Song of the Day | Battle Royale by Ecca Vandal | Spotify | YouTube
It was midnight by then, and Soda was exhausted.
“Steal a few hours’ sleep. Maybe you'll use your brain better.”
Lune ushered her into a small but luxurious guest room with tasteful wallpaper and a big, squashy looking bed. Red followed down the hallway then hesitated.
“Come on, I’m shutting the door,” said Soda tiredly, realising she was saying the same thing she’d said to him a thousand times at home. Definitely going to need really specialised therapy once this is all done. Yeah hi I want to talk about how my cat is actually a man?
He looked grateful, and darted in, jumping on the bed and positioning himself at the far end like he always did. He never cuddled her or invaded her space, she realised, or tried to come into the toilet like normal cats.
She took off her shoes and slid into bed, a soft, downy hug after the longest day.
“Red… you’re gonna help me right?” She mumbled from deep in the many pillows. “Cos I’m in way over my head, and I really need some help…”
She could tell he was looking at her, his green eyes flashing in the dimmed lamplight.
“Yes, love. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, but I promised Frank I’d look after you. You looked after me and the house when you didn’t have to. I owe both Frank and you.”
“Okay cool.”
She fell asleep almost immediately.
Soda dreamed. The forest, again. Dark and endless, lines of enormous trees so ancient and huge she could barely comprehend their size. And just out of sight, right at the very edge of the soft green light cast by the Stone… Things were waiting for her. Unnamable, awful Things, slinking through the darkness, circling, pacing. Soda could hear clicks and rustles, and low growls. She was breathlessly terrified. The Stone pulsed, and the Things crept back a little, reassuring her that she would be safe as long as she was in the light. But they circled, waiting. She looked up. There was no sky, only the distant canopy, tightly closed overhead. Soda understood in that dream-like way that this wasn’t Earth, and she was truly alone.
There was a soft touch on her shoulder and she started violently, stumbling to the ground. Her eyes were open but she was still seeing trees all around her. She started to whimper.
“Soda Jones, come back now. You’re safe here.”
It was Lune’s voice, sonorous and steady. The panic subsided as she felt dirt in her scrabbling fingers. She could hear the gentle chirps of insects and the light rustling of nighttime creatures going about their business. She’d never been so disoriented. Where was she? What was going on?
An elegant hand with big gold rings appeared in front of her and she hesitated, then took it. Lune hoisted her back to her feet.
“I'm not a creature of this plane. My dreams aren’t the same as yours. Humans dream so noisily. So many things happening all the time. It’s a wonder your species survives, honestly.”
Soda peered blearily around. They were outside the hotel, standing near the edge of the grounds where the pine plantation began, stretching off in neat marching lines into the gloom. It was very dark, and very quiet.
“Fuck, was I sleepwalking? What time is it?”
Soda rubbed her face vigorously. Her eyeballs felt like rotten grapes in her aching head, ready to explode.
“You’ve been caught up in something much bigger than even Red realises,” said Lune in a low voice. “It’ll be dawn soon. Worlds are colliding. Red would have you give me the Stone, and I admire his desire to protect you. But the truth is I can’t take it, even if you want to give it to me. Do you want to give it to me?”
Soda put her hand to her chest and felt its warm reassurance there. Should I give you up? Is that the right thing to do? A distinctly hostile buzz. No. Absolutely not. Soda frowned.
“Um… no. I don’t want to give it to you.”
Lune nodded, their fingers extending almost experimentally toward Soda’s chest. Before Soda could pull away, a spark flared and zapped Lune’s fingers, leaving spots of afterglow in Soda’s eyes.
“Ouch! See? This is more than an accident. You’ve been chosen to bear the Stone.”
They looked her over, their strange eyes full of ancient cunning.
“But you already know that, don’t you?”
“I don’t know what you mean,” mumbled Soda, unable to meet their gaze.
“The Stone rejected your father, I'll bet. That’s why he died. Maybe the Ambrosia seed helped you, maybe it didn’t. But for whatever reason, the Stone has decided on you. That means a great responsibility. You’re ill-equipped for what’s coming next.” Lune looked her up and down appraisingly. “Do you know how to fight?”
“What? No, absolutely not. My last job was getting coffee and editing shitty writing about pop culture. Before that a bookstore. I don’t have any useful skills. I’m a loser.”
Lune frowned and opened their mouth to say something else, but closed it again. A moment later Big Red appeared.
“Alright, Soda?”
He eyed them both with clear suspicion.
“Sorry Red, I was sleepwalking apparently,”
Soda's face flushed.
“Oh, that’s fine. I thought you were trying to escape into the woods without me.”
He said it in a light tone, but Soda could tell he was worried.
Darren appeared abruptly with a -pop- and nearly gave Soda a heart attack.
“Jesus Christ,” she shouted, clutching her chest.
