Onwards, always onwards. Yet now- the walls were awake. The doors held shimmering shapes that laughed and danced to a thrumming that was not unlike music yet quite wasn’t. And once we had passed them- they swooped down to attack our backs.
I whirled to face them, lifting my arms and transforming as I leapt into the air.
It was a perfect shielding pose. My arms turned to stone that writhed toghether in a peiced disk. One foot remained balanced on the floor and the rest of me was suspended between, mid-way stone and mid-way person.
The first attack landed square on my disk. Before the second blow could land a familiar hand snatched at my handle in the middle of my back. As I was lifted I was flicked to whirl fully into a shield that could cover master from head to toe. In a dull thud-thud-thud, the ethereal blows rained down on me senselessly.
In this state, I could not see but I had come to sense what was happening about me. That whirring of ehtereal that slid around me from behind? That was master’s sword doing its dance. The bursts before me were the strange beings being slain and dismembered, bursting like glittering fireworks.
Then, in a toss, I was thrown in a backwards spin. It dismembered me piece by piece so I landed on my four feet in cat form.
I must admit, the first few times I’d seen myself as this I’d sat and adored myself. A pitch little black cat, I had magnificent fur three inches long and glowing green eyes. I was beautiful.
But now, I ran at master’s side as we dashed forward. We moved as one, our shadows mingling as we darted between swooping creatures that dashed for our backs. Again I was forced to leap up to cover him, smashing another ethereal monster from stabbing him through the back. Again, our dance repeated. I was twirled, used, and thrown again to his side. This time, I was in human form with my dagger in hands to help him. Proud, I defended his side as best I could. It was very good. He left me his entire back and right side, not even looking there so much he trusted me.
But we were not here to clean house, metaphorically speaking. Only once the monsters (‘beings of alternative ethereal form’, he would have scolded me) thinned, I was snatched up again by the handle that appeared to his touch, and we darted forward. He left me in human-with-feline-abilities form, running with my daggers at his side. And that was when he repeated the old adage. For my master, every moment was a teaching moment. I loved it.
“Do you remember why we hold each other?” he asked as we skidded into another turn. Here the orange abruptly ended, and with it all the creatures that lived within its light.
“It doubles our power,” I said like a dutiful student, proud as could be.
“Yes,” he said with the faintest of smiles.
And now, we drew to a stop. Our feet were on a fine line, the smallest area of respite possible. It was the blissful dark, the area between one light’s conquered land and another’s. It was about a foot long. Before us was another triple choice. Yellow, red, and blue. Immediately within the blue’s corridor was another giant painting on the walls. This one was clearly already awake and thriving, throbbing with wet desire.
Master heaved a sigh. “We take blue,” he said firmly. It surprised me. Blue was master’s skill, his best color to fight. Why was he already choosing it? It was then I saw the slightest hint of worry creases around his eyes. The slightest furrow was visible in his brow.
But I was not worried. Flush with confidence in him I reminded myself of times I’d seen those worry creases on him before. We had survived, hadn’t we? It had been difficult, but it had been won. So when he stepped forward, I followed with head high and confidence.
The blue light was so pure it seemed white. The walls thrived like a bee’s nest, waves crashing alongside their inked supple lines- and the spirit jumped at us.
It was a whirling battle. I was lifted, dashed against a head, then tossed to land on its back with all claws out. Here, in this realm, cat claws tore the ethereal better than any dagger. With screaming howls the monster thrashed. Master sliced at its head, then its other head and other. I distracted like needles in the back, jumping and clawing- and very nearly being eaten by another head.
“Jump! Shield!” Master ordered and I did without knowing why. In a leap I whirled into full shield form in the air. The head dashed against me so swiftly it almost entered through my transformation. But I had been fast enough and it smashed into my flat side. I was sent whirled- then was caught by strong hands.
Set on my two feet, I jumped for action- but was pulled forward by the shoulder. Glittering water lay around us, inked and drooling across the floor. “Hurry,” master snapped. We rushed on.
On and on we plunged. The blue swiftly faded from view, its doors not daring to attack us after defeating its living master. Slowly, as it died, the blue faded. The light now glowed from bulbs that blinked and watched- white and seemingly harmless.
Up and up we went up stairs that reminded me of apartment buildings in worlds gone by. We exited into a hallway that was once again lit by white- and master took my shoulder. Why did he want our powers doubled? I never had the chance to ask.
He lifted his sword in a deflection, and a spirit crashed against it. “They’re invisible!” he barked, and I saw with horror that he was true. A glimmer here- a gaunt shape there- I shielded with one foot on the ground just in time to save myself from a stab through the gut. The moment that blade crashed off me I saw another glimpse behind master’s back as he was parrying to the front. I leaped behind him to shield, shield, shield- that seemed to be all I could do. Dance and shield as invisible blows rained around us, one even dashing against my granite back and tingling up my spine. Then I was snatched up. “Run!” Master barked as he threw me before him. I landed on all fours and darted, too small to be caught. There was a slicing hiss of master cutting his way forward, and a corner rounded to me. Beyond was blissful darkness.
In a bolt and a leap that felt like three heartbeats of eternity, I was landing and skidding through pitch black. My heart pounded in my throat. Crashes and hissing of ‘alternative monsters ‘, or whatever they were called, resounded as they struck the darkness in pursuit and died. Master’s thick silver-plated boots stepped next to me. He crouched down next to me. Now his armor gleamed all over him.
Don’t ask me how he does that. The armor, much like the sword, was magic to my eyes. It was just there one minute and gone the next. He’d tried to explain it once, but I had groaned and buried my head in a pillow. He’d laughed and said “alright, it’s magic” just that once.
