Time and Time Again

Circitain was a beautiful town that built itself from its contrasts. Its wondrous atmosphere married with its previous status. People made light of their dark as they used the rejected items from the streets to create wondrous art pieces.

The children of the time ran carefree with their friends and their worried parents told them to be home before seven and to not leave their sights. Couples holding hands in the streets shied away from the shadows for fear of something lurking in them.

May was a 30-year-old mage. She had a vine-like design on her hand that represented the earthen-enhanced powers she was born with. It wasn’t often that she came here, as her silken robes showed her as one of the mages who worked with the royal family, but something unexpected happened.

In the underbelly of the city, the spy network she was in charge of caught what seemed like a rink that participated in the illegal trading of sprites– Creatures whose bodies are made from pure mana, they are little glowing balls that come in all sorts of colors.

These spirits, despite their prankful nature, were important to the environment, therefore the hunting of them was made a crime. Yet, some people couldn’t get over the idea of using pure things to enhance their powers or make some money.

She was sent in to gather information so that the ‘rink busters’ as they call them could do their job. Her expertise in stealth potions made her an easy choice.

Yet, she needed some muscle.

It was why, despite the beliefs instilled in her since she was young, she walked into one of the popular bars. Loud music slammed in her ears the moment she stepped on through. She slipped past the people dancing and fighting, careful to not get any of the spilled blood on her shoes.

Her eyes danced about the wooden building with booths lining the walls. When she spotted a woman with long, white hair and pointed ears, she knew she had her girl.

Tylor, a rogue fay known as the Earthbender of the West, was powerful yet enigmatic. While she couldn't lie, she excelled at weaving half-truths and misleading information.

She was a dangerous alley, but one May needed right now.

As she approached the fay, she noticed that she was staring down at something– A little gadget that was recently invented called a wristwatch.

She saw the other’s mouth move. She traced her lips to see what she was saying– To try and make out if this was some elaborate trick. She knew faeries had their version of spoken spells, so she needed to know what the other was casting.

Yet, to her slight embarrassment, she realized that the woman was only counting. The fay’s focus was fully on her wristwatch, a recent invention, as she counted the seconds that ticked by.

“Counting the time?” May asked. She couldn’t help the confusion that spread through her.

The fay looked up at her. She seemed shocked, at first, as she took May in, but a pleasant smile graced her face.

“Five o’clock,” Tylor said, “Right on schedule.”

May rolled her eyes and took a seat in front of Tylor.

She reached into her robes pulled out her binder and opened it onto the table.

“Alright, now let's get this done quickly. I have work I would like to get done,” she stated as she pushed some notes over to Tylor.

The other hummed, “You don’t like to feedly, huh?” She asked. May shook her head, she did not. The fay took the words out of her mouth.

She furrowed her brows, “Number one, we know where the base is,” she stated plainly, “And we also know that a person within the rink is going to show up here, as he does so almost daily.”

“Number two, we’re going to follow this person to the entrance of his base, and use him opening it to slip inside,” she explained coldly. Tylor looked at her.

“You have your invisibility potion, right? The lesser one that needs you to hold your breath?” She questioned. May nodded. She hadn’t realized her inventory would be a part of the information sent over to Tylor, she felt a bit embarrassed about that.

“Excellent.” The woman with white hair smiled at her pleasantly. “We’re going to have about three minutes to kill– What do you want to do till then?”

Internally, May groaned. She should’ve expected this woman to be the sort who is looking to get out of talking about work– Having been the most feared sorceress, or magic-wielding fay, in the West will instill a sort of ego in a person that May was just not ready for.

“We go over the plan,” May stressed. “We need to–”

Tylor waved her off, “We need to get information about trade routes, the main bases, the head of the rink, and, hopefully, weak points but we’re unlikely to find them. I’m meant to stay behind you and look out for danger, while you crack the passcodes. I got it, princess.”

May’s face flushed red. “Did– Did you send my plans?” She sputtered a bit. It wasn’t a bad thing, she just needed to know what all the palace had sent over.

Tylor shrugged. “They sent over a few papers with your name on them.”

