A Long Way to Fall

by Cinders of War

Chapter 84: Age Old Discovery

Frigid Night awoke the next morning with a huge yawn and stretch. The floor under him was hard but he somehow managed to get a good night’s rest anyway. He looked back to the bed to see his apprentice, still asleep atop the softer mattress, dressed in her black tank top and grey sweatpants, the blanket tossed over to her right leg. Frigid leaned over and pulled the sheets over her shoulders.

The Saddle Arabian Assassins didn’t have much spare room, so Mentor Steel Shine had ordered each pair to share rooms. Unfortunately, that meant Frigid had to share a room with Morning Blade.

It wasn’t like he didn’t like her. Frigid thought she was a pretty girl; she was caring, she was smart, and quite athletic too. But she was just too young for him. That’s why he had slept away from her and on the floor. She deserved someone else. Someone better.

He stood up and scratched at his head before moving to pick up his coat. The night had been a lot cooler than he had expected, but by the time he had realized it, he was fast asleep with his coat hung on the nearby chair. Frigid was thankful that it was only his coat he removed and not his shirt as well. He might’ve frozen over during the night.

He did a few stretches before leaving the room, looking for the canteen. It was still early, the air around him was still cold. The Assassin finally found it two floors and a few corridors down, walking into the expansive closed room. It was almost the same as the Trottingham bureau’s, but it was painted grey-blue instead.

Frigid grabbed a plate of what looked like burritos from the counter, nodding his greetings to the mess Assassin as he headed off. Only a few other Assassins were awake and in the canteen, allowing Frigid to get a whole table to himself. He noticed the food didn’t come with any utensils. Frigid just shrugged and grabbed his breakfast with both hands and took a bite.

Not bad… Frigid thought to himself as he chew. Saddle Arabians sure knew how to-

Then he began feeling something prickly and before he knew it, his mouth was burning.

“Haht, haht!” Frigid hopped off his chair and ran to one of the water dispensers.

The few Assassins in the canteen watched him with amused faces, but Frigid didn’t care. What mattered now was getting some water to douse down the inferno in his mouth. He quickly grabbed a cup and painfully watched as the water slowly flowed into the cup; it was as though time had slowed down for him. When he finally felt like the cup was filled enough, he put it to his mouth and gulped down all its contents.

It wasn’t enough.

Frigid grabbed a second cup as he began filling the first one again, gulping down cup after cup after cup. Finally, after about the twelfth one, Frigid felt the heat dissipate, followed by a sigh of relief from within his throat.

“Not used to the spice there, partner?” someone clasped him on the shoulder. Frigid knew the voice.

“Yeah, never really got into spicy food,” Frigid told his old friend as he took a few long breaths.

High Noon stood behind him with his hat in his hand. “Well, so… H-how’s it going?”

“It’s fine,” Frigid wheezed out. “Just that I’m very sure I don’t like it here now.”

“Oh, well, uh… Good to know, pal,” High Noon feebly smiled. “Any missions today? I had a good one with a Saddle Arabian called Ikram yesterday. He’s pretty awesome. You should see him dance through the enemy with his swords. Uh… They’re called skimi- scimy- something. But the way he moves and everything, just wow.”

“At least you’re enjoying yourself.” Frigid began making his way back to the table, High Noon following behind. “I, on the other hand, still prefer to work alone.”

“Yeah… I’ve noticed. Frigid, maybe you sh-should… move on, you know?” High Noon sat beside the grey haired Assassin and sighed into his arms. “When Windy died, she was all I could think about. I regretted not making my move sooner. She loved me as much as I loved her, but… I was too late. I still think about her sometimes, but I still do as I’m told.”

Frigid nodded and gave his friend a pat. If anything, High Noon was still somewhat special to him. He had fought with the cowboy before bringing him to the Assassins. They had plenty of good times and bad times, but here they were, still alive.

“I’m sorry about Windy. I wished I could save her. Satin too. I’m not very good at saving people am I?”

“I don’t know, buddy… But, it looks like we all lost someone, huh? Dewdrop. Me. You.”

