Crimson Powder

A small, white rowing boat topped with a bottle-shaped reservoir. It was twice the size of the hull itself. Inside, a powder glistens like over The Devourer. Except it’s of a sole colour, a silver one.

    After accosting our airship, a figure steps onto the deck. Blond strands of hair reach the boy’s cheeks, his face otherwise hard to figure out with the veil hanging from the rim of his black hat. A thin white veil weighed down by golden accessories, occulting his eyes.

    He seems no older than my brother.

    Pushing aside the fabric of a silver cape adorned with a gradient of blue on its lapel, the militiaman steps towards the captain.

“Why is a member of the Militia here…” I step back at his sight, hiding in the fleeting shadow of a cloud.

    The young man stops in front of Black Star, exchanging a few words with him.

“What are they talking about?”

“Do they scare ya? The Militia?”

    A whisper makes me jolt, until I recognise Calico’s unmistakable voice.

“No…” I avert my gaze. “I genuinely don’t know why you’re telling me this.”

“Yar sure?” She adds, a step behind me. “Ya look like ya have some business with ‘em.”

    I choose to play the silence card.

“I can help you hide from them, come with me.”

    My poor acting doesn’t convince Calico, surprisingly so. Barely have I time to direct a surprised glance at her before she catches hold of my hand, dragging me into the depths of the airship.

    A doubt kicks in.

    We don’t go further down than the first level since I force Calico to pause.

“Why are you helping me?” I question. “You have no reason to.”

    Most people wouldn’t dare to step in the way of the Militia. And if they’re really after me…

    For a while longer than necessary, Calico remains silent, her back to me.

    Slowly, almost as if she just realised she owes me an explanation, the captain’s first mate turns to me.

“I have a weakness for men like ya.” She utters, her selenite gaze on me.

“Ohh. Ohh damn it.”

    As I stare at her wide-eyed, Calico takes a step forward, pinning me to the wall. Pressing her leg between mine. The warmth of her skin brushing the fabric.

“What da ya say?” She lowers the tone of her voice, leaning in closer. “I can bring ya to a place they won’t find ya.”

“Ohh, fuck. Is it THIS day of my life?”

    I place my hands on her hips, a smile I hope not to be too eery forming on my face.

“I…”

    But before I can think of an inappropriate end to this sentence, something heavy hits the side of my head with such force that I fall forward into Calico’s arms. Everything blurs. Her grim chuckles are the last thing I can hear before blood trickles down my forehead, down my eyelids, miring my eyes. Everything in crimson.

𖢻 𖢻 𖢻

    When I open my eyes, I hear echoes of voices from the crew. I realise that I’m still on the stairs leading to the depths of The Devourer, although far from the first level’s platform we reached a moment ago with Calico.

    Something is weird.

    My vision feels oddly restricted, as if my left eye was covered.

“Blood sealed it?”

    Something is very very weird.

    I reach out my hand to brush my eyelid, but find instead a piece of fabric. My fingers pull on it, but the sight doesn’t return. I take off what ends up being a red eye-patch.

“The one-eyed?” I mutter with a voice far more raspy than Seveg’s.

    Hit by the obviousness, I hurriedly check my arms, clothes… No doubt. I ended up in Skutz’s body.

“Which means…”

    My guts twist at the thought, but I resolve to descend the stairs. When I reach the first level’s platform, I notice damp smears on the wall and ground. As if someone just washed stains away…

    I linger only a little while before pursuing my way down the stairs. Since Calico doesn’t have a big head start, I soon hear noises. Heavy footsteps, shadows projected against the walls by the burning lamps. The shadows are those of a woman carrying something heavy with her.

    Feeling my heart beat wildly, I hold back my breath as I pursue my way, begging not to get caught by a traitorous noise.

“Why… Why did she kill me?” My thoughts twirl and twirl. “I need to retrieve Fufu. And to discover why she did that…”

    That’s when a horrid idea shapes in my mind.

“Could this be… Does she have anything to do with those disappearances?”

    By some miracle, I manage to tail Calico to the entrance of a room. A mere door remains between her and I.

    With a gulp, I carefully push it. Just enough to glance inside with my one and only eye.

“For a man of yar height, ya sure are lighter than I thought.” A faint voice utters.

    A moving figure.

    Calico leans forward, letting the corpse she’s been carrying fall to the ground. Reaching out my hand to my mouth, I hold back the urge to vomit at the sight of Seveg’s inanimate body. As if that strange, burnt stench wasn’t enough…

    Leaving the corpse there, the first mate approaches what seems to be an immense oven. A brief muttered command spell is enough to bathe the room in the flames’ glow, although they soon shift to an unnatural colour. Fire burning purple.

“Is this an artifact?”

    While satisfied with her shenanigans near that suspicious oven, Calico returns to Seveg’s side. Lifting him once again. And with that, she drags him closer to the oven. In the purplish glow of the flames, I catch sight of Fufu still wrapped around Seveg’s neck. All trembling and teary-eyed.

“I have to do something…”

    Barging into the creepy room, I rush towards Calico.

“Fufu! Fly away, now!!”

