Chapter Twenty: Melas Kardia
The waves brushed the sides of the Island as the friends stood in the center of it. Ari looked around nervously, his fingers tightening around the slippery, cold orb in his palms. It felt…powerful, just holding it.
Ari exchanged looks and nods with his friends, then lifted the orb high overhead.
Nothing happened at first, but suddenly the orb lifted into the air.
Light from all of the Stone Circles twisted into the sky, forming into one gigantic streak of color that merged with the Spiritus. The Spiritus glowed brightly, the color of a rainbow, before almost fading altogether.
Unexpectedly, the Spiritus fired down pure white radiance onto them, and Ari shut his eyes tight.
When it cleared, they had no idea where they were standing.
Everything around them was pure white, with flowing strands of energy that gave it motion. The world was comprised of nothing but a black platform in the middle of it.
And there, looking amused was Rosalyn.
She yelped in surprise when everyone except Stan started giving her hugs or pats on the back and shoulders. Ari grinned at her. "You're okay!"
"I've been okay for a while," laughed the Hero. "Just bored. But now that you're here, and the Spiritus is powered up, maybe that creepy dragon that's been looking at me and speaking in a whisper will be strong enough to help. Sorry it took me a moment, I wasn't sure what to do to activate this darn thing."
"Where's this dragon?" Stan said, looking a little uncomfortable by so much light.
"Shiro Ryu?" Rosalyn called.
A hiss and emerging from the whiteness around them came a long, serpent like figure. There were no wings, but it flew around easily. The dragon seemed to be comprised of bands of light; the only thing solid was its eyes, a pale gold. The dragon drew itself up, mane rippling, blinking sagely down on them. The Spirit spoke in a voice like the wind, gliding softly but with enough force to be heard.
"Welcome, friends. What use do you have of the Spiritus, and we Spirits of the Astral Realm?"
"Addonexus is using the Necomortis to destroy our world." Ari began. "And we have to save our friend, along with fixing this mess."
"Addonexus!" The light flashed like a storm around them and Shiro tossed his head like an irritated animal. "The Hellhound! We remember him." Dipping his head low to look into Rosalyn's eyes, the dragon sighed. "Young one, forgive me. I couldn't think straight or manifest myself properly to help you."
"That's okay," the Hero said, obviously a little uneasy.
Shiro nodded, breathing a white mist from his mouth. Ari just now noticed that Rosalyn was missing her demonic characteristics, except for a slight pointed angle to her ears.
"You are now back on the mortal plane with your friends. Well done, many don't know how to activate the Spiritus."
Rosalyn gave a flustered thank you. Shiro whirled around to face the group.
"Are you leader here, young one?" The Spirit asked Ari, who gave a shrug while the others nodded. "Then I pass the powers onto you and your friends, but you are the one whom will carry the strongest spell…and the biggest responsibility."
When Ari nodded again, Shiro twisted into the air some more and called, "Spirits of the Astral Realm, these mortals require our aid in defeating Addonexus. Lend them your might!"
The energy swooped down and buried the friends in soft lavender light. With a startled yelp Ari covered his eyes. Everything felt cold and then warm, switching rapidly and giving him such a weird feeling he almost felt sick.
Voices murmured in his ears, and shapes danced around him despite his eyes being closed. When he dared to crack open his eyes again, he was back on Wap Wap Island.
And Rosalyn was with them.
"What happened?" Coracinus gave a disoriented moan, stumbling around in his true appearance, almost falling flat on his scaly face.
"Feels like I hit a rock wall." Big Bull mumbled.
Rosalyn kept touching her arms and then the ground, as if to make sure she was really here. She then yanked her rapier out and pointed it at Stan. "Stanley!"
Her sword unexpected blazed pure white, and she jumped, surprised, almost dropping her sword.
Stan laughed. "Wow, can't even handle your own sword?"
"Hey, everything feels uncanny." Kisling complained.
Epros didn't appear bothered by it, but Ari had to agree the buzzing in his head was mildly irritating.
Young one.
Ari jerked, looking around.
