Chapter 41:
Chapter 41, A Moment of Calm
Quin'Derax slowly moved around the room. It had been a few hours since his master had been returned from surgery but the young warlock had shown no signs of waking yet, but there had been a few times where he had been close. He knew the pain that could be done by Radiant magic but he had hoped that the defensive wards and shields his young master had in place on himself would hold up to the strain. It looked to be as if they had done their task and kept most of the damage to a minimum but with the backlash of the young sorceress waking her blood in a fit of rage, the defenses had been shattered and the surrounding magic amplified.
It was clear that she hadn't meant to do so, he could sense and had seen that, but because of her lack of control due to inexperience and age, she inadvertently compounded the situation beyond the needed measures. True, his master's point had hit home with the fool; the young one would not be willingly let go into his keeping without a fight, but his master hadn't expected her to arrive, nor the Analyst or the elder vampire.
His dark eyes slowly shifted from his sleeping summoner towards the other Void in the room. She hadn't left his side since the boy was returned from the procedure and had remained there with no sign of leaving. Quin'Derax knew full well who she was to his master, and was honored to be near her, but it worried him that she was. He didn't know if he would loose the tie he had to the young boy, the Empress of Shadows hadn't spoken to him when she arrived next to her youngest son. She sat quietly by her child's side, gently fluxing her magic around his body to maintain the healing spells given to him to mend the damage. Her Void energy flowed softly around her, never letting others see the features she carried that had no ability to see beyond the swirling density.
The door opened with a soft knock and both beings turned. Quin'Derax immediately recognized Fuyumi but tensed at the Holy energy of the Male next to her. The Empress waved her hand at him and he felt his energy settle.
"Chi Yen, Fuyumi," she greeted softly.
Chi Yen bowed in greeting and lowered the radiance around him to a point that it wouldn't conflict with the energy in the room or potentially make Kyoya's injuries worse than they were. Fuyumi quickly walked in and wrapped her arms around her mother, tears sliding down her face. Shizukesa returned the embrace, knowing her only daughter was worried and relieved that her youngest brother would be okay. She looked towards Chi Yen who had gone over the the machines and rune walls to check how his brother-in-law was doing.
Both showed he was healing slowly, which was normal given how badly he was burnt, but Chi Yen was worried that Kyoya's energy and connection was dropping too quickly.
"He is doing well," Shizukesa soothed, sensing the young doctor's concern. "The drop is due to him resting fully. It is rare that he can sleep so deeply without enduring a flux or shift. Being surrounded by the energy in which he was born has soothed his mind and let's him be at peace."
Chi Yen nodded softly. He could understand the premise of what was just explained. Kyoya was in the emptiness of the Void, was part of it for the rest of his life. To be surrounded by that which made him, especially so gently, would get anyone to relax and let their guard drop. Turning to face the mother of his wife, the Holy sorcerer smiled gently and let the poise of a doctor drop slightly and sat down near enough to speak softly.
"I am glad he is healing," Chi Yen sighed. "As well as honored that he entrusted his care to me over than that of his brothers and father. I can imagine that it wasn't as easy choice to make but, with due respect, they wouldn't have known how to fix this. If Yoshio-sama wants learn how to mend in the ways we do, I can get him in touch with those that can give him and his elder sons the ability to. I know they have very little affinity, if any at all, but that doesn't mean they can't learn how to use the runic instruments that are commonly used. In use and appearance, they are the same, but I am unsure how he will go about this."
"I know he was in the theater watching with a Historian," Shizukesa stated. "His choices are his own, but that doesn't mean that I do not have hope that he will make the right choice. He has tormented Kyoya enough with what could be his, so much so that Kyoya has gone about gaining things on his own."
Chi Yen smiled with a light laugh. "I will be honest, I hadn't expected him to contact me about a merge of hospitals and medical suppliers. Most who work under the Kage title, speak highly of their president but never make any overt mention of what kind of person he is. I won't back out of the merge he offered, it is a boon to the both of us and one that would level what I have worked so hard to build if I didn't."
"I doubt Kyoya would do anything to make you or anyone regret being in any kind of alliance with him," Fuyumi spoke, gently brushing a few stray hairs out of her baby brother's face. "He works hard to keep what he has, and does his best to maintain the stability around him."
Shizukesa nodded softly. Kyoya tended to run himself ragged trying to keep things organized around him. He juggled school, the club he had helped create since he started high school, and now the leadership of a blooming medical company. She worried about her youngest and hoped that her husband was going to let him get the care he needed. Her eyes flashed when she felt the shift outside the door. She stood and faced the door, her energy creating a barrier around the other four in the room.
