Chapter Twenty-seven
Next Day; Burmecia; Freya's House; Early Morning
"So, what are you going to do?" Amarant asked Freya.
Freya looked over at Amarant. She had indeed slept on the problem, like she had said. Her dreams had transported her to predicted futures, and things that she could do. Indeed, her sleep had been so "busy", it hadn't really been fulfilling. She was still rather sleepy, though keeping alert. Meander seemed to be in a similar condition. Amarant seemed perfectly fine, though Freya had an idea that his sleep had not been fitful either. Eiko was not up yet, while Dominic had been sent to do a little investigating. Anita was up, but she was completely silent and had not said a word.
"I'm thinking of consulting Puck," Freya said slowly. "He may know something, being the way he is."
"What if Puck is dead?" Amarant asked.
"Then I suppose I'll get information of some sort either way," Freya muttered grimly.
Amarant nodded. "Well, perhaps Dominic will find him."
Freya nodded. "And if not, well..."
Freya didn't elaborate, for everyone understood.
Ten minutes later, Dominic quietly entered the room. There was a neutral look on his face, but his eyes were glittering with excitement. Freya stared at him silently for a few moments before she spoke.
"Any luck?" she asked.
"We found him," Dominic replied happily. "He's alive, that's for sure."
Freya smiled with relief. "That's good! Do you think I could see him?"
"He specifically said he wanted to see you," Dominic replied. "He said it in a much ruder way, however."
"That's Puck for you," Freya said, rising from the chair. She turned to Meander, Dominic, and Anita. "I shouldn't be long."
"Can I come with you?" Anita asked, rising to her feet.
"I see nothing wrong with it," Freya said after some thought.
"Be careful," Amarant grunted.
"I will be," Freya said. She took a few steps toward the door. She then paused, and turned to Amarant and Meander once more. "Oh, and when Eiko wakes up... Be nice."
"No promise there," Amarant grunted.
"Make it one," Freya replied. "I'll be going now."
With that, Freya turned to Dominic.
"Lead the way," she said simply.
Dominic nodded and strode swiftly out of the house. Anita's ears twitched slightly, and she immediately followed Dominic. Freya also left, following Anita, who followed Dominic with no problems. They took many twists and turns that led them to places Freya could barely remember. Then, suddenly, Dominic stopped walking. He stooped down and touched the ground.
"Open," Dominic whispered.
Suddenly the floor swung open to reveal that it wasn't the floor after all – it was a secret door. Opening it revealed a stone staircase leading down into darkness. Dominic walked over to the staircase and began to descend. Anita slowly followed him, not wanting to fall. Freya also followed, and soon she found them surrounded by darkness. The place was cold and quiet. Above Freya, the door closed.
They continued to descend steadily, none of them stumbling despite the eternal darkness. Then, suddenly, Freya saw a soft light. It was flickering, indicating it to be a candle's light. As they descended, the light became larger and larger, until it was bright enough to light the room the way the sun would. They all reached the bottom steps.
"Puck," Anita shouted as she reached the bottom, her voice echoing through the chamber.
"Yeah, I hear ya."
Footsteps echoed throughout the chamber, and soon Freya saw Puck. He had a long scar across his face. Other than that, Freya could see nothing wrong with him. Puck soon stopped walking and regarded his visitors with a cold stare.
"Nice of you to visit," Puck spat sarcastically at Freya.
"I'm being stalked. My schedule is busy," Freya replied, walking over. "You look fine."
"Huh. I'm anything but fine. Lose position as king, nearly get murdered, and suffer this," Puck complained, and as he completed his last sentence, he held up his right hand.
The index finger on Puck's right hand was missing. Freya stared for a bit, then sighed.
"Puck, I'm sorry, but everything's madness. Ebon's king, I have been practically on my deathbed for about a week now, Anita's being hunted," Freya replied, sighing. "It's – insane."
"No kidding, it's insane! Ebon's after me too!" Puck replied. "Come with me. I have a lot to tell you."
Puck turned around and headed down the corridor. Freya swiftly followed him. Hearing footsteps, Anita headed after the footsteps. Dominic was last to follow. Puck led the group down the dark corridor and into a cozy-seeming room with a large fireplace. They all took a seat on the large, fluffy rug on the floor.
