Etherno

by Aaron DeMott

  “None taken.” Saija shrugged. “Don’t want to get that involved anyway.”

  “Sweet!” Tannin pumped his fist. “Do I get a badge?”

  “Hold on.” Inspector Adamka held up a hand. “This is a serious matter. If you do become police deputies, you’ll have additional responsibilities. And I shouldn’t have to warn you about the danger.”

  “I understand.” Kasai gave a sharp nod.

  “Me too.” Onin stepped closer to Kasai, and she smiled at him. “We have these gifts for a reason, and from what Professor Jekao very carefully did not say, the giftlings in the police department aren’t up to taking on a Natas.”

  Inspector Adamka smiled. “It’s not common knowledge, but we only have one S-class, and two A-class giftlings working for us.”

  “This city’s in trouble,” Saija said.

  “No, it’s not. We’re here,” Kasai said.

  Saija raised an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything else.

  “Tannin, Cerina,” Inspector Adamka stepped over to stand in front of them. “Do you want to become deputies and fight for the citizens of the city? Remember, no one’s forcing you. You can go back to your dorm right now and no one would think lesser of you.”

  “I do,” Tannin said.

  Onin raised an eyebrow. For once, Tannin didn’t say something stupid, and he even had a serious expression on his face.

  Cerina squared her shoulders and looked Inspector Adamka in the eye. “Yes.”

  Onin blinked. He’d really expected some sort of sarcastic comment at the very least from Cerina.

  “Very well. All of you raise your right hands, and repeat after me,” Inspector Adamka said.

  Onin, Kasai, Tannin, and Cerina raised their right hands, and Inspector Adamka led them through the oath of office.

  Onin covered his mouth to hide a yawn. He and Kasai had been crouched behind this stupid statue for what seemed like hours now. He should’ve known. The last robbery had happened at three am. This one probably would too. If they even came tonight.

  “Think they’re coming?” he whispered.

  “I don’t know. If so, it’ll probably be a while before they show up,” Kasai whispered back.

  Something across the room clicked.

  “Or it could be sooner,” Kasai whispered.

  “Probably just Tannin going to the bathroom again.”

  The clicking sound repeated, and a beam from a flashlight shone through the door. Four figures in dark clothing crept into the room. Onin rose to a half-crouch and tensed his muscles. The lead figure shined the light around the room, then each of them split up and started rummaging through a different drawer, apparently chosen at random.

  Inspector Adamka stepped in front of the door and flicked the lights on.

  “You’re under arrest!”

  One of the thieves laughed and thrust his hand out. A metal spike extended out at the inspector. Onin raised his hand to generate a servitor, but the inspector raised his forearm, and something that looked like a leather shield sprouted from his arm. The spike glanced off the shield and embedded itself into the wall behind the inspector. He grabbed the metal rod with his left hand and pulled. Simultaneously, he grabbed the shield with his right hand and threw it at the thief.

  Onin generated two servitors, and sent them after the thieves. Tannin was fighting one of them. Cerina wasn’t anywhere in sight.

  “I’ve got a kinetic barrier around the whole room. Cerina’s got a sonic barrier up too.” Kasai pointed to Inspector Adamka. “Go help the inspector. That one’s stronger than he looks.”

  Onin nodded, jumped up, and generated a servitor as he moved. The servitor followed above and slightly behind Onin. The thief facing off with the Inspector now had metal spikes emerging from each of his fingers, and some from his forearms, shins, and back as well. The inspector generated two more shields, and ran at the thief. Onin sent in his servitor, and generated another.

  The thief threw one of his spikes into the ground. It anchored itself in, and grew up at the servitor faster than Onin could blink. The end of the metal spike penetrated the servitor, and it popped.

  “Uh-oh.” Onin frowned. He hadn’t instructed the servitor do disperse. “Inspector, watch those spikes, they’re not normal metal.”

  The inspector nodded and threw one of his shields at the thief, who easily batted it away. In the split second that the thief was distracted, the inspector grabbed the remaining shield with both hands. It elongated out and flattened into a sword. The Inspector tossed it into his right hand, and another shield sprung from his left arm.

