If I'm being honest with myself I think what made me a history buff and also bisexual was them
One of those shows nobody has ever heard of that shaped me into the person I am today, I weep every day that I will never be able to see the Hanging Gardens of Babylon simply because I have the episode where they go back in time to see them and end up having to flood the things themselves seared into my brain for all eternity, every single time I have ever mentioned the wonders of the ancient world I have the scene of Semiramis pulling a lever and flooding the gardens playing on a loop behind my eyes every single time. I think about the weird future relative genderbend thing they randomly threw at us one episode like a sexually confusing ball of accidentally queercoded baby dykes when I try to sleep at night. The fact that this show doesn't have twenty seasons worth of content is my villain origin story. I would watch these six fuck up history every second of every day if they'd only made this show in perpetuity. These six ran a goddamn marathon, so PragerU's Leo and Laya could limp like mobsters blew out their kneecaps
"Thanks, grandad!" Freddi smiles happily and Sam's mind blanks.
"Wait, what?" Sam asks as it reboots. He feels foreign in his own body, somehow. Like when they first learned the girls were their granddaughters.
Their granddaughters. Sam runs his hands through his hair, scratching along his scalp.
Freddi's eyes widen. Thinking about it, looking at them now, her eyes are definitely his. The brown is deeper, darker than Fred's lighter brown. It's his brown. "Oh! Uh. Sam."
"No." Sam points at her, semi-desperately. "You called me grandad. Why did you call me grandad?"
"You heard wrong?" Freddi says, which might be more convincing if it didn't come out as a question. Sam's mind races. If it's Fred and his kids or grandkids who got married, Freddi probably wouldn't be trying to hide it. But the alternative- That means-
But Fred and him couldn't!
"Tell me Samantha and you are sisters."
"WellâŠ" Freddi looks away.
"Cousins? Our kids got married?" Sam tries.
"UhâŠ" Freddi kicks her toe at the ground. Sam slowly topples to his knees. He always did think Freddi acted more like him, and Samantha acted more like Fred.
"Huh. Okay. This is fine. Perfectly fine! I'm just destined to marry one of my best friends and have kids with him, that's all," Sam whispers to himself, voice a little thin.
"Do you⊠not like Fred?" Fredi asks hesitantly.
"No, Fred's fine," Sam says, brain still on future. Somehow, this is harder to wrap around than the initial grandkid realization. Maybe this is why they never told them. "Fred's great. I'm just dealing with the knowledge that the best friend I like might actually have a crush on me one day and if I mess anything up I could lose the both of you, but other than that Fred's awesome!"
The Palace of Versailles was beyond magnificent. It was a nearly ninety million (yes, million) square feet estate covered in gardens, winding walkways, and topiary, with the main attraction the palace itself, a towering presence of marble white and cream that glowed in the night brighter than the hundreds of candles lighting up the night.
The soft winter breeze carried the fragrance of flowers through the night air. The din of excitable chatter nearly drowned out the airy sounds of several flutes, harpsichords, and violas.
It would have left Anthony breathless⊠if he had been there on holiday.
He imagined Isadora wouldâve adored the palace, trying to capture every pond, fountain, garden, and tree to recreate later in her artwork. Sheâd ask a dozen questions and inexplicably have a dozen more answers. Sheâd love it so much sheâd beg to stay for just a few more minutes and, of course, Anthony would give in.
He sighed and placed his mask on his face. He couldnât afford to get distracted with thoughts of his daughter, not when he was purposely heading into a trap. He had to be alert. Focused.
Anthony was glad he warped close to the entrance, and even happier he was hidden behind a large yew tree. The estate was positively crowded with hundreds of gilded carriages and thousands of guests dressed to the teeth made their way inside. Women dressed in big baroque dresses decked with ribbons and bows. Meanwhile the men looked almost as extravagant, wearing every color under the sun. Many of them wore masks similar to Anthonyâs, allowing them to enter without invitation.
With a snap of his fingers, his outfit changed to match that of the aristocratic party guests. Green mist shimmered around his form and when it vanished he wore a green frock made of silk and velvet with gold embellishments. White breeches, black boots, and a jabot-- fluffy white neckwear-- completed the look, and with his green and gold domino mask, he blended in with the crowd.
