The Being in the Belfry - Cover art by Lyritwolf

I don't know why I haven't posted this here yet. Oh well, no time like the present. This is a little something I wrote for the wonderful . Check her out she's awesome! I tend to give my character's free range to do as they please in my stories and head, but Isaac is a little freer than most. When I got done reading Lyrit's backlog of world-building. This is what Ike slapped into my forehead with the command to write it. Once again, I'm so glad she let my pushy interloper intrude upon her world. Of course, that's what Isaac's good at after all. Lyrit happily edited and provided the cover art for this piece. Again, AWESOME! As always I value any input and hope you enjoy. Thank you for reading my ramblings. Now on to the show...

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After a sleepless night, General Nyxis Pierce retreats to a private place in order to clear her thoughts, however she did not know it was already occupied.

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The Being in the Belfry

Mist danced across Nyxis’s wings. The bat angled her rose-patterned wings into a descent down the cliff-face, one of Fontis’s many waterfalls crashing alongside her. Despite the rush of the wind in her ears, she could still hear the dull roar of the falls below. The air was cool and crisp, and the dampness of the mist was refreshing and brisk under her silk uniform. She breathed in as she leveled out. The air was just what she needed.

In the predawn light the water took on a reddish hue as if the kingdom itself were spilling rivers of wine into the sea below. She could only take a few sparing glances at the sight as her single eye was focused on keeping her flight steady. She flew behind one of the waterfalls, smiling as the cool wind flowed through her hair and spiraled behind her wings. The damp crags of the grotto’s wall glistened as if studded with millions of diamonds. Only the glint of Save the King, fastened to Nyxis’s belt, outshone them all. When the sword caught the light just right, its crystal form flared like a star. The living rose wrapped around its crossguard glittered with sprinkled dew.

This was early for her. While no one would call Nyxis a slouch—to her face at least—she did tend to rise with the sun instead of before it. Today she had already been awake for hours, and the flight was meant to clear her head. It was helping, though not enough.

The brow over her crystalline eyepatch twitched, and Nyxis grimaced.
Don’t think about it! She chastised. Just fly.

Following a trail of upward flowing mist, she found an updraft and let herself be lifted back to the edge. With barely a flap of her wings, she shot over the precipice, and the capital city of Bellefountaine spread out before her. The many rivers that fed the kingdom’s waterfalls branched like a massive burst of lightning cleaving the land into large shards. Buildings fought for space on several pieces of land, and hundreds of bridges attempted to bind the districts they formed together. The result was a city that looked shattered, yet elegant even in the dying shadows of dawn.

Poling his way across a channel, a gondolier raised his arm and waved to Nyxis as she flew overhead. She gave him a lazy roll from side-to-side in greeting. Continuing on, she passed over the city’s labyrinthine streets and similarly disordered canals. Many gondolas and pedestrians were scurrying about despite the earliness of the hour. Most were hauling wagons and goods toward the main avenues where they would begin setting up their stores for the market day. Nyxis glanced east at the clear, golden light that was growing brighter by the minute. It was cool for late summer and showed no signs of changing.

It’s going to be a beautiful day, Nyxis thought. Even the merchants can feel it.

Glancing back to the west, she saw the rest of Bellefountaine come together. Unlike the broken-up market and urban district, the islands here were larger. The large chalets and mansions of Fontis’s more noble or richer families dotted these islands along with public parks, plazas, and gardens. At the border between the rich and average was the unofficial entertainment district where all forms of class met and intermingled.

Further down, near the exact junction of all these districts, was a large swath of land on which an opulent structure dominated the skyline from the summit of its hill. Castle Kade was like the central gem of a crown. It didn’t undermine the beauty that was the rest of Bellafontaine, but enhanced everything around it with an aura of regality and grace.

Nyxis’s heart warmed at the sight of the imposing structure. She’d learned much of her combat and magic under the shadow of that castle. Its magnificent spires reached into the sky like ivory fingers attempting to touch a small piece of heaven, and massive banners, emblazoned with the royal seal, hung from the castle parapets like an ornate jacket.

Look upon me, the structure said. Gaze upon me and find hope and beauty!

Nyxis frowned and turned away from the castle, flying back towards the city’s main avenue.

