by J E Mueller
“That’s a tough one. Somewhere probably around the idea of unlimited power and a way back to our realm. Of course, things would be different. I wouldn’t just be able to go back home, but being able to keep my magic and go home… I don’t know. Somewhere in there, I got lost. How could they make good on their promises? Now I understand a bit more. If I were to ever go back, it would be on their terms and not as myself. I would be one of them, one of their minions… I’ve glimpsed their true forms and out of all the voices…” He shivered. “It was like looking into a pit of chaos and pain.”
I nodded. “What happened?” I asked as nicely as I could. “How did you trap them?”
“You see, that’s where things get foggy. I know there was a small group of us who made it to them, these angels and demons, but I can’t actually say for sure who. I’ve only got a gut feeling. After we found them, I know they were able to temporarily possess us. The next thing I remember was waking up in a cave outside. I was pretty beat up, fairly bloodied, and most of the blood was not my own. I don’t think I felt like myself for a week and then things slowly felt more and more off here. Then things just started to feel wrong.”
He paused for a moment as he collected his thoughts. “Dreamers kept appearing, speaking of where the Creators were. We knew one for sure was able to ask for help, but I don’t know… For the longest time I had the urge to wipe out any who dared speak of it. Several of us did, and those who acted on it are where I’ve gotten my guesses from.” He sighed heavily, slumping over for a moment. “Now that brings us here. Trying to find whatever artifact we can find. Except so is everyone, and I swear, I have no proof, but I think Clove is hoarding them just to keep any hidden from us. It’s like she knows and doesn’t want them found.”
I nodded slowly. “I won’t speak to Clove since I have no idea, but there are a lot of weird things in your story. You really can’t remember more?”
Benz gave a slight shrug. “I remember weird blurs that don’t make sense. Like seeing a creature, I think it’s called a Nighzel Nightwing, a bat creature, flying. Those things can’t get more distance than a turkey so that’s absurd. Then there’s these purple tentacles, and another thing about finding a way to banish ‘her’ to a new realm, whoever the heck her is. It’s just a confusing mess of random bits of memories.”
“Sounds like my life.” Before getting all these memories to come back that was how it really felt.
Well, now what, Lydia?
He’s more useless than I thought.
That’s not nice, he’s trying to make up for being an idiot.
True, but that doesn’t make him any more useful.
“Do you think anyone else would remember better?” I asked curiously.
“I wouldn’t even dare ask them.” Benz shook his head. “I’m ninety percent certain the others are Canton, Cane, and Clove.”
“All the C names?” I fought back the amused look that threatened to slide across my face. I couldn’t help but notice the pattern.
He rolled his eyes, hopping off the desk. “Canton is actually Joseph Canton Greensburg the Fifth, so I understand why he prefers his middle name. Cane is still a C with Cadence, but Maria Olivia Clove went by her last name.”
First name, middle name, and a last name with C wasn’t any less funny, but I nodded along anyway.
Ask him about this cave he woke up in. Where was it exactly?
“So, this cave? Where was it? Are there a lot of caves around here?” I asked, genuinely curious.
“Oh, not that I know of. If you take the basement to the tunnel leading out it goes down a ways and then back up, making you come out of a cave-like structure. All around the entrance looks like a rocky hill and has several small caves that don’t actually go far in. It was in one of those that I woke up. There was an exit back into the main shaft of the tunnel but I don’t exactly remember where in the tunnel you popped back up at. I was pretty disorientated then.”
“So it’s not something easily found since it’s outside and basically in the death zone.”
Benz gave a nod. “I’m not entirely sure where the entrance is. You can’t get in the way I came out, which was mostly falling through the ceiling into the tunnel. It’s most likely in the death zone as you put it, and honestly, I don’t know how the Watch even survives out there.”
“How do you know they’re alive if no one ever talks to them?” I wondered aloud.
“They make their way back quarterly when things die down.” Benz shrugged. “You really think a basement of spiders can stop a group that lives outside? Adler and his crew are creature slayers. They know their stuff.”
“Has Adler been around a long time too?”
“Yeah, about as long as Clove and I have, actually. I think he has a few others with years under their belts. If someone is wandering outside and he finds them, you can bet they’re a part of that team in no time. Rarely does he bring someone in because they can’t hack it. Maybe twice ever?”
We should go see Marella.
I sighed. “As fun as this has been, I should probably go.”
No, we all should go. Bring the boy.
Benz nodded at me. “That is fair, it’s been a day.”
“I guess you’re coming with, sorry about that.” I shrugged.
He stared at me, confused.
“You were right. One of the Creators can speak fairly easily to Dreamers. To make a long story short, ta-da!” I waved at myself. “And now we’re going to see one that’s a little harder to communicate with, but needs to be updated.”
“You know where two are?” he asked curiously.
“No. I know where one is, and how to talk to another,” I explained as I started for the door. “It doesn’t make much sense, just come on.” I motioned for him to follow.
“You know,” he stated as he got off the desk. “You are probably the last person I expected secrets from. Somehow, of course, that means you have the best secrets,” Benz mused.
I crossed my arms as I waited for him. “I hate secrets, but there are too many layers to this problem to be going on and telling everyone everything.”
