Chapter Eleven - The Play Begins (Part Three)
Sara ran as fast as she could down the corridor but she had to slow somewhat, she had landed on her legs hard and they still ached from the impact but she knew she had to keep moving, find help, what about Galamore? She hoped he was okay, bumbling he might be he had still guarded her with his life and she must not squander the chance he had given her.
Where were the guards or servants!? She lent against the wall for a moment panting, then she realised, the play must be in the second half, its most dramatic part, no-one would be missing that if they could help it.
She gripped the royal crystal round her neck; her assailants seemed to want this? Why would they want it? She checked all around, no sign of them but if they had defeated Galamore she would have little chance trained as she was in the use of her element, water.
Suddenly she heard a crash from behind her and the four assailants came round the corridor at a sprint. The young girl was at the front, the tall man with the sword behind her and then the other man and woman, barely adults, they however were unarmed.
"Ho princess, stop you can't escape!" The man with the sword called out as they began to approach her more slowly now.
Sara looked around desperately, the corridor behind her was a dead end and there was only a single door behind her to the right, she had no choice.
Felix slowed to a walk behind Hurin and Talim who were steadily closing the distance to the princess when she struck.
She closed her eyes and Felix felt the hairs on the back of his head bristle as he sensed something, elemental forces being gathered.
The princess had half closed her eyes and then she flung both hands out towards the approaching group.
A massive stream of elemental water appeared out of thin air, a tidal wave of energy that roared down the corridor towards them.
"Get back!!" Talim shouted dashing forwards as Cassandra gasped grabbing his own arm as Felix looked dumbfounded at the massive wave that was seconds from crushing him.
Talim stood her ground, murmuring words under her breath to focus herself she flung her right hand back producing a massive blast of air that whistled out in front of her.
The air smashed into the water and…for a split second held it back, then the water arte smashed through the air barrier and thundered towards them.
A sudden morbid part of Felix's brain realised that he could be well about to die, even if he survived assault on royalty was almost certainly a hanging offence, he had to do something, anything!!!
He remembered the words of a tone he had read on elemental properties, wind and water shared a symbological relationship while fire and earth shared the same; one element could only really be stopped by one of the opposing force…or by the same.
He squeezed his fists, focused on all his spirit, thought of all the things he wanted to do in his life, he wasn't going to die here, he wasn't!!!
"Σφυγμός του ύδατος!!!" His lips moved instinctively, words that came out as a roar over the thunder of water, words that came to him without thought and just with the moment. A massive water blast issued in front of him, narrowly missing Talim and a startled Hurin.
The two water blasts met directly in front of Talim, they crashed together with an earthshaking gnashing of power, the castle itself shook and paintings and castle portraits on either side of the corridor were shredded were the two forces of elemental energy met.
Helen felt a shudder run through the castle; her senses felt the usage of elemental forces deep in the castle, two distinct forces yet both of the same elements, one she recognised instantly, every persons elemental signature varied and she could tell the differences between them, one of the forces that had been used was that of Princess Sara.
She looked to the queen, she hadn't seemed to notice the shudder in the castle and she wasn't as elementally attuned as she once had been.
"Highness" Helen began putting a trace of urgency into her voice. "The princess it seems is in danger; someone could be assaulting her in the castle."
"What!?" This finally got the queens attention, her rapt gaze snapped away from the play and switched to Helen. "Are you certain?"
"Highness the princess has just unleashed her elemental powers in the castle" Helen spoke as quickly as she could. "Someone else countered the princess's elemental power, one person with the wind and another annulled it with the water element."
"Then she must be in danger to so recklessly use her power." The queen nodded. "Go Helen, secure the princess and make sure she still has the royal crystal as well."
"Highness" Helen saluted and turned and left at a run her mind mulling over the thought that the Queen of Brimshare had put more emphasis on the royal crystal rather then her own daughter, no, surely not.
Captain James down on the bridge of the Elemental Star theatre ship watched as the play continued but he too had sensed the forces being used in the castle.
What the devil is going on? He wondered, he turned and moved to the speaker tubes that linked the bridge to the engine room. "Hey down there, I want the engines ready to go if we need them, I've got a bad feeling about this, be ready."
