It looked the same as all the others, wooden walls with a thatched roof. A small opening beside the cloth doorway had a small clay pot with a large single blue flower in it. There were two other walkways feeding into this platform, one off towards the Elders hut and the other down to where a platform held four identical huts.
“Quaint.” Gemini smirked.
“I need to gather some weapons in the morning but meet me down there in an hour.” Sara pointed off through the trees where a smaller platform could barely be seen through the foliage of the trees.
Gemini nodded. With a small farewell wave, Sara spun and walked down the swinging bridge to the larger platform of four huts. Letting out a sigh, she faced her new lodging and ducked through the doorway, adjusting her way through with her wings as they got stuck on the leather.
The inside was well kept and clean. A small wood burning stove sat off in the corner with a small pot boiling some green liquid in it. On the far side was a pile of pillows and blankets that formed a sort of bed that cornered a pile of rope near a couple of barrels. With being cut off from the rest of the world the curiosity of how they had so much for so long raced through her mind as she scanned over the small odds and ends saved throughout the years by the previous tenant.
Looking down at her naked body again, she shook her head at the lack of modesty the steel gave her. With her index finger, she hovered it over her nipple, waiting for a part of the steel to pass by. Just as it got close, she poked herself in hopes to catch the steel beneath it. It kept moving without concern, exposing the skin again below her finger. Shaking her head at her failure, she closed her eyes in hopes to focus on controlling the armour like Marthiel had mentioned, again nothing happened.
“Be wary young one.” The androgynous voice came into her head again, making her jolt upright.
A knock against the hut walls at the doorway.
“Be wary young one.” The voice sounded through the back of her mind again like someone talking into her ears from behind.
Another knock.
“Mother?” Ko-rin’s voice came from the other side.
“Yes?” Gemini turned and pulled the leathery cloth to the side and exposed the beautiful woman on the other side standing next to Mara.
“Do you have a moment?” Mara asked.
Gemini nodded.
“Be wary young one.”
Chapter 14
“Why would you say that?” Mya stood next to an odd shaped sign marked up with many languages near the side of path.
A single soldier dressed head to toe in plate mail, holding a tall spear stood close to a single torch leaning off one side of the sign. Quite a young soldier that would have been easily new to the order and given a station that no one else wanted.
“I am sorry miss; I did not know you were close by. The road ahead is closed because of them and you will need to go to the next road up, closer to the south side of the mountains.” His voice sounded younger than expected and a little trembly with upsetting her.
“I can handle myself against a few Kobolds, I need to get into the city today and going to the south side won’t get me in until nightfall.” Mya put a hand on her hip in disapproval.
“I am sorry miss, but orders are orders and I can’t let you past.” With a sigh and a shake of her head, Mya turned to walk away. “Miss?”
“Yes?” Mya stopped and looked back over her shoulder.
“You have grass stuck to your backside.” The young man pointed at her.
With a smirking scowl Mya brushed off her pants and stepped off again.
“Miss?” Mya stopped at his words with a sigh and fully turned around. “You could help me out with something up the path. There was a light that shot up into the sky this morning that I have not been able to leave my post to investigate.”
“And you need someone to take a look?” Mya looked up past his shoulder with a curious look on her face.
“You look like you are strong and do seem in a bit of a rush to get into the city. If I let you pass, you could check on it and you would be able to get into the city before nightfall and let the Captain know what you find.” The soldier suddenly got a tired look on his face.
“What kind of a flash exactly?” Mya looked at him dead in the face, making him a little intimidated.
“Like an explosion had gone off without a sound and then a beam of light shooting up into the heavens.” She could see that the young soldier was trying to use his hands as he talked but couldn’t with his spear in the way.
“Did it sort of look like this?” Mya reached into her pack and puller out her journal, flipped through near the end and showed him a detailed sketch of what she witnessed at Mirror Lake.
He nodded, happy that she followed his childish actions. “Exactly.”
Mya closed her book with a thwomp and stuffed it back into her pack. Looking up into the mountain pathway and back down to the young man in front of her, she gave him a sideways glance in question.
“I did not see this light earlier as I was approaching the city, are you sure what you saw?” Mya placed a hand on her hip and gave him a smirk with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes. It came from near the top of the path. There should be a widening to the road that looked like it was where it came from.” The young soldier fidgeted with his spear handle, trying not to catch her eyes with his.
Mya gave him another look.
“Also, could you get the Captain to send someone else down to relieve me, it has been a long time and I think they have forgotten about me.” The young man let out a long yawn and leaned his head against his spear.
Mya nodded and gave him a smile as she grabbed his shoulder in reassurance. Trotting off into the mountain path behind him, she bounced her pack before finally disappearing behind the outcroppings.
“Hope she doesn’t run into too much trouble up there, she was cute.” The young soldier nodded to himself as he watched her vanish. Turning back to his post, he scanned the countryside and sighed with another yawn.
A rustling behind him caught his ear that quickly directed his attention to the small area between the edge of the mountain and the grassy base on the other side of the sign. With his spear at the ready, he approached the noise while holding his breath.
