by Jaz Johnson
“Artemis?” Avani said a bit startled as she started rushing towards her friend. Artemis panted heavily as she dangled from the vines that had saved her. She smiled and laughed through squinted eyes at the blurred image of Avani. The rest of the group looked on in shock at the sudden appearance of the kingdom’s royal advisor. The men looked to each other with concern and question. If she was there, there was something wrong.
“Avani! Thank you for catching me,” she laughed, jerking her head a bit to move a lose strand of hair from her face. Avani let her down and laughed with her after handing her glasses back to her. Her arms reached around her and gave her a welcoming hug.
“Of course. I’ve missed you! What are you doing all the way out here?” she asked, pulling away from the hug to look at her. Artemis dusted herself off of the mess that wasn’t there.
“I’m here to talk to Hydra,” she said, swallowing down the breath that she had lost. The group of men looked to each other confused. Mizuko glanced over to the water drakon that had popped her head out of the lake at the other end of the clearing. Loki frowned, and stepped forward towards the two women. Before Avani or Mizuko could say anything about the statement, Loki spoke up.
“Where’s Vida?” he asked sternly. There was a stillness in the air as Artemis took a bit too long to answer. He took another step forward before she could blurt out her response.
“She’s resting. She’s been growing weaker, Loki,” she said folding her hands with some guilt and averting her eyes.
“Weak? Weak from what?” he asked gruffly. “Has Ares sent something to the-“
“No,” Artemis said, shaking her head. “But Saphora has been in trouble on Earth.”
“Saphora?” They all seemed to ask at the same time, with the same level of concern.
“The princess,” Mizuko said, stepping away from the tree and coming closer. Dakota was right behind him. “Is she alright?” he asked with a frown.
“She is, for now. But Tebias has started going after her again. We suspect with stricter orders. But Saphora hasn’t mastered her power yet, and is poorly defended against him. She barely escaped with her life during their last altercation,” Artemis went on.
“What about Arol? Didn’t Vida send the beast with her?” Loki asked, remembering clearly that she had. Artemis nodded.
“Yes, but he was injured during the fall. His recovery has slowed because of their distance. They did not land together. And the humans – they’ve captured him and put him on some form of display as a discovery. He cannot fly. Not without healing further. Keeping him from Saphora is making him weak. And it is hindering the balance of her power as well. In attempt to help her in some way, Vida has been using her witchcraft to communicate to, and through Saphora. She’s been fighting off Tebias by launching her own power through her.”
Artemis pushed up her glasses.
“I fear that if it continues on like this that she may not survive it.”
The group fell silent, as their eyes fell to Loki. He too was silent, thinking of the information that was just given to him. What could be done to help her? To help the princess? His sister?
“That is why I am here to speak with Hydra,” Artemis said, getting back to the task at hand. The drakon in the lake lifted its head further, its eyes alert. Mizuko looked back from his friend to Artemis, not quite understanding.
“Why Hydra?” he asked.
“Vida wants to send someone to Earth to help Saphora. Someone who can train her to master her power. And –“
“Who can defend against his flames,” Mizuko finished. Artemis nodded. “But why Hydra, and not I?”
“Yes. Hydra is a water drakon, but Mizuko is the master of the element. Why not send him?” Avani asked, also curious.
“Because it is not certain when Ares will start her next assault on the kingdom, and she wants the strongest to stay here in preparation. She thinks it may be near.”
“Will Hydra be bringing Saphora back for the war?” Dakota asked, stepping out from behind Mizuko. Artemis nodded.
“Yes. But not until she is ready.”
“But what if the war happens before she is ready?” Avani asked.
“… Then she will have to come sooner. And hopefully it will be enough. That is why we must act now. Hydra?” she said, peeking past everyone to the lake.
Hydra had morphed into her hominoid form. She stood at just over five feet and nine inches. Her hair, a navy blue colour, hung just past her shoulders. A mixture of waves, curls, and straightness, reflecting the infinitely shifting ways of the water she resided in. Her eyes were a calm pale lavender in contrast. There were no pupils, like most of the guardians.
“Yes,” she answered, stepping forward.
Her pale skin shifted in the light as she made her way closer to the group. Her clothing of choice, which morphed with her, was a white suit. It looked as if it were made for the water. For swift movements in the currents. It was sleek, and easily adjustable to her curving body. She wore no shoes, so that she could feel the current beneath the ground’s surface, if there was any to be felt.
The group parted to make room for her to come forward.
“Will you accept, Hydra? The kingdom needs you,” Artemis pleaded. Hydra did not hesitate.
“Yes.”
Saphora’s heart raced as they moved deeper and deeper into the forest that she now feared. With each few steps they took towards the location, her body seemed more and more reluctant to move. She looked back at the group of people that was following her. Officer Johnson was immediately behind her, Fran and Officer Roland were behind her, chatting away, and Officer Glover and Dr. Lupin were behind them. Saphora scowled at the sight of seeing Fran and Roland walking together. But when Johnson looked up at her, she turned away, and moved a bit faster.
It didn’t take long for them to reach the clearing that the battle had taken place in. There before them was the damage that had been done by the fallen tree. Johnson covered her mouth with one hand as her other found her hip.
