Revolution

by Montana Ash

  He nodded. “I hear it too.”

  Max was startled to hear that, “You do? What is it?”

  “I hear it – feel it – because of my affinity with the death domain. As for what it is; it’s the land. Well, more than just the land. It’s the air, it’s the water, and the spirit of the place. It’s broken, scarred, contaminated.”

  Max cast her eyes into the distance once more, heart pounding. “What happened?”

  “Revolution.”

  The room seemed to inhale and the walls flexed with the weight of that one word and Max suddenly understood. “It’s where the battle took place?”

  Her father dipped his head once, “That’s right.

  “If you can feel it and it is so contaminated, then why hasn’t it been cleansed?” she asked, voice incredulous.

  “I’ve been trying, believe me. But no matter what I do, my powers can’t seem to purify the land there,” Mordecai revealed. “Our domains are influenced by energies. Everything has an energy – whether inanimate or not – and these leave a mark, telling the history of its life. Like an echo. As wardens we should be able to manipulate those echoes. Heal the scars, if you will. Depending on the element of course.”

  “Death for you; Water for Blu,” Max stated, thinking of the grey haired, blue-eyed warden. She really liked the older water warden. He was someone she had felt immediately comfortable around. Though he also carried an air of expectation whenever he was around her, it wasn’t suffocating like the paladins inside the log house. There was also a world of hurt wafting from him. Max wished there was something she could do for him but she took solace in the knowledge that every time she saw him, the hurt was a little less sharp. Blu was grieving but he was also healing. Shaking herself from those thoughts, she instead focused her mind on the new ideas whirling within. Although the others had explained something similar to her, it was different hearing it from the perspective of a warden. It also seemed somehow familiar. Like it was information she knew.

  “That’s right,” Mordecai said.

  Max shook her head, “I can understand you trying to heal it with your affinity with death energy, but what about an Earth Warden for example? If the infection is rooted in the land there.” It seemed simple to her.

  “Well, for starters, our oldest and most powerful warden of the Earth was recently shown to be a duplicitous traitor and killed for her crimes in the revolutionary battle,” her dad began and Max found herself blushing.

  Though she didn’t remember any of the events, she had been told of them in great detail. She knew that Autumn was one of the masterminds behind the civil unrest. Before Max could apologise, he was continuing;

  “And second, no matter what we elders do, how much energy we expend, or what element we wield, the earth, the air, and surrounding seas remain contaminated.”

  “Others have tried?”

  Mordecai nodded, “Many others. It’s another reason why we need to get the local and international councils back up and running,” he admitted. “Perhaps with a full council and all seven elements, we may be able to do something about the strange rot still festering there.” He looked at her, green eyes deep and clear. “That’s what we were discussing before. The people need to see you, Max. They need to see their human custodian, the daughter of Nature who branded them. And we need our government back.”

  The thought of facing all those people made her nervous as hell. But Mordecai was right; while she was sitting around the house being watched like a ticking time bomb about to go off, there was a whole society of people out there trying to piece their lives back together.

  “Of course I’ll go,” she said. “Revolution means nothing without resolution.”

  Mordecai looked momentarily stunned before surprising her by pulling her into his arms for their first ever hug in either of their memories. “I’m so proud of you. I wish I could take credit for how you turned out. But I can’t. I played no part in shaping you into the amazing woman you are. You were right to call bullshit on your Order. There is nothing lacking in you.”

  Mordecai kissed her on the forehead before releasing her and leaving her alone gazing into the distance. She knew one day soon she was going to have to go to the place of all that pain and suffering – and victory. She didn’t know how she knew that but the knowledge felt as sure to her as the ground beneath her feet. Not that she had any idea how she was supposed to help when someone like Mordecai couldn’t.

  Glancing back at the weathered sketch pad, Max hesitated before picking it up. There was a definite sense of anticipation rushing through her body, leaving it feeling all tingly. Pushing through her nerves, she opened it to the first page – and promptly barked out a laugh when she saw a black and white drawing of Ryker, shirtless and built, with a speech bubble over his head reading: ‘blah, blah, blah!’. Checking the date in the corner, she noted that it was from just over a year ago. Max realised the sketch must be a rendering of her initial impressions of the surly paladin.

