Journey
World: Marvel / Original
Main characters: Illyana Rasputin from New Mutants
Time: Alternate timeline
Special thanks to beta reader Mako-clb, for her hard and good work.
Chapter 1
Tonight this journey seals my fate
Far beyond the open gate
To the secret places never seen before
For this final odyssey into
Arcana, Arcana
The tall, long-haired man was walking along a curvy and rocky path running around a steep mountain side. The air temperature at such a high altitude was very low and because of that the man covered himself with a brown, warm cape under which he hid leather armor and a sword attached to his belt. He was carrying a gnarled wooden cane, which towered over him. He was looking all around, admiring the view of grey mountains peaks covered with snow that sparkled in the sunlight which reigned over the landscape. The traveler stopped, then he stared overhead and noticed dark mouths of caves emerging from the stone wall enveloped in a morning mist. He knew that he was already close to his destination; his eyes revealed pleasure. He smiled to himself thinking that once again he had managed to travel to the far north. When he was almost at the peak of the mountain, the visibility was so poor, that the wanderer had been forced to help himself with a cane in order to distinguish hard rock of the road from the chasm waiting outside it for his one careless step. The man reached the entry to the cave and leaned against the wall in order to rest after his exhausting journey. He looked behind himself, as if trying to perceive something or somebody on the road which he had travelled a few minutes ago. He smiled, the reason known only to himself. After a few minutes he was ready to continue his trek. When he was walking through a cave plunged in darkness a murmur of the underground river flowing under his feet was heard all around the grotto. The moisture inside and cold temperature were unbearable so the man started to walk faster. After a while he once again found himself in an open space to his satisfaction. As it turned out he was standing above the clouds on the top of the mountain. There was a huge temple door carved in a rock centuries ago. It looked like it was merged with stones, like it was being born from them continuously. The wanderer was stunned by its beauty in spite of the fact that he had seen it not for the first time. Complex sculptures and geometric shapes symbolizing the Sun astonished him with their beauty. The enormous building or maybe the special atmosphere of that place caused the wonderer to forget about the overwhelming coldness on the mountain top, and his mind was transferred to some other place, far away from the mountains. An old woman with long, white hair wearing a plain dress and a pendant shaped like the sun was standing motionless on the terrace supported by marble columns. Her grey eyes were full of warmth and wisdom learned over years spent solving mysteries. Seeing the traveler she raised both hands in a sign of greeting.
"Greetings Ariana," the man said to the person who was the purpose of his journey.
"Welcome Azureus," The keeper of the temple answered him. She smiled at him and continued the conversation.
"So many months have passed since we last saw each other. How are you?" the long haired man asked out of courtesy.
"Well. The hermit lifestyle doesn't have such a destructive influence on me," the priestess answered him, glad that she was able to open her mouth to someone after all those years. Azureus came up to the woman and then they strolled around the terrace of the building together. A wild bird flew above his head screaming loudly. The man smiled.
"I can see that you became a real man. I remember when you arrived here with Oron. You were such a cute little boy. So much has changed since that time..." Ariana said looking at her unexpected guest.
"That's true. A lot has changed," the black-haired man replied falling into pensive mood.
"Let us come inside. It is much warmer there," offered Ariana. Azureus was surprised because he didn't feel any cold near the stone sanctuary, but he granted the wish of the old woman. They both passed through the triangular gate and entered the interior of the temple. It was enormous; corridors from the main chamber seemed to continue into infinity long inside the mountain's core. Bright discs were hovering everywhere, some lasting in the air perpetually, others appearing just to disappear after a few minutes, and others existing only for fractions of seconds. The woman came to one of them and reached her hand out to its shimmering surface. She closed her eyes, feeling positive energy entering her whole body. Azureus stared at her without any feelings; he didn't want to come closer to the magic phenomenon. The priestess smiled at him.
"What is so important that you decided to return to me Azureus?" The woman asked despite knowing the man's answer. Her intuition never failed her.
"Your examinations. I am convinced of their rightness the same as you, the same as Oron was once..." The man answered not being sure what to say.
"I don't believe that you came here from the distant country, only in order to discuss the magic. Your eyes are betraying you. I know that you want something larger from me, something which for some reason lies heavily on your heart". Ariana wanted to get to know why the man had came to her as soon as possible. Azureus decided not to answer her question.
"Ariana... not knowing what to do with my life I visited the Oracle in the Pylfiders. She showed me that something crucial had happened in your church which can change not only my fate but also the fate of our land. She said the legendary Traveler would appear here..." The priestess got sad when she heard his words. He noticed it and the first signs of annoyance appeared on his face.
"Indeed, I made the most unusual discovery". Ariana announced unwillingly.
"Tell me about it?" Azureus asked clearly showing impatience.
"What are the bright discs to us? We have been trying to figure out for ages. They are holy for the people; they are objects of worship and power. These are secrets which even our most wise mages weren't allowed to explore. Priests of the light are teaching that discs are sources from which divine grace and power are emanating. My order believed in the theory that discs are something natural; they are gates, windows linking the most distant corners of our land, thanks to which we could travel huge distances in the unusually short time and go where no man has gone before." Azureus turned around and clenched his fists. The woman sighted seeing his behavior.
