by Sam Ryan
“Not that there is really anything to worry about,” Jarrad spoke up. All attention turned to him as they waited for him to elaborate. “You see, we have not been able to come anywhere close to killing an Immortal. The problem lies in the fact we still do not understand what it is that is keeping you alive. On every inspection that we have…” he searched for the word he needed. “Made,” he said, though Madilyn did not think that was the word that he wanted. “Both her Majesty and Lady Elena appear to be normal humans. That is except for the fact they do not seem to age and they cannot die.”
“So.” Jezebel dragged out the word, resting her fist against her chin. “What you’re saying is that in all your research to try and figure out how to kill us, all you’ve concluded is that we still can’t be killed.”
“I have never had any doubt that there is a way to kill you,” Jarrad stated. “We have merely been unable to figure out how. Even when inflicted with rapid mortal wounds, such as fire or acid, the body does not die and will eventually heal itself. No matter how long or intensely they are subjected to it.”
Madilyn cringed as she thought about what Queen Allora would have had to go through in order for them to reach such a conclusion. To do something like that willingly was unfathomable.
“So do you have any theories on how someone managed to kill one of us then?” Sophia asked.
“I can only guess at this point,” Jarrad said. “It is my personal belief that given enough energy, that was delivered fast enough, it would be possible to completely vaporize your entire body. Making it so there is nothing left of you to heal.”
“And how much energy are we talking about here?” Jezebel calmly asked, tapping the side of her arm. “Like a Legendary Relic exploding kind of energy?”
Madilyn nearly gasped as she realized what Jezebel was implying. She thought maybe Stella had been killed using the very Relic she had been trying to find.
“No,” Jarrad shook his head. “Bigger than that. And much faster. When a Relic.” He paused again, snapping his fingers and saying a word that Madilyn did not understand.
“Overloads,” Allora translated.
“Yes.” Jarrad nodded. “When a Relic overloads, the following explosion happens in about two seconds. I would guess that the power required to kill an Immortal would be around five Legendary Relics and the overload would need to be instantaneous. Leaving no time for healing.”
“Well that doesn’t help us much,” Sophia sighed. “Allora, would you mind if we tabled this for today? It has been over a month since I’ve had a proper meal and a night sleep that wasn’t on an airship or in some tavern.”
“You’re right.” Allora nodded. “I will have rooms prepared for you all.” She looked over at Jezebel. “And for any of your crew who would wish to stay at the Palace.”
“They’re fine,” Jezebel assured, brushing the offer away. “I am sure Clem and Yates will stay, but I doubt the others would even be able to sleep in a bed as comfortable as the ones you got.”
“As you say,” Allora said with a nod and rose from her chair. Elena and Madilyn immediately rose with her. Jarrad was a little slower given his age. Sophia and Jezebel were the only ones in no hurry as they stood up at a leisurely pace.
“If we get a choice for the menu,” Jezebel said, cracking her back and rotating one of her shoulders to work out the stiffness. “Can we have something other than fish? I know it’s Itona’s specialty and all, but we have been eating it for like an entire week now.”
“Sure thing,” Allora said, giving Jezebel a warm smile. “And I hope that you three will join Elena and me for supper tonight. With any others you wish to invite as well,” she added, meaning Max, Yates and Clementine.
“I would be honored,” Madilyn said with a smile and bow of her head.
“The honor is mine, I assure you.” Allora gave Madilyn her warmest smile yet.
***
Sophia laughed to herself, shaking her head as she saw Jezebel sitting on the terrace of the Palace, overlooking the front entrance. She was sitting with her legs sticking through the support pillars and dangling off the side. Her face was pressed between two of the marble pillars, mumbling curses under her breath.
“I am going to kill her,” she said. “I am going to kill her and then find a way to bring her back so I can kill her again.”
“Clementine still not back yet?” Sophia asked, moving up next to her.
