Level 3 + The Light Of Emeraude
Sublevel 3 + Broken Wings Of Erin



When Nova finally opened her eyes again, the pain had dimmed, although it still drummed in her temples relentlessly. Her face was tight with dried tears, and her fingertips were crusted with dark dried blood, although she couldn't understand why. Reaching up and touching her soft cloud of pale pink hair, she felt the same blood crusting there --- she had a sudden flash of a memory, seeing herself clawing at her head and wailing in a wild, animal-like manner as the pain tore apart her mind. A grimace found its way onto her pale face; her stomach churned. Was she going insane?

Climbing to her feet, Nova winced, her stiff joints and sore muscles aching fiercely. She stretched, yawned, shivered. Shakily, she wrapped her arms around herself, sniffling a bit.

She was cold, and it was dark around her. Nova could feel hard-packed dirt beneath her feet, and she felt a cool wind at her back, stirring her hair. Her wide eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, and she found herself standing on a worn pathway in the middle of a thick, silent forest.

Crossing to the side of the road, Nova sat on a low rock there, shivering again. She hugged herself tightly, her cranberry-red eyes darting towards the shadows, seeking out other pairs of yellower, more sinister eyes that were never there.

Then, at last, her paranoia was rewarded as the bushes on the other side of the path rustled. Whimpering softly, Nova drew her knees up, hugging them to her chest, huddling on the rock and trying to look invisible.

A figure stepped out of the thick trees. She was small, and had an iridescent look about her, as though she wasn't quite there. Her pale blond hair fell to the ground in soft waves; her white dress shifted and billowed as she walked across the path and as the wind stirred it; her calm, sad blue eyes were focusing upon Nova's wide, frightened red ones.

The slight woman reached out, brushing Nova's hair out of her eyes. "Nova," she said softly, her voice sweet and gentle. "Nova, why are you frightened?"

Nova whimpered a little, cringing under the woman's touch. "I... I don't know."

The woman took both of Nova's hands in her own, making eye contact. "Nova, will you come with me?"

The cranberry-eyed girl looked up; the truth behind the woman's deep blue eyes gave her comfort and peace. She knew she was safe. "Yes."

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Hikaru opened her eyes to dizzying sunlight. Shakily, the redhead sank to her knees. She felt cold stone beneath her, and when her vision ceased its swimming, she glanced up, surveying her surroundings.

To her left, a white river surged over a sharp cliff, raging down in a furious waterfall. Lying on her stomach and creeping forward, Hikaru peered over the cliff edge. The distance to the bottom was as dizzying as the sunlight had been at first.

There was a thick forest to her right, which ended abruptly as the cliff dropped away at an angle very near nintey degrees. The sky was a healthy blue; a few clouds dotted the blueness, but the accumulation of stratuses advancing from the western horizon brought the promise of rain.

As Hikaru got to her feet once again, she noticed the group on the other side of the wide river. They were all very tall and broad-shouldered --- probably strong men. They were plain brown robes with hoods that covered their heads and scarfs of various dark colors tied over their faces so that only their eyes were visible. They were picking up suspicious-looking sacks and tossing them over the waterfall.

Hikaru felt something stir uneasily inside her as two men threw over a sack stained red in several places. "Hey!" she shouted at them, the words passing her lips without ever going through her mind. "What do you think you're doing?"

Her voice could not be heard over the roar of the river, but her presence did not go unnoticed. A man with a forest-green scarf over his face hurried over to a man whose back was turned to Hikaru. He pointed towards her, and the other man turned.

Hikaru's breath caught in her throat. He was taller than any of the other men, and the scarf covering his face was blood-red, the brightest color of all those in the group. Even across the river, she could see the fire and loathing in his eyes as his gaze fell upon her.

The petite redhead shivered suddenly, stepping back slowly. She felt cold inside all of a sudden...

Something wrapped itself around her upper arm. Hikaru heard a shrill scream, then realized it to be her own. By then, she was being dragged into the trees roughly.

At last, she was released, also rather roughly; she fell against a tree, wincing and nearly falling.

"You foolish girl," a feminine voice hissed, "do you want to be killed?"

