Two Sides

There was another cry of pain after a sickening wet crunch sound. A whimper floated up from somewhere else in the room at the same time there was a slap of flesh against the cold, metal floor. The unicorn-like mother gargoyle didn't have the strength to pick her head up off the floor. Her horn had been broken nearly down to her skull and her left eye, the one currently against the floor, was bruised and swollen shut. She was missing a few teeth which only added to the overall strangeness of seeing sharp canines in an equine styled mouth. Bruises had begun to darken along her chocolate skin from head to toe alongside her multiple lacerations. One of her legs was twisted at an impossible angle with the dull gleam of what could only be bone visible just barely beneath the gore that slicked it. The large, leathery wings that held true to her gargoyle heritage had been torn and shredded; they would never support flight again. Her broken horn was sticking out of her right shoulder and various other puncture marks along her body showed where else it had pierced her flesh; some were black with the blood that bubbled up and others had unsettling jagged edges.

Asmodeus paced by the groaning gargoyle and rubbed the knuckles of the hand he had just used to pummel Ankti's mother. Strangely enough the drow looked nothing like the proud warlock from his stint in Uzern. Asmodeus was currently barefoot and shirtless; his white hair was tied back but strands had come loose and floated around his narrow features where streaks and splatters of blood went unnoticed by him. The white stripe tattoos that covered his arms and face weren't present on his chest and back. Instead he had row upon row of glyph-like runic writing. He wore a pair of old trousers that had seen better days and his hands were wrapped in cloth stained red. None of it was his blood; it all belonged to the gargoyle. The blue skinned warlock worked out his fingers as he squatted down next to the gargoyle. "You have nearly had enough. There is so much more I can do to you to make you command your daughter to do as I say. However your daughter is not my only tool. Unlike Greta I won't hesitate to kill her. I give you the option now to test my bluff or force her to obey me. I would choose the second option if I were you. She will live through it." Asmodeus waited a while and when the older gargoyle didn't respond he rose to his feet and strode across the room.

Bruin scrambled away from the gargoyle child, he had been forcing her to watch as Asmodeus beat her mother. The cyclops scurried to the wall and watched events unfold in silence.
"Hello, Ankti," the goliath said to the terrified child. Ankti had gone silent at some point, her screams had been so delicious in the beginning and as they grew hoarse it forced the drow to find ways to bring them back. He circled her a few times with his eyes on the child's mother.
Ankti tried to recoil but she had been tied to a chair and couldn't move. "G-go away!" she sobbed in a rasp. Her little eyes were puffy from crying and her inability to wipe her nose was obvious.
"Go away?" Asmodeus asked in mock hurt. "Why would you want me to go away?" He reached out and ran his fingers through the child's tangled brown mane as she whimpered. He heard some sort of strangled sound from her mother. "What was that?" the warlock asked for clarification.
"I'll kill you, you bastard," the older gargoyle snarled through a broken jaw. Blood leaked out of her mouth as she raised her head in fury and her tongue could be seen thrashing behind the missing teeth.

"I have a name you know," the goliath warlock smirked. "It's Asmodeus. And I didn't quite catch your name," he prompted her with an overly elaborate bow as if he were trying to be polite.
"Momma!" Ankti screamed as she watched her broken and battered mother try to sit up. She cringed at the horrible coughing sounds her mother made in her struggle. Asmodeus had loosened the chains that bound Ankti's mother. She still wore them but they were no longer attached to the floor. He had used them as tools as he broke her body.

"I'll kill you!" the mother roared. Her chest heaved, it hurt to speak and it was agony to sit up as she had. Her ribs were broken and the splinters she felt deep in her muscle caused the simple act of breathing to send white-hot flares of pain through her.
Asmodeus leaned in to Ankti, "Your mother is rude. I asked very politely for her name but she won't give it to me. Perhaps you can?"
Ankti's large eyes watered and she shook her head violently as she bit her lip. She didn't want to give him her mother's name.
"Well she doesn't seem to mind the fact I know your name, little Ankti," Asmodeus said as he grabbed the cream colored child by the chin and forced her horse-featured face to look up at him. Ankti squealed and tried to pull her face out of his painful grasp.

