—Chapter8 Pyrrhic Victory

“Now listen carefully, you need to know how it works” Tom eyed the yellow amber stone, twirling it aground in his hands. Zmera continued, “It doesn’t hide your thoughts as a whole, but it will hide a very specific idea. Show Hinba the stone and say what you need to say. She won't remember what you tell her as long as you keep it simple. Show her the stone a second time when you’re ready. Even though the effect of the magic is stronger, it’s incredibly fragile so don’t talk about the thing you are trying to hide.”

“So it’ll break right away the second time around?” Tom asked. “That’ll make the timing easier… Thank you, Zmera.” 

“Don’t worry about it, we used to make these all the time. They helped us insure loyalty when our coven was rapidly growing… For what it’s worth, I sincerely hope you find what you’re looking for.” She looked down for a moment. “I have many reasons to hate Hinba and she could definitely say the same about me, but those people didn’t deserve what happened to them. Even you were granted… some agency in your life.”  

Tom considered her words carefully, “On that, we agree…”

—-

It was the first time that Tom woke up before Hinba. The only reason he knew this was because he couldn’t feel predatory eyes on him in the moments where he still pretended to be asleep. He turned over to see Hinba still sleeping next to him in his bed. A strange feeling passed over him. For the briefest of moments he felt the urge to place a kiss on her forehead while she slept. But like a ship passing in the night, Tom let the feeling pass as quickly as it came. 

He got out of the bed as quietly as he could so as to not wake the sleeping giantess disguised as a human. Tom grabbed a pair of underwear and pants but waited until he was outside his bedroom to put them on. The closet door was known to squeak so he opted to go without a shirt for the time being. 

Without thinking, he reached for the handle to his office door. It opened as soon as he turned the knob and Tom couldn’t help but panic for a moment. For so many years this door was to remain closed and locked. Now, being able to open it freely without finding a copy of ‘old  recently-divorced white guy discovers equally-old muscle cars are a thing’ magazine seemed downright suicidal. He took a deep breath and told himself that it was ok, allowing for a moment to stare at the open doorway to let the message sink in. 

Tom stepped through the doorway and got to work sketching a map. His plan was to draw up a map of the area directly outside of the worldtree right up to the worldstone. Matching the scale to a corresponding map of downtown was an easy enough venture. He had a dusty projector around here somewhere that we could use to overlay the two maps however he needed. 

It didn’t take him long, before he put the finishing touches Tom remembered something important. He darted out into the living room and started frantically searching for his dirty briefcase. Hinba had apparently left it by the couch. Tom opened it and stuffed the amber stone into his pocket, thankful that he didn’t hear Hinba stirring in the other room. He got up and made his way back to the office. 

As soon as he rounded the corner, he heard the door to the bedroom creak open. He froze in place, unable to turn his head to face the source of the noise. His mind started to race with the standard concoction of self preservation and potential escape routes. Tom heard Hinba approach and right as he was about to turn to make some sort of excuse… She hugged him from behind. 

“Good morning.” She said while she pressed her face into the back of Tom’s head and inhaled deeply. 

“Morning” he replied, fighting back a nervous shiver. 

—-

“That’s where we’re going.” Tom said, pointing to a projected map on the wall. His apartment was at the center of the projection and a hand drawn map of their jaunt from the clearing to the worldstone was pinned underneath. “So that same distance southeast actually puts us in the bay but we can at least search the docks and marina for some hints.” 

Hinba, who was trying her best to be distracting by refusing to put on any clothes, scratched her chin. “I thought you said we were on the western coast of this continent?” 

Tom nodded, “We are, but we’re also on a peninsula, so you’ll actually hit water quicker going east.”

“Alright and we're looking for the point where worldstone overlaps with the human world?” 

“Yup...”  

They were both quiet for a moment. “Tom?” 

He flinched at his name, feeling extra jumpy at what he was going to ask Hinba to do. “Yeah?” 

She rolled her eyes, “Tom?” This time her voice was more stern and Tom could feel her worming her way into his thoughts. 

