THE MOMENT
"Well, what do you think?" Abby grinned as she held the sword pointed at Roy's neck. The burly blonde man was beaten bloody and looked up at her from the white ground, defeated. "Did I do better than the dead guys?" Their encounter happened in a large white room unlike any other Abby had seen in the castle. The floor, walls, and ceiling all seemed to glow with gentle warmth. She entered the room to discover Roy standing atop a pile of bodies that couldn't have been there for very long. Some seemed to still be groaning their last breath. Despite the unusual room and immediate danger, Abby's attention was drawn to something else initially.
Behind the stranger who introduced himself as Roy, stood a tall, deep black grandfather clock. When Abby first entered the castle, she left with an audible ticking sound in her mind. Everyone in the town could hear it too, after visiting the castle; but, none of them had an idea where it came from. As soon as Abby entered the room and set eyes on the black clock, she knew it was the source. Luckily, that was enough of a hint to take Roy seriously. She had a tendency to underestimate her challenges. It was her toughest fight yet; but, she came well equipped.
After a series of favors that might as well have been a quest line, Abby was loaned a legendary sword to help explore the castle. Legendary Sword #57 - La Espada wasn't at its full strength; but, it did pull its weight in the fight. As the battle progressed Abby realized she wouldn't have stood a chance without it; though, she put her best forward too. But now, she was victorious, and doing her best to be merciful. She held the white-handled sword ready and Roy nodded. He was about to speak; but then, Abby blinked and he was gone.
The bodies were gone, the clock was gone and the white room showed no sign of their struggle. But, that wasn't the only difference. It was quiet now. Abby didn't register the silence right away though, because something new caught her eye. A teenage elf girl with long, golden, double-plaited braids flowing down each side of her face. The braids ended in brilliant colors woven in, but it was still obviously her own hair rainbow-colored at the tips. She was frozen in place with her eyes closed, hands pressed to her ears, and her mouth hanging open as if shouting. Abby spun in place to survey the whole room; but, the elven druid was the only new addition to the empty room.
"Huh. Hi?" Abby asked, she waved at the figure; but, the girl didn't move. "Hello!?" She tried again, louder, and closed the distance between them. "HEY!" she raised her voice and yelled at the girl's face. "ARE YOU ALIVE!??" By this time, Abby kind of had her answer, but, she felt like teasing the girl for no reason. It made her smile, and she felt like enjoying a moment of silliness after the intense victory.
"I'm Abby, what's your name?" Abby giggled. She'd sheathed her sword in its white scabbard and she hefted it up near her mouth to imitate a microphone. Then, she moved it toward the girl's face as if giving her a chance to answer, and the handle bumped her chin.
"SHUT UP! IT'S NOT OKAY! LEAVE ME ALONE!" The time-stuck girl came to life, yelling directly in Abby's face as she kept her eyes shut. Abby was surprised and leaned back with a curious smile, and she was relaxed enough to be caught off guard. The girl took her hands off her ears and swung wildly, knocking Abby square in the jaw and sending her stumbling back.
"HEY!" Abby replied as she recovered and drew her sword again. The girl froze and her eyes shot open to reveal brilliant, crystal blue focused on Abby.
"ABBY!" the girl shouted, then looked around. "WHERE'S HELIOS!??" she panicked as she spun in circles, then, settled down. "Hey... the ticking stopped....," she said. She took a second to calm down as her breathing slowed..., then she turned and focused on Abby again.
"We need Ms. Sharp!" the girl said. She began picking at the air, but she only grew more frustrated when nothing happened. "WHERE'S MY NODE!?" she asked. "USE YOURS! WE NEED TO TALK TO MS. SHARP!"
Abby shrugged and relaxed. She didn't know what the girl was going on about, but she didn't seem to be a threat, despite her surprising strength.
"How do you know my name?" Abby asked as she decided to sheath the sword again.
"Because I hate you...," the girl replied; but, she appeared to calm down. She wasn't actually calm, just distracted. Things were different now. "... you don't know who I am? It's... too late....?"
"No clue," Abby shook her head with a shrug. "But, you're already annoying me, and I kinda wanna kill you. We should be friends," Abby giggled and moved the sword to her left hand to offer her right.
"LA ESPADA!" The girl's attention finally drifted across the white sword and she recognized it instantly. It was only a split second between her exclamation and the moment when Abby felt the sword yanked out of her hand. "I NEED TO MAKE THIS RIGHT! TAKE ME TO HELIOS!" The girl raised the sword, ready to swing at nothing with all her might. Abby took a step back willing to watch the scene play out. She was familiar with the sword, so maybe she could help Abby restore it to its full power.
"NO WAIT! MS. SHARP!" she started the downward swing, then changed her mind again. "NO, I NEED MONDAY!" The sword cleaved the air and sliced a black hole in reality. The wound expanded until it was broad enough for someone to step through, and the girl didn't hesitate to charge in without looking back.
"Hey, wait!" Abby called out realizing the girl was running off with the sword; but, the weapon refused to enter the black void and fell out onto the white ground before the portal disappeared. "Thanks, that's all I wanted," Abby giggled to herself and collected the sword. Then, she decided to call it a day. After a hard fight and a confusing couple of minutes, she was ready for some peace and quiet. As she thought about it, that was when she finally noticed. "Oh, hey. The ticking stopped."