Disclaimer: I own neither the WITCH cartoon-show nor Jackie Chan Adventures; they are the property of their respective creators, writers, and producers.
Author notes: greetings, readers. Not a lot to say here, except my usual thanks to all the reviewers that take their time to read this story and leave a comment afterwards. Glad that you enjoyed it even with all the dark tones I put on it. This chapter, while continuing in the trend from 11, 12 and 13, will not be as dark as those. Having said that… what happened in Carhaiz?
Guardians, Wizards and Kung-Fu Fighters
Episode Fourteen
The Shift in the Chessboard
World of Meridian; Carhaiz; two years and a half ago
If there was something Meridian had in abundance; it was villages. It was actually pretty understandable, since almost anyone could gather a group of people, then take some tools and wood, and built a couple of houses around at the entrance of a forest. With time, more people would join in, and built more houses around the ones that were already built. Then they may create a road that connected the new village with other ones, or with one of the main roads of Meridian. Thus, the number of them around the outer ring of Meridian or even in the medium ring, where they usually didn't stay far away from the great cities; was countless. Many of them weren't even connected to the roads, their bystanders preferring a quiet life away from the main civilization; or even have a name for their home. The exception to that rule was, of course; Carhaiz.
Carhaiz had been the next step in the nobility's plans for the recovery of the peaceful, and (despite Phobos) functional kingdom that Meridian was before the war. The middle ring of the realm was at that time peaceful, and thus the nobility had decided to start to spread their influence towards the outer ring. It was Servantis the one that, like always, suggested caution and patience; since the outer ring was completely under the control of the smallfolk, and they were almost entirely sympathizers of the Rebellion and still hated the nobles' guts for the whole ordeal with the late Queen Weira. On top of that their life conditions had considerably worsened since the start of the war, especially at north and south. The snowy and harsh climate conditions of the north where snow fell almost the entire year, made the gathering of food for the smallfolk incredibly difficult, and since trade had become almost impossible under the tyranny, many died of starvation. In the south the problem came from other source. Phobos had struck a deal with some of the Lurden tribes, promising them lands inside the southern part of the Kingdom, near the Tower of Grendal. Four Towers named after the Four Knights, each marking the boundaries of Meridian in each Cardinal point. The tribes that the Usurper had struck the deal with crossed to Meridian from the Outer Lands to where the Escanor bloodline had banished them long ago, and travelled all the way to the Capital, mixing with the Prince's army and serving him. However, other tribes crossed the boundaries of the kingdom too, and settled down in the area around the Tower of Grendal, killing anyone that dared to be in their way. Thus, it was normal for the smallfolk of those zones to not trust the nobles, who aside their good intentions still were on the tyrant's side.
Things needed to be done with wariness, and so the idea of Carhaiz started to take shape in some nobles' minds. As time passed the idea grew more thought was put into it, and the village that Carhaiz would become was started to be built at the east. The village was supplied by the nobility until it could start producing food for itself, and citizens were started to be translated from poorer, less known villages around to there. In the end, Carhaiz started to become not only a functional town, but s symbol that things could go better for the population of Meridian even with someone like Phobos on the throne.
Then… then, one night like any other, came the fire. And with the fire, the screams of pain and terror of the individuals that were fast enough to run out of their houses in order to evade the flames. The ones that were left inside the burning and crumbling buildings didn't scream at all. But the people that evaded the flames had to contend with what was waiting beyond those. Because beyond the flames were blades. Swords carried by men; men that looked like demons came from the depths of hell thanks to the fire around them and that was consuming the town.
Screams filled the air, and as bodies of men, women, and even children fell to the floor while the flames devoured Carhaiz, a middle aged, white haired man named Ban ran towards his burning house evading as many rebels as he could, and the ones he could not evade he disposed of with a blacksmith's hammer, entering in his home by kicking the burning and practically crumbled door.
"Tristan!" the man yelled. "Tristan!"
"F-Father!" came the response from the then ten year old boy, one of his legs trapped under a fallen piece of debris from the house's ceiling.
"Tristan!" Ban shouted again, running to his son's side and leaving the blacksmith's hammer at his side. He took the piece of debris with both hands, and using a great effort, he lifted it slightly from the floor for long enough for his son to free himself and rise to his feet again. Then the father kneeled in front of the boy. "Tristan, are you alright? Where is your mother?"
The boy whimpered, and pointed to another mass of burning debris. Only then Ban noticed that there was something in the boy's hand, something that the boy was clutching with all his strength. It was a silver necklace, or what remained of it, since half the thing had been eaten by heath and ashes, deformed and discolored. But... but it was her necklace! Ban's eyes fell over the larger piece of debris, and sorrow colored them. He could almost see the scene. The mother taking her son in her arms, running away from the flames. The ceiling cracking and the woman pushing the boy away and sending him flying. The boy would grab his mother's necklace and take it with him. Then the burning debris would fall over both of them, trapping him and crushing her. The boy would look powerless to the woman that gave life to him die, but would nonetheless continue to clutch the necklace between his fingers, even if it hurt due to the heat.
Ban dedicated one last look at the pile that had to serve as his wife's grave one last time, making a small prayer to the Light of Meridian in a whisper. Then he grabbed his son's arm with one hand and took the hammer again with the other, and both ran out of the burning house. Once both had crossed the doorframe, they almost bumped into a man that was screeching like a howling hound and that was enveloped on fire. He was running randomly until he clashed into a wall of a nearby building that was also burning. Both flaming masses melted together thanks to the flames, and the screams stopped. Grabbing his son's arm even strongly, ban started to run in the first direction his brain judged less dangerous.
What was happening here? How could this happen? Had Phobos decided that the nobles' little pet project wasn't worth the effort? Or maybe it was a Lurden attack? Or perhaps it was a mere group of thieves, attracted to the prosperous new town like flies to honey?
His answer came in the form of three men that appeared and surrounded him and his son with what clearly was the intention of killing them both. One was carrying a short spear, the other two each a rudimentary axe, more fitting to cut wood than flesh, but they seemed to be doing their work great, as their edges were colored in the red of blood. It was their attire; however, what tipped both Ban and Tristan into who they really were. Lurdens were clearly not the answer, as the trio of individuals were obviously human… well, maybe there was a bit of Galhot blood there, but now wasn't the moment to be prissy about those matters. They were wearing clothing befitting of smallfolk, and yet wore some pieces of armors here and there. Not guards or any other soldier related to the crown; that was for sure. Thieves then? But why would a thief destroy everything instead of thieving? Then the only answer left was…
"Are… Are you rebels?" Ban asked, hardly believing his own words. Why would the Rebellion do this? They were supposed to fight against the crown and leave them alone, out of the damned war! That was what the nobles had promised! Had they lied to them?
The trio didn't answer, instead preferring to ready their weapons and charge at them. Ban put his boy behind him and prepared his hammer. He was lucky enough to block the strikes of the two axe-wielding rebels, but the spear of the third one ended encrusted in his left shoulder, piercing his flesh and making him bleed. Tristan's shouted then, and the scream of the boy was enough for the man to force himself to ignore the pain and move the hammer in order to break his opponent's arm. Then he and Tristan ran to one of the stone alleys of the town, where Ban dropped his hammer and kneeled in front of his son again. Yells and cursing were heard out of the alley, and the white haired man was sure that the… the rebels he had luckily evaded were calling on for help. He grabbed his hammer once again, and looked at his son in the eyes.
"Tristan, Tristan listen to me now…" Ban began.
"Father, you're bleeding!" the boy cried out. "I don't like this! I want mother! Why did we leave her under …!"
"Tristan!" Ban yelled, and using his arm, he pulled his son near to him in a half-hug. "Tristan, now you need to be strong, alright? I need you to be strong."
"B-But mom…" the boy protested, face buried in the man's good shoulder, eyes closed in order to not let the tears fall.
"I know," Ban said, tightening his grip around his child. "I know how it hurts. But now I need you with me, alright?" Ban pulled Tristan out of the hug and looked at the boy's eyes, now full of tears, once again. "Listen, because we don't have much time. You… you are going to run down this alley, and then out of the town. Do you know where Old Mogg sells the potatoes?" The boy nodded quickly. "Good, when you find that, you go on ahead and out using the small road that drives into the forest, understood?"
"B-But what… what about you?" Tristan asked, making half a smile to appear in Ban's lips.
"I'm sorry," the man said sincerely. The words felt like ash in his throat and mouth. "But I'm not going with you. Now listen to me!" the man said before the boy could cry more. "We will always be with you, your mother and I. No matter where you go, no matter how far away you are, and no matter how much these village burns; we will always be with you. And as long as you live, as long as you breathe and remember us, we will live inside your heart. Don't forget about us, don't forget about Carhaiz. Don't let them forget about what they did here." The yells of the rebels were sounding nearer and nearer, and the man pushed the boy away from him. "Now run!"
"Father!" the boy cried, and five individuals appeared in the entrance to the alley. Before even he was able to notice it, Tristan's legs were running.
"Run!" Ban yelled as he raised his hammer towards the incoming foes. "Run and don't look back!"
Tristan cried, but he obeyed his father. And as he left the screams and yells behind, he started to stop crying, opening his eyes as he ran and letting his tears to dry. As he ran and finally found Mogg's establishment, his face started to show a much different emotion than sorrow or despair. It started to show anger, an anger fuelled by the unending and yet each time quieter and quieter screams of terror of the population of Carhaiz. The anger grew and grew, it became wrath, and it made Tristan to grid his teeth like a rabid animal, his eyes hardening as he gave step after step, impotent to do anything to stop the screams.