“Ok!” He knew she was getting impatient, “Just let me get coffee first…” Tom walked past Hinba to leave the room and could hear her make a fake cough as he rounded the corner. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end and he stopped. “Would you also like some coffee?” His voice was shaky, as he tried to remain confident. 

“I would love some.” she said as she came strolling around the corner as well, patting Tom on the head as they both made their way to the kitchen. 

A short while later they found themselves on the couch, sipping in their warm mugs. Tom only had two white mugs. “Please don’t make me ask you a third time.” She huffed. 

Tom sighed, now or never… “Ok, so here's the deal. You’re not going to like what I have to say and there’s now way I can say it without sounding like I have an ulterior motive.” Hinba eyed him intently but allowed him to continue. “I think… I think your people are trapped in the worldstone and the only way to save them is for you to break your charm on me in front of the worldstone.” He never paused to take a breath, worried that if he stopped for a moment, he might lose his conviction. Hinba opened her mouth to speak but was cut off. “Wait, I’m not done. The naga seems to think that doing this might also break the wouldstone’s connection to this world, thereby making passage between the two inaccessible.” 

Hinba nodded for a moment, trying to take everything in. “you’re done now?” she didn’t want to be cut off again. 

“Yes I’m done now, but if-”

“You’re saying that I can get my village back and I get to keep you in the forest? That sounds like a win-win to me.”

“I…” he recoiled at what he needed to say but was too deep to turn back now. “I need to stay here.” 

She burst out laughing. “Oh, come on!

“I’m serious!” 

“So am I! Tom, if..” She slammed her empty mug down on the coffee table, causing it to  smash into several small pieces before turning back to face Tom. “If you…” Hinba found herself unable to put her thoughts in order. 

Thankfully, Tom had also finished his coffee. He set his mug gently on the table right next to the broken remains of Hinba’s. “I think there’s an elephant in the room that we need to address. We haven’t talked about the possibility that these people might still be alive. The past two times we passed through the worldstone I had the same dream. At first I thought it was just you messing with me, but I knew you wouldn’t try and trick me like that…. You’re a lot less subtle. Then, I thought it was just another nightmare, but it felt different somehow. In my nightmares, I’m running away or to something I couldn’t see but not in those dreams. Hinba, they felt… close. I might not be doing a good job of explaining this.” 

“I believe you.” She agreed quickly. “There’s something else I haven’t told you.” Hinba leaned close to Tom and pressed a finger to the tattoo on his chest. “You’re not the only one that has one of these. Over the years, I planted them on a small few of the townsfolk as a way for them to let me know if they were being attacked. They all agreed to it and I never actively monitored them. If they needed something, they would let me know and that was it.” She traced her finger idly around Tom’s chest, “When we first found out they were missing, I tried searching for them…” 

“I assume you didn’t have any luck?” 

“I’m used to tracking humans when their perception of time is wildly different. A decade for you out here would be little more than a month for me back home… But this feels backwards somehow, like I’m the one speeding through time and they are just frozen.” 

“You think they’re still alive as well?”

“Tom,” she put a hand on his cheek. “I know they’re still alive, and I know we’re going to save them.” Her lips met his as she laid down, pressing Tom into the cushion. 

There was still a part of Tom that instinctively feared any time Hinba invaded his personal space. His entire body and mind tensed up as he felt her weight on top of him. Their lips were  locked for several seconds before Tom even realized it was a kiss. 

Tom felt guilty that he was still afraid of Hinba. He had hoped that his fear would have subsided by now. That at some point he could actually feel somewhat normal when they shared a space. Maybe that’s what she was trying to tell when they were in the cave all those days ago. She wanted Tom to trust her, not completely, but to a point. From that moment on, everytime she felt pleasure, he felt fear and every time he felt fear, she felt pleasure. Baring the run in at the temple this was the standard of their relationship. This was their power dynamic. He was ashamed, really, that it took him this long to see it. It was the reason that even while he feared for his life when he was around her, he also felt strangely… safe, knowing she was the one who held his life in her hands. 

