by Virlyce
“Please. It means a lot to me.”
The corner of a piece of paper poked Mary’s calf. Grimmy grinned at her when she turned to face him. “Just sign the contract and we’ll return everything to you.”
Mary furrowed her brow as she grabbed the paper. The dense text seemed to jump out at her, and she looked away. “There’s so much to read,” she said and sighed. She placed the contract down and stared at Grimmy. “If I sign this, will you tell me what you meant by the other fellow will take over my body and destroy my soul?”
“You know, that sounds pretty self-explanatory,” Emile said from his position near the front of the cave. “Someone out there wants to take over your body by destroying your soul. What’s so hard to understand about that?”
Mary wandered over to Emile. “But how does he know? Who wants to destroy my soul? How can I defend against it?” She pushed the contract towards the phoenix. “Can you read this for me and tell me if there are any disadvantageous clauses?”
Emile peered at the page. “The very first line says you’ll give up your soul for all eternity to Grimmoldesser after you die. That sounds very disadvantageous. Should I continue?”
“I don’t think I need my soul after I die,” Mary said and bit her lower lip. “Continue.”
Emile stared at Mary. “…Okay.” He cleared his throat and focused his attention back onto the contract. “The next line says that your spouse will be determined by Grimmoldesser.”
Mary tilted her head. “If I don’t like the spouse he chooses, I can beat him up, so that’s okay too. Continue.”
“Your firstborn child will also be given to Grimmoldesser.”
“I don’t plan on having children. Continue.”
“You must become a willing participant in any experiment that Grimmoldesser comes up with.”
Mary furrowed her brow. “For how long?”
Emile squinted at the contract before shrugging. “There’s no time limit, so I’m assuming forever.”
“Forever’s a long time…,” Mary said. “But if it’s only participating in experiments…. I’m used to those, so it should be fine. Continue.”
Lindyss patted Grimmy’s snout. “Has anyone ever been crazy enough to sign one of your contracts?”
“Yep,” Grimmy said. “There’s the few who think they can outsmart me somehow but end up having their souls sucked out of them for breaking the contract. And there’s the ones willing to do anything for a short moment of fame.” He shrugged. “It’s not like I’m offering unbalanced deals either. I take advantage of their desperation and give them an offer just slightly under their breaking point. I mean, really, which one would you rather have? A lot of power, or your firstborn child?”
“…What do you even do with firstborn children?” Lindyss asked. “I’ve never seen you with a kid before. Other than Vur.”
Grimmy cleared his throat. “That’s classified information.”
“I’ll sign it.” Mary walked between Grimmy and Lindyss and held out the contract in her outstretched arms. “Give me something to write with.”
“You’re going to sign it?” Lindyss asked, her eyes widening. “Didn’t I warn you earlier?”
Mary pouted. “But you won’t return my sword.”
“Your sword is really that valuable to you?”
Mary’s head bobbed up and down.
“You’re really willing to give up anything for this sword, huh?”
Mary continued to nod.
Lindyss sighed. “Don’t sign the contract,” she said and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’ll return your sword to you, but under one condition.”
“Hey,” Grimmy said and poked Lindyss’ side before she could say anything else. “Are you poaching my prey?”
Lindyss snorted. “It feels wrong to watch an innocent young girl fall into your clutches.”
“Wow, I’m offended,” Grimmy said and blew a puff of smoke out of his nostrils.
Lindyss rolled her eyes and reached into her pocket. She took out Mary’s sword and pulled her hand back as the empress extended her arm towards it. “I didn’t say the condition yet,” Lindyss said, taking a few steps back.
“That’s okay,” Mary said as she sidled closer to Lindyss. “I agree. Anything you want. You said you’ll be fairer than the dragon, so it’s okay.” She held her hands out, her palms facing the ceiling. “Sword, please.”
Lindyss sighed as she placed the sword into Mary’s hands. “Don’t regret your decision.”