“No, I’m Darren,” he replied innocently, then turned to Lune with a more serious face. “Boss, I got a perimeter warning. Those new wards are working just like you said. Someone’s setting up a big transport spell with the co-ords pointed right here. They’re not using the Gate, so I reckon they’re already in a hundred K radius.” He pulled a small screen full of data out of his pocket and handed it to them. Lune squinted at it in clear irritation.
“Stats suggest big enough for at least a dozen. Shit a river. Very well, initiate code one with the household.”
He turned away, but Lune added: “Oh, bring Soda’s backpack and shoes like a good lad will you?”
-pop-
-pop-
In two blinks he was gone and then back again. He thrust the backpack into Soda’s hands, dropped her shoes on the ground, then -pop- he was gone once more. Soda clutched her backpack and hopped on one foot, trying to get her shoes on standing up.
“What’s going on?”
“Looks like word is out,” said Lune grimly. “They’re coming for you.”
“Who’s coming?” She fell over and swore some more. “What does that mean?”
“Well, since they’re not using the Gate, a dozen goons, cutting edge spells… I’d say Evangeline.”
Soda gulped. Red yowled and cursed.
“We need to get out of here! Lune, will you open the Gate for us?”
“You know there’s a fee,” they said smoothly, unconcerned by Red’s panic.
“Ah gads Lune! This is an emergency!”
“Exactly. I’ll be punished for letting you go. Again.”
“I have cash!” Soda interjected quickly, reaching into her backpack and taking out a random wad. “Please!”
Lune took the notes and squirrelled them away somewhere in their robes.
“And an extra danger fee. For bringing all of this to my house.”
Soda frowned, but pulled out more cash.
“No,” said Lune, eyes glowing, lips curving cruelly. Soda gulped. “I need something else.”
“Like what?”
“Like a cherished memory. Or a lock of hair. Or your favourite tattoo.”
“Ugh, skin and all?”
“No, not the skin. Just the meaning.”
“Just the meaning… is this some dodgy fairy contract stuff? Are you going to use this against me later?”
Lune grinned widely, and their teeth looked sharper.
“Maybe, but do you have a choice?”
Soda looked down at Red, who shrugged in defeat.
“I don’t have anything Lune wants,” he said.
Soda thought about what seemed best to give up. She sighed and glanced down at her forearm. There was a vintage glass soft drink bottle etched into her skin. It made her think fondly of Frank: he went with her to get it. She pointed with jaw clenched shut. Lune reached out and grasped her, covering the tattoo, rings glittering strangely in the bright moonlight. For a moment, Soda’s skin fizzed unpleasantly, then when Lune’s hand pulled away, the tattoo was gone.
“Do you mind? We’re running out of time!” Red shouted at their feet.
Lune turned at once and raised their arms up high. In the distance, a shining hexagonal shape lit up the seemingly empty lawn. Ancient-looking stone pillars rose up out of the grass and began to glimmer and sparkle.
“Let’s go!”
Red was already bounding towards the Gate. Soda was temporarily awestruck by its beauty, so he ran back and bit her hard on the leg.
“Ow! Okay! Sorry I’m coming!”
They started to jog towards the Gate, then Lune shouted.
“STOP! Wait!”
They pulled up short, just as shapes started materialising in the centre. Human shapes. In a few seconds they were fully realised: three men in stiff, old-fashioned suits with one-shouldered capes. Surrounding them were a dozen larger figures in sleek uniforms with shining breastplates.
“Ah feck it’s the Fed!” Big Red sprang up into Soda’s arms, then positioned himself onto the backpack. “Run now! Quickly!”
“Stop! William Bosby, Soda Jones, you are wanted for questioning regarding the impending Apocalypse!”
The man at the front was striding forward, his voice stern and authoritative. Big Red hissed loudly.
“I did not authorise this approach! I demand an explanation!”
The three caped gentlemen were approaching them briskly. Soda could see the one in front was a bit younger than the other two wrinkly fellows. He had big swirls of salt and pepper hair standing in perfect waves.
“We have an emergency override issued by an Enclave Quorum, giving us full authority to use whatever means necessary to get to the bottom of this! Surely you must appreciate how serious this is!”
He was waving a rolled up, sealed parchment like a baton. The other two men marched up behind him, scowling.
“Enforcers! Seize these reprobates!”
One of the old suited men pointed a sausage-like finger at Soda and Big Red. He was pouchy and pockmarked. The armoured goons advanced forward menacingly.
“This is unfair! I haven’t done anything!” Soda squeaked, backing away.
“Then you won’t mind coming with us."
The man with the quiff had a pleasant voice and a tight little smile. The third, tall and rail thin, pressed his lips together.
“She has an Ambrosia aura,” he hissed. “We may have some trouble with containment.”
The goons, hearing this, advanced more slowly, unsure of what to do next. Soda kept backing away, step by careful step.
Then -pop-
and Darren was next to Lune. He shot off a low bow to the Enclave members.
“Now?” He asked Lune.
“Who the Seven Hells are you?” Demanded the pouchy man.
“Yes please Darren, thank you dear,” said Lune pleasantly. Darren disappeared again.