“Geez,” she breathed, looking around at the damage as the others came about to stand beside her. They all had similar reactions. “It looks like it was torn apart by hand,” Johnson observed, referring to the piece that Saphora had unknowingly flung at Tebias. “You fell from a tree with this kind of height?” she asked, turning to look at Saphora. Saphora nodded.
“I’m surprised a fall like that didn’t kill you,” Roland said. Saphora narrowed her eyes at him.
“Thanks,” she said bluntly. He shifted uncomfortably and went to explain himself, but Lupin cut him off.
“There’s no doubt that you hit your head in a fall like that. If not on the ground, then on the branches on the way down,” Dr. Lupin said. Johnson nodded.
“Oh definitely. That checks out, no doubt. I’m just trying to figure out how in the world this tree fell,” she said, walking towards it. “I mean look how sturdy it is. What could have made it fall?”
Saphora stopped to think about that too. At first she had thought that the force of her hitting the tree made it fall. But how could that be? She didn’t weigh all that much. And trees withstood all sorts of weather. Surely it could stand up against the thrashing of a twenty-something year old woman, right? Then what did make the tree fall?
“Yeah, it’s thick as heck. Maybe it’s old?” Roland suggested. Johnson shook her head.
“It wouldn’t just fall like that. I mean, I’m no tree expert or anything. But I’m pretty sure that’s not how it would have gone down. And there are no axe marks or anything on these. Not that I can see anyway.”
“And why would there be? If someone was going to cut down the tree, they would have seen or heard Saphora climbing it. They would have told her to come down,” Glover argued.
“Unless they were trying to hurt her,” Roland said. Glover and Johnson looked over at him. “What if someone was trying to hurt Saphora by cutting down the tree? But she survived – with a concussion that lead to the unfortun
ate death of Jones?”
“So you’re saying his death was an accidental result of the failure to kill Saphora?” Glover asked. Roland shrugged.
“A possibility.”
Johnson looked to Saphora, who was doing everything in her power to not mentally be present.
“Do you have any enemies, Saphora? Someone that might try to hurt you?” she asked.
“Dr. Lupin,” she blatantly mumbled. Fran took a step towards her.
“That’s not funny, Saphora. This is a serious question. Has anyone been threatening you?” Fran asked, concerned. Saphora hesitated before giving the only other answer she could think of.
“Tebias.”
Fran huffed and threw her hands up in the air, fed up with the nonsense that she kept talking about. She didn’t want to hear any more stories.
“As expected. It’s the only person she knows that has tried to hurt her before. It’s only natural for her to call on that memory,” Lupin noted.
Johnson sighed, shaking her head as she looked back at the tree once more.
“Glover. Call the guys out here to do some clean up. Everything on these parts,” she said, gesturing to the two halves of the tree. Glover nodded, taking out his phone to make the call.
They waited around for the other workers to come through and start searching the place until Saphora, Fran, and Lupin were told that they could leave. The three of them were heading back to Fran’s car when Lupin started a conversation with the reluctant Saphora.
“Saphora. We need to take a look at your back now,” he said, walking towards her. He stopped at the distance he shrunk when she turned to look at him as she walked. Lupin cleared his throat, glancing from the wary Fran back to the temperamental Saphora. “It could be some sort of infection. It’s spread since the last time we-“
“No.”
“Saphora, it needs to be looked at. What if it’s-“
“It doesn’t need to be looked at. You people have been looking at it for years and coming up with nothing. It has spread before. I was fine. I am fine.”
“But we’ve noticed your increased, err – instability since that night. It could be related to the-“
Saphora stopped walking, and Lupin stopped short, almost tripping himself in the process.
“You think my anger has something to do with the marks on my back?” she asked in disbelief. In appall. “No, doctor. It has nothing to do with my anger, or my dislike for you. I’ve always disliked you. From the first session,” she said, taking a step forward.
“Saphora,” Fran urged warily.
“I kept it aside for Fran’s sake. Out of respect. But since you’ve managed to get her on your side, that level of respect is slowly but surely depleting,”
“Saphora!” Fran said in offense.
“I don’t see any reason to hold back exactly how I feel about you anymore, doctor,” she said, before moving to walk past him. Lupin reached forward to grab hold of Saphora’s arm.
“It needs to be done for your own good,” Lupin urged. But instead of grabbing her arm, he ended up catching hold of the back of her sweater because of her movements. The sweater stretched backwards, exposing Saphora’s back to the crisp cold air and to Lupin’s eyes. They both gasped. Lupin at what he saw, and Saphora at the chill that surged through her, followed by the hot flow of anger. She spun around to rip his grip of her, and in the process, she slipped up. Winds whipped from her body into Lupin in an instinctive act of self-defense. Lupin’s eyes fluttered at the sudden gust of wind. His glasses wobbled on his face and his hands quickly reached up to keep them steady.
The winds left as quickly as they had come, stunning both Lupin and Saphora. Her eyes went wide, realizing what had happened and she anxiously awaited Lupin’s reaction. Once his eyes opened, they seemed to hold a different expression. They shifted from that of shock, to realization. He didn’t even look around. To see what had caused the wind. Because he was looking at what caused it. She took a step back, away from his peering eyes. Knowing that if she stayed silent, it would only make his detached assumptions more valuable.
