sleep. Meanwhile I started hearing it during the day. It would break in while I was on the phone, in a meeting, receiving a report; then when I was reading or exercising, or just trying to relax. I never know when I'll hear it, or for how long." She put her hands over her ears as if trying to deaden some cacophony. "And I cannot block it out; no matter what I try, it breaks through my thoughts and hammers at my brain like a pile driver."
She dropped her hands and turned to look at them. "That's when I told the others. I hoped Vlad had been aware of it and would vouch for me, but he denied knowing anything. They tried to be sympathetic, but they were convinced I was merely suffering from stress."
She took a deep, rattling breath. "I almost believed them, but then I started seeing her! At first it was in my dreams, then I would catch glimpses of her in halls and rooms, just flashes out of the corners of my eyes. But then she started leering around corners and through windows, popping out from behind furniture, standing just inside when I opened doors--Vlad never saw a thing!"
She took another rattled breath. "By then I was deteriorating rapidly and I was sure they would pack me away to a sanitarium any moment. I was becoming paranoid; thank God you two are here now, because I doubt I would have lasted another day."
"What does she look like?" Sunny asked.
Differel gave her a sharp look. "What?"
"The girl you've been seeing; what does she look like?"
"Like me," the voice said. Eile turned with the others and saw a girl fade in from nothing as she pirouetted across the room towards the desk. But Eile realized she wasn't a girl at all. She looked like a late-twentysomething woman who dressed and acted like a child. She was short and petite, which added to the illusion, but there was a maturity of face and figure that belied her playacting. She was dressed in what looked like a Sailor Moon senshi uniform like some kind of cosplayer, except over it she wore an open cape-like coat. She also looked fairly normal, except for the baroque style of the clothes and ornaments, and the fact that everything about her was in various shades of orange: costume, hair, eyes, lips, cosmetics, fingernails; even her skin had an orange tinge to it instead of pink.
As she approached, she giggled, warbled, and bubbled laughter, until she came to a stop just in front of the desk and faced them, a huge grin on her face. She jammed the index fingers of both hands into her cheeks and cried, "Ain't I cute?!"
She acted and sounded like a lunatic, which, Eile realized with shock, was exactly what she was.
From "Jigsaw Dragon"
Eile Chica crouched behind one of the pylons at the foot of the stairs. She turned her head to shield her face from a tongue of fire that lanced past her hiding place.
"Are you ready?"
Eile glanced across the causeway. White-Lion was hunkered down behind the opposite pylon.
"Yeah, as ready as I'll ever be."
Another gout of flame interrupted them.
"Okay, on three," White-Lion said after the fire dissipated. "One, two, three! Let's go, partner!"
She rose and dashed out onto the first step as Eile watched. Looking up the stairs, she held out her staff and shouted, "Halon!" A milky-white, concave shield appeared in front and slightly above her. A stream of fire shot down from the top of the stairs. It hit the shield square in the center, but instead of penetrating, the flames spread out along its surface and flickered off the edges.
White-Lion gestured. "Come on!"
Eile ran up behind her, trying to keep low. Together they advanced up the stairs, while the fire covered the shield.
Eile couldn't see anything through the flame, but as they climbed she saw the shield go from white to yellow to orange. Her stomach knotted in cold fear; she expected it to collapse at any moment. If that happened, they would be incinerated to char before they even felt the heat.
It seemed to take forever to reach the top of the steps, as the shield turned a dull red and then glowed a molten cherry. Finally, White-Lion came to a stop. She pulled her staff back; the shield retreated towards her and turned to orange as cracks began to appear. Eile broke out in a cold sweat and her mouth dried up. If this doesn't work..., she thought
"Kii-yaaah!" White-Lion threw the staff forward. The shield jumped away from them and rammed the source of the flame. It shattered and dissolved, but it extinguished the fire as it threw a figure back.
"Go!!"
Eile charged around White-Lion, up the last few steps, and between two more pylons.
She lifting her broadsword and roared. "Rrraaauuugh!" The figure recovered and threw itself at her. It had a body like a cross between a velociraptor and a dragon, including sickle foot claws and a long, sinuous tail, but minus the wings. The head, however, looked like that of a milk-skinned, sable-haired woman with ice-blue eyes.