  Shaking her head, Max continued to turn the pages, her eyes getting wider with every turn. The entire book was filled with drawings of Ryker. Every. Single. Page. And the affection and love the artist had for the subject was a wonder to behold. Some images were accompanied with funny quotes, and others were poignant in their simplicity – a curled fist or a bare shoulder taking up the entire page. It was the image on the final page that had Max jamming a fist in her mouth to stifle her sobs though.

  It was of a naked Ryker, his attributes covered just barely by a rumpled sheet, features relaxed in sleep. His face was smooth and devoid of the riotous scar currently gracing his cheek, and his face was turned into the empty pillow beside him. His hand was stretched out as if to hold onto the person normally next to him. He looked beautiful and peaceful and oh, so very innocent, still oblivious to the pain he would face that very day. For Max had no doubts that the image had been created just hours before the Revolution. The caption running along the bottom in a careful scrawl, read simply; ‘You love him.’

  Max was positive the previous her had drawn those brutally honest pictures with the express intention of post-battle Max finding and seeing it. Feeling a little off balance, and a lot unsure, she closed the notebook carefully. She was surprised to see a single slip of paper flutter to the floor because none of the pages had been loose. Retrieving it, she saw that it contained a single sentence;

  “Create. Max, custodians were able to create elements.”

  Quickly on the heels of her discovery came a familiar voice in her head, making her gasp. It was Blu, saying those words and patting her on her knee in a very paternal gesture. A memory! Max thought. She’d had a few fleeting feelings of familiarity and déjà vu here and there, but she was yet to have a true memory and she had no doubt that is what it was.

  Max tapped out an unconscious rhythm on her leg with the small piece of paper as she contemplated those eight words over and over, her turquoise eyes never leaving the scarred land in the distance.

  NINE

  Jasminka dug her feet into the cool sand, wrapping her knitted cardigan more tightly around herself. The air was cold, verging on chilly, but the sky was clear and the waves lapping rhythmically against the sand had a hypnotic quality. There was a time when such easy miracles would have gone unnoticed by her. But not anymore. Now she was revelling in them. She couldn’t believe this was Max’s backyard. It was also temporarily hers and she was going to make the most of it while she could. She had no idea how much longer she was going to be there but was pleasantly surprised she hadn’t been asked to pack her bags yet. In fact, she had found herself incorporated into the world of nature’s guardians further by being asked to assist Dawn. Jazz very much liked the other woman and knew she would be yet another thing she was going to miss when she left.

  “Mind if we join you?”

  Jazz looked up to find Diana, Cali, and Ivy standing above her. She squinted, none of them had their deadly-looking weapons out, so she figured they weren’t
there to give her the old heave-ho. She shrugged, “Sure.”

  Diana and Cali took up positions on either side of her and Ivy sat down on the sand in front of her. An exuberant bark from behind her made her realise she was effectively surrounded. Remembering these women didn’t need weapons to be lethal, Jazz began to re-evaluate her earlier conclusion. “Okay, you have me surrounded. Now what?”

  All three women looked confused for a moment before comprehension dawned and they started to laugh. “We just came for a chat. We haven’t had much of an opportunity to talk much outside of medical mumbo-jumbo.”

  Jasminka raised her eyebrows; “Medical mumbo-jumbo is kind of my thing.”

  Diana smiled, “We know that. But it’s not everything you are. We wanted to get to know you better.”

  “Why?” Jazz knew she sounded genuinely confused because that’s how she felt.

  “Well, for starters,” Ivy drawled, “I’d like to learn a little more about the woman currently panting over my baby brother.”

  “Panting? I don’t pant,” Jasminka assured Ivy, keeping her face the blank mask it was for the first three and a half decades of her life.

  Ivy pointed a finger at her, “Oh, you’re good. I’ll give you that, Doc. You ever want a job as a ranger, let me know. A face like yours is perfect for interrogations.”