Who? Who had done this? Who had buried his mother under mere dirt? Who had let his father to die in that alley? Who? WHO?! SOMEONE HAD TO PAY!
Tristan bumped into someone, and the little collision was strong enough to send him to the floor. In front of him stood a man with brown hair and a little goatee of the same color adorning his chin. His dark brown eyes were looking at Tristan from above, and an unsheathed sword was in his hand. If it was red like the others, that the little one didn't see.
"Who are you?!" Tristan demanded to know.
"I'm Julian," the man answered, raising his blade a little and giving a couple of steps towards him. "And I am a rebel."
The Infinite City; now
"What is the meaning of this?!"
Caleb's angry growl took everyone in the room by surprise. In the small chamber dedicated to hold meetings of the Small council, the 'Mage' had called for the remaining members in order to know how to proceed now that they were back at the rebel base. Torus Filney was theirs, that was true, but they had lost two rebel commanders in the process, and not to the enemy but to their own allies, one of them being executed by the rebel leader no less. Rhouglar's men had followed him out of his promises of satisfaction for their lowly desires; desires that now couldn't be satisfied so easily since Rhouglar had been executed due to satisfying his. As for Tharquin, rumors of him being killed by exactly the same species he warned about being killing monsters had already spread around the main rebel force; which meant some of them were much more reluctant to fight alongside a Shapeshifter than before. Some small groups composed of ten or fifteen men had started to distance themselves from the main army, and if they weren't leaving that was because they didn't want to risk getting lost in the Infinite City or being captured by Phobos' forces. Yet the tension was clear, the rebellion was passing over a moment that would mark its future from now on. So there were the 'Mage', Aldarn, Drake and Sephiria, all of them sitting in their usual spots in the table (now with two seats empty), the blonde rebel already having drank his third glass of wine. They were waiting for Caleb, but they weren't expecting for him to show up with the Guardians and Vathek. The incredibly loud scream wasn't part of their expectations either.
"Young Caleb," the 'Mage' addressed the young rebel leader. "What is the meaning of that question?"
Caleb answered by throwing a scroll over the table. Sephiria extended her arm and took it, while Drake served himself another glass of wine and sipped from it, Aldarn listening and the 'Mage' not taking her eyes off from Caleb.
"Read it," Caleb ordered Sephiria, his eyes locked into the ones of the 'Mage'. "Read it! It's Carhaiz."
Ah, big brother's usual weapon, knowledge; Cyrus thought while drinking wine, this time almost gulping the entire glass. Well, here we go. The breaking point.
Sephiria read a bit for herself, her eyes widening as she did so. She looked at Caleb perplexed, and then she lowered her eyes to the scroll again and read aloud. "Carhaiz used to be a small town in the outer ring of Meridian," the green haired rebel read. "Then, around eleven years after Phobos' coup… the Rebellion delivered a merciless attack over it. According to the testimony of numerous guards that served under Captain Raythor that day, the…" Sephiria struggled to continue reading; "the massacre collected the lives of almost every citizen in the village; be it men, women… and children. The rebels were, however, detained afterwards, and witnesses testify that captain Raythor was the one to execute the former rebel leader, Julian during the…" Sephiria's voice trembled again. "The numbers of dead bodies amounted to 231 men, 218 women and 67…" Sephiria emitted a sound similar to the one someone emits while puking, but she didn't puke. "Light of Meridian…"
"That's enough," Taranee said, walking towards Sephiria and putting a hand over her back in order to help her calm herself. Then again, the Fire Guardian had almost puked too when learning what had happened in Carhaiz from Vathek's mouth.
"From where have you…?" the 'Mage', surprise showing in her otherwise stoic face, asked.
"From Ludmoore," Vathek told her. "I arranged for it long ago, just after Raythor's demise."
"And you believe it?" Aldarn, who hadn't even flinched during Sephiria's reading, asked then, arms crossed over his chest. "The King Smuggler would say anything to get a couple of gold coins."
"You do not understand," Caleb said bitterly. His eyes were still fixed onto the ones of the 'Mage', green against green. "You weren't there, listening to what Servantis told us. About Weira, about the rebellion, about the nobility's true intentions! You weren't there when I met Tristan, the hatred in his eyes because we burned his home. But you knew, didn't you?" Caleb asked the 'Mage', who kept herself silent. "Even since I had use of reason, I have been here, fighting for the ideals this Rebellion is supposed to represent. My father and you told me about our 'heroic quest', about how Meridian needed to be freed from Phobos. But the ones raping women were in our side, the ones torturing girls were on our side," he gave a couple of steps towards the table and grabbed the scroll, practically shoving it in the Mage's face. "And the ones burning children were on our side! And you knew this; I know you must have known this! You told me that my father perished destroying a weapon of the tyranny that was being built in Carhaiz. And the Light of Meridian knows I wanted to honor him, I took leadership in his absence and I wanted to avenge him! And the man I threw down the Abyss of Shadows was only following his duty when he killed him! I blamed a man for something he didn't do, in base of a filthy lie."
"Your father was an honorable and great man, Caleb. He fought for the right cause;" Aldarn told his commander. "You can't shame him just because of some lie of…!"
"It's not a lie;" Drake cut him. "Carhaiz was a village we destroyed, negating that reality now would be an idiocy; but I must admit there was really a weapon there."
"And what was that?" the attendants hear Irma's voice from behind the rebel leader, along the other Guardians. "'Cause from here it looks like you were just a bunch of assholes."
"Hope. The weapon was hope," Drake explained. "Hope that even under Phobos' rule, people could live happily, that they could live well under the nobility's care. That hope that you can survive during a tyranny if you only lower your head… that was what we intended to end."
"And for that, children had to die?!" Caleb asked, enraged to the extreme.
"That wasn't part of the plan;" the 'Mage' said, and for once, the truth came out of her lips. "The original idea was to turn them to our side, to make them join us. If even the ones they nurtured and guided like sheep were to join the Rebellion, perhaps the nobility would stop to try and further their influence in the outer ring, from where we have gathered our main forces. In the end, the nobles desisted, albeit for a different reason that what we intended."
"That's it?" Caleb asked his fellow rebel. "For years I was told that we gave people hope, when in reality we take as much from them as Phobos does, maybe even more! And that's the explanation, just a miscalculation?! That's what resulted in the loss of innocent lives?! Nothing but a side effect of a plan you had?!"
"Was in your plans for Rhouglar to rape that noblewoman and leave her in the state she is in now? Or perhaps it was in your plan that Tharquin kidnapped Jade and tortured her? As I told you before," Drake said; "a Rebellion made of thieves and killers, will thieve and kill. The majority of our forces are smallfolk, and most of them come from impoverished areas. It… must have hit them really hard that there was a village that had so much just by bowing to Phobos while they sacrificed so much in order to stand against him. Envy and bitterness can be… very strong fuels for violence. Your father decided to accompany the envoy force we sent to Carhaiz in order to guarantee its success via peaceful means, but it seems he wasn't enough. You can't control every aspect of a war so easily."
"And yet, I knew nothing of this. Why didn't you tell me this?!" Caleb shrieked.
"Because you weren't ready;" the 'Mage' intervened again. "You were just a boy. In many aspects, you still are. You weren't ready, at the time of taking leadership, to carry that burden over your shoulders." I didn't want you broken so young, Nerissa thought. And yet here you are now, knowing about your father's deeds, another tiny sacrifice I must do in order to achieve the greater good.
"I wasn't ready?!" Caleb asked angrily. "Who made you the jury of that?! You, with your spells and your riddles! Telling us that we were saving this world! The man I put on a cell was doing a better job at saving anyone that you ever have!"
At that moment, something that no rebel had ever seen before happened. The 'Mage' slammed her palms furiously against the table she was sitting at, and looked at the young rebel leader with an anger matching his. "You dare to speak disrespectfully to me? You know who I am?" the glamoured Nerissa spoke in her disguised raspy and not-so-whispering-anymore voice. "I am the Mage. The Mage!" the table shook for a second under the power the Ancient One was radiating. Even Drake lost his composure, quickly grabbing the wine and putting it up in order to save it. No one had ever seen the Mage showing this kind of emotion before. "Who has the duty of protecting Meridian, but me? Who has been guiding the Queens of Escanor for generations? Servantis and the nobles may say that they look at Meridian's bigger picture, but I am the one with the burden or looking at the Known Worlds' bigger picture! What would happen if the nobles would have been left to their delusions of creating peace in Meridian while maintaining Phobos in power? Years would pass; maybe entire decades, but someday, Phobos would find his lost sister, and take the power of a Heart that resides within her! Then he would dedicate himself to conquer other worlds! How many would suffer then?
All the people in that room became frozen upon those words and over witnessing the Mage's rage. Caleb thought about her words for a second. Drake had said something similar to Taranee, hadn't he? That they must dirty their hands so others in the future had them clean?
"The Rebellion should know about Carhaiz," Vathek intervened after a while. "They should know what kind of…"
"No."
Every pair of eyes in the room turned towards Will. The redhead had remained silent the whole time, and now that she spoke she had shocked everyone.
"Don't get me wrong," Will said, her eyes falling over Taranee, knowing she would be the one with more problems with this. "What the Rebellion has done until now, with that Carhaiz, and Rhouglar and Tharquin; it's unforgivable. But I suppose Julian's image it's pretty important for the rebels, right?"
"Indeed," the 'Mage' answered after calming out. She really had a temper, didn't she? However, Will's words were enough to drag her out of it and focus on more important matters than justify her actions to her confused son. "Many of the men and women that join us everyday do it thanks to Julian's existence. They regard him as a hero, a symbol that even commoners can stand against the might of Phobos. If they knew his involvement at Carhaiz, then we would lose a lot of support."
