by DM Fike
Avalon clutched her arms around herself as if that alone could steady her wobbling feet. The sky seemed to spin above her in a dizzying pattern. Kay was alive?
That’s when Kay’s gray eyes pierced Avalon.
The two locked gazes. Avalon’s entire body seized, her heart unable to beat, her lungs incapable of drawing air. She waited for something: a glance of recognition, a shout of surprise, Kay running toward her.
Instead, he looked away to address his father. His face became lost to the crowd.
A familiar power gathered in the pit of her stomach. She clutched her hands together, trying to hold it inside, but it rushed outward, thrusting a gale force wind over the courtyard. People tittered in confusion as the wind whipped through the throng, knocking off hats, causing banners near the booths to whip about in confusion.
When the wind hit Kay, he paused. Raising his arm, the wind stilled.
Thunderous applause erupted around the fairy knight, fists high in the air. Kay became lost in the sea of his fellow Covert K knights.
Avalon took one step back, then two.
“Miss Benton?” Vernal asked, glancing at her. “Are you all right?”
“Sorry.” She stumbled backward. “I can’t. Sorry.”
Avalon fled back into the castle, leaving a trapped Vernal behind in the crowd.
CHAPTER 34
AVALON WANDERED THE castle aimlessly, trying to find someplace, any place, that would give her privacy. She trailed a young Aossi couple up a set of tower steps, thinking she had finally located the Wind Tower. She realized it couldn’t be when the second floor widened into a lounge with many plush chairs, shelves of books, and colored paper cut out in odd shapes on the wall. The two Aossi continued to the next floor, but Avalon stayed behind, too overwrought to go any farther. At least the room was empty. She plopped herself onto a window seat in the corner.
She tried to force herself to be positive. At least Kay hadn’t died. That was something, right?
But why didn’t he recognize her?
A tear slid down her cheek. She wiped it away. Another burst forth. She lifted her knees and folded her arms around them, hiding her face between her knees.
She wept silently, unable to fight them off.
The humidity of her breath coated her knees with moisture. Her arms cramped into place. Her back ached, bent at such a raw angle, but she could not move. She dared not move. One thought controlled her, and she could not let it go.
She was all alone.
An indeterminate amount of time passed in that pose. Vernal found her at some point, taking a discreet position away from her. Her snot dried, her arms wobbled, her back slouched. She eventually pressed her cheek onto the cool windowpane, letting the chills shock her warmer core. Her ear rested against the glass, the sounds from outside creeping inside her brain.
Children screaming in joy. Whistles and tambourines. Carnival music. Avalon imagined she could hear The Serpent roller coaster climbing its first steep ascent. Everything started at Fantasma, at the Hall of Mirrors. How had a fairy from Llenwald become a statue there, losing his memories in the process? How did he escape death delivered by the person he loved?
Why couldn’t he recognize Avalon now?
She opened her eyes.
Down below in the castle courtyard, the festival clamored in full swing. Dusk had settled, lanterns marking the path of booths in the encroaching dark, winding outside the main gate. Swarms of people milled about in colorful apparel, food on sticks in their fists, dancing in small groups in front of a stage.
"Avalon, is that you?" a voice asked.
Avalon whipped her head to the door frame. Vernal had left, leaving J.T.’s silhouette near the stairwell. He lifted one hand, a warm glow filling the room.
J.T. came to lean against the wall next to her. "Why are you sitting here alone?"
“I…” Avalon’s voice cracked and she trailed off.
J.T. gave her a weary smile. “Long day?”
She nodded. He didn’t know the half of it.
J.T. sighed. "I’m sorry. I wish you weren’t in such a tricky situation."
The general believed her mood stemmed from their earlier lunch conversation. J.T. rambled on about how the Guardians would find a way to keep both her and Llenwald safe, but Avalon let it float by her, focusing on the visitors coming and going below. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, trying to block the heavy weight in her chest, and, if she had not been plagued by images of Kay, she would not have reopened her eyes. And if she had not opened her eyes, she might have missed a glimpse of purple cape among the sea of colors. She caught the fleetest glimpse of green frizzled hair before she lost the Aossi in the crowd.
