I watched as Starry Knight glanced towards me again. I felt like telling her I was okay where I was (because admitting I was in too much pain to move would have been too painful), but I didn’t get the chance to even not to be able to try.
Starry Knight’s second of distraction had cost her. She was flung into the ground, close to the middle of the street, as the Sinisters’ power managed to strike a hit.
“No!” I strangled, half-gasped cry of despair barely cried out.
There was a moment of standstill. It was as though time had stopped, unable to process what was happening. I just watched, hoping fervently, that she would move.
Her fingers twitched a moment later, and I felt the breath rush out of me. I hadn’t noticed I’d stopped breathing.
She straightened a moment later, and something on her cheek sparkled dimly. Teardrops.
The sensation of déjà vu struck me again, as real and as painful as the pain in my own body. I struggled to sit up.
Eris closed in on her, grabbing Starry Knight by her throat, much as she’d done to me earlier. “I see you’ve disposed of your little sidekick. Was he really your greatest weakness?” Eris laughed.
Starry Knight clenched at Eris’ hands. “You leave him out of this.”
“That silly boy? Her greatest weakness?” Alcyonë laughed from a short distance away. “You’re still not strong enough to fight us, sister dear, even if you are a Guardian Star.”
“Once I’m finished with you, I’ll have to go see him,” Eris murmured playfully. “Don’t you agree, Alcyonë?” She giggled.
“Augh!” Starry Knight’s hands gripped Eris’ even more tightly. Power unleashed from her, trapping Eris. The power forcefully exploded, and I watched, amazed, as Eris imploded; suddenly she was gone, her laughter still hanging in the air. Starry Knight, wide-eyed and breathing heavily, turned to face Alcyonë. “I won’t let you hurt him.”
I felt all prickly; even as I was glad to know Starry Knight wasn’t after harming me, her power was much more intimidating than mine.
“Kid, you need to get out of here.” Elysian had gone unnoticed while he had slithered up behind me. But now he was tugging on my leg with his claws, pulling me as much as he could away from the battle.
“Elysian, what’s going on?” I felt myself ask, even though I was pretty sure I knew.
Alcyonë appeared unimpressed with Eris’ demise. “You’ll still have to stop the rest of us,” she glowered.
“So be it.” Starry Knight began to glow. She whispered something; I wasn’t quite sure, but I thought she said, “I have no choice.”
That really scared me. I’d never felt this afraid before. “No!”
“Hamilton,” Elysian grumbled.
My cry of angry fear and dismay, along with Elysian’s reprimand, was drowned out by the eerie silence. All seven Sinisters fell silent as an immense light poured from Starry Knight, and bubbled around her and began to draw them in closer to her.
I could stop it, if I just had my power! I glared angrily at my wrist when I saw it was still not there.
Okay, Wingdinger isn’t going to show. No choice, I thought. Hamilton would have to suffice. I prayed it would be enough.
I shoved Elysian off me and crawled as fast as I could (which was not very fast, all things considered) to the edge of the light now swirling around. I looked up but I couldn’t see its end; later on, pictures would show it was almost like a star, circular and wide, giving off flares.
Looking deep into the middle of the light, trying not to worry about going blind, I could just barely make out the slim shadow of Starry Knight. I pushed at the resilient force, feeling it repel me. Bearing down, I marched forward into the torrent winds of her energy.
The pressure of Starry Knight’s power pushed hard against my advance. It figures she wouldn’t cooperate, even now.
After much moaning and silent cursing, I finally made it to Starry Knight. I felt the fear in me rise once more. She was very solid and focused. Her eyes had brightened over with violent energy, and her skin was speckled with power and light.
If she wasn’t careful, she was going to use all her power to fight, taking the Sinisters and the earth and everything in it along with her.
Shoot. That’s what she is going to do. Exactly what she is going to do!
I reached over and tugged on her hand. “Stop!” I tried to tell her. My mouth wouldn’t seem to make any noise. I grabbed her wrist, trying to draw her attention. She didn’t move. She seemed lost in the chain reaction of her own power.
