Beyond Death's Door

By: Sokai

Disclaimer: I, Sokai, do not claim ownership to the role-playing game, Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth -- I leave that honor up to tri-Ace and Square Enix. However, I can and DO claim to own this story, its inspired ideas FROM said series, as well as my original character, Sitara Vandom.

Note: You guys are tough cookies to crack. You hit the story like mad, 131 times so far, yet only 8 reviews. IS it really cuz it's not a traditional "Hey, guys! Let's go to the mall, gossip about boys, and then fight Phobos!" story? That's so boring, it's not even funny. LoL :Sings: "All I am sayyyyin, is give this a chaaaannnccceee . . ." Seriously. LoL But fine. Happy, now? Four of the five Guardians are featured in this chapter right now.

P.S. For all you fans of my drama, this chapter's pretty depressing and sympathetic. Have fun. LoL

This chapter was created/written in January 2007.

Chapter Three

"Wh . . . where do you guys suppose this place is? Is this Heaven?" pondered Hay Lin aloud within a quiet, frightful whisper to her four companions and fellow ex-Guardians of the Veil.

The youngest, recently fallen Asian-American stood (curiously wearing a beautiful one shouldered Toga that was identical to her friends, she'd noticed) within a vast, mysterious and open field, that was curiously littered with a conglomeration of both men and women of various ethnicities and ages doing battle with one another.

She marveled at how skilled some of them appeared to be, the way they effortlessly swung a blade, threw a javelin, or leaped several feet into the air to dodge an attack. Moreover, the former Air Guardian wondered why she and her friends were being virtually ignored by the sea of apparent warriors, and were not engaged in a sparing match.

After all, we'd be easy pickings, since the four of us are unarmed and standing relatively close by, reflected Hay Lin, looking down at her smooth, empty and saffron hued hands as though for emphasis. Maybe they are all merely honor-bound, or something . . .

"If this truly is Heaven, Hay Lin, it's the most backwards Heaven I've never heard of," Hay Lin suddenly heard her former-now-returned best friend, Irma Lair, remark aggressively behind her. "Unless it's some sort of Heaven for 'Fight Club' members, or whatever. Either way, even in death, it seems, I still won't get to see my dad . . ."

The sole brunette within the quartet immediately looked down at her bare feet after finishing her sentence, a sad frown forming upon her tawny, flawless complexion. She hadn't the chance to even begin to try to get over the tragic death of her father, Tom Lair, and she was greatly skeptical that she ever would within the afterlife.

But . . . was this truly the afterlife?

"I . . . But, are we . . . I mean, are we really dead? Because, it's weird . . . I still feel . . . sort of alive," commented the raven haired and vastly intelligent Taranee Cook softly, wrapping her mocha tinted, muscular arms around herself in comfort.

"That would be due to the fact that your soul is still alive, which is what the four of you -- as well as every other Einherjar you see before you -- essentially now are," said a sudden, fortified and unrecognizable female voice from behind the African American teenager.

Taranee, Irma, and Hay Lin at once whirled around within their spots in time to witness a young woman, adorned within shimmering and noble blue colored battle armor, suddenly and gracefully descend from the pure blue sky above and down to the grassy field (courtesy of the rather large pair of beautiful, dove-like wings that were spread out and flapping majestically behind her).

None of the girls uttered a word (despite each of their mouths hanging open ajar) as each of their eyes continued to drink in the sight of this mysterious, regal-resembling female, who landed with a soft thud at the same moment that her wings dissolved into a multitude of tiny yet mesmerizing bluish-white light.

After several nanoseconds had elapsed into actual seconds, and still not a word had been verbalized between the retired Guardians and the feathered, blue helmeted maiden, she had taken it upon herself to do so for them.

"I see that the knowledge of your demise is still a bit of a shock for you all," she said within the same strong voice from just moments before, a cool breeze passing through the endless field that caused her French braided sea of silvery-blue tresses to lightly sway against her toned back. "However, you would do wise to accept it as swiftly as possible, as I sense that the majority of you -- especially one in particular -- have not. You will not be able to leave your material possessions and attachments of your former life behind if you do not do as such."

At this, Irma frowned greatly inappreciatively at the intimidating and slightly insensitive gentlewoman standing tall before her and stepped forward.

"Well, of course all of us are having a hard time 'accepting our demise,' as you so kindly put it! We're dead! As in, never going to be able to see any of our loved ones ever again, giving them a hug or kiss, o-or . . . t-tell th . . . them ho . . . how sorry you a-are for treating t-them like scum throughout the final year of your life!" she cried, hot, angry and regrettable tears gushing forth from her turquoise eyes. "S-so, don't tell me h-how I am unable to a-accept my 'passing,' because I --"

"-- Although it is quite obvious how . . . upset you are to leave your former loved ones behind, human, I was not referring to you," interrupted the armor-clad woman without emotion, blue-silver eyes peering back at Irma without affect. "I was specifically regarding your fellow compatriot behind you . . ."

The four women turned their attention onto the only member of the small group to have not said a word since the mystifying woman's arrival, and well before that.

Cornelia Hale.