Hope for those who have a reason left to hope, she thought.

The second largest structure in Bellefountaine was the old cathedral located across the city’s central plaza and marketplace. She flew around to its sunward side and made for the bell tower. Spanning across an alcove that lead into the tower’s cavernous depths was a crossbar that she hovered up to. For a moment, she saw the massive bells hanging inside as if in wait for their time to sound, then she flipped back wrapping her toes around the bar before letting herself go limp. She hung from the bar, her world inverted, as she cocooned herself in her wings.

She left her head exposed, watching the city come to life beneath her. The marketplace was already teeming with vendors setting up for the day. They moved about like ants preparing stands and opening storefronts. They were going about their lives without a care in the world. Nyxis envied them.

Perhaps I’d be happier, leading a normal life like that? Conceited, complacent, benighted, happy. Devoid of this damned ambition to save the world! Just what has that altruism given me?

Something panged deep within Nyxis’s chest. It was a deep, dull foreboding type of pain constantly reminding her of the time and that she was ticking. It had been getting worse in recent weeks and was often accompanied by nightmares. Visions of two fathomless eyes judging her, waiting. Some nights they were so bad it wouldn’t let her sleep.

“You will never be recognized for all the kindness you give,” said a voice that wasn’t there.

Nyxis did her best to cover her trembling as she buried her nose under the blanket of her wings. Her one pink eye gazed at the horizon. It stung for a reason that had nothing to do with the brightness. She took a calming breath and sighed as the pain faded. A part of her knew it would come again, and one day, it would never leave.

“Well, if it isn’t a literal bat in the belfry.”

Nyxis’s heart leapt as she dropped from the crossbar. Instinct took over, flipping her upright and spreading her wings. She landed nimbly on her feet in a way few would have called unintentional. She spun around, searching, and heard chuckling.

“Sorry,” the voice said. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

She found him on the other side of the alcove sitting on the tower’s edge. He was clad in a grey cloak and had one leg dangling over the side. His cloak’s hood was pulled up and his face was in shadow, so Nyxis couldn’t tell what he was other than that he was tall and thin. His voice had a rich, melodic tone that was edged with a slight rasp. She straightened up and quickly composed herself, smoothing out her silk-red vest and trousers.

“You didn’t scare me,” she said, “I was… merely startled.”

“Eh,” he shrugged, “whatever you say.” Nyxis could practically hear a wry smile grace his lips as he spoke. He looked away from her and out over the city, saying nothing else.

Nyxis shifted uncomfortably in the silence. “Well, are you going to tell me what you’re doing up here?”

“Isn’t it obvious,” he said, indicating with a gloved hand out to the city, “I’m here for the same reason you are, I suppose. I’m enjoying the view.”

Nyxis frowned. “And are you allowed here?”

Another chuckle. “Are you?”

Nyxis bristled, agitated. I don’t need this right now.

“I am a general of Fontis.”

“So?”

“So, I may roost wherever I please.”

His chuckle creeped into an outright laugh. “Well, I am a traveling vagabond, and I may squat wherever I please.”

“That’s not how it works,” Nyxis said, her tone turning venomous.

“By your logic it does,” he said. “You are something, therefore you have a right to be somewhere.”

“That’s not what I meant!”

“Well, then you should say what you mean,” he said.

Nyxis crossed her arms, wings flowing around her like a cape. Her brow twitched. “And exactly what did I mean?”

“Nothing really,” he said, leaning back. “Just that you perceive yourself as important, I’m not, you’re in a bad mood and want to be alone, and I should get lost.”

“That’s a lot to be nothing,” Nyxis said, flatly.

He shrugged, “I find that’s usually the case.” He folded his arms behind his head and cradled his head in his hands. He seemed to recline into them. Nyxis had no idea someone could look so ridiculously relaxed. He went silent again, and Nyxis’s irritation grew.

“Well?” she finally said.

“Well what?”

“Are you going to ‘get lost?’” she said, beginning to feel a headache forming.

He cocked his head as if to consider it. “Nah,” he said, shifting once again to admire the city. Nyxis’s brow twitched several more times. He glanced at her.
“You might want to get that looked at.”

