440. Of openings, annihilation and a little bit if curiosity

Cassandra Pendragon

The drive was surprisingly pleasant. We reached an unspoken agreement to keep the deadly, supernatural catastrophes for later and simply focus on… well, small talk. As far as you could call it that. The two of them were having a go at me from every angle and since I wasn't as tight lipped as I had been on the drive here they got quite a few more answers than they had expected. To me the funniest part was when my actual age became a topic and Jane realised that she had been trying to flirt with a minor, albeit tamely. Not that it mattered to me, but somehow most people who didn't know me got really hung up on my age when they realised I was a little child on paper.

In all honesty, I had expected my royal lineage to be much more of a hot topic, but with one being a British noble and the other moneyed aristocracy it didn't come up, much. They were very curious, though, when it came to my personality. It even reminded me of the godawful official banquets I had been forced to attend back on Boseiju. What's your favourite colour, do you play an instrument, what kind of music do you like and so on and so forth. For the record, in case it isn't obvious, silver, no, and I didn't really prefer any style of music, as long as it was properly composed and played and I wasn't forced to dance to it. 

All in all I quite enjoyed the first half hour of our drive. Watching illuminated buildings the size of hills appear and vanish like memories had its own charm and the dreamlike changes between flashes of harsh, bright light when a car passed in the opposite direction and inviting darkness when we seemed to travel alone between an invisible sky and a distant, half hidden landscape still fascinated me. I hadn't spent enough time on Earth, yet, to get used to the luminous wonders of the motorway. Plus, the soft chatter of their silky voices, paired with the rhythmic sounds of the engine felt like a strange, but comforting lullaby to me.

I even caught myself getting drowsy, my thoughts wandering, my eyes growing heavy. I relaxed, the tension drained from my muscles and I took a deep breath, trying to memorise their scent so I'd be able to find them again, should the need ever arise. It wasn't particularly difficult. With Nancy I had already spent over an hour alone in the car and Jane was inching closer ever chance she got, trying and failing to keep her wandering hands under control. She had touched my tails several times by now, but considering how inconspicuous she acted I chose to ignore it. It wasn't like I hadn't gotten used to the sensation and there was no way in hell anybody, especially the angel, who was still keeping a mental eye on me, could interpret more than mere curiosity into her badly hidden antics. And I also understood her. If I had shared a seat with a fluffy fox, I'd have been tempted to pet it as well.

Which made the proverbial awakening all the more rude. At first it wasn't much, just a whiff of ozone I simply chucked up to my own presence, but with every passing second it became stronger until I couldn't ignore it anymore. Grumbling under my breath I sat up straight and pulled my tails from Jane's grip. A trickle of energy reached my eyes and while they flared silver, the world became a chessboard of the same colour. I saw the intricate net of energies in my companions and, as a teacher, I was quite pleased with how far Nancy had gotten, but my attention immediately darted to a veritable maelstrom of power a few kilometres to the right, somewhere between the abandoned farms in the middle of nowhere and the outskirts of the city proper.

"Shit," I mumbled. I didn't have to guess, I had seen that particular amalgamation of forces before. The gate had activated again and something else was getting through. If I had been forced to guess the reason, I'd have put my money on our little scuffle a few hours ago. The amount of energy we had unleashed was probably enough to cause a second materialisation, but it didn't matter either way. Unless I was prepared to watch another giant or maybe a titan or some other freak run rampant through urban China I had to put an end to it. There was also the letter which haunted the fringes of my mind every time I thought about the future. Please, don't walk away. Luckily Mephisto had dispersed my fears about my power so in this instance I definitely wouldn't.

"Need some help," Ahri and Viyara asked almost simultaneously. The two were still at the restaurant, sampling the various deserts a highly proficient chef could come up with.

"Thanks, but I think I can manage. It's enough if that thing ruins my night. No need to ruin yours. Keep an eye on me, if it makes you feel any better." Out loud I added: "could you take the next exit? Head… north, I think. I'll tell you which way to turn."

"What is it," Nancy asked while she already signalled and threaded the car into the appropriate lane. Traffic was quite high, considering the time, but the goods had to reach the voracious markets long before sunrise to keep the city fed.

"Trouble, but nothing I can't deal with. I think. Don't worry, you won't have to get close."

"And if we want to," Jane interjected. Her playful demeanour had already given way to the cold indifference I remembered.

