Of Gaea (36 page)

“It’s my
fault.”

Nasya looked
at her confused.

“
He
didn’t want any part of this; he didn’t want any part of me, and
now he’s stuck.
I
dragged him into it.”

“
He is
Spartan.” Nasya spoke quietly, as if she didn’t want to upset her.
“It is expected…”

“
It
shouldn’t be.” Ari pried Nasya’s hand from her arm. “It’s not going
to be. I’m going to fix it.”

“
Some
things cannot be fixed, Ari. It’s part of the balance. We see both
sides .”

“
The
balance is skewed. It has been for centuries. One life isn’t going
to tip it back into place, I know that. But one life can start it.”
Ari let go of her hand and stepped away. “Trust me to do
this.”

She
sighed and nodded very slowly. “Be very, very careful. Your life
won’t tip the balance, Ariadne. Your life will destroy the scale
completely.”

She
smiled at Nasya. “I’ll be careful.” She began to walk away without
glancing back to see if Nasya was joining her or not.

“
I’m
going to go get Sasha and Kleisthenes.
Please, think every action through. That’s all I
ask.” She vanished from sight before Ari could respond.

Ari
continued her walk alone.
Though, not technically alone, as she could feel the eyes
on her waiting to see what she would do. They wouldn’t have long to
wait.

The only
foreseeable problem was she only knew one Pure and two Tainted
people in the entire town. Though there were several others she
could guess at from her history. At the moment, she was closer to
the Tainted than she was the Pure.

Unfortunately, the shop was everything she remembered it
being.
The window looked
slightly less cluttered, though that might have been her
imagination. The mysterious fluids were still there.

Ari
hesitated on the sidewalk.
The only other time she had been here, Nasya had been with
her to repel the sickness. Though, when she had seen Erelah on the
street she hadn’t gotten sick. She hadn’t smelled anything either,
but she had been on the other side of the road.

Agonized
screaming pulled her out of hesitation into action.
Ari struck the door with the
cane and it vaulted inwards. As she charged forward, she took in
some of the shop.

Book
cases were stacked much like a book store, but not with the variety
of wares that a book store would carry.
Ari didn’t bother with those and swept her arm as
if she was swatting away a fly. They screeched over to the side of
the room. Later she would pat herself on the back for control, as
nothing had shifted or fallen off the cases whilst they
moved.

The
shifted cases revealed five people on the opposite side of the
room.
Three of them were
holding onto Leonidas. Erelah stood in front of him holding a
rather sharp looking stick and the fifth thought to charge
her.

Ari
ducked under his swing and used the cane like a bat.
She put all her fury behind the
blow. She felt it crunch as she completed the swing. He howled
worse than anything she’d ever heard before.

The
contact with his body shattered his bones and sent him
flying.
He crashed into
the wall and dropped to the floor like a rag doll. One down and Ari
didn’t regret it.

In the
split second she had been preoccupied, Erelah and her goons had
slipped out a doorway she hadn’t noticed. Cursing, Ari flew after
them. The doorway led into another room, this one empty but for the
strange markings all over the place. Erelah and company were
exiting a door to what could only have been the alleyway behind the
building.

Leonidas
looked directly at her. Locked eyes with her and shook his head
ever so slightly. Blood dripped into his eyes and bruises colored
his cheekbones. His face was apathetic. He wasn’t even trying to
survive.

It made
her angry.
At the same
time she was okay with it. He didn’t have to try and survive. She
would try for him.

Ari
didn’t slow when the monstrously, large man turned from Erelah to
stand in the doorway.
There was only one way to get through. She wasn’t going to
let some monster of a brute stop her.

She
pulled out several of the bone knives and threw them. He ducked
under and she jumped over. She was nearly free and out the door
when his hand grabbed her ankle and yanked her back.Ari landed with
a teeth rattling thud.

He charged
with a booming growl.

Ari rolled to
her feet and swung the cane at the same time.

He
braced and only slid back a few feet with the blast of air.
He smiled tauntingly and
cracked his neck.

She
rolled her shoulders and drew her blade. This was not going to be
easy.

It took
a few dodge and parries for her to realize she was faster than the
big oaf.
She was also
infinitely more agile. There was a downside, though. Ari was a
toothpick to his strength and his arms were a lot longer than hers.
She couldn’t get close enough.

The
elements only slowed him down temporarily.
Ice, earth, air weakened when they met
him. Ari didn’t try fire as she didn’t want that bounced back at
her. She didn’t have time to ponder why.

Ari had
to rely on what Kleisthenes had taught her instead.
It wasn’t a hard lesson
learned. The Gifts of Gaea were a crutch she had relied on it first
and shouldn’t have.

She
could only hope and pray for a mistake on his end.
And in the meanwhile pray that
she did not make one. It was a delicate balance.

Ari felt
the change first.
It was
like a whisper on the air. Or a scent. She knew what it
meant.

She wasn’t
surprised when she jumped back again and someone intercepted so she
could withdraw.

“
Are you
okay?” Sasha wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her
even further out of the way.

Ari
looked up at him.
“I’m
alright. They have Leonidas. He was here. I saw him.”

Sasha’s
arms tightened. “I saw them run into the woods. There’s no telling
where they were going.”

A thud
drew her attention back to the fight. Kleisthenes was calmly wiping
his blade off on the decapitated body’s shirt. The head laid
several feet away with an expression of surprise etched on its
face.

“
You’ve
never been taught how to handle a strongman.” Kleisthenes stated
when he saw them watching him. “The little one out there was
handled rather roughly.” He gestured to the shop.

