Bonding
"I looked everywhere I could think," Meilyr said with a yawn and stretch. "I simply could not find your coin purse, I am sorry." The gremlin had been the last one to awaken. The other Skylanders his small party had been traveling with had already departed leaving Meilyr the lone male in the company of Windy, Hex and Seraphina. The princess had just enough time to tell him to call Hex by the name Helen when Windy came bounding up to ask about her lost item.
"So wonk," the blue hybrid sighed, "Oh, well thank you," Windy replied with drooping ears. "You tried and that's all I could ask for."
Seraphina turned around quickly to fish through Meilyr's pack. The gremlin tried to look over his shoulder with his ears sticking straight up as she jostled the potions. "Hey, if you pop the cork on one or break it the enchantment on the pack will never allow me to clean the mess out."
"Shh," Seraphina told him as she continued to dig. She knew what she was doing; she had used enchanted items such as Meilyr's pack much longer than he had. "Ah, here it is." She pulled out an empty coin purse as well as a full one.
"When did you put that in?" Meilyr asked as he watched her pull the strings to open first the empty then full purse. "What else have you put in my pack?" He pulled it off to rummage himself and made far more noise than Seraphina had.
"When I went to wake you," the princess replied. She counted out coins from the full purse and dropped them into the empty one before she held out the newly filled purse to Windy.
"No!" Windy gasped. "I can't accept that! Please," the Whirlwindling looked up at the Hexling with large eyes. She appreciated the thought but couldn't take hand-outs due to her pride in being self-sufficient.
Hex had been silent for the full exchange and cleared her throat. "If someone is going to be kind enough to give you a donation you should be more appreciative of it." Not that she would take it herself; the last thing she wanted was to feel like she owed someone anything.
Windy stared at the coin purse Seraphina was offering her when a thought hit her, "Why didn't the pouch fill the purse with the coins in the other?" she narrowed her eyes at the item in Seraphina's hand, how weird.
"The enchantment is not meant for gold or gems," Meilyr answered as he slung his pack back on. "If it worked that way could you imagine the inflation on prices? Anyway, are we ready?"
"That'd be the cheese," Windy said softly on the thought of multiplying wealth with the pack's effect. But yes, she could see the problem too.
"I am bathed, rested and everyone has eaten?" Seraphina asked. She got nods from her companions. "Then we are ready." Windy still hadn't taken the purse so Seraphina tied it alongside hers under a fold of her gown. When the hybrid was ready she would take it.
The sun had rapidly heated the stone and sand in the molekin town. The heat washed over the quartet like a furnace when the door was opened and Windy instantly adjusted her wings so they weren't held so close to her body. The sun was bright too; surely it couldn't have gotten that bright so soon. "It is still morning, isn't it?" Windy asked.
"Yes," Hex's short reply came almost before Windy had even finished speaking.
Windy scowled, "What the juice is your problem, Helen? You're always so rude to like, everyone!"
"Don't call me that," Hex said in the same snippy tone. She ghosted out into the town and gave the barest glance over her shoulder to ensure the others followed.
Windy cocked her head to the side, "Well what do you want me to call you if not your name?"
"That's not m-" Hex stopped and scowled. "Just don't talk to me and everything will be fine." She glared at a molekin woman that looked up at her as she passed.
Windy gave the other Skylander a dirty look, "Shoob," she muttered and dropped back to Seraphina, at least this Hexling had manners.
"I have been meaning to ask you," Seraphina began as she hovered between Windy and Meilyr, "you have used words in ways I am unfamiliar with. Where did you learn this?"
"From my Portal Master, Krystal. Well, from this one show on TV she got me hooked on. I thought all humans talked that way. It helps me feel more connected to Krystal, ya know? I hear it a lot and thought it would be right to pick it up myself. But seriously, Randy Cunningham: Ninth Grade Ninja is bruce. You should watch it sometime!" Windy's draconic face split into a wide grin, "My best memories of Earth are about the time I spend with Krystal. Like," she started before launching into memories of her Portal Master.
The room was dark except for the alternating patterns of light from the TV. It bathed items directly in front of it with splashes of constantly changing color. Among those items was a shelf full of Skylander figures, frozen on the outside but alive on the inside. None were more enthralled with the cartoon currently airing than Windy the Whirlwindling. She never missed an episode, ever. A shadow fell over her as a dark figure blocked her view and Windy gasped, "I can't see!"
"Relax," the shadowed figure laughed. "Come on, I've got a better seat."
As Windy's eyes adjusted she was able to see her Portal Master Krystal pick her up and move her to the arm of the couch. "Oh yeah, this seat rocks," the Whirlwindling said proudly from her new perch. Nothing was in the way from this vantage point; anyone else that passed through the room would be behind her and wouldn't block her view. Next to her sat Krystal, that was what Windy enjoyed the most about Earth; soaking up the entertainment alongside her Portal Master.
