Callie's Heroes

PART XIII - SYMBIOSIS (III)

“I’m going to go last,” Vanis said, “So I can be here for whomever is left. For moral support.” He gestured towards Callie and Pixyl.

“So who’s it going to be, then?”

The Gnome and the Pixie just looked at each other, neither eager to volunteer.

“Uh…” Callie said, not wanting to say anything.

“Then I will decide,” Tasi said. “The Pixie goes next.”

“W-why?” Pixyl demanded.

“Because, I want the Gnome to help, as we need everyone to hold you down so you don’t injure yourself again.”

Pixyl deflated as she slowly turned towards her bed, not even attempting to argue. “I c-c-can’t reach,” she said sadly, gesturing towards her footlocker.

“Right,” Vanis said as he retrieved her Symbiote case, giving it to Tasi. “Here you are.”

“Thank you,” Tasi said. “You are going by Pixyl, yes?”

The Pixie nodded her head. “Easier than my f-f-full n-n-name.”

“If you could lie down,” Tasi said, “and confirm your class.”

“Bladew-w-weaver.”

“Really?” Meyra asked in disbelief.

Tasi nodded, unlocking the blue and brown case. “Checked and rechecked.”

“Does she have her Ethereal Blades unlocked?”

“I believe so,” Tasi said, querying Pixyl.

“Y-y-yes, I do,” the Pixie responded.

“We’ll need to restrain her then, not just so she doesn’t hurt herself, but so she doesn’t hurt anyone if she summons her swords,” Meyra warned. “It would be better if we could sleep her.”

“N-n-no!,” Pixyl panicked. “Please n-n-no! I need to have every advantage!”

“I’ll help keep her calm,” Callie said.

Tasi put up a hand to stop any objections. “We all know how to handle Bladeweavers that wish to remain awake, and thankfully a Pixie is not as strong as others. We just need to work around her small size and her wings. We can’t put heavy direct pressure on them as we hold her in place.”

“I have an idea,” Callie said, cocking her head. She quickly explained her plan, asking Vanis to retrieve the oversized blanket from the unused Ogre bunk.

Pixyl took position in the center of her bunk, and spread out on her stomach, with her head resting on its left side and her wings folded in tight against her back. She extended her arms straight above her head. Vanis spread the oversized blanket over the Pixie, pinning her wings underneath it, while it draped over the sides of her bunk.

“Hi,” Callie said, sliding into position in front of Pixyl’s face as she winced slightly in pain from the blanket being stretched over her. “While they do their thing, we’re just going to talk for a bit. Let’s do just like I did with Tazrok. Breathe in through your nose and blow out through your mouth. Can you do that?”

Pixyl frowned at the Gnome being so close, but realized she was only trying to help, and further realized she actually appreciated the support. With a nod, Pixyl took a few deep, calming breaths.

“I’m curious, how many joinings have you done?” Vanis asked Tasi while Callie worked with Pixyl. “It’s almost like a well-choreographed dance watching all of you work.”

“Oh, about six hundred over the last eight years,” Tasi said as she organized herself and opened the Symbiote box. Sania quickly rescryed and confirmed it was Bladeweaver class.

“Pixyl, we’re going to get started. You’ve seen this done three times now, so you know what to expect. Just concentrate on staying calm,” the Healer said, and then nodded to Vanis. “If you could take your position?”

Vanis lay down on the floor and shimmied under the bed. He took the hanging, oversized blanket in each hand and pulled it tight. This had the effect of pinning Pixyl’s wings to her body and her legs to the bed, without the direct pressure of hands on her wings. The Pixie gave another yelp of pain.

“Sorry, Pixyl,” Vanis said with a grunt.

“I-i-it’s fine,” she said, trying to block the agony of her bruised wing. “I’ve felt w-w-worse.”

“Hey, look at me,” Callie said, locking eyes with the Pixie. “It will only be a quick minute. Let’s breathe together.” Callie took a deep breath and hesitantly, Pixyl did the same. They breathed together twice more. Behind her, Tasi placed the Symbiote on the plate, while Sania pinned one of Pixyl’s outstretched arms in place.