"Sure thing cap't." The tinny reply came up the tube and James turned and moved down towards the front of the ship where the play was taking place, he was needed for the last act anyway.
The haze from the two water arête's cleared, both powers had cancelled the other out leaving the corridor a soaked wreck.
Felix felt an unbelievable wave of nausea and sickness sway him and the only reason he didn't fall was because Cassandra half caught him, helping him remain standing.
Talim and Hurin both stared back at him in astonishment then they heard a band down the corridor and they turned to see that the princess had bolted into the only door available to her.
"We should be careful." Hurin urged. "Any elementalist within a league of the castle would have sensed that and the princess is not as weak as it first seemed."
"Its alright." Talim said moving forwards down the coridoor to the closed door. "She will have exhausted herself, she will not be able to do that again, allow me to handle this."
"Aye." Hurin nodded giving Felix another wary look before moving after Talim.
"Come on Felix." Cassandra urged. "I never knew you could do that sort of thing, I heard the words as well, that sort of power only comes with years of training, how'd you do that?"
"I…I don't know." Felix gasped. "Come on, let's finish this."
He staggered forwards, supported somewhat by Cassandra towards the princess's last holdout.
Sara collapsed to the floor of the small bedroom she had entered as soon as she had locked the door and threw up.
Her body heaved and she felt tears in her eyes, she had overexerted herself and she remembered General Helen's words when she had taught the princess proficiency in the elemental artes. "The body runs on two forms of energy princess." She had said. "We are surrounded by elemental energy which regenerates with time and sleep, this force wards and protects us and we can cause it to physically manifest under our command when we master control over it. By using elemental artes you use up this power and you must wait for it to return to you slowly, if you practice regularly you will build up your elemental strength and be able to use more and more power with time."
"The second form of energy is your physical energy; this runs throughout your body and is your very life force, this is known as mana and you cannot live without this energy. If you overexert yourself using an elemental arte your body will be forced to use this mana energy and this will cause nausea, exhaustion and a number of other nasty side effects. Overuse your elemental energy too much and your body will draw on all your life mana and you will die, never ever overreach yourself."
Sara heard a rap on the door behind her; they were trying to break in!
Dragging herself up she moved to the window and opened it looking out, it offered a side on view to the massive theatre ship, a long streamer hung from the window to the airship, one of many that had the flag of Brimshare flying proudly. Another idea came to her as her gaze fell suddenly on a pile of metal clothe hangers lying discarded on the floor...
"Give me a moment." Talim said as Hurin kicked the door furiously. "I'll break it down as soon as I've recovered my strength."
Felix watched supported by Cassandra as Hurin stepped away and Talim moved forwards…
"Stop, in the name of her majesty!" A bellowing cry came down the corridor.
Felix, Cassandra and Hurin turned to see the large knight that had so clumsily tripped earlier charging down the corridor flanked by eight castle guards, all held long sharp looking swords.
"Oh…" Hurin made out pulling forth his sabre as Talim instead of blasting the door open just pushed it open. "Get in; I opened the lock from the other side!"
Together they dashed into the room and locked it before turning to confront the princess…
To see her standing on the window ledge, her arms above her head, she turned as they walked in, her eyes flared with determination and then, she stepped out of the window.
"WHAT!" Hurin gasped charging forwards followed by the rest as they dashed to the window to look out.
The princess of Brimshare was zip-wiring over to the Elemental Star, a hanger in her hands ran along the streamer between the castle and the ship, her cream dress fluttered in the black night, if anyway looked that way…
"I can't believe she just did that…" Cassandra gasped.
"She's landed on the top deck of the Elemental Star." Talim said.
The door thudded as outside Felix could imagine the hevily armoured knights kicking the door down.
"We have no choice, we must follow her." Felix said moving away from Talim feeling a bit recovered now, though that was probably partly to do with adrenaline that was now flooding his body. "If we use these metal hangers we can zip-wire across much like she did, we can then get the crystal from her and then take off once she's off the ship."