"My father would revolve in his grave if he knew that;" Caleb said.
"I agree," Vathek said. "It's not honorable." It's not something that Julian would allow, he wanted to say too. But was that true? Considering what he knew now, had he really known Julian? Had he really known the Rebellion?
"But it's true," the Keeper of the Heart keep saying. "I have been thinking a lot after our talk with Servantis. About what he said about Phobos' mom not being suited to be Queen, and what he tried to do after the coup. It's stupid to think that the nobles aren't doing their best to better the lives of the... the smallfolk;" it was clear that Will struggled with the word; "under their care. And even if you said that Torus Filney needed to be conquered for whatever strategic whatnot, what we did in there, all the people that died… what if there is another way?"
"If you are suggesting that we can win this war without killing those who fight against us," Drake cut her, "then I will told you the same I told Taranee here…"
"I'm not saying that," Will cut him in retaliation. She breathed deeply. "I've killed. Jade has killed. And it feels horrible. But I can understand it was necessary."
"Will!" Taranee, still at Sephiria's side, protested. "We aren't weapons, we aren't killers! I'm thirteen years old! I refuse to…"
"I'm not a killer, Taranee, I'm not a monster!" the redhead said, recalling the words of the angry men that had charged at her after she had killed that man. "I won't ask you to kill children. I won't ask you to kill anyone, I won't force you to go there, I don't want you to go there, I don't want anyone there;" Will said, and the Heart of Kandrakar beat strongly against her chest for a second. "But can you go back to Earth knowing what happens here? Knowing you could have done more to save innocents, even if it meant dirtying your hands? Can you?"
Taranee looked at her side briefly, and then she looked at Will again. She looked at her leader, at her friend. "No," she answered. "I'll stay here." For you, and Jade, and the girls and Caleb; she added in her thoughts. And if any of you get too close to losing yourselves to this war's madness, I'll be the one pulling you out.
"Keeper of the Heart," the 'Mage' called for the redhead. Nerissa was getting actually interested in the turn this whole mess was taking. Carhaiz had been a defeat for everyone, and here it was again, years later from that fiasco that had coasted every side in this war so much, showing its ugly head in order to trouble everyone once again Perhaps the reveal of the atrocities committed there and the loss of the man she loved could end in a profit now? "What is your proposal?"
"You saved Jade," Will said. "I'm grateful for that, and I won't try to understand how your work is supposed to function. But this Rebellion needs to change, because if it doesn't and you depose Phobos, then you will find another Rebellion made out of all the Carhaiz-s and Torus Filney-s out there."
"And how would you change it?" the 'Mage' asked once again.
"If the nobles do care about the smallfolk," Will explained; "why not bring them to our side?"
"What?!" Aldarn asked. "That's ridiculous! They are our enemy!"
"Aldarn makes a point," Drake stated. "We have been at war with them for far more than a decade, and they have as much reasons to hate us as we have to hate them, especially after Servantis' fall. Good luck with making them to join us."
"We don't need all of them, just enough to create a proper army." Will told them both. "With two or maybe three..."
"And pray the Light of Meridian;" Sephiria intervened, now that she had regained some of her composure. "How are we going to accomplish that?"
"Let her explain," the 'Mage' ordered. "With the desertions we will have from the forces of Rhouglar and Tharquin after their deaths, this can be a good form to gather allies." And without Servantis around anymore to keep them together, some of the nobles will side with Phobos completely, but others won't; Nerissa thought as she smiled behind her glamour. A conclusion I already had reached to. And that now, she thought as she looked at Will; you have reached too.
"You worked at court," Will told the 'Mage'. "You know the nobles; you know how many of them think. I need to know that too;" Will sighed. "Then, if we understand them and give them what they want, we will be able to control them."
"Strike a deal with the nobles that are more sympathetic with our cause?" Drake pondered. "Clever," the blonde man said. And it's nothing that could get in the plan's way, actually. In fact, it could help our little game, and raise enough conflict to speed things up for the first phase of the plan. Big brother is going to love it. "But how are you going to approach them?"
"That's why I need the Mage's help, and everyone's here;" Will aid. "But before…" she turned towards her friends and fellow Guardians. "I need to know if everyone's okay with this. I know it's not how none of us thought this whole 'being a superhero' would be, but I feel like if we don't do this then… then more innocent people will get harmed, or killed."
Cornelia looked at the redhead in front of her. She wasn't just asking for permission, or their approval, wasn't she? No… she was asking for help. The same conclusion seemed to have been reached by the Guardians of Air, fire and Water. One by one, all of them agreed to Will's idea and asked for her to explain what she had planned. Not out of pragmatism, or a desire for victory; but out of a desire to protect their friend and walk beside her in the storm. Of course, not everyone in the room was the same as the girls.
Cyrus Ludmoore decided to play along as he had done until now; and as he served himself another glass of wine, he started to think about which wording he would use to inform Charles of all this. Sephiria decided that this course of action was the best one to accomplish her duties. Vathek was thinking about making a hard decision or not; and Aldarn had already made his decision. Caleb… Caleb was still clutching that damned scroll. The reveal about Carhaiz, that his father had been unable to stop those atrocities and that he had thought of him a saint while committing the same failures Julian had… it made him hate himself. As for Nerissa…
Nerissa was smirking behind her glamour, said smirk getting bigger and bigger as Will proposed her plan of action. Well, well, well… the Fallen Guardian thought with pleasure. I knew you had potential Will, but I didn't know you had so much. Fate must be conspiring in my favor, at this rate I will just have to sit back and let you all do all the work until the Heart of Meridian comes back home. I should start to prepare that siphoning spell on that jewel…
Thirty five minutes later
It took them more than half an hour to get the plan designed and working. After the meeting everyone had left the room without too many words, everyone with too many things in their head to think about. Aldarn hadn't even directed a word to him, perhaps he was as troubled as his friend due to the revelations and what the plan entitled? Caleb had to admit it was a good plan, it was a good way of shortening the conflict even if it meant doing some dishonorable things... and it was something that he should have been able to figure out sooner. But no, the thought was at that time unthinkable. How could the Caleb of that time think about the nobles as potential allies? They were the enemy! And only now he thought about the dishonor implied in his actions, just because he had started to see them as people. He had nothing to call Will out on, after all she and the girls were just trying to fix a problem he had created. Like with Tharquin. And like with Rhouglar. He almost laughed darkly at that. Servantis' and Tristan's words came to haunt him once more, and Caleb found ironic that his Rebellion seemed to have done as much harm as good. He reclined his back against the wall and sighed.
He was in one of many small and lonely passageways of the Infinite City now, near enough to the Rebellion's camp to not get lost but far away enough to not get bothered by others. He liked this place, it provided solitude when needed. He had found it as a child, after one of his training sessions with his father. His father...
Julian had been the one to fill his head with stories about Ser Grendal, Ser Hoel, Ser Brandis and Ser Didier; about King Escanor, Queen Leryn and Meridian's age of heroes. But Drake had been right, heroes and villains were things of tales and songs for children, and he had thought himself in one. Look at what he had done to Raythor, and Raythor hadn't been at fault at all, just a man following his duty, even if serving under the wrong master. Like Lothar, and all those soldiers. Tristan's face came to his mind again. Had he looked at Raythor with those hateful eyes too? But there was a difference, since Tristan's hatred was, at least, justified. Why hadn't Raythor told him the truth? Would have that mattered at all? Probably not. 'Lies of the tyrant and his minions' he had called anything escaping their mouths, no matter how much sense it made. What a foolish boy he had been, for thinking himself an honorable man when not being one.
"Penny for your thoughts, pretty face;" he heard a voice then. Looking up his eyes fell over Cornelia, who waved at him awkwardly. How had she been able to find him? Oh right, Earth Guardian. From all of them she was the one that could easiest move in the Infinite City, sensing the people in the halls with her powers. She was still dressed in the same greenish jersey and lavender long skirt that she had brought from Earth. "Mind if I sit with you?"
Caleb shook his head and the blonde Guardian, or more accurately blonde girl since she still was in her human form; sat at his left. While Caleb sat with his legs stretched and opened, Cornelia sat down and put one leg gracefully over the other, crossing them.
The two of them didn't say anything for a while, Cornelia drumming her palms over her knees a bit before asking. "So? What's up in your head?"
"Too many things," Caleb answered. He really didn't want to do this right now. "What about the others?"
Cornelia shrugged. "Will's still with the Mage, Irma insists on seeing Jade, Hay Lin and Taranee are speaking with Yan Lin, Tohru and Uncle, I think. Jackie must still be at Jade's side. And Vathek..."
"Do you know my father and Vathek were the closest of friends?" Caleb said abruptly. He had thought of not talking, but the words were coming almost by themselves. "When I was a child they would spent a lot of time together, laughing and drinking. I think Vathek was the only man that was able to make jokes at my father's expense. All the others talked to him with either admiration or respect. They talked of him as if he was the hero of an old song come to life, and I think I saw him like that too. But Vathek... Vathek knew the man; in the same way Aldarn has known me. I think one of the reasons he volunteered so many years ago to become our infiltrate in the castle was because he thought of it as a favor to his friend. This whole revelation… I suppose it must be hitting him in the same intensity yet differently than it's hitting me." Caleb stopped and put his hands together, interlacing his fingers. "Meridian knows I tried to be like him, that I tried to carry on with his legacy once the Rebellion's leadership fell upon me."
"Maybe that's the problem, Caleb;" Cornelia said. "Who said that you should be like your father?"