All of this was how Tom knew he could relax and enjoy Hinba’s lips pressed against his. It wasn’t a kiss that begged for something more or asked a question so wordlessly to demand an answer…. It was a quiet moment on the morning of a possible goodbye. It didn’t ask for anything, demand anything, it just was… and right as Tom was finally able to put enough of his thoughts together so he could actually enjoy it…. It was over. Hinba released his lips and started to lift herself off of him. 

Tom didn’t let her. In a quick movement, he grabbed her neck and shoulder and pulled her back for another deep and passionate kiss. Her full weight crashed back down enveloping him in her warmth and for the first time in five years, he didn’t feel like running. 

For nearly an hour they stayed in that position, neither wanted to accept that their next adventure might take them down different paths. They both didn’t want the moment to end but for very different reasons. Tom wanted to stay and explore whatever this new development was and what it meant for their relationship but he knew that Hinba had a much harder decision to make. 

Hinba made no outward sign of her turbulent emotions. It was the perfect solution for Tom and she knew it, but she also knew that it would work. Her knowledge of the worldstone and its magic never rose above a superficial level, but she trusted Tom implicitly. The last time she believed Tom was acting purely in self interest she almost robbed herself of… well… Tom. 

Once they finally managed to find their way off the couch, it did not take long for them to be ready to leave. Both just threw on enough clothes to be considered decent. Hinba wore her light purple blouse and jeans. Tom was stuck wearing his sweatpants. There was a small glowing object in his pocket that he needed to keep hidden for the time being. 

They were both at the door ready to go. Hinba reached for the door but was stopped when she felt Tom grab her wrist. 

“Hinba. There’s one more thing I need to tell you before we head out.” she watched him put his hand in his pocket. Tom didn’t appear to do anything after that. After what couldn’t be more than a single blink, his hand was back out in the open. “We’re uh… heading to the marina.” 

She gave him a weird look. “You said that already… Did I actually break you? Please tell me I didn't actually break you?” 

—

It was several blocks to the marina but Tom didn’t want to take his car. There was a very high likelihood that they would need to get into some areas that were considered “off limits” so Tom didn’t want to worry about broadcasting his license plate. Hopefully they would be able to get in and get out quickly. Tom opted for a cab. 

The ride was mostly spent in complete silence. The driver was not overly chatty and Tom appreciated it. When they arrived at the marina, they were met with the sight of… a marina. Tom rarely had any reason to come this far east but the lines of boats seemed unbelievably mundane compared to some of the prior locations he’s seen recently. Much like his interest in cars, he cared little for boats. They were expensive playthings of people that had time and money to burn, and for the past five years he had neither. 

Maybe in a few years, after he put all the crumbled pieces of his life back together, he might change his mind, but not today. Today these were just a bunch of boats, who’s owners would probably object to having Tom and Hinba poking around. “Just walk like one of these is ours. If anyone approaches us let me do the talking.” 

To her credit, Hinba was actually incredibly good at blending in. She walked with a confidence that would leave no one unsure if she belonged. Tom was the one having trouble remaining inconspicuous. People would see Hinba standing at around seven feet tall, beautiful complexion, well dressed, strong build and then they would see Tom. He was still wearing sweatpants and his hair was disheveled. He felt like a pet being taken for a walk with how people were staring at him. 

Hinba leaned in close, “Should I get you a leash to complete the ensemble?” 

“Shush!” He shot back as they continued. Thankfully there was a small turnoff on one of the piers. The boats could hide them enough from the street for them to look around. “Are you able to tell if we’re close?” 

She nodded. “At least I think so, but I’m not sure how close I would need-“ 

Tom cut in, “That’s fine, can you sense it here?” Hinba responded by shaking her head. “Ok, if I’m off, then that means” he looked around trying to remember his scale drawings. “It’s probably further out.” Tom motioned to the murky waters of the bay. 

“Can I help you?” A gruff voice rang out causing Tom to jump. Hinba merely turned on her heels. Tom watched as the older gentleman slumped down to the deck.

