Clockwork Twist : Dreamer (13 page)

While Storm was saying goodnight to Myra, Kima shook Jonas's hand and whispered so that only he and Twist would hear, “Please don't say anything to Storm or my father about our leaving with you.  And thank you for your help.”

Jonas closed his eyes to give her a smile, while Twist gave a bow instead of shaking her hand as well.  Kima smiled at the two of them, apparently able to easily understand their somewhat odd behavior.  She and Storm left their guests then to lie down and rest in the billowing, misty surface of the cloud.

Twist woke slowly.  His dreams mingled gently into reality while he lay on the cool, soft surface of the cloud.  He opened his eyes to see that the sky was already turning blue beyond the ceiling of latticed branches above him.  He moved to stretch slightly, and suddenly remembered the airship crash, the previous night.  His body was sore in odd places, and his movements seemed sluggish, but he was happy to find that the comfort of the cloud top had done wonders to ease the stiffness in this neck and back.

Woken by the new daylight as well, the others began to show signs of life not long after Twist sat up and began to test his wounds.  The small scrapes and bumps seemed to have healed pretty well during the night—thanks to the strange medical attention of Storm's Grandpa.  Twist pulled the bandage off of his brow and found nothing but a light tenderness there now.  When Myra joined him to wish him a good morning and ask how he was feeling, Twist was happy to report the good news.

Kima appeared not long after, rushing to the pen while Storm followed beside her.  Tasha paused in her greeting as she caught sight of Kima's face. “What's happened?” Tasha asked the moment Kima moved close enough to hear her.

“I'm sorry,” Kima said.

“They're here!” Storm said, clearly frightened.

“Who's here?” Jonas asked. “The Cyphers?”

“They weren't supposed to come for another two days,” Kima said, already working to unlock the door to the pen. “But they arrived this morning, just before daybreak.  I only just heard.  You have to escape before they see you.”  The captives moved closer to the door as she pulled it open.  Twist paused to grab his walking stick from the luggage, abandoning the rest in the interest of speed.

“Come with me,” Storm said, reaching in to take hold of Jonas's hand. “I'll take you to an airship.”

“No argument here,” Steve said, following instantly with the others.

“I'll do what I can to distract them,” Kima said, turning to run in another direction.

She stopped in her tracks, and Storm did too.  Three large men in sand-colored cloaks now stood at the edge of the clearing around the pen, their hoods hanging low over their shadowed faces.  One of them held a tall wooden staff that was intricately carved with symbols all along its length, and a large clear crystal held in a claw-like cluster of roots at the top.

“What is the meaning of this?” the man with the staff asked with a deep voice and an accent that reminded Twist of Tasha's.

Rather than answer, Kima spun to look at Storm.  They stared at each other in equally bitter dismay.  Tasha looked to Niko and gave a nod.  Without hesitation, Niko lifted his left arm, pointing his fist directly at the three Cyphers.  A bolt of brilliant, blue-white lightning erupted from Niko's hand, flying at the Cyphers with a roaring crack.

“No!” Kima screamed.

The Cypher with the staff moved with amazing speed, holding it out before him just as the lightning reached him.  The raw current curled down the staff with a tight, electric whine, and then vanished without leaving the slightest mark behind.  Niko stared in disbelief, staggering back a step.  In the next instant, another Cypher made the motion of throwing something at Niko.  A fireball the size of a grapefruit burned into life in the air as it flew recklessly at its target with startling speed.

Niko dove to the side as the others began to scatter.  The fireball slammed into the cloud and left a tunnel-like hole behind.  Another two fireballs flew into the crowd, one nearly striking Twist as Myra gave a shriek.  There was movement everywhere, screaming, fire, and open holes in the cloud beneath their feet.  Hardly aware of his actions in all of the fear and chaos, Twist took Myra's hand tightly and rushed for cover behind the nearby huts.

“Stop!” the Cypher with the deep voice commanded suddenly.

