Without either Talia or Calenelda noticing, the sun had already climbed over its highest point in the sky. The shadows became short and heavy, as did the heat. They had been so caught in planning over how to lure the Colossus here that they hadn't noticed. Though Calenelda seemed more lovestruck than usual. Those three words kept going through her mind.
You love me.
Talia wasn't wrong in that. She was madly head over heels in love with her. Even if she couldn't fully explain why. There was just something about Talia that made her willing to throw herself away just to be with her.
But was that feeling mutual? Talia hadn't said she loved her. She had however kissed her and then pretended it didn't happen. Why did she have to be so stubborn? So thick headed. So infuriating.
"...enelda?"
Calenelda suddenly snapped from her thoughts. "What?"
"You've been staring at the clouds for the last half an hour." Talia said with a smirk.
"Have not." Calenelda objected, waving a hand in front of her eyes. "I can't have."
She did like to remind Talia that she was blind. It also amused her how easily Talia forgot that she couldn't see.
"You know," Calenelda began with a soft voice. "Calling the Colossus might require me to push my limits again."
"I know." Talia sighed. "So please let me help."
"But you're.."
"Learning to control my light." Talia cut her short before she could finish that sentence. "You can't deny that I have improved loads since we first met." She gave a short confident smirk.
"Well…" Calenelda started teasingly, only to receive a playful jab.
"Hey!" Then Talia decided to return the tease. "Unlike you, my reserve is still full."
"Because you didn't fight draconians."
"Alone. I didn't fight Draconians alone."
"And look where that got you.." Talia gave her a stern look, forgetting once again that the woman in front of couldn't see it. She did however see Calenelda's expression change. For once, she looked genuinely worried.
"Talia… There is something you should know."
"What is it?"
"The Colossus, the one I saved you from?"
"Mhm." Talia nodded. "The one we're going to call."
"That was just a juvenile…"
Talia's eyes grew wide in shock.
"If we try to call it…" Calenelda swallowed. "Its mother might answer."
Silence followed. The heat suddenly seemed considerably more oppressive than before.
Talia stared at her. "You're joking."
"I wish I were." Calenelda sighed.
"You fought that thing."
"Yes."
"You needed Stonefang's help."
"Yes."
"And that was a juvenile?"
Calenelda tilted her head. "Technically."
Talia slowly lowered the map she had been using for their plans. "How large was the mother?"
Calenelda was quiet for a moment. "I don't know."
"That is not an answer I like."
"I've never seen one."
"That is somehow worse."
Calenelda's lips twitched. "I've heard stories."
"Stories?"
"Old ones."
"Calenelda." Talia's stern look returned.
The Diviner raised both hands defensively. "I am telling you now."
"You were going to let us lure something here without telling me its mother might be twice the size?"
"Three times, according to one account."
Talia's mouth fell open.
Calenelda winced. "I probably shouldn't have said that."
"No. You definitely shouldn't have." Talia began pacing. "We need to rethink this."
"We do."
"Entirely."
"Probably."
"No."
Calenelda smiled faintly. "You're doing the thing."
"What thing?"
"The thing where you pretend you're not scared by walking faster."
Talia stopped. "I am not scared."
"You are."
"I am concerned."
"That's the polite word for scared."
"I'm a Paladin."
"That doesn't make you immune to having sense."
Talia opened her mouth to argue, then stopped. She looked toward the distant dunes.
"What happens if its mother comes?"
Calenelda's expression became serious again. "We don't fight it."
Talia looked back at her. "That simple?"
"No." The Diviner rested a hand against the earth. "The juvenile was territorial. Hungry. Aggressive. But it was still young. Its movements were predictable. I knew I could stop it." She pointed towards the distant Draconians. "It could be guided towards them."
"And the mother can't?" Talia wanted to know. Needed to know.
"Even with the two of us at full power we can't take it on."
The certainty with which Calenelda spoke unsettled Talia. At the same time it reassured her that even this reckless woman wouldn't charge into this danger. Then again, that probably meant something about the scale of this danger.
"If we get the Draconians to attack it, it will turn on them.." Calenelda continued.
"And we can save Foxglove." Talia reluctantly came to a conclusion and folded her arms. "You could have started with that."
"I was distracted."
"By what?"
Calenelda's smile became smaller. "Clouds."
Talia stared at her. "You were staring at clouds."
"I was thinking."
"About me?"
Calenelda's cheeks warmed. "Perhaps."
Talia's own face reddened.
She looked away. "Right. Well. We have a giant monster to worry about."
"Two giant monsters."
"Calenelda."
