by Brindi Quinn
“How is killing her with song any different?” The hint of snide was back.
“I’ll unleash the Song and nothing more. The Creator will give her the punishment she deserves because it isn’t mine to deliver. I’ll sing and bring about a means for fate to play out, but I will not deliver a killing blow to even the one I hate, so I definitely won’t kill you!”
“Even if it means dying?”
Might die.
“Yes.” I didn’t want my life to end, but for some reason, my voice was strong and conviction-filled.
“Is that your final answer?” The guardian looked even sadder than he had before.
Goodbye Nyte. Goodbye Ardette. Goodbye Kantú . . . Goodbye everyone.
I closed my eyes but again felt no fear.
The Creator’s words rang in my head: With you, blessed daughter, I am well pleased.
I would trust that this was right. That my conviction wasn’t foolishness.
“It is my final answer,” I said.
“Very well,” said the boy.
I kept my eyes closed and waited for death or whatever it was that was going to happen, but after a minute or two of feeling no differently, I opened them back up.
The boy was now standing and braiding his long hair down his shoulder with a wide smile on his face.
“Then, you have passed the test,” he said brightly. “The Song of Salvation is yours, but it can only be released on ad’ai.”
I stared at him blankly, but he just continued to braid his hair.
The Song of Salvation? I . . . I passed?
“Wait, what?” I asked. “But you said-”
He shrugged. “Had you killed me, you would have gained the Song of Destruction, and your innocence would have died.”
“Destruction?! But I’m the-
The boy’s smile widened. “Oh, and your concern for my well-being is touching, but don’t worry; I really am just a spirit. Now then, Heart of Salvation, open your arms and receive the Song of Salvation!”
“Wait!”
But even though I was confused and surprised, my arms opened on their own.
Huh!?
Just then, a golden light, shining brighter than any light-source I’d ever encountered, burst into view and encompassed the grayness, completely blocking out the boy. Surging waves of gold danced into the nothingness, pouring into and becoming the air itself. While I stood in awe, the goldenness hovered around the space, soaking into my goose-bumped skin and filling my body.
It was warm and smelled like sun-baked futon.
This is the Song of Salvation?
As the Song settled within me, it brought with it a heaviness to my ribcage. It was a heaviness that was too much for me to bear, and it forced me to my knees like a landslide pulling young trees to their graves below its shaking belly.
It’s so intense! Almost crushing! I’m to carry this until ad’ai? But how will I be able to do that? Am I strong enough?
Seconds later, the goldenness was completely within me, and I was on the ground, unable to hold myself up with the Song under my skin. Again, my eyes were blind for just a moment.
“Aura!” It was Kantú’s voice. She was nearby, off to my left somewhere.
“Argh.” I groaned and tried to swallow the remnants of gold, forcing them all into the same place – that heavy brick just beneath my ribs.
And when the blind blackness started to retreat, with the return of sight, came the return of familiar surroundings, and there was someone warm with their arms around me.
“Miss Hav- Aura! You did it! I have always known you were not the Havoc!”
Nyte’s arms felt even warmer than the golden Song. Even with that golden heaviness consuming my thoughts, I knew that it was dangerous for him to be so close, but I was too weak right then to put any effort into taking his spirit. The others seemed to realize this, for none of them ran forward to remove me from his embrace. More sight returned, and Nyte’s concerned eyes became clearer. I wanted to crawl inside of them and leave the golden brick behind. To retreat into their deepness, away from the weight beneath my chest.
“You have decided,” said Darch quietly.
One by one the others materialized inside of my returning view.
“What the heck was that about?” asked Grotts, his voice a rumbling tremble.
Scardo looked equally confused. “Yes, please explain at once!”
“We can tell her now, can we not?” Nyte looked at Ardette.
“Tell me?” I asked. But I wasn’t entirely concerned with the specifics. After being so convinced that I’d never get to see him again, I was just glad to be back in my Elf’s arms. I pulled myself closer to his warm chest and closed my eyes.
