Alright it took some work cause I'm so busy but here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it. I was happy that there were things I could actually keep in this chapter, but there were a lot of things I had to change. T-minus three more chapters until absolute new original stuff that isn't revisions. Well I'm saying that there has been a lot of new stuff. This will just be the continuation. I'm going to finish this story if it kills me. That's how much I love you!
James Birdsong: Dude you're seriously kind of my hero, because you are one of the few people who has been with me since this story originally started coming out. You rock!
Jovian Sun: You're questions and involvement amuse me greatly. Hopefully you have a better picture of Mercury now. I definitely tried to spend a bit more emotional time with her in this chapter.
Chapter 12
Mercury Rising Part 2
"She's moving again," the slender man said though no one was present in the room, and as he paced around a worn wooden table he brushed long white strands of hair from his face.
"Well she is a nomad I thought that was normal," replied a tinny female voice which projected from the tip of an ornate golden pen held delicately in the man's long thin fingers.
"Normally I would say yes, but not this time. She has deviated from her normal path, and I cannot understand why. All these years I've been able to feel her, but never once has her power called out to me like it has been these past few days. Perhaps her time of awakening is close at hand, or perhaps she can feel me as much as I can her. It's begun to be very frustrating not knowing what is about to happen. I'm tired of this desolate rock as I never knew I could be, and I miss you terribly. I've been away from you far too long dear one," he said sighing. He released the pen letting it roll onto the table top, it glistened in the bright mid day light without reflecting the heat that was waiting just outside his little house.
"Don't fret. I feel that soon our wait will be over. Something is coming to a head, I can feel it. You will have a part in that I think. It's like watching a tower teetering on the point of collapse. A stray breath of wind is all it will take to make it collapse. I fear that when it does much will be left in the rubble. Until then hold out, you will be home soon. In a short enough time we will be together again, and then we will have more than words to exchange with one another," replied the feminine voice, full of promise but fading. He looked down at the pen and sighed, knowing that as the tiny world turned away the connection was fading. Everything about this planet made him long for the cooler climate of the Moon. Mercury was a hot, dry and harsh place and so were it's people. He simply had not been able to bring himself to love it. Sometimes others in his position would come to love the places they had been stationed, but he didn't think he could ever learn to love this place. It had nothing but the ever burning sun and the freezing nights in the way of seasons. It was a cloudless, relentless and unforgiving place made, he thought, almost entirely out of dust. Sometimes he wondered if even the people were made of dust, since the weather seemed to effect them to little.
He was hoping desperately that his gut was not wrong. If, in fact, she was headed towards him, it meant that soon he would be home free and that his job here would soon be over. He snaked his longer slender fingers around the ornate teacup in front of him and brought the now tepid cup to his lips. Perhaps he should have ventured into the desert all those years ago. He could even now have been home enjoying the comforts of his wife. They might have even been able to have a child by now. Instead here he was waiting for the guardian he sought to come to him. It was almost to unnatural for words.
"It would not have turned out the right way if you had done what you are thinking my friend," said a deep calm voice from the doorway. The man jumped to his feet with a start turning to face the direction the voice had come from. He had suspected who he found standing there, though he had hoped his suspicions would not be confirmed, even now after all these years she looked no different. Taller than any woman he knew, she stood cloaked in her own deep blackish green hair with garnet red eyes even now reading his every thought. He had long ago learned that she did not read his mind, she simply knew the things that he might think or do.
"Mei..." he started trailing off. There just weren't words for the things he wanted to express to her.
"Artemis," she nodded calmly, "You have waited all these long years, please do not fail at the closing of this small era in her life. You have done well, and I know that it has been difficult for you, but the things you regret would have been more harshly regretted had they actually come to fruition."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Artemis raged, pounding his fist against the table nearly upsetting his now cold tea, "You talk in riddles Mei. Don't do this, you'll regret it more later or do this for it will soften the blow. None of it makes sense. I don't know why Luna has insisted in trusting you all these years. What did you show her that you will not show me? What do you hope to gain from all these games you have played throughout the years?" Artemis turned away from her combing his hands through his long hair angrily. Mei said not a word, she simply waited for him to calm himself. Rarely did she ever explain herself or her reasons for what she did. Artemis and Luna had fought over very few things in their years together, but this one thing kept them divided on many things, he could not understand what strange instinct kept them connected to this woman.
