Amelia Thornheart

Chapter Thirty-Five: Little Big Horns

Wings! She did have wings! Amelia couldn’t contain her growing excitement and leapt up, bouncing around the arena, giggling uncontrollably. “You mean it!?” she asked Serena as she stopped and began tippy-tapping the floor with her four hands. “We’re going to fly to Shimashina!? You’re going to ride me!?”

“Ha!” Serena exclaimed, looking amused at Amelia’s antics. “Not quite. We’ll fly within fifty klicks of the city and enter the forest before the perimeter ships and their aetherscopes can pick you up. Then you’ll transform back, and we'll run the final leg. We-” Serena frowned. “Hang on.”

She vanished into the ship, where Amelia could sense her collecting their luggage. While that was happening, a small voice piped up.

“We’re really going to… fly?” Polina asked in a small voice.

Amelia flashed a gigantic smile. “Looks like it! Don’t worry, I’ll ward you so if anything goes wrong you’ll be unharmed!” At her words, Polina’s eyes widened and a small smile appeared on her face.

“Ward me? Of course, you can do something like that…” she muttered. “How can you Speak the Second Word? It should be impossible. You’re twenty-five! Unless…” Suddenly, Polina looked apprehensive. “Are you a darkblade!?” she blurted out.

“Nope!” Amelia chirped, waiting for Polina’s blessing to verify her statement before continuing, “I’m just me! Amelia!” She punctuated her point using two of her four hands to point to herself.

Polina mumbled some more stuff about impossible things as she twiddled her fingers. Amelia let her be, turning back to the ship as Serena appeared with their luggage and a large rope.

“Our stuff. I figured we might as well bring it. After all, when you change back…” Serena looked Amelia up and down, “... you’ll be naked. Can’t have you strolling into Shimashina wearing nothing, can we?”

“Hehe…” Amelia giggled.

“We’ll wrap the luggage in this rope,” Serena said, holding the thick rope up. “You can hold it in one of your hands. You’ll need to be careful not to crush it accidentally. Look at what those wings and talons have done to the tree bark!” Serena pointed, and Amelia followed her finger to see the deep scratches and cuts in the enormous trees surrounding them.

“It’s just tree bark, right?” Amelia asked, raising a taloned hand and carving into a nearby tree. She barely felt any resistance.

“That bark is two inches thick and almost as tough as iron,” Serena intoned. “In emergencies, ships have been known to land and harvest it for repairs and armour! Be careful with your hands! You’ll slice someone in half if you’re not careful!”

“Ahh…” Amelia gulped and made a mental note to always pay attention to where her hands were. “I see…”

“I’ll find another rope to make some kind of harness for me and that girl,” Serena jerked her head towards Polina, who shrank back a little. Serena couldn’t keep the distaste out of her voice. “It would be best to put her to sleep for the journey. Because-” Amelia’s aether flared, and a moment later Polina fell to her side, under the effects of Amelia’s sleep spell. 

Serena’s eyes widened in surprise. “That was easy; I thought you would be against the idea…”

“It’s not that,” Amelia said quickly, focusing almost entirely on the aetherfield as her instincts screamed at her. “Somethings coming, something big. Fifty kilometres... closing fast.” As the entity approached, Amelia cast an eighth-circle ward on Polina and then an enormous sixth-circle ward covering the entire ship and its unconscious inhabitants.

So many wards were a strain on even Amelia’s titanic aether reserves. Her regeneration - which she now understood to be a result of how her soul bent the aetherfield into her, similar to how a planet bent space-time - was struggling to keep up. Amelia cancelled the ward she had cast around the trio earlier, stabilising her aether.

Still, it made her oddly anxious for her maintenance costs to more or less match her regeneration. The tiers of spells accessible from the Second Word, the seventh, eighth and the monstrous ninth-tier were no joke. They were exponentially more expensive than the lower tiers. This was the first time she had begun to sense the precise limit of her powers. Of course, she still had numerous buffs she could cast upon herself to increase her capabilities, although she had zero experience using them in the real world.

If it came to a fight, then hopefully everything worked like it did from the game.

The wind began to pick up as the entity approached. First, it was just the whisper of wind, the slight rustle of the forest canopy and the gentle ruffling of her feathers. Then it picked up, and the branches began to creak under the growing wind, and leaves began to fall. Serena seemed to sense it now as well, and moved closer to Amelia, her hand gripping her training sword.