His heartbeat was there, rapid. I held my ear against it and listened to the pounding that was for me. The warmth grew even warmer, but I was still too weak. Too disoriented. At least this way we could actually be close for once. I didn’t know how long this encumbered state of mine would last, and I intended to take advantage of it while I could. I brought my weak arms around Nyte’s back, below his cloak, and pulled him closer. I heard his heartbeat speed.
It was racing mine, but mine might have been even faster.
“Tell her what?” Kantú pressed.
Nyte was silent, clutching to me as though I might sink into the ground at any moment.
“The rest of the Silver Command,” answered Ardette.
“The . . . rest?” I peeked up at Nyte and he winced.
“Whaddaya mean the rest?” grouched Grotts from somewhere.
Ardette continued, “Well, well, something quite interesting for you to chew on, if I do say so myself. The follies of Yes’lech continue to grow, don’t they?”
“ARDETTE!” yelled the gruff man, evidently at the end of his rope, “Jus’ spit it out already!”
“Fine. If he’s just going to sit there like an imbecile, I’ll share. That coot, Pietri, ordered this also of the Elf:
‘Do not tell the child of Rosh your past. She must remain oblivious. The true prophecy states that the Hearts shall decide for themselves during the test which one is the Salvation and which one is the Havoc. This is why it is impossible to know for certain which she is. For this reason, treat her with caution.’”
For several seconds, it was quiet and I forgot to breathe, but then the flurry of questions started to kick up from the ground of my mind.
With caution? Wait a minute, so there was a chance all along that I might really be the Heart of Havoc?! But how can that be?! And even knowing that, Nyte and Ardette both . . .
I closed my eyes again, snuggled in closer to Nyte, and tried to make sense of it.
“Wait, what’s going on? Pietri didn’t want Aura to know Nyte’s past?” But Kantú’s questions were cast aside in lieu of the shattered Scardo’s.
“What?!” he cried. “It was her choice?! B-b-but why were we not informed?!”
“Heh, so even you didn’t know?” Grotts raised a brow at the trembling man.
“Hmph.” Ardette grinned brightly. “Why, how does it feel to be kept in the dark for once, oh favored one?”
Scardo looked like he was about to faint. “No! They wouldn’t have kept this from us! They must not have known! We must go inform them at once! Wait, Darch, did . . . did you know?”
Darch nodded and Scardo slumped over, visibly distressed that the officers would tell Darch something they’d kept from him.
Darch read this and said kindly,
“But don’t worry, friend! It is not because the officers confided in me. It is the spirits I gain my knowledge from.”
“Oh, I suppose that is true.” Scardo brightened up a bit.
During this little outburst, I’d continued contemplating in Nyte’s chest, and the conclusion I’d reached was something terrible. If my standing as a really Heart hadn’t been predetermined, then . . .
“So in my doing that, the Heart of Havoc’s fate was decided as well?!” I pushed myself away from
Nyte with sudden verve, but he clutched my elbows and pulled me back into him.
“No, no, no,” assured Darch. “The Havoc and the Salvation are opposites. She WOULD have chosen to kill the guardian. It’s just her nature. This test was only to reveal to the rest of us which of you is which, though there was hardly ever a doubt.”
But I didn’t really feel any better.
“The Mystress said she needed me present as a sacrifice to obtain the prophecy. Why?”
“She might have been misinformed?” suggested Darch.
Grotts shrugged. Scardo looked sick.
Was that really it? It didn’t seem very likely that Druelca, with all of their informational prowess, had been wrong about something like that.
The others seemed to question it too, for the air was silent for a bit. It was in the center of this silence that something struck me every so faintly – ever so slyly – and when it did, I let out a small, gasping sigh.
Warm.
“Miss Heart, are you all right?” Scardo was the first to notice the strength returning to my body. I’d been trying to ignore it for a while now, but it was there, returning – the former weakness now being replaced by thirst.
“Ardette!” squealed Kantú.
And then, before either Nyte or I could protest, Ardette was over my shoulders, yanking me away from that warm, budding temptation with his cool, gripping palms.
