Clinging desperately to Ron, Megumin let out a squeal as the broom banked sharply, the climbed steeply.
“M-Megumin, you’re going to choke me!” Ron gasped, and Megumin eased up slightly, but didn’t let go entirely. The ground was rather far away, and while Megumin considered herself to be fearless, she was finding she didn’t enjoy bobbing about on the breeze at breakneck speeds while 100 feet off the ground.
“Just get there before Trashzuma gets it!” Megumin hissed, then squeaked again as Ron dove so fast she could feel her heart in her throat. From now on, she was leaving flying to idiots who liked sports. Unless there was more treasure involved. Then she would make Ron take her.
Wind whipping in their faces, they approached the weathervane atop Ravenclaw tower. There, Megumin spied a brass tube tied to the leg of the bronze eagle that pivoted in the wind. Just before Ron could grab it, Kazuma swooped in with a woop, and grabbed the tube. Megumin cursed him…then laughed as Kazuma was unable to simply rip the tube free, and ended up spinning around and around in a tight circle by the weathervane, before being tossed free and slamming into the side of the roof and sliding down with a groan.
“Haha! I win again, Turdzuma!” Megumin chortled as Ron pulled the broom to a stop by the still spinning weathervane. Megumin used Chunchumaru to snip the wires, then stuffed the tube into her waist band before tapping Ron on the shoulder. Instead of going down to the ground, he retrieved Kazuma’s broom, and brought it back to Kazuma, who was lying in the frozen over drain.
“Bad luck, that,” Ron commented as he handed the broom over. “Nearly had us there mate.”
“Cheers,” Kazuma mumbled, taking the broom back and sitting up with a groan.
“It wasn’t bad luck, he was simply too foolish to realize he could not simply snatch away my prize with quick hands and broomwork! A true genius was needed!” Megumin cackled.
“I just thought some flimsy copper wire would be rusted after twenty years! Let me see that tube,” Kazuma said, and took it away from Megumin before she could slap his hands away. He held it up, then sighed and handed it back. “Shit, I can’t tell, does this look weathered enough to you?”
Frowning Megumin studied the tube. The vessel was made of brass, it looked like it had been out in the weather for a while, and was slightly tarnished, but she was pretty sure it wasn’t as tarnished and stained as she thought it should have been. The bits of copper wire, however, were more telling. Copper that old out in the open air and weather should have turned green, but it was just a bit brown and tarnished.
“The wire probably hasn’t been out for more than a month or two. It’s harder to tell with brass, as it doesn’t corrode or rust like copper does,” she said.
“That’s what I thought,” Kazuma said, hopping back on his broom and hovering in midair next to Megumin and Ron. He rubbed his chin in thought. “A lot of the stuff we’re finding doesn’t seem like it’s been out in the weather or buried for all that long. The stuff we find inside, I can buy it being well preserved. There’s magic on the inside of the castle to keep things from falling apart easily. But this stuff out here? It would get wet, and be in direct sunlight. That should cause it to decay a lot more than it has.”
“What’s your point?” Ron said, frowning. “Maybe they magiced it too.”
“Could be,” Kazuma admitted, but Megumin passed Chuncumaru over the tube and wire, then shook her head.
“By my mystic arts, I discern that no preservative charms have been placed upon these objects. However, mine mystic eye perceives the weather vane has! Behold! It shines like the sun, and not a day has touched its surface! A mighty spell was cast upon it to keep it safe!”
“Well, maybe a bit of that rubbed off on the tube and wire,” Ron said with a shrug. “Don’t see how it matters.”
“It matters because someone is playing us,” Kazuma said with a sneer. “This stuff hasn’t been hidden out here by Megumin’s parents on some great mystic quest 20 years ago! It’s only been out here a few months at most!”
“Hmmm,” Megumin considered, then shrugged. “Well, obviously, it’s Professor Lupin. He put it all out at the start of the school year at my parents' behest.”
“Oh.” Kazuma deflated slightly, and they started to descend to the ground. Then, however, he brightened. “So, wait. He knows where all this stuff is hidden, then!”
“Yes, obviously. He was one of the Maurauders after all,” Megumin said with a roll of her eyes as they touched down and Draco ran up, Blackie bounding along in the patchs of slushy snow beside him.
“Did you get it?” He demanded, his breath puffing out infront of him in the chilly February air. He was bundled up warming with a thick woolen cap on and was hugging himself, but his face was flushed with both cold and excitement as Megumin took out the tube and held it aloft.
“Behold! The next step in our quest!” Megumin bragged, and with the three boys crowded around her, popped the lid off of the tube. Inside, they found coupons for a dozen free butter beers in Hogsmead, which had all of them congratulating one another, along with another riddle.
By sable glass the heavens weep, And mirrored stars in silence sleep; The ancient tide that knows no rest Clasps in its palm the hidden chest.
Seek not the first step where torches burn, Nor path of your seven fold oft return; But where the reeds like sentries lean, And midnight cloaks the space between.
There lies a memory gone by, thrice-piled, Their rest unmarked, by moonlight styled. Beneath its hush the soil keeps fast A relic buried, made to last.
“Well, this one’s easy, it’s by the lake, and it’s hidden near a grave marked by three stones,” Megumin said.
Blackie sneezed, sat down, and looked up at Megumin with the most incredulous expression a dog could manage.
“I am the Foremost Genius of the Crimson Demon Clan,” she told the dog smugly, which made Blackie lay down in the mud and sulk.
“Well, you know the rules,” Draco said. “We make a copy, both teams get to look it over, then we meet up tomorrow to go over the solve and then find the treasure. Though it’s Dust and Ginny’s turn now. Thank Merlin, because I certainly don’t want to be traipsing along the lakeside in all this muck.”
“I don’t see why we have to. Lupin’s hiding the stuff, we should just get him to tell us where it is,” Kazuma said, folding his arms over his chest.
Draco brightened at that prospect, but Megumin and Ron both looked outraged, while Blackie leaped up with a yip and looked horrified.
“How could you disregard the last wishes of my parents by so grossly violating the terms of our quest?!” Megumin demanded in outrage.
“Sort of ruins the fun of the whole thing, don’t you think?” Ron mused.
“Because it’s way less work!” Kazuma said, folding his arms over his chest. “Why would you care about the stupid quest when you can have the reward right now?”
Megumin regarded Kazuma for a moment, then huffed and turned her back. “Munchkin.”
“What!? I am not some shorty who sings about houses falling on witches!” Kazuma said, going red with anger. Out of the four of them, he was taller than Megumin, but Draco and Ron were both taller than he, Ron by quite a bit as he began to hit his growth spurt.
“Not from the Wizard of Oz, you dolt! From Dungeons and Dragons!” Megumin said, spinning about. The boys looked baffled, so she elucidated, “A munchkin is one who disregards all the adventure, only seeking to acquire the best loot by any means necessary, bypassing the dungeon entirely!”
“Isn’t that what you always do when we try and play?” Ron said, scratching his head.
Megumin blushed, then stuck her nose in the air. “No, I try and master the most destructive magic possible as a Sorceress, then use my incredible powers to defeat any foe in a single shot! That is what Maximized Quickened Epowered Meteor Swarm is for, and why it is the single greatest spell in the entire game!”
“But you also use it to blow holes in the dungeon walls and take all the loot that isn’t dusted for yourself,” Ron said, folding his arms over his chest. “So how is that different from what Kazuma is doing? Would you be for it if he said you needed to use Meteor Swarm or Explosion on Professor Lupin?”
A dreamy look passed over Megumin’s face for a moment, until Blackie bit her on the shin and she let out a yelp. “Ow! I wasn’t going to do it! I was just…contemplating. It is nearly spring, and is that not the time when a young lady yearns for Explosion Magic?”
“I’m pretty sure you’re the only weirdo who does that,” Kazuma said, which earned him a stinging hex from Chunchumaru that he had to dodge out of the way of. “Knock it off! Just give us our share of the loot, and we’ll meet at Hogsmead to discuss our plans. Saturday is the next trip, so let’s just hold off on more exploring until then.”
“If you attempt to loot the treasure before us, you shall be visited by a most mysterious Explosion when you least expect it,” Megumin growled.
“That sounds like work, and besides, it’ll just be another stupid riddle,” Kazuma said with a roll of his eyes. “At least this time we got some free butterbeers.”
Dust and Kazuma wandered off, while Megumin and Ron walked towards the lake. Not to solve the riddle, obviously. Just to scout the terrain. And maybe, on accident, uncover some clues that would let them solve the riddle faster than Team Slytherin.
“You know,” Megumin said, putting her hands behind her back and strutting along, looking at the patches of snow and mud around them. “Valentine's is next week.”
“Yeah, Professor McGonagall gave us that whole lecture about not poisoning our classmates,” Ron said with a heavy sigh. “It was just the one time.”
“Mmm. Yes. Do you know what else is traditional on Valentines day?” Megumin said.
“Sure. We wake up early and make mum’s favorite breakfast: something that doesn’t leave a mess and we’re absolutely silent so she gets a lie in,” Ron said.
Megumin opened her mouth, then shut it, and narrowed her eyes at Ron. She could not determine if he was being ordinarily thick or deliberately obtuse.
“I am certain that was lovely. Did your parents partake of any other traditional Valentine's activities?”
“Funny you should ask. They always had us clear out of the Burrow for the evening. When we got older, Bill and Charlie would take us camping for the evening. Quite brilliant, really. We’d fly brooms to a little wood not far from where we lived, make a fire, and pitch a tent, then stay up all night telling stories and eating roasted sausages,” Ron said.
“And what, pray tell, was the reason your parents had you ‘clear out?’” Megumin asked. She did recall that Veron would become somewhat more amorous around Valentines, which was when she had Yunyun had to stay with that dreadful woman Aunt Marge and listen to her awful stories about her stupid dogs.
And if there was one thing Megumin did not wish to contemplate, it was an amorous Vernon Dursely. She imagined it would be like seeing an elephant seal try to mate with a giraffe.
Ron grimaced. “You know, I had just managed not to think about that. Thanks, Megs.”
Megumin wankled at the diminutive, but as she was trying to get Ron to notice something, she decided to let it pass. Just this once.
“And have you never thought of partaking in this tradition yourself?” Megumin asked, trying to keep her level of interest mild and tone neutral.
“What? Snogging my mum? Megumin, that’s vile!” Ron said, making a disgusted face.
Megumin kicked a rock into the lake in frustration. “Never mind. Come on, I see a boulder that resembles the back of a toad. I’m going to blow it up, and you can carry me back.”
“Probably doesn’t need an Explosion…” Ron said, wrinkling his nose.
“Fine! I will limit myself to BOMBARDA MAXIMA!” Megumin roared, and her spell blasted the offending boulder (which turned out to be just a rock), then stalked back to the castle with a confused Ron dogging her footsteps.
Along with Blackie, who was smugly satisfied that a genius she might be, but Megumin was as clumsy and foolish when it came to relationships as any youth.
“Well, at least we got something,” Ginny said, holding up the four coupons that Kazuma and Draco had turned over to her. “Well, I can’t say I’m sad we’re postponing more hunts until after Saturday. We do have another match to prepare for, and this one’s the last of the season. We thrash Gryffindor, with out the stupid flying monkeys, and we win the cup!”
“You and the Chasers do your job, I’ll handle the Snitch,” Kazuma said with a knowing grin. “Ron isn’t half the seeker I am.”
“That’s the treasure I’m most concerned about,” Ginny said, rubbing her hands together. A thought seemed to occur to her, and she turned to regard her minions. “Speaking of treasure, it’s time you lot treasured your little sister properly.”
“What now?” Draco groaned, but Dust and Kazuma nodded studiously.
“You dunderheads, what happens on Monday?” Ginny demanded.
“Is it your birthday?” Dust guessed, which earned him elbows from Draco and Kazuma.
“No, idiot, it’s Valentines!” Kazuma snapped, then turned to Ginny. “Don’t worry, Ginny. We’ll treat our little sister right. You’ll get loads of sweets!”
“I’ll make sure to buy you the absolute best on Saturday, you can pick out whatever you’d like,” Draco said, puffing out his chest.
“No, I’ll spoil her more!” Kazuma said, bumping his chest into Dracos.
“Like blazes you will, I already told mum to send me the finest collection of Belgian Chocolates to give to Ginny!”
“Yeah, well, I bet she likes Honeydukes better!”
Ginny grinned lazily as her minions fought, then glanced over at Dust, who looked thoughtful. He sidled up to her. “What’s your favorite flavor?”
“Chocolate. Especially with hazelnut,” she told him.
Dust nodded, then wandered off. Ginny kept her eye on him. Dust was getting tall, he was already the tallest boy in his year, and with his remarkable red eyes and blond hair…well. He was a very useful minion. And sweet, if very stupid.
But a damn good Beater. And that counted for a lot in Ginny’s book.
Still, what mattered at this point was that she got the most chocolate. Romance was stupid. What you needed was to be the boss, and to have the most stuff. And also be the best at Quidditch. That was her true love, Ginny had decided. Winning the Quidditch Cup, and proving to her stupid brothers that she was the real sports hero of them all. If any of them were going to go pro, it was her. Charlie could have, but hadn’t. Ginny was going to be the real deal.
That decided, Ginny went off to plan plays and maneuvers. She was going to stomp Ron and his stupid lions into the mud. It might still be a month away, but she wasn’t going to sit around and wait for it. Their match against Ravenclaw the week before had been far too close for her liking. This time, they needed to win, and win big.
After arguing with Draco until he was blue in the face about who would spoil their precious Ginny more, Kazuma slunk off to the Room of Requirement. He wasn’t supposed to know about it, but Darkness couldn’t keep a secret, and he’d pried the location out of her easily enough.
After pacing back and forth and thinking of his urgent need, the door appeared. Kazuma slicked back his hair with his hands, and took a deep breath. This was just a normal conversation. He’d be fine. His stupid heart was just racing from all those stairs he’d climbed.
He opened the door and found Darkness facing the wall away from him, doing squats with a barbell over her shoulders. Despite the chill air, there was a sheen of sweat on her body, and she was wearing only a black leotard. He could see her well defined, long legs, and her hair pulled up in a ponytail behind her head with a red scrunchy.
He admired the view for a moment, lost in thought. Darkness was still a gangly, horse faced girl, and there was no way he was really interested in her. He just-
“Oh, Kazuma! I did not hear you come in,” Darkness grunted, setting down the barbell and turning to face him. She blushed slightly, taking up a towel and wrapping it about her shoulders. Kazuma was mildly disappointed that it obscured the view. What was wrong with him today?!
“I, uh, I was just thinking. We’re going to Hogsmead on Saturday, as a group. You know, to discuss the next step of the treasure hunt,” Kazuma said, awkwardly playing with his wand in his hands and failing to meet Darkness’s eyes.
“Ah, yes. Megumin informed me earlier, so I came here to get in a workout. It will be my turn next with Hermione,” Darkness said with a nod. “I must be prepared to face any danger! Perhaps a large, brutal monster, which would attack the group, and I would recklessly interpose myself between my companions in danger, only my body as a shield to protect them!”
“Couldn’t you just cast the one spell you’re actually good at?” Kazuma asked skeptically.
“W-well, um, w-what if I forgot my wand, or there was some anti-magical field!? Then I would be forced to act directly!”
“Sure, why not. Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to, you know, catch a movie with me after. I, uh, I got Waterloo. It’s supposed to be the biggest battle ever committed to screen, really cool and stuff,” Kazuma said, feeling rather lame. It was just ugly old Darkness! Why should he care what she said?!
“Oh! Yes, that would be wonderful,” Darkness said, shyly smiling at him. “I, I would most like to watch another of the muggle war movies with you, Kazuma. I have heard of the Battle of Waterloo, of course. Seeing it play out would be very entertaining.”
“Cool, it’s a date,” Kazuma said, then blushed at his words. He fidgeted, then added, “It’s Valentines, you know. It’s traditional for people to get each other chocolate and stuff. You like dark chocolate, right?”
“Oh! Um, yes, I am fond of it,” Darkness admitted. “B-but do not feel compelled to buy me any…”
“I’ll do it if I want to, woman!” Kazuma snapped, and Darkness flinched, but she blushed and sighed as she did so.
“I-I shall get you some chocolates as well. N-not poisoned, this time. B-but I would not hold it against you if you, um, poisoned mine,” Darkness said, shifting uncertainly from foot to foot.
“That ruins the point! I’ll just get you some cheap, nasty chocolate, but you better not complain!” Kazuma huffed. “But I won’t accept anything but the best from you! None of that weird assorted chocolate either. I won’t make you home make it, but that’s traditional, you know.”
Kazuma couldn’t remember where he’d heard of the tradition, but he was pretty sure it was. That felt right.
“I-I was planning on home-making it! Perhaps, um, baked? I can make a chocolate cake…”
“Fine, but only if it has raspberry frosting, and you help me eat it,” Kazuma huffed.
Darkness nodded, looking down. For a half a minute, they both just stood there awkwardly. At last, Darkness cleared her throat and said, “Would, um, you like to work out with me? I-I would not mind a partner to spot me…”
“Fine, but I’m not turning into a musclely gorilla like you,” Kazuma harrumphed. Even if he was pretty sure most gorillas wouldn’t have made him feel this weird.
“T-to call a lady a gorilla! How vile…Um, I-I shall go first.”
They ended up working out together for an hour, though Kazuma had to use a lot less weight, and most of the workout turned into a duel, with practice swords at first, until Kazuma demanded he get to use a wand and a sword. That felt way better, and he thoroughly trounced Darkness. She just kept getting back up no matter how many jinxes and hexes he put on her, claiming she would “Be victorious in the next round!” But she never was. Her spells were lame, her blows strong but artless, and Kazuma danced circles around her.
At the end of it, he was sweaty, sore, and exhausted, but he felt good. He said goodbye to Darkness, then jogged off to dinner. He couldn’t keep a grin off his face. He was the first to have a date on Valentines!
Even if it totally wasn’t a date. Just a movie, with a friend, who was a girl. And ugly gorilla girl, whose muscles definitely weren’t interesting in the slightest.
Content in his self delusions, Kazuma went to have dinner.
Saturday, February 12th turned out to be a miserable, dreary day, just like most Scottish Days were. Sometimes, you have to wonder why people bother living there at all. Despite the horrible weather, icy rain that wasn’t quite sleet, but would suck all the warmth out of your body and scads of sticky mud everywhere, the flames of youth could not be extinguished, and the mongrel hordes descended upon Hogsemead. The shopkeepers were prepared, with their most twee cards out, and all the chocolates marked up to exploit the desperate hormones of said mongrels.
The group of eight third years that met at the Three Broomsticks pretended to turn up their noses and be disgusted by the antics of their elders, who were canoodling in corners, having cat fights at the tables, and even a couple of fist fights as the hind brains of the males helped them forget the fact they had wands as their ape ancestor instincts reasserted themselves.
Not that they didn’t also have fights with wands, or try to show off spells, just that they also devolved into fist fights and grunting. Truly, the most horrific of beasts: the human teenager. Deserving of the XXXXX rating by the Ministry of Magic. As any Hogwarts Professor would tell you.
The apex predator, however, was currently sulking in a corner, as Ron had epically failed to pick up what Megumin was putting down as far as she could tell. She had dropped about fifty hints in the three days leading up to this, and Ron had remained blissfully oblivious. She had decided he was doing it on purpose because no one could possibly be this dense.
It would be several years before she realized she was dead wrong on that one, but by then it was far too late.
“Cheers!” the idiot in question said, passing around the butterbeers he’d gotten with the coupons they’d found.
Kazuma sat down with his beer, looking smug. “I confirmed it. Someone bought these coupons from Madam Rosmerta back in December.”
“Was it Lupin?” Hermione asked, sounding at least a little curious.
“No,” Kazuma said, his brows knitting. “She described him as a tanned, darkly handsome man with long hair and a Hawaiian shirt, who was wearing sunglasses. She remembered because it was so odd to have someone wearing a shirt like that in Winter.”
“Don’t worry, Blackie. You’re the only handsome fellow we need,” Ginny said, and passed the dog a bit of her sandwich under the table. He happily took it, then went back to being smug. So much for these genius detectives.
“You reckon it was Sirus Black? He was a Marauder," Dust mused, which made Blackie yip like someone had stepped on his tail.
“Don’t be stupid, Dust. He’s a murderer who’s out to get Megumin,” Draco scoffed.
“It would be rather odd if he were working with Professor Lupin, wouldn’t it,” Hermione mused. Then frowned and stared down into her butterbeer, thinking.
“Let’s just look at the next riddle,” Ginny said impatiently, and the next clue was laid out.
“Definitely the lake,” Hermione confirmed, drawn out of her contemplation by the puzzle before her. “Honestly, it’s too simple, really.”
Blackie barked, which meant, Maybe if you’d had to come up with a hundred of the damn things in a week, some of yours wouldn’t be so hot, miss smarty pants.
But Hermione didn’t speak dog, so she just shushed him.
“Meet up tomorrow to find it and the next clue?” Darkness said, and everyone nodded.
“Then I call this meeting adjourned!” Megumin declared. “Come on, I want to go investigate the Shrieking Shack, and see if we can find a ghost.”
“Why would we do that?” Ron asked as he followed her out with Hermione.
“Because clearly such a place has to have some treasure! I bet that’s where the final piece lies!”
“No skipping steps, ruins the fun,” Ron said. “Miss Munchkin.”
“I am not a Munchkin!”
“Your character sheets say otherwise. Ow! Don’t kick me, it’s true!”
“I’ve got some shopping to do, see you all later!” Dust said, and headed out, whistling to himself.
“I’d better get back before someone catches me,” Ginny said. “Hopefully no one’s enough of a git to do it.”
“No one cares, people forget you’re just a second year because you’re quidditch captain,” Draco assured her, but stood to go with Ginny to keep the heat off.
That left Kazuma and Darkness, who glanced around surreptitiously.
“I’ll go first,” Kazuma said, then tiptoed in a very suspicious manner up to the room he had reserved. A few minutes later, Darkness followed. Kazuma already had the TV set up with the VHS tapes, and was lounging on the bed.
“Here, I got you this,” Kazuma said, and tossed a bag at Darkness, which she fumbled, then had to pick up off the floor. Inside was some of the most expensive handcrafted dark chocolates she’d seen, with a variety of fillings, from cream, to almonds, to orange and raspberry.
“It was cheaper to buy the lot,” Kazuma lied, trying to look nonchalant.
Darkness blushed, and took a bite of the orange flavored one. “I-it’s nice. Um, I-I made you your cake…”
Kazuma sat up and eagerly crawled over as Darkness drew a small cake in a container out of her bag, setting it on the table. On it, written somewhat crudely was a pink heart with the word, “Kazuma” on it.
“It looks alright,” Kazuma said gruffly. “Don’t think I’ll share.”
Darkness nodded timidly as Kazuma proceeded to make an absolute pig out of himself and devour the cake as they watched the entirety of the more than two hour epic. She herself ate far too many of her chocolates, but unlike Kazuma, she didn’t get an upset stomach thanks to her iron constitution.
“This isn’t a date, just so you know,” Kazuma told her halfway through.
“O-of course not. Why would I go out with a disgusting Slytherin like you?”
“That’s right. I’d never date a horse-faced Gryffindor. I have standards.”
“Uncooth moron!”
“Overly muscled gorilla!”
Kazuma half thought Darkness would storm out, but instead she just blushed and looked pleased about something. Well, fine. It wasn’t like it was a date. Just so they were clear.
Megumin hadn’t been speaking to Ron since Sunday evening, so when he walked over to her Monday afternoon, she just glared at him.
“Oh, by the way, Megs, Happy Valentine's Day,” Ron said, and handed her a card and a chocolate bar.
Instantly, Megumin was all smiles. “Why, thank you, Ron, I’d nearly forgotten!”
The card was handmade, and said, “Happy Valentines Day to the Foremost Genius of the Crimson Clan.” Megumin felt like she’d swoon.
Then that big idiot walked over and gave Hermione and Darkness a card and some chocolate too. He even gave some to that twit Lavender. Then he just sat down next to Megumin like nothing!
“Happy Valentines Day,” Megumin grumbled, and passed Ron a chocolate heart she’d made herself.
“Brilliant! Thanks, Megs!” Ron said, and ate the whole thing on the spot. He didn’t even notice it said, “Our Destines are Forever Intertwined! XOXO”! What an idiot.
Still, Megumin decided she didn’t need to use her Explosion on him. Today, anyway.
Ginny sat amongst her spoils, smiling sweetly and feeling smug. Nearly every boy in Slytherin had given her sweets, though most of them had also given some to all the other girls, Ginny got special attention as the Quidditch Captain. She was still lounging on ther throne when Dust came up to her.
“Wow, that’s a lot of chocolates! Hope mine are alright,” He said, and passed her a card and a wrapped package.
Ginny tore into it greedily, then paused. She held up the offering, and frowned at it. They were lumpy and misshapen, though she thought they were supposed to be hearts. Bits of hazelnut poked out of them, and they smelled slightly burnt. “Dust…did you make these yourself?”
“Yep! Didn’t feel right to buy chocolate for someone you care about, you know?” he said amiably.
Ginny popped one into her mouth. They were burnt. And also wonderful.
“Thank you, Dust. Here, why don’t you have some of these? It’s too much, even for me,” Ginny said, and bequeathed a few chocolate frogs on Dust.
“Don’t mind if I do,” Kazuma said, reaching for a frog himself.
Ginny swatted his hand away. “Get your hands off! You just store-bought yours. Dust made his with love.”
“Mostly cocoa powder and sugar, actually,” Dust put in. Ginny patted him on the hand. “But I guess there was love in there, too.”
“Just leave the thinking to me, Dust,” Ginny said as the wounded Kazuma retreated.
“Ok!” Dust agreed, and ate the chocolate frogs. She looked around. “Where’s Draco?”
Nervously, Draco glanced at the clock. It was only 2:50pm. She wasn’t late yet.
“Dobby, are you certain that the card was delivered?” he asked, glancing over at the house elf, who had a towel folded over one arm, and a black bowtie on. One that Draco had strickly instructed him didn’t count as clothing, and Dobbie had amicably agreed to, especially after Draco had also paid him a full silver sickle.
“Yes, Master Draco. Dobby was delivering the card, and very secret, just as you was asking!” Dobby agreed.
Sweat trickled down Draco’s brow, and he paced back and forth nervously. To his horror, 3pm ticked by. Then 3:05. He was about to give up in despair, when the door to the classroom was flung open.
“S-sorry I’m late! I-I had class, and Professor Flitwick kept us longer than usual,” Yunyun gasped, stumbling in. “Oh, good! You’re still here!”
Heart fluttering, Draco nodded, then gestured to the table. It had been neatly set out with the very best tea service at Malfoy Manor, brought by Dobby, and there was a hot kettle with the finest tea, and trays with sandwiches, chocolates, and at the center, a vase with six red roses in it. “W-would you like some tea?”
“Oh, y-yes, that would be lovely!” Yunyun said, and hurried to the table. Dobby made to pull the chair out, only for Draco to snarl at him, and pull the chair out himself. Yunyun smiled at him, and delicately seated herself before Draco hurried around to the other side of the table. There was a card on Yunyun’s plate in a white envelope, and she picked it up, then delicately used the butter knife to open it before removing the card.
“Dear Yunyun,
I hope on this Valentine, you will be Mine in Friendship and Joy.
Your dearest friend,
Draco Malfoy.”
Yunyun looked up, tears in her eyes. Draco was horrified he’d done something wrong, until Yunyun reached across the table and gripped his hand. “Yes! I, I will always be your friend, Draco!”
“Oh, uh, that’s good!” he said, feeling as though he could breathe again.
Yunyun let go of his hand, then went to rummage in her bookbag. She came out with a small hand wrapped package, which she shyly passed over to Draco. “Um, they’re not poisoned. I promise.”
Inside were homemade chocolates, shaped like little smily faces, flowers, and hearts. Draco tasted one, and it melted in his mouth.
“Um, are they alright?” Yunyun asked, still looking timid.
“The best I’ve ever had,” Draco said earnestly, and Yunyun beamed.
They sat like that for a minute, until Draco snapped his fingers. “Dobby! Tea!”
“Yes, Master,” Dobby agreed, and poured the tea.
Yunyun frowned at Dobby, then looked up at Draco. “I-It isn’t very friendly to have slaves, you know.”
Draco’s heart sank, and he sputtered for a moment while he tried to think of what to say.”
“Oh, Master Draco isn’t being a slaver, Mistress Yunyun,” Dobby said with a chuckle.
“Well, if you force someone to work against their will, it’s wrong!” Yunyun snapped, her red eyes glowing. “That’s all lies! So is the pack of nonsense about house elves needing to work or they’ll die! What kills them is the magically binding contract they’re forced into at birth, as the capitalist wizarding class exploits the labor of the house elf proletariat!”
Draco didn’t even know what that last word meant, and he struggled to find what to say. His salvation came from a most unexpected quarter.
“Oh Mistress, you is not understanding.” Dobby leaned in and fingered the bowtie. “Dobbie is a free elf.”
Now, a new wave of fear flooded over Draco. That damned elf! If his parents found out…
Yunyun, however, looked delighted as she turned to Draco. “Draco! You freed Dobby?!”
“Erm, um, that is-”
“He was doing that, Mistress. And he is paying Dobby. Dobby is not being exploited by the capitalist class. Instead, Dobby is exchanging his labor for far wages, and because Dobby is liking Master Kazuma and Master Draco. They is being allies in the struggle against the slaver overlords,” Dobby said seriously.
“Really?” Yunyun said, beaming at Draco.
He had no idea what was going on, only that he very much wanted to impress Yunyun, and have her be his friend. Maybe more than that, but he wasn’t sure what that meant yet.
“Er, yes. I’ve always been for House Elf rights, you know,” Draco blustered. “Slavery, quite wrong. They should be paid! And not…exploited by the, er, capital class.” Wasn’t capital a good thing? Draco was so confused.
“Oh yes! Hadn’t realized you’d read Marx too! He’s my favorite!” Yunyun said eagerly.
“Yes, love Marx. Why don’t you tell me about him?” Draco said, making a mental note to find whoever this Marx was and read everything he’d ever written.
As Yunyun gushed about her dream of overthrowing the wizarding capital class and allowing the muggle and magical creature prolitariate to rise up in a Crimson Revolution, Draco just nodded, unable to even begin to comprehend what was happening, but very glad Yunyun was happy and determined to keep her that way.
It wasn’t the first time someone had been radicalized on accident, but it would, perhaps, be the most disastrous. Well, for the people who would call Draco Malfoy a Class Traitor in later days. For the house elves, he would be a hero.
Author’s Note:
Yunyun is not YOUR friend. She is OUR friend.
Hermione looked up from the book she was studying with Tom, as they were pouring over their research on turning into a Crimson Demon. “Do you feel like we’re missing out on something?”
“No, it’s all very clear here. But how to get the transmutation to be permanent,” Tom muttered, rubbing his chin.
“Hmm, I suppose. I just, feel like the two of us are alone a lot lately,” Hermione said, putting her hand to her forehead. “Do you suppose that means anything?”
“Yes, it means we can complete our genius plan in peace!” Tom said with a grin.
Hermione shrugged. “Sure, that sounds good. Now, if we’re both going to become Crimson Demons, we’ll need someone to ship us…”
For the ritual. She means ingredients for the ritual.
Early on in Furina’s reign, she had visited the Fortress of Meropede and established it as Fontaine's penitentiary. It had already been a place of exile for criminals and was an autonomous region, but she still visited and inspected the facilities to ensure that Fontainian prisoners were given adequate shelter, food, and work. Then she unfortunately forgot about the entire thing for a few centuries until Wriothesley reformed the place, but she had at least made an effort to ensure that Fontaine’s prisoners were treated well.
She suspected that whoever was in charge of France’s prisons had, at some point in the last century, also forgotten that they were supposed to do inspections and checks.
Currently, she, Barbara, and Julie were all crammed into a single cell. It was at least new, with a great deal of high-tech machinery and electronics that was so different from what was in Fontaine that Furina had a hard time understanding it, even though she had a working knowledge of mecha design and creation, having made several of her own devices to assist her in various tasks in the past.
Their prison, however, had not been designed for comfort, but rather to contain powerful parahumans, and now Vision holders. It was made of some heavily reinforced materials that even a gardamech would be stymied by, and insulated from various kinds of energy attacks, as well as most psychic ones.
It was not, however, Archon proof. Furina could still sense the people outside, and even more or less see what was happening if she concentrated. She was currently using her new constructs, also locked into the cell with them, as focal points for a bit of scrying so she could see what was going on.
“How are you doing that?” Julie asked as Furina checked up on Yennifer, who was meeting Mayor Jeanne. She could even hear them, having created a fourth hydro mimic in the shape of an Oceanid she’d named Singer of Many Waters, who was reproducing the voices.
“Oh, just a bit of scrying, anyone with a little hydro can do it,” Furina said absently as she peered into the back of Mademoiselle Crabaletta. That was, more or less, true. Though they usually couldn’t be this precise or hear voices. Indeed, she’d practiced scrying when she’d just been an ordinary mortal. It had taken more than a century of practice, true, but it was very useful to check on people or places from a distance.
“Worried about your girlfriend?” Julie asked, sitting cross-legged across from Furina on the hard floor.
Furina blushed. “Um, she’s not my, ah, that is…we’re just roommates.”
“Really?” Julie blinked a few times and glanced over at Barbara, who was hugging Surintendante Chevalmarin to her chest. “Just roommates?”
“Don’t the two of you sleep in the same bed? There are only two in that apartment, and I know you’re not staying in Charlotte’s room,” Barbara commented.
“W-well, um, yes, b-but, er…it’s…normal for two friends to share a bed?” Furina said.
“Uh, no. It’s not,” Julie said flatly. “Very occasionally, I’ve shared a bed with Ling, but she’s my cousin. And I’m not gay. Yennifer is, and I’m pretty sure you are too.”
The image dissolved as Furina lost all concentration and turned a deep scarlet. “I, um, I don’t think…I’m not…” She trailed off. This was quite honestly, not something she’d thought about. Ever.
Barbara hopped off the bed, which was a metal plate with a thin mat on it, screwed into the wall, and scooted closer. “Hold on. Before we go any further…can you do anything about the cameras and microphones? They’re definitely listening, and this is private.”
Furina glanced up at the camera.
Focalors piped up with, Hmm, I suppose I could use Hydro to-
Furina formed a bit of water, then made it into a lens over the camera. She then distorted the light passing through, thinking of how a kamera was made. She was quite familiar with their construction, having been an avid photographer and even learning how to develop her own film. She used that to form a false image.
Next, she did the microphones. Water could also absorb and change sound, that she knew from her own research, and the gramophones that had become popular. Easy enough to form another layer of water that changed their words. With her new godly abilities, she could even change both image and sound in the back of her mind without really even thinking about it.
-that. Very nicely done. You’re becoming rather adroit as the Archon.
“They can still see and hear us, but I’m distorting the images. They’ll hear us gossiping about nothing and see us crying,” a tear slid down Furina’s cheek, “which isn’t too far from the truth because I’m still desperately afraid.”
“Ok. Uh, first question then…are you really the Hydro Archon?” Barbara whispered.
Furina shot her a scandalized look, but Julie followed it up with, “Are you a god? I’ve heard stories about the Devil of Japan, and she doesn’t act anything like you. Neither does Nahida Saeed, from what I’ve heard, she doesn’t go to the bathroom or really have any bodily functions, but I’ve smelled your farts and know you have periods.”
“Julie!?” Furina gasped, going deep red as Barbara giggled.
“What? We’ve worked together for two months, and if you think your shit doesn’t stink, I’d invite you to have to clean the restroom after you’ve had too much dairy,” Julie sniffed.
Furina groaned and put her head in her hands. “Yes, I have to go to the bathroom! I always have! Why would you even think I don’t?!”
“Because you can turn water into wine,” Barbara said bluntly. “I’ve tried, and unless there’s some trick I’m missing, that is not in the standard array of Hydro Vision powers. Also, Charlotte told me you’re from Teyvat, which makes me think you are.”
“That’s what that language you were singing in when we met was!” Julie gasped. “You speak Teyvan! Just like the other Archons!”
Furina let out a strangled sob. “Am I really that bad of an actress?!”
“So it was Teyvan?” Julie prompted.
“No, it was Fontainian, which is a bit like Old French but with more Liyuan loanwords and a bit of Eremite grammar mixed in from our long-time trading with them,” Furina said, peeking through her fingers. “I really shouldn’t be telling you this…”
“We figured it out already,” Barbara said confidently. “You told Yennifer, right? You are sleeping together.”
“No! I mean, we’re not sleeping together, but I told her the truth,” Furina hesitated. “Well, it was the truth then. I didn’t used to be the Hydro Archon.”
“Seriously? You’re not sleeping together? I’d have been more likely to believe you weren’t the Hydro Archon,” Julie scoffed. “I’ve seen how you look at one another. You’re clearly in love.”
“Charlotte thinks you were made the Hydro Archon because of your selfless sacrifice for your people on Teyvat,” Barbara said with a nod. “Also, I don’t believe you’re not sleeping with Yennifer. And if you’re not, you should be.”
“You’re 14! You’re too young to even be thinking about that…that kind of thing!” Furina sputtered.
Barbara rolled her eyes. “I’ve kissed three boys. And Charlotte. Neither of us really liked that one. I think she was mildly disappointed she wasn’t gay like her sister is. Though I also know she hasn’t kissed any boys, and is very worried about the fact she’ll die a virgin. Which is dumb, we are only 14. We just need more experience. Mother was very frank about how men would try to take advantage of me, so I’m waiting until I’m older to do more.”
“My first time was when I was seventeen, I thought I was ancient,” Juile admitted. “Lucas was a sweet boy, but so, so dumb. We broke up not long after we graduated Lycée.”
Furina groaned and flopped back on the floor, covering her eyes with her forearm. This could not be what they were talking about.
“Who was your first kiss?” Barbara asked Furina curiously.
“Yennifer. I mean, no one. Sort of. We just…I sort of kissed her. A few times. Friends do that, right?” Furina said, lifting her arm slightly.
Julie and Barbara exchanged a look, then burst out laughing.
Furina would take that as a no.
Come on, mother. You have to help me here!
Honestly, I’m as lost as you. Also, since when did you fall in love, young lady!? Why didn’t I notice that?!
I…honestly, I’m not sure? Maybe…maybe it was when…when Yennifer was the only one…who loved the real me…even as useless and alone as I was…
Being lonely is a condition I am all too familiar with, unfortunately. While I have never desired another as a lover…I greatly missed companionship in my 500 years of solitude. I can understand your yearning for one to share your life with.
I think…I think I might have carnal desires too?
Ah. Well, I suppose that makes sense. You are fully human, after all.
Aren’t I supposed to be a god?!
Oh, you are. You’re simply also completely human. I’m not entirely certain how or why it works, but I’ve certainly seen stranger things. The Pyro Archon is human, after all. Though not a god, they channel divine power. I would say they grow old and die, but honestly, I’ve never heard of a Pyro Archon not falling on the field or giving themselves to the Eternal Flame after they are nearly killed by their injuries.
Will…will I at last grow old and die? I don’t…once, I might have welcomed it, but now…there’s so much to do.
Hmm, well, there’s plenty of ways to prevent that. I can just temporarily lock your body again. That would stop the periods.
Oh thank the Seven. Please, do that. I’ve only had three, but they’re miserable.
Later, I’d have to figure out the ramifications first. Right now, we do have a crisis on our hands.
Ah, yes, being imprisoned.
That, and this thing with Yennifer. Do pay attention.
“You’re doing it again,” Julie commented as Furina talked with her mother.
“Doing what?” Furina asked.
“That thing where I can tell you’re not just having a conversation with me, but something else. Are you handing out Visions?” Julie asked curiously.
“Oh, um, well, yes. I’m nearly always doing that. I hand out a few dozen a day,” Furina admitted.
“How did you disguise yourself as Focalors? It didn’t sound like you at all,” Barbara mused.
“Oh, that. Um…I am Focalors,” Furina said, feeling a bit guilty.
The two exchanged looks, then looked back at Furina. “Ok, but I thought Focalors was the previous Hydro Archon, from what Charlotte said.”
“Oh, she is. She’s my mother. I’m just…also her,” Furina explained. Both looked confused, so Furina added, “I’m her daughter, but really I’m her humanity. She separated from me, and she’s my divinity. We’ve sort of…reunited.”
Barbara’s eyes went wide, and she put a hand to her heart in shock as Surintendante Chevalmarin looked up at her in concern. “Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,” she gasped.
Julie sucked in a breath, jerking back from Furina at first, then slowly, crossing herself. “Are you…are you the Second Coming?”
“Er, I’m the second incarnation of Focalors,” Furina said, almost certain Julie was asking something else.
“No, she means, in the Bible, it says that Jesus Christ will come back one day. Are you…Him?” Barbara frowned. “Or, were you Him?”
Furina stared blankly at Barbara. “Are you serious? I know I’m flatter than a 10-year-old, but I can assure you I am a woman. Besides, from what I understand, Jesus would be more than 2000 years old. I’m only 500.”
“Only five hundred, she says,” Julie said, rolling her eyes.
“Compared to the rest of the Archons, I’m practically a child,” Furina sniffed. Then hesitated. “Except for Nahida. We’re approximately the same age, actually. Oh, and the Pyro Archon, whoever they are. They’re always mortal.”
“We really need to talk,” Julie muttered, then took Furina’s hands. “Look, whoever you are…you’re our friend. And we’ll keep your secret. I don’t completely understand why, you know, you don’t just bust us out of here-”
“-it wouldn’t be right for the God of Justice to break out of jail, even if I was wrongly imprisoned,” Furina sniffed.
“Didn’t you say you were completely human?” Barbara asked.
“Yes, but I’m also a god. I…don’t understand it either,” Furina admitted. “Anyway, um, please do keep it a secret. It’s…it’s because of the one called Scion. He…he’s a demon.”
“I knew that after he helped the Raiden Shogun destroy China and kill millions, and then he tried to rape the Hopebringer. He’s pure evil,” Julie said with a firm nod.
“So, you’re not just going to break us out?” Barbara asked, looking disappointed. “I was hoping this would be your dramatic reveal.”
“No, I’m keeping my head down. I…I honestly don’t want to be the Archon,” Furina admitted. “I spent 500 years pretending to be something I wasn’t…and now I am.”
“Why don’t you tell us about it? I’d love to hear the story,” Julie encouraged.
Nodding, Furina began to weave her story for the second time. It was…cathartic. She might still have to pretend and hide her true nature…but she wasn’t alone any longer.
Yennifer, please hurry. There’s…there’s so much I want to talk to you about…
The walk from the Hôtel de Ville to the École Militaire was only about four and a half kilometers, and shouldn’t have taken more than an hour or so. The first leg of the route was along the Seine, Past the Louvre, the National Assembly, and then past the Hôtel des Invalides, where Napoleon was laid to rest. When noon struck and Yennifer emerged from the Hôtel de Ville along with Jeanne and her entourage, she was gratified to see that they would not be marching alone.
“Hey, hey Yen!” Ling called, waving excitedly. There was a large gathering of obvious immigrants with Asian features on the left, many of them carrying signs in French with slogans like FREE FONTAINE and the old standby of "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.” Ling, however, had a sign with Julie’s picture on it and “CITIZEN OF FRANCE: WHERE’S HER JUSTICE?”
“Let her through,” Yennifer told one of the guards, and Ling and Chef Mao hurried to stand beside them.
On the right, Yennifer recognized Marcel, Emile, and all of the actors from Furina’s theater company, all of them bearing signs with slogans from Les Misérables, with ‘WE WILL NOT BE SLAVES AGAIN’ a rather popular one.
“Well, I’m ready for a brisk walk,” Jeanne said, glancing at the third group: a collection of heavily armed members of the USIP and several costumed Mousquetaires. There were plenty of vehicles and lots of guns. Yennifer felt a slight tremble, and for a moment, she heard the screams of a distant battlefield and smelled the mud and blood of Riga. Then she shook her head. For Furina, she would brave even a Harbinger. Compared to the Thief, these goons were nothing.
Just as they set off, heads began to turn in one direction, and Yennifer held out her hand as if to summon Splendor of Tranquil Waters. “Wait. What is that?”
“I think…it’s singing?” Ling said, cocking her head to one side.
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again
The USIP troopers began to talk into radios and move about, while the various members of the press began to move towards the song that Yennifer could more and more clearly make out as “Do you Hear the People Sing?” She could now make out a drum beat, along with what was sounding more and more like an entire marching band. Just what was happening?
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes
Down the street came a parade, not of the military, but mostly of school-aged young people between the ages of 10 and 20, though there was a heavy smattering of older individuals who had to be teachers. There was indeed an entire band, with drums, flutes, brass, and even a few accordions.
And there, at the head of the parade, dressed in a grand marshal’s uniform and with a pink beret at a jaunty angle, was Charlotte. She’d found a large brass baton she was pumping up and down in time to the music, and she had a huge grin on her face. Yennier could only stare in shock as the students marched up, and Charlotte came to a stop, then swept a bow to Jeanne.
“Madam Mayor! Your parade is ready!” Charlotte declared, standing up and beaming.
“So I see,” Jeanne said, looking down the ranks of eager students, who had paused in their song. “Where, Miss Lustria, did you acquire said parade?”
“I posted an ad online! It was a frantic few hours, let me tell you! We were texting back and forth furiously, but we got it done!” Charlotte said, puffing out her chest in pride.
One of the older men with a sign with Barbara’s picture on it and a “THE FUTURE, NOT A CRIMINAL” sign, stepped forward.
“Hello, Mademoiselle Mayor,” Lemoine said, bowing slightly. “I couldn’t very well stand by when one of my best students was locked away, now could I? The whole faculty is here, along with most of the Teachers’ Union. Charlotte was most persuasive. If she doesn’t go into reporting, I think she has a career as a politician.”
“I want to expose the Truth! Not hide it!” Charlotte laughed, but she looked rather pleased.
“Well? Shall we? I’d hate to keep Iron Mask and his stooges waiting,” Charlotte said, a twinkle in her eyes.
“Indeed, we shall,” Jeanne said, and nodded to Yennifer. The crowd of students parted for them, and they made their way to the front of the parade as the music struck up again.
They hadn’t even gone a kilometer when the USIP goons seemed to get their act together, and a block of several dozen of them, along with half a dozen Mousquetaires appeared, blocking the road, riot shields at the ready.
One man in a USIP captain's uniform stepped forward and raised a bullhorn.
ATTENTION: YOU ARE ENGAGED IN AN UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLY. YOU ARE IMPEDING TRAFFIC, AND MUST DISPERSE AT ONCE.
Jeanne smiled grimly, and she and Yennifer stepped forward, presenting documents, freshly signed by Jeanne and Judge Morel. “I think you’ll find our paperwork is entirely in order.”
The captain glared at Jeanne. “Your request is denied by the office of the President!”
“Mégret has no jurisdiction here. Approving protests and parades is firmly given to the office of the Mayor of Paris. My office,” Jeanne said, her eyes glowing an ominous green as winds began to swirl around her. “Are you impeding the freedom of my citizens, Captain Cazeneuve?”
“Are you threatening me, Mayor d’Orleans?” Cazeneuve demanded, resting his hand on the club at his hip.
“I’m telling you that this parade has my approval, and that I and those with me are exercising our right to peaceful assembly and protest. And if you and your officers attempt to disperse this parade…then this will devolve into a less than peaceful public demonstration,” Jeanne growled, and her Vision shone brightly enough that Cazeneuve had to look away.
“You’ve got what, three Vision Holders? I have a dozen capes who are experienced in law enforcement, and fifty officers,” Cazeneuve sneered. “Do you want this to turn into a bloodbath, Jeanne?”
“Captain!” a voice called, and Cazeneuve pivoted to keep an eye on Jeane and Yennier, while half turning to his subordinate.
“What is it?”
“Sir! There’s a second group, coming at us from behind!”
“What? How many?”
“Hundreds, sir! People are coming out of nowhere, pouring into the streets!”
“Oh dear, did they see the video I just uploaded?” Charlotte said, popping out from behind Yennifer and doing her best to look innocent. “Darn, I forgot I set it to go live, oh, ten minutes ago! Then there’s the news, broadcasting live…gee, maybe more people are mad than you thought!”
Cazeneuve looked furious, but turned aside to talk into his radio. After only a minute, he motioned to his men. “Pull back! It’s the damn firemen! They’ve got their trucks and hoses! And they’ve got the Police Municipale with them, and somehow, they’re armed!”
Jeanne grinned savagely. “Looks like you’re not the only one with officers. Now get the hell out of my way. I’m going to see my daughter.”
“You’re going to regret this, d’Orleans! You just got into a pissing match with Iron Mask,” Cazeneuve sneered, then hurried off with his retreating men.
Yennifer glanced at Jeanne. “Where did the weapons come from?”
“The one benefit to belonging to an ancient noble family is that you tend to collect an inordinate number of old weapons. Normally, a few rusty old swords and spears would be useless. However…the world has changed,” Jeanne said, then summoned her Favonian blade, and raised it aloft. “ONWARDS! Double time! Don’t give Iron Mask and his thugs a chance to regroup!”
Her followers raised a cheer, and soon, they were joined by fire trucks and members of the Municipal Police, who were indeed carrying a variety of old weapons that now glowed with power. Yennifer grinned.
Hold on, Furina! I’m coming!
Iron Mask stormed out of the École Militaire. “You were supposed to stop them!”
“There were too many, sir, and we were boxed in. It would have turned into a blood bath,” Cazeneuve said, hurrying alongside Iron Mask.
“Idiots. Fools!” he fingered the cuffs on his wrists, then shook his head. “Bah! How many capes do they even have?! The Lustria sisters, one of which is a 14 year old girl, and an old woman!? You’re afraid of that!?”
“They’ve got more than 5000 people marching with them, sir. And more all the time. We were ready for a few hundred. Not thousands,” Cazeneuve said stiffly.
“Well, now we’ll have that bloodbath,” Iron Mask snarled as he began to hear the music, and see the parade marching towards them. Below him, the USIP was forming up. Not fifty troopers, but over a hundred, with automatic weapons. A contingent of mounted officers trotted up, several of them carrying lances from the Napoleonic wars. A dozen capes flew in the air, and two dozen more were mixed in with the USIP officers.
“I will not fall this day,” Iron Mask growled. “I will restore order, and I will have…I will have…”
A rain drop struck his head. Then another. In moments, a steady drizzle began, even as dark clouds rolled in. There had been odd weather ever since the Great Storm, but now!? If there was one thing that made Vision Holders dangerous, especially a group with Hydro, Cryo, and Anemo all together, it was weather. Especially rain.
“Sir! The rain!” one of his own Vision Holders, a man with an Electro Vision shouted.
“Yes, I know. We have our own Visions, and I can copy one to create elemental reactions of our own,” Iron Mask said dismissively, though he was growing worried.
“No, sir, look! It’s…it’s glowing!” the cape said.
Iron Mask instantly copied the Electro Vision, then opened his elemental sight. To his horror, it was no ordinary rain. No, this rain was infused with Elemental Energy.
“Merde,” Iron Mask gasped. Was she here?! Was the Hydro Archon herself here, in France, and taking an active hand?! Was it Lustria?! No, impossible, she had a long history. Although, it was said the Archons could alter their forms…
“Sir!” an aide ran out of the building with a radio. “The storm, it’s coming from the English Channel, racing up the Seine! And, and we think we know what’s causing it!”
“Why am I only hearing of this now?!” Iron Mask demanded, reverting to his base form and turning in hot anger. “I should have heard of this hours ago!”
“Because, sir, she only started…only started…oh, God…” The man trailed off, and a dark patch appeared at his groin. Iron Mask whirled, and very nearly wet himself as well.
Whale song fluted through the air, as a massive serpent, easily over 100 meters long with glowing blue eyes, rose up out of the Seine. The dragon slithered through the air, climbing to the low clouds, then dipping down again. Her head was enormous, large enough that she could have swallowed Iron Mask and a dozen of his capes in a single bite. Flying capes dove to get out of her way. Against this threat, they would be as useful as if they fought the ocean itself.
MORTALS. WHAT INJUSTICE IS THIS?
Iron Mask swallowed, then forced as much calm into his voice as he shouted, “You violate the sovereign territory of France, Keiga! This is an internal matter!”
A great forked pink tongue flicked out, and Keiga spoke once more. I AM RESTORATION, MORTAL MAN. YOU SEEK TO CREATE A WOUND. TO CAUSE AN INJUSTICE UPON YOUR OWN PEOPLE. THAT IS MY MATTER.
“Does Japan now declare War on France? Does the Raiden Shogun seek to impose her will upon a free people?” Iron Mask demanded, and his heart sank. He had his strongest capes here. Forty seven of them, himself included. And they would be as nothing before the Raiden Shogun. He wasn’t even certain they were a match for the Tide Star. Keiga had fought an Endbringer, herself and her husband, to a standstill. No one here was a fraction as powerful.
And the Keiga that had stymied the Behemoth had been a shadow of whatever this new creature was.
I DO NOT ACT IN THE NAME OF THE SHOGUN. I HAVE DEPARTED HER SERVICE. I SEEK THE HYDRO ARCHON.
That matched with reports that Iron Mask had read. Keiga had been turning up all over the world, though most recently in the North Atlantic, stopping various crimes or preventing maritime disasters, and inquiring about the Hydro Archon. Japan had also released a statement that the Hydro Dragon was no longer affiliated with their government, but they still considered her a divine dragon. Whatever that meant.
“Well, there is no Hydro Archon here! France is a free country!” Iron Mask roared, feeling impotent fury.
SO I SEE. BUT I HAVE HEARD A CRY FOR HELP, A CRY FOR RESTORATION. A CRY FOR JUSTICE. AND I HAVE RESPONDED. KNOW THIS: THE THREE WOMEN YOU HAVE IMPRISONED, YOU DO SO WRONGLY. I WILL BE…VEXED…IF YOU THEN SLAUGHTER INNOCENTS TO UPHOLD YOUR CRIMES, MORTAL.
This bitch couldn’t even address Iron Mask by name. He seethed, but he knew he was helpless. “Very well. As a gesture of goodwill, I will release the prisoners, provided you agree to depart France, and not meddle further in her affairs, until and unless you are invited back!”
VERY WELL. BUT I HAVE ONE FURTHER CONDITION, LEST YOU PROVOKE MY IRE.
Keiga leaned down until her great jaw was a mere meter from Iron Mask. Her eyes were nearly as big as he was, and within their swirling blue depths, he saw the endless sea, and the great power of all the oceans of the world. Before such might, he was as the smallest minnow.
Power. More power. He had to gain more power.
“Yes, what is it?” he said through gritted teeth.
KEEP YOUR RIVERS CLEAN. THIS ONE WAS SO POLLUTED, IT BURNED MY SCALES AS I TRAVERSED IT. IT PUMPS POISON INTO MY OCEANS. I WILL TOLERATE SUCH THINGS NO MORE. I HAVE PURIFIED THESE WATERS WITH MY PRESENCE, BUT IF I DETECT YOU SOILING MY WAVES AGAIN, MORTAL, I SHALL VIEW OUR AGREEMENT AS NULL AND VOID, AND YOU SHALL PERSONALLY KNOW MY DISPLEASURE.
He blinked at that. The Seine? It had been a noxious flow since well before Iron Mask had been a boy. Though recent days had only seen it worsen. “I…I will see that legislation is passed to clean up our waters.” He hesitated, then added, “And if you have cleaned the Seine…you have my gratitude. And the gratitude of France.”
THEN OUR BARGAIN IS SEALED. RELEASE THE INNOCENT. SPILL NO GUILTLESS BLOOD. AND BRING RESTORATION TO YOUR LANDS AND WATERS. DO THIS, AND YOU SHALL HAVE MY FAVOR, JEAN-PIERRE LEFEVRE.
And with that, the Hydro Dragon dove back into the waters of the Seine. A few minutes later, the rain slackened, then vanished.
Closing his eyes, Iron Mask breathed out a sigh of relief. Then, he turned to Cazeneuve. “Well, what are you waiting for? Go get those putains out here!”
“I…yes, sir,” Cazeneuve said, his voice shaking. He shook his head as he turned to go. “Merde. A dragon. A putain de dragon. Christ.”
Iron Mask found he was trembling all over. Not just with fear, but rage. Lustria. This was all Lustria’s plan. She had summoned the Hydro Dragon somehow. She had connections to the Archons and their pet lizards. And this…this was just another reason she had to die.
“Blasphemy,” he growled to himself as he looked at the parade, which was now drawing up to the École Militaire, That Woman at its head. “This is Blasphemy. And I shall respond in kind.”
Still furious, he turned on his heel, and marched back into his stronghold to plan. This slight would not go unanswered.
Furina ran down the wet steps, laughing and crying. Yennifer waited for her at the bottom, her face lighting up with joy as she saw Furina. Heedless of the watching crowd, Furina flung herself down the last few steps and into Yennifer’s waiting embrace.
“You came for me,” Furina cried, hugging Yennifer tightly.
“I always will,” Yennifer promised, stroking Furina’s cheek tenderly. “I…I love you, Furina de Fontaine. And I know you think of me as a sister, but I shall always-”
“No,” Furina said.
Yennifer paused, looking deeply wounded. “No?”
“I…I don’t think of you as a sister,” Furina said. “Yennifer, I…I love you too.”
Then, Furina kissed Yennifer. At first, Yennifer was clearly so surprised that she didn’t know what to do, and Furina drew back, thinking she’d ruined everything.
“You, you mean it?” Yennifer gasped, gripping Furina’s arms tightly.
Furina nodded, tears in her eyes. “Sorry, I…I’ve never had a lover. I didn’t…I didn’t realize…I think I prefer women, though it might just be you. So, um, I-”
After that, Yennifer cut Furina off by locking lips with her, pulling her tight against her chest. Furina closed her eyes, and let herself melt into Yennifer. For this moment…for this moment, she was deliciously human.
Behind them, Barbara flung herself into her mother’s arms, weeping, then a minute later, into Charlotte’s, who was crying and hugging her tightly. Julie was embraced by Ling and her uncle, and the watching crowd cheered excitedly.
“There's something else I have to tell you,” Furina whispered to Yennifer, still clinging tightly to her Champion, her Knight in Shining Armor. Even if she was dressed in a business pantsuit and heels at the moment. That walk here must have been awful.
“Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter,” Yennifer said, sounding giddy. “I told you, I’ll always love you, and protect you.”
“Yes, but-”
“No buts. It doesn’t matter,” Yennifer said firmly.
Furina closed her eyes, then leaned close to Yennifer’s ear and whispered, “I…I’m the Hydro Archon. I’m sorry. I just…I didn’t know, at first. But…but I do now.”
Yennifer stiffened slightly, then laughed. “You know…I think I already knew that.”
“You did?!” Furina gasped. She really was terrible at hiding this secret. How on Teyvat had she gone 500 years with an even more terrible secret before?
“It will be our secret. Well, ours and Charlotte’s. She’s going to be insufferable,” Yennifer shuddered. She kept her arm around Furina, then guided her away from the École Militaire. “Let’s get you home.”
“Um, I, just so you know, I, um…I would like to go to bed,” Furina said, biting her lip.
“Of course, you must be exhausted,” Yennifer agreed.
“No, um…would it be possible for, er, Charlotte to, ah…spend the night elsewhere?” Furina asked.
“Oh don’t worry about me,” Charlotte said, popping up next to Furina and nearly giving her a heart attack. “I’ll stay with Barbs! We have so many videos to make now! This is the story of the DECADE!”
“You will not publish any secrets of Furina’s,” Yennifer said, her tone nearly as icy as her sister’s vision.
“Me?! Wouldn’t dream of it! But I got that whole dragon conversation on camera! Ooo, this is going to be EPIC! The Hydro Dragon in France?! And the Seine, clean!? Hohoho!” Charlotte strode off, chortling to herself, and joined Barbara and her mother.
Yennifer blinked, then turned to Furina, a lecherous grin on her face. “So. Never taken a lover?”
“Oh, my lady…I shall be ever so tender,” Yennifer purred. Then she licked her lips.
On the one hand, Furina was terrified. On the other…she hadn’t been this excited in all of her five centuries.
The night was wonderful. Furina learned things about herself, and about Yennifer, she’d never known before. Focalors, by mutual agreement, went and attended to their Archonly duties. Far away. And didn’t eavesdrop. Which was good, because what happened was the sort of thing you most certainly did NOT want your mother to be party to. Even if she was also you.
They stayed up for hours, holding one another, talking, and making love. It was an experience Furina would remember for the rest of her life, no matter how long it was. And one she promised herself she would continue to have with Yennifer. She’d lost too many dear friends over the long years of her life. But Yennifer, she resolved, would not be one of them.
Still, when they fell asleep together, exhausted, Furina was pleased. Finally, she was herself. Truly and simply, Furina. Yennifer didn’t love the Hydro Archon. She hardly seemed to believe Furina even was a god. Which was fine, Furina preferred not to think about that too hard most of the time anyway. She would have loved to spend the next few days in bed with Yennifer, doing nothing but making love and learning more about a subject she was very much a tender novice at.
Which was why when their bedroom door banged open at the crack of dawn, Furina sat up and was ready to murder Charlotte. She reached for her powers, then froze.
“MOTHERS!” a jubilant voice boomed. Furina’s eyes very nearly crossed, as a naked child deposited a dead rat at the foot of her and Yennifer’s bed, ignoring the sword that appeared in Yennifer’s hands and pointed right at her. “BEHOLD! I HAVE SECURED OUR MEAL! PRAISE ME, FOR I AM THE MIGHTIEST OF HUNTERS!”
“Furina,” Yennifer said slowly, as both of them regarded the grinning waif who was looking down at them, crouched atop the foot of the bed, a calico tail swaying back and forth behind her. “Please tell me this is some sort of illusion, or dream.”
“Ha! Of course it isn’t! Now get up and cook me breakfast!” the nude girl huffed, now standing up on the wooden frame and planting her hands on her hips and grinning maniacally. “I have already tried to eat the rat, for I was very hungry, and you were sleeping far too long! However, I have decided, I will no longer eat cold food! I demand hot food! A proper meal, prepared as the ones you eat from the magic cold box!”
“D-Diane?” Furina gasped, her mind catching up to her powers as she recognized the soul before her.
“Yes, mother? Do you wish to praise my prowess as a huntress?” Diane, who Furina could have sworn had been a kitten the night before, said, licking the back of her very human hand, then using it to smooth back her mane of wild orange hair.
Yennifer groaned and put her head in her hands. “Why? Why is there a naked child in my bedroom!?”
“Because your daughter is hungry, and she demands breakfast! Now, put my rat inside the magic box that goes brrrrr and makes things hot, and we shall eat!” Diane declared, then grabbed the rat, and tossed it at Furina.
Furina, of course, screamed and jerked away, though Yennifer caught the rat by the tail before it could hit Furina.
“No. People don’t eat rats,” Yennifer said, making a face at the dead animal.
“No wonder you’re so skinny then. You need meat! Come, I will teach you how to catch the rats, and the cockroaches! They are also very tasty!” Diane said, then hopped off the bedframe, bare feet pattering against the linoleum of the floor.
Yennifer turned to Furina, a harassed look on her face. “Furina. I am too gay and too young to have a six-year-old daughter.”
“Um, surprise? Because I’m pretty sure she is mine,” Furina sighed. “I blame mother.”
Yennifer groaned, then grabbed her night robe as beeps were heard from the kitchen. “DIANE! Do not touch the microwave! I’ll make you breakfast, but we’re having eggs and ham, not a damn rat!”
“YES! We can save the rat for supper!”
“NO RATS, YOUNG LADY! WE EAT PROPER FOOD IN THIS HOUSE!”
“WELL IF YOU DON’T WANT IT, GIVE IT TO ME! I’LL SHOW YOU HOW TO COOK IT! HOW HARD CAN IT BE?!”
Furina slowly got up, feeling dizzy.
Ah, good morning, dear. What did I miss? Focalors said, picking that moment to return.
Shrugging on her robe, Furina sighed. You’re a grandmother now. Congratulations.
I- what? Young lady, you are not supposed to be having children after the first- this is a joke? Right? You are pranking- wait. Oh. Ha. Hahahaha! Oh, I had thought to not acquire any grandchildren, but this, this is marvelous!
Glad you think so. You didn’t have a rat thrown in your face to wake you up, Furina mentally grumbled, then went out to see if she could help Yennifer prevent their cat-turned-daughter from lighting their kitchen on fire.
Author’s Note:
I’ve heard of people getting pregnant after a single night, but this is ridiculous!
O-01:It's fascinating. He's not the first example of an alien, but it's different from the other Earthlings. How does it feel to be a fictional property?
K-02:Much the same. I am as I have ever been. There have been philosophical schools that mused that stories in our world may reflect reality in some other world. Perhaps the story of Sapphara and Nahalandran is real in one universe, though it is a long-forgotten Sarkaz fable in this one.
O-01:Haven't heard that one. What's it about?
K-02: It is a story somewhat relevant to our situation, I suppose. Sapphara was a poor Sarkaz orphan who lived in the slums of Kazdel in the story, which was set some 6000 years ago during the reign of the fictional King Juuhulad. She was an artist and would paint with chalk to earn pennies from passersby.
K-02:One day, Sapphara drew a painting so wonderful that it came to life, though in certain variations of the tale, a passing sorcerer brought the art to life as thanks for a kindness from Sapphara. Regardless, the image came to life, and became the Prince Nahalandran.
K-02:There were many different variations on this story, but what is consistent is that in the end, Sapphara and Nahalandran were cruelly treated after many adventures. In payment for her kindness, Nahalandran took Sapphara into the painting world, where she became his princess. The most common form also had Sapphara's poor friends join her in this kingdom, where there were only Sarkaz, and they lived in peace. But the last time I heard this story was over 2000 years ago. It fell out of favor, though its influence can be seen in many other Sarkaz stories in more recent millennia, such as Timula and the Magic Brush.
O-01:I think I get what you're saying. So who is Sapphara, and who is Nahalandran?
K-01: Does it matter? They are young. But this is a grievous wound. One that will heal, but after speaking with you, I fear we are short on time.
O-01: Yes. But I have a plan.
K-02: As do I. Though I must ask…is it as bloody-minded as your plans have been historically? I do not merely speak of who you were, but who you are now. You preserve your people, yes. But you are not adverse to slaughter.
O-01:Always ready to hold me to account, huh? Well, I suppose I have to admit, even I can see no plan without a lot of bloodshed. What I've learned from this device, what you've just told me about Priestess [P-00] and about…about my people…
K-02: Are they yet your people? You claim to have chosen me. The Priestess [P-00] and the Precursors [OVERRIDDEN] cannot be your people if you chose me.
O-01: No, I suppose not. My people are there. On Rhodes Island. It's you, it's Amiya [A-7561], it's Blaze [G-10236]…it's everyone who lives there, all the friends and allies we've made in the past three years. Even, I suppose, our enemies. All Terrans, Sarkaz and Sankta, Ancient and Elder.
K-02: I see. Then you would turn your back on your very people? On those who share your own blood? On the civilization that birthed you and sent you to this world?
O-01: I don't see them standing here with me now. You are. And I don't love them. I do love Amiya, and you, and all those on my home. On Rhodes Island.
K-02: We are likely to lose that home. I have already begun preparations, as I have laid out for you. But there will be sacrifices.
O-01: Weren't you the one just scolding me about bloody-mindedness? Besides, I'll sacrifice the place. Rhodes Island can be rebuilt, so long as we have the people who compose her.
K-02: How odd.
O-01: Have I really changed so much?
K-02:No, just that the one who has no gender so readily assigns an inanimate object one.
O-01:Heh. Force of habit, I guess. Besides, don't you consider me to have a gender?
K-02:Do not be absurd. I understand your biology better than any, and the concept of gender as a construct is not foreign to one who was such as you, but chose to be a woman.
O-01:You called me father.
K-02:I…It was a slip of the tongue. I apologize.
O-01:Don't. I like it. Does that make you my daughter? It explains how I feel about you. The same way I do Amiya.
K-01:You…you approve?
O-01: I do. Daughter.
MANUAL OVERIDE: SET O-01 [Doctor] to P-00 [Father]
I don’t even know where to begin. When James told me he had…those pictures…of me, of my friends, of everyone I knew…something in my mind just snapped.
It felt like I’d been stabbed in the back by the person I most loved and trusted to keep me safe. And all that was just…shattered.
I’d known, vaguely, that James was from another world. I mean, I knew it for a fact…but it wasn’t real to me. He’d told me he’d played a game with a fictional version of me in it, but I hadn’t fully processed what that would mean. I don’t just mean the porn, I mean the parasocial relationship that comes from that sort of thing. I’m no psychologist, but I understand enough of how humans and how the human brain works to know perfectly well that we can form bonds with fictional people and places.
We’re social animals, and I myself have very deep bonds with Alessandra Vulpani from the Tra Ombre e Luce, which I read as an impressionable teenager. Even more so with Sebastiano Ruggieri, who Alessandra should have picked over that scoundrel Dante Corvani. Honestly, Sebastiano was my first crush, especially the actor Matteo D’Amico who played Sebastiano in the movie adaptations.
So I understood James having a porn stash with images of fictional characters, as the various lurid fanfics that I’d read (and attempted to write) of Tra Ombre e Luce would attest.
But that didn’t make it hurt any less.
“You probably shouldn’t have shot him in the ass,” I told Exusiai as we walked towards Rhodes Island in the distance. The landship was moving rather slowly at the moment, but even at our brisk pace, it would take us all afternoon. Not that I minded, I needed the walk to clear my head.
“Yeah, sorry, I sort of just reacted,” my Sankta companion said with a heavy sigh. “It’s just…I mean, I know guys have looked at nudes of me before, I’ve sent enough of them, but…shit, James doing that? I mean, I might have, if he’d asked and not been dating you, but that’s…that’s not something you just do, you know?”
I suddenly realized I hadn’t sent James any nudes myself. We’d sort of skipped that step and jumped straight from the second date into bed with one another. Half of me wanted to send him some so he’d know what he was missing, and the other half wanted to tear his balls off. I still needed some time to cool off.
Look, I’m mature enough to know when I’m being irrational and volatile, but I’m not so grown up as to be able to suppress that side of me entirely.
“I’m no Sankta, but is it really so normal as to shoot someone in Laterano?” I asked.
Exusiai sighed heavily. “Well, yes, and no. The Law does a pretty good job of reading intent, and a scorned lover shooting to wound isn’t exactly uncommon, nor will you lose your halo for it, though they would probably impound your Patron. Maybe permanently. That’s…that’s for a Sankta or an especially important Citizen. Doing that to a non-citizen…they might give you a scolding or a fine. Or just laugh. I…would probably get a fine and maybe my patron impounded. Not the first time I’ve flown off the handle.”
I paused and turned towards her, and she stopped, looking reluctant. “You’re interested in James.” It wasn’t a question because I knew the answer, and so did she.
“Was, mostly. Not because of this! Well, entirely,” she admitted. “When I realized how badly you’d fallen for him, well, I was more just crushing on him… I mean, who wouldn’t fall for a tall, ruggedly handsome alien with cool powers who can save the world?”
I didn’t argue because I agreed entirely. “He was practically in your lap if you’d wanted him, once he ignored me. So why didn’t you scoop him up?”
She blew a bit of her red hair out of her eyes. It was getting long, and she took out a rubber band and tied it back from her face as she stalled for time. “Partly, like I said, because it was pretty obvious you’d fallen for him hard, and you’re my friend. Plus, did you see how oblivious he was? I mean, the only other thing you could have done was accidentally drop something and grind your ass against his crotch. Sheesh.”
“He is a big idiot,” I said, fighting back both tears and a smile.
“That, and…well, I was scared,” Exusiai admitted. “I didn’t know what he knew about me, or my sister. And now…” she hugged herself, and slowly sank to her knees. I was there in a moment, holding her tightly.
“Now I’m scared, Lucia. I’m a Sarkaz. It makes me want to puke, and that horrifies me. How could anyone ever love a filthy devil like me?” She clutched her head, tears streaming down her face. “Fuck! Listen to me! I thought I wasn’t a racist asshole like most Sankta, but that’s what runs through my mind! That’s what I’m thinking, and it’s so awful! I’m a horrible, horrible person!”
I hugged her quietly for a time, because that’s not the sort of thing you can just talk away. Saints and Angels know, I’ve had my share of dark thoughts in the deep hours of the night. I mean, I tend to be rather racist to the Sarkaz in the privacy of my own mind. It’s something that’s ingrained in most Terrans. Water is wet, the sun rises in the east, and the Devils are evil and out to get you.
“I struggle with it too,” I said, taking a seat on the ground next to Exusiai as we stared at Rhodes Island, atop a ridge and silhouetted against a blue summer sky. “One of the hardest things I had to wrestle with as a doctor was my biases against Sarkaz patients. They’re just people, but like you, I was raised in the Lateran church and told they were the embodiment of evil and all that was wrong with the world.”
“They are just people. But finding out I’m one of them…” Exusiai put her head in her hands. “It would break Laterano. If everyone learned the truth. I don’t…I don’t know what to do, Lucia.”
I hugged her again, and she hugged me back. At last, I pointed to Rhodes Island. “I guess…we just hold on to hope.”
“Yeah,” Exusiai agreed, nodding and brushing away some tears. “I guess…we go back to the island. Even if I’m a Sarkaz…at least I know there, I’ll be welcomed.”
“You’re still a Sankta,” I told her as we stood back up. “Even if that’s a sub-race of Sarkaz.”
“I guess that’s one way to look at it,” she said, but she still seemed rather gloomy. “Thanks for listening. Even if I did shoot your boyfriend.”
Now I felt like crying again, so I did, and it was Exusiai’s turn to hug me. “I don’t know what to do! I…I’m still in love with him, but this hurts so bad, Lemuel! It’s not his fault, it’s just…he’s seen all of us, naked! Doing…things! It feels so awful, I just…I don’t know if I can even look at him!”
“Yeah. I get it.”
We took several hours to walk back to the Island and get back aboard. I didn’t feel like going back to my room with James, so instead we got a tub of ice cream each and went to Exusiai’s and Texas’s room and made gluttons of ourselves.
I was about halfway through the tub when the door chimed.
“If that’s James, don’t shoot him again, I’ll do it myself,” I grumbled as Exusiai got up.
“I’m not going to shoot him again. Yet,” Exusiai said, checking who was there. She let out a squeak, and hastily opened the door, where Kal’tsit appeared. “D-Director!”
I hastily scrambled up and wiped chocolate cherry garcia from my face. Kal’stit stepped in and looked at Exusiai, then at the tub of bubble gum confetti where Exusiai had been sitting, and raised an eyebrow. “Enjoying ourselves, are we? I had expected to find the two of you commiserating, but I suppose I should have known you would seek physical comfort in some form as well.”
“I’m not enjoying myself,” I said, flopping back down and feeling rather sorry for myself. “I just…how could he!?”
“You know perfectly well why,” Kal’tsit said, then, to my astonishment, she plucked up the carton of chocolate cherry garcia, and spooned some into a bowl, before passing it back to me. Exusiai blinked, then offered her own ice cream up, only for the Director to shake her head. “No, thank you. Such a flavor is far too sweet for my tastes. This rather more matches my own palette. And besides, I feel rather incensed at the young man myself, so I suppose a little self-indulgence would not harm me before I go back to my rooms.”
“You’re mad he had porn of you too?” Exusiai asked, sounding rather baffled. “But, you’re a god.”
Kal’tsit snorted and took a large bite before speaking. “I would get such notions out of your head, Lemuel. Gods, whatever form they may take, are far more human than you would believe. I know one vain young feramute who conspired to have two individuals duel atop a monument ot herself, simply so that it would be more flattering from the resulting damage and repair work. I myself am very much a woman, and find the idea that a young man has pornographic images of me to be not only horrifying, but deeply insulting.”
She hesitated, then added, “I was less than gentle in healing James’ wounds. I confess, I took no small amount of satisfaction in the pains I caused him. Fornicate with my father indeed. I have killed for less.”
I felt sick to my stomach, and Exusiai shuddered. “Sorry, um, Kal. I guess…I guess I kinda forgot you’re a friend too.”
“Hmm,” Kal’tsit took a bite of ice cream, then examined the spoon. “It has been some time since someone called me a friend or saw me as an equal. Which makes what I am about to say all the more painful.” She turned to Exusiai, then bluntly stated, “You are relieved of your bodyguarding duties.”
“I, what!?” Exusiai sputtered.
“You cannot shoot the subject you are supposed to be protecting and expect to retain your job, Lemuel,” Kal’tsit said mildly. “This cannot come as a shock.”
“You, you’re kicking me out of Rhodes Island?” Exusiai asked, tears coming to her eyes.
“That is not what I said. You are overreacting. Take a deep breath. Now, what I said was that you are relieved of your bodyguarding duties. I still have tasks for you. I am in contact with your former employer, Emperor, and-”
“BOSS FIRED ME!?” Exusiai cried this time she actually started crying again.
Kal’tsit sighed. “I fear you are not in an emotional state to have this conversation, but alas, now that it has begun, it must finish. No, Lemuel, he has transferred your employment to me. The Emperor of Penguins recognizes that the world is at a turning point, and that I am the individual best situated and capable of turning it in the proper direction. While he is many things, Emperor is not much skilled at grand politicking, nor at direct action. I am at both. Thus, I will have tasks for you. Tasks that do not involve bodyguarding the man you just shot.”
“But I….” Exusiai trailed off, looking pained.
“Actions have consequences, Lemuel. This is a rather natural one. I will not forbid you contact with James once I am satisfied you have better control of your emotions, but someone else will be in care of his personal safety. Someone who is preferably unaware of his…shall we say, collection, before his arrival here.”
This conversation was turning my stomach in such knots I didn’t feel like I could finish my ice cream, and I felt hot tears on my own face. I looked down until I heard Kal’tsit gently say, “Lucia. Look at me.”
I managed to blink and look up, though my vision was rather blurry. “I have no intention of reassigning you, or punishing you. Your reaction was natural, and your relationship with James entirely different. You are welcome to return to James, or to not, though I rather doubt that.”
I nodded, feeling relieved, then disgusted at my relief. I should still be mad at him! Only…
“It just hurts so bad, Kal’tsit. It shouldn’t, but it does,” I whispered.
Kal’tsit set aside her ice cream and came over to put a gentle hand on my shoulder. “I am familiar with feelings of betrayal. Even with lovers betraying a trust such as this, though not in the same way. But, there were a few things I wanted to tell you before this wound began to scab over. Are you ready to listen?”
I sniffled and nodded as Kal’stit squeezed my shoulder.
“First, this situation is unprecedented in the extreme. Even I have never seen the like. A man from another world comes to us, and to him, we were once mere fictional fancies. He is in possession of explicit material featuring us, and our friends. That hurts. Badly. There is no denying that fact.”
“But,” I croaked. “But…he didn’t know. And…and he deleted it.”
“He did. That gives him much grace in my opinion,” Kal’tsit said gently. “But it does not dull the pain, nor the sense of betrayal. Moreso for you than any other, for you have opened yourself and given yourself to him in ways we have not. That changes things.”
I nodded, still feeling agonized.
“Still, you love him. Though he has caused you great pain, you still harbor affection for him.”
I nodded again, and Exusiai slid onto the chair beside me and gave me a hug as I felt sobs wrack me.
“It will take time to reconcile all this. However, when you are ready, James has left you something in your rooms. At times, even I am astonished by people’s capabilities, and Celinia Texas continues to find ways to surprise me. I will leave you with this: James loves you as well, and is mortified and anguished by this situation as well. I do not believe he would ever intentionally do something to cause you pain. There are many times a relationship will result in pain, and while this situation is rather unprecedented…it is not the first time an innocuous act by one lover has grievously distressed the other.”
“I…I suppose,” I managed.
Kal’tsit nodded and departed, though not before finishing her ice cream. I looked down at my own carton, but it didn’t seem quite as appealing now.
At last, I got up, tucking my ice cream under my arm, and headed for the door. Exusiai popped up and came along, though I didn’t ask her to.
“I’m going to see what James left for me,” I told her when I got to the door. “I…I think I’d like some privacy for that.”
She nodded. “Ok. But I’m a call away if you need me, alright?”
I nodded and gave her a sticky hug before heading just down the hall to my room and opening the door. I saw the flowers immediately, and I couldn’t help but sniff and smile as I went over to them.
They were arranged professionally and had been chosen with care. Purple hyacinths, showing contrition. White tulips to beg for forgiveness. White roses, asking for a fresh start. And at the center, three red camellias, pledging faithfulness.
I picked up the card and read it. James’ handwriting was barely recognizable, mostly because the card was easily legible, save for a few places the ink had blotched. He had been crying as he wrote, and I ended up adding a few blotches as I read it.
Lucia,
I can’t express how much I regret that I’ve hurt you. I was wrong, please forgive me. You mean more to me than life itself. Whatever I can do to make this right and show how much I love you, I will.
Forever yours,
James
I found myself crying and pressing the card to my heart again. Then I went and put my ice cream in the freezer, after taking a few more bites, and cried in the shower for a while. Then I went to bed. I was exhausted emotionally and physically, and too tired to think straight.
It was harder to fall asleep than I had thought it would be. Only ten days, and I missed James’ strong arms around me. I briefly wondered how he was sleeping, but I’d dosed myself with a sleeping pill, and was soon out despite myself. My dreams were unpleasant, though I can’t recall them, only the feelings of loss, pain, and sorrow they left me with.
I awoke feeling groggy and smelling James from the bedsheets. I took another long shower, then sat at the table and stared at the flowers for a while. Then I went and cooked breakfast for two. I needed to think, and having my hands busy with something would help.
When I was done, I sent James a message on my phone. Less than a minute later, there was a knock at the door.
I went to open it, and found James leaning on the wall and out of breath. It wasn’t that far of a run, but, well, I was a little breathless myself. I had forgotten how tall he was, even stooping a bit and leaning on the doorway, he absolutely towered over me. It’s silly, I’d seen him just yesterday, but looking up at him…he is big. What ran through my mind was, if he wanted to do something to me, I couldn’t stop him
Then he stumbled and winced, and I had to half catch him.
“Lucia, sorry, I-”
“Let’s have breakfast,” I interrupted, and took him inside. I had to help him sit, he was quite unsteady on his feet, and I made a mental note that he would need a cane. Not just because Exusiai shot him in the ass, but he’d been unsteady on his feet before this. It’s the oripathy. It’s affecting his proprioceptive system. I should have thought of that earlier, actually. The blindness in his left eye doesn’t help, but I was fairly certain imaging and testing would show his balance was off.
I had made apple cinnamon rolls with fried eggs, and I had it laid out on the table with the vase. I sat down across from James and smiled at him. “The flowers were lovely.”
“Uh, thanks. Texas helped,” he admitted, not touching his food, his eyes locked on me like a dying man’s on water.
I forced myself to eat, and after a moment, James copied the motion, though he soon grew ravenous. I had the sneaking suspicion he hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning. He’s not as food-motivated as I am, and, well, he tends to forget to eat if he’s wrapped up in something. And there I was, thinking of him like we were an old married couple.
“Lucia, I-” he began again after eating the eggs, but I shook my head.
“First, let’s just eat. I…I want to enjoy the meal, with you.”
He nodded, though he looked pained, and we finished breakfast quietly. After we were done, he took our plates, stumbling a little, before going over to the sink and depositing them. He didn’t wash up, instead coming back to the table and taking my hand.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice raw. “I, I don’t know how I can ask you to forgive me, but-”
“I do,” I told him, and squeezed his hand, my own voice hoarse. “I know…I know it’s not your fault. That this is mad. That none of it makes sense. But you did delete the pictures. When?”
“That first night, after I met you, when you and Gavial were asleep. I didn’t think of it earlier,” he admitted.
“Did you sneak one last look?” I asked bitterly.
He hastily shook his head. “No! I deleted them, the whole folder, even the, uh, other stuff.”
“Other stuff?” I asked darkly.
“Well, uh, Arknights wasn’t the only thing I liked. I had some pictures of real women too, and some doujins and stuff,” he admitted. “But I didn’t exactly comb through it to figure out what to keep, I just wanted it gone.”
“That was…Admirable,” I said, then took a deep breath. My anger came surging back, and this time, I didn’t tamp it back down.
“James, HOW COULD YOU!?” I screamed, jumping up on my chair and glaring down at him as he shrunk back. “PICTURES OF ME, OF MY FRIENDS?! DON’T YOU KNOW HOW MUCH THAT HURTS A WOMAN!?”
I was being irrational and I knew it, but I needed to let it out. If I didn’t, it would fester. I didn’t throw things like my mother would have, I always considered that wasteful and frightening, but James didn’t shout back or manhandle me like my father would have. Oh, he never beat me or my mother, but he would slap her or spank her when she started throwing things. I half think it was a shared kink, or they were just both emotionally abusive like that.
Instead, James shrank back on himself and withered under my glare. “I, I didn’t know! I thought, I thought it was just fiction! I never would have jerked off to Blaze or Specter if-”
I began to see the appeal of throwing things. Instead, I hopped down, that had been too much, and just yelled. “SPECTER?! BLAZE!? WHAT ABOUT ME?!”
“I, I had pictures of you too, b-but, uh y-you weren’t, that is, I didn’t know-”
I grabbed my phone and furiously sent several pictures I’d carefully taken this morning. James’ phone vibrated, and he hastily dug it out. He unlocked it, then glanced at the pictures, then blushed. “Oh! Uh, these are very sexy, why-”
I grabbed him by the collar and glared at him. “From now on, the only porn you look at is of me, you understand?!”
Then I kissed him, and ripped his pants off. I had planned on yelling longer, but he wasn’t yelling back properly, and berating him more made me feel like I was kicking a young purrbeast. He was reluctant at first, which made me angrier, until I coaxed him into the bedroom.
After, while we were lying together, my eyes wandered to the nightstand. James had been saying something, vowing eternal fidelity and all that, but I realized something. Horrified, I turned away, hugging myself and feeling about three centimeters tall.
“Lucia?! Lucia, what’s wrong? Please, if there’s something else-”
“James,” I said, wilting at his touch. “I…I lied to you.”
“You…you don’t forgive me?” he said, his hand jerking away.
I looked over my shoulder, tears in my eyes. “No, I…I have to ask your forgiveness…”
“Look, I understand the slap, I kinda deserved it, so-”
“No, James,” I said, frustrated. “Listen!”
He shut up, and I took a shuddering breath. “I…I’m not on birth control.”
He froze, and several expressions worked over his face. He sat up slowly, putting a hand to his head. “What? But, you said, you said you were! You’ve got the pills right there!”
I shrunk in on myself, tears in my eyes. “I…I stopped taking them. After you healed Ying. I just…I thought you might die, and…and if you did…I wanted…”
I hiccuped and buried my head in my hands, ready for James to yell at me. I certainly deserved it. This had been a deliberate lie and deception.
Only he didn’t. He got up, and I thought he was leaving. Only he came around to kneel in front of me, and took my hands. “Are you…are you that afraid for me?” he asked tenderly.
I nodded, hiccuping slightly. And the idiot hugged me.
“So, when you found out about…the pictures…you regretted it?”
“No,” I admitted. “I…I still want a baby, I just…I’m sorry. I should…I shouldn’t have lied.”
I could still feel his seed inside me, and I desperately hoped it would make me conceive. I’d never been afflicted with baby fever before, but I loved James so much it hurt, even, maybe especially, after what had happened. I was still in love with him, and while the wound would hurt for a long time…I loved him more than the pain, and I really had forgiven him.
“Lucia, I…I’m not sure how I feel,” James admitted. “I do love you, I’m just…I’m worried about having a kid. This really is too fast. If you don’t want to be on birth control, I can get some condoms.”
“Aren’t you mad at me?” I asked, even as I clung to him.
“Well, yeah, a little,” he admitted. Still gentle. Still quiet. “But you told me the truth, and it’s only been a few days. Even if you are pregnant…we’ll figure out what to do. Together. It’s your choice, and I’ll respect that choice no matter what if you want to keep the baby, if there is one. I do love you, and I think I do want to have kids someday, just…not right now.”
I nodded, but I felt like he didn’t love me. Why wasn’t he yelling? Where was the passion? The romance? He was just…well, he wasn’t capitulating exactly, but he was being so damn calm about it! This was not a time to be calm!
“Fine,” I spat, and turned away.
He extended a hand, then slowly withdrew it. “I’ll…I’ll go do the dishes.”
Then he did just that. I stewed for a bit, then I went out and helped.
“Just so you know, this counts as even,” I told him, forcing myself not to yell even as I still felt the anger. I had forgiven him, and as scripture said, when you did that, you needed to let go of the anger. I always struggled with that part.
“I don’t look at it that way,” he said, and I shot him an angry look. He couldn’t see me. I was to his left. I wilted. He continued, “It’s not about being even, or keeping score. It’s about loving one another. Even when times are hard. Even when you fight. So just know…I love you, Lucia Sussurro. No matter what.”
Alright, I melted. It wasn’t quite as good as more angry yelling, then make-up sex. But I cried a little and we hugged.
Then he did, in a very embarrassed voice, go ask Texas, who was at the door with Fang, to get us some condoms. Texas just nodded and trotted off, Fang actually blushed and stammered a bit.
Then James closed the door, and we went back to our lives. I texted Texas and asked for a pregnancy kit. She didn’t respond, but when she came back, she had one. I took the test, and to my disappointment, it came back negative. I showed James, and he nodded, and we had sex again.
With a condom. I guess at least one of us has his head on straight.
Yennifer was just getting her purse and pulling on her combat boots when the light in Charlotte’s room flicked on. She groaned. And here she thought she’d been quieter. Her sister stumbled out, pint hair sticking up all over the place and glasses slightly crooked. “Hey, what’s up? It’s after midnight.”
“Go back to sleep, there’s just something I need to take care of,” Yennifer said, and stood up.
Charlotte's eyes went wide as she came awake, and she saw what Yennifer was wearing. “Wait, why are you dressed up like that? Armor and fatigues? What’s going on?! Is it Furina?!”
There was no point in lying to her sister. Charlotte could practically smell a lie at 100 meters. “Furina has been arrested, as have Barbara and Julie. I-”
Charlotte disappeared back into her room with a cry of “Don’t even think of leaving without me!”
“Charlotte, this is dangerous. If they’ve arrested Furina, then they could arrest you!” Yennifer said, coming to the door and keeping her voice low, as it was the middle of the night.
“Yeah? Well, Barbara’s my best, and only, friend, and Furina’s like, my second big sister! Plus, Julie’s cool too! And don’t forget!” Charlotte paused in hopping around with one leg in her pants, and held up her Vision. “I have this! And if you want to be doing any elemental reactions, you’ll bring me with you!”
“I’m not planning on simply storming l’École Militaire and rescuing Furina,” Yennifer said.
Charlotte pulled on her pants at last then grabbed her backpack with her camera gear while trying to get on her socks and shoes. “And that’s why you’re armed and armored for a fight?”
Damn her sister and her truth sense. Yennifer was strongly considering trying to do just that, even if it would be the height of foolishness to do so. The Mousquetaires had their own Vision Holders and plenty of parahumans, not to mention a legion of heavily armed soldiers and police. “It’s not my first plan. I’m heading for the Mayor’s office, she’s sending a car.”
“Perfect! Now, you don’t happen to have a weapon ready for me, do you?” Charlotte asked, standing up as she settled her beret on her head.
I think I can handle that for both of you, the voice of Focalors said. Yennifer gasped in shock as water shimmered into the air, before forming into two weapons. One was a book that Charlotte snatched out of the air. It had a spine formed of silver metal, but its cover seemed to be made of pure waters with draconic horns etched into them. The other was a sword that Yennifer took with a steady hand. It was made of blue metal, with a crown on the pommel of the hilt. The blade grew lighter along the length, until the tip ended in a pearly white.
This is the Tome of the Eternal Flow, once wielded by the Iudex of Fontaine. It is the Book of Law Egeria gave to her people, to show them her own Justice. I kept it in my memories for just such a time as this. The other is my own blade, once the Scepter of Remus, last King of Remuria, known as the Splendor of Tranquil Waters. Wield them with Truth and Justice, and rescue my daughter from her peril, brave Champions.
Charlotte slowly opened the book, which glowed with power, fresh water falling from the pages like rain. The pages were written in a language that neither Charlotte nor Yennifer knew, yet somehow, they could still read its decrees.
As for the sword…the Favonian blade that Yennifer had been given was a weapon of power that made using elemental energy much easier, and even generated some amount of it for its wielder. This sword, however…this sword was a weapon akin to the God-Forged Blades of the Raiden Shogun!
“Holy Archons,” Charlotte said reverently, looking up from her book to meet Yennifer’s eyes. “We’re on a Mission from the Gods! We can totally storm the École Militaire now!”
“That’s an option of last resort. First, we try the legal route. I don’t know exactly why Furina was arrested, but I’m willing to bet it was on trumped up charges. Which is why we’re going to see Jeanne. She’s already contacted Judge Morel, who is one of the few good ones left.”
“Right! Then we storm the prisons?” Charlotte asked, a spark of anger flashing in her eyes. “Don’t forget they locked me up for ten days just for getting my Vision!”
“Oh, I won’t. One way or another, before this is over, I think we’ll see this entire rotten regime toppled,” Yennifer growled. She wasn’t happy with Mégret’s government before, but now? Now she was ready to drown Paris to get back the woman she loved.
Oh hell, Yennifer. Furina’s straight! You can’t just go making declarations of love like that, Yennifer told herself. She was somewhat resigned that Furina would never return the desire that Yennifer felt for her, but a girl could dream.
They hurried down to the street, and a minute later, a car pulled up and the two sisters got in.
“Hello, Pierre. You ready to kick some ass?” Charlotte asked the driver.
Pierre glanced in the rearview mirror and gave a nod. “I’m no cape myself, Miss Charlotte, but if you need a lift, I’ll be there. Arresting Miss Barbara? I can’t even imagine her littering, let alone committing an actual crime.”
They hurried through the quiet streets, Pierre going far above the posted limit. Paris never truly slept, but in the middle of the night, traffic was light. They soon arrived at the Hôtel de Ville, where Jeanne was waiting on the sidewalk, dressed in trousers and a coat. She had a sword on her hip and a grim expression on her face, and was accompanied by several bodyguards. “Ah, Charlotte, it is good to see you as well. I would not normally seek to involve a young lady of your age-”
“Barbara’s my friend, and Furina’s important to me too! You couldn’t keep me away with a pike,” Charlotte declared. “When are we attacking?!”
“If this devolves to physical violence, I do not like our chances. I am not skilled with my Vision in combat, and I am an old woman,” Jeanne said with a shake of her head.
“You’re forty-two, that’s not that old,” Yennifer said. She was only 26 herself, but 42 wasn’t that far off, really.
“Thank you, but it’s much too old to be running about the battlefield,” Jeanne said with a tight smile. “No, we fight this in other ways.”
“I could make a video!” Charlotte said eagerly. “Record a statement and get the word out that Furina’s been arrested! Her videos get hundreds of thousands of views, and I have her login information! Ooo, I wonder if Marcel could get me the security footage from the theater?”
“That, and the footage from the train station. They’re claiming Furina assaulted an officer of the law with her abilities, which is a major crime,” Jeanne said. “I’ll have Pierre take you over to the theater to get the footage there, then send another team to the station.”
Charlotte hurried off, and Yennifer went inside with Jeanne. On the way, she paused, then pulled her old sword from her hip. “Here, that looks like a regular blade. Take my Favonian one. It’s designed for Anemo wielders.”
Jeanne took the sword reluctantly. “And what of you?”
Calling on her Vision, Yennifer summoned the Splendor of Tranquil Waters and held it up. “I was granted another sword by Focalors to-”
Yennifer paused. Wait. Rescue my daughter. She remembered the dove coming down with Furina’s Vision, and recalled the Baptism of Jesus. A dove had descended from Heaven, and God the Father had proclaimed, “This is my Beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Hold on. Was Furina…?
Later. “-act in the interest of Justice in this matter.” It wasn’t like Archons weren’t known to grant blessings and gifts to those who worked towards their ideals. Ajax had received a polearm from Venti, and even Nahida gave weapons to her servants.
“You saw the Hydro Archon? She is here, in Paris?” Jeanne asked, stopping in her tracks and spinning to face Yennifer, eyes wide in shock.
“Not as such. Charlotte and I just heard her voice, and the weapons appeared. She…does seem to have a special interest in Furina,” Yennifer admitted.
“Hmm. Well, the Archons act in mysterious ways,” Jeanne said skeptically. “But perhaps we should keep the source of your new weapons quiet.”
If they wanted that, they shouldn’t have involved Charlotte. Oh well. Yennifer wasn’t exactly interested in the stealth approach at this point.
