Vagabonds

by Kyle Olson

  “Yes,” Sejit agreed, dryly, “You know what I meant.”

  Tess’ head came up, “Do I? Actually, that reminds me of something funny.”

  “Go on.”

  “Well, y’see, from what I was told, apparently a bunch of mercs appeared one night, shot the place up, and killed her. Terrible thing, but hey, in this game of grab-ass between us gods, sometimes a few ants are crushed underfoot when we’re trying to kill everyone anyone has ever cared about. We both know Ifon and Daontys have the resources to send a squad to kill your boy. Of course, we all know they’re not that stupid.”

  Sejit cricked her neck. She had not been looking forward to this inevitable conversation. It’d been on her mind since the first message, but they’d always skirted the topic. Some things just had to be borne out face-to-face.

  “And why haven’t you done anything, I wonder?” Tess continued, wandering back and forth in a slow, too-easy pace.

  “Get to the point.”

  “But I’m already there,” Tess said, leaning forward, “I don’t give a fuck that you did it. We’ve both thrown away more for less. What pisses me off—”

  Sejit held up a hand, “That is why I apologized. However, unless you confided in me, I could not act. Why would I risk it when I could not be certain of your actions? It was not that I believed you would be swayed to their side, but that you might lash out. We have had a… difficult history, after all.”

  “That’s bullshit and you know it. Never stopped you before,” Tess scowled, but her words… her words lacked power, impact. A dying campfire sputtered where a bonfire should’ve roared, “And I told you that didn’t matter anymore.”

  “But you never said you forgave me.”

  “You’re right.”

  Sejit clasped her hands at her back and paced to the picture windows overlooking the courtyard gardens. “Much has changed. The world. Us. Not always for the better. I used to be more trusting.”

  Tess scoffed and looked away. “Don’t you go soft on me.”

  “There is no risk of that, but…”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Tess waved a hand absently, “We’re both getting emotional in our old age. Besides, if I really hated you, I wouldn’t have helped train her.”

  Sejit’s expression opened up, briefly, before she continued on as usual, “I appreciate the sentiment. That aside, this has made me think. My war was over almost before it began. Yosel has doubled in size, guerrilla actions are well below projected expectations, and our economy should be capable of supporting a much larger military within two to three years. Overall, everything has gone well, save for a few inconveniences.”

  “Mmm, yes, congratulations. The Lady of Slaughter, Goddess of War, Conquest, and the Hunt has learned well from little ole’ me,” Tess said, wiping a non-existent tear from her cheek, “They grow up so fast.”

  Sejit shot the jackal a lidded look. Though she did have to put some effort into hiding her amusement. “The worst has been the meddling from Ifon and Daontys. That is why I asked for you to come soon as you arrived.”

  “Figured as much. At least you follow through when you want to pump me for info, so that’s something.”

  Sejit had managed to detour as long as she could, even gone through that troublesome bit. The time for the whole point and purpose had come. She paused for a moment to study Tess, gauge what her reaction might be, then went on.

  “What happened when you disappeared? There has been no news of any… incidents, but that does not mean nothing happened. I respected your wish to avoid the topic while you were away, but now I must know.”

  There was a long stretch of Tess doing nothing save for wearing a rut in the carpet, and even that slowed to a halt. No longer mobile, she sank.

  “I,” she paused, “I was lost. I could see my path, knew what I had to do, but still, I was lost. You ever value something so much, want to protect it and cherish it so much that when the time comes you must, you’re at a loss for what to do?”

  “…Yes,” said Sejit, in a small, distant voice. The wraith of regret haunted her anew.

  “Well, none of that has to do with what I did,” Tess carried on, shifting mental gears, grinding a few along the way, “Short of it is Phytos was there, and now, well, I’m sure a number of people have breathed in at least part of him.” Darkness skittered across her features and around her, as if unseen flames cast faded, dancing shadows.

