Mythos: Last Stand

  Chapter 20 — Conscription

  by Caide Fullerton

  The five of them had come to a decision. After determining what each of them wanted to do with their new lives, they selected the option that would best aid those goals, though the process exacted a serious mental toll on one of them.

  Helena: “Are you okay..?”

  She’d moved beside Lii, a reassuring hand on the Mimic’s shoulder. The girl nodded weakly,

  Lii: “Y-yeah. Sorry. I knew something was up, when we showed up here instead of Elysium, but… four hundred years is a lot. So much has changed…”

  Strade: “Just means you’re as clueless as us, now.” He chided from across the tent.

  Lii grimaced. “Elysium covered, like, half the continent. That’s… a lot of new countries I don’t know. Assuming the other ones I know still exist.”

  Jackie: “We’ll get to discover them all together, yeah?” They rose to their feet. “Speaking of exploring, I’m gonna go do more of that.”

  Sam: “You’re leaving on your own again?”

  Jackie: “I mean, you guys can come with if you want. I want to talk to more people around camp. Especially that Earpiercer guy.”

  Sam: “The Kritta?” He held a finger to his chin. “I am pretty curious about that…”

  Helena: “Then let’s go together.” She stood. “I’m curious as well, and I want to start learning about the world.”

  Jackie looked to Lii. “Think you can walk?”

  Lii: “Y-yeah, I think so.” She rose to her feet, a bit shaky at first, but found her footing. Jackie and Helena had to back out of either side of the cramped tent to make room.

  Lii hobbled her way outside, soon followed by Sam. Jackie noticed movement out of the corner of their eye; someone had been watching their tent from afar and was now leaving their post. Reporting that Lii was out and about, perhaps? No matter; they wouldn’t let anything happen to her while they were all together.

  Helena: “Strade, c’mon.” She placed her hands on her hips, looking down at the last of their group, still lounging within the tent.

  Strade: “Must I? I couldn’t really care less about chit-chatting with the locals. Someone oughta watch our stuff, anyways.”

  Helena: “None of our scrap is worth stealing.”

  Strade gave only a shrug in reply.

  Jackie: “Well, whatever. The four of us will do.” They turned to leave, only to immediately be met with a friendly face.

  The face in question paused as it met Jackie’s red eyes. Then, raising an arm to point at them,

  Raffica: “Ah, it’s you guys!”

  Lii slinked behind Helena at the appearance of a new person; Helena seemed amused with her new role as a wall. Jackie gave Raffica a bright smile,

  Jackie: “Howdy, Raffica. What’s up?”

  Raffica: “I was just on my way to go see Celeste! She should’ve been discharged by now, but I haven’t seen her around, so I’m a bit worried.”

  Celeste—that was the name of the quiet Ghost girl, one of the two they’d saved in the earlier mission. It hadn’t seemed like she’d sustained any major wounds, but she probably had to receive a proper examination either way.

  Jackie: “Are you and Celeste friends?”

  Raffica: “Ya-huh!” Her antennae twitched, her eyes lighting up, “Oh! It’s a good thing I ran into you, actually! Think you can help me cheer her up?”

  Cheer her up? So they almost asked, but they were able to answer the question on her own. From Jackie’s perspective, the mission had gone quite well; they saved everyone they possibly could have and got everyone out with minimal injuries. From Celeste and Earpiercer’s perspectives, that wasn’t the case; their comrade had died before Jackie and the others arrived.

  Jackie: “Sure, we can try.”

  Raffica: “Thanks!” She returned a bright smile of her own, then set her eyes on a new target. In the blink of an eye she bypassed the defenses between her and Lii, eyes sparkling. “I remember you! Are you feeling better?”

  It obviously took Lii great effort not to recoil away from the cheery girl. Her face paled, but she managed to force on a crooked smile. “Y-yeah. I’m, uh. F-feeling a lot better already.”

  Raffica cocked her head at Lii’s reaction and took a step back. “Sorry, was that too much? Here, I’ll introduce myself!” She held out a hand, “I’m Raffica. Let’s be friends!”

  Lii stared down at the hand. “Um, s-sure.” Slowly, shakily she raised her own hand and placed it in Raffica’s. “I-I’m Lii.”

  Raffica: “Nice to meet you, Lii! You know, you’re kinda similar to Celeste. I bet you two’d make good friends!”

  Lii: “Eh, really..? Um, you think so..?”

  Raffica: “Yeah! C’mon, let’s go see her!”

