Hour of Mischief

by Aimee Hyndman

  I nodded mutely.

  “And,” Itazura smiled again. “You did kiss me back.”

  I sighed. “Fine, maybe a little. But next time give me a little warning.”

  Itazura’s eyebrows shot up. “Next time?”

  “Shut your mouth.”

  Itazura chuckled and finally released me from his grip. Even with my left arm free, I didn’t try to hit him.

  My good mood lasted until we reached the foyer of the library–and found ourselves faced with about twenty vigilants. All were armed. And all had their various weapons pointed in my direction.

  “Janet Redstone,” said the man at the front of the pack. It was my old friend with the mechanical arm. I still had a slight bruise from where he had nearly crushed my shoulder. “Don’t try to run. There’s no escape for you.”

  “So you found me,” I replied, raising an eyebrow. “I expected trouble from your lot sooner than this. Guess you’re getting slow on the draw.”

  “You were foolish to wander back into the center ring,” the guard with the mechanical arm said. “Trying a new job so soon? And at one of the most important buildings in the whole of Memoria? You didn’t even have the grace to sneak in at night.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ll get rid of them,” Itazura murmured.

  “No,” I whispered. “You’ll draw too much attention. If people find out I’m with you, then word will get around to the elder gods, if it hasn’t already.”

  “Did you plan to fight them all off yourself?”

  “Nope.” My hand drifted toward my pocket. “Even better.”

  “Stop talking,” the vigilant ordered. “Come quietly or we’ll shoot.”

  “You’ve caught me, officer.” I sighed, putting on my best disappointed face. “And here I really thought stealing at seven o’clock would do me some good. But it hasn’t done a thing.” I shook my head. “If only it wasn’t in the heat of summer, then it might have been dark out. But okay, I’ll come clean.”

  “So, you did steal something,” the vigilant said.

  “Yes, yes, I’ll give it back.” I reached into my pocket. Every guard in the room seemed to take a step toward me. “Relax, relax, it’s not a weapon. It’s what I stole. Even if it was a weapon, I couldn’t take down all twenty of you.” My fingers closed around a small object in my pocket and I grinned to myself, before withdrawing Laetatia’s gear. I held it up to the light so that the vigilants, but most importantly Itazura, could see it.

  “What is it?” one vigilant asked.

  “An important artifact,” I said. “Worth a lot. It was near the center of the library and I didn’t think anyone would miss it. But alas, you all followed me here. Curse my recognizable hair and arm.”

  “Enough talk, Redstone.” The head vigilant ordered. “Drop the gear. Now.”

  I shrugged. “As you wish.” I flipped it into the air. Itazura rested a hand on my shoulder as the gear spun up and then down again. “Catch you later, boys.”

  I never got to see the dumbfounded looks on their faces, unfortunately, because the moment the coin struck the floor, there was a blinding flash and the library melted away. The next thing I knew, we were standing in the middle of Laetatia’s back room. No vigilants. No guns.

  “So,” Itazura said. “You finally remembered to bring that damn coin.”

  I picked the gear up from the ground, twirling it between my fingers. “Even I learn my lesson eventually.”

  Itazura laughed.

  Itazura kept me close to his side the next few days. He said it was because he didn’t want a beast of the Abyss to destroy me, but I think it was because he would die from withdrawal if he didn’t annoy me at least fifty times a day.

  Or . . . whatever gods did in place of dying. I didn’t know about that one.

  He departed only to check on the progress of the other gods. Then he left me in Laetatia’s tavern because, being human, I would probably just slow him down. When he was alone, he could probably just fly to see them.

  I spent most of my time in Laetatia’s tavern, which on one hand was nice because of the vast supply of alcohol but on the other hand, I didn’t like being cooped up.

  “One more day,” Itazura promised me one morning.

  “I didn’t say anything,” I muttered, staring down at my half-empty glass of alcohol.

  “No, but you look exceptionally moody today, so I figured I needed to reassure you.” Itazura shrugged.

  “How did you know?” I asked.

  “Well, that’s your third glass,” Itazura said.

  “Oh, is it?” I tipped the rest of the contents down my throat. “I thought it was the fourth.”

