Chapter 21
As Dilandau was moved back to his own apartments, Viole turned to Sylvana; her face was deathly pale.
"What happened?" he asked.
"I…I wasn't…I didn't…an accident…it was an accident…I didn't mean for it to happen…" She brought a trembling hand up to cover her mouth. By the tone of her voice, it sounded as though she was on the verge of hysterics.
"Sylvana, you have to tell me what happened," said Viole, grabbing her upper arms and giving her a shake in a weak attempt to get some sense out of her, but quickly had to let go of her. Her skin was like a branding iron, burning hot; he could feel the heat even through his gloves. It was as though she was on fire, as if it were burning just under her skin. She covered her face with her hands and Viole could see that she was trembling all over.
"It's my fault…" she said, barely audible…"it's all my fault…"
"What is?!" cried Viole, "Sylvana, what happened? What is your fault? You have to tell me!"
"I couldn't stop it…I lost control…I didn't…I would never -" she was cut off when, out of frustration and desperation, Viole brought a hand down across her cheek, not as hard as Lord Dilandau had when he had struck her, but still hard enough to silence her and to finally knock some sense into her. She covered her smarting cheek with a hand and stared at him with shock filled eyes. Viole flinched, unable to believe that he had struck her. For a few moments, he expected her to lash out at him the way she had at his captain, but the counter blow never came. She dropped her hand from her slightly reddened cheek and took several steps backward until she collapsed into her armchair and rested her forehead on a still trembling hand.
"Sylvana, please tell me what happened." There was a long stretch of silence. Viole shifted awkwardly, not sure what he should do. Should he leave her until she was calmer and more able to speak about it? Should he force her to speak? Should he -
"It was an accident," Sylvana's musical voice suddenly cut through Viole's thoughts. Viole focused his attention on her again. She hadn't moved and he could see that her pale eyes were closed.
"Yes, you said that already," he replied. She nodded and then looked up at him. The pain and horror in that gaze was almost overwhelming.
"But this isn't the first time it's happened," she said in a soft voice.
"No?"
"No, it happened once before. When I was still living with the clans in the main vale, there were…issues among the elders concerning me. One day one of my friends confronted me…he was concerned because the elders were searching for a good excuse to exile me. We got into a heated argument and…I lost control…and in short, did to him exactly what I did to your captain."
"B-but, what did you do? You couldn't have attacked him, I saw no signs of a fight…"
"You're right, I know you don't believe in this, but I didn't attack him physically, though it does very real and physical damage. Basically, I have several gifts, my most powerful, and unfortunately least under control, is my gift of empathy -"
"Empathy?" Sylvana stopped to meet eyes with Viole.
"Yes…it's…it's the ability to sense the emotions of another…and/or, to project one's emotions onto another, or essentially to make one who is not empathic feel one's own emotions…" Viole now had a sceptical look on his face.
"But that can't be possible," he muttered.
"Oh, but it is," replied Sylvana, "but I don't expect you to believe in it, after all, you came from a world of science." She shrugged. He still looked sceptical, but she continued anyway, "Those who have exceptionally strong empathic abilities may also have the ability to…well…it's difficult to explain…basically they can influence another's mind in nearly any possible way, through emotions…guilt, anger, jealousy…" she shrugged, "They also have the ability to concentrate their life energy into an attack…Unfortunately I have no control over that aspect of my gift, so if I lose control of my emotions, fear or anger, then I lose control of it too. The effects are similar to if one fell and hit their head…"
"So, that was what happened to Lord Dilandau?"
"Yes, last time this happened, the person it happened to didn't survive past two days…" She met Viole's eyes. He looked surprised, maybe concerned, but his scepticism still lingered. "Still sceptical are you?" Sylvana asked. She looked thoughtful, "Perhaps I can show you one of my gifts." She though a moment. She didn't like the idea of shape-shifting. There was a possibility that she had been weakened from losing control of her empathic gift. Perhaps one of her minor gifts… "Yes, I'll show you one of my minor gifts, one that won't take too much energy. You'll see that this is no mere parlour trick, my friend." She held out her hand, palm up. At first nothing happened, but after several moments an iridescent mist appeared over her hand and slowly it seemed to create a uniform shape and finally solidified into the form of a crystal flute.
"What -" cried Viole.
"It's called summoning," she told him, holding the flute out to him so that he could see that it was very real and not some trick. Tentatively, Viole took the flute. Yes it was very real indeed.
:That gift's just one of many.: Viole jumped. Had it been Sylvana who had spoke? He hadn't thought that she -
"Telepathy…mind speech," Sylvana said as if she'd picked up on his thoughts. "the -"
"Ability to communicate with the mind without physical speech," said Viole finishing what Sylvana had begun. He was beginning to believe the rumours about Sylvana and magic.
"That's right," said Sylvana with a nod, "are you beginning to believe yet?"
"I think…I might be…" there was a pause while Viole thought. "You're a healer aren't you?" he asked suddenly.
"Well, ye-es…b-but -"
"Is there anything…anything at all…that you can do?" Sylvana looked surprised.
"I-I don't know…I have no idea what the extent of my power is…I-I'm not certain if I have the strength. When I did this to - to Azure…eight healers tried to save him but he didn't make it…" She shook her head.
"Maybe you should just try," replied Viole, "I know how you hate him, but if you must do it for someone then do it for…for Azure…or if for anyone then yourself. You may not like Lord Dilandau, but I can tell that you feel guilty for…whatever it is you did to him." Sylvana looked at him, stricken.
"And how, may I ask, do you know me so very well?" she demanded.
"I don't, but you should have seen yourself just now…You were nearly hysterical…" Sylvana narrowed her eyes at him, but then relented.
"You're right," she said, barely above a whisper, "I'll try, but I'll tell you now I can guarantee nothing." Viole nodded.
"I know."
"Take me to him." Viole made his way toward the door, but then Sylvana caught his arm. He paused and turned back to look at her.
"Will you do me a favour? I know you care about my Serene, so please, will you wait here for her until she returns and if I'm not back then bring her to me, I don't want her to be alone in these rooms, even if she has Anya for company…and if need be she can run errands for me." Viole nodded.
"I promise," he replied softly and then, "Come. I'll take you to Lord Dilandau.
He looked so different lain out in his bed like this, almost frail. Sylvana held one of his hands in between both her own and closed her eyes allowing herself to slide down into a semi-trance. Through this, she could concentrate all of her energy on healing the young captain's wounds. He did indeed have a severe concussion as if he'd taken a violent blow to the head. That would be her first priority, since she could sense internal haemorrhaging that could cause major problems if it wasn't repaired right away in order to prevent any possible permanent damage. She hated to make him able to battle again, but she had to be impartial when it came to healing. As she'd been taught by the other healers as well as her guide, a healer must heal all, be they ally or foe. If they were mortally wounded then the healer must put aside her personal feelings and do what must be done. There were other wounds as well, but they were less pressing than his concussion. She sank down into a kneeling position, still clutching his hand between her own. She took a moment to look into his face. Unconscious and unguarded he had a different look; he didn't show the madness, the darkness that dwelled deep within his spirit. She wondered if at one time he had actually been a kind hearted person. She, of course, could not tell, she had the gift of farsight, not truesight like those of Clan Alicorn were supposed to possess. She tightened her grip momentarily as she thought about the Lost Clans, but quickly forced those thoughts away so that she would not be distracted and closed her eyes again. Slowly she began to feel her energy transfer to Dilandau, strengthening his own healing systems and promoting his body to take care of the worst of his wounds. She saw brief flashes of memories appear behind her eyelids, but they were so fleeting that she couldn't even be certain if they were hers or his. she began to feel both cold and light-headed, but she didn't stop, not until she sensed that any and all permanent damage was healed. She then allowed her body to sag and rested her forehead upon the backs of her hands, which still rested atop Dilandau's.
*******
Viole gently lifted the sleeping healer and placed her on the sofa that had been moved next to Dilandau's bed. Again, she felt like ice. It had to be from giving up all that energy. He wondered if she could bring the captain back and he wondered if it would be better to just let him die. He had been surprised at first when he entered the room with the child to find Sylvana bent over Dilandau's hand as if she'd been weeping for someone dear to her heart, but now he understood that she'd simply worn herself to exhaustion in her attempts to bring back the young lord who she despised so deeply.
"She'll be all right," he told Serene upon seeing the look on the child's face, "I think she just needs rest…" The little thing nodded.
"I know," she replied, "I-I hope she can save him." This surprised Viole.
"Why?" he asked, curious.
