Antique Store II: On a Fragment of Time

I. On Knights and Damsels

         The world was a mass of colored blobs: blue sky, green grass, and the confused gradient where they met. Focus slowly began to separate the seas of color into 2 distinct halves. Slowly, details came into line — as the white dots in the air materialized into clouds and the ocean of green became coated in the texture of thin, stalky blades.

         Then came awareness of feeling. Kamilly, now able to see, became cognizant of the sun beating on her back and the wind turning her organized curls into a tumultuous tangle of hair. Last came the refreshing scent of open air. She was awake.

         "What— what did you do, wishing stone?" She murmured, holding the familiar object. "When I said I yearned for love, I didn't mean immediately. And, even so, how am I supposed to find love in the middle of nowhere?"

         The stone offered no response. Kamilly looked towards the sun to find which way was East. She remembered that Juan — or maybe it was Mima — told her that when lost, it's better to pick one direction and move only that way, so she wouldn't accidentally retrace her steps.

         Kamilly did not know how much time had passed when she arrived at a dirt road. She only knew that her woolen nightwear was unfit for walking on a sunny day, and that the wind kept flinging her hair into her face.

         But then, she heard a noise.

         A deliberate, repeated slamming of hooves on dirt. Horses. Kamilly could only reminisce and descend further into gloom as she remembered the "horse" she had confessed her love to. The knights on horseback came to a stop at her — kicking up the fine, powdered road.

         One of the knights took off her helmet and looked at Kamilly. The woman underneath the armor had mocha skin and long, flowing white hair. Her features were soft, with a smooth chin and slim cheeks that rose into deep green eyes.

         "You're different," she said, dismounting her horse. "How did you get here?"

         "I-I-I— There's—," Kamilly stammered, face red from the warm sun and the beauty of the woman in front of her. "Um, you wouldn't understand. It's magic."

         "No, I do. I am from the future, like you clearly are. You must be very lost if you are here. This land is but a passing shadow compared to what you know. Everything you see is just an ephemeral prison of fragmented time," she articulated, each word deliberate and calm.

         The woman pulled back her sleeve, revealing an arm covered in black lines that formed tally marks.

         "The tallies represent the number of times I have experienced this exact day. I broke the rules of the time stream. Therefore, this day is my eternal prison. Each day has been the same as the last — until I saw you."

         Kamilly took the woman's hand, trying to comfort her. Though flustered and weak, she uttered what calming words she could manage.

         "That sounds terrible. I promise, I will—." She took a breath. "I will—"

         Kamilly was already thirsty when she entered this world, and the heat of its sun dehydrated her when she was walking. Her legs quaked as she spoke, growing steadily less stable. Before finishing her words, fatigue overcame her, and she fainted.

         The knight grabbed Kamilly's limp body as she fell. After the initial shock wore off and she secured Kamilly's condition, the knight gave Kamilly a warm smile and hoisted the small doctor onto her horse.

         "Come, we shall take her to the camp," she said, addressing the other knights she was traveling with. "She can recover while we siege the tower."

         "Yes, Lady Eeshta!" The other knights shouted in unison, riding off with her.

II. On Death

         Cloth walls. Cloth ceiling. A cloth cot. When Kamilly once again became aware of the world, she was surrounded by cloth. A man entered the tent and offered her a bowl of water, which she greedily drank. The lost girl was nearly in tears as the cool liquid restored her stamina. She paused for only a moment to take a breath before draining the bowl completely.

         "Where is the knight?" She managed to utter, recalling the events that led up to her collapse. She wondered if the encounter was a dream or if the woman she met was even real.

         "Lady Eeshta is on the battlefield. Her skills — which are much greater than she had ever spoken of — will deliver us from the evil of the Romans."

         "Eeshta." Kamilly tried to memorize her name.

         Kamilly rose from the cot slowly, allowing her body to regain strength. Her feet carried her forward, until she arrived at the entrance of the tent. She pulled back the entry flap and immediately gagged.

         Kamilly crumbled down to her knees — breathing quick, shallow breaths. Her heart threatened to rip itself from her chest as it beat with violent intensity. She choked and coughed as she tried to keep herself from vomiting.

         Corpses. Roman armor and mauled bodies littered the grassy ground, and blood stained the earth. In the center of the battlefield stood a radiant white lion, its body dirtied by the gore of its fallen foes. On its back were a set of pale bat wings, and it had a large scorpion's tail. The wishing stone was on a necklace around its neck.

