412. Of threats, acceptance and a little bit of flight

Cassandra Pendragon

I turned away and allowed the cold breeze to ruffle my hair. Lilith, spluttering and pulsing like a lightbulb during a thunderstorm, had just managed to extricate herself from the charred trunk of the elm, Lamia and Reia were huddled up close together under a spruce, hiding from the biting wind, and Constantine's harem had formed a loose circle around us, their heads lowered. That alone would have been enough to convince me he had told the truth, but I hadn't really doubted him to begin with. What kind of environment would teach four proud, beautiful, magically gifted women to lower their heads in the presence of someone whom they probably shared a bed with?

A traditional, outdated, violent culture, where personal prowess was the only indicator of worth. The strong would rule and the weak would cower. Damn it all to hell and back, not only was it inefficient, it also went against every fibre of my being. I had walked many worlds where it had been similar and I had never stayed for long. Either because I had become disgusted or because I had lost my patience. But this time I couldn't hide and I couldn't lash out. This was my home.

Groaning I raised my head to the sky and watched the two immortals, far above the clouds, frolic like two young birds, the joy of their reunion palpable in every one of their movements. Seeing a small piece of heaven come to life calmed me down, but it still couldn't loosen the knot of worry I felt hardening in my stomach. "How many of you are there," I finally asked.

"Millions," Constantine replied, "but they're mostly slaves or commoners. It's the cultivators you have to be wary of. As to how many there are… powerful ones maybe a few hundred. Of those only about ten can pose a real threat."

"Are you amongst them?" He chuckled morosely.

"Not even close. Despite my knowledge I've only had about twenty years to cultivate my strength and my family isn't associated with any of the more formidable powers. If you want an indicator… each one of them can travel between realms at will. Maybe destroy them. They know what's happening and they'll be prepared. They might even see it as a chance to rise above their peers."

"Then what exactly do I need you for?"

"We might not be allies but I know them and I've met several in person. Let's get to the chase. I can lead you to them and once you've put them in the dirt I can make sure they comport themselves appropriately, maybe even peacefully."

"As the newly minted emperor of the next great dynasty, I take it?"

"Why not? You know as well as I that structure is important. Without it chaos and strife will follow. I don't have the strength, but I have the skill to prevent that. Why not use it?"

"Because I don't trust you," I shot back. More to myself than for his benefit I added: "maybe I should just seal magic on Gaya altogether and be done with it." Unfortunately that would kill the dragons, the fey, the kitsune… the list went on. Otherwise I might have truly considered it as a solution. Without magic most of the shit I had been forced to deal with wouldn't have happened.

My gaze returned to him and I asked: "how do you even intend to find them? I suppose they're very adapted at suppressing their aura."

"That they are, but they're also spoiled, indulging crybabies. I'm not going to divulge everything I know, that'd be stupid, but one has a taste for exceptionally pretty boys." With an exaggeratedly lecherous smile he winked. "Now, in which waters do you think she'll start fishing?" I didn't quite take away the message he had meant to convey: "Are there kitsune in your realm?" Judging from his suddenly hesitant demeanour he wasn't expecting me to take his answer overly well.

"No… but a few got lost and ended up there. Their fate wasn't kind. She… collected them all, regardless of age or gender, and kept them until they withered away. Your… bodies, your innate magic, its like a fruit waiting to be plucked for us." I whistled through my teeth.

"And you thought I'd hold you responsible? What do you take me for?" Stupid question, really, considering he had turned me into the devil. "Never mind." I inhaled deeply and savoured the tangy, but muted scent of the forest. Electricity was building in the air, mixed with a subtle note of something else. Ozone, the smell of reality torn asunder. What was brewing in the sky wasn't a normal storm. "Thanks, but no. I'm not going to spend my time running after people you point out. Your kin are going to be in for quite a surprise. This world as we know it… with or without you it's going to end within a year. I neither have the time nor the desire to play kingmaker while a real war is already looming on the horizon."

"And you expect me to believe that? You expect me to believe that you're going to turn a blind eye? Wherever my people will arrive blood will follow, unless they're met with more strength than they possess. Unless you're someone else entirely you won't let that happen."

"I don't mean to, but I don't need you to act as my guide." With a wicked grin I added: "chances are over half of them will appear on the other side of the ocean. Maybe I'll even root for them, but most likely your oh so powerful cultivators will end up as arcane batteries themselves in no time." At least death was an escape now. Their souls would be safe once they had passed on.

