by S. J. Wist
He looked back at Asil and walked over to her, but she vanished into thin air with a playful laugh. “Asil!” Cirrus felt and caught a sharp stab at his side and looked down to his hand that was now covered in blood. He forced his mind to stay focused, as this was an illusion. The past couldn’t repeat itself and neither could the injuries he suffered.
“Cloud Warrior,” Asil’s voice came again. “Why are you bleeding?”
He looked at the pale and frailer version of Sybl with no answer. “I’m not really here. Just my mind is.”
She touched the gash cut through his white tunic and her warm heat quickly mended him. “You bleed rather real for not being real,” she mocked him. “Have you not found all the answers you wish to by your blade yet?”
He smiled as he knew that she would say that. Cirrus also knew what she would say next.
“Do you love me, Cloud Warrior?”
“I love…” he stopped in thought for a moment. “I love you in the future. The future I have to get back to so that I can save you.”
She laughed and it sounded like wind chimes crashing against his heart. “You are in need of saving far more than me.”
“Fate is an endless circle,” he replied. “I’m in the wrong place on it.”
She turned around for a moment, before spinning back to face him. “Am I more beautiful in the future, Cloud Warrior?”
“You are…the most beautiful of the humans you always worked so hard to help. You are the Fay of this world and yours, and they need you.”
She walked back over to him and without a warning kissed him.
Cirrus took a moment to pull away in surprise, before a surge of pain went from his Mei to his heart. He collapsed to his knees as he felt the wound on his side reopen.
“There is no truth in your soul or your kiss, Cloud Warrior. There is no future self of me that you love.”
He braced himself against the wind that picked up violently, before the field ignited all at once into angry red flames.
“I will teach you the consequences for tricking a Fay’s heart!”
Asil lifted her hand as her blue eyes glowed dangerously, and Cirrus panicked that he would be burned alive. But before the fire could hit him, Moon’s claws caught and covered him first, saving him from a painful death with his cold estus energy.
Moon looked at Asil and the Fay spirit stepped back in a terrified fear. The fires extinguished on the field and the Cael pulled Cirrus into his somn. With nothing more than pain and fear to give her, Cirrus escaped from the corrupted memory of his past by awakening.
28: PURGATORY
Sybl wondered if purgatory was like this as she sat in an alleyway with her knees up to her chin. It was the closest place she could find where the city’s electrical wires wouldn’t try to kill her.
She looked up as the feeling that something was watching her had followed her here. With enough focus of her Sylvan energy, she could see the strange creatures phase in and out of the sunlight. Sybl looked back down at the ground as her thoughts changed to those of Kas. She remembered how he had told her that going to the city was impossible, and now she could see with her own eyes why. If he was scared of this place, then she didn’t have a chance out of Hell.
A voice entered her mind, and she closed her eyes and listened. It was Kas’. It was her song of death when they had taken the Atrum. She hummed along, as if it was a gift of prayer that would kill these things following her so she could find a way back to Aster. A screech went out from above, and Sybl scrambled to her feet as the Sentry took an entirely physical appearance for a moment before vanishing again. It was a terrifying insect-like creature at that. Sybl breathed faster as she feared that she had angered more than she could outrun this time. She walked out of the alleyway and into the street, with no destination in mind. But that was when one found her.
If there hadn’t been a dozen cars driving past it a minute, Sybl would have panicked at the sight of the stag standing in the middle of the busy downtown street. But the silver creature was unbothered by the vehicles as it waited for them to stop, before weaving through them and walking over to her.
“Don’t run.”
Sybl stopped mid-step in wanting to do that, fearing at first that it was some other form of a Sentry that had come to get her. Master Xirel?
“Damek is trying to force you to react violently against the Sentry. The Sentry cannot attack you unless you threaten them first, or reveal them from their camouflage, as you are still a human.” He stopped in front of her.
No more singing, got it.
Xirel nodded and then looked back to the street as several sirens raced past.
“I’m glad you’re here. I thought I was a goner.”
“We are both stuck in the same predicament, as there is no way back to Aster with the exception of Damek’s trap set on the last Gate. The Rift I used was shut by Aragmoth himself. Instead of having my somn pull me back, I chose to stay here.” He unsomned in a silver mist, and his tall, but thin physique stepped out of it.
“Thank you.”
“I know how scared you get when you are alone. I could not have that on my conscience. Now come, we must retrieve your festra.”
“It’s here? How?”
“I had Luna fly it in through the Ain Soph Aur,” Xirel explained plainly.
