Rising Shards

Oka scrolled around on her phone as Berin paced around the living room. The phone Zeta had gotten her was amazing, and she was glad it was Zeta that bought it and not Berin. It felt more special that way. She could’ve asked Berin for a phone at any point over the last few months, but the thought hadn’t really occurred to her to do so.

“Alright, or should I say OK? As in OK-Oka?” Berin said.

“Uh huh?” Oka said.

“Probably going to be a busy day here.”

When isn’t it? Oka thought. She wanted to say that out loud but held her tongue.

“Lots of guests today.”

When aren’t there?

“Oh!” Oka said. “You’ve been so busy I haven’t been able to show you!”

“Show me what?” Berin asked, stopping his laps around the room to look as Oka held up her phone.

“Father Berint,” Oka said. “Look at what Zeta hath procured for me.”

“She got you a phone?” Berin said, eyebrows raised.

“With a plan and everything!” Oka said.

“I guess we were just calling you through the wristband.” Berin said.

“Uh huh,” Oka said. “The wristband’s boring. It has like an umpteenth of the features a cellular device has, you see.”

“An ‘umpteenth,’ huh?”

“Uh huh. Very minimal in comparison.”

“Well, wow!” Berin said. “A plan and everything, huh? That's...dedicated? I hope she didn't spend too much. 

"She said it was some Lil' Haven sale thing." Oka said.

"Ahhh, gotcha, gotcha," Berin said. "Good first impression for Zeta, then. I mean, I have talked to her a little bit I guess, but I mean first impression as a person dating you.”

“Uh huh,” Oka said. “We shared her phone, but she let me have her login for her streaming stuff and the book app we use so I can keep—”

Berin’s own phone rang, and he winced as he answered it, leaving the room abruptly as Oka sighed. She remembered when she told Berin she started dating Zeta. She wasn't sure if he'd approve or disapprove, but she also said it in a way that made it clear she was gonna date Zeta no matter what. Fortunately, he was supportive, if a bit distant as he left for Kilander work or school work shortly after Oka's annonuncement, not clarifying which, just like he did upon hearing the news about how kind Zeta was for buying her girlfriend a whole entire phone.

The Kilander house (the one Oka lived in, not the TV set on the west coast) had been bustling ever since Kitty Kilander had entered the school life. Or, re-entered since she was apparently a teacher before. In addition to being a pop star. And a Haven fighter. Oka rubbed her temples. She had tried to avoid all the strangers wandering around her house as she usually did when she was there, but a week off meant she was much more likely to run into people. She retreated for her bedroom and loaded up the OKWatchThis app. She had a bit of time before the next meeting she had to sit in the back of, but not too much time, so she picked a random cartoon from the app and began watching.

* * *

Kalei gripped her bloodsaber as she looked at the void gate rosin pedestal.

“You know, you could be having a day off right now.” Caya said. “This technically is your day off.”

“Instead, I’m at school.” Kalei said. But she had to do this. She couldn’t wait a second knowing her friends were at Wildfire Hearts now. Especially Nikki.

Caya handed her a gate rosin. Kalei scratched it on her fang and the two entered the void.

Kalei expected to return to the island they’d just been at, but instead they were in a familiar hallway. One with walls that flowed like they were made of oceanwater mixed with curtains. Behind them was a room that had pants dripping from its wall.

“Why are we back here?” Kalei asked.

Caya nodded to the end of the hallway. While before there was an open pathway to a floating castle there, now she just had a wall to look forward to.

“If you can get through that with your powers, you can go back.” Caya said.

Kalei ignited her bloodsaber and ran forward. She clanged it against the wall, not even leaving a scratch on the smooth, white stone. “Huh? Wait…why’s it?” She looked down to her bloodsaber, which was deactivated. She tried to use the blood collector again. Her blood flowed from the pinprick into the veins of her blade, but no energy was charged into it. “Fine, I don’t need this.” She held her hands up next and tried to channel her ice powers like she’d done on the trip to protect Aira and Laenie, to fight the drones and Jeans. But her hands didn’t even feel chilled.

“I got nothing,” Kalei said. “Damn it.”

“You’re drained,” Caya said. “All of you probably are.”

“But…you said we can get them back.”

“I did.” Caya said. “It won’t be easy. And it also isn’t something you can just check off in a day. And that day won’t be today, or any day soon given your drained powers.”

