Post by Solana on Apr 21, 2014 20:25:53 GMT -5
Chapter Four- Inside The Fire
What medicines do not heal, the lance will; what the lance does not heal, fire will.
Hippocrates
Raoul had finally finished his round of good-byes to all of the fellow orphans that he had grown up with. He was seventeen, and finally ready to make his own way in the world. Even so, it was going to hurt to leave behind all the little ones who had come to depend on him. He had taught them games and read them stories, carried the little ones on walks to nearby caves, and calmed down those who awoke from scary nightmares.
But he knew that as a Guardian, he could protect them all from things far worse than any nightmare.
Presently, Raoul was trying to clean up the breakfast dishes from the dining room table. Bachlan would be coming any minute to hear his answer, and he wanted his caretakers to be proud of their home and himself. Dirty bowls and crusts of bread were brought to the sink, and a quick wipe with a wet washcloth took care of the ever-present crumbs.
"Raoul, you don't have to do that." Sofya came in, a sweet woman with shiny black hair and a lap big enough for any crying child. Her smile was proud, but her eyes were sad.
"Of course I do. You carried me until I grew, fed and took care of me," Raoul replied.
Sofya came over to him and threw her arms around him in a hug. Tears trickled down Raoul's cheeks. This woman had been 'Mother' for as long as he could remember. For so long she had been a tower of strength and encouragement. Even as he passed her in height and girth, he still thought of her that way.
"I love you, Mother," Raoul said into her black hair.
"Oh, my dear Raoul. I love you too, enough to let you go." The woman's voice shook with her emotion, and she took a gasping breath. "You're off to find your future and your past. I hope you can find the elven piece of your heritage."
Raoul nodded. This had been his only private heartbreak all of this time. With Sofya he had never missed the love of a parent, but did ache to know of the other portion of his soul. As a Guardian, maybe he could find his way in this world...
A loud cough sounded. Raoul looked up to see Bachlan standing at their threshold. His nose was wrinkled slightly from the smell of cabbage and mutton stew, but thankfully he kept any comments to himself. "It is time, Raoul. Time for you to decide your path."
Raoul reluctantly took a step away from Sofya. A bittersweet understanding blossomed in her eyes as she too stepped back. He stood up very straight and smoothed down his best homespun clothes. "I am ready, sir. I will join the other Guardians and serve you and Merna as best as I may."
"Very good. Bring whatever things you wish and we'll leave immediately for you to start your duties," Bachlan answered crisply. He turned and sidestepped one of the stuffed catacorns belonging to a younger child and picked his way through the slight mess back to the door.
There wasn't much to take- only the bronze bracelet already adorning one wrist and a small sack of clothes, rough paper, quills and homemade berry ink. He turned to Sofya, his expression already far away and containing a hint of the man he would become. "Good-bye, Mother. I'll come visit as often as I can," he promised softly.
Sofya stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. She would miss this child of her heart, but was glad that he would go off to an incredible life. "Never forget to listen to your heart, son of mine. When your head is confused, your heart will always tell you what is right."
There were a few officials and guards inside the temple that didn't look happy at Aryn's appearance, but a quick word with Uthel was enough to silence them. "She can help us. She knew that the next shake was coming and got us to safety in time," he kept repeating.
"You be careful, Uthel. You too, stranger. This temple is fairly solid, but I don't want to lose my best partner to a beam on the noggin," one remarked, handing them torches. Aryn accepted hers gratefully, knowing that there was no point in whipping out the fireworks until the real task began.
Following Uthel down the lifts that led to the heart of the temple made Aryn feel more and more on edge, as the sense of wrongness grew stronger. While normally the Guardians' ties to their elements were very useful, it could be a bit of a pain when something was interfering with them and they could sense it. A slight tinge of claustrophobia was beginning to creep into her system.
Uthel suddenly turned around, then noticed his companion's somewhat pale face. "Are you all right, Aryn?"
Aryn nodded and stopped a moment to strengthen the guards she kept around her power. Not only did they keep her fire in check until she needed it, but also aided in keeping the emanations from fire she could sense from overwhelming her psyche. Once she was done and the sense of being closed in was suppressed, she wiped her forehead. "Yup. Are we almost there?"
"Right through that door," Uthel assured her, gesturing with his torch.
Aryn smiled gratefully and followed the guard into the Chamber of the Fayth, one of the destinations of countless summoners throughout this world's history. She was immediately impressed by its ancient beauty and sense of power. Odd glyph patterns formed a ring on the floor and ran up the walls of the circular chamber. There was a definite residue of power left behind by the aeon Ifrit, like coals that retained the faintest bit of heat in their hearts hours after a bonfire.
But she could admire it later- there was work to do. Noticing convenient holders at the ring's outer perimeter, Aryn relinquished her torch and went to the very center of the chamber and looked down. "This was where that hole Elma mentioned was? Right here?" she asked, pointing at the ground.
Uthel nodded. "Upon Lady Yuna's return from the Farplane, all of the holes in the temples closed completely on their own."
"Right," Aryn murmured, and carefully knelt down. She then placed her palms flat against the dusty floor, shut her eyes, and sent her awareness back down into the magma beneath the layers of earth.
Son of a blazes!
The problem was immediately clear. Far underneath the temple was the reservoir of magma that marked any volcano. Many of these had multiple outlets to release lava through vents in the seabed in addition to the main one through the volcano cone, but this reservoir's outlets appeared to have been blocked. Aryn would bet a year's tribute earned as a Guardian that the earth shifting around to create the holes to the Farplane and then closing had caused it. With no other outlets, the reservoir was sending all its magma up towards the volcano she was on top of and trying to wake it up a few centuries ahead of time. The earthquakes had resulted from the magma trying to blast its way through the solid earth between the summit and its pool, and were helping them by loosening up the ground.
"Aryn, are you all right? Elma said that you knew something about these quakes." Solana's voice broke Aryn's concentration, and she opened her eyes and got back on her feet to glance at her friend with a hint of worry in her eyes.
"The townspeople, are they well?" Uthel asked nervously.
"A little shaken, but they're fine," Solana replied, as Aryn inwardly groaned at the unintentional pun. "What's going on here? What have you found out?" she continued, puzzlement in her eyes as she looked at the temple floor that Aryn had been examining.
"Solana, didn't you say that the fisherfolk and blitzers were warning you to stay away from some places on your dives, due to the vents?" Aryn asked. Solana nodded. "Did you sense or see any active ones?"
"No..." Solana said slowly, remembering her observations. "In fact, there was one vent ecosystem that looked like it was hungry, espcially the tube worms." She paused as realization and horror crept into her eyes. "Wait a moment. Blocked vents? Earthquakes? Aryn, you don't mean-"
"Uh-huh. This sleeping giant's going to be waking up ahead of schedule," Aryn cut in grimly.
"Excuse me, but would one of you mind explaining just exactly what all this is about?!" Uthel demanded, his voice rising with a hint of panic.