“Yeah…” Frigid pushed his plate away and looked to the ceiling. “We’re gonna make these Templars pay. That’s one thing I’m certain of. That’s why we joined after all. To give our lives for the safety of this world.”

“I’m glad I knew you, Frigid,” High Noon reached out a hand. “I’m sorry I was… hostile towards you. Still friends?”

“Sure.” Frigid shook his hand.

High Noon gave him one more smile before looking to the plate of half-eaten food. “Is it really that spicy?”

---

“Take these, Spectral,” Dr. Patch said and handed her a cylindrical container containing pink pills. “In a day or two, your fever should go down.”

“Thanks, doc,” the teal haired Assassin smiled and took the container.

They were about to leave, but Silent Frame stopped Spectral before turning back to Patch. “Patch, one more thing. Spectral said Mirror Match had rubbed some kind of liquid on one of her fingers. Do you think you could inspect it and find out what it is?”

Patch rolled her chair over and took the hand Spectral held out. “Hmmm… I can’t really take a sample now. Most of it’s been evaporated already… But there’s still your blood I can check. If you don’t mind of course?”

“Not at all,” Spectral shook her head and waited as the head medic got her equipment ready.

Patch cleaned out Spectral’s arm before plunging a long, thin needle through her skin and into one of her veins. Spectral winced, but it was nothing more than a little prick otherwise. Soon, Patch was done and wheeling herself over to the a microscope by her table, placing the blood in a little slide.

Spectral Rim and Silent Frame waited by the doctor’s side, anxiously waiting to see what Mirror Match had rubbed on Spectral.

“You want to sit down first?” Silent asked her partner, walking over to grab a chair for her. “You’re not well after all.”

“Thanks,” Spectral said and sat down. “But what do you think she did? That Mirror Match?”

“I’m not sure… but after what you told me…” Silent put a finger to her chin. “I’d figure it was some kind of mind control bug, or something that made you drowsy.”

“But I was totally a-aware of my actions,” Spectral looked down and blushed. “I remember everything. I just don’t know why I... acted the way I did...”

“It’s fine, Spectral. Patch will figure it out. Right, doc?”

“Of course!” Patch replied as she continued to look down the microscope. “And I think I may have something.”

“Let’s hear it,” Spectral said, wanting to know exactly what Mirror had done to her.

Patch spun the chair to face the two Assassins. “I’m not a hundred percent sure, but I think I’ve found traces of an aphrodisiac in your blood. Are you sure she didn’t just inject you or something?”

Spectral’s face drained in colour. “Aphro-aphrodisiac? N-no. Mirror Match simply rubbed something on my finger. She said it was moisturizer.” She started feeling woozy and leaned back against the chair.

“What, and you actually bought it?”

“I… I didn’t know…” Spectral put a hand to her head. “S-so… because of this I…”

“It’s fine, Spectral. You don’t need to talk about it again,” Silent put an arm around her shoulders.

Patch waved the two Assassins away, claiming she wanted more time to examine the sample alone. Spectral followed Silent back to her room, deciding spending a bit of time with her friend would dull the shock of her encounter with Mirror.

“I can’t believe she did that!” Spectral groaned into Silent’s pillow as she dropped face first on her bed. “Whhhhyyyyyyyy… I thought she was in love with Frigid? What is she doing?”

“Could be she’s just playing with you,” Silent said as she walked over to her wall. There was a wooden board full of pictures and notes hung up all around its frame. “Remember what happened to Glimpse? I don’t think Mirror really loves anyone but herself.”

Spectral sat up and nodded her head. “And I made fun of Glimpse too… I’m partially to blame for why she left, I’m sure. I hope she’s doing alright.” Then she took a closer look at Silent’s wall and widened both eyes. “What’s all this?”

Silent turned around to proudly display her months of work. “It’s my research on Mirror Match. All this is my little project on the Witch of Manehattan.”

Spectral only had one word. “Why?”

