Today was supposed to be a time to relax. Róisín wanted the familiar comforts of a rosewater-scented bath, with the bath being sweetly accented by actual pink rose petals and green apple-scented candles lining the room. The linen towels would have been freshly pressed and her auburn hair would be floating dreamily in the water as the bath accentuated her natural beauty.
No, she had to be sitting in an abandoned computer cafe negotiating—the mere word sent a tremor to her neck—with the bitch who stole her money through a computer terminal.
"If you refuse to turn over my money, rest assured that I will use the considerable financial and human resources at my disposal to track you down to whatever hovel you've holed yourself in, strip you of everything that you held dear, and dump you in a place where neither heaven nor earth can find your worthless body," she threatened.
I believe that you have considerable financial resources and people to do as you bid. I doubt you would be able to find me. I've concealed my presence in the real world. No virtual inspector would be able to discover my location.
Róisín sneered at the flickering blue symbol on the computer. Aquarius the Waterbearer, just like her lessons taught her.
"If you truly have no fear of me, then you would be party to all of your financial assets seized, liquidated, and turned over to my company and family, whom you've deeply wronged." She already had her phone out. She could call the company's chief cybersecurity experts, and ask them to comb through every crumb that this would-be hacker would have inevitably left behind.
I'm not afraid of your company, your board, or your family. There are more dangerous threats loose in the world. I think your family would be well aware of the nature of your threats.
She kept a calm façade. Aunt Alcyone always told her to never show any weakness in the face of her enemies. Róisín imagined herself on top of a throne of bones, dominating over all that opposed her. She would think about the exact structure later. For now, she sought restitution. The liquidation of the ingrate's bank accounts satisfied her. Their home was unlikely to be worth much, but the land would be valuable enough. Another property of hers to own. As for the bitch...she was hers to do as she pleased, once she found out their identity.
"Return the twenty million euros you stole from Seven Sisters Investment Holdings without any latent Trojan horses or any such viruses, and you will be untouched." Róisín narrowed her pale green eyes. "This would be a mercy."
I will decline your offer and make a counteroffer instead. Your ill-gotten twenty million euros, with no strings attached, directed to the bank account registered in Lemuria. In return, I will require your services in escorting two persons of interest. One is a close friend of the Libra of the Seventh House, the other is the Dog of the Eleventh Gate.
This person claimed to possess the Dog and...a random human? Tch, they couldn't take the Libra herself and decided to grab the next best person. How worthless.
You can accept my offer, or I use it for my ends. There are a few charities in need of a large donation. For the Orphans of Calamity Fund, the Red Cross, and Amnesty International, a boost in their finances would do wonders. It would be in your name, seeing how you exemplify the virtue of generosity.
The threat of them touching her money made Róisín recoil internally. She summoned her hammer in case she needed it. The ingrate lived in the digital network, so smashing computer terminals wouldn't be helpful. The company's IT experts couldn't find where the money had vanished. They were a ghost, nearly untraceable. To send her an encrypted message telling her to meet here alone and with such insane demands that any sensible person would have refused, they must have been desperate.
"Why do you need me for an escort?" she asked the flickering blue waves. "You could have easily hired someone."
Because my enemies are merciless against any private security company or escort service I could think of hiring. I need the Taurus of the Second House. The girl is defenceless and only the Dog would not suffice. I'm looking to acquire the Key for the Door to the Eleventh Gate and return it to its rightful owner.
The Keys...Aunt Asterope talked about them. Twenty-four artefacts imbued with the energy of the cosmos and the universe scattered in fear of dangerous powers taking advantage of them. She had begged Aunt Asterope for the location of her Key to possess it when the time came, but Róisín knew that the location was never entrusted to anyone and the fall of the Second House rendered that information lost.
To sweeten the deal, I'll reveal my cards: The Dog of the Eleventh Gate is known as the Watcher on the Wall, and she sees all, even those that wish not to be found or can't be found. Perhaps her powers and abilities would be of use to you.
She was about to rebut the Aquarius' argument, but she couldn't find anything. The computer terminal started glowing an electric blue before exploding and ejecting two people onto the cracked tiles. One of them was a girl her age, her long black hair covering her face as she looked at Róisín's white horns with something that could be called admiration. It was strange. The other was a woman dressed in ancient Chinese armour the colour of the terracotta army in China and a helmet of the same material in the same colour. A nearby computer terminal blinked on.
