Chapter 35, Demons, take 2
(I could have added a very tender morning scene here, but I felt they deserved that much privacy too. And the cute rate was getting dangerous.)
Lise sat on the edge of the bed, slowly, distractedly brushing her hair.
"You okay?" a very characteristic voice asked.
She looked up, a little surprised.
"I can show up at will sometimes," Wisp kindly explained and floated lower, "so? How are you?"
The princess looked at her brush, a little embarrassed.
"I wasn't watching you know," the spirit hurriedly promised.
"Then how can you know?" Lise mildly said.
"Dear, I see straight through you. And Salamando said that both of you were close to a breakdown of any sort."
"Ah well…"
She fiddled a little with the brush, smiling absentmindedly.
"Salamando was right about that we were about to fly off the handle about each other…"
"Told you," Wisp kindly said, without being neither mocking nor a wiseacre.
"I'm glad," Lise admitted with a soft smile, "very glad even. And relived beyond belief that it didn't hurt the first time, I have no idea how Kevin would have reacted to that."
"Lucky," Wisp agreed, nodding gravely, "I've noted that it's not common knowledge among humans that it doesn't have to hurt for everyone. And if Kevin, oh dear…"
"Yeah…"
Lise looked up and perked an eyebrow jokingly.
"Am I having girl-talk with a white flame?" she commented.
Wisp smiled warmly. She was finally feeling better psychologically too again. Confronting her and Kevin's love on that plane had eased a lot of tension for both of them.
"Seems so," he chuckled, "but don't worry. Luna's having a man to man talk with Kevin right about now."
"You mean that's why Karl started barking all of a sudden?" Lise suspiciously asked.
"All of a sudden, what? It's almost midday," Wisp mildly said and winked with one eye, "we just wanted to make sure you were alright. We're your guardians you know."
Lise chuckled a little.
"Speaking of which," she suddenly said, "has Duran gotten the gate to the Holyland open yet?"
Wisp coughed.
"Well, about that…" he slowly said, "we had some troubles. The gate rose up in the sky, so they'll have to find your Father of the Winged ones to get in."
"Oh dear… will they make it in time?" the princess asked, frowning.
"Oh, surely. Some of our enemies broke in too, but they're too busy fighting each other to make it through the labyrinth of the Holyland."
Wisp fell silent, looking concerned.
"Though…" he said, "among those enemies there was an airship coming from Navarre, but we have no real idea who was on it. It's hard for us to see exactly what is going on. But don't worry about that, you concentrate on Elliot, alright?"
"But…" Lise worriedly began.
"No buts, lady. It's not your job. And… hmm…"
Lise followed Wisp with her eyes as he slowly swept around, thoughtfully gazing at her.
"Something wrong?" she asked.
"No, not really…"
There was a hint of new concern in his voice, however.
"… It's just that your body still seems vary, maybe you should have rested longer back at my place. Well, not much too do about it now, this oven isn't the best place to recover in. But be careful on the journey, alright?"
"I feel fine, Wisp," Lise tried to calm both him and herself.
"Yes, I know. But… have you felt tired?" he asked.
"Well… a little, but only period."
The elemental nodded.
"You're not falling to pieces," he said, "but try to stay as calm as you can in the closest future. Try to avoid battling as much as possible, and definitely long, intense ones."
"But we're probably going up against demons tonight again," Lise pointed out.
"I know," Wisp said with a sigh, "and that can't be helped. And I know you're not going to consider it, but it would probably be best if you let Kevin and Hawk look for Elliot without you."
Lise looked down and resolutely shook her head.
"I can't, I'm sorry."
"I know…"
Wisp sighed.
"Well, call me if you need me," he softly said and dematerialized.
Three, two, one…
The door opened and Lise turned around with a faint smile that grew bigger as Karl leaped onto the bed, set on a petting. The vanadis put her brush aside and moved up fully on the mattress as she couldn't resist the puppy eyes.
"Why were you making such a hassle, eh?" she asked in a low voice while scratching him behind the ears.
"Luna's order," Kevin mildly said, sitting down and absentmindedly stroking the soft fur.
"Wisp mentioned she was talking to you," Lise nodded.
He smiled a bit, dryly.
"They worry too."
Lise just smiled then, silently.
'Just a bit tired…'
"Ugly fellows, I take it. Don't really wanna see one on close-up," Hawk muttered in a low voice, peeking up behind the boulder the three warriors were crouching behind.
Large, winged and horned shadows gracelessly moved on top of the high walls of Navarre. There were three of them, but there could very well be more inside.
"We should be able to handle those," Lise muttered in a low voice, "but it would be safer if we could get them away from the castle so that they won't be able to call for help."
"How would we manage that?" Hawk whispered, "living bait?"
He meant the last thing more as a joke and was horrified as Kevin nodded.
"Alright," the half blood said.
"Are you crazy?!" the ninja hissed.
"They slower than me, you go back a bit and I'll lead them there."
Hawk and Lise exchanged glances.
Finally the princess nodded, giving Kevin a quick hug.
"Be careful," she mumbled.
"I will," he whispered back, briefly stroking her cheek with a furry hand.
"Count to one hundred, we'll go in a straight line back towards Deen," Lise instructed before she began moving backwards.
"You're nuts…" Hawk sighed and followed the vanadis.
"Probably," she muttered, more to herself than to her friend.
Even though she meant for Hawk to hear it, she wasn't sure if he heard. She wasn't even sure where he was.
While she rushed away from the castle in a crouching manner, ducking behind dry cliffs and boulders, Hawk was diving between the shadows born from the moonlight. His silhouette bolted in and out of sight; Lise only managed to see him from the corner of her eye sometimes.
"… Thirty-three, thirty-four…" she mumbled through clenched teeth.
