Okay, second half of this chapter should look familiar. Not sure who to feel more sorry for—Mithri, trying outrun Sync, or Sync, for the 'obstacles' that keep 'tripping' him up.
Also, massive apologies for not posting in forever. I have lots written, just... Having trouble getting it posted, apparently. (Most of it just need to have the headers added, honestly. So hopefully will get more posted soon. Kairi's miffed with me.)
Edit: Hi, Twilight PhoenixFyre/Kairi here. Teá/WeGotWinx is MIA, and she gave me access to her account, so I'm just dropping a chap or two while I procrastinate. (Since, you know, I'm out of chapters to post for the Ripples Trilogy, and procrastination by posting is one of my favorite pastimes, apparently.)
Now's your chance to run for cover
I don't wanna change the world
All is lost again, but I'm not giving in
I will not bow, I will not break
Conflict of Interests
Chapter 11 – I Will Not Bow
Under Attack!
Mana is energy in a human—sorry, half-Fae—body. Which, really, is only fitting, given her name...
The blue-haired girl skips in with two trays of food, and she puts one in front of me before sitting down. She pulls a bowl of milk and the extra plate of fruit off of my tray and puts them in front of Kuri before setting a large bowl of what appears to be raw meat in front of Alyna'aou. Once that's done, our trays look about identical.
"So, since you mentioned Kelys, I take it that means you're from there?" Mana asks. I nod as I absently stick a grape in my mouth. I'm a bit more preoccupied with this passage in Father's lexicon, honestly. "You ever meet a girl who looks a lot like me, but with pink hair? Her name's Maeve."
And... that makes me put Father's lexicon down.
"She's one of my only friends," I admit. Mana's eyes brighten.
"She's my twin sister!"
I can't help it. I raise an eyebrow.
"I'm telling the truth! Our hair's different 'cause of our Fae blood!" she immediately starts, sounding defensive. I smile and shake my head.
"No, that wasn't why I did that. It's just... right before I left, Maeve had a vision. She said... She saw me and a stranger with red-streaked gray hair with her, Lora, and Rishu at Aesin's Fountain during the Dark Rain. Then, during the Fire Rain, the stranger and I were gone, but you were there instead," I explain. Mana looks curious, and I nod when the image of a familiar Guardian pops into her head. "Yes, it was Sakkaku."
"Huh... Weird. He dumped me and Alyna'aou here a few Auldrant months back. Didn't even let Alyna'aou and Sae'iri make the Dive. He used his teriques instead. But if Maeve is on Kelys, why wouldn't he come get me and take me to see her?" she asks. "He knows I've been trying to get back to Kelys forever. But Alyna'aou can't Dive to a world she's never been to unless she's following another dragon's Dive."
I nod, Mana's mind telling me enough about Diving for me to understand the principles of it and little else. She then realizes that I must have no idea what she's talking about, and I hold up a hand. "Um, since I'm getting all sorts of information out of your mind as you think about it, I feel like I should probably mention something..." Mana pauses and silently gives me the go-ahead. "I categorize people into seven groups."
And now she's totally confused again. "Since I have to listen to everyone's thoughts, I've found that some people's minds are able to work more efficiently in one way or another. You, for example, actually have a near-photographic memory, so you remember just about everything, Unfortunately, at the same time, your mind is completely unorganized, and so when you're talking, you jump from one bit of information to the next and sometimes... okay, usually skip over a few things that you have to backtrack to. It makes you sound a bit forgetful, when really, you're just mentally disorganized," I say.
Mana, Alyna'aou, and Kuri are surprised, Alyna'aou because she never realized why Mana's so ditzy sounding sometimes, Mana because she knows I've gotten it perfectly, and Kuri because she didn't realize that was even possible.
I raise a hand again to stave off questions. "You're a Class Six. I've felt a couple minds like yours before, but this is the first time I've been able to really, really get a good feel for one. I know it's rare for me to categorize people into that group, though. Anyway, I'll do Maeve next. Near-photographic memory or perfect recall, and a very, very precise mental catalogue. I'm not totally certain yet, but I'm thinking Alyna'aou goes into that group as well. This is Class Five."
"Kuri and Tear drop into Class Four. Organized minds that don't have almost-perfect memory. These kinds of people tend to be rather hard to approach on the outside, but they're a lot nicer once you get to know them. The reason for this is because they have to redirect part of their attention to keeping everything orderly all the time, so they invest a bit less attention to being social. Most soldiers are trained to be this way."
I pause, tapping the table. "Class Two, I usually assign to children, ages three to ten, roughly. Intelligent enough to string together a discernable thought, but ever-innocent, ever-confused, and not as fast at figuring things out. Up until I landed on Auldrant, I only ever found one exception, and he went into Class Seven, which will make sense once I explain that one. However... Luke, despite being a teenager, feels like he belongs in this group, about halfway. So... Six or seven years old?"
Mana frowns, thoughts flying around in a very, very disorganized mess that I'm getting a mild headache trying to follow. Proof that I'm not in that group. "He said he was kidnapped seven years ago, and lost all his memories. From what I was able to figure out, it sounded like he'd relapsed to being practically a newborn, mentally."
