Okay, I'm baaack!! 6 days at a National Guard Base is all I can handle.....Anyway, here's chapter 7. Enjoy!! ^_-} And is anyone still reading this?
***********************************************************************************************Chapter 7--New Questions
Zell opened his eyes. (God, my head hurts.....) he thought, running his fingers through his hair. He felt around his neck for his necklace. He sat up quickly and immediately regretted it. He clutched the side of his head and groaned.
"Holy...!!"
He shut his eyes and put his head between his legs. Everything was swirling. He then heard yelling.
"Kildare!" he heard it yell. "One is awake! Go and tell the Dileja!"
The words faded away to nothing. Zell breathed deep as his hearing failed him. Suddenly there were hands on his shoulders pushing him backward, making him lie back down. He obeyed them. Whatever he was lying on, it was soft enough to make him not wish to move. He turned his head and tried to cough without success. He had never felt so nauseous and spent in his life.
"Lie still," the woman said to him. She knew he could not hear her well; this was the state all who traveled in the Light ended up. They couldn't move easily, they were nauseous, and tired. It would take time for them to recover from the trip, but it would not take long. They had learned long ago how to remedy this state of disorientation.
Zell felt a hand pulling him up from his resting place, making everything begin to twist and turn again. He resisted, trying to lie back down. The hand pulled him up more forcefully, putting a cup to his lips, beckoning him to drink from it.
He only wished to be left alone to rest. He opened his mouth, if only to make the presence go away. A thick, syrup-like liquid poured into his mouth and down his throat. It had a sweet taste to it and he opened his eyes, putting his hand to the metal cup.
He immediately felt the dizziness and nausea disappear, leaving only strong fatigue. He could not sit up by himself or hold the cup.
It was a gold goblet, filled with a silver substance. A girl with strangely pure white skin and blue hair held him up as he drank. She wore a white robe to match her skin, and lavender eyes. She looked no older than twenty, but Zell knew then that looks could be deceiving. The goblet was soon empty and the girl laid him back down. Zell looked up at her before falling asleep again.
"Where am I...?" he asked.
"At the bottom of the ocean."
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
"He was awake for only a few moments, Dileja. I gave him the malist as I was told to," the blue haired girl said after entering the room. She stood in what seemed to be an office of sorts. She faced a large picture window that would have classified as an entire wall. At each end of the window were silk white curtains. White marble columns lined the edges of the large room, with a slightly older woman behind a wooden desk. She was reading from a leather bound book. She turned the yellow pages gently and looked up at the girl before her.
"Thank you, Ondine," the Dileja replied to her. The Dileja wore a plain white dress that covered her entire body. Her skin was tinted brown, as were her eyes. Her long, black hair was put back in a gold tube that was as long as one hand width, holding the pony tail high on her head. No woman but the Dileja was allowed to wear her hair in any such fashion. It was a symbol of authority. "You have done well for me. If another wakes, do the same. You are dismissed."
Ondine let a sigh of relief. Punishment for bothering the Dileja with unimportant things was severe. Whether or not the Dileja knew of the punishment was unknown. You could never tell what mood she was in by looking at her, nor even speaking to her at times.
"Yes, Dileja," Ondine said, bowing her head and backing away. She stopped, and looked back up for a moment, a question in her mind. The Dileja looked up at her.
"Yes...?"
"May I ask...what is happening on the surface? I'in the surface world...? I know I'm not to ask of that place, but I feel something coming, Dileja," Ondine said.
"What you feel is not something coming, but something that is already here. I can tell you no more until the surfacelanders awaken," the Dileja said. "Leave me, Ondine. I understand your concern and it shows me you are mature enough to question when you believe something to be amiss. But, for now, I have business to attend to and there are things on the surface that need to be thought of."
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Later on.....
Zell sat up and looked down at the bed. Ondine was next to him in a chair, watching over all of the teenagers in the room. All except Zell lay asleep on their small beds. He scratched the back of his neck and rubbed his eyes.
"Where am I?"
Ondine giggled. "You asked me that question once before. Do you not remember the answer?" Zell gave her a questioning look. Then a look of remembrance.
