Chapter III: The Reflection
Skeletor paced back and forth in the throne room of Snake Mountain. "Lady Moria," he began for the umpteenth time in an hour. "I thought you respected your privacy and did not want the Eternians to know you existed!" He had been saying things along these lines for the better part of two hours, his tone getting more and more aggravated with each passing minute.
"I regret the fact that my presence had to be revealed, Skeletor," came the Dereskian's voice from her usual place above him. "But I do not regret my actions, as the situation called for my intervention. It was necessary," she argued calmly.
Skeletor shot her an angry look, his eye sockets glowing red. "Necessary?!" he thundered. "I do not see how!"
Lady Moria jumped down from her place and landed gracefully on her feet before him. "Skeletor," she said, her tone at the beginnings of anger. "Let me make one thing perfectly clear to you: The only reason I 'joined' your so-called 'warriors' was to be with my daughter. That is the one, solitary basis for my standing before you now. I did tell you at the beginning that I would not take direct part in the battles unless my daughter needed my assistance. She did, and thus I intervened. It is that simple."
"That is all well and fine, except now those cursed 'Masters' know that you're aiding me!" the Overlord of Evil shouted, staring at the Dereskian. Moria was the same height as he was, which intimidated him slightly. He was not used to having to look eye-to-eye (so to speak) with others.
A slow smile made its way across Lady Moria's face. "I don't see how," she commented, smiling. "I did nothing to aid you in the battle. I only helped my child. The Sorceress already suspected that Evil-Lyn was my daughter, even if she did not openly admit it. They have no concrete evidence of me ever giving you aid, Skeletor. They simply saw a mother looking out for her child."
The ex-Eternian looked at her skeptically. "I'm sure they recognized the fact that we were fighting differently than we previously had been. They are not complete idiots, and will have put two and two together."
Moria's smile widened. "They usually end up with three or five when they add, Skeletor. If they didn't, they would have noticed my presence without my direct appearance. With a few rare exceptions, Eternians have never been the brightest of peoples." The Overlord of Evil looked as though he was going to say something, but Lady Moria continued, "Besides, what is done is done. As I said, I do not regret my actions. My child is safe, and that is all I care about. It is not as if the so-called 'Masters' can do anything about my presence here, if they know that I am helping you at all."
Skeletor sighed exasperatedly. "You underestimate the strength of the 'Masters,' Lady Moria. They are not especially powerful but they are a persistent bunch very much like burrow-rats. If they get it into their heads to come after you-"
"I will dispose of such a threat as I have done so before," the Dereskian interjected calmly. "Skeletor, I have been killing Eternians since long before your grandparents were born. True, I have not practiced my keenly honed destructive skills in centuries, but I truly doubt it will matter.
"The 'Masters' grew up listening to tales of me by the fireside; they were raised hearing stories of how the Dereskian Queen would come to crush them if they were unruly. They fear me, I know because I see it in their eyes when they look upon me. They will. they can do nothing against me. Even if, by some odd chance, they were to attempt some kind of arrest or Eläni knows what other foolishness, it is not as if I am completely helpless. I can take care of myself, Skeletor," she finished, an almost secretive smile upon her face.
"Now, if you'll excuse me," Lady Moria commented, walking gracefully over to the wall, "I have some pressing matters to take care of." She winked a single amethyst eye at him, and passed through the wall.
Skeletor was left standing alone in his throne room. He walked over to his chair and sat down hard, leaning heavily into the back of his seat. Gods, that woman annoyed him! She was so cocky, so mysteriously secretive and so. wonderfully powerful! What annoyed him most, however, was that she also always seemed to be right. ***********
The Sorceress sat on her throne in the viewing room, listening attentively as Man-at-Arms talked about the dangers of having the Dereskian Queen back in the area. She waited politely for him to finish, and then spoke.
"Duncan," she said. "I agree that Lady Moria's presence is not welcome and possibly even dangerous. However, we cannot simply jump out and do something rash. Moria has not done anything wrong, that we know of, in the last several hundred years. There is absolutely no reason to suspect that she will immediately revert to her killing sprees simply because we know of her existence."
