Tuesday, January 11, 2005, 7:32 PM
Once, Long ago, before there was such
A thing as time, the world was shrouded
In Darkness.
Then came the splendor of light,
Bringing life and love into the universe,
And the Darkness retreated deep
Into the shadows of the earth,
Crystallizing and manifesting into the
essence Dark Eco….which in turn would
Banish Light forever.
But precious Light is protected,
Harbored in the souls of Precursors, the
Most mystical of all creatures.
Precursors are safe from the most
Baleful of crux of Dark Eco, they can
Only be found by the purest of mortals…
Such a mortal is Mar, who lives in peace
With the people of the desert and city.
A dark creature named Xan loves
Mar with all his heart. In their innocence,
They believe that they can coexist with
Each other and believe only goodness
Exists in the world.
Together they will learn there can
Be no Good without Evil…no Love
Without Hate…no Heaven without Hell…
No Light without Darkness.
The harmony of the universe
Depends upon an eternal balance. Out
Of the struggle to maintain this balance
Comes the birth of legends.
Prologue
"Must you leave already? You've only been back for a year…"
"I'm afraid I must Xan. You know I'll be back though…I've always come back haven't I?"
Xan stared at Mar for the longest time before sighing heavily and nodding.
"Yes you always come back but still…" he was cut off by a finger to his lips. He blinked and looked up at the Lord with a confused expression.
Mar smiled at him softly.
"I will be back…so do not doubt me. Is your faith in me failing after all these years?" he wondered.
Xan pouted some. Mar always knew how to make him feel guilty. His face showed a sign of pouting, which made Mar chuckle. No matter how much Xan tries, he is never able to outwit Mar. Xan tilted his head and sighed again before shaking his head.
"I'd never doubt my faith in you Mar. I would never doubt anything of you. You know that…tell me though, when will you be back? And for how long? I do grow wearisome of your departures and short returns. We never get to spend any time together. I'm beginning to feel as if your expeditions are more important than our relationship." Xan confessed sadly, his gaze dropping.
A finger reached under his chin to lift his face, violet meeting cerulean.
"I have to be honest. I do not know how long I will be gone nor when I will be back. But I will tell you one thing. I would never in a million lifetimes put my work before you. You will be happy to hear though, that this expedition will be the last one I am making for the next five or so years…does this please you?"
Xan's eyes lit up and a smile spread across his features.
"Do you really mean that Mar!"
"Yes."
"No more expeditions, no more foreign affair meetings, just me and you for the next few years?"
Mar nodded. Xan couldn't contain his joy and threw his arms around Mar's neck, hugging him tightly. Mar laughed, then wrapped his arms around Xan's waist and spun him around.
It was only one night before Mar's exodus and Xan wanted his going away to be special. While the monarch was out touring his garden, the Dark Denzian hurried back to his room to grab a small ivory box. He sat down at his bureau and opened it, unfolding a white cloth to reveal two shining Eco Crystal necklaces.
The first he took out was a Light Eco crystal in the shape of a sun with Dark Eco crystals in the shape of stars surrounding it. The other was a Dark Eco crystal in the shape of a moon with Light Eco crystals bordering it. He ran his thumb over the sun and sighed.
Xan peered down at the jewelry, the shine reflecting in his eyes. There was a knock on his door and he hastened to fold the cloth and close the box, placing it in a drawer before turning as Mar walked inside.
"Am I intruding on anything?" he asked politely.
The dark haired Denzian shook his head and smiled.
"No of course not. Is there something that you wanted?"
Mar paused, shook his head and closed the door. He approached Xan and draped his arms over the smaller male's shoulders. Xan was slightly surprised until Mar rested his head in the crook of his neck.
"I just wanted to see you that's all."
"hm…you're always more than welcome in here, so you don't have to knock you know."
"I know, but I'm polite like that…please forgive me. I will try to be more like you from now own" Mar joked.
"ha ha…very funny. I'm not that ill-mannered am I?" Xan wondered, lofting a brow as he watched the blonde.
Mar looked back at him and smiled a bit.
"No, no of course not. Although a few of the guards did complain about your attitude and certain disregard for the rules"
"Hmph, I don't listen to people who don't know how to patrol and secure. It was their fault anyways. If they had been paying more attention instead of dozing off, I would have never been able to interrupt your secret conference in the first place…" Xan pointed out heatedly.
He had a good point. None of the guards seemed to have a very long attention span and most fell asleep at their posts. This was something Mar would have look into that later. A moment later there was a tap on the door and a voice heard.
"Sire are you in there?"
"Yes Captain I am, is there something you needed?" Mar replied.