"I know what discs are for me Ariana. You remember that they fascinated me from childhood, and I devoted a lot of time to studying and contemplating them." The man's hand trembled. He clenched his fists again
"Yes, Azureus...".
"However, in spite of many years your order have devoted to study them, you failed to prove the truth about them. What's more no one managed to cross them and lived to tell the tale. For years we have thought that it was a ban put by the Gods preventing man from possessing a huge power which the discs could give to him. What else do you want to add?" Azureus wanted clear and not ambiguous answer.
"I discovered their true nature. A few weeks ago I managed to carry out the charm which I had wove for years. I managed to look into the disc..." Eyes of the man widened from the amazement.
"It turned out that the truth about discs is much more remarkable than we expected in our boldest dreams. During the trance over one of them, after casting a spell on it, I saw inside, and what is on the other side." The woman was excited. The mystery which she had been trying to solve all her life appeared to be unraveled and she was able to tell somebody about it.
"Discs are gates to the different parts of the world; they are gates to other worlds, so fantastic that we wouldn't be able to describe them by words. They are gates in space and time!"
"Your revelations are shocking, but what is their significance for us? We can't go inside these gates, not being ripped to shreds by them." The man asked knowing that the priestess' answer will satisfy him. Ariana broke off for a moment. She thought what to say next. Her intuition told her that something bad was going to happen. After a moment of hesitation, she continued.
"The Oracle told the truth about the Traveler. During my meditations I discovered that in one of the worlds on the other side of the disc... somebody lives... a young woman, who is able to go inside the disc... what's more, she is able to control them." Azureus was struck dumb by the revelation.
"Who is she, that she has such a remarkable power? Can we contact her?"
"Yes... when she is going through discs, she is in the place devoid of time and space. It is a nothingness between worlds, but she doesn't realize the true nature of discs; she isn't able to move beyond her own world," Ariana said less enthusiastically.
"Would you be able to get her to our world?"
"This church is so overwhelmed with the magic, that being in it I am able to control places in which discs are created; times of their opening... if I tried to extend my power to the nothingness between worlds perhaps I could cause the disc of this woman to appear in my church."
"In that case do it! Get her here!" the thrilled long haired man was shouting.
"I would like to do it. She could reveal a lot about the nature of discs, even a short conversation with her would help me find answers to many secrets I have studied. But I don't know whether I should do it. She belongs to the other world; we should not cross borders of the discs. My examinations, action of this temple and the order were banned by the Great Priest and recognized as a sacrilege. If he learnt about what I had told you today, he would send Riders here... And apart from that, the abilities of this girl could be used for evil things... I cannot afford such a risk..."
Ariana wanted to end her reunion with her old friend quickly.
"Are you going to hide behind the teachings of the priests of light now? They weren't an obstacle for you when you built this place among the rocks and clouds!" the warrior yelled.
"The truth about the discs is too great to reveal Azureus! We do not even know how big ... People are not ready for it yet."
"No. It's about you. You aren't ready for changes Ariana! Or maybe you're already too old to a dream of better world like you used to ... like Oron!"
"I understand that you are still full of fire, Azureus, but I will not let you burn all the world with it. The Traveler and everything associated with her is too dangerous to play with and to use it!" Ariana turned her face to one of the discs shining in the dark.
"I am sorry that you came here for nothing. I wish you a safe return to the Tarania. I hope you find the right path for yourself. I cannot help you. Goodbye."
"You will have to take a risk, Ariana." Azureus smiled ominously.
"What do you mean? Your voice sounds strange." The woman became worried.
"If you don't get this girl, you will have a much larger problem than Riders." The priestess sensed that something terrible was going to happen. The man took the sword out of the scabbard. A round blue sapphire shone on its hilt. The woman moved back.
"Did you sell your soul Azureus? I didn't think that you were able to do it." The warrior smiled widely.
"Like I told you before, a lot has changed. I had been following your road once woman, now the Clan of the Night showed me my own. The time of great changes came for me but thanks to your discovery for the entire world also. I'm man of actions not of dreams!"
After a few minutes, men dressed in black chain mail and black capes entered the temple. Everyone was holding swords. After a moment, a bald man holding a cane decorated with a jewel entered the rock church. He was wearing a black tunic and a pendant with a black stone was hanging on his neck. Ariana just smiled and gained confidence.
"You can kill me traitor. But I certainly won't give you the secret which could destroy both you and everyone on your road. Destroy this place with a dark magic emanating from your companion, bury me and years of my research under ton of rocks but you will get nothing from me."
"But I will get everything, Ariana! Rerik!"
Hearing these words the bald man mumbled something. A glowing orb appeared on his stick with displayed image showing the small town. Ariana recognized her young daughter amongst people walking on its streets. The bald man giggled insanely.
"Tazia! No, you monster... what are you going to do? " The priestess was terrified.
"Nothing, if you will get the enchantress here. If not, Rerik will order the Roughriders of the Dragons to drop the crazy wyverns on the city. You know very well what happens when their minds are clouded and there are innocent people around."
Rerik giggled once again. Drops of sweat appeared on his bald scalp.
