Susan looked around at her family as she finished the story. Grandpa Zach seemed enthralled, leaning forward eagerly from his position on the other side of the coffee table from her. Though judging by the eyes peeking around Granny Hilda from the other side of the couch, Elizabeth was just as interested.
The biggest reaction came from Granny Hilda herself who looked down with a bemused smile and chucked.
“You call that a tale?” She asked as she ruffled Susan’s hair, “Where were the heroics, the shirtless Cimmerians? You didn't even slay a great monster!”
“Grandma, I am the giant monster in this story!”
“You could fight a different one. Besides, everyone knows that for a proper tale you need a barrel of mead and a drinking hall!” Hilda finished her teasing with a hearty laugh.
Susan sighed and looked away from her, “Any other questions?” She asked with a wry smile.
Grandpa Zach looked pensive for a moment, head tilted to the side in thought.
“Have you ever heard about the Guivre Manuscript?” He asked with a hopeful smile.
Hilda slapped her knee, interrupting any chance Susan had of replying.
“Not this again Zach!” She exclaimed.
“Hilda please,” Zach threw his hands in the air, “What other opportunity am I going to have to speak to someone from the time period!”
“Plenty!” Hilda snapped back, “But some other time, not today!”
“It’s fine Grandma,” Susan chuckled as she watched the two rehash another one of their ancient arguments. She looked back at Grandpa Zach, “So, what exactly is the ‘Giver’ Manuscript?”
Zach’s look of confusion was priceless. Susan and Elizabeth couldn’t hold back giggles, and Granny Hilda outright guffawed at the sight.
“Of course she’s never heard of the thing!” She collapsed back against the couch with a wide grin, “That's the name you scholars came up with after the fact.”
The realization that flashed across his face afterwards was nearly as funny, but Susan managed to hold in her laughter this time.
Zach deflated a bit as he chuckled at his own mistake, “Sorry, looks like my excitement got the better of me again. After the Atlan Empire fell, much of their knowledge on dragon making was left behind. But none of it was usable, as no one could understand the measurement system used. This was until the Guivre manuscript was unearthed in Beringia detailing the conversions. It was a godsend to the wizards of the time, but the question of where the scroll came from has dogged researchers for millennia.”
Susan blinked a few times. “Was there a dragon in a pair of pants doodled on the front?” She blurted out.
A smile flashed over Zach’s face, “You know it?”
Susan nodded, “Yeah, one of Hadwigis’ students made it. He’d started teaching me runic magic, then got frustrated that we kept using different units. So he had Dagny figure out the conversions.”
Zach’s eyes took on the distant look of realization.
“And so the spark that began the Golden Age of Dragons was born,” He breathed in awe, “And one of the great mysteries of history, finally solved.”
Then a small frown crossed his face, and a hand came up to stroke his beard. “But another mystery remains,” He mused, “Why was the dragon wearing pants?”
Susan’s face turned a fluorescent red and she slid back against the couch to hide herself. Grandpa Zach seemed too distracted to notice, but Hilda looked down at her and grinned wide. Susan met the look with a horrified stare. She could never let knowledge of the dragon pantsing incident see the light of day again.
“Pants… you say?” Elizabeth spoke up from the other side of Hilda, Susan could hear the grin in her voice.
“What a mystery, indeed,” HIlda drawdled.
“Anyway!” Susan almost shouted, “After that I learned magic, then I fought the Atlans a few times, wanna hear about that?”
“No, no, I think we’ve had plenty enough of stories today” Hilda said, before pausing for a moment.
“Say,” she said, clapping her hands and standing up, “How abouts I show you my magic sword?”
Elizabeth was on her feet in a moment.
“Yes!” She shouted, pumping both fists in the air, “I so want to see Excalibur!”
Hilda threw her head back and laughed, before patting Elizabeth on the back with enough force to make the girl jump a foot forward.
“It’s better than that old thing,” She threw her head back and put her hands on her hips in a heroic pose, “I‘m the wielder of Liss, the Blade of Innocence!”
At those words, Susan felt her stomach turn to ice.
“Why don’t you show her the armory first,” Zach spoke up, apparently finished with his moment of distraction.
“That too,” Hilda declared, ”Onward, to the upstairs!”
She charged off toward the staircase, dragging along behind her a bemused Zach and followed closely by an excited Elizabeth.