  “Maybe. The point is, you won’t be cooped up here much longer,” Itazura said. “Word travels fast in Fortuna but the rumors are still spreading to the other two human realms. The nomads are basically our mouthpiece to Tiyata and Kabila. Travel takes a bit longer there. Just be patient.”

  “Patience isn’t one of my virtues,” I said. “And it’s not one of yours either. Could you get me another drink?”

  “I think you’ve had enough.” Itazura plucked the glass from my hand.

  “What?” I glared at him. “I’m not even a little drunk yet. At least let me get a little bit tipsy.”

  “If someone tries to attack you while I’m gone, you don’t want to be drunk,” Itazura said, holding the glass out of my reach when I tried to make a grab for it.

  “Are you going somewhere?” I asked.

  “I’m checking in with the wisdom twins. Apparently Mother and Father are starting to catch wind as well, so the heat will be coming soon.” He sighed. “You don’t need to be involved with the godly politics.”

  “Hooray, you’re going somewhere.” I pumped my fist in the air. “No you for a few hours!”

  “Try to contain your joy.” Itazura rolled his eyes. “Maybe I should kiss you again. Then you won’t want me to leave.”

  I frowned at him. True, over the past few days, Itazura hadn’t tried to kiss me again, but he loved to bring it up. A lot. Every time he found something that annoyed me, he enjoyed exploiting it to the umpteenth degree.

  “I’m kidding,” Itazura rolled his eyes and headed for the door. “Don’t go wandering around. I’ll know if you do.”

  “How?” I asked.

  “Well the last two times you tried to wander around by yourself, you almost died.” Itazura glanced at me over his shoulder. “So if I find you bleeding on the ground, I’ll have a pretty good idea.”

  “Your powers of deduction amaze me.” I said flatly. “It’s no wonder Viden and Kaval don’t respect you very much.”

  “No, they don’t respect me because I tried to steal–” Itazura stopped. “You know what, never mind.”

  “Oh come on!” I said, sitting up. “You can’t just start a story like that and not finish it.”

  “Later, little human,” Itazura said, exiting the room. “If you stay here I’ll tell you when I get back!”

  I huffed and slumped against the couch.

  There wasn’t much to do in the tavern besides drink and play with knives. While drinking sounded very tempting, Itazura was right when he said I shouldn’t be tipsy. So, I settled for playing with the knife I had stolen from the shape shifter who had attacked me a few days ago.

  The hilt fit nicely in my palm and the blade itself stretched nearly a foot long and slightly curved like a scythe. A black flame was painted on the pommel, the sign of Axira herself. The unique and honestly awesome design of the knife wasn’t surprising seeing as the Goddess of Death had blessed the weapon. In all of her pictures, she carried a huge scythe that would have crushed a normal woman under its weight. Fortunately, she was a goddess and a terrifying one at that.

  “I’m definitely keeping this,” I said, flipping the blade in my hand.

  “That is the blade you stole from my subordinate, is it not?”

  I jumped to my feet so quickly that if you blinked you would have missed the movement
. In front of me stood a tall man with deathly pale skin and pitch black eyes.

  And I mean pitch black, pupils and all. It was as if he kept two, small black pits on either side of his nose in place of eyes. The man wore a long black cloak reaching all the way to the ground and had a hood drawn up over his head, nearly covering his slick, ebony hair. A single dark lock curled down, forming a spiral shape in the center of his forehead and I absently wondered whether that strand ever got annoying when he fought.

  I didn’t know how such a tall man had managed to slip into the room without me noticing. The door didn’t open or close and the windows were still shut. Honestly, it didn’t matter at this point. He wasn’t human, and he was in the same room with me, a dark smirk on his face. A smirk that bore striking resemblance to the malicious one of my least favorite shape shifter assassin, whose blade I clutched in one shaking hand.

  “Who are you?”

  “You may call me the Lord of Beasts, Guard of the Abyss,” the man’s black eyes flashed. “Or just Cleptos.”

  “Fuck,” I replied. The only word fitting to this situation.

  “You may as well drop your blade,” Cleptos said, looking down at the knife. “It’s not going to do you much good.”