"Le-let her go!" the chocolate female bellowed. Tears had begun to form in her eyes again as she tried to drag herself across the floor towards Asmodeus and Ankti. After a few feeble attempts the mother gave up and collapsed in a fit of hysterical sobs. She was in terrible pain and the block he had on her magic was still firmly in place. She kept trying to break it down as the feel of mana was just on the other side but she was too weak to focus. If only Ankti had done what she asked earlier and gone to help Nahuel they might have gotten out before that horrible warlock returned.
"Let her go? Once she does what I want then she can go. Your time is running out. What is your decision?" Asmodeus held his hand out and channeled enough magic to form a jagged blade of ice. He made eye contact with the mother as he dragged the freshly forged ice blade down Ankti's arm. The child screamed shrilly as her flesh split and crimson stained her cream colored arm and flowed down it in rivulets. Ankti thrashed in the chair and bawled loudly.
"Momma! Momma!" Ankti screamed hysterically until she went hoarse. Her bottom lip quivered as her arm twitched and she stared at the leaking wound. "Momma," she croaked again.

"Filthy dark dredge!" Ankti's mother howled. Even with her broken leg she managed to rise up and unfurled her wings threateningly at Asmodeus. She stood on her one good leg and tried to hop towards the drow. Her knee gave out and she fell back to the floor with a howl of pain. Still she didn't give up and tried to haul herself across the floor once more with bruised and battered arms.
Asmodeus laughed, "Bruin, make sure she doesn't get anywhere."
The cyclops had been quiet up until that point. Now that he had been involved he darted out into the center of the room and kicked the mother in the face. She grunted and jerked to the side with the force; yet another tooth popped out and clattered across the floor leaving droplets of blood in its wake. Bruin moved behind her and grabbed her by the bad leg to drag her backwards. The gargoyle howled in pain and fresh blood coursed out of the wounds that peppered the leg. She left a horrible smear in her wake as she was dragged back. Her skin squealed in protest against the floor whenever it didn't pass through blood.

"Now, child," Asmodeus snarled in Ankti's face, "Do you need mommy's approval or are you going to listen to me?" He grabbed her by the hair and pointed the ice dagger at one of her eyes. The warlock took pleasure in how the girl shivered in terror. "Take the boy's mind," he commanded. Nahuel was sitting in a far corner of the room covered in shadow. It was easy to forget the drugged gargoyle was present when he didn't make a sound. "Overpower him and make him understand he follows my command." The drow pressed the dagger in closer to Ankti's eye, he let the tip poke the sensitive skin under her socket and smirked when she whimpered from the bite of the temperature as well as the way it split her skin. Ankti shut her eyes tightly and only succeeded in making the dagger slice even more delicate skin when she squinted up the muscles under it. The child cried out in pain again and tried to pull her head away.

Asmodeus pulled the dagger away and grunted. He couldn't push her too much or she would shut down. He didn't want to kill her but he would if she gave him no choice. "Beat her," Asmodeus said to Bruin.
Ankti groaned and looked away when Bruin began to kick her mother everywhere he could get his foot in. "Stop it," the child whispered with eyes that rolled wildly to show more white than anything else.
"What was that?" Asmodeus asked as he moved the ice dagger under Ankti's chin to push it up. Again her skin was cut and the gargoyle child snapped her head back to get it away from the blade. "You need to speak up, child."
"I said stop it!" Ankti howled. She finally found a bit of fight and used psionic force to rip the ice dagger out of Asmodeus's hand and throw it across the room. It shattered when it made contact with the floor.
The drow chuckled darkly, "She has fight after all. Bruin, remove one of her mother's fingers."

