Gemini.
Climbing the Stairway between the Taurus and Gemini Temples had demanded a considerable effort of the two elder Fields and Sir Frederic, and they had been forced to take a breather halfway. Now, with the flame of Gemini diminishing, they stood facing two temples.
"Which one?" wondered Queer.
"Both." answered Ilya. "I sense he presence of Saga in the right and Kanon in the left-hand Temple. The second one used to be an illusion, but since Kanon has been absolved of all his crimes, he has apparently been made Gold. I wonder which of them wears the Cloth…"
"Can't you tell? Then we'll have to hope for the best." said Sir Frederic and resolutely made for Kanon's Temple.
"Shouldn't we split up to double our chances?" asked Esk.
"Evew heawd of shafety in numbews?"
"If we do, we'll half our chances of success if it comes to a fight. Ilya can't be present in both, and without him we will be slaughtered."
"I keep telling you that." said Ilya despairing of his family's determination to continue despite the obvious danger.
"Perhaps you need another Saint to help you." came a clear voice from behind.
It was Shun, wearing his God Cloth, and he was smiling.
Ilya's first reaction was to embrace his friend. His second was to cry out: " Shun, don't take our side, they will call you a traitor like me, and your life will be forfeit."
The Andromeda Saint's smile deepened. "Then it is forfeit. You showed les concern for Mu, though."
He laughed at everyone's surprise, as he Kei-reied in greeting to the Fields.
"Aries knows my feelings. He told me, telepathically, that you would have trouble with the Gemini. Of course I came to help. Aldebaran would not be a danger to you as he as already in doubt over the wisdom of unconditional allegiance to Athena."
"He seemed fairly adamant about it to me." said Esk, " He would not let us pass though we pleaded with him. Ilya was forced to attack, and he forgot that he was in the company of mere mortals. Had it not been for the fortuitous arrival of his girlfriend, with the warning of Aleksej's attack on Rodorio, we'd be frozen meat by now."
Shun nodded pensively.
"Yes, that was likely to happen sooner or later. The attack I mean. So Aleksej has finally made his move. Shaka will probably counter it, which will work to your advantage, if he sends Milo or Camu to quench the rebellion. It all depends on the attitude of Cancer, Capricorn and Pisces. If they move with Aleksej, Sanctuary will have another war amongst the Saints."
"Has Athena no control over it?" asked Ilya, surprised.
"Very little. Things have chanced a lot since you left! The Goddess spends most of her time in trance. So does Dokho. They seem positively obsessed with the thought of the coming war with Olympos. Shiryu and Marin are practically running Sanctuary as far as the loyal troops are concerned. Aiolia is the only Gold Saint Athena can count on for the full on hundred percent, but Aries has been working on him for days. You see, with all these factions Mu and I decided to form a fourth one; one that is concerned with what is right for Humanity, which is not necessarily what is best for Athena."
"But I thought…" began Ilya, and then he turned red.
"You thought I had taken the Goddess' part against you!" laughed Shun, " Your pardon, Cygnus! I cannot blame you: it was my intention that you believed that. I figured you could do with a secret friend within the fold. Mu was of the same opinion, and so was Ikki. True to his nature he however could not dissimulate, and defied Athena openly.
"Then he is…is he alive?"
Shun laughed again.
"Of course he is! It takes more than the Circles of Hades to vanquish my brother! I would not be smiling I knew him dead. Mind you, I have been moping about Sanctuary ever since his 'execution': that allowed me some breathing space. Aleksej and his gang thought me a dead loss, Shaka judged me enfeebled and Athena was all understanding. She felt sorry for me and let me be. So none of them tried to drum me into heir particular service. Mu of course was everyone's and nobody's ally, as they all needed his Cloth-repairing abilities. Ikki, by the way is biding his time; even I don't know where. Inside some volcano, I expect, to gather strength and turn up in the nick of time to save me, as per usual." he grinned, " My brother likes his dramatic entrances."