“Glad you asked.” Silent pointed at the board from one end to the other. “After all the… powers Mirror Match has displayed, I had gone back through my books to find out what she could possibly be.”

Spectral felt this was leading to something interesting. “So… What did you find out?”

“She’s definitely not human,” Silent said after a pause. “She’s able to heal herself, as we have seen firsthand. Explosions are not something humans can easily walk away from.”

“And Star Lance did say he ran her through with a spear,” Spectral remembered.

“Yes, and I also have a list of other… ‘feats’ Mirror Match had shown us.” Silent pointed to a particular piece of paper. “Fangs, claws, accelerated healing, speed, strength, poison resistance, transformation, you name it. She’s also claimed to have lived, what, over a hundred years at least? Not human.”

“Well, if she’s not human, then what is she?”

“I’ve looked back in history for any records of people who were able to do things like Mirror Match. Like that glove she used on you. You remember that?”

Spectral recalled the night they had set out to face Mirror Match with Pierce Network. Mirror Match had used a glove with some kind of flints built into it to start a fire that almost burned the hair off the Assassin’s head. Spectral shuddered, but remembered the heat and explosion.

“What about those gloves?”

“There were records in history of an old mage that had used those. Her name was Beatrix, and she used to perform illusions and magic tricks for the royal court in Old Canterlot. The royals loved her. That glove was one of the tricks she had to make it look like she could start fires.”

“Now that’s an interesting bit of information,” Spectral nodded and leaned her head against Silent’s pillow. “So you’re saying Mirror Match somehow got her hands on that?”

“Either that, or she made one herself,” Silent clicked her fingers. “But it could be possible that Mirror Match has been around that long.”

“What, for real?” Spectral raised an eyebrow. “That’s at least a thousand years!”

“I don’t know, but from what I learned, we should never underestimate Mirror Match or her abilities.”

“Gah!” Spectral covered her face with her hands and sighed. “I don’t know what to think about her!”

Silent walked over from her wall and sat at the edge of the bed. “Well, whatever she is, she’s not like anything we’ve ever faced before. She first came to us like a sweet, innocent girl, but now…”

“She’s really turned out to be quite the mastermind, hasn’t she?” Spectral’s face grew red again as she remembered her actions towards Mirror Match recently. “And what about the queen? Any mention of her in your history books?”

“There was one,” Silent continued. “Have you ever heard of the tale of Draculina?”

“What, that old vampire story from Romarenia? What about it?”

“Draculina was the countess of Trotsylvania. She kind of ruled over the city there, something like a queen, you could say.”

“Alright… And what does Mirror Match have to do with this queen?”

“The version you’ve read is the revised edition of the story, with Countess Draculina and her vampire kin being vanquished at the end by the hunters, Silver Spray and her group. The truth, however, is far less comforting.”

“What, you have the real version?” Spectral, for the first time since last night, voluntarily formed a smile on her face. “Where’d you get something like that? And how do you know if it’s true? Could just be some faked recording or something.”

“It’s all handwritten.” Silent headed to her drawer and dug through a pile of books before finally returning with an old looking one. The cover around the book was an old cow skin, cracked and hardened from age. “And this… Doesn’t look fake, does it?”

“I don’t know…” Spectral remained partially skeptical. “Anyway, go on. What did you want to say?”

Silent Frame smiled and cleared her throat. “Her real name was Countess Winter Solstice, and reportedly, she wasn’t a vampire at all, but something completely different. The kid, Velvet, also mentioned that the vampire Rovena served a Winter Solstice, if I recall.”

“Uh, right. So, you going to tell me what she was?” Spectral asked, awaiting further description. “Was she a werewolf, perhaps?”

“The writer doesn’t say, but on this one page near the end, it makes mention of a small, jagged black dagger that inflicts poisoning on one of the characters. Interesting, wouldn’t you say? The exact quote being ‘a knife of green and black, crooked like a crone’s back and dripping with an unknown toxin’. The writer also mentions he had been poisoned by it, but received the cure. There is a cure, Spectral. For that dagger.”