"How do we know that you aren't secretly trying to bring down this kingdom we so desperately wish to protect," Artemis asked again more calmly.
"I do not need to create a situation already set in stone. The things I do now are only to protect those I can in small ways which will allow this kingdom to live on, "Mei held up a silencing hand and continued, "Do not ask me. Telling you would not help matters, it would merely drive you mad for trying to fix it. The burden I have been given does not need to be shared. Trust in me, because I am the only one brave enough to make the decisions that will help lessen the pain. Someday you will see the truth in this, and then you will not think me so callous." Artemis watched her with widening eyes, and for the first time saw past the carefully calm exterior. This was a woman who had steeled herself to unpleasant things long ago, a woman who had seen things no person should see. In that split second he pitied her for the first time, and as he watched her notice the look in his eyes hers flashed in anger.
"Do not pity me now little cat for in the end we will all have enough to worry ourselves never to consider another again." Artemis wasn't sure where it had come from, but suddenly she was gripping a long silver staff in her strong slender fingers. His gazed fixed itself to the large garnet orb atop it. Before he could say a word she slammed it into the ground and was gone. Afterwards, head reeling, he stared at the spot she had just stood and was terrified. Whatever it was that made her so desperate made his petty problems seem insignificant.
"Hurry little girl, we need you now more than ever," he mumbled to himself.
Noai watched the wind sweep copper colored dust down between the bright white tents that made up her home. Here and there people she had known her entire life bustled to and from one tent and another. The white tent flaps would flap briefly in the wind, and then fall closed, or be plastered against the outside wall of the tent. She watched, standing quietly outside of what was once her tent. Now it would house the clan chieftain, a girl not much older than herself she had trained for just such an occasion. Still, she didn't like leaving the life she had always known, even if she had always known some day she would have to. She was still reeling from how quickly her tribe had accepted her professed need to leave them. She would never show it, but secretly she had hoped that they might argue with her, even if it was only in the smallest way. There was only one person she had to blame for their blind obedience to her and that was herself. She had been their rock for so many years that they just could not believe anything she did wasn't for the right reasons. Still, she did not wanted to leave her people. Even if she was young for her position by some twenty years she still felt the responsibility as clearly as if she were the fifty years older than she was now. No one questioned the fact that she would be leaving with a man who had mere days before attempted to kill her. Sometimes she wished they didn't have such exact confidence in her abilities, true she was very capable, and very little got past her, but she wished they would worry at least some.
Her reverie was broken by the arrival of her most trusted second, soon to be the chief in her absence, the girl still barely managed to hide her looks of nervousness and uncertainty. Noai was glad that the girl was different enough from herself that the other members of the tribe would not feel as though she were attempting to replace Noai herself, that would simply never work. She had been shocked when she had told her the news only a few days before. If not for the fact that she knew Noai would never approve or deign to listen, she most likely would have respectfully declined. That had been the one person Noai had hoped would not wish loudly for her to remain, but it would be what it would be.
Breaking with tradition there was to be no formal leaving ceremony, Noai simply could not have born such a thing. The other tribesmen would never admit it, but they knew it as well as she did.
"Fear not. I have trained you as well as anyone could train you for such a job. You will make no mistakes, so be mindful but do not be afraid of them. They will make you grow faster than if you never made any. They may be painful but except them with grace, and laugh at them, the quicker you laugh the sooner everyone begins to laugh with you," Noai said quietly, she knew that despite the volume of her voice the girl caught every word. She didn't respond, she merely nodded at the all too familiar words. When it became clear that Noai had nothing further to say the girl bowed, with one last backwards look she rounded the nearest tent and was out of sight. Noai sighed wishing that the man to blame for all of this upheaval would finally grace her with his presence.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I had thought that I had packed enough, but every time I took a step towards the tent flap someone else was there to shove something into my packs. I'm finally ready, though I had rather expected there to be some sort of farewell. Where is everyone," Safir asked in a frenzy of motion and words.
"There will be no farewell. I asked that it be this way when we left," Noai replied carefully as ever.
"Why? Don't you want everyone to see you go?" Noai shot him a suffering look. He instantly felt like he was in tutoring once again, and that he had said something so obviously ignorant that he should have known before he opened his mouth that he was wrong.
