by TR Cameron
Chapter Eighteen
Ruby swirled defensively, using the sword in her right hand to deflect the blade seeking her head, and using the one in the left to convince her second opponent not to press the attack she’d begun a moment before. The clearing was mostly empty for their combat although several villagers had come out to watch. Ruby wasn’t sure whether it was because Keshalla was always worth learning from or because Ruby now held a status she’d never had before. Her teacher had suggested it was time to add Idryll to the mix regularly since she would now factor in most, or possibly all, of Ruby’s fights.
She had also warned her student that her studies were falling behind. She said, “If you intend to master the double sword, you will have to clear time to practice regularly.”
Yeah, like I have time for that sort of thing. Ruby’s magic was limited to the force shields covering her blades and what she could pump into her muscles, both by her teacher’s orders and by the fact that her hands were both tied up with the weapons. As yet, she still hadn’t had time to investigate how to cast magic through her sword. The entities within told her that no one had ever done that with them before, but that was a far cry from saying it was impossible. Time, time, everything takes time. She had managed to find the opportunity to spend an hour locking the artifact back into its place, though. That ranked above every other entry on her priority list.
Idryll slammed into her from behind, Keshalla having distracted Ruby at the right moment. The blow came at knee level, knocking her backward over her partner. Her teacher charged forward with a cry, and Ruby used her extra powered muscles to launch herself into a backward roll that carried her to her feet, both swords flicking out to intercept Keshalla's attacks from above and from her right. Her teacher snapped a foot out, but Ruby shifted and caught it on a raised thigh, then smashed that foot out at her teacher. Keshalla blocked down with the pommel of the sword, the two blades scraping down their full length. As they disengaged, Ruby’s ankle twisted and erupted into pins and needles.
She jumped back, yelling, “Ouch, jerk,” and drew a laugh from her teacher. She sensed rather than saw Idryll off to the side and hopped into a skip kick, landing her heel right in the shapeshifter’s stomach. The breath blew out of her foe with a loud gasp, but Ruby didn’t have a chance to follow up on the attack since her numbed foot gave out. She controlled her tumble, twisting and writhing to bring her swords to bear in defense again. Keshalla stabbed and kicked from above, and Idryll was close enough that Ruby couldn’t get away in that direction.
She was stuck on her back, barely able to defend against Keshalla's attacks, and would be a sitting duck when her companion did rejoin the fight. Plus, her body ached from head to toe. It was a good feeling, full of confidence that she had come back and was now only tired and exhausted from the extended training session. Still, she was done in. She shouted, “I yield,” and let her hands drop to the ground. Her teacher’s sword stopped moving an inch from her throat, and Ruby gave her raised eyebrows. “I said, I yield. I surrender. I give up. You win. There’s no need to be nasty about it.”
Keshalla laughed and sheathed her blades with a flourish, then extended a hand to help her up. Idryll grumbled, sounding out of breath, “Wait. Let me hit her a few times before it’s over.”
Ruby assisted her partner to rise once she’d regained her feet and shook her head. “You’re the reason I called it off.” Her voice dropped to a stage whisper. “Her I could’ve taken. But you, no way.”
The comment earned her a none too soft kick in the behind, and she straightened in surprise with a laugh. “Oh, I see how it is. Can’t handle the truth, huh?” Ruby retrieved her swords and put them back where they belonged, then asked, “I don’t suppose you found out anything about the messenger?” She gestured at her house, needing to clean her gear and store it away before her teacher yelled at her for delaying.
Keshalla followed her toward the small home. “I’ve talked to the elders of all the villages I have connections with, which is most of them. No one remembers anything, or they’re not talking. I tend to think it’s probably the former at this point since there’s no need for them to keep secrets.”
Ruby laughed. “Every elderly person I’ve ever met considers knowledge currency. If you’re not willing to offer them something good in trade, their lips are sealed.”