"Okay first separate the clouds," Randy the main character of the show began with an artful maneuvering of his hands out from his sides. "Gather the fallen wind," he murmured while leaning over and fluffing up blue swirls of magic as the giant komodo dragon approached. The ninja pulled his hands up towards his midsection and began to snicker as he said, "And free the chicken." He lost it with that and slapped his head, "I can't, I can't! Free the chicken? What am I supposed to do with that?" His shrug quickly turned into a dodge when the giant lizard tried to pounce him. "Alright, alright, alright," he muttered upon rolling back to his feet. "Cloud, wind," he began with the same motions, "chicken," his laugh almost sounded like a chicken's cluck as he doubled over with one hand to his gut and the other to his head. "Chicken! Okay, okay, okay. I'm gonna do it this time for real."
Windy laughed at the same time Krystal did when the armored dragon almost crushed Randy for the second time. "That is a ridiculous name for a move," Windy snickered. She thought proudly about how the red scarf she wore matched Randy's, all thanks to Krystal. "This is the cheese, Krystal. Thanks a bunch biffer," Windy told her Portal Master.
"We talk like that to each other a lot, some of Krystal's other Skylanders can be such shoobs about it though. No harm done, just goofing off," Windy said as she hopped along the road.
"Well I could see picking up lingo from a Portal Master, if I could understand mine I might do the same. My Portal Master speaks a language I have never heard and though she can understand me her replies are broken and sometimes I confuse her. It gives me a headache to talk to her," Meilyr said in such a way as to end the conversation.
"I respect mine, he respects me. End of story," Hex said before she was put on the spot.
Seraphina shrugged, "I have no complaints about Sean. He finds my life interesting and I find his likewise. There are things that the other does that we do not understand but we do not question it."
Windy flashed Seraphina and Meilyr a grin, "On the topic of speech the two of you talk so proper!" She drew herself up tall and held her head high before giggling and relaxing her posture. "I bet you're from the Tour region of Skylands. Am I right? You were elves before the change? So was I, a storm elf. It was weird to find myself suddenly walking on four legs instead of two but the wings are so honkin' bruce!" She held them up proudly to punctuate her statement and seemed to prance as she walked.
"We were eirian elves," Meilyr said with his hand up as he studied it. "You know, metallic skin tones ranging from silver through pearl, hematite, copper, bronze, silver and gold. Seraphina was a tawny muted gold with hair like spun gold. Gold, gold, gold. We used to tease her about being gold plated. My own skin tone was a muddy copper sort of color, my hair dark. Now I am this," he motioned to himself. "I am stronger now but beastly. I am glad someone is happy with their cursed form."
"Helen too?" Windy asked. She didn't dare approach the Hexling ahead of them with the question.
"We recently met Helen," Seraphina said when Meilyr looked in her direction; "she does not talk much about her life before the exile. I have decided I do not need to know and refrain from questioning her."
"Fair enough," Windy shrugged. She hoped they were going to leave the dusty island soon; she could see the grime in her feathers and knew it was going to cause her to do a serious grooming.
The innkeeper had told the quartet that the best opportunity for a departure from the island was in the next town over. When it appeared on the horizon they understood why. The dry arid landscape changed abruptly with an oasis. Lush palms and underbrush made a stark line against the sandy rocks that covered the area they had come from. It was still very warm out but the addition of shade helped give relief. On the road ahead of them was a lone molekin leading a train of reptilian trekkers loaded with packs of goods he was transporting back to the molekin settlement. The molekin waddled on by without so-much as a glance at the group. His trekkers either tossed their heads or extended a neck out to sniff at the travelers. Hex popped the first one in the face to try it with her and kept moving. The rest avoided her but seemed to find Meilyr particularly fascinating.
"Ugh, quit," the gremlin grumbled when the third straight reptile nudged him with a blunt nose. They all went for the side of his face and some rammed him rather hard. The fourth trekker got Meilyr to side step with his nuzzle and the gremlin used the momentum to stumble into the foliage flanking the road. "I am good," he said with only a hand sticking up above the green leaves.
Windy wound her way around the legs of the trekkers and got them moving along quickly so the road was once again open for the Skylanders. "Hey, big, blue and fuzzy, it's safe again!" she called out to Meilyr with a giggle.
The Fizzling's head pushed through large leaves and looked back towards the trekkers behind Seraphina and Windy before he looked ahead to Hex. They were all waiting on him with various expressions. Windy was amused, Hex was scowling and Seraphina was more than a little embarrassed by him. Meilyr hopped through the foliage and left it rustling behind him as he scurried down the road ahead of the princess and hybrid but behind the Core. "Come on," he called to the ladies now behind him. "We all want to get out of here, right?"
Warm sun and a cool breeze made the largely flat, one square mile island, with farm and animal husbandry business located on it look and feel quaint. Except for the main house, a few barns of various sizes and purposes along with fences and corrals to divide up the land there wasn't much on the island. It had the look and feel of being a private island owned by whoever lived in the farmhouse on the eastern edge.
