by Samuel Small
“We can get started,” Sara said and folded her hands on the table. Just when she was finished collecting her thoughts she heard something faintly from beyond the door. It wasn’t anything she could make out, just a slight vibration, but it seemed like it came from very far away.
“So? You gonna start or what?”
“Right, did everyone here read the briefing?” She glanced around at all of the members of the council, none of whom looked at Sara except for Kai. Sara cleared her throat. “About a month ago a horde of mysterious creatures, who we’ve called Voids—”
“Come on!” Kai shouted, leaning so far back he’d fall onto his head had he not been gripping the table. “Just give us the abridged version, okay? It’s cold as hell he—”
But then even the impatient Kai stopped. At first Sara didn’t know why, as she couldn’t hear over the last lingering echo of his yelling. But a second later she heard it, a few slams and crashes in the distance, followed by muffled yelling. She glanced at the other council members in the hope that they’d have some kind of an idea of what was going on, but no one looked interested in the sounds. Her wine-soaked father swayed back and forth in a sort of happy delirium, and Kai had lost interest in the proceedings and resumed scowling at no one in particular.
The noises hadn’t ceased, however, and it was drawing ever closer. Now she thought she could make out words. Livid shouts and… was that swearing?
“I’m about to leave. There ain’t anything important going on here,” Kai said. “I thought I read somethin’ about demons and figured they’d be tough but if you ain’t gonna get around to that I—”
That was when the explosion filled the room. Both doors flew off their hinges and screeched across the floor, stopping just shy of the table. That brought Sara’s attention to the entryway and the figure that stood there firm and alert, glancing at each of the delegates. When his green eyes reached Sara he gave a slight nod, which she thought was his form of acknowledgment but her guess was that he didn’t want to look anything less than tough right now. She smiled upon seeing him, despite his outrageous interruption.
“Which one of you motherfuckers is the Führer guy!?” Dante demanded.
Chapter 12
Everyone in the room was silent at Dante’s outburst. Sara couldn’t help but hold her hand over her mouth to suppress a chuckle. Only he would burst into a meeting looking for the leader of a country and not bother to find out what they look like, she thought.
“Hey!” Kai shouted, standing on his chair. “I’ve had enough of random people showin’ up! This place is cold as all hell and I just wanna get outta here already!”
“Who the hell are you!?” Dante shouted.
“Who the hell are you!?”
“I’m not tellin’ you shit!”
“Well I’m not tellin’ you shit!”
“Fuck you!” Dante screamed and shot both of his arms out, his blue energy tearing out of each palm. Kai leapt off the chair to avoid it, his hands stuffed roughly into his jacket pockets. He jerked his head up toward Dante, where a fiery explosion quickly erupted, sending wind lashing out in all directions. It was enough to mess up Sara’s hair, which she’d worked on nearly all morning. She scooped the mess that had fallen over her face out of the way just in time to catch Dante’s counterattack.
He punched out small orbs of light at Kai, swearing under his breath with each attack. But Kai ducked, pivoted, and did whatever he needed to avoid them. Once the last of the orbs passed by him and cracked into the wall, Kai swung one leg onto the table, rising up on top of it. He removed both hands out of his pockets and bellowed, “Fuck yoooooooooouu!” A series of explosion erupted all throughout the room and chased Dante. They popped loudly, each explosion seeming to be accompanied by a fist that pounded Sara’s eardrums. But Dante seemed unaffected as he quickly jumped out of the way of the last explosion, rolled, and rose to his feet.
“Suck my diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick!” Dante returned along with a large ball of energy, which tore straight at Kai who leapt off the table to avoid it. The energy knocked straight into it, sending the entire thing flying into the air, much to the awe of Sara’s father and the apathy of Führer Bellator and Whip. It reached an apex just shy of the ceiling where it hung suspended for a second then plummeted down on a direct course for the disinterested Führer.
“Lord Republic!” Sara shouted and extended her hand, out of which shot her icy Sol. It slammed into the falling table and pinned it against the far wall.
