Tempest

Chapter Thirteen

And it was huge. I’m not even exaggerating; it had to be about ten feet long, its monstrous head tucked under its paws as if it was trying to shield itself from the falling rocks. The pain in my wrist was simply dim distraction, although subconsciously I knew it would hurt later. The position was so human that I wandered slowly, as if in a dream, over to the side of the animal and knelt down. “Kyran…?” I whispered slightly, and rested my hand against its side. Its flank was rising and falling unsteadily, and a faint heartbeat fluttered under my palm, too flighty for comfort.

Finally someone spoke.

“Monster.”

My whole body tensed up, half-expecting me to be yanked away from the creature, but I had forgotten these were posh uptown people, and they wouldn’t dare do anything with their own hands. And no, it didn’t matter that there were the bodies of other fallen nobles and ladies, all that mattered was the new mysterious piece of gossip that had just presented itself. The fox shifted slightly under my hand and I slowly ran my hand across its fur. A daring man, his shirt torn and smears of ash on his face stepped forward, reaching his hand quickly to pet the fox, which was a huge mistake on his part.

The fox’s eyes snapped open immediately, and a low growl burst out form its mouth. Its teeth were smeared in blood, and some of it dripped out of the corner of its mouth and bloomed on the floor like roses. The man quickly backed up, but the fox rose to a crouched position, unstable, pushing my hand off of it and I saw the tears in the skin and the patches of fur that were missing. An odd sound burst from its throat, a mixture of a cry and a growl as it stepped forward. The man stumbled over a rock and fell on his behind, but the fox’s gaze had already shifted from him to me. There was a moment, in which the fox and I just stared at one another, and all I noticed was that his eyes weren’t that of an animal; they were a cold brown.

And then I noticed the body still half-hidden by its crouched position, but there was distinctly a black outfit that could’ve once been a suit, and a distinct shock of blond hair. “Taz,” I breathed and slowly made my way forward. He stirred lightly and his blue eyes fluttered open, making my heart jump. I quickly checked his pulse. It wasn’t the best, but a lot better than the fox’s (Kyran’s?). He smiled at me slowly, the lazy grin spreading over his face. “Hello, Vivien,” he murmured softly, catching my wrist with his hand.

“Don’t scare me like that,” I muttered. Oh god, they were both still alive. Alive and well, for the most part, which was all I could ever ask for. I glanced behind me, but the sorcerers were gone, leaving their carriage, horses, and a spilled teacup on the ground. I cautiously helped Taz to a sitting position, and he almost immediately crumpled forward. I caught him lightly, and the Kyran looked behind him, teeth bared, and saw that Taz and I were okay, and slowly the fox shrank, and shrank, limbs twisting and snapping grotesquely to form the skinny servant I was used to. He was still covered in blood that I assumed was his own, and his shirt was torn as was his torso and the majority of his arms. He was also spotted with burns, and the skin on his hands were terribly burnt. “Oh, Kyran…” I murmured, and he shook me off with a brisk motion of his hand.

He helped Taz to his feet, despite how frail he looked, and despite the stares and gaps she was getting, helped both of us (my knees were knocking at this point) down the mound of rubble until Taz and I found the sturdy cobblestones beneath our feet. “Kyran, are you sure you’re okay?” I asked him when he stumbled a little. His lips were white at this point, too, and his fingernails were blue. He’d lost too much blood. He didn’t answer me. “Kyran. Are you-” His eyes rolled back in his head and he crumpled to the ground in a heap before vomiting up more blood. And then he passed out.

***

Kyran woke with a start, fingers clawing at the sheets and his lips parted in a silent scream. Pictures bloomed in front of his eyes and a snarl grew on his lips when he realized someone was gripping his shoulders. “Kyran. Kyran, relax,” the voice was saying and Kyran grabbed the hands with the intent to snap them like twigs, when he realized, oh. I was dreaming.