"Everyone," Caleb continued. "Of course they didn't say it, but none wanted a boy leading them. However, they were pretty eager to be marching behind the 'Son of Julian'. It's exactly as Will said, my father's image does bring people to our side. And I tried to be at the level of that image, trying to prove myself worthy of my father's pride… even if he is dead, and what he did."
"You heard the Mage and Drake," Cornelia told him. "Your father was…"
"How do I know if that's true or it isn't?" Caleb cut her. "How do I know what is true or false anymore? Was my father a hero that fought against a tyranny? Then why did he permit for people like Rhouglar and Tharquin in? Drake said it was just pragmatism, but what if he was just pursuing his own plans like so many others? What if he was only a man trying to do as best as he could with what little he had?" Everything had been far easier before he had jumped into that Portal and he had met them all. The Guardians and the Chans had made his entire world to turn upside down. But he couldn't be angry at them for that, and he supposed he should be grateful. If they hadn't opened his eyes, then he would be celebrating their conquest of Torus Filney right now, singing. "It's all so…"
"Complicated?" Cornelia helped him to end the phrase. "You know what my plan for high school was? Go to school, win more ice skating matches, spend time with my friends, and maybe get a boyfriend or something. But no; Will appears one day at school, and next thing I know I'm in Hay Lin's family restaurant and her grandma just tells everyone magic's real and that we're some kind of mystic warriors, and then Jade pops up too, and Jackie's giving us Kung-Fu lessons… and now I'm fighting a war." Cornelia paused a moment, and stopped drumming her palms against her knees. "Maybe we should accept that the world… or rather worlds' in this case, are complicated, and that the people over them are complicated too. Doesn't that mean your father was complicated too?"
"You are speaking as if you know for what I'm passing;" Caleb told the blonde. She had all the reason in what she had said, but he wanted to know why.
"Maybe I do," Cornelia told him.
"How?" the young rebel leader asked.
"Taranee told us that you bought the guns from a man named Chang," the blonde said, and Caleb nodded slightly. "You know, in Earth selling guns it's illegal. It's a crime."
"It is?" Caleb asked in a sincerely confused manner. Why would it be a crime to sell weapons? Meridianites sold weapons all the time, be either the blacksmith that made them or another that just put them in sale, swords, axes, spears, bows and arrows, all of them and from the lowest to highest quality could be bought in Meridian. However, considering what those guns, as the earthlings called them, could do; he supposed that there was a reason behind that decision. Also, it meant that he had been cutting deals with another criminal. Fantastic…
"Yes, but that's not the matter," the blonde Guardian said. "That Chang guy… how did he look like?"
Caleb shrugged. "Not an elder, but yes older than many adult men I know;" the rebel leader explained. "Not very tall, slim… the trait that gathered the most attention was a…"
"A green hand instead of a normal one?" Cornelia asked.
"You know him?" Caleb answered with his own question.
Cornelia raised her legs and hugged them, putting her head over her now raised knees. It was if she was trying to hug her own self. "I think my dad works with him, or for him… or something. That Hak Foo guy, the one who stole the red Oni Mask, works with them too."
Caleb remained without saying a word. Instead, he kept listening to what Cornelia wanted and needed to say. She had listened to him, after all.
"It's not so easy being me, you know?" the Earth Guardian said, more for herself than anyone else. She looked sideways to Caleb, to the scar that adorned his pretty face. It didn't look bad on him, for that matter. When he had appeared tumbling out of that portal, she had thought of him as nothing but a pretty face. Now… he seemed as the only person who would understand. "And everyone thinks it is. That I'm just this hyper-competitive girl obsessed with clothes and boys, that I think myself perfect. But it's not so simple. Sometimes I feel as if I'm in some sort of shell that I've built around me. I mean, I do enjoy winning, I enjoy ice skating, I enjoy being pretty most of the time; I'll be a total liar if I said anything else."
"But?" Caleb asked.
"But sometimes I think that's everything people think there's to me;" Cornelia continued. "That everyone just sees that and claps now, but that they are waiting for me to fail and fall, and then just laugh. That's the reason I don't like losing, or failing. And the worst thing was that a tiny part of me felt like I was doing it for my dad. Everyone around me said how awesome he is, and I just felt that I shouldn't be less. And I was such a bitch to everyone in school that reminded me of how I really am… I mean, look at how I reacted to Will and Jade at first, and to all this Guardian things when it popped out, just because I was afraid it would ruin my perfect, little bubble. And now my dad turns out to be working with… I don't even know what they are."
Both of them remained silent for a long time afterwards. Then Caleb put his left arm over Cornelia and pulled her towards him. She ended resting her head over his shoulder, and the two kept staring ahead, silent.
"The world is complicated," Caleb said at last.
"World's complicated," Cornelia repeated. "People are too. That… should include our fathers, right?"
The rebel leader didn't answer, but he kept hugging her. No other word was said between the two until they left the hall that Caleb had been using as his secret fort of solitude since childhood. Not that any word was needed, anyway.
In another section of the Infinite City…
"Damn it!" Aldarn yelled, punching a wall in another section of the Infinite City. It as a chamber devoid of any other rebel aside from him, his only company his loyal Hoogong mount, one of the few the Rebellion had now, at least until they captured and trained more. The animal answered to his yell with a bit of agitation, even if it was accustomed to the chaos of battle already.
Aldarn retired his fist from the greenish wall, looking at how it had left a mark over his knuckles. Small drips of blood were starting to show in them, so he decided to stop. The nobles, they had decided to pact with some of the nobles! Manipulate them or not, this was basically the same as asking for their help! The help of the men that were leading the enemy armies in Phobos' stead, the same armies that had occasioned so much pain to them! And now they were willing to pact with them, just thanks to the words of someone like Servantis, who was a nobleman himself! How dared Caleb to say that he was right while shaming Queen Weira! This… this wasn't right! He had been listening to the Keeper's plan in silence, hoping that Caleb, the Mage or even Drake would protest to it. But they hadn't! They had all agree to it, even calling it the best course of action! Rhouglar raping that woman had been unforgivable, and what had happened in Carhaiz… Aldarn had admired Julian too, but even for him it was clear that the Rebellion had taken a bad turn in the past. However, in total opposition from Caleb, he was able to see that the Guardians weren't the solution; that they weren't the solution anymore, and that perhaps they hadn't been the solution to begin with. What the Rebellion needed now, after all the pillaging wasn't for a search of help between the enemy's lines. What it needed right now, in Aldarn's opinion, was a purge.
He approached the wall and retired a fake portion of it to reveal a little hiding spot. He reached inside the hole and took a wooden box out. Behind him, his Hoogong flinched and grew more agitated, especially after he opened the box and revealed what contained. 'An old relic from our family, we who are direct descendants of Ser Hoel, of the Four Knights'; that was what his mother used to tell him while holding this… thing in her hands. She had never left him to play with it, and now he hoped his mother's concern hadn't been unfounded.
He approached the agitated Hoogong and patted the big animal in the neck in order to calm it. Then he made a fast movement and put the Mask over the animal's visage. Between screams of pain, the trinket ended wrapping itself around the cranium of the Hoogong, giving the animal blue scales instead of feathers. The animal calmed down afterwards, and looked at Aldarn with a tilted head and predatory eyes, even if the Hoogongs weren't known as carnivores.
So it is not a fake, Aldarn thought as he pulled a dagger out of his back. He approached the Hoogong and patted it again. "I'm sorry boy, but sacrifices need to be made;" the rebel muttered. Breathing a couple of times in order to gather courage, he passed his hand over his own bald head for a couple of seconds, feeling the scales that ran through his skin from in some spots. He sank the dagger in the Hoogong's neck afterwards, hugging the animal tightly while it bleed out and screamed in pain, fear, and confusion. A single tear fell from Aldarn's eyes as the blood from the animal dirtied his clothes, which he reminded he should change afterwards. The animal's strength seemed to had increased and for a moment the shadows of the room enlarged themselves as if they wanted to come to the rescue of their new master. However, after a couple of more seconds of struggle, the animal died and the Mask fell from its face by itself, the shadows returning to their previous shape. So a Mask was useless if worn by a dead body. That was important.
Aldarn sat in the ground and took the relic. My weapon, he thought of it. The Rebellion's weapon. He kept staring at it, at how… monstrous it seemed. The blue scales gave it an eerie appearance, mouth opened as if screaming a war cry, fangs sharp and pointy, no trail of hair over it, in contrast with the one that Ludmoore had auctioned and Lothar had worn. He put it back in the box, but decided to keep it with him from now on. Such a powerful weapon shouldn't be left out there for anyone to find and use recklessly.
Dedicating one last glance to the fallen Hoogong, Aldarn got out of the room; leaving the corpse behind. He would change his clothes and dispose of them, blame the killing of the Hoogong to one of the men loyal to Tharquin or Rhouglar and that seemed to be leaving the rebel base. He would wait for the ideal moment to strike, and then he would don the Mask and he would have the Rebellion he had dreamt of. Meridian needed the rebellion, and he had come to the conclusion Caleb wasn't able to lead anymore. Now it was his time. And as he left the chamber behind, the shadows seemed to whisper in his absence, leaving a name echoing though the walls.