"W-well, because -- he's alive, and all living things have the right to a chance for life, and as a person -- he deserves the chance to…to find himself…and the chance to redeem himself…" Viole stared at the child, stunned, stricken dumb. The compassion she showed was positively admirable, and her wisdom…no one else that young had that kind of wisdom. Serene plumped herself down on the sofa and sighed. She then looked up at Viole with those innocent blue eyes. "You don't know very much about him, do you?" she asked. Viole shifted uncomfortably.
"No, actually, I don't. I was taken as a dragon slayer after Dilandau had been promoted to captain. However, sometimes I think even he doesn't know much about himself…"
"I think you're right," whispered Serene, "I don't think he remembers anything before he was about my age…" She trailed off and looked up at Viole, her wavy golden locks left loose so that they framed her pretty heart-shaped face and a strand falling over one of her big blue eyes making her look almost like a curious little filly.
"How do you know that?" asked Viole. She looked at him, her expression mildly grave.
"My Sylvie isn't the only one with gifts."
Chapter 22
It had been almost two and a half weeks and still Dilanadau remained unconscious. Sylvana knew that it couldn't be any of his injuries. She'd beaten the odds and healed everything, and just to be certain she hadn't missed anything she'd checked and double-checked; there was nothing wrong and yet he didn't wake. She sat on a chair next to his bed and gazed at him. She was exhausted; she had stretched herself thin in her attempts to call him back and now her strength was waning. She knew she couldn't keep it up much longer; her resources wouldn't hold out past a few days.
"What's wrong with you?" she asked the unconscious youth, sighing as she brushed a silver strand away from his closed eyes, "I healed you, you're well again, and yet you do not wake. Are you doing this to be spiteful because I injured you outside of battle?" she sighed again, "I'm not sure if I know what else to do, Dilandau. My reserves won't last me much longer…" Looking at him like this, she had trouble clinging to the hate that had kept her going all those months. Day by day it had been replaced by pity. With his guards down she was beginning to pick up on traces of emotions lost and long forgotten…as if they were echoes from lost memories. The joy and contentment of a happy childhood…and terror…pure and utter terror. Ghosts of distant memories, as if they were from the memories of a past life forgotten, and yet partially retained. Her brows furrowed as she contemplated these things. How very odd it was that she would find this sort of thing in a human.
"I don't know what more to do for you," she murmured to him, "I'm not certain if I can bring you out of this...you have to want to come out of it…"
*******
Serene snuggled, curled up next to the young woman who, at the moment, slept so deeply she might as well have been under an enchantment. She could feel that her Sylvie had little left to give. Serene had never seen Sylvana give her everything to save another, and that fact that, since she'd been on the Vione, she'd felt nothing but seething hate for the young man, as if he were her bitterest enemy, made it so much more extraordinary that she would give up so much of her strength for another. How much longer she could hold out, Serene couldn't begin to guess…and really didn't want to. She silently leaned up against Sylvana and watched Dilandau wondering…just wondering what his own childhood had been like. Had it been like hers? Had he had brothers, sisters? She herself had three sisters, but all were with her father. She frowned to herself thinking about them, but then sighed and closed her eyes feeling rather tired.
*******
"Lord Dilandau is still unconscious," Viole told the rest of the dragon slayers.
"What's wrong with him?" asked Guimel.
"She says she doesn't know," Viole replied with a shift of his shoulders that came close to resembling a shrug. "She told me that it was as if his spirit has retreated into the deepest recesses of his mind and body. She says she doesn't know if she can reach him in time…"
"In time for what?" demanded Dallet.
"Before her resources are completely depleted." One of the other slayers coughed.
"Come on, Viole, don't tell me you believe in that crap. You and I both know that magic isn't real. It's superstition, children's tales and nothing more."
"I do believe in it," replied Viole, "because I've seen it; she showed me -"
"She fooled you, parlour tricks…illusion -"
"You're wrong!" snapped Viole, now he and the other were both on their feet attempting to stare the other down or so it seemed.
"You like her," the other said with a chuckle. Viole narrowed his grey eyes at the other and glared.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Aethan," Viole replied.
"Don't I?" Aethan threw back locking his violet eyes on Viole's grey ones, " You're the one closest to her. You're the one Lord Dilandau assigned to personally keep an eye on her so that she wouldn't make any trouble. You've been closer to her than anyone. You've allowed yourself to get closer than you were supposed to an now she has you wrapped around her little finger…" Aethan waved his little finger as if using it to help emphasize his point. "That's the only magic she has. She's using her feminine wiles. She's a female…you're a male…face it…" Viole growled
"All right then, if that's true, and you know so much then you tell me what's wrong with our captain?" Now Aethan looked stumped. He had seen Lord Dilandau for himself. There hadn't been a mark on him, but tests have proven that it had not been poison that had dropped him like that so suddenly. "I know what I'm talking about," insisted Viole, "she showed me some of her magic. I saw her make a flue appear from thin air, and it wasn't slight of hand. I saw it appear first as a wisp of mist before it took on the form of a flute, and she spoke to me telepathically. Perhaps science can explain away the ability to speak with the mind, but not how she made that flute appear…and not how she healed Chesta when he took that mortal wound…" All eyes then turned to the blond youth, shortest of the lot; the only one meeker than him was curly haired Guimel who looked like he belonged in a field tending sheep rather than in Dilandau's dragon slayers. Chesta now looked like he wanted to shrink away from all the gazes that were on him; the expression on his face told Viole that he was probably wishing right now that he could sink into a hole in the floor. No one really knew why Chesta wanted to be a dragon slayer; he had never tried to discuss it. Perhaps he felt it was his duty in order to protect his family, his parents and his little sister. No one had ever bothered to ask.
"Well," spoke up Gatti, drawing the attention of the others off of Chesta, so that the other looked exceedingly grateful to him, "if she does have magic as you say, Viole, then maybe she has something to do with Lord Dilandau's condition. Maybe she's doing something to keep him that way. We all saw just how much she despises him when she confronted him about the death of her lover. Someone like that would of course be capable of harming him in more ways than one..."
"You could be right," mused Viole, "but why this way? She'd had plenty of chances to kill Lord Dilandau. Why not just do it and be done with it? Why not kill him and then say she could do nothing to save him?" Again, no one had any answers for that either, "And this wasn't her only chance -"
"I agree with Viole, " Chesta, "When she healed me, she transferred her own life energy to me…and when she did that I could feel something…it's hard to describe, but I do believe that she's a good and kind hearted persona and I do think that she'd do her honest best to save anyone who was dying…even Lord Dilandau despite how badly he's treated her and how deep her hatred for him runs. I don't know how I know this…but…I do…" The entire room fell silent. No one really knew what to think; none of them really knew anything about Sylvana. There were a few, two or three, who felt the same way Viole and Chesta did, but most just didn't know. It was difficult for youths who had grown up with science, to begin to even fathom what magic was or how it worked, let alone believe it possible. Everything they'd been taught was being challenged simply by its existence…
Chapter 23
"There's one more thing I can try, but I don't know how well it will work considering how low my resources are now…" Sylvana looked up at the figure of Viole standing in the doorway. She then looked at the little girl.
"Well, sylph,"she said, "I'm going to have to ask for your help in this. This time I don't think I can do it alone."
"Okay!" replied Serene, looking almost ecstatic. She'd never been permitted to use any of her magic in this way because so far she'd had only the most basic of training. She was still just a student who had not even used true magic; only the most minor of her gifts.
"I suppose after this you'll be able to consider yourself a novice," Sylvana told her. Serene nodded eagerly. She'd most likely been the youngest novice in the history of the clans.
"What do I do?" she asked.
"I'll tell you…"
Sylvana and Serene each lit two oil diffusers, two on one side of Dilandau's bed and two on the other. The scents of Jasmine, Rose, Violet, and Wisteria mingled together making the entire room smell sweet like a garden.
"Jasmine for prayer, rose for health," murmured Sylvana as she lit the first two diffusers.
"Violet for health, wisteria for the journey of mind and spirit," added Serene as she added the last two.
"Good," said Sylvana in a hushed voice as she sank to her knees next to Dilandau's bed, Serene followed suit, opposite from Sylvana.
"In order for me to keep up my strength, I must call upon Audra," Sylvana told Serene.
"The maiden healer," murmured Serene.
"Yes, we'll go together and see if there is any more that can be done to wake Dilandau. You will be able to travel farther, however, because you have more strength, so once we come to the area where I can go no further then I will act as your anchor so that you do not get lost. This is where all of our meditation comes in use, for we must sink into a full trance in order to do this. " Serene nodded again and then closed her eyes just as Sylvie did.