"Oh, yeah.....wait a minute--the bottom of the ocean...?! How-what-who-" He rolled his eyes and fell backward on the bed. "I give up. Stupid necklace. How'd I get here, anyway? And where's Squall and the others?"
"If you're talking about the ones who showed up with you, they're here in this room," she said.
"And why's your hair blue? Never seen blue hair before," Zell commented. "'Cept on Shiva..."
"And I have never seen a marking on anyone's face like that before," Ondine said, touching the tattoo on the side of Zell's face. "What is it?"
"It's called a 'tattoo'," he said. "What's your name?"
"I am Ondine," she answered. "And you, my tattooed friend?"
"Just call me 'Zell'. You didn't answer my question. Why's your hair blue? Did you dye it or something?" he asked.
"Dye? I do not know the word 'dye'. I was born with this color," she said. "I am one of the last of my race, the Articas. That is why I am here, along with few others of my race. We lived on the southern part of the planet, the Artic continent, before it melted and left us with no home. I must return to my race's part of this Temple very soon. I cannot survive in this warm climate for long."
"How did we get here?" Zell inquired, sitting up. He looked around the room at his friends, still unconscious. "And are they going to be alright?"
"They will be fine. They have already awoken once and taken the malista. They should be waking up anytime now," Ondine said.
"What's 'malista'?"
"That is High Centauran for 'recovery water'. It relieves all kinds of ailments, except for fatigue. Your stone was apparently what brought you here. I don't know how, but it would seem that was it. Are you still tired?"
"No," Zell said. "What is this place?"
"This is the Temple of the Lost. A shrine on the bottom of the ocean, protected by magic that no longer exists on the surface. Only the weakest of magics exist there, now. This is all what I have learned in school here. I have never been above the water that surrounds this place, nor even seen a glimpse of its surface. Are you *really* from the surface?"
"Yeah," Zell answered. He had known that Battleship Island existed. But he had never even begun to think that there was something like this at the bottom of the ocean.
"Is it as beautiful as my teachers tell me? I have only heard descriptions from ancient texts," Ondine said.
"It is a beautiful place," Zell said to her. "Nobody really appreciates it, I don't think. Not even I get the time to stop and look at my surroundings." He stopped a moment. "What did you mean 'only the weakest magics exist there, now'? The strongest magic we have is Ultima."
"There is much stronger magic in the world, Zell. If it were ever released into your surface world....." Ondine shook her head. "You would not have a world to live in. It is not my place to tell you any more. If you are not tired, I will take you to see the Dileja and she will tell you what you wish to know."
".....Okay," Zell said and got up. There were no blankets, only a sheet to cover the soft mattress he had slept on. He was still in his regular clothes, how he had been able to sleep in them, he would never know. He took his shoes that lay at the foot of the bed and put them back on. He stood up and stretched. "Let's go see the Dileja." He had no idea what the Dileja was, but he was going to find out. And as soon as his friends were awake, they would figure out how to beat Danda at his own game.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
"It won't be long," the Dileja commented, looking out her window that showed her the bottom of the sea and its creatures. A whale swam past her and she touched the glass. "Not long at all."
"Dileja Lucca, what do you mean?" her servant asked. She wore a plain brown robe with a gold rope ending with a tassel tied around her waist. She looked no older than the Dileja. Her skin, too, was dark and her hair black. Her eyes, however, were the color of amber. Her hair was put back in a braid and extended to the back of her knees.
"Terrible things are happening on the surface," Lucca said. "He will find this place, and lay it to ruin as well. Then no one will be safe."
"Who do you speak of, Dileja? We will find you a safe place to stay if you are in danger," the girl said. The Dileja turned to her, her face sad. She pitied Kildare. She was so young, yet so eager to do more than her part.
"No, Kildare," Lucca said. "Soon there will be no place safe for me. Not even here. We must make use of this time we have now, and not spare a second for anything. Jasper will be released soon."
"The Dark One...?! Oh, Dileja, how is this possible?" Kildare exclaimed. She covered her mouth. The Dark One was the reason the Temple of the Lost was built. He wiped out many races with a wave of his hand. Melted the continent of Artic and sank the Islands of the D'shalu, and destroyed countless other civilizations. No, Jasper's return would not be a welcome one to this world.
