CHAPTER 28
Please forgive the long wait. I hope it was worth it. As always, Read, Review and Enjoy!
Liane was up and running before the last echo of Katana's cries had died in their link.
The slippery rooftops posed no hindrance for her as she flew over them, her feet barely touching the surfaces. She bridged the gaps between buildings with the fluid grace of a great mountain cat. Her long legs stretched outward in front and behind her, propelling her forward onto the next rooftop.
Not even pausing to regain her balance, for she had no need, Liane ran onward. Her eyes and mind acknowledged the sight of dark rain clouds bursting apart to reveal their true nature. Shadow khan shot out in every direction scattering across the night sky.
Liane ignored them, she kept running knowing that the khan would be upon her any moment. The day of betrayal had finally come, she had always known the khan would turn on the order someday. And they couldn't have picked a worse time to do it.
As if it wasn't enough that the Bakura, zealots within the order, had resurfaced and penetrated Valinor, now she had to deal with the khan as well.
Still she kept running, leaping from rooftop to rooftop. There was a lot of distance for her to cover, she'd been alone on the enormous domed roof of the library, which was on the opposite side of Rivendell as her room.
Her heart pounded hard in her chest, blood was roaring in her ears, air seemed to elude her lungs and her vision darkened as the khan tried to keep pace with her. She felt their dark grip pull at her from behind and beside. But she escaped their holds with another burst of speed. One more leap and she was clear of their black cloud.
Almost there, just a little further a voice inside her urged. She was at the guest quarters now. Beneath her the guests of Rivendell were no doubt fast asleep, oblivious to the chaos and danger they were all in.
Further ahead Liane could just barely make out the faint flashes of light coming from inside her room. Someone was putting up a good fight in there. She could only hope that it was someone on her side. That they would keep Katana safe until she could get there.
Unless Katana was already dead. Liane pushed the nasty thought aside, she would know if Katana had been killed, she would know.
Still the thought urged her forward, faster, faster, until her lungs burned with the effort.
Vaguely, Liane heard the sound of a crash and glass breaking behind her, but paid it no mind. Until the shouts and terrified screams reached her ears. Skidding to a precarious halt, Liane whipped around sending her shaggy wet locks into her eyes. Pushing them crossly out of the way Liane scanned the scene before her.
A swirling black tunnel of shadows was rushing into the open balcony windows of a guest room like a tornado. Another scream, female, followed by a male bellow of outrage.
More flashes of white light from behind her and the black mass at her room seemed to lessen. That didn't really mean anything, the fight could have simply moved further inside. Katana could be in serious danger.
Still someone was down there fighting the khan, while in the guest quarters there was not.
Her decision made, Liane backtracked to the guest quarters. One of the khan must have seen her for the shattered doors had been magically sealed against her. Liane dropped down onto the slippery balcony and started unweaving the khan's safeguards.
Webs of molasses like shadow wove together like lattice work to keep her out of the room beyond. Dark figures shifted within the room, indistinguishable between the thick undulating safe guards.
Liane contemplated the web of dark magic in irritation, the stupid thing could take hours to unravel. Since she didn't have hours she settled for the next best thing.
Pulling out her sword she muttered a quick but powerful incantation. The runes carved on the blade began to glow bright gold until the blade was completely engulfed in the whitest of lights.
The sword swung in a large arc and came smashing down into the black magic barrier. Her sword went through the barrier slowly and she had to use all her strength to pull it free. For a moment the black web remained unchanged, a swirling web of molasses. Then it froze and began to crack before shattering completely.
She put up an arm to shield her eyes from the blast. When she lowered it the remains of the safeguard were melting back into the shadows. Liane shook herself, feeling like the taint of the khans magic remained upon her. As she made to step into the darkened room her body gave another painful shudder, she ignored it.
The broken glass doors creaked as she pushed them aside and entered crouched low to the ground. With a clear view Liane could now see a circle of khan formed in the middle of the room.
One of them turned its pitiless red eyes upon her.
"Get away fallen ones!" Liane ordered in a ringing tone.
As one the group of khan turned to look at her.
"Now!" she shouted sharply "Or I shall make what is left of your sorry existence even more hellish."
Without hesitation the khan shifted, forming a gap in their circle to allow her passage. But what Liane saw there held her rooted to the spot as wave after wave of shock and confusion washed over her.
Dark, masked figures stood silent and waiting in a shadowed clearing of forest.
Just beyond them were the cerin stones and the smoldering ashes of the elven guards who had once stood watch over the magical gateway. They had fallen quickly under the powers of the invading Bakura. Their valiant attempts to kill them and send warning had been snuffed out within a matter of minutes.
Now all was quiet again as the Bakura waited and the residents of Valinor slept on undisturbed and unaware of their own impending deaths. The Eldar and Valar would soon fall just as the guards had, they too would be finished swiftly.
Of this the leader of the Bakura had no doubt as he surveyed the peaceful surroundings with disdain. The most magically powerful beings on earth indeed.
The Eldar did not even know they were here and the Valar were too weak oppose them. Defeating them would be barely challenging and still they were arrogantly unaware of their impotence. Well, no matter, they would soon be put in their place by true power. An unchallenged, undefeatable, immortal-
"Shouldn't they have finished by now?" a young man asked in an antsy voice.
"We just got here." A woman ground out.
"Yes but we sent them ahead hours ago. They should have completed their mission by now." The young man said hurriedly "What if something went wrong? How will we know?"
"We will know when the khan arrive." A man barely older than the first two growled "Until then we will hold our position unless we are ordered to do otherwise Roule."
"But what if the khan have failed?"
"Then we will hold our position until we die" the older finished looking north to the city with steely eyes.
"We are not Kurast Fensly, the Bakura don't blindly follow orders like mindless sheep!" spat another young man "And nor shall I hide my face, I am proud to be a Bakura!"
The young man stepped out of line and removed his black face mask to reveal pale blond hair and sharp grey eyes.
"What would you know about the Bakura, Shane" a woman cackled "You only joined a month ago."
"Like you've been a member such a long time member Juliet" Shane snapped back.
"I agree with Shane, why should we mask ourselves against our enemy" Roule demanded tearing off his own mask to reveal a face not more than twenty. His features were asian and alight with zealotry.
"I want Liane to see my face when she dies" he declared proudly.
"Why?" Juliet asked, now unmasked herself along with a few others "It's not like she'd recognizing you. She doesn't even know your name Roule."
Some of the others laughed unkindly, Roule blushed a deep bronze.
"When I'm finished with her she'll know it" he declared stubbornly "And she will regret ever hearing it."
"I know I wish I'd never heard it" Fensly muttered, still masked, drawing more laughter from the others.
"Enough!" the leader said sharply, sending his young and sometimes irksome followers into blissful silence.
The shadow khan had arrived at last, slinking into view from the darkness of the surrounding forest. One by one they materialized out of the forest, their crimson eyes appearing first followed by their dark golem bodies.
They formed ranks and then a tight circle around the Bakura.
"Finally" Roule said "Let's go."
Fensly held him back "Not yet. We have not been given orders yet."
"To hell with orders!" Roule shrugged angrily out of Fensly's grip "They have completed their mission. I say we should act now."
