Post by Solana on Jun 28, 2014 14:03:22 GMT -5
Chapter Eight- Back To The Beginning
You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you mad.
Aldous Huxley
After a few hours of helping to clean up the mess in Sagia from Trista's hurricane, tending to the few patients that had been injured, and trying to duck as many questions as possible about her role in the matter, Solana wanted nothing more than sleep. She would worry about planning her next move in the morning. She pulled out the silver sticks that had kept her hair in its knot and shook her long tresses out, then pushed open the heavy door to the inn.
Upon entrance, however, Solana realized that sleep was going to have to wait yet again.
Lounging at one of the tables in the common area, playing a card game, were Aryn... and Eziban!! Aryn's braids had been coiled on her head and hidden under a cap, and her weapons were nowhere in sight. Eziban had cloaked himself in illusion with one of his stones, but Solana knew the feel of his power that was so close to her own. Both looked up at her approach; Aryn grinned at the surprise on her best friend's face and gathered up the cards while Eziban smiled happily and rose. "It's been too damn long!"
"It certainly has!" Solana cried out, dashing forward to greet him with a hug and putting aside questions of why they were here. Though the Earth Guardian had always been much closer to Aryn than to herself, they had still been a pack with Raoul and he was a dear friend. He looked different since that disastrous day in the Citadel all those years back- a little less carefree, and a little more responsible.
"Seems like you've been taking care of yourself. Has it been hard keeping this one in line all this time?" Eziban asked mischievously, pointing with a thumb at Aryn while she loudly protested.
Solana laughed. Perhaps he was not so very different after all. "We've been keeping each other in line, actually," she admitted. Aryn nodded and stuck her tongue out at Eziban, who ignored it. Aryn had been very blunt about what she had thought about Eziban's silence the last time they had all been together, and Solana was grateful that the old friends seemed to have made up in their fashion. "Why don't you two come up to my room, and we'll compare notes?"
Once inside, Eziban shed his illusion and tossed a spell at the walls that would prevent them from passing on any vibrations and thus made it completely soundproof. Once he was certain it was rock solid, he took the desk chair while the girls sat down on the bed. Solana took out a bottle of Sagia cider from her pack and poured out three mugs, noting with amusement that Aryn was sprinkling cayenne pepper into hers. "Eziban, why are you and Aryn here? What's happened back at the Citadel?" Solana finally asked.
Eziban shifted to rest his elbows on his knees, his face completely serious. "We don't have any more time to be playing games. Oriana's disappeared, and I think that Bachlan might be getting scared," he began frankly.
Solana gasped, her hand involuntarily brushing the pearl around her throat. "Wh-what?! Is she-" she began fearfully.
Eziban cut her off. "I can't say for sure, but I don't think that he CAN hurt her with her life essence," he said quickly. He explained what he and Oriana had been up to in the Crystal Citadel, including Bachlan's little workshop and the book that he had found there, and lastly the notes that he had transcribed and that Oriana had been trying to translate. "I'm guessing that he caught her in the act, and tried to destroy the evidence. He probably thought that Oriana found out something that she wasn't supposed to," Eziban finished glumly.
"But I don't understand how that ties into this 'Great Birth' legend," Solana stated with a sigh.
"So you did find out about it," Aryn commented without surprise.
"Of course," Solana replied, and told them everything about Merna being at least partially sentient in that it had chosen to make itself over to be fit for life. Thinking over their own powers, in the ways that the various elements seemed to have directions or objectives of their own at times, it didn't come off as being far-fetched.
"Maybe this will help," Eziban suggested, a glimmer in his eye. He fished out the salvaged piece of paper from a pocket and handed it to their Atlantean. "I have no idea how much of this Oriana actually translated correctly, so see what you think."
Solana accepted it and began reading it over carefully. Her eyes widened at the butchered spelling, but Eziban had done the best he could with a language he knew nothing about. She had to ask him a few times to translate one scribble or another or even guess on a few words, but meaning finally surfaced. She triple checked it, hoping against hope that there were some nuances she could have missed, but the words that spoke of Bachlan's true ambitions were as clear as a mountain lake.
"Spill it!" Aryn demanded, shaking Solana's shoulder to get her out of her shock. "You've got that 'I can't believe someone is this insane' look on your face."
"What does it say?!" Eziban asked nervously, scooting closer.
Solana swallowed hard. "It's worse than I would have guessed," she admitted, "Bachlan plans on recreating the Great Birth and restoring what he considers our world's former perfect. According to his notes, the collective power of our eight essences would be enough to do the job."
Silence reigned for a few moments as Aryn and Eziban tried to take it in. Finally, Aryn let out a growl and rose to her feet. "No, no, no! Even he can't be that stupid, that small-minded, that obsessive...can he?" she finished weakly, glancing at Eziban.
He understood what she wanted to know. "He can, firebird. He's just been getting worse and worse since your last visit home," he replied, catching her hand to tug it and urge her to sit again.
Solana read through the scribbles at the beginning and end once more and frowned. "Eziban, didn't you say that there were more pages? This is clearly a middle one. What else did you find out?"
Eziban lowered his head. "I'm not sure. Oriana was the one to figure out how to translate things. Raoul and I were away while she was working on it."
"That was no accident. But what I want to know is what the hell he thinks he's going to use to convince us-" Aryn grumbled.
An icy fear shot through Solana's veins. "Oriana? She's bait, isn't she?"
"Never," Aryn hissed, then got up again. Eziban seemed to know better than to push his luck, and let her be. "I'm renting us two more rooms. First thing in the morning, we can take off. And this time, I'm going to finish Bachlan's introduction to the business end of my sword without any interruptions." Angrily, she stalked out of the room and slammed the door behind her. The mugs trembled on the table from the force of the slam.
Eziban watched his friend's exit before he raised an eyebrow at Solana. "What do you figure?" he asked.
Solana shrugged. "I think Aryn's right." She got up and gathered the empty cider mugs to be put away, thinking. "There's nothing more that we can do out here, Eziban. No more research that will benefit us. We know what Bachlan's plans are and he must be stopped."
Eziban hated to be the messenger of more bad news, but it was better to get everything out in the open now. "Solana, just keep in mind that he knows you two are here, and it's just as likely that he knows that I came to fetch you. That's why he had Trista send the hurricane," he said delicately.
His words had an awful ring of truth to them. But even knowing that, she wouldn't have done anything differently. This was a quarrel between Guardians, and their people shouldn't have to suffer from the hands of those who had sworn to protect them.
Not ever again.
"This is going to be a fight against an opponent who knows us well. With that memory essence of his, we can't know how well," Eziban added.
Solana sighed, moving to glance out the small window at the hurricane-ravaged landscape of the world she loved. "Bachlan knows how Aryn and I used to be. And that may make all the difference."
Eziban sobered, remembering the incredible tale of their journey that Aryn had told him on their way here. She had spared no details, left out no mistakes, until he felt as if he had seen it all through Aryn's eyes and almost experienced it all himself.
Still, he didn't think that Solana only meant changes such as the strange powers they had both acquired. The old and, yes, naive Solana wouldn't have been able to stand toe-to-toe with their twisted leader and try to stop him head-on.
But Eziban had a hunch that this one could. "Get some rest. Tomorrow's going to be a big one," he said kindly, giving her shoulder a friendly pat before leaving her to her thoughts.
Solana's hand clasped the pearl around her throat tightly, and she stared out the window that faced the direction of the Crystal Citadel. She felt no fear or regret over the course she had chosen, but a calm determination at what they had to do. There was even a hint of relief that finally this would be decided once and for all.
The trio decided to fly back in Eziban's ship and leave Aryn and Solana's ship behind. Solana had cloaked it and tucked it in a hidden valley a few miles outside Sagia during her investigations. Solana believed Eziban that Bachlan knew that they were on their way, but advertising that fact didn't seem wise. One Guardian's ship flying wasn't unusual, but having another following behind would be.
