Page 90 of Down from the Tower

I shrug. “Zarev asked the same thing. I haven’t decided yet, but if I go back they will try to morph me back into the perfect daughter they wanted. I can’t be her anymore.”

Legs grins. “Then your journey over the wall is worthwhile. Midas will always be a concern, even to the people who do not live in Tressa. He’s too big of a threat.”

Nodding, I open my mouth to respond, but the door to the house flies open, startling me. Another woman, with wings that spread wide and boast a similar design to Legs, marches in. “Quickly! We need a bigger horse.”

“Why?” Legs is already twirling her fingers to make the leaves form Phillipe again.

Her eyes dart to me, then away. “It’s Zarev. He grabbed his chest before muttering about Tressa and collapsing by the great willow. Something’s happening, and it can be felt across the land.”

23 Rapunzel

I’m still trying to process everything Legs shared with me as we rush across the garden to Zarev’s collapsed form lying in the grass. I kneel down beside him, pressing my hands to his chest.

He’s breathing at a steady pace, no signs of outward distress. I stare down at him, willing my magic into him to heal, but the only hurts my magic can find are the gold points embedded in his chest.

“What’s wrong with him,” I breathe, looking back at the two. The second butterfly woman must be Margo, and they hurry just steps behind to join me at his side, Legs sliding free of her horse.

“Something’s going on,” Legs breathes, and I’m ready to yell at her that I already know that. But the silence that’s cocooned us here in the garden is suddenly shattered, the sounds of wailing voices rising to high pitched screaming around us.

And it’s everywhere.

“What’s going on?” I scream, barely able to hear myself over the commotion. Zarev remains unconscious, but his blade moves, as though the noise is calling to it. I throw myself on top of the handle, covering my ears with my hands, and try to keep the thing from launching itself away from us.

A few moments later, when I feel my eardrums will burst, a gathering of spirits zips past us, the rush of souls energetic enough that it nearly knocks me over. When Legs is dropped as her horse disappears, Margo is there to catch her.

The ringing in my head from the screams is nonstop, and I alternate pressing my hands over Zarev’s ears too, hoping the noise didn’t bother him too much. He doesn’t react, and the silence from my Reaper freaks me out. I turn back to the butterfly women, my desperate eyes searching theirs. As the deafening noise begins to dim, I start to yell. “What’s wrong with him?”

“I don’t know,” Legs admits, looking around wide-eyed just like me. Through the insistent ringing in my ears I can just make out her words. “Margo, go see if there’s something going on near The Barrens. The two of us can get Zarev back to the house. Be careful!”

For a moment the two women pause, and when I look up they have pressed their foreheads together, eyes closed. When Margo, the taller of the two even sitting down, kisses Legs, I smile softly and look away. It’s their private moment, so I turn my gaze to Zarev.

Suddenly, the noise stops, but my head still throbs. The inhuman screeching is something I won’t soon forget.

When Margo jogs away, Legs gestures to me. “I can help support his legs but you’re going to have to yank him on the saddle. We can check him out in the house.”

“This has never happened to him before,” I whisper, even as I struggle to my feet. My arms aren’t nearly long enough, and I can barely get leverage despite Leg’s help. We should’ve kept Margo, but as the ringing in my head recedes, I realize we need to know what’s going on.

We heave, but Zarev is quite a bit taller than me and really heavy, even without the scythe. Frustrated, I almost drop him on his face, overwhelmed by how difficult this simple task is right now.

I fidget with my hair, preparing myself to start again as Legs take a couple deep breaths. “I’ll call down the vines to help…”

Her voice fades as I stare down at my hair. Strong, rope-like, and I know I can snap someone’s neck with it. It’s down to brushing the ground as of this morning, and that has to be enough length to get the job done.

“I can do it,” I say, ignoring her curious look as I tear my braid apart, letting the loose hair hang all the way down my back, and it tickles my feet when I move. It’s longer than ever, dragging on the ground now.

I don’t wait for a response. Sectioning it in half I wrap half around Zarev’s middle, Legs grumbling about weird bondage games while I work. I can almost zone her out, but the distraction helps to keep my mind from going into panic mode again.

With her help, I get my hair bound around him before using the second section to twist through the first, creating a type of lever.

“I can do this,” I grumble, and if I can’t get this man inside I think I’m going to hate myself. He’s impossible to drag for some reason, like weighted stone, and if he’s still that heavy when I try to move him, he’s not going anywhere until he wakes.

I hop on the horse, watching Legs scoot back a little, and pull with all my might. He budges, his torso lifting in time with my movements, and I’m so excited for a moment I almost drop him again.

Legs snorts. “Careful there, Princess.”

Ignoring her, I continue to pull him up. When he’s close to me I jump backwards, his body collapsing over the back of the leafy horse, and I groan on the ground. At least he’s up there now.

“Good job,” Legs says, glancing over at me. “Put me up there and we’ll get inside. I need to check him. Can’t say I’ve ever seen a Reaper collapse like that before.”

---