C R Y O F O M E N S

by Rap's

(31904 - NOTE! Read?) Time is a human concept, and our existence is a fragile thread of reality. In this sequel, Soa shall wield the rebirth and death of destiny as our dragoons, both new and old, face the truth of eternity.

5. Chapter Three: The Resurrection of a Nam

---~~~ C R Y O F O M E N S ~~~--- - Chapter Three : The Resurrection of a Name. - Factoids: -- Words between ~ signify mindspeech. -- Words in italics signify your typical 'flashback' scenario or thoughts by the indicated character. -- Words between * are being emphasized. Notes: -- Do you guys find the type I'm using is to small? I've been worried about that... -- Although I update monthly on the 14th- I'm going to have Chapter 4 out Dec. 24th as a sorta present for anyone who enjoys this story; and with my well wishings to all you wonderful authors out there that keep LOD alive. Chapter 5 will be posted January 14th 2003 - on schedule. -------------------- -------------------- Alot was different in the Endiness of the here and now; or so Miranda often mused. Alliances and newly budding rivalries were bonded and broken. Strangers became friends as friends became strangers. Little things, even, like Kongol's 3rd year in developing his now fluent English were apparent to someone as keen on 'watching' as Miranda tended to be... but sometimes- yes. Things still managed to shock her; no matter how numb to change she'd hoped she was becoming. No one had told her Emily was the new bearer of the Golden Dragoon Spirit, for instance. Truthfully, the gravity of the revelation had gone unnoticed at first. Her eyes were still heavy with an unfamiliar dampness when a local Rouge villager came sprinting his way towards the group. He was one of the watchmen; with a scroll in hand that he waved wildly, caught up in the excitement of a seeming 'something wrong.' She remembered turning, her body naturally on edge as the vulnerability that was emotion came creeping up- choking her with Haschel's departure, and the images thereof. She didn't want to let it matter that much... so if however odd, the distraction came before a tear could fall. For a moment Miranda had been thankful- until Emily took the offered parchment and opened it hurriedly; violet eyes scanning the text within. That was when the spirit had come out; as the queen's eyes flew wide in shock and fear. Slender fingers worked into the fabric of her light white tunic, grasping the stone that surely Miranda had remembered previously in Kongol's care. Concern for the moment overwrought the questions; 'how?' and 'why?' at the time, but as a pause came between friends and circumstance, her mind briefly alighted with shock. Dart was at Emily's side in a breath. "Emily-!?" "-There is an intruder at Indels." The queen rushed out. Her voice was calm but strained as Kongol's brows narrowed, and both Meru and Shana stepped forward as if jarred. "-Dart-!" The scroll fell into his hands. Miranda pressed past Kongol to see the damned thing; mouth twisted into a grimace. "What's going on!?" Said watchman seemed to be milling around the circle of dragoons; wondering until Kongol told him to go back and prepare a boat. With a choppy bow and a scuttle of shoes on the sand beneath his feet, the man ran back up the beach on which he'd found Dart's group. By now, towards the town itself, lights were flickering on and voices rose into the once-calm night. No time to mourn. Dart looked up from the print in his hands. Slowly. His eyes grasped Emily's, and her own bore into his. Meru's jaw knit, her gaze knowing all to well that the following night wasn't about to be spent as previously planned. Miranda's peircing gaze stole to Shana; and all at once, you could say it was amazing how the six simply knew; simply understood one another. They had been comrades for years; and even after months apart were able to recognize a call for action. "... We have a situation." Miranda already began stalking up the beach- towards the dock with Emily on her heels. "... I assume you'll tell us on the way?" A sharp nod. "The Siren's Fury is stationed not far offshore. Let's go-!!!" And that it was- as Dart had just read. The group didn't question- or bother to protest and wonder. That wasn't their place; and regardless of time or placement or purpose? This was their duty. As footsteps rushed, Dart's voice rang out. A man had arrived at Indels not some few hours ago, knocked the castle guards outright unconscious, and had locked himself inside Albert's chamber where a magical barrier now restricted anyone further access. Emily's features