Réné Goscinny and Albert Uderzo's property forever. You know the drill. "Oh no, not the drill!" (In case that makes no sense, I'm sort of obsessing over the movie Megamind at the moment…..)
Some action coming right up!
P.S. Thanks for pointing out errors. However, unless they hurt the plot, I'm going to edit them after finishing the story, because I like to advance with it! Plus, I'm sure there are a lot more things to correct…..I would like to do them as much as once as I can.
P.S.S beta-readers are also welcome of course .
The next day, the sun was hidden behind thick clouds. A fierce wind blew, and not even the wooden palisades of the village seemed to lessen it much.
"Serves you right for trusting the elements," Phyllis smirked at Asterix.
She was in a good mood, which felt odd, since they had woken up to Bonny knocking on Asterix' door. Apparently, Getafix and Manilla had been working all night. The result was that the magic potion would last for almost a day know, without risking any overdose. The other thing they had accomplished, a few days before, was to take away the side effects of using the magic potion together with the brew that Getafix had used to help Histrionix and Melodrama. And that particular potion was adapted too, for it no longer caused memory loss. It could help to heal the injured, allowing Bonny and Manilla to focus on protecting the village.
In all, those were striking results. But Getafix and Manilla needed their rest, and that was why Bonny was in Asterix'hut. Normally she and Manilla walked the entire palisade every morning, just like Phyllis did at night. She had explained to him that it helped to get a defense up very quickly, knowing each and every corner of the area you wanted to protect.
"I will not help you with that defense." Phyllis had said. "Manilla can hold it on her own, and so can you."
Bonny had nodded. "I understand. But I don't want to believe that. I want to know it."
Phyllis had stared at her for a while. "Try to break it." Bonny had said. "If you can't, I know Mesmeron cannot either. He cannot possibly hit me harder than you. He does not know me well enough."
Phyllis had agreed, much to Asterix initial dislike. If anything could have damaged their relation further, it was this. But it had turned out differently. Phyllis had not broken Bonny's defense, and both seemed to think that was more important than anything that had surfaced during the fight.
All in all, despite the grim weather, things looked brighter than they had in days, and Asterix smiled back at Phyllis. "I'll find another trick, don't you worry."
"I sincerely doubt that," an icy voice cut through the air, startling everyone around them. Asterix turned around wildly, almost bumping into Phyllis, who was suddenly right in front of him. Her eyes were pitch-black. Obelix followed seconds later, the three of them looking but not seeing anyone. The rest of the villagers had gathered at Getafix'hut, and Bonny and Manilla held up their defense around the village. Asterix saw neither of them, but he could see the palisade faintly glowing from the powers that were projected onto it. Something that would help very little if….
"He's not here…" Phyllis whispered. Just as she spoke, a form appeared a short distance in front of them.
"Nice to see you, Phyllis." The icy voice rang again, its owner now clearly recognizable. "Though once again you stand in my way. I wonder why. You are free to go." Mesmeron irked his head in Goliaths' direction. "You even got transport."
Goliath had not reacted. Asterix realized that the horse could not see Mesmeron. Phyllis was right. He was not physically in the village. Judging from Phyllis' reaction, that did not necessarily mean he could do no harm.
"It is polite to greet old acquaintances of course, my dear. But I'm not here for you." Mesmeron smiled, but his eyes flashed dangerously.
"You're not here at all," she retorted through gritted teeth.
The image hovered closer. "But I will be….and I expect you to be gone by then."
Asterix had stepped from behind her, now standing next to her, and Mesmerons' eyes drifted over to him. The image became less transparent at once, and Mesmerons' expression darkened. But when he spoke again, it was Phyllis he addressed.
"I do not appreciate interference….but it seems it was not you who played that part this time. I'm sure that returning you your horse was displayed as a favor. Treat it like one. Do not make the mistake of protecting people who would not have spared you a second glance if they did not need you…we both know how that turned out."
Asterix looked sideward for Phyllis' reaction, but she did not even flinch. Suddenly she moved, and for a startled moment, he thought she was taking Mesmerons' advice, but she was leaping upwards into Cacofonix' hut. He saw her shaking her head from the platform, indicating that there were no troops in the fields surrounding the village.
"As I said, I will be here soon," Mesmerons' image was now fully focused on the little warrior. "Up to you to decide whether you want 'here' to be this charming little village."
Phyllis appeared again, behind Mesmerons' image, motioning to Asterix to keep silent. It was quite unnecessary, because the image had started to fade and was gone completely in a matter of seconds.
Asterix turned to her, the other gathering around them.
"Why is he doing this?" he asked. "He has to know you won't leave, even if you didn't want…"
Phyllis rolled her eyes, "Yeah, because going home to my parents and sister, who I haven't seen for the last like eight years, that would be completely ridiculous."
"Of course it isn't but…."
"But I won't because I want to see Mesmeron die more than I want to see them." She shook her head. "Do not expect Mesmeron to understand that. Make sure he DOESN'T. That why you can't talk to him, Asterix, because he will use everything he knows about you against you. He was not looking for answers, but for reactions."
Manilla stepped closer: "But not just that….he knows this fight will become more difficult with Phyllis around. Last time she could not defeat him, but he was certainly weakened."
Phyllis turned to her: "I can let him think I left." "He'll know you didn't," Manilla said, dismissively.
"But it would irritate him. Anger focused on different people is less strong. So I'm doing it anyway," Phyllis said simply, earning her an irritated sigh from Bonny.