Aryn gave the man a rundown on her observations, pitying him as he grew more and more pale. "Active again...it could wipe out our entire city!" Uthel gasped, then turned to Aryn and grabbed her arm entreatingly. "You said you can fix this? Prevent Kilika from being destroyed again?"
"I'm going to try hitting its snooze button. There's plenty of outlets to blast open, but that's why I called in some reinforcements," Aryn replied, clapping Solana on the shoulder. Uthel looked considerably relieved at Aryn's bravado and let go of her arm, but Solana hoped they would live up to his expectations.
Aryn knelt back down on the ground, ready to get to work. Uthel shifted a bit nervously, looking unsure of what to do. "Uthel, could you have your people prepare as many message balloons to send to the people as possible? Just in case?" Solana asked gently.
"Yes, ladies. I'll be back shortly to await your signal and your instructions if anything else is needed," Uthel replied, and departed.
Solana eased herself into a comfortable sitting position next to Aryn, taking a few deep breaths to keep her mind clear for what they needed to do. "Mixing water and magma can be tricky, so I'll follow your lead on this one, my friend."
Aryn nodded absently, deep in thought for a moment. "About a hundred feet down, I want one of your strongest 'last resort' shields. If I screw up, I don't wanna take the whole island with me."
"With us," Solana corrected with a small smile. Aryn didn't reply, so Solana drew on both the Aura of the Asterite and her Defensive Seal of Water to form a protective slab-like shield between the temple and the magma.
Meanwhile, Aryn closed her eyes and followed her tie to fire back down to the magma reservoir. It was vividly hissing and spitting and running wild like a daycare's worth of sugar-rushed toddlers, but she had some time yet.
Aryn then fanned her awareness out, looking for the outlets that the magma was supposed to be flowing through in normal times. Her Celestial gift kicked in, sharpening her magical vision as she scanned through layers and layers of earth as Eziban had taught her. Empty underground riverbeds appeared in her mind's eye, and she left a small dab of magical fire at each to mark them as she made a full circuit of the volcano's perimeter. By the time she got back to the first one, she had marked seven major outlets.
Drat, and they're all solidly blocked. The Fire Guardian cracked her knuckles in anticipation. Then again, it wouldn't be any fun otherwise.
Another geyser of liquid magma was beginning to form to shoot at the earthen ceiling. Aryn used a rope of her power to harness it, and directed its heat and pressure to instead drill the blockage at the first outlet. Rock and soil first flushed a dull crimson from the heat, then a brighter and brighter red as it softened and began to give way. As it lost its power, the magma cooled and trickled away to rejoin the reservoir, so Aryn called up more to take its place.
Once she had gotten about halfway through the blockage, Aryn took a moment to gauge how much earth and water were still above her magma. They seemed stable, so she took a firm hold on the magma being used as a drill and fed her own power into it to strengthen it. "Flare!"
The magma exploded forward, obliterating the earth in its path as it raced gleefully along. Aryn kept a tight rein on it, guiding it along its pathway until the magma crumbled the last of the blockage and shot into the outlet in the seafloor. The vent ecosystem around the outlet gleefully drank in the returned nutrients and got to its own work to renew itself.
Aryn let out a sigh of relief and returned her attention to the magma reservoir. Despite having one restored outlet, the magma level was still rising alarmingly fast. An enormous boulder fell from the ceiling, creating a mighty splash of magma as it landed. Aryn cursed as the island trembled in reply, and heard some startled yelps from the guards still in the temple. Since they were of surprise instead of pain, she ignored them for now. "Solana, can you use your power to help keep the earth in the cavern's ceiling stable?" she asked hopefully.
"Certainly. Just keep working on the magma," Solana replied softly. Her shield was completed, and she used it as an anchor as she spread her power into the earth above the reservoir. Even this far down there was water in between the particles of soil. She then began freezing it and the earth around it into one solid mass, strong enough to resist the tremors and cold enough to defend against the magma's heat.
Satisfied that the tremors had stopped for the moment, Aryn got back to work. The second outlet was soon blasted open, and the third even more quickly. The fourth was causing some problems, since a vein of metallic ore had been tossed into this blockage, so she was forced to add some celestial power to her fire to break through it. Sweat was trickling down her face from walking the tightrope of using enough power without waking up the volcano or blowing up anything extra.
Taking a quick breather after that last one, Aryn doublechecked the rising magma pools. Fewer geysers were being created, but it was still rising swiftly despite the progress she had made. She had to buy herself some more time to finish opening the outlets.
Quickly, Aryn tossed a rope of her power into the magma and commanded it to Stop!
Howling protestations greeted her order, roaring in her mind, until Aryn clenched her hands to her head against their onslaught. "Aryn?!" Solana gasped, her hand on her friend's shoulder haloed in healing blue light. A slight moan escaped Aryn's lips. Sometimes, harmony with nature's forces is anything but.
This magma came straight from Spira's very core, and if she wanted to stop it she'd have to pit herself against the force of the whole planet without causing a disaster somewhere on the surface. For the sake of the rest of Spira, it was a gamble she was unwilling to take. Fine, then! At least freaking slow down a little! This the magma did, if reluctantly, though it required a steady stream of her power to make it stick.
"I'm...I'm ok, Solana. I didn't realize this magma had a direct link to the motherload of Spira's fire," Aryn replied with a shaky laugh.
"How are you holding up?" Solana asked in concern.
"Three more and we'll have it. Thanks for helping me out here, but by Merna I wish Eziban was here, too," Aryn replied vehemently.
"So do I, but let's finish it with what we have," Solana suggested kindly. Aryn nodded her agreement and turned back to her work.
The fifth and sixth outlets took more time to crack open than Aryn would've liked, and then she faced the last one. Naturally, this outlet was the biggest, second only to the volcano cone. As high as the magma pool was, she'd have to be extra careful now about how to use her power. She plunged another strand of magic into the magma pool, ready to form one last drill.
Solana yelped as another tremor hit that felt like a giant hand was rocking the entire island and sent the Guardians rolling to opposite walls in the Chamber. Pillars trembled and rock dust fell from the ceiling. "Aryn, the magma just hit my shield! Hurry!!"
Damndamndamndamn... Aryn's magical reserves were draining faster than the time they had left. Holding back the magma in its pool had cost her.
Finally, she drew her flaming sword. No mistakes. I have to obliterate this bad boy in one shot. Aryn concentrated the last of her magical power into her sword and raised it as the flames turned the brilliant blue violet of celestial fire. "Drop the shield under me, Solana! Raise it up when I tell you!" Solana gazed at her incredulously, but obeyed. With a battle scream, Aryn thrust her blade down into the temple floor as hard as she could, focusing that magical power down.
Blue and purple fire raced gleefully down, passing through where Solana's shield had been and going for the last blocked outlet. "Now!" Aryn yelled, and Solana hurriedly replaced the gap before the magma could swamp through it. Aryn's magic whipped through layers of rock until it found its target. With a deep roar, the celestial fire disintegrated every rock and speck of soil in its path before dying out, and the magma rushed through the new pathway like a river through a broken dam.