Killer of a Hundred Men Ikazuki…
Irma Lair; near Jade's room
Irma Lair wasn't a girl for meticulous plans. She had jumped into being a Guardian because it sounded awesome; it had been awesome to fly and shot water to giant, talking snakes; evil wizards, and shadow ninjas, and she liked it. Right now, it seemed that it meant a lot more responsibility than before. That was the reason she had agreed with Will's planning, not only because she liked to leave the thinking to others while she just punched (or in this case, shot water at) things or people, but because she thought that the redhead was the best suited for this situation. Speaking of said redhead, Irma had to admit she had come really far in a very short time. Months ago, when she had arrived in Heatherfield, she could barely stand to Corny's bravado. And now here she was, she had kissed a guy, she had lead the team in fights, and now, even in human form, she had been able to come up with a plan that, regardless of needing elaboration alongside the Mage, was pretty astonishing. Was it the result of killing a man and not wanting for any other of the girls to pass and suffer such a situation? Probably. But with that matter taken care of, Irma had time to do something she had wanted to do since they had come back to this creepy underground city, or whatever it was. That was, of course, seeing Jade.
Jade… Jade had come really far in a short time too, but in it had resulted in something bad. Irma had to admit both of them were pretty similar, with all the wanting to live adventures, and be strong and awesome… who wouldn't want that? But while Irma had gathered admiration while becoming stronger, Jade had become the target of a monster. God, she had wanted to kill him. She was sure that, had Tohru not stopped her she would have killed him. Pour water in his mouth until he couldn't breathe. But in the end it had been Jade who had delivered the finishing blow, in a very frightening way, to be sincere. Then again, was it reprehensible? No one would miss someone like Tharquin, not her at least. Not after what he had done to her friend. But it was the fact of how Jade had done it, of how wrong it had looked to her, what was troubling Irma. That was the reason she was here now.
She had stopped right into the door to the room the Mage had left Jade in, alive yet still sleeping, recovering from the wounds that bastard Tharquin had inflicted on her. What should she say, what could she say? She extended her arm slightly towards the door, which was opened just a crack. Before she could reach it, however, she heard voices inside the room. Agitated voices. Even if it could be considered insensitive, she decided to peek inside. What she found herself looking at were Jade, still conscious and lying semi-incorporated over the bed, clothed in nothing but her underwear; and Jackie sitting in a chair in front of his niece and giving his back to the door. They seemed in the middle of an argument.
"You can't be serious, uncle Jackie!" Jade yelled. "I just… woke up and you come here with all this, and…"
"Jade," Irma heard the man. He sounded tired, very much so. "Jade, I know this isn't something you want to talk about, but I want you to understand…"
"What's there to understand?" Jade asked. "Look at this!"
She turned slightly around, so Jackie could see her back. Irma was able to see it too. Scars, a dozen of them for that matter, all over the girl's back. It seemed that the Mage had been able to save her life, but not leave her body without marks. Her heart skipped a beat upon seeing them, and her contempt for the deceased Tharquin grew.
"Look at what he did to me," Jade said bitterly. "He deserved to die!"
"Nobody deserves to die," Jackie said, and Irma could feel the anger mixed into his voice. "He deserved to spend the rest of his days in a cell, day and night dedicated to think about the horrible things he had done to you!"
"Oh, oh, oh! I get it now!" Jade said, smirking a bit. "So uncle Jackie wants to talk to me about ethics, and honor, and that the best fight is the one not fought. Tch! Do you wanna talk about integrity? Fine! You do it after you've told Cornelia that you and her dad work for the mafia!"
Cony's dad works for what now? Irma thought in shock. The conversation between uncle and niece seemed to have died there, as the Water Guardian saw Jackie rising from his seat, clearly with the intention of leaving the room. She was quick to leave her spot in the door and hide behind a corner, waiting for a too lost in his thoughts Jackie to notice her to pass by. Then she walked towards the door again, this time opening it completely. She entered and her eyes met with Jade's.
"Irma?" the girl in the bed asked upon seeing her friend, dressed in an orange t-shirt covered by a bluish vest over it and a pair of jeans of the same color.
The Water Guardian closed the door behind her and gave a few steps ahead in order to get close to Jade. The fact that the wolf-girl was practically naked didn't help to the lower her tension. "Hi," she said awkwardly. "I… saw Jackie in the way here. He seemed angry."
"We were speaking about Tharquin," Jade said. "I don't want to talk about that anymore, sincerely. How're the others doi-?"
Before Jade could finish the sentence, Irma did what she knew best; giving in to her emotions. Next thing Jade Chan knew was that her face was buried in Irma's chest and that the Water Guardian was hugging her strongly. Jade would have found the situation pleasant in any other moment, but now it had surprised her too much.
"Irma, what the heck?!" the Ben-Shui reincarnation asked.
"You idiot!" the brunette said as she hugged her tighter. "Do you know how scared we all were? You almost… almost…" Irma ran her hand over Jade's back. The complete different sensation that the skin and the scars produced under her touch was too weird. Scars that would always be there, that would always accompany Jade to wherever she went. "You…" Irma muttered, but she wasn't able to finish her own sentences. Instead, she let her body speak for her and kept hugging Jade.
As for the Chan girl, after the initial surprise had disappeared, she closed her eyes and gave into the hug, enveloping Irma with her own arms. She could feel Irma touching her scars, scars like the ones Tharquin had, like the ones he inflicted upon himself. It felt like a bad joke; even with the man dead she would always bear a reminder of what her pigheadedness had cost her. Lady Báthory had been right; she had been acting like a fool. This wasn't like those adventures with Jackie; this was something far more serious. She had killed a man. She… hadn't even thought about what repercussion that would have; she had done it even if he couldn't defend himself. And she didn't feel guilty over it. It had felt so… easy. But she had yelled to Jackie just for pointing out how dangerous that mentality was, for Christ's sake! She should apologize… later. Right now, it felt good to be where she was.
Jackie Chan
You are a failure. You know that, don't you? What are you going to tell to your cousin when he wants to see his daughter again? Are you really going to deliver a killer to him? Are you? You are pathetic; a voice inside Jackie's head told him in a mocking tone, a product of his own guilt. Who had been the one letting Jade to fight a war? Who had been the one agreeing to let teenage girls to throw themselves into this nightmare? He! He had been the one! And the worst part was that he had had the nerve to talk to Jade like that, about codes and integrity... and it made him feel like a hypocrite. He had been the one telling Will that she couldn't run from this situation; he had been the one letting Jade to go with the girls into their missions. He hadn't voiced any objection to those missions in the first place! The archeologist knew that anything related to magic would always be extremely dangerous. If Will and Jade had just been hurt; he could handle it even if he felt guilty over it. But this, this was a complete different story.
They had killed; they had taken lives. This scenario… he didn't know how to handle it. And he had had the nerve to lecture Jade around the whole thing. He felt as if the code he had followed his whole life had become suddenly outdated, and that he was the child now.
"Uncle knows that face. It's the face nephew does when doesn't know if he has done something stupid or not. Probably he has, but Uncle always needs to tell him!"
Jackie had started to hear the sound of footsteps following him from five minutes ago, but he hadn't noticed that the person following him was his elder. The archeologist didn't even turn his head around, instead slowing his pace in order to let the old man to walk at his side.
The two men walked side by side for a while, without uttering a word. They had lived too many years together, they knew each other too well. Words weren't needed between these two men, yet sometimes they were welcomed. This was one of those situations.
"So? Does Uncle need to sit you down like when you were a child?" the old Chi Wizard asked. "If nephew does not talk, Uncle can't help him."
"What kind of people throws teenagers into a war?" Jackie asked. He was both talking about Kandrakar and about himself. "Without consideration, without any warring or second thought or without worrying at all."
"Nephew did worry," the elder remarked.
"And what use did it have?" Jackie retorted. "Both Jade and Will have killed people. I understand that they didn't do it in cold blood... but it goes against everything I believe. Worse, the way Jade talked to me... it feels as if what I believe in it's not relevant anymore."
"Maybe," Uncle said as he put his hands at his back.
"Maybe?" Jackie asked. That wasn't the type of answer he was expecting.
Uncle breathed deeply. "Remember how Uncle used to drink only coffee before? Uncle reaaaally disliked tea. Then Tohru came along, and Uncle discovered that his new apprentice could make really good tea. So now Uncle likes both tea and coffee. He drinks both of them often, sometimes between very small time lapses, in order to balance the effects they have upon Uncle's body! I think that right now nephew just became tea and niece became coffee;" the old man paused for a few seconds to catch his breath. "Meridian is at war, that and what repercussions it entitles, nephew must have known;" Uncle said. "It's normal for nephew to worry, it's normal for nephew to have doubts about his way of life. But that doesn't mean niece and the Guardians have to follow it, or that he should abandon it. Perhaps nephew should maintain his way while being enough open-minded to accept niece's way at the same time, and be at her side in order to balance her."
"Balance her?" Jackie asked.
"Be here for her," uncle told him. "And don't criticize her actions when not needed, try to value them for what they accomplish. If you try to pull her away from her trials now, then you will only push her away from you and further into the darkness."
"But she… Auch!"
"Killed a man?" Uncle said after dope slapping Jackie. "Yes, she did, and using Blood Chi Magic no less! Uncle will investigate how she figured to do that so fast, and of course nephew should make clear that there was a problem with that. But Alistair Tharquin was an evil man, one that really hurt niece, and nephew didn't have any problems when niece blew Shendu up!"
Well, that was true. He hadn't criticized her in the slightest when she had destroyed the Fire Demon's statue form, even when that resulted in another seven demons trying to run free from the Netherworld.
Jackie felt how Uncle's hand landed over his shoulder, and looked at the elder's face. The old man was looking at him with a very serious pair of eyes behind his glasses. "People that walk the path of the Ben-Shui and the Guardians are prone to a lot of situations that test their souls and minds' endurance. If you are not here for them, then no one will. Because both Uncle and nephew know that this is not something they can walk out from now. So if you don't want them to fall into the dark, then the best you can do is stay at their side."
