Chapter 12
Emi saw Calythé wake up in a large living tree next to two girls. The elder looked about ten and had amber brown eyes and a long cascade of very pale blond hair. The younger girl, scarcely older than six, had wavy chocolate brown hair and green eyes. She stood to the side, sucking her thumb. Calythé's eyelids fluttered, then opened. "Wha? Where am I?" she whispered. The younger girl removed her thumb from her mouth.
"We finded you in da desert," she squeaked. "You was wyin' in da water, all dirty." She wrinkled her nose and reinserted her thumb.
"Pleased to see you're awake," said the older girl. "We were pretty worried about you. You broke your arm in two places and it would have gotten infected if Mona had kept touching you." She glared at the younger girl, who removed her thumb from her mouth and started to pick her nose. "See what I mean?"
"Gross," agreed Calythé weakly. "Can either of you tell me who I am, or what's going on?"
"The first question we can't answer," replied the amber-eyed girl, "but we took you to our tree house. Forgive me, we haven't introduced ourselves. My name is Ramisse Ironfist, daughter of Cyrrus Ironfist, and this is Monavelle Skyvale, daughter of Elver Skyvale."
"Me is tiweded," Monavelle yawned, and she toddled off to her room, flopped on her bed, and began to snore loudly.
Ramisse gestured awkwardly in her direction. "I know it doesn't look like it, but she's great with a bow for a kid her age."
"Uh-huh," Calythé mumbled. "I wish I could introduce myself, but I don't know who I am. I think I need some rest. Yeah. Some ressss…" and she dozed off.
Flash-forward.
"Calamine?" asked Ramisse.
"No," Calythé said, strafing the sides of her head.
"Calypso?"
"No. These don't sound familiar at all."
"Callycallycally?" Monavelle babbled.
"No. Nonono."
"How about Calythé?" asked Ramisse. Calythé's expression cleared for a second.
"Yeah. I think that's it," she murmured. "Calythé. I'll go with that."
Flash-forward.
Embrea screamed, a high keening terrible cry, and began to sob, retreating to the corner and wailing loudly. Thunder watched, a guilty expression on his face, and awkwardly went to Embrea's side. He gently patted her on the back and she waved him away.
"SHE'S DEAD!" Embrea howled. "MY BABY IS DEAD!" Thunder suddenly turned and stormed away.
Flash-forward.
"She's alive," Embrea breathed. "And she defeated Cthulhu."
Thunder said nothing, then very quietly said, "I pushed her off of the bridge."
Embrea rounded on him, absolute murder in her eyes. "You WHAT?"
"You heard me. I PUSHED HER OFF OF THE WORLD BRIDGE!" Thunder's eyes flashed and energy crackled and swirled around him, making him glow.
Embrea stopped dead, but her anger was evident. Her face turned as red as her hair and red energy snapped about her body, making her hair rise off her back. She finally managed to splutter, "You - banished - five years."
"Fine! You know what - fine! I don't care anymore about that dumb sister of mine!" Thunder turned, picked up his grappling hook, and stormed out the door. The doors slammed shut. Embrea's face turned purple and she let out a terrible scream and Emi came awake with a start.