  So she was not able to save them, yet maintained herself. I wonder if I will be able to accomplish that feat when the time comes.

  At least Phytos is dead. That is quite the boon. Now then, since she has been agreeable, and especially after I let slip what I did earlier…

  “I met with Ifon, after learning of his plans,” Sejit said, meandering away from the window and towards Tess, “I attempted to convince him of the folly of his ploy. Now he has lost one of his closest allies as payment and, in the course of our discussion, the last threads between us were severed. I should have told you.”

  Fire and shadow dwindled in the gulf of seconds, but the embers were still there, smoldering and waiting for an opportunity to leap and consume.

  “What’s done is done. But if you knew, then why not use the girl for my benefit? In fact, what pushed you to take such a gamble? That’s not like you.”

  “Impatience and frustration. Despite the ease, it has been remarkably trying. I had considered using her to aid you, but as you said, it was a long gamble. I do not think I would have taken the risk even five years ago.”

  “How selfish, tsk tsk,” Tess said, wagging a naughty finger at Sejit, “But you know what, I can understand that. I get that. What are gods, if not selfish? Gakaka! That’s the whole reason we were worshiped to begin with!”

  “Yes, we are. Yes, I am. But, once I have the world at my fingertips, then what? I have spent long pondering that question, following each thread. However…” Sejit appraised her next words carefully, “I do not believe I will achieve a satisfactory answer without you.”

  “Now you’re really laying it on thick,” Tess said, drenched in faux-suspicion, “But I have to agree. I want Ifon dead. I want Daontys dead for what they took from me!” The lurking embers roared into life, “Their hearts held aloft, pumping burning pitch, flesh seared and charred!” And just as quickly, fell to nothing, “I can’t defeat them alone, not without making a fuss. Thus, I find myself in need of a lioness who once had an ideal.”

  “Once. Perhaps you’re not wrong,” Sejit said, a shade quieter than usual.

  An idea welled within Sejit, one so uncharacteristic and foreign that she was amazed with herself for even coming up with it, let alone giving it actual consideration. How times changed. It would be the greatest apology and consolation all in one.

  “Trust in me,” Sejit said, faintly, approaching the jackal, “and I will guarantee my aid in your revenge.”

  Before Tess could respond, Sejit ambushed her, wrapping both arms around the smaller woman.

  Tess went stiff in shock and surprise, then squirmed for a moment before falling slack. Quiet dominated the room for what felt like minutes.

  “I will take your silence as pledge to continue our alliance, and to that, I agree.”

  With her words, Sejit released Tess from the impromptu hug. It’d been the first time someone other than her children or lovers had known her embrace. Considering the reaction she’d obtained, perhaps it was a weapon she could wield more often.

  Tess comported herself, straightening her shirt. “You big fuckin’ softy. When did you learn those kinds of tricks?”

  “It is a mystery. And, seeing as how you have not disagreed…”

  “As long as they live and breathe and shit, I will not rest,” Tess growled, eyes kindled with renewed passion, “So, yes, I agree.”

  A sort of warmth radiated off Sejit that Tess would not have imagined the goddess could ever radiate. Perhaps it was the way she smiled just then.

  “Excellent. Now, I will move up the schedule t
o annex Kloshtel, this should goad…”

  CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

  Sophia dabbed a cloth to her forehead. Not only had she gone from a snowy clime during the winter to the deserts of Yosel, but the vast distance from north to south meant she’d crossed seasons, too. Just when she had started getting accustomed to the cold, she was thrown back into the scorching, arid winds.

  Their farewells had been brief, with hugs from Tarkit and Yf, and even Hydon, who rubbed all over her and chuffed up a storm. While there may not be a great deal to chat about in the future, she made sure to add their numbers to her phone all the same.

  Her apartment was as she remembered it, only with a layer of dust across everything. It was nice to be back home, small as it was. Gregor and Samsa, however, viewed the foreign, forgotten smells with suspicion and investigated each room and nook as if they’d never been there before.