"We can't take that chance. The Dereskian Queen is dangerous, and there is no 'possibly' about it. The woman is a serious threat, and you of all people should know it," Man-at-Arms countered.
Teelina sighed and massaged her temples. "I am aware of the possible danger, Man-at-Arms. However, I also know that Lady Moria is not entirely evil. I know that despite common opinion Moria has the capability to love. I know that she has a system of morality, as loose as it may be. You are correct, Duncan, I do know what she can do. Her power is greater than anything I have ever seen, including the mystic might of the Elders."
Duncan's eyes grew wide as saucers. "What?!" he exclaimed. "She's stronger than the power of the Elders?!"
"Yes," Teelina answered simply. "The Majick of the Dereskïgiä is far older and far stronger than anything we as Eternians possess. That is why she is able to bypass all of the guarding spells around Castle Grayskull and enter it at will. It is also why she is able to undo certain spells that were cast by the Elder's magic, for example, transforming me into human form outside of this Castle. If she wished it, Lady Moria could easily destroy all of Eternia. But she hasn't." She left the unspoken 'yet' dangling in the air and stared at Man-at-Arms.
Something that the Sorceress had said unnerved Duncan and he wasn't quite sure what it was. Finally, it came to him. "She can enter Grayskull?" he questioned, unbelieving. "Without your knowledge?"
"Moria could very well be here right now, Duncan. She was raised within these walls; she knows every single chamber, every hallway. The illusions do not faze her, nor do the other devices, both mechanical and magical, which I am constantly updating. She notices them all, and knows not to fall for any tricks I might have pulled." Teelina's voice was very close to being emotionless, even though this obviously was a difficult conversation for her to have.
Man-at-Arms looked at the guardian questioningly. "How do you know this, Sorceress? Has she been in here before and you just haven't said anything?"
The Sorceress of Grayskull shook her head gently and sighed. "The last time Lady Moria was here, that I know about, was over five centuries ago. She used to come here often, and for a while, she even came every day. Moria would never do anything here, if that's what you're thinking. She would just come and talk. All the time she would talk to me, and then listen while I talked as well. She's a very good listener, Man-at-Arms. And it got to a point over the years that I actually almost looked forward to her visits. True, this was during the point of her history when she was on her killing rampages, but she was never ruthless, at least not to me. Lady Moria was, and still is, I imagine, very proper; she is a true lady. She has done many terrible things in her past, Man-at-Arms, and I will not deny that. But she is also. very correct in her attitude. She is always apposite in manners and .taste."
"You admire her," he said, amazed. It was not much a question as it was a statement of obvious fact.
Teelina faltered for a moment. "I respect her, yes," she admitted after a moment. "I find her .deserving of admiration."
Man-at-Arms looked at her confusedly. "Why? After all that she's done, how can you find her worthy of respect?"
The Sorceress was silent for a very long moment. "Because she's the Dereskian Queen, Duncan. One cannot not respect her. She has a certain class to her. One that can only be described as Lady Moria Vadorian."
Duncan cringed inwardly at the Sorceress' use of the full name. Even now, five hundred years after her last attack, the true name of the Dereskian Queen still chilled the bones of Eternian men. That said something.
Teelina smiled softly at Man-at-Arm's silence. "I don't expect you to understand, Duncan. I don't really understand it. As odd as it may sound, Lady Moria is the closest thing I have ever had to a sister."
"How sentimental," an all-to-familiar voice called out from the shadows. Both other occupants of the room looked, shocked, towards the sound of the voice. Lady Moria walked out slowly, her feet making no sound on the floor, with a smug sort of smile on her face. "Oh, don't look so surprised. After all, as you said, Teelina, I 'could very well be here right now.'"
Man-at-Arms slowly began to reach for the mace at his side. The Dereskian noticed and snapped her fingers. The weapon vanished and reappeared in her hand.
"There will be no need for this, Man-at-Arms. Believe me, had I come here to fight, you would be dead already," she said calmly, placing the weapon on the floor.