Susan managed to keep up the charade of normalcy long enough for them to head up the stairs. Then she took the opportunity to hang back, before breaking off and slipping out the front door instead.
She shouldered her way through it, walking across the wide porch to the railing. Practically collapsing against it, she let out a heavy sigh.
A wind rustled through the flowers around the house. Their scent filled the air around her, making for a truly idyllic day. She didn’t notice it.
The taste of ash choked her mouth and nose, and her eyes could only see a shining blade thrust point first into the dirt amidst a broken world. Fallen towers and shattered walls filling the burnt wastes around it. Her fingernails ground against the porch rail, though the sensation barely registered.
She grit her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut, forcing the sight and smells out of her head. Her head fell down until it thunked against the smooth wood of the railing.
“It just had to be Liss, didn't it?” She muttered.
The mention of Liss always dredged up old memories and old hurts. Ones she had hoped would hurt less after all this time.
The door thunked shut behind her, making her jump. She whipped around, trying to lean back against the railing nonchalantly.
“I feel we’re going to regret introducing Elizabeth to the armory,” Zach drawdled as he slowly made his way across the porch. He stopped next to Susan, letting out a sigh as he settled down against the railing. He stayed silent for a moment, watching the wind roll through the wide clearing around them.
Susan felt the knot of tension in her chest loosen a bit as the silence continued. Maybe he didn’t notice?
“Are you feeling alright?” The question hit like a fastball. A glance showed Zach staring at her with obvious concern.
She huffed, tilting her head back and staring at the porch's roof.
“Was I that obvious?” She asked tiredly.
“No,” She could see the shake of his head from the corner of her eye, “I am simply more familiar with the history of Liss than Hilda is.”
“So you did recognize me, then.”
That got a chuckle.
“There weren’t exactly many gray dragons from the time of the Atlan Empire,” He replied, “And the lead coloring of your scales was more than enough of a clue on its own. Metal dragons are… quite well known after all.”
“You can say that again..” She said, then her head came back down.
“There aren’t any on earth, right?” She asked quickly.
“No,” Zach replied, before shooting her a pointed look, “But don’t go dodging the question now.”
Susan found herself examining the other side of the porch in great detail. A quick look back the other way showed Zach giving her a worried look. She met his eyes for a few heartbeats, the honest concern in them mollifying her.
“Okay,” She whispered, turning around toward the railing again. Leaning on it, she looked over the flower fields once again.
“I just want to put everything that happened on Themus behind me,” She continued in a low voice, “But all of it, the magic and the monsters and the power hungry fools seem to have followed right after me.”
She leaned her elbows on the railing, and put her head in her hands. “Even that godawful name they gave me,” She mumbled, “I genuinely believed I would never have to speak it again, but there I was, using it within a day of arriving back on earth.”
An arm fell across her back. It was old and frail, but she still felt herself begin to relax.
“You should know,” Came Zach’s voice softly, “That name of yours was only terrible to you and the Atlans. To the rest of the world it was the name of a hero and liberator.”
His arm tightened into a good hug, “I don’t think it would be so bad if it spread to earth as well.”
“I…” Susan looked away again, “I don’t know.”
Zach gave her a light shake.
“Don't get your nose stuck in the past like one of your textbooks,” He said, “Otherwise you’ll never be able to see the world around you.”
Susan huffed. “I’m pretty sure I heard you tell Elizabeth that when she cried after spilling juice on your favorite book,” she said, rolling her eyes.
Zach reached up to tousle her hair. “Good advice is good advice, girl,” He grouched. “Don't waste it.”
A stronger breeze came through the trees, making their limbs shake. It whipped up the flowers as well, their heads whipping back and forth as they danced.
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For a moment the world around the cabin seemed alive with motion. The smell of the flowers reached her, and this time she managed to breathe it in. The smell was nice. The arm around her was warm.
Deep within her, Susan felt some of that age-old hurt begin to fade.
She wanted to laugh at herself. She’d tried so hard to pretend everything was fine. But apparently what she really needed was someone to talk to.
She breathed in, then out, her chest lighter.
“Sorry,” She said as she finally turned her head to face Zach properly, “You’d think being a thousand years old would make me better at all this.
He shrugged in response.
“Such is the curse of immortality,” He said quietly.
Susan chuckled, “Yeah, it took me a few decades to realize that becoming a teenager forever might not have been the best idea.”