With more difficulty than I would’ve thought possible, I stood up, and grabbed her shoulders. My wounds burned as though the light was full of acid. I tried to shake her, but I couldn’t move her. Not even an inch!
‘I tried.’ I flinched at the silent voice. What was that? Was it her? I felt something wet on my hands and looked up. Her tears. What are you crying for? I thought. This is all your fault! I’m the one who should be crying, not you!
“You stupid girl!” I mouthed, still without a voice. Despair took me. I was going to die without finishing high school! Along with all the other important things I wanted to do in life.
A new sense of desperation overwhelmed me as I stood there, in the middle of a star, in a world where time had no measure. And then suddenly there was more. A familiar scent of heavenly fields. The heartbeat of a song. I found every layer of myself chiseled away, the blackened cynicism of my heart breaking open and oozing the kind of fear which only stems from the deepest sort of longing. “Don’t leave me.”
And then I kissed her.
☼20☼
Sparks
I kissed her.
I’d meant only to stop her, or so I told myself.
But the instant her lips met mine, I found stopping was the last thing on my mind. If there was anything on my mind.
Sparks dashed through me as quickly as disbelief, as I finally kissed Starry Knight. Her body stilled under my embrace, leaving me to absorb the full shockwave. A surge of desire like lightning struck me; suddenly I could take on the world, or even a supernova. But I didn’t particularly care. I could have cheerfully wished for death at that moment, so long as I was kissing her.
Her lips were as familiar to me as much as they were foreign, like reliving the magic of a first kiss over and over again. The taste of sweet starlight, of spices too rich for this world, swamped through my senses, and I was unable to stop kissing her, to stop the flooding tide of satisfaction and longing as I held onto her.
It was my secret from the world, and I gloried in it. My fingers threaded themselves through her tender tresses, memorizing their softness. My arms tightened around her, drawing her closer to me.
Just as I began to force myself back into my mind, properly chastising myself for enjoying this, she began fiercely kissing me back. Her arms wrapped around me, consigning all my intentions to nonexistence. The rush was like nothing else I’d ever known.
But I had known this feeling before.
The blinding light of the supernova melted, throwing me back into the realm of my heart and my memories. The clouds of light cleared up, and I could almost see her; I could almost remember her name . . .
Before me, I could see the broken bridge of my heart; I felt myself racing inside, as I leapt off of its ledge, amazingly fearful and free, and then all at once caught up in her arms, safe and secure.
My fear was gone; Starry Knight had conquered it with a single kiss.
A roar began to echo in my ears, and I, reluctantly, opened my eyes. The supernova was receding, and the brightness overshadowing us slowly retreated. The Sinisters were nowhere to be seen.
Wanting to savor the moment even as I knew it had to end, I slowly pulled back from Starry Knight. But she jerked back as if the slight movement had broken some sort of spell, hastily ending it.
I watched her eyelids, heavy with soft passion, as they fluttered open. Her violet eyes were clouded over with sedated ecstasy. I suspected my
own face had a similar quality to it, but I wasn’t concerned with myself at the time. I took a moment to study her face, to see if I could remember her from the other side of my memory; to see if I could summon her name like a long-forgotten incantation of the deepest magic.
But then her eyes cleared, and her expression became stricken; her arms promptly fell away from my body and began to push me away. “No,” she breathed. “Not you.”
I frowned and jumped back as if she’d struck me. What was wrong with me? I wondered. I looked down at myself.
That was when I noticed I was Wingdinger again! Joy swelled up within me, and I probably would’ve shouted excitedly if Starry Knight hadn’t decided to collapse just then.
I managed to catch her, of course. In my arms.
And I felt that wonder again, that deep-seeded wonder, of just who she was. I didn’t know that maybe, but I did know at that moment she was dangerous.