  “You underestimate my propensity for foolish persistence,” I said, ignoring the twisting of my gut. “I have a strict policy against doing nothing when someone is trying to kill me.”

  “I’m afraid my master wills it,” Cleptos said.

  “Your master?” I croaked through my dry throat. “As in . . . the Goddess of Death?”

  “Yes,” Cleptos said.

  “I hate my life,” I replied.

  “Don’t worry, you don’t have much of it left,” Cleptos said. His mouth twitched again and I guessed he was sort of like Sid in the sense of humor department. A mouth twitch equated to laughter.

  I raised my knife a little higher, trying to steady my breathing. Just a minor god from the deepest reaches of the Abyss. Nothing to worry about.

  “Very well.” Cleptos sighed. He reached under his cloak and drew out a knife. His had the same shape and structure as mine . . . except it was two feet longer. And sharper. And scarier.

  I swallowed hard but I stood my ground.

  “Your move. I have time,” Cleptos said.

  I looked straight into the black pits on his face, trying to decipher his intentions. But the problem was . . . they were black pits, absent of light. In a fight, the eyes can be the doorway to deciphering your opponent’s next move. But Cleptos didn’t have any of those helpful hints. I was fighting him blind.

  I decided not to think too much of my imminent defeat. After a brief pause, I leapt at Cleptos, trying to slip under his huge blade and stab him in the stomach. He spun out of the way, knocking several glasses from the private bar with the edge of his weapon as he spun. He sliced down toward my neck but I rolled out of the way and ended up in a crouch against the couch, panting.

  He struck out again, this time mutilating the faded cushions and sending feathers flying everywhere. I barely managed to duck to avoid the blow and I scrambled to my feet to face him again.

  “You are quick,” Cleptos said. “Just as my subordinate said. Perhaps this won’t be so boring.”

  The steel of his blade glinted in the light as he swung around with lighting speed. I didn’t have time to duck. Instead, I raised my left arm. The blade struck the steel so hard it sent me sliding back a few meters until my back hit the wall. But the arm held strong.

  Bless you, Grant.

  “Steel,” Cleptos said.

  “Yeah,” I said. “Didn’t your subordinate tell you?” I dove at him again, keeping low to avoid his blade as he swung. I brought my knife across his side. It didn’t go very deep, but it broke the skin and brought a stream of silver blood to the surface. I skidded to a stop and spun around to face him, a grin of triumph on my face.

  Cleptos looked down at the wound, seeming surprised. Then he looked back at me. “Not bad.”

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “But I probably should wrap this up. I don’t want to keep my lady waiting,” Cleptos said. Then, before I could blink, he spun and jammed the hilt of his knife forward, nailing me in the stomach. Breath whooshed from my lungs and saliva flew from my mouth at the sudden, painful impact. My knees gave as black spots sprouted across my vision. I don’t know how I remained conscious, but I was aware enough to feel the brush of cold steel on the back of my neck. A shudder tore through my body.

  He intoned Axira’s sacred words. “The Abyss claims all in time.”

  “And drink keeps them happy until then!” a familiar voice said as the door burst open.

  Cleptos blade lifted from my neck and I raised my head in time to see a mug spin across the room at top speed, nailing the minor god in the face. Laetatia followed soon after, spinning through the air to deliver a swift kick with her dangerously sharp high heels. Cleptos flew straight through the brick wall, leaving a hole in his wake and digging a crater in the cobblestone when he landed outside. Laetatia grabbed my arm and hauled me to my feet.

  “Thanks,” I gasped out. “You have wonderful timing.”

  “No problem,” she said. A low growl sounded from outside as Cleptos picked himself off the ground, shaking debris from his black jacket. “I think we should run.” She seized my wrist and bolted from the tavern. I could only follow after her, trying to ignore the horrible pain in my stomach. I was still out of breath, but who needed air once adrenaline kicked in?

  “Is he following us?” I asked, not daring to look over my shoulder.

  “If Axira ordered your execution, you may be sure he is,” Laetatia said.

  “But why? Why am I suddenly important enough to send Cleptos after me? Why not just a normal assassin?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know why she’s decided to side with the elder gods either. I’d just as soon not ask. I could take Cleptos easily, but I’d rather avoid the fight.” Laetatia peeked over her shoulder. “Well, damn.”