"The Stones, Kildare. Jasper has one servant on the surface already; one with the Stone of Dreams. And another, with the Stone of Tears is nearby in a town called Dollet. And yet another, with the Stone of the Heart, is here within this very Temple. We must keep the Stones from that servant on the surface. The ones who came here are our only defense. They must be given the keys to our magic, the ancient magic. That is the only way to beat Jasper's servant. I watched their first confrontation with him, and the strongest magic that exists on the surface, Ultima, did nothing to him. They must be given the Ancient magics and their weapons made stronger."
"But, Dileja, that magic is not....safe in the hands of surface dwellers. There must be another way to--"
"There *is* no other way! Their weapons and magic did nothing to Danda! I have seen his coming for nearly 1,000 years and this is the beginning of what is known in ancient texts as 'The Darks', *unless* we stop Danda *where* he stands!!!" Lucca said. She calmed herself, and shut the curtains to the large window.
"Dileja?" a voice said at the front of the room.
Lucca turned to look at the voice, and saw it was Ondine's. A blonde boy stood behind her, peeking out from behind her shoulders. "Yes, Ondine. I will see him now."
***********************************************************************************************
Chapter 8's coming soon, hopefully! My parents are dragging me camping for four days. *shudder* I'll be back.
Sergeant Phoenix
PS
This is just a quick lesson on military customs and courtesies. For people who don't care, you don't have to read this. It just bugs me when people mock the organization I'm in. If you've been to my pathetic little homepage, you know I'm in the Civil Air Patrol, the Auxilary of the US Air Force. I get it all the time at school. 'Hey, soldier!' and 'Atten-hut!' every time I walk down the hall with my uniform on. People mock-saluting me kind of gets on my nerves. You probably don't mean anything by it, it just bugs me. I knew I was asking for it when I changed my pen name, but oh well. There's nothing wrong with saluting someone, as long as you mean it. The salute is a show of respect.
I'm not being mean or anything, but I'm not a 'sir'. I am female. And even if I was male, you wouldn't call me 'sir' yet, because I'm not an officer. You would call me 'Sergeant'. I'm finished with my little speech, guys. I'm really needing some help on my homepage. I can't figure out how to post stories! Call me stupid, but I can't figure out how to do it. Somebody help!!! Thanks.
***********************************************************************************************Chapter 7--New Questions
Zell opened his eyes. (God, my head hurts.....) he thought, running his fingers through his hair. He felt around his neck for his necklace. He sat up quickly and immediately regretted it. He clutched the side of his head and groaned.
"Holy...!!"
He shut his eyes and put his head between his legs. Everything was swirling. He then heard yelling.
"Kildare!" he heard it yell. "One is awake! Go and tell the Dileja!"
The words faded away to nothing. Zell breathed deep as his hearing failed him. Suddenly there were hands on his shoulders pushing him backward, making him lie back down. He obeyed them. Whatever he was lying on, it was soft enough to make him not wish to move. He turned his head and tried to cough without success. He had never felt so nauseous and spent in his life.
"Lie still," the woman said to him. She knew he could not hear her well; this was the state all who traveled in the Light ended up. They couldn't move easily, they were nauseous, and tired. It would take time for them to recover from the trip, but it would not take long. They had learned long ago how to remedy this state of disorientation.
Zell felt a hand pulling him up from his resting place, making everything begin to twist and turn again. He resisted, trying to lie back down. The hand pulled him up more forcefully, putting a cup to his lips, beckoning him to drink from it.
He only wished to be left alone to rest. He opened his mouth, if only to make the presence go away. A thick, syrup-like liquid poured into his mouth and down his throat. It had a sweet taste to it and he opened his eyes, putting his hand to the metal cup.
He immediately felt the dizziness and nausea disappear, leaving only strong fatigue. He could not sit up by himself or hold the cup.
It was a gold goblet, filled with a silver substance. A girl with strangely pure white skin and blue hair held him up as he drank. She wore a white robe to match her skin, and lavender eyes. She looked no older than twenty, but Zell knew then that looks could be deceiving. The goblet was soon empty and the girl laid him back down. Zell looked up at her before falling asleep again.
"Where am I...?" he asked.
"At the bottom of the ocean."