"It is not your say that decides out actions." Fensly barked.
"And it is not yours either Fensly" sneered Juliet.
"That is enough!" Their masked leader shouted over the squabbling, they fell silent once more but continued to glare sullenly at each other.
"You seem to be having a bit of trouble controlling your followers Caine"
Caine inhaled swiftly and closed his eyes against the sharp stabbing pain of dread in his gut. That voice, that oh so hated voice. He had imagined it, he must have. She could not be here now, she had been foiled, just as he'd planned. Otherwise the khan would not have returned.
He spun in a circle, his eyes desperately searching the darkness for that hated, despicable voice. The forest was as dark and silent as it had been when they arrived, no one was afoot. Except for his erstwhile followers and the khan, she could not be here, it must have been his imagination. He had been thinking so hard upon her he must have conjured her voice in his head.
Just as his shoulders began to relax his eyes landed upon the khan, and he knew.
As one khan stepped backward out of line and Liane stepped forward, materializing from within one of the khan. She had hidden inside one of them, it must have been an uncomfortable experience. She came away from the dark creature and entered the circle while the khan reformed ranks.
"Funny seeing you here Caine, my old friend" she said lightly as though she frequently found herself hidden inside a shadow khan "I never thought you the sort to align yourself with a group of self-deluded zealots, suffering from delusions of grandeur. It appears I over estimated you."
Caine, the leader of the Bakura removed his mask with controlled dignity. His weathered ebony features so familiar, his beard starkly white as was what was left of his hair. His eyes drooped at the edges but were shining with cunning and something that Liane had never seen before. It was the mad light of zealotry and obsession, she'd seen it in Ryujiro's eyes, just before he died. And she was truly sad to see it in the weathered features of an old friend.
Until now Caine had been a close friend and trusted advisor. He had guided her through the past five years with his considerable knowledge of ancient magical artifacts and history. Liane had trusted him, even liked him, mostly because he had never been a part of the council, whose constant interference in her life drove her mad.
But now Caine was here, leading the Bakura or rather what was left of it. Judging by the looks of them they were likely all new recruits. Liane recognized some, but most were unknown to her.
"Zealots, madmen and self deluded, how often did I find myself labeling the Bakura as such" Caine said calmly "However, in the past three years I have re-educated myself on the Bakura. And now not only do I count myself among them, I do so proudly."
As he said this the remaining Bakura tore off their masks, their faces shining with sweat and violent passion in the moonlight. Overhead and on the ground lir of all kinds stood by their masters.
It often baffled her that lir, animals gifted with infinite wisdom would also turn to zealotry.
Turning a disdainful eye on the young Bakura she said to Caine "Funny how your pride seemed to have kept your allegiance hidden for so long. You would have thought being so proud that you wouldn't go skulking around, working in secret, using the shadow khan to do your dirty work for you."
Anger flashed in Caine's eyes for a moment and he smiled tightly "Let's just say I leave lesser duties to lesser beings."
The barb barely registered and Liane's face remained blank and bored "If you mean your foolhardy plan to use the khan to posses Legolas and Morwen and send them into bed together in the hopes of driving me into a jealous rage that would see Morwen killed and Legolas bound to me and my incarnation powers dried up? I suppose I would leave such a pathetic plan in someone else's hands as well."
"I'm assuming then by your presence here that they did not succeed?" Caine glared at the khan.
"Actually they didn't even bother, you see the double crossers have double crossed you. They lied to you, drew you into believing that you had their allegiance, lured you here and then they did everything in their power to protect those you sought to hurt. And alert me of your plans." She explained rocking back and forth on her heels. "Not particularly original plans either, coming here, seeing that my powers were disabled with my bonding to Legolas, and then killing him and Katana. To leave me in a state of living death as my soul was ripped away with their deaths. Putting me in the perfect position to be taken over by your evil allies and destroy Valinor."
Some of the Bakura shifted uneasily, unsure what to do now that their plans had been revealed, they looked to Caine for guidance.
Caine glared at the khan "I suppose I should have known not to trust beings who were traitors in life to be any better in death." The khan glared crimson right back at him, he shrugged "No matter. It had been my intention to use you to infect Valinor with the Three's evil, knowing that no one would suspect you, being Valinor's golden girl. But, I can just as easily do this the hard way and use someone else. Legolas perhaps."
An icy lump formed in Liane's throat and she realized with a jolt that it was not her incarnation plaguing her, but fear. It had been a long time since she had people to care about, or people to be afraid of losing.
"You might not remember Caine, but Ryujiro had a similar plan and incase you didn't notice things didn't work out too well for him either."
Caine changed tactics, stepping dangerously close to her "Hurts doesn't it? Your incarnation I mean. It must be difficult to suffer ones incarnation so close to your soul mate and not be able to claim him. How is Legolas by the way? As I recall he seemed very protective of you when you brought him to visit the temple. I imagine he is very distressed for you, what with your current condition and the arrival of the shadow khan."
"I wouldn't know" Liane shrugged indifferently "I haven't seen him recently, I've been keeping my distance from him"
"Yes, I noticed that argument the two of you had the other night seemed to drive quite a wedge between you."
Liane's nostrils flared momentarily, so he had been spying on her, no doubt with the help of the shadow khan.
With a stupendous effort she reigned in her anger and smiled again "A wedge you tried to remove by using the khan to posses Legolas and Morwen and force me to mate with him."
"Unfortunately for you, treacherous though they are" her eyes glanced balefully to the khan "They cannot defy their bond to honorable members of the Kurast, even with the tempting offer of freedom laid out before them. And as it so happens, Morwen was, engaged, with someone else this evening."
Caine shrugged, remaining calm like her but anger was making his shoulders tense "As I said it's not important, a minor adjustment in my plans."
He paced leisurely away from her, stroking his chin thoughtfully "So, I can't use you to bring the Three here, I can't rely on the shadow khan, I suppose Katana is alive and well also."
Liane didn't respond to that, knowing that Katana was safely hidden from Caine and the Bakura's lir. She had no contact with Katana now but neither could the other lir detect her.
Her silence seemed to be answer enough for Caine. "Hmm, well no matter she was of no use to me anyway. Her only place was to die and ensure the complete loss of your sanity and soul."
"And since I can't use you there's no reason to destroy your mind with the death of a soul mate and lir. I suppose I'll just have to settle for killing you, knowing that your soul mate shall be the one to carry evil into your homeland."
Liane tutted "And how do you plan on doing that? When Legolas is safely out of your reach. Assuming of course that you actually believe you'll get out of this alive. Which you won't by the way."
Caine opened his mouth to retort but was silenced by the sound of shouting coming through the forest.
Liane closed her eyes in horror and prayed for strength as she recognized the voice of not only Legolas but Adon, Thranduil, Glorfindel, Elrond and all of her brothers. They came rushing into view, all of them bearing ancient but vicious looking elven weapons.
Simultaneously Caine and Liane shouted orders in the Kurast tongue.
"Kill them, but leave Legolas alive!"
"Protect them at all costs!"
The Bakura moved eagerly forward. They were instantly blocked by the shadow khan who formed a tight defensive wall around the elves.
