Between Hope and Death
By: ChocolateEclar
Disclaimer: Some characters belong to the magnificent authoress, Diana Wynne Jones. I just borrowed them for a while.
Claimer: I only own Wyn, Aidan, Kamania and Chris Aprilian, Lady Kachioin (and her village), Miss Coca, Mr. Calypso, Professor Weph, Life, Death, Apocalypse, Rhys, and 'the voice' (AKA 'the Sun Spirit of All Knowledge.')
Chapter 12: In Which 'the Sun Spirit of All Knowledge' Introduces Himself
The voice gave another snarl and backed up towards the center of the room. 'Hmm. I've been in tighter spots,' he thought. He studied his surroundings carefully, making sure to take note of everything. A twinkle of light caught his eyes and he looked up to see a crystal chandelier. Ten little candles were nestled in the chandelier and the voice grinned. 'Let's see. There's ten candles, one chandelier, one of me, one of Omar, and twelve Sifrais…Its perfect!' he said to himself silently.
He noiselessly muttered the beginning of an enchantment in his head. He then jumped up and grabbed the chandelier with sweaty fingers and climbed up on top of it. It tittered back and forth on its chain and the voice gulped slightly. 'I seem to have developed Rhys's fear of heights,' he mumbled with an ironic tone.
He waited for Omar to bark an order to the Sifrais to attack before he let the spell he had been saving loose. The candles lifted off the chandelier and repeatedly rammed towards the assaulting creatures. Meanwhile, while Omar and the Sifrais were occupied, the voice began to swing back and fourth. When he was sure the chandelier was going high enough, he threw himself over the Sifrais' heads and into the nearby hallway.
He ran as quickly as he could 'feeling' for Rhys. The sense of being nearby each other was getting stronger and the voice followed it readily. When he reached a dark passageway he turned into it and into a room at the end of it. Sitting in a chair next to a Sifrai covering its ears with its hairy palms, the four-year-old Rhys was wailing. The voice had to yell over the noise to get Rhys attention and when he did, Rhys abruptly stopped crying.
Rhys bounded towards the voice and hopped on his feet complaining. "They twas so mean, and they wouldn't let me see ya or nuthin'!" Rhys whined.
The voice smiled at the boy with affection before muttering a simple 'knock out spell' to deal with the confused Sifrai. He turned around sharply then, to see several Sifrais and Omar Resive in the doorway. The voice grabbed Rhys wrist protectively and let his thoughts take over. He slowly backed away from them until he was near the closed glass window. He pulled Rhys with him and carefully recited another spell in his head.
An earsplitting roar could be heard outside the window suddenly and Omar looked about nervously. Outside a huge crimson blob could be seen coming into view. A gigantic snout barged into the room threw the window and cold air gushed in. The voice pushed Rhys onto the dragon's snout and climbed up himself. 'They don't call us the Dragon Enchanter for nothing,' he explained to Omar mockingly as the dragon backed out of the hole in the wall and began to fly away.
The voice made sure Rhys was safely on the dragon's back before telling the dragon in a rolling speech to take them to the moving castle in the mortal land of Ingary. Rhys gazed at the voice puzzedly before inquiring mind to mind, 'I know whatcha saying 'cause I'm a part of the Dragon Enchanter too, right?'
'Correct, Rhys,' answered the voice gently.
'Can I talk like tat too?' asked Rhys hopefully.
'With practice,' the voice replied.
'Are we going home now?'
'Yes. We need to return to our body,' said the voice.
'Okay. Where are we anyway?' Rhys questioned.
'I believe we're in a world where people go when they're in their astral projection forms.'
'When their 'astro what-sis?' ' Rhys asked.
'Astral projection, Rhys. Astral projection is when someone's 'mind' leaves his or her body. That Sifrai back there removed us from our body due to the orders of Omar Resive, who probably ordered the creature to do such because of Apocalypse,' answered the voice.
'Um…Okay then.''Now don't worry; we'll be back to normal soon enough,' explained the voice.
'Okay,' said Rhys sleepily. He yawned loudly and curled up into a ball behind one of the dragon's huge scales. He was asleep in no time at all and while he slept the voice considered him. 'We don't look so very different,' the voice thought. The voice looked like a younger black haired Howl with Rhys's round face. He may have appeared only eighteen or so, but he was far older and had waited for what seemed like forever to find his other half.