The silence stretched on for a long time before they finally started to talk again. Unease rested in May’s gut.

Tylor sat in front of her, and the confidence radiating off of her added to that sense. She couldn’t read past the mask the fay had put on.

But as the tense conversation went on, Tylor tapped her.

“The dudes about to come in, stay on guard.”

Curious as to how she knew all of this, she looked over to the door. Sure enough, seconds after she had said that the man they were looking for walked in.

He was tall and sturdy. He had a glowering face with stubble on his chin.

He was able to slip through the bar unnoticed, though. Being a regular, the other customers were used to him, and the owners were able to instantly know what he was going to get the moment he sat down.

The two girls sat there silently for a moment before Tylor picked the conversation back up.

May tried to make the words flow naturally, but it was getting harder by the minute.

She just… There was something about the day that was bugging her.

The way she talked, how she laughed, the way she positioned herself… There was something about it that was as though the fay knew May on an intimate level, as though they’d been friends for decades.

As much as May just wanted to do her mission and leave, it bugged her. The fay stirred something in her– A feeling of familiarity and some form of comfort that she couldn’t quite place.

As they chatted, May kept an eye on the man.

When she saw him head out of the bar, she signaled to Tylor. It was time.

Keeping to the shadows, they weaved through the back streets of the village, keeping the man in their sights.

When he stopped at a wall, May held up her hand to stop.

She watched as he riffled through his bag, and she knew that this was it.

She got out the potion– A dark purple shimmering liquid and downed half of it before giving the other half to the fay next to her.

They swallowed at the same time, and, to the world around them, vanished into thin air.

Holding their breaths, they crept around the corner and got as close as they could.

They watched as the man took something out of his bag and placed it on the wall. It was a circular stone painted red with five wings coming out of a dragon’s head.

The stone’s design lit up like an engraving on the wall, and suddenly there was a swirling circular entrance.

As the man walked through, the two followed inside.

The area was small and made of wood. It had boxes piled on top of each other. It looked like an old warehouse.

The room had two doors on opposite sides, one with light shining through, and the other one that the man was heading to.

May knew they couldn’t keep holding their breaths for long, so she grabbed Tylor and got them both behind some boxes, allowing them to breathe.

They sat there for a moment before they heard a door open and close.

May looked around a bit more. “Okay,” she breathed. “It seems like there’s two ways out of here,” she notes. “Through the door that man just went through– And a door that has some light coming through it.”

They should more than likely continue to follow the man.

“We should follow him.”

May looked at Tylor, a bit shocked. She merely shrugged. “That was what you were thinking, right?” She asked.

May only nodded. “Okay– Do you have, like, mind-reading abilities?”

“I know what’s going through your head,” she said with a shrug.

She rolled her eyes. “Come on, let’s get going.”

The two trailed the went through interconnecting hallways that made the building seem more like a maze. They watched as he looked into rooms with clutter scattered about and were dimly lit.

May was starting to realize that this might have been a hopeless way of doing the mission. They couldn’t get close to the man without revealing themselves, but they couldn’t see where he was going.

She was about to say something when Tylor grabbed her arm.

“In here,” the fay whispered.

She dragged May into a room and closed the door when they got inside.

May looked at her, confused.

“I’ll stay by the door,” she whispered, “You do what you have to do.”

May was just perplexed at this point. She looked around the room and realized she was in a storage area of sorts. Filing cabinets lined the walls, and there was an older thick file book.

She glanced at Tylor as she walked toward the book. “How'd you know this was in here? Was there a sign?”

Tylor hummed, “I just knew it,” she stated.

May paused as she opened the book. “How?”

“I knew what the outside of this room looked like.”

May looked over and saw that Tylor was avoiding her eyes by looking at the door.

“How?”

Tylor huffed. “We don’t have enough time–” “What ties do you have to this organization?”

That was when the fay looked at her and blinked. “I have no connections or alliances with this organization,” she stated.

May felt some relief in that. It was the most she had ever gotten out of this girl.

She turned back to the book and skimmed through, trying to find what she needed. “We’re working together here, why won’t you tell me what you know?”