The two forces were at a stand still, sizing each other up. On the one hand the Bakura were trained Kurast warriors, inexperienced though they were, and had near limitless elemental powers. The shadow khan on the other hand had no magic but could not be injured and it would take a powerful spell to destroy them.
All in all it was a fairly well matched fight.
Liane realized in that moment that attack, not defensive action, was necessary, and only the cruelest attack would end this quickly. As she had done before Liane took the unpleasant task of merging with one of the khan. She stepped backward inside of one, exiting on the opposite side. Her orders would be kept secret and would pass through the khan silently.
As she exited the khan she knew that her orders had all ready made their way through their ranks. It pained her to watch what was to happen next, but she could not risk spending her powers in battle, she needed them for the coming task.
And so she watched, as did Caine, as the elves were protected for the time being by one group of shadow khan. While another group broke away and advanced into combat with the Bakura.
The fighting was fast and furious, the two sides equally matched, both with strengths and weaknesses. Both sides fought distinctively, the khan were fluid and ever changing, the Bakura were ferocious and hungry, out for guts and glory.
Great clumps of dirt were blasted into the air and then rained down on them as blasts of fire, lightening and ice struck the helpless earth, pock marking it with smoldering craters. A scream rent the air as one of the Bakura fell under a shadow khan.
Furious the Bakura re-grouped and attacked with more ferocity than before. It was the moment the khan had been waiting for. In their haste to retaliate the Bakura dropped their guard, allowing six khan to slip by their notice and do the unthinkable.
Above and below, in the sky and on the ground twelve lir, hawks, falcons, mountain cats, wolves and foxes were engulfed by shadow. On the ground the Bakura faltered as they were disconnected from their lir. Their attacks screeched to a halt.
Liane could relate, with Katana similarly enveloped at this moment she too suffered the increased discomfort the break caused. But it was for Katana's own safety, these lir however, were far from being protected by the khan now.
The Bakura turned from their opponents without hesitation to try and save their lir. But it was too late. With a silent scream lost within the shadows, the lir had died. As the khan melted away from the dead bodies of the lir, hawks and falcons fell from the sky and cat, wolf and foxes lay unmoving upon the ground.
A horrendous wail of despair and anguish roared through the Bakura. They fell to their knees beside their dead lir and wept openly over their bodies. Their formerly feverent eyes swiftly going blank as the loss of their other half was stolen away from them.
Liane watched them with a mixture of pity, guilt and burning satisfaction. Pity for these young people led astray by lies and deceit, guilt for ordering the deaths of sacred animals. And in some dark part of herself she knew that she was glad for what she had done. Not in a righteous way, but a dark, cold, vengeful way. She was glad to see these traitors suffer, knowing that their suffering was only just beginning.
Liane nodded to the khan standing nearby. Quickly and quietly they swooped down on the mourning Bakura and extinguished their life forces as easily as they had the lir. As they slipped away however they did not leave behind fallen bodies. Instead as they returned to their former positions eleven more faceless khan joined them.
Their eyes burned at her with hatred but they remained silent and unmoving, now bound to her will as surely as the others were.
What was left of their tainted souls was now encased in those faceless, indistinguishable forms. But their eyes burned red like hot coals caught in the darkest nights. They hated her, they wanted to kill her, but they were silent and unmoving until she commanded them otherwise. Such was their punishment, what was left of their tainted souls, bound forever to this earth and the will of honorable.
One of the Bakura remained, for Liane commanded that he be spared, for the moment.
Crouched on the ground and hunched over the form of a fallen grey owl, Caine new leader of the Bakura, was defeated. Liane approached him slowly, her face blank and her heart hard to this traitor who would have seen all that she loved destroyed.
He turned his head slowly in her direction as she came near and she saw anguish etched deeply into his familiar lined face.
"You show me mercy Liane?" he asked bitterly "Do you intend to spare me the existence as a shadow khan? You are more a fool than I thought then."
With a speed and agility that belied his age Caine leapt to his feet drawing a short but deadly blade from within his cloak. He wielded the weapon well for an old scholar, but not well enough.
Liane did not call the khan to her aid this time. Rather she simply waited until Caine was a hairs breath away from running her through and whipped out her own blade. Their blades clashed, but with a flick of her wrist Caine's went flying away from him, landing softly in the grass. With her bare foot she kicked out at him and sent him sprawling backward, landing with a hard thud on the ground next to his dead lir.
"I assure you Caine I have no intention of sparing you from your rightful fate." She said walking calmly to stand over him. The tip of her sword rested just above his navel "But I want answers"
"And if I don't give them to you?" He spat daringly.
"Then I will draw out the end of your life very painfully. I have learned much about pain these past five years. Push me and I will share those lessons with you." The threat was given coldly and blank faced but inside Liane was raging.
That short moment of combat, when their blades had met and she had seen hatred in his eyes, had lit a new fire in her blood, the beast inside her was eager for release. She could destroy this small man, make him no more than a bloody stain upon the soft wet grass. And then, then just ten feet away was Legolas, her soul mate, she could have him.
It would barely take an effort to reach him. There were others near him but they posed little challenge to her, nothing would stand between them. Nothing.
Liane kept these impulses in check with the knowledge that there were more important things to be done, but only just.
"How long have you been a part of the Bakura?" Liane began her interrogation quickly, it would not take long. She knew of his plans and his motivation but there where a few more important things to clear up.
"I told you I reformed them three years ago when we returned to the temple."
"So you were not in league with Ryujiro or his former followers?"
"If only" he muttered bitterly "If Ryujiro had had me to help him rather than a bunch of over zealous children we would have been victorious long ago."
"Just as if you might have been victorious tonight if you had allied yourself with more reliable followers" She jerked her head at the shadow khan and their newest recruits.
"There wasn't enough time to gather more experienced warriors to our cause. The shadow khan were my best shot at killing you."
"Speaking of followers" she went on without rising to his comment "Were these the only Bakura left, or did you leave some behind at the temple to wait for you?"
"You'll certainly never know" he spat defiantly, but his cloudy eyes told her a different story.
"Never mind, I see the answer in your eyes" Liane remained calm and dismissive in the face of Caine's anger "Arrogance seems to be a common trait among the Bakura, and a common failing as well. Ryujiro was also arrogant, but you took this to a whole new level. Coming here, with only a handful of bickering teenagers as your army, and the khan as your backup. One could only wonder why you would do such a thing."
"Why did you do this Caine? Why did you turn your back upon the order? What could possibly make you betray your oath?"
"Enlightenment" he hissed.
"Or greed" she countered.
"Is it greed to seek an alliance that will bring us new and unimaginable power?"
"Sounds like greed to me."
"Do you forget Liane, I was there with you during the wars of The Three. I saw the chaos they wrought."
"Yes, you did. And I would think knowing that would bring you the sense not to dally with them."
"At first I did" he admitted his eyes growing foggy with memory, or perhaps madness "I could not imagine what Ryujiro had been thinking to unleash such powers into the world, how he could think to control them. But then we returned to the temple and I saw in the human world all that evil spreading. All on its own, without the excuse of demon lords to fall back on."
