Breakfast was interrupted by the commander of the Fanelian Army, General Lucian McBane. He was a wolf man from Rahm's tribe and had been sent to Fanelia to help with the restoration twenty-two years ago. After the restoration, he had been accepted into the army and after the betrayal of Chenley during the Zeus wars, had been promoted to general. He also was in charge of Fanelia's defenses and was a good friend of the Fanels.
When Lucian entered the dining room and bowed low, interrupting the conversation and the meal, everyone knew something was wrong, really wrong. Adrina felt her throat close as Lucian leaned down near Folken.
"My Lord," he began in a whisper, "when the meal is finished, there is something I need to talk to you about."
Folken wiped his mouth with a napkin and stood up. "I know you wouldn't have come if it wasn't important. We'll talk now." He turned to the table of people. "If you'll excuse me…"
Adrina jumped up as well. "I'm coming too."
"There's no need," Folken told her, "Whatever it is can wait until after breakfast."
"And breakfast can wait until after the news is given," Adrina insisted, "I'm coming with you."
Folken nodded and the three of them hurried out of the dining room. The walk from the dining hall to the parlor was the longest few minutes of Adrina's life. She had the sinking feeling that whatever Lucian had to talk about had to do with Mecale.
They finally reached the parlor and Folken closed the door behind them to ensure that they weren't bothered and their conversation wasn't overheard. Inside the room, Adrina collapsed onto a sofa and Folken sat down beside her. Lucian sat on a plush chair across from them. For a few seconds no one spoke and Adrina thought she would die from the anxiety. Finally Folken addressed the wolf general.
"Lucian, what news do you have for us?"
"My Lord, My Lady, scouts just returned form Zaibach…" Lucian began.
"Zaibach?" Adrina interrupted, "Why would you send scouts to Zaibach?" When the sorcerers were destroyed, Zaibach crumbled. There had been no human inhabitants of the region for over fifteen years, although the fall of the Empire wasn't the only reason the people had fled.
"There seems to be a change in the…anomaly there," Lucian informed.
"A change?" Suddenly, Folken wasn't so calm anymore. "What kind of change?"
"Well, My Lord, it appears to be growing."
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Mecale awoke before dawn and went jogging with Kouji. She wasn't used to the exercise but she managed to keep up with him just the same. At the top of the cliff, near where he had found her, they sat in the grass and watched the ocean as the sun rose behind them.
After the sun had risen and they had had their fill of the ocean view for the morning, the two of them jogged back to Kouji's apartment. Kouji let Mecale take the first shower while he watched the morning news. After Mecale emerged dressed in a pair of jean shorts and a red fitted T-shirt depicting a sinister looking black cat, Kouji took his turn in the shower and Mecale changed the TV to Cartoon Network.
Kouji made a simple breakfast after his shower and upon seeing the bareness of his fridge and cupboards, the two of them decided to go grocery shopping.
As the two of them got into Kouji's car, Mecale realized that she was growing quite accustomed to life on the Mystic Moon. She loved the technology, she loved the food, she loved everything about this foreign world. She knew that her family was probably worried sick about her but an adventure had never killed any of them and it certainly wouldn't kill her. They were too overprotective anyway.
They arrived at the grocery store and the two of them walked through the automatic doors. Kouji grabbed a basket and they started down the first aisle.
"So, what kind of stuff do you like to eat?" Kouji questioned as he put two loaves of bread into the basket.
"Um…" Mecale stalled. She pretended to be thinking about what she liked when in reality she was trying to think of a way to answer the question. "I like…pretty much anything really."
"Come on," Kouji urged as he picked up some sausage, "everyone has a favorite food. What's yours?"
Mecale was desperately searching her mind for the name of the foods she had eaten on the Mystic Moon. "Uh…lasagna."
"Lasagna," Kouji repeated, "Good choice. And it just so happens that I can make lasagna." He grabbed a large bag of grated cheese. "Let's see what other good stuff we can find to eat."