At the sound of a sharp knock, Shizukesa let her darkness open the door. Standing on the other side was a being she knew she would never win against.
"Arch-Mage," she bowed, lowering her shield.
"It's good to see you again, Lady Empress," Kayon smiled. "I came to see how your youngest was doing."
"He rests in peace."
"That is good. May I enter?"
Shizukesa nodded softly and moved to the side to let the Elemental move closer to her children. Kayon was the most powerful user of magic with only two others stronger than him, once whom wrote the tomes of magic that all sorcerers and mages studied and the other whom carried the weight of time itself. She watched calmly as he looked over her youngest son with the same concern that all fathers carried for their child when they were greatly hurt. It pained her that Yoshio rarely ever showed such.
"You son is healing well," Kayon smiled. "I also have some relieving news."
Everyone looked at the young Arch-Mage with hope and slight trepidation.
"Yoshio Ootori has willingly given the care of your youngest child to the Archive. Kyoya will be given all the necessities that one in his circumstance require. There is also the request from him that he and his eldest children learn the methods needed to mend those of the Community."
Shizukesa slumped slightly in relief. Her fear that Kyoya would be taken by force, although well founded in most instances, was needless. Fuyumi gave a watery smile and leaned against Chi Yen. He nodded softly, mostly to himself, in understanding.
"What is the Archive offering Kyoya?" Chi Yen asked. "I know they will cover everything that anyone would need but knowing the specifics would ensure that the medical staff here won't be in the way."
"While he is unconscious, the medical staff here will have full maneuverability to ensure he heals completely. When he wakes, the Archive will have a tutor of the Lady Empress' choice to impart the lessons he has missed in school and magic. The hospital staff should be of those who know how to handle a fluxing Void."
"I can easily assign two members that are affluent in Void Magic to oversee his care. I will get a list to you with their skill level and personality."
Kayon and Shizukesa nodded. Chi Yen bowed softly and gave a soft kiss to his wife before exiting to get the documents, as well as to inform Nenai of what was requested and being given. He also wanted to check on the other children. With one being in a coma, another recovering from backlash and the last having a fully broken arm, it was going to be a stressful night.
*~*0o0o0o0o0*~*
Mori sighed softly as he sat back in the wheelchair he was in. He didn't need it, but he had to follow hospital protocol while he was there. Satoshi was with him in Haruhi's room, keeping watch over the slumbering woman. Both were worried about her but knew that neither of them could do anything about it. It was frustrating but both knew that the feeling would pass. Mori turned his steel-gray eyes towards the other person in the room and watched the dejected expression deepen on the young male's face.
Teshiro sat at the edge of the room, close but distant from the others. Even though Trekiva had explained things to them, he still felt as if he shouldn't be near her or them because of what had happened. He hated that he had done such a cruel thing to Haruhi, but Teshiro knew that it was the only thing that would prevent a worse catastrophe from happening. His head dropped as his mind kept going in circles. It made him angry that he couldn't let what happened go but there wasn't much he could do about it until his cousin woke up so that he could apologize to her. He had apologized to her betrothed and his family, and even with their assurance that he was forgiven, he didn't feel like it until he had her forgiveness. Ranka had thrown a royal fit when it was explained but not for the reason he thought.
Ranka had slapped him with every bit of strength he had, which was considerable despite his feminine attire and demeanor. His father had cautiously asked why the cross dresser had hit Teshiro and became stunned at the response. Ranka was mad that Teshiro was beating himself up over doing what was needed to ensure that Haruhi wouldn't get hurt worse or inadvertently do something that would make her be filled with regret. He also told the young Elemental that if he kept tormenting himself over the events that had transpired, the cross dresser would smack him over the head until he got the notion out of his brain. Teshiro had given a nervous and amused laugh because he was fairly certain that Ranka would hold true to that promise.
At the sound of the watered chuckle, Mori relaxed slightly. He could tell that the young male was torn about his part in why Haruhi was in the hospital but he also knew that mentally berating himself wasn't going to fix anything. Mori calmly moved the chair over to Teshiro and moved into the chair next to him.
"Tormenting yourself does nothing," Mori schooled softly. "You did what was best for everyone else."
"I know that," Teshiro sighed. "Doesn't change the fact I hate using my ability against family."