"If you don't think you're up to it, that’s fine, but of course you're welcome to attend," J.T. was saying. "The festival just started and is bound to last into the night."
"The festival?" Avalon repeated.
J.T. perked up at the sound of her voice. “It’s for the summer solstice, which is coming up soon. You could go meet Marcus, since you missed him this afternoon."
Avalon cringed at the mention of Kay's real name.
"No one wants you to overstrain yourself,” J.T. added hastily. “I know you’ve got a lot on your mind. Maybe you’d rather go to bed, get some rest, and in the morning—”
Avalon silenced him by clearing her throat. "Let’s go."
Her limbs protested as she wrenched them from the ball position, moving them for the first time in hours. She maneuvered like an old woman as she swiveled her legs back to the floor. J.T. scrambled to his feet, using his unlit hand to help her stand. As the blood pumped freely to her extremities, a renewed determination washed over her. It was a time to fight. If she could find Nobody in the crowd, she had a chance to leave Llenwald and put her life back together on Earth.
A familiar sizzle crackled inside her. Surprised at its sudden arrival, she let it slip out of her body. The electric bulb, previously dormant, flashed as the surge hit.
“Odd,” J.T. said. “The light isn’t supposed to do that.”
Neither am I, Avalon thought to herself as J.T. escorted her from the room.
* * *
J.T. led Avalon through the festival. The inner castle courtyard, which had seemed spacious before, had shrunk, filled to the brim with people. Humans with feathery hats, women trotting after overeager children, every shape and size of ear available taking up space near the game booths, near food tables, and every corner in between, spilling into the streets beyond. A delicious savory smell hit Avalon’s nostrils. A booth with steam pouring from its depths attracted a long line of hungry festival goers.
J.T. noticed her curiosity. “Have you ever had a bellato?”
“No, I’m fine,” Avalon said, but J.T. positioned into the enormous queue.
The line moved surprisingly fast. Avalon caught a glimpse of people dancing near the stage. A band played woodwind and stringed instruments, a fairy projecting her voice into the crowd. A song floated down to them, a beautiful soprano voice that kept the dancers on their toes as they twirled in a coordinated dance.
Now at the front of the line, J.T. paid for two long steaming sticks with skewered white mounds. They looked like the pot stickers her parents used to order at their favorite Chinese restaurant. J.T. gave Avalon a skewer, then bit down on the other, leaning forward as juice hit the ground.
Avalon tentatively chewed the soft dough. A taste like chicken and an odd sweet flavor filled her mouth. She ate the rest of one mound, a pleasant mix of vegetables, meat, sauce, and dough mingled together. She quickly finished the others.
“I see you’ve become a bellato fan,” J.T. laughed with half of his still left.
“Best thing I’ve eaten here,” Avalon admitted as the two of them wandered toward the edge of the dance circle. It reminded Avalon of the square dance she’d learned in middle school P.E., with partners pairing off and switching in a rhythmic pattern.
As the song reached its em
otional peak, the woman belted out a strong high note, reverberating through the courtyard. Avalon focused her attention on the singer, finally realizing Symphony held the stage. The note sent shivers up and down Avalon’s spine with its intensity and clarity.
The song ended, and the dancers stopped, erupting into applause, along with everyone else in the stage’s vicinity.
“Symphony!” The name repeated in between shouts and whistles around the booths. “Symphony!”
“She’s got an amazing set of pipes,” J.T. said.
The fairy bowed. She tried to leave the stage, but cheers kept her rooted to the spot. She exited under a collective sigh from the crowd. The audience tittered as they waited for the band to start a new song.
“I didn’t know she could sing,” Avalon said.
J.T. chuckled. “I swear you come from another world.” He continued, not noticing her reddening face. “She’s the most famous bard in all of Llenwald, trained by the Ancient Tribe of wind. It’s a treat for us to have her as a Guardian.”
“She lives far away?”
“No one can pin Symphony or Colin down for long. They live on the road, but they are ambassadors of Emerged Falls. They drop in to visit Marcus. Speaking of which, here he comes now.”
