Chapter three of the 'Alignments' arc! (Finally too) Just a small update until I can (maybe) form a more solid schedule.
Enjoy the story.
Shelia simply watched the drama unfold, her arms crossed over her chest as she slowly tapped her upper arm with her pointed claws while she took a seat back on the light purple furniture. Her tail flicked irritably, and her eyes narrowed. Her yellow eyes were narrowed as she watched the scene, a scowl baring her sharp fangs.
How had she gotten herself into the group?
Honestly, she barely got on with any of the other five. She did find herself speaking the same language with Jasmine, but the rest of them… Well, to put it simply, they seemed like the exact opposite of the company she usually kept. No matter, it was still better not to wander off, not even when she felt like going back home.
At the bickering that was going on, the demon couldn't help but roll her yellow eyes a bit. Ugh. What a bother. Tuning herself back in to all the drama that was plainly going on, the demon picked up the rear end of Jasmine's sentence.
"—them as I see them," she replied sharply. "I've learnt not to care if people are offended by my tendencies to nickname as I see fit. Yes, Lila, I'm aware of that," the Panthalassan said, changing her target from the white-haired mermaid to the youngest of the group. Finally, she then turned to the pink mermaid, and finished, "but she didn't, and that's the end of it."
The black-haired girl shook her head and stalked over to Shelia before she sank into the seat next to the red demon. "If the Ocean Queen wants us to save the world or something, she chose the wrong people," the Panthalassan growled, loud enough for Shelia to hear. The girl leant back in her seat, frowning as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Uh-huh," the demon said with a nod in response to Jasmine. She frowned, raising a condescending brow. "I don't exactly mind saving the world. I do mind serving the 'almighty' Aqua Regina. And I mind doing it with… mermaids." Shelia scoffed contemptuously in a quiet tone. "I only stand for my kind."
Luna whirled around, her dark eyes wide in anger as she spat a response to Jasmine's statement. "She sure did! Why am I supposed to save this world? What has it ever done for me?" She threw her arms up in anger. "Nothing good comes from the world I live in; they hate me and now Her Majesty Aqua Regina wants me to help save it all?" she snarled incredulously. "Help us all!"
The blonde mermaid threw a glance in their way, though the demon noted that she was looking more at Jasmine than at her. "Rude," she heard the pink mermaid mumble. "How does one get themselves out of saving the world?"
Jasmine aimed a sharp glare in the direction of the mermaid. "Can it, Frosty," she snapped harshly. "We don't even know why we're all marked like this." The Panthalassan girl made a large gesture with her hand, and Shelia caught sight of the black mark on her arm again. "For all we know, Aqua Regina could be setting us up as decoys for slaughter!" She scowled deeply. "I agree with Shelia," she concluded, crossing her arms over her chest defensively. "Anything that has to do with serving that damn blonde is right out."
"Well, I… I think she chose the right people," Lila voiced out nervously. "I-I mean, things happen for a reason, right?" There was an anxious hope in her eyes, a kind of nervousness that Shelia pinpointed to being due to her being around the entire group.
"I agree," the masked man spoke up calmly. "The Fates must have brought us together for a reason. It is certainly strange on why there are only six of us, however. Nevertheless, we were most definitely chosen for a reason."
"I don't care!" Luna yelled angrily. "I don't care for this world at all! So what if it goes to hell? It never did anything for me!" Her voice dipped, her dark eyes gleaming with hate and anger. "The Arctic… The Antarctic… both, I hate them so much," she spat. "Why should we help them?"
Jasmine's eyes narrowed at Lila, but then she sighed and leant back. "You're not the only one that hates those places," she muttered darkly, scowling. "They hate my kind. I've been there a couple of times before, and just barely escaped being killed by those bloody guards."
"How do you get out of being a chosen one?" Helen cut in, swimming back and forth from one end of the room to another.
Luna nodded at the blonde. "I want to know too. How?"
"You can't," the masked man supplied. "If, and I'm assuming, the Fates chose us specifically, we supposedly have something that makes us stand out from the rest — properties that make us ideal for this."
Shelia's eyes narrowed. "I don't like how that fucking sounds," she growled lowly. "We're stuck doing this? Fuck that shit!"