Nyxis forced down the urge to behead the buffoon, for now at least. She hated lazy wastes like this. They had no respect for authority and no ambition, but she couldn’t execute someone for that, unfortunately. She let out an exasperated groan and stalked over to the edge.

“Leaving?” he asked.

“If I can’t roost in peace, then why should I try at all?” she said, preparing to jump from the ledge.

“Who said you can’t?” Nyxis paused and shot him a fiery glare. He shrugged. “I’m just sitting here, and that’s all I’ll do if you want. You keep asking me questions, so it seems like you’re the one who secretly wants to talk.”

Nyxis stifled a growl and turned away from him.

What could he possibly tell me!

“How bad does it hurt?”

Nyxis whirled around reaching for her sword. She bared her teeth at him. “How!” she demanded.

“Did I know? Until two seconds ago all I did was suspect,” he said, not reacting to her stance at all. He nodded to her crossbar. “I saw you trembling. Pain was a lucky guess, but of course, pain can mean a lot of things. What’s yours: physical, mental, or spiritual?” Nyxis held her stance and said nothing. The figure cocked his head. “A little of all three, perhaps?”

“It’s none of your concern,” Nyxis said, turning away from him. She wrapped her wings around herself once again, feeling rather foolish at being caught. The only person she dared let see her so weak was Eflasia. For a stranger, a fool no less, to see through her so easily, it left her feeling horribly exposed.

There was a sigh and rustling as she heard the figure stand up. She glanced at him and saw that he was almost a foot taller than herself, however a slight gust looked like it could snap him in half he was so thin. His cloak, billowing slightly in the breeze, gave Nyxis the impression of a Wraith descended from the shadows to steal the souls of the unwary. She quickly dismissed the childish thought.

As the cloak caught the light, she noticed it was embroidered with a faint silver pattern. It flowed across the entirety of the garment and seemed to swirl as if it were alive. The illusion was mesmerizing. Nyxis narrowed her eyes.

“That’s not the cloak of a vagabond,” she said. The figure glanced down at his cloak. Much to Nyxis’s annoyance, his head was still in shadow.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I’d say that this is the ideal cloak for a vagabond.”

“Since when can vagabonds afford the ideal?”

“Oh, I see,” he said, straightening up and leaning against the wall. “You’ve made the assumption that I’m a bum.”

Nyxis’s ears twitched, “You’re not?”

He shook his head. “Of course, I’m not. I’m a vagabond which is simply a Jack-of-all-trades on leave. Tomorrow I could be anything.”

“Ah.”

“Heh, you don’t believe me,” he said.

“From my experience, vagabonds tend to mooch from our citizens for as long as they stay in the city. Until they move on or disappear.” She added the last sentence in a grave tone, but he didn’t seem to take the hint.

“Those are bums,” he said, waving off the comment. “Completely different creature altogether. You really should brush up on your loners’ taxonomy, Ms…?”

“Sir Pierce,” she almost scoffed the title to the—cloak or no cloak—impossibly uncultured hobo. “General Nyxis Pierce.”

The figure hummed. “Nyxis...” he said, considering the name. “I like it.” He took a step forward and gave her a passable bow. “My name is Isaac, but my friends call me Ike, at your service.”

“Isaac?” The name wasn’t unusual, but it wasn’t native either. “Are you from the Kingdom of Sound?”

“I am from under the hill,” he said, “and under hills and over the hills my paths led. And through the air. I am he that walks unseen.”

Nyxis frowned. “That’s… quite an introduction.”

“Eh, don’t give me too much credit,” Isaac said, shrugging. “It’s one I stole.”

“Yes, I figured,” she said, “and don’t avoid my questions.”

He sighed. “I’m from Nowhere, and nowhere is where I’m going.” He looked to her. “That one is mine. Sorry if I can’t give you a straight answer. It’s just hard to say I’m from anywhere. Anywhere is a place you intend to go back to, and I don’t have that. For now, I’m looking for Nowhere, and Nowhere is a place you intend to stay once you find it."

"Do you enjoy speaking in riddles?" Nyxis asked, rubbing her temples.

"Not really. Gives me a headache sometimes."

You're not the only one.

“So, Nyx.”

“General Pierce!”

“Gesundheit. Postmaster General, huh? You don’t seem the type for that line of work,” he said. Nyxis stared at him using every ounce of her willpower to not gape.