With a flash of steel, a cloaked hulk leapt from the shadow, embedding a small odd shaped dirk into the soldier’s throat. It artistically missed all plates of his armour and skipped any ability that the boy could have blocked or called out for help. The shadow quickly drew back its blade and cleaned it on a small piece of fabric that was exposed between some of the boys armour.
Looking quickly down at the corpse at its feet, the cloaked figure lifted its head up to the path where Mya had gone and made a low chirping noise. With the stretch of its neck, the cloak hood pulled back from its face to expose a lizard like face covered in blackish green, almost moss like scales. Snorting a breath in frustration, it looked back down at the soldier and slowly backed against the stone of the mountain, fading back into the shadows.
Once it touched the rock face, cloaked by the cascading shadow, it shuffled its way up into the pathway and kept to the dark corners. The sunlight slowed its pathing as it waited to dart from shadow stem to shadow stem with a snort of frustration. Partway up the road, there were lit torches beside a sign reading “Sky Pedestal” that flipped from side to side in the subtle breeze that rushed up the path until the hulk finally disappeared between the stones of the mountain.
• • •
Gemini was thrown back, falling on her backside and her two swords skidding across the wooden planks behind her. Her wings furled under her slightly, giving her a bit of a cushion but still looking like the fall hurt against her bare skin.
“You need to be quicker.” Sara spun around with own set of blades and pointed one down at her.
“I know what I am doing, these wings are getting in my way.” Gemini quickly stood up with her swords and got herself ready again.
“Use them, they a
re an additional source of weaponry and defense. Your armour will react when it needs to, for your final line of defense. They are an extra set of limbs, if used right, they can be better than any steel.” Sara stepped back prepping for their next bout.
They were surrounded by a growing crowd, a collection of all the Spiri in the village. Each with wide eyes in awe followed with the odd whisper that Sara was training someone. The battle between them was intense and caused a stir with everyone with the clash.
“Again.” Sara called out.
Gemini lunged forward with her blades. Flipping one in her palm so it was running the length of her forearm, her left hand jabbed forward causing Sara to react in defense. A quick riposte from Sara on her open side caused Gemini to bring her side blade up in her own guard. Being ready for the strike, she spun the blade around her own weapon and dislodged it from Sara’s grip sending the ring of steel clanking around as it hit the ground; the crowd around them went quiet.
Just as quick as the disarm, Sara kicked out into Gemini’s exposed stomach and sent her backwards, skidding to a halt. Her bare feet barely catching on the smooth wood beneath them. The steel from her armour still spun in circles around her body, not caring that there could be potential danger to its host.
Sara lunged forward with her own offensive strike. Sending one of her wings forward as a shield, she collided into Gemini who was ready for the attack and had spun sideways before Sara connected and whipped around behind her. Flipping her two blades around, she brought them down in front of Sara and locked them together in a cross from shoulder to hip with each. Pulling her tight to her own body, Gemini had her in a grasp she could not wriggle free from.
“Very good, but still not using all the tools.” Sara nodded as Gemini let her loose.
“It’s barely been a half day; I need more time.” Gemini forced through her heavy breathing.
“That will be enough for today, you know how to use your weapons I will give you that. Zhou will get you kitted with a new set of swords tomorrow, ones fitting a Spiri Mother. Use the rest of the day to focus on your armour and wings.” Sara walked over and grabbed her other sword and whirled it in a flourish.
Sliding both swords into their sheaths on her back, Sara turned back to Gemini, nodded and smiled her warming smile before heading down one of the swinging rope bridges. The crowd around them murmured and slowly started to break a part as each went back to their daily tasks that had been interrupted.
“Don’t worry about her, she can be moody sometimes.” Marthiel stepped from out of the dispersing crowd and placed a gentle hand on Gemini’s shoulder. “She doesn’t train many of us anymore, but she is one of the best.”
Both girls watched as Sara stopped to talk with a few of the Spiri not participating in the gallery. Marthiel smiled at Gemini again before looking down at her exposed body with a raised eyebrow.
“We really need to get you working on that armour. Can’t be walking around nude all the time.” She could barely keep a straight face.
“Everyone else is walking around like this.” Gemini looked down at her body and then pointed with her eyes and head to what was left of the crowd.
“But you can’t be doing battle or out in the world like this.” Marthiel reach behind her into a small pouch and pulled out a small bottle. It looked like the same liquid that Faer drank to let her into the valley. “Take this back to your hut and I will meet you there shortly.”
“What is it?” Gemini held it up to her face.
“It’s a simple tonic I make. It helps the mind focus on the magic around us. Should help with your connection to your armour. Go now, I will bring something to eat and drink.”
Gemini nodded and headed off to one of the ramp bridges leading up into the canopy. Marthiel kept her eyes on her as she left.
“Always with the tonic.” Ko-rin’s voice drew her attention and she turned quickly to face her.
“It helps more than you think with the new ones. Let her be.” Marthiel’s voice turned cold and direct.
“No need to be hostile Martie, just trying to keep an eye on the kid.” Ko-rin smiled a bit of a sinister smile.
