Her arms dropped, the angelic beauty had the mind and soul of a demon. She was sure that something was wrong with them. But something was off about them. She hadn't figured out what yet and it bothered her. Ishtar was torn between expanding her knowledge by helping them escape, talking with them, but being refused to be taught by the Chronomancer Mentor Zill or she made sure they stay here until help arrives and then she could be granted to learn from the time mage right away. And yet she was too damn curious to find out what they had. Even if she would let them escape, she could find them again down on the island, but time magic.
Her lips quivered, then she bit them to still the tremble. "I do. How do you know?" She tried her best to stay calm. Her inability to narrow down the cause of her racing heart frustrated Ishtar. Was it the fear of death or a man touching her? Was Nerium's body 'that' deprived of affection?
"I'm Gideon and the guy over there is Nezkar. It's not mind reading. It's a bit more rare." He said and hugged her tighter, lifting her off the ground.
Her arms and legs stiffened, and she gripped on his shoulders. "Gideon and Nezkar." She mumbled again, placing those names deep into her mind. She had a knack for remembering names and she never heard of them.
[I heard of them before.]
'When?'
[Six months ago, when we were on the ship.]
'Are you ghosting around?'
[Of course, I am. You know that whenever you just enjoy the landscapes, I just go discover the stuff you can't with a body.] Nerium's tone was slightly disappointed, and Ishtar knew how often she disappointed her.
'I know, and I am very thankful, but can you tell me, please, that someone is coming right now?'
[Heh, no. You can enjoy your hug.]
'Fuck.'
If someone from the island was worthy to be studied, she would've heard their name. Then she took a closer look at their clothes. Only one of them had the chain.
"Can you let me down?" She asked, thinking of how the other one came into the tower. It was a floating fortress that had no entrance without magic, and without a proper crystal any attempt of teleportation magic could end up lethal.
"You won't run or just teleport?"
Ishtar nodded. It was curiosity that led her to her current status as a proper titled mage and that helped her gain a large amount of knowledge. But it was never enough.
Gideon let her down to her feet gently. His appearance was that of a prisoner, but his manners were similar to someone who spent time as a royal soldier, somehow. He smiled softly and turned to Nezkar. "Ishtar will get us down the island and we let her live."
"Ridiculous, what did I tell you when someone sees your power?" Nezkar pulled out his sword.
"More blood will cause more blood. We are already covered in it. She won't do us any harm."
Nezkar took a step closer to Ishtar, but was blocked by Gideon right away. There was an unreasonable amount of disagreement for twins. Most twins she met, got along well, if not beheaded for their infamously bad omen. She stepped behind Gideon, gladly accepting his protection.
[You should help them.]
'I will lose my head with them. After getting a black eye from her magistrate personally.'
[That is an honor, we both know, you wouldn't even deserve. She wouldn't bother rolling your head first.]
'Thanks for the reminder.'
Gideon's hand slowly reached for Ishtar's wrist, then hand. For some reason this escapee was either very affectionate or a huge pervert. Then she caught a glimpse of both swiftly turning their heads towards the door, where Timothy appeared out of nowhere. Gideon swirled Ishtar around, grabbing both of her wrists while Nezkar held his sword close to her throat.
From where Ishtar stood she could barely see what Nezkar's expression was. But from the little bit of experience, he would have the expression of a murderer. Lips in a thin line, furrowed brows and a bloodlust gaze.
But Timothy's face was ridden in horror. He probably expected something else, but Ishtar was a hostage. Awkward? A bit, but he moved his scepter up. And stopped right away as Nezkar laid the sharp end of the blade on her throat again.
She was afraid, but more afraid for Timothy's life than her own, unless they could appraise his value without a bargain. Then her own life had less value. He was a travel specialist, one of the few who had the power to leave the island without a large Teathar. Hopping in and out posed no difference for him at least than walking or breathing.
Timothy pointed his scepter to Ishtar. "I assume you –"
" – If you want your friend in one piece, then get us off the island." Nezkar demanded.
Ishtar felt Gideon's lips on her ear.
"Shut up, prisoner. I'm not talking to you." Timothy yelled.
The usually calm and nice Timothy wore a fierce and dark expression, which didn't fit him. The cheerful smile with dimples and bright olive eyes hid behind, and an expression similar to Nezkar.
"Ishtar, did you cast a spell on the man holding you?" Timothy asked as he drew circles.
And when Ishtar opened her mouth, Gideon used her own hand to prevent her from speaking. The other hand slid down on her hips. Why did it have any importance to his next actions? And why did Gideon muffled her? Everything felt disconnected and chaotic. She lacked knowledge of the entire situation. What if Ishtar answered yes? She could figure out a secret. Immunity of magic was a rarity and she assumed anyone who inherited it was sentenced to death. But it didn't explain why she needed to be dead.
Gideon moved his head, which made Ishtar think he faced Timothy. "She won't answer, magehunter."
Hunter? Timothy was an investigator, not a hunter. She was sure of it, he didn't have the guts for taking lives.
"Let her speak, monster."
"I won't, any answer she will give, will force you to end her." Gideon answered while he snuggled her. The long fingers and warm skin had a mixed sense of comfort and danger.
She knew Timothy and he would never put her in any danger or cast lethal spells. It was not in his set of skills, but then he sometimes finished separate jobs when Ishtar had her own special requests. He had his moments when he acted weird or strange after each mission.
Uncertainty grew inside her mind, clouding her warm feelings and happy memories about him. As if a distorted veil vanished and revealed the ugly truth. But what was the truth? She knew of his love of traveling and jumping, as he called his ability to teleport without casting, and seeing the world outside the boundaries of the kingdom. Yet he quietly followed Ishtar to the nameless prison as she hated being alone. And as they grew up together in the academy, Ishtar started to consider him as part of her family. But everything seemed so distant now. Especially after their arrival at the tower. His nightly jobs vanished as they started to live inside the tower.
Ishtar started to struggle against Gideon's hold, creating a small gap between her mouth and hand. She whispered. "Will you kill me?"
Gideon twitched and answered in a warm tone. "No and Nezkar won't. I promise."
Timothy's arm began to tremble. "Ishtar, if you want me to help you, then you should answer me. Did you use magic on him." He pointed the tip at Gideon. His voice cracked and a fireball formed in front of him.
He was serious and Ishtar's view of him shattered. Gideon freed her and everything happened so sudden. Nezkar broke the window and Ishtar was thrown into his arms as she and the swordsman fell, followed by Gideon who hugged both. She fumbled her earring and used her remaining energy to get them to ground without being squashed to bits.
Even if it meant helping prisoners escape. The spell was instantly.
Thump.
The viridian leaves covered the rays of dawn as she was pushed off Nezkar, down to the mossy ground.