Nyte’s nostrils flared, but he refrained from cold remark. It was apparent he’d reached the same understanding that I had – that we were both to be grateful for what little time we’d been given in each others’ arms.
“Nyte,” urged Grotts.
“I know,” said Nyte, irritated. “I will remove myself from her.” He gave me a sorry look before springing to his feet and bounding over to Rend, who’d been limply placed against a built-up dune.
Ardette was still clinging onto my shoulders, and it was only with his help that I was able to stand.
“What’s wrong, Aura?” asked Darch, concerned. He shuffled up next to me and reached for my ears.
“The Song of Salvation’s heavy, is all.” I considered my own words and added, “Actually, it’s really heavy.”
“I there anything I can do?” asked Scardo with a bow. “If I can be of service, I would gladly oblige, Miss Heart.”
“Oh, what could you do?” Kantú swatted him with her tail. “Aura, I’ll ask the feather man if he knows how to make it lighter, okay?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Kantú stuck out her arm, and the bird descended from its higher crystal tree perch on cue. Another one-sided conversation ensued.
“Uh-hu,” said Kantú, a look of concentration upon her face. “An emulator? What’s tha-”
“Shoo!” Darch interrupted the question with a great, two-handed brush-away. Looking annoyed, the bird flapped off.
“Darch!” scolded the Squirrelean. “What did you do that for?”
“That old Elf doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Good thing you’ve got a wise Magir like me along, eh? Isn’t that right, Aura?”
“Huh? I guess . . .”
“I’ll help!” He sang, clapping his hands together. “And so will Ardette!”
“Help, will I? When have I ever let you speak for me, you damn, meddlesome-”
“But Ardette, Aura’s struggling, can’t you see? You wouldn’t want her to suffer, would you?”
Struggling? Oh please, like that’s going to convince-
But Ardette frowned and said, “And just what would you like me to do, oh wise Magir?”
Oh, really? Surprised, I studied the Daem’s face, but it was unreadable.
“That’s more like it! You’re going to reach in and break the song up a bit. It’s all clumped up, so breaking it apart should distribute some of the weight.”
“Fascinating,” said Ardette dryly.
“I’ll slow her blood flow, so that you can get around easier.”
“Pardon me?! Slow her blood flow?” Scardo was now almost as pale as Ardette.
“Grotts,” said Ardette, “take that bundle of nerves away from here, would you?”
“Er, come along, then, Scardo. You too, Kantoo. Let’s go figure out if there’s a deposit of condensed shadow ‘round here.”
“Alright, Grottsy! Come on, Scardo. This’ll be fun!”
“Oh, ahem, yes.” Scardo didn’t look very comfortable with the idea, but with Grotts’ hand wrapped entirely around his bicep, the hunched man had no choice but to feebly obey.
“See you in a bit, Aura!” shouted Kantú, and the trio trotted away.
Darch opened up his pack and pulled out a black dandrill blanket for me to lie on. Reluctantly, and feeling like an awkward, helpless doll, I let Ardette set me down. The situation wasn’t ideal. I didn’t really feel like allowing the pair of them to go digging around inside of me and performing weird shadow-spirit experiments, but the heaviness was too strong. If I didn’t want to be crushed, I had no other option but to go along with it.
Squatting near Rend a safe distance away, Nyte looked on. “There is no danger involved, is there?” he asked, his voice more threatening than inquisitive.
Ardette beamed fiendishly. “Only the possibility of heart failure, should I aim too high.”
“Funny, Ardette,” I retorted. “I’ll be sure to haunt you before crossing the Mistlands if that happens.”
“If it means we could spend forever together.”
“Ugh.” My emission of disgust was mixed with that of strain.
Darch pushed up his sleeves and looked at Nyte. “You can only stick around, kid, as long as you don’t try touching her or anything. If you can’t do that, then you might as well take Rend and go for now.”
“No, I wish to stay by her side.” Nyte stood from his crouch and walked over. “I will refrain.”