  Onin generated two more servitors. They joined the other one and formed up in a tight triangle linked by energy bands. Onin generated three more servitors. They formed another triangle, and stacked under the existing formation of servitors.

  “Let’s see how much he can handle,” Onin said.

  He generated three more servitors, and they joined the formation, making a stack of triangles three deep. A circle of white light formed in the center of each triangle, then a larger circle formed above the top of the servitor stack. A high-pitched hum filled the air and grew in volume. A beam of light shot up through the center of the servitors. As soon as it hit the hovering ball of light, a blinding arc of lightning curved across the room and slammed into the thief. Thunder shook the building.

  Onin blinked as the glare from the lightning faded. Only a large pile of molten metal was left where the thief used to be. The first two servitors that Onin had generated floated over. A prisoner was suspended beneath each of them.

  “A little excessive, But good work.” The Inspector pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his brow. “Let’s get these—”

  The inspector was interrupted by the pile of metal being thrown into the air. It caught him in the chest and knocked him over. The thief, who was unfortunately very much not dead, kicked Onin in the throat, grabbed something and ran for the door. He threw two metal rods over his shoulder. They popped the servitors, and the two other thieves also ran for the door.

  Onin coughed. His throat was sore, and he struggled to suck in air. He looked around. Tannin was still fighting the last thief. Saija and Cerina were nowhere in sight.

  The metal generating thief was at the door now. He reached out with his hand and swore as it bounced off the force field that Cerina and Kasai were generating. A metal rod with a split end came out of his palm. He grabbed it with both hands and slammed it into the door. A visible shockwave rippled out. Cerina screamed and fell out from behind a cabinet. She collapsed onto the floor.

  The thief sprouted a dozen rods and threw them into the floor at various points along the wall. They expanded out and pressed against the forcefield.

  “Onin, do something! I can’t hold this for long.” Kasai’s voice sounded panicked.

  Onin held up his hand. Nothing happened. He must have used up all his energy already. He smacked himself in the forehead. He was going to have to remember to keep some sort of snack on him at all times. The kinetic field around the room flickered, and the metal rods punched through the walls. The thief pulled the door open—and took one of Saija’s crutches right in the face.

  The thief stumbled back into the room. Saija spun on her crutch and kicked him in the face with her left foot.

  “You!” The thief took a few steps backward. “You’re supposed to be dead.”

  Saija smiled. “Apparently the Natas aren’t as all-powerful as they led us to believe.”

  The thief snarled and pulled out a staff-sized rod. Saija threw down one crutch and spun the other one around to block the blow. The thief circled around, trying to find or make an opening in Saija’s defense.

  Saija was remarkably agile for someone with only one leg. She ducked, hopped, and spun around on the crutch. She was the better fighter, but the thief was more maneuverable. He attacked with the staff, threw a punch, and kicked out at Saija’s good leg. She managed to block the punch with her arm, and block the staff
and the kick with her crutch, but it threw her off balance. She landed hard on her back and the crutch flew across the room. The thief grabbed his staff and thrust it at her like a spear.

  It stopped inches from her. The thief grunted and shoved at the spear, but it didn’t move. He spun around. Kasai stood facing him from across the room.

  “Ah, the half-breed kinetic.” The thief sneered and took a step toward Kasai. “The master is interested in you.”

  He reached down and touched something on his belt. A loud noise vibrated around in Onin’s skull, and his vision darkened for a second. He blinked. The thief stood over Kasai, who was huddled on the floor. He pulled out another metal rod and swung it down at Kasai’s head.

  “No!” Onin yelled.

  He tried to generate another servitor. His palm glowed, then dimmed. Still out of energy. Kasai rolled away at the last second. She kept rolling and came up in a crouch, her hair covering her face.

  “I’ve had just about enough of that.” The voice was Onryo’s, but it came from Kasai. “You made things happen too fast, and now you’re gonna die.”