The magma level collapsed beneath them as molten rock resumed its travels throughout its previous beds. Solana watched the underwater vents carefully, making sure that nothing in the delicate ecosystems would be swamped. Aryn watched as the magma levels sank, and sank, and sank back to their former levels, and the earth under them stabilized.
The very island seemed to let out a sigh of relief as Solana reclaimed her barrier. For a second, both Guardians were breathless and could only exchange a tired smile.
"Are we safe? Are you all right?" Uthel asked, entering the chambers and glancing at the Guardians with a worried expression.
Aryn grinned triumphantly and resheathed her sword. "And that's how we do it in Merna!" she announced proudly, then dizzily fell to her knees. Her face was as white as alabaster as the results of her efforts came to her in a rush.
Solana went to her side and helped her best friend back up. "Plenty of rest for you, my friend. You've earned it."
Uthel put Aryn's other arm around his own shoulders. "Far be it from me to leave behind a lady in this condition. Particularly one who has just saved my home."
Aryn yawned, too tired to protest. "Okay, thanks..."
After taking the lifts, the other guards tried to cluster around and thank the Guardians, but Uthel waved them away. "Go see to our people. Make sure that no buildings collapsed and that no one was trapped. And see if any of our Al Bhed allies are available to help us fix anything that might require it."
"Yes, sir," they replied and split up to assume their duties.
Outside in the bright sunshine again, Aryn shrugged off the others' arms, determined to make it back to the inn under her own power. Solana said nothing, knowing her stubborn friend's pride all too well. They glanced up at the temple, but it had survived the shakes remarkably well and only showed a few minor cracks in the stone walls. One woman was already carefully replastering these, while the children had resumed their games and laughing.
"How is the volcano now?" Uthel asked quietly.
"It's stable, but it's still a volcano," Aryn replied, then tipped her head back in thought. "If I had to guess, I'd say you have three, maybe four centuries until it tries erupting again for real."
The guard shook his head in amazement. "Even our best black mages could give no indication."
"They probably don't get swamped with feelings of fire getting angry about being messed with, either," Aryn pointed out dryly.
Uthel began to look worried again, so Solana rushed in. "We're used to it. We have our barriers, and remember to work alongside of our power instead of letting it drive us. But that kind of magical sensing can be very useful if managed properly."
"As with anything else in life, it seems," Uthel remarked thoughtfully. The women nodded in agreement.
Despite Uthel's worries, the damage to the city of Kilika appeared to be minimal. There were a few people setting beams back up properly and sweeping up broken pottery, but no one seemed injured.
Thankfully, it was a short walk that brought them to the inn that the Guardians were staying in. Solana wasn't sure how much longer Aryn's pride would keep her walking unaided. Uthel thanked Aryn again, asking if there wasn't anything he could do.
Aryn's eyes lit up mischievously. "Now that you mention it, could you get that awesome fish and lime soup recipe from the Salty Dog?" she asked hopefully.
Uthel raised an eyebrow. "My family manages it, so....you're sure?"
"Of course. A good recipe is a treasure that pays off again and again," Aryn explained, her mouth already watering at the thought of a whole pot of tasty zesty goodness to share (or not) with everyone else at home.
Uthel's eyes warmed in respect. "My sister would agree with you on that one. Good day, ladies, and I'll have the recipe for you tomorrow morning." He made a salute, then went back to the temple to get back to his own work of informing the people and seeing if anything more needed fixing.
Solana held out her arm to her friend, and this time Aryn took it as she managed to stagger into their room and finally collapsed on her bed. Aryn looked even more pale after their walk back, but still managed to kick off her sandals and wrestle off her weaponry with a wry smile. "That's the funny thing about fire- it takes a lot more work to make it NOT go boom."
"But you are all right?" Solana asked in concern.
Aryn snickered and waved a hand. "Not to worry, mama hen. I'm just going to crash until tomorrow." She crawled into her bed and buried herself under the covers, then stuck her head out again to add, "So go ahead and check out those reefs that you're so worried about."
Solana stared at her in shock. "How did you-"
"Because I know you," was the smug reply.
Solana couldn't think of a proper retort, so settled for tossing a pillow in her best friend's direction before leaving. There was a squeak of surprise before the inevitable retaliation, but Solana was already through the door and chuckled as she heard the soft ‘smoosh’ of a pillow hitting the door. After setting up a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign, she departed for the docks again.
Aryn looked much better the next morning, although her power hadn't fully regenerated yet and she even slept in past her usual sparring hour. Not wanting to disturb her friend, Solana quietly fixed some breakfast and went to Kilika's forest clearing for a quick workout with her kamas.
As she finished with some of her dancer's warmup stretches, Solana got an uneasy feeling of being watched. She went into some of her spinning slashes, keeping her eyes peeled on the trees around her as she moved, but her only company seemed to be a few birds sunning themselves and the chirps of insects from the trees. It was a credit to her stalker that she couldn't see them, but there were other ways of looking.
Starting on a complex combat routine, Solana kept her body moving on automatic pilot while her mind and magical senses were free to search her surroundings. After hunting about three quarters of the forest around her, she finally sensed the water in a body nestled on some branches of a large oak. Whoever it was was slowly and carefully approaching her.
Solana's smile took on a bit of a smirk. While many remembered to tack on invisibility spells and stealth techniques, very few knew to magically shield the presence of the natural elements of their bodies from those that could detect them.
There was only one person present, and they might not be a threat. Even so, her last unwelcome visitor had destroyed the precious Alterius Scroll right in front of her eyes, and she had no inclinations to be caught so easily again. Solana shifted her position so that the watcher was to her left, then suddenly lunged with her kamas to the right.
A figure clad in black came flying from the trees with a startled gasp, and was kept suspended six feet above the ground in front of her. Solana also made sure to keep their hands where she could see them, away from the nondescript black clothing, and kept her kamas in a ready position.
"I think now would be an excellent time to explain why you were spying on me," she stated calmly.
The figure tried to look down or move their hands, but failed. "I shall have to tell my comrades of this trick. If I was here to attack you, I would be in a most difficult position. As it is, I am only a messenger, and my name is Haji." Miraculously, he sounded more impressed than angry.
"What kind of messenger would my friends send that would need to employ such tactics?" Solana asked, not letting him down yet.
"One that has reason to be wary of interceptors. I come from Oriana of Merna, to whom my people are currently paying a blood debt. She saved my village from a plague, and requested that we find you and your friend Aryn in return," Haji answered, his voice as bland as if he were just standing on the grass next to her.
Solana hesitated as delight and a sense of alarm battled in her mind. She would dearly love to believe him, but this could well be a ploy of Bachlan's in some way. Then again, he had never seemed interested in anything beyond Merna's borders, but if she and Aryn had angered him enough to try attacking them...