Anthony recognized when and where he was: The Yew Ball. The celebration of the marriage between the Dauphin of France, Louis Ferdinand de France, the son of King Louis the XV, and the Infanta of Spain, Maria Teresa Rafaela. Many of the guests were looking for the king for even a simple glimpse of His Majesty, but Anthony had a different target he was hunting down.
Mad Jack had to be here. Even if this were a trap (and it absolutely was) and he did not need to be there, heâd still be here. The man couldnât help himself. He had this deep psychological urge to gloat even at the cost of his goals. It was infuriating but could work to Anthonyâs advantage.
The Warp Wizard made his way through crowded courtyards, making polite and short conversations to not stand out. His eyes scanned every masked face and accessed everybody for a familiar lanky build, but there was no sign of Jack.
Past fountains and Roman-styled statues, he came across the ballroom, a wide open space situated outside surrounded by fountains and beautifully shaped hedges. Couples waltzed along to the lovely music while others socialized on the sidelines. Anthony scanned the dance floor when he saw âher.â
Across the dance floor was a woman with an oversized white powdered wig and an unbelievably big and bright green dress. She stood out like a broken arm.
Anthony ignored his years of training to blend in and go unnoticed. He stormed across the ballroom to reach her, blind to the strange looks from the other guests. As if sensing Anthonyâs presence, the bearer of the bad wig turned around, a wicked grin under his mustache and a mean gleam behind a monocle.
âIâll be damned.â Mad Jack snapped his fan shut with a dramatic flourish. âLook who the cat dragged in. Itâs Anthony the Steadfast.â
âYou look ridiculous.â
Jack laughed, like anything in this situation was funny. âIs that any way to talk to a lady?â
âDonât play games. Why did you bring me here?â
He had the nerve to tut-tut-tut at him, waggling his finger like a disappointed guidance counselor. âSo impatient. Why donât you ask me to dance first?â
Anthony could arrest him now. Send him to Em and be done. But he needed answers and playing along with this silly game might be the only way he might ever understand what this nutter was up to.
He held out his hand and grimaced when Jack placed his gloved hand in his. The two of them glided to the dance floor, falling into the practiced waltz theyâve done a dozen times back in their academy days.
âYouâre looking well,â Jack said.
Anthony snorted. âLike you ever cared for my well-being.â
âYou got me there. Never could stand your meatheadedness.â
Heâs been called much worse. As Anthony rolled his eyes, he caught a glimpse of something resting against Jackâs collarbone. It was a necklace of pure gold, two bands coiled around each other like serpents.
The madman noticed what Anthony was looking at and smiled. âLovely, is it not? A perfect copy of the Necklace of Harmonia. I took it off the hands of a witch who was squandering its power.â
Jack was a thief. That was nothing new, he always had sticky fingers even when they were young. At first, it was endearing, but then he started taking historical artifacts. Important items that always got him in trouble, and for what?
âWhat do you want, Jack?â
âWhat do I want? As if anyone has ever given a flying fury about what I wanted. If they had then we wouldn't be here now, would we?â
Anthony could never comprehend the sheer entitlement of this manbaby. Ever since they met, it was all about what the universe owed to him, what he deserved. Like a disease, itâs only gotten worse with age.
âI suppose,â he mused, âthatâs not entirely true. Dulari cared, once. That is before you and my simpleton of a brother corrupted her with your utter incompetence and softness.â
âYou do not get to talk about her that way! Not after the way you treated her.â
âShe didnât do anything she didnât want to do.â
Anthony stopped dead midstep. His jaw was tight. He clenched Jackâs hands in a death grip with his, and he briefly imagined them around his neck.
Jackâs smirk widened. âUh-uh-uh. Remember the Academyâs golden rule:Â Donât cause a scene~â
Anthony dropped Jackâs hands and sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose. âI donât want to fight you. That gets us nowhere. Just tell me what you want with Isadora.â
âWhat makes you think I wantââ
âFor once in your life tell me the truth! I know what youâre up to, so why donât you just admit it.â
A bluff. He still had no clue what the maniac was up to, but he hoped this would catch him off guard.