I frown. That still shouldn't make him feel like a child to me.
Oh well. I'll figure it out later, I'm sure. For right now, I'm just going to finish my explanation.
"Anyway... Class One consists of unintelligent monsters, animals, and very young children who aren't thinking good enough to jump into Class Two yet."
"That's how you always spot the monsters!" Kuri realizes. I nod.
"I can sense every mind around me, and make a mental map of their locations relative to mine. If a mind I know I'm not allied with comes after me, I can warn others. It's saved Lora's life before," I acknowledge. "Anyway... Class Three is the largest. I think the best way to put it would be... average minds? Non-photographic memory, not real organized... And then it's split into three, based on how easily the person can string together a thought. I myself am a 3a. I have to be able to think fast to deal with all the extra thoughts in my head. If it weren't for the general feel of Luke's mind, I'd have put him in 3c. Lora's 3b."
The three of them nod, and Kuri flicks her tail. "What about the seventh group?"
I flinch. "I've mentioned having three friends so far, right? Lora, Maeve, and Rishu." I pause and bite my lip. "Rishu goes into this last category. Remember I said this was where the exception to Class Two went? Rishu's mind works on a higher level than anyone I've ever found before... With two exceptions. Rishu's father... and the blædür ghâddra on this ship. Those three... Even one of them on the edge of my range is enough to give me a headache if I pay any attention to them. Having one so close, and thinking so fast..."
Mana gasps. "That's why you didn't wake up until Jade left!"
I nod. "His mind was pressing in on mine painfully. I couldn't do anything. And it's part of the reason I'm paying so much attention to you right now. If I lock onto another, less-intelligent mind—and I'm not trying to be insulting—it actually helps to ease the aching his presence causes."
Mana grins brightly. "I hate to say it, but compared to Jade, being called 'less intelligent' isn't really an insult."
I can't help but smile. "Yeah... I know. Some people don't always realize it, though." I sigh. "Anyway... The Classes are numbered according to how often the people within them give me headaches, with Sevens obviously being the worst offenders. Although you're giving me less of a headache than your group usually does..."
Mana giggles. "Glad to hear it. I—"
The landship jolts suddenly, knocking Mana and me over, and throwing Alyna'aou off the edge of the table. The purple dragon hisses angrily, but is unharmed.
On reflex, my mind shoots out, looking for the cause. I find the blædür ghâddra standing far too near for comfort, but work around him as best I can. Luke, Tear, Mieu, and... huh, don't think I know that girl's name... are racing down the hallway toward the murderer.
Further out, however, my mind slams into a large amount of monsters. Ligers, and flying monsters that are intelligent enough to understand a language, but not as intelligent as the ligers. Some of these flying monsters are also carrying humans, and I can read intentions almost instantly.
"We're under attack! Humans, ligers, and griffins!" I shout, grabbing Father's lexicon and digging around in my bag for my straw. Mana jumps up, one hand on her sword's sheath to steady it, the other on its hilt. Unlike me, this is a girl who knows how to handle a sword.
"There's only about a hundred and fifty soldiers on the Tartarus!" she says.
"I'm counting about thirty humans, as many ligers, and enough griffins to carry them all—what the hell was that?!" I suddenly ask as a mind that doesn't fit with the others brushes against mine. A flying monster, but much, much more intelligent than the others.
I don't have much longer to think about it before Luke's terror slams into me. "Oh, blaïghra!"
"Mithri!"
"Go!" I order. "Left, just upstairs! If I go, I'll have to kill the blædür ghâddra!" I yell running out of the room and to the right rather than the left. Mana goes without another argument, Alyna'aou once again perched on her shoulder. Kuri mentally debates on which of us to follow for a while before going after Mana and her dragon.
I take a moment to try to figure out where I'm going. I know a number of places I could hide, if this ship is anything like an airship on Kelys. The brig, for one. No one would think to look there when I'm sure there aren't any recorded prisoners in the ship's logs. A maintenance shaft would be another good place, somewhere up high, with low maneuverability. For once, my small size is coming in handy.
I end up going down further into the ship as Mana catches up to the others, just as the murderer attacks the man pinning Luke. I smile a bit when the first thing out of Luke's mouth when he sees her is 'Where's Mithri?'
"Heading the other direction so she doesn't have to kill Jade," the girl says quickly. "Jade, we've got humans, ligers, and griffins. I think Arietta might be behind this, but I can't figure out why she'd attack us unless... Oh no, tell me the liger queen wasn't her mom! Wait, even if she was that wouldn't—"
"Do you ever shut up?"
Mana giggles. "Sorry. My brain's disorganized. I can't really condense anything, so it all comes out in a messy glob."
"Tell me something I don't know," the murderer grumbles. "Any idea how many? I already guessed she was involved when Largo came down here."
"Total? Roughly a hundred and twenty. Half of those are griffins, and the remainder is about half and half between humans and ligers," Mana says quickly.
"How do you know all that?" Tear asks, baffled.
"Sorry, can't tell you that one. Try another question?"