Here are the two you promised to escort. As soon as you attain the Key, I'll give back your money. When you go back to your limo, there will be a file named "for_europa". There will be three fake passports and three tickets to a flight from Dublin Airport to Lake District Airport that leaves tomorrow at 0400 hours. Further instructions will come once all three of you have landed.
The girl started speaking to the computer terminal in another language. Japanese? How did the Aquarius know her code name?
The Key is located in a semi-remote location. Due to the lack of the Internet and the rarity of technologically equipped vehicles in this location, I am unable to assist any of you past landing at Lake District Airport. If needed, the Japanese girl has my phone number, but only in emergencies.
The computer shut down, leaving Róisín, the girl with black hair, and the Dog standing in an abandoned computer café in the middle of the night. She supposed she was stuck with them until she got her money back and visited vengeance upon the Aquarius for daring to steal from her. The limo was suitable for them, as the Aquarius could be watching for any signs of mistreatment.
"Come with me," she demanded.
The girl eagerly followed, chatting with her phone. The woman shrugged and took off her helmet, revealing hair the colour of a burnt carrot and two upright dog ears. She also had a bushy tail, Róisín noticed. The girl's clothes were mediocre and not becoming of a proper aristocrat, as her Aunt Taygete would have said.
Once in the black limo with the rain pounding, she secluded herself in the section reserved for board members of the Seven Sisters. Róisín was thankful that her dress absorbed none of the rain. She did like it, often playing in it when she was younger.
"Seamus, the Pleiades Mansion!"
"As you say, Ms. Ó Laoghaire!"
The limo lurched forward. Róisín liked the absolute obedience of the staff and servants. No one at the Seven Sisters dared to think of usurping any of the Pleiades, such was their grip on the company. She rolled down the window behind her and felt the soft rain on her skin. In her hand, she imagined a teardrop-shaped emerald and it manifested in her hand. Leaving it in Seamus' favourite drawer, she waited. The two at the back didn't make a fuss except for the girl's awe at being in a limo.
The familiar sight of Pleiades Mansion comforted her. It was made in stone, dating back to the founding of the company. Ivy vines snaked across its dark and foreboding facade, yet the topiary was amusing. Aunt Electra was always changing the shapes. Sometimes they were giraffes, serpents, elephants, or bulls. They were bulls, as they have been since she left three weeks ago. Róisín oversaw their maintenance, as one of the few manual labour duties she had.
Once Seamus stopped, a valet opened the door for her. Neither of them had to worry about her being wet owing to the large stone archway attached to the mansion. He also opened the door for the Dog and the girl, who were both surprised by the valet's presence. Róisín knocked on the door, which Callum opened.
"After you, Ms Ó Laoghaire. I see you have guests as well." He nodded to the Dog and the girl. "What are your names?"
"Nishikawa Hina." The girl bowed deeply. This was a way to greet others in Japan. Róisín needed to refresh herself on Japanese etiquette rules.
"Willa Divata Baccay." The woman spoke English with a brisk accent, likely from the Americas.
"Come in." Callum beckoned all three in.
Hina had found herself a chair to watch the maids handle the laundry. Willa didn't bother to sit, leaving for a discrete room on the left. Róisín felt at home with the white marbled floors and double staircases. The dark blue ceilings were patterned after the Taurus constellation, while the floor beheld the Seven Sisters in stellar form. The maids were mostly cleaning and tidying up the place. Several were walking briskly with piles of fresh laundry. Róisín approached the bronze cowbell and started ringing it loudly. All of the maids and servants stopped what they were doing.
"I need to leave for a flight to Dublin Airport tomorrow that will depart at 4:00 am. I want three suitcases filled with travel-ready clothes and outdoor clothes and all of the necessary items from my vanity within the hour. For the guests, pack two suitcases each. In my absence, everyone reports to their head, and the heads will report to Callum in all manners." Róisín clapped twice.
In an instant, the maids all scurried to perform their duties. Hina appeared to be astonished by the speed at which they shuffled in and out of the rooms.
One of the servants approached her with the emerald green telephone. "Excuse me Ms. Ó Laoghaire. A telephone call from Mr. Conor Ó Ceallaigh."
"I'll take that, thank you very much." She nestled the bulky telephone underneath her chin. "Dia duit Conor."