Avalon’s face went numb as Kay approached, handsome in the blue and green uniform he had once worn as a statue with matching gauntlets. Some festival goers saw him coming and gave him a wide berth. He seemed not to notice, ignoring everyone including Avalon to focus on J.T. He saluted the general and said, “Sir, we—”
“Marcus, I don’t know if you’ve met Avalon properly.” J.T. shoved her forward. “Avalon Benton, meet Symphony and Colin’s son, Sir Marcus of the Emerged Falls Covert K knights.”
Kay nodded, disinterested. Avalon may have responded in kind, but she couldn’t be sure.
Dance music cut into their conversation, full of percussion that shook in Avalon’s bones. Kay tried to yell something at J.T., but he couldn’t be heard. J.T. motioned the three of them to step farther away from the frantic dancers.
“Sounds like your kind of tune,” J.T. shouted to Kay as they moved toward the castle gates, backs against a game booth.
“I don’t know about that,” Kay said, shifting from boot to boot.
“Don’t be modest.” J.T. turned to Avalon. “You wouldn’t know it by looking at him, but Marcus is one of the most talented dancers in the entire city. Symphony gave him a quite thorough musical education. Show her, Marcus.” He pulled Kay and Avalon closer together. “Give our guest a twirl.”
“I can’t dance!” Avalon said.
“We have a possible situation!” Kay yelled at the same time.
This caught J.T.’s full attention. He let go of both of them.
Kay avoided Avalon’s gaze. “She shouldn’t be involved,” he said curtly.
Avalon’s spine stiffened. “Don’t mind me.”
J.T. shrugged at her. “You must to excuse us. Official business.” He motioned for Kay to lead him away.
The two men left Avalon fuming as they drifted into the crowded streets. “‘She shouldn’t be involved,’” she spat out Kay’s words with a sneer. The Guardians were perfectly okay using her to bait elusive terrorists but didn’t trust her enough to share basic information. Avalon raised one middle finger as the two wandered away.
An Aossi toddler waddling behind his father saw her and giggled. He repeated the upturned middle finger with a buck-toothed grin.
Avalon chuckled in spite of her anger. Then she felt a familiar ache on her arm. She pulled up her shirt sleeve.
The Miasmis bruise had returned.
Avalon covered it back up. She didn’t come down to the festival to eat or dance anyway. She came to chase that splash of purple cape with green hair. If Kay had survived his death-defying ordeal, surely Nobody would have made it out alive too.
* * *
More than an hour later, Avalon dragged her weary feet along the cobblestones. She found that Nobody’s signature dark purple cloak, while not exactly common, was worn by a number of Aossi in the crowd. Green hair also came in no short supply. She had walked at least a few miles away from the castle into the town below and still hadn’t caught a glimpse of the gremlin.
Avalon leaned over the side of a rock bridge that overlooked a creek. The moon shone over the babbling waters below, casting a distorted reflection. Avalon rested her elbows on the rough bridge railing and sighed.
The whole vision had been wishful thinking, just like everything else. Wishful thinking that Nobody had shown up at this exact convenient time. Wishful thinking that Kay would have rescued her, had he survived his fall on the Kori Plains. Her entire reliance on Kay had been wishful thinking that anyone cared about her other than as a convenient tool to meet an end.
Something splashed in the water below. Avalon gave it a cursory glance at first, not seeing much in the dark shadows of the bridge. Probably a fish.
The splashing intensified, the animal drifting into the moonlight. A painted turtle craned its neck at her.
“Oh yeah,” Avalon thought she heard it whisper as it swam away from the bridge.
“Vimp?” Avalon ran to the base of the bridge and peered down the beaten path that paralleled the river. She dashed into it, high reeds scratching her bare arms her as she struggled to keep her eyes on the turtle in the creek beside her.
The turtle made surprising speed. Avalon scurried to keep up, no small feat with so many rocks peppering the dirt. The path had obviously been made by years of wear and not through any sort of planning. At one point, she tripped, scraping one palm against a rock. She leaped back to her feet, peering over into the water.