         The manticore turned towards Kamilly, blood dripping from its pearlescent fangs.

         The terrified, lonely girl stared into the beast's emerald eyes, and as she gazed into them, the two green orbs lost their intensity. The monster's expression changed from one of bitterness to one of anguish. Its wings unfurled, and it took to the sky, kicking up dust that temporarily blinded Kamilly.

         "Wait!" The Brazilian cried, watching her precious stone grow further from her. Her need for the stone overcame her fear, so she lifted a sword from a disfigured Roman corpse. A hurricane of sadness, disgust, and desperation forced her to sprint after the beast.

         After running for what seemed like an eternity, Kamilly stopped. Her legs began to fail her, and she panted as the manticore disappeared onto the top of a cliff.

         "If only Eeshta were here. She could take me on her horse, and we would be up there in a half-hour," Kamilly said to herself in between breaths.

         After that thought, she fell onto her knees and started to weep into her hands. Just thinking about Eeshta made her realize she was probably one of the fallen fighters that she saw right outside the tent.

         Kamilly's tears dropped from her chin to her lap. She shed tears for her misfortune. She shed tears for the Romans, evil or not. And she shed tears to extinguish the pain from Däsmarchen's flames, even though she was never burned.

         After Kamilly had no more tears left to give, she dried her eyes and looked to the cliff. A narrow path winded to its apex, where she was sure the manticore was hiding. She marched, holding a weapon that not even soldiers could successfully use against the beast. She marched, ignoring any sense of futility or danger. She marched for hours, ignoring exhaustion, pain, and sadness.

         After she had marched hundreds of meters, the dirt underneath her feet began to give. Kamilly screamed as her body plummeted down the steep cliff-side, towards a fatal collision with the cliff's base. She fell and fell, bracing herself for the impact.

III. On Poor Decisions

         But in a blur, her tumble came to a halt. The soft feeling now enveloping Kamilly made her think she was dead, in the embrace of some comfortable afterlife, but then she felt the intensity of the wind around her, which proceeded to suddenly stop. This quick deceleration sent her off the manticore and onto the ground.

         Kamilly rose.

         "Beast, you saved me."

         She approached the untamed manticore and gently held its muzzle in her hands.

         "You're just like her. You have her otherworldly essence, her beautiful white hair, her strong form..."

         "...But for the sake of my heart tell me," Kamilly said as she pressed the manticore's forehead to hers. "Tell me that you are not her."

         The monster's body shrunk and darkened, as its coat began to resemble human skin. Its tail and wings withered in size and melded into flesh. Its mane changed to hair. Its face shortened and softened. When it was done transforming, all that was left was Eeshta lying in the grass, wearing the wishing stone.

         "I thought I had more time. I meant to take you away from the battlefield. I should have never taken you there - but the knight you were with was the only doctor nearby. You must have been horrified. I'm sorry," Eeshta said, taking off the necklace and giving it to Kamilly. "Leave me. Your key is strong enough. Midnight is coming. I cannot guarantee your safety when the day resets."

         "You'll come with me, won't you?"

         "I am a monster. You saw the carnage."

         "I don't want to leave you here. Nobody deserves this."

         "You said you think I'm beautiful. You're just infatuated. I—"

         Eeshta paused for a moment and blushed. She realized this was the first time she had shown her emotions to Kamilly.

         "I also find you beautiful, and you are someone I could potentially fall in love with. However, I will not let my feelings lead me to an irrational decision."

         Kamilly advanced towards Eeshta, who had taken a step back. Kamilly placed a kind hand on the self-proclaimed monster, and she pulled Eeshta close as she wrapped her arm around her. She held Eeshta for a moment, before whispering in her ear.

         "Let's make an irrational decision together."

         Eeshta was shocked. She leaned into Kamilly's embrace and placed her hand on the wishing stone.

         "You know little about me. I am an outcast. I am unclean. I am a beast in a cage. Do you really want to open that cage after everything you've seen?"

         "I want to see tomorrow with you."

         Green light radiated around the two, and they gripped the stone together. As the two disappeared in a flash, Eeshta's prison of false time unraveled. The never-ending day faded, as the pain it had caused Eeshta was replaced with a quiet brightness and calm.