Needle and Thread

Penultimacy

 Andesine was still angry when Lyra set him down.

"So," he said. "I can't beat them to a bloody pulp because something else will come along and kill us? And then beat them to a bloody pulp?"

"Pretty much sums it up," Roxy said glumly, from her position guarding the gates. "Anybody wanna try turning that sword on again?"

I think. I have it.

Anar had been thinking (still screwed into the ground like some sort of weird plant).

You can't open the weapon.

"Oh, great," Lyra said. "Well, in that case, maybe we should just get the heck out of here before we get killed."

They will follow. You're not sasdffe now, not asdfnywhere.

I can open the weapon, Anar said patiently, as though he hadn't heard anything. We swing together.

Thasdft would be violasdfting every trasdfdition we hasdfve.

Yes. Our decisions have been poisoned. How long?

Anar stood up, holding the sword. In his other hand sprouted a golden shield.

Last stand. They approach.

Sure enough, there was a rumbling in the streets.

Anar, this is crasdfzy. There's no wasdfy I'm SHASDFRING with them.

"Frikkin racist," Roxy muttered.

"Have fun dying," Benny snarled.

You casdfnnot live without me.

"I know," Benny snapped. "I've watched. So either you have fun dying, and we'll fight to our last breath and be true warriors, or you help us and possibly live, if I don't crush your fucking skull."

He thrust out his hand.

Reluctantly, she summoned her own giant pair of swords. Benny put his hand on one, and Winter on the other. Lyra and Anar took ahold of his sword.

Roxy grabbed Ananda and Andesine and bounded into the air, where she hovered. For an instant, her eyes flashed golden, and thin, golden filaments appeared around her friends, weaved into a dome. When it faded, Roxy kept in the air (though barely), with Andesine and Ananda hanging on for dear life.

They must have all blinked at some point, because suddenly, the Angels were there. Their faces were contorted-- some with anger, some with glee. They were all drenched in thick golden blood, which dripped like honey from their fingers.

Lyra felt sick. The rest of the group didn't look too well, either, barring the Ancients, who both stood with eyes wide open.

Behold. The Ancients.

Anar gestured with his shield arm at the Angels.

All their work. All their life. Gone. Not that any of it mattered anyway.

"Gee, thanks," Lyra muttered. "Let's get this over with."

Before. I must thank you.

"Huh?"

Ancients do not need light. We sense. We had no light. Then, a sun. We could see.

"Oh," Lyra said softly, as realization dawned. "You mean you were just sitting ducks?"

Yes. Now. Swing at them. They fall. You live.

Lyra nodded.

The sword's flames began to heat up. Lyra and Anar swung their sword at the Angels. Unfortunately, this meant that the Angels were obscured from the group for a moment. When the sword had finished its arc and returned to the hilt, the Angels were all very angry-looking. A few of them had missing arms that weren't there before, as though they'd tried to block. There were even a few with no heads. But the vast majority of them were crouched low to the ground, scowling at the group.

"Schist," Andesine said from above.

"I'll have to agree with that," Benny said. "Okay. We're going to try thrusting. Try to keep sight of them!"

The giant, flaming swords came forward. Lyra, thinking that everybody else would be watching, took the opportunity to blink--

--and the Angels had advanced again. They were feet from Benny and Winter, and inches from Lyra. Devolved into a forest of stretching arms, the Angels had made their attack.

One of the hands was thrust through Anar's chest.

Golden blood dripped down his chest. He coughed. Some of it came out of his mouth.

I hated being alive anyways.

He collapsed.

"SHIT!" Lyra yelled, and slumped to the ground. "No, no," she said. "Nope! You're not dying!"

She turned to Roxy, who had sunk to the ground to rest briefly.

"Weren't you watching?" Roxy asked.

"I blinked," Lyra said miserably. "I thought you guys would be watching."

"I guess we thought that too," Andesine said.

"Dammit," Lyra said. She looked at the Angels, which had nearly surrounded her, and a Benny and Winter and the girl Ancient. "Okay. Rox, you get back up there. Benny, Winter, you keep swinging. I'll keep an eye out. We might still win."

"Then why do I have the overwhelming feeling that we're about to lose?" Winter asked, eyeing the Angels around him. "Maybe we should get out of here and try it again."

I doubt they'll let us leasdfve here. They let us off easdfsy lasdfst time.

"Fine," Lyra said. "Come on, guys! We can do this."

She picked up the empty hilt Anar had dropped, and made her way over to Winter and Benny. Roxy put Andesine and Ananda down for the moment on the only small patch of earth left.

Benny and Winter swung.