The turtle had disappeared.
She glanced over her shoulder. The festival was gone too, leaving nothing but tall, unlit houses lining either side of the creekbank.
Avalon ran farther down the path before she found a break in the reeds where she could access the water’s edge. “Vimp!” she hissed as she scoured for him. “Vimp, where are…?”
“Don’t cry for me, Uruguay,” someone sang in her ear, causing her to jump. The back of her hand smacked into flesh.
Avalon twirled around and found a green-haired gremlin rubbing his head. “Nobody!” she exclaimed.
Dressed in the same purple tunic and cloak from before, Nobody appeared more frazzled than ever, the fabric more tattered at the edges, his hair more snarled. Vimp, back in his normal demonic form, popped onto his shoulder, dripping wet. Shaking himself like a dog, he splashed Nobody’s face with water.
“Ugh! Vimp! Seriously, do you have to be so close when you do that?”
Avalon threw her arms around Nobody’s neck. “You’re alive!” she screamed in his ear.
“Oh yeah!” Vimp threw his arms around her.
“And deaf now too, thanks to you two,” Nobody said sarcastically, but he returned the hug.
When she pulled away, she asked. “You look awful. What happened to you?”
“Sadus, girl, if you’d been through what I have, you’d look like a deflated balloon after a hippo sat on it too.” Nobody pulled his tunic down at the shoulder, revealing a nasty two-pronged scar. “Vimp barely managed to teleport me outside before Boxer caught us. Digs healed me just enough so I could come back here to find you. I don’t think I’ve slept in three days.”
“Oh yeah!” Vimp confirmed.
“You’ve been searching for me?” Avalon asked softly.
“Of course.” Nobody knocked her on the head.
Avalon pushed away the happy feeling that threatened to burst inside her. She couldn’t be sucked into believing Nobody would take care of her out of the goodness of his heart. She backed away from him. “I’ve heard some awful rumors about you.”
Nobody’s grin widened. “I would worry if you didn’t.”
“The Guardians told me you kidnapped Braellia and allowed Kryvalen to murder her for your own gain.”
Nobody shrugged dismissively. �
��The Guardians have their hearts in the right place, but they have a strict sense of justice. They want to convince you not to trust me.”
“What about your sister, Ladybug?”
Nobody took an indrawn breath, his cheerful mood evaporating. Vimp screeched and jumped off Nobody.
“What do you know about Ladybug?” His voice wavered, so unlike his usual cocky self.
“The Guardians said she died because of you.”
A strangled noise issued from the back of Nobody’s throat. He grabbed her by the shoulders. More shocked than frightened, Avalon froze as he gave her a light shake. “I would never harm her.” His voice cracked on the plea.
“I didn’t think you would,” Avalon whispered.
“I loved her,” Nobody said, continuing as if he hadn’t heard Avalon. “Loved her more than myself. I would have done anything to protect her. But Gaea took her.” Nobody’s sharp fingernails jabbed into her skin. “She took my sister as punishment, made her the Child of the Statue. Ladybug suffered because of me.” He hung his head low.
“Nobody.” Avalon tried to pry his fingers off. “Let me go.”
His grip did not relax, lifting his bloodshot eyes to pierce Avalon’s. “But she’s inside you now, isn’t she?”
“What?”
“They say all the Children have a special bond with one another. She’s in there somewhere.” He poked Avalon’s forehead. “She lives in you. You are her.”
“No.” Avalon said forcefully. “I am Avalon. I am not your sister.”
“But you said it yourself, didn’t you?” Nobody’s voice rose a pitch. “That dream you described. She’s in your head. She’s fighting back.”
Something inside Avalon gave way. “I am not HER!” Avalon shouted, pushing Nobody backward. She was as surprised as Nobody when a thunderclap boomed from her body, knocking Nobody back into the reeds.
For a second, there was nothing but silence around them. Avalon gaped at Nobody, unmoving in the brush. Her hands shook, tingling from the magical discharge.
Nobody said something unintelligible as he squirmed to get up.