"War, famine, poverty, murder, terrorism, slavery, genocide. It burns across our world like a wildfire. And the order does nothing to stop it! Is that what so many of our people fought and died for? To face the ultimate evil only to return to world as surely infected by that evil. To sit back and do nothing."
"You know very well the temple does more than nothing about such things Caine" She argued angrily "Just because we cannot reveal ourselves, or get too deeply involved in world affairs does not mean we do nothing to help."
"But it is not enough!" he howled like an animal pinned as he was to the ground "The world is still in constant disorder. We can change all that, but we need more power to do it, to maintain peace and order."
"A new order" Liane sneered, she had hear such righteous ranting from Ryujiro five years ago, right before he'd been killed.
"Yes" Caine whispered serenely, his face transported "Ryujiro had it right. The world needs the Kurast order once more to guide it."
"Guide it, or control it?"
"Both."
Liane paused for a moment, staring into the eyes of an old friend and teacher, now a traitor and an enemy. But was what he said truly madness? The world was indeed violent, chaotic and often treacherous. The order did what it could to help those in need without revealing themselves. And still the world suffered terrible wars, poverty and disease.
"It is not simply mankind that is suffering from its own disorder, it suffers from an unnatural unbalance. You know that unbalance is caused by the cerin stones, they open up a gateway to the darkest regions of the world. Even when they are contained behind the barrier of the cerin stones that evil seeps into the world and disrupts the natural order of things."
"But don't you see Liane? It is the only way." Caine's rasped desperately "To save the world of man, to bring in a new era of unrivaled goodness and peace we must have unrivaled power. And that can be achieved only one way."
"By sacrificing Valinor to unrivaled evil" Liane stated coldly "What about the suffering that will happen in Valinor if you proceed?"
"What has Valinor ever give us?!" Caine demanded his eyes suddenly mad again "What have the Valar, the Mia, the Wizards or the Eldar ever done for us!? They stand by and watch our people die, sitting here in their golden palaces, surrounded by finery and devoid of suffering! Who are they to me? No one! Let them taste what it is to suffer, to die, to be powerless against the darkness! Then I shall show them mercy!"
"Fortunately for them I am here to see that such a thing never happens."
"Why? Look at them Liane" he jerked his head at her family still held against their will by the khan "These aren't your people. They did not live and die with you, were not there during the good times or the bad. What have they ever done for you Liane?"
Liane did not even glance over at the elves "They have done nothing."
Caine's eyes lit up triumphantly.
"Nothing to deserve the suffering that you seek to cause them"
Caine's face crumpled and hardened with rage "And the humans have?"
"They have done nothing to deserve it either, which is why I intend to stop you. No matter what you may think, Valinor's powers will not hold the Three. They would spread their evil here, destroy it, and then they would break free and come to the human world just as they did before. Only this time they will be even more powerful than ever and possibly undefeatable." Liane explained.
"Go ahead then, kill me in your righteousness. It will do you no good" he spat, spittle flying from his mouth like a rabid dog. "Go ahead and sacrifice yourself. It won't destroy the cerin stones."
A flutter of worry coursed down Liane's spine "What makes you say that?" she asked trying to keep the uncertainty out of her voice. The plan had to work, she had researched it for three years. Still, Caine had been in communion with the evil that dwelled just beyond the gateways. He could know something she didn't.
Caine laughed tauntingly "You think you can do it? That your love will be strong enough."
"I am strong enough" she said steadily, but inwardly doubting herself.
"Do you really think it's about strength?"
"I can assure you it has more to do with than just strength. The strength of my heart will be in it, my whole heart."
"Just as you whole heartedly tried to save your friends?"
Liane gasped sharply and jabbed the tip of her sword hard into his stomach. God, how she would love to kill this traitor now. He had a worse place to go to however, and he seemed to know it and not care.
"You think that you love them enough to save them? You barely know them, keeping them an arms length as you have, how could you possibly love them enough? You knew Hyabussa Ryu your entire life, he was your brother, as were the others. And you couldn't save them, just the opposite in fact, you ended up killing them."
"That was different!" Liane shouted finally losing control "I did what I had to! I released them from their suffering! If I hadn't they would have lived forever possessed by demons!"
"You may tell yourself that Liane, but I know the truth. I have seen the guilt of what you did tear away at you. It has even gone so far as to dim your precious Eldar inner light."
This was true, Liane had not felt herself since returning to the temple three years ago. But who would, after facing the things she had.
"Face it Liane, you don't have it in you to succeed. You're a killer, a hunter, a murderer. You're a being as dark as these poor creatures."
Liane's eyes shifted to shadow khan. They were silent, speechless beings, experiencing only fleeting shadows of their former lives. She was not like them, she was not a traitor.
"You don't have the strength to love, you only understand pain, you may try and destroy the cerin stones, it will only be a waste of your pathetic life." His wild grey eyes met hers in a moment of clarity "You'll fail and then you'll die and then your people will follow."
"Kill me now, kill yourself, it will do you no good. The Three will find their way in here and destroy everything you have ever fought to protect."
"As you wish then" Liane said quietly, stepping away. She signaled the shadow khan with a slight wave of her hand.
Liane kept her eyes on Caine's and watched as three khan swarmed over him. She saw the look on his face turn from defiant triumph to fear as he felt the first cold touch of his new life.
In a moment there was a black mass upon the ground and in another the khan had regrouped with one more amongst their numbers. They all, including their newest members glared at her, Liane didn't return it.
Caine had planted a seed of doubt deep within her and it had taken root, just as he'd planned. She stood, alone, eyes downcast, sword hanging at her side. The weight of it all seemed to be pressing in on her at a suffocating rate. The task ahead, the chance of failure, grief and guilt over her dead friends, anger at Caine's betrayal. And chief among them fear that he may be right.
"Liane!" with the help of the others Legolas had broken free of the shadow khan and went charging for her.
Still stuck in her own world Liane didn't respond, not when he was right in front of her, not when he had drawn her into a tight embrace. She didn't even move when he drew away and kissed her passionately in full view of her family.
"Ahem!" Glorfindel and the others had finally broken through the rest of the khan and came upon the couple.
Elrond tried to insert himself between them but Legolas wouldn't budge.
"I think you have some explaining to do young lady." He huffed, hands on hips.
"Liane" Legolas whispered, and when she didn't answer "Look at me"
Liane dragged her eyes up from the ground, his blue eyes looked dark as they searched hers. She could barely stand to hold his gaze. There was hurt and worry, and something else she dare not name there.
"What was that man talking about?" he demanded quietly "What is all of this?"
She was afraid he was going to ask that. It was clearly what was on Elrond's mind as well.
None of them were meant to know, she'd never planned on telling them anything. It was all so complicated and difficult to explain. But then, everything in her life seemed to be complicated and difficult these days.
Her family, Legolas and the others weren't supposed to get close to her, or her to them. They were merely an after thought in the grand scheme of things. They were never meant to be this involved.
Not answering or meeting any of their eyes Liane gazed silently off into the distance. Gandalf and Katana approached at a sedate pace, while Celebrian and Arwen came rushing forward.