As it closed in on them, the wind became a storm, and thunder sounded from close by. The air hummed with electricity, and her feathers and fur rose. Small branches snapped off and fell, carpeting the mostly barren floor with a carpet of greenery.

Then, it breached the forest canopy.

It was a giant humanoid thing. It didn’t seem to have a physical form. Instead, its outline was subtly defined by the flow of wind around its location - its body vaguely represented where the leaves and dirt struggled to pass through. As it floated down, nearby leaves and branches were entirely vapourised by the arcs of electricity firing off the giant’s body.

It landed about fifty meters away from them and simply watched them. At least, Amelia thought it was watching them. She could only barely make out its facial features.  Looking at it with her newly gained perception, she suspected that this entity mostly existed in the mirror realm she had identified, and only a small portion of it was manifested in this plane. The power of its soul was almost blinding to her eyes and made it somewhat uncomfortable to look directly at.

He was also enormous. Perhaps twenty-five meters tall. If Amelia stood upright than maybe she would be taller, at least if it weren’t for the great horns of shadow that crowned the figures head. Amelia swallowed nervously, and then slowly raised one of her four arms and gave a small wave to the familiar entity.

“Hello again,” she said to the eastern overlord.

The overlord was silent for an awkward amount of time that stretched to the point Amelia considered speaking again. Thankfully, he broke the silence first.

“You again,” intoned the overlord, the act of just speaking sending bolts of lightning to vapourised parts of tree bark, leaving oddly shaped holes behind. Amelia couldn’t help but suspect that perhaps this was why he landed away from them. “The first violation in Kenhoro, and now… this.” He hissed the last word, and a stream of lightening crackled wildly as it ate away at the surrounding trees.

“I-” Amelia began to explain.

“Asclepius,” interrupted the overlord. “Why did you accept the connection? Is your thirst for knowledge regarding this woman so great that you’ll violate the accords?”

“Vikram!” Amelia spluttered, her mouth moving on its own. It was Asclepius, speaking through her. “This daemon lord forced the connection! I couldst not break it!”

It felt odd to have a literal god complain about her through her own body. Besides, what was she supposed to do? Who knows how much damage she might have done if she had Spoken the Second Word of one of the more powerful demon gods who specialised in combat? 

“Every fleet in the east was scrambled because of… this event.” Vikram waved an almost invisible hand dismissively. “I thought it was an attack. Miss Thornheart, do you know how much financial expenditure you just cost me?”

“Umm…” Amelia mumbled, taking back control of her mouth.

“Furthermore, to Speak with such power this far south. You’ll have disturbed Rhaknam’s slumber! Another mess that you have caused that others will need to clean up!” The storm giant glared at her. He seemed to be waiting for a reply, but the moment Amelia opened her mouth to apologise, he began chastising her again. “And your presence here! Disrupting the ecosystem! Every trade post or mining village in two hundred klicks will need deployments of soldiers to defend against the hordes of monsters fleeing you!”

After he finished, Amelia waited an extra long time to make sure he was done. “I’m sorry!” she blurted out quickly, getting the words out before any potential interruption could come. “I didn’t know!”

“Exactly,” said the overlord, “you didn’t know.” The giant turned its head to look down. “Young Speaker Halen, you have done a poor job of teaching this realm-traveler how to conduct herself!”

“I…” Serena began, and Amelia looked down to see Serena was on her knees, bowing with her head touching the ground. “My deepest apologies, great one!” Seeing Serena in such a state was a shock to Amelia. It was a position of submission that she would never have been able to imagine her girlfriend taking. The sight of it tickled her anger.

“And this human with two blessings. What an unbelievable thing you have found...” The overlord’s attention turned to the sleeping Polina, his voice taking on a tone of curiosity. “Explain everything to me.”

“Well, it-” Amelia began.

“Not you,” snapped the overlord. “Speaker Halen will explain!”

Well, alright then! Amelia decided she didn’t really like this grumpy overlord. Always interrupting her and snapping at this and that. How much would a smile cost him? Wouldn’t it pay for him to be a little more… relaxed?

Amelia resisted the urge to roll her eyes and waited quietly while Serena explained who Polina was and the events that lead up to the ship breaking. She didn’t hold anything back, and explained in detail what Polina’s blessings were. On occasion, the overlord would interrupt with a probing question or other enquiry. When they were done a full minute of silence passed before the overlord spoke.