"Oriana said to tell you that she gave you a piece of your home reef the night you left, and was glad to see that it was still with you when you last met," the ninja added.
Solana gasped, her fingers brushing the pearl pendant that Oriana had given her so long ago. The only other that had heard that phrase that night had been Aryn, so it had to be legit. She let him back on the ground carefully and freed his hands. "Forgive me, but I think you understand why I had to be careful. May I have the message, please?" Solana asked.
The ninja wordlessly reached into a pocket and withdrew a sealed piece of parchment. Solana immediately recognized Oriana's personal seal, a willow tree near a river with a single snowflake hanging in the air. Grabbing a pin from her hair, she quickly cracked the message open and scanned its contents.
My darling girls, it has been a long time.
Tears came into her eyes at the familiar phrase and delicate handwriting. She wiped her eyes and continued on.
It is a very great blessing to know that you are alive and well after all of this time. All of us are alive and healthy, although I believe it would be inaccurate to say that all is well. Eziban has discovered that Bachlan possesses a secret workroom hidden in the very heart of the Crystal Citadel. His journals are written in Atlantean, and I fear that my memory no longer holds the language. The only phrase that he was able to unearth was 'Genu Magnia'.
We shall seek what we can here, but you two have far greater freedom for such things. I fear that in his anger at what he sees as the decline of our world and the shaken trust in him by our people, he is apt to act recklessly. It is imperative that we learn what we can, and are able to put a stop to anything that would only bring more harm to the people and world in our care. I wish to add nothing more to the debt already owed to our people for our tenure as their Guardians.
Please be very careful. Eziban sends his warmest wishes, and he and Raoul miss you both. It's been very lonely without you two around, although my heart believes in your journey to the fullest.
All of my love,
Oriana
The tears ran faster as Solana reread the message to make sense of it. Some drops hit the paper, threatening to blot the ink written in that familiar handwriting. Oriana was all right after teleporting her and Aryn to safety, and so were the boys after backing them up. The thought that they might be otherwise had been lurking in the back of her mind ever since that day. Despite the bad news of Bachlan's plotting, she felt something in her heart relax.
A discreet cough broke her line of thought. "The lady wished some form of response, such as a translation," Haji stated with a hint of impatience.
Startled at being returned to the present, Solana looked up from the paper. "Please tell her that 'Genu Magnia' translates to 'Great Birth', we will do what we can to learn more, and also that we are well and love her. Please accept my apologies for what I did," she requested.
"There is no shame in being prepared for a possible foe. Remember in your endeavors that the greatest strength is found in unity, whether it is a handful of Guardians or one hundred and eight stars or a league throughout the universe. Farewell," the ninja replied. He bowed his head and vanished.
Solana read through the message once more, smelling just a hint of the lavender oil that Oriana used in so many of her herbal remedies. Finally, she wiped her eyes and ran back to the hotel.
To her surprise, Aryn was already up and polishing off a tray of breakfast while intently reading a scrap of paper. When Aryn looked up at Solana's entrance, it was with the light of discovery dancing in her hazel eyes. "Uthel came to see how things were after yesterday and brought us some food, as well as the recipe. Wait until I get my hands on the right combo of herbs," she explained triumphantly. She then stared at Solana's face, which was still flushed with excitement. "What happened? Did you discover a new species of fish or something?"
Solana breathlessly handed over the message from home. "Oriana found us and sent us a message with a mission of sorts. The messenger claimed that Oriana was glad I still had 'the piece of my home reef', so I know it's from her."
"I don't think I've ever seen you take that thing off," Aryn commented absently, reading the note over as her own eyes got a little misty in nostalgia. An approving grin crossed her lips as she read that Eziban had been helping Oriana out. Suddenly, her eyebrows raised in question while re-reading some of the lines. "'Genu Magnia'? The blazes does that mean?"
"It's Atlantean for 'Great Birth'. Aryn, I learned most of my Mernan history after becoming a Guardian- does this sound familiar to you at all?" Solana asked earnestly.
Aryn shook her head regretfully, as bewildered as her friend. "Whatever it is, it sounds big. And if it's something that Bachlan intends to stick his fingers in, it can't be good."
Solana thought quickly, wishing that they had more information. One of the main problems of their journey was that Merna was a very isolated world in the Universe. They did trade occasionally with nearby worlds, but most of what was Mernan stayed in Merna. Someday, they would have to change that.
Out of other options, Solana suddenly knew what she had to do. Aryn frowned, knowing that calculating and decision look on her companion's face all too well. Worse, it was the expression that meant that she wasn't going to like the idea one bit. "What is it?"
Solana didn't meet Aryn's gaze. "I'm going to Merna to check this out."
Aryn groaned. "I knew I wasn't going to like it. I'll go pack our gear and you see about how to disguise us-" she began.
"No, not 'us'. I'm going alone," Solana interrupted...
...and quickly stepped back as the air around her became hot enough to boil water. "Not just 'no', but 'HELL no'!" Aryn shouted angrily, rising and training her furious hazel gaze down on Solana's determined silver one. One hand shot out to grab her chair to steady herself. "Solana, need I remind you that you are at the TOP of Bachlan's hit list? Last time you two were in the same room, you ended up unconscious and drained for days, and it would have been a lot worse if Oriana hadn't bailed us out!" Aryn never wanted to see Solana like that again in her life, if she could do something to prevent it.
"I know all that! But, Aryn, the others in the Citadel don't have the freedom we do to move around!" Solana logically protested, not backing down.
Drat, Solana had her there. But still... "Fine, then I'll go!" Aryn decided.
Solana shook her head. "You don't know the libraries there like I do. You'll have to ask too many questions and stick out, and my powers for transformation and defense should be enough to help me get by." She tried a reassuring smile, which didn't work. "I'm not going back to the Citadel, Aryn, just to the city of Sagia."
Aryn scowled, still not convinced. "Plus, we need someone to stay free in case something does happen," Solana added softly. "Aryn, if I can't finish this, then I need you to do it. I have faith that you can rally the others to help you if it comes to that."
Aryn let out a laugh. "Right, when it's considered a good day if Trista and I only argue three times and I sometimes need a dictionary when talking to Joshua. That's beside the very minor fact that they were ready to help Bachlan kill us."
Solana had to chuckle at that. Her friend had a true gift for making catastrophes sound like mere annoyances. "You sell yourself short, my friend. But I do not intend to let anything happen until I find out what this means."
Aryn thought it over for a few seconds, weighing the possibilities and consequences in her mind, then reluctantly nodded in defeat. Solana was right, curse it, and trying to stop her when she had an idea was like trying to stop a tidal wave by throwing a handful of sand at it. "Have I ever mentioned how much I hate your logic?" Aryn asked, hugging her best friend goodbye.
Solana hugged back, trying to put as much confidence into it as she could. "All the time. Keep resting up, and I'll be back soon so we can finish this together."