It would be a few hours flight to the Citadel. Solana had been planning to take another look at Oriana's notes, to see if there was anything else that she could figure out, but Aryn put her foot down. "You're the only healer we've got, Solana, and you just stopped a hurricane and patched people up afterwards. You look shot, and you're going to get some rest."
"I'm fine, Aryn, really. I can mana-" An enormous yawn interrupted Solana's protest.
Eziban shook his head. "How much sleep did you get while in Sagia? In a favorite library you haven't seen in forty years?" he demanded.
"Ah... " Caught, Solana blushed. Knowing that they were right, she turned around and slunk off to the small dormitory to get some sleep before the big confrontation.
Aryn sighed as she plopped down in the co-pilot's chair. "She's lucky that we love her," she muttered.
Eziban chuckled as he sat in the pilot's chair and began readying the ship for takeoff. "Some things haven't changed in forty years, then?"
"You have no idea. The worst was when she was investigating that prophecy in Tiraz-leen years ago. She stayed up for almost a week straight and then fell asleep in the bath. A maid found her and starting screaming, thinking she'd drowned. Woke up damn near the whole city." Aryn grinned wryly as her fingers flew over her own control panel. "She got a little better after that, and even more so after finding her people again."
In a short amount of time, they were airborne. Eziban charted a course to the west towards the Citadel, then settled in for the flight. Aryn made them both some spicy coffee before taking her chair next to him again.
It was good to have a bit of a breather after their frantic race to Sagia. Eziban filled Aryn in on the major events in Merna over the past forty years, as well as her friends and his own creations. Aryn had time to talk about the funny stories and wonderful people met during her journey throughout the Universe with Solana. The flight flew by as they laughed together and just enjoyed the other's company.
Once they were only an hour away from the Citadel, Eziban had a thought. He activated the autopilot and wards, then swung around to face Aryn with a teasing smile. "So after all of those adventures, are you any good with that?" he asked playfully, pointing to Aryn's morningstar.
"I had a little help and training to get it figured out at first, but I am now. Why?" Aryn asked, then recognized that look. "What, now? Ezi, we're kind of flying a ship..."
Eziban waved that away. "Autopilot. Plus, my powers will warn us if we're getting near other ships or mountains. If we're going to take on Bachlan, we have to be ready."
True enough, and it had been too long since they had had a good sparring match together. Aryn's heart started beating a little faster in anticipation as she rose and started her stretching exercises as Eziban did the same. They left the cockpit but kept it in view, having enough space on the main deck.
"No powers? Just a nice clean match?" Aryn asked.
"Right," Eziban agreed, drawing his axes.
Aryn grinned recklessly as she drew her sword and ran a finger down the blade to dispel its fire. After considering, she kept the blade in her left hand while she drew her morningstar with her right and took a ready position.
Eziban blinked in surprise, but said nothing. Good. He'd have a lot more surprises than that before they were done.
They saluted each other, then moved at exactly the same time. Sword met axe, and axe met morningstar as they moved in a complicated dance. Though the rhythm was familiar, many of the steps were new.
Aryn had a few surprises herself. Eziban was faster than he had been, more precise, and it only took a few exchanges for him to adjust to fighting against a morningstar. He often twisted his axes to block the spiked ball on the side of the blades, not letting it get past his guard the way it would against a sword. "You've been... working with Joshua... haven't you?" Aryn asked breathlessly, going on the attack.
Eziban was sweating as he parried and riposted the strikes. They backed off and circled each other. He'd never fought Aryn as a dual wielder, and with Solana gone, he was the only one left in the Citadel. "Yeah. And you... whom have you been... sparring with?" he grunted.
"You'd be surprised," Aryn answered. She switched hands for her weapons and lunged in, trying to thrust with her sword while using the morningstar for a feint. Eziban fell for it, expecting her to focus on her new toy, as the chain wrapped itself around one axe. He brought the other up to parry, but realized that he was going to be too slow to block the thrust.
Instead, Eziban yanked on the axe still tangled up with Aryn's morningstar, throwing her off balance. Aryn went with it, tucking into a roll and reflexively raising her sword to block Eziban's next strike.
Both were panting, smiling at each other, when the alarms on the ship began ringing. They looked out the front window in the cockpit, seeing shadowy shapes flying and getting closer to them. "Ezi?" Aryn asked.
Eziban dropped to one knee beside her. "Grab on and hold tight," he said briskly. Aryn obeyed, and Eziban wrapped one arm around her shoulders and slapped his free palm to the floor of the ship. His power raced through the ship in a breath. Suddenly they dropped like a stone.
Aryn felt like her stomach was trying to climb up her throat, but held on grimly. After a few seconds, Eziban's power eased off. The ship righted itself and went back on course.
THUD! A yelp and a burst of questions in Atlantean came from the dormitory. Solana stormed out, wincing as she rubbed one hip. She glared at her friends as they sheepishly rose to their feet, then glanced at the empty cockpit and back in an obvious question. "What's going on? Are we under attack?!" she demanded.
"No, we left it on autopilot and were having a match. Ezi, I thought you warded the ship...?" Aryn trailed off.
Eziban blushed. "I did, but... my power doesn't cover migrating birds. But we didn't hit any," he muttered.
Aryn burst out laughing, while a small amused smile appeared on Solana's face as well. "Really? Birds? Well, I guess as long as we didn't hit anything, it's all right," Solana replied. A hint of blue sparkled around her hip, then vanished as she healed it.
"We're only an hour away from the Citadel anyway. I'll make us some grub if we wanna talk battle plans," Aryn offered. The other two nodded in agreement.
It wasn't long before they sat down together, each holding a bowl of rice seasoned with a few spices from Aryn's things. Several plans were put forth and then rejected. There was also the factor of rescuing Oriana.
Solana came to the grim conclusion as the Citadel came within sight. "I think our best bet is just to rush in. We'll have to take care of Bachlan first, then rescue Oriana." She turned to Eziban. "You mentioned that Raoul is ready to help us. Is there ANY way that Trista and Joshua could be talked over to our side? I'd rather not fight any more of us than we must."
"I'd say the chances of that are one in zero. If they do join us, I'll put my cooking pot on my head and do the funky chicken," Aryn muttered.
"Don't count on it, Solana," Eziban added warningly.
Solana nodded her understanding. If need be, she was prepared to fight three instead of one. Her fingers brushed the handle of one of her kamas in a silent promise.
The Citadel grew bigger and bigger with each second. It had only been a few years since she had seen it, but it felt as if a lifetime had come and gone. The culmination of everything that had happened since that day when a city's inhabitants had been accidentally slaughtered by her ignorant hand had come to this point.
Eziban took them into the landing bay at the bottom of the structure and shut the ship down with a little sigh. "Are we ready to do this?"
"Yep. Time to show what we'll do as Guardians," Aryn answered. Eziban clasped her shoulder warmly before they both grabbed a weapon.
Solana would have tried talking them into putting those away until needed if she felt like wasting time they didn't have. She held Oriana's page of notes in one hand. "Let's finish this."
Joshua's scrying had finally borne fruit after all this time. He had confirmed that Eziban's ship held three Guardians, not just one, and was on its way to them from Sagia. Bachlan had ordered him to keep watch and give him a ten minute warning of their arrival while he went to his workroom to finish his own preparations.
He started by double checking the spells embedded in Oriana's crystal prison. Oriana herself was watching him closely, her eyes alight not with fear but with sadness and... disappointment? It made him feel uncomfortable, as if he had to answer for his actions to her.
He didn't like it.
"It didn't have to be this way," Bachlan said gruffly, making sure that there was a loophole in the crystal that he could open on command. He needed to be able to draw the rest of her essence away without letting her use any of it herself. It was a tricky adjustment and not without its risks, but his tests had made him confident. "You could have followed Trista's and Joshua's paths and kept your loyalty to me."
