Guardian

by Matthew S. Cox

  “She’s going to mistake me for fertilizer,” muttered Charles.

  The electric cat ears on Laney’s headband swiveled to face rear. “I heard that.”

  Kirsten smiled at the floor. “That’s up to you.”

  Approaching sharp clicks triggered Kirsten’s ingrained hatred of high heels. She glanced back at the sound. Seven other mourners in the section all watched an athletic woman with a black bob in a formal black gown that sparkled silver when the light hit it; the effect reminded her of Harbinger’s eyes. The approaching woman seemed at once dainty and powerful, and her violet lipstick and downcast eyes conveyed her mood.

  Kirsten blinked when recognition finally hit her. She patted Laney on the shoulder. “Excuse me a moment.” She took three steps toward the windowed wall, waving as the woman got closer. “Nina?”

  Nina stopped. “Oh. Agent Wren. Hello. Sorry… Lieutenant.”

  Kirsten saluted her. “Lieutenant. I’m sorry about Vincent.”

  “Thank you.” Nina nodded. “I know he’s gone on, but I still come here at least once a month.”

  “I’m sure he knows.” She clasped her hands and looked out the window. “Sorry for interrupting.”

  “What brings you here? I hope you didn’t lose anyone.”

  “No… Part of a case. Helping a spirit say their final farewell before they transcend.” Kirsten bit her lip thinking of the woman’s doll body. “If, uhh… anything strange happens to you, it’s the crossover.”

  Nina’s smile seemed more sad than anything. “Noted. Take care of yourself, Lieutenant.”

  “You too, Lieutenant.” Kirsten returned to Laney’s side.

  She fidgeted with the urn. “Who’s that?”

  “Another cop. Different department, but we’ve worked together once.”

  Laney clutched the urn to her chest, and cried. “I-is he gonna go away now?”

  Charles put an arm around both women’s shoulders. “I’m not sure. You know, I think maybe I’m going to hang around for a while.”

  “Really?” Laney’s eyes widened. “Can I take you home? I swear I won’t put you in a flowerpot.”

  He offered a resigned shrug. “If it makes you feel better. Meh. Might let me sleep easier. So much chatter here.”

  “So I hear.” Kirsten glanced at the grave cubbies. “Guess I’ll drive you home then.”

  “Thank you, Wren.” Charles offered a hand. “Not a perfect result, but… I guess I’ll take it. Having all of me in one place did weaken that overwhelming pull of anger. Hey, one question.”

  “Hmm?” She stopped walking and looked up at him.

  “That ‘transcending’ thing. If I stick around to keep an eye on Laney, am I going to be stuck here when her time comes?”

  Kirsten held her arms out. “It’s different for every spirit. Some think they’ve got only one chance to enter that door, and they’re stuck here forever if they miss it. Some say they can go whenever they feel like it; they only need to want to. If you do stay though… that whole Harbinger issue remains. You might be clean enough to transcend now, but if you do soul-staining things even as a ghost, it might not open again when you want it to.” An idea raised her eyebrow. “Maybe you’re still here now because you want to protect her.”

  “I get it.” He smiled.

  “Thank you!” Laney leapt into a brisk hug, jabbing the corner of the rectangular urn into her breast.

  “Ngh.” Kirsten pushed her out to arm’s length, moved the urn aside, and pulled her close again. “Better. And, you’re welcome.”

  On the walk around the mausoleum ring back to the parking area, Kirsten gazed up through the windows where the outer wall curved inward, forming a portion of the ceiling. Billowy clouds glided across the blue.

  What am I going to put in the report for this one?

  irsten balanced on tiptoe atop a stone pillar only six inches in diameter. While standing on one foot, she loosed arrow after arrow at a monster resembling a four-clawed crab the size of a small building. After seven shots, her pedestal cracked for no apparent reason. She leapt to the next one, emitting a high-pitched elven war cry at the height of her rolling jump. One foot landed with perfect precision on the next sturdy pedestal, and she kept firing, aiming for one of eight stalks tipped with black eyeballs as big as human heads. Below her, a rippling pool of bright green acid waited. She couldn’t shoot from solid ground on the left half of the room; if the crab saw the arrows coming, it would invariably ‘close’ the eye, causing the shot to bounce away from hardened carapace.

  Sir Halek, aka Sam, in glowing fiery armor, stood at the edge of where catacomb floor met the acid pool. He absorbed the brunt of the massive creature’s claws with a round shield studded with saw teeth. Each time the beast hit him, he slid away twenty or thirty yards, but blurred back into place between the creature and Monwyn (Evan) before the next claw could smash the wizard.

  Evan shouted the words of spells from the more elaborate sim at the Funzone, despite speaking them having no effect on the home system. Hearing the voice of a nine-year-old come out of the adult-looking mage left her grinning.