*******
It was so dark…and so cold, what was this place? What happened? Dilandau's mind seemed to be running in frantic circles. He hadn't even a mild notion of how he ended up here. His last memories were of his latest argument with that damned Laicar and then his mind was blank. More than once he'd thought he'd heard distant voices directed at him, but he still hadn't managed to figure out where they came from. It was as if they came from all directions at once. He thought he'd heard people talking, Folken and the Laicar healer at one time, Viole talking to the healer and the child. It had sounded as if the stratagos had been demanded how something had happened, or what had happened, he couldn't remember, but it had been something along those lines…and he'd heard him speak more than once. Viole's voice was another he heard often.
How long had he been here anyway? Somehow, it seemed nearly like days and seconds at the same time. He thought more than once that he'd heard the voice of Sylvana begging him to come back. It didn't make any sense to him. He stood there, not sure which direction to go in or what to do next. Then, as he stood there he could hear voices again, two of them…no, wait, they were the same voice, but it was as if it were speaking in two languages at the same time. He recognized Sylvana's voice, and slowly recognition of the musical lilting Laicar language came to him. Then there was the second voice, also the healers, but in his own language, and it sounded as though she were speaking some sort of prayer or incantation. Finally he slowed his rambling thoughts and listened closely to the fluting, slightly accented voice of Sylvana, which seemed to him to be barely above a whisper, but echoing all around him.
'Hear me Kind Maiden, hear me. Gentle Healer, I hail you, acknowledge my plea. Hear me Compassionate Audra, I beseech you to heed my calls. Hear me, hear my cry, and answer my appeal for help. As the tide falls, my energy ebbs. As death threatens to claim another, my power to divert it wanes. I beseech you, Merciful Lady, this night, this hour, grant me your strength, and lend me your power…'
A sudden glow out of the corner of his gaze caught Dilandau's attention and he turned his head to look. It was almost as if a door had opened allowing light to flood his gloomy prison. Silhouetted against the light was the figure of a person. It stood a moment and then moved toward him. As the figure drew closer, he saw that it was a woman who approached him. She looked…almost familiar. She was dressed in gold and in the Laicar fashion, her tresses partially left loose, the rest piled atop her head. She was small, slender, graceful, and he knew there was something very familiar about her, her golden tresses, her sapphire eyes, her heart-shaped face. For a moment, he thought she was the same girl from that earlier dream, but as she neared, he saw that she wasn't. Her hair was a lighter shade of gold, as if sun-kissed, her skin a warm bronze as if she spent a goodly amount of time soaking up the sun's rays, and her eyes were definitely Laicar…alien…feline, or perhaps draconic…not human. No, though this girl was so very familiar, he had not met her before in his dreams.
"Dilandau," she said, her almost ethereal voice almost seemed directly between soprano and alto and it had the unmistakable Laicar accent and seemed to echo all around him, "here you are." He felt his brow furrow.
"Where am I?" he demanded.
"Some place you should not be. You cannot stay here."
"Well, I don't know how to get away, what do you propose I do?"
"Come with me. I can show you the way…" Dilandau scoffed.
"You can't be serious. You actually expect me to trust you?"
"What choice do you have?" She seemed so much calmer than Sylvana. He'd not even seen a minor flash of ill temper yet. "You cannot stay here. You'll die if you do." He flinched and she held out a small, delicate hand. "Come, I can take you back where you belong. I can take you home if you'll let me." Dilandau gazed at the proffered hand for hours it seemed, but finally submitted to taking it. Afterward he had no idea what happened. It was as if his head was filled with light and the ground fell away.
Chapter 24
Hitome leaned against the railing of the palace balcony and gazed out over the grounds. She hadn't had any bad visions in a long time it seemed, but it was as if the visions had been replaced by something else…the memory of the silvery young woman she'd met eyes with on the Zaibach fortress. It almost seemed as though they two had made some sort of…connection, perhaps a sort of meeting of minds. She wasn't sure, but she'd found herself thinking about her often. She had felt something very strange about her, and even though she hadn't had any visions of the future, she'd been having dreams, strange dreams that she couldn't quite understand, or fully recall. She recalled a forest, and many paths through the trees. Buildings of some sort, usually amid the trees, the ocean and a beach with fine white sand. Often she recalled children and curious animals…probably pets. She vaguely recalled a little girl with sleek ebon hair, a little boy with silver hair who, she recalled, she'd first mistaken for a young Dilandau, but then realized that it wasn't possible, for this little boy had dancing emerald eyes. She was sure she recalled little kittens too, kittens with wings on their backs. That was when she'd dismissed it all as nothing more than a dream, because even though this was Gaea and not Earth and there were strange things to be seen, she just couldn't bring herself to believe that winged cats existed. She sighed and closed her eyes and then something happened:
Before her closed eyes, visions flashed…visions of fire…indigo, violet, white, and…silver fire? And she saw birds…four birds…birds of prey they looked like, all of a different colour….silver, black, gold and white…birds which seemed to have feathers of fire…birds formed of dancing flames…huge things…and they appeared to be attacking something…guymelefs…on a battle field…it was the enemy…the Zaibach guymelefs…no wait! Only two seemed to attack…one the guymelefs…the other the enemy men…as if passing judgment…silver and black were the two…
Then, just as quickly the images faded, it was as though it had been no more than a brief flash. Her eyes snapped open and she had to grip the railing as she swayed.
"Hitome, is something wrong?" She nearly leapt out of her skin before meeting eyes with Allan.
"I'm not sure," she replied.
"Did you have another vision? Is Zaibach planning another attack?"
"I…don't think so…not yet…I…don't know what it was I saw…" She fell silent. She hated this, seeing the future, seeing terrible things happen before they did; she had never wanted this, so why did she have to suffer? Fortune telling had been a game, something she'd play at with her friends, so why…why had it suddenly become real? When had it become more than a game? She shook her head as if to dismiss those thoughts. "I'll be fine, Allan, honest," she lied and hurried inside.
*******
Princess Mellerna, third princess of Asturia, had noticed something different about Allan. He'd always seemed to do his best to distance himself from her, but this time it seemed like something else…not his usual honor, but something different, almost as though he had something continuously on his mind…or someone. No that couldn't be it. She tried to tell herself that it was only concern over Zaibach, concern for Asturia, and that the great empire would someday attack. He'd been like this too long now, before he'd seemed filled with life, but now he seemed a little more serious and almost…gloomy as though he was constantly brooding. It wasn't like him at all. Even her sister Eries had noticed the difference but had not expressed any concern. As for Mellerna, she had considered expressing to him her concern, but then realized that it might have been caused by something she didn't wish to know about, and so left it alone.
*******
Van wondered when the next attack from Zaibach would come. He knew Dilandau's arrogance not to mention vanity. Van had little doubt in his mind that Dilandau's pride had been badly bruised and that he had taken the defeat very personally.
"So when are you coming, Dilandau?" he asked the silent, starry sky. "Don't worry, when you come I'll be waiting for you and then I'll avenge my country and my people…" It felt good to get that off his chest, even though he'd truly spoken to no one…no one who could hear him anyway, he then turned and went back inside.
He found his dear, childhood friend Meruru, a little tiger-striped cat-girl with strawberry-blond hair and dancing blue eyes, waiting for him outside his door.
"Lord Van!" she squealed as she threw herself into his arms as she usually did upon seeing him, "Where were you?" she then demanded, disengaging herself from him and planting her hands on her still forming, barely thirteen-year-old hips, her striped tail waving back and forth just like that of an agitated feline, wild or domestic.
"I had to do some thinking," he told her, "so I slipped away to a quiet place where I could be alone…" He opened his door and Meruru followed him into his room.
"You should have told me," she protested.
"Right, so you could follow me?" he said in a gentle, slightly teasing voice, "As I said, I wanted some time alone."
"But, Lord Van!" objected the cat-girl.
"I'm fine aren't I?" said Van kindly enough, letting one of his rare, gentle smiles grace his lips, "you needn't worry so much." Meruru gave him a sideways glance, the slight frown visible on her young face.
