《Prompt-Fills: April 2018》


 Cuckoo

    ¡°You¡¯re crazy,¡± said the grizzled hunter. ¡°Invisible birds? That¡¯s nuts even for a blue lady like yourself.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s there,¡± said Kits, who was blue-skinned and red-eyed and purple-haired, with teeth slightly more pointed than a human¡¯s, but who otherwise carried herself as any humanoid creature might. She had a fox on her shoulders. A live one, who happened to be her kindred, her literal soul sister. Literal because they shared it. Their soul. ¡°I can feel it.¡± Kits searched her translation spell for the appropriate adverb. ¡°Thermally.¡±


    ¡°You mean with magic?¡± asked the hunter¡¯s kid, a scrawny boy in camo clothing who held his own rifle with as much confidence as his father.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°No such thing as magic,¡± said the hunter.


    The kid huffed.


    Atop Kits¡¯ shoulders, the fox, Kaia, adjusted into a better position for pouncing. Kits leaned to make it easier. She knew what Kaia was going to do. Kaia had every intention of proving the hunter wrong by hunting the invisible bird herself, which frankly Kits found excessive. The bird hadn¡¯t done anything except sit there on its branch. But sometimes when Kaia got an idea in her head there wasn¡¯t anything to do but indulge her. She could be so difficult. Kits braced herself for the taste of feathers. Sharing a soul meant they shared sensations. Not always a good thing.


    ¡°Whether it¡¯s there or not doesn¡¯t really matter,¡± said Kits in the hopes that Kaia would give up her crusade to prove these two humans wrong. ¡°But magic does exist. We¡¯re proof.¡± We meaning both herself and Kaia. She gestured appropriately to indicate this.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t any of my business if someone decides to dye themselves crayon colors,¡± said the hunter. ¡°Or keep a pet fox, though I have to say that¡¯ll come back to bite you eventually if you don¡¯t keep up with its training. Foxes are wild animals, emphasis on the wild.¡± He shrugged, showing excellent gun control. The weapon¡¯s nose remained pointed away from everyone and down at the earth. ¡°Magic is for fairy tales. Fictional.¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    The kid stared at the ground and shuffled his feet. Kits felt his body temperature heat up with an argument he wasn¡¯t voicing. It was slight but it was there, mostly in his heart, neck, and ears, and Kits felt it as a tactile sensation. Her thermal sense was an extension of her sense of touch. She knew Kaia was feeling it too because of the soul connection, but Kits was more sensitive to her own form of magic, so Kaia¡¯s experience of the heat rising in the kid would be muted compared to hers.


    ¡°Your son disagrees with you,¡± said Kits.


    The kid turned red and looked at Kits, stricken.


    Oops. Guess that was the wrong thing to say. Normally Kits wouldn¡¯t bother correcting anyone about whether magic existed, but the invisible bird wasn¡¯t the only invisible thing in the forest. She¡¯d felt another presence, just as warm and much larger, a few miles up the trail where the hunter and the kid seemed to be headed. The larger presence had been stalking this way and that, gobbling up bigger and bigger vermin as it went, and Kits didn¡¯t want these two humans to become part of the larger thing¡¯s meal. She liked humans. This conversation had started because she¡¯d tried to caution them away from the area.


    Problem was, it was becoming more and more apparent the hunter wasn¡¯t going to listen to her. Kits might¡¯ve let him have his stubbornness, shrugged oh well and let him run off toward the danger, but this time she couldn¡¯t. He had a kid with him. A kid he¡¯d drag along for the ride who had no choice in the matter.


    Kaia¡¯s weight moved around on Kits¡¯ shoulders. She¡¯d decided not to pounce. Good.


    ¡°Want company on the trail?¡± asked Kits.


    ¡°No offense,¡± said the hunter. ¡°But no. Come on, kiddo.¡± He ushered the kid in front of him, putting himself between his son and Kits. At least he had a protective instinct. As they made their way out of view up the trail, Kits turned her face toward Kaia.


    Kaia twitched her ears back and then forward again.


    ¡°We have to,¡± said Kits.


    Kaia let out a canid scoff.


    ¡°They can¡¯t see it,¡± said Kits. ¡°Even if they have guns, they won¡¯t know where to aim.¡±


    Kaia scoffed again, but her nose was twitching. Kits smelled the scents of the hunter and the kid in her own nose and felt accomplished. The fact Kaia was memorizing their scents meant she intended to track them, which meant she wanted to help too. Kaia hopped off Kits¡¯ shoulders to the ground, leaving the invisible bird to its peaceful existence in the tree.


    ¡°The kid believed us.¡± Kits used her magic to raise her body temperature, readying herself for a fight. With Kaia running beside her, they took the forested route and kept far enough away from the trail so they wouldn¡¯t be spotted even with Kits¡¯ bright coloration. They shadowed the hunter and his kid. ¡°How long has it been since someone took one look at us and believed everything we said?¡±

 Abide

    Kits felt like an easygoing person until they put her in a cage. Three walls of the cage were white and the fourth was a mirror. Whether that mirror went more than one way was up for debate, but Kits would guess it was double-sided. The ceiling was low. The space smelled like detergent and metal. Kaia would¡¯ve had a better sense of nuance when it came to the smells, but she wasn¡¯t here. She¡¯d escaped, which left Kits alone in this little white room with nothing to do but seethe. She could melt her way out, probably, but the people who put her in here had a lot of guns, and Kits had a terrible track record against projectiles.


    There was a door, but it was locked. Kits sat on a metal chair, which was bolted down, and had her elbows on a metal table, which was also bolted down. To amuse herself while she waited for something to happen, she imagined what the reactions of the humans who¡¯d placed her here might be if she randomly decided to singe the table. Or freeze the chairs. Or thermal shock her way through the lock. She could. Being made of magic meant it would be easy, and she was bored, which made it tempting, but once again, guns. Bad track record with guns. Kits put her chin in her hands and blew purple strands of hair out of her face.


    After an approximate eternity, a man in a suit entered. He sat at the chair across from Kits (yeah, that one¡¯s bolted down too, she checked) and placed his arms on the table, fixing her with a stern expression.


    ¡°Hi,¡± said Kits.


    He arched an eyebrow. He had dark caterpillar eyebrows. Kits imagined them wiggling to music and had to choke down a giggle.


    ¡°Remind me why you¡¯re in here,¡± said the man.


    ¡°People shoved me through the door.¡±


    His expression went flat.


    ¡°People shoved me through the door because I accidentally burned down a house. Which I apologized for.¡±


    He blinked at her.


    ¡°And no one got hurt.¡±Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°The house got hurt.¡±


    A jolt of adrenaline raised Kits¡¯ temperature. ¡°Houses are sentient here?¡± If that were true, she¡¯d feel terrible. She didn¡¯t think they were, given this was a human settlement and all, but anything was possible in the multiverse.


    ¡°No.¡± The man spoke slowly. Judgmentally. ¡°Houses are not sentient.¡±


    ¡°Well that¡¯s a relief.¡±


    He made this face that made Kits think she might¡¯ve short-circuited his brain. Maybe he was trying to figure out where to place her. She¡¯d been in a lot of places where people didn¡¯t know what to do with her.


    ¡°I also promised not to do it again,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°Someone has to pay for the property damage.¡± He hadn¡¯t brought a folder or any papers with him¡ªcome to think of it, probably because those are flammable¡ªso he must¡¯ve memorized the exact cost. ¡°Three hundred thousand dollars. Do you have three hundred thousand dollars?¡±


    ¡°I assume a dollar is currency.¡±


    He made that blank face again. Now that she was paying closer attention, Kits noticed aggravation in the crease of his brow. His body temperature was rising too.


    ¡°I might have something to trade, but you took my Poc-Inv.¡±


    ¡°Your what?¡±


    ¡°Poc-Inv. It¡¯s short for something but I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s translatable into this language. It¡¯s the thing that holds all my stuff. You took it when I went through that beeping doorway.¡±


    ¡°You mean the metal detector?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that.¡±


    ¡°This thing, does it look like, uh.¡± He approximated a hexagon as best he could with his hands.


    ¡°That¡¯s the one. There¡¯s lots of valuables in there.¡±


    He went silent for a second, hands still held out toward her in that bequeathing position as if he¡¯d forgotten what he was doing. He had that face humans make when something dawns on them.


    ¡°What?¡± Kits leaned away from him and rested against the back of the chair. It wasn¡¯t comfortable, but it wasn¡¯t the worst place she¡¯d ever sat.


    ¡°You¡¯re not playing me.¡±


    ¡°Um. No.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re actually blue and you actually had no idea whether houses were sentient and you actually didn¡¯t mean to burn that one down.¡±


    ¡°Why would I burn someone¡¯s house down, anyway? It¡¯s rude.¡±


    He got up and made his way toward the door.


    ¡°Where¡¯re you going?¡±


    ¡°I have to make a few calls.¡±


    ¡°I really didn¡¯t mean it, y¡¯know.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Burning down the house. I tried not to.¡±


    He turned to face her and lifted his eyebrows.


    ¡°I was kinda mad,¡± said Kits. ¡°Emotions make my magic go everywhere. But I never want anyone to get hurt.¡± Unless they deserve it.


    ¡°Now there¡¯s magic,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°Can I ask you something?¡±


    ¡°You just did.¡±


    ¡°Hah, hah. But can I?¡±


    He circled his wrist at her.


    ¡°Have you seen a fox around?¡±


    ¡°Calls. I must make them.¡± He left.

 Sensibility

    Every once in a while, they¡¯d wind up in a magic-based competition, and invariably someone would have something uncouth to say about Kaia¡¯s ability to shapeshift. Kits would brush those comments off, not only because they didn¡¯t affect her directly¡ªsame soul didn¡¯t mean same mind¡ªbut because she knew Kaia used her ability well. The fact they were still alive after so many trials was proof enough of that. From Kits¡¯ perspective, they had nothing to prove.


    But Kaia was sensitive about it. She was in humanoid form, blue-skinned like Kits but with yellow eyes and the reddest hair you¡¯ll ever see, and her opponent was giving her grief about the upcoming match while they waited to enter the gladiator-style arena. Rumor had it Kaia¡¯s opponent had control over the elements. Assuming that meant the classic four, Kits mused that at least she and Kaia wouldn¡¯t have to worry about fire. Sharing a soul meant not only did they share pain, they also shared some effects of each other¡¯s magic. In this case, because Kits could control temperature, both of them were immune to its effects. Not flammable. Couldn¡¯t be frostbitten either.


    ¡°Just a fox?¡± asked the armored opponent in a mocking tone. What he was wearing was polished to blinding levels of shine and he held an equally shiny plumed helmet under one arm. No weapons though. This match was purely between magics. ¡°And only one species? That¡¯s it?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Kaia. And it¡¯ll be more than enough to beat you. Already she was analyzing the style of his armor, noting any chinks to take advantage of during the fight.