Duncan growled at seeing his weapon in her hands. "Then why are you here?!" he grumbled, angry though also slightly fearful.
Moria's eyes flashed. "Not that it is your business, but I wanted to speak with Teelina."
"How dare you call her by her given name and not her title?!" Man-at- Arms thundered. At this point, he was getting so infuriated at the Dereskian Queen's mere presence that he was forgetting who she was.
The Sorceress stood from her seat and flew down in between the other two. "Duncan!" she said urgently. "It's alright!"
"It's not alright, Sorceress! This. thing should not be allowed to address you so informally!" Man-at-Arms roared, his tone getting louder and louder.
Lady Moria stepped forward slowly, one foot at a time. Her amethyst eyes began to glow and pinwheel darkly. At an unbidden call, a phantom wind began to pick up and it whipped Moria's hair around her head.
Man-at-Arms stepped back unconsciously, suddenly realizing exactly whom it was he was yelling at. As the winds began to pick up, he shielded his eyes from the dust particles brought into the air.
"Moria!" Teelina shouted above the noise of the wind, trying to get in between them. "That's enough!"
The Dereskian Queen looked over at the younger woman, and extended a single finger. The Sorceress was thrown back, but hit the wall gently. She tried to move, but found that Moria had frozen her limbs in place.
"Oh, I don't think so, Teelina," Moria said darkly, an evil chuckle rumbling in the back of her throat. She reached Man-at-Arms and shot out her hand to grasp his neck. She lifted him up as easily as she had done with the Sorceress not two days before.
"Now then, I want you to listen to me very carefully, Man-at-Arms." The Dereskian's tone was not so much loud as it was compelling, and Duncan immediately opened his eyes and stared into the darkening amethyst pools before him. "I am not a 'thing.' I am the Dereskian Queen, Lady Moria Vadorian. I am the ruler of the Dereskïgiä, the chosen of Eläni, and guardian of the secrets of the Nine Sacred Hells. I shall give you the best piece of advice I can possibly give you, and that is to never, ever forget who I am."
The Eternian squirmed in her grasp and struggled for breath as her hand slowly tightened. Gagging, Duncan feebly raised his arms and tried to pry the fingers off.
Moria laughed darkly and let go of her hold on his neck. Man-at-Arms fell to the ground panting for breath. Lady Moria bent her knees and looked Duncan in the eyes. "You're living in a dream world, Duncan," she said, almost sweetly. "It's time you woke up." She snapped the fingers of her right hand, and the Eternian disappeared.
Teelina was also released from the wall, and she fell to the floor. She stood quickly, and ran over to Moria.
The Dereskian's eyes were back to their usual color, and the pinwheeling had stopped. The wind was gone, back to wherever it was that it had come from.
"What did you do to him?!" Teelina shrieked angrily, beating her fists against the older woman's chest. "Where is he?!"
Lady Moria bore this assault without complaint or even trying to fight back. She simply waited, and then gently, carefully took Teelina's hands in her own. "He is safe and unharmed, Teelina. What more would you ask?"
The Sorceress yanked her hands away from the older woman's. "Where is he?" she asked, only slightly calmer.
A faint twinkle came into the elder woman's eyes as she gestured toward the viewing screen. The screen immediately began to ripple, and it pictured the insides of Man-at- Arms' workshop. Duncan was in his bed, the blankets neatly tucked beneath his chin, sleeping.
Teelina looked, astounded, at the older woman. The Dereskian winked one brilliant eye. "I told him he was living in a dream, Teelina. You know I never lie if I can help it."
"And when he wakes up.?" the Sorceress asked, leaving the sentence open for Lady Moria to fill.
The elder woman smiled faintly and caressed Teelina's cheek almost lovingly as the viewing screen dulled. "He will think he dreamed the entire incident, and most likely come see you, to tell you about his very active imagination."
As this sunk in, a worried look came into Teelina's eyes. "I have been dreaming of encounters with you for over a year now. Were all of those actual incidents or was I really just dreaming?"