“So that’s the bastard,” Dante mumbled and quickly pivoted away from Kai, making a beeline for the Führer. That wasn’t good, he was dead set on attacking so Sara raised her hand. Several large blocks of ice appeared in Dante’s path but he avoided them like they were nothing. Pivoting around, jumping over them just as they sprung up, or blasting right through them, none seemed to impede his path to the Führer. His eyes never left the man, no matter how many obstacles Sara created, and before long Dante placed his palms to the ground and blasted energy that sent him into the air.
“You fucker!” Dante shouted with his fist cocked. “Tell me what you know!”
All at once Dante’s body froze in midair, glowing faintly with light blue around the edges. His fist was still cocked and ready to punch but it was apparent he wasn’t able to let it free. His eyes darted all around the room in confusion. “W-what the hell!? I can’t move!”
The Führer had risen out of his seat, one extended hand pointing at Dante’s suspended figure. “I believe there’s been a… misunderstanding,” he said then lowered his hand slowly to the ground and Dante’s body followed suit. Whatever grip held his body completely in place seemed to have been removed when his feet hit the ground with a light tap. Führer Bellator then turned to the group.
“I’d heard the leader of the Purists was a young person, although I wasn’t entirely sure of the gender…” His eyes shot to Kai, who jumped slightly. “I believe your transgressions against him were unwarranted. He has a right to be here.”
He nudged Dante in the back and he meandered across the way to a seat next to Sara. He looked lost, his eyes appearing to stare at something far in the distance despite being focused on the ground. There wasn’t much Sara could do right now though. She had to create a detailed object, and quickly. She pictured the image of the table in her head then willed it into shape. It was like moving a body part that wasn’t there, forcing her Sol to do something so intricate and controlled, but when she opened her eyes she saw that she’d managed it. A table made of ice now sat between them, its edges rough and uneven, but serviceable.
Dante still sat in the chair, inspecting his hands as he opened and closed them. The guy looked absolutely distraught, even though he apparently shook off having a building collapse on him. His encounter with the Führer must have really gotten to him. Sara had heard that he had a unique and powerful Sol – was that what held Dante in such a grip that he couldn’t even move? Either way, she knew that for it to get him of all people shaken up it had to be a big deal.
“Only you would break into a meeting you were already invited to,” she whispered to him.
“Eh?” Dante said. He looked at Sara and upon taking in her smile relaxed a little. Perhaps a little too much. He folded his arms behind his head and propped his feet up on the table, although it didn’t appear that anyone cared apart from Kai.
“The reason this meeting has been called,” Führer Bellator said, “is to discuss the recent happenings dubbed ‘the Void incident’ and make all nations aware of the threat. Those of you who read the briefing already know that we suspect the Voids to be the work of a demon from long ago, hell-bent on destroying humanity. We thought it was appropriate to share all the information we have so that you might be able to protect yourselves from this threat, although it seems some would like the ‘abridged version,’ which essentially boils down to train dutifully, enhance your military strength, and be prepared for the worst. We don’t know what’s coming next.”
Right on cue a small explosion erupted at Dante’s feet, knocking him back into his chair and nearly causing it to topple over. He managed to place all of his weight on the front end and push it down. Kai was across from him, glaring. Can they wait five minutes to kill each other? Sara thought.
“…that being said, we have somebody who was involved in the incident personally,” Führer Bellator continued as he extended an arm out to Dante. “As I’m sure you’ve noticed we have a member of the Purists amongst us. He was the last person to have an encounter with the Void’s leader. Mr. Dante, do you have any additional information?”
Dante was in the middle of giving Kai a counter stare-down and jumped when his name was called. Führer Bellator leaned in further, giving Dante the go-ahead to speak.
“They won’t be a problem anymore,” he said simply.
There were a few seconds of silence as everyone waited for him to continue but it was evident by his folded arms that he was satisfied with the paltry explanation. What was even worse was that everyone else in the room seemed to think this was okay too, as no one pressed for details. Sara frowned then leaned toward Dante.