    ¡°Want me to go easy?¡± He put on the helmet. It covered his head but not his face. ¡°Only use one element?¡±


    Kaia shrugged. That didn¡¯t deserve an answer. Her skill would speak for itself. Maybe she couldn¡¯t do a lot of things, maybe her magic wasn¡¯t top tier, but she¡¯d learned to adapt. She was fast. Nimble. Ruthless. She could shift in and out of fox form in seconds, torqueing her position midair, even mid-shift if she had to. This was supposed to be a fight to the death, but Kaia wasn¡¯t worried about surviving. Foxes were stealthy when they had to be. If it came to it, she could shift and escape the arena.


    She and Kits might¡¯ve done that already except Kaia wanted to wipe that pompous grin off Mister Armor¡¯s arrogant face.


    Horns blared. The gates to the arena opened, and the roaring, whistling crowd got louder as the sunlight stretched over Kaia¡¯s feet. She was going into this barefoot, and though she felt the warmth of the sun, felt the heat of the sand under her soles as she took that first step, the temperature didn¡¯t affect her. She imagined Mister Armor breaking into sweat thanks to all that metal he wore. She grinned.


    ¡°Show ¡®em how it¡¯s done,¡± said Kits, who wasn¡¯t allowed to spectate from the stands because she was a competitor too.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    Kaia made a gesture of acknowledgement without turning back. Another few steps and the gate closed behind her and Mister Armor with a boom that shook the earth. The horns sounded anew, and the crowd quieted. The competitors approached the center of the venue, just the two of them for this match. Kaia surveyed the arena and noted that because it was mostly sand she might have to watch out for earth magic in particular. No water source, so it should be mostly against earth and air. Unless Mister Armor was skilled enough to pull moisture from the atmosphere. Or from Kaia herself.


    It pained her to not be able to drag this out and show off, but if he could mess with her physical makeup it¡¯d be best to get this over with swiftly. Strike fast and hard, hit him in a way that kept him down.


    The signal of the match beginning wasn¡¯t a horn. It was a gong.


    Kaia sprinted at him, intent on covering as much ground as possible before he manipulated the earth against her. He took a stance, raised his arms, and the sand swirled underfoot, so she launched herself through the air, shifting as she went. With a flick of his wrist he sent a blast of wind at her fox form. She tucked in her limbs and straightened her tail, imitating the aerodynamics of an arrow, but it wasn¡¯t enough. The wind caught her and thrust her backward, past where she¡¯d been standing when the match started.


    To avoid a bad landing, she spun herself around and used the momentum of her twist to shift back into a humanoid. If she were Mister Armor, now would be a good time to mess with the earth again. He did. Beneath her, sand swirled and rose. It hardened to glass as it shot up at her in a point sharper and sharper the closer it got.


    Kaia was ready. She turned her nose to the ground and shifted¡ªa fox again¡ªcoming down on her two front paws on the un-manipulated sand next to the glass protrusion. Pirouetting on those paws, she shifted once again to her humanoid form and kicked, cracking the glass in two with the back of her heel. Soon as her foot burst it open, the glass dissolved into sand, and Kaia had one second to collect herself before Mister Armor could try another tactic.


    He sent a torrent of air at her.


    She felt it coming and dodged, but not all the way. The gust caught her at just the right angle to send her sprawling. She landed on her belly and the sand moved across her skin in the wrong direction¡ªno time, no time! Kaia pushed herself sideways and rolled.


    Sand wrapped around her ankle and tightened, hardening toward glass.


    Another shift to a fox shortened her limbs enough to slip free. She dashed toward Mister Armor again, wondering if this would be a battle of endurance more than strategy.


    She lucked out. The next thing he tried was fire.


    She ran through the flames unhindered, and he let out a surprised yelp as she closed the distance enough to pounce. Mid-jump she shifted back to humanoid form and caught him in a momentous tackle that took them both to the ground. Before they hit the earth, she shifted again into the fox and placed her teeth over his eyes.


    He froze. She could smell the fear, the water welling in his eyes as he kept them wide, probably too scared to blink. The crowd gasped.


    Then they cheered. They roared for her to finish it, for her to sink in her bite.


    She pulled back. She¡¯d made her point.


    He didn¡¯t move against her.


    One last shift to her humanoid form, and she got all the way off him.


    ¡°Forfeit and I¡¯ll spare you,¡± said Kaia.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what the people came for.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s what I came for.¡±


    He scoffed. After a long moment, he gestured his surrender.

 Career

    Normally they were at the whim of the dragonflies, but then Kits found a teleporter. It was a handheld device with a glossy flat screen that burst into three-dimensional holographic displays if you poked it. Their translation spell didn¡¯t work unless they heard a few sentences of verbal language, so navigating the controls became an issue. Neither of them had experience with whatever language dominated the interface. It turned into a spat. Kits kept flipping the teleporter over and around to see if she could find a familiar landmark, accidentally changing what was displayed every time, and Kaia kept snatching it out of Kits¡¯ hands to try and get it back the way it was when they¡¯d first poked it.


    ¡°Would you stop that.¡± Kaia spun the teleporter in the exact opposite sequence Kits had subjected it to.


    ¡°Stop what? I¡¯m helping.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re so not helping.¡±


    Kits crossed her arms and plummeted the air a few degrees.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be dramatic,¡± said Kaia.


    The temperature plummeted even more.


    ¡°Stop that.¡±


    Kits held the temperature at that exact degree.


    Kaia groaned, but there wasn¡¯t anything she could do about Kits¡¯ lack of maturity. She studied the teleporter itself instead of its display and made thoughtful noises. If she spent enough effort she might be able to crack it, and then they could use it to get an edge on the dragonflies, which was all either of them ever wanted.


    ¡°Surprised she hasn¡¯t stolen it yet,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tempt her.¡±


    ¡°Think she¡¯s paying attention?¡±


    ¡°She will if you keep running your mouth.¡±


    ¡°Maybe we should speak in code. I met a guy who spoke in code. He fed me some good meals.¡± Kits inched closer to Kaia and rubbernecked. ¡°Did you figure it out yet?¡±


    ¡°Do I look like I figured it out yet?¡±


    Kits shrugged with her arms out and made a placatory noise. Kaia exhaled sharply and fiddled more with the teleporter. She could tell she was getting the hang of something, just not what that something was.


    ¡°Hey,¡± said Kits and the temperature fluctuated wistfully, as a candle¡¯s flame might flicker. ¡°If we weren¡¯t stuck dealing with her, where would you wanna go?¡±


    ¡°Dunno. Somewhere nice.¡±


    ¡°But there¡¯s lots of nice places.¡±


    ¡°Nice for us.¡± Kaia flopped her wrist at Kits to indicate this conversation was distracting, but they both knew she didn¡¯t really mind the topic. ¡°Just somewhere.¡±


    ¡°This whole time all we¡¯ve been is ¡®just somewhere.¡¯ You wouldn¡¯t have a top pick?¡±


    ¡°Do we really need to be having this conversation? I¡¯m trying to concentrate.¡±


    ¡°If we¡¯re gonna have it,¡± said Kits. ¡°Now¡¯s a good time. We have a teleporter. One teleporter. Don¡¯t you get it? This time we have an actual choice. For real.¡±


    Kaia looked her kindred in the eye.


    ¡°Anywhere,¡± said Kits seriously. ¡°Our choice. What if it only works once? What if it only works for one person?¡±


    ¡°What if it works splendidly forever and we can take whoever we want?¡± countered Kaia.


    They stared at each other. The teleporter¡¯s unknown power source hummed, its display gone eclectic without either of their input. The link between Kits and Kaia snapped into stimulating awareness, the soul between its bodies having an argument with itself. Neither moved, but they felt themselves within the other, their magic building and twisting until Kaia broke off the eye contact.


    Kits shook her head.


    ¡°If we¡¯re gonna use it,¡± said Kaia. ¡°We¡¯re gonna do it cleverly. How sucky would it be if it was one use and we got to somewhere perfect and she swept us away from utopia?¡±


    ¡°You think there¡¯s a utopia?¡±


    Kaia thought about this. Then made a face and a so-so motion with her hand.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± said Kits. ¡°Me neither.¡±


    Just as Kaia was about to discover what input sequence they¡¯d need to pick destination coordinates, phantom giggles filled the air. Both Kits and Kaia straightened, and Kits¡¯ body temperature skyrocketed toward volcanic levels of heat. The foliage at their feet burned, melted, caught fire. Kaia was immune, but the teleporter wasn¡¯t. She hopped away, landing out of range of Kits¡¯ thermal influence.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    ¡°Kits, be careful! We don¡¯t know what kinda heat this thing can take.¡±


    The giggles erupted into maniacal girly cackles. A silver dragonfly appeared¡ªjust appeared, as they always did¡ªin front of Kits, and flitted around. Kaia instinctively hid the teleporter behind her back. Not the best idea since it drew attention to the fact she had something, but she tried to play it off like it was normal.


    Didn¡¯t work.


    ¡°I heard you say teleporter,¡± said the dragonfly in the voice of a little girl. ¡°Whatcha got there, Kaia?¡±


    ¡°Nothing.¡±


    The dragonfly giggled some more and vanished. Kaia predicted where it would reappear. Obviously it was going to poof into existence behind her to see what she was holding. So she spun around and faced it as it did. It manifested where she¡¯d expected it to and bobbed back and forth in the air. Kaia took a step away from it toward Kits, the teleporter still hidden behind her back.


    ¡°Buzz off,¡± said Kits. ¡°We don¡¯t have any requests.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± The dragonfly vanished again and reappeared between Kits and Kaia. ¡°No wishes? You have two more. Why not use them? You know I could grant them. You could wish I went away. Do you wish I went away?¡±


    Kits maintained her superheat, crossing her arms.


    ¡°Do you wish you went away? Is that why you have a teleporter?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have any requests,¡± said Kaia.


    ¡°Why isn¡¯t Kaia coming closer?¡± The dragonfly¡¯s head twitched back and forth. ¡°I know she can¡¯t be burned.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re arguing,¡± said Kaia flatly.


    ¡°I heard. About the teleporter. You could wish to go somewhere. You could wish it.¡±


    ¡°Maybe we don¡¯t want it that badly.¡±


    ¡°Then why argue about the teleporter?¡±


    Kaia stared past the dragonfly at Kits. Their shared soul meant they could both feel the dragonfly¡¯s silvery cold thermal signature in a tactile sense, and Kaia knew the only reason Kits hadn¡¯t yet made an aggressive move was because she was heeding Kaia¡¯s warning about breaking the teleporter. A thought occurred to Kaia. The dragonfly probably wasn¡¯t going after her, even though it could, because it might not see the point if she could use the teleporter to reverse the damage. That was what these dragonflies did. They moved things. They were tricksters.


    Maybe Kaia could be trickier. Releasing it from her grip behind her back, she dropped the teleporter to the ground, muffling the sound of it hitting the grass with speech.


