Catch a Falling Star

[MadEmperor]

Volke stepped forward, eyes full of a desperate darkness that could now only be satisfied by blood. He had to have the power of the Tear at any cost. His mission demanded it.

He lunged, sword aimed at her neck. Time for negotiations was over. It was, quite literally, time for her to do or die.

[DragonSong]

Kiara moved on instinct, ducking the blow and rolling away from Grav so she could snatch her dagger up off the floor.

She sprang up behind Volke, but she was slower than she should be, still not fully recovered from their earlier ordeals. Lifting the dagger into a guard position, she started to try to skirt her way around the edge of his range, looking for an opening.

[MadEmperor]

The mage took an expert fighting stance. He sidestepped slowly, keeping his cane handle in a guard position and his blade prepared to thrust. "I have all the time in the world to waste on the defensive. You, however, do not. From the ragged breathing  and the bubbles in the blood coming out his mouth, I can see that has a collapsed lung. He'll be dead in minutes if you don't do something."

[DragonSong]

Kiara didn't have space in her brain for witty banter, or even an angry retort. Because she knew he was right; Grav was dying.

She couldn't let Volke get the Tear.

But she couldn't let Grav die either.

Slowly, she let her dagger start to lower, arm trembling. "Fine," she whispered. "Fine. Just—promise you'll help him."

She'd already sacrificed herself once for Grav, or had intended to—Volke would have no reason to suspect she wasn't about to do so again. She just needed his guard down. Just for a second...

[MadEmperor]

Volke nodded, lowering his blade slowly. "Excellent. I'm glad you're finally seeing sense."

[DragonSong]

Kiara nodded dejectedly, eyes on her feet, and took one shuffling step toward him. Then her off hand came up, flinging a weak jet of fire into his face--probably not enough to do him real harm, not with his skills. But enough to distract him as she suddenly burst forward and jammed her dagger as far between his ribs as she could get it.

She didn't even pause, letting the momentum of her lunge carry her forward to skid onto her knees beside Grav and pull his shoulders into her lap. With one bloodied hand, she reached out to press her palm against the Tear.

"Please," she begged, not sure if she was wishing or praying. "Fix him. Save him. Please."

[MadEmperor]

Volke stumbled back with a look of surprise on his face. "You'll..." He couldn't manage to say anything else as he collapsed to his knees before falling over.

The Tear responded to her intent, glowing brighter. And it continued to glow ever brighter until all was white. When it faded, she was floating in a vast sea of stars. Grav was with her, but frozen in his final moments.

Before her floated a person in flowing clothes the colors of a nebula. They stared into her with eyes like twin suns, though they didn't hurt to look at. "What is thy desire?"

[DragonSong]

Kiara stared. She had seen a lot of ethereal creatures in her life--it sort of came with the territory of her parentage--but nothing like this.

"Y-you're...the Tear is...alive?" she whispered, stunned. Then she shook herself, looking around. "Wait, I--where am I? What's going on?"

She swallowed and looked back to the glowing figure. Her hand on Grav's chest clenched in his shirt unconsciously.

[MadEmperor]

The being smiled kindly. "Do not worry, child; you are still in your reality. This place is simply being projected into your mind so that we may communicate more easily."

They cast their eyes on the wounded swordsman. "You wish to save his life, this I know, but I sense there is more to your wish than that."

[DragonSong]

"I..."

Kiara looked down at Grav. He wasn't breathing, but that seemed to be due to the strange blip in time she was currently occupying.

"I just want him to be okay," she suddenly sobbed, curving forward over him slightly. "He--he never would have had to deal with any of this if he'd never met me. He's still be human, he wouldn't have met Volke, he wouldn't have gotten shot." She looked up at the Tear, her own eyes ironically watery. "I--I want him to be okay. To be himself again, to be happy."

[MadEmperor]

The entity looked apologetic. "This, I cannot do. If you had never met him, then you wouldn't be here now to make that wish. I can no more break the flow of time than I can revive the dead.

[DragonSong]

Sniffling, Kiara nodded; she was sure there was some lengthy, convoluted explanation about that, but she didn't have the time--or really the inclination--to try to parse through it.

"Then..." She looked up at the Tear. "Can you fix him? Heal him--make him himself again?"

[MadEmperor]

"I can do that." The entity nodded. They snapped their fingers and reality crashed in on her.


Grav took a sudden gasp of air. He was human again and, more importantly, unharmed. He was even fully dressed. Strangely, though he was in much nicer travel gear, with a high quality breastplate among other fine, studded leather armor. He even had a cape, for gods' sake.

"What in--what did you do?" he asked, perplexed.

[DragonSong]

Kiara gasped herself as the world suddenly oriented itself back into the reality she knew. Grav was still half in her lap, warm and alive and...perhaps a bit shinier than she'd been expecting.

She didn't care. With a half-choked sob, she threw her arms around his neck and hugged tight. "Oh my gods, oh my gods!"

"I-I--" She sniffled and tried to pull herself together enough to answer him. "I made the wish," she whispered. "You--you were dying, and...I had to. I asked the Tear to heal you, to...make you yourself again..."

[MadEmperor]

"Is that why I'm dressed like a nob?" he asked with a woozy smirk. Yep, he was himself alright.

His head cleared quickly. "Oh shit! Volke shot me, didn't he?" His hand shot to his breastplate. "Right... healed by the... Tear? Uh... where did it go?"

He was right: the artifact was no longer there. There was only the empty space where it had been.

[DragonSong]

"I..."

Kiara looked at the empty space where the crystal had been floating. "I think...it's gone. The last of it's magic must have been used up..."

She was still half supporting him, but then her eyes widened and she shot to her feet. "Kit!" She whirled back toward the entrance to the chamber. "We have to get back to him--I know Volke said he was just asleep, but what if--what if--?!"

[MadEmperor]

Grav wobbled a little, but managed to get to his feet. Nodding, he resolutely said, "Let's hurry."

He wasted no more time, not quite running for the tunnel back to the bridge. He didn't bother to make sure Volke was dead; there was nothing for him anyway. Kit was far more important.

[DragonSong]

Kit skidded to a halt as they made it to the bridge, seeing a mass of black scales and crumpled wings on the other side of the gap. For a heart-stopping moment, that was all she saw--then she realized his flank was moving lightly with breath, and a relieved exhale escaped her.

"Kit!" she called "Kit!"

No response--the wind was probably drowning out her verbal call, and he was too deeply asleep to hear her shouting down their mental link.

[MadEmperor]

Grav scratched his chin. He had his scruff again! Yay!

"Hey, does the wind sound... weaker to you? Like, a lot weaker?" He stuck an arm out  to feel the wind flow around his hand. "It is!"

He looked at her. "Do you... think the Tear was keeping the magic going?"

[DragonSong]

Kiara tried to focus, redirecting her attention from her concern for Kit. "That would make sense," she murmured with a nod.

Giving the chasm a wary look, she added, "I still think I'd feel better if we use the ropes while we get back across..."