Hello. I don't know if anyone is still interested in this story, but I'm still continuing it...very slowly. I've had no motivation to write, but I managed to come up with enough to give this story another direction. The next chapter is going to contain a lot of action, so I decided to stop here for now. If it would help to skim over the reviews or the previous chapters, feel free. I had to do so, myself, before picking up my pen to write this.
While Sinbad was in the Kou Empire, Yamuraiha's condition severely worsened. Judal had done everything he could to slow the curse, but his efforts weren't enough to save the enchantress.
After the king's ship arrived in Sindria's port, Gyokuen was placed in the palace dungeon. Later, Sinbad planned to gain information from her on how to return Yamuraiha's body to normal.
Judal waited in a chair next to the cursed general's bed. Yamuraiha could no longer open her eyes. Most of her body had turned to obsidian. Sinbad knocked on the wall next to the open doorway.
"Sin," the magi said, desperately. He stood up, meeting the violet-haired man at the foot of the woman's bed. "I don't know what to do." Judal buried his face in the soft robes covering Sinbad's chest.
"I've captured Gyokuen. Our only hope for saving Yamuraiha may be something the empress knows. Since she's now Sindria's captive, she's in no place to deny us the truth."
Shortly thereafter, Sinbad had Gyoken brought up to the bedroom. The Kou Empress refused to speak.
"There will be consequences if you choose to remain silent," Sinbad said, taking a seat in front of Gyokuen. "No one knows where you are. I could kill you right now and not a single Kou citizen would ever know. It's your choice."
Gyokuen began to look frightened. She sat there, silently, for another few minutes. Sinbad fixed his gaze upon her downturned head.
Just then, a strange sound came from somewhere in the room. Sinbad turned toward Yamuraiha. Cracks were beginning to form in the obsidian that was covering most of the woman's body. When the king turned back to Gyokuen, she had a wicked grin spread across her face.
"I was beginning to fear you, Sinbad, but it looks like my comrade arrived just in time," the empress snickered.
Sinbad called all of his generals into the room. "Don't let her move a muscle," the king ordered.
"Actually, I have almost nothing to do with this woman's present state. It's too late for you to win this battle, Sinbad. If you knew what's good for you, you'd surrender to Al Thamen right now."
Sinbad didn't understand how Gyokuen planned to make him surrender. As far as he knew, Gyokuen was a possession of Sindria. He also didn't know what she meant by "comrade".
Yamuraiha's body was starting to break into pieces. Each piece morphed and began to build a different figure.
"No! I won't allow this to happen! I promised!" Sinbad shouted, as he pulled what was left of Yamuraiha's crumbling body into his arms.
Pieces of the general's transformed flesh continued to break off. The shadow of a man was nearly complete. Somehow, the curse was taking human form again. This time, it wasn't a clone.
Everyone watched the once beautiful and powerful enchantress disappear. Gyokuen laughed when the shadowy figure was complete.
"Welcome, Ithnan," said the Kou Empress.
"Hello, Ren," the man said. "I hate to burst your bubble, but you're no longer of any use to me. Having you here only distracted Sinbad from noticing my elaborate plan. If I allow you to harness Black Rukh with me, I won't obtain it all. It belongs to me. Al Thamen isn't going to rule the world democratically."
Gyokuen's face fell, as Ithnan pushed her aside. "I don't believe it. You used me to achieve your own selfish goals. I sold my soul for our organization, and now you're just discarding me."
"Don't look at it that way, Ren. Won't you be happy to see me atop the throne of this world as it was during the darkest times? That's what you wanted, wasn't it?"
"No! That isn't what I wanted! I wanted us to be together, and if that meant awakening Earth's most chaotic period, I wasn't going to stop you. I just wanted to be with you, Ithnan." Gyokuen's eyes filled with tears.
Sinbad and Judal sat on Yamuraiha's bed, in disbelief. Al Thamen was disintegrating before their eyes.
"You are weak, Ren. You aren't worthy of being my queen. You'd only hold me back from reaching my fullest potential." Ithnan sprouted a pair of black wings, and climbed out the window.
Gyokuen watched as he flew upwards. "He's going to harvest Sindria's rukh. If I had known it were going to end this way, I never would've formed an alliance with such an evil man. If you can manage to stop him, the world will be in your debt, Sinbad."
Sinbad brought Gyokuen over to the bed. "If I put a stop to Ithnan, will you release Judal from his duties to the Kou Empire?"
The empress looked at Judal, scornfully, but then softened. "Done."