were drawn sharp as her tresses flowed; now running to the docks ahead. Meru sprinted after her, light voice suddenly commanding as she instructed the nearest residents to return inside. Shana's palm had tightened on Dart's as they hurried towards the Gatetower. He looked back at her in a whirl of night and worry; where their eyes met as distraught lovers often do. "I'm sorry." From one hurt into another... "Don't be." She whispered back to him. "We've lost one friend. We won't lose another. At least we're together." All of us. --~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~-- Zoir never really... ran anywhere. It was more of a waddle that often tripped and skidded and flopped on the marble floor beneath his feet. It wasn't that he was an exceptionally ungainly man; but more absent-minded enough to trip on his own shoes. As such; when hurried voices went about calling him to presentation from a late afternoon meal? The King of Tiberoa tended to be disgruntled. Hence; not quite graceful, either. Destiny let her eyes roll up and to the side as he burst into the conference hall, looking terribly flustered. His courtmen fluttered around him a moment before taking a seat at the long rectangular table situated in the middle of the room. Destiny leaned back in her chair; watching Zoir approach the gathering quiet little by little. Straight to business, eh? About damned time this cesspool of human idiocy called a 'Monarchy' actually seemed to do a damned. Perhaps it granted them a bit of merit. Zoir settled in beside her on their adjoined thrones, patting her leg once, and then looking out over the table. Or perhaps not. "Courtmen." A nod. "Sandra." Another nod to Destiny. Gods- she loathed that name. "I assume this is of DIRE importance?" Zoir shrugged his shoulders forwards, where white and red cloth jumbled on the table in front of him. "I and my lovely young queen have things to attend to, you know." Destiny smiled in a beautiful manner at the remark; pretending to show flattery. Her burgundy eyes glittered. Her perfect brows arched, and she followed up the facade with a bubbly giggle. One hand absently brought an Ivory brush through golden hair afterwards. To the court, it would seem an act of her vanity. To Destiny, it was a way to keep her hands occupied lest they shoot out and strangle someone. "Sire..." Came a voice from one of the men in the room. He glanced at the queen briefly, leaning forwards to implore his majesty. "I assume you're aware of the situation in Serdio? Word was just sent of what appears to be a hostage situation; to use a more 'camp' verbal appreciation of the term. NO-" And the nobleman waved a hand once to sate Zoir's immediate concern. "Emily is fine. It's Albert. An unusual case, but..." The king leaned back on his throne, light from the nearest window catching sudden beads of sweat on his brow. He dabbed at them frantically with the back of one sleeve; worry apparent over each prominent wrinkle in his brow. "I was most certainly NOT aware-!" And Zoir stroked a hand over his blonde mustache, blinking repeatedly. "What's all this about!? Who the bloody hell would have that kind of gall?! And where is Emily now!?" "She's with Lord Feld and his early wife, Sire. Attending an event in Rouge, as I was informed." "Well why isn't she at Indels!? This could jeopardize my political standing... the knighthood's will be in control until she returns! Stupid woman... stupid STUPID-" "My liege." Another voice began, interrupting. "Please- let us return to the subject on hand? We have no idea what has provoked this action; nor the man involved." "Are Serdio's knight's so ill-trained they can't so much as drag off-" A lengthy, shocked pause. "... One man!? ONE!?" Those idiots truly couldn't protect a Runner's ass, could they!? Why are you troubling me with events as utterly RIDICULOUS as-" "-This ONE man, sire, knocked the resident guardians unconscious and was able to access Albert's personal chambers. Some sort of magical restraint has been placed around the room since the initial scandal; and thusfar, no one else can access it." Destiny's brush clattered to the table. Somewhat shaken from their converse, all eyes in the room turned towards Zoir's queen, who laughed a tender laugh and shrugged quietly. The blonde hurried another stroke of the bristles throughout her bangs after retrieving the comb, and at last pocketed the item in her lap. "... Sandra, dear, are you alright?" Destiny smiled at the older monarch, nodding. "Fine! Fine, my husband. Just... worried, of course. All this talk of hostages and