Apparently, it worked. Jackâs playful features morphed into shock before he quickly reclaimed his demeanor. âWhat does it matter? With those little earrings, I canât get near her, anyway. Sounds like youâve already solved the problem.â
Anthonyâs heart skipped. Time slowed around them. âYouâve been around her?â
âIâve had some run-ins, nothing you need to worry your empty little head about. But I must say, you ought to be ashamed. You stifled Isadoraâs potential, fed her with half-truths and lies. Sheâs weak, nowhere near as powerful as Dulari, but for my purposes, sheâs the best bet. If she doesnât survive the process, then itâs no fault of mine, now is it?â
A chill swept through the ball. The horror of what he said hit Anthony like a crashing wave. Rage took hold of Anthony. In a blink, his fist, glowing green with magic, slammed into Jackâs face. The man flew past the dance floor, past hedges and shrieking guests, crashing through a gilded window.
Anthony summoned his wand. With a wave, he vanished and reappeared near where his fist carried Jack off to: The Hall of Mirrors.
He yelled for the few remaining guests to flee, and thankfully they listened. Hundreds of people poured out of the hall past statues and mirrors until the two of them were left alone.
He pointed his wand at Jack and raised him above the rubble and glass. The wig disappeared in the flight. His dress was in tatters revealing his suit underneath because of course, he was wearing his suit under the dress.
Manic laughter erupted from Jackâs upturned lips, speckled with red.
The blood in Antonyâs veins boiled. âShe is not your damned battery!â
Jack shot his hand forward. Anthony dodged out of the way of the cane sword that whizzed by, the tip barely slicing through the sleeve of his suit and grazing his arm. He winced in pain, dropping Jack in the process. Jack landed with a crouch and shot a bolt of magic at the chandelier overhead. Crystal shards as sharp as daggers plummeted down over Anthony. He would have been skewered if he hadnât jumped out of the way, skidding ungracefully in shoes not meant for combat.
The chandelier exploded in a plume of shredded crystals. Quartz shrapnel splintered in every direction. Anthony whipped his wand like a lasso and caught the crystals overhead, hurling them back at Jack. He dodged; hardwood and dirt erupted where he once stood. He vanished in the cloud of debris.
Fire from the candles spread throughout the room, coating the room in red and orange light. Air burned in Anthonyâs lungs. The flames reached high above them, licking at the marble walls and painted ceiling.
Anthony wiped at the beads of sweat forming on his brow. Cautiously, he approached where Jack lay, a pair of magic-proof handcuffs appearing in his hands in a flash of green.
âIâm finally taking you in, Mad Jack. Under Emâs authority, you areââ
Sharp pain flared from his shoulder blade. The fez-wearing man from the diner stood behind him, pulling the blade from his back, a wicked grin under lifeless eyes.
Another stab at Anthonyâs side brought him to his knees. His vision doubled and blurred. He struggled to keep balance on his knees. Poison, he thought groggily. The blade was poisoned. The warmth of blood bloomed from his wounds soaking his clothes and staining the floor.
From the dust clouds, Jack emerged. Hate radiated throughout his body. He stalked towards his fallen ex-friend brandishing his sword.
âFinally, I can be rid of at least one thorn in my side.â He raised his sword, primed to rend Anthonyâs head from his body weakened. âBut fear not, old friend. Isadora will be in capable hands, at last.â
He swung. But the blade never touched his neck.
A flash of green as bright as the sun slammed Jack like a freight train. A blur of purple rushed past, but Anthony didnât have the strength to follow it. His magic fizzled in and out as he tried miserably to heal his wounds. Behind him, Jack and a familiar voice shouted back and forth. Swords clashed and magic blazed. A flash of golden light seized the room, then⊠nothing. Silence. He couldnât distinguish the roar of the fire and his blood rushing through his ears.
A moment passed before the sounds of footsteps quickly approached from behind. Anthony tensed.
âAnthony! Oh, dear. Youâre hurt! Can you move?â
â⊠Joe?â
Joe the Magnificent stood before him. His purple suit was torn and his mustache was smoldering. Joe tried to help him stand, stopping when Anthony grunted in pain and nearly collapsed.
Joe frowned and fished out his pocket watch from his breast pocket. âPlease hold on, my friend!â
Somewhere between bleeding out and warping, Anthony passed out, his thoughts on his daughter, her sweet face clear in his mind as everything else faded away.