"Well, somebody has to," she told him, "and better me than Hitome." Van chuckled. He knew how much Meruru disliked the girl from the Mystic Moon, and the youthful cat-girl wasn't shy about expressing her dislike either. However, Van had a feeling that deep down, Meruru couldn't bring herself to hate the other girl. There were some similarities between them; both were now far from their homes, not knowing when they'd see them again, if ever, and they both cared very much for him, though Hitome was quite a bit more discreet than the cat-girl when expressing it. She'd demonstrated how much she cared, though, when she'd come to find him on the Zaibach floating fortress. He knew very well that Allan would never have let her along, so that left only one other explanation, that she'd seen something which gave her reason to believe that his life was in danger and had entered the fortress in order to warn him. He had to admire her courage, not only had she braved the dangers of the fortress itself, Meruru had later told him in private that Hitome had leapt across a nearly nine foot gap to get onto the fortress and had just made it by the skin of her teeth. Meruru herself had laughed and the other girl's supposed stupidity, but Van knew that really, the cat-girl envied the other's courage and willingness to help in whatever way she could rather than just sitting back and waiting for the men to handle things. He also felt that Meruru envied Hitome's gift of sight. Who else could see what might happen in the future and prevent it? Who else could find another without knowing the other's location first? Who else could see through the Zaibach cloaks? And, who else was willing to risk their lives to warn another of possible danger that might or might not come to pass? He knew that Meruru was a little afraid; she and Van had been the best of friends nearly their entire lives; she was almost like the little sister he'd never had. They were closer than close and he had to guess that the cat-girl feared that Hitome would come between them.
'No fears,' he thought to his feline-human sister, 'nothing can come between us two. Even if true love were to find me, it could not break the bond we share, my little sister…' He sighed, 'Death…now that may be a different story, and I hope we never have to find out…'
Chapter 25
That voice…it still spoke in that odd, musical language, but now he could no longer understand it. It was soft, barely above a whisper and it continued non-stop, never repeating itself. Was it a prayer? An incantation? Damn, did his head hurt. He'd never been in so much agony. He hadn't even felt this bad when he had crashed his Alseides near the Laicar vale. He hadn't even felt this bad when he very nearly died in that training accident all those years back. he had been lucky then, two of the other trainees had been killed and one had been crippled for life thus cutting his military career short. What had hit him? He had been having yet another argument with that damned stubborn woman and the next thing he knew he was here. The dream of that golden woman still lingered though, if only in bits and pieces. Finally, he came completely back to himself, stirring and then slowly opening his eyes. A scent of flowers hung faintly on the air as if he were in some invisible garden. There was only a small amount of light, which emanated from several candles placed around the room, his room he came to realize. He then saw two figures reclining on a couch near his bed, Sylvana and that little girl. The child was stretched out on the couch, her head resting on the older girl's lap. Sylvana had her eyes closed, but she wasn't asleep, no, she was meditating or in some kind of trance for he could see, however faintly in the dim light, that her lips moved soundlessly as if in prayer. He attempted to sit up but excruciating pain lanced through not only his head but his entire body and he let out a groan as he fell back onto his pillow once more.
*******
Sylvana's eyes snapped open when she heard a pained groan. She looked toward Dilandau and nearly cried out.
"Great Good Gods," she finally managed to get out, "you're awake…I can't believe it."
"What do you mean?" Dilandau asked. He had meant to snap at her, but it hadn't come out right, "What happened?" Was his next question as he pressed a cold hand to his forehead and closed is eyes against the pain. Sylvana gently moved Serene aside and stood. She picked up a clay mug and held it out to her patient while helping him to sit up, propping his back with pillows with her free hand.
"There was…an accident," she told him as he took the mug suspiciously.
"An accident? The last thing I remember I was arguing with you…" He sipped tentatively at the still piping liquid and made a face. It wasn't that it tasted terrible. It was just, well…it was quite bitter. "What the hell is this crap? Are you trying to poison me?" he growled a mite weakly at the young woman. She frowned at him.
"If you don't drink it yourself…then I will pour it down your throat for you…while it's still steaming." she threatened, using that poisonously sweet tone that indicated that she was making a threat or was trying to keep control of her temper. "It will help you recover faster." Dilandau grumbled but gave in and Sylvana collapsed back onto the couch looking quite exhausted. "I suppose you should know that you have been unconscious for about three weeks give or take." Dilandau nearly spat out his drink for the second time.
"W-what?" he demanded, almost dismayed.
"While we were arguing, I…lost control of my temper and lashed out at you with my mind. It was an accident, but you very nearly died. I suppose you were lucky…the last person this happened to liven no longer than two days." Dilandau had to take a moment to let that sink in. Sylvana had nearly killed him. How? With magic? He suddenly felt cold; it felt as if an icy hand had his heart in its grip, or as though he had swallowed ice-cold water from a glacier lake. Coldness resounded in the pit of his belly and his mind reeled. He nearly died! She almost killed him! He finally had to loosen the grip he had on his mug, because his fingers had began to ache. Suddenly, he was afraid of her. He thought that she might be lying, but quickly decided he was wrong as white-hot pain lanced through his skull and into the rest of his body once more. He tried to hide the fear though.
"How long before I can fight again?" he asked, somehow preventing his voice from trembling.
"Not too long, a couple of weeks give or take, but for now, you should rest." Dilandau didn't want to rest, he had too much to work out in his head; suddenly his mind was flooded. However, as soon as he finished the potion?…he'd been given and laid back down, he fell right back to sleep. This time, however, it was a natural sleep.
*******
"Sylvana just informed me that the captain has regained consciousness this afternoon," Viole announced to the rest of the dragon slayers. The room then erupted into whispers and murmurs as the slayers declared their surprise, or relief…or even disappointment as the case may be, to each other.
"How long before he'll be able to fight again?"
"She says it's difficult to say because it depends on how willing he is to listen to her and drink the teas and potions she administers." Another chorus of mutters and whispers.
"I suppose it's time we decide whose side we take." said one of the other slayers unexpectedly. Suddenly the room exploded into a cacophony. Most were expressing their shock at such a statement. Most were loyal to Zaibach if not to Dilandau himself, but there was a good number who nodded their heads in agreement with the slayer.
"Look," piped up Chesta, "we can help Sylvana and still be loyal to Zaibach. She's a neutral party in this. If we help her escape then we won't be committing any crimes…"
"Except disobeying our captain…"
"He had no right to bring her here in the first place," added in Viole, "Technically, she didn't come willingly, she was coerced, therefore, he was breaking the law in bringing her here. She may have come willingly, but only because he threatened to kill someone she cared about." Murmurs, quiet discussion.
"She's helped many of us," added another of the slayers, "she saved some of our lives, helped us heal faster…she even saved Lord Dilandau's life. I think, if anything, we owe her the chance to return to her own people…"
"She could escape if she wanted to," protested another, "why would she need our help to escape. She can fly for god sake."
"I think I already know the answer to that," said Viole, "I've spent a good deal of time around her and her little girl. I think I've come to the only one possibly conclusion. Her people are shape-changers, am I right?" Nods from the others, "well I've come to believe that through they may be shape-changers, they are confined to only certain forms depending on the individual…"
"that doesn't explain why she doesn't escape -"
"I'm not finished yet," interrupted Viole, "She may be able to take on the form of a bird, but whose to say that the child can too? For all we know, she may not have even learned how to shape-change yet…"
"And Sylvana may not be able to carry her," added another as understanding began to dawn in the minds of the others.
"I've seen her in her other form," piped up another, "when she shifts to her bird form she's only about the size of a large eagle. There's absolutely no way she could carry that child and stay aloft."
"Well, that explains a great deal," commented Gatti, "I was wondering why she didn't just escape if she could fly. I mean, it's clear how much she hates Lord Dilandau, and she's never really tried to mask her abhorrence for the Vione either." More nods from the group.
"She'd have to leave Serene," said Viole, "and one thing I've come to understand about her is that, though she's obviously too young for that child to be her daughter, the child is immensely loyal to her. In fact, I've been surprised by the ardent loyalty and love that child shows at such a young age, and Sylvana certainly reciprocates. She'd never abandon that child, and she must have known that she was trapping herself by allowing the girl to come along…" There were more murmurs and it even sounded like there were expressions of awe mixed in at the young woman's faithfulness to this child, that surely wasn't hers by birth. Perhaps Serene was her little sister, but that seemed unlikely considering that they hardly resembled each other at all. Now there were more questions. Just what was the relationship between the two? There were others, now however. Was it at all wise to go about doing anything that came remotely close to betraying their captain? Dared they help her get back to her people? There was a growing number of slayers who wished to help the young woman, though a good deal still remained loyal to their captain. There were others, however, who, like Viole, were fast growing inspired by the unusual and beautiful young woman, their loyalty slipping away from the tyrannous young lord a little more every day. They had to be careful though. Lord Dilandau had caught wind of this previously and things had not turned out well. They'd have to play their cards carefully, discreetly, with subtlety to prevent their captain from picking up on anything that would giving him even the slightest inkling that their loyalty lied elsewhere. The next months would, without a doubt, be very trying for all of them…
As Dilandau was moved back to his own apartments, Viole turned to Sylvana; her face was deathly pale.