  As she rose to her feet, her hair turned red. Wings and a tail sprouted from her back. Onin took a step back. What was going on here? This did explain why Kasai always ran off whenever Onryo was around, but… Did Kasai know about this? Was that why didn’t let anyone get close?

  Onryo took a step forward. She moved so fast she blurred. She grabbed the thief by the neck and his collar started to smoke. The thief grabbed Onryo’s wrist. He immediately let go and cried out. Blisters covered his hand.

  The thief shoved a metal rod out of his palm. Onryo burst into blue flame. The rod bent and started to melt. The thief grunted and encased himself in metal.

  “You’ve been watching too much anime if you think metal beats fire,” Onryo said.

  She gripped the metal shell with both hands. The metal started to turn red.

  Worry and a sense of dread filled Onin.

  “Onryo, don’t kill him,” he said.

  “Stay out of this, lover boy. This little punk has got me in a very bad mood. Not to mention that he’s put Kasai into a rather awkward position.”

  “Yeah, about that, who are—”

  Onryo turned and glared at him.

  “Never mind.” Onin held up both hands. “We need this guy alive so we can find out who’s behind the attacks on the giftlings. Also, if his boss is hunting you and Kasai, you’re gonna want some information out of him, right?”

  It seemed like forever until Onryo spoke.

  “Fine.”

  She dropped the metal coated thief. The fire around her puffed and went out. Onryo held out her index finger and a tiny flame sprung to life. She pointed at the encased thief, and the flame turned blue and hissed.

  “Come out, or I’m cutting you out,” she said.

  Chapter 8

  What's a Matari, Anyway?

  Onin slouched on the couch in his dorm room. Tannin sat next to him. Cerina sat on the floor to their left, and Saija sat in one of the two chairs across from him. Onryo sat in the other. No one had said anything since they got back from the police station.

  “Well, this is awkward,” Saija said.

  “Yeah.” Tannin shifted his position on the couch. “So… are you going to burn us alive if we ask what’s the deal with you and Kasai?”

  “Shut up, Tannin.” Onin smacked him. The last thing they needed was to anger Onryo. “You don’t have to tell us anything if you don’t want to Onryo, but we are really concerned about Kasai.”

  “Really?” Onryo arched an eyebrow. “All of you?”

  “Yeah.” Saija looked down and twisted the grip on one of her crutches. “Kasai was nice to me even when I was mean to her. I’m kinda new to all this touchy-feely crap, but I think I care about what happens to Kasai. It’d suck to lose a friend before I’ve even made one.”

  “Yeah, yeah.” Cerina picked at her shoe and didn’t make eye contact with anyone. “Me, too. I hated her at first. Growing up in the Northlands, I’ve heard rumors about her… you… whatever. I’ve since learned that it’s actually the Natas that hunt her… you… both of you… that are the real problem.”

  “I know what you mean about touchy-feely crap.” Onryo looked around the room, and blinked away a tear. “Kasai usually handles this part.”

  “So what is the relationship between you?” Onin asked.

  “Here’s what I know.” Onryo folded her arms across her chest and took a deep breath. “Kasai and I are the same person, sorta.”

  “Wait, what?” Tannin scratched his head. “Did I hear that right?”

  Onin leaned back and blinked rapidly. How was that even possible?

  “What’d’ya mean, ‘sorta’,” Cerina asked.

  “From what I’ve been able to piece together, she’s half dragon.” Onryo wiggled her tail. “Thus the wings and tail. Apparently she turns into me when she gets angry or threatened, or whatever. I don’t really understand it. She’s not aware of me, and doesn’t even remember that she can transform. I guess a lot of the trauma of being hunted constantly and stuff made me as a defense mechanism, or something.”

  “Why was she hunted all the time, anyway?” Onin asked.

  “I don’t know.” Onryo shrugged. “I wasn’t around for the first several years. I think she transformed at will back then. Ever since then, we’ve been hunted by both people yelling nonsense like ‘kill the half-breed demon’ and the Natas. The Natas are the worst of the two.” She turned to Saija. “No offense.”

