052 Those Who Watch the Sky - 52
52 – Children thrust Into the Sky 10
“You’re still upset with me aren’t you, Melody? I don’t
know why though, I apologized didn’t I?”
“It’s not just that Link ~♪ It’s
also your uniform compared to mine ~♪ My whole outfit changed while
you simply got a jacket ~♪”
With Link hanging from her talon Melody gladly complained
about the differences in their Choir uniforms. Whether Link’s uniform could be
called such was a different matter entirely as it was little more than a long
sleeve bolero of cream color in the fashion of a blazer that couldn’t close.
Link seemed less bothered by the whole ordeal than Melody however and discussed
the matter with a detached air.
“Well it’s not like Balgun didn’t explain the spell before
we left so you can always change it back to your normal leotard. And I bet mine
is more distracting anyway since the Beast wants to eat it and I haven’t
managed to convince it not to yet so keeping it in check is so much trouble.”
“The beast ate our last set of clothes too I believe ~♪
Those memories are harder for this one of us to wrap our head around ~♪”
“I really wish you wouldn’t talk about yourself like you’re
in so many parts Link ~♪ It makes it really hard to
understand what you’re trying to say ~♪”
“But we are in so many parts Melody ~♪ It wasn’t supposed
to happen, but we weren’t allowed to become one and this is the result ~♪”
“Well I still don’t like it ~♪”
Donning a pout Melody dug in on her opinion as Link’s
mermaid self tried to get her to accept the reality of Link’s current state.
Link was less concerned with convincing Melody and instead tried to alleviate
her headache with a change of subject.
“Well, maybe finding Elliot will be simpler.”
“What makes you say that Link? ~♪ Look at the size of that city! ~♪ How can finding Elliot or your father be simple at all⁈ ~♪”
“Hmm~. My father might be a little harder, but Elliot
should be pretty easy. After all, Foreigners have blue blood but that thing is
pure red so it must be Elliot’s power.”
“Huh–⁈”
Lowering her eyes from the city to the battlefield below, Melody
scanned for the red thing that Link implied should lead them to Elliot. If not
for Link’s own grip on Melody’s foot the harpy would have dropped the icaran
girl as she took in the sight looming over the battlefield.
To call the towering humanoid construct of crimson hue
unnatural, while not inaccurate, would have been to underestimate the power
that formed it. Where a Dolmen stood only 25 meters or so on average the
towering crimson humanoid easily tripled that height. Its long lanky form
called to mind the malnourished, but it was anything but. With a swipe of it’s
arm it tore apart any Foreigner beast in its path and many more caught in the
displaced air that followed the attack. A cloud of copper blue blood exploded
into the air and soon took on a crimson hue as it was siphoned into the body of
the colossus.
“Li~nk… ~♪ Are you sure that thing is
related to Elliot…? ~♪”
“Yup. But just to make sure can you fly me close enough to
touch it, or let me down and let me get to it on foot?”
“Li~nk! ~♪ Both of those requests sound
crazy ~♪ There are Foreigner monsters everywhere and can’t you see
the destruction that thing is causing? ~♪ Where did it even come from
anyway⁈ ~♪ I didn’t see it from Balgun’s
earlier ~♪”
“It’s hard to tell with all of the Nectar in the air out
here, but the most stable Nectar seems to be being drawn from within the city ~♪”
“Really⁈ You can tell⁈”
“Li~nk! ~♪ Please don’t ask yourself
questions like that ~♪ It’s confusing enough talking
to you as it is! ~♪”
“Eh, heh, heh. Sorry Melody, but…”
The pouting face of the harpy looking back at her made Link
laugh, but she still managed to stay focused on the task at hand and turned her
attention back to her mermaid double.
“Do you think you could lead us along it?”
“It’s possible, but Melody may not like my instructions ~♪”
“It’s okay little Link. ~♪ Just
keep me away from that thing for as long as you can, please! ~♪”
“I’ll do my best! ~♪”
Aware that the mermaid could not keep with her flight speed
Melody reached down with her other talon. As soon as Link’s mermaid double was
within she folded her leg back tight against her body and brought her talon as
far forward as she could. Grabbing hold of Melody’s clothes the mermaid Link
easily made her way to the harpy’s neck. From there she grabbed onto Melody’s
hair and pulled herself up behind the harpy’s ear and clung on for dear life.
As secured as she could be in her new position she leaned over into Melody’s
ear and began giving the harpy the directions to take the three of them into
the Foreigner city by way of the Nectar trail that supported the heart of the
colossus.
The flight of Link, her double, and Melody above the battlefield
in the fractured crater holding the Foreigner city did not go unnoticed.
Stepping out of the neck of the colossus Feast turned his eyes onto them. A
smile spreading his lips he mused aloud about their passing.
“So, they’ve finally come as well. Looks like the old sorcerer
wasn’t lying. Won’t you be so glad to know that Elliot? Hmm?”