"Leave my momma alone!" Ankti screamed. She knocked the cyclops over with another psionic blast and tried to do the same with Asmodeus. The goliath warlock stepped back but didn't fall. He grinned and walked back up to her before he grabbed her by her elf-like ear and twisted her head around to look at Nahuel. "Break his mind! Make him loyal to me and your mother will be healed!"
"No," Ankti whined. "I can't!"
"You can!" Asmodeus hissed. "He is weakened with the drug in his veins; his mind is not as strong. You can! Bruin!" the warlock snapped and made Ankti flinch with how he yelled into her ear, "Get up and remove one of the mother's fingers like I asked!"
Ankti tried to watch but Asmodeus kept wrenching her head around to look at Nahuel.

"Get away from me you filthy monster!" the mother hissed as Bruin lifted up the arm that was impaled by her broken horn. He took hold of the horn and wrenched it out. The gargoyle's form shuddered with a wave of pain and she whimpered softly. It was nothing compared to what came next. The cyclops twisted up her hand and bit down hard on her pinky finger. Other than his tusks Bruin had very flat teeth that were better for grinding so his one bite wasn't doing to do much of anything. Bruin's rather unique design also made the act of biting difficult for him; his top teeth were right under his one huge eye so each time he bit down his vision bounced. The gargoyle screamed and convulsed as he opened his jaws and bit down once more. The cyclops had to repeat the action several times before he finally bit through the bone with an awful crunch and pop. A shard of jagged bone punctured his lip and added his own blood to the mix but Bruin grinned as he stepped back and let the mother turn horrified eyes up to the ragged end of her finger that stuck out of his mouth.

"Bring it here," Asmodeus commanded. His tone was calm and indifferent.
Bruin gave the chocolate colored gargoyle a lewd grin before he turned around, plucked her severed digit from his mouth and placed it in Asmodeus's upturned palm.
"I will take your mother apart piece by piece, you ungrateful brat," the drow spat as he thrust the finger in Ankti's face. "Make the boy loyal to me!"
Ankti's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she convulsed a few times. Asmodeus shoved her head away and dropped the finger to the floor as he glided back quickly just before the child vomited all over her front and lap. She coughed afterwards and began to wail again. "I hate you!" Ankti screamed. "I hate you! I hate you!" The acrid smell of bile made her nose wrinkle and she tried desperately to get the stench out of her nostrils.
Asmodeus drew his hand back and hit her hard across the face. "Bend his will to mine!" he roared at the child.
"Do it!" Ankti's mother screamed. "Do it Ankti!" she sobbed furiously. "Don't let him hurt you anymore!" She didn't care about herself; all that mattered was her daughter. She felt a wave of shame so deep over her next thought - she wished that Asmodeus would strike her daughter hard enough to kill her and save her from having to do something so vile and horrible. Her sobs grew louder as she felt sick to her stomach because of it.
"Momma!" Ankti called to her again. Her body trembled and her throat hurt from screaming as well as the stomach acid that sat in the back of it still.
"Do it!" Asmodeus bellowed again and turned Ankti's chair around to face Nahuel.

The mother began to collect her thoughts at that moment; her sobs grew more controlled as she prayed with all her might to the Light to save them. She prayed that the Light would hold the Darkness at bay and wouldn't allow it to take her precious, innocent child away. She prayed that the warlock would fail and that he would never break any gargoyle ever. She prayed for freedom for both her and her daughter be it someone to rescue them or the sweet release of death. She simply couldn't bare it anymore, the pain numbed her mind and before she knew it Ankti's mother had lost consciousness.