"As long as you try to harm a single hair on the heads of any of my children, my loyalty goes to those who will stop you," Oriana promised without hesitation.
Bachlan snorted as he finished locking his spells into place with a flourish. More soft-hearted weakness, and where had that gotten her? "When I gave you the life essence and the chance to serve as Mother of Merna, that was for the world alone. People can reproduce and regenerate a population in time. A dead world cannot," he said coldly.
Oriana's eyes widened at his complete lack of compassion. Destroying the lives of so many of their people really meant nothing to him at this point. "You would sacrifice countless lives instead of taking the chance that you might be wrong in what Merna truly desires," she stated mournfully.
Bachlan's fist slammed into the crystal, causing Oriana to give a start in the little space that she had. "The people begged me to take this role after I saved Merna from the Golden Ones," he snarled, his angry face only inches away from the crystal that separated them. "I'm still haunted by those days when our world was almost completely dead and stripped of its riches, and still the tyrants wanted more. No one else stepped up. I brought her back from the brink once and now Merna trusts me alone with her wishes." A ghostly touch and distant fragrance of violets came to him, but he shook them off. "Everything, EVERYTHING else is secondary to that."
"Then you have already lost," Oriana replied calmly.
Bachlan couldn't stand Oriana's rebukes or the strange feelings in his heart any longer. He raised one hand wreathed in iridescent fire and knocked her out. Even in sleep, there was a sadness in her expression that ripped at him.
He leaned closer to the crystal, hatred dripping from every word. "I will do what I must. I will take down any opposition as I have before. I will let you watch helplessly as I take what I need, and then finish off the traitors that you now call your children. After that, I will send you after them."
With that promise hanging in the air, he added one more spell to her crystal prison- a square of power that, once awakened, would display a view of the common room of the Citadel and pass on any sound. He had studied Trista's and Joshua's paths well.
Tap, tap. "My lord? Eziban's ship will be docking quite soon. Trista is armed and ready to join us as well," Joshua reported, keeping his eyes away from Oriana.
"I trust you are prepared as well?" Bachlan asked, glancing from Joshua to Oriana and back.
Sadness rippled over Joshua's 'mask' for only a moment. "Y-yes, my lord. Most certainly-" Joshua began.
Bachlan scowled at Joshua's fumbling, remembering his reaction when Oriana had first been imprisoned. He came over and laid one hand on Joshua's shoulder. "Am I going to be able to count on you, Joshua?" he asked softly.
Joshua froze. That phrase. How could Bachlan have used that phrase? It still triggered nightmares from his past, and this time was no exception...
"Are we going to be able to count on you?"
Joshua only moaned in reply. Chains from the dungeon ceiling ended in manacles around his ankles, keeping him suspended upside down. A filthy cloth served as a blindfold, so Joshua couldn't see the next strike to come. The blood had rushed to his head, making it hard to think. More blood from gaping wounds ran down his body in sticky red rivulets, emitting a strong coppery odor.
One of his interrogators was only irritated at the young man's silence. He gave Joshua another lash with the cat o' nine tails, making him howl with pain as it struck raw skin. "We can't, can we, your HIGHNESS?" Another lash. "It's sad that one of your blood can't be loyal to the mother empire, isn't it?
"That's enough," came a crisp, cruel female voice.
"Get out, my lady. This is rough work, not suitable for a delicate imperial ma-"
"Hold your tongue!" the female voice snapped. Grunting noises, the results of a silencing spell, were all that were heard in reply. Dainty footsteps came closer. "Bumpkins. No one is supposed to treat one of royal blood so, traitor or not. I will get the information needed."
"Ohhhh, you're going to strip it from his memory!"
Joshua shuddered as mocking laughter sounded. "No, fool. All must bend the knee to our sovereigns for themselves. He will give me what we seek of his own free will." A soft hand caressed his cheek. "Won't you, your Highness?" she purred.
"I... do not know... what you want," Joshua muttered.
"Tell us where he is. This is your last chance," the voice ordered.
Joshua opened his mouth to reply when pain burned his whole body. It felt as if he had received twenty lashes at once all over his aching flesh. Joshua screamed and gasped for breath at the onslaught. Amazingly, his skin didn't open up to release more blood.
"My lady..."
"Enough, that would have been a lie. Our bodies hold memories as well, your Highness. Memories of pleasure, of comfort, of pain. I can reawaken any of those, as you can see, without leaving a single mark on your body. Now, tell us!"
Joshua tried to swallow. "But-"
Another spell summoned more ghost-lashes, as if he were reliving the entire session of torture in a few seconds. His very blood seemed to throb with each new sensation of pain blurring into the next in endless waves of agony. "MILA!! HE IS IN MILA!!" Joshua screamed, "MAKE IT STOP, I BEG OF YOU!!!"
An eternity seemed to pass before it finally did. The blessed coolness of a healing spell followed as a reward for giving in. While it washed away his wounds, it did nothing for his guilt. Tears slipped from Joshua's eyes at his own betrayal, joining the pool of his own blood on the floor under him. "Tsk, it only makes sense. The traitor going to the traitor's land," the female voice snapped.
"He is... augh... no traitor," Joshua replied.
There was the hand cupping his face as her hot breath whispered into his ear. "You are still considered one yourself, Highness. For your loyalty, you have earned only exile. As for the traitor himself... death." The hand caressed his chin almost lovingly, then slapped him hard.
Joshua's eyes shut in agony from her words. The knowledge that he had helped this fate be sealed was worse than any of the other tortures he had experienced.
He would carry it for the rest of his life.
Joshua stood up tall, eyes meeting Bachlan's. "I will serve my world to my utmost, my lord. I am no traitor," he replied calmly.
"Excellent. Then it's time for a new beginning," Bachlan answered with a wolfish grin. As they left his workroom, Bachlan felt secure in the knowledge that all was ready for his traitors and a better path for their world at last.
Three figures came marching up the steps to the common room of the Crystal Citadel. Solana strode purposefully in front, with Aryn on one side and Eziban on the other. Bachlan came to meet them, flanked by Trista and Joshua, while Raoul stood off to the side with a cautious expression on his face. Seeing the group entering, he swallowed hard and went to stand by Eziban as determination surfaced in his eyes at last. The lines had officially been drawn.
Bachlan felt a twinge of fear for the first time in a long time as his expression met Solana's. It took a lot to anger the Water Guardian, unless someone was harming a member of her pod or her seas. When that happened, her silver eyes took on a glacial look, and the air around her felt like the calm before the storm. This was not the same woman who had faced him years ago with that ridiculous theory, but one who had grown in both power and confidence. "Where is Oriana?" she asked quietly. "What have you done to her?"
Joshua flinched a little, but Trista's eyes remained loyally on their leader. "She had to be disciplined, and is being kept out of my way for now," Bachlan replied casually.
Solana's eyes flashed, and she gestured. Bachlan gasped as he felt his own body lift up off of the ground. He was slammed into one of the crystalline walls before he fell.
Aryn pointed her sword at him, its flames rippling eagerly over the shining blade as if begging to be released. "Wrong answer. Keeping Oriana 'out of the way' means she isn't here to stop me this time. Don't think I forgot what you tried to do to me before, and ended up doing to Solana instead."
"How dare you-" Trista began, blasting a dozen razor-sharp wind blades at Aryn.
A solid earthen shield sprang up to block them all. "We can't afford to fight between us, Trista. Not with what he's cooked up," Eziban admonished her. With his eyes on Bachlan, he missed the quick gaze of surprise and appreciation that Aryn shot his way before facing her hostage once more. Bachlan got to his feet and drew his double-ended naginata, keeping it loosely in one hand for now.
"What is he talking about?!" Joshua demanded. Unlike any of the others, he had not yet made a move. "Solana, what is going on?"