“Perhaps something can be salvaged from this situation…” the overlord murmured. “Continue as you planned towards Shimashina. The quicker you leave the forest the better. Fly mid-sky, for if you travel too close to the canopy you’ll frighten the monsters.” The storm giant seemed to ponder for a moment before continuing. “Leave the human girl. I will take her.”

“Hang on a minute,” Amelia began, “I-”

“Amelia!” Serena hissed at her. “Don’t! Not this time!” Amelia looked into Serena’s hard eyes and saw a layer of fear and perhaps even anger. It was a look she had never shown before, and the fact that it was because of the overlord made Amelia dislike him even more.

“... fine,” she muttered, turning her head to the side.

“Speaker Halen. Despite the circumstances, you’ve done well collecting me this prize-” Amelia felt herself twitch as he referred to Polina in such a way. “You are no longer a mere Lord-Prospect. I hereby declare you Cascadian Lord! Stand now, and serve me and our divine empress with your body and soul! Bleed for demonkind, and let demonkind bleed for you! Stand, Lord Halen! And answer! Will ye serve?”

Serena swallowed and stood up with shaky legs. She bowed deeply, clasping her hands together. “With great honour, I will serve!” she declared with a strange intensity that was again unfamiliar to Amelia.

“Make preparations for your flight and leave,” the overlord commanded, beginning to float upwards as the wind picked up again. As he rose, so did Polina’s sleeping form. It pained Amelia to see her friend be taken away from her. She dropped the eighth-circle ward on Polina and replaced it with the strongest sixth-circle one she knew. Despite being a lower tier, she was confident she could maintain this even without Speaking the First Word. She made a promise to Polina that she wouldn’t let anyone harm her, and it was a promise she intended not to break. Amelia would maintain this ward across the entire empire if needed.

“I will ensure the safety of the ship's inhabitants from above,” intoned the overlord as he entered the canopy.

“Y-yes, overlord!” Serena shouted, remaining in her bow until the overlord and Polina had passed through the hole he had created in the forest canopy and travelled several kilometres above into the clouds, where he remained - in Amelia’s opinion - like a lingering fart.

Serena eventually straightened, but didn’t say anything. It appeared she was deep in thought. Her mouth would occasionally curl into a smile before correcting itself. Perhaps she was happy? After all, Serena was now a full Cascadian Lord. That was like getting a massive promotion at work, right?

“Congratulations… I think?” Amelia said, unable to withstand the long silence. Serena turned to her.

“Thank you, Amelia,” Serena said with a smile.

“Is… everything alright?”

“Yes, I’m sorry,” Serena motioned for Amelia to come closer. When she bent her head down, Serena began massaging her feathered neck. Despite the mood not being quite right, Amelia couldn’t stop the deep rumbling of a purr erupting in her throat. “I’m quite literally overjoyed,” Serena explained. “I can’t put it into words. Becoming a Cascadian Lord this young? It’s a monumental achievement! Lots of things will change now…”

“...Change?” Amelia muttered. She wasn’t sure what she thought of that.

“Yes, but in a good way, I think,” Serena said softly. “Now, it will be easier for me to protect you!”

“Do I need protection?” Amelia wasn’t sure what level of attack she could withstand in this form, but it was surely far greater than anything Serena could handle. “I’m super strong, you know?”

“Not that kind of protection… you’ll see…” Serena gave her neck a hug and then withdrew. “Let’s prepare to leave! It might take a while to figure out the best way to secure this luggage. Here… hold this! Try not to slice the rope with your talons…” Serena set about tying the luggage together.

Eventually, they got it in a position where it was half strapped to Amelia and half cradled in her lower two arms. After assuring Serena multiple times that she definitely wasn’t going to drop it, Serena clambered onto her back, gripping Amelia’s feathers as she settled into a comfortable position.

“I’m worried… about Polina…” Amelia said, unable to stop herself from sounding sad. She was sure the overlord could hear her, but she didn’t care. “She’s going to wake up in a strange place, and I won’t be there!”

“Don’t be,” Serena said. “Believe me, she’s so valuable not a hair on her head will be harmed. You can trust the overlords, they are principled and honourable. She'll likely be given a place to stay that makes The Highguard look like a slum in comparison.”

“I hope so…” As long as Amelia maintained her ward on Polina, she could follow the trail of aether to her location. “I will write her a letter,” Amelia announced to herself, Serena, and the listening overlord. “I don’t want this forest to be the last time I see her!” Serena didn’t say anything in response, but Amelia was sure her stubbornness was recognised.

