8BTFreek: *laughs* Well, it seems that Forms is still a hit! I'm impressed. Thanks to everyone that liked it! The last chapter just burst out of me.
REVIEWER RESPONSES:
tigerlily98: I'm updating! I'm updating! Sheesh!
Joker's Specter: Well, there are many undercurrents that are hidden from the naked eye: the hatred of the Q'tiil that is drummed into every Lemurian child's head, the hatred of the Lemurians that is drummed into every Q'tiil child's head, the dangers of combining alcohol and idiocy... You get my drift.
Mesoforte: I really hope so. I really hope they review, too!
ACL: Hey, "interesting" means that you're interested. And yes, I've gotten comments that it was confusing. That's what I meant. And if that's not good enough for you, how's this? A wizard did it.
Allexandra: Well, as long as you're ok with it in my fic... I mean, I couldn't leave Isaac's parents without grandchildren, could I? That just wouldn't be ethical, in my viewpoint. And Link is right, Piers is insane. And a bit drunk.
Rallalon: Yes, the plot is extremely thick right now. I've been dubbed "the King of Plot Twists," so... expect stuff like that from me. And no, I'm not nice to a certain OC. As for Alex... wait and see.
END RESPONSES
8BTFreek: Someday, I'm going to have to Review Response in C++, just to see what would happen.
Nynaeve: Your reviewers would go nuts, that's what'd happen.
8BTFreek: Oh, hush.
Rand: Freek doesn't own Golden Sun, Golden Sun: The Lost Age, the characters and places thereof, or the ideas therein. However, he does own the Q'tiil, the concepts behind them, and the concept of Kayshipping, however strange that may be.
8BTFreek: You don't have to remind me about not owning Golden Sun.
**Chapter 5: The Seeds of Hatred**
That same morning, Piers woke to the grandmother of all hangovers. His head pulsed as he sat up in bed. As he opened his bloodshot eyes, he tried to remember what had happened over the past week. Certain events stood out. The first, not surprisingly, was the arrival of Rhoen. Second was his "fight" with the Q'tiil, the only fight that had ended in his total humiliation. Being kissed by Sheba came third, followed by a fond memory of draining the inn of about half its alcohol. After that was a blur, punctuated by a memory of challenging Rhoen to a duel.
He had been surprised by Kay's appearance and subsequent threat. {Didn't Garet tell her about the Q'tiil? Come to think of it, does he even live there anymore?} Being unable to answer his own questions made him boil with rage, but he managed to force it down behind a mask of calm. After getting dressed, he put on a pair of gloves and grabbed his belt knife. He had... things... to do.
***
Kay jumped at the knock on the door. She had been sitting with Rhoen, watching him carve. She had also been looking at the carvings that he'd completed. She thought that he had made her too beautiful. Gathering herself together, she walked out of the room and opened the front door. There stood Piers, a look of utter calm crossing his face. "What do you want?" she asked, remembering what he'd done in his drunken state the previous day.
"I wish to speak with Rhoen," he said in a too-calm voice.
"Give me your weapons," she demanded. He undid his belt knife, took off his gloves, and took off his cape. Handing it to Kay, he asked where Rhoen's room was. "First room on the left." Without any sign of recognition, he strode off to the door on the left, pulled it open, and slid in.
***
Rhoen's sensitive ears picked up the opening of the door. Sharply looking up from his carving, he tried to find out the identity of the one who'd opened it. This would have worked had the door not opened to the inside. Suddenly, Piers glided into the room, a completely calm look on his face. Rhoen put down the carving amid the complete ones, gripping his knife. "What do you want, son of Lemuria?"
"I only wish to talk." He sat down in the chair Kay had occupied only moments before.
Rhoen turned to face the man. "About what?" His voice contained an amount of suspicion that he never would have used under normal circumstances.
"I'm not going to kill you, if that's what you're worrying about. Your caretaker took my weapons." Rhoen's face twisted at his naming Kay a caretaker. She was merely a good friend. Piers shook his head. "No, I only wish to talk."
Rhoen nodded. Currently, the only words of his father's that he'd ever paid attention to flowed through his head. {Know your enemy and his defeat becomes easier.} Seren's voice also echoed. {I am sure that rhoen exist among other nations. Trust the outsiders, brother.} "You begin to see things Kay's way, then?" Piers laughed, a cold, venomous laugh.
"No more than you see things mine." He sat back, lounging like a leopard on a rock. Rhoen still wasn't convinced that he'd given up all his weapons. "No, you're still an enemy. I'd just like to understand your philosophy."
"Ah, still seeing me as the country I was born, eh?" He shook his head. "But I still see you as a Lemurian, I guess. The seeds of hatred are planted deep in youth, no? My guess is you were taught from the cradle to hate Q'tiil."