"Ok, you monster. Have your own way. You will get this girl, but remember that today I cursed you. Remember that after death an eternal agony is awaiting you in the nothingness between worlds."
"The nothingness already stared at my face, woman. I learned to live with it a long time ago."
Ariana sat down by the huge light circle with tears in her eyes and started reciting the spell.
In a completely different place and time, on the Earth, in Salem Center, New York, two young girls who were students of the nearby school called Xavier's Institute spent their free time on the carnival organized in the neighborhood. Kitty Pryde, had curly, brown hair and was wearing white trousers and a green short-sleeved shirt. Her friend from Russia was called Illyana Rasputin. She was a blonde with straight, long hair and blue eyes. She was dressed in brown trousers and black blouse. The girls were mutants, meaning they had special abilities which separated them from the rest of the society just like the rest of their companions from Xavier's school. Kitty was able to phase, that is to go through solid objects, and Illyana was a teleporter but also a person who spent half of her life in the place which can be compared to the hell, under the care of a being which could be a devil. However nobody would guess it by looking at these two normal girls enjoying themselves at the carnival. Friends after a dozen minutes of roaming around amongst the crowd, stopped at the shooting gallery.
"You want to challenge me to a duel, Illyana?" Kitty asked holding the wooden shotgun. The blonde took the weapon out from her hand.
"If you're challenging me, I probably deserve the first try?" She put the weapon on a wooden counter, aimed at the pile of cans and fired. Unfortunately she wasn't lucky and hit nothing. The mechanical laughter sounded from loudspeakers behind the walls. The man standing next to gallery told her something but his voice was attenuated by the noise of street.
"Illyana, you must correct your aim because after the shot the wind is deviating the trajectories of the bullets... look how I'm doing it."
Kitty pointed the toy gun at the pile and fired. She managed to hit the target. The pile collapsed with a loud clank. The person guarding the attraction started saying something to the girls, but they didn't listen to him.
"Well... I've got something more difficult for you. I'm going to hit only one of these cans. If I do it, you'll buy me an ice cream. If not I'll buy you." Illyana offered.
The brown-haired girl accepted the challenge and gave the shotgun back to her friend. The Russian prepared for the shot, this time it took her more time. She shot at the pyramid and managed to do what she had planned. Only one of cans was hit and fell on the floor. The girls started laughing. The employee of the shooting range gave them gifts and invited them for the next game. They decided to go to the café. Passing by the Palace of Fears Kitty gripped her companion's hand. She showed her the colorfully painted wooden building. Red demons leaving the lake of fire above which the inscription 'inferno' was seen were drawn on its walls. Illyana's humor violently deteriorated.
"No," she said quietly and moved ahead. The girls walked beside each other in complete silence. Kitty understood that she had behaved not very appropriately, proposing her friend visit in a place which was a parody of the land in which she had lost her childhood. However she didn't suppose that Illyana would react that way. They stopped on the bridge built above the street. The blonde leaned against the fence and looked straight ahead with a blank eyesight.
"I'm sorry Illyana, I didn't want to irritate you," said Kitty.
"Kitty... you didn't irritate me. It isn't about you... Simply, I'm hacked off at the way in which people make fun of places and beings which took my innocence away and changed me into the person I am now. They are painting caricatures of demons and hells, they are laughing at them, not realizing that some of these monsters can at one time kidnap their tiny daughters and flood their hearts with a darkness from which there is no escape."
The girl's eyes became red.
"I feel like summoning from the Limbo some smaller imp to release him on this carnival.
"Illyana, don't even joke about it".
"I'm not joking. I am who I am and nothing will change it."
Kitty had been silent for a moment. Horns of cars were heard from the distance. The city at the evening was full of impatient drivers.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I don't know. I'm mutant; you are also, so is my brother... besides... I'm witch, demon, and devil... lady of infernal armies..."
"You're my good friend..." replied Kitty patting the friend on the back.
"You can forget about everything other..." She added smiling.
"Yes, Kitty?" Saying these words the blonde made a gesture with the hand. A bright disc appeared and both girls vanished in it. After a moment they turned up in the completely different place: Brown rocks and barren soil like on the strange inhospitable planet, black volcanoes growing on the horizon, sky as red as the blood, laughter coming from a distance and the flutter of bat's wings reigned there. It was the place in which Illyana grew up from the small child into the young woman, the place which was her house, which she knew more than her own homeland. Place in which she was a queen. The Russian created the silver sword out of the emptiness.
"It cannot be forgotten Kitty. Over seven years of a fight for life in this hell, learning of the black arcana from the hands of a real demon and things which I did and about which I will never tell neither you nor Piotr. And them, as companions of my childhood..." From behind the Kitty's back, a strange green demon with one eye and thousand of tentacles appeared. The girl instinctively phased and walked away a few steps.
"Leave her alone!" Illyana shouted pointing the sword at the creature. The monster listened to her and disappeared in the darkness.
"Ok Illyana. I know what you mean. And now let us go back to Earth."
"As you wish, Kitty."
The bright disc appeared again and the girls came back to the bridge, exactly at the time when they vanished from it.