  And, before she knew it, Lii was being dragged away into a social situation she was woefully unprepared for.

  * ? *

  By the time Jackie, Sam, and Helena caught up, the conversation was already underway. Raffica was crouched by the open end of a small tent, one hand on the arm of a very flustered Lii behind her. Sitting within the tent in front of the pair was an equally flustered Celeste, strands of her white hair floating up around her, her eyes sunken and tired.

  Raffica: “How’d your check-up go, Celeste?”

  The girl glanced between Raffica and Lii before answering, “fine… i’m not badly hurt anywhere…”

  Raffica: “That’s good. But are you feeling okay? You look pretty tired.”

  Celeste turned away. “d-do i..?” She glanced at Lii again, “uh, who’s that?”

  Raffica: “Oh, this is Lii! She’s my new friend. I think you two should be friends, too!”

  Lii and Celeste’s gazes snapped to each other as Raffica finished speaking, both wearing wary expressions.

  Lii: “Um, h-hi, uh…”

  Celeste: “h-hi, uhm…”

  Those sorts of mutterings continued for a frankly embarrassing length of time, but Raffica merely gave the two a perfect, patient smile. From the sidelines, the three Humans watched the two girls with dull gazes.

  Jackie & Sam & Helena: [They’re the same…]

  Eventually, they both gave up and took deep breaths.

  Lii: “I-I’m Lii. It’s, um, nice to meet you.”

  Celeste: ‘y-yeah, you too. i’m celeste.”

  Raffica: “Good! Now, Celeste, I have even more friends to introduce you to.”

  Celeste: “m-more..?” Her voice failed to express the alarm shown on her face, her eyes widening as she turned and saw the three humans. She reddened, no doubt realizing the trio had witnessed the previous exchange, and quickly made to cover her cheeks with her hands, her eyes peeking out between her fingers.

  Raffica rose and waved the others over. “Don’t worry, they’re nice. That’s Jackie, and…” After pointing to the androgynous Human, her finger moved to Sam and faltered, “I don’t think I know your name.”

  Sam: “Oh, right. I’m Sam.”

  Raffica nodded, then moved to Helena. “And I haven’t even met you!”

  Celeste: “th-then how do you know she’s nice..!?”

  Helena sighed. “I’m Helena. I promise I don’t bite.”

  Celeste’s expression remained sour; Jackie turned their gaze to Raffica, who remained all smiles even so. Was she truly ditzy enough to bring them here knowing it would make Celeste uncomfortable? Or, perhaps, was she cunning enough to use that discomfort to distract Celeste from the grief of losing a companion?

  They stepped closer and gave Celeste a friendly wave, putting on a soft smile as they crouched down to meet her eyes. “Hi, sorry for showing up so suddenly. I’m glad you seem to be okay.”

  She studied Jackie intently, her eyes narrowing. “ah, you’re..?”

  Jackie: “Right, I was part of the group sent to save you. Sam, too. And Helena helped from camp.”

  Hearing that seemed to get her to relax a bit. “then that means… you’re the humans.”

  Jackie: “Yup, that’s us!” They neglected to mention that Lii was not, in fact, Human.

  Celeste: “it’s, um, n-nice to meet you. so, um, what brings you here, jackie?”

  Jackie: “Raffica dragged us along, mostly. But I would like to be your friend, if you’re alright with that.”

  She considered it for a moment, casting a glance at Raffica again, who gave her a thumbs up. “w-well, raffica’s a good judge of character, so… sure, i guess that’s fine.”

  Jackie: “Great! Mind if I ask you some questions?” Their eyes sparkled. They’d learned a bit about some races earlier from Delia and Viz, but that’d only left them hungry for more info.

  Celeste: “eh? um, sure, i guess.”

  A grin crept across Jackie’s lips. “Great! You’re a Ghost, right? I remember hearing that earlier, during the mission. What’s it like being a Ghost? Actually, how are races even categorized in the outside world? There are types, right? Oh, and what are your powers—uh, racial magic, right?”

  Celeste waved her hands in a flustered panic, her body levitating backwards. “t-too many questions..!”

  Jackie blinked. “Ah. Sorry. Let’s start with ‘how are races categorized’.”

  Celeste: “you’re asking me things like that..? okay, i guess, um… most races are divided into either mortals or fae, and there are smaller categories of each. g-ghosts like me are undead, which are a type of fae. is that good..?”

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Jackie nodded eagerly. “Yes, that’s perfect.”