Piers looked defensive. "What makes you think that?"
"That's how early they teach Q'tiil to hate Lemurians, Piers." He stood up and opened the door. "Think on what I've said, Piers of the Lemurian Islands."
"Island," muttered Piers as he stood up and exited. "You bastards sunk Maren Heights." Kay walked in soon afterwards.
"What was that about?" she asked, sitting down.
"The seeds of hatred are buried young, Lady Kay." He picked up the unfinished carving and set to carving again. "Very young."
***
The room pulsed. Flashes of light linked the sleeper to three statures. Suddenly his eyes snapped open.
Reaching toward the fourth statue in the room, Alex grumbled. "Mia will bear me an heir and an heiress." Quickly, he forced the stone floor to create a large board. It seemed a chessboard, but with many times more squares.
"Bring in the key figures," he whispered. Three elements combined to form small figurines. He noticed them, but only paid attention to the ones of himself and the Wise One. "Now his army," he murmured. Figures of Felix and his seven companions took up eight of the squares. "And their families." A multitude of figurines filled the board. Each was near the people they were related to. He only took notice of two. One was Hama, Ivan's sister, who was positioned near to both Ivan and Felix. The other one was Garet's sister Kay, who was placed nowhere near her brother. In fact, she was close to the key players. It was then Alex noted a third among the key figures. Picking up the statuette, he looked carefully at it. It was fairly recognizable.
"Not Seren. I killed that good-for-nothing rhoen years ago. But then who...?" He looked closer. Suddenly, he gasped - and smiled. "Zhin... so the boy wants his revenge." A twisted smile further distorted his handsome features. "Perfect."
He picked up the figure of Mia. "You will be mine, even if you love another. Love cannot interfere with imperial bloodlines. The imperial bloodlines must be kept pure." He picked up Garet's statuette and crushed it. "And I will be emperor, no matter who stands in my way."
***
Rhoen felt a surge of power, but he said nothing about it. Instead, he asked the one question that had been on his mind since Kay had first mentioned her brother. "Doesn't Garet live here?" he asked.
Kay rolled her eyes. "He's supposed to, but he keeps finding excuses to stay at Mia's residence. You know - the place she stay at whenever she comes to visit." The past two days, she had told him about her family. He had noticed that every time she mentioned Garet and Mia, venom entered her voice.
"Another question. Did Garet ever tell you about his journeys and the people he met?"
"He may have mentioned something..." she muttered. She then looked him in the eyes. Confusion crossed across her face. Rhoen didn't notice.
"Did he mention someone named... Alex?" His voice tightened at the name. He focused his gaze on her. She pondered the question for a moment, then nodded.
"Yes..." She closed her eyes and tried to think of what Garet had told her. He said... he said Alex tried to take the power of the Golden Sun, and had a lot of power." She gave him a flat gaze. "He described the man as power-hungry." She looked at him questioningly. "Why do you ask?"
A shiver passed through Rhoen's spine. "Always, the power-hungry want more." He looked at her. "If this is who I think it is, then the man that tried to take the Golden Sun is also the one who murdered Seren. Alex, the slayer of Imil and the one outlander my father truly liked." Kay just sat there, white as a sheet, eyes wide as saucers.
"But... He won't come after you, will he?" He set down the carving and knife. Slowly, he walked over to her and held her, trying to comfort her fears. "I mean, he's dead, right?"
Rhoen shook his head. "I have a feeling that he's not dead. Merely... sleeping." Suddenly, he felt something confirm and add to his thoughts. "In Mt. Aleph, Alex slumbers. But he wants me dead because I am a rhoen, and my kind are a threat to his imperial dreams." He held her tight. "But hear this. I swear on my honor, I will not allow him to harm you, so long as I live." He lightly kissed her cheek. Horror still held her face, but she didn't seem as scared as she had been. {Now I must play the comforter,} he thought. He watched over her that night, tucking her in and watching her to make sure she slept well.
The next morning, he went to his room to get a well-needed repose. The sight he saw upon entering caused his eyes to widen and his hand to dart for his flail.
***
8BTFreek: Well, Alex is more powerful, Rhoen is a good guy, Piers had the hangover of the century, and Rhoen's real name was revealed. Of course, only two people outside of Q'tlataresh know it, but...
Rand: Well, that's that.
8BTFreek: Yes, and it's a bit shorter than other chapters. That's what you get for hand-writing it first.
Rand: Oh well. Let's see, what's left...?
8BTFreek: A-hem? *points to script... which nobody else has* Oh, wait! That's my script for trying out for the school play. *grabs notepad, points to writing on that* A-hem?