Anicetus Reve found himself in only the company of Crevan Mikken. Teranika and Rafer would not be around until sunset and his sister and Meilyr hadn't arrived from their now two day long journey from Eon's party. Anicetus wasn't complaining however, he was rather enjoying himself at the moment. It was peaceful on the island and the building style was at last familiar to that which he had grown up with. The Ignitorling drumed his fingers on the wooden fence he stood at as he let his gaze roam. Crevan had decided he liked the Meir Valan elf enough to show him the collection of birds and trekkers his family raised. It felt good to be back in the Tour region of Skylands. In the distance Anicetus could see the island continent of Tour and imagined the line that divided it into Orriden and Garda, the latter the country his father ruled. The capital city of Meir Valan would be on the other side of his current position. Anicetus was on an island belonging to Orriden, King Faolan Young was an ally of Garda and considered a friend to Anicetus. In a roundabout way the Ignitorling was home.
Anicetus had let his thoughts wander too far from the conversation with the Fizzling. He tore his eyes off the horizon and focused again on his newest ally in time to hear the tail end of his explanation of the animals present.
"That one is the best sprinter," Crevan pointed to a female ostrich wearing a collar of pink-dyed leather matched by anklets. "Are you any good at riding?" he asked while leaning on the fence. Crevan put two fingers to his mouth and whistled before he waved to a beautiful antique gold skinned elf with red-orange hair. She turned and waved back before taking two large male ostriches by their leads and approaching the fence. "This is my younger sister, Eileen. Eileen, may I present to you Prince Anicetus Reve of Meir Valan."
Eileen's eyes widened and she dipped into a low bow before him, "Forgive me, prince. I am not dressed for receiving royalty." She cast a glare at her brother before smiling warmly at Anicetus. "It is good to see you well."
Anicetus surprised her by placing a gauntleted hand to his chest and bowing in return. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Eileen."
"Just Eileen," she said in embarrassment. "I have no title." She glanced back to her brother; he was giving her a slightly insane grin. She really hated how his cursed form always made him look so unbalanced. "Crevan would like to race, I am assuming," she said as she looked to the ostriches she still held the leads for. "Now these two are fairly evenly matched. Not the fastest but matched. Have you ridden before, Prince Anicetus?"
"Please," the Ignitorling said with a hand up, "Just Anicetus is fine. Titles are not necessary." Eileen closed her eyes and gave him a deep nod of understanding. If that was what he requested then that would be what the prince got. "I have ridden orniteryx before and am skilled with them. Ostriches however have been very rarely."
"Then you will find yourself bored with the ostrich," Crevan smirked. "Mount up. I will show you the track we train them on." He hopped the fence and took the lead from one male before swinging up onto the bird's back. The ostrich side-stepped lightly and ruffled his wings at the additional weight but calmed quickly with Crevan's soothing words and gentle strokes.
"My armor does not make me too heavy?" Anicetus asked. "I will not cause harm to the bird?" He gestured to the obvious flames behind his helm.
"Rider wears armor when he jousts. No, you are not too heavy," Crevan replied as he turned his mount around to face the prince. "Your saddle should keep the largest area of heat off the bird. If we are to travel as much as we have already might I suggest getting a trekker for use? They will be best suited for your unique needs."
The ostrich looked at Anicetus and stepped back half a step when the prince reached for his reins.
"Come now, Overdrive. That is no way to treat a prince!" Eileen said to the bird as she directed him back towards the prince.
"Overdrive, huh?" Anicetus asked when the ostrich finally allowed him to take the reins.
"When he needs it he always seems to have a reserve of extra power and speed," Eileen nodded. She watched the prince mount up and noticed Overdrive kept his wings away from the Ignitorling's armored legs. She had been able to feel the heat from him when she was close enough and could understand the bird's agitation over carrying live flames. Eileen swept her red-orange hair behind her ears before she stepped away from the two riders and moved to open the gate to the corral first. "Keep it short, Overdrive will tire fast with the heat," she warned.
"Just a bit of recreation," Crevan waved. "We will be back before you know it."
Well, the ostrich moved similarly to an orniteryx. The bird had a longer and slimmer neck with a less threatening head and seemed a bit lighter on his feet than the war birds Anicetus was used to. Strange when he considered the orniteryx could fly and the ostrich could not. The prince easily transitioned from a walk into a canter to pace Crevan. The Fizzling looked relaxed and completely at home on the back of the bird. For a moment Anicetus wondered how a bird wrangler became an alchemist. Then again, the same question might be asked of him if one did not understand the tradition of picking a hobby as a young princeling.
"Just up ahead," Crevan glanced over his shoulder to Anicetus. He turned further and laughed, "It appears we will have company."
Anicetus swiveled as much as he could in the saddle to look behind him. He saw Eileen swing up onto the back of an olive and brown female trekker after closing the gate to the holding pen she had brought the lizard through. "It cannot possibly be a fair race," Anicetus said as he turned back around. "The trekker will have a longer stride!"
