Chapter 16
Ozzie's Fort - 600 A.D.
Ozzie, Flea and Slash were waiting in the Great Hall, together with a large amount of Mystic soldiers of various races, well armed. This sight slightly comforted Auree, but just for a few seconds. The two groups collided with a deafening noise. The Mystic troops shouted their warcry and Ozzie laughed like a madman, magic crackled in the large room.
The three bosses were fighting in strict co-operation. They had elaborated some complex but rather effective tricks. Sometimes they created a roughly triangular force field, shining and pulsating, to trap and stun the humans inside. Otherwise, Slash attacked with a sword powered by Flea's fire magic, after that Ozzie had given him a great crash force. It was an impressive spectacle.
Well, for Auree it wasn't exactly pleasant seeing humans wounded...but what did they want? They were menacing her life and her happiness...again.
Soon the battle rhythm changed. Against all odds, the humans were gaining ground and they had managed to put the bosses apart from each other and from their troops, a bad thing. Auree observed Flea's fight while frantically thinking about a way to reach and help him.
Spheres of light and flames took form in his hands, and he threw them at the enemies, always quietly smiling. A sort of twinkling aura surrounded him, probably a magical shield. He didn't seem worried. He fought with grace and elegance, with harmonious gestures, his robes and cloak fluttering around his slim body; he was always wearing a mien of regal dignity, always posing as for a portrait.
At one point, he tossed a mocking kiss to the frogman. Auree was surprised to see the kiss -a pink heart-shaped object- actually flying across the hall and hitting the frogman in the face with the force of a fist. He staggered under the impact and suddenly looked confused. It took his several minutes to remember who he was and what side he was fighting for. Despite her fears, Auree smiled inwardly considering that a kiss from Flea was always -in some way- a special experience.
But the companions took their revenge. The two blond-haired girls began some kind of silly dance and soon Flea remained still, as if he were frozen. The enchantment lasted only for thirty seconds or less, but this short break was enough for the cavewoman to go near the immobilised Magician and steal something from him. Auree couldn't figure out what that black object was, but she noticed that Flea's shield was gone.
«YOU...YOU THIEVES, YOU SEXUALLY DEVIATED SWINES!» he yelled, as soon as he could speak again, infuriated like nobody had ever seen him «How dare you? What do you think you've done? You'll pay for this!»
He launched a full-force flame attack against the companions, now with the true intent to kill them. The purple-haired girl with the goofy glasses intervened, raising a magical wall and gesturing her friends to hide behind it, so they survived unscathed.
Then, while the two blonde girls run away to help Magus and the spiky-haired boy -who were having a hard time against Slash and his bodyguard- the third girl shot at Flea with a strange device which fired a sort of black ray. Flea promptly evaded the blow. A Hench behind him was instantly killed and, for the first time, Auree could see a glimpse of terror in the Mystic's expression. She couldn't wait anymore. The girl was preparing to shoot again and Flea, still looking bewildered at the Hench's corpse, wasn't aware of the menace...
***
She passed her fingers over his shoulder and arm in a slow, shy caress. She didn't know if he was still asleep -he was lying on a side, facing the other way- but hoped so: only when he was asleep she dared to contemplate him for so long, admiring his beauty, and to touch him on her own initiative...but slightly, surreptitiously, not to awake him.
But this time Flea was already awake and took her hand with a sigh. He turned slowly toward her.
«Good morning, dear...»
Like everyone else, he wasn't at his best in the morning: his braid matted, his eyes still clouded from sleep. He looked a bit less feminine than usual...but still wonderful.
Auree found the courage to go ahead with her caressing, and her hand slid down toward his soft chest -because he had breasts after all, tiny ones (Auree could have looked like that at the age of twelve), nevertheless more than a male usually should have.
«Flea...what's your true name?» she asked in a whisper.
He seemed a little puzzled, but smiled.
«It's a secret my mother has taken with her. I've never told anybody. Can you imagine what kind of power some people can have over you if they know your actual name?»
«Really...?»
«Some spells can work only with the true name of the victim...in every case, the spell's effect is amplified. You must be cautious if you live among ambitious people...»
«I'm sorry» she apologised, ashamed to have asked such an inappropriate question, although Flea's gentle voice didn't sound like he was reproaching her «I didn't mean to be...nosy...»
«It's all right, Auree. I think I will tell you. But not now, and surely not here. I can't afford the risk of letting Slash and Ozzie to discover it...neither I know their true names, on the other hand. I suspect Slash has his ways for spying on me»
«Spying? Here?!» Auree exclaimed, hurriedly covering herself.
He giggled, raising his gaze to the ceiling.
«If this is the case, I hope he has enjoyed the show!»
***
And at the end he had actually told her...he had been interrupted before having the opportunity of speak about his feelings in a proper manner -if she had interpreted correctly the few syllables that had escaped Ozzie's thunderous screaming- but he hadn't wanted to leave her without expressing how much important and trustworthy he considered her.
«NOOOO!» Auree cried and plummeted down from the balcony, in front of the astonished human.
A piercing pain run across her limbs while the remaining energy of the flying spell discharged in the ground through her feet. She nearly fainted, but somehow managed -with the sheer weight of her body- to knock Flea off the black ray's trajectory, just in time. Through a red haze of pain, she saw him rolling unharmed on the ground and a pillar disintegrating in a rain of rubble. Then her body became limp. She confusedly heard voices, slowly came to her senses again and saw Flea's worried face a few inches from hers.
«Auree, what in the world are you doing here? Go away! You're in danger!»
Probably the purple-haired girl was going to shoot again.
She will hit me first, Auree thought, He will be able to escape...
She grabbed the Mystic's arm.
«Let's go together!»
Flea sustained her and both turned toward their enemy.