“What do you mean? What about that tower that collapsed? Or the Void King?”
The boy opened his mouth to speak, but Kai’s loud voice interrupted him. “I don’t care about no Void King or stupid tower. Come on, abridge it!”
“They,” Dante said, his eyes focused on the frozen floor, “…he won’t be a problem anymore, okay? I took care of it.”
“Great,” Kai said. He stood out of his chair with such ferocity that it toppled over and crossed the room to walk out. With him leading the charge, all the other diplomats jumped up and clamored for the exit, Sara’s father giving her a “Good job honey,” before he staggered out of the room. The last to leave was Führer Bellator. Dante had his eyes fixed on that flowing cape as it drifted around the corner of the entrance. Once that cape was out of sight Sara grabbed Dante’s ear and tugged down hard.
“Ah! What the hell did you do that for?”
“Don’t you think you owe me an explanation?” she demanded.
“For what?”
“Oh, I don’t know – maybe about what the hell you did in that tower? Why you didn’t tell me you were still alive?”
“You didn’t ask!”
She pulled down hard again, dragging Dante along by his ear, his feet barely able to keep on the ground from the sudden jerk. “Why would I? I thought you were dead.”
“Why would you think that?”
“The building you were in ex-plo-ded.”
“It didn’t explode, it collap— ugh!”
After another firm tug, Sara gave him the best ‘don’t fuck with me’ scowl she could manage, the type her mother used to give her father. She let a little bit of her Sol leak out of her fingertips, creating a dull coating of frost on Dante’s earlobe.
“You know, if I give you frostbite your ear will turn black and drop off. It hurts a lot.”
“Okay, I’ll tell you what you wanna know.” Dante clasped his hands in front of his head. “Just let me keep my ear, all right?”
Sara let go and as soon as she did Dante returned to a proper sitting position, rubbing his ear where she’d grabbed it.
“Not here,” Sara said.
“Oh come on,” Dante protested.
Sara grabbed him by the collar and pulled him up. “Somebody got into a huge fight with a world leader and fucked up my hair and I want to get out of this,” she gestured at her frilly dress and uncomfortable shoes, “so we’re going to talk elsewhere. That okay with you?”
Dante put his hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay. Fuck. When and where?”
Sara pulled him closer. “Dinner. Tonight.” Maybe she pulled him a little too close. She could feel his warm breath on her lips and stared into his green eyes, which were wide with curiosity. She felt her face get hot and shoved him back as she turned away.
“But just because I don’t want to look like this doesn’t mean it’s going to be a slobfest. Semi-casual, okay?”
Sara could tell by Dante’s clueless nod that he had no idea what that meant.
“Come with me back to the castle, you can borrow some of my father’s old clothes from back when he was a lot thinner. I’ll have the staff help you pick something out. When you’re ready, we’ll have a coach take you to the restaurant. I’ve got some things to take care of because of all… this, so you’ll be there before me. When you arrive the waiter will show you to a table: follow him and don’t make an ass out of yourself. Understood?”
Dante gave a fearful nod.
“Good. See you later.”
***
When Sara arrived at the restaurant that evening Dante was sitting uncomfortably at a booth in the corner of the room. It was one of the ice city’s fancier eateries, but not too fancy. Sara had managed to look suitably dressed for the public in a fitted outfit with a nice snowflake design running up the side, with shoes that were flat and didn’t make her wobble. She approached Dante and sat down across from him.
Her outfit may have been up to par but his certainly wasn’t. He wore the same green jacket that he had on at the meeting, actually the same one he was wearing when she first met him, which had become even more tattered since then. On the left sleeve was a crudely sewn patch that was a darker green than the rest of the jacket. Underneath, he wore a black T-shirt with a tie hanging loosely from his neck as if that somehow made the outfit fancy. And his hair, oh lord – she thought that he just grabbed a handful of gel and slicked it back, which made him look like a thug.