"You're grown girls. That's up to you. But I can't promise to keep you safe if you're close by. There's a rift opening and I don't yet know what's going to stumble through. Could be prince charming for all I know, but I'd rather put my money on the wicked witch, if I'm being honest. Damn it, maybe we should have spared a minute or two to talk about what's actually going on. Well, no time like the present. Listen…" I'm not going to bore you with a repetition, but while Nancy chauffeured us through a roundabout and away from the highway I quickly summarised the last few hours, excluding Mephisto's prediction as to why time was maybe a little out of sync and why a dead man had turned into a giant. What would have been the point?

Hardly a few minutes later I directed us towards an unkempt field. The lights of the city shimmered in the distance and a warm breeze was blowing from the sea, but my attention was focused on the only cloud on an otherwise hazy, but clear sky. Dark and billowing it looked like a harbinger of destruction, bluish white flashes within displayed the colossal, otherworldly forces it contained and the stench of ozone was almost unbearable. I clenched my teeth and opened the door, but I didn't get out, just yet:

"Last chance, either you're in or out." They shared a glance and Jane replied:

"Gotta work out the kinks in my back anyways," while the witch simply reached for a hidden compartment and pulled out a finely carved staff. It wasn't enchanted directly, but it was a focus she had created herself, as much I could tell on first glance. It would allow her to control her magic much more precisely.

"Stubborn humans," I complained without any real heat. In a way I felt awfully flattered that they either didn't want to leave me alone or that they trusted me enough to face the goddamned cloud of the apocalypse with me. Either way I couldn't muster any real derision.

The doors thumped shut behind us and I made my way into the field. My expensive boots would be ruined beyond salvation before it had even begun, if the sucking sounds and the heavy, wet weight were any indication. "Can one of you shroud this place," I asked without ever taking my eyes off the spectacle in the sky. The foreboding manifestation of energy was glowing red by now.

"Sure, but can't you…," Nancy began.

"No," I growled. "I didn't have the time to practice anything as delicate. Ask me to knock over a building and I'm your gal, but illusions aren't my cup of tea. Never were."

"Okay…," there was a myriad of things I heard in her pause, most of them pertaining to one lesson or the other about control I had made her suffer through, but she was wise enough to not voice them out loud at that particular moment. "Sure, but I need a few minutes."

"Don't know if you'll have them. Go ahead. Tell me when you're done." I felt the air stir and smelled her scent when she nodded. A moment later a litany of Latin flowed from her mouth, the complex syllables pronounced to perfection despite her rush.

"Where do you want me," Jane asked.

"Behind me. You know your skills much better than me. Whatever you can come up with, go for it. Just… don't get in my way. That might become a problem for both of us."

"Understood." I felt a smile spread across my face. It was a true marvel that they actually listened to me. "If it's corporeal I have an idea or two." Her words were followed by the distinctive click of cocked gun. When I spared a second to look to the side she was fiddling with a truly impressive specimen, about as long as my forearm. 

"Where did you hide that," I couldn't help, but blurt out.

"Trade secret," she replied with a wink, but immediately explained: "Tara, one of the redhead twins, is pretty good with dimensional magics. She gave me a storage for my last birthday. My belly button. It's not large, but enough for a few surprises and a smuggled artefact or two. Priceless when your main income is thieving." Right, I had almost forgotten.

Those were the last words we exchanged. With a sound like cracking glass the red glow imploded into a thin, angry, crimson line and the cloud was sucked into it. "Here it comes," I whispered and unfurled my wings. Whether Nancy had managed to set up the coverage was slightly less important to me than keeping us alive. Roiling, blood red flames poured from the cut and for a moment it seemed like the sky had caught fire. Then they petered out.

The scent of ozone was almost suffocating when a gust of dry, hot air made my tresses dance around me and my eyes began to water, but I didn't look away. High in the sky the blood red scar quivered before it tore open as if a giant had reached out and ripped the world asunder. Alien stars shimmered on the other side, but I was much more focused on the salivating maw and gargantuan, ivory, blocky teeth that filled the gap. An enormous, bronze ox was sniffing the air. His wet, quivering, fleshy snout dripped acidic, oily saliva, its metal hooves beat the air into sparks and the heat it radiated rivalled a volcano. Searing winds, caused by its bellowing, putrid, flaming breath, flattened the stubby grass around us and made the sparse trees in the distance moan and tremble. Small fires broke out all over the field and a dark cloud of smoke rose towards the heavens. Khalkotauros, I thought, as I willed myself into the sky. But where was the second one?

