For almost the next minute, that’s how it went for the two. Kat continued to bob and weave through the now advanced warriors, disarming them, mostly by simply ripping through their arms with two handed swings. Every now and then, she would get close to the circle that Diane had made for herself, and feel the flames of a spell nip at her heels. She didn’t bother commenting until- “Yow!”
Kat slammed herself flat onto the ground, one hand on her rump as she felt the sting of a particularly powerful stray bolt. “Hey, keep an eye on those chain lightnings, alright?”
Diane blushed slightly as she held one hand up and pushed the air. Soon, the knight in front of her went wheeling backwards and fell upon the blades of two of its ‘compatriots’. “Sorry. Just trying to stretch my spell list.”
“Just make sure I’m not caught in the crosshairs, and we’ll be fine.” Kat still rolled her eyes as she began to cleave into the next knight. It was merely one of the more… annoying parts of working with a mage, especially one that liked fire and lightning as much as Diane did. At least during things like this, it wasn’t much of a problem.
And then her blade bounced off of one of the thing’s armor. The vibrations from hitting the fortified steel caused Kat’s teeth to quake as she stumbled backwards. Looking up though, she saw a slight bit of reason to be concerned. The dummy in question this time was twice the size of Kat, towering above her with a shield almost as large as her, and a greatsword to match. It moved slowly, letting her easily dodge the first swing, but with such a hulking behemoth, how were you supposed to beat it?
Diane on the other hand, took one look at it, raised a single finger, and fired a single shot of pure arcane its way. It was a simple spell that every mage knew, and flew in a lazy arc towards its target. When it thudded though, it was pure impact, scaled by the user’s magical power. In other words, it blew the behemoth’s head off, and knocked it out of balance. One heavy slam later, and the thing wasn’t moving.
Kat blinked a few times before turning to Diane, who was currently looking through the bag for the bandages they had. “You know, you take the fun out of things sometimes.”
Diane merely smiled, and extended the bandages towards Kat. “You’re the one that says they love me.”
The knight’s eyes narrowed, and she took the bandages from Diane. “You’re too cheeky for your own good sometimes.”
That brought a smile to Diane’s face, along with a slight shrug. “If it helps, since you cleared more of these guys, I’ll set up the tent while you cook dinner.”
“Hmm, seeing as dinner is jerky, preserves, and hard tack tonight, I’ll take it!”
A chuckle escaped both of them, before they simply smiled at each other, and continued to plan for their tasks for the night, because no good adventurer goes from a hoard fight straight into more danger.
Reality
Kat let out an almost silent growl as she looked up from the bottom of the staircase. She had just finished bounding down them as she always did, though today it was with a touch more… aggression. Of course, when you slept on splinters of wood, metal, and were inhaling pounds of dust with each breath, you didn’t really wake up too well. It only became worse when she saw Diane wincing with each step. Whether it was because of her own failure, or Diane’s own inattention, it didn’t matter. It only provided fuel for the fire in her. “And I thought I had trained you better than that.”
Diane glanced up as tears sprang back to her eyes. She had been fighting them off all morning, but from Kat’s work rebandaging her as she sipped coffee, to the aches and pains of the ground they had slept on, it had been getting harder and harder. She let one fall now, turning away from Kat, just like the barbarian had done to her. Neither were in the mood for casual chit chat, to say the least, and Diane suspected she wasn’t supposed to hear the last comment. “So, are you ready to head in?”
Kat nodded and pushed against the heavy door. If luck was on her side, it would be something akin to what they faced the day before, and she could work her kinks out. Instead of a crowded room though, or one with obvious traps, there was almost nothing. Simple torches outlined the circular arena, letting them see just how much nothing there was, and Kat could feel the hairs on her neck rise. “Stay close to me. There has to be more to this.”
As the door they came in closed behind them, the door on the other side began to open. Kat’s hand wrapped around her sword as she caught her breath, and the two waited. Trying to rush past whatever may come rarely was good for anyone, and if it was trying to see them attack and use that against them, a quickspell would be the last thing they wanted. As the beings were revealed though, Kat’s hand drifted off of her hilt.