The blædür ghâddra frowns, mind whirling fast enough to almost make me groan from the pain. "Why can't you tell us?"
"Because I swore not to."
That man's mind calms, and I can see the edges of respect. Respect of what, exactly, I'm not sure, but at least he's not going to press the issue.
They emerge on the deck and immediately have to hide from a passing griffin. "Now what?! The ligers back at the cheagles' place weren't exactly attacking us until Jade knocked out Mithri, but..."
The ache on the edge of my mind increases.
"They'll likely spot us if we try to get to the bridge... The maintenance deck overhead is less covered, and we need to get to the bridge," the murderer says.
Mana bites her lip and looks down at Alyna'aou, who shakes her head slightly. Only because I'm listening to Mana do I hear it.
*The magic I used earlier to seal my promise was all I had access to in this form, and it still hasn't regenerated enough for me to transform,* the dragon admits only to her partner. Mana groans quietly.
'Then it'll be another seven hours at least before she'll be any use in a fight... Mithri called it earlier. Blaïghra!'
I smile a bit at the mental curse, then finally stop running and open a nearby door, poking my head in. Yes, this is where I wanted to be. I step in, then close the door behind me and start looking around. For cabins this deep in the ship, there's gotta be... ah-ha!
I drag a few crates over to the wall, then drag some more over to make it look like they were put there on purpose, and start stacking them carefully. Once I've made a nice little pile, I climb up and get to work on the cover to the ventilation shaft. It'll be a tight fit, but it'll work, nonetheless.
By this time, the others have reached the door that leads off the maintenance deck. Mana, Tear, Kuri, and the murderer are going to try to reach the bridge. They're leaving Luke to guard their exit point if they have to leave in a rush.
Luke, unfortunately, takes their leaving him behind as meaning he needs to stay out of the way. I scowl at the fact that I can't tell him otherwise, then realize... if they're subtle about it, I can.
I wait until I'm safely tucked away in the ventilation shaft before I close my eyes and reach out. It doesn't take me long to find Mana, since I've been paying attention to her this whole time, but the dragon on her shoulder takes me a moment longer.
'Luke took that the wrong way, guys,' I warn them.
It only takes a single glance for Alyna'aou to jump off of Mana's shoulder, heading back toward Luke. The others don't notice the dragon leaving—and where did that other girl go, anyway? Or... There she is!
...And there she just got thrown out of a porthole.
I can't help but sigh amusedly at her choice of 'I'll kill you bastards' for a last line.
But Alyna'aou is too late, and Luke's already woken up the soldier that had been stationed at the hatch. I force myself to watch the ensuing fight, and feel Luke's horror when he realizes that he's killed the soldier. Alyna'aou nudges his elbow, trying to get his attention, but nothing successfully drags him out of his shock until Mana, Tear, Kuri, and the murderer return.
Then I catch the other minds.
'Look out!' I call, careful only to warn the three that know of my ability. None of them moves fast enough to dodge the onslaught of icicles except for the murderer, though, and with all of the familiar minds knocked out, I find myself drawing back into the privacy of my own mind.
It isn't long before the murderer is brought down to the brig. I know, because his mind hurts, pounding against mine painfully as he comes up with plans, discards them, and draws up new ones faster than I can force them to pass through my own head.
I black out to one last understandable thought passing through his mind—Where is Mithri?!
When I finally regain consciousness again, I reach out carefully. Ligers, ligers... wait!
I breath a soft sigh of relief. The ligers remember me, they're trying to find me to protect me. If I can just find one of them...
I crawl out of the ventilation shaft and then climb down the crates. Odd... That man's gone now. Well, sort of. He's still on the landship, but not anywhere close.
I step out of the cabin I'd been in and immediately myself in a bit of a bind.
I'd been so busy trying to figure out where the nearest liger was that I hadn't noticed the human who had stepped into the hallway.
"What the—who the hell are you?!" the green-haired boy asks. He's taller than me, about Ion's height, and... uh-oh. "Answer me!"
"Meep!"
And no, that doesn't mean anything in any language I know. It's just the sound I make when I realize the very urgent need to run like hell!
Oh, please, please, please let there be a liger nearby!
I drop my straw and Father's lexicon back in my bag as I run, freeing up my arms. The boy behind me is fast and I need all the speed I can get.
I reach out and snag the edge of the wall, swinging around easily and jumping over a puddle of blood. Someone died a messy death... And their sacrifice is appreciated, given that the teen following me just slipped in that puddle. Now, let's see... left here, then a right and another right...
I jump over obstacles as I come to them, but the boy following me isn't quite as lucky. His speed means his agility is a bit lacking, and that's an advantage for me... though I kinda feel sorry for him, slipping through the third patch of blood now.
I hear a crash from behind me, and flinch even as I cheer mentally. That's gotta painful, and with any luck, it'll slow him down enough for me to... Ah, here's the hatch!
I hesitate for a moment, knowing that the blædür ghâddra is outside, but then the green-haired boy is back, and my mind's made up.
I run out the hatch, making a beeline for the liger. "HELP!"
It glances at me, sees my eyes and the teen behind me, and attacks the boy without a thought.
