"This all just happened so fast," Darien said out of the blue. "I mean, one moment she's here, and the next..."
"She's gone." Trista stroked the black wolf, staring at the floor. "I never thought...well, I mean, I knew, but it's just so hard to believe he'd actually do this."
"That is pretty low, even for a guy I barely remember," Darien agreed, stretching out on his back and staring through a solar panel on her roof. "I miss her so much. She told me about how she watched me in the Silver Millennium."
Trista gave a faint smile, as though the memory made the pain lessen. "She always told me that she wouldn't have traded the world for the time she spent with you. Which, if you think about it, is a good thing."
Darien chuckled, then was silent for a moment. "She really loves us, doesn't she?"
"Oh, Darien, you just don't know how much. She'd fight to the death for any of you and would rather die than say a bad word in any of your names. One time Amy was sick, and Atia likely went berserk taking care of her, even though it meant leaving her home during a family crisis."
He smiled. "Luna and Artemis said something about an older brother and sisters. May I ask why they don't exist?"
"Tatanya was born first, therefore making her heir. When her mother died, her father remarried. They had a boy and named him Demetrie; then the king caught a disease and died. Her mother chose a new husband; they had a girl and named her Giallia. Then the queen died, and the king elected a new queen. They had the twins."
"So, what happened to them?" Darien inquired.
"We were around...seventeen....in earth years. There was an uproar in the court because of treason by some trusted advisors. Tatanya and Giallia were killed in the first onslaught, caught unawares. Demetrie died to protect the twins."
"How did they choose between Atia and Lia?"
"Atia would've been queen, but she has the mark of the solar system and not of Saturn. They chose Lia instead. Atia never really wanted to be a ruler, anyway, so it all worked out in the end."
"That doesn't resemble the happy life I remember."
"The Silver Millennium occurred mostly for the moon and for Earth - we outer planets were dealt an equal share of bad and good luck throughout that time." Trista scratched ThunderClaw's ear, and he wagged his tail happily. "Although sometimes there was more bad than good."
"What of this singing thing Luna and Artemis are always talking about?" Darien rolled over onto his stomach and regarded her thoughtfully. "You've never told us you could sing."
Trista flushed a little. "It's a gift the five of us have. Nobody can explain it, but when we sing, we can give each other strength and power both. It's...the most wonderful thing." She sighed. "I miss it." They were silent for a moment. Suddenly, Trista perked up. "That's it!"
"What's it?" Darien asked, ready to frown.
"Never mind. Without our links, it may not work." The woman flopped back against the couch. "And I have no real reason to, either."
"Reason for what?"
"I thought, maybe if I sang, I could find Ocean and Sky. Atia's lost to me - Sebradon would kill her. Lia..." her voice trailed off, faltered, for a moment. "But I have no real reason to contact them. I mean, I'm alive, so they must be alive too. It would just be so nice to see them again," she replied wistfully.
Darien stared at SunChaser, who was lying across the heat vent. "If you saw them, would it repair your links? If you sang, would it? Something made your bond happen, Trista. If it can happen once, it can happen again."
But if you bring them here, won't it bring some great disaster? ThunderClaw rose his head and regarded them curiously.
"I don't think I could bring them here. If I could just...see them, that would be enough." Her eyes came to rest over a large full-length body mirror in the corner of the room. "That would be perfect." She got up and walked over to it, angling it a little and wiping the dust off of it. She stared at her reflection, then at her prince's and the wolves' behind her. She sighed and shook her head. "What if I can't reach them?"
If you believe you can, SunChaser said quietly, then you can do it.
Trista stared at the mirror as though that alone would bring the two women into existence before her. She closed her eyes and touched a dark green locket on her neck, then opened it. Music filtered out of it. "Ocean. Sky. If you can hear me, please answer me." She seemed to be counting, then opened her eyes. Nothing seemed to be happening, but by the time she'd finished that song, there were outlines in the mirror, shadows that nothing in the room had thrown. Trista put her hands on the glass, never missing a beat as she started a new song.