  Monwyn raised his hands and threw a retina-searing lightning bolt into the crab’s roaring mouth. The crack-a-boom of the magic slammed into Kirsten’s eardrums, hurting in reality as well as the game.

  The monstrous crustacean leaned back, raising its claws. Gaps in its underbelly shell stretched open a few inches as it began to channel a regeneration effect.

  “Mom!―uhh Asara!” Monwyn hurried another spell and made a grabbing gesture at her.

  An invisible ‘hand’ closed around her, making her feel like a tiny child’s toy. Force flung her off the pedestal in a clean trajectory for the stone floor behind Halek. Kirsten rolled over, flying sideways while aiming. She touched the rune on her bow for ‘speed shot,’ and her arms blurred. In the three seconds it took for her to fly from the pedestal to the safety of solid cavern floor, thirty-seven arrows flew.

  Only two missed the narrow gap in the shell plate.

  The progress bar floating over the crab for its self-heal stuttered back every time she inflicted damage. A constant stream of ‘1357’ scrolled over its head. Sir Halek leapt into the air, a ghostly image of him separating from the more solid metal-armored knight to ram a broadsword to the hilt in its shell.

  Evan conjured up a rolling sphere of flames, and hurled it into the crab’s face as the two copies of Sir Halek coalesced once more into a single entity. The fireball hit the crab in the mouth, sending a crisscross of burning lava lines across the carapace. It roared, waving its claws, and proceeded to do a belabored, two-minute long death animation as it gradually sank into the acid lake. The entire cavern shook, knocking huge rocks from the ceiling that fell into the roiling acid lake.

  Scrolls appeared floating in front of them, offering a choice of loot rewards. Evan made faces at his as though he’d gotten stumped at his homework. Sam jumped up and down cheering. It took him less than a second to reach into the scroll and grab a new sword, made of a solid chunk of blue gemstone infused with lightning.

  Kirsten looked back and forth between gauntlets with a small agility boost, a bow about the same as what she had now (slower rate of fire, but more damage per hit), and a necklace that almost doubled her mana reserve. “Hey, Ev? What do you think? Huntsmaster’s bow or the Charm of La’astra?”

  He held up a hand. The animation included Monwyn raising the ‘do not disturb a wizard in the midst of critical decisions’ eyebrow. After some minutes, he grabbed a ring from his scroll and put it on. “Sorry, Mom. What?”

  She repeated her question.

  “Uhh. The bow. Asara’s best move is slow, and it scales with the weapon’s top damage. The Huntsmaster does an extra sixty-six damage per shot. With the multiplier on ‘Slay,’ it winds up being a lot more.”

  “What about the charm? It almost doubles my mana… I could use the middle-range specials more often.”

  “We can run this boss again a
nd farm the necklace. That bow’s got a lame drop rate… like one in two thousand.”

  “Sounds like the Sapphire Hand.” Sam raised his blade with an adoring stare. “Been after this guy for nine months.”

  “Okay. Bow it is.” Kirsten grasped the weapon, which became a solid object in her hand while the scroll faded away. She thought about ‘inventory,’ and her old bow disappeared in a cloud of pixels.”

  The sound of the real world doorbell made all three of them jump.

  “Save, Logout,” said Evan.

  Monwyn vanished.

  Sir Halek walked over to Asara the Huntress. “My princess, thine bow has surely turned the tide in service of the kingdom. It was an honor to fight at your side.”

  Kirsten couldn’t speak without giggling, so she merely extended her hand to be kissed.

  Sam obliged.

  “Mom!” yelled Evan from reality. “Nila’s here.”

  Kirsten winked at Sam. “Save, logout.”

  The lava cave faded to darkness infused with the soft ‘lobby music’ of the game. Kirsten took the Senshelmet off and blinked a few times to adjust to seeing the real world again. Sights and motion blurred for a few seconds while her brain acclimated to getting its input from biological sources instead of the helmet beaming electrical signals straight into her skull.

  Nila, in all her relaxed sweat pants glory, padded barefoot into the living room with Shani in tow.

  “Hey.” Kirsten detangled her crossed legs from her over-long tee shirt, stood, and ran over to hug her and Shani in turn.

  Sam pulled his helmet off and packed the game console away in the cabinet.

  “All set?” asked Nila, winking at Evan.

  Ugh. I’m so nervous. Kirsten put a hand on Evan’s shoulder. “Are you sure this is okay?”

  Evan rolled his eyes. “Yeah, Mom. I like hanging out with Shani.” And you and Sam wanna get all mushy and eww.

  Kirsten laughed. Sam walked up behind her, and she smiled over her shoulder at him.

  “Relax.” Nila bit her finger and made sultry eyes at Sam. “Who’d have thought one of the D2 network wonks was so cute.”

  Sam’s eyes bugged. His mouth opened, but no words came.

  “It’s like right out of one of those stories. As soon as I saw him the first time, he broke through that thing controlling me.”