"Illyana, I understand what you went through. Therefore I want us to be together and don't want you to think about what happened to you in Limbo. You'll tell me about it, when you're ready. And now... we're going to eat something. I owe you an ice-cream." Kitty took her friend by the hand and dragged her deep into city.
Meanwhile in the stone temple in another world, Ariana fell into the contemplative trance. Azureus and his companions watched her with anxiety. The black-haired man came up to the bald magus.
"And what if she tries to cheat us? What if she casts an offensive spell? I know that she didn't learn such magic, but who knows what happened, when I didn't have a contact her..."
"Be calm. I will sense every offensive spell directed against me. I'm sure that now the priestess is creating the charm of summoning. But so complicated and convoluted... I would need months for seeing through it..." The eyes of the mage were glittering with amazement.
"Unimportant!" Azureus waved the hand and came up to his old friend. At that very moment the disc lighted up with an intense glow. The warrior covered himself with his black cape and the wizard impulsively surrounded himself with the protective shield.
"Now... The girl crossed barriers of the nothingness between worlds. I established contact with her. I can show you her face."
"Do it woman!" The man yelled and pointed his sword at old priestess. Ariana spread her hands and Illyana Rasputin's face appeared in the bright disc. Azureus came closer to the circle and started staring at her blue eyes.
"She is beautiful... how can such a person be in the nothingness between worlds? Get her to us!" The priestess was silent. She was sad and irritated. She wanted to delay the time of using her spell as long as she could. The man lost patience. Drops of sweat were flowing down his cheeks. He put the ice cold sword to the woman's neck.
"Do it!" Ariana remained motionless despite his threats.
"Rerik!" He shouted at his subordinate. The cane kept by the wizard was glowing with a purple shine.
"Well..." replied Ariana. She concentrated on the summoning spell. Tears flowed down her eyes. Her hands were shaking and her breath was becoming faster and more uneven.
On the Earth, Illyana and Kitty were eating ice cream in a small café. Despite the late hour, there was no crowd inside, the only guests were group of young girls talking about something all the time and a couple of old timers wearing shirts with large, white flowers. The interior of the cafe was wooden, potted plants were placed here and there. Jazz music was coming from a radio hidden somewhere in the room. After a day spent in the town two mutant girls were preparing for the return to Xavier's School. Kitty didn't delve farther into the topic of Illyana's stay in Limbo, she told Illyana about her brother, Piotr and the time she spent in his company after she had moved to the school. The humor of the Russian improved, thanks to her friend. She stopped thinking about the past taken away from her by Belasco. The girls rose from the table, and then they headed towards the exit. The blonde stopped.
"I must go to the bathroom. Are you going with me, Kitty?"
"No, I'll wait outside."
"Ok, I'll be back right away".
Illyana went to the back of the café and entered the Ladies room. She locked herself in the first cubicle. She felt that her abilities are activating. A teleportation disc appeared on the floor, although she didn't even intend to summon it. Directed by the force which she wasn't able to oppose she was drawn into its interior. The bright disc dissolved into thin air as soon as the girl disappeared. There was no one in the bathroom who could come to her rescue.
Ariana got up and the disc by which she had cast spells, stopped glowing with the intense light. Azureus came up to her, but she didn't turn around in spite of the sword put to her back. She didn't want to look at the eyes of the friend who had betrayed her.
"It's done. She is already in our world... in this temple..."
The man angrily gripped his sword.
"Where is she! I can't see nobody!"
"She is there," the priestess whispered quietly. She turned around violently and spread her hands out.
"She is in the place where she won't fall into your treacherous hands!" She shouted with all her might. The bright circle appeared from nowhere, cutting Rerik in two pieces. The bloody remains of the man fell down on the floor with a splash. The ending of his cane stopped glowing and a window portraying the village of Ariana's daughter vanished irretrievably.
"You witch! You don't even realize what you did! You won't escape the Clan of the Night!" Azureus screamed raising his sword above his head. The woman started escaping from the temple, skillfully avoiding appearing and disappearing bright discs. After a moment she vanished in darkness, her silhouette merged with dark interior chambers of the temple.
"Go after her! You must find her and the girl she brought here. Azureus' subordinates set off in pursuit of the priestess. The man sheathed his sword.
"And level this place later. Don't let even one stone remain unturned!"
Ariana went along the corridor, plunged in a darkness leading deep into the mountain's interior. There was the smell of mud in the air and water was dripping from the ceiling and walls. Torches stuck to walls of the mountains viscera were the only signposts for travelers inside the mountain. Their strange greenish tint revealed that they were magical. The woman entered a little cave and leaned against its wall to gasp for air. She concentrated and after a few seconds a bright circle appeared in the middle of the cave. One moment later Illyana emerged from it. The girl was horrified and disoriented, because her senses could not adapt to the sudden teleportation into an alien world, into physically different reality. When she saw Ariana, she took a defensive position and tried to summon the Soulsword. She was too weak. She lost consciousness and started to fall down. The priestess caught her, not letting her hit the ground. She swept Illyana's hair aside from her forehead and stroked her face gently.
"Such a young girl... what have I done?"
She put her hand on Illyana's breast and recited the old spell. Her hand lit up with faint glow. The blonde started regaining consciousness. The healing spell had worked so the girl quickly felt better. She broke free from Ariana's grasp and ran to the other side of the cave.