The two moved through the entire store picking out food and snacks that looked good. When they were finished, the basket was nearly half full.
"I hope we can fit all this into the trunk of my car," Kouji commented as the cashier rang up their purchase. The groceries were bagged and taken out to the car. Mecale and Kouji loaded them into the trunk and then headed back to the apartment. They put all the groceries away and Kouji decided to teach Mecale how to play rummy.
After a while, Mecale got the hang of the game and even beat Kouji a few times. After a few more games, Kouji made lunch and they sat at the counter, talking and eating.
"Now what should we do?" Kouji asked after lunch.
"I don't know," Mecale shrugged, "what do you think we should do?"
"Wanna go see a movie?" Kouji suggested.
Mecale's eyes lit up. "Yeah! That's a great idea!"
"Let's go then!"
Kouji grabbed his car keys and the two of them left the apartment.
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"What do you mean it's growing?" Van shouted after Folken relayed the message that Lucian had just told them to Van, Hitomi, Golan, Siri, Allen, Millerna, Riley, Kolena, Erika, Merle and Zane. The three younger children were playing elsewhere in the palace.
"According to Lucian's scouts, it's grown almost two feet in every direction," Folken informed.
"Why now?" Millerna questioned, "Why would it choose now to start spreading?"
"You don't think it senses that Mecale is gone, do you?" Hitomi asked, wide-eyed.
Before anyone could answer, Riley spoke. "Let me get this straight. That shadow in Zaibach is alive?"
"Yes," Folken answered.
"Why wasn't I told about this before?" Riley demanded, "Is it a threat?"
"Yes," Allen replied to his son, "A very serious threat."
"We were always told that it was dangerous," Siri whispered, "but never that it was dangerous to us."
"We didn't want to scare you," Hitomi told her daughter. "We always thought we could stop it, but now that Mecale's gone…"
"What does Mecale have to do with this?" Riley asked.
"Shouldn't Mecale know it's awakened?" Millerna inquired hopefully, ignoring her son, "Won't she come back once she realizes we're in trouble?"
"She should start having nightmares about it soon," Adrina answered, "but she won't understand their meaning."
"Why not?" Allen demanded.
"We never told her about the prophecy," Folken told everyone, "We didn't want her to know until she was old enough."
"Prophecy?" Riley repeated, "what prophecy? What are you people talking about?"
"The prophecy of the Draconians," Adrina stated, "when we went to the Record's House, we brought back a Draconian book with us. The book told how to destroy Zeus but also told of many other Draconian secrets, one was the prophecy."
"The prophecy tells about the first born female child of two Draconians," Folken picked up where Adrina left off, "If ever the two sides of the Draconian family tree were united, a girl child would be born with wings of gold. The gold wings would represent the strength and goodness of the Draconian race. Unfortunately, there cannot be good without evil. When the child of the united Draconians was born, a shadow would also be born and inhabit the most uninhabitable corner of the world. This shadow represents the evil intentions of the Draconians and their will to dominate. It is the opposing force of the pure goodness of the daughter of the Draconians. This shadow has the power to destroy the entire planet by merely covering it. Everything it touches will instantly be devoid of life. There is only one force powerful enough to contest this evil."
"Mecale," Siri whispered in awe.
"Mecale?!" Riley exclaimed, "How is Mecale supposed to oppose something like that?"
"The prophecy states that the evil will remain dormant until the girl child is able to face it," Adrina explained, "it senses her at all times and knows when the final showdown will begin. The fact that it awakened means that Mecale is ready to fight it."
"How will she fight it?" Riley demanded, "It's a giant shadow! How is she supposed to defeat it?"
"Only Mecale knows the answer to that," Adrina told him.
At that moment, Lucian entered the room. "My King, we have gathered more information as you requested."
"I'd like to speak to Lucian alone," Folken told the group. Everyone but Lucian, Folken and Adrina left the room. Once they were gone, Lucian relayed his message. "It is confirmed that the anomaly is growing."
"How fast?" Folken asked.
