Author's Note: It is not Tuesday. I no longer control when my muse decides to cooperate. Help.
Origins
By LeFox
Chapter Thirty-Five: Respite
Kuja left the mages' quarters in a foul mood; that conversation certainly hadn't gone the way he'd expected. Why were they all like that? Blind, god-struck half-wits with no concept whatsoever of the reality of the situation, quick to assume Neirin was their savior, there to answer all of their prayers… it was as if the entire city of Kiera had, somehow, forgotten that Neirin was the fugitive. Only three years ago, they'd been escorted into the city as foreign oddities, their presence permitted largely because Maliris was practically royalty within the city, herself.
Had they all forgotten how they'd laughed at Neirin in Arros's hall?
Had they forgotten watching Neirin collapse time and time again?
Now he was a god. A miracle worker.
Kuja wasn't sure why the thought enraged him so badly, but it left him with the strong urge to shatter every pane of stained glass in the palace, just for the sake of damaging something in this thrice-damned city. Barring Vehtra, who at the very least seemed to have plans, all of Kiera seemed to be full of idiots. Idiots waiting for some kind of miracle to save them from Taharka and the end of the world.
"You look mad enough to kill someone." Tiamat's voice startled him nearly enough to shake him out of his rage. The guardian was lounging near the top of a stairwell, idly sharpening a sword. Not his sword, Kuja realized; his sword likely hadn't needed sharpening at all in the past three years. The only thing Neirin needed to be protected from, at this point, was his own stubbornness.
Kuja cleared his throat. "A few mages, maybe."
Tiamat snorted. "The girl?" He grinned, tucking the sword back into its sheath and setting it aside. "You're old enough to start noticin' girls your own age, I guess. Just remember she's on loan."
"What?! Not- no!" Horrified, Kuja shook his head furiously. Why was that the first thing that came to the guardian's mind? "No, I just… they're all so-" This wasn't going well at all. His face felt hot; was he blushing? Dammit. He took a deep breath, composing himself. "They think he's a god. They think he can do anything."
The smile slipped from Tiamat's lips. "Times like these, everyone wants a miracle." He sighed. "You ask me, I think the fact Kiera's even still standing is a miracle all on its own. How many other cities are still standing in the world? If he could knock down those walls, we'd've been dead years ago."
A moment passed before the guardian glanced up again. "How about you?" he asked. "Do you believe in miracles?"
Kuja shook his head, heading down the stairs. He needed to visit the library. He needed some kind of peace, even if there was none to be found, until Neirin returned from his excursion into town.
Did he believe in miracles?
No. Not for quite some time now.
xxx
"The world's in pretty poor shape," the scout was explaining, stretched out on a bench outside the stables. Though Vehtra would have much preferred to walk back to the palace for additional privacy and comfort, Neirin's attention had been immediately seized by the silver dragons chained nearby. "I didn't find any surviving cities of any size on the northern continent. Most of the ruins have been infested with monsters of a nasty sort. Malboros," the scout added, grimacing with disgust. "Still, it hasn't halted Taharka's little gardening project-"
"Gardening project?" Neirin glanced over from the dragons, his gaze quickly flicking toward Vehtra – was this something else they hadn't bothered telling him? He was growing weary of being kept out of the loop like this.
But Vehtra looked just as confused. "Elaborate."
"Is this new?" The scout's confidence wavered. He glanced between the two of them nervously, then swallowed. "It's… it's a tree, I think. Growing on an island just off the northern coast of the continent." He looked first at Vehtra, then at Neirin. "It's a large tree. I was sure you would already know of it. Surely it must have taken more than three years to grow to such a size."
A tree? Neirin frowned, trying to remember. Had he heard anything about a tree in their travels…? It was difficult to remember; his memory was hazy at best these days. Would Kuja remember that sort of thing? Surely if a tree had played some part in their journey, Kuja would remember. But why would a tree even be relevant? He stroked the feathered crest of the male silver dragon, trying to think, succeeding only in frustrating himself. There were so many things happening outside the walls of Kiera, and no one seemed interested in telling him anything about it, so long as he continued creating magical defense systems powered by the city's own life force.
A tree. Why would Taharka be bothering with a tree?
"Are you sure it's Taharka's doing?" he asked, and the scout shrugged.
"It's the only thing on or around the continent that isn't dead. It seemed like the logical conclusion."
"Why a tree?" Neirin mused, looking at Vehtra, who simply shrugged. If no one could think of a decent reason to be concerned, then… "Never mind that; a tree can't be much of a threat." Hopefully. "What else did you find out?"