  Sam: “Um, if I could ask, what are Undead?” He chimed in, clearly intrigued by the ‘dead’ portion of the new term.

  Celeste tugged at a floating strand of hair. “you guys really don’t know anything, do you..?”

  Helena: “Well, we were living in the Forgotten Heap until now. There aren’t exactly a lot of books. Or people worth talking to.”

  Celeste’s lips curled. “r-right. then, um… ghosts like me, and zombies like jahd, are undead. there are a lot of us in heapwatch, actually. we’re fae whose souls are recycled from those who’ve passed on.”

  Sam: “Your… souls? That’s a real thing?”

  Celeste nodded. “It’s, um, a core part of you. something related to magic, and memories, and personality…”

  Jackie raised an eyebrow. “And you inherit that stuff from the souls you’re made of?”

  Celeste: “some of it. not magic, usually, but some of the personalities and memories can remain. it varies from person to person. in my case, i… i remember almost all of my past lives, but—“

  Raffica: “Hey, look! There’s Jahd!” She butted in, pointing an exaggerated finger towards the edge of the medical quarter.

  The others turned, and there was indeed a Zombie warrior making his way over to them. He gave the group a lazy wave as they caught sight of him,

  Jahd: “Ye ruined the surprise, Raffica. Y’all ain’t bullyin’ Celeste, I hope?”

  Jackie shook their head. “Just talking. Learning about Undead.”

  Jahd: “That so? Well, it’s mighty lucky ye’re all together. Meet at Sils’s tent, pronto, all five of ye. Grab yer other friend, too. Cap’n’s got need of ye.”

  They all exchanged glances, and then the group began to move as one.

  * ? *

  Sils tapped her foot against the war table. She’d begrudgingly eaten some of the food Jahd left her as she awaited his return, though she still hadn’t been able to muster much of an appetite. Across the table, Lapala was glaring daggers at her; he’d lowered his visor, rendering himself a faceless knight, but she could feel his eyes all the same.

  She ignored him. Retreading the same argument wouldn’t bring about anything productive, not without Raffica here. That didn’t stop her from eventually giving in with a huff,

  Sils: “I knew you were a hard-ass about this, but I didn’t think it was this bad.”

  Lapala: “It is only natural that I care for my family.”

  Sils: “She can take care o’ herself!”

  Lapala: “That does not make the mission any less dangerous. You may be my superior, but I’ve no intention of letting you thrust my sister into danger.”

  Sils: “I ain’t thrustin’ her anywhere! She wants ta help!”

  Lapala: “That is not your place to conclude.”

  Sils: “It ain’t yours, either!”

  She clenched her fists, shaking in frustration; Lapala, on the other hand, remained still, stoic within his armor. She nearly launched into another verbal attack before she heard a sound at the doorway, Jahd appearing before her; his return, and the arrival of the small crowd behind him, brought her some relief.

  Jahd: “Started round two without us, eh?”

  Viz: “Unfortunately.” She gave an exaggerated sigh from her seat. Sils pitied her and Delia for being forced to endure the fruitless exchanges.

  Jahd: “Show some decorum in front of our guests, hm?” He stepped inside and gestured to the aforementioned guests, leading them to line up inside before he moved to his seat.

  Assembled within the tent now, in addition to those who’d already been participating in the meeting, were the four Humans, Lii, Raffica, and Celeste.

  Sils took a deep breath to regain her composure, scanning the group’s expressions. Had they heard the commotion during their approach? Jackie certainly had, at the least; they didn’t bother to hide the gears turning behind their eyes.

  Sils: “Thank y’all for comin’ here. We’ve got a bit of an emergency mission, which is why I called ya here.”

  Celeste eyed Rasha’s empty seat, her eyes darkening. “i-is this about..?”

  Sils: “Aye. I don’t intend on lettin’ anyone’s deaths be in vain, and I just got my hands on the last piece we need ta turn things around.”

  Jackie: “You have a plan to help you turn the tide of the war?”

  Her gaze returned to them. “Win us the war… maybe. More importantly, it’ll ease my men’s sufferin’.”

  Sam perked up. “What is this plan, then?”

  Sils: “There’s a race of elven folk known as Druids. They’re reclusive, never leavin’ their home country of Saga, but they’re some of th’only people in the world with innate healin’ magic.

  “A friend of mine was able t’arrange an audience with their leader. We’re gonna sneak past the blockade, travel to Saga, an’ bring a Druid back here ta heal all our wounded.”