Peace. It is I, Shiro Ryu. Do not fear; I will guide you to Melas.
Ari suddenly just…knew…what to do.
He closed his eyes and extended his hand. Energy collected around his palm and suddenly swirled into a glowing portal, dark and thick with red energy.
Shiro spoke again.
The Spiritus will puncture the darker planes, allowing you to quickly pass through the gaps to wherever you wish to be. The tunnel you have just opened should release you and your friends at Melas's floating castle.
Silently giving thanks, Ari told his friends what he had just heard.
"Let's go fight Melas!" Big Bull stomped his feet. "We've gotta save the Diva!"
Epros agreed readily, and Ari took a deep breath before entering the portal.
Darkness clung to him like a second skin, and it was only by sheer force of will that he didn't panic. Shiro told him if he panicked, then the tunnel could close on them and who knows what happens to those trapped in between realms.
The blackness was like night fire, but Ari knew his friends were counting on him and didn't flinch away from it. When the tunnel finally came to an end, he made sure all of his friends were out before closing the portal.
Everything around him was made of dark stone. Torches flickered in their sconces and clouds hung heavily outside the windows. The air was thick with the scent of death, and dark stains lined the walls.
"What's happened here? This is indeed most queer." Epros muttered.
"Was there a fight?" Rosalyn guessed.
Kisling looked around. "Judging by the dimension and magnitude of each separate blemish, I'd say there was previously an appalling fight here. Unfortunately, or perhaps providentially, the stains are quite aged."
"We're in some kind of dungeon, perhaps? When floating I doubt windows or not will make a difference to a prisoner that can't fly." The Hero murmured.
"Why fight Melas at all?" Stan said suddenly. "He doesn't have Linda; we could just go straight to Addonexus."
"The clouds don't shift by themselves," Kisling explained. "According to one of the Spirits which has been instructing me on the use of the powers from the Spiritus, she says Addonexus may craft them, but it's Melas that directs and activates them. He may also impede our clash with Addonexus. Not only that, but…" Here he added dryly, "Getting easily into Addonexus's abode will necessitate an exceptional key."
"Not just that," snapped Rosalyn. "But Melas has been causing trouble for those people not in the negative realm, he needs to be stopped!"
Ari raised his hands. "We're here now, let's just go."
The friends crossed the corridors quietly, speaking in low voices as Coracinus led the way. His black fur now had a faint white sheen to it, and the wolf kept pausing to sniff the floor.
"Where're all the ghosts at lately? The bad ones. Not that I'm complaining." Marlene said thoughtfully.
"The Rising Rain clouds signify the return of someone very evil. Even the ghosts don't want to be around for that. Or, all the ghosts are with Addonexus and he's planning something." Rosalyn replied.
"I found his scent trail, this way." Coracinus took off, and the others were right behind him. They ran faster than they ever had before, Ari was stunned. It was like he was a car in a video game that just hit a speed boost.
Each window they passed Ari looked out of, noticing the oddly stiff gray storm clouds. He had teleported his friends somewhere, but exactly where he wasn't sure. They were beyond the Highlands though, that much he knew. It was really Shiro that showed him where to "poke" a hole at in the dimensions, he just followed orders.
Emerging from a long flight of stairs, they saw that up here it was cleaner. No guards were present but according to Coracinus the scent trails were fresh. They entered more flights of stairs, even passing where Linda had been imprisoned, and Ari felt a fresh wave of sadness for the poor girl.
Why Linda?
She was so sweet and naïve, why was she so important? What made her so significant that Addonexus wanted her, and where was the Hellhound anyway? Melas's castle moved, did his? No one really knew. Rumor had it he had moved into the Diablerie, but Ari didn't know.
It irritated him when he couldn't help his friends. It had been about…two weeks? A month? He had lost track of time. She was probably scared.
We're coming though, he thought.
Coracinus paused at the top of a large tower they had navigated in a matter of seconds. Tossing his head and whining, he lifted his pupil devoid green eyes at the friends. "Guys, we've got a problem."