Hikaru clutched her throbbing elbow, glancing up. A woman stood before her in very pale gray robes similar to those the men in brown had worn. This woman's robes also had a hood; however, the hood draped low enough to hide her face in shadow. Only her pink lips were visible to Hikaru. "What... what do you mean?" she asked the woman.

The lady, who was much taller than Hikaru, folded her arms across her chest. "They would have killed you if you had remained staring at them much longer."

The redhead narrowed her eyes. The woman's voice sounded somewhat familiar. "Do I know you?"

"Perhaps in name; perhaps in face. But no, you do not know me as I am, nor do you know my proper name."

Hikaru grimaced. "Can you give me some name to call you by?"

The woman frowned as well, but her own frown was one of contemplation. At last, she offered, "Saffron." She stepped back from Hikaru slightly; out of the trees emerged more people in robes. There was one tall man, built much like those across the river, and he also wore a pale gray robe; Saffron introduced him as Bane. There was another man, as well, but he wore darker gray robes, and he was called Decept. The third and final one to appear was a tall, thin man, also wearing dark gray robes.

"This is Hid---" Saffron began, but the tall man held out his hand suddenly to silence her. She cleared her throat, repeating herself: "This is Hawkwing."

Hikaru stared at the new arrivals. All wore hoods that fell low over their faces; all stood as Saffron, with their arms crossed. Their mouths were grim, serious lines across their shadowed faces. When Decept spoke up, he spoke in the same monotone as Saffron had used.

"Why are you so concerned with the absence of Nova?"

Hikaru balked. "How... how do you know about Nova?" she asked.

"We know much," Bane replied, his deep voice also expressionless. "However, what we do not know is why you are so distressed."

The red-eyed girl pressed her hands over her heart. "Nova's part of me," she explained, her countenance pained, "and... I feel so empty without her. And... and I know she feels the same."

"Nay," Saffron said, "Nova is well."

Hikaru turned her gaze upon the woman. "What?"

"She is in the care of the White Lady," Saffron said plainly. "She is both at peace and safe."

"But..." Hikaru's expression was puzzled. "How can she be at peace... when we're apart like this? We're... we're part of each other."

The faintest of sympathetic smiles teased the corners of Saffron's mouth --- but then again, it may have simply been the sunlight shifting through the leaves overhead. "Nova is with the White Lady," she repeated. "The White Lady can calm any troubled heart."

Hikaru slumped to the ground, leaning back against the tree she had stood by. "Now what?" she muttered, half to herself.

The one called Hawkwing, who had remained silent until now, stepped out of the line, coming and standing in front of Hikaru. When he spoke, his voice was obviously masked with a deeper tone that what came naturally to him, and it quavered in a way that made Hikaru sure that his eyes were troubled behind the shadows. "Now you must learn your fate."

He reached down a single hand, and Hikaru hesitantly reached up, accepting the offer. He helped her to her feet, then led her to the edge of the forest, standing near the curve of the cliff.

Hawkwing pointed to a little valley nestled among the hills that lay below. "Do you see that?"

Hikaru squinted, straining her eyes. In the valley lay a tiny village. She could almost make out the smoke rising in pillars from the chimneys. "Yes."

"That is the village of Erin. The people there are... good people." His voice wavered again, and he paused to clear his throat before continuing. "However, there are those who dislike the people of Erin. There are those who wish to kill these kind folk."

She turned to him, asking, "But... but who? Those men I saw at the river?"

The dark hood nodded. "Yes."

Hikaru's eyes widened. "Then those bags were full of---"

"Yes." His voice was accutely pained, and the deep-toned disguise fell from it for a moment; Hikaru thought she knew the voice that lay beneath. But when Hawkwing spoke again, it was in the deep voice once more. "Yes, those were people of Erin."

She stared out at the little town, her heart feeling heavy. "You're from Erin, aren't you?"

There was a long pause. "Yes."

Hikaru drew a slow, deep breath. She parted her lips to speak, but stopped and froze, startled and amazed.

She could hear terrible cries echoing from over where the river was, loud enough to soar over the roar of the water. Hikaru knew, somewhere, that the men in brown were slaying more of the innocents of Erin.