"I do not wish them to watch, because I wish them their happy memories of me, like I wish to have only happy memories of them. I do not wish my last memories of my family and friends to be of them all in tears. That is what a farewell requires of my people," she replied shortly. Safir could not help feeling as though he had pried into some very private part of her, even though something like that would be regular conversation where he had been raised. All the same he liked the mysterious woman he had been sent, wrongly, to kill. He felt as though he would truly enjoy their short voyage to the nearby trading town Noai seemed certain held her seeker. Everything about the situation with her and her seeker seemed strange. It was unusual for a seeker to wait for their quarry to come to then, but that is what the man had done all these years. Noai seemed to take it completely in stride, never doubting her obviously superior abilities.
They left, just as Noai wanted, without any real fanfare. She didn't even look back to see the faces hidden between the tents watching her go, because none of them could really bare to turn a blind eye to her departure. Some of them waited until they could see her no more and only then returned to their daily routines. Noai knew they were there, but could not bring herself to look back at the life she would never again live. Once the camp was out of sight Noai pushed the memories behind her as best she could so that she could focus on what might lay before her. Inside she knew there was going to be a large battle ahead of her, and many who needed her help and protection. She was glad to replace her old purpose with a new one, but at the moment her only real purpose was putting one foot in front of the other.
Later, as the sun sank low over the desert Noai called a halt to her intrepid partner. Safir looked ahead at her, having long ago been outdistanced by her in stamina and speed. For all his trudging he still could not manage to keep to the pace that her people seemed able to manage with seemingly little effort. She hadn't said anything, but he could tell that she was going as slow as her training would allow. Perhaps there was something to be said of being a native of any place, you certainly grew up knowing only the blistering hot climate so you never thought anything of doing things in it normal people would balk at.
"This seems as good a place to camp as any for the night. We are nearly there. If we rise early we will be at his house early in the morning of the next day. Unpack your things and let's see if we can't manage some sort of fire. It's going to get very cold out here very soon," Noai said authoritatively, even now unable to shrug off her ingrained leadership role. As she spoke she was already pulling out a few warmer things from her pack to wrap herself in for the night. She began unwrapping a beautifully made scarf from around her face. Safir was again struck with the angular harsh beauty of someone subjected to such harsh climates. It was easy for him to forget, since most of the day all he could see were two uncanny blue eyes staring at him from behind her scarf, which covered the rest of her face almost completely. Now that it was bare he wished she didn't have need to cover it. He wasn't sure how someone like her had managed to keep such pale fair skin, but if that was what the head wrap did he would be happy for her to wear it always.
"Yes, well I believe they packed some sort of fuel for us to burn," he said as he rummaged through his pack, "But I'm sure you already knew that they would do that...or in fact even told them to pack it yourself." Safir shut his mouth and quietly pulled the compressed fuel pellets out from his pack. He wasn't too keen on figuring out what they were made of, but he had a fairly good idea. After a few silent moments setting up camp Noai had a good small fire burning low to the ground. Safir wrapped himself in a large blanket he had found rolled up in his pack, and looked across the fire to see that Noai had done the same thing, only in a much more elegant way. Behind them sand stretched in every direction rolling like the waves of an unmoving ocean. The light of the shortened day was waning quickly splashing pinks, reds, oranges and yellows across the tops of the dunes. This was the only time of the day when Safir felt Mercury was attractive. He had seen countless sunrises and sunsets while he trudged, but never with quite so much presence of mind.
"I can't help but feel sorry for putting all of this in motion for you. I wish that I had somehow been stronger, so that I could resist my siblings," Safir said quietly, unable to stand the silence any longer. Noai looked at him as though he had just said something silly, but she also seem resigned to the fact that he was nothing like her or her people.
"You cannot stop destiny. This day was meant to happen. I have known this since I first came into my powers. That is why I had someone ready trained to take over for me. I've always known this day would come. Perhaps I had hoped foolishly once or twice that it would not, but there is no stopping what is meant to be. I hope that I am in time to save a few of these horrible things I feel coming," Noai mused quietly. Safir wondered at her calm control, and the fact that she seemed completely awake to her powers. Most guardians awoke later in life in dramatic circumstances. He wondered what horrible thing must have happened in her childhood to make her powers show themselves at such a young age.