Hey, so my personal YouTube channel got disabled recently and that sucked. I never mentioned it before because I didnât know how, but my channel was Animefan764, where all the Time Warp Trio episodes where uploaded. All the episodes are gone, including nearly 15 years of videos and playlist. I lost a lot of channels I was subbed to. Iâll probably post the episodes again on a different account. I thought I didnât have to worry since I had them up on my channel for four years. I made a video for my grandmotherâs funeral twelve years ago that was on my account but thankfully my mom had it saved elsewhere. Iâll try to get my account back but I have no hope of getting it back, honestly. Iâll add a pic of part of the email for proof. So yeah, that was my Tuesday. How was yours?
I still have the episodes on my computer. Iâll try and upload them again, but with how quickly I was struck Iâm not sure how long theyâll stay up. Iâll have to do some fancy editing but my computer struggles to run adobe premiere.
Hey, so my personal YouTube channel got disabled recently and that sucked. I never mentioned it before because I didnât know how, but my channel was Animefan764, where all the Time Warp Trio episodes where uploaded. All the episodes are gone, including nearly 15 years of videos and playlist. I lost a lot of channels I was subbed to. Iâll probably post the episodes again on a different account. I thought I didnât have to worry since I had them up on my channel for four years. I made a video for my grandmotherâs funeral twelve years ago that was on my account but thankfully my mom had it saved elsewhere. Iâll try to get my account back but I have no hope of getting it back, honestly. Iâll add a pic of part of the email for proof. So yeah, that was my Tuesday. How was yours?
What Iâd give for one of the Cinderella remakes to go into how when youâre in an isolated and abusive situation, sometimes you need to be saved and youâre not weak if you canât escape by yourself
Iâve never been a fan of bad faith reinterpretations of fairy tales, especially ones which flatten the originals into âprincesses is saved by a prince and nothing elseâ, to then go #girlboss. The princess can save herself because sheâs a strong female character! (Implying if youâre in a bad situation, itâs because youâre not strong enough to get out)
Also the concept of the Prince over the course of like⊠a couple hours hanging out with Cinderella going from âHaha nice I really like youâ to âoh fuck i can tell from context clues alone that your home situation is FUCKED UPâ  itâs good shit  âI have just met you but ON GOD Iâm gonna get you out of there beautiful mystery womanâ  cinderella makes desperately yelling into the night âhow can I find you again!??!â when sheâs taking off that much more poignant really
Heâs been trained to read the room. To read the context clues. To read politics and scheming and planning and people. Heâs a Prince, itâs either that or accidentally drink poison by age 15. And he reads her and âŠ
Sheâs impossibly wealthy. The dress isnât a fabric he can recognize, but itâs beaded with cut diamonds, faintly milky opals that shimmer with a rainbow, little pale aquamarines, and somewhere are little bells gently ringing with each step - heâs a Prince and he canât afford to dress like that. The slippers ring too ⊠there is nothing like that crafted by the hands of humans. Thatâs fairy stuff. She has an in with them that eclipses royal politics. She is powerful in the Old Ways.
All this wraps around the poorest woman heâs ever seen in his entire life, and heâs seen some very, very, poor people in his time.
Poor in money, but poor in âoh you poor thing!â as well. This is someone who has been robbed blind. This is someone who carried themselves waiting for the lash, for a browbeating, for harsh, cruel, abrupt, punishment.
He expects her to be haughty, or hard, or meek or⊠something else⊠but sheâs just nice. Sheâs just ⊠nice.
The rigid posture comes out of his back, his tongue unsticks. Sheâs like sitting by the embers of a low, calm, fire. He feels warmed and rested simply speaking to her. He wonders if itâs magic, and it might be, but if it is it is magic that is her own.
And that terrifies him, because heâs trained to see these things and he knows someone with a cruel hand is waiting to douse her, and snuff her, and beat the last glimmer out of her shining eyes - eyes that put that dress to shame and and and and⊠sheâs gone.
Oh god, sheâs gone. It will be all over her sweet, kind, warm face that she transgressed and ⊠oh god theyâll kill her, whoever they are. This will embarrass them and if thereâs anything he knows, itâs that you donât humiliate someone who has power over you and walk away unscathed.
And all he has is a fairy slipper that will only ever fit her foot (itâs not merely shoe size, itâs a kind of spiritual fit as well), and the vain hope that he can keep such a bright light from burning out. It doesnât even touch his heart that what heâs feeling is a kind of pure philia, not until it enraptures him soul to bones, all at once. Oh god, oh no, oh shit⊠heâs reached well above his station, butâŠhe can try to be good and worthy.