"What happened?" he asked.
"I…I wasn't…I didn't…an accident…it was an accident…I didn't mean for it to happen…" She brought a trembling hand up to cover her mouth. By the tone of her voice, it sounded as though she was on the verge of hysterics.
"Sylvana, you have to tell me what happened," said Viole, grabbing her upper arms and giving her a shake in a weak attempt to get some sense out of her, but quickly had to let go of her. Her skin was like a branding iron, burning hot; he could feel the heat even through his gloves. It was as though she was on fire, as if it were burning just under her skin. She covered her face with her hands and Viole could see that she was trembling all over.
"It's my fault…" she said, barely audible…"it's all my fault…"
"What is?!" cried Viole, "Sylvana, what happened? What is your fault? You have to tell me!"
"I couldn't stop it…I lost control…I didn't…I would never -" she was cut off when, out of frustration and desperation, Viole brought a hand down across her cheek, not as hard as Lord Dilandau had when he had struck her, but still hard enough to silence her and to finally knock some sense into her. She covered her smarting cheek with a hand and stared at him with shock filled eyes. Viole flinched, unable to believe that he had struck her. For a few moments, he expected her to lash out at him the way she had at his captain, but the counter blow never came. She dropped her hand from her slightly reddened cheek and took several steps backward until she collapsed into her armchair and rested her forehead on a still trembling hand.
"Sylvana, please tell me what happened." There was a long stretch of silence. Viole shifted awkwardly, not sure what he should do. Should he leave her until she was calmer and more able to speak about it? Should he force her to speak? Should he -
"It was an accident," Sylvana's musical voice suddenly cut through Viole's thoughts. Viole focused his attention on her again. She hadn't moved and he could see that her pale eyes were closed.
"Yes, you said that already," he replied. She nodded and then looked up at him. The pain and horror in that gaze was almost overwhelming.
"But this isn't the first time it's happened," she said in a soft voice.
"No?"
"No, it happened once before. When I was still living with the clans in the main vale, there were…issues among the elders concerning me. One day one of my friends confronted me…he was concerned because the elders were searching for a good excuse to exile me. We got into a heated argument and…I lost control…and in short, did to him exactly what I did to your captain."
"B-but, what did you do? You couldn't have attacked him, I saw no signs of a fight…"
"You're right, I know you don't believe in this, but I didn't attack him physically, though it does very real and physical damage. Basically, I have several gifts, my most powerful, and unfortunately least under control, is my gift of empathy -"
"Empathy?" Sylvana stopped to meet eyes with Viole.
"Yes…it's…it's the ability to sense the emotions of another…and/or, to project one's emotions onto another, or essentially to make one who is not empathic feel one's own emotions…" Viole now had a sceptical look on his face.
"But that can't be possible," he muttered.
"Oh, but it is," replied Sylvana, "but I don't expect you to believe in it, after all, you came from a world of science." She shrugged. He still looked sceptical, but she continued anyway, "Those who have exceptionally strong empathic abilities may also have the ability to…well…it's difficult to explain…basically they can influence another's mind in nearly any possible way, through emotions…guilt, anger, jealousy…" she shrugged, "They also have the ability to concentrate their life energy into an attack…Unfortunately I have no control over that aspect of my gift, so if I lose control of my emotions, fear or anger, then I lose control of it too. The effects are similar to if one fell and hit their head…"
"So, that was what happened to Lord Dilandau?"
"Yes, last time this happened, the person it happened to didn't survive past two days…" She met Viole's eyes. He looked surprised, maybe concerned, but his scepticism still lingered. "Still sceptical are you?" Sylvana asked. She looked thoughtful, "Perhaps I can show you one of my gifts." She though a moment. She didn't like the idea of shape-shifting. There was a possibility that she had been weakened from losing control of her empathic gift. Perhaps one of her minor gifts… "Yes, I'll show you one of my minor gifts, one that won't take too much energy. You'll see that this is no mere parlour trick, my friend." She held out her hand, palm up. At first nothing happened, but after several moments an iridescent mist appeared over her hand and slowly it seemed to create a uniform shape and finally solidified into the form of a crystal flute.
"What -" cried Viole.
"It's called summoning," she told him, holding the flute out to him so that he could see that it was very real and not some trick. Tentatively, Viole took the flute. Yes it was very real indeed.
:That gift's just one of many.: Viole jumped. Had it been Sylvana who had spoke? He hadn't thought that she -
"Telepathy…mind speech," Sylvana said as if she'd picked up on his thoughts. "the -"
"Ability to communicate with the mind without physical speech," said Viole finishing what Sylvana had begun. He was beginning to believe the rumours about Sylvana and magic.
"That's right," said Sylvana with a nod, "are you beginning to believe yet?"
"I think…I might be…" there was a pause while Viole thought. "You're a healer aren't you?" he asked suddenly.
"Well, ye-es…b-but -"
"Is there anything…anything at all…that you can do?" Sylvana looked surprised.
"I-I don't know…I have no idea what the extent of my power is…I-I'm not certain if I have the strength. When I did this to - to Azure…eight healers tried to save him but he didn't make it…" She shook her head.
"Maybe you should just try," replied Viole, "I know how you hate him, but if you must do it for someone then do it for…for Azure…or if for anyone then yourself. You may not like Lord Dilandau, but I can tell that you feel guilty for…whatever it is you did to him." Sylvana looked at him, stricken.
"And how, may I ask, do you know me so very well?" she demanded.
"I don't, but you should have seen yourself just now…You were nearly hysterical…" Sylvana narrowed her eyes at him, but then relented.
"You're right," she said, barely above a whisper, "I'll try, but I'll tell you now I can guarantee nothing." Viole nodded.
"I know."
"Take me to him." Viole made his way toward the door, but then Sylvana caught his arm. He paused and turned back to look at her.
"Will you do me a favour? I know you care about my Serene, so please, will you wait here for her until she returns and if I'm not back then bring her to me, I don't want her to be alone in these rooms, even if she has Anya for company…and if need be she can run errands for me." Viole nodded.
"I promise," he replied softly and then, "Come. I'll take you to Lord Dilandau.
He looked so different lain out in his bed like this, almost frail. Sylvana held one of his hands in between both her own and closed her eyes allowing herself to slide down into a semi-trance. Through this, she could concentrate all of her energy on healing the young captain's wounds. He did indeed have a severe concussion as if he'd taken a violent blow to the head. That would be her first priority, since she could sense internal haemorrhaging that could cause major problems if it wasn't repaired right away in order to prevent any possible permanent damage. She hated to make him able to battle again, but she had to be impartial when it came to healing. As she'd been taught by the other healers as well as her guide, a healer must heal all, be they ally or foe. If they were mortally wounded then the healer must put aside her personal feelings and do what must be done. There were other wounds as well, but they were less pressing than his concussion. She sank down into a kneeling position, still clutching his hand between her own. She took a moment to look into his face. Unconscious and unguarded he had a different look; he didn't show the madness, the darkness that dwelled deep within his spirit. She wondered if at one time he had actually been a kind hearted person. She, of course, could not tell, she had the gift of farsight, not truesight like those of Clan Alicorn were supposed to possess. She tightened her grip momentarily as she thought about the Lost Clans, but quickly forced those thoughts away so that she would not be distracted and closed her eyes again. Slowly she began to feel her energy transfer to Dilandau, strengthening his own healing systems and promoting his body to take care of the worst of his wounds. She saw brief flashes of memories appear behind her eyelids, but they were so fleeting that she couldn't even be certain if they were hers or his. she began to feel both cold and light-headed, but she didn't stop, not until she sensed that any and all permanent damage was healed. She then allowed her body to sag and rested her forehead upon the backs of her hands, which still rested atop Dilandau's.
*******
Viole gently lifted the sleeping healer and placed her on the sofa that had been moved next to Dilandau's bed. Again, she felt like ice. It had to be from giving up all that energy. He wondered if she could bring the captain back and he wondered if it would be better to just let him die. He had been surprised at first when he entered the room with the child to find Sylvana bent over Dilandau's hand as if she'd been weeping for someone dear to her heart, but now he understood that she'd simply worn herself to exhaustion in her attempts to bring back the young lord who she despised so deeply.
"She'll be all right," he told Serene upon seeing the look on the child's face, "I think she just needs rest…" The little thing nodded.
"I know," she replied, "I-I hope she can save him." This surprised Viole.
"Why?" he asked, curious.
