Nadura City looks even more nightmarish than earlier.
Terra isn't used to the sight. As she exits the tunnel with a crowd of fanice, they look out over the edge of a cliff, peering down into the ruined city. Without emergency services to put them out, fires have broken out, adding layers of deep grey smoke to the already heavily polluted sky. The fanice gasp and whimper at the sight. "Oh my!" "Is this really the surface?" "It's nothing like I imagined." A few of them glance at Terra as if asking her to answer their ignorant questions. Gabriel, too, looks at her expectantly.
"The smog is normal," Terra starts. "It's pollution from flying cars. As for the fires... not so normal. When all the people disappeared, there were a lot of… accidents. If we don't hurry, they could turn catastrophic." She can't imagine what could happen if those fires reach a gas station or nuclear power plant.
"You heard her!" Gabriel shouts. "Fan out. Start putting out those fires. Our top priority should be cleaning up the city. Then we can make it our own."
"Yes, sire!" a few of them shout. They shoot up into the sky like rockets and get to their destinations quickly. In mere minutes, several fanice are already at the base of the cliffside, flying over the nearest fires. They hold their hands over the blazing inferno, and beams of yellow light appear. They shine down on the fire like a sun, yet the thicker they get, the weaker the fire becomes. It shrinks, becoming smaller and smaller until it is completely snuffed out, leaving only a smoking, dilapidated building. Then, immediately, they move on to the next.
Terra's jaw drops. The power of these creatures is unbelievable. She clutches the device the professor gave her, buried deep in the right pocket of her baggy black pants. Her finger hovers over what she knows is the yellow button with the picture of a sun. She knows the professor said she can fake most types of magic, but seeing that display, she has no idea how that could be true. She hopes the fanice don't ask her to perform any magic, but she has a feeling she won't get that lucky.
"Shall we begin with the plants?" Gabriel asks, snapping Terra out of her trance.
"Uhh, what?"
"Well, seeing as you can't fly, you can't help with the fires. The next step is the restoration. We need to bring nature back to the surface. We can get started on this cliff."
He just said, "We." He's asking her to do magic right now. Terra swallows. "Of course, where should we start?"
Gabriel's turquoise eyes glance about the clearing. They stand on a paved road on the edge of a mountainside, and the only plants around are weeds growing out of the cliff walls. Fanice adults and children have already started tending to them, their hands sparkling green. Gabriel walks forward, making his way to the middle of the road. Then, he looks to his right and points to the other side, a few feet away from the cave exit. "Right there. That young tree."
Terra spots the plant he's talking about, making her way to Gabriel to get a better look. It's a pitiful little thing: a tree sapling growing out of a crack in the concrete, wilting and barely alive, with only four leaves left on its branches. It's no wonder the fanice are leaving that one alone. It looks as if it could drop dead any minute.
Despite the hopeless state of that plant, though, the prince approaches it and kneels. "Poor thing. Humans are so cruel. They didn't even give you a chance." He stretches a root-covered hand toward it, and his palm sparkles a deep forest green. The second it contacts the plant; it seems to glow as well. Then, just as suddenly, it returns to normal.
Unlike with the fires, Terra doesn't notice anything different. The little tree is still wilting, and it still only has four leaves. "Will it… be okay?" she asks. It's a general enough question that she shouldn't come across as ignorant.
"I believe so," he says. "Give it some time, and it'll become very strong. We'll help it along, just as we will everything else." He stands, gesturing to another plant a few dozen feet down the street. "Would you like to go next?" This time, it's a red flower all by itself. It, too, is wilting and has yet to spread its petals.
Terra thinks of what he just said. Give it some time, and it'll become very strong. So, chlorokinesis doesn't work right away. That might save her. Now more confident than a few minutes ago, she nods. They make their way over to the next plant.
Just like before, the two of them kneel, but instead of performing the spell himself, Gabriel waits for Terra to do it. She takes a deep breath. It's now or never. Reaching for the flower with her left hand and clutching the gyp in her pocket with her right, she presses the plant button. Immediately, Terra's hand sparkles green, just like Gabriel's, and she moves it toward the plant, praying it'll look similar to how he did it. However, when it touches the flower, it does not glow green like before. Instead, it stays exactly the same, petals still red and wilted.
Terra's heart sinks. She touches it several times, and it still won't respond. Is she doing this wrong? Is there a limit to the illusion? She looks around, and a few nearby fanice are staring at her. They whisper to each other, pointing at Terra's sparkling hand.