    Seeing someone rush in, Calico hurries to throw the corpse into the oven.

“Fufu!!”

    Our gazes meet right before the body hits the flames.

    As if gaining enough boldness to move despite his fears, Fufu regains his cloud shape the second before the flames can touch him. Taking his opportunity to flee.

    I let out a massive sigh when I see him float safely a metre away.

“Skutz? What are ya doin’ here?” Calico just turned to face me, violet flames engulfing Seveg’s shape behind her.

    I grit my teeth at her casual tone. The audacity.

“And you dare speak like this after killing me…” I mumble.

“What?” She raises an eyebrow.

“Why are you doing this, Calico? You killed a man…”

    A much hated smile shapes over her face, her selenite eyes directed at me.

“Do ya know where we are?”

“No, but you’re going to tell me.”

“In the engine room.” She answers. “This is where the fuel allowing The Devourer to keep flying is crafted.”

“The fuel…” I feel dread. Dread permeating every pore of my skin. “What do you mean… Isn’t it an artifact which allows it to fly?”

“The balloon floating above the deck? Well, sure.”

“Then…”

“Every airship works thanks to such an artifact. These are quite the potent ones, but also very complicated to build.” She explains. “To this day, there aren’t lots of airships, are there, mate?” A pause. I feel the urge to push her away and turn this cursed oven off. “If ya want to sail on the airy seas, ya sometimes need to rely on… less efficient artifacts.”

    I don’t like where this is going. I really, really don’t like it.

“This one isn’t autonomous enough to last without a regular inflow of magic.”

    With a quick glance around the room, I catch sight of a darkened ring near the oven, of a bucket of cinders in a corner, remnants of a crystal glove protruding.

“So this is why you’re hiring so many people…”

“Of course. Imagine fallin’ short of fuel during a flight. But given the quality of yar mate’s heart, we shouldn’t fear that for a while. The captain himself recognised his potential in magic after the tinakhsites’ attack. Once his body is consumed, his heart will be smashed into a thin powder. Just like the one ya’ve seen floating over the deck.”

    I widen my one and only eye, horrified by her words. All this time, I’ve been admiring an iridescent powder obtained by milling who-knows-how-many hearts from the very members of the crew?

    I tighten my fists at this thought.

“You can’t keep doing this…” I mumble.

“Haa?” Calico tilts her head to the side. “Don’t make a fuss about it. When a geman needs another geman’s life, he takes it. It’s the law of the strongest.”

“Aren’t we all monsters?” Seveg’s words echo in my mind. “Beings existing only to be chased for the magic within. I’ve always wondered… if we live in a community because we’re supposed to benefit from it, or if it’s because it makes it easier to kill us when needed.”

    Crimson drops begin to fatten before rolling down my fingers.

“This will change. This has to.”

“But enough with da small talk,” Calico draws her weapon, “since ya saw it all, this leaves me no choice.”

    Behind her, cinders fall from the grid where she placed Seveg’s body, consumed by the magic fire. As the purple flames lessen, shrinking, all they leave on the grid is a pair of hexagonal glasses and a labradorite heart. The artifact is far from done with him, though. Indeed, some magic slowly makes the heart float.

“I won’t let them use his heart.”

    Although I draw my blade in turn, all I do is wait for Calico to take a few steps closer. Just a little bit closer and…

“Levitio cinnare!” I exclaim, the bucket of cinders suddenly hurled at the captain’s right hand.

    Before she can react, the cinder is spread over her, blinding Calico and making her cough.

“Ya bastard…”

“Fufu, now! The heart!!” I shout out.

    Instantly, the little cloud still floating near the oven hurls himself towards the artifact and swallows the heart in a gulp before the artifact has time to grind it.

    Fufu rushing then towards me, we both hurry out of the engine room.

“Come here, coward!”

    A coward, I am. Indeed. I guess I’ll always be deep inside. But, as I keep running through the corridors, smashing against the wall in my precipitation, stumbling as I disengage from its embrace to take the stairs, I remain focused on my aim.

“I need to reach the deck. Quick… Before she has time to catch up.”

    There’s one thing I need to do before fighting.

    Echoes of footsteps follow me. Lighter than mine.

    One last stairway… I turn my gaze back briefly, only catching sight of Calico’s shadow. And yet…

“Bragniare fulureo fulureo brak!” She exclaims, an orangey glow bathing the corridor as flames soon rush forward, engulfing it whole.

    As the fire rushes upstairs, my breath too ragged to cast a defensive spell, I focus back ahead of me.

    Five remaining steps… Four… Three…

    I can smell my garments starting to smoke.

“I won’t make it…”

    Two…

“Fwiihh!”

    One step…

    The moment I surge from the depths of the airship, I trip and fall flat on the deck.

    The flames roar past my head.

    Losing not a single instant, I lean on my forearms, raising my head to all the stunned faces turned towards me.

“Listen to me! Listen to me or you’ll all die!” I quickly stand up to my feet. “This place is a trap! Calico and Black Star hired you only to keep at arm’s length hearts they use to fuel this airship!!” I point at the giant bubble floating above our heads, held back by ropes. “Fight for your lives or you’ll all disappear one by one!”