"W-well, because -- he's alive, and all living things have the right to a chance for life, and as a person -- he deserves the chance to…to find himself…and the chance to redeem himself…" Viole stared at the child, stunned, stricken dumb. The compassion she showed was positively admirable, and her wisdom…no one else that young had that kind of wisdom. Serene plumped herself down on the sofa and sighed. She then looked up at Viole with those innocent blue eyes. "You don't know very much about him, do you?" she asked. Viole shifted uncomfortably.
"No, actually, I don't. I was taken as a dragon slayer after Dilandau had been promoted to captain. However, sometimes I think even he doesn't know much about himself…"
"I think you're right," whispered Serene, "I don't think he remembers anything before he was about my age…" She trailed off and looked up at Viole, her wavy golden locks left loose so that they framed her pretty heart-shaped face and a strand falling over one of her big blue eyes making her look almost like a curious little filly.
"How do you know that?" asked Viole. She looked at him, her expression mildly grave.
"My Sylvie isn't the only one with gifts."
Chapter 22
It had been almost two and a half weeks and still Dilanadau remained unconscious. Sylvana knew that it couldn't be any of his injuries. She'd beaten the odds and healed everything, and just to be certain she hadn't missed anything she'd checked and double-checked; there was nothing wrong and yet he didn't wake. She sat on a chair next to his bed and gazed at him. She was exhausted; she had stretched herself thin in her attempts to call him back and now her strength was waning. She knew she couldn't keep it up much longer; her resources wouldn't hold out past a few days.
"What's wrong with you?" she asked the unconscious youth, sighing as she brushed a silver strand away from his closed eyes, "I healed you, you're well again, and yet you do not wake. Are you doing this to be spiteful because I injured you outside of battle?" she sighed again, "I'm not sure if I know what else to do, Dilandau. My reserves won't last me much longer…" Looking at him like this, she had trouble clinging to the hate that had kept her going all those months. Day by day it had been replaced by pity. With his guards down she was beginning to pick up on traces of emotions lost and long forgotten…as if they were echoes from lost memories. The joy and contentment of a happy childhood…and terror…pure and utter terror. Ghosts of distant memories, as if they were from the memories of a past life forgotten, and yet partially retained. Her brows furrowed as she contemplated these things. How very odd it was that she would find this sort of thing in a human.
"I don't know what more to do for you," she murmured to him, "I'm not certain if I can bring you out of this...you have to want to come out of it…"
*******
Serene snuggled, curled up next to the young woman who, at the moment, slept so deeply she might as well have been under an enchantment. She could feel that her Sylvie had little left to give. Serene had never seen Sylvana give her everything to save another, and that fact that, since she'd been on the Vione, she'd felt nothing but seething hate for the young man, as if he were her bitterest enemy, made it so much more extraordinary that she would give up so much of her strength for another. How much longer she could hold out, Serene couldn't begin to guess…and really didn't want to. She silently leaned up against Sylvana and watched Dilandau wondering…just wondering what his own childhood had been like. Had it been like hers? Had he had brothers, sisters? She herself had three sisters, but all were with her father. She frowned to herself thinking about them, but then sighed and closed her eyes feeling rather tired.
*******
"Lord Dilandau is still unconscious," Viole told the rest of the dragon slayers.
"What's wrong with him?" asked Guimel.
"She says she doesn't know," Viole replied with a shift of his shoulders that came close to resembling a shrug. "She told me that it was as if his spirit has retreated into the deepest recesses of his mind and body. She says she doesn't know if she can reach him in time…"
"In time for what?" demanded Dallet.
"Before her resources are completely depleted." One of the other slayers coughed.
"Come on, Viole, don't tell me you believe in that crap. You and I both know that magic isn't real. It's superstition, children's tales and nothing more."
"I do believe in it," replied Viole, "because I've seen it; she showed me -"
"She fooled you, parlour tricks…illusion -"
"You're wrong!" snapped Viole, now he and the other were both on their feet attempting to stare the other down or so it seemed.
"You like her," the other said with a chuckle. Viole narrowed his grey eyes at the other and glared.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Aethan," Viole replied.
"Don't I?" Aethan threw back locking his violet eyes on Viole's grey ones, " You're the one closest to her. You're the one Lord Dilandau assigned to personally keep an eye on her so that she wouldn't make any trouble. You've been closer to her than anyone. You've allowed yourself to get closer than you were supposed to an now she has you wrapped around her little finger…" Aethan waved his little finger as if using it to help emphasize his point. "That's the only magic she has. She's using her feminine wiles. She's a female…you're a male…face it…" Viole growled
"All right then, if that's true, and you know so much then you tell me what's wrong with our captain?" Now Aethan looked stumped. He had seen Lord Dilandau for himself. There hadn't been a mark on him, but tests have proven that it had not been poison that had dropped him like that so suddenly. "I know what I'm talking about," insisted Viole, "she showed me some of her magic. I saw her make a flue appear from thin air, and it wasn't slight of hand. I saw it appear first as a wisp of mist before it took on the form of a flute, and she spoke to me telepathically. Perhaps science can explain away the ability to speak with the mind, but not how she made that flute appear…and not how she healed Chesta when he took that mortal wound…" All eyes then turned to the blond youth, shortest of the lot; the only one meeker than him was curly haired Guimel who looked like he belonged in a field tending sheep rather than in Dilandau's dragon slayers. Chesta now looked like he wanted to shrink away from all the gazes that were on him; the expression on his face told Viole that he was probably wishing right now that he could sink into a hole in the floor. No one really knew why Chesta wanted to be a dragon slayer; he had never tried to discuss it. Perhaps he felt it was his duty in order to protect his family, his parents and his little sister. No one had ever bothered to ask.
"Well," spoke up Gatti, drawing the attention of the others off of Chesta, so that the other looked exceedingly grateful to him, "if she does have magic as you say, Viole, then maybe she has something to do with Lord Dilandau's condition. Maybe she's doing something to keep him that way. We all saw just how much she despises him when she confronted him about the death of her lover. Someone like that would of course be capable of harming him in more ways than one..."
"You could be right," mused Viole, "but why this way? She'd had plenty of chances to kill Lord Dilandau. Why not just do it and be done with it? Why not kill him and then say she could do nothing to save him?" Again, no one had any answers for that either, "And this wasn't her only chance -"
"I agree with Viole, " Chesta, "When she healed me, she transferred her own life energy to me…and when she did that I could feel something…it's hard to describe, but I do believe that she's a good and kind hearted persona and I do think that she'd do her honest best to save anyone who was dying…even Lord Dilandau despite how badly he's treated her and how deep her hatred for him runs. I don't know how I know this…but…I do…" The entire room fell silent. No one really knew what to think; none of them really knew anything about Sylvana. There were a few, two or three, who felt the same way Viole and Chesta did, but most just didn't know. It was difficult for youths who had grown up with science, to begin to even fathom what magic was or how it worked, let alone believe it possible. Everything they'd been taught was being challenged simply by its existence…
Chapter 23
"There's one more thing I can try, but I don't know how well it will work considering how low my resources are now…" Sylvana looked up at the figure of Viole standing in the doorway. She then looked at the little girl.
"Well, sylph,"she said, "I'm going to have to ask for your help in this. This time I don't think I can do it alone."
"Okay!" replied Serene, looking almost ecstatic. She'd never been permitted to use any of her magic in this way because so far she'd had only the most basic of training. She was still just a student who had not even used true magic; only the most minor of her gifts.
"I suppose after this you'll be able to consider yourself a novice," Sylvana told her. Serene nodded eagerly. She'd most likely been the youngest novice in the history of the clans.
"What do I do?" she asked.
"I'll tell you…"
Sylvana and Serene each lit two oil diffusers, two on one side of Dilandau's bed and two on the other. The scents of Jasmine, Rose, Violet, and Wisteria mingled together making the entire room smell sweet like a garden.
"Jasmine for prayer, rose for health," murmured Sylvana as she lit the first two diffusers.
"Violet for health, wisteria for the journey of mind and spirit," added Serene as she added the last two.
"Good," said Sylvana in a hushed voice as she sank to her knees next to Dilandau's bed, Serene followed suit, opposite from Sylvana.
"In order for me to keep up my strength, I must call upon Audra," Sylvana told Serene.
"The maiden healer," murmured Serene.
"Yes, we'll go together and see if there is any more that can be done to wake Dilandau. You will be able to travel farther, however, because you have more strength, so once we come to the area where I can go no further then I will act as your anchor so that you do not get lost. This is where all of our meditation comes in use, for we must sink into a full trance in order to do this. " Serene nodded again and then closed her eyes just as Sylvie did.