The way he sees it, sometimes even the strongest people can be brought low and need just⊠a little help. She had enough in her to do whatever she had to do to free herself of those evil relations if she had to, but she shouldnât have to. Thereâs no glory in blood. Sometimes itâs okay for the ending to be happily ever after.
Heyo! I don't know if you take art requests, but I would love to see some art of Izzy and the boys in their Valentine's Day outfits. And maybe Cas too?
Oh yeah! Iâd love to, Iâve actually started sketches of them but Iâve been super busy. One of these days Iâll get some free time to work on it.
Howdy yâall! Iâm starting to get stuck with some nasty art block. And Typically what helps me out of it is drawing characters I wouldnt normally draw.
So if anyone as an OC they would like drawn for them, DM me a picture of them and a Small description.
Since this is 100% free, I make literally no promises, I might draw One or several. but I would still love to see everyoneâs characters!
Howdy yâall! Iâm starting to get stuck with some nasty art block. And Typically what helps me out of it is drawing characters I wouldnt normally draw.
So if anyone as an OC they would like drawn for them, DM me a picture of them and a Small description.
Since this is 100% free, I make literally no promises, I might draw One or several. but I would still love to see everyoneâs characters!
Summary: Another summer at Horae Manor begins, but before Joe and Tessa get the chance to train, they are sent out on a mission to explore the magic capital of the universe, Mancika. Rumors of illegal magic conversion spread throughout the city, and Joe and Tessa need to locate those responsible. But after the events of last summer, Joe isn't eager to work with his Aether partner, and the two are struggling more with each other than with their enemies.
A/N: Kind of short, but I figured it was better to post something rather than nothing. Hope you enjoy!
Read on AO3
---
âHow am I expected to maintain the balance of the universe with her? She's rude, loud, and impossibly stubborn. We've yet to find a single issue we agree on, and every time we're in the same room, a fight ensues. Surely, the All Father made a mistake with us.â - Excerpt from the journals of Isadora Amana, Fiftieth Warp Wizard
As soon as Rowena and Cassius disappear, the burden of leadership falls on Tessa and me.
âSo, what is our plan, leaders?â Four pairs of skeptical eyes stare us down.
âItâs simple. Weâre splitting up,â Tessa says. âWeâll cover more ground that way, and it will allow us to make the most of our short time here.â
âSeems logical.â Everyone nods, but Arwen narrows her eyes. âWhatâs the trick?â
âWhy does there have to be a trick?â
âBecause you always have a trick up your sleeve.â
âSeems easy enough to me.â Fred puts his hands behind his hand. âSo, how are we splitting? Boys and girls? Oh! Letâs make it a competition to see who can be the best secret spy!â
Sam sighs. âHow would we measure that?â
âWhoever goes the longest without getting arrested?â
âWeâre not doing boys and girls anyway,â Tessa cuts back in. âRo and Cas really want us to work on our team-building, so Joe and I are going together. â
Fred smirks. I roll my eyes before he does anything else, knowing exactly what heâs about to say.
But Arwen beats him to it. âYou two are going off alone? Why? So you donât have witnesses around when you inevitably kill each other?â
âNo.â Tessa scowls. âWe need to focus on our mission, and there are lots of wizardy things we need to discuss.â
âWizardy things?â
âYes, wizardy things.â
Arwen shrugs. âWhatever. June and I will do just fine by ourselves.â
âYou and June arenât going together.â
âWhat?â Arwen drops her crossed arms. âPlease tell me youâre not sending us off with the two of them.â She unceremoniously flips a hand toward Fred and Sam, who both frown in response.
âOf course not,â Tessa says and Arwen sighs with relief. âTwo groups would be way too inefficient. Weâre only sending you off with one of them, but weâll let you pick which one.â
âHow benevolent of you,â Arwen growls.
I stay silent. Tessa and I did not discuss this, but at the same time, I donât disagree with her. Everyone needs to learn to get along. That wonât happen if we keep to the same groups every time. And three groups is more efficient than two, but this kind of feels like weâre forcing it on them. Which only goes to show how bad our relationships are.
âOh! Dibs on Arwen.â Fred raises his hand like weâre picking science lab partners in school.
