by Tristan Vick
20
Wind rushes past me as I press my arms back and straighten my body, trying to cut my wind resistance and limit drag. My only thought is that I need to catch up to Lisette, who is floundering about in the air like a fish out of water, before we are pulverized against the cobblestone streets of Koroth below. By my estimation, I have about eight seconds to catch up to her and then eight more seconds to figure out how not to die.
Wisps of cloud whisk by as we cut through the white haze which gathers below. I lose sight of Lisette momentarily, which causes me to panic, but then I spy her. Adjusting my trajectory, I position myself just above her. It appears she’s passed out from the shock of the fall. The air is thin up here and it’s hard to breathe against the downward force and the rushing wind, which always seems to hasten away from you with each breath.
Out of the blue, I see a pink flash of light. Cutting through the clouds is Guerriero! He’s in freefall with me. The dragon’s crystal in his chest flares hot with radiant energy.
Where’d you come from? I think to myself. The racing wind causes my hair to lash wildly about and my evening dress flaps so violently that the small tears I gained in the fight against the shadow monster turn into big tears. Soon enough, the bottom part of my dress has pulled apart into five or six strands which look like the streamers on military banners that flow in gusts of wind upon the battlefield.
Suddenly Guerriero rolls across the sky, like a hawk doing a spinning maneuver, and the flying Juggernaut of living armor appears right on top of me. Without a second’s hesitation, there is a loud hiss, steam jets shoot out of Guerriero’s orifices, and each plate of armor unfolds like the nastic unfurling of flower petals at dawn’s first light.
「ARIANNA…」 Guerriero booms, 「WE MUST CONJOIN!」
I throw out my arms and legs to cause drag and slow up and Guerriero moves in closer. Guerriero’s armored torso opens wide, as does the arm and leg plating. With every steel plate fully extended, like the feathers of an eagle, the living armor reaches around my body like a giant metallic grasping hand.
The moment Guerriero and I come into contact, the steel plates clamp down upon my body. There’s a series of clanking sounds as each metal plate shifts into position and slides organically across my body, fitting themselves to my body’s natural figure as tightly as a new glove. Before I know it, I’m wrapped up in form-fitted armor, and inside Guerriero. Inside the Juggernaut of living armor.
「I’m handing control over to you, Mistress Arianna. Please save Lisette.」
Fully encased in the armor, we are two entities merged into one. My left hand, now wrapped in armor, continues to hold firm to the Sword of Runes, while my right hand extends out toward Lisette. Now that I am merged with Guerriero, I find that I can reach Lisette’s hand, but just barely. I take her hand gently in my steel gauntlet and pull her into me.
「Deploying wings,」 Guerriero says as though he’s speaking inside my helmet.
“Wings?” I ask, completely amazed by the prospect. And sure enough, the skeletal framework of wings unfolds from the concealed compartment on the backside of the armor. Just in time too, for we fall through the final cloud layer and I can see the city rushing up toward us at breakneck speed.
Once the fins of the wings are fully extended, a translucent film unfolds between them, like the canvas sails of a sailing ship. The wind catches in the folds of the newly formed wings and picks us up in a dramatic fashion that would surely be a spectacle to anyone standing on the city streets looking up right now as they are witness to this death-defying spectacle.
I look to either side, through the rose-tinted eye-shields of the armor’s visor, and note that the wings are dragon-like in appearance. Which only makes sense. After all, the dwarves did harness the power of dragon’s eye crystals. Literally the lifeforce of every dragon. Utilizing the aesthetic and design elements of an actual dragon only seems fitting.
Making a few adjustments, I shift inside the armor and it responds intuitively, as if by thought. Everything seems integrated. Guerriero acts as a perfect symbiont, carrying out my wishes as soon as I can think them.
It takes a few moments for me to figure out how much I need to lean to one side or the other before I can get a feel for how the wings govern pitch and yaw. But after some practice, I finally get the hang of it and I’m soaring through the air with Lisette curled up in my metallic arms.