“Please, Darch. I want him neh-nnn-neaaar . . .”
But without warning, as it had been at Yes’lech, Darch’s pinky was already on my forehead, circling . . . circling . . . circling . . .
Look, the sky has become Daem . . . er . . . I mean ‘day’. Wonder when that happen . . . ened . . .
This time, though, my thoughts were more coherent. It seemed I wouldn’t be completely knocked out for the procedure. Still, as the circling continued, my heartbeat slowed, and my breathing followed shortly thereafter.
I could vaguely make out the three blurry faces above me, peering down.
There was a cool hand gently resting on me, but the hand was too low. It wasn’t at my chest where the brick resided; it was at my navel.
Don’t you d . . . d . . . hare. Don’t you hare. I mean ‘dare’. Don’t . . . you . . . dare.
Nyte’s agitated voice was there, “You need not lift her shirt for this, you lecherous-”
“The moral brigade, are we? Relax. Like I would actually try something – not that an old-fashioned bore like you would understand what she really wants anyway. Besides, it’s pointless to deny that you would have liked to take a peek yourself. We all know what sort of shady person you are.”
The hand moved up to its proper place.
“All right, Ardetto, she’s stable, so plunge away!”
“I told you not to call me th-”
“Yes, Ardetto, we are waiting.” Nyte’s smirk was too blurry to make out, but without a doubt, it was there. “Go ahead and use your powers of darkness.”
“Ha. Ha. Just so you’re aware, Elf, there’s always a chance I’ll leave from a different point than that which I enter. Can’t wait to see what’s going on inside that mixed up little head of hers right now. Pity you’ll never experience that connection.”
The hand plunged in too quickly. My lungs were immediately overtaken by smoke. I wanted to cough, but my body was dormant and wouldn’t allow something so active.
Can’t . . . breathe!
“Careful, Ardette!” scolded Darch, “You’re just being reckless now!”
“I swear if you hurt her, I
will-”
“Save it for someone that pays mind to the empty threats of a powerless puppet.”
I can’t breathe!
“DAMN!” yelped Ardette. The hand quickly retreated from my chest, and I was again free to draw in air.
“What is it?!” Nyte was frantic. “What has happened?!”
“I warned you, Ardette. Get your head clear. Need me to send him away?”
“No!” argued Nyte. “I refuse to leave her in the hands of a foolish, perverted-”
“Shut up, both of you! I need to concentrate!” Ardette’s blurred face was right over mine. “Sorry about that, my cherry pit, your boy’s being a real bother.” His uncaring was tainted by anxiety.
Again the hand plunged in; this time slowly.
Much bet . . . ett . . . ter . . .
“Did you find it, Ardette?” asked Darch. His pinky was static, but it was still there, in the center of my forehead.
“Yes, it’s here, but it’s sol-” His answer was cut off by a large pant. “Unh! It’s solid! Gah!”
Care . . . fffful, Ardettoes . . .
“Get out of her before you break something!” Nyte’s voice was strained.
“Nyte, go and fetch whatever andap Scardo has on him,” ordered Darch.
“No!” panted Ardette, “I’ll be fine without- Unh!”
“Now, now, Ardette, this is no time to be stubborn. Go, Nyte! Hurry!”
Nyte let out a begrudging, scoffing huff, but said, “I understand. I will return, Aura!”
Now there were only two blurry faces.
Ardette’s shadow was around the Song. I could feel his fingers digging into its sides and squeezing, but try as he may, the Song of Salvation wouldn’t budge.
“Darch, it’s too thick! Can’t . . . ungh . . . get through!”
“You just need a little more juice, right, Ardette? Come on, you can do it!”
“Dammit, I’m trying, but . . . what if I can’t get it? Do you have something in the way of a back-up plan?”
“Now, Ardette, you know we won’t need one. Come on, brother, try again!”
They really are . . . Rends. Er, friends. Theeeey are friends.
Indeed, with the others out of earshot, the two of them were behaving quite civilly and very much like friends.