  Jasminka didn’t know whether that was a compliment or an insult but before she could ask, Cali patted her on the knee. “Relax. We come in peace.”

  Peace, Jazz thought, still sceptical. Until it hit her; “Wait. This is what? Girl talk?” She asked incredulously, the concept entirely foreign to her. Other than Max, she still didn’t have a lot of female friends.

  “Not without me it isn’t.” Max suddenly parked her butt next to Ivy, dispersing sand in all directions. She scowled at the other women. “You said you wouldn’t start without me.”

  Diana held up her hands, “We didn’t. We only got as far as Jasminka’s lame-arse denial. Which none of us bought, by the way. I don’t care how good your poker face is,” Diana nudged her knee. “Come on. Confess your sins to Aunty Di.”

  The grin on Diana’s face was infectious and Jazz found herself laughing – and replying; “I’ve wanted to get Beyden naked since the first time I saw him. Okay, maybe not the first time considering he was fresh from fighting in a war and with a partially dismembered leg,” she amended. “And the wanting has only grown with time.” Especially now she knew what the man was sporting in his pants, she silently added, recalling the shower scene in vivid detail.

  “I don’t blame you. When I first got a look at the body that man was sporting, I wanted to climb him like a spider monkey,” Diana confessed.

  Cali and Max nodded their heads vigorously and Ivy winced. “You asked,” Jazz pointed out.

  “Indeed I did. What are you going to do about it?” The ranger questioned.

  “Do?” Jazz blinked. She could think of dozens of things she wanted to do, but she replied with the most realistic one; “Nothing. I’m his doctor. Besides, the man is completely uninterested.”

  Ivy snorted rudely, “Uninterested? Aren’t you some whiz-bang surgeon, multiple university degrees, stellar career, yada yada yada?”

  “That would be me,” was her dry reply.

  “And yet so clueless. It’s sad really,” Ivy shook her head.

  “Ha! As if you have room to judge. Oblivious ranger,” Cali scoffed.

  Ivy scoffed, “Please. I knew Lark had a hard-on for me from the beginning. I simply chose to ignore it.”

  Jazz passively listened to the banter going on around her, enjoying the hell out of herself. A single lick to the back of her hand had her addressing Zombie, “So now you like me? Why don’t you like me at two in the morning, huh?” She asked, rubbing him between the ears and receiving a happy doggy grin.

  “What do you mean, two in the morning?” Cali asked.

  Jazz pursed her lips and growled playfully at the dog, “He keeps howling outside my bedroom door until I let him in. Then when I let him in, he wants to go back out again. Then the whimpering starts. This is repeated over and over until Beyden finally comes to get him or I take him to Beyden. I don’t know why he doesn’t just go straight to Bey’s room if that is who he wants. I know he knows the way.” Jasminka was sure of it in fact. The dog was alarmingly, and a little weirdly, intelligent.

  “That’s really strange,” Diana admitted “He loves Bey, as you know. But I can’t think of why he would be doing that.”

  “Hmm,” was all Max said, head cocked to the side as she eyed Zombie.

  Jazz narrowed her eyes at her. “You know something! Spill!”

  Max’s lips twitched, “Tell me, Jazz. What do you wear to bed?”

  “Huh?” Jasminka wasn’t expecting that. “Uh, nothing real interesting. Just a nightgown.”

  “A nightgown? Or sexy lingerie?” Max asked.

  Jazz scrunched up her nose. “There’s nothing sexy about it. It’s just a plain, white, long nightgown. For all the colour I like to wear during the day, I go for simple and comfortable at night. What does it matter?”

  Ivy surprised them all by barking out a laugh, “Oh, it matters a lot. You sneaky, brilliant dog! Let me guess, this simple, white nightie of yours is so comfortable because you’ve had it for years, right?”

  “I guess,” Jazz admitted.

  “And I imagine it’s been washed a few hundred times?” Ivy continued.

  Jazz still had no idea what the other woman was getting at, but she played along. “Yes. It’s an old favourite.”