"Aren't you overestimating your compatriots? From whatever little information I have the magic of this world is far inferior to ours."

"Magic is always the same and the tiny morsels of power you've stored away within you won't last for long. Soon you'll have to play by the same rules as everybody else. And if one of you should come up with the brilliant idea of using cognisant fuels to strengthen themselves… I'll know and I'll be there. Have you forgotten what I've done, barely a quarter of an hour ago? It wasn't all for show, either. No… amor fati. What will be, will be. Which means you should stop worrying about the future and maybe start thinking about how you're going to earn twenty gold coins." He cocked an eyebrow, but didn't insist further. I was pretty sure, though, that he'd bring it up again at the next opportune, or even inopportune for that matter, moment.

"One part is easy, the other isn't," he replied, "I can help her lay the foundation of her own path. That's worth quite a bit more than twenty gold, don't you think?" True, but… unnecessary. If I wasn't entirely mistaken the former slave would soon have access to more information on magic than Constantine, in all his lives, had ever accumulated. The beauty of getting close to an immortal, albeit a newly born. "But," he continued, "the world will end within a year? Why?"

"Because not one entity from beyond the stars is watching this little world of ours. All of them are and in a year they'll come knocking on the door. It falls to me to make sure that more than dust and ashes survive the dawn of an immortal war. That's also why I'm not going to bother with your compatriots for now, unless they give me a reason to." He was taking the revelation quite well, without the usual fuss, puffy cheeks or wringing hands. No, he seemed quite calm and even managed a pinched smile.

"What's the plan, then? You can't hide an entire planet… can you?" I shrugged.

"Maybe. I…," wasn't sure whether or not to reveal my hand, but that stemmed mainly from my past experiences with him, which I wouldn't have described as delightful. In all honesty, trying to screw me over now was tantamount to suicide and Constantine was many things, but an idiot he was not. "The planet can't be hidden, especially not by me. It's my own magic that will serve as a beacon to draw my siblings closer. But a chunk of rock orbiting a star isn't what I'd call home and the peoples of this world… they don't have to stay here, do they?"

"Are you trying to tell me that you want to leave this world beforehand? How? Technology isn't an option and space travel by magic is a darn balancing act. It takes almost as much time to get right as it takes to develop a spaceship."

"And how would you know? The last few chapters of your life clearly didn't take place on a medieval world, did they? It doesn't matter, I'm not really interested in your past. And no, trying to turn a world, on which most people struggle to add two and two together, into a spacefaring civilisation isn't an option. It wouldn't even be one if I had a decade, or several for that matter. But… you've spent your entire life in a subrealm yourself. Let me tell you a little secret. A subrealm doesn't have to be anchored to a world. It only needs a counterweight heavy enough to withstand the pull. I could probably do it myself, but I don't even need to. As we speak a friend of mine, a dryad, is growing. Her roots are spreading and when they've reached every last part of this world, she'll become the sanctuary we dearly need. At least I hope so."

"And if you're wrong?" I answered his questioning, anxious gaze calmly.

"Then we'll have to fight… and probably die, but what else is there? Besides, I don't think I'm wrong. Creatures who are much wiser, much more cunning and much more ruthless than me have sacrificed more than you can imagine to make it possible. I don't expect them to fail. In that regard, at least, I trust them." Something changed within his eyes, a spark of comprehension that vanished just as quickly as it had formed. Gradually the little bits and pieces he had picked up were coming together to form a picture he wasn't overly comfortable with.

"Who are you," he breathed.

"The devil," I chuckled dryly. "Don't tell me you're surprised that your colourful descriptions didn't even come close to the truth. I'm not arrogant enough to think of myself as the root of all mortal aspirations, but the strength you unwittingly attributed to me isn't too far from what I actually am. And it will be even more accurate once the year has run its course," I added under my breath.

"But… why… what…," he stammered. "Doesn't that mean there's nothing for us to do? What does it even matter? Aren't we just waiting for the end to come?" Another sigh escaped me. Luckily we were still talking in Latin, which meant the four girls around us couldn't follow the conversation. Otherwise the ensuing explanations would have taken me a week.