"She will give us a head start of nearly one lap," Crevan laughed. "After that it gets fun."
"Should have just taken trekkers," Anicetus thought he said quietly enough for Crevan to miss.
Crevan's laughter proved it wasn't soft enough, "Trust me prince, this will be much more fun."
A short walk around a bend put the riders at an open area with a track of bare dirt obviously used often for the running of animals. There were even a few risers present for spectators. If Crevan's family sold their stock it was most likely where prospective buyers sat to observe the animals. "Line up even with that mark there, yes. That one," Crevan pointed to the buried stones that marked the starting point.
"Eileen seems to be taking her time," Anicetus remarked. Her trekker was actually being allowed by her rider to graze as she wandered slowly along the path.
"She will allow our lead until we are nearly halfway back to this mark. When we get to that point she will take Olive into a run," Crevan said as he adjusted himself in the saddle. "Ready when you are, prince."
"On my mark," the prince said. He gripped the reins tighter and lowered his profile against the ostrich. "Ready. Set," he paused. "Go!"
Eileen watched the ostriches take off in a dash. She thumped Olive's neck when she felt the trekker's muscles tense up in preparation. "Easy there girl. Let them have their head start. Shall we give them a whole lap or just under a whole lap?" Olive shook her head, the loose skin around her throat waddled and she made a noise similar to a honk. "A whole lap it is. You are getting confident," Eileen laughed. Eileen felt she would never get used to seeing her brother as he was now. True, much about him remained the same. He was still grinning and he retained that little quirk in his smile on the left side. But as a gremlin he was not the elf she remembered running around the pens with and squealing as they played tag around the legs of ostrich and trekker alike. One day, she told herself, one day she would see his copper skin and golden brown hair again.
"Get ready," Eileen whispered to Olive as the duo neared the starting line with Anicetus in the barest of leads. "Go!" she flapped the reins and laughed in delight as the thickly corded muscles in Olive's legs propelled her forward.
Anicetus was as flat against Overdrive as he could manage without touching the bird with his chest or head. The wind whistled inside his empty armor and he could hear Overdrive breathing in time with the tramping of his feet against the dirt. Yes, there was a thrill to the race. Anicetus didn't dare look behind him knowing the drag the action would cause could throw Overdrive off his game. Anicetus was in the lead, for now. He had taken one lap and Eileen had just spurred her trekker into action. The lizard was faster than the ostriches but he and Crevan had a lap on her. It was inevitable that Eileen and Olive would pass them but not until they had nearly looped around behind Anicetus would he have to worry. It was a three lap race if Anicetus could just keep that lap lead he wouldn't have much to worry about. That chance grew smaller when Eileen's grinning face came up next to Anicetus and pulled ahead just barely.
"I will make it easier," Eileen yelled as she kept her pace just ahead of Anicetus. She knew they had a lap on her but each time he or Crevan tried to pull ahead of her and Olive she was going to increase Olive's speed. Their pushing would be what made her utilize the trekker's full potential. Crevan would be used to the tactic and would play it easy until Eileen would press it at the last possible moment to take the lead and race. Anicetus though would be tempted to increase his lead. Just as Eileen predicted the Ignitorling bobbed up beside her and began to pull ahead. Eileen responded in kind, Olive lurched forward and put several lengths between her and Overdrive. The ostrich squawked in aggravation and lowered his head to catch up with the trekker.
"You are doing well," Anicetus said softly to Overdrive. The roar of the wind wouldn't allow the ostrich to hear the praise but Anicetus would continue coaxing more out of him regardless. Olive had slowed barely and Anicetus kept in mind that she and her rider were one lap behind. Crevan pulled up alongside Anicetus and waved as he pulled ahead. "Faster," the Ignitorling said louder to Overdrive. "I will accept second but not third!"
Crevan's laughter carried easily to Anicetus. He hadn't informed the prince of everything about the race. Right on cue, the moment Eileen hit the lap marker she spurred her mount on. She would pass the two of them then come up alongside them on the last leg of the final lap. That would be where Anicetus was taken by surprise. Crevan pushed his mount on harder, if he could cross the finish line before Eileen the prince wouldn't ever learn how a Mikken race was in truth. If Anicetus won he would be spared getting involved in the antics but he would still bear witness to Crevan and his sister taking part in their traditional distractions.
Eileen dashed past the lap marker the second time, now she was on the final lap like the two riders she was closing in on. The poor prince, she knew full well that Crevan had "forgotten" to explain the rules of the race in full to him. Ah well, she would simply focus on Crevan instead. It wasn't so much about winning as training the birds for what most of their buyers were going to put them through. Eileen reached into the small pack she carried and pulled out a diminutive packet wound up and bound in thin paper and string. She held the item carefully in one hand and directed Olive with the other. She passed Anicetus, Crevan had maintained his lead and that made it all the easier. Eileen threw her small packet forward; it hit the ground behind Crevan and in front of her trekker with a loud pop and billowing smoke. Crevan's mount screamed and faltered as he tried to change course. Olive leapt to avoid the smoke left behind by the small explosion. Eileen glanced behind her and saw Anicetus simply ride his mount through the thinning smoke. He had good control of the bird; Eileen had completely missed the reaction, if there was one.