“You what!” Sybl felt terribly faint.
“It was the safest route to bring it here. Damek cannot endure the Aur’s intense aeri energy.”
Sybl chased after Xirel’s quick walking pace down the street. “Wouldn’t this ‘Luna’ burn up in that heat?”
“Her stone skin makes her immune to just about anything.”
She followed him as they turned at the next intersection and headed towards the park.
“She is a very bright and a long admirer of you, both in this life and your last,” Xirel said.
“What is she?” Sybl asked, and looked around the small clearing where they had stopped in the park. The sun had almost set, but with its remaining light she caught the glimpse of a winged, monkey-like creature sitting on a park bench. The stone statue was holding her festra. “Is that Luna?” Xirel nodded with a smile, and Sybl walked over to the gargoyle. Despite how ugly it was, she decided to keep those thoughts to herself. “Hello.”
One yellow eye opened and looked at her, and then another when Sybl didn’t jump in fright. She watched its stone skin fall away from her as the creature breathed in some air and expanded, revealing equally grey skin underneath. Then it suddenly held out her weapon to her. Sybl took it, and the creature stood up.
“I hope it wasn’t damaged,” Luna said.
Sybl felt the Threads around the weapon and quickly realized something was seriously wrong. All the Threaded names of the Eminor were gone.
“Uh oh.” Luna ducked in fear of being reprimanded.
“Well, at least we don’t have to worry about this being an army that Damek can use against us anymore. The aeri of the Soph Aur must have disintegrated all the names,” Sybl concluded.
“Damek only has his corrupted Sentry on this side of the world to aid him now,” Xirel added as he walked up to her side.
“So as long as I don’t make them angry, then it’s just me and him.”
Xirel nodded once. “His festra is as powerful as any weapon he wields against you. With it, I believe you can stop him.”
“Okay, so where do we find him?”
Xirel looked at Luna.
“I’ll ask around and be right back,” Luna said, then spread her wings and was off like a bat.
“Now I’ve seen everything,” Sybl said. “Is it just me or does she look a lot like the gargoyles on churches?”
“That was where she found me. There are a few fascinating creatures left on your world that have not become the dumb soullessness of animals. She was supposed to be your birthday present, but Master Kas disproved of her.” Xirel finished with a sigh.
“Well you picked an even better time to give
her to me,” Sybl replied, then smiled when his purple eyes glowed a bit brighter.
29: SHIVER
Cecil scrambled out of the way when Cirrus woke up with a cry of pain. “Cirrus!”
Cirrus caught his head in his hands, as pain overtook every part of his body.
Cecil smelled blood on him and used his aeri to heal the wound on Cirrus’ side, before getting out of the way as the larger dragoon struggled to get to his feet and see again.
“Cirrus. Cirrus wake up!”
The dragoon opened his eyes and looked at Cecil, before looking down to where Sybl lay at his feet. He fell back to his knees and touched her forehead, trying to see where her psi was now. But he couldn’t hear her anymore.
“What happened? Where is she?” Cecil asked in worry.
Cirrus rocked her a few times in his arms, before looking at his wrist where his Mei to her had vanished. “Damek took her.”
“What? You mean her soul is stuck on Earth!” How could you leave her there? Does she even know she’s Dreamwalking? The Sentry—”
“Cecil, shut up!” Cirrus picked Sybl up and lay her down next to Kas’ body on the bed, as his thoughts raced at a hundred miles an hour on how to get her back. He left the room and went downstairs to where he sensed Gwa. Several dragoons stood in the hallway outside of the shower room when Cirrus got there.
“I’m not taking a shower in there. They have diseases.”
“Did you see his eyes? He’s not even a griffin somnus.”
Cirrus didn’t so much as register their faces when he grabbed the shoulder of the closest one. The dragoon never saw the punch coming that landed him on the floor. Then he stormed past him and into the shower room. Gwa was shivering when Cirrus found the griffin somnus sitting alone on the floor near the back. “Gwa.”
Gwa looked up at him. “Where’s my Beautiful?”
Cirrus walked over to him and picked him up by his shirt, before pinning him against the wall. “Why don’t you tell me?”
“Wha…?”
He threw Gwa across the shower room, where he collided against the far stone wall. The somnus got to his feet and retaliated with his somn, sending a surge of electricity through Cirrus. “Why are you attacking me? Where’s Sybl?”
“She’s trapped on Earth, and whatever you did with her last is likely the reason why!”
Gwa staggered back at the accusation. “The last thing we did was get her kyrie.”