Before Twist and Myra had gone but a few steps, the world around them fell into a startling silence.  Twist's pace slowed in his confusion, and thankfully so.  A figure materialized out of nowhere, not two steps before him, cloaked in a sand-colored hood.  Twist stopped dead in his tracks as Myra bumped into him from behind, now only a few inches short of colliding with the Cypher.  The man reached up to pull his hood back, over his head.

The Cypher looked middle-aged and strong, a good head and shoulders taller than Twist.  His skin was even more pale than Twist's and his hair was a bright, almost white, gold.  Twist stared in shock at the man's sudden appearance, unable to move as he looked into the Cypher's pale, lavender-gray eyes.  The Cypher, however, looked immediately at Myra, while she peered back over Twist's shoulder.

“Your Majesty!” the Cypher breathed, his voice hollow.

Twist heard Jonas curse behind him.  Twist's fright stole away his breath.  He gripped Myra's hand and took a step back with her, hardly aware of her terror against his Sight.  When Twist glanced around, he saw that the other two Cyphers had also removed their hoods to stare at Myra in wonder.  Twist's companions, while scattered around the clearing, seemed to be unharmed.  Everyone watched with curious horror in the new silence.

“I... I don't understand,” the pale Cypher said, his eyes locked on Myra now. “How did you—” He stopped short, then dropped into a shallow bow. “My apologies, Your Majesty.  You were lost to us in Egypt.  I never expected to find you here.  Please forgive our rudeness.”

Glancing around again, Twist saw that the other two Cyphers were bowing now too.  He looked at Myra over his shoulder and found her expression bewildered and frightened, matching the emotions that splashed through his Sight.  She looked to him as if for guidance.  Twist felt a pang of guilt, having none to offer her.

“Lord Set also sends his apologies, I'm sure,” the Cypher went on when Myra didn't respond. “He took full responsibility for letting you fall into the hands of those thieves.  But I can assure Your Majesty that my master, Lord Loki, will be just as pleased as I am by your unexpected presence here.  He will gladly see to your every wish.”

“What the hell is going on here?” Ted asked suddenly. “Who are you people?”

The pale Cypher shot Ted a disgusted look. “Check them for Sights, and kill the normals,” he snapped at the other two Cyphers. “If you please, my lady,” he said sweetly to Myra, holding a hand out to her.  Twist felt a bright flash of indignation jolt through her against his Sight, while the others began to wake from their shock.

“No!  You can't!” Storm gasped, still holding Jonas's hand and clinging to him tightly.

“Oh, and take him as well,” the pale Cypher mentioned as the two advanced. “Lord Loki requested him.”

Kima rushed to her son, while Niko, Steve, and Ted all began to put themselves themselves before the others.  The Cypher with the staff held the top of it over Niko's head, and after a moment the clear crystal gave off a red glow.

“Normal,” the Cypher announced. “Kill this one.”

“No!” Myra screamed as Tasha gasped in horror and reached for Niko.  The Cyphers all paused to look at Myra. “Oh, you horrible things!  Leave my friends alone!” she bellowed at them in a voice that shook with unseen tears. “You didn't lose me in Egypt, I was rescued.  I don't want to be your princess!”

“Rescued?” the pale Cypher asked, eyeing Twist with indignation. “Friends?  Your Majesty, these wretched little people don't deserve your friendship.  We can be—”

“I don't want you!” Myra snapped angrily, advancing on him but still clinging to Twist's hand.  The Cypher fell into a shallow bow once again. “I want
them
.  If you care at all for my wishes, you won't harm a single one of them.”

“I see,” the Cypher muttered, his tone promising that he didn't. “Why don't you discuss your wish for companionship with my master?  I'm sure he wouldn't have any trouble with Your Majesty keeping a few pets.”

“Pets?” Steve scoffed.  Tasha hushed him instantly, watching Myra now.

“I don't want to see your stupid master,” Myra spat.

“Uh, princess?” Jonas called gently.  Twist and Myra both turned to find him looking at them with pale, lilac eyes. “They're not going to leave us standing here, alive.  We're going to board their ship.”

