Thirty-Nine || Regrouping

"Mint," Belle said sharply. "Stop it."

Mint grunted and lowered the Halo. The ring's glow dimmed, then died, and she wiped the back of her sleeve against her nose. A streak of red formed on her sleeve. She ignored it.

She was standing on the back of the Hexagon, alongside Belle – no choice there – and several feet from the magic edge of the storm that raged at the apex of the tower. They had tried to figure out another way around it, but Mint and Prima had already determined going up through the tower was impossible, and Belle said she had already tried to probe the storm, but hadn't been able to break through the edge of the spell barrier. Mint had hoped that, perhaps, she could use her own magic to combat the spell, but now that she was up here and trying to do so she fully realized the futility of the idea.

That didn't stop her, though.

"You know," Mint growled, "if you would help me this might actually work."

"I didn't think Miss High-and-mighty needed my help," Belle said. "Besides, this is pointless. You feel what kind of power that thing's giving off. We'd need a lot more mages to be able to get through this thing."

Mint gritted her teeth and swore.

"Well we can't just not get through it," she said. "Maybe... I don't know, break through the wall and just fly up the spire."

Belle stared at her.

"Do you understand just how many stupid things you just said? Do you actually understand?"

"Well I don't see you coming up with anything."

"Because I try not to act until I actually have a plan, whereas you seem content to–"

Belle cut herself off and looked up. Mint immediately joined her.

The magic edge was receding. The storm was dying off. They both stood still for a long moment, watching as the funnel cloud shrank down until it collapsed on itself and disappeared entirely. The rest of the magic mass joined it not long afterward, dissolving into a spray of fading light.

All at once, within only a few seconds, the magic was gone, leaving behind the high edge of the tower.

"Huh," Belle said.

Mint flashed her a broad grin. "I told you I could do it."

"You didn't do a damn thing."

Belle threw her arm out, and the Hexagon followed, drifting to the side and slowly rising. It had to reach out and grasp the tower to assist its vertical climb, but, gradually, they began to rise, spiraling upward. As Belle commanded the Hexagon, Mint checked the windows, looking for any signs of familiarity. They were back in the upper architecture, where the interior resembled the castle corridor, and a little bit further up–

"Stop here," Mint said.

"What? You see something?"

She didn't wait for an answer before obliging, and once the Hexagon's nose was pressed against the window, Mint made her way across its head and into the tower again. She turned to face Belle.

"Hang out here," she said. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

Belle shrugged and folded her arms. "Fine," she said. "Just hurry up."

Mint nodded and headed upward.

The castle corridor ended only a little way from the window, bleeding into another architectural style, this one filled with old, chipped concrete and a powerful suffusion of dust. She had seen it out of the corner of her vision as they approached the window, and now that she was walking through it again she recognized it as the building they had entered in the first place.

In short order, she heard the steady drum of footsteps heading in her direction. She stopped and listened, momentarily unsure of who to expect coming around the bend. She took a half-step back and readied herself, channeling magic into the ring and setting it aglow–

Rue came around the corner.

Mint relaxed.

"Oh, hey," she said. "Found y– wow you look rough." Her eyes flicked from his face to his clothes – utterly unsalvageable, between the tears and the burns and whatever was staining them – before her brain caught up to what she was seeing and realized he was also carrying Maya. Mint couldn't help but grimace.

"I'm better than her," Rue said. "How long have you been here?"

"Been waiting for a little while," she said. "But here, right now? Couple of minutes." She shrugged. "Belle's waiting to take us back down."

Rue blinked and tilted his head. "Belle?" Then he paused. "Down?"

"You haven't noticed?"

"I noticed we're on an incline. What...?"

Mint laughed and shook her head. "Oh, wow, you've missed some important stuff."

"I was... dealing with a few things."

"I'll bet."

She moved to the side, giving him leave to start walking, and she fell in step alongside him.

"We saw the magic from down here," she said. "Couldn't get through it."

"Not surprising," Rue said. "That must've been from the Book."

"I thought so." She waited a few seconds, trying to figure out how to word her next question, and couldn't think of anything better. "So...?"

"So... what?"

"What the hell happened up there?"

Rue was quiet for several seconds.

"The Book's gone," he said finally.

"That's what made everything explode," Mint said.

"I mean it's gone." He put a distinct emphasis on the word. "Everything that it was. I–"

"Really broke it," Mint offered.

