But as Ojo walked down the hall, an unseen prisoner hissed at him from behind a solid door. Another scurried to the back of its cell. Ojo stopped and plucked the rubber duck from the tray. The creature next to him whined and covered his face with furry claws.
Finishing his round, almost back to the exit, the wizard paused his muttering. He dropped his hands to his knees and slid his gaze over to the rubber duck on the trolley. The prisoner swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. Ojo looked from the duck to the prisoner and back again. Perhaps there was more to the toy than he thought.
"Still donning the duck, I see." Dr. Devi commented as Ojo removed her platter. "To you it's a powerful trinket, but to Maquna it's everything. Give it to him, and you'll gain his loyalty. He'll mark you as his and will never again be a threat to hold you in a trance."
Ojo clasped the rubber duck. The string hooking it on his belt was knotted like a noose around its yellow neck, securing it like a sidearm to his hip.
"You like the fear of the prisoners. But remember, they fear the smell of Maquna, not the toy itself. Give him the toy, and his loyalty will keep them away forever, whether you have the duckie or not."
Ojo jerked his gaze to the woman behind the bars. "Why are you helping me?"
"I'm simply a curious scientist, Ojo. I'm driven to use mechanics to break the laws of nature. I'm on the verge of something great and Maquna's frustration oozes throughout the corridor, distracting me from my work."
"But you'll never be able to put your inventions to use."
"That's beside the point, circus boy," she said, her head tilting as she examined him. "It's all in the accomplishment. Nothing else matters."
Ojo wondered at the doctor's reputation, and her nickname, Lady Absinth.
"Deliver this duckie, gain Maquna's loyalty, dissuade the other prisoners from their interest in you, and quiet the fear in the corridors." She lowered her voice. "It's better for everyone this way."
Ojo ran a hand down the side of his clean-shaven face. He'd felt better since he'd received the duckie, an amulet of sorts. But if he could gain the snakes loyalty, now that would be a tale. Even one the Racs would like to hear.
Turning, he untied the duckie and approached the snake's door. It was smaller than the ferrets, but only just. He pressed his hands against the glass, then clutched the duckie, hesitant to let it go. Down the hall, the sound of claws screeched and echoed as the prisoner sharpened them against the stone. Ojo took a breath and pressed the toy through, his hands compressing, squeezing the duck. On the other side of the glass, Ojo's hands returned to their normal size, his amulet and peace offering in the cell.
The snake's tail twitched. Sharp fingernails dug into Ojo's hands, puncturing the duck between them. A shock of horror reverberated down Ojo's spine as he was jerked inward. His arms flattened as he was violently pulled through the hole.
Before he could cry out, his shoulder smashed against the glass. His arms expanded inside the cell as he fought wildly against Maquna's grip. The duckie fell from his grasp. In a flash, the creature's teeth sunk into the flesh of Ojo's palm. This time Ojo's scream pierced the air. In his periphery, he caught the swish of a black skirt. He sucked in a breath, hearing only the quill scratching on parchment. Ojo's skin was tearing with the force of the snake's frenzied movements. Still, the guard lost ground, his body flattening, sliding inch by inch into the cell. Pain exploded as his shoulder, skull, and then his upper back squeezed, pushing his genetics to the edge of their ability. He pushed out his legs into a desperate split, frantically trying to keep himself from being pulled completely into the cell.
The body of the snake flexed, muscles rippling across its humanoid chest. Ojo felt the glass scraping across his lower back. His body automatically contracted, fitting through the tiny hole. Still, the explosive pain made it impossible to have a coherent thought. A crack sounded from his hip, but he barely felt anything beyond the numb terror.
Maquna 's warm breath puffed over Ojo's neck. The guard's feet stretched, his boots popping off his feet as they smashed against the glass. The snake jerked, its serpentine body wrapping around Ojo. He tried to scream, but couldn't.
As the snake squeezed, Ojo caught a glance in a spiraling space between the scaled tail of the beast. The yellow duckie lay on the ground, discarded. Beyond, he could only hear Lady Absinth's cooing voice.
"Interesting experiment, my pet," she said.
Maquna was a pet? Ojo's frame thinned under the pressure of the snake's constriction. Ojo's body was slick with sweat, pushed beyond his limits, as the snake continued to tighten its grip.
"I told you I could get you an unscheduled feeding. You doubted I could do it before the trial. I myself didn't know if it was possible. Still, it's good to have goals." Dr. Devi's voice was barely discernible through the small hole left open in the glass.
Ojo couldn't see the doctor, but he imagined her quill scratching. He concentrated on oozing through the snake's grip, despite knowing he couldn't control his body like that. Still, he tried. In the recess of his mind, he cried, but his lungs didn't respond beyond a gasp.
"So tell me how it feels, circus boy." Lady Absinth's voice was calm. "Knowing these are your final seconds as your lungs are crushed and your breath taken while you slip into the abyss."
His vision grayed, and somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered, Who will close the food access slit?
"I have always been a student of Death and never miss a chance to record it firsthand," the doctor continued.
A maniacal laugh burbled in the back of Ojo's mind. Of course it all made sense now—her name, Lady Absinth.
The snake twisted, and Ojo felt himself drifting away as he heard the doctor's final words.
"This is for science after all."
This setting and most of the characters are from Paul Tallman's world of Rogue Destiny, found in his upcoming series. When I was given the assignment to write a dreadful story (with a rubber duck), I knew that Lazaranth Prison would be the perfect setting and I very much wanted to play in this sandbox, which Paul graciously allowed. Thank you, Paul!
WINTER 2019
FORGED IN IRON AND BLOOD
by Jeanna Mason Stay
6,800 Words
LINA HAD LEFT the war long behind her. That’s what she told herself, anyway. Especially on nights like this when dusk fell through the open doors of the smithy and the fire blazed in the forge and in her blood. But the crash of her hammer against the metal was too like the clamor of battle, and the memories kept flooding back.
The pulse of the fight, the tang of blood in the air. Friends bleeding and dying, both fae and human, their lifeless bodies strewn across the field. Such pointless, wretched loss. She swung the hammer again, hoping to drive out the pain and forget herself in the work. To forget their naivety— her naivety—in believing that peace could come so easily. The oathbinding magic was certainly rare and powerful. But no promise made to one foolish half-blood fairy could end the simmering tension between the two countries as quickly as it ended the actual battles. If only she’d—