by Ioana Visan
Alise opened her bag and pulled out a small cloth pouch from which she extracted a handful of dried leaves and herbs. She had spent the majority of the evening looking for them, driving Cassie crazy with her absence. “No pizza was worth so much trouble,” claimed her roommate, unaware that most of the ingredients weren’t meant for the pizza sauce.
With her right hand, Alise spread the leaves around her. Part of the mix was taken away by the breeze, but enough landed on the rooftop. The air filled with a faint scent of basil, thyme, and quince.
“I need something of his.” She held out her hand.
“Yeah, about that…,” Rafe said. Neither of the Guardians made a move.
She should have known. They wouldn’t have come to her if they had it. Bastards.
Throwing them a dark glare, Alise dropped the bag on the ground and shrugged off her jacket, revealing a blue halter top. She gathered her hair on one shoulder and presented her back to Rafe, keeping her head lowered. He seemed to be the most capable of doing it with a steady hand.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Rafe pull out his blade. He moved closer and froze behind her. A moment later, he drew in a sharp breath. To anyone on this side, the two thin, lighting-shaped scars parallel to her spine wouldn’t have looked too bad. But he knew what they meant, what she was missing. Welcome to my nightmare.
As more seconds passed, the scars started to burn. They had to be glowing by now.
“They won’t grow back, you know? What are you waiting for?” she asked.
To her left, Vale looked a little sick to his stomach. This went against everything in the Guardians’ nature. Their whole purpose in life was to protect people, not torture them.
“Just do it…” Vale sighed.
When the tip of the blade touched the scars, Alise clenched her teeth, trying not to let herself be caught up by the memories of Gorem slicing her open and chopping her wings off at the very base. Sometimes, she still felt his fingers digging into her back to make sure no trace of them remained. If there was anything left of him, it had to be inside those wounds that never fully healed and kept bleeding while she was on the other side.
The blade was so sharp, no real pressure needed to be applied. The skin broke in a straight line as it followed the already existing pattern, fresh blood kissing the blade. Rafe let a few drops drip onto the ground, a sudden gust of wind ruffling their hair.
Pretending the pain in her upper back was a minor inconvenience, the way she had plenty of times in the past, Alise brought her hands together and tossed the last ingredient up in the air. The scintillation flew high up on a curved trajectory, heading for the hills to the north of the city where the expensive private residences were located. Gorem would never share a house with commoners.
Why had he crossed over and come to this world? It wasn’t really a question. She knew why. He had come for her, just as he had promised. And, this time, he was determined to kill her.
Big, red fireworks exploded close to the cloud ceiling, lighting up the conical roof of a house hidden between the trees.
“He’s there,” Alise said, pointing towards the building. “And now he knows you’re coming.”
She picked up her jacket and slipped it back on, ignoring the blood that dripped down her back, soaking the waistband of her jeans. Damn, the wounds are going to take forever to heal.
“If you want, you can stop by our room to clean up,” Rafe said. Vale was already leaving the roof.
Alise shook her head. “No need. Just catch the bastard.”
Chapter Three
“I brought beer!” Alise said with a cheerfulness she didn’t feel as she entered the apartment. Cassie had a low tolerance to alcohol and tended to act silly when drunk. Two cans were more than enough for a Wednesday night. Actually, it was Thursday already. The clock on the wall showed it was quarter past midnight. They had a full workday ahead of them, so better start rolling. “Is the pizza ready?” she asked as the smell assaulted her nostrils.
“Yes,” Cassie said, putting on an embarrassed smile, and hurried to hide her hands behind her back. The tips of her fingers were green. So were the tips of her ears, for that matter.
“What did you do?” Alise stared at her, too tired to get upset. Besides, it wasn’t the first time it had happened. Her roommate had messed with Alise’s herb collection before.
“I was trying to make a dressing for the pizza,” Cassie said. “You’ll love it.” She kissed her fingertips. “It’s dynamite!”