Tom turned to Hinba to see her eyes go from a glowing red back into their normal light purple. “What did you just do to him?” Tom tried to keep his voice low as he darted to the fallen man. 

“He’s fine, just sleeping.” She replied. Tom wanted to get him off the pier in case he inadvertently rolled off into the waters. He was not a large man but Tom still was having trouble slinging an arm around the unconscious man. “Here.” Hinba said before pushing him to the side and hefting the limp body over her shoulder. “Where do you want him?”

“Dry land, and then we need to get the fuck outa dodge.” Tom was already thinking of what he was going to say. His plan was quick and simple. “I think this man had a heat stroke.” As few people came over to help lower him to the ground. “We’re going to find help.” He said to a woman that was already worriedly tending to him. 

Hinba and Tom started to hurriedly walk away, fast enough to look worried as well but not so fast to cause suspicion. Neither had any intention of actually coming back with help. 

“Ok never again!” He said after they were far enough down the street opting to continue walking down the street adjacent to the water. 

“He'll probably wake up in a few minutes. No harm done.” She crossed her fingers over her chest. 

“We can’t risk making a scene, Hinba.” 

“It’s fine. Besides…” she stopped for a moment and pulled Tom close, speaking into his neck. “He was like you, Tom.” 

“What do you mean?” Tom tried to keep walking but she held on to him tightly. 

“I gave him a short little dream, just so he wouldn’t remember us, and Tom… he loved it, he loved being dominated by me.” 

Tom quit trying to pull away, unsure what he was more shocked at. Was it the fact that Hinba had the time to implant one of her dreams into that man in such a short time, or that she believed Tom actually enjoyed how he was treated when they were together?

“I know you love it.” She responded directly to his thoughts. Her finger came up under his jaw to help him close his mouth before he even realized it was hanging open. Hinba then released him and continued walking down the street, leaving Tom to collect himself before hurrying after her. 

—-

They watched the boats float by as they sat on a bench near the water. Tom got Hinba a hot dog she didn’t ask for but accepted anyway. “My math must be off.” 

“Hmm?” Hinba said through a full mouth of food. 

“I know it was an estimate but it couldn’t be that far off, could it?” 

Hinba swallowed. “I’m telling you, it wasn’t there. If you're confident that you were close then I know I should have felt something.” 

Tom nodded a few times. He chewed lips trying to rerun the numbers again. “How tall are you?” 

“Taller than you, little guy.” She tilted her head back so she was looking down her nose at Tom. 

“No, no. I meant ‘big’ you.” 

She licked the remaining crumbs off her fingers and smiled. “Oh right.” Hinba leaned close to Tom and whispered, “Taller than you, little morsel.” She traced circles around the back of Tom’s neck. He could feel the slight dampness clinging to her fingertips 

He brushed off the shiver that traveled down his spine. “Alright.” Tom stood up and walked to the railing overlooking the water. “How tall am I when we’re in the forest?” To better explain his question, he held up his hand with his index and thumb about five inches apart. “Or ‘how short?’ might be the better way to ask.” 

“How about ‘how small?’ and you're probably about here.” Her thumb and finger were only slightly closer together than Tom’s. 

Tom was taken aback by her precision. “That’s…” he was about to say something condescending but stopped himself. 

Hinba had a response ready. “I’ve had you in some very sensitive spots.” She stood up still displaying Tom’s measurements. “So let’s hear it, Tom. How far off were you?” 

Tom sighed as he made his mental estimates again. He wasn’t off. “That’s about what I was expecting actually…” Tom turned around and looked back towards the marina then up to the sky. “Unless it’s eighty feet in the air…” 

A boat drifted by that caught Tom’s attention. It was a handsome enough vessel, with a pristine coat of glossy white paint with light blue trimming. The mid morning sun caught the water and reflected a choppy visage of the boat. They must have picked the color white for that reason. “Huh.” Tom noticed that the name of the boat was written in the same light blue trim but the letters were upside down. Reading the name off the side of the boat was utter gibberish but if you looked close enough at the reflection in the water, the name read, “The Merry Voyage” 

Hinba appeared beside him to lean on the railing. “It only makes sense if the boat is upside down. Maybe we’re not looking for something eighty feet in the air but eighty feet deep in the water?” 