Lila smiled brightly. "Well, the world did me a favor," the black-haired Ancient girl chirped enthusiastically. "I got to be friends with all of you! Of course I'm going to help save this world!"
Luna screamed in frustration. "Why?" she shouted out, pulling at her hair.
Jasmine growled, blue eyes narrowed.
Helen just groaned in frustration.
Suddenly, the black-haired Ancient girl seemed to sway on her feet unsteadily. Her head dropped, and a pale mist swirled around her form. Shelia instantly recognized the mist as being magical in nature, as it glowed faintly in the depths of the ocean, even in Luna's well-lit home. The youngest of the group then looked up and smiled at the remaining five, and her eyes were taken over with a mix of emerald green, ruby red, and sapphire blue.
"Hello Saviors," she said with an eerie giggle. Her voice seemed like three female voices overlapping at once, and it echoed faintly in the room.
Jasmine stared at the girl. "The hell?" She raised a thin brow. "What did you do to her?"
Luna physically jumped, startled. "The heck is going on?" Her eyes, wide in surprise, stared at the possessed Lila. "What the crap is going on here?"
"Calm yourselves, Saviors," one of the three voices that had spoken earlier stated. The low, authoritative voice rang out powerfully, commanding respect. "It is not who or what we are, but who you are, that truly matters." The green in her eyes had primarily taken over.
Shelia just watched with a sort of morbid fascination with the whole thing.
All the others, she observed, were also staying silent, except for Jasmine, that was. The dark-haired Panthalassan scowled. "The hell does that mean?" she ground out.
"Oh please," one of the three earlier voices cut back in, with a change in pitch and tone as well as attitude. Sassily, the voice continued, "Don't listen to mah sister. She's as ol' as space. Well, straight through an' through, y'all are our champions. You mess with fate, ya get destiny; you mess with destiny, ya still get fate, m'kay?" The girl grinned wildly. "So, ya'll are s'pposed to bring back balance to all o' the soil, sky an' sea. Don' forget, just like the seven princess of the ol' days, there are seven of you. Any questions?" Her green eyes were now primarily red.
Luna burst out, "Yes! Why us?" she shouted. "Why me? Why must I be the one chosen by the Fates when you people have only given me all those days?"
Helen coughed, cutting into the conversation. "Excuse my language for a second," she started politely, "but… the hell are you talking about? There's absolutely no way I'm going to listen to you! What the heck do you mean by us being your 'champions'?" She threw her hands into the air. "Stuff it!" she shrieked.
"We're what?" Jasmine asked incredulously. She used both her hands to make a large gesture in bewilderment. "The hell?"
A loud roar boomed outside — strange, since Shelia vaguely recognized it as thunder, and she was pretty certain that it wasn't able to rain underwater. The water currents outside were rapid, swirling around outside like a whirlpool and making a sound vaguely reminiscent of howls. Luna's doors were slammed open by the currents.
A woman's form was illuminated as she stormed in, long blonde hair flowing behind her in strong waves. Her eyes, crystal blue, were narrowed, but aged. She was dressed in a powder blue gown, and held a very recognizable staff with a glowing blue orb atop it. It wasn't hard to recognize her at this point — Aqua Regina herself, in all her regal glory, was here.
"Clotho!" she yelled, her regal voice echoing in the room. "Lachesis! Atropos! What are you doing here?"
Shelia hissed, threatened, as she backed away from the light that the woman practically radiated. She held both her arms up to block the light. It burned the eyes, like how a mermaid's song was painful for her to listen to. Demons and light would never match — it was simply how it worked.
Out of the corner of her squinted eyes, Shelia saw Luna sink into a quick bow before she hid behind the doors.
Helen, on the other hand, sank into a formal bow, showing clear respect to the blasted source of the burning light.
The masked man was simply watching from where he stood as the goddess swept past, not in the least affected by the light that the blonde radiated.
Jasmine, on the other hand, stood and quickly held her cloak out, blocking the light from Shelia's eyes. The girl made a face and turned her head away from the light, clearly just as affected as the demon was.
Lila snorted, red eyes gleaming. "Ah… Lady. Always comin' on in at the best time, eh? Just telling these youngin's here what they're s'posed to be doing."