He nodded and smiled weakly. "Really broke it."

"That why you look like you lost a fight with a squid?"

"I'm going to say 'yes'."

"What about Maya?"

He looked down to her. "We all had kind of a rough time."

Mint came to a stop next to the window. Rue nearly walked right past it until Mint cleared her throat, far more loudly than necessary, and he almost jolted at the sound. He turned and looked outside, and the Hexagon's head rose up slightly, regarding him with its round stone eyes.

"Oh," he said. "Hey."

The Hexagon lowered its head again, and Belle knelt down to better look through the window. "That's the entire greeting I get?" she asked.

Rue gave her a half-hearted smile. "Sorry. I'm still a bit... out of it."

"I guess so."

"Come on," Mint said. She hauled herself into the window frame and stepped onto the Hexagon. "It'll be cramped, but we can all make the trip."

It took a little maneuvering between Rue and Mint and a little magical assistance from Belle, but they managed to move Maya out through the window and onto the back of the Hexagon without too much trouble. The Hexagon itself had space enough for a fourth passenger even then, but just barely, and Rue decided instead to back off of its head and onto the window sill.

"Take her down and make sure she's okay," he said. "I'll be right there."

"You aren't climbing down this thing," Belle said.

"To emphasize, you aren't climbing down this thing," Mint added. "It's impossible. Too much crap in the way further down."

Rue shook his head. "Wasn't my plan."

"Then what–" Mint stopped herself. "Oh, right, you're... monster-thing."

Belle cocked an eyebrow and looked between the two of them, then sighed and shook her head. "Whatever," she muttered, and lowered her hand. The Hexagon started its descent, and as it drifted downward, Mint turned her attention to Maya.

"Geez, sis," she muttered. "What did you even do to yourself?"

"What was all that about?" Belle asked. "I mean... the magic field. Did he say?"

She frowned. "The Book's been destroyed," Mint said. "Sounds like the magic was a freak-out response to trying to stop that. It, uh... I guess it didn't work."

"You guys..." Belle frowned to herself and folded her arms more tightly. "You guys actually destroyed a Relic? I... I don't know how to feel about that."

Mint still wasn't sure how to react, either.

She looked up at some point and saw a bird – some type of raptor, she didn't know exactly what – perched on the window sill high above them. It opened its wings and leapt off the ledge, caught the air, and set itself on a circling downward glide for a few seconds before it tucked its wings and dove for the ground, hurtling past the Hexagon. She blinked, closed her eyes, and pressed her fingers against her temples.

She had a pretty high threshold for crazy, but the last forty-eight hours had really been pushing it.

A few minutes of silence later, the Hexagon had just about neared the base of the tower and settled itself gently on the ground. Mint hopped off first and found herself utterly unsurprised to see that Rue had beaten them to the ground, although he had apparently landed somewhere a little ways off; he was just approaching the others, and it was only as the Hexagon landed that Duke, Mira, and Prima happened to see him.

"Rue!" Prima shouted.

He ran up to him immediately, but Rue stepped back and held up his arms. "No hugs," he said quickly. "I'm a mess. You'll stain... everything, probably."

Prima halted and nodded, trying hard not to look put out. Duke approached him next and nodded. "You all right?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," Rue said, and himself nodded in the direction of the Hexagon. "Help them with Maya, please."

"With..." Duke blinked. "The princess? The princess that threatened the town? Why'd you bring her with you?" It was a genuine question, and Duke was absolutely aghast at the idea.

"It's okay," Rue said. "She was being manipulated. She's... aware of that, now."

Duke frowned slightly, but nodded and headed back. Taking his place almost instantly was Mira, and she quickly stepped forward and looked him up and down.

"What on earth happened up there?" she demanded.

"A lot of things," Rue said. "And– I'm very tired, Mrs. Adler. I'd rather not..."

Mira's stance softened slightly, and she closed her eyes. "I'm sorry," she said. "The important thing is you all got out of there okay."

"Yes," Rue said. "That's... yes. Mint?"

"Hm?"

"We need to talk."

Mint looked at him quizzically. "You got all sorts of serious, didn't you?"

"This is serious."

Prima looked quickly up to Mira, then back to Rue. "Is this... private? Should we...?"

"No," Rue said. "This concerns everybody."

He stepped past them and closer to the Hexagon, to where Belle and Duke could also hear him.

"Doll Master is after the Relic," he said.