"I'm sure you all figured out that we have some major problems brewing up here," Puck began in a low tone. "Ebon is king, first off. With him as king, it brings the security women once got down. Now attempts are murder are slowly creeping through. There are very few attempts – and even fewer successful ones – but at this rate we're all dead. Ebon, of course, doesn't care. Meanwhile, Ebon has been doing many things to keep Freya here from being safe here. She's been banned, she's no longer a Dragon Warrior, and Ebon's instructed any who find her to hand her in to authorities. Obviously, he's in on the plot to kill you, Freya. Then, Ebon wants Anita dead and me. Why? We're smart, and we're dangerous to him."
"It's not because she's blind after all?" Freya asked.
"No," Puck replied. "It's because Anita and I are working together to spy on Ebon. He knows, and he wants us killed. Unfortunately for Ebon, he doesn't know about this underground chamber built who-knows-when. So we're safe – But you're not, Freya. You're in grave danger. A suspicious figure in black has been spotted various times."
"Julius," Freya muttered.
"Exactly," Puck said. "And with Ebon in charge, Julius can wander free."
"We need to get Ebon out of office," Dominic said.
"But how?" Freya asked. "I'm not about to kill the king..."
"Why not?" Puck asked.
"Because I have enough problems already. I don't need the dungeon to boot," Freya answered.
Puck sighed with exasperation. "If that's how you're going to work right now, fine. But I'd be on your guard – All the time."
"I am," Freya growled.
"Not at night," Puck muttered. "Something bad is brewing. Something ominous. Something is going to happen, and it's going to happen at night. Just please, be careful. Don't let your guard down just because darkness falls. That will only get you killed."
"How can I be on guard at night when I sleep then?" Freya snapped.
"Light sleeping," Puck replied. "Come on, Freya. Would you rather be dead?"
Freya took a deep breath, thinking things over.
"All right, I'll try," she said.
"Good. That's all for now. For now, just keep yourself alive. Anita and I will do a bit more spying," Puck said. "Now get out of here."
Freya and Dominic rose to their feet.
"I'll stay here," Anita said. "I'll be back later."
"All right," Freya said. "Be careful, okay?"
"Same to you," Anita replied.
Freya nodded. She and Dominic then began to head back to Freya's house.
"What are you going to do?" Dominic asked.
"I don't think I can do much," Freya admitted. "Just keep my current level of security. That's it."
Dominic frowned, but he didn't say anything. The remainder of the walk passed in silence.
"So Ebon is the source of our troubles?" Amarant asked after Freya had relayed the news.
"Yes," Freya replied.
"Then why don't you get rid of him?" Meander spat.
"You already know why," Freya replied.
"You're going to the dungeon anyway. Might as well spend your time in the dungeon without Julius trying to kill you in there," Meander growled.
"I think I'd prefer him trying to kill me right now than in the dungeon," Freya retorted.
"How about never?" Amarant asked.
"I don't want to spend time in the dungeon, and I don't want Julius after me. What am I supposed to do, attack Julius?" Freya asked.
"Why not?" Amarant asked.
"Because he's too powerful, and I'll be dead!" Freya snapped. "Later I may be able to face him. But right now? No."
"So you're just going to stay tied in a deadly knot?" Amarant asked.
"Until I'm given time to think, yes," Freya replied. "Now leave me be so that I may find that time."
Freya rose from the chair she had been sitting in and headed upstairs. She walked into her bedroom and nearly slammed herself into her bed. She thought carefully over the possibilities, but there were too many. She could kill Ebon. She could kill Julius. She could kill both of them. She could run away. She could kill herself. She could bring others into the conflict.
She could do so many things she couldn't keep track of them all.
"Well, you are certainly making an attempt at solving this problem maturely."
"Well, there are so many choices to make, I don't know which one is best," Freya told Amarant as he entered the room. "What would you do? No wait, don't answer that."
"Why not?" Amarant asked.
"Because I know the answer. What's Meander's opinion on all this? He's not easy to read," Freya continued.
"I haven't the slightest idea," Amarant replied. "His moods are changing too quickly."
"Too quickly?"
"Haven't you noticed that Meander's moods change quicker than you can jump? These days it's been worse than normal."
"You mean he always has mood twists?"
"Always."
"That's interesting. Where's Eiko?"
"That I don't know."
"Did you do something to her?"
"No. She left on her own."
