***
Thirty minutes into the flight, once the plane had steadied itself above a dazzling blanket of clouds, Aiden saw the image of an unbuckled safety belt illuminate on the little screen above his head. He unbuckled, taking a deep breath, and tried to find his balance as the aisle wobbled gently from side to side.
Three rows up, Aiden stopped beside London's aisle seat. "Uh, hi," he said, finally looking directly into her blue eyes. She returned his gaze, but said nothing. "Are you London? London Pale?"
The woman hesitated, then said "Yes. Yes I am."
"Oh good," Aiden sighed, smiling. "For a moment there, I thought I might've been mistaken. Do you mind if I..?" Aiden gestured to the empty seat next to her.
London agreed with an awkward nod. Aiden slid past her and took a seat.
Aiden introduced himself, but London stared blankly. Aiden lowered his voice, looking around to see that no one else was listening, "We went to the Guild together," he whispered.
A look of revelation washed over London's face and she smiled for a moment. "Oh yes, you're Aiden," she said. "I remember you. I remember what happened, and I thought it was unfair-"
"Oh that's nice," Aiden cut her off, his brow furling in disbelief. "Listen," he leaned in closer. "I don't have a lot of time, so let's do this quickly. I know what you're up to, and I think if you come quietly, they'll be lenient. More than they would be if-"
"What I'm up to?" London asked, trying to keep her voice down. "I know what you're up to," she said forcefully.
Aiden threw her an incredulous look. "Don't play games with me. Turn yourself in, and it won't be so bad."
London laughed as if finding the whole thing unbelievable. "I could ask the same of you," she said, turning to face him more directly. "Let's stop the games. I knew you were following me, and I knew you'd end up here. Let me take you in, and no one will get hurt."
"Oh really?" Aiden said, still wondering if he wasn't a bit confused. "I really don't think you want to make threats like this."
London's face hardened in determination. "I am prepared to do what I have to do, if that's what you mean."
Aiden stood suddenly and reached down to his side as if grasping for something. His hand formed as if gripping a handle, and a double-edged sword materialized, his fingers wrapping around the hilt. He drew it completely out, as if from an invisible scabbard and held it aloft. The sword's white-metal alloy gleamed in the sunlight that filtered through the cabin windows.
The plane's cabin went alarmingly silent at the sight of Aiden's drawn blade. He bit his lip as if he'd forgotten where he was. He shrugged and held it out toward London anyway.
The woman stood. "Idiot!" she said, her fists clenched.
Aiden didn't care. "Let's do this now," he shouted, choosing not to notice the gasps of panic emanating from onlookers all around.
"Do I have a choice?" London said, drawing her own blade, which materialized as she drew it out from by her side.
Aiden and London's blades clattered furiously, sending people rushing out of the way and to each end of the plane. London raced forward, but Aiden blocked high and grabbed her wrist, trying to force her sword arm away. A burst of energy smashed into Aiden's chest and he crashed into the seat behind him. London had launched an energy ball with her free hand.
"Smooth." Aiden smirked, brushing himself off and regaining his composure.
Despite how D'Tari could possess so many different types of powers, summoning swords and shields, and launching energy balls tended to be the most common kinds of defense. Aiden hadn't expected much of London, but now he knew he shouldn't underestimate her either.
"Just so you know, I actually graduated from the Guild," London quipped. "Now are you coming quietly?"
Aiden scoffed and launched an energy ball at London with one hand. A shield materialized in London's free hand to block it, but the ball simply passed through the shield and unraveled in a ghostly fashion. London lowered her shield, looking confused, only to find herself being struck with a full blast of real energy from Aiden. She flew backward, crashing into the row of seats behind her, almost hitting the cabin wall.
The crowd of passengers gasped, many of them on cell phones talking to authorities. London slowly picked herself up, looking much worse for wear, her clothes disheveled and hair in front of her eyes. Aiden waited, imagining himself a gentleman.
"Alright!" a man's voice called from the front of the plane. It was a dark-haired co-pilot standing with arms out in a calming gesture. "Sir, we're not sure what's going on, but we just need you both to calm down... And put away the weapon..."
Aiden chuckled. "Oh don't worry. It's not what you think," Aiden said, keeping on eye on London, who was getting back to her feet, a look of fury painting her features. "Actually I don't know what you think frankly. But believe me, this ain't it. I'm here to take this traitor in."
London fumed. "Me? A traitor! You're the traitor!" she said, with her blade squarely aimed at Aiden. "N'Iatari sympathizer!"
London charged and the two blades clashed, sending sparks into the air. Aiden and London dueled for a moment longer, and Aiden began to wonder if he'd met his match. London's face twisted ferociously as her blade smashed so heavily against Aiden's that he thought it might tear his in two. He held his ground, balanced against a seat, and forced her backward. She regained her footing and blocked his thrust, and for the moment Aiden's blade gave way, the heel of London's somewhat fashionable boot caught him painfully across the chin.
Aiden fell sideways, his nose cracking loudly on the back of a seat. His thoughts whirled in a thousand circles. He crawled backward, realizing his sword had vanished. London's blade had come to rest just inches from Aiden's face as he looked up at her.
"You're the N'Iatari sympathizer," he said, tasting the blood trickling from his nose. "I thought we established that."
"Never," London said plainly as Aiden opened his mouth to protest.
"Menlir sent me to find you," the two of them said to each other, simultaneously.
For a moment, they stared at each other, absolutely dumbfounded.
"No... Can't be," Aiden said, still sitting on the floor, not looking so worried about London's looming blade.
London drew her blade in closer to herself. "I don't know why I didn't question it."
"Menlir..." Aiden snarled through grit teeth.
Within moments of realization, London and Aiden apologized to the terrified passengers and crew, though it didn't seem to do any good. No one seemed to know what was going on, and Aiden supposed that was best. It would have to be sorted out later. London immediately dropped to the floor and started writing a formula in glowing runes on the carpet in the aisle. It was a formula that Aiden didn't want to admit he'd never seen before.
London grabbed Aiden and the two of them stepped on the circle London had drawn around the runes. They both were encased in a circular glow, and without warning, Aiden felt as though the floor had fallen out beneath him. Holding on to London, he felt ghost-like, sliding through the undercarriage of the plane and finally into the bright sky above the carpet of white clouds.
The world lost focus and Aiden could feel his stomach in his chest and his heart in his throat. In that fleeting moment, he could have sworn he saw a large black bird flutter by, its liquid eye glaring as if reading Aiden's thoughts.