"I, uh…" She says, trying to keep calm. "I'm not sure what's going on. I-I haven't done this much."
"More like at all," Gabriel comments. "This is a very basic plant spell. Did your mother not teach you it?" His demeanor has changed. Instead of smiling encouragingly, his eyes have narrowed, and he's studying Terra's hands. She has to get his attention away from that.
"We were more focused on… passing as human than learning magic," Terra lies. "I'm going to be honest; this is the first time I've done this." She layers some truth with the lie because that will make it more believable. She's not an expert, but she remembers that from the one psychology class she had to take in college. The best lies are those that have some truth to them.
Seeming to have overheard what Terra said, the fanice at the nearby plants speak louder.
"She doesn't even know basic spells. How pathetic."
"This is why King Azrael made half fanice live separately from us."
"I don't know why she's even here."
Gabriel grits his teeth. It seems like he wants to say something, but he's holding back. Instead, he places a hand on Terra's shoulder. "You should have said something. Here, let me show you how it's done." He reaches for her hand, and she flinches. "Oh, is this not alright? I'm sorry," he says immediately.
"N-No," Terra responds. "It's… fine." She chokes down her nervousness. The other fanice are watching, and she's already acting suspicious. Gabriel is just grabbing her hand. It's not as if he's trying to kill her. She thinks of the fanice down below, stopping the disasters. How easily could they snuff her life out, just like those fires? She must be as agreeable as possible and, of all things, don't get caught. Please, please… don't get caught.
The fanice prince takes her hand and hovers it over the flower. "Okay, begin the spell again."
Terra presses the button in her pocket, and her hand turns green again.
"Good, now, place your hand on the flower and give it your blessing. Think something like, 'I wish for you to grow tall,' or 'I wish for you to bloom.'"
"I wish for you to be strong," she says. Suddenly, the plant glows green, just like the sapling, then immediately fades back to its original color. Terra is so relieved that she nearly sighs, but she catches herself.
"Great! Now, all we need to do is wait." Gabriel says. He stands and helps Terra up. "See? Not so bad, is it?"
She shakes her head. Noticing the prince is still holding her hand, she pulls it away. Now, even more fanice seem interested in the two of them. They've gathered in a small crowd and are gossiping among themselves. She catches words like "half fanice", "useless", and "inferior." Terra bites her lower lip, trying not to explode.
Gabriel glares at them. "Terra, do you know your way around this mountain?"
She notes the landscape around them. Downtown seems to be north of here, and the buildings below are primarily houses, so if she's not mistaken, this is the mountain Eila's school is on. It has a winding road leading to the school, and if one goes further up, there's an open field with a few trees and flowers. It's where the kids would have field day and other outdoor activities. "Yes, if we keep heading up, we will come across a school. There are plants there, but if we go to the peak, there will be even more."
"Why don't you show us around?" Gabriel asks. "I'd like to know the ins and outs of this city, and I'm sure the others would as well. After all, that would be very useful information to have, right?"
The gossiping fanice nod, fear emerging in their gazes. Terra's surprised they talked so openly around their prince. Then again, they have the same views as Michaela. Maybe they're trying to get in the way of the prince's goals, in their own petty, nosy way.
…
They spend the next several hours traveling around the mountain and blessing thousands of plants. Some of the fanice seem impressed with Terra's knowledge of flora and fauna, and she vaguely talks about her time as a biology student. Despite their prejudice, they seem fascinated with her former life as a student. They ask way too many questions, and by the time they reach the mountain peak, Terra is exhausted.
She has so many memories from this field: sitting in the metallic gazebos, watching Eila and her friend run laps, and visiting with Professor Faramund. Now, the field is a smoking rubble-filled mess. The fanice use their abilities to move around the broken cars and what used to be the building with student locker rooms, and they make attempts to heal the burnt grass. Terra helps here and there, pretending to use plant magic. All the while, Gabriel sticks to her like glue. He walks uncomfortably close, almost to where she can hear his breathing. This man has no sense of personal space, and it's starting to get on Terra's nerves.
"What did this grassland used to be?"
"Let me guess, the humans were planning to destroy it. It's a good thing we're saving it."
"Can you tell us more about being a student? Was your school on this mountain, too?"
Terra's tolerance for their questions is growing dangerously low. She's been walking for hours, talking to almost every fanice in their group, and trying to shrug off Gabriel, to no avail. "I-I need a break!" she blurts.
A few of fanice back away, their expressions growing angry.
