#TimeTravelingGhost EP 10: Post 100: 1191, Nicosia, Cyprus

#Wss366 Red (maroon) #TimeTravelAuthors 05/17. Sleep habits/schedule

There was no time left to discuss my mask with Emily because a servant had arrived and was gesturing for me to follow.

The inside of the house was cool and dim, carrying the faint scent of cedar and lamp oil. The furniture was sturdy and well-crafted rather than ostentatious. A painted icon of the Virgin Mary hung in a corner with a small oil lamp burning beneath it, all in the Eastern style.

Some of my anxiety eased. I doubted they would have in-depth knowledge of the Western style, especially how a Copt might practice it. My foreign appearance would help hide any mistakes I made.

The scholar standing beside our host reinforced this impression.

Our host was a stout, gray-haired man wearing maroon robes over a pale tunic. Though he no longer carried a weapon, there was still caution in his eyes.

The scholar wore layered dark-blue robes; the edges faded from years of use. A small silver cross rested against his chest when he moved, and his gray-flecked beard forked neatly at the end. He looked nothing like the clean-shaven Latin priests I had seen in paintings.

He studied me with open suspicion before politely translating our host’s greeting.

“Welcome to the house of the Delphinas. You have come at an unfortunate hour, but we will honor you as best we are able, holy one.”

I bowed, offered a silent prayer toward the icon, and crossed myself in what I hoped was a convincing imitation of a wandering pilgrim. Three fingers for the Trinity. Left to right or right to left? Muscle memory took over. Better wrong than hesitant.

“The girl is watching from above,” Emily said. Her words blurred with the scholar’s next statement.

“We have prepared a room for you to rest and refresh yourself before dinner.”

While, as a ghost, I didn’t need to sleep, the break to discuss the situation with Emily would be welcome.

“May God bless you for your charity,” I said as I followed the scholar upstairs.

#TootFic #NMFic #TimeTravel #HistoricalFantasy #UrbanFantasy #Mythpunk #Serial #Slowburn #Yuri

Isa, Rip, and Marga were waiting in the common room of the Tori. It had been eight days since the asteroid incidence, and Ada was about to release Captain Leblanc from the artificial coma. The feed for the infirmary had been shuttered, so all they could do was talk and drink tea to pass the time.

"How long does this take?" Isa asked while watching tiny tea leaves float in her drinking pouch.

"Hard to say." Rip shrugged. "As far as I understand, it now depends on her condition and constitution. Staying in the pod any longer could be more problematic than waking her up."

"Problematic for her, or for us?" Isa asked grimly.

"Both." Rip answered sincerely. "The Tori has excellent facilities for what she is, but she's no hospital, and we have limited supplies."

"Fucking hard decisions." Isa sighed. "I couldn't do that."

"Oh but you did." Rip smiled.

"Huh?" Isa looked confused, then realization washed over her face. "Yeah, I did, didn't I? Risk all our lives for some strangers."

"Sometimes it's simple." Rip nodded.

After a few more minutes, the door opened and Ada entered. With a sad look on her face and without a word, she flew towards Rip, who caught her and held her in a tight embrace.

Marga tugged on Isa's arm, and the two of them left.

43/X

#writing #fiction #smallstories #tootfic #scifi #serial #projectgatekeeper

The crew of the Tori had assembled in the common room for a group breakfast.

"How are the newcomers?" Bjorn asked between pancake bites. "And who are our newcomers?"

"They're in bad shape. At least another five days in the trauma pods." Ada sighed. "I hope they make it; towards the end they were running on drugs and grit."

"As for who they are." Marga pushed some documents onto the ship's feed. "The missing ship report came with a roster. We saved captain Thea Leblanc and deckhand Surya Lee."

"What do we do when they wake up?" Isa asked. "I guess we can't just keep them in the pods?"

Rip gave her a disapproving look. "You had your chance for an easy out before we risked our lives for them." He handed her a fresh pancake. "Now, you explain to them that they are stuck on a top-secret, month-long, deep space expedition that has just burned tons of fuel to rescue them and food stocks calibrated for a crew of six."

Isa's face went white.

42/X

#writing #fiction #smallstories #tootfic #scifi #serial #projectgatekeeper

"Everyone's secure." Rip's voice sounded through the comms. "We should leave."

Isa was strapped to her chair in the command room and watched the feed for the infirmary, where Ada and Rip had sealed the two new arrivals in trauma pods, then taken seat in the emergency flight chairs.

Bjorn came flying through the doorway, elegantly pivoted towards his seat and clipped in, all in one fluid motion. "Go."

The captain nodded, and with a few commands, the Tori came alive again.

Isa braced herself, and after a dizzying turn, she was once again pressed into her seat with great force, taking her breath away. When the pressure subsided again, she checked the infirmary feed, where Ada was already tending to the pods.

"Anything behind us?" The captain asked.

"Doesn't look like," Marga answered. "But a drone can't cut a hole in a freighter and take two people. They'll know we were there; let's hope it takes 'em long enough for our fumes to disperse."

"So now we might have vengeful pirates and vengeful corpos on our tail." Bjorn sighed, then looked at Isa. "You make good enemies."

41/X

#writing #fiction #smallstories #tootfic #scifi #serial #projectgatekeeper

#Airisu: The Crow and the Witch

Okiku (Airisu POV): Post 37
#Wss366 Yellow #TimeTravelAuthors Whatever

I hadn’t been able to get her to give up the plan of rescuing Okiku-san, but I convinced her to stay away from Lookback Ridge and the presence there. Instead, she drew a magic circle and the required runes in her garden.

On the chosen night, the full moon shone brightly over the neat rows of herbs in her yard. The plants gave off a faint purplish light that I associated with magical energy. The faint scent of shiso, rosemary, and mugwort hung in the air.

As the hour of the ox arrived, Sumika cast yarrow stalks, said the time was favorable, and stepped out into the moonlight. She began chanting and slowly danced backward, widdershins around the chalked lines. I perched on her shoulder, remaining quiet. Now wasn’t the time for me to be clever.

Gradually, a fog arose, first hiding the garden plants, then the stars, and lastly the house. Only the moon remained, casting a diffuse, silvery light. While all this was happening, the circle began to sparkle, giving off a violet radiance. The mist sang back to us in a woman’s voice. As the singing grew louder, a #yellow flickering glow, like a fire, appeared off to one side.

The voice abruptly ceased singing and spoke. “So he has sent someone after all. Welcome, sister. Join me by my fire where it is warm. We have much to discuss, and my time is short.”

#TootFic #Crows #Otherkin #Fantasy #UrbanFantasy #Serial #SlowBurn #Yuri #Folklore #NMFic #TimeTravel