Keshalla grinned. “That’s a useful piece of wisdom from you, minari. I count myself amazed.”
Idryll groaned. “Yes, yes, will wonders never cease. Every compliment you give her increases the size of her ego exponentially. You should stop. Maybe switch over to insulting her regularly.”
Ruby opened the door and headed into the house. “I think you have that fully covered, Idryll.” She pulled the harness that held her swords over her head, hung it on the wall, and started to unlace her boots. “Did Nadar offer anything?”
Keshalla shrugged. “I didn’t have a chance to visit with the mystics. It hasn’t been that long, you know.”
“Slacker. How about we drop in and say hello?”
Word of her impending arrival had preceded her. They arrived at the mystics’ home to find them all down on one knee, including Nadar and the archivist. Ruby shook her head and stalked directly over to the pair. Grabbing their hands and pulling them to their feet, she said, “Not just no, but hell no. Be nice to me, sure. Feed me the best food and drink, definitely. Give me presents, okay, maybe, if the inclination strikes you. Kneel before me? No way, no how.”
Nadar laughed, seeming relieved. She sensed that she might have passed a test in his eyes. “I’m glad to hear it. One imagined you had not changed, but it’s always better to be unnecessarily formal than not formal enough, don’t you agree?”
Idryll replied, “I’ve seen her eat. She definitely does not agree.”
Ruby snapped out her foot in a kick to the woman’s shin and received a slap on the back of her head as a counter. She reached up and rubbed it. “That’s it, you get a castle full of dungeons, too.” Nadar and Keshalla gave her a confused look, and the archivist laughed at the banter.
The pair of mystics escorted them straight to the archive, where the woman had arranged seats and snacks at her desk. Nadar said, “We don’t normally allow food down here, but now that you have completed the venamisha, we believe secrecy is essential. Obviously, those before us thought so.”
Ruby managed to say around a mouthful of trail bread, with only a small moan of pleasure at the taste, “Sounds like you found some things.”
The archivist laughed. “Indeed. The books you brought back from the trial were exceedingly well-chosen.”
Keshalla replied smugly, “Of course they were.”
Ruby shook her head. “Yeah, you’re awesome, and everyone knows it. No need to be snotty about it.” She turned her head to the archivist. “What have you discovered?”
The woman unlocked a drawer in her desk and pulled out a tome, setting it flat on the wooden surface. If she felt the impulse to lock that thing up among the mystics, it must hold something very important. “This is a journal, written by one of the companions. Mirra Mintel’s partner.”
Idryll said, “Oh, I like that guy.”
Ruby replied, “Will you shut up and let the woman speak? Honestly, you’re such a chatterbox these days. I think Morrigan is rubbing off on you, and not in a good way.” She intercepted the lazy slap Idryll threw her way, and the archivist laughed again at their antics.
The older woman said, “Well, obviously the perspective is a little different since it’s from someone on the inside. I won’t bore you with talk of the trials and so forth. That’s something you can check out whenever you like by visiting us. Without refreshments, of course.” She pulled the book slightly away from where their cups of tea rested. “The messenger is discussed near the end. He says they went about their daily lives for ‘several weeks’ before the messenger appeared. When she did, they were summoned and ‘taken away’ for an indeterminate amount of time.”
/> Ruby nodded. “That sounds more or less like what I expected, although the idea that someone might take me somewhere for something is a bit of a surprise.” She shrugged. “Guess it’s pretty much the same old same old, given the process so far.” They talked for a while longer, but the mystics shared no more useful information. As they walked out into the open air to look up at the mountain, Keshalla gestured at the pinnacle, which was again mist-covered. “I’ve been up higher. The castle is invisible.”
Ruby replied, “Really? Weird. I figured it would stick around.”
Keshalla nodded. “I guess that only you can access it now, and perhaps others with your permission. Or maybe not.”
Ruby laughed. “Well, at least I’ll have a place to get away from her.” She gestured at Idryll.