Lady Moria's smile slowly became more wicked. "The answer to that depends on what you want to hear. Do you want me to be honest or tactful?" she asked, winking.
"Oh, gods." the Sorceress exclaimed, understanding the implications of why Moria would ask such a thing. She buried her face in her hands and sank onto the ground. "You mean I actually.? Oh .I think I'm going to be sick." She rolled over onto all fours and put her hand over her mouth in attempt to stop the bile from rising.
She felt Moria's graceful hand upon her back, rubbing it gently. "They were not all real, Teelina," the older woman said softly, the wicked grin still present on her face. "Only a certain few, and even in those, only scattered parts of them were actual events, the others I made up as I went along."
The Sorceress slowly, cautiously turned her head and looked at the older woman out of the corner of her eye. "Which. Few?" she asked slowly.
Moria tilted her head to the side and her smile widened. "Which do you think, Teelina?"
The younger woman closed her eyes as tears of shame began to trickle down her cheeks. She began to gag, and felt the evidence of her disgust creep into her mouth.
Moria clapped a hand over the Eternian's mouth just as she was about to retch. "You're hurting my feelings, Teelina. It's not really that bad, now is it?" She slipped her other hand beneath the younger woman's body and placed it on the Sorceress' stomach.
Teelina's eyes widened at what she thought Moria intended to do. She tried to get up, but found that the Dereskian had positioned herself so that movement was almost impossible for her. "You're despicable," she breathed raggedly.
"Calm yourself," the older woman whispered, bringing her head directly next to Teelina's ear. "I am not going to hurt you, and I am most certainly not going to rape you." The Sorceress looked at the Dereskian a bit untrustingly. Lady Moria winked at her seductively. "Well, not yet, anyway," she continued, smiling.
The Sorceress began to shake uncontrollably. "What do you want from me, Lady Moria?" she asked, fresh tears coming into her eyes.
The Dereskian Queen seemed almost shocked. "How silly of me," she said softly, running her tongue along the base of Teelina's jaw and enjoying feeling the younger woman tremble. "I was so busy enjoying myself that I almost forgot why I came here in the first place." She lapped up the Sorceress' tears with her tongue, and then released the Eternian, standing as she did so.
Teelina slowly got to her feet, trying not to gag again as she wiped what little saliva there was off of cheek. "And why did you come here?" she asked angrily.
"To make you aware of this: the 'dream' in which we made the unwritten law was real. I still intend to uphold that law as long as you do, which is why I bothered to heal Teela for you the other day," Lady Moria said clearly, the smile long since faded and her body movements as regal as ever. "You will not hurt Moritënia in any way, Teelina. That includes aiding Man-at-Arms in attempting her capture."
The Sorceress shook her head. "But I didn't do that, Moria. I-"
"You just told him not to let her escape, yes I know," the Dereskian interrupted. "I was there."
The younger woman's lower lip began to tremble slightly and she lowered her gaze, staring at the floor. "I didn't think. I didn't know."
Moria nodded and gently slipped her hand beneath the Eternian's chin, raising her eyes to meet her own. "Which is why I am telling you now, Teelina. The unwritten law will still stand, as long as you uphold it everyday from this point."
Teelina nodded slowly, locking eyes with the older woman. "The unwritten law will still stand, Lady Moria."
The elder woman smiled softly. "Yes. Yes, it will," she said gently. She stood up to her full height, which, after all, was several inches taller than that of Teelina, and winked at the Eternian slyly.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I really must be going. Man-at-Arms will be coming back soon, and I really don't think a repeat of events is in order for today." Her smile widened and she began to sink through the floor. "Lamentinätio, Teelina," she called, and the last traces of her form disappeared from view.
The Sorceress was left alone, standing in the middle of the floor, with her skin still tingling slightly from where Moria had touched her. She felt the beginnings of stomach revolution swell within her, and she quickly flew to her chambers, and went inside the bathing room. And when she knew she was safe and out of sight from prying eyes, she dropped to her knees, leaned over, and began to vomit.
