Shape of Magic Chapter 21: Mission Begins

<<<Amy Carlson>>>

As much as she hated to admit it, she did get some kind of rush as she and Tay escaped after burning the Catapillar’s stash. It reminded her of moments with Vicky and, with the benefit of hindsight and not being stressed out? Her covering for Vicky or helping her was… fun, you know if you ignored the covering up for excessive use of force or the virtual reckless manslaughter she would reverse.

She was pretty messed up back then, she liked to think she was better though. Though if she was in fact better was debatable, really.

Still, now she was back on the ship (more of a giant cart, really), which she never actually got the name of, of the Swamp Pirates. The pirates themselves were celebrating a successful job, and, after some pushing, even Taylor joined. Eventually she wound up talking to Aisha and Lisa, and though Amy could clearly tell she was uncomfortable she forced herself to continue.

Nodding to herself she relaxed on a wooden chair, truly she was fine with Tay being the center of attention. The girl desperately needed it, and she just wanted to think of her own encounter in the cave. She’d certainly have to share the full story with Taylor after they got home.

“Heh, it only took my life being ripped apart and getting a second chance to make me realize how much of my problems were self-inflicted.” Maybe in the beginning Carol could’ve been blamed, but the truth was it was her own fault.

She was holding herself to unrealistic standards to get the approval of a woman that, while not cruel or abusive, was indifferent to her. 

“Penny for your thoughts?” Alec asked, sitting down next to her with a bottle of something most assuredly alcoholic in his hand.

“Just thinking about things,” Amy said, “Like… how much trouble I had in life is largely my own fault. I wonder just how many opportunities to be happy I lost in my determination to prove myself to a woman utterly indifferent to me,” She added, sounding wistful.

“Yeah I can’t sympathise,” Alec replied almost instantly, “I hated dad, never knew mom. Unless you’re talking about Taylor there, and if you are I also got nothing cause you’d just be wrong?”

“Heh… funny thing.” Amy decided it felt nice just talking to someone about her past, “Taylor and I first met when she and her gang were robbing a bank. I was held hostage…”

Alec nodded importantly. “How many of the most important love stories of the age start,” He said, “What you have to do at this point is rescue her from the authorities when you get a chance to throw her into the brink.”

“Oh she tumbled off the edge before I even knew it, I was so absorbed in my own problems I never knew,” Amy said, “The only other time I met her was… at the end. We were collectively threatened by a being we couldn’t challenge. And stupid, self-sacrificing, and possibly delusional Tay sacrificed herself to stand a chance…”

He nodded and offered, “Drink?” It smelled… very strongly.

Amy looked at the offered drink before shrugging and took herself a small drink, only to cough as she passed it back, “What is that?” She asked between coughs.

“To tell you the truth,” He started, “I don’t really know.” And then he took a swig.

Amy just shook her head with a faint giggle. “Fair enough,” She said as she stared up at the sky in thought, “The whole nightmare was called Golden Morning. And Taylor became a monster to fight the Golden man, they called her Khepri. She took control of millions, billions, of people… and forced everyone to work together.”

“Sounds horrifying,” He agreed, “But you lived! Probably.”

Amy nodded, “Not that it could be called that. After Golden Morning I withdrew from a world trying to rebuild. Lived the rest of my days as a hermit,” She said, “And Tay’s reward was a summary execution… The last thing she said to her killer was ‘we’re all so small’. She was deaf and blind…” Amy just shook her head.

“So how’d you end up here then?” He asked, waving around the… they weren’t in a swamp anymore, the castle was visible ahead.

“Here in Wonderland? Well we were exploring the grounds, actually.” Amy said, “And how we ended up on the gourds, we were adopted by a half-fae half-veela woman and her husband. And we’re honestly not sure how we got here, we just woke up in the orphanage one day and we were always there.”

“Did you chase a rabbit? Look into a looking glass?” He prodded, “Or just poof. Oh, and she’s not a ghost is she?”

“Just poof really. And Tay isn’t a ghost… though god she has her moments,” Amy said with a snort, “She’s very good at getting around unnoticed.”