“No,” she growled, not looking away from the palace entrance. “You would think that after Lear she would be a little more considerate of my feelings.”
“I’m sure she’s fine,” Sophia said, sitting down next to Jezebel, her back resting against the marble. “It’s not even 4 yet. They’re probably just enjoying the scenery.”
“I know that,” Jezebel said, resting her head against the pillar. “So how did it go with Elena?”
“She is taking it about as well as I would have assumed,” Sophia said. “Sat and listened in silence as Allora and I told her that Stella was dead and Tara had likely been taken by the very same people who killed her. Once we were done, she got up and walked out of the room without saying a word.”
“Allora had better think of something soon,” Jezebel said. “When Elena is angry, she tends to get very impatient.”
“You sound like you speak from experience,” Sophia smiled. “Elena cause a lot of problems when she was with you?”
“Nope,” Jezebel shook her head. “She was probably the best first officer I’ve ever had. She followed orders, knew when to take the initiative and how much to take. Her cold demeanor was perfect for keeping the crew in line but she also knew what standard to hold them to and never pushed them to hard.”
“Shame you two don’t get along anymore,” Sophia said.
“Our paths diverged,” Jezebel shrugged. “It happens. I still care for her and I know she still cares for me. I suppose that will have to be enough for now.”
“So then, why do you refuse to look at her?” Sophia asked, turning her head so she was staring at the woman. “I get that she is mad at you and that is why she is acting so stand offish, but I thought you said you were over whatever spat you had.”
“I am,” Jezebel said, though her voice was flat. “There are other things though. Things I really don’t want to talk about.”
“Fine.” Sophia sighed, rolling her head back and looking up at the sky. “So then what do you think about the whole Glowdose Project thing?”
Jezebel let out a long breath as she thought it over. “If it was anyone other than Allora, I would have it destroyed in an instant.”
“Who’s to say there aren’t others?” Sophia asked. “Maybe there are dozens of Glowdose Projects all around the world, all trying to figure out a way to kill us. It’s possible that Trevelia had one. I am sure most people would have seen Stella as a threat and would wish her removed.”
“It’s possible.” Jezebel nodded. “But are you going to live in fear of it? Normal people can die for any number of reasons at almost any time. But they have to learn to accept it or else be ruled by it.”
Sophia bobbed her head in agreement. “But what if it works?” Sophia asked. “What if Allora finds a way for us to die? You think you would ever one day take it?”
“No.” Sophia was surprised by how quick she answered. “I like my life,” Jezebel explained like it was the simplest answer in the world. “I love my children and I love my crew. More than that, I love this world. Even after a thousand years, people still manage to surprise me. And I find all that worth living for.”
“Really?” Sophia snorted. “I found people in general stopped surprising me a long time ago.”
“Well that’s because you are not looking close enough,” Jezebel said. “Let me guess, you look at humanity as a whole. The wars that they fight, the politics they bicker about, and you think they never change. That they are stuck in some kind of perpetual cycle.”
“Like clockwork.” Sophia nodded. “They are al
l just smaller cogs making up one large machine.”
“But you can’t do that,” Jezebel said. “Humanity isn’t a clock. Humanity is a picture. A picture made up of millions of small pictures, all unique in every way. How can you say that you understand the big picture that humanity makes if you refuse to look at all the little pictures? At how a person helps a stranger. The look on a child’s face when their parents give them a gift. That person who never gives up, despite how outmatched they are.”
Sophia did not say anything as she pursed her lips together in thought. She thought back to her family. The children and husbands she had loved. Nothing about being a mother or a wife had been predictable, even after she had done it several times. She wondered why she had never thought of that before.
“And look at Madilyn,” Jezebel shrugged.
“What about her?” Sophia said. She narrowed her eyes, wondering where Jezebel was going with that.
“Nothing.” Jezebel shook her head. “Just look at her more. You might even catch her looking back.” Jezebel playfully elbowed Sophia’s ribs, giving her a wink.