"I just want to protect them, to do the right thing;" Jackie told his elder. "It shouldn't be so complicated."
"Then nephew should try to counsel them," Uncle said, "guiding them into the right direction, not overprotect them. Uncle has more probabilities of dying in this war than them, and he's not even fighting it!" the old man joked, albeit he regained his serious demeanor shortly after. "The problem with cousin Yan's generation was that no one was there to serve as their guide. And cousin won't admit it, she is more stubborn than you think, but that was one of the reasons she called us here."
Jackie let out a long sight, and the both continued walking. What Jade had done… while understandable, wasn't justifiable. The same thing could be said about the Rebellion, the same could be said about people like Raythor, or like Harold. 'Because you can only think in black and white', the words of the banker sounded inside his head yet again. Perhaps it was time to try a different approach.
Jade Chan
Irma had left around fifteen minutes ago, and she had been considerate enough to bring Jade's clothes with her and leave them at her bed's side. She had closed her eyes again when Irma had exited the room, trying to find her past lives; but they hadn't come. Maybe they didn't want to talk? Or perhaps they were discussing with each other? Irrelevant, perhaps it wasn't even one of those options. Perhaps it was just her head playing tricks on her, because every time she closed her eyes she saw him. Tharquin haunted her dreams now, sometimes as the old, bitter man he was, still carrying that damn whip of his. Other times, and worryingly more often each time she dreamed, he came to her very differently. In those nightmares, the Old Worm would appear before her as a pale skinned wraith, with empty eye sockets and the mouth open in a snarl, showing a blue tongue. Blood poured from both his mouth and empty eye sockets, and he would stretch his arm towards her, not in a malicious manner, but as if pleading for her compassion, which she would deny.
She had taken more time than usual to dress in her earthling clothes, feeling the scars in her back and how weird her clothes, her second skin, felt over her. Scars like the ones that scumbag had in his back.
God, she had killed him! Killed him! Killed him! Killed him! Killed him! And she had enjoyed it, hadn't she? No matter how much she tried, she couldn't deny that she had enjoyed killing that man.
He had it coming! she thought. He tortured me! He was a...
A what? A criminal? A is A, and scum is scum. That was what Quentin Ross had said. A criminal would be a criminal, irredeemable and immutable. That was so... simple. Nothing but an easy answer; that was everything that Ross' creed was. She had seen a boy, a scared boy, in those scars. And what about Cornelia's dad? Was he nothing but scum too? Wouldn't that make her the same? Irma and her had talked for long, the brunette sharing Will's plan with her. A good plan, intelligent one at that; but it was clear that Will had designed it in based on the soldier she had killed and the innocent people the rebels had killed at Carhaiz. Because Will had killed a man and the Rebellion had killed innocents, apparently. Wouldn't that make them scum too? And speaking of Will...
"Door's opened," Jade said aloud. "You can come in."
The door did open then, revealing Will Vandom behind. "How did you know?" the redhead asked as she crossed the doorframe and closed the door.
"Wolf's nose," Jade told the redhead, touching the part of her body in question.
"Ah," Will said plainly as she walked towards the other girl. While Jade sat in the bed's edge again, Will sat in the same chair Jackie had been using before. "Irma told me that you were awake. How're you feeling?"
"Better now," Jade said. At least physically, she thought. "And you?"
Will shrugged, letting her gaze descend to the ground, where the redhead was making the tip of her feet to hit each other.
"Irma and I talked," Jade said. "She told me everything. About Torus Filney, Rhouglar, Carhaiz... and that you killed a man."
"So have you," Will told her.
The two girls stared at each other for several seconds. Then Jade smirked and Will chuckled dryly. The two of them let out a pair of not-very-enthusiastic laughs, bordering in being plain sarcastic, or even sad.
"This wasn't what this whole thing looked like months ago, right?" Will muttered after the laugh. "Do you know... that I find hard to remember his face? Of the man I killed, I mean. I still feel like I took something irreplaceable from him, and from that man that called him brother. And then, you and Tharquin..."
"Tharquin was a monster," Jade said then. "But, you know? After all that talk we got with Caleb after Raythor, I feel like a real hypocrite now; because no matter how much I think about it, I can't feel anything for him, not because he was evil or something like that... but because I hated him;" Jade took a deep breath. "I wish I could forget about him. I dream about him sometimes, and no matter what happens, I always kill him. I sink my claws in him and I make him explode, or choke in his own blood. Tch;" the Chinese girl looked up and half-closed her eyes. "It's not how I imagined how all this would develop. That's the reason you're here, right?"
Will was the one to breathe deeply now. "Irma told you about my idea."
"Yeah, she told me about your plan," Jade said, using the word she thought better described what Will was doing. "You want to manipulate the nobles."
"Control them, yes;" Will told her. "Bring them to our side, some of them at least. I was discussing it with the Mage, gathering information about some nobles that we can bargain with. Some want more authority, some others are less comfortable than others with Phobos... then, there are others that..."
"Have families?" Jade asked, forcing Will to look directly at the eyes of the dark haired girl, who just tilted her head at the growing discomfort showing in her friend's face. However, she didn't speak in a harsh tone, actually sounding quite understandable. "That's the reason you're here. 'Cause I've got a reputation, right? I heard those soldiers in Torus Filney, screaming. 'The Black Wolf! The Black Wolf!' They were scared. And I'm the only one, besides you, that knows what's to kill."
Will didn't say a word, instead keeping her reddish eyes fixed in the almost golden, amber eyes of her friend. "No matter how much I think about the matter, I always get to the same point."
"The fear factor," Jade said, recalling the words from Tepes. 'My friends and I don't kill!' she had told Dracul back then. What an idiot she had been.
Will nodded. "Apparently, Rhouglar provided that, but now he's dead, and he was a rapist, a murderer. I think everyone did well calling him Mad Dog;" Will's hands gripped her pants. "Do you think I'm a horrible person?" she asked. "For asking this of you, after all you've passed. I can understand if you don't want to roll with it, but it's just…"
"No," Jade told the redhead, cutting her sentence. "No Will, you aren't a horrible person. In fact, I think it's a good point;" she said, and then raised a hand in front of Will. Jade closed her fingers and palm and made a fist, enveloping it in a chi as red as the one she had been coated while killing Tharquin. She had called for her magic many times since she had awakened, but it always came to her as red chi now. She suspected it wouldn't turn white anymore. "If you've power, what's wrong with using it to protect people? I always wanted to protect people, even since I met Jackie. Adventures, magic… all of them don't mean anything if you can't safe those that you care about; but it's clear Meridian's not a place for heroes," she said as her eyes hardened. "If you have power, you can make a difference, right? Even if you have to dirty your hands. I did make a difference back there, when I killed Tharquin;" Jade let a few seconds before continuing. "And I think that it was for the better, no matter how much I think about it. But why was Tharquin how he was? What makes a monster like him? So go ahead, tell me whatever you thought about, Will. 'Cause if you think I can use this power to change this rebellion to something better then I'll do it; because that's what I want to use my power for. If we don't so something now, then more Tharquin-s will be born. So go ahead, if you're determined to take matters in your hands and do it, even if it means dirtying them, then I'll follow you and I'll walk by your side. I'm your friend, after all."
Wilhelmina Vandom; forty seven minutes later
It had all gone better than she had thought. Jade had agreed to her decision, even encouraging the redhead to be brave about her decision. This was a war, and torus Filney had proved her that harsh decisions needed to be made in order to win. But she won't be as stupid as Caleb had been. She won't burn cities to ashes; she won't rape women, or kill children… because that was nauseating and proper of animals. So she would try to minimize the losses; even if she knew that she couldn't save everyone. The Heart of Kandrakar beat slowly over her torso, always reminding her of who she was. Keeper of the Heart and the leader of WITCH. Whose idea had been to give her the jewel, and why? How was she special?
She had killed a man.
But it was her responsibility, right? Yes, for someone like Will Vandom, the fact that someone had been willing to put so much responsibility over her shoulders felt not only stressing but also… good. It meant someone was confident in her abilities, whichever they were.
She had killed a man. that she didn't want to kill. Why? Because she wasn't in control. And she wouldn't let it happen again. And for that… for that she needed to be in control of the situation, know every detail, and manipulate them in her favor. That was something that she had accepted. It still didn't ring well inside her head, but she had accepted it needed to be done. The Mage had told her that it was her duty, as chosen bearer of the Heart of Kandrakar; to make decision others couldn't, even if it meant to lie or manipulate them. That was the reason she was here now.
Finding Vera and her girls hadn't been extremely hard, since the former residents of the Red House were in the rebel base, yet maintained themselves a bit distanced from the main mass of people. Drake had been kinder enough to accommodate them in a small side-chamber to the main, enormous one that served as the rebels' camp (the redhead wondered how big this underground city really was. Did it travel under the whole planet, like a blood system?); and assign a group of five of the men that were under his direct command to guard the entrance. Considering that some of Rhouglar's followers were still around and that they surely took after their deceased commander, then the Keeper of the Heart understood the decision perfectly. However, they let her in after giving a look at the pendant hanging from her neck. A useful device the Heart of Kandrakar even in what entitled non-magical matters; opening almost every door to the redhead just by showing it around. When Will entered the room, she spotted the former mistress of the Red House sitting at a table. Unfortunately, she wasn't alone.
"Say 'Ah…'," Gentle Vera instructed the woman in front of her while preparing a spoon full of some kind of bluish liquid. Was it soup? Will hoped it was soup.