Below me are the pointed rooftops of Koroth, which carve out the skyline like crocodile teeth. I dive low, skimming the pointed spires and Gothic architecture then rapidly climb. Once my momentum drops off all I need to do is think of climbing higher and the wings automatically flap. With each flap of the wings I gain an immediate upward thrust. And I continue to will us higher and higher until, at last, we pierce the thick canopy of clouds. Behind us spans a swath of cobalt skyline that fades into a black canopy of starry night.
The obsidian tower, where we temporarily reside, looms in the distance like a great lighthouse, and I can see the glowing semicircle of the balcony entrance in the near distance.
I use the winged armor to climb higher and higher and gain some more altitude. Next, I aim for the balcony and then, leaning forward, I descend, allowing gravity to pull me downward as I glide toward it.
As with my wind rush technique, I realize I must slow myself down before landing, otherwise I’ll crash through the wall like a blazing comet. So, I dip down below my trajectory and then arc back up. If I time it right, the lull will occur just as I come up over the balcony. With an additional flap of the wings, I catch on the air a couple of feet above the balcony and then set down. My armored feet touch down with a metallic clank.
With Lisette resting safely in my metal arms, all I need to do to retract my outstretched wings is think the mere thought of it. They automatically fold back up and fix themselves back into place in a slot on my back. Once securely tucked inside the armor, segmented metal slats slide down to conceal them and add additional protection.
With a sluggish step, I lurch forward and head through the semicircular archway which enters Leif and Lisette’s chamber room. I scan the faces that stare at me in amazement and find Leif standing guard over Alegra, who lies on the floor and looks as though she took a rather hard hit. Zarine kneels beside Alegra and attends to a nasty bruise on her left arm. Luckily, the shadow creature is nowhere to be found.
As I stand in the center of the room, I catch a glimpse of my armored form in the mirror on the wall and make a mental note that I look like a more slender, feminine, version of Guerriero.
“By the Goddess!” Leif exclaims rushing up to us. “You saved her!”
“We saved her,” I correct. I tap the side of the helmet and the faceguard opens, revealing my face inside the protective casing of the Juggernaut.
“Arianna?” says Leif, unable to hold back his bewilderment.
“Here,” I say, gently placing Lisette into Leif’s open arms. “Make sure she’s all right.”
Leif sets her down on the floor next to Alegra and puts his ear to Lisette’s chest. After a moment, he lets out a sigh and looks back up. “Her heartbeat is normal. Just a bit of shock is all.”
That’s the best news I’ve received all day. I take a step back with a loud clank and realize everyone’s eyes are still on me, or more accurately Guerriero and me. Staring back at them staring at me, all I need to do is think the words “open.” The unfurling of steel plates, and the metallic clatter of sliding and clanking, begins.
Once the armor completely opens, I climb out. I discover I’m drenched through my evening gown, which is now torn in several places due to the unexpected battle with the shadow creature and the stress of the sky dive. Otherwise, I feel fine.
“What happened?” I ask, my eyes fixating on Alegra’s wound.
“The shadow creature attacked me,” Alegra answers in a weak voice. “I tried to stop it, but it tossed me across the room. I hit the lamp fixture on the wall and crashed to the floor rather ha
rd.”
“She’ll be fine,” Zarine insists, holding a glowing stone over Alegra’s wounds. “It’s but a bad bruise and a sprained elbow. Luckily, nothing is broken.”
Concerned for Alegra, I kneel beside her and let her put her arm across my shoulders. “I’m so relieved that you’re all right.”
We rise to our feet and Alegra shoots me a fierce look. “You scared me.” That’s when I realize her eyes are brimming with tears.
“I’m fine,” I say. “That’s what matters.”
“You were reckless and you could have died.”
“I could have,” I reply, trying to sound sympathetic. “But I didn’t. I’m here.”
Alegra puffs out a displeased sigh and then looks away. I bite my lip and shoot Zarine a confused look. She merely shrugs as if to say it’s none of her business.