The huge, globular circle of destruction from her power was evidence enough; the cement streets had been carved out, and buildings on the event horizon of her power had sliced out in a perfect, though now-crumbling curve. Her erratic pulse remained throbbing with the remnants of her recent power surge as I held her.
I looked up at the sky, once more searching for signs of the Sinisters. I saw with no uncertain elation they seemed to have been warded off. It was not the last time I would see them. But for now I was satisfied.
Of course, it didn’t last long. Seconds after I breathed a small sigh of relief, I felt an unexpected pain electrify through me. The network of nerves in my body channeled the shock, numbing my skin while stinging at the same time; I tried to call out but the severity of the agony coursing through my veins caused me to pass out in mid-scream.
*☼*
The first sensation tingling through me I could recognize was the cold dampness associated with dungeons. The second feeling was similar to being tickled–almost as though I was stuck in an overloaded bird cage.
Opening my eyes, I looked up to find my perceptions had both been correct in the most awkward way.
I was curled up on the floor of a small jail-like cell. The ground was made of stone, surrounded by think bars, and there was a leak coming from somewhere. I would have probably figured out where it was coming from if my ears weren’t been ringing. I looked down at myself to see I was lying on one of my black wings, which was surprisingly comfortable (the only alternative being the stone floor).
Looking to the left of me, I saw Starry Knight. Her wings and her position on the floor hid most of her face, but I was pretty sure she was still unconscious.
I sat up, my back aching from where I suspected I’d been tasered. I stretched out my arms. Something on my wrist caught my eye.
It was my mark; but it was not quite the same. Rather than being a black star crossed over with a red one, the black star had been replaced with a deep, blood red. Cool.
I glanced over at Starry Knight, and felt my breath catch in my throat until I could see her own shallow breathing. Should I wake her up? I wondered. I scooted over and touched her shoulder. “Hey,” I said, shaking her gently. “Hey, wake up.”
“She probably won’t wake up for a while,” a new voice told me.
I jumped slightly and whipped around. Before me was a familiar-looking man, but not the one I was hoping to see.
It was my new neighbor. Standing on the other side of the cell. Wearing a black suit. Checking his watch. All exactly like he wasn’t some kind of secret agent in some kind of secret agency secretly letting his bosses know I was awake.
“Hello there,” he said, a small smile growing between the lines of his beard.
“Who are you?” I asked, not really sure I would get an answer. Or that I wanted one.
“My name is Dante,” he said.
All of a sudden, the pieces came crashing together before they came around and slapped me in the face. I’d thought before, when I’d been walking home with Adam, that our neighbor had seemed familiar. I barely heard him tell me he was the director of the unit division and he had been watching me for quite some time.
All I could think of was that this was Mikey’s dad. About ten years older than the last time I’d seen him, with his voice deeper than I remembered, but it was Mikey’s dad. The darkened brown of his eyes and the shaped of his face didn’t lie.
Mikey’s dad had gotten a new job and had been taken away from his family. He’d been required to sever all ties, emotionally and physically, for some kind of secret work. And now I knew what it was, and where I was.
I was in a secret black site probably hundreds of yards away from civilization. I’d seen all the movies. I knew how these things about the FBI worked. I looked around the cell, trying to see if I could find the surveillance cameras. (I wasn’t able to; they must have been camouflaged really well.)
“Please, make yourselves at home.” Dante indicated the small cell. “Welcome to SWORD.”
“What sword?” I asked.
“It stands for Special Worldwide Operations and Research Division.”
“Isn’t that just a bit cliché?” It was out of my mouth before I could stop it.
I turned slowly to see Dante Salyards staring at me with piercing brown eyes, eerily glimmering in the poor lighting. “Well, we couldn’t go with SHIELD, could we?” He smiled at me. “As much derision we’ve gotten in the last decades, there’s something to be said for our name. Swords are thought to be weapons of the past, outdated, even romantic. Our name, while cliché, as you say, gives the illusion of comfort, of hope, of some meaning in a grand narrative.” His smiled dropped and his eyes narrowed. “It’s a perfect front for us to use before we take you down.”