'Soon we'll start to become similar until there is no differences,' whispered the voice. He gazed at the emerald world below him and felt his stomach churn. 'I wish I could sleep,' he thought longingly. After a while he laid against a blood red scale and dosed peacefully beside Rhys. Soon they would return to their body.
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Rhys's body shifted in Sophie's arms and his bottle green eyes slowly opened and focused. Wyn, Morgan, and Aidan jumped at the sound of Rhys's soft words. "I'm back," he said.
Howl turned around sharply and grinned. "So you've found your way back to us, cariad," he said tenderly.
Rhys vaulted out of his mother's arms and to Howl. "I seed the coolest things, Dada! There were these big ug-ly thingies that took me and they twas real mean! But then my friend came and took me back home. It twas SO awe-seem!" Rhys said as he bounced on his heels and flapped his arms out dramatically.
Howl crouched down to Rhys's level and asked, "Who rescued you, Rhys?"
"He…um…He has lotsa names, but I don't really call him nuthin' except when he bothers me and I call him 'big one' or 'Little Lizard' or 'Dragon Enchanter.' He don't like it when I do tat," replied the boy.
At the same time Wyn shouted, " 'Dragon Enchanter?!' " and Aidan yelled, " 'Little Lizard?!' " Both looked at each other and then at Rhys puzzedly.
"Who is he exactly, Rhys?" inquired Morgan softly.
"He's….He's, well, um, also called 'The Sun Spirit of All Knowledge,' " said Rhys uncertainly.
'Don't worry, Rhys. I'll talk to them now,' said the voice so that everyone could hear him. All of the others looked around in wonder for the faceless voice. No one else seemed to be there though, so all their gazes returned to Rhys.
A tall ethereal figure appeared behind Rhys with its hand on Rhys's head. The figure was what the voice looked like in his 'astral projection form' and everyone but Rhys was in shock. 'You may call me Heulo or Heulwch, which I believe means 'Sun' in your native tongue, Wizard Jenkins,' said the voice unperturbedly.
Howl nodded slowly before shaking his head slightly and asking, "You're the wandering Sun Phantom of legend called 'the Last Hope,' aren't you?"
'I've been called that,' replied Heulo with his right hand still resting on Rhys's head as if it were a lifeline.
"Were did you come from?" inquired Wyn.
'It's a lengthy story but it all started long ago I was born a dwarf star,' Heulo explained, 'I was alone for some time in space, far from any other star. One day, I was told by Life himself that if I wanted to become something more exciting I would have to become a Sun Spirit and wait a thousand years to be truly human. I was young for a star and hopelessly naïve at the time and I took up his offer. I became a Sun Spirit and traveled the worlds and universes waiting for the occasion when I could find the other half of myself. I gained virtually infinite knowledge and was soon known as The Sun Spirit or Phantom of All Knowledge.
'Then, after a millennium, I sort of 'felt' myself being pulled towards something within this universe. I searched for it until it led me to this very planet, and eventually to this land. What I found was nestled in a crib. He was a small newborn who looked so like myself and yet so much more pure and inexperienced than I had ever been. I knew he was what I had been searching for; he was my other half, the other part of my mind.
'I began to 'share' his head. I soon found out though that being squeezed in a brain with a maturing mind wasn't particularly comfortable, but I stuck to what I knew had to happen if we were ever going to become the Dragon Enchanter. I protected him as if he was the most magnificent person ever, and to me he was all I had left. Eventually I hoped we would become the same person, one whole complete mind, the Dragon Enchanter,' continued Heulo.
Wyn gawked at Heulo for a few seconds before analyzing Rhys. She had never 'truly' looked at her brother until then and she saw the subtle similarities between her kid brother and the ancient apparition before them. 'I thought he was the Dragon Enchanter, but I never thought this would also be true about my little brother!' she thought wonderingly. She turned back to Heulo who was looking at her understandingly.
'I know it's hard to believe, Maiden of the Phoenix, but I am who I say I am,' said Heulo.
"I know. I could tell you weren't a threat the moment you started talking," replied Wyn.
'Hmm. I see. Rhys and I are the same, but different. Someday that will change though. I have to return to my place in Rhys's brain, but before I go I believe Rhys needs something to eat. Make sure he gets a little,' and with that Heulo was gone leaving Rhys rubbing his stomach and complaining of hunger.
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A/N: Would you consider this a cliffhanger?
Readers: …
A/N 2: ⌐_⌐ Hey…I resent that silence. Then again, maybe I don't want to know what you guys really think.
A/N 3:Anyway, you'd better review!
A/N 4 (and hopefully the last note): REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!