The scout took a moment to recollect his thoughts. "It's been surprisingly quiet. There are signs Taharka has started working on a new airship, but has made little progress. He scarcely leaves Pandemonium. He sends out scouts to other continents, but theyhaven't made much progress." He shrugged. "All in all, it seems Taharka's plans have stalled. The failure of the Invincible at Oeilvert was a major blow, and he hasn't quite recovered yet."
Neirin allowed himself a sigh of relief, resting his forehead against the dragon's neck. If Taharka's plans had hit a snag, perhaps it was time he had some rest, at least for a few days. How good would it feel just to sleep again, without the driving urge to rise and make more soldiers, just in case Taharka attacked today, just in case the army he'd already built wasn't enough… and perhaps he could have a real conversation with Kuja again, instead of an argument over how badly he was exerting himself. How long had it been since the boy had last relaxed, himself? There were few demands on him, to be sure, but that didn't stop him from always being present during Neirin's rituals; even his appointed guardians weren't half so diligent.
Vehtra, on the other hand, was not to be so easily calmed. "And our continent? What did you see of it?" His question didn't stir Neirin at all; the younger king simply remained kneeling with his face tucked against the dragon's neck.
"We've fared far better." The scout smiled proudly. "The outposts have mostly survived. The only one that shows any sign of distress is Iksandr, and they've mostly responded by expanding their hold below-ground. The others remain mostly untouched, though they've been preparing for an attack as well as can be expected. We've had no difficulty dealing with Taharka's little pests."
"Because Kiera would have to fall first." Neirin looked up at last, looking around at the high, solid walls. "If Kiera falls, the outposts won't be far behind, but so long as Kiera stands, there's no point in destroying the outposts."
"Then I suppose we'd best concentrate on keeping Kiera standing," Vehtra said, a wry smile tugging at his lips, as if he knew Neirin had, however briefly, been considering giving himself a brief respite. Neirin drew himself back up to his feet; it was time to return to the palace. It was time to get back to work. Snag in Taharka's plans or no, the army wouldn't build itself.
xxx
"A… tree?" Kuja stared up at the king a moment, uncertain of whether or not he'd heard correctly. "A tree? Did you say a tree?"
"That's what the scout says." Neirin sat on the second level of the library, letting his legs dangle over the edge. "A giant tree of some sort. You don't recall hearing anything about it, either, then? I thought perhaps…" My memory was fading faster than I knew, he didn't say. "I thought perhaps you'd overheard something I missed." That the boy seemed just as bewildered by this news as he was came as no small relief.
Kuja frowned, shaking his head. "No. Nothing about a tree. It makes no sense." He shoved the book he'd been reading back onto the shelf. "He wants to kill off all life on Terra. Why stop to grow a tree?"
"And apparently it's been growing for quite some time. The scout claims it's very large." The king watched as Kuja skimmed the shelves, looking for something on trees, perhaps. "Perhaps it was growing even before he attacked Traje, if indeed it is Taharka's doing at all."
"We have no real reason to suspect it is his doing, from the sound of things." Kuja climbed to the second level, activating the switch to lower the highest level of shelves. The library was entirely too complicated for something so simple, but he'd grown used to its oddities. "It may be just a normal tree that survived simply because it's on an island, away from the pollution…" He paused, then turned toward Neirin, eyes narrowing. "Unless you know something you aren't telling me about this."
"Nothing." Neirin sighed, leaning back against the shelf. "If I knew, I wouldn't have troubled myself with asking you, would I? No, there's no real reason to suspect Taharka's involvement in this." He hesitated, then added, "But I can't shake the feeling."
Kuja gave up his futile search (there were no useful books on trees of any sort in this library; the desert was hardly a place where trees turned up frequently), and sat beside the king on the ledge. "I guess it's better to assume he has something planned than to be surprised."
I just wish I knew what to suspect, Kuja thought, trying to consider the possibilities. But where to begin? What was a tree good for? Shelter? Taharka had the whole of Pandemonium to himself; his cult hardly needed shelter. Burning wood? There was no shortage of wood to be found throughout the mother continent. What else could a tree do, though? Maybe it's just meant to distract us, he considered, then immediately rejected the idea; if they were meant to be distracted by it, surely more of an effort would have been made to draw their attention to it sooner. But then what…?
"That's enough of a break, I suppose," Neirin said suddenly, sliding down to the bottom level, not bothering with the ladder. "Back to building an army." And just like that, he was gone, off to drain more mages and create more shadow soldiers.
Kuja watched him go, suddenly wondering if this whole "tree" fiasco had, after all, just been a ploy to distract him from his own uselessness.
It had worked.
He went back to the shelves, determined to find something relevant about this damned tree.
Author's Note: I'm really hoping to write more this week, but we've learned how my "I'M GOING TO WRITE" promises work out. Here's hoping. Also, I have a Tumblr now (my account name is sezja); feel free to follow me. Mostly I talk about cats.