by A W Hartoin
Alesky pulled him back. “Enough.”
Three wzlots led Gilles from the room. He didn’t look back. I squeezed the bag and spoon, not daring to look at the cauldron. Soren stood with his head down and Farue stepped in front of me.
“Did you have a plan to get home?” he asked.
“I’m not going home. I’m going to the History Museum.”
Farue shot a look at Soren. “I get that. But what was your plan?”
“I thought we’d send a message to Marie, but that takes days. Miss Penrose doesn’t have days.”
Soren looked up, his face restored to its normal calmness. “We’re sending you home.”
“No, you’re not,” I said and held out my bandaged leg. “This isn’t going to be for nothing. Miss Penrose isn’t going to die.”
“I’ll send someone to the great healer. You needn’t go.”
“I’m finishing this. Me. No one else.” I was crying. I don’t know when it started. “I promised I’d save her. I promised.”
“You heard Gilles. You’re in no condition.”
“I’m going home with a cure. Are you going to help me or do I have to get there on my own?”
“Matilda, you couldn’t get out of this room on your own,” said Soren.
“Watch me!” I hopped out of Lrag’s grasp and fell forward. Bentha caught me quick as anything and placed me back in Lrag’s embrace.
“Soren,” said Bentha. “Matilda is a force of nature. She won’t give up. Can we not take her to the museum and then home? We have the power.”
I was still crying, but holding back sobs. Soren watched me. “We can. Make the arrangements.”
Bentha bowed. He left quickly before Soren could change his mind. At least, that’s the way I saw it.
“Lrag, carry Matilda back to her room to wait until arrangements are made,” said Soren.
I sobbed a little for effect and said, “Not yet. Can I have a moment? I need to get myself together.”
Iris and Gerald looked at me, puzzled, but Soren understood my need for dignity. At least, he thought he did. Iris and Gerald took Lrag’s place in supporting me. Iris pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket and dabbed at my eyes as Soren and Lrag left.
When they were out of sight, I let go of Gerald and gave him my earring. “Watch the door, Gerald.”
He nodded, still puzzled. I hopped with Iris to the cauldron and looking down into the bubbling viscous liquid, I swallowed. The skeleton arm spun around, the claws contracting as if grasping for another victim. The two claws Gilles had cut off came to the surface and then sank.
“Let’s go, Matilda,” said Iris. “Soren made his decision. There’s nothing you can do about it now.”
I let go of her shoulder and opened my hand. The little bag and spoon sat in my palm. I bit my lip and my head spun. I grabbed the edge of the cauldron and it tilted under my weight. Iris grabbed me by the waist.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
I measured a spoonful of the white powder and held it over the liquid. Once done, there’d be no going back. Soren would never forgive me, but I kept thinking of Horc and all the other little spriggans. Then I thought about the katana, phalanx, and the rest of them. This war could go on and on. Maybe the wzlot were right. Best to end it now. Except Alesky didn’t want to end a war as much as end a species.
Gerald came over. “Do it, Matilda.”
“Do what?” asked Iris. “What’s that powder?”
“It’s what Gilles was about to add to the cauldron when Alesky stopped him. It will make it an antidote not a weapon. Am I right?” asked Gerald.
I nodded with more tears.
“Why are you hesitating? You need that antidote,” said Iris.
“Just do it,” said Gerald. “There’s no right answer.”
“Yes, there is. Medicine is always better,” said Iris.
“Soren won’t see it that way,” I said as I poured the powder in slowly, almost granule by granule. When the last bit absorbed, the color changed from the vibrant harsh green to a pretty mossy green, much like the color of Horc’s skin after Mom gave him a bath. It was done and it was the best I could do.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
IRIS HOOKED MY arm over her shoulder, and I tucked the bag into my pocket with Horc’s letter. “Let’s go,” I said, my throat hot and tight.
“How long before the antidote’s ready, do you think?” asked Iris.
“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “We’re not waiting.”
“But you need it.”
“The price is too high. I’d rather heal slow.”