Freya looked out the window. "To where, I wonder?"
"I'm sure she'll be back. Unfortunately." Amarant turned toward the door. "I'll leave you to your 'thinking' now."
Freya watched him leave with relief. She needed peace and quiet, not only to think, but to keep from going insane. No one was helping her now. They were only driving her nuts.
Now that it was quiet, Freya felt at peace.
The rest of the day brought silent confusion and pondering for Freya. Eiko came back to the house, but she seemed trouble and refused to speak with anyone. Meander's mood changes became worse and worse until he finally isolated himself. Anita seemed worried when she finally got home in the evening. Dominic seemed confused, and Freya was equally confused. Everyone's behavior was strange.
When night fell, Freya found herself trying not to sleep. Something was going to happen. Everyone seemed to sense it. She tried to keep herself awake.
She failed. Slowly, as the night seemed peaceful, Freya fell asleep. Only a few minutes after, Amarant, restless, left the house. A noise in the distance startled him. Suspicious, he swiftly moved to check it out.
Julius padded quietly into the house. He prepared a fire spell, then mentally commanded it to become resistant to water. The fire became blue. Julius walked up the stairs silently. He then shot the fire spell at one of the wooden beams that supported the walls. While the wood caught fire, he prepared another blue fire spell and shot it at the window frame in Freya's room. He moved swiftly, setting many things a blaze. He then padded over to the stairs. In seconds, he had them on fire as well. Julius then teleported to the main level of the house. There, he set fire to furniture and the front door.
Julius heard scrambling upstairs, but the scrambling was of shoed feet. Smirking, Julius teleported out of the burning house. He knew that it would take some time before his victim woke up.
It was not the smoke that alerted Amarant to trouble, but rather an odd light in the distance. Amarant had already been walking toward Freya's house, but he broke into a jog to make sure to investigate.
He couldn't believe what he saw when he got there. It had not been just a small light. It had been a huge fire.
Freya's house was on fire.
--------- Hello, hello! Not much coming from me... Just things are taking a downward spiral, yes? Heh, another cliffhanger. Mwahahahahahaha!
This story is copyright to me. Some characters, locations, and Gaia in general are copyright to SquareEnix.
Next Day; Burmecia; Freya's House; Early Morning
"So, what are you going to do?" Amarant asked Freya.
Freya looked over at Amarant. She had indeed slept on the problem, like she had said. Her dreams had transported her to predicted futures, and things that she could do. Indeed, her sleep had been so "busy", it hadn't really been fulfilling. She was still rather sleepy, though keeping alert. Meander seemed to be in a similar condition. Amarant seemed perfectly fine, though Freya had an idea that his sleep had not been fitful either. Eiko was not up yet, while Dominic had been sent to do a little investigating. Anita was up, but she was completely silent and had not said a word.
"I'm thinking of consulting Puck," Freya said slowly. "He may know something, being the way he is."
"What if Puck is dead?" Amarant asked.
"Then I suppose I'll get information of some sort either way," Freya muttered grimly.
Amarant nodded. "Well, perhaps Dominic will find him."
Freya nodded. "And if not, well..."
Freya didn't elaborate, for everyone understood.
Ten minutes later, Dominic quietly entered the room. There was a neutral look on his face, but his eyes were glittering with excitement. Freya stared at him silently for a few moments before she spoke.
"Any luck?" she asked.
"We found him," Dominic replied happily. "He's alive, that's for sure."
Freya smiled with relief. "That's good! Do you think I could see him?"
"He specifically said he wanted to see you," Dominic replied. "He said it in a much ruder way, however."
"That's Puck for you," Freya said, rising from the chair. She turned to Meander, Dominic, and Anita. "I shouldn't be long."
"Can I come with you?" Anita asked, rising to her feet.
"I see nothing wrong with it," Freya said after some thought.
"Be careful," Amarant grunted.
"I will be," Freya said. She took a few steps toward the door. She then paused, and turned to Amarant and Meander once more. "Oh, and when Eiko wakes up... Be nice."
"No promise there," Amarant grunted.
"Make it one," Freya replied. "I'll be going now."
With that, Freya turned to Dominic.
"Lead the way," she said simply.