Myra gave Jonas a confused look, and turned to Twist.  Twist, meanwhile, caught the subtle fear that followed Jonas's words in the buzz at his neck.  Jonas seemed more uneasy than frightened.  Twist's mind leaped into understanding with unsteady feet: Jonas must have gotten a vision of them boarding a Cypher airship, which no one had seen yet.  His visions always came true, but he never willingly spoke of them, which explained the uneasiness Twist now sensed.

“We should go with them, and speak to their master,” Twist said softly to Myra.  She gasped, looking at him in astonishment and horror. “Remember what I told you, my dear,” he said, giving her hand a light squeeze. “Don't be frightened.”

Myra looked at him for a long moment, staring into his eyes with her own jeweled gaze.  He felt fear and uncertainty rage in her emotions, like waves under a gale.  Then, she slowly seemed to settle and turned to the pale Cypher.

“I will only go with you if you promise not to hurt any of these people.  And I don't want them to leave my sight for an instant.”

The Cypher frowned, still bowing.  After a moment he glanced up at her steady resolve. “As you wish, Majesty.”

Twist and his companions were led through the village in a solemn procession.  Twist held Myra's hand in his left and his walking stick in his right, ready at an instant to flee or fight.  Kima walked beside her son, whispering quickly to him in her language.  He nodded or shook his head as he listened, but stayed silent.  The others all remained quiet as they walked, led and flanked by the three Cyphers.  When Twist turned his attention to the buzz in his neck, he found a heavy sense of bitter resolve mixed with apprehension, but no real fear.  Twist took a deep breath, assuring himself that if Jonas wasn't frightened, then he had no call to be himself.

The village was already beginning to wake around them.  People appeared at the sides of their procession, as if watching a silent parade.  Some of them gazed curiously at the captives, while others looked on them with cold disgust.  As more people appeared, Twist realized that any chance for escape was well past.  Without explanation, none of these villagers would lend them any aid.

At the edge of the village, Twist could now see a large airship of a design he had never seen before.  It had no balloon, and no sails.  The thick, slab-like mass of the ship was in a diamond shape, with both elongated points stretching out fore and aft, and four long metal beams hung out from the flat faces of the shape.  Huge, whirring black propellers hummed with so much speed that they seemed almost invisible as they pointed themselves downward towards the open sky below.  Despite the obvious power of the engine, the ship only hovered, hanging perfectly still at the edge of the cloud.  The ship glinted gold and brass in the new daylight, the many large glass windows that were set into the metal hull shining like stars.

As they got closer, Twist couldn't help but feel impressed by the sheer size of the airship.  It was as big as a train station, and seemed to have at least ten or eleven decks.  Small items that had looked decorative before could now be clearly seen as cannons mounted at every angle.  A huge slab of brass-colored metal hung down from the bottom of the ship like an open jaw, inviting them into the darkness within.  Twist shivered.

“This is a good idea, right?” he muttered quietly to Jonas.

“Probably not,” Jonas answered softly.

Myra looked to Jonas with surprise.  “But you told us to surrender,” she said in a whisper.

Jonas gave a shrug, not looking at her.  While Myra gave him a confused look, Twist caught her attention.

“It's all right, my dear,” he said gently to her.  Jonas's anxious eyes caught his: cold, wary, and stone gray. “Is there anything we need to know?” Twist asked him with the same gentleness he'd shown Myra.

Understanding flashed in Jonas's eyes, and he glanced away quickly. “No.  Just that we get on board.  I don't know what's going to happen after that.”

“Oh, did he have a vision?” Myra asked Twist with a sudden excitement in her voice.  The buzz at Twist's neck sharpened so quickly that he winced against the feeling.

“Let's not talk about it now,” Twist said to her with a tight smile.

As Myra reluctantly acquiesced, Kima's voice caught Twist's attention.  She was holding her son around the shoulders, spitting vicious words at the Cypher that stood before her.  Storm looked sorrowfully between his mother and the Cypher, wringing his hands nervously.