    ¡°Kits broke it,¡± said Kaia. ¡°Y¡¯know. Like she breaks everything.¡±


    Kits caught on immediately and played her part. ¡°That was your fault! You stood too close to me!¡±


    Kaia let out a dramatic huff and turned her head away from Kits. Keeping the dragonfly in her peripheral vision, she put her hands on her hips and moved in a semicircle, simultaneously getting closer to Kits and farther from the teleporter, which thankfully was hidden from sight by an unmarred patch of foliage. Kaia counted her steps as she went to make sure she wouldn¡¯t lose track of where she¡¯d planted the teleporter and gestured in a way that would make it obvious to Kits she no longer had it in hand, all under the pretense their argument was heating up.


    ¡°How is this my fault? You¡¯re the one with the thermal nonsense.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not nonsense!¡±


    They kept this up for an impressive amount of time, mainly because it was an argument they¡¯d actually had in the past. The dragonfly didn¡¯t need to know they¡¯d gotten over it. They milked it for all it was worth and then some.


    ¡°And what about that time you burned down a house? Clearly I¡¯m not the one who needs to work on my priorities.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah? Well, what about that time you¡ªyou¡­¡± Kits made a frustrated noise. It was an honest noise, because she actually couldn¡¯t think of something reprehensible Kaia had done. ¡°Whatever! Y¡¯know what I mean!¡±


    ¡°How come you have to run around getting involved with everyone we meet, anyway? It¡¯s like you¡¯ve got some hero complex. All it does is get us into trouble.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s better than other people getting into trouble!¡±


    ¡°Listen to yourself!¡±


    ¡°No, you listen!¡±


    ¡°I am listening, but all I¡¯m hearing is stupidity.¡±


    ¡°Well what do you expect me to do, Kaia? Huh? Let people get hurt all the time even when I could do something?¡± This was turning into an actual argument now, and the temperature around Kits fluctuated hot-cold-hot-cold-hot-cold-hot. The dragonfly flitted backward to avoid her unhinged magic. ¡°If it were up to you, we¡¯d never make friends with anyone. We¡¯d be too cautious to do anything. And worse, we¡¯d be convinced it was the right thing! But it¡¯s not the right thing. Being a bystander is never the right thing!¡±


    Kaia gaped at her.


    Kits realized she was breathing hard and impromptu remembered to rein in her magic. If anyone had been around during that rant, they¡¯d be thermal shocked beyond repair. Lucky thing Kaia was immune to Kits¡¯ magic.


    And even luckier, the dragonfly had vanished. Kits reached out with her thermal sense to double check. Yup. It was gone. Kaia was still gaping at her. Kits cleared her throat. She tried for nonchalant, but the words came out bitter.


    ¡°Crisis averted?¡± Kits copied the ambient temperature of the world they were on, which had a mild climate, and then scanned the ground to see if she could spot the teleporter. She found it, jogged over and reached down to retrieve it.


    Kaia didn¡¯t move.


    ¡°Right?¡± Kits glanced at Kaia then busied herself inspecting the teleporter. Undamaged. It was a miracle.


    ¡°You meant it,¡± said Kaia. ¡°You meant every word.¡±


    Kits turned her face to the sky and took one deep breath.


    ¡°Don¡¯t try and act like you didn¡¯t. I could feel it. You¡¯re really mad at me.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not anger,¡± said Kits, her eyes closed, a chill rippling out of her. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ I just don¡¯t see why you bother if you don¡¯t really care about people.¡±


    ¡°I do care about people.¡±


    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you ever consider their feelings?¡±


    ¡°Kits. We¡¯re the same person. Same soul and all that.¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Maybe feelings are your department. Maybe my job is focusing on the task in front of us so we don¡¯t die before we can help anyone. We ought to be working together.¡±


    Kits blinked at the teleporter. Her eyes blurred. Her chest hurt. She felt like crying, but she couldn¡¯t figure out why. Sure, she knew Kaia was getting on her nerves, and she knew this whole thing with the dragonflies weighed on her a lot even on the best of days, but there was something deeper rending her emotions right now. She started thinking of what ifs. What if they did beat the dragonflies? Then what? What if they succeeded in getting out of this wisher crap and then couldn¡¯t figure out what to do with themselves afterward? What if deep down she and Kaia disagreed about everything and they could never be happy with each other no matter where they were? What if the dragonflies were distracting them from some terrible truth about themselves?


    What if their Handlers were right?


    Kits shuddered.


    The shudder latched onto Kaia through their soul link, and she shuddered too.


    ¡°When did I become so worried about the future?¡± asked Kits.


    Kaia crossed the distance and stood next to her. They both stared down at the teleporter. It was so small but so full of possibilities. Kinda like the dragonflies.


    ¡°Maybe since we figured out we might have one.¡±

 Veld

    The grassland held no breeze. The sun blared down on a single barren tree that grew talonlike toward the amber sky. Shrubs stabbed out from the ground in hazardous networks of spiky thorns, and it was onto one of these sharp shrubs that Kits landed. A dragonfly had moved her while she slept, a time when it was impossible for her to regulate her temperature, so when she fell onto the shrub it was a pointy and painful awakening.


    She yelped and scrambled off the shrub, her temperature spiking with alarm. Frantically Kits circled around and took in her new surroundings, the haze of sleep making her thoughts run wild.


    Ack! Where am I what¡¯s stabbing me in the butt ow ow ow what the heck it hurts! Where was I before I fell asleep? Wait I remember I was in that place with the¡ªit was Milli. She moved me, that brat-faced sadist, augh!


    Before she could process any more than that, the shrubs beneath her caught fire. She squeaked and sent subzero temperatures at them, flailing to get her range of thermal influence far enough to stop the fire from spreading. It extinguished, but her magic had turned all the shrubs brittle and they cracked underfoot with angry snaps no matter how gingerly she tried to tiptoe over them.


    ¡°Sorry, sorry! I just woke up and you surprised me!¡± It struck her how ridiculous it was to be talking to pointy dead plants. She shut up and cleared her throat and hoped nobody had seen her. Once she reached a flatter patch of grassland she took a deep breath, gave herself a once-over, and made a point to match her body temperature to the ambient atmosphere on this world, which was pretty hot compared to a lot of places she¡¯d been, all things considered. Not as hot as that volcano she got dropped into that one time. That remained the record. (To this day Kits wondered if the dragonflies had been trying to figure out just how immune to temperature she really was. They¡¯d plopped her in the middle of the lava. Right in there. At least the volcano hadn¡¯t erupted while she was swimming around trying to figure out where she was.)


    Hands on her hips, tilting her head, Kits surveyed her surroundings one more time now that she¡¯d calmed down enough to keep control of her magic. She was making a thoughtful humming noise when she realized what was missing.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    Kaia was nowhere.


    ¡°Ack!¡± said Kits. ¡°Crap! I lost my kindred!¡±


    Disembodied little girl giggles mocked her.


    ¡°Shut up, Milli.¡±


    ¡°Do you wish I¡¯d shut up?¡± asked the disembodied voice.


    Kits didn¡¯t say anything in response to that. Instead she stretched her thermal awareness as far as it would go in all directions, moving her arms and legs wide, even lifting her chin to make her aura of sensation expand. She could feel out temperatures farther away than she could influence them, so she was hoping to find Milli or the dragonflies even if they weren¡¯t close enough to burn. The dragonflies could be invisible but they couldn¡¯t get rid of their thermal signatures. The same was true for Milli, the real mastermind behind the insects.


    Kits didn¡¯t find Milli, but she did find another lifeform. It had a stocky figure but a long neck and its temperature indicated warm blood. Having no other clues as to where the dragonflies had put her, Kits crossed the distance to the lifeform, approaching in a way she hoped would appear friendly, or at least nonthreatening. Generally not a good idea to act threatening when you¡¯ve found yourself somewhere unfamiliar. As she came closer, the lifeform raised its very long neck a little higher and peered at her. It was a tan, spotted color and it had these adorable ears and a long snout.


    Kits gave it a little finger waggle wave.


    Its neck seemed to lengthen as it leaned forward and changed the distribution of its weight. Spotted legs uncurled from its torso¡ªoh, so it was sitting¡ªand when it rose up to its full height it towered over Kits. It might¡¯ve been the tallest creature she¡¯d ever seen, proportion-wise.


    Kits waved at it again with a smile. She kept her lips closed because in a lot of places showing one¡¯s teeth could be considered a threat.


    The tall lifeform appeared inquisitive but didn¡¯t say anything.


    ¡°Hi,¡± said Kits even though she knew the language probably wouldn¡¯t be understood on this world.


    The tall lifeform¡ªshould think of a better noun to call it, hmm¡ªwidened its legs as it dipped its head down to Kits¡¯ level. The posture appeared uncomfortable, so Kits stretched herself up as much as possible toward the lifeform¡¯s head to make the distance shorter. It had long feathery eyelashes.


    ¡°Sorry about the shrubs,¡± said Kits. ¡°And appearing out of nowhere. But the second thing wasn¡¯t really my fault.¡±


    All of this lifeform was long, including its tongue. It slurped the top of her head. Then it came even closer, its two front legs widening even more, and kissed at her hair.


    Kits giggled and reached up, sliding her fingers across its cheek. She made sure to match its body temperature as she did.


    ¡°You can¡¯t understand a word I¡¯m saying, can you? Nope. Not even one. But you¡¯re good at friendly nibbles!¡±

 Ineluctable

    It was inevitable really. The multiverse was huge, but a lot of it had the same patterns because some patterns worked no matter where you were. It was only a matter of time before one of them wound up somewhere with the same technology as the Handlers. Anti-magic. This world brimmed with it. A blocky metropolis of hindrance. Everywhere Kaia looked there was another incarnation of that eerie black material. In necklaces, in cufflinks, in the hard soles of people¡¯s shoes. Even in the architecture. It was everywhere, and if ever it touched her skin¡ªor fur if she were in fox form¡ªshe knew she¡¯d be unable to shapeshift until she broke off the contact. She had the feeling there would be a lot of jumping involved if she got into a scuffle here.


    Also, Kits wasn¡¯t with her. No backup.


    Kaia resolved not to get involved in any scuffles, which is exactly what one does before a scuffle bowls them over, but she squashed that cynicism under practicality. She was good at practicality. The best. She prided herself on being a survivor. So.


    When you find yourself on an unfamiliar world without your kindred, there are steps to follow.


    Step one: locate someone who can get you directions.


    Ugly as it was, the fact this place was a metropolis meant it had a dense population, and although the people clopping up and down the streets weren¡¯t human¡ªKaia had grown fond of humans after running into them in a surprising variety of locales¡ªthey were clearly sentient. Duh. They couldn¡¯t have built or conquered a metropolis otherwise.


    Nobody could understand her.