  “None taken. I’m not a Natas now anyway, and I imagine they want me dead more than you.”

  “I don’t even know what they want me for. Probably a super-powerful host. Or worse,” Onryo said.

  “Probably worse.” Saija shuddered. “It’s always ‘worse’ with the Natas.”

  “Yeah.”

  They sat in silence again for a while, until Onin spoke. “So, what can we do for Kasai, and for you now?”

  “I don’t know. Like I said, Kasai doesn’t know about me. She’s used to people screaming and running away after a lot less than you’ve all experienced. I want her to know all this, and heal from the past, but I’m afraid that if I just go away now and everyone starts talking about it, it’ll make her worse.”

  Onin drummed his fingers on his leg. How would Kasai react if they just told her about this? If someone said he’d done a bunch of stuff he didn’t remember, he probably wouldn’t believe him. Kasai would probably become even more withdrawn. She needed friends to help her get through this. Onin sighed. If he was going to be honest with himself, he liked Kasai and wanted to get to know her better, mental issues or not. Still, he didn’t know what to do about Onryo.

  “I think everyone needs some time to digest this. How about we all go to bed, and discuss this tomorrow?” Onin said.

  “Okay. But I can’t go back to Kasai’s dorm like this.” Onryo flicked her tail. “Her roommate is rather, ah… excitable.”

  “Tell me about it.” Onin rolled his eyes. “How about you sleep on my couch, and Tannin and I can take Kasai home in the morning?”

  Onryo nodded.

  “What about me?” Saija asked. “The Inspector said I’m not supposed to be out unsupervised, or he’ll toss me in a jail cell.”

  “Come on.” Cerina stood up and sighed. “You can stay in my dorm room. My roommate is gone most of the time anyway.”

  Kasai was asleep on the couch when Onin got up the next morning. He sat in the chair next to the couch and poked her shoulder.

  “Kasai, wake up.”

  She mumbled something and cracked an eye open. She gasped and jumped up, her eyes jerked back and forth as she looked around.

  “How did I get here?”

  “Come on and sit down.” Onin moved over to the couch and patted the cushion next to him. “You’re safe here.”

  Kasai sat, but drew her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Onin lifted a hand toward her shoul
der, then stopped and lowered it. He’d want a hug right now, but Kasai usually kept to herself. He didn’t want to scare her off.

  “What’s the last thing you remember?” Onin asked.

  “We were at the archaeology building. The thieves broke in, we fought with them, it started to go bad, one of them swung a pipe or something at me, and everything went dark.” Kasai reached up and felt her head. She pulled her hand away and stared at it. “There’s not a bump or anything. What happened?”

  “Has this ever happened before? Like say, the first time the thugs attacked us, or when we got into a fight with Saija?”

  “No…” Kasai’s voice was low. Her eyes opened wide and she hugged her legs tighter. “Not you too…”

  “Hey,” Onin reached out his hand. “I’m your friend. I’m not going anywhere. What’s wrong?”

  Kasai slowly stretched out her hand. It trembled as she extended it to Onin. He took it and clasped it in both of his. Kasai took a deep breath.

  “Did Onryo show up again?” she asked.

  Onin nodded.

  “This is what always happens. Whenever I’m in danger, or about to be killed, I black out. Sometimes for minutes, sometimes days. Apparently, Onryo shows up, destroys a bunch of stuff, and people blame me. After I wake up, people are afraid of me. They blame me for the destruction, and either kick me out of town, or try to kill me.”

  “What about the monks?” Onin asked.

  Kasai looked down at the floor. “When the monastery first took me in, everyone treated me kindly. After I’d been there a few weeks, a mob from a nearby village came to the monastery and demanded that the monks turn over the half-demon that burned their village down. The monks tried to hold them off, but they broke down the doors. I blacked out, and when I woke up all the monks except Brother Terrence treated me differently. They were still kind, but they didn’t smile when they saw me coming. Some of them even avoided me. Not even Brother Terrence would tell me what happened.”

  She scooted over closer and turned to face Onin. “What happened to me? Please tell me.”