Sophia in turn glared back at the woman.
Closing her eyes, Sophia leaned her head back and rested it against the cool marble. “So, you’re really fine with living forever? Never ageing, never dying?”
“It’s only forever,” Jezebel shrugged. She turned her head and smiled at Sophia. “It’s not long at all. Ah!” Jezebel cried out as she leapt to her feet.
Sophia placed a hand behind her and looked over her shoulder. At the entrance of the Palace were two young women staggering through the gate. The smaller of the two draped around the shoulder of the other.
“Are they drunk?” Jezebel asked under her breath.
Sophia watched how they both staggered like the ground was constantly shifting under their feet. “Looks like it.” Sophia nodded. “Can’t wait to see them both at dinner tonight.”
CHAPTER 10
For the first time in a long while, Madilyn’s arms were sore. Part of it, she knew, came from the fact she had not gotten much sword practice in these past few months, but the real reason was because Elena hit so hard that it made Madilyn’s arms and hands go numb, no matter how she tried to block.
Madilyn had found the woman in the training room after she woke up. She was accustomed to waking up early as that was often the only times she could move about in peace. She had found it odd that Elena would be awake even earlier than her, but then it dawned on Madilyn that she may not have ever gone to sleep in the first place.
Not that her exhaustion showed in her sparing. Madilyn did not even think the woman was sweating yet. Unlike her, whose shirt was so wet that it was sticking her to her back.
“You’re pretty good for a woman,” Elena said, twirling a practice sword in her hand as she circled the practice floor.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Madilyn said, gasping for air. Her entire body covered in sweat. “You’re a woman too, in case you forgot.”
“I am aware,” Elena said, lowering her blade as she waited for Madilyn to catch her breath. She did not even look the slightest bit winded. Was this woman actually a mechanical doll or something? “And for the past thousand years I have seen many women try to become warriors and fighters. Most of them simply try to be men, in which they are not.”
“I know that,” Madilyn said, straightening her back as she raised her sword. She had barely even gotten a swing in the entire morning. She could not even concentrate long enough to use one of her knight skills. Elena moved so fast it was all Madilyn could do to block. And she was not even doing that all that well. “That’s why I work hard to fight to the best of my own abilities and not in the way that is best for others.”
“I know you do.” Elena nodded, bringing her sword up across her face.
Madilyn recognized the stance as an old fencing style used by knights before the invention of guns. Back when soldiers and knights wore full plated armor. Madilyn would have thought that her archaic stance would make her attacks slower and more sluggish, but she had been terribly wrong. When Elena moved, it was as if one foot was always off the ground, and her sword never stopped swinging, no matter how Madilyn tried to lock it down.
“Your style is quick and agile,” Elena said. She darted forward knocking the tip of Madilyn’s sword out of the way and shoulder checking her to the ground for the umpteenth time. “But you have a toned strength about you. It is impressive to see.”
“Got it,” Madilyn said, laying on her back trying to figure out what had just happened.
“You two having fun?” a voice rang out.
Madilyn rolled her head back and saw Sophia walking into the training room, her cane lightly tapping against the ground as she walked. She seemed to have a silly smile on her face as she looked down at Madilyn.
“You think you could do better?” Madilyn grumbled, lacking the strength or will to get to her feet.
“Never.” Sophia shook her head. “I barely know how to hold a sword.”
“How can you have lived a thousand years and yet still be so bad at fighting?” Madilyn asked.
“Whoever told you that Sophia was bad at fighting?” Elena asked.
“Me.” Madilyn snorted, lifting her head off the ground slightly so she could stare up at Elena. “She can’t even make a fist properly…” Madilyn’s voice trailed off as she saw the look of confusion on Elena’s face. She quickly shot a look back at Sophia who still had on her smug smile. “You were just pretending to be terrible weren’t you?”