  Jackie: “‘We’, meaning you called us here because you want our help on that mission?”

  Sils narrowed her eyes at them. It truly was troublesome how quickly they caught onto things. They continued before she could respond,

  Jackie: “Well, that works out. We decided to accept your offer.”

  Sils: “...eh?”

  Jackie: “On a couple conditions, that is.”

  Of course, it couldn’t be that easy. “Fine, let’s hear ‘em.”

  Jackie nodded. “First, we don’t mind fighting for you when it comes to it, but we don’t want to be stationed on the front lines as soldiers. Second, whatever you have us do, the five of us can’t be separated. Those are our conditions.”

  She scratched her chin, pondering Jackie’s words. “That first part’s fine. Your talents’d be wasted as soldiers. But the latter—“

  Jackie: “You’d want to keep one of us here to maintain communication, right?” They drew her attention again, guessing her thoughts exactly. “Unfortunately, I don’t think it’d work either way.”

  Sils: “It wouldn’t, eh?”

  Jackie shook their head. “During the mission earlier, I felt a sort of… interference, while I was contacting Helena. I believe our telepathy has a limited range, and it wouldn’t work over a distance much longer than where we were.”

  Sils: “I see…” If that really was the case, they’d be most useful kept together. It worked out quite well in their favor.

  Given she was taking advantage of them for her own desires, she could afford them that much convenience.

  Sils: “Fine, then. I accept yer conditions. So,” she bowed her head and clasped her hands together, “please help me save Heapwatch.”

  There was a moment of silence. The one to answer her request was not Jackie, but,

  Sam: “We’ll do whatever we can.”

  Raising her head, Sils released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. “Good. Then let’s go over things in more detail.

  “We want ta keep as low a profile as possible while we pass the blockade an’ travel ta Saga, which means a small group. We need that friend o’ mine fer th’audience, an’ she’s already bein’ pursued by the enemy, so it’s gonna wind up a game o’ cat an’ mouse.

  “That’s where y’all come in, with yer telepathy. It’s exactly the sort o’ trick we need ta outmaneuver th’Evendelians. Beyond that, we just need a bit o’ muscle, which brings us,” she looked to Celeste and Raffica, “ta you two.”

  Lapala: “I am against it.” He rose from his seat, drawing the eyes of the others. “It is far too dangerous a mission for someone so inexperienced.”

  Jackie: “Who’s this?” They asked, eking out their question not a moment before several others were about to start shouting.

  Sils: “Lapala Cterychil. My left-hand-man, and Raffica’s older brother.”

  They mouthed a silent “Ahhh” in response to the information, turning to Raffica for a response. “So, he’s the one who’s been holding you back?”

  Raffica nodded, giving her brother the sternest look her usually-cheery face could muster. “You need to stop treating me like a kid! I can handle myself!”

  Lapala: “You are a kid.”

  Raffica: “I’ve already been on my Vita Sagacia for nine years! Why are you so unreasonable!?”

  Lapala: “My actions are guided solely by reason.”

  Raffica: “If that was true, you’d let me do what I want!”

  Lapala: “You are endangering yourself!” He slammed a fist down on the table.

  Raffica paused a moment before delivering her response, looking down at her brother’s armored hand. “Ever since I got here, you’ve been ordering me around like you’re in charge.”

  Lapala: “I am ensuring your safety.”

  Raffica: “I don’t need your protection! I don’t need you to treat me like a helpless kid, either. I can handle myself.” She took a deep breath, “I’m not gonna let you boss me around anymore. The people here need my help, and I’m gonna do what I can.”

  Lapala inhaled sharply, the sound echoing within his helmet. “You can’t just—“

  Sils: “If I may, Lapala, she proved herself more than capable earlier today.”

  He froze. “You sent her into the field?”

  Sils: “And, as I said, she was fine. She’s agreed to join this mission, so that decision’s final. Your insubordination’s gone far enough.”

  Between that and Raffica’s declaration, he was forced to seat himself, once again silent behind his steel mask. Sils sighed; with the Humans recruited and Lapala circumvented, that marked both of the biggest roadblocks dealt with. Raffica was a capable fighter, that was no doubt true, but she had other reasons for choosing her for this mission.

  Her main motivation for recruiting the Humans was their telepathy; it couldn’t be understated how much of an advantage it granted her. To best capitalize on that ability would require they form bonds with the rest of the squad and gain the ability to telepath them. For this task, Raffica was a perfect choice; she was kind, outgoing, friendly, and incredibly easy to get along with. Sils had no doubt she’d be good friends with the Humans before long.

