Chapter 11: Finality

Kel took a hesitant step into the cavern, hunching over and bending her knees. Several feet into the tunnel, patches of a strange white moss were visible. The moss gave off a sort of eerie green-white light that, instead of banishing shadows, seemed to make the black shape even bigger. Kel was creeped out, shivering as the tunnel slanted even lower and the air chilled.

The tunnel widened so that she could stand up with her head almost brushing the ceiling. She walked for what seemed like hours. Kel's self control slowly weakened by the pressures of the day, and all the thoughts whirling around in her head. A headache throbbed behind her temples, and her stomach growled at her. Kel paused a moment to think, and rub her forehead. She leaned against the wall.

Looking back into the blackness of the tunnel, she saw once more that she couldn't see the entrance. She had lost sight of it long ago, but still she looked over her shoulder. She started to slide down the wall, the toll of all that work taking effect. Her muscles throbbed. Kel inwardly cursed the bloody adrenaline boost that had gotten her through the sparring. She was even more confused in mind about Kasumi, her dear master, being the Shang Phoenix.

Well, that explains a lot! Kel berated herself for being not observant enough. How could she miss it? All the frequent trips, the diplomacy meetings? Kel felt like a total idiot. She had been trained in her Shang arts, but she didn't feel like she knew anything. She knew about different healing plants, and different political figures, but she felt incredibly ignorant about the world.

Press on, sister. Do not be afraid. Kel gave a start as the long-forgotten voice came into her head. She had not heard the voice since her arrival at the Order, all those years ago. But something was different; the voice was far more urgent, commanding. It had also called her sister. Time is short. You must come, or all is lost! Come forth, now, and fear not. Kel staggered to her feet and set out doggedly once more.

After about what could have been an hour or ten minutes, Kel emerged into a huge underground cavern. The huge rocky walls stretched up, up, higher than anything Kel could see. Flickering torches in sconces lit the room in hesitant, sputtering light. Dark shadows danced in all the wrong places; Kel's heart rose to her throat with some kind of unknown fear. In the middle of the large circular cavern was a throne, elaborately worked with gold and rubies. Upon the throne sat a cloaked figure. The figure stood.

The hood of the black cloak was drawn back. Kel was amazed to see the face of her mentor, Kasumi. The mouth opened, and a cold, unfamiliar voice spoke. "Come to me, daughter. All have abandoned you, and everything is lost. Come to me and share my eternal sleep. The Order will control you, and you will be Their slave. Abandon them, and come to the darkness with me…" Kel saw welcoming darkness behind Kasumi, reaching cold tendrils out to ensnare her, sending snakes of dark matter dancing around the figure on the throne.

The darkness entranced, and chilled Kel to the marrow of her bones. She could see herself sinking into the welcoming void, floating without care, without problem, without confusion. A flame of light flickered in her mind, and Kel shuddered and clutched at her head. Kel knew this was not her Master. Kel shook her head to clear it from the grogginess that suddenly overtook her. Kel tried to speak, something foreign filling her body, glorious warmth and heat from some inner flame, that banished the darkness where it touched.

She cleared her voice, shaking now not with fear, but with anger that filled her body and soul to brimming. "I do not know you by face, but I know you by voice, Dark One. Remove yourself from this place immediately. You are not in strength. You have no vessel in which to leech life from. Begone, Master of LIES!" Kel shouted the last word with all her heart and strength. The Dark shadow's form melted from that of Kasumi, into a great swirling shadow. But that was all it was. A shadow, with no power over her. There was an ear-deafening shriek, and it was gone.

Kel was dumbstruck by her own actions. Part of her brain was amazed at this new knowledge. She did not know from whence the words came, they had simply flowed from her lips like flaming brands. The Shadow was gone, to Kel's immense relief. But she knew that all was not over. In its place stood a robed figure, clothed all in white, the hood of it casting not a shadow, but a sort of light-shadow, that kept Kel from looking closer to see who it was. Behind the robed person sat a Council of heavenly beings, who blazed in their glory.

In the middle of the half-circle sat a tall god, blazing with light, holding a spear in one hand, with a great suit of armor protecting him. He was flanked by two women, one with glittering green eyes and ruby-red lips, the picture of Tortallan beauty. The other was Yamani, tall and graceful in her maroon and white kimono with patterns that changed every time Kel looked. The Yamani goddess had long black hair, and her humble brown eyes seemed to look through you, but not with the blazing confidence of her sister two seats from her, but with the compassion and love of a mother. Other deities were seated, one of whom caught her eye.