***
“So…,” Alice said. Her hand was shielding her eyes from the sun and blocking her hair from waving into her face. She rose up and down as Vur beat his wings, hovering in place. “None of us know where Mary’s palace is.”
“I thought you studied this continent’s geography,” Tafel said. “Isn’t that why you cooped yourself up in the library instead of training?”
“Hey, at least I tried, alright?” Alice snorted and brushed her hair back with her hands. “You didn’t even try to familiarize yourself with the place. All you did was train after getting schooled by Mary. Just because I know the general layout of the lands doesn’t mean I can know exactly where we are based on a few very small clues.”
“Hovering is annoying,” Vur said, nearly knocking Alice and Tafel over as his head moved. “Can I circle instead?”
“Let’s just head towards that direction,” Tafel said and pointed. “If we reach a town, I’m sure we can ask around for the location of Mary’s palace. We have a few days since we left the dungeon early. We’ll make it in time.”
***
Mary hummed to herself as she hugged her sword to her chest. Her arms were no longer bare, covered by her gauntlets, and her feet had been washed before slipping back into her sabatons. With a little persuasion from Lindyss, Grimmy had returned Mary’s items back to her. Mary swayed from side to side and giggled before slipping her sword into her sheathe on her waist. “I really didn’t expect those two to return my equipment,” Mary said as she looked up with her eyes. Susan was sitting on top of her head, and Emile was sitting on top of Susan.
“What did Lindyss ask of you?” Susan asked, meeting Mary’s gaze.
“Watch out,” Emile said and flapped his wings. “You’re going to walk into a tree. When you’re walking this fast, don’t look away!”
The forest blurred by as Mary’s footsteps shrank the land underneath her feet. “I won’t,” she said. “I always pay attention.” She rubbed Susan’s belly with her finger. “Lindyss asked me to become her servant for ten years sometime in the future. It was a good deal, right? I think it was a great deal.”
“Hmm.” Susan’s beak jutted out as her eyes narrowed. “Ten years isn’t long at all. Isn’t Lindyss being really nice? I think she’s planning something. When someone who’s as corrupted as her does something nice, you can bet your tail feathers that she’s working in her best interests. What’d she tell you to do?”
“She told me to have fun and do whatever, just get out of her sight,” Mary said. She swerved to the side, avoiding a caravan and startling a horse. The trio had exited the forest and were approaching a city with a massive wall surrounding it. “And maybe when I actually became useful, she’d make me her servant, but for now, I’m free to do what I want.”
“It sounds a lot like you were thrown away,” Emile said. He shifted his weight on top of Susan’s back and squinted. “Which is a good thing when you consider who you were thrown away by. Nothing good comes from associating with flying lizards and their sympathizers. Phoenixes are the only ones that you can trust.”
“Don’t forget that Tafel married a dragon,” Susan said.
“Yeah, well don’t forget that Tafel’s a traitor who abandoned us in the middle of nowhere to fend for ourselves,” Emile said and snorted. “We were almost shot by hunters!”
“Emile…,” Susan said, hesitating as she picked out her words. “You tend to blame others a lot for your own faults. In a few hundred years, you�
�ll be an adult. Don’t you think it’s about time you grew up and took some responsibility for your own actions?”
Emile’s beak snapped shut as he lowered his head. Susan met his gaze without wavering. The two phoenixes stared at each other as the scenery blew past. Emile’s eyes narrowed. “Who do you think you are? Mom?”
“No, I’m saying this as your older sister,” Susan said. “The way you’re acting, it’s not cute at all.”
“I’m a phoenix; I’m not supposed to be cute.” Emile flapped his wings twice. “I’m imposing! Majestic! Awe-inspiring! People will write stories about my grandeur, not my cuteness.”
“But I think you two are cute,” Mary said, stopping in front of a shop. She walked inside and grabbed a flask of water that was on a shelf. She popped it open and took a long gulp.
“H-hey! Miss, you can’t drink before you pay,” the shop owner said from behind his counter.