    Of course. Another duh. The translation spell Crystal had fixed for her and Kits was still a spell. It was magic. In case the streets were paved with an anti-magic compound that might be interfering with the spell¡¯s effects, Kaia tried hopping while she conversed, which wasn¡¯t the local custom and earned her universally-recognized expressions of bafflement. People began avoiding her, taking wide arcs around what they must¡¯ve seen as a helplessly strange foreign blue lady, and it occurred to Kaia that even if she could prevent herself from being affected by whatever anti-magic was around, most of the inhabitants of this world were wearing it on their person. There wouldn¡¯t be any input for Crystal¡¯s spell to calibrate.


    Okay, so no talking to people. No big deal. She could skip step one. Wouldn¡¯t be the first time.


    Step two: find transportation, the higher the tech or magi-tech the better. Obviously, magi-tech was out of the question, so Kaia hoped to find pure technology that could get her as far away from here as possible. Anything that reminded her of the Handlers was a source of extreme stress, given how she and Kits were raised, and all this anti-magic was making her jumpy. Pun very intended. At the very least she tried not to yelp at anyone.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Navigation without the help of a guide was impossible. The transportation tech in immediate view didn¡¯t seem like the kind that could get Kaia off world either.


    In a last ditch effort to orient herself before she¡¯d resign to aimlessly wandering the metropolis, she attempted to decipher the language on what seemed like shop display windows and street signs when a scuffle crossed her path.


    A male with catlike ears, leonine hair, and a long feline tail¡ªbiological traits unlike the rest of the people here, though his bipedal gait matched everyone else¡¯s¡ªran past her, glancing at her in panicked haste. The moment their gazes met, an unquantifiable feeling clicked between them and Kaia knew she had to help him, whoever he was. Another oddity about him compared to the rest of the locals was that he wasn¡¯t wearing any anti-magic that Kaia could see. Or smell.


    But y¡¯know what she did smell? Magic.


    So she chased after him. It soon became apparent he was running away from something rather than toward, which meant now Kaia was fleeing pursuers too. Those in pursuit were dressed in a manner that implied authority and had what could only be weapons at their belts. As they gave chase through alleys and buildings and even windows, they shouted in a language Kaia had no hopes of grammatically understanding. But she knew what the words must mean. She was officially on the run from some kind of law, already a fugitive after less than an hour on this new world. Oops.


    Wasn¡¯t the first time, and worse things had happened. She¡¯d managed not to touch any anti-magic or get hit with any projectiles, and she ran astride the male, keeping pace pretty easily. She had a lot of practice when it came to escapes.


    ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you can understand me?¡± said Kaia between breaths. ¡°Or would be willing to say something so my translation spell could calibrate.¡±


    At a junction the male shot out his arm, caught Kaia¡¯s, and dragged her into a tight space. They both ducked down, and Kaia had the good sense to keep her mouth shut, breathing as softly as possible under the circumstances.


    Their pursuers approached. It was dark in the space since she and the male were making use of a building¡¯s shadow, but Kaia could hear and smell the pursuers as they came closer. Perk of being a shapeshifter. Some of the fox senses became automatic after a while, so automatic that even anti-magic couldn¡¯t dilute them. You can¡¯t really get rid of someone¡¯s hearing unless you block it or blow it out, nor their sense of smell unless you plug their nose. The male was shielding her with his body as they hid. She could hear his apprehension in the way he breathed, smell his sweat.


    Kaia didn¡¯t sweat. She and Kits never had to regulate their own temperature. That didn¡¯t mean she wasn¡¯t nervous.


    She and the male stayed there for heartbeats upon heartbeats, neither daring to move. A bin that must¡¯ve been for waste kept the pursuers from spotting them, and eventually the danger passed.


    The male spewed something in the metropolis¡¯ language. He was still leaned over her, his hand braced against an anti-magic protrusion of the building.


    Kaia reached up and gently pulled on his wrist.


    He blinked and stepped away from her, looking sheepish the way he rubbed the back of his neck. His tail swished low, back and forth.


    ¡°Wanna repeat that?¡± asked Kaia.


    He did, and this time Kaia¡¯s translation spell did its job.


    ¡°One more time,¡± said Kaia, cupping her ear. ¡°Sorry.¡±


    ¡°I said thank you.¡± He paused. All of him, even his tail. ¡°Um.¡±


    ¡°Kaia.¡±


    ¡°Venlyn.¡±


    ¡°Any chance you know where I can find interplanar transport?¡±


    ¡°Where you can find a what?¡±


    Kaia sighed. Since when were things ever that easy?

 Bastion

    And they were falling. This wasn¡¯t the first time a dragonfly had put them in the sky but it was the first time there were dragons flying around, circling Kits and Kaia as they plummeted toward a lush green canopy. Wind whirring in her sensitive ears, Kaia let out an involuntary adrenaline-fueled shriek. On the contrary, Kits burst into laughter. It wasn¡¯t even nervous laughter. It was honest giddiness. That dork was having fun. Fun! When they were about to be eaten by dragons! Or die from the fall!


    The way the dragons flew, their massive wingspans formed updrafts that caught Kits and Kaia and spun them in unpredictable directions. It wasn¡¯t a straight shot down and it was taking a lot longer than if they¡¯d fallen through dead air.


    ¡°What are you laughing about?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re in Ellindris¡¯ world!¡± Kits shouted over the wind. ¡°Remember? I told you I met a dragon that one t¡ª¡±


    A silvery teal dragon flew beneath them, spun, and caught them on its belly. Kits and Kaia were small in comparison to the dragon. There wasn¡¯t much to do except roll with the momentum as it corkscrewed through the air. The dragon¡¯s maneuvers tumbled them toward its chest then along its arms and eventually Kits and Kaia wound up on their knees inside its grip. Through the dragon¡¯s talons they got a dizzying view of tree tops transformed into a blur of undistinguished green-brown hues as they rushed past.


    They caught their breath and clung. The dragon¡¯s grip loosened ever slightly as if it feared holding too tightly might hurt them. Then it spoke in a language that utilized two pitches at once, one so high it was shrill and one so rumbly and low it might as well have been a drumbeat. Kits and Kaia¡¯s translation spell worked its magic between beats of the dragon¡¯s wings that brought them higher and higher over the sunset horizon.


    ¡°Say again?¡± shouted Kits though the wind wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as when they¡¯d first arrived.


    Kaia noticed they were away from the rest of the dragons now. After it caught them this one must¡¯ve flown out of the maelstroms¡¯ range. Also, Kaia didn¡¯t know how she knew this but based on its voice she assumed this dragon was male. Probably a nuance of the translation spell they¡¯d never had the opportunity to notice before. Anyway, for the moment it didn¡¯t matter. All she could do was inhale and exhale and try not to think about how high above the trees they were. She wasn¡¯t exactly afraid of heights but she¡¯d feel a lot better if their fates weren¡¯t up to the whim of a creature who could decide to drop them at any moment. Or eat them. Kaia was still afraid it¡ªhe¡ªmight eat them. They were small enough in comparison for him to just pop them into his mouth. Chew. Swallow. Just like that. Unsettling thoughts she couldn¡¯t get out of her brain kept looping. She imagined the pain of the chomp, of dragon fangs piercing skin then muscle then bone and there was probably saliva and the idea of slipping down an actual throat afterward and digestion¡­ eckgh! She hoped her kindred knew what she was doing. Trust Kits to make friends with something that potentially saw her as food. Jeez.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    ¡°As you flew I heard you say a familiar name,¡± repeated the dragon. The translation spell didn¡¯t change his voice. Because he was speaking a booming two-toned language the words boomed and echoed as they would have in his own tongue. The only difference was Kits and Kaia could understand him. It was almost earsplittingly loud but somehow his timbre also sounded kind. ¡°I am Kurventhor, mate of Dragon Queen Ellindris! Which means I am Dragon King. Alas I mustn¡¯t brag. You know Ellindris, wee hatchling?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± said Kits. ¡°Last time I was here we kinda had an argument. But then she breathed fire at me and we made up.¡±


    Kurventhor¡¯s laughter shook the sky.


    ¡°Thanks for catching us,¡± added Kaia nervously. ¡°We weren¡¯t flying. We were falling.¡±


    ¡°How¡¯s your egg?¡± asked Kits.


    ¡°Egg?¡± asked Kaia.


    Kits smiled toothily at Kaia and didn¡¯t elaborate. Then turned her face up at Kurventhor. Since he was so big and cradling them at his chest he seemed a long way away. Kits craned her neck far enough for Kaia to feel it stretching uncomfortably through their soul link.


    ¡°Don¡¯t give us whiplash,¡± grumbled Kaia as she rolled out her own neck to relieve some of the tension. Kits ignored her. This Kaia also felt through the soul link because it was deliberate. Kaia sighed. Typical. But she felt better about the situation now that she¡¯d defaulted to her normal mode of being annoyed at her kindred.


    ¡°Ah,¡± said Kurventhor.  ¡°Our egg is why Ellindris is not in flight with the rest of the thunder.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s keeping it warm?¡± asked Kits.


    ¡°She is.¡±


    ¡°How long¡¯s the incubation time?¡± blurted Kaia. She had no idea why she wanted to know but now that she¡¯d asked she really wanted the answer.


    ¡°Oh,¡± said Kurventhor. ¡°A century or so.¡±


    ¡°Can we visit?¡± asked Kits.


    Kaia made bug eyes at her.


    Kits shrugged as if to ask what else they were supposed to do when a dragon was carrying them around.


    Kaia didn¡¯t have a response for that. She resigned herself to the fact they had even less control than usual and hoped Kurventhor remained friendly. Now she had time to notice he had cold scales. They were pearlescent and beautiful the way teal markings vined through them but they didn¡¯t match the warmth of his voice. Maybe on this world dragons kept all their fires inside them.


    ¡°Of course!¡± Kurventhor flew them enthusiastically to where Ellindris had nested, the ruins of a stone castle.

 Maladroit

    Every now and then Kits might tease Kaia about the fact she could only shapeshift into one thing, but Kits never really felt superior. When it came to a lot of things, Kaia was just better.


    Wrestling, for example. Kits had never once gotten Kaia into a hold she couldn¡¯t get out of either in fox form or otherwise, which made sense because Kits never needed to hone that skill. If someone threw themselves on Kits, she could burn them off without much effort. Most things hated superheat. The instinct to pull your hand away from a fire comes automatically when you have flammable nerve endings. And if her attacker was the type who actually liked it hot, Kits could use the other side of the spectrum to the same effect. Or both temperatures in rapid succession. She¡¯d yet to meet anyone who could stand up to a good old fashioned thermal shock, anti-magic users excluded.


    Kaia didn¡¯t have that luxury. Temperature didn¡¯t affect her but she couldn¡¯t manipulate it either. She had to use other means to get people to respect her boundaries. That meant honing non-magic skills. Kits had a lot of respect for her kindred for not relying on magic alone. Still, Kaia could be kind of irritating when she got on her know-it-all shtick.


    ¡°It¡¯s not even that hard,¡± said Kaia.