He was rather short, with a mischievous grin on his face. His eyes twinkled, and as he turned his head to speak to another god, she saw that his close-cropped hair was grown out in the back, in a braid similar to her own. He wore a pair of loose pants in the Yamani style, a flamboyant red sash circling his waist. His chest was hairless, chiseled with muscles that rippled as he turned. Suddenly he let out a barking laugh, and suddenly his face warped, twisting his nose into that of a rabbit, growing floppy ears that hung down on both sides of his face. He twitched his nose at Kel, picked a carrot from the air, and nibbled on it, along with sipping a Tortallan cup of tea. Kel laughed out loud, startling herself. She dropped to her knees on the hard-packed dirt, pressing her face to the dust.

"No, Keladry." A voice spoke, reminding Kel of the baying of hunting hounds. She looked up to see the Goddess rising. She felt the cool hand touch her shoulder, cold through her shirt. Kel stood, hands locked behind her, willing her face to be as impassive as a wide, calm lake. Kel felt as if large whales had suddenly invaded her lake and were making for a party. Her stomach churned, and she kept her gaze fixed on her bare feet. A finger brought Kel to look up into the face of Yama.

"My daughter, you have gone through much. Look up now, as Mithros speaks." The voice was soft, gentle. Kel nodded her head, and Yama returned to her seat. Kel kept her eyes fixed on a spot on a far-away wall. Mithros's voice rumbled like thunder. "Keladry of Mindelan, of Tortall. You have come into our presence today, through no work of your own. This is the Final Testing Ground.

"You are the first in many years of mortal span to come here. The last was Kasumi. We tested, and she carried some of the Blood. But, we come to test you now, and all these things are in the past. A danger beyond reckoning approaches, far more dangerous than the Immortals' War of Tortall, and surpassing in power even the Battle at Argahz's Plain, so many millenia ago. But, once more, we are in the present, and pressing matters are at hand. You possess a large amount of the Blood. What is that, you ask?" Kel started. She was thinking that, but had said nothing. Then she cursed to herself. Gods, they're the gods- they can hear my thoughts. Oh wait! Oh man…

A ghost of a smile flitted across Mithros's face. But the stern impassiveness settled back over the stony features. "The Blood is the Gods' gift to those in Mankind who have no Gift. If the Gifted ones were to have their Gift taken from them, they would be weaker than those with the Blood. The Blood is now watered, spread over many generations and peoples. It is not as powerful as the world needs it to be. Now, we come to a young woman whose Blood is pure, as pure as the first Man, and the first Woman. That is you, Keladry. The Blood adapts and enchances certain skills, both mental and physical.

"But there is another reason your Blood is so strong. When the original Shang Phoenix Ascended to the Divine Realms, she left behind parts of herself to make the line of the Shang Phoenix strong. Each Phoenix since the First has had a concentrated amount of the Blood. But it is said that the Phoenix will be Reborn and save the world. Just before the Phoenix Ascended to a higher realm of existence, it was said that She would return to save the world and the Gods. Now it is time to test your Blood." The white-robed person stepped forward. Kel stepped back as a shiny katana was drawn from an unseen scabbard. The white steel was not painted, it was pure white, like the rest of the warrior.

Kel stared down at the cold metal blade that paused at the hollow of her neck, resting on her strange birthmark. The birthmark was a kind of half circle, having a curved line where the straight line should have been, had it been a half-circle. The cold tip spread its icy feeling into every part of her body, chilling her mind and senses so that she could only look down, immovable.

She knew that if the blade was thrust forward even half an inch, she would die. The sharp edge caught Kel's skin and pressed in lightly, letting a drop of blood well up. The sword was tilted back, and the blood slid down the length of the blade, eerily balanced, and leaving behind no red trail. The blood droplet neared the hilt, and was strangely enough, absorbed. The blood fused with the hilt, leaving no mark in its wake.

Kel sighed inwardly to herself. She was not harmed, or dead. Suddenly, the blade of the sword began to glow. It blazed with a light that dwarfed the glory of the gods' and it began to hum. It hummed as if it were whirling around in the air, wielded by a swordmaster. The white-robed person held on grimly to the sword, turning their head away. There was a blast of light and of sound, as if every sound of every creature and thing in the universe, from a mouse's scratching to the explosion of a supernova had been compressed and suddenly released. Kel was thrown back, hitting her head on a wall and nearly blacking out.

Faces swam before her eyes. The Goddess, holding her hand over Kel's face, examining for injury. Yama, placing something around her neck that burned her skin and froze it at the same time. And finally, Mithros came into her view. "Keladry. Daughter. You are the Phoenix Reborn." And all went dark.