It was all too familiar and utterly strange all at once. Kaelin stood on the balcony above the palace entrance in Uzern. Before him the ancient city sprawled out, rife with overgrowth of the forest and populated by a vast array of spirits. On Kaelin's left stood Seraphina; his future queen and life partner. They were joined only by Uriel with the rest of the party they had arrived alongside standing in the plaza below totally surrounded by the spirits of Uzern. The magic that upheld the illusion of everyone being themselves held fast and no one appeared to be a Copy of a Core Skylander.
Kaelin turned to look at Seraphina; her soft eyes of honey were roaming over the palace plaza and seemed to linger in certain areas. Kaelin knew what she was seeing, no matter how well the plaza had been cleaned she still knew where conflict had happened and her eyes were drawn to the memory of each spot. The King of Haven and Heir of Uzern reached out to take the other eirian's hand. She wound her fingers with his and while it took her eyes a moment to meet his Kaelin instantly felt her awareness flood into his being and mingle with his. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply as he brought his other hand up to stroke her cheek tenderly, they had a bond that only the psionics of the gargoyles could understand. Kaelin felt what Seraphina did; he experienced all of her senses as she experienced his. It was an oneness so complete that while they maintained it they ceased to be separate entities in all ways save physical. For them the wedding was just to bond them by law, they had already united via heart and soul.

"We should not keep them waiting," Seraphina's gentle voice spoke both aloud and into Kaelin's mind. Her soft fingers alighted on the ones he had on her face before Kaelin moved his hand back. He could feel her intake of breath and the way it flowed out as she formed every word. The beating of her heart paced his. It was a feeling neither had felt since they had become undead; it was strange to suddenly be aware of it and slightly saddening to know it was just their memory of how it used to be that gave them the feeling. Kaelin could feel everything about Seraphina through the bond; felt her hand in his as well as his own in hers. It made him feel alive and forget about the veil of the undead they were forced to wear thanks to the curse Kaos had laid upon them. Seraphina made him feel alive.
Kaelin relished the feeling a while longer before the both of them slowly withdrew their awareness so they could focus on the matter before them.

"Welcome Uzernians," Kaelin spoke to the spirits. "I know how long you have waited for this day and I send my deepest apologies that it had to be so late in coming." The king frowned for a moment, "It is strange how it was my own misfortune that finally brought us to this moment. Had I not become a Skylander and been shunted into a cursed undead form would we be here today?" The question was rhetorical but it still made him think. "I find myself wondering how I should speak to you, how I should address you. You have waited for a release for ages but I feel as if I would be doing you a great disservice if I did not take the time to recognize what you have done. But I wish to keep this sweet and to the point; you have waited long enough."
"We thank you for watching over Uzern," Seraphina picked up the thought Kaelin couldn't quite voice. "The city has always remained dear to our hearts and now we understand that your care has allowed the elfwood to thrive and live. Tour would not be the same without the life you have cared for all these centuries. Even in the face of such sorrow and personal torment you have withheld the standards and will that made Uzern and the elfwood flourish. Thank you for your gift."

When Seraphina lowered herself to one knee and Kaelin followed Anicetus felt it was only natural that he and the others follow suit. The prince turned on his heel so that he was facing the spirits before he dropped to one knee. The rustle of clothing around him let him know that his companions understood the unspoken sense of honor and had knelt as well.
Please, stand, a spirit said.
We only did what we had always done in life, another said.
More and more spirits began to speak, they almost sounded embarrassed that the living eirian had bowed before them. Many voiced concerns about royalty kneeling to commoners but when the living eirian made no move to rise up they finally fell silent and accepted the honor they were being shown.

"We will continue your vigil," Kaelin spoke at last once he was back on his feet. "The elfwood will see life again; the holiness of Uzern will be maintained while the elves return to other parts of the forest. I will not let your gift go to waste; we will ensure your home remains alive and thriving as you have done for us even though your own lives were taken from you." Kaelin seemed to falter for a moment, he looked to Seraphina for help and all she could do was smile. Kaelin had said all that needed to be said. The pale haired and golden skinned elf propped his hands on the stone railing of the balcony and leaned out slightly. "Spirits of Uzern, most noble ancestors and watchers. I, Kaelin Alistair, heir to the throne of Uzern release you from your bonds. You are free to move on; Uzern no longer demands you linger in her streets. The crown blesses you and wishes you well as your service has done us a great deed for all these years. Rest, good spirits. You have earned it."