Ilya marvelled at the change in Shun. The Andromeda Saint had…no, not matured, Shun had always been by far the most mature of the Five Bronzes, if maturity lies in quiet reflection and pacifism. But he had definitely come into his own, out from under his brother's wings. There hung an air of decision-making and command about him that had not been there before.
"Are there any others who will support you?" inquired Mr. Field in Japanese.
If Shun felt any surprise to the Englishman's question spoken in his own tongue, he did not show it. "I am afraid not: Aiolia has his heart in the right place but will not abandon Athena, probably to make up for having fought against her in the Battle for Sanctuary! Milo the Scorpion, Camu Aquarius nor Kanon of the Gemini can be persuaded into changing their allegiance. There is a self-righteous heartlessness in them that makes them all Shaka's…sorry Hyoga, I'm talking of your Master…"
"Not a problem. It is true. By the way, my name is Ilya. I would prefer it if you did not call me Hyoga anymore."
The Andromeda Saint looked momentarily taken aback, then smiled again, and continued: " hey will never be Aleksej's, though: they cannot stand the man. True to their natures Cancer, Capricorn and Pisces will follow whoever is the strongest. As it happens, they believe that to be Aleksej."
"What about his sister? Aleksej's I mean. Nastassia."
Shun's face grew fond.
"She is Athena's handmaiden, and knows much of the Goddess' mind, which she then passes on to me. Athena will hear you, but only if you pass the test of the Twelve Temples. "
"What a bitch." growled Queer after his father had translated, " Miss High and Mighty won't consent to meeting mere mortals unless they've gone to hell and back. Those boobs may be the only nice thing about her."
"Quirinalis. I will not have you speak of the unfortunate girl like that." chided mrs. Field.
"Unfortunate! Mother, don't tell me you feel sorry for her." cried Esk.
"Strange as it may seem, I do. I agree that she is very…primitive in her ways, bound by a culture and tradition that is well past, but she probably can't help it. She is reborn every two hundred years, lives to about fifteen and dies again. She has never had the chance to grow up properly and experience a woman's life. She is forever an immature teenager with the power, authority and responsibility of a Goddess, which of course she can't handle."
"An explosive combination." remarked Sir Frederic, "Let us be grateful that she also has a teenager's single-mindedness that makes her stick to her ideals. At least her wish has always been to protect Earth against her fellow Gods. Think what it would be like if she too started thinking that Humanity's supposed corruption deserved a flood."
"She reminds me a little of Antigone." said mrs. Field, " Do you remember, Hubert? The play by Jean Anouilh. At the beginning of our courtship, when you still took me out to the theatre. You defended Kreoon, and I used to favour the poor girl who wanted to bury her brother regardless of her uncle's orders to execute anyone who did, determined as she was to do what she thought was right, against all others."
"Typical adolescent behaviour." said Mr. Field, " Incapable of reflection or compromise. They call it idealism. It makes their greatest charm, but also their greatest weakness. Oh God, how I hated the Sixties and Seventies! All those longhaired good-for-nothing fils-à-papa with no sense of responsibility at all, out to change the world! We oldies know what blind idealism can lead to, we saw it happen in the Forties. The friends of my German cousin also believed that what they did was for the good of Humanity. Their slogans were shouted with the same enthusiasm. Young people who want to save the world before breakfast are a pain in the neck." he glowered at Nick and Esk, "You have no idea how irritating you two were at the time. Thank God you developed a brain, son, and that Nick had a baby. Fatherhood knocked some sense into him. Idealism is a good counsellor but a bad master."
"I thought that was Ambition." said Queer.
"Likewise. It's the Kreoons that make the world a better place, not the Antigones."
"Still not changed after all those years, have you, Hubert?" said mrs. Field fondly.
"Anyone who has to carry responsibility for a large number of people will agree with me." answered her husband, " Well, shall we decide? Now that we have two Saints at our disposal, we can split up."