*******
It was so dark…and so cold, what was this place? What happened? Dilandau's mind seemed to be running in frantic circles. He hadn't even a mild notion of how he ended up here. His last memories were of his latest argument with that damned Laicar and then his mind was blank. More than once he'd thought he'd heard distant voices directed at him, but he still hadn't managed to figure out where they came from. It was as if they came from all directions at once. He thought he'd heard people talking, Folken and the Laicar healer at one time, Viole talking to the healer and the child. It had sounded as if the stratagos had been demanded how something had happened, or what had happened, he couldn't remember, but it had been something along those lines…and he'd heard him speak more than once. Viole's voice was another he heard often.
How long had he been here anyway? Somehow, it seemed nearly like days and seconds at the same time. He thought more than once that he'd heard the voice of Sylvana begging him to come back. It didn't make any sense to him. He stood there, not sure which direction to go in or what to do next. Then, as he stood there he could hear voices again, two of them…no, wait, they were the same voice, but it was as if it were speaking in two languages at the same time. He recognized Sylvana's voice, and slowly recognition of the musical lilting Laicar language came to him. Then there was the second voice, also the healers, but in his own language, and it sounded as though she were speaking some sort of prayer or incantation. Finally he slowed his rambling thoughts and listened closely to the fluting, slightly accented voice of Sylvana, which seemed to him to be barely above a whisper, but echoing all around him.
'Hear me Kind Maiden, hear me. Gentle Healer, I hail you, acknowledge my plea. Hear me Compassionate Audra, I beseech you to heed my calls. Hear me, hear my cry, and answer my appeal for help. As the tide falls, my energy ebbs. As death threatens to claim another, my power to divert it wanes. I beseech you, Merciful Lady, this night, this hour, grant me your strength, and lend me your power…'
A sudden glow out of the corner of his gaze caught Dilandau's attention and he turned his head to look. It was almost as if a door had opened allowing light to flood his gloomy prison. Silhouetted against the light was the figure of a person. It stood a moment and then moved toward him. As the figure drew closer, he saw that it was a woman who approached him. She looked…almost familiar. She was dressed in gold and in the Laicar fashion, her tresses partially left loose, the rest piled atop her head. She was small, slender, graceful, and he knew there was something very familiar about her, her golden tresses, her sapphire eyes, her heart-shaped face. For a moment, he thought she was the same girl from that earlier dream, but as she neared, he saw that she wasn't. Her hair was a lighter shade of gold, as if sun-kissed, her skin a warm bronze as if she spent a goodly amount of time soaking up the sun's rays, and her eyes were definitely Laicar…alien…feline, or perhaps draconic…not human. No, though this girl was so very familiar, he had not met her before in his dreams.
"Dilandau," she said, her almost ethereal voice almost seemed directly between soprano and alto and it had the unmistakable Laicar accent and seemed to echo all around him, "here you are." He felt his brow furrow.
"Where am I?" he demanded.
"Some place you should not be. You cannot stay here."
"Well, I don't know how to get away, what do you propose I do?"
"Come with me. I can show you the way…" Dilandau scoffed.
"You can't be serious. You actually expect me to trust you?"
"What choice do you have?" She seemed so much calmer than Sylvana. He'd not even seen a minor flash of ill temper yet. "You cannot stay here. You'll die if you do." He flinched and she held out a small, delicate hand. "Come, I can take you back where you belong. I can take you home if you'll let me." Dilandau gazed at the proffered hand for hours it seemed, but finally submitted to taking it. Afterward he had no idea what happened. It was as if his head was filled with light and the ground fell away.
Chapter 24
Hitome leaned against the railing of the palace balcony and gazed out over the grounds. She hadn't had any bad visions in a long time it seemed, but it was as if the visions had been replaced by something else…the memory of the silvery young woman she'd met eyes with on the Zaibach fortress. It almost seemed as though they two had made some sort of…connection, perhaps a sort of meeting of minds. She wasn't sure, but she'd found herself thinking about her often. She had felt something very strange about her, and even though she hadn't had any visions of the future, she'd been having dreams, strange dreams that she couldn't quite understand, or fully recall. She recalled a forest, and many paths through the trees. Buildings of some sort, usually amid the trees, the ocean and a beach with fine white sand. Often she recalled children and curious animals…probably pets. She vaguely recalled a little girl with sleek ebon hair, a little boy with silver hair who, she recalled, she'd first mistaken for a young Dilandau, but then realized that it wasn't possible, for this little boy had dancing emerald eyes. She was sure she recalled little kittens too, kittens with wings on their backs. That was when she'd dismissed it all as nothing more than a dream, because even though this was Gaea and not Earth and there were strange things to be seen, she just couldn't bring herself to believe that winged cats existed. She sighed and closed her eyes and then something happened:
Before her closed eyes, visions flashed…visions of fire…indigo, violet, white, and…silver fire? And she saw birds…four birds…birds of prey they looked like, all of a different colour….silver, black, gold and white…birds which seemed to have feathers of fire…birds formed of dancing flames…huge things…and they appeared to be attacking something…guymelefs…on a battle field…it was the enemy…the Zaibach guymelefs…no wait! Only two seemed to attack…one the guymelefs…the other the enemy men…as if passing judgment…silver and black were the two…
Then, just as quickly the images faded, it was as though it had been no more than a brief flash. Her eyes snapped open and she had to grip the railing as she swayed.
"Hitome, is something wrong?" She nearly leapt out of her skin before meeting eyes with Allan.
"I'm not sure," she replied.
"Did you have another vision? Is Zaibach planning another attack?"
"I…don't think so…not yet…I…don't know what it was I saw…" She fell silent. She hated this, seeing the future, seeing terrible things happen before they did; she had never wanted this, so why did she have to suffer? Fortune telling had been a game, something she'd play at with her friends, so why…why had it suddenly become real? When had it become more than a game? She shook her head as if to dismiss those thoughts. "I'll be fine, Allan, honest," she lied and hurried inside.
*******
Princess Mellerna, third princess of Asturia, had noticed something different about Allan. He'd always seemed to do his best to distance himself from her, but this time it seemed like something else…not his usual honor, but something different, almost as though he had something continuously on his mind…or someone. No that couldn't be it. She tried to tell herself that it was only concern over Zaibach, concern for Asturia, and that the great empire would someday attack. He'd been like this too long now, before he'd seemed filled with life, but now he seemed a little more serious and almost…gloomy as though he was constantly brooding. It wasn't like him at all. Even her sister Eries had noticed the difference but had not expressed any concern. As for Mellerna, she had considered expressing to him her concern, but then realized that it might have been caused by something she didn't wish to know about, and so left it alone.
*******
Van wondered when the next attack from Zaibach would come. He knew Dilandau's arrogance not to mention vanity. Van had little doubt in his mind that Dilandau's pride had been badly bruised and that he had taken the defeat very personally.
"So when are you coming, Dilandau?" he asked the silent, starry sky. "Don't worry, when you come I'll be waiting for you and then I'll avenge my country and my people…" It felt good to get that off his chest, even though he'd truly spoken to no one…no one who could hear him anyway, he then turned and went back inside.
He found his dear, childhood friend Meruru, a little tiger-striped cat-girl with strawberry-blond hair and dancing blue eyes, waiting for him outside his door.
"Lord Van!" she squealed as she threw herself into his arms as she usually did upon seeing him, "Where were you?" she then demanded, disengaging herself from him and planting her hands on her still forming, barely thirteen-year-old hips, her striped tail waving back and forth just like that of an agitated feline, wild or domestic.
"I had to do some thinking," he told her, "so I slipped away to a quiet place where I could be alone…" He opened his door and Meruru followed him into his room.
"You should have told me," she protested.
"Right, so you could follow me?" he said in a gentle, slightly teasing voice, "As I said, I wanted some time alone."
"But, Lord Van!" objected the cat-girl.
"I'm fine aren't I?" said Van kindly enough, letting one of his rare, gentle smiles grace his lips, "you needn't worry so much." Meruru gave him a sideways glance, the slight frown visible on her young face.