A smile appeared on Alise’s lips when she saw the girl’s enthusiasm. Oh well. The side effects would wear off by morning. “I’ll go change, and then we can eat.”
She hung her bag on the back of a chair and went to her room. The halter top was ruined, but she tossed it into the laundry basket anyway. While not bleeding profusely, the skin opened with every move she made and would continue to do so for a while, so she put on a large bandage and a loose shirt that wouldn’t cling to her skin and, most importantly, would hide any new stains that might appear on the back of her jeans.
When Alise returned to the living room, Cassie handed her a plate with a hot slice of pizza. “Here.”
The girl popped a can open and filled her glass. Alise thanked her with a smile. Cassie was a convenient roommate who put up with her strange little habits without complaining or asking too many questions, and Alise enjoyed her company. So what if she stuck her fingers in Alise’s herbs once in a while?
“Oh, damn.” Cassie pulled at her navy T-shirt containing a fresh tomato sauce stain. It reminded Alise of another kind of stain, and she looked away while Cassie took another bite of pizza and then ran to the bathroom to clean her shirt.
Lost in thought, Alise slowly chewed on her slice. She didn’t want to lean back and leave some sign of her injury on the couch, so she leaned forward and propped her elbows on her knees instead. A soccer game was on TV, and she muted the sound. She didn’t see the attraction of watching men running after a ball when it would have been easier to make the ball come to them. But Cassie liked watching sports, so she couldn’t discuss the subject openly with the girl since Cassie didn’t know.
She was reaching for the glass when the apartment door nearly came off its hinges, and two bruised and battered Guardians burst in.
“What are you doing here?” She stared at them, shocked by their entrance, while cheese dripped off her pizza and onto her fingers.
“Gorem got away,” Rafe said, breathing heavily.
Alise needed a second to digest the news. She should have expected it. Gorem was too smart to be caught that easily.
“We thought he might come after you—” Rafe said.
“Since you sent us to him,” Vale finished, and moved to the window to glance outside.
“We kind of destroyed his house.” Rafe smiled a feral grin, displaying no remorse. “Are you alone here?”
Cassie chose that exact moment to return. “Oh … hello,” she stammered, startled by the presence of two strangers in her living room.
“I guess not,” Rafe mumbled. “Is she your girlfriend?” He smirked at Alise, but she kept her cool.
Cassie blushed.
“This is Cassie … my roommate,” Alise said. “She owns this place.” She made sure it sounded like a warning not to trash it.
“How convenient,” Rafe mused, looking around the room. “I love plasma TVs.”
Cassie still looked confused, so Alise said, “This is Rafe, and Vale.” She pointed at each Guardian.
“We’re family,” Rafe said. When that earned him a glare from Alise, he added, “Distant family.” It wasn’t that much of a stretch. After all, they all came from a different world.
“Hi. It’s nice to meet you.” Cassie offered her hand to both men, and Alise silently cursed her for being so friendly. “I didn’t know Alise had any family.”
“Well, we didn’t part in such good terms,” Alise muttered. “And they’re not staying.” She gave the Guardians a point
ed look.
Cassie missed it. She was too busy staring at the visitors. She had a healthy appreciation for beautiful human forms, although she would have been shocked to discover how far from human these two were.
“Since you’re here, I’m sure you’d like to catch up. Please, take a seat.” Cassie gestured for them to make themselves comfortable on the sofa or in the armchairs surrounding the coffee table. “Would you like some pizza? It’s fresh out of the oven.”
Alise hated her perfect hostess skills. Cassie had the plates ready before they could answer.
“I wouldn’t mind a slice,” Vale said, moving away from the window and coming closer to the table.
Rafe took a seat on the other end of the sofa. “You cook?” His eyes twinkled at Alise.
“She doesn’t. I do.” Cassie smiled. “But she’s great with the dressing.”
“Ah … I see.”