"Knew it," Mint mumbled.

"He's been pursing it for a very long time," Rue continued. "He has no intention of stopping, and he has no intention of waiting any longer. He broke his ties with East Heaven Kingdom and he's made his goals clear– to everybody here. To Maya, as well."

"He kind of punched her to prove it," Mint added.

"My point," Rue continued, "is that we have to keep him away from the Relic at all costs."

Rue's voice had taken on a chill and hardness that seemed distinctly foreign to him, and Mint felt some of that chill slice through her veins. She didn't know what was wrong, but it worried her far more than it should have.

Despite Mint's misgivings, it was Mira who spoke up. "Do you know what he intends to do with it?"

Rue did not respond immediately. His eyes narrowed; his gaze flicked somewhere to the ground. He clasped his hands behind his back and tried to think.

"I have an idea," Rue said finally. "Valen's Relic – you remember the conversation with had with Mel, Mint?" She nodded. "A-according to Doll Master, she was right. The Relic – the Dewprism – is somehow tied into the very essence of the universe. It's capable of... of anything. Literally anything."

He looked up and around. Nobody spoke.

"I hardly need to mention what would happen if it fell into the wrong hands," he said.

"Anything?" Prima gasped.

"So Doll Master said," Rue responded.

He looked up as Belle finally jumped off the back of the Hexagon and landed alongside Duke. She cocked an eyebrow.

"And knowing that, you're still okay with giving it to Mint?" she asked.

Mint shot her a glare. "That was uncalled for?"

"Was it? Really? You'd go off and make yourself high undisputed queen of the world, wouldn't you? That's terrifying."

"You know, the first thing I ever intended to do what set Maya on permanent toilet-scrubbing duty. But if you're gunning for the chance to be my Minister of Lavatories–"

"Shut up."

The protest was deathly quiet, but Mint and Belle immediately fell silent and turned, slowly, to face Rue.

"I don't have time for this," Rue said, his voice remaining level, calm, and frigid. "None of us have time for this. If you want to get into a useless pissing contest you'll do it when we've taken care of what's actually important."

There were a few seconds of silence.

"What do we need to do?" Mira asked.

He looked over to Belle and Duke. "We need to get Maya back to town," he said. "Take her to somebody who can look at her wounds. I'm sure she'll be fine, but I don't want to leave any of that to chance–"

"No way," Mint said.

Rue shot her a glance. "I know you two didn't get along, Mint, but–"

"That's not it at all," Mint said quickly. "I mean... we shouldn't take her into town. That's dangerous– for her. Just about everybody was out there when she made that announcement. They'll recognize her. There's a lot of animosity back there. Even if we explain things... it won't go well for her."

Rue considered that. "Do you have a plan, then?"

Mint thought, and then, slowly, she smiled. "Yeah," she said. "Yeah. I know the perfect place."

"Where's that?"

"Isn't it obvious?" She looked around, and chuckled. "Guess not. We'll take her to Fancy Mel. Mel's got plenty of magic to help, far enough away from town–"

"Excellent," he said. "Take Prima with you."

Mint stopped and blinked. "Er... what now?"

"Did I... miss something?" Prima asked.

"No, I was getting to it. The other thing we need to do." He waved in the direction of the lake altar. "Our primary concern is to keep Prima safe and keep him from being taken again. Doll Master needs him to open the seal. If he can't reach Prima, he won't be able to get to the Relic. And we can't keep him in town–"

"Because they've already proven they have no regard for us," Mira said acidly.

Rue nodded, and then looked to Prima. His expression softened – his whole stance softened – and he spoke gently. "I'm sorry to force this on you. I just–"

"It's okay," Prima said. "You want us all to be safe. Right?"

"Right."

Prima nodded, once, with absolute certainty. "And so do I," he said. "If it means they won't– they won't hurt Klaus again, or Mira, or Elena– absolutely." Then he faltered, and his brief flash of bravado evaporated. "Should I– should I go back? Into the cube, I mean. That way, even if something happens, they won't know how to–"

"No," Rue said.

"Hell no," Mint added.

"I absolutely forbid it," Mira said.

And then Duke laughed. "Trust me, little guy," he said. "If that crazy witch can't keep you safe, being in a box won't help anything."

Prima smiled.

"So we're clear," Rue said. "Take Maya and Prima to see Mel. Explain to her whatever you need to–"

"I'm sure she'll be aware of something," Mint said. "She's... perceptive."