âYou canât just call dibs on a person,â Sam says, pinching the bridge of his nose.
âYou want her?â
âWell, no, but thatâs not the point.â
âNo oneâs calling dibs on me!â Arwen snaps, throwing a glare at Fred and Sam, who both stumble back. "Splitting up doesn't make sense at all. Yes, we'd cover more areas, but we're all in unfamiliar territory, and you," she pauses and points to Tessa, "are the only one who has any sense of direction here. Everyone else will just get lost."
Tessa spreads her arms wide. "It's a giant floating castle in the sky. You literally can't miss it. If you get lost here, even I can't help you."
âWhat if we all just go by ourselves?â Juniper speaks out.
Everyone stares at her, making her flinch back and hide behind her hair. âIâm just saying. If no one wants to group up.â
âYou saw that explosion earlier, right? You want to go off alone in a city like this?â
June lifts her shoulders. âIâm not scared.â
âNo one is going off alone in a foreign and potentially dangerous city.â Tessa runs a hand over her face. She glances at me out of the corner of her eye. âA little help here?â
I donât know what she wants me to say. Dividing everyone up like this isnât my idea, but I guess showing a united front couldnât hurt. I fumble for the right words to say. âLook, we all need to learn how to get along. Especially after what happened last summer. We canât do that if we always group up with the same people. Focus on the greater purpose here, guys. Ro and Cas are trusting us to search Mancika for clues about the Time Decay. This is important.â I stress my last sentence. My friends may not understand the whole truth of whatâs happening, but thatâs no excuse for them to slough it off.
Arwen huffs, blowing a tuft of hair out of her face. âFine. I guess Iâll go with the idiot.â
âHey!â Fred whines.
âInteresting that you assumed I meant you.â
âYou didnât?â
âNo, I did.â
I resist the urge to roll my eyes. I guess thatâs better than nothing. At this point, Iâll take what I can get.
Tessa nods and throws me a thankful smile. âRight. What he said. Now letâs figure out whoâs going where.â She points over the wall. âMancika is divided into nine districts. One for each magic type. So each group should take three districts. Obviously, Joe and I will go to the Time and Space sections, and if I remember the map correctly, the Element district is next to Space, so weâll also take that area.
âThat leaves Mind, Body-â
âThereâs body magic? Is that like super strength and speed? I want to go there! I bet those dudes have a killer workout plan.â Fred flexes his arms.
âNot even close.â
âSorry, dudes and chicks.â
âThatâs not-â Tessa looks to the sky and lets out a sad sigh. âWhatever. You and Arwen can check out the Mind, Body, and Nature sections. Which means Sam and June are going to the Creation, Life, and Death districts.â
âIâm sorry, Death?â Samâs eyes widen. âNo, thank you. Can we switch?â
âIâm still willing to go it alone.â Juniper volunteers.
âOh, come on, Juney. This will be a great opportunity to work on your socialization skills and make a new friend.â
âI have you and Arwen. I donât need any more friends.â
Tessa and Arwen roll their eyes. âYouâll be fine.â
âAny other questions, comments, or complaints?â Everyone raises their hands, and Tessa folds her arms across her chest. âI donât want to hear the complaints.â All the hands fall back down. âGood. Then we should probably get going.â
I stare at each of my friends in turn, feeling like I should say something inspiring or at least hopeful. Thatâs what good leaders did, right? I canât just stand here and let Tessa do all the talking.
Unfortunately, my mind comes up blank. The best I can come up with is a boring, âGood luck, guys. Stay safe. Weâll be back here before you know it.â
With a chorus of mumbles and halfhearted âgoodbyesâ, we are ready to begin our mission.
After a beat of awkward silence, Sam clears his throat. âHow exactly do we get down to the city from here?â
âWell, I could tear us all down,â Tessa purses her lips, âbut without knowing the layout of the city, we could end up someplace we donât want to be.â
âLike a mafia bossâ bathroom.â Arwen smirks. âWhile heâs using it.â
âThat happened one time!â
The light catches something in the corner of my eye. It takes me a moment to process what I just saw, but then everything clicks. âHow about those?â I point to a row of boats docked in the pond.
Each boat is uniquely painted with a different color and pattern, but their shape is the same â long, narrow, with tall points on either end. They remind me of those fancy boats with the singers in Italy.
