2.20.2 – Keeper of secrets

2.0 - Edited by: Rellawing, AlliterativeArts - 11/21/2020

For the second time that day, Aurora stepped through a portal after Mistral and again found herself in a weird room. It looked like a perfect cube, and it was spotless. That was probably why Anygmah hated visitors, well… there had to be far better reasons.

The room was square along every dimension, all six boundaries of the room, if you counted the floor, were equidistant. It was very much a cube. The walls were featureless and pure white. Where the ambient light emanated from was uncertain. There was no one and nothing except for a hooded figure in robes. Its body was completely concealed by those robes as it stood in the precise center of the cube.

“Mistral,” it said in a whispering voice, “you have brought a new hero, have you not? Aurora, Leo Walker, Leona Ramses… you have many secrets.”

“Anygmah.” Mistral gestured grandly towards Aurora. “I proudly introduce Aurora, my companion in fighting against injustice,” Aurora turned three shades of red when Mistral said that. I AM HER ALLY! KYAAAAA! “And formally request your protection so that she might remain vigilant to external threats.” She bowed.

“I have heard many requests, and so often you heroes so readily expose the secrets I have taken such great care with-- I am obligated by my oath to protect Aurora’s identity from those who might pry in the realms mystic-- but I should wish to offer her yet another boon.”

Anygmah raised an arm and Aurora saw something of the form beneath the robes for a moment.  Its flesh was mummified, tightly clinging to a skeletal hand. “You jealously guard the secret of your gender; from peers your age, from those both empowered and not. I will also keep this secret if you have a secret to trade in exchange,” it whispered.

“What sort of secret?” Leona asked with a mesmerized focus on its mummified hand. She hadn’t expected to see anything like this in… like, her whole lifetime. She tore her eyes away to its hooded and concealed face.

“Well, how about these, I don’t have any really big secrets. My father was a bad man… and my mother was a good woman whose death made him worse. I don’t keep that a secret from anyone who REALLY wants to know as much as I try to distance myself from my past. Not that people really do ask. Sarah, my friend, knows and Mistral does too.” Aurora smiled. “What sort of secret do I have that you would want to know, Anygmah?”

“I am willing to wait,” Anygmah spoke. “Heroes often come across lost and esoteric information. Promise that you will share such knowledge with me and me alone, and I shall keep your secret until I receive said knowledge.”

“That seems unfair, Anygmah,” Mistral said, putting a hand across Aurora’s shoulders protectively. “You claim we carelessly uncover and reveal secrets but now wish for us to banter for the selfsame for your benefit? What if she never comes across such knowledge?”

“Mistral,” it spoke as though the veteran hero’s injection was but a trifle, “your secret bubbles so, you want to share it… do not seek to rush Aurora from my realm because of your weakness.” It pointed directly at Aurora with its gnarled digit. “Aurora, do you accept my terms? There is no cause for alarm if you do not, I simply will not guard it as jealously as I guard the identity of other Heroes.”

Aurora looked from Anygmah to Mistral. She had a secret she wanted to tell her?

She looked at her hero with trusting eyes, and then back to Anygmah. “As long as withholding said information does not hurt the world, my loved ones, other lives, or the other heroes you protect, then I could agree. But if it means otherwise, I’ll simply have to risk the derision and lack of understanding that might come.”

“I accept your terms,” Anygmah said quickly.

Mistral sighed and nodded. “Thank you, Anygmah.” She offered Aurora her hand and spoke again. “Come on, let’s not trouble him any longer.” She pulled her mentee away.

Aurora was so happy to be holding Mistral’s hand she glowed, quite literally. She led her to a wall, what she surmised might be the fourth wall, but that really depended on your viewpoint. Aurora gaped when Mistral touched what must have been some kind of invisible switch and the room literally spun. Stumbling backwards, she found they were in Mistral’s Sacred Sanctum once again. She turned around to find Mistral standing behind the fire in the center of her lodge.