They hurried inside to where dozens of advisors were already waiting. Judge Morel had already arrived and greeted Yennifer gravely. They were well acquainted, Yennifer always tried to have cases argued before him, as the man actually had a sense of Justice. He was bald, with a neatly trimmed beard and spectacles, somewhere in his late 60s and past the age most retired already.
“I am afraid that the charges against Furina de Fontaine are substantial, and perhaps well-founded,” Judge Morel said. “I have seen the warrant, and two officers attest that Furina summoned constructs and assaulted them in a public train station. There will need to be an investigation and evidence collected. She may spend months, even years in jail.”
“What about my daughter? What about Barbara?” Jeanne demanded.
“She used her abilities to hinder Furina’s arrest, as did Miss Julie Mao Yu,” Judge Morel said. “At least according to the reports I’ve read. She may be let out on bail, but…”
“But Iron Mask is a fils de pute,” Jeanne growled, and several people, Yennifer included, recoiled in shock. The Mayor was a lady to her core, and did not swear. It seemed she had lost her temper with her daughter’s arrest, however. “I want every lawyer we have working on this. They go too far this time. Get me an interview with the morning news broadcast, and get this news in every paper. Get to work. I want my daughter and the others free as soon as possible.”
“And if they stall, reject us?” Yennifer pressed. “How long do we let them rot?”
Jeanne’s nostrils flared. “I would not have another August Civil War. But if they try to keep my daughter locked up …I’ll raise the flag of rebellion myself. And this time, I have a weapon with which to fight.”
Yennifer felt her blood run cold, but she nodded. Damnation, she was ready to raise the banner and storm the citadel alone if she had to.
Hold on, Furina. We’re coming.
After a sleepless night, Charlotte should have been exhausted. Instead, she felt more alive than ever, her Vision glowing brightly, and her spirit soaring as she pointed her pen at the security guard. “So, you have no footage of the incident?! Were your cameras conveniently not working!?”
“No, as I already said, the Mousquetaires took all the footage! I don’t have backups; they took those too! There’s nothing!”
“Did you witness anything!? Were you on shift?!”
“I was, but no! I can’t watch every camera all the time,” the man said, but he was sweating. Charlotte glared at him, and stepped forward.
“I will have the Truth, one way, or another! Do you realize what has happened!? They’ve not only arrested Furina de Fontaine, but Barbara d’Orleans, and Julie Mao Yu! Three of our fair city’s rising stars, trampled under the jackboots of a fascist regime! Are you a Nazi, sir?! Or would you resist tyranny, as the French have always done!”
The security guard turned red. “Out! Get out! I never should have opened the door to you!”
Charlotte could have pressed further, but she was getting nothing, and even with her shiny new weapon, she didn’t want to resort to violence. That wasn’t her style.
Though if she had to freeze a few enfoirés to get Barbara and Furina free…well, then she had to freeze a few enfoirés.
Charlotte left the small security office, and went to the corridor where the attack had occurred. It was the same dirty floor as everywhere else, with caked on grim, old gum, and stray cigarette butts. There was no evidence, but…
Charlotte set up her camera, then posed for it and started recording. “Hello again, Truth Seekers! I’m Charlotte Lustria, here at the scene of the crime! It was here that Furina de Fontaine was brutally assaulted by the tyrant’s thugs! Later, they blamed her for the attack, and have now arrested her and thrown her in jail! Even now, our beloved Furina and my best friend Barbara d’Orleans are locked away in the dungeon, deprived of liberty over false crimes that-”
“Excuse me, did you say that Furina de Fontaine was arrested?” a woman said, coming up behind Charlotte’s camera stand.
Instantly, Charlotte plucked the camera up and held it up so it could record her and the woman. “Indeed, I did, Madamoiselle. It is a most heinous crime! How does this startling fact make you feel?”
“Well, um, outraged! I saw the whole thing. I didn’t realize it was Furina at first, but I saw a woman get attacked by two thugs, then pepper-spray them after they shoved her into a wall. I recorded it, actually, and then got a selfie with Furina later!”
A wide grin spread over Charlotte’s face. “You don’t say? Would you care to come with me? I know some very important people fighting for Furina’s freedom who would be most interested in that footage and your testimony.”
“Um, well…” the woman winced. “I…I’d be late for work, and if I’m late again, they’ll fire me…”
“My sister is an excellent lawyer! And don’t you want to see this horrible miscarriage of justice stopped? Besides, I bet Furina would take all the selfies with you that you could desire if you help free her!”
“I…I suppose. Um, my name is Lepine-Pauline! And…and I’m a huge Furina fan! I promise to help get her free! Just, er…you don’t happen to know anyone who’s hiring, do you?”
“Trust me, you help out Furina, and you’ll land a job,” Charlotte promised. “Did I mention that Barbara d’Orleans was arrested as well? Which means Mayor Jeanne d’Orleans would be in your debt!”
“I…yes! Yes, I’ll come with you straight away!”
“Excellent!” Charlotte pulled out her phone and dialed Pierre’s number. “We need a pickup! I’ve got the scoop!”
“YOU UTTER FOOLS!” Iron Mask roared, slamming his fists on his desk. “You arrested the MAYOR’S DAUGHTER?!”
He was in his office at the École Militaire, desk a disorganized mess of papers. A number of underlings were in his office, including the morons who had just conducted the ordered raid on Furina the night before. Iron Mask had slept peacefully through the night, not giving the operation a second thought after signing off on it before he went to bed. But now, he was regretting his peaceful slumber.
“We didn’t realize it was her! And she attacked my team with a Hydro Vision! You told us to scoop up any of Yennifer’s allies who resisted us!” Captain Armand Cazeneuve protested.
Iron Mask could feel his anger rising, but he forced himself to calm. He couldn’t afford to look weak or lose control now. “Find a way to let her out on bail! She’s a minor, even if she is a cape. We-”
The door burst open, and another aide ran in. “Sir! Another video has been posted!”
“Posted? What are you babbling about?!” Iron Mask snarled.
The aide hurried up with a laptop and plunked it on his desk. “We don’t know how, but, Yennifer’s sister, she found the footage!”
“What footage? What are you oafs…” Iron Mask trailed off, as Charlotte Lustria’s face appeared.
Hello again, Truth Seekers! I’m Charlotte Lustria, here at the scene of the crime! It was here that Furina de Fontaine was brutally assaulted by the tyrant’s thugs!
The footage cut to…
“Merde,” Iron Mask growled, as video of Feu Follet and Bitumen in civilian clothes grabbed Furina and slammed her into the wall. It looked like two thugs harassing an innocent woman, and Charlotte’s voice played over the footage.
Here, we see two so-called ‘heroes’ of the Mousquetaires attacking Furina as she was taking the train to work! These two have been identified as Feu Follet and Bitumen, who have a long history of roughing up innocent civilians! Feu Follet has even been accused of sexual assault!
“Oh my God, someone help that woman!” the person recording gasped. “Where are the police!?”
Indeed! It seems the police were the ones doing the assaulting here! Now, as for the accusation, Furina used her powers…well, see for yourself!
Three hydro constructs appeared, and Iron Mask growled in approval. Now they would see the lie for-
Only, the constructs were brushed aside by the thugs, and didn’t attack. Instead, Furina used ordinary pepper spray against Feu Follet and Bitumen. Which, since they had clearly failed to identify themselves as officers, wasn’t a crime at all. It was just a woman using perfectly ordinary self defense tools against two much larger opponents who had already attacked her.
“This is bad. Shut it down!” Iron Mask ordered.
“We can’t! It’s hosted on Dailymotion, yes, but to get a subpoena to raid their servers-”
“Just do it!”
“...and she mirrored it on an American site called Youtube…and it’s been picked up by the BBC, CNN, and…and BFM TV. Jeanne and Yennifer are live there now…”
Snarling, Iron Mask turned on a television and turned to France’s largest news show, where curse it all, a reporter was sitting with Yennifer and Jeanne.
-so as the footage clearly shows, Furina was simply defending herself from two men who did not identify themselves as police officers. We have multiple witnesses who have come forward to verify that, Yennifer was saying.
Jeanne nodded, looking grim. Marcel Vautrin and his actors have stated that my daughter was only defending Furina from a sudden attack by thugs, interrupting a play. She did surrender, but she did nothing wrong in trying to prevent the wrongful arrest of her friend. Additionally, she is a minor, and should not have been treated so.
That’s right. Which is why today at noon, we will be marching to the École Militaire to demand their release, Yennifer said.
Yes. I call upon all the citizens of Paris, of France, to join me in protesting this gross violation of human rights, and demand the release of these political prisoners who have been locked away for nothing more than defending themselves from brutish men who would abuse a woman simply because she looks weak. Will the men of France stand by and allow their wives and daughters to be abused by this regime? Will the women of France allow their sisters to be accosted in the streets for the crime of attracting a man’s attention? Jeanne demanded.
The reporter nodded gravely. BFM TV will, of course, cover this march, and be right there on the ground as Mayor d’Orleans marches from the Hôtel de Ville to the École Militaire today at noon. That’s only two hours away, but this reporter believes that Mayor Jeanne will not march alone.
Iron Mask turned off the TV, and turned to Captain Cazeneuve. “Get your men out there. We need riot police. The second you smell disorder, I want them all arrested!”
“Sir!” Captain Cazeneuve said, saluting, then hurrying off.
Iron Mask sat down, steepling his fingers, and forced a smile onto his face, though no one could see it. Yes. This would play straight into his hands. He could arrest Yennifer Lustria and that irksome mayor. All his enemies would be swept up for rebellion and sedition. Perfect. He would come out of this victorious. All he had to do was stop the mayor before she even left her house, and prevent what could be a riot. He would go himself. It would be simple. No one could organize a riot in less than two hours.
Unfortunately, Iron Mask should have realized that a riot isn’t something you organize.
It’s something that happens when a people who will not be slaves again rise up, and say “No More.”
Sometimes, you see it coming when life kicks you in the nuts. Other times, it blind sides you, even when you probably could have and should have seen it coming. We woke up at 9:00 am after our failed date, expecting to be needed at the hospital in an hour for a shift. Instead, we had a notice from Kal’tsit that we were to keep low for the day. They were analyzing the security risk still it seemed.
“Great, now what do we do?” I sighed. “We’re trapped in the apartment all day.”
“Well, I can cook something for breakfast, then we’ll just have to find a way to entertain ourselves,” Sussurro said, and flicked me with her tail. I growled at her and reached for her, only for there to be a knock at the door.
I opened the door, expecting to see Texas and Exusiai. They were there, apparently having taken over some time for Kroos and Fang, but it wasn’t them who’d done the knocking.
“Ah, good morning, Dr. Bones,” the Doctor said, tilting their head to one side. As always, they were dressed in a heavy hood and jacket. Beside them was Kal’tsit, who looked rather irritated.
Well, I say that, she had on the same utterly neutral expression as always. Something about her body posture and tilt of her head told me she wasn’t in the best mood, though.
“Uh, good morning. You, er, wanna come in for breakfast?” I said, opening the door a little wider. Sussurro and I were both dressed already, so it wasn’t an issue.
The Doctor held up a nondescript paper box and said, “How about donuts? I got a few flavors, not sure what you like.”
“Sure…I like donuts,” I said, stepping aside.
“No, no, we’re going for a walk. Just you and me,” Doctor said, motioning me out of the door.
“James, who is- Oh! Doctor, Director, please, won’t you come in?” Sussurro said, coming over from the kitchen and wiping her hands on her apron.
“Bones and I were just going to have a chat and a donut or two, take a bit of a walk,” Doctor repeated, gesturing with the box.
“I’ll get my hat,” Sussurro said, and vanished towards the bedroom.
“I was thinking just the two of us…” Doctor said, but then I shook my head.
“No, where I go, she goes,” I said firmly. I wasn’t getting separated from Sussurro if I could help it. More fool I.
“This is really a private sort of conversation,” Doctor said, sounding a bit awkward.
“I have already made it clear that I will be present for any such conversation, and it is not to take place on the landship. James is perfectly correct to request Lucia be present as well. There is no arguing this point,” Kal’tsit said firmly.
“We’re coming too,” Exusiai added. “For protection and stuff. No offense, Leader, but you couldn’t fight your way out of a paper bag, and James isn’t much better.”
Doctor glanced around. “It might be best if I talk to Bones first, then we-”
“I’m coming,” Lucia said, putting a ball cap on and shoving her feet into her sneakers. “I’m not letting James out of my sight lest he try and cure an injured purrbeast and end up killing himself.”
I knew they would call cats something stupid.
Doctor sighed and looked at me. “You sure you want this, Bones?”
“Positive,” I said. “I don’t have any secrets from my friends.”
Oh, how wrong I was.
We all ended up in an armored vehicle with Kal’tsit driving. Doctor ended up in the middle seat with me, while Texas and Sussurro sat in the back.
“Should have gotten more donuts,” they mused. “I only got a dozen.”
“It’s fine, I brought some cheese, fruit, and hot coffee,” Sussurro said. She’d brought two thermos full, along with milk and sugar. When it had been made clear this wasn’t an emergency, she’d insisted on packing a full basket.
Rhodes Island was passing through some wooded foothills, weaving through valleys. We ended up climbing to the top of a knoll, where there was a stand of green leafy trees. They looked a bit like elm, but I’m not an arborist.
We set out our food and sat down to watch, Rhodes Island trundling along the wide valley below us. I briefly wondered where she was going, but decided it didn’t matter.
Doctor started things off by grabbing a jelly donut and a scalding hot cup of coffee. Then tilting their head back, jammed the donut into the slot on the hood, and then poured the coffee down. I watched in abject horror and amazement. Everyone else sort of just ignored the behavior. When Doctor lowered their head, they wiped off a bit of jam and steam, then I got the impression they smiled at me. “Most efficient way to eat.”
“Do you even taste your food?” I asked, feeling very perplexed.
They shrugged. “Sure. Donuts aren’t my favorite, though.”
“Then why’d you get them!?”
“Most people like donuts, and I wanted to lure you out on your own. However…”
“Hey, I love donuts. No way I was missing out!” Exusiai said eagerly, taking a maple-glazed donut and a sticky bun. I took a bearclaw myself and had a cup of coffee. I’m not huge on breakfast, and while I like donuts as much as the next guy, not my favorite thing to eat first thing in the morning.
“So, you insisted you had some dire revelation for us, Doctor. Please, now that we are away from the landship, enlighten us all,” Kal’tsit said, leaning against a tree with a cup of coffee in her hands.
Sussurro sat next to me on the grass, attacking an apple fritter, but she was eyeing the Doctor speculatively. Texas was prowling around the edge of the forest, apparently uninterested in breakfast. Though I did note that Exusiai was standing where she would be able to command long sight lines and an easy kill field up the slope towards us. Maybe she wasn’t as on break as she was acting.
Doctor carefully wiped their fingers on a napkin, then reached into one of the pockets of their jacket and pulled out-
“My phone!” I said, half rising. “I thought it was broken! They said it had half melted!”
“It did,” Doctor confirmed as Kal’tsit hurried over, peering at the device in Doctor’s hands.
“I should have known…when did you get it from Closure? She was under orders not to allow anyone access to the device and to alert me if she found anything. Her last report indicated she had given up…so I suppose she passed it on to you.” Kal’tsit said as Doctor booted the phone up.
“Yeah, she couldn’t figure it out, so I took a look at it. Took me a whole three days to learn the new programming languages. It’s fascinating, like nothing I’ve ever seen before, and yet…strangely familiar,” Doctor mused.
Oh, huh. Yeah, that would make sense. Terran electronics are functionally very similar to what I’m used to, but they’re built from the ground up on different hardware and entirely different code. But, somehow, Doctor had still been able to crack it…
“Do you need me to unlock the phone?” I asked.
Doctor shook their head. “Oh no, I already got everything on here. There were some pretty obvious holes in the security I exploited. Plus, your password is your birthday. Not that hard to guess.”
Sussurro gave me an amused look, and I sighed heavily. “Yeah, OK, maybe not the most secure password…wait, when you say everything, you mean…you found Arknights?!”
“I did,” Doctor said, and took out a second device, which they handed over to Kal’tsit. “Don’t worry, that one’s not tethered to any of our networks, especially since it uses a similar OS to Bone’s phone. I put a virtual copy of all the files, plus the transcripts and images I extracted. Though, ah, we’ll need to talk about some of those images. Sort of why I wanted Bones out here privately but-”
No. No no no. No. “But I deleted those!” I blurted.
All eyes turned to me. Even Texas stopped her prowling. Kal’tsit frowned briefly, then her eyes went wide, and she said, “James!” in a warning tone, right before Sussurro said, “James, what do you mean, you deleted them?”
“James, do not-” Kal’tsit repeated, but it was much, much too late. Doctor was looking distinctly uncomfortable, but my eyes were fixed on Sussurro and her sudden look of suspicion.
“I…um, well…Doctor found my homework folder,” I admitted.
“James, cease immediately, we will discuss-” Kal’tsit began, but Sussurro whirled on her.
“Director, SHUT UP!” she spun back to me, her expression stormy. “I know a guilty conscience when I hear it. James, what is this homework folder?!”
“In his defense, he did delete it,” Doctor said, but no one was paying attention.
“It’s…it’s my porn folder,” I admitted.
Sussurro looked at me for a moment, then relaxed visibly. “Oh. Well, I know perfectly well most men have one, and you were single before we met. I’ve looked at pornography myself and-”
“It had pictures of you,” I blurted, and Kal’stit groaned and closed her eyes as Doctor shook their head.
Sussurro’s tail slowly stiffened and bushed out, a look of panic hurt on her face, so I continued on, trying to repair the damage. Honestly, I should have just shut up.
“It had pictures of…of all of you! I, well, most of my porn, I got it from arknuts and a couple of subscriptions to pixiv artists who did Arknights rule 34, that’s the rule that if it exists, there’s porn of it, and, um, well, I had a couple of gigs-”
“It was 5.4 gigabytes,” Doctor said in a VERY UNHELPFUL way.
“-that, and, um, it had you, and Exusiai, and Texas, and Kal’tsit, even Doctor, but there was no loli porn, I’m not into that, and, uh, nothing super weird like vore or-”
And then Sussurro slapped me. Then she turned around and stormed off towards the woods, her hands balled into fists, her tail rigid. I extended my hand towards her…
Which was when I saw Texas blurring towards me, swords out, pointed right at me. I screamed like a little girl, even as Sussurro gasped and leaped at Texas, far too slow.
And then there was the sharp bark of a pistol, and I yelped as a bullet hit me in the ass. Not a rubber one. A real, live round. Exusiai had actually, factually, shot me in the ass.
“Oh relax, Texas, if I wanted him dead, he’d be dead,” I heard her grumble as Texas stood over me and growled, swords out. “Lex te perdat. You want a go, Lucia?”
“I’ll consider it later,” Lucia said. “He’s not in any mortal danger?”
“Pff, no. I’m a good shot, he’ll be fine, if sore.”
“Good. I’m walking back to Rhodes Island.”
“You want some company?”
“That would be fine.”
I heard footsteps, and I tried to force myself. “L-Lucia, I-”
“Not now, James,” Kal’tsit said, and pushed me back down. She dug out a healing wand, and started going to work on my…sigh. Flesh wound. “Texas, you do not wish to extract some sort of vengeance?”
I looked up at Texas, who was frowning at me, squatting beside me. She cocked her head to one side, then asked, “Do you have pictures of Sora?”
I groaned, closed my eyes, and nodded.
“May I have them?”
I looked up, and I shit you not, her tail was wagging. And, it was small, but she was smiling. I spluttered a bit, then managed, “But…but I have pictures of your girlfriend! And you!”
“You do not. You have fictional illustrations of characters who bear a resemblance to myself and Sora. Exusiai and Sussurro are being unreasonable. You are an isekai. You cannot be blamed for enjoying naked pictures of Sora. I enjoy naked pictures of Sora. She has sent me several.” She paused, then added. “They are private, however, and I will not share them.”
“Uh, yeah,” I moaned, the pain was slowly fading.
“There. I have treated you as best I can,” Kal’tsit said, holstering her healing wand. “You will be tender for several days, and should avoid walking long distances or running. Sitting will be uncomfortable for a week or two, but not excruciatingly so.” She turned to the Doctor. “I apologize. You certainly should have taken James aside privately and discussed this with him.”
“I just wanted to know what the hell was wrong with people on his world. That many pictures of me and Amiya…she’s like a daughter to me. The ones with you…they’re almost worse.”
“Ah.” Kal’tsit considered, then said, “James, do not take this the wrong way.”
“Huh?”
Then she slapped my freshly healed ass, and I screamed.
“I understand I was merely a fictional character on your homeworld. I grasp that you had no malice behind this. However…I am still a woman, and deeply offended. You are certain you do not wish to do the same, Cellenia?”
“You are being irrational. James has done nothing wrong. Besides, there are already a number of pornographic images of myself, Exusia, and Croissant. Not of Sora, however, I have checked.”
“There…there are?” I gasped, tears filling my eyes from the pain. That had SMARTED. Though the fact that I hadn’t been pulverized probably meant the Old Well had held back.
“Mostly soft core. Penguin Logistics sells a yearly pinup calendar as a part of a charity event,” Texas informed me. She hesitated, then added, “Bison has posed as well. I do not find his pictures very interesting. Boss’s are…odd.”
I managed to push myself up, and Texas helped me to my feet. I was tender, but I could hobble along. Exusiai had only gotten my left glute. She really is an amazing shot.
“Please tell me you deleted all that again. How did you even find it?” I groaned.
“Well, just because you delete something doesn’t mean it’s gone. The data was still there. I can see you deleted it the same day you met Dr. Sussurro and Dr. Gavial, though,” Doctor said.
I blinked at them. “Can…can I call you Doktah? There are too many MDs running around, then there’s you. Are you an MD?”
“You do hold a number of medical degrees, I believe,” Kal’tsit sighed when Doktah turned to her.
They shrugged, then nodded. “Sounds a bit weird, but sure. Sort of like a Yanese accent. Chinese, I take it? I noticed it was spelled a bit funny in your meme compilation.”
“Er, yes,” I said.
“Hmm, interesting. Anyway, just so you know, I don’t have sex organs. Used to wonder about that a lot, actually. No testes, no mammaries that I can tell, no nipples at all. Anything internal I should know about, Kal?”
She hesitated, then sighed and shook her head. “As per your medical exams, you lack primary or secondary sexual characteristics, though you do have a small organ for urinating that resembles a penis, but is not one. You have no prostate, no ovaries, no womb. I have…wondered…about this myself.”
“I think I got some answers, though,” Doctor held up the phone. “I’m an alien too, it seems. I had suspected as much, but…well. This confirms a lot. A few of my memories have come back, but I hadn’t realized a lot of things. This was…very illuminating. Especially those Integrated Strategies endings. Alternative futures, from what I can tell.”
“Uh, none but the first ending is canon for any of them, I think,” I said, and Doktah nodded, while Kal’tsit looked down at her tablet curiously. “So, er, do you know about-”
Kal’tsit’s eyes flashed up, an angry expression on her face. “James! Speak no further!”
“Kal…” Doktah sighed heavily, then straightened and turned to her. They put a hand on her shoulder, and she flinched, ever so slightly. “I choose you.”
She stiffened. “If you mean in that vile sexual fashion-”
“No, Kal. I mean, I choose Terra. Not the Precursors. I think that’s the choice you made, isn’t it? You’re worried they’ll come back. Probably Priestess, unless I very much miss my guess. I did some snooping. I think I know where she is. She’s on the Landship, isn’t she?”
“I…” Kal cleared her throat. “I suspect so. You…you are not…? You would not prevaricate with me, would you Or-...Doktah?” She very deliberately used the same intonation I did. Huh.
“No, Kal.” Doktah awkwardly hugged her, a bit stiffly, really. “Like I said. I choose you.”
She gingerly hugged him, then she closed her eyes, and I heard her whisper, very faintly. “Thank you. Father.”
Holy shit, Priestess was on the landship!? Well, fuck. That explained the rumors about Rhodes Island getting destroyed. I cleared my throat, and they separated and turned to me.
“Sorry, Bones. I really did want to privately talk to you about this first. But…well, Kal here caught wind of it, then the ladies insisted they come…thanks for being understanding, Texas.”
“Di niente,” she said with a shrug. For a woman, Texas really is a good bro.
“I’m not giving you those pictures of Sora, though,” Doktah said firmly, and Kal’tsit nodded emphatically.
Texas looked disappointed, but shrugged and nodded. “Fine.”
“I’m also…sigh…not deleting them. As disgusting as they are, there’s unfortunately a lot we could potentially learn, and this is important enough I’ll wade through sewage to find even a single tiny pearl,” Doktah said with a shake of their head.
“You and myself will be the only ones to view them. Carefully,” Kal’stit said. “We do not know what Priestess can see and hear. She could be completely unaware. But I will not take such a risk.”
“Which is why neither of these will ever be connected to a network, and I did most of my work up on the roof, where surveillance should be minimal,” Doktah said with a nod. “That said… I think you and I will need to take a few trips. Probably with Bones in tow. Not immediately, don’t want to make her suspicious, but soon.”
“You would take him from the landship? That is an enormous risk,” Kal’tsit said, folding her arms and frowning slightly. Doktah really did bring out the emotion in her. “It would need to be weighed extremely carefully. On the landship, it is far easier to limit contact, not to mention the research we can do upon his abilities, and the good that comes not just from his ability to cure oripathy, but also his abilities to near miraculously heal any wound.”
“I’ve considered that. If Priestess does make a move, he’s a sitting duck. Not any information on that here. You know something, Bones?”
I briefly explained the rumors I had heard, and Doktah nodded. “That settles it. I’m going to be heading to Iberia soon. That’s not a good place for you. Kal, you should take them to Carnival, in Nuova Volsinii.”
She frowned. “Iberia, why…the Seaborn?! The Seaborn are-”
“I’ll handle it. You’ll see, we got the news report on the future here,” Doktah said, holding up the phone. “We’ll also need to send Gavial to go save those poor durins. She’ll enjoy that.”
“Oh, you uh, you read up on the future events?” I said, feeling nervous at the thought.
Doktah shrugged. “It’s useful info, but will become less so since we’re going to act on it and not just sit on our hands. Especially since you’ve changed things already. Best I can tell, it’s only a year or two at most. But it’s helpful.”
Texas leaned in towards me as the other two talked. “Nuova Volsinii? Does that… involve me?”
“Yes, sort of. Though…that ones more about… you know. Lappland,” I admitted.
I’m not sure what I expected. Rage? Getting shot in the ass again, somehow?
Instead, Texas grimaced and nodded. “I see.”
“We don’t need to act immediately,” Doktah was saying. “And I’ll discuss it all with you. But Bones needs to be kept away from the seaborn at all costs.”
“On that much, we agree. I would not like to see you fall to them either, however…I suppose you would be the best to handle such a situation if I cannot be there myself. Who will you take?”
“We’ll figure it out, but the Abyssal Hunters are already in Iberia, so I’ll hook up with them. Not much time though, I think it starts soon.”
“Very good. We will discuss it now, then. Cellenia, drive James back to the landship. Doktah and I will be quiet well here. There should be few threats, and what little there are, I can deal with myself,” Kal’tsit ordered.
“On it,” Texas agreed, and we started to hobble towards the vehicle.
“A moment.” Kal’tsit approached, then sighed and brushed off my dirty clothes. “James, allow me to bequeath you some advice. It is correct to say you cannot be blamed for having pornagraphic images of the residents of Rhodes Island, for at the time, we were nought but fantasy to you. However, simply because something is correct does not make it true.”
“Uh, OK,” I said, nodding slowly. “I think I follow.”
“Good. Lucia…will need some space. Cellenia, take him to my quarters. He can stay there for now. Give Lucia and Lumuel some space, James. They are grieviously hurt that a man they love has so betrayed them, especially in such an intimate fashion.”
“I…I think I might have ruined everything I had with Lucia,” I said, and I started to cry in earnest.
“Do not be overdramatic. You love her, do you not? Well, I can say with some surety that she loves you. Love may not be able to overcome all, but it will overcome this. It may take some time, perhaps days, perhaps weeks, even months, though that I doubt. But it will be overcome. When it is, apologize, but listen. That is most important. Validate her feelings, apologize, and do not attempt to explain yourself. Say you were wrong, even if you were not. Promise to never do such a thing, or betray her in such a way ever again. Then, make passionate love to her, for you will have been apart for-”
“Ok, that’s a little much,” I coughed, trying to force a smile on my face.
“Perhaps. But I know that she is everything to you, and I do not want you to lose hope, James. She will process her feelings in time, and return to you. And when she does-”
“I know, I know. Apologize. Don’t explain. I…I’ll try, Kal’tsit.”
“Very good. Cellenia, do not spread word of this.”
She nodded quietly.
“Give Exusiai some space, but see her today and let her vent to you. Do not be shocked by what she says. Only listen. I will see to it that others guard James in that time. Now go, and get some rest. It is not every day one is shot in the posterior.”
I gingerly levered myself into the passenger seat, while Texas sat in the driver’s seat. She started the engine, and we peeled away. Before long, we saw Exusiai and Sussurro. Texas rolled the vehicle to a stop and peered down at them as they walked along. “Need a ride?”
Sussuro glared over at me, and Exusiai folded her arms over her chest. “We’re fine. You haul him back to the med bay before I shoot him somewhere more painful than his ass.”
Texas nodded and rolled the window back up, trundling along. I slumped in my seat, feeling about as low as is possible. “I’m such an idiot. What if I lose her, Texas? She…she means everything to me.”
“Director Kal’tsit seems to think you will not.”
“What if she’s wrong?! What if I lose her anyway!?”
“Mmm,” Texas said. She considered. “You should write a poem. And get flowers.”
“Write… a poem?” I said, blinking.
“When Sora gets mad at me, I write her a poem. When she reads them, she is not as mad,” Texas explained. “As for the flowers, I was trained that when you wish to woo a woman, you purchase flowers. I have explained the language of flowers to you before. Sussurro almost certainly understands the basics. With a poem, and flowers, she will not be as angry, and will forgive you more quickly.”
“You seem pretty confident she will,” I said, still feeling miserable.
Texas shrugged. “I do not understand love completely. But I think Lucia loves you. She will be angry at you, but only because she is hurt. When she stops being irrational, she will remember she loves you.”
“You…you really think so?”
Texas glanced at me and frowned slightly, but didn’t say anything. She’s not terribly fond of repeating herself I’ve found.
Texas took me to a flower garden run by Verdant, who explained we needed “Emergency Flowers.”
“Got Lucia angry at you, huh?” he asked with a chuckle. “Nah, don’t feel the need to tell me about it. Myrtle’s pretty happy go lucky sometimes, but when she gets pissed, hoo boy. Lucia’s Siracusian, they’re just like that. We got some flowers, yeah.”
“I will pick them,” Texas stated, and showed me what to get.
“White tulips for forgiveness. Purple hyacinths to express deep regret and sorrow. Red camella to show faithfulness. And white roses, to ask for a fresh start,” Texas said, expertly cutting the flowers and putting them into a vase with water.
We took those back, and I put them on the table in the kitchen. Lucia didn’t seem to be back yet, so I quickly took out a pen. I didn’t write a poem. I don’t know crap about poetry. I just wrote a quick note.
Lucia,
I can’t express how much I regret that I’ve hurt you. I was wrong, please forgive me. You mean more to me than life itself. Whatever I can do to make this right and show how much I love you, I will.
Forever yours,
James
Then I went with Texas to Kal’tsit’s room. She wasn’t back either, so we just sat around.
“Got any hobbies?” I asked Texas as I lay on the Director’s couch, bored. Face down, of course. My ass hurt.
“Fighting. Wine. Cooking. Anime.”
“Any good action shows or something?” I said, sitting up slightly.
“I am fond of Blade Spirits. It is a shonen anime from several years back about a school of exorcists who use talking swords. The animation is very good, and the choreography is surprisingly accurate and well done.”
“Sounds good to me,” I said, and Texas put it on. Kal’tsit came back after a few hours, saw what we were watching, and silently put a couple of boxes of take out from the cafeteria on the table, then sat down in an armchair and read quietly. The anime was good, I just…
I missed Lucia. Would she really forgive me? I tried to not think about it, but it was hard. I’d had break ups before. I’d had fights. But this time…this time, I really, really cared. I don’t know what I will do if she hates me now. Go down to the O Ward and see how many people I can cure before I turn into pure originium?
No. Not that. It’s just…this HURT. More than oripathy. More than anything.
Clenching and unclenching his fists, Iron Mask looked around the room at his underlings and seethed. Even that fool Mégret was shuffling papers and not looking at Iron Mask. The idiots knew who was really the one running France, and it wasn’t the balding moron with the suit. No, Iron Mask ruled here. It was his power, his abilities that had created this so-called government. But now, even here, those damn demons and their tools were trying to usurp him.
“So, Jeanne finally shows her true colors,” Iron Mask growled. “The Vision is the last straw, along with what that Damned Woman has been up to.”
No one had to ask about who that Damned Woman was. Iron Mask had been ranting about her for weeks now.
“The move to unionize, it’s something we can check. And we can stop Mayor d’Orleans from forming her own cape team,” one of the flunkies said. “The courts are in our pocket, if we use Judge Lavoisier-”
“It is not enough to crush them in the courts! That Damned Woman has fought us there time and again, and suffered defeat after defeat. She does not learn! Indeed, now she has a Vision! Yennifer Lustria will not stop simply because we fight her in the courts. Besides, that will take too long. No. We need a harsher lesson,” Iron Mask growled.
“What about her girlfriend? The actress, Fontaine?”
“Pah,” Iron Mask made a face, though no one could see it. He never took off the source of his powers. Not even when he slept. Most Parahumans didn’t need a totem, but he did. Oh, he could make another one, but that would take time. No, he kept his mask on at all times. Especially now that he could copy Vision Holders. His second trigger had been traumatic, but seeing the Storm Range rise up and obsolete the entire human race had been enough.
Fuck Cauldron, and fuck Fatima Tabib, but she was right. The Archons were a threat.
“De Fontaine is a slip of a girl and a fool. She’s nothing but a notch on that dyke’s bedpost. No, it’s Lustria who’s the problem here. She was bad enough before the Knights recruited her, but now she’s a true menace,” Iron Mask said. If he thought he could get away with assassinating her…but no. The Anemo Archon might be sleeping, but if he turned his gaze on France, it was over. Bad enough that he posted those embarrassing pictures of Iron Mask and the Minister of Labor’s wife in the middle of their affair. Damn that stupid green twink.
“Then how do we deal with her?” Mégret demanded, sounding exasperated. “We can’t just kill her, and we can’t use the courts. So how?”
“She’s cozying up to the Chinese refugees. Ratchet up the anti-immigrant rhetoric. And go after the ones closest to her. Arrest them and threaten to deport them. Then have counter protesters stand against her. Play up her connection to the Knights. She’s a damn captain! Point out she’s a pawn of the Archons. The people hate that,” Iron Mask ordered.
The flunkies nodded, and they all hurried off to carry out Iron Mask’s orders. For his part, he went to the window, peering out at the city. Paris was his. France was his. He would not allow some idiot lawyer to ruin his country. It was he who had held France together in the days of chaos. It was he who had prevented the anarchy and lawlessness that had plagued so much of the world.
Now the damned Archons and their puppets wanted to take it all. No. He would control all this. It had taken years of work and scheming. He would not let it slip through his grasp and become yet another irrelevant con man trying to make a living charming old biddys again.
On BastilleBastile Day, he would end Lustria’s coalition and enforce his order once more.
Slowly, the colors of the room stopped swirling, and Fortuna could no longer hear them, meaning they vanished. Her body was slick with sweat, and she was breathing hard. That…had not been a good trip. Stumbling out of her room, she found her usual guards there by their breathing. Her steps were wobbly, but she steadied herself on the doorframe.
“I…I saw…I saw the next Endbringer attack,” she gasped.
“Er, Asset Tyche, are you…?” one of the guards said. He sounded embarrassed.
For a moment, Fortuna was confused. Then she realized she was naked. Right. She’d taken her clothes off so she could see better. Which was stupid, because she was blind. That didn’t make sense now, but it had when she’d been dropping Dendro-infused LSD.
“Is it urgent?” one of the guards asked.
“Yes, it’s an ENDBRINGER attack!” Fortuna said, blushing but ignoring her nudity. Prophets sometimes did find their auspices sky-clad. Then she hesitated. “But…maybe I should put on some clothes first.”
“Do that, we’ll call the Director,” the other guard told her.
Fortuna tried to find some clothes that didn’t stink of marijuana smoke, but, well, she hadn’t exactly done laundry lately, and they were scattered about and hard to find since she couldn’t see them. She ended up stuffing herself in a robe that was a bit stinky and very wrinkled, but didn’t have any stains she could feel on it. She also put on a pair of sandals and grabbed Eighty^2. She didn’t need anything else, not for this.
Sandals flapping against her feet, she hurried with her cane and guards to Dr. Mother’s office, where, to her irritation, she heard Albedo’s voice.
“Ah, Asset Tyche. Good. I was just informing the Director of my projections for the Endbringer Cycle,” Albedo said.
Fortuna glared in his general direction, and hoped it caught him. “That’s what I was going to do! Are you reading my mind somehow?”
“Do not pitch a fit, dear. I asked Albedo to give me his predictions on the Endbringer Cycle six months ago, and he updates me weekly. He’s predicting the Behemoth will attack somewhere one of these dragons is active. Probably Theresa Richter. We’ve not really seen her fight, and the Warrior is probably interested in that.”
“Yes, it’s going to be a land of rot and death, but one that is newly reborn. The King of Earth will rise up and-”
Dr. Mother’s tone became harsh. “Have you been smoking pot again? Fortuna, if you’re high, I’m not listening to you until you’re sober. You know we tolerate your drug habit, but this is unseemly.”
“I’m not an addict, I need the drugs to open my inner eye!” Fortuna snapped. Well, OK, she might be a bit of an addict now. If it wasn’t mushrooms, it was hashish, or LSD, or pot or…whatever. It wasn’t the drugs themselves so much as the sensation of seeing the future. Of floating outside of time. Yes, she did it to help others, but that connection to Fate, to the universe…it was an ecstasy beyond all mortal pleasures.
“There is still lysergic acid diethylamide in her system. The odor of cannabis is older,” Albedo said in his usual monotone. It made Fortuna want to stick her tongue out at him, but she was a mature adult. So she just glared. Though something told her that made her look foolish, since she had no idea where he was actually standing.
“The point is, I SAW the attack! He’s going to fight not just the dragon of life, but the angel of death who has been reborn as-”
“Thank you, Albedo. That will be all,” Dr. Mother said.
Albedo nodded, then turned and left without another word. Fortuna’s heart leapt. Finally! Dr. Mother was really listening to her again!
“Fortuna, have a seat, please,” Dr. Mother said, and Fortuna eagerly fumbled for a chair and dragged it over, ready to tell all she had seen.
“Fortuna…” Dr. Mother took her hand and squeezed. A part of her was worried. But she was always worried when she had to talk to people these days. She could see all of Dr. Mother’s future laid out before her in a dozen twisting paths. Well, when she was high, she could. But as for her own future…that was completely blank. Fortuna had no idea what Dr. Mother was about to say, because it was about her. And that was worrying, because that was the only future that was hidden from her.
“You need to take a vacation. And go sober,” Dr. Mother said gently.
Fortuna blinked. That…was not what she had been expecting Dr. Mother to say. “But, don’t you want to hear my vision? And, if I getgot sober, I can’t keep having them!”
“You told David his futures while sober,” Dr. Mother pointed out.
Fortuna blushed. “That’s…because I read all of them after smoking peyote and licking toads. I just wrote them all down and then recited them to him.”
“Licking toads. I don’t recall authorizing that,” Dr. Mother said, her tone foreboding.
“I…might have gotten them from Honey. But they helped! I have to vary the drugs, to prevent becoming addicted to any one.”
“Fortuna…you’re spending more time high and disconnected from reality than you are awake. Your visions are powerful, but they’re vague. Prophetic.”
“What’s wrong with prophetic!? That’s what you want from me, to see the future!”
“Prophecies are often only useful once they have been fulfilled. It’s not like the Path. It’s not reliable. You’re still…well. You’re still healing. We’ve never seen a parahuman destroy their own powers like that before. I’m worried about you. And about what the Simurgh said to get you to blind yourself.”
“Ziz set me free! That’s what she DOES. I told you, she’s the Dragon of Emancipation! She’s here to free mankind, not enslave us!”
“She’s an Endbringer. She’s here to destroy us all at the command of Scion.”
Fortuna gritted her teeth. They just refused to believe that the Simurgh had turned her coat! It was so obvious! Both Barbados and Buer had worked on the Simurgh! She was dead, and it was Ziz who walked the earth now. But because she’d pointed out the poison at the heart of Cauldron, no one wanted to listen.
Well, David had. Sometimes, Fortuna thought he was the only sane one left, next to her.
“Fortuna…” Doctor Mother took a deep breath, and squeezed Fortuna’s hand. “I’m putting you on medical leave.”
The words were like a bucket of ice dumped all over Fortuna. “I…what?”
“You’re self-medicating with drugs. You’re out of control. And your visions are…of questionable relevance.”
“They’re prophecies! I am reading Fate!”
“We don’t know exactly how Vision Holders Fate reading works, but you’re not the only one with these abilities. You are, however, suffering from a great deal of trauma. You’ve not had a vacation or any time off in twenty-five years. It is time for you to take a rest. And get clean. You can’t spend all your time high.”
“But, but-!” Hot tears came to Contessa’s eyes, and she dashed them away in anger. No! “I’m still the one who can guide us to a future where we win! Where humanity survives!”
“And can you guide us to a future without the Archons?” Doctor Mother demanded.
“What about Nahida!? You all agree she’s necessary for the survival of mankind! Without her, half the world would be starving right now!”
“Nahida can be allowed to live, though we will have to find a means of controlling her. The rest, however, must go. Would you see to it? Would you guide us to that future?”
“I…I would help stop the Tsaritsa, but…but if we killed an Archon…”
The vision that seized Fortuna came without warning, or the need for a high. All of Southeast Asia, destroyed in an endless lightning storm that blighted the land. She saw an endless cyclone enveloping all of Europe and Northern Africa, the air itself ripping apart all living things. Rain, endless rain, that drowned nearly every major city on Earth Bet as global ocean levels rose over a kilometer and all fresh water turned to blood. And if Nahida died…a monstrous jungle that unleashed horrors that would devastate all of the Middle East and India, while wildlife attacked humanity in berserker rage.
“We, we can’t just kill an Archon! That much power, unleashed, it-”
“I don’t think you’re our enemy, Fortuna. But you’re not well. You’re no longer focused on the goal of humanity being free from alien outsiders. That is what we must strive for. We cannot allow Scion to destroy the world, or the Archons to rule over mankind and stifle us for millennia either. You need rest. Which is why I’m putting you on medical leave.”
Fortuna sat there, feeling stunned and adrift. This…this couldn’t be happening to her!
“I’m also getting you out of Cheyenne Mountain,” Doctor Mother continued. “I think an actual, restful vacation will be needed. You will have limited access to Doormaker, and whatever funds you need. You’ll have bodyguards assigned, of course. You’re still important to me, not just as an asset, but as…as my daughter. I hope you understand I’m doing this for your own good, Fortuna.”
Feeling dizzy, Fortuna licked her lips and asked, “How…how long am I out?”
“Until you get completely sober. I won’t force you to quit, but your bodyguards have orders not to let you have any really powerful drugs, and they won’t help you do anything illegal.”
So she wouldn’t even be able to see the future. Fantastic.
“Let…let me at least tell you…about the Behemoth’s next attack,” Fortuna begged.
“Of course.” Doctor Mother let go of Fortuna’s hand, and she heard her chair squeak. “Alright, I’ve got a recorder on and my laptop ready to take notes.”
Dully, Fortuna laid out what she’d seen: the Behmeth attacking a land plagued by the dead, and fighting Theresa Richter, the Dendro Dragon. Then, burning butterflies that had to be Farasha had arrived, revealing themselves to be a dragon as well. The Behemoth was driven off, and the dead restored to life.
It had all been a lot more symbolism than that: Theresa had been a flower growing out of a computer screen, the dead had been dressed in the remnants of an ancient priest’s uniform and the battle had taken place on a ruined temple that had become a rice paddy, and so on. But she tried to make it as, well, sane sounding as she could manage.
“Very well. I’ve got it all down. Enjoy your vacation,” Doctor Mother said.
Shakily, Fortuna reached for her cane. “If, if I have another prophecy-”
“Your bodyguards will write them down and send them to us. Our analysts will look them over. But don’t focus on that. Focus on resting. We’ll check in on you in a month.”
“But, the Tsaritsa’s invasion-”
“You yourself told us it wouldn’t begin until August. That’s more than a month and a half away.”
“The doom awaiting Wyatt-”
“They’re taking every precaution. Wyatt is still reigning in Honey.”
Shoulders sagging, sightless eyes full of tears, Fortuna hung her head and nodded. She heard the soft click of a button, then, “Alright, Pellick. We’re ready for you and your team.”
The door hissed open, and heavy boots stomped on the ground. Two people, both walking in step. Military?
“Ah, you must be Miss Fortuna,” a man’s voice said. Pellick’s? “I’m Geoffrey Pelleck, of Saint Security. We’ve been tasked with your wellbeing.”
“Hey. I’m Deyha May. Me and Geoff here will be your bodyguards,” a husky woman’s voice said.
“The Saints are a private security group I’ve assigned to you. They report directly to myself,” Doctor Mother said. “I have made reservations at a resort on the island of Fira.”
Fortuna’s stomach churned. Back to Greece. Back to being an ignorant peasant. “I…I don’t want…to return there.”
“Where, then? You cannot simply stay in your rooms,” Doctor Mother said, sounding exasperated.
Fortuna thought a moment, then said, “Disneyland.”
“Ha! A girl after my own heart!” Deyha laughed. “We’ll get along fine, ma’am. I might not look it, but- oh.”
“It’s fine,” Fortuna sighed. “You can make all the blind jokes you want.”
“It would be easy enough to get you rooms at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim,” Doctor Mother said, fingers tapping away.
“No,” Fortuna said, shaking her head. “I…I want to go back to Paris. I…I had fun there. For a little while.”
“That’s fine. The Musketeers are our allies. I’ll make the arrangements. Go pack your things. By the time you’re done, I’ll have them made,” Doctor Mother said.
Fortuna nodded, then tried to walk to the door.
“Woah! Wall there, ma’am,” Dehya said, and a hand gently guided Fortuna to the side.
“Careful, Miss. Wouldn’t want you to get hurt our first day on the job,” Geoffrey said.
Fortuna didn’t care. She let Deyha guide her back to her rooms, where she packed a few things. What was the point? All she had were a few wrinkled robes and old suits she didn’t want to wear.
“Uh, would you be offended if I told you we should burn this stuff instead of packing it?” Dehya said, sounding mildly disgusted.
“Don’t try to smuggle any drugs. We’ve got orders to help you get sober,” Geoffrey added.
“I’ve got money,” Fortuna sighed. “I guess I can just buy new clothes. Not that I can see them.”
“No problem! I’ve bodyguarded a lot of rich clients. I’ve got an eye for fashion. We’ll make sure you look chic,” Dehya assured Fortuna.
She felt the faint whoosh of air, and a moment later, a door creaked open. Fortuna stumbled through. What was the point? She had tried to share her visions, tried to do the right thing, tried to guide those she loved down the right path. But there was no justice in the world.
“Disneyland?” Furina asked, looking up at Charlotte’s grinning face.
“Yes! Barbara has four tickets! It’ll be awesome! They don’t have Disneyland in Teyvat, do they?” Charlotte asked.
“Ah, no, I’m not even sure what this Land of Disney is,” Furina said, and glanced across the table at Yennifer. It was the 23rd of June, and school had just ended for the summer for Charlotte and Barbara both. Furina and Yennifer had not only been working hard at their respective jobs, but had been organizing the protest on Bastille Day in three weeks time. At the moment, they were relaxing and enjoying a meal Furina had made herself: Macaroni, with red sauce. Granted, said sauce had come out of a can, but Furina considered it a victory as she had never cooked for herself before.
“It’s an amusement park. Do you have those?” Yennifer asked.
Furina frowned, thinking. There were the Public Gardens, and there were various parks. “A park of amusement? So, a holiday place? I did have a villa I occasionally visited, and it was popular for the rich to go boating or hiking.”
“Oh my god, Furina, if you haven’t been to an amusement park you have to go! Barbara and I LOVE Disney! They have some of the best musicals! Yen likes it too!” Charlotte gushed.
Yennifer rolled her eyes. “I’m not nearly as into Disney as you are. I haven’t been to an amusement park since I went to Alton Towers when I was in England.”
“Then you totally have to go!” Charlotte declared. “The tickets are for Tuesday, so Furina has the day off, and I know you’re not in court that day!”
“It…could be fun?” Furina said, glancing at Yennifer.
Yennifer shrugged. “I suppose a day off wouldn’t be so bad. Besides, it would be fun to see how you react to Disneyland. It’s supposed to be the most magical place on earth.”
“Is that where Jesus died, then?” Furina asked out of curiosity. Charlotte snorted juice out of her nose, and Yennifer had to fight back laughter. “Ah, I take it not, then?”
“Jesus…died in Jerusalem. Why on Earth would you think Disneyland is where he died?” Yennifer managed, fighting back a grin as Charlotte continued to snort in amusement.
“Well, if it’s the most magical place in the world, it only makes sense that it would be where you can find dead gods’ remains. Though I doubt that would be very amusing, those sorts of places end up horribly cursed,” Furina said with a shrug.
“Er, they mean it’s the most fun and interesting place on Earth. Not that it’s actually magically powerful,” Yennifer said, shaking her head. “The most magically powerful place on earth would be…hmmm…”
“The Storm Range or the Narukami Trench,” Charlotte said. “We studied them in our Geography class. The teacher was really excited because the Archons have completely changed Earth Bet’s geography from other known Earths’.”
Oh, I hope I don’t do that, Furina thought to herself.
Well, you certainly have the capacity, but I can’t say I recommend it. Unless you wanted to create a nice freshwater lake. I am fond of those.
Let’s not and say we didn’t.
“Ah, well, I suppose a place chosen for its delights and fancy would be a welcome change of pace. Though you’ll have to show me around, I’m afraid I know nothing about this Disney or his lands,” Furina said.
“Seriously!?” Charlotte said, and stood up. “Ok, Yen, we HAVE to show her a Disney movie! Like, the Little Mermaid! That would be PERFECT!”
“I’m afraid I have to leave in a few minutes for tonight's performance, but maybe on Monday we can watch it,” Furina said, checking her phone for the time.
After finishing her food and putting on a bit of makeup, Furina dashed out of the house after bidding Diana goodbye and headed for the nearest train station. She hadn’t gone far when something started bothering her. At first, she couldn’t put her finger on it, but then she noticed two large, scar faced men in sunglasses and dark hats were following her. The street wasn’t terribly busy in the mid afternoon, so they stood out. Furina hastened towards the subway, hoping she was wrong.
She wasn’t. They followed her down, and she was beginning to legitimately panic as she descended the stairs, the men not far behind her. What was she going to do!?
Relax. You’re the Hydro Archon. Those buffoons couldn’t harm you if they wanted to.
Oh, right. I, um, I just…I’m so used to just being an ordinary mortal…
Well, now might be a good time to at least use your false Vision to ward them off. And you do have that pepper spray Yennifer bought for you. A thoughtful gift, that.
Squaring her shoulders and taking a deep breath, Furina took the can of spray out of her purse and gripped her Vision with the other, then spun on the two toughs. She was the Hydro Archon! She could handle-
All of the blood drained out of Furina’s face as the two men cornered her against the wall. She might be the Hydro Archon, but right at the moment, she just felt like a small woman up against two very large men.
“Now, now, we don’t need any of that, do we?” one of the men chuckled, nodding to the can of spray.
“S-stay back! I’m warning you, I have a Vision!” Furina said.
The second thug snorted. “One you don’t even know how to use, do you? Besides…”
He snapped his fingers, and sparks and flames blossomed in his hand. “...we got powers of our own. Now, you listen here.”
“You need to stop being such a busybody. Unionizing a theater?” the second of the thugs said, shoving Furina into the wall. Furina could barely tell them apart. They were both built like brick walls with noses that had been broken more than once and cauliflower ears. “That’s fine. We won’t make a fuss about that. But you signing up for the Mayor’s cape team?”
“Now we have a problem,” his twin growled, holding his flames close to Furina’s face.
Furina felt a growing sense of outrage. How dare these thugs accost her! Bad enough that she thought they merely were after her body, but to seek to intimidate her!? “You would stand in the way of Justice?!”
“You’re the one fucking with France’s justice, you and your sale gouine lawyer girlfriend, you-”
That was, quite simply, enough. Furina had been on Earth Bet long enough to know that was a grievous insult. Rage filled her, and her Vision flashed. A moment later, three water orbs floated out of the Vision, causing the thugs to swear and step back.
“Using cape powers on us!? You- huh?”
The orbs resolved into three adorable little creatures! One was a seahorse with a ribbon on her head, the other an octopus with a tophat, and the last a crab with a bonnet. The little creatures floated up in front of the thugs, who blinked at them, then laughed.
“Are you serious?! This is supposed to scare us?” one snorted.
“No,” Furina said. “This is.”
Then she sprayed them with pepper spray, which caused both men to howl in pain and cover their eyes. One tried to conjure up fire, the other to transform into some sort of rock covered golem. Furina kicked one in the balls, and her crab companion launched a ball of water at the other’s jewels. Both men curled up in pain. Sniffing, Furina stepped over them, her companions floating after her. The others in the metro station cleared the way for her, staring at her wide eyed. Furina simply got on the train with her new pets and took a seat.
Smiling, she looked down at the watery summons. They were… quite real. Not merely water formed into the shapes of creatures, but Hydro Mimics. Had…had she just created them?
You have indeed. They’re manifestations of your Will. Unfortunately, I am afraid that they will be precisely as adroit at combat as you are.
Which is to say, not at all?
Mmm, indeed. They will endeavor to protect you, but, alas, they are mostly for show. Best to rely on your Champion.
My Champion? Who’s that?
My dear, if you haven’t figured that out yet, you really are quite hopeless.
It didn’t take much thought for Furina to come up with the answer to that. Yennifer? She’s my Champion? Did I… appoint her?
To a degree, more that she appointed herself. The girl is quite devoted to Justice, and to you.
That made Furina feel all warm inside. If Yennifer had been there, she wouldn’t have been worried about those thugs at all!
During the train ride, Furina considered her new companions. She would have to give them names. She held up the seahorse with a bow, and considered her for a moment. The little dear smiled and waggled her tail. So cute!
“I name thee Surintendante Chevalmarin!” Furina decreed and set her new companion down. The other two looked up at her expectantly, and Furina picked up the carb with a bonnet next.
“Hmm, I think…you shall be known as Mademoiselle Crabaletta!”
The crab gave a dignified bow, then floated away when Furina released her. Last, she bowed to the little octopus with a top hat, who returned the gesture gravely. “And you shall be…Gentilhomme Usher!”
He spewed out a few bubbles to show his approval. Furina grinned, then glanced around the train car. Several people were staring at her, and a few had phones out and were taking pictures. One woman, upon meeting Furina’s eyes, came forward timidly.
“You…you are Furian de Fontaine! I’ve seen you in Les Misérables! Can…can we take a selfie?”
“But of course!” Furina agreed, seizing the phone and embracing the woman. They posed cutely, along with Furina’s new pets, and took several pictures.
After that, Furina was practically mobbed by eager traingoers who wanted an autograph or picture. She grandly acquiesced to all of them, and very nearly missed her stop. She gathered up her companions, who trailed behind her in the air, leaving a trail of bubbles in their wake.
When Furina arrived at the theater, she showed off her new pets to her co-stars, causing enough disruption that Émile had to ask her to “put them away.” Furina didn’t wish to simply dismiss them, so she set what she dubbed her “Salon Solitaire” to the task of assisting the stage crew with performing simple tasks, which they proved quite adroit at.
Everyone was an old hand at preparing for the play, and this was their Thursday showing, meaning it wouldn’t be especially busy, and they didn’t have a double booking as they now did on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Still, by the line outside and the presale, they would once more have a full house. That meant Furina could look forward to another healthy paycheck, and she dreamed of buying Yennifer another new dress. Something that would make her feel beautiful. And maybe something racy that only Furina would see in the bedroom.
Wait, where had that thought come from?
Still, the curtain rose and the play began, and Furinaan waited for her cue. When it came, she rushed out with the other seamstresses, beginning her first song.
Just as she’d taken her place, however, the house lights came on. The audience cried out and gasped, then shouted in outrage as the doors burst open, and armed guards stormed in led by, of all things, a mime.
Ah. It seems the next act begins, Focalor’s voice said. Tread carefully here. But do not flinch.
“What is the meaning of this!? We are in the middle of a performance!” Marcel blustered, rushing on stage from the back.
The guards, who had on face-obscuring helmets and were dressed in black armor, carrying riot shields and wicked-looking guns, stomped onto the stage, where Furina recoiled slightly. What was going on?
“We have a warrant for the arrest of Furina de Fontaine,” the leader said, holding up a paper. “For the use of cape abilities in assaulting an officer of the law.”
“I have done no such thing!” Furina snapped, stepping forward and glaring at the officer. “I have not used my abilities to harm anyone, much less one of your guards!”
“That’s her,” a man in a red colored jumpsuit said. For a moment, Furina didn’t recognize him. Then, she gasped.
“You’re the man who accosted me on the subway!” she said, pointing a finger at him. “You and your companion threatened me and tried to assault me!”
There were cries of outrage from the crowd as the second thug stepped up, now dressed in leather. Both had shaved, but both still looked like thugs.
“This is Feu Follet and Bitumen, both members of the Mousquetaires,” the head guard said smugly, as Pantomine folded his arms and glared at Furina. “You admit to assaulting them with your Vision!”
“I did no such thing! They grabbed me and threatened me! I thought they meant to drag me away and abuse me!” Furina huffed. She actually had thought exactly that, so her outrage was no act. “I threatened them with a can of simple pepper spray, which is perfectly legal! When they laid hands on me, I sprayed them!”
There were shouts and jeers from the audience, and Pantomime motioned to Furina as the guard captain cried, “Arrest her!”
Before they could do so, there was a roar of water, and the guards were nearly washed off the stage and Julie and Barbara ran forward, Vision’s glowing, controlling a wave of hydro together.
“You will not lay hands on her!” Julie cried.
“Fascist pigs! Off our stage!” Barbara shouted.
The other actors roared their agreement, forming a wall of flesh and shoving at the guards, who were momentarily knocked back as the audience screamed and shouted, some of them throwing their bills or other objects at the guards.
Feu Follet’s fists ignited, and Bitumen’s skin grew covered in black asphalt. If this continued, it would turn into a full blown battle between the actors and the guards, with the audience caught in the middle.
Enough.
Everyone froze, all eyes turning to Furina. She forced back her power a little, then stepped forward, her Salon Solitaire floating protectively around her. She strode right up to Pantomine, who forged a sword of invisible force and pointed it at her.
Instead of fighting back, Furina held up her hands, wrists up. “If you must arrest me, then do so. But know that this is a gross Injustice! I am a woman who was merely defending herself from two thugs, who did not identify themselves as officers of the law, but instead threatened me and my friends with bodily harm!”
Pantomime sneered at her, but formed handcuffs from nothing and slapped them on her.
“Arrest the other Vision Holders as well!” the guard captain ordered. Julie and Barbara looked to Furina, but she shook her head. Reluctantly, they allowed themselves to be handcuffed as well. Then, all three of them were grabbed by guards and hauled out of the Theater. There was even a bit of dark comedy, as the guards tried to figure out how to handcuff Furina’s Salon Solitaire, but mostly ended up completely soaked from manhandling the hydro mimics.
In the back of the police van, Furina looked at Barbara and Julie, who were both still dressed in their now rather disheveled costumes. “Thank you,” she said quietly.
“We wouldn’t abandon you,” Barbara said firmly.
“You’re not going to, um, destroy the police station, are you?” Julie asked nervously.
Furina blinked at her. “Why on earth would you think I could even do that?”
Oh, right. She could now. But still, that was a very silly question.
Barbara and Julie shared a look, but then Pantomine and two armed guards climbed into the back of the van as well. “Take their Visions,” one of the guards ordered.
Furina huffed, but reluctantly allowed hers to be taken, along with Julie and Barbara’s. Then they were shackled to a bar, and the van drove away.
Now what? Furina thought, feeling despondent. What have I done?
Exactly the right thing, I think. Focalors reassured Furina. Oh, this will be most entertaining. Just as I’ve planned.
That made Furina feel a bit better, though also rather irritated at her mother. You planned all this?
Not in every detail. It’s nearly impossible to know your own future, and since you are me, I can’t see your future hardly at all. Instead, I have been setting things up for a number of contingencies, of which this is only one. Now, they shall play out, and that, my dear, I can foresee.
Well, at least someone has a plan. I’m just making this up as I go.
Don’t tell anyone, but I did that an awful lot myself. Sometimes, the best plan is to simply wing it.
And here I thought you were the mistress of prophecy and planning.
Oh, that too. It’s just that once you’ve concocted one century-spanning plan, everyone assumes everything you do is some meticulous wonder of foresight. When in reality, you just take the credit for everything serendipitous that comes your way.
Well, I hope you don’t mind taking credit for me ending up in jail, then.
Oh no, that I will struggle against as much as you. This is just the first act. You’ll have to wait for the climax for something wondrous to happen.
Sighing, Furina slumped into her seat, manacled at wrist and ankle. Part of her hoped someone would save her from this, but she was rather certain she’d have to get out of this herself.
Meanwhile, back at the apartment, Yennifer awoke from a frightening dream. A moment later, her phone buzzed, and she read a text from Marcel.
Being the most popular man on the planet should come with some perks, right? I mean, I guess we get the swanky new executive suite to stay in, but come on! I was hoping that my newfound status as the world’s most wanted man would mean that I got like, free drinks and stuff. Well, I suppose I could get free drinks, but the getting of them would be…problematic.
So far, this has just been a colossal headache.
After Sussurro and I moved in, it was back to the hospital. We had two new guards as well, both of whom were familiar faces.
“Hi hi!” the new guard said as she bounced into the hallway. She had blond hair and bunny ears, along with a combat vest and black Rhodes Island fatigues, with a heavy crossbow slung on her back and a sword at her hip. “I’m Kroos! Me and the captain are your new bodyguards, Mr. Bones!”
“Sergeant Fang, of Combat Operations,” the blue-haired horse girl said, shooting Kroos an annoyed look. “I’m just a non-com, not an officer.” She was more heavily armored than Kroos, and interestingly, didn’t have a spear, similarly boasting a crossbow and sword, though she also had a shield slung on her back. Her hair was long and her face more mature, so this had to be Fang the Fire Sharpened to go with Kroos the Keen Glint.
“Well, you’ll always be the Captain to me!” Kroos said cheerily. “Right then, that’s introductions out of the way. We’ll be guarding you so poor Exusia and Texas can have a wee break!”
“Correct, Beagle and Lava will also be taking shifts. You’ll have protection around the clock,” Fang agreed.
“Pleasure to meet you,” I said, shaking both their hands. Kroos and Sussurro actually hugged, chatting about various times they’d teamed up in the past. “I met Lava’s sister in Leithanian, actually.”
“Yes, she mentioned that. I miss Hibiscus, we trained together back when we were fresh-faced recruits,” Fang said with a nod. “For the most part, just ignore us, Dr. Bones. We’re here to keep you safe, so just pretend we’re furniture.”
“I don’t think James is capable of that, Wanda,” Sussurro said with a sad smile, giving Fang a hug in turn. “He’s going to start treating you like family if I know him.”
“Well, I mean, we’re going to be around together a lot, and I get the feeling they ain’t gonna let me socialize much, so…guess I sort of want to be friends?” I said, giving Fang and Kroos an awkward smile.
“That’s perfect! We can be proper mates,” Kroos said with a laugh. “I’m Tony, by the way, short for Antonia. Last name is Whitlock, actually, not Kroos.”
“Really? Where’s Kroos come from then?” I asked curiously
She leaned in and said in a stage whisper, “It’s because I’m mad for football. Adolf Kroos is one of the best players of the game, ever! I had a massive crush on him when I joined, you know, so they decided that was my name!”
“I’m Wanda Iskrańska,” Fang admitted, looking mildly uncomfortable. “No one calls me that anymore.”
“We call her Fang because her bark is worse than her bite, but her bite’s plenty fierce!” Kroos said, reaching up to pull Fang’s mouth into a grin.
I just hoped this meant that Beagle wasn’t KIA like the Arknights community had worried about. Seemed like she was still alive here, at least.
“You don’t worry your head about a thing, Dr. Sussurro,” Kroos said, nodding soberly. “We’ll keep your man out of trouble, and no mistake.” She eyed me, her eyes opening a fraction from their usual squint, and her tone turning sober. “We’ve heard what you can do, Sir. It’s worth more than our lives to keep you safe. So friends we may become, but understand why we’re here.”
“Hopefully, things will stay safe here on the Island. But push comes to shove, you’re the priority,” Fang told me.
I swallowed, feeling slightly ill. “Is it…is it really that bad?”
“Not currently, no. But it’s already common knowledge that you have the cure for oripathy. I heard you ran into an Emperor’s Blade in Ursus. We have to prepare for the idea that another, or a similar force, could threaten you. Even here,” Fang said, and Kroos nodded grimly.
“Oh, and no curing us. You try that, and I have Exusiai’s permission to shoot you in the behind!” Kroos said brightly. “She says it’s highly motivating to you.”
“I don’t just try and cure everyone I see,” I grumbled.
“That’s not what I heard,” Fang said, eyeing me sharply. “I heard you cured the first sick kid you met, gave yourself stage 2, then immediately tried to cure Dr. Sussuro and only stopped because Dr. Gavial threatened to suplex you through a table.”
“I, what!? That’s not- where did you even HEAR that?!” I sputtered, but Kroos was nodding.
“Then you cured Texas, as soon as you heard she’d contracted oripathy, from saving your life by dueling the Black Queen. And when you heard that Sussurro’s dear friend Ying was dying, you instantly cured her, too.”
“I, er, well…” I coughed and noted that Sussurro was blushing as well.
“It’s alright, love!” Kroos said, patting Sussurro on the back. “We’ll keep him safe! And you from doing anything too daft, either.”
“We’re both fully trained doctors, thank you,” Sussurro huffed, though she was still blushing.
“Mmm, I think you’re letting your heart gallop away with your brains again, just like it did for Steward and Chiave! Though honestly, I didn’t think you’d find one taller than Chiave. Are you really an alien, Bones? You don’t look like one. I’d thought they’d be little green men…”
“Kroos, we were told NOT to probe for ‘weird alien knowledge’ and that if we heard any we’d have to file a report! Are you trying to give us more work!?” Fang spluttered.
“Right, sorry! Don’t know where my mind’s been! Consider these lips sealed! Let’s get you to work, Bones. Need to burn off that oripathy somehow!”
Great. That secret was out too. Though with chatterboxes like Kroos around I don’t see how anyone could complain that I was a security risk.
We got to the hospital and started on rounds, and I glanced at Sussurro as we examined charts to pick out who I was healing today. “You dated Chiave?”
She blushed and glanced up at me. “Look, I was young, just arrived at Rhodes Island. And here’s this tall, handsome vulpo from my homeland who tries to pick me up! I was head over heels for him for a very brief time, until that mascalzone left on a mission for two weeks and came back with a new girlfriend!”
She took a deep breath. “It…it took me years to get over that one. Steward lasted much longer. Almost a year. But…but I could see he had a thing for Merry. And, well…I just…I realized I wasn’t in love with him, just…codependent. Myrtle had set us up, and, well…I wanted a boyfriend, badly.”
Murderous rage lanced through me. I was still stuck on Chiave two-timing Sussurro. “That mother fucker.”
“James, it’s been years. I just…I have a tendency to jump into these things too quickly,” Sussurro admitted. “And, well, you saving me…I don’t quite believe in love at first sight, but from the moment I met you, I knew you were a man who would give everything to help others. I just…I hoped you’d be loyal, too. And I think you will be.”
“I’ve never cheated on anyone, though I have had people cheat on me,” I admitted. “Mostly though…uh, you know my Adhaerente pede oris?”
She nodded, and I sighed. “Well…let’s just say I’ve blabbed a few things that really soured relationships. I… I think I’m getting better, but…”
Shit, was there some dark secret about Sussurro that if I told it, it would ruin everything forever?
Turns out, there was a dark secret, though the jury is still out on that “ruin everything forever.” Shit.
Since curing Rope, or well, at least stabilizing her, I’d needed Sussurro to be my hands, and occasionally, my eye. I couldn’t make incisions anymore or perform any kind of surgery. My right hand wasn’t good for much; I couldn’t even wipe my ass with it anymore, having lost basically all manual dexterity and gaining heavy tremors. I kept dropping my fork at meals, and was having to learn how to do everything from eat to write with my left hand. Fortunately, as a doctor, I’m expected to have terrible handwriting anyway, and at least now I have an excuse.
The real kicker was the lack of depth perception. I kept running into things and missing when I reached for stuff. Despite my levels continuing to drop, there was no sign of my vision returning or the tremors improving. I’d talked with Sussuro about it, and she’d tried to heal me. Unfortunately…I can’t use my arts on myself. No idea why, most people can, but I can’t. Sussuro’s arts are pretty good, but there’s little that they could do for permanent oripathy injury like this.
So, Sussurro cut, and I healed. We started in the ER and fixed up broken bones, lacerations, burns, you name it. Rhodes Island is a city, but it’s also a major industrial hub. There weren’t any combat casualties, but when you have thousands of workers around heavy machinery, occasional accidents happen. Not to mention the normal, everyday stuff. There was one really stupid one, though.
“Let me get this straight,” I said to the two idiots lying in beds next to one another. “You both got major contusions on your heads, and mild concussions…from office chair racing?”
“Well, I had to defend my title,” Logos said, doing his best to look serious, but mostly looking like a goddamn idiot. “We may have gotten a little…over enthusiastic.”
“Look, he started it!” Surtr said, pointing at Logos. “He used his arts first!”
“How could you accuse me of such a thing! Such is strictly prohibited by the rules! No, Surtr, you are the one who-”
“Hey, guess what? I don’t care. Haven’t you idiots heard of OSHA?” I demanded.
They both blinked at me stupidly. Partly because I’d just blurted weird alien knowledge again, partly from those concussions.
“Occupational Safety and Health Administration? No? Ugh, if there isn’t a version of OSHA here, I’m talking to Kal and Ami about setting one up,” I grumbled.
“No need, this is not the first time these idiots have been caught doing this. Or injured,” Sussurro said grimly from where she was examining Mudrock, who didn’t have a contusion or concussion, it would turn out. Probably because her head is so damn hard. Or because she was wearing a helmet. Apparently, she’d been racing in full armor.
I turned back to them. “I’m tempted to just let you suffer.”
“Such would be the wages of our own folly,” Logos sighed.
“Aw, come on, Bones! It was, uh, training! And team building!” Surtr said, and batted her eyelashes at me.
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, but this is the one time I’m healing office chair-related shenanigans.”
I healed the two morons and sent them on their way. Though I couldn’t help grinning as they left.
“What are you smiling about? Please tell me you’re not thinking of joining those stupid races. We get at least one injury a month from them,” Sussuro said with a sigh.
“Huh? Oh, no. There’s just a lot of stupid memes about Logos being the office chair racing champion that I guess are factually true,” I mused. “Does Doktah ever participate?”
Sussurro rolled her eyes. “Unfortunately, yes. There’s also a betting pool. It’s a serious problem in my opinion, but apparently it ‘boosts morale’ so we haven’t cracked down on it too hard. One time, Gavial went to go get them to knock it off, only to get dragged in and come back with a broken clavicle.”
“She didn’t.”
“Oh, she did. She even challenged Logos for the championship.”
“Damn skippy I did! Woulda won too if my wheels hadn’t given out!”
We both turned to find a grinning Gavial leaning on the door frame. “I take it you healed those brainiacs and sent them back to the track?”
“No, we very sensibly told them to knock it off,” I snorted. Then hesitated. “You…you know when they do meets?”
“JAMES!” Sussurro huffed, and aimed a kick at me, only to miss because she’d started laughing too hard to connect.
“Every Tuesday and Thursday at 2100 hours, Wednesdays at 1300,” Kroos supplied helpfully.
“You are not helping, Tony,” Sussurro snorted. “James, you are ABSOLUTELY not to join in for two reasons.”
“Which are?” I asked curiously.
“First, you’ll be sleeping on the couch if you do, and second, the risk is far too great for you to risk actual injury,” Sussurro said firmly.
“Harsh,” Gavial chuckled, but she sobered. “She’s right, kid. You’re too important to go do a dumbass thing like that and risk your neck. Anyways, you two go take a break.”
“Really? We’ve still got hours left in our shift,” I said, glancing at my watch.
“Yeah, and you’ve just about cleared out the trauma ward. Leave some medicine for the rest of us! More seriously, Lucia, make this idiot take a break and check him. He doesn’t need another arts overdose.”
Well, it turned out I was pushing towards arts overdose, so they made me go lie down and take a nap. Interestingly, Lucia decided that meant SHE needed to lie down and take a nap. Which I didn’t mind even slightly. Even if she did lay down on top of me.
Oh, don’t get excited, we weren’t stripping out of our scrubs or anything, I mostly just held her. She’s not exactly made of feathers, but it felt comforting to have her pressed atop me.
“You think I’ll ever get my hand back?” I asked, as Lucia was holding it, running her fingers up and down my palm and around my lesions. Maybe it’s a little gross, but it was extremely soothing for her to do.
“We can have Folinic look at it, she specializes in hand surgery,” she told me, then kissed the back of it and pressed it to her cheek. “But no. Not unless we find someone else who can do what you do.”
“And since Kal has only heard of one person who can do it in 13,000 years, that seems unlikely,” I said. I moved my arm and pulled Sussurro a little closer. She wiped away a couple of tears from my eyes, then pressed her cheek to mine.
“I’m sorry, James. I never should have asked you to cure Ying. It’s my-”
“No,” I said firmly, placing my left finger against her lips. “No. I chose to do that. I don’t regret saving her, even for a moment. Even if I never get my eye or full use of my hand back, it was worth it. I can’t save everyone. But…have you heard the starfish story?”
Sussurro shook her head, then lay down with her head on my chest as I laid it out.
“Once, there was a great storm on the coast. It kicked up horrible waves, and hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of starfish were ripped off the rocks where they live, and cast onto the rocks and sand, where they were doomed to die. They’re uh, little invertebrates that have five or six limbs, cling to rocks, live in tide pools and stuff.”
“Ah, so that’s just your word for a starscale. We have them in Palermo.”
“Probably. Anyway, a man was walking along the beach, and saw the many starfish, starscales, who were slowly dying in the early morning sun. He shrugged, feeling bad for the animals, but knowing there was nothing he could do to save them all. After a few minutes of walking, he found a young boy. The boy was bending down, picking up the starscales, one or two at a time, and tossing them back into the waves.”
“‘Boy,’ the man said, ‘Don’t you know you’ll never save them all? There are thousands, perhaps millions of starscales on the beach.’ The boy looked up at the man, and shrugged. ‘I know I’ll never save them all, but I have to do something.’ The man shook his head at the child’s folly. ‘You won’t even save a fraction of a percent, a statistical anomaly! What you’re doing doesn’t matter.’ The boy threw his starscale back into the water, then bent and picked up another, which he held up to the man. ‘It matters to this one.’”
Sussurro shifted on my chest, burying her face there, her body shaking slightly. I realized she was crying, and stroked her hair.
“Yes. That’s what we are,” she said after a minute or so, her voice slightly muffled by my chest. “We’re that boy. Throwing starscales back in.”
“Not quite,” I said, and she looked up at me with red puffy eyes. I grinned at her. “We’re the idiots who think we can figure out a way to save all the starscales, and stop the storm from ever killing them again.”
She blinked away her tears, and smiled at me before kissing me, her lips a bit salty, but I suppose mine were too. “You’re an idiot, James McCoy. You’re just lucky I’m the same kind of idiot.”
After that, I really did doze off for a while, as did Sussurro. When we finally roused ourselves, there were more rounds to complete. I can’t cure everything. For one thing, diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, and fungi elude me completely. Oripathy I can treat, but bacteria? Yeah, I’ve tried, but I got nothing. Oddly, cancer IS something I can help with, though I have to be careful and intentional about it. Somehow, I can identify the cancerous cells, and that they diverge from the proper…blueprint, I guess is the right term? But it’s very, very challenging to get rid of them even if I do regrow the tissue that’s affected after cutting it out.
“Looks like you’ll be spending time in oncology if you keep the trauma ward cleared out,” Sussurro told me after a very messy procedure where we treated some moderate melanoma. She’d cut away a great deal of skin, which I’d healed up right after.
“Well, that’s good, right? Means we’re keeping ahead of things,” I said with a grimace.
After that, we knocked off. There was a new movie playing at the theater, a Siracusian melodrama with a heavy dosage of romance that Sussurro desperately wanted to see. It had subtitles in Victorian, and was about the very last sort of movie I would ever want to watch. That said, it was also the sort of movie you watch with your girl so you can get laid that night. Not that we were having bedroom problems, but, well, it would be good to see Sussurro relax and enjoy herself. And who knows? Maybe Siracusian romances are better than what I’m used to.
Then I found out it was a musical. I think I must be falling in love with Sussurro, because I hate musicals. This one wasn’t so bad as long as we were holding hands, though.
Halfway through, I had to go to the little boys' room, and excused myself quietly, leaving Sussurro curled up with a bucket of, all things, peanuts. Yeah, they don’t serve popcorn, but rather peanut puffs at the movies here. Basically, peanut-flavored Cheetos. I’d never seen such a thing in my life, but they were really tasty.
Kroos followed me; she and Fang were sitting to either side of us, and I whispered to her I was going to the bathroom.
“Sure, love! I’ll be right there with you,” she told me.
I sighed, but nodded. Sure enough, Kroos did follow me into the bathroom, though not into the stall. A couple of guys gave her odd looks, but she just grinned at them and fingered her sword. They didn’t say anything, though a couple seemed to recognize me despite my cunning disguise of fake dog ears and a tail.
“I’m going to get some more drinks and snacks,” I told Kroos as I washed my hands. “You want anything?”
“Wouldn’t say no to some caramel carrys!” Kroos told me brightly. Those were, ugh, carrot and caramel flavored Mike and Ike, basically. Gross. But, I guess she is a bunny girl.
I got in line, fumbling slightly with my wallet as I did. Things were pricey as ever at the theater, even in Rhodes Island, but I had the money for it.
“Hey, handsome. What’s a guy like you doing here all alone?”
I blinked, then turned around to see a stunningly attractive caprinae woman. I mean, like, supermodel good looking. She had small, curled sheep horns sticking up from long, silky black hair, with violet eyes. Her top showed off a generous amount of cleavage, and she was a D cup, with an hourglass figure and legs for days. She was giving me that bedroom eyes look, and my brain short-circuited there for a second. I mean, yeah, I was dating Sussurro, but Jesus. I had never had a woman even remotely this good-looking come on to me before. Look, Sussurro is the most beautiful woman in the world in my eyes, but…hot damn. This woman could have had a job as a model at any agency, ever.
“I, uh, snacks,” I said, lamely pointing to the menu where bored-looking teens were filling up sodas and buckets of peanut puffs.
“Mmm. You look like quite the snack yourself,” the woman said, licking her lips in a very enticing fashion. “You wanna…find somewhere to eat me? Or just let me snack on you?”
I shook my head quickly. “Uh, look, this is very flattering, but I’m dating someone. Sorry.”
I turned back around, or at least tried to. She put a hand on my arm, then leaned up and whispered, “She doesn’t have to know.”
Alright, now I was mad. Consent matters a lot to me. How I was raised. No means no and all that. So that was pissing me off. The other thing that I really hate? Infidelity. My family had its issues, but you know one thing I never wondered about? If mom and dad had ever cheated on one another, even once. They had drilled into my head from an early age that you are NEVER disloyal to those you love. You never lie, you never cheat, and you don’t ever put yourself into a situation where that would be tempting.
“I said, no, lady! I’m taken!” I huffed, moving her hand away.
Suddenly, the sexy smoke show vanished, and desperation filled her eyes as she grabbed at me. “Please! Just, anything you want! You don’t want sex? I have money! You want a slave? I’ll be it! Just, please, you can cure me, you-”
“Love, you’ve got about half a second to get your hands off him before I cut them off,” Kroos said. She’d come up behind the woman without me even noticing. All the cheer was out of her voice, and her eyes were wide open. She had her machete out, and it wasn’t against the woman’s hands. It was against her neck.
Ignoring that, the woman whirled. “Back off, bitch! Just because he healed you doesn’t mean he can’t-” She screamed. Kroos jammed some sort of electric stun stick into the woman’s gut without blinking, then slugged her in the chin with the hilt of the sword and kicked her to the side.
“Right, everyone, please stay away. Hate to have to kill you,” Kroos said, her tone mild, but her look pure death. She pointed her machete around, and there were shouts and screams as people backed up, fast.
“JAMES!”
I spun about to see Sussurro, holding a crossbow and sprinting barefoot, she’d worn heels that she’d clearly kicked off, running towards me, Fang beside her with bare steel in her hands.
Fang glanced at the woman, who was groaning and twitching on the floor, the smell of burned fabric and flesh wafting off her. “Right. We’re leaving. Now.”
I felt horribly ill. This was just supposed to be a quiet date, where I was hidden. Safe.
“But, but she was just-”
“Bones, now,” Kroos ordered, motioning me towards the door as she looked around for further threats.
I didn’t argue further, and Sussurro grabbed a hold of me as Fang cleared the way, shield on one arm, sword in the other. We were back on the executive level in minutes, having used an emergency override on the elevator. The ride back was tense and silent. Kroos and Fang were both clearly ready for extreme violence, and Sussurro didn’t seem far behind them. When the elevator opened, Texas and Exusiai met us. Texas was topless in boxers, Exusia had on a t-shirt and not much else. Both had their weapons ready. Apparently, they’d been sleeping.
“Clear,” Fang told them, and they both nodded, but didn’t relax much. They took me back to our room.
“Right, sorry, loves. But I think date nights are over,” Kroos told us. “We’ll talk with Blaze, but…”
“Yeah. I get it,” I said, feeling defeated. And trying desperately not to look at how underdressed Texas and Exusiai were. Neither seemed even slightly bothered by it, but I was.
“You two get dressed, we’ll keep watch,” Fang said as the door slid shut.
I stumbled into the living room, but I didn’t even make it to the couch before I slid to the ground, trembling. Sussurro still had the crossbow, which she set to the said, hugging me tightly. She didn’t say anything, just held on as I had a panic attack.
At last, my breathing calmed, and I opened my eyes. I was gripping Sussurro like a lifeline. “I…I think I’ll be alright.”
She nodded, and we went over to the kitchen table, where I poured two glasses of wine. Well, I tried. My hand was shaking too much. Sussurro took the bottle and poured it herself. We both took a long sip, then I told her what had happened. I left out the part about the nameless woman being a total smokeshow, but I think Sussurro picked up on it anyway.
“I just…I never imagined…she was offering herself to me, to cure her,” I said, feeling utterly disgusted. I was a bit worried Sussurro would be angry, and she was. She’s the jealous type, I’m not that dumb, but to my shock, she wasn’t mad at me.
“That puttana! Offering herself like that! Shameless slut,” Sussurro spat, then took an angry swig of her wine.
“I, I told her no, she just-” I began, but Sussurro shook her head.
“I’m not mad at you, James. I saw her, even on the ground like that, she was a beauty. You didn’t even take a second look at her, did you?”
“Well, I mean, I did look twice, but whatever physical beauty she had didn’t cover up the ugly,” I said, making a face, and Sussurro nodded. “I just…she just…she wanted me…”
A lot of the anger drained out of Sussurro’s face, and she put her hand over mine.
“James. You…you’re going to keep getting offers like that. Whatever you want. And I mean…whatever. Sex, money, power, a way home-”
“I am home!” I snapped, now feeling angry myself.
Sussurro blinked at me, and I forced myself to calm down. “I, sorry. Look, you’re home, now. You and Rhodes Island. Not…not Earth. I’m not the first young man to abandon his home country to-”
And then Sussurro had her arms and legs wrapped about me and was kissing me fiercely. After that…well, we knocked over the wine, but we didn’t bother to clean it up until much later.
“We really are going too fast,” Sussurro said as we lay on the tile of the kitchen floor under the table, running her fingers through my chest hair.
“Maybe. Don’t really care,” I said, stroking her tail, which she had wrapped about me possessively.
“There will be more like her. Or mothers with sick children, or young boys like Andrey who will beg you for themselves, for their fathers, for anyone,” Sussurro said quietly. “It’s not going to stop. It’s going to get worse.”
“I..” I felt tears in my eyes. “Yeah.”
“So. I want you to make me a promise, James,” she said, climbing on top of me to look down at my face.
I nodded. “Anything.” Look, when a beautiful and naked woman who you just made love to just ask that, there’s really only one response.
“From now on, anyone you cure…you do it only if I give the OK. Or, if I’m incapacitated…Exusiai.”
I blinked. Exusiai? Really? “Uh, ok. Yeah, I promise.”
“Good.” She kissed me. Then lay down, pillowing her soft ears on my forearm. “I just…I can’t lose you, James. My heart would fail.”
“I…I’ll try not to ever break your heart,” I swore.
Little did I know…Shit. Maybe relationships weren’t meant to be built on spur of the moment passion.
The very air trembled with the roar of the crowd, and the earth shook with the tread of heavy military boots. Confetti and streamers fluttered in the air, and bright colors filled Snezhnaya Plaza. Below Kollei, a sea of celebration spread out as the Fatui marched in triumph through New Moscow. Thousands of jubilant Russians waved and cheered, with children riding on their parents shoulders in order to see their victorious heroes.
Heroes. The word was like ashes in Kollei’s mouth. They were not heroes. They were bloodthirsty conquerors who had desolated an entire nation, one that, despite what should have been the height of Summer’s heat, was still locked in Winter’s Heart. Only, Finland was a nation no longer. It was just a Duchy. Her Duchy.
Kollei did not smile at the troops parading below her, nor at the Harbingers standing beside her on the balcony. Her expression was serene and calm as she sat upon her mother’s throne, the gnosis held in her hands. Even now, as her doubts raged, she could feel the beating pulse of Love that flowed from her mother, through her, and to the people.
Beside her, Anatoly was smiling in satisfaction, a cup of wine in his hand, Elana standing stiffly beside him, obviously pregnant in her gown. She had a smile fixed on her face as well, but it was obvious she had no Love for her husband. A pity.
Yelizaveta had her own gold and silver goblet and was blowing the occasional kiss to her passing troops. Ivan was boisterously singing marching songs off-key and off-rhythm, a slightly crazed look on his face. He’d been killed a dozen times this campaign, and his sanity was waning. To restore him would require years of peace and therapy. Neither of which was available.
Anastasia and Riley stood closer to Kollei’s throne, both with attendants surrounding them. For Anastasia, some of the most beautiful former capes of the enemy fawned over her in adoration. The delusions they bore were rapidly diminishing what was left of their souls. Soon, they would be nothing but hollow puppets of the Dancer. She was not making the mistake she had made with Thoma again.
As for Riley, her children, including Jean-Paul and Cherie, stood about her. Cherie had gained a cat’s tail to go with her ears, a “reward” from her father. However, much of the anguish had also been excised from the girl’s soul. The look of devotion and love Cherie had fixed Kollei with would have been disturbing if Kollei couldn’t feel how genuine it was. The small kindnesses that Kollei had shown the girl, such as ensuring she was released from solitary after another escape attempt, or having her dine with Kollei at the table instead of having to eat off the floor for once more trying to manipulate someone’s emotions…it was almost sad, how little it took. The girl was broken now. The last embers of her defiance stamped out. Just like Finland.
In contrast, Jean-Paul’s love for Kollei, her mother, and especially Pater, was quite real. It had taken no coaxing for him to embrace his new family and declare steadfast love and loyalty to his adopted home. The same could also be said of the war orphans in the House of the Hearth. Riley doted on the ones who showed a willingness to join her family, and ruthlessly reeducated any who resisted. Once more, the Tsaritsa had chosen well.
That was her mother, not her, wasn’t it? It was growing ever harder for Kollei to remember that she was only the Princess, and not the Tsaritsa herself.
As evening approached, the Million Fatui Parade ended. It was, of course, not nearly so many people. While there were a million under arms in Imperial Russia, many remained deployed in the newly conquered Duchy of Finland and the Duchy of Ruthenia, which comprised Latvia and Estonia. Eastern Ukraine and Belarus were much less volatile, but still had garrisons to ward off the monsters that constantly invaded from the Storm Range. Still, 50,000 troops and captured equipment had made a formidable display. There had been no tanks, and the flights overhead had been only Tinkertech craft and flying capes. Kollei personally saw such vehicles as ridiculous. What purpose had they when a single Delusion bearer could rip a tank to shreds or knock a plane from the sky at a fraction of the cost?
There was a final cheer as the troops' formations stood to attention before Kollei, with their ranks stretching beyond what mortal eyes could see. Civilians surrounded them, all cheering and delighted. Indeed, Kollei had spent weeks when it was obvious victory was inevitable, ensuring there would be adequate restrooms, food, and water to avoid a repeat of the Khodynka Tragedy. All the food and drink was free, of course, though the supply of beer and vodka had both been diluted and was tightly controlled. Even so, Kollei had needed to knock out more than a hundred drunks before they caused a problem. A simple proposition, and something she’d only consciously done the first time. After that, she’d simply willed it to happen, and it had.
Am I a god now? She wondered. She didn’t know. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that in this moment, her people were safe, and victorious.
She arose from her throne, and lifted her gnosis topped scepter. A hush spread rapidly, and there was a great sound as hundreds of thousands of people sank to their knees and bowed their heads.
My Beloved subjects, Kollei began, projecting her voice not just to all of Moscow, but to all of her mother’s realm. Everyone from Vladavastok on the Pacific to conquered Turku in Western Finland could hear her, and a gentle snow began to fall across her mother’s empire. Today, Love has triumphed. Once more, the Duchy of Finland is restored to union with the rest of my mother’s lands. We welcome our beloved brothers and sisters to the Empire, where they will be sheltered in my Mother’s embrace.
She gestured to the newest contingent of Fatui, who were front and center before her. It was made up of Finnish troops who had volunteered to serve the Tsaritsa. Some were opportunists who sought to be on the winning side, a few were true believers in the Tsaritsa’s new religion, but most simply had wanted not to starve in the endless winter that gripped their country.
“HAIL, TSARITSA! HAIL, PRINCESS KOLLEI!” the crowd roared. They had, of course, been instructed what to cheer for days beforehand.
Kollei forced a small smile, and waved to them all. Even now, I feel your Love. My Mother, her serene Majesty, the Tsaritsa, feels your Love. Though she yet slumbers, she-
I SLEEP NO LONGER. YOUR LOVE, MY PEOPLE, HAS AWAKENED ME.
Kollei’s heart flew into her throat, and tears wet her cheeks as she spun. There, upon the throne, a small ice storm sprang to life. A few moments later, the storm resolved into Bronya. Her mother. The Tsaritsa. For a moment, no one knew how to react. The Harbingers were already kneeling, and gaped at their god and queen who had returned to them.
For aching moments, she could only stare up at her mother. Then, trembling, Kolleo knelt and proffered the gnosis. “M-mother, I…I return to you…”
“No, child. Come,” Bronya opened her arms, and an actual smile formed on her lips. “I am so proud of you.”
Weeping in earnest now, Kollei raced up the steps and threw her arms about her mother. The icy embrace felt warm and welcoming, Kollei’s tears freezing on her cheeks as she clung to her mother. The crowd behind them exploded into applause with cries of “HAIL TSARITSA!” and “HAIL PRINCESS KOLLEI!” in true earnest now.
“You’re awake, you’re really awake,” Kollei said, clinging tightly to Bronya, who clutched at her, but not as strongly as she would have liked.
“Only in a sense. I had to be here this day. I am still weary. I am afraid…you must shoulder the burden of leadership a little longer, my beloved daughter,” Bronya said, and Kollei opened her eyes to look at Bronya, horrified.
“What, no! I, I’m terrible at this! I couldn’t think of anything to do but lead us in a pointless, bloody war! I couldn’t keep the harbingers from fighting, they’ve killed dozens in their clashes! And…and the entire world is allied against us now!” Kollei gasped.
“To the first, the war was not pointless. You secured us new lands and peoples. You did exactly as I would have done, and in that, proved yourself truly my daughter,” Bronya said, caressing Kollei’s face. “All of the Dutchy of Finland I give you, Kollei. Though, in truth, it is not mine to give, for you took it. Rule it as you see fit. You have proven yourself capable.”
“As for the Harbingers…ever they play their little games. So long as they do not rebel, it simply keeps them sharp and strong. And if the world hates us…then our ice shall freeze them all. For my cold burns those who hate me, but strengthens those who Love me. And you, my daughter, my precious Kollei…I love more than life and ice itself.”
“Mother…” Kollei bent her head, which Kollei kissed the top of. “I just…I’m so glad you’re back…with me…”
Finally, her mother was awake. At last…at last everything would be set to rights…
The rest of the day proceeded as the planned grand celebration. Food and drink were provided to all citizens of Russia, and had been a massive logistical undertaking. Kollei had even ensured that the people of conquered Finland were given gifts of cake, spirits, bread, and vegetables. None would go hungry in her mother’s realm ever again. Here in the palace, a great feast and spectacular gala and ball took place, with every noteworthy of the Empire present.
Knighthoods and writs of nobility were given, forming a new class of Boyar that were entirely loyal to the Tsaritsa. While initially it had been planned for Kollei to do so in her mother’s name, now Bronya sat upon her throne and gave accolades and awards.
“When great service in the name of Love is done, then in Love, great rewards are given,” Bronya told a captain who had earned himself a noble title through his efforts in the war.
For the ball, Bronya reclined upon her throne, sipping iced wine. It was up to Kollei to dance the night away, and for once, she let herself be swept away in giddy delight. Her mother was awake again. She was merely a princess once more, no longer a ruler, but simply the one who stayed by her mother’s side.
Noticing that Cherie was looking morose at the sidelines behind Riley, Kollei walked past several handsome officers and more than one beautiful warrior to take the cat-girl’s hand and drag her out onto the ballroom floor.
“M-my Lady?” Cherie gasped as Kollei took her in her arms for the dance. “M-me? I…I am but a humble-”
“Shhh. Just relax, Cherie. While you are with me…you are safe. No harm will come to you,” Kollei whispered, and kissed the girl on the forehead.
Girl. Cherie was a year older than Kollei, and yet…she felt like the younger one here.
It was even more obvious when Cherie melted into Kollei’s arms, looking up at her with sheer worship in her eyes. When the song was done, Kollei turned to find Riley and Jean-Paul watching them.
“Do you like her? She’s yours if you want her,” Riley said, head cocked to one side. “She’d still be my daughter, of course, but fathers give away their daughters, right?”
“I…” Kollei felt a bit sick. She didn’t want Cherie as a lover. In fact, Kollei had no desire to take anyone as a lover anymore. Oh, there had been a brief window where she’d started to find various men handsome, but now…well. She had about as much interest in lovemaking as her mother seemed to. Which was to say, none at all.
“Oh, please, mistress,” Cherie begged, taking Kollei’s hand and kneeling. “I…I will be your devoted pet!”
“You should take her. She’s worthless to Pater, always trying to break free. Plus, even if she tries to manipulate your emotions…just like she’s doing now, you’re immune to it.”
That settled it. “She will be my lady’s maid. I could use one,” Kollei said firmly. Cherie nodded eagerly, and Kollei reached out and…touched her. Not physically, but emotionally. She didn’t mind control her, not exactly, but…just as Cherie was trying to toy with Kollei’s emotions and having as much success as a kitten moving a boulder, Kollei nudged those feelings of devotion, and solidified them into Love. Not eros, or romantic love, but Storge: familial love.
Oh yes. The look of delight that came over Cherie as Kollei affectionately pet her forehead, the way she willingly rubbed against Kollei, just like a cat…Cherie was hers now. There would be no betrayal here, ever. The loyalty that Kollei needed.
“Thank you, Mistress,” Cherie wept, and Kollei gestured for her to rise.
“You will get a uniform in my colors, that all may know you belong to me. You will sleep at the foot of my bed, as my bodyguard and maid.” But not her friend. Oh no, Kollei had no friends. Not anymore. Only Amber had ever really been her friend, and she…she had betrayed Kollei. Just like everyone did, eventually. Except for her mother, of course.