As Shun was more fluent in Japanese than in English (despite having lived in the company of a girl with an Oxbridge accent), and mr. Field the only one who knew that language, the two would confront Saga in the Temple on their right together with Mrs. Field and Esk, whereas the others would take on Kanon.
"Stay behind me and be ready to turn and run." whispered the Andromeda Saint to mr. Field as they passed through a hall that flashed alternately light and dark, " This is how Saga tried to confuse us the first time. His Aura is barely discernible from Kanon's, but there is a sadness in it lacking in his twin's. The Gemini Cloth has two faces: one weeping, one grinning. Typically, Kanon chose the latter when they returned and Athena had Mu adapt the Gemini Cloth to fit two persons."
In the other Temple, Ilya was explaining to his companions how Gemini was the Sign of duality, of being torn in two and tossed between Good and Evil.
"Gweat." said Nick," We'll be facing a shch…shchi…shi…"
"Schizophrenic." Queer helped, laughing.
"Is that what you think I am?" came the thundering voice of Kanon in the dark.
The lights turned up, and Saga appeared before the blinking group.
"So you have chosen your path and your doom, Shun? So be it. I shall expedite you to another dimension!"
He raised his arms.
"Andromeda Chain, protect me and mine!" cried Shun, deploying his most formidable defence around the Fields, " Stay close to each other, and do not leave the circle!"
"As if we would." muttered Esk.
"I will not allow you to harm my companions." Shun told the Gemini Saint.
"The mortals need not fear me."
"Was that meant to be ironic?" asked Esk.
"How can a renegade Saint and a bunch of puny mortals hope to stand against me? You are weak, Hyoga. You always were. During the War with Hades you spend half the time unconscious. Seiya and Shun did most of the fighting and without my help you would never have reached Elysion."
"Oi, my Gweek sheemsh to have impwoved, I could follow all he shaid!" exclaimed Nick.
"That's because he is speaking in English." said Queer, patiently.
"Oh. Vewy couwteous of him. "
"Courtesy has nothing to do with it." sneered Kanon, " Soon I will be the Master of the World, and all will be my slaves: English happens to be the language most people understand. They will know my commands!"
"Ruler of the World?! You have returned to your old ambitions?!" cried Ilya.
"I have never left them." said Kanon, and laughed.
"Think, Saga, think! Remember how you wished to rule the world! How you struggled and fought against that burning desire! " whispered Shun, " I touched your mind. I felt how you suffered. You would not have if there had not been goodness in you, and warmth, and generosity. You prove it even now, for you promised to spare my friends. They are a family, Saga. The two women Scorpio is guarding belong to that family. Since when does Sanctuary take hostages? It is for Humanity that we have always fought. They never had any say in that, either. It is time they had: look what we have turned into, look how we treat Humanity!
This is why these people have come. To talk to Athena, merely to talk: what is there to be afraid of? Why must they pass the Test of the Twelve Temples?"
"He shoundsh like Chwishtopew Lee."
"There probably is a rule about that kind of thing. Want to take over the world: must laugh maniacally." said Queer.
"The world has a thing or two to say about the takeover. " said Sir Frederic, " I certainly have."
Their flippancy shook Kanon off his a-propos.
"Hyoga, explain to these mortals how they should tremble I will not merely kill them. That would be a mercy and I know none. I will send them wandering for all eternity in the Bermuda Triangle."
"Wow! The Bewmudash! Wine, women and shong, shunshine all day long, oh, shake it baby, shake it! "
In all his life as a Saint (and well before that too), no one had ever laughed at Kanon. It unsettled him. Fortunately, he did not see that the men he faced were suitably impressed and definitely scared, but that humour as their way of coping.
"You helped us against Hades. Athena pardoned you. " whispered Ilya hoarsely, crushed by so much duplicity.
"Athena is a sentimental fool. After the fall of Poseidon, Ikki and Sorrento made the mistake of letting me live. I was beneath their dignity to kill. Hah! The noble Warriors would not dirty their Sacred Cloth and Scales with my blood! Any blood spilled is dirty: there is nothing noble about the Warrior."