“There is always something else with you, I don’t trust you. Not after the Shelves.” Marthiel glared at her.
Ko-rin laughed and walked past her, giving her a push with her shoulder. With a huff and a sneer, Marthiel looked towards Gemini’s route and back to Ko-rin who had already made her way over to the next platform. A final glare towards the scarred Spiri before turning to where Gemini had disappeared and scrunched her face up in worry.
“Suppose I need to be closer with this one then I was with my sister.” Marthiel spoke under her breath.
• • •
“Were you not close with your sister?” Gemini sat on the edge of her bed holding a steaming cup of tea.
Keeping her eyes on a pacing Marthiel, Gemini couldn’t help but be drawn to the athletic and sensuous body. Like her own steel, Marthiel’s armour swirled about her calmly and kept most of her body exposed. With each twirl to start the next arm of her pacing, her wings would tighten into her torso as if they too had a mind of their own as to not bump into anything.
“Not as close as I should have been.” Marthiel stopped her pacing and looked at Gemini dead in the face. “What did Ko-rin want earlier?”
“She didn’t say much, just gave me a hug and told me good luck with my training. Oh, Mara gave me a pointer about Sara and her combat style.” Gemini took a slow sip of her tea as to not burn her lip.
Marthiel cocked her head to the side and her mouth curved in a concerned curiosity before starting to pace again.
“As much as we all need to be a solid unit, I don’t trust her. The three elders seem to have an ulterior motive since the third seal broke.”
“Seal?”
“It’s a glyph set by the Dragons that seals the world against a stronger evil, among other things.”
“Did it happen to look like a cluster of stars around three circles with two dragon heads eating each other?”
Marthiel stopped and looked at her in concern before nodding.
“Is there any in the valley?”
“Should be one left. There is rumour that once it is broken that we can finally go home to Spiringlaive.” She scanned the ground and grabbed a cushion to sit on.
“There may be more to it than that. I was told by our council mage to bring Necrolin’s Cup here. That it would help in some way.” Gemini took another sip of her tea.
“That would explain much of what is going on; Elder Yvane hasn’t left her hut since the first seal broke. Sara has also mentioned something about hearing the three talk about a relic from the Dragons to give us a passage past the Skkooh and Koad, get back to the world. She also mentioned a name, Surfa and something called Needle, mean anything to you?”
Gemini shook her head.
“Worth a try.” Marthiel shrugged and shifted on the pillow. “Most of the Dragon relics in the past were used to disrupt the magic of High Realm and typically used as a torture device on Spiri. Its magic hurts us to touch it due to that disruption which is why we need the Mother to act as an envoy for us.”
“Why would Elder Yvane take it from me then?”
“She has been trying for as long as we have been here to get out and might be onto something with the relic.” Marthiel shrugged off the curiosity and leaned in closer to Gemini. “So, the tea is mixed with a tonic I brew for young Spiri; it helps them concentrate on the development to their bodies, control their wings, and control their armour.”
“It makes me feel light headed.”
“Good.” Marthiel smiled her signature smile that made Gemini smile a little to herself. “That means it is working.”
“What should I be doing?”
“Think of it as though you were having a conversation with yourself inside your head, trying to make a decision about something important. Look at the other side of that conversation to be your armour, focus as if
you were casting a spell.”
“I am not good with spells, focused all my efforts on the physical combat.” Gemini smiled coyly making Marthiel laugh slightly.
“Hmm.” Marthiel pursed her lips and looked down at the floor. “Another approach then.” A silence filled the space as she thought, rolling her eyes from side to side until she finally landed her gaze back to Gemini and gave her a smirk.
“What?” Gemini recoiled slightly in concern.
“Do you ever pleasure yourself?”
Gemini immediately turned red and shyly lowered her eyes to her tea. She has never been asked something so forward before. For all the times that she bugged Faer about the world in a sexual context, she now knew how her forwardness made him feel.
“No need to be shy, you are after all basically naked, sitting with another woman who is basically naked. Wouldn’t be the last personal thing you should be embarrassed about at this point.” Marthiel giggled under her breath.
“Doesn’t everyone?” Gemini whispered and took another sip of her tea.
“Something you will need to get used to doing a lot around here, after you live for a few thousand years, need something to pass the time on the slow days.” Marthiel laughed again. “Or you lean on the other girls for some help.”
“Men don’t help in that area?”
“Not many men around here these days, but yes they can. No need to worry about pregnancies either, the magic of being a Spiri removes that all together. Thus, the unorthodox way of becoming a Spiri.” Marthiel cocked her head to the side with girlish shrug.
“What happens when a male kills one of us, would the armour be shifted to them?” Gemini took another sip of her tea.
“It does, but the power of the armour collapses their mind and soul and they whither into a husk and die. The magic of the Dragons is strong for the contract we bear, and very specific. There has only been a record of two men holding on to the armour for more than a day.” Marthiel shifted on her pillow and patted Gemini on the knee. “Back to the focus. During some you time, everything around you goes away and it is just you and the feeling.”
Age of Souls Page 23