"I'm counting on it. Watch your back," was all Aryn could say in reply.
What medicines do not heal, the lance will; what the lance does not heal, fire will.
Hippocrates
Raoul had finally finished his round of good-byes to all of the fellow orphans that he had grown up with. He was seventeen, and finally ready to make his own way in the world. Even so, it was going to hurt to leave behind all the little ones who had come to depend on him. He had taught them games and read them stories, carried the little ones on walks to nearby caves, and calmed down those who awoke from scary nightmares.
But he knew that as a Guardian, he could protect them all from things far worse than any nightmare.
Presently, Raoul was trying to clean up the breakfast dishes from the dining room table. Bachlan would be coming any minute to hear his answer, and he wanted his caretakers to be proud of their home and himself. Dirty bowls and crusts of bread were brought to the sink, and a quick wipe with a wet washcloth took care of the ever-present crumbs.
"Raoul, you don't have to do that." Sofya came in, a sweet woman with shiny black hair and a lap big enough for any crying child. Her smile was proud, but her eyes were sad.
"Of course I do. You carried me until I grew, fed and took care of me," Raoul replied.
Sofya came over to him and threw her arms around him in a hug. Tears trickled down Raoul's cheeks. This woman had been 'Mother' for as long as he could remember. For so long she had been a tower of strength and encouragement. Even as he passed her in height and girth, he still thought of her that way.
"I love you, Mother," Raoul said into her black hair.
"Oh, my dear Raoul. I love you too, enough to let you go." The woman's voice shook with her emotion, and she took a gasping breath. "You're off to find your future and your past. I hope you can find the elven piece of your heritage."
Raoul nodded. This had been his only private heartbreak all of this time. With Sofya he had never missed the love of a parent, but did ache to know of the other portion of his soul. As a Guardian, maybe he could find his way in this world...
A loud cough sounded. Raoul looked up to see Bachlan standing at their threshold. His nose was wrinkled slightly from the smell of cabbage and mutton stew, but thankfully he kept any comments to himself. "It is time, Raoul. Time for you to decide your path."
Raoul reluctantly took a step away from Sofya. A bittersweet understanding blossomed in her eyes as she too stepped back. He stood up very straight and smoothed down his best homespun clothes. "I am ready, sir. I will join the other Guardians and serve you and Merna as best as I may."
"Very good. Bring whatever things you wish and we'll leave immediately for you to start your duties," Bachlan answered crisply. He turned and sidestepped one of the stuffed catacorns belonging to a younger child and picked his way through the slight mess back to the door.
There wasn't much to take- only the bronze bracelet already adorning one wrist and a small sack of clothes, rough paper, quills and homemade berry ink. He turned to Sofya, his expression already far away and containing a hint of the man he would become. "Good-bye, Mother. I'll come visit as often as I can," he promised softly.
Sofya stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. She would miss this child of her heart, but was glad that he would go off to an incredible life. "Never forget to listen to your heart, son of mine. When your head is confused, your heart will always tell you what is right."
There were a few officials and guards inside the temple that didn't look happy at Aryn's appearance, but a quick word with Uthel was enough to silence them. "She can help us. She knew that the next shake was coming and got us to safety in time," he kept repeating.
"You be careful, Uthel. You too, stranger. This temple is fairly solid, but I don't want to lose my best partner to a beam on the noggin," one remarked, handing them torches. Aryn accepted hers gratefully, knowing that there was no point in whipping out the fireworks until the real task began.
Following Uthel down the lifts that led to the heart of the temple made Aryn feel more and more on edge, as the sense of wrongness grew stronger. While normally the Guardians' ties to their elements were very useful, it could be a bit of a pain when something was interfering with them and they could sense it. A slight tinge of claustrophobia was beginning to creep into her system.
Uthel suddenly turned around, then noticed his companion's somewhat pale face. "Are you all right, Aryn?"
Aryn nodded and stopped a moment to strengthen the guards she kept around her power. Not only did they keep her fire in check until she needed it, but also aided in keeping the emanations from fire she could sense from overwhelming her psyche. Once she was done and the sense of being closed in was suppressed, she wiped her forehead. "Yup. Are we almost there?"
"Right through that door," Uthel assured her, gesturing with his torch.
Aryn smiled gratefully and followed the guard into the Chamber of the Fayth, one of the destinations of countless summoners throughout this world's history. She was immediately impressed by its ancient beauty and sense of power. Odd glyph patterns formed a ring on the floor and ran up the walls of the circular chamber. There was a definite residue of power left behind by the aeon Ifrit, like coals that retained the faintest bit of heat in their hearts hours after a bonfire.
But she could admire it later- there was work to do. Noticing convenient holders at the ring's outer perimeter, Aryn relinquished her torch and went to the very center of the chamber and looked down. "This was where that hole Elma mentioned was? Right here?" she asked, pointing at the ground.
Uthel nodded. "Upon Lady Yuna's return from the Farplane, all of the holes in the temples closed completely on their own."
"Right," Aryn murmured, and carefully knelt down. She then placed her palms flat against the dusty floor, shut her eyes, and sent her awareness back down into the magma beneath the layers of earth.
Son of a blazes!
The problem was immediately clear. Far underneath the temple was the reservoir of magma that marked any volcano. Many of these had multiple outlets to release lava through vents in the seabed in addition to the main one through the volcano cone, but this reservoir's outlets appeared to have been blocked. Aryn would bet a year's tribute earned as a Guardian that the earth shifting around to create the holes to the Farplane and then closing had caused it. With no other outlets, the reservoir was sending all its magma up towards the volcano she was on top of and trying to wake it up a few centuries ahead of time. The earthquakes had resulted from the magma trying to blast its way through the solid earth between the summit and its pool, and were helping them by loosening up the ground.
"Aryn, are you all right? Elma said that you knew something about these quakes." Solana's voice broke Aryn's concentration, and she opened her eyes and got back on her feet to glance at her friend with a hint of worry in her eyes.
"The townspeople, are they well?" Uthel asked nervously.
"A little shaken, but they're fine," Solana replied, as Aryn inwardly groaned at the unintentional pun. "What's going on here? What have you found out?" she continued, puzzlement in her eyes as she looked at the temple floor that Aryn had been examining.
"Solana, didn't you say that the fisherfolk and blitzers were warning you to stay away from some places on your dives, due to the vents?" Aryn asked. Solana nodded. "Did you sense or see any active ones?"
"No..." Solana said slowly, remembering her observations. "In fact, there was one vent ecosystem that looked like it was hungry, espcially the tube worms." She paused as realization and horror crept into her eyes. "Wait a moment. Blocked vents? Earthquakes? Aryn, you don't mean-"
"Uh-huh. This sleeping giant's going to be waking up ahead of schedule," Aryn cut in grimly.
"Excuse me, but would one of you mind explaining just exactly what all this is about?!" Uthel demanded, his voice rising with a hint of panic.