“It’s okay,” Mary said. “I’m the empress. This is a tax.” She nodded and left the building before the shop owner could respond. Without caring about the confused man’s feelings, she sat down on the steps leading up to the shop and sipped on her flask.
Emile leaned forward and glared at Mary. “Which part of me is cute?”
“You’re small and puffy and you have large eyes,” Mary said. “Isn’t that the definition of cute?”
Emile clacked his beak. “Just wait a few hundred years until I’m an adult. Then I’ll tower over you, and we’ll see who’s cute then.”
Mary raised an eyebrow. “I think I’ll be dead before that happens? So, you’ll always be cute and not awe-inspiring in my lifetime.”
“You see?” Susan asked. “You have to play towards your strengths. Learn to act cuter and take some more responsibility for your actions. You can’t stay immature forever.”
Emile pecked the back of Susan’s head, causing her to squawk and roll off of Mary, both phoenixes falling to the ground. They rolled around in front of Mary, a ball of red feathers and occasional flames. “Just because Mom told you to seduce Vur for grandchildren you think you’re mature now? You’re only a few minutes older than me! How dare you talk to me like you’re some kind of adult when you’re still just a baby!”
“Maturity isn’t about age,” Susan said and buffeted Emile’s head with her wings. “It’s about how you handle life. Why do you think Tafel’s an adult when she’s less than half our age? It’s because she’s mature!”
“You’re dumb! Stupid! Idiot!”
“This is why you’re immature,” Susan said. With a few deft movements of her legs and wings, she managed to pin Emile underneath herself. She sat on his chest and held his wings against the ground with her talons.
Emile struggled but couldn’t break free. He stopped moving and stuck his tongue out at Susan. “I know you are, but what am I?”
Before Susan could respond, Mary scooped the two phoenixes up in her arms. “I’m ready to move again,” she said. “If I move fast enough, I might make it in time to apologize to Tafel for missing the banquet. We’re almost at my palace, just a few more cities to go.”
Emile and Susan exchanged glances with each other. They were held near Mary’s armpits, one phoenix per arm. “Isn’t Mary the type of person to get lost easily?” Susan asked in a whisper.
“Don’t worry. I always know the way home,” Mary said and nodded.
“She’s like a pigeon,” Emile said. “Not a lot goes on up there, but at least she can find her way home.”
“Up where?” Mary asked, leaving the city behind as the ground warped underneath her.
“Nothing,” Emile said. “Forget I said anything.”
***
Alora opened one eye as she yawned without opening her mouth, inhaling through her nostrils. Her lips parted as she exhaled and stretched, her tail reaching towards the sky as her wings spread apart. “Oh?” Both eyes widened as they shot open, and her head swiveled around. “I’m a dragon again. Vur’s polymorph must’ve worn off.” She let out a groan as she splayed her limbs out, her paws pushing the dirt apart and creating divots in the ground. “I wonder how much longer he’ll be in there for.” Then she folded her legs back underneath herself, curling up into a ball. “I’m getting kind of bored. Well, I guess I can go back to sleep. He’ll wake me up when he’s out.”
***
Within a room with red walls and a black-tiled floor, a stalactite hung from the rocky ceiling. Beneath the pointy structure, there was a coffin made of a transparent material that refracted light in all directions like a diamond. The coffin was filled, nearly to the brim, with a red liquid that resembled blood but was less murky. A droplet fell from the stalactite and landed in the coffin, creating a ripple on the mirrorlike surface of the liquid inside.
The room was a cubical one with no windows. Glowing red crystals embedded in the ceiling were the only source of light. A fissure in one of the walls was the only exit, but it was blocked off by layers upon layers of red spiderwebs. Dust covered the ground, and white moss grew on the walls and ceiling starting from the base of the stalactite.
Another droplet of liquid fell from the stalactite into the coffin. As the ripples on the surface reached the edge of the transparent material, the ground shook as the room was engulfed by a bright, white light. The red liquid bubbled as if it were water in a boiling pot, and a pale white hand erupted out of the coffin. It groped around before clasping onto the coffin’s edge, and a second hand snaked out of the liquid beside it, its fingers curling around the diamond-like surface. The pale hands shimmered, flickering in and out of existence, as they gripped the coffin tighter, blue veins bulging against their skin.