Katana locked eyes with her amongst all the chaos and without a word passing between them Liane knew that it was time to tell them. That they were meant to know and she was meant to tell them... If that was true, then they deserved more than she had given them.
Celebrian launched herself at Liane, Legolas stepped aside but he kept his eyes on her. Elrond joined the embrace, flicking an annoyed glance at Legolas.
Legolas should have cared, he should have been sorry for keeping a concerned father from his daughter, but he couldn't. From the moment he had seen those dark creatures chasing her across the rain washed rooftops he knew they were in trouble. He had to get to her, to protect her somehow.
Liane's eyes darted around as though looking for an escape and pointedly avoiding his.
"I- it's hard to explain' she stammered extricating herself from Celebrian's grasp.
"Yes, I imagine it is" Gandalf intoned in his deep smoke rasped voice as he joined their group "I often find however, that starting at the beginning usually makes telling a difficult tale easiest."
Katana wound her way around Liane's ankles and then surprisingly around Legolas'. Strangely enough he found her deep purring put him at ease. Such a small thing to put him at ease in such an uneasy time.
Liane licked her lips unconsciously, she opened her mouth to try again but shuddered and bent double clutching her stomach. Legolas had thought to go to her, but instead found himself similarly disabled. A terrible pain seized him, it started at the very tips of his fingers and ran down his limbs to his middle with a deep bone jarring shudder.
A tight knot formed in his stomach, it felt as though his insides were being pulled into a tight ball in his stomach. It was a breathtaking pain, he felt like he was going to be sick or pass out, something he hadn't done since he was a child.
"Legolas! Are you all right?" Adon had come to his side, bending over his prone form.
Adon and his father had stepped between him and Liane, and he didn't care for that at all. That strange, unnamed, dark thing rose up inside him with a roar of rage. Legolas stood again with the sudden urge to shove them out of his way. He did not like these other males coming between him and his mate.
"Legolas!" his father shook him hard by the shoulder.
Legolas snarled and shoved the man's hand away, starting forward to get to Liane, intending to do whatever he had to. Those men would not stand between them, those men…those men were…
Legolas blinked in confusion, his vision swam before him in a blur then began to clear. His dark haired brother and fierce looking father stared at him in worry. He shook himself, clapping a hand to his head. When had he started thinking of them as those men?"
"What is going on here Peredhel!" Thranduil bellowed as he watched his son suffer the same strange symptoms that plagued Liane.
"I don't know!" Elrond shouted back just as angry, and then more gently to Liane "Liane? Are you all right?"
Liane panted, keeping her eyes shut tight, trying desperately to block out the voices around her, or rather one particular voice, his voice.
When she didn't respond Elrond took action "Come on, we're taking you back home where I can treat you properly."
"No!" Liane protested standing up with a great heave "No, I'm fine. It's nothing, just a-"
"That is not true" Adon came up next to Elrond "You experienced this the night before last, I saw it myself."
"Is this true?" Liane glared at Adon but nodded "Why was I not informed?" he demanded.
"I accepted Liane's explanation at the time, that it was just a bad reaction to the fireworks smoke. Obviously that was not the cause. Forgive me Elrond, for not telling you then."
"Then what is this?" Thranduil asked impatiently still keep a close eye on his befuddled son.
Elrond frowned at Thranduil but said gently "Liane? Tell me, what is wrong? Whatever it is I assure you I can help."
Liane was shaking her head violently "No" she rasped "There is nothing you can do."
"Liane, don't talk like that. I'm sure once we figure out what this is I can treat both you and Legolas"
Despite it all Liane smiled and then grimaced "What Legolas and I are suffering from is not curable with a poultice or potion."
"Then what is the cure?"
"There is only one" she explained "But in the current circumstances it is not available."
"Well what is it?" Adon asked "Surely we can find it."
"You don't understand" another pain seized her, and Legolas "And I do not have the time to explain it to you."
"Liane" Elrond growled, clearly losing his patience.
"There is no time!" she ground out, deep within, past the lust and demands to get to her mate, she could feel her powers growing, getting out of control. "I must go now, I have to destroy the cerin stones."
"You're not going anywhere" Elrond stated firmly holding her back as she tried to leave. "None of this makes any sense. What is going on?"
"They deserve to know Liane" Katana urged. Her voice passed through Liane's soul like a calm summer's breeze, soothing her and giving her strength at the same time.
With a deep breath "I'm sorry, to all of you" she met the eyes of everyone in the glen, darting over Legolas' quickly to meet Elrond's once more "I suppose I should have just told you everything in the first place, but.."
Celebrian and Elrond watched her expectantly, she didn't want to hurt them, but she didn't want to lie to them anymore either.
"But in all truthfulness I never meant to come looking for my family. Frankly, at the time I just didn't care, family was merely an after thought."
They both looked utterly crestfallen but they did not interrupt.
"That's not how I feel anymore of course" she assured them quickly "Since I've gotten here, you have been…wonderful. I- well things are different."
Elrond remained looking a little hurt but Celebrian smiled kindly.
"Never the less I should have told you, I didn't because I thought you would try and stop me. And frankly I didn't think you needed to know."
Glorfindel hmfphed.
"Given the circumstance however I think a change of plan is in order."
She swallowed hard, how could she explain all this in time.
"From the beginning my dear" Gandalf encouraged.
"Yes, from the beginning" she muttered thinking hard and fast "I told you about Ryujiro before, when I first arrived in fact, but I'm afraid that I left out some essential facts."
"Ryujiro did spy on Valinor with a palantir, he did raise the cerin stones here, seeing its weakness, he kidnapped me the only child born here in three ages. He took me to the middle earth, wiping my memories. He had me integrated into the order, to keep an eye on me, to keep me close, to use me to bring the darkest evil here when the time was right."
"I explained all of this before but I did not explain the nature of that evil nor its origins. This evil is not like that of Sauron, or the one ring, it was not created. It is evil that simply is, it is the pure darkness that balances out the pure light of the world. This evil remained balanced and controlled for ages until the temple made one terrible mistake. They created those."
Everyone followed Liane's hand as she pointed just beyond them, to the cerin stones over a small rising stood the cerin stones silent and imposing in the darkness.
"What they thought were merely gateways that would allow them to travel across great distances at will, were more, much more. They were gateways into the darkest regions into the universe. Through," she waved a negligent hand "Unimportant circumstances, some of that evil manifested in the form of the Three powerful demons, Mephisto, Baal and Diablo, brothers, kings of evil dominions. They were released and brought with them minions and other powerful demons."
The others looked confused, all except Aragorn, he was watching her closely. The wheels turning over in his mind, just behind his eyes.
"At the time, nearly four ages ago no one knew how to destroy this evil. So they capture and contained them, their souls, were imprisoned in magical stones. These stones were hidden and placed under heavy magical guard for centuries. The demons were gone from the world they tried to destroy, but not completely banished nor did the darkness of their souls remain completely contained. Their evil touched everything, even Valinor, weakening it until it was nearly dead."
Understanding began to dawn on Aragorn's face and more slowly upon the others.
"Nor were these monsters completely hidden, somewhere deep in the catacombs of the temple libraries was a book telling of them. This book was found by a young, ambitious Kurast warrior."