Rand: *goes over to Freek, looks at notepad* Oh, right. Please review.
REVIEWER RESPONSES:
tigerlily98: I'm updating! I'm updating! Sheesh!
Joker's Specter: Well, there are many undercurrents that are hidden from the naked eye: the hatred of the Q'tiil that is drummed into every Lemurian child's head, the hatred of the Lemurians that is drummed into every Q'tiil child's head, the dangers of combining alcohol and idiocy... You get my drift.
Mesoforte: I really hope so. I really hope they review, too!
ACL: Hey, "interesting" means that you're interested. And yes, I've gotten comments that it was confusing. That's what I meant. And if that's not good enough for you, how's this? A wizard did it.
Allexandra: Well, as long as you're ok with it in my fic... I mean, I couldn't leave Isaac's parents without grandchildren, could I? That just wouldn't be ethical, in my viewpoint. And Link is right, Piers is insane. And a bit drunk.
Rallalon: Yes, the plot is extremely thick right now. I've been dubbed "the King of Plot Twists," so... expect stuff like that from me. And no, I'm not nice to a certain OC. As for Alex... wait and see.
END RESPONSES
8BTFreek: Someday, I'm going to have to Review Response in C++, just to see what would happen.
Nynaeve: Your reviewers would go nuts, that's what'd happen.
8BTFreek: Oh, hush.
Rand: Freek doesn't own Golden Sun, Golden Sun: The Lost Age, the characters and places thereof, or the ideas therein. However, he does own the Q'tiil, the concepts behind them, and the concept of Kayshipping, however strange that may be.
8BTFreek: You don't have to remind me about not owning Golden Sun.
**Chapter 5: The Seeds of Hatred**
That same morning, Piers woke to the grandmother of all hangovers. His head pulsed as he sat up in bed. As he opened his bloodshot eyes, he tried to remember what had happened over the past week. Certain events stood out. The first, not surprisingly, was the arrival of Rhoen. Second was his "fight" with the Q'tiil, the only fight that had ended in his total humiliation. Being kissed by Sheba came third, followed by a fond memory of draining the inn of about half its alcohol. After that was a blur, punctuated by a memory of challenging Rhoen to a duel.
He had been surprised by Kay's appearance and subsequent threat. {Didn't Garet tell her about the Q'tiil? Come to think of it, does he even live there anymore?} Being unable to answer his own questions made him boil with rage, but he managed to force it down behind a mask of calm. After getting dressed, he put on a pair of gloves and grabbed his belt knife. He had... things... to do.
***
Kay jumped at the knock on the door. She had been sitting with Rhoen, watching him carve. She had also been looking at the carvings that he'd completed. She thought that he had made her too beautiful. Gathering herself together, she walked out of the room and opened the front door. There stood Piers, a look of utter calm crossing his face. "What do you want?" she asked, remembering what he'd done in his drunken state the previous day.
"I wish to speak with Rhoen," he said in a too-calm voice.
"Give me your weapons," she demanded. He undid his belt knife, took off his gloves, and took off his cape. Handing it to Kay, he asked where Rhoen's room was. "First room on the left." Without any sign of recognition, he strode off to the door on the left, pulled it open, and slid in.
***
Rhoen's sensitive ears picked up the opening of the door. Sharply looking up from his carving, he tried to find out the identity of the one who'd opened it. This would have worked had the door not opened to the inside. Suddenly, Piers glided into the room, a completely calm look on his face. Rhoen put down the carving amid the complete ones, gripping his knife. "What do you want, son of Lemuria?"
"I only wish to talk." He sat down in the chair Kay had occupied only moments before.
Rhoen turned to face the man. "About what?" His voice contained an amount of suspicion that he never would have used under normal circumstances.
"I'm not going to kill you, if that's what you're worrying about. Your caretaker took my weapons." Rhoen's face twisted at his naming Kay a caretaker. She was merely a good friend. Piers shook his head. "No, I only wish to talk."
Rhoen nodded. Currently, the only words of his father's that he'd ever paid attention to flowed through his head. {Know your enemy and his defeat becomes easier.} Seren's voice also echoed. {I am sure that rhoen exist among other nations. Trust the outsiders, brother.} "You begin to see things Kay's way, then?" Piers laughed, a cold, venomous laugh.
"No more than you see things mine." He sat back, lounging like a leopard on a rock. Rhoen still wasn't convinced that he'd given up all his weapons. "No, you're still an enemy. I'd just like to understand your philosophy."
"Ah, still seeing me as the country I was born, eh?" He shook his head. "But I still see you as a Lemurian, I guess. The seeds of hatred are planted deep in youth, no? My guess is you were taught from the cradle to hate Q'tiil."
