There was nothing like the wall that had nearly taken her out, but there was a relative meteor shower now. Various stones, bricks, beams and bodies. All it took was one to pin her down and one more to keep her there.
She dodged what she could and sliced through what she couldn’t. She activated her Sage robes again, haven’t realized when they had disappeared. It had probably been when she hit the earth, but she couldn’t dwell on that. Not now.
The shower of debris became a drizzle now and she ignored its cries for attention. The boulders became hail and the bodies became parts. She was out of the most danger now, but far from it completely. She had to see who had survived and if they wished her harm.
Not many from what she could see through the clouds of smoke and dust. A few Cimmerians emerged from the fog in a frenzy and she gave them no time to recover. She slashed through the first one and threw her eidolon into the neck of the second. The third one threw up her hands in surrender but Remi wasn’t quite in the mood for mercy. She punched the Cimmerian in the face and then immediately turned her attention to her eidolon, still lodged in the soldier she had taken down a second earlier. She wretched it from the corpse and then cut through the fallen Cimmerian that was still clutching her face.
Remi sighed heavily and waited for more, but none came. After a few more seconds, she stretched her eidolon outwards and realized that most of the Cimmerians were retreating, and they were taking out as many Sages as they could in the meantime.
She wasn’t having it.
Remi ran forward and fell on her face.
No, she wasn’t having it at all.
Her body had reached its limits. Remi roared aloud, not caring at all if the enemy heard her and came for her life. She roared again and then she screamed, wishing someone would dare to come for her. She hoped that just one dared to test her. She wasn’t done yet. She wasn’t weak. She wasn’t. She wasn’t. SHE WASN’T!
“Stop,” she heard a familiar voice whisper in her ear. Remi craned her neck slightly and saw half of Olivia’s worn and exhausted face. Olivia was clutching her side—her gaping wound now seared shut and more surprising, there was now half of their enemy’s red sword in her hand. It had lost most of its glow, but the implications of possessing such a prize came over Remi’s face.
“A Sorcerer’s weapon,” Remi said low through her raspy throat.
Olivia nodded. “The Academy was finished, and we didn’t have time to stop that guy and force it out of his hands. I improvised. I’m sure there was a better and less painful way.”
“Yeah,” Remi sighed, feeling sleep massaging her back. “It’s…over?”
“For now,” Olivia winced, dropping down to one knee. “I don’t know what the losses are. But Cimmerian definitely won.”
“No,” Remi replied. “Not yet. Not…even…”
Remi’s eyes shut and her breathing slowed. Before she drifted off, the notion that she was entrusting her well-being to a traitor was all too clear to her, but she had survived through worse.
And to be honest, there were worse ways to die.
***
“KACE!” Remi screamed as she awoke. Finding herself in a bed, she sucked her teeth and threw the plush pink comforter off of her. She swung her legs over to the side and took a deep breath. How long had she been asleep this time? Her eyes fell onto her left arm. Strangely, seeing that it was still gone was relieving. If there had been a brand new prosthetic there then she would have known that a great deal of time would have passed.
She slowly applied pressure to her legs. Her natural one ached but it wasn’t terrible. She stood up straight and then started walking to the door in the left corner. The room looked similar to hers sans the mess, but she knew that she was in an entirely different place. She would never see the room she once had ever again.
She didn’t see her surroundings. She didn’t care to. She had to know what had happened.
She opened the door and found herself looking into a living room, full of posh furniture and carpets so thick that they looked softer than the grass in the meadow. The windows behind the group standing before her were wide and open, letting in the warm air. There was no smell of destruction. No smell of the dead.
Olivia turned around and smiled. Remi barely acknowledged her. She was still getting over the shock of seeing Ian there.
“You okay?” he asked, his eyes full of concern.
“I’ll live,” Remi replied. She tried to lean her shoulder up against the doorframe but she had already forgotten about the loss of her arm. She stumbled off balance and Ian ran forward to catch her. She caught herself, but that didn’t keep him from putting his tender hands on her stomach and the side of her hip.
“You sure you’re okay?” he whispered, his eyes searching hers for lies.
“In time,” she admitted, clearing her throat. “What are you doing here?”
“You mentioned him,” Olivia said. “I was carrying you on my back and you kept muttering his name. It didn’t take a lot of asking to find out who he was and where I could find him.”
“Where are we?” Remi asked, taking Ian’s hands and removing them absentmindedly.
“Altostratus,” Ian said. “Another home of mine. And you’re free to stay here as long as you need. I heard about what happened to the Sage Academy. The whole world did.”
“And what does Paragon think of it?” she sighed, taking one of the loveseats nearby.
“They’re probably not going to do anything,” a stranger in the room replied. Based on his garb, he must have been a student at the Academy. “This is what they want. I wouldn’t be surprised if they coordinated the attack with Cimmerian.”
“What would be the point?” Remi sighed.
Olivia snickered. “Makes sense to me.”
“What does that mean?” Remi asked, lifting her head.