"Ryujiro" Aragorn supplied fully understanding, it was all coming together now.
"Yes, Ryujiro found this book. And he began plotting to use this to aid his plans to reform the world in his vision. To exchange more power, for full reign over Valinor. A contained place where The Three could roam free and yet never intrude upon Ryujiro's perfect order."
"To get to them however, he would have to do much. And much he did do. That's a long story and unimportant right now."
Judging by the look on Aragorn's face however he did not seem to think that it was unimportant.
"If you want to know the whole story I left a journal of mine in the books that I brought back with me. They are in my personal belongings, you may have it if you like."
Aragorn inclined his head in thanks.
"Needless to say, much transpired between the thirty years that Ryujiro formed his plan and now. Ryujiro was discovered as a traitor, a Bakura, he was hunted down and killed, as were all of his followers. Many were lost, but The Three brothers were sent back to their realm and yet there was much left to do."
"To truly banish them, the gateways have to be closed, to be destroyed, all of them. Their closing would put them back in their rightful place and rebalance the world and restore Valinor's powers."
"Which is why I am here. To destroy them. It will take great sacrifice. A sacrifice I am willing and ready to make."
"That man spoke of sacrifice, yours in particular." Gandalf pushed sternly
Now it came to it, there really was nothing else to be done.
"Yes, to destroy even one set of the cerin stones would take great magical power and sacrifice. To destroy them all and close the gateways would require even more. All of my power at its peak, during my incarnation, all of my blood, and my immortality. That's what it will take to destroy them all and close the gateways."
Gasps and shouts of protest filled her ears just as she knew they would.
"This is not why you were born Liane!" Elrond protested "It cannot be, you were a chosen child meant to bring love and life to your people. How can you do that if you are dead?"
"I think it is exactly why I was born" she argued "And why I was born to you."
"Oh?" Elrond looked lost and distraught "And what did I do to deserve this?"
"That's not what I meant. This isn't a punishment, it is a gift."
Elrond barked in mirthless laughter, his eyes wet with tears "You expect me to consider losing my daughter a gift."
"No, but without you I wouldn't be able to destroy the stones" she said patiently "I will sacrifice my immortality to complete the process. And without your blood running through my veins I would never be able to do such a thing. It is a gift sent from Eru, it is why I was born to you Elrond and no one else."
"So this is my fault?" he said quietly and before she could protest "If that is the case then let me take your place. I am half elven, I can sacrifice my life and immortality. You are just a child, I have lived for many ages, you have so much more to do. Let me go."
Elrond's suggestion didn't surprise Liane, she was starting to truly understand the depths of his love. And Celebrian's too, for even though she looked horrified at the prospect of losing her husband she didn't protest either. They really would die for her, every one of them, not that she would ever allow it.
"I know you would gladly do it and I understand why. But I can't let you and it's not just because I don't want you to. You wouldn't be able to destroy the cerin stones. This is more than just about my immortality."
"Then what is it about?!" Elrond shouted in frustration.
"It is about everything" Liane said calmly, she was feeling incredibly zen at the moment, everything was finally starting to fall into place now. "I was taken from my home by Ryujiro and raised and trained in the order. If I hadn't been I would never have had the power within me to go through my incarnation."
"Incarnation?"
"This" she gestured to herself and Legolas "Is what we call an incarnation. Every warrior experiences it once they complete their training. For most it is a build up of their magical powers, it lasts for a few days and when it's over they achieve new levels of power. For those of us with soul mates it is a time of magical renewal but also a time of bonding with our soul mates."
"For those of you…?"
"Yes, I have a soul mate" she admitted freely "Legolas is my soul mate, which is why he is suffering the pains of my, our, incarnation as well. The pain will end if we bond, or if I die."
Liane looked him straight in the eye now.
"I need the magical powers building inside me to destroy the stones."
"And to sacrifice my life, my powers, my immortality, knowing that I will never come back, that I will always be separated from my mate and my family. It will be enough to destroy them, I think."
"You think?!" Elrond squawked "You think? Are you telling me that you would sacrifice everything and you are not even certain it will work!"
"Nothing is certain. This has never been done before." She said still calm and collected "I believe it's my destiny to do this and succeed. All of the circumstances are right, my birth, my abduction, my training, my soul mate even, these were all instances to help in this moment."
Elrond threw his hands up in utter frustration "I-this- I don't even know what to say to that!"
She smiled at him softly "Elrond." He did not look at her, staring instead at the ground.
"Ada." His head jerked up and she walked towards him "Eru would not have set me this task if I could not complete it. And he would not have blessed me with a family that could not live through this. It was meant to be, look into your heart and know that my birth was not a curse."
"Never a curse!" he hissed, pulling her to him tightly "Oh, Liane, my daughter, you are not a curse. You are a wonderful blessing upon our family."
"Then let me go, knowing that you believe in me. That you are proud to be my father." She whispered.
Elrond looked to the skies with watery eyes and gulped past a lump in his throat "I am always proud of you no matter what Liane. Always."
He held her tight for a moment longer then held out his arm pulling a speechless Celebrian in with them.
"Amee, I'm sorry I never got to know you better" Liane whispered into Celebrian's shoulder.
"Hush my daughter, there is nothing to be sorry for." She stroked Liane's hair, so much like her own, but shorter now "I am grateful that I got to see what a beautiful young woman you have become. You make me proud every day."
There wasn't a dry eye in the clearing as the family all embraced and then parted.
Suppressing another painful shudder and wiping away tears Liane tried to smile at them, sad as she was, she had never felt so loved. Her eyes roved over each of their faces, committing every detail of them to memory. For so long she had wondered what they would be like and now she knew, just as she was about to die.
"Well, this is it" Liane sighed "I should go now."
"You will not go alone iell" Elrond assured her "We will be there with you."
It was impossible to protest, Liane knew it by the determined looks on their faces.
"We will meet you there, at the cerin stones" Celebrian said casting a significant look over Liane's shoulder "Come" she took Elrond's hand and led him and the others away.
Leaving her alone with Legolas, even Katana had gone. She could tell he was still there even though she had he back to him. Slowly she turned to face him.
He was standing five feet away from her, as rigid as one of the surrounding trees. He was angry with her, she could tell. It surprised her but she could barely stand for him to be angry with her, to know he felt that she had betrayed him.
"I'm sorry Legolas."
"You're sorry" he hissed "Is that supposed to make me feel better? That you're sorry that you used me? That you will tear out my heart? That all this time you were deceiving me? And I'm supposed to feel better because you're sorry!"
Liane winced, he wasn't just angry, he was furious. She could feel it raging through him, she would like to think it was just the incarnation affecting him, but she knew better. This was her fault.
"You're right. An apology isn't nearly enough to fix this, but I never meant to hurt you."
"Ha! Then what do you call this?!" he pounded a fist upon his chest "To fall in love with a woman, to find my other half and then to know she never meant to be with me at all!"
