by Brindi Quinn
To put it simply, the scene was funny . . . and entirely over the top, but also sweet, so sweet that I wanted to cry.
I started to reach for him but stopped myself out of habit.
It’s fine to touch him now, though, right?
Yet I refrained. There was something I had to do first.
Ardette’s panting answer had reminded me that he was in need of revival. That had to come before anything else. I reached for his horn with the intention of letting him draw spirit. He placed a shaky hand over mine and closed his eyes.
Don’t hold back. I’m still all right with the rainsong.
When he’d had his fill, he lowered my hand but did not release it. Instead he entwined his fingers in mine.
Er-
But then I decided that that was okay. He’d broken the curse that had been over Nyte, the curse that had kept us from touching. Ardette had taken a chance, saved us in a moment of desperation, and ultimately freed us from the chains of emulator bondage. Ardette deserved more than I could give him, so my hand was fine.
With my other, I reached out, still a little wary, and placed it on Nyte’s head. The addiction said nothing. The only voice in my head was my own.
No warmth? This is great!
I wanted to laugh, cry out, or do something, anything, to show off my complete joy, but there wasn’t time now. She was waiting.
With new freedom, I ruffled the top of Nyte’s mossy hair.
He looked up at me, grinning like an idiot. I returned the grin with something equally idiotic and then signaled that we had to move on. No matter how earth-rocking this had been, we had to keep going. Phase two was underway, and we couldn’t stop now. There’d be time to test out our new boundaries later.
Understanding, but still very much grinning, he nodded and rose.
Let’s go, Ardette.
Nyte took my other hand, and the three of us pressed on. We moved silently as possible through the pipe, which was now much harder to trudge though due to the increased water level, and came to the place where the sliced bars were. As we neared, the voices of Druelcans started to reach us, even through the thunderous storm overhead. We were close. Dangerously so.
We checked the bars to make sure that the ariando hadn’t failed.
It hadn’t.
Satisfied, Nyte gave me a nod, and together we turned to head back to the others.
But Ardette had other plans. Giving my hand a sudden hard yank, he heaved me away from Nyte.
Huh? I wrinkled my brow at him.
Little did I know, the plotting Daem was about to uproot phases three and four.
Nyte started towards us, but Ardette held up a finger, commanding him to wait. We were all now sopping wet, but Ardette’s mouth was dry. Confused, I waited as he again brought his lips to my ear.
In a voice that was quieter than breeze, he breathed, “Be obedient. This is the only way they’d have let you come.”
What? They?
“The others.” And then, “I love you.”
He kissed my lobe gently.
Now even more confused, I pulled away and studied him, trying to discern what he was playing at.
Nyte, however, responded to the kiss with far more vigor. He lurched forward with a look that said, ‘What the hell, man? Are you serious?’, and threw a fist, but Ardette had a counter already planned. He flickered to shadow just when Nyte’s swing should have made contact, and Nyte instead fell through him. Ardette used the opportunity to give me a great tug through to the other side of the broken bars.
It was then that I saw that the pipe curved up just beyond them. From what I could tell, it looked to be a dead end, but that wasn’t stopping Ardette from whatever he was about to do.
“Stay, Elf,” he commanded over his shoulder while slipping up his hood.
Nyte again started after us, but Ardette performed the next sequence of events more quickly than I’d ever seen him move. It was as though he’d been storing up all of his energy for a time such as this, always concealing the fact that he too, could be quick and fluid if he so chose.
There was a small hole circled by a dark, looping design on the wall to the right. With great rapidness, Ardette pulled out his saber and pierced it into the hole. He held my wrist tightly, so that it even hurt a little, but for the moment, his brutish behavior was unnecessary. I was too captivated by the intrigue of what he was doing to attempt escape.
The hole must have been extremely deep, for it completely swallowed the blade – all the way up to the hilt. When that was all that remained, Ardette gave the handle a twist, apparently using the weapon like some massive key.