"Who are you? Where am I? Why have you kidnapped me?" The girl was frightened and she wanted to have all answers as soon as possible.
"Calm down... I don't want to hurt you. I want to help you. You are in big danger."
"You answered none of my questions!" Illyana became nervous. A white light accumulated around her hand.
"Please, calm down, child". Ariana tried to come closer to Magik.
"Stay back!" the mutant girl shouted and two magic arrows shot out of her hands. They hit the cave walls making loud noise and scattering dust and small pebbles all around. Illyana's eyes widened from surprise. She remembered that when she wasn't in Limbo, she wasn't able to use the magic she learned from Belasco with such an easiness. She looked at her hands, which hurt from the used charm.
"Where am I? It isn't the Earth! Where did you take me?" Tears appeared in the girl's eyes.
"I didn't kidnap you. I moved you here from your world, I admit it, but I was forced to do it. Please, hear me out. You are threatened by a huge danger. Trust me, please".
"Don't try to come closer. I can defend myself!"
"I won't touch you if you don't want it. However, please, hear me out. My name is Ariana, How are you called, my child?" The priestess tried to calm the girl. She wanted to establish a dialogue with her.
"Illyana Rasputin," the blonde replied quickly. "And now tell me where I am!"
"This is not so simple to explain; you are apart from your reality. We don't have a time for conversations. This place is swarming with warriors who want to kidnap and use you. They will find this room." Magik fell into a pensive mood. She knew that she could not trust the woman, but she could not fight with her since she didn't even know where she was and how to get back home.
"Ok, I believe you. But remember, one false move..." The girl conjured the Soulsword out of nothingness; she pointed its blade at the priestess.
"We must escape from here," Ariana announced. She left the cave. Illyana put the sword away and followed her. The woman turned into the branch of the corridor and went outside, on the cliff. A very cold and unpleasant wind was blowing here. Magik looked around. From the precipice a fantastic view was stretching. Hills covered with forests and meadows, dense mist lying in valleys and clouds rushing on the blue sky. A huge shape glittered; a young dragon went to hunting somewhere in the faraway land.
"You must go through the bright disc with me!" Ariana screamed over the loud wind.
"…and later take us there!" She pointed at the field in the front of the wall of the forest.
"You want me to teleport us there?"
"No matter how you are calling walking through the discs, Illyana".
"Okay, if because of that I'll be able to get back home..." The girl agreed unwillingly.
"One second!" Ariana said and removed the golden locket from her neck. She broke it into a few parts and threw all of them into the chasm. The teleport disc appeared taking both women.
Azureus felt pain in the forehead and then vibrations coming from every corner of the stone temple. He guessed that Ariana had cast the spell, which could stop him and his plans forever.
"My Warriors, we are retreating!" he shouted and the echo reflected his voice from walls of the building. Inside the temple, in a flash of light, hundreds or perhaps even thousands of bright circles opened. The building shook, and then it tumbled down burying warriors of the Clan of the Night beneath its ruins. Only stones and a thick layer of dust rising above them remained from the beautiful temple built ages ago. Azureus escaped death. He looked at the damage his former friend had done with eyes full of hate. He took an oath that he would find Ariana, kill her and get the girl with golden hair from the other world.
The teleportation disc made by Illyana appeared on the meadows bordering with a thick forest. The girl and the priestess were staying amongst tall grass. Ariana was looking at the mountain covered by a mist and noticed clouds of dust spilling from its peak. She realized that nothing had remained of her sanctuary. She prayed that its wreck buried Azureus and other warriors of the Clan of the Night. Illyana touched the shoulder of the woman. She looked at her with angry eyes.
"You're safe now! Take me home!" She ordered her.
"I would like, really… but without the temple and my circles it is impossible. I'm sorry"
"What? Do you want to say that I'm stuck here forever? No, it can't be happening!" The girl was irritated; the Soulword appeared, answering her subconscious order.
"There is one place, where I could try... one which wasn't seized and destroyed by the Great Priest... a long way from here, in the land behind the sea called Falaria. There is a tower built on the biggest disc that ever turned up in our world. Being there, perhaps I would manage to send you back..."
"Perhaps? We're supposed to travel who knows how many kilometers, but you're saying that 'perhaps' you'll send me?"
"You must understand me. Up to today you were only a legend... the person who can travel through discs and live in the emptiness between worlds."
"Nice. But now I'm real and I'm your problem! You are responsible for me, it is you who got me here and it is you who'll send me home!"
Illyana dematerialized her sword and headed in the direction of the forest.
"Don't follow me. I'll come back right away... I must... cool down."
Ariana watching the blonde walking away sat down on the big stone sticking out above grass.
Azureus, wearing a cape, went down a forest path. He was holding in his hand a small statuette which at one time belonged to Ariana. He took a little bottle out from behind his belt. He opened it with an anger. A black smoke which took the form of the tiny man escaped from his flask.
"Fly my messenger! Fly to the cities and announce that I am offering a huge award for the head of the woman to which this idol belonged!" Azureus plunged the figurine in the black smoke.