They stood there in silence for a few minutes. The sun still hung high in the sky, but its heat was held back by the shade of the roof and the heavy breeze.
Susan wondered if she might have to find a cabin of her own to stay in for a while. It should make for a good vacation, growing wisteria and napping.
Zach finally broke the silence.
“It’s about time I headed in,” He said as he pushed off of the railing, “You might want to join me, Elizabeth managed to wrangle Hilda into letting her hold Liss.”
Susan’s hand was on the doorknob a moment later. A look back showed Zach frozen mid step as he stared at her. She stepped to the side to hold the door open while shooting him a raised eyebrow.
“You coming?” She asked.
Zach frowned heavily, “I didn't know it was a race.”
Susan glanced inside, eyeing the path to the stairway as she bounced up and down in impatience.
“Hilda has been showing Liss off for decades now,” Zach said as he resumed his walk, “Elizabeth will be fine.”
“Maybe,” Susan said as she watched him slowly advance towards the door. Her voice trailed off until it was a near whisper, “But you don’t know Liss like I do.”
A minute and slightly longer than she would have liked later, she helped Zach up the final step of the staircase and into the long hallway that ran the length of the upper floor.
A line of doors followed the wall to the left, lit up by large squares of light coming from the windows on the right.
Zach let go of her arm with a nod of thanks, and began walking down the hall with Susan on his heels.
First door was the bathroom, then next was the flower covered door to her mothers childhood bedroom. Past that a storage closet, then finally, an open door leading into the master bedroom.
The inside had a simple layout. A bed was set against the wall next to the door, a desk covered in scrolls and heavy tomes just past it. They sat opposite two windows showing the front yard, a dresser and mirror in between. A heavy wooden mannequin stood in the corner, dressed in heavy woolen robes. Something that Susan only now realized might not be something grandparents normally kept in their rooms.
Two more doors were across the room on the right wall, though they were quite different from the ones found in the hall. The one on the left, a thin closet door, was closed. The door on the right, however, was a different beast entirely.
It was made of heavy wooden planks held together by metal bands. Opening outward on enormous steel hinges, the entire construction made for an incredible sight.
To Susan though, it had simply been one of the background features of her grandparents house. And while the contents of the room had served as the basis of plenty of childhood fantasies, the mystery had never been solved.
The door now stood wide open, its mysteries laid bare. Susan didn't notice though, her focus entirely on the two people that stood just past the door. Bright lights from within shone down, illuminating Hilda and Elizabeth before spilling out into the dim bedroom beyond.
Elizabeth was still wearing her school uniform, but now sported an oversized helmet. The t-shaped visor of the barbute only rose high enough to show her nose, but she didn't seem to mind as she struck a dramatic pose.
Hilda had changed into a pair of bright gray shirt and pants that looked suspiciously like steel. A wide grin splitting her face as she applauded.
With the distinctive form of Liss nowhere in sight, Susan finally relaxed. Stepping up to the doorframe alongside Zach, she leaned against it and looked past the duo to take in the rest of the room.
A childhood’s worth of fantasies had not done justice to the truth of what lay within. An army’s worth of weapons covered the walls, while a half dozen more wooden mannequins covered in heavy armor stood grouped together on the far side of the room.
The variety was incredible. Shelves of wands and staves as well as racks every kind of weapon imaginable. The armor wasn't just common plate either, It was custom work. Some fur lined and insulated, others glowing with the sheen of heavy protective magic. They were clearly made for Zach and Hilda as well, intended to give the duo protection in a variety of dangerous environments.
Looking away from the weapons, she noticed that it was all lit by a variety of glowing orbs. Vials and gems that hung haphazardly suspended by strings above their heads. The treasures of what must have been a dozen different kingdoms transformed into cheap lighting with a casual irreverence that could only have come from Hilda.
Taking it all in, Susan could almost see how the two adventurers might have believed they could rely on more than luck in realm hopping.
Hilda finally noticed the two of them and her clapping slowed. Elizabeth kept posing for another second before noticing she’d lost her audience's attention. She pushed up the helmet just enough to see again, then grinned when she saw Susan and Zach.
“Hey, you’re finally here,” She exclaimed, “Now we can get onto the magic sword part!”
“Yes,” Hilda said, her face taking on a more serious look, “It’s time.”