You’re unlocking something?
Ardette said nothing in reply, but he didn’t need to. A loud click informed me that my assumption had been right. By this time Nyte had gotten back on his feet, and as he splashed towards us, face a mixture of horror and fury, the floor below us started to rise.
That’s when I understood: We were on one of the lifts!
“Ah!” My cry was louder than it should have been.
Ardette removed his saber, covered my mouth, and forced me back against him as the lift brought us up towards a hole that was sliding open at the top of the pipe. Once again, I was a captive, but this time my captor was someone else. Someone I knew, and he was bringing right into enemy territory without my guard.
ARDETTE! WHAT THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?! LET ME GO!
Ardette responded only by kissing my neck and holding me tighter. I tried to wiggle away, but he was too strong.
ARE YOU CRAZY? I HAVEN’T EVEN SET OFF THE LIGHT BURSTS, AND WE CAN’T GO IN WITH JUST THE TWO OF US!! AT LEAST LET NYTE COME!
The Elf in question was below us, angry and wet. He’d reached the lift just a moment too late, and we’d been out of reach before he could hop on. All I could do was look over the edge and give him an apologetic grimace.
Nyte . . .
Nyte eyed Ardette with blazing, furious shock and threw up his hands in frustration. I was certain that the next time they met, Nyte would attempt murder.
Ardette wasn’t worried. He sighed and rested his mouth in my hair while the lift took us up, through the hole, and into the fortress, leaving my first captor behind in the darkness.
~
The lift brought us to a room; a small, metal shed of sorts. Outside, there were the voices of at least a dozen men blanketed by the shroud of thunder.
“What was that pop?” said a booming voice from outside.
I stiffened in Ardette’s arms.
They’d heard the lift. Of course they had. They’d heard it, and they would come to investigate. With my pulse quickening, I squirmed in Ardette’s arms, but he shook his head.
Let go! We have to go! They’ll come!
But a second voice pushed away those fears.
“The sewer lift must’ve activated by itself again.”
“Oh, that’s right,” said the first voice. “Shitty piece of equipment. They keep fixing it, and it keeps breaking back down!”
Oh, – I let out my held breath – phew.
Still holding me tightly, Ardette slipped on my hood.
He brought his mouth to my ear and whispered, “Be good.”
NO!
After what he’d just done, there was no way I was going to behave obediently. No way – except one.
“Your sister,” he said the magic words.
I groaned inside, knowing that he’d gotten me. Fine. But I’m really mad at you right now, so don’t get cheeky. You’d better have a plan. Seriously. You’re in a lot of trouble.
He laughed breathlessly, and though I’d said I’d cooperate, he didn’t loosen his grip.
“More,” he mouthed, looking up.
Rain?
He nodded.
But I’ve been holding it for so long! I don’t know if I can give much more!
“No whining.”
I rolled my eyes and pushed the song as hard as I could, growing red in t
he face in the process. The rain, which was already pelting like arrows, started to come down in sheets.
“ARGH!” came a call from outside.
“DAMMIT!” said another voice, “WHAT’S WITH THIS TEMPEST?”
The cries were followed by the thudding of feet.
Ardette waited until the last of the thuds had stopped before stepping off of the lift and pulling me out of the shed. The lift sank back into the darkness below.
Argh!
We were immediately lost in the downpour, but that was exactly what Ardette had been hoping for. With the rain that way, falling in violent sheets, it was hard to see even a few feet in front of us. I blocked my face from the pelting spears of wetness that threatened to tear away my cloak and let Ardette pull me.
He dragged me around a few benches to where there was a row of small metal buildings. The rain made a clanking clamor against their roofs that only added to the fortresses steamy symphony of knocks and turns and gasps.
“This way!” yelled Ardette, leading me behind the line of metal houses.