"I said I shouldn't have mentioned that."
Talia groaned and rubbed her temples. For a few moments neither spoke. Then Calenelda's hand tightened against the earth. Her smile disappeared.
"But there is something else."
Talia looked at her. "What?"
"If the mother comes…" Calenelda hesitated. "…I may need to use everything I have."
Talia's expression hardened. "You're still exhausted."
"I've recovered."
"Not fully." Calenelda said nothing. Talia knew that silence. "You're running on reserves."
"A little."
"A little?"
"Perhaps more than a little."
Talia sighed. "You're impossible."
"I've been told."
"And if it comes to a fight?"
Calenelda's face softened. "Then I need you to remember something."
"What?"
"You don't have to save me."
Talia's eyes narrowed. "Absolutely not."
"I mean it."
"So do I."
"Talia—"
"No." The Paladin stepped closer until Calenelda could feel the warmth radiating from her armor. "You don't get to decide that I'm going to stand on the sidelines while you throw yourself at something that could swallow you whole."
Calenelda smiled. "You really are stubborn."
"And you're reckless."
"I lost my fear."
"I know." Talia's voice softened. "But that doesn't mean you have to lose your caution too."
That silenced Calenelda. For a moment, neither woman spoke. Then Calenelda reached out and found Talia's hand. Her fingers closed around it.
"I'll try."
Talia squeezed back. "That's all I'm asking."
For once, Calenelda allowed herself to just enjoy being near Talia. The feeling of her hand in hers. The touch of her skin. The warmth. Thinking back on it, she wasn't certain anymore if she fought the Colossus to protect Tan'Thalon or if she fought it to keep Talia safe. She had sensed it long before anyone in the patrol noticed. The immense presence beneath the earth had felt like a warning, a pressure building beneath her feet that only she could understand. Yet the moment she realized Talia was in its path, every thought of caution had vanished. There had been no council, no city, no duty in her mind then. There had only been Talia, and the desperate certainty that she could not let anything happen to her. Perhaps that was when she had first begun to understand just how far she was willing to go for the woman beside her. A pressure beneath her feet…
A realization just hit her. She squeezed the hand in excitement as almost simultaneously a wide lopsided grin appeared.
"I know how we can call it!"
Talia quirked an eyebrow. "I'm not sure if I should be thrilled about that or fearful."
"Both are reasonable."
Calenelda turned slightly toward the open desert, her smile widening. She lowered her free hand toward the sand, fingers hovering just above its surface. Below it, her magic reacted by solidifying the sand.
"When I fought the juvenile, I noticed something strange. It didn't react to what Stonefang could see. It reacted to what I could feel."
Talia frowned. "Meaning?"
"Vibrations." Calenelda tapped her bare fingers against the ground. "The creature senses the world through them. The sand tells it what is nearby. Footsteps. Movement. Impact. Even changes in the earth."
Talia snapped her fingers. "Like you."
"Exactly like me." Her expression became thoughtful. "When it disappeared beneath the sand, I could still track it. Not because I could see where it was, but because I could feel how it moved through the earth. It was doing the same thing to me."
Talia stared in confusion. She had never heard Calenelda use the term seeing before. Calenelda in turn noticed and before she could ask, already gave an answer.
"Oh, by seeing I mean sound." She clicked her tongue against her palate. "Like this."
Talia still stared. "You continue to amaze me. You see with sound?"
"Sort of, I guess." Calenelda shrugged. "I don't know what seeing is. I can tell where things are."She shook her head. "I'll explain later. But back to the colossus."
"So you think we can make it think something is here?"
"Not something." Calenelda's grin returned. "Something worth coming to."
Talia stared at her for a moment. "You want to bait a Desert Colossus."
"Yes."
"With vibrations."
"Yes."
"By deliberately making the ground feel like prey."
"Or a rival. Or another Colossus." Calenelda shrugged. "I'm still working out that part."
Talia sighed. "Of course you are."
Calenelda laughed softly and leaned closer.
"We don't need to overpower it. We just need to make it curious enough to come here. The Draconians will keep it occupied."
"And if its mother comes instead?"
The grin disappeared for half a heartbeat. "Then we improvise and hope the Draconians still occupy it."
"That is not reassuring."
"It wasn't supposed to be."
Talia shook her head, but a reluctant smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. Then her eyes wandered down Calenelda's battered form.
The Diviner was still dressed mostly in what remained of her clothing from the journey: tattered fabric, several hastily replaced wrappings, and bandages crossing her bronze skin where the earlier battles had left their marks. Calenelda clearly hadn't given her state of dress a second thought. Talia, unfortunately, had. It was basically undergarments with bandages.