    Kits fiddled more with the multicolored cube. She could feel Kaia¡¯s frustration with her lack of progress through the soul link. And Kits was trying her hardest. She¡¯d never been good at puzzles.


    ¡°Just solve the corners first,¡± said Kaia for the fourth time.


    ¡°I¡¯m trying.¡±


    Kaia¡¯s gaze was unrelenting. It got to the point where Kits could see Kaia¡¯s viewpoint through the soul link and had to shake her head to get it out of her own visual spectrum. That or this puzzle cube was making her dizzy with its complexity.


    ¡°Ugh.¡± Kaia held out her hand. ¡°You¡¯re taking forever. Give it.¡±


    ¡°No, I can figure it out. I¡¯m just not as fast as you are.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re going about it the wrong way and it¡¯s driving me crazy.¡±


    ¡°No I¡¯m not.¡± Kits got three corners to match up and then spun the thing in a way that made her lose all her progress. The cube became once again a mess of mismatched squares. She whined in disappointment and tried to get the pattern back the way it was. The floor grew slick with ice and the air around Kits¡¯ head warbled with heat mirages. Her magic was overflowing. Might not be long before she had actual steam coming out her ears. Because¡­ because she could feel Kaia¡¯s impatience and judgement through the soul link and it wasn¡¯t Kits¡¯ fault her specialties were different than Kaia¡¯s and anyway what was the point of solving one of these stupid things in the first place? ¡°I¡¯m doing what you said. I¡¯m solving the corners.¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°You can¡¯t forget about a side once you¡¯ve solved it,¡± said Kaia exasperatedly. ¡°It only works if you keep the whole design in your head so you don¡¯t screw it up with another move.¡±


    ¡°Where did you even get this stupid thing anyway.¡± Kits huffed. This was impossible. Except she knew it wasn¡¯t impossible because she¡¯d seen Kaia solve it in about twenty seconds. So why? Why couldn¡¯t Kits figure it out? Kaia made it look so easy. Am I just inept at everything but being a walking toaster?


    ¡°Can¡¯t remember.¡± Kaia plucked the cube out of Kits¡¯ grip, spun it around, studied it, then made a blur of moves, sliding squares into their proper places with an ease that made Kits feel very small, and then the cube was solved. Just like that. Again.


    The ineptitude shrank Kits¡¯ posture all the way to a slouch. She felt like melting the stupid cube on sheer principle. That way Kaia couldn¡¯t rub it in her face.


    But Kaia didn¡¯t rub it in her face. Kaia returned the cube to the position Kits had put it in and gave it back. Then crossed her arms and stared down at Kits like she expected her to continue.


    ¡°What¡¯s the point,¡± said Kits. ¡°You showed me. Go you.¡±


    ¡°But you said you wanted to solve it yourself. I just got tired of waiting for my turn. Go on. Solve it.¡±


    ¡°Maybe I don¡¯t wanna anymore.¡±


    ¡°You can be such a baby, Kits. I swear.¡±


    ¡°Not my fault I¡¯m not as smart as you are.¡±


    ¡°This isn¡¯t smarts.¡± Kaia took a deep breath and explained patiently. Through the soul link Kits felt her sincerity so it was really hard to stay bitter toward her. ¡°It just looks like that from the outside. If you know the patterns, all it is is memorization.¡±


    ¡°Better memory.¡± Kits waved a dismissive hand. ¡°Smarts. Same thing. Even Crystal told me that and she¡¯s a genius for real so don¡¯t act like it doesn¡¯t matter. We both know you¡¯re the better half.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Kaia blinked. ¡°Hey what was the name of that guy you met on that one world you told me about? Y¡¯know the time when you burned down that intergalactic restaurant?¡±


    ¡°Torbold,¡± said Kits instantly. ¡°Tor for short.¡±


    ¡°That was forever ago. That¡¯s proof you have a good memory.¡±


    ¡°Whatever.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m serious. And I could never do the stuff you do with ice.¡±


    Kits thought of her miniature ice sculptures, the ones she sculpted with her thermal magic to pass the time and remember all the people she¡¯s met. ¡°Those melt.¡±


    ¡°But that doesn¡¯t change the fact I could never sculpt them. We have different strengths. It doesn¡¯t matter about the puzzle. Sculptures are prettier.¡±

 Reify

    Whenever Kaia slept she was either in a nightmare or total dreamless blackness. If she had good dreams, she never remembered them. In her nightmares she was always adolescent but on the younger side, still on her home world in a time when she hadn¡¯t yet met Kits, and the Handlers were interrogating her. Interrogation wasn¡¯t what the Handlers called it. They were pseudo-holograms, artificial intelligence programmed to affect kindred magic, so they called it a term they understood. Diagnostics.


    ¡°You will sit,¡± said the Handler. It was an amalgamation of anti-magic tech which looked like Kaia except when it didn¡¯t. Blue skin flickering a bit too brightly, yellow eyes with no depth behind them, red hair held impossibly away from its face without a clip or tie in sight and not one strand out of place even when it turned its head. In the cubical anti-magic room where Kaia had spent all her years, the Handler projected itself onto the floor before her. It pointed down with the blank expectation that its command would be followed. ¡°Protocol will run diagnostics.¡±


    Kaia didn¡¯t want to sit. Diagnostics hurt. But she knew there wasn¡¯t any arguing with the Handlers. They were the Handlers. She sat.


    It reached into her, shoved its holographic hand all the way inside her body in a way that only Handlers could, right into her heart, and a shock ripped Kaia¡¯s nerves so bad she screamed. She could feel the electricity arcing between her teeth.


    ¡°You will be silent during diagnostics.¡± The Handler¡¯s hand remained under Kaia¡¯s skin as it rose its fingers up to her throat.


    Her screams stopped making noise. That didn¡¯t mean she stopped screaming.


    Kaia.


    ¡°Compiling results.¡±


    Kaia stood there on her tiptoes without any means to move while her muscles strained to their extreme, her whole body a cramp. It hurt it hurt it burned it hurt it hurt.


    ¡°Error.¡± The Handler flickered and dropped Kaia. She was so outside herself she heard the impact but didn¡¯t feel her legs or the rest of her hit the floor. In that moment while she seized out of catatonia and breathed in burning rasps, twitching involuntarily as every spasm flared a fresh needle-pin pain through her system, the Handler became so many other things besides an imitation of her physical appearance. Its hair flashed purple, its eyes turned red, its posture changed to favor one hip. It buzzed with leftover electricity and flickered some more. Finally it became a blank slate, nothing but the faintest blue veins in its skin, white hair, white eyes and no gender.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    Kaia lay there and didn¡¯t try to get up. Her whole body felt like the gelatinous food that was her only sustenance here in this room which was delivered through tubes along one wall. The absurd thought that she might soon be squeezed through a tube too occurred to her, but she didn¡¯t have the energy to consider whether that notion held any merit. It was useless to move. Moving would make it hurt more. No more. No more no more no more please no m¡ª


    Hey.


    ¡°You will sit. I will rerun diagnostics.¡±


    Her shoulder started shaking. She couldn¡¯t fight it. Maybe she was dying. Dying meant you didn¡¯t feel anything anymore. Must be nice. Maybe she could wait it out. Couldn¡¯t do much besides twitch anymore anyway.


    She felt like she was forgetting something important.


    Kai¡ª


    The Handler reached down inside her again and the agony returned. Her throat went raw with the words she screamed but couldn¡¯t hear.


    ¡°Stop stop stop I¡¯m sorry stop stop I didn¡¯t mean it I¡¯m¡ª¡±


    ¡°Kaia!¡± Kits¡¯ voice. ¡°You¡¯re dreaming and it¡¯s ruining my sleep too, y¡¯know!¡±


    ¡°Kits?¡±


    ¡°Hi dorkface.¡±


    Kaia tried to flatten her ears back and remembered she wasn¡¯t in fox form.


    ¡°Nightmare obviously.¡± Kits made a grand sweeping gesture of presentation at the room around them, which was as nondescript as it goes except for the scorch marks beneath Kits and the ice crawling up the walls. ¡°Over now though.¡±


    Kaia swallowed. Rubbed her throat and fidgeted on the mattress, which was¡­ oh. Half of it was frozen and the other half looked burnt. Frost and ash spread unevenly along the surface as well as some of the previously fluffy innards. The pattern was ridiculous. Some of the springs showed through where the fabric had pulled back from superheat. She couldn¡¯t blame Kits for this. I¡¯m the one who had the nightmare. Not like I asked for it, but still. This time it was me who messed up our baseline.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you call Akki?¡± asked Kits. ¡°Y¡¯know that¡¯s kinda her job. Nightmares.¡±


    ¡°Too late now.¡± Kaia tried to shake off the fatigue and the memory of electric pain but it stuck on her like mange. She shifted into fox form and tried to physically shake herself out but that didn¡¯t work either. For this night at least, she resigned to being shaky and uncomfortable until she got her emotions under control. Kits¡¯ presence helped, their moods blending through the soul link, but so did other things. Unlike where Kaia had been kept with the Handler, this room had a window. She stared out that window and basked in the starlight that shined outside. Unlike her claustrophobic dreamscape, the night on this world was clear, sharp-scented with ozone. She listened to the curtains billow in gentle wind. Then she shifted back to her humanoid form and felt gross again because now she resembled the Handler. ¡°Sorry. I should¡¯ve. Should¡¯ve screamed for Akki. But I forgot.¡±


    ¡°Nah.¡± Kits lounged beside her. ¡°Forgetting in dreams is just one of those things. Want me to craft you a pleasant one?¡±


    ¡°You can do that?¡±


    ¡°Akki taught me how.¡±

 Defer

    For a couple months Kaia stayed with Venlyn on that anti-magic world, dodging the authorities at every turn and generally keeping out of trouble by remaining in fox form whenever possible, and before she knew it she''d slipped into the idea of complacency. She''d started to think maybe the dragonflies wouldn''t come back, that maybe they''d stopped bothering her for good. She even thought with wistful abandon that someone might''ve beaten them at their own game. Then she got to thinking it wouldn''t be so bad to stay here for the rest of her life. For the most part she had decent meals and good company, and the authorities weren''t that difficult to evade if you knew which blocks had the least anti-magic built into the architecture. Besides, even if she had been itching to leave, Kaia wouldn''t have been able to find interplanar transport here. The tech was stuck at a certain level because the locals refused to use magic to supplement their sciences.


    But Venlyn seemed to be getting antsy about having her around all the time.


    "It''s your fur," he''d say. "It''s so bright, brighter than the normal foxes here."


    "Better than blue for blending in though." Kaia was tired of this discussion. She was doing everything within her power to keep a low profile, and wouldn''t you know it, it was working. She had yet to be caught. That should''ve been enough testament to her skill at stealth but apparently concrete evidence wasn''t enough for Venlyn. She was getting sick of having to prove herself over and over. "This is the best I can do. And it''s good enough. Look who''s not caught."