Worlds swam before Kel's closed eyelids. A stable door, standing on its own, opening itself to a new world, frozen and icy beyond. A great ring of some material, strange runes carved into a smaller inner ring within it that lit up, and through which a strange bluish void was seen. A fiery mountain, with a great blazing eye staring down at the charred landscape below. A pair of people, one dressed all in black, one in humble Yamani-like robes, dueling with glowing swords on a bridge over a river of molten rock. A planet, suspended in space, green and blue forming a gentle contrast, with white clouds in the sky around it.

The worlds whizzed by. Kel found herself living the lives of people in those worlds, learning more, fighting, working with others. Kel underwent a huge number of experiences, taking on the role of both villain and hero, peasant and queen, human and alien. She lived fruitful lives, poverty-sticken lives, short lives, and long lives. She died painful deaths, deaths of disease, deaths of wounds in battle, deaths of old age. She had children, was a child, was a man, was a woman. She sped slowly through all these experiences, learning more as she died and rose up again.

The haze of life and death suddenly slowed and came to a halt. She was a bird, soaring over familiar lands she had visited in her travels. A ghostly voice said to her, " Scanra, " as she passed over icy mountains. She swooped down through the clouds and saw a small village. The houses were made of stone and of strange architecture. On a ridge directly behind the village was a cave that glowed with the warmth of a fire. Suddenly she was wrenched from the sky-scape of Scanra.

She soared over a green pasture. She topped a rise and gasped. There was Corus before her, sprawling across the ground like a welcome pet. She soared into the main bustle of the city, and into the Palace. Passing through walls and doors, she came to a place that she recognized as the catacombs. She wandered through endless tunnels and chambers of the dead before she came to her destination. A great stone door stood before her, bearing the mark of a blazing sun.

Once again she was torn from her surroundings. She soared over her own familiar land, the island where she was trained, the Order's stronghold. The Morning Sage was anchored in the water. Kel flew to the familiar cliffs, entering and passing through yet another maze of corridors to a room that was dark. Some unseen hand wrenched open the shutters, and the light was blinding… the light… the light…

The light from a single torch flickered in her eyes. Kel winced as she sat up, expecting excruciating pain from what had happened to her. What happened? Images swam in her memory. A blazing spear. A pair of warm brown eyes. A voice calling her name with the baying of hounds. A white sword. And an explosion. Everything came back to Kel in a rush. She sagged back against the wall, burdened by the memory of the gods' council, the sword, the visions…

Kel simply sat for a few moments, gathering her thoughts. She wanted to laugh, to scream, she wanted to give in to her hysterics. She controlled herself just barely enough to start a rational train of thought going. What am I? She asked herself. I am Keladry of Mindelan. I am no Phoenix. She thought the title to herself, just to see what it would sound like. Keladry of Mindelan, Phoenix Reborn. It sounded silly, and that was just in her head. Kel muttered something along the lines of how much she disliked the gods at that moment, and how she wished she could think of something practical, and how she would scream if Kasumi popped out from behind a rock and shouted, "Sakuyo laughs!". Kel almost felt like crying then and there, but managed to pull herself together.

Kel's stomach growled, reminding her that she had no idea how long she was below ground, and how she might be in big trouble if she didn't get moving and find something to eat. She moaned softly as she forced her stiff legs to support her. She nearly fell once more to the floor as the chamber swam in front of her eyes.

Kel found her way to the opening in the wall, using one hand to grope her way to the entrance and clutching the ring around her neck with the other. She staggered into the chilly green-blue light of the tunnel and headed upwards. The trek seemed to take several hours, or maybe it was just ten minutes. The warm glow of the sun beckoned to her at the very end of the tunnel, and Kel rushed towards it, dropping all pretense of self-control. She hurled herself into the sunshine, and the warm grass, and the sounds of the birds in the trees and the insects of the field. Kel closed her eyes against the blinding light and laughed for sheer joy of being alive, and of being free.

Author's note-

Okay- here are the things I was talking about two chapters ago.

The ring around Kel's neck- the One Ring- Lord of the Rings

The chain of quartered circles of various materials- the Six Signs- the Dark is Rising series, by Susan Cooper

The Golden Chalice- The Holy Grail- Various Arthurian stories

In this chapter, can you recognize the places and occurences Kel went through as she was Seeing? There's a bit of a sci-fi show reference in there though. Ah well. Tell me, and kudos to the person who finds them all!

Anyhow, This is relatively long chapter, I hope you enjoyed it. I missed an episode of the Bachelor to write this, mind. I thoroughly enjoyed writing this, and I hope you like the story, please Read and Review!

-Lana S.