"If that's what you want, sure. But I'm not yet ready to stick my head in the sand and wait. And if you are neither, I'm sure we'll find something for you to do that doesn't involve tearing your hair out until the sky falls onto your head. For instance…," I breathed in deeply and tasted the rising pressure in the air. "Within a few hours even more of your kin are going to stumble into our world right around here. They'll be confused and angry and generally in a bad mood. I'm sure they could use a familiar face to calm them down. Incidentally, the same thing is going to happen all over…" I felt my ears twitch and swivel and then I caught a faint almost inaudible sound on the wind. Screams that carried with them an echo of the magic that was being unleashed not too far from here. Blasted, godforsaken war! We were on the Emerald Island after all and more or less bound to stumble over a few skirmishes on our way to the capital, but I hadn't expected the flames of carnage to have already ignited this far north. Damn it all to hell and back.

"Or not," I continued, while I was already reaching out mentally for the two immortals in the sky. Then I switched to Chinese and beckoned for Reia and Lamia to join us. "Time's up. Excuse my candour, but you're planning on sticking to us like a burdock, aren't you, Constantine?" I had actually meant to say like mould, but antagonising the former emperor, as enticing as it was, would have to wait. He exchanged a quick glance with his better halves and nodded.

"Just as well. That leaves the two of you… I don't think you'll suffer any repercussions, Reia, but chance are Lamia is going to be out of it for a while once we're done and I can't stick around to watch her regain consciousness. There's a fight happening close by and I want to know what's going on. Which means the two of you have basically two options. You can either stay like you are and we postpone the whole make the phoenix better affair until we arrive somewhere with an actual bed, or we can rush through it right now. In that case Reia will have to stay here and watch over you. We'll pick you up in a few hours and I'll leave Lilith with you." Which was less generosity and more irritation with the demoness on my part, but they didn't need to know. "What's it going to be?" The two girls exchanged a glance that was a tad too familiar for my liking, before my sister replied:

"We'll wait. Unless… is there a risk to her?" I moved my wings, one of the scintillating torrents pierced the dark, ominous flame, still dancing above Lamia's heart, and it dispersed into silvery motes of light instantly. A peculiar look entered the phoenix' eyes but before she could ask a stammering question I explained:

"I just fed your magic a tiny piece of my own power. To cut a long story short your energy will try to… digest, for want of a better word, what I've given you, but it won't work. Until I take the spark back out your magic is locked in an unbreakable cycle. You can still actively use it, but it won't flare up without your say so. It's a temporary fix, mind you. If we don't get that spark out of you again it'll slowly corrode your innate ability." To stop Reia from inflating even further I quickly added: "which will take weeks. You're fine for now." A soft thud sounded behind me and a warm gust, carrying with it the scent of fire and stars, tickled my bare back. Sarai and Ahri had returned.

"Once we're in the sky Reia can carry Lamia. We'll have to split the others between us. Or… can you fly?" Slightly miffed at my pretentious question Constantine replied:

"Maybe not as good as you, but it'll be enough." I nodded curtly, my wings slithered through the air and two tentacles wound themselves tightly around Reia and her… friend. A second later we were already above the trees, the muddied clearing slowly shrinking away. A flurry of activity erupted below us, but I couldn't watch.

"You're going to drop me any second now, aren't you," my sister complained.

"Hmm, if you want to teach someone to swim, throw them in a river, if you want someone to learn how to fly…" then I let go. Just of her, mind you. Unfortunately Lamia screamed even louder than the vixen when the latter plummeted towards the earth. With a gentle squeeze I reassured her:

"She'll be fine, I think. If she doesn't manage to righten herself before she passes the canopy I'll catch her." Inadvertently I held my breath, my eyes glued to the flailing bundle of shimmering wings and artic blue tails. Once she'd figure out how to use them her tails would become quite the asset when manoeuvring in the air, but for now they were simply in the way. "Just spread your wings and tails and soar," I shouted, but the muffled, slightly panicked response still consisted of an impressive stream of curses. Luckily the girl was able to multitask and managed to adjust her trajectory. It was a far cry removed from elegant, but at least she wasn't falling anymore. That was until Sarai brushed past her, laughing merrily, and messed up her balance entirely. For the fraction of a second the vixen almost stood in the air and then she plummeted again, head over tails, towards the frozen baldaquin of unforgiving boughs. 

"That could have gone better," I murmured as I prepared to teleport below her, but Sarai had already gripped one of Reia's tails and was pulling her back up, smiling brightly. 

"Next time I'll catch you by your neck," the fully grown angel chuckled sinisterly.