Liz Walker POV
That night, the foursome went to investigate the street where Eli had taken the picture while Liz paid a visit to the museum for her own private investigation. She knew something unusual was in the museum and had to find out what it was that was emanating magic.
Dressed in all-black casual attire and a hood pulled over her head, she walks down the street towards the large building with a clock on its top. Fortunately for her, there was no one walking around at this time to see her sneak into the museum. Breaking and entering seem to be second nature for her nowadays. She hopes it doesn't become a common occurrence.
Approaching closer, she walks toward the side of the museum and stands below a window. She looks around for a second before teleporting herself inside and appearing on the second floor of the building in the same area where she was earlier today. She glances around in the darkness, the moonlight from outside the windows casting dark shadows from displays across the indoor balcony floor. Liz shook slightly from the chill, the museum feeling eerie at night in the quiet darkness compared to its wonderous atmosphere during the day when its halls were brightly lit with soft chattering and shuffling feet of its visitors.
With heightened awareness for any passing security guards and quiet footsteps, she walks across the hallway of the indoor balcony, down a long flight of stairs to the first floor towards the section closed off with large white drapes. Ignoring the "do not enter" sign, she pulls back the drapes to the side and walks through.
Although there were no lights on, the moonlight from the skylights above gave her a visual of stacked wooden crates piled throughout the room, but in its center, something significant covered in a white sheet of cloth with scaffold platforms on both of its sides grabs her attention. Walking closer to the covered structure, she began to feel an aura of magic emanating from it, growing stronger with each step.
Once she stood before it, she felt chills go down her spine as though a cold wind blew through the room.
With a gulp, she lifts a hand to grab the covering and pull, the white sheet falling to the ground and revealing an incomplete large stone bridge with elaborate carvings on it. The Killahead Bridge.
Instead of backing away as she should have, Liz instinctively placed her hand on the cold stone surface. As soon as she did, the magic within reacted to her own, the elaborate carvings of the bridge glowing a shimmering blue with traces of silver coming from her hand. She gasped in shock, quickly pulling back her hand as the glow faded away. So, she was right! Bular has been rebuilding the bridge right under their noses, and he's halfway from completing it. But to build it here in a museum of all places? Someone who works for the museum must be helping him...a human.
Suddenly, the sound of a door creaking open and clicking footsteps in the hallways made Liz snap from her thoughts. Quickly, she waves a hand over the fallen sheets, the white drapes magically drawing back across the stone structure, covering it once more. With no time to spare, she runs to a side pile of wooden crates and ducks behind it. Peering from behind, she watches as the sound of clicking footsteps draws nearer and then stops before a hand pulls back the curtain, revealing the museum curator, Ms. Nomura.
The tall lady with shoulder-length black hair, wearing a purple jacket with matching ankle-length skirt and black high-heel boots, was carrying a wooden box in her hands. Luckily for Liz, Ms. Nomura went to the pile of crates to the opposite side and placed down the box on top. She must be the one helping Bular. It has to be. How else would the bridge be here in the first place? But then, why is she helping Bular? Maybe she was threatened to help him. Or maybe Bular bribed her in exchange for her aid. Nah, the first one makes more sense. Right?
But what happened next shattered all those predictions. A flash of green light encompasses the curator's figure, and in her stead stood a slender troll with purplish-fuchsia skin and long black hair that reaches down to her stifle-jointed legs. Liz had to quickly cover her mouth to keep herself from gasping in shock as the troll cracks opened the wooden box and took out what Liz believed to be a stone piece of the Killahead bridge. The troll - Nomura - turn to the side, revealing an extremely pointed chin and glowing cat-like green eyes that analyze the stone in its grasp, holding it up under the light of the moon.
She couldn't believe what she was seeing. A human transforming into a troll? But that's not -- no, it is possible. She has heard of a story about it before. What were they called again? Liz backs up a little as she thought it over to herself but accidentally knocks into a wooden crate behind her, a creaking noise breaking the silence and making her blood freeze.
Immediately the glowing, green slit-shaped eyes snap in Liz's direction, making her duck back behind the crate pile. Liz knew her time was up, so without a second thought, she teleports back outside on the side of the museum building. Glancing around her, she speedwalks down the street from the museum towards a nearby dark, empty alley and, without looking back, teleports again, this time into the safety of her apartment unit.