“They’ll still think you did it for yourself,” said Gerald.
“I can’t help what they think.”
Gerald and Iris half-carried me out the door. We found Lrag and Bentha waiting in the hall with grim faces. They knew.
“I guess I’m not your lady anymore,” I said.
Lrag and Bentha answered with their silence.
“Can’t you understand? I couldn’t let them do it. Alesky wants to kill all the spriggans. Children, babies dead because of me. Horc’s brother would be killed. His whole family.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Bentha. “You wouldn’t have been launching the weapon.”
“But it would’ve been my fault that it existed in the first place. Farue told me to stay invisible, and I didn’t listen. The horen saw my wing, so the battle was my fault. How many already died because of me?”
Lrag rubbed his left horn thoughtfully. “He might’ve seen Iris or Gerald when they came out of the clothes.”
“He didn’t. He saw me.”
Bentha slashed his sword through the air and then jabbed the floor. “You’ve put us at a huge disadvantage.”
“I put things right. You’re no worse off then before I came.”
The room blurred and I sagged against Iris. Lrag scooped me up and held me tight against his broad chest.
“Do you forgive me?” I asked.
“You made a decision. We’re not happy, but it’s done now,” said Lrag.
“The hardest decisions are where courage lies,” said Bentha.
“Really?” I asked.
“I prefer a fair fight where I can see my enemy’s eyes anyway,” said Lrag. “You’re wanted in the war room.”
He carried me through the halls and I allowed myself to close my eyes to try and rest. But I found no peace. I kept seeing Soren’s angry face. Would he even help me get to the museum? Would we get to Miss Penrose in time?
“Do you think Soren knows?” I asked.
“We didn’t tell him,” said Lrag. “Best to get you out quickly.”
Lrag ducked his head and stepped into the war room. All conversation stopped and a new galen fairy I didn’t know rushed over. She looked like Esmee but with older, sharper features. She sniffed my leg and frowned.
“I’ll have to open your bandages. The putrefaction process has accelerated. The antidote would’ve done you much good,” she said, shooting a glance at Soren’s troubled face.
“No one asked you, galen,” said Alesky.
Soren held up his hand to the wzlot. “Nor you either, Alesky. Remain silent or leave. What does this mean, Mirielle?”
Mirielle ignored Soren and motioned for Lrag to put me in a cushioned chair. She asked Iris to bring her the teapot from the table. Iris followed her instructions and mixed in three powders and filled a cup for me. The tea tasted like home, not home in Judd and Tess’s house, but home in Whipplethorn Manor. I could smell the forest and the clean, fresh air.
Soren stood behind Mirielle watching as she cut away the silk. The sight of him made me feel guilty, so I rested my head on the tufted side of the chair and closed my eyes. The terrible smell was back and it stung my nose. I opened my eyes to see everyone from Iris to Soren recoiling from the stench and the sight of my ankle. I didn’t think it looked that bad, but I was the only one. It was dark yellow and swollen to three times its size, but at least i
t didn’t have an arm hanging off it.
Mirielle sprinkled a combination of two powders into the stitches I’d ripped open. It stung at first, but then it was cool and soothing.
“Drink your tea,” said Mirielle. “It will help with the pain and calm you. I’m afraid I can’t do anything for the scarring. It will be considerable. Your leg may return to its normal size or it may not. Without the antidote, I doubt your leg will ever be the same.”
Over Mirielle’s shoulder, Soren’s face paled under his paint. “There’s nothing more you can do?” he asked.
“Time is all I have left.” She mixed the two powders into a green bag and gave it to me. “Sprinkle this over your wounds morning and night. It’s all I can offer you.”
“Thank you,” I said.
Then looking at Soren, I said, “Is there a way to get us to the museum? I must see the great healer.”
Soren looked ready to protest, but Mirielle cut him off. “A visit to the museum would be advisable.”
“Do you think the great healer can do something more for her?”
Mirielle faced me with her back to Soren. I could see from her expression that the answer was no, but she said, “It’s possible. My gifts pale in comparison.”