“Agreed. Which is where the need to disguise myself came from.” Benz nodded.
I gave him a nod in return and tentatively opened the door. When I saw there was no major threat looming I continued onward toward finding Marella. “I just want to try and fix this before I wake up. Or die, I guess. There really aren’t a healthy amount of options here for me.”
“How is waking up not healthy?” Benz asked, confused.
“Well, it’s not so much unhealthy as it is likely going to be problematic. I’ll have extensive injuries if I wake up anytime soon, and who knows if anyone else survived the wreck. I may be familyless and penniless. Healing, even if you aren’t awake, still costs a few shiny coins.”
Benz sighed. “Well, I suppose that is true in most places.”
“Exactly. Still, I would like to wake up. I hope my sister is doing well…”
Silence fell between us for the rest of the way, my thoughts churning over if Melly would make it or not. I could see where temptation comes into play and realized something important as we reached the door.
“Something must have gone wrong if those fog things still need help,” I stated the fact simply.
Benz nodded. “After being possessed I stayed as far from there as possible. I’m sure they are short the proper people, or magic, or whatever now because of that. Probably won’t be forever though, so we need to hurry.”
“My thoughts exactly,” I said, opening the door to where Marella lurked.
“What are you doing?” Benz eyed the room carefully. “You go in there it’s death. That’s the puddle room.”
“That you so casually pretended not to know about.” I stared blankly at him.
He smirked knowingly. “I can keep up good appearances.”
“Just get in the damn room.” I opened the door widely.
“Ladies first.” He motione
d for me to go ahead, clearly more reluctant than chivalrous.
Without hesitation I took several steps into the room and motioned for him to follow.
“Heck no.” Benz lingered in the doorway.
“Are you going to be helpful or not?” I crossed my arms and walked further in. “This room is only dangerous when it needs to be. If you’re not a threat you’ll be fine. If you’re with me, you’ll be fine,” I promised. I wasn’t positive on how I would keep that promise, but Marella couldn’t very well kill allies just because she didn’t like them. We didn’t have time for all that mess.
With a sigh, Benz took a full step in and shut the door. “Fine. Now what?”
“We wait for Marella,” I replied as I heard Benz gasp. I turned to see her pulling herself out from a puddle. “There you are.”
“And who have we brought?” she asked curiously, tilting her head to the side. “Ah, I remember you.”
“Hopefully good things?” He laughed hesitantly as he placed a hand on the doorknob, ready to flee.
“I remember you as a young Dreamer and as an annoying soul here. You’ve grown a lot and still refuse to rest,” Marella stated simply. “Why refuse to move on?”
“I suppose no one likes the unknown?” Hesitation laced his voice. “Why leave now? I’m used to this place.”
Marella gave him an amused look. “Do you enjoy slaying creatures or is there another reason you stay?”
Benz didn’t answer for several moments. “I think I like the ever-changing adventure. Some days are rough, but I am not tired of it. Not even close.”
Marella nodded, accepting his answer. “Let’s move on then.” She moved casually around me so I could better see her. “What brings you here with this friend?”
“Lydia suggested it,” I replied and went over all the events that had happened today.
While I summed up the library search, I gave all the details I could remember for the rest of the events. I wasn’t sure if there was any surprise in what I learned but Marella being made of water was hard to properly read.
“Hmm, that is a lot of interesting things. I can’t say I’m surprised memories are sketchy at best.” She eyed Benz, “My kind are well known for those things.”
Benz eyes went wide. “Your kind? How are you here if they are your kind? Why aren’t you trapped with them?”
Marella smirked, looking a bit too pleased to easily ruffle him. “You see, we all have decisions to make, my child, and they made worse decisions than me. We all had a choice to stop destroying the realm we were inhabiting, but oh is it so much fun… So, they continued and I worked with those I could to stop its destruction.”
Benz didn’t seem to know what to say to that. I felt like the entire conflict was becoming much clearer. “So, can it be said that the reason these angels and demons are still around is also in part because someone thought they would learn their lesson from the world’s longest timeout and maybe were redeemable?”
Marella’s smirk turned into something oddly sinister. “That, my dear, is entirely what happened.”
Actually, she’s right, but don’t tell her I said that.
I ignored the side comment. “How do the creatures fit into this? Are they somehow redeemable in some way?” I asked curiously.
Nope, not redeemable at all.
“I wouldn’t call them redeemable…” Marella sighed, her smile faltering. “More like… future lost souls. There’s a reason they keep coming back.”
I looked at her surprised. “What do you mean?”
“This realm was failing. It was why it was chosen in the first place. It just needed to be modified for souls…” Marella began to pace. “You see, before, your realm had a place for spirits. Those with certain magics could help guide them and make sure they crossed correctly. Some took longer to cross.” She motioned to Benz. “And some crossed as soon as their path was clear and untangled. The demons decided to destroy this in order to gather more minions than the angels.”