They approached the window, and Ari looked down. Down below the window was a sort of courtyard, and in that courtyard was a contingent of ghosts. Standing in front of them was Melas, snarling in his true form, pacing back and forth. A strange device was glowing a sickly orange color and from within its depths…
A girl was thrown out. She landed heavily on her side, gasping, slightly transparent at first but becoming more and more clear every moment. Melas grabbed the girl roughly, and his voice carried up to the high tower's windows. The friends increased senses heard every word.
"Well I'll be. Who's this?"
The girl's eyes turned wide and fearful, and Ari recognized Maggie, the leader of the street gang in Madril and Robert's friend slash rival. Her hair was loose and untidy, hanging limply around her shoulders.
"Silent treatment? Don't be rude, my dear." His green eyes glowed. "I won't hurt you. My name is Melas Kardia, what's yours?"
"M-Maggie." She suddenly lifted her chin defiantly. "L-let me go!"
"But why would I do that, dear? Addonexus always needs servants, and we find those from the negative realms are always wonderful at it." He cooed at her softly, like she was a young child. It made Ari shiver. "However…If you don't want to, we can just kill you now. My nice little machine will guarantee there are plenty more servants where you came from. To think, it punctures the negative realm! It'll make up for the master being cross with me for giving Infernose my disc."
Maggie turned her head to the side to escape his evil eyes, and Ari found himself admiring her bravery. "Where am I?" She ignored his other statements though she was obviously scared.
"Welcome to my castle. We're currently floating quite a few hundred feet above the landscape. I could just flick my wrist and down you would go, my dear."
"I'm not your dear!"
"Cheeky, aren't you? One more chance." He suddenly threw her on the ground, and she let out a scream of pain. "Submit! Submit to my master's new regime!"
The ghosts screeched in delight as the Shapeshifter tossed his head back and laughed, one heavy claw on Maggie's back.
"Let's get him." Rosalyn gripped the handle of her sword.
Epros nodded, extending his hands. Suddenly Ari felt his feet leave the ground and he realized he was floating, like Epros.
Big Bull cracked his fists then drew his hand back. "That Spirit talkin' in my head better be right, or this is gonna hurt!" He punched the wall, knocking a huge hole in the stones. Pieces fell into the courtyard, hitting the surprised ghosts.
They all jumped down, Epros's spell protecting them, and they landed lightly on the ground. Epros stalked forward, passing Ari, whom was surprised because usually his friends seemed to wait for him to lead.
Not that he was complaining.
Melas looked amused by all that was going on, and Maggie struggled to her feet, her eyes suddenly flashing surprise at spotting Ari.
"Ari!" She called. He gave her a reassuring smile before looking into the Shapeshifter's eyes.
Melas waved his tail, stopping the lines of elite knight ghosts from attacking. "Well, I am surprised. It's Epros, Coracinus, and the other rebels. And the traitor Evil King too."
Stan smirked.
"Don't feel so triumphant, my master and I have anticipated your betrayal. All planned. Addonexus does enjoy a good game though, so he wanted to give you a second chance." He chuckled good naturedly. "Coracinus, powered up by the Spiritus like the others are you? How entertaining! I look forward to our fight. Though I have to ask; what makes you think I won't pull out the Alpha card on you? Figuratively, of course."
Coracinus smiled. "You can't."
"Oh? Why not? I know you haven't given your allegiance to anyone else."
"I have, actually. I knew if I ever got powers from the Spiritus you'd pull your rank on me and get me to work for you." The Black Shapeshifter turned into his true form, eyes narrowed, round muzzle shaking from side to side as if tasting the air. "So I gave my loyalty to someone else."
"Who? That's not possible! I don't see how-"It was the first time Melas seemed surprised.
"Of course not. When we were in Triste together, I asked Linda if she would let me join her 'pack', so to speak. She was puzzled but said yes. That means I have officially left your pack, and no magic of hierarchy can force me to listen to you."