"I am offering the award for Ariana, keeper of bright discs. I am offering an even bigger award for those who will bring her companion with the golden hair to me, alive and in good health! Azureus from Tarania".
The being from the smoke split into a lot of smaller parts and each of his fragments ran to the other side of the world. The man covered himself with the cape and moved forward.
Kitty alarmed by long absence of her friend returned to the café. She entered the Ladies room. She looked around. There was no one in the room apart from her, but one of the stalls was closed. The girl came up to it.
"Illyana, are you there... Illyana, are you OK?"
Nobody answered her. A moment later Kitty phased through the closed door and became convinced that the cabin had been completely empty. The young mutant girl went outside to look for her friend.
It was already late night in the world to which the young Russian was taken away. Illyana and the woman keeping her company ventured into depths of the forest thicket to hide from the people who were going after them. A semi-darkness and the black shadows of trees moved by a gentle wind surrounded them. The smell of mustiness raised around the rotten trunks of trees and the first sounds of night creatures were heard from a distance. The women had not been talking to each other for quite a long time. Magik could not get rid of her dislike for the person who kidnapped her. She remembered exactly what had happened when as a 7-years -old girl, she had found her way to the dimension ruled by Belasco. She was afraid that she had been imprisoned in a place completely alien to her once again.
"When I return to earth some day, will I be able to find my family and friends alive, or perhaps this time so much time will pass that only a memory remains after them?" She wondered. Ariana was sitting on the stump looking attentively at the girl. Illyana started walking amongst the forest thicket searching for something.
"What's going on? Why are you acting this way? Why don't you want to trust me?" The priestess wanted to calm her down. The girl stopped and turned around very rapidly.
"Let me see. Maybe because you kidnapped me from my own house to a place who knows how distant?"
"You cannot be driven by anger... you will kill yourself quickly..."
"I am not angry at all. Not at all…I'm hiding in a forest from someone who want to kidnap me, who knows why! I'm tired of all the walking!" The girl was irritated.
"Why won't you sit down and rest?"
"I must simply do something in order not to go crazy... and evening will approach, it's getting colder, so the most sensible thing which I can do now is collect wood and make a campfire, right?"
"I will help you." Ariana replied and went to search for dry twigs needed for making a fire. The blonde picked up a few long sticks. She was watching her companion all the time, afraid to ask her a question. Finally she broke the silence. She threw branches at a nearby boulder.
"What did actually happen? Up there?" She asked.
"I was betrayed by an old friend. He struck me in a way I could not have expected."
"Was he the one who forced you to kidnap me?"
"Yes ... I ask for your forgiveness once again."
"Why does he need me? How did he get to know about me? I've never seen this place before!"
The woman was silent for a moment. She did not know how to answer all the girl's questions. She went to the blonde and put hand on her shoulder.
"We will leave this land soon and we will go as far as possible from here. We will fight with them if the need for it arises. But if not ... I do not want you to know too much about this place. It can be dangerous for you. Just know that you were a legend for those who desire you now." The woman returned to look for wood in the bushes. She stopped for a moment once again.
"I had no choice ... They threatened the life of my daughter ..." She announced in a calm voice.
"I am sorry," she added. Illyana heard the word daughter and a wave of sadness and helplessness overwhelmed her. Tears appeared in her blue eyes. At the same time the hatred she had felt for Ariana was replaced by understanding and compassion. She wanted to say something but was unable to open her mouth. She decided to return to her work. After a dozen minutes, pieces of woods placed in one spot were ready to set on fire. Illyana sat down by the priestess.
"Ok, now a fire would be useful to us..."
"You have it in yourself, Illyana. I feel it... Very firmly..."
"What are you talking about? I'm not a smoker. I'm not carrying matches or the cigarette lighter..."
"Smoker? Matches? A cigarette lighter?" Ariana was surprised by strange words.
"Huh... not important... I mean that I don't know how the hell I'm supposed to set these damn twigs on fire!"
"You are full of magical energy Illyana. The spell of the flame should be very simple for you."
"You know what? It isn't... Now I don't know what you are talking about!"
"Your world doesn't have magic?" the priestess was surprised.
"There is no...You know, some people are using it, it is kind of complicated." The mutant girl didn't know how to tell her companion how her world works.
"All right; in that case I will teach you the spell of the flame." Ariana grasped the blonde's hand. She hugged her, and started to train her how to cast a spell.
"Relax. Take a deep breath. Focus your attention on the wood. Think about it; let it fill your mind. Imagine that branches are heating up, that the first spark is turning up on them. Close your eyes if it helps you. Well... now gently lift the hand. Feel the heat of the fire, see its glitter..."
The girl did exactly what the woman told her. She felt that her body was going into a trance, which she couldn't understand. All the pieces of wood were caught by the flame immediately. It was very violent and intense; it ravaged the entire mound of the branches and spread to nearby bushes and trees. Frightened Illyana moved a few steps away. Ariana widened her eyes from surprise. Once again Illyana's abilities have turned out to be greater than she thought.
"What happened? What I did wrong...?" asked the blonde looking at burning trunks of nearby oaks.
"Be calm." Ariana stretched the arm out. She kept magically extinguishing all the flames until only the ones on the mound of the wood stayed intact. Exhausted Illyana fell into arms of the woman.