In legend the Colchis Bulls, presents to king Aeetes from Hephaistos, the god of the forge, were one of the obstacles Jason had to overcome in his quest for the Golden Fleece. Once yoked, he used them to plow a field and sow it with dragon's teeth. For a split second an absurd idea drifted through my thoughts as I looked down on the ever shrinking patch of unkempt earth. Surely not. Besides, I somehow didn't see Viyara handing over most of her fangs on a mere whim, even though they did grow back. 

"Hardly the point," the dragoness griped, but I didn't listen. High in the sky the temperature was unbearable and, once again, my borrowed wardrobe went up in flames. Wreathed in an orange blaze I hovered, my wings a crackling promise of destruction behind me. With a thought I drowned the fire with light and called for my spear. Gleaming silver manifested in my hand as swaths of roiling darkness and flashes of eternal light danced around me. The fraction of a second later I was clad in flowing robes of crystallised silver and unfathomable black. 

The towering head of the bull, easily as large as a minivan, swivelled on his muscled, sinewy neck and red, glowing, beady eyes focused on me with mechanical precision. Right, in ancient times those things hadn't been truly alive. They had been constructs of magic and ingenuity, held together by a thread of an imprisoned soul. 

It roared its challenge, an infernal firestorm tore towards me and the world vanished behind a curtain of searing heat and thundering flames. Unfortunately I knew most aspects of fire more intimately than any god could ever hope to and with a mere twist of my wrist I extended my spear. Silver light broke through the hellish maelstrom like the first rays of dawn breaking through dark, heavy clouds and with a sound like a giant's dying breath the voracious, inexorable wall of death turned into memories and ash that silently soared towards the ground. The ox blinked in utter confusion.

"My turn," I breathed and allowed the barley restrained forces within me to rise to the surface. My wings turned into the arms of a galaxy, my eyes shone with the promise of eternity and a small, silver spark ignited on the tip of my spear. I weighed it in my hand, my gaze landed on the poor creature with the confidence of a predator and a cruel, anticipatory smile tugged on the corners of my mouth. "Let's see how sturdy you are."

With a fluid, almost languid motion I struck out, the thundering tide within me begged to be released and finally I allowed a tiny part of it to manifest. One moment I stood in the air like a statue of the past, wings spread, tails flared, spear extended and the next a thin, sparkling line appeared, running from the point of my weapon straight to the massive, heaving chest of the ox. Silence settled in like the calm before the storm and then the entire sky was swallowed by a silent wave of liquid silver. The behemoth was reduced to less than smithereens in the blink of an eye and for a broken, stuttering moment Shanghai shone brilliantly in the light of a silver sun. Crap. That might have been a tad over the top. Oh well, there had been stranger things on the news already than silver gas explosions in the sky.

With a shake of my head I dislodged the intrusive thought and inhaled deeply. I was searching for the smell of smouldering bronze which would surely accompany the hapless cow's sibling, but all I got was the stench of ozone. The still opened rift was overshadowing any other smell and its expanding magic made my second sight almost useless. From where I stood it looked like a beating heart and with every pulse it spread its power further through the sky like cracks appearing on a pane of glass. That couldn't be good. Never mind the second cowardly… cow, that thing had to go.

I beat my wings and tore through the night. A flash of light, the roar of the sky torn asunder and I materialised in front of the gaping wound in reality. With a thought I made my wings latch onto the edges, the ethereal construct as substantial to my grasp as steel, and prepared to pull it shut, but then I paused. It wasn't only curiosity that drove my decision. The last time, back on the roof, there had been no real reason to take the risk and peek behind the curtain, but now… in case Mephisto was right and Gaya's crumbling walls were the reason why her past was bleeding into Earth I had to know. I had to know what that rift, that gate actually was and why I didn't have a single usable memory about its origins. True, I had known it existed, but that was it.

"Now I could use your help," I whispered silently. Neither Ahri nor Viyara hesitated, nor did I have to wait for long. A glow of crimson and gold illuminated the western sky and barely a handful of seconds later a stunning dragoness and an even more beautiful angel hovered in front of me.