Aryn gave the man a rundown on her observations, pitying him as he grew more and more pale. "Active again...it could wipe out our entire city!" Uthel gasped, then turned to Aryn and grabbed her arm entreatingly. "You said you can fix this? Prevent Kilika from being destroyed again?"
"I'm going to try hitting its snooze button. There's plenty of outlets to blast open, but that's why I called in some reinforcements," Aryn replied, clapping Solana on the shoulder. Uthel looked considerably relieved at Aryn's bravado and let go of her arm, but Solana hoped they would live up to his expectations.
Aryn knelt back down on the ground, ready to get to work. Uthel shifted a bit nervously, looking unsure of what to do. "Uthel, could you have your people prepare as many message balloons to send to the people as possible? Just in case?" Solana asked gently.
"Yes, ladies. I'll be back shortly to await your signal and your instructions if anything else is needed," Uthel replied, and departed.
Solana eased herself into a comfortable sitting position next to Aryn, taking a few deep breaths to keep her mind clear for what they needed to do. "Mixing water and magma can be tricky, so I'll follow your lead on this one, my friend."
Aryn nodded absently, deep in thought for a moment. "About a hundred feet down, I want one of your strongest 'last resort' shields. If I screw up, I don't wanna take the whole island with me."
"With us," Solana corrected with a small smile. Aryn didn't reply, so Solana drew on both the Aura of the Asterite and her Defensive Seal of Water to form a protective slab-like shield between the temple and the magma.
Meanwhile, Aryn closed her eyes and followed her tie to fire back down to the magma reservoir. It was vividly hissing and spitting and running wild like a daycare's worth of sugar-rushed toddlers, but she had some time yet.
Aryn then fanned her awareness out, looking for the outlets that the magma was supposed to be flowing through in normal times. Her Celestial gift kicked in, sharpening her magical vision as she scanned through layers and layers of earth as Eziban had taught her. Empty underground riverbeds appeared in her mind's eye, and she left a small dab of magical fire at each to mark them as she made a full circuit of the volcano's perimeter. By the time she got back to the first one, she had marked seven major outlets.
Drat, and they're all solidly blocked. The Fire Guardian cracked her knuckles in anticipation. Then again, it wouldn't be any fun otherwise.
Another geyser of liquid magma was beginning to form to shoot at the earthen ceiling. Aryn used a rope of her power to harness it, and directed its heat and pressure to instead drill the blockage at the first outlet. Rock and soil first flushed a dull crimson from the heat, then a brighter and brighter red as it softened and began to give way. As it lost its power, the magma cooled and trickled away to rejoin the reservoir, so Aryn called up more to take its place.
Once she had gotten about halfway through the blockage, Aryn took a moment to gauge how much earth and water were still above her magma. They seemed stable, so she took a firm hold on the magma being used as a drill and fed her own power into it to strengthen it. "Flare!"
The magma exploded forward, obliterating the earth in its path as it raced gleefully along. Aryn kept a tight rein on it, guiding it along its pathway until the magma crumbled the last of the blockage and shot into the outlet in the seafloor. The vent ecosystem around the outlet gleefully drank in the returned nutrients and got to its own work to renew itself.
Aryn let out a sigh of relief and returned her attention to the magma reservoir. Despite having one restored outlet, the magma level was still rising alarmingly fast. An enormous boulder fell from the ceiling, creating a mighty splash of magma as it landed. Aryn cursed as the island trembled in reply, and heard some startled yelps from the guards still in the temple. Since they were of surprise instead of pain, she ignored them for now. "Solana, can you use your power to help keep the earth in the cavern's ceiling stable?" she asked hopefully.
"Certainly. Just keep working on the magma," Solana replied softly. Her shield was completed, and she used it as an anchor as she spread her power into the earth above the reservoir. Even this far down there was water in between the particles of soil. She then began freezing it and the earth around it into one solid mass, strong enough to resist the tremors and cold enough to defend against the magma's heat.
Satisfied that the tremors had stopped for the moment, Aryn got back to work. The second outlet was soon blasted open, and the third even more quickly. The fourth was causing some problems, since a vein of metallic ore had been tossed into this blockage, so she was forced to add some celestial power to her fire to break through it. Sweat was trickling down her face from walking the tightrope of using enough power without waking up the volcano or blowing up anything extra.
Taking a quick breather after that last one, Aryn doublechecked the rising magma pools. Fewer geysers were being created, but it was still rising swiftly despite the progress she had made. She had to buy herself some more time to finish opening the outlets.
Quickly, Aryn tossed a rope of her power into the magma and commanded it to Stop!
Howling protestations greeted her order, roaring in her mind, until Aryn clenched her hands to her head against their onslaught. "Aryn?!" Solana gasped, her hand on her friend's shoulder haloed in healing blue light. A slight moan escaped Aryn's lips. Sometimes, harmony with nature's forces is anything but.
This magma came straight from Spira's very core, and if she wanted to stop it she'd have to pit herself against the force of the whole planet without causing a disaster somewhere on the surface. For the sake of the rest of Spira, it was a gamble she was unwilling to take. Fine, then! At least freaking slow down a little! This the magma did, if reluctantly, though it required a steady stream of her power to make it stick.
"I'm...I'm ok, Solana. I didn't realize this magma had a direct link to the motherload of Spira's fire," Aryn replied with a shaky laugh.
"How are you holding up?" Solana asked in concern.
"Three more and we'll have it. Thanks for helping me out here, but by Merna I wish Eziban was here, too," Aryn replied vehemently.
"So do I, but let's finish it with what we have," Solana suggested kindly. Aryn nodded her agreement and turned back to her work.
The fifth and sixth outlets took more time to crack open than Aryn would've liked, and then she faced the last one. Naturally, this outlet was the biggest, second only to the volcano cone. As high as the magma pool was, she'd have to be extra careful now about how to use her power. She plunged another strand of magic into the magma pool, ready to form one last drill.
Solana yelped as another tremor hit that felt like a giant hand was rocking the entire island and sent the Guardians rolling to opposite walls in the Chamber. Pillars trembled and rock dust fell from the ceiling. "Aryn, the magma just hit my shield! Hurry!!"
Damndamndamndamn... Aryn's magical reserves were draining faster than the time they had left. Holding back the magma in its pool had cost her.
Finally, she drew her flaming sword. No mistakes. I have to obliterate this bad boy in one shot. Aryn concentrated the last of her magical power into her sword and raised it as the flames turned the brilliant blue violet of celestial fire. "Drop the shield under me, Solana! Raise it up when I tell you!" Solana gazed at her incredulously, but obeyed. With a battle scream, Aryn thrust her blade down into the temple floor as hard as she could, focusing that magical power down.
Blue and purple fire raced gleefully down, passing through where Solana's shield had been and going for the last blocked outlet. "Now!" Aryn yelled, and Solana hurriedly replaced the gap before the magma could swamp through it. Aryn's magic whipped through layers of rock until it found its target. With a deep roar, the celestial fire disintegrated every rock and speck of soil in its path before dying out, and the magma rushed through the new pathway like a river through a broken dam.