    Venlyn''s tail swayed nervously as he spooned gruel into his mouth. They were holed up in an abandoned alcove in an even more abandoned building at the center of the metropolis. Not one scrap of anti-magic in the whole place, not even on the walls. After that first run-in with the authorities, when he''d brought Kaia here and told her this was the best they were going to get as far as lodging was concerned, Venlyn explained this was one of the oldest buildings in the metropolis, might even be the first ever built on this spot of land. Story goes it used to be a church, and rumor had it there was a curse from some ritual gone wrong that lingered inside the old stone, which Kaia reasoned might be why this world embraced the anti-magic trend in the first place. Supposedly that was long enough ago that only occult enthusiasts like Venlyn and historians knew of it. Though the original meaning of anti-magic was now lost on the general populace, the tradition of wearing it had nonetheless trickled down into this world''s modern fashion, which was why the stuff was everywhere.


    Anyway, all that was beside the point. The point was it seemed like Venlyn didn''t want Kaia around anymore, which ruined her fantasies of finally settling down on one singular world. She curled into her knees and sighed as her appetite abandoned her.


    Venlyn twitched.


    "I don''t mean to be a bother," said Kaia. "If you really can''t stand me being around I''ll leave." Wouldn''t be the first time.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    "What? No." He crawled over to her side of the alcove and squeezed in next to her, which was pretty awkward given the small space, his height, and the fact he smooshed between her and the wall. Also, the ceiling of the alcove sloped upward. There wasn''t much room for his head unless he craned his neck down and swept his ears back, which he did. He pulled in his knees, mimicking Kaia''s posture, and wrapped his tail around his feet. "I don''t want you to leave, Kaia. I just don''t understand why you''re hanging around here. When we first met you said you had friends, family. Don''t you want to get back to them?"


    "It''s complicated."


    "Is it?"


    "Firstly, I can''t. Y''know, physically can''t, because there''s no transport here."


    "Fair."


    "And secondly I''m not sure if I want to."


    "But that soul sister of yours," said Venlyn. "Kits, right? That was her name?"


    "Yes."


    "You don''t miss her? It sounds like you do when you talk about her being so far away."


    "Maybe." Kaia couldn''t believe she was opening up about this. She hadn''t even told Kits because it was so embarrassing. "But what if she doesn''t miss me?"


    Venlyn burst into laughter. His proximity forced Kaia to feel it intimately, the way his whole body bobbed with chortles.


    "What?"


    "Kaia," he said through the laughs. "She misses you."


    Kaia wasn''t so sure about that.


    "If you''re wondering why I''ve been so off around you lately." He waved his hand to indicate the church with its walls that ensconced them. "It''s because of this place. I''ve been thinking maybe the curse is real. Sure, might sound ridiculous, but then where do the nightmares come from?"


    "Nightmares?"


    "You don''t remember waking up screaming? You''ve been doing it every night for the past week."


    "Oh." The pause lasted an eternity and when she spoke again her voice came out small. "Sorry."


    "I''ve figured out you''re made of magic. It''s in your scent, the way you carry yourself. I''m not all magic, but I can recognize it in others. I thought maybe¡­ well, the curse had to do with a ritual and rituals have to do with magic, don''t they?"


    "Not always. Sometimes the magic is there naturally, a force ready to manipulate. Organic, y''know? Crystal explained it to me once but I can''t remember the explanation word for word."


    "My point is I don''t want you staying anywhere that upsets your sleep cycle that much. It''s unhealthy. I''ve been trying to come up with a better place for a while now but every time I try to think of somewhere without anti-magic all I can think of is here."


    "I''ve always had nightmares. They''re not new. So there''s probably no curse."


    A concerned expression flickered across his face and he hid it but his swaying tail betrayed him. His tone abruptly lightened. "Probably? Not definitely?"


    "Well. Another thing Crystal told me is probably everything exists. Y''know, somewhere. Somehow. On some world. She has theories about it. Sorta makes sense if you think hard enough, but then again so does everything."


    "Not for me it doesn''t."


    "Really?"


    "Kaia." He puffed out a breath filled with fondness. "You have no idea how clever you are. That''s why I''m saying your family and friends must miss you."


    Kaia thought on this.


    "And if you left," he continued. "I''d miss you too."


    A pinch in Kaia''s heart broke her concentration.


    "But it''s up to you to choose."


    "I can''t. I can''t right now. I need time."

 Aegis

    Kits ran into an invisible wall.


    ¡°Ow!¡± She took a step back and rubbed her nose, squinting at the space in front of her in irritation. There was nothing there except the rest of the warehouse. No unusual thermal signatures either, only the coolness of the floor and the warmth of sun-soaked cardboard under the fractured light that streamed through the windowed ceiling. But there had to be something there if she ran into it. She reached out her hand until she touched the wall, running her palm along it. Whatever it was, it curved.


    ¡°A bendy invisible wall, huh?¡± Kits kept her hand on the wall and jogged along it until she found herself back where she started. Turned out it was a circle that took up most of the warehouse floor.


    ¡°Get off,¡± said a voice from inside it. Sounded male. ¡°You¡¯ll ruin my spell.¡±


    ¡°My bad.¡± Kits took her hand off the circle.


    ¡°You speak my language? You were spouting gibberish a second ago, and that¡¯s coming from someone who chants for a living.¡±


    ¡°Translation spell.¡±


    ¡°Ah. Whose work?¡±


    ¡°A friend¡¯s.¡±


    ¡°Quite the craftsman.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s a girl actually.¡±


    ¡°My mistake.¡±


    ¡°Her name¡¯s Crystal.¡±


    ¡°And what¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Kits.¡± She knocked on the circle. She felt the physical rap of her knuckles against it but not any thermal signature even though she was concentrating. She¡¯d never encountered that before. She got the urge to mess with the circle¡¯s temperature just to see if she could. It was an exhilarating impulse, but with someone inside there who might get burned in the process it¡¯d be wrong. Kits decided not to, but it got her thinking. ¡°Are you actually invisible?¡±


    The pause in conversation seemed to express aggravation.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    ¡°Now I have to start over.¡± He sighed. ¡°And no. The circle is blocking your perception of me, that¡¯s all. Being actually invisible would be way more difficult.¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡± Kits stepped away from the circle so she wouldn¡¯t be tempted to touch it again. ¡°So what¡¯re you doing in there, anyway? What kinda spell?¡±


    ¡°Standard cleansing and protection. You could say I¡¯m sweeping negative energy out of this warehouse.¡±


    Kits stretched out her thermal senses, trying to figure out what he might be getting rid of, but all she could feel was the absence of thermal signature from the circle and the normal readings of everything else. Akki would be better at this. ¡°What happened that you need to get rid of negative energy?¡±


    ¡°A murder.¡±


    Kits¡¯ spine straightened with attention. She¡¯d dealt with murderers before. She¡¯d even had to take lives by her own hand in some circumstances. Fear and guilt pitched her magic into a rapid cycle loop. Hot-cold-hot-cold-hot-cold-hot. Cold. As the condensation crystallized on the concrete floor, frost formed at her feet.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to scare you.¡± His voice seemed closer. ¡°But you did ask. Also, your magic is pushing against my circle. Please remove it. The faster I work, the faster I can get the bad vibes out of here, and I can¡¯t work fast if you don¡¯t rein in your magic. It¡¯s distracting.¡±


    Kits couldn¡¯t help the emotions that welled inside her, but she could choose what direction to push them. That was a lesson Crystal had taught her. Especially if someone was depending on Kits to get ahold of herself, she could do it if she compartmentalized. She focused on the fear first. If something is out there and decides to attack me, whatever it is, I can take it. I survive people trying to kill me all the time. In response to her logic, the hot side of her thermal magic cooled. Next she picked apart the guilt. I¡¯ve never killed without reason. It¡¯s never been an accident and it¡¯s usually been in defense. It¡¯s still wrong, but it¡¯s in the past. This didn¡¯t change the cold side of her magic at all. She had to dig deeper. They pushed me into it. I had to. It was me or them. No change. If anything, trying to rationalize the guilt into submission made it stronger. The ring of frost at her feet widened. How could she be standing here trying to justify murder?


    What would Kaia say?


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t murder,¡± Kaia would say. ¡°Murder implies malevolence. What you did was kill, and everything alive is killing something. You aren¡¯t evil, Kits. Neither am I. That was a lie the Handlers told us. It was all about control.¡±


    ¡°Well, I feel evil.¡±


    ¡°But you aren¡¯t.¡±


    That didn¡¯t help much either. What did help was a random thought in Akki¡¯s voice that crossed Kits¡¯ mind unprompted.


    ¡°There¡¯s a difference between guilt and regret.¡±


    True. And Kits might feel guilty about those she¡¯d killed, but she didn¡¯t regret her decisions to kill them. When she thought about it, if she had to do it all over again under the same circumstances, she¡¯d kill them just like the first time. Actually, y¡¯know, most of the time it wasn¡¯t just me or them. It was me and my friends or them.


    The cold leveled out to a middling temperature. Kits focused on maintaining it.


    ¡°Thank you. Now please. Silence.¡±

 Vulnerable

    Kits sat against the frostbitten wall, a halberd¡¯s broken staff resting across one shoulder. The axe head was at the other end of the room, embedded into half-melted plaster about two inches above the floor. The axe¡¯s blade had warped with the heat, twisted its shape, and there wasn¡¯t much hope of removing it without taking a good chunk out of the wall too. Kits didn¡¯t want to damage this place any more than she already had. Not that it was her fault. It was Milli¡¯s fault. Which was what Kaia was trying to explain to their human hosts: a mother, her adolescent daughter, and the father of the household.


    ¡°The dragonflies move things,¡± said Kaia. ¡°That¡¯s what we were trying to tell you before.¡±


    ¡°You were a fox before,¡± said the father. According to the teenager, who¡¯d brought Kits and Kaia here in the first place, his name was Dad. The mother was Mom. Dad crossed his arms and his face pinched. It was clear he didn¡¯t know what to make of the situation, even though he¡¯d seen it with his own eyes.


    Kits and Kaia got that a lot.


    The adolescent, Melanie, held a dog by its collar. Its coat was tawny gold and it wagged its tail during the entire exchange, lips pulled back, tongue lolling. Kits found herself smiling at it in admiration. A smile was something that couldn¡¯t be taken. Feelings were in that category too. Thinking that, she almost frowned.


    ¡°I can be a fox again in a heartbeat, as you saw.¡± Kaia took a slow breath, and Kits felt through the soul link she was gathering patience. ¡°My point is Kits isn¡¯t crazy, neither of us took anything that wasn¡¯t ours, and the dragonflies are way more dangerous than we are. It¡¯s the nature of their power.¡±


    ¡°But all they do is move stuff around,¡± said Melanie. ¡°How can that be scary?¡±


    The dog¡¯s tail stopped wagging. It closed its mouth.


