A/N: Sorry about the long wait for the update, but this was pretty difficult to write with my schedule and all. I finally got some time to write, but even then I wavered from one idea to another on how to end this chapter. Right now I have to work on a few pieces for Mokka Week and the character challenge that I made for myself.

I'm not going to put any annotations in this chapter, due to much of the information being already there. Also I'm a little lazy on my part. Sorry.

Ch. 21 "Ceremony"

"You ready?"

"Are you sure?"

Eva played with the belt of her dress for a while. It was beautiful, mostly white with yellow-brown trimming, hitting just at mid-calf. There were small shoulder pads made of the shell of a small species of beetle of a red earthy color and a cape of molted skin fell off her back in earthy red, orce, yellow, and brown. Two barrettes of a kind of red stone were attached to her hair, matching the color of red of her eyes. Ties wrapped around her legs from the sandals she wore.

Nyree was standing before her in her own costume, of a bluish tunic with white pants and leather boots. Turquoise stones adorned her neck and belt. A ceremonial saber hung at her side.

"Oh course it'll work," she said, "up for at least a few hours."

"A few hours?!"

Nyree shrugged her shoulders and then clasped her hands together. She started off with an invocation to the gods.

"Oon Sekai, dia maska sarras!"

Blue and white light formed in her hands and transformed into a ball of light. The ball of light flew from her hands and went around Eva. The Earth girl watched the light swirl around her. Then it stopped and exploded, throwing light all over Eva. The light filled the room they were in, causing Eva to throw up her hands to shield her face. When the light dimmed, Eva slowly withdrew her arms.

Nyree opened her eyes as well as looked at Eva.

"I can't believe it!"

"Huh?" Eva tilted her head. For some reason her ears felt weird. The world around her seemed more livid, more detailed.

"You're a Nourasian," said Nyree, "here let me show you."

She took out a small hand mirror and showed it to Eva. Eva leaned in to see herself.

"Ahhh…" Eva starred in surprise.

She was almost alike to her original form, save for her eyes, which seemed devoid of white, but the red of her eyes were bright. Her hair was still black and red. Her skin had only darkened slightly, but the biggest change had to be her ears. They were long, but not to the point that they made her look like a bunny.

"W-wow," she said.

Nyree smiled and jumped up and down in joy.

"This is great, this is great!"

She stopped her little dance and touched Eva's shoulder.

"If you start turning back, we can always take a route into the stables, there's a hidden chamber down there for storing straw. It is a little cramp, but it should be okay."

"I hope this last very long," Eva said. "Oh my voice…"

"Don't worry about that," said Nyree. "The Crogs never talk to anyone save for the King and the prince, I do not think that they would show any kind of interest in…"

"What, a peasant!?"

Nyree gave off a laugh. "That's a pretty nice dress, I don't think they would call you that, even though, even the farmer's daughters dress exceptionally nice for occasions like tonight."

Nyree and Eva looked to a small window, seeing the three moons near apex.

"We best be on our way, Eva, or rather, if anyone asks, you are Meru."

"Just Meru?"

"Just Meru."

**

There was no crowd of sorts around in the palace. The only people around really were a few Nourasian Knights, the Royal Family and a trio of shamans. The shamans, as Eva was told quietly by Nyree, were the ones who would protect Aikka from attacks from vile spirits who, during the height of power, would be able to attack Aikka and kill him. All of them were standing around a crystal blue spring, with small stepping stones towards a shrine like structure, enclosed by all sides with silk awnings. Up above, the three moons were shinning clear and bright. Down in the town and villages around the area, the people of Nourasia were celebrating the Three Moons with much merriment. The Nourasian Knights were chosen from their bonding with certain aspects of nature; for Nyree it was water and the oceans, a male with jet black hair and a trimmed goatee was responsible for fire, a young male with a few scars on his face was selected for stone and earth, a young woman who wore a headband was selected for clouds and non-moving water, and an older male wearing a grey braid had been chosen for wind and air. They seated themselves around the pond now, little glyphs carved into the stone around. Eva, called Meru was standing with the Royal Family and a few retainers, namely Canaan and Thuy, though curiously, Terru was not present. She wondered why.

Then she heard someone approaching. She turned to look in the direction of where they came from. A group of three Crogs came into the blue light, looking larger and more imposing than she had remembered Kross as being. They loomed over her as they stood at attention with King Lao and Queen Nori, but took no notice of her.

"Cornel Rook," said King Lao.

"It is a pleasure, your radiance," said the large Crog before him.

Cornel Rook, as Eva realized the Crog as, wore the usual red of a Crog of high military rank (or what she inferred to as so, being limited in things Crog) with large steel swept winged shoulder pads which seemed to be very imposing. He didn't wear a cloak, but even without one, he seemed large and imposing like a statue of a thunder god. The one thing that set him apart from the Crogs Eva had seen was his ears. One was full and unbroken while the other had been cleaved in half, one part missing. No other additional scars appeared on him as far as Eva could discern, but that half of an ear told her that she was not dealing with a pushover.