“So this whole thing…was just to show me that?” Kalei asked.

Caya nodded.

“That sucks.”

Caya nodded again.

“Wait, are they even still on the island?” Kalei asked.

“It was your idea to come here specifically,” Caya said.

“And you obliged me? I thought we could like storm the gates through here and get them! Like…was I wrong? Why’d you bring me here, then? So I wouldn’t even be able to get Nik—all the others back this way?”

“Obliged you? Sort of. Were you wrong? Yes. Why'd I bring you here? Because I thought it would be good to show you you're not in condition to fight right now. Can you bring your friends back this way? Nope. Well, not yet at least. I’ll explain that later.”

“Great…” Kalei said. “Guess we might as well go back? Unless you want me to keep trying against that wall.”

“I think my point was made pretty well.” Caya said. She conjured a return pedestal, and the two returned to school.

“And you have a ride home?” Caya asked as she made a report on her wristband’s screen about the brief void trip.

“My mom’s on her way.” Kalei didn’t think she’d have to text for a ride home so soon, but luckily her mom was still in town getting groceries.

“Good.” Caya left abruptly, leaving Kalei to head to the school’s parking lot on her own.

While she waited for her ride, Kalei looked at her phone and scrolled through the few texts she’d shared with Nikki. What would happen if she just texted her? What would she even say? Did Wildfire Hearts take her phone away already? Sure it was an Endoran school, but they’d have to have rules, right? She wrote fifteen variants of “Hey” that each had a different tone from the capitalization and emojis but none felt right. She sighed and put her phone in sleep mode.

*  * *

Lillia tried to focus on her game as her little sister marched around her room. “Lillia’s skipping schoooool, Lillia’s skipping schoooool…” Lilith chanted as she danced around Lillia.

“That’s enough, Lilith,” The two’s mother said as she picked up Lilith, carrying her out of the room like she was a plank of wood. Lillia knew things were serious if her mom didn’t even tell her to chill on games.

“You just relax today, alright?” Her mother said.

“I will, mother.” Lillia said.

The two left to bring Lilith to school, leaving Lillia ample time to game. For a few hours, she lost herself in the fantastical world of Spreadsheet Simulator, really taking on the persona of an office worker. Until she saw a text on her phone. She assumed it was Oka, who now had a cell phone of her own, but it was from an unfamiliar number.

“Ay guess who im thinking of rn?”

That definitely wasn’t Oka, who typed everything out like an essay, something Lillia appreciated. From the other people who had her number, it couldn’t be Zeta or Kalei, because it wasn’t about a school question or Tower of Hate and Love in Zeta’s case, or a gaming invite or question from Kalei. Who else would text her?

“This is ko btw”

After the second text, Lillia immediately paused her game and called her instead of texting back. “How did you get this number?” She asked.

“From the gamer group, we all gave our numbers?” Ko asked. “You sound a bit ticked, you good?”

“I just…wasn’t expecting to hear from you.” Lillia said.

“Ah, well I wasn’t expecting you to call me so suddenly,” Ko said. “So forward, that’s…your voice is nice on the phone too.”

Lillia didn’t know what to say, and hoped her small gasp wasn’t picked up on the call. She thought about hanging up instantly but thought back to how she felt with Ko’s arms around her after Lillia had freed her from the nightmare pod in the void. For some reason, the thought made her fangs feel warm. Cani reaction to intense emotions, that’s it. Because that whole day was intense, and I’m still reeling from it. And that part where Ko seemingly flew down from the heavens destroying the Wildfire Hearts drones and winked at me. And her strong arms. And how nice her hair felt when I gently caressed it at her behest. And her strong arms.

She realized she’d been quiet for a very long time as she daydreamed about Ko Matora’s hair.

“When do you want to see that movie?” Ko asked.

Ko had asked her before the trip on what Lillia basically surmised was a date, which she still couldn’t wrap her head around. The thought of being pursued like this was so thrilling to her, but she still tried to exercise some caution.

“I’m not sure,” Lillia said. “Maybe once we’re back at school, it’ll be easier to plan.”

I can’t believe I’m actually humoring this idea.

“Right, next week then.” Ko said.

“Next week?” Lillia said.

“Yeah! You get to pick the movie,” Ko said. “I won’t keep you, but I will keep thinking about you. Heh. Really can’t wait to see you.” Ko said.

