Chapter 3: The Steam Beast
5 Hours and 30 Minutes After Sunset, Main Square of Flame Kingdom: Base of Flame King's Mountain Palace, 2 Hours and 30 Minutes Before Bedtime
Standing before them is a giant, mechanical, steam-powered beast. Its body looks like a bowling ball with twenty or so small chimneys jutting out from its body. Most of them on its upper back. It was supported by a pair of small, stumpy metal legs, and long, heavy, bendy straw-like arms. Marshall could hear the elaborate system of cogs and engines working from inside its glossy-black hull. It began to hiss steam from its small chimneys again. It lowered itself into a crouch position before hurling its arms forward like a gorilla, and pulling its large, awkward body forward at incredible speed straight in their direction.
"Oh my glob is right." Fiona smiled and looked in the direction of Marshall Lee.
"Hold on a second.. can you see me?"
"No, you idiot. I can't see you. You're invisible" She held her sword's handle parallel to her nose. Lining it up perfectly with the direct middle of the beast speeding towards them.
"Then how do you know I was here?" He asks dumbfounded.
"Simple." She replied as she began charging at the beast. "You breathe so heavily."
He stood there for a moment... shocked that she allowed him to believe that he was following her undetected. Did she know more than she let on?
Fiona giggled as she jumped on top of the whirling monster. Why did beating things up always make her feel better? It suddenly halted. Attempting to throw her off, but she knew better. She had fought it before she knew some of its signature moves, as it did hers, but the difference between the two was that Fiona was always learning new techniques, so it was impossible to foresee what she would do next. She held on to two of its chimneys as it attempted to buck her off. Using them to steady herself.
"Feisty tonight aren't we?" It was more of a statement than a question. "Hey Marshall? Once you are finished in Dreamland, would you mind helping me out a little bit?" Fiona knew she was a strong gal, but she also knew that she couldn't fight it without some help.
He shook himself from his puzzlement. "Sure thing Fi."
He transformed into a giant beast with bat wings, and flew up into the air. He dove for the beast below, his fangs and claws spread wide. Fiona jumped off the Steam Beast and took cover in one of the nearby blown out shops right as Marshall pushed it back with all his might. Forcing it to fall backwards, and skid down the long street to the edge of the main square, pulling up the hot cobblestone with it.
"Marshall! Be careful!" Fiona screamed.
He deflated back into his humanoid form and glided up next to her. "Why? What's the big deal?"
"Oh you don't understand anything do you?" She ran in the direction of the the fallen Steam Beast.
"Fi! Don't go over there! I already got it! Everything is good now!" He called after her. It was useless. Fiona ran to the cooling Steam Beast, and proceeded to kneel down next to it.
"Fiona, stay away from that! We don't know if we have killed it yet."
Fiona shook her head. "Marshall, I am not interested in it. I am only interested in what is inside of it."
She laid her hand on the Steam Beast's body and whispered some words he did not understand. She began to rock back and forth in correspondence with the syllables she spewed. Her hand began to glow light blue, and a sticky, runny substance the same color began to pour from where she placed it on the now inanimate Steam Beast. It ran down the body of the beast, and pooled on the ground. Glowing blue runes appeared on the black, glassy body of the Steam Beast. Marshall could read some of them, but many of them were too old to be understood. Not even his mother would be able to read them they were so old. Fiona's face became more serious as she continued chanting. The veins in her arms began to pulse with the same glowing blue substance, quickly spreading to her neck, and the edges of her face.
"Fi, stop this! Please Fiona! Don't do this!" He tried to shake her from her ramblings, but it was useless.
She began to scream the incomprehensible words as the light reached her eyes. When she finally stopped, the light receded from her body, and she breathed out a few glowing blue breaths. She collapsed where she knelt. There was a brief pause, then a small door popped open on the side of the Steam Beast, and the once glassy black surface of its body became transparent. Inside, he could see the citizens of the Flame Kingdom squished up against the sides of the wall. They now hurriedly pushed for freedom from the Steam Beast.
"What the..." He began.
"That's what the Steam Beasts are doing, Vampire King. They are collecting the citizens of Aaaa, and then they just disappear in a snap of electricity and smoke." A voice behind him said.
"Vampire King..." Marshall turned around to see who addressed him by his formal title. As he did he realized he was standing face to face with the new Flame King.
"You..." Marshall spewed angrily.
"Yes, me..." The Fire King smiled. He looked exactly the same as the banners outside of his castle minus the crown. He wore a dark bronzed suit of armor with golden and blue swirls engraved upon the chest and shoulder plates. The flames upon his head were more slicked back than they usually were, and he seemed taller. His face was momentarily expressionless.
Marshall wanted to kick this young king to the Ice Kingdom and back, but he knew that hurting him, would not make Fiona feel any better. It would only make him feel better.
"I have much to thank Fiona for. I hope you will not let our past history distract from her future well-being. I have a fully equipped room prepared to handle the injuries you both received while defending our fair land."
Marshall returned the sickly sweet smile the Flame King gave him and replied.
"I would rather walk across Aaaa for a hundred years in the daylight, than accept your hospitality."
The Flame King shrugged "Suit yourself, you angry little vampire, but I will not let you speak on the behalf of the truly injured."
He nodded towards Fiona, who was now being attended to by a large army of Flamelites (that is what the citizens of the Flame Kingdom are called) who were all covered in tin foil to keep themselves from burning the blond adventuress as they touched her, and placed her on a stretcher.
"Hey you!" Marshall yelled. "Stay away from her." He ran up to the crowd, and attempted to push them away from her.
"Guards!" The Flame King called in a very regal manner.
In an instant two flame guards with spears seeped into existence from the nearby lanterns that lined the main square.
"I would like you to keep an eye on this young man for a while. Don't be mean of course, he is royalty after all."
He smirked at Marshall, and then turned his attention to the unconscious girl in the stretcher.
"Just make sure he doesn't interfere anymore. I have more pressing matters to attend to."
The two flame guards nodded to their king, and moved towards Marshall. He backed away from them. Again, two more appeared behind him, and slipped shackles around his arms, legs, and neck. He struggled to transform into a beast, but found he could not do it.
"What the..."
"Don't try anything funny, son." One of the Guards said in a deep, rough voice. "These shackles are enchanted. I think The Lord has been expecting you to make an appearance for a while."
Marshall clawed, and struggled as the guards forced him in the opposite direction of Fiona, and the Flame King. The Flame King standing over the halted stretcher before him. He was caressing Fiona's face without a gloved hand.
"DON'T DO THAT! YOU WILL BURN HER!" Marshall screamed wildly at him.
The Flame King lifted up one of his hands and wiggled his glowing gold fingers. "One of the perks of the new job kid. I don't need them anymore. I can touch her all I want."
There was a sharp pain on the back of Marshall's head, and then everything went black.
OKAY EVERYONE! FIRST THREE CHAPTERS ARE DONE. STEAMY STUFF IS COMING UP. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
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XOXOXOXOXOXOXO