Tom chewed the thought for a second. “We would need to go find some scuba gear… but I actually assumed the height thing had more to do with my apartment being on the seventh floor. I don’t appear eighty feet in the air when I teleport to the forest, do I” 

She shrugged. “I guess not. It would be fun to try to catch you though…” 

“Plus the boat’s not actually upside down, it's just a reflection…” He knew the answer was right there. “Only the image is upside down…what if the map needs to be flipped?” 

“We’re looking southeast but we’d need to be looking northwest. What’s northwest?” 

Tom sighed, “The rest of the city.” He stood up and started scanning for a cab. “Everything’s really densely packed around those parts. Let’s go back to the apartment and see if we can narrow it down to a few blocks…” He balled his fist. This was going to take way too long and they weren’t sure how much time the townsfolk actually had. “Fucking…”

Hinba hugged him from behind, “We’ll find it… don’t worry, Tom.” He tried to relax but couldn’t seem to clear his racing thoughts. “You smell good, you know that.”  

“I smell?” his eyes went wide. “That’s it! You said you picked me because I smelled good right?” Hinba nodded but wasn’t sure where he was going. “I had just left the gym! My old gym! The worldstone has to be nearby! Come on, let’s go!”

—- 

“I’ve never had a human take me to a gym before.” 

They stood on the sidewalk outside an rundown fitness center. Tom winced at the curious look he got from another man that walked into the building. He must have heard Hinba refer to Tom as a “human.” The only thing Tom knew to do was nod before the individual hurried off. “We’re not going in. For one, we would stand out.” Tom referencing the fact neither of them were dressed in workout clothing. “And two…” he pointed down the street. “I walked home that way.” 

It didn’t take them long. They walked a block down the street but a building caught their eye. It looked to be abandoned, the small amount of shrubbery that remained out front was overgrown and unruly. The reddish brick was spotted with a green moss that traveled around from the ground to the second floor. “This one’s so much smaller than the ones around it.” Hinba said, looking around at the other buildings. 

“It’s strange. I’d figure it would have been condemned by now if it’s been abandoned for so long.” Tom also looked at the neighboring structures. “It’s a decent enough area. Why hasn’t someone bought this and actually done something with it?”

Hinba turned to him with a furrowed brow. “You think money is the only thing this shithole needs?” 

He just shrugged. “We lowly humans have a phrase. ‘Money talks.’” He started walking towards the entryway of the abandoned building. “And this ‘shithole’ is awfully quiet…” 

The front door was little more than a piece of plywood bolted to the frame. Tom tested the makeshift doorknob. It turned, but the door itself didn’t budge. There was a sound of metal on metal. Whoever sealed this place went to great lengths to ensure no one got in. He turned and started to walk back to the sidewalk. Hinba passed him, heading for the door. “I tried it already. I’m going to look around back for a window we could-“ 

There was a loud sound of spitting wood. Tom spun to the source of the noise to see Hinba standing next to the now open doorway. The frame around the door appeared splintered and cracked. “After you.” She motioned to Tom. 

“You… how?” Tom stammered. If she kicked open the door that was one thing but it happened so fast that Tom assumed she simply pushed the door open as if it were made of paper. Tom counted at least six locks holding the door in place, all of which did nothing to even slow this beast of a woman down… 

“Suit yourself.” She entered the building as Tom hurried to catch up. 

The interior of the house looked as equally disheveled as the exterior. A dark wood flooring covered in deep cracks and stains blended into the remains of an ornate stairway. Lines of wallpaper clung to the battered walls betraying very little of the prior design. The only remaining evidence of a hanging light fixture was a ominous chain that hung from the high ceiling of a narrow hallway. Sunlight streaming in from boarded windows offered little help to illuminate the dingy spectacle.

Tom couldn’t help but wonder if, at one point, this place was actually beautiful. It seemingly was stuck in both a time long ago and left to decay for decades to come. He eyed a few missing stairs. It would probably be better if he checked upstairs. If the structural integrity was failing, he weighed significantly less than Hinba. “Look around, I’ll check upstairs.” 