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
"He was awake for only a few moments, Dileja. I gave him the malist as I was told to," the blue haired girl said after entering the room. She stood in what seemed to be an office of sorts. She faced a large picture window that would have classified as an entire wall. At each end of the window were silk white curtains. White marble columns lined the edges of the large room, with a slightly older woman behind a wooden desk. She was reading from a leather bound book. She turned the yellow pages gently and looked up at the girl before her.
"Thank you, Ondine," the Dileja replied to her. The Dileja wore a plain white dress that covered her entire body. Her skin was tinted brown, as were her eyes. Her long, black hair was put back in a gold tube that was as long as one hand width, holding the pony tail high on her head. No woman but the Dileja was allowed to wear her hair in any such fashion. It was a symbol of authority. "You have done well for me. If another wakes, do the same. You are dismissed."
Ondine let a sigh of relief. Punishment for bothering the Dileja with unimportant things was severe. Whether or not the Dileja knew of the punishment was unknown. You could never tell what mood she was in by looking at her, nor even speaking to her at times.
"Yes, Dileja," Ondine said, bowing her head and backing away. She stopped, and looked back up for a moment, a question in her mind. The Dileja looked up at her.
"Yes...?"
"May I ask...what is happening on the surface? I'in the surface world...? I know I'm not to ask of that place, but I feel something coming, Dileja," Ondine said.
"What you feel is not something coming, but something that is already here. I can tell you no more until the surfacelanders awaken," the Dileja said. "Leave me, Ondine. I understand your concern and it shows me you are mature enough to question when you believe something to be amiss. But, for now, I have business to attend to and there are things on the surface that need to be thought of."
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Later on.....
Zell sat up and looked down at the bed. Ondine was next to him in a chair, watching over all of the teenagers in the room. All except Zell lay asleep on their small beds. He scratched the back of his neck and rubbed his eyes.
"Where am I?"
Ondine giggled. "You asked me that question once before. Do you not remember the answer?" Zell gave her a questioning look. Then a look of remembrance.
"Oh, yeah.....wait a minute--the bottom of the ocean...?! How-what-who-" He rolled his eyes and fell backward on the bed. "I give up. Stupid necklace. How'd I get here, anyway? And where's Squall and the others?"
"If you're talking about the ones who showed up with you, they're here in this room," she said.
"And why's your hair blue? Never seen blue hair before," Zell commented. "'Cept on Shiva..."
"And I have never seen a marking on anyone's face like that before," Ondine said, touching the tattoo on the side of Zell's face. "What is it?"
"It's called a 'tattoo'," he said. "What's your name?"
"I am Ondine," she answered. "And you, my tattooed friend?"
"Just call me 'Zell'. You didn't answer my question. Why's your hair blue? Did you dye it or something?" he asked.
"Dye? I do not know the word 'dye'. I was born with this color," she said. "I am one of the last of my race, the Articas. That is why I am here, along with few others of my race. We lived on the southern part of the planet, the Artic continent, before it melted and left us with no home. I must return to my race's part of this Temple very soon. I cannot survive in this warm climate for long."
"How did we get here?" Zell inquired, sitting up. He looked around the room at his friends, still unconscious. "And are they going to be alright?"
"They will be fine. They have already awoken once and taken the malista. They should be waking up anytime now," Ondine said.
"What's 'malista'?"
"That is High Centauran for 'recovery water'. It relieves all kinds of ailments, except for fatigue. Your stone was apparently what brought you here. I don't know how, but it would seem that was it. Are you still tired?"
"No," Zell said. "What is this place?"
"This is the Temple of the Lost. A shrine on the bottom of the ocean, protected by magic that no longer exists on the surface. Only the weakest of magics exist there, now. This is all what I have learned in school here. I have never been above the water that surrounds this place, nor even seen a glimpse of its surface. Are you *really* from the surface?"
"Yeah," Zell answered. He had known that Battleship Island existed. But he had never even begun to think that there was something like this at the bottom of the ocean.
"Is it as beautiful as my teachers tell me? I have only heard descriptions from ancient texts," Ondine said.
"It is a beautiful place," Zell said to her. "Nobody really appreciates it, I don't think. Not even I get the time to stop and look at my surroundings." He stopped a moment. "What did you mean 'only the weakest magics exist there, now'? The strongest magic we have is Ultima."