The magma level collapsed beneath them as molten rock resumed its travels throughout its previous beds. Solana watched the underwater vents carefully, making sure that nothing in the delicate ecosystems would be swamped. Aryn watched as the magma levels sank, and sank, and sank back to their former levels, and the earth under them stabilized.
The very island seemed to let out a sigh of relief as Solana reclaimed her barrier. For a second, both Guardians were breathless and could only exchange a tired smile.
"Are we safe? Are you all right?" Uthel asked, entering the chambers and glancing at the Guardians with a worried expression.
Aryn grinned triumphantly and resheathed her sword. "And that's how we do it in Merna!" she announced proudly, then dizzily fell to her knees. Her face was as white as alabaster as the results of her efforts came to her in a rush.
Solana went to her side and helped her best friend back up. "Plenty of rest for you, my friend. You've earned it."
Uthel put Aryn's other arm around his own shoulders. "Far be it from me to leave behind a lady in this condition. Particularly one who has just saved my home."
Aryn yawned, too tired to protest. "Okay, thanks..."
After taking the lifts, the other guards tried to cluster around and thank the Guardians, but Uthel waved them away. "Go see to our people. Make sure that no buildings collapsed and that no one was trapped. And see if any of our Al Bhed allies are available to help us fix anything that might require it."
"Yes, sir," they replied and split up to assume their duties.
Outside in the bright sunshine again, Aryn shrugged off the others' arms, determined to make it back to the inn under her own power. Solana said nothing, knowing her stubborn friend's pride all too well. They glanced up at the temple, but it had survived the shakes remarkably well and only showed a few minor cracks in the stone walls. One woman was already carefully replastering these, while the children had resumed their games and laughing.
"How is the volcano now?" Uthel asked quietly.
"It's stable, but it's still a volcano," Aryn replied, then tipped her head back in thought. "If I had to guess, I'd say you have three, maybe four centuries until it tries erupting again for real."
The guard shook his head in amazement. "Even our best black mages could give no indication."
"They probably don't get swamped with feelings of fire getting angry about being messed with, either," Aryn pointed out dryly.
Uthel began to look worried again, so Solana rushed in. "We're used to it. We have our barriers, and remember to work alongside of our power instead of letting it drive us. But that kind of magical sensing can be very useful if managed properly."
"As with anything else in life, it seems," Uthel remarked thoughtfully. The women nodded in agreement.
Despite Uthel's worries, the damage to the city of Kilika appeared to be minimal. There were a few people setting beams back up properly and sweeping up broken pottery, but no one seemed injured.
Thankfully, it was a short walk that brought them to the inn that the Guardians were staying in. Solana wasn't sure how much longer Aryn's pride would keep her walking unaided. Uthel thanked Aryn again, asking if there wasn't anything he could do.
Aryn's eyes lit up mischievously. "Now that you mention it, could you get that awesome fish and lime soup recipe from the Salty Dog?" she asked hopefully.
Uthel raised an eyebrow. "My family manages it, so....you're sure?"
"Of course. A good recipe is a treasure that pays off again and again," Aryn explained, her mouth already watering at the thought of a whole pot of tasty zesty goodness to share (or not) with everyone else at home.
Uthel's eyes warmed in respect. "My sister would agree with you on that one. Good day, ladies, and I'll have the recipe for you tomorrow morning." He made a salute, then went back to the temple to get back to his own work of informing the people and seeing if anything more needed fixing.
Solana held out her arm to her friend, and this time Aryn took it as she managed to stagger into their room and finally collapsed on her bed. Aryn looked even more pale after their walk back, but still managed to kick off her sandals and wrestle off her weaponry with a wry smile. "That's the funny thing about fire- it takes a lot more work to make it NOT go boom."
"But you are all right?" Solana asked in concern.
Aryn snickered and waved a hand. "Not to worry, mama hen. I'm just going to crash until tomorrow." She crawled into her bed and buried herself under the covers, then stuck her head out again to add, "So go ahead and check out those reefs that you're so worried about."
Solana stared at her in shock. "How did you-"
"Because I know you," was the smug reply.
Solana couldn't think of a proper retort, so settled for tossing a pillow in her best friend's direction before leaving. There was a squeak of surprise before the inevitable retaliation, but Solana was already through the door and chuckled as she heard the soft ‘smoosh’ of a pillow hitting the door. After setting up a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign, she departed for the docks again.
Aryn looked much better the next morning, although her power hadn't fully regenerated yet and she even slept in past her usual sparring hour. Not wanting to disturb her friend, Solana quietly fixed some breakfast and went to Kilika's forest clearing for a quick workout with her kamas.
As she finished with some of her dancer's warmup stretches, Solana got an uneasy feeling of being watched. She went into some of her spinning slashes, keeping her eyes peeled on the trees around her as she moved, but her only company seemed to be a few birds sunning themselves and the chirps of insects from the trees. It was a credit to her stalker that she couldn't see them, but there were other ways of looking.
Starting on a complex combat routine, Solana kept her body moving on automatic pilot while her mind and magical senses were free to search her surroundings. After hunting about three quarters of the forest around her, she finally sensed the water in a body nestled on some branches of a large oak. Whoever it was was slowly and carefully approaching her.
Solana's smile took on a bit of a smirk. While many remembered to tack on invisibility spells and stealth techniques, very few knew to magically shield the presence of the natural elements of their bodies from those that could detect them.
There was only one person present, and they might not be a threat. Even so, her last unwelcome visitor had destroyed the precious Alterius Scroll right in front of her eyes, and she had no inclinations to be caught so easily again. Solana shifted her position so that the watcher was to her left, then suddenly lunged with her kamas to the right.
A figure clad in black came flying from the trees with a startled gasp, and was kept suspended six feet above the ground in front of her. Solana also made sure to keep their hands where she could see them, away from the nondescript black clothing, and kept her kamas in a ready position.
"I think now would be an excellent time to explain why you were spying on me," she stated calmly.
The figure tried to look down or move their hands, but failed. "I shall have to tell my comrades of this trick. If I was here to attack you, I would be in a most difficult position. As it is, I am only a messenger, and my name is Haji." Miraculously, he sounded more impressed than angry.
"What kind of messenger would my friends send that would need to employ such tactics?" Solana asked, not letting him down yet.
"One that has reason to be wary of interceptors. I come from Oriana of Merna, to whom my people are currently paying a blood debt. She saved my village from a plague, and requested that we find you and your friend Aryn in return," Haji answered, his voice as bland as if he were just standing on the grass next to her.
Solana hesitated as delight and a sense of alarm battled in her mind. She would dearly love to believe him, but this could well be a ploy of Bachlan's in some way. Then again, he had never seemed interested in anything beyond Merna's borders, but if she and Aryn had angered him enough to try attacking them...