Soren turned to Alesky. “Find Earl and Stanley. Inform them that they are needed.”
Alesky left the war room with a grimace at my ankle and then a look of compassion. That feeling would be gone soon enough. I could only imagine his rage at losing his weapon.
“Earl and Stanley?” asked Gerald. “Aren’t those the names of the dimwit deliverymen who took the mantel to Tess and Judd’s house?”
“The very same,” said Bentha. “They work for us now.”
“Earl and Stanley can see you?” asked Iris. “How did that happen? Matilda only got Tess to see her by using her fire. It wasn’t easy at all. Who did it?”
“That would be me,” said Farue, coming to Soren’s side. “I needed to bring in new troops from another mall. I got Earl and Stanley to do it.”
“But how?” I asked. “They’re total idiots.”
“That’s how. You know how the young are open to possibilities and are capable of seeing us in the right circumstances?”
“Sure.”
“It’s the same for the very stupid. Earl and Stanley are so dumb, they’ll believe practically anything, so it wasn’t hard.”
“Do you think they’ll be able to find the museum?” asked Gerald. “I bet they’ve never been there.”
Soren smiled. “I’m sure you’re right, but they have a GPS system.”
“Took them five days to understand it and even then I had to give them a tutorial,” said Farue. “I’ll put the museum in for them, so you should make it there with no problems.”
“Unless they see a pretty girl and follow her instead of the directions,” said Bentha. “It’s happened. More than once.”
“Or stop at a hamburger place and forget to start the GPS again,” said Lrag.
“They might turn left when the system said right and get lost for an hour,” said Farue, shaking his head.
“That doesn’t sound too promising,” said Gerald. “Isn’t there another way?”
“Not one so quick,” said Soren. “Lrag, carry Matilda to the loading area. She needs to be on her way before the horen gets his troops moving.”
“Wait,” I said. “Can I see the commander before I go?”
Soren frowned. “He’s asleep, I believe.”
“Yes,” said Mirielle with a kind of tightness around her mouth. “But he’ll feel her presence, and he did ask for her.”
“You may see him, Matilda, but promise me you won’t wake him or ask any questions,” said Soren.
I would’ve argued, if I hadn’t felt so awful. Instead, I agreed and let Lrag carry me out. The sickroom was twice as large as mine with five beds in it. The commander was on the largest even though he was the smallest of the injured. Daiki lay in the next bed with his eyes closed and his neck swathed in bandages. I could hardly look at them. Normally, they were the embodiment of strength. Now they were lying in bed without any of the things that made them them. It pained me to see it, and I never wanted to feel that hollow again.
Mirielle led Lrag to the commander’s bedside and he sat me on the edge next to the commander’s shell which was propped up against the wall. The commander looked tiny in that big bed, especially without his shell.
“How is he?” I asked Mirielle.
“Healing,” she said. “The injuries were extensive, but he will recover.”
I wobbled a little and Lrag steadied me as I leaned over to whisper in the commander’s ear. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you wanted me.”
Soren came to the other side of the bed. “It was for the best. Someday you’ll understand.”
“Not if you don’t tell me what he wanted.”
“It doesn’t matter now.”
“I doubt the commander would agree,” I said.
“If he were awake, he would understand the part he wanted you to play has passed by. It was a hard choice, but I’m not sorry I made it.”
“I feel the same way,” I said, thinking about the cauldron.
“I never doubt your resolve.” Soren stood up. He was so tall, the branches on his head brushed the ceiling. “Time to go, Lrag.”
Lrag didn’t take me out the door, but to Daiki’s bedside. He leaned me over without asking and I kissed Daiki’s lips. When he lifted me up, I saw Iris and Gerald’s shocked faces. Gerald sputtered and Iris turned a violent shade of red and bit her lip. I guess I wasn’t done surprising them.
Lrag carried me past them and Soren met us at the door. He didn’t say anything, just patted my hand and turned away. There were many things I would’ve liked to say, but none of them would do any good and only delay my getting back to Miss Penrose. So I let it go.