"Dia duit! How's my parents' nest egg?"
Ah, the impish and all-knowing Conor Ó Ceallaigh. "It's growing well on Lemuria. I'm surprised you haven't hijacked your parents' private jet and flown there."
"And I'm surprised that you haven't been shaving off the little eggshells to fund your family's, ah what should I call it, extraneous activities?"
"Am I supposed to act as if you were an innocent saint? I doubt that the hedge fund investors consented to having their money used to stage Shakespeare plays and James Joyce productions in Irish Gaelic."
"You wound my heart, my little rose! As long as we, ah, keep skimming only the tiniest bit off of our eggs, we should be fine. Speaking of which, did you catch the person who skimmed off your eggs?"
"That's being dealt with privately, none of your family's money was touched."
"Great! Slán go fóill, tabhair aire."
"Slán go fóill, tabhair aire." She hung up.
Róisín watched the maids and servants quickly packing everything up in seven grass-green suitcases and walking up the stairs, her tail flicking lazily. Portraits of herself lined each wall. Aunt Celaeno painted her on her birthday each year, watching her blossom from infant to dawdling toddler to lively child to young lady. She fixed some of the more crooked portraits as the servants scurried about, their cow tails flicking like her own.
When the seven sisters sought to recreate the Second House in what they called the Lower World, Róisín wondered how they managed to adapt. Certainly, change was hard. She could attest to that, being suddenly enrolled in a private school at the age of twelve and forced to interact with her peers. Luckily she had managed to befriend Conor and join a reputable club, but her fate had always lain beyond the Lower World and its denizens.
Someone was yelling at something. It was none of the maids or servants. Probably one of her guests. Hina had been spirited away to a changing room by two of the strongest maids, so it had to be Willa, the Dog. Approaching the extra room, she listened through the keyhole.
"Let me talk to them, all you've sent them was a single message!"
Silence.
"What do you mean 'it's for my good'?! I need to talk to Liza, Dana and Jenny...my oldest sister is in a coma! I want to talk with them? Wait what are you—don't hang up on me!"
Róisín had sprinted away from the door in time for Willa to slam the door wide open, tears falling from her eyes. She motioned for three servants to fix the door. Meanwhile, Hina was dressed in a white blouse with a ruffled collar and two pockets, beige dress pants with discreet pockets, and black polished shoes—and now chasing after Callum's black bull tail.
"Ms. Nishikawa, I must beg of you, my tail is not to be used as a duster—gah!"
The maids that dragged her into the changing room were now trying to drag her away from a frightened Callum. Willa was standing in the middle of the floor pondering the massive constellation below her, her tail twitching.
Róisín coughed to grab her attention. "If we want to be able to board the plane, we have to detransform. It's in a public airport." She reminded herself to wring the Aquarius' neck for putting her in economy class.
Willa nodded and left with a maid in tow. Terracotta light emanated from one of the changing rooms. Following her example, Róisín sequestered herself and recited the words to detransform.
"Prosperity has been acquired and the rose is no longer in season."
Green light bathed her, leaving her hair a little less reddish and her eyes a little bit duller. She summoned maids to dress her with a ring of the cowbell and let them apply sweet-smelling perfumes and lotions to her body.
Two hours later, Willa had been outfitted in one of Róisín mother's old adventuring outfits, complete with a plaid cap to her surprise. She had on a white sundress with pink roses patterned on it. Without their respective animal traits, they looked more like Hina than any of her staff.
"You look nice," she complimented Willa as they both entered the limo.
Willa didn't say anything in return.
Róisín commanded Seamus to drive them to Dublin Airport. All of the necessary forms were already prepared in the compartment. She used the biometric scanner and unlocked the terminal inside the limo. She clicked on the file labelled "for_europa" and watched as her amulet printed out all of the fake passports and the tickets needed to board the flight. Róisín was glad that it wasn't a ferry. She hated going near the ocean.
"Passports please?"
All three of them handed over their passports one by one. The boarding agent scanned them and read their names out.
"Grainne Doyle, Saori Inoue, and Alma Mendoza?"
All of them nodded.
"The two thousand euro fee for flying with any airline?"
Róisín deposited the cash in front of the boarding agent, causing Willa and Hina's eyes to widen in disbelief.
"The insurance forms stating that the airline is not liable for your health and safety in the case of an unexpected Calamity?"