She put a slice of pizza on the plate for him, and the unusual color of her fingers caught his attention. He leaned in towards Alise to ask quietly, “What happened to her fingers?”
“Dressing,” Alise deadpanned.
He let out a muffled chuckle that brought out wrinkles around the corners of his eyes, and he thanked Cassie for the pizza. As she turned to serve Vale, Rafe nodded at him.
Vale got up. “I’d like to wash my hands first.”
“Sure. The bathroom is right over there, second door on the left,” Cassie told him.
Appetite gone, Alise pushed her plate to the side. It looked like the visitors weren’t going to leave any time soon.
Meanwhile Cassie continued to chat as if she had known Rafe for ages. “What happened to you? You look like you’ve been run over by a bus.”
“Yeah. What happened?” Alise mocked him. She wanted to know, but Rafe better not discuss it in front of Cassie. There was a limit to the things she could make the girl ignore before she would start to wonder what was real and what wasn’t.
“We got attacked…” Rafe glanced at Alise before adding, “by some dogs.”
Werewolves.
“Oh, but that’s awful!” Cassie brought her hands together. “This city does have a big problem with dogs. There are many strays.” She shook her head.
“Indeed.” He grinned, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Don’t worry. We’re fine.”
“I’m not,” Alise said with a matching grin. She couldn’t care less if the Guardians ended up as dinner for some Werewolf pack. They had brought too much disruption into her life, and she didn’t like it one bit.
“So compassionate, isn’t she?” Rafe winked at Cassie, who looked from one to the other, not sure exactly what was going on.
She didn’t get to answer. An explosion coming from Alise’s room made them jump from their seats. Out of nowhere, a blade appeared in Rafe’s hand as he rushed in the direction of the noise. Dammit!
“No, wait!” Alise tried to stop her, but Cassie had already stepped into the corridor.
The girl stared wide eyed at a giant sponge mass that encompassed the back room, threatening to engulf Rafe as it oozed its way out. The only thing in its way was the Guardian’s determination to cut a path through it in order to get to Vale. Alise caught a glimpse of the once brown, now purple hair matted against the other Guardian’s head. He had somehow ended up right in the middle of that growing thing. What was he doing in her room?
Forgetting about her back, Alise leaned against the wall. The presence of the creature was draining her of what magic she had left, as if it was feeding off her. Maybe it was. She hadn’t been attacked by monsters on this side before. Warily, she waited to see how things were going to turn out. Either way, they would have to run. Even if the Guardians killed it, if she knew Gorem, it wouldn’t be the only monster. She sighed to herself. Now she was going to have to rebuild her wardrobe from scratch. While not poisonous, the monster left behind a disgusting residue that made any object it touched unusable.
With their combined efforts, Rafe managed to pull Vale out, pushing against the monster with his shoulder, then dragging Vale out by the arm. Once Vale was free, Rafe pressed his palm to the monster’s side. A sun-like shape flared on the back of his hand, and the whole thing exploded, dissolving into dust.
Cassie covered her mouth with her hand to prevent a scream from escaping.
“Everyone okay?” Rafe looked back, although the girls hadn’t been in danger. After all, it was only a little monster. The Guardians had battled things much worse than that in their lifetime. Vale wiped slime out of his hair, making a face as if he was about to puke.
“What … What was that?” Cassie stammered.
“That…” Rafe pointed with the tip of his blade towards the inside of the ruined room, “was an expansion monster, also known as a compression monster because it crushes everything that gets in its way. As long as it has a roof over its head, it grows until it fills any available space, and then it explodes.”
“Rafe…,” Vale warned, but Rafe ignored him.
“Any more questions?” Rafe asked.
“Well…” Cassie’s shoulders shook lightly, her lips paler than her face. “What was it doing here?”
“Oh, she didn’t tell you?” Rafe’s sarcastic laugh echoed along the corridor. “It came after her.” He nodded in Alise’s direction.