“Just because they’re supposed to be enemies, it doesn’t mean that’s how it is. Maybe Paragon is smarter than we think they are.”
“But to what end? What’s the point of allowing your home to be destroyed?”
“If you think about it…the losses on Paragon’s side have been miniscule. So far Cimmerian has only attacked the Sages and the Sorcerers’ weapons. Little else.”
“This is a conversation for another day,” Ian interrupted. He shook his head as he glanced down at Remi’s lost arm. “We’re going to need to get that fixed.”
“You know someone?” Olivia asked. “And someone that can get it done fast?”
“Why? Where are you going?”
“We’re heading out,” Olivia said, giving Remi a smile. She pointed down to the bandages wrapped around her waist. Remi received the message clearly—she still had the enemy’s sword hidden somewhere. Once they left, they would have a somewhat direct line to the next Sorcerer weapon in human form.
“Your journey?” Ian asked, turning to Remi. “Am I coming?”
Olivia snorted. “Why would you be coming along?”
“We talked about it,” Remi said sheepishly. “And I agreed.”
“How would he help us?”
“He has knowledge about Terra that we don’t. He knows what to eat and what we should avoid. That’s very invaluable.”
“I’m not going to risk my life just because you want to suck face.”
Remi winced. “It’s not like that at all.”
“Could have fooled me. I mean, it’s not like you’re worried about what happened to Kace.”
“What?!” she exclaimed. She tried to push herself up to a standing position with her left arm but she forgot that it was gone. She fell back into the seat.
“What do you care?” Olivia said.
“I do!” she said, refusing to look at Ian. “He saved my life up there, and I couldn’t see what happened to him after he fell. You have to tell me!”
Olivia sighed heavily and shut her eyes. “I think Cimmerian knew about your friendship, because they didn’t kill him. They took him hostage.”
&
nbsp; “No…” Remi said, lowering her eyes to the carpet. “But…how do you know this?”
“After I got a chunk of that guy’s sword lodged in my ribs, I made my way to the platform in the East tower and took it down to the ground. I found Kace there barely alive and trapped under a boulder. I did my best to remove it, but I didn’t have the strength. And that’s when the Sage Academy started crumbling down around us. I was able to avoid it and I soon found you. After you went unconscious, I carried you myself and went back to where Kace was. I saw them carrying him away, and they were headed right for Paragon’s gates. I’m not entirely sure if he’s still alive, but if he is, I’m sure he’s in Cimmerian.”
“As bait,” Ian replied. Remi glanced up at him and then back down to the carpet.
“It doesn’t matter,” she muttered. “We have to get him.”
“Is that wise?” Olivia asked. Remi glared at her angrily. “Don’t look at me like that. Think about it. We would be heading straight into the enemy’s lair. We would be exactly where they want us. Is that what you want?”
“If Kace is alive, they won’t kill him until he’s been deemed useful,” Remi said low. “That means we can take a little time to prepare.”
“He could be tortured.”
“You think I don’t know that?!” she snapped, rising to her feet. “But we both know what needs to be done. We should find one of the Sorcerer weapons first and even the odds.”
“Or just make Cimmerian that much more powerful when they capture us all.”
“You don’t have to go.”
“Sorry,” Olivia chuckled. “I’m just seeing where your head’s at.”
“It’s clear,” Remi said through grit teeth, then she turned to Ian quickly. “So you know someone that can make repairs?”
“Yes, it’s the other person that will be coming with us besides Harlan and myself.”
“Who the—“ Olivia began. Remi stopped her, knowing she was about to start cussing up a storm.
“He’s a nice guy,” Remi said, putting her free hand on Olivia’s shoulder. “Very strong too. You’d like him.”
“Whatever.”
“Where’s Eckard?’ Remi asked, remembering Olivia’s better half.
“In the other room sulking,” Olivia sighed in frustration. “He was annoyed that he wasn’t able to do anything and everyone saw his unmentionables.”
“Well, go get him. We don’t have time to lose.”
Olivia headed toward one of the bedroom doors and burst through it, caring little for the structure around it. Remi shook her head and found that Ian was looking at her. She gave him a quick glance from the corner of her eye and he burst out laughing.
“Sorry, it’s just I never got to see you before in your natural habitat.”
“There’s hardly anything natural about what just happened,” she said. “I don’t know where James and the others went but they no longer have a home. From what I’ve heard, the relationships between Paragon and the Sages are so strained that there’s no way they’ll be integrated into its society.”
“And that might be for the best,” Ian said. “It forces them to look elsewhere.”
Remi was taken aback. “I thought you didn’t mind the Sages.”
“You misunderstand,” he laughed. “What I meant was that now they can look for the others. What many of us call the Ancient Knights.”
“I’ve never heard of them.”
“They’re not an organization. Nothing like that. It’s our umbrella term for the warriors of centuries past. The only ones that can make a difference in the war should the Sorcerers prove unreliable.”
“Why haven’t I heard of them?”
“Do you usually consort with those from Paragon? It’s not the type of conversation we would easily discuss with a Sage.”
“Well, we won’t be looking for them. I want the Sorcerers.”