Her companion shook her head. “Highly doubtful. Where you go, I go, remember? Kind of the rules.”
Ruby sighed. “I’ll take this castle. You get the one full of dungeons, identical to Dralen's. Keshalla, you can have one full of random traps and enemies to defeat. Don’t thank me. I want you all to be happy. I am a benevolent tyrant.” Internally, she laughed. A custom castle for everyone, this idea keeps getting better all the time.
Chapter Nineteen
Dieneth gazed down from the balcony onto the floor of his warehouse. It was a new warehouse after the visit from Magic City’s vigilantes forced him to abandon the other. It had been worth it, though, to get a sense of them. He knew now that convincing them to join him was a nonstarter, although he had the feeling they might be willing to stay on the sidelines as long as he kept his actions as under the radar as possible. Probably wishful thinking. Self-styled heroes are rarely logical. Still, one can hope, right? Below, a gathering of magicals was underway. His trusted people had pulled in their trusted people at his request, and so on a couple of levels down. The final group appeared to be twenty-some strong. Enough to cause trouble, not enough to bring major heat down on us. It’s a tough line to walk, but fortunately, Drow are agile.
He leapt over the railing and cushioned his fall with a burst of magic, then raised his voice as the gathered assembly turned their eyes to him. He was dressed all in black, soft black jeans over boots, plus a mock turtleneck. “Thank you for coming. Tonight, we’ll strike another blow against the human encroachment onto power and authority that should be ours.” There was a small smattering of cheers, and he nodded in appreciation of them. “It’s a protracted fight we’re in, and tonight won’t decide anything. Neither will tomorrow night, or the night after, or the week after. Still, over a long enough timeline, our continuing efforts will resonate and reinforce the next actions. More people will flock to our cause, and the humans will moderate their behavior in response.”
Someone he didn’t know, a Kilomea with a tall black mohawk, replied, “What if they don’t?”
Dieneth grinned. “Well, then, we’ll try harder. Because we won’t stop until things are the way they ought to be.” That incited the crowd to applause, and he nodded again. “All right, let’s move.”
It would’ve been an impressive sight, the whole group walking down an industrial street on the southern outskirts of Magic City. However, he’d sent some trusted souls out ahead, and they were defeating the cameras, knocking down drones, and ensuring their progression stayed secret. He broke teams off at intersections, sending friends along with friends to make specific declarations of his displeasure. The first, he ordered to burn down a warehouse that refused to hire non-humans and posted about that policy on social media. He directed the next group to break into a jewelry store another team had failed to get into before. The owner traded in more than human heirlooms, taking advantage of magicals who were down on their luck and offering them pennies on the dollar. He dispatched others off to similar things, all with the admonition that they shouldn’t take action until the clock hit midnight. Ten minutes before that mark, he and his two most trusted lieutenants arrived at Hazard, a human-only club about halfway toward the Strip.
There was no signage to indicate it was human-only, of course. Still, the street knew, and when a pair of Kilomea dared to venture inside, they wound up getting attacked by a human gang as soon as they were off the premises. The Kilomea gave as good as they got, and the fight finished with only bumps and bruises for the magicals. However, it wasn’t the attack’s result that was important, but rather the emboldened attitude that caused it to happen in the first place.
Before entering, they sheathed themselves in disguises, dressed like and appearing as average tourists out on the town. Drunk humans filled the bar, so they avoided it entirely and instead made a careful circuit, avoiding physical contact that could reveal their disguise while identifying all the security guards they might have to face. They finally stopped at a high-top in a corner that was momentarily empty, and he leaned over toward them. They mimicked his posture, and he cautioned, “Remember, killing is not an option, not even by accident. It will draw down too much heat on us, and we’re not ready for that quite yet.” He had killed the gang members in the alley, but that was more as a way to give notice to the humans in the city that magicals wouldn’t tolerate their actions any longer. Since then, his operations had been nonlethal. Even if they hadn’t been restraining themselves, this was too many people. Death on that scale would bring in all sorts of authorities from the outside, possibly including bounty hunters from Vegas, who he had no desire to tangle with.