Did he really just say?

“Postmaster?” she mumbled.

“Well, judging from your over-sized letter opener what else am I supposed to think you are?” He said, indicating to Save the King. Nyxis felt her cheeks heat up. She pulled the sword from her belt and deftly pointed it at Isaac, holding the tip inches from where betwixt-his-eyes would be if she could see underneath that hood. Sunlight caught the blade’s edge, and a mosaic of refracted light lit up the inside of the massive bell tower in a dazzling display. The lights danced across the chamber as she angled the blade and settled herself into a more stable stance.

“How’s this for a letter opener?” she said, coolly, her eye boring into him waiting for him to make a move. Isaac glanced at the blade, his face unreadable behind his hood, and tilted his head.

“It is impressive,” he said. Nyxis tensed as he lifted his hands and held them a few inches apart. “But I think you only need something about this long.” There was no concern in his voice at all, and from what Nyxis could tell he was being completely serious.

“D-do you have a death wish?” she stammered as she lowered the sword.

“Why is it people always seem to ask me that?” he said, moving a hand to his face seemingly to scratch his unseen chin. “I don’t really have an answer for it.” Nyxis blinked at him once before putting her sword away. She turned around walked back to the edge.

And for moment I was beginning to think he had a brain under that hood!

“Where’re you going, Nyx?”

Nyxis whirled around and glared at the vagabond, willing a bit of lightning to crackle across her fur. “I am a General Nyxis Joanne Pierce, I am the leader of the Fontisian Air Force, personal bodyguard of Princess Eflasia, and I have no time to be insulted by an idiot such as you!”

“Ouch,” he said, placing a hand over his heart.

“Don’t pretend like you care!” she said. “Don’t let me catch you asking for coin later, or I’ll have a cell waiting for you... or perhaps the stocks would be more enjoyable? You can insult the citizenry while they pelt you with rotten fruit!”

“I’m not certain they would care to see ugly, old me,” he said with another lazy shrug. “However, if it means you’ll actually talk to me about your problem I might consider it.”

Nyxis huffed and turned away. “I said that’s none of your business, and I think it would be in your best interest to never set foot in this kingdom again.”

Isaac hummed behind her. “Can I at least offer a piece of advice?" Nyxis ignored him and continued walking towards the edge. “Be careful when you hang upside down, people can see how that crystal growth is coming out of your skull.”

Nyxis stopped and turned back around. Her heart hitched when she no longer saw Isaac standing in his spot. She cast her eye around but found no sign of him.

“I suppose most think it’s just an eccentric flair?” He continued. “Lose an eye and replace it with a crystal patch? It looks nice. I’ll give you that.” She couldn’t find him, but he sounded like he was right in front of her. “You want to know a fun fact? This bell tower is an acoustic antechamber designed specifically to amplify sound.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “You can hear anyone from anywhere in here.”

“You’re a lot more observant than you let on,” Nyxis said, crouching with her hand on her sword.

I can’t let him get the drop on me.

Isaac chuckled. “Elementary, my dear Nyxis. I’ve had a lot of practice.”

“That’s not the skill of a vagabond,” she hissed.

“Like I said, tomorrow I could be anything. You wouldn’t believe what I was yesterday. So tell me, where is it growing? Judging by your eye I’d guess the brain, but by the way you clenched your chest… It’s your heart isn’t it?”

“What does it matter to you?” she said. Out of the corner of her eye she thought she saw a shadow. She didn’t move. If he led her into the chamber, she’d lose her advantage. It was better for her to stay by the ledge. It wasn’t a hazard to her like it was to him.

“I don’t know yet,” he said. “It could mean nothing, or it could mean everything. I can hardly ever tell this early. Let’s just say for now that I’m curious.”

Nyxis growled. “I’m no one’s puzzle!”

“You misunderstand. Despite what you may be thinking, I’m in the business of helping people.”

“I don’t need your help!”

“Perhaps not personally,” Isaac said. He was calm, far too calm. As far as he was concerned he was ten steps ahead of her, and Nyxis was beginning to worry that might be true. “But you see, I’m here, and therefore in some manner you really do need me, even if it’s in the broadest way possible.”