    ¡°Because power in the hands of a sadist is always a straight way to cruelty,¡± mumbled Kits, who was too tired at the moment to keep up appearances. ¡°That brat gets really creative about what she steals and where she puts it. Y¡¯know, like. One second you could be having a nice time just living your life. But the next, she could decide to move a knife into your spine. Magic¡¯s terrifying if you think about implications.¡±


    Melanie shuddered and in response the dog sat down, leaning against her legs, looking up at her with relaxed ears. She knelt and gave it a hug. Slower than before, its tail started wagging again. Mom crooked her index finger and bit down on it, her eyebrows squished so far together they might as well be one growth. Dad maintained his cross-armed posture. He made a noise deep in his throat, looked from Kits to Kaia back to Kits.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°You need to leave,¡± said Dad.


    ¡°Did I shatter your illusions of safety?¡± asked Kits without bothering to hide the snark. ¡°My bad.¡±


    ¡°Kits,¡± said Kaia. ¡°Don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t what? Tell the truth?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re leaving,¡± announced Kaia. ¡°Sorry for the trouble.¡±


    ¡°Wait.¡± Kits got up, tilted her head at the human family. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to be a jerk. Rough day. Gotta ask though. Did any of the dragonflies land on you?¡±


    The family looked at each other.


    ¡°Humor me,¡± said Kits. ¡°One last time. Then we¡¯re outta here.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± said Melanie. ¡°I mean, I didn¡¯t feel anything. Dad? Mom?¡±


    Mom and Dad had an entire conversation via expression. Mom took her finger out from under her teeth and shook her head at Kits.


    ¡°Then you should be fine.¡± Kits jogged over to the axe head stuck in the wall. ¡°At least when it comes to the dragonflies. Uh.¡± She yanked and tugged and even melted a tiny bit more of the metal trying to remove the axe head but nothing worked. It was very stuck. So stuck in fact that Kits couldn¡¯t figure out how she¡¯d gotten it in there so far in the first place. Eventually she had to yield. ¡°Oops about the halberd. I sorta can¡¯t get it out.¡±


    ¡°Of course you can¡¯t get it out,¡± grumbled Kaia.


    ¡°I mean I can¡¯t without ruining the wall.¡±


    ¡°Think you already ruined the wall, Kits.¡±


    ¡°Not all the way! There¡¯s some parts not melted.¡±


    ¡°Ladies,¡± said Dad in a booming voice. ¡°You were leaving.¡±


    Melanie winced. Hers became the face of someone who had nothing they could do about Dad¡¯s verdict. Now Mom¡¯s arms were crossed too. The dog¡¯s tail swished back and forth across the floor but its big brown eyes were pensive.


    Kaia practically dragged Kits to the front door. On the way, Kits warmed the air to remove the frost from the wall she¡¯d used as a backrest.


    ¡°Keep an eye out for dragonflies,¡± said Kits. ¡°You don¡¯t wanna touch one of those. Trust me.¡±


    ¡°But,¡± said Melanie. ¡°What stops them from messing with us after you¡¯re gone?¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°We don¡¯t provide much protection anyway,¡± said Kaia. ¡°Best thing to do is be boring. The dragonflies hate boring.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t make any sense,¡± said Melanie in a desperate voice full of bafflement.


    ¡°It means don¡¯t call attention to yourselves,¡± said Kaia. ¡°If you have any secret desires, I¡¯d suggest not voicing them.¡±


    ¡°You can still work toward them though,¡± added Kits.


    The human family stared at them, each with a different expression. Mom was shocked. Dad seemed angry, which was understandable. Melanie looked a little slack jawed, probably scared. The dog wriggled away from Melanie and met Kits and Kaia at the door. Kits reached down, closed her eyes, and ran her hands along the smooth texture of the dog¡¯s golden coat.


    ¡°There are things she can¡¯t steal,¡± said Kits. ¡°Things like this.¡±

 Embarrass

    Kaia didn¡¯t know where Kits learned the song but she wanted it to stop. It was catchy the first five times Kits sang it. Now it was painful. Not only was Kits singing in a language the locals didn¡¯t understand, she was bobbing back and forth doing twosteps beside a fountain in the center of the square. On this world, the locals all had appearances in as colorful a spectrum as Kits and Kaia, meaning the dragonflies had finally put them somewhere they wouldn¡¯t stand out, and here Kits was making a show of herself anyway. At first, she¡¯d tried to get Kaia to join in but soon gave up on that endeavor. Regardless, Kits was obviously enjoying herself and had been at it so long that people had stopped to stare. Or they took ginormous arcs around the square to avoid the commotion. Or they booed her.


    Every time they booed, Kits sang louder.


    Kaia couldn¡¯t tell if she were happy to be in fox form because it concealed her embarrassment or angry because her ears were more sensitive to the incomprehensible verses Kits was belting at full volume. Kaia hadn¡¯t been on the world where Kits picked up the song and therefore didn¡¯t know the language either. This had started as innocent humming. Why hadn¡¯t Kaia stopped it when it was innocent humming?


    A local whose skin was marbled in orange and gold stopped in front of Kits, waited a second to catch the tune, then began whistling along with her, tapping his heel to the beat. A groan reverberated through the crowd, but Kits and the whistler kept on going. They increased the tempo until someone threw a rotten bit of fruit at Kits¡¯ head.


    Kaia, who was sitting on the rim of the fountain observing this spectacle, felt the phantom impact on her own head and flinched. On reflex, her ears snapped back. The spray of fountain water dampened the fur on the very tips of her ears and through the soul link her rising aggravation fought with the giggly elation of Kits¡¯ emotional state. Kaia considered shifting out of fox form and bodily dragging Kits elsewhere to put an end to this before Kits inspired even worse criticism from the crowd. Short of actual mob violence, you couldn¡¯t get much worse as a performer than serving as target practice for rotten fruit. Not that Kits counted as a performer. Obviously, most of the crowd considered her a nuisance. Kaia agreed with the majority. If it were anyone but Kits, Kaia might¡¯ve let the crowd have their fun heckling. Not intervened. But it was Kits, which meant any damage she took Kaia would have to deal with too, so Kaia hopped to dry ground and headbutted Kits in the shin.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    ¡°Look who decided to join us,¡± said Kits. She lifted Kaia and grinned.


    The whistler had stopped whistling and was turning about, presumably to find whoever had thrown the rotten fruit.


    Kaia sent as much frustration as possible through the soul link.


    And what did Kits do? She put Kaia down, picked up the rotten fruit and took a ginormous bite. The flavor was bitter and fleshy and sloshed around like a gooey wraith in Kaia¡¯s mouth.


    ¡°Bleh!¡± said Kits.


    Kaia shifted out of fox form and kicked what was left of the fruit out of Kits¡¯ hand. With a disgusting squelch of juice, the fruit landed bitten-side down beside the fountain.


    The whistler spontaneously found some other place to be.


    ¡°Why should I be punished for your idiocy!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not idiocy,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°Yes it is!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fun.¡±


    ¡°Fun for you maybe.¡±


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t fun for me be fun for both of us?¡±


    Kaia pointed at the rotten, half-bitten fruit and raised her eyebrows.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know it was gonna taste that horrible,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°In what world would it have not tasted horrible? Why would someone throw it at your face if it weren¡¯t inedible?¡±


    ¡°Well the song and dance were fun.¡±


    The idea to shove Kits into the fountain popped into Kaia¡¯s brain and it was tantalizing. Sure, Kaia would feel the splash and wetness through the soul link, but there was a good chance the crowd might cheer. Y¡¯know what? Screw it. My ears are already wet anyway. Kaia shoved Kits into the fountain.


    Kits squealed, flailing into the water. From the crowd came a stunned silence then a smattering of claps and whoops.


    Worth it.


    Kits came up giggling. And steaming. Her temperature must¡¯ve spiked in surprise. Of course. Because the only thing more embarrassing than Kits¡¯ song and dance routine would be if she accidentally boiled the water. She kicked a tiny wave of water in Kaia¡¯s direction.


    Kaia dodged.


    Kits sloshed to her feet and did a cartwheel with terrible form, pinwheeling water everywhere. What was most frustrating about this was Kaia knew Kits could do a good cartwheel. Kaia threw her hands up to shield her eyes from the spray.


    ¡°What is with you today,¡± said Kaia in exasperation. ¡°Why have you decided to be so annoying?¡±


    ¡°Because you ate that pepper.¡±


    ¡°Because I what?¡±


    ¡°The pepper.¡± Kits pointed at Kaia to emphasize the explanation. ¡°Remember? A couple days ago you found a hot pepper and looked right at me and stuck it in your mouth even though you know I hate spicy food.¡±


    ¡°This is payback for a pepper.¡±


    Kits leaned down and splashed more water at Kaia¡¯s legs. She missed.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t even that hot of a pepper,¡± said Kaia.


    ¡°Maybe not to you. Our tastes are different.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be the temperature queen?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not the same,¡± Kits whined.

 Headlong

    ¡°Wisher, wisher!¡± said the dragonfly as it zipped through a stone archway that stood oxidizing in the middle of an unchanging forest. After miles of what seemed to be the same tree multiplied over the same patch of dirt, the archway was the first thing that looked different. Kits halted in front of it. A few seconds later, Kaia caught up and they both leaned over to catch their breath, resounding the forest with gasps.


    ¡°It went in there,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°I saw.¡± Kaia tilted her head and squinted at the archway. She inhaled purposefully. Through their soul link, Kits smelled the ancient mossy scent that entered Kaia¡¯s nose. ¡°Hmm.¡±


    ¡°Hmm? What hmm?¡± Kits spread her thermal awareness as far as it would go. Beyond the archway, she felt cold winding paths interposed with stretches of warmth and guessed those warm stretches were where sunlight shone down. The warm stretches were too uninterrupted for the archway to lead further into the forest. The cold sections were obviously laid out in a pattern, albeit a confusing one. ¡°A maze?¡±


    The dragonfly¡¯s flickering, cool thermal signature zigzagged at the edge of Kits¡¯ awareness.


    ¡°It¡¯s getting away,¡± said Kits impatiently.


    ¡°Maybe we shouldn¡¯t chase after it,¡± said Kaia.


    ¡°But it¡¯s finally cornered,¡± said Kits. ¡°And we don¡¯t know if whatever person it¡¯s after is on their final desire or even knows all the rules. Besides, wasn¡¯t it you who said mazes were easy to solve? Hand on the wall, right? Always turn the same direction?¡±


    ¡°Depends on complexity,¡± said Kaia. Then her voice darkened. ¡°I have the distinct feeling we¡¯re about to get lost.¡±


    ¡°Oh, whatever!¡± Kits dashed through the archway, calling over her shoulder. ¡°Wherever we are, we¡¯re already lost. That¡¯s how it always is.¡±


    Kaia groaned and followed Kits, grumbling about stupidity and impulsive kindreds the whole way.