We retraced our steps through the stronghold with Bentha, Iris, and Gerald close behind. We got to the hall where the cauldron room was and saw Alesky charge out and begin screaming at Anatol and the other wzlot. Lrag spun around and took me another way. We left by the front doors where the wounded had been.
“What happened to everyone?” I asked.
“Triaged them and took them to their species areas to recover. Funerals start tomorrow.”
I got a lump in my throat. “How many?”
“Too many,” said Lrag.
Two formations of phalanx scuttled over. One shell in the middle popped up. “Earl and Stanley are waiting, but they ain’t happy.”
“I’ll teach them unhappiness,” said Bentha, unsheathing his sword.
“They’ve discovered the battleground and figure the mess is gonna be blamed on them,” said the phalanx.
Farue came out behind us and said, “Don’t worry about those nitwits. I’ll handle them. Head out, Lrag. We’ll be along shortly.”
Farue disappeared into one of the formations and Lrag took off in a smooth lope, flanked by the phalanx. Gerald and Iris flew overhead. I didn’t see where Bentha went, but he was so skinny, he could disappear behind a toothpick. We passed by Soren’s area. Council members of at least twenty species were gathered outside of the council chambers. We didn’t stop. What would I have said, if we had? Sorry wasn’t enough for the trouble I’d caused just by being me and showing up. The mall was over for me anyway. Once Alesky figured out what I did, I’d never be welcomed back. The one place that accepted my being a kindler would never want to see me again.
Lrag turned a corner to a long corridor lined with glass cabinets on either side. He tromped right down the middle with his bulbous nose in the air, not trying to hide.
Gerald flew down and hovered in front of us, wobbling from the weight of my earring. “What are you doing? The horen’s on the move and you’re out in the open.”
“We’re deep in our territory. The horen’ll hit the katana stronghold first.” He cocked his head to the right. “Plus, they’ve never had a chance to see h
er before.”
I looked past Lrag’s bicep and saw eyes peeking at me from behind figurines inside cabinets, under decorative boxes, and knickknacks of past ages. Trolls, wood fairies, ashrays, teufels, katana, dryads, and other species I couldn’t name stepped out to line the corridor.
Gerald flew in closer. “Considering the situation, I think we should—”
“Quiet, boy. Matilda isn’t skulking away like she’s done something wrong,” said Lrag. “And she’s the only kindler they’re likely to ever see.”
Gerald’s mouth pursed like he’d taken a bite of Tess’s favorite sour candy. Oh, how Gerald hated being brushed off. He always thought he was right. One of the hazards of being a genius, I supposed. But in that case, I agreed with him, not because I thought I should be hiding, but because I wanted to.
Gerald flew up to tell Iris that we weren’t going to hide. The two of them dropped down and flew in front of us. Iris did a series of spins and pirouettes. She was grinning so wide, it looked like it hurt.
“See?” asked Lrag. “She’s proud of you. Hold your head up.”
I didn’t know whether I should smile, wave, or what. That other fairies wanted to see me was such a strange idea. Later, they’d say they’d seen the kindler. The one who ruined the bomb material and extended the conflict with the spriggans. The thought left me with a hollow feeling.
“This is a compliment to your uniqueness,” said Lrag.
“You’re unique,” I said. “Nice horns, by the way.”
“Thanks. My horns are especially nice and trolls don’t have horns, you know,” he said with a fierce look.
A little wzlot fairy ran out from behind her mother and waved with a sweet smile on her face. I waved back before I thought about it, and my head did get a little higher. Maybe that tiny girl would turn out to be a kindler. I wouldn’t show her shame. I couldn’t. Whoever she turned out to be, whatever she did, her head should be high.
I touched Lrag’s cheek. My fingers slid over the diamond pattern, like the most supple leather. “I wouldn’t care if you were a troll.”
Lrag’s eyes darted around and then he spoke in a low voice, so low I felt it rumbling in his chest. “I am a troll. A devil troll.”