Belle snorted. "It doesn't take much perception to see this thing suddenly appear," she grumbled.

"Whatever you need to do," he repeated. He exhaled, closed his eyes, and pressed his hand against the crystal in his forehead. He stood like that for a moment, teeth clenched, shaking slightly, before he finally looked up again. "Please."

They all looked at each other, and they came to a silent assent.

"We've got it," Belle said. She pulled herself back on the Hexagon and stood next to the unconscious Maya. "I'll take her on ahead."

Duke was clambering up alongside her. "Let me assist you, milady," he said. "I've been there before. I'll point the way."

"Start pointing."

He did. Belle raised the Hexagon and followed his indication, taking them off toward the forest. Rue watched them for a moment, then turned his attention back to Mint.

"Mint," he said, "could I ask you to escort Prima?"

"Yeah, sure," she said. "But what about you?"

"I–" He tugged at his shirt, then let it fall from his hand. His fingers were slick with ink. "I need to get– cleaned up, a little bit."

It was a weak excuse, but it was plain that exhaustion and pain and barely-bridled anxiety had finally caught up to him. He had been doing an admirable job of hiding it, but now that his little burst of aggression was gone she could see that he was distinctly pale, and trembling.

"Right," she said. "No problem."

"I'll join you," Mira said. She stepped forward and squeezed his shoulder with her hand. "I need to tell Klaus what's happening, besides."

"Thank you," Rue whispered.

They started toward the edge of town.

Mint looked down to Prima.

"C'mon, squirt," she said. "We'd better get going."

"Yeah," he said. "Hey, ah... who is Fancy Mel?"

"She told us how to open your cube, actually. She's..." Mint trailed off, thinking of how best to put it. "I think you'll get along."

"Hm."

She started leading him out of the old town, and the conversation quickly fell by the wayside. Mint found herself in the rare position of having very little to say. She was in the even rarer position of being afraid.

. . .

Doll Master had managed to drag himself off the floor and into the desk chair, and that was as far as he got before he had to sit down again. He wasn't bleeding anymore, but fixing that kind of damage had left him tired, and the whole ordeal had left him exhausted.

He sat with his head in his arms, eyes closed, for a little while, until he felt the fabric of magic behind him ripple and twine. Even then, he didn't entirely bother to look up.

"Afternoon, everyone," he said mildly. "I've missed you."

Mode Master was the first to react, scrambling by his side. "Are you all right, sir?" she asked. She knelt down next to the desk and tilted her head curiously. "Your mask..."

"It's unnecessary," he said. He pushed himself a little more upright and shook his head. He opened his eyes, but continued to focus on nothing in particular. "The Princess is no longer an asset and our ties to the Kingdom no longer matter. If we don't succeed while we're here, now, we never will."

Psycho Master approached from the other side of the desk. "What befell you here?"

"A number of things," Doll Master said. "In positive news, we have no need to worry about the Book, and have just as little need to worry anymore about Princess Maya's intrusion."

Trap Master leaned against the far wall. "So that's the good news," he said. "You got bad news?"

"I was able to speak to my brother," he said. "It seems his opposition was a... quirk of fate. He was utterly unaware of our purpose. He's been educated."

Trap Master looked around. "And... he ain't here."

"Our conversation did not go as well as I had hoped." He winced and slumped down against the desk again. Mode Master leapt to her feet, but Doll Master waved her down. "It's fine, Kirielle," he murmured. "Old wounds."

"What comes next, my lord?" Psycho Master asked.

Doll Master closed his eyes again and hummed to himself, briefly lost in thought. After a moment, he smiled to himself.

"I have an idea."

He rose from the chair, using the desk to keep himself steady, and looked to Psycho Master.

"Karwyn," he said, "take Narcius and go to the cathedral– the one here, in the old city. It's the last remaining building. Last time I was here I noticed some... curious happenings, and I believe we may be able to gather a few assets here."

"Assets, sir?"

"Old experiments of Elroy's. Failed experiments, I should add. Broken dolls." He laughed quietly. "My, but that's... appropriate."

Trap Master frowned. "What're we gonna do with those?"

"Watch. Investigate. See if there's a means of directing them. You're clever boys, I'm sure you'll think of something." He turned his head. "Kirielle?"

"Yes, sir?"

"With me, for now. I believe I have a special task in mind."