The two other Crogs on either side of him wore grey and red, holding large battleaxes not yet activated. They had a pair of ears each, which made Eva certain that this meant something, which she wasn't all that clear on.

On the other side of the pool, Aikka appeared in white and blue and bronze leather. He wore a pair of dark black-blue pants that were fitted, with a bronze colored jerkin over a white fitted short sleeve shirt. A swirling crown of ambrez was fitted on his head with his red hair flowing down, not done in their usual topknots. He wore bandages on his calves and feet.

Eva starred at the Prince as he walked around the parameter of the pool, his clothing and face lit up by the soft blue glow. The shamans, a trio of three women followed close behind, dressed in white and blue. One was tall and imposing, even to the Crogs. Her hair was a translucent white, and her demeanor reminded Eva of Lady Terru (wherever she might be). The other two consisted of a middle aged woman with long reddish-brown locks in a ponytail and a younger woman with lightly tanned skin and cropped black hair. All of them had strange masks lying on their backs, unused for the moment. They had round eyes and except for the old woman's, stripes instead of the royal swirls. Aikka also wore a mask on his back with the royal swirls making up for a crown and swirls on the chin reminiscent of a beard or a smile. The Prince stopped at the edge of the pool and then knelt down. He began to enter the pool. At that moment, the knights who had assembled upon their glyphs stood up, raising wooden staves into the air, each one with a certain token of their element: a white feather for air, seashells for ocean and fast moving waters, a flake of obsidian for fire, a pair of smooth stones for calm water and clouds, and sandstone and a piece of quartz for earth and stone. The shamans surrounded the Prince and the knights in an outer circle, which Eva could see was also marked with glyphs, these ones pertaining to the Three Moons. A soft chanting emanated from the group, sounding similar to the spells said by Aikka, but for some reason, that chanting seemed different from anything Eva had heard in her life. Different from the Drudgers' songs of renewal or the evil chanting recited by Canaletto, the spell or prayer the group was singing seemed less of an evocation of any force, but an awakening spell. She had drawn away from the scene, just like the guests and the Royal family, but she could see some kind of movement in the pool. Aikka had been left in the middle of the glowing blue pool, which was now swirling around him, even though Eva was certain there was no outside force that could be doing this.

The knights started to chant, and streams of colorful ribbons seemed to emanate from the ground they stood on. It took Eva a while before she realized that this was magic, more specifically elemental magic, rather than the blue-white magic Aikka usually employed. These strands of magic started to swirl around Aikka, who from what Eva could see was now glowing a bright blue-white as the moons seemed to glow brighter in the night sky.

"How beautiful," she whispered, hoping no one else would hear.

The moons seemed to glow bright in the sky as strands of magical light drifted towards them. Then below the voices of the chanters came something else, a new voice, low and raspy singing a chant that sounded so vile and disturbing that she was waken up from the strange stupor that she had been in moments before. She looked around herself, noticing that everyone, including the Crogs present where starring at Aikka stood amongst the glow. They had not even noticed the voice she could hear so loudly now. Something bad was going on, she could just feel it.

**

He had been watching the entire ceremony when he saw her. The Master was not pleased.

"She's there," he snarled, "I had not planned for this. The Star Child is ruining everything!"

"Stop acting so stupidly," snapped Mura as she walked out of a patch of shadows. A red cloak floated around her as she came to him.

"That was an unwise set of words, my dear," he said. "I needed the Prince alone…"

"For what?" Mura tossed her hair casually. "Just so you can kill him. Why couldn't you do that now?"

"You're an idiot and you'll always be an idiot," he fumed. "Death is not his fate. Something far worst, yes… But that girl…"

"What about her?" Mura asked looking over his shoulder as he peered into his mirror.

"How sad he is so… attached to her. It would be a shame if they were separated forever."

**

Aikka inhaled the cool night air and exhaled. With his eyes open and a feeling of clarity and assurance, he stepped out of the pool. He looked up, but his eyes were for one person, standing there smiling and clasping her hands.

Eva.

Three shamans came up to him, one throwing a towel on him, drying him off, another holding him up by one hand and another giving him a warm smile.

"You have passed the Ceremony," she said. "The Three Moons smile upon our world tonight as the Three Goddesses have ordained. You, Prince Uten Aikka Li Tsuki-An-Jai-Nourasa are now Heir, the Blue Windstorm Prince. With the addition of a suitable Queen, you will be the Windstorm King."

Aikka gave a reverent bow. The Shaman did the same.

Eva watched from the sidelines, Canaan at her side patting her on the shoulder.

"Now my Lady," he said to her. "The Prince will be excused from the arena, he will be exhausted."

"From that light show?" she asked, suddenly realizing how stupid she sounded.

"Some light show," he snorted. "That was a true show of magic, powerful and dangerous to behold. If he was not worthy of such power, the Goddesses would've killed him on sight."