Lost in the midst of it, we no longer had to be cautious of the Druelcans hearing us. In fact, a passing guard paid us no mind even when he nearly pummeled into Ardette. The rain had caused that much of a frenzy. With the rainsong mighty and steady, I focused on keeping up my stamina. Pulling in warmth earlier had given me a second boost of energy, but that energy would only last so long. I had to keep it up the best I could, thus my pace was slower than Ardette would have liked.
When it reached something close to leisurely, he pulled me into an area where parts made of metal were stored. We stood behind the pile and I tilted the rain, giving us a break from its pelting pour. That was what I needed. I doubled over and caught my breath, ever holding the rain. He only allowed me a short moment of reprieve before pulling me away again.
It seemed that not much had changed since Ardette’s last visit to the fortress, for he knew his way around incredibly well, even with the hindrance of rain. Around another cluster of metal buildings and past something that looked like a giant catapult, he dragged me to a triangular building that was against a tower – the eastern tower, I presumed.
Oh my Creator, we’re there!
My adrenaline started to rush.
Without knocking, Ardette plowed through the triangle’s door, taking me along with him inside.
The room beyond was small and dry and lit by a quiet, humming fire. But more interesting than that, and entirely more terrifying, was that the room also contained three people – three Druelcans, two of whom were standing guard. The other was seated behind a large wooden desk that was adorned with white cockle shells.
Upon seeing us, the two guards rose with lances out. I backed into Ardette, who’d once again embraced me in a captor’s grip.
“Who’re you?!” spat one of them angrily.
“Terru of the western tower,” lied Ardette.
“What?” asked the other, eyeing Ardette with valid suspicion. “Why’d you come here, and who’s with ya?”
I kept my head forward to hide my face.
“I’ve a present for Commander Gershaw,” said Ardette.
What?! Present? I struggled to remain ‘obedient’. Alright. So that’s our game? In the end, I managed.
“Present?” questioned the sitting man. His voice sounded young – young for someone called ‘commander’.
Ardette continued, “It was delivered from someone named Sowpa.”
The commander bolted from his seat. “Remove your hood at once, Terru!”
Shoot, shoot, shoot!
I was certain that we’d been found out. That using his dead brother’s name twice had been our demise. Stupid Ardette. What were the chances it would work a second time?!
With a pounding pulse, I concentrated on the ariando above and prepared myself to sing a mist bomb into being. However, Ardette didn’t seem at all worried. Rather, he flung his hood back haughtily.
I winced and waited for a signal to start the song.
The commander eyed Ardette without reaction. “Alright,” he said. “I’ll accept it. Go away you two.”
He shooed away his guards.
“Er, yes, Commander!”
The two of them obediently retreated out of the room and into the ‘tempest’. The metal door slammed behind them, splattering us all with storm droplets.
Ardette? What should I do? Say ‘pinhole’ if you want me to cast a song, all right? ‘Pinhole’.
Shivering, I waited, but ‘pinhole’ did not come.
The commander laughed deeply and began walking over to us in a saunter. “Well, well, look what the storm swept in. I always knew you’d come back.” He laughed again. “Finally decided those bullshit ideals of yours were worthless, eh, little brother?”
This time, I was unable to refrain from reacting just a little.
LITTLE BROTHER?!
I jerked my head up slightly, so that I could clearly see the man’s face. He was strikingly handsome and no more than two and a half decades old.
I tried to make sense of it all. Ardette has another brother? That was the only explanation. Sowpa had been part of Yes’lech, and he’d been there on that night, but he’d died, hadn’t he? And now Ardette’s other brother was a commander of Druelca? How did that work out? So can we trust this man, or . . . ?
Ardette shrugged. “Hm, yes. I suppose you were right. I guess it is in my nature to side with darkness after all, Sowpa.”
I’d thought I’d had it at least partially figured out, but at the utterance of ‘Sowpa’, everything was once again thrown into disarray.
Wait, this is Sowpa? But I thought he was dead! What’s going on, Ardet-
BOOM!