Solana held out the single of page of Oriana's writing that Eziban had found. Bachlan's eyes narrowed. "Our world used to be chaotic, with the elemental forces running rampant. Our world made itself over to support life, to support us, and made our essences. It's called 'The Great Birth'." She turned away from Joshua to meet Bachlan's gaze head on. "Now he wants to start that cycle all over again with a rebirth."
"You really thought that you could force us to help you? Is that why you took Oriana hostage?!" Aryn growled, her sword-hand trembling with fury.
"What about our people? What happens to them during this grand scheme?!" Eziban demanded, his voice shaking.
"You monster..." Raoul murmured.
Joshua had turned whiter than his robes and looked like he was going to be sick. He could see the truth in Solana's eyes. He glanced over at Trista, seeing a tiny flicker of doubt in her expression for the first time ever. Joshua's own doubts about his loyalties to his leader had been smoldering slowly over time and had now been fanned into a blaze. Even so... "Surely they are mistaken," he tried, glancing up at Bachlan warily. "Tell me this is not what our purpose is!!!"
"Bachlan?" Trista asked in a tiny voice riddled with despair.
Bachlan glanced at them all, a slow smile dawning on his face. As with Oriana, he began to mockingly clap. "Very good, Solana. You, and the rest of you who were involved in a little espionage. Unfortunately, I knew all about your little game and it's helped me along."
"We'll see about that!" Aryn yelled, her sword whipping around in a fiery strike. Bachlan easily caught it on the staff of his naginata. Behind her, Eziban clenched one hand on his war axe while the other went for one of his enchanted stones. Raoul slipped on his cestuses as bits of lightning flickered around him. Solana drew her kamas at last.
At the sight of four battle-ready Guardians, even Bachlan wanted some reinforcements. "Joshua, Trista," he ordered as he stepped back, then paused. They were both standing there, no weapons in hand, staring at him in shock. Solana's revelations had twisted their loyalties to him, and they were hesitating!
He turned to Joshua first as anger replaced his surprise. "Wretched boy, will you dare to disobey me now? Become a true traitor at last?"
This time, Joshua didn't flinch. His face was only thoughtful as he coolly replied, "I rather believe I do. As my vows are to Merna and not to you, I remain no traitor. You may consider my tenure as your servant terminated, effective immediately." He purposefully turned his back to Bachlan and walked to Raoul's side.
Stunned, Bachlan turned to Trista and took her hands in his, his voice turning low and sweet as it only did when speaking to her. Trista took a small step back, but he pressed on. "My dear, you know what I have done for you. You know why I am trying to do this. Joshua has proven himself a faithless fool. Will you, at least, remain at my side?" he asked.
Trista desperately glanced between Bachlan and Solana's group, tears glittering in her eyes. "My lord, please... there must be another way... give us another method to fulfill our duties to you!" she begged, her features twisted in a soul-wrenching agony.
Bachlan's stare was cold, unmerciful, and slowly filled with contempt at this display of weakness. For just a second, the amethyst eyes so filled with love and despair seemed to shift to brown, and that beautiful face shifted to another familiar one crowned with red curls....
He violently shook her away, and Trista fell to the floor with a sob. Joshua helped her back to her feet, leading her to stand next to him. She stared at the ground, her mind unable to handle what had just happened.
Seeing Bachlan cast off Trista so casually, Solana knew that there was no chance to try and make this man see reason. And yet... "Stand down, Bachlan. You can't face all of us, and you can't force us to help you. There will be no Great Rebirth," she promised.
Bachlan laughed at the idea of this one thinking herself worthy to direct him. "You're a hypocrite, Solana, to order ME about. You believe that your memories of your failures are locked away from me? The way your weakness and short-sightedness destroyed your homeland, as you destroyed one of our own cities? It will cost you another."
After this statement, Raoul had plenty of questions in his eyes, while Joshua's thoughts were hidden and Eziban looked sympathetic. Trista still didn't look up. "Then you also know we're a lot stronger than last time. We've survived wars that wracked the Universe and taken down enemies that would eat you for breakfast and have room for dessert. What I can't figure out is why the hell you still think you can win," Aryn snapped.
"You're as simple-minded as ever, Aryn. Yes, I planned a Great Rebirth, but I never intended on forcing you to help me. What I needed was all of you in the same place," Bachlan answered. He held up the rest of Oriana's notes as Solana paled. "What the rest of this would have told you was that I've learned how to take what I need instead of requiring permission. Oriana stumbled on it too early, but was kind enough to summon you back and be a test subject as well. All of your planning has actually given me the last pieces I needed- the fire and water essences."
Bachlan's expression turned nasty as he shifted his grip on his weapon. A burst of power was sent to his workroom to wake up Oriana and force her to watch. She couldn't miss his hour of triumph. "I have seen with my own eyes what Merna desires, and I alone have the ability to give it to her. The other Golden ones didn't stand in my way. Those pesky naysayers that tried to stop me from taking on this role were not allowed to. Oriana has been dealt with. I promise that you traitors will surrender your powers and share her fate, starting with the Atlantean bitch!" With a wild gesture, he unleashed the spell he had worked so hard on full-force. Gray fire seemed to swamp the entire Crystal Citadel, then was tinted the various shades of the elements of Merna.
Aryn let loose with a ribbon of white-hot fire that joined with one of Eziban's earth spells to create a spray of molten lava. Joshua released a brilliant beam of concentrated light as a deadly laser. Raoul summoned a crackling ball of lightning and let it fly. Solana could feel the immense Tethys Sea just outside of the Crystal Citadel and sank her power in it. Trista was still in shock, unable to make a move either way.
But Bachlan's power enveloped the attack spells, somehow nullifying them in the process. The tinted gray mist then flowed to each of the other seven Guardians, calling out to their essences to join their 'true' master as Oriana's had started to.
"What... what the hell?" Aryn gasped, feeling the flames in her system starting to fight her. "What did you just do?!"
Solana felt like every drop of water was trying to leave her body at the same time. Trying to concentrate, she activated her Asterite Aura, trying to form a shield around it to keep it safe. The power of the water essence fought it, seeking some crack in her defenses to push through to follow Bachlan's call. Solana tried to hold it, but the essence formed itself into a drill-like shape and punched through her shield.
Raoul fell against the crystal wall, his face sweaty and pale as he slid to the ground. Eziban sank to his knees, calling on the power of the stones he held with him to form some kind of barrier and failing. Slowly, he slumped down. Joshua was already unconscious, fingers clenched around his mace. Trista's eyes never left the face of her beloved as she too was overcome by the loss of her power. Aryn, ever the fighter, swung her blade in Bachlan's direction until she was too weak to hold it up. Solana tried to call on her Water Seal, but was too slow and also passed out.
Bachlan had not felt this powerful since the last of the Golden ones had knelt before him, waiting for the slaughter by his soldiers. His eyes were closed in heady victory as one essence after another dropped every dram of its power into his lap. These essences were so much more POWERFUL since he passed them out to seven chosen folk so many millennia ago. Was it possible that they had grown with their holders?
Bachlan suddenly frowned as he realized that something had gone wrong. The other six essences were fully in his grasp, but the life essence was still incomplete. No more power was flowing from the Life Guardian, though he renewed the spells and tried again. "Witch! Why does your power not fully respond to my call?" he demanded. He opened a link to her prison for her answer.
"Because of something I did long ago. For now, I can only do... this. Stay safe, my children," Oriana's voice rang out in reply. A brief flash of light erupted around the six fallen figures, signaling the use of one of her teleportation spells.
Impossible!
"Not this time," Bachlan growled, throwing a ball of stolen life magic directly into the light to disrupt her spell. The light shuddered as it drank in the added power, then split into three and shot off into different directions with their accursed cargo- one to the west, one to the south, and one to the northeast. It wasn't the desired effect, but would make things more difficult if anyone got any ideas about stopping him.
