Author's Note: I'm terribly sorry for this slow update…life has been keeping me extremely busy! But I hope this chapter made up for the long wait and I would like to thank crestoflight3, Angelfish369, endlessfun, QueenSunset, Vigatus, Spottedleaves1, and Digi Yo for reviewing.
Shards of Light
Chapter Six
"What's wrong, My Queen?" asked the Wraith behind Tai. "Shall we begin the punishment now?"
Both Wraiths turned; ready to strike Tai, when Kari immediately arose from her throne.
"No!" she cried, causing them to look up at her with surprise, "Don't do anything to him just yet!"
From out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a trail of blood oozing from Tai's temple, staining his shirt. "Instead, I want his wounds to be treated at once, and after he is healed, send him to the tower room."
"Very well then, Your Highness." They said.
Now giving the chains a gentle tug, the Wraiths led Tai out of the room through the corridors and into what appeared to be a medical room but it seemed almost barren aside from a bed and a small chest.
As Tai took a seat on the bed, one of the Wraiths went to the chest and opened it, pulling out a small bottle filled with a blue-green liquid.
"Drink this," ordered the Wraith, handing it over to Tai.
Tai narrowed his eyes in suspicion as he stared at the vial's contents. What if they were actually planning to poison him instead of healing him?
But that wouldn't make sense, he thought, Kari ordered them to treat me and she doesn't want me dead. But I'll take my chances!
With that, the Bearer of Courage uncorked the glass tube and drank it all in one swallow.
Immediately, a drowsy sensation came over him but he could feel the potion's effects lifting the pain from his body as sleep consumed him.
"Now that he's been taken care of, let's take our guest to his proper room."
…
Slowly waking up, Tai found himself lying on top of a large bed in a different room yet its design was similar to the throne room.
Before he had time to analyze his situation, the former gogglehead's attention was averted to the sound of the door being unlocked.
Tai tensed in anxiousness but to his relief, Kari appeared, closing the door behind her.
He got up from the bed to approach her but then remembered how he was deceived because of his desire to find his little sister.
No! I won't be fooled this time! He thought turning away from her, She has to be another fake!
"Why are you ignoring me, Tai?" she asked in an almost hurt tone.
"How do I know that you really are my sister?" Tai challenged, "Everyone thinks you're dead yet I continued to search for you! Now that I have finally found you, y-you're 'queen' of those…monsters!"
He waited for a response but was answered by Kari's silence until she whispered,
"Tai, look at me."
Hearing the plea in her voice, he finally turned around at stared at her.
Unlike the decoy Kari, she had aged since her disappearance. She'd grown taller, though still petite compared to her brother. She was dressed in a vintage gown of various shades of green, with a seashell brooch pinned to the collar. Her short, light brown hair had grown just enough to frame the sides of her face, while her bangs hung over her forehead with a coral tiara atop her head.
Still unconvinced that this person really was his sister, the Bearer of Courage looked directly into the girl's eyes.
When his brown eyes met with hers, he saw the same desperation in her eyes, the last thing he saw the day he tried to save her.
Tai couldn't believe it; he got up from the bed and approached his sister almost to see if she was real, till they were standing face-to-face with each other.
His hand slowly rose, gently caressing her cheek.
"It…is you, Kari…"
Upon his touch, Kari wrapped her arms around her brother, sobbing into his chest as he returned the embrace.
"I-I thought I'd never see you again, Tai!" she wept, hugging her brother even tighter.
A feeling of relief swept over Tai and he could feel his eyes watering up as well but he held them back to be strong for Kari.
"I knew that you had to be alive somewhere," Tai said, stroking her hair, "I never doubted it…"
…
After Kari had calmed down, Tai questioned about what happened to her when she was kidnapped but she proved to be uncooperative.
"Kari, I can't help you unless I know what happened!" Tai persisted. "I've told you my side of the story, now please, let me hear yours."
She sighed sadly, "Very well then, I will tell you.
"When I was kidnapped and brought here, I nearly died from pneumonia," she started.
"Pneumonia? But I thought you just had a cold then!"
"Arriving in the Dark Ocean worsened it, but the Wraiths were able to save and heal me. Once I recovered, I tried running away, only to find that the land was surrounded by ocean. I was caught and returned back to the castle, I begged to be sent back home but the Wraiths told me that the Dark Ocean was my home now and I was to be their ruler. Though I have been well treated here, the Wraiths have decided that I have come of age and…and…"
"And what Kari?"
"And that I need to marry." She answered.
Tai was flabbergasted. "Kari, you're twelve years old! You can't! How can they?"
Kari hung her head in silence.
"I won't let them do this to you, Kari!" Tai cried, "Not now, not ever!"
Turning back to her, Tai saw his sister quietly weeping until she looked back at him with a tear-stained face.
"I saw what the Wraiths did to you…a-and I don't want you to die because of me!"
The older boy's anger faded as he felt his heart aching in response to her grief; slowly, he gently took Kari's hands into his.
Feeling the warmth of her palms in his made Tai reflect back on his search for Kari: it was almost like being lost in an endless tunnel but he knew that if he kept going through the darkness, he would find the light at the other end. And now he had found that light.
"Tai," Kari asked in a defeated voice, "what are we going to do?"
He gave her hands a reassuring squeeze answering,
"We're going to escape this place. Together."
…
"Hey Sora! Heads up!"
She looked up just in time to hit the ball out of her opponent's range, scoring a point.
"Nice shot, Sora! How about we play another game?"
"Umm, no thanks, Gwen, I need to take a break." Sora replied.
Gwen was annoyed. "Hmph, you've been making up excuses a lot lately. I wonder what for?"
Sora didn't answer and walked over to a nearby bench on the tennis court, grabbing her bag.
"On second thought," Sora said, looking at the time on her Digivice, "I think that I better go home."
After telling the coach, Sora gathered her things and left the court. Stopping for a moment, she could see a soccer team practicing out on the field nearby. Sora sighed as she recalled how she enjoyed playing the sport with a passion prior to her journey to the Digital World.
Unlike me, Tai stuck with his love for soccer. She thought to herself, But when the Highton View Terrance incident occurred, something else happened to him.
Then Matt told me what really happened, and now I feel so terrible being oblivious to his pain all these years.
Tai's always been there for me, this time I'll be there for him!
Sora turned abruptly from the field and left the high school but when she arrived at the Kamiya apartment, she noticed that the front door was slightly ajar and unlocked.
Going inside did not ease Sora's growing tension as she entered the living room.
"Tai?"
She called out again.
No answer.
M-maybe he's asleep. He has to be; no he's got to be!
The Bearer of Love walked into Tai's room, hoping to see him sprawled on the bed but there was nothing but an empty room.
-To be continued…