Dominic nodded and strode swiftly out of the house. Anita's ears twitched slightly, and she immediately followed Dominic. Freya also left, following Anita, who followed Dominic with no problems. They took many twists and turns that led them to places Freya could barely remember. Then, suddenly, Dominic stopped walking. He stooped down and touched the ground.
"Open," Dominic whispered.
Suddenly the floor swung open to reveal that it wasn't the floor after all – it was a secret door. Opening it revealed a stone staircase leading down into darkness. Dominic walked over to the staircase and began to descend. Anita slowly followed him, not wanting to fall. Freya also followed, and soon she found them surrounded by darkness. The place was cold and quiet. Above Freya, the door closed.
They continued to descend steadily, none of them stumbling despite the eternal darkness. Then, suddenly, Freya saw a soft light. It was flickering, indicating it to be a candle's light. As they descended, the light became larger and larger, until it was bright enough to light the room the way the sun would. They all reached the bottom steps.
"Puck," Anita shouted as she reached the bottom, her voice echoing through the chamber.
"Yeah, I hear ya."
Footsteps echoed throughout the chamber, and soon Freya saw Puck. He had a long scar across his face. Other than that, Freya could see nothing wrong with him. Puck soon stopped walking and regarded his visitors with a cold stare.
"Nice of you to visit," Puck spat sarcastically at Freya.
"I'm being stalked. My schedule is busy," Freya replied, walking over. "You look fine."
"Huh. I'm anything but fine. Lose position as king, nearly get murdered, and suffer this," Puck complained, and as he completed his last sentence, he held up his right hand.
The index finger on Puck's right hand was missing. Freya stared for a bit, then sighed.
"Puck, I'm sorry, but everything's madness. Ebon's king, I have been practically on my deathbed for about a week now, Anita's being hunted," Freya replied, sighing. "It's – insane."
"No kidding, it's insane! Ebon's after me too!" Puck replied. "Come with me. I have a lot to tell you."
Puck turned around and headed down the corridor. Freya swiftly followed him. Hearing footsteps, Anita headed after the footsteps. Dominic was last to follow. Puck led the group down the dark corridor and into a cozy-seeming room with a large fireplace. They all took a seat on the large, fluffy rug on the floor.
"I'm sure you all figured out that we have some major problems brewing up here," Puck began in a low tone. "Ebon is king, first off. With him as king, it brings the security women once got down. Now attempts are murder are slowly creeping through. There are very few attempts – and even fewer successful ones – but at this rate we're all dead. Ebon, of course, doesn't care. Meanwhile, Ebon has been doing many things to keep Freya here from being safe here. She's been banned, she's no longer a Dragon Warrior, and Ebon's instructed any who find her to hand her in to authorities. Obviously, he's in on the plot to kill you, Freya. Then, Ebon wants Anita dead and me. Why? We're smart, and we're dangerous to him."
"It's not because she's blind after all?" Freya asked.
"No," Puck replied. "It's because Anita and I are working together to spy on Ebon. He knows, and he wants us killed. Unfortunately for Ebon, he doesn't know about this underground chamber built who-knows-when. So we're safe – But you're not, Freya. You're in grave danger. A suspicious figure in black has been spotted various times."
"Julius," Freya muttered.
"Exactly," Puck said. "And with Ebon in charge, Julius can wander free."
"We need to get Ebon out of office," Dominic said.
"But how?" Freya asked. "I'm not about to kill the king..."
"Why not?" Puck asked.
"Because I have enough problems already. I don't need the dungeon to boot," Freya answered.
Puck sighed with exasperation. "If that's how you're going to work right now, fine. But I'd be on your guard – All the time."
"I am," Freya growled.
"Not at night," Puck muttered. "Something bad is brewing. Something ominous. Something is going to happen, and it's going to happen at night. Just please, be careful. Don't let your guard down just because darkness falls. That will only get you killed."
"How can I be on guard at night when I sleep then?" Freya snapped.
"Light sleeping," Puck replied. "Come on, Freya. Would you rather be dead?"
Freya took a deep breath, thinking things over.
"All right, I'll try," she said.
"Good. That's all for now. For now, just keep yourself alive. Anita and I will do a bit more spying," Puck said. "Now get out of here."
Freya and Dominic rose to their feet.
"I'll stay here," Anita said. "I'll be back later."
"All right," Freya said. "Be careful, okay?"
"Same to you," Anita replied.
Freya nodded. She and Dominic then began to head back to Freya's house.