“Hmph, so what, its fate you’re here?” Nyxis rebuked. She couldn’t let him control this battlefield. How did she let herself be caught so off guard? She was a little tired, but that was a pitiful excuse. She knew nothing about Isaac: his species, his magical prowess, fighting abilities, nothing! The truth was that he had fooled her.

Even Sir Tailchaser isn’t so blindingly stupid. This idiot played me! But why? Surely not for a cheap thrill, and if he wanted to assassinate me, why didn’t he do it when I didn’t know he was here?

“Oh no,” Isaac said. “I’m fate’s biggest enemy.”

“How’s that?”

“Because I’m proof that fate can screw up and go screw off. My being here is not a question of fate, Nyx, it’s a question of function.”

“Stop calling me that!” She shouted.

“Why, it rolls off the tongue so easily? Also, did you know I spent all of my summers climbing trees?” There was a thump behind Nyxis. She spun, sword whipping through the air. Its point this time settled on Isaac’s chest. He balanced himself on the tower’s edge with the tips of his booted feet. He didn’t flinch. Instead, his hood angled down as he examined Save the King. He hummed. “The sword refracts light just like your eyepatch. Same material? Rose around the crossguard, it’s looking a bit wilted.” He nodded to himself. “The clock’s ticking isn’t it?”

Nyxis tilted the sword, digging the point into the fabric of Isaac’s cloak. “Stop. Analyzing. ME!” She pressed the blade against him. His balance teetered, but he didn’t fall. She wasn’t worried about that. She could catch him if he did.

Isaac chuckled. “You aren’t telling me anything. How else am I going to get to know you?”

“I don’t want you to know me at all!”

“Yet you haven’t stormed off,” he said. Nyxis felt her temper flare having put up with that self-amused tone of his for too long. She dropped her sword and grabbed Isaac by the collar. He held his arms up though not defensively. She pulled him towards her, trying to get a look at his face. Tilting his hood lower was his only act of defiance.

She gave up after a moment and snarled at him. “You’re lucky I haven’t run you through surprising me like that. If you weren’t unarmed I’d-”

“Who said I was unarmed?” Isaac interrupted. He hooked a finger around the seam of his cloak and pulled it aside. The pommel of a sword revealed itself to her. She lifted her sword and pressed it against him again.

“If you were going to use that, you would have done so already,” she said, though she cursed herself for not considering that he might be concealing a weapon. It was a rookie mistake, one she usually never made.

Am I really that annoyed, or just that off today?

“True,” he said, nodding. “Nyxis, I think we’ve started off on the wrong foot. Perhaps we can call this one a Mulligan and start over?”

“I’m not the mood,” she said. Isaac was unpredictable as far as Nyxis could tell, but he was obviously no assassin. He’d purposely dropped the element of surprise and had spent most of his time insulting her. He was either insane, or more likely, an opposer of the crown.

Or maybe, it’s just me.

It wasn’t uncommon for her to hear peasants throw comments her way while she walked amongst them. Many viewed her as Eflasia’s pet, not believing that it had been her skill that had awarded her the title of General while barely into her twenties instead of her friendship with the princess. She had sacrificed much to get to where she was.

A phantom pain echoed within her and her single eye blinked.

Even my life it turns out.

Isaac hummed behind his hood. “Well, I guess we can try again later.”

Nyxis shook her head. “You are going to get out of this city before I lose patience with you altogether.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that, Nyx,” Isaac said, “I’ve a feeling that I have some very important things to do here and that we are going to be seeing a lot of each other.”

If he calls me that one more time...

“I doubt a vagabond could possibly do anything for my people.”

Isaac groaned. “Do I have to tell you the difference between me and a bum, again?”

“No,” she said, “besides I thought you said you didn’t believe in fate?”
“I don’t,” he said, shaking his head, “but I do know how I function. I’m always where I am for a reason, even if that reason is entirely up to me.”

“That… doesn’t make any sense.”

“Yeah probably not,” Isaac said with a long suffering sigh. His hood tilted as he peered behind her. “Well, Nyxis, it’s been fun, but I’m afraid I have to go.”

“The only place you’re going is the City Gate,” Nyxis said, reaffirming her grip on him. She could disarm him easily enough and have him out of her hair. Seeing him be kicked out, perhaps even doing the kicking personally, was beginning to feel like a splendid way of improving her mood.