The dragon-lady got in the first blows, leaping up and raking at Eile with its claws. She parried the hands, but the sickle-claws skidded over her breastplate and the steel scales covering her belly. She danced back then sprinted forward, swinging her sword. The dragon-lady blocked the short, wide, thin blade with its arms as it raised its tail. She saw it had a spike on the end, and her opponent held it poised as it looked for an opportunity to strike.
Cripes, this is like fighting five people at once! "I don't know how long I can hold her off. Move!"
"Right!" she heard White-Lion say, and out of the corner of her eye she saw a streak of gamboge hair move around the outside of the pylons to get to the plateau behind.
Sunny Hiver paused after she clambered over the edge of the plateau and stood up. Looking back, she watched as Braveheart and the dragon-lady struck and parried, slashed and blocked, while they waited for an opening to deliver a crippling blow. Braveheart wore a furious expression of intense concentration, though the vivid fuchsia locks that framed her face made her appear comical. Her long ponytail of seal-brown hair waving like a flag didn't help either.
"Dammit, White-Lion, go, go!"
Sunny turned and jogged further onto the plateau as she searched for their quarry. It was as big as a gymnasium, and sheer granite cliffs enclosed three sides. At the far end, she spotted something, and sprinted towards it. As she got closer, it resolved into a female form, dressed in a simple gown, tied up with a bag over her head.
She broke into a run and reached the captive in seconds. Pulling her slim dagger out of her belt, she squatted and reached out to touch the woman on the arm. She jerked and cried out.
"It's okay, I'm a friend. You're safe now; Team Girl is here to rescue you!" And she cut the woman's bonds.
"What?" Her voice came muffled from under the bag.
"White-Lionnn!! Look out!"
She pivoted on the balls of her feet and looked back. The dragon-lady charged her, screaming like a banshee, while Braveheart raced after it trying to catch up.
Sunny squealed as she stood and raised her dagger to defend herself, but she knew she stood no chance against it, and she didn't have time to use magic.
Just as the dragon-lady reached her, Braveheart put on an extra burst of speed and took a flying leap. As the monster paused and made ready to kick its sickle-claws, she landed on its back and wrapped her arms and legs around its body. The dragon-lady jumped, bucked, spun, cavorted, and danced as it tried to dislodge her; somehow, she managed to hold onto her sword. The dragon-lady raised its tail and jabbed at the back of her head, but missed, and she grabbed a hold of the spike.
Sunny picked up her staff and ran towards the pair, but she slowed as she got close. She didn't know what to do. If she used magic, it would affect Braveheart as well as the monster, and if she tried to hit the latter with her staff, she might miss and hit her partner instead. But she knew she had to do something. The dragon-lady clawed at Braveheart's arms and thighs. So far, it hadn't gotten through the leather unitard, but eventually it would. It also clawed at her head, but she managed to avoid being scratched, and she bit at the fingers when they got too close.
Then Sunny saw her opening: the dragon-lady's leg
s were exposed. She rushed closer and whacked its knees with the staff. It stumbled, but righted itself before it fell, then turned and tried to jump to claw her with its sickle-claws, but with Braveheart on its back it couldn't get high enough, and it moved in a clumsy manner. Sunny avoided the claws and pivoted around to its side. She slid the staff between its legs, jamming the other end against the rock floor, and when the dragon-lady landed, she twisted the staff using the grounded end as a fulcrum. The monster tripped, lost its balance, and fell flat on its face. Braveheart rose up and slammed the pommel of her sword into the back of the dragon-lady's head, and it slumped unconscious.
From "The Peril Gem"
Eile Chica looked down past her feet at the pit of lava. It was maybe ten yards beneath them, but she knew they'd get a lot closer real soon. Looking up, she examined her restraints. Her wrists had been well lashed with a thick cord made of fibrous vines, and slipped over a hook that hung from a rope. The rope had been thrown over a cross-pole high above them, from which she and White-Lion dangled. She couldn't twist her body around far enough to see, but she heard the creak of the winch as it was turned, lowering them towards the lava at a tedious pace. She looked out in front of her. The tribe
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