"Ah…" Ishol Servantis said, opening her mouth. The elegant clothes she wore as a noblewoman had been ditched in favor of a commoner's attire that didn't suit her too well; her hair badly tied into a ponytail that let the scar resulted from a healed wound in the side of her head to be seen. Another product of Rhouglar's abuse, surely. The former noblewoman closed her mouth over the spoon, swallowing the food in it happily.
"Now that's a good girl!" Vera complimented her in the same exact manner Will suspected her mother congratulated her when she was a baby and she ate her food properly. "Here, let me…" Vera said, cleaning one the sides of the noblewoman's mouth with her own sleeve. "That's better."
"Vera?" Will asked softly, not wanting to upset the woman. The mistress loked at her for several seconds for then rose from her seat, snapping her fingers so one of the whores would came and take lady Ishol with her, promising her to play. The fallen noblewoman giggled like a child would do, and followed the other woman happily.
"Well, well; if it isn't the dominating one;" the woman told the teenager. "If you want me to help you with your clothes again, then I cannot. And you really need help, you dress incredibly strange;" she said, referring of course to Will's earthling attire. "What do you want?"
"How's she?" Will asked, nodding slightly in Lady Ishol's direction. The noblewoman was now sitting on the floor, playing with a bunch of wooden figures under the care of one of Vera's girls.
"The woman is gone," the mistress told Will. "The only thing left is someone akin to a child. She cannot even talk properly."
Will shivered. What the hell had Rhouglar done to… no; she knew exactly what Rhouglar had done to her, just not with how much intensity. "Can we… talk for a second?"
"Of course," Vera answered as the two of them distanced themselves from the other girls. "What is it?"
"Are you familiar with other Red Houses across Meridian's medium ring?" Will asked her. "The ones in great cities like Lannion or Fallbottom?"
Vera thought for a few moments before answering. "I think so. Last time I was in Lannion I talked a bit with the woman in charge of the Red House there. She was pretty funny. Why?"
"Could you get some of your girls, or you; inside them?" Will asked. "Or maybe arrange a meeting between those women and me and the other Guardians?"
"If given enough time and resources, yes;" Vera answered, and Will knew that resources meant money. "Is this some other favor for the Rebellion?"
"No," Will said seriously. "It's a favor for me."
Vera shrugged. "Alright. It's not that I'm not accustomed to serve women either. I will talk with some of my girls, and if you can provide them with escorts until Lannion and Fallbottom, then you will have your meeting. I will talk with you later."
"Thank you," Will told her, turned around and started to leave.
"Now where is that damn knife?" Will heard Vera asking. "I swear I left it here! I need it to cut the meat!""
Unknown to any of them, Ishol clutched her sleeve when no one was looking at her.
Gareth Mountainson; a couple of hours later
Gareth was, in all meaning of the word, an opportunist. When he had first joined the Rebellion, he had looked for the role in which he could take more from. He had ended under Rhouglar's orders because men like Rhouglar let you to do as you pleased as long as you killed when he told you to kill, drank when he told you to drink, and looked in another direction when he abused some woman, if you weren't eager to join him, that's it. Gareth had joined the rebels because he thought he could make a better living (ergo, gain more gold) there than lost in some mountain taking care of some sheep. So far, he had been proven right, since Rhouglar let them to take the belongings of the people they killed, and Gareth sold them to the ones that better paid. Heck, he had been able to make deal with the King Smuggler himself! And he had to admit Ludmoore was the better payer of the bunch of rascals he had stroke deals with.
But now Rhouglar was dead. Meh, no one would miss him. But that meant Gareth had lost his main source of income. He hardly believed that any other rebel commander would let him to take 'spoils of war', as Rhouglar usually called their pillaging. He had even thought of joining Tharquin's parole of devote idiots, but they were too obsessed with the worshipping, the purity and the Light of Meridian and whatnots. And Tharquin had, apparently, ended dead too, sending said parole of devote idiots to escape in a hurry. Rhouglar's former men were in the verge of doing the same, wishing to return to their former lives of thieves in the outer ring rather than serve under more strict commanders, and for a second Gareth had been tempted to follow the new and self-appointed leader of the pack, Darry; a man almost as huge as Rhouglar and (if that was even possible) with less brain inside his skull. However, luck seemed to be on Gareth's side, since something unexpected had happened before they could leave.
A dark haired girl dressed in strange clothing had appeared and talked to them. Gareth knew her from seeing her at the Guardians' side, the Good Wolf, or at least the girl the wolf was while not being a wolf. Darry had been stupid enough to dismiss her, and even insult her. The girl, presenting herself as Jade Chan, (that was the name! He was horrible for names) had told him to shut up, and that she had an offer to make to them. Darry had reaffirmed himself to be more idiotic than Rhouglar when he had told her that he was in charge and that she didn't had a word with them. Then the girl's hands had coated themselves in red energy, and she had blasted Darry across the room. Magic, uh. Once in the floor, she had hit him with a kick in the ribs that had surely broken something. Oh right, Shapeshifters had quite the strength, even in human form.
"Anyone else wants to say something to me?!" Jade asked, adjusting her new orange hoodie after kicking that idiot's butt. "Yippie. Now, about that offer I talked about. Look at you, the Mad Dog's former pack. Not so strong anymore now without a leader, right? Man, it surely sucks to be you right now. If you stay here and mix with the others, you can't continue doing the same things than you did under Rhouglar. If you go out, you can get caught by the Princey's forces, and the rebels won't get easy on you if they catch you either, right?"
While some of his companions made distressed faces upon finally realizing how desperate their situation was, Gareth let one of his eyebrows to rise in curiosity. This girl seemed intelligent, vastly so. And she wouldn't be talking if she didn't want them to listen, or agree to her terms.
"But… today seems to be your lucky day;" the girl said as her lips formed a grin. "Because you all can get another shot at being rebels. Of course, there're going to be some changes," the girl in orange said, and as more words left her mouth, more grew Gareth's interest. "First," Jade continued; "you're going to answer to me from now on, except when I'm not here, when you'll answer to someone I left in charge. Second, that whole thing about raping women ends now. And if someone thinks he can do it again," Jade's right hand shifted into a black furred claw and enveloped itself in red chi, which she quickly pointed towards the fallen Darry's groin; "then that someone won't be losing his head but something way more precious to him."
Gareth heard how some of the others gulped; clearly the threat had been real and they knew it just by looking at her. He, instead; chuckled.
"Third, don't try running away from me;" Jade threatened again; "because I'll find you. I've already memorized each of your smells."
While the others were struggling with the decision, Gareth was quick to raise his hand and make the question that was most important. "Do we still get gold for this?"
Jade's smirk widened, and Gareth knew that she knew she had him. "Of course," the girl said. Damn, how old was she? He had only seen the Guardians in their magic forms and the wolf from afar, so he didn't know. Fourteen, thirteen? He was twenty six! But he wasn't so stupid to let this to pass over him just for something as trivial as age. If an opportunist couldn't take an opportunity…
Gareth gave a couple of steps and without doubt or saying any word positioned himself at Jade's side. Slowly, and one by one; the other seventeen men that were still alive from the group that had composed Rhouglar's personal band and inner circle did the same. But he had been the one to do it first, and Darry had been shamed, for not saying injured. Both Gareth and Jade smiled upon this. She had gotten her second in command, and he got to be second in command. And she knew that he knew that only she and her authority within the group guaranteed that. The hounds under Rhouglar were gone, no one would miss them. This was now a pack of wolves. And both Gareth and Jade loved it.
Hours later; the Small Council's room; Hay Lin
"So everyone has it clear?" Will asked aloud while sitting in one of the chairs at the table that one of the two deceased commanders had left free. Jade was sitting in the other one, and which one belonged to Rhouglar and which one to Tharquin while they were alive, that Hay Lin didn't know. It didn't matter.
The room was even more full of people than ever before, since not only were the Rebellion's commanders, the Mage and the Guardians here; but also Jade (who had, upon her arrival; received a storm of questions about her wellbeing that she had answered quite civilly) Jackie, Tohru, Mr. Uncle, and even her grandma. It was clear to Hay Lin that Jackie and Jade had things to talk between them thanks to the awkward glances they had shared, but the Air Guardian had been smart enough to realize that this was neither the place nor the moment for that.
"Clear as water," Caleb said in a serious tone, a sentiment that the 'Mage', Aldarn, Drake and Sephiria shared. Will's plan would last, according to the redhead, a month in order to get in action. Until then, the Rebellion would resume their guerrilla tactics, calling for them if the mission was incredibly important, or if they were going to deal with opponents that had access to magic abilities or weapons. Will had insisted, in spite of Taranee's loud protests, to keep the guns the Rebellion still had, arguing that they gave them a tactical advantage over Phobos' forces and bringing up the possibility that now all guards and Lurdens, for not speaking of the likes of Wong and Cedric; already knew of the guns and would be expecting them. Jade had, apparently, taken command over Rhouglar's remaining men, leaving a man named Gareth in command while she wasn't here; and the ones that had followed Tharquin like thoughtless robots had already left the rebel base, albeit not the Infinite City. And Jade's new… unit's, there was no other way to define it, first task was to find and capture them.
Will had judged it as a good idea. Why leave the Rebellion's most troublesome members under the care of people that cared first for them, and second for the Rebellion? Why not put them under the command of people that would put them in their place and control them effectively? And aside from all that, there was another, important matter to discuss…
"You want to find the true heir?" Aldarn inquired. "The lost Princess?"
"Why not?" Will asked. "She's the real heir to the throne, right? If she was in Meridian, then Phobos would've no right to sit on that throne. Plus she's supposed to be incredibly powerful, being the Heart of Meridian and all, right?"