"Well I hope that isn't entirely true, because there are some things I certainly hope can be avoided if one is careful," Safir replied darkly his thoughts turning inward, "I only hope that by the time we return my brother hasn't done something completely irreparable. If he hasn't yet he is certainly going to try. I want to get a little of my own back for what they did to me." Safir stared into the small flames his deep blue eyes flashing dangerously.
"I know that they compelled you to do things you would not otherwise have done, but I feel like there is something else they did to you, something even more unforgivable," Noai said, prodding deeper without seeming to do so. A barked laugh forced its way between Safir's lips, but it was clear that it was not a laugh born of happy amusement.
"For me all of this nonsense started when we were all still children. I grew up in a family of magic users, and they lived in a village full of others who were similarly talented. At the time we were spending most of our year on the run or hiding in different places. After the Earth King's mandate it was all my family could do to stay free and alive. We all hated the King for making our lives so difficult, or at least that was what our parents told us to believe. I was only seven or so, so what my parents thought and did was my whole world, of course now I understand why they felt that way. Still I also know that in many ways they were the cause of their own downfall. I still don't think much of their methods. They made a point of terrorizing any and every village, outpost, fort or town, just to get back at the King's unfair edicts about magic users. Unfortunately, the downside to that was that it also proved him right, and made hoodlums out of my siblings. We were cruel, unjustly cruel, to those who didn't deserve it. I'm lucky and unlucky that I saw the error of my ways, not that it made any difference. They made me do what they wanted anyways. Even now it feels strange to be completely in control of my own body after so long. I guess in the end I'm going to be just as bad as the rest of them," Safir chuckled to himself at a private joke. Noai considered him through wise blue eyes, her never wavering gaze pinning him where he sat, Safir enjoyed some one watching him in such a straight forward way. While he couldn't read what she was thinking, he could rest assured that not knowing wasn't going to lead to something terrible for him.
"Why would you be like them? You're free now, you don't have to be like them. You don't even have to see them ever again if that is what you wish," Noai posed to him reasonably.
"Well, I suppose it's because I have reasons of my own for revenge beyond the things they forced me to do. For most people loss of control over their own body would be enough to want revenge, but as usual my sibling had to go one step further," Safir said darkly his dark blue eyes filling up with hatred, "Once there wasn't just the four of us, there was five, her name was Citrine, and she was all of the good things my other siblings were incapable of. She had perfect golden brown eyes, sparkling amber blonde hair and a smile that could make anyone else smile, but she had no magical abilities and to my family that made her an abomination. I couldn't have cared less whether she could wield or not, she was my closest friend. In the end they managed to even take her from me.
It wasn't long after one of my families typical "shows", and one of the King's bands of soldiers had managed to follow them back to where we were hiding. Everyone was too busy celebrating what they had done to notice fifteen armed men on horses approaching the camp. They struck without mercy, which I later discovered was warranted. Apparently my parents favorite thing to do at that time was to capture all of the village children, cast illusions of them and make their parents guess which was real. When they guessed they would plunge a dagger through the image not chosen, whether it was the illusion or the real child. My parents were terrible people, and I'm glad to say that they died that day, but I'm getting off track.
The men entered the camp and my parents were killed outright. Most of the children, myself included, managed to get out of the way and hide in time, because we weren't drunken fools. Citrine was not so lucky, she had been tending to the horses, which were staked because we had no stable, so she was left in the open. I reached out to the soldiers and managed to control a few of them, but I have never been able to control the mind like my sister, so it wasn't enough. My siblings could have helped, but instead they sat and watched, glad to be rid of the blemish on our families impeccable line of magicians. In fact they wouldn't even let me go back for her body to bury her properly. They laughed in my face when I said I wanted to go back for her. That was the first time Emerald ever took complete control of my body. From then on it became permanent practice for them simply to force me to comply with them." Safir's eyes never left the fire as his words trailed off to nothing. Noai watched him with narrowed eyes seeing no point in breaking his silence.
