Ruse of Spirit

Chapter 11 The Burning Marya

That night Liam went home, he wasn't looking forward to knowing why Leo had taken over him in the café. He sighed and sat down at the edge of his bed. Morning light peeked through his curtains. He'd just put on a dark blue t-shirt and was going to go to the magic shop. He worked there part-time.

Although they owned a hotel, they had no problems with money. Liam refused to simply take money from them without working for it. Besides, he loved to prank his friends and working at a magic shop made it so much easier.

"Hey...Leo. What happened yesterday in the café?"

A kid was in trouble. I had to step in.

Liam dreaded asking Leo more about it, but he had to. "I know that...but, what happened?"

There was a pause. Liam hated when Leo did that.

Oh. I get it. He's safe. The kid's okay.

"You went after the guy...he was trying to abduct him for real, wasn't he? That's why I panicked. I couldn't take it. I didn't want to relive..." Liam hid his face in his hands and tears rolled down his face.

Damn it, Liam! Look, the kid's okay. You're safe. I'm here for ya. I won't let anyone hurt you. No one.

Liam took in a shaky breath. "It felt good to cry, though. I can't let all that pressure stay inside."

When Liam was a child, he'd been through a traumatic event. He used to live in another dimension. At the time there had been civil unrest and jinn who existed there had abducted and forced him to do the whims of his masters. Locked up for four days. But those days had felt like months. That time of his life he'd never get back. It was on the third day, that Liam had been broken. His spirit shattered and Leo took over. Leo was his alter. It was Leo who took the rest of the pain. All the physical trauma, the beatings and emotional scars. Leo told him he'd tried to beat his.... abductors. It was the fourth day he'd been rescued by his cousin. Other elementals like himself who had infiltrated the underground cell and saved him. It had been too late to save Liam's childhood, but he wouldn't let his adulthood go to waste.

"Leo, I'm going to work this out."

What..what d'you mean?

Liam smiled. "I'm not going to keep this locked up anymore. I'm going to tell Eima and my closest friend."

Wow, man. Well uh...there's someone else you need to know about.

"It can wait." Liam shrugged on a sweater and headed for the stairs. "I need to go to work." He smiled as he made his way down the stairs.

"Orzala!" Eima had a wide smile across her face. Her long blue dress undulated in the wind. She stood, like a crane over the top of the roof, her stature full of grace. She turned her head as the large grey Spectre toppled over to the street where Orzala crouched in wait for it.

"Got it, sis!" Orzala's arm twisted back, her fingers tightly gripping a large cream scabbard. She flung her weapon. Purple whips of energy spiraled around it as it spun and tore into the Spectre's arm, slicing it cleanly off. In a matter of minutes, she pointed her right wrist with her Pulse and formed a rifle. The white energy shot and punctured the Spectre. The creature's body obliterated, and turned into smoke.

"Nice one!" Eima skidded to a stop in front of Orzala. "What?"

Orzala grinned at her. "Still can't get used to your dress."

"I've worn them before." Eima stood tall, her chin up.

"Yeah. Now, let's get back to that wedding before they find out we're missing." Eima roped her arm around Orzala's shoulders, her silver bangles jangling and walked down the street.

Eima had worn her best silver shoes for the event. After all, it was Orzala's cousin's wedding. It was ten in the morning. The invite had stated the time for eight. When they'd first reached there, not many people had come. Being fashionably late had become a strange custom for generations. Her family had entered the large pavilion at nine and no sooner had they stepped through the hallway, Rima called them to a Spectre attack.

Orzala peeked through the beaded make-shift curtain at the entry way. "I don't see mama, anywhere."

Eima opened up a pocket mirror to inspect the kajol—eyeliner— rimming her eyes. She held a purple pencil and carefully traced her waterline. "Good. I needed to touch up."

Orzala elbowed her. "Oh my God...look!"

Eima jumped. "You nearly took my eye out!"

"Eima...they're playing my favourite song and the dancers look so awesome!"

Eima grinned and elbowed her back. "Zala, you're going to give me a heart attack one day."

Orzala grinned back at her and dragged Eima by the arm. "Come on, let's have fun...and stop calling me that!"

Eima chuckled. "Fine. Fine. I'll try." She rolled her eyes and smiled.

The light was dimmed and the white walls were decorated with purple and red streamers. Every table top had a large red candle and a vase of purple flowers. The stage at the far right of the wall had a podium left to the side.

Eima strolled with Orzala to the right side of the room, dancers swaying and their arms rising in the middle of the room. If it wasn't for Orzala, Eima would have declined attending the event. Besides, the others weren't even related to her by blood. A small part of her was flagrantly uninterested in the other people who were in the room. She'd seen enough bodies as a child. Too many for her to enjoy people congregating or groups bumping into each other in the streets. Her chest used to tighten at the sight of them, fearing she'd see red. That they would be painted in blood, not sweat.

The bass echoed in the hall, and Eima glazed eyes blinked back into reality.

"Come on, Eima, let's go get some soda."

"Sure."

Eima's Pulse began to beep. "Hey." She elbowed Orzala.

"Eima, do you read me?" It was Rima's voice.

Eime held her band to her ear. "Yes."

"We detected a Rogue on Codec street."

"That's where we are..." Orzala leaned in to hear her.

"Right. We'll handle it."

"Did I interrupt anything? I hear music in the background."

"Well..."

Eima leaned away. "No. We're on it, Rima"

Orzala pouted and crossed her arms on her chest.

To be continued....