  I couldn’t help but spare a glance this time. And I wasn’t happy with what I saw. Four huge black dogs pursued us. The one in the lead stood twice the height of the others and his eyes burned black instead of red. Cleptos. But the other three shape shifter minions didn’t make our situation better.

  Laetatia turned abruptly into an alleyway, nearly jerking my arm from my socket. I cursed as I registered the direction we were headed. “Laetatia wait. This way is–”

  We skidded to a stop in time to avoid slamming face first into a steel wall.

  “–a dead end,” I mumbled.

  “Damn it all.” Laetatia spun around, grabbing the edge of her red dress and ripping it almost up to her hip. She had a band strapped around her leg. A band full of knives. I knew I had good reasons for loving this goddess. “I hope you brought weapons.”

  “Thanks to Grant, I’ll never be without a weapon again.” I pressed the button on my hand. The blade darted into view, ripping the edge of my sleeve in the process.

  Cleptos and the other shape shifters stopped in front of us. The minor god shifted back to human form immediately but his subordinates remained vicious black beasts. Their red eyes burned as they focused on me and drool dribbled from their pearly canines, pooling in disgusting puddles on the ground.

  “Give her up, Laetatia. This is foolish,” Cleptos said.

  “Since when do you give me orders, minor god?” Laetatia sneered. “I’ve always wanted to see you dance, so let’s go.”

  Cleptos barred his teeth. “Fine.”

  He lunged at the goddess. Their blades ricocheted off each other in a flurry of sparks.

  I faced the three shape shifters, holding my blade arm in front of me. “I have a weapon now, bastards. Think you can handle me?”

  They let out snarls in response and charged. I ducked under the first dog, raising my arm over my head as he passed. The edge caught him in the chest as he soared over my head and with a cry, I slashed the blade
all the way through its abdomen. Foul smelling black blood splashed my face and clothes, mottling the cobblestone at my feet. The creature skidded until it hit the brick wall and lay still.

  I didn’t have long to celebrate my victory with the other two shape shifters bearing down on me. They came from my right and left side, not leaping high enough to allow me to duck. So instead, I jumped. Their heads moved inches under my feet as they skidded under me, colliding into each other. I cocked back my arm and drove the blade between the shoulders of one of the shifters. Then I braced myself on its back and jerked the steel from its flesh, flipping backward to avoid the spray of black liquid. I landed on my knees, arm out to one side. The gooey fluid dripped from the steel tip, dotting the ground as I glared up at the final creature.

  “You want this too?” I asked. God, I loved having a weapon.

  The last shape shifter shot at me, but as he did a second snarl sounded to my left.

  “Janet!” Laetatia called out.

  I let gravity take over, dropping flat to the ground just as the shape shifter I had sliced from chest to belly moments ago went soaring over my head. Its gaping jaws passed so close to my face, drool splattered against my forehead as I landed on my back. I rolled to avoid another flurry of claws and teeth. The world around me spun and I couldn’t orient myself in time to see another one of the black beasts hurdling toward me.

  A familiar god skidded in front of me, slashing his blade arm upward with a force that removed the monster’s head from its body. The creature crumpled.

  “You okay, little thief?” Itazura glanced over his shoulder.

  “Doing wonderfully,” I gasped out, pushing myself to my feet. My knees were scraped bloody and my lungs burned, but I was alive. “Thanks.”

  “Don’t mention it.” He backed up a few steps as the two remaining shape shifters moved toward us. “If you want to kill them, it has to be instant. Get them in the heart or take off their head. You have to hit dead on.”

  “Got it.” I sprang at one of the creatures before it could lunge at me, dropping at the last moment to slide between its huge paws. As I moved beneath its chest, I jammed my blade through its flesh, sinking the steel up to my fist. The creature let out a bone-chilling screech, writhing in an attempt to pull itself from my weapon. I curled my free arm around its shoulders, securing myself to its body as I twisted my wrist to pierce deeper into its heart. Its lifeblood pumped out, streaming down the steel of my arm and onto my jacket. I held my breath to avoid gagging at the putrid scent.