whatnot." Soon. It's to soon... "Surely something must be done...?" "It's not so much our direct problem as it is our interest, My lady." Zoir's advisor began. He was a tall, lanky man seated near the the king himself with brows furrowed. Just another nameless face. "Potentially hostile use of magic is strictly forbidden in Serdio and Tiberoa, and as this individual has clearly defied that ruling on such a truly grand scale; we may have reason to suspect similar happenings here in Fletz. The Wingly population-" Destiny felt herself sigh when that sentence was immediately interrupted. "-Now, hold on a moment- no one said this was a WINGLY'S doing. You start bringing race into this and we'll have hell from here on-" "Who else COULD it have been? Humans don't possess that kind of capability. This could be a warning sign, in effect. Where else could a motive lie? I say we-" "-LEAVE it ALONE. We've worked HARD to establish confident ties with the 'New Kaddessa Organization.' The establishment is a peak display of Wingly unity, and butting our heads into a corner and crying about Magic will create tensions we don't NEED right now." Said random faces continued just as random talk. Destiny took the opportunity to excuse herself, grimacing a kiss to Zoir's balmy forehead before parting their company; complaining about the dredges of a headache. As it would seem, the ever self-centered Tiberoan council would be worried about cornering their own debates before any adjoining action was made on the... situation in Serdio. ... Which was fine with her, really. They weren't the only one's effected by this new development. As she headed back to her chambers, her mind reached out. ~Lord.~ Came the tones of mindspeech. ~We're out of time.~ --~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~-- The sea was as restless as the crew. Or so Meru seemed to think, in either case. She was leaning with her head propped up beneath her arms in the Crow's nest of the Siren's Fury, watching the dawn begin to peak on the horizon afar. This vessel? The identical sister ship to the Queen Fury; a tragic freight that had, not long after the Moon Crisis, sank in a turbulent storm far out at sea; claiming her crew, and captain. Funny she would recall that now, as the Tiberoan warship sped through Serdio's violent northern oceans. She was thankful that Bale's new seaport had opened not long ago, but reminded, regardless, of the power in swelling waves. Her dragoon spirit fluttered against her heart; almost as if tugging on the necklace from which it dangled. The water elemental was an active stone when storms raged at sea; she'd felt it many times, now. Her ownership of its power had become something she looked upon as a partnership instead. The Spirit was very much an entity all its own, and although its powers could guide her in battle, at times she truly wished they could guide her in life- as well. Oh goddess... So much had just... happened. She felt herself trembling. Haschel... And Albert. Something was wrong- someone was going to hurt him... Meru liked to think she was prepared for moments like these; realizing that she shouldn't let it effect her. That yes, she'd just lost a friend- but that said friend would want her to act dutifully in the coming throes of life; however quickly even after his 'death'. Even yet, it troubled her. It was as if Haschel was, but then was suddenly not; pushed aside by a new task. Isn't that what 'moving on' is all about...? Maybe she just hadn't been as prepared for his departure as she'd thought. She was Meru- afterall. Take it in stride, with a smile. ... Smiles just seemed so hard in coming, now adays. Even her friend Guaraha- normally so aloof in his discovery of Endiness, would return home to the Wingly Forest and wonder where her cheer had gone. Maybe this was just a part of growing up. Or Maybe it was just a part of life in general. Life like this; where her concern would flounder into worry, and her hope was hard pressed not to flee. "Meru?" The young woman started, pulling a light blue overcoat around her arms against the wind. Silver hair whisked to the right by the turbulent breeze, she glanced behind her- and blinked as Miranda came into the Crow's Nest. "Sup?" "Nothing worth doing." Miranda stated, snarling at a snag in her shirt as she easily lifted herself onto the flats. "Dart and Emily are with Shana, checking up on her. Queen's all laced up in knots..." A hand panned through her golden hair. "Came to see what your take on this hellhole we call circumstance is. Got a question, too." And she roughly slung her arms over