"If it keeps spreading at a constant speed, it will reach Fanelia in two weeks," Lucian reported.
"Two weeks?" Folken repeated in surprise. He composed himself quickly. "Thank you Lucian. Please keep me updated on the matter."
"Yes My Lord." Lucian bowed and exited, leaving the King and Queen alone in the room.
"Two weeks," Adrina sighed, "Do you think she'll make it back?"
"Of course she will," Folken assured. He was quiet for a moment. "You know, you left part of the prophecy out of your explanation."
"What part was that?" Adrina asked innocently.
"The part about the girl child's samurai," Folken replied.
"Oh yes," Adrina admitted, "I guess it slipped my mind."
"I didn't want to mention it in front of Riley either," Folken grinned, "I don't want him to get any ideas."
"He can get all the ideas he wants," Adrina stated, "It won't do him any good."
"Why do you say that?"
"The shadow didn't start growing until Mecale was on the Mystic Moon," Adrina reminded, "The prophecy says that the evil remains dormant until the good is ready to fight it. Mecale wouldn't be ready unless she had found her samurai. I'd bet anything that she brings someone back with her from the Mystic Moon."
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When Mecale and Kouji got back to the apartment, it was late. They had ended up getting tickets for a double feature and then had gone out for a late dinner. Mecale had thought TV was a wonderful experience but it was nothing compared to the movies. Mecale wasn't sure what was better, the experience of the movie or actually watching the movie. It was all she had talked about during dinner and the car ride home.
"Thank you so much Kouji!" Mecale exclaimed for the fifth time as they entered the apartment. "That was the most fun I've had in my entire life!"
Kouji grinned. "If I didn't know any better, I'd swear that you'd never been to the movies before."
Mecale's smile faltered and her face turned red. "Sorry, I just…"
"Don't be sorry," Kouji chuckled, "I was just teasing. And besides, it's always nice to know that you make people happy." Mecale's grin returned and Kouji's smile widened. "See you in the morning. You're going jogging with me, right?"
"Of course!" Mecale assured, "Goodnight Kouji. See you in the morning." She practically skipped back to the bedroom. She hadn't been this happy since her first visit to Asturia when she was six. She had no idea why, but she felt like everything in her life was finally working itself out. She changed into her froggy pajamas and fell asleep with a smile on her face.
Mecale was standing in the clearing in the Fanelian forest. She was facing the deserted country of Zaibach and was staring intently. Of course, the mountains and trees blocked her view of the desert land but she continued to stare anyway.
As she gazed, an ice cold wind whipped around her body, stirring her dress and blowing her hair away from her face. The wind was so cold and sharp that it stung her eyes but she refused to turn away, even when she could feel hot tears running down her cheeks.
Suddenly, all of the mountains and trees obstructing her view disappeared and she had a clear view of the Zaibach landscape. In the far corner was a dark shadow, so dark that it swallowed any light that dared try to pierce it. She knew the shadow, it had been there for as long as she could remember. She had been told it was dangerous but while the other children feared it, she didn't. Instead, she saw it as an adversary, an opponent that must be defeated. Of course, that was crazy. It was just a shadow.
As Mecale watched, the shadow began to shift and change shape. She had never seen it move and it startled her, but instead of feeling fear, she felt anticipation as if she were waiting for something. It continued to change until in the middle of the shadow, a recognizable shape appeared. Mecale gasped when she saw it.
It was the face of a man.
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I don't own Cartoon Network. Okay fine, I don't own anything!! Except Folken and Adrina Fanel's Royal Treatment Horse Care Products. Actually, it's a joint venture with Gwuinivyre, but it's 100% garunteed to work on any horse, to make them feel as if they really were vibrant rulers in the house of Fanel. Would you like to buy some of Folken and Adrina Fanel's Royal Treatment Horse Care Products?
I named the wolf general Lucian in honor of Lucian from Underworld (which I don't own). I felt that he shouldn't have died (damn Kraven). Anyway, yeah.