A third droplet fell into the coffin, and the hands solidified. A head burst through the surface of the liquid, and blood-red rivulets ran down its sides. The head was bald, and its skin was as smooth as a baby’s. Its eyes opened, revealing a pair of green irises. A fourth droplet of liquid fell onto the person’s head, and the outline of a neck appeared as the man rose upward. Arms and elbows broke through from underneath the bloody surface as the man pulled himself up with his hands as if he were climbing out of a swimming pool. As the man rose higher and higher, the level of the liquid within decreased. When the man fully emerged from the coffin, rolling over its edge and onto the floor while panting, the last vestiges of liquid had disappeared.
The man’s arms and legs were splayed as he lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling. He raised one hand over his head and in front of his face. His hand flipped back and forth before his gaze traversed down his arm and onto his bicep. He flexed, and his skin bulged as his muscles knotted. A faint smile appeared on the man’s lips as he sat up. He clenched and unclenched his hands a few times before bending both his arms at his elbows. An exhale escaped from his mouth as he unbent his arms and cracked his neck. He rolled his shoulders a few times before standing up, bending and unbending his knees. Finally, he rolled his ankles one at a time with his eyes closed. The smile on his face widened as his eyes shot open. “Perfect.”
19
Mary stared at the man kneeling in front of her feet. He was wearing a black outfit that covered everything except for his eyes. She had just returned to the palace when the Shadows member appeared to greet her. Mary pursed her lips as she walked around the man towards a couch in the palace’s foyer. She placed Emile and Susan onto two pillows before sitting down between them. “What happened to the banquet?”
The man shuffled around without getting off his knees to face Mary. “My liege,” he said, his head still hanging. “All the preparations for your banquet have been completed. It can begin at any time you’d like.”
Mary’s eyes widened. “I didn’t miss it? When is it taking place?”
“The banquet was scheduled to happen in three days, but it can be moved forward,” the man said. “Did something happen while you were exterminating the devil to make you lose track of time, my liege?”
Mary let out a low hum as she leaned back into t
he couch and exhaled. “A lot of things happened,” she said. “A lot of interesting things happened. Does Shadows know about the black dragon that appeared?”
“Yes,” the man said. “We’ve sighted it, but after it flew over Viscount Tori’s land, we lost track of it. There’s some kind of magic interfering with our tracking techniques.”
“Don’t try to find it,” Mary said, still staring at the ceiling. “It’s too strong to kill. Locating it will only antagonize it and bring about greater trouble. Before I could kill the devil, the dragon interfered and took it away.”
“I understand,” the man said. “My liege….”
Mary waited, but the man didn’t say anything else. She sat up and tilted her head at him. “What is it?”
“Have you”—the man’s forehead wrinkled as he hesitated and bit his lower lip—“heard anything about Sir Zyocuh?”
“About Uncle?” Mary asked. Her eyes narrowed. “What do you mean? Are people spreading rumors about him even though he’s dead?”
“No, that’s not it,” the man said and shook his head. A bead of sweat formed on his brow, but it was instantly absorbed by the cloth covering his face. “Forget I said anything, my liege.”
Mary stared at the man without saying a word.
“I’m hungry!” Emile squawked and smacked Mary’s thigh with his wing. A metallic ringing noise echoed through the foyer, and Emile flinched as he waved his wing back and forth. “Ow. That hurt.”
“Emile! Can’t you see she’s busy intimidating someone?” Susan asked. “You’re ruining the atmosphere.”
Mary sighed as she scooped up the phoenixes. She narrowed her eyes at the kneeling man. “My good friend, Tafel, will be attending the banquet. She must be treated with the utmost respect. If I hear even a single complaint about the banquet come out of her mouth, I’ll disband Shadows and create a newer, more competent intelligence network.”