With that taken care of, he stormed off to his workroom to get a few questions of his own answered.
You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you mad.
Aldous Huxley
After a few hours of helping to clean up the mess in Sagia from Trista's hurricane, tending to the few patients that had been injured, and trying to duck as many questions as possible about her role in the matter, Solana wanted nothing more than sleep. She would worry about planning her next move in the morning. She pulled out the silver sticks that had kept her hair in its knot and shook her long tresses out, then pushed open the heavy door to the inn.
Upon entrance, however, Solana realized that sleep was going to have to wait yet again.
Lounging at one of the tables in the common area, playing a card game, were Aryn... and Eziban!! Aryn's braids had been coiled on her head and hidden under a cap, and her weapons were nowhere in sight. Eziban had cloaked himself in illusion with one of his stones, but Solana knew the feel of his power that was so close to her own. Both looked up at her approach; Aryn grinned at the surprise on her best friend's face and gathered up the cards while Eziban smiled happily and rose. "It's been too damn long!"
"It certainly has!" Solana cried out, dashing forward to greet him with a hug and putting aside questions of why they were here. Though the Earth Guardian had always been much closer to Aryn than to herself, they had still been a pack with Raoul and he was a dear friend. He looked different since that disastrous day in the Citadel all those years back- a little less carefree, and a little more responsible.
"Seems like you've been taking care of yourself. Has it been hard keeping this one in line all this time?" Eziban asked mischievously, pointing with a thumb at Aryn while she loudly protested.
Solana laughed. Perhaps he was not so very different after all. "We've been keeping each other in line, actually," she admitted. Aryn nodded and stuck her tongue out at Eziban, who ignored it. Aryn had been very blunt about what she had thought about Eziban's silence the last time they had all been together, and Solana was grateful that the old friends seemed to have made up in their fashion. "Why don't you two come up to my room, and we'll compare notes?"
Once inside, Eziban shed his illusion and tossed a spell at the walls that would prevent them from passing on any vibrations and thus made it completely soundproof. Once he was certain it was rock solid, he took the desk chair while the girls sat down on the bed. Solana took out a bottle of Sagia cider from her pack and poured out three mugs, noting with amusement that Aryn was sprinkling cayenne pepper into hers. "Eziban, why are you and Aryn here? What's happened back at the Citadel?" Solana finally asked.
Eziban shifted to rest his elbows on his knees, his face completely serious. "We don't have any more time to be playing games. Oriana's disappeared, and I think that Bachlan might be getting scared," he began frankly.
Solana gasped, her hand involuntarily brushing the pearl around her throat. "Wh-what?! Is she-" she began fearfully.
Eziban cut her off. "I can't say for sure, but I don't think that he CAN hurt her with her life essence," he said quickly. He explained what he and Oriana had been up to in the Crystal Citadel, including Bachlan's little workshop and the book that he had found there, and lastly the notes that he had transcribed and that Oriana had been trying to translate. "I'm guessing that he caught her in the act, and tried to destroy the evidence. He probably thought that Oriana found out something that she wasn't supposed to," Eziban finished glumly.
"But I don't understand how that ties into this 'Great Birth' legend," Solana stated with a sigh.
"So you did find out about it," Aryn commented without surprise.
"Of course," Solana replied, and told them everything about Merna being at least partially sentient in that it had chosen to make itself over to be fit for life. Thinking over their own powers, in the ways that the various elements seemed to have directions or objectives of their own at times, it didn't come off as being far-fetched.
"Maybe this will help," Eziban suggested, a glimmer in his eye. He fished out the salvaged piece of paper from a pocket and handed it to their Atlantean. "I have no idea how much of this Oriana actually translated correctly, so see what you think."
Solana accepted it and began reading it over carefully. Her eyes widened at the butchered spelling, but Eziban had done the best he could with a language he knew nothing about. She had to ask him a few times to translate one scribble or another or even guess on a few words, but meaning finally surfaced. She triple checked it, hoping against hope that there were some nuances she could have missed, but the words that spoke of Bachlan's true ambitions were as clear as a mountain lake.
"Spill it!" Aryn demanded, shaking Solana's shoulder to get her out of her shock. "You've got that 'I can't believe someone is this insane' look on your face."
"What does it say?!" Eziban asked nervously, scooting closer.
Solana swallowed hard. "It's worse than I would have guessed," she admitted, "Bachlan plans on recreating the Great Birth and restoring what he considers our world's former perfect. According to his notes, the collective power of our eight essences would be enough to do the job."
Silence reigned for a few moments as Aryn and Eziban tried to take it in. Finally, Aryn let out a growl and rose to her feet. "No, no, no! Even he can't be that stupid, that small-minded, that obsessive...can he?" she finished weakly, glancing at Eziban.
He understood what she wanted to know. "He can, firebird. He's just been getting worse and worse since your last visit home," he replied, catching her hand to tug it and urge her to sit again.
Solana read through the scribbles at the beginning and end once more and frowned. "Eziban, didn't you say that there were more pages? This is clearly a middle one. What else did you find out?"
Eziban lowered his head. "I'm not sure. Oriana was the one to figure out how to translate things. Raoul and I were away while she was working on it."
"That was no accident. But what I want to know is what the hell he thinks he's going to use to convince us-" Aryn grumbled.
An icy fear shot through Solana's veins. "Oriana? She's bait, isn't she?"
"Never," Aryn hissed, then got up again. Eziban seemed to know better than to push his luck, and let her be. "I'm renting us two more rooms. First thing in the morning, we can take off. And this time, I'm going to finish Bachlan's introduction to the business end of my sword without any interruptions." Angrily, she stalked out of the room and slammed the door behind her. The mugs trembled on the table from the force of the slam.
Eziban watched his friend's exit before he raised an eyebrow at Solana. "What do you figure?" he asked.
Solana shrugged. "I think Aryn's right." She got up and gathered the empty cider mugs to be put away, thinking. "There's nothing more that we can do out here, Eziban. No more research that will benefit us. We know what Bachlan's plans are and he must be stopped."
Eziban hated to be the messenger of more bad news, but it was better to get everything out in the open now. "Solana, just keep in mind that he knows you two are here, and it's just as likely that he knows that I came to fetch you. That's why he had Trista send the hurricane," he said delicately.
His words had an awful ring of truth to them. But even knowing that, she wouldn't have done anything differently. This was a quarrel between Guardians, and their people shouldn't have to suffer from the hands of those who had sworn to protect them.
Not ever again.
"This is going to be a fight against an opponent who knows us well. With that memory essence of his, we can't know how well," Eziban added.
Solana sighed, moving to glance out the small window at the hurricane-ravaged landscape of the world she loved. "Bachlan knows how Aryn and I used to be. And that may make all the difference."
Eziban sobered, remembering the incredible tale of their journey that Aryn had told him on their way here. She had spared no details, left out no mistakes, until he felt as if he had seen it all through Aryn's eyes and almost experienced it all himself.
Still, he didn't think that Solana only meant changes such as the strange powers they had both acquired. The old and, yes, naive Solana wouldn't have been able to stand toe-to-toe with their twisted leader and try to stop him head-on.
But Eziban had a hunch that this one could. "Get some rest. Tomorrow's going to be a big one," he said kindly, giving her shoulder a friendly pat before leaving her to her thoughts.
Solana's hand clasped the pearl around her throat tightly, and she stared out the window that faced the direction of the Crystal Citadel. She felt no fear or regret over the course she had chosen, but a calm determination at what they had to do. There was even a hint of relief that finally this would be decided once and for all.
The trio decided to fly back in Eziban's ship and leave Aryn and Solana's ship behind. Solana had cloaked it and tucked it in a hidden valley a few miles outside Sagia during her investigations. Solana believed Eziban that Bachlan knew that they were on their way, but advertising that fact didn't seem wise. One Guardian's ship flying wasn't unusual, but having another following behind would be.