  She sprawled out on her bed, its light, airy blankets whispering against her skin and let her hair down. The thin material felt good against her fur, too.

  Clothing had been another problem she’d not yet solved. Couldn’t exactly buy something for a lion off the rack at the local shop, and a tailor was going to raise some questions. Well, now that she was back in friendly territory, Sejit or Tess might know someone. Then again, considering how rarely she was going to allow herself to be in that form, perhaps it wasn’t worth fussing over.

  Her phone buzzed. A message from Sejit, asking her to stop by the penthouse for a chat. With nothing better to do, Sophia donned her pants.

  “Been busy, huh?” Sophia asked, by way of a greeting as she ventured into Sejit’s study in the penthouse. There she was, behind her desk, with the display case containing her favored weapon. Hadn’t seen her in months.

  “Yes,” Sejit replied, also by way of a greeting, in the sort of tone reserved for responding to a question that needn’t be asked, “I have.”

  She still hadn’t looked up from her desk, where she was signing her name across several documents. Official-looking documents.

  “Suultov was nice, if cold” Sophia went on, “Tarkit, too. He’s great. Yf was a bit odd, but I guess that comes with the territory, huh?”

  “They are.”

  To hells with it, thought Sophia.

  “Then there was that part where I died. That was a real drag, let me tell you.”

  The dancing pen came to a halt. Whether from her comment or because Sejit was done, she couldn’t tell.

  “Yes, I suppose I erred in assuming you would be safe there,” Sejit said, standing and stretching out now that she was no longer weighed down so heavily by the fiendish pen, “But Yf performed her miracle and here you are. Show me.”

  “What, right here?”

  “Where else?”

  Sophia glanced around. It was just them. Possibly Wophin if he’d walked in at the right moment. Though, was it really at all different from when she was with Tarkit and Yf?

  With the last vestiges of shame crumbling away, she worried, briefly, that it’d wind up getting her into trouble later on.

  Her pants, underwear, and socks folded neatly and placed upon the ground, Sophia let out the sneeze she’d been holding in since she left for work that morning. In a near instant, the human had been replaced by the sphinx.

  “Well, here I am,” she said, turning about as if showing off new clothes.

  Sejit observed this with a great deal of interest and began to circle the sphinx, as if to examine her from every angle. “How many children have I had?”

  Photos surfaced in the inky pool within Sophia’s mind. Photos of creatures that looked like lion cubs. Some were human. Some young, some elderly. Some of the images Sophia scooped up before they could sink back down from whence they came. They were sorted, shuffled, laid out this way and that. One by one a stack of possible hits grew, based on criteria of what felt right.

  Some time had passed with Sejit waiting patiently by the time Sophia settled on an answer. “About 60? Uh, do you mean humans, lions, or both?”

  Sejit cocked a brow. “Humans.”

  “20?”

  “Too high.”

  A quick resorting. But with each photo she removed, the rest became that much more difficult to reject.

  “…15?” She chanced.

  “Try again.”

  And try she did, wringing her mental fortitude for all its worth until almost ten minutes had gone.

  “11!”

  “…Close enough,” Sejit conceded with a nod and continued, “Where is Ifon?”

  “The god?”

  “Who else?”

  “There’s also…” And then it dawned on Sophia. She set herself to the task, this one requiring her to take a seat so she could get a good, solid think in. Scenes and panoramas of cities and snow-bound plains and forests and mountains played out. Some were even animated, hinting at the current conditions. Yet for the cities, there were no famous buildings she could spy and the mountains, well, to her one mountain range looked like any other.

  This task required some extra help.

  Picking herself off her haunches, she plopped herself behind Sejit’s desk, “May I?”

  Sejit watched with a curious brow arched, “Go ahead.”

  Alternating closing her eyes to get a good mind’s-eye view of the mountains and that which came up in the search results, Sophia was able to decipher the name and location of the range—and as soon as she had that solid, concrete fact, a set of new views snapped into her consciousness… Only, they were the blurriest yet.

