Chapter One ~ Revival
A past that is lost – is it one that matters?
Phoenix gazed at the world before her, her golden eyes surveying the Sol Kingdom in the very first rays of morning. This land, it was still young, younger than herself, for she had lived many lives, lives in Kingdoms more ancient than the Kingdom of Sol. But it appeared the other way around, as it was the Empress Eos that created this land – this peaceful place of prosperity – and Phoenix was her granddaughter, and heir to the throne.
Yet this land was not always peaceful, and Phoenix – despite the silence that the Family kept about the events of the past – she knew that the Sol Kingdom was built upon the ruins upon the Neo Silver Millennium. A traitor's blood ran in the veins of the Silver Millennium's rulers, and the last one was a tyrant; bloodthirsty and chaos loving. It was Eos that put an end to Selenity's rule, and built upon the ashes of the old a Kingdom that rightfully belonged to the Sun Family – the Kingdom of Sol.
Phoenix closed her eyes, wrapping her arms around her waist as a soft breeze strayed into her chamber through the open window. It seemed as if she was enjoying the cool morning air, but she was in reality pondering upon her own thoughts; recalling memories of the past – visions of a past life. A faint smile crossed her lips, one of satisfaction and glee.
Eos had not only reclaimed what was rightfully hers -- she had avenged the deaths of many, and restored the pride of a fallen empire.
Her eyes snapped open, but the smile continued to linger on her lips. She could hear the door to her chamber being pushed open, and close behind the one who stepped in. Phoenix did not turn around, for she already knew who it was, and that that person was already bowing low before her.
"I am here, My Queen…" it was a soft voice that spoke – one almost deprived of all emotions save that of loyalty to the young lady at the window. Its owner was one no older than Phoenix herself; a petite raven-haired girl, one dressed in clothes too luxurious to be one of the servant-maidens, yet too bland to be a true member of the Royal Family.
Phoenix took no notice of the girl walking towards her. Her gaze was once again fixed on the City outside. She knew that the Neo Silver Millennium was a city of glass and steel, a place filled with carriages and devices foreign to her – much unlike the brown wooden buildings that presently lay before her eyes. 'Modern technology' – if those were the words to describe it – was what Eos despised, calling them achievements of the Traitor, and she would rather start anew without them, even if it meant being labelled as 'taking a step backwards'. But it hardly mattered that she chose to use the Iridescent Jewel, for not much was left of the Old World after the Revolution – not even citizens to object any of her doings.
Yet somehow, the Iridescent Jewel had failed to erase all traces of the Old World, and the remnants of the past were now stirring disturbingly in the dust. While others slept, and stayed blind to such happenings, Phoenix kept vigil, aware of all that was bound to happen in her kingdom. She was not threatened by the events that took place (or those that were going to happen), but despite all the power she possessed, they certainly weren't comforting to think about.
"Tell me, Xia Yan… What do you see?" Phoenix spoke after a while, the smile on her face no longer there. She glanced at the girl beside her from over her shoulder, and saw that she was silently obeying her order. Xia Yan had closed her eyes, for what she was meant to see was not visible to open eyes, but to an open mind.
"The Red Moon hovers in the sky, Your Majesty," Xia Yan said after several moments - softly - but once again audible enough in the silence of the chamber.
"But has the Red Moon not fallen?" Phoenix set her sights far beyond the horizon. She looked the least interested, but she was, in truth, carefully deciphering what she was told. The Red Moon, as it always did in Xia Yan's visions, stood for the last ruler of the Neo Silver Millennium - Selenity.
"It hovers low, My Liege. A sapling grows in its light, in a ring of tall trees…"
"…And the time of day?"
"It is approaching twilight. There are pale clouds, but they do not hide the Moon well…"
"Is that all?"
"Yes, My Queen…"
Xia Yan - despite Phoenix's turned back - could tell that her mistress was smiling once more, even giggling silently at what she was told. Despite their closeness of nearly a decade, Xia Yan still found it nearly impossible to read her mistress's mind. But even if she could, she would choose not to. After all, why should she, when she was content to serve Phoenix faithfully, and remain by her side?
"The Red Moon rises…" Phoenix repeated aloud. She turned away from the window, still smiling as she moved towards the door. She signalled for Xia Yan to follow her, which the timid girl did wordlessly.
"…And we shall see."
-----
Come to me…
Neona Anstice woke up with a start, blue eyes wide as she searched for the source of the voice. She found no one, and for a while, being unused to such silence, wondered why she was alone in the hall. It was only after several moments that she recalled that she was indeed alone, as both Anshar and Axel had gone out to run some errands, and she was put in charge of the inn until they returned.