“Thanks for the compliment,” Taylor whispered into her ear, earning a yelp and a punch to the nose for the effort, “Ow, ow, ow… I deserved that.” It looked like it was going to bruise, but she was still grinning, “Brian says we’re as close as we can get on the road and we’ll need to go through the river to get inside. I don’t want to think about how this thing will float though…”

It was rather rickety, even if it looked a little bit boat like.

“Well, let’s get this over with,” Amy said before nodding to Alec, “And thanks… it feels nice talking about that shitshow.”

“Uhhh, you’re welcome!” He replied with a wide smile, “Your thanks touches my heart, truly.” His voice, already rather monotone unless he forced it, had somehow become even more dry. She wasn’t sure how, but she did applaud it.

Amy just rolled her eyes with a faint smile.

Taylor smiled as well, but Amy could tell the girl was wincing to herself. Having never really interacted with Alec, or Regent, she could only imagine how similar this guy sounded to the one Taylor knew.

“Brace for impact with the water!” Brian announced before the cart lurched off the dirt road and plunged downwards.

She did not, no matter what Taylor claimed, scream before impact. The girl is a liar, a cheat, and a fraud and should never be trusted.

The impact was surprisingly soft, a large splash announcing it, before it continued on its way; pushed downstream by the current.

After quenching her dry for no particular reason throat, she said aloud, “A little more warning next time would be nice.”

Her voice sounded a little too small for her taste, but that was because she was thirsty.

Taylor snickered from the side. “You don’t hire escape artists for easy rides, Ames.” Her eyes sparkled in amusement. “How long until we get there, Brian?”

“Just a few minutes, but we’re going to have to hide in the smuggling compartments or they’ll shoot at us,” He said, “Trash always flows down this river, so if we’re not on top they won’t think anything of it.”

Amy just blinked at the comment, “Okay fair enough… shall we get to hiding?”

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Amy wasn’t expecting the smuggling compartments to be roomy or anything, but honestly there was absolutely no room. Taylor was practically on top of her while they waited for their ride to get to wherever it was going.

And Taylor’s squirming combined with her own hormones certainly wasn’t helping at all! And she had a good feeling that Taylor was completely aware of what she was doing and did it on purpose!

This audacity of this bitch!

“... My leg’s asleep,” Taylor sighed after a moment, “I can’t wake it up.”

Or not.

“Well, we’re in the same boat there,” Amy said, “Both of mine are asleep… how long do you think this is going to take?”

“That pun was awful,” She groaned.

Amy blinked before snorting, “And completely accidental, I swear.” Mainly because puns were the lowest form of humor and hard to actually use properly and be legitimately funny.

“I don’t believe you,” Taylor snarked with a grin, “And to answer your question, they said when we stopped we’d be there. No clu-” A small clunk sound resounded through the ship as it jerked to a stop. “Nevermind then. You’re on top, so… you leave first!”

Amy just shook her head before she opened up the compartment before climbing out, though instead of getting up she massaged her legs to get some feeling back into them. Taylor followed shortly afterwards and also tried to wake her legs up by stretching them out.

The small cavern they’d entered was wet and filled with trash. The only way out to the ocean was… blocked by more trash, and now their ‘boat’, so the smell could be described as ‘unpleasant’.

“Great.” Amy deadpanned as she covered her nose, not that it helped.

Pity her power wasn’t working, she would’ve risked messing up if she wouldn’t have to smell this anymore! Something that Taylor agreed with given that she covered her nose as well.

“Okay so, where to next?” Amy asked, “Never did a heist before.”

“Ha! I knew I’d find one of these here!” Aisha called out, pulling a sword out from a completely ruined box. “Always wanted one.”

Lisa tapped Amy on the shoulder and pointed to a locked door, “They’ll send a guard down to ‘clear the way’ now that our ship came down. What you need to do is take this,” She was handed a very large and half rotted wooden board, “and smack him on the butt with it.”

“... The fact that you specified the butt makes me suspicious…” Amy said dryly as she hefted the board, “But fine.”