Phyllis turned to Asterix and glanced up at Vitalstatistix. "What about the second part? He wants to take this confrontation outside the village….."
"Why?" Vitalstatistix asked.
"Manilla and Bonny can protect the village much better than the fields," Asterix said.
"If they have to divide their attention between the field and the village, it is a matter of time before he breaks through," Phyllis said.
"So I should just let all my warriors stand behind the gate? Let the most dangerous battle they have ever faced be right in front of their wives and children? How long before Mesmeron hurts them?"
Phyllis shrugged. "I understand. But you're not facing a roman army that takes out warriors first, that plays by the rules. If he strikes somewhere, it might be the village anyway. That's what I expect him to do."
Her words caused everyone to freeze. They were not afraid to go out and fight, but if that did not ensure safety to the village, at least temporarily, what was the point?
"Are you…"Asterix began. "…Sure?" Phyllis completed for him. "No, of course not."
Vitaltstatistix looked grim: "We will stay here. If any soldiers approach, we will head out and fight them, and you will come along," he pointed to Phyllis. He turned to Manilla and Bonny: "The village is your priority at all times. My warriors can handle themselves."
They both nodded stiffly.
Before the last of the villagers had had their share of magic potion, Cacofonix called out that an army was approaching the village. They finished quickly, and left their village, now shielded by Bonny and Manilla, behind them.
Phyllis and Goliath disappeared before Asterix had the chance to talk to her. He did not like her plan of irritating Mesmeron one bit. "Assuming she actually comes back, Geriatrix had piped up, when Asterix had voiced his thoughts. He had glared at the old man, but many other villagers seemed to share Geriatrix' doubts.
"She will be back," Bonny had cut in. "Let's just hope it will be for the right reasons," she added in a whisper, lost to everyone but Manilla, who stood right next to her.
Still, as Asterix and the others approached the army, Phyllis was nowhere to be seen. This time, he felt no outside influence pulling at his mind. Phyllis had predicted Mesmeron might not try so this time, since they had ultimately overcome it in the previous fight. She anticipated him changing tactics, and it seemed she was right, because Mesmerons' hold over the army was almost tangible. The Romans fought fiercely, despite their empty eyes. They seemed able to predict every move that was made in battle, making the power of the magic potion less absolute then it normally was. The Romans fought more organized than Asterix had ever experienced, and what was worse, sneakier as well. He barely had time to overlook the battle as a whole because it soon became clear that the soldiers were told to focus on him.
Luckily, the other villagers realized it too, and after a while, Mesmerons' approach started to work against him. Since the Romans were focusing on Asterix, the others were in less danger, and had more time to organize, taking out the Romans one by one without suffering too much damage of their own.
After some time, the battle seemed to turn in their favor. But Asterix had just barely avoided a spear thrown in his direction, Obelix stopping another one, when he noticed the weather was changing. Out of nowhere, fog appeared, seemingly gradually, but far too quick to be natural. Soon he could barely see more than 5 meters in front of him. He heard something soar through the air, but did not see the knife before Phyllis jumped in front of him, and it plunged into the roman shield she was holding up.
"Where's Goliath?" he asked. "Back at the village," Phyllis whispered. They formed a triangle, backs toward each other; Phyllis' appearance caused the Romans to focus on her as much as on Asterix. The battle seemed to quiet down though. Asterix was about to punch a Roman a few meters in front of him, when his limbs blocked. He fell face first to the ground, hitting it painfully.
"What the hell are you doing," he heard Obelix scream, and as Asterix looked sideways, he saw Phyllis hand stretched out in his direction. Obelix was running towards her, but Asterix scrambled to his feet and stopped his friend, who had not seen the look of pure terror on Phyllis' pale face. She seemed oblivious to both of them, eyes locked on the roman that he had been about to punch. The man had slowed down, as baffled by her reaction as they were. His confusion seemed to lessen Mesmerons' spell over him.
Suddenly, there was a small clearing in the fog and Mesmeron himself became visible, smirking at them. An image or real, it was hard to tell with the fog surrounding him, but he smiled at Asterix as they locked eyes, and the roman changed appearance.
Asterix and Obelix saw what had rendered Phyllis motionless. The roman was no longer armed, still in his army outfit, but without actual armor or helmet. His black curls were a bit too long for a soldier on duty, and his dark eyes pictured confusion. He was moving towards Phyllis, and Asterix slid in front of her, realizing who he was looking at. He vaguely heard hooves approach from behind, and then running. Just as Phyllis however, Bonny stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of the illusion.
"Marcus," she whispered.
Right in front of her stood someone she believed, no, knew to be dead. And yet he approached them, cautiously, but stepping forward until he was less than a meter from Asterix.
Bonny focused with all her might, clinging to a memory she had tried to push away for eight years. She had liked Marcus. Not like Phyllis, who had always seemed to drink in his words when he visited the Forest House. But she had enjoyed his stories and his visits as much as the other girls. Biancus and Marcus meant a break from their usual routine, and for Bonny, who lived there even during holidays, that was at least as enjoyable as for Phyllis.
She had insisted upon seeing them before they were buried. It had been the most horrifying thing she had ever seen, but she clung to the image now, and Marcus' face faded, revealing the Romans' moss green eyes, fixed in determination as he flung forward the sword she had not seen up till now. It swayed towards Asterix and she yelped in fear, leaping forward to pull him back.