the railing, bracing herself on her elbows. Meru sighed a little, ruby eyes distant. "I say things feel wrong. Like there's more going on than we think. Even before Haschel. And now- like with this...?" Worry raced over her eyes. "... Albert's been in a coma for months. I just don't understand..." The Sacred Sister gave a rough snort. " I can't speak for his illness; but this hostage thing ss probably political- I wouldn't worry to much. Albert's easy prey in his current state; I don't think anyone would outright have the gall to harm him." "But... they -the person- used magic..." Miranda's eyes narrowed, swiftly turning her gaze from the ocean upon Meru. Ah... "... You're thinking this could spark feuding." Meru nodded. "Three years or not, Winglies and Humans still don't always get along. The peace we do have is fragile- suppose this is some fanatic trying to bring those ancient prejudices to the surface? Albert was heavily involved in the formation of that 'New Kaddesa Organization' -- and met alot of opposition in the process. He was under the gun from both races; even though the POINT of the damned project was to unite them." The Wingly held her head a moment. "... I can't helping thinking I should have been more of an influence. A Wingly bearing a dragoon stone. It signified something. Had- anyway. Tensions since the moon Crisis have only been building." She sighed, jolted in surprise thereafter when Miranda cuffed her on the arm. HARD. "Bullshit." Came a single frank word. "Don't blame yourself for anything going on in the here and now. You've done your best. Hell knows I wouldn't have offered myself up as representative between the two races. All our world leaders would have ended up getting decked." She smiled. Meru couldn't help but smile back; she didn't doubt that in the slightest. "Now lay off it." Miranda continued with a sharp nod to the wind. "When we get to Serdio, we're gonna' take care of business Dragoon style and put the person who's decided to mess with one of OUR friends into a permanent body cast." Meru laughed. "Damn right." And now feeling a bit better, she gave the Sacred Sister a tug on her sleeve and tilted her head. "What did you want to ask me...?" "Oh..." Miranda straightened, reminded. "... It's not that big a deal, really. I realize I'm 'out of the loop' by now, but..." Meru blinked. "How the HELL did Emily land up with Kongol's dragoon spirit?" Meru could have outright KICKED herself. Holy gods... that's right, Miranda wouldn't know. Theresa's right-hand woman was the member of their party furthest from any one person of their group, and therefore left out on a deal of information that honestly needed to be told if they wanted to bring her up to speed. It wasn't intentional of she or the others to forget- it was just circumstance. They so rarely saw one another, and so much happened in BETWEEN those periods of visitation... "Kongol gave it up." She said simply. "A few months ago, just after Albert started having his dizzy spells. Haschel's health was already failing at that point; and Kongol was gradually taking his place as leader of the village; as per Haschel's wishes. After awhile... he decided it was his lot in life. He really loves those people; they're like the family he never had. Aside us and all, but..." Miranda BLINKED. "... So he traded off the duty of becoming a dragoon, to become a chieftain?" "-Why do you think he stayed at Rouge when we left a few hours ago?" "-I thought-! I.. I didn't know- I just figured he'd be meeting up with us later-!?" Meru shook her head. "He has an obligation to those people, now. Awhile back, he came to Serdio to entrust his Dragoon Spirit with Dart, but Emily happened to walk into the room, and que- the old familiar light show." Miranda sat back, looking baffled, and a little pissed off. "......" "Emily's working really hard to learn of- and use her power..." The Wingly tred warily. "... Are you... upset?" "Just shocked." Miranda bit out; then sighing. "...Kongol's a friend." "Well it's not like he ISN'T anymore..." "I KNOW that, Meru." She continued gently; the odd, softer tone of her voice taking Meru just a moment offguard. "But... Hell. It's just another damned thing to get used to. When I told Shana I would take her stone, I meant for life. Being a Dragoon isn't something I take lightly." A nod. "It's just the way things worked out, is all..." Miranda nodded gently, casting her eyes out to sea. "Yeah." ~ end chapter three ~ ------- I'm sorry everything is so BORING, you guys! O_O It'll pick up come next chapter; the Christmas update on December 24th!