I gulped as quietly as I could.
As I gazed at him, Dante nodded over to Starry Knight. “She’s quite a fighter, your partner. She woke up when we tried to move you. We had to taser her twice as much to get her to stay down.”
I hid my fists in my lap as they clenched. Dante continued. “I had a feeling she would have fought with us more, but she used up a lot of power trying to kill everyone.”
“She was trying to protect the people,” I said evenly. “She managed to ward off the Sinisters at least.”
“The Sinisters? You mean that tie-dyed mess of women who were causing all that trouble?”
“Yeah. What do you call them?” I asked arrogantly, even though I was somewhat curious and embarrassed. I’d forgotten the FBI–sorry, SWORD–didn’t know about the monsters the way I did.
Dante smirked. “You certainly have spunk, kid.” He stood up straight from where he was leaning against the wall. “So you’re just like all the teenagers out there, aren’t you? Well, in that case, let me cut to the chase. You’re in here until we say you can leave. We want answers.”
“We?” I asked. (It was just part of my counter-ploy.)
“SWORD. The FBI. The CIA. The American people. The Global News Network. Anyone else I need to add to the list?” Dante’s tone was light, but I knew it was spoken with quite a bit of power behind it.
I turned my attention back to Starry Knight. I was having a hard time not freaking out. If I was found out, I’d never make it into law school! Overwhelming fear bit at my mind, making it hard for all of this to process . . .
As if he’d been reading my mind (which I could only pray he wasn’t), Dante spoke up. “I’ll give you some time.”
The moment he was gone, I shook Starry Knight harder. “Hey, come on, get up!”
A small moan escaped her and I felt guilty once again. Her skin was cold and limp.
I sighed; she wouldn’t have been in this situation if it hadn’t been for me. “I’m sorry,” I muttered, disgruntled even if I was sincere. I picked her up and moved her onto my lap. I didn’t like her much sometimes, but the least I could do to make up for my mistakes was to keep her from getting pneumonia.
Besides, if she did wake up and wanted to kill me, I’d be able to quickly get her into the headlock Poncey
had shown me a couple of months ago.
A few minutes passed in silence. I started getting fidgety. What if she didn’t wake up for hours? I’d be stuck here until she did. Reaching up, I touched my fingers to her neck, trying to get a pulse reading. Relieved it was normal, I relaxed; it was then my nose tickled with her scent.
Cinnamon and some other kind of warm spiciness clouded my mind’s senses. I couldn’t decide what it was, but it seemed to fit her spitfire personality.
I wasn’t used to seeing Starry Knight up so close. Usually we would just fight the monsters, and then have our own little spat, and then walk away. I sniggered to myself as I recalled some of our fights. They were amusing, if nothing else, I thought. Although I vaguely remembered hating it at the time.
I felt her forehead. No, no, she was fine. I supposed. I didn’t really pay attention during health last year (though I’d passed the class with flying colors–thank goodness for being on the swim team).
My fingers brushed against the red feather she always kept in her hair. I wondered where she’d gotten it; the feather didn’t really fit with the rest of her outfit. Someone like Via Delorosa would have a heart attack if Starry Knight wasn’t famous, I thought with a small smirk. Famous people could get away with anything.
I touched the feather again. This time I was surprised to feel warmth coming from it.
Huh, that’s weird.
Noticing Starry Knight was still not waking up, I decided it would be all right if I borrowed it for a moment. I carefully pinched the feather between my fingers, about ready to pluck it from her for just a moment of careful scrutiny, when all of sudden it burst into flames.
“Augh!” I jumped, letting the feather go and letting Starry Knight fly out of my grasp.
A moment later, after I’d calmed down (and had made sure I had no burn marks on my skin), I breathed deeply. “Whew. That was a close one.”
“Maybe for you,” the grumbled voice muttered from the floor.
I grimaced. “So, you’re up, are you?” I asked tentatively. I noticed out of the corner of my eye the feather had turned back to normal.