"I've been answering your questions for hours. Please, just let me sit down for a minute." She tries to make it sound polite, but rage seeps into her tone.
The creatures aren't taking it well, either, but before they can respond, Gabriel intervenes. "That's a fair request. Everyone, be grateful she has shown us around, and let her rest."
Reluctantly, they back off, returning to their jobs restoring the field.
The prince points to the other end of the field, at a lone tree sitting by the cliffside. "Go sit over there. I'll make sure no one bothers you for a while, and I'll come to check on you later. Thank you for your hard work today. They may not appreciate it, but they needed someone like you to tell them about the outside world."
"Thank you," Terra says. She practically sprints toward the tree.
…
When Terra arrives at the tree, she collapses at its base, staring at the permanent sunset. The whole city may be in ruins, but their red sun remains the same, setting amongst the smog of the sky. She leans against the tree trunk, trying to steady her breathing. Terra is so bad at this. She let her temper get the better of her, and earlier, she nearly got caught again. She looks over the edge, hoping the professor and Eila are having a better time. They must have left out of the house exit, the one Gabriel showed them down when they first met. She can't believe it hasn't even been one day since everyone disappeared. These twelve hours have felt like an eternity.
Step Step
After several minutes of silence, she hears someone's footsteps heading across the grass. She turns around to find Gabriel looming over her. He smiles lightly. "Hello, may I join you for a moment?"
Having pulled herself together, Terra nods. The prince sits next to her, but he leaves space for her to breathe this time.
For a moment, they both stare at the colorful sky. "I'm sorry… about earlier."
"It's alright," Terra says, avoiding eye contact. "It takes a long time to change people's minds."
"Tell me about it. I thought it would be easier after all the humans were gone, but I have my work cut out for me. My father did a number on fanice beliefs. I'm sorry you and your family experienced so much trauma because of him. Hopefully, in the next few days, we'll find more half-fanice hiding in the city, and you can support each other."
You mean more like Professor Faramund. Terra thinks. She looks out at the buildings, which have stopped burning. She still can't believe the professor is one of them and wonders how many more there are. It must have been agonizing to hide in plain sight like that, knowing that if the fanice or humans knew their true nature, they could disappear too. She shudders, recalling what the professor said about her mother. The feds took her. So, the government knew about the fanice and tried to keep them a secret. Terra can't believe how deep this goes.
"What is on your mind?" Gabriel asks, snapping her out of her thoughts. "You seem deeply troubled."
Terra scrambles to make up another lie, but then she sighs. Even though they're enemies, the fanice prince seems like a genuinely nice person. "Gabriel, why are you trying to help us? Why don't you hate us, like the others?"
He leans against the tree, gazing at the city. "It's a long story. Let's say I once knew someone. She met a grisly end because of my father's policies. She was a good person, too. She couldn't help the circumstances of her birth."
Gabriel pauses a second, clearly tormented. Then, he keeps talking. "I mean, do not get me wrong. I hate humans for what they've done to us. As if forcing us underground wasn't enough, they had to slowly assassinate most of the royal, I mean, my family. I was kept in isolation my whole life and could only watch as my cousins, my aunts and uncles, my… mother…" His lower lip begins to tremble. "It wasn't long before my father and I were the only ones left. So, I get it. I understand where he's coming from, but we shouldn't punish half-fanice just for having human blood. You have it harder than any of us, stuck between two worlds like that."
Terra stares at him. He's… not lying right now. At least, it doesn't look like it. She almost feels guilty for deceiving him, but then she reminds herself that her people are gone, and Gabriel's hatred for them is evident. She must focus on her mission. She must get information. "Why did the government target your family? No citizens on the surface knew about fanice, so I don't see why they'd go out of their way."
"They feared our power," he responds. "As you probably already know, we're different from other fanice. We have a few extra abilities. The humans had no idea we were planning The Vanishing, but they knew we were powerful. I think they didn't want to take the chance of us retaliating."
Terra pauses. She wants to ask what "other abilities" he's talking about, but that might make her look suspicious. This seems to be common knowledge among the fanice. "That's horrible," she says. "But hey, you won in the end. All the humans are gone."
"That's right…" Gabriel looks at Terra, his face falling. "I'm sorry. I got too personal for a minute. I don't have that many people to talk to about this. Thank you for listening."
"I may not completely understand, but I'm here," she says. It's technically not a lie. "I'm not offended. I'll listen to anything you want to tell me."
"I appreciate that," the prince responds. He stands up, stretching. "Are you ready to head back? I know the people have been rude to you, but the fact they were asking questions is good. I believe we can make some real progress here."
