IRON GOD | 2: Empyrean

[3] Azvalath: Missing the Point

 They all left Styzia together. It had seemed like a good idea until all of them were crammed together on the lift, halfway down the mountain, packed like pickled fish. Azvalath found himself sweating even though it was bitterly cold. "Lalek, can you bring us down any faster?"

"Not safely." Lalek sounded out of breath.

Channei groaned next to Azvalath. He shot her a glare. "Shut up. You could fly down and meet us at the bottom."

"I hate waiting." She fumbled with her ponytail. "This is terrible. I wanted to go with you and Kolo."

Azvalath raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you like going with me?"

Rizval giggled. "Don't fall for it, kittycat. She only wants to be with Kolo."

Channei elbowed Rizval. "Shut your trap."

Kolo looked up from where she sat with Ido and Dakko. "What's going on?"

"Have you not been paying attention?" Azvalath snapped. "Any of you? You're fussing about who's going where, but you're missing the point." He rubbed his forehead, then sighed. "Isn't it unusual that they're sending all of us out at the same time? Even Dakko and Ido?"

"Not missing anything. It's fairly obvious they're trying to keep us distracted." Channei crossed her arms. "Hey Ido, Dakko – you really have no ideas about what might've happened to Master Xigon?"

"What? You think it's contagious or something?" Ido half-laughed and half-yelled. "Probably not."

"What's contagious?" Azvalath pressed.

"Rager." Ido shrugged. "Master Qila said that's what made Haode sick and then broke his mind. Said Ami poisoned him."

"Well, if it's Rager, I can just destroy it." Kolo clenched her hand into a fist. "Wasn't hard that one time."

Ido froze up and went quiet.

Dakko shifted. "You're not thinking what I think you are, are you, Ido?"

"I...whatever." Ido looked down. "I'm trying not to be angry anymore. It's Ami who ruined all our lives. But I..."

Azvalath crouched down to Ido's level. "Hey. Spit it out."

"If Kolo's right about destroying Rager, maybe she really could have saved Haode." The boy tensed up. "What if she did?"

"No." Dakko shook his head. "Those wounds were never going to heal."

"You're probably right, Dakko." Azvalath nodded. "And Ido, I doubt Haode suffered much. It was probably a huge relief for him."

"In any case, why would I want to help him?" Kolo scoffed. "He treated you two like punching bags and almost killed Channei. And even if he hadn't, I'm sick of people trying to make me theirs."

Ido leaned his head into his knees. "Yeah, I guess."

Azvalath met Kolo's eyes. "I wouldn't have let him take you either."

Kolo huffed. "You weren't the first, you know." She smoothed her short white hair. "Hell, you weren't even the scariest."

Azvalath cocked his head. "Huh?"

"Never mind." Kolo stood up and looked down. "Hey, we're almost down!"

"Just a minute." Lalek paused to catch her breath, then lowered them the rest of the way. The platform thudded to the ground, jolting all of them. "Phew. My arms hurt."

Azvalath vaulted over the guardrail. One by one, his companions followed. "Any idea where we can find a bluehole to Morning, Jai-Lag?" He looked down at the sabretooth cat, who stared back at him with the silent judgment only a cat could muster. "What? I haven't been there in ages."