"Yes my Lord. Apparently a few of the Desert Stormers have malfunctioned and we can't find Doriyen."
Mar sweat dropped and sighed shaking his head.
"That girl. You never know where she will be next." he paused and looked down at Xan. "It looks like I have work to do. I'll join you for dinner though alright?"
Xan rolled his eyes and nodded.
"Yeah, sure" he said rather bemused.
Mar frowned and leaned over, kissing Xan lightly. The Dark one made a weird face and blushed slightly, giving him an annoyed expression.
"I hate it when you do that"
"I know and that's why I love doing it"
"Smart ass…" Xan muttered.
"Sire please it is urgent" the Captain called through the door.
Mar leaned in for another kiss, but his head dropped instantly, a sweat drop forming. He grumbled incoherently before standing straight and walking towards the door. He stopped before opening it and peered over at Xan.
"Duty calls beloved. I will see you at dinner" he got no answer from his darker half and it made him a little weary, but the Captain's calls forced him to open the door and exit.
Xan sat there staring down at his claws, bewilderment washing over him. He removed the box once again and stared down at its contents, wondering if he would have the courage to deliver the gifts to Mar, unless he became timid and put it off. He shook his head and exhaled weakly, then put the sachet back and stood up. A sudden rush came over him and he almost fell over from dizziness.
"W-what was that all about?" he queried. He didn't know what had come over him all of a sudden, but he gave little thought to it as he left his room in search of something to do while he waited for evening to arrive.
Mar meanwhile had a difficult time trying to figure out what exactly was wrong with the Desert Stormers.
"They look perfectly functional to me Torn…so what is the problem?" he questioned inquisitively and crossed his arms.
The Captain blinked and tried to turn the ignition on, but nothing happened. "That's the problem. It won't start. Everything else seems fine, but we just can't get the damn things to turn on. So how do you reckon we fix the problem O' fearless leader?"
The blonde king eyed him when out of nowhere a little white thing jumped out of thin air and clung to him.
"MAAAAARRRR!"
Twitch, twitch "Hello Doriyen….and where pray tell have you been?" Mar looked down at the little girl and lofted a brow.
Doriyen let go and laughed nervously putting a hand behind her head.
"I've been out in the Sand Shark collecting treasures as usual. Why? Is something the matter?"
Torn put his hands on his hips and leaned down.
"Yeah we want to know why the Desert Stormers won't start up…I have a feeling it is your doing brat."
"I am not a brat Torn. And if you keep up the crap you can just go and walk your ass around the desert. I don't have to repair these you know nor do I have to build them. I only do this for Mar." she said snottily.
Torn growled and held up his fists as if asking for a fight, but Mar rose a hand.
"Chill out. Doriyen will you please repair the vehicles for our expedition tomorrow? I would like to be able to meet Xan for dinner tonight on time because he won't be seeing me for a long time." he explained.
Doriyen made a pouting face, then sighed and nodded.
"They'll be ready in the morning. Now go on get outta here so I can concentrate." she shooed Torn and Mar out of the garage, leaving them to discuss the topic.
"Where exactly are we going tomorrow anyway? You never told any of us." Torn stated.
Mar nodded and walked down the sandy streets towards his throne, Torn following close behind.
"We're supposed to be venturing to Haven City to meet up with my father, then we're to head out and locate the Precursor Temple to the North. My father says that the last Archaic Relic of the Precursors is located there. With that artifact we can finally stop the Metal Heads for good."
"Ah I see now. After we get the relic we can finally live in peace?"
Mar gave a curt nod.
"That's right, then my father and I can reign without stress or force. I would really enjoy a life like that."
"Well I have to go join Ashelin at the Oasis so we can plan out the route for tomorrow. I'll see you later kay?" he waved to his friend then took off back to the garage to pick up a vehicle to take out to the Oasis, leaving Mar by himself.
Mar really did enjoy a hassle-free life, his people living tranquil lives without worry or fear. The only thing that separated his citizens from the desert and Metal Heads was the iron walls surrounding three sides of the city while the fourth was protected by ocean. A breath of fresh air is just what he needed as he watched the sun setting over the waterline. Denzians began ushering their children inside as evening fell, houses filling up with light and warmth. Mar stood there for a few more minutes, then turned to head back to his home for supper.
All the while, Xan had been suffering constant vertigo and a feverish throbbing in his head. He didn't know what was wrong with himself and neither did Samos.
"I really don't know what to tell you Xan. Maybe you should just go back to your room and rest. It might be that you caught the virus that's been going around to the other Denzians. Just sleep and tomorrow we will see how you're doing."