"Oriana said to tell you that she gave you a piece of your home reef the night you left, and was glad to see that it was still with you when you last met," the ninja added.
Solana gasped, her fingers brushing the pearl pendant that Oriana had given her so long ago. The only other that had heard that phrase that night had been Aryn, so it had to be legit. She let him back on the ground carefully and freed his hands. "Forgive me, but I think you understand why I had to be careful. May I have the message, please?" Solana asked.
The ninja wordlessly reached into a pocket and withdrew a sealed piece of parchment. Solana immediately recognized Oriana's personal seal, a willow tree near a river with a single snowflake hanging in the air. Grabbing a pin from her hair, she quickly cracked the message open and scanned its contents.
My darling girls, it has been a long time.
Tears came into her eyes at the familiar phrase and delicate handwriting. She wiped her eyes and continued on.
It is a very great blessing to know that you are alive and well after all of this time. All of us are alive and healthy, although I believe it would be inaccurate to say that all is well. Eziban has discovered that Bachlan possesses a secret workroom hidden in the very heart of the Crystal Citadel. His journals are written in Atlantean, and I fear that my memory no longer holds the language. The only phrase that he was able to unearth was 'Genu Magnia'.
We shall seek what we can here, but you two have far greater freedom for such things. I fear that in his anger at what he sees as the decline of our world and the shaken trust in him by our people, he is apt to act recklessly. It is imperative that we learn what we can, and are able to put a stop to anything that would only bring more harm to the people and world in our care. I wish to add nothing more to the debt already owed to our people for our tenure as their Guardians.
Please be very careful. Eziban sends his warmest wishes, and he and Raoul miss you both. It's been very lonely without you two around, although my heart believes in your journey to the fullest.
All of my love,
Oriana
The tears ran faster as Solana reread the message to make sense of it. Some drops hit the paper, threatening to blot the ink written in that familiar handwriting. Oriana was all right after teleporting her and Aryn to safety, and so were the boys after backing them up. The thought that they might be otherwise had been lurking in the back of her mind ever since that day. Despite the bad news of Bachlan's plotting, she felt something in her heart relax.
A discreet cough broke her line of thought. "The lady wished some form of response, such as a translation," Haji stated with a hint of impatience.
Startled at being returned to the present, Solana looked up from the paper. "Please tell her that 'Genu Magnia' translates to 'Great Birth', we will do what we can to learn more, and also that we are well and love her. Please accept my apologies for what I did," she requested.
"There is no shame in being prepared for a possible foe. Remember in your endeavors that the greatest strength is found in unity, whether it is a handful of Guardians or one hundred and eight stars or a league throughout the universe. Farewell," the ninja replied. He bowed his head and vanished.
Solana read through the message once more, smelling just a hint of the lavender oil that Oriana used in so many of her herbal remedies. Finally, she wiped her eyes and ran back to the hotel.
To her surprise, Aryn was already up and polishing off a tray of breakfast while intently reading a scrap of paper. When Aryn looked up at Solana's entrance, it was with the light of discovery dancing in her hazel eyes. "Uthel came to see how things were after yesterday and brought us some food, as well as the recipe. Wait until I get my hands on the right combo of herbs," she explained triumphantly. She then stared at Solana's face, which was still flushed with excitement. "What happened? Did you discover a new species of fish or something?"
Solana breathlessly handed over the message from home. "Oriana found us and sent us a message with a mission of sorts. The messenger claimed that Oriana was glad I still had 'the piece of my home reef', so I know it's from her."
"I don't think I've ever seen you take that thing off," Aryn commented absently, reading the note over as her own eyes got a little misty in nostalgia. An approving grin crossed her lips as she read that Eziban had been helping Oriana out. Suddenly, her eyebrows raised in question while re-reading some of the lines. "'Genu Magnia'? The blazes does that mean?"
"It's Atlantean for 'Great Birth'. Aryn, I learned most of my Mernan history after becoming a Guardian- does this sound familiar to you at all?" Solana asked earnestly.
Aryn shook her head regretfully, as bewildered as her friend. "Whatever it is, it sounds big. And if it's something that Bachlan intends to stick his fingers in, it can't be good."
Solana thought quickly, wishing that they had more information. One of the main problems of their journey was that Merna was a very isolated world in the Universe. They did trade occasionally with nearby worlds, but most of what was Mernan stayed in Merna. Someday, they would have to change that.
Out of other options, Solana suddenly knew what she had to do. Aryn frowned, knowing that calculating and decision look on her companion's face all too well. Worse, it was the expression that meant that she wasn't going to like the idea one bit. "What is it?"
Solana didn't meet Aryn's gaze. "I'm going to Merna to check this out."
Aryn groaned. "I knew I wasn't going to like it. I'll go pack our gear and you see about how to disguise us-" she began.
"No, not 'us'. I'm going alone," Solana interrupted...
...and quickly stepped back as the air around her became hot enough to boil water. "Not just 'no', but 'HELL no'!" Aryn shouted angrily, rising and training her furious hazel gaze down on Solana's determined silver one. One hand shot out to grab her chair to steady herself. "Solana, need I remind you that you are at the TOP of Bachlan's hit list? Last time you two were in the same room, you ended up unconscious and drained for days, and it would have been a lot worse if Oriana hadn't bailed us out!" Aryn never wanted to see Solana like that again in her life, if she could do something to prevent it.
"I know all that! But, Aryn, the others in the Citadel don't have the freedom we do to move around!" Solana logically protested, not backing down.
Drat, Solana had her there. But still... "Fine, then I'll go!" Aryn decided.
Solana shook her head. "You don't know the libraries there like I do. You'll have to ask too many questions and stick out, and my powers for transformation and defense should be enough to help me get by." She tried a reassuring smile, which didn't work. "I'm not going back to the Citadel, Aryn, just to the city of Sagia."
Aryn scowled, still not convinced. "Plus, we need someone to stay free in case something does happen," Solana added softly. "Aryn, if I can't finish this, then I need you to do it. I have faith that you can rally the others to help you if it comes to that."
Aryn let out a laugh. "Right, when it's considered a good day if Trista and I only argue three times and I sometimes need a dictionary when talking to Joshua. That's beside the very minor fact that they were ready to help Bachlan kill us."
Solana had to chuckle at that. Her friend had a true gift for making catastrophes sound like mere annoyances. "You sell yourself short, my friend. But I do not intend to let anything happen until I find out what this means."
Aryn thought it over for a few seconds, weighing the possibilities and consequences in her mind, then reluctantly nodded in defeat. Solana was right, curse it, and trying to stop her when she had an idea was like trying to stop a tidal wave by throwing a handful of sand at it. "Have I ever mentioned how much I hate your logic?" Aryn asked, hugging her best friend goodbye.
Solana hugged back, trying to put as much confidence into it as she could. "All the time. Keep resting up, and I'll be back soon so we can finish this together."
"I'm counting on it. Watch your back," was all Aryn could say in reply.