Eloryn shivered with each flash of white light. The spirits were vanishing one by one and each one wore a smile before they returned to the light. Eloryn could feel the electricity in the air as the charge began to rapidly increase as more spirits simply allowed themselves to fall into the embrace of the beyond. All of Uzern seemed to be covered in a white light that was brilliant, comfortable and soothing all at once.
With the sheer numbers involved there was a point when nothing but white could be seen and the most wonderful sensation of warmth and safety cradled the living tenderly. When the glow finally faded Uzern felt darker and eerily empty. All at once it was over, how strange it was to have been something so quiet. The youngest princess of Meir Valan sighed deeply when she noticed she was once again standing on four legs and bore the crystals Flashwing was known for. She turned sad eyes back to her party; she was joined by two Pop Fizzlings, an Ignitorling, Stealthling, Flameslingerling and a Sunburnling. "Well, here we are," Eloryn said forlornly.

"Here we are," Anicetus mimicked her tone as he rolled his hands over and studied them. His fires burned low and took on a blue hue.
"But we have each other," Teranika said softly. She grabbed Rafer's hands and brought them up to her lips to kiss, "That is all we need right now."
The Flameslingerling smiled warmly at the Stealthling before he gently pulled his hands out of hers and laid one on her cheek while the other sat gently on her shoulder. "Yes, we have each other and that is all that matters right now." He leaned in to kiss Teranika tenderly.

"The city feels so empty," Seraphina said as she leaned next to Kaelin on the stone railing. She looked at the Riderling and the way he studied his pale blue hands. "No matter what face you wear I will always know you and my heart will always belong to you," she said as she placed her hand on his. The Hexling shivered slightly when she felt the ethereal touch from Uriel on her shoulder. She saw his other hand alight on Kaelin's shoulder to much of the same reaction.
Thank you, Uriel said with a surprising amount of emotion in his voice. We have waited for this day for so long. It feels surreal almost to have finally accomplished freedom.
"But Prime Uriel," Kaelin addressed him as he turned around, "You bound yourself to another task."
The spirit smiled warmly, My vow this time will have a foreseeable end. I can wait as long as it takes to defeat Kaos and see the wrongs Asmodeus has done righted.

Seraphina surprised the spirit by throwing her arms around him and embracing him; it was tricky when the spirit could be solid or non-corporeal on a whim. "Thank you," she said. "Thank you for all you have done. While my face may not be my own I feel like myself again thanks to your efforts."
Uriel took a moment before he returned the hug, it had been so long since he had felt an embrace that he wasn't quite sure how long was proper anymore. You are welcome, the spirit said once the Hexling pulled back and rejoined Kaelin at his side. Thank you, he at first lowered his head then dipped into a bow.

"We are equals in my book, please rise," Kaelin said softly. He took a deep breath to feel his lungs expand, as long as he never forgot to draw breath he wouldn't feel undead. "Come, we should rejoin the others then return to Haven. There is much to do before tomorrow." He smiled warmly at Seraphina, the way she smiled at him made his knees feel weak and his heart flutter so.
Tomorrow will be a fine beginning for the next phase of my existence, Uriel smiled at the two. There was a sense of pride in being able to give them back part of what Kaos had taken from them, Uriel felt accomplished for the first time since his death.

As she had vowed, Sprocket found the Cores she had separated from earlier in the day. On a whim she had decided to look past the city and found the duo near the main gates of Haven. The golding had spilled out so many words of apology so fast that neither had time to register what she had said. Trigger Happy's ears quivered as he and Drobot stared at Sprocket.
"Well don't leave me hanging here!" Sprocket implored with her hands out and her face expecting.
Drobot bowed his head, "Apology has been processed and accepted," he said once he had raised his head again. "How are you feeling now?"
"Better, much better thank you," the golding nodded.
"I'm sorry for my comment too," Trigger Happy said with downcast eyes and a toe rocking from side to side in the soft grass. "I didn't mean it."
The little gremlin looked so pitiful that Sprocket couldn't help but kneel down and hug him tightly. "It's okay; you had every right to snap at me when I kept acting like an idiot." When she stood back up Trigger's tongue was lolling out and he looked like his happy self once again. "I met briefly with Stealth and Flame; we have been invited to the palace."