Having said that, she promptly turned and walked out of the room. Watching her pass by from her place by the door, Susan couldn’t help the befuddled frown that came over her face.
From her place still in the room, Elizabeth watched her go with her own look of confusion. Taking the helmet completely off her head and settling it under her arm, she followed behind Hilda slowly until she stood next to Susan and Zach by the door.
They watched with identical frowns as Hilda ended her walk at the bed, then turned back to look at them.
“What,” She asked with a raised eyebrow, “You weren’t expecting me to keep Liss locked in there, right?”
Susan just shook her head, “Please don’t tell me you keep one of the most dangerous magical artifacts ever created under your pillow.”
“Course not!” Hilda proclaimed, before reaching down and pulling the blade out from underneath the mattress instead.
Susan held in her sigh.
Her face smoothed back into a more serious look as she stepped back over to her granddaughters, both arms held out with the palms up. The blade lay across them, gleaming under the light that spilled out from the armory.
Liss, the Blade of Innocence, wasn't what most people would think of when they imaginaged a blade of legend. It certainly didn't look like the weapon of a hero. In fact, it didn't look much like anything at all.
The three foot bastard sword was made of a perfectly translucent glass, only visible by the faint reflection across its surface. A spherical pommel, oval shaped grip, and straight handguard made up the handle. The blade was two inches thick at the base, it thinned along its length until reaching a needle point at the tip.
It was a working of magic of the highest order, indestructible, immortal, and unimaginably deadly. Staring down at the blade, Susan couldn’t help but feel the familiar sting of disappointment.
“Are you ready?” Hilda asked with a pointed look at Elizabeth, catching Susan’s attention again.
Elizabeth furiously nodded.
“Yes, She said with a look of total seriousness.
“Well I’m glad to hear that…” She trailed off. Susan could see she had Elizabeth by the nose, the girl leaning forward with wide eyes, “But there’s something else we need to do first.”
Elizabeth’s face fell, before morphing into an indignant pout.
“Grandma…” She whined furiously.
“In your grandmother’s defense, there is a proper order to this,” Zach spoke up from his place beside them. He had watched the entire preceding with a tight grin, trying to hold in his laughter.
Hilda smiled as well, before becoming serious again. Changing her grip on the sword so that she was holding the handle pointing towards Elizabeth, she began to speak.
“To those who wish to wield the Innocent Blade,” She began, her voice taking on a deep timber as she spoke in a lilting rhythm, “A warning must be given.”
The blade in her hands began to hum softly, the sound joining with Hilda’s speech so that it became something like a song.
“If there be even the littlest of evils in your heart, flee, and never look back. For this is the blade that wields its wielder. Take it up, but know that you shall become a hero, or nothing at all.”
Susan looked on with a raised eyebrow. A glance at Zach showed that he was watching on with an expectant smile. And while Hilda spoke with reverence, her speech lacked the tension that a true warning would bring.
The speech finished and Elizabeth eagerly reached out toward the handle, but was stopped when Hilda pulled it back.
“Are you sure?” Hilda asked, half worried and half teasing.
“Don't worry, I'm a magical girl! Being pure of heart is like the most basic requirement,” Elizabeth scoffed.
Hilda didn’t respond, and just smiled indulgently as she held the sword back out.
As Elizabeth’s hand once again crossed the distance between them, Susan couldn’t help but feel a somber air come over the room.
Even within the normal bedroom of a house that Susan could have walked into off of any street, there was a gravity to the moment that couldn’t be denied. The unreal form of Liss dredged up visions of knightly oaths and fantastical deeds.
Elizabeth’s hand touched the handle and the blade erupted in a flash of pure white light. The shadows in the room were banished for the slightest second before the sword dimmed back down again. Hilda took the opportunity to quickly let go of the blade and step away.
Elizabeth stared in awe as the blade in her hand shifted, the handle shrinking while the blade shortening a foot to match her height.
The glow slowly faded and Elizabeth’s head came up to stare at the rest of her family with a look of pure joy.
“Did you see that?” She exclaimed, barely able to find her words, “It was… the sword… It’s so awesome!”
Susan couldn’t help the enormous smile that came over her as she applauded along with Zach and Hilda. Elizabeth’s excitement was infectious. Even with her experience as a magical girl, she still showed a deep love for the fantastical side of magic. So much that it could make even Susan see Liss as a weapon of myth and legend.