But that was not what made her stand so still, as though her feet were rooted into the ground like the trees around her. It was the feathers.

The wind carried them across the cliff from the river. They danced before her --- white, black, blue, red, tawny, rusty, gray. Torn and cut from the backs of the people of Erin, feathers of all sizes and colors passed on the breeze, shifting and moving, until they grew so thick that Hikaru could not see past them. And then, suddenly, they were gone.

A lump formed in Hikaru's throat; in the same instant, realization settled upon her mind.

She turned to Hawkwing. "You are he that is called many names," she gasped, sounding as though she had lost her breath. "You are Songspinner, the White Hood, Hidden Wings."

Hawkwing did not move.

"Eagle." Hikaru's voice was soft, shaking.

He turned away, moving back into the trees. He joined the line of robed people once again. Hikaru followed him.

"Hikaru," said Decept, his voice calm. "Do you wish to know your mission, in full?"

Her eyes rested upon the shadow that hid Eagle's face. "Yes."

"You are to regain the Light of Emeraude, so that She Who Holds The Light may live. When the Light is given back to her, to its Owner, she will regain her true form, and she may take her place upon the throne once again.

"Not until the Light is restored to its Owner will the seats of the High Council be filled," he continued. "Not until the seats are filled will this country be able to defend itself."

Hikaru still did not lift her eyes from Eagle. "So. My purpose in playing the game is to save this country?"

"Yes. Although---"

"Although it really isn't a game, is it?" Hikaru did not shift her gaze. "It's a clever cover-up. Someone hears whispers about a game. Some say it's like a big maze you have to get through. Others say it's a virtual reality game. Others say it's all a big play, a hoax, like a haunted house. Yet others say it's The Great But Deadly Game, and it's as real as the world I live in."

"Those whispers are heard only by those qualified to carry this burden upon their shoulders," Saffron said. "However, only one of the competitors may succeed."

"And the rest die."

"And the rest die," Saffron assured.

Hikaru bit her lip nervously. "For real."

"For real."

The redhead's fingers traced the clip of her friction gun; suddenly, it felt useless. "This is very real, isn't it?"

"As real as your own world," Bane said smoothly. "This is simply... another world."

"Like another dimension."

"Perhaps you would call it that in your world."

Hikaru sighed, playing with her braid. She could not see Eagle's face, but felt his eyes upon her; she tore her gaze away, staring at the ground.

Saffron turned towards the river suddenly, her lips parted in astonishment. Her companions grew visibly tense. Hikaru stared at them, confused.

"They are approaching." Saffron turned, vanishing into the trees. Bane and Decept followed her.

Eagle lingered a moment. He reached up, his fingertips brushing his hood as though he were about to pull it away from his face, but he stopped, then lowered his hand slowly. He did not move.

Hikaru went to him, staring up beneath his hood, trying to see his face. She could not. She reached up one gloved hand --- she could just barely reach the dark gray fabric...

He snatched her hand in his own. His voice came painfully: "No."

She stared up into the darkness that hid his face, hurt. "Why?"

Although his eyes were unvisible, he couldn't hide the thin tear that slid down his cheek into the lighted lower part of his face. "It is forbidden."

There was a crashing in the trees to their right, in the direction of the river. Hikaru grasped his hand suddenly as he was already grasping hers. "Always?"

"No." Eagle's voice was faint. "There will come a time when you may see my face again, Hikaru."

"And your wings."

There was a pause. "And my wings."

He released her hand, turning and vanishing into the trees. The men still approached from the right. Hikaru remained where she stood, unable to look towards the advancing antagonists. She had failed, had she not? She had accomplished nothing in this level, and she could not leave until she did.

The brown-robed men appeared, circling around Hikaru silently and instantly. The one with the bright red scarf over his face, obviously the leader, stood before her in the center of the circle. Hikaru's eyes were upon his hand as he slowly drew a long, curved sword from its sheath at his side.

He brought the sword to hover at the base of her neck. She didn't dare swallow the lump in her throat. Tears stung her eyes, and she squeezed her eyelids shut against them.

Nova, she cried silently, I wish you were here!...

The men, the sword, and the trees were swallowed in the blackness.