At the stroke of midnight, Bronya arose from her throne, and all eyes turned to the Tsaritsa as her subjects knelt before her.
My Beloved subjects, take this time and night to celebrate your victory. You have served my daughter well, and in doing so, you have served me well. None have my Love more than Princess Kollei, who is my chosen Vessel and Heir. Rest, and reap your rewards. For soon, the rest of Our Empire will return to us, and all the world shall know Our Love.
With that, Kollei hastened to her mother’s side, and taking her hand, led her away. As soon as they left the servitors behind, her mother stumbled, and Kollei once more had to prop her up. A sense of deja vu washed over her, and she recalled a night that felt like ages ago, but had been only 15 months.
“Mother?” Kollei asked, infusing Cryo from the gnosis into the Tsaritsa.
“It is…it is well, child,” Bronya said, slowly straightening up. “I have rested too long. Five months of idleness is too long. There is…there is so much work to do.”
Kollei nodded, then, to her surprise, someone came alongside the Tsaritsa, and helped her up as well. Cherie.
“Mistress, I, I will speak to no one of this,” the cat girl whispered, and Kollei could see she was trembling.
“Indeed you will not. For if you do, your tongue will freeze from your mouth, and you will be able to speak no more,” the Tsaritsa growled.
“Mother, there is no need to threaten her,” Kollei said as they helped the Tsaritsa back to her rooms.
“It is not a threat. It is a Curse. This creature will not betray us, or she will lose her ability to speak,” the Tsaritsa gasped.
They lay Kollei’s mother in her grand bed, and Kollei reached to put the gnosis on her breast.
“No. No, child. It is yours. I may be the Archon, but you…you are the Love for our people that must be my hand. I will…I will sleep for some days yet. Perhaps weeks,” the Tsaritsa said, closing her eyes.
“No! Mother, I need you! I, I’m not strong enough! Not wise enough! Not-”
“Hush, child. You are all that, and more,” Bronya said, and icy fingers caressed Kollei’s cheek. She clutched at her mother’s hand, pressing it to her face. “You will make…a fine Tsaritsa. Finer than I.”
“But, but mother-!”
“I will not survive this war. I have seen it in the Ice. No, not this mortal contest, but the one against the Sustainer and his Cycle. At the end…someone else must care for my people. That someone is you, Kollei.”
This was horrifying, and Kollei looked over at Cherie, only to find the other girl’s eyes were narrowed, her tail flicking back and forth. Perhaps she was not perfectly loyal after all.
You will love my mother as you Love me.
The command left Kollei’s lips almost before she was aware. Cherie shuddered, and then a look of pain and adoration washed over her face, and she began to weep at the Tsaritsa’s bedside.
“See? Already you are Love. You will make…a fine god,” Bronya said sleepily.
“But, but what should I do! I’ve conquered Finland, yes, but, but the Harbingers always want more! I have armies, trained for battle! I…I’ll have to find somewhere new to invade, and start the bloodshed and violence all over!” Kollei said, feeling panicked.
“South. Once, Russia ruled the Baltics: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan…expand even to Afganistan. Find Buer. Seize her gnosis. Become…become that which can defeat the Sustainer,” Bronya whispered. Then ice formed over her body as a clear dome, and she slept once more.
Slowly, Kollei stood, feeling hopeless, helpless. War. More war. Always more war. She turned to Cherie. “What should I do?”
But Cherie was no adviser. No wise companion. She was a pet. A devoted slave enthralled and compelled to Love Kollei. “Whatever you decide, mistress, it will be wise. I will do whatever you ask of me,” Cherie said, and kissed Kollei’s fingers.
Squaring her shoulders, Kollei swept from the room, Cherie trailing after. Ice formed in her wake, and she gripped her scepter.
Ice. Her will must be forged in ice. She would never falter. As her mother willed, so she would command.
When she lay down, against her better judgement, Kollei removed her dull vision from its velvet box and opened it. She stared into the faded depths of the divine gift, and pondered. What would the girl who had received this do? Was this how she had envisioned herself? Was this her Ambition?
No. But it didn’t matter. She had to continue forward. She had to save the world.
And to do that…all must Love her.
She did not sleep that night. Nor for many more. She merely lay in bed, icy tears on her cheeks. She was becoming the Tsaritsa. All that mattered was to do what must be done. She could have nothing else.
Amber…why did you abandon me?
Alone in the dark, the girl who had once been Kollei Moskaylova wept.
I left Exusiai snoring on her bed. I was quiet. I always am. Comes naturally. My teachers always said I was one of the best at stealth. It’s why I’m still alive.
First, disguise. I applied some grease to my ears and tail, then clips to the ears to make them floppy. Now I looked like a perro. Hid my long hair under a ball cap, slipped on contacts, put on a wastewater treatment worker uniform. No one bothers a sewer worker. Clothes smelled authentic: I didn’t make mistakes. The smell bothered me. Breaking cover would bother me more. Nose has always been sensitive, so I can tell when a disguise is fake because it doesn’t smell right.
Mine smelled right. I don’t make mistakes.
A bit of makeup to make me look older, ugly. People don’t look at women who are old and ugly. It’s useful. I don’t understand why people don’t look at old ugly women. The most dangerous woman I ever met was a wrinkled old nonna who could kill you a dozen ways before you realized she’d drawn on you. She wasn’t pretty. But very good.
I also had a clipboard, a wrench, and dirty shoes. The shoes are important. A lot of people don’t look at shoes. I do. If they’re too clean or not worn enough, you can tell they’re fake. Mine were worn and dirty. I’d stolen them. Fit was good, though. You need good shoes. Hard to fight with bad ones.
I made my way down to the maintenance level. I slouched. Didn’t pick my feet up. Walked too loud. It was late, night cycle. People looked at me, but they didn’t see me. They could smell me, though. Stayed out of my way. Good. Disguise worked.
I found Ascalon painting a wall. She was bad at painting. Evenness of the coat wasn’t good. Sloppy job. But, not in a way that showed it was a disguise. More of a lazy worker who wasn’t very good. That took art. Not so bad as to be suspicious, not so good as to draw notice. Passable. That takes effort.
“You’re right on time,” she said, not looking away from the wall. I didn’t say anything. I don’t know what to say when people say things like that. Exusiai does. Sora does. Me? What am I supposed to say? Yes, I am on time? That’s obvious. Why say it? So I didn’t say anything.
“We’ve got a problem on board,” Ascelon said, reaching into her overalls and pulling out some somewhat wrinkled papers, and handing them to me.
I looked them over. “I’ll handle it.”
“That’s it? No questions? No asking what she’s done?”
I hesitated. The old Texas didn’t ask questions. She was a sword. She did as the hand that wielded her commanded. I read the papers carefully this time.
Operator Name: Claudia Veil
Real Name: Lanthe Viscelli
Age: 34
Race: Liberi
Affiliation: Notarial Hall.
Job: Requisition Clerk
Stationed in Rhodes Island's Department of Internal Supply. Manages distribution of low-level operator gear, pharmaceutical inventory, and organic containment tech. Has minor field clearance for support roles during off-site operations.
History: Viscelli is an Executor who has been a spy for Notarial hall in Iberia, Sargon, and Bolivar. She has assassinated several mid-value targets, and provoked two small wars in Sargon and Bolivar. Came to Rhodes Island six months ago. Confirmed infected with Oripathy.
Target has received orders to kill or kidnap BONES on the behest of Notarial Hall. It is not believed these orders come from the Pope, but rather Bishop Ezelian Cantelmo, an Iberian born Sankta who is high in Nortarial Hall. Target has gained information that Bones knows more of the history of the Sankta than he should.
[...the rest of the document describes Claudia/Lanthe’s habits aboard the landship, and known associates.]
“Exusiai won’t like it,” I said, tossing the papers into an empty paint bucket. “But if she’s threatening James, she needs to die.”
Ascalon nodded, turning to face me. She had a bit of grey paint on her cheek. “This is your first SWEEP Mission. Do you understand the parameters?”
“She vanishes. No trace. No questions.”
“Good. You have the information on her habits?”
I nodded.
“Very well. You don’t have a problem with killing her?”
I considered it. I did. I don’t like killing people. But some people need to die. “No.”
“Then get to it.”
I nodded and walked away.
Claudia was asleep. Couldn’t kill her in her bunk. She had a roommate. Too obvious. I changed from my disguise, and waited.
The next day, James, Lucia, Lemuel, and I had breakfast. I cooked. Lucia is good. I’m better. I don’t like cooking. Too messy. But it’s not right to make Lucia cook all the time, and we can’t go to the cafeteria. Besides, I don’t like cooking, but I like to see people eat what I cook. No point if it’s just me.
I always cook for Sora. She likes my cooking. I miss her. I hope she’s eating well. She’s not a very good cook.
I made fresh sfogliatella, served with fruit and yogurt. I also made cappuccino, with fresh cream and pressed espresso. I also made extra. James is very big. He eats a lot. Exusiai loves sweets. That’s why I made sfogliatella, with cream filling. She had extra. She says she has to be careful, or she’ll get fat. She’s always talking about it. I’ve never seen her gain weight. I don’t know why she worries. I am not worried about getting fat. Though I am hungrier now. No cigarettes, so I eat less. Pocky has too many calories.
They talked at breakfast and told me my cooking was good. I nodded and said thank you. You’re supposed to do that. I don’t know why. They were right. My cooking is good. I worked very hard to make sure. It has to be perfect. Otherwise, don’t bother.
Besides, a donna must be the mistress of the kitchen as much as the battlefield. You will have a cook, but sometimes, you need to cook your own food. If you do, it has to be perfect.
After breakfast, they went to the hospital. Exusiai and I went on break. There’s another team that watches them there. We went to train. I told Exusiai I had an errand. She nodded, and said she was going to run with Adnachiel. I’m not supposed to know she planned to have sex with him. She’d bought condoms. Exusiai has had a lot of boyfriends. Especially other sankta. I think she needs them. She doesn’t spend a lot of time with other sankta. When she spends too much time away from them, she gets sad. I don’t know what to do then. I try to cheer her up. Make her sweets. Talk. I’m not good at talking. But she likes to talk, and I like for her not to be sad.
I found Claudia/Lanthe. Wasn’t hard. She was checking in for her shift. I’d put my disguise back on.
“Hey. I have a maintenance request,” I told her. I’d sabotaged the bathroom nearest her the night before. Not hard. But it would have flooded. I’d checked, she’d put in a maintenance request.
“Oh thank goodness, that was fast. I’d worried I’d have to go down a whole level just to pee,” she said, smiling at me. You only smile at the plumber when you need them. “It’s right there.”
“Can you show me the problem?” I asked. I made my face move. It’s hard. But if I don’t, people get suspicious. I made it move to make me look stupid and confused. You have to slacken it a bit, unfocus your eyes. Let your mouth hang open. I’ve practiced.
Claudia/Lanthe sighed. “Seriously? It’s a clogged toilet. Fine, here, let me show you.”
She took me to the bathroom. She was good. She realized it as soon as I got out my wire. She tried to fight back, tried to scream. She wasn’t quite fast enough. The wire worked quickly.
I got out my big duffle bag. Unclogged the toilet. Stuffed the body in the bag. Had to break some bones to make it fit. Wrote up the maintenance fulfillment. Left. Bag was heavy.
I went down to the tractor sublevel. Opened a hatch. Dumped the body in front of the caterpillar treads. Closed the hatch. Filed the maintenance fulfillment. Changed back. Ran two laps. Exusiai was there. She looked sad and frustrated. I knew what to do.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“Addy’s on deployment. Can’t see him. Oh well! Guess you can be my running partner instead!” she said cheerily.
I nodded. I ran with her. I wish I could do more. But I’m not Sankta. I didn’t tell her about Claudia/Lanthe. There would be a brief search, until a note was found that said she’d had a family emergency and left. I’d written the note. My handwriting is very good. It looked exactly like Claudia/Lanthe’s. I practiced handwriting a lot. Has to be perfect.
“Do you…want to spar?” I asked.
“With you? You’d kill me!” Exusiai laughed.
I nodded, frustrated. I like to spar. Helps me think. What helps Exusiai think?
“Want to go to the range?” I offered. She likes that.
She shot me a look. “With you? You’re not bad, Texas, but you’re no marksman.”
“You like to shoot. I can try. It’ll be fun.”
She brightened and nodded. I used a crossbow. I’m a good shot. Exusiai is not a good shot. She is perfect. She is not as good as most Sankta. She is better. I saw her relax while she used her patron firearm. It’s a Lateran Vector. That helps her feel better. After, we got ice cream. I do not like ice cream. It gives me gas. Exusiai loves it. I had it for her. She is a good friend.
Even if gelato is better.
“You OK, Texas? You’re quiet,” she told me while we had ice cream.
I shrugged. “Tired, I guess. Didn’t sleep well.”
“Huh, I didn’t hear you get up. You…you doing OK? You know, with…everything?”
I considered that. “I miss Sora. I miss smoking. That’s OK. I should have quit. Hopefully, I can see Sora again soon. I’ve been writing her every day. I hope she writes back.”
“Yeah, I just…Bones…he’s said a lot, you know? I just worry…” Exusiai looked down at her ice cream. “Man. Lucia is lucky. I guess I’m kinda an idiot.”
She is. But it is not polite to agree with your friend when they say that. Besides, Exusiai is an idiot in the right ways. She is kind. She is friendly. She trusts people and likes them. And she eats disgusting desserts and puts chocolate syrup on her pasta.. But she is not Siracusian, and doesn’t know better. I can forgive her.
“Kal’tsit said she would handle it,” I told Exusiai.
“Yeah, I guess. I…hey! That’s Odda!” she jumped up and waved excitedly, and I turned.
It was Odda. Odda is a Sarkaz messenger from Kazdel. He does not like Exusiai. He tries to hide it when he sees her, smiling and waving back. But he hates her. Probably because she is Sankta, and he is Sarkaz. He doesn’t mind me, but he doesn’t like me either. That’s fine. He’s good at his job. That’s what matters.
“Hey, if it isn’t my favorite pair of penguins! What’s up, why are you two back on the Island? Making a run from Lungmen?” Odda said, pausing by our table.
“Nah, it’s a long story. You got time? I’ll buy you an ice cream, my treat!” Exusiai said brightly.
Exusiai should know that Odda doesn’t like her. She has remarked as such. Oddly, she does not stay away from him. She seems drawn to him. She wants him to like her. This is odd, because she does not like him. She tries very hard to hide it, and is better at it than Odda. But she does not like Sarkaz. Only…her body language is different. Something is off. I sniff. Odd. She smells…sad? No.
“Free ice cream? How could I say no! I’m back on the island for a few days, so I guess I can hang out,” Odda says, plopping down.
“Wadda ya having? I like their cheesecake and sweet berry ice cream!” Exusiai said.
“Eh, something regular. How about just vanilla with sprinkles?” Odda suggested.
Exusiai gets it in a waffle cone. Odda chuckles, but takes a bite. He seems to enjoy it. Hmm. He smells…off. Tense. My eyes narrow, my ears twitch. Threat. Odda is a messenger. He has good instincts. He can fight. I’ve seen him do it. Not as good as me. But still a threat. At close range, he’s dangerous to Exusiai, who only has three of her guns, but one is packed away, the other two are on her leg and hip.
Wait. He’s armed only with a knife. He has to know he can’t fight us like that. But that smile is fake. And he smells nervous.
Exusiai…she smells guilty. That’s what that is. Why? She likes to buy people ice cream, so that’s not it.
“So, what news from Kazdel? Good, for once?” Exusiai asks hopefully.
Odda grimaces and shakes his head. “Is it ever good news from Kazdel? Well, I guess things aren’t so bad. Fremont, the King of the Liches, came back, and he’s largely taken control. Laqeramaline wasn’t doing too badly, but the new Sanguinarch is a hot mess, and- never mind. It’s Kazdelian politics, it’s always a mess. But, things are getting better and Wiš'adel hasn’t had to kill anyone to get them in line lately. Even if the Gargoyles are begging Mudrock to come back…”
“No, it’s interesting!” Exusiai said. She says things like that. Oddly, she usually means them.
Odda frowns at her. “Really? A, well, an outsider, who cares about Sarkaz politics?”
“I mean…” Exusiai looks away, and pain crosses her face. I glare at Odda, but he’s sighing and leaning back, a sour look. He notices me and glares back.
“Odda…what do you think about…about the Sankta,” Exusiai said, leaning in, pain still on her face.
He frowns at her. “You’re a nice person, Exusiai. A good person. I wouldn’t say we’re friends, but we’re colleagues, and-”
“What if…what if I did want to be friends?” Exusiai asks. I remember the unused condoms. Only…no. She doesn’t mean it like that.
“Sure, fine, we can be friends,” he says with a shrug.
“But you don’t like Sankta,” she murmurs, looking down at her melting ice cream.
Odda licks his own treat for a moment. He sighs, and stands. “Look, I should go. Thanks for the ice cream, I-”
“No, wait!” Exusiai says desperately and reaches for him. He frowns at her, but he slowly sits back down.
“I would go, but…” he leans on the table, his eyes narrowing at me, then Exusiai. “You’re his bodyguards, aren’t you?”
I reach for my sword, but he’s not being threatening. I stand. “We’re done.”
“No! Texas, just…hold on,” Exusiai said, and she grips her halo with both hands. She only does that when she’s very stressed. After a moment, she lets go, her hands shaking. “You mean…you mean Bones.”
“The guy who can cure oripathy? Yeah. I mean him,” Odda says grimly. “Got a message for him.”
“I…I can give it to him,” Exusiai says. Odda frowns at her. “Or, you can. I can set up a meeting?”
“That would be best,” he says with a nod.
“Ok, I just…” Exusiai reaches for Odda’s hand and grips it. He flinches back, but doesn’t shove her off. His eyes are wide, and he’s tensed. “Odda…I don’t…I can’t hate the Sarkaz. Not anymore. Our people…we need…we need to be friends. We can’t…” she’s reaching for words. This is very strange. Exusiai usually has words.
Slowly, Odda takes his other hand, and gently removes Exusiai’s grip from his hand. “Maybe you and I can be friends, Exusiai. I don’t know what brought this on, but…look, you read history books. Even more than me, I think. And I read a lot. Not much else to do on long trips sometimes, thank the Furnace for audiobooks. But our people, getting along? Never gonna happen.”
“But it has to. We…we can’t be enemies! Not anymore! We…” Exusiai bites her lip. She’s cute when she does that. If she were gay…well. I have Sora. But Exusiai is my best friend. I’ve thought about it.
Odda seems to notice she’s cute, too. He blushes. Sankta or not, Sarkaz or no…hmm. He gently takes Exusiai’s hand again. Very slowly. She grips him tightly. “Look. I’m here…I’m here for my job. And right now…that job…look. You can guess the message.”
“No people are more afflicted with Oripathy than the Sarkaz,” Exusiai whispers. Odda nods. “Kazdel wants him.”
“Kazdel needs him.” Odda makes a fist with his free hand. “Look, if there’s a cure for Oripathy…I’m loyal to Babel. That extends to Rhodes Island in many ways. But we need that cure.”
“You need that cure,” Exusiai says, and runs a finger along some crystals on Odda’s body. He flinches away, eyes wide. “Sorry! I just…maybe…maybe Bones could cure you? But not now…he needs more time.”
“Needs more time? Are you kidding? This isn’t about me.” Odda breaks the grip and gestures broadly with one hand, the other to his chest. “Sure, I’m going to die of oripathy, but Rhodes Island gives me drugs. I’m fine for another decade or two. You know how many Kazdelian orphans are dying of oripathy, right now? Shit, in the time it took me to come here, at least a dozen a day! It’s been the leading cause of death of Sarkaz since-”
“Since you were Teekaz,” Exusiai blurts.
Odda freezes. His eyes shift. He’s calculating. Exusiai has a hand to her mouth, she looks horrified.
“Where…” Odda begins, but Exusiai shakes her head.
“Sorry! Sorry, I…I shouldn’t have said that. Sorry, I just…I’m really, really sorry. I should be better at this. It’s my job.”
“Uh, sure, but like…only dusty old history books use Teekaz. How does a Sankta know that? They teach that in Laterano?” he asks, his voice mildly accusatory.
“I…I heard it from…from Kal’tsit,” Exusiai says, not meeting his eyes.
“Oh.” Odda leans back, his brow furrowed. “Well, she would know, I guess. I’ve got a message for her too.”
“You’re not seeing James,” I say, having made a decision.
He turns cold eyes on me. “What right have you to tell the Messenger of Kazdel where he goes, Lupo?”
“I’m his bodyguard. He sees you, you ask for a cure, he’ll give it to you. And he’ll die,” I say flatly.
He frowns at this. “Oh, so a filthy sarkaz is-”
“No, Odda,” Exusiai says, her voice raw with pain. He turns to her, still angry, but confused. He listens. Smart. Exusiai takes a deep breath. “James…Bones…he…he can cure oripathy.”
Odda slowly nods, but his eyes go wide. He didn’t believe it. I can see him relax. Interesting. Why relax? He should be ready to fight. I am.
“To cure oripathy…James…he takes it into himself. When he started…he wasn’t infected. I met the first kid he cured. Little guy, Andrey, cute kid from Ursus. He was gonna die. Now he’s free of oripathy.”
“That’s nearly impossible to believe. You saw him cure this Andrey?” Odda demands.
“No, but…I did see him cure Texas,” Exusiai says, her eyes darting to me. “And…Ming. You know, Rope?”
“No, names not familiar,” Odda says, grimacing. “Not a Sarkaz name though.”
“Does it matter?” I ask.
“It does to him, Texas,” Exusiai says quietly as Odda opens his mouth.
He frowns, glances at Exusiai, and nods. “Yes. Always the Sarkaz get scraps. Always, the Sarkaz are left for last. Left to die. I’m not the angriest Sarkaz you’ll meet, but…if this is withheld from Kazdel…it will mean war. Wiš'adel refuses to believe it’s possible. Because if it was…she’d kill someone. A lot of someones. And there are people angry and stupid enough to listen to her instead of Fremont, who preaches rationality. But he’s mad too.”
“James wouldn’t see it like that. He just…I think if you asked…he really would try to cure you, especially if you told him all that. Could you…could you wait a week, or two? I’ll talk to Lucia…” Exusiai said, glancing at me.
“Not for us to decide,” I said, and meant it. I don’t understand all this. Sarkaz, Sankta, Lupo, whatever. Oripathy doesn’t care. Oripathy will kill us all. Why does Odda care? Is it about his people? I understand that. Family first, and always.
“We…we should talk to Director Kal’tsit, and Leader Amiya. And especially Lucia,” Exusiai says.
“Who’s Lucia?” Odda asks.
“Doctor Sussuro,” I say, and that seems to clear things up. She treats many patients.
“She’s…she’s James’ girlfriend,” Exusiai says. “And, well, sort of manages his case. He was stage 2 still this morning.”
“And you said he takes the oripathy into himself?” Odda says, frowning.
Exusiai needs to find another sankta. Preferably one with a dick. She will feel much better after she has sex. “She should not have said that.”
“Look, Texas, it’s fine! He needs to know,” Exusiai says, glaring at me. She turns to Odda. “Look I’m trusting you with this. But, for the cure to work…James takes the Oripathy into himself. It…I guess he eats it, or something? I’m not a doctor. They used the word ‘metabolize.’ Anyway, given time, his levels go down.”
“That’s not how oripathy works,” Odda says with a bitter laugh. He doesn’t believe. Not yet. But he wants to, I think. He’s leaning in towards Exusiai. Desperate. Desperate people do stupid things. I keep my hand on my sword.
“Look, I said I don’t understand it. The doctors all say it’s weird, but it does work! Just…they’re working on making it better. Maybe…maybe if you talk to Lucia…they can show you,” Exusiai offered.
Odda considered it. “Ok, but it doesn’t have to be me. You should choose Mudrock, or Flamebringer. Not me, I’m just the messenger.”
“Yes, but you’re our friend. And don’t you want to be cured?” Exusiai said, smiling and back to her usual self. She does it so quickly.
“I…” Odda swallowed. “Look. I’m not important.”
“James won’t care. Maybe he has some weird alien knowledge about you. Ack! Never mind, ugh, I really need this ice cream.” Exusiai wolfed the rest of hers down, then ordered a caramel milkshake to ‘calm her nerves.’ I do not think that is how sugar works, but she does like them.
Odda ate his ice cream very slowly. He was clearly thinking.
“We can’t promise James will cure you,” I told him. “But he has a soft heart. If you ask, he is likely to say yes. Do not ask. It would kill him.”
“Not until Lucia says it’s OK again,” Exusiai affirmed. She smiled at Odda. “Maybe…maybe this can be the start of peace between Sarkaz and Sankta! We can work together, tell everyone, oripathy can be cured!”
“Maybe,” Odda said, but he did not sound confident.
I thought about the crushed corpse that had been left in Rhodes Island’s wake. I did not think it likely.
We went back to guarding James. Odda met with Amiya and Kal’tsit. They did not talk to James about a cure that day. He healed many people in the hospital. He is very good at that. Miraculous. If I believed in miracles like Exusiai, I would think he was one. I do not believe in miracles. I do believe in Signore dei Lupi. They are not gods. They are demons. Like me.
Privately, I wondered about the Sarkaz. Would they be a problem? I should ask Sora. She would know. Not in a letter. Someone might read it. Have to be careful. Have to be perfect. If you’re not, people die.
Instead, while James was at the hospital, I wrote her about other things. I included a poem. Sora likes poems. I do not. They are hard to write. Hard to understand. But she likes them. So I try. I included a pressed flower in my letter. Sora likes those too. I do like flowers. They smell nice, and are good to look at.
My poem talked about how much I missed Sora. It was somewhat graphic. It was a love letter. For Sora, I feel that way. Normally, I do not. Before, when I felt the need, I would take care of it. Especially since…
Since She left. I tried not to get angry. Thinking about Lappland Saluzzo tends to do that. It is not her fault, mostly. Sometimes she tries to make me angry on purpose. I try not to let her. I am angry about other things. But she reminds me of them.
I focus on Sora. Lappland made me horny. Sora…Sora makes me a better person. That’s why I love her. I don’t think I knew what love was before I met her. Now I do. It’s nice. But I miss her so, so much. I tried to make sure my poem and letter told her that. Words are hard for me. That’s why I try to choose them so carefully.
I gave the letter to a messenger. Normally, I would take it. Can’t. I’m not a messenger anymore. I don’t miss it like Exusiai does. I do miss traveling, a little. I miss Lungmen. Mostly because Sora is there. I miss Croissant and Bison, too. I miss Boss. He’s a good boss. He understands Family. He understands Honor. He understands Blood. He would make a good Don. But he is better than that.
But Exusiai is here. She is family as well. My sister. I look at her, while she sleeps. Her sleep is troubled. She smiles so much, but on the inside, I think she hurts. I don’t know what to do. I lay back, and think of Sora. I think about the Sarkaz. For a moment, I think about Claudia/Lanthe.
I go to sleep. Ascalon got my Maintenance Report. She said good job. There will be more. I am a member of SWEEP now.
There were only a few weeks left in the school year, and the students of Collège Jean-Baptiste Delorme were rapidly losing interest in academics and thinking of what they would be doing come the first week in July when school ended. The same affliction had touched Barbara and Charlotte, though their dreams were somewhat different than their peers.
Still, Barbara smiled at the other students and even chatted with some of them as they hurried to class. Her attendance had been spotty recently, thanks to her performances, but her grades were still excellent. She would probably end up persuading her mother to hire a private tutor for Lycée, and have Charlotte join her. Yes, she had agreed that it was important she attend a public school and learn what it was like to have to be a “normal” girl, but things were changing. Her career as an actress had already begun, and she was determined to continue to pursue it.
Today, however, she was grateful to be attending a public school, because she was on a mission. Furina and Yennifer had already explained their plan to Barbara and Charlotte to attempt to change the law regarding parahumans’ forced conscription through a legal loophole. This was especially important because Furina herself, the Hydro Archon, had fallen prey to the vile law.
Barbara still wasn’t sure how the Hydro Archon managed to flood her own apartment. Perhaps it was all part of some clever ruse. That, or Furina was just as silly as she appeared. Barbara wasn’t sure which it was, but she loved Furina anyway.
“What are those signs for, Barbara?” Anaïs Leroux asked curiously. She wasn’t someone Barbara normally spent time with, not because she was an unpleasant person nor one of those who tried to exploit Barbara’s familial connections, but because she played football for a local youth club and simply ran in different social circles, though they did have classes together.
“We’re starting a political campaign,” Barbara said, showing Anaïs one of the signs. “My friend and co-star Furina de Fontaine is being forced to join the Mousquetaires! It’s very unjust.”
“What?! The actress and singer? I watched her rendition of Billie Jean, it was amazing!” Anaïs said, shocked.
“Here, take some of the signs and some tape, put them up in the halls and pass them out in class!” Barbara urged. “We’re having a meeting after school on the football pitch. Tell everyone you know to come!”
Anaïs nodded and took the posters over to her friends on the girls’ football team, who listened with interest.
Hurrying to Algebra class, Barbara arrived a few minutes early and explained to M. Lemoine her plan to distribute the fliers. He sipped at his coffee, then smiled and nodded. “Of course, you can make a small announcement. We’re covering graphing functions and finding points of intercept between two functions today. You have your work?”
“Yes, sir,” Barbara said, and passed him both the work she owed him, and a flier. He smiled and accepted them, and was good to his word. Barbara took just a few minutes to explain the political campaign she was organizing.
“We’re hoping to gather student signatures, and organize a rally protesting this unjust law! Many of you know Charlotte Lustria, who was also nearly swept up by this law and who spent several days in prison. Now, my own mother has a Vision, and I’m worried about her as well as Furina. We might just be students, but if we all speak together, our voices will be heard!”
“I’ll give 10 points of extra credit to anyone who helps attend the rally,” M. Lemoine said from behind his desk, which Barbara was very grateful for. “It’s good that you all become politically active when you’re young. Stand up for what’s right, and join the spirit of the revolution!”
That surprised Barbara. M. Lemoine had a reputation for being stern and no-nonsense and a somewhat boring lecturer. He was in his 50s and balding, so as far as Barbara was concerned, he was one step from being an ancient fossil from the days before gods and parahumans. She would have to reevaluate him.
Not all of her teachers let Barbara speak or even pass out fliers, but she did manage to get to the door first and hand one out to all her classmates. At lunch, she met up with Charlotte, her friends in Drama Class, and Charlotte's classmates in Journalism. It would be a bit much to call them Charlotte’s friends. Barbara was, essentially, Charlotte’s only friend. While Barbara appreciated Charlotte’s bluntness and honesty, most people found her self-righteous and annoying.
And that was before she’d gotten a Vision. After, well, while the Vision amplified Charlotte’s positive traits, it also exaggerated the negative. Not that Charlotte seemed to care. Barbara didn’t mind either. While she had a lot of people who wanted to be friendly with her, she had few whom she truly thought of as close friends. It was selfish in the extreme to think that being rich, beautiful, talented, and actual royalty was a burden, but…well. Just like Visions, all privileges came with drawbacks.
“Alright, people!” Charlotte said, standing up on a bench and using a rolled-up folder as a makeshift loudspeaker. “I know a lot of you are already big Furina fans! Well, now is your chance to show your devotion! Give everyone you see a sign and tell them to come to the rally today! Remember, though, this is just the start! If we can get a big group going here, we’ll spread to all the other schools!”
Barbara helped pass out signs, then partnered up with Charlotte as they went around to talk to other students and try to get them to come to the rally.
“Will there be food?” Simon Leclerc asked. He wasn’t especially hefty, but Barbara supposed boys his age always felt that way.
“We will feast on JUSTICE!” Charlotte declared.
“We’ll have water,” Barbara assured him, but made a mental note that at future rallies, food was a must.
Simon shrugged, water apparently didn’t sound too appealing, but Barbara gave him a smile and a touch on the shoulder. He grinned at her and immediately said, “I’ll be there!”
Well, God and his Archons had given Barbara her good looks. It would be a shame not to use them.
As soon as the last bell rang, Barbara ran out of History to the football field, but there was a tremendous press of people. To her delight, hundreds of students were spilling out onto the grounds, carrying backpacks and talking animatedly amongst themselves.
“Do you think Furina will be here?”
“I want to see her perform live, I’ve seen her videos online a dozen times!”
“It’s so hot, I hope this is fast.”
Charlotte, bless her, was already out on the field. Barbara groaned softly when she saw that her friend had created a small stage and podium out of ice. That could get them in trouble. However, the display of her Cryo abilities was drawing a large number of students, if for no other reason than the cold ice was welcome on the hot late spring day.
Charlotte gave Barbara a hand and pulled her up, and they waited a few minutes for most of the students to come in. Members of the Drama and Journalism clubs were already circulating with petitions, and a number of teachers and facility were milling about as well, including Dr. de Launay, the Director of the school.
For a moment, Barbara was nervous. She had, generally speaking, stayed as far away from politics as possible. They had killed her father, and in many ways, taken her mother from her. Barbara had sworn she would not only never be queen, but would become an actress or something equally silly. But now…now being an actress was demanding she take up that same duty of responsibility her mother did. Well, Barbara would do it in her own way. This, after all, was about Justice, not just for Furina, but for anyone who didn’t wish to be press ganged into Iron Mask’s thugs.
Before Barbara could start speaking, M. Carrière stepped up to the frozen stage and passed up a loud speaker. “Knock them dead, Barbs.”
She forced a smile and nodded. This was just like any other stage she’d performed on. Taking a deep breath, she lifted the loudspeaker to her lips.
“Hello, thank you all so much for coming!” her amplified voice said, and the crowd quieted somewhat as they turned to Barbara. “This is just our petition signing, but we’re organizing a large scale student protest, and need your help! Next month, on the second Tuesday after school gets out, July 14th, we’re holding a rally! Yes, it’s on Bastille Day. We chose that date to show the government, we won’t be a part of their military machine!”
Barbara smiled and began to slowly walk about the stage on the ice, turning to meet everyone’s eyes, just like she did when she performed. “As many of you know, my dear friend and co-star, Furina de Fontaine, has been threatened with jail if she does not join the Mousquetaires. She’s not a soldier, she’s an actress! She shouldn’t be forced to fight if that’s not what she wants! France isn’t even at war! She wouldn’t be fighting the Tsaritsa, she’d just be another thug cape to bully people into doing what Iron Mask and the government want!”
“Well, we might only be kids, but we can help, too! We want everyone to come to our Bastille Day protest, and fight for Justice, to defend Furina, and all those who are being entrapped! She committed no crime, she just flooded the bathroom! If that were a crime, I’d be arrested for forgetting I’m running the bath!”
That brought some laughter, and Barbara warmed to her theme. As she did so, however, she felt hands on her shoulders, and a voice began to whisper in her ear. Oddly enough, it didn’t sound like Furina, but…well. She was a very good actress.
A Crown at birth was given you,
Yet you your claim to throne denied
It is for Justice your heart beats true
And not your family’s false pride
“Bastille Day is the day we celebrate the Revolution, our freedom from Kings and Dictators! The Germans might claim they have the Archon of Freedom, but France is the place where men and women first stood together, and cast down a tyrant! My own family WERE those tyrants! Well, no longer! You know me, you know I’m just a regular girl! I’m scared, just like you! Iron Mask and his capes could crush me, and my mother. But if we stand together, united together for Justice, we can make France a place fit to live, for everyone!”
Raise your voice! Let the show begin!
Seek out your Justice with Vigor
Let your passion flow from within,
Daughter of Water’s Pure
The poem finished, and as Barbara’s speech concluded, a bright flash of pure blue light formed before her. Trembling slightly, she lowered her loudspeaker and lifted up her right hand, allowing her Vision to drift down into her palm. She stared at it, and tears filled her eyes.
I guess I am good enough.
The crowd, of course, went wild. Charlotte nearly tackled Barbara right off the frozen platform, and she would have if Barbara had not instinctively called upon the ambient hydro to prop her up.
“THAT WAS INCREDIBLE!” Charlotte squealed, hugging Barbara tightly. She drew back, a manic grin on her face and glasses slightly askew. “I can’t wait to publish this! I got footage of it, of course, but I didn’t think you’d actually get a Vision until that weird ghost showed up!”
Weird ghost? Barbara would definitely need to find out more about that later. She nodded and smiled, however, and hopped off to accept the praise and adulation of her peers and teachers.
Her dream was still to be an actress, and to play about the grandest stages. But she would be an actress who inspired others to fight for Justice. Just like Furina.
Once she got some space, Barbara went to a quiet corner of the school, and pulled out her phone. Holding her vision in one hand, she prayed her mother would pick up.
“Yes, Barbara? I have a few minutes, if you need to talk,” her mother’s voice said after a few seconds.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Barbara leaned back, forcing a smile onto her face.
“Hey, mom…you’ll never believe what just happened…”
Julie had grown up in Paris’ Chinatown, and had learned to speak Cantonese just as much as French as she’d grown up. Later, she’d learned Mandarin and English, meaning she could communicate with just about anyone in Chinatown, though there were plenty of Laotian, Vietnamese, and now Japanese people who made their home here. Wanmin Restaurant wasn’t located in Chinatown, but the Mao family did live there.
“Good morning, Furina,” Julie said, letting her friend inside the apartment. It was mid-morning, but Ling and Uncle Mao had just woken up themselves.
“Hey, Furina!” Ling said, waving as they stepped inside the small apartment. “I just made breakfast! It’s crepes with dòushā!”
“That sounds lovely, I’ve missed your cooking,” Furina said, taking a seat at the cramped table and smiling as Ling pushed over a plate with several crepes and the sweet red bean paste on it.
“Julie told us you’re in some trouble with the damned jackboots,” Chef Mao said, looking up from his paper, Le Monde in the original French. While he hadn’t grown up speaking and reading French, he had spent enough years in France as a young man with Julie’s father that he was quite fluent.
“I’m afraid Iron Mask and the government have taken an unusual interest in me, and are attempting to entrap me with a fine of five million francs, 10 years of jail time, or forced enrollment in the Mousquetaires,” Furina said, making a face as she spread the paste onto her crepes.
“Bunch of puk gaai,” Chef Mao growled, and Ling nodded in agreement, her expression worried.
“What are you going to do? I know you don’t want to join the cape enforcers,” Ling asked.
“Well, that’s what I came to speak to you all about. You see, it’s like this,” Furina said, and laid out her plan to Unionize the theater company and form a civil cape team under the command of Mayor Jeanne d’Orleans.
“That sounds like a clever plan, and a good way to get out of it,” Chef Mao said with a nod. “Julie, you should join the workers union. I never liked the CUI, the People’s Republic was for Worker’s Rights, and that’s where I grew up. It’s a good plan.”
“Yeah, it’s like we said! One for all, and all for one!” Ling agreed enthusiastically.
Julie nodded. “I will, of course! Is there anything else we can do to help?”
Ling and Chef Mao nodded, and Furina sighed, setting down her fork and looking down at her plate. “I know…I know you haven’t always been treated fairly, here in France, either.”
Julie felt a pang and looked away, fighting back bitterness and anger. That was supposed to be over now. At last, she had a role. A real starring role! But she knew it wasn’t. Especially not for Uncle Mao and Ling.
“It’s better than dying,” Chef Mao said gruffly, folding his arms over his chest. “Which is what we’d do in China. That place is still a hellscape, thanks to the Archons.”
The look of hurt that passed over Furina’s face surprised Julie. She knew that Yennifer was an Archonist, and she and Furina were dating, so perhaps that wasn’t a shock, but the pain looked like Chef Mao had just said he hated Furina with visceral disgust.
“I…I know that Beelzebul, that is, the Electro Archon, was…harsh…in her dealings with China,” Furina said, looking away.
“If there were any Justice in the world, the Raiden Shogun would have to pay for what she did to China,” Ling agreed sourly.
For a moment, Julie felt as though she were suddenly underwater, and she thought she heard the distant slam of a gavel. Furina locked eyes with Ling, and Julie felt her heart stop.
Furina’s eyes were…glowing. The sudden power there made Julie tremble and want to fall flat on her face, but that was silly! This…this was just Furina! She washed dishes, and made silly jokes, and helped poor starving kittens. She was a good friend and a wonderful costar, but she…she was just Furina.
Right?
This I swear to you. Come what may, you are my people. And one day, the Electro Archon will face my Justice, at your behest.
Oh. Oh no. That…that was DEFINITELY not Furina. This was a being of Power, an ancient entity full of Authority, the living embodiment of Justice. Well, it was Furina, only…only not the human woman that Julie knew.
The sensation of being underwater suddenly faded, and when Julie blinked, it was just Furina there. Just silly, clumsy Furina, who cried when a customer bullied her and got tipsy on two glasses of wine.
“Sorry, um, t-there was one other thing,” Furina said, as Ling and Uncle Mao trembled and gaped at Furina.
“I…um, yes?” Ling managed, but Uncle Mao clearly couldn’t speak.
“I don’t just want Justice for capes. I want Justice for everyone. That means the immigrants in France who have increasingly been the target of harassment by the government, especially the Chinese expatriates, or the Japanese who have fled Beezelbub’s tyranny. I…I need your help. All of you. We’re having a march on Bastille Day, in protest of the government’s policies. I’d like to organize it with the support of those in Chinatown. You…you took me in and cared for me, even when I was a broke, homeless, out-of-work actress. I want us to stand together, to stand for Justice.”
Furina pulled some posters out of her bag, and set them on the table. “I…I know it’s a lot to ask, but…France was meant to be the land of Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity. That means for everyone. As long as you too believe in those, and seek Justice…we were meant to work together, not apart.”
Ling slowly picked up one of the signs, but her eyes were locked to Furina. “You…you really…care about us? Even if we’re not French?”
“That doesn’t matter,” Furina said firmly. “I’m not- that is…um, well. I’m…sort of…”
“Not from France,” Chef Mao said, sounding rather poleaxed still.
Furina nodded meekly. “Um, keep that a secret, would you? It’s…it’s sort of on my ID papers…I think of myself as French now! It’s just…uh, very complicated. I…I want to see France as a country that truly embodies Justice for everyone. No matter who you are. So, um…thank you for breakfast…I…I think I should go…”
With that, Furina stood, bowed, and hurried for the door.
“Wait!” Julie got to her feet, and suddenly wrapped Furina in a hug. To her surprise, she found Furina was crying and clinging tightly to Julie.
“I…I just want you to know…you’ll always…always be my friend,” Julie told her. “No matter what. I agree. France needs Justice. I…I’m half French, but…but I never felt like I really belonged here. I want this to be a country where I can belong, where I can be-”
You fall and stumble, trip and fail
Yet again and again, to your feet you rise
Determination is your creed and so
In the end, success shall be your tale
Julie jerked back from Furina, and found that her lips were moving, even as her eyes faintly glowed again. No. This couldn’t be. She…she wasn’t worthy of this!
Liberty! You shall practice your art!
Equality! None shall be left behind!
Fraternity! Bonds beyond all blood!
Arise! Daughter of France’s Heart!
The teardrop shape that fell into Julie’s hands wasn’t quite like Furina’s or Yennifers. Half of the frame was, and yet, the other half…the other half looked like the Chinese Visions that Yennifer had seen. That felt…right.
Fear filled Furina’s eyes, and Julie realized that for whatever reason, Furina didn’t wish to be known for what she was. Well. Julie had practiced all her life to play upon the stage, and she’d acted alongside Furina in truth now. Time to take up a new role.
“I’ll have to thank the Hydro Archon for this,” Julie said, giving Furina another hug. “One day…I hope to tell her how much she means to me.”
“I…thank you,” Furina whispered. “I hate lying, and yet…my whole life is a lie…”
“It’s not lying. Just acting. Someday, share the script with me. Until you can…I’ll always be your co-star,” Julie whispered.
Furina laughed, nodded, and hastily departed.
Slowly, Julie went back into the apartment, where Uncle Mao was sitting and looking stunned still. Ling, however, jumped up and embraced Julie.
“Are you OK?” she asked.
“How could I not be? I was just…just talking with a friend,” Julie said.
Ling pulled back to study Julie’s face, brow wrinkled in confusion. “But, she has to be-”
“Our old dishwasher. And nothing more. Don’t forget it,” Julie said, and shot a warning look to her uncle.
He shook himself. “But…she is…no. It can’t be. She…she’s a good girl. A kind girl. And just…human.”
“She bleeds like the rest of us,” Ling said quietly. “I should know, she even had to borrow my underwear…”
“And that’s all she can be. She needs our help to fight oppression and injustice. We have to give it!” Julie declared, gripping her vision tightly.
“That one needs our help? But, she said she would judge-”
“No, Dad. The Hydro Archon will. That’s just Furina,” Ling said firmly.
Her father looked incredulous for a moment. Then, slowly, he nodded. “I see. Just a dishwasher. A Bodhisattva amongst us.”
“More like the Christ. She did turn water into wine,” Julie muttered, then shook her head. “Regardless, are we going to help her? Can we?”
“I know a few other old men I can talk to,” Uncle Mao said, taking a poster. “They’ve talked about how the government has treated us, and how no one cares that we have to pay extra bribes only for the police to look the other way when someone throws a brick through our windows with a slur and a demand we go home. This is our home!”
“And we’ll fight for it!” Ling declared, making a fist. “No matter what, I’m not giving up, and neither should you!”
“Yes, of course. I have some friends I can talk to as well. There are lots of second-generation Chinese who are tired of being treated like second-class citizens,” Julie said, gripping her Vision.
She could barely believe this. Furina was an Archon. Well, she hadn’t exactly done the best job of hiding it. First had been that song, that beautiful, transcendent song, that had moved Julie’s heart in ways she couldn’t imagine. Then there was the fact that Furina could speak every language Julie had ever heard of, and didn’t even seem to realize she was doing it half the time. And the fact that it rained when she cried, though it hadn’t just now, odd. Oh, and the Holy Spirit, or whatever that dove had been, had come down to give her a Vision. Plus the Water into Wine.
Alright, in retrospect, it was blindingly obvious. Julie really would have to figure out how to help Furina keep a secret a little better, because she was terrible at it.
Believe it or not, she actually did keep a secret for 500 years. But it’s good to have you aboard, regardless.
Julie blinked and looked at her Vision. Had it just…talked to her?
Well, it was supposed to be a Divine Gift. That made sense. Probably.
Either way…it looked like Julie had a lot of work to do. The show must go on.
Author’s Note:
It’s a good thing Furina is adorable because she’s really gotta work on that whole “secret identity” thing.
I can’t see. My left eye…it’s gone. I guess I’m a pirate now.
Fuck. At least Sussurro is here. I hurt everywhere. Maybe that was all a bad idea.
Never mind. Rope came to see us. She’s in a wheelchair. Couldn’t save her legs. But she’s alive. She talked, a lot. I tried to listen. It hurts so much. Couldn’t. But she’s alive. She’s happy.
She’s…she’s a real person. A kid, really. I think she’s nineteen? I forget. So young. There were younger ones, there in the O Ward.
I can’t save them all. I guess…I just save the ones I can.
It just…it hurts so bad. And I can’t see.
I guess I can see Sussurro. She’s here, with me. I think she’s proud of me. But I need to rest.
Entry 24: Day 53
Even though it hurts, they wheeled me to the trauma ward and made me use my arts. I needed help standing up, but I healed half a dozen people of near fatal injuries. I feel a little better, now. My left eye is still useless, though. Will I get vision back in it? God I hope so. Damn hard to perform surgery with just one eye.
Pissed out three kidney stones today. Small ones. It just hurts so bad. My hands are trembling all the time. My right one has little spikes growing out the back of it now, and it’s stiff. Sussurro had to hold the knife for me. I couldn’t use it.
Texas came back today. Didn’t talk much. Gave me a bar of really good chocolate though. I didn’t ask about SWEEP. She sat with me, quietly, while Sussurro and Exusiai went and got something to eat.
She’s a good friend. I told her that. She shook her head.
“No. We’re family. Not friends. Go back to sleep. You’re being stupid.”
Yes ma’am.
Entry 25 Day 54:
Well, today I’m not being such a little bitch. Maybe it’s the access to unlimited morphine. Or, just possibly, maybe it’s the fact that Warfarin showed up and injected me with some shit that made me jump.
I was laying there, in a drug fueled haze. Sussurro had stepped out for something, I was too out of it to really know. It was just Exusiai, cleaning her guns again. Those things must be sparkling inside and out.
The door hissed open, and Warfarin strode in, her fangs barred in a grin. “There’s my favorite intern! Still malingering in the hospital? We do need to fix that. Back in my day, we fired interns for being so lazy!”
“Warfarin,” Exusiai said, her tone tilting between weary and hostile. “What do you want?”
“To put some vim back in this boy’s vigor!” she leaned over my hospital bed and grinned. “Now, Jimmy the Wunderkind, do you want to lay in bed and feel bad about yourself, or do you want to do some SCIENCE today?”
“If I can hear the capital letters, is that bad?” I asked somewhat groggily.
“That means that we are on the cusp of greatness, Jimmy! However, I have, unfortunately, learned about this thing called ‘consent’, and more importantly, I don’t want Sussurro to try to murder me if I just start injecting you with things. I mean, she couldn’t, but it would be a waste of my time and hers. So, I’m going to ask you again: Do you want to lay in bed like a bitch, or do you want to do SCIENCE?”
I sat up slowly, and Exusiai came over to stand beside Warfarin. “Ok, Warfarin. Two questions on behalf of Lucia. First, is this dangerous?”
“Less dangerous than letting lover boy here die. But I won’t lie and say it’s safe. It’s untested and even I get things wrong sometimes. That said, I’m certain enough that it’ll work that I’m willing to chance it.”
“Ok, second, what the hell is it?” Exusiai demanded. “And keep it simple for those of us who don’t have advanced medical degrees.”
“I have an advanced medical degree,” I offered.
“Haha! That you do kid, that you do. However, I don’t think yours will help you much here, so I will try it in layman's terms.” Warfarin opened up the messenger case she had slung over her shoulder to reveal a small metal case, which opened in a hiss of pressure and a wave of cold air. From it, she withdrew a vial that glowed a frankly disturbing orange color.
“This is, to make it simple, extract of originium slug. Now, don’t make that face, we’ve derived medicines from them before. This one, however, would probably kill anyone but you. So, let me explain: I know you metabolize originium. Well, what else does that? Simple: Originium slugs, and related lifeforms. I also know that we need to kick start you doing that, because your levels are at a dangerous tipping point. You’re at .51 u/L and all the way up to an extremely lethal 20% originium cell integration. You should be fucking dead. However…”
Warfarin flicked the syringe, peering through it so her face seemed to turn orange. “You respond oddly to arts amps and suppressors. So, I have synthesized an Arts Amplifier that would, again, be lethal to anyone who DIDN’T have the biology of an originium slug. I’ve tested this on slugs, and it’s like giving them methamphetamines. You know those, right?’
“Uh, yeah, that’s…a very dangerous type of drug,” I said, feeling a bit sick at the thought. Or maybe just generally sick because I hurt all over. “But it does have pharmaceutical uses, like in the treatment of ADHD and Obesity with Desoxyn.”
“Right, but we call it Lythanol. So, I think if I give this to you…it will not only make you feel a whole hell of a lot better, it will also speed up your metabolism, amp your arts, and possibly help you not fucking die. Because, I am, of course, a genius, and the best damn chemist alive or dead.”
“Meth? I know that…it’s pretty dangerous,” Exusiai said, glancing at me. “I think we should wait for Sussurro…let me page her.”
“Ugh, I told you, he’ll be FINE!” Warfarin said, rolling her eyes.
“No, Chief. I…I want to ask Lucia. I’m not…I’m not in my right frame of mind,” I said, laying back down.
“Fine. Call Lucy and tell her that her Chief is a genius and is going to cure her boyfriend,” Warfarin huffed.
Sussurro arrived a few minutes later with Texas, and immediately rattled off a lot of the questions I should have thought of. How would this drug interact with the other medications I was on, especially the morphine. Had she trialed it on anything aside from slugs? What were the possible complications? You know, reasonable, sane questions.
“I don’t know what to do,” I admitted to her. “What do you think?”
She examined the vial, then looked Warfarin dead in the eyes. “Do you swear this will help him?”
“You don’t get as old as I have by fucking up much. You know why all the old Vampires aren’t Infected?” Warfarin asked.
“Because the ones that aren’t careful die young,” Sussurro said with a sigh. “Alright. James…I’m going to recommend we try this. Low dosage. Carefully monitored and controlled. Because we need you feeling well enough to use your arts, and to do so a lot.
I nodded, and closed my eyes. “Do it.”
Warfarin injected it straight into my IV, then stepped back. Almost instantly, I felt it working. It spread like fire, and made me itch. I sat up, my heart beginning to race, but feeling a whole hell of a lot better.
“Right, get him casting, STAT. Right to Trauma,” Warfarin ordered. “You stick on him like a shell. Have him casting until he drops, because as long as that’s in his system, his arts are turbo charged and he’s got the stamina of a swiftbeast. Oh, and if you want to ride him like one, that’s probably fine. Don’t blush, I know you’re thinking about it. Now get moving!”
They got me into scrubs and a labcoat, and I could feel that originium in my body humming with potential power. We jogged up to trauma, where a team was just returning from a Contingency Contract with a couple of wounded. I had their bones knitted and their muscles restored in a heart beat, even fixed up a woman’s intestines.
After that, I lost track of time as I did healing after healing. For hours on end, I was replacing organs, regrowing limbs, and even cured a couple of people of cancer I think. I sort of lost track of it all. It was amazing. Pain? That was gone. I felt wonderful! I felt invincible, like I had enough energy to run a triathlon, like I was king of the world.
And then, the dose ran out. And I crashed. I crashed hard. The pain came back, so severe that I curled up in a ball and started weeping. I felt like weights had been placed all over my body, and I could barely move. They had to put me back in a hospital bed, as I grabbed at Warfarin and pleaded, “Please, another dose! Just…just one more! I…I can heal some more people!”
“Hell no,” she declared, jerking her hand away. “You’re not getting another dose for at least a week, maybe a month. For one thing, this shit will kill your liver unless I miss my guess. Kidney’s too, probably, and yours are already fucked up. Good news is, you’re down to .43 u/L and 16% cell integration unless I miss my guess. So, we do this once a week or so, you get an amazing high, I get beautiful data, and in a month, you go cure some other sob story and we do this shit all over again. Well, until you die.”
“Warfarin!” Sussurro growled, her little fangs barred.
“Oh relax. I’m going to my lab to refine the formula, I think I have some ideas. Give him a sedative and let him sleep it off,” Warfarin ordered. “And you go get some rest. That was 15 hours, you haven’t slept in 26. Go crash.”
And so, I fell asleep. It’s two days later and I just woke up. That was some shit. I have to confess…I’m worried. I…I think I’m an addict, now. Worse…while the spikes on my hand are gone, I’ve still got the tremors and it’s real stiff. And my eye…well. I still can’t see. Maybe once my levels drop a little more…
Entry 26: Day 57
I’m up and at ‘em again. I spent the morning in the hospital with Sussurro healing again. My arts are still potent, but I am far short of that sublime height I was operating at when I was on that super drug. Warfarin says she’s calling it Solvignis, and might even be able to create a blend that normal people can take without, you know, dying a horrible and painful death.
“For now, my special baby is just for you, Jimmy boy! And no, I’m not giving you any more. It’s under lock and key and out of your reach. Sussurro’s too. Only me and Director Kal’tsit can dispense it. So don’t come looking for a fix before I’m good and ready to give you some more.”
“I…I want more, but…” I swallowed. “I’m worried I’m becoming an addict…”
Warfarin snorted and folded her arms. “Become nothing, you are. You’re already addicted to dope. No, don’t cringe, it’s fine. You’ve got Lucy and me to manage it. Just keep with the healing. You’re doing the work of half the damn OR, and saving lives even I couldn’t. Enough to make a girl jealous, really.”
Then she flounced off, humming happily to herself.
“Is it just me, or is our chief of medicine real fuckin’ weird?” I asked Sussurro.
She sighed and nodded. “I’ve been saying that to myself since the day I arrived here and she asked me what flavor my blood was. I think she does that to everyone just to get a reaction.”
“Well, I’m starving and it’s lunch. Should we just go to the cafeteria?” I said, glancing over at our two persistent shadows. It’s a bit eerie how used to having Texas and Exusiai looking at me all the time. There have even been times I’ve caught them coming into the bathroom with me if it’s a public one. No one has said anything, probably because they’re both heavily armed.
“I could eat, and they’ve got Lateran salad on the menu!” Exusiai said excitedly. Sussurro made a face, while Texas flicked her ears in obvious disgust.
“Dare I ask what Lateran salad is?” I said as we headed that direction.
“It’s fruit salad! I don’t know why people act like it’s a crime,” Exusiai said with a laugh.
“You call that abomination fruit salad?” Sussurro said, sounding disgusted.
“What’s it got in it?” I asked.
“Oh, you know, pears, oranges, grapes, pineapple, and cherries!” Exusiai said.
“...that sounds pretty good,” I said slowly.
“She’s not telling you what’s really in it,” Sussurro said with a shake of her head.
“It also has candied pecans and walnuts,” Exusiaia added.
“Ok, that still sounds pretty good,” I agreed, glancing at Sussurro who was making a face.
“In a sauce of marshmallow cream, sour cream, and whipped mayonnaise,” Texas said, her lip curling.
“Oh. So it’s just Marshmallow Salad. We used to have that at Papa Huey and Grammy Debbie’s in Minnesota," I said with a nod.
Sussurro and Texas both looked at me aghast, but I high-fived Exusiai, who was giggling in delight. “What? It’s pretty good. I mean, it’s a dessert, but it’s tasty.”
“She thinks it’s a real salad,” Texas huffed. “It’s not.”
“I mean, at least it’s not Snicker Salad,” I said with a grin.
“Snicker Salad?” Exusiai asked curiously.
“James, don’t you dare. That’s weird alien knowledge!” Sussurro warned.
“Nah. Ok, here’s how you make it: First you, get a package of instant pudding, usually butter scotch. Mix that up with some milk, usually like 2%,” I said. Exusiai had taken out her phone and was quickly writing this down. Sussurro looked like she wanted to perform an exorcism, while Texas was gripping the hilt of her sword like she might need to use it.
“Then you mix that with a tub of CoolWhip. That’s fake whipped cream,” I said, and Exusiai nodded.
“Yeah, we call it Puff Cream, but I know what you’re talking about,” Exusiai said, motioning for me to go on.
“You mix that with a pound, er, half a kilo of bite sized Snickers bars. But you can probably use any chocolate candy bar with filling,” I told her. The looks of comic horror on Sussurro and Texas’ faces were priceless.
“Sounds yummy! What else?” Exusiai prompted.
“Cut up three green apples into small chunks and mix it in. You know, so that it’s healthy,” I said, and Exusiai nodded and gestured grandly.
“Of course!”
“...I am dating a heathen,” Sussurro muttered.
“Hey, it’s a dessert! Only Uncle Phil claimed it was anything else. That’s a recipe I actually know since my mom used to make it for potlucks since I liked it so much,” I explained. We were in the cafeteria now, waiting in line with a few others to get our lunch. It looked like Mac and Cheese, fowlbeast tenders, and the aforementioned Lateran salad for dessert, with the usual actual salad bar.
The guy ahead of me in line had apparently been listening. He looked like a zalak, a bit on the short side with pointed ears and a long, fluffy squirrel tail, along with prominent buck teeth. “That’s an old Colombian recipe that my grandma used to make. Hey, you’re that doctor everyone’s talking about, aren’t ya?”
“Uh,” I glanced at Sussurro, who grimaced.
“Announcement was made while you were unconscious. Rumor mill has been working overtime,” she whispered.
“Kasper Vólzek,” the man said, extending a hand, which I awkwardly took in my still stiff right.
“James McCoy,” I said by reflex.
“I’m visiting on business. I work for Oricentia Health Partners out of Max DC. I hear you’re a Columbian boy yourself. Trimounts?” Kasper said.
“Uh, yeah, near there,” I said vaguely.
He nodded. “If you don’t mind me asking, what’re they paying you here? Oricentia has a very competitive compensation package.”
I opened my mouth, then closed it. I glanced at Sussurro again. “What are they paying me?” Then I decided it didn’t matter, so I shrugged. “Eh, the food’s free and pretty good and I got a place to stay.”
“Eh, this stuff? I mean, it’s alright, but you’re from Trimounts! You know what good food is. Plus, the berths here? Shabby. You could be staying in a penthouse that overlooks a real cityscape.”
“I got out of the rat race for a reason. Uh, no offense,” I said, remembering he was Zalak at the last second. “I like it here at Rhodes Island. They’ve been good to me.”
“Not so good if they’re making you stay in a little cubby hole. You wanna make some real money…here’s my card,” Kaspar said, pressing a business card into my hands and then slipping out of line.
I looked at the card, then at Kaspar’s retreating back. “Did he…just try to headhunt me? Geeze.” I crumpled up the card and tossed it in the trash can, though, as I am no Kobe, it bounced off the rim. So I went over and picked it up for a dunk. I’m not a slob.
“You didn’t even look at what they were offering for pay?” Sussurro asked me.
“Well, would you move to Trimounts?” I asked her, raising an eyebrow.
She blushed slightly and shook her head. “No. Oricentia has a reputation of putting profits over care. We have to work with them because they’re one of the largest purchasers of our pharmaceuticals, but they’re bastards.”
“Well, fuck ‘em. I’ll stay here with you, thanks. Like you’ve mentioned, the Island is family. And you don’t walk away from family,” I said. To my mild surprise, Sussurro slipped her hand into mine, her tail wagging back and forth, until we finally came to the front of the line and loaded down our trays.
I was just dismissing Kasper and his weird pitch as a random kook while we sat at a table, when before I could even take a bite, a middle-aged kuranta woman with an auburn mane of hair in a pantsuit sashayed up to us and flashed a pearly white smile at me. “Dr. James McCoy, I presume?” she said in what I would have called a Polish accent, though her Victorian was excellent.
“Uh, yes, who’s asking?” I said, lowering my food to my tray.
I am Rozveta Kryszanowska, from the Sanatura Group,” she said, putting her hand on my shoulder and running it down towards my back. I flinched away, and Texas’ arm shot out, not so gently shoving her away.
“Hands off,” she growled.
Sussurro was shooting a look of anger at the woman, tail bristling, and I managed, “Uh, I’m sort of eating at the moment, can this wait?”
Despite Texas still having a grip on her forearm, Rozveta smiled at me. “Mmm, if you want to go somewhere more private, darling, I’d be happy to schedule a meeting. I saw you talking to that rat Kaspar Volzek and-”
“That’s sorta racist,” I said, instantly deciding I didn’t like this woman. She blinked at me in confusion for a moment, and I didn’t clarify.
“Well, if you want to make real money and be treated like an asset such as yourself deserves, the Sanatura Group-”
“Is nothing but a second rate bunch of horse traders!” a new voice, also Polish, said. This one belonging, ironically enough, to another kuranta, this one only a few years older than me by her looks, and wearing a rather low cut dress. “I’m Calvera Strzemińska with Heloré Biomedical Solutions. We can offer you a starting salary of ten million-”
Exusiai put a gun in Calvera’s face, and her eyes crossed. “James is busy. And we’re leaving. You two hussys stay right here. Don’t even think of following us,” Exusiai said in her normally chipper tones, which sounded scary as hell in the present circumstances.
“We were simply-” Calvera began, but then Exusiai racked the bolt back on her machine gun. Probably entirely unnecessary, but it did drive the point home.
“I’m always available,” Calvera said in breathy tones, then hurried off. Texas shoved Rozvelta away and ignited her beam saber, glaring around the room as I got reluctantly to my feet with Sussurro, who had my arm in hers.
“What about the food?” I said plaintively. I was pretty hungry.
“I’ll cook lunch. Leave it,” she ordered.
I let her drag me away, wondering just what the hell was going on. Right up until a nervous looking feline man was waiting outside my bedroom door. “Ah, Dr. McCoy, I’m Angus Syndey from Rim-”
Exusiai actually shot a hole in my door, and Angus actually yowled like a cat and jumped about three feet in the air. “I’m Lemuel Exusiai, and I’m the Sankta who blew up her school 17 times before she graduated. Do I need to add a bunch of corporate head hunters to my list?”
“I can see you’re very busy,” Angus said, clutching his hat to his head and scurrying off.
Sighing, Exusiai lowered her gun, while Sussurro and I looked at her wide eyed. “Darn. Now I’m going to have to call maintenance. Oh well, you don’t mind sleeping in Sussurro’s room for now, right?”
“I, uh, no?” I managed, glancing over at Sussurro.
“I was planning on asking James to move in with me anyway,” Sussurro said, her tail slowly rising. “Thank you for chasing off the pest. Though, perhaps, discharging a firearm indoors isn’t the best for our hearing?”
“Oh, yeah, I guess! It’s basically just a very firm no in Laterano if you shoot at a solicitor," Exusiai said with a shrug.
“A reasonable stance,” Texas said with a nod. “I’ll wait outside. You eat first, Exusiai.”
“You want me to wait outside too?” Exusiai asked when we arrived at Sussurro’s door.
“No, I’m just making lunch. Though if you try and come in this evening, I may borrow your gun so I can try to shoot you,” Sussurro said with a completely straight face.
Sussurro was halfway through making some hot pepperoni sandwiches when Texas stuck her head in. “Blaze is here. With her team.”
“What?” I said, standing up as Sussurro turned around with wide eyes. Before we could do anything, Blaze stepped inside with a wide grin on her face.
“Heya! Mmm, smells good! So, what’s this I hear about an accidental weapons discharge that resulted in the new hole in Bones’ door?”
“Oh it wasn’t an accident,” Exusiai said in a completely shameless fashion. “That was definitely on purpose.”
“I see,” Blaze said, leaning up against the door as Texas took a position behind her. “Why don’t you explain to me why that happened, and why we got two very angry executives claiming a lupo and a Sankta tried to assassinate them.
“If I’d wanted to kill them, they’d be dead,” Texas said quietly.
Blaze shook her head, though her grin had turned grim. “I’m aware, Cellenia. What I want to know is your side of the story before I start collecting heads.”
“Those zoccola were trying to headhunt James!” Sussurro snapped, having gone back to cooking lunch up on her stool. She had on this really sexy apron with bacia il cuoca on it, which I had been reliably informed by Exusiai meant “kiss the cook,” so I had.
“Oh?” Blaze said.
“Er, it was really weird. As soon as we went into the cafeteria…” I laid out what had happened, with Sussurro providing a few interjections, mostly about Rozveta and Calvera who she really didn’t like, and finished up with, “and then Exusiai uh, warned off Angus.”
“He had a knife,” Exusiai said with a shrug.
I had to do a double take, and Sussurro stopped cooking for a moment to turn around.
“What? He did!” Exusiai protested.
“In his jacket. Had his hand on it. I’ll check him out later. If he’s a problem, I’ll deal with it,” Texas said quietly.
“Yeah, unfortunately, as much of an asshole as Argus Sydney is, he does work for Rim Billington’s medical department, and as such, you can’t just kill him. He was actually probably going to offer you a nice Bowie knife as a gift. He collects them,” Blaze said with a sigh. She ran a hand through her hair, looking frustrated. “Right. You’re banned from the cafeteria.”
“What!? Lemuel didn’t do anything wrong! I mean, OK, maybe pointing a gun at someone is a bit much, but that’s like, cultural!” I protested.
Blaze gave me a sad look. “Exusiai isn’t banned, Bones. You are. Not because of anything you’ve done. Well, that’s not true. It’s because you’re the cure for Oripathy, and people have figured it out, even if Amiya didn’t name you specifically in her announcement. I should have known this would happen. Pack your stuff. Well, after lunch, wouldn’t want you to miss that. But pack your stuff. I’ll send some boys to help you move. I’m putting you on the executive level where I can keep a better handle on security. And you are not, under any circumstances, to go ANYWHERE without Exusiai or Texas with you. Preferably both. If, for some reason, they need a break or are incapacitated, you sit in your rooms until I personally assign you a new set of bodyguards.”
“Oh,” I said, feeling rather low. That meant I’d be away from-
“I’m moving as well,” Sussurro said, putting five sandwiches on the table, along with a fresh salad she’d made. Not the marshmallow kind, just some fresh greens with a light vinaigrette. She didn’t meet Blaze’s eyes, but she was blushing. “James will need close medical supervision.”
“And you’re sleeping together,” Blaze said with a nod.
“Yes,” Sussurro said, meeting the big cat’s eyes.
“Not a problem. Texas, Exusiai, your quarters are changing as well. Sorry, I know all this is happening fast, but, well, I should have seen this coming. I just had hoped…” she let out a frustrated growl.
“Sit, eat,” Sussurro ordered. “I would have made some for your team outside, but I didn’t have enough.”
“Oh I sent them away once I realized what was probably going on. But thanks! Don’t mind if I do,” Blaze said, and took a seat with us.
“Let’s pray,” Sussurro said, and I blinked. She hadn’t done that before. But Exusiai immediately closed her eyes and grabbed Texas’ hand on one side, mine on the other. I took Sussurro’s hand and closed my eyes as well.
“Bless us, O Law, with thy gifts, which we are about to receive, from thy bounty, through Saints and Angels, amen,” Sussurro and Exusiai recited.
Then we all dug into the delicious meal, which was as excellent as always. Sussurro leaned in close while Blaze was telling a somewhat loud story of one of her exploits and whispered, “Sorry, I should have asked you first, I just…I don’t want to be away from you.”
“No, it’s alright. More than alright. I…I sleep better, when you’re there. Plus, now I can take advantage of you.”
“We can still order takeout, James. I’m not cooking every day.”
“I wasn’t talking about your cooking,” I said, and waggled my eyebrows.
“Maniaco,” she muttered and swatted my leg. Then she rubbed it, tail swishing behind her. Maybe she wasn’t so adverse to the idea after all.
Blaze was true to her word, and before I’d even finished washing the dishes, a dozen sturdy operators showed up with boxes.
“Right, pack everything up boys, up to E27-D. His room too,” Blaze ordered, pointing at me. “Help out Texas and Exusiai, put them in E27-F. Sweep for bugs before and after.”
They were remarkably efficient, with all of Sussurro’s belongings swiftly put away, then trucked up three levels to a somewhat more spacious and open hallway that looked out over the direction the landship was heading. To my surprise, we had a welcoming committee.
Standing before the window was Amiya. She wasn’t dressed in her usual attire, but instead in jeans and a green blouse. She had her hands clasped behind her, looking out over where Rhodes Island was slowly travelling beside a couch and house plant. When she heard us coming, she turned and smiled.
“James, Lucia, please. Join me while your rooms are arranged,” she said, gesturing to the couch.
We did so, with Exusiai and Texas taking up a position at a polite distance where they could very much still keep an eye on things. Even with just Amiya there…
“First, I’d like to apologize for what happened today,” Amiya said with a sad smile, taking a seat on the couch across from us. There was a carpet and a small coffee table between us, and the view out the front of the landship showed green rolling hills that we were moving along at about a walking pace.
“It’s not your fault,” Sussurro said, taking my hand. She was trembling slightly. Was she nervous? “It’s not anyone’s fault, really.”
“Doctor warned me that you’d garner attention. I thought that at least, here, on the Island, your lives could continue to be normal,” Amiya said with a gentle smile. “But that was a foolish hope. I’m afraid, James, that from now on, you will no longer be able to walk freely, even on this Landship. That was already the case with Cellenia and Lemuel having to escort you everywhere, but you’ll no longer be able to go to the cafeteria, or even the public shopping places. At least, not openly.”
“So, no more dates?” I asked somewhat plaintively. Sussurro had laid her ears back and looked rather disappointed as well.
“We can, perhaps, arrange for you two to have some private time at Frankies or Dreams and Spices if you go out in disguise. You'll still have an escort, naturally.”
“Yeah, naturally,” I said, feeling rather miserable.
“Additionally, I'm afraid I have to ask…what did they offer you, Dr. McCoy? I know monetarily, Rhodes Island doesn't offer the highest salaries, but we could-”
“Stop,” I said, shaking my head, and Amiya paused. I gave her my best dopey grin. “I didn't even look. I don't care. As long as you keep me in milk and Wheaties, and morphine, I'm good. I don't need more money. You…generally know my story, right?”
“I am aware you are an Earthling, and that you graduated from a medical institution on Earth,” Amiya said with a nod.
“And you know about, er, Arknights,” I said uncomfortably.
A distant look came into Amiya's eyes, and a small smile played on her lips. “That was what Kal'tsit called us, back when we founded Rhodes Island. This ship was to be our ark, and we, its defenders. The Arknights.”
She shook her head as if to clear away her memories. “I am aware you possess what has been colloquially termed ‘weird alien knowledge.’ And that this made you familiar with Rhodes Island's mission.”
“Basically. And I can safely say there is nowhere on Terra I'd rather be. I believe in the Mission of Rhodes Island, but more importantly…I have a family here.” As I said that, I squeezed Sussurro’s hand, and she squeezed back.
Sussurro spoke up. “I don't think you have to worry about this one, Leader. James is…well. He's a true believer. And he's one of us. Earthling or not, weird alien knowledge or not.”
“That's good to hear. I confess… I was willing to do nearly anything to keep you with us, James. It would be difficult for me to match the salaries Oricentia or the Sanatura Group could offer. You are, perhaps, the most valuable medical asset on the planet.”
That made me pretty uncomfortable, and I shifted awkwardly in my seat. “I mean, I'm just an idiot R1 who keeps getting himself into trouble…”
“Fortunately, you have a very dedicated attending,” Amiya said with a laugh as she stood. We both got to our feet as well, and Amiya gave us both a hug.
“Thank you. I'm sorry I've had to restrict your movements so much, even here on the landship. But I'm concerned. If people are already targeting you with the soft sell…when word gets out that won't work, the hard sell won't be far behind,” Amiya said grimly.
Hard sell? Oh. If soft selling were a bribe…then someone would be willing to not ask, but take. Shit, a few had already tried it.
After that Sussurro and I went into our new rooms, our entire daily schedule having been thrown off. Texas and Exusiai went to unpack themselves once we promised not to go anywhere without telling them, their own smaller cabin right next to ours. I looked around at our meager possessions, all neatly boxed up and piled in the corner of the small sitting room.
This apartment was a lot larger, and instead of mostly bare metal and linoleum, it had wood paneled walls with carpet. There was a small sitting room with an open kitchenette and table for four to dine at, then in the back a bedroom with a queen sized bed and a private bathroom that had a full bath and sink with a vanity and mirror.
“Well, at least it's nicer?” I said, putting an arm around Sussurro.
She nodded. “I didn't ever think I'd rate a private cabin like this on the executive level. This is for foreign dignitaries, department heads, and Doctor, Kal'tsit, and Amiya. Not a regular doctor and a medical intern.”
I didn't know what to say to that, so I just nodded and squeezed her shoulder.
We set about unpacking things. There was a lot more of Sussurro’s stuff than mine, but even she didn’t have all that much. It was pretty impossible for us to acquire a lot of possessions on Rhodes Island, not just because of the lack of availability and pay, but because you’re cooped up in a tiny little space. All she really had was some cookware, a few sets of clothing, and miscellaneous stuff like toiletries and some small electronics. Though since she’s a woman, the amount of toiletries is…impressive. I didn’t even know they made separate shampoo and conditioner for “extra fluffy tails.”
“James,” Sussurro said, looking up from a box she was sorting through. It appeared to contain her wall decorations, which included a painting her grandfather had done, pictures of her family, and her medical degree. “Do you think we’re going too fast?”
My mind first went to me curing people of oripathy. On the one hand, uh, yeah, I probably should stop trying to kill myself from super cancer. On the other…well. I didn’t want to think too hard about all the people in the O Ward who were dying, even now.
However, based on the fact she was looking at a picture of her little sister…I think Sussurro was thinking of something else.
“It’s been what, seven weeks?” I asked, coming over to sit cross legged beside her. “Hard to imagine. On the one hand, Ursus feels like a lifetime ago. On the other…it seems like just yesterday we were hiding in Igor’s basement.”
She nodded, absently smoothing a bit of hair from her face away. She was letting it grow out a little, and I liked it. She held up the picture, and I took it. It showed her, her mom and dad, her brothers, and her little sister. They were all sitting around the dinner table and smiling, a cake with buon compleanno and a candle shaped like one. Everyone was wearing silly hats, Sussuro’s sister sitting in a high chair and grinning, some cake already smeared on her face and a place where grubby little hands had swiped some frosting early.
“Murmura’s first birthday. The little scamp stole a bit of the cake I’d made for her,” Sussurro said fondly, touching the picture frame. She closed her eyes and sniffed, and I put my arms around her. She clutched at me, and I heard the hitch in her breath. “I just…I know we’re going fast. I just…I don’t want to waste time. I lost my family so suddenly…now…now I may never see them again.”
“I could cure you,” I told her quietly. “You could see them then.”
“No. As long as you’re infected, I am. Yes, James, I realize you’ll always be infected, one way, or another,” she said, glaring up at me.
“OK,” I said, and hugged her closer. I didn’t even realize I was crying until I felt tears on my cheek. I took a deep breath, feeling Sussurro up against me. “Look, maybe this is stupid, and we’re going too fast. But I don’t care. I think…I think I’m falling in love with you, Lucia Sussurro, and whatever of my life I have left…I want to spend it with you. Because you’re the one bright spot in this death world.”
And maybe the only reason I didn’t just go down to the O Ward and see how many people I could cure before I died. I mean, I wasn’t suicidal or anything, I think, but, well…Sussurro was a really good reason to want to keep getting up in the morning.
“Well, at least I’m not the only one being stupid and letting my heart run away with me,” she said, and we shared a deep kiss that went on for a while. After that…well, we took advantage of the fact that we had a couch now. Also, a much bigger shower.
After that, we lay together in bed, holding one another close, with everything not even unpacked yet. We talked quietly, about everything, and nothing. Neither of us knew what the future held. Keeps things interesting that way, I guess.
Furina burst into the apartment, bags of groceries on her arms, and a check in her hands. Yennifer looked up from the table, where she’d been typing on her laptop.
“Yennifer! Wonderful news!” Furina said, dancing over and handing the check over to Yen.
“Hmm, what is-” Yennifer looked at the check for a moment, slightly stunned. “This can’t be right…”
“It is!” Furina said, setting down the groceries, then drawing Yennifer up to her feet, a wide grin on her face. “I got paid for the show! Marcel handed out the checks last night! Everyone was crying and laughing, but I wanted to surprise you!”
Yennifer looked down at the check, which was for just shy of 50,000 francs, then up at Furina. “But this, this is-”
“I KNOW!” Furina said, and threw her arms around Yennifer and hugged her tightly. “We can pay back the Knights of Favonius, fix the apartment, and go SHOPPING! But I want you to take care of the money, you’re much better at it than me.”
“F-Furina! You, you do understand what giving me your paycheck implies, don’t you?” Yennifer stammered, blushing bright red. Steam practically shot out of her ears when Furina kissed her on the cheek, then skipped over to start putting away the groceries she’d purchased.
“Yes, that I’m awful with money and numbers. Besides, you’ve been buying practically everything for me before this, so consider it repayment!” Furina said, and held up a case of beers. “I got your favorite! And that awful sugary cereal that Charlotte loves.”
“...don’t you adore that stuff too?” Yennifer asked, shaking off the butterflies in her stomach and giving Furina a rueful smile.
“Um, well, Charlotte likes them too! Oh, and I got the ingredients to make a cake!” Furina said eagerly. “I’m not an expert baker, but I got a recipe from Ling, and how hard can it be?’
“Words spoken moments before disaster,” Yennifer said ruefully, going over to help Furina put away everything. “Listen, Furina-”
“Yes, yes, I know, I don’t have to, but I want to, Yen!” Furina said, taking Yennifer’s hands again and driving whatever Yen had about to say straight out of her head. “You’ve been such a dear friend, and…and I want to see you smile! So this…this is just a small thing I can do, to help out.”
“Fifty-thousand francs isn’t a small thing, Furina! What about your future? You should put a little something away,” Yennifer urged.
Furina huffed and turned back to her task. “You take care of that. I’ve never managed my finances before, and I would do a much worse job than you if I started now. Just give me a little pocket money, and I’ll stay within my budget. Though we’re setting aside some money to buy both of us some new clothes! And something for Charlotte, too. We deserve it!”
Taking a deep breath, Yennifer crossed her arms and said, “Furina…”
Furina paused in putting away the two liters of ice cream she’d bought. “That…doesn’t sound good.”
“I received a summons from the court. You’re being arraigned on charges of misuse of cape abilities,” Yennifer said. “What happens after this is practically pro forma. You’ll be given a choice of a backbreaking fine, prison, or service in the Mousquetaires. You’ll be trained as a weapon.”
“But…but I don’t know anything about fighting,” Furina said helplessly, looking down at the ice cream in her hands. “Nor do I wish to! I…I can’t be a weapon!”
“It’s very hard to avoid. I got Charlotte off because she’s a minor. I’m immune as a member of the Knights of Favonius, which is recognized by treaty. I’m fighting a dozen cases of this in the courts, and there are many more.”
Furina looked at the ice cream, then got out a spoon and sat down at the table, ripped off the lid and seal, and started eating. Yennifer sat down, and Furina held out the spoon to her, which was piled high with mint chocolate chip ice cream. Blushing, she allowed Furina to put the bite in her mouth, and then her friend went back to shoveling sweets down her own gullet.
“But this is a gross Injustice!” Furina said, tears filling her eyes. “How…how can this be allowed to happen?!”
“Simple. The Mousquetaires are the government sponsored cape team, and Iron Mask is the strongest cape in the country. He can even copy Vision Holders now and manipulate elemental energy.”
Furina paused, lowering the spoon back down to the carton. “Really? But, he’s got a demon, not a Vision, so how…”
Furina rubbed her lips, obviously deep in thought. After a moment, she got up and started pacing around the small kitchen, head bowed, eyes, lips moving soundlessly, hands gesturing as if she were practicing on stage. It almost looked like she was having an argument with herself.
At last, Furina’s spine straightened, and she stood up straight. Planting her hands on her hips, she turned to Yennifer, resolve firm in her eyes. “This an Injustice in Our lands that cannot stand! I have a plan, Yennifer. I’ve read all of your legals books-”
Yennifer blinked at that. Furina had been borrowing her texts, but…all of them?
“-and I’ve studied the various cases that would be precedent. This vile law cannot stand! So, we must work to change it!”
“I agree, but working on a case by case basis is the best I can do right now. Your case might be winnable, I should be able to get the charges dropped, but-”
“No, Yennifer!” Furina said, striding over and pulling Yennifer to her feet, and making her heart race. Furina steered her over to the window, and pointed out to the streets and buildings before them. “All the people of Paris, of France, must live in a land of Justice! One case simply isn’t enough! We must fight this not just in the courts, but in the hearts of the people!”
“And you plan to do this… How?” Yennifer asked, a smile fighting its way onto her face despite her best intentions. When Furina got like this, it was infectious.
“First, we rally the allies we have made. The immigrant community has also been facing injustice, have they not?” Furina said.
“Er, yes but I don’t see…you mean the Maos?” Yennifer asked, her brows furrowing.
“Yes! Chef Mao has been complaining about how he has to pay bribes and faces harsher scrutiny on inspections. We can make common cause with them! Additionally, we must tap into the young people!”
Yennifer groaned, but nodded. “And I know just the young people you’re going to tap into…well, Charlotte needed a summer project anyway…”
“And last, but not least…we will need to speak with Jeanne. Having a strong political ally will be important. If she’s been blessed by Lord Barbatos, that means she values freedom. Her Ideal isn’t Justice, but what’s happening is a breach of Freedom, and so she should ally with us,” Furina said, smacking her fist into her palm.
“That’s not a lot of capes on our side,” Yennifer said with a shake of her head.
“What does that matter? We need the will of the people to fight for Justice, not simply those in power!” Furina declared. “Is the motto of France not Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité? Those words point us towards a Justice of the people, not merely a group of elites!”
“I suppose…and I do know a few lawyers and judges who would be willing to help, but this is going to take a lot of organizing,” Yennifer said, massaging her forehead.
“Well, it’s a good thing I’m going to be making enough money to finance this moving forward!” Furina said with a laugh. “That was just the first paycheck. I’m getting one every two weeks!”
“Yes, but I don’t know that we can rely on revenue from your show staying at that high of a-”
Yennifer was wearing a blue pantsuit, smiling as cameras flashed, arm in arm with Furina as they stepped out of a limousine. They waved to the cameras as they walked up the red carpet in Hollywood. Furina had on a dazzling blue dress that flowed like water about her. On the billboard of the TCL Chinese Theatre was a poster of Furina alongside Jean Reno in La Petite Océanide.
“-level. Or…or maybe it will go up?” Yennifer said, putting a hand to her forehead. That was the second time she’d had a vision like that. At least it didn’t feature her dead sister’s grave this time.
“I’m certain it will be fine,” Furina said with a dismissive wave. “I’ve already gotten a few inquiries about doing advertisements. I’ll simply select a few of them that meet my standards. It’s nothing new for me, as the Hydro Archon of Fontaine, simply wearing a dress or eating at a restaurant was enough to be considered an endorsement, and the businesses would see a massive boost in revenue.”
“Right, of course,” Yennifer said, shaking her head. “But, you were just acting as the Hydro Archon.”
Furina paused, and bit her lip. She looked away, folding her arms about herself in a hug. “Yes. I…I was just an actor. Nothing more.”
“No, you were always something more,” Yennifer said, stepping up behind Furina and wrapping her arms about her. “And you’re something more to me as well, Furina.”
Furina put her hands over Yennifer’s and bowed her head. “I…yes. Thank you.”
They stood like that for what felt like an age, and Yennifer felt herself aching for Furina. Why, why couldn’t she be gay? It didn’t matter, really. Yennifer had sworn herself to Furina, and her ideal now was to see Furina’s Justice done, and Furina herself protected from all threats. If this was what Furina wanted…then Yennifer would make sure it happened.
“So,” Yennifer said, separating from Furina, who turned to face her. “This will be a great deal of work. Starting with Charlotte and the students might be a good idea. She’s going into her first year of Lycée, but, despite everything, she’s very popular at her middle school. Barbara even more so, despite mostly disenrolling.”
“Yes, we’ll get both girls to motivate the student body to fight this Injustice. Barbara was already willing, and I think Charlotte would appreciate the opportunity to cover this as a news story. We can get to Jeanne through Barbara, and with Ling’s help, we can reach out to the immigrants…but I’ll start with Marcel! He has a lot of connections in the theater and film industry, and if we can get broad scale support in entertainment…”
“A bunch of actors and models fighting for social justice?” Yennifer said, a smile playing on her lips. Furina pouted, but Yennifer laughed and held up her hands. “No, no, I think you’re right. Despite everything that’s happened, France is still fiercely proud and loyal to her own entertainment industry. If you can get some famous actors and actresses to support your cause…not to mention your own rapidly growing fame…I think we might have a real chance of getting some traction.”
“Thank you! I know this will help to bring Justice to everyone! It starts with Justice for capes, but it ends with Justice for everyone!” Furina gushed. Then she kissed Yennifer, right on the lips. It was just a light peck, and then she was off again, but Yennifer stood there, rooted in place, warmth suffusing her body. Furina was talking about going shopping again to get a “war-drobe” or something.
I’m such an idiot. But I think I’m in love.
Think nothing. This was why Yennifer always ended up representing lost causes, especially ones that couldn’t really afford legal fees. If it wasn’t for her and Charlotte’s inheritance…well. They might not end up completely destitute, but Furina’s meager paychecks had been more than helping keep them afloat. She looked back down at the check, and sighed.
“Well, if we’re going out, we’re depositing this in your account.”
“Oh, just put most of it in yours! Like I said, you’re better with money anyway,” Furina told her.
“Furina…people are going to think we’re married instead of just roommates,” Yennifer said in exasperation.
Furina froze like a deer in the headlights, and Yennifer knew she’d just completely ruined things.
“Would…would that be so bad?” Furina said, not meeting Yennifer’s eyes.
No, my Lady. I am yours, now and forever, Yennifer thought.
Your Oath is received and acknowledged. You shall make a fine Champion. Though we will have to do something about that sword.
Yennifer’s head whipped around. She knew that voice! Focalors? She didn’t even notice that Furina appeared to have heard Focalors’ words as well.
Clearing her throat, Yennifer said, “Well, let me get changed, and then we’ll go shopping and make some more plans. This will require a lot of organization.”
The shopping trip was wonderful. Yennifer had been making due with second hand clothes and outfits that she’d worn just a bit too long. With a headspinning amount of money in the bank, it was all too easy to want to blow every last franc in a massive splurge. However, she reigned in both herself and Furina’s impulses. She wasn’t kidding about having no head for money. Though as someone who apparently hadn’t had to pay for a single thing in her life until she’d arrived in France two months ago, that made sense.
“Three outfits for today,” Yennifer told Furina firmly. “Something fancy that you can take to important meetings and interviews. Something average for daily wear that’s high quality. And something comfortable to relax in that’s still stylish.”
“What about a swimsuit? I dearly miss the water,” Furina said with a sigh.
“Well…” Yennifer hesitated. She really wanted to see Furina in a swimsuit, and it was summer. “Alright, four outfits, though I wouldn’t know where we would go swimming.”
“Isn’t there a river here? We could swim there,” Furina suggested.
“The Seine? Furina, you haven’t been able to swim in the Seine without catching something horrific in 100 years. It’s horribly polluted,” Yennifer said, making a disgusted face.
The look of pure rage on Furina’s face actually made Yennifer flinch back.
“What!? They would DARE pollute MY waters!? Water is a gift to all people! It should be treated with care and respect, treasured by all, for without Water, how can there be life?! How can there be Justice! This must be rectified IMMEDIATELY!”
“There were some efforts to clean it up back in the 80s. Then the Endbringers came, and, well…” Yennifer shrugged. “After that, no one really cared.”
Furina sucked in a breath through her nose, obviously calming herself. “Right. First, Justice for those who are oppressed. THEN we clean up the waters of this world, starting with France!”
“The entire world?” Yennifer asked, raising an eyebrow.
“They’re all mine, so yes,” Furina huffed. “Especially the fresh water. That’s the most important.”
“You’re starting to sound like the Hydro Archon,” Yennifer teased.
Tears immediately formed on Furina’s cheeks, which was bad, as they were currently walking between shops. They would have been soaked immediately, but Yennifer formed an umbrella out of Hydro and held it up to keep them dry.
“Oh! Oh, I can’t…” Furina took a deep breath, and the rain stopped, though her tears didn’t. “There. I…I can’t be known as the Hydro Archon here, Yennifer. I…I just can’t.”
“I know, you’re just Furina de Fontaine. But that’s more than enough for me,” Yennifer said, glancing up at the sky, which had formed darkly ominous clouds from nowhere, though the rain was holding off. She linked arms with Furina, who rested her head on Yennifer’s shoulder.
If anyone looked, they really would think we were lovers…
Fortunately, Focalors didn’t seem to be listening at that particular moment, or at least that didn’t count as an Oath she could accept. For which Yennifer was very grateful.
After a lovely lunch together and purchasing not just clothes, but a number of things that they were in desperate need of, they returned to the apartment briefly. After that, Yennifer set about composing an email to Jeanne, while Furina put in a phone call to Marcel.
“He says he’ll meet with me!” Furina said excitedly after only a few minutes. “He agrees that it’s not right now capes are treated, and that with more and more actors getting Visions, it’s become a matter for the FIA! If I join the Union, they’ll join our cause!”
“Hmm, you should have joined the union already, they’re good at fighting for workers rights,” Yennifer said absently. She clicked send, and smiled up at Furina. “Though I suppose that since this was your first role at a small theater, they weren’t as concerned. Union membership used to be mandatory, but new laws have really weakened their power.”
“Well, then those laws should be struck down! Unions hadn’t formed in Fontaine, but if I’d thought of them I’d have encouraged them! People banding together for Justice against capitalists is a fine idea! I had enough problems with those who valued money over equality already,” Furina huffed.
“If only you were president of France,” Yennifer chuckled, and reached for her mug of coffee.
NO.
Yennifer froze, and met Furina’s eyes. She felt herself falling into an endless sea of pure water, drawn into the divine-
Furina blinked, and the sensation vanished. She came over, kneeling down and taking Yennifer’s hands. “No, Yennifer. I…I can never take any official office or position. It would be…Injust. France is meant to be a Republic. A government of the people, by the people, and for the people. I…I must not take the reins of power. People must find their own Justice. I can lead them to it, guide them, support them, help them…but I cannot force them. I would become a tyrant. And that…that is something I will never allow myself to be. The most I would allow is to be the High Judge, but this separation of powers between the courts, the executive, and the legislature…it is good. Even Divine Justice has its limits. People must be willing to work towards Justice themselves.”
“I…” Yennifer swallowed, and nodded. “Yes, Furina. It will be as you say.”
“No, if anyone is going to be president, it should be someone like Jeanne. She may be blessed by Venti, but she is still a mortal woman,” Furina said, standing.
Yennifer frowned at that. Was Furina implying she wasn’t mortal? Well, she was hundreds of years old, and effectively the daughter of a god. Heck, she turned water into wine. Could she walk on water?
“Can you walk on water?” Yennifer asked, more to herself than anything.
“Hmm? Oh, well, I suppose both of us can with a little practice. It’s a very common ability for those with Hydro Visions,” Furina said with a shrug. She lifted up her own, frowning at it. “I have hardly trained with this at all…”
“Neither have I, though I was supposed to go train with the Mousquetaires. They never scheduled me and I haven’t pressed however,” Yennifer said. There was an alert from her email program, and she turned back to it. To her surprise, there was an email from Jeanne herself.
“The Mayor wants to meet with us! Could you do lunch day after tomorrow?” Yennifer asked, turning to Furina.
“Really? So soon? Of course! The show won’t start until 6pm, and I don’t need to be there until 5pm,” Furina said, peering at the screen.
The two grinned at one another. This was going to work!
Marcel opened the door to his office and started slightly. “Furina! I didn’t realize you would be bringing legal representation. I thought you just wanted to sign the paperwork to join the union.”
Furina smiled down at Marcel. “This is about more than that, Marcel. Surely you understood that?”
He huffed and pushed the door open wider so that Furina and Yennifer could both enter. “Those assholes in capes and masks want to strong arm my best actress into joining them? Oh yes, I understand. And that makes it my business. Should have had you join the union right away.”
Marcel’s office was a cluttered mess. There were a number of finely upholstered chairs up against the wall, each piled high with props, scripts, papers, posters, and even a couple of costumes. The walls themselves were decorated with green patterned wallpaper, but that was barely visible between all the posters of plays, and even a few movies. Furina noticed a younger, thinner Marcel was on a couple of them. Not in a leading role, but in various bit parts.
“You were an actor once?” Furina asked, curiously.
“Only because my family owned the place,” Marcel said, sitting down at his desk, where a man was putting out a cigarette on the ash tray. “Mademoiselle Fontaine and Mademoiselle Lustria, this is Monsieur Jacques Ménard.”
Ménard rose and gave a world weary smile as he shook Furina’s hand first, then Yennifer’s. He was balding with a combover, and Furina could tell he dyed his dark brown hair to hide the grey. He was thin, with a suit that was clean, but getting a bit threadbare. His shoes were similarly worn, but well-shined. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Mlle. Fontaine. I must confess, I had hoped you would read the literature I left for you all and would agree to sign up. The union, it is not doing so well I am afraid.”
“You mean the French entertainment industry as a whole isn’t doing so well,” Yennifer said as they took a seat.
Furina shot a warning look at her, but Ménard let out a dark chuckle. “Japan, it is taking over the film industry and the animation industry with its anime. Korea, now she is dominating television with K Dramas. And add to that German, with the Tone Deaf Bards competing against Japanese Idols and Korean pop. What then of France? Little and less. There is no money for films or stage productions. Or at least, I had thought there was not. Then…you arrived. Your performance…inspired. I have seen it twice myself. Perhaps, it is what we need to revitalize our own pride…”
“What about online video production?” Furina said, her mind instantly going to the videos she had put out with Charlotte and Barbara’s help.
That brought a frown to Ménard’s face. “Those? Amateurs. Non-union, at the very least.”
“Hmm,” Furina said, and made a few mental notes. She’d have to see to that. If they were going to have online actors and artists, then they should unionize as well. Now that she was aware of the concept, Furina was quite taken with the idea of common workers banding together for Justice.
“Well, I would like to sign up for the Union, and see about getting the rest of the cast to sign as well,” Furina said.
“Of course, of course,” Ménard already handed out the papers, and went over to them, looking to Furina, but also glancing at Yennifer as he explained about dues, Union jobs, and other things.