That was cheating! Anicetus growled to himself. He moved Overdrive to the outside of the track to gain distance from the elven rider and her lizard. Before he realized what was happening Eileen dropped behind him and Anicetus saw a vial thrown by Crevan somersault through the air. The golden liquid shimmered as it tumbled in slow motion for a moment. Anicetus hoped Overdrive was a jumper as he gave the ostrich the indication that was what he expected. Overdrive raised his flightless wings and beat them furiously when he pushed himself off the ground at the same moment the vial made contact. It exploded louder and more furiously than Eileen's little packet and Overdrive's leap had moved him out of harm's way. At least Anicetus hoped so, those exploding vials sent out shards of glass. What were the siblings thinking? Overdrive landed with a jolt and kept running smoothly. Eileen wasn't pushing ahead and Anicetus was nervous when he saw Crevan reach for another vial.
"If that is the way you want to play," the Ignitorling growled. He leaned back on Overdrive and snapped his arm out as if he held a whip. A thin line of fire sprang up across the track and shot tall flames up high into the sky. Anicetus saw the trekker pull up short of his wall and back pedal as Eileen tried to comfort her.
"He learns fast!" Eileen laughed as she pat Olive's neck. "Easy girl, calm yourself. The flames are dying already." The elf directed her mount to an area in which the fires had nearly been extinguished before she spurred her on and made her jump the licking flames. She had lost some ground but could reclaim it. Crevan too had lost ground when the prince wised up to them and launched the whole of his fiery spirit out onto the track ahead of Crevan. The sudden appearance of a being made entirely of fire made his ostrich skid to a stop. The bird was unbalanced and the skid turned into a fall and slide as Anicetus retreated to his armor and blew past Crevan.
Crevan was on his feet just as quickly as his ostrich but the bird was panicked and there was no way he was going to be able to make him go forward. Crevan chuckled to himself as he took the reins and led the frightened bird off the track. He should have known he would get burned if he played with fire. He heard more than saw Eileen race by, he hoped she took it easy on the prince. If his temper was as bad as Crevan had heard then his sister, the trekker or maybe both could get hurt.
Anicetus felt slightly satisfied to see Crevan give up. The finish line was within reach but Eileen kept throwing her little exploding packets. Overdrive didn't even flinch and Anicetus took the opportunity to lob a small ball of flames behind him. It bounced in the dirt of the track a few times and made the trekker behind him scream and weave to avoid the unknown path the fireball would take. Anicetus threw out another and another only looking back to see when one had been left behind the rapidly advancing reptile.
"Try harder next time!" Eileen grinned as she passed the prince and threw one of the packets out in front of Overdrive.
That time the ostrich responded by turning around and running towards the field beyond the tracks before Anicetus could straighten him. "Blast!" the prince growled when he saw Eileen begin to slow Olive. The finish line had been crossed, the race was over. Anicetus slowed Overdrive and kept him moving to catch up with Eileen and Crevan, both pointing and laughing at each other as they pantomimed the other's reactions to events.
"You mind telling me what that was about?" Anicetus scowled as he dismounted. Crevan's bird was nervous around him and it was obvious that Olive wanted to give him a swift kick.
"I am sorry, prince," Crevan laughed. "We train these creatures to be stout and strong of heart. Be it that they are used in combat as mounts or as animals on the farm to keep other animals in check we want them to be as fearless as possible. These races give them that brush with the unexpected in a controlled manner."
"You did remarkably well for a first timer," Eileen smiled widely. "Most drop out of the race or let their mounts take control of where to go. You actually fought back!"
The Ignitorling balled the reins up in one hand; his flames were a dark orange bordering on red that indicated he wasn't as amused as the siblings. "And if you hurt the animals? What kind of price will they fetch on the market?"
"I am a healer," Eileen replied calmly. "As is my mother. They will be taken care of promptly and no lasting damage remains."
Anicetus stood in silence for a while before he shook his head with a sigh. "You have strange ways of breaking in people." His flames had softened to a lighter orange now, still not the amused yellow but not irritated at least.
"Walk with us back to the pens, prince. I think it time you visited home. It has been a while, has it not?" Crevan finally convinced his mount to walk past the Ignitorling.
"Two years," Anicetus said with a glance off in the direction he thought Meir Valan was. It would be good to see his parents in person. And Lan, whereas his sisters had ladies in waiting to assist them Lan was his groom in waiting and had been a surprising absence from the gathering on Eon's island.