"I'm tired so terribly... I must rest... sleep..." The priestess hugged her once again. The girl put her head on her knees and fell into deep sleep, losing consciousness. Ariana put the hand on girl's breast whispering words of healing spell.
"Sleep child..." She whispered to her ear.
"I'm sorry." She added stroking her hair.
Illyana woke up very early in the morning. She stretched her back, which hurt her from sleeping on the hard and wet ground. She sat down on a rock covered with moss and started looking all around herself. The forest was flooded by a thick, white mist; rays of the morning sun were penetrating through crowns of trees. Sounds of miscellaneous birds came to the girl's ears. It turned out that Ariana had been on legs for a long time; she walked in the distance searching the forest thicket for herbs and other useful plants. The blonde decided to join her.
"I can see that you already got up, child" the priestess said seeing the girl coming up to her.
"And I'm feeling calm and well rested... It's strange after such a terrible night."
"I am pleased. I already have everything that I need. If you are ready we can start our journey."
"I think that we wasted too much time".
"Going to the north we should reach the route leading to the plains. And, from there we will quickly get to Aranis. It is the only city which has a little port in these areas. Then I will know what chance we have to get to Falaria."
The women were tearing through the thicket until they came to the muddied road. Going along it for several dozen minutes they encountered the exit from the forest. Illyana stopped for a moment stunned by the view stretching before her. Hills covered by green meadows seemed to stretch away to the infinity. The morning mist in valleys gave the place a strange, magical appearance. In the white clouds showered by the sun rays, two big, green shapes were moving; young dragons enjoyed their own company. At the bifurcation of the road a wood signpost stood. The blonde smiled seeing it.
"We approached indications of the civilization! At last!
"Well..." Ariana looked at her companion attentively.
"As soon as we reach some market, I must buy some other clothes for you...yours are too exotic, you cannot be so blatant..."
"Exotic?" Illyana was surprised by an opinion of her companion.
"Exactly... Illyana, tell me what kind of place your world is..."
"It's a large place, but it isn't possible to describe it in one word. Every part of the world is different. We are a technological civilization, machines, computers, the fast transport and television. Apart from that there are many beings in it which have extraordinary abilities."
"It must be a wonderful place."
"Yes, wonderful... with all wars, illness, madmen and perverts..."
"And what do you know about discs? Are they turning up in your world?
"No, they don't appear. Actually I didn't even call them by this name. I have always thought that they are only an addition to my power, the special effect like smoke and sulphur of Nightcrawler... I would never think of them like of a natural phenomenon."
"In your world are you the only one able to create them?"
"Yes."
The road led the women to the cliff. The blonde stopped in order to admire the landscape of the lands which were waiting for her on her journey. She could see the village of wooden houses and farther away the city with the distinct market on which the stone tower stood. A fishing ship with a large white sail was entering the little municipal port. In the distance forests and extensive marsh areas stretched out.
"I wish I had a camera".
"A camera?"
"Forget about this... I would like to keep all these views... they are so beautiful."
"Let us walk away; in your travel you will see even prettier landscapes."
After a short break the women returned to their journey.
A man dressed in black armor and a dark blue cape rode on a horse as black as the night and left the nearby forest. His face was camouflaged, only red eyes stuck out from under folds of materials. A few similarly dressed men left bushes, they kept crossbows. Ariana stopped the blonde with a move of the hand and looked at the stranger. Fear appeared in her eyes.
"Illyana! Escape!" She shouted pushing the girl. The mysterious man was looking at the travelers in silence. He raised his left hand. Warriors who were keeping him company directed crossbows at the two women and fired. Two arrows hit Ariana's leg. The third arrow hit Illyana, but she defended herself creating a fragment of her armour around herself. In her hand, her Soulsword appeared. The girl came up to the injured priestess. She tried to help her to get up. In the same moment the dumb man moved in her direction taking the obsidian sword out of the scabbard. His red eyes met with the eyes of Magik. Illyana protected Ariana from his first blow. The warrior was surprised, that his sword had come across the resistance.
"Escape Illyana! You won't win against him! He is Immortal walking in the Darkness, The murderer for hire who cannot be killed!"
"I'm not going to leave you behind! You're my only ticket to home!"
"You understand nothing! I am already lost! You can still save yourself!"
"Enough chatting!" Illyana shouted attacking the opponent. The man parried her hit with the blade of the obsidian sword. The blonde attacked again and this time she destroyed the piece of his armor. The immortal retreated. He signaled to his people. They fired crossbows at the mutant girl. Only one arrow hit the target, Illyana's arm. The armor protecting it was shattered; Illyana felt sharp, piercing pain. She dropped the sword which dissolved into the nothingness. She fell down on her knees. The masked man approached the priestess. In the same moment the woman recited new spell. The wave of air hit the blonde, pushing her to the edge of the cliff.