It would be a few hours flight to the Citadel. Solana had been planning to take another look at Oriana's notes, to see if there was anything else that she could figure out, but Aryn put her foot down. "You're the only healer we've got, Solana, and you just stopped a hurricane and patched people up afterwards. You look shot, and you're going to get some rest."
"I'm fine, Aryn, really. I can mana-" An enormous yawn interrupted Solana's protest.
Eziban shook his head. "How much sleep did you get while in Sagia? In a favorite library you haven't seen in forty years?" he demanded.
"Ah... " Caught, Solana blushed. Knowing that they were right, she turned around and slunk off to the small dormitory to get some sleep before the big confrontation.
Aryn sighed as she plopped down in the co-pilot's chair. "She's lucky that we love her," she muttered.
Eziban chuckled as he sat in the pilot's chair and began readying the ship for takeoff. "Some things haven't changed in forty years, then?"
"You have no idea. The worst was when she was investigating that prophecy in Tiraz-leen years ago. She stayed up for almost a week straight and then fell asleep in the bath. A maid found her and starting screaming, thinking she'd drowned. Woke up damn near the whole city." Aryn grinned wryly as her fingers flew over her own control panel. "She got a little better after that, and even more so after finding her people again."
In a short amount of time, they were airborne. Eziban charted a course to the west towards the Citadel, then settled in for the flight. Aryn made them both some spicy coffee before taking her chair next to him again.
It was good to have a bit of a breather after their frantic race to Sagia. Eziban filled Aryn in on the major events in Merna over the past forty years, as well as her friends and his own creations. Aryn had time to talk about the funny stories and wonderful people met during her journey throughout the Universe with Solana. The flight flew by as they laughed together and just enjoyed the other's company.
Once they were only an hour away from the Citadel, Eziban had a thought. He activated the autopilot and wards, then swung around to face Aryn with a teasing smile. "So after all of those adventures, are you any good with that?" he asked playfully, pointing to Aryn's morningstar.
"I had a little help and training to get it figured out at first, but I am now. Why?" Aryn asked, then recognized that look. "What, now? Ezi, we're kind of flying a ship..."
Eziban waved that away. "Autopilot. Plus, my powers will warn us if we're getting near other ships or mountains. If we're going to take on Bachlan, we have to be ready."
True enough, and it had been too long since they had had a good sparring match together. Aryn's heart started beating a little faster in anticipation as she rose and started her stretching exercises as Eziban did the same. They left the cockpit but kept it in view, having enough space on the main deck.
"No powers? Just a nice clean match?" Aryn asked.
"Right," Eziban agreed, drawing his axes.
Aryn grinned recklessly as she drew her sword and ran a finger down the blade to dispel its fire. After considering, she kept the blade in her left hand while she drew her morningstar with her right and took a ready position.
Eziban blinked in surprise, but said nothing. Good. He'd have a lot more surprises than that before they were done.
They saluted each other, then moved at exactly the same time. Sword met axe, and axe met morningstar as they moved in a complicated dance. Though the rhythm was familiar, many of the steps were new.
Aryn had a few surprises herself. Eziban was faster than he had been, more precise, and it only took a few exchanges for him to adjust to fighting against a morningstar. He often twisted his axes to block the spiked ball on the side of the blades, not letting it get past his guard the way it would against a sword. "You've been... working with Joshua... haven't you?" Aryn asked breathlessly, going on the attack.
Eziban was sweating as he parried and riposted the strikes. They backed off and circled each other. He'd never fought Aryn as a dual wielder, and with Solana gone, he was the only one left in the Citadel. "Yeah. And you... whom have you been... sparring with?" he grunted.
"You'd be surprised," Aryn answered. She switched hands for her weapons and lunged in, trying to thrust with her sword while using the morningstar for a feint. Eziban fell for it, expecting her to focus on her new toy, as the chain wrapped itself around one axe. He brought the other up to parry, but realized that he was going to be too slow to block the thrust.
Instead, Eziban yanked on the axe still tangled up with Aryn's morningstar, throwing her off balance. Aryn went with it, tucking into a roll and reflexively raising her sword to block Eziban's next strike.
Both were panting, smiling at each other, when the alarms on the ship began ringing. They looked out the front window in the cockpit, seeing shadowy shapes flying and getting closer to them. "Ezi?" Aryn asked.
Eziban dropped to one knee beside her. "Grab on and hold tight," he said briskly. Aryn obeyed, and Eziban wrapped one arm around her shoulders and slapped his free palm to the floor of the ship. His power raced through the ship in a breath. Suddenly they dropped like a stone.
Aryn felt like her stomach was trying to climb up her throat, but held on grimly. After a few seconds, Eziban's power eased off. The ship righted itself and went back on course.
THUD! A yelp and a burst of questions in Atlantean came from the dormitory. Solana stormed out, wincing as she rubbed one hip. She glared at her friends as they sheepishly rose to their feet, then glanced at the empty cockpit and back in an obvious question. "What's going on? Are we under attack?!" she demanded.
"No, we left it on autopilot and were having a match. Ezi, I thought you warded the ship...?" Aryn trailed off.
Eziban blushed. "I did, but... my power doesn't cover migrating birds. But we didn't hit any," he muttered.
Aryn burst out laughing, while a small amused smile appeared on Solana's face as well. "Really? Birds? Well, I guess as long as we didn't hit anything, it's all right," Solana replied. A hint of blue sparkled around her hip, then vanished as she healed it.
"We're only an hour away from the Citadel anyway. I'll make us some grub if we wanna talk battle plans," Aryn offered. The other two nodded in agreement.
It wasn't long before they sat down together, each holding a bowl of rice seasoned with a few spices from Aryn's things. Several plans were put forth and then rejected. There was also the factor of rescuing Oriana.
Solana came to the grim conclusion as the Citadel came within sight. "I think our best bet is just to rush in. We'll have to take care of Bachlan first, then rescue Oriana." She turned to Eziban. "You mentioned that Raoul is ready to help us. Is there ANY way that Trista and Joshua could be talked over to our side? I'd rather not fight any more of us than we must."
"I'd say the chances of that are one in zero. If they do join us, I'll put my cooking pot on my head and do the funky chicken," Aryn muttered.
"Don't count on it, Solana," Eziban added warningly.
Solana nodded her understanding. If need be, she was prepared to fight three instead of one. Her fingers brushed the handle of one of her kamas in a silent promise.
The Citadel grew bigger and bigger with each second. It had only been a few years since she had seen it, but it felt as if a lifetime had come and gone. The culmination of everything that had happened since that day when a city's inhabitants had been accidentally slaughtered by her ignorant hand had come to this point.
Eziban took them into the landing bay at the bottom of the structure and shut the ship down with a little sigh. "Are we ready to do this?"
"Yep. Time to show what we'll do as Guardians," Aryn answered. Eziban clasped her shoulder warmly before they both grabbed a weapon.
Solana would have tried talking them into putting those away until needed if she felt like wasting time they didn't have. She held Oriana's page of notes in one hand. "Let's finish this."
Joshua's scrying had finally borne fruit after all this time. He had confirmed that Eziban's ship held three Guardians, not just one, and was on its way to them from Sagia. Bachlan had ordered him to keep watch and give him a ten minute warning of their arrival while he went to his workroom to finish his own preparations.
He started by double checking the spells embedded in Oriana's crystal prison. Oriana herself was watching him closely, her eyes alight not with fear but with sadness and... disappointment? It made him feel uncomfortable, as if he had to answer for his actions to her.
He didn't like it.
"It didn't have to be this way," Bachlan said gruffly, making sure that there was a loophole in the crystal that he could open on command. He needed to be able to draw the rest of her essence away without letting her use any of it herself. It was a tricky adjustment and not without its risks, but his tests had made him confident. "You could have followed Trista's and Joshua's paths and kept your loyalty to me."