“Thanks for taking care of her,” I say.
“It’s my pleasure,” Zarine states. “We’re all friends here.”
Zarine moves to the center of the room and then throws out her arms. She sends out a series of glowing runes from her fingertips, which waver in the air like flames. Each one wafts through the air like paper lanterns, flickering as they glide on ripples of air. Once they touch the wall, like a candle’s flame licking a parchment, scorch marks of the symbols burn themselves into the wall.
“There,” Zarine states. “I’ve placed a protective barrier all around this room.” Turning toward Leif, who holds Lisette in his arms, she adds, “You should be safe here for tonight.”
“Thanks,” Leif replies.
With a clangor of scraping and clapping metal, Guerrierotransforms back into his original self, and looks over at us.「I will stay and stand guard.」
“I’m sure she’ll appreciate that, big guy,” Leif says as he takes Lisette to the bed. Leif gently sets Lisette onto the bed and then tucks her in.
With that, Guerriero nods at us all, as if to bid us adieu, and then turns and sets himself in front of the balcony entrance where he peers out like a sentinel guarding the sacred gates of El Novette at the entrance into the thirteen levels of heaven.
“Come,” Alegra says to me. “We’d best get some rest too.”
I nod in agreement, and together we return to our bedroom chambers. I assist Alegra into bed and then turn and sit on the end. I look up to find Zarine lingering in the doorway.
“Is there anything either of you need?” she asks.
“I don’t think so,” I say in a quiet voice. I feel exhausted and I’m ready to sleep, but I know Zarine is just being protective of me. “I think we’ll be fine, for now. No need to trouble yourself.”
She smiles at me, and then says, “If there’s anything you need, anything at all…” Her voice trails off as she, true to fashion, leaves enough mystery so as for the imagination to fill in the blanks.
Zarine backs out of the room and pulls the doors shut behind her. Once I hear the lock click into place, I fall back onto the bed and let out a heavy sigh. I don’t even bother taking off my tattered dress because I’m just too exhausted to even bother.
“You’re attracted to her, aren’t you?”
“What?” I say, shocked. I’m completely caught off guard by Alegra’s question. I look at her only to find her staring at me with her amethyst gaze. But this time her eyes feel cold and, for the first time in our relationship, I feel jealousy and mistrust behind her stare.
“I only have eyes for you,” I say.
“You sure?” Alegra pries.
I feel accosted, as she’s never acted this way before. It’s quite out of character for her.
“Well, what do you want me to say?”
“The truth,” she snaps. “Admit you want to sleep with her.”
“That’s unfair!” I argue. “You know I’ve always been open with you. No lies.”
“It’s not me you’re lying to, Arianna. It’s yourself. The sooner you can admit that, the sooner you can stop pretending you care about me and finally go be with your girlfriend-stealing enchantress.”
“I think maybe that shadow monster hit you a bit harder than you think.”
“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Alegra folds her arms across her chest and glares at me.
“Nothing,” I say. I roll over onto my side, turning my back to Alegra. My cheeks are flushed red with anger and I’m livid. But I know that if I continue to fight it will only make things worse. So instead, I just grumble, “Never mind.”
Alegra does the same, and places her back to mine, and grumbles in and equally unhappy tone, “Fine.”
“Fine,” I say, fending off the sobs that want to come gushing out in torrents.
It tears me up inside that we’ve had our first fight. Worse still, it’s over nothing meaningful.
As the tears soak into my pillow, I begin to drift off to sleep. And, before I know it, the sandman comes to take me. Just before I fade out to a dreamy unconsciousness, my final thought is that I hope this little spat is as meaningless as it feels and I pray to the Goddess that things will be back to normal in the morning.
21
Unable to breathe, I jerk myself awake. It’s not the first time I’ve dreamed of choking or drowning in my sleep. Realizing on some subconscious level that my body is fighting to gasp for air but that the air never comes.
