Dead King's Sword (Old Draft)

8. A Silent Hello And Goodbye

Erin

***

After a few days of pumping mana into the rune to stabilize Megu, she finally recovered on the fifth day. Megu stood and gave everyone hugs, happy to be feeling better. She was small, close to four feet tall, with the sweetest smile. She was like a mini-Zeren with dark brown skin and an afro she liked to decorate with sticks, leaves, crayons and pencils, much to her father's chagrin.

Megu drew teleportation runes all over the house. Vegetables given to her would suddenly appear on another's plate. And, as I was bathing that morning, I felt a gust of air brush my back, then turned to see Megu standing behind me, wearing a skull mask. She waved a dagger at me, shouting, 'Die! Mwa-ha-ha."

I sighed, remembering when my cousin, Ty, had identified as a pirate for three years. It had been the longest three years of my life.

Megu waved her dagger again.

When I didn't respond and simply stared at her, she bowed her head and climbed out of the bath, leaving wet footprints on the ground.

***

Later in the day, Megu tricked me into setting her neighbour's rocking chair on fire. 'It's not a real rocking chair,' she had told me, 'Just an illusion.'

After I set it aflame, it had turned out to be an actual chair, and her neighbour Jakob, an old man with light brown skin and curly white hair, hurried outside, pointed his spatula at us and yelled, "Get away from my house, you little pests."

"You owe me twenty-four pancakes," Megu retorted.

"I owe you nothing, child."

"But you promised me." Megu pouted; a single tear slipped down her cheek. "I'm going to tell the aunties down the street how mean you are."

"You don't have to go that far. I'll cook for you tomorrow. There's no need to get those nagging witches involved in a conversation between you and me." Jakob cleared his throat and got rid of the fire, dousing it a blast of water. Steam rose off the black and hole-riddled cloth. He muttered, "I told your father to stop after the first one, but did he listen...?"

Megu laughed into her hands, reminding me of my little cousin, who used to do that often when he was up to no good. A rope tightened the invisible corset that covered my chest, and I fought back the sense of longing that threatened to rise.

Megu squeezed my hand, taking me to our next adventure. She had this classmate, a young boy named George with brown hair and violet eyes, who she missed dearly. He lived in a wealthy neighbourhood a few miles away. We travelled to his home via our airboards. I flew slower to avoid losing track of Megu as she sauntered behind. After passing a cluttering of oddly sized homes scattered along a dirt road, we entered a neighbourhood where houses were separated by acres of woods.

Megu's classmate lived in a large manor made of grey bricks. Dark-tinted windows observed us as we landed near the tip of his driveway's tongue.

Megu placed a red present in my hands and motioned for me to deliver it. I walked up the driveway while Megu waited behind, a pleasant smile on her face. I knocked on the door, and the boy opened it. He dressed well in a miniature grey suit; his nanny hovering behind him asked about the purpose of my visit. "I have a gift for George from Megu."

George lifted his left brow, clearly puzzled. "Megu? Do you mean Meghan Mandel?"

I blinked; I had never heard anyone call Megu by her proper name before. "I guess so."

Frowning, the boy blew air into his cheeks and opened the gift. A small cloud of white smoke rolled out of the box. There was nothing left but a folded letter, which the boy picked up to read. I studied it from above. There was a drawing of Megu sticking out her tongue, and beneath that, the sentence, 'As if I would ever get you anything, loser.' The boy's ears turned red. He stared at me as his lips hardened into a straight, determined line. "Tell her I have a present for her too. Wait here." The boy ran inside and disappeared near the top of the staircase. He returned a few minutes later, pale, breathless, and handed me a box. "Give this to Meeghan for me," he said, stretching the 'e' unnecessarily.

"Certainly."

I returned to where Megu was waiting and offered her his present. She shook her head. "No, thank you. You can have it if you want." Instead of standing, Megu sat on her air board and balanced herself on the small oval device as she floated away.

***

That night, I sat on the sofa in the living room. Zeren's father had brought me an Artic Breeze gemstone that he placed in the centre of the room. As the temperature dropped below zero degrees Celsius, I was comfortable. I wrapped a blanket around me and put my head on the pillow, fidgeting with the present Megu's classmate had left her. When I opened it, a snake jumped out and bit my nose. It didn't hurt. I chuckled softly as the snake vanished, and the illusion rune etched into the bottom of the box revealed itself. Zeren and I had played this trick on each other a few too many times for me to be surprised by this.

I placed my hand on my forehead, thinking of my family, the war, Zeren and her family, and how all of this would end.

***

Zeren

***

I studied the black bars of my cage. The scorched skin around my neck tickled as it healed. To complete Yala's quest, I had to bring this slave trade operation to a halt, but what could I do without help?

I glanced at the woman in the cage across from me. I had met her during the first auction where she had been successfully sold, but she had been returned after biting off her owner's ear. We watched each other in silence. With her small core, there was little she could do to escape.

I splayed my fingers across the sand floor. All I could do was pray to Virah every hour of the day for something to change, so I could return to my family. I begged her to give me the power I needed to fulfill her will. So, I could be free again. Happy.

One of the guards, a man with a twisted smile and a goatee, brought our food. He placed mine just outside the bars. A bowl of fried maggots. I had hated the texture at first. The hardened exterior gave way to a fleshy interior, and oil gushed out, staining my teeth and lips.

As hunger stirred my stomach, I crawled over to the bars, poked my hand outside and gripped the bowl before carefully bringing it inside without spilling much. I ate quickly, ignoring the fact that I was chewing on maggots.

The man took a set of keys out of his pocket and opened the cell across from me.

My heart dropped.

I gripped the bars as he went inside. He started to strip. The girl retreated to the stone wall behind her, tears streaming down her ebony cheeks.

I shouted, "Stop!"

The man ignored me.

A blue coin of energy appeared between us. I flicked the air, and it shot forward, tearing through his head. He fell on top of her, and she pushed him away, staring at me with wide eyes as if to say, 'What have you done?'

***

Pain rocked my entire body as my muscles tightened. The charred leather scent I inhaled was my skin burning. Warm pee dried on my thighs as Walt, the leader of the slave traders, pocketed the remote controlling my collar. My muscles relaxed, and I could move again. His combat boot stomped the side of my head, forcing my cheek into the coarse grains of sand. He spoke with an American accent, "That is the second person you have killed since you got here. What do I have to do to get you to behave?"

I swallowed but didn't answer.

"Until you swear obedience, you'll get no food or water. If your stubbornness causes you to starve to death, I honestly don't care." Walt went out into the hall and closed the gate behind him. A few hours later, the girl across from me was taken from her cell. She watched me over her shoulder as five soldiers, clad in their golden garments, led her to the staircase. Her silent goodbye stayed with me as they took her upstairs, stuffed her into a jeep and delivered her to another auction. One she would never return from.

***