The Spirit of Wrath

Chapter Eleven: Plans for the Future

It had been quite an adventure, actually. They'd seen Master Garacel in action, even seen him face an equal. A war between ghosts and mortal men had played out before their eyes. But at last, it was over. They were finally going home.

Narcissa was more than glad of the fact as she slid her one-piece leather outfit on. She slipped the straps onto her left shoulder and stretched. She enjoyed the sensation of the soft leather as she slipped on the other.

Wearing a glorified tin can was not fun at all. However, she felt and looked much better like this. Narcissa admired herself in the mirror. Had there ever been a servant of Zigildrazia to look so flawless?

Aside from Alkela, of course. Her blonde hair and perfect complexion were something to be shown freely. Her other excellent features were something that ought to be appropriately foreshadowed. Especially those fabulous breasts and hips...

All the more fitting for Narcissa's twin sister. Who else could compare in looks?

Narcissa drew in a breath as they crossed the border. Even now, she could feel the energy of Zigilus flowing through her as they drew nearer. The sky had already returned to normal. She began tying her hair back into its original ponytail. As she looked at Alkala's reflection in the mirror. Her twin had finished some minutes ago; she always dressed quickly and held her mace.

"Ugh, it feels so good to be out of that armor and back in leather," said Narcissa. "Right, Alkela?"

Alkela moved forward and set a hand on Narcissa's left shoulder. Narcissa met her gaze, and something seemed off about her. Ever since Alkela had seen the Sword of Chaos, she'd seemed odd. There was steel in her eyes that hadn't been there before. Though Narcissa felt somewhat bizarre herself.

They had set foot in a world that did not revolve wholly around Zigildrazia's will. Or even Baltoth's. It had been strange, and somehow Narcissa felt stronger. But, on the other hand, she thought she would not be the same even when she was back in Zigilus. And she wasn't sure she wanted it to be the same.

Narcissa shoved Alkela's hand off her shoulder and walked past. "Come on, let's go see Garacel," said Narcissa. "We'll be getting back to Zigilus in a few hours. The first thing I'm going to do is eat a feast. What do you think?"

Alkela looked at her flatly. Narcissa sighed. "Yeah, right. I know, 'choose a healthy diet or die.'" Alkela suddenly looked up. Her eyes flicked to the door, and she picked up the mace she'd kept. Narcissa looked at her oddly. "What's wrong?"

Alkela made for the door. "Akela, where are you going? And why are you still using that stupid mace? You looked better, making use of hand-to-hand anyway."

Alkela didn't turn back. Narcissa waited a moment. Then she sighed, snatched up her axe, and propped it over one shoulder. She followed her sister out of the room and into the halls. As they walked, Narcissa guessed she thought someone was on board. She moved toward her and grabbed Alkela by the shoulder. "Okay, seriously. Nobody is going to be able to stow away on this. Master Garacel would never miss them.

"Let's head to the bridge."

Alkela looked at her and finally nodded. So they went off. As they did, they noticed that several of the patrols had been there before had been removed. Was someone slacking off? Or had Grakus found some other task for them?

Personally, Narcissa didn't see the need. They were miles in the air. Who was going to attack them up here? She'd heard that dragons flew in the fast western regions of the world. But the golden dragons of these lands crawled on eight legs. Even if they had wings, their armor was too heavy to take flight.

They turned a corner, and at last, they reached the bridge. The guards saluted and opened the way for them, and they walked through. The bridge was an area of many magical displays that showed information. A three-dimensional map of light was coming from a table in the center. Garacel and Grakus were there, looking at it. They seemed to discuss something, but Narcissa couldn't explain.