Hinba was still from the moment she entered the building. “Don’t bother. We’re here.” Without any elaboration, she walked through the hallway. 

Tom followed and was met with a similar sight of decay and degradation, only this room was slightly more spacious than the cramped foyer. To the left side of the room was a broken bookshelf with scattered books dumped haphazardly on the floor to complement the other piles of trash. To the right was a decrepit fireplace. A torn painting of some generic beach vista hung on the wall. Someone apparently took in upon themselves to add to the piece with a can of purple spray paint. In the middle of the room was what appeared to be a small piano with a large crack down the center. The legs bowed outward, and it seemed like the only thing holding it up was a long term balancing act with both halves leaning inward. 

Something on the ground caught Tom's eyes. There were several wood planks missing from the floor that appeared to split the room in two. “This it?” 

“Yeah.” Can Hinba’s reply. She stepped into the room and circled around the left side toward the remains of the bookshelf. 

Tom moved to the right. He was looking for a signature on the painting, potentially able to help him understand who owned the building or why it was in such disrepair. “This isn’t really what I thought it would look like.” He scraped at the spray paint with his fingernail. “I kinda thought it would be blue, you know?”

“Have you tried looking harder?” Her voice sounded distant. Tom turned to investigate. She was still standing on the other half of the room but she appeared as a human sized version of her Oni self and it seemed like she was on the other side of a blue glass window. “Did we do it? Did we win?” 

Tom pulled on the collar of his shirt and pointed to the black star tattooed to his chest. “Almost… remove this and let’s find out.” 

“What if it doesn’t work?” She tried to seem stoic but her face betrayed genuine concern. 

Tom shrugged. “Then you put the charm back on me and we try again. There are worse things you’ve-“ 

“What if this doesn’t bring everyone back. What if it doesn’t fully break and I have to spend months trying to fix it? It would be decades for you. Your entire life might pass by…” 

“It’s ok.” Tom reached into his pocket waiting for the moment of truth. “It’s going to work. And don’t worry about me… I’ll find a way to get back to the forest, with or without the worldstone. You just focus on rebuilding the town.” 

Hinba was stunned at the comment, unsure how even to respond. She could only manage a simple “ok,” and a single nod. 

Tom saw her eyes switch to a vibrant crimson. “I will find a way back to you.” He grit his teeth at a pain in his chest. The magic that clung to his body seemed unwilling to let go. With a steady hand, he pulled the amber stone from his pocket and held it up. ”Remember Hinba, we still need to find out who did this…”  

Hinba saw a twinkling yellow object in Tom’s hand and remembered a conversation she once forgot. “And END them!” 

Tom felt the pain in his chest again as the charm placed on him finally released. He heard the amber stone crack, and he turned just in time to see it go dim. His eyes were drawn back to Hinba. Her face turned to a deep scowl. She let out a deep war cry and balled her fist. Her shoulder cocked back and she swung a punch at the center of the room. 

There was a loud bang as her fist made contact with the translucent barrier that bisected the room. The worldstone became more and more visible and Tom could see the deep cracks beginning to form as the shockwave traveled outward. The entire building shook but Tom maintained his footing. 

“I’LL KILL THEM!” Hinba’s voice sounded more like a roar than anything else. This time she took a running start. When her second blow landed the picture above the fireplace fell to the ground. Tom collapsed to a knee but was able to get back up quickly. This level of anger was rarely safe to be around so Tom needed to stay on his feet. 

Her fist was bloody. They looked at eachother as she grit her teeth. Her eyes still glowing a fiery crimson. She took a deep breath then pulled her arm back once more. Their eyes met one more time and Tom gave her a nod, unsure if it would even reach her in this state. He watched as her fist came forward to meet the translucent wall but never saw it make contact.  

There was a bright flash of light that temporarily blinded Tom and he was thrown backwards. When his head collided with the wall, he was immediately knocked unconscious and fell limp to the floor