This was all happening so fast Lillia could barely keep track. Which is why she was very surprised when a “You too,” escaped her lips before Ko hung up the phone.

* * *

With the weather too cold and rainy to sit out on the curb next to the station where Iris liked to get snacks, the two walked to Iris’ house instead. It felt like the old days when they weren’t at a boarding school, just wandering around Sky Clay. Iris joked about going back to their old school to see how it was, but Maia didn’t want to spend one of her days off at any school.

Iris brought Maia to her living room, where they each sat on recliners facing the room's big TV. Iris sighed contentedly and dug into a bag of chips.

“I think we really earned these this time,” Iris said.

Maia wasn’t terribly broken up about the void trip. It was scary and it sucked, but she still had Iris. The nightmare she had to see rattled her the most, but she hated to admit why. Iris spoke up after the two quietly snacked for a bit.

“MaiMai,” Iris said. “Listen. Anything you want for the rest of this semester, it’s yours, alright?”

Maia squinted.

“What the hell is this about?” Maia asked. “Don’t call me MaiMai.”

“My my, testy are we?” Iris asked. “My MaiMai. My my my. MaiMai my. My—”

“Alright, stop.” Maia said.

“Make me.” Iris said. “But don’t get any of that cheese dust on me.”

“Like I’d wash Cheese Stuffos off my claws before I scratch you for being so annoying.” Maia said.

Iris giggled, then said something a bit weird. “I’m just…feeling very appreciative of you, that’s all.”

“You better,” Maia said. She sounded stern to try and hide how hearing that made her feel. That and being called “MaiMai.”

“What was your void nightmare thing like?” Iris asked.

Maia thought about telling her straight up. That in her nightmare Iris’ ex Olive came back. And that they got back together. She didn’t care about the fighting or Wildfire Hearts, or Kitty, or whatever. That didn’t stick with her. But the vision of Iris going back to Olive did.

“You were gone in mine,” Iris said softly, not quite a whisper but as soft as a loudmouth like Iris could speak. “So I want to be there for you more! Kinda that like ‘you don’t appreciate what you got until it’s gone’ type of dealie. Just losing you for a nightmare made me feel like that.”

Maia didn’t know what to say to that.

“So what’d you see in yours?” Iris asked again.

Maia couldn’t say it. That she saw Iris back with Olive. That Iris abandoned her.

“That bad, huh?”

“Yeah.” Maia managed to say, her mouth dry.

“Well, then I extra gotta do something for you,” Iris said. She stood and approached Maia, quick enough that Maia felt the fur on her back start to raise in a fight or flight response. Iris stood behind her and started lightly patting her shoulders. “Massage? Are your shoulders tight?” She moved her hands to Maia’s head. “Ears need some scratching?”

“They’re fine,” Maia said, smacking Iris’ hands away. Not one to be thwarted that easily, Iris rushed to the front of the chair, kneeling down in front of Maia, who had an even bigger fight or flight response seeing Iris looking up at her expectantly from there, her eyes practically sparkling. Maia was glad her tail was hidden by the chair as it was surely fully poofed up at that moment.

“Foot massage? Does your feets have them little toe beans? Take your socks off so I can see, I've never noticed before.”

“Quit it, freak.” Maia said, laughing as she did a joke kick, missing Iris by a lot but still making a sound effect. Then she realized how dorky that was and was glad it was just her and Iris there. Iris still acted like she got hit for real, and dramatically fell backwards in slow motion.

“Anything?” Iris asked, looking up slightly from her downed pose.

“I’ll think of something,” Maia said. “Just go sit back in your chair before your parents walk in and see you trying to touch my feet or whatever weird stuff you’re trying.”

“You can just kick me in the face for real if that happens.” Iris said. She sat up and whirled around in one motion, turning to the TV. Without thinking, Maia got up and sat down behind her. With her left hand, which didn’t have  cheese dust on it like her right, she reached out to Iris’ head. What the hell am I doing?

“I…and if…you…” Maia tried to say as she patted Iris’ head, who didn’t even flinch. “Need…too.”

Iris could be the densest person Maia knew at times, not understanding the simplest concepts. Thankfully, she didn’t have that density as Maia stammered, and just patted the hand patting her head, which was a weird gesture but Maia understood what she was going for, and was kinda glad her weird out of nowhere gesture received a weird response.

“I got it, MaiMai.” Iris said.