Melas snarled. "I see." Inside, the Black Heart was confused. Surely Shapeshifters couldn't be part of a non-Shapeshifter pack? He could reach for the energy right now and try, but there was so much Holy energy covering his nephew that he would have to search for the power.
"You're not an Alpha anymore. Infernose and Tawnvele, your pack, are dead. I left your pack. I'm in Ari's pack now, and since Linda sees Ari as her leader he is now my Alpha." He turned to Ari. "If you ordered me to jump off of a cliff, I would have to, by the laws of my people."
Melas narrowed his eyes. "That's all very well; I imagined something like this would happen, no? If I can't use your powers, then I'll simply kill you all, take the Spiritus, and…" He smirked. "Defeat Addonexus myself. Shapeshifters don't bow to the will of a Hellhound." He clicked his claws, making all of the ghosts perk up. "Kill them all."
With a wild scream the ghosts fell upon the friends. Ari listened to the advice Shiro was giving him, unleashing waves of white energy while skipping backwards and swinging his sword. Every swing unleashed a flourish of energy that decimated the hordes of knight ghosts coming at him.
Everywhere he looked, Ari saw his friends, even Marlene whom previously had no fighting prowess, unleashing powered up versions of past attacks. The ghosts didn't stand a chance, not with the feral energy of the Spiritus tearing apart the landscape and seeping through their very armor.
Some ghosts began to shriek in fear and run away, into the castle, off the side of the cliff, anywhere they could to avoid the stinging light energy. Rosalyn was the brightest of them all besides him, and Ari knew she took out dozens of ghosts.
Unexpectedly, Melas, whom had been watching disinterestedly, launched into the fray. His dark aura let out tendrils of choking darkness that tried to strangle him, but Ari fought him off. The friends were desperate to deal with the hundred ghosts still remaining and Melas at the same time. With a sudden roar Coracinus attacked Melas himself.
They rolled over and over, Melas being larger and stronger appearing to have the upper hand. However, the Spiritus lent the younger Shapeshifter strength. The others were left to deal with ghosts, unable to intervene unless they ended up hitting Coracinus.
Melas snarled, biting so hard into Coracinus's arm that it almost came off. Dark blood flowed down his arm, and he cried out in agony. Suddenly, all of the black became eclipsed in white and Coracinus struggled to his feet. Catching Melas from underneath, he flexed his muscles, despite his severely injured arm that wept rivulets of blood, and tossed him across the courtyard and into the wall.
The Black Heart hit it hard, and he was dazed for a moment before he shifted into a large, monstrous black bird. He moved across the field like smoke, and the white Shapeshifter dodged just in time.
Rosalyn caught Melas in the face with her sword, and he pulled back in pain. However, he lifted his wings and buffeted powerfully. Winds pushed the Hero over and she would have fallen off if Stan had lunged forward and caught her hand. He hauled her up, and she gave him an odd look, a mixture between gratitude and something else, before she launched back into the attack.
Epros skipped backwards, dodging every talon strike from the black bird, before swiping his cards, Sargarious's among them, into the creature's wings. Melas wouldn't go down though, no matter what Big Bull did, or Kisling, or even Ari.
Stan made an odd gesture with his hand, and then pointed downward. Black fire erupted, completely covering the Shapeshifter. Melas screeched in distress, fear in his eyes, before tearing himself free from the fire.
Ari rushed forward, raising his hand and summoning energy. "You are done!"
A white beam cascaded down from the very sky, and Ari saw Shiro and several other Spirits within it. They crashed down on Melas, and he thrashed, growling in pain, incapable of even thinking straight, he was in so much agony.
While the injured Shapeshifter lay there, his form beginning to break down, Kisling pulled out the book, on instinct, that Abterqen had given him.
He began to recite.
"Spirits and Demons, from above and below."
Melas's eyes snapped open and he let out a wild cry of despair. "No!" He gathered his form together and leaped, in the shape of a black tiger, directly for Kisling. Coracinus intercepted him, his smaller wolf form enough to knock the tiger off course. The white wolf and its opponent struggled vainly for a second, then with a desperate strength Melas threw off the younger Shapeshifter and delivered a terrible blow to his throat.