"It's true, I came here with the express purpose of finding my soul mate and exploiting that connection to my advantage" Liane swallowed hard, feeling suddenly teary again "Since I met you though, all of my intentions have gone astray. I was supposed to find you, not fall in love with you. You got the better of me, whether it was your warm smile, the way you made me laugh, your cooking, your kisses, your kindness or your passion, I don't know, but you got the better of me."
"I fell in love and for that I thank you. Not just because of the cerin stones, but because I never thought I could. For so many years I believed myself what Caine named me tonight. That I could not love, that I was a hunter, a killer, a creature of cold, dark places. Destined to forever be alone in the dark."
Against all of his anger and frustration, his heart melted. Legolas rushed forward and kissed her hard and long. When he drew away he laid his forehead against hers "How could you think such a thing?"
"I was alone for so long. My world had gone dark and I was so alone." She looked up at him pointing to her chest. "And I could feel it, in here. I was alone and incomplete."
"And now I shall forever be alone and incomplete without you." He said sadly knowing it was true, when she died tonight he would never see her again. Not her smiles or her frowns, never hear her voice again, never feel her warm skin next to his. She would be gone from this world and he could not follow her. He would wander the earth alone and then he would wander the halls of Mandos alone, forever without her.
"You will never be without me Legolas" she cupped his face in her hands "I will always be with you" she put her hand over his steady, but breaking heart, "In here, for that is my true home."
Liane and Legolas arrived at the cerin stones shortly after everyone else. They walked hand in hand, sad but strangely light in their hearts.
As they arrived her family was waiting for her. Celebrian smiled at the pair of them. Elrond stood tall and proud and inclined his head to Legolas. The others also waited, forming a kind of half circle around the stones.
They were all silent and waiting, all of them ready to be with her in her last hour. In the past such an idea would have angered and annoyed her. Now Liane saw how blessed she was to have family there at her side.
"I have to go now" she said to them all "Thank you all for being here with me. It is a gift I never thought to have."
The others did not answer, some at loss as what to say, others too choked up to say anything at all. Liane turned to Legolas and smiled, he smiled back sadly, but he did smile. It did her heart good to know that he was not so angry with her anymore.
Heaving a deep breath she stepped forward, releasing Legolas' hand as she went. Elrond and Celebrian stepped aside to let her pass into the inner circle of the stones.
Before she got there however something small and furry snaked around her legs.
Grinning Liane bent down to scratch Katana behind the ears.
"I guess this is it munchkin."
"Must you call me that stupid nickname even now?" Katana complained but there wasn't any real rancor in her voice.
"I guess it's not really fitting, you won't be a munchkin for very much longer. Once I'm gone you'll be all grown up. You won't even remember me calling you munchkin."
Katana looked up at her solemnly and Liane fought off the tears, her closest friend would not remember her when she was gone.
"I will never forget you Liane. You are my lir that will never change, even if I do."
Liane nodded, hoping that was true "Just try and stay out of trouble once I'm gone."
Katana's answer was a deep purr. And then she too joined the others, standing beside Legolas.
Legolas watched with a heavy, but resigned heart as his love walked to her death. She seemed so different to him now. She looked much the same as she had that first day they met. Dressed all in black, a sword hanging at her side, that golden earring, that determined stride, was all the same but different somehow. It wasn't just her short hair or the tear streaks upon her face, it was something more.
He had never noticed until now how dim Liane's inner light had been. Now however she shone with a brightness to rival the stars sparkling above them. Something had changed, as he looked around at the people assembled there he had a fair idea of what that was.
Liane had finally opened her heart to her family, and to him. She had embraced their love and her own.
It was a bittersweet victory knowing she loved him and was going to die any moment now. But he was proud of her, for all that she had accomplished and for what she would do tonight.
Something soft and warm leaned against his leg. He didn't have to look down to know it was Katana. He leaned back, just a little to give her some support.
The poor creature must have been afraid. Liane had told him before they had joined the others that when she died Katana would turn into a normal mountain cat. Katana would lose her human mind and unnatural ageing process.
"I know I have no right to ask a favor of you," Liane had said quietly, looking to the cerin stones "But will you watch out for her? She will not be the same, not in mind or body. She will be a wild animal but if you could just make sure that… that she has somewhere to live that is safe. Well, I would be eternally grateful."
Of course Legolas had agreed immediately. He would see to it that no harm ever came to Katana. She was the only living connection he would have left to Liane. Wild or not he was sure Katana would never forget Liane. He certainly wouldn't.
Liane approached the center stone steadily. From the moment she had entered the stone circle the very air around her changed. It seemed the demons just beyond the gateways knew the end was near.
They wouldn't be able to resist the taste of her blood, immortality and magic as it flowed out of her dying body. Diablo would be especially hungry for it. Hidden within it however would be their end. All of her love and strength would be released from within her as well.
That pure, untouched light would wound and drive back their evil, loosen their hold on the gateways. Then and only then would she be able to destroy the stones.
That was the plan, now all she could do was go through with it and hope that it would work.
Turning away from the center stone Liane walked to the outer circle. Without looking to her family she withdrew from her ankle strap her cerix. It was a curved, vicious blade that had been given to her upon her initiation into the order. The jeweled handle was inserted with her name and oath.
Liane White, Warrior of the Kurast. "My life for the Order"
Her fingers closed tightly around the blades edge. It drew a deep thick red line on her palm, leaving a trail of freshly flowing blood.
Liane didn't wince at the wound, she'd had worse after all. She brought her hand up and placed it flat upon the magical symbol for spirit. The symbol soaked up her blood greedily and began to glow a deep red. She proceeded to do the same with the others, earth, air, fire and water.
Once she had reached the final stone she began the incantation to open a portal.
"Spirit, earth, air, fire, water. Spirit, earth, air, fire, water. Spirit earth, air, fire, water." Her voice was low, monotonous but heard all around the clearing.
Over her chanting the stones began to hum, and then fiery light blasted out from the outer stones to strike the middle one. Usually cerin light was bright blue, tonight it was a bright, fiery red. Even the portal that opened pulsed a bright bloody red.
Liane approached the portal, slipping the cerix back into its sheath.
Far beyond, in the deepest parts of the portal Liane could see them. Mephisto, Baal, Diablo and all of their terrible minions. They were waiting for her, trying to remain out of sight, but so hungry for her blood and magic.
Liane stare at them a while. These creatures had taken everything she had ever loved. And they would do it again if she let them.
Turning her back on them Liane looked out to the forest. Her family and friends watched in horror, bathed in the strange red light. Just beyond them she could see the shadow khan that she had not dismissed. Their eyes were as red as the portal. No doubt they were here to watch in glee as one of their masters went to their death.
Her eyes sought out Legolas', his face was drawn in terrible pain. She could relate, still as she was, her powers were growing exponentially inside her, on the very verge of total collapse.
Now, she had to do it now!
And so she did.
The sound of her sword being drawn was drowned out as a great cry of despair rose up when she plunged it straight into her heart. Metal scraped bone, flesh tore and broke and bled.
With a gasp she tore the sword out of her body and flung it away from her. It landed with a clatter upon the ground.
Blood began to seep through her clothes thick and fast and Liane struggled to remain standing. It had never occurred to her that dying would hurt so much.