Just as she appeared in her apartment, Liz was met with a burst of screams. Without realizing it, she teleported into the living room, her back facing the TV, and in front of her was a startled Archie and Douxie sitting on the living room couch. Frozen in a fit of surprise, Douxie sat back wide-eyed with his mouth open, midway from eating a piece of orange chicken that tragically fell from his chopsticks. At the same time, Archie was splayed against the back of the couch, the ends of his fur standing up in fright of her sudden appearance, his serving bowl laying beside him with its contents spilled onto the cushions. Liz glanced down at the coffee table, filled with emptied Chinese take-out boxes. Her stomach grumbled at the sight, realizing she had not eaten dinner yet. She didn't know they're were having Chinese take-out tonight. She hopes they saved some for her, at least.
She didn't know whether to tease them for not sharing or laugh at their comical expressions, and she would have done either one if it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation she had just escaped from, her heart hammering in her chest from adrenaline. Liz ran a hand through her hair as she pulled back the hood from her head, revealing herself to them. Once they saw her face, Archie relaxed, and Douxie let out a breath, placing a hand over his heart. "Bloody hell, love. You almost gave us a heart attack."
Liz didn't reply, feeling the adrenaline fade from her system as a slight tremble in her legs sent her plopping down on the floor in front of the coffee table, the TV blaring behind her, but it was muted to her ears. Immediately, Archie noticed something was wrong. "You alright there, lass? You look a little...spooked."
Liz chuckles lightly. "Speak for yourself, Arch. But I hate to admit, you may be right. Especially after what I've just seen."
After placing the carton on the table, Douxie walked over to Liz, settling a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong? Did something happen during training?"
Liz shakes her head as Douxie helped her up from the floor. "I didn't train Jim tonight. We had a school trip to the museum earlier today, and I felt traces of magic there. I didn't know what it was, but then a student said he spotted goblin remains in the neighborhood last night, so the boys went out to check it. I opt-out to investigate the museum instead."
"Wait, are you telling me that you just broke into a museum? Alone? What were you thinking, Liz?" Douxie scolded.
"I couldn't help it, Doux. I had to check." Liz insisted. "There are goblins loose in the streets of Arcadia, and I was worried that the bridge has something to do with it. Since I felt magic in the museum, I thought that the bridge might be there. And it is! It's there! I saw it with my own eyes. But -- that's not all."
Douxie turned pale at her words, tensed with dread at the thought of Gunmar returning so soon. "Is the bridge completely rebuilt?"
"Fortunately, no. However, I saw something strange. The museum curator... she's human, but--she turned into a troll." Liz responded.
"What?!" Douxie and Archie exclaimed.
"I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. It happened right in front of me. She almost saw me, but I teleported out of there before she could catch me. And just in case, I went to the alley down the street before coming here directly." Liz tries to reassure them, but it doesn't seem to be working by the look on their faces.
Douxie grabbed onto both of Liz's shoulders, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. "But what would've happened if you were caught, Liz? None of us would be there to reach you if anything happened to you. You should've told us before acting on your own."
Liz merely shrugged. "I could always teleport myself out, Doux. I didn't want to waste any time in case the bridge was complete."
"If it were complete, Gunmar would have been here by now. And worse...if he saw you, he would have...." Douxie paused, closing his eyes in frustration as he squeezed Liz's shoulders. "...he would have killed you."
Face turning pale, Liz shudders at the thought, her mind suddenly filled with flashbacks of all the nightmares she had of Gunmar, with the outcome being the same: her death.
Without realizing it, Liz was pulled against Douxie's chest, his arms hugging her to him as he spoke. "I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't be bringing that up. I think that you should be more careful from now on. I know that you're not going to let this go no matter what I say, but I need you to promise me that you won't be doing this alone. No more solo missions. Please, love?"
Liz sighed and nodded against his shoulder. "I-I promise."
"Thank you." Douxie gradually relaxed, knowing Liz is the type to keep her promises no matter what.
"Ahem." A cough sounded, drawing their attention towards the couch as Archie sat perched on its back, his yellow eyes gazing lazily at them. "Now that our wizard's worries are finally settled, I would very much like to hear about that human turning into a troll. Care to elaborate more on that, my dear?"