"For a while they didn't really have to force me to do too much, because after all I was still young, and the King's men had killed my parents as well as Citrine. Eventually, though, I began to see that by retaliating we were simply vindicating the King's edicts instead of fighting against them. That was when I lost the privilege to do anything of my own free will. Then one day my oldest brother, Diamond, requested my presence. Heh...I say requested, like I had a choice in the matter, anyway I went to him and he told me I was going to Mercury to look for someone I was supposed to kill. After that everything begins to get a bit hazy. They put me under a compulsion so severe that I hardly even remembered who I was anymore. All I knew was that I needed to find you and kill you, that was my whole world until two days ago. I suppose I should thank you. It's rude of me that I haven't until now and for that I apologize. I owe you a serious debt of gratitude. Thank you," Safir said looking up from the fire finally. When he looked at her a smile slowly spread across his face. Even in the darkness Noai could see the way the expression lit up his eyes, and wondered if he realized just how much like that sister he lost he was.
This wasn't according to plan. The spies that had been hired had almost been dismissed based on the fact that the girl never did anything of any real consequence. Why did she have to go poking around things that didn't concern her now? Now that everything was so close to being just the way it was supposed to be. One more old guardian stood in the way, and soon that would change. Too bad his siblings were unable to perform even the simplest of tasks. This just meant that Diamond would have to take care of everything. He supposed that if things were worth doing they might as well be done right.
"Attend Diamond! Your mind is wandering. I am growing impatient with you. Have you done as I have asked?" growled the king.
"To the best of my ability every task you have given me has been completed. I cannot speak so well for my siblings, but I have heard that Emerald is working a new plot as we speak. She intends to use one of the lesser members of the Earths royal family to collapse it from within," I responded savoring the taste of the words.
"You plot too much. I don't need civil war I just want the throne. This is what that plot will lead us to if you are incautious."
"Your majesty I would never do something that would hurt our eventual goal. If the Earth is in disrepair then they cannot dispute your claim to the throne. Besides the last hundred years of Earth rulers have been men so they will have no quarrel with your claims. As for Serenity?"
"You have already worked your magic have you not? Take her as you will. As soon as your part in this plot is done you are free to take her where you wish. Now go your incompetence is taxing me. I want only to get this trial over with. Then we can focus on what is truly at hand," he said with finality waving his hand at Diamond like a bug. Diamond smiled and made a sweeping bow as he back through the door to the antechamber.
Diamond closed the door behind himself feeling a bit more smug than usual. Of course his siblings had failed him as usual, but this time he felt sure that his last sibling remained a beacon of hope in this whole scheme. There was no way that Safir could fail him after all of the careful work they had done on his brain. He had not wanted to comply, but in the end he had regardless of his own personal wishes. It was all to the good, soon at least one of Serenity's guardians would be gone, and he would have redeemed himself in the eyes of the King.
Diamond swaggered his way down the hall, for the first time in weeks feeling as though things were going along as they should. He smiled at each and every maid he met along the path to Serenity's private rooms. Maids ducked and blushed alternately, they knew his true notice would never be for anyone but Serenity, still they had tried unsuccessfully over the years. Diamond appreciated the notice all the same, and by the time he turned the corner to Serenity's wing he had a true smile plastered to his devilish face only to be stopped in his tracks by what he saw. Endymion and two of his friends were just exiting Serenity's rooms rather hastily. Diamond stopped, making no move to hide his presence in the hall. Endymion did not notice him at first, but when he did both he and his men fell silent. They slowed their pace and halted in front of him. The man to his left wore a look of silent amusement while the man on his right looked openly worried, though about what Diamond was unsure.
"Good afternoon royal advisor," Endymion said in the absolute correct tone, with the correct bow at the correct level, beyond that nothing about his person was the slightest bit friendly. The man with short sandy blonde hair on his left considered him quietly. Diamond decided then and there that he would be the one to watch most carefully should their plans on Earth succeed.
"What brings you to this part of the palace Prince Endymion," Diamond asked innocently. Endymion was clearly not expecting to be questioned about either his presence, or his reasons behind appearing where he had. A warning flashed across Endymion's deep blue eyes, but Diamond paid it no mind at all.
"What brings you here advisor? It hardly seems natural that the Kings advisor would have any real business with the royal Princess," Endymion replied smoothly deflecting Diamond's parry. Diamond realized suddenly that he had underestimated this man, he was obviously much more practiced in court doings than his little Serenity, which was as it should be.