  “I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, doctor, but you’re African American,” Ivy pointed out.

  Jazz snorted, “I noticed. Same way I noticed you’re Asian.” Again, irrelevant but Jazz was more than capable of giving as good as she got.

  Ivy’s eyes glittered with appreciation, “When you take a sad looking puppy to Beyden’s door or he knocks on yours to retrieve that same puppy, what do you think Beyden gets an eyeful of when the light is on behind you and you’re in a comfy, white nightie?”

  Jasminka felt her mouth form an ‘O’ as comprehension dawned. “Everything. Beyden gets an eyeful of everything.” Especially considering I don’t wear knickers to bed, Jazz silently snickered.

  And with that they all collapsed into laughter, including the dog, who Jazz swore was chuckling right along with them. “Seriously? The dog is playing matchmaker?”

  Max shrugged and rubbed Zombie’s exposed belly. “He likes you.”

  “I’m honoured,” she told the dog. “But how about we stop that now, huh? I need my beauty sleep. I’m not blessed to be forever young like the other girls here. My forty-six-year-old body needs rest.”

  “You’re forty-six?” Max asked, presently.

  “Yep.”

  “When did we meet?” Max then questioned.

  “A touch over eight years ago now,” Jazz answered. She wasn’t likely to ever forget the date.

  “How did we meet?”

  That made Jasminka hesitate, looking toward the other women – unsure if she should discuss this part of their shared history. Clearly, Max hadn’t disclosed the information before her disappearing act, so perhaps she didn’t want the others to know.

  Seeming able to read her thoughts, Max said; “It’s okay. These are my friends. They can hear anything you have to tell me.”

  Jazz saw the effect Max’s words had on Cali, Diana, and Ivy. They practically basked under Max’s affections. Knowing Max had a right to know, Jazz took a deep breath. “We met in a psychiatric facility. I was doing a rotation there in neuropsychiatry while writing my PhD in the biological basis of behaviour.”

  Max eyed her speculatively for a moment before commenting, “I take it I wasn’t there working like you were?”

  “No,” Jazz admitted, “You were a patient.”

  Max turned to the others, “Did you know I was in a funny farm?”

  Diana placed a supportive hand on Max’s folded leg,
“Yes. You told us you were institutionalised a few times.”

  Max frowned, “A few times? I was cray-cray?”

  Cali snorted, “You weren’t crazy, Max. You just happened to be a magical being surrounded by humans who had no idea superpowers were real. Of course they thought you were mentally unstable.”

  Max eyed them all for a moment, judging their sincerity before she finally shrugged, “Okay. Keep going.”

  Jasminka nodded, “Cali’s right. You were in this particular facility after mentioning your powers to the wrong therapist. You were admitted involuntarily for the legally allowed time but had ended up staying longer. When I met you, you were very ill physically. But that didn’t stop your mouth from moving. You told me this wild tale of phantoms and superpowers over the elements and how the white walls and sterile rooms there were slowly killing you because there was nothing natural or organic there to give you solace.”

  Max raised her eyebrows, “What was your response?”

  Jazz felt a smile soften her face as she answered honestly, “I believed you.”

  “Just like that?” Ivy asked.

  Jazz shrugged, “Yes. Just like that. It was odd. Very odd. I was – and still am – a woman of science. And here was this psych patient telling me about black-eyed creatures and whispers on the wind. I should have prescribed her a higher dose of Ketamine, yet I ...” she turned to Max, “I believed you. From the very first moment I met you I believed you – believed in you.”

  Ivy snorted, ruefully rubbing her arm where Jazz knew Max’s unique loyalty brand was. “She seems to have that effect on people. Good to know it wasn’t just my sappy arse she worked her Max-mojo on.”

  Cali pushed Ivy into the sand, “Oh yeah. Your butt is real sappy. It’s hard as stone, just like your heart.”

  Ivy actually laughed, flicking sand over Cali’s feet. Clearly the two were good enough friends to be able to insult each other so freely and effectively. “Then what happened?”