“What's going on?” Steve asked, watching now as well.

“Can't you hear her?” Myra asked him in a hushed whisper.

“Sure, but she ain't speaking English,” Steve responded with a frown.

“Oh, she's not?” Myra asked, looking back to Kima.

The Cypher, meanwhile, seemed to be losing his patience.  He barked a harsh-sounding word at her and held up a hand.  A small fireball sprang to life on his open palm.  Kima's words stilled, and her stern face tightened.

“Mom, it's okay,” Storm said softly, pulling out of her grip. “I'll be fine.”

Kima watched, helpless, as the Cypher put out his fireball and snatched Storm's wrist, turning to board the airship without another word to her.  Storm glanced back at her with a brave smile.  Kima stood still on the cloud as her son moved farther away.  She looked to Twist with eyes that were filled to the brim with meaning.  Twist gave her a slight nod, turning himself to follow along as the other two Cyphers led them aboard.

They came to the lip of the metal drawbridge and found armed guards in sand-colored cloaks waiting on either side of it. They all looked at Myra in awe for an instant before giving her a respectful nod.  She hardly seemed to notice them as she and the others stepped onto the metal slab and walked up the incline, into the ship itself.

A huge, dark entryway met them.  It was hard to guess the true size of the space, for the ceiling and far walls were hidden in shadow.  Oil lamps hung at eye level on long chains, but they only lit a relatively small pocket of space in the center of the wide, shining, brass floor.  Stepping into the light, Twist saw rings of symbols and strange designs drawn on the floor in gold.  The pale Cypher took a long staff from a hidden place in the shadows and lit the top of it off an oil lamp; the staff burned like a torch.

“This way, if you please, Your Majesty,” the pale Cypher said with a sweeping gesture.

“Wait, where are you taking him?” Tasha asked suddenly as the other two Cyphers led Storm away into the darkness.  The Cypher glanced at her, but didn't seem even slightly inclined to answer.

“Answer the question,” Myra snapped at him tersely.

“Please, don't trouble yourself, Your Majesty,” he said, still holding his hand out to lead her on. “The boy is merely a tool.  He hardly matters.”

“No...” Tasha gasped, her face alight with horror. “You wouldn't!  You monsters!”

“What?  What's going on?” Jonas asked her, clearly as confused as the others.  The Cypher let his gesturing hand drop to his side with a quiet sigh.

“He has a Sight,” Tasha said urgently to Jonas. “And this villain just said that he's a tool to them.  Surely, they wouldn't.  He's only a boy!” she growled at the Cypher, who didn't appear disturbed by her words in the least.

“Do you think they'd use the drug on him?” Niko asked her, uncharacteristically concerned.

“What drug?” Jonas asked, frowning.

“Majesty, if we could—“ the Cypher began calmly.

“What are they talking about?” Myra demanded of him. “What are you going to do to Storm?  I expressly said that I didn't want any of my friends to leave my sight!”

The Cypher's jaw tightened in annoyance, but his expression remained otherwise placid. “Yes, you did,” he toned smoothly. “I didn't imagine that you included the boy.  We've been using him for some time now, without any indication that he was important to you.”  Tasha shuddered.

“Well, he is important to me,” Myra said sternly. “I want him back.”

“I have orders from my master to collect the boy,” the Cypher said. “If you wish to change my orders, I suggest Your Majesty take the matter up with Lord Loki.”

Myra pursed her lips, giving the Cypher a blazing glare.

“Now, if we could continue,” the Cypher said calmly, gesturing again.

Myra looked to Twist as if for guidance, once again.  Twist glanced away from her, ashamed of his vastly inadequate ability to offer support.  Standing as he was, in the darkness of a Cypher airship, surrounded by untold legions of fire-wielding and uncompassionate villains, it was all Twist could do not to give in to blind panic.  He gripped her hand firmly and forced himself to meet her eyes again.

“There's nothing else to do now, but meet our fate,” he said as calmly as he could.

Myra gave a slight sigh, but nodded.