The forms were pushed in front of the agent.
"The insurance forms for your luggage, stating that the airline is not liable for the safety of your luggage and has permission to jettison them in case of emergency?"
She reluctantly handed the forms over. The thought of any of her belongings being jettisoned to save the flight disgusted her and she internally winced at such a vulgar and outrageous action. If any of these inferior beings thought to even smear her perfect suitcases—
"Alright. All three of you are cleared for flying."
Hina thanked the lady while Róisín and Willa pushed past the gate before a group of talkative individuals followed. After getting through Customs, they were stuck waiting for their flight. Hina left to buy donuts. Róisín and Willa waited for her, neither saying a word. Not for the first time, Róisín wondered how much Willa would want to be paid to find specific people.
After realising that Hina was taking too long and helping her order donuts despite her distaste for the inherent inferiority of airport food, they walked back to their gate. The same group from before was behind them. Róisín decided to go to the jewellery store, trying on whatever cheap imitations they had. Leaving the store, the girls continued onwards. Aunt Maia taught her to be aware at all times, especially when she was alone.
They were being tailed.
Willa must have noticed them as well, dragging them around the airport and at one point trying to mask their presence by standing close to a fast-food restaurant. Now that Róisín thought about it, Willa's nose crinkled every time she was close to her. She thankfully resisted and managed to keep her signature rosewater and apple scent untainted by the smell of fryer grease and oil. The flight was starting to board, so Róisín pushed everyone to their gate. After they finished checking in, she looked behind her—and saw that the same group was also boarding with them. Róisín and Willa started picking up the pace a little, slightly dragging a confused Hina along with them.
Róisín stored all of their suitcases in the overhead compartment across from them, much to the consternation of some of the other passengers. The saving grace of their economy class seats was that they were facing a window. Unfortunately, the view was mostly blocked by an aeroplane wing. Hina didn't mind taking the window seat while Willa chose the aisle seat to guard them and Róisín was left alone with the middle seat.
While putting her seatbelt on, the screen on the back of the seat in front of her crackled to life. Electric blue started overtaking the mandatory aeroplane safety video.
"The enemies you mentioned, they're sitting at the back," Róisín relayed to the Aquarius.
I'm already aware of them. Nothing will happen on this flight.
Róisín had more questions, but since the aeroplane was taking off and she did not want to ask questions while her ears were popping, she waited until the plane was aloft in the air.
Hina decided to fall asleep, leaving Róisín alone with a silent Willa. Her eyes were still red. Feeling more than a little bored with a stoic wall beside her, she decided to probe the worthless ingrate.
"How do you know my code name? Only my family calls me Europa."
According to my files, Europa is one of your courtesy names, and the one currently used.
When going over the history of the Second House, Aunt Alcyone had not covered her titles or list of names. She knew she had multiple names, but not the true name.
The Houses used courtesy names frequently, bestowed on them by the Gemini of the Third
House three thousand years ago. The Gates used courtesy names as well since it was them who had brought the custom from ancient China. Ganymede is a courtesy name of the Aquarius of the Eleventh House. It's not my real name.
"You hide under falsehoods because you're afraid of retribution."
I'm not the one spinning falsehoods. Your family has always operated under a facade of respectability and abused their control over others' money for their purposes.
"How dare you besmirch the Pleiades—"
Do you want to lecture me on image and respectability? There's a reason why you want to protect the Dog and it has nothing to do with twenty million euros and everything to do with the Seven Sisters.
The nerve of this bitch...Róisín turned towards Willa. Her eyes were wary, but she spoke nonetheless.
"What solution?"
In the event of an attempted offensive, I have various countermeasures in place.
"Oh really?" Róisín sneered. "What can you do?"
Any attempt to leave their seats would be crushed by the flight attendants. Voice mimicry through a computer could be easily accomplished, but not as well as the Gemini could do it. The flight controls are under my purview and the black box answers to me and only me. I could crash this plane into the Atlantic Ocean and erase its very existence from the world. Of course, I've planned methods of escape for all three of you. Your survival is important.
Willa's eyes were scanning the area. Her gaze stopped at a mother rocking her baby to sleep, a man regaling the man beside him with a jaunty song, a woman sleeping in her partner's lap, and two small children drawing in an activity book.
"What about the other passengers?"