"Are you mad?" Cassandra asked her eyes going wide but Talim nodded picking up some hangers and passing them to Hurin and Felix, Cassandra refused to take one. "We have no choice." Talim replied moving to the window. "The Elemental Star offers escape and staying here offers a hangman's noose, we must go."
And without looking back the fearless wind dancer moved to the window, stepped onto the ledge and put the hanger over the streamer and leapt off into the night.
"You go next Felix." Hurin nodded moving towards the door that was shuddering under repeated impacts. "I'll go last after Cassandra."
"O, okay." Felix moved to the window and placed the hanger above the streamer rope, below the ground seemed to fade in and out of focus, it was a long way down. Far, far away at the end of the streamer he could see the diminutive figure of Talim waiting.
Taking a deep breath he leapt off the ledge.
"Get going!" Hurin urged thrusting a metal hanger into Cassandra's quivering hands as soon as Felix had gone.
She moved to the window and looked out and then gasped, tears rushed to her eyes. "I can't, it's too high."
"Go!!!" Hurin roared. "Go now or we're all dead!"
Cassandra with her eyes half closed moved up onto the ledge and quivering placed her hands with the hanger over the rope, but didn't move.
"Get going!" Hurin grunted sheathing the sword and picking up a hanger, on seeing Cassandra still quivering there he gave her a hearty slap on the back and with a screech she vanished down the wire.
"Onwards men!" Galamore urged on his knights. "One more time."
The two leading armoured castle guards stepped back and then flung themselves one last time at the disintegrating door which caved in under their force.
Galamore charged in with the knights of Brimshare at his back to see the male with the sword that had challenged him standing in the window, everyone else had gone.
"Seeya sucker." The man then made an obscene gesture with his hand and leaped from the window.
"What!!!!" Galamore charged forwards to see the man zipping across to the massive theatre ship, they must have succeeded in kidnapping the princess and the theatre ship must be part of it!!!
"What's going on!?" Galamore recognised the voice of General Helen stepping into the room and he turned as she stepped over the debris of the door into the room as the guards parted to allow her access.
"General." Galamore turned. "It seems the princess has been kidnapped by a highly organised and powerful group they have just taken her over to the theatre airship. My hypothesis is that the theatre performance is just a means of distracting us while they snuck in and kidnapped the princess, we must stop them at all costs."
"Agreeded." Helen nodded moving to the window to look out. "I cannot fathom why such a group would wish to kidnap her royal highness, Galamore you take your men and ground the airship, I shall return to the queen and inform her of the situation, we'll have the ship surrounded by the Brimshare army before they know whats hit them."
Galamore saluted her. "Yes General!" and she turned and moved swiftly out of the room.
Galamore then turned to the nearest armoured knight. "You, go and rally the castle guard, head down the castle finding as many men as you can and then take them to the airship and board it, go now, stop them by force if necessary."
"Sir!" The knight saluted and rushed out of the room, armour clanking.
Galamore turned and moved up to the window eyeing the distant airship far below, he then reached up and put his arms over the streamer the kidnappers had used to escape, somewhere over there the princess was in dire need!
He turned to the remained of the guard. "Men, follow me as soon as I am across."
Unlike him they all wore full male helmets but Galamore was sure that underneath their helmets they were cheering on him, a brave loyal knight of Brimshare off to save the princess! What glory! What Patriotism!!!
He leapt from the window into the sky with his arms above the rope and began sliding down the rope at exhilarating speed towards the theatre ships top deck.
"Princess!!!" He yelled. "I'm coming!!!"
The rope behind him strained, unaccustomed to such weight, a second later, the castle wire snapped.
Galamore hurtled forwards as the rope swung like a massive vine towards the theatre ship, he didn't land smoothly on the top of the airship but instead smashed through the side of the ship akin to a metal cannonball with a boom of metal and wood.
The knights from the castle window watched in astonishment at their captain's stupidity.
Σφυγμός του ύδατος - Literally 'Pulse of Water', a class III elemental attack (Class I being weakest, Class XII being the most powerful) this elemental attack creates a massive blast of energy in the form of a torrent of water that smashes into foes and drives them away with its power, in this case it cancels out Sara's attack (Which was also class III), for Felix to use such power so soon is unusual.