“Here we go,” Tasi said as Meyra deftly powdered and wet the Symbiote. In a quick series of actions, Tasi picked up the worm while the Elf took the plate and set it aside. Meyra swiftly reached up and held Pixyl’s other arm still.

“Little Symbiote,” Tasi purred as she set the armored worm on Pixyl’s cheek. “I want you to meet Pixylataweneecina, your new host, or Pixyl to her friends. She’s a special Bladeweaver, the only one of her kind we know of. You two take great care of each other and together you will be mighty.”

“Great job on her name,” Callie whispered, not breaking eye contact.

“I practiced to get it right,” Tasi whispered back with a wink. “It’s important.”

Pixyl barely heard any of this as she kept her eyes locked on Callie’s, and Callie returned the favor. Pixyl fell into those wide, purple Gnome eyes, and somehow just a tiny amount of that oppressive anger she always carried fell away. They breathed in together, and blew out their breaths together. Pixyl heard and felt the tiniest of cracks as the Symbiote’s armor split.

“Blue with a brown ring,” Tasi whispered to Sania. “Bladeweaver colors.”

Pixyl felt the touch of the wet slug on her cheek as it began to move towards her pointed ear, and she balled up her fists to fight the panic, staring hard at Callie. “Careful,” Sania warned Meyra, nodding at Pixyl’s fists.

“You’ve got this,” Callie whispered to Pixyl in a chant. “You’ve got this. You’ve got this.” The little blue and brown slug found its new home and slipped inside.

“Just a moment of panic.” Tasi said quietly, placing a hand on Pixyl’s head to hold it in place. “Just one quick moment and then it’s over.”

“You’ve got this, You’ve got this.” Callie said again.

“I’ve got this,” Pixyl whispered back, refusing to break contact with those wondrous, deep purple eyes. Pixyl felt her heart flutter in a strange and unexpected way.

Instantly, as the Symbiote took hold, she bucked her body, but Vanis was able to keep her in place, holding the blanket tight like a straight-jacket. At the end of each fist, there was a flash of magenta-colored light, and two hazy spikes of Ethereal energy sprang forth making a harsh, crackling noise. Each was perhaps forty centimeters long, and as they lashed out, they pierced effortlessly through the wood headboard. Tiny wisps of smoke rose from each of the holes, and as Pixyl’s pinned hands twitched, the Ethereal Blades sliced the holes larger. Sania and Meyra each quickly backed their torsos away instinctively, while continuing to hold the arms connected to the energy weapons in place.

“You’ve got this,” Callie whispered once more, putting on a smile and barely noticing what had happened

And with that, the Pixie went still, her eyes still wide. Nobody moved for a long moment. The glow of Pixyl’s swords seemed to fade a bit, before they both dissipated into a fading mist of magenta Ether. Everyone finally let out the breath they were holding.

“Nobody told me she could summon lightsabers,” Callie said quietly, as she watched the last remnants of the blades disperse. “She’s a frickin’ Jedi?”

“Jedi?” Vanis said, sliding out from under the bed.

“Yeah. Very powerful Ninja Wizards. I’ll tell you all some time,” Callie replied, still in awe of Pixyl’s powers.

“Anyone hurt?” Tasi asked quickly, and her two assistants both confirmed they were uninjured. The headboard, however, sported two large holes with charred wood surrounding each.

“Good. Almost every time, a Bladeweaver that already knows that skill will summon their swords,” Tasi said. “It’s just instinctive. You need to be sure to aim their fists in the right direction.”

Tasi looked at Pixyl’s face and, with two fingers, closed her eyelids. “Meyra?”

Callie stepped out of the way as the Elf swooped in with her cloth, wrapping it around Pixyl’s eyes and ears.

“Great work, everyone,” Tasi said. “I have a good feeling about Pixyl and her Symbiote.”

“I guess it’s my turn,” Callie said sullenly.

“I’m afraid so,” Tasi said.