The desert oasis had provided the perfect travel option for the group of Copies and their Core companion. The oasis was less like a village and more like a tourist city. It had much faster methods of travel than balloons and more eclectic than air ships.
The oasis grew smaller quickly as the copter gained altitude. Windy stared out the window in awe at the sprawling landscape below them, as dusty as she thought the molekin village was it was nothing compared to the rolling dunes and vertical stone walls on the interior of the island past the far side of the oasis. The copter itself was a marvel; most were utilized by arkeyans of the hostile variety so to see one being flown by a friendlier gillman was surprising. The pilot was separated from the four passengers by a metal wall with a door in it and was talking with someone through a headset modified to work with the copter's communications network.
Hex sat alone, the angle of her head said she was looking out the window but in truth she was studying her temporary companions. She could feel the princess's eagerness to be back on her Portal Master's island and find a change of clothing. Other than that though she couldn't sense anything else from the Hexling. It didn't matter; she would have lectured her for dwelling on the previous night's dream anyway. The infuriating Pop Fizzling was cleaning his claws and watching her the way she was watching him. The only difference was he couldn't tell where she was looking because her eyes were a solid color.
The strained silence didn't last long.
"Isn't it cool how much like Earth technology the arkeyan machines are? I can almost pretend I'm walking around freely on Earth," Windy said with her eyes closed as she listened to the hum of the copter.
"Why would you wish to do that? There is no magic on Earth, we would be nothing. We are nothing," Hex rained on her parade by reminding her.
Windy's ears drooped and she looked away from the Skylander she knew as Helen. Such a downer, she was going to start calling her Debbie Downer at this rate.
"You seem to like Earth quite a bit," Meilyr said.
Windy nodded enthusiastically. "It's just so… different! Don't you find it exciting? All the new things to see and do. They have fantastic animals that are like nothing I have ever seen!" Her eyes were so wide they looked ready to fall out of her skull.
Meilyr shifted and leaned back on the bench seat he shared with Seraphina. "It is wondrous but I prefer being able to move about as I please and go where I wish. On Earth I sit on a shelf in a room full of writing I cannot read with conversations in a language I do not speak. It is depressing for the other Skylanders that share my Portal Master." He glanced to Seraphina when she placed a hand on his arm. "Sorry," the gremlin sighed. "I did not mean to dampen your spirits. We see things differently, perhaps if I had a different Portal Master I might understand."
Hex cocked her head to the side as she studied the Hexling across from her. The sympathy Seraphina felt for the motley gremlin was strange to her. Long ago Hex had abandoned such thoughts and feelings, it was part of a life she no longer lived. It frustrated Hex as well, to her it was as if Seraphina couldn't let go of the past and wouldn't move forward. But then there were times the princess surprised her with insight Hex had missed even though she had been undead far longer. Oh light, Hex thought, just what is it that Eon wants me to walk away with from this? Hex tuned out the conversation around her and closed her eyes. By pretending to sleep she could avoid being involved in the conversation.
"Are you coming?"
Hex jumped and slapped at the hand on her shoulder. She blinked a few times to clear her vision and saw the long, white haired Hexling straightening her posture as she moved away from Hex. "What?" Hex asked in confusion. Apparently she had fallen asleep rather than simply pretended to be.
"We are on the island of my Portal Master. Are you going to join us?" Seraphina asked. She moved towards the bay doors of the copter and out into the bright, late morning-early afternoon sunlight. Meilyr and Windy stood in the grass looking back into the copter; behind them were Skylanders Hex wasn't familiar with milling about and pointing.
Hex rose to her feet fluidly and glided out into the sun. It was bright and made her shield her eyes. She was glad to not be traveling any more but obviously not thrilled with the populated island.
"You just missed Sean," a little blue Wrecking Balling said as he bounced up to the Hexling. "If not for him we would have thought you gone. We heard about Fetter Foothold, Sean says you've been traveling a lot and he couldn't teleport any of us to your side because of it. We have a lot to show you." The bouncing grub turned big round eyes back to the trio accompanying her. "Good to see you again, Meilyr," he grinned to the Fizzling. "I don't think we've met," he turned back to the Whirlwindling and Hex.
"Ah, Boogies this is Windy and Helen," Seraphina said as she introduced the two. "They have been with us since Fetter Foothold."
"Oh you're so cute!" Windy said to Boogies. "Cutest grub worm ever. Never thought I'd say that," she said with a wrinkled up nose.
"Oh for me this is an improvement. I was a troll," he grinned with his tongue hanging out one side of his mouth. "Ugliest troll you ever did see, so said my momma." He seemed proud of that fact to boot. "Anyway, follow me! Sean overhauled the lair. Wait 'til you see it. Yer gonna flip!"
Once Seraphina passed the line of trees that separated the landing field from the island proper she could already see the difference. The building was larger both in width and height. It was amazing how two days away could leave such a drastic change. She paused for a moment to examine the building; it looked like an apartment building now.