“If that’s the case, may I offer one last piece of advice?”

“What?” Nyxis sighed.

“Plug your ears.”

“What?”

Nyxis felt the sound more than she heard it. It reverberated through her very being, rattling her teeth and the crystal of her patch. She released Isaac and clamped her wings over her ears. She had forgotten about the morning bells! Usually, she left long before they had a chance to ring. Now they rang like they were furious that their tower had been disturbed.

She squinted through the pain and peered at Isaac only for her heart to skip a beat as he dove off the ledge. Nyxis scrambled to the edge, but it was far too late to catch him as plummeted to the ground. She tried to stand readying herself to jump after him, but the pounding of the bells against her back made it difficult to focus. If she took off with her head spinning there was a good chance she’d get turned around slam into the tower. By the time she felt confident enough to jump, he was already too far away.

That idiot! I was going let him go! He didn’t have to… Is he slowing down?

Isaac’s descent had shifted from a plummet to a relative crawl. As he neared the ground, his body flipped, and he hung by his arm. In his hand he gripped a rod that was forcing itself away from the ground as if it were being held up by an invisible rope. Nyxis stared at the device, dumbfounded.

That’s...that’s not airbending. That’s magic I’ve never seen before!

Magic that was apparently not strong enough. When he hit the ground it wasn’t with a sickening crunch, but a bone-rattling thud! Isaac tumbled several times before coming to a stop on his back.

She had him now. Nyxis leapt from the tower and spiraled down towards him. He staggered to his feet and made it up before she was halfway down. He rolled his shoulders and glanced up. Nyxis saw a pale face, likely white fur, looking up at her. He pressed two fingers to the brim of his hood and gave her a mocking salute before taking off in quick yet slightly hobbled run toward the throngs of civilians meeling about the market.

Nyxis cursed as he was absorbed by the crowd. She dove toward the street, flaring just above the people's heads. Ladies grabbed their bonnets and hats trying to keep the gust of Nyxis’s wings from knocking them off, and several people threw shouts at her as she landed. Shouts she didn’t hear.

Nyxis froze as she realized she couldn’t hear anything. The shouts were silent along with the footsteps, chattering, and other noises of the market’s crowd. The only thing she heard was a sharp ringing.

The bells!

They’d deafened her. Before panic could set in she sensed something underneath the ring, muted voices. She turned and saw a badger attempting to give her a tongue-lashing that was only coming across as silent mumbles. Mumbles that were thankfully getting louder. She sighed in relief. Her hearing was going to be fine. The last thing she needed was to go deaf along with her other problems, but a temporary condition like this she could handle.

She focused her attention back on finding Isaac, ignoring the ringing for now, and began to step away only for a hand to grip her shoulder. She looked back and found the badger fuming. He waggled a finger at her, brow furrowed in rage. His gripped tightened, and Nyxis sighed. She casually sent a small arc of electricity up her spine, and the badger gasped as it shot through his arm. He released her, snarling furiously until he glanced down at her sword. He froze as realization dawned on him. Fury was replaced by fear as he stared back up at her.

Yes, you know who I am.

“I’m chasing a man in a grey cloak. Did you see him?” she asked, business-like keeping all emotion out of her voice. It didn’t sound quite right to her muffled hearing, but the badger understood and nodded, pointing down the street. Nyxis left him without another word. Sometimes even the parts of her reputation that she didn’t care for had their perks.

Nyxis danced her way through the crowd, her nimble feet drawing her along like a leaf in the wind. She focused ahead, hunting for her target. He wasn’t hard to find. In a matter of minutes she saw his tall form failing to blend into the crowd. His grey hood bobbed along as he tried to pick his way through; its embroidering shimmering in the light. Attempting to lose her in the marketplace had been a poor decision on his part. He stood out like a sore thumb. She smiled as she made her way towards him. She closed in without him noticing, reached out, and latched onto his sleeve. She blinked and saw that it wasn’t him. The hood wasn’t grey. It was a dirty white, and a young girl far shorter than Nyxis stared out from under the hood with fearful eyes.