“You would have thought it strange if I wasn’t.” Sophia shrugged. She was standing between where Madilyn was lying and where Elena was standing, both hands placed on top of her cane.
“So, how good are we talking?” Madilyn asked, lifting herself up onto her elbows.
“Sophia is likely the best of us in unarmed combat,” Elena stated. “Tara is also quite skilled but she prefers small blades, such as knives and the like.”
Madilyn recalled the brief scuffle they had when they were fleeing the train. The way that Tara had moved had seemed so fluid and precise. Madilyn had thought it odd at the time that she would possess such skills but she had been so focused on escaping she had not given it much thought during or after.
“If any of us are unskilled in the ways of martial combat,” Elena continued. “It would be Allora and Stella. They rely more on their magic and wits.” Elena paused, and for the first time Madilyn saw the gruff exterior soften as her eyes seemed to drift somewhere far away. It was the same look Sophia often had on her face when she was alone and thought no one was looking. Like she was remembering something that always made her sad.
“What was Stella’s ability anyway?” Madilyn asked. She had often times found when people were grieving, it helped to talk about fond memories of that person. “Given Jezebel’s nicknames, I can pretty much guess everyone else’s, and she said Sophia’s is enchantments. So what was Stella’s?”
“Illusions mostly,” Sophia said, averting her gaze from Elena to Madilyn as if she were oblivious to Elena’s sudden show of vulnerability. “Though, her magic was much deeper than that. Most would probably call it dark magic today.”
“She practiced the dark arts?” Madilyn frowned.
“It’s not what you are thinking,” Sophia assured. “She didn’t sacrifice children or anything like it’s often thought of now. But she could animate objects, such as statues and the like. And yes, that also includes corpses, so she could have an undead army if she wanted,” Sophia added, rolling her eyes.
Madilyn cringed at that last thought. Stella was starting to sound like the villain from old fairy tales. Madilyn even thought she might actually be a villain from old fairy tales. Along with the rest of the Immortals. It would explain why it was always some evil sorceress with almost god like powers. Her mother would often say that all fairy tales are based in some small way on truth. Even if that truth has been lost and changed over time.
“Was t
here a reason you came here?” Elena asked, giving her practice sword a few good swings to keep her muscles lose.
“There was.” Sophia nodded. “Allora says she wants to see all of us in her study. Probably something relating to Tara, if I had to guess.”
“All of us?” Madilyn asked, thinking the invitation likely only applied to the Immortals.
“That’s what she said.” Sophia nodded.
Madilyn cringed at the thought of having the Queen see her in her current state. Her hair was a mess, with stray strands poking out all over and her body was covered in sweat.
Sophia turned to Elena, quirking a smile at her. “Go on ahead. Madilyn and I will be there in a minute.”
Elena looked down at Madilyn still laying on the ground, her chest heaving with every breath. She gave them both a nod then walked off, returning her practice sword and gathering up her stuff before departing.
“Did you have fun sparring with Elena?” Sophia asked, leaning against her cane and bending down so her face was closer to where Madilyn was lying.
“I did actually,” Madilyn said with a flat voice, rolling over onto her stomach. Though she might think differently when she woke up in the morning. She placed her hands on the ground beside her and pushed herself up enough that she could slip her feet under her. Getting to her feet she let out a single breath. “It’s weird, but being here feels so natural for me. The soldiers don’t give me dirty looks as I pass by or spit at my feet. In fact no one seems to even find it weird that I carry a sword.”
“One of the perks of the Captain of the Palace Guard being a woman, I imagine,” Sophia said as she watched Madilyn move over to where her coat and sword were waiting for her.
“It’s more than that,” Madilyn said, scooping up the water flask and taking a drink before pouring some into her hands and splashing it on her face. She strained, trying to think of the words.
“You feel like an actual knight,” Sophia offered.
“I have always felt like an actual knight,” Madilyn corrected. Then her expression softened and she let out a sigh. “But here I am also treated like one. And that is a new experience for me.”