They nodded. “Broken bones only. We’ll stay away from the heads.”
“Excellent. Let’s do it.” Their disguises vanished as they reached down and pulled combat sticks from thigh sheaths. The patrons at the nearest table only realized that something weird was happening when the wooden weapons slammed into legs and arms, snapping them with a loud crunch. The place erupted in screams and confusion, with people pushing instinctively toward the exits. “Dammit,” he said, “the cattle are going to kill themselves if they’re not careful.” Dieneth pointed at one of his lieutenants and ordered, “Fly over and make sure the front doors are open so they don’t get crushed.” She obeyed immediately, and he turned to the other. “Do the same with the back door. Then, give the humans some more pain.”
He waded into the nearest, striking only hard enough to create bruises and fear, worried that if they wound up on the floor, they’d get trampled. I should have expected them to react like sheep. I won’t make that mistake again. The security guards had realized what was up, and several deployed toward the doors to help people escape. A couple decided to challenge him instead, lifting bright yellow tasers to point them in his direction. He asked, “Really?”
They both pulled the triggers, and he used force magic with a wave of his hand to knock the darts into the floor. He stepped forward and slammed his stick into the leg of the one on the right, then smashed an elbow into the ribs of the other. The first went down, and the second cringed. He swept a foot around to take the upright one’s legs out from underneath him, and his head slammed off the floor as he landed. Dieneth didn’t think it would’ve been hard enough to kill him, but he certainly couldn’t be sure. Well, ultimately what will be, will be.
He shook his head at the security guards now trying to escape along with the patrons. “Oh no, you don’t. You’ve chosen to defend this place actively and taken payment from it. You’re going down.” He strode toward the entrance and his targets, throwing blasts of force magic around to destroy bottles behind the bar, to shatter the electronics in the DJ booth, and generally create havoc and property damage. He laughed out loud. “Man, I love my job.”
Ruby was in Alejo’s backyard on the evening of the following day. She used illusion to coat herself, so this time she could accept a beer bottle from the other woman, and they drank together. Ruby said, “You know, this is how friendships usually start.”
Alejo snorted. “With one person in disguise so the other person doesn’t know who they really are?”
She shook her head. “No, that’s totally more a romantic rela
tionship kind of thing.” The sheriff laughed. “I meant having a drink, sharing information, talking. Like normal people.”
Alejo chuckled. “Neither of us is normal, but I get what you’re saying. I presume the incident at Hazard was the sort of thing you warned me about the last time we met?”
“Yeah. Drow male, don’t know much more about him, except he’s a jerk who thinks humans have overstepped.”
The other woman replied, “Right. We’ve been watching for him ever since you sent the email with the additional information. Too bad we didn’t find him before last night. At least no one was killed. Hospitals are busy today, though.”
Ruby frowned. She hadn’t sent an email, so it must’ve been Demetrius. After a moment, she let her initial annoyance go. What did I think he would do, stand idly by and not help out where he can? I’d never date someone who would act like that. Besides, I didn’t forbid it, and clearly, the sharing had some benefit. Maybe I need to stop being such a control freak.
The sheriff asked, “What do you think we should do about him and his people?”
Ruby shrugged. “Keep your eyes open, and if you see something developing, email or call me. If you can’t get me, for whatever reason, call Andrews.”
Alejo coughed on her drink, then wiped her mouth. “You, recommending I work with the PDA? Do you really believe this guy is that bad?”
Ruby nodded. “I think he has a message that will resonate. I think some of what he says makes sense, but he’s also convinced me that he’d burn down the city to prove his point. Just because I’m sympathetic to a couple of ideas doesn’t mean I will accept the fact that his tactics cross the line.”