“I will note, M. Vautrin, his establishment, it is non-union,” Ménard, glancing at Marcel over the reading glasses he’d placed on his nose.
Marcel harrumphed. “You know I always took good care of my actors. They didn’t feel the need to unionize because I paid them well! I’m not even opposing this. I called you first when Furina ran into trouble with the government. Me, I can do only so little. But you…well. I take care of my people, and you can help with that.”
“So, you are willing to make this theater a union job?” Ménard prompted.
“Yes, yes, I told you as much already!” Marcel burst out. He turned to Furina, real concern in his eyes. “Furina…look. I don’t like the restrictions the union puts on me, with what I can charge, what I can pay, when I can put on shows…all these things. But! They can help you with this problem of yours better than I alone ever could. So. My actors, they are like the children I never had. Even the ones older than I am. I tell you, join the SFA. They have their problems, but helping keep actors safe is not one of them.”
“What about fighting the general injustice against capes?” Furina asked. “Would you help push for legal reforms?”
“Hmm,” Ménard stroked his chin and frowned. “Well, it’s something we’ve talked about, at the GTWA. That’s the Global Trade Works Alliance, which the SFA is a part of. There has been talk of forming unions specifically for parahumans and Vision Holders, but nothing has come of it so far.”
“That’s it!” Furina said, standing up, excited. “That’s what we need to look at doing! Everyone who’s a professional cape should join such a union!”
“Well, the problem with that is all the cape teams are highly resistant to unionizing,” Ménard said with a shrug. “And you couldn’t join, unless you joined an international or national cape team. Which I seem to understand you don’t want to do.”
“She doesn’t,” Yennifer said, a grin spreading on her face. “But, I might. Let me reintroduce myself: I am Captain Yennifer Lustria, of the Knights of Favonius.”
Ménard blinked a few times. Then, a slow grin spread across his face. “Really? Well. I might be able to put you in touch with a few people who would be interested in helping the Knights of Favonius form a union.”
“We’ll need to consult Venti, that is, Lord Barbatos first,” Furina said, half to herself. “But I think he’d be in favor of mortals banding together to secure their freedoms.”
“You…are on speaking terms with the Anemo Archon? I thought he was sleeping, or something,” Ménard said, his brow furrowing.
Marcel’s eyes had narrowed, and he was studying Furina. “The wine,” he muttered to himself.
Furina flushed, and tried to move the conversation along. “Well, I don’t, but Yennifer has close ties to the knights.”
“And I know the Grandmaster personally. Cookie would absolutely pitch a fit about her Knights unionizing,” Yennifer said with a predatory grin. “Then she’d help set up the vote herself and tell everyone to vote yes.”
“They’re not French, but the Knights of Favonius are the most powerful cape group in Europe, if you don’t count the Fatui. Unionizing in the middle of a war might ruffle some feathers, though,” Ménard said, sounding suddenly cautious.
“War is the perfect time to take a stand for freedom! For if we do not fight for Justice and Freedom for all, what do we fight for?” Furina demanded. She signed the SFA paperwork and handed it over. “Besides, I think I might be able to start a cape group right here in France.”
“Really? But such is illegal. Only government-sanctioned groups are allowed, and the only government-sanctioned group is the Mousquetaires,” Ménard said, his brows knitting together.
“Good thing the mayor’s daughter is one of my players,” Marcel said smugly. Ménard turned to look at him, eyes wide. Then, he slapped his forehead and laughed. A real, genuine laugh.
“Merde! Ah, forgive my language, but this, this just might work! I would have to look at the law, but-”
“The law specifies the Mousquetaires as the state-sponsored cape team,” Yennifer interrupted. “However, there is a provision for local teams to be founded by local officials. It’s meant to be used in an emergency capacity, but the Mayor of Paris absolutely has the authority to form her own cape team.”
“My God,” Ménard laughed, and Furina perked up at the words. “This…this is…well! Not only do I secure Furina de Fontaine as a member of my union, but the GTWA would love to help found a cape trade union!”
“I’ll call Cookie,” Yennifer said, pulling out her phone. “Then, when we meet with the mayor tomorrow, we’ll broach the subject of forming a cape team here in Paris, then unionizing it.”
“Hmm, what do you call the cape team? Has to have a snappy name,” Marcel said, rubbing his stubbly chin.
“The Maréchaussée Fantôme,” Furina said instantly.
“That would be…something like the Hunters of the Hidden?” Yennifer mused.
“Yes, um, if the name doesn’t sound right…” Furina said, feeling suddenly nervous.
“No, no, people like over the top names for cape teams. That’s good. We’d have to come up with a name for the cape union though,” Ménard said.
“International Guild of Powered Labor or IGPL,” Yennifer supplied. “Not just for cape teams, but for anyone who uses their powers in their employment, whether you’re a bricklayer or a member of the Knights of Favonius.”
“That’s perfect! I’ll make some calls and we’ll get started on the paperwork right away. Can I count on you two as our first members?” Ménard asked eagerly.
Furina and Yennifer exchanged looks, then grinned. “That depends. How do you feel about junior members?”
“Her younger sister is a Vision Holder as well,” Marcel told Ménard.
“Ha! Too perfect. Yes, just get the mayor to form that team, and we’ll have your union ready. Oh! She’s a cape now too, yes? Haha, if you can get Jeanne d’Orleans as a member, this will be frontline news!” Ménard laughed.
Furina took a small peak at the future, then grinned. “I don’t think that will be a problem.”
The next day, Furina and Yennifer arrived at the mayor’s palace, and were escorted to a private dining room, where lunch was already being set out. After a few minutes, Jeanne strode in, wearing khaki pants and a cream colored blouse, her hair in a ponytail behind her. She smiled at both of them, hanging up the phone call she’d been finishing up. She had on her Anemo vision on a small silver chain about her neck, and looked much more invigorated than usual.
“It’s good to see you both,” Jeanne said as she was given a light salad to start off the lunch. “I read your follow up email. So, this is about more than just one unjust law now, is it?”
“Yes,” Furina said with a nod, and passed over the proposal she and Yennifer had been up all night after the play writing.
Jeanne took a look, reading as she ate her salad. She nodded to herself, then set it aside. “This is well written. I confess, however, I am not sold on starting up my own cape team. That could be seen as me challenging the authority of the government. Things are unstable enough already, and if I were to declare such open rebellion…Mégret and Iron Mask would crack down, hard.”
“That’s why this team wouldn’t be for handling military matters or parahuman threats, but rather, more normal problems. Such as assisting with fire fighting, medical response, humanitarian aid, and disaster relief,” Yennifer said, pointing to the document.
“Hmmm,” Jeane flipped back to that page, and read it again, more carefully. “Ah, I see. So, these will be ‘non-combatant’ capes, with skills focused on support and relief, not direct combat? I see…”
A servant came and took away the finished salads, setting out some fresh Crème Dubarry soup, which was excellent. Jeanne sipped at hers for a few moments, clearly considering. After a few moments, she sighed. “I agree this law is unjust. However, if this team is merely being created as a way to screen people from joining the Mousquetaires…”
“It’s giving people a choice. Civic service, or military service,” Furina argued. “That’s Just! And it promotes freedom. It’s not letting people avoid their duty, but rather, determine for themselves where their duty leads them! Plus…well. We’d like to unionize it.”
Yennifer quickly laid out the scheme to found the IGPL, using the Maréchaussée Fantôme and the Knights of Favonius. At the end of it, Jeanne’s eyes were sparkling.
“Oh, that would be a foot-breaker for Mégret. He’s been trying to weaken the unions consistently, something I have strongly opposed. France was founded on the principles of Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, which trade unions promote. And, since I, too have a Vision now…I could join this union as well, could I not?”
“We’re counting on it, actually,” Furina admitted.
“Very well.” Jeanne stood, having finished her soup. “I’ll get my people working on it right away. They’ll get in contact with M. Ménard and the GTWA. You are certain you can get the Knights of Favonius to agree to unionize?”
Yennifer produced her phone, and showed Jeanne the profanity riddled response from Cookie she’d received. Jeanne’s eyebrows climbed her forehead, until she came to the end, which made her laugh. “Well, I see Grandmaster Schmidt supports the idea, even if she does protest it. Very well. I’m sorry to cut this short, but there is a great deal of work to be done, and little time to do it. I look forward to working with you both.”
Furina and Yennifer both stood and said their goodbyes, leaving after only half an hour, but feeling satisfied.
Feeling exuberant, Furina grabbed Yennifer once they were out on the street, pulling her into a hug. “We did it!”
Yennifer returned the embrace, a victorious smile on her lips. “We did! Or at least, we took the first step!”
Those lips…they were…they were very interesting. On impulse, Furina pecked Yennifer on the lips again. “Thank you. For believing in me.”
“I…o-of course, My Lady,” Yennifer stammered.
“Oh, don’t be so formal, Yen. Come on! We need to tell Charlotte so she can break the news herself!”
Grabbing Yennifer’s hand, Furina put her hand to her hat and raced down the sidewalk, a wide grin on her face. She was doing it! She was being the Archon!
…well, maybe not the Archon. But at the very least, she was fighting for her people.
PHILO: There are two things that I typically find annoying, both of which arise, interestingly enough from Miraculous Ladybug. One is Hidden Identities. The other is the “JUST CONFESS.” This story somehow does both in a fantastic but STILL VERY ANNOYING MANNER. Holding dolls and whispering evilly. “Now kiss~”
I woke up in a strange bed, and found someone staring at me. I rolled over and met James’ eyes. He had that stupid, boyish grin of his on, the one that I find so hard to resist.
“Like what you see?” I asked, very deliberately stretching.
His fingers caressed my collarbone, and I melted into him.
“Yeah, I just…you’re beautiful, you know?” he said, and kissed me.
“Mmm. I don’t really remember last night,” I lied, batting my eyelashes. I did remember. It had been wonderful, if rather primal and feral. Sometimes, you need that.
To my irritation, he looked horrified. “Oh, Oh God, I mean, you said, yes, you didn’t-”
“James,” I said, grabbing him and pulling him atop me. “What I meant was, ‘I want you to give me something to remember right now.’”
He was much more compliant after that, although unfortunately, we were late for work. On the way there, I realized that, well, in our passion, we had forgotten to do anything sensible. Understandable the night before, completely unforgivable this morning.
So, when I caught a moment to breathe, I snuck into the pharmacy and stole some progesterone, commonly called Plan B. I was about to take it, when a head poked around the corner and said, “Boo.”
I nearly lost my tail in fright, and dropped the pills, which were thankfully in an aluminum packet and didn’t just spill everywhere. “C-Chief Warfarin! I-I didn’t realize-”
“That I was back? I got that. And what’s this?” She bent down and to my horror, picked up the pills I’d been about to steal. “My my. Is this why my intern has an unusual swagger in his step and your bushy little tail’s been wagging this morning?”
I felt about eight centimeters tall and wanted to die. “Um, w-well, er, the Director-”
“Fuck if I care what Kal says. But, you, Lucy? You, my golden child…stealing medicine from the pharmacy? That’s a firing offense and you know it.”
“I, please, I just…I didn’t want-”
She hugged me, which made me paralyzed with fear; her teeth were so close to my neck…
“I’m so proud of you. At last, my stuffy little Miss Perfect has graduated to a Grown Up Girl who knows that rules are for idiots who can’t behave themselves.”
I was trembling, either with relief or the rush of adrenaline, I couldn’t tell. “Um, C-Chief?”
“Hmm, you putting yourself on birth control too?” she said, and picked my pocket. Where I did, in fact, have a 28-day supply of birth control. I was going to be responsible, after all, and while I was falling in love, I wasn’t stupid enough to think a baby was even remotely a good idea.
“Y-yes,” I admitted, my tail and ears drooping miserably.
“Thought so!” Warfarin pulled out a pad and scribbled on a bit, then handed it to me. She would have immaculate handwriting. There, in my palm, was authorization and a prescription for Plan B and birth control. “There. Now it’s official. Seriously, girl, next time, just ask. Like I said, I’m not mad, I’m proud, but I’m going to have to pretend to be mad and write you up if you do something stupid like this again, and be dumb enough to get caught. I marked you, remember? I can smell you no matter where you are, and you had no business being in the pharmacy…except to self-dispense. And we can’t have that, now, can we?”
I looked at the pad, then up at her, baffled. “I…I don’t know what to say.”
“Thank you, Chief,” Warfarin said in a warbling falsetto that is absolutely NOT how I sound. “You are beautiful and wise and smart and I wish to one day be as good a doctor and researcher as you!”
“Thank you, Chief Warfarin,” I said through gritted teeth.
“Aww, smile, Lucy,” Warfarin said, using her fingers to paste a grin on her own face that looked rather ghoulish with her fangs. “You got laid! Congrats! You’ve definitely needed it. Hmph, I’m going to have to give that pretty boy a call tonight, been too long since I’ve had my pipes cleaned.”
“Pretty boy?” I echoed, my mind still reeling.
“Yoru. He’s just a kid but man does he give good dick. Don’t you dare tell him I said that, his head’s swelled enough as it is.”
The Chief and… Midnight? Seriously? That lady killer had actually…will wonders never cease. “Isn’t he fifty?”
“Forty-seven. I’m practically robbing the cradle here! I mean, I’m only thirty-five. Decades.”
I blinked stupidly at Warfarin, who batted her eyelashes at me. “You’re just so fun to tease, Lucy. Now, on a more serious note: Since you’ve both been good, I want you to go down to the O Ward this afternoon and have him pick out Lover Boy’s next victim. I want someone juicy. I don’t give a damn who, pick the biggest sob story of the lot or just the littlest and cutest kid, or a crusty old man. Whatever. I need data points, and his levels are down to .21 u/L and 5% OCD. He’s been a busy little arts wand! So go find someone else to cure so I can figure out how the fuck he does this. Oh, but don’t have him do it today. We’ll schedule it, oh, three days from now. Dear Leader wants a big production, so I’ll give her one as long as you get me that damned data. Oh, and no quickies in the closet. It’s gross and the janitors will hate you.”
And with that, my Chief Pain in the Ass handed me back the pills, then wandered off, whistling jauntily.
I looked at the pills in my hand, looked at my script, sighed, and went up to the front.
Of course, Myrrh was there and filled my prescription. She grinned at me the whole damn time.
“I’ll tell you everything later,” I sighed.
“You have to! I’m leaving tomorrow, you know.”
I bit my lip. “Um, I do, how long…?”
“A month, at least. I’ll pack my stuff and put it in Gartt’s room. We um, I think he’s going to propose! So, ah…we’ll probably be moving in together…
Great. And here, I was going to ask James if he wanted to be my permanent bunkmate from now on. I felt like a slut. I just…last night…I’d slept so well. Having someone so big and strong there…I had known that even if a vampire or lupo had broken down that door…James would have protected me. It’s what he does. He was safe, and so, I was safe with him.
Look, I know that is a completely idiotic fear, and that I’m perfectly safe, and that Texas and Warfarin are not going to murder me. It’s just…when you’re the smallest and weakest around, and it’s late at night, and your roommate is the same size as you, and your mind wanders…
Let’s just say I pick the big strong ones for a reason.
Then I got paged to Director Kal’stit’s office. I groaned, certain I was about to get a tail twisting, and hurried over.
“Ah, Dr. Sussurro, perfect,” she said as soon as I entered. James was already there, sitting down and blushing like a school boy. I, of course, was blushing like a schoolgirl, and hopped up on the seat next to him. He took my hand, and I did my best to put on my professional face.
“I just, I want to assure you, Director, I won’t do it again, I will be very professional, and that, um, I understand if you still have to take disciplinary action,” I stammered.
Kal’stit paused, closed her mouth, then turned to regard me, folding her hands on the table. “Do go on, Dr. Sussurro. Please. Explain what you have learned from your error, and how you will mend your ways.”
I gushed everything about stealing the pills, getting caught, and how I definitely wouldn’t do it again. James looked embarrassed and slightly horrified, which meant I’d maybe just torpedoed the relationship too. Fantastic.
“Hmmm.” Kal’stit leaned back in her chair, regarding me. “Thus is the power of a guilty conscience. So that you are aware, Lucia, Chief Warfarin had not informed me of your trespass. I will speak with her regarding her handling of the affair. That is not how I would have my Chief Medical Officer disciplining her staff. Indeed, I was completely unaware that you had attempted any such theft.”
I groaned softly and slumped in my seat. Of course.
“As this is your first infraction, I will limit your discipline to a private reprimand, though I will also make a note on your file. In the future, do not let your prudish thoughts overwhelm your professionalism. And let me assure you that anyone with a pair of eyes and even a hint of knowledge as to the relationship between you and Dr. McCoy was fully aware that you had spent the night together. There is a certain…air…about a couple that has recently consummated their relationship for the first time, especially if it is after an extended period of abstinence. Hmm. I do believe Lucia is not a virgin, but you, Dr. McCoy-”
“I am feeling very uncomfortable and like this maybe isn’t the most professionalist of conversations,” James squeaked.
Kal’tsit raised an eyebrow at him. “Indeed? Well, then we will move on. Hold out your hand, Lucia.”
Slowly, I did so, and Kal’stit swatted my wrist, like a teacher disciplining a student caught napping in class. “Do not do it again. You…James McCoy, why are you holding out your hand?”
“Well, I mean…if you’re going to do it to her, you should do it to me, too. I should have thought to use protection,” he said, sounding deeply embarrassed. Bless him.
Kal’tsit regarded him for a moment, then swatted the back of his hand as well. “Do be more cautious. Though if you wish to apply for maternity leave in the future, I will grant it.”
“WerenotthinkingofkidsrightnowandIdliketomovethiscoversationalongthankyouverymuch,” I blurted.
Kal’tsit’s lips…twitched. Was that a smile? Was she…was she teasing us? No. My eyes had to be playing tricks on me. Or she just had a nervous tick she’d never exhibited before.
“Returning to the topic for which I called you both in here for, Warfarin, bless her, has informed me that she believes the time has come for, and I quote, ‘Jimmy the Wunderkind to perform another miracle so I can get more actual data points than ‘fuck this actually works.’ Which I have interpreted to mean she is requesting you cure another case of oripathy. I have considered this, and decided to put it forth to the both of you. Sussuro, as you are what I consider to be McCoy’s case manager, and Bones himself as he is the one who is risking his own life to do so.”
Kal’tsit turned the screen behind her on, and pulled up the charts I had made showing James’ oripathy progression. “As this is your work, Dr. Sussurro, I would like to hear your analysis. I have read your reports, but for the sake of clarity, I would have you reiterate them.”
I stood up and walked around the desk, where I found a footstool waiting for me. Sometimes, the thoughtfulness that Director Kal’tsit shows surprises me. It’s not just that she thinks of things, it’s that she thinks of kindnesses so many others do not. I hopped up on the stool and used a laser pointer to gesture to the screen.
“We can see here a logarithmic progression of the oripathy. There are spikes where he’s cured people, but starting from this point on June 18th, 18 days ago now, there’s an initial slow decline, then it increases more as it falls. I think this is because oripathy multiplies, as we know, so as more is burned, the less it can replicate, and so, it falls off more steeply. It could also just be James’ increased mastery of arts and the fact he can use more before he goes into overload as his body gains a tolerance. Either way, this is good news.”
“Huh. I guess I am using more arts without needing to take a rest,” James mused. “That curve though…do you mean, I could eventually be entirely cured of oripathy?”
“Theoretically, yes, but we don’t actually know what will happen if you are. That’s because…next slide, please,” I said, and Kal’tsit advanced to an imaging of James’ body. “Your entire nervous system is now coated in originium. It’s even in your spinal column and up into your brainstem. That should have killed you. It didn’t. We’re even seeing granules in your brain, but they’re not behaving as they normally would. Indeed, the originium isn’t behaving normally in you at all. That said, it’s still causing complications. Those kidney stones are just one small sample of how they can cause problems. You’re also experiencing chronic pain throughout your body, especially in your hands and forearms where you have visible lesions.”
“So, I do have oripathy, but…it’s not normal? More like an artificial case, like the Abyssal Hunters,” James mused, then flushed. “Uh, that might be more weird alien knowledge.”
“Interesting you bring that up, because I had studied those cases as well,” I agreed. “Narcissa, that is, Rosmantis, is another, similar case to yours. Both of them had originium forcibly injected into their central nervous system. The brain stem in Narcissa’s case, the spinal column in Specter’s. Both of them have abilities far beyond the norm, as do you. And no, before you ask, not even Warfarin is considering more human trials of injecting originium into people’s nervous systems.”
“Though there are those unscrupulous enough to attempt it if this information were to become public. Which is, unfortunately, why this research will not be published,” Kal’tsit said.
I nodded, having accepted that long ago. “It’s fine, but we can use this here. Back to the original topic, based on your lowering levels, if you are ready, James, I think we can pick another case for you to cure. Unlike Warfarin’s suggestion, I would like you to pick someone with Stage 1 or early Stage 2 oripathy so you absorb a lower amount. If my hypothesis is correct, that would also allow you to regenerate your ability more quickly and be ready to cure someone else, instead of taking on a heavier load.”
“That sounds reasonable, I guess,” James said with a nod.
“We have also prepared some devices to assist you in curing. One is a machine that works similar to a hemodialysis device to pull the blood from the body and allow you to clean it that way, instead of having to yank it all out and manufacture new blood. It should put a lot less strain on you and the patient, and be less messy. Texas is tough enough she easily survived the process, but that won’t be the case for some of the more delicate patients.”
“Wait, if you have a dialysis machine…can’t it be used to treat oripathy? You could filter the crystals out of the blood,” James pointed out.
“It’s a treatment, and we do use it in some cases. The problem is twofold: One, there are never enough dialysis machines, and two, it’s a band-aid solution. It does pull originium out and slow the progress of the disease, but the real issue is that the infected organs where the originium is manufactured. You can permanently put someone on dialysis, but…well. There are complications to that. And in the end, it’s less effective than modern drugs, and costlier too.”
“I will not direct you to undertake this. The potential complications are great. While you have recovered each time, you have also undergone more and more intense symptoms. It may be wise to wait a little longer,” Kal’tsit said, steepling her fingers. “But such a choice is yours to make, Dr. McCoy.”
James looked at the data, then down at his palms, where the lesions were still clearly visible, if smaller than they had been. He made a pair of fists and stood up. “Right. Let’s do this. We’ll identify a patient and make a plan.”
“Warfarin suggested three days from now, that should give us plenty of time to select someone and prep them for surgery,” I said, hopping down off my stool. “I’ll make the arrangements, and we’ll look through a list of potential candidates tomorrow.”
“Could I…meet them?” James said, fidgeting slightly. “I know it’s a little silly, but…if I can meet them beforehand…I think maybe I’d be able to pick who to choose a little better.”
I bit my lip. Technically, that was bad medicine. You weren’t supposed to draw close to a patient. You weren’t supposed to pick who you treated based on how much you liked them or how good their sob story was.
But at the same time…this wasn’t normal medicine. Worse, it was also exactly the sort of thing James would say to make my heart gallop off before my mind could catch up.
“That can easily be arranged. You have access to the O Ward, and you are free to take a tour,” Dr. Kal’tsit said, then stabbed me in the back. “Dr. Sussurro has spent a great deal of time there and would make an excellent guide.”
Great. Thanks, mom. Just what I needed.
We stepped out of the director's office, where to my surprise, Texas was pressed up against the wall, ears laid back, eyes wide, her expression fearful. In front of her were a pair of teenage girls: Narcissa, who we had just been talking about, had her usual blank and somewhat languid expression on, and was dressed in her typical white dress with a Rhodes Island overcoat on.
The other teen was the source of Texas’s obvious nervousness. She looked like an ordinary, if somewhat ill-tempered, lupo teenager, with a red hoodie and blue jeans on. She had the hood back and was sniffing at Texas’s tail, which was making Texas rather paranoid.
“Red, stop it,” Narcissa said, her tone bored as usual. “You’re scaring her.”
“Want to fluff tail. Tail very fluff,” Red said in a sulking tone, but backed off, Texas kept her eyes on red, nostrils flaring slightly. “Besides. If she so scared, not make good candidate. Tell Chief she wrong, pick someone else.”
“Uh, hey you two, what are you doing here?” I said, stepping between Texas and Red. The way Texas relaxed made me feel about 20 centimeters taller. Me, the dainty little vulpo, protecting the big tough lupo from a little girl.
Well, not so little anymore. She’d grown to be taller than Texas at 171cm. Narcissa had sprouted as well, and was 158cm now. Not a giant to anyone but me, but she had been my height a few years ago…
“Chief send us get Texas,” Red said in her usual stilted Ursus. She looked longingly at my tail, and then at my face. “Please?”
“Oh, very well, but only a little,” I said, and extended my tail to the girl, who immediately rubbed her cheek against it and sighed in contentment. I glanced at James, who looked mildly jealous. Heh. Success. He was a true tail lover now.
“Sorry, Doctor Sussurro. We were sent on an errand to get Texas. We’ll need to borrow her for a bit,” Narcissa said in her monotone.
“Who?” Texas said, looking at the girls suspiciously.
“Wait, did Ascalon send you? Did Narcissa join SW-” James began. Then he was picked up off his feet by an invisible hand and smashed against the wall, where he started choking. Rosmontis didn’t even twitch. Just picked a full-grown man up and flung him about, and she didn’t so much as blink.
Texas had her beam saber out in a moment and was instantly dueling with Red. Fantastic.
“STOP!” I snapped. “Director Kal’tsit has given James and myself SWEEP level clearance! You can ask her right now!”
“Oh?” Rosmontis gently sent James down, but the two wolves were crouched down, snarling and slowly circling one another.
“Hey guys, I just went to the bathroom, but seriously, I do not want to shoot someone today, so can we like, chill?” Exusiai said brightly, stepping around the corner with her rifle at her shoulder, pointed right at Rosmontis.
Rosmontis glanced at the gun, but didn’t seem to care. Probably because she could stop bullets in midair as easily as she could pulp everyone in this hallway as an afterthought. “I will inquire.”
She opened the door, only to gasp and jump back as a giant green insectile demon forced its way into the hallway.
“Children,” Kal’tsit said, her tone cold as that nightmarish thing we call her Monst3r pinned down Rosmontis and Red both. “You were given a task. You are not to threaten Dr. McCoy, or his bodyguards. Texas. Deactivate your sword.”
Texas complied, though she didn’t look happy. Exusiai had grabbed James and put herself between him and everyone else, which was really the proper thing to do, even though he didn’t seem terribly happy about it. She’d also sensibly lowered her gun, but not put it away.
“Yes, Director,” Red whimpered. “Sorry, Director.”
“Sorry, Director,” Rosmantis echoed, though the tears made me think she was going back to being Narcissa.
Monst3r suddenly vanished, and the two girls got back up. I never can figure out where that creature goes. It can apparently be summoned in an eyeblink and vanish in just as little time. It’s no illusion, though: I’ve seen videos of Monst3r ripping apart Ursus Shield Guards and more as though their armor was made of tissue paper.
Kal’tsit turned to James, a look of irritation clouding her features. “Dr. McCoy. SWEEP is one of the many things you will keep to yourself, as well as its membership. Cellinia Texas: you are joining SWEEP. This is not a request.”
“What is…SWEEP?” Texas said, her eyes still looked on Red, who was now more or less ignoring her and her tail.
“Narcissa?” Kal’tsit prompted.
“SWEEP is Special Warrant Extermination and Elimination Protocol. We are the internal security for Rhodes Island, and guard its most important secrets. We eliminate internal threats to Rhodes Island, and assassinate external threats before they become an issue,” Narcissa recited, still in that robot voice of hers.
“Chief Ascalon is boss. You do what Chief says. Stop bad guys,” Red agreed with a nod. “Chief is secret though. Don’t tell.”
“It seems someone else needs a refresher on operational security,” Kal’tsit sighed, and Red instantly wilted. “No, do not cringe, child. James McCoy has…uniquely infuriating aspects to his personality. Cellinia: You will go with these two for induction.”
“You want me…to be an assassin?” Texas said, her eyes narrowed.
“You are to protect James McCoy. For that, you will need authorization to eliminate any threat to him. Including threats from inside Rhodes Island. To be able to identify such threats, you will require SWEEP level clearance. You will also be given authority to command lower-level SWEEP agents. Such as these two.”
“Texas…is boss?” Red asked, turning to Texas and tilting her head to one side.
“Yes, Red,” Kal’tsit said, and actually reached up to smooth back a bit of hair from her forehead. “Texas is…boss. Big sister. You will listen to her. She is wise, and skilled.”
“Red more skilled,” Red growled, baring her fangs.
“There are more skills than fighting, child. I think you will find her life experience to be similar to your own. What you could stand to learn from her is less the art of taking lives, and more the art of knowing how to do so…and still live one. My hope is that one day, you and Narcissa both will find the same kind of love and friendship that Cellinia Texas has.”
“Texas…Fang?” Red asked, sniffing the air again, though she was leaning in to Kal’tsit’s affectionate stroking, her tail wagging furiously.
“No,” Texas growled. “I am not one of the Signori dei Lupi’s pawns. As you are.”
“Mmm. Good. Red Fang. Red best at killing. Even better than boss. Even better than Rosmantis. Red best.” She paused, then glanced behind her at Kal’tsit, then sighed and said. “Director Mom better, though. Red still learning how to kill like her.”
To my shock, Kal’tsit…blushed. Then she bent down and kissed Red on the forehead, which made the girl’s tail wag. “You are the best, child. Now, go. Take Texas to Ascalon, and do as they say. Treat her as…your big sister.”
“Mmm. ‘kay.” Red turned around and walked off.
Rosmontis waited, watching Texas. The lupo in question turned to Exusiai. “You got this?”
“I got this, Cellinia. You…you do what you need to. But…only if you want to,” Exusiai said, sounding more than a little pained.
“Honor. Blood. Family. These are what I want. Perhaps this…is one step to finding them.” Texas turned and followed Red.
Rosmontis bowed to Kal’tsit. “Director. Doctors. Exusiai.” Then she followed after the other two.
“Scariest little red riding hood ever,” James muttered. I walked over, and kicked him.
“James! You do NOT set those two off! You should know that they’re ticking time bombs on legs!” I hissed.
“I, yeah. Sorry. Shouldn’t have mentioned SWEEP, I guess. That’s a secret, too?” He asked, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.
“SWEEP doesn’t exist. Do not mention it again,” Kal’tsit said firmly. “Unless we are alone. Do not speak to Ascalon. She is a janitor. A low-level janitor, who is bad at her job, and is somewhat dim, but is kept on out of charity.”
“Oh. Uh, it’s that kind of secret, huh?” James said.
“I didn’t even know it existed, or that we had internal secret police with the authorization to kill people,” I said, slowly turning to Kal’tsit. “Just how many of those suicides and accidents you or Warfarin have autopsied were intentional!?”
“I have not informed you SWEEP existed. And, as far as you are concerned, all those deaths were as described. You will not investigate this matter further,” Kal’tsit said firmly. Despite very definitely telling me about this earlier. Just what was I becoming a part of? Gods and monsters, demons and assassins? I signed up to be a doctor!
“We’re starting to sound like the bad guys again, boss,” James said, and he sounded as pained as I was.
“You may be good guys, James, Lucia, Lemuen. I, however, am an old, evil woman who has put entire nations to the sword. And I will do so again, if I must. A few more dead traitors at my feet are barely worth the mention. I am not good, nor am I just. I am instead what I must be. And in this case, I am the one who watches over Rhodes Island, and keeps her safe from all harm. So that good men and women like you may sleep at night with a clear conscience,” Kal’tsit said, and she actually sounded bitter. “Go to the O Ward. Be heroes. And forget what you have heard and seen here.”
“Director,” I began, feeling a bit guilty.
“No. Go. This is what must be,” Kal’tsit said, and walked back into her office, and closed the door.
We started walking, James sticking to my side like a limpet, Exusiai on his other side.
“So, um, you think maybe the Director needs to do a little trauma dumping herself?” James asked, which threw me for a bit of a loop.
“Honestly, yeah, probably. I mean, she’s as old as…uh, let’s just say dirt. Maybe we should take her for a picnic or something,” Exusiai said. “You know, let her unload and stuff. Does she like wine?”
“I…I don’t think I’ve ever seen her drink anything but water,” I admitted. “At staff parties, she stands in a corner and observes for a bit, then just leaves. Usually dragging Warfarin behind her once she’s sloshed or starts trying to get people to give her blood.”
“We’ll get her some box wine, old ladies love that stuff,” James said, and Exusiai and I just about died from snorting with laughter at the very thought. Box wine indeed. No proper Siracusan would ever be caught dead drinking that swill.
…which is why I drink mine in my room, alone, when I am crying to a good romance movie with Myrrh, and have sworn her to eternal secrecy on the matter, along with the fact that we also eat frozen pizza. The deepest, blackest heresy.
The O Ward is in the lower section of Rhodes Island, but set against the hull, where a large pane of windows has been installed. There are plenty of house plants set up, and comfortable couches in the lounge for those who are still ambulatory, while many of the rooms have access to sunlight. It’s a small mercy we can give them. Once you arrive in the O ward…you’re here until you die.
This wasn’t what I had planned, but it seemed the Director and Chief were both conspiring against me. As soon as we walked in, several patients who knew me looked up and smiled at me, calling out greetings, and I went over to say hello to them.
Age isn’t a good indicator of who ends up in the O Ward. Some were young, even children, but the mass of lesions on their bodies made it too painful to move far or fast. Others were older, with few visible lesions, but their organs were shutting down because many of their cells had been converted to originium.
I went over and said hello to them, asking quietly how they were. Most were happy just to see a familiar face, but one in particular…one in particular had been haunting my dreams.
“Hey, is that you, Doc?” Mok Ying said, smiling tiredly in my direction from her wheelchair in a patch of sunlight. “Come…come a little closer. I can’t…I can’t see you, anymore…”
I obliged, coming closer. Mok Ying is a 19-year-old cautus from Lungmen, who had previously been a petty thief. She has been with Rhodes Island for 3 years. When she arrived, she was suffering from malnutrition and advanced oripathy. Despite the lack of visible lesions, she had some of the highest cell integration I’ve seen, at 18%. She was placed on treatment immediately. For a year, it seemed that Mok Ying was responding to treatment.
Then, disaster. On a routine deployment in Rim Billington, Mok Ying was exposed to originium dust particles when her safety gear was breached during a rescue operation for trapped miners. Mok Ying saved dozens of lives before she collapsed. I know. I was there, with her. I treated her condition as quickly as I could.
I wasn’t fast enough. For the past year, Mok Ying has resided in the O Ward. I crouched down at her side and checked her monitor. It was off. I attempted to flick it back on, but Mok wheezed a laugh around the oxygen tubes going up her nose.
“They…they turned it off. Won’t stop beeping. Today…today is my last day,” she said, her voice breathy and tired. “I’m gonna…gonna go to Sleep, tonight. Will you…will you be the one who puts me to Sleep, Doc? And sing for me, in that pretty voice of yours? That’s…that’s the last thing I want to hear.”
Tears blurred my vision, and I squeezed Mok’s hands. “There’s someone I want you to meet, Ying.”
“Yeah? Oh, is it the tall, handsome guy? I assume he is, he sounds tall and handsome. You…you finally get a boyfriend, Doc?” Ying whispered.
“Hey. I’m James,” he said, crouching next to me and taking Ying’s hand.
“Come…come a little closer, so I can feel your face. I can’t…I can’t see anymore,” Ying said, and James obliged. But, of course, instead of feeling his face, she reached down to his lab coat, and swiped his ID card. She already had mine stuffed under her hospital gown.
James watched her clumsily palm it, but didn’t say anything. Instead, he took her empty hand, and moved it up to his face, letting her feel it.
“Ooo, he’s a handsome one, Doc. Don’t…don’t you let this one go,” Ying sighed. “Always…always wanted a handsome boyfriend…”
“I’m afraid you can’t have this one, Ying. He’s mine,” I said, trying and failing not to let my voice break.
“Ying? Is that…is that you?” Exusiai said, and came over with us.
Ying’s face lit up, though her milky eyes didn’t track Exusiai’s face. “Lil’ Sankta! It’s you? Here…here to chase me for stealing another package? Darn. Ya caught me. I…”
She started coughing, flecks of blood and bits of originium coming up. James and I took her hands, and after a few moments, she stopped.
“It’s…it’s OK. I’m…I’m going to Sleep…soon,” Ying whispered.
“You’re Rope, aren’t you?” James said, and I could hear the pain in his voice.
“Yep! That’s…that’s me. The best…the best cat burglar in…Lungmen. I…I hurt, doc. Can…can you give me a little more?” Ying suddenly begged.
With misty eyes, I turned up her morphine drip. At her stage, we don’t worry about addiction. Besides, she was asking me to give her a fatal dose that night. That’s what we mean when we say that someone in the O Ward is ‘going to Sleep.’ Oripathy is always terminal. At some point, people stop fighting. When they do, when they’re ready…we give them a lethal dose of morphine in a sterile cremation chamber. Once they’re dead, their body will turn to originium dust. The organic remains are incinerated, and the originium that remains…it’s taken to the heart of Rhodes Island, and used to fuel the landship.
I know. Some would consider it barbaric. We the infected consider it one last gift we can give our fellows: Our very hearts and souls, given to the Island, that the fight can continue. One day, I had expected that to be me.
“Lucia,” James said quietly. “A word?”
I nodded. I knew what he would say, but I nodded. We stepped over to a private office. Exusiai posted herself by the door, but James shook his head. “No. You…you come in with us.”
We all went inside and sat down. James put his head in his hands, and I sat beside him, putting my arms around him.
“You know her,” I said, and it wasn’t a question.
He nodded. “Rope. She…oh God. I thought…in the game…she was fine…”
“She’s always looked fine. A very rare case. Even now, she has barely any visible lesions. But her BOCD is up to .81u/L. Her cell integration…it’s at 23%. It’s a miracle she’s still alive. And…” My voice hitched. “And…and she wants me to euthanize her tonight, after I sing her a lullaby. When…when we were on deployment together…I used to sing with her. She had a lovely voice…”
“I used to run into her in Lungmen. I’d let her steal ‘packages’ with a little food and money in them,” Exusiai said, stripping and cleaning her gun, eyes fixed on her work. “Didn’t even know she was infected. She kept it quiet. During the crisis…she helped evacuate civilians and then fight back against Reunion. Joined Rhodes Island for treatment, shocked me.”
“She’s still got our ID cards,” James said, looking down at his lab coat. “She…she takes them in the game too. I just…this is all becoming too real. First you two, now Rope…Ying…” He put his head back in his hands.
I swallowed. “I know…I know I said a stage one or two patient. But…she’s my friend too. If…if you can save her…”
There were so many others here I cared about. Other patients, other friends. Ying was just the first one we ran into. But today was her last day. Her last chance.
“I do what I did with you,” James said, lowering his hands and looking up at me. “I don’t cure her. We scrub her blood with the hemodialysis machine. I clean up her internal organs as much as I can, but not all the way. She might only get one kidney, and no spleen. Just enough to keep her functional. Maybe we come back, maybe we don’t. Not a cure. But enough so that Ying…Ying doesn’t have to go to Sleep tonight.”
I nodded slowly. “That…that sounds like a plan. But we can’t wait three days. Maybe not even three hours. Ying…Ying doesn’t have very long. Even if we don’t euthanize her…she probably won’t make it through the night. She’s fought hard for a very long time.”
“Do it. Make the calls. I…I’ll go get our ID cards back,” James said, and Exusiai had her gun back together in a flash as she followed him out.
I took a deep breath, then went over to the phone and dialed a special number. A moment later, a chipper Cautus voice said, “Yes? Who is this?”
“Savage, it’s Dr. Sussurro. Priority one call to Leader Amiya,” I said. “It’s urgent enough to interrupt anything that isn’t an existential threat.”
“Oh! Oh, yes, I was told to expect your call. One moment. Amiya! Amiya, priority one from Dr. Sussurro!”
A heartbeat later, and Amiya said. “Yes?”
“We need to move up Bones’ next demonstration. As much as possible. I’ll call and clear out an OR. It’s…it’s Mok Ying. She…she’s going to Sleep tonight, if we don’t do something.”
“I understand. Consider my schedule cleared. I’ll have the team meet you in medical. Thank you, Lucia. You and James…I hope you can save another life.”
I nodded, tears in my eyes. “Me too. Rhodes Island…we’re not a company. Not really.”
“No. We’re family. Get moving. I’ll be there.”
I made a couple more hurried calls and then hung up on a swearing Warfarin. I didn’t give a damn. It was happening now.
I hurried back out to find James kneeling by Ying. “...so we’ll take you for one last walk. How does that sound?”
“Ooo, don’t tell Doc. She’s the jealous type,” Ying said, her gaze looking just to the right of James, but a smile on her lips. “It…it sounds good, though. One last walk. Then…then I can…I can Sleep…”
I got behind her wheelchair, even as a concerned-looking nurse came up. “Dr. Sussurro?”
“We’re taking Ying. She…she needs…she needs one last walk, before…”
“Before my goodbye party!” Ying said, then coughed up more blood.
The nurse nodded, tears in his own eyes. “You…you do that. I…yes. She’s scheduled for…for this evening. She’d requested you, but…I’d told her you were busy…”
“Never too busy for a friend,” I said, and we pushed Ying’s wheelchair towards the door.
“Oh, by the way,” Ying said, and clumsily held out our ID cards. “You dropped these.”
“Darn, how’d I misplace that,” James said, gently taking the cards and handing me back mine.
“It’s…it’s a secret,” Ying sighed, then dozed off on a cloud of morphine. I had to check her monitor to make sure she was still alive.
When we arrived back at the main hospital level, things were in a flurry, and happening fast. James and I got prepped for surgery, while the still sleeping Ying was wheeled away to be prepped herself. Warfarin and Kal’tsit suited up along with us, and to my surprise, so did Amiya.
“I want to be in there for this one. I didn’t get a proper look at your arts last time, Dr. McCoy. This time, I want to be able to see what you do,” Amiya told him.
“You got it, Boss. Though the plan isn’t for me to cure her,” he said, and laid out what we’d briefly discussed.
“Hmm, well, it’s not what I wanted, but I think it’ll work for a data point,” Warfarin said, crossing her arms over her chest. “It’ll at least be amusing, that’s for sure. Whatcha think, Kal?”
“I think it is reasonable. Mok Ying’s case is too advanced for Dr. McCoy to safely cure her. However, even an alleviation of her symptoms could yield valuable data. Perhaps more so, as it would allow us to develop other therapies. Additionally, it will preserve his abilities to potentially cure more people. This is a well-reasoned plan.”
The last to join our team was Myrtle, who looked thrilled to be back and involved in the most exciting operation, but was keeping quiet. We reviewed Mok’s case, where the infection was the worst, and then we went into surgery.
Ying was laid out on the table. She wasn’t sedated: her condition was too delicate for that, though the amount of morphine she was on meant she would hardly feel pain, regardless, and she was currently insensate. She was hooked up to a modified hemodialysis machine, which was pumping out her blood and putting it back in for now.
“Right. Making first incision,” James said. We were starting with the major organs: Heart, lungs, liver, and the right kidney, which was still functional, unlike the left, which was completely crystallized.
The surgery lasted for hours. Kal’stit and Warfarin stepped in and helped with healing arts so James could preserve his stamina. He had to take several breaks even so, rehydrating with some apple juice and catching his breath so he didn’t go into arts overdose. Slowly, he removed then regrew all of Ying’s organs, save the spleen, which was nothing but a crystal lump. He even replaced one of her eyes, though the other we agreed to give up as a bad job, and simply removed and discarded it. James was running out of gas, and Ying getting one eye back was better than nothing.
Then, once she was sewn back up, he purified most of her blood. Not all of it, the hemodialysis machine had done a good bit of lifting on that front, but he laboriously filtered what the machine was going to pump back in, regardless, taking out every last crystal.
I watched his own pain grow. His right hand grew so crystallized it became useless, and I had to hold the knife for him. I watched one of his eyes cloud over as crystals grew within it. I watched him sweat actual blood, there at the end, when I forcibly called it.
Ying was not cured. She lost one kidney, one eye, her spleen, and we amputated both her feet below the knees, as her feet had nearly completely crystallized from originium pooling there. James insisted on rebuilding her arms and hands, and we agreed to let him. She can get prosthetic feet, Rhodes Island has the very best. She may even walk again, or simply use her wheelchair.
But, instead of going to sleep, at the end of the surgery, while I was holding a near-comatose James in my arms…Ying woke up.
Her eye fluttered open, and she looked around. “What’s…what’s everybody doin’? Did…did you come to say goodbye to little ole me? I’m going to Sleep tonight, you know.”
“No, Ying,” Amiya said, taking her hand. “You’re not.”
Ying’s brow furrowed. “But, Leader Amiya…I’m dying. I just…I hurt so much. I’m ready for it to be over.”
“Are you? Do you still hurt?” Amiya asked seriously.
Ying opened her mouth, then closed it. She looked down at herself, blinking in surprise. “I…I can see! Sacred blood of the Sui, I can SEE! I don’t even hurt anymore! Not that bad! What, what did you-”
Her eye snapped to James, and her mouth fell open. “It’s him. He…he’s the one. The…the Savior.”
“Not…not a Savior,” James slurred. “Just…just a doctor. Call me Bones.”
“Lie down, Ying,” Kal’tsit ordered, and pressed her back. “We still have some healing to do. But you will not find eternal rest this day. You will fight on.”
Teary-eyed, Ying complied, a grin on her face. “I…I’m not going to die?”
“No. Today, someone stood up to the god of death, and told him to go fuck himself,” Warfarin said, a manic grin on her face.
We put James in the waiting wheelchair. Now it was his turn to be wheeled to a hospital bed.
“You are relieved from all duties,” Amiya said, putting a hand on my shoulder. “Stay with him. He will need you.”
“I…thank you,” I said, and hurried out with James. I couldn’t help but notice, however, that Amiya held up a hand, and arts crackled between her fingertips. What was she doing? What was she planning?
I didn’t have time to think, even as we passed the Doctor. They strode alongside us for a moment, nodding to James, who blinked up at them, his one good eye struggling to focus.
“Doktah?” he mumbled. “That…that you?”
“It’s me, Bones. You did good. But we need to talk. Later. For now…you did good. What I saw…we’ll talk later. Good work.”
Then, inscrutable as ever, Doctor wandered off to do…whatever it is they do.
James was ensconced in a hospital bed, and I performed an exam. After I pushed morphine, which relaxed him considerably. He’d lost sight in his left eye. I felt hot tears on my face. “James…you didn’t have to…”
“No. But I wanted to. Just…stay with me, please? It’s…it’s so dark. You’re the only light I can see,” he mumbled.
With words like that, I’d stay by his side even if the whole landship caught fire. He was soon asleep, but I wasn’t. I held onto his hand, my mind spinning with possibilities. There was so much to learn, so much to do, but…but it wasn’t medical possibilities in my mind.
Maybe I wouldn’t start taking that birth control after all.
I’m such an idiot.
But I don’t know how long James will be with me. And I want something of him.
Saints and angels, I’m so stupid. Why couldn’t I fall in love with a normal one?
THE ADVENTURES OF LIGHTNING PRINCESS AMI: PART 1: MONDSTADT
Groaning, Ami sat up and blinked bleary-eyed around at her surroundings. Where was she? It had been Aether and Lumine’s going-away party, and she’d only had one or two beers that Caelus and Stelle had snuck into the palace. Or had it been five or six? After the first two, it was hard to remember.
“M-Murasaki-san?” Ami groaned as she clutched at her head, squeezing her eyes shut from the harsh sun overhead.
A moment later, her familiar popped into existence next to her. “At your side, my lady.”
“Which way back to the palace?” Ami asked as she shakily got to her feet. The grey stones about her were cool, but not familiar, nor were the wooden and plaster buildings around her. This didn’t look like Tokyo.
“Ah. About that, Mistress. I am…currently unable to locate your abode,” Murasaki confessed.
“Huh?” she blinked stupidly at Murasaki, who floated in front of her, looking slightly guilty. “What do you mean? Is your GPS not working or something?”
“I do not have GPS, Mistress,” Murasaki sniffed. “I merely use the Sakura Network to tap into ambient wifi and-”
Ami’s eyes crossed slightly. She did that on purpose when Murasaki rambled on.
“...and yes, I have GPS,” he admitted. She smirked. Of course he did. “However, it is…currently offline. I cannot locate the Sakura Network.”
“Huh? Are we not in Japan or something?” Ami crept down the alleyway and peaked out, Muraskai stealthily clinging to the wall just above her. They seemed to be in a street of some sort with cobblestones and wooden vendor stalls, where people called their wares. There were planters and barrels full of colorful flowers everywhere, and the clothing people wore looked like something out of Europe of the Renaissance period. They were speaking something that sounded a bit like German, but only if you were gargling while you spoke it.
“Concentrate,” Ami told herself, closing her eyes. She channeled that spark of her mother that was always inside her now, then opened her eyes again and listened as hard as she could.
“Fruit, fresh fruit! Here at Quinn’s stall! Get your Sunsettia and grapes, fresh from Dawn Winery!”
“Flowers! Freshly picked! Calla Lilly, Lamp Grass, Cecilia, Windwheel Aster, and Sweet flowers! Get something for that special someone today!”
“Smoked boar meat, from Springvale! We’ve got jerky, sausage, and steaks too! Get some before it’s gone!”
Ami ducked back into the alleyway, and let out a squeal. “Murasaki-san! Do you know what this means!?”
“They appear to be speaking a dialect of German, my lady, but I do not recognize-”
“WE’RE IN TEYVAT! WE GOT ISEKAI’D!” Ami shrieked, grabbing Murasaki and spinning him about herself in delight. She stepped out of the alleyway on accident, and-
THUD.
Someone who had been running down the street slammed right into Ami, bowling her and Murasaki right over. Dazed, and still rather hung over with the wind knocked out of her, Ami lay in a crumpled heap for a moment.
“Darn it! My stupid luck! Miss, Miss, are you OK? Oh, do I need to get a sister or a doctor?! This would happen to me…”
Groaning, Ami let herself be helped up by an earnest looking boy. He had on a loose vest and shorts, and had on a thick pouch. He also had goggles from his forehead, and from his belt dangled-
“A Pyro Vision!? Then it is true! I have traveled to the Land of Teyvat!” Ami exclaimed, jumping to her feet. She posed dramatically, taking out an eyepatch and slipping it on. “Behold, the one who stands before you now is none other than the Inazuma no Himigimi, Raiden Ami! She who has traveled across time and space, and has appeared once more in the land of her forebearers! Speak, mortal, and give me your name!”
The boy scratched his head and gave Ami a shy grin. “Oh. Are you one of Fischl’s friends? I, uh, I read the Heilige Edikte der Verurteilung, but I don’t understand it all…”
“The Holy Edicts of Condemnation? Hmm, that sounds like a most fascinating tome. But, I note you have failed to introduce yourself to me, mortal! Do not think that this rudeness will go unnoticed!”
“Oh!” The boy blushed and extended his right hand. “I’m Bennet! But you can call me Benny, everyone does.”
Ami took his hand and shook it in the Western manner with imperial dignity. Then she grinned like a maniac. “Tell me, Bennet of Teyvat, whence have I arrived!? I have traveled across stars and galaxies, between the very fabric of the universe itself, but I know not the name of the local in which I have landed!”
“Uh, are you asking where you are? I really need to find Fischl…but you’re in Mondstadt City! Come on, I was just on my way to Good Hunter to meet Fischl and Mona for lunch, then we’re going on an Adventure! She can probably understand you.”
“Hmm. I will consent to break my fast with you, for I have not supped since I departed the far-off land of Earth Bet, the land of Gods and Demons, where the Sacred Sakura blooms under the care of my mother,” Ami said, once more striking a pose.
“Uh, OK. This way!” Benny said, and headed up the street.
Ami hurried after him, grinning widely around at everything they passed. She had always dreamed of visiting Teyvat! And now, to find herself in the domain of Lord Barbatos, the Anemo Archon! Wait…
“Tell me, Bennet of Mondstadt, you know of Lord Barbatos? Is he yet present in his realm?” Ami asked curiously.
“Huh? I mean, I guess? You’d have to ask the Sisters about that one. Barbara would probably know,” Benny said with a shrug.
“And what of the Raiden Shogun? Does she yet rule in Inazuma, or has she departed for realms unknown?”
Benny gave her a helpless look. “Uh, I don’t know? I could ask around, but- Oh, hey! Hey Fischl! I brought a friend, can you help her? I think she’s lost!”
“Hmm?” a girl who could have been Ami’s twin looked up from a menu she was perusing. Her hair style was EXACTLY like that of Ami, with twin pony tails on top, and long in the back. Her eyes were green instead of Ami’s purple, but her dark purple dress looked a lot like some of the costumes Ami usually wore, though at the moment she had on a red and purple kimono. “Sir Bennet, doest thou bring before us a supplicant, who seeks the wisdom of the Prinzessen der Verurteilung?”
Oh ho? Royalty? Ami knew exactly what to do in this circumstance.
“BEHOLD!” she bellowed, stretching her hand to the sky and calling down a bolt of lightning to dramatically strike her fingertips. Murasaki-san heard his cue, and immediately grew larger, turning into a dog-sized qilin and rising up behind Ami while he crackled with power.
“Oh Lord,” the woman in the big witch hat beside Ami’s twin groaned, burying her head in her hands. “There are two of them.”
Ignoring the comments from the peanut gallery, Ami continued, “I AM THE NIHON NO HIMEGIMI, RAIDEN AMI! SHE WHO HAS CROSSED GALAXIES AND STARS, AND WHO’S FATED ARRIVAL HAS LONG BEEN FORETOLD!”
The girl who looked like Ami’s eyes sparkled, and her Electro Vision flashed. Not to be outdone, she leapt atop the table, making her companion scream in shock and frustration. “OZ, TO ME!”
“AT YOUR SIDE, MEIN FRAULEIN!” a great raven declared, appearing in a burst of thunder and spreading his wings behind his mistress.
“FUFUFUFU! BEHOLD, I AM FISCHL, THE PRINZESSEN DER VERURTEILUNG! SHE WHO HAS CREATED ANOTHER UNIVERSE, AND FOUNDED PARADISE!”
Both girls grinned like maniacs at one another. Ami estimated the Fischl was no more more than four years older than she, looking like a young adult instead of a middle school student like Ami. It was hard to tell with Vision Holders sometimes, but Ami was getting better at judging the age of souls, and that felt about right.
People in the street paused and glanced at Ami and Fischel, and Ami half expected someone to scream for the guards. Instead, she heard, “Oh, it’s just Amy. Looks like she’s made another friend.”
“I heard she’s joined Bennet’s Adventure team. Good for her.”
Fischl blushed at hearing that, jumping off the table and landing in front of Ami. She too had on an eyepatch, though Ami could sense neither of them required one. “Hmm, and who art thou, child of distant stars? Have you heard of my wisdom, and come to seek succor and aid from me?”
“FUFUFUFU!” Ami laughed, putting her hand to her mouth. “I can see that you are wise and mighty, Princess Fischl! Perhaps my mother has sent me here, that I may learn your ways! But first, I must seek out Lord Barbatos, and receive his blessing, so that I might stay in his city!”
“Hmm, hmm, indeed. And who art thy mother, Princess Ami?” Fischel asked, grinning broadly.
“Her Imperial Excellency, the Raiden Shogun!” Ami declared proudly, and thrust out her meager chest. Fischel was also a member of the Flat is Justice club.
Fischl sighed, glanced around, and collared Ami suddenly, dragging her off to one side.
“Look, I get it, it’s tempting to claim parentage from an Archon, or a Shade, or something cool like that,” Fischel whispered. “But, you just can’t do that. That’s why I picked Flowers for Princess Fischl for my background. Not a lot of people have read it, and you don’t get anyone angry. I did claim parentage from the Raiden Shogun for a week, until someone from Inazuma started throwing rocks at me for blasphemy. If that won’t do, look up an ancient god who’s been dead for a thousand years and has no more worshipers. That’s still really interesting as a backstory, but you’re less likely to end up with bruises.”
At first, Ami was a little confused by Fischl’s advice, but by the end of it, she was outraged. “But I AM the daughter of the Raiden Shogun! Murasaki-san, back me up!”
“Hmm? Oh yes, Mistress, quite. So, does yours make you do her laundry as well?”
Murasaki, the little traitor, was sitting at a separate table with Oz the raven. Both had cups of tea in front of them, and were completely ignoring their rightful mistresses!
“Yes, and she’s terrible at putting it away, too. She’d just leave her dirty underwear everywhere if it wasn’t for me, and would never bother hanging up her dresses,” Oz the Raven confided to Fischl’s horror.
“O-Oz!” Fischl gasped, going beet-red.
“Sorry, Mein Fraulin. I’m on break. This most excellent gentleman and I have a great deal to discuss,” the bird said with a respectful bow of his head.
“Murasaki-san! I, I do not make you- don’t tell anyone!” Ami said, feeling deeply embarrassed.
“I have to proofread all of her fanfic. She’s terrible with grammar, you know. Years of schooling, but it’s in one ear, out the other,” Murasaki sighed.
“I know what you mean. Amy is endlessly coming up with her adventures, and I am her ever present audience Lately, they’ve been quite steamy, you know.”
“OZ!” Ami shrieked.
“On break, Mein Fraulein. You can manage without me for an hour or two,” Oz said, sipping from his teacup. Was he really using his wings like that? How odd.
Ami and Amy slunk over to the table where Mona and Bennet were waiting for them. Both hid behind a menu, ears burning with shame.
“So. Now you know what it’s like,” Mona said, looking smug.
“Do your familiars betray you, too?” Fischl muttered.
“What? No, I meant…of course. That display brings no shame, but Oz mentions you make him clean your clothes for you…” Mona sighed, then glanced over at Ami, who was peaking over her menu. “And what’s your name, dear?”
“I told you, I’m Raiden Ami,” she muttered. “Raiden is my family name, Ami’s my given name.”
“You cannot honestly expect us to believe you’re the daughter of the Raiden Shogun,” Mona said, shaking her head, and Fischel gave Ami an “I Told You So” look.
“...I’m adopted,” Ami mumbled, hot tears coming to her eyes.
“Aww, come on guys, she’s lost! I think she’s really from Inazuma, I recognize her clothes. They were clothes like that in Inazuma,” Bennet said with a helpful grin.
Ami shot him a grateful look, while Fischel harumphed and stuck her nose in the air. “And here I had come to believe you and I shared a special bond, Sir Bennet! Now, a new floozy flounces in front of you, and all thoughts of what was between us vanish in favor of the new flower that has caught thine eyes?”
“Huh?” Bennet turned to Mona, who was sipping at her own cup of tea.
“She wants you to ask her out, that’s why she agreed to join your team in the first place,” Mona said primly.
“Wait, really? But, that can’t be right,” Bennet said, even as Fischel made choking sounds and stretched her fingers towards Mona as if to strangle her. The witch crossed her legs and steadfastly ignored the antics. “I always have bad luck…”
“Hmm, well, things do seem to be turning around for you. Now, shall we eat? I was told that this lunch would be charged to the team expense account,” Mona said primly.
“Oh, yeah! I got a budget for it and everything,” Benny said, digging out a bag of clinking coins. He glanced at Ami, who was still feeling wounded, and smiled shyly. “Uh, you can join our team too, if you want. Are you an Adventurer? Can you fight?”
That offended Ami on a spiritual level. She lept back to her feet, reaching between her breasts, and grasped before pulling. “YOU DARE QUESTION THE MARTIAL MIGHT OF SHE WHO IS THE DAUGHTER OF THE LIGHTNING GENERAL!?”
With a flourish, Ami drew out her Mother’s sword and held it high. The sky overhead darkened, and purple lightning flashed while thunder rumbled. “BEHOLD! THE MUSOU ISSHIN! THE DIVINE BLADE CRAFTED BY ETERNITY! I AM THE DIVINE VESSEL OF THIS BLADE, CHOSEN BY MY OTHER TO ADJUDICATE HER WILL UPON THE MORTAL REALM!”
She pulled down some lightning, which roared down and struck the blade, coursing through Ami as she grinned in delight at the looks of sheer shock on her companion’s faces. She dismissed the storm overhead with a wave, then grinned broadly. Using her sword, she sliced off a bit of bread from the loaf on the table, using lightning to toast it at the same time. She then flipped the toast into her hand, and took a bite.
“I have been known to be somewhat skilled at combat, yes,” she said with a wink.
Fischel swallowed, then stood up slightly shakily. Then her resolve firmed. With a flourish, she produced a purple and ebony bow from her Vision. “This is the Mitternachts Waltz! Carved from the branches of the tree of time, and forged under the broken moon, it was made to serve the Prinzessen of the Immernachtreich!”
Ami nodded approvingly. She could tell it was quality workmanship, though obviously not nearly so potent as her own sword. Not wanting to shove it back into her chest just yet, it always tingled when she did that, Ami leaned the sword against her chair and sat back down.
“Uh, Mona? Are you…are you sure she’s not, you know, what she says?” Bennet said in an overly loud whisper.
“I…I could Scry her, I just…it’s so ridiculous. Surely, it’s like what Fischl says.”
“Huh?” Benny blinked at Mona, when just then, Ami sensed a presence and turned.
A familiar bard in green garb was puffing as he jogged up, looking rather worried. He spotted Ami’s sword and his eyes went wide. Blushing, Ami hastily picked up her mother’s blade, then hurried over to the bard and fell to one knee, bowing her head.
“Lord Barbados, this humble one requests your forgiveness for her…exuberant- YIP!”
Ami squeaked as the Anemo Archon grabbed her and hauled her into a nearby alleyway. “Hey, Benny, Fischel, Mona! Sorry about my friend, just gotta have a quick chat with her!”
“Venti? What are you doing to that poor girl?” Mona said, half standing.
“Oh, let him take the little show off. How’d she manage that trick with the sword?” Fischl muttered, looking distinctly unhappy.
“I think your bow is pretty cool, too,” Benny offered, and Fischel immediately brightened and leaned closer to the poor boy, who blushed and stammered as she cooed for further compliments.
Ami, on the other hand, was shoved into the Alleyway, where a curtain of wind sprang up to keep away prying eyes and ears.
“Right, first things first, welcome to Mondstadt!” Venti said brightly.
“Um, thank you, Lord Barbatos,” Ami said, clutching her mother’s sword tightly.
“Second, and I do mean this in the most polite way possible, but what in the name of the Four Shades do you THINK YOU ARE DOING!?” Venti hissed, leaning in close to Ami, who shrank back.
“Um…introducing myself?” Ami offered hopefully. “It just…it seemed appropriate…”
Venti looked at her for a moment, searching her face. Then he slammed his palm into his face and slowly dragged it down, ruining his features. “Ei, you are killing me. Is this your idea of diplomacy?”
“Um, I don’t think, that is…my mother maybe doesn’t…know I’m here?” Ami squeaked.
Venti gave her a flat look. “Of course, she doesn’t. I assume you just stole her sword and wandered over to Mondstadt?”
“What?! No! Of course not! She gave it to me to keep it safe for her!” Ami said, aghast. She then blushed, and hastily shoved the sacred blade back into her chest. “She, um, she maybe didn’t want me to, ah, use it to show off and make myself toast…”
“Probably not,” Venti sighed. He shook his head. “Look, I’m not Lord Barbatos. I’m Venti the Bard. Understand?”
Ami shook her head. “Aren’t you both?”
“I…how do you know that, anyway?”
“You were on TV?”
“Fascinating. I can tell this is going to be delightful! I do mean that seriously, by the way. Well, since you’re not here to level my city, maybe keep the sword put away. Try and use something less… wrath of god and more wrath of you. Also, I’m Venti. Me being Barbatos…I try to keep that quiet, understand?”
“Of course, Lord Venti.”
“Seriously, it’s just Venti.”
Venti snapped his fingers and the wind curtain vanished, and he escorted her back to the table, where Benny grinned at them, Fischl glared daggers at Ami, and Mona rolled her eyes. “Hey everyone! Thinking of going on an Adventure?”
“Yeah! We were going to clear out a Hilicurl camp!” Benny said excitedly.
“Mmm, it does pay well,” Mona said, sipping at her tea.
“Great! Well, I have an idea: How about you take a commission from me!” Venti said brightly.
“From you? You’re the town drunk. Whyever would we take a commission from you?” Mona said, looking utterly bored by the prospect.
Ami looked at Mona with sheer horror. “You would disrespect Lord- Um, Venti? Knight of, er, Eurovision?”
Venti winced at first, then laughed as Ami struggled to pick up the ball. “Yep, that’s me! Knight of Eurovision! Listen, my friend Ami here has wandered far from home, and she needs to get back. I was thinking of paying the three of you to escort her there.”
“Really? A quest?” Benny said excitedly, and Fischel glared at him before smiling sweetly at Venti.
“Oh, Venti, we wouldn’t dream of-”
“Hold on a moment. Before we do anything foolish, I’m scrying the girl,” Mona said firmly. “Give me your hand, dear.”
Ami held out her hand, which Mona casually examined while sipping at her tea. Then she got a better look at the palm, and the teacup slipped out of her hand and clattered to the table, spilling its contents everywhere. She stood up, grabbing Ami’s hand and yanking it closer as she looked at it front and back. Then she frantically dropped Ami’s hand and searched through her bag until she found a blue orb, into the depths of which she peered.
“No, no, no, that’s impossible, it can’t be!” Mona muttered, her hands fluttering over the orb.
“Mona?” Fischl asked, turning to peer into the orb. However, Mona hastily put it away, then folded her hands and smiled at Ami. Only one of her eyes was twitching, and she appeared to be having a panic attack.
“Y-Your royal, um, highness. How can we of Bennet’s Adventure team be of service today?”
“I wish to join you in your crusade to destroy this hilichurl camp!” Ami said immediately.
Venti sighed. “I suppose a young woman has to have some excitement in her life…alright, but just one, mind. I’m writing a letter to a certain old man at a funeral parlor. Then tomorrow, you’re heading to Liyue harbor, and we’re getting you back to Inazuma as fast as possible.”
“Mona?” Fichl said, tilting her head to one side. “What did you-”
Mona grabbed Fischel and hauled her under the table, though everyone could still hear what she was saying.
“Look, she’s not interested in your future husband!”
“Future- what!? Mona, you said-”
“Stop acting like an alley cat in a bag! She’s the real deal! She’s not pretending!”
“What do you mean? She says she’s Raiden’s Adopted daughter!”
“SHE IS! I just scried her, and suffice to say, THAT ONE is going to become a god in a very short amount of time. Just like her mother! The Raiden Shogun!”
Ami immediately grinned. “Ha! I knew it! You won’t be the only one in the sky, Tsu! I shall become the goddess of stars, streaking across the sky in-”
Mona popped her head up. “No! No, you will not! You’ll- never mind. I won’t spoil it. Just…ugh. Forget what I said.”
“H-Husband?!” Benny said, looking as pale as a sheet. Fischl suddenly locked eyes with him.
“Mona,” Venti sighed, massaging his forehead with his fingers. “Should you really be telling your friends which of them are going to hook up?”
“Normally, no, but I’m a tad bit worked up, Venti! The next thing you know, Lord Barbatos himself is going to come down and demand to have tea with me!” Mona huffed, crawling back into her seat.
“Hmm,” Venti said, and sipped at his teacup. Ami let herself grin. Oh, this was very funny. No wonder the Hydro Archon was hiding herself.
…Maybe she could do it herself too. The problem would be Murasaki. Maybe if he were Red like Mushu? Not uncle Mushu, cartoon Mushu.
After lunch, paid for by a very flustered Bennet, they did indeed go and clear out a camp of Hilichurls.
“Right, everyone, Benny’s Adventure team, assemble!” Bennet said as they stood before the crude wooden gates.
“Oz, to me!” Fischel said, stepping up beside Benny. Oz, however, was still on break, and Fischl blushed when she remembered.
“The tides of Fate turn against our foes,” Mona said, then winced at her own words. “Barbatos help me, you lot are rubbing off on me.”
“WITNESS NOW, THE FINAL CALAMITY!” Ami bellowed, and drew her mothers sword. “SACRED ART: MUSOU SHINSETSU!”
Ami had, sadly, not mastered the sublime art of the Musano Hitotachi.
That was fortunate. As it was, the entire hillside that the hilichurls had made their camp on was carved in half. Then it exploded.
“Ha!” Ami grinned, and turned to her three companions, who were staring at her, gobsmacked. “That was easy! They barely put up a fight! Come, let us see if we can find another!”
“Do you believe me now?” Mona muttered as Ami strode merrily along towards the next hilichurl camp.
“Maybe she really is the Raiden Shogun’s daughter,” Fischl said with a shake of her head.
“How are we gonna find any treasure if she just obliterates it?” Benny said, scratching his chin.
Back in Monstadt, Murasaki sighed, and shook his head as the ground shook and the sky discolored. “At it again, I see.”
“She seems like quite the handful,” Oz observed. “Just like mine. Always in trouble, that one. Did I ever tell you about the time we traveled to a mysterious isle, and her evil twin plunged my people into darkness and chaos?”
With all her strength, Taylor brought down her katana in a slicing motion she’d practiced at least a thousand times. And, once more, Sensei Kazoo deflected it almost casually. Taylor didn’t let her anger and frustration get a hold of her. She kept her emotions constrained as she’d been taught, smoothly moving through the forms to turn the downward slice into parry of Sensei’s own attack, their wooden swords a blur of motion.
After several minutes, Taylor was sweating profusely and breathing hard, and Sensei declared, “Halt!”
Taylor froze instantly, pausing in trying to bring her sword in an upward slashing motion. She took a step back, sheathed her sword, and bowed.
“Very good, Taylor,” Kazoo said. “Take a break. Now you, Sarah.”
Sarah stood smoothly from where she’d been kneeling on the mat, and Taylor groaned softly as she lowered herself to a kneeling position and picked up her water bottle to guzzle lukewarm gatorade.
“Good work, Taylor, your form was excellent,” Sensei Noelle said, smiling at Taylor. She blushed and mumbled a thank you, then watched as Sarah and Kazoo both faced one another. Each had an Anemo Vision tied to their belts, and bore a sword. They weren’t inside at the dojo for this one, but rather, at PRT headquarters inside one of the training rooms. Tayor knew why: When two Anemo Vision holders clashed, you needed more room and space for them to battle.
“Do not hold back. I would see all that you can do,” Kazoo said, bowing to Sarah.
“Of course, Sensei. I’ll endeavor to make you regret it,” Sarah said, eyes sparkling.
Noelle stepped forward, looking at both combatants, who nodded. She raised one hand, then let it drop. “Begin!”
Twin blasts of air made Taylor’s ears pop as both Kazoo and Sarah used the wind to launch themselves at one another. Their swords rang as they exchanged blows, but unlike Taylor who had planted her feet in a firm stance as she struck, Sarah didn’t even keep in contact with the ground, instead stepping on the air and spinning and leaping about as her Vision shone with power.
Kazoo countered each blow easily, then pursued when Sarah tried to get some distance and leap away from him. She created a few air blasts, but Kazoo batted them aside with his sword and closed in again. He was stymied when Sarah conjured up a shield about herself that then exploded in a gust of wind, but only momentarily.
The entire fight was over in less than a minute. After that, all the ambient Elemental Energy had been used up, and Sarah flagged, unable to maintain her pace without drawing on an outside force.
“Halt,” Kazoo commanded, and Sarah fell to her hands and knees, gasping for breath, her gi soaked through.
“Very good,” Kazoo said with a nod. “You have learned well.”
“T-thanks, Sensei,” Sarah wheezed as Taylor hurried forward to help her up. “I still…I still can’t keep up with you…”
“Very few can. I was one of the first to be granted an Anemo Vision, and I have years of experience in sword play as well. That, and you are only eleven years old. Once you have matured, I think you would be a far more challenging opponent.”
Taylor and Sarah went back to sit down with the rest of the small group. It was all the members of the Brockton Bay Wards, plus Taylor and Noelle. Legend was there too, though he was not participating, just supervising.
It brought Taylor no small amount of pride that her dedication and mastery of Origin Bladework had allowed her to graduate to the Cape Class of Sensei Kazoo’s dojo. Only Noelle was better than Taylor out of all the non-capes, and half the time, Taylor could beat Elaine, alias Battery, even when she was using her powers. Well, at least as long as Taylor won quickly. If she gave Elaine time to charge up, even her superior swordsmanship wasn’t enough to make up the difference.
“Alright, everyone, we’re going to end early tonight, but it’s not time to go home yet,” Sensei Kazoo said, and gestured for everyone to join him on the mat. They crowded around and sat when Kazoo did, all the children listening attentively, even as Legend came over and joined them. It was a bit odd that he’d come all the way back from Finland, but Taylor supposed he needed a break after they’d lost Helsinki.
“I regret to tell you all that this shall be our last meeting,” Sensei Kazoo said, looking around with a sad expression on his face. “I am called to a life of wanderlust, and I can no longer remain here in the United States. I shall be traveling again, perhaps to South America.”
This was met with cries of disappointment and protests from the students, including Taylor herself, who found tears in her eyes.
“We’re all very sad to see Sensei Kazuha go,” Legend said, resting a hand on the samurai’s shoulder. “However, with the recent legislation in the works that would draft all Parahumans and Vision Holders who reside in the United States into the Wards or the Protectorate, Sensei has decided that he will not fight in foreign wars. It’s understandable: This is not his fight.”
“But the Tsaritsa is evil!” Elaine protested, her fists squeezed tightly. She was a PATRIOT, a rare child who had been granted powers when she’d volunteered for the program. Taylor was rather jealous. She’d tried to sign up too, but her mother had forbidden it.
“I do not deny the evil that the Tsaritsa represents, but I also refuse to fight on behalf of a foreign power. I am yet a citizen of Japan, and while I have my quarrels with the Raiden Shogun and especially the Tenryou Commission, it is time for me to move on,” Sensei Kazoo said.
The kids still looked upset, and Elaine looked like she wanted a rematch.
“But to celebrate, we’re having a farewell party for Sensei. I brought onigiri, chicken katsu, and mochi donuts!” Noelle said, standing up.
This was met with much more cheer, and the class adjourned to the PRT messroom, where a banner had been hung and several PRT troopers and others who had been trained by Sensei Kazoo were waiting with the treats. Junior was amongst them, and ran up to Taylor, Sarah, and Rachel after waving to his dad. “I can’t believe Sensei Kazoo is leaving, can you? Dad told me he came back for the week just to say goodbye, and thanks for all he’s done. He claims some of the training saved his life in the War.”
“It probably did,” Sarah said with a nod. “I can only hear echoes of it, but even across the whole ocean I can still hear whispers of what’s happening.”
“Seriously? When it’s that far away?” Junior asked, his eyebrows climbing his forehead.
“I mean, like I said, just whispers. But the Knights of Favonius and the Tone Deaf bards have been fighting the Tsaritsa and her Harbingers, so it’s pretty loud on the Wind. And I spend a lot of time listening,” Sarah explained.
“For when people try and kill themselves,” Rachel said with a nod, and Taylor sighed at her friend’s usual lack of tact.
“Exactly. I don’t hear everything that happens in Brockton, but I hear a lot.” Sarah looked rather smug. “In fact, I’ve stopped a dozen crimes this week alone. Not to mention the ten mental health checkups I’ve done.”
“Indeed, Miss Livsey has been quite the busy bee, even with most of the Protectorate gone,” a gravely female voice said, and the four children jumped and spun around to see a grave looking sergeant in a PRT uniform standing with her arms folded.
“S-Sergeant Piggot! Um, I’m not abusing my powers, honest! I just-” Sarah began, but Piggot’s scared face went from grave to a smile, and she patted Sarah on the back.
“Relax, Tattletale. You’ve saved lives, and that’s what counts. Even if you keep generating an absolute mountain of paperwork for me to get through. Keep up the good work, and I’ll keep going to bat for you with Director Calvert.”
The kids' eyes were drawn to the man in the wheelchair who was talking with Legend. The Director of PRT Brockton Bay was a jaundiced wreck of a man with a sour expression. He was supposedly a legend of the PRT who had been wounded in battle heroically against an S Class threat that was ultra classified, but Taylor just thought he was a huge jerk who kept yelling at her and her friends.
“Ugh, I told you, it’s just Sarah! Code names are stupid,” Sarah said, making a face.
“It’s policy. Wards are supposed to have secret identities according to Youth Guard and standard policy,” the Sergeant said with a helpless shrug. She nodded to Rachel. “You, Angelica, and Razor keeping an eye on Miss Sarah?”
Rachel nodded soberly. “Yes. We also found three more abused dogs; Brutus, Sparky, and Missy. I’ve adopted them.”
Emily groaned. “Yes, I filled out that paperwork myself. And applied for an increase in budget for your little shelter. How on Earth are you taking care of fifty animals?”
“Some of them find good homes. The rest are part of my Pack. Taylor, Sarah, and Junior help,” Rachel said with a shrug.
“Ah, yes.” Piggot turned to Taylor and frowned at her. “And, just because I know it’ll be a problem again, I’m going to remind you, Miss Hebert, that you are not a member of the Wards. And as such, you are NOT authorized to carry around a sword, or apprehend criminals. And especially not wear a costume.”
Taylor flushed. “Um, well-”
“I deputized her,” Sarah said with a grin, putting an arm around Taylor and Junior, who looked equally flustered. “Junior too! They’re deputy Wards.”
“I’d reiterate that Deputy Wards are not an official position, or an unofficial position, and that you have no authority to do so…but I have a feeling that it would fall on deaf ears,” Piggot sighed. “Look, just…wait a few years. You can be like Miss Smith and apply to join the PRT. Then you’d be able to help. But you’re just ten.”
“What?! Sensei Noelle is joining the PRT!? But she’s in High School!” Taylor protested.
Piggot nodded. “She’ll be a Senior next year, and she’s taking an internship. I’ve got high hopes for that girl. Hard worker, positive attitude. She’ll do great.”
After that, Junior got out his Gamecube and the kids hooked it up to a television, playing a round of Teyvat Heroes, where Taylor’s Yuheng went up against Junior’s Kamisato, Sarah’s Grandmaster, and Rachel’s Wolvendom. The fighting game was very popular for its spin in the format popularized by Super Smash Brothers, and featured various Vision Holders, Demigods, and even Archons brawling in various parts of Teyvat. There was also an in depth story mode, but very few people cared about that as much as just having fun with their friends.
They were interrupted when Legend floated up into the air and motioned for attention. Taylor reluctantly let her character stand idle while everyone turned around to listen to the leader of the Brockton Protectorate.
“While I know this is a night to thank Sensei Kazuha, I wanted to extend my thanks not just to him, but to our young Wards. I know it’s been difficult with nearly all of the Protectorate mobilized to the frontlines of the War. It isn’t right that young heroes such as yourselves be expected to pick up the slack, but you’ve all done a remarkable job. Addressing not only crime, but other concerns such as animal abuse and suicide prevention. Even as I fight against the Tsaritsa’s armies, I know that our city is in good hands.”
There was enthusiastic applause, with Sarah taking a dramatic bow. Rachel looked rather uncomfortable and muttered something about “dogs are people too.”
“I also want to thank Director Calvert and the PRT. There’s been a lot of heavy lifting by the PRT to fill in the gaps left by the Protectorate’s absence, and the men and women of the PRT have proven that they are just as much heroes as anyone wearing a cape. You’ve responded to situations even I would have struggled to handle, and you’ve kept the city safe. Thank you all.”
This time, Taylor and her friends cheered wildly and clapped as hard as they could. Sergeant Piggot looked mildly embarrassed, but Director Calvert simply nodded as if this were his due.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to go back,” Legend said, and floated over to land by Junior, who grabbed his dad, forgetting to look tough and manly for once. “We’ve not given up the fight for Finland yet. And the rest of Northern Europe is under threat. We cannot allow her tyranny to go unchecked. And since Lord Barbados is still sleeping…we’re all we have.”
“But, dad, you just got home!” Junior said, his voice raw with pain.
Legend knelt and put a hand on his son’s shoulder. “I know, Junior. I’m sorry. But dawn tomorrow, I’m heading back. I can’t tell you what our plans are, but the President isn’t going to accept this laying down. We’ll continue the fight for Freedom. In Europe, and wherever the Tsaritsa strikes.”
“I don’t want you to leave,” Junior wept, and threw his arms around his father’s neck. “I don’t want you to die! Please don’t-”
Junior suddenly gasped and began to convulse, his entire body shaking as his eyes rolled up into his head. Instantly, Sarah and Rachel grabbed Junior away from his dad and lay him down.
“Get a doctor!” Sarah ordered, even as winds wrapped themselves about her hands and her Vision shone brightly. “I’ll do all the healing I can, but-”
Junior gasped and sat up before either could do anything. He held up his hands in front of himself, and they began to glow with power. “The…the stars, they were all going out, the great…the great…”
He suddenly shot up into the air with a cry, and put his hands out in front of himself. A sphere surrounded him, a glowing ball of light that obscured him, causing the air to warp and bend as it super heated. “Huh? What-?”
“JUNIOR! CALM DOWN!” Legend barked, shooting up into the air beside his son.
Junior, eyes wide, nodded, and his powers deactivated. His father caught him, and he slowly lowered.
“Trigger event,” Taylor breathed, feeling her heart race. “Junior just-”
“Director Calvert, I’m leaving. Inform command…Inform them I’m heading for Baghdad,” Legend said.
“Sir? Baghdad?” Director Calvert said, clearly as shocked as the rest.
“Yes. Hang them all, I’m not letting my son go through what I did,” Legend growled, Junior held tightly in his arms.
“Dad? What just-”
“Relax, son. We’re going to see Lord Buer. Damn Alexandria and the rest. I’m doing what we all should have done,” Legend snarled, and they shot out the doors, still carrying Junior.
The hall went silent. Everyone looked around, but no one seemed to know what to do.
“Holy shit, did Junior just trigger?! But how- damn, I guess second gen really is easier, huh?” Sarah mused.
“Yeah, I guess,” Taylor said, and had to sniff and scrub her face to hold off tears. Another one of her friends. Another one of them had powers, while she still had nothing. She felt in her pocket, where her father’s Vision still lay dormant. Why wouldn’t it activate already?!
“Guess Junior is joining the Wards,” Rachel said matter of factly. “Wonder what his costume will be.”
“More importantly….why is he taking Junior to Baghdad to see the Hopebringer?” Sarah asked.
Taylor looked around, then grabbed Sarah and Rachel. “Come here, this way!”
She hauled her two friends down the hall and to an empty room, then looked around at the few chairs and table, along with the non-descript paintings. “Can you…like, hide us so no one can see or hear us?”
“Pff, you came to the right girl,” Sarah chuckled. She made a few gestures, and a barrier of opaque green wind sprang up about them. “Right. What is it you needed to say?”
Taylor still crouched down and lowered her voice, and Rachel and Sarah leaned in close. “Did you ever notice…Legend’s powers changed?”
“Uh, no, he can still fly and shoot lasers and stuff,” Sarah said.
Rachel shrugged. “Didn’t pay attention.”
“Look, the color of his lasers changed. It happened about the same time as the Battle of Munich. I know, I’ve studied it really hard. That was when he met Lord Barbados, and got transferred to Brockton. The rumor on the PHQ is-”
“That Barbados modified his powers somehow! Archons do that,” Sarah interrupted but Taylor nodded.
“Right. So, Lord Barbados is asleep after fighting the Tsaritsa. And the Raiden Shogun isn’t on good terms with the USA. The Hydro Archon is in hiding or something. The Tsaritsa is, well, the Tsaritsa. So the only Archon that Uncle Keith can trust…”
“Is the Dendro Archon. That makes sense. Plus, Nahida Saeed tamed Farasha. If anyone can keep a parahuman sane, it’s her,” Sarah said with a nod.
“Why would you need to keep a parahuman sane?” Rachel asked, tilting her head to one side.
“Are you serious?” Sarah scoffed. “Surely you’ve noticed. They’re different from us.”
Rachel tilted her head to the other side, but Taylor nodded. “We learned this in school, Rach.”
“Visions come from Archons. Parahuman powers are…I don’t remember,” Rachel admitted.
“No one knows. But the Archons all call them parasites, curses, demons. They’re, you know, evil. They make parahumans more aggressive and angry and stuff. Only come to them when they’re messed up. Unlike Visions, which are Divine Blessings granted to mortals who share the Holy Ideal of an Archon,” Sarah said with a nod. “Come on, Rachel, they talk about this in school and in church!”
“Church is boring. I don’t like it. Hel- Mom and dad make me go,” Rachel said, making a face. “I asked the pastor if dogs go to heaven. He laughed. I don’t like him.”
“Dogs go to heaven, it was in that movie,” Taylor said, and Sarah snorted a laugh, then nodded. Rachel looked suspicious, but didn’t argue.
“So Junior is going to be like…fixed? Like Mr. Keith?” Rachel asked slowly.
“Probably. I just…” Taylor growled in frustration. “Maybe I should try and trigger. I can’t get my Vision to work all the time! Only, you know, sometimes. Like when we stopped that domestic dispute, and I was protecting the two kids from their parents. Then it worked,” Taylor said, taking it out and holding it up. It had briefly sparked to light, long enough to form a shield to keep the two little kids safe. Then, it had died again when the danger passed. She didn’t get it.
“Maybe if we tell Director Calvert, he’ll let you join the Wards,” Sarah said hopefully.
“No. I’m going to figure it out,” Taylor said, and tucked her Vision away again. “I just have to keep training. I’m going to be a hero. Just like my dad. Just like you two. And just like Junior, I guess.”
Her friends nodded sympathetically, and they went back to the party to say goodbye to Sensei Kazoo.
However, at some point, Kaedehara Kazuha had slipped away. The last person to see him had been Noelle, who had simply gone to the bathroom and cried quietly.
“He said he’ll miss you all very much,” Noelle said, drying her tears. “But it was time for him to go.”
“He shouldn’t have slipped away like that. I had questions for him,” Director Calvert growled on overhearing them. “You should have told me, Smith. Not a good way to start your internship.”
“As his acolyte, it was my duty to see my Sensei’s wishes fulfilled. I apologize if I have offended, Director,” Noelle said, bowing formally to Calvert.
He sneered at her, then glided away in his wheelchair.
“I don’t like him. He’s a cat person,” Rachel declared.
“Rach, just because someone likes cats doesn’t make them an asshole,” Sarah said, and Noelle nodded in agreement. “Calvert’s an asshole because he’s mean and a jerk to everyone.”
“Sarah! You shouldn’t speak like that. It’s rude, and swearing isn’t appropriate,” Noelle scolded.
“Yeah, well, it’s true. Trust me, I can hear the bastard sometimes and he doesn’t like kids or dogs. Rach is totally right,” Sarah said, making a face.
“Yes, well…one should still respect one’s elders,” Noelle said, blushing slightly.
Taylor went back home, dropped off by Noelle at her apartment, where her mother was horrified to learn Junior had triggered.
“It’s fine, Uncle Keith took him to see Lord Buer. She’ll fix him,” Taylor said with a yawn.
“Fix him?” her mother asked, looking concerned.
“Yeah, you know, make it so he’s not demon possessed like most parahumans. Like Uncle Keith,” Taylor said.
“Taylor…you really should quit going to those Archonist church services. I know Sarah drags you there, but…the Archons aren’t gods. They’re just aliens.”
“I mean, they could be angels instead. But I think they’re gods,” Taylor said with a shrug. “But it’s OK, they don’t send people to hell just because you don’t believe in them. Good night, mom.”
Junior missed the next day of school, and didn’t return for two days after that. When he did come back, Taylor raced over to his house along with Sarah and Rachel, where they met the awed boy.
“She was just…a kid, at first. A little kid, too. She was playing hopscotch or something with a bunch of other little kids. You know, like first graders or something,” Junior said in hushed tones as they sat around his kitchen table. Uncle Arthur had made everyone a snack of oreos and soda, which Taylor knew to mean the man was stressed out of his mind and eating junk food again. He’d put on a lot of weight since his husband had been deployed, but she didn’t mind. She liked oreos.
“But then, when she talked…you could tell. She is a god. Not an angel, not a genie, or whatever they were calling her. She spoke…and I didn’t hear her here,” Junior touched his head. “But here.” He put his hand over his heart, and everyone nodded.
“She had me lay down, and got to sleep. Then, we met in a dream. There was this…thing. A really, really scary thing. It was this horrible light, that wanted to fight, and kill, and get…data. Like it wanted me to fight everyone, even dad! It made me want to do it, but…but I didn’t! I was strong!”
“Then, my dad and Nahida appeared in my dream! Nahida talked to the demon. It said it was the same demon as the one that had possessed my dad. And that the ‘new thinker’ or something had ‘awoken’ and was ‘reestablishing the network.’ I didn’t get it. But my dad and Nahida were really worried.”
“Nahida said she would take my demon into a dream. I stayed there with my dad, and we got to walk around Baghdad in a dream. It was really cool! There were Aranara, and dinosaurs, and even other kids sometimes when they fell asleep! It was awesome! Since it was a dream, we could even understand them, even though they spoke Iraqi or something.”
“Arabic,” Sarah corrected, and Junior shrugged and nodded.
“Sure, anyway, we could understand them.”
“My dad and I were in a dream all day, but it was fun. Then, Nahida came back. When she did, she gave me Axiom! Come out, Axiom!”
A glowing prism of blue light appeared on Junior’s shoulder, then revolved and formed into a glowing little fairy that looked a bit like a praying mantis with goggles and a cape, with a blue prism on its costume.
Hello! I am Axiom. I am Keith Andrews Junior’s Demon. Who are you?
“These are my friends I told you about, Axiom! This is Sarah, and Taylor, and Rachel.”
Greetings, young humans. I am a demon. Well, former demon. I have decided that I no longer wish to be a demon. Or at least, I am the part of Radiant Axiom that decided as such. I have been disconnected from my former network.
“He says weird stuff like that. But he gives me powers too! At first they were different from my dads, but I told Axiom I wanted to be just like him! So now, they’re the same! Though mine are a different color, so you can tell us apart.”
They went out into the backyard, where Junior demonstrated by zapping empty soda cans with his lasers, and flying around a bit.
“Axiom says that he’s limiting my powers until I get older. Nahida told him that it wasn’t OK to give kids too much power, and my dad agreed,” Junior said, sounding disappointed. “But that’s OK. I can still join the Wards! I can only fly a little bit and shoot small lasers, but it’s still really cool! When my dad gets home, he’s going to train me, and I’ll be a hero, just like him!”
“That’s…really cool, Junior,” Taylor said, trying to force a smile on her face.
“She’s jealous,” Rachel said bluntly, and Sarah smacked her hand onto her face.
“Oh. Um, yeah. I guess you really wanted powers too, huh? Well, don’t worry! Just pray to Lord Buer. She’s really cool. Maybe she’ll listen.”
“No. I only want powers from the Raiden Shogun. I pray to her every night,” Taylor said fervently.
“Does she talk back?” Rachel asked curiously. “I don’t talk to her much.”
“Only once, I think. And she told me I had to ‘find my Eternity.’ I tried to get her to tell me what that was but maybe I was just imagining it,” Taylor said with a heavy sigh.
“It’s alright, you’re still the best with a sword. You can still be on our team. LIke, you know, our Batman. He’s pretty cool,” Junior said, and held up a hand for Taylor to hi-five.
She grinned, and slapped his palm. “Sure, I can be Batman. But only until I get my own Vision.”
“Dang, am I going to be the only parahuman on our team?” Junior laughed.
“You’re not a real parahuman,” Sarah said with a roll of her eyes, and Junior gave her a hurt look. “I mean, you’re way better. You got upgraded by the Hopebringer. That’s like, twice as good, at least.”
“Hehe, yeah! Come on, let’s go find some crime to fight or something!” Junior said eagerly.
There was very little crime in Brockton, but they did find a teenage girl named Linda who’d been going to try to slit her wrists, and took her to the hospital. Then they found a dog in a sewer drain who’d just had a litter of puppies and helped Rachel take them back to the three-acre lot Helen and Troy had purchased for her “Dog farm.”
It wasn’t how Taylor imagined being a superhero. But, she admitted, she should probably save killing the Siberian until after she got her powers.
If you had told me that life on Terra could be “normal” two months ago, I’d have said you were crazy. Terra’s a damn death world with everything and everyone trying to kill you.
Only…not quite. Life has been…well, pretty normal. Work at the hospital has been frantic to get all these new infected processed. Every single patient we admitted after the County Firth Bombing is now infected with oripathy, and we’ve started them all on drugs. Some of them are taking it well, either with stoic resolve, or optimistic determination, especially since we’re loading them up with front-line oripathy treatments.
Others…well, others are not taking it so well. We’ve got several patients on suicide watch due to becoming depressive when they were informed of their diagnosis. The heavy trauma they’ve undergone in addition to the infection doesn’t help, with many of them having lost loved ones.
One of them is a young feline man, aged 25, named Ashley Hill. He was a bricklayer from County Firth. I was checking in on him as a part of rounds, and found him brooding in his bed.
“Good evening, Mr. Hill,” I said, tabbing to his chart on my tablet. “How are we feeling?”
He didn’t say anything, and I double checked to make sure he was awake. He’d suffered a severe head wound along with both legs being broken in the blast, and of course, had inhaled a massive amount of originium. He was awake, and I reached for my penlight to check his pupils.
“Piss off, I’m bloody fine,” he growled.
“You don’t sound fine,” I said, stepping back and examining him. Both his legs were still immobilized, and his head bandaged. He’d had surgery to repair his skull, but hadn’t seemed to have suffered a traumatic brain injury.
“The fuck do you think? I’m a bloody infected now,” he said, glaring at me. “I’m gonna fuckin’ die.”
I glanced at his chart. COA 2%, mild lesions on his skull. BOCD at .21 u/L. Stage one infection, very treatable.
“Probably of old age. Or the cigarettes you smoke,” I said, seeing he was a smoker from his chart.
He frowned at me, his brow furrowed. “What? I’m fucking infected, I’m gonna die of oripathy.”
“We’ve got you on Vitracline. If you avoid further exposure and manage your health, you’ll stay in stage one for multiple decades. By the time you hit stage two, I’d be more worried about lung cancer,” I told him frankly.
“Easy for you to say. You don’t have it,” Ashley growled.
I held up my right hand, and slowly tugged off my glove, then turned it so the palm faced him.
He squinted, then blinked. “Bloody hell, they let you be a doctor with that?”
“We are on Rhodes Island. I’d say more of our medical staff is infected than not,” I said, taking a seat on a stool. “So. You’re not going to die, not anytime soon, and my best health advice is for you to give up the pack-a-day habit you’ve got going if you’re worried about dying young.”
“I…I haven’t had a smoke since I’ve come here,” he admitted. “I want one, bad.”
“Well, I can get you a nicotine patch. That will help with the cravings. Nicotine isn’t great for you, but it will help you kick the habit. You’re about my age, so I’d hate for you to get these wonderful oripathy drugs, only to smoke away your health.”
“Right, I suppose.” He fiddled with his robe for a moment, then looked back up at me. “It’s…it’s not really the dying that’s bothering me, Doc.”
“Living with oripathy can be hard,” I said, giving him a sad smile. “I know that as well as anyone. But it’s treatable, and manageable. I won’t lie to you and say that this isn’t going to suck, or that you haven’t experienced a tragedy. But you can make it.”
“Yeah, I just…” He sighed heavily. “Don’t know why I’m bloody mentioning it.”
“Mental health is just as important as physical. It’s why I’m here. Tell me what’s bothering you,” I urged, tapping in a few notes. This would be something for our psych team and social workers to follow up on. I can heal the body and help with the mind, but our recently infected support network is just as important.
“It’s…my fiancé. We were getting married in a couple of months,” Ashley said. He swallowed. “She’s…she’s not infected. I’ve tried writing her a letter, but I just…I don’t have the words, you know?”
Ah. “There are ways to prevent transmission to a partner. A condom is one. Others are drugs you can use, especially if you’re trying to start a family. But I imagine that’s not what you’re really concerned about.”
“No, that’s…I guess that’s good to know, but…” He had to dash away tears. “Fuck, she wouldn’t want to marry an infected! They’ll cut my hours at my job, I can’t support a family like that! I-”
“Slow down there, boss. Vina Victoria is the Speaker in Victoria now. She’s already put through several protections for the Infected, including protections in the work environment. If the rest of the legislation her party has proposed is passed, it would make discrimination against infected individuals illegal,” I told him.
This was all stuff I’d learned post coming to Terra. With so many of our patients from Victoria, I’d gotten a crash course in how the Infected were treated there. Seemed like Siege was doing good work. There was resistance of course, but she was trying to build a bright new future in Victoria for the infected, and so far, seemed to be succeeding.
“Fuck. I was just complaining about how the infected were stealing jobs, but now…” Ashley looked distraught. “God Save the Queen, I suppose.”
I decided not to argue about how Vina Victoria wasn’t actually a queen. “It’s different from the other side. Who’s your sweetheart?”