“And the festra.”
“Yeah. Then the creature died. I mean, we were worried that Sial was carrying some memory Sybl was better without, but nothing happened. I watched her the entire time. Where is your Mei to her? Why haven’t you gotten her back?”
“Damek broke it somehow,” Cirrus replied, and pulled his blond hair back and out of his face.
“That’s impossible. Nothing can break a Mei.”
“Aragmoth likely can’t be saved anymore, so it’s possible. I need to get to Earth, but Moon says the Rifts have all closed. He pulled me back without her because of it. ”
Gwa pulled out of his pocket a panel and turned it on, before throwing it to the floor in front of the dragoon. “That’s the panel that Sybl had taken from one of the dead Falls soldiers who attacked here. There’s one Gate left.”
Cirrus picked it up and looked at the map. “Helios.”
“Kas was keeping a close eye on them for some time now. He had suspicions that they were working for the Falls, while under the guise of allies for the Sanctus.”
“Kas’ escort was mostly Helios’ Pack, wasn’t it?”
Gwa nodded. “Which would explain the Fall’s timing of their attack against the Efereal Mountains and Toria. I think the faster we can fly back to the Suzerain Continent, the better. If they had anything to do with Kas’ death and what happened to Sybl, I’ll kill them with my own talons.”
“Get ready and meet me downstairs. We’re leaving once I find Kenshe.”
“Cirrus, wait,” Gwa called after him.
He stopped and turned around to look at the griffin somnus.
“I thought Beautiful might want this fixed. It’s probably better that you hold onto it, since you have the matching one.” He dropped Sybl’s fairy pendant into his hand. “Maybe it can help somehow with it being gold and all.”
Cirrus looked at the necklace. “Fixed? What was wrong with it?”
“The pendant broke into two,” Gwa replied. “It fell from Sybl’s neck while you were Dreamwalking.”
Cirrus held his last remaining connection to his Bond tighter in his hand. There were no memories left in the gold. He wouldn’t be able to use the gold of his own fairy pendant to find her Threads on Earth this time.
30: WRAITHS IN THE PARK
Sybl looked at the trees that lined the park’s path as she swore she saw a shadow move beside one of them. “So was your Sentry popular around here before it found you?”
“I was just another of the soldier-like ones,” Xirel replied.
“What made you come to Aster?”
Xirel watched the last of the sun vanish over the horizon, then looked back at her. “It was a chance for me to expand my horizons.” He held out his arm for her to take and Sybl tucked the festra behind her and through her sash, before taking his arm. “Many, many years ago, there was a little farm girl I met.”
“In your Sentry form?”
“Yes. She must have been only eight, but what made her special was her ability to see me. Every day we would have a game where she would find me in her apple orchard. And every day she would win.”
“What’s the Sentry protocol for that?”
“With children, the rules tend to be less strict,” Xirel explained. “Because no one believed in her ‘imaginary friend.’ Years went by, and her visits became less and less often. After she hadn’t returned for some years, she suddenly reappeared again and with what emotion I had at the time, I excitingly ran to greet her. But she had grown older.” Xirel paused. “Her smile lasted only half a minute before Hino used me to snuff out her life. She died right in front of me, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.”
Sybl stopped walking with him. “I’m sorry.”
“I suppose that’s why I value your friendship in a special way, Sybl,” Xirel said and caught her eyes. “Because I know that no matter what happens in the future, neither I or any of the Sentry can take you like that girl was taken from me. Even if you die, I know your soul will always come back. Aragmoth has already proven that several times. Only now I feel as helpless as I did with that little girl in being able to help him.”
She nodded in understanding. “Well if Damek kills me, that puts all the Sentry against him, right? But I’m not so scared of the possibility anymore.”
“Oh?”
“Because you found me in the middle of downtown, in broad daylight, as a stag. And let’s not forget the realm of death that you so easily kicked me out of... You can only have a tracking signal on me.”
Xirel laughed. “In my defense I nudged you out, and kicked your dragon. And yes, you do have a tracking signal. Your Sylvan energy is easily visible for miles.”
“So much for hiding anywhere,” Sybl replied.
“Why hide?” Xirel asked. “Earth has its beauty to explore, too. And your light will not bother anyone here as long as we shine it in peace.”
“Pacifist,” Sybl said, nudging his arm with her own.
“It has its places of usefulness.” His smile was cut short then as he turned around on sensing something. Xirel unsheathed his blade as his eyes saw the shadows move behind the trees. “There should not be wraiths in the trees here.”