"We musht be back in the Twilight Zone: I find myshelf agweeing with him."
"Friendship, love and trust are weaknesses when people come to rely on it. The Strong must put aside those feelings to achieve their purpose. There is only Power, for those who are willing to wield it, and the Strong will crush the weak while reaching for Power: that is the way of nature, and only a fool will act otherwise."
"Wight. I've jusht shtopped aweeing with him."
"Athena is weak. She believes in goodness in everyone. A few tears, a little self-sacrificial play-acting with that not quite so gullible idiot Milo -painful, but it was worth it- and they were taken in completely. They will never achieve Power, let alone keep it: to rule the world one must have an iron fist, not a velvet glove."
"Hish English though ish vewy good. Wondew wewe he leawned it."
"An educated Saint. Must be a first." quipped Queer.
"To know a thing is to have Power over it. Knowledge is Power! Power is all. It is the only truth there is…"
"Yadda yadda yadda, yes, we got the message, power is your lover." said Queer, and quoted:
"' There is only one Power that can vanquish Truth: Power. There is only one Power that can vanquish Power: Truth. In the end, both will regard each other as the loser.'"
Now Kanon was well and truly rattled. He had rarely faced 'mere mortals' in combat, and when he had, they had usually been terrified. Briefly. Saints never made long speeches either.
He found himself having great difficulty in adjusting his mind to fit in opponents who talked back.
"What?"
"Not so educated a Saint, evidently." said Queer, and repeated the quote," Samuel Menasseh. Rabbi, Philosopher, teacher of Spinoza. From his Uma Vida."
"Youw pwofound wishdom ish losht on him, Queew."
Kanon resorted to laughter. It sounded more like a cackle.
"Wisdom! You are fools. All are fools. Athena and Dokho wait for Zeus to come: they should be on the offensive. Shaka is battling he Lord of Blue Graad for control. They do not see what happens right under their noses."
" Military speaking he is quite right." said Sir Frederic.
"He's a few straws short of a full bushel, if you ask me."
"If you ashk me, he hash only a few shtrawsh left."
"I have only to let them kill each other, and finish off the last one standing!"
"Ruthless, but effective." said sir Frederic with grudging admiration.
"Kanon, answer me this: Is your brother in on you scheme or not?" asked Ilya quietly.
Once again the mad - powermad if not truly mad- Gemini Saint laughed.
"There can only be one Master."
Saga was visibly crumbling under Shun's assault. Not the strength of the Andromeda Chain not the Power of a Saintly attack got the better of him, but words, spoken from a warm and loving Soul.
"You fled in death; and you sought forgiveness when you joined us in the War against Hades. You fought bravely. And she forgave you. In the eyes of all true Saints you have redeemed yourself, but in the eyes of Man? Look at them, Saga. Mortal men and woman. Because of what you did, people such as they have suffered and died. Have you ever wondered how they might feel? Can you look into their eyes and say: I will not harm you? By being party to the abduction of their loved ones, you have already harmed them."
"Not I…Aleksej…"
"Did you make any attempt to stop him? Did you protest when he brought them here? Did you persuade Athena to order their release? Did you?" Shun went on, relentless.
"That's enough." said mrs.Field, " I haven't understood much of what you were saying, but you sound like you are hounding that poor man."
I have met a couple of nazi's in my time." said sir Frederic, " They believed themselves to be the Master Race. I doubt though if even Hitler thought himself capable of mastery of the World. Mind you, he made a damn good attempt at it. And failed. Because the combined forces of several nations rejected him. People believed it impossible at the time. They believed it was better to comply with his wishes, and not have a war. The dead of World war Two might agree. Personally, I hold with 'Britons never, never shall be slaves'. I stand not alone in that. Keep it in mind when you expedite us. Nations may bow to you, but there will always be Nations that will resist, or simply ordinary people. You will never be master of anything, if the people do not choose you to be."