They both were completely black beings, and the shorter one’s eyes glowed red the moment she saw them. Iit reached back for the bastard sword on its back, before swinging it out in front of her with a two handed grip. Kat began walking towards it, drawing her own blade in the process, but keeping it loose with only one hand on it. The tall shadow-like creature cocked her head as Diane did so as well, and they both began to walk behind their respective warriors, their robes dragging along the ground.
As Kat got to the center of the room, she attempted to smirk at the thing, only to find it doing the same. She opened her mouth to call it a copy, and merely stood there as the creature mouthed out the words, but said nothing. “Hey, stop doing what I’m about to do, you shadow freak!”
It stopped speaking, before it’s smile grew wider, and it shrugged. One arm didn’t stop there though, as it raised the sword in one hand now. Kat’s body tensed as she began to move her own, knowing that it probably would hurt like hell without both hands, but didn’t have enough time to get the support because she had been distracted. Diane had noticed the action first though, and hadn’t hesitated. Instead, six of the bolts she had used to end yesterday’s trial with flew in arcs towards the shadow Kat. They were met right above the two warrior’s heads with six bolts of matching power.
A high pitched whine made both Kat’s wince, before the projectiles exploded.
Before either knight could properly react, the conflicting forces threw their bodies into each other, and their blades clattered far away from them. Kat’s ears were ringing as she placed a hand on the ground and tried to get a grip on her bearings, something that an elbow smashing into her face made a little harder. For a moment, her eyes turned red, and her leg moved on its own, slamming into some sort of metal, and getting the creature off of her. Getting up though, she heard Diane yell something, right before two fireballs slammed right in front of her and the shadow version of herself.
Kat gripped her arm as her vision stayed red now, and she screamed out, “Will you watch it with the magic for once? I know I’m nothing, but at least you could acknowledge that I-” She had turned to Diane to let out the screeches, and had even watched as Diane looked horrified, an expression that Kat almost never saw. It was somewhat warranted as her shadow self brought Kat back to reality with a jab to the face, followed by an uppercut that knocked her flat on her ass.
She wasn’t dazed now though. No, she was quite aware of what was going on, and watched as the other Kat raced towards her. She wasn’t angry enough, and Kat had no difficulty bringing up one of her boots and slamming it into the fake’s face. She was done with this shit, and glancing at Diane didn’t help.
The sorceress was blocking magic for once, instead of overpowering it. Kat knew Diane sucked at defensive magic, and the proof was in how the shadow spell slinger was cracking each new barrier with simple arcane bolts. Was this one of Diane’s little games? See how much of her own magic she could take? Kat felt the rage in herself begin to boil, and could see red, glowing bite marks appearing on her hand.
She heard movement behind her, but it wasn’t worth her attention. Instead, she grabbed one of the flashbangs in her pocket, and spun around. This time, the shadow version of herself grabbed her arm, stopping her as they both glared at each with red eyes. Kat then smiled
, and squeezed down on the ball in her hand.
Unfortunately, while both Diane’s winced at the sudden explosion of light, it also forced Diane to frown. She was already hurt, and not just from the stabbing, so to hear Kat cry out from being blinded by her own flashbang… She grit her teeth, and let two tears fall. Why did she have to listen to a brash idiot complain about her magic when Kat was supposed to be the one good at her environment?
She placed her hands together, and breathed in deeply. Opening her eyes, she saw that her shadow counterpart was doing the exact same. The sting of lightning and heat of fire began to crackle between her fingers, broiling into a mass of magic. The other one was already taking aim though, and it was straight for her companion. If their spells collided over the two Kats...