The tiger sprang forward again, but this time Rosalyn and Stan caught him just in time. Epros and the others hovered nearby, ready to intervene should he break free.
"Banish this creature of evil to the blankest voids…"
"No!" cried Melas again, the fear in his voice made Ari wonder what was going on exactly.
"Where no light nor darkness may enter, for he is not worthy of even the desolate blackness nor the soothing embrace of the light." Kisling looked puzzled, but continued. "Melas Kardia enters the nether realms, and may he never resurface." Kisling raised a hand, pointed it at the Shapeshifter, and smiled slightly. "You are Expelled."
Melas snarled in anguish, breaking free from everyone and leaping toward Kisling again. Big Bull prepared to protect the professor, but suddenly he froze mid leap.
Claws still extended, the tiger began to break down into glittering black particles. "No! Not the nether realms! No one survives there!" His calm, composed demeanor had shattered and his disc like eyes was wide in fear. "No, no, no!" With a last desperate howl he vanished.
"Kisling…what did you do?" Rosalyn asked, breathing heavily.
"I just…well, I had an impulsive instinct to open the book." He explained. "I can't discern what I did."
"Do you know, Coracinus?" Ari asked, turning around. Suddenly, the friends rushed forward. "Coracinus!"
The Black Shapeshifter's eyes were closed, and blood ran from a wound in his side. Marlene was kneeling down by him, her hands on his throat, where the most blood flowed. White energy, mixed with pale green, flowed through fingers.
"It's bad." She admitted. "But the Spirit guiding me says it can be healed."
"Thank goodness. You were so brave, Coracinus." Ari told their friend. The young Shapeshifter smiled faintly, eyes still closed.
"Yeah…but I'm in no condition to fight Addonexus now. You guys will have to."
"Very well, nice to know you aren't dying, Shapeshifter. I've got uses for you yet." Stan smiled.
Coracinus snorted, which caused more blood to stick in his throat. "Yeah, okay, sure thing…Tell Linda…she needs to be patient with Epros sometimes, he can't find a way to properly say what he wants to."
"What do you mean? It's not fatal." Marlene sounded surprised. "You can tell her yourself."
The Shapeshifter shook his head. "No I can't. The Spirits protect me, I lied."
"What?" Big Bull questioned.
"I bluffed. Melas thought Shapeshifters, whom live in packs usually where we come from, couldn't join a pack with humans and ghosts. That's true. Only with other Shapeshifters."
"Does that mean…what I think it means?" Epros asked.
Unexpectedly, Coracinus laughed. "Did you not rhyme, Epros?"
Epros smiled. "I got that curse from Melas a long time ago. That's how we met. Let's say he got mad I won a bet. Of course, I could still rhyme, if I wanted to, all the time."
"You told me before, you love rhymes." Coracinus snickered, and then sighed. "I can either follow Melas into the nether realm…or let the Spirits take me to the Astral Plane with them. I think I will, there I really will be free of Melas."
"…We'll miss you," Rosalyn said. "And we'll be sure to tell Linda."
Marlene removed her hands from his body when the white wolf shook violently and suddenly began to fragment into glittering pieces.
"Then off I go to the Astral Plane. Get Addonexus for me, and if I can I'll help you guys from the Spiritus." Coracinus completely vanished, and Kisling shook his head.
"Quite an enigma, that Shapeshifter. So many unreciprocated questions."
Ari nodded, and raised his voice to address his friends. "Where's Maggie?"
"I saw her run into the castle, she's fine." Rosalyn said. "The entire castle is empty now, the ghosts are all gone. Every one of them."
"Excellent." Ari smiled. "I'm going to teleport Maggie to Madril. It won't take long."
"Okay, slave, you do that." Stan shrugged. "I guess we just leave that machine, especially if the crackpot professor wants to try and work it."
"Then we find the big boss?" Big Bull questioned.
Ari smiled. "That's right. Let me find and transport Maggie, then we can fight Addonexus, and Shiro knows the way."
***
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