"As long as you try to harm a single hair on the heads of any of my children, my loyalty goes to those who will stop you," Oriana promised without hesitation.
Bachlan snorted as he finished locking his spells into place with a flourish. More soft-hearted weakness, and where had that gotten her? "When I gave you the life essence and the chance to serve as Mother of Merna, that was for the world alone. People can reproduce and regenerate a population in time. A dead world cannot," he said coldly.
Oriana's eyes widened at his complete lack of compassion. Destroying the lives of so many of their people really meant nothing to him at this point. "You would sacrifice countless lives instead of taking the chance that you might be wrong in what Merna truly desires," she stated mournfully.
Bachlan's fist slammed into the crystal, causing Oriana to give a start in the little space that she had. "The people begged me to take this role after I saved Merna from the Golden Ones," he snarled, his angry face only inches away from the crystal that separated them. "I'm still haunted by those days when our world was almost completely dead and stripped of its riches, and still the tyrants wanted more. No one else stepped up. I brought her back from the brink once and now Merna trusts me alone with her wishes." A ghostly touch and distant fragrance of violets came to him, but he shook them off. "Everything, EVERYTHING else is secondary to that."
"Then you have already lost," Oriana replied calmly.
Bachlan couldn't stand Oriana's rebukes or the strange feelings in his heart any longer. He raised one hand wreathed in iridescent fire and knocked her out. Even in sleep, there was a sadness in her expression that ripped at him.
He leaned closer to the crystal, hatred dripping from every word. "I will do what I must. I will take down any opposition as I have before. I will let you watch helplessly as I take what I need, and then finish off the traitors that you now call your children. After that, I will send you after them."
With that promise hanging in the air, he added one more spell to her crystal prison- a square of power that, once awakened, would display a view of the common room of the Citadel and pass on any sound. He had studied Trista's and Joshua's paths well.
Tap, tap. "My lord? Eziban's ship will be docking quite soon. Trista is armed and ready to join us as well," Joshua reported, keeping his eyes away from Oriana.
"I trust you are prepared as well?" Bachlan asked, glancing from Joshua to Oriana and back.
Sadness rippled over Joshua's 'mask' for only a moment. "Y-yes, my lord. Most certainly-" Joshua began.
Bachlan scowled at Joshua's fumbling, remembering his reaction when Oriana had first been imprisoned. He came over and laid one hand on Joshua's shoulder. "Am I going to be able to count on you, Joshua?" he asked softly.
Joshua froze. That phrase. How could Bachlan have used that phrase? It still triggered nightmares from his past, and this time was no exception...
"Are we going to be able to count on you?"
Joshua only moaned in reply. Chains from the dungeon ceiling ended in manacles around his ankles, keeping him suspended upside down. A filthy cloth served as a blindfold, so Joshua couldn't see the next strike to come. The blood had rushed to his head, making it hard to think. More blood from gaping wounds ran down his body in sticky red rivulets, emitting a strong coppery odor.
One of his interrogators was only irritated at the young man's silence. He gave Joshua another lash with the cat o' nine tails, making him howl with pain as it struck raw skin. "We can't, can we, your HIGHNESS?" Another lash. "It's sad that one of your blood can't be loyal to the mother empire, isn't it?
"That's enough," came a crisp, cruel female voice.
"Get out, my lady. This is rough work, not suitable for a delicate imperial ma-"
"Hold your tongue!" the female voice snapped. Grunting noises, the results of a silencing spell, were all that were heard in reply. Dainty footsteps came closer. "Bumpkins. No one is supposed to treat one of royal blood so, traitor or not. I will get the information needed."
"Ohhhh, you're going to strip it from his memory!"
Joshua shuddered as mocking laughter sounded. "No, fool. All must bend the knee to our sovereigns for themselves. He will give me what we seek of his own free will." A soft hand caressed his cheek. "Won't you, your Highness?" she purred.
"I... do not know... what you want," Joshua muttered.
"Tell us where he is. This is your last chance," the voice ordered.
Joshua opened his mouth to reply when pain burned his whole body. It felt as if he had received twenty lashes at once all over his aching flesh. Joshua screamed and gasped for breath at the onslaught. Amazingly, his skin didn't open up to release more blood.
"My lady..."
"Enough, that would have been a lie. Our bodies hold memories as well, your Highness. Memories of pleasure, of comfort, of pain. I can reawaken any of those, as you can see, without leaving a single mark on your body. Now, tell us!"
Joshua tried to swallow. "But-"
Another spell summoned more ghost-lashes, as if he were reliving the entire session of torture in a few seconds. His very blood seemed to throb with each new sensation of pain blurring into the next in endless waves of agony. "MILA!! HE IS IN MILA!!" Joshua screamed, "MAKE IT STOP, I BEG OF YOU!!!"
An eternity seemed to pass before it finally did. The blessed coolness of a healing spell followed as a reward for giving in. While it washed away his wounds, it did nothing for his guilt. Tears slipped from Joshua's eyes at his own betrayal, joining the pool of his own blood on the floor under him. "Tsk, it only makes sense. The traitor going to the traitor's land," the female voice snapped.
"He is... augh... no traitor," Joshua replied.
There was the hand cupping his face as her hot breath whispered into his ear. "You are still considered one yourself, Highness. For your loyalty, you have earned only exile. As for the traitor himself... death." The hand caressed his chin almost lovingly, then slapped him hard.
Joshua's eyes shut in agony from her words. The knowledge that he had helped this fate be sealed was worse than any of the other tortures he had experienced.
He would carry it for the rest of his life.
Joshua stood up tall, eyes meeting Bachlan's. "I will serve my world to my utmost, my lord. I am no traitor," he replied calmly.
"Excellent. Then it's time for a new beginning," Bachlan answered with a wolfish grin. As they left his workroom, Bachlan felt secure in the knowledge that all was ready for his traitors and a better path for their world at last.
Three figures came marching up the steps to the common room of the Crystal Citadel. Solana strode purposefully in front, with Aryn on one side and Eziban on the other. Bachlan came to meet them, flanked by Trista and Joshua, while Raoul stood off to the side with a cautious expression on his face. Seeing the group entering, he swallowed hard and went to stand by Eziban as determination surfaced in his eyes at last. The lines had officially been drawn.
Bachlan felt a twinge of fear for the first time in a long time as his expression met Solana's. It took a lot to anger the Water Guardian, unless someone was harming a member of her pod or her seas. When that happened, her silver eyes took on a glacial look, and the air around her felt like the calm before the storm. This was not the same woman who had faced him years ago with that ridiculous theory, but one who had grown in both power and confidence. "Where is Oriana?" she asked quietly. "What have you done to her?"
Joshua flinched a little, but Trista's eyes remained loyally on their leader. "She had to be disciplined, and is being kept out of my way for now," Bachlan replied casually.
Solana's eyes flashed, and she gestured. Bachlan gasped as he felt his own body lift up off of the ground. He was slammed into one of the crystalline walls before he fell.
Aryn pointed her sword at him, its flames rippling eagerly over the shining blade as if begging to be released. "Wrong answer. Keeping Oriana 'out of the way' means she isn't here to stop me this time. Don't think I forgot what you tried to do to me before, and ended up doing to Solana instead."
"How dare you-" Trista began, blasting a dozen razor-sharp wind blades at Aryn.
A solid earthen shield sprang up to block them all. "We can't afford to fight between us, Trista. Not with what he's cooked up," Eziban admonished her. With his eyes on Bachlan, he missed the quick gaze of surprise and appreciation that Aryn shot his way before facing her hostage once more. Bachlan got to his feet and drew his double-ended naginata, keeping it loosely in one hand for now.
"What is he talking about?!" Joshua demanded. Unlike any of the others, he had not yet made a move. "Solana, what is going on?"