"Indeed," the 'Mage' answered. "But finding her will be troublesome. Earth is a massive world, no doubt that was the primary reason that whoever took the Princess brought her there." Even if I already know her name, and that she is in Heatherfield, Nerissa thought. It would be so much easier to let Phobos gain Meridian's heart and then take it from him… That had been the original plan, actually, thirteen years ago. But no! Someone had to snatch the baby Princess away, and with her the power Nerissa had planned to steal. That and the rising of a Veil around this world, making the access to any other world that wasn't Earth impossible, had forced her to form the Rebellion around her beloved and her two years old son. It's irrelevant, however, who gains the Princess first, and who ends bearing her power; Nerissa thought. In the end, the Heart of Meridian will be mine, no matter which side of this war wins. Either Phobos or that Elyon will wear the siphoning jewel, and making them to surrender it to me will be easy.
"But perhaps the Keeper of the Heart of Kandrakar is onto something?" Sephiria intervened in her usual meek and polite tone. "The lost Princess is the Light of Meridian incarnate. That enormous power… shouldn't there be a way to detect it?"
"Perhaps," the 'Mage' said. Of course there is, you fool; Nerissa thought. "I shall investigate it and device a mean to which locate that power, but it will take some time."
"Then we'll be returning to Earth now;" Will said as she rose from her seat, since there was nothing else to discuss. She wasn't asking permission, she was clearly giving a command, a thing that obviously was perceived by the rest of the people sitting at that table.
You aren't even the one giving orders anymore, Aldarn thought as he saw how the Guardians, Yan Lin and the Chans left the place. His eyes were fixed in Caleb.
As for the girls and the rest of earthlings, they left the place in silence. Hay Lin made a quick nod to her grandmother, and Yan Lin replied with the same gesture. Of course the Air Guardian had told her what Will's plan was, and of course her grandmother had been worried. Hay Lin was worried too, these were his friends! Heck, Jade was her family! Her grandma would talk with her. Yes, she always was able to fix things when they turned in the wrong direction.
Later
"Will, a moment of your time; please?" Yan Lin asked to the redhead while the whole group walked through the halls of the Infinite City towards an exit from the underground labyrinth and into Meridian's wild. There they would use the Hearth to find a Portal and use it to cross back to Earth. However, now the party had halted, stopped by Yan Lin's question, many eyes fixed now in the Chinese granny. "Alone," she elaborated.
Everyone looked at Will then, expecting an answer; or perhaps a command? Sighing, the redhead nodded. "Sure," she then looked at both Cornelia and Jade for a brief moment. "Go ahead; we'll be there in a second."
The blonde and dark haired girl put themselves in the head of the group, leading the way and making the party to disappear after a few minutes. That left Will alone with Yan Lin, something that the redhead was clearly not enjoying, judging by her expression, her crossed arms, and the tension her body was showing. Will recognized when an adult wanted to give her a talk… and this looked exactly like that.
"Yes?" the redhead asked, leaning against a wall, one foot against it and the other against the ground.
"My granddaughter told me about," Yan Lin began, "what your plan for bringing some of the nobles to the Rebellion's side is."
Yes, of course she did; Will thought. She had no problem with Hay Lin, the girl was a sweetheart and she could practically transform a stormy day into a sunny one with her smile, but she tended to think that every person had another's best interests at heart, and that left her to think that sharing everything was good. That combined with the fact that the Air Guardian thought that her grandma was an infinite source of wisdom that could cast light over every doubt in order to solve it… it rubbed Will in a wrong way. "What about it?"
"While your plan can be considered brilliant," Yan Lin told the young Keeper of the Heart; "you ignored Taranee's warnings about using those guns."
"The guns are useful," Will said, putting a lot of strength in every word. "I don't like them, and I don't like what they do, but they're useful in a war."
"I'm not talking about that, Will;" Yan Lin said. "Ignoring a companion's plea it's not befitting of a Keeper of the Heart."
"And then what am I supposed to do?!" Will asked, rising her voice. It was clear that the redhead wasn't comfortable with this situation, or with the choices she had made, but no matter how much she thought about it… she found no other options. It was her responsibility, her duty.
"Will, I'm just trying to help…"
Oh, that had been the last straw. Will uncrossed her arms and stopped leaning against the wall, approaching the old Chinese lady. "You want to help me?! You want to help us?!" the girl yelled. From Yan Lin's point of view, the redhead teenager seemed in the verge of a breakdown, tears forming in her eyes due to the huge amount of rage she was showing. "It's too late! You were the one that gave me this jewel, and told me I was supposed to lead! And now that I'm doing it you back off? Don't joke with me! And the worst part of it, it's that you knew! You were a Guardian before us! You knew what kind of things we'll have to do, you knew the only reason we're here it's because Phobos attacked Zamballa! What if he hadn't?! Would we just be ignoring this world's suffering?!"
"Will, that's not…"
"Well, I can't!" the redhead continued with her yells, ignoring Yan Lin's words completely. "I can't ignore it, I can't just go back home knowing what's happening here, knowing how many are bleeding and dying here, and that I can make it stop, even if I have to make… incredibly hard decisions;" Will let out a bitter, sad laugh. "I need to save as many as I can… we need to do it. What kind of person would I be, what kind of Guardians would we be, if we couldn't?"
"And for that, you have to manipulate and use innocents in a scheme?" Yan Lin asked.
Will looked directly at the Chinese elder's eyes. For a second, Yan Lin wasn't looking at the redhead's reddish eyes, but to Nerissa's green ones. For a second, for old Yan Lin, it was impossible to tell the current Keeper apart from the previous one.
"If I can save them with that, yes. What else I'm supposed to do?" Will said. "In order to save as many as I can, yes, Yan Lin. I will manipulate them. I will control them. And they will obey."
With that last sentence, Will turned around and walked away from the owner of the Silver Dragon, stomping her feet on the ground. Yan Lin, meanwhile, put her hand against the wall, supporting her now tired body. The years always weighted more in these situations. She let out a tired sigh out of her mouth and looked ahead. The tensions within the current generation were escalating, and that brought sadness to Yan Lin's old heart. She started to walk, knowing that the others were currently waiting for them. The last words she said in the Infinite City were ones dripping with sorrow, a sentence that she had wanted to tell Will from the first moment she had worn the Heart of Kandrakar.
"You were supposed to be better…"
What Meridian's war was forcing Jade and Will to become scared me. It was as if Nerissa had split herself in half and each one had reincarnated as them. Jade was the part of my friend obsessed with magic, adventures and being a heroine, the part of her that ended obsessing over power and that wanted the entire universe bowing to her, loving her. Will was the other part, the Nerissa that had lead us in battle with more efficiency than a seasoned general, and that ended becoming a schemer, manipulator and liar. It scared me so much, the fact of how similar to my friend they both were, and also the possibilities that fact brought up. Would this generation end like the previous one? Or worse… was my friend right in some of the things we accused and condemned her for? Yan Lin
Long Author Notes: Greetings, everyone. I hope you enjoyed reading this one as much as I enjoyed writing it. We have, basically, reached the first half of this fic's cover of the first season, and everything that has been happening thus far, aside from presenting other secondary plots, has been building this up. The Rebellion, already damaged, has touched rock bottom, which means it can now only go upwards. The girls adapt to the truths and lessons they receive, and each does in a way. Each is right, but also wrong. The same can be said about Jackie and Yan Lin, for that matter. You know, when I started the drafts for this story and to create the overall plot line, I decided to turn each of the girls' greatest strengths in their greatest weaknesses too. Hay Lin is cheerful and idealistic, but that also means she's kind of unrealistic about the bad things around her, and that she tends to see the good side of everything when maybe she shouldn't. Cornelia is strong and you can always count in that she will do her best when given a task, but that gives her a big ego that it's just a shield to cover how insecure she feels over the possibility of failing said task. Irma is headstrong and diligent, but that means that sometimes she just rolls with things she shouldn't roll with. Taranee is the most rational of the girls and the voice of reason within the group, and I decided to turn her into the one with the strongest moral code, but this also means she can't be as pragmatic as Will or Jade. Jade, for that matter, was given what she always wanted in the first chapters of this story, magic powers and the opportunity to be part of the action with her new friends; but that resulted into the whole Tharquin ordeal and her almost becoming a Blood Knight and accepting the counsel of some of her previous incarnations that aren't precisely the most heroic people through history. Will is probably my favorite one, basically because how I have twisted her character development from canon. From insecure girl to chessmaster in the two seasons of the TV series, here that happens in a much darker setting, which means she uses her new role as Keeper of the Heart as a boost of confidence… that leads her to think she needs to take control of things because else others will die; even if this means manipulating or even harming some of said innocents to save the majority. And all this is fueled by her trauma of killing a soldier. Which leads to the comparisons Yan Lin notes between Jade, Will and Nerissa; and her understandable preoccupation. However, both Yan Lin and Kandrakar are so ashamed of Nerissa, that they don't like bringing her up, which means problems. Jackie receives the same treatment, understanding that his code can be a limitation in some cases, and that this one is one of them. You know, I think the most functional characters here are actually Uncle and Tohru. So who's right and who's wrong? No one. And all of them. That is what having flawed characters entitle, and that's what I wanted to do with this fic. As for Carhaiz and the whole business with Julian, I had planned to solve it in this chapter, but I decided not to, mainly because it would have make it too overloaded. However, I suppose you all would be able to put some pieces together at this point.
So, why the long text? You see, this story won't be updating in a long time, give it a couple of months. However, I'm not going to abandon it, and chapter 15 should be some kind of Christmas present… maybe. Anyway, hope that you enjoyed it once again, please leave a review, and have a happy life. Good bye.