Aqua Regina gave Helen a hand gesture, and following it, the blonde backed up, straightening from her bow but not yet raising her head. There was a deep frown on her face, and she was clearly not happy with the trio that had taken over the half-Ancient's body. "Zip it, Lachesis," she hissed. "These children here are not prepared for this. You're making a mistake."
Clearly confused and annoyed, Jasmine muttered to Shelia, still shielding her eyes with her hand while she looked between the Ocean Queen and the 'Fates', "Damn it. This is crazy!"
"Hey, those kids are. Cosmetics ain't the only reason why we chose 'em, ya know."
The Ocean Queen gripped her staff tighter, scowling angrily. "The Mermaid Princess were born for a reason!" she snapped. "These... children… they barely have the power the Princess were born with, and one of them isn't even over the age of consent! What can they do against the forces of Malus?"
"Wasn't Her Majesty just thirteen when she went up against the forces of darkness for the first time?" Helen mumbled in a low voice, looking at a piece of furniture across the room.
"Do not underestimate the power of Fate, Lucia," the first voice said once more, and Lila's eyes changed from red to green. "Are you implying that these Saviors were born without a reason? Just like you were chosen by destiny and birthright, they were chosen by fate and capability. No matter if you choose to oppose our choice of champions, or if you will agree to it, their journey will still find a way to come through. There is no way of fighting it."
The goddess glowered at the young girl, though it was obvious she was not angry at Lila, more at the Fates that had taken over her body. "I was a Mermaid Princess all those years ago," she stated firmly. "I had no choice but to do it — it was my solemn duty to save this world, and it still is." Her eyes narrowed, glowing a faint white. "Enough with the fate talk, Atropos," the woman demanded sharply, slamming the end of her staff into the ground. "I was born with the duty. These six are the farthest thing from the Princesses as is even possible."
"You are right, my dear," another voice, lighter and sweet, accompanied by a change of blue eyes, spoke up. "Our chosen champions are no Princesses. But must they be the Princesses to be capable of saving the world? No, it is not we who are overestimating the power of the seven, but you, Lucia, who is underestimating them. Do you not have faith and trust, my dear?" Lila tilted her head to the side, a brow raised.
"Clotho…" the blonde began, but she stopped moments after. Finally, she replied, sighing, "I have trust. But the historical fact is that Malus' forces were always defeated with the use of the Mermaid Princesses' power and they clearly lack that power. If they agree to this, it's going to mean certain death for them!"
The voice with the red eyes returned with a scoff.
Shelia was left rather annoyed and confused by the constant switching, but she didn't say anything.
"Hah! Ya just admitted it! You think they ain't capable of dealing with it! Even after we've given our votes o' confidence, you still can't have faith in 'em! You agreed to it when we told you, ya know. Ain't gonna mean death for you!" Lila scoffed again, red eyes gleaming. "Every single one o' these Saviors has always been underestimated. I'd suggest that ya don' become one o' those that do."
"Yeah!" Helen piped in, voice substantially stronger. "I can kick ass any day!" she proclaimed confidently.
Aqua Regina's grimace was unmistakable at this point. "Fine, I admit it. I don't think they can handle it. They're not just up against Malus — the Princesses aren't happy about it either. Some of the Princesses are going to be outraged that they were passed over for non-mermaids, even."
"Argh!" All three of the Fates screamed in unison, completely irritated and annoyed. "Ya know what?" Red eyes changed to green. "We'll just let the Saviors themselves decide." Green turned blue. "If they think they can't deal with this, and say no to us, then we'll leave." Blue turned to red again. "If they say yes, then they're gonna do it!" All three voices joined up again. "What do you all think?"
Shelia was seriously offended at that statement, and her red fins bristled. "I do believe the oh-so-mighty Aqua Regina remembers my bloodline," the demon hissed harshly, still glad for Jasmine's dark cloak that was blocking some of the light. "If the stories are true, my ancestors used to give you quite the trouble," she sneered. "Don't you dare doubt my abilities!"
Jasmine was the next to speak up, voice strong. "And if a prissy little princess that's never fought before can take down your so-called evil, then so can I. It'd be a blow to my pride if I let that bloody insult slide without retaliation."