"I'm merely delivering something to a...close...friend," Diamond said with a smile, making sure to emphasize the word close. Endymion smiled, but Diamond knew it was just an attempt the hide the fact that he was grinding his teeth in frustration.
"Well," Endymion said with a sudden chuckle, "Good luck saying anything to her now. In fact I encourage you to go in there now and ask her anything at all. Perhaps you will have better luck than I did." Endymion smiled wickedly and took a few steps towards him. His men looked at one another then followed. They took a few more steps, but when Endymion was level with Diamond he stopped, and suddenly his expression was replaced with complete seriousness where before there had been mirth.
"Know this. If you hurt her in any way I will be the one to find you and kill you myself. Do not think that I am too young to have heard stories of you and your wicked family. If I must I will do what my father could not finish, though it would grieve me greatly to do so." The tone of Endymion's voice made Diamond feel something he had not felt in a very long time, uncertainty. His eyes narrowed and he tilted his head to the side to return Endymion's hard stare. Endymion's lips were tightly shut, but his eyes spoke volumes about the things he didn't know, but could guess at and the things that he would do to make good on his words. Without another word the Prince turned and left without another word, or even a proper bow. Diamond stared straight ahead waiting for the prince to be gone. He could feel when he left, and only then did his legs begin to close the distance between where he stood and Serenity's door. As he was about to announce himself formally to the guards he heard footsteps stomping towards the door. He got out of the way in time to see Queen Selene throw the double doors open without any regard to the guards outside and storm off towards her own apartments. Diamond was considering announcing himself again when Maino came storming out after her. Lucky for him she was too busy trying to catch the Queen to notice him standing there. He stared at the door realizing that where there was one guardian there were usually more. A sudden thought struck him, and he pulled a pencil and a piece of paper out of his jacket. He turned to one of the many tables that lined the hallway and hastily scribbled a note on the piece of paper. When he finished he handed the now folded note to the guard and asked politely that the note be delivered to Serenity when she was finally alone. The guard looked at him strangely, but accepted the request without comment. Diamond glared at the door wishing he could talk to her in person but thought better of it. If her mother had been in there recently the odds were that he would have to deal with one of Serenity's crying fits, and that didn't sound the least bit amusing at the moment. Diamondgave the door one more glance and turned around walking back the way he had come without a second look.
A sharp rap on the door startled him awake at an hour which most reasonable people tended to avoid. He sat for a few moments in indecision. Should he answer the door or simply hope that whoever it was went away? The sound came again this time more insistently and he decided that he would have to get up as whoever it was didn't seem to be going away.
"I'm coming!" he called out to the stranger at the door wishing them all kinds of bad luck for having woken him at such an unreasonable hour of the morning. He shuffled rather unceremoniously to the door and slowly but intently undid the latches. He sighed and with a last tug pulled the door open. Suddenly he froze staring fixedly at the woman on his doorstep. Something in his mind registered and sent him reeling.
"You are my seeker I presume. We have urgent need of your portal knowledge so that we might make our way to the Moon kingdom. My friend and I have traveled far across the desert in search of you," said the imposing dark haired woman with a tone that left no room for arguments. The man standing beside her looked travel weary. He also looked content, which made Artemis realize that he had something to think about later. There was more to the two of them than he could guess at in the recently woken fog he was in.
"Yes of course we will speak of it in the morning for now I think that a bed would be in order for the two of you then food in the morning. No good will come of you barging in, in the dead of night," he said not quite aware of what he was saying or doing.
"That is a most pragmatic thought. I feel that one nights rest will not ruin that which we must save. Let us rest. We will take whatever guest room you have gladly friend," she said warily.
"Yes the rooms are behind me and to the left. Make yourself comfortable guardian and I will speak with you in the morning. I pray your friend is as safe as he seems," he said turning to lock the door securely on the night.
Author's note: Well I hope you all like Noai as much as do. She's honestly been one of my fav characters to write. I was never a huge Ami fan, but I really felt like she deserved to be a little more kick ass in her past life. The plot thickens with Diamond and his siblings. If you hadn't guessed before there is more behind what Diamond and his siblings are doing. I actually don't have a whole bunch of things to say in my notes this time so I think I'm done rambling, and we can do this again in two weeks. Cheers!