Drobot's head jerked back so quickly that the gears on his wing casings squealed in protest when his neck pressed on them. "We have been what?"
"You heard me; apparently our friends never left the sides of these unique Copies we met in Uzern."
"Oh, a new place to explore with lots of shineys!" Trigger Happy's eyes very nearly sparkled as he thought of what he might see inside the palace.
Drobot's neck snapped out and he gently took the gremlin by the scruff of the neck. He pulled the little orange fur ball gently between his forelegs before he angled his head down and to the side to meet Trigger's questioning gaze. "Do. Not. Touch. Anything!" he stressed in a clipped tone.
"Aw," Trigger pouted and crossed his arms, "you're no fun!"
"It ain't fun if you get us in trouble," Sprocket replied with a raised brow.
"I know that," the gremlin grumbled. "I just," he stopped in mid-sentence and and blinked. "What's going on?" He pointed behind Sprocket and she as well as Drobot looked up and back the way the little finger had been extended to see a unit of soldiers marching through the streets and clearing a path for some reason.

The soldiers walked right out the front gates and left in their wake a gathering crowd that pushed themselves up against the invisible barrier outlined by the soldiers and strained to see out of the gates to the un-walled island expanse.
"You think it could be Ghost?"
Sprocket shook her head at Drobot's question, "He was on his way to the palace last I saw. I don't know what this is. Come on, let's go be sheep and join the rest of the gawkers."
"Baa, baa!" Trigger Happy exclaimed as he hopped off on all fours to meet the rest of the crowd.
"You think he does that on purpose?" Sprocket asked Drobot with a smirk.
"Half and half," the dragon replied. "His sanity is like a revolving door."

The guards wouldn't let the Skylanders enter the city and instead they joined the other travelers that had been held back at the gates. Conversations on what was happening ran rampant as eyes pointed out past the direction the guards looked. At some point Trigger Happy wound up sitting on Sprocket's shoulders to see over the heads of the taller elves. He was small but not quite small enough for it to be comfortable for the golding. She kept flicking him in the leg when he constantly acted like a child and either tugged on the goggles she had moved up onto her forehead or reached out with a giggle to play with the hair or hat of whatever individual unfortunate enough to be within reach. "How old are you again, five?" Sprocket grumbled.
"Times five! Or is it times four? Give or take," he replied cheerfully.
"I think all gremlins are just insane," Drobot replied simply. "I have not had many experiences with them but if our friend here and Pop Fizz is any sort of indication," he left his statement to hang with a shrug.

A swirling portal opened on the paved road before the city gates and figures began to file out of it and formed a line facing the guards and city beyond. Murmurs ran through the crowd as recognition dawned on faces.
"Oh! Them!" Trigger Happy exclaimed when the crowd became deathly silent. The eirian began to bow or kneel and the scattered Skylanders followed not long after. The gremlin was jostled and held onto Sprocket's goggles for dear life as the golding knelt down.
Sprocket tried to lower her head but Trigger had pulled on her goggles enough to keep it at a slight angle. Just before she lowered her eyes she saw a regal Riderling and Hexling stroll in with a group of familiar Copies and new faces alike. The armor one of the Fizzlings wore and the ghostly spirit that accompanied them was all the confirmation Sprocket needed; they were the Copies she had seen in Uzern. "Trig, seriously. Stop pulling my goggles," the golding grumbled.
"It's royalty!" he gasped. "I am trying to keep from making a fool of myself!"
"Off," Drobot said softly. He grabbed Trigger Happy by the scruff of his neck and pulled him off Sprocket's shoulders to deposit on the ground. "Just keep your head down."
"Yeah, no problem. Can't see now," the gremlin muttered, lowered his ears and folded his arms across his chest. His ears swiveled around at the sound of hooves and wheels from within the city.