From the corner of her eyes, Shelia saw Luna nod silently in affirmation. Well, that was four out of five.
Battle Royale Pichi Pichi Pitch
Kazi Carter was not quite sure how he had gotten himself into this situation. Nevertheless, the man nodded silently. He didn't mind having to save the world — if it would help atone for what his kind had done, then it was fine with him
"There's only six of them here," the blonde goddess said once more. "And only five consents. Whether the remaining duo agree or not, they are still being coerced into this."
The younger Panthalassan, still a child by the standard of their kind — Jasmine — growled. "Tch. Why do you even care?" she shot at the Ocean Queen.
A foreboding feeling crept up the Panthalassan man's spine, and Kazi frowned, narrowing his purple eyes from behind his white mask. "Does anyone else feel that?" he asked, furrowing his brow.
There was a distinct aura of fatigue that was spreading through the water, and it was tiring, making him feel heavy, like there was lead weighing him down. Whatever it was, he didn't like it, not in the least.
"Are you brats supposed to be the ones I'm looking for?" Another voice, male, cut into the gathering, sounding tired and like the man simply couldn't be bothered.
"Everyone can feel it," Jasmine snarked at him, rolling her eyes. "Now who are you and what do you want?" she demanded. Reaching under the hem of her shirt, she pulled something out, exposing the handle of a dagger. "Show yourself!"
What followed next was unexpected, to say the least. Contained in a bubble of air, a throne-like armchair appeared in the room, with a young man sitting on it. He gave the group an apathetic glance through dull grey eyes and simply frowned as the chair moved closer to the group. The air of stagnation grew even stronger, if that was even possible.
"My name?" he drawled lazily. "Giving it would be far too much of a hassle. For now, I guess you can call me… Sloth."
"Anyone have a plan?" Jasmine muttered out, drawing out her weapon conspicuously and adjusting her grip on the weapon. "Because I'm not going to just go all 'Leroy Jenkins' in there. It's going to get me killed."
The sole demon of the group growled threateningly, hostility evident. "This guy is gonna bring trouble, and I guess it's now our job to take care of him," she mumbled, drawing out her 's' sounds with a hiss.
"What are you going to do?" Jasmine hissed, giving Shelia a look. "Sing?"
Kazi gripped his staff and decided to take action. Slamming the end of the silver stave into the ground, he pushed his powers into creating a barrier of light between the man and the group. That should be enough for now— His thoughts were cut off abruptly when a blast of pale blue energy slammed into the barrier and shattered it like glass. What? How did he even do that?
Without a moment of pause, several vaguely humanoid beings swirled up to form from the dirt, and within seconds, the golems were fully formed. Sloth snapped his fingers, and the golems started to move towards the group.
"Oh, you fucking bet I'm going to sing!" the orange-haired demon yelled out loud. The familiar red sphere of the Live Stage belonging to demonkind flared into existence around her, and she swept up her microphone into her hand, tossing the microphone from hand to hand before she caught it and bared a fanged grin. "It's Show Time!"
An aggressive beat started pounding as the demon started to sing, and Kazi had to wince a bit at the harsh-sounding song. The strong voice that the demon sang in didn't help either, since the song just echoed in his head uncomfortably. It didn't hurt, for some strange reason — just felt uncomfortable — but the Panthalassan couldn't be bothered to think about it just then.
Jasmine cursed loudly from beside the demon and angled her weapon, launching herself at a golem that neared. It caught her, tossing her to the ground and holding her there, but the younger Panthalassan snarled and lashed out, throwing the golem off of her. Jumping back onto her feet, she pulled out another knife and kicked another golem in the head.
Kazi muttered a spell under his breath and fired a series of blasts of glowing light at the golems that advanced, channeling his powers through his staff. It didn't last too long, as the golems just got back up again before moving forward once more. Out of the corner of his eyes, the man noted that Sloth's bubble was glowing, and that he didn't seem to be affected by the song at all.