Skeletor paced back and forth in the throne room of Snake Mountain. "Lady Moria," he began for the umpteenth time in an hour. "I thought you respected your privacy and did not want the Eternians to know you existed!" He had been saying things along these lines for the better part of two hours, his tone getting more and more aggravated with each passing minute.
"I regret the fact that my presence had to be revealed, Skeletor," came the Dereskian's voice from her usual place above him. "But I do not regret my actions, as the situation called for my intervention. It was necessary," she argued calmly.
Skeletor shot her an angry look, his eye sockets glowing red. "Necessary?!" he thundered. "I do not see how!"
Lady Moria jumped down from her place and landed gracefully on her feet before him. "Skeletor," she said, her tone at the beginnings of anger. "Let me make one thing perfectly clear to you: The only reason I 'joined' your so-called 'warriors' was to be with my daughter. That is the one, solitary basis for my standing before you now. I did tell you at the beginning that I would not take direct part in the battles unless my daughter needed my assistance. She did, and thus I intervened. It is that simple."
"That is all well and fine, except now those cursed 'Masters' know that you're aiding me!" the Overlord of Evil shouted, staring at the Dereskian. Moria was the same height as he was, which intimidated him slightly. He was not used to having to look eye-to-eye (so to speak) with others.
A slow smile made its way across Lady Moria's face. "I don't see how," she commented, smiling. "I did nothing to aid you in the battle. I only helped my child. The Sorceress already suspected that Evil-Lyn was my daughter, even if she did not openly admit it. They have no concrete evidence of me ever giving you aid, Skeletor. They simply saw a mother looking out for her child."
The ex-Eternian looked at her skeptically. "I'm sure they recognized the fact that we were fighting differently than we previously had been. They are not complete idiots, and will have put two and two together."
Moria's smile widened. "They usually end up with three or five when they add, Skeletor. If they didn't, they would have noticed my presence without my direct appearance. With a few rare exceptions, Eternians have never been the brightest of peoples." The Overlord of Evil looked as though he was going to say something, but Lady Moria continued, "Besides, what is done is done. As I said, I do not regret my actions. My child is safe, and that is all I care about. It is not as if the so-called 'Masters' can do anything about my presence here, if they know that I am helping you at all."
Skeletor sighed exasperatedly. "You underestimate the strength of the 'Masters,' Lady Moria. They are not especially powerful but they are a persistent bunch very much like burrow-rats. If they get it into their heads to come after you-"
"I will dispose of such a threat as I have done so before," the Dereskian interjected calmly. "Skeletor, I have been killing Eternians since long before your grandparents were born. True, I have not practiced my keenly honed destructive skills in centuries, but I truly doubt it will matter.
"The 'Masters' grew up listening to tales of me by the fireside; they were raised hearing stories of how the Dereskian Queen would come to crush them if they were unruly. They fear me, I know because I see it in their eyes when they look upon me. They will. they can do nothing against me. Even if, by some odd chance, they were to attempt some kind of arrest or Eläni knows what other foolishness, it is not as if I am completely helpless. I can take care of myself, Skeletor," she finished, an almost secretive smile upon her face.
"Now, if you'll excuse me," Lady Moria commented, walking gracefully over to the wall, "I have some pressing matters to take care of." She winked a single amethyst eye at him, and passed through the wall.
Skeletor was left standing alone in his throne room. He walked over to his chair and sat down hard, leaning heavily into the back of his seat. Gods, that woman annoyed him! She was so cocky, so mysteriously secretive and so. wonderfully powerful! What annoyed him most, however, was that she also always seemed to be right. ***********
The Sorceress sat on her throne in the viewing room, listening attentively as Man-at-Arms talked about the dangers of having the Dereskian Queen back in the area. She waited politely for him to finish, and then spoke.
"Duncan," she said. "I agree that Lady Moria's presence is not welcome and possibly even dangerous. However, we cannot simply jump out and do something rash. Moria has not done anything wrong, that we know of, in the last several hundred years. There is absolutely no reason to suspect that she will immediately revert to her killing sprees simply because we know of her existence."