An ornate carriage passed through the gates and stopped just in front of the guards for a portion of the group to board. Unlike most other transports in the city the carriage wasn't drawn by the avian orniteryx or reptilian trekkers but by beautiful forest steeds; creatures that were much like Camo being they were plant and animal hybrids. The sleek green equines tossed heads decorated by leafy manes bearing purple flowers and swished vine tails as they worked the carriage back around to travel to the palace. The Flameslingerling, both Fizzlings and Ignitorling were mounted up on proud orniteryx all of varying shades of red before the procession set out. The spirit priest from Uzern joined the Sunburnling on the platform of a chariot led by two of the red orniteryx before they set out behind the carriage.

The guards turned and followed after the two transports and the people outside the city walls started to flow back in slowly behind them.
"Should we follow them, we're heading that way after all," Sprocket asked as she stood up.
Drobot's head came up and he tilted it to see the city beyond the gates. "At a distance, we will blend in with the crowd better."
"They're Skylanders, why arrive out here and not in the palace?" Sprocket wandered aloud. She paused at the gate when the guards there stopped another traveler to look into the bag the shifty looking rat man carried.
"Portals break shineys," Trigger Happy said matter-of-factly. "That's why," he gave a self-satisfied nod as he wiggled between people ahead of his friends.
The golding smirked, she had a feeling it was more due to the fact the king needed to make appearances than anything else.

Eloryn kept staring at her sister as the carriage bounced and swayed gently during the ride. The four of them were quite the sight in the white satin covered carriage interior. Eloryn looked in her element, her colors blended beautifully with the interior and she felt like a princess for the first time since she had become a Copy of Flashwing. Her draconic features split into a huge grin and she finally caught the Hexling's attention. The curtains on the windows were open so the occupants could look out into the city, Kaelin and Teranika seemed absorbed in the windows they were seated near but not Seraphina.
"What is that look for?" Seraphina asked as she sat a little straighter on the seat next to Kaelin.
"You are squirming and fidgeting!" the Flashwingling laughed.
Kaelin drew one of Seraphina's hands to his lips to kiss lightly, "What has you troubled my love?"
"The attention," Eloryn beamed. "Sera always went out of her way to avoid the ceremony surrounding her birth as a royal. Oh sure, she lived for the ceremonies that the priests in the Order of Light held. But she always shied away from and cringed at anything dealing with her ties to the crown."

"I am no different," Kaelin admitted. "But the people expect it, if I do not walk among them and let them know I am aware of what affects them how can I show them that I serve their best interests? They want to see me, to know that I see them and I am not just some lofty person that sits upon a throne and orders others around. If I am not out among them it sours their outlook. I do not want to be a recluse. These are my people and I have a responsibility to them. I want them as comfortable under my rule as possible. Under our rule," the king corrected himself before he gave Seraphina a gentle kiss on the cheek.
"I understand," Seraphina sighed and closed her eyes. "Mother always told me the same but I liked the feel of being known as a priestess and on the same level as the people I walked among. The thought of being above them…"

"Everyone looks to someone for guidance," Teranika said. The Stealthling shifted slightly so she wasn't pressed up painfully against the crystal points of Eloryn's wings. "You just happen to be one of those people others depend upon the most."
"And who am I to look to for guidance?" Seraphina's expression went from serious to warm and kind a moment later when Kaelin squeezed her hand. "Of course, each other," she murmured with a smile. Her head tilted and Seraphina's eyes closed to accept the tender and very thorough kiss from Kaelin.
"Oh, get a room," Eloryn teased them good-naturedly.
"Where do you think we are going?" the Riderling smirked at her. Eloryn made a face at that; she didn't want to think about her sister in such a way.