Xan wanted to protest, mainly because he can't get sick, the Dark Eco gave him immunity to illness, but he decided it best not to argue with Samos, as Samos was not one to be told otherwise. He staggered back to his room and collapsed onto his bed, cold sweat forming on his brow. Thick blackish-purple liquid started oozing from his mouth, making him cough and gag. He sat up and put a hand over his mouth while the other supported him.
"W-what…"
He couldn't speak for the Dark Eco spilling from his mouth prevented him from doing so. His body felt cold, freezing actually, and body shook uncontrollably. His mind was spinning and his vision became blurry. He just couldn't understand it. After soaking his bed with Dark Eco, Xan stumbled to his feet and left his room.
Mar wandered down the long hallways until he reached the dining hall. He was just about to walk in when Rayzn came running up to him, a panic stricken look on his face.
"Something the matter Rayzn?"
"I-it's Xan…we can't find him. We think he's injured."
"Injured?"
There was a small crowd of guards blocking off the hall as Rayzn and Mar approached. They stood aside to let them through. Mar's eyes widened when he entered Xan's room. Dark Eco pooled around the bed, which was stained and a thick trail was leading out through the other set of double doors that went to the gardens. Rayzn tried to stop Mar, but the king was already out the door, following the trail of eco in hopes of finding Xan nearby. The trail grew thicker the farther he went into the garden until it his reflection could be seen in the oozing pools. Mar was being overcome with apprehension as the puddles got larger. He stopped for a moment and gasped when he came upon fallen guards. Five guards, all slain and what looked to be in the most grisly ways.
Severed limbs were strewn all over the ground, intestines and brain tissue was strung from the branches of the fruit trees, which were dripping blood. Even their skin was stripped from their bodies and lay scattered before him. He felt sick to his stomach at seeing the muscle tissue and bone of what was left of his guards. He carefully made his way around eyeballs, detached fingers, cut muscle, and spinal cartilage. Rayzn soon caught up but fell to his knees and vomited at the sight, his flesh turning pale.
"M-my g-god…" he sputtered wiping his mouth with his sleeve. He looked up to find Mar gone again and he thought it best to send for Torn and more, heavily armed guards to protect the king.
Mar soon found himself at the fountain in the heart of the vast floral milieu. There he found Xan, or at least what looked to be Xan. The guard he was holding hostage shouted for someone to help him, but was cut short when Xan ripped his Adam's Apple out, then grasped his spinal cord from the hole in his throat and snapped it. Blood gushed from the Denzian's mouth and esophagus, his hands reaching to try and block the passage. The Dark Denzian finished the job by running his claws down the man's front, his sharp nails tearing the flesh from his chest cavity and stomach til his insides fell out and spattered all over the ground. Mar couldn't believe his eyes.
Xan dropped the mingled corpse and stared at the running water that was turning crimson from the blood that poured into the pool. He apparently hadn't noticed Mar's presence and didn't pay attention as Mar got steadily closer to him.
Suddenly, Xan grabbed his head in pain, Dark Eco surged from his mouth, and the aching in his head caused him to descend to his knees, doubled over with a burning feeling shooting through his limbs.
"Xan! Xan what's wrong?" Mar asked rushing up to aide his lover.
"A-ahhhh!" Xan yelled as he held his throbbing head, staining his violet and black hair with blood.
Mar knelt down beside him and wrapped his arms around the younger male. He cradled him, hoping that he could find out what was wrong with him. He wanted to heal Xan for he couldn't stand to see Xan in agony. Xan slowly wrapped raised his hands up under Mar's arms, resting against his back as seizures overtook him once again, the flow of eco not ceasing. It was in that instant that his sanity fully slipped away whilst his sharp claws drug down Mar's back, crating five large excruciating gashes that spilled scarlet fluid.
Mar cried out in anguish, the poison from Xan's claws seeping into his bloodstream. It was Mar's screams that pulled him back into reality. His eyes widened as he came to and he gazed around completely lost, til it fell on Mar in his arms, hunched over and shaking violently.
"M-Mar….w-what…" he didn't finish.
He blinked and pulled his hand from behind the other man, his becoming enlarged when he glimpsed the blood on his claws, the other hand running over the wounds going down Mar's shoulder blades to the center of his back. He was mortified at what he realized he had done to the one he loved. He quickly backed away from Mar looking horrified his breath quickening in his chest and tears welling in his eyes.
"W-What….have I done….I…" he just couldn't find the words to even begin apologizing.
It was only by fate that Mar didn't die from the poison for the Light Eco inside him repelled the toxins and began healing the wounds. However, because of the Dark Eco having a negative effect on Light Eco, the wounds would not heal completely, leaving five long white scars on his skin.
