Her eyes fluttered close as Leo's hands warmed on her face. She could hear
Lex's protests fading until they were as inaudible as the rest of the
world. Slowly, sounds from a long forgotten past crept louder until it was
all she could hear. She opened her eyes to see that everything else that
she knew had dropped away. In front of her were familiar strangers moving
in and out of a room that was as wide, with ceilings as high, as her vision
could encompass.
"Ch'ali!"
She turned around to see a curvaceous blonde heading towards her, long curls flying like a banner behind her. The name flew out of her tongue even before she could register that this was someone new. "Vilandra."
Slender fingers closed over her hands. The lovely woman Vilandra tightened her hands around hers in a grip that seemed so inappropriate for an obvious princess. "I need your help."
It was as if an ice sheet fell over Chloe in an instant. She was filled with an immediate hostility for the young woman whose face rivaled that of any angels'. Chloe could only wonder what had happened between the two of them in this life. Chloe felt herself slipping fully into the body of this new person that she was. Desperately, she tried to clutch tendrils of her identity and lost the battle. She settled fully and forgot that she was not a true inhabitant of this world that Leo opened up to her.
"What do you need, princess?" Ch'ali replied caustically. A princess was in front of her, but Ch'ali knew she was in a high enough position that she did not have to be too careful about her words.
"Please. I need you to go with my fiancé to the convention tonight."
"A tête-à-tête with someone else, Vilandra?" Ch'ali inquired smoothly. "Isn't it on the side of irresponsible that you are choosing this over peace?"
Vilandra's eyes narrowed and the hands that gripped Ch'ali's tensed. The princess dropped Ch'ali's hands. "You know as well as I do that I have no real responsibility in this kingdom. I'm a prize to the best warrior, no more than that. And I want you to accompany Rath because he is more likely to listen to your counsel than mine. You have to stop this war!"
"Rath and I have nothing but respect for each other, Vilandra, if you are implying otherwise."
"Insist what you will. But I command you to leave tonight with Rath and my brother, as my representative," Vilandra stated coolly. "You're dismissed."
~~
Lex caught Chloe easily as her form slipped into unconsciousness. He lifted her and laid her gently on the bed. Lex sat down and looked up at the whitelighter. "Will she be fine?"
"Knowing who she is, I'm sure she will," Leo answered.
Lex breathed in relief. "When will she wake up?"
"It depends on how much she is willing to see. Just trust that she will be back." Leo looked up quickly. "I need to go. If you need me, just say my name." In front of Lex's very amazed eyes, Leo vanished in a shimmer of blue lights.
Lex looked down at the girl who had suddenly, in the span of one night, turned from a mere acquaintance that he often admired, to the perfect partner for his soul that he had not been aware was craving for a match.
He carefully lay close to her and closed his eyes. His hand involuntarily searched for hers. At the moment of contact, Lex sucked in his breath and was thrust into memories that he was not sure were his.
He walked confidently into a building that appeared like a closed coliseum. Several pairs of eyes turned towards him, and Lex felt the corner of his lips curl upwards. Even in this life, he held the same air as he did in the real one. "Lexan," a soft feminine voice sounded from beside him. "I do not want you to step up there and ignore everything that I told you."
Lex shook his head at the blonde who he could recall was his sister. "Glor, you know my position on the matter of war."
"And you know mine," she hissed.
"Maybe that's why I'm in the throne and not you. You might have to wait until I die before you can wage that war on Antar."
"Rath will attack us if we do not arm ourselves!"
"When they fire the first destroyer, then we raise our barriers. But not before. The economy will suffer."
"Life is more important than business, Lexan."
"Without the commerce from the other kingdoms, our people would die, Glori. Accept it." He shrugged off his sister's arm and stepped onto the dais to a resounding applause. Lex held up his hands to ask for silence, and began to speak.
~~
Flanked by the two most powerful men of Antar, Ch'ali listened breathlessly to the king of the neighboring kingdom-the ruler of the country that was in danger of being conquered by her own. She watched intently as the sculpted face expressively moved an audience of diplomats. The king was seeking the support of the hundreds of other officials, in a fight against the idea of empire, with one ruler that would, according to him, leave the simple citizen too distant to reach those who could have helped him.
"I see stars in your eyes," Zan said carefully, jarring Ch'ali's attention away from the speaker.
"He is brilliant. His argument is logical and rational, which is more than I can say for the instinctive decisions that Rath is feeding you." Ch'ali glanced at the general that he was speaking of.
For his part, Rath shook his head and appeared unaffected. "A woman, of course, would easily be swayed by Lexan's words. The man has always had a silver tongue. I can show you proof that Lexan has been prepared to strike us for three moons now. His destroyers are trained at Antar even as he soothes you in a sense of security, Ch'ali. You're young. He's battle- honed." He handed her a black compact viewer and pressed the power button. The screen glowed with images of the destroyers that Rath spoke of. "Throw you moon green eyes at the man, Ch'ali, until your body and those of the ones you love are blown to bits by the traitor."
Ch'ali gasped at the sight. She looked up at Zan, but her king was now watching every movement that Lexan made. She turned her eyes back at the king on the dais, and marveled at how well he could fool the ones listening to him, with sincerity throbbing in the zeal that he affected.