"What are you going to do?" Dominic asked.
"I don't think I can do much," Freya admitted. "Just keep my current level of security. That's it."
Dominic frowned, but he didn't say anything. The remainder of the walk passed in silence.
"So Ebon is the source of our troubles?" Amarant asked after Freya had relayed the news.
"Yes," Freya replied.
"Then why don't you get rid of him?" Meander spat.
"You already know why," Freya replied.
"You're going to the dungeon anyway. Might as well spend your time in the dungeon without Julius trying to kill you in there," Meander growled.
"I think I'd prefer him trying to kill me right now than in the dungeon," Freya retorted.
"How about never?" Amarant asked.
"I don't want to spend time in the dungeon, and I don't want Julius after me. What am I supposed to do, attack Julius?" Freya asked.
"Why not?" Amarant asked.
"Because he's too powerful, and I'll be dead!" Freya snapped. "Later I may be able to face him. But right now? No."
"So you're just going to stay tied in a deadly knot?" Amarant asked.
"Until I'm given time to think, yes," Freya replied. "Now leave me be so that I may find that time."
Freya rose from the chair she had been sitting in and headed upstairs. She walked into her bedroom and nearly slammed herself into her bed. She thought carefully over the possibilities, but there were too many. She could kill Ebon. She could kill Julius. She could kill both of them. She could run away. She could kill herself. She could bring others into the conflict.
She could do so many things she couldn't keep track of them all.
"Well, you are certainly making an attempt at solving this problem maturely."
"Well, there are so many choices to make, I don't know which one is best," Freya told Amarant as he entered the room. "What would you do? No wait, don't answer that."
"Why not?" Amarant asked.
"Because I know the answer. What's Meander's opinion on all this? He's not easy to read," Freya continued.
"I haven't the slightest idea," Amarant replied. "His moods are changing too quickly."
"Too quickly?"
"Haven't you noticed that Meander's moods change quicker than you can jump? These days it's been worse than normal."
"You mean he always has mood twists?"
"Always."
"That's interesting. Where's Eiko?"
"That I don't know."
"Did you do something to her?"
"No. She left on her own."
Freya looked out the window. "To where, I wonder?"
"I'm sure she'll be back. Unfortunately." Amarant turned toward the door. "I'll leave you to your 'thinking' now."
Freya watched him leave with relief. She needed peace and quiet, not only to think, but to keep from going insane. No one was helping her now. They were only driving her nuts.
Now that it was quiet, Freya felt at peace.
The rest of the day brought silent confusion and pondering for Freya. Eiko came back to the house, but she seemed trouble and refused to speak with anyone. Meander's mood changes became worse and worse until he finally isolated himself. Anita seemed worried when she finally got home in the evening. Dominic seemed confused, and Freya was equally confused. Everyone's behavior was strange.
When night fell, Freya found herself trying not to sleep. Something was going to happen. Everyone seemed to sense it. She tried to keep herself awake.
She failed. Slowly, as the night seemed peaceful, Freya fell asleep. Only a few minutes after, Amarant, restless, left the house. A noise in the distance startled him. Suspicious, he swiftly moved to check it out.
Julius padded quietly into the house. He prepared a fire spell, then mentally commanded it to become resistant to water. The fire became blue. Julius walked up the stairs silently. He then shot the fire spell at one of the wooden beams that supported the walls. While the wood caught fire, he prepared another blue fire spell and shot it at the window frame in Freya's room. He moved swiftly, setting many things a blaze. He then padded over to the stairs. In seconds, he had them on fire as well. Julius then teleported to the main level of the house. There, he set fire to furniture and the front door.
Julius heard scrambling upstairs, but the scrambling was of shoed feet. Smirking, Julius teleported out of the burning house. He knew that it would take some time before his victim woke up.
It was not the smoke that alerted Amarant to trouble, but rather an odd light in the distance. Amarant had already been walking toward Freya's house, but he broke into a jog to make sure to investigate.
He couldn't believe what he saw when he got there. It had not been just a small light. It had been a huge fire.
Freya's house was on fire.
--------- Hello, hello! Not much coming from me... Just things are taking a downward spiral, yes? Heh, another cliffhanger. Mwahahahahahaha!
This story is copyright to me. Some characters, locations, and Gaia in general are copyright to SquareEnix.