The objective is of paramount importance. If they are the price to pay to achieve it, so be it.
The Aquarius spoke like her Aunt Taygete, only more uncouth. Willa's grip on the seatrests strengthened, but she didn't say anything afterwards. Hina was still dozing off underneath clear blue skies. She remembered that the Libra was known to be discerning in her choice of lovers and friends. Ms. Nishikawa wasn't a girl she would consider refined by her or Aunt Taygete's standards. What were the Libra's friends like? Róisín knew that the others wouldn't be as instructed as thoroughly as she was. The Libra's judgement was known to be absolute, and she was not known to make any wrong decisions. Perhaps there was a well-hidden reason why Hina was chosen to be the Libra's friend.
The Dog has shown a brusque manner at times. How much money would Willa accept? She was astonished by her pulling out two thousand euros for the agent, so that should be enough to pay her off. Unless she demanded more for her skillset. In that case, Róisín wouldn't go any higher than five thousand euros. More than that, and that would be blatant robbery. She smiled at the thought. Aunt Alcyone helped set up her bank account and taught her how to manage her finances. She would have loved to hear her mother and aunts' voices one more time...but all she had was the Dog. Róisín tapped on Willa's shoulder.
"I want to pay you two thousand euros for your services in tracking down seven individuals." Willa didn't respond. "Three thousand euros." Nothing. "Four thousand." Still nothing. "Five thousand, that's my final offer."
"Who?"
She jumped a little internally. "Who?! Does that matter? How much do you want? I know you have tracking and detection powers beyond comparison."
Willa shrugged.
"I—You must want something. Everyone wants something. What about whoever Liza, Dana, and Jenny are?"
That seemed to have Willa's attention. "Ummm, I don't want anything."
Explaining this—this is worse than explaining their appearance to new investors and why the robes were necessary. "The Seven Sisters are the women who raised me from when I was born to who I am now. Their names are Maia, Electra, Taygete, Alcyone, Celaeno, Asterope, and Merope in that order. My last conversation with any of them was three weeks ago when they departed. Their last known locations are known only to me. I will pay you five thousand, six thousand, seven thousand, ten thousand euros if you could just find them." Why was she offering more than her set maximum amount of money?!
Willa's face...softened. "They're your family. That's why you want to pay me."
Róisín hmphed.
Willa seemed to take that as a time to smile. "I feel lost here. Ganymede...is a person, and I can't agree with Ganymede's methods. I want to go home and be with my family as well." Her eyes were piercing. "I know you don't want to be here. I have three sisters and a niece ten years younger than you. If any of them were in your position, they would be doing what you are trying to do. So I won't accept your money, but I'll still help you find your family." She raised her right hand.
"Left hand." Why did everyone assume she was right-handed?! Even her classmates tried to shake her right hand after seeing her write and draw in class!
Willa used her left hand to shake her hand.
The flight passed without incident. Hina woke up just in time for the food cart to pass by their row, ordered apple juice, drank all of it in one gulp, and slept again. Róisín refused the food and Willa accepted some small pretzels. They ate in silence, Róisín occasionally glancing at Willa. After that conversation, she felt more comfortable around her.
"What does the Key to the Eleventh Gate look like?" she asked Willa just before they descended.
She shrugged. Perhaps, Róisín thought, there shall be a great trial to prove Willa's worth. Aunt Electra reminded her daily that to be worthy of holding her Key, she must pass the test suited to her.
Once they landed, they rushed through the arrivals section of the airport. On their way to the exit, Róisín noticed the group that was following them being stopped by airport security. More officials swarmed them and all she caught was that the group was on a no-fly list from quickly whispered gossip. This must have been the Aquarius' doing. Hina's phone started to ring and she answered it.
"Konnichiwa? Ano, Ganimedo-san!" Hina handed the phone to Róisín. "Sore wa anata no tame desu."
Róisín accepted the call. "What do you want?"
"Go to the bus station. Enter the bus closest to the crosswalk."
Róisín relayed that information. "And now about twenty million euros—"
"You'll get your money when you deliver the key to the Dog, and not earlier."
Ganymede hung up.
Grumbling internally, she kept pace with an excited Hina. Willa was watching out for anyone suspicious, judging from her constant head swivelling. The bus station had four buses, two of which were accepting passengers. Róisín was about to approach the bus, before being tapped on the shoulder by Hina.