"Calenelda?"
"Hm?"
"Shouldn't you put some proper clothes on?"
Calenelda tilted her head. "Why?"
Talia's eyes immediately moved away. "Because…" She cleared her throat. "Because you're distracting me."
There was a beat of silence. Then Calenelda's lopsided smile slowly returned.
"Oh." There was the tease in her voice again. "Talia."
"I mean—"
"You're distracted."
"I didn't say—"
"You did." Calenelda stepped closer, deliberately enough that Talia took a half-step backward. "By me?" She ran a hand over her bare side.
Talia's face flushed. "By your lack of clothing."
"That's very specific." Calenelda smirked even more, tugging at the fabric that still covered her chest. This snapped the final strand and sent the fabric sliding down. Talia immediately looked away, her cheeks on fire. Something told her that Calenelda did that on purpose.
"Calenelda."
"I could put something on."
"Please do."
Calenelda considered this. Then she smiled mischievously.
"No."
Talia dared to look back at her, seeing she still had a smaller chest wrap covering her bust. It left little to imagine the size of her bust though. She had slightly more volume than her, which actually made her a little jealous. Talia's cheeks turned so hot that Calenelda could almost feel it. Finally she managed to speak again. "No?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because apparently it's helping my strategy."
"What strategy?"
Calenelda leaned toward her, lowering her voice. "Distracting the Paladin."
Talia's mouth fell open. "You are impossible."
"And yet you love me."
The words slipped out almost casually, though both of them froze. Calenelda's grin softened. Talia looked away, suddenly very interested in the horizon.
"I—" She wanted to object, to raise her walls, but somehow was unable to.
Calenelda squeezed her hand again. "You don't have to answer."
That somehow made Talia's blush worse. The Diviner turned back toward the desert, still smiling. It wasn't an acknowledgement yet, but it wasn't denial either. At the very least, that was something.
"Come on, Wildfire. We have a giant creature to summon."
Talia exhaled through her nose. "One day, I'm going to stop following you into these things."
"No, you won't."
"Probably not." Talia took a long, slow breath. "So.. What is this big idea of yours? How are vibrations going to lure it here?"
Calenelda only smiled. "It's probably easier if I just showed you."
She lowered herself into the sand. "Wait."
Talia stopped. The Diviner knelt and placed both palms against the ground. For several seconds, nothing happened. Then Calenelda inhaled deeply.
"Stay still."
Talia obeyed. She already knew what Calenelda was capable of. What worried her was her lack of restraint at the moment. She was running on fumes and still she was bent on getting Foxglove out, no matter the cost. Calenelda closed her eyes to protect against the sand rather than necessity. Her fingers spread against the warm sand, feeling the countless tiny movements beneath them. She felt the grains of sand move beneath her. The wind disturbed the surface. Sand shifted against sand. Somewhere in the distance, a lizard scurried beneath a stone. She described everything in detail to Talia, noticing how curious she was.
"You can really see all of that?" Talia asked in wonder.
"Yes. That lizard just caught a sand beetle too. And no, this isn't straining my magic too much."
She pushed all of it aside. There. Something far away and deep beneath the desert. Slow. Massive. Sleeping. Recovering. Her expression changed.
"It heard us."
Talia glanced around. "I don't hear anything."
"You wouldn't." Calenelda smiled. "That's the advantage."
She pressed her palm harder into the ground. "This however, will strain me."
The earth answered. A low vibration spread outward from beneath her hands. It wasn't strong enough to be felt immediately, but it travelled through the sand in widening ripples, disappearing beneath the dunes like waves. Calenelda concentrated. Again. This time the vibration was stronger. A dull thump travelled through the desert.
Talia felt it beneath her boots. "Was that you?"
"Mm-hm."
Another Thumb. The sand around them trembled along with it.
Calenelda's smile widened. "It's listening."
Far away, something shifted the dunes. The sound was almost too deep to be called a roar. More like the desert itself groaning.
Talia's amusement vanished. "How long?"
"Until it reaches us?"
"Yes."
Calenelda tilted her head. "At its current speed? Not long."
"Wonderful." Talia looked toward the distant dunes. "Where do we want it?"
Calenelda pointed. "Toward the draconians."
Talia stared at her. "You want to lead that thing toward them?"
"That is the plan."
Talia could already see the toll it took on Calenelda. She had thought it a bad idea to begin with. Talia looked toward the approaching disturbance. Then back at Calenelda. Color started to withdraw from her face.
"Good." She drew her sword. "Fine."