Once Serena confirmed she was secure on Amelia's back, Amelia used her other two hands and legs to clamber up a tree and through the forest canopy. “Wow…” she exclaimed, trying to ignore the blinding soul of the annoying overlord above them.

“What a beautiful night sky…” Serena mumbled from her back. “Look! You can see the blue moon! It’s only going to get bigger from now, until the next moonrain!” Amelia looked at the shining blue object in the far distant sky. Serena was right; it was beautiful. Amelia felt a yearning inside her. If she were a wolf, she would want to howl into the sky. Sadly, she couldn’t howl, but she could fly.

“Ready?” Amelia called out as she unfurled her great wings under the night sky.

Flying would be easy, right?

Lani paced around the room. She knew a dignified highborn lady like her shouldn’t pace, but she couldn’t stop herself! Every thirty seconds, she would glance out the window, looking down the road for the carriage that was supposed to have arrived hours ago.

“Ho ho… you’re an impatient one, aren’t you…” said an elderly maid as she tidied and cleaned the room. “Why don’t you sit down and read, young Lani? You’ll only tire yourself out.” Lani rolled her eyes. Why did old people always feel the need to give her constant advice? She could figure everything out by herself!

Nevertheless, she forced herself to sit down, turning to look in a mirror. She grumbled at what she saw. “They’ll get bigger, won’t they?” She asked the old maid. “They’re barely past four inches!”

“Of course, my dear Lani!” The maid gave her a reassuring smile. “You’ll have your growth spurt any day now! Besides, horns don’t stop growing until you’re far into your twenties! You have a wonderful set of horns, I bet all the boys try to talk to you all the time!” Lani giggled at the old maid’s words. Old people always had such nice things to say! Why didn’t she listen to them more often!? 

“But… boys like big ones, right? Big like Serena’s?” Lani reached up and grasped her horns in her hands. Even with her small lady-like hands she could easily wrap them around each horn.

“Some might… but others like smaller ones! Bigger isn’t always better, young Lani!” The old maid paused her cleaning and waggled a finger at her. “Don’t fixate on one thing! You have such lovely silky hair, and your eyes are every bit as crimson as any other member of House Halen!”

“Hmm… you’re right! I am pretty!” Lani looked at herself in the mirror, feeling a lot better about her appearance. She should probably thank this old maid. Lani didn’t even know her name! “What’s-” she began before catching sight of a carriage slowly coming up the road. “Seven hells! She’s here! Out the way, old woman!”

Lani jumped up and ran out the bedroom, ignoring the maid calling after her not to run in the house. Down the stairs she went, taking them two at a time. Through the doors where her father and his attendant were waiting.

“Lani! Behave yourself!” Father barked at her. Lani skidded to a stop, taking her position by her father. She almost couldn’t stop the rising excitement as the carriage came through the gates and pulled up in front of them. When the demon inside stepped out, and those familiar set of horns appeared, Lani couldn’t contain it any longer. She leapt from the steps and threw herself at her sister, giving her the best hug she could.

“Big sister!” Lani squealed, squeezing her harder. It didn’t matter how hard she squeezed; someone like her could never hurt her sister! “Welcome home!” Well, the family house in Shimashina wasn’t exactly home, that label belonged to the massive estate they all grew up in over in Asamaywa. Regardless, Serena would get the message.

“Ooof! You’ve become so strong!” Serena exclaimed, hugging her sister back. “Look at your horns! They’ve become so big!”

“But not as big as yours!” Lani complained.

“Well, make sure to eat everything on your plate! That worked for me!”

“Uh, huh,” Lani rolled her eyes. Her big sister was always giving her big-sister advice like that. Well, she could forgive Serena for now; after all-

Oh, who was this?

Someone else clambered out of the carriage. It was a human wearing work clothes, with golden hair and a cap. “Hup!” the person exclaimed, jumping down from the carriage. They patted themselves down before looking around awkwardly.

“Human!” Lani called, breaking away from hugging her sister. “Who- oh, I’m sorry! I thought you were a human!” She smiled nervously, hoping she hadn’t insulted Serena’s friend, or was she a servant? Maybe an assistant? Poor girl, here Lani was, worried about her horns growing as big as Serena’s while this demon's horns were so small they were hidden behind her hat!

If it weren’t for her crimson red eyes, every bit as blood red as any member of House Halen, Lani would have thought she was human!

“Hello!” Said the demon girl, “I’m Amelia! Nice to meet you!”