"Karera wa shitsumon ga ō sugimasu." She pointed to the bus driver, who was being questioned by a group of men.
"Have you seen a Filipino woman with an athletic build, brown eyes, and black hair travelling with two teenagers recently? One of the teenagers is Japanese with long black hair, brown eyes, and a skinny frame; the other is Irish with auburn hair and green eyes with a stocky build?"
Róisín dialled the unknown number on Hina's phone. "Find us another bus. Yours is compromised."
"Take the other bus furthest from the crosswalk on your right. All buses will now be accepting passengers."
She hung up and directed everyone and their suitcases to the other bus. The bus driver didn't ask for identification and thankfully neither did he ask for a fee. They all took seats in different rows and stuffed their suitcases underneath their seats. The bus quickly drove off, but not before the same group of men managed to board the bus.
Willa and Róisín shared a glance before Hina discreetly showed them her text messages from the row in front of both of them.
Don't leave. That will draw suspicion.
The men quickly filed into the bus seats. Two of them decided to sit next to Willa. The rest seated themselves in a seemingly haphazard fashion. Aunt Celaeno always taught her to look for patterns, and she was seeing that now. Three took up the row closest to the front, Hina was boxed in, and Róisín was also surrounded by three, including the two next to Willa. She was separated from the man by an old lady. The man seemed amiable enough, tipping his hat to her. She noticed that all of them were wearing hats with large brims, obscuring their faces from the camera. Willa was looking increasingly uncomfortable.
The bus drove off. Róisín still found the English countryside beautiful with its green fields and rolling hills. She would always prefer the Irish countryside, but this was pleasant enough. It was a long fifteen minutes, during which Róisín decided to imagine all of the ways she would punish these men for following her. She could transform right here, turn them all into precious gems, smash them with her hammer, summon petals to befuddle them, summon petals inside their stomachs, hit them with her bronze amulet...she eyed the man's expensive hat. Such a pity.
The tourists on this bus were admiring the landscape and snapping photos. Willa was more focused on the two men talking about the weather, with one of them occasionally eying her. Hina had managed to stay awake and kept jabbing her elbow into the dark-haired man beside her. When he looked at her, she promptly pretended to sleep, knocking into a disgruntled middle-aged man who mumbled something in Welsh. The men were quiet, only stopping to chat about the weather, the landscape, their non-existent social media pages, and their non-existent families. They must be inferior in some way, Róisín thought, or why would they be here chasing after three girls?
The man in her row was discussing the stock market with the old lady.
"...so my thoughts were that the new American biotech company is on the rise! I decided to buy a few stocks, and after selling them, I was rewarded richly! I think the price is about ten euros right now. You should buy it now before they climb any higher." He looked at Róisín. "Sorry ma'am, but can you excuse me? I want to speak with the young lady near the window. Do you mind if we switch seats?"
"Oh, no need!" The old lady happily traded spots with the young man.
The young man was content with relaxing in his seat, yet something glinted at his belt. A metallic device, with a liquid-filled chamber. It wasn't like anything that Róisín had seen, but she remained wary regardless. There were multiple exit points, all of them through the windows. She had the strength to grab Hina, but the transformation had to be fast. Róisín knew nothing about the man sitting beside her whistling, or who he was working for. Considering they were outnumbered, interrogation was not an option. Besides, she doubted that Willa would agree to her breaking their hands with her hammer.
She and Willa shared a glance. Aunt Asterope had a code for quick emergencies: blink for the number of seconds for the beginning of your plan. Róisín blinked three times, mouthing the word "seconds" in English. If this went well, it wouldn't matter if the men caught on. Willa blinked in acknowledgement. Róisín shared it with Hina, touching the back of her wrist instead. Hina droopily nodded.
Close to the three-second mark, the young man moved closer to her.
"Excuse me miss, can I move a little closer? I seemed to have dropped something—"
Both of them had their weapons out. The moment he grabbed his syringe gun, she already had her bronze amulet out.
"Call forth the bounty of the spring and let fortune favour the emerald fields. Prosperity is not within my grasp and the rose is in season."
Pink rose petals swirled around her neck, creating a necklace in the shape of the Taurus glyph while her body became encased in a crystal. Emerald rose earrings sprouted from her ears as her horns crystallised. Her hair gradually became reddish and her green gown manifested around her body. The bronze hammer formed out of rose petals and she sent crystalline shards flying everywhere, catching on multiple people's clothing.