Maybe they should have let Hawk lure the demons instead… no, who knew if the ninja could use his sneaking abilities to hide from those beasts. And he wasn't strong enough to handle three at once. Well, neither was Kevin, but he had greater chances to hold up long enough for help to come.
"… Forty-six, forty-seven…"
Rushing onwards, alone as Hawk kept out of sight.
The cold night air crawled over her bare skin, but she was moving quickly and got warmed up from the inside by her own flowing blood.
"… Sixty, Sixty-one…"
Would Kevin even be able to keep ahead of the demons for that long? What if he got caught out of reach for her and Hawk…
Don't stop!
Clenching her teeth she kept running without hesitating, though the fear almost gripped her.
'He knows what he's doing, otherwise he wouldn't have volunteered.'
"… Eighty-nine, ninety…"
Any second now…
"… Ninety-seven…"
She dove in behind another boulder, trying to catch her breath. Hawk entered from nowhere just beside her.
"One hundred."
"Really think he'll make it?" the ninja grimly asked.
"He better," Lise muttered, trying to force her worry away.
She peeked up above the rock, and not seeing anything she sat down on one knee again.
"Wisp, I call upon you. Blessed weapons, quickly!" she hissed.
"Coming right up!" the summoned elemental whispered.
He was almost invisible, trying to keep his powers hidden as they still were dangerously close to the demon's lair. One spark too strong could alarm a more skilled dark arts user.
A careful glow covered the spear point and the blades of Hawk's daggers.
"Good luck," Wisp whispered and disappeared again.
Seconds snailed past.
Then a distant sound made the two warriors peek up above the rock, tense with worry. It was hard to tell what the sound was, but it came closer.
A figure came dashing out in the moonlight, rushing over the cold sand. Heavy flapping and growling laughter followed him; devilish silhouettes against the starlit sky.
As Kevin only could focus on running and the track showing him towards his friends he couldn't concentrate much on the hunters, and one of the demons swooped down at him, brandishing its claws for the unprotected back.
With a halfway muffled warcry Lise flew up on the rock, sending her spear flying through the night. The demon stopped in midair of the surprise, which led to a full hit on its throat. It fell to the ground, leaving Kevin unharmed. And Lise unarmed.
"Me and unguarded back!" the werewolf snarled as he skidded to a halt before the rock.
"It's alright, I'll get it soon enough," the vanadis hissed and jumped down on the ground beside him.
"Careful, no claws."
"Hey, it's lord Jagan's dinner," one of the still mobile demons sneered, and both the spawns of evil cruelly laughed.
Strangely, or maybe not, they didn't seem too touched by the death of their comrade.
Lise instinctively cringed and her hand flew to her throat in a defensive move by the memory. Then her vision was covered by a dangerously growling werewolf.
'You shouldn't have to protect me, Kevin, I'm a warrior!' she thought, bitter as she felt her own weakness apparent.
No weapon, no self-control… being shielded!
'I am not a frail little princess! I'm…'
"Ready to get spear, me and Hawk distract them," Kevin whispered from the corner of his wide mouth.
'Huh? Oh…!'
"Alright," Lise whispered, trying to force herself not to smile of relief.
It had maybe not been meant as such, but the simple plan hit as acknowledgement when she really had needed some of that.
"Ready when you are," Hawk's voice came from a shadow.
"Now!" Kevin hissed.
"Messenger from heaven coming down!"
One of the demons fell with a surprised grunt due to a smirking ninja planting his feet between its wings. How Hawk had come up there remained a mystery. Kevin tackled the falling beast before it hit the ground; the Navarre warrior jumped off half a heartbeat before the second impact.
The still untouched demon snarled and dived at the werewolf, slamming Hawk's dagger aside. But the desert boot hit its mark in the greenish stomach, even if the slam almost sprained the ninja's ankle. So it was hard to tell who got hit the worst.
Kevin was wrestling his own demon but Lise came to Hawk's aid with her spear in both hands, trusting her hairy friend to hold his ground for a moment. The ninja had some troubles though. His foot ached and it made him slow, somehow robbing his ability to hide in the darkness. He did his best but his daggers weren't meant for killing demons even in a blessed state. Lise however had something meant for major stabbing.
It was an almost disappointingly short battle.
"I had awaited a little more," Hawk commented, watching the final body dissolve.
"These not as strong as Jagan's…" Kevin nodded, thoughtfully.
"Can they have sent their strongest warriors somewhere else?" Lise suggested, "Wisp said that an airship left for the Holyland…"
"I don't really like the idea of demons going there," Hawk grimaced with a shudder.
His two friends gravely nodded.
They began walking towards the castle of the sand ocean.
'What the heck was that anyway?' Lise grimly thought while walking beside Kevin, 'I've never gotten dispirited like that before. Sure I've lost hope sometimes, but that was like falling into depression.'
She tried to push the thoughts aside.
'No use worrying. Wisp just got me jittery, that's all. Now focus on what we're doing.'
The silhouette of the great fortress loomed before the three. Lise looked up at the walls and felt another almost paralyzing cut of hopelessness.
'Dear goddess, please let Elliot be here…'
Almost simultaneously Kevin's warm, soft paw brushed against her arm and Hawk spoke:
"You okay, Lise?"
"Hmm? Yeah, why?" she mumbled, a bit absentmindedly though.
"You sighed so that my heart almost broke," the ninja gently said.
The vanadis looked around, only seeing concerned eyes glistening in the moonlight.
"I just hope Elliot's in here," she said, somewhat calmingly.
Kevin touched her hand carefully, nothing more.
"Let's find out, then," he said in a low murmur.
Lise nodded and they turned back to the castle; hopefully the end of the long journey.