“Thanks a lot!” Alise glared.
“Rafe!” Vale raised his voice. “We’ve gotta go. We need to get out of here before more show up.”
The urgency in his voice made Cassie anxiously look around. “More?” she whimpered. The small apartment couldn’t take any more monsters, and neither could she.
“It’s all right.” Alise moved to stand by her side and put an arm around the girl’s shoulders. “It’s going to be fine.”
“It will be if we move now,” Rafe said. He glanced at the dark smudge left on the wall where Alise had been standing. “Let’s go. We need to find shelter for the night.”
Ahead of them, Vale walked out the front door, leading the way. Alise gently ushered a shell-shocked Cassie out. Rafe closed the door behind them, but no one bothered to lock it. With these creatures, locks didn’t stand a chance.
Chapter Four
Cassie started for the elevator, but Rafe shook his head. “No. They can suffocate you in there before you reach the next floor. We’ll take the stairs.”
At times like these, Alise really missed her wings. While they weren’t meant for flying per se, they could be of great help, giving her the strength she lacked now. Seven flights of stairs were no game, not while in a hurry and being chased by monsters. Blood pumped loudly in her ears, and sweat dripped down her back as she ran, making her wounds sting.
As they arrived on the fifth floor, the elevator’s door burst open. They had to slide around the giant mass pouring out of it to avoid touching it. The monsters were slow but relentless because of their one-track mind. For the time being, it was better to escape them than to waste time destroying them. Rafe waited for the girls to pass by him then put the monster out of its misery. This one didn’t explode but deflated like a balloon, letting out a low whistle.
The noise brought an old woman to her door from across the corridor.
Rafe yelled at her, “Stay inside, ma’am! There’s a robbery going on in the building!”
The woman slammed the door shut.
For the neighbors living on the floor below, the locked doors had provided no safety. When Alise got there, she found the entrance door open and sand-like residue spread on the floor, a sign that Vale had already been there. There was no time to wonder what had happened to the tenants. She pushed Cassie forward and hoped for the best.
As they reached the third floor, a tentacle rushed around the corner, straight towards Cassie. With Vale already heading down another flight of stairs, too far away to be of any help, Alise and Rafe jumped ahead and placed their hands on the thing. Alise’s palm tingled while the back of Rafe’s hand flared, and the monster disappeared in a cloud
of smoke, leaving behind a thick scent of burning sand.
Rafe caught Cassie in his arms before she fell to the ground. He held her up, waiting for her to regain her balance. “Nice.” He grinned at Alise over the girl’s shaking shoulders. “Personally, I like to make them suffer but, I gotta admit, this is neat. You should show me how you do it sometime.”
“I prefer to send them back to their creator.” Alise’s smile had nothing sweet in it. Whoever had made the monsters could handle them, but it wouldn’t be pretty.
“Can you stand?” Rafe turned Cassie around and stared into her eyes to make her focus on something other than an army of monsters.
Cassie blinked and managed a weak nod.
“Let’s move. We’re almost out.” He gave her an encouraging smile and squeezed her arm, then pushed her forward.
They found Vale retreating up the stairs from the first floor. “We can’t go that way,” he said. “The entire lobby is blocked by a solid mass. It’s different than the ones up here. The magic doesn’t affect it as it should. Blades do, but it would take us hours to cut a path through it.”
If the monster had grown this much and benefited from extra protection, killing it would be much harder. Alise had neither the strength nor the resources to tackle such a job, and they were running out of time. More monsters, coming from above, could show up at any moment. They were trapped.
The Guardians looked around, but the corridor had no other exit, only a big glass panel with an ornamental plant in front of it. Rafe pulled the heavy pot to the side, and Vale used his blade to carve a hole in the glass as if it was made of paper. They both leaned over the edge to look out.
“If we hurry, we can make it,” Rafe said. “Vale, you go first, and I’ll send them down to you.”