“I’m sorry if he was being a creeper, Anygmah loves secrets before all things. It pleases him when others trust him with those. If I were to hazard a guess, I’d say that it will now be even more difficult to find anything about you. You may not even need to try very hard to hide your true gender in your civilian identity.” Mistral smiled.

Aurora giggled and sighed a breath of relief. “That’s good news, it’s already really awkward getting ID’d now… not that it happens too often to me yet.” Her lips twisted humorously. “It’s okay, though. I trust that he wouldn’t hurt me. He seems wise for a ‘creeper’.” She giggled again for that. “Anyway, do you need to rest again? And do you think I could ever learn to do some real magic? Besides what I normally do with my powers, that is.” Aurora asked, staring up at the sky high above that was very much visible as though the lodge was roofless. If so, what would Mistral do when it snowed? She didn’t ask.

Mistral smiled and flushed with pleasure. “You’re asking me to teach you magic? I don’t know if I would be a good teacher.” She laughed. “Dragonmage’s old mentor, Jade Guardian, would be the best for something like that, but she's… kind of missing now. It’s a long story,” she said tepidly, “Well, if you want to learn real spells, I’m not sure you will have the time if you want to have a semi-normal civilian lifestyle as well, at least for now.”

“As for your concern,” Mistral flexed her free arm. “I didn’t use my own power to teleport us here. The gate I created was a two-way, but we were concealed by Anygmah’s realm when we passed through. That’s why there was an extra wall.”

Aurora blinked at that. Extra wall? She hadn’t seen one. Perfect cube.

Was there another dimension she was missing out on seeing?

“Anyway, we’re ready to go to the Society’s northern Headquarters. Assuming you’re still interested.” Mistral smiled and stepped around the fire, taking Aurora’s hand and squeezing it.

“I sure am!” Aurora bounced and grinned. “But don’t sell yourself short. You’re so much more amazing that I ever even imagined. You’re kind, compassionate, sweet, not at all distant when it comes down to it. You would make a wonderful teacher, I’m sure of it! I’d never force that role on you though, even if it meant spending more time with my favorite hero! That’s definitely another one of those selfish desires of mine,” she stuck out her tongue and winked. Now that she was getting used to being around Mistral, she was able to let more of who she was as Aurora integrate with who she had always been.

Mistral moved to the door and opened it, allowing the cold to billow in, stealing away the warmth of the lodge for a moment. It was the northern wilderness after all.

Aurora stepped over and looked outside. They were in a snowy forest.

Aurora figured they truly were above the frost-line somewhere in Canada, just as her mentor said.

“This is my own personal fort of solitude,” Mistral said with a grin. “If we can get you a communicator, I’ll give you my number. Maybe we can hang out sometime, make an official team-up.”

Aurora’s jaw dropped before an ear-to-ear smile took over her face, her heart overflowing with her happiness. “Yes, please!”

“Let’s go!” Mistral grinned and whooshed up into the skies. Aurora stared momentarily before charging up after her, catching up in an instant. They laughed together.

“I envy that speed of yours!” said Mistral jovially.

They moved along for some time at a pace Aurora soon felt was a bit slow for her tastes, but nonetheless it was wonderful flying by Mistral’s side. It took forty-five minutes before a city came into sight off in the distance.

“Up ahead, that’s Ottawa… and we’re headed for a building called ‘Clubhouse Three’,” Mistral explained. “It’s an entry point to the Society’s Headquarters elsewhere. I’ll be bringing you in as my guest,” she added.

“Right! I can’t believe I’m actually in Canada! Another whole country!” Leona squeed and barrel rolled, expressing her sublime joy. “I’ve never been outside the States in my life… and now I get to see the world! I never thought about that perk before! I’m really really looking forward to this!” Mistral smiled fondly at Aurora, who was spinning, practically cartwheeling in air, dancing through the clouds.

If you want others to love you, be the best kid inside you can. Magic can happen.