Elizabeth’ head turned to look at Susan expectantly, “You’ve got to try this.”
She just laughed in response.
“Yeah, no,” She said, waving her away, “I’m good.”
“Hm, okay,” Elizabeth said, before looking back at the sword. She seemed eager to share, but equally happy to keep the awesome magic sword to herself.
She moved to grip it two handed, then gave it a light swing back and forth. The tip hummed through the air, even the light wave giving the impression of a blade swung at much more dangerous speeds.
It stopped when Hilda reached out and grabbed the tip, locking the sword in place.
“Alright kiddo,” She said, “How about I show you how to actually use a sword before you go loppin’ somebody's hand off“
Elizabeth paused, then nodded and let Hilda take the blade back. She seemed to think for a moment before speaking up again.
“Grandma…” She asked slowly.
Hilda cocked an eyebrow.
“Do you think I could use Liss when I go on missions?”
Hilda’s mouth moved to respond then froze midway open as she processed the words.
“What missions?” Zach asked quickly.
“Um, y’know, as a Magical Girl,” Elizabeth asked, now just as confused as her grandparents.
“YOU'RE A MAGICAL GIRL?” They roared together.
“Yes! I just said that!,” She cried, before looking to Susan for help, “I said that, didn't I?”
Susan was too busy laughing to respond.
----------------------------------------
The van roared as it flew down the road. Heavy steel plates covered the blocky sides, all painted a pitch black. The white SWAT letters painted on the side gave it just enough normalcy that the people seeing it didn't wonder why there was a small tank driving down the roads of their sleepy town.
The inside was just as strange as the outside. The layout resembled an actual SWAT vehicle with heavy padded benches running along either side of the van below armored windows. But the people that filled it were an eclectic mix of fantastical and normal.
The two seated in the front were human, not so much the group in the back. An enormous orc, a woman with a wolf’s head, and two short green goblins sat with two more humans.
Each of them was armored in heavy riot gear, kevlar suits and helmets fronted with tough glass. Though on the more nonhuman members it had been somewhat customized to fit them better, or entirely discarded in the case of the wolf headed woman.
One of the two human members, a short, black haired woman, sat slumped against her seat next to the back doors. She stared out one of the windows as she listened to the mission briefing.
“Alright people, we’re hunting a literal dragon today!” The man riding shotgun twisted around in his seat and shouted to be heard over the roar of the engine.
“We killin’ it?” The orc shouted back.
“Nope, it’s sapient, and also way out of our weight class. John’s been telling me that it’s hunkered down with some human unknowns. Our job is to flush it out and let Gamma team deal with it, any questions?
“Yeah, a lot,” One of the goblins shouted back, “You're barely giving us anything to work with here!”
“Sorry, that’s a rush job for you,” He shouted back with a shrug. “Rob’s got an address,” He jerked a thumb at the man driving the van beside him, “And I just told you everything John told me about the mission. Anything else?”
The woman pushed herself into a more upright slouch. “Yeah, can this wait? I wanted to be at home with the girls, Martin!” She shouted towards the front.
The rest of the group chuckled.
“Leave the flirting at home,” The orc called over the roaring of the engine, which got another hearty laugh.
“Sorry honey, priority assignment!” Martin shouted back.
She slouched back down in her seat and turned her attention back to the street. Trees flashed by as the discussion continued around her, barely any of it relevant to her.
She was the demo expert, capable of taking down any door or barrier her team may meet. A necessary job, but somewhat redundant when Forman, the orc seated across from her, could run through walls.
Even if she was needed she’d take the door down in a second or two, then step back as the rest of the team cleared the house. Then she’d do her paperwork and go home.
The job certainly had its moments, but she didn't love it the way Martin loved mission planning and strategizing.
She felt her weight shift forward as the van swung to the right, the tires crunching as they moved from concrete to gravel.
Her eyes barely registered as a street sign passed across the window in front of her, but then her brain caught up and processed the name on it. She bolted upright, jumping up and over to the rear window to confirm.
The blood left her face as she realized where they were.
“Oh no,” She whispered.
The wolf headed woman had felt her move and turned to face her.
“Anything wrong Chay?” She asked, a look of worry passing over her canid features. Chay turned to stare at her with wide eyes.
“This is the road to my parents house,” She whispered.