As it happens, whenever I have a nightmare, I wake up in a sweat, sit up in bed, and inhale the deepest breath I can take. It takes several moments, but then I realize it was only a dream. But this time is different. This time, when I wake up, I’m still choking. And two hands are clasped tightly around my throat.
Immediately, a surge of adrenaline rushes through me, and I clutch the two white wrists and try to pull them apart. I’m able to pry them loose just long enough to catch a quick gulp of air, but the hands suddenly clasp back down with a vengeance.
My eyes are wide open, and I stare up into the face of Alegra. All I want to do is ask why. Why are you doing this? But like earlier, her eyes are vacant. Unfeeling. And she stares down at me with an annoyed expression on her face as though she’s simply waiting for me to die and it vexes her that it’s taking so long.
Placing my palms together between our chests, I push them up between her arms, thrusting my tightly pressed hands upward as though I were diving into lake Abalon. I manage to overpower her and break her hold on my neck, but she straddles me around the waist with her firm thighs and prevents me from rolling away.
She reaches down for my throat again, but this time I catch her wrists before she can choke me further. Holding her arms at her sides, I demand to know the meaning of all this. “Why?” my voice rasps. My throat feel tight and scratchy, as though it itches from the inside as the dry air passes my lips. “Why are you doing this?”
“You stopped me from killing that little larcenous wench. But once you are out of the way, I can put that scarlet thief in the grave where she belongs. And then Leif and I can live out the rest of our lives together.”
“You and Leif? What?” That’s when it dawns on me. I’m not talking to Alegra. I’m talking to the vengeful spirit of Leif’s dead wife. “Hannah?”
Alegra jumps back and recoils away from me. As she pulls back, I scramble off the side of the bed, making sure to place it between the two of us. She does the same opposite me, and we stand on either side of the bed staring at one another suspiciously. Suddenly a smirk crawls onto her face.
“It took you long enough, barbarian girl.”
“You were the shadow creature all along?!” It dawns on me that I’m dealing with a tormented soul. A soul which lusts for vengeance but has somehow confused it for a most covetous form of love.
“Leif and I are bonded for all eternity. He vowed to love me for all eternity and nothing will change that. Nothing! When his infatuation wears off for that pasty, breastless bag of bones that barely passes for a woman, he’ll come back to me. He always does.”
“Hannah,” I say, cautiously inching toward the end of the bed. I ra
ise my open palms to let her know I mean her no harm. “Look, the thing is, you’re not…”
“Not what?” she sneers.
“You’re not supposed to be here. You’re dead.”
“Lies!” she screams. Without warning, Alegra leaps across the bed and pounces on me. We tumble to the floor and roll about.
My right leg smashes into one of the legs of the nearby dinner table to hard that I hear a snap. As first I think maybe I broke my leg but, as it turns out, it’s the table’s leg that has broken.
I scramble back on my elbows and reach for the broken table leg, which is now the closest viable weapon. Just as I catch hold of it, Alegra is on top of me again, pressing her hands into my larynx. With the wooden peg in my hand, I swing as hard as I can, even as I’m at a disadvantage, and strike Alegra across the temple. Luckily, it’s enough to knock her off me, but not enough to immobilize her.
She pushes herself back up. I spring to my feet and circle around her to keep her moving and not to give her a straight line of attack. If she comes at me again, I’ll be ready.
She reaches up and touches a small cut on her forehead. Examining her fingers, she notices a small dash of crimson residue dappling her fingertips.
“You cut me!” she says in bewilderment.
“I’m sorry,” I say, realizing that I unintentionally hurt my own girlfriend.
Hannah, inside Alegra’s body, begins laughing as though I had just said something funny, even though I have no clue as to what it would have been. Then she looks at me with a strange look that is both unsettling and intimidating. Keeping her gaze fixed, she licks the dollop of blood from her fingers and then smears it across her teeth with her pointer finger. She looks up and smiles eerily at me and then licks her teeth with her tongue, wiping away the pink residue and leaving a perfect spread of pearly white teeth grinning viciously at me.