"Right," Liz said, stepping back as Douxie let her go. "I have never seen anything like it before, but I have heard about it from one of Blink's lessons. I can't remember what they are called, but they're troll shapeshifters who were swapped with their human counterparts at birth and sent as spies in the human realm while their human familiars stay in the Darklands. I don't know how that's possible with the bridge being incomplete, but it's scary to think they're walking among humans without our knowledge."
Douxie nodded in agreement, wrapping his head around the thought of humans turning into trolls, but then an old memory crosses his mind of an ancient myth that his master once shared with him that sounds quite similar to this case. He cannot remember the details, but maybe he'll look it up in the GDT Arcane Books store and see what he can find.
"I just can't help but wonder how both the troll shapeshifter and goblins got here." Liz contemplated to herself, unaware that she spoke her thoughts aloud when Douxie replied. "Maybe Blinky might know."
"Yeah, I should go call Blinky right n--" Liz started when she suddenly let out a tired yawn. Douxie chuckled, ruffling her hair with his hand. "Check with him tomorrow, sleepyhead. Plus, you got school tomorrow, remember?"
"You're right. I overhead from Claire that the girls don't have PE tomorrow, so it should be fun having free time around then." Liz said as she stretched her arms out when she immediately froze, remembering the nightmares. "Speaking of sleeping, do you have anything that might help with the nightmares? The Dreamless Sleep potion doesn't seem to work anymore."
Douxie frowns, shaking his head. "I'm afraid not, love. I tried searching for other ways but came up empty."
Liz nodded but smiled softly, not wanting to make Douxie worry any longer. "It's alright. Maybe it's time for me to face these nightmares."
"But what if you wake up somewhere else like before? Or worse?" Douxie said in concern, thinking of the worst possible outcomes as Liz placed her hands on her hips. "Don't worry about me, Doux. If anything like that happens, I can simply teleport myself home or somewhere safe."
"And what if you can't teleport? Anything could happen, love." Douxie remarked, crossing his arms over his chest. Dropping her hands against her side, Liz sighed. "Then, I will figure out a way. I'm the Guardian, after all. I was trained to protect and defend. Not the other way around."
"Well, someone has to have your back." Douxie pointed out. Slowly, Liz places a hand on his crossed arms and smiles softly, thinking of those she knew she could always count on. "I know you do, Doux. I know that you, Arch, and the others will always have my back, but...someday, there will be a time when I have to see things on my own, and that's when I need you to trust me. Do you trust me, Doux?"
They stood like that for a silent moment until Douxie lets out a deep breath, uncrossing his arms and clasping her small hand into his own. Then with a smile, he nods.
"I trust you, love. Always."
Douxie Casperan POV
After giving Liz her share of Chinese take-out food to eat for dinner, Liz went to her room to sleep later that night. However, Douxie couldn't sleep, sitting on the couch as his mind raced with worry.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Archie asked, jumping onto the couch beside Douxie. Douxie groaned, leaning back onto the couch as he stared up at the ceiling, his hand petting Archie. "I'm afraid, Arch. If the bridge is here in Arcadia, then...."
"If it's Liz you're worried about, then you should know that nothing will happen to her," said the black cat, assuring his bonded wizard as he casually licks his paw. Douxie glances down at Archie with furrowed eyebrows. "How can you be so sure of that? What if...what if history repeats itself? I cannot let it happen the second time, Arch."
Archie sighs, hopping onto Douxie's lap and tapping the wizard's forehead with his paw. "You're overthinking it too much, old pal. Just as Liz said earlier, you need to trust her to face it on her own. She's been training as the Guardian for years, so she'll be prepared when the time comes. And besides, it is not our right to interfere with mortal affairs. You know that well more than anyone."
"But Liz isn't just any mortal she's--" Douxie began, but Archie interrupted. "You do well to remember your master's words, Douxie. We must not intervene until his return."
Douxie groaned. "Then, what do you suppose I do? Watch from the sidelines while Liz walks into danger?"
"The only thing we can do now, my old friend, is to prepare for the worse and hope for the best."
Looks like Douxie's getting worried. Then again, he should be because from this point on, everything will start to go downhill for our crew...lol this should be fun.
Original Art: Teny Issakhanian
Fanfic Question: What is your theory on Douxie's concerns?
Please don't forget to vote or comment, if you liked this chapter. I would love to hear what you all think. Happy reading!
- Miss_Nightingale