"Damn! This isn't working!" the black-haired Panthalassan yelled, throwing both her blades at a golem, the metal sinking right through the dirt to the handle with ease. The golem didn't even falter in its path, continuing to move forward at her. Jasmine spat a curse, kicking it in its head. "We need another way!" She growled, drawing another weapon and stabbing it into the golem.
Kazi's mind was stuck for a while as he repeatedly held back the golems with bursts of blindingly bright light. "Try combining our powers," he said, recalling one of the chapters in the old books. He did spare a pause though, striking back another golem before he added, "You can use them, right?"
He hoped she could. It would make everything much easier, but his common sense was pointing out that if she could, the girl would have done so quite early into the fight, since she was clearly at a disadvantage in the fight.
The younger Panthalassan frowned, slamming another kick into a golem as she bit down on her lower lip. "Not well," she finally admitted. "I never had the time to learn." She shifted her position and quickly jumped up, kicking another golem with both legs. "What am I supposed to do?"
Kazi suppressed a frown — she didn't know how? "Focus," the white-haired man told her, using the silver staff to physically hold back a golem before concentrating his power in his hands and using the glowing light to send the golem flying back by several feet. "There's a power deep within. Find it, and focus on its radiance." Or the absence of such if she was one of the fewer Dark Panthalassans. "Let it build in strength, and then release it outwards."
The girl gave a stiff nod, and closed her eyes, her tight grip on her weapon slackening a bit as her brow furrowed in deep concentration. A frown crossed her face — she looked to be having some trouble doing as she was instructed to.
In the brief while that she was searching, the masked Panthalassan didn't let himself be distracted. He focused on taking down the advancing golems, and continuously kept them at bay until the girl found what she was supposed to be searching for.
"It's there," the younger Panthalassan muttered, eyes opening again. "What now?" Her grip on her weapon tightened, and Kazi was sure he could see a faint violet spark reflecting off the metal blade. There was no doubt that she had done it.
"Take my hand," he instructed her, training his gaze in front of them, grasping his staff carefully just in case he needed to defend again.
The girl muttered something under her breath and exhaled sharply. "Fine."
Not wasting any time, he quickly took her hand, feeling an electric shock run through him at the contact. That had certainly never happened before. Ignoring the sudden jolt as well as how the demon's song suddenly didn't seem to give him a mild headache anymore, Kazi focused on linking their combined powers together.
The masked Panthalassan searched for the connection, drawing the younger's power towards him to channel it through his staff. There was a mild resistance as he linked their powers together, but he dismissed it, deciding it was probably just her lack of familiarity with the Panthalassan magic. The familiar burning on his brow alerted him that he had indeed found the connection, and he adjusted his hold on his staff, preparing to fire a blast of magic.
Kazi leveled his staff, confident about his next move. Concentrating the power through the staff, he fired a blast of darkened light straight at the man, the projectile constructed by magic striking true and causing a small-scale explosion that kicked up dust and created a veil of smoke that hid the rest of the scene.
Immediately, the younger of the two yanked her hand away and winced, stumbling back as she nursed her head, making a face. "Ugh," she mumbled. "I'm never going to do that again." Her eyes narrowed a bit as she tried seeing through the thick smoke. "Did it work?" she asked warily.
"I'm not sure," Kazi stated, looking through the slowly dissipating smoke. He was confident that he had succeeded, but he wasn't foolish enough to just assume without basis. The masked man lowered his staff, not completely lowering his guard just yet.
"That actually hurt." The smoke then cleared abruptly, revealing Sloth once more, looking somewhat disgruntled. It was like the blast didn't even hit him, and if it wasn't for the minor burns on him, Kazi would have thought that the attack had completely failed to hit.
The younger Panthalassan hissed a series of vulgarities.
"Enough," Aqua Regina's voice spoke up from behind them as the goddess moved forward. "Stand back. I will deal with this," she commanded, her voice full of grace and authority. The blonde raised her golden staff, the glowing blue orb at the top flaring up with power, sparks flying. The Ocean Queen delivered a cold glare with her pale blue eyes. "Leave now, human," the goddess ordered. "I do not wish to inflict harm on you."
The man — a human, according to the goddess — yawned lazily. "Whatever," he drawled. "Just let me get back to resting."