“I’ve tried before,” she stated. “But you don’t seem to remember, so what’s the point?”

“What?” May sputtered, “Wh–”

She gasped as she looked at the papers she had just flipped to.

“That’s what we need, right?” Tylor asked for her response.

She nodded.

“Yeah– A map of bases and trade routes–” She ripped out the page and flipped some more, “And some of the connections they have.”

She pulled out the needed page and stuffed it into her book.

“Alright, we have what we need, we gotta head out.”

Tylor nodded before turning to the door and opening it.

Right as she did so, they came face to face with the man they had been stalking before.

The three just stared at each other for a moment.

“Huh–” May sputtered.

“Night-night!”

Tylor threw a punch right into the dude's face, causing him to land on the ground and hit his head. He groaned in pain.

“Let’s go!”

Tylor grabbed May and started to bolt.

May yelped as she was dragged through the hall, she strapped her book down and fumbled with her potions.

“Here!” She shouted as she grabbed out a potion that swirled a bright purple. It was just a tiny veil, but it would be enough.

Right as she handed it over to Tylor, more people rounded the corner.

“Drink it!” May screamed, her voice panicked.

Tylor didn’t need to be told twice.

She downed the thing.

Suddenly, the world around them turned a hue of pink, and they were purple.

Ropes wrapped around them, and they were suddenly being dragged past the group and through the wall.

Trees and buildings were whipped by them, if they could feel the air, they would’ve been whipped with it.

When they got to the front of the bar they met at, they screamed as they were suddenly thrust out of the ghost-like form they were in.

They caught themselves on each other as they stumbled. Their legs are jelly as they try to adjust to gravity once more.

May tried to breathe through the transition. Even though she has been doing that for a few months it has yet to get easier.

“Come on,” Tylor suddenly said, “People are staring and the dude will come back here, let’s go somewhere else.”

With a nod, May felt herself being led away. A small smile formed on her face.

Tylor had gotten them into an alleyway a ways away from the bar. The two leaned against the wooden wall, regaining their bargains after everything that had happened.

May looked over at Tylor and saw the fay's eyes closed. She was breathing in and out as evenly as she could. She looked… Peaceful like this.

May let out a sigh and looked forward. “Do you think we will be working together again?” She suddenly asked.

Tylor looked at her with a hum. “Depends– How do you rate your mission experience?” She teased. May chuckled, “More like a babysitting experience.”

Tylor jabbed her with her elbow, and May shoved her back.

As May’s smile fell, she spoke again. “I’m sorry for accusing you of working with the rink,” she said.

Tylor hummed, “It’s alright, not the first time it happened.”

While playing with her fingers, May continued, “Look, I don’t know who you are or what you’ve done, but there’s… Something about you that is familiar in a way.”

Tylor seemed to stiffen when she admitted this, she looked over at her. “I know what you mean,” the fay admitted.

May nodded, “I’d like to get to know you a bit better, so that next time we go on a mission, I won’t accuse you of working with the enemy.”

Tylor nodded and then her hand went into her pocket. Moments later, she pulled out a card and held it out to May.

She took the card and looked at it. On it was the code to a mana link, a way to send letters by mana.

“That’s my mana code,” Tylor said as she got up with a stretch.

As she started to walk away, she spoke softly and full of care.

“Keep in touch, Soul-geld.”

May looked at her as she walked away. That name stirred something in her, an unspoken history that May didn’t know of left her spinning.

As Tylor walked away, she couldn’t help the smile that was placed on her face.

For 30 years, Tylor had endured heartache and solitude, each reincarnation a bittersweet reminder of a love lost and regained.

Yet, whenever she sees the new form her lover takes, she falls for her all over again. With every encounter, she found solace in the brief moments they shared.

She knows how it will end. She knows her partner will take the rebirth oath once more. She knows soon after, she will die.

She knew how it was going to start– The two would never meet until the week after the mage turned 30 at five in the afternoon.

But she never knew what the middle would hold, and that was always the thing that excited her the most.

Her immortal heart has been broken time and time again.

Yet, it becomes worth it every time.