Chain the Infamous Chainmaid 2

Consciousness was slow to return to the chainmail clad maid. Even though her eyes had begun to open her mind was held captive two years prior. Flames raged all around her when she was but thirteen springs of age and there were no recognizable landmarks to be seen. For as far as the eye could see only scorched earth still aflame greeted the girl. It did not matter the direction she turned all that she saw did not change. All except for a girl more peculiar than herself.

The girl with bright red hair was bawling her eyes out but it was not with human hands that she tried to dry her tears but rather feathered wings of pure white color. Her lack of human features did not end there however as she had a similarly feathered tail and was possessed of stilt like feet as long as her shins that ended in eagle-like talons. The girl was obviously a harpy but not a savage beast as implied by the large blue beads that adorned the thick locks of hair on either side of her face and the blue scarf that held the rest of her hair in a tight ponytail. Her modesty was also mostly preserved as she wore a custom white leotard.

“Melody! Thank goodness!”

The maid reached out for the harpy who turned accusatory and tearful eyes upon her. Stunned by the look in the harpy’s eyes the maid stopped and slightly retracted her hand.

“Melody, what’s–?”

“How could you Link?! Look what you’ve done! There isn’t anything left! You destroyed all of it! How could you!”

“Melody… I… I… I just wanted to save you…”

“Never again Link! Promise me, never again. You’ll never use your Relic like that ever again! Promise me!”

“Melody… I…”

“…couldn’t keep that promise. Ugh.”

Groaning the maid leaned back and pressed her back against the wall of the cell she woke in. Looking up she scanned her current environment with her eyes and donned an unamused expression.

“Well looks like someone has a great sense of humor. Still…”

Looking around again and testing the shackles that held her arms above her head as she sat on the floor with her legs in a double-u shape the maid more seriously evaluated her situation.

“It looks like you really messed up this time Chain.”

Chain hung her head and exhaled heavily as though to purge her body of all that she had recently done wrong. Taking a deep breath she attempted to stand and discovered that her ankles had been shackled directly to the floor.

“Well that’s going a bit too far.”

(NOT AT ALL, HATCHLING.)

“Who…?!”

Chain spoke the question out loud which she knew was unnecessary as the inhuman voice had obviously originated within her own head. Calming herself down from her initial surprise Chain closed her eyes and concentrated on trying to respond in kind.

(I don’t know who you are but if you’re the warden of this cheap prison you’ll regret jumping inside my head.)

(HRM, HRM, HRM, HRM, HRM. I WOULD LIKE NAUGHT MORE THAN TO SEE THE EXTENT OF YOUR FURY HATCHLING. ALAS, I AM NOT YOUR JAILOR SO YOUR FURY MEANS LITTLE AIMED AT ME.)

(Well, I think I’ll be the judge of that. I’m not particularly fond of having unwanted guests inside my head.)

(YOU WOULD DO WELL TO RECOGNIZE THE FORTUNE THAT BEFALLS YOU HATCHLING.)

(Fortune huh?)

Opening her eyes again Chain once more studied the cell that held her. There was nothing particularly special about it but there were signs that informed of her situation.

(The walls are assembled brick and they look pretty worn with age so this isn’t an impromptu prison made by that idiot. And the air…)

Chain took a deep breath and tasted the air on her tongue.

(Yeah, it’s a lot thicker than up in the Stormroots and definitely reeks of human meddling so I’m out of the mountains, though who knows where Melody and the others are now.)

A wry smile pulled at Chain’s lips and she turned her attention back to the voice inside her head.

(Sorry, but my fortunes aren’t looking so hot at the moment. There’s a lot I don’t know right now and there’s a fair bit of the unknown that’s making me anxious. Talking to a voice inside of my head isn’t really doing me any favors either.)

(I AM MUCH MORE THAN A MERE VOICE, HATCHLING. I AM THURLIX AND ONE WHO WOULD WEEN YOUR MISERABLE SELF.)

(Thurlix huh? You’ll have to forgive me for being a little bit doubting but that sounds like a dragon’s name.)

(DID YOU THINK NOT THAT YOUR ACTIONS WOULD EARN THE ATTENTION OF THE DRAGON WORSHIPPED IN THE STORMROOTS)

“What?! CRAP!!”

So shocked was Chain she exclaimed aloud her surprise and immediately shouted an oath and would have jumped if not for her restraints. Doubling over with pain Chain spread her lips in a strained smile.

“I swear, whoever it is who put these restraints on me is going to have hell to pay if I get my hands in them.”

(THEN UNLEASH YOUR FURY HATCHLING. WHAT YOU SHOWED ME IN YOUR BATTLE WITH THE HEROES WHO PLAGUED YOUR JOURNEY THROUGH THE STORMROOTS WAS MORE ENTERTAINMENT THAN I HAVE EXPERIENCED IN CENTURIES. I WOULD WELCOME SEEING YOU BEGET FURTHER DESTRUCTION IF ONLY TO RELIEVE THIS MONOTONY.)

(Well, now I’m going to have to disappoint you.)

Leaning back and relaxing against the cell wall Chain closed her eyes and smiled.

(If you would have jumped into my head a few seconds sooner you might have realized that I made a promise a long time ago not to go that far ever again. Though, depending on how things went when I lost my head out there I may yet find myself angry enough to let loose that level of destruction again. Right now though, I don’t have a clue about way too many things so I think I’m just going to sit tight for a few days until I can put together a picture that makes sense.)

(PERHAPS I SHALL ENLIGHTEN YOU THEN TO WHAT IT IS THAT AWAITS YOU SHOULD WASTE YOUR TIME IDLING AWAY.)

(Can you really do that right now? If you really are who you claim then I wonder if you really can since I never saw your telltale light while I was up there in the Stormroots.)

(YOU WOULD MOCK ME HATCHLING?)

(I mock anyone I feel like. The consequences don’t even matter to me.)

(THEN THAT YOU ARE TO BE OFFERED AS TRIBUTE TO THE HERO YOU HUMANS NAME THE BANDIT KING IS ALSO A CONSEQUENCE YOU WOULD DISREGARD?)

(Really? So I’m being offered up to that grinning idiot. What a joke. What is he now, a god or something?)

(YOU MAKE MUCH TOO LIGHT OF THIS MAN ELEVATED ABOVE MOST BY THE BUILDERS’ SONG.)

(Nah. If anything right now I’m actually glad to hear that him and I are going to be meeting again. You see, right now, I could really use a Hero.)

Copyright © 2018 Joshua D Tarwater