Piers looked defensive. "What makes you think that?"
"That's how early they teach Q'tiil to hate Lemurians, Piers." He stood up and opened the door. "Think on what I've said, Piers of the Lemurian Islands."
"Island," muttered Piers as he stood up and exited. "You bastards sunk Maren Heights." Kay walked in soon afterwards.
"What was that about?" she asked, sitting down.
"The seeds of hatred are buried young, Lady Kay." He picked up the unfinished carving and set to carving again. "Very young."
***
The room pulsed. Flashes of light linked the sleeper to three statures. Suddenly his eyes snapped open.
Reaching toward the fourth statue in the room, Alex grumbled. "Mia will bear me an heir and an heiress." Quickly, he forced the stone floor to create a large board. It seemed a chessboard, but with many times more squares.
"Bring in the key figures," he whispered. Three elements combined to form small figurines. He noticed them, but only paid attention to the ones of himself and the Wise One. "Now his army," he murmured. Figures of Felix and his seven companions took up eight of the squares. "And their families." A multitude of figurines filled the board. Each was near the people they were related to. He only took notice of two. One was Hama, Ivan's sister, who was positioned near to both Ivan and Felix. The other one was Garet's sister Kay, who was placed nowhere near her brother. In fact, she was close to the key players. It was then Alex noted a third among the key figures. Picking up the statuette, he looked carefully at it. It was fairly recognizable.
"Not Seren. I killed that good-for-nothing rhoen years ago. But then who...?" He looked closer. Suddenly, he gasped - and smiled. "Zhin... so the boy wants his revenge." A twisted smile further distorted his handsome features. "Perfect."
He picked up the figure of Mia. "You will be mine, even if you love another. Love cannot interfere with imperial bloodlines. The imperial bloodlines must be kept pure." He picked up Garet's statuette and crushed it. "And I will be emperor, no matter who stands in my way."
***
Rhoen felt a surge of power, but he said nothing about it. Instead, he asked the one question that had been on his mind since Kay had first mentioned her brother. "Doesn't Garet live here?" he asked.
Kay rolled her eyes. "He's supposed to, but he keeps finding excuses to stay at Mia's residence. You know - the place she stay at whenever she comes to visit." The past two days, she had told him about her family. He had noticed that every time she mentioned Garet and Mia, venom entered her voice.
"Another question. Did Garet ever tell you about his journeys and the people he met?"
"He may have mentioned something..." she muttered. She then looked him in the eyes. Confusion crossed across her face. Rhoen didn't notice.
"Did he mention someone named... Alex?" His voice tightened at the name. He focused his gaze on her. She pondered the question for a moment, then nodded.
"Yes..." She closed her eyes and tried to think of what Garet had told her. He said... he said Alex tried to take the power of the Golden Sun, and had a lot of power." She gave him a flat gaze. "He described the man as power-hungry." She looked at him questioningly. "Why do you ask?"
A shiver passed through Rhoen's spine. "Always, the power-hungry want more." He looked at her. "If this is who I think it is, then the man that tried to take the Golden Sun is also the one who murdered Seren. Alex, the slayer of Imil and the one outlander my father truly liked." Kay just sat there, white as a sheet, eyes wide as saucers.
"But... He won't come after you, will he?" He set down the carving and knife. Slowly, he walked over to her and held her, trying to comfort her fears. "I mean, he's dead, right?"
Rhoen shook his head. "I have a feeling that he's not dead. Merely... sleeping." Suddenly, he felt something confirm and add to his thoughts. "In Mt. Aleph, Alex slumbers. But he wants me dead because I am a rhoen, and my kind are a threat to his imperial dreams." He held her tight. "But hear this. I swear on my honor, I will not allow him to harm you, so long as I live." He lightly kissed her cheek. Horror still held her face, but she didn't seem as scared as she had been. {Now I must play the comforter,} he thought. He watched over her that night, tucking her in and watching her to make sure she slept well.
The next morning, he went to his room to get a well-needed repose. The sight he saw upon entering caused his eyes to widen and his hand to dart for his flail.
***
8BTFreek: Well, Alex is more powerful, Rhoen is a good guy, Piers had the hangover of the century, and Rhoen's real name was revealed. Of course, only two people outside of Q'tlataresh know it, but...
Rand: Well, that's that.
8BTFreek: Yes, and it's a bit shorter than other chapters. That's what you get for hand-writing it first.
Rand: Oh well. Let's see, what's left...?
8BTFreek: A-hem? *points to script... which nobody else has* Oh, wait! That's my script for trying out for the school play. *grabs notepad, points to writing on that* A-hem?
Rand: *goes over to Freek, looks at notepad* Oh, right. Please review.