Disaster!

What Happened to my Magic?

Episode 4

She fell through a red tunnel of light. This time, however, she was prepared for it. The light spiraled around her, but she stared straight at her hands to keep from getting dizzy. She was spun around until...

FWAM!

She landed in the middle of a field, more or less on her feet. "Itai," she muttered shakily to herself as she took stock of her surroundings. It was rather like the meadow she and Naga had landed in earlier, with all the chirping birds and buzzing bees, but with slight differences that told Lina it was not the same one.

A rattling sound caught her attention. A hay cart was bouncing along the road, drawn by two aging nags. The driver was some skinny farmer who looked half asleep.

"Hey, mister! Do you think you can give me a ride to the nearest city?" Lina waved her hands to get his attention.

"Eh, whassat?" asked the farmer groggily. "Oh, yeah, sure, just climb on back..."

"Yatta!" Lina clambered up the straw and settled down as the cart started rolling down the path once more. "This'll be a lot easier and faster than last time."

In what seemed to be no time at all, they were pulling into a large, walled city. Lina slid off the cart and tossed the farmer a copper coin in appreciation. She waved goodbye as he drove his cart down the streets, then paused to look around.

"Sugoi!" she gasped. The city easily surpassed any place she'd been to. Along the fringes of the town the buildings were small and derelict, but as she continued further towards the heart, they became larger, sturdier, and more impressive. "This is amazing! I wonder if this is what the capital of Sailoon looks like?"

Lina dodged through the crowds of people, pausing to stare at just about every new sight available. "Kakkoi," she whispered to herself as she absorbed the marvels. Her grin grew larger every minute.

Like a child in a candy store, Lina poked around every corner of the city. Her eyes sparkled as she took in the splendors and sounds of a busy marketplace full of vendors selling everything imaginable. There was a lack of magical items, but Lina surmised that there was a separate district for mages. In a city this large there was probably a large population of them. She'd have to go hunt them down later. Maybe she could learn some new spells!

Her giddy delight did not go unnoticed. A group of street toughs began to shadow her, but Lina was so absorbed by the wonders of the city that she didn't even notice.

"Suteki!" giggled Lina as she caught the end of a song. She turned past the singer on the street corner and found herself facing a dead end. "Whoops, better go the other way!" She swiveled around on her heels and nearly ran into the group of thugs.

"Oi, watch where yer going!"

"Yeah, be careful! Shouldn't go running inna people like that!"

Lina scratched her head. "Ano, gomen nasai. If you'll excuse me, I think I smell some food down the street..."

When the men refused to budge, Lina's euphoria dampened. She had spent so much time enjoying herself she forgot to watch her back. She had allowed herself to be cornered into an unpleasant situation.

"Well, whaddaya got ta say fer yerself, eh kid?"

Lina smiled, her elation rising again. "You don't know who you're messing with," she warned.

"Oh yeah?"

"You'd better believe me." Lina pointed her finger at the thug in front of her and yelled, "Fireball!"

Nothing.

"W-what? Elmekia Lance!"

In the silence that followed, Lina's blood ran cold. Her jubilation disappeared.

The street thugs blinked a few times in confusion then grinned menacingly. Lina was not getting a warm and fuzzy feeling when they started advancing on her.

"All right, Plan B!" Lina whipped out her sword and went into a fighter's crouch. She'd worry about her magic later; right now she had more pressing things to worry about.

She got a sinking feeling when they began drawing their own weapons; two had knives, three had clubs, and one balled his hands into fists.

Not good odds for a single swordswoman who was backed into a corner.

The first man lunged at her with his two knives flashing. Lina ducked under them and kicked him in the gut, sending him grunting backwards into his pals. One of his knives clattered on the ground, but he got up immediately, holding his stomach.

"A feisty one, eh?" he commented to the others, gripping his knife. "I think we ought to teach her a lesson."

Lina gritted her teeth. This was going to get nasty.

Two of the men with clubs charged at her next. She managed to dodge the first swing, but the second caught her on the side and flung her against the wall of the building. "Shimatta!" the sorceress swore. I can't fight them all!

The gang of toughs began smiling as all six began to advance, backing her up against the dead end.

Bam! Smack! Fwap! Someone was attacking the group from the other side!