"That is understandable. You are loyal to family and carry a great deal of honor and respect for those within it, but you must also carry that same respect for yourself. You do yourself a great injustice only focusing on the ill your skills are capable of. I know that most despise the Analysts for their part in rendering a users magic useless, but the Sect you are part of only do so when the one that has misused their magic is a danger to all. You haven't taken away her ability, you have just made it so she cannot use it for the moment. You made it so the situation ended in the best way possible, without anyone losing their lives. Haruhi would have been greatly dismayed if she learned her power had killed innocents. She will be filled with remorse when she learns her power inadvertently made Kyoya's injuries worse and that I was affected as well."
Teshiro sighed and dropped his head back. "I know...it...it's just going to take me a bit. I was so thrilled to meet her, so excited to know that there was someone closer to my age I could spend time with, practice with. I may be an Analyst but I am also an Elemental tied to the Eternal Elements of Magic and Knowledge."
"Surely there are others closer to your age within the Arcane schools and Trekiva-sama's court," Satoshi stated.
"There are but they keep their distance because they are afraid of me."
Satoshi looked at him with a mix of shock and anguish. He honestly couldn't imagine what it would be like to go through what Teshiro had. To be isolated just because he was different was hard to comprehend but if he really thought about it, weren't there many instances in which everyone felt like that? Satoshi looked at his brother and saw that Mori had placed a hand on Teshiro's shoulder.
Teshiro glanced over at the teen next to him. He could see the wisdom behind his gray eyes and smiled softly. At the soft smile, Mori nodded softly and looked back towards Haruhi. Teshiro saw the love and worry in his eyes and glanced towards the dragon hanging around the male's neck. It stood to reason that his cousin's companion would go to the one promised to her. Not only would the companion protect and guide him while she was gone, he would also stand as a conduit and link between the two of them so that their bond wouldn't fall apart due to the distance and strain. He highly doubted that the stoic vampire beside him would do anything to betray the bond they had, the small lecture about honor was proof of that, and he was certain that his cousin wouldn't do so either.
Teshiro knew what Sancturis was like, as well as the people who would be with her. Alexander wouldn't do anything to endanger the bond between the two of them, he had a bond of his own; that and then there was Lin Kai. The elder Elipsion would quite literally throw the younger, or anyone that tried to break their bond, into a time loop until he fixed what he broken. He had done it before with Alex just to prove a point. At the memory, Teshiro couldn't help but chuckle. When both teens with him looked at him confused, Teshiro smiled and laughed a bit harder.
"Just a memory," he chuckled. "I can honestly ensure to both of you that while she is gone, your bond will be in no danger of external influences. The only thing to worry about is her stressing what she had done and damaging the bond due to depression."
"How would a memory give you insight on that?" Satoshi asked.
"While on Sancturis, she will have Alexander, or Aujuri, as he was introduced, Lin Kai, Narvu, and Vladimir to instruct her on certain aspects that she either needs to relearn or begin learning. Alex, Narvu and Vlad are all relatively close in age to her if you go by physical appearance alone. They are centuries, if not millennia, older by chronological years but that doesn't change how they look. Most that have to be separated from their bonded for the length of time it will take for her to learn, would end up doing something stupid due to loneliness. I know that it isn't in your nature, your lecture about honor was a good indicator of that, and I highly doubt it is in her nature to go against her word.
"Even if it was, none of them would let her. Alex has a wife of his own whom he loves with all his heart, even though he tends to tease and flirt with people. She knows he does it but she also knows that he won't betray her. Narvu has far too much honor to do such. He may be French and a natural flirt because he is honest about the beauty he sees, but he is Noble-borne and was raised with an iron fist when it comes to married individuals in great distress. Vlad would break her of the notion in less than a heartbeat with just a look. He knows all too well the pain of having a breaking and broken bond.
"As it stands, if neither of them had any issue in taking such steps, Lin Kai would end it as quickly as it started. He is the Elipsion of Time, and has quite literally thrown people into a time loop to prove a point. Alex has been on the receiving end of such many times. One such event was what caused me to laugh. Alex had made Lin Kai mad at him because he could do something far better. Alex had thrown a fit and Lin Kai didn't have the patience to deal with it, so he opened a time loop and threw Alex in. For roughly the next four days, Alex had relived the same day in a continuing loop. To Alex, the day passed in seconds and was always the same. It drove him nuts but Lin Kai proved his point, with enough time, anything is possible."
Satoshi looked at Teshiro with a mix of horror and humor at the inclination. Mori was impressed, and slightly worried at the same time. He knew that Haruhi wouldn't go against their bond, and there was no way he would willingly do so either, so having the reassurance was both welcome and understandable. Both continued to listen as Teshiro began to detail a few other instances where Alexander had irritated Lin Kai enough to toss him into a rift in time.