Neona sighed, tapping the top of the wooden counter as she gazed nonchalantly at the unusually blank guest book before her. She did not like being left alone, and the lack of life and merry sounds in the inn disturbed her greatly. It bothered Neona not to have somebody to talk to, and it troubled her even more that she was beginning to hear voices in her head.
She threw another impatient glance at the clock by her side, and once again, sighed in frustration. Neona quickly made up her mind that she wasn't going to sit there all day long, even if it had been Anshar who gave her the orders to wait at the reception in case someone should come. There wasn't anybody coming anyway, not in an entire week, and it was such a waste to stay indoors, when the weather was fine enough for her to go outside.
Grinning to herself, Neona immediately left the main hall and headed towards the stables on the east wing of the building. Peta was in the meadow, and upon seeing that his mistress was coming, greeted Neona with a loud neigh. Neona replied with an affectionate rub on his neck, before laying her head upon the stallion's warm body, happy to finally have a companion to ease her loneliness.
Come… Come to me, my child…
Neona got up with a jolt, almost as if she had just touched a steaming hot kettle. It was that voice again, only this time she noticed it sounded less ethereal than before. She looked around nervously, feeling more puzzled when she found that there wasn't anyone else there save Peta and herself. Perhaps it was only her imagination, or the wind, which sometimes made sounds similar to that of whispering voices. Or perhaps…
Rain? Neona looked up at the sky above, more confused than ever when she felt drops of rain falling onto her bare skin. It was fairly weird that it was beginning to drizzle when the weather was sunny hardly minutes ago. The pale-haired girl drew closer to her horse, feeling awkwardly afraid all of a sudden, when she heard the same female voice again:
…Come… Come to me… Come to me…
The voice, now harsher and louder than before, echoed in her ears like a ringing bell. Then, without truly understanding what she was doing, Neona mounted Peta, and whispered to the horse words that sounded foreign even to her own ears. Peta neighed, and started galloping northeast towards the edge of the neighbouring Donoma Woods.
Neona could hear the rushing wind as Peta gained speed, and feel the cold rain slapping onto her face. She clung onto the palomino by his mane, somehow unshaken by the abnormal speed at which they were moving. The trees on both sides became a blur of dark green, and eventually turned white. She was not frightened at all, and in fact, feeling greatly exhilarated. Neona burst out into laughter as she rode on Peta's back, giggling like an amused young child.
She did not know how long she was on horseback, but when she finally returned to her senses, it was when Peta came to an abrupt halt, thus throwing her off his back. Her short-lived excitement dissolved quickly into the dark gloom of the woods, and as Neona tumbled into darkness, a searing pain shot through her body and she remembered no more.
-----
Neona moaned softly, and tried to lift her hand to her aching head. But she realised that she could not move her arm, for it hurt her greatly when she tried, and it tormented her even more than her painful head did.
"Please, lie still and don't move. That limb's badly injured…"
She groaned again, this time attempting to open her eyes. Her vision was blurred by tears, and worsened by the shadows cast by the trees in the light of the moon. It took Neona several moments to make out what - or who - was kneeling over her. A lady it was, unnaturally pale in the dim moonlight, and with long locks of hair tumbling down her cloaked shoulders.
"…Whe… Where am I?" Neona croaked, her eyes scanning the gloomy surroundings around her. "What… What happened to me??"
"You must have fallen from a horse, from how you've injured your arm. Absurd thing, I must say, for a girl like you to ride horseback in these woods, and in the rain as well… How are you feeling now?"
With much difficulty, Neona turned towards her limp arm on her left, and saw that the woman had placed her hands over the broken limb, emitting some kind of soothing warmth from her palms. The pain slowly faded, but Neona winced and turned away, for the sudden presence of light in the dark hurt her eyes.
Neona made an attempt to recall what happened before her blackout. She remembered the wind and the rain, and the brief flash of light before Peta flung her off his back. The unusual feeling of exhilaration quickly came into her mind, too, and that somehow told her that those memories were not hers, but someone else's.
And the voice?
Neona closed her eyes, and heard the same ringing voice she had heard in the inn and near the stables. Now that she tried to remember, that voice certainly sounded familiar. She was sure she had heard it before, but where…?
"Come, my child. Try and sit up. Your arm should be better now that I've mended it. Just be careful you don't put too much pressure on it …" the lady spoke after a while, this time trying to help Neona up from the ground.