"Another night slowly closes in
And I feel so lonely
Torchin' heat
breathing on my skin
I pretend you still hold me
I'm going crazy, I'm
loosing sleep
I'm in too far, I'm in too deep
Over you
I can't believe
you're gone
You were the first you'll be the last.
Wherever you go, I'll be with you
Whatever you want, I'll give it to
you
Whenever you need someone to lay your heart and head upon,
Remember
after the fire, after all the rain,
I will be the flame...
I will be the
flame.
Watchin' shadows move across the wall
Feels so frightening..." Suddenly
Darien could've sworn he heard two more voices singing with hers alternatively.
The shadows were filling out, and he could see two familiar women standing on
the other side.
"I wanna run to you, I wanna call
But I've been hit by lightening
Just
can't stand the thought of falling apart
Can't see through the spell across
my heart
Over you
You'll always be the one
You were the first you'll be
the last
Wherever you go, I'll be with you
Whatever you want, I'll give it to
you
Whenever you need someone to lay your heart and head upon,
Remember
after the fire, after all the rain,
I will be the flame...
I will be the
flame.
I'm going crazy, I'm loosing sleep
I'm in too far, I'm in too deep
Over
you
You'll always be the one
You were the first you'll be the last
Wherever you go, I'll be with you
Whatever you want, I'll give it to
you
Wherever you go, I'll be with you
Whatever you want, I'll give it to
you..." As the music trailed off, the two new voices were clear, and the shades
were now full-fledged humans.
"Trista!" One of them, a blonde, cried in surprise. The moment they stopped singing, however, the two nearly vanished. There were three shrieks of alarm, and Trista let her locket play. Within no time, they were back, confused expressions on their faces as they sang.
The woman with black-blue hair rose a hand and began to sign in sign language. "What happened?? How did he do that?!"
"Very sneakily," Sky answered, looking slightly angry. Her fingers flew so rapidly that her two companions could hardly understand her words.
"Sky, calm down. I called you two because I wanted to know how we got our links to begin with," Trista said, trying to calm her.
"It's beyond me," Ocean said, then hesitated. "Did Michelle tell you?"
Trista choked on her words, momentarily halting the song. "It's true? You haven't lost your link?"
"I haven't. He didn't cut it all the way. But...that's all. I can't find any of you, even though Sky is right here beside me." Ocean looked downcast.
"Is she okay?"
"She's fine. However, she can't come to me, or he'd kill us."
"I can't believe it. He was one of our best friends," Sky signed shakily. "I can't believe it."
"You would if you saw him strike her with that sword of his. If she hadn't have given in, he would've flayed her alive. How much do you two know?"
"Know about what?"
Trista's eyes softened. "Lia?" They could only stare at her, and she saw Ocean clearly pale and Sky tense up, the two cousins remembering her words the foggy night. "He killed her. A long time ago - when they were coming to Earth. Then, yesterday, he brought her back to Earth in her demon form. Atia changed her back, but then she had to leave. She was an angel, and she couldn't live on the Earth. Then she came back when he was about to strike Autumn. He had this...jewel...thing that allowed her return to Earth. She relied on her ability to breathe through other people. He cut that ability and said, if Atia came with him, he'd let her be and not break the crystal." Tears slid down her face. "He lied. He struck up Atia. When they'd gone, the crystal shattered. We don't know if it really killed her or not."
Tears ran down Sky's face, but Ocean's only welled in her eyes. Trista knew her too proud to cry. "Lia." During an interlude, Sky squeaked out the word. Just as fast, it was time to sing again. They didn't communicate beyond singing.
Ocean flinched, and her voice stopped. Sky jumped, then glanced behind her. "We have to go," the blonde signed hastily.
"It was so nice to see you again, Trista. We love you."
"I love you guys too."
With unspoken agreement, they stopped singing. The two faded away, their voices lingering ever so slightly in the song.
Darien could've sworn he had been listening to angels singing.
