Shapeless Hero

22 - Known by Spell

August's aura slowly recedes with every magic circle he places in the room. "Fylka, you better stay still now." Assuming I can't speak yet, I nod and lay back down in the bed. He continues: "They'll be here in a second. Just try to look asleep, no matter what they do." He then jumps back into the wardrobe. "You'll be done for, if they find out anyway.", he finally says, barely audible through the closed wardrobe.

I recede into the bed and close my eyes, listening for steps or anything else that might give away our first visitor. Maybe a passerby possessed one of those old artifacts for shapeshifter detection, as Karl mentioned. Is August using me as a bait then? I can hear the determined stomps close on us. They stop in front of the shut door, before the unknown visitor knocks three times, each knock making the door rattle.

"Alya! Are you in there?", comes a female voice from the other side, barely muffled by the door between us.

They shout again. "Alya!" The voice is tinted with frustration, underlined by another powerful knock.

No, not a knock. A kick. The door flies open with a loud slam. In the entrance stays an elf, a slightly older version of Alya. At the very least, she has the same red hair and similar facial features. Everything else differs though. While Alya sports a wizard robe and hat, the new visitor looks like a seasoned mercenary. Barring her head, every part of her body is covered in either leather or chain mail, placed at the right spots to either protect vitals or allow for freedom of movement. Any kind of aesthetic sense had to make way for practicality.

She lowers the leg with which she kicked in the door. It refills with mana immediately, after she used it for the breach. "Alya!", she shouts again. My cover hasn't been blown yet, so I stay limb. She steps into the room. "There you a-"

A magic circle activates under her feet, interrupting her. Just a blink of a moment later, a beam of darkness shoots up. Yet, the intruder dodges it. "Holy sh-"

Another magic circle activates under the intruder. She dodges again. "Wha-"

Two magic circles activate. Two new beams of darkness spawn. Even then, she makes it out in the nick of time. She's panting, but still keeps up the pace, as more pairs of magic traps activate, wherever she moves to next.

I don't know, if August's traps are subpar or if she's a highly skilled fighter. In any case, her movements and dodges merge into a stage-worthy dance.

Out of breath, the intruder makes it eventually to the side of my bed. Towering over me, her shoulders rise and fall, as she gasps for air. I don't think any fighter of my old world could've endured that gauntlet. Especially not without any rehearsal.

"Alya..." She grabs my shoulders with both hands. I almost stop breathing from the sudden touch, but her grab is... gentle.

"Alya, you fool!" Her voice turns shaky. "Why didn't you ask me to come with you!?" I feel warm droplets, one after another, hit my chest. "I hate that you've taken the path of magic, but we're still sis-"

A shout of enough force to startle a dragon out of its deepest slumber fills the room. I am immediately released by our visitor's firm grasp on my shoulders. In the door, the commander stands, ready to draw her sword. Yet, she continues with an uncanny calm demeanor. "Please remove yourself from the patient."

"P-patient?", our visitor stutters. The commander noticeably squeezes the grip of her sword. The visitor immediately backs away from the bed. The commanders palpable killing intent reminds me, that I still haven't seen the full extent of her fighting abilities.

The commander loosens her grip on the sword. "Yes, patient. She's stable, but a doctor will have to take care of her unbreakable sleep."

"What do you mean..." The visitor swallows the remainder of her words, realizing she's not in a position to question anyone in the room.

"Who are you anyway?", the commander asks.

"I am Alya's sister. Sterl." She wipes away the residue of her tears.

"Well, Sterl", the commander says, switching to a more casual tone, "Nice to meet you. I am an Imperial commander. We found your sister on the way here. Considering the doctor I ordered, your sister should be fine in a couple of days. I am currently sharing the room with her, so rest assured that nothing will happen to her on my watch."

"Oh. Okay." Sterl slumps into the nearest chair and exhales. She properly takes in the room for the first time. "That's still better than our house, I guess.", she mumbles.

The commander raises a brow. "If you don't mind, I'd like to tend to my own private matters in here."

"I'm sorry, but can I stay a bit?"

A short glance at me, then the commander sighs. "Fine. But you'll have to sit somewhere else. I need the whole table."

And with that settled, the commander commences her gear maintenance, while Sterl watches me with obvious worry on her face from a chair closer to me. The table is covered in weapons, pauldrons and all the small bits and pieces of the commander's armor. One by one, the armor set regains it's shine, as the commander executes her thorough cleaning routine. Sterl occupies her fingers with some kind of pendant halfway through.

While checking her armor for any dents, the commander addresses Sterl again. "Say... how did you know, Alya was in this room?"

"Ah... how should I put it... we've fought a lot, so I recognize her magic immediately. It flared up, when I was returning here from my last quest."

"Flaring up? Are you telling me, Alya is casting spells while unconscious or sleeping in the bed there? That sounds ridiculous."

"I-I don't know what to tell you! I sensed it, I swear! She was gone so long and suddenly, I could feel her magic circulate somewhere. That's why I rushed here!"

"If you say so..." The commander inspects the next dagger.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

"No, but I can't prove you wrong either. Maybe her current condition makes the arcane circuits misfire or something. We'll know in a few days."

As time passes, the commander and Sterl hold light conversation. I listen in, still in bed as Alya. Towards the evening, Sterl finally leaves, seeing that I won't wake up anytime soon and having the commander tell her that she can't do much anyway.

Sterl's steps vanish down the corridor, before the commander speaks up again. Her eyes are still glued to her gear. "August?"

The wardrobe opens slightly. "Mmmyess?"

"Is it true?"

"As much trouble as it means, yes. Fylka cast it, though."

The commander freezes. "...just like that?"

"Just like that."