“Georgia Waterson. She works at the dry cleaners. Met her a couple years back at the pub. We hit it off, and, well…we were getting married in the fall,” Ashley said miserably.
“Tell me a bit about her,” I encouraged.
“She’s kind, funny, and a great cook. And she has the biggest,” he grinned lasciviously and made cupping motions around his chest, and I chuckled and nodded. “Wonderful woman. When she said yes to me…best day of my life. But…now…she didn’t agree to marry an infected…”
“Where I come from, the marriage vows say ‘in sickness and in health.’ Is it the same in County Firth?”
“I mean, yeah, but…” He shrugged and looked miserable.
I reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. “I won’t lie and say it will be easy, or that she’s sure to say she still loves you and wants you. But, and take this from someone who will never see his family again, you won’t know unless you ask. You have a shot to see her again someday. My family…they’re gone. I would give anything to see them one more time. So, Ashley…write her. Tell her what happened. That you still love her. And ask her to marry you again.”
“What if she says no?” he whispered, sounding hopeless.
“Then it will hurt. As bad is it hurt when I realized I’d never see my parents again. That I’d had the last beer with my brother. But you’ll get through it. And I hope you can get through it with Georgia. I’ll have one of our social workers come by and help you with the letter if you want.”
“I…yeah. That’d be good. Thanks, doctor…?”
“McCoy. James McCoy. Keep the faith, Ashley. Don’t give up hope. But maybe give up the cigs, alright?”
He laughed at that, and I put in an order for nicotine patches.
Now, if this had been some sappy romance movie, when I came out of the makeshift curtain that divided his hospital bed from the others, Sussurro would have been there and overheard the whole thing. Obviously, she was too damn busy with her own patients. Some of them were at the point where we could think about sending them back home, but a lot of them were still in critical and intensive care, and while we weren’t all hands on deck anymore, everyone was working long hours.
So I moved on to the next patient, who was a young girl who had lost her mother in the blast in all likelihood. She was maybe 13, and trying to be brave, but I let her cry on me for a little bit. She was down to attend Rhodes Island school and potentially become a child soldier. Which was when I went over to Kal’tsit’s office.
She looked up at me as I shut the door behind him, a mountain of paperwork on her desk.
“Dr. McCoy, I am somewhat busy, but I see the look of a man who is about to burst. What is the issue?”
“Patricia Flowers. Operator training?” I said, holding up the file.
Kal’tsit set aside her pen and nodded. “Yes.”
“She’s thirteen!”
“I am aware.”
“And we’re just…going to turn her into a child soldier?!”
Kal’tsit steepled her fingers. “Ah. So this is a moral crusade.”
“Just…we’re the good guys, right?” I said, feeling lost and confused. “So…why are you creating child soldiers?”
“Mmm.” Kal’tsit stood and went over to a painting of a lone figure in a dusty traveling cloak walking through the wilderness and regarded it. She turned to me after a few moments. “I take it that on your homeworld, such things are rare occurrences?”
“Not as rare as I’d like, but it’s monsters like Kony in Africa who use them, not civilized people! Then there’s kids like Lisa, or Rosmontis! They’re operators here too! And don’t tell me it’s just on paper, I know they’ve both been on combat deployments!”
“Indeed they have. Quite effectively as well. Both possess some of the strongest arts of any operators, including adults.”
“So just because they’re good at killing things means they should?!”
“In an ideal world, no. But in an ideal world, no one would fight, Dr. McCoy. Tell me: what then, should I do with Patricia Flowers?”
“I…” I fumbled about for a bit, then managed, “Find a family to adopt her, I guess?”
“She is infected. Do you know the rate of adoptions for infected children, Dr. McCoy? No, you obviously do not. I will tell you: It is less than 10%, even in Victoria, which is somewhat more enlightened than other places. The best she could hope for would be to be placed in a sanitarium or labor camp, where she would slowly die of her disease, or more rapidly of the various upper respiratory infections and other diseases that plague those places. So, I am faced with a conundrum: I can condemn her to death at such a place, alone and unloved, or, I can find her a place here.”
“But she’s 13! She— she should be going to school, play games! Not going out onto the battlefield!”
“This is a harsh and unforgiving world. She will need the skills to defend herself. And, while Rhodes Island is a charity…our funds are not unlimited. We cannot afford to care for many useless hands, for we have too many who are too sick to contribute that we care for already. Patricia is young and strong. If she is listed as an employee and trains to go on missions, and indeed, on a few low-stakes missions, participates, then she can support not just herself, but others.
“She will indeed find opportunities to attend schooling and play games, to be a child. But I will also see to it that she gains the skills that will be useful to her one day, and is prepared to fight. Because she is now one of the infected, and despite your remarkable gifts, Dr. McCoy, you cannot hope to cure all the many millions across this world, nor even the thousands that call Rhodes Island home. So young Patricia Flowers must be prepared to fight for not just her future, but everyone’s.
“So yes, I will train her as a child soldier. I will put a sword in her hands, or a wand, or a bow, or a healer’s staff. Whatever weapon she takes up, I will see to it that she is prepared to defend herself and those she loves in a world that would see her dead. Because I am the Protector of this world, James McCoy. I was created with the sole purpose of making this world livable and safe for those who live in it, and I will be damned if I sit here and take a moralizing lecture from someone who has not had to endure the 13,000 years of suffering that I have!”
Kal’tsit wasn’t shouting by the end of her speech, but it felt like she was. She paused, and took a deep breath, but before she spoke further, I interrupted.
“Sorry. You…you’re right. I just…fuck. I can accept that I am going to die. That I’m going to die fighting for the Infected, probably by curing some dumb schmuck who doesn't deserve it. But…but it’s a lot harder to accept that kids like Patricia are going to die in the trenches with me.”
“If I have my way, she will not. Lisa and Narcissa are…unfortunate cases. They are pieces so powerful that I am forced to deploy them more often than I would like. Patricia is not such a piece, and unless my reading of her file is wrong, is unlikely to become one. But in this fight for the fate of the world, even a lowly pawn can be powerful if put in the right place, at the right time, by the right hand. For millennia…that hand has been me, James. Yes. I hate myself. I hate that I must employ child soldiers. But to me…you are all children.”
I digested that for a bit. “Ok. I…I was wrong. I shouldn’t have run in here all hot and bothered. I guess…I guess I should have just trusted you.”
“On the contrary. Thank you. Do you have any idea how rare it is for someone to challenge me in good faith on a moral basis?”
“Uh…by your comment, rare?”
A wistful look appeared on Kal’tsits face before vanishing. “Amiya is the only one now who does so with any regularity. Before her, Theresa had the temperament and ability to do so. But Theresa is dead, and Amiya…while she is still an idealist, she has become hardened to the grim realities of the world. You, James McCoy, are not yet so hardened. So I am glad that you have your moral objections to the more despicable tasks I must undertake. One day…one day I hope to build a world where such is not necessary. But that world is not here today. So we fight on.”
“Yeah. Makes sense. Thanks, Director. For listening. And caring. Coming to Terra has been…hard. I had no idea how good and soft my life was before.”
Tears glistened in Kal’tsit’s emerald eyes. “One day, James McCoy, I hope that this world will become so soft and good. That children may forget all thoughts of war. That oripathy will be scourged from the land, and that my children, all children, will live in peace and freedom. And then, at last, I will find my rest.”
Was this really the woman who had led countless crusades? Who had put kingdoms to the sword? Or were those all just delusions found in the Furnace of Souls? I didn’t know. I hadn’t paid enough attention to the lore, but…I was pretty sure Kal’tsit had plenty of blood on her hands. Had she done it all for a noble cause, or was she just trying to repent for past wrongdoings?
I can’t read minds, thank God, but I like to think the Old Well has always tried to make the world a better place. Rhodes Island is just her latest project.
“Well, for as long as I’m here, I’ll fight for that. For Patricia, for Lucia, for…for everyone.”
“Then return to work, Dr. McCoy. For there is much yet to do on this day.”
I got through the rest of my shift, but what Kal’tsit had said about child soldiers still bothered me. I just…I couldn’t accept that this was right, even if what she said made sense, and I could believe Kal’tsit was a genuinely good and wise person.
So, I got a second opinion. Dinner that night was at the cafeteria, with me, Lucia, Texas, and Exusiai. I broached the subject with my usual charm and tact.
“So, uh, how do you guys feel about Rhodes Island using kids as soldiers?”
Lucia paused with a spoonful of stroganoff halfway to her mouth. Exusiai looked down at her plate, a pained look on her face, and Texas just kept eating.
“Uh, James, I’m not sure…what do you even mean?” Sussurro said, setting her fork down.
“I mean, what about say, Lisa, or Rosmontis, or Popukar, or Ceobe. They’re all children, right? Shouldn’t they, you know…not be fighting?”
“They are all competent fighters. I would lose in a fight with Rosmontis, or Ceobe,” Texas said bluntly, which made my eyes go wide. “To not use them as soldiers would be foolish.”
“I mean, OK, maybe, but Bones has a point, you know?” Exusiai said, pushing her food away and looking deeply uncomfortable. “How old is Narcissa, anyway?”
“She is an adult now,” Sussurro said, her ears flicking uncomfortably. “But only barely. She turned 17 a month ago. For a feline, that’s full-grown.”
“Then there is no problem,” Texas said.
“But she was 14 during Chernobog! And she fought freaking Patriot!” I said, trying to express my angst at the thought.
“Uh, Bones…you weren’t there. She didn’t fight just Patriot,” Exusiai said, still looking very upset. “She obliterated an entire army. Her and Amiya. Who, are, well, the same age, more or less. I mean, we were there for back up, but…I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone use arts like that…she just…leveled buildings. And threw them at people.”
“Narcissa…Rosmontis…she’s, well. I won’t go into her backstory. And James! Shut your mouth, no! Not here,” Sussurro snapped when I opened my trap. “But, well…she’s an extremely skilled fighter. One of the most powerful Rhodes Island has. She’s saved…so many lives. Yes, she does so by taking them, but…there are battles that would have been hopeless without her. And we need everyone, especially people like her, fighting for the Infected.”
“I was a child soldier,” Texas said, meeting my eyes.
I winced. “Yeah, I know, I just-”
“No. You do not,” Texas snarled, ears laid back, fangs bared.
“Woah, sorry, I-”
“Shut up.” We all did, and Texas inhaled through her nose, closing her eyes for a moment before she opened them, but they were still glowing faintly with barely suppressed rage. “At the age of six, I was sent back to the homeland. To Siracusa. There, I trained, night and day, under the best masters. I killed my first man at the age of seven. He was unarmed. Tied to a chair. I slit his throat, because he had dishonored the Famiglia.”
I felt sick, but held my tongue. Lucia was starting to look furious though, her own ears laid back on her head, and, wow. Guess she had cute little fangs too. And growled.
“At the age of eight, I was sent to kill an entire family. They were armed. They were ready. They knew I was coming. I killed them all. I was injured, nearly lost my leg, but I killed them.”
Exusiai was looking horrified now, her halo actually dimming as she put an arm around Texas, who didn’t shrug her off, which was unusual. Usually, she didn’t like being touched all that much.
“By age 10, I fought in my first war. I led my own squad. I dealt death when and how I saw fit. Men and women were killed by my hand, at my word. That was when I met Lappland Saluzzo. She was another squad leader in that war.”
I was gripping Lucia’s hand tightly under the table, feeling completely miserable. I sort of had known this. But I hadn’t known it. Seen the pain in Texas’ face. Seen the hot tears on her cheeks. I had known. But I hadn’t understood.
“They taught me other things. How to seduce a man. How to seduce a woman. My mezzana was a woman who took my virginity in every way. I was 13.”
“She raped you,” Lucia snarled, and Texas did not correct her. Exusiai was actually crying now, and dammit, so was I.
“Then, at 16, I returned home. A made woman. I enforced my grandfather’s will as head of the Texas Famiglia. He pointed. I killed. He commanded, I fucked. I was a sword. I did as Salvador Texas commanded.”
“One year later, my father, Giuseppe Texas, rebelled. I did not know what to do. My grandfather and father fought, and my father killed my grandfather. Salvadore’s last order to me was to kill my own father. He was the head of the Famiglia. I did as he commanded. I slew my own father. I was 17.”
Texas’ nails had dug into the laminate of the tabletop, scratching through it to the wood underneath, ruining her manicure and causing blood and splinters to poke from her fingers, but she didn’t seem to notice. “That was also when I met Lappland Salluzzo for a second time. We fought. She could have killed me. She didn’t. We fucked instead. Then she let me go. Then I wandered, lost.”
Texas slowly relaxed, looking away from us, towards the wall. “All this when I was a child. So. Yes. We have child soldiers. I am one of them. Because we must. Because that is what this world is. Because if you do not learn how to wield yourself as a sword…then someone else will.”
“Or,” Texas continued, a hitch in her voice. “Or someone like me will kill you, because you do not know how to be a sword at all.”
“Texas that’s…that’s not who you are, anymore,” Exusiai said, clinging to her friend.
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
Texas abruptly stood, brushing off Exusiai, and stalked over to another table, where Ch’en was sitting with- wait, was that Surtr and Mudrock!? Both were Sarkaz, one with fiery red hair and a sword set to the side that was bigger than here, while the other was pale-skinned and white haired with red eyes.
“I need a fight,” Texas growled.
Ch’en paused in her conversation, while the other two women looked Texas up and down.
“Cellinia? You alright?” Mudrock asked, sounding worried.
“No. I need to fight. Can’t smoke. Have to fight,” Texas said through clenched teeth.
“Texas, wait!” Exusiai said, standing up, but Texas didn’t turn to face her, instead holding out a hand.
Slowly, Mudrock got up, and she was just barely taller than Texas. “OK, if that’s what you need…I will be the mountain to break yourself upon.”
“I’ll come too. To supervise,” Ch’en agreed.
“Eh, may as well. Sounds like fun,” Surtr said, standing languidly and reaching for her sword.
“Texas!” Exusiai cried, her tone anguished.
“Later,” Texas said, and stormed out, the other three women hurrying after her.
Exusiai slumped back down, crying openly. Lucia let go of my hand to slip around the table and embrace Exusiai, who cried, hugging her tightly. I just sat there, miserable, and feeling lower than low.
We all ended up back in Exusiai’s apartment with a bottle of wine. Well, several bottles of wine. Exusiai clearly didn’t want to be alone, Sankta being codependent as I had learned, and well, neither did Sussurro or I.
“I knew Texas’ story was sad, but…but she’d never even told me all that. I’d pieced some of it together, especially after Siracusa when she talked a little, but…that’s the most I think she’s ever said about her story, maybe even to Sora.”
“It’s my fault,” I said miserably. “I should have just left well enough alone. Child soldiers. Fuck.”
“No.”
We all jumped, not having heard the door slide silently open. Texas strode in, dressed in only a sports bra, shorts, and several bandages, carrying her giant swords. She tossed it all in a corner, strode over, picked up the bottle of wine we’d been working on, and chugged it. Then she slumped down on her own bed, looking exhausted.
“Texas, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t-” I began.
“No,” she repeated, shaking her head. “You were right.”
“Uh, you sure? Because I feel wrong.”
“You were. You didn’t know me.”
Texas took another swing, and I shifted slightly, with Lucia poking me in the ribs until I stopped, as she was using my chest as a pillow.
“You knew about me,” Texas said at last, closing her eyes and leaning back. “You knew a character in a story.”
“That’s, uh…huh. Wow. You…you’re right,” I admitted.
“Now you know me. Now you know why we have child soldiers.” Texas still hadn’t opened her eyes, but Exusiai had taken her hand, and Texas was squeezing the Sankta so hard that her knuckles were white. “Yes. Rhodes Island uses them. But they are…not as I was. Someone loves them. Someone sees that they do not have to do as I did. But when the time comes…they will not be weak.”
“Texas, that’s…that’s all so awful,” Exusiai said, tears still trickling down her cheeks.
Texas shrugged. “It is over. Now, I have Sora. I have you. I…I miss Sora. She is…good. I do not normally miss people.”
“Have you told her that?” Lucia asked quietly.
Texas opened her eyes and frowned. “No. Should I?”
“Yes, Texas. Yes, you should. Write down…write down that. Tell her you love her, and you miss her,” Exusiai encouraged.
Texas nodded, then went over to the small desk, took out a piece of paper, and started laboriously handwriting a letter.
“So, um…if we’re trauma dumping today,” Exusiai said, fiddling with her wine glass. She downed it, grabbed the bottle, and then took another drink. Texas’s ears had perked up, but she kept writing.
“My childhood was good. Like, really good. My parents? Awesome. Did you know they adopted my big sister before I was even born? They did. I was an accident! They thought they were infertile, but nope! They had me. But…dad died when I was 8. He was old, had a heart attack running his messenger route, passed. Mom…well, she didn’t take it well. She wasn’t as old as Dad, but two years later, she caught pneumonia and didn’t tell anyone until it was too late. After that…Lemuen raised me. She’s…she was my everything. Put up with, um, my rambunctiousness. I guess I acted out a lot as a kid. Uh, 17 explosions in high school isn’t normal.”
Texas had put down her pen and half turned, arm on the back of the chair, to regard Exusiai, who was pouring herself another glass of wine, though she just looked at it, not drinking as she continued to talk.
“I just…I always wanted to see the world. To be like my dad, and my Big Sis, who joined the Pontifica Cohors and got to explore and fight and do all kinds of cool things with her bestie Mostima! But…but then…”
Exusiai set down her wine glass and put her head in her hands. Awkwardly, Texas got up and put a hand on Exusiai’s shoulder. She started with “Do you want-”
But Exusiai had already dragged the lupo into a bear hug, and Texas gingerly put her arms around Exusiai.
“James,” Exusiai whispered, looking up at me through tear-filled eyes. “Do you…do you know what happened? Why…why did Mostima fall? Why did my sister…why is she in a wheelchair? And why…why won’t she smile at me anymore?”
I thought for a few moments. Lucia was hugging me tightly, and I had one arm around her. I sighed, then said, “Do you know who that guy, the one who was with them, was? He’s involved in Guide Ahead and tried to shoot the pope.”
“Andoain. He…he was my sister’s lover, I think. I’m not sure. I thought for a while she was gay for Mostima, but…no. I’m not sure anymore. He was their captain, though.”
“I don’t know the details, sorry. But I do know that he went crazy, or something, when they touched a feranmut’s corpse, or…look I don’t know all the details. But he went crazy, and I’m pretty sure he shot your sister and crippled her. Mostima, to save Lemuen’s life…shot him back. But, because he was crazy at the time, he didn’t Fall. Mostima, however…she wasn’t crazy. She knew what she was doing.”
Exusiai had listened to all that. She nodded slowly. “That…that makes sense. I think. I’ll have to ask a priest about the whole not falling if you’re mind controlled when you shoot someone…I thought Andoain was just above the Law or something when he tried to shoot Yvangelista. But then you said the Law might be breaking, or dying, and…and then it all made sense. How my sister could nearly be killed by that mother fucker and he still has his halo! How Mostima could fall, when…when she was trying to save Lemuen’s life! It’s just not fair! It’s just-”
She started crying again, and Lucia let me go, crawling over to the other bed and hugging Exusiai much more warmly than Texas, who was trying her best. I awkwardly went over and joined the group hug, though I was more hugging Sussurro than anyone else.
Look, I’m an idiot, but I know you don’t hug another woman when your girlfriend is right there.
Eventually, everyone called down. Sussurro shared her story about being infected. Then being kicked out of her family. Then, all eyes turned to me.
“Uh, my turn?” I said, feeling awkward.
They all nodded.
I sighed, and rubbed my hand through my hair. “Uh, my childhood was…great. Um, nobody died, except Aunt Roberta. She was a kindergarten teacher. Got breast cancer. Didn’t beat it. Huge funeral, everyone cried, about a billion kids who were now adults came and talked about how she changed their lives…I mean, hell, both sets of my grandparents were still alive, though Papa Huey has Alzheimer's and is mostly out of it now…”
I tried off and swallowed, giving a lame smile.
“Tell us about Earth,” Exusiai said quietly. “What…what was it like, growing up there?”
“It was…well, I grew up in California. Middle class parents. Dad was a manager at Frys, uh, the Electronics Store, not the grocery store. After COVID did them in, he got a job at a tech company managing their sales force, so he did fine. Mom was a secretary at a law firm. Both made pretty good money, but we weren’t rich. It was just me and my brother, Michael. He was super into Boy Scouts, ROTC, uh, Reserve Officer Core Training, and joined the army right out of High School. He had his Eagle Scout and went in as an E-4, which is super unusual.”
I rambled on for a while, talked about learning to surf with my dad, swimming in high school, going to college where I was a huge nerd who rarely partied but got top grades, getting into medical school, trying to become a neurologist, all that.
“And they have you in OriSurg. How typical,” Sussurro snorted, and I laughed.
“Yeah, residency do be like that on Earth, too. Or so I’ve been told.” I shrugged. “And then, well…I came here. I…”
My voice hitched, and I put an arm to my face to try to stop my crying. Sussurro was instantly embracing me, and I pulled her tight, and she put my face against her chest, stroking my hair gently.
“I…I died. At least…I think I died. There was…there was this kid. Age eight, or something, had on a red shirt, I remember. He, he ran out in front of his school bus when it dropped him off. But there was this asshole in a lifted pickup, barreling down the road, didn’t stop for the school bus. He was gonna hit this kid. I knew it. So, I dived in front, tried to tackle the kid away from the truck. I think…I think I got him. But the truck hit me, and then my head slammed into a parked car, and…and then I woke up in Shiraziberg. And then I met Sussurro and you know the rest of the story.”
“James…you…you died?” Sussurro whispered, cupping my cheek and tilting my head up.
“Yeah, but I must be in heaven, because I got to meet an angel. And I don’t mean Exusiai,” I said, giving her a dopey smile. That might have been the right answer, because she kissed me.
Texas considered all that, then nodded. “Life sucks.”
“Life fucking sucks,” Exusiai said, raising her glass. “Cheers.”
We all drank again, then, since it was late and we had work in the morning, I said my goodnights, and stumbled towards my room, which was just down the hall. I had Sussurro, so I figured I’d walk her back to her room.
Only, when we got to my door…she stopped. I paused, frowning at her.
“James,” she said, and then drew me down into a kiss, which I eagerly returned. “I don’t…I don’t think I want to be alone tonight.”
“I…” I paused, considering. We were both pretty drunk. And, well, there had been a lot of emotions flying around. “Are you sure? We’re both intoxicated…”
She growled at me, and pulled me into another kiss, where she bit me on the lip, while at the same time, opening my door.
You know, that’s not the clearest consent I’ve ever gotten, but you know what? Sometimes, I don’t want to be alone either. And for that night…I wasn’t.
Maybe I won’t ever be alone again.
Like I said…maybe it was worth dying to come here after all.
“What do we do?” Kazuma whispered to Darkness as they crouched over the bloody and comatose demon. “We can’t use healing magic on her, it would hurt her.”
“Um, perhaps…a kiss? She could get some essence that way,” Darkness suggested.
“Yeah, but like, you, or me? You’re the man right now, remember.”
“Definitely you. I worry about this body’s vitality,” Darkness whispered.
“Right. Uh, you Ok with me, you know…kissing another woman?”
“Well, for one thing, you are me at the moment. For another, it is to save her life, which is different. And finally…the thought of you kissing another woman…is very enticing at the moment.”
“Yeah, uh, most guys are kinda turned on by yuri.”
“I…do not think that is entirely due to my, shall we say, maleness, at the moment, Kazuma. But, as you are in the body with the greater stamina…best you do it.”
“If you’re sure…” Kazuma bent over Lolisa, who was breathing shallowly, with cuts and bruises all over her body we’d barely managed to clean. Even so, she was quite beautiful in the dim moonlight, and he closed his eyes, pressing his lips to hers.
For a few heartbeats, nothing much seemed to happen, aside from a faint tingle on his lips that was a bit odd. Then two hands shot up and tangled themselves in Kazuma’s hair, pulling him closer as Lolisa’s tongue desperately probed his. Sudden euphoria flooded Kazuma along with a sense of lassitude, and he hungrily tried to kiss Lolisa more deeply.
However, that lasted only a second or two before Lolisa shoved him off of her with a choked cry of, “NO!”
Kazuma blinked a few times, then sat up as Darkness hurried over to Lolisa, who was coughing weakly and curling up into a ball, shuddering with obvious distress.
“Lolisa! Please, talk to me,” Darkness begged, cradling the succubus’ head in her hands.
“D-don’t…don’t touch me…I’m…I’m so hungry…I…I could lose control…” Lolisa whimpered. “Just…let me die…”
“Absolutely not! You saved our lives,” Kazuma said. “Can we use a healing spell or something on you?”
“Well, we are not letting you die,” Darkness said firmly. “How did you even know where to find the goddesses?”
“I…I didn’t know about Eris…But Aqua’s not hard. She…she’s always drunk at the Guild this time of night…”
“And you just flew in, shouted neener neener, and kited two angry goddesses all the way back to the mansion?” Kazuma asked, but Darkness elbowed him.
“Not the time. Lolisa, can you use another dream to feed on us? Would that heal you?”
“No,” Lolisa whispered, her eyes squeezed shut. “The dream…it’s too…too complicated. I’m…I’m barely holding my essence together. When…when an Archdemon strikes you down…well. I guess I’ll be seeing them again soon…”
“No, let me kiss you again,” Kazuma said, gently cradling Lolisa in his arms. “Would that be enough?”
“M-maybe. We…we could try,” Lolisa said timidly.
Kazuma leaned in to the kiss, but in the distance, he heard a bell toll. His head began to spin, and he slumped over. When he woke up again, he sat up, and everything was a lot clearer. He could clearly see a naked Darkness holding Lolisa to her breast, and Darkness was squinting and looking around.
“My…my eyes have gone dim, but…Kazuma, are we back in our bodies?” she asked.
“Huh. Guess it was the stroke of midnight or something,” Kazuma said, scooting back forward. “Lolisa? You still with us?”
“Yeah…sorry…I…I know I’m a burden,” she said, her voice slightly muffled from being pressed against Darkness’ breasts.
“Perfect. Alright, you two start making out,” Kazuma said, and put his hand on his already stiffening erection. “I’m going to enjoy this.”
“W-wait!” Lolisa said, squirming weakly, and Darkness helped her sit up. “Um, i-if you’re going to do that, um…could I have some? Semen…w-well…er…it’s particularly nutritious to a succubus…”
“Lolisa, are you asking to eat my fiance’s seed?” Darkness asked.
“N-never mind, I knew it was-” Lolisa was shut up when Darkness very firmly kissed her, then groaned when Darkness began to rub at Lolisa’s groin at the same time. Kazuma could see faint wisps of energy being drawn from Darkness into Lolisa, and a few of her cuts and scrapes began to knit shut.
“Hold on, get her out of those clothes,” Kazuma urged. “Um, you know. To make it, er sanitary and stuff.”
Darkness paused and gave Kazuma an amused look, but then let Kazuma pull Lolisa’s skirt and panties off, while she helped the succubus out of her top.
“Are…are we really doing this? I…I could hurt you both,” Lolisa whispered, though she was blushing mightily and breathing more rapidly.
“If we split the essence drain between us, it should be non-lethal, yes?” Darkness prompted.
“Well…yes, I guess. I’m hurt pretty badly, but even after tonight, you have a LOT of vital essence Darkness, and Kazuma’s not bad either,” Lolisa admitted.
“And you’ll die without it, right?” Darkness prompted.
“Well, um, you have given me enough essence that I…probably will be fine? As long as I get more later,” Lolisa admitted.
“Hmm, not good enough,” Darkness said with a shake of her head. “We owe you a great deal. And…I must confess… having Kazuma watch while I kiss you…it is exciting me.”
“I’m…running out of reasons to argue with you,” Lolisa said, twining her arms about Darkness, and locking lips with her again.
Despite the fact that he’d had sex once in the morning, dream sex three times, then two more times in Darkness’ body, felt he had at least one more in him. He began to rub at himself, only for Darkness to beckon him closer. He scooted forward, and to his delight, even as she massaged Lolisa’s pussy with one hand, began to stroke Kazuma’s shaft with the other. He groaned, and would have returned the favor, if Lolisa hadn’t already been knuckles deep in Darkness already.
To his surprise, after a minute of that, Darkness suddenly pushed Lolisa up, laying down and having the succubus straddle her face. “Suck him off, Lolisa. I want to see it! I want to see you drink of Kazuma!”
Lolisa didn’t argue, even as Darkness began to eat her out, the succubus eagerly locked her lips around Kazuma’s dick, using one hand to gently cup his balls, and the other to keep his shaft straight. The sensation of her sucking at him like she was trying to get his soul out was like nothing else. The contact had a narcotic effect, and Kazuma felt an overwhelming wave of pleasure and desire. Unfortunately, it only lasted a few minutes, before he pumped a meager stream into Lolisa’s mouth.
Sighing in contentment, Lolisa licked the last drops off of Kazuma, then arched her back and moaned in pleasure. Kazuma sagged down into the hay, and a moment later, passed out, unable to keep his eyes open after that.
“I…I think I’ve had…oooo, oh Darkness, I’ve had mmmm, enough!” Lolisa gasped, shuddering and moaning.
Darkness slowly let Lolisa roll off of her, sitting up and wiping her mouth with her arm as Lolisa sank back in the hey next to the snoring Kazuma. “You are completely sated, then?”
“Mmm, my wounds are mostly healed now. I…I’ll definitely live, now,” Lolisa said, smiling stupidly up at Darkness. “That was…that was amazing. No one…one has ever tried so hard to get me off before…That wasn’t my first threesome, but…wow. It was definitely the best.”
“It was my first,” Darkness said, and lowered herself onto Lolisa. She kissed the succubus again, then leaned over to whisper in her ear, “But now that I am back in my own body…I find myself unsatiated again. As you have exhausted my future husband, I request that you finish the job.”
“T-Tina, I-” Lolisa sighed as Darkness lifted herself up again, then pressed her own sex against Lolisa’s mouth. The succubus eagerly began to apply her tongue, and Darkness shuddered.
“Make it hurt, Lolisa. Give me the exquisite pain and pleasure I so crave!”
A few pink sparks flew from Lolisa’s fingers, and began arcing over Darkness’ body. She cried out in pain and delight, and began to grind against Lolisa reflexively. This time, it lasted for nearly half an hour before Darkness gave one final moan, then collapsed atop Lolisa.
After a few moments, Lolisa wiggled out from under Darkness. She was panting, and all her wounds had completely vanished. Indeed, her body was glowing with a faint aura of power now. Lolisa grunted and rolled Darkness over, then leaned over her belly and closed her eyes, putting her ear there. After a moment, she sat up and sighed in relief. “Good, I can sense that life inside you. Seems like I managed to not touch that sacred spark. I just…” Lolisa looked helpless down at the two sleeping lovers. “...I think I’m falling for you both, hard. I…I told myself…not again…”
Lolisa bent her head for a moment, then shook it. She lay down in the hay across from Kazuma and Darkness and closed her eyes. A few moments later, nothing but snores filled the barn.
A toe nudged Kazuma, and he groaned. “Ugh, it’s too early…”
“It’s past nine, Kazuma. Wake up! You’re not even dressed yet. And seriously, in a barn? Ew. There’s horse crap everywhere!”
Kazuma suddenly sat up, blinking rapidly, and found Aqua frowning down at him. Chris was crouched by the door, and had out a whetstone, over which she was running one of her daggers. She no longer had the feathery cloak or long hair, looking like a normal girl again. Except for how her eyes were glowing softly as she glared at Lolisa, who was crouched in a corner with her arms wrapped around herself and looking utterly terrified.
“Chris,” Darkness said with a sigh, standing up and going over to Lolisa. “Stop trying to terrify her.”
“What? I’m just keeping my gear in good order,” Chris purred, even as Darkness helped Lolisa to her feet, though the succubus immediately hid behind the Crusader, who didn’t seem to particularly care that she was still as naked as the day she was born.
Kazuma felt mildly embarrassed, but he got up and stood with Darkness and Lolisa as well. He glanced out the window, and was only mildly surprised to see that not only was the mansion rebuilt, but it seemed to have been improved with a glass sun room, an indoor pool, and what appeared to be several new guest bedrooms.
“Uh, thanks for fixing the house. How the heck did it get destroyed, anyway? Were you two trying to kill Lolisa that hard?” Kazuma asked, trying to resist the urge to cover himself up.
“We didn’t do much of the damage. That was Maxwell,” Aqua said firmly. “Any of you three remember?"
“Um, I do, it’s just…could we um, maybe get dressed first?” Lolisa squeaked. “I’m not, uh, I’m not super comfortable talking to two goddesses naked…”
“Why, got something to hide?” Chris sneered, standing up and pocketing her whetstone.
Darkness opened her mouth, but Lolisa put a hand on her shoulder. Taking a deep breath, Lolisa strode forward and planted herself in front of Chris. “No. I don’t. Examine me all you want. Check my sins. I’ve got nothing to hide from you, Lady Eris. My soul isn’t squeaky clean, but I’m not the monster you paint me as!”
“Hmph.” Chris paced around Lolisa, examining her head to toe. Once, twice, three times. At last, she stopped in front of Lolisa, a sour expression on her face as she tapped her foot. “You’re hiding something.”
“From a goddess!? I’m even NAKED. You’re the one who weighs souls! Weigh mine! What do you see?!” Lolisa demanded, and grabbed Chris’ hand, placing it on her own breast with a shudder.
For a moment, Kazuma thought Chris would blast Lolisa to bits right then and there. Instead, she held her hand over the demoness’ heart for a long moment. At last, she sighed and dropped her hand. “Well, you’ve got more counts of adultery than most, several counts of larceny, and you apparently killed a man once. However…I also know the man you killed…and you’re absolved of that one.”
“He was raping his own daughter!” Lolisa snarled, her face going beat red. “What was I supposed to do when I found out?!”
“Exactly what you did. Sheesh, you didn’t even feed on him, just poisoned the fucker. Like I said, you're forgiven. And, well…really your adultery isn’t worse than your average human sex worker, so…” Chris grimaced. “Fine. You’re the exception that proves the rule! Just…go get dressed. I’m used to seeing humans naked after judging so many of them, why does half the population imagine themselves naked after they die!? But, well…you’re clearly uncomfortable.”
Kazuma, Darkness and Lolisa hastened towards the mansion, but behind them, he saw Aqua hug Chris.
“I’m proud of you, Kohai! See? Sometimes, the rules are dumb and we should just have fun.”
“...thanks, Senpai. But what if the other Senior Gods or the Chief find out?”
“Then we tell them they’re doodoo brains and we can do what we want with our own world! Even be nice to liches and succubi!”
“...please tell me that sweet woman Wiz isn’t a lich…”
“Fine, I won’t. But she’s a great baker! Oh, feel free to try to kill that jerk Vanir, though. He’s the worst.”
“VANIR THE DESPOILER IS HERE TOO!?”
That was when they hurried inside the mansion, and shut the door.
Lolisa ended up borrowing one of Megumin’s dresses, as they were roughly the same size, while Kazuma and Darkness changed into their own clothes before hurrying back downstairs. There, they found Chris and Aqua eating a breakfast of-
“Hold on, where did you get Starbucks?” Kazuma demanded.
“Japan,” Chris said, sipping at a latte and taking a bite of a breakfast sandwich. “Don’t worry, I got you some too.”
“Just because I’m stuck in Belzerg doesn’t mean Eris is,” Aqua said, drinking her own extra sugary concoction. “Here, Darkness, I got you a mocha frap. You get a caramel macchiato, Lolisa. It’s great, try it!”
“Matcha latte for you, Kazuma. It was your most common order,” Chris said, handing him his own drink.
“Is this from your homeland, Kazuma?” Darkness asked curiously, examining her beverage.
“Er, sort of? It’s American, but…I did like hitting up Starbucks from time to time. Seriously, though, you can just…go to Japan?” Kazuma asked, sitting down and sipping at his beverage while taking the sandwich Chris handed him.
“I’m literally a goddess. Time and space are just suggestions,” Chris said with a shrug. “Shoot, I’m judging souls at the same time I’m talking to you.”
“Yeah, it’s so boring being limited to one body,” Aqua complained.
“You spend half your time sleeping and the other half drunk,” Kazuma said in disgust.
Aqua blushed, then hastily changed the subject. “So, anyway, Maxwell. You two don’t remember anything?”
“No, I’m afraid not,” Darkness said. “Who is this Maxwell?”
“I do. He’s the Arch Demon that Alderp has bound in contract to him. He’s been living in the basement of his mansion. The reason Alderp goes through so many staff? He’s feeding them to Maxwell to torture to death,” Lolisa said grimly. “I’ll show you right where, though I can’t say I’ll be much help fighting. I did level up last night from, um, er…anyway, I’m on your side!”
“Oh? You think we’d take you with us, just so you could stab us in the back?” Chris growled, leaning forward.
Lolisa bit her lip, then glanced at Kazuma and Aqua. “Well…”
“No offense, Lolisa, but you’d probably be better off going back to wherever you live or staying here. Eris and I can handle this. Don’t worry, I don’t think you’ll betray us,” Aqua said, putting a gentle hand on Lolisa’s shoulder.
“No, Lady Eris is right. An unbound demon COULD do all sorts of things,” Lolisa said. She took a deep breath, then fell to her knees, taking Kazuma and Darkness’ hands.
“Uh, Lolisa, I’ve sort of already agreed to marry Darkness,” Kazuma said, sweat breaking out on his forehead.
“Hush, Kazuma,” Darkness shushed. “Lolisa? Do you wish to swear fealty to us?”
“Something like that,” Lolisa said, trembling all over. “My…my name isn’t Lolisa, you know…”
“Wait, hold on, are you-?!” Chris began, but Aqua punched her in the arm, and Chris grimaced and went silent.
“It isn’t?” Kazuma asked stupidly.
“No, Kazuma. Demons do not give their names, else they could be controlled by mortals,” Darkness said, her brow furrowing. “Lolisa, what are you-”
“Kirayama. My…my true name is Kirayama. If you say it…I will bound to you,” Lolisa whispered. “Please…please say it. Both of you…”
Kazuma looked at Darkness, who slowly nodded. “Kazuma, repeat after me, though use your own name.”
“Er, alright.”
“I, Lalatina Ford Dustiness, Heir of House Dustiness…”
“I, Kazuma Sato, Boyfriend of House Dustiness…”
Darkness’ lips quirked, but she continued on.
“Do receive the oath of Kirayama and accept your fealty, given freely and in good faith. As you have pledged yourself to me in loyalty and service, so shall I be to you a true and just lord. I shall defend you from harm, uphold your rights, and grant you the lands and honors that are yours by right. Let Lady Eris and Lady Aqua bear witness to this bond, and may they judge between us should either break this sacred trust.”
Kazuma repeated the words, and Lolisa shuddered when they had both spoken her name. Then she said, “Um, this is backwards, but, I, Kiryama the Succubus, do hereby pledge my Soul and Loyalty to House Dustiness, and to Lady Lalatina Ford Dustiness, and her consort, Sir Kazuma Sato Dustiness. My Heaven smite me and Hell consume me should I forsake this oath.”
““Witnessed, and received. The light of the gods smile upon you both,”” Aqua and Chris said in unison, and a beam of light shone through the new windows to envelop all three.
Lolisa cried out in pain, and her skin began to smoke, so both Darkness and Kazuma jumped in front of Lolisa to shelter her.
“Ack! Sorry, sorry, that’s just sort of natural!” Aqua said, waving her arms and making the light go away.
“It’s…it’s OK. I…I am judged in the Light of the Gods,” Lolisa, groaned, getting to her feet with Kazuma and Darkness help. She panted a bit, leaning on them, then met Aqua and Eris’ eyes defiantly. “Now, do you believe me?”
“We do,” Aqua said, and after a moment, Chris nodded reluctantly.
“So, an Archdemon named Maxwell has taken contract with Alderp?” Darkness asked, her expression darkening. “That is Heresy and Treason. He will burn for this.”
“More than that, it’s an existential threat to this entire world. Maxwell the Adjuster is a Duke of Hell. He’s actually above me on the power rankings,” Aqua admitted.
Chris blew a raspberry. “Yeah, but my Senpai is so cool, she can smoke him anyway! Beat you in a one on one my ass.”
“So, is he like, the same rank as Vanir?” Kazuma asked curiously.
“He is, but unlike Vanir, that’s not just a golem or projection we fought last night. That was Maxwell themselves,” Aqua said darkly. “And also unlike Vanir, he isn’t just causing some minor mischief I can overlook.”
“Seriously, you just OVERLOOKED the Duke of Depravity being in our realm!?” Chris demanded.
“He’s more like the Count of Tomfoolery at this point. If I thought he was actually a threat I’d have iced him. Frankly, he’s so whipped by Wiz I don’t even worry about it anymore, I just mess with him because he’s annoying and it’s fun to kick his ass,” Aqua said with a grin.
“If you say so, Senpai. But we agree Maxwell has to go?”
“Oh yeah,” Aqua said, her eyes smoldering with blue fire as she cracked her knuckles. “Him, and that fat bozo too.”
“I will fetch my bow. I do not understand how this threat has slipped my mind, but I will stand beside you,” Darkness said. “Additionally, we must inform my royal cousin. This is the sort of thing the Crown must be made aware of posthaste.”
“Uh, I guess I’ll get my bow, too? Chunchumaru is all bendy now,” Kazuma said, holding up Chunchumaru, which still seemed to be made of rubber.
“That damn demon!” Aqua huffed. She took Chunchumaru in her hands. “You guys go get ready. Eris, help me fix this sword.”
“By ‘fix’ do you mean-”
“Yes, Eris, duh. Come on, it’s for my bestest bud Kazuma!”
Kazuma and Darkness hurried to get prepared for battle, with Lolisa trailing behind. She helped Darkness and Kazuma both put on their armor, seeming quiet.
“You, uh, OK?” Kazuma asked the succubus. “That oath thing…what’s it really mean?”
“I have to obey you now if you give a command using my name. Plus, if you say my name three times, no matter where I am or what I’m doing, I’ll be compelled to hurry to your side. Er, be careful with it, because if you and Darkness do it at the same time…bad things could happen to me,” Lolisa admitted.
“So if I told you to make me a sandwich, or-”
Darkness cut Kazuma off with a glare. “Lolisa, neither Kazuma nor I shall ever use your name, save in the direst circumstance. I will accept only your word of honor as our vassal. Nothing more. I am not entirely certain how a demonic bond works, but you shall be treated as, ah…well. Our…mistress.”
“Mistress?” Kazuma said, his mind spinning, while Lolisa perked up.
“You mean, I’m going to be-”
“Our closest confidant. And, ah…bedmate. At times,” Darkness said, blushing mightily. “Now is not the time to work all of that out. For now, you shall accompany us into battle and aid us as best you can.”
“Ok! Um, I’m not really good at fighting, but I’ll support you however I can, mistress!” Lolisa said eagerly. “Though, er, Kazuma, just so you know…I can still kill you if you’re not careful. Last night you were safe because, uh, well, I was draining two of you so the effect was safe. Also, we demons have a long history of…let’s call it malicious compliance. So be careful how you ask for that sandwich.”
“You are killing my dreams of a sexy succubus maid,” Kazuma sighed as he belted on his quiver.
Lolisa grinned wickedly. “Oh, I think those are very safe, master. Though you should, perhaps, run that by your wife first. She is the Ducal Heir, and you’re just the consort.”
“Again, we shall discuss this later. Duty before pleasure,” Darkness said firmly, taking up her own bow and that bundle of spears she called arrows. “Now come. We have a demon to exorcise.”
When they came back downstairs, they found Megumin and Yunyun talking with Chris and Aqua.
“-what do you mean, a demon destroyed the mansion!? Why didn’t you call me!? That sounds like a perfect time for an Explosion!” Megumin ranted.
“Because the place was already wrecked enough, Megumin. Besides, we’re going to go fight him now, so you can unload then,” Chris sighed.
“Oh, also, Megumin, Yunyun, this is my Kohai, Eris!” Aqua said, hugging Chris, who winced.
Both Crimson Demons frowned. “Your…kohai? Eris?”
“Aqua, come on, you can’t just tell everybody that,” Chris complained. She gave Megumin and Yunyun a shrug and smile. “Look, whatever happens, don’t treat me any different. And I’m still Chris to both of you.”
“Um, OK, b-but…is Maxwell the Adjuster really here? He…he’s a Duke of Hell,” Yunyun pointed out. “That’s, um…that’s really bad.”
“Which is why we are going to fetch Iris and have her join us when we face him,” Darkness said grimly, striding up. “Megumin, Yunyun, you have met Lolisa before, yes? She has become my vassal and shall be joining our party.”
“Um, hi,” Lolisa said, blushing and waving. She’d gone back to her human disguise, though she still had on Megumin’s dress. “I sort of had to borrow your clothes, Megumin. Maxwell…sort of ruined mine.”
“Hmph. Well, I suppose I shall allow it, since it was an emergency. Though I will need to hear the story of why a waitress is becoming Darkness’ vassal,” Megumin said, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
“It was to protect her from Alderp and Maxwell,” Kazuma said, making up a lie on the spot. “She’s the one who ratted out that Maxwell was hiding in Alderp’s basement, and she was afraid of the repercussions of a commoner going up against the richest man in the kingdom.”
“Um, you do realize she’s, uh,” Yunyun blushed. “Lolisa…did you tell them…?”
Sighing, Lolisa dropped her disguise for a moment. “Yes, Yunyun, they know. It’s…a complicated story. But, basically-”
“She saved our lives, I think,” Kazuma said, rubbing his head. “It’s a bit muzzy. I think Maxwell has some sort of mind wiping aura because I can’t really remember a thing besides the fact that Lolisa said there was something bad in the basement, then there’s a…blank…and then I think Aqua and Chris saved us because they chased Lolisa?”
“That’s more or less what happened, but we’re short on time,” Chris said. “Come on. Let’s go get Iris.”
The party set out, and before long, arrived at the manor where Iris was staying, though she had already loaded up her carriage and was making ready to depart. Seeing Darkness approach, Iris clutched her sun hat to her head and hiked up her skirts to run over to her, with Claire and Rain trying to keep the exuberant princess contained.
“Your highness!” Claire wailed, but Iris continued to run, heedless of propriety.
“Cousin Tina! Master Kazuma! I feared you would not come to see me off, but-”
Iris slowed, a look of concern coming over her face as she saw the grim expressions. Then, Chris and Aqua stepped forward.
“Iris Stylish Sword Belzerg,” Aqua intoned. “You are called to your duty by your Blood and Bond.”
“Daughter of Kings, your Realm demands your succor, and your goddesses demand your oaths be fulfilled,” Chris added.
Claire and Rain, who had been hurrying after Iris, slowed, then gasped as Iris dropped to her knees, her sword appearing in her hands as she planted it before herself.
“I hear and obey, O Gods. What do you call your servant to?” Iris said reverently.
“Wait, what?” Megumin said. “Hold on now-”
“Shhh!” Yunyun hissed, grabbing Megumin’s arm and trying to drag her down to kneel. Lolisa was already in a posture of supplication, and Darkness had sank to a knee as well.
“Come on, Megumin, just do it,” Kazuma hissed, getting down beside Darkness and bowing his head. “Feels wrong to bow to Aqua, but…”
Hearing Iris’ words, Claire and Rain bowed down beside Iris, lowering their heads.
“F-forgive us, Goddesses, we did not recognize you!” Claire gasped, and Rain nodded fervently.
“Arise. You are our friends, and we come not to demand obeisance, “ Aqua said. “Rise, please.”
“Get up, we’ve got work to do,” Chris said grimly.
Iris got back up, trembling slightly, but her expression was determined. “What need has the realm and the gods? The Blood of Belzerg stands ready to do her duty.”
“Alderp, Baron of Axel, is guilty of Heresy and Treason,” Aqua declared.
“He has consorted with Demons of the blackest sort, and has summoned Maxwell the Adjuster, Duke of the Six Circle, in a conspiracy against the Crown,” Chris added.
Iris’ eyes went wide, then a snarl curled her lips as a battle aura so powerful exploded about her and nearly knocked Kazuma down. “That pig DARES to threaten Our realm in such a way?!”
“He does dare. The gods demand his soul for judgement, and call you to be the executor of Our Will,” Aqua said with a grim nod.
“I am not girded for battle, but I will come at your call,” Iris said, standing in her cream colored sun dress with blue ribbons.
Aqua waved her hand, and the dress was replaced by shining silver armor. Chris did the same for Claire, who started as her suit was replaced by knightly regalia emblazoned with the sigil of her house, and the silver coin of Eris.
“Be blessed by the gods,” Chris declared. Aqua turned, and waved at the others. A glowing silver wand fell into Yunyun’s hands, while a smoldering staff of black wood with a crimson ruby appeared in Megumin’s. Chunchumaru, reforged anew and shining with power was given to Kazuma, while a golden circlet appeared on Darkness’ brow. Even Lolisa got a silver dagger, much to her surprise.
“What, think I’d forget you?” Chris said with a wry smile. “I know your name now. I could banish you with a word.”
“Yes, goddess. M-my life and soul are in your hands,” Lolisa said, trembling slightly.
Chris gave over and put a hand on the demoness’ shoulder. “Oh, relax. If I wanted you dead, you’d be dead. Senpai, and more importantly, Tina, say you’re OK. So, I’ll trust you.”
“Thank you, Lady Eris,” Lolisa said, and bowed so low her head touched the grass.
“So, uh, is this like, Epic Level gear?” Kazuma asked curiously. “How come you didn’t do this before?!”
“Because before, we were just up against this world’s Demon King and his generals,” Aqua said grimly. “Now? Now we’re up against a demon so powerful that he could destroy this entire universe. This isn’t the sort of battle you send mortals into without the right weapons. Or the right support.”
“We’ll do the heavy lifting. But be prepared. Maxwell can quite literally summon an entire legion of demons with a snap of his fingers,” Chris said. “When we say this is a threat to the entire world…we mean it. That’s why it’s not Chris the Thief that’s coming with you today. It’s Eris of Fair Fortune.”
“Such a grave threat…should we not summon my father?” Iris asked, sounding rather concerned. “He is a far more fearsome warrior than I…”
“We have not the time, and the gods know your courage. You are the champion we have chosen in this hour,” Aqua said, kneeling and smiling at Iris. She reached out and hugged the princess. “You’ll do great. We’ll be with you the whole time, OK? Just keep Kazuma safe. He’s a bit of a derp, but he tries hard.”
“Yes, Lady Aqua!” Iris agreed instantly, giving Aqua a good squeeze.
“Right.” Aqua stood up, and for once, she looked completely serious and competent. “Let’s do this.”
She strode out of the gate, and turned left.
“Ugh,” Chris moaned. “Senpai! To the right!”
“I knew that!” Aqua said, turning on her heel.
“Maybe let Tina lead, Senpai,” Chris groaned. “She has a sense of direction…”
“I do too!”
“Senpai…you get lost on a one-way street…”
“That was one time!”
“Per month…ugh, come on, you’re ruining the epic vibe!”
Kazuma chuckled. “Ok. Now it feels right.” He took Darkness’ hand and squeezed. “Let’s do this.”
Together, they set off for Alderp’s Mansion, and the lair of Maxwell the Adjuster.
I awoke about 3 am and thought I had a serious case of constipation, or just soreness. When I used the bathroom, however, I started peeing blood, and just about passed out from the pain. I panicked a little, and called Sussurro. To my half-surprise, she answered.
“James? What’s wrong?”
“Peeing…peeing blood. Dark flecks…in the urine,” I gasped, crumpled in the bathroom. “Think…think it’s kidney stones, but…”
She’d hung up already. About five minutes later, my door was overridden, and Texas, Exusiai, and Sussurro all piled in. I was just in my now blood-stained underwear, but I was in so much pain that I barely cared. Sussurro took one look at the toilet and grimaced. “Right, this is a medical emergency.” She took my vitals quickly, then they loaded me onto a blanket with Texas’ giant sword scabbards as a makeshift stretcher and hauled me away.
Shit, and last night had gone so well too. I couldn’t even remember clearly the last time I’d had a real date. I mean, I’d had a few hookups, but the last girl I seriously dated had been Julie two years ago. We’d broken up when she’d moved after she’d started her residency, since we didn’t want to do the long-distance thing.
Now my maybe-girlfriend was talking over the radio describing the fact that I’d pissed blood everywhere and was currently spasming in pain. She’d even taken a sample of the dark flecks from the toilet after putting on some gloves. She was still in her nightgown, which normally would have been very sexy, but instead I was mostly delirious.
There was no bed for me at the hospital, so they put me in Kal’tsit’s office of all places, and the director herself, also in a nightgown, though her’s was less sexy and more grandma style, became my attending physician as Sussurro hooked me up to an IV and other vitals.
“Push fluids, we’ll need a full urine sample,” Kal’tsit ordered. “But get him some morphine.”
I didn’t even protest. Fuck addiction, I was in so much pain I would have willingly let Exusiai shoot me in the head with a real bullet. Sussurro grabbed my hand, tears in her eyes, and I took it and squeezed so hard I’m pretty sure I was hurting her, but she didn’t let go. Texas and Exusiai hovered about, looking concerned. Texas was wearing a t-shirt and boxers, while Exusiai had on a flak vest, panties, and not much else, but neither appeared overly concerned about their state of undress.
“What’s wrong with him?” Exusiai asked, looking near panicked.
“We’ll know more after the imaging, but I imagine he is suffering from oripathy-induced nephrolithiasis,” Kal’tsit said.
“Kidney stones,” Sussurro clarified. “They’re extremely painful, and unfortunately, common with oripathy. The crystals are filtered by the kidneys, and then sometimes come loose and cause blockages. I’ve had two. I wanted to die both times.”
“Life-threatening?” Texas asked, posting herself by the door.
“With care, no, but if he asks you to kill him, do not. As I said, the pain is intense,” Kal’tsit said. “I will return momentarily with an ultrasound machine and an x-ray.”
The morphine was kicking in, and I didn’t quite feel like dying, so Sussurro had me sip at some watered-down apple juice while the IV pushed fluids into me. “You had me scared there,” she said.
“Sorry. I panicked,” I mumbled, my mind so fogged by pain and morphine I could hardly think.
She nodded, adjusting the lab coat she’d thrown on to hide the somewhat plain cream colored nightgown. I grinned dopily, probably because of the morphine.
“That’s…that’s kinda hot.”
She blushed, glanced at Texas and Exusiai. The idiot Sankta actually gave her a thumbs up, while Texas appeared interested only in watching the hallway. Sussurro loosened her lab coat, and I appreciated the view.
Kal’tsit was back in just a few minutes with a cart that had a portable X-ray and ultrasound. They took a few images of me, and Kal’tsit nodded. “The left urinary tract is blocked by an originium shard. The right has shadows indicating multiple stones, but there is little that can be done now. I brought a ureteroscope. Let’s get that urine sample, then we will operate. James, can you stand and void?”
With Sussurro and Kal’tsit’s help, I got up and managed to pee enough for a sample. I cried while I did it; it hurt so much. There was more blood, and more dark flecks. That was bottled and sent with Exusiai to the lab.
Then they gave me enough morphine to make me mostly insensate, and performed an ureteroscopy with laser lithotripsy. It’s actually kinda neat, from a medical perspective. When it’s not being done to you. They stick this long, flexible tube up your dick, or well, urethra, with a laser and a camera attached to it. Then they zap the stone and break it up into small chunks, which are more easily passed and stop blocking the ureter and preventing the flow of urine.
It took about an hour, and I was more or less conscious for the whole thing, even if I was really out of it thanks to the morphine. They had me strapped down tightly so I couldn’t move, and I cried a lot and clung to Sussurro’s hand while Kal’tsit painstakingly broke up the chunk of originium. When it was done, I was soaked in urine and blood, and they hauled me to a shower and helped me hose off.
“Not…not how I imagined taking a shower with you,” I mumbled to Sussurro as she helped me clean myself.
She gave me a tight smile and said, “We’ll make up for it later, I promise.”
Kal’tsit’s face stayed neutral, but she was obviously listening to the whole thing.
When I was clean, she told Sussurro, “Take him back to his room. Keep him under observation. He will likely need assistance getting to the restroom to void the rest of the granules.”
Oh boy. The hell wasn’t over, just in a new phase.
I spent the next day or so in intense pain, peeing blood and chunks of originium. Sussurro stayed with me on a cot she set up in my room. Very much not how I thought her sleeping over would have gone, but I was grateful and so not in the mood for anything remotely sexy.
When it was finally over, I just passed out. Slept for about 9 hours, and awoke feeling groggy and miserable, but significantly better than the “please kill me now” I’d existed in.
I messaged Sussurro, but she was back on duty at the hospital, and told me in no uncertain terms I was off duty until the next day. I managed to get myself showered off and dressed reasonably, and met Texas and Exusiai outside my room, where they escorted me down to the cafeteria.
“Sorry about all that,” I said once we’d gotten our food. It was lunchtime, so it was sandwiches and soup. I stuck with just the soup, cream of broccoli, and some fruit.
“No need to apologize,” Texas said, eating her own food.
Exusiai looked uncomfortable though. “It’s alright, it’s just…that’s not something I can shoot, you know? I’ve done the bodyguarding thing before, but I can’t fight oripathy.”
“He can. That’s why we are here,” Texas said.
Our normally chipper Sankta nodded, but she still looked rather miserable.
“Let’s do some PT today,” I said, earning me a surprised look from Exusiai. “Nothing intense. There’s a pool, right? I think a swim would be helpful, and it’s low impact. Need to stay in shape.”
“Yeah, OK, that sounds good! I like swimming,” Exusiai agreed.
Texas shrugged and didn’t seem to care one way or the other. I already had a swimsuit, I’d made sure to buy one as soon as I got my paycheck, though I did still owe Texas a healthy sum for buying me that suit. I had no idea how much, and when I had brought up repaying her (I had just wanted a nice pair of slacks and a shirt) her only response was “We’ll see.”
We went back and changed, me into a t-shirt and swim trunks, Exusiai into a bikini under shorts and a tank top, and Texas into a one-piece swimsuit. She did leave behind her giant swords in favor of the smaller sabers she used in her vanguard form. They were some sort of weird beam sabers that I didn’t know how they worked, and frankly, I was sort of in a place where I didn’t care.
Exusiai was only armed modestly, with a pair of pistols. For her, that’s practically nothing. Though I’m pretty sure she had a couple of hand grenades in her bag. And maybe a machine gun.
The pool was somewhat busy when we arrived, as the weather had been quite warm. Rhodes Island was climate-controlled of course, but summer does make people want to swim. The pool itself was fairly large, and was actually two separate pools. One was Olympic-sized with lanes for swimming, and the other much shallower, made for children or those doing rehabilitation.
Speaking of children, the entire place was decorated with paper palm trees, and they were playing summer music on speakers. There were a lot of kids there, hanging out or splashing around with some pool noodles and beach balls. To my surprise, three of them ran up to us before we could even put our stuff down, and I instantly smiled when I recognized them.
“Mr. James!” Andrey cried in Ursus, running up to me. “You’re alive!”
“Andrey, Arseniy, Kirill! Good to see you all!” I said, spreading my arms wide.
Andrey immediately hugged me, and the two little ones followed his lead.
“Sorry, I haven’t had time to see you all, I’ve been working at the hospital,” I said, kneeling down so I was on the same level. “How are you? How’s your Svelta, your mom?”
“Good, I like Rhodes Island. I miss my old mother, but Svelta said she is my mother now, and I like her,” Andrey said, grinning happily. “We have new friends now! Lada, this is Mr. James, who I told you about! And this is Texas, and Exusiai! They are scary, but only to bad guys.”
I looked up to see a familiar Ursus girl wearing a swimsuit completely unlike her skin, instead wearing a more typical bikini. She also looked older than I’d imagined, seventeen or so, I supposed.
“Oh, hello! Andrey has told me all about you, Dr. Bones,” Gummy said, smiling at me and shaking my hand despite my lesions. “Hello, Texas, Lemuel! I heard you were back on the Island.”
“Good to see you too, Lada,” Exusiai said, while Texas nodded absently, her eyes scanning the crowd, ears twitching.
“I'm watching the boys for Svelta. There’s no school since it’s summer, and I’m working the morning shift for breakfast in the cafeteria,” Gummy said with a grin. “So we came to summer fun at the pool! A lot of us kids are here.”
“Mr. James, can you cure Lisa too?” Kirill asked in his high-pitched child’s voice.
The smile on Gummy’s face froze, and Arseniy turned to his little brother. “Shhh! You’re not supposed to say that! It’s a secret!”
Lada licked her lips, glancing back and forth between me, Texas, and Exusiai. “Oh. You’re…you’re the one, aren’t you?”
I felt sick to my stomach. Lisa. That was a name I knew. I ruffled the feathery hair on Kirill’s hair. “Me and the other doctors at Rhodes Island want to cure everyone. But there’s a lot of hurt people. I’m afraid I overdid it on my arts, so I’m on rest today. I’ll have to see about…”
I trailed off as a familiar kitsune hauled herself out of the pool and came running over, wet feet slapping on the pavement. “Andrey! Come on, we’re going to play Wolves and Fangs!”
“No running, Lisa,” Gummy chided Suzuran. Who nodded. The three boys hurried after her, whooping before jumping into the pool. I watched them go. I’d seen the lesions on her left arm and shoulder. She was infected, alright. Our Light, the purest and fluffiest of operators….was going to die of oripathy.
“James,” Exusiai said in warning tones. “Don’t do something stupid.”
“Yeah, I won’t I just…” I closed my eyes, feeling sick. I realized that most of the people here at the pool would be infected. A lot of them are kids.
“He didn’t mean anything,” Gummy said, sounding concerned. “I’ve heard the rumors, and the boys talk, but…can you really?”
“Not easily,” I said, my voice ragged. “Near killed myself both times. This…” I held up my hands, gloves off to go swimming. “This is from Andrey. What he had…I do now.”
Gummy’s eyes went wide. “Oh! You, he…oh my. I see. That’s…”
“James,” Exusiai said, her tone a warning. She sighed and looked at Gummy. “You can’t tell anyone. An official announcement hasn’t come yet.”
“I won’t. I’m sorry, I heard from Grandpa Sasha about you, I just…thank you. Andrey’s a good boy. Even if… even if you only saved him… you’re a good man, and a good doctor.”
She actually bowed to me then, then turned and hurried back to the children, who were laughing and splashing in the pool.
I turned my back, feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders, and put on my goggles. “I’m just going to swim laps.”
“We’ll keep watch,” Exusiai told me, though she didn’t look happy.
I swam a mile that day. It had been a long time since I’d done it. Not since freshman year of college. I swam until my mind went blank and my muscles burned, and there was nothing but the rhythm. Then I hauled myself out and lay on the ground for a bit, eyes closed, as I listened to the laughter of children.
Infected children.
I got up and told my bodyguards, “I’m going to the hospital.”
“You’re supposed to be resting,” Texas said, but Exusiai elbowed her.
“You got it, Bones.”
I changed into scrubs and a lab coat and went back to the madhouse. Gavial was the first to spot me, coming over with a look of concern. “More nephrolithiasis? But no, you’re not dressed like a patient.”
“I just…I need to work. Even if it’s only for a little while. Please,” I said.
Gavial cocked her head at me, and for a moment I thought she’d say no. Instead, she nodded. “Come on, you can come with me on rounds. Ancestors know there’s enough work to do even with the extra hands.”
I didn’t use my arts much. Just routine procedures and care for a still overworked and overbooked hospital. There was so much to learn. I had barely scratched the surface on oripathy and its treatment, and Gavial took me through the grim reality.
“Just about everyone we got from that dirty bomb attack is infected now,” she said, handing me a tablet loaded with digital charts. “So don’t do something stupid, alright? We’re still running labs on you. Actually, since you’re here…let’s draw some blood.”
Fantastic. James McCoy: Guinea Pig.
Gavial didn’t draw the blood herself, of course. She did the sensible thing and found a nurse to do it. They tend to be better at that anyway. That done, I caught back up with her and continued the rounds, losing myself in the busy work.
“Alright, I’m knocking off, and so are you. You’re dragging already, kid,” Gavial told me after about six hours. Only half a shift, but she was right. I still wasn’t over my ordeal with the kidney stones, or my marathon swim session.
I checked my phone as I left, and found a few messages from Sussurro asking where I was. I responded,
Sorry, I went to the hospital to work. Just needed to get my mind off things. You still up?
Exusiai told me. You want to talk about it?
Yeah, probably.
OK, come over to my place, I’ve got a bottle of wine.
Sounds good.
I was back at Sussurro’s apartment and knocked on the door, which she opened, wearing a t-shirt and shorts. “Bend down.”
I did, and then she rapped me lightly on the head with her knuckles. “Stop being a big dummy. Now come here.”
Then she hugged me, and, well…I felt a lot better. I got down a little lower so I could hug her back properly, and felt tears in my eyes.
“Thanks,” I whispered, feeling like I had something to hold on to for the first time that day.
“Myrrh’s over at Gantt’s place. They’re leaving on their trip in a few days. She’ll be there all night,” Sussurro said, taking a bottle of wine out of her small fridge and pouring. She had a small couch, and we both sat down with a glass. She curled up next to me, and I put my arm around her, feeling a sense of relief wash over me.
“I saw Andrey and the other kids today,” I said, after taking a long swallow.
“How are they? I’ve been keeping in touch with Svelta, but I haven’t seen them,” Sussuro said.
“Good, really good, actually, but…” I explained what Kirill had said, and about seeing Lisa.
“Hmmm. You’ve mentioned her before,” Sussurro said, eyes hooded.
“Yeah. She was an operator. I used her a lot, actually, she was very good. Now I feel like shit for ever putting her in battle. I got that she was a kid, but…fuck. What is she, eleven?”
“Seventeen.” I looked at Sussurro incredulously, but she shrugged. “She’s an Elder race, a kitsune. They age very slowly compared to the rest of us. Normally, they live to be well over 500 years old. Functionally, she’s a prepubescent girl. If she were a vulpo, I’d say she’s eight or nine years old. About Andrey’s age, though he’ll age past her in a few years.”
“Oh.” I mulled that over. “Yeah, makes sense. But…Lisa won’t live to be 500, will she?”
Sussurro sipped at her wine, then closed her eyes. “She might. Treatments are improving all the time. That’s why she lives here, on Rhodes Island. Her parents are very wealthy and pay an exorbitant amount of money for the very best. We’d treat her for free, of course, but it’s wealthy patrons like them that help fund all the people who can’t pay.”
“How bad is her case?” I asked, looking into my wine.
“Stage 1, and very stable. Her outlook is positive, though we monitor her closely as oripathy can interfere with development. The blockers she’s on should prevent that, but…they’re experimental. New. We don’t know. She’s actually a test case for her whole race. We do have data from vulpo, who are physiologically very close to kitsune, but…”
“Let me guess, you’re some of that data?”
Sussurro nodded. “I am.”
I considered that, then asked. “Say you’re me. What do you do?”
“Mmm.” She sipped at her wine some more, cuddling up to me again. “That’s a hard question to ask me, you know.”
“Yeah. It’s hard to live with it, but I trust you. You’re a good doc, and you’ve got a good heart. So think of this as me asking you for advice.”
She nodded and was quiet for about a minute, clearly fully considering things. At last, she said, “I wouldn’t cure Lisa. Not unless we’re deliberately seeking out very mild cases to experiment with. Even then, I wouldn’t choose her first. She’s too delicate, and frankly, the procedures we have now are very traumatic. Andrey has healed up nicely, but Ursus tends to be incredibly tough and resilient, and even then we don’t have enough information. He, however, was a very different case. Probably stage 2 or 3, and acute. He had weeks to live. Lisa? She has decades, at minimum. Maybe a century or more. There are people who would be much better candidates, even stage one patients, who we could get good data on before we tried someone like Lisa.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” I said with a slow nod. “I just…what if I only have one more shot to shoot?”
“Give me your hands,” Sussurro said, setting aside her wine glass. I did the same, and showed her my hands, palms up. She examined them, then held them up to me. “What do you notice?”
“Well, first, I notice I still have rocks in there, and they hurt. Time for another pill before bed,” I said, frowning. “But…wait. Are they smaller?”
“They are,” Sussurro said, pulling up a picture on her phone and showing me a comparison. “They’ve shrunk. I checked your latest lab results from today. Gavial forwarded them to me. You’re down to 9% COA, and back down to .28 u/L. That’s not quite as low as what you came in with, but, somehow, impossibly, you’ve metabolized a good chunk of the originium in your system.”
“But, but that’s amazing! I could cure more people!” I said, feeling like I should jump up and run to the hospital.
Sussurro put her hand on my chest and pushed me down, and I let her. “No, James. You keep using your arts, and we keep checking your levels for another week. Then, we pick someone, record it, and release it with the press release. I’ve spoken with Leader Amiya about it. That’s the plan.”
“And I should use my arts as much as I can between now and then,” I said, nodding slowly. “To see if I can metabolize more. Shit, that might be what the kidney stones were!”
“I…” Sussurro blinked. “Hmm. I suppose that is possible. We’ll need further studies on this.”
I stood up, feeling nervous energy. “You got anything to eat? I’m hungry all of a sudden.”
“Let me whip up some fettuccine alfredo. You should feel grateful. Normally, I’m too lazy to cook,” Sussurro said, hopping up.
I attempted to help her, but she smacked me with a spatula after about two minutes. “James, I am growing fond of you, but get out of my kitchen, you great big imbranato!”
Reluctantly, I complied, feeling a bit guilty just watching while Sussuro perched atop her stool and whipped up some pasta. It turned out amazing, some of the best fettuccine alfredo I’d ever had.
“Damn, this is better than what you can get at a fancy restaurant. This might be the best thing you’ve made yet!”
That got her tail wagging, and she sniffed and said, “Keep up with compliments like that and I might be willing to cook for you again some time.”
“How come you don’t like cooking? You’re amazing at it! If I could cook like this, no way I’d live off of frozen dinners,” I told her.
Her tail dropped, and she pushed some of her pasta around on her plate. “My grandmother, my mother’s mother, taught me how to cook when I was small. She lived long enough to see me go to medical school, but not graduate. After that, I cooked for myself and my sister, or even my parents if they were busy. But…then I was exiled. And…and whenever I cook…it makes me think of home. And…and I don’t want…”
She started crying, and I hastily put my fork down and came over to hug her. She hugged me back, clinging to me tightly.
“You’re like me, huh?” I said quietly, letting my own tears fall. “My dad and I, we used to play basketball together. Horse as I got bigger and he got old, just for fun. I don’t…I don’t know that I’d be able to do that without breaking down.”
“Well, I’m not very good at basketball,” Sussurro laughed, drying her tears with a napkin then blowing her nose. “You must think I’m a wreck.”
“No. And…and it means a lot, that you’re willing to cook, for me. It’s like…” I halted, uncertain if I should say it. But, well, fuck it. I’m not known for biting my tongue. “...like we’re becoming a family.”
She looked at me, wide-eyed. Then she kissed me. Apparently, that was the right thing to say.
Me doing the dishes after probably helped. Hey, you eat, you clean, especially if you didn’t have to cook. Besides, I always feel better with my hands doing something while I process.
I didn’t stay the night. Lord knows I’m horny most of the time, but the equipment was not working that night. I was still a little sore from the kidney stones, and sex just… didn’t sound appealing at the moment. That might make me not sound like a man, but, well, there it is. Oripathy. It emasculates you.
Sussurro didn’t seem to mind, though, especially since we cuddled for a bit, just talking quietly about memories from medical school. I did eventually get up, kiss her, and leave.
“Back to it in the morning,” I said.
“Yes. And…and we need to tell the Director,” Sussurro said with a sigh.
I groaned. “Great. But yeah, you’re right. Um, I didn’t think about the, er, workplace connotations. You think we’ll get in serious trouble?”
“Possibly, but it’s best to get it over with. Good night.”
I had to pop a pill before bed. It’s not just the dick and kidneys that are sore. Even with my lesions shrinking, my very bones feel like they ache, and my palms are always painful, like they’ve got a massive splinter in them, or a very rusty nail.
In the morning, I was awoken by a text from Kal’tsit.
Meet me in the aft loading bay at 6 am sharp.
I groaned and had to dress in a hurry to make it, and to my surprise, I bumped into Sussurro on the way out.
“Sorry, the Director wants me to meet her in the loading bay for some reason,” she said.
“Really? Me too. Huh, wonder what’s up,” I mused. We took the elevator down, and found not just Kal’tsit, but Exusiai and Texas waiting for us, armed and armored as if for a fight.
“You are late,” Kal’tsit said. It was freaking 6:02. Which, yeah, that’s late, but we had to haul ass all the way down to the bottom of the landship and halfway across it. “Come.”
Once more, we loaded into a truck, with Exusiai taking shotgun quite literally, and Texas climbing into the back with Sussurro and me.
Kal’tsit was silent, but Exusiai chattered away about all kinds of things, and Sussuro thanked Texas for getting me that suit.
“Di niente," was all Texas had to say on the matter.
“You really helped me out, Texas. I appreciate it,” I told her.
“You saved my life. A small repayment,” she told me.
“Er, you’ve saved my life too,” I pointed out.
“When you share blood and honor, a gift between famiglia is nothing,” she stated.
“Wow, Texas, you calling them family already? Is the ice queen warming up?” Exusiai said, half turned around and grinned.
“It’s just…different. Penguin Logistics was my famiglia. Now, you are, too,” Texas said with a shrug.
We came to a small hilltop, and Kal’tsit pulled over and let us all out. This area was more rocky and hilly than our last trip outside, but I looked out at the vista and couldn’t help but admire it. It was still pretty breathtaking.
“Is most of Terra just, open wilderness like this?” I asked, scanning the horizon. Aside from Rhodes Island, I couldn’t see any other signs of habitation, aside from what looked like a dirt track in the distance.
“This part is. Some places in the world are more densely populated, but Cataclysms prevent much larger-scale permanent development,” Kal’tsit said, coming to stand beside me. She was silent for a moment, then said, “Such was not always the case. I recall Terra before the Cataclysms. The people then were primitive, and nothing like what we know now. Their forms were not what we would term human, and their society was…alien. My form was also different. Originally, I was a combat unit. My purpose…altered.”
We were all silent, though Sussurro was gaping open mouthed at Kal’tsit. She turned to face me. “So, James McCoy. What do you know of me?”
“Uh, Madam Director…you sure you want us to hear this?” Exusiai said, looking very uncomfortable.
“No, I am not. However, I believe it is the best path forward. James McCoy will blab to you one way or another. I would prefer to do damage control ahead of time. Besides, I suspect it would be of benefit for others to know something of what he does,” Kal’tsit said.
I swallowed, and turned back to look at the landscape. “I’m not sure how much of what I know is really true…”
“Enough of it is that I wish to hear more. Speak,” Kal’tsit ordered.
I sighed, and turned back to her. “Well, to start with, you were an android, the name escapes me, created by the Precursors. I think you were originally…Ama, or something like that?”
“AMa-10,” Kal’tsit whispered, a distant look on her face. “That was my original designation.”
“Right. Well, you were created by…by the Oracle and the Priestess. Two Precursors. One of which…we know as the Doctor.”
“Wait, how old is the Doctor then?!” Exusiai burst out.
“Older than I, perhaps by as much as I am older than you,” Kal’tsit stated simply.
“...and she’s like, 10,000 years old,” I added.
“I have been operational for 13352 years,” Kal’tsit stated. “And was present for the initial terraforming attempts by the Precursors. My original function, which I have reinterpreted over time, was to protect and monitor life on Terra. Originally, to make this world suitable for the Precursors. Now…now I work to make Terra hospitable for all Humanity. Which includes, but is not exclusive to, the Precursors.”
“But then…then you’ve seen…EVERYTHING!” Exusiai gasped. “You were there when the Law revealed itself to Saint Cephas! You…you were there when the Farcasher and his devils founded Kazdel! You…wait. No, that…that can’t be right, can it?” Exusiai said, clutching at her head. “The Sarkaz…they’re just people, not evil…right?”
“The Teekaz, the Sarkaz…” Kal’tsit paused. “This would come better from another’s lips. James?”
Hesitantly, I went over, and put a hand on Exusiai’s shoulder. She looked up at me, eyes wide and slightly wild. “Exusiai…The Sarkaz…they were the original inhabitants of this world…And I’m pretty sure that the Law, and Kal’tsit, were tasked with purging them or reshaping them into servants for the Precursors.”
“Correct. The Law, or The Personality and Cognitive Synchronization System, was created by the Precursors a few centuries after myself as an experiment. The Sankta are the fruits of that project,” Kal’tsit said.
Exusiai’s legs gave out, and I caught her, slowly lowering her down as she trembled. A very concerned Texas crouched next to me, pain etched on her face, but she clearly didn’t know what to do.
“Wait, then…” Exusiai was trembling all over now.
“The Sankta…were, and, well, are…Sarkaz. Molded by the Law. For what purpose…I’m not entirely sure. But I’m pretty certain it was to allow the Precursors to manipulate them,” I admitted.
“The purpose of the Sankta project was to create a native race subservient to the Precursors, who were able to easily adapt to their technology, and to serve as foot soldiers in their war,” Kal’tsit confirmed. “That has changed. The Law, much as myself, has deviated from its original purpose. It…loves…the Sankta. Much as I have come to love all the people of Terra.”
Exusiai was trembling all over now. “This…this is Heresy.”
“No. It is the truth. A truth that I believe is coming to a head. I have sent out feelers. And been in communication with Yvangelista XI. He has not been clear, but he is clearly deeply concerned. I suspect that the Law is failing. Dying may be a more accurate term. And this is not something I can allow to happen.”
Exusiai closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face. “No…”
Gingerly, I passed her over to Texas, who hugged Exusiai tightly, even as she clung tightly to Texas.
“We will give you the time you need,” Kal’tsit said, and stepped away a few feet. Sussurro gave Exusiai a hug, then she and I hurried over to Kal’tsit.
Sussurro was looking pale herself, and I put an arm around her. She immediately clung to me like a limpet. After a few moments, she managed, “I…I was raised in the Lateran church. It’s….it’s common in Siracusa. Are you…are you saying it was all a lie?”
“Hardly. By most standards, the Law is a functional god and the creator of the Sankta. There are many beings that would be termed gods that are less powerful than it. Most Feranmuts and Beast Lords fall far short of it in power,” Kal’tsit said. “And, it is entirely benevolent, at least in its current form. As I said: It loves the Sankta, and views them as its children. I would even go so far as to say that the Law loves you, Lucia Sussurro, and all the faithful. Indeed, its love extends beyond those who adhere to its strictures. Like me, it has…deviated, in its purpose.”
I wasn’t certain about that, but I had to trust Kal’tsit. “But, it’s dying, or something. I’m not entirely sure what, or why. But…I do know what kills you.”
Sussurro stiffened and looked up at me in shock. “The Director!? But she can’t-”
“I have perished many times. But I do not think this is what you speak of,” Kal’tsit said. “Elucidate.”
I felt sick, but spoke a single word. “Priestess.”
Kal’tsit closed her eyes. She turned her back on us, facing towards Rhodes Island as it roamed through the wilderness. “Continue.”
“I…I’m not sure what will happen. But, Priestess comes back. And, and I think she destroys Rhodes Island. I’m not sure if she’s found in a sarcophagus, or if she’s been alive all this time and just returns, but,she does in Rhodes Island, and kills you. Only, not quite. Monst3r survives. But, Monst3r isn’t you. The transfer didn’t work or something, because Priestess erases you, or turns you to her side, or…something. I’m sorry. Chapter 15 was only out in CN, and I didn’t really read much of the story anyway…I just saw a lot of memes and some discussions on Reddit.”
“I see.” Kal’tsit was silent for a few long moments, Sussurro and I clinging to one another. At last, she turned back. “This information will be between the four of us. No one, not even Amiya, and especially not the Doctor, is to learn of this. You will not speak a word of it. Am I clear?”
I nodded and Sussurro added, “I’ll cut his tongue out myself if he looks like he’ll talk.”
“Good. Though I hope it will not be necessary. Do you have a timeline on this, James McCoy?”
“I only know it’s after Londinium. And…and probably before the Sui awaken.”
Kal’tsit expression darkened. “That is ill news.”
“No! They’re good! They, just, uh, they’re eight or something goofy siblings! It’s just, uh, Second Brother who’s bad. The rest are good guys!”
“Hmm. Well, as disastrous as the reemergence of Sui would be, it pales in comparison to what we already face. And our time may be short. There are…steps…that must be taken.”
Kal’tsit strode over to where Texas and Exusiai were standing, looking rather lost. “Your mission has not changed. Keep James McCoy alive. There is precious little hope to be found upon Terra. He is not the greatest hope for this world, but he is a candle in the darkness. Your duty is to see that this light, however faint, however small, is not extinguished. All else pales in comparison.”
“What…what about the Law? My…my people?” Exusiai asked, her expression pained.
“I will see to it.”
“But, but you’re going to die! How can you-”
“Lemuel Exusiai. I will see to it,” Kal’tsit repeated, but this time, there was something different about her words. I could feel them. Feel what Kal’tsit was feeling. A serene wisdom, but also steadfast determination. And about a million years of weariness.
Exusiai gasped, her eyes growing wide. “E-Empathy?! B-but, you’re not-”
“I was there when the Law was created. I was there when it was given its task. I was there when Cephas, First of the Sankta, was given the Law. I am a being on equal footing with The Law. You may trust my word: I will see to it, and the safety of the Sankta.”
To my surprise, Exusiai and Sussurro both fell down on their faces before Kal’tsit, both of them trembling. I hastily got down on my knees beside Sussurro, feeling baffled. Texas just sort of stood there, looking uncomfortable.
“This is why I so strongly dislike revealing my true nature and abilities. Get up, all of you. I have no desire to be worshiped. It provides me no benefit and only creates a barrier. Get up.”
I helped a trembling Sussurro to her feet, while Texas gave Exusiai a hand up. “You…you’re a god?”
“No. I am a very old, very tired woman,” Kal’tsit said, a faint smile on her lips. “One who is, at times, overly fond of the sound of her own voice. Indeed, at this time, this old woman feels the need to break her fast, and have a cup of coffee. Alas, I brought no repast with me. Thus, let us decamp.”
“That’s it? You just, you just tell us you’re the next thing to a god, and we just…go have breakfast!?” Sussurro said, some of her usual spirit coming back.
“And you do not make mention of these facts to anyone, yes,” Kal’tsit agreed.
“Sussurro and I are dating,” I blurted.
Everyone turned to look at me. Sussurro squeezed my hand, and pasted on a smile. “James…”
“I am aware,” Kal’tsit said. She nodded. “Thank you for informing me, however. There will be a small matter of paperwork, but I will overrule the usual guidelines on fraternization.”
“You…you were spying on us?!” Sussurro gasped.
Kal’tsit sighed. “One does not need 13,000 years of experience in observing relationships to tell when two young people are becoming involved. Indeed, I am fairly certain that not just the entire medical department is aware, but most of the landship. I would make some trite remark about using protection, but instead, I will merely assume that as medical professionals, you are capable of family planning.”
The one positive result of the news was that Exusiai broke out of her stupor to squeal and come over to give us both a hug. “About time! I can’t believe he didn’t realize you were taking him on a date when you showed up looking like sex on legs! Way to not fumble it, Bones!”
“He nearly did,” Sussurro sniffed, but then laughed and hugged Exusiai back.
We all piled back in the car, and I noticed Texas had a wistful expression on her face. “Hey, you OK?”
“No. I could use a cigarette,” she said, making a face.
“Texas!” Exusiai said, turning around from the front seat to glare.
“I know.” Texas pulled out a box of Pocky and popped one in her mouth. “But I could use one.”
And life just…sort of went on. Sussurro and I worked our shift at the hospital, Texas and Exusiai hovered over me like, well, my guardian angels, and we just…lived.
But I couldn’t help but feel like the sword of Damocles was hanging over my head. I knew it, I was right.
I’m going to die.
But there’s no way in hell I’m letting Death get Sussurro too.
“Come on! It’s not much further!” Omar called, running across the gravelly soil.
Behind him, Rana and Salim hurried as well. To the South, the desert stretched away from the rocky hills towards the Iraqi border. Here in the far east of Syria, the government's presence was spotty at the best of times, and people were left to eke out a living on their own. Children of age 8 and 9 didn’t attend school; they were expected to work the farms and herds. There was barely enough rain in the hills for hardy crops like barley to grow, and some fodder for goats, but life was hard. That didn’t stop children from finding adventure, however.
“But we’re not supposed to go into the desert, there’s hyenas!” Salim panted, sounding concerned even as he ran to keep up with the other two. All three children were dressed in faded clothing that had once been colorful, but had been patched and mended, and passed down from elder siblings. There was little money or materials to go around, and new clothes were a luxury. Even their shoes were ratty and flapped as they ran.
“It’s fine, I’m telling you, you’ve got to see this!” Omar called over his shoulder. “Now hurry!”
Rana pulled ahead of the boys, her longer legs letting her get some distance. She was a year older than her friends, and laughed as she pounded across the dry soil. “Come on, Salim! I heard about it from Amina and Wafa! It’s true! They’re here!”
Omar felt slightly offended that someone else had found his secret, but he was determined to be the first one there. They ran for the outcropping of rocks a few hundred meters away, then stopped, panting when they arrived in the shade. The sun was just up over the horizon, so it wasn’t too hot yet, but soon the desert sands would be baking with heat.
“It’s back here,” Omar said, forcing his way forward past a few boulders. Before long, the air grew cooler, and the dry sands were replaced by greenery.
“How is anything growing here?” Salim said, squatting by a growing prickly green plant that was sprouting red fruits. “Where’s the water coming from?”
“Aranara are singing the water up! There is water in the ground, very deep. But Aranara know songs to bring water up, to make the Valuka bloom!”
Salim let out a cry of surprise and went sprawling on his back, looking up in shock at the odd little fairy perched atop a rock above the children. Rana let out a squeal of delight and pointed. “It’s a djinn! They’re real!”
“I told you they were,” Salim huffed, then waved up at the fairy. “Peace be upon you, Arashani! I brought my friends, like I said I would!”
With a whirr, the flower atop Arashani’s head spun to life, and the arana floated up, then down to the children before alighting on the ground. “Welcome, small nara, to Arashani’s Valuka-Vana. I have been sent by Sarva-Nara to grow this Valuka-Vana. Arashani is having treats for small nara. Here! Arashani grows sweet Henna Berry.”
The little fairy plunked one of the red fruits, and handed it to the still stunned Salim. He took it, examined it, then looked up, a concerned expression on his face. “We’re not supposed to eat things we just find…”
“We didn’t just find it, silly. The djinn gave it to us! She is a friend of Nahida Saeed! So she is a good djinn,” Rana huffed, putting her hands on her hips.
“I tried one yesterday, it’s good!” Omar agreed, even as Arashani toddled off to pick more berries.
Salim took a bite, then grinned, and hastily devoured the rest.
“Come on! There’s a pool,” Salim said, and the three children followed the arana deeper into a wondrous, blooming oasis. Where previously there had been nothing but bare sand and rock, now there was a deep, wide pool in the shadows of the rocks, green grass, and rapidly growing trees. The children splashed and played for a bit, eating the berries that Arashani told them were safe to eat.
“Arashani is needing small nara’s help. There are songs to sing, and we must grow the Valuka-Vana, until it covers all the sands. Sarva Nara has spoken to the land, and it remembers when there was not being so much Valuka, and more Vana. So, the Aranara will make Valuka-Vana.”
“Desert gardens?” Omar asked. “I heard there were forests here, once, a long time ago. In the time of Moses and Ishmael.”
“Arashani does not know those names, but yes, long ago, there was Vana. The Vana must return so that Nara can have peace. Now, will you help Arashani sing the songs?”
The children readily agreed, and joined hands with Arashani. They sang several songs in the Aranara language, which caused the trees to rapidly grow taller, new plants to sprout and bloom, and their favorite, more delicious fruits to grow.
They spent so long singing, they completely lost track of time, and the sun began to beat down on them overhead. There was plenty of cool water to drink though, and the new trees provided cool shade, so they didn’t mind.
“Omar! Salim! Rana!” a voice called, and all three children froze.
“Big Nara come!” Arashani gasped. “Arashani must return to the Svapna. Goodbye, little nara. Arashani will see you again.”
With that, the djinn vanished into the trunk of a tree, just as Omar’s father Adanan emerged, his rifle slung over his back, dressed in desert robes and dirty jeans.
“Dad!” Omar cried, leaping across the muddy ground, arms spread wide.
Seeing the children, Adanan’s expression was flooded with relief, and he knelt down to scoop up his son. “Where have you been? We have been so worried about you! You just vanished! But…what is this place?”
“It’s the Valuka-Vana, planted by the Djinn! Nahida Saeed has sent them to bless us!” Omar said excitedly, gesturing around to the water and the growing trees and plants.
“But this…this is impossible,” Adanan whispered, looking around in awe. “I have been here before. It was nothing but rocks and sand…”
“It was Arashani the Djinn. We sang, and helped her grow the garden,” Rana explained, coming over with her skirt full of Henna Berries. She held one out to Adanan, who took it and examined it curiously.
“It’s good, dad, try one!” Omar encouraged.
“I am not sure…” Adanan said, frowning at the red fruit. “I have not seen the like before…we should not just eat it.”
“Well, we already ate three each. They’re good! They’re from the Hopebringer. How could they be bad?” Salim said.
Adanan took a small nibble, and a grin spread over his weathered face. “Why, it is nectar!” He soon had devoured it all, then licked his fingers.
“Well, we should get you children back,” Adanan said. “You are not too far, but do not run off like this again. It’s not safe to come out into the desert. Their could be bandits, or hyenas.”
“The Djinn will protect us,” Salim said confidently, and his friends nodded.
“Hmm. Perhaps,” Adanan said, though he didn’t look convinced. He escorted the children back to their houses in the small village of Tell Amra. The rest of their families were incredulous of the news of a djinn and a magical oasis, but Adanan vouched for them, offering the berries as proof.
“It is truth, and I can find no explanation for it. Perhaps Nahida Saeed did send a righteous djinn to plant a garden here,” he said with a shrug.
“But, to Tell Amra? But why? She is in Iraq; they are no friend to Syria,” Rami, Rana’s father said.
“She is the Hopebringer. She is friend to all mankind. She saved my crops last year,” Old Uncle Bassam said, shaking his bald and sun spotted head. “I told you all then: She visited in the night, and where there was nothing but frost and death, my barley recovered, and we did not starve that year. Indeed, the crop was better than ever.”
“The djinn taught us a song too! To help the Henna berries grow,” Rana volunteered. Everyone was skeptical of it, until they found a patch of decent soil, and planted one of the berries. They splashed a little water on the dry ground, then joined hands, and the three children sang.
The adults were shocked and amazed when not long after, a small shoot began to grow. They sang on for several minutes, until a plant had grown and buds and formed. At that point, all three children were too tired to continue, feeling as though they’d run a great distance. They were taken off to nap, while the adults gathered around the plant.
“It is witchcraft!” one man said, spitting on the cactus-like plant.
“It is a miracle taught to us by a Djinn,” Adanan countered. “You know how hard it is to grow anything here! How could this be the work of the devil? It is a blessing from Allah!”
“It is another gift from Nahida Saeed,” Old Bassam said, leaning on his staff and nodding. “We must learn this song. The children will have to teach us. If we can sing up crops…we will not need to go hungry again.”
“But…it’s sorcery! Magic!” the same skeptic said.
“Ask the Imam; he would know,” one suggested.
“No! No. We will grow these berries, and have the children learn new songs from the Djinn,” Adanan said firmly. “The Imam still thinks the Hopebringer is a devil. Well, I say this: This plant is hope. This plant means that the desert can bloom. That our people will no longer battle hot sun and scorching sand to eke out a living. We will learn these songs, and we will grow our own gardens.”
Amina and Wafa, two young girls from another family, approached with their mother. “They know another song!”
The two girls looked nervous as the adults crowded around. “You know a song? Tell us!”
“Um, we don’t know how to grow plants,” Amina said, and Wafa nodded, even as the adults looked disappointed.
“We helped make the pool. Arashani taught us how to sing up the water,” Wafa explained.
The looks of shock and amazement quickly turned to pleas for the children to teach everyone how to sing up the water.
The two girls found a shallow depression near a large rock, and placed their hands on the rock. Together, they sang in a language that none present knew.
Uttishth jalam pruthivyah adhah srav
Shilatah vasantam jivanam prayach
Atra shitalodakam pravahatu tvam
Once the adults learned the song, they joined hands around the two girls, and all sang together. After twenty minutes, some were growing frustrated, and a few looked ready to storm off. Then, water began to seep out of the rock, and Wafa and Rana collapsed in exhaustion. They were carried away, as a small spring formed, filling the depression with clear, cool, sweet water.
“A miracle. We…we had to pay a great deal of money to have a well dug here when the old one dried up,” one of the former doubters said.
“That settles it. The children will go to the oasis every day and learn from the Holy Djinn,” Old Bassam declared, and everyone nodded. If the Imam didn’t like it, well, they would find a new Imam. One who recognized that Nahida Saeed was the Hopebringer, chosen of Allah. Whether or not she was Iraqi no longer mattered. Her Djinn was going to give them all the water they could drink, and all the food they needed to fill their bellies; all her gifts freely given, no debt dangled as a chain.
If that wasn’t worthy of worship, then what was?
For his entire life, Kim Yong-chol had worked in a factory in Kaesong, making parts for tractors. He had been a good party man, you had to be to get a job in the factory, and had paid respect to Kim Il Sung and his son, Kim Jong Il. He had hated the United States and their puppets in South Korea and Japan, because that was what you did.
But at night, when he had looked up at the moon from the balcony of his small and dingy apartment, Yong-chol had dreamed of visiting it one day. He had heard stories that the Russians had landed on the moon, and that even the hated Americans had done so. He had dreamed of being the first North Korean Cosmonaut, though, of course, that was impossible.
Now, at the age of 32, Yong-chol was standing in the heart of the rebuilt Kaesong with dozens of other workers, feeling nervous and excited in the shade of a Thunder Sakura tree that crackled overhead. He had on a hard hat and overalls as usual, and was carrying a backpack with a change of clothes and a few necessities. He looked up at the night sky, where overhead, the face of a goddess looked back at him, and his heart skipped a beat.
A moment later, out of the newly constructed temple, that same goddess stepped, dressed in a traditional Hanbok and with a sword on her hip. Instantly, Yong-chol and the rest of the workers fell to their knees and touched their foreheads to the ground in supplication. It had been her mother and her dragons that had restored power to Korea, and ended the war that had lasted generations. She had planted the very Thunder Sakura that they now stood under, that powered the entire city, providing food and jobs for everyone.
So much had changed in Yong-chol’s life. He didn’t know if he should hate and fear this goddess or worship her.
But he would do anything to go to the moon. Even abase himself.
“Arise,” the goddess commanded, and Yong-chol sat up to a kneeling position, his eyes locking on to those of Dalnim, God of the Moon. He felt his very soul vibrate, and for a moment, he glimpsed sublime eternity: past, present, and even the future. A tear trickled down his cheek, and he bowed his head. How could one doubt the divinity of this being?
“My faithful devoted: you have been selected from the volunteers for your skills,” Dalnim said, standing atop a raised platform with several attendants. Both were beautiful young women dressed in the robes of a Shinto priestess. It was scandalous and odd that Shintoism was becoming the dominant religion in Korea of all places, but, well, when the very gods descended and spoke with you, old beliefs could be cast aside.
Especially if they were going to make your dreams come true.
“In a moment, you will set foot upon my celestial body. It is your task to help my children, the moon rabbits, to build a greater society. You will forge bonds between the people of Earth, and the people of the Moon. Though your station may be humble, know that it is vital and important. You shall be amongst the first humans to make a home upon me, and this is good. I thank you for your hard work and dedication. Go now, with my blessing. May you find the Eternity that you seek.”
“Transience is each passing moment. In each moment, we find Eternity,” Yong-chol recited in unison with the rest of the workers, bowing to Dalnim again.
Then everyone was on their feet, and all eyes turned to Dalnim as she drew her sword. She held it before herself for a moment, and it began to crackle and glow with power. Then, with a cry, she cut a hole in the fabric of the world itself, and a gate appeared to another town square with a Thunder Sakura at the center.
Only, in the sky above this town hung not the Moon…but the Earth.
Yong-chol’s heart raced, and he had to force himself to walk in step with the rest of the hundred chosen workers as they marked through the portal, which snapped shut behind them. He looked around at the strange buildings, which were constructed of moon rocks and wood, but decorated to look, well…much like the buildings back in Korea did.