"We can't take that chance. The Dereskian Queen is dangerous, and there is no 'possibly' about it. The woman is a serious threat, and you of all people should know it," Man-at-Arms countered.
Teelina sighed and massaged her temples. "I am aware of the possible danger, Man-at-Arms. However, I also know that Lady Moria is not entirely evil. I know that despite common opinion Moria has the capability to love. I know that she has a system of morality, as loose as it may be. You are correct, Duncan, I do know what she can do. Her power is greater than anything I have ever seen, including the mystic might of the Elders."
Duncan's eyes grew wide as saucers. "What?!" he exclaimed. "She's stronger than the power of the Elders?!"
"Yes," Teelina answered simply. "The Majick of the Dereskïgiä is far older and far stronger than anything we as Eternians possess. That is why she is able to bypass all of the guarding spells around Castle Grayskull and enter it at will. It is also why she is able to undo certain spells that were cast by the Elder's magic, for example, transforming me into human form outside of this Castle. If she wished it, Lady Moria could easily destroy all of Eternia. But she hasn't." She left the unspoken 'yet' dangling in the air and stared at Man-at-Arms.
Something that the Sorceress had said unnerved Duncan and he wasn't quite sure what it was. Finally, it came to him. "She can enter Grayskull?" he questioned, unbelieving. "Without your knowledge?"
"Moria could very well be here right now, Duncan. She was raised within these walls; she knows every single chamber, every hallway. The illusions do not faze her, nor do the other devices, both mechanical and magical, which I am constantly updating. She notices them all, and knows not to fall for any tricks I might have pulled." Teelina's voice was very close to being emotionless, even though this obviously was a difficult conversation for her to have.
Man-at-Arms looked at the guardian questioningly. "How do you know this, Sorceress? Has she been in here before and you just haven't said anything?"
The Sorceress of Grayskull shook her head gently and sighed. "The last time Lady Moria was here, that I know about, was over five centuries ago. She used to come here often, and for a while, she even came every day. Moria would never do anything here, if that's what you're thinking. She would just come and talk. All the time she would talk to me, and then listen while I talked as well. She's a very good listener, Man-at-Arms. And it got to a point over the years that I actually almost looked forward to her visits. True, this was during the point of her history when she was on her killing rampages, but she was never ruthless, at least not to me. Lady Moria was, and still is, I imagine, very proper; she is a true lady. She has done many terrible things in her past, Man-at-Arms, and I will not deny that. But she is also. very correct in her attitude. She is always apposite in manners and .taste."
"You admire her," he said, amazed. It was not much a question as it was a statement of obvious fact.
Teelina faltered for a moment. "I respect her, yes," she admitted after a moment. "I find her .deserving of admiration."
Man-at-Arms looked at her confusedly. "Why? After all that she's done, how can you find her worthy of respect?"
The Sorceress was silent for a very long moment. "Because she's the Dereskian Queen, Duncan. One cannot not respect her. She has a certain class to her. One that can only be described as Lady Moria Vadorian."
Duncan cringed inwardly at the Sorceress' use of the full name. Even now, five hundred years after her last attack, the true name of the Dereskian Queen still chilled the bones of Eternian men. That said something.
Teelina smiled softly at Man-at-Arm's silence. "I don't expect you to understand, Duncan. I don't really understand it. As odd as it may sound, Lady Moria is the closest thing I have ever had to a sister."
"How sentimental," an all-to-familiar voice called out from the shadows. Both other occupants of the room looked, shocked, towards the sound of the voice. Lady Moria walked out slowly, her feet making no sound on the floor, with a smug sort of smile on her face. "Oh, don't look so surprised. After all, as you said, Teelina, I 'could very well be here right now.'"
Man-at-Arms slowly began to reach for the mace at his side. The Dereskian noticed and snapped her fingers. The weapon vanished and reappeared in her hand.
"There will be no need for this, Man-at-Arms. Believe me, had I come here to fight, you would be dead already," she said calmly, placing the weapon on the floor.