What? But it was…

Nyxis released the girl who took off the moment she was free. Nyxis whirled around stunned. The girl had been Isaac until contact. There was no way she could have mistaken her for him. As Nyxis tried to make sense of what she had seen a flash of grey appeared in the corner of her eye. Nyxis turned and saw Isaac standing in two places. On one side of the street he was examining some fruits on a vendor’s stand, while on the other he was walking casually towards her as if he couldn't see her. She gaped as this Isaac brushed alongside her, and the moment they touched, his image fuzzed before condensing into the form of an elderly ferret that gave Nyxis a polite nod as he passed by.

Nyxis blinked and turned to the other copy. She walked up to him and numbly tapped him on his shoulder. Like the last copy, he too fuzzed and formed into a canine that awkwardly glanced at her before turning back to the fruits. She stared down the street and saw five more copies of Isaac chatting amongst themselves. Another pushed a wheelbarrow filled with potatoes to a stand, and several haggled with each other over the prices of their wares. Soon, she was surrounded by hundreds of Isaacs instead of the normal crowd. Their voices blended together under the ringing in her ears. None of their faces could be seen. She took several steps back, eyes wide with disbelief.

What is going on? This kind of illusion magic is impossible.

Her thoughts were interrupted by loud shouts that penetrated through the ringing, which had finally faded completely. She turned and saw yet another Isaac copy atop a carriage. His faceless form was shouting at her and waving for her to move. In her confusion, she had stepped off the pedestrian walkways and onto the street. With her hearing muted the way it was, she hadn’t heard the approaching carriage that was moments away from crushing her. She tensed to move, but in the back of her mind she knew it was too late. She couldn’t get up in the air and jumping was pointless by now. Surprisingly, she was more angry than afraid.

After all this and it’s a carriage! Unbelievable.

Nyxis braced for the impact. It never came.

Something clamped onto her outstretched wing and yanked her off the street as the carriage passed by. Her heart pounded in her chest as she realized how close she had come to being flattened. The driver, who now looked like a short, fat rat, shouted that a bat like her should stay in the air instead of on the ground with the other sane creatures.

“Well, that was rude,” a voice said.

Nyxis looked down and found herself cradled in an arm clad in grey.

“Did anyone ever tell you that chasing shadows can take you to bad places?” Nyxis gritted her teeth as she looked into Isaac’s face and saw something impossible. She wrestled out of his grip which gave way easily and stepped back gaping at the creature before her.

“Oh come on, Nyx, I said I was ugly, but I can’t be that hideous,” Isaac said as a small, tired smile curled the lips of his furless face. His green eyes danced with a mischievous light behind a pair of shaded spectacles, and a scar graced his left cheek. The only time she had seen anything that remotely resembled Isaac, it had been a puppet that barely pretended to be alive. This creature, however, was no puppet. He breathed whereas the puppet hadn’t tried to all. His eyes blinked rather than staring vacant and empty. Something existed beyond them, a light like a candle that fought against a typhoon in order to stay lit.

“You can’t be real,” Nyxis breathed. Isaac’s smile, not quite the self confident smirk she had imagined, lessened a few shades as if growing weary.

“You have no idea how right and how wrong you are,” he said. Nyxis stared at him unable to form any thoughts. There were questions weren’t there? Things historians would want to know, but for the life of her she couldn’t think of any of them. Isaac simply stood there, his soft smile revealing nothing.

“What are you?” she finally said.

Isaac sighed. “I’m-”

“General Pierce!” Nyxis turned as a loud voice called her name. From the crowd the lumbering figure of Sir Samson Tailchaser appeared. The labra-border collie loped up to her, his usually affable face masked with concern. “General, are you alright? I saw what happened.”

“I-I’m fine,” Nyxis stammered. “He pulled me…” She trailed off as she saw that Isaac was gone. She glanced down the street searching through the crowds but couldn't find a single grey hood amongst them.

“General?” Samson asked, “Are you sure you’re okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” She stared into the market for a long while even though a part of her knew she would never find him unless he wanted to be seen. Samson stayed quiet, but his concerned look continued to deepen. “Sir?”

Nyxis blinked, forcing her attention back on the collie. “I think,” she said, hesitantly, “that may not be far from the truth.”

Chapter 2: journeymanic.deviantart.com/ar…