  “Okay, well, I’m pretty sure he’s in Erton.”

  Sejit’s pacing came to an abrupt halt, “You are certain?”

  “Yeah, here, I think he’s somewhere on this mountain range,” she said, indicating to a map of the country displayed on the screen, “There’s more, but… it’s super unclear.”

  “Interesting,” she said, resuming her predatory encirclement, along with the interrogation.

  Questions flowed like a babbling stream, focusing on the wheres and whens and whos and sometimes whys. Multiple gods were involved, even Tess. Some were easy to answer. Some, not so much. For it all, Sophia tried to put together links between the seemingly random questions, but nothing came of it. After the deluge of inquiries, there was a sudden silence as Sejit processed the answers.

  “Interesting. Very interesting, indeed,” Sejit said, cocking her head, “One last thing. How are you?”

  Sophia squinted, playing the words in her mind to make sure she’d heard them correctly. Absolutely confident she did, she responded, “Well, other than dying, and well… everything, I guess I’m fine. It’s been interesting.”

  She thought about going on in further detail, but decided against it.

  “That is good. I do regret what happened to you, but things have worked out, at the very least. With that said, I have some matters to attend to.”

  “Uh-huh. Well then, talk to you later,” Sophia said, deflated, like Sejit had just attempted small-talk—which, in of itself, was a shock—instead of genuine interest. But, with her, who knew? Maybe she would, in time. The idea brought a smile to her face as she left the office.

  What was all that about, I wonder? Tess did the same thing… Testing me, probably. Well, if I’m still around, guess that means I passed?

  Out in the hall, she ran into the one person in all this shorter than she. He was carrying a book of such proportion it’d been promoted to tome.

  “Miss Sophia,” Wophin said, “It’s been some time. You’re looking rather… different these days.”

  “Well, you know. Hung out with some gods, and then some things happened. Grew some extra legs.”

  “Ah, you were lucky, then. Extra legs are perhaps one of the more tame things that contact with Yf can engender.”

  Sophia shrugged, “You’d think something out of the ordinary would happen with this group at some point.”

  A smirk hooked one corner of his lips, “You’ve adapted well, or perhaps, yo
u’ve taken to the mold well?”

  “Mold?”

  “Oh, never mind me,” Wophin said with a slight nod of his head, “Just errant thoughts. If you’ll excuse me…”

  “Whatever you say,” said Sophia, a sudden itch at her rump sending all the fur along her spin on edge. All things considered, it was some distance away from her fingertips, but cats were blessedly flexible creatures, and her chimeric form was no exception.

  The tiny god weaved around her, disappearing into his room to the accompaniment of a whispering door and the clacking of the latch. Latches were something anyone could hear, but the subtle rush of air and grind of hinges, that was new. Her ears wiggled.

  Now that she thought about it, and put some effort into listening, she could hear all sorts of new things. Whether she wished to or not.

  Fortunately, shoving it out of mind was good enough to turn off that ability.

  Padding towards the exit and home, she morphed back to her human shape, hopping into her clothes as she went. And, as she went, she realized something.

  Did he just call me a tool?

  Like I don’t already know that.

  Because, really, everyone was used. That’s just how the world worked. No reason to get all upset over it. Besides, how many could say they were used by gods? Now that was something to put on the ole resume.

  With a final hop her pants were on, just in time to slip on her shoes and take the elevator down.

  She arrived home, uneventfully, but with her key outstretched and inches from the door to her apartment, her phone buzzed once again with a message from Sejit.

  Get back here.

  “…Why me?”

  Sejit glared at the letter as if she could hate it out of existence, the thing unfolded on her desk near a torn envelope, no doubt claimed from the impressive tower of paper looming in a small plastic bin labeled “In.”

  Sophia shifted her weight from side to side, waiting for someone to get on with it, and Tess skimmed her phone and responded to messages.