"Well, somebody has to," she told him, "and better me than Hitome." Van chuckled. He knew how much Meruru disliked the girl from the Mystic Moon, and the youthful cat-girl wasn't shy about expressing her dislike either. However, Van had a feeling that deep down, Meruru couldn't bring herself to hate the other girl. There were some similarities between them; both were now far from their homes, not knowing when they'd see them again, if ever, and they both cared very much for him, though Hitome was quite a bit more discreet than the cat-girl when expressing it. She'd demonstrated how much she cared, though, when she'd come to find him on the Zaibach floating fortress. He knew very well that Allan would never have let her along, so that left only one other explanation, that she'd seen something which gave her reason to believe that his life was in danger and had entered the fortress in order to warn him. He had to admire her courage, not only had she braved the dangers of the fortress itself, Meruru had later told him in private that Hitome had leapt across a nearly nine foot gap to get onto the fortress and had just made it by the skin of her teeth. Meruru herself had laughed and the other girl's supposed stupidity, but Van knew that really, the cat-girl envied the other's courage and willingness to help in whatever way she could rather than just sitting back and waiting for the men to handle things. He also felt that Meruru envied Hitome's gift of sight. Who else could see what might happen in the future and prevent it? Who else could find another without knowing the other's location first? Who else could see through the Zaibach cloaks? And, who else was willing to risk their lives to warn another of possible danger that might or might not come to pass? He knew that Meruru was a little afraid; she and Van had been the best of friends nearly their entire lives; she was almost like the little sister he'd never had. They were closer than close and he had to guess that the cat-girl feared that Hitome would come between them.
'No fears,' he thought to his feline-human sister, 'nothing can come between us two. Even if true love were to find me, it could not break the bond we share, my little sister…' He sighed, 'Death…now that may be a different story, and I hope we never have to find out…'
Chapter 25
That voice…it still spoke in that odd, musical language, but now he could no longer understand it. It was soft, barely above a whisper and it continued non-stop, never repeating itself. Was it a prayer? An incantation? Damn, did his head hurt. He'd never been in so much agony. He hadn't even felt this bad when he had crashed his Alseides near the Laicar vale. He hadn't even felt this bad when he very nearly died in that training accident all those years back. he had been lucky then, two of the other trainees had been killed and one had been crippled for life thus cutting his military career short. What had hit him? He had been having yet another argument with that damned stubborn woman and the next thing he knew he was here. The dream of that golden woman still lingered though, if only in bits and pieces. Finally, he came completely back to himself, stirring and then slowly opening his eyes. A scent of flowers hung faintly on the air as if he were in some invisible garden. There was only a small amount of light, which emanated from several candles placed around the room, his room he came to realize. He then saw two figures reclining on a couch near his bed, Sylvana and that little girl. The child was stretched out on the couch, her head resting on the older girl's lap. Sylvana had her eyes closed, but she wasn't asleep, no, she was meditating or in some kind of trance for he could see, however faintly in the dim light, that her lips moved soundlessly as if in prayer. He attempted to sit up but excruciating pain lanced through not only his head but his entire body and he let out a groan as he fell back onto his pillow once more.
*******
Sylvana's eyes snapped open when she heard a pained groan. She looked toward Dilandau and nearly cried out.
"Great Good Gods," she finally managed to get out, "you're awake…I can't believe it."
"What do you mean?" Dilandau asked. He had meant to snap at her, but it hadn't come out right, "What happened?" Was his next question as he pressed a cold hand to his forehead and closed is eyes against the pain. Sylvana gently moved Serene aside and stood. She picked up a clay mug and held it out to her patient while helping him to sit up, propping his back with pillows with her free hand.
"There was…an accident," she told him as he took the mug suspiciously.
"An accident? The last thing I remember I was arguing with you…" He sipped tentatively at the still piping liquid and made a face. It wasn't that it tasted terrible. It was just, well…it was quite bitter. "What the hell is this crap? Are you trying to poison me?" he growled a mite weakly at the young woman. She frowned at him.
"If you don't drink it yourself…then I will pour it down your throat for you…while it's still steaming." she threatened, using that poisonously sweet tone that indicated that she was making a threat or was trying to keep control of her temper. "It will help you recover faster." Dilandau grumbled but gave in and Sylvana collapsed back onto the couch looking quite exhausted. "I suppose you should know that you have been unconscious for about three weeks give or take." Dilandau nearly spat out his drink for the second time.
"W-what?" he demanded, almost dismayed.
"While we were arguing, I…lost control of my temper and lashed out at you with my mind. It was an accident, but you very nearly died. I suppose you were lucky…the last person this happened to liven no longer than two days." Dilandau had to take a moment to let that sink in. Sylvana had nearly killed him. How? With magic? He suddenly felt cold; it felt as if an icy hand had his heart in its grip, or as though he had swallowed ice-cold water from a glacier lake. Coldness resounded in the pit of his belly and his mind reeled. He nearly died! She almost killed him! He finally had to loosen the grip he had on his mug, because his fingers had began to ache. Suddenly, he was afraid of her. He thought that she might be lying, but quickly decided he was wrong as white-hot pain lanced through his skull and into the rest of his body once more. He tried to hide the fear though.
"How long before I can fight again?" he asked, somehow preventing his voice from trembling.
"Not too long, a couple of weeks give or take, but for now, you should rest." Dilandau didn't want to rest, he had too much to work out in his head; suddenly his mind was flooded. However, as soon as he finished the potion?…he'd been given and laid back down, he fell right back to sleep. This time, however, it was a natural sleep.
*******
"Sylvana just informed me that the captain has regained consciousness this afternoon," Viole announced to the rest of the dragon slayers. The room then erupted into whispers and murmurs as the slayers declared their surprise, or relief…or even disappointment as the case may be, to each other.
"How long before he'll be able to fight again?"
"She says it's difficult to say because it depends on how willing he is to listen to her and drink the teas and potions she administers." Another chorus of mutters and whispers.
"I suppose it's time we decide whose side we take." said one of the other slayers unexpectedly. Suddenly the room exploded into a cacophony. Most were expressing their shock at such a statement. Most were loyal to Zaibach if not to Dilandau himself, but there was a good number who nodded their heads in agreement with the slayer.
"Look," piped up Chesta, "we can help Sylvana and still be loyal to Zaibach. She's a neutral party in this. If we help her escape then we won't be committing any crimes…"
"Except disobeying our captain…"
"He had no right to bring her here in the first place," added in Viole, "Technically, she didn't come willingly, she was coerced, therefore, he was breaking the law in bringing her here. She may have come willingly, but only because he threatened to kill someone she cared about." Murmurs, quiet discussion.
"She's helped many of us," added another of the slayers, "she saved some of our lives, helped us heal faster…she even saved Lord Dilandau's life. I think, if anything, we owe her the chance to return to her own people…"
"She could escape if she wanted to," protested another, "why would she need our help to escape. She can fly for god sake."
"I think I already know the answer to that," said Viole, "I've spent a good deal of time around her and her little girl. I think I've come to the only one possibly conclusion. Her people are shape-changers, am I right?" Nods from the others, "well I've come to believe that through they may be shape-changers, they are confined to only certain forms depending on the individual…"
"that doesn't explain why she doesn't escape -"
"I'm not finished yet," interrupted Viole, "She may be able to take on the form of a bird, but whose to say that the child can too? For all we know, she may not have even learned how to shape-change yet…"
"And Sylvana may not be able to carry her," added another as understanding began to dawn in the minds of the others.
"I've seen her in her other form," piped up another, "when she shifts to her bird form she's only about the size of a large eagle. There's absolutely no way she could carry that child and stay aloft."
"Well, that explains a great deal," commented Gatti, "I was wondering why she didn't just escape if she could fly. I mean, it's clear how much she hates Lord Dilandau, and she's never really tried to mask her abhorrence for the Vione either." More nods from the group.
"She'd have to leave Serene," said Viole, "and one thing I've come to understand about her is that, though she's obviously too young for that child to be her daughter, the child is immensely loyal to her. In fact, I've been surprised by the ardent loyalty and love that child shows at such a young age, and Sylvana certainly reciprocates. She'd never abandon that child, and she must have known that she was trapping herself by allowing the girl to come along…" There were more murmurs and it even sounded like there were expressions of awe mixed in at the young woman's faithfulness to this child, that surely wasn't hers by birth. Perhaps Serene was her little sister, but that seemed unlikely considering that they hardly resembled each other at all. Now there were more questions. Just what was the relationship between the two? There were others, now however. Was it at all wise to go about doing anything that came remotely close to betraying their captain? Dared they help her get back to her people? There was a growing number of slayers who wished to help the young woman, though a good deal still remained loyal to their captain. There were others, however, who, like Viole, were fast growing inspired by the unusual and beautiful young woman, their loyalty slipping away from the tyrannous young lord a little more every day. They had to be careful though. Lord Dilandau had caught wind of this previously and things had not turned out well. They'd have to play their cards carefully, discreetly, with subtlety to prevent their captain from picking up on anything that would giving him even the slightest inkling that their loyalty lied elsewhere. The next months would, without a doubt, be very trying for all of them…