"What makes you think I will allow dissenters to live? Or that there will be people at all, other than my faithful followers?"
"Oh, so you are just going to rule over a graveyard, are you?" asked Ilya angrily, "Doerak!** You really are insane. Locking you away in the cell under Cape Sounion was far too lenient."
He went for the kill.
Do you imagine I feel no guilt at all?" shouted Saga, "I tell myself that I am only partly to blame, that it was my brother's whisperings of evil and Ares spirit that took over my soul, but in my heart I now that it isn't true. They sought entrance and I let them in. Don't you know that I lie awake at night seeing the faces of my victims before me? Nothing will wash me clear of the deeds I have done, nothing, I can never atone enough, never…."
He choked on his words.
Mr. Field and son were embarrassed. As proper Englishmen did not approve of such show of emotion in other men. Mrs.Field however was of different stock. Filled with pity for the man she moved to step out of the Andromeda Chain's defensive circle.
"Don't!" cried Saga as he saw her approach, " The Chains will sent millions of volts through anyone who passes them!"
He dived for the woman who was just lifting her left foot to step over the first spiral and pushed her back with such force that she fell into the timely outstretched arms of her son. He too fell: flat on the chains.
"Helena!"
For once, Mr. Field forgot himself.
"Poesje ***, answer me, are you hurt?"
"Not as much as he will be for hitting mum!" bellowed Esk, by this display of belligerence disproving the general idea that absent-minded professorial types are natural born pacifists.
"No Esk, he meant to save her, believing that my chains were set to incinerate. If they had been, but for him, your mother would be ashes and dust by now." said Shun quietly.
Saga was on hands and knees, a look of total, bewildered astonishment on his face.
"They are not activated!" he gasped, taking a length of the chain as he stared at the Andromeda Saint as if willing him to gainsay it, " It is your best defence, and you did not activate it! I could have killed the mortals as easy as whistling."
"You said you would not harm them. I took your word for it. And though I allowed you to believe there was high voltage on my chains, you did not hesitate to risk your own life to save mrs. Field." Shun smiled, warmly, " Do you realise what happened? You showed your true nature: and it is good. Without actively seeking redemption, you have found it."
Esk stepped forward and held out his hand to Saga.
"Thank you for my mother."
This time, Ilya made sure that his cold air would not affect his friends. All of it was balled into his attack on Kanon, and the widespread wings of his God-Cloth shielded Nick, Queer and Sir Frederic, standing in a defiant group behind him, from the worst.
"Give it to the Bashtawd!" whooped Nick.
"'God for Harry, England and Saint George!'" ****shouted Queer.
"Don't stand there yelling, you idiots! Retreat! Retreat and take cover! Let them slug it out!" cried sir Frederic, in true military style.
But Kanon had already opened the Bermuda Triangle. Huge gravitational forces were pulling in Ilya's Kholodnyi Smerch, the Cygnus Saint himself, and the men he was protecting.
"Grab hold of me!" Ilya cried, frantically beating his wings like a swimmer trying against the current. Sir Frederic caught his left foot and Queer his right, and he in turn collared Nick.
"You …awe…stwangling me!"
"Better…than being…ripped apart!"
Kanon's hellish laughter rang more and more faint in their ears as the Triangle began to close about them.
"Now…now is the moment. Bozhe moi, I do not wish to kill him but I must: give me strength. For my family!"
With one mighty beat of his swan's wing, Cygnus pivoted upon his own axis and, facing the Triangle , took up the stance of the Aurora Execution.
"Stop twitching…my hands…are slipping!" screamed Queer.
"Quirinaaaaalis! Nick!" howled Sir Frederic, as he lost his hold on Ilya's foot.
"Noooooo!"
The Cygnus Saint unleashed his Power.
To be continued.
* from : 'Rule Britannia.'
* fairly common Russian swear-word, meaning 'peasant' (Russian peasants had a bad reputation even in Russia!)
***(dutch) kitten
**** read your Shakespeare.