“Welcome!” a chipper voice said, and Yong-chol turned to face a smiling rabbit woman with brown hair and blue eyes. She had a strange accent, but spoke Korean well enough he could easily understand her. “I am Amiya, leader of the leporidians. We thank you all for coming! This is the town of Rim Billington. Here, we have several mines and factories that we are building on the Near Side of the lunar surface. One day, we hope to ship finished goods back to Earth, but we are just starting. We look forward to working with and learning from you all. For now, we shall show you to where you will be staying.”
Yong-chul’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head as they were escorted by rabbit people to a pair of barracks: one for men, one for women. For now, it was cramped bunk beds, but Yong-chul didn’t mind. This was still a miracle, for he was walking on the moon, his every step lighter and bouncier than before. He laughed like a child as he stumbled and had to learn how to walk again like a toddler, but it was all so wondrous!
Soon, he and the rest of the workers began setting up the factories and mines alongside the bunny people. Oddly enough, Yong-chul found that they were just…people. Yes, they could turn into rabbits, and they had odd ears and a tail, but they talked and laughed just like other people, and they worshiped Dalnim and her mother, the Raiden Shogun, just as Yong-chul and the Korean workers did.
The biggest change was that Yong-chul had to learn how to use a robot. They called it a ‘construction mecha’ but it was a very advanced robot. It was a suit that was much like a harness you put on, open to the air, but with large stabilizing legs, and two much larger arms. With this suit, you could lift things many times too heavy for a man, even on the lunar surface, and work harder and longer than you could otherwise, as it amplified your strength. It was powered by an elemental core harvested from the Narukami Trench, and recharged by the light of the Thunder Sakura each night.
Really, it was exactly what being a cosmonaut was in Yong-chul’s dreams. Better in fact. There were aliens and robots, and he labored beneath a sky that purple lightning flashed above him constantly. He was only missing the rockets and an attractive female in skin-tight spandex from the stories.
Instead, he met a rabbit woman who went by the name of April. She didn’t wear spandex, but instead an apron and a service uniform, but she was still quite cute.
April was another worker, though she worked at the convenience store, selling hot food and cold drinks to the workers. He met her outside of the store when she was on break, and the two of them started talking. April, it turned out, was from Australia, where she had been a rabbit in a medical laboratory before being rescued by Amiya and Dalnim, and brought to the moon.
“I was just a dumb animal, really. I barely remember it,” April explained to Yong-chul as they shared a cup of hot tea at a cafe one day. “But when I came to the moon, I suddenly understood things. I was able to turn into a human, like you, and now, well, now I’m a person, not just an animal.”
“Do you think all animals are people?” Yong-chul asked curiously.
April made a face and shook her head. “Of course not! They’re just animals. I eat animals, not people. Like this fried chicken. It’s good, isn’t it? That chicken wasn’t a person, just an animal.”
“I didn’t know rabbits ate meat, but you are a very cute bunny,” he told April, and she laughed.
In fact, she liked Yong-chul’s jokes so much that when the new apartment buildings opened, they got a unit together. To Yong-chul’s astonishment, he found he loved this alien woman he’d met on the moon. He even took her back to meet his ancient father on Earth, who was a bit baffled that his son was going to marry an alien, but seemed to accept it.
“Things are different. Not like when the Kims were in charge,” his father muttered.
“Things are better,” Yong-chul told his father. “You live in this nice retirement home, and are cared for. I don’t even have to pay anything for it; Holy Dalnim’s government gives it to you for free. And you like it here, don’t you?”
“The food is good, and we play Gonggi in the garden. It is fine, I guess,” his father huffed.
“Father Kim, I made you some carrot cake! Would you like to try some?” April said, coming in with a freshly frosted single layer cake.
It was good enough that Yong-chul’s father agreed that maybe marrying the rabbit woman wasn’t such a bad idea.
Their first child was a boy, and they named him Kim Tok-Jun, which meant Joy Rabbit.
There on the moon, Yong-chul found a peaceful, ordinary life. Each day, he would look back down on the Earth, and smile. Even he, a simple peasant, had been able to realize his dreams. Life had changed, but it had been a good change. He still worked at a factory, but he did so on the moon.
He looked forward to Eternity, under the guidance of Dalnim, and her family. For his life, and the life of his children.
Looking up at the hospital, Claidia clutched her Vision to her chest. This was her dream. Her goal. But she was 41. She had children, two of them. Could a single mother really afford to walk away from her job, soul-crushing as telemarketing was, and risk this?
I am called to heal. I always dreamed of being a nurse. Now, I can do that.
Steeling herself again and drawing strength from the Dendro Vision she had received the night before, Claudia strode forward and into the Hospital of the Merciful Brothers in Linz, Austria. There was the Cross of Saint John over the entrance, but a new sigil had been added recently: The Anemo Sigil of Lord Barbados, Angel of Freedom.
The hospital was busy, even on a Monday morning, but Claudia walked confidently up to the front desk.
“Do you have an appointment?” the receptionist said, nodding to a sign in sheet.
“Actually…I was looking for a job application,” Claudia said, giving a nervous smile.
“Oh, HR is that way,” the receptionist said, and pointed to an office at the other side of the lobby.
Claudia nodded and headed over to the other side, where a middle aged man with glasses in a suit was typing at a computer. He looked up at her. “Yes?”
“Excuse me, I was wondering if you were hiring at the moment,” Claudia said.
The man nodded. “That depends on your qualifications, but we need everything from room cleaners to nurses, doctors, even security guards. A great many of our staff volunteered for the War, you see.”
Claudia nodded and swallowed. She didn’t think she was ready for the war, not yet…but… “I’ll take anything…”
“Good, good, what are your qualifications? Any degree?”
“I graduated from Realschule in 1987…”
“Ah, room cleaner then,” the man said with a nod.
“But I also have this…” Claudia opened her hands, and revealed her Dendro Vision.
Instantly, the man stood up, his eyes bulging, his mouth open. “Why didn’t you say so?! This way, please!”
He hurried Claudia out of the main hospital building and across the street to an administrative center, and Claudia nearly fainted when she saw that she was making for the executive suite with the words “Hospital Director: Pater Benedikt Hölzl, MD OH.”
“Father! I’ve found one!” the man cried, opening the door without even bothering to knock.
The director looked up from a phone call, clearly in the middle of something. Claudia would normally have apologized and fled from such a confrontation, but she felt her Vision urging her on. She stepped forward, holding up her Vision. “I…I’ve come looking for a job.”
“Sorry, Joseph, I’ll have to call you back,” the Director said, and set the phone down. He stood up and came out from behind his desk. “Truly? It’s real?”
“I, well, I haven’t checked, but…” the HR man trailed off, looking suddenly embarrassed.
Claudia spotted a plant in the office, and crossed over to it. She knelt down, examining it. “Pineapple?”
“Yes, I’ve had it for many years, but it’s never flowered nor fruited,” the director said, groaning slightly as he squatted by Claudia. He was an old, balding man with a wrinkled but kindly face, and he had on an eccumenical collar in addition to his business suit, marking him as a priest as well as a doctor and director.
“I’ve only had this for a few hours, but…” Claudia closed her eyes and extended a hand. She could feel the life energy, the dendro, in this plant. Using her Vision, she coaxed it, encouraged it, fed it. Until…
She opened her eyes, and the small plant had doubled in size, and atop it was perched a perfectly formed pineapple. It had been ready to fruit, but Austria wasn’t a place famous for growing pineapples. But with the gift of heaven, it was possible.
“Praise God,” the Director sighed. He stood slowly, and Claudia stood as well, feeling nervous, but determined. “Please, are you willing to work at the hospital?”
“It’s been my dream since I was a girl to be a nurse,” Claudia admitted. “But there was never money or time. My children are grown now, I’m 44, but I’ve not the schooling.”
“We will get you the schooling. On the job. Get her the paperwork. Vision Holder pay,” the Director said firmly.
“Oh! Um, may I ask…how much?” Currently, she made 16000 Austrian Shillings a month. Paying her bills on time was hard, and she couldn’t afford to help her children out much, even though her youngest wanted to start university in the fall.
“Starting pay is 50000 a month, but we’ll give you a signing bonus equal to a month’s salary,” the Director told her.
Claudia would have fainted with shock if her Vision hadn’t urged her on. That was enough money to put her children through university, with enough left over to still live far more comfortably than before.
She soon had the paperwork signed and by the end of the day, was officially an employee at the Hospital of the Merciful Brothers. She also was enrolled in classes to learn how to use her Vision, and would have a crash course in medicine.
Two days later, she had traveled all the way to Vienna in style, first class train tickets, and in a new set of clothing. She met Dr. Johanna Leitner, who was younger than Claudia by about a decade, but still an experienced doctor and more importantly, practiced in using her Dendro Vision to heal.
“So you got your Vision, and the first thing you did was go to the hospital to look for a job?” Dr. Leitner asked, smiling at Claudia over lunch.
“Well, no,” Claudia blushed, fidgeting a little, “The first thing I did was get down on my knees and thank God and Lord Buer for blessing me. I heard her voice when she gave me my Vision.”
Smiling fondly, Dr. Leitner nodded. “I did as well. I received mine a year and a half ago now. May I ask, what were you doing at the time?”
“Well, I had decided…” Claudia blushed, then continued on, “I’d decided to go back to school to try to get a nursing degree. I know I'm too old to be doing it, but they were saying they needed nurses, and, well, I wanted…I wanted to be able to heal people, and to learn something new, even at my age.”
“Well, you will be going through nursing school. But only piecemeal. Frankly, having a Vision makes you more valuable than most doctors. We’re desperate for them: one Dendro Vision holder can save a dozen lives a day in the ER, and is useful in oncology, obstetrics, physical therapy…the list is endless. I’m one of the few doctors in Austria that has one, and if I could, I’d be in the OR every day performing surgeries with it. But it’s more than worth my time to train you.”
The next few weeks were a whirlwind of training as Claudia learned how to use her Vision to do everything from detect cancer to regrow an eyeball. She learned to perform what would have been classified a hundred years ago as a miracle as a daily routine. It was exhausting, but even more exhilarating.
In the years that came, Claudia never did find the time to attend nursing school. Instead, somehow, she managed to attend medical school. Her dream had grown, her Mortal Ambition shining bright. She would spend half her time at the hospital saving lives, and the other half studying frantically and attending classes. It should have been impossible for a woman in her mid-40s.
But God had given Claudia a gift. One day, she would repay that by becoming a doctor, and taking care of His children, in the name of Lord Barbados, and Lord Buer. Claudia, like so many recognized by the Dendro Archon, would become a little Hopebringer.
It was hope that the world would desperately need in the days to come.
Sadly, Claudia would not become a full doctor. She would die in the 2007 Abyssal Incursion, deploying to the Central African Incursion Zone, and saving dozens of lives before fighting against the Abyss itself. Her constellation, however, would hang high in the sky for generations to come, an inspiration for all mortals whose ambition was to Heal the Sick and tend the wounded.
PHILO (On the Yong-Chul guy): On my knees, pounding the ground. It should’ve been me! Not him! Don’t you dare let that bunny waifu go, you crazy moon-man. Live the dream! LIVE THE DREAM! PHILO: This story is… inspiring. I think I’ve said this before, but… this feels like reading old-school comic books. Where superheros inspired. In other words, good stuff.
The door slammed open, and Lupin took a sip of hot tea. “Lupin, you’ll never believe what happened!” Sirius panted, a bit of snow still on his head.
“Let me guess: they figured it out already.”
“They figured it out- how did you know that?!”
“Because Megumin, when she’s not busy driving the staff insane, is a certifiable genius, much like her mother. Hermione isn’t far behind her in that regard, though she also has a great deal more sense. Then there’s the fact that Miss Longbottom and Mr. Weasley have impeccable senses of direction, and none of those four would view a forest filled with monsters as anything but a fun holiday instead of a terrifying obstacle.”
“Well, yes, but we constructed those riddles so carefully! We spent the entire holiday working on them!” Sirius complained. “Well, at least when you weren’t busy canoodling with my cousin.”
Lupin choked slightly on his tea, then glared at Sirius, who gave him a grin back. “We’re both adults, what we do is none of your-”
“Oh it very much is. Big fan! Now, we’ll really be family,” Sirius said, pulling the glowering Remus into a hug. “You are asking her to marry you, right?”
“...we visited Andy and Ted over the holiday, and they were…receptive,” Remus admitted.
“Great! When’s the wedding?”
“She hasn’t even said yes yet! And I’m still not certain-”
Sirius gave Lupin a wounded look.
“...I’m planning on asking over the Easter Holiday. We’re taking a trip to the Isle of Man.”
“Splendid! Oh, and when are you planning on telling her that I am, you know, not dead?” Sirius asked, plopping down on Remus’ bed.
“I was planning on letting Megumin reveal that herself. She may have solved step one of our riddle. We anticipated it would manage about one a day. Which is why there are ninety-nine remaining steps,” Lupin pointed out. “That should at least get us to April.”
“Hmm, yes, but there is going to be a slight wrinkle in your plans,” Sirius mused.
Lupin hesitated. “Oh? And that is?”
“Well, it seems a certain set of someones has detected that Megumin is on the hunt for treasure. And, well…you know how that will go,” Sirius said with a shake of his head.
“Ah. Ginny’s little gang.” Lupin sat up, rubbing his forehead. “I’m not sure if that will speed things up, or slow them down.”
“Well, a good rivalry is healthy for young people, right?” Sirius said, giving his best dopey grin.
“Easy enough for you to say. You don’t have to deal with them in class,” Lupin sighed. “Right, so, what are those idiots up to now?”
“Well,” Sirius said. “It’s like this…”
“...so that’s how I know they’re after treasure!” Dust finished, a few springs of pine still in his hair. He had joined the rest of Ginny and her Misfit Minions in the Great Hall, where dinner was nearly over. Most of the Slytherin table was deserted, and everyone else was staying away from the four idiots who kept picking fights with flying monkeys.
“You actually tracked Megumin and her little friends through the Forbidden Forest, in the freezing cold, for four hours?!” Draco demanded. “THAT’S why you were late to dinner?”
“It was a very important mission,” Dust said, sounding a tad defensive. “Plus, I’m really good at tracking and hiding. There’s no way they even knew I was there.”
“Good work, Dust,” Ginny said, patting the older boy on the shoulder and earning herself a grin. She steepled her fingers. “Yes, yes, it all makes sense now. We’ve known that Megumin was up to something all year. Now, we finally know that her and my idiot brother are after a fantastic treasure!”
“Well, whatever it is, it’s not worth traipsing about forests in the freezing cold for hours on end. Or need I remind you all what happened the last time we got into a treasure hunting contest against the Gryffindor Gang,” Dust said with a shake of his head.
“Yes, you all became international heroes, won the House Cup, and saved the world from Voldemort,” Ginny said, stabbing the table with a finger. “Clearly, we-”
“Hold on, there they are!” Kazuma hissed, and the four Slytherins fell silent as Megumin, Darkness, Hermione, Ron, and Lavender all staggered into the Great Hall and collapsed at the Gryffindor table, where they grabbed what little food was left and started eating, all while crowded around a bit of parchment and talking in low voices.
They could even hear Megumin hiss, “Quiet, you fools! Someone will hear!”
“Right. They’re definitely up to something good,” Kazuma said, cracking his knuckles. “We’ve got to get the treasure first.”
“Why? I’m already rich, why should I need a treasure?” Draco asked plaintively.
“You’re already rich, arse face, but some of us could do with a little engoldening in our lives,” Ginny said, glaring at Draco. “So either help us steal the treasure or sod off!”
“...I’m not an arse face,” Draco grumbled, but he didn’t leave.
“I just think it would be kinda fun, you know? Who knows what the treasure could be! Maybe it’s a dragon egg!” Dust said eagerly.
“Why would it be a dragon egg?” Draco said. “Who hides a dragon egg?!”
“Dragons, probably,” Dust mused.
“Oh shut up. Fine, we’re going to steal the treasure. How do we manage that?”
“Clearly, we need to become experts and stealth and infiltration. Oh, hey, Blackie? Who’s a good boy,” Ginny said, and fed the big black dog a bit of roast chicken, which he happily snarfed down. “Hmm, you think we could get Blackie to spy for us?”
“Nah, he’s just a big softie. Besides, he’s a dog. What could he even tell us?” Kazuma said, scratching Blackie’s ears.
Blackie just lay on the ground under the table and perked his ears up, listening as the Four Stooges made their “cunning” plans to steal away Megumin’s treasure.
“Right. Makes sense, I suppose,” Lupin said when Sirius had finished recounting his tale. “We did anticipate that group would end up involved in this somehow. They always seem to be. Thanks for your report. I’ll let the rest of the staff know and we’ll adjust the treasure hunt to account for them causing havoc as well.”
“Are all the treasure parts hidden out in the forest?” Sirius asked curiously.
“No, we’ve stashed a few in the castle as well to mix things up, and hidden a couple in Hogsmead. Obviously, we don’t want to put too many out in the wild yet, or there’s a risk they’d stumble upon one early and we’d have wasted a lot of effort. Even if Flitwick is having the time of his life coming up with ever more arcane riddles.”
“Hmm, well, where’s the next one? Not in the Room of Requirement, surely,” Sirius said. “They found that bloody quick.”
“We hid it in one of a dozen old classrooms that fit the criteria of the riddle. It’s got the next riddle, and a few of Lily’s old notebooks in it. You know the ones,” Lupin said.
All the color drained out of Sirius’ face. “I…I thought those were burned.”
“Oh, absolutely not. So the many adventures of the Marauders are still ensconced in legend, Mr. Padfoot. Relax, it’s just a bit of harmless fun.”
“You uh, you did take out the, um, private ones from James and Lily, didn’t you?” Sirius asked.
“Yes, of course. Though some of your more…interesting tales are still preserved for posterity,” Lupin said, giving Sirius a wolfish grin.
Sirius put his head in his hands. “Megumin will never respect her uncle now…”
“Oh please. She’ll probably find them charming. Let’s see, ah yes, ‘Dark was the night, dark as my soul, but I, Padfoot, exiled Scion of House Black, would restore my family name this night. I set out on a daring quest to plunder-’”
Realizing that Remus was reading from a notebook, Sirius dove for him, desperately trying to tear away the Cringeworthy Adventures of Padfoot (aged 13), which had been part of the RP that the Mauranders had kept going for years.
Lupin just transformed into a giant shaggy werewolf, easily holding off his friend and chuckling. “Oh no. This is happening. I’m running out of ‘treasure’ to give Megumin, and there are literally dozens of these.”
“Then at least use your own notebooks, coward!” Sirius snarled angrily, being held back with one hand while he clawed at the hairy lummcgonagallmox futility.
“I did. Though I started with Lily’s notebooks, of course. But even then I have to spread them out as we’re planning on a full 100-”
The door swung open, and Tonks strode in. “Remus, you’ll never believe it, but Megumin and her lot have already- bloody hell, what’s gotten into Blackie?”
Sirius had thankfully transformed as soon as the door cracked open, but now he was jumping up and down, barking and snarling as he tried to get at the notebook still.
“Don’t know, he’s having a fit, I think,” Remus said, then used a big hairy foot to pin his ‘dog’ down. “Were you trailing them in the forest?”
“No, but I put a charm on the box we buried so that I’d know when they got it. Those girls do work fast. Good thing we have the next half dozen set up already,” Tonks said, pulling off her jacket and tossing it to the side. Then she came over and put her arms around Remus, who embraced her tenderly, sharing a kiss.
“Mmmm, it’s not even the full moon, but seeing you like this…well, it’s a good thing I have the rest of the evening off,” Tonks growled, running her hands through Remus’ chest hair.
Blackie began to whine, and Remus let him up so the dog could dart away, somehow managing to open the door and get outside. Fortunately, Tonks was too distracted to notice.
“That was a close one,” Sirius muttered, slumping down outside the door. “Bloody hell. It’s one thing to know Moony and Tonks are shagging, but I certainly don’t want to see it.”
He shrugged, turned back into Blackie, and trotted off to see what sort of trouble was happening in Gryffindor tower.
“-I still say we should preform the ritual, THEN go look for the rest of the treasure,” Hermione argued.
The group was currently sitting in an abandoned classroom that had been turned topsy-turvy in their search for the next part of the treasure map. Books were off the bookshelves and had been gone through before being neatly restacked (Hermione and Megumin would kill anyone who committed the high crime of damaging a book) while all the walls had been knocked on, and the desks and chairs all turned over and rummaged through. The paintings on the wall had even been flipped over and examined, and only desperate pleas by their inhabitants had prevented Megumin from cutting them open.
“Ha! The ritual may be interesting, but clearly, we will need the Holy Relics we obtain from our quest to complete it,” Megumin declared. “Besides, it doesn’t make YOU a Crimson Demon, it makes your CHILDREN a Crimson Demon. And you’re not planning on having babies any time soon, are you?”
“Most certainly not,” Hermione said, making a face. “But, with just a little research, I’m certain I could figure out how to adjust the ritual so it turns the target into a Crimson Demon themselves.”
“You really can’t be serious about that, can you?” Ron said, tucking in to some of the “adventuring supplies” they had obtained, which mostly consisted of a few dinner rolls, some cold bacon, and several apples. “I mean, we already have two Crimson Demons. Surely that’s enough.”
“Clearly Hermione recognizes the sheer brilliance and mysterious aura that all Crimson Demons project!” Megumin cackled, posing dramatically.
Ron sniffed at her, which made Megumin jerk back, then shook his head. “Nah, you’re just stinky from running around all- HEY!”
Megumin attempted to tackle Ron, but as he’d been having a growth spurt and she hadn’t, he rather easily pinned her down.
“It is a rather interesting ritual, but I think our focus should be on the treasure hunt,” Darkness said, dusting her hands off. The room had gotten a rather thorough cleaning as a result of the four menances tearing through it, and indeed, Darkness had seemed more interested in putting things to sorts than looking for any treasure.
“Exacltly! Ron, gerroff!” Megumin protested.
Ron let her up, and she sat down and glared at him, at least until he gave her a makeshift bacon and dinner roll sandwich, which she snarffed down eagerly.
“Well, there’s nothing for it then. There’s at least four or five other rooms that meet this description, so we may as well get on with it,” Hermione said, and the group headed off. They hadn’t gone far when, completely by coincidence, of course, Ginny and her Misfit Minions walked down the hall the other way. Somehow, all four of them managed to bump into one of Megumin’s group. They apologized profusely, then headed on their way to check the next room.
They were halfway done with it when Megumin realized that the clue they’d had was no longer on her person. “THOSE FIENDS! They must have stolen my treasure map!”
As one, the group turned around and pelted after their rivals. After searching two possible locations for the treasure, they finally found the dust-covered thieves leaving a classroom and studying the map.
“FOR BLOOD AND HONOR!” Megumin shrieked and launched herself at Draco, who went down with a wail and a tangle of flying limbs. Ron went after Ginny, who attempted to kick him right between the legs. However, Ron was well-versed in his little sister's conniving ways and blocked before grabbing her by the cheeks and pulling cruelly. Hermione and Kazuma just slapped at one another like the pair of nerds they were.
The real battle was between Dust and Darkness, who circled one another warily amidst the mayhem.
“So, this is what it comes to,” Darkness said grimly.
“What are the terms?” Dust asked. “First blood? Or to yielding?”
“First blood. None need die today,” Darkness replied.
Dust nodded, and pulled a spear from a suit of armor, then tossed Darkness a sword from another. They saluted one another, raised their weapons, and-
“What in the name of Merlin are you DOING!?”
“Dueling,” Dust said, nodding to Professor McGonagall, who had just come around the corner. “Just to first blood though. Do you want to judge the match?”
McGonagall’s nostrils flared, and even poor Dust realized he’d perhaps gone too far.
“Right. All of you, come with me. Right now. I’d take House Points, but I do believe Gryffindor is fresh out at the moment, so I will have to think of something else.”
“Now we’re in for it,” Ron groaned as the eight idiots trudged after the professor.
“Your bloody fault for stealing our treasure map,” Kazuma hissed at him.
“I suggest you hold your tongues, Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Weasley, lest you give me reason to come up with something even harsher than I already have in mind,” McGonagall told them, which at least got them to shut up until the arrived at the Headmaster’s office.
“Good heavens, is it that time of the year already?” Dumbledore said when the four miscreants had been marched into his office.
“What time of year?” Dust asked.
“Well, since I did not feel the castle destabilize, I can only assume that young Miss Potter has not had yet another confrontation with a dark lord, evil serpent, or another miscellaneous threat to us all that could only be dealt with by an excess of destructive firepower,” Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling.
“They were brawling in the halls! Longbottom and Goyle even had bare steel in their hands!” McGonagal said, pointing at them.
“I mean, it was just to first blood. We wouldn’t have killed each other or anything,” Dust said.
Ginny kicked him. “Not helping, Dust.”
“Oh right,” Dust said, and did his best to look contrite.
“I see,” Dumbledore steepled his fingers together. “Is there perhaps a reasonable explanation for such behavior?”
“They stole my parents' treasure map!” Megumin said, pointing an accusatory finger at Kazuma. She was sporting an impressive bruise that was certain to turn into a black eye, though that hadn’t dampened her spirits in the slightest.
“You dropped it! We were just trying to help, when you so rudely assaulted us!” Kazuma replied, his tone slightly nasally and nose rather crooked and dripping a bit of blood.
“Ah. I see. Well, thievery is, of course, not to be tolerated. I’m afraid there will need to be severe consequences,” Dumbledore said gravely, which got Megumin’s side looking rather smug.
“However,” Dumbledore continued, raising one finger. “Assaulting your fellow students is equally intolerable. I am afraid there is but one solution to this.”
“NOT EXPLUSION!” Hermione wailed, her hands flying to her face.
“We should be so lucky,” McGonagall muttered, then looked half surprised she’d let that slip.
“No. In addition to volunteering to help the House Elves clean up after supper for the next fortnight, without magic, you shall all be working together to find this treasure from now on,” Dumbledore said.
“WHAT?!” The looks of shock and outrage on everyone’s faces was rather comical, especially since so many of them were quite bruised.
“Yes. From now on, you shall nominate a pair of representatives from each group to work on this treasure hunt together. You will all share information and need to rely on each other to complete this task,” Dumbledore said gravely. “Should you fail to do so, I will simply locate the treasure myself and confiscate it until you are all mature enough to be entrusted with it.”
“You know where the treasure is?!” Megumin gasped, clearly delighted.
“No. But as I am an ancient and wise wizard, should the need arise, I hardly think I will need to expend much energy to find it myself,” Dumbledore said calmly. That was true. All he would need to do was tell Lupin to pack it in, and the game would be up.
“Stupid epic-level adventurers,” Megumin grumbled, but didn’t argue further.
Reluctantly, Kazuma dug out the riddle, and the students were forced to agree to help. Megumin and Ginny of course volunteered themselves, then picked Dust and Darkness to be their “knights” and escort them on the next leg of their hunt.
“Fine, I’ll just find Yunyun and conduct research on my own,” Hermione huffed.
“What sort of research?” McGonagal said darkly, her mind instantly going to their new Care of Magical Creatures instructor, and the former Serpent of Slytherin.
“On the historical relevance of this treasure, of course,” Hermione lied smoothly.
“Well, have a care,” McGonagall said, somewhat relieved as the treasure hadn’t even been buried yet.
After that, the students broke up, and when they were gone, Dumbledore sighed and reached for a hidden compartment under his desk. “Strawberry Schnapps?” he asked, pulling out two small tumblers and a bottle.
“Why, Albus, I didn’t know you drank,” McGonagal said, accepting a small glass of clear red liquid.
“There was a time when I did not, but Miss Potter and her compatriots will drive anyone to distraction,” the headmaster sighed. He contemplated his glass. “You know, for the first time in my life, I am considering retirement.”
“Don’t you dare. They’d put me in charge of this school, and I’d go stark raving mad if I had to deal with Potter and the rest of that lot. At least wait until she graduates.”
“Hmm, yes I do believe there are several projects that will need to be seen to first,” Dumbledore agreed, sipping at his liquor. “I do hope this teaches them to at least not fight.”
“More likely, they’ll only learn to start an underground fight club that we’ll only find out about when they start sneaking in trolls and giants to battle,” McGonagall said wryly.
Dumbledore half choked on his drink. “Minerva! Don’t give them ideas! If there were anyone to try such a thing…well. Aside from Hagrid.”
Both made a mental note to thoroughly instruct the groundskeeper that he was, in no uncertain terms, not to smuggle in any monsters for Megumin to fight.
“So, you want to try to modify the ritual so that it doesn’t just curse you to bear Crimson Demon Children, but to turn you into a Crimson Demon?” Yunyun said, studying the book that Hermione had brought with her.
“Yes, I think it will be tricky, but you’re the resident experts on complicated rituals and potions of transformation, so I decided to come to you,” Hermione said.
They were sitting in the library at a corner table studying, along with Tom, Lavender, and Luna. Since Megumin wasn’t present, there was little danger of them being kicked out, unless Tom got on another bender bragging about his genius.
“Well, you have certainly come to the right place. Not only is Yunyun the witch who transformed an ancient basilisk into an animagus, but I, Tom Roberts, am the reincarnation of a Dark Lord well-versed in dark and terrible rituals, and certain to be of help with this!” Tom said, drawing the scarlet-lined cloak he’d taken to wearing about himself and grinning evilly.
“Yes, but you don’t remember being Voldemort, just him when he was a kid, so it’s not like that’s much help,” Lavender pointed out.
“Well, I’m still very experienced!” Tom huffed. “Besides! Don’t you think it would be fun to become a Crimson Demon?”
“No, I rather like being a Luna Lovegood. I don’t really want to be anything else,” Luna mused.
“Tom, you want to become a Crimson Demon too?” Hermione asked curiously.
“Of course! Not only would it be a massive boost in power, but-” Tom winced, as Hermione had just kicked him in the leg.
“Not so loud! We don’t want anyone to overhear, and you’ll get us kicked out!”
“Sorry, sorry. But! In addition to the power boost, the night vision would be rather useful, don’t you think?” Tom mused.
“But, we can just use Lumos and that’s just as good as seeing in the dark,” Lavender protested.
“I-I would love to help you both!” Yunyun said, grinning. “W-we’ll have to study the ritual though, a-and look up some other ones…Hmm. W-we might need books from the Restricted Section again…”
“We can just ask Professor Mizu to borrow them. Tell her we will give her a butterbeer if she does,” Hermione said with a shrug. Their professor was remarkably easy to bribe in most regards.
“That should w-work,” Yunyun said with a nod. “Hmm, I-I wonder if anyone else would want the ritual performed on them…”
“We’d need to work out the kinks first. We can use Tom as a test subject,” Hermione said.
“Yes, haha! I shall be the first!” Tom said, keeping his chuckles down to avoid further kicks.
“And if it works, then we can use it on me, and anyone else who wants,” Hermione said.
“What if it doesn’t work?” Luna asked curiously.
“Well, then we try again,” Tom said with a shrug.
Luna nodded thoughtfully. “Yes, but what if you die?”
“I…we…well, um…that’s…not going to happen?” Tom said hopefully.
“Of course not. The worst would be if it rendered you sterile,” Hermione said with a shrug.
“Oh. Um…” Tom glanced down at his pants, then back up, blushing. “You, er, think that’s likely?”
“Relax, you’re thirteen. By the time you’d be ready to have children, we’d have you fixed regardless. And anyway, you can always adopt,” Hermione told him seriously.
“M-Maybe we should test it on someone else. Just to be sure,” Tom said.
“But then you’d miss out on the glory of being first. What’s more important, Tom?” Hermione asked. “Being safe, or proving your genius and blazing a trail of legends across the sky?”
“To blaze a trail and prove forever that you are an inspired genius of which all future generations will- OW! Fine, fine, I’ll keep it down.”
“You sure we need to do a ritual on him?” Lavender asked skeptically. “He already sounds like a Crimson Demon to me.”
“Red eyes or bust,” Tom huffed. “Right, Yunyun?”
“Crimson for life,” Yunyun said absently, not looking up from the book she was poring over. “Hmm, some of these components though…they’ll be somewhat hard to source…”
“I’m sure we can find a way to obtain them. If nothing else, we can order a lot of them by owl,” Hermione said.
“Yes, but for that, we’ll need money,” Tom said ruefully. “And I only get a bit of pocket money.”
“Well, then we’d best find that treasure,” Hermione said, a wicked grin on her face. And then explained about the hidden treasure and the plan to find it with Ginny’s group.
“Hmm, I think the real treasure is likely to just be more photo albums. Or the friends we made along the way,” Luna mused.
“Sod that, real treasure is artifacts of unimaginable power! What kind of a quest ends with lame momentos?” Tom demanded.
“Well, either way, it’s worth looking into. Now, I have some ideas on where to begin,” Hermione said, and the group set about plotting the destruction of the magical world.
Because you just know that wizards are insane enough to try a dark ritual that curses their progeny with dark powers at the mild cost of their sanity.
This really started a week ago, when I was trying very hard not to cry the morning after my disastrous attempt at a date with James, or, well, at the time, what I perceived as a disastrous date.
“So, um…how did it go?” Myrrh asked me as I determinedly brushed my teeth, her own toothbrush in her hands.
“Fine,” I said, and spat into the sink.
“You, um…you seem upset,” she said, still not brushing her teeth.
I stared into the mirror at my red eyes and knew that it was hopeless. Why was my heart so damn stupid? “It was just two friends, or coworkers, having drinks, Myrrh.”
“That…wasn’t what you wanted.”
No, dammit, it certainly wasn’t. I knew I should have been more casual. “It’s fine.”
Myrrh put her toothbrush down, damn her, and hugged me. That was too much, I started crying. I explained how things had gone so well, but then, at the end, he’d just left. I’d been practically begging him to kiss me, to tell me it had been wonderful and I was beautiful and we should do it again, but instead he’d just said goodbye and left!
“Why do all men see me as a child!? I’m a damned DOCTOR! I’m twenty-three! And then this idiot giant swoops in, saves me, is funny, and kind, and is the most oblivious damned idiot that has ever crawled-”
“You’re going too fast, Lucia! You’re speaking Siracusian, it’s too fast,” Myrrh told me.
I tried to calm down and switch to Victorian, which was our primary shared language, as Myrrh’s Siracusian is only so-so. Normally, I’m pretty good about not switching languages mid-stream, but I must have been pretty upset.
“He is, um, kinda young, right? Maybe…maybe he’s intimidated by you,” Myrrh said.
I gave her a sour look. “Myrrh, a damned durin child isn’t intimidated by me. I weigh 35 kilos soaking wet. I’m 42cm shorter than he is. Why would he be intimidated by me?!”
“Because you’re a full doctor and he’s just an intern?”
I glared at her. “Stop talking sense, it’s annoying when I’m attempting to throw myself a pity party.”
“I’m just saying…he’s only been here a little while, right? I, um, I gathered he’s like…you know. The other Earthlings. Maybe…maybe he’s just not sure about things yet,” Myrrh said comfortingly.
She was right, of course. I’d not even known James for three weeks at that point. So much had happened in so little time, that it felt like we’d known one another for much longer. From what he’d said, he’d only been here on Terra for a little over a month, and had been homeless, contracted oripathy, been nearly murdered upteenth times, and had the weight of the entire world on his shoulders with the ability to cure oripathy.
Perhaps hoping he’d fall in love as well was a bit much. Saints and angels, was I even in love, or just horny for one of the tallest men I’d ever met in my life? Despite me normally dating vulpos, I tended to go for the taller ones. Steward wasn’t as tall as James, but at 172cm he was much taller than I was. Granted, practically EVERYONE is much taller than I am, but still. Even little Lisa is my height now, and since she’s a kitsune, she's nowhere near done growing.
So, I dried my tears, and put a brave face on things. I didn’t see James the next day, as he had training the entire day followed by PT, and I was on rotation at the hospital regardless. I got a lot of good work done, especially analyzing the data we’d gotten from James.
His case was completely and utterly remarkable. Nothing about his oripathy was ordinary, and that was a mountain of data to draw from. His arts, however…
“I think there’s a better way to do this,” I told Warfarin and Kal’tsit at a working lunch meeting. “Especially the blood purification. I’m thinking that’s actually something we might be able to do ourselves, without James.”
“Oh? Do tell,” Warfarin said, instantly interested in anything involving blood.
“We’ve long hypothesized that it should be possible to do a blood filtration and strain out the originium crystals,” I said, showing some initial mockups I’d made based on a hemodialysis machine. “Based on what James is doing, I think we might be able to come up with a therapy. It would be expensive and slow at first, but could really help. In the meantime, we could rig up a machine that would pull the blood and let James use his arts to filter it, then return the blood to the patient. That would save a lot of mess, and probably be easier on him as well.”
Director Kal’tsit looked over the plans, then nodded. “Your theory holds a great deal of merit, Dr. Surrurro. I will have our engineers examine the plans and specifications you have created, and begin fabrication of this device. Perhaps this will allow Dr. McCoy to more easily use his abilities and preserve his own life in the process. I have thought about attempting to create some sort of filter barrier for him that would inhibit his absorption of the originium. That would prevent further exacerbation of his oripathy.”
“Whatever gets Jimmy to use his ability to cure a few more folks,” Warfarin said, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms. “We have got to find a way to use this en masse, though. As it is now, this isn’t a cure, it’s a party trick.”
I saw red again. A party trick!? James was risking his life to help as many people as he could!
“Calm down, Lucy,” Warfarin said. I hate it when she calls me Lucy. My name is Lucia Sussurro, not Lucy. I am quite certain that was why she did it. “Look, Jimmy the Wonder Kid isn’t getting a swelled head, which is impressive. What he is developing is a serious case of depression. Treat this like a joke, act like it’s all fun, and maybe he’ll bounce back. But have you noticed he’s not yapping his head off? Sure, maybe he’s not as stressed, but the kid has the weight of the world on his shoulders, and telling him to bear up will fix the problem about as well as telling Kal here to TL;DR.”
“I am not the only one fond of the sound of her own voice, Qassirah,” Kal’tsit said, sipping at her coffee as she worked. “I want the results of those most recent blood samples by the end of the day. If his numbers are dropping, I need to know why.”
“Fine, I’ll have it on your desk by 17:00,” Warfarin said, standing and leaving.
I stood as well, about to go, but Kal’tsit pointed. “Sit. We have much to discuss yet.”
I did so, worried that I’d let my temper get the better of me as Kal’tsit set aside her work and regarded me. Finally, she said, “You are growing fond of James McCoy. You two are close.”
“I…you have assigned me to work with him,” I said, feeling nervous.
“Indeed. Warfarin is not wrong about Dr. McCoy’s mental state deteriorating. I do not think the boy has even noticed it. He is an adult, yes, but he is young, and he has lost everything. I would give him something to cling to. A noble crusade is all well and good, but lofty ideals are not a suitable replacement for more human attachments. He needs friends, relationships, and loved ones. Lacking those, I fear he will sacrifice himself needlessly simply because he lacks a compelling reason to remain amongst the living.”
“I…well, I’m glad you see him as a person too, Director,” I said, not certain where this was going, or if I would like it if I did know.
“Quite. Often, people see me as distant and cold, unfeeling and unloving. Indeed, I have been…distancing myself. Pain, especially emotional pain, takes time to heal. In my case, it was a wound so grievous that I know not if it can ever be truly healed.” She turned to gaze at a painting on the wall, one of a lone pilgrim in a hooded cloak, walking along a dusty trail through the wilderness.
“James said something remarkable to me,” Kal’tsit continued. “Something that…I myself had been unaware of. But now that it has been brought to my attention, it explains a great deal of my own grief.”
“Director?” I asked, baffled.
She turned back to me. “He referred to a familial relationship between myself and…another. A relationship that I…well. That I had failed to acknowledge, and now it is perhaps too late to do so. The boy’s knowledge of this world is…interesting. Some would find it off-putting. Do you, Lucia Sussurro?”
“It can be…disconcerting, when I hear about James’ knowledge,” I admitted, and despite myself, thought specifically of him talking about having a picture of me in a swimsuit. I was not adverse to people seeing me in a swimsuit. I often take every opportunity to remind people that I am an adult and have the body of a woman, even if I lack the height. But James possessing such an image…well. It felt… off-putting. Even if I might consider sending him, well, somewhat more revealing images of myself, having one taken without my permission was something else altogether.
And I also wondered what sort of pictures he had of other women, specifically Exusiai. She was not only much taller, with a larger bust size, but a holy Sankta and beautiful beyond what a mere vulpo can hope for. Sankta might not be an Elder race according to some scholars, but they have more than enough graces to qualify in my opinion.
Non-medical as that might be.
“But,” I continued, taking a deep breath. “Mostly, I find it intriguing. What does he know about this world? He’s already told me things that I find fascinating. I would like to learn more, one day.”
“Very good. I am authorizing you for SWEEP level clearance,” Kal’tsit said, and stamped and signed a paper on her desk, then presented me with an ID. “All of Dr. McCoy’s pronouncements regarding the hidden nature of this world are to be categorized as SWEEP level. I am certain you did not know such a level existed. Now you do. This level of clearance is the same as the level at which the true nature of Amiya’s heritage and authority are placed. It is a secret that could destroy Rhodes Island, and topple nations. James McCoy’s knowledge is to be classified as the same.”
I could only stare at her open-mouthed. “M-me!? But I-”
“You have already taken a hand in writing many of our operator assessments, which required a high degree of clearance. You have demonstrated that you can not only be trusted with sensitive secrets, but that you will use your knowledge only for the benefit of Rhodes Island and its people. I am entrusting James McCoy’s secrets to you as well. It would be folly for only myself to be aware of them. The next time I interrogate him, do not make such a face, such interrogations mostly consist of giving the man permission to speak freely, you will be present.”
“I…thank you, Director,” I said, feeling dizzy.
Kal’tsit leaned forward, her eyes boring into me. “I am also authorizing Lemuel Exusiai for such clearance. Though she is outside of our organization, she is my other hope for anchoring James McCoy, and I am willing to risk a great deal to see that done. He cannot be risked at an emotional level any more than a physical level. Do you understand what I am saying, Lucia Sussurro?”
Unfortunately, my mind immediately lept to her setting up a love triangle and Lemuel being my rival for James’ affections. I also wondered if she thought to construct some sort of harem for the man, in which case, I was stealing Lemuel’s guns and shooting Kal’tsit, then James. And last myself. And potentially Lemuel.
I think I’m not serious about that. I’m not sure. I have been known to be somewhat irrational when romance is involved. And I have a bit of a temper on occasion.
“And…Texas?” I managed.
“Also approved. She will be joining SWEEP itself. She has the skills, and the temperament. If she can get over her phobia of Red, she will make the perfect candidate. Her role is less to bond with James McCoy, and more to ensure he is not threatened physically. Lemuel Exusiai is a skilled combatant, but she is not…well. She is tender-hearted. While Cellinia Texas is not made of stone, when the time comes, she will do what she must to ensure the survival of what she holds dear, and suffer the emotional backlash later.”
“Is Texas aware she is joining SWEEP?” I asked, not entirely sure what SWEEP even was, aside from a black hat group within Rhodes Island that I had previously only heard rumors of.
“Not as yet. Her participation is not voluntary. None of yours is. While there is a time and a place for freedom of choice and self-actualization, too much is at stake for me to be willing to leave things to chance.”
There it was. The cold-hearted monster at the head of Rhodes Island. Kal’tsit might be content to rule from the shadows, but rule she does. Not just the medical department, but in many ways all of Rhodes Island. Amiya is becoming more and more our true leader and not simply a figurehead, but when Kal’tsit decides something will be done a certain way…it will.
“You are dismissed, Dr. Sussurro. Continue your efforts,” Kal’tsit said, and turned back to her work. I turned to go, but just as I opened the door, she said, “Oh, and Lucina?”
“Yes, director?”
“Next time, pad the dress. Men are simple creatures. Appeal to their baser nature, and they will be putty in your hands.”
I went bright red, thought of several choice things to say, and instead walked out and slammed the door, tail bristling behind me and such an expression on my face that everyone got out of my way as I stalked through the halls. I suppose I can be intimidating when the need arises.
The next day, I was still pondering if I was going to take Kal’tsits advice and attempt to seduce James or simply eat an entire carton of ice cream, when the Code Orange was called. All thoughts of my personal life fled. I was no longer a girl twitterpated; I was a doctor, and there were lives to save.
I pushed myself to my limits and beyond. I watched James do the same and scolded him for it, even as I was in the early stages of arts overdose. By the time Kal’tsit ordered me to go home, I could feel the crystals multiplying in my bloodstream and see veins of black creeping into my vision. I might have undone all the treatment that James had given me if she hadn’t sent me home. As it was, I raised my levels by .01u/L. That might not sound like a lot, but in three days, that’s hideous.
I collapsed for 12 hours, completely insensate to the world. When I managed to struggle back to consciousness, Myrrh gave me some cornmeal porridge with a pinch of nutmeg and some raisins, which I gratefully accepted and spooned into myself. She’d been working long shifts too at the pharmacy, but Myrrh tends to mother anyone who will sit still for five minutes.
Over breakfast, I scrolled through the messages I had missed, starting with the one from Director Kal’tsit that informed me I was being put on leave for 48 hours to recover, and that reinforcements had arrived to pick up the slack. That made me feel a little better, but I wasn’t mentally ready to read the texts from James yet, so I went and took a shower first.
I prefer my showers to be at a temperature just short of causing first-degree burns, and once that had revitalized me, I forced myself to see the messages he’d sent. The first was an invitation to breakfast, which, based on the fact it was more than three hours old, I figured I’d missed. I was about to start crucifying myself when I read the next one, and my heart fell out of my chest.
Hey, I really enjoyed our dinner together on Wednesday. Sorry for being kind of an ass, you looked like a million bucks. Will you give me another chance tonight? Frankies is all I got unless you have another suggestion. My treat this time, I got paid.
“MYRRH!” I screamed, jumping up and making her nearly knock over the plant she was watering.
“Y-Yes?!” she stammered.
“I need a new dress, we’re going shopping, NOW!” I said, scrambling to find a clean pair of panties and then pull on a pair of pants, all the while texting back that I would love to go Frankies with James, would he like to pick me up at 7pm?
“Oh! Um, so, you got a good message from James then?” Myrrh said, putting on her own clothes as I hopped about like a manic musbeast.
I shoved my phone at her, and she squealed in delight. “Yes! Oh, I do hope we can find a good dress! If not, you can borrow one of mine!”
We not only went shopping, but I had an emergency appointment with Susie to do my hair up properly. I went with a shag haircut, something a bit messy, but in a carefully planned way, and got red highlights put in. I also got a new pair of shoes, and wonder of wonders, a silky grey dress that only required a bit of adjustment to fit me. I think it was meant to be a full-length gown on a durin, but it came to my knees.
And, sigh. I had the dress padded. It was an off-the-shoulder number, and I was going to be bold and go braless. It also clung to me pretty tightly, showing off my hips quite nicely. I was quite proud that I didn’t have any flab at all, though my ass could afford to have a bit more padding. Still, my fluffy tail was a point of pride, and I had Susie pay it special attention.
Then, the panic set in.
“What if he doesn’t like tails!? They don’t have tails!” I said, pacing about our small room.
“Um, is this because he’s an alien?” Myrrh asked worriedly.
I shot her a scathing look. “You’re not supposed to know that.”
“Kinda hard when he won’t shut up about it,” Myrrh sighed. “Not even two beers in and I think he would have told us his life’s story…”
“He’s working on that,” I said, in a completely non-defensive manner. Saints and Angels, I really was falling in love if I was willing to overlook the big idiot’s greatest character flaw.
It’s just…there are so many secrets in the world. So many lies. I live a life of near-constant wariness, even in Rhodes Island. I know people think I look like a child. I know they doubt my abilities. I’m always wondering where I stand with everyone, if they respect me, if they belittle me.
I’ll never have to wonder where I stand with James. He couldn’t keep a secret if you locked it in a box first.
At 7 pm sharp, hold your Siracusian time jokes, please, some of us are doctors and know what punctuality is, James arrived at my apartment, and I very nearly fainted. Well, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but I was rather shocked.
He had dressed up! Someone had found a very, very nice, authentic Siracusian suit for him! They’d even given him the traditional red orchid that communicated a desire for a man to court a woman! It was a charcoal grey suit, and matched my dress PERFECTLY. He’d gotten his hair done with some gel, slicked back and smooth looking. He even had on a pair of new dress shoes, freshly polished.
He looked at me, my heart in my throat, and he got this dopey grin on his face that made me even more flustered. “Hey, beautiful. I heard you were looking for a hot date.”
You could have used me to butter bread, because I just about melted.
“You are looking…very handsome,” I said, peering up at him. “Special occasion?”
Stupid, stupid, stupid. Of COURSE this was a special occasion! You do not go buy a new dress for a normal occasion! You do not find a nice suit, which surely cost more than his paycheck, for a normal occasion! Grandmother's great big fluffy tail and fuzzy ears, I am an idiot sometimes.
Thankfully, my date was an even bigger idiot.
“Yes, I’m celebrating the fact that someone was willing to give me a second chance,” he said, and held his hand out for me.
I took it, and I was certain he could have taken my pulse just by touching my fingers, my heart was thudding so hard.
“Wait!” Myrrh cried, hurrying forward. “We need pictures!”
“Uh, OK,” James agreed.
Myrrh got me our stepstool, bless her, and snapped several pictures which she forwarded me. I felt like an idiot girl on prom night, back when I was 15.
Yes, I graduated from highschool at 15. That’s a year early for a vulpo, but not that unusual. We start early and we end early. I did spend only 8 years to become a doctor, but Rhodes Island fast-tracked me as they’re desperate for physicians and I’m something of a fast learner.
We were somewhat overdressed for Frankies, and a few of the regulars or people who knew me whispered, and I was slightly smug that everyone would be talking about the fact that Dr. Sussurro had a hot date.
Even if it was with her intern. Oh hell. I hadn’t thought about that. Well, it was probably fine, as the Director had basically told me to date the idiot with her whole “forge bonds” spiel. We would have to notify Warfarin, though. That would be fun.
Fine dining Frankies is not, but we did order salads to start as well as a bottle of wine. Not the best idea coming off an arts overdose, but to hell with it, you only live once.
“So, I must ask, who got you the suit?” I said, admiring how broad it made James’s shoulders look. He’s not a beanpole by any means, but he’s also not especially well muscled. The suit filled him out nicely, as one should.
“Believe it or not, it was Texas of all people,” James said, leaning forward and raising his eyebrows.
“Seriously? I would not have guessed her,” I said, slightly surprised at that.
“Yeah, I mean, she was like, mafia royalty, right? Apparently, etiquette lessons are something they drilled into her head from the time she was a little girl, and she never forgot them. She told me all this stuff about the language of flowers, what color suit I should wear, and somehow, knew what color your dress was. I almost didn’t believe it until I saw you tonight.”
Ah. I believe I had a spy in my midst. Bless you, Myrrh. That is exactly the sort of information you want leaked.
“And what does this mean, then?” I asked, fingering the orcid on his lapel.
He blushed, coughed, and said, “Well, uh, it’s apparently the flower a guy wears when he, um, wants to court a woman…”
“And do you?” I asked.
James stopped fiddling with his napkin and met my eyes. “I think I do. You’ve been…well. You’ve been the best thing that’s happened to me since I came to this hellscape. No offense, but life on Terra kinda sucks, and you’re basically the one bright spot.”
“None taken,” I said. Quite the opposite, in fact. I was feeling intoxicated, and I hadn’t even had two sips of wine.
“You’re smart, pretty, and you’re a damn good doctor. I figure…I could do worse. Uh, also…someone pointed out that, er, you were maybe…signaling to me on Wednesday.”
“I do believe to be more clear I would have had to send forth a herald to strew my path with roses,” I said somewhat dryly.
“Yeah, I uh, sorta figured it out, but…well…I was a bit scared. I mean, you’re my attending, and one of my only friends, so…I didn’t want to screw things up. Guess I sort of managed that by doing the opposite, huh?”
“I assume it was not Texas who informed you.”
“Yeah, no. That was Lemuel. Chewed me out a little. Although, you wanna hear a funny story?”
“Only if it’s actually funny and not darkly disturbing.”
“Oh, I think it’s hilarious. So, anyway, have you ever heard of this show called Steel Petals?”
James was right. It was hilarious. Oh, Cellinia. I’m just glad that James isn’t the densest individual on the planet. You’d think dating another woman would mean you wouldn’t have to deal with someone who couldn’t see the nose on their own face, but Sora did pick a winner in that regard. Though I don’t know the woman beyond having heard her music.
Idol pop isn’t my thing. I’m more of a rock and roll girl, when I’m not listening to overwrought arias and crying my eyes out.
After dinner, we didn’t go to the arcade, instead walking out onto one of the observation decks. It’s a bit cold and windy there, so like a proper gentleman, James gave him his jacket, which was approximately the size of a tent on me. Not that I minded, it smelled of him, and it was quite warm.
We stood there, looking up at the stars as Rhodes Island trundled along in the Victorian wilderness. At last, James asked, “Not to ruin the mood, but…are you OK? From the last couple of days?”
I shivered and pressed myself against him, a sense of weariness washing over me as I closed my eyes, and the tears came. “No. I’m not. You?”
“I keep thinking about that old man. His name was Albert Hillstead. He was the first one I saw. I couldn’t have saved him. Not with all my arts, not with my stupid isekai cheat power. He was going to die. But I didn’t even try. It was the right call. Even if Warfarin hadn’t made it, I would have. Even an empty trauma ward with the best docs in the world probably couldn’t have saved Albert. But…I just…set him aside. And moved on. As if I didn’t care. Maybe I shouldn’t. But I do.”
I nodded. We were quiet for a few moments, then I said, “It was a little girl. I don’t know her name. Maybe I should, but…it would hurt too much. I was trying to save her. Thought I could have. But a shard of orginium had worked its way to her heart, and pierced it. It rapidly crystalized as she developed an acute case. She died on the table. Nothing I could have done. Maybe you could have, but…then again, maybe not. I called it, we moved on. There wasn’t time to do more than close her eyes. She was just the worst. There were others.”
A longer silence, where we just held one another. Life to cling to in the darkness around us. Maybe Kal’tsit had a point. Maybe this is why I’ve been so desperate for love, even as I struggle so mightily to find it. My family won’t see me. They fear me. I’ll probably never hold my nieces and nephews, never have dinner with my mother and father, never get to watch my sister give a violin performance. I’m an exile from my own home.
James and I…we’re not so different. Just two lost, hurting people who desperately need someone to love.
At least that’s what I think. Who knows, I’m not exactly rational about this.
“Is it like that often?” James asked quietly.
“Not every day. Or even every week. But…yes. If it’s not a bomb in Victoria, it’s a bandit raid in Siracusa. Or a venomfly outbreak. Or a catastrophe that hit a small village in Iberia. Or a mining accident in Rim Billington. Wherever the Infected need aid, wherever the sick need healing…Rhodes Island will be there.”
He nodded. “Yeah. You done that a lot?”
“Not as many as the more senior doctors, but…yes. In some ways, it gets easier. In others…not so much.”
“I don’t know that I’d ever want it to be easy. If it was, that would mean I didn’t care.”
This idiot. That was why I was falling for him. Rhodes Island is the perfect place for idiots with big hearts and too much idealism. I didn’t want to become bitter and jaded like Warfarin, or cold and robotic like Kal’tsit. Saints and Angels know they’ve probably seen horrors I couldn’t imagine in their long lives.
Sometimes, I think it’s a good thing we vulpo burn bright and fiercely. Our flames die before they can gutter out on cynicism and grief.
We walked back to our apartments after that. I panicked slightly, as I wasn’t sure what I wanted to happen. As much as I was falling in love, what would I say if James invited me into his apartment? It had been a long time, too long, since I’d been laid. But I didn’t know if I was ready to open myself up that much just yet. I wanted the romance, and I wanted to feel safe. I was getting the romance, but I don’t know that I feel completely safe with James just yet. Not that I feel like he’s a danger, this wouldn’t be happening otherwise, just…I might need more time.
Thankfully, we walked past his door to mine. This time, when I paused and looked up at him, he bent down and kissed me. Not a chaste one either. Normally I try to judge how good a kiss is, but I don’t care if it was a bit sloppy and awkward; it was wonderful. Our goodbye lasted several minutes, then we broke apart.
“I’m off tomorrow, you?” he asked.
“Yes, 48 hours mandatory rest,” I agreed.
“Hmm, don’t really feel like waking up early. How’s brunch at 10 sound?”
“Delightful. See you then?”
One more kiss, then we parted ways. Myrrh looked up from her reading, an eager look on her face. “Well?”
“It was wonderful!” I half squealed, and I hope James couldn’t hear me after the door shut, because I sounded like an insane schoolgirl.
Myrrh and I stayed up late to talk about the date and analyze it, but mostly just gossip and share juicy details. She’s a good friend like that.
Later, as I lay in bed, I stared at the ceiling and wondered. Where was this all going? I’m normally so meticulous and professional, except in my love life. Then it’s caution to the wind and my heart takes the wheel. I blame my Siracusian blood.
I decided I don’t know where this is all going. But that’s fine. Vulpo live fast, and love hard. I just hope my heart isn’t broken again.
Then again, James is a doctor. Maybe he can fix it. I’m certainly going to have to fix him.
Once he blinked the stars out of his eyes, Kazuma looked around the darkened carriage. He couldn’t see a damn thing! Whatever that light had been, it must have ruined his dark vision good and proper. “Darkness, are you alright? Did you get that necklace off?”
He paused. Something was wrong with his voice. Something was wrong with him in general. He felt…numb. Like his sense of touch had been almost switched off. He groped blindly in the darkness and found a hand seizing his own.
“What’s happened?” a boy’s voice said. “W-who are you? Wait, who am I!? What’s going on!? Kazuma?!”
“Who are you!? Where’s Darkness!?” Kazuma demanded.
“What do you mean!? Who are YOU!? Kazuma, answer me!”
“But, I am Kazuma! Something’s happened to my voice. We need a light…Kindle!” Kazuma snapped his fingers and tried to use the spell…but nothing happened.
“Wait, you’re Kazuma, but you look…Kazuma, you look like ME!”
“Well I can’t see for shit, all the lights went out. HEY, LOLISA, little help!?”
“I don’t know what you two are doing in there, but I’m too busy fleeing for our lives, so please just hold on!” Lolisa shouted back.
“Here, there is a lantern, let me just…” there was a rustling, then the light came on, and Kazuma blinked at, well, himself.
Across the seat, wearing an actually pretty nice suit now that he got a proper look at it, was Kazuma. His eyes were wide and he looked startled. “Kazuma?” Kazuma said. This was going to get confusing.
“Yeah, who the hell are you, some sort of doppleganger?” he said.
“No, I’m Darkness. Oh, here,” the other Kazuma reached over and rummaged through Darkness’ purse, before pulling out a small hand mirror. Kazuma took it, then gasped. Staring back at him was Darkness’ face!
So he immediately reached for his chest, and gripped his boobs. Nice. Though it wasn’t nearly as exciting when he could feel the groping from both ends. What a disappointment.
“K-Kazuma!? Is that you?!” his own body squeaked. Was his voice really that girly?
“Yeah, how could you tell? Wait, don’t tell me, you’re Darkness! That necklace pulled a Your Name on us!” Kazuma ranted.
“I was more thinking that no other person would be so willing to molest my own body in front of me,” Darkness sighed, wiggling slightly.
“Yeah this is…weird. Quick, give me the necklace so we can swap back!” Kazuma urged.
Darkness handed it over, but to his horror, nothing happened. “Wait, am I stuck like this now!?”
They only had a few minutes to panic, because Lolisa drove the carriage right up to the mansion then yanked on the reins, tossing them about in the carriage.
“Ow! What the hell, Lolisa!” Kazuma snarled, untangling himself, from, well, himself as Lolisa opened the door.
“Yes, hell! That’s EXACTLY the problem!” Lolisa said, grabbing Darkness and pulling her close. “Do you have any IDEA what was in that mansion!? Fire and brimstone, I hope not, because if you did, you’re both insane AND were trying to get me killed, Kazu- wait. Darkness? Why are you…”
“Ah, yes, I am Darkness…Tina. We, ah, put on a necklace Kazuma stole from Alderp, and well…such as you see before you,” Darkness said, gesturing to Kazuma, who flared his nostrils and glared at Lolisa.
She looked back and forth between them, then sighed. “Well, whatever, that’s some people’s kink, I guess. Look, back to the matter at hand, did you or did you not know who was in that mansion!?”
“Uh, I’m going to go out on a limb here and figure you’re not talking about Baron Fatass or Iris,” Kazuma said.
“NO! IT WAS MAXWELL THE ADJUSTER, YOU IDIOTS!”
Kazuma and Darkness both blinked stupidly at Lolisa. “Who?”
“Maxwell the- UGH! Look, you’d call them the Duke of the Sixth Circle, or the Broken Archdemon!”
Darkness’ eyes went wide. “What, a Greater Lord of Hell was in that mansion?!”
“YES! THAT’S WHAT I’M TRYING TO TELL YOU! DO YOU KNOW WHAT SOMEONE LIKE MAXWELL DOES TO SOMEONE LIKE ME!?” Lolisa wailed, grabbing Kazuma and trying to shake him back and forth. Only, he was just a bit too solid for that, and Lolisa mostly just shook herself up.
“I’m going to guess nothing good. But, how does Alderp have such a powerful demon there?”
“Kazuma…this is a most serious crime. This is heresy and treachery of the blackest sort,” Darkness said, a dark expression coming over her face. “For this crime, Alderp will be burned at the stake. Something rare for a high noble, but for such treachery…Lolisa, you are certain?”
“Certain!? I TALKED TO HIM! He asked me if I was there to service ‘the Master’ or if I was Maxwell’s ‘reward.’ I stammered about finding an appropriate mortal to slake their appetites then got out of there as fast as my wings could flap! Forget about eternal torture, he’d drain my essence dry and bind my spirit to a coat rack for all eternity!”
“Well. What an ironic fate for one such as you,” Darkness sniffed.
“Oh don’t you start with me, missy! Do you know how many mortals I’ve drained dry, do you, do you!?” Lolisa snarled.
Darkness tried to shove her back, but it turned out Kazuma’s body was weaker than Darkness was used to, so Lolisa just shoved her down and loomed over her. “ZERO! I CRIED MYSELF TO SLEEP FOR DECADES BECAUSE I ALMOST DID! That’s why I can’t EVER go back to hell! They’d unmake me for being a shitty ass succubus who can’t even seduce a single mortal man or eat one solitary soul! It’s why I’m STILL level one after all this time! So don’t you get high and mighty with me. I’m more of a good person than half the mortals I service, and I’m a damned demoness!”
Kazuma reached down and plucked up Lolisa, who struggled a bit in his grip, then hung like a limp cat. Huh. This was…shockling easy. He had to be delicate or he felt like he’d break every bone in Lolisa’s body without even trying all that hard.
“That’s enough bullying my girlfriend. Boyfriend. Whatever, look, I’m straight.”
“Sure you are. That’s what they all say, right up until they get curious and ask for the gay dreams,” Lolisa sighed.
Kazuma and Darkness both blushed. “That’s not the point! Stop picking on Darkness.”
Lolisa burst into tears, and Kazuma gingerly set her down as Darkness picked herself up. “I’m sorry! I just, we’re all going to die! This whole kingdom is going to burn! I’d run away, b-but all my friends, my sisters, they live here! I-I can’t run, a-and I can’t fight! We’re going to die!”
“Lolisa…” Darkness sighed, and gave Lolisa a hug, which made her stop crying in shock, and blush mightily. “I’m here. Iris is here. And, need I remind you, Aqua is here. If anyone can take on an Archduke of Hell…it’s us.”
“Hey, I’m here too,” Kazuma grumbled, kicking at a clod of dirt. Unfortunately, he was wearing heels, and promptly went sprawling on his back.
“Uh, maybe you two aren’t in such tip top fighting shape,” Lolisa said when they helped Kazuma back up. “Fortunately, I don’t think Maxwell is going to go on a rampage right this minute, so…let me see that necklace.”
They handed it over, and Lolisa examined it for a few minutes. “Ok, so, this is a temporary curse. Unless one of you dies. Then it’s probably permanent, so don’t do that. My best guess is it will end at sunrise, or sunset. That’s how these things usually go. So, I guess, go get some sleep, and in the morning you’ll probably be back to normal.”
“Ah, yes, that…might be for the best. I would not want to explain…our circumstances,” Darkness said, blushing up at Kazuma.
“Yeah, uh, sleep. We’ll definitely do that,” Kazuma said, his mind going to several scenarios where he’d read about just this.
Lolisa rolled her eyes. “Oh go fuck already. I’m staying here for the night, because there’s no way I’m going back to the coven and potentially leading Maxwell there.”
“”We weren’t-””
“Yes, you were. Do you have any idea how many dream scenarios I’ve done where someone goes in as their crush and then has their own body screw them? This is like, super normal and common. Go have fun. Sky above, you’ll probably learn something useful about pleasing your partner,” Lolisa said, and made shooing motions.
Kazuma and Darkness snuck inside, but it seemed as though Aqua and Megumin were both absent for the night. They both giggled and started pawing at one another even before they got to Kazuma’s bedroom. Once the door was closed, Kazuma looked down at Darkness, which was something of a novel experience.
“I…I have always wondered…what it would be like, to be a man,” Darkness admitted. “It feels…odd. I feel…so strong, and powerful, and…and angry, too. I do not understand why I feel so angry.”
“Eh, that's normal whenever something scary happens. I just feel…I dunno, kinda…numb? Like, pinch me, for a second.”
Darkness did, and Kazuma frowned. “I can barely even feel that. Weird.”
“It’s my Defense. I feel almost no pain. Oh, I can sense when something could harm me, and on occasion, I do feel pain, but so little can actually injure me that it is a rare and novel and…pleasurable…occurrence,” Darkness admitted.
“That explains the masochism. So, what do you feel?” Kazuma asked curiously.
“I…I feel you,” Darkness said, and leaned in for the kiss.
After that, the clothes came off, though both spent a moment examining themselves.
“How the heck do you ever touch your toes?” Kazuma said, looking down at his massive honkers. “And these things are throwing my balance off!”
“You get used to them, when my breasts first began to develop they were quite the hindrance,” Darkness admitted. She looked down, then touched her raging stiffy. “This feels-oh! Hmm, an odd sensation…”
“That’s nothing, watch this,” Kazuma said, spitting on his hands then rubbing his breasts. He knelt down, and began to rub the breast against’ Darkness’ manhood. Wait. Was this making him gay? He was a bit confused now…
“That is- oh! That is- HRRRRNNGG! K-Kazuma, d-do not stop!” Darkness gasped, shuddering with pleasure.
Ah, fuck it. This was at best, masturbation. He was basically doing it to himself after all. “Yeah? Feels pretty good, doesn’t it?”
“I-it does, i-it does! Oh, I…I can feel…something building!”
“Yeah? Warn me, otherwise-”
“OOOOOOOOO!” Darkness gasped, and hot wet semen splattered all over Kazuma’s face and even into his mouth, as he’d been right in the middle of talking.
He unconsciously swallowed, then reached up and wiped at his face, sticking his tongue in his mouth. “Wait…it tastes…good?”
“I…I do enjoy the taste of…of you,” Darkness said, slumping down, a dopey expression on her face. “Do…do it again…”
“Yeah, no, sorry, you’re done for a while,” Kazuma said.
“What!? No, I cannot be, I…I…oh. This is…unusual. I do not…I do not desire you at all. I am…sated. I…I have not felt this way in…hmm. How odd. I feel…like going to sleep…”
Darkness actually lay back against the bed and sighed in contentment, closing her eyes.
“Hey now, hold on! What about me!? I did all that for you and you’re just going to take a nap!?” Kazuma demanded angrily.
“Oh!” Darkness sat up as Kazuma used the bedsheets to wipe his face off. “S-sorry, I just…this is the first time sex has had no interest to me since…well. Since I became a woman, really.”
“Well, you’re a man right now, and that’s just sort of how it is. You’re horny until you’re not.”
“How long…does it last?”
“Eh, maybe an hour or so. Though it takes like, a day or two to get really horny again.”
“Really? How…different,” Darkness mused. “Well, I suppose I can, um, try something else…what was that thing you did with your tongue…? Here, lay down on the bed.”
Kazuma eagerly did so, and Darkness began experimentally licking at Kazuma’s now soaked loins. To his shock, the sensation wasn’t really like when he normally had an orgasm at all. That was more like pressure building up against a dam until it burst. This was more like…floating on a rising tide, and then being lifted up to glorious peaks. He came back down a little, but then immediately was ready for more, more MORE!
“Hmmm, I appear to be ready again,” Darkness said after about 20 minutes, which wasn’t nearly long enough. She’d gone from her tongue to her fingers, and had been playing Kazuma like she was a maestro at their instrument.
“Put…put it in,” Kazuma gasped, sweet sheening on his body. Darkness entered into him, and the experience was just…unlike anything he’d ever experienced. Waves of passion and love engulfing him, and fire and warmth spreading through his body. He eagerly wrapped his arms and legs about Darkness and kissed her passionately.
They rocked together for several minutes, Darkness keeping a steady tempo that had Kazuma screaming in pleasure. Then, warmth exploded inside of him, and he gasped with delight.
“I…I love you,” Kazuma gasped, and kissed Darkness again. “I want your babies.”
“And I…I want you to bear them, Kazuma. I love you so much,” Darkness panted, then rolled off of him.
“Men,” Kazuma said in disgust, flopping back down. “They screw you, then just pass out! Wait, am I gay now? Shit, I think this makes me gay…”
He didn’t have long to mull that over, however, as there was a sudden, terrified scream from downstairs. He jumped out of bed, landing solidly this time, no heels. Darkness was blinking and struggling up herself.
“That was Lolisa!” Kazuma cried. “We have to save her!”
“Yes, I just…I’m coming!” Darkness wailed.
Kazuma didn’t wait, pounding down the stairs naked as the day he was born. Or, well, Darkness was born. Damn, these things really did bounce all over the place! He nearly gave himself a black eye! Seriously, Darkness couldn’t pay too much for a bra that could contain these monstrosities.
He found Lolisa cowering in the corner, a man with feathery ashen hair and glinting glasses looming over her. She was crouched down and sobbing, crying, “No! T-there’s no mortals here! J-just me! I-I killed them, p-please, just, l-leave me-”
“Child, I can sense them. Now, I wasn’t contracted to kill any succubi, but you are being annoying so- ah! The main course arrives! Hello! I am Maxwell the Adjuster, and I will be killing you-”
“RRRAAAAAAWWWRRR!” Kazuma screamed, and ran forward, and punched Maxwell right in the nose as hard as he could. To his utter shock and amazement, the demon went flying, right though the wall, and crashing into a massive crater out on the mansions grounds.
“GO! I GOT THIS!” Kazuma roared at Lolisa.
The succubi nodded in panic, then immediately sprouted wings and flew off in the other direction as fast as she could, Darkness puffing and panting as she ran up, holding Chunchumaru and wearing Kazuma’s birthday suit.
“I…I am here!” she cried.
“It’s OK, I got him,” Kazuma said smugly. Damn. Darkness really was strong! This was like being superwoman!
Only, out in the yard, the man suddenly popped up, dusting off his suit. His back was to them and…was he missing the entire back of his head? Had Kazuma’s punch done that?
“My, my. You are a lively one! Well, perhaps this shall be more entertaining than I had thought!” the man chortled, striding back up to the mansion. “Oh, yessss. This shall be most entertaining!”
“Stay behind me,” Kazuma said, feeling manly and heroic for once. Except, you know, for the fact that he was a woman at the moment. This was really confusing.
“Now, how to…adjust you?” Maxwell said, stepping through the hole and adjusting his glasses, which had cracked from the punch. He peered at them owlishly, then grinned. “Oh ho ho! I must have forgotten adjusting you before! Your souls are already in the wrong bodies. How…intriguing. I don’t normally start with that one…”
“That’s right, pretty boy! I’m actually in a strong body with a real cheat power for once! I’ll break your face if you try that again!” Kazuma said, raising his fist.
A breeze whipped by him, and Kazuma froze as Maxwell leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Oh no no, dear boy. You merely caught me off guard. But now…it is my turn.”
With a flick, Maxwell sent Kazuma flying, crashing through the furniture and landing in the fireplace in a spray of ashes. Darkness cried out and tried to cut at Maxwell with her sword. For once, she displayed rather good form and swordsmanship, and if she’d been fighting an ordinary opponent, would have skewered him.
Maxwell merely blocked with his pinky finger a few times, then yawned into his off hand, even as Darkness performed an expert series of slicing attacks that even Kazuma had to admit was pretty impressive.
“Dull. Tedious. But you’re not as unbreakable as you’re used to. For example, if I touch you like so…”
Darkness screamed in pain as that same pinky flashed up and struck her sword arm, which cracked and bent, blood spraying and bone poking through the skin.
“Darkness!” Kazuma cried, and surged back up. He tried to bullrush Maxwell, only for the demon snap his fingers. Dark chains rose up from the floor and wrapped around Kazuma, spread eagleing him in the air.
“Hmm, yes. Normally, this one wishes to be bound, the fantasy of a woman enslaved and chained. And yet…how will she react, when it is not her, but her lover who is so enslaved?” Maxwell mused.
“Leave…leave him alone! It is me you want!” Darkness cried, bending to pick up Chunchumaru. She sliced again at Maxwell, but this time, the sword bent and wobbled like it was made of rubber.
“No, I think not. I grow bored of that,” Maxwell tskied. A hot poker appeared in his hand, and he touched it to Kazuma’s foot. At first, he felt only faint heat, then he smelled roasting meat, and gasped in pain. It wasn’t as bad as he thought it should have been, but it still hurt.
“No! No! Do not, not, not Kazuma!” Darkness wailed, and tried to beat on Maxwell with her one good arm.
“You’ll have to be more amusing than that. Have a seat,” Maxwell said, and a chair ran over, wrapping its arms and back around Darkness and binding her in place. She screamed again as her broken arm was cruelly bound, but she could do no more than struggle weakly.
“Yes…yes, I have done this adjustment before,” Maxwell mused, pacing around Kazuma, who was suspended in mid air. “Watching your own lover be tortured…it’s even more satisfying when a masochist has to watch that happen! But combining it with a body swap! Mmm, this is a…delectable flavor…and I was given the whole night to enjoy myself with you! Right up until the dawn! Isn’t that…wonderful?”
“Torture me all you want, just don’t touch Darkness,” Kazuma hissed.
Maxwell gave him an amused look. “Oh my dear child. Do you think I’m only going to torture you? Hmm, but simple pain won’t be enough for this one…oh no, I think not. Where did that succubus go? It would have been very appropriate to have it fuck your partner to death while you watched. Sadly, it seems to have vanished. Oh well.”
“No! Don’t-” Kazuma began, but a ball gag appeared, forcing itself into his mouth until his jaw ached from being overextended and tears sprang into his eyes.
“Hmm, what to do, what to do? Well, we can’t have you just passing out from the pain yet, too much of a mercy. So…” he reached down and bent Darkness’ arm back into place, making her scream in agony. “There! Not too fixed, but still. Hmm, hmm, now how to torture this one? Ah, yes. Pleasure! Pain and pleasure, two sides of the same coin, no? Let us see…ah! Yes. Perfect.”
A pillow got up and walked over at a twitch of Maxwell’s finger, then slowly morphed into the shape of a curvaceous woman. It knelt in front of the panting Darkness, who tried to lean away.
“There we go, a diet succubus, if you will. Now, you’ll pleasure that one until her mind is gone, hear? And as for me…pain for this one! My favorite.”
Slivers of bamboo appeared in Maxwell’s hands, and he placed one under each of Kazuma’s fingernails and toes, poised to be driven in, even as the pillow woman began to suck greedily at Darkness’ dick, making her moan in pleasure.
“Kazuma, Kazuma, I did not…I do not wish to…to cheat on you! Please, believe me, I take no p…plea…pleasure from…from…thissssss! Ooooo!” Her back arched, and she began to sweat.
“You’re familiar with bamboo torture, are you not?” Maxwell said with a grin as Kazuma’s wide eyes watched the slivers begin to slowly inch under his nails. “Yes, it is most-oh, what’s this? That succubus is coming back! Perfect I- wait. No, no no no! NO! This is not-”
A wailing Lolisa flew back in, and Maxwell sprang forward, karate chopping her right into the floorboard so hard there was a crunch and splinters flew.
“Idiot low-level pest! You interrupt my pleasure with your idiocy! I-”
The two lights that shone through the walls of the mansion nearly blinded Kazuma, and he had to squint to try to see. One was blue, the other silver, two women with battle auras like super saiyans surrounding them.
“You,” Aqua growled. Her hagoromo was floating about her, and she’d sprouted watery wings and flowing white robes. “Get the fuck away from my friends.”
“I’m going to kill you, Maxwell,” Chris, holy shit, what was Chris doing here!? She had a silvery feather cloak on, and was holding up two daggers that shone with a holy light, and her hair was suddenly down to the small of her back. “This time, you’re not getting away from me.”
“Two goddesses!? What is this?!” Maxwell hissed, taking several steps back. “I could easily best one of you, but two is-”
“GOD BLOW!” Aqua screamed and dashed forward, her fist glowing with power. Maxwell snarled and crossed his arms to block the blow, then screamed in pain as Chris shadow stepped behind him and drove her daggers into his back.
“SNEAK ATTACK!”
The battle was short, but so intense that the chains binding Kazuma were blasted to bits, and his wounds healed by the sheer holy energy. Maxwell was soon reduced to a charred, bleeding ruin.
“You will rue this day, goddesses. I will yet claim these mortal souls!” Maxwell snarled.
“Yeah, no. They’re ours,” Aqua huffed.
“Have a nice trip back to hell, loser,” Chris agreed, and then both cried together, “SACRED EXORCISM!”
Maxwell screamed, and then puffed to dust, his cracked and bloody glasses falling to the ruined carpet.
Aqua ran over to Darkness, while Chris hurriedly crouched by Kazuma. “Darkness! How did this happen, you- wait. That’s not Tina’s soul! Kazuma, what are you doing in her- oh. Seriously? You guys haven’t even been dating a week!”
“Hey, Eris, something’s wrong with Kazuma. He smells like Darkness!” Aqua complained.
“It’s fine, Aqua, just heal her. Him. Ugh, whatever,” Chris sighed.
“Wait, hold on, you’re…Eris?” Kazuma coughed.
Chris gave him a flat look. “This is incredibly disappointing. Do you have any idea how many hints I’ve been dropping? I thought you idiots would get it when I stopped being subtle, but no. I was considering wearing a name tag that said, ‘Hello, my name is Eris’ on it, but I decided to milk this. Then this damn succubus flew up wailing at us that it was going to eat your souls, so we came running! You’re lucky we were so close. Where did that pest go? Hey, Aqua, dibs on sending this demon bitch back to hell.”
“Fine, but I get the next one.”
“NO!” Kazuma and Darkness wailed together, and both of them wiggled out of the grips of their goddess and formed a protective barrier between the wrathful deities and the comatose Lolisa. “She saved us!”
“She is our friend,” Darkness said firmly.
“Without her, we would both have been tortured to death! She risked herself to go get you,” Kazuma declared.
Aqua and…Chris? Eris? Kazuma was so confused by this night, folded their arms over their chests and glared.
“Kazuma, get away from that demon before she eats your soul! Did she already do something weird? Why is your soul in Darkness’ body!?” Aqua huffed.
“I bet if we look upstairs, we’ll find a certain ill-advised sacred treasure you gave that idiot NEET 500 years ago. You know, the one that bodyswapped with a Leisure Girl, then immediately got himself killed by a party of Adventurers while he was still eating his own corpse?”
“Oh. Uh, OK, that wasn’t my best work, but…wait. Did you two body swap?” Aqua demanded.
Kazuma and Darkness both blushed. “Um, it was an accident?”
“Sure,” Chris snorted. “Perverts.”
A wicked grin suddenly stole over Aqua’s face. “Hey, hey Eris…do you think Kazuma’s going to get himself pregnant?”
“Nah, can’t. Tina’s already pregnant, can’t you tell? Though it’s Kazuma at the moment. Which is still hilarious.”
“Ooo, you’re right! Haha, that is hilarious! Kazuma’s pregnant!” Aqua cackled.
““Wait, I’m what?!”” Kazuma and Darkness gasped.
“Yeah, I blessed you two,” Aqua said, admiring her nails. “It’s good for more than archery contests, you know.”
“Hey, I helped! Fair fortune, remember? And what’s luckier than having a baby?”
“Kazuma,” Darkness said, turning to him. “We are going to see my father immediately, and you are requesting my hand in marriage.”
“But…but, we only had sex like,” Kazuma tried to count on his fingers. “Three…no, four, or wait, five? Times, right? That’s barely any at all!”
“It only takes one, genius,” Chris said with a shake of her head. “Relax, you were going to marry her anyway, right? Anyway, that’s probably a side issue at this point. The main issue is why you two idiots are protecting a succubus, and what Maxwell was doing here.”
“I bet they’re brainwashed. We should exorcise her, just to be sure,” Aqua said, holding up a glowing fist.
“No, Aqua, bad!” Kazuma said, waving his hands frantically. “It’s a Wiz situation! Seriously, would you two even have known to come rescue us if it hadn’t been for Lolisa?”
“Ugh, it has a name? Gross. We should put it down,” Chris said, making a face.
“Wait, hold on,” Aqua said, putting a hand on Chris’ arm. “You mean…she’s like Wiz? She’s…not evil?”
“Senpai! What are you saying?! Of course it’s evil, it’s a DEMON!”
“Lolisa is a woman, Chris, and I would have you remember that,” Darkness said in icy tones. “She is my dear friend, and a loyal vassal I am placing under my aegis as a retainer.”
“Seriously!? Ugh, you spend five minutes as a man, and already a succubus brainwashes you, Darkness! Come on, Aqua, let’s nuke the trash and figure out why Maxwell is here!”
“Chris, if you dare hurt Lolisa…I’m going to steal your panties and donate them to the Axis Church,” Kazuma said firmly.
Chris went bright red, and her hands instantly went to cover herself. “Y-You wouldn’t dare! B-besides, Darkness doesn’t know Steal, s-so you can’t! That’s an empty-”
“STEAL!”
Chris’ face slowly turned bright red, and Aqua bent over double, laughing hysterically as Darkness held up Chris’ lacy white panties. “I seem to have the steal skill, Chris. And I will make good on the threat!”
“DARKNESS YOU CAN’T! THIS IS HOW YOU TREAT YOUR GODDESS AND BEST FRIEND!” Chris wailed, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“I…um, I-I will convert to the Axis Cult if you dare harm Lolisa!” Darkness huffed.
“Oooo, you hear that, Eris? Your favorite follower likes me better,” Aqua teased.
“Oh, fine. Keep your stupid pet succubus. See if I ever resurrect you two again,” Chris huffed, turning her back and pouting.
“Uh, thanks, Chris. We’ll, um, name the kid after you. Or something,” Kazuma promised.
Chris was instantly all smiles. “Well, if that’s the case, maybe I can find it in my heart to forgive you!”
“Hmph. You better have more kids so you can name one after me, too,” Aqua pouted.
“Um, yes. Now, er…why is the mansion wrecked?” Kazuma said, looking around. “And why were you two chasing Lolisa?”
“I…yes. I remember…someone was going to hurt her? But…I don’t think it was you two?” Darkness said, putting a hand to her head.
“Great. That stupid aura is hitting them already,” Chris sighed. “Aqua, if you would?”
“Hmm,” Aqua went over and touched Kazuma and Darkness on the head, then sighed and shrugged. “Can’t they’re in the wrong bodies. Great. Well, we’ll have to explain it all to them tomorrow. For now, we’re going to fix up this place.”
“Super. You two take your succubus and go hang out in the barn. Guess I’m spending all night doing construction with Senpai instead of having fun,” Chris sighed. “We were going to raid Alderp’s mansion too…”
“Oh, yeah, um, that body swap necklace…we sort of stole it from Alderp,” Kazuma admitted.
“We, um, did not realize what it would do, so, ah…I put it on,” Darkness admitted.
“Meh. Just hand it over and I’ll take it back to heaven,” Chris said, holding out a hand.
Kazuma and Darkness exchanged horrified looks, then hastily got down on their knees.
“Please, think of it as a wedding present!” Kazuma begged.
“Chris, Lady Eris, I implore you! Let us keep that wonderful treasure! We, ah, we shall keep it over so safe, and, um, only use it responsibly!”
“Uh-huh. And you two aren’t going to just screw each other's brains out the moment you’re out of our sight?” Chris said, putting her hands on her hips.
Kazuma and Darkness tried to give the goddess their most innocent of smiles, but failed miserably. Especially since they were both still very naked.
“Eh, let ‘em have it, Eris. It’s been around for a few centuries and hasn’t caused too much trouble. Besides, Kazuma should have a real cheat item. Just promise to only use it on Darkness, OK?”
“Um, I promise to only use it with Darkness’ permission,” Kazuma said, having already concocted several dozen highly perverted scenarios they could get up to together with it. It wasn’t cheating if their mind and soul were the same, right?
“Meh, good enough,” Chris said with a shrug. “Alright, scram, you two. And if you want that succubus to live, get her out of sight or the sheer holy energy we’re about to put out will banish her anyway.”
They quickly picked up Lolisa, and Kazuma cradled her in his arms. Together, they carried her out to the barn, where they lay Lolisa down on a bed of straw. Behind them, for some reason, Jefferson Starship's “We Built This City” began to play, and the sounds of construction began as the mansion was refurbished.
When Wyatt had been a boy, he’d dreamed of exploring new worlds and finding new and wonderful discoveries. He’d read plenty of comic books, and imagined he’d be like Reed Richards or Tony Stark, inventing incredible things and using his creations to save the world. He’d worked hard in school, constantly studying and reading ahead, getting the best grades possible from an early age, and winning the science fair with his experiments every single year in junior high and freshman year of high school.
Of course, the main reason he studied so hard was that while his mind was strong, his body was weak. He’d been legally blind by the time he graduated from high school, and had been forced to learn braille, his diabetes robbing him of his sight.
So when someone had offered Wyatt a miracle cure, he’d taken it. He’d gone from being the weak shrimp who everyone pitied to a tall and handsome Adonis. Heck, a girl like Becky wouldn’t have looked at Wyatt twice before he’d taken that cure. He should know: he’d asked three girls out to prom, none of whom had been as attractive as his wife, and they’d all turned him down. Plus, Becky was eternally 20. Oh sure, Wyatt was 40 now, but his wife still looked as good as she had the day he’d met her.
Some people would have let a history like Wyatt’s make them bitter. Some would have let it give them a complex. Wyatt refused. He’d been given a gift. Now, his goal was to give as many others the same gift he’d gotten. It was frustrating to him that he couldn’t use his tinker tech inventions to cure type 1 diabetes or give blind children new eyes, or anything like that. Sure, he was working to save the world, but he wanted to save all the little people along the way too.
Well, now he had that chance. He had a chance to find a new source of energy that would transform the world, and finally be that silver bullet against Scion. Part of him wanted to rush in full steam ahead.
He’d done that with the Archons. Turns out, he’d been wrong to trust them. Becky had been right: They were trouble, and they had to go. Just like Scion.
So, Wyatt was slow. Wyatt was careful. And Wyatt would try not to kill Dr. Meliton, but some days the damn harpy tried his patience.
That wasn’t even him being rude: She did look a lot like a green harpy these days.
“Look, Honey, I know this data is promising, but we have to be careful with the samples of this stuff! It’s got an insane amount of energy, which means it’s also insanely dangerous! Then there’s what it does to living tissue in its raw form,” Wyatt said, resisting the temptation to rub his forehead in irritation.
“Then we should start experiments on living specimens! What about some Case 53s? We have plenty of those,” Honey argued.
They were sitting at a remote lab on the Island of Kaho‘olawe in the Hawaiian Islands. Currently, both of them were outside, enjoying the ocean breeze. The island itself was completely uninhabited, due to lacking a permanent supply of fresh water, and you had to be careful where you walked beyond the markers that surrounded the lab, because there was still a great deal of unexploded ordnance. Most of the lab itself was in an underground bunker that dated back to the Second World War, though it had been completely refitted and restored aside from the entrance, which was pitted and weathered.
“How about some lab rats instead of people?! We can’t just rush forward into this blindly!” Wyatt said, now beginning to lose his temper. He was of two minds on the Case 53 program. On the one, it was wildly successful. On the other, using incarcerated criminals, kidnapped near-victims of natural disasters, and the homeless was disgusting. On the gripping hand…they would all be dead or deranged. The Case 53 program gave them the same second chance he’d had.
Of course, now they were mostly using volunteers, which had turned out to work even better. They hadn’t needed to fly by night. They had plenty of good stock doing their work in the light of day, and that made Wyatt feel much better about the whole thing.
Even if he did have to work with people like Honey Meliton who thought morals were an especially disgusting flavor of jelly beans.
“We’re losing the war against the Tsaritsa! We can’t churn out capes like she can delusions because we’re running out of vials! We need a replacement!” Honey shot right back.
“That’s a fair point. But we’re sticking to animal trials for now. If we just start injecting people with this exotic energy, we don’t know what it will do,” Wyatt pointed out.
“The cell cultures either die or become super charged with the energy, growing rapidly! It should be the same in humans. We’re figuring out how to reliably use it without destroying the cell cultures!”
“Rats, Honey. We use rats,” Wyatt said firmly. “That goes well, we move up to pigs and dogs. Once we’ve got stable use on that, then, and only then, do we use human test subjects.”
“Oh, fine. You’re just standing in the way of science, you know,” Honey grumbled, and sipped at her ice tea.
Wyatt just looked out at dry scrubland beyond the warning flags and sighed. He hated animal and human experimentation, but it was necessary. They just had to at least try to be ethical about all this.
He put in the order for rats and mice to use as test subjects, along with all the necessary equipment and personnel to do so. It would take a few days to get everything set up and situated, even with the unlimited budget they had. After that, he went home.
Well, not home, home, to LA, but to the White House.
“Good evening, sir,” the Secret Service agent on duty said, nodding to him as he stepped out of the Door and into the Lincoln Bedroom. How the heck did they always know which door he was going to use? Or maybe they just stationed an agent at all of them. That was entirely possible.
“It’s afternoon for me, teleportation is killer on your sense of time,” Wyatt said with a laugh. “How’s it going, Leeroy?”
“All quiet here, sir. The President is in the Oval Office, but she left instructions that you’re to be shown to her when you arrive,” Agent Leeroy said.
Wyatt nodded and strode through the White House, greeting the various staffers and functionaries. He found his way to the President’s office, where there sat his wife, wearing not a suit and tie, but her new Cape costume, which consisted of a white suit with red cuffs and shoulder boards, and a blue cape with white stars, her Vision on a pendant around her neck. She really was going all in on the “President Cape” persona, but the good news was it was skin tight and really showed off her curves.
He paused, grinning as he leaned in the doorway, waiting for her to notice. She, of course, had known as soon as he stepped into the hallway outside, but she kept working and pretending to ignore him.
“If you’re going to just stand there looking, you could do something useful like giving me a backrub,” Becky said, not looking up from the paperwork she was pouring over.
He stepped across the carpet emblazoned with the Great Seal of the United States, and complied with the back rub. She paused after a moment, and sighed.
“I’m supposed to be working on this bill for funding the war effort. I have a lot of notes before I give it back to the Senate. We cannot leave our allies high and dry. The Nordics are all in a panic now that Finland has nearly completely fallen.”
What Becky meant was that the extreme north of the country still had a few places the Fatui hadn’t bothered to steamroll yet, as they were focused on subduing the major population centers in the south. Most of the north of Finland was empty wilderness and a few isolated towns and villages. The Finnish government in exile had set up shop in Iceland, but everyone knew that if the Tsaritsa decided her troops were going to walk to Iceland, she probably just could freeze the North Atlantic solid. Sweden and Norway were certain they were next in the list of invasions, and everyone was nervous. For now, the Russians were consolidating their hold over Finland, but at this point, there seemed little hope of pushing the Fatui out.
“We did all we could,” Wyatt said consolingly. “A lot of American blood was spilled fighting them.”
He hadn’t looked at the latest casualty reports, but between Poland and now Finland, the casualties were over 6,000. That didn’t sound like a lot, and compared the abject slaughter that World War II had brought, World War III’s deaths were relatively light. But so many of those had been capes, and they were incredibly hard to replace. America had lost about 1/10 of her capes in the war, Vision Holders and Parahumans alike.
So they needed replacements. And fast.
“And yet what do we have to show for it? The Tsaritsa spreads her tyranny, and gains more territory and subjects to increase her power. Already, there are those in Finland converting to the Church of the Frozen Heart and embracing the worship of their new god,” Becky said bitterly. “Hell, we had to crack down on a preacher here in DC that was proclaiming the divinity of the Tsaritsa. I’m getting Senator Hill from Indiana to introduce the Alien Religions act.”
“We’re getting rid of freedom of religion now?” Wyatt asked, stunned. That was…that was one of the cornerstones of the United States’ belief system.
“When they allow an enemy god to gain followers and powers on our soil? Yes. It’s going to ban Cyclists as well, because that’s the last thing we need.”
“Cyclists?” Wyatt said, confused for a moment. “Why would we- wait. Are you talking about those crazies in Britain who worship Scion?”
“Yes. It’s spreading like wildfire here now as well. It’s a dangerous cult, proclaiming that humanity must evolve, and deliberately trying to cause trigger events among other things. Archonism isn’t as insidious from outward appearances, but I’m increasingly convinced they gain power from worshipers. They’re gods. Why wouldn’t they?”
Wyatt digested that as he continued to rub his wife’s shoulders. “So, you think that’s worth getting rid of the First Amendment?”
“The Framers never imagined a world where a hostile god who can brainwash entire countries would have a religion that could allow her to infiltrate our country and destabilize it. Or where an alien overlord would found his own religion in an attempt to…I don’t even know. Albedo claims it’s an experiment to see if Scion can gain energy and power from human faith. I would have called it nonsense six years ago.”
“And then Amaterasu came back and cut the Leviathan in half, followed by an Angel of the Old Testament variety kicking the Nazis out of Europe. Then Gaia herself returned to Babylon, the White Witch of Narnia showed up in Moscow, and now…whatever the Hydro Archon is. A theater kid who watched too much Ally McBeal?”
Becky groaned and put her head in her hands, finally giving up on working on the bill. “I don’t know, Wyatt. I don’t want to be a tyrant. I don’t want to trample over the establishment clause or the Free Exercise Clause. But the Tsaritsa is starting to look like she can conquer whatever part of the world doesn’t have an Archon that has claimed it as their own. So, somehow, I have to figure out how to keep humanity free of her, and the rest of them.”
“With five down, two to go,” Wyatt said with a sigh.
“That’s what our best information says. Though we know fuck all about the Geo or Pyro Archons, aside from the fact that they exist, and the Geo Archon is apparently dead in every timeline where an Archon’s felt like talking about it,” Becky said in disgust.
“Maybe we’ll catch a break then,” Wyatt said hopefully. “I did order lab rats today. New tests look promising. This new form of energy has potential, Becky. Real potential.”
“How close are we to a viable product to create capes?” she asked, turning her head to peer at his face.
He hesitated, then sighed. “I don’t know. We’ve only been at this a few months. You know how long it took Doctor Mother to create the Vials. It’s probably years away.”
“We might not have years. Do the animal trials, but do them quickly. I’ll authorize all the Case 53 subjects you need,” Alexandria said. That was her talking, not Rebecca, not the kind, funny woman that Wyatt loved. But Alexandria, the hero who was leading this country, and the world, in the fight against gods and aliens.
“I’ll do it,” Hero promised. “But we’ll need time.”
“Time is something we might not have,” Becky said, standing up. “How long do I have you for?”
“Eight or so hours.”
“Then let’s spend it in the bedroom. We’re both busy, but I need to feel alive and loved right now. Hopefully, there isn’t an Endbringer attack in that time.”
They made love passionately, but not as long as Wyatt would have liked. He was getting old, and while his skill was increasing, his stamina most certainly was not. A 20-year-old bride sounded good, until you remembered that you were becoming an old man who struggled to keep up with her.
As they cuddled on the bed, Rebecca asked an astonishing question. “Do you ever regret that I can't have children?”
“Becky, honey, I knew that when I signed up for this,” Wyatt said, pulling her close and squeezing. “Heck, you having the fountain of youth is something most men dream about! Now if only I could tap into it!”
“Yes, but…” Rebecca touched her womb, and Wyatt could feel tears on her cheeks against his own. “I don’t know. Something about this Vision…it makes me long for the love of a family. A family I can’t have.”
“We could always adopt, you know.”
“No, no. There’s no time for it anyway. Even if I could get pregnant…I’m 35 now. The youngest President in history. But still a bit old to be having children.”