Solana held out the single of page of Oriana's writing that Eziban had found. Bachlan's eyes narrowed. "Our world used to be chaotic, with the elemental forces running rampant. Our world made itself over to support life, to support us, and made our essences. It's called 'The Great Birth'." She turned away from Joshua to meet Bachlan's gaze head on. "Now he wants to start that cycle all over again with a rebirth."
"You really thought that you could force us to help you? Is that why you took Oriana hostage?!" Aryn growled, her sword-hand trembling with fury.
"What about our people? What happens to them during this grand scheme?!" Eziban demanded, his voice shaking.
"You monster..." Raoul murmured.
Joshua had turned whiter than his robes and looked like he was going to be sick. He could see the truth in Solana's eyes. He glanced over at Trista, seeing a tiny flicker of doubt in her expression for the first time ever. Joshua's own doubts about his loyalties to his leader had been smoldering slowly over time and had now been fanned into a blaze. Even so... "Surely they are mistaken," he tried, glancing up at Bachlan warily. "Tell me this is not what our purpose is!!!"
"Bachlan?" Trista asked in a tiny voice riddled with despair.
Bachlan glanced at them all, a slow smile dawning on his face. As with Oriana, he began to mockingly clap. "Very good, Solana. You, and the rest of you who were involved in a little espionage. Unfortunately, I knew all about your little game and it's helped me along."
"We'll see about that!" Aryn yelled, her sword whipping around in a fiery strike. Bachlan easily caught it on the staff of his naginata. Behind her, Eziban clenched one hand on his war axe while the other went for one of his enchanted stones. Raoul slipped on his cestuses as bits of lightning flickered around him. Solana drew her kamas at last.
At the sight of four battle-ready Guardians, even Bachlan wanted some reinforcements. "Joshua, Trista," he ordered as he stepped back, then paused. They were both standing there, no weapons in hand, staring at him in shock. Solana's revelations had twisted their loyalties to him, and they were hesitating!
He turned to Joshua first as anger replaced his surprise. "Wretched boy, will you dare to disobey me now? Become a true traitor at last?"
This time, Joshua didn't flinch. His face was only thoughtful as he coolly replied, "I rather believe I do. As my vows are to Merna and not to you, I remain no traitor. You may consider my tenure as your servant terminated, effective immediately." He purposefully turned his back to Bachlan and walked to Raoul's side.
Stunned, Bachlan turned to Trista and took her hands in his, his voice turning low and sweet as it only did when speaking to her. Trista took a small step back, but he pressed on. "My dear, you know what I have done for you. You know why I am trying to do this. Joshua has proven himself a faithless fool. Will you, at least, remain at my side?" he asked.
Trista desperately glanced between Bachlan and Solana's group, tears glittering in her eyes. "My lord, please... there must be another way... give us another method to fulfill our duties to you!" she begged, her features twisted in a soul-wrenching agony.
Bachlan's stare was cold, unmerciful, and slowly filled with contempt at this display of weakness. For just a second, the amethyst eyes so filled with love and despair seemed to shift to brown, and that beautiful face shifted to another familiar one crowned with red curls....
He violently shook her away, and Trista fell to the floor with a sob. Joshua helped her back to her feet, leading her to stand next to him. She stared at the ground, her mind unable to handle what had just happened.
Seeing Bachlan cast off Trista so casually, Solana knew that there was no chance to try and make this man see reason. And yet... "Stand down, Bachlan. You can't face all of us, and you can't force us to help you. There will be no Great Rebirth," she promised.
Bachlan laughed at the idea of this one thinking herself worthy to direct him. "You're a hypocrite, Solana, to order ME about. You believe that your memories of your failures are locked away from me? The way your weakness and short-sightedness destroyed your homeland, as you destroyed one of our own cities? It will cost you another."
After this statement, Raoul had plenty of questions in his eyes, while Joshua's thoughts were hidden and Eziban looked sympathetic. Trista still didn't look up. "Then you also know we're a lot stronger than last time. We've survived wars that wracked the Universe and taken down enemies that would eat you for breakfast and have room for dessert. What I can't figure out is why the hell you still think you can win," Aryn snapped.
"You're as simple-minded as ever, Aryn. Yes, I planned a Great Rebirth, but I never intended on forcing you to help me. What I needed was all of you in the same place," Bachlan answered. He held up the rest of Oriana's notes as Solana paled. "What the rest of this would have told you was that I've learned how to take what I need instead of requiring permission. Oriana stumbled on it too early, but was kind enough to summon you back and be a test subject as well. All of your planning has actually given me the last pieces I needed- the fire and water essences."
Bachlan's expression turned nasty as he shifted his grip on his weapon. A burst of power was sent to his workroom to wake up Oriana and force her to watch. She couldn't miss his hour of triumph. "I have seen with my own eyes what Merna desires, and I alone have the ability to give it to her. The other Golden ones didn't stand in my way. Those pesky naysayers that tried to stop me from taking on this role were not allowed to. Oriana has been dealt with. I promise that you traitors will surrender your powers and share her fate, starting with the Atlantean bitch!" With a wild gesture, he unleashed the spell he had worked so hard on full-force. Gray fire seemed to swamp the entire Crystal Citadel, then was tinted the various shades of the elements of Merna.
Aryn let loose with a ribbon of white-hot fire that joined with one of Eziban's earth spells to create a spray of molten lava. Joshua released a brilliant beam of concentrated light as a deadly laser. Raoul summoned a crackling ball of lightning and let it fly. Solana could feel the immense Tethys Sea just outside of the Crystal Citadel and sank her power in it. Trista was still in shock, unable to make a move either way.
But Bachlan's power enveloped the attack spells, somehow nullifying them in the process. The tinted gray mist then flowed to each of the other seven Guardians, calling out to their essences to join their 'true' master as Oriana's had started to.
"What... what the hell?" Aryn gasped, feeling the flames in her system starting to fight her. "What did you just do?!"
Solana felt like every drop of water was trying to leave her body at the same time. Trying to concentrate, she activated her Asterite Aura, trying to form a shield around it to keep it safe. The power of the water essence fought it, seeking some crack in her defenses to push through to follow Bachlan's call. Solana tried to hold it, but the essence formed itself into a drill-like shape and punched through her shield.
Raoul fell against the crystal wall, his face sweaty and pale as he slid to the ground. Eziban sank to his knees, calling on the power of the stones he held with him to form some kind of barrier and failing. Slowly, he slumped down. Joshua was already unconscious, fingers clenched around his mace. Trista's eyes never left the face of her beloved as she too was overcome by the loss of her power. Aryn, ever the fighter, swung her blade in Bachlan's direction until she was too weak to hold it up. Solana tried to call on her Water Seal, but was too slow and also passed out.
Bachlan had not felt this powerful since the last of the Golden ones had knelt before him, waiting for the slaughter by his soldiers. His eyes were closed in heady victory as one essence after another dropped every dram of its power into his lap. These essences were so much more POWERFUL since he passed them out to seven chosen folk so many millennia ago. Was it possible that they had grown with their holders?
Bachlan suddenly frowned as he realized that something had gone wrong. The other six essences were fully in his grasp, but the life essence was still incomplete. No more power was flowing from the Life Guardian, though he renewed the spells and tried again. "Witch! Why does your power not fully respond to my call?" he demanded. He opened a link to her prison for her answer.
"Because of something I did long ago. For now, I can only do... this. Stay safe, my children," Oriana's voice rang out in reply. A brief flash of light erupted around the six fallen figures, signaling the use of one of her teleportation spells.
Impossible!
"Not this time," Bachlan growled, throwing a ball of stolen life magic directly into the light to disrupt her spell. The light shuddered as it drank in the added power, then split into three and shot off into different directions with their accursed cargo- one to the west, one to the south, and one to the northeast. It wasn't the desired effect, but would make things more difficult if anyone got any ideas about stopping him.
With that taken care of, he stormed off to his workroom to get a few questions of his own answered.