JIA
Rowan's face bleached of its colour and he pushed me away, pulling himself up. "She found me much earlier than intended."
"Who has?" I asked, following him inside.
"Vindicta!" he shouted, leaping down the stairs two at a time. "She's the witch I was— argh!"
"Rowan!" I screeched, grabbing his wrist as he almost fell over the landing. "Stop, you'll hurt yourself! Who is Vindicta?"
"I am."
I whirled around. Standing at the top of the stairs was a woman. A long, navy cloak was wrapped around her shoulders and pinched together with a silver clasp in the centre of her chest. She wore a dazzling green dress with a slit running until halfway up her thighs. She slipped back her hood to reveal a shock of curly red hair, the colour of my flames, and keen, violet eyes. Her thin lips were pursed and she studied me like I was a bacteria in a petri dish or a frog in a lab ready to be dissected.
"Rowan," I said, "why don't you give the nice lady her cat back and then we can be on our way."
"I can't do that, Mango." He stepped in front of me, right hand in his pocket and left hand gripping the bannister. "We need her help to solve our problem."
"Mango?" Vindicta's expression melted and a beam replaced it. "Oh, so you're the reason I lost my apprentice! Rowan would not stop talking about you–"
"Vindicta," he warned. "Don't."
Before I could even blink, she flew down the stairs and pushed Rowan aside. Her gelid fingers seized my chin and pulled my face to the side as her warm breath fanned over my cheeks.
She ran her tongue against her teeth and hummed. "Oh, I see now. You're suffering from the side character's curse, no? Final stage and about to Glitch. Not very fun."
Ding!
We turned to see the blue notification angled towards her.
Vindicta, don't do it. This will break the Law of Stories. Her fate has been sealed and there is nothing you can do to stop it.
She cackled. "Oh, System! Your petty laws do not apply to me." She turned to me. "Fate is such a bullshit concept designed by those in power to convince others their mistakes were all part of some non-existent, cosmological plan. It excuses bad behaviour, and I don't like excusing bad behaviour."
"I knew you'd help us, Teacher," Rowan spoke up.
"Silence, boy. Don't think I have forgiven you for your actions. Now, hand over my familiar before I turn you into a caterpillar and step on you."
Rowan rolled his eyes and thrust his hand to his right. To my astonishment, half of his arm disappeared into thin air. He tipped his head to the side and, finally, pulled something out with a triumphant shout.
"Oh, Miss Lilith!" Vindicta swooped down and snatched the raggedy tabby cat from Rowan's arms, holding her tight to her chest. "Oh, my precious cat, I'm so sorry the mean boy took you away!"
Miss Lilith meowed and purred, but then shot Rowan a nasty look with her ears pressed flat against the top of her head. A growl emerged from her throat and her red eyes burned with an unnatural brightness.
"Who are you?" I gaped, my mind reeled with the overload of information. "What are you?"
"My name is Vindicta, and I am a witch. I am the embodiment of every woman taken advantage of by those in power." Her voice shifted to be more melancholy, "I represent the ire of a forty-year-old woman who was diagnosed with hysteria after complaining of repeated aches, only for her autopsy to reveal endometriosis scars filling her body. I represent Medusa's rage after she was assaulted by a man, used as a tool to spite his enemy, and cast away by the goddess she served only to be slaughtered by a hero seeking glory. Millions of girls and women look towards the sky and scream for justice, for vengeance, against those who have wronged them. Weapons forged by grief and rage are the most powerful in the world, which is why the Law of Stories does not apply to me."
Vindicta laid a heavy hand on my shoulder and her voice dropped until it was barely above a whisper. "I represent your fury and anguish too, little one. I know what you have been through, I can see the scars on your soul left by those who sought only to use you. Let it all out, I will help you."
A burning sensation grew behind my eyes and, to my great astonishment, tears swept down my cheeks. A strangled half-cry escaped me and Vindicta pulled me into a hug, patting my head in comforting motions.
"I'm so tired," I sobbed. "I just want it all to stop."
"And it will, I promise." She stepped back and turned to Rowan, who had been studying the crevices in the handrail with a mixture of regret and sadness. "I need my cat, three bags of sea salt, candles, and a bottle of vodka."
"Vodka?" Rowan's brows furrowed in disbelief. "Is that for the spell?"
"No, that's to make me feel better about ripping a hole in the universe."
**
It was much easier to get the salt than I thought it would be. The kitchen was in a riot about the banquet so I just had to toss a bag of coins at one of the servants and he was happy to let me walk away with the bags. I used my dragon strength to haul it up the stairs. Rowan was in charge of the candles and managed to grab a huge stack by putting the guards to sleep.
"Alright." Vindicta popped open the bottle of alcohol and downed half of it in one go. She smacked her lips with relish and nodded. "Good stuff." Then, she waved her hand and a shimmering veil appeared between the top of the stairs and the third floor– I recognised it as a shield to deter any guests who might make their way up.