Marella continued to stroll over the floor and puddles alike. “When Tella saw the creatures here dying off, she decided to spare them, looping them in a time based regenerative magic she unlocked when she became a full Creator. Eventually, she knows they too will need to rest and move on, but I am not entirely sure she has a plan for after that. It’s a complicated world working with souls. Good, bad, whatever in between status they are at…”
Marella sighed, coming to a halt at the far end of the room and staring off into the distance. “But that is a matter for another day. First is getting free, rebalancing things, and seeing if there is a way to better seal off those angels and demons.”
“Why not get rid of them?” Benz asked before I could.
“Because the one strong enough to do that won’t. Sadly, I cannot take down my own kind. At least not all of them…” Marella strolled back, looking thoughtful. “We’re off track again. Now do you remember anything about imprisoning us? Even a small blur could be the clue we need.” She approached Benz slowly.
Benz shook his head. “Most are vague clips of being outside, and the ones I remember I have to fight to keep hold of.”
Marella nodded, stopping several feet away. “Come here, let me see.”
Benz looked terrified of the idea. “What are you going to do?”
“If there’s magic blocking your thoughts I’m going to dispel it. Or just obliterate you. Depends on how long I have to wait.” She gave a sly smile.
“You’re not helping things,” I chastised her.
“Can’t I have a little fun?” She gave a very fake remorseful look before waving Benz over once more.
Benz sighed and walked up to her. “Let’s just get this over with.” He stopped in front of her and closed his eyes.
Casually, Marella reached out and touched his head and to my surprise, Benz didn’t flinch away. After a moment, she shook her head. “They were clever. It’s the angel magic and not the demon magic. Well, it was too much to hope for that big of a break.”
Benz stepped away looking both relieved and disappointed. “Well, it was worth a shot. Now what?”
“We need to find the artifacts,” Marella stated simply. “I don’t suspect the ones you’re looking for will be easy.”
I sighed. “So maybe fourth floor, basement, and attic? Of course yours is outside,” I said to her. “Wait, how many do we need?”
“More than you thought.” She gave a smirk. “Lydia is on your wrist, my artifact is outside. Dani and Tella are the other missing Creators, however, we did have another group of protectors. I assume they were dealt with first in order to get to us without us noticing. The Protectors were Key, Lee, and Emmyth. Those three traveled between your home and here and helped guide lost souls. Most were brought here instantly thanks to Tella, but there were always some wandering…”
“So, six more artifacts to find.” I tried not to sigh in dismay at the thought, but it was impossible to keep my face neutral.
“It’s entirely possible a few have been found too,” Benz pointed out. If someone is hiding them, well, we just need to find that stash.”
“As if that’s any easier,” I replied.
“Sort of is. It’s not going to be magically hidden.” Benz shrugged. “And there’s only so many safe places to store and keep things.”
“True…” I thought on that for a moment. “I wonder what Mare knows.”
“Considering she hasn’t mentioned my secret yet, a lot.” Benz laughed.
Marella cleared her throat. “If we are done here, I suggest leaving. I sense some adventurers nearby and I bet you don’t want to be spotted just yet.”
Benz nodded, adopting his Ze illusion before going to and opening the door. “I’d ask her.”
“She knows about you already?” I was surprised she never let any of that up. She did try to send me to the library that one day though. Of course, I didn’t realize Ze was Benz at that moment.
“Of course. Trackers can see who I really
am.” Benz lead the way out. “You can’t just change your magical essence.”
“So the other day when that group was looking for Benz, Canton was tracking you. We were avoiding that group not just to avoid Canton’s wrath, but to keep him in the dark.” I didn’t think he did but needed confirmation.
“Exactly. He doesn’t know. I don’t think he’d join the cause and he would probably make things worse, actually.” Benz shook his head and sighed as we continued to walk. “I should probably get back to my team for a bit.”
I nodded. “I’ll talk to Mare and we’ll see where things go.” Just as we parted ways I thought of something. “Wait!” Benz turned and looked at me, confused. “Any artifacts you have, try and bring them. If she’s close enough, Lydia can tell if a Creator is trapped there.”
Benz nodded. “That would make things easier.”
With that, I headed back, more than ready for some sleep.
Of course, that would be too easy. As soon as I reached the room with the painting I saw Clove and Cane chatting just outside the safe zone.
“There you are,” Cane said upon seeing me.
Clove glanced over. “I’m surprised you’re wandering alone.”
I shrugged, hoping a basic reply was enough. “It helps having a bow and just carefully peeking around turns. Not that I was expecting the kitchen to be an exciting adventure.”
“We must have just missed you then,” Clove said, confused.
I laughed as a lie conjured surprisingly easily. It just flowed off my tongue without hesitation. “Yeah, probably. I get lost here still. It’s not so bad though. I’m learning a lot of new places. I wish my memories kicked in better so I had a map.”
Clove shook her head. “You always sucked at direction.”
“Thanks.” I rolled my eyes at her but smiled, thankful it all sounded reasonable enough. “What are you doing out here? I can’t imagine it’s the most relaxing place.” Just on the verge of safety but still not safe… I would rather be inside.
Clove shrugged. “Sometimes it just gets too loud and I’d like to have a conversation or two without eavesdroppers.”
I laughed and took a step toward the painting. “Fair, you probably do get that often. I’ll head in then.”