“Right, while you do that we’ll hide over there!” She said with a point, “Just shout if you need help!” And with that they dove behind a random pile of refuse. Taylor shrugged and seemed about to say something before being yanked down too.

It didn’t take long for someone to come down, something rather. Keys jangling, it pushed the door open to reveal… a card. A walking Two of Hearts. It had a bomb in its hand and very clearly didn’t see her as it made its way to the trash blockage.

“Fucking fairytale bullshit…” Amy thought, “Oh well, might as well…” Moving as quietly as she could she reared the board back before swinging it as hard as she could towards what had to be the cards butt.

It flipped through the air multiple times, bomb flying out of its hands to explode with a large black smoke cloud and keys… flying directly into Lisa’s outstretched hands. “Perfect!” She said as the card landed in the dirty water, “Let’s go before people start to look for him!”

Amy just shook her head before she and the rest followed the blonde, “God, Aif and Chuck are never going  to believe- no, actually they probably would…” Amy thought with a faint smirk.

Still… play card guard… something about that felt so familiar…

Vague memories of a man, her father, reading her a story with card guards came to mind.

“Ok!” They were rushing through the halls and, very carefully, avoiding guard patrol paths as they went. “There are two keys we need in different parts of the castle,” Lisa explained, “So we’re going to have to split up.”

Amy nodded, that made sense if you wanted to keep someone out.

Though Tayor waved her hand, “Nope. Not happening. You don’t split the team, that’s just begging for everyone to be overwhelmed and eventually captured,” She said in her ‘Skitter’ voice and everyone listened, “We’ll do this together and we’ll do it right, or we won’t do it at all.”

“If we do it together they’ll notice and reinforce the other key,” Lisa countered, “They have guards already!”

“Perhaps, but if we split up it lowers chances of our success,” Taylor said, “Also together we’re stronger than when we’re divided.”

“... We’re a bunch of teenagers,” Aisha noted quietly, “We aren’t that much stronger together. Come on Amy! Let’s grab the key while they argue for hours!”

The smaller girl grabbed her by the arm and started dragging her away.

“Oh goddamnit…” Amy muttered before she followed the Imp, besides there was a reasonably good chance nothing too bad would happen.

Not that she was going to say so, she’d already jinxed herself once!

“Besides… I could do with some shenanigans after that goddamn cave,” Amy thought.

“So, did you hear where she said the key was or are we going to wing it and hope things go well?” Aisha asked with a grin, “Cause I didn’t hear shit.”

“Nope.” Amy said, “I think they started arguing before Lisa could tell us. I wonder if Taylor ever had moments like this with the Undersiders?” Something she definitely planned on asking later.

“No idea, don’t know her!” She said, “So… if I were a key, where would I be? Wait, guards!”

“She jumped out of a window,” Amy thought dully as two arguing people walked down the hall. They sounded painfully familiar too.

And as Amy ducked behind a corner she kept watch and…

“I know Dean, I know, it’s just that sometimes I have to throw an extra bomb down the hole to chase away criminals!” Vicky said, “You’d do it too if you had extras!”

“Un-fucking-believible…” Honestly she wasn’t sure how to feel, she was seeing Vicky again but… now she understood how Taylor felt when she saw the Swamp Pirates.

“You don’t have extras anymore!” Dean replied, sounding exasperated, “You threw them all!”

“And it worked, didn’t it?” She asked in reply, “Hold on, I smell something.”

Internally, Amy screamed. Obviously Aisha jumped out of the window, they could both probably be smelled for miles.

Vicky’s head peaked around the corner to look at her, “Oh, you seem very lost. Sorry, have to arrest you! Please don’t run.”

Amy just sighed, “... Can I at least punch Dean? For the catharsis if nothing else?” She asked plainly, knowing trying to run was useless, “Then you’d have a better reason to lock me up.” She doubted it would work, but this world just seemed to lack common sense so she figured she had a fifty-fifty shot either way.

“You can not,” She replied blandly before lifting Amy over her shoulder and beginning to walk 

“Eh, it was worth a shot.” Amy said with a shrug, though she swore she'd punch the pretty boy before she left!

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