The world span and sound dimmed, she vaguely heard the shouts and anguished cries around her but could not fully decipher them. Whispers from behind her, from the portal, the demons, filled her ears like as irritable buzzing insect. They were calling to her, taunting her, they were hungry.
If they were hungry she supposed it was only fair that she feed them.
"Akono vash, kateka dei." The incantation was just barely audible over the cacophony of noise in her head.
Liane jerked violently and then a bright stream of her power and blood shot out from her heart coming out her back, flowing strong and fast like a bright white river into the portal. It felt like someone had punched a hole in her chest. Like her very soul was being pulled out of her body to be greedily lapped up by the demons beyond.
The portal grew brighter and larger. The symbols on the outer stones were now glowing so brightly, still red, that the entire forest was bathed in their bloody light.
Liane's feet were lifted off the ground and she rose high up into the air. The only thing connecting her to the ground was the white light going between her and the portal, like a giant tether.
She felt like she was rising to heaven, with the stars above her so bright. The pain was starting to go away now and she thought of her family, of Legolas, Katana and her long dead friends. She loved them all so much, and even though she would never see some of them again there were others waiting for her. Just beyond the mortal veil, they waited to welcome her into the peaceful embrace of everlasting rest.
It made her happy, it made her stronger. And so the magical tether grew stronger and fed the greedy demons. They lapped it up not knowing their end was upon them. Soon, soon they would see, and then they would weaken and Liane would act.
But they did not weaken. Too late Liane realized that it was not enough, the demons grip upon the gateways had not been broken. Not even in the slightest.
Liane could not destroy the stones while they still held on. She had failed.
Despair filled her, she was dying, she had failed, her enemies had won. Just as Caine had predicted they would. It had all been for nothing.
Her power was fading now, the great white tether sputtered and faltered. Liane looked one last time over her homeland. Her eyes passed over her loved ones with grief, instead they touched on the shadow khan.
Somehow she knew that she had caught the eye of the one who had once been Caine. Traitor though he was she grieved for him and the other lost souls with him. They had betrayed their order and now they had nothing and would have nothing forever.
And then it came to her. It was as though her father was standing right next to her, she could here his words so well.
'So shall she come
As the third bell tolls
Bearing a gift of which they have none
And the prize of her heart shall make them whole.'
And then she understood.
Although she barely had the strength to do it she said "I- forgive. I release you from your service. I forgive."
In an instant Liane knew she had done the right thing.
The khans shadow bodies burst apart to reveal the soft, vapor like light of the souls once trapped within the shadows for so long.
As they rose up to the heavens, to their eternal freedom, a great burst of power surged through Liane and shot into the portal. A horrible sound rent the air as the demons beyond were mortally wounded and lost their grip on the gateways. Then five beams of light shot out from the portal to strike all of the stones.
They glowed bright, blinding white. Vibrating, humming, the ground shook. All over the world cerin stones reacted the same way as portals opened up to blast them with white light.
In a moment it seemed like nothing was going to happen and in another it all seemed to happen at once. The portal collapsed in on itself, the stones glowed and hummed and then disintegrated in a flash of white light.
A series of aftershocks made the world tremble and stumble.
And then it was over.
Legolas knew the moment she died, when she was gone forever from this plane. The pain in his stomach ceased, now he was left only with the pain in his heart.
Beside him Katana changed, with a feline scream her body contorted and grew. She was now a fully grown mountain cat, at least six or seven feet tip to tail. She twisted and turned in fright as the white light flashed above and around them, she took off at a bound into the surrounding forest.
The light was gone in a flash, a gong like ringing sounded deep in the earth, a terrible bang followed by a giant shockwave. It knocked him and everyone else off their feet.
Legolas was lying flat on his face, he breathed in the scent of the cool, dew wet grass. He laid his ear against the earth, and even now he could tell it was beginning to heal. There was a certain shifting there like things were returning to their proper places. It had worked, Liane had succeeded.
That knowledge didn't ease the burning in his heart. Valinor would now live on and thrive, he would not. He would go on wandering Valinor alone and then he would wander Mandos alone. He could barely stand the thought, no more than he could stand to face the reality.
Legolas knew what he would see if he looked up. Liane, dead, lying prone upon the ground, her body ravaged by the magic she had used to destroy the cerin stones. Or would there be a body at all, would she simply be smoldering pile of ashes?
A tormented yell sounded above him. No doubt everyone was in as much pain as he was, and right now he didn't have what it took to deal with their pain as well as his own.
Someone put a hand on his shoulder.
"Up you get my son." Thranduil and Adon heaved him up from under his arms and stood him on his feet.
Where once the towering figures of the cerin stones had stood, now there were now six large craters in the earth. Legolas could feel the tears upon his face as he stumbled towards the small crowd gathered around what he imagined was Liane's body.
As he came upon them, Liane's family, he realized their voices were not rising up in anguish but in astonishment. Legolas peered over Elrond's shoulder and discovered why.
Liane was there just as he thought she would be, but she was not bloody and singed, she was whole and clean. And… she was alive.
And she was not alone.
Authors Note: All right, all right, everyone just simmer down now! I said simmer down! The author shouts over the yells and jeers of her angry readers. I know it has been waaaaayyyy too long since I posted a new chapter. I know that there were many times when I said I was working on it and it would soon be in your greedy little hands. And then I didn't deliver. My excuse…… The crowd waits with bated breath but hears only the sounds of crickets chirping and the author fiddling with her shirt.
Well, I don't have one, well I have some but there not nearly good enough to make up for the long wait. Too much work, a long journey to a far off land (Egypt), after work activities, and finally plain old writers block. The crowd seems hardly appeased and so the author continues quickly. In truth it was really the writer's block that did it. This was the crux of all the chapters in the story, the place where I had to tie up some major plot lines.
It was a difficult task to be sure, for those of you who don't know I started this story three years ago. Since then a lot has changed, in the story and in me. I can't even remember how many times I've changed this story and its plot along the way. As you can imagine that could create a lot of problems when trying to tie it all up. I think I hand wrote at least three hundred pages of first draft work before I finally had it all worked out, from the bare bones of how it was going to work out, to the smaller details. Finally this afternoon I wrote my final pages of first draft and was determined to see it typed up and edited and posted by this evening.
So thank you for bearing with me and waiting for so long, for those fellow writers out there I hope you understand how bad it can be when life and plot holes stall your writing process. For those readers out there I hope you can understand as well and if not, 'sigh' I give you free reign to throw pies at me now and forever, in every review and comment you post whether it be good or bad for all eternity. The readers looked slightly more appeased by this.
Truly, thank you all for being there with me during this wonderful journey into the writing world. I've learned a lot about writing, just by doing it, by reading others stories, analyzing my own. I hope all of you who think you could never write something will take the plunge someday and write something yourself and discover how rewarding it.
I hope you will all stick with writing and reading, and me.
Because this ain't over yet baby! There's still at least two chapters left to go and you're sure to get them no matter what! What's that? A preview you say? Well… maybe just a hint of things to come…. We'll see more of our favorite characters, Adon, Morwen, Katana, someone new, someone old will all return. There will be closure…in many ways, some surprises, and definitely some hot scenes.
Until next time!
Love
War