Diane shut her eyes as tears streamed down her face, and she clasped her hands. “Dual Cast-”
Kat opened her eyes as she heard the clap of Diane’s hands, or, were they the shadow Diane’s hands? She didn’t know, but something told her that the sudden, blinding light she saw now was not just from the flashbang. Kat’s muscles tensed as the heat of the large, cataclysmic fireball made its way towards her. She blinked, and felt her muscles stay put. They weren’t willing to move, and Kat sighed as she knew what would come, all because she couldn’t do this right.
And then, she wasn’t there, but on the ground, watching as the shadow her, who had been given just a little more time, jumped out of the path of the shot. As the haze of the spell cleared, she could see Diane trying to smile, on her knees. For a moment, Kat tried to figure out what spell Diane had used, before the pain in her side told her that it was probably just a shot of magic. Just to get her out of the way, and… and protect her.
She looked to her hand again, and watched the red marks fade into nothing. She couldn’t bring herself to be angry anymore, and couldn’t even really move. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to.
The crunching of gravel brought Kat back, but only in time to watch as her shadow self fell upon her. The creature’s hands went for her neck, but she stopped it, grabbing the thing’s wrists and spinning the two to try to get on top. It didn’t last long, as they both simply began predicting what the other would do, and so kept slipping through the others grapple.
For Diane, it was simpler, easier. The small blast of magic was supposed to mean something, show that she did know the consequences of her magic and wasn’t just a spellslinger. It wasn’t even her fault that it was harder in open combat for her to not also hit Kat, but simply how things worked, or at least, that’s what she thought the case was. Did their dynamic change at some point, or was this something Kat had thought of before?
She turned away from Kat’s sad eyes, not willing to take it anymore. Instead, with every part of her feeling like ice, she turned to her shadow self. She was staring at Diane while down on one knee at this point. Diane had assumed the position out of relief, because she had been able to protect her companion. The shadow now knew the other half of why most spellcasters couldn’t use double cast. They were too afraid of the physical tax that channeling so much energy took. Something Diane had gotten quite used to by now.
Diane looked to her knight one more time, before turning back to her double, and wiping away the last of her emotions. She raised one hand as her robe began to flutter, and lightning arced all the way down from her shoulder, to her fingertips. The shadow sorceress tried to summon a barrier, but it wasn’t going to be enough, not now. Not with Diane as she was. “Fine, I’ll be your destruction mage then, Kat.”
Kat heard the crack of the lightning, and all was still for a moment. The shadow Kat blinked once, before every marking appeared on her body. From bite marks, to paw prints, to wolf heads themselves, the shadowy figure was covered in the red markings of a berserking barbarian. Kat tried to do something, but the creature’s fist seemed to come out of nowhere as it almost cold cocked her.
Then it moved off of Kat, and began walking towards Diane. Diane almost didn’t even look at it, but instead clapped her hands together. From the ground beneath the shadowy beast, lightning and fire erupted from the ground and sent it straight into the cieling, where it could not move from the torrent of magic it was under. It wouldn’t be long for it to die, not under the white flames and enhanced lightning that cracked the stones. No, it was for Diane that it continued to burn, all the way until she was out of magic, and had to turn off the magic.. By then, Kat was standing, and waiting.
The two looked at each other, before Kat looked away. Diane couldn’t read the expression, but she bet it was anger. That’s all a dumb barbarian could feel anyways, even if it shattered her heart. She didn’t say anything though, and merely set the bag on the ground so as to start getting ready for camp.
Heartache
Diane’s hands trembled as she grabbed the clasps on the bag. What had become routine for her, done over and over again, a hundred times at least, now was as impossible as crossing the oceans. No matter how she tugged, teased, or pulled at the leather, it wouldn’t budge. Tears stung at her eyes as she could feel Kat’s eyes on her, watching her, judging her.
Kat meanwhile was working with the bandages in her belt to treat the burn on her arm. She had plenty of other cuts and bruises, but those she didn’t care about. They were simply part of the job, the job she had no business being in. The image of Diane simply obliterating her shadow self flashed into her mind, and the bandages began to blur as the binding over them became too tight, and she could feel every inch of the singed flesh on her. She should have put a salve on them first, but that was in the bag that Diane was opening.