The eldest, tallest and solitary blonde ex-Guardian of the Veil sat, curiously crouched over within the grass with her smooth, partially bare back facing her comrades.

"C . . . Cornelia? Are you okay?" voiced Hay Lin with both hesitation and alarm, releasing Irma from the embrace she had enveloped her within just a few moments before.

Although she was truly concerned for her renewed friend, did neither Hay Lin nor the others (and perhaps not even the female newcomer, it seemed) had to take a guess as to what was clearly troubling her:

Sitara Vandom.

The estranged, unknown twin sister to the Guardians's former and hopefully still alive leader, Will Vandom, had brutally murdered each and every last one of them -- including Cornelia, who had been Sitara's supposed friend.

Some friend she had been -- she did not at all hesitate to attack and later kill her, in addition to the rest of us, thought Hay Lin in what she could manage to recollect (as, truth be told, the events leading to and after her death were still coming in jumbled bits and pieces), tucking strands of her untied, short sable colored hair behind her ear.

". . . I . . . I left her behind," murmured Cornelia suddenly, her usually vibrant blue eyes currently glazed over with immense sadness as she kept her blonde head bowed towards the grass. "I told her that I would help her, but I . . . I left her . . ."

"Cornelia . . . it's . . . it's going to be okay. We all left Will behind, and --"

"-- Where is she? Where did you put her!?" Cornelia suddenly exclaimed, whirling around to face the unidentified female at the same time that she interrupted the petite Air Mistress's comment of whom she perceived Cornelia was referring to.

"Your demands do little to bring you sympathy for your loss, human," said the blue armored female, who peered down with an even expression at the visibly distraught former Earth Guardian.

Swiftly rising to her feet, Cornelia rushed to move closer to the cold woman and seized both of her shoulders as she spoke again.

"I don't care about your sympathy! I just want to know where she is! It's bad enough that her sister had to lose her, as well as the rest of us! Don't you dare tell me that she's now lost to me, too!" she sobbed, slowly releasing her hold upon the silver haired gentlewoman, before collapsing back onto the ground by the woman's feet. ". . . I can feel her . . . She feels so . . . alone . . . so afraid . . . Please! Tell me where you've put her!"

"I'm sorry, Cornelia, but who cares where that bitch is? If it wasn't for her, none of us would be dead right now, leaving Will all alone without her friends or family -- who were also murdered by that monster, I might add! Wherever she is is too good for her!" snapped Irma abruptly, wiping away her remaining tears to glare unsympathetically at the slouching blonde.

"Irma, stop it!" pleaded Hay Lin, moving from the fuming Irma's side to sit beside Cornelia, whose eyes were squeezed tight and her hands clutched firmly over her ears.

"She has a point, though, Hay Lin . . ." muttered Taranee quietly, brown eyes gazing at Irma, who looked back at her in appreciation. "I mean . . . Everything that she just said. You were there through it all, to the very end; you can't act as though it had never happened -- and neither can you, Cornelia . . ."

"Truly, there is great distress lingering amongst you four . . . Perhaps . . . I shall give you a bit of moment's peace, before beginning to train you," said the helmeted woman with a uninterested sigh, turning on her heel to walk away. "Oh. And you need no longer lay your concerns upon the female in question, humans. She is where she deserves to be for her sins, as you are here within Asgard where you deserve to be for your valiant efforts as heroes . . ."

Before anyone could effectively respond, the unknown armor-clad female suddenly vanished within a brilliant flash of white light, leaving the girls to fend for themselves (if only for the time being) within the sea of continued battlers.

"Wha --? I don't and can't understand any of this," remarked Taranee, rubbing the back of her neck in presumed fatigue. "Asgard?Train us? Our souls being alive and not -- ugh! I hate this! I didn't want to die . . . I'm never going to see my family or Nigel again . . . And Will . . . Right when she and I had finally begun to repair our broken and once tight friendship, I . . . Will . . ."

Irma and Hay Lin both watched Taranee slowly sit down upon the grass and curl into a tight ball in self comfort, before Irma turned both her attention and body away from her companions to walk further down the field, clearly wishing to be alone.

Sighing sadly, Hay Lin reflected upon her own personal loss a moment, before gently rubbing a now swaying Cornelia's back while still watching a softly crying Taranee.

"Wha . . . What are we going to do, now? What are we going to do, now?" she asked to no one in particular, a single tear trailing down her cheek.

-- End of Chapter Three

(A.N. I KNOW! Short! But, dammit, this chapter and I had, if you please, A.D.D., and refused to be longer – EVEN though the REST of the chapter was/still is within my head vividly. It was to be all about Sitara in Nifelheim in the second half of this chapter, but my Muse was like, "Eeeeeeeeeenope. You can't write it tonight. TONIGHT, we post zis chapter as is, ma cheré." So I did, dammit. Ah well. I promise to make the next chapter longer, since I hate short chapters and feel dirty when I make 'em as such. LoL But at least you got to see the Guardians all dead and what not, and slightly confused about how they died. Like, they KNOW they died, obviously, and they remember the battle, but it's slowly filtering back into their minds. No worries. LoL)