âYou want to go for a boat ride?â Fred peers at the boats with obvious confusion on his face. âYou know you can do that back home in Central Park, right?â
âAnd how is that supposed to help us get down?â Sam lifts one eyebrow at me.
âBecause the boats are obviously magic. Or at least the drivers are. Just watch.â I gesture again to the boats, only mildly annoyed that my friends think Iâm stupid.
A couple walks towards the boats, aiming for one decorated with purple and black swirls. As soon as they get seated, the boat pulls away, floating to the edge. When it reaches the waterfall, the boat doesnât tip over. It goes until the back of the boat is just barely touching the pond. The pilot spreads their arms, keeping their palms flat, and the boat slowly drops out of view.
âSee? Magic boats.â I smile. âThe perfect way to descend into a magic city.â
âItâs perfect!â Tessa latches on to my arm, already dragging me away. âLetâs get going. We should start with the Time district.â
âWhat about us?â Arwen calls out after her.
âStart at the Body and Creation districts,â she responds without looking back. âThen work your way around.â
Tessa drags me all the way to a shining black boat. The boat is covered with a bunch of shapes and symbols I donât recognize, and one that I do. A skull stares at me with its hollow eyes. I try not to look at it and convince myself itâs just a boat. Riding in this one doesnât mean anything about the future of our mission.
Still, Iâm relieved when she pulls me into a bright green boat with hourglasses and numbers on it instead.
âStraight down to Time please.â Tessa seats herself at the front of the boat, already leaning over the side to get a better look at the city below.
The pilot nods and waits for me to get in.
The seats are so small and close together that my only options are to squeeze in next to Tessa or take the seat directly across from her and have our legs bump into each other for the whole ride. I choose the latter, not trusting myself to sit right next to her.
As I step into the boat, I get a glimpse of the water and notice that the boat isnât actually touching it. I wonder how far off the ground the boat can fly? Or rather, how high can the magic make it go?
Speaking of which, what kind of magic is making the boat move in the first place? Air magic? Our pilot, a silent woman with long golden hair, flicks her wrist at the dock and launches our boat toward the waterfall. The wind whips Tessaâs hair into my face. Definitely air magic.
âSorry,â Tessa says as she tucks her long hair into the back of her jacket.
As our boat nears the waterfall, I half-expect it to lurch forward, dumping us out miles in the air. But our boat smoothly transitions from water to air with no sudden drops. A breath I didnât realize I was holding escapes my lips.
We slowly begin our descent, the city of Mancika growing closer and closer beneath us. For the first time, I get a good grasp of just how big this place really is. How are the six of us supposed to search this entire city? Even with splitting into three groups, the task seems impossible.
No, I canât start thinking like that. Our mission is too important to fail. The fate of the entire universe rests on my and Tessaâs shoulders. Especially since our friends donât know the whole truth. Tessa and I have to work hard to learn everything we can about the time decay, and hopefully, a way to stop it. And if weâre really lucky, reverse it.
Tessa does not seem as bothered about it all as I am. Sheâs practically hanging out of the boat. I ignore the impulse to reach out and pull her back into her seat. She can handle herself.
I turn my attention back to the city. At the rate weâre descending, weâll be on the ground in just a couple of minutes. This far up, itâs easy to see the invisible lines that divide the different sections. Each area has its own scenery and aesthetic based on its assigned magic. I canât pick out the details from this height, but Iâd give just about anything to be able to explore the city freely with no impending doom hanging over my head. Maybe Iâll get a chance to come back later this summer.
Our boat gently touches down at the bottom of the waterfall. It takes me a moment to realize why weâre not getting wet, until I look up and see a bubble of air around us, deflecting the spray.
I take another look at our pilot. Her eyes are closed, and her face is relaxed like she doesnât have to put in any effort to fly the boat and protect us from the waterfall at the same time.
Tessa and I have a long way to go with our magic.
My chest tightens as we move away from the waterfall and continue around a small river underneath the citadel. We briefly follow the circle before pulling up to a long wooden dock.
Tessa jumps out of the boat in a flash, rocking it violently as she does so and earning a glare from the pilot. But sheâs oblivious to it all, already moving into the city.
I offer a small smile in apology and quickly follow my partner onto the dock.
No turning back now. Weâve got a universe to save.