Neona snapped out of her thoughts, and stared at the lady beside her. She sounded just like the voice she had heard; the only difference was that the previous voice was harsh and commanding, and hardly comfortingly gentle like this one. Neona opened her mouth, intending to ask the female her name, but the lady seemed to be able to read minds, and told her even before she could say anything.
"My name is Ara," Ara smiled as she said. "You were wondering, were you not… Neona?"
"H--How did you know my name?" Neona asked, startled that this stranger should know who she was.
"How? Time tells many stories, my young one… And speaking of time…" Ara turned away, and gazed into the direction of the trees in front of them.
Neona instinctively cocked her head upwards to look at the sky, and saw that the Moon was no longer concealed by the clouds. Now that the darkness was less dense, Neona could see that Ara had deep red eyes and hair of the same rich colour. A sense of familiarity came over her; Neona began to realise that Ara was no stranger, and in fact, someone she felt she knew very well.
"…He has come."
There was a rustle of leaves, followed by the unmistakable sound of footsteps heading towards them. Neona heard a neigh which she instantly recognised as Peta's and sure enough, the horse emerged from the trees before them. It was a tall young man beside Peta, leading the horse by the rope tied around its neck.
"The beast doesn't seem to like you, does it... Gale?" Ara cooed with hidden mockery as she signalled to the man to hand over the rope to Neona. Peta snorted, and struggled to pull away from Gale, who seemed only too relieved to allow the horse to trot over to its rightful master.
"It is late, and the forest at night is no place for a young girl like you. I say it is best you headed back for home now - you don't want your family worrying about you, do you, Neona?" Ara spoke again.
Neona didn't refuse when the lady offered a hand to mount Peta, for she saw that it was a genuine smile of kindness on her face. She returned the smile with a weak one, secretly wondering about the true identity of the two, and the reason why they were so willing to help her. Yet after several moments of deep thought, she made up her mind that Ara and Gale were simply two wanderers who found her in trouble and decided to help her out of their goodness of their hearts. As far as she was concerned, no one in the family had enemies, and they weren't very wealthy folk either; so why would anyone want to harm her?
Finally convinced that her saviours had no evil intentions towards her, Neona gratefully thanked both Ara and Gale. The man behind them did not answer, and something told Neona that Gale was rather unhappy, even resentful towards her. Ara, on the other hand, replied cheerfully when Neona expressed her appreciation;
"It's my pleasure to help you, dear Neona. Now I will accompany you back to where you came from, but not to the inn. We will see you to the edge of the woods only, for we will go no further than that. You should be able to ride home from there. And I believe -- your uncle and brother are busy searching for you…"
-----
"Has she returned?" Anshar's voice was full with worry as he asked his nephew. His eyes were glancing over the youth's shoulder, almost as if he expected Neona to turn up at that very moment.
"No… she hasn't…" the dark-haired boy answered instantly, appearing to be equally worried about his sister. "I've checked everywhere, including the stables. Her horse… Peta is missing from the field as well…"
Whatever colour left in Anshar's face drained away when he heard that Peta was gone too. "The nearby shops…" he muttered. "What about them? H…Have you tried looking for her there?"
"No. But I'll go now." Axel wasted no time, and hastily made off towards the building nearest to the inn.
Anshar gritted his teeth in frustration, nervously running his fingers through his greying hair. He moved his eyes from the counter at which he was staring blankly earlier, in hopes that he might stumble across some clues giving him Neona's whereabouts. His mind was clogged with thoughts of fear and he anxiously hoped that the child was safe. Anshar had not been exceptionally protective of Neona without a reason - he had lost her mother before, and he wasn't letting any danger near her for that very cause.
His eyes strayed out of the window, settling at the far end of the field; the Donoma Woods. He didn't pause long to think of the possibilities, and immediately headed towards that direction. Anshar ran as fast as his legs could go through the muddy ground, only stopping when he heard a familiar voice.
"Papa!!" It was Neona, waving at him from Peta's back as the horse galloped in his direction. A wide smile of relief spread across his face, and all that Anshar could think of when he pulled his niece into his arms was how grateful he was to see her again.
"Where did you go?? We were so worried about you!" he asked her when he finally found the words.
"I… I'm sorry, Papa… I was just riding Peta, and…"
Neona stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she stumbled; Anshar catching her just in time. Anshar shook the unconscious girl by the shoulders as he called her name, but Neona didn't stir at all. He searched around desperately for something or someone to help revive Neona, worry creeping into his heart once more. Alas, he found something, but what he saw froze him on the spot.
"Oh Lord…"
There was a reflection of the Moon in a nearby puddle, but that image of the Moon…
It was red - the colour of blood.