A shudder came over Eva.

"So he's weak?"

"Very." He looked towards a group of knights standing up stiffly from their positions on the ground. "There is a reception. The Prince is not attending; he is far too exhausted to do so."

Eva sighed.

"That means I can't see him, can I?"

"Not right now," Canaan said giving a knowing wink. "But tomorrow he will be fine."

A smile formed over her face before she could realize it.

Don't worry about it, she said to herself. You just saw something no other human has ever seen, and he loves you. He'll be back and fine in no time.

A yawn came over her.

I'm tired; she looked over her shoulder to see Aikka being escorted back to his chamber. Sweet dreams, fair prince, she thought to herself, rather happy she didn't say that out loud.

The lights of a tent came to view as she looked ahead, walking by Canaan's side. However, the voice she heard troubled Eva. It sounded so sinister and frightening. It became more apparent when she could hear that same voice.

"What's wrong, young lady?" asked Canaan before she realized she had stopped walking. She looked up at him and waved it off.

Must be hearing things…

A coldness, a thick mist came upon her quite suddenly. She tried to scream as a hand came upon her, cold and claw-like over her mouth.

"Do not struggle much," said an oddly familiar voice. "It will only hurt you."

**

The groggy feeling of sleep clouded Aikka's mind. He nearly stumbled trying to get across the ceremony circle. A shaman steadied him in time as he tried to stand up again.

"I'm quite alright," he said turning to the shaman. "I – I'll be fine."

"My Prince, do not be so modest," she said, "a broken nose or leg is nothing to shrug off so easily. Especially in your condition."

"I would think that magic would only make me stronger," he said, with a hint of a laugh.

"In time," said the shaman, "you need to get used to it. It will grow stronger and stronger as you learn to use and control it."

He nodded slowly only to feel an unnaturally cold breeze. His ears pricked up. Aikka turned to see a sight most disturbing.

There was a tall, thin figure dressed in a mockery of a Nourasian Knight's suit of armor. Instead of the warm bronze, it was a cold silver and gold, with a dark red cloak, too elegant to be that of even a fully noble knight. Mists, white and ice cold swirled around him like vines and he was standing there with a girl…

"EVA?!"

The Shamans looked horrified, almost letting Aikka go. The figure turned to see the Prince and his attendants, showing a face pale with ice blue eyes, and a neatly manicured beard. His hair was smooth and the color of rusty iron, tied into a high topknot ponytail. A scowl marred his face as he turned around, holding Eva's mouth closed. She had shed her Nourasian disguise in front of everyone who was there.

"You're too late, little prince," said the Nourasian knight. "You are far too weak and this outlander is powerless."

"Who – who are you?" Aikka could barely contain himself, though his knees felt like they were about to turn to jelly.

"I was once like yourself," said the man, "once to inherit the wind upon the wings of Kabuto, but that was wrenched away from me amongst others, and I found a magic that could heal that wound. But now, I will regain that power that was once lost to me." He held out his free hand. "Oon kage narama un." Aikka felt something being torn out of his chest. He collapsed on his knees, gasping for air. The Prince looked up to see the Nourasian knight who gave a cold smile, while a sphere surrounded by runes glowing bright blue, silver and bronze. Eva was still struggling in his grip.

"Let me go!" she managed to scream.

Aikka tried to get up on his feet, only collapsing on himself like a newborn foal. He looked up again, seeing Eva starring at him with horrified red eyes. Surrounding the Nourasian knight surrounded by smoke were some of the Nourasian Knights who had attended the Ceremony. The knights drew out some ranged weapons, all but two held bows with arrows affixed. The scarred young man held a spear twice as long as his body and Nyree started to summon water from the central pond to her as a whip.

"Don't even think about it," snapped the Nourasian knight as an invisible wall of power knocked the knights surrounding him.

"I- I won't let you take her away!" Aikka managed to say.

A flash of red flew into his sight, and a burst of pain came out of his shoulder. He made a strangled cry as he saw the figure of a young woman dressed in a red cloak standing above him, with a sour expression on her face.

"You are a fool," she said, his eyesight blurring. "My Master, shall we leave?"

"Why of course, Mura my dear," said the Master turning around. Before he went he gave Aikka a sideward glance. "Prince, you have at last the mercy to know my name before I leave, a courtesy I usually do not give my enemies. I am Masao, who has no equal."

"No, wait, wait!" Aikka drew his hand out, his eyesight blurring more and more until the world became one bright and confusing blot.

A/N: Yes that's the end of this chapter. What will happen next? Who is this Masao character and what does he want with Eva?

The entire Ceremony in question is more of a test on the part of the Prince and the Goddesses. Canaan is actually exagerating at this point, as Aikka would have not have died in any case and the cause for his extreme exhaustion may have something to do with what happened near the end of this chapter.

Well I hope you enjoyed this installement and please read and review.