"Won't that destroy her liver?" I asked Rowan quietly as we huddled together in the corner to stay out of Vindicta's way when she organised the candles and salt in a pattern on the ground.
He shook his head. "Nah, witches have a much stronger defence system than normal humans, so she'll be fine."
"I see." A mischievous grin spread across my face and I nudged him in the ribs. "Talked about me all the time, huh?"
His ears reddened and a flush spread across the back of his neck. "Shut up."
"Aww," I cooed. "I didn't know you cared about me that much."
"I don't. I mostly talked about how annoying you are."
"Liar." I teased, looping my arm around his. "I know you very well now I have my memories back. Once we get back to our world, we'll have all the time to talk about it."
For a second, he hesitated, something strange flashed through his eyes. Then, he smiled. "Yeah, definitely. We can visit all the places we want. And you can finally tell me your real name."
Hope fluttered in my stomach. My real name. My own identity. Hey, maybe I even have a family too.
A slow warmth spread through my being. Perspiration trickled down my back and I fanned myself by flapping my hand. "Is it just me or is it really hot right now?"
"Probably 'cus I'm here– oh. No, your dress is on fire. Ah!" Rowan wrenched off his coat and dropped it over the bottom of my dress, patting out the flames until half of the skirt was a charred clump.
"How did that happen?" I panted, pressing my hand against my chest as if to force oxygen back into my lungs. My dragon-shifter status had protected me from the burns, but it did nothing to alleviate the shock.
"It's the system, child!" Vindicta called, pouring a steady stream of salt in a squiggly line. Miss Lilith followed her owner dutifully, careful to not mess up the lines already drawn. "You must have done something to create a plot hole, but the story doesn't want to expel you. So the system is trying to find a logical way to remove you from the story and it seems to be going for the burn to death route." She glanced at Rowan. "It seems you were not entirely complacent in your studies."
Ding!
It's not too late to take back your decision, Story Traveller. If you continue, you will not escape this unscathed.
I tilted my chin upward with Rowan's presence behind me. "Leave me alone, System."
"Done!" Vindicta exclaimed, stepping back to admire her handiwork. "Not too shabby, if I do say so myself."
In the centre was a wide circle of high salt. Going outwards was a set of squares turned on their side, then wavy lines joined each peak. After that was a series of striations and spirals which made my head spin the longer I looked at it, then strange symbols which I couldn't decipher. Candles were dotted around in a seemingly random order and, when the witch clapped, all set ablaze with a tiny spark.
"Now, for the fun part." Vindicta took a deep breath then chanted. The inflection of her words rose and fell to form a sort of song which followed a steady pulse. The salt shifted, then began to burn a coruscating white. Miss Lilith hissed, her back curved, and her black stripes began to glow.
A rumble passed through the castle.
I thought it was part of the spell, but Vindicta's brief halt in speaking and quizzical tilt of her head made me think otherwise.
I turned towards the stairs and swore.
Soldiers armed with lances and swords clashed over the stairs, followed by men and women draped in cloaks the colour of twilight– magicians. At their head was Calix, face contorted into hideous rage unbefitting of someone of his role.
"Lady Jia!" he roared, banging a fist on the blockade. "I hereby declare you guilty of illegal sorcery and insulting a knight of the Imperial army. Stand down now, and you will be given a fair trial." I doubt that.
"Quickly, child, you must enter the portal before he gets here!" Vindicta dug her fingers into my shoulder and pulled me over. "I cannot sustain both the wall and the portal!"
"Wait!" I shouted as the crowd swelled and cracks started to appear in the air with the magicians' chanting. "What about Rowan? He said he'd come with me too!"
Vindicta flinched and licked her lips, an uncharacteristically morose shadow passed over her face. "Only one person is allowed to go through and... the Dreamer agreed to stay behind to pay the price for breaking the story."
"What?" The blood chilled in my veins. I tugged myself free and rounded on the Dreamer. "Ro, what is she talking about? I'm not– I'm not leaving without you!"
His grey eyes shone silver and his hands skimmed my arms before pulling me into a tight hug. "I'm sorry I lied, Mango. Wait for me on the other side."
Rowan shoved me back.
I shrieked, trying to drag him with me, but he evaded my grasp. His lips formed words I could not read, and tears slipped down his cheeks. But he looked happier than I'd ever seen him. Content, even.
There was a flash of white.
Frozen hands tore through my body. My back arched as a blinding pain bolted through me.
"Don't worry," a lilting voice said, "I'll send him back to you."
Then I was spinning.
Down.
Down.
Left.
Right.
Back up–
Falling through nothing–
Nothing was here. Darkness. I'm.....
Cold.
Everywhere and nowhere.
I was–
Who am I?
Falling. Again.
Down.
Down. Up.
Down.
And then–
I jolted upright.
Nisha.
My name.
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Total word count: 26 424
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