    ¡°I mean,¡± Kits continued as she ran. ¡°This is us we¡¯re talking about. When have we ever known where we¡¯re going or where we¡¯ll end up? This is just our lives in miniature. Who knows? Might be easier.¡±


    ¡°Might be our doom.¡±


    The deeper into the maze they ran, the more Kits realized its size was becoming a problem. When the outer border slipped from her thermal awareness, she slowed her pace and started paying attention to the inner layout. The walls were constructed of hedges and overgrown stone. Since a hedge felt similar thermally to the grass floor, the maze became difficult to navigate by temperature alone. Almost every time Kits thought she¡¯d found a direct route toward the dragonfly, a hedge would be in the way.


    ¡°If you¡¯re in such a hurry,¡± said Kaia, ¡°You could always burn us a path.¡±


    ¡°But how long did it take to grow this place? Wouldn¡¯t that be kinda rude?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re ridiculous.¡± Kaia took the lead. Initially, she fared better than Kits, making quick, adept decisions and even getting them to an inner sanctum with a statue that pointed toward a deeper, hidden sector of the maze. The hidden sector was constructed entirely of stone, and unlike the maze up until this point, had a ceiling. From the outside, it looked like the ruins of a castle. Inside, barely any light seeped through its tiny rectangular windows. Without much visibility, Kits and Kaia had to rely even more on their other senses. Luckily, they were used to that. As they traversed the stone sector¡¯s corridors in a brisk walk side by side, the dragonfly eluded them yet kept a consistent distance in Kits¡¯ thermal awareness, which got more and more infuriating the further into the maze they went.


    ¡°Kits,¡± said Kaia as they jogged down a straight, entirely lightless corridor after the dragonfly. ¡°You¡¯re gonna burn a hole in the floor.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna start melting walls if we don¡¯t catch this stupid thing soon.¡±


    ¡°Wisher, wisher!¡± said the dragonfly as it zoomed around the corridor¡¯s only bend. Thermally, Kits felt the dragonfly double back and head toward them again, but something was weird about the distance. Kits stopped altogether to pay more attention, the air around her gone cold with concentration.


    A couple steps later, Kaia halted too. Her voice echoed oddly. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Feels like it¡¯s underneath us. Y¡¯know, like another level. Is the floor that thin?¡±


    Kaia put her ear to the ground and listened, and through the soul link Kits¡¯ hearing sharpened. They heard the dragonfly¡¯s voice chanting wisher, wisher but not the flitter of its wings. From the sound of it, Kits was right. The dragonfly seemed too far down to be flying through the same corridor. Which meant the maze must deepen even further, must go underground.


    Sometimes, because of the soul link, Kits and Kaia shared instinct. They both got the urge to turn back. Kits looked behind her, and the corridor stretched so far that the end was impossible to discern with any of their combined senses. Sudden dread made her magic frost nearby stone. When had they gotten this far inside the inner sector? It didn¡¯t look that big from outside. Maybe the dark was playing tricks. She reached out with her thermal sense and found the cold borders of corridors became more convoluted than when she and Kaia first passed them. And she could only reach so far. Kaia could probably retrace their steps.


    But the wisher.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    They couldn¡¯t leave the dragonfly to do what it wanted.


    ¡°Think you can solve the maze?¡± asked Kits.


    ¡°Pretty sure it qualifies as a labyrinth by now.¡±


    Kits waved her hand around dismissively, trusting her kindred to feel the motion through the soul link despite the dark.


    Kaia cracked her knuckles.


    ¡°Right.¡± Kits laughed. ¡°Dez would call me silly for asking that.¡±


    ¡°And I would call you a moron. Of course I can solve it.¡±


    ¡°Wisher, wisher!¡± called the dragonfly.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± said Kaia.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who can feel it. Is it moving?¡±


    Kits focused on the dragonfly. Its thermal signature bobbed back and forth, but it wasn¡¯t exiting Kits¡¯ sphere of awareness. ¡°Seems confused. Dead end?¡±


    ¡°Or it¡¯s a lure.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°The whole time we¡¯ve been here,¡± said Kaia. ¡°Have you felt anyone else?¡±


    Kits thought about it. Nope. She shook her head.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t smelled anyone either. Or heard anything. It¡¯s suspicious.¡±


    ¡°But on the off chance,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    They both took a breath. Kits stomped once on the floor. ¡°Want me to melt us through?¡±


    ¡°Nah.¡± Kaia sprinted down the corridor, and this time it was her calling over her shoulder at Kits. ¡°I wanna solve it the real way. But first we have a pest to deal with.¡±


    Kits followed Kaia around the bend, past a few untaken turns, through a barely-noticeable trapdoor in the wall of a dead end, and down claustrophobia-inducing stairs to the level where the dragonfly hovered. As soon as Kits reached a place she¡¯d be able to burn it, the dragonfly vanished and reappeared out of her range of influence. In a jolt of irritation, Kits started after the dragonfly, but Kaia yanked her back by the arm.


    ¡°Pay attention!¡±


    Kits¡¯ foot dangled over an abyss. She broke into nervous laughter.


    Kaia sighed and released her.


    ¡°Hey, wait.¡± Kits squinted as she stepped away from the edge, wondering when she¡¯d regained her vision. ¡°Is there a light source in here?¡±


    ¡°Sconces. But I don¡¯t think they¡¯re in this room exactly.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Kaia grabbed Kits¡¯ shoulders and maneuvered her to the side. ¡°Look again. Mirrors.¡±


    At this angle, it became obvious. Kits groaned.


    ¡°I know,¡± said Kaia. ¡°Look at the floor instead of ahead of you.¡±


    ¡°Okay but which floor?¡±


    The chamber they¡¯d entered was dimly lit, but the way the torchlight bounced off the mirrors made its spatial trickery obvious. Upside down stairs, steep drops, door-shaped cutouts that seemed to lead directly into walls, thin pathways that might be either buttresses or alternative routes or both. Multitudinous ledges, the occasional might-be-a-floor located in impossible to reach places. The ledge Kits and Kaia currently stood upon was the final stretch before the chamber. It was like standing on something¡¯s teeth and peering into its throat.


    ¡°My bad,¡± said Kits. It was her fault they were in here. She was the one who decided to chase the dragonfly.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I love a challenge.¡±


    ¡°So, uh. Which floor do I stare at again?¡±


    ¡°How about I guide so we don¡¯t fall to our deaths?¡± Kaia took Kits¡¯ hand and started off sideways, inching bit by bit with her back pressed to the wall. Kits mimicked everything Kaia did, and they managed to avoid falling through any false walls or off any platforms. Even so, neither of them could deny they got increasingly confused the further they went. They found themselves back at the beginning at least fourteen times.


    ¡°Did I ever tell you I kinda hate mirrors?¡± asked Kits.


    ¡°For real?¡±


    Kits nodded gravely.


    ¡°I¡¯m starting to too.¡± Kaia released Kits¡¯ hand and adopted a thoughtful pose. They were back at the beginning ledge. Bending and crouching and twisting, Kaia studied the layout again. She even shifted into fox form for a while, fluffing her tail as she perked her ears and scented the chamber. Shifting out of fox form, she crossed her arms. ¡°So, I got a random question. Felt that brat¡¯s minions anywhere since we¡¯ve been in this chamber?¡±


    Kits searched her thermal awareness. No dragonfly. A frustrated noise crawled out her throat. While she and Kaia were stuck trying to solve this stupid, cavernous puzzle, the dragonfly could¡¯ve already gotten to the wisher. It might already be too late to change anything.


    ¡°Kits. Remember that thing about not burning holes in the floor.¡±


    ¡°What if I freeze it? What if I freeze it and shatter it instead?¡±


    ¡°Now, now.¡±


    ¡°UGH.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll get outta here,¡± said Kaia. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡±


    ¡°What if we can¡¯t? I¡¯m so stupid. Why¡¯d I chase Milli¡¯s dragonfly in here? Now we¡¯re stuck.¡±


    The dragonfly reappeared in front of Kaia¡¯s nose. Kaia yelped and hopped backward, which put her precariously over a drop, and instead of going for the dragonfly, Kits automatically lunged to catch Kaia. No regrets. A moment¡¯s hesitation would¡¯ve meant Kaia plummeting into the abyss.


    The dragonfly giggled.


    Kits and Kaia glared.


    ¡°Wisher, wisher!¡± said the dragonfly, pure taunt. ¡°Don¡¯t you wish I¡¯d get you out?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± said Kits and Kaia together.


    The dragonfly suspended in its eerie way. It wasn¡¯t simply hovering. It was stagnant, as if stopped in time. And it was just outside Kits¡¯ range. Her rising anger formed heat waves. Maybe this time she should lunge for the dragonfly and trust Kaia to catch her. A quick feel for the distance rendered that plan moot. Kits would have to launch herself completely off the ledge to get the dragonfly into burnable range. As in feet and all. There was no way Kaia could catch her on the drop if she did that. No jumping, then. Probably shouldn¡¯t let the temperature keep rising either. Falling through a hole she¡¯d melted into the floor would be as bad as jumping outright. But because Kits didn¡¯t want to be calm, forcing her magic back under control wasn¡¯t easy. Somehow, she managed. She made herself the absolute ambient temperature of this obnoxious chamber and tried not to become increasingly annoyed.


    Kaia clenched her hands into fists. The aggravation sank into Kits through the soul link, and Kits had to double her efforts to keep under control.


    ¡°We could always jump together,¡± said Kits.


    ¡°We could.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯d disappear as soon as it guessed what we were up to.¡±


    ¡°It would.¡± Kaia spoke through grinding teeth. ¡°But this is proof, don¡¯t you think? It lured us in here.¡±


    ¡°Wisher,¡± said the dragonfly in the threatening tone of a child about to tantrum. ¡°Wisher. Don¡¯t you wish I¡¯d get you out? Don¡¯t you wish it?¡±


    ¡°You fucking brat.¡± Kaia took one step forward and growled at the dragonfly. Even without being in fox form, the growl sounded like it should. ¡°You think we¡¯re that easy to trick? You think we¡¯d just give in? We¡¯re not kids anymore.¡±


    The dragonfly¡¯s wings twitched.


    Kits took a breath and focused on control. Just to be safe, she hiked up her and Kaia¡¯s body temperatures to make sure the dragonfly couldn¡¯t land on either of them. But if Kaia was pissed enough to talk back to Milli, Kits wasn¡¯t about to intervene. It was sort of refreshing.


    ¡°Y¡¯know what,¡± said Kaia. ¡°I¡¯m done. You think we can¡¯t solve this on our own? Goes to show you can¡¯t imagine doing it yourself. You don¡¯t have the intellect.¡±


    The dragonfly got very quiet, then erupted into a shrill scream that grew louder with every word. ¡°You¡¯re not a wisher, you¡¯re a meanie! A mean, mean meanie! I won¡¯t let you out of here even if you wish it! Not even then!¡± It vanished, thermal signature and all, but its voice lingered after its body was gone. ¡°I hope you die in here! I HOPE YOU DIE!¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± said Kaia primly. ¡°We have a labyrinth to solve.¡±