Two rows behind her, Willa also transformed, managing to put on her helmet as the two men tried to puncture her skin with a syringe gun. The man tried to inject the syringe into Róisín's neck, only for the needle to shatter on impact. Róisín smiled before smashing his skull with her hammer. It made a satisfying crunch.
Grabbing Hina from the seat and knocking aside the man beside her, Róisín smashed her fist through the window, with Willa trailing behind. The men were yelling and chasing them. She started running, remembering her mother's maxim: "A strong mind needs a strong body." Of course, she had immediately defeated Róisín in hand-to-hand combat.
They charged through the plains, Róisín creating unbreakable diamond barriers and sapphire columns to slow them down. They weren't equipped with long-range weaponry, which made sense considering how strict the United Kingdom was with guns and no one expected anyone to be carrying around bows in this day and age.
Willa was running quickly, finally shapeshifting into a reddish brown and white dog. Hina was still groggy. Shooting showers of sharp emeralds at her opponents, Róisín quickly checked Hina. Her neck had been nicked by the syringe gun, likely while Róisín grabbed her. She kept sprinting, following Willa.
Finally, they managed to outrun their pursuers, with Willa circling the area and transforming back into a human. She sniffed the air.
"We're clear."
Róisín let Hina down. She was sleeping now. Meanwhile, Róisín observed the surrounding area. There were a few stones scattered here and there, but there was an intact wall section further away. Aunt Maia had drilled geography into her head, so she knew where they were based on the airport they left and her limited knowledge of the Eleventh Gate. Unfortunately, Aunt Celaeno's lesson slipped her mind, but she knew that the Dog guarded a wall between existence and non-existence.
They were standing near Hadrian's Wall. Willa was observing the area. Did she recognise where they were? It was hard to see her expression as the helmet obscured part of her face. She was interested in the rocks and was looking at one with a worn-out inscription in what looked like Latin.
"What does it say?" she asked Willa.
"Cave canem," Willa replied...her voice was deeper now. More earthy.
Before Róisín could react, Willa pressed her amulet into the stone. It glowed yellow, with yellow lines streaking off into the horizon in geometric patterns. All of them formed a square, or squares within squares, and they were perfect. They shone like the earth itself had decided to embrace Willa.
Willa herself was changed. Her eyes glowed yellow, and so did the rest of her body. Her armour was floating and it seemed she was caught in a trance. Her amulet glimmered, with all five symbols lighting up with terracotta light. Everywhere else was lit in yellow squares, sectioned off and shaped like a wall.
She tried to remember her lessons. The Gates utilised five types of energy, each with a corresponding colour. Wood was blue-green, fire was red, earth was...yellow. The Dog and the Eleventh Gate were associated with earth, so it made sense the site of the Key of the Eleventh Gate was in yellow. The squares almost overlapped where Róisín supposed the original wall once stood. She felt the brimming stability, the steadfast resoluteness emanating from its core, and felt rejuvenated by it. She was connected to the element of earth as well.
The Dog of the Eleventh Gate has come to fulfil her duty.
The energy spoke?
Of course we do, Keeper of the Gardens. The Wall is stirring for the first time in three cycles. The towers stand erect for their commandant and the beacons eagerly await the signal that will call upon the forces of the Upper World to bear arms against those that wish for its destruction. The scouts slumber still, but in time, they shall be called upon to shield the Lower World as their duty demands of them.
She sensed a hidden clause there.
Propriety has forced our hand here. The Dog has neglected her duties to such an extent that her obedience to the tenets of the Eleventh Gate was in doubt. Such a lack of conviction in the face of unimaginable adversity is unthinkable. To prove this candidate's fidelity in the face of time unending, there shall be a trial. If she is to undertake the mantle of the Watcher on the Wall with all of its attendant responsibilities, she must have a pure and unsullied mind.
The squares pulsed with a greater intensity as Willa briefly struggled against them before finally yielding and letting her arms hang limply.
...interlopers in our midst!
A low buzzing sound resonated far beyond the horizon. The men she knew immediately. Hina was still unconscious and Willa...she tried waving her hands back and forth. Nothing. She couldn't do anything to Willa nor could Willa help them.
She was going to have to defend them by herself.