Galvin propped his front legs up on the bow of the chariot and held his head up high, a smile played at the corners of his beaked mouth and his eyes closed. He simply enjoyed the sounds around him, Haven wasn't his home but it sounded just like Meir Valan. The accents around him were familiar, the proper way the eirian had of speaking was welcome to him. He had heard so much rough and coarse language in the past two years from the Skylanders he was around. Of course there were Skylanders in Haven as well and he could easily pick them out from the over-all eirian tone of the city. But it felt like home and it made him comfortable.
If your grin grows any larger I fear your beak may split with the effort, Uriel said in a highly amused tone.
"If my grin grows larger, what of yours?" the Sunburnling asked as he dropped back down to the floor of the chariot and turned to face the spirit. The space was tight, it wasn't meant for a dragon let alone one with a companion but Galvin made due. It was true; Uriel seemed to have undergone a change since he was released from his previous vow. Either Galvin was imagining it or the spirit was indeed showing more color than the soft glowing blue he had been. He was starting to look like the holograms Portal Masters were in Skylands.

The world feels different, Uriel nodded slowly. Uzern used to call to me when I was too far from it. We all heard it, even just walking the forest below left a yearning for the city. I had not seen it as a prison until now. The feeling had become second nature to me so that I felt it was homesickness and nothing more. How strange it was when I left Uzern the first time to come here. The pull was so strong I felt it might forcefully retake me.
"It is an honor to work with you, Prime," Galvin said and he dipped his head into a bow. "I never once expected to find myself in the company of one so famous."
The spirit smirked; Galvin didn't understand that as a Skylander he too could become famous. Everyone knew the Cores and one day they might also know the small group from Tour that fought to prevent oppression via corrupted psionics.

"Easy there," Anicetus murmured softly to the orniteryx he sat astride. The poor bird had to be uncomfortably hot with the Ignitorling on his back. Anicetus had purposely taken the one that seemed to have a thicker saddle. He turned his fiery gaze to the side to watch Meilyr. His friend had always been something of an attention seeker, he remember once when they rode out together with a grand procession Meilyr had scooped up an elven maiden or two for a quick kiss on the cheek before he would deposit her back on the ground and she'd run off giggling to her friends. Meilyr had changed now thanks to his visage of Pop Fizz. He wasn't quite the same and Anicetus couldn't decide if it was better as it was at the moment or not.
Anicetus missed those charming grins Meilyr would flash a pretty face; he even missed the way Meilyr would very obviously pine after his eldest sister. There was something amusing in how Meilyr blatantly flirted with Seraphina and she was either clueless or chose to ignore it. Meilyr had taken everything in stride, he didn't like being a Fizzling but he would never complain. Work was all Meilyr ever complained about.
Then there was Eloryn. Anicetus's proud and beautiful sister. She used to be so outgoing and well, loud. But now she was more reserved and let others take center stage. She almost seemed defeated.
Seraphina was as unflappable as ever. All that had changed about her was her face. She made peace with what had happened and moved on. Although Anicetus had noticed she seemed a lot brighter with Kaelin at her side again.

The prince similarly compared the other members of his party to how they had been. At the core none had changed but no matter how well adjusted they were it was obvious they still felt some form of effect from it. The last two years of Anicetus' life had sure felt like a dream.
"Well someone is having fun," Meilyr's comment shook Anicetus from his reverie.
The Ignitorling raised his head and looked to his friend. Meilyr was completely focused on the carriage and the laughter from within. "You wanted to ride with Kaelin?" Anicetus asked with a grin, which was to say his flames turned a bright yellow.
The Fizzling straightened up and shot the prince a molten glare. "They better not be talking about me," he grumbled.
"Why must everything always be about you? If I did not know any better I would say you and Eloryn were separated at birth!" Anicetus exclaimed in mock exasperation.
"It is always about him because he secretly likes the attention," Rafer replied with a smirk. The flames that danced in the Flameslingerling's eyes added a whole new level of mischief to his expression.
"Watch it, ranger," Meilyr huffed.
All Crevan could do was chuckle, the dynamic of the group was still so new to him but he was glad he had fallen in with them. Yes, meeting that lone Hexling dressed in the style of Meir Valan's royalty had brought him on adventures he had never dreamt of. As Meilyr's orniteryx broke into a run unexpectedly and Anicetus as well as Rafer called out to him Crevan had to shake his head, the story of their escapades was just beginning.