Lexan stepped down and the crowd burst into another applause. Ch'ali followed him with her eyes until he vanished into the throng of his admirers. She gingerly rose and excused herself from her companions. "I think I need fresh air after that revolting experience," she muttered. She heard Rath chuckling behind her.
"Ch'ali!"
She turned around to see a curvaceous blonde heading towards her, long curls flying like a banner behind her. The name flew out of her tongue even before she could register that this was someone new. "Vilandra."
Slender fingers closed over her hands. The lovely woman Vilandra tightened her hands around hers in a grip that seemed so inappropriate for an obvious princess. "I need your help."
It was as if an ice sheet fell over Chloe in an instant. She was filled with an immediate hostility for the young woman whose face rivaled that of any angels'. Chloe could only wonder what had happened between the two of them in this life. Chloe felt herself slipping fully into the body of this new person that she was. Desperately, she tried to clutch tendrils of her identity and lost the battle. She settled fully and forgot that she was not a true inhabitant of this world that Leo opened up to her.
"What do you need, princess?" Ch'ali replied caustically. A princess was in front of her, but Ch'ali knew she was in a high enough position that she did not have to be too careful about her words.
"Please. I need you to go with my fiancé to the convention tonight."
"A tête-à-tête with someone else, Vilandra?" Ch'ali inquired smoothly. "Isn't it on the side of irresponsible that you are choosing this over peace?"
Vilandra's eyes narrowed and the hands that gripped Ch'ali's tensed. The princess dropped Ch'ali's hands. "You know as well as I do that I have no real responsibility in this kingdom. I'm a prize to the best warrior, no more than that. And I want you to accompany Rath because he is more likely to listen to your counsel than mine. You have to stop this war!"
"Rath and I have nothing but respect for each other, Vilandra, if you are implying otherwise."
"Insist what you will. But I command you to leave tonight with Rath and my brother, as my representative," Vilandra stated coolly. "You're dismissed."
~~
Lex caught Chloe easily as her form slipped into unconsciousness. He lifted her and laid her gently on the bed. Lex sat down and looked up at the whitelighter. "Will she be fine?"
"Knowing who she is, I'm sure she will," Leo answered.
Lex breathed in relief. "When will she wake up?"
"It depends on how much she is willing to see. Just trust that she will be back." Leo looked up quickly. "I need to go. If you need me, just say my name." In front of Lex's very amazed eyes, Leo vanished in a shimmer of blue lights.
Lex looked down at the girl who had suddenly, in the span of one night, turned from a mere acquaintance that he often admired, to the perfect partner for his soul that he had not been aware was craving for a match.
He carefully lay close to her and closed his eyes. His hand involuntarily searched for hers. At the moment of contact, Lex sucked in his breath and was thrust into memories that he was not sure were his.
He walked confidently into a building that appeared like a closed coliseum. Several pairs of eyes turned towards him, and Lex felt the corner of his lips curl upwards. Even in this life, he held the same air as he did in the real one. "Lexan," a soft feminine voice sounded from beside him. "I do not want you to step up there and ignore everything that I told you."
Lex shook his head at the blonde who he could recall was his sister. "Glor, you know my position on the matter of war."
"And you know mine," she hissed.
"Maybe that's why I'm in the throne and not you. You might have to wait until I die before you can wage that war on Antar."
"Rath will attack us if we do not arm ourselves!"
"When they fire the first destroyer, then we raise our barriers. But not before. The economy will suffer."
"Life is more important than business, Lexan."
"Without the commerce from the other kingdoms, our people would die, Glori. Accept it." He shrugged off his sister's arm and stepped onto the dais to a resounding applause. Lex held up his hands to ask for silence, and began to speak.
~~
Flanked by the two most powerful men of Antar, Ch'ali listened breathlessly to the king of the neighboring kingdom-the ruler of the country that was in danger of being conquered by her own. She watched intently as the sculpted face expressively moved an audience of diplomats. The king was seeking the support of the hundreds of other officials, in a fight against the idea of empire, with one ruler that would, according to him, leave the simple citizen too distant to reach those who could have helped him.
"I see stars in your eyes," Zan said carefully, jarring Ch'ali's attention away from the speaker.
"He is brilliant. His argument is logical and rational, which is more than I can say for the instinctive decisions that Rath is feeding you." Ch'ali glanced at the general that he was speaking of.
For his part, Rath shook his head and appeared unaffected. "A woman, of course, would easily be swayed by Lexan's words. The man has always had a silver tongue. I can show you proof that Lexan has been prepared to strike us for three moons now. His destroyers are trained at Antar even as he soothes you in a sense of security, Ch'ali. You're young. He's battle- honed." He handed her a black compact viewer and pressed the power button. The screen glowed with images of the destroyers that Rath spoke of. "Throw you moon green eyes at the man, Ch'ali, until your body and those of the ones you love are blown to bits by the traitor."
Ch'ali gasped at the sight. She looked up at Zan, but her king was now watching every movement that Lexan made. She turned her eyes back at the king on the dais, and marveled at how well he could fool the ones listening to him, with sincerity throbbing in the zeal that he affected.
Lexan stepped down and the crowd burst into another applause. Ch'ali followed him with her eyes until he vanished into the throng of his admirers. She gingerly rose and excused herself from her companions. "I think I need fresh air after that revolting experience," she muttered. She heard Rath chuckling behind her.