"There is much stronger magic in the world, Zell. If it were ever released into your surface world....." Ondine shook her head. "You would not have a world to live in. It is not my place to tell you any more. If you are not tired, I will take you to see the Dileja and she will tell you what you wish to know."
".....Okay," Zell said and got up. There were no blankets, only a sheet to cover the soft mattress he had slept on. He was still in his regular clothes, how he had been able to sleep in them, he would never know. He took his shoes that lay at the foot of the bed and put them back on. He stood up and stretched. "Let's go see the Dileja." He had no idea what the Dileja was, but he was going to find out. And as soon as his friends were awake, they would figure out how to beat Danda at his own game.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
"It won't be long," the Dileja commented, looking out her window that showed her the bottom of the sea and its creatures. A whale swam past her and she touched the glass. "Not long at all."
"Dileja Lucca, what do you mean?" her servant asked. She wore a plain brown robe with a gold rope ending with a tassel tied around her waist. She looked no older than the Dileja. Her skin, too, was dark and her hair black. Her eyes, however, were the color of amber. Her hair was put back in a braid and extended to the back of her knees.
"Terrible things are happening on the surface," Lucca said. "He will find this place, and lay it to ruin as well. Then no one will be safe."
"Who do you speak of, Dileja? We will find you a safe place to stay if you are in danger," the girl said. The Dileja turned to her, her face sad. She pitied Kildare. She was so young, yet so eager to do more than her part.
"No, Kildare," Lucca said. "Soon there will be no place safe for me. Not even here. We must make use of this time we have now, and not spare a second for anything. Jasper will be released soon."
"The Dark One...?! Oh, Dileja, how is this possible?" Kildare exclaimed. She covered her mouth. The Dark One was the reason the Temple of the Lost was built. He wiped out many races with a wave of his hand. Melted the continent of Artic and sank the Islands of the D'shalu, and destroyed countless other civilizations. No, Jasper's return would not be a welcome one to this world.
"The Stones, Kildare. Jasper has one servant on the surface already; one with the Stone of Dreams. And another, with the Stone of Tears is nearby in a town called Dollet. And yet another, with the Stone of the Heart, is here within this very Temple. We must keep the Stones from that servant on the surface. The ones who came here are our only defense. They must be given the keys to our magic, the ancient magic. That is the only way to beat Jasper's servant. I watched their first confrontation with him, and the strongest magic that exists on the surface, Ultima, did nothing to him. They must be given the Ancient magics and their weapons made stronger."
"But, Dileja, that magic is not....safe in the hands of surface dwellers. There must be another way to--"
"There *is* no other way! Their weapons and magic did nothing to Danda! I have seen his coming for nearly 1,000 years and this is the beginning of what is known in ancient texts as 'The Darks', *unless* we stop Danda *where* he stands!!!" Lucca said. She calmed herself, and shut the curtains to the large window.
"Dileja?" a voice said at the front of the room.
Lucca turned to look at the voice, and saw it was Ondine's. A blonde boy stood behind her, peeking out from behind her shoulders. "Yes, Ondine. I will see him now."
***********************************************************************************************
Chapter 8's coming soon, hopefully! My parents are dragging me camping for four days. *shudder* I'll be back.
Sergeant Phoenix
PS
This is just a quick lesson on military customs and courtesies. For people who don't care, you don't have to read this. It just bugs me when people mock the organization I'm in. If you've been to my pathetic little homepage, you know I'm in the Civil Air Patrol, the Auxilary of the US Air Force. I get it all the time at school. 'Hey, soldier!' and 'Atten-hut!' every time I walk down the hall with my uniform on. People mock-saluting me kind of gets on my nerves. You probably don't mean anything by it, it just bugs me. I knew I was asking for it when I changed my pen name, but oh well. There's nothing wrong with saluting someone, as long as you mean it. The salute is a show of respect.
I'm not being mean or anything, but I'm not a 'sir'. I am female. And even if I was male, you wouldn't call me 'sir' yet, because I'm not an officer. You would call me 'Sergeant'. I'm finished with my little speech, guys. I'm really needing some help on my homepage. I can't figure out how to post stories! Call me stupid, but I can't figure out how to do it. Somebody help!!! Thanks.