"I know what you're thinking," Boogies grinned. "And you're right. We each have ourselves a room just like an inn would have! There is a common room with a kitchen, locker room style showers. Everything we need to make the island a comfortable place to stay when we aren't traveling. If you haven't figured it out by now Sean has decided to let us remain in Skylands indefinitely." As he followed the Hexling and her entourage he bounced around as if he were full of energy and most likely was. He nodded to Sean's other Skylanders as they greeted Seraphina and asked who her friends were.
"Does he have spare rooms to rent?" Meilyr asked in awe. This was much better than what he had to look forward to on his Portal Master's island. At times Meilyr honestly felt as if his Portal Master didn't care for them much anymore.
"How was this done in only two days?" Seraphina over-rode Meilyr's question.
"You can thank your parents for that," Boogies nodded. "Sean reached out to them with a proposal and they provided what was needed. There's more!" the animated grub exclaimed as he bounced ahead and through the door. "Wait'll you see!"
To Hex it all seemed so strange. The effort that was put into comfort for these copies. Everywhere she looked she saw familiar faces but knew none of them were who they looked like. They had homes they could return to and in her mind should. The Portal Masters could call on them when needed. Why did they insist on making new homes in the company of others sharing the same Portal Master?
"Check it," Boogies grinned as he led Seraphina and her party to a corner of the common room. "We've got a terminal connected with Sky Arc. No need to visit a hub for information, just log in here and you're done!" He chuckled and moved away as Seraphina glided in smoothly to do just that.
There were messages from Teranika, Rafer, Crevan and her brother. Seraphina ignored them for the time being, Galvin and Kaelin had messaged her. Galvin's read nearly the same as Kaelin's but without the obvious notes of affection. Seraphina smiled warmly at the screen, she knew where to find Kaelin now and his Portal Master's island wasn't too far from hers. "Galvin and Kaelin share the same Portal Master," she said to Meilyr.
"Wait, say those names again," Windy insisted as she moved up next to the Hexling.
"Galvin Killian and Kaelin Alistair," Seraphina replied. "Why, do you know them?"
Windy nodded her head emphatically, "I sure do! I met them not long ago; a Fright Riderling and Sunburnling. They were on the same transport as me and went out to check the remains of a troll camp. I now know that was your doing," she looked between Seraphina and Meilyr. "That bird of Kaelin's is about as rude as Helen though," Windy said slyly. Hex snorted and crossed her arms across her chest.
"I know this fact all too well. You should have seen him before the change. Huge orniteryx," Meilyr raised a hand and stretched it out way above his head. "He is very bite-y. I have the ruined clothing to prove it," Meilyr grumbled.
"Wow," Windy said in amazement. "I've never even seen an orniteryx up close!"
"Powerful and dangerous birds," Hex said smoothly. "Fiercely loyal. A true companion." She took a small amount of satisfaction in seeing the surprised looks some of the others gave her on her knowledge of the war birds. "Just because I'm undead doesn't mean I know nothing about living creatures."
"Thank you, Boogies," Seraphina said when she realized the grub was still with them. He seemed perfectly content to listen to the conversation from the fringes. "This is amazing." The Hexling skimmed through the messages others left in her Sky Arc account, the same information more or less in each of them with only viewpoints changed.
Boogies bounced off towards an interior door of the common room. "Let me show you your room. I think your parents moved everything from the locker on Never-sleep to here so you should be able to change. You were wearing that emerald dress the last time I saw you!"
Seraphina groaned, "And I never want to wear it again."
The Hexling had vanished into her room first then back down the hall to the shower before she returned yet again. Her companions had decided to simply wait in the hall outside her room as there were a fair number of benches to turn the halls into semi-social areas. For Meilyr the interior of the building looked like home with style and decorations that spoke of Garda and Meir Valan. He looked quite relaxed on the bench he had taken over by stretching out across on his belly with his large hands folded under his cheek.
Windy was lost in a painting that hung in the hallway connected to Seraphina's room. Her eyes trailed slowly over the sprawling city depicted there and the lush trees in and around it that climbed up on the north side to a ridge. It had the feel of a very old elven kingdom in the center with new additions obvious in the way styles of the buildings changed. They didn't clash but rather flowed like a timeline outward in a fashion similar to the rings of a tree trunk. She kept going back to the palace, the oldest structure in the city and the tallest. A princess lived there. Seraphina lived there; she had been traveling with a princess the whole time and never knew it! Well, Windy thought she was at least rich because of the dress but she didn't understand anything beyond that. She hoped her refusal to take the coin purse Seraphina had offered her wasn't an offensive move. Although, how would she ask for it now knowing who the Hexling really was?
"This is your home, where you came from?" Windy asked the gremlin she knew was from the same place as Seraphina.
"Yes, that is Meir Valan, in the country of Garda on the continent of Tour," Meilyr said as he moved to stand next to her. "Home." His eyes moved over the painting lovingly and his expression seemed to soften at certain point on it.