Aqua Regina didn't say another word, raising her golden staff, frowning. "So be it," she said with a heavy sigh. She brandished her weapon and pointed it straight at the human, and Kazi could hear her murmur a quick prayer in Latin before she released her power. A flash of bright light filled the room, almost blinding the Panthalassan in the process. A beam of glowing energy circled around the man several times, slowly shrinking in diameter before it smashed straight into him.
The man let out a scream as the glowing light broke right through the bubble, and vanished into a pale blue vortex, fleeing from the scene.
The end of Aqua Regina's staff hit the floor as the regal-looking woman shook her head, looking over at the three Fates that had taken over the youngest of the group's body. "I told you three," she started softly, blue eyes heavy with sorrow, "they weren't ready." She sighed heavily. "And I wasn't wrong."
The small girl walked back into the middle of the room, having moved out of the fray once the battle had begun. Her tri-colored eyes gleamed eerily as the Fates that possessed her spoke in an unnerving unison. "When divided, they cannot reach their full potential. When united, they have the power to save this world." The black-haired child cocked her head to the side. "Was it not the same case for you and the Guardian Princesses?" Her eyes cycled through the three colors as the girl just looked at the goddess.
The blonde goddess sighed heavily and pushed her strong blonde waves out of her eyes, shoulders slumping in defeat. She lowered her staff, frowning. "True," she finally agreed, looking reluctant. "But they'll just have to find their last companion by themselves." Her voice was suddenly grim, sending a sense of foreboding down Kazi's spine.
Aqua Regina shook her head and looked back at the group before glancing at the Fates. "Then… I'll just have to continue holding back Malus until they do," she concluded with a sigh, gripping her staff tighter as she looked away from the Fates.
"Good," Lila chirped, her blue eyes glinting, before all three colors returned full-force. "Well then, we should take our leave now." A smile crossed the young girl's features. "And remember," the girl cooed with red eyes glinting mischievously, a grin on her face. "Fate's gonna be fate. Ya can't fight it." Green eyes took over once more. "Good luck, Saviors. You have your work cut out for you."
The mist that was curling around the girl dissipated, and the tri-colored glow in her eyes vanished as the child's eyes closed and she swayed on her feet. Then, the girl fell back.
The blonde goddess caught the small girl with a subtle flick of her wrist, waving her staff ever so slightly, and enveloping the child in a bed of bubbles. Slowly, Aqua Regina lowered the girl to the ground, where the black-haired child curled up like she was sleeping.
Kazi wasn't sure if she was, or if she had just fallen unconscious.
Aqua Regina sighed heavily as she turned to the remaining group. "Well, Saviors," she murmured, shaking her head, "it seems that you've all made your choice. Be careful. He wasn't the only enemy you will have to face in the future." Her blue eyes went over each of the five, gaze lingering carefully before moving on. "A word of advice: go along with the Fates, now that you've accepted your post. You'll just regret it if you don't."
"There's a disturbance in the Arctic. Start from there, Saviors." The woman gave a sad smile and she turned away. "Good luck." Once that was said, she vanished into the clear water, with no trace of the regal-looking woman ever having been there before.
Good luck. Aqua Regina's voice echoed in his head, repeating that one sentence like a record stuck on a loop. Good luck. Good luck. Good luck.
Kazi slammed his staff into the ground, clenching his fist while his hand tightened around his staff.
Good luck.
The masked man cursed under his breath, scowling angrily. He hadn't felt so helpless — so unable to take control of his own fate — since the end of the Panthalassan rebellion. Not since Aqua Regina had destroyed his people. The Panthalassan shot a glare at where the goddess used to be, though it wasn't very effective, considering the Ocean Queen was no longer there.
"The hell did I just get myself into?" Jasmine hissed, looking incredulous. The girl pushed aside her dark hair and delivered an angry glare at the empty space where the Ocean Queen had been. "The fuck?" she spat, eyes narrowed, throwing her hand out in a wild gesture.
"The fuck were we just told to do?" Shelia hissed incredulously. "Did she just tell us to head to the motherfucking Arctic? That's a damned suicide mission!"
Kazi couldn't focus on anything else at this point, tuning out the rest of the demon's rant. Aqua Regina… His eyes shut and his frown deepened. Why?
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