Duncan growled at seeing his weapon in her hands. "Then why are you here?!" he grumbled, angry though also slightly fearful.
Moria's eyes flashed. "Not that it is your business, but I wanted to speak with Teelina."
"How dare you call her by her given name and not her title?!" Man-at- Arms thundered. At this point, he was getting so infuriated at the Dereskian Queen's mere presence that he was forgetting who she was.
The Sorceress stood from her seat and flew down in between the other two. "Duncan!" she said urgently. "It's alright!"
"It's not alright, Sorceress! This. thing should not be allowed to address you so informally!" Man-at-Arms roared, his tone getting louder and louder.
Lady Moria stepped forward slowly, one foot at a time. Her amethyst eyes began to glow and pinwheel darkly. At an unbidden call, a phantom wind began to pick up and it whipped Moria's hair around her head.
Man-at-Arms stepped back unconsciously, suddenly realizing exactly whom it was he was yelling at. As the winds began to pick up, he shielded his eyes from the dust particles brought into the air.
"Moria!" Teelina shouted above the noise of the wind, trying to get in between them. "That's enough!"
The Dereskian Queen looked over at the younger woman, and extended a single finger. The Sorceress was thrown back, but hit the wall gently. She tried to move, but found that Moria had frozen her limbs in place.
"Oh, I don't think so, Teelina," Moria said darkly, an evil chuckle rumbling in the back of her throat. She reached Man-at-Arms and shot out her hand to grasp his neck. She lifted him up as easily as she had done with the Sorceress not two days before.
"Now then, I want you to listen to me very carefully, Man-at-Arms." The Dereskian's tone was not so much loud as it was compelling, and Duncan immediately opened his eyes and stared into the darkening amethyst pools before him. "I am not a 'thing.' I am the Dereskian Queen, Lady Moria Vadorian. I am the ruler of the Dereskïgiä, the chosen of Eläni, and guardian of the secrets of the Nine Sacred Hells. I shall give you the best piece of advice I can possibly give you, and that is to never, ever forget who I am."
The Eternian squirmed in her grasp and struggled for breath as her hand slowly tightened. Gagging, Duncan feebly raised his arms and tried to pry the fingers off.
Moria laughed darkly and let go of her hold on his neck. Man-at-Arms fell to the ground panting for breath. Lady Moria bent her knees and looked Duncan in the eyes. "You're living in a dream world, Duncan," she said, almost sweetly. "It's time you woke up." She snapped the fingers of her right hand, and the Eternian disappeared.
Teelina was also released from the wall, and she fell to the floor. She stood quickly, and ran over to Moria.
The Dereskian's eyes were back to their usual color, and the pinwheeling had stopped. The wind was gone, back to wherever it was that it had come from.
"What did you do to him?!" Teelina shrieked angrily, beating her fists against the older woman's chest. "Where is he?!"
Lady Moria bore this assault without complaint or even trying to fight back. She simply waited, and then gently, carefully took Teelina's hands in her own. "He is safe and unharmed, Teelina. What more would you ask?"
The Sorceress yanked her hands away from the older woman's. "Where is he?" she asked, only slightly calmer.
A faint twinkle came into the elder woman's eyes as she gestured toward the viewing screen. The screen immediately began to ripple, and it pictured the insides of Man-at- Arms' workshop. Duncan was in his bed, the blankets neatly tucked beneath his chin, sleeping.
Teelina looked, astounded, at the older woman. The Dereskian winked one brilliant eye. "I told him he was living in a dream, Teelina. You know I never lie if I can help it."
"And when he wakes up.?" the Sorceress asked, leaving the sentence open for Lady Moria to fill.
The elder woman smiled faintly and caressed Teelina's cheek almost lovingly as the viewing screen dulled. "He will think he dreamed the entire incident, and most likely come see you, to tell you about his very active imagination."
As this sunk in, a worried look came into Teelina's eyes. "I have been dreaming of encounters with you for over a year now. Were all of those actual incidents or was I really just dreaming?"