“What is…”
The younger man’s words died, drowned out as the air filled with a thousand horrible, discordant screeches. The Enforcers looked around nervously, forming up into tight defensive ranks. Some of them had curious-looking complicated crossbows, which they held up and aimed around. Others drew swords. Only one had a gun, comically large and ornate, a bit like Rowan’s.
From the front doors of the house up the hill spilled a million bats, surging and swarming towards them in a black tide of leathery wings and chittering cries. They were on the group in two seconds. They swarmed mindlessly, angry and confused about how they came to be flying through this clearing instead of high over the suburbs one hundred and fifty kilometres to the south. Absolute chaos descended.
“Get around this lot and towards the Gate!” Big Red hissed in Soda’s ear.
She took off, stumbling with her arms held high as angry bats collided with her and got tangled in her hair. She was so close to panicking and going completely wild, but Red put a paw on the side of her neck comfortingly.
“You got this kid, you’re alright, keep going,” he continued to cajole and encourage her until she collided with a stone and fell backwards. Red yowled, tumbling off her backpack. Soda swore and scrabbled back to her feet, but it was too late. The bats all vanished as quickly as they’d appeared.
“Nice trick!”
A new voice, a woman’s, hearty and loud.
“But it takes more than a few bats to scare me!”
Soda whipped around. The Enclave hadn’t gotten very far from their original spot and they also looked shocked and dishevelled. Advancing down the slope towards them was a single woman, short but broad, dressed in head to toe black combat gear. She was holding up one hand as though in greeting, but it was trailing pale yellow fire. Wisps of sparkling ash drifted on the breeze where the bats were a moment ago.
“They’re surrounding us,” growled Red.
Soda glanced over her shoulder and realised that other attackers in black were approaching through the trees. As they stepped forward in steady rhythm, a white, net-like matrix was shimmering into existence. With each step it got brighter, more solid-looking.
“In the name of the Enclave Quorum stop!” Shouted the handsome man, full of pompous righteousness.
The woman, clearly their leader, laughed.
“Since you couldn’t even deal with some local bats, I think we should take it from here!”
Soda realised the white net was shining out to the others from her. It was closing fast.
“Will the net stop us?”
Soda cradled her arms so Red could leap up again.
“Probably not,” the cat replied, repositioning on the backpack, “but you can still be stabbed or shot by crossbows or guns or–”
“Ok thanks I get it! What do we do?”
An unnaturally loud voice boomed out from one of the black-clad figures towards the driveway.
“TERTIARY THREAT IDENTIFIED!”
The leader’s head swivelled around as she realised that another group had appeared in the darkness. They were dressed in light grey jumpsuits with fencing masks covering their faces, and had been approaching silently from behind her squad.
“Engage immediately!”
She spun a powerful kick to the grey fighter behind her. The fighter dodged her easily, their movements graceful and inhumanly fast. She followed it up with a volley of yellow fire, but it just puffed to ash over the mask. The grey figures moved as silently as ghosts and harassed everyone indiscriminately. They moved like dancers, springing and twirling around swords, crossbow bolts, and brushing off bursts of furious magic.
The lawn had become a battlefield. A chaotic melee of black, grey, and silver fighters grappling, shooting, shouting, exploding, and in some cases, transforming into farm animals. A furiously honking goose ran past Soda.
“Ugh, someone used a bestiary! You never do farm animals! Too messy!”
Red shook his head in disgust as a sheep pooped nervously in front of them.
They had finally made it to the henge-like structure of the Gate. Soda pressed herself up against one of the cool stones and tried to stop panicking. There was a warm glow on the edge of the dark sky. The sun was rising.
“How do we get out of here?!”
Lune appeared through the chaos, black clouds shot through with lightning boiling out of their kaftan.
“Get ready!” They shouted, then, “shit!”
The Enforcer captain had finally managed to run through one of the grey fighters with a sword. Instead of hitting solid mass, the sword swirled through the fighter like they were mist.
“Awwww Seven Hells! They’re illusions! Focus on the others!”
Lune couldn’t help but grin.
“Not bad, hey old man? It was Darren's idea, actually.”
Red whistled appreciatively.
“Best I’ve ever seen,” he agreed. “Real as anything! Now can we go!”
“Alright, get re– oh double shit!”
A much larger shape was materialising in the centre of the Gate. It was all sleek edges, and glinted pearly white…
The engine roared, and lavender smoke shot out of the back of the Mustang as Rowan put her foot on the accelerator. She burst out into the battle, laughing maniacally. Unfortunately, they made eye contact almost immediately. Rowan grinned with feral triumph. She slammed on the brakes and swung the car into a drift, kicking up clods of lawn in the process. Soda tried to run, but the Mustang door flung itself open, and she and Red were scooped up into the car like flotsam. Now facing the way she’d just come, Rowan floored it again, and ploughed the car straight back into the Gate and the sparkling unknown.
Chapter Six: Gatecrashers
Escalating situations with the use of farm animals, a daring escape/kidnapping