Spectral and all the other Assassins could never forget the black dagger Mirror Match wielded. She had killed three of their friends using the weapon, and even Dr. Patch couldn’t save them. It was a poison that was unfamiliar to everyone in the medic wing.

“So does that mean that witch has really been around for that long? Oh, she also did mention some emperor’s koi garden when I… You know… So does that mean she’s been telling the truth?”

“It seems so,” Silent closed the book and put it on her lap. “At least, from what I have. There’s not much of concrete evidence, though.”

“But this is good! We’ve got to tell Mentor!” Spectral hopped off the bed, but immediately regretted it. It felt like she was suddenly hit with a hammer; she fell back down on the floor, knocking her head against the bed frame.

“Spectral!” Silent helped her up and against the bed. “Careful. You’re not well.”

“Ah, yeah… I’m not… Sorry.” The Assassin rubbed the back of her head. There was definitely going to be a bruise there. “I think I should get some rest later. What should we do? We need to tell the Mentor! This is important information!”

Silent Frame thought about it, then sat down beside her friend. “I’m not sure that’s such a good idea,” she said.

“What?” Spectral was taken aback. “Why not? You’ve almost figured out what Mirror Match really is! That’s important, right?”

“Think about it,” Silent mused darkly. “The bureau’s already scared witless of Mirror Match. Do you think that’ll change if we tell them that she’s over a thousand years old and has probably survived this long by being even more brutal than she’s been with us? I’m telling you, Draculina alone features people who were more skilled than us. And then there’s the possibility there might be more than just Mirror.”

It was all so much to think about. Spectral Rim placed a hand over her heated head and groaned. “Too much, Silent. It’s hurting my head. You want us to keep this information to ourselves because it might lower morale? What about us?”

“Unless you feel like asking Patch for an amnesiac, there’s not much we can do now, is there?”

“Great. Just great…” Spectral closed her eyes, welcoming the dark. “So we’re pretty much doomed, huh? Our morale’s gonna just drop to a low point and stay there?”

“Well, neither of us is on Mirror’s hit list, so there’s no reason to be afraid…” Silent tried to be upbeat, but then settled back into a brood. “We really can’t tell anyone, can we?”

Spectral sighed and looked over to her friend. “Guess not… At least I’m not alone in this. I hate the be the only one holding a secret.”

“Well, you know what they say,” Silent brushed off her hands and stood up. “Two’s company, three’s a crowd.”

Comments

[Jaxxon Markus Citadel]

“Remember what happened to Glimpse? I don’t think Mirror really loves anyone but herself.”

Well, not quite. Her circle of loved ones is just really, really limited.

Her real name was Countess Winter Solstice, and reportedly, she wasn’t a vampire at all, but something completely different.

Called it. Fake vampire.

We need to tell the Mentor

I have a feeling she already knows.

[Marcthelightspark2004]

“Oh, well, uh… Good to know, pal,” High Noon feebly smiled. “Any missions today? I had a good one with a Saddle Arabian called Ikram yesterday. He’s pretty awesome. You should see him dance through the enemy with his swords. Uh… They’re called skimi- scimy- something. But the way he moves and everything, just wow.”

Scimitars, High Noon. A desert blade.

[Marcthelightspark2004]

“I’m sorry about Windy. I wished I could save her. Satin too. I’m not very good at saving people am I?”

No, no you're not.

[Marcthelightspark2004]

“There was one,” Silent continued. “Have you ever heard of the tale of Draculina?”

Yeeeeees!!!!!! Bloodlines DRACULA!

[Marcthelightspark2004]

Silent Frame smiled and cleared her throat. “Her real name was Countess Winter Solstice, and reportedly, she wasn’t a vampire at all, but something completely different. The kid, Velvet, also mentioned that the vampire Rovena served a Winter Solstice, if I recall.”

Nevermind.

[MoonlightRift]

Patch spun the chair to face the two Assassins. “I’m not a hundred percent sure, but I think I’ve found traces of an aphrodisiac in your blood. Are you sure she didn’t just inject you or something?”

Knew it, I just forgor what it was called 💀