Distracted by the sudden swing in events, the thugs were divided. Lina took advantage of their lapse and swung out with her sword, slicing into the knife-man's arm. The other attacker punched one of the club-bearer's onto the ground. No longer faced with winning odds, all six men beat a hasty retreat.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Lina sheathed her sword, rubbing her side and wincing. "Yeah, I guess," she muttered as she looked up at her rescuer.

"You!" they said in unison.

"Awww, damn, I guess that means you don't have any money to pay me, huh?" said the blue-haired man, the red character slowly fading from his forehead.

"Ah, well," said Lina. "I, um, well... thanks for saving me. I really did need it this time. And, hey, guess what? I'm not poor after all." Lina pulled out a few gold coins from her pouch and jangled them together.

"Okane!" said the man bubbily. "Yatta!"

Lina fanned the coins out on her hand. "Okay, so who are you, anyway?"

"Me? I'm Sou Kishuku. But everyone knows me by Tamahome." He reached out to grab the money.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Lina scolded, wondering how one gets the name 'Tamahome' from 'Sou Kishuku.' "I'm Lina Inverse. Hey, if I give you another coin, will you help me out a little?"

"SURE!"

"Great. Here," and Lina deposited four coins into Tamahome's eager hand. "Okay, I want you to be my guide."

He scratched his head. "Guide?"

Lina grinned. "Yeah, well, I'm kinda new around here, so I don't know too much about, um, local stuff."

Tamahome looked at the young woman. "Yeah, you sure do dress pretty weird." He twirled the coins joyfully in his hands, "So what did you want to know?"

"Well, first off, where am I?"

"Whoa, you're really new around here, aren't you? This is Eiyo, the capital city of Konankoku. Come on, you have to have known that!"

"Um, next question. Where is the mages' guild?"

"The what guild?"

Lina blinked a few times. "The mages' guild. Sorcerers' guild. Magic place. What part of the city is it located?"

"Huh? What mages' guild? There's no such thing as a sorcerers' guild!"

Lina scowled. This was more difficult than she had expected. Irritated, she brushed away an inquisitive insect and continued, "Okay, let's try a different question. What do you know about magic?"

Tamahome shrugged. "What about it? Magic's just a kids' story. It doesn't really exist. I heard that a couple of people can control their ki, but I don't think that counts."

"Ki?"

"Ki, ki! Spirit energy! Geez, what backwaters are you from?"

"Erehwon," said Lina sarcastically, naming the biggest backwater she could think of. "And what you mean magic's just a kid's story?! Do I look like some kid to you?"

"Um, kind of."

A few fume clouds spluttered from Lina's head and a vein popped. "Okay, so even if my black magic spells aren't working, shamanist, or spirit, magic might. Okay, let's do a little experiment."

"Huh?" Tamahome was starting to wonder if this girl was more trouble than the money was worth.

"Let's see, shamanist magic... what spell do I know from shamanist magic? Ahh, the digger bolt!" Lina cleared her throat and her mind, concentrating her full powers. She raised her hands and gathered energy.

Tamahome backed up a few paces.

"Digger BOLT!"

A beam of green light shot forth from her hands and blasted onto the roof of a nearby shop. It fizzled angrily and several wooden planks crashed onto the ground in front of startled spectators.

"Uwaaah!" yelled Tamahome in surprise.

Lina frowned, rubbing her chin. "That was small."

"WHAT?" gasped Tamahome. "You nearly crushed two people there!"

She turned to him and explained, "A digger bolt with that much power should at least have blown the entire roof off, not just a few boards. This is truly strange."

"Wh-what do you mean?"

A buzz of angry noises distracted Lina. Several people were staring angrily in her direction, including someone she took to be the shop's owner.

"Um."

"What now?"

"Now is a good time to start running," explained Lina in a patient voice.

"Wait! What's going on?!!" Tamahome was extremely angry.

Lina pointed. "See those people? They're kind of mad that I opened up a sunlight in their shop. Anyways, it's better if we lay low for a while, let them blow off some steam. Let's book it. You lead us to someplace safe."

"But-!" This is not what Tamahome had in mind.

"I'll give you some more money." Lina jingled her pouch.

They were off in a blast.

Continue: Episode 5: Run! Escape to the Temple of Suzaku!