“If anyone can find them, I’m sure it’s you.”
“I broke up with Kace,” she found herself saying. Immediately she chuckled under her breath and closed her eyes. Why did she say that? She wasn’t even sure if she liked Ian like that.
“Oh? I hope it wasn’t because of me.”
“Don’t be an ass,” Remi said, shoving him back with her one arm. Ian barely moved, but the gesture was enough to illicit a laugh out of him.
“I’m not. I’m being serious. I hope I didn’t cause any trouble.”
“No, this was in the making already. We just have different priorities.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s not a fighter. He would rather spend time with his friends than go on wild suicidal missions, which I seem to have an unhealthy obsession with.”
“Which begs the question: if the situation was reversed, would Kace be heading to Cimmerian to save you?”
“I don’t know,” she said, staring out the wide bay windows. Everything looked so peaceful outside despite recent events, and it disturbed her. It wasn’t that she wanted the world to acknowledge the destruction of the Sage Academy and the loss of her friend, but at the very least, they should be aware enough to get up and prepare. Paragon was good at keeping things looking like Paradise on the surface, but how much turmoil would it take for them to admit the truth? How much suffering would its people have to endure before the officials recognized that there was a major problem on their hands? It would be uncomfortable to fix and approach, sure, but Paragon would be all the better for it in the end.
Only through fire could they be molded into their better selves.
“But it doesn’t matter,” Remi declared. “I can’t control what he does, only what I do. And what I’m going to do is save him one more time. Whether you’re with me or not.”
“Of course I’m with you,” Ian laughed. “And I will keep you looking gorgeous while you do it.”
Remi laughed.
She didn’t feel right laughing at first, but then she felt that it was necessary. Her journey would be a long and tumultuous one, and there was no ending in sight. She had to afford herself a few moments here and there to remember what she was fighting for, and most of all, to realize that she truly wasn’t alone.
Hearing the laughter of others kept her sane.
Chapter 30 – Fix
It was back to Virga for them all, but the trek there was not the same as it was before. The rain from earlier had certainly taken its toll on the environment. Though the sun was shining bright, the air still felt damp and heavy. The flowers below were waterlogged and only the tree branches high above looked beautiful as drops of water were illuminated under the ultraviolet rays. Many people were standing along the path with mixed feelings bombarding their psyche. While the heavy raindrops sitting on the leaves were fascinating and they were a new sight for the people of Paragon to behold, the muddy trail sucking in their expensive boots concerned them.
Then, of course, they had heard whispers of the Sage Academy’s fall. This brought on a whole new bout of conflicting emotions. They were excited that the Sages were probably gone, but at the same time, who were their protectors? Would the warriors of old return to aid them? Or were they so far away they wouldn’t even know when the people were attacked?
No one wanted to think about it.
So they kept looking up at the trees, hoping to calm their whirlwind of emotions.
As Remi walked along with her friends at her side, she realized that this was the beginning of a new Paragon, for she had seen and heard much of the same emotions back on Terra. It was a world that was almost magical in what could be accomplished. It seemed like there were always new adventures to have, new lands to explore, interesting species and unexplored concepts. But it could also be dangerous, overwhelming, and crippling. Many thrived, but just as many couldn’t take it anymore and took their lives. Most of those on Terra found themselves in the middle, as the Paragons near Virga did now—a bittersweet mix of emotions, and the sickening feeling of not knowing which side would win over, the dark…or the l
ight.
“If anyone sees a King’s official, let us know,” Olivia replied, continuously taking a peek at Eckard. He was dressed in one of Ian’s outfits. A three piece suit that was finely pressed and a little too tight on the young Sage. Olivia actually thought it made him look a bit more attractive but she wasn’t about to admit that in this lifetime.
“We can look while Remi gets her repairs,” Eckard replied. “I know of a few places where they congregate.”
“Sounds good.”
They walked in silence, past the onlookers and through the muddy terrain until they arrived at their destination. Remi noticed that Gill was still not on his post, though she supposed that he had to go home sometime.
“We can take her to get repaired,” Ian said, grabbing Remi’s shoulders and leading her to the right after they cleared the entrance. “Harlan and I will keep her safe.”
“I hardly know this guy,” Olivia said, staring up at the man who was almost twice her size in height and mass. They had picked him up at the beginning of the trail and he had apologized to Remi profusely for not making it with Ian back at the Academy. They truly didn’t know the way and he knew that Ian had the necessary medical equipment in Altostratus. Remi didn’t care about any of that. She was glad they were safe, and now, all she wanted was for the boys and Olivia to get along. She didn’t worry about Eckard and how he felt about them. His mind was so dense that he could get along with quicksand.
“We wouldn’t cause her any harm,” Harlan said, staring directly into Olivia’s eyes.
“How am I supposed to know that? You could be Cimmerian spies for all I know.”
“Then come with us.”
“That’s inefficient.”
“Then make up your mind.”
Remi sighed. “I’ll be fine.”
The Complete Seven Sorcerers Trilogy Page 29