A grunt came from Diane as she pulled on the steel clasp, and Kat glanced over. The sorceress was supposed to keep the pack, because while it slowed her down, she, the knight, was supposed to draw away enemies so the fairer maiden never had to worry, and could fire spells from a concentrated position. However, even after five years of work together, Diane still had a good ways to go herself as an adventurer. “I thought she had at least that fucking down.”
The words felt empty though. Even the curse felt hollow, like an excuse. Her body wanted to scream at Diane, while her soul wanted to cry for being a failure, and she doubted Mazu was coming back to smack some sense into her this time. Not now that Diane was hurt, and had to protect her. The only part of her that simply wanted to go over and hug Diane was her heart, but that also meant sacrificing her pride.
A small whimper escaped Kat as she tightened the bandage too far again, and Diane winced in sympathy. If she had ever been able to take healing lessons at the monastery, she could be of some help, but Maxwell had died before she could be admitted, and the new Avatar after him wasn’t about to have an orphan healer dirtying the prestige of the holy class, not when she held her own suspicions. Not that it would have mattered, as even teasing the buckles to come undone with her magic was a chore. All she could do was mindlessly destroy and hurt, even when it came to the best friend she’d ever had.
The tightness in the tall woman’s slim chest grew at the last thought, and she shut her eyes. She could talk for days to convince others to give her what she may need, knew how to act in the highest courts, and could be considered the most cultured explorer out there. But when it came to Kat, she still defaulted to things like best friend. How was she supposed to execute on her plan in the dungeon, when she still paused to call Kat her lover? Kat never had, not when she had taken Diane’s first kiss, or held her close in the tent the first time. It was all natural for her, but Diane still had to hesitate.
The buckles finally loosened, and Diane began to search through the bag. She had been such an idiot yesterday by deciding to search through this stupid thing. Diane knew better, of course, but she had been so nervous about this whole thing expedition going well that she just made screw up after screw up. And now Kat thought she meant nothing to Diane, which couldn’t be farther from the truth. She just didn’t know how to tell her. Should she be tactful? Wait for the right moment? She looked
into the bag, and bit her lip.
“Kat, are you… are you feeling hungry?”
Kat glanced over at Diane, who had the open bag held close to her chest. The knight considered being difficult, saying no and simply tending to her wounds. Her stomach’s rumbling demanded otherwise, especially as her… sorceress pulled out jerky. She slowly walked forward, but stopped a few feet away when Diane, face into the bag, asked, “Do… do you really think I don’t care about you?”
Kat felt the hairs on the back of her neck bristle. Of course Diane would have hung up on that point, and would probably lather her with praise Tell her how good of a knight she was, or how strong she was. It wasn’t going to work tonight though. “It’s not that you don’t care, it’s that when compared to you, I am nothing, and you seem to have finally picked up on that.”
Diane’s body shrunk as she put her head into the bag, trying to not let Kat see her cry. She would either think they were insincere, like the idiot that she was being would, or she would simply come back to her because she cared, but Diane was scared that that wouldn’t help. Instead, she steeled her voice, and kept ahold of what she needed to keep close. “I haven’t picked up on anything, and I thought you got over me being a strong mage; that there was simply a gap there.”
Kat balled her fists, the back of her mind and soul nagging at her for trying to give into the fear, for letting what was supposed to be resolved come back. But how was she supposed to not? These were things that always came back, always smacked her in the face, and proved how futile trying to get these stupid rings was. It would just be another way for Diane to fail to put her on the same level as her. “B-because we’re not the dumb teens we used to be. Because I can’t just keep trying to think that this can work, not with how little progress I’ve made over these years. Honestly, I.. I’m beginning to think it would just be better if we went our separate ways at this point, because you no longer need me to keep you safe, not… not when all I am is a weak link.””
Diane and Kat- the Bound Bands Page 5