Lady Moria's smile slowly became more wicked. "The answer to that depends on what you want to hear. Do you want me to be honest or tactful?" she asked, winking.
"Oh, gods." the Sorceress exclaimed, understanding the implications of why Moria would ask such a thing. She buried her face in her hands and sank onto the ground. "You mean I actually.? Oh .I think I'm going to be sick." She rolled over onto all fours and put her hand over her mouth in attempt to stop the bile from rising.
She felt Moria's graceful hand upon her back, rubbing it gently. "They were not all real, Teelina," the older woman said softly, the wicked grin still present on her face. "Only a certain few, and even in those, only scattered parts of them were actual events, the others I made up as I went along."
The Sorceress slowly, cautiously turned her head and looked at the older woman out of the corner of her eye. "Which. Few?" she asked slowly.
Moria tilted her head to the side and her smile widened. "Which do you think, Teelina?"
The younger woman closed her eyes as tears of shame began to trickle down her cheeks. She began to gag, and felt the evidence of her disgust creep into her mouth.
Moria clapped a hand over the Eternian's mouth just as she was about to retch. "You're hurting my feelings, Teelina. It's not really that bad, now is it?" She slipped her other hand beneath the younger woman's body and placed it on the Sorceress' stomach.
Teelina's eyes widened at what she thought Moria intended to do. She tried to get up, but found that the Dereskian had positioned herself so that movement was almost impossible for her. "You're despicable," she breathed raggedly.
"Calm yourself," the older woman whispered, bringing her head directly next to Teelina's ear. "I am not going to hurt you, and I am most certainly not going to rape you." The Sorceress looked at the Dereskian a bit untrustingly. Lady Moria winked at her seductively. "Well, not yet, anyway," she continued, smiling.
The Sorceress began to shake uncontrollably. "What do you want from me, Lady Moria?" she asked, fresh tears coming into her eyes.
The Dereskian Queen seemed almost shocked. "How silly of me," she said softly, running her tongue along the base of Teelina's jaw and enjoying feeling the younger woman tremble. "I was so busy enjoying myself that I almost forgot why I came here in the first place." She lapped up the Sorceress' tears with her tongue, and then released the Eternian, standing as she did so.
Teelina slowly got to her feet, trying not to gag again as she wiped what little saliva there was off of cheek. "And why did you come here?" she asked angrily.
"To make you aware of this: the 'dream' in which we made the unwritten law was real. I still intend to uphold that law as long as you do, which is why I bothered to heal Teela for you the other day," Lady Moria said clearly, the smile long since faded and her body movements as regal as ever. "You will not hurt Moritënia in any way, Teelina. That includes aiding Man-at-Arms in attempting her capture."
The Sorceress shook her head. "But I didn't do that, Moria. I-"
"You just told him not to let her escape, yes I know," the Dereskian interrupted. "I was there."
The younger woman's lower lip began to tremble slightly and she lowered her gaze, staring at the floor. "I didn't think. I didn't know."
Moria nodded and gently slipped her hand beneath the Eternian's chin, raising her eyes to meet her own. "Which is why I am telling you now, Teelina. The unwritten law will still stand, as long as you uphold it everyday from this point."
Teelina nodded slowly, locking eyes with the older woman. "The unwritten law will still stand, Lady Moria."
The elder woman smiled softly. "Yes. Yes, it will," she said gently. She stood up to her full height, which, after all, was several inches taller than that of Teelina, and winked at the Eternian slyly.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I really must be going. Man-at-Arms will be coming back soon, and I really don't think a repeat of events is in order for today." Her smile widened and she began to sink through the floor. "Lamentinätio, Teelina," she called, and the last traces of her form disappeared from view.
The Sorceress was left alone, standing in the middle of the floor, with her skin still tingling slightly from where Moria had touched her. She felt the beginnings of stomach revolution swell within her, and she quickly flew to her chambers, and went inside the bathing room. And when she knew she was safe and out of sight from prying eyes, she dropped to her knees, leaned over, and began to vomit.