"Use your power! And remember! Tower in Falaria! They will help you return home!" The dark rider ordered his steed to hit Ariana with the hoof. At the same moment Magik moved back to the escarpment and fell down a chasm. She used her abilities as fast as she could and teleported herself blindly straight below to the bough of the tree sticking out of the wall of the precipice. She grasped it using one hand only, because her second arm was paralyzed by the pain from the stuck arrow. She dropped the branch and slipped down farther over the surface of the cliff. She was already close to the ground, but in spite of that the fall was very painful. The girl wounded her body and tore her clothes. She cut her forehead; her shirt was becoming saturated with the blood flowing from her arm wound. Great pain turned up at her right leg, she probably broke it. Illyana lost consciousness very quickly.
The immortal, convinced that the girl didn't survive the fall, came back to his first victim. He ordered his two people to take her from the road. Black warriors put her on one of their horses and signed the readiness for the way with had gestures. The entire four galloped in a direction known only to them.
Coming down from a mountain took Azureus the entire night. He had to choose one of the easiest trails because the ones which were shortest were too dangerous for travel after sunset. He found himself in a small valley surrounded by a little coniferous forest. A big tent was spread there and two men dressed in dark armors were guarding its entrance. Seeing Azureus they turned away their head to his side.
"You are coming back alone?" one of them asked.
"Unfortunately yes. I have a very bad tidings for you. Meeting with Ariana ran totally different than I had anticipated. This witch preferred to destroy the temple than help our matter. Nobody survived. Even Rerik..."
Two guards looked at themselves and they lowered heads in silence. With this gesture they wanted to pay tribute to their deceased companions. A young woman emerged from the inside of the tent. She had short, black hair, a dark complexion and beautiful brown eyes. She was dressed in black trousers and a black sleeveless shirt. At the belt she had a dagger with the same sapphire as on the Azureus' sword.
"I can see that you failed to convince my mother to our point of view?" She said looking at the man.
"Unfortunately, she regarded me as the incorporated evil. I wasn't able to reason with her.
"Whether she... whether you had to..." an alarmed girl asked.
"No, she gave me the slip... I regret it very much... she killed my good subordinates..."
Azureus tightened the fist on a sword hilt.
"But I sent an arrest warrant after her; she will fall into our hand soon..."
"I understand." Tazia replied feeling distinct relief that her mother had survived and simultaneously not showing it before Azureus. The black-haired man touched her gently and then led her into the interior of the tent. Semi-darkness prevailed there, some bags lay on the floor. The man removed the cape from his back and he threw it into the corner of the room. He unfastened a belt with the sword.
"The Oracle from Pylfiders wasn't wrong." He announced. The girl eyes widened from surprise.
"What's more, reality turned out to be more remarkable than her prophecy."
"What do you mean?
"A way to control bright discs exists. A way to control the time of opening and closing them... even the travel through worlds which are connected by them is possible... Your mother kidnapped the Traveler girl from her own world. It happened precisely the way it was predicted by the prophecy." Azureus averted his gaze.
"I had her in my reach, but Ariana..." He stopped and closed his eyes kind of feeling great pain.
"She helped her with the escape, who knows where!"
"It is a good sign." Tazia announced. "If my mother knew the prophecy she wouldn't let the Traveler survive but she rescued her instead.
"It seems so... she shouted to me that she would hide the girl from me, that I would never get her.
"If Ariana does not know the prophecy, there is a chance that the Great Priest and the Queen also don't know about it. We will find the girl and everything will go according to our plan." Tazia smiled looking at the dark eyes of her companion.
"We must find her before they learn about her: Queen, Priest," Azureus repeated after the girl. He sat down on ground and added with a quiet voice.
"And before Master Asanar find out about her". He lay down on the floor. He was worn out very much. He turned in the direction of the girl.
"And something else. Your mother will pay the Clan of the Night for what she did tonight. Remember it..." Tazia turned around.
"Yes..." She answered him quietly and then left the tent. She looked at the starry sky tightening her mouth. She wrapped herself in her arms; her face betrayed that she was stopping the flood of tears with an effort. She remembered the day in which she had arrived with Azureus at the place of the Oracle from Pylfiders. The cottage of the blind woman was built deep inside the swamps. Strange plants grew around and stinking mists was rising everywhere. The girl remembered that clearly because of them she was feeling sick and they made her dizzy. The sibyl was sitting at the very centre of the wooden chamber surrounded by her servants. She was wearing a plain dress and a necklace made out of bones of sacrificed animals. Her companions were clothed the same way and had a lot of herbs and flowers in their hair. Tazia remembered how long Azureus had sat beside the old lady and whispered questions into her ears. The woman had told her visions with cracking voice.
"Rules of the light of the lie will end when the one who is opposing it meets the Traveler from the other world. A woman with golden hair attired in the exotic dress who is sailing in the Emptiness between Worlds. Only her power is able to close the well of the light. "
"Where I can find this sort of person? Answer me old woman! Azureus shouted then.
"She is not in this world, but she will be found in circles closed in the stone high above clouds."
"What does it mean?"
He listened to the reply no longer, an older woman fell into the trance and the irritated man vacated the cottage. He looked in Tazia's eyes and announced that he knew what the words of the prophetess meant. And her face become pale because she guessed that the only place above clouds where circles were closed was the church forged in the stone, the house of her mother. And for the first time a thought horrified her that perhaps she did a wrong thing following Azureus.