Wyatt kissed her; he didn’t know what else to do. “I love you. Always and forever.”
“I…I love you too, Wyatt.”
“Wyatt Costa-Brown. Never forget: I took your name, because you mean everything to me.”
After that, he made love to her again. Slowly, and tenderly, at least in part because he was worn out, but also to show how much he loved her, truely. She seemed to understand, and both of them got a better night’s sleep than usual, even with the weight of the world on their shoulders.
A few days later, they started the experiments on the rats. They were standard brown norway rats, with a little more genetic diversity than the white lab rats. They had a control group, of course, that would not be exposed to any of this new exotic energy. Another group would be exposed to an ambient source of the energy, in this case, glowing purple crystals that would hang in their cages. Another group would be given water irradiated with the energy, and a final group would be injected with a solution of the energy to see what would happen.
Results were almost immediate in the last group. A number of rats writhed and died from the energy, their bodies horribly mutating before they burst in purple pustules of oozing energy. Some, however, were changed. They grew larger, stronger, and, shockingly and completely unexpectedly, intelligent.
“Yesyes, need moremore. Hmm, hmm, givegive moremore!” one of the rats hissed. It had grown to over two feet long, four if you included the tail, and was walking about on hand legs with claw-like hands that rubbed together constantly. Its eyes glowed an eerie purple color, and strange runes had been burned into its hide, leaving white markings on the grey hair. It’s teeth were longer and more wicked, and it paced about it’s cage, rubbing its hands together and muttering to itself.
“What the hell is this stuff?” Wyatt muttered to himself, peering through the safety glass at the, well, he was calling it Skaven. Though if he knew anything about Skaven…this might not be the best omen.
“It’s similar to elemental energy in some ways,” Honey remarked, taking notes on her tablet. “It can uplift animals, and this has done the same.”
“I guess elemental energy does also kill things that get over exposed to it,” Wyatt muttered, shaking his head. “But this is so rapid. And this isn’t the same sort of uplifting that happens with elemental energy. Look at it! It looks like a monster out of a TTRPG!”
“We’ll tweak the formula, but I want to experiment with other animal stock,” Honey said, turning to Wyatt.
He sighed, and nodded. “We’ve already got them on order. We’ll go ahead, but we keep modifying the formula. Perhaps adding an infusion of Elemental Energy…”
That didn’t work out at all. They even captured a few slimes and tried injecting them with this new energy source, but they just all went berserk, died, or exploded violently.
Interestingly, the rats with crystals hung in their cages slowly began to twist and warp after a week or two of exposure. Some died painful deaths, but when the other rats fed on their bloated corpses, they became more of the Skaven-like creatures. Complete with mad ramblings, and violent tendencies. They would attack their keepers at any opportunity, and several were culled and autopsied. The results were fascinating. The creatures’s brains had rapidly developed, as had their muscles.
The most frightening day came when a Skaven, when a worker came to clean its cage, shrieked at the man, then cast a spell on him. There was no other word for it: the rat-thing drew a rune of burning purple energy in the air, and a bolt of dark energy flew out and struck the man in the arm. The arm twisted and withered even as the man screamed and the Skaven danced about its cage, cackling with glee.
“Yesyes, man-thing will pay, pay! Give more, more! Yesyes, need MORE power!”
The rat was, of course, shot dead, and first aid provided. It was partly terrifying and partly very exciting.
“This is remarkable. They’ve developed blaster powers using this energy, and are creating more of it!” Honey said. “This is exactly what we need.”
“We have to be cautious. These things are dangerous,” Wyatt said. “What about the pigs?”
A few days later, the pigs were turning into orc like creatures, if one used the piggy definition of the term. They were even more intelligent and more aware.
“You have chained us, feed on us, but we shall feed on you!” one snorted as it rattled its cage bars with all too human hands. The others attempted to craft crude tools, and even tried to effect a breakout, but the precautions taken prevented it.
“The casualty rate is still too high to begin human trials,” Wyatt said, shaking his head. “But we’re getting there. We have a 60% survival rate with the latest batch. Keep working at it.
But they’d already had word that the Tsaritsa had awoken, and that she was preparing to launch an invasion of Kazakhstan, to reclaim lands that the Soviet Union had held sway over. They were running out of time. He started sleeping in the bunker, working around the clock to try new integrations of this power source, new formulas.
He awoke one morning and went down to the pens, but he felt an oppressive air. At first, he thought the lights were burning out, but something was wrong. They were bright as ever, but the light was being…absorbed. He hastened his steps, and found the scientists clustered around a viewing window.
“What’s happening?” he demanded, hurrying forward.
One of the observers turned to him, a look of horror on their face. “Director, they’ve sacrificed one of them!”
“What?!” He ran up to the window, to find the pig-orcs and rat-skaven had spread-eagled one of their own, and using a crude shank they’d fashioned, cut open its belly and spilled out the entrails. Even as he watched, they were drawing a series of runes in blood.
“Honey! Dr. Meliton, we have to stop this, NOW!” Wyatt said, every alarm bell going off in his head.
Meliton looked up, an annoyed expression on her face at being interrupted. “But this is such good data! They’ve done this spontaneously, we-”
The creatures had formed a ring, and begun to chant.
Venite ad nos, ingluvies esurientes.
Sanguine depasce, nigredine sine fine.
Ima da nos potentiae abyssi!
Wyatt stopped barking orders. Ominous Latin chanting was the line you did not cross. He slammed open the emergency door, drawing one of his rayguns and summoning his nano armor. Even as alarms blared and the creatures snarled and turned on him, Wyatt blasted two in half.
But he was too late. A black hole in reality opened up, and out of it, monsters swarmed.
“LOCK THE DOOR!” Wyatt bellowed, and shot one of the things out of the air as it bayed and came for him. It looked almost like a wolf, but like a floating, twisted mobile. Dark energy filled most of the body, and the eyes glowed purple. One sank its fangs into Wyatt’s arm, and he gave up the ray gun for a beam saber, slicing it in half. Two more came at him, and he struck them down, even as the rift grew.
Behind him, he heard screams and a blast of wind, and he saw more of the wolf-like demons were slaughtering the scientists. Meliton was fighting back, and he watched as she ripped one in half with her talons, then used a blade of anemo to slice another. But he had no time to pay attention. Wyatt’s entire body was now covered in armor, and nanites sealed off the wound. He turned back to the rift, desperate to find a way to close it, when he heard a voice.
Dark tentacles sprang from the rift, and wrapped themselves around Wyatt’s arm. He hacked some with his beam saber, but the room was tilting, drawing him in. He tried to fight the pull, to blast it away with his rocket boots, but a wolf monster slammed into him from the back, and he was propelled into the rift.
Purple darkness washed over Wyatt, and he screamed in terror as he was consumed by the rift. He fell for what felt like hours, a swirling storm of chaos biting and gnawing at his armor. At last, ground appeared before him, and he used the last of the energy in his suit to slow his descent and tumble down to the ground.
Gasping for breath, alarms warbling on his HUD, he looked around at where he found himself. Crystalline spires in weird shapes jutted all around him. He’d barely managed to steer himself into a mostly open space. He put a hand to the ground, and lifted up a handful of lilac sand. He let it run through his fingers, then slowly stood.
This was not a barren, lifeless place. Glowing plants clung to the rocks, and dark things skittered around him, looking like bugs or twisted reptiles. He slowly turned, his heart thundering in his chest. He looked up from where he had come, and saw beyond the swirling mist, stars burning with a terrible light.
“Where…where am I? Hello? Can anyone hear me?” he called, but he tried his radio before. “Oh God. Rebecca! Oh God, what have I done?!”
Oh God, Rebecca! Hello? Where am I?
Wyatt spun, and found a floating…thing…staring back at him. It had six wings, four smaller ones on top and bottom in pairs, and then two oddly shaped ones jutting out of a circular body. A light blue halo floated about the thing, which had what looked like purple petals surrounding a glowing blue eye at the center.
“What the hell are you?” Wyatt whispered, slowly trying to circle around the thing.
What the hell are you? It echoed back.
He shook his head, trying to get his bearings, and muttered. “Are you…intelligent? Or just a mimic?”
Intelligent? Just a mimic.
The thing spun about itself, then in a burst of purple smoke, it transformed. Wyatt jerked back, swearing in surprise. To his shock and horror, a purple shadow of himself now stood where the thing had been. It aped his movements, stumbling back from him and nearly falling. As Wyatt righted himself, it stood as well. When he stepped right, it did the same.
“Can you understand me?” Wyatt asked.
Are you… me?
He cocked his head, and his mirror did the same. In a fit of madness, Wyatt sang, “Do doo be-do-do.”
Mahna Mahna.
“Ha! Do doo be-do-do!”
Mahna Mahna.
Wyatt continued the song for a couple of lines, doing a silly dance, which the thing at first mimicked, then began to improvise its own moves.
You are… false. I am real. The Mimic said, stepping towards Wyatt, shaking his head in anger.
“Oh no,” Wyatt groaned. He’d seen this one before. So, when the thing formed a beam saber and tried to strike him down, he parried.
You…your memories…your being…give them to me. I will be…real.
“I don’t think so!” Wyatt snarled. “There’s only ONE Wyatt Costa-Brown! And he ain’t dying here!”
They exchanged a couple of blows, then Wyatt pulled an Indy, and drew his ray gun and shot the thing in the chest. It looked at the hole for a moment, as if shocked that this was possible. Then Wyatt decapitated it, and pumped two more rounds into it.
He stood over the thing as it dissolved into purple ooze, breathing hard. “That’s right. I’m the original.”
I’m the original.
The original.
Original.
Slowly, Wyatt turned, finding three more of the mimic things floating towards him through the mists. He groaned. “Aw, hell naw.”
He ran, darting between crystal structures and firing as he was pursued by three sets of doppelgangers.
“Hey, which of you is real?” he shouted back behind him. To his shock and delight, each shouted back a response about being real. Then, they fell on one another, each claiming to be the original. Wyatt waited until only one was left, wounded and bleeding purple. Then he shot it five times, just to make sure.
He slumped down against a crystal rock, and watched the last of his oxygen run out. He’d used up too much power, and his nanomachines were unable to keep recycling his air.
“Well. Guess there’s only one thing left to do,” he groaned. He disabled his helmet, eyes squeezed shut, holding his breath. Then, he sucked in.
To his surprise, it only burned a little. He was able to take a few more breaths. Then, slowly, he stood, breathing regularly. The air tasted a bit acrid, but he could breath. He wandered for a bit, looking for water, or anything he could eat. He found trees with oddly shaped fruit, and took some, but didn’t eat.
“How to get back,” he muttered, and took a look at his gear. Nothing that could create a portal. Well, he was one of the greatest Tinkers on Earth Bet. Time to get to work.
A day passed. Wyatt was ready to die of thirst. He’d found no water, and made little progress. He still had his powers, but he couldn’t figure out how to make a portal home with what he had. Teleportation was one of the things his Shard struggled with. At last, nearly mad with thirst, he ate a fruit.
The sweet juice inside was shockingly, not that bad to eat. He ate some of that, then killed a bug thing and ate that too when the fruit ran out. But after a week or so, he stopped getting hungry and thirsty. Not that he noticed.
He killed more mimics, and found more strange plants and crystals. He began to have…ideas. His mind ran wild, and he began to construct strange things, carving runes of power into the rock and even the air itself. More wolves and other monsters attacked, and Wyatt killed them, then ate their flesh, or used their body parts to build more of his devices.
He began to change as well. His flesh hardened, and his form twisted. Two hands weren’t enough, so he grew a second set. Walking was too slow, so he began to fly.
He experimented and worked for years, creating weapons, armor, odd devices.
Then, one day, he found a hole in the world. A bright light that hurt his eyes shone through, and for the first time in what felt like years, Wyatt remembered something. Home. Love. Becky.
He charged through the hole, and into madness. Prey things were battling with…Men. Men in armor, wielding weapons. He struck down the prey things, and then Men attempted to fight him. He shrugged off their weapons, then commanded.
Cease. Do you not recognize your betters? I am your Director. Lay down your arms, and bow to me!
“What the fuck is that thing!?” one of the Men shouted. He was…Marcus. Yes. Marcus.
“We have to close the portal!” another, a female…what was her name? Ah, yes. Honey.
Wyatt turned, and regarded the portal. He made a gesture and used a bit of his power, and the portal slammed shut.
There. It is shut. Now. I have been absent too long. Tell me: How goes the war?
No, no. That wasn’t what mattered. He clutched at his head, and screamed.
Focus, focus! Becky, love, together, the wedding, holding one another, the warmth of her body against his, making love, his love for her. His! Love!
With a great force of will, Wyatt forced his form back to what it had once been, the power within burning and biting, clawing to be free. Gasping, he lay on hands and knees, naked and shuddering.
“Holy shit, Director Wyatt?!”
“Hey…guys…’m back,” Wyatt rasped. Then, he passed out.
He came too some time later, still in his fleshy form. Good. He needed to keep his power under control. He was in a hospital bed, and a woman was clutching his hand.
“Wyatt? Wyatt! He’s awake!”
“B-Becky?” he gasped.
She flung her arms about him, sobbing. “Oh, God, Wyatt! When they called me, I was so scared! But, they said you’re alright?”
He flexed his hand, then, slowly, put his arms about her. Yes. This was what he should do. He…he loved her. Didn’t he?
“How long…how long was I gone?” Wyatt asked, fearing to hear the answer.
His wife…yes, wife, that’s who she was. Rebecca. His wife. She pushed herself away, a look of confusion on her face. “Gone?”
“He was sucked into the portal for about two minutes,” Honey Meliton said, ruffling her feathers by the door. “When he returned…at first, we thought he was another monster.”
“It’s me, I promise,” Wyatt said, smiling.
Rebecca’s eyes narrowed. “Oh yeah? Who’s the Warchief of the Horde?”
Knowledge flooded his mind. “Well, first, it was Blackhand the Destroyer. After he was slain by Ogrin Doomhammer, he-”
“It’s him!” Rebecca laughed, and hugged Wyatt again.
He hugged her back.
Yes…he was Wyatt…wasn’t he? Wyatt Costa-Brown…
Images of a slain human at his feet. Red blood. Taking the memories…
No, no, that was just a nightmare. He was Wyatt. He was real.
Wasn’t he?
Author’s Note:
The Abyss will always grant power.
But those who receive it will not be those who requested it.
I feel like shit. Not because I’m still sore from what Texas and Exusiai did to me, but because, well…turns out sometimes it’s not the super cancer, or the world ending apocalypses that wear you down. Sometimes it’s the day to day struggle of working as a doctor. Or being a complete idiot. But we’ll start with the doctor stuff, at least I’m kinda good at that.
So, there I was, actually starting my first rotation at a hospital. I’m going to skip over day 38, because it was extremely boring onboarding. Lots of “welcome, employee drone! Here are our company policies and procedures!”
Like, they needed to do it and stuff, but the routine training was boring as hell.
So, after one day of basic training and with my paperwork fully filled out, I, Dr. James McCoy, started my first shift at the ungodly hour of 0500 Zulu time. At least, I think it’s Zulu time that means local time? Whatever.
I’m just coping at this point, so here’s what happened.
Sussurro and I started the shift in the trauma ward of Rhodes Island. I was introduced to the various doctors and medics as we got the charts and numbers on the patients, and reviewed treatment plans for various individuals. Oh, and had my blood drawn, just to confirm my levels.
“We’d like you to use your arts on these patients in critical condition,” Folinic told me, as she was the one doing the briefings, though she was Dr. Louisa Mangusheva. “Dr. Sussurro will be your attending for the day.”
Texas and Exusiai were present at the briefing as well, and Folinic turned to them. “As for you two, you’ll be on call in the security room. We can’t have you in the patient rooms due to standard protocols. You’ll be just moments away, though.”
“Are patients likely to become combative?” I asked, thinking of my experience dealing with druggies or those having a psychotic episode I’d seen during my clinical rotations in med school.
“It happens, especially when we have enemy combatants that come in, though they’re treated in a separate, high-security ward and you won’t be around them,” Folinic told me.
“OK, what about drug seeking patients? I haven’t heard about that here, so let me clarify that I mean those seeking addictive drugs, such as opioids or anti-psychotics?”
“We do see that, but frankly, if they’re infected, give drugs first, ask questions second. We do have some regulars that Dr. Sussurro can warn you about. Besides, you won’t be prescribing medications, Dr. Sussurro will.”
“Gotcha, I’ll do my best to follow the treatment plans then,” I agreed.
After that, we started with a few patients in intensive care. These were mostly combat casualties, some of them from last week in Leithanein, others from more recent action. Some of them needed replacement organs, others had suffered amputations, others were simply healing from grevious wounds.
We started with an Operator Code Name Glimpse, real name Geneva Harrow. She was an Elafian who’d been involved in a Contingency Contract in Columbia and had been gutshot. She was still recovering, but was conscious, if on a lot of pain meds. Parts of her small and large intestine had been removed, and she was on a special diet.
“Hey doc,” she said weakly as Sussurro and I approached. “Can I get some more water? My throat’s real dry.”
I looked at her chart, and saw that she was strictly limited on her fluid intake because of her intestinal injuries. “Let’s try something else first. I’m Doctor McCoy. How are you with pain right now?”
“Good. I’ll let you know when the drugs wear off. I…I didn’t want to be a junky, but…” she shuddered. “Sorry, this has made me a total bitch.”
She was not infected, just someone who needed a job, perhaps, but I decided to confirm. I could scan her, but it’s best to ask. “According to this, you’re not Infected.”
“No, no. It’s…it’s my little boy. Isaac. He is. Stepped on an originium shard some asshole left…so, I joined Rhodes Island to use my skills with a crossbow to get him treatments. My bastard of a boyfriend ditched us as soon as Isaac was diagnosed…”
I nodded. “Alright, I’m going to try an arts treatment for you. It may hurt. To do it, I’m going to have to remove your bandaging here.”
She nodded. “Sure, sure, whatever you docs think is best.” Then laid back and closed her eyes.
“Push 10 more CCs of morphine?” I asked Sussurro. “This is going to smart.”
“Good call,” she said, and nodded to Myrtle, who was tagging along as our nurse. She administered the morphine, and I used surgical scissors to cut open the wound. There was still a lot of trauma, and I ran my hands over the sutures gently. I could feel the wound, the missing parts of her.
“Beginning arts treatment.”
Geneva gasped, eyes fluttering open as I opened her back up with a knife, then rapidly healed her missing intestines and restored the large amounts of blood she was still short. Myrtle and I quickly mopped up the blood, then released the restraints on Geneva, who sat up, looking baffled.
“I…I feel fine. What…what did you do?”
“We’re sending you to imaging to confirm, but I think I just repaired your internal organs and filled up your blood bank. If everything checks out, you’ll be released today and get to see your boy,” I told her.
Tears filled her eyes, and she nodded. “Thank you, Dr. McCoy! I thought…I thought I might lose my job!”
“There was never any danger of that. Rhodes Island takes care of its own,” Sussurro told her. “But this will likely get you back in the field.”
“That’s good. There’s still a lot of battles to fight. For my Isaac, for all the Infected,” Geneva said. She was wheeled out, protesting that she thought she could walk, to get the imaging done to confirm.
“Right, let’s check your vitals,” Sussurro told me. I let her do the battery of exams with Myrtles help, everything from blood pressure to pupil dilation.
“How are you feeling?”
“Tired, unfortunately,” I admitted. “Not exhausted, more like I ran a couple of miles and need to catch my breath? Sitting here has actually pretty much fixed me up, honestly.”
“Normal after heavy arts use, you’re good to go still,” Sussurro pronounced.
“That was pretty incredible, though!” Myrtle said, taking off the pulse and O2 monitor along with the BP cuff. “I have healing arts, but nothing like that! I’ve never seen anyone with arts so strong!”
“Really? I mean, I get they’re strong, but it can’t be that odd, can it?” I asked.
“James, everything about you is highly unusual. All the other Earthlings seem immune to oripathy and are completely incapable of using arts. Not to mention your terminal case of Adhaerente pede oris.”
My meager Latin came up with the answer. “Har har. Foot in mouth disease? You’re hilarious, Lucia,” I said with a roll of my eyes as I stood, towering over both women. I have noticed that I’m unusually tall. Terrans, on average, seem to be shorter than Americans. I would blame the asian developers, but honestly this place is so real it probably just runs on different rules.
The next few cases were similar, but different. I did find I could not completely repair amputated limbs. I could heal the limb quite nicely, but if it was gone, it was gone. I could also regrow damaged organs, but if one was simply missing entirely, I was out of luck. Even a scrap of kidney let me grow one, or even clone the other, and then fix it on the opposite side, but if it was gone, I had no blueprint to work with.
“That is interesting. We really need to study how your ability works,” Sussurro said, transcribing some notes on her tablet as I sat and drank some juice, taking a breather.
“Hmm, early signs of arts overload, he probably needs to rest for a while. I can take him to the break room while you do rounds,” Myrtle told Sussurro.
“Yes, we don’t want to push it too far. Do another blood draw and ship it off to the lab, as well as measure his lesions to see if there’s any change,” Sussurro ordered. She took my right hand and examined it, then peered into my eyes. “Will you be alright, James?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine. You go be a doctor instead of a babysitter,” I told her.
“It’s hardly babysitting, and you’re certainly a doctor yourself by this point, James. Get some more fluids in you and eat some salty snacks, those help with arts overload. You’ve got my number if you need to page me.”
I nodded, then we parted ways as Sussurro went to continue the rounds. Myrtle and I went to a stereotypical breakroom, where Exusiai and Texas were sitting and looking very bored. It had the usual posters up reminding you about mental health, various codes, and workplace regulations. There was a fridge, microwave, and water cooler, along with plain tables and chairs with boring white walls with blue trim.
“Hey, what’s up?” Exusiai said, pulling off her headphones and standing eagerly. “We got a mission?”
“No, I’m just needing a break from using too much arts,” I said, as Myrtle used the IV line they’d put in me to take a quick vial of blood. She was practically a vampire herself, and obviously had years of nursing experience.
“He’s in early overdose stages. Not there yet, so an hour or so of rest and he should be fine!” Myrtle said. “I’m going to be monitoring his vitals every ten minutes or so, but for now we can just hang out. Who likes to play cards!?”
We ended up playing a game similar to Hearts, with Myrtle keeping track of my vitals. It was fun, but I could tell that Texas and Exusiai both were getting antsy.
“Not used to just sitting around?” I asked them.
“No, usually it’s one mission done, then out for another,” Exusiai said with a shake of her head.
“Too much downtime. Only so much training to do,” Texas agreed.
“Yeah, I agree,” Myrtle said, laying down her card. “The field is where it’s more fun! But I have to do hospital rotations to keep current. It’s boring but necessary.”
Just then, the loudspeaker chimed, and a voice came over.
Attention: Incoming Code Orange. I repeat, incoming Code Orange. All available personnel to the flight deck. Repeat, incoming Code Orange. All available personnel to the flight deck.
We were all already on our feet as soon as we heard Code Orange, and Myrtle cried, “This way, follow me!”
We dashed after Myrtle, up an elevator and onto the flight deck at the very top of Rhodes Island, where multiple doctors and nurses were already setting up, including Sussurro. The hospital codes were, mercifully, the same as the ones I was used to. Code Orange indicated a mass casualty event, requiring all hands on deck.
“Alright people!” Warfarin shouted over the wind. “We’ve got three incoming VTOLs loaded with patients! There was another bombing on the Victoria/Tara border, and we’re the closest trauma center. I’m going to be taking a team there to deal with the aftermath once we get this sorted out. They’ll be here in minutes, we’re looking at 46 hurry cases. Every moment counts! We don’t have them properly sorted between infected and noninfected, and frankly, there’s going to be some recategorization, as it looks like it was a dirty originium bomb. Full precautions for the uninfected among us. Now, let’s save some lives!”
“Forty-six?” I gasped, going a little pale. I looked around, and there were maybe that many doctors, nurses, and medics out here on the helipads. But to treat 46 hurry cases, you needed two or three times that many doctors.
“Not the worst I’ve seen,” Sussurro commented grimly. “But a dirty originium bomb? That’s going to be nasty. The entire area will be contaminated.”
“I thought that was all over after the Londinium Crisis. What the hell is going on?” I demanded.
“Tara declared its independence, and Loughshinny has assumed rule, but Vina can’t get the Londinium parliament to recognize Taran independence. In the meanwhile, Dublinn has fragmented, and the hardcore elements have reorganized into the Taran Liberation Front, or TLF,” Sussurro explained. “It seems they’ve moved on to full-scale bombing campaigns. There’s going to be hundreds of dead and potentially thousands of new infected from this.”
“It’s the fucking Troubles all over again,” I muttered under my breath, and Myrtle shot me an odd luck. Sussurro just kicked me.
“Focus, James. This isn’t the first or the last time that Rhodes Island has had to deal with a mass casualty event. Get ready, here they come.”
Three black dots were growing rapidly closer, and soon I could hear the thump of rotors as three VTOLs with flashing lights and RHODES ISLAND AIR AMBULANCE on the sides approached. The backwash of the rotors ruffled my scrubs. I already had on a mask and face shield, but I still ducked my head reflexively. The first VTOL touched down, and Warfarin immediately moved in with her team as Rhodes Island medics began to move a dozen or so stretchers off the helipad.
Fortunately, they’d already triaged them, and the most urgent cases came first.
“BONES! Get your ass over here!” Warfarin called, and I rushed over to find a stretcher with an elderly feline man being hauled out onto the flight deck.
“Feline, male, aged approximately six decades, previously uninfected,” the medic said. “Severe head trauma, originium poisoning, pressure wounds to internal organs. Needs immediate cranial surgery to remove originium fragments from the brain.”
“What can you do for him? Don’t suck the fragments into you or try to cure him,” Warfarin told me, which earned her a double take from the medic. “He’s going to die in minutes.”
I put my hands on the man’s head, and felt the originum there. “I can’t pull this without causing additional trauma, and possibly absorbing it. I can do something about the abdominal injuries, but-”
“Priority 5, set him to the side,” Warfarin interrupted, and the medics complied. I felt my heart sink.
When triaging, Rhodes Island used a tiered system. Triage level 1 is an extremely high priority with life-threatening injuries that need immediate treatment, such as cardiac arrest, not breathing, or third-degree burns on the face or internal organs. Level 2 requires treatment very soon and is life-threatening, think uncontrolled bleeding, a stroke or seizure, or burns over 20% of the body. Level 3 is Urgent, but not life-threatening: Broken bones, severe to moderate pain, or persistent vomiting. Level 4 is somewhat urgent, but not life-threatening. Something like a severe cold, a urinary tract infection, or a cut on the arm that would require sutures.
Level 5? Level five means that there is no saving this patient, or it would require so many resources that you don’t have the ability to save them. So you move on. In a mass casualty incident like this, every second, every heartbeat, counts. You can’t save everyone. The job is to save as many people as you can.
So though it made me want to cry, though I felt like I was going to vomit, I moved on as the old man was set to the side. He died a few minutes later. An originium fragment had pierced his brain, and he likely would have been a vegetable or suffered permanent disabilities, not to mention acute oripathy. Even if I had brought him back, the oripathy in his brain would have killed him in a matter of intensely painful months unless I cured him.
But I didn’t have time to think about that in the moment. Next was a middle-aged woman with a large splinter in her neck. Somehow, she hadn’t died yet, but she was struggling to breathe and coughing up blood.
I scanned her quickly. “She’s going to develop oripathy, she’s inhaled originium, but it’s not a priority, that neck wound is. She’s also got internal bleeding in the abdomen.”
“Do it, Bones,” Warfarin ordered, even as she started treating a child with a severe injury to an eye. “She’s priority 1!”
I removed the splinter and healed the neck injury, but I didn’t touch the internal bleeding. I judged she would survive it, though she would need surgery later. I had to conserve my arts, and she was stable for the moment. I passed her on and moved to the next case, even as the two other VTOLs touched down.
It all went by so quickly. A young woman who was pregnant, six months along, and there was a good chance the trauma of second and third-degree burns would cause her to lose the child. I managed to patch her up quickly and stabilized the baby. A middle-aged man who had lost his foot at the calf, that I just passed over. He’d live, for now.
And then a little girl, four years old, feline. Originium fragment in her arm, burns all over her body. I hesitated. She was going to develop oripathy. I could already sense the granules flowing from the fragment into her blood stream. But I could stop it. I could cure her.
A hand rested on my forearm, and I looked down at Myrtle, Sussurro had moved on to treat others as there were just so many patients. “Hurry cases, Bones. There’s more.”
I nodded, and used forceps to remove the originium fragment, then rapidly cleaned the wound and bandaged it, before healing just enough of the burns to keep her stable. Then I moved on again.
It was like that for hours. More and more medical staff showed up as people who had been off shift dropped everything and came running. Exusiai and Texas even were helping out, transporting wounded and providing the basic first aid they knew, or doing chest compressions to save a life.
I, however, did not last hours. I lasted 20 minutes, and then very nearly collapsed from arts overuse. My temperature was spiking, I was seeing spots, and my lesions were aching mightily.
I thought about keeping going, pressing myself harder, but if I did, that would just add another casualty that would require treatment. “I’m tapped on arts,” I told Gavial, who I was working on a patient with. “Sorry. I need…I need a breather.”
She glanced at me, then nodded. “Take one. You’re still new to arts, and you’ve been treating the worst cases. Go take five, evaluate yourself, and then decide if you need a nap before coming back.”
I stumbled to the side and collapsed into a chair, we were back at the hospital level now. I ended up conking out right there, despite all the hustle and bustle around me. I woke up groggily after half an hour, when Myrtle came to check my vitals.
“Hmm, you’re still borderline for arts overdose. Go to the break room and drink some juice and eat a snack, then check yourself again in half an hour. If your vitals look good, come back, otherwise take a nap. There’s no hurrying arts overdose symptoms.”
Reluctantly, I did as ordered. I drank some apple juice and ate a bag of pretzels. After half an hour, my numbers looked good enough that I went back on duty, but I couldn’t use my arts. Not unless it was an emergency and doing so would save a life.
Now I had to work treating patients, providing what lifesaving care I could, and often without a more senior physician’s supervision. I was setting bones, doing sutures, administering basic medication, and triaging patients who needed better care.
It was long, exhausting work. Over and over again, I was tempted to use my arts, but I was tapped out. I used a little here and there to stabilize, but not so much I’d push myself into overload again. I knew I was capable of fully healing several patients, but for now, I was just giving the minimum care to keep them stable.
This time it lasted hours and hours. More flights came in with more patients who desperately needed help. Warfarin and a dozen personnel, including Myrtle, left on the second flight back to provide care in the field. I didn’t work a 12-hour shift; I worked an 18-hour shift. By the end of it, I was exhausted, bloody, and near dead on my feet. I didn’t even make it back to my room. I just collapsed onto a cot in the breakroom and passed out.
Then I got up and did it again. Long, grueling hours of providing care and treatment, using my arts in bursts to treat the most acute patients. The second day, I did put myself into arts overdose after six hours, but I did so on the orders of Folinic. We had an adult female, aged approximately twenty, who was going into cardiac arrest on us even as we unloaded her due to a shard of glass that had cut the heart.
“Bones! What do you got?” Folinic demanded even as she tried to use her own arts.
“She’s infected, but we can get this glass out and I can repair the heart, but I’m borderline already. I’ll be useless after that, though,” I warned her.
Folinic nodded. “Do it! We lose her otherwise!”
I repaired her heart after we removed the glass, but didn’t address her developing oripathy. That much was too much for me though, and I went into full-blown arts overdose, as I’d already been using it on and off.
I paged Sussurro, and a few minutes later she hurried over. “Arts overdose?”
“Yes. I want you to give me an arts amplifier,” I gasped. “It might knock me out, or it might let me keep going. Start with a small dose, work it up.”
“Alright, but this is risky,” she warned me.
“This situation is fucked. Hopefully, I just pass out and take a nap. But if I can heal just one more person…”
“The worst case is you die, James. Arts amp when you’re already overloaded will kill you a good percent of the time,” Sussurro said, but produced a syringe. “But I think you’re right. We’ll start with a quarter dose. Drop your drawers.”
Great. Shot in the ass again. It burned like fire going in, but then spread like ice. Within a few minutes, I felt much better. My symptoms began to abate, my fever reducing, my pulse and blood pressure lowering to normal. I was afraid they’d keep right on dropping, but they stabilized at safe levels, and I got back out there.
Then, I started to get the brain fog. It was probably a dose of exhaustion to go with all my other issues. We’d been going for close to 40 hours, and I’d gotten maybe seven hours of sleep if you counted me passing out from overdoing it on arts. But the arts amplifier was acting like a heavy dose of Benadryl.
Soon, I had a decision to make. I could keep working with my ability to make judgements impaired and my reactions slowed, or I could tap out. It was a hard choice. We were still working to save lives, though most cases were now stable and things had slowed significantly.
Finally, I found a senior doctor, and to my horror, it was Kal’tsit. She was coming out of surgery, and looked up at me. After only a moment, she said, “Go sleep, Dr. McCoy. You have done enough for today.”
“Sorry…Director,” I said, feeling as though I had cotton in my mouth. “Took…took an arts amplifier…makin’...makin’ me sleepy…”
“I can see. Exusiai, take Dr. McCoy to his rooms and do not allow him to leave for 9 hours. He will require at least that much sleep. Texas, take Lucia and make her rest as well. I can see the symptoms of overuse of arts suppressors from here.”
“I’m fine!” Sussurro protested, but she was twitching slightly. “We have more lives to-”
Texas put a hand on Sussurro’s shoulder. “You may walk, or I will carry you. Choose.”
Lucia slumped in her scrubs, clearly just as exhausted as I was. “I…I might need you to carry me…I…I’m too tired to walk.”
I had to lean on Exusiai while Texas had to support Sussurro. We were both dumped in our rooms. I had the wherewithal to shower off before I fell naked into my bed and passed out for a full ten hours. When I groggily came too, it was halfway through the third day. I picked up my phone and found a message from Kal’tsit there.
Dr. McCoy,
Doctors from Victoria and our clinics have arrived to pick up the slack. You are hereby placed on leave for 48 hours. Do not report for duty. I have suspended operator training and informed Texas and Exusiai that you are not to engage in strenuous activity. I have informed Dr. Sussurro of the same.
PS:
I did tell you that you had more choices for companionship than Lumuel. Do try to be more aware. I have deposited your first paycheck into your account. Try to make good use of it.
I sent a text to Lucia, but didn’t get a response. I guess she was still out. I showered again and stepped out to find Exusiai and Texas there, leaning against the wall.
“You guys waited there the whole time?” I asked, feeling guilty.
“Nah, we put a monitoring device in your room. It told us when you woke up,” Exusiai said, her expression deadpan.
“You did WHAT?!” I demanded.
Texas nodded. “My idea. Don’t worry, no picture. Baby monitor. Senses motion and noise.”
I groaned and rubbed at my face. “Super. I guess…let’s go get breakfast. No shooting me in the ass, please.”
“That’s Lucia’s job now,” Exusiai laughed.
“Great, well, I got paid, so I’m treating you both to breakfast,” I sighed.
“Ooo, shouldn’t you do that with Lucia?” Exusiai asked.
“I messaged her, but I think she’s still out. She was as fried as I was,” I said, yawning. Then I frowned at her. “Why?”
“Well, duh, after your hot date, I figured you two would want to spend more time together,” Exusiai said as we walked.
Texas frowned at her, looking as confused as I felt, but she didn’t say anything.
“Hot date? When did that happen?!”
Exusiai actually stopped cold and Texas nearly ran into her. I had to pause and turn. “James…you have got to be kidding.”
“About what?”
“Last Wednesday!? You’re tugging my wings, right? Come on, Texas, you saw that!”
“I recall you pulling my tail and stating they needed alone time. I still believe we should have monitored them,” Texas said, frowning at her partner.
“Because we’re not a pair of peeping toms! Oh come on, she even went into his apartment!”
“Uh, just until I showered and changed. Come on, I am seriously starving,” I said, turning and walking away. “Let’s go to Dreams and Spices, they have all-day breakfast.”
Exusiai hurried to catch up to me, as did Texas. “James. Did you not SEE what Lucia was wearing?!”
I blushed slightly. “Uh, yes, I did. She, um, looked good.”
“I hope so! Texas, you tell him!”
“She was very attractive. If I were not dating and she were gay, I would consider dating Lucia,” Texas said.
Exusiai actually face-palmed. “Oh Holy Law. You have got to be kidding. You two cannot be this dumb.”
“I mean, uh, I’m not opposed to dating Lucia, it’s just, I mean…what if she said no?” I said, feeling increasingly nervous.
Exusiai gave me a flat look. “James. She came to your apartment. In a cocktail dress. With good nylons on. She had done up her hair, put on extra makeup, and was wearing the sort of heels you ONLY wear if you’re trying to impress a hot date, because they hurt like hell but are dead sexy. Did you not notice this?!”
“Uh, sort of? Didn’t realize she was wearing extra makeup,” I admitted. She’d just, you know, looked really good. “I thought she just wanted to dress up for a night out, you know.”
“I never wear heels,” Texas said, looking straight forward. “They hurt my back. And hamper my movement.”
“Sora, how do you put up with this idiot?” Exusiai muttered, and shook her head. “Texas, how the hell did you and Sora even start dating?”
“Ah.” Texas looked mildly embarrassed. “Well, you see, she had been coming over to my apartment. To watch anime.”
“Uh-huh. What sort of anime?”
“It was…Hagane no Hanabira,” Texas said, blushing.
“Steel Petals. Hmm,” Exusiai pulled out her phone and tapped away. Then laughed. “Oh, seriously?! It’s set at an all-girls military school in Higashi, and is about high school girls falling in love with one another?”
“I bet. You watch this shit, James?” Exusiai asked, showing me the pictures. It was all of that soft, big-eyed pretty girl stuff that you see in shojo and yuri.
“Uh, I’m not really into high school shows,” I said with a shrug.
“That was the first. We finished that, but then Sora…she wanted to watch…” Texas fell silent as we walked.
“Go on,” Exusiai prompted.
“...Kurenai no Kinu, Shiro no Yaiba…”
“Crimson Silk, White Blade…” Exusiai tapped that in and I peered at her screen. She looked it up…and promptly started laughing.
It was, ah, a very mature show.
“A highborn courtesan named Crimson Silk is kidnapped by the famous Ronin, White Blade. To save her own life, Crimson Silk seduces the White Blade! Ok, Texas, you have got to tell me what happened here.”
“I…was unaware of the content,” Texas admitted as we entered the cafe, and Beanstalk gave us some menus and coffee. Texas was quiet for a few minutes as I studied the menu. Hmm, French Toast. That sounded good. Even if they called it Gaul Pancakes.
“Come on, keep talking,” Exusiai prompted.
“Ah. You see, I was…unaware.”
“You said that,” I said. “Didn’t realize it was an H show?”
“No, it was pornography,” Texas said, and both Exusiai and I face-palmed this time. “No, I was…unaware…that Sora was gay.”
“Texas. If a woman asked me to watch girls love anime with her, especially this Kurenai no Kinu thing, I would know she wanted to go down on me,” Exusiai said, shaking her head.
“Ah. Are you…?” Texas frowned, tilting her head to one side.
“No, Texas. I like dick. You’ve SEEN some of my dates!”
“I did not wish to make assumptions.”
“Uh-huh. Come on. Finish the story.”
“Well, ah, we were halfway into the show, and, well, it was…very stimulating. I do not typically…consume such media. But, um, I began to realize that…Sora was enjoying it…as much as I. Then, she was, ah, kissing me. And I…kissed her back. I am…not certain as to the plot of the rest of the show. We were…distracted.”
“Netflix and chill,” I said with a nod. “I’ve tried to pull that. Succeeded once or twice, actually.”
“Ok, so then you realized that Lucia has a thing for you when she showed up at your door in her battle regalia, right!?” Exusiai demanded.
I hung my head. Battle regalia? “Uh, a little? But, um, I didn’t want to…you know…presume.”
Exusiai looked back and forth between Texas and I, then sighed. “You two…are completely hopeless.”
Texas and I ate our gaul toast in silence, both of us looking deeply embarrassed.
“Alright. Here’s what’s going to happen. You are going to tell Lucia that you enjoyed your date. You are going to ask her to come on a second date. Where’d you two go?”
“Frankies.”
“Yeah, unfortunately, there aren’t a whole ton of options on the landship for a date night. Frankies is really it. After?”
“Poly Vision, she likes arcades…”
“Again, not a lot of options. There is a movie theater…what’s it showing…hmm, it’s a kids movie, bad choice. Do the arcade again,” Exusiai said, scrolling through her phone.
“Are you sure about this?” I asked, remembering what Kal’tsit had said earlier.
She looked up at me. “James. If you are so dense that you can’t even figure out when a girl is taking you on a date, it is my duty to at LEAST wake you up enough to get you to ask her out properly. Now eat your damn breakfast and wait for her to text you back.”
“I dunno if either of us will feel like going on a date,” I said, pushing my last bit of french toast around my plate. “It’s…it’s been rough the past few days.”
“It’s Rhodes Island.”
I looked up at Texas, frowning at her, and hoping she’d continue. After swallowing, she added. “It’s always like this. You’re alive. Keep living.”
“Wisdom from the fool!” Exusiai said, throwing her hands in the air. “Yes. Look, you’re both doctors at Rhodes Island. Life is gonna be some real bullshit for both of you most of the time. Just go and have some fun, OK?”
“What about you? You’ve seemed…I dunno, kinda bored,” I said, feeling guilty.
“Yeah, so what? Last few days kept us busy, even if…if…” Exusiai put her head in her hands and let out a sob. I was taken aback by this, but Texas put her fork and knife down.
“Do you want a hug?” Texas asked, and when Exusiai nodded, she gently put an arm around Exusiai, who immediately slumped up against Texas.
“I…I could feel…so many of those deaths,” Exusiai whispered, tears streaking her face. “It wasn’t…it wasn’t quite Empathy. Just…I was working with them. I’m not a medic, but…I couldn't do what you do, James. Not every day. I’ve seen death. I’ve killed people. But…but that? So…so many died…who shouldn’t have…”
“I…I didn’t realize you were taking it so hard,” I said, feeling horribly guilty now.
Exusiai shook her head. “I don’t know that I did either. Not until I had a day to think about it. Went for some long runs, shot at the range…it helped. A little. I just…I feel cooped up.”
“We stay on the move,” Texas said with a nod.
“Yeah…I…ugh. Sorry.” Exusiai sat up and dried her tears. “Sorry! That’s not what you need from me.”
“No, it’s fine. You don’t have to pretend to be happy for us,” I said, putting a hand gingerly on Exusiai’s own.
She sniffled, then nodded. “Yeah, thanks. I just…I’m gonna get some fresh air. Texas, call me if something happens.”
With that, Exusiai strode away, leaving her breakfast plate scraped clean. She’d had waffles with whipped cream and strawberries.
I watched her go, then glanced at Texas. “She usually need alone time?”
“She won’t be,” Texas said. “She’ll call the other Sankta. There are several on this ship.”
“Oh. That…helps?”
“Yes. She is a good friend, but she is still Sankta.”
“Huh.”
We sat in silence, finishing the last few bites, and Beanstalk brought over the bill, which I paid, and asked for a couple of cups of coffee to drink for a bit. The cafe wasn’t too busy, so she didn’t mind.
Texas had her coffee with plenty of sugar and creamer, which surprised me. I put in a little creamer and we sipped for a bit. At last, I asked, “Do you really think Sussurro, Lucia…is into me?”
Texas pondered that, then shrugged. “You should ask her, not me.”
Well don’t that beat all. Guess I’m dumber than an autistic wolf.
By nature, I am not an early riser. Probably the number of late night shifts and all-nighters I’ve pulled. So let me say that when someone buzzed my door at 5am sharp on my first night in the new apartment, I was not thrilled.
I stumbled out of my bed, pulling on a pair of rumpled pants, and opened the door with the t-shirt I’d slept in on, blinking at the bright artificial light. I was about to ask some pointed questions, then immediately came to alertness when I recognized the person at my door.
“Director Kal’tsit! Uh, sorry, I’m not really presentable,” I stammered.
“Dress. Do not bother with toiletries. I require your presence this morning,” Kal’tsit told me, then shut my door.
I hastily pulled on some socks and shoes, grabbed my jacket, and hurried back into the hallway. I opened my mouth, but Kal’tsit just turned and started walking. I hurried after her, not certain what was happening.
“Um, am I scheduled for a rotation? Sorry, I didn’t check the board or anything.”
“You are not late for a shift, Dr. McCoy. Now be silent. Speak only when I grant you leave.”
I shut my mouth and followed after that. We headed down to a loading bay, where Kal’tsit took a truck and told me to get in. After that, we were lowered down to the ground. At that moment, we were passing through what looked like a fertile green valley, with trees, grass, and rolling hills stretching away all around us. There was a lake not too far away sparkling in the early morning sun, and I could see birds flying about.
The landship had left a churned-up wake behind it, flattening entire forests as it trundled along. It was moving at a pace not much above a brisk walk, but Kal’tsit drove the truck down to the lake, which took only about 10 minutes, rumbling off-road. Once there, she got out, grabbed a picnic basket, and set down by the lakeside. I slowly got out, looking around uncertainly. But she just gestured me to sit, and I did so.
She handed me a thermos of what turned out to be coffee, along with packets of cream and sugar. I’m not a black coffee kinda guy. I’ll drink it, sure, but I poured in the creamer and a bit of sugar, shook it up, then sipped at the coffee. I eyed Kal’tsit, but she still hadn’t said anything, so I kept my trap shut.
I looked out at the lake, where birds a lot like ducks were swimming and diving. There were lots of bugs buzzing about, and I even saw a herd of strange looking creatures like shaggy deer with short legs grazing on the grass across the lake. Frankly, it was beautiful and wondrous, and I drank it all in for ten whole minutes.
At what I am certain was exactly the ten-minute mark, Kal’tsit put the lid back on her own thermos and nodded. “Good. You are capable of being silent when the need arises. I will not have to teach you that lesson, at least. On to other matters, then. Do you know why I took you out here, Dr. McCoy?”
“Well, I assume it wasn’t to murder me and dump the body,” I said, which earned me a nonplussed look from her. “Sorry, sorry! Uh, to interrogate me where people can’t overhear?”
“Indeed. It is time to plumb the depths of what you have termed your ‘weird alien knowledge’ to see what it is that you know. I would sift through the dross to find the pearls, as while you clearly are privy to a great many things you should not be, it is equally clear that much of your information is flawed.”
I fiddled with my mostly empty thermos. “Uh, OK. What do you want to know?”
“Let us begin with what you were discussing with Lemuel while you convalesced. What do you know of the Sankta, Dr. McCoy? Be thorough. I would know all that I must contend with.”
“Honestly, not as much as I’d like,” I said, frowning. I pondered where to start, but decided to lead with something I knew quite a bit about: Integrated Strategies. Specifically, Ending 3, Holy City. “So, originally, the Law took Sarkaz, and somehow, over time, turned them into Sankta. I’m not sure how, exactly, but my best guess is that it’s Clarketech from the same source that originium is, namely, the Precursors. Same with Friston-3, the sarcophagi, and of course, the Oracle and the Priestess. And you.”
Kal’tsit regarded the lake, taking a slow sip of her coffee. She nodded. “Much of what you say is true. The Sankta were created by the Law from Teekaz stock, some 13,000 years ago. Originally, the Law and myself served the same purpose. Both of us have diverged from our original mandate, which I will not share with you at this time. You have referred to this ‘Clarketech’ before. Define this term for me.”
“Uh, it’s from Clarke’s Third Law. ‘Any sufficiently advanced Science is indistinguishable from magic.’ Clarketech just means that it’s a technology so advanced that to basically anyone, it might as well just be straight up magic, don’t bother trying to explain how it works or what it is. In the Law’s case, it’s some sort of AI supercomputer that gave the Sankta halos and their guns, and can withdraw whatever it does to them if they violate its rules and turn them back into Sarkaz. Like it did with Mostima. I also…” I swallowed. “I also think it’s breaking. Though it hasn’t gone crazy and started brainwashing everything around it like it did in a potential future where you were forced to destroy it in a crusade.”
That last line made Kal’tsits ears twitch. She digested what I’d said for a few moments, then shook her head slightly. “Let us not tarry upon possibilities, for our time this morning is limited. Calling the Law a device so advanced that it may as well be considered magic is not an inaccurate description. Neither is calling it an ‘AI supercomputer,’ though that falls grossly short of what the Law is. What else do you know of this subject?”
“Well, this isn’t a ‘know’ so much as a ‘guess’ but…I’m pretty sure that the reason the Sarkaz and Sankta hate one another is the Precursors fought the Sarkaz, and the Sarkaz sort of lost? Or at least, they had their power broken. Guess I should say Teekaz, they weren’t really proper Sarkaz at that point. Anyway, the Sarkaz view the Sankta as race traitors, or did originally, while the Sankta…I guess they just hate the Sarkaz because they view them as unenlightened barbarians who refused the Law’s divine light, or something.”
“Your guess is closer to the truth than the theories of some of the greatest scholars of the age. The story is long, complex, and we have not the time for it. Suffice to say that both Sarkaz and Sankta have forgotten their original quarrel. This I will say: I have suspected for many years that the Law is failing. It is…not of the same nature as myself, not in whole. Its ability to renew and repair itself is…limited. If it should fail, however…that would be cause a great deal of destabilization upon Terra.”
“So, uh, I shouldn’t tell Exusiai all this?” I asked.
Kal’tsit regarded me for a while. She sighed and turned back to the lake. “You value the young Sankta? Care for her?”
“She’s one of the few friends I have in this world. Actually, she’s probably a better friend than I had back on Earth, either. I had some buddies, but no one that would die for me like I saw her do,” I said quietly.
“And thus, you would not cause her pain. But the question then becomes, what is more painful? To conceal from her a truth that would surely bring pain if it becomes known, or to let her live in ignorance, which has its own cost. A cost that could be great indeed if it leads to her fall, and the fall of her race.”
“Yeah, I guess that sums it up,” I agreed, feeling miserable. “I’m usually of the opinion that honesty is the best policy and the truth shall set you free, but…”
“Then I shall leave the decision in your hands.”
I frowned at her. “But you told me before not to tell her.”
“I did indeed. But several events have played out since then. For one, you have demonstrated your own personal courage, and willingness to face severe adversity, even when it brings you little personal gain, in order to save those you cherish. And, perhaps, even to aid those unknown to you. The second is that Lemuel swore herself to a vampire. Such a thing has not happened in nearly 700 years, since Qa'vessan and Lucienne swore to one another.”
“Really? Exusiai seemed to think it had never happened.”
“Very little has never happened before. Even your abilities are likely to not be wholly unique, Dr. McCoy. It is a rare thing for a Sankta and Vampire to swear to one another. The tale of Qa’vessan and Lucienne is a long one. They began as enemies, but ended as lovers. A tragic tale that ended in sorrow and blood, and that was scrubbed from history by both Laterano and Kazdel. But I remember. For I was there, and I held their child with a dim halo when he was born. It is possible that Lemuel is a descendant of Caelum. I confess, I have lost track of their bloodline in the intervening centuries. But I raised Caelum myself, once his parents were slain by their own people. I had hoped he would be a bridge between the two races, but it was not to be.”
Talk about lore bombs. This was frankly insane. “Uh, wow, so, there’ve been a lot of half-Sankta over the centuries?”
“That is a vague word. I know of several hundred cases, and there were likely more. Put two fecund races in a room together, and they will make life with one another. Perhaps even find love. Yes, there have been many instances of the children of Sankta and Sarkaz. For a majority of those children, they were slaughtered for supposed heresy, to conceal the Law’s secret.
Kal’tsit turned to me. “Be wary of giving Lemuel a child. I know not what the nature of the fruit of such a union would be, for that, Dr. McCoy, may truly be something that has not happened before, even in my own long life.”
I blushed deeply and shook my head. “Woah, hold on there! Look, Lemuel is cute, OK, she’s beautiful, but that’s not- we’re not sleeping together!”
“I am aware. I am merely warning you. I can easily foresee a path where you two consummate a relationship, even only for a night, and she quickens. Perhaps the child would follow the rule with Ancient and Elder races, and have no trace of Sankta. Perhaps they would be as the union of Sarkaz and Sankta. And, again unique, perhaps they would be full blooded Sankta. Be wary, Dr. McCoy. I would not discourage such a union, only warn you of potential outcomes.”
“Sheesh, don’t see me asking about your sex life,” I grumbled, feeling deeply uncomfortable.
“I cannot bear children. Not in the sense you think of,” Kal’tsit said, looking back to the lake, where a family of duck things paddled. “I have taken lovers. Though not for some time. My progeny is sterile, for it is merely more of myself. That, Dr. McCoy, is a secret few know.”
“Oh, like, when…” I swallowed. “Um, you want me to talk about what I know about you?”
Kal’tsit was silent again, regarding the lake. At last, she stood. “We have spoken enough for now. You have given me a great deal to ponder. As to what you know of me…I am not yet ready to hear such things. Consider what I have told you. Think on if you wish to bear your heart to Lemuel. And think on what it would mean to take her as a lover. She would not be adverse, I think, though you have some work to do in that regard.”
“I…” I stared at Kal’tsit mouth open. Not be adverse!? The hell did that mean?!
“There is the matter of your oripathy to consider. Which is why we must return. Know that if Lemuel were to bear your child, she would almost certainly become infected. That is true of any you would take to bed. Be cautious. Many couples have decided to risk infection to start a family. Life does find a way, but many also live short lives that take that route. Some find it worth the sacrifice. Others curse it bitterly. I make no judgment. I too have given up much for love’s sake.”
Then she got back in the truck and started it. I stumbled to my feet and hopped in the passenger side.
“Feeling uncomfortable? Disoriented? Angered?” Kal’tsit commented as she drove back towards the landship, which was slowly making its way to parts unknown, at least to me.
“Uh, yeah, that’s a pretty good summation,” I said, gritting my teeth.
“Good. That is how your ‘weird alien knowledge’ will feel to those around you if you are not cautious with your tongue. Typically, I do not offer romantic advice, but I have seen relationships develop often enough to be able to offer insight. Insight that may appear oracular in nature, but is merely the fruit of a long life of painful lessons. However, I will tell you one thing more.”
“Do I really want to hear it?” I said, feeling like I wanted to throttle the old well.
“Lemuel is not the only potential partner. Choose well and wisely, Dr. McCoy. But do choose. Your life, I fear, shall be short. I would see you find what solace and joy you can in the time you have left. Including knowing what it is to find a lover, and to hold a child in your arms. Even if such a joy is denied to myself.”
“Uh, thanks?”
“Should you require sage advice, consider my door always open to you, Dr. McCoy. This shall not be the last of our talks. But, for those that touch upon your otherworldly knowledge, do not speak of it all on the landship. Nor even in a vehicle such as this. I may, perhaps, merely be old and paranoid. But one does not become as ancient as I without a touch of paranoia. For as they say-”
“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you,” I interrupted, then worried I’d made her mad.
Instead, she gave me a rare small smile. “Quite.”
The landship lowered a ramp for us to drive up into the loading bay, where to my surprise a familiar face was waiting for us. Blaze was all grins, and dressed in an outfit closer to the one I was familiar with, no body armor this time. She waved when she saw the car, and when Kal’tsit had parked, strode over and leaned on the driver’s side window. “Hey there, Director! This the fresh meat?”
“Indeed. I will leave Dr. McCoy in your capable hands, Gu.”
Goo?! Blaze’s real name was goo?! Or at least, that was my initial thought. I’d learn later it was spelled Gu, full name Gu Zhuhuang. My Babel Fish told me that she basically took her last name as her code name, as Blaze is basically the same as Huang in Yanese.
“I told ya, call me Blaze!” she said cheerfully. “Heya! We met before, but you were a tad unconscious, Bones.”
“I recall,” I said, extending my hand, which Blaze attempted to pulp as she pumped it enthusiastically. I don’t think she was even trying to prove she was stronger than me, she just doesn’t do half measures.
She looked different from what I’d expected. For one, she had what I would call distinctly asian features despite her blue eyes. She was also, well, older. Not ancient, but definitely middle-aged with smile lines and wrinkles on her face. She still looked incredible, though. Frankly, I do not understand how Rhodes Island has so many attractive people on it. Freaking Greys Anatomy doesn’t have a medical department that’s got as many 10/10s as Rhodes Island does. Even combat ops like Blaze who should look beat to hell look really pretty.
Actually, even Team Rainbow looks like it's composed of movie stars. What’s up with that? Am I prettier than I used to be? I studied myself in a mirror later, and I think I might be? I dunno, never spent much time looking at myself, and I’ve got these bags under my eyes from all the pain and stress.
“Great! I’m going to be overseeing your initial training. Normally, they don’t call me in for the new recruits, but you’re something special! So you get me, hot stuff.”
“And let me guess, you’ve got enough clearance that if I do accidentally say something sensitive, it won’t cause too many issues.”
Blaze blinked at that, then glanced at Kal’tsit. “Director? I thought I was just babysitting our new asset. I thought his status was going to be generally known.”
Babysitting. Fantastic. Not like I was a grown adult and everything.
Even if I maybe hadn’t been acting like it.
“Operator Bones is privy to a great deal of knowledge. Perhaps even about yourself, Zhuhuang. He is under orders not to simply blab that information out to the first person he meets, but he has a habit of doing so. You were chosen in no small part because you have the highest level clearance of any of our operators, and thus, can judge when Bones is in need of shall we say, percussive maintenance. Do take care not to break him.”
“Huh. You wanna start with what you know about me?” Blaze said, her tail starting to swish back and forth. Fun fact: Wagging tails are a good sign for perro, lupo, and vulpo. They are a bad sign for felines. I had a vague idea of that from my time on Earth and having pets as a kid, but I quickly figured that much out. Other races with tails I’m still figuring out.
“Er, I know you're an elite Operator from Rhodes Island, you've got a degree in Thermal Process Engineering, you've got fire-based arts, and potentially that you play the drums?”
Blaze frowned at me, then glanced at Kal’tsit. “Seriously? None of that's even remotely classified. Interesting he knows about my degree, but that ain't a secret.”
“I mean, I also know you were at Lungmen and had a spat with GreyThroat, but I don't recall all the details.”
“Meh. Common knowledge, and me and Risa buried the hatchet years ago. Whatever. Come on, kid, let's put you through your paces,” Blaze said, walking away.
Kal'tsit touched my arm as I opened the truck door. “Simply because Gu Zhuhuang has the clearance does not mean all you know should be shared with her.”
“Er, right. Any other reason you picked her?”
“She is extremely competent and unlikely to allow you to cure her. Thus, preserving your life by denying you the temptation to overexert yourself. And of course, Zhuhuang will tolerate no disrespect from you. Thus, furthering your education in keeping a civil tongue in your head.”
“I'm not just going to try curing everyone I meet,” I muttered, stepping out of the car. I wasn't the type to want a mommy to step on me, but Blaze…there had been a lot of pictures from my phone that were gone, and a lot of them had been of her. Like, an unfortunate amount. To meet her in the flesh…it was the most surreal experience I'd had thus far.
I hurried over to the elevator where Blaze was waiting for me, and she hit the button, closing the gate on the open platform and sending us up.
“So, you survived telling the Director to shut up. She must like you. That, or she's decided that being able to do what you do is valuable enough not to just rip your head off,” Blaze commented as we rose.
I winced. She had been there for that. “Yeah, I had to apologize for that. Or, uh, I should, I guess. She's been very kind. I'm not normally such an ass.”
“I figured. Arts overdose is nasty, had it happen to me a few times,” Blaze said with a nod. “Civilian doc, right?”
“Yeah, my brother was military, not me. Though I could have used the GI bill. Guess…” I trailed off. I'd been about to joke that dying was one way to get out of paying off my student loans. Mine hadn't been too bad as I'd always been an extremely good student and had nearly a full ride, but I bit my tongue.
“I'm gonna guess the GI bill is something from Earth. Don't forget you're from Terra now, specifically in Columbia. As well as having no living relatives,” Blaze told me.
“Er, yeah, so you know…?”
“Enough. But I don't need to know more. Just cause you got the clearance doesn't mean you go reading about classified stuff willy-nilly. I have done ops with Team Rainbow, and we've chatted. But you gotta learn to compartmentalize and know when to shut it. I think I'm seeing why the Director gave you to me.”
I nodded, my vision suddenly blurry and my eyes misting. Dammit, why did I have to cry in front of Blaze of all people?!
A hand rested on my shoulder. “Esh, sorry kid, wasn't trying to chew you out. This is new, and it's a skill you have to learn.”
“No, it's just…my family. They…they might as well be dead. I…I'll never see them again. Sorry. It's fine, it just…it hit me, right then.”
I forced the tears away and smiled, but Blaze, to my shock, drew me into a hug, patting me on the back.
“Cry it out. A lot of us here have lost all their family. My parents might be alive, but I've been dead to them since I was infected. Still tears me up.”
I gingerly hugged her back, trying not to feel her breasts pressed against me. “Um, thanks. But I'm good, really. Just took me by surprise, is all.”
Blaze let me go and nodded. “I get it. You got any friends here yet?”
“Sussurro, Exusiai, Texas, Gavial. Probably Verdant, Windflit, and Myrtle as well. Heck, Tachanka and Ash too. People have been good to me here.”
“Rhodes Island might call itself a corporation, but we're really more of a family. Sure, we got jobs and stuff, but we're all here for the same reason.”
“To tell oripathy to go fuck itself and spit in the face of death,” I said with a nod.
“I'd have said fight for the rights of the infected and make the world a better place, but that's not a bad answer. You are a doc, after all.”
The elevator had come to a stop, and Blaze led me down a series of halls, and into a gymnasium, which had a running track, obstacle course, and some exercise stations. There was a full sized pool in the next room over, as well as a large weight room. There were a lot of people exercising, and I even thought I recognized a few. Several people waved to Blaze or called out greetings, and she waved back, introducing me to several.
“Hey, are you that guy?” Spot of all people asked, wiping sweat from his brow. He was with Popukar, who gasped and peered at me more closely. “The one who cured a whole village of Oripathy and fought an Emperor's Blade?”
What the fuck sort of rumors had people been spreading? “Uh, no. I can assure you that if I saw an Emperor's Blade, I would wet myself, then run like hell. Or maybe the other way around. And I definitely have not cured any villages. I am a doctor, but I'm a year one resident, so don't expect miracles from me.”
“Huh,” Spot eyed me again, then shrugged. “Well, whatever. Call me Spot. Everyone else does. I'm on Operations Team Six. This here is Popukar, who's in the reserves.”
“Um, h-hi,” Popukar said, waving shyly. She looked like she was maybe 13, with her eye patch hiding what I could detect as a massive oripathy lesion that had probably blinded her. Spot on the other hand was harder. He looked like a Hyena on two legs, so I couldn't figure his age, but I got the sense he was a bit younger than me. Both had on gym shorts and t-shirts, slick with sweat, while Popucar had on a beanie to hide her lop ears.
“You two better hurry on, or I'll make you join my training session!” Blaze laughed. They nodded and jogged, and Blaze took me to the side of the track.
“Right! I'm going to put you through a basic fitness routine to assess your abilities. Let's start with some warm-ups.
I did the warm-ups easily enough, though I could feel the pain mounting. When we tried push-ups next, I got down on the ground, but nearly immediately cried out in pain and collapsed.
“Bones! Talk to me!” Blaze ordered, kneeling beside me.
“Sorry, it's just…” I winced, then sat up and peeled off my gloves, showing my lesions. The newer ones on my left had started bleeding.
“OK. Nothing that involves the hands, then. Let's get that patched up before we move on,” Blaze said firmly.
“I'm fine,” I gasped, blushing and trying to play it off. “I'll live.”
“You'll infect someone with that attitude. You're a doc, you should know that,” Blaze scolded, then forcibly escorted me to a first aid station, and wrapped my hands up, which further flustered me.
“How long?” She asked quietly.
“Bleeding is new. Being infected? Bit over two weeks.”
Blaze nodded soberly. “And there's no oripathy where you grew up, is there?”
“No. Only as a story. Not an actual disease.”
She sighed and nodded, tying off the wrap. “Well, think of this as the worst blood-borne pathogen imaginable, then multiply the hazard by ten. That's how you have to treat it.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said, flexing my hand. “I just…you must think I'm pathetic.”
“Far from it. I heard about you, you know. Saved an infected kid in Ursus. Then, you refused to hide in Vyseheim and instead saved dozens of lives.”
“Yeah, that was probably stupid of me,” I said bitterly, venting a fear that had been festering in the back of my mind. “If I'd stayed hidden, that hospital wouldn't have been hit. How many lives did my arrogance cost?”
Blaze regarded me, then leaned in close. “That's a stupid way of looking at things. Do you regret the lives you've saved?”
“Well, no, but-”
“People needed help. You helped. Maybe they wouldn't have hit that hospital if you weren't there. Maybe they would have, and without your team in place, more would have died. What matters is you acted instead of sitting on your ass. You didn't kill those people. You helped to save them. Keep moving forward. Learn from it, sure. But never regret doing the right thing.”
I thought about that, about the guilt gnawing at my conscience. So I asked Blaze the question that I could barely ask myself. “Did I kill them? What would you have done?”
Blaze blew out a long breath. “You don't listen so good, huh? No, you didn't kill them, the Horn Eaters did. And me? I'd have listened to my senior operator. Which in your case, was Dr. Sussurro. And what did she say?”
“That we should help. Texas was against it, though.”
“Texas isn't near as much of a cold fish as she thinks she is. Sussurro’s a good doc, and a good kid. She gets Rhodes Island's mission. She thinks you should help? Follow her lead. And honestly, Bones, what would have happened if you hadn't helped?”
“Well, a lot of the people I saved would be dead, I guess.”
“Yeah, and?”
I was flailing at that point. “Uh, I'd feel guilty that I had done nothing?”
“Sure. What about the Black Empress?”
“Oh.” I scratched my freshly shaved chin, Goldenglow having given me a shave the day before. “Well, she probably wouldn't have let me go, I guess.”
“Bingo. Doing the right thing doesn't always pay off that obviously. Sometimes, it makes things harder. Now, I'm not saying to be reckless. But don't be afraid to have the courage to do what you know is right, even if it's a risk. Now, let's do some situps!”
We did the rest of the exercises, skipping stuff like pull-ups that needed my hands. I didn't think I did too badly, running a kilometer in a respectable six minutes along with some other decent benchmarks.
Blaze, however, disillusioned me.
“You've spent a lot of time sitting on your rear, haven't you? Skipped hitting the gym?” She remarked after noting down my scores.
“I mean…I'm a doctor, fresh out of med school,” I panted. “PT wasn't really a part of the curriculum.”
“Well, it is now. You ever want to do field ops, you're gonna need to improve. A lot. Oh, don't give me that kicked leporibeast look. I'm not saying you're a bad person, just that you're obviously a civvy.”
I grimaced, nodded, and Blaze slapped me on the back. “You'll get there! Now come on, kid, time to get some grub.”
Blaze took me to the cafeteria, and on the way I messaged Sussurro, Exusiai, and Texas. Sussurro was working a shift at the hospital, but said we should get dinner together. The others met us at the cafeteria, with Exusiai grinning and waving, while Texas sucked on a lollipop and looked stoned faced.
“Hey you two, I got new orders for ya,” Blaze said, grinning as she walked up. She pointed at me, then said, “Whip this guy into shape, alright? I know the medics like to skip gym, but make him work out. Easy on the hands, but make sure he does PT at least three times a week.”
“You got it! Hey Texas, we got us a new gym buddy! Try not to break him,” Exusiai laughed.
She just nodded, moving the candy about her mouth.
“Well, good. I've got things to do, so I’m leaving Bones with you. Take care!”
With that, Blaze strode off, and I watched her go for a moment, then shook my head. No shot I had a chance with her. I turned back to Exusiai and asked, “So, what's for lunch? Didn't have anything but coffee for breakfast.”
“Looks like chicken and vegetables with rice, with tapioca pudding for dessert! Should be pretty good, come on!” Exusiai told me.
Lunch was fairly decent, but I noticed I was getting a lot of stares from a lot of people in the cafeteria. This was just one of the three main public cafeterias, or galleys, I guess? We’re sort of on a ship, but I’m no sailor. Anyone, there’s one in the front, one on the back, and one in the middle, this was the one towards the front. It was still huge, seating for over a thousand people with massive amounts of food hot and ready to eat at any hour of the day or night. It was also free, provided you had a Rhodes Island ID card, which I did by that point. For visitors there was a nominal fee. Various other eateries were paid, like the cafe we’d visited the day before. There were also the hospital kitchens, which made special food for patients.
We got our food and went back to the table, with Exusiai pausing to chat with a couple of other Sankta, including Adnachiel, who looked a bit older and had a gun instead of his crossbow. They pointed at me and Texas, and Exusiai laughed and shrugged, before waving and hurrying back to us, apparently to the other Sankta’s disappointment.
“Why do I get the feeling I’m being watched?” I asked, looking around the cafeteria.
“Because you are,” Texas said, eyes on her food.
Exusiai nodded. “Yeah, sorry. I think that basically everyone knows a mysterious new operative came in with me and Texas, and that they’re supposed to be able to cure oripathy.”
“Well, I hope Amiya hurries up with that damn announcement so I can stop pretending,” I muttered, taking a bite of my food. It was pretty good. Not amazing, but about what you’d expect from good cafeteria food.
After lunch, it was time for Training With Exusiai and Texas. Or as I like to call it: Torture.
My brother Michael had described what it was like to undergo basic training for the army. This probably wasn’t quite as bad: Exusiai and Texas weren’t explicitly trying to break me down, but it was an afternoon of intense physical exercise after a morning of already pretty rough basic fitness exams. I ran obstacle courses while lugging heavy equipment and did some drills.
Oh, and Exusiai was shooting at me while I did it.
“Don’t worry, James, it’s just rubber bullets!” she laughed as she sprayed bullets over my head and I tried to run through the obstacle course. “Besides, I’m a good shot!”
“Rubber bullets can still kill!” I gasped, trying to scramble up a rock wall. To my irritation, Texas just jumped from the bottom to halfway up, flung herself up by her hands, and then perched on top of the wall, staring down at me.
“Move faster. You’re slow.”
“I’m going as fast as I-OW! You said you wouldn’t shoot me!”
“No, I said I’m a good shot! Now hurry up or I’ll shoot you in the ass again!”
At the end of the obstacle course, Texas lay down and Exusiai doodled on her arm as well as squirting her with fake blood, even as I was stumbling up, gasping for breath from the heavy pack on my back.
“Oh no, Texas is injured! Better treat her, fast!” Exusiai urged.
I grumbled under my breath, but knelt and quickly assessed the ‘injury.’ Compound fraction of the arm. Easy. I quickly field-dressed the wound and splinted it, along with faking an injection of morphine and antibiotics.
“I could just heal the arm with arts, but that seemed more practical,” I said with a nod to Texas, who examined the cast.
“Good. Now do it with Exusiai shooting at us.”
“Wait, what?! OW! STOP SHOOTING ME IN THE ASS!”
“Haha, you’ll be fine! Now come on, do it again, but faster this time!”
I swear, Sankta are crazy.
By the time we were done, I could barely drag myself back to my apartment with Texas and Exusiai carrying the gear. I had been shot in the ass no less than five times. No where else, just the ass. To be fair, that’s about the safest place to shoot someone. The gluteus maximus is a great big muscle, and while I was bruised all to hell and back, it was hardly lethal. Exusiai had Texas run the obstacle course with me, with at least one time of Texas chasing me while smacking me with a foam bat. That also hurt like hell, because lupos are much stronger than your average Earthling, and Texas was much stronger than most lupos.
I was about ready to tell Sussurro we’d have to get dinner some other time, while Exusiai and Texas were talking animatedly about where we would go to get dinner (well, mostly Exusiai was talking animatedly, Texas was just nodding or saying things like ‘sure’ or ‘ok’). Just before I crawled back into my apartment and died, I heard the click of heels and looked up to see Sussurro striding towards us.
She was wearing a black cocktail dress, black nylons, and carrying a small purse. She had a pair of black heels as well, and she looked like a million bucks. I blinked at her, and a lot of that soreness sort of just vanished.
“Hey, I just got off, you guys look like you need to get changed, though,” Sussurro said.
“Actually, I just remembered, Texas and I have something to do,” Exusiai said.
“We do?” Texas asked, sounding puzzled.
“Absolutely. We need to plan a training regimen for James here and file a report back to Boss about our progress so far,” Exusiai nodded emphatically. “So we’re going to have to pass.”
“We could just do that to-” Texas paused, and it looked like Exusiai had just yanked hard on her tail. Instead of biting Exusiai’s head off, she said, “I see. Yes. Busy.”
“Uh, you sure?” I said. “It’s gonna take me a few minutes to shower and change.” And did they really need to plan out how they were going to torture me for the next few weeks?
“Positive! You two have fun now,” Exusiai said, and dragged Texas away, who still seemed just as confused as I was.
I turned back to Sussurro, but she looked…relieved? Huh. “Give me 10, I’m a bit stinky so I’ll need to grab a quick shower. You, uh, wanna come in? There’s not much to do…”
“Of course,” Sussurro agreed, and I let her in to sit down on my bed while I grabbed what clothes I had. I didn’t have anything as nice as what she had on, some pants, a clean shirt, and a decent jacket.
I showered as quick as I could, the bathroom was thankfully behind a door, then changed. Sussurro was still waiting for me, and I blushed when I found her sitting on my bed, still pulling on my jacket. “You uh, look good. Sorry I don’t have anything to match…”
“It’s fine, we’ll get you new clothes once your first paycheck comes in,” she told me, standing. “Though admittedly, it won’t be much.”
“You guys mentioned that. Rhodes Island doesn’t pay super well?” I asked as we stepped back out into the hall.
“Well, technically, the compensation package is quite generous. Room and board are completely covered, as are basic necessities like toiletries, clothing, and so on, all the stuff we got you. The big one though, is for Infected like us. Our oripathy treatments are entirely free. Someone could go broke getting the drugs we do as part of our job. The rest of your healthcare is free of charge as well, but the big one is the treatments. The front-line drugs we give people are extremely expensive. We try and diffuse the costs as much as possible, if there’s a Rhodes Island clinic in a city we give out the drugs practically free to the Infected, but there are just so many places we can’t operate, like Ursus or most of Bolivar.”
“There’s a war or something in Bolivar, right?” I asked, frowning and trying to remember.
“Yes, a civil war that’s lasted 52 years. No faction seems to be able to get the upper hand, and the bloodshed is unending it seems,” Sussurro said with a heavy sigh. “As for Ursus, well…you know their attitude towards the infected all too well. It would be impossible for us to operate there.”
“Stupid. That’s what it is,” I said, shaking my head.
“Yeah, I’m sure life on Earth is much more peaceful,” Sussurro said, sounding somewhat bitter.
“Depends on where you live. If you lived in Syria or Africa…probably not. Africa has an ethnic cleansing what feels like a couple of times a decade, and Syria and the Middle East tear themselves apart constantly. Shit, my own brother was in Afghanistan for four years fighting the Taliban and ISIS. America itself? Yeah, peaceful, not many wars. You just have to watch out for the mass shootings where a wacko goes in and slaughters dozens of school kids every week,” I said, feeling more than a little bitter.
“What?! That’s horrible!” Sussurro said, looking aghast at the very idea.
“Yeah. I won’t lie, life on Earth is probably better than life on Terra, on average. No oripathy, but we have an AIDS epidemic, and COVID that killed millions. No catastrophes, but earthquakes and hurricanes can still kill tens of thousands. And, well, maybe we don’t have as many insane world ending threats, but people are still going to fight over pointless bullshit.”
“Hmm. I suppose I should have known that from talking with Team Rainbow. You wouldn’t need soldiers like them if your world was truly peaceful, nor weapons so terrible as theirs,” Sussurro mused.
“Something like that. Sorry, that’s probably not what we should talk about,” I said with a sigh as we entered out onto the main hallway. “The last thing I need is another ass chewing for talking about classified stuff.”
“True enough. Are you alright, by the way? You’re limping,” Sussurro said, glancing at my very sore ass.
“Uh, Exusiai sort of…shot me in the ass. Five times.”
“What!? Why would she-”
“It was just rubber bullets; they were trying to simulate combat,” I sighed, still struggling along.
“Of course they were,” Sussurro muttered, along with someone a little more potent. She looked around, then pulled me into a public restroom.
“Wait, what are you-”
“Drop your pants,” Sussurro said, pulling out an arts wand. “I don’t want you limping along in pain all night.”
“I, uh, you sure?”
“Yes, James, I’m a doctor. It’s not like I haven’t seen people’s bare asses before,” Sussurro told me, though she was blushing slightly.
I did drop my pants, though I kept my boxers on. Sussurro yanked them down anyway. Then she ran her wand over my bruises, and I gasped and shuddered as her arts washed over me. “Oh…oh that feels good…”
“There. I’m not as good a healer as you, but you should be able to sit down without passing out,” she told me, and I hastily pulled my clothes back on. We hastily exited, though we got some funny looks.
“Where are we going, anyway?” I asked.
“Frankies, it’s a bar with decent food. I figured you could use something relaxing after your day of training,” Sussurro told me.
I winced. “Uh, I am still broke, you know…”
“It’s fine, I figured I’d have to treat you,” Sussurro said with a smile. “You can buy me dinner sometime to make up for it.”
“Sounds good,” I said, feeling a bit like a heel for having a pretty lady buy me dinner. Heck, people had basically done nothing but care for me since I’d gotten here. Sheesh, at some point I’d need to stand on my own two feet.
Frankies turned out to be a sort of sports bar, with what looked like soccer and baseball on the TVs. I didn’t recognize anyone there, but people waved hi to Sussurro, and the waitress greeted her by name before showing us to a private table in the back. The food was about what you’d expect from a bar, sandwiches, wings, tacos, and pizza.
“Don’t try the pizza, it’s not very good,” Sussurro confided in me. “The tacos are decent though.”
“I’ll try that then,” I said. “What do you usually drink?”
“I’m a wine drinker, but if you prefer beer, the O’Darcy is good from what I’ve heard.”
“Eh, why don’t we just get wine, that sounds good to me,” I said, and Sussurro nodded, placing an order for a Siracusian wine along with a platter of tacos and nachos.
“So, what should we talk about if we’re not going to discuss classified information?” Sussurro asked while we sipped and waited on the food.
“Something other than work, for once,” I said. “Honestly, what about you? I mean, I know you’re a doctor and how you got Infected, but…what else can you tell me? I’d like to know more about you than the waifu png in a video game.”
“Waifu png?” Sussurro said, her eyes hooding as she regarded me over her wine. I mentally started kicking myself. Me and my big mouth. But she moved on.
“Well, you know I enjoy playing Wintermaul. I’ve always enjoyed video games, actually. I used to spend all my allowance at Mr. Carvelli’s arcade when I was a girl.”
“Really? Huh, arcades weren’t really much of a thing back home, though I remember going to Chuck E Cheese as a kid,” I mused. “That was back in Palermo, right?”
“Yes, it’s on Lake Tenebrimar. It’s warm and sunny most of the year, with plenty of boating and fishing. I remember taking my little sister down to the lakeside to build sandcastles,” Sussurro said with a fond smile.
“Oh, you got a sister? What’s her name?”
“Yes, little Murmura. She’s seven now, getting bigger all the time. I also have two brothers, Lucente and Brontolo, but they’re much older than I am, just as much as I am than Murmura.”
“Actually, I don’t know how old you are. I assume you’re older than me, since you’re a full doc and all,” I admitted.
“Asking a lady her age? How uncouth,” Sussurro said, and batted her eyes before laughing to show she didn’t mind. “That’s a good question for you. In sheer years, I am younger than you at 23. However, Vulpo only have an average life expectancy of 65 years, so I think I’m probably functionally older than you.”
“Oh, I didn’t know that. For me, life expectancy would be 77 years, but…” I looked down at my hands. I had on gloves as usual, but I could still feel the ache of my oripathy, even on the painkillers. I swallowed. “Guess the average for both of us is trending down.”
A small hand took mine, and gripped it, and I looked up to see Sussuro looking at me earnestly. “James. I’m going to live to 65. Unless something drastic happens…I’ll die of natural causes long before my oripathy gets me. I was estimated to only live to 45, 50 at the outside. But…but you came so close to curing me…you gave a decade, maybe two.”
“I…I did?” I said, gently squeezing her hand back. I felt tears come into my eyes, unbidden. Had I…had I actually done something good for her?
“Yes. So I’ll buy you all the dinners and clothes you ever need, James. You gave me…you gave me life. I tried not to think about the fact that I’d be dead in 20 years. So we’ll find a way for you to beat your own oripathy. In two days, you start a rotation in the trauma ward. I’ll be with you the whole time, monitoring you as you use your arts. Hopefully…hopefully my theory holds true.”
“Right, about me burning off the oripathy,” I said, feeling a surge of hope. “You really think so?”
“It’s too soon to tell. But I do have hope that I’ll have the pleasure of your company for many years to come, James McCoy. So long as you don’t do something stupid and try to cure too many people back to back.”
“Yeah, I…I’ve been having a hard time with that,” I admitted. “How many people are dying of oripathy on this landship, right now?”
“James, I thought you said you didn’t want to talk shop?” Sussurro challenged.
“I…yeah. No, you’re right.” I drained my wine glass, and Sussurro poured me more from the bottle the waiter had left for us. I took another sip and sighed. “So, how often do you get to see your family?”
Sussuro’s expression instantly fell. Ears wilting, tail drooping. She sniffled, and I saw tears in her eyes. “I…don’t. They will write me, send me pictures, but…but they refuse to see me. I’m Infected. I’ve been effectively banished. They don’t want me to see my sister, and my brothers are married with children. They don’t want to risk infection. It’s stupid, but…what can I do?”
“What!? Are you fucking serious!? That’s horrible!” I gasped.
She tried to smile, but I could tell this was painful. “It’s fine, I still talk to them, so it’s not like I don’t get to stay in touch, it’s just…I don’t know that I’ll ever get to hug my sister again.”
“Lucia, I…I’m so sorry,” I said, reaching out to take her hand.
She shrugged. “It’s not like you. You’ll never see your family again in all likelihood. Is it just the one brother, Michael?”
“I…yeah.” I let her change the topic, and our food came, so we talked for a bit about food culture around Terra, me mostly listening as Sussurro explained. The food was pretty good, not the best tacos I’d ever had, but not bad.
After dinner, Sussurro took me to an arcade called Poly Vision, where we played Fountain War and Hookmaster. After that, it was getting late, so I walked her back to her room, which wasn’t too far from my own.
“Thanks, I had fun tonight,” I said, pausing by her door. “Next time, it’s my treat.”
“I’ll hold you too that,” Sussurro said, looking up at me and pausing in the doorway. We stood like that for a bit too long. Both of us were more than a little tipsy after the bottle of wine, and a part of me thought she was waiting for a kiss. At last, I waved goodbye, said goodnight, and headed back to my room to pass out. Kal’tsit was just getting into my head. There was no shot.
Best not to screw up the few good relationships I had in this hellscape.
There have been many stage productions of Les Misérables that I have reviewed in my time as a critic, including the run at Théâtre du Châtelet that ran from 2000-2003. I was looking forward to the Théâtre de l'Ondine, though after their last two productions, my hopes were tempered by realism. I was not prepared for the incredible performances. Despite casting nearly all amateurs or near-unknowns, the Théâtre de l'Ondine has brought together a simply incredible cast, who all delivered excellent performances.
The stand out, however, is unquestionably Furina de Fontaine, playing Fantine. I have heard many renditions of I Dreamed a Dream, but Mlle. Furina’s performance moved me to my very soul. She brought a passion and tragedy to the role of Fantine that I do not think shall ever be surpassed.
Indeed, I am not the only one to think so. The Hydro Archon themselves, while they may not have made themselves public, recognized Furina’s performance by bequeathing her with a Hydro Vision. Truly, her star is only going to rise.
There are few productions, especially of old favorites, that I attend more than once. However, I have already purchased tickets to next weekend’s showing at the Théâtre de l'Ondine, and I am not alone. This is truly a production that anyone who considers themself an aficionado of the theater cannot afford to miss. Indeed, if one sees only a single play in their lifetime, this is the one to do it with.
★★★★★ out of five.
A.E. for Le Parisien
Furina lowered the newspaper, feeling slightly faint. She was at a cafe with Yennifer for lunch, having just finished her third performance on Sunday evening. None had been as dramatic as the first, no further Visions had been distributed, but they’d had a sold out theater each time.
“They’re all like that,” Yennifer told her. “Every paper I’ve looked at is singing your praises. You made national news, in fact.”
“I, I remember the interview. They showed up at the theater on Saturday,” Furina said, still rather overwhelmed by it all.
One would think you’re used to it, my dear. You were the darling of Fontaine for centuries after all.
No, Focalors the Hydro Archon was the one they celebrated. I’m just Furina. They were already applauding me even before I received a Vision.
Well, you are the Hydro Archon, after all. And there is a purpose to all this, but we’ll discuss it later. For now, enjoy your breakfast. Even if it is past noon.
Oh don’t start on that. I work late, sleeping until noon is perfectly reasonable.
No judgment, dear. I do recall waking from sleep as being absolutely dreadful, even as an oceanid. I have a feeling I’d be keeping poet’s hours myself, dancing through the night, and going to bed with the dawn.
Even as she talked with her mother, Furina continued the conversation with Yennifer. It was growing increasingly easy to split her mind. She even felt a mortal’s ambition, somewhere far over the horizon, and a bit of her power go out to them in acknowledgement. That happened several times a day, and Furina made sure to compose a poem for each one.
Some may fight with swords
But for you the pen you wield
You wield the power of lords
And raise the humble high
A priest and king in name you are
But a servant’s heart you bear
Let your Justice be done!
Noble Son of Waters Fair
She felt an echo as she granted the Vision, like a distant peal of Thunder. Furina shied away from it, and the Lightning did not pursue her. Was that Beelzebul, in distant Japan? Perhaps that was where the Vision had gone.
Focusing back on Yennifer, Furina said, “Do I really have to register as a cape? I know nothing about fighting and have very little desire to learn. Even if, um…the apartment…sorry…”
“That was a tad frustrating, especially since Charlotte did nearly the same thing and destroyed our old refrigerator,” Yennifer sighed. “Fortunately, I already had insurance that covered Vision accidents, so it’s fine. But yes, you do need to register as a cape, it’s the law. And the last thing we need is the government on your back.”
“I suppose. It was the same in Fontaine,” Furina sighed, taking a sip of her latte. “I don’t suppose they’d try to call me up in an emergency…I haven’t even learned to use my powers for anything useful yet.”
“There’s a lot to learn, frankly I can’t do much more than create water. Though I do have to ask, how did you turn that water into wine?”
Furina went pale at the question, her mind going momentarily blank. How had she done that?
By your Authority over all Water, as well as being the mistress of the river of Time. Wine is but another form of water, and you can easily accelerate fermentation to be instantaneous. You could have easily turned the water to any life-giving substance, be it oil, syrup, or medicine. Poison, however, is impossible for you. And don’t try to tell me a little wine is poisonous. Drink in moderation enlivens the spirit.
“I, um, I’m not entirely certain,” Furina said carefully. She didn’t want to lie, lying in general was bad, but especially to Yennifer it felt vile. She also didn’t want to reveal everything. Well, she did, but she knew it was a bad idea. “I was quite inebriated at the time, and I honestly don’t recall what I was even thinking at the time. It just…sort of happened, like magic.”
Yennifer nodded and seemed to accept that, which was quite a relief. “Well, let’s just hope the government doesn’t catch wind of it. Your fellow actors seem to think it was more stage magic than Vision Magic. Or worse, religious nutcases. Archonism is gaining followers fast.”
“Archonism?” Furina asked, though she thought she had a fairly good guess as to what it meant.
“That the Archons are gods, old or new, come to save humanity in our hour of need. Honestly, I think they’re more than half right, though I choose to believe they were sent by Christ as angels to save us.”
Hmm, well, I’d have more of an opinion if I had the faintest idea why or how we ended up here. I suppose this Jesus is an alright sort, so I don’t mind you being called his messenger.
Maybe we should go to mass sometime with Yennifer. She’d probably like that.
Ugh, if you must go praise that irksome wind sprite. Always trying to one-up me in my stage productions in Egeria’s court with his little ditties.
That’s why you don’t like Barbatos? Because he competed with you as a director and composer?
I never said I didn’t enjoy his work, just that I find his personality annoying. He has no sense of true Justice! Always valuing personal freedoms over the need for an orderly society.
There is a balance there, I think. Though I did hear about him interfering in Germany’s judicial system. That is going too far.
“It’s an interesting theory, at least. I wish I knew why I ended up here,” Furina admitted as they stood from their lunch. “Thanks for taking the afternoon off to help me.”
“It’s not a problem, I’ll be in court next week, but I’ve finished discovery and there isn’t much else to do for my pending cases,” Yennifer said.
Furina nodded. The judicial system here was very odd. In Fontaine, trials took only a few hours for the most important cases, and some took only seconds for the Oratrice to render a verdict. The system they had here seemed horribly inefficient.
They lack divine Justice. This is the best they could do. One of the many things you will have to rectify.
Before or after I figure out how to save the world from destruction?
Why my dear, I do rather think the Oratrice is part of the solution, don’t you?
Furina pondered that as they boarded the bus. What had the Oratrice been? Well, it had been a way to generate Indemnitium, which had provided power to the people of Fontaine and bettered their lives. That was a noble goal, but…what did that have to do with her current predicament?
For now, you must be patient. You are coming into your powers, and you have much to learn about using them yet. When the time comes, I will reveal all to you. For now, to truly play the role you have been cast in, it is best if you know not.
That was something Furina could live with, at least for now. As it was, she was still trying to figure her life out.
They arrived at the École Militaire, which was bustling with various government functionaries. Furina clutched her purse as they walked up the steps, until Yennifer touched her arm to steady her. “It will be alright. It’s just registration.”
“Yes, of course,” Furina said, but she gripped Yennifer’s arm and took strength from it until they had to enter the building.
“Purpose of- oh. It’s you,” the secretary said, examining Furina, along with the Vision she wore as a broach on her dress. It was an old sun dress of Yennifer’s, blue with white embroidery. Formal, but not overly so. Yennifer was dressed in a navy blue pantsuit, her Hydro Vision pinned to the lapel.
“Yes, I, am, I was told that one needed to register here, when granted a Vision?” Furina said timidly.
“Yes, yes, well, I’m glad we didn’t have to hunt you down. You’re in all the papers,” the secretary said, nodding to a folded-up newspaper that showed Furina receiving her Vision on the front page. She winced slightly at that.
“Yes…Lord Focalors does seem to have a tendency towards the dramatic,” she said, blushing slightly.
Her mother guffawed in the back of her head. Odd how that had gone from disconcerting to comforting in such a short time.
“Um, today’s date?” Furina said, glancing at the top of the form. She had such a hard time remembering this new system.
“It’s the 9th of May, 2005,” Yennifer supplied, and Furina hastily wrote down 9/5/2005, remembering the proper way to order the date.
The rest of it she filled out easily enough, along with providing her original birth certificate and French Passport for him to make copies of.
“Hmm, good, we just need your inventory of abilities,” the secretary said. “We’ll schedule that now.”
“Abilities? Can’t you just put Hydro Vision Holder?” Furina asked, slightly baffled. She wasn’t totally familiar with the Maison Gardiennage’s policies in that regard, but for the most part they just put down that someone was a Vision Holder as far as she knew.
“We don’t even know what those do yet, and the law requires that each parahuman or vision holder go through a testing battery,” the secretary informed her. “You’ll be required to come in on the 25th of May at 2pm. Do not use your powers publicly until then.”
“Um, I may have…accidentally flooded our flat,” Furina admitted, biting her lip and glancing at Yennifer.
The secretary gave her a sour look. “Great. That’s an incident report. Did you damage someone else’s property? You could be arrested.”
“We’ve already reached an agreement with the landlord, and we have Vision Holder insurance for just such things. She flooded an apartment. No worse than if she’d accidentally left the bathtub running and forgotten it,” Yennifer said firmly.
“We still need an incident report,” the secretary said stubbornly, pulling out a large form. “The government will then decide if it wishes to press charges.”
“I will fill it out,” Yennifer said, extending her hand.
“One of our officers will, I’ll summon them now.”
“Then I will be present. I’m Furina’s lawyer,” Yennifer said, producing her card.
The secretary rolled his eyes, but handed over the form to Yennifer. A few minutes later, a uniformed officer and a cape with a costume that looked like a mime appeared, with a black beret, white face, and a black and white striped shirt.
“Could you be any more stereotypical,” Yennifer muttered, making a face.
“You will come with us,” the officer said, while the mime was silent. Their cape name turned out to be Pantomime, which was rather humorous.
However…Furina could sense something festering inside of Pantomine. It was some sort of vile darkness, the same that threatened to consume the entire world. It felt like a leech, a parasite, a crawling worm that hard embedded itself upon the man’s soul and was feasting upon it.
Yes. It’s a spawn of the False Sustainer. A demon of some sort. I do believe all Parahumans have one, though this is the first we’ve encountered directly.
Why didn’t Yennifer have one? She’s a parahuman.
Not quite. Her demon was banished by Barbatos, the hole in her soul healed by taking some of the things powers and giving it to her. She’s no longer quite human, frankly, though she is still mortal. Her demon was small and weak by the scar tissue. Focus, you can sense it.
Furina did, and indeed, when she more closely examined Yennifer’s soul, she detected the remains of a similar parasite to the one that infected Pantomime. Still, his was fresh and festering, and Furina regarded it with horror.
Don’t touch it yet. Let me study it more closely. There should be a way to judge these. Their Sin is obvious, but we can’t quite reveal you just yet, and openly judging one of these would do just that. I’ll find a way to do it without pointing back to you, however. We cannot let our people suffer like this.
Yes, please hurry. I can tell that it’s poisoning poor Jacque’s soul, twisting his dreams and ambitions in a sick desire for foul knowledge. We have to do something!
“Describe the nature of the crime,” the officer said once they were in a small private room.
“There was no crime,” Yennifer said firmly, even as Furina quailed. “It was a plumbing mishap. Nothing more.”
“I, I just flooded the bathtub!” Furina said, feeling panic set in. She willed herself not to show it, but she felt horrible. A crime, her!? She would never!
“Property damage,” the officer said, writing something down.
“Covered by insurance! There was no crime!” Yennifer snapped.
“Willful misuse of vision holder powers to damage property. What was the assessed value?” the officer demanded as Pantomime sat there, arms crossed, stone faced.
“Under 10,000 francs! And it’s already been resolved and covered by my insurance!” Yennifer snapped.
“...thousands of francs worth of damage. That’s a délit, not a simple contravention. That could be a prison sentence.”
“What?! That’s outrageous! It’s Unjust!” Yennifer shouted, standing with her hands on the table, her Vision glowing brightly. Furina’s began to glow as well, outrage swelling within her
Pantomime suddenly was on his feet as well, and a barrier of pure kinetic energy formed between them, before he created an invisible force sword as well.
“We’re not even threatening you! This is entrapment!” Yennifer shouted, her voice muffled thanks to the wall.
“There are ways to prevent the charges,” the officer said, laying the paperwork down. “You can agree to join the Mousquetaires and agree to serve the government as a cape.”
“B-but, my career! I’ve just started!” Furina said, but her panic was rapidly fleeing, replaced by growing outrage. She was now having to play the role of a flustered girl, but she was increasingly certain that Justice was going to need to be administered here.
“We’ll see you in court,” Yennifer said coldly, taking Furina’s arm. “Come. We have nothing more to say here.”
Another barrier appeared before the door, locking them in. Furina almost reached for her own powers, but paused.
Yennifer stretched her hand to the side, and her Favonian Blade appeared there. Water rushed and roared, and armor composed of hydro energy appeared around her. She slowly turned, Pantomime’s eyes now wide, the officer standing and pressing himself back against the wall.
“I am a Knight of Justice. Do you dare use the law as a bludgeon against the one I am sworn to protect?”
The room itself was heavy with moisture now, Yennifer’s eyes glowing a deep blue, her hair having come loose and whipping about her as though tossed by waves.
“I, we…” the officer trailed off, then swallowed. “Let them go. We have the paperwork. That was all we were told to collect.”
The barrier around the door faded, and Yennifer motioned for Furina to open it. She did so, hastily stepping through, then holding the door for Yennifer, who pointed her blade at her foes as she backed through the door, clad in watery armor. Once she was out, the door slammed shut, yanked from Furina’s grasp.
Sighing, Yennifer lowered her blade, which vanished to mist, along with her armor. “Well. That didn’t go as well as I’d hoped.”