Ari hung
scratched her nose. “I was emotional.”

He
didn’t speak for a moment. “We’ve discussed emotions in
battle.”

“Yes.”

He
pointed to the strange marks on the walls.
“Devil’s tongue. It weakens the Pure and
anyone with Gaea’s gifts the longer you are near it. I think now is
a good time to go for a walk.”

Sasha and Ari
didn’t question him, but followed him out the back door.

The air
was so clean and pure, Ari staggered on the steps and would have
fallen if Sasha hadn’t caught her.
She was dizzy and lightheaded.

“
Ari?”
Sasha’s
voice buzzed in her ear but she didn’t really hear it.

Ari pushed
away from him and swayed a moment before stumbling away.

“Ari?”

“
Let her
go a moment.” Kleisthenes murmured so low Ari almost missed
it.

She felt
rather than saw the trees. Ari stumbled over and fell against them.
She slid down a trunk and could swear the tree roots came up to
embrace her. It felt heavenly; like sinking into a hot tub.
Blindly, she unzipped her boots and dug her bare feet into the rich
soil. She sighed contently and lolled against the tree.

The
sensation was new to her. Ari felt like she was asleep. Or at least
her body had fallen asleep but her mind was still awake. She
couldn’t respond or move but she was totally aware of the
conversation of the men at her feet.

“
Keep
this moment in mind, Sasha.”
Kleisthenes spoke softly. “If she ever falls ill; poisoned,
disoriented return her to the soil.”

“What’s wrong
with her?”

“
Too
much time among the Tainted with little to no protection. She is
not yet everything she will be. Once that happens, I think only the
very powerful will be able to touch her. But right now, days before
her ascension she’s not strong enough.”

“
Did you
see the Tainted in there? He was crushed like a paper
ball.”

“
Yes, he
was. Raw power is not the same as endurance at all. Yes, she has
power that makes most anything within the city cringe at the mere
sight of her, but it’s not the same as those that know their power
and have used it for decades.”

“How long will
she be recharging?”

Ari
sighed and opened her eyes. It was already over. She could feel it.
She had been released from the cat nap, power nap, recharge, or
whatever it was called. She stretched slowly, drawing the attention
of the men.

Sasha
crouched down next to her.
“How do you feel?”

She
pulled her feet out of the soil and dusted them off to put her
boots back on. “Fine. I feel fine now.”

“
That’s
good to hear.” Nasya stepped out of the trees next to her dragging
something behind. She tossed it at Kleisthenes’s feet.

A man was
curled up in a whimpering ball.

Kleisthenes reached down and with one hand dragged the man
to his feet.
“What do we
have here?”

“
Nasya,”
Ari turned to her.
“I’ve
been meaning to ask. Why do I feel disconnected from the earth when
I wear shoes? It’s like muffled.”

She
cocked her head at Ari. “You shouldn’t. What have I told you about
your mind? You think I’m in shoes I can’t feel the earth. That’s
not true at all. At least it’s not for you. You should be thinking
I am the earth and it’s always under my feet.”

“
Huh. I
never thought about that.”

“
If you
ladies are done?” Kleisthenes shook the whimpering mass in his
hand. “Nasya, what do you intend to do with this whelp?”

“Smack him
around a bit and get the Tainted’s plans out of him?”

“
I like
that idea.” Sasha seconded and the boy cried louder.

“
I don’t
think it’s going to take much pain to get him to give us
anything.
The question
is will it be the truth.” Ari poked the boy and he jerked and
sobbed hysterically.

“
Truly a
pathetic creature, Nasya. Well done.” Kleisthenes slapped the boy
across his face. “What did you do to his eyes, dear?”

Nasya
shrugged. “It was encouragement that he wanted to come with
me.”

“
It’s
too late.” The boy muttered. “Too late. She already has Leonidas.
There is no stopping her now. There is no Gaea.”

“
What do
they plan to do with him?” Kleisthenes gave the boy a teeth
rattling shake. “Where did they take him?”

“
It’s
too late. Death to the Goddess and her followers. You are doomed.
In a few hours the darkness will come and the sun will never be
seen again. She wills it.”

Ari
moved close enough to the boy for him to hear her draw her blade
from the cane. “You know, I’m a pretty good hunter. On occasion, I
even get the opportunity to skin my prey.”

“
You’re
all dead.
Dead I tell
you. She’s going to kill you all. The boy is first.” He wept. “I
don’t know where. It wasn’t actually discussed, at least not with
me.”

“
Pathetic.” Ari walked away.

Sasha
was at her side in three strides.
“Where are you going?”

“
Home. I
want my bow. Then I’m going back to Leonidas’s to see if he’s got
an answer we haven’t thought of.”

“You’re not
going alone.”

Ari
smiled. “I wasn’t expecting to.”

“
The sun
sets in three hours Ari. We won’t be able to do anything in the
dark.”

“
What do
you suggest? Let him die?” She stopped to look at him. “I know
you’ve never liked each other, but you’d just let him
die?”

“
No. I’m
saying we need to move fast. Most Tainted rituals occur at night.
It’s something about the darkness, which is completely weird
because Gaea isn’t limited to just this planet. The moon is one of
your symbols and so is the sun. You are both ying and
yang.”

“Fancy
that.”

Kleisthenes
and Nasya watched them go.

“
You
should go get the guild; this cannot end well withoutmore help than
we have here.”
Nasya
stated.

“What will you
do?” Kleisthenes asked.

“
I will
be close by. I do not think my siblings will come, but I can try.
For now Sasha is enough, but very soon he will not be. We must be
ready for that.”