"It's beautiful," Windy said breathlessly. The vast majority of the buildings pictured were made of white ornately carved stone with scroll and vine work. As with all elven settlements the trees were worked into the city's flow. It looked as if some grew up out of the buildings themselves. Windy doubted the elves had cleared any to build but rather planted them once the city was constructed in an area with very few naturally occurring trees. "How did the builders manage so much detail?"
The gremlin stretched up tall and brought his arms back down to his side in an arc. "Druids built the city long ago," Meilyr informed her. "All we do now is maintain the buildings. It is an art not practiced much anymore, I am afraid."
"I want to go there," Windy said as she turned to Meilyr. "I want to see it up close." Excitement and the prospect of adventure shone in her eyes.
The gremlin clasped his hands behind his back and nodded, "If you stay with us long enough I am sure you will get a chance."
"More stuffed shirts and aristocratic behavior, count me out," Hex grumbled. She had tucked herself away in an adjoining hall, obviously close enough to hear conversation if not be seen.
Meilyr glanced to Windy for a moment; he couldn't remind Hex of Eon's order without giving her away. Meilyr never got the chance to speak with Seraphina about the ruse and "Helen" but thought better of it. Hex had her reasons and so long as if hurt no one Meilyr could play along. "You are more than welcome to remain here, then," Meilyr said instead. "Or return to your Portal Master."
Hex came around the corner and grimaced, an action that made Windy cock her head to the side. What was it with certain Skylanders and their Portal Masters? Windy loved Krystal and couldn't picture any Portal Master being so different. "I will return with stories for Krystal," Windy said proudly.
"I am so pleased for you," Hex said flatly as the door to Seraphina's room finally opened. Hex was not expecting what she saw, nor was Windy either judging by her blank look. "Are we going on a crusade?" the undead Skylander asked her clone.
"No," Seraphina replied as she tightened the grip she had on her staff. She leaned the long ivory item against her shoulder as she straightened white, billowing sleeves with their gold trim. She knew wearing white would leave her vulnerable to dirt, grime and its stains but her informal priestess garment did not fit proper. She had a slightly different build than Hex and only a handful of garments had been altered for wear in her new and hopefully temporary body. Seraphina had taken the time to braid her long white hair and it hung down the middle of her back with the tail at her lower back.
"You get used to it after a while," Meilyr shrugged, his armor creaked with the action. "Well, where is our next destination?"
"Home," Seraphina said as she looked past him to the painting. "The two of you are welcome to join us if you would like."
The arkeyan copter had remained on the island and was still waiting for them when the princess turned priestess reemerged with her entourage. The gillman pilot had been socializing with the Skylanders on the island but broke away easily to return to the fare that had hired him. If he had any reservations about the distance he didn't express them. If anything the pilot seemed excited by the prospect of traveling to Tour.
Windy was thrilled to join them; Helen on the other hand looked disgruntled. Something was wrong with the Hexling and the Whirlwindling couldn't put her finger on it. Her imagination was having a field day of it though. Maybe Helen was a palace servant that had run away and was now being returned. Maybe she was a fugitive of the law, only given pardon because she was a Skylander. Maybe Helen was a rival noble that had done something to shame the ruling family. Maybe she was a thief and being called back to answer for her crimes. Windy was sure the real reason was a lot more simple and plain but she could entertain her ideas anyway.
"The copter is much, much faster than the lumbering flight of the ships," Meilyr pointed out when fringe islands from both Garda and the neighboring country, Orriden, began to pass by. Already beyond them the floating continent of Tour took up the whole of the skyline. "A part of me wants to stick my head out a window and feel the rush of the wind." He gave Hex a big, dumb grin when she grunted at him.
It was only mid-afternoon and so long as the copter pilot was willing to lend his full day to the princess then they would make the meeting with Rafer and Teranika that night. The thought was very appealing and it led to another, related subject. "I will speak with the pilot about where we might be able to procure one for our own use," Seraphina replied. Hopefully one a little larger to carry the whole of their group. "When we land I would like to request that you let Meilyr and I handle any issues that arise. I will not be recognized like this and until I can send word to someone in the palace that I am there we may find ourselves left in the plaza with an armored guard."
"Sounds thrilling," Hex said sarcastically.
"We're not going to end up in a dungeon, are we?" Windy squeaked. "That would be so the opposite of cheese."
Meilyr blinked blankly a few times as he tried to figure out what Windy had actually said. "Uh, no. No dungeon unless someone causes a scene."
"Don't give me that look," Hex snapped at Windy when her head automatically turned towards her. "I don't want to be in a dungeon any more than you do!"
"Please," Seraphina sighed, "Put the sharp words and tart responses on hold for a while. The wrong first impression will be made otherwise."
Hex understood her meaning and would make an effort to control her tone and words. Although the presence of Meilyr and Windy would make it harder to control her comments.