  “Eww,” said Evan. He grabbed a small bag and marched toward the door. “I’ll be downstairs.”

  “That’s why it hurt so much.” Kirsten put a hand on her stomach. “What, no hug?”

  Evan dropped the bag and ran over to jump into an embrace.

  She closed her eyes, squeezing him while swaying side to side. “I love you so much, kiddo. Have fun tonight.”

  “I will.” Evan leaned up to whisper, “I love you too, Mom” before running out.

  Kirsten waved at Nila and Shani. When the door closed with a squeak, she turned around and put her arms around Sam. “I meant that. You really did break through. ‘Course, at the time, I didn’t know which way was up.”

  “Well, I am a knight.” He smiled.

  She stood on tiptoe, kissing him for a while. She let her weight back down on her heels and stared up into his eyes. “Feels like we’re getting away with something.”

  “Kind of.” He smiled, and started another kiss.

  Minutes passed as they kissed and held each other. She walked backwards, tugging him by the hand toward the bedroom. Once he realized where she was going, his eyebrows climbed. The excitement and worry on his face made her giddy.

  She backed into her bedroom, let go of his hands, and held her arms to the sides.

  “Umm…” Sam glanced past her. “What’s that?”

  Kirsten twisted to the right. An enormous plush rabbit sat on half the bed, an inch or two over four feet tall. Bright azure runes decorated its snow-white fur. “Uhh, it’s a rune rabbit.”

  “I know that.” Sam chuckled. “Why do you have a life-sized rune rabbit on your bed?”

  She pouted. “It’s so cute!”

  “Yeah, that seventy-second level creature is real cute when it one-shots you.”

  Kirsten smoothed her hands down the front of her long tee shirt and walked up to him. “I’m not really thinking about the Monwyn game now.” She nibbled on her lower lip and gave him a coy smile.

  “Ever hear that thing about how it’s impossible to get romantic when there’s a dog watching? That rabbit takes it to the next level.”

  “Oh, fine.” She rolled her eyes. “Come on Binky.” Kirsten carried the giant plushie to the corner, putting it down facing the wall. “Is that okay?”

  He looked down. “Sorry.”

  Kirsten giggled and sashayed back over. “You’re right. It is too cute.”

  Sam grasped her hips and pulled her against him. “Are you sure about this? You look nervous. I don’t want you to feel pressured. I want to be with you no matter how long it takes you to be ready.”

  She kissed him long and gentle, pulling away with her mouth half open a minute or so later. “Yeah… I want this.” Kirsten stared into his dark brown eyes; time seemed to slow to a standstill. Her breath resonated in her ears over the thump of her heart. She drew her arms into her tee shirt and pulled it off over her head, standing before him in only panties. Her brain leapt back to the moment she’d removed the ratty scrap of canvas serving as a garment for the man who wanted sex in exchange for feeding her.

  Long-past shame came over her. The last time she’d disrobed in front of a man, she’d been twelve and starving, willing to do anything for something to eat that had never been trash. The beginnings of tears welled at the corners of her eyes as a surge of love gathered in her core. She stared at him; an overwhelming sense of trust dispelled her shame, and she stopped trembling.

  He looked worried. “What’s―”

  “Bad memories.” She pushed the taste of military ration stew out of her memory and smiled.

  Sam removed his shirt and stepped closer. Kirsten clung to his warmth, threading her arms around his chest to savor his presence. He caressed the back of her head and let his hand glide down her back.

  “Sam?”

  “Hmm?”

  “I love you, and yes. I want to do this.” Kirsten guided him to the bed. “I need you to do something for me.”

  He kissed her neck, sending a shudder down her back. “Anything.”

  Kirsten held him in silence for the span of a few breaths. “I want you to give me some good memories.”

  I’d like to thank everyone who’d read the Division Zero series up to book 3 and kept asking me what happens next. Initially, I had planned on letting the series rest after Thrall since it seemed to be a nice place to leave Kirsten… but so many people mentioned it, I set to thinking about a story until this book came about. So, to everyone who asked for it – thank you!

  Also, big thanks to everyone at Curiosity Quills for their help in making this book exist.

  To the editor, Mark Woodring, your insights are one of a kind and usually made me smile.

  Thanks as well to Eugene Teplitsky for the amazing cover!

  Born in a little town known as South Amboy NJ in 1973, Matthew Cox has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Somewhere between fifteen to eighteen of them spent developing the world in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, and The Awakened Series take place. He has several other projects in the works as well as a collaborative science fiction endeavor with author Tony Healey.

  Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom systems (Chronicles of Eldrinaath [Fantasy] and Divergent Fates [Sci Fi], and a fan of anime, British humour (<- deliberate), and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life, and what happens after it.

  He is also fond of cats.

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  Prophet of the Badlands, by Matthew S. Cox

  (http://bit.ly/1BedXN2)

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