And just this once, he crouched down to scratch my head. “Well done,” he said softly. I purred loudly and rubbed against his hand, as content as could be. As I opened my eyes I saw his smile, his glowing blue eyes, and I couldn’t have been happier or more proud. He too, seemed so happy. Then he looked up to what was waiting before us.
“Do you remember what happens if I let go of you during a transformation?” he asked softly, almost absent-mindedly while peering ahead.
I rolled my eyes and transformed into two-legged form. His hand slid from my head to rest on my shoulder. “I get sent home,” I said dully.
“M-hm,” he said, making me wonder if he was even listening. I smiled, taking the moment as a chance to admire his features. His sharp nose. His full lips. Then I looked ahead to see what he saw.
To my eyes, there was nothing. Not even light. Just- an absence of darkness. One could see beyond, but it was as if by starlight I supposed. Or moonlight, that soft glow that illuminates but isn’t quite there. That’s what it was, but wasn’t quite. What it was, was our final goal.
“Come,” he said as he straightened and strode forward. I followed, silent and (I hoped) lethal.
As we stepped into the non-visible light, it took a breath around us. The air rushed away from us, sucked into unseeable lungs- then was exhaled in a seething hiss.
“God morning,” it cooed.
“It’s night,” master said flatly, reaching to pick me up. I whirled int a shield, and was tossed before him. With a dash I crashed against someone’s head. A scream burst as I was snatched by claws and torn apart, my shield self being forced to dismember and reverse transform into limbs and then furry limbs that could slip through their grasp.
Shrieking, I landed on all four paws and, well, ‘regrouped’ to say it gracefully. I dashed between master’s legs and braced myself behind him. “What is this?” I asked over his shoulder as I braced with shields up- and winced at the pain. I could hardly shield now.
“It’s it,” he said calmly.
Well, ‘it’, was slavering and shrieking softly, hissing and clambering over walls with nails scraping- a metallic thud could be heard. Then another. Was that it’s feet? I thought I saw a claw- but then I didn’t see it.
“Do you remember what I said?” master asked so calmly.
“About not letting go?” I asked nervously. Why was he bringing that up now?
“Yes, good.” he said, and as I glanced over my shoulder I saw him looking back with the slightest of smiles. “Now come here. You’re wounded, aren’t you?”
“Y-yes?” I said, stepping backwards then turning with my arms out. Between the stone creases there was blood. Our eyes met again. A silent understanding passed, a sort of recognition of our bond. “You’ve done well,” he said gently. Then, abruptly, “Shield!”
I leapt into the air, spinning to follow his eyes. A claw gouged against me, scraping against my surface and catching in the crack it had created. With a rip I was torn open, forcing to un-shield again.
“Shield!” Master shouted, snatching me up from behind. Again I regrouped, again I was dashed against a head. A claw snagged around me rim and flipped me from his grasp and I twirled freely in the air- and was snatched up again. “Cat!”
I transformed just in time to see him leaping up into the air, sword striking- and his hand leaving me mid-way.
It is common knowledge that cats travel the easiest through the realms. No matter the wounds, no matter the distance, cats do it best. It was also common knowledge that no master would let their shields get seriously harmed. It was a pact between worlds that the shields would always be returned- even if that left the master to die alone.
With that thought in mind, I sat up in a bed with heart pounding. Master’s name was on my lips – but the world here would not recognize it. Around me was four plain walls, flat and adorned with posters. My bed was a mat that unrolled, a green comforter spread across my legs. A fluffy pillow had been under my head. The scent was sickeningly familiar. Home.
“No, no, no,” I muttered as I took in my old room. “Why did you send me back?” Standing, I looked down at myself. I was wearing a checkered sleep shirt and baggy pants. The floor boards were cool under my bare feet as I stepped to my desk in search of some note.
It was filled with memorabilia that had once meant so much to me. Notes from the day before I was taken. ‘you can do this!’ a cheery cat waved at me from a large post-it I’d stuck on a board beside my lamp. Now, I didn’t care for them. What had my master done?
I sccrambled through my desk but found nothing. Jerked open drawers filled with old school assignments and found them layered with dust. Searched my pockets and found I had no pockets. Turning back to the bed I rummaged through it, shakign out the comforter and lifting the pillows- nothing.
Finally, I turned to the door. Gulping, I slowly walked to it. My breath drew short as I closed in on it. What would be on the other side? This whole world that I had once called home, still unchanged like the rest of this room? Or was master sitting downstairs with mother, calmly retelling our adventures to soothe her nerves? I paused, the very air feeling suspended as my fingertips brushed the door’s handle.
It opened on its own, revealing mother. Mother who had aged, grown almost ten years’ worth of wrinkles and grey hairs and a strained smile. “Darkling,” she said, and even her voice bore the strain of these years.
“Mother,” I said, shocked and terrified by these changes in her. It made her seem stiff, awkward, and unwholesome. Then the words just blurted out of me. “Why am I here? Where is my master?”
Mother’s smile kept that stiffness. She hated speaking of the pacts. “You are home now,” she said softly.
“Why? When am I going back? My time is not over!” I had another five years before master and I unbound and chose our ways! Then- then I was bringing him home! I had promised to show him our golden gates that mirrored his! We- we had so many plans!
But mother’s smile shattered all that. “You are home now. It’s over.”
My hand fell from the door’s handle. “He’s dead?” I heard myself saying.
Mother smiled and her eyes twinkled eerily. “You’re home, safe.”
Like any good master would do. The shield returns home, always.
I sat down on my bed and cried. Mother shut the door.
Unhinged and unenlightened 