"Yeah, let's go," Terra says. Gabriel reaches toward her to help her up, and this time, she takes his hand. Perhaps he's interested in her because they're both outsiders. Either way, she's going to take advantage of it. She's learned so much from just one conversation.
They head back to the center of the field where some fanice have started a campfire. They sing and dance around it, celebrating this day's work. Terra strikes up a conversation with two of them, one, an overwhelmed mother, and the other, one of her nosy kids. This time, though, there isn't any hostility in their tone. The kid seems genuinely curious about Terra. His little yellow wings fold in and out like an animal's tail wagging as he listens to her stories of Nadura City.
A few hours pass, and it must be time to sleep soon. Terra is yawning, and she has a pretty bad headache. Luckily, the fanice settle down for the evening, some flying down the mountain, and others opting to walk with Terra, still loaded with questions.
Flap Flap
Then, from the sky, comes green wings.
The dainty fanice from earlier, Ariel, lands in front of them. As she touches down, she nearly stumbles into the dirt. "Gabriel!" she screams, out of breath. "Gabriel, come quickly!"
"Ariel?" he asks, rushing over to help her stand. "What has happened? Why did you fly here in such a rush?"
"It's your father!" she shouts. "He just returned, and we were going to throw a celebration for him, but…" She struggles to say what's next. "The king seemed healthy, but then he suddenly collapsed. No amount of magic could get him to wake up, and then he… he…"
Prince Gabriel's hands begin to shake. "He… what?"
After a few agonizing seconds, she manages to say two words, tears streaming down her face.
"He's dead."
…
What comes next happens in a blur. Gabriel picks up Terra and flies down the mountain. She hardly has time to argue about it, as he's so distraught he didn't even ask her if it was okay. Then, she, the prince, and the other fanice follow Ariel down the narrow tunnel and back into the village. There, lying in a patch of flowers right off the dirt path, is a fanice with the same wings as Gabriel. He has side-swept gray hair and a short beard the same color. There are wrinkles all over his face and hands, but the resemblance to Gabriel is still uncanny.
The former fanice king lays there in the flowers, motionless. He looks so peaceful; it's almost as if he's asleep, but his stillness is unnatural. Not a single breath, wrinkle of the face, or twitch of his fingers can be seen. He's gone and has been for at least a few minutes.
Surrounding him are hundreds of fanice. Some hold each other and cry, while others talk amongst themselves, wondering how this could have happened. The most heartbreaking display is Gabriel, however. He shoves his way to the front of the crowd and falls to his knees, cradling his father's body in his arms. "This can't be happening." He breaks into tears. "We finally did it. Your dreams have been realized. How could you leave me alone like this? Please, Father, I beg of you… wake up!"
Terra tries to make her way over to help, but someone massive shoves past her. "Move, hafling." The voice of Michaela says.
She and Ariel rush over, pulling Gabriel off his father's corpse. "You need to get out of here!" Michaela shouts. "This screams foul play, and you could be next. Let's get you to the safe house until we've made a list of suspects."
"No, my people need me!" He screams, but Michaela drags him away anyway. "Your people need you safe. For all we know, the killer could still be here."
As if on cue, Terra spots the professor and Eila hanging out at the back of the crowd, closer to their cliffside cottage. The professor signals for Terra to come over. Her heart sinks, but she obeys, making her way along the edge of the mourning fanice until she reaches her family.
Eila jumps into her arms. "Are you okay? This is so scary."
"Indeed," the professor agrees. "Terra, did you manage to get some information today?"
She stares open-mouthed at the professor. Is she seriously asking that right now? Someone was just murdered, and the fanice are in chaos.
Then… it hits her.
Who would have a motive to kill the fairy king?
Her face falls as she connects the dots. The professor certainly had a motive, but still… is she capable of cold-blooded murder? Besides, if she wanted to kill the king, she would have told them about it first, right?
"Don't give me that look," Professor Faramund says. "Let's go back to the house. This place is in shambles right now. We'll wait for things to calm down."
Wordlessly, Terra follows them back to the cottage, and on the way, she can't help but wonder… Why did the professor really want her to distract Gabriel?
The answer to that question raises bile in her throat. What are you doing, Terra? she thinks to herself. This is a good thing. Regardless of who killed the king, he was a definite obstacle in their plan. She should be feeling satisfaction, no, triumph at this.
Instead, all she can do is look back as Gabriel tearfully argues with Michaela, being led into isolation.