IRON GOD | 1: Peripeteia

[24] Ami: Dirty Birds

           Ami dreamed of Azvalath. Spoke through him, even. Wherever she spread her spores, she had ears and a voice. She baited Xigon into taking her poison. It was heavily diluted, but it proved just enough to put him in torpor and link his mind with that poison's other living victim. It all went smoother than she ever could have hoped.

She woke to Magpie tapping her shoulder. "Ami, ma'am?"

"No need for formalities, Magpie." Ami sat up and stretched. Her hands brushed the roof of what seemed to be a cave. "Thanks for bringing me to shelter. We're still on the mountain, I presume?"

"Yes." Magpie's voice cracked. "How'd it go?"

"Perfect. Seamless." Ami grinned. "And I'll bet I made Qila real angry."

"Is that good?" Magpie looked concerned. "Doesn't sound good."

"Nah, but Qila's got her moods. I'm sure once I explain everything, Qila's even gonna thank me. I did her lot a solid favor." Ami sniffed the air. "Smells like there's a good bit of Atrament in this cave." She followed her nose and found a patch of what looked like thick purplish-black slime growing out of a crevice in the wall. "Ah-ha! Will you look at that, Magpie?"

Magpie nudged herself in for a closer look. "What's Atrament good for?"

Ami poked at the slime-like mass. "Atrament is a slime mold. One of the odds and ends I use to make Rager. This, a birch-rotting fungus, various plants I can't tell you yet, a bit of snake venom, Sothyrion's polluted blood, and then maybe I'll spit in it for good measure."

Magpie chuckled.

"You think I'm joking?" Ami scraped the encrusting Atrament off with her fingernails. "All right, maybe I am about the last bit. Say, how long do you think we've got before Qila skins us alive?"

"Forever, I hope." Magpie twisted a lock of her black-and-white hair around her fingers. "Ami, I'm scared."

Ami wrapped the slime mold in parchment, then shoved it into one of her many pockets. "You'll be fine, dear. Promise." She looked up and gave her companion a crooked smile. "Magpie, give me Azvalath's voice."

Magpie cleared her throat, then mimicked Azvalath with such perfection no one could possibly tell their voices apart. "What are you talking about?"

"Now we're talking. Good job." Ami beamed. "Give me Kolo now."

"I am! With all my hands!" Kolo's voice came out of Magpie's mouth. Ami's companion bounced a little with excitement. Her voice became her own again. "How was that?"

"Magnificent!" Ami clapped her hands. "How about me?"

Even though she was expecting it, Ami still flinched at the sound of her own voice coming from someone else. "Maybe I'll spit in it for good measure."

"Oh hello, it's me." Ami laughed even though her skin was crawling. "I'll tell you what. If Qila gives you trouble, just scream in one of her babies' voices. That oughta make her think twice. Got it?"

Magpie's voice returned to normal. "Yes, I think so."

"You think or you know?" Ami crawled out of the small cave and into the blistering cold. She beckoned her companion to follow her.

"I know," Magpie corrected. She looked up at the dark cloudy sky. "I can't even tell the time of day right now."

Ami couldn't see the sun, but she spoke with feigned confidence. "I think it's late morning."