The commander interrupted my ranting thoughts by slamming his hand against the wall and making me jump.
“I told you NEVER to call me that again! Sowpa is dead! It’s Gershaw now! You know better than anyone that the name bestowed by our brainless parents died when I joined The Mystress!”
“Yes, brother Gershaw.” Ardette smirked. “I sincerely apologize.” He didn’t seem very apologetic. Instead, he looked very pleased with himself for causing the uproar.
“Still as smug as ever, I see, you little bastard. Well then, what offering have you brought?”
The commander slinked right up to me and sniffed.
“Oh,” shrugged Ardette, “just an innocent for your enjoyment.”
“An innocent?!” Gershaw reached out with hungry eyes and drew a few eagerly shaking fingers along my chin. “Where did you find one of these? Last one I had was that Squirrelean boy.”
“Oh, you know. It’s hard not to stumble upon them when they so eagerly throw themselves. This one was as affected by me as all the rest, but she was a little prettier, so I decided to keep her.”
Oh, brother.
Gershaw laughed again. “Well, let’s see her pretty little face. I like it better when they’re girls.”
His drawing fingers turned gripping, and they clutched my chin.
“No!” Ardette pulled me back from him. “Why don’t you have a drink first? Let your palate be the judge.”
“A wonderful idea!” Gershaw reached for my right wrist, but Ardette was already throwing him my left – the one without the tattoo. Gershaw caught it and brought it to his left horn, which was slightly longer than Ardette’s.
I’d donated spirit on several occasions, so I was prepared for the icy cold sucking that was about to happen, but what I wasn’t prepared for was Gershaw’s version of it.
In a forceful motion of violence, he slammed my palm down on his horn’s tip, which was far, far sharper than Ardette’s, and twisted. The horn went deep into my skin, and I winced.
Uuu!
Behind me, Ardette let out a breathless growl, for blood started to trickle down Gershaw’s horn and onto his head.
My hand was icy – more than icy. It was cold and dead, and it hurt. Not only was spirit being sucked out of me, life was b
eing sucked.
Gershaw placed his other hand on my cheek. “She’s good! She’s really good! She almost tastes like . . .” His words trailed off in a slur.
“Oh, surely you can’t remember that far back, can you, Sowpa? That was another lifetime for you.”
But in place of an answer, Gershaw only started to giggle. He really was an andap addict, and he was quickly becoming drunk off of me.
“This is quite the gift, little brother. You know, when you showed up, I decided I’d kill you, but now . . . I might just let you live.”
“It is I who will let you live, Sowpa.” Ardette’s expression was sad, his voice flaked with pity.
Gershaw only giggled more. He was taking me in much too quickly. The overhead thunder quieted in response to my weakened state.
Ardette leaned forward. “I’m sorry, my cherry pit. Just a little longer.”
I winced again and nodded. The icy pain was now all the way up to my shoulder.
Gershaw’s eyes drifted shut, and he grinned stupidly. “Her face,” he said in a hiccup, “let’s see it!”
Without hesitation, Ardette pulled the hood back.
“As you wish, brother,” he said quietly.
Gershaw squinted a moment. Then his scarlet eyes widened and he stumbled back, taking my arm with him.
“It’s her! She is the one! She is-”
“Yes, Sowpa. It is her.”
“Her?!” I repeated.
Ardette ignored me. He only continued to address his brother. “Now that you know, will you keep her for yourself, or will you give her to The Mystress? This girl you once loved?”
Once loved?
“I will . . . I will . . . kill . . . her.” In one last fit of giggles, Gershaw collapsed into a drunken pile on the floor, and free from him, my arm immediately started to warm back up.
“Ardette!” I whispered. “What was that ab-”
“Later.” His voice was stern. He grabbed my hand, stuck out his tongue, and licked away the flowing blood. I was surprised, but I didn’t dislike it. Then he ripped a bit off of Gershaw’s sleeve and quickly tied it around my hand in a makeshift bandage.
