Reality Skimming

Part 60

“I’ve been hearing things,” Perry told her granddaughter when she got back home.

“Really!” Alivda said sarcastically, not even looking at Perry. She walked in and headed for the kitchen. Perry followed her.

“I heard you killed someone,” Perry said.

“And did you also hear it wasn’t a fair duel?”

“No, but—”

“Then what’s the problem?” Alivda said, now pulling food from the cupboards.

“He was a good man,” Perry said.

“He was a horrible sword.”

“Nevertheless,” Perry said, “you can’t kill people just for that.”

“Sure I can! Didn’t I just prove that?”

“Fine then, you shouldn’t kill people just for being horrible swords.”

Alivda rolled her eyes and finished preparing her vegetable-free food.

“I am serious, Alivda!” Perry said. “Stop!”

Alivda shaped her hand into a mouth and made it yap at her grandma while she gathered up her Vrellish-friendly lunch.

“Don’t you walk away from me!” Perry yelled, but it was too late. Alivda had taken her food and left.

Part 59

“I can’t move!”

“So you want a ten minute break then?” Alivda asked.

“How about an eight hour nap?”

She laughed. “No.”

They were standing across from each other in the room she had rented. The man she had defeated was named Tristin and she was making him spar with her.

“You are a remarkable sword,” Tristin said.

“Thank you,” Alivda said. “You are an okay lay.”

He chuckled nervously. “You are no Angel to a man’s pride either, Alivda D’Ander, D’Aur Lorel.”

“True,” Alivda said, grinning. “So you ready yet?”

“Between the sex and the fighting I don’t think I ever will be again,” Tristin panted.

Alivda sighed. “Then I will just have to find someone who is.” And left.

Tristin collapsed on the bed as soon as she was gone, but he didn’t have long to rest. Less than an hour later, Alivda returned with a man named Bernard and made him leave.

Alivda thought her system was very effective. She got a sword lesson and a little fun out of it. And what in life was better than sword fighting and fun. Anything that would get her what she wanted.

Part 58

For the most part Amel kept his promise, and if for some reason he couldn’t she would come and see him.

And again time flies when you aren’t keeping track of it. Alivda sprang from a fully grown child to a teen in no time.

She enjoyed Korbin more and more, until he got boring and she started flying away from home to meet other men.

Her favourite way of doing it was to challenge them to a duel.

“So let me get this straight,” the black-haired man facing Alivda said. “If I win I give you a sword lesson and if I lose we sleep together?”

“That’s right,” a now fourteen-year-old Alivda said. “That’s the deal.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense,” he said. “Why would I even try to win?”

“’Cause otherwise you will lose to a girl?”

“That may work on those Demish bigots, but it won’t work on me,” he said.

“Fine!” Alivda said. “Then let’s switch it around.”

“So if I win we sleep together?”

Alivda nodded.

“Alright,” he said and drew his sword. Alivda grinned.

She let him think he was winning. She let him think she was horrible and that’s why she wanted a lesson. Why she had messed up the terms of the duel the way she had. Then just when he was starting to relax, she ducked under and sliced his leg open.

He collapsed. Grinning, she walked over to him. “How do you like my terms now?”

He laughed. “You are a hell of a woman!”

Alivda grinned from ear to ear and dragged him back to the room she was renting.

Part 57

“Are all green worlds this pretty?” Alivda asked as they walked through the streets of Clara’s World.

“Yes,” Amel said. “That’s why they have to be protected by Okal Rel.”

“But wouldn’t it be great to have one!”

“People protect their green worlds very well,” Amel said. “And you can’t make any more.”

“But what if we could get someone else’s?”

Amel was shocked. He leaned down to Alivda’s level.

“You can’t do anything okal’a’ni,” Amel told her very seriously.

“I know,” Alivda said quickly. “But still it would be nice, right?”

“The Demish are the ones who have the most green worlds,” Amel said. “And they are all tied up in marriages and contracts. You couldn’t get one without doing something okal’a’ni.”

“Fine,” Alivda said, but she hadn’t forgotten.

They delivered the package and returned to their ship.

Alivda and Amel had a blast flying around. He let her take the controls, since she had obviously already flown from Barmi to Gelion.

“You’re a natural!” Amel said.

“I am Vrellish!” Alivda yelled as she flew around in empty space like a crazy person.

Amel laughed. “Yes, you are!”

After all the fun, Amel took Alivda back to Gelion and back to her ship.

“Since you can fly now, I can’t very well tell you to go home and stay there, but don’t get into too much trouble please!”

“I won’t,” Alivda said. “But don’t be gone so long again.”

“I promise.”

Part 56

“Where are you going?”

“I have a message to deliver for Ameron,” Amel said.

“It seems like you are always doing that!” Ev’rel said. “You should be here. How am I supposed to know what other women you are seeing otherwise?”

“When I am here, I am yours,” Amel said. “That is the arrangement we made, remember?”

Ev’rel didn’t look happy. “What if that arrangement isn’t agreeable to me now?”

“I don’t know,” Amel lied. “But either way I have to go.”

“You always go.”

“But I always come back.” He smiled.

Ev’rel seemed somewhat satisfied with that as far as Amel could tell. He walked out of Lilac hearth and continued on to White hearth.

The guards let him pass and he went in to collect his package from Ameron.

“Ah, Amel, good,” Ameron said. “It is over there.”

Ameron usually was more attentive, Amel observed, but he didn’t mind. Ameron was currently in a deep conversation with one of his gorarelpul.

Amel read the note from Ameron attached to the package as he walked, using his memory to prevent him from banging into anything.

His memory was very good, so it surprised him when he was suddenly blocked by something.

“What!” Amel exclaimed.

“I found you!”

“I can see that!”

“So now you have to hang out with me,” Alivda said.

“Okay, but not here,” Amel said. “Let’s go to my ship, okay?”

Alivda nodded.

Amel led his rebellious little Diff down across the plaza and out through Silver hearth. He had planned on exiting through Lilac, but with Alivda that was not an option.

“Princess-Leige Luthan told me to always let you through,” the guard said grudgingly.

“Thank you,” Amel said and he hurried Alivda out.

They got to his ship unscathed.

“I haven’t seen you since we bought this together,” Alivda said, indicating the sword at her hip.

“I’m sorry,” Amel said. “It’s been really busy around here.”

“Huh.” Alivda wasn’t soothed. “You owe me fun!”

“I have a package to deliver,” Amel said.

“No,” Alivda said. “We have a package to deliver.” And Amel couldn’t say no.