  That left only one.

  Sils: “Celeste, what about you?”

  She looked to the final prospective member of her squad, the Ghost girl who had shrunk into the corner of the room, her body partially transparent as if hiding from the sibling argument that had unfolded. She crept forward, her body regaining opacity as she tried to speak,

  Celeste: “are you sure i’m… the right choice..?”

  Sils: “I know how strong you are, an’ yer abilities are more useful on offense than defense.” Naturally, the same logic as with Raffica applied here, as well; from what she’d gathered from Jahd and Makala, Celeste had a similar personality to the Mimic whom the Humans had already befriended. “But, more than all that, I think you’re just as motivated as me ta see this through.”

  Celeste: “m-motivated..?” She glanced at Rasha’s chair.

  Sils: “You know exactly what I mean. I ain’t lettin’ his death be in vain, an’ I don’t think you plan to, either.”

  Her eyes widened, and she looked down, opening and closing a shaking hand. “i… i don’t know how to feel about anything right now, but… you’re right. i don’t want… rasha wouldn’t have wanted me to waste away. he’d want me to keep moving, to… make a difference. so… and i still need to…” Trailing off, she looked up and mustered her voice, “p-please let me join you.”

  Just how terrible a person did it make Sils, preying on a girl’s grief like this? She’d have plenty of time to wonder about that on the road.

  Sils: “Then our group is finalized. Me, Jahd, the Humans, the Mimic, Raffica, and Celeste.” She realized that she didn’t even know all of their names. Had they never been introduced, or had she simply forgotten? She set those thoughts aside, looking to Lii. “How are your wounds?”

  She let out a slight yelp, unprepared to be called upon. “Um, I-I think they’re healing fast. I’m good enough to walk around and stuff.”

  Sils looked to Makala, and he nodded, standing. “May I take a look?

  Lii gulped and gave the man a nod, and he hobbled over, gingerly taking her arm and unwrapping a bandage to inspect the wound beneath. “Yes, they’re healing quite well. You’ll be fully recovered by tomorrow, I think.”

  Sils: “Then we’ve until then to prepare. Understood?”

  Several voices affirmed with an “Aye aye”; Lapala was silent. Jackie gave Sils a curious look,

  Jackie: “You and Jahd are going with us?”

  Sils: “Aye. Things'll go smoother with Kirra, since she’ll recognize me. I’m not cut out fer leadin’, anyhoo; the camp’s better off in Lapala’s hands, an’ my abilities are more useful in the field.”

  Jackie raised an eyebrow, turning to Lapala. “Him?”

  Ah. That outburst was their only impression of him, so that reaction was only natural. “He’s level-headed when it comes ta things other than ‘is sister, I assure ya.”

  Lapala: “I am level-headed in all things.”

  Raffica stuck her tongue out at him; Lapala ignored it with a huff. Sils couldn’t help but sigh at the sour mood that had formed. This meeting had left her far more exhausted than she’d expected, and Jahd and Viz were both giving their trademark ‘I need to get out of here and drink some booze’ looks.

  Sils: “Alright, y’all’re dismissed. I’ll call on ya tomorrow, so be prepared. Don’t share the details of this meetin’ or the mission with anyone else, either.”

  Jackie: “Aye aye, cap’n.”

  Sils: “Very funny.”

  She didn’t even bother to wait for everyone to file out, dissolving her body into a cloud of mist and disappearing right before them. She desperately needed a nap—or to just pass out until tomorrow, really.

  Sylphs weren’t supposed to need sleep; their bodies possessed infinite stamina. While that held true for physical energy, mental energy was another issue altogether. Unfortunately for her, infinite stamina also meant infinite insomnia.

  Right now, even that didn’t seem like enough to keep her awake.

  Chapter Glossary:

  Fae - One of the two main categories into which races are sorted.

  | Mortal - The other category into which races are sorted.

  | Undead - A subcategory of Fae races who are born from the recycled souls of those who have passed on. They inherit some of the memories and personality of their past lives.

  | Vita Sagacia - A fifteen-year spiritual journey of growth that Alphiccae embark on from ages 15-30. They are forbidden from returning home until the journey is completed.

  Ghost - One of the Undead races, to which Celeste belongs. I wonder what she's capable of?

  | Druid - An elven race native to the nation of Saga on the mainland. They are one of only a few races in the world to possess racial magic capable of healing others.