“… Don’t touch me,” she breathed, glancing at the angered Fran. She hadn’t seen. She looked back at Lupin, who was adjusting himself. “I’m not going to any more of your sessions. You’re fired. Whether Fran does it or not. Burn my files. No – as a matter of fact, give them to me. I want them.”
Lupin chuckled.
“That’s funny? They’re about me. They’re mine.”
Lupin shook his head, pulling his sleeves down and clearing his throat.
“No, Saphora. Those files – your files, belong to the government.”
Saphora’s eyes narrowed.
“What?”
“Those files, if you’re a threat to society, belong to the government.”
Now Fran looked at Lupin with the same expression as Saphora, even taking a step forward.
“A threat to society?” she repeated. Lupin, nodding, not even looking over at Fran.
“That’s right. With Saphora’s recent violent behavior and with this case happening, she could easily be marked as a potential threat. If you walk away from my office, I’ll have no choice but to hand your files over to the police when they ask for them.”
Both Saphora and Fran stood shocked at the words that lacked such a required level of remorse. They glanced at each other. And then at the nonmoving Lupin, before Saphora spoke again.
“You can’t do that,” she said as barely a breath.
“On the contrary. I’d be betraying my country if I didn’t,” he said sternly.
Saphora grimaced and her hands clenched into fists. She couldn’t believe it.
Lupin shifted his weight onto his other leg, now looking at Saphora with an air of cockiness. So quickly had the tables seemed to turn. And it made Saphora’s head spin. Her mouth opened and closed as she searched for something to say. But her well of infinite responses had suddenly gone dry at the threat of being exposed.
“I’ll see you on Monday,” he concluded, turning around and continuing on the path to his car. She stood speechless as he walked away from them. But instead of going after Lupin to yell at him, she slowly turned to Fran, her expression caught between disbelief and fear.
“You … You’re going to let him do that?” she asked Fran. Fran shook her head. Not as an answer, but as a form of pleading with Saphora. She fought for words to say but could come up with nothing by the time Saphora rolled her eyes and started walking away.
“Saphora? Saphora!” Fran called after her, as she followed close behind. “What am I supposed to say, huh?” she asked, catching up with her and doing her best to match her pace.
“That you don’t approve, for starters,” Saphora scoffed, shaking her head.
“Saphora, looking at your back is for your own good,” she said, desperate for her to see her side of things. “What if it’s something dangerous? A disease?” Saphora scoffed again.
“When have I ever, in the entire time that you’ve cared for me, been ill? From even so much as the common cold?”
“That’s not the point,” she said, pulling on her arm. Reluctantly, Saphora complied and stopped walking. “Can’t you just understand that I’m worried about you? I know you think you’re invincible, but can’t you just do this? So I can put my mind to ease?” she seemed to beg. Saphora’s gaze softened as she heard the pain in her voice. “There are so many things … That I don’t understand. This – if I could figure out just one …”
It both warmed and chilled Saphora to hear that. On one hand, Fran seemed to be genuinely concerned about her, despite her failed attempts to show it. But on the other hand, she was also making a point. As long as she had known Saphora, in reality, she knew very little about her. And that hard truth suddenly became very clear to her. The most trusted person she had in her circle of one, knew little to nothing about her. Fran’s eyes searched Saphora’s for some sign that she understood what she was saying. And Saphora gave a soft grin
, for the sake of Fran’s nerves.
“Yeah … I’m sorry.”
Fran sighed and wrapped her arms around her tightly, resting her chin on her shoulder. Saphora’s hands found Fran’s back in the embrace, and she gently pressed her fingertips into the fabric of her puffy down coat.
“Thank you,” she said, pulling out of the hug. Saphora nodded, before Fran pulled her back into her embrace. And just then, Saphora’s phone vibrated against her pocket, making both Saphora and Fran gasp and flinch. They pulled away from each other again, looking down at Saphora’s pocket. Saphora’s eyes widened as she realized the only other person that could be calling her was Maverick. His prize for winning the question-battle was exchanging numbers. A smart move on his part. But bad timing on Saphora’s. She reached down to silence the phone, as Fran’s brows pinched together.
“Who’s that?”
“No one.”
“I’m not calling you. And I know Dr. Lupin isn’t. Who is it?”
“It’s just … some telemarketer.”
Fran grimaced.
“You know I don’t like you shopping online.”
“Sorry … I’m gonna … go for a walk and calm down, okay? I’ll meet you at home.” Fran gave a worried glance. “I promise.” Fran sighed and looked around at the area, shaking her head and folding her arms.
“I don’t want you out here by yourself anymore … It’s dangerous,” she sighed.
“I’m not going to stay here. I’m going to walk around in town. And even if I were to stay here, the police are here. A bunch of them, at that. What’s the worst that could happen?” she asked, glancing down at her phone that had started vibrating again. But this time, since their bodied weren’t pressing together, Fran didn’t take any notice to it. Fran reluctantly agreed, putting a hand on Saphora’s shoulder.