Xan knelt there, his face in his bloodstained hands, crying hard, causing the blood to mix with the salty tears. He gasped with surprise when he felt arms wrap around him and hold him tightly, though shaky. His head lifted to meet Mar's weakened gaze. This only made it hurt more and he cried into his love's chest.
"I-I'm…glad…y-you're alright Xan…y-you had me…worried" Mar stammered softly.
Xan shook his head, not rising to meet the other's gaze this time.
"I-I can't begin to apologize Mar…what I've done to you…is…unforgivable" he trailed off a bit. "I-I can't remember…anything a-after collapsing on my bed…a-and then I see you hurt…w-what happened to me! What is happening to me?" he asked, weeping heavily.
Mar shook his head and rocked back and forth, holding onto Xan tightly as he could.
"I don't know what's wrong…but I guarantee that I will find out…I promise…" he cooed stroking the dark one's hair.
By this time Rayzn and Torn appeared along with a few armed guards.
"Sire are you alright?" one guard asked.
Mar nodded slowly.
"I'm fine…Xan is the one I am worried about."
"But Xan is the one who murdered those guards my Lord…he must be punished!" another stated.
Mar glared at them, making them go silent.
"This was not Xan's fault. He doesn't remember anything from when he went to his room until he saw me. Get Samos. He will know what to do. NOW!" he ordered firmly.
The guards nodded and retreated at once, though Torn and Rayzn stayed behind.
"What do you think it could be Mar?" Torn inquired with concern.
There was utter stillness between the three while Xan cried himself into a deep slumber, by which Mar had stood up, taking the smaller Denzian up into his arms and carried back inside to his own room, for Xan's was still a mess.
About a half hour later Samos and the rest of them surrounded Mar's bed, Mar himself sitting on the edge holding Xan's hand after placing a warm wet cloth on his forehead. Samos carefully examined Xan along with the details Rayzn and Mar gave him. It took at least another half hour to an hour until Samos returned with a conclusion.
" I have discovered the reason for Xan's sudden malevolent behavior. It is the Dark Eco inside him."
Everyone stared with disbelief. Samos coughed and continued.
"There is an eternal balance of Light Eco and Dark Eco. Now we all know that Mar is balanced between the two different Ecoes. He, in spite of this, chose the Light Eco as his main source of power and thus receives positive energy from it always. Xan on the other hand is a completely different story. Xan was never subjected to Light Eco during those fifteen years his father experimented on him. He was injected with pure Dark Eco, which should have killed him." he paused to make sure they were listening before going on.
"But his body somehow bonded with the Dark Eco and thus he evolved into what we know as a Dark Denzian, someone who has Dark Eco in their DNA strands. Unlike Mar, he cannot choose which he wants to dominate him. He only has one eco and thus is unbalanced. Because of this permanent unbalance, he cannot fully control his Dark Eco powers."
"That explains the Dark Eco bleeding from his mouth." Torn pointed out matter-of-factly.
Samos nodded in agreement.
"You're absolutely right Torn, nevertheless, Xan's inept ability to contain the power may cause him to lose control. That is the reason for his sadistic actions. In some cases, he will also lose his sanity. Unfortunately for him, he can't be balanced between Light and Dark. He was practically born with Dark Eco in his veins, so any Light Eco interference could very well kill him." Samos finished and sighed heavily, then left to return to his laboratory.
Torn and Rayzn exchanged looks before bowing and exiting themselves to give Mar time alone with Xan before he had to leave. Once the door shut and locked, Mar turned to Xan who had finally calmed down in his slumber and his breathing pattern returned to normal. The blonde brushed a few stray locks of hair from the Dark Denzian's face and sighed heavily. He then felt incept to talk to Xan, although he knew he wouldn't be heard. It made him feel better though.
"I'm sorry Xan…I should have done something to prevent this from happening. That's what lovers are supposed to do isn't it? Protect each other always. I failed in that department I guess and for that I am ashamed to call myself your lover." he trailed off and wiped his eyes stubbornly. He was never one to allow anybody to see him cry, even Xan.
It wasn't long before dawn, when he had to leave his Darkness behind. Now he felt obligated to stay and take care of Xan, but he knew that he must go. So with much restraint and reluctance he let go of Xan's hand and stood. He turned to leave, but stopped and faced the latent youth. He gazed down at the other Denzian, and then as quietly as he could, leaned down and pressed his warm lips to Xan's cold ones, stroking his left cheek with his thumb gently as he did so. When he pulled back he held his breath, wishing to see Xan react in some sort of way that reassured him that he would recover okay. But he made no movements other than the heaving of his chest. Mar felt crestfallen, but bottled up his worry and forced himself to walk out and leave Xan behind for he did not know to be the last time…