Curiosity tool hold of Feast as he noticed Link looking
pack at him with a puzzled expression on her face. His smile returning Feast
pointed at himself and then down towards the city. With a laugh he then waved
at Link sending a shudder down her spine.
“Is something wrong Link? ~♪”
“Eh–⁈”
Distracted by Melody’s question
Link looked to the fore again to see the harpy looking down at her with
concerned eyes. Not immediately sure if she could answer Melody’s question,
Link looked back again at the colossus. There was no sign of Feast however and
she was unsure of how to feel about what she had just saw. His appearance was
too similar to Elliot’s and pointing as he did assured it wasn’t just something
she imagined. Without Feast present though Link had no way of really saying
anything. Shaking her head, she again turned to the fore and the city ahead of
her as she answered Melody.
“Hm. It’s nothing. Besides, we need
to focus on catching up with Elliot. Between him exploring a Foreigner City
without us and Balgun saying he was going to get it airborne again we don’t
have much time.”
“Ah, ha, ha, ha, ha! ~♪ And’ you’re mad at me for being
upset Link when you still haven’t gotten over Elliot and me exploring places
you haven’t yet ~♪“
“Hrm~! I can’t help it! We’re supposed
to be adventuring together!”
“Says the one who went into Ambrosia
on her own ~♪”
The only reply that Link had to
Melody’s counter was to deepen her pout which simply left Melody laughing. For the
joy they were having though the atmosphere of the Foreigner city was oppressive
ad overwhelming. No sooner did they enter the city did silence fall over them.
There was little way that they
could have ever guessed what lay within the ovoid shell of the Foreigner city,
but Link and Melody were soundly disquieted by what they did find. There were signs
of battle everywhere and the freshness of the copper blue Foreigner blood and
still smoking holes from cannon rounds told them that the recent battle was
likely between the Dolmen pilots of Foothold and the abominations within.
Corpses were strewn everywhere throughout the city and numerous Dolmen were
left torn asunder, the pilots dead with no chance to have ever received aid.
But it was not the battle that so disquieted Link and Melody, but rather the
city itself.
The people of Icarus had no idea
where the Foreigners came from or what form they once had before only their aerial
cities and ancient horrors remained. That they had razed the face of Icarus
many times across the history of mankind was a known fact as well as the battles
numerous ancient cultures fought against them futilely. Why and when the Foreigners
attacked mankind was a mystery to all since they could have easily annihilated mankind
at any time. Yet mankind was allowed to persist. The only change in the cycle
that anyone knew of were the Foreigner parasites, the monsters that birthed the
monsters of the world and from which Sa·B·ers were born from when mankind
resisted their transformative abilities. Yet the city that sprawled out all
around Melody and Link was unquestionable for human use. The technology was
vastly superior to anything even Link with her training in the use of the Artificial
Ambrosail Gate Generators of the Ancients had ever seen or could comprehend.
How the city even functioned as it seemed to not have a up, down, or sideways
as it spread across the tiered disks that made up the entire floating impossibility.
Even then though the walkways, door sizes, structures, and just everything and
anything they looked upon seemed ideally built for not just humans in general,
but icarans and the chimeric races most similar to them.
“You don’t suppose… You don’t
suppose Melody that icarans were slaves to the Foreigners do you? I mean,
legends tell us that the nāti are the ones who sealed the Poltergeists who were
the rulers of the Foreigners and that Cardinal’s Light defeated their dark god
who threatened to destroy the world… And the nāti are older than icarans too,
so maybe icarans and the chimeric races were slave races rescued from the
Foreigners by the nāti…”
“I think you’re over thinking
things Link ~♪ Sure it’s scary here and it
looks like regular people lived here a long time ago, but we aren’t here to
learn about that ~♪ We’re
here to meet up with Elliot and save your father so let’s keep it that simple,
please ~♪”
“Hn… I guess you’re right Melody,
but–”
“What do you mean but⁈ ~♪”
Melody couldn’t believe that Link
wouldn’t let it go, but the icaran girl’s laugh told her it was something more.
“Eh, heh, heh. Part of the fun of
exploring ancient ruins is learning about what type of people lived there. We’re
actually in a Foreigner city Melody! Don’t you see that⁈ How many did we watch drift
across the sky back in Cross⁈ And now
we’re actually in one and have learned at least that the Foreigners built this
city at least to accommodate icarans and maybe a bunch of the chimeric races as
well. I’m so excited I feel like I’m going to burst!”
“Please don’t! ~♪”
Protest as Melody did Link’s
potential explosion it was all in good fun and the harpy was grateful for her
friend’s good cheer. The way Link’s eyes shimmered in excitement brought a
smile to Melody’s face. It was not a smile that lasted for long though as
Melody turned her attention back to where she was flying and knew from the
signs of battle that Elliot was not having as good of a time as them.
Copyright © 2019 Joshua D Tarwater
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