What really bothered her was that he didn’t notice that this wasn’t proper attire for their setting. The staff would’ve tried to help him, but he would’ve insisted that he was fine as he was. Violently insisted, probably.
Apparently Sara wasn’t the only one who noticed Dante’s improper dress as she heard a few murmurs of “isn’t that Princess Sara?” and “Is that rough gentleman her date?” But she didn’t care – she’d dealt with enough bullshit already that day.
The waiter came over and passed out menus, giving Sara a raised eyebrow above his thin mustache. She smiled and ordered water for the both of them while Dante picked up the menu and turned it over as if it were some kind of alien artifact.
“Order whatever you like. The government’s paying.”
He gave her a ‘y’ sound followed by some babble, the kind of ‘yeah’ you got from someone terribly disinterested. He continued to squint at the menu, turning it back and forth. Sara stared, perplexed as to why he was holding the thing upside down until she came to a sudden realization.
“Dante, can you read?”
His face flushed and he buried it into the open menu. She sighed and smiled. “Just show me which picture looks good and I’ll order it for you.”
The menu came down, revealing his awestruck face. It was as if reading was some sort of unique Sol that only Sara possessed. He gave two fast nods and stared at her with wide eyes.
The two ordered – Sara had a strawberry shake (she figured she’d treat herself) and Dante had a steak. At first he tried eating it with his hands but as people began to gasp and mutter she had to show him how to use a knife and fork. He crammed the larger-than-his-mouth pieces of meat into his face, which gained him more tuts and complaints from the peanut gallery. She didn’t care to correct that one. One step at a time. Plus, she was beginning to enjoy the spectacle and sniffy commentary.
Sara began scooping up the last liquid parts of her shake that could still just about be considered ice cream. Once she was done she told Dante what she really wanted to talk to him about.
Dante looked up while still cutting his steak clumsily. “Guys in black coats?”
“Yeah. One talked like he knew you.”
Dante placed a finger on his chin and looked to the ceiling. “Hmmm. Nope, doesn’t ring a bell.”
“You sure? You seem like the type of guy who would know a lot of
shady characters.”
“I resent that. The only people I really associate with are two, no, one person from my village and the people at my gym, all of whom are on the up-and-up.”
“That Montasir guy is on the up-and-up? A pillar of the community, hmmm?”
Dante looked down, focusing on cutting the next piece of meat. “He does what he has to do to keep himself and his village alive. If you knew his situation, you’d think he’s a real saint.”
Sara sunk lower into her seat. It looked like he didn’t know anything useful, but those guys seemed like they’d become a big threat someday. “Oh well. Just keep an eye out. They seemed very interested in you.” Dante nodded, stuffing another piece of steak into his mouth before Sara leaned in over the table, causing him to pull back. “…and I think you owe me an explanation.”
Dante opened his mouth to say a presumable ‘about what?’, revealing bits of meat on his tongue, but then his face tightened and the gears started turning. “Oh right,” he said, “that bastard Void King got a firm grip on me and I couldn’t get away, so I started blasting at these pillars that were keeping the place standing. The roof collapsed and I managed to keep alive by firing my Sol upward to stop the place from falling on my head and crushing my sorry ass.” He placed the final piece of meat into his mouth and began to chew.
“And what about the Void King?”
Dante swallowed, then looked down. “I already said that he won’t be an issue anymore.”
Sara tried to use some of her feminine wiles, another trick she had picked up from her mother. She sunk back in her chair, looked up at him with widened eyes, and pursed her lips.
“Come on, don’t you think I’m special enough to deserve an explanation?”
Dante stared back with a flat expression. “No. Not really.”
Damn, no effect. For some reason that caused an empty feeling in Sara’s chest, but she figured it was just because she was annoyed she couldn’t trick somebody as dumb as Dante. She glanced over at the boy and noticed for the first time that he actually appeared cold. He gripped both biceps and rubbed them while glancing around at the other patrons. Sara was able to wear fairly lightweight clothing because her Sol, as well as her nationality, made her used to the cold, so sometimes she forgot that visitors really had to wrap up warm.