Calenelda frowned. "Talia—"
The Paladin stepped away. "Keep it coming."
"Talia. What are you…"
Talia turned. "Trust me."
Calenelda's expression tightened. "I do."
"Then trust me properly."
Before Calenelda could answer, Talia slammed the flat of her sword against her shield.
CLANG!
The sound rang across the desert. She did it again.
CLANG.
Then she channelled light through the metal. The third strike erupted with a sharp flash. The Colossus felt that and stopped. Calenelda felt its attention shifting.
Her grin disappeared. "Talia, don't…"
The Paladin raised her shield toward the dunes. "Come on, you oversized insect."
Without warning the ground exploded. Talia barely had time to throw herself sideways as a massive limb tore through the sand where she had been standing. She rolled, came up on one knee, and laughed breathlessly.
"Oh, you definitely heard that."
Calenelda could feel the creature's vibrations changing. Its enormous body was turning. Away from her. Toward Talia.
"You have its attention," Calenelda called.
"I noticed!"
"Now run!"
Talia sprinted. The Colossus followed. Each of its movements sent tremors through the desert. Talia could feel them even through her armor, but unlike Calenelda, she couldn't interpret them. She didn't need to. She only needed to stay alive. She ran toward the distant ridge where the Draconian patrol had been positioned. The Colossus surged after her. Talia glanced over her shoulder. She could see the giant mandibles and a centipede-like body. Too close. She recognized it as the juvenile they had fought months ago but wasn't sure if she should feel relieved or terrified.
"Come on!"
She raised her shield and released another burst of light. The creature recoiled.
Talia grinned. "That all you've got?"
Behind her, Calenelda continued driving rhythmic pulses through the earth.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Each vibration kept the Colossus oriented. Following a certain pattern. But then Calenelda felt something was wrong. The creature's movement wasn't matching the pattern anymore. It wasn't simply following Talia. It was learning. Her smile disappeared.
"Talia!"
The Paladin looked back. "What?"
"Don't let it get beside you!"
"Why?"
"Because it isn't chasing you anymore."
Talia's stomach dropped. "What is it doing?"
Calenelda's fingers dug into the sand. "It is predicting where you're going."
Talia looked ahead. The Draconians were just visible beyond the ridge. They had found their dead comrades by now. Then she looked back at the Colossus. For the first time, she understood what Calenelda had meant. They weren't hunting a mindless beast.
They were trying to outthink something that had spent its entire life reading the desert through vibrations.
Talia grinned despite herself. "Good."
Calenelda frowned. "Good?"
"If it can learn…" Talia lowered her shield. "…then so can I."
And she changed direction sharply, dragging the Colossus into a wide arc toward the Draconian patrol. Calenelda felt the change immediately and reacted accordingly. She adjusted the vibrations and simultaneously raised one of the dunes to guide the Colossus in Talia's path.
Her grin returned. "That's my Wildfire."
Talia heard her faintly over the thunder of the approaching Colossus. "Don't call me that!"
Calenelda laughed. Their plan was actually starting to work.
In the distance Talia could hear the Draconians. She didn't understand their language but she could see them pointing at the approaching Colossus with wide, animated gestures. They shouted to one another, weapons already being drawn. She could only assume they saw the Colossus as a dragon. And from a distance, she understood the mistake.
The other mistake was that Talia was now standing directly between them. She hadn't accounted for that.
"Oh no…"
Instinctively, Talia raised her shield and summoned a burst of light. The world became white. The Colossus lunged.
Calenelda could only shout. She was in no shape to intervene. "Talia!"
One of the draconians, a huge muscular warrior, his body covered in old scars—pointed furiously at the Colossus and shouted something Talia could only interpret as 'False dragon'. Then he threw his spear. It struck the Colossus with a deafening crack, burying itself deep between the plates of its carapace. The creature screamed. The Draconians answered with a roar of their own. Talia's stomach dropped. They weren't afraid. They were hunting it. And she was standing between them. She found herself in a very dangerous position, and the only support she had was dangerously low on her magic.
Another spear flew straight for her. Talia threw up her shield. Light exploded outward. The spear struck the barrier and spun away, but the force nearly knocked her from her feet. Then the Colossus lunged again. Talia braced herself. A massive shadow passed overhead.
And then—
Silence. For one impossible heartbeat, everything stopped. Calenelda held her breath. The vibrations had ceased. Their plan had worked. But Talia—
"No."
Calenelda stretched her awareness through the sand. Nothing. No armored footsteps. No familiar pulse. No trace of Talia. Her face went pale.
"No.. Talia!" She cried out.