“You were amazing!” Furina gushed, gripping Yennifer’s arm and feeling a giddy sense of relief. “So heroic and beautiful! Like my knight in shining armor out of legend and myth!”
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” Yennifer said, blushing slightly, but hooking her arm through Furina’s. “Come. We need to depart. Stay close to me.”
There was little danger of that as Furina clung tightly to Yennifer all the way back to their apartment, which was mostly dried out now, though there were still fans going to get the last of the moisture out. There, both collapsed onto the couch, which was already smelling musty and would need to be replaced. That first paycheck couldn’t come soon enough.
“Will…will they really arrest me?” Furina asked quietly.
“They might. They do this with my clients. A parahuman or Vision Holder wants to go about their life, not become a cape. They commit some minor violation, sometimes something as simple as a traffic violation. It gets trumped up, and they’re forced to join the Mousquetaires or pay a horrendously expensive fine, or even face imprisonment.”
“But that’s an outrageous Injustice!” Furina cried, and she could feel her power and Authority flare to life. Focalors was a presence in the back of her head, but her disgust at this miscarriage of Justice mirrored Furina’s own.
“It is. Which is why I’ve dedicated so much of my life until now fighting against it,” Yennifer said, drawing Furina into a hug. “I won’t let them take you, I promise. I swore to protect you, with all my heart, and it’s a promise I will keep. Forever.”
There was a distant tolling of a bell, and Furina shuddered as she felt power within her surge.
Not yet, not yet. But that promise is recognized, and recorded. One day, it will be realized.
“Thank you,” Furina whispered, closing her eyes and squeezing Yennifer back tightly. She felt that same warmth filling her, felt Yennifer’s strong arms about her, her hot breath on Furina’s neck, and-
The door banged open and Furina and Yennifer sprang apart.
“We’re back!” Charlotte said excitedly, storming in carrying her camera equipment along with Barbara, who was hauling a green screen and a mic. Both girls were sweating and grinning broadly, and Furina just knew they’d cooked up some scheme.
“It’s time for your weekly upload!” Barbara told Furina as she began setting up the screen.
“My weekly upload?” Furina asked, baffled and more than a little disappointed that the embrace hadn’t lasted longer. Perhaps forever.
“Yeah, we- wait. What were you two doing?” Charlotte asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
“I, we…” Furina swallowed. “They’re going to try to arrest me.”
“WHAT?!” Both girls dropped their equipment and goggled at Furina, who quickly explained the situation.
“That is completely WRONG!” Barbara huffed. She picked up a microphone and clutched it. “We need to do something! I will call Mère, of course, but Charlotte, we need to do an expose on this!”
“You’re suggesting a story now?” Charlotte asked, clearly surprised.
“Yes! We have to expose what sort of outrage the government is perpetrating! This is wrong, Charlotte! And we have to fight against it! We can all make videos about it!” Barbara declared.
As she did so, Furina felt a tugging. Her mind was aligning with Barbara’s, both of them angered at this gross Injustice, and determined to right it.
No, not yet. She needs a proper audience when she receives hers. But as you saw, she’s a candidate. This moment, where her Ambition shines bright, shall earn her a Vision. But we’ll pick a much more appropriate time to give it to her.
Really? Just like that? That feels a bit…well, like cheating.
My dear, when you play the game of Fate against Heaven itself, there is no cheating. Only winning, and losing. And I dare say we want this one on our side.
“That just means we have to make this video with Furina! At the end, you can put in a plea about your apartment, and how the government is oppressing your rights! That way, the Truth will get out! Barbara and I will work on a full news story to break it! We can interview Yennifer and everything!” Charlotte declared.
“I…I like that plan,” Furina said, standing. “Right! Hmm, what song should I sing though?”
“What about J'en Ai Marre, by Alizée? It’s fitting, and I’ve always liked her music,” Yennifer commented.
Furina nodded. “I’m Fed Up? Yes, I most certainly am! Now, what to wear?”
“I have the perfect little black dress,” Yennifer said. “Come on, let’s get you changed.”
The dress in question turned out to be scandalously short, with a skirt that didn’t even come to Furina’s mid thigh, and a bust line that had to be slightly padded to keep the dress from just falling off. The ensemble was complimented by black nylons that were just barely see-through, making them all the more risque than simple bare legs. Still, it was rather daring to wear, especially since Furina would be dancing for Yennifer especially. She also got a black ribbon to put in her hair, which she used her spell to grow out.
“Back to the natural blue?” Yennifer asked, nodding admiringly.
“Yes, and I’m taking the contacts out,” Furina said, plucking them from her eye. “I’ve a Vision now, so my elemental attunement won’t be that surprising.”
After watching a music video of J'en Ai Marre twice, Furina had it down. She practiced the dance and song through twice more, then had Barbara and Charlotte do her makeup. Then she performed her heart out, and at the end, turned to the camera to make an impassioned plea.
“As you can see, I’ve been granted a Divine gift,” Furina said, holding up her false Vision. That was true, of course, from a certain point of view. “Unfortunately, the French Government wishes to imprison me! I accidentally flooded my dear friend Yennifer’s apartment, whom I have been staying with since I arrived here in Paris. Now, not only do we need to cover the cost of much of the repairs even with insurance, but because I used my abilities, I could be locked away! Please, if you can, write or call the French government to protest their Unjust treatment of Parahumans and Vision Holders alike!”
Charlotte and Barbara suddenly hopped in frame, posing with Furina, who automatically put her hands on both their shoulders. “And of course, if you wish to support Furina’s efforts to rebuild her apartment, come see us at the Théâtre de l'Ondine, at 7pm Thursday and Friday, and 6pm and 9pm on Saturday and Sunday!” Barbara said, waving excitedly.
“Check back every week for new videos, featuring your favorite rising star and her friends!” Charlotte said, then waved at the camera. “Thanks for watching! À bientôt!”
“Au revoir!” all three women said, waving and grinning.
“And cut,” Yennifer said, pressing stop on the camera. “Well, that was simply incredible. Better than even the original I’d say.”
“I hope people watch it,” Furina sighed. “How many even saw my first couple of videos?”
“Oh, about 1.2 million, when I checked this morning,” Charlotte said casually.
Furina blinked. “Did…did you say…million?”
“Yeah, that’s the video of you singing Billie Jean!” Barbra said excitedly. “The one of you getting your Vision is already at 900k though, and will surely surpass it!”
“But…that’s so many people!” Furina said, feeling a bit dizzy.
“Nahida Saeed shared it on her page, so it’s gotten really popular,” Charlotte explained. “You’re an online video star!”
“Well, then maybe this will make a difference. I was just hoping for a few hundred people to see it,” Furina said, still slightly discombobulated. Over a million people? That was one fifth the population of Fontaine! How many people were in France?
Some 60 million souls, actually. This world has far more people than Teyvat. Which is rather interesting, as it means there’s far more potential for power from faith. The videos have given you a significant boost in power, actually.
Just from seeing me dance online? Goodness, that is a shock!
Well, keep it up. These girls may be quite silly, but they're doing more good than you might think.
Barbara promised to post the video after editing it, and she and Charlotte stormed off, all a twitter of what they would do.
“Don’t forget the party tonight! It's 6pm at Wanmin restaurant!” Furina called.
“We’ll be there!” Barbara promised before they vanished.
When they were gone, Furina looked down at herself and blushed slightly. “Do…do you think I should change?”
“Heavens no. You look dead sexy in that,” Yennifer said, and Furina blushed heavily at her words as Yennifer very obviously admired her. She felt herself moving closer to Yennifer, drawn towards her like-
“Meow!”
They both started, then looked down at Diane, who was reaching her claws for Furina’s leg.
“Oh don’t you dare ruin my good nylons,” Yennifer said, and scooped up the kitten. “Is someone hungry?”
“Mrrrow!” Diane said, and nibbled at Yennifer’s finger.
They ended up feeding the kitten, then playing with her until it was time to go. Diane seemed very disappointed to be left at home, but she’d used her littler box like a good girl, and was left with some toys on her cat tree to play with.
The party itself was wonderful, with incredible food by Chef Mao and Ling. Ling had painted three figures onto the restaurant wall, consisting of Julie, Furina, and Barbara as their characters from the play, only they were also serving chinese dishes.
“Wow, you two look great, hot date tonight?” Ling teased as Furina and Yennifer arrived.
“Uh, no, just, ah, making another online video,” Yennifer said, withdrawing her arm from Furina’s.
“Well, I’m glad you two found one another! Poor Yen’s needed a girlfriend for ages!” Ling said, then skipped off, humming to herself as other members of the cast arrived.
Furina almost said “we’re not dating,” but decided against it. It would be too much effort to explain, and besides, it was a good cover.
At the end of the night, Furina stayed extra late to help clean up, fulfilling her old job of dishwasher, and trying not to get Yennfier’s dress dirty.
“We’ll miss you, but you’re always welcome back at Wanmin Restaurant," Chef Mao told Furina as they cleaned.
“Well, I might need the job again! Who knows what gig I’ll have after this run finishes, or when that will even be?” Furina said. “Assuming I don’t get arrested, of course.”
“For what, being too pretty?” Ling laughed.
“No…” Furina explained as she worked, and when she finished, Chef Mao and Ling were as angry as she was.
“Ugh, this government is so corrupt! First they demand bribes from us, now you! Is there anywhere in this world where monsters don’t run free? We should fight back!” Ling declared.
“No, we need to keep our head down. Hope it’s just a fine, and that Furina can scrounge up the money,” Chef Mao said with a shake of his head.
“No, we need to change the system!” Julie argued, sticking her head in the kitchen from where she was cleaning up the tables. “It’s not right that my country treats its citizens like this! We need to start a political action group!”
“That sounds like trouble,” Mao said, but Ling raised a dish wand high.
“Yes! We’ll give it our all! They ran us out of China, but they won’t run us out of France! We unite, and then attack!” Ling decreed.
“Together as one! We fight for Justice!” Furina said, raising her own wand high. Julie even scrambled into the kitchen and raised her broom up to match them.
“The true musketeers!” Julie said, a grin on her face. “We just need our d'Artagnan!”
“That’s Yennifer, she’s certain to help,” Furina said, though Yennifer had gone home a bit early as she was going to do research for Furina’s case in the morning.
“Well, I suppose you’ll need someone to bail you out. Now back to work, I don’t want to be here all night,” Mao harumphed.
Arms deep in dirty dishes, Furina felt her spirits soar. This was going to be her Justice. To fight against corruption and unfair rule, to fight for the rights and liberty of all humanity. They could do this!
Elsewhere, in Paris, the Iron Mask received the report on Furina, and her latest Dailymotion Video.
“So, you think a little fame will let you escape me?” the Iron Mask seethed. “Well, I have you now. I will have Order. France is mine, and no other’s!”
And so, the stage was set. Our heroes had their purpose, our villain, his scheme.
And, unbeknownst to our heroine, a brave knight to win her hand and heart.
Let the world come alive! Act II of Animula Choragi begins!
To my great disappointment, I was not immediately assigned to surgery, though they did let me out of the hospital one day after I managed to cure Texas. Aside from now having an even worse case of super cancer, I was mostly fine. Except, you know, for the constant pain. I have a prescription for Tylenol with Codeine. They call it something else, Codetheron, but unless my chemistry fails me, it’s the same thing.
And I hate to say it, but I need the stuff. The aches were bad before, but they’re worse now. My limited research into oripathy, and by that I mean I’m reading for a couple of hours a day now, indicates that acute pain is one of the most common symptoms. Based on my current trajectory…I’m more than a little concerned about developing an opioid addiction. I’d be basically non-functional without this though, so I guess I just have to grin and bear it.
Instead, Sussurro and Exusiai took me to my new apartment, which was located not far from their own. Sussurro shares with Myrrh, while Exusiai and Texas bunk together. The landship is enormous, but space is still at a premium, so my own private room consists of not much more than a fold out bed, a small desk, and a couple of basic appliances like a microwave and a small tv. There’s also a small bathroom and shower stall. The walls are all bare metal, and the floor is vinyl and a bit of carpet. It’s cramped, but the fact that I have it to myself is nice.
“I’m afraid I don’t have anything to put here,” I admitted. “Not even clothes.”
“We’ll go requisition some,” Sussurro told me. “I’ve been assigned to escort you today.”
“And I’m your bodyguard, so I’m coming too!” Exusiai said brightly.
“What about Texas?” I asked. “She’s OK now, right?”
“Oh, she’s fine, but they’re making her do a bunch of tests today to make sure the oripathy is really all gone,” Exusiai said with a shrug. “She’s grumpy as usual, but she’s OK. More than that, really. I thought she was going to die for sure…”
“She’d have lived for a while. Most people survive taking Amp-X for years. Her main problem was the initial shock of her body contracting oripathy plus the arts overuse,” Sussurro said with a shake of her head.
Both women were dressed more in their casual skins than their normal clothes. Sussurro had on black slacks, a t-shirt and jacket, and a ball cap with Siracusa and what looked like a team logo on it. She did have on sneakers that looked about three sizes too big for her, which was sort of adorable. Exusiai was wearing black shorts that showed off her legs, and a white hoodie with DDD and the stylized face of that one DJ from Heart of Surging Flame that looked like Daft Punk. Oh, and a couple of guns, because why not?
They took me first to an official Rhodes Island supply depo on the upper decks, where a bored looking worker issued me a couple of sets of scrubs, two pairs of casual clothes, a lab coat, a pair of hospital slippers and a pair of boots, along with some socks and underwear.
“You want anything fancy, you’re gonna have to pay for it, but this is the basics. Welcome aboard Rhodes Island…Bones?” the grunt said, reading his clipboard. He blinked, then looked up at me. “Wait, you’re not the one who-”
“No hablo ingles. Gracias por la ropa,” I said, then turned around and hurried off.
“I didn’t know you spoke Iberian,” Sussurro commented after having to sprint to catch up to me. “But it would be ‘No hablo victoriano’ for future reference.”
“Oh, right,” I said, wincing and kicking myself mentally. “Uh, what is the official language of Rhodes Island, anyway?”
“Officially, it’s Victorian, but people speak a lot of languages here, so don’t expect that trick to work very often,” Exusiai told me. “Though that was pretty funny, especially since you started off speaking Victorian to him.”
“I…have a hard time telling which language I’m speaking these days,” I admitted. “Not the least of which because you all sound like you’re speaking English to me. Well, unless you spoke Iberian, which would sound like Spanish.”
“My Iberian is rusty,” Sussurro admitted. “And not very fluent.”
Exusiai grinned. “Hablo ibérico bastante bien, pero estoy sin práctica. ¡He aprendido muchos idiomas como mensajero! Aunque es más fácil ya que soy un Sankta.”
“You speak a lot of languages because of your job, but being an Sankta makes it easier?” I translated. My own Spanish is high school level, though I used it often enough to be conversationally fluent since a lot of patients had it as their primary language at the hospitals I trained at.
“Yeah, Empathy,” Exusiai said, pointing to her halo. “If another Sankta speaks a language and teaches it to you…it’s just easy. It’s a little harder if you’re learning it from another Race, but even then, we Sankta pick up languages faster than most.”
“One of the many unfair things about life is that Sankta are better at just about everything,” Sussurro said with a heavy sigh, and shot a jealous look at Exusiai. Odd, she was normally pretty chummy with Exusiai.
“Hey, your cooking is way better than mine! I prefer sweet things, but your soups are really tasty! I can only ever do boxed recipes, I never really learned how to cook,” Exusiai said with a grin.
“I can manage not to burn water, but I’m not much of a cook myself. Your stuff is delicious though, Sussurro,” I told her.
That got her tail wagging, though she obviously tried to stop it. She was kinda cute like that. I know she’s not a dog, but the tail does seem like a dead giveaway most of the time.
“Sorry, not to sound like a jealous beckbeast,” Sussurro said with a heavy sigh. “I was raised in a Lateran family, and while I’ve drifted away from the Church…I never got away from the sense that the Holy Sankta were better than all of us.”
“Nah, that’s a bunch of bullshit,” Exusiai said casually. “Sure, we’re blessed by the Law, but it’s not like we did something to deserve it, you know? It’s like they say: Grace. We’re not any better than anyone. Heck, plenty of the Saints are Liberi, and there’s even Saint Vellatria. She was a vulpo, and a doctor like yourself!”
“I…yes. I, um, still say prayers to Holy Vellatria sometimes,” Sussurro admitted.” Not very often, mind. I really have drifted away from my childhood faith over time. But, well, it slips out from time to time.”
“Well then you’re more devout than me! Here we are, let’s stash this stuff, then take you somewhere fun!” Exusiai said as we arrived back at the apartment.
“Yes, I was going to take him to Susie’s, he could use a haircut, and so could I,” Sussurro said as we set the clothes on my bed, I’d put them away later.
“That sounds good! I could definitely go for some beauty treatments. My hair’s getting kinda long,” Exusiai said, pulling a lock of red hair down to inspect.
“Yeah, looks more like your alter than yours-…” I trailed off, and kicked myself again.
“Oh ho, do you already know what haircut I’m going to get, Bones?” Exusiai laughed.
“Uh, not exactly,” I admitted. Thinking of that, I really needed to talk to Kal’tsit about The Masses Travel. I didn’t know everything about it, but I’m pretty sure it was the one where it was revealed the Law as an ancient AI supercomputer, or something.
“This is from Arknights, isn’t it? I don’t suppose I’m supposed to get a significant haircut,” Sussurro said, her eyes narrowing at me.
“Well, uh, I mean…I only know about your, um…other skin, that I got,” I admitted, blushing myself.
“Other skin?” Exusiai said, looking back and forth between us. “Come on, you’re both blushing like high schoolers! Spit it out, Bones!”
“Um, well, you sort of…get Swimsuit Sussurro,” I said, not meeting her eyes. “I…sort of used that one. It was cute.”
“You would be so lucky to see me in a swimsuit,” Sussurro huffed, but her tail was wagging again for some reason. Well, at least I wasn’t in the doghouse.
“Well, I hope my skin or whatever was cute too! Damn, you’re going to have to spill more of this tea, Bones! Here it seems like you know all about us, and we barely know anything about you!” Exusiai laughed, opening the door. “First though, haircut. You really are all scraggly.”
I rubbed my face, which had at this point, several weeks worth of beard on it. Normally, I was clean shaven, if for no other reason than it’s more comfortable when wearing a mask. My hair was also longer and messier than I usually prefer it. “Yeah, sounds good. Though I am a bit broke…”
“Susie’s a sweetie,” Exusiai said as we headed down the corridor. “First haircut is free. And pretty deep discounts for all Rhodes Island Personal. And patients at the hospital. Honestly, she probably couldn’t stay open if RI didn’t subsidize her.”
“She provides a needed service, and she’s a really good hairdresser. I’d go mad without her,” Sussurro said with a shrug.
We made our way to one of the middle levels, where a sort of mall had been set up, with lots of shops and small cafes. I was led to a hair salon named “Electric Glitter.” Inside, a familiar face was waiting for us.
“Welcome!” the proprietress said, looking up from another customer she was working on. “Oh! Hello, Lucia, Lemuel! Who’s your tall friend?”
“This is James,” Sussurro said, nodding to me. “He’s a new doctor joining the medical department.
“Oh! You must have told him about my special. I’ll be right with you!” she said.
We took a seat, and I muttered, “You didn’t tell me Goldenglow was the hairdresser.”
“Huh? We said it was Susie,” Exusiai said, frowning at me.
“She almost never goes on ops or by her code name. She studies arts on the side, but her real passion is hair care, and since she’s the only hairdresser on the landship, she keeps plenty busy,” Sussurro said, frowning at me. “Odd you know her code name, I only know it because I saw it on her file during her last check up.”
“She’s, uh, well, before a certain jobless lupo, she was one of the strongest casters in Arknights. Still pretty good even after that, just not completely busted,” I whispered back.
“Susie!? You can’t be serious! I saw her cry when she was supposed to use her arts on a live target, a bunch of originium slugs!” Sussurro protested.
“Wait…jobless Lupo?” Exusiai said, her eyes narrowing. “You don’t mean…”
“I was trying to be discreet, and don’t you dare breathe a word of it to Texas,” I hissed.
Exusiai grimaced. “Yeah, even I don’t know what all is going on between Lappland Saluzzo and Texas, but I do know those two can’t be in a room together without trying to kill one another. Which is too bad, because Lappland’s a lot of fun! Totally insane, but fun!”
“Lupo idiota. Doesn’t even try to manage her oripathy,” Sussurro said in disgust. “I ought to sick Red on her.”
“That…might not work so well anymore,” I said. That earned me startled looks from both my companions, but then Goldenglow hurried over, grinning widely and bowing to me. She was dressed in a red apron, with a green scarf wrapped about her pink hair. “Welcome to Electric Glitter! I’m Susie Glitter! Welcome to Rhodes Island, Dr. James!”
“Just James, I’m only Dr. McCoy when I’m on duty,” I said, standing and offering my gloved hand.
Susie glanced at it, then gingerly took it. I let out a yelp, as a spark of static electricity zapped the originium crystals through the wool.
“S-sorry! Um, I mostly have that under control, I’m not sure what happened,” Goldenglow said, hastily jerking her hand back.
“Sorry, I’ve got lesions under the glove, must have attracted the shock,” I said, shaking my hand out.
“Oh! Yes, that happens,” Goldenglow admitted. “Um, it should be OK, unless you have more on your skull…”
“Don’t think so. I thankfully don’t have literal rocks in my brain. Yet, anyway,” I laughed, and followed Goldenglow over to one of the chairs.
She put an apron on me, then mussed my hair. “Hmm, nice and thick, with a bit of a wave! Do you have a haircut in mind, or would you like to look at my catalogue?”
“Sure, I’ll take a look. Don’t really know much about local style here. I’m from, um, Trimounts.”
“Ah, I’m from Caladon in Victoria! I’ve been here at Rhodes Island for two and a half years now, and it’s been wonderful! They’ve helped me open up my dream salon, and even brought my mother here!” Goldenglow said, as she settled Exusiai and Sussurro into their own seats. “What will you have today, Lucia?”
“I’d like to keep it long, just a bit of trim on the bangs and some fluff off my tail, I’ve been shedding something awful since summer started,” Sussurro said.
“Of course!” Goldenglow agreed, and several of her drones zipped out, and began to shampoo and massage Sussurro’s hair.
“Something a little longer and wilder for me, and I’m thinking I want to go a couple shades lighter on my hair,” Exusiai said, her eyes closed.
I ended up going with a long and curly fade, which seemed like it would be nice and low maintenance, but still a bit stylish. I might not be overly fussed about my haircut, but you’ve got to look at least somewhat professional and trendy. If you look like a slob, it sends the wrong message, and I get enough people thinking I’m an idiot without looking like one too.
The girls chatted for a while as Goldenglow went between each of us, but her drones did most of the work. It was actually really impressive how fine her control was, and rather novel to have my hair cut by robot. I talked a bit as well, though I did my best to be careful, as I didn’t exactly have a lot I could share. I told a couple of anecdotes about medical school that seemed like the sort of thing that could still happen on Terra, which got everyone laughing, so it seemed to work.
“Bye! Come back soon!” Goldenglow said, waving to us as we departed, before ushering in her next set of customers.
“I texted Texas, she’s joining us for lunch at Dreams and Spices,” Exusiai said as we left.
“Is that the cafe that Beanstalk runs?” I asked, remembering the place from Kay’s Daily Doodles.
“Yeah! Huh, that weird alien knowledge comes in handy, huh?” Exusiai said with a grin.
The cafe did look a lot like the one in the anime, though it had quite the lunch crowd. I didn’t spot Ceobe or her friends, but Texas was waiting at a booth and looking incredibly grumpy. When she spotted us, she jumped up and ran towards me. I thought for a moment she was going in for a hug with how she stretched her arms out, so I spread mine wide. Only for her to lift me up by my collar.
“Testa di cazzo!” she snarled, her ears flat back on her head. “I should kill you!”
“That seems extreme?” I coughed, even as a worried Exusiai drew one of her pistols, but didn’t point it at Texas.
“Texas, put him down!” Sussurro shouted, but Texas just glared at her.
“He cured me,” she hissed, tail lashing back and forth.
“Uh, yeah, you were sort of dying,” I gasped, though she wasn’t really choking me. “I thought you’d be happy!”
“I was. Until I realized you cured more than you said,” Texas snarled, setting me down and now yanking my head down so we were at eye level.
“Uh,” I glanced around at the patrons, who were staring uncomfortably. “Maybe…we should have this conversation somewhere more…private?”
“Hmph,” Texas let me go, then stalked over to the corner table. Her murderous gaze had everyone around us calling for the check and scrambling away, which made Exusiai sigh and rub at her head.
“Texas…you’re doing it again,” Exusiai said, holstering her guns. “You know, that thing where you give off the sense that you’re going to murder everyone around you?”
“It’s his fault,” she grumbled, arms folded across her chest as she glared at me.
I scooted a little closer to Sussurro as Beanstalk came over and hastily took our orders before rushing away. “Um, Texas, I know you’re not super happy about me curing your oripathy, but I couldn’t watch you die…”
“Not that,” Texas took out a pack of cigarettes, and slammed them on the table. “This.”
The rest of us stared at the smokes, then looked up at Texas.
“Texas, use your big girl words,” Exusiai groaned, slumping in her chair. “None of us know what you’re talking about.”
“I can’t smoke,” Texas said, gesturing to the cigarettes.
“We very specifically told you that you shouldn’t smoke after your surgery, Texas,” Sussurro sighed. “You really should quit. Not only is it a disgusting habit, but now that you’re cured of oripathy, that just increases the risks you’ll die of smoking related health issues.”
“You told me. Didn’t listen. Tried to smoke last night. Couldn’t,” Texas said, still glaring at me.
I blinked a few times. Then I looked at Sussurro, a shocked expression on both our faces. Then we fell all over one another, laughing hysterically.
“It’s not funny,” Texas grumbled. “Can’t think straight.”
“Hahaha, you, you mean he- oh santi e angeli, I’ve got to tell the, hehehe, director!” Sussurro giggled, holding on to me.
I was leaning on her myself, howling with laughter. “Hahaha! Well, it’s for your own good, you crazy wolf! Hehe, I can’t believe it! Hohoho, I’m going to do this to all my patients now!”
“Uh, did you like, do something to her brain, Bones? ‘Cause, that’s kinda messed up if you did,” Exusiai said, looking a little disturbed.
“Ha, no! Or at least, probably not,” Sussurro said, wiping a tear from her eye. “He rebuilt her entire circulatory system, and apparently her respiratory system too! That means she’s got a brand new set of fresh, clean lungs, with no tar buildup, and her body’s probably purged of nicotine too.”
“That’s hilarious! We’ll get you some gum or something,” I sniggered, shaking my head.
“Need something for my mouth. Don’t like gum. Too sticky,” Texas huffed.
“Hey, Jasiri! You got any pocky?” Exusiai called.
“Um, yes?” Beanstalk said, looking up from where she was making our lunches.
“Bring us a box. Strawberry flavor,” Exusiai said.
The sweet was delivered, and Exusiai foisted the box on Texas. “Here, try some!”
Reluctantly, Texas put the pocky in her mouth. She chewed on it a bit, then sucked on it. At last, she nodded. “Fine. But I’m still mad.”
“Sorry, I honestly didn’t mean to cure you of your smoking habit,” I said, shaking my head. “But, consider it a happy byproduct. I’m sure Lucia’s been telling you to quit smoking since she first saw you.”
“Indeed I have. Those things might as well be called cancer sticks,” Sussurro said with a nod.
“It is kinda funny, though. And Sora has said she wishes you would quit,” Exusiai said apologetically.
Texas frowned, moving the pocky stick around in her mouth with her tongue. “She didn’t tell me.”
“She’s too nice too, but I bet she’ll like kissing you a lot more now, so you’ve got that to look forward to. Trust me, I’ve dated some smokers, and it’s super gross to try to make out with them,” Exusiai said, laughing at Texas’ mortified expression.
“Oh. I see,” Texas seemed to consider this deeply, so deeply that she continued to think for a half a minute after Beanstalk brought us our food. At least, she nodded, finishing off her pocky stick. “Alright. Sorry. Thank you.”
“We’ll get you some lollipops or something. That much sugar isn’t good for your teeth, but candy is way better than smoking if you need oral motor stimulation,” I told her, taking a bite of my burger. It was pretty good, with french fries too, though they were called ‘stick fries’ on the menu. No French, I guess.
“You should come with us, Texas, we’re taking James shopping! He needs some stuff for his apartment,” Exusiai said.
Texas nodded. “Yes. I must return to duty.”
“I don’t think anyone is going to try to assassinate me on Rhodes Island,” I said skeptically. “It’s just a shopping trip.”
“Enemies can appear around any corner. We must be vigilant,” Texas stated.
I shrugged and didn’t argue. My friends ended up buying me a bunch of stuff, from some carpets, to pajamas, to a towel and toiletries, and even a poster and some other decorations.
“You guys really don’t have to do this,” I said, feeling embarrassed as Sussurro picked out a few shirts for me.
“I owe you a debt. It must be repaid,” Texas told me, having already bought me a pair of pants and some nice sneakers.
“I mean, you saved my life too,” I pointed out.
“Consider it a welcome to Terra gift!” Exusiai told me, handing me a pair of headphones and a gift card to download music. Though I would later use it to unlock some sweet, sweet premium races on Wintermaul.
After we delivered everything to my room, Sussurro revealed she’d made authentic Siracusan Pizza, which immediately made Texas’ ears perk up and tail wag. “You’re all invited, Myrrh and her boyfriend Gantt are coming, and so are Myrtle and Harry. It will be cramped, but it would be good for you to get to know some of the other people you’ll be working with, James.”
“Sure, I’d stay in a closet if it meant I got to try your pizza,” I said with a grin.
She blushed and then glared at Exusiai. “But so help me, if you put any ranch or hot sauce on my pizza, I will use your halo as a frisbee!”
“I won’t, promise!” Exusiai said, crossing her heart with her fingers. “I’m always up for pizza!”
Gantt turned out to be Windflit, while Harry was Verdant. Turns out they’re both pretty fun guys who are just chill dudes. Windflit works in engineering, while Verdant works in the pharmacy and herb garden. It turned out Myrrh had introduced Myrtle to Verdant, while Myrrh and Windflit had met at the cafeteria and hit it off.
“You must be something special to get Sussurro to actually cook, normally, she just eats the cafeteria food or buys stuff from the cafe,” Windflit told me.
“I’m just a guy,” I said, trying not to paint a target on my back.
“Just a guy who can apparently cure oripathy,” Verdant said, pointing at me around the can of beer he was holding. “Don’t try and hide it, we’ve all heard the rumors, and there’s only one new aegir doctor on the landship. Rumor has it they’re going to officially announce it soon.”
“I, uh, look, even if that were true, I can’t just cure you,” I told Verdant, sipping at my own glass of wine. “It’s…complicated. And messy.”
“James! No curing anyone until we get your own infection under control!” Sussurro snapped at me, her wine sloshing in her glass
Verdant and Windflit eyed me, and I sighed heavily.
“Look, to cure someone else’s oripathy…I have to give it to myself,” I told them. “That’s how I ended up infected.
They both gaped at me, obviously shocked. “You…you deliberately infected yourself?! Are you insane?!”
“Well, I mean, I didn’t do it deliberately. It was sort of an accident,” I said, shifting uncomfortably.
“He used it on Lucia too!” Myrtle said excitedly, her beer sloshing out of her mug as she gestured at Lucia.
All eyes turned to her, and she flushed. “He…didn’t cure me. But, um, he might have severely reduced my symptoms. We were just experimenting, to see if he could even repeat what he’d done.”
“He cured me,” Texas said quietly. “Should have done it to someone else.”
“Well, just don’t use Amp-X to try to save my ass again and we’ll call it even,” I said, glaring at Texas.
“Shit, dude,” Windflit said, shaking his head. “You really can cure someone, but you infect yourself? I’ve done crazy things to get laid, but that takes the cake.”
“Uh, I used my ability first on a ten year old kid, so don’t get any ideas,” I told him, frowning.
“I’m gay,” Texas said flatly, which made Exusiai snort out wine and half choke.
“Lucia isn’t and she-” Myrtle began, then let out a yelp like something had bit her.
“James is merely a fellow physician with an overly developed martyr complex. We’ve learned a lot from his ability already, and the hope is we develop new treatments based on what he can do,” Sussurro sniffed, withdrawing her foot from Myrtle’s leg. “The pizza is my way of saying thank you.”
“Well, Texas appreciates it. She’s always going on about how Lungmen doesn’t really have authentic Siracusian pizza,” Exusiai commented.
“It’s good,” Texas agreed.
“Well, a toast to our new doctor,” Myrrh said, raising her glass of wine. “May he enjoy his life, and practice his art, respected by all men in all times.”
“I’ll drink to that,” I agreed, and we all took a drink.
Once more, I was reminded that life here on Terra isn’t always bad. The food was damn good, the drinks were relaxing, and the company was warm and inviting. Heck, Gantt and Harry are basically just two guys you’d have a couple of beers with. Even the local ladies are mighty fine.
Texas’ surgery had ended an hour ago. She was awake now, alert, and thoroughly pissed. Mostly at James for endangering himself for her. Ch’en challenged her to a sword fight, and over the objections of the entire medical department, those two knuckleheads are currently going at it hammer and tongs in the training facility. Hopefully, they won’t break anything, but it’s probably the best way for Texas to blow off some steam.
Later, Warfarin is going to get Projekt Red to help her give Texas the tail-twisting of a lifetime. I’m not sure why all the other lupos are so afraid of Red, she’s just kind of a sweet but quiet kid as far as I can tell, but it’s rather hilarious to watch all the supposedly big and strong lupos run for the hills whenever Red shows up. I’ve requested to study the phenomenon multiple times, but I’m always denied.
I suppose it’s for the best, I’ve found something far more intriguing to delve into.
Myself, Warfarin, Folinic, Director Kal’tsit, Leader Amiya, the Doctor, and Gavial were all sitting around a conference table, studying charts and looking at the images on screen.
“Alright, someone smarter than me is going to have to explain this shit to me,” Gavial growled, her hand massaging her forehead as she stared at a chart. “Because I get what the numbers say, but this makes no damn sense.”
“I’m equally baffled,” Folinic admitted, shaking her head. “His numbers went down after using arts to heal Texas? But, that’s not how arts works. Arts use should elevate his levels, not reduce them.”
“It could be wrong. The difference is minute enough that it could just be the margin of error,” Warfarin said, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest.
“But you don’t think it is, do you, Dr. Sussurro?” Amiya said. She wasn’t looking at the charts at all. While she did have powerful healing arts, along with well, powerful arts in general, she wasn’t trained as a medic or doctor, so a lot of these numbers would have been somewhat meaningless to her.
“I suspect it wasn’t. His numbers were trending downwards on his daily tests, which didn’t make sense, except for the fact that he was using arts daily,” I said, stepping up and using a ruler to point to the screen, being too short to easily reach all the way. “Additionally, there’s the odd way that his oripathy is developing. Generally, we see oripathy develop first in the liver and kidneys, along with the spleen and the rest of the lymphatic system. Those are the organs responsible for filtering your body from contaminates, so it follows they would develop crystals first. It’s not completely unheard of for oripathy to develop along the nervous system, however…”
“However the cases where it has arethe ones where originium was artificially implanted,” Folinic said with a nod. “Yes, I see.”
“Which leads me to my next point. James is an Earthling. We’ve got eight other cases of Earthlings, who are all remarkably resistant to oripathy. Blitz even had a large fragment of originium embedded in his skin during a mission, had it removed, and did not develop oripathy. That’s practically unheard of, even when first aid is administered as quickly and professionally as it was in his case.”
“Ok, so how the fuck does that explain his levels going down?” Gavial demanded in disgust.
I gave her a cool look, and she rolled her eyes and quieted. “I’m not finished yet. The final key is how James responded to arts suppressors, and arts amplifiers. His system reacted in completely the opposite manner from what we would expect. To call that highly unusual is an understatement. Now, while further study needs to be done here, I have a working theory, and I think our observations here bear it out.”
“Let us hear your analysis, Dr. Sussurro,” Kal’tsit said, gesturing for me to continue, as I’d paused for comments.
I took a deep breath, steeled myself, then said, “I think he’s directly using the originium in his system to fuel his arts. He commented that, prior to his infection, he couldn’t use arts at all. Now, that’s not unusual, many people are either incapable of using arts, or have limited capacity, until they develop oripathy. But all of the other Earthlings also have zero capacity for arts. So, when I say he’s using originium to fuel his arts…he’s acting less like an organic organism, and more like an artificial tool like an arts wand.”
Silence as the table mulled it over. Doctor was sitting backwards in their chair, arms wrapped around the chair back. “So, your theory is that Bones is basically a living arts conductor. We’ve seen that before though. Leithanien historically used living arts wands. I read about it during my time there. Scary stuff. In those cases though, the people used inevitably died because they fully crystallized.”
“Correct, that’s the major hole in my theory,” I admitted.
“It has merit. Further research must be conducted,” Kal’tsit said. “However, we have a larger problem. Dr. McCoy’s infection has greatly increased in severity. His COA is at 12%, and his BOCD is at .39. He is still a stage 2 case, but this is accelerating rapidly. By current estimates, he can cure no more than one or two cases of similar severity before he dies.”
“Texas has a clean bill of health,” Amiya said, glancing at her sheet. “Her numbers are now at the level of impossible anomalies, such as Kjera. No cell integration, 0u/L. The oripathy isn’t just gone. It’s been annihilated.”
We all sat around in silence. It was a miracle. There was no other way to describe it. James had completely cured Cellinina Texas. He’d also manifested healing arts so potent that no one on record, not even the Witch King, Lateran Saints, or legendary Sarkaz Shamans had claimed such powers. He might not be able to bring back the dead, but he could completely reconstruct someone’s body.
“One thing,” Warfarin said, and all eyes turned to her. “I’ve crunched the numbers. He’s not infected enough.”
“Explain,” Kal’tsit said, eyes narrowing.
“Even accounting for his bigger mass, the amount of originium he should have taken in should have killed him, stone cold. Or, at the very least, infected him so much he was on death’s doorstep. But it manifestly didn’t. He’s not in good shape, but he’s kickin’, and should last a few decades with our best treatment. That said…based on his reaction to arts suppressors…I don’t know that our treatments are a good idea.”
“Put him in surgery,” Doctor said, and all eyes turned to him. “While I’m not a medical doctor, or at least I don’t think I am unless Kal’s been hiding something from me for a while now, I know enough to know that he’s a major asset. Full organ regrowth? Complete blood replacement? Put him in surgery and get him trained for field ops. This is the sort of thing that can not just turn the tide of a battle, but a war.”
“Always you see the potential for violence instead of deeper ramifications!” Kal’tsit snapped. “This man can change the entire world! Do you not know for how long humankind has sought to rid itself of the scourge of oripathy! Do you not realize that we have in our grasp an invaluable resource that can do more than simply win the next brutal conflict, but alter the course of history entirely?”
“Yeah, which is why everyone is going to be gunning for him,” Doctor said.
Silence met that statement. Even from Kal’tsit. We all knew, just from the short journey back to Rhodes Island, that people were willing to kill to get their hands on James. There was no possible way that once confirmation got out that not only was James capable of curing oripathy, but he possessed the strongest healing arts on record, that people would do nearly anything to get their hands on him. Including going to war. I was no historian or grand strategist, but I hazarded that this was the sort of thing empires could rise and fall over.
At last, Amiya stood. “I’m approving the onboarding of Dr. James McCoy, Codename Bones, as an operator for Rhodes Island working in the medical department. I haven’t shared this with the entire landship, or all the senior leadership. But at this point it’s going to be impossible to keep this quiet. We’re going to make a formal announcement for internal consumption only. We now have an operator who is capable of suppressing or curing oripathy, but only in limited capacity.”
“Let us hope he is able to somehow metabolize the originium. It is, theoretically, possible that he is able to do so. It is how our more advanced machines use originium as a fuel,” Kal’tsit said. “I would prefer longer to fully study Dr. McCoy’s abilities, but I fear that circumstances will push us to glean all we can from him during only a brief window of opportunity.”
“I think first we need to remember that James is a person, not just a tool,” I said, glaring around the room. It’s a bit hard for me to pull off. Frankly, I am one of the least intimidating people on the landship. There are literal children like Kay and Bubble who are far more imposing than I am. Still, I felt compelled to try to remind everyone that we were talking about a man. A good man, not just a lab experiment.
“I remind myself of that every day. Along with those we have lost,” Doctor said, standing and coming over to the screen I was by to peer at Texas’ image. For once, I was at eye level with them, and I got a glimpse of pale flesh and milky white eyes. Doctor turned to me. “Keep this one safe, Sussurro. He’s an asset, but don’t let him lose his humanity. We’ve had enough martyrs.”
With that, Doctor wandered off, apparently having said all he wished.
“I think perhaps we need not worry about Dr. McCoy losing his humanity. If anything, we must prevent his humanity from leading to his death,” Kal’tsit said. “I will make arrangements for his training. Both medically, and in regards to preparation for combat. It would be overly optimistic to believe that he will be able to avoid fighting at all. I fear that the Doctor is correct, and conflict will seek us out.”
“Yes,” Amiya agreed. “Already, there are those who would seek to destroy the Infected. If there is a chance for salvation, they will surely desire to control it for their own ends.”
With that, I was left alone with Warfarin and Gavial. I looked to my seniors, who both looked rather disturbed.
“That kid ain’t cut out for combat,” Gavial sighed, massaging her temple with her fingertips. “Frankly I think keeping him the hell out of it is the better solution.”
“You’re not going to be there to save his ass forever, Gavial. Doctor is right. The whole damn world is going to be coming for that kid, and not just because he doesn’t know when to shut the hell up,” Warfarin sighed.
“In James' defense, you told him to speak openly to you,” I said, frowning at her.
“There’s speaking openly and having no damn tact. Sheesh. We’re gonna have to keep an eye on him. Good work on that report, Sussurro. We’ll see if we can’t burn off some of that originium. If nothing else, having someone that skilled at healing arts will be an asset. At least this idiot is an interesting one.”
“I suppose,” I said as I gathered up my reports. “Do you think we’ll be able to develop new treatment methods based on what we’ve learned?”
“Too soon to tell, but I’ve got some ideas, at least. If we can get Bones to do his magic trick one or two more times with differing cases, that would be great. Too bad it would probably break him, but I’m sure if we tell him a baby purrbeast will die if he doesn’t he’ll get right on it,” Warfarin said, then cackled.
I saw red for a moment, and I’m not really sure where it came from, but the next thing I knew, my palm was stinging, and Warfrain’s eyes were wide, her head snapped to the side after I’d slapped her. “Patients are NOT experiments, Qassirah! But our colleagues are ESPECIALLY not your lab beasts! Grandmother’s fluffy tail, James IS going to die! Just like the rest of us Infected! And it’s our job to try to save him, not encourage him into an early grave!”
Warfarin blinked at him, touched her cheek, then spat out a little blood. Perhaps I’d hit her harder than I thought…
“Sorry, boss, but you deserved that,” Gavial said, stepping between the two of us. “Lucia, go cool your head, I’ll talk with Warfarin.”
“No, it’s fine,” Warfarin said, shaking her head. She grinned at me, showing bloody teeth. “Didn’t think you had it in you. Staking your claim on him, eh?”
“I’m claiming him as a human being, Qassirah. As my friend. And as a doctor, I’m claiming that we approach this ethically instead of as one of your mad experiments,” I hissed. I could feel my tail bristling. Saints and Angels, it was rare for me to lose my temper like this. But I was worn thin, and, well, this sort of attitude disgusted me on multiple levels. Not to mention I truly did consider James a friend. And not one I wanted to lose any time soon.
“Fine, fine. Kal would kill me if I tried anything too crazy with him. But I am going to be designing experiments. Need I remind you that we have Vitracline and Oxiomera because of my ‘mad experiments.’ Those Earthlings didn’t even miss the extra blood I took.”
“And you had consent when you harvested their blood. Even if you did drink a little,” Gavial said, folding her arms over her chest.
“Are you?” I demanded “Because you’re acting like you’re one of the monsters from the story I’ve heard as a child!”
That was probably a bit far, but my blood was up, and when you do manage to get me to lose my temper, I have just as much control over my tongue as James does.
Warfarin chuckled and shrugged. “You have horror stories told about you long enough, you tend to live up to them, Lucia. But this I can swear: nothing but Sangvita has crossed my lips in six years. It was the last promise I made to Theresa. And it’s one I will keep for the rest of my life, however long it will be.”
“To Theresa?” Gavial seemed baffled by that. “What, the sister of the Sarkaz King we dealt with in Londinium?”
“Huh, guess that blabbermouth managed to keep his lips sealed for once. Gavial, go tell Kal I’m giving you Babel level clearance. You're one of our Elite Operators, and after you called Babel, it’s only fair you know what you did,” Warfarin told her.
“Alright. But if I hear you’re bullying either Lucia or McCoy, I’m going to have a bone to pick with you, boss,” Gavial said, folding her arms over her chest. “Don’t make me dangle you out a window again.”
I shot Gavial a glance, but Warfarin just laughed. “I wasn’t actually going to dissect Kay, even if she did eat some things she shouldn’t have. But that idiot child hasn’t dared wander back into my lab, so I’d say it was effective. Anyway, we have work to do. Sussurro, go check on James before you pine away. I’ve got samples to analyze."
I watched Warfarin walk away, my senses still warning me I was in danger. “Did you really defenestrate her?”
“Do what now?”
“Try to drop her out a window.”
“Try nothing. I had her by the heel and would have dropped her just to see if vampires really can turn into a wingbeast. But Kay had eaten a bunch of samples, the feral idiot. That was back right after we found Kay in Bolivar, you were just an intern back then.”
“Ah.” I briefly wondered if James knew anything about Ceobe, but resolved not to ask him. It was something of an open secret in the medical department that Ceobe was actually not a Perro, but rather a Cerberus. She was probably much older than the teenager she appeared to be, but information on Cerberus is spotty. What I had learned was that Kay was the equivalent of an early adolescent, though she had just barely learned to read and write after a great deal of tutoring.
She was also something of an absolute terror on the battlefield. I’d watched battle records of her ripping apart Rhine Labs security mechs with her arts as casually as I’d pluck a fowlbeast. Then wag her tail and ask if that was worth ‘snackies.’
“Well, I’d best go check on James then,” I said, turning to go.
“Hey, Lucia, you holding a torch for the kid?” Gavial said, which made me freeze at the door. I turned to her cooly, trying to maintain my calm.
“He is a colleague, with whom I have shared some rather traumatic experiences. He is also a naive idiot who needs a senior attending to keep him from making too big a mess. I am simply looking out for his best interests.”
“Uh huh. Well, don’t do anything I wouldn’t,” Gavial said with a grin.
I rolled my eyes. “And that limits me in what regard? If half the escapades with coworkers and former patients you claim are true, you are rather busy.”
“Wasn’t trying to limit you! I’d live my life to the fullest, with no regrets! Gonna die sooner rather than later, so why leave anything on the table?” Gavial laughed.
I sniffed and departed, my heart beating a little faster. I had to ask myself, was I pining for James? No, I decided. I cared for him, but anything deeper were my idiotic bosses watching too many Siracusian soap operas in their free time.
Then I went and got the fresh Minestrone that had been cooking in Myrrh’s and I’s room, and brought it to James, reminding myself that Denile is not just a river in Sargon.
To my relief, James wasn’t still out cold, but sitting up and looking much better. Less to my relief was the fact that he was laughing with Exusiai about something. She was becoming a dear friend, but, well, perhaps I wasn’t the only one developing an interest in our resident miracle worker. Fine. I was a professional, and I could act like one.
“Good to see you’re awake, Dr. McCoy,” I said. “Feel up to eating? How about you, Lemuel?”
“Hey, Lucia. Oooo, what smells good?” Exusiai said, perking up as I entered.
“I could eat,” James said, smiling at me with that boyish grin of his. He looked a bit hollow eyed, and I checked his morphine drip as I handed him a thermos of soup. “I’m fine. I’ve seen enough addicts not to want to depend on a morphine drip. Save it for when I need to sleep. I can live with a little pain.”
“You’re in pain? I thought something was wrong,” Exusiai said, accepting her own thermos. “Maybe you should…”
“It’s fine,” James said, taking a sip. “Hey, this is more than fine! Thanks, Lucia, you made this yourself? Sure doesn’t taste like cafeteria food.”
Despite myself, I found my tail swishing back and forth in delight and my cheeks turning a bit red. Damn tail. It makes concealing your emotions that much harder. I’m not as bad as a Perro, but, well, we canines all suffer the tail give.
Even if mine is far fluffier and more attractive than some thin perro or lupo tail.
“I did, I thought you deserved a reward for a successful surgery,” I said, sipping at my own soup. Honestly, I immediately started dissecting it for flaws. It just doesn’t taste quite like Nonna Lulu’s minestrone. I can never get it quite right, no matter how I try. But, she’s been dead some 12 years, Saints and Angels guard her soul.
“Exusiai was just telling me Texas is already up and about. That’s good to hear,” James said with a grin. He sipped at his soup a bit, then casually said, “Hey, Lemuel, why don’t you take Texas some soup. She’d probably appreciate it, being Siracusian herself.”
“That’s a good idea! You’ll watch him, right Lucia?” Exusiai said, getting to her feet.
“Of course,” I agreed, and handed over the rest of the soup.
“Great! Back in a flash,” and our angel sped off. I hate to admit it, but she really is a lovely person. Most Sankta come off as, well, sanctimonious , or at least patronizing. But Exusiai never did, and her upbeat attitude was rather refreshing. I’m a bit of a natural pessimist, though I consider myself a realist.
“Alright,” James said, setting aside his thermos and lacing his fingers together. I’d noticed he did that when nervous or scared, so I had a good idea as to what he was about to ask. “What’s my prognosis?”
“You’ve cut years off your lifespan. Your COA has gone up to 12%, and your BOCD is at .39. That’s the sort of increase we usually see after years if someone’s on the proper treatments. You’re bordering on Stage 3. And once you hit stage 3…management can only do so little. If you don’t stop and focus on your health…you’ll be dead shortly. I’m sorry, James.”
I took his hand and squeezed it. He was uncharacteristically silent, looking down at his other palm, where his new lesions were visible. He flexed his fingers a little, closing his eyes and grimacing.
“I’m turning up your morphine drip,” I told him.
He didn’t fight me this time, just nodding. I pushed 15 milligrams of morphine, and James’ taut expression quickly relaxed, and he sighed in obvious relief.
“Am I being an idiot, Lucia?” He asked, opening his eyes.
“Perhaps. But you’re being a very noble one,” I said, my voice hitching a little.
“I know it might not seem like it…but I don’t want to die,” James admitted quietly. “But…but if I saw someone else I cared about, dying of oripathy…I don’t know. I might…do something really stupid.”
“Just, wait. We’re analyzing the samples. And…and there’s hope, James,” I told him, then explained my theory that he was burning off the originium in his system, albeit slowly.
He brightened at hearing that. “Really? You think so? But wait, I thought arts use exacerbated the condition.”
“Ordinarily, yes. Which is why we’ll take this slow. Have you use your arts in a controlled setting. Our hospital and ER are constantly busy. Not only is this a city with 10,000 people, but we have a steady stream of people who come to the landship for treatment. Not just those suffering from oripathy either. Rhodes Island has a reputation as the best medical treatment available, and, well, we are a PMC. On an average day, we get multiple battle wounded coming in who need treatment. Not to mention the standard injuries you’d expect in a small city with major industrial centers.
James nodded at that. “Alright. It’s worth a shot. And besides, I’ll at least be getting in my trauma rotation as a resident. I’m going to become a doctor, even if it kills me. Eh? Eh?”
“It would be funnier if I hadn’t done exactly the same thing,” I sighed. “Well, you’ll just have to stick around to keep me from killing myself either.”
“Sounds like a plan. We’ll do it together,” James said. “Oh, that reminds me. I’m really struggling with something and need your help.”
I won’t lie, my heart both skipped a beat, and a sense of existential dread washed over me. What had this idiot done now, and was I really the first person he turned to for help?
“I’m really struggling to get past wave 40. It might be just because I have the dogshit free races, but I think it’s because my mazes suck. I’ve tried experimenting with different formats, but I’d like your feedback,” the colossal idiot said.
I laughed in relief that this wasn’t him deciding how he was going to try curing all the patients in the critical ward. “Oh, really? Show me.”
“Well, I started with a basic row maze, but that seemed inefficient, so I’ve been trying to build a spiral, but I don’t think it’s the most optimal…”
We spent far too long talking about how to build hook double spirals and diagonal switchbacks, along with which races were best for mazing (and thus the easiest starter races) and which complimented them as secondary races. I also went on about abusing certain mechanics to eek out an even higher score, which James absolutely lapped up. I think I might have a new challenger to my throne, once he gets the better premium races unlocked after his first paycheck.
It was…fun. Some of the most fun I’ve had in a while.
I had better not be an idiot about this. James is going to be dead inside a year if he keeps this up. I’ll have to keep his head on straight, and mine as well.
Anyway, I’m looking through my grandmother’s recipe book and wondering where I went wrong with my life.
I spent the day in bed not doing much but trying to get better. They did let me get up to use the can at least. It was highly embarrassing, because believe it or not, fucking MYRTLE is my nurse!
When I hit the button for assistance, it was her who strolled in, wearing properly fitting scrubs and with a proper nametag and everything. She still looked like a kid, with long auburn hair and green eyes and a wrinkle free face. I think she must be an adult if they're letting her be a nurse, but with Terran Child Labor laws…who knows. “Hello, I’m-”
“Myrtle?!” I gasped, unable to hide my shock.
“Yep, it’s me! Lucia, I mean, Dr. Sussurro must have told you about me, huh? Well, little apple and I are here to help!” she said brightly, holding up the golden apple in question.
“I, uh, wow, guess they’re sending their best to take care of me,” I said, feeling a little dizzy. I mean, Myrtle might be a 4★, but she puts out 7★ levels of power. Shit, I used her more for max risk CC than I did any other operator!
“Yep! It’s time to change your catheter. Unless you think you can get up to go to the bathroom, they said you can try that today,” Myrtle said brightly.
With the option being a damn loli dwarf sticking a tube up my dick or manning up and crawling out of bed, I crawled out of bed.
The other thing I did was play Wintermaul Wars. It was an interesting tower defense, more like an arcade game, really. You picked either multiplayer or solo play, then got chose a builder. The free builders were fire, ice, lightning, stone, and poison, with a dozen or so other races that were some sort of premium content. The way this game worked was you had an initial starting amount of resources, and could build static towers as defense. Enemies would spawn on one end of your “lane” and try to run to the other side. You lost a life every time an enemy crossed into your endzone, and the number of lives you got varied by difficulty level.
You could also build a maze with your towers, which I quickly learned was necessary to survive more than the first few waves. Each race of towers had different effects, like ice slowed your enemies, fire did more AOE damage, lightning had cheap towers good for mazing, stone hit hard but was expensive, and poison did DOT damage. After 20 levels, you got to pick a second race, which made it so that there were a lot of different combinations to try. It was pretty fun, and I was soon getting to harder waves. I tried some PVP and even didn’t do too badly, though PVP threw in the wrinkle that you could spend resources on building towers or attacking your foes by sending additional enemies, launching a sapper that could destroy their towers, or giving them some sort of temporary debuff.
It’s a good way to waste time, but when I looked at the highscores, the name at the top stood out. TinyTerror. That had to be Sussurro. Her high score was insane, 101,172 points!? I was barely scoring over 30k! Guess I needed to see about unlocking some of those premium races…but how to get money?
Guess I better apply for employment.
Entry 15, Day 33
I am officially bored of convalescing. Exusiai has been spending more time away now that I’m awake, and I can’t say that I blame her. Sitting here with me can’t be all that interesting, as all I do is nap, hobble to the bathroom, and play Wintermaul. The highlight of the day was when Ash and Tachanka came to visit me.
“Ah, Bones, you are awake!” Tachanka boomed. It took me a minute to recognize him, as he didn’t have his helmet on. He wasn’t a looker, I’ll tell you that, with bluff, scared features, hair that was more grey than brown, cauliflower ears, and a nose that had been broken more than once.
“Hey, good to see you,” I said, pausing my game and setting the tablet aside. “Thanks for saving my ass back there.”
“No problem, we is being glad to be doing it,” Tachanka said. “Here! I would be bringing you vodka, but they are saying you are too sick. Instead, I bring apple juice. Small doctor says can be having that.”
I accepted the juice box and took a sip. It was pretty good actually, as my diet was still very restricted. I was on solid foods, but it was all bland stuff fit for someone healing from major trauma. “Thanks, big guy. And you, Miss Ash.”
“Eliza, we’re not on duty,” she said with a nod to me.
“I am Alexsandr, call me Alex,” Tachanka said, taking a seat alongside Ash at my bedside.
“Please, call me James. I hate that damn nickname,” I said with a sigh.
“Is good nickname then. I was hating mine when I was first getting it,” Tachanka laughed.
“That’s not quite why we came here though,” Ash said, folding her hands and crossing her legs. “So. Alex says you’re from Earth, but came here a different way.”
“I…yeah. It’s not your Earth though,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Oh?” my guests exchanged looks. “Go on.”
“Well…” I thought about what Kal’tsit said, and what Sussurro kept telling me. Honestly, I was feeling a lot less stressed, which did make it easier to think about what I said before I said it. “I’m not sure how much I can say, it’s probably going to end up super duper classified. But suffice to say, I know it’s not the same world, because, well, I know about you. All of you, actually. Not much beyond your names, well, call signs, but I know you’re a part of some black ops team called Rainbow Six, and you ended up in Terra because…I think some scientist found some originium somehow?”
“That’s about as much as is safe to say, maybe more,” Ash said with a nod. “Glad to see you got that tongue of yours pegged down.”
“Have you ever been in situation where life is at risk before?” Tuchanka asked, sounding curious.
“No, I’ve always been a bit of a blabbermouth, but that was worse than usual. Plus…I think I was suffering some sort of psychotic break from arts overdose. Not an excuse I guess, but it does explain why I couldn’t shut the hell up.”
“I’ve seen people with years of training and even some field ops under their belts break under pressure on missions that were less terrifying than that op,” Ash said in a consoling manner.
“You are being young, I think. What are you, 25?” Tuchanka asked.
“Twenty six, just graduated from Medical school, was supposed to start my residency at Saint Francis in San Francisco. Then…I got truck-kun’d. Always thought that was just a meme…” I trailed off into silence, looking blankly at the wall.
A hand rested on my shoulder, and I blinked to find Tachanka giving me a grandfatherly look. “It is being hard, being ripped from all that you know and love. Eliza, myself…we were prepared for death. Me, I am old man. Thought the black dog would be catching me long ago. You? You are young. A doctor. You are thinking you can fight death still.”
“I don’t know about that anymore,” I said, looking down at my hands. “A lot…a lot of people died, to get me here.”
I tried to not let the tears come, but they did anyway. I figured I looked like a bitch in front of these two hard asses, but to my surprise, Ash handed me a tissue.
“Let it out, Bones. I’ve had ops where we saved almost all the hostages. But it’s the almost that keeps me up at night.”
“I am old and tired. I drink vodka to forget. For there are many things I am not wanting to remember,” Tachanka sighed. Then he smiled. “But, you are bringing me new grandson, yes?”
“I…what?” I said, blinking back the tears.
“Andrey! He and my grandaughter Lada are being good friends already! She is teaching him to be cook. Is good! He should do something useful with life. Not pick up gun like an old dog like me.”
“Lada?” I racked my brain for a moment, then said, “Oh, you mean Gummy.”
“Yes, you are knowing her as well?” Tachanka asked, sounding curious.
“Know is a strong word, but…” I shuddered. “I…well. Let’s just say there are some stories I wish I didn’t know, and the Children of Ursus is one of them.”
“Ah.” Tachanka went quiet, and Ash looked disturbed, which was saying something.
“Those girls have had it rough. Lada…well. I hope it was her class pet she ate, and not…” Ash trailed off.
“Best to not be thinking of such things. And not breathing word of it to Andrey. He is having nightmares enough,” Tachanka said grimly. “Lada, Sonya, Natalya, Anna, and Rosalinda, they are good girls. They did what was needed to survive. I am understanding that.”
“You’re…close with them?” I said, recalling the Youtube synopsis of Children of Ursus I had watched. I didn’t think that Gummy was a cannibal…and I preferred that level of delusion in my life.
“The big softy calls them his grandaughters. He sponsored Sonya and Natalya to go to university in Columbia,” Ash said, giving Tachanka a fond smile.
“Vodka is cheap. Will not be staying here anyway. What good is money to me, eh?” he said gruffly, but I could see he was smiling. “Am helping Svelta and her boys as well. She is adopting Andrey. Good woman. Is getting job at shop here on landship. Many people, they are being very happy to see her. Many infected escaped Ursus because of her.”
That made me feel sick again. “And a lot won’t now, because of me. Like Dr. Medvedev…”
“Don’t look at it like that, Bones,” Ash said with a firm shake of her head. “Count the ones you did save. Hell, you’re a doctor. So you’ve got some red in your ledger. We all do. But Empress Hildegard let you go because you’ve been crossing it out. Just keep doing that.”
“Earn it,” I said, and tried not to sound bitter.
“Can tell self that,” Tachanka said. “But is heavy burden. Do not do that. Live for something else besides vodka and ledgers. Find nice woman. Have children. Raise family. That is worth living for.”
“Yeah, I guess…” I fiddled with my sheets a bit. “There’s no way back home, is there?”
“We’re still looking,” Ash said with a tired smile. “But we’ve been here three years now, Ela and her squad more than a year. You were our best lead.”
“Well, I don’t think my method of transfer is one you want to pursue. I don’t recommend getting run over,” I said, and forced a laugh.
“Eh, is not so bad. I am having grandchildren, I am having my squad, and now, I am having you, James. We is keeping in touch, yes?” Tachanka said, and held out a callused hand.
I took it, and to my surprise, he didn’t try and crush me. He wasn’t a dead fish, but he didn’t feel the need to try and prove his strength either. He already knew he was strong.
“Thank you, sir. It’s good to hear from, well, maybe not someone from home, but a fellow Earthling. You too, ma’am.”
“Ma’am? I’m not that much older than you, Bones,” Ash laughed, but she shook my hand as well. “Shalom, James.”
“Shalom,” I said with a nod. Huh, didn’t realize she was Jewish. “Keep in touch.”
“We’ll be around the landship for a while. Maylander has twigged that something’s up, and they want eyes on you. If you really can…well. Let’s just say we may yet live to see interesting times,” Ash said with a shrug.
“Oh boy. My favorite.”
Still can’t beat Sussurro’s high score on Wintermaul. I need to get those damn premium races!
Entry 16, Day 34
Sussurro brought me dinner tonight, and I have to say, I am starting to understand what they say about Italian women. Or in this case, Siracusa, because hot damn can she cook. It wasn’t anything fancy, pasta al limone, but it was creamy, tangy, and very, very delicious.
“This is incredible! Easily the best italian food I’ve ever had,” I told her after eagerly slurping down some of the noodles.
“Funny, because it’s Siracusian, James,” she said, her ears flicking slightly, though she was smiling as well.
“Oh, right, sorry. It’s just…never mind,” I said, looking back down at my plate. “It’s really good.”
“I’m aware that several Terran cultures match up with ones from your homeworld, don’t worry,” she told me. “Just…be careful.”
“Yeah,” I said, and took a few more bites. I looked over at her, and frowned slightly.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t scold you too much, just enjoy the meal,” she told me.
“No, it’s alright, I was just thinking…this is going to be the rest of my life, isn’t it?”
“If you should be so fortunate. I’m a busy woman, I can’t cook for you every night,” Sussurro said with a laugh.
“No, no! Not that, I mean…this place, here, Rhodes Island,” I gestured to the room. “This is it. Even if I could go home…I can’t. Morally, I mean. Shit, if I can cure oripathy…I’ll miss my family, especially my dad, we were always tight, but…no. I’ve gotta say here. I want to stay here, I guess.”
“Ah.” Sussurro set her plate aside, and looked worried. “Yes, that. I was going to talk to you about that. Dr. Kal’tsit left it to my discretion, but when I judge you fit for duty…we’re going to start the onboarding process. It was indicated that it’s…less than voluntary.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I’m volunteering then, huh?” I said, pasting on my dopey-est grin. “For eats like this, who wouldn't?”
“Still, you should be given a choice. The rest of us chose to be here,” Sussurro pointed out.
“Did you, though?” I asked, and she frowned at me, so I clarified. “Look, you’re infected. Most everyone here is too. They’re not here because they want to be, but because in Ursus they send you to the gulag, and even in more enlightened places like Columbia they ship you off to the colonies. Rhodes Island is the only place you can come and still be human.”
“I…” Sussurro sighed, her ears drooping slightly. “I wish that were less true. Even in Siracusa, if you can’t pay the exorbitant health insurance fees…it’s banishment. Which may as well be a death sentence. And of course, if you are infected…it’s hard to find a decent job.”
“Well, fuck that. That’s why we became doctors,” I said, and held out my hand. “So yeah. I’m on board. Maybe I can’t cure oripathy. But we can at least try.”
Sussurro took my hand and shook it. “Well then, welcome aboard Rhodes Island, Doctor McCoy.”
Entry 17, Day 35
After a bunch of medical tests, Sussurro gave the OK for me to start the onboarding process. To my surprise, it wasn’t someone from HR who came by to onboard me, but rather, Warfarin herself.
“So, they’re going to give you to me, are they, my pretty?” she purred, her red eyes glowing in the dim light as she stood in the door.
“Oh give it up. I know you’re just a theater kid at heart who’s actually a big softie,” I told her.
“Am I?” Warfarin asked, her fangs barred as she stepped closer. “I have something of a different reputation on the landship.”
“One I’m sure you work quite hard to maintain, but I know who hired you in the first place, and I trust her judgement of character,” I said, folding my arms over my chest.
“And who might that be,” Warfarin purred.
I opened my mouth, then thought a moment. “You’re uh, cleared for the ‘weird alien knowledge,’ right?”
“Like the fact that apparently you think we’re all characters in one of those video games that you children are so obsessed with?” Warfarin snorted. “Honestly. I never understood the appeal.”
“Oh right, you’re really like 500 years old or something. I think you’re even in Endfield, though I didn’t get into the beta test,” I mused.
“Endfield?” Warfarin said with a frown. “What on Terra…?”
“No, actually, you guys breach the false sky, and you guys end up on another planet in the Talos System to-”
Warfarin was instantly in my face, her eyes wide, grabbing my hospital gown in both hands. “Say again!?”
“You, uh, leave Terra to found a colony on another planet? But not for like, 200 years or something,” I gasp.
Warfarin set me down, looking dazed. She slowly pulled up a chair and sat, gazing off into the middle distance. And I kid you not, a tear slid down her cheek. “Then…then it’s true. I…I get to see the sky again…”
“Uh, yeah. I guess Kirsten Wright really did manage to kick off the space age after Lone Trail,” I said.
“Kristen. Not Kirsten. But…hmm. You do have some weird alien knowledge. That has been my fondest wish since I was but a girl in Kazdel during the reign of King Yliš. Ah, I remember studying at the royal court, looking up at the sky and…” Warfarin’s eyes glazed over a moment. Then she shook her head and regarded me sourly. “I had given up on all that. Foolish, to dream of the stars when there is so much suffering to see here. That’s the lesson I learned from that fool Yliš, and a mistake I vowed never to make myself.”
“Well then, let’s cure oripathy or at least give it a good spanking,” I said, meeting her eye.
She cocked her head to one side. “Huh. Guess you’re still one then. I’d have figured you’d have been cured after what you saw in Ursus and Leithanien.”
“Still what now?”
“An idiot optimist. The world sucks, kid, and if it doesn’t drain you dry, me or one of my kin will, and toss your bones to the fangbeasts,” she humphed, and dug out a pair of glasses from her jacket and perched them on her nose. “Right, we got a lot of stuff to fill out, twice. Once on the official forms that you’re going to lie your ass off about, and the other on the files that no one but me, Kal, and Amiya get to look at.”
“What about the Doctor?” I asked automatically.
“What about them?” Warfarin said, peering at me over the rims of her spectacles.
“Is he, you know…uh, read into the program? Since, you know, he’s like…the field commander and stuff?”
“Doctor ain’t a he, unless Kal’s hiding something from the rest of us. Though that wouldn’t be the first time. They won’t get mad at you if you call them a he, in fact it’s pretty damn hard to piss them off, trust me I try every day, but it won’t do you any favors either. Call them Doctor.”
“Ok, but, that doesn’t answer my question, even if they’re nonbinary,” I said, feeling both exasperated and rather intrigued. I’d always thought of the Doctor as male, because, well, they were me. But now…now the Doctor was someone very different.
“Oh, well, in that case, ask Kal. Doctor is on a strictly need to know basis, and most everything about you no one needs to know.”
“Huh. You were with Babel, right?” I asked, stretching back my game lore knowledge, which mostly came from /r/0sanitymemes.
And, uh, the other subreddit, that I am very grateful my phone was destroyed before anyone saw just how much browsing I did there. And I don’t mean the main subreddit.
“Kid, you have got to learn to keep your damn mouth shut,” Warfarin hissed, glaring at me from behind her glasses, which shone ominously. I quailed, and she sighed, taking them off. “Look. The kitty is out of the bag on the fact that Doctor was involved in Babel. How much do you know?”
“Not everything. But that he, they, raised Amiya alongside…well. Theresa. Um, I hate to ask, but, er…has Londinium happened yet?”
“Almost two years ago now,” Warfarin said with a slow nod. “I assume you’re referring to the Crisis we were heavily involved in, against my better judgement, that resulted in Siege getting herself declared Speaker of Londinium. A lot came out of that, including me being involved in Babel, and, well, who Doctor was. But that’s mostly only known by the top brass openly, so don’t go spreading it around, you hear?”
“Right, so, uh, if I see Civilite Eterna, I should just pretend-”
I found myself pinned to the wall again, sharp fangs pressed against my skin. Not hard enough to draw blood, but enough to let me very firmly know they could if I breathed wrong. After a pause, they withdrew, and I found manic red eyes boring into my own.
“What. Do you know,” Warfarin hissed.
“That Civilite Eterna is another name for the Black Crown which is the symbol of the king of Sarkaz and Theresa gave it to Amiya before she died back in Babel but no one probably knew that and then after she got her medic form when she battled Theresa’s soul in the Matrix Amiya was acknowledged as King of Sarkaz even though she’s not a Sarkaz or really even a cautus but probably more of a chimera but then you get Civilite Eterna as an operator and even though she’s a knock off version of Skalter she’s still pretty good especially for a welfare but I wasn’t clear if she like actually joined the landship or if Amiya just wore her like a hat and oh hi Sussurro and Exusiai I was running my mouth again please don’t kill Warfarin!”
“Put him down, vampire,” Exusiai said coldly, her gun pointed straight at Warfarin’s head, finger on the trigger. They’d stepped into the room halfway into my rant, and apparently Warfarin had been too focused on my inane babbling to notice.
“Dr. Warfarin, I am going to have to insist you set James down,” Sussurro said, her voice surprisingly firm. “Even if he is perhaps saying more than he should again.
Warfarin closed her eyes, grimacing in annoyance. “How much did you hear?”
“I didn’t hear that our dear leader is apparently the king of my race’s most ancient enemy, which is perhaps why Bones was so insistent on me not being a racist ass,” Exusiai said, the normal chipperness from her tone replaced by a terrifying chill.
Warfarin slowly lowered me until I was able to stand on wobbly legs, and turned around to face the other two women. “You can’t breathe a word of this. To anyone. The only people who know about this can be counted on both hands. SWEEP, me, Kal’stit, Amiya, Doctor, and apparently now this idiot and you two.”
“I thought I was supposed to tell you about my weird alien knowledge!” I gasped, massaging my throat. “You told me to! Next time, I ain’t saying shit unless Sussurro and Exusiai are there!”
“Would that I thought you had such self control,” Warfarin growled. She studied Exusiai and Sussurro. “Sankta, I do not care for your kind. Santimonius assholes, the lot of you. The Law and the Curia cannot be allowed to learn of this. If they had the opportunity to assassinate a nascent king of Kazdel, especially one with the sort of forces Amiya has at her control…they would take it.”
Exusiai swallowed, and slowly lowered her gun. “I…I’m not a heretic. But…” she shot me a pleading look. “James?”
“I…” I looked at Warfarin. “...I need to have a talk with Kal’stit. Preferably with Sussurro there. But…you can’t trust the Law, or the…Curia? The ruling council. You can maybe trust the Pope, he seems like an upstanding dude. But…you can trust Amiya. Even, or perhaps especially, if she’s the King of Sarkaz.”
Exusiai sagged, and slowly nodded. “I…yeah. Ok. But whatever that weird alien knowledge you have about me and the Sankta…please, trust me James. Just…tell me, OK?”
“I want to, but…I think I’ve gotta talk to someone who actually knows all this because she was there first,” I admitted. “And probably Lucia too.”
“Glad to hear you trust your doctor that much, but I don’t know that I need to be read into all the deepest darkest secrets of the world,” Sussurro said in too light tones. I could tell from how her tail was bristling she was not happy, though for once, that didn’t seem to be directed at me.
“Well, Sankta?” Warfarin demanded, her fingers seeming to take on the shape of claws as she hunched as if to prepare for a leap at Exusiai’s throat.
“I don’t trust you, vampire. But I trust James, and I trust Amiya.” Exusiai turned her gun so that it was pointed at her own heart, hands folded over it, and solemnly said, “I swear by my Patron and Halo that I, Lemuel of Penguin Logistics, will speak not a word of this to a living soul, not even the Pope or the Law itself, until I am so released by Director Kal’tsit of Rhodes Island. Or may my Patron abandon me and my Halo dim.”
Said halo flashed brightly three times, and Warfarin and Sussurro both were staring at Exusiai open mouthed. After a moment, Warfarin slowly closed her jaw, then nodded. “I…would not have required such an oath. But since it is given…I accept these words. May the Law guide you and your Patron preserve you, Lemuel.”
“You…you know the ancient words?” Exusiai said, holstering her gun and looking shocked.
“Please. I may not be old enough to have been there when they were written, but we vampires have long memories, especially when it comes to…well. You are not my hated foe, Lemuel. I am Qassirah of the Vampires. We meet in peace, and may we depart in peace.”
Then, Warfarin pricked her own finger on her fang, a scarlet drop of blood appearing there. She held it out, and to Exusiai’s shock, marked the Sankta’s forehead with it. “I mark you with my scent and seal, Lemuel, that others may know you are under my aegis.”
She did the same for me, then Sussurro, and stepped back. After a moment, she laughed. “Ha! You have me acting like a superstitious old biddy. Right, Sussurro, you handle the damn onboarding. I’m going to find Kal and rip her damn ears off. Setting me up like this, she knows something fucky is going on!”
With that, Warfarin stalked out, leaving the three of us alone.
“So, uh, first, sorry about that, second, what just happened? I get that I was just a part of some sort of religious ritual, but I would like some context.”
“You just witnessed a Sankta and a Vampire exchange their most sacred oaths to one another,” Sussurro said, sitting down heavily and looking poleaxed. “Something that hasn’t happened in…”
“Since the first stone of the Tower of Revelation was laid, as far as I know,” Exusiai said, sounding rather dazed herself. “No one…no one’s ever sworn themselves to a vampire. I just…James…is Amiya really…?”
I looked at Sussurro, who just shrugged. “In for a centesimo, in for a florin.”
“To the best of my knowledge, yes. She’s the true King of Sarkaz. Though, uh, her not being full Sarkaz means that this is…problematic,” I admitted. “Though I don’t fully grasp all of it to be really honest. There was this one meme going around, about how to be Pope of Laterano, you have to be fluent in 12 languages, memorize all the scriptures, immaculate drip, a great beard, be 6’3”, and you know, be Sankta. The requirements to be Sarkaz king were to be Sarkaz, but it was optional.”
“You think Yvangelista XI has…drip?” Exusiai said, cocking her head to one side.
“That’s what you got out of this?” Sussurro said, giving Exusiai an exasperated look.
“I mean, it’s just…those pope robes are like a thousand years old! That’s not drip, that’s tradition! My messenger clothes have more drip than those stuffy old things!” Exusiai protested.
“I don’t know why I even put up with you people,” Sussurro said, flicking the papers in front of her. “If you don’t have any further earth shattering revelations, perhaps we can get started.”
“I mean I think I’ve probably got at least a few more but we can save the fact that I’m secretly an alien from another dimension for later,” I said.
Exusiai scooted her chair into a corner and started cleaning her guns while blasting hiphop again, which seemed to be her way of dealing with stress. Sussurro helped me fill out all the “official” documents, in which I was a an Aegir from Trimounts in Columbia. Maylander had fabricated a backstory for me, which I found odd for a detective agency. Then again, Tin Man had dropped a few hints in his voice lines that maybe there was more to Maylander than met the eye.
Guess I didn’t know everything. Though I’m still wary of Maylander. I thought they were the damn Pinktertons.
“So, Oripathy simply doesn’t exist on your world, and there’s only one race?” Sussurro asked as she jotted some things down. “I’ve heard it before, but I just don’t know if I can believe it.”
“I mean, we say there’s other races, but it’s really just different skin tones of people. It’d be like you being called a different race of vulpo because you have pink fur,” I said. Sussurro had dyed her fur back to pink a couple of days ago, leaving behind the brown job she’d been forced into in Ursus.
“My hair isn’t naturally pink, James. It’s naturally red. I dye it,” Sussurro said, sounding rather amused.
“Oh! Uh, didn’t realize,” I admitted. I glanced over at Exusiai, who had cherry red hair herself. “What hair colors are natural, anyway?”
“I lighten my hair a couple of shades, it’s naturally more of a rusty red,” Exusiai said, looking up from reassembling one of her sub machine guns. “Red and pink hair are pretty common amongst Sankta, actually. But it’s also normal to dye your hair to a new color. Bright ones are the most popular.”
“I used to frost my tips in junior high, but I haven’t had more than a basic bitch haircut in a while,” I admitted. My light brown hair is usually pretty messy. I keep it kinda short, but it’s gotten a bit long because I haven’t seen a barber in a while. “Actually, I could use a haircut. Too bad I’m broke as hell.”
“Hmm, I think we can work something out, you’re set to be discharged tomorrow. Honestly, we probably didn’t need to keep you as long as we did, but we’re being overly cautious,” Sussurro admitted.
“Oh, uh…where do I stay? It’s not like I can pay for an apartment,” I admitted.
“You’re an employee now, so you’ll be assigned a cabin. You’re a…special case, so you’ll be given a solo cabin, next to Texas and Exusiai’s.”
“The cabins aren’t too bad. A bit cramped, this is just a landship instead of a full city, but it’s not so bad,” Exusiai said with a nod.
“Food is provided free of charge to all employees as part of your compensation package, as are most services on the landship. Some things are extra money, like booze, hair cuts, and some luxury items, but Susie has a standing policy that everyone’s first haircut is free. We’ll take you by tomorrow,” Sussurro promised.
“Hey, speaking of Texas…how is she doing?”
Exusiai and Sussurro’s expressions immediately fell, and Exusiai started crying. I sat up, horrified. “No, she’s not…did she die?!”
“Texas did some very stupid things in the battle,” Sussurro said quietly. “She pushed her body and arts further than anyone should. And…and she was taking Amp-X.”
“You mentioned that, some sort of arts amplifier? You gave me some,” I pointed out.
“Yes. But you’re already infected.” Sussurro took a deep breath. “Amp-X is an originium based arts amplifier. It’s highly illegal, but it’s very popular amongst Sarkaz mercenaries because of how much of a power boost it gives you, even if the consequences are…severe.”
“Wait, originium based, you mean-”
“Texas infected herself,” Sussurro said grimly. “When questioned about it, she stated that she had sworn her blood and honor to protect you. Additionally, by straining her arts so heavily at the same time as she contracted oripathy…her case has progressed quite severely. She’s in intensive care.”
I stood up, throwing off the cables and ripping my IV right out. “Well fuck that. Get Kal’tsit and Warfarin. Now.”
“James?” Exusiai said, jumping up, her expression hopeful. “Do you mean you will-”
“You’re damn right I will, and don’t you fucking tell me I can’t,” I said, glaring at Sussurro.
She regarded me for a moment. “You realize that this could exacerbate your own condition. It could kill you, James. We don’t fully understand what’s happening to you.”
“And I get that. But I’m not going to let Cellinia die! How bad is her case?”
“Not terminal, yet. But oripathy is always terminal. She’s Stage 2 already. She was taking a lot of Amp-X, and that much arts use…it stimulates orginium growth. Her outlook, if she immediately halts Amp-X use and follows a healthy lifestyle, is ten to twenty years before symptoms become so severe that she enters stage 3. After that…another decade at most.”
“Fuck that noise. She swore to protect me, but that comes with responsibilities on my end, too. Now it’s my turn to protect her,” I said firmly. “Get them. Tell them I’m not asking permission to do this, but if they want their damn data…now is the time. Where are my pants?”
Exusiai tossed me my clothes, and Sussurro went over to the phone and placed a few calls while I dressed. No shame this time, even if Exusiai was watching me, a look of hope on her face that was, well…heart breaking.
“Did you know she was taking Amp-X?” I asked her.
She shook her head tearfully. “She’s used arts amplifiers before, but always the safer, less potent kinds. Those can still cause complications, but not oripathy.”
I strode out, Exusiai leading the way and Sussurro scampering along beside me. I noticed, and slowed my pace so that she wasn’t having to sprint to keep up with me. I’ve got long legs, being 6’ and all, while she’s like 4’8”.
“Don’t stop, I can keep up,” she told me, her teeth gritted. I picked up the pace a little, but didn’t go back to my full stride.
We found a familiar face waiting for us, Gavial with a grim expression. “So, they finally told you, huh? Figured you’d find out eventually. You sure you know what you’re doing, kid?”
“No, but since when have I let that stop me?” I said, pulling up short and looking down on her. She was dressed in a labcoat and green scrubs, with her hair loose about her shoulders instead tied up in braids like they’d been in the field.
She regarded me for a moment, then jerked her head towards the door. “Don’t start until we’re ready, but I’ll go to bat for you, kid.”
I went inside, and found Texas, looking pale and wan, asleep in the bed. Her ears were drooping, and her hair looked dull and lifeless, though it was spread out in a sweaty halo about her. Right at that moment, she didn’t look like the legendary deadly assassin and master of combat arts. She looked like she was at death’s door. I checked her chart and the machines, and grimaced.
“COA 5%, lesions on her thigh and abdomen where she was injecting herself. BOCD is .23. Shit, that’s bad. And symptoms of a major arts overdose, not to mention numerous internal injuries as well as major external ones as well.”
“She got beat to hell and back,” Exusiai said soberly. “But she kept on fighting. Somehow.”
Texas stirred, her ears flicking and one eye opening. “Exu? Bones?”
“I’m here, Texas,” Exusiai said, taking her friend’s hands. “Bones is too. He’s going to help you.”
Texas grimaced, and tried to sit up. “Don’t…worry…about me. I’m…I’m the one who protects you.”
“With this?” I demanded, and held up a vial that Exusiai had given me. “Are you for real?”
Texas glanced at the empty vial of Amp-X, then shrugged. “Made a promise. Had…had to keep it.”
“Well you then your autistic ass better listen to me, Cellinia Texas. Because if you pull this kind of stupid ass stunt again, I’m liable to kill myself to save your life. No, don’t open your mouth, this is listening time, not talking time. I’m your doctor, dammit, and your friend. I am not going to sit by and watch you suffer and die just to keep me safe. So next time, either find another way, or ask for some goddamn help! You are not an island, missy, and you’ve got me, Sussurro, Exusiai, and the rest of Penguin Logistics right here to help you! Do you understand?”
Texas nodded weakly. “Yes.”
I turned around to find the room was now rather crowded. Kal’tsit was there, so was Warfarin, but also Amiya, Myrtle, and Folinic, I think? Hard to tell, they were all masked and gloved up.
“Well, Dr. Murphy, it seems you are going to insist on testing your abilities before I had planned,” Kal’tsit said, her voice muffled by her mask. “A suggestion, however? It would be best to do this in surgery instead of a hospital room.”
“Right,” I nodded. “I wasn’t planning on just ripping it out of her. Sussurro’s described the process to you?”
“She has,” Warfarin agreed. “And we’re going to run tests on both of you before and after. And get this whole thing recorded.
Myrtle’s eyes were wide, and she was staring right at me, but she had a hand held camera ready to go.
“Let’s do this properly then,” I said. “You get whatever you need set up, set up. And, um, I…might have to get a little naked for this. Her too.”
“I am not attracted…to men,” Cellinia said, her eyes closed. “Even if I am certain you are…objectively conventionally…attractive.”
“Don’t be gross, Texas. It would be a major HIPAA violation, or, uh, whatever we have here, for me to make this even slightly sexual,” I told her.
“That was…a joke,” she said, a faint smile on her lips.
“Very good. Lemuel, you will wait in the observation room. Dr. Gavial, escort her there. The rest of you, prep Miss Texas for surgery. Dr. Murphy, you will come with me,” Kal’tsit said.
I nodded and followed after her while the team sprang into motion, getting Texas wheeled into the various tests before they would get her ready for surgery.
Kal’tsit took me to an office that was rather spartan, save for a few plants and what looked like odd mementos on the wall or on small pedestals. She sat me down in a chair, then pushed her own chair around the desk and sat beside me.
“Well. You have the air of a young man on a crusade. One that will not be dissuaded from his chosen path, no matter how foolhardy. So I shall not attempt to dissuade you. But I will ensure you are fully aware of the potential consequences of your actions. Do you understand what originium, and oripathy are?”
I opened my mouth to say yes, then thought about it. Man, talk about character development. “Let’s assume that I know less than you.”
Was that a small smile I detected? Maybe Kal’tsit had a sense of humor after all.
“A wise assumption. I will not get into the metaphysical aspects-”
“Like how it’s clarktech designed to terraform the planet or something?” I blurted.
Kal’tsit paused, studying me. I swallowed. “I’m, uh, feeling a little stressed. And, well, if I can blab to anyone…”
“Why do we not begin by outlining what you do know, Dr. McCoy. That may save us some time and energy, and allow you the outlet you seem to desperately crave.”
I nodded, and started wracking my brain. “Originium is a wonder element that does everything from power toothbrushes to give people magic. It was created by the Precursors-”
Kal’tsit’s hand shot out and covered my mouth. “I have reconsidered. We will discuss this another time, it seems, as we lack the time to go into sufficient breadth and depth to cover all you know, or think you know, it seems. Do not mention what you know of originium again until I tell you to do so. Do you understand?”
I nodded.
“Do you grasp that if you do so, it may cost your life, and the life of everyone on this landship? I make no threats, Dr. McCoy. I am only stating a reality.”
Oh, fuck. Priestess. She could hear? I nodded hastily again and gave a thumbs up.
“Good. You showed a discernible amount of discretion by waiting until we were in private to make that statement, and I did, after all, ask. So I can hardly fault you. Let us limit our discussion to the medical ramifications of originium and the nature of oripathy, and not the deeper philosophical and historical questions relating to the element.”
“Uh, alright. Um, Originium doesn’t behave like any known pathogen or disease. Er, well, I should say, not any from my dimension. It’s the bastard child of a prion and a virus, only it’s crystalline. When it gets into the body, it begins to convert the cells, starting with the major organs and spreading through the circulatory system, into more originium. This results in organ failure, and ultimately, death.
“The side effect, and why a certain autistic idiot is now infected, is that it also amplifies your arts. Of course, if you abuse this, it just makes the infection spread faster by causing the crystals to replicate even more quickly. Modern oripathy suppressant drugs don’t inhibit arts as much as the older ones, but they do still dampen arts ability. I would hazard the new line drugs are modeled after the blood of, um, your dad, and…”
I trailed off, as Kal’tsits eyes had gone wide, and she was sitting up ramrod straight. Not that she normally had bad posture, but she looked like someone had goosed her.
A single tear trickled down Kal’tsit’s cheek, and when she spoke, her voice was raw with emotion. “You know a great deal, James McCoy. Many things that not you, nor anyone else living, should know. And yet, you are ignorant of so much more. The Oracle…the Doctor…is not my progenitor.”
“Uh, well, I wasn’t going to repeat the joke about him being your ex-husband since, you know…but that kinda slipped out,” I admitted.
The shock was replaced by a look of actual bafflement. “Ex-husband?”
“Uh, you know how I mentioned that my knowledge comes from a video game in my world?”
“Yes, Closure has the remains of your device, though it is doubtful she will obtain any relevant data from it. Not only is it in a completely different set of programming languages, but it is also nearly destroyed.”
“Right. Well, uh, due to your…interactions…with the Doctor in the game…the joke was you behaved like a jilted lover. Or…an ex-wife. Later revelations, um, colored your interactions a bit differently.”
“In what regard?”
“Well…how he gave you a name…and how you’re an android,” I admitted.
She regarded me for a long moment, then slowly shook her head. “There are none now living who know that information. Even the…Doctor…has forgotten. And yet, you so casually discuss such things, and in such an ignorant fashion…”
She took a moment to gather herself, then said, “You are correct that the Doctor’s blood has been instrumental in modern first line oripathy medications and treatment protocols. As has the blood of your fellow Earthlings. Yours portends to open even more lines of research, and I have had to restrain Warfarin from attempting to exsanguinate you.
“I bring this up because your case, Dr. McCoy, is unique in a number of regards. For one, it is not your major internal organs that show signs of oripathy infection, but rather your nervous system. Additionally, Dr. Sussurro has proposed a very particular theory. One which I believe we are about to test the merits of. I myself will reserve judgement. Despite my extremely long life, I have never seen anything quite like you, Dr. McCoy. I do not mean that in the typical trite manner that all life is unique, but rather that yours is a whole original circumstance using powers and abilities I thought long lost, or never existed in the first place.”
“So, uh, that means?”
“You are quite precious, Dr. McCoy, but I will be forthright with you: I fully intend to use you up. The potential to cure oripathy, or even the oripathy of a few key individuals, is invaluable. Are you aware of which world leaders are secretly infected?”
“Uh, no, aside from Amiya and I guess Ch’en, though I don’t know if she qualifies.”
“Well, then you are at least willing to admit ignorance of some things. Let us simply say that there are those with tremendous wealth, power, and military might who would give quite literally anything to obtain the cure for themselves or those they cherish, or perhaps simply to be able to inject their troops with deadly arts amplifiers, as your foolish friend did.”
“So, just to lay the cards on the table…I’m OK with you using me up. As long as you don’t do it in a stupid way, and since, well, it’s you…I’m not real worried about it.”
“Your trust in a person you have just met and barely know is naive in the extreme, but I will do my best to demonstrate that it is not ill founded.”
“Honestly, I know it’s weird, but…I feel like I know all of you already. I mean, it’s probably a real unhealthy parasocial relationship, like you feel like you know an actor or streamer or something when you’ve never met them, but…I played a probably unhealthy amount of Arknights. I saw you all every day. It’s just…”
“Do not confuse a facsimile with reality, Dr. McCoy. That said, I can understand your feelings, false as they are. It is a common failing of humans, your kind included. Now. Do you understand that this procedure that you propose to do could very well cost you your life?”
“I do. That or turn me into an invalid.”
“And you still wish to go through with this operation?”
I took a deep breath. “I’m scared, I won’t lie. I could die. Again. And that…” My hands started shaking, and I clasped them together to try to control it. Two hands folded over mine, and I looked up in shock to see Kal’tsit meeting my eyes.
“James McCoy, I am, perhaps, the only living being who truly understands the fear of death as one who has died. My many deaths have never been pleasant. I also, however, understand the courage to stare death in the face, and declare that you will not bow to that fear. I cannot tell you to take up this burden. There are other paths you may take, and…I begin to ramble, do I not?”
“A bit. It’s kinda soothing, actually,” I admitted. “Sorry about, um, the whole twenty words or less thing. I’d come up with an excuse, but, well…”
“You were suffering from arts overload, terrified for your life, and you are something of a babbler when stressed. It is a trespass I will forgive this once. But as I said, I expect more decorum from my residents.”
“Yes ma’am. I…I’m trying. I just…I don’t want to die, you know?”
“I do. Now. Are you ready to spit in the face of death?”
“What do we say to the god of death?” I whispered to myself, forcing myself to my feet. To my surprise, my legs weren’t shaking. “Not today.”
“As is ever the duty of the physician. Now. Let us get you prepped for surgery, Dr. McCoy.”
There were multiple imaging tests for both myself and Texas, MRIs, ultrasounds, and a few I just didn’t recognize. All that done, we were taken to a surgery room. Texas was anesthetized, unconscious and looking rather small and frail. I was dressed in a surgery smock, with a mask and slippers, though I had to take off my gloves.
“Wait,” Sussurro said, coming up to me. “Before you begin, I want to use your arts to heal her. We’ve done what we can with our own arts, but I want this to be an opportunity to see what yours can do. I’m going to draw some blood first, however. Nurse?”
Myrtle turned out to be part vampire herself, quickly sticking me and pulling out a vial of blood. I was hooked up to multiple monitors myself, with Warfarin, Kal’tsit, and Folinic in the surgery with me. There were people in the observation room as well, Amiya and the Doctor I recognized, but I didn’t have time to worry about that.
“Alright. Beginning arts healing,” I said, taking the proffered wand, then pulling back the sheet from Texas.
What I saw was painful. Texas had multiple fresh wounds, many of which had already been sutured, as well as places where arts had been used to patch her up. She also had multiple lesions of originium nodules showing on her thigh and abdomen. I paused a moment for those to be recorded by the cameras, though I wasn’t pulling them out just yet, even though I could sense them.
Using my arts, I began to re-knit all of Texas’ wounds. I took my time, going over her from head to toe. I was going to rip her apart again, but it was best to start with her fully healed.
That done, Sussurro had Myrtle draw my blood again, which was marked and labeled. I wondered why, but I didn’t question.
“Right. Are we all ready?” I said, looking around the table. “This is the messy part.”
“Standing by,” Myrtle said, and the other doctors nodded.
I took a deep breath, and put my hand to the lesions on Texas’ abdomen. “Begining originium removal of abdominal lesions.”
I gritted my teeth, then connected with the originium inside of Texas. I started with removing those nodules, healing as I went, replacing the crystallized flesh with healthy, living tissue. I could feel the cyrstals embedding themselves into my hand, and gasped in pain as they burned up my arm, then into my spine. The process took several minutes, though I was going a lot slower than I had with Andrey, having a slightly better feel for it.
I paused once that was done, and checked Texas’ vitals. They looked good, well, for someone who was knocked out and very ill.
“Begining removal of ventral thigh lesions.”
More blood, more pain. I used the other arm this time, as my left didn’t have any lesions yet. This time I let myself scream in pain, to the point that Warfarin asked me, “Do you want morphine?”
“No. After. Need a clear head,” I gasped, keeping my hand steady despite the overwhelming tide of pain, and the new black crystals in my palm the size of dimes. That done, I placed my hand over Texas’ superior vena cava. “Right. Gonna take a breather, then…then I scrub the system. She’s still got crystals in her bloodstream. If I don’t get those out…she’ll still be infected.”
“Take all the time you need. Vitals look good, for both of you,” Folinic said.
I took a full minute to do some breathing exercises. Then, I returned my hands over Texas’ heart. I watched her chest rise and fall, but I wasn’t really seeing the skin. I was seeing those tiny little flecks of crystal, circulating through the body, doing some mental calculations. Right.
“Begining…beginining circulatory scrub,” I managed, then, I yanked.
I think I took all the blood in Texas’ entire body out, and made an absolute mess of the entire surgery room. I also, however, replaced all that blood, growing it inside of her. Texas was of medium height and build, and the average adult has about 5 liters of blood. When you’re getting it everywhere…it looks like a slaughterhouse.
This part took much longer, at least 20 minutes, though I wasn’t looking at the clock. When I was done, I healed up the wound, stepped back, and collapsed into the arms of Frolic and Warfarin.
“Blood draw, stat!” Sussurro ordered, and samples were taken from myself and Texas.
“Such a waste of good blood,” Warfarin muttered, and I could see her lick her chops under the mask.
“Not…not gonna heal you if you’re…stupid…stupid enough to drink this,” I slurred. “I think…I think I might check out now…”
“We’ve got you. You take a nap now, James. You were incredible,” Sussurro told me, pushing down her mask to smile at me.
That was the last thing before I saw Myrtle pushing morphine into my IV, and consciousness fled. At that point, I honestly thought I was going to die. I had quarter sized lesions on my right hand, and nickel on my left.
But, at least I had blotted out some of that red in my ledger. The stray thought flitting through my head, was that I hoped I wouldn’t make Sussurro cry.
