With the re-introduction of Orlha, hopefully Norris' urges will be better kept in line. Then again, the solider is surrounded by beautiful women, so you can't fault him too much for his actions. She might have surrendured once, but don't expect a repeat performance of that now; everyone's favorite jester joins the party once again. After this the companions only have one realm left to travel through. The journey to get there, however, will prove just as dangerous as ever.
Black Realm – Harle (Black Champion)
The black rift opened and the seven travelers stepped out. They took a minute to take in their new surroundings. For one thing, the black realm was a much dryer place than the blue realm. There wasn't even any water in sight. There was plenty of gray sky in sight, but the ground was not visible. Miki was standing on the edge of a mountainside, peering down. With a nervous sigh, she stood up straight, turned around, and looked at the others' faces.
"It's a looong way down," Miki informed with a frown. Her six companions mirrored her facial expression and hugged the mountain face. The rift had opened on a narrow mountain ledge, fifteen feet from a deadly drop. The sun hung in the sky on the opposite side of the peak, casting a shadow over the seven companions. However, it was a cloudy day so the shadow wasn't very noticeable. The uneven rocky mountain face was full of cracks and small crevices. The color of the rock was tinted to a dark gray.
"You understand everything?" Norris asked. He had just finished explaining the situation to Orlha.
Orlha nodded. "Yeah, I got all that. One of the gods is supposed to welcome us, right?"
"Yes," Leena answered. "So far, a god has spoken to us every time we entered a new realm."
"I wonder-hee where the next god is?" Razzly contemplated.
"And where are the sleeping black innates?" Schala questioned as she scanned the horizon.
"You people ask too many questions!" a foreign voice exclaimed. All eyes wandered in every direction in search of the voice's source with no luck. "Up here, mortals!" the voice called out again. They looked in the direction they least expected and found the voice. It belonged to a voluptuous woman, much to Norris' delight. She was floating in the air above them and gradually drifted down to their level, just past the cliff edge. Norris found himself staring at her shapely body, which was wrapped in a pitch black robe that dangled past her feet. The wind blew from her left, showing off the woman's curves through the robe. That same wind also blew her waist length ebony hair to magnify her striking presence. All in all, she was damn sexy and Norris couldn't agree more.
Leena and Orlha stood on either side of the soldier and took notice of his drooling. Simultaneously, they stomped on Norris' boots, which produced an "Ow!" from the military man.
Knocked out of his trance, he looked at his assailants with a show of surprise, but only received a "Hush!" from the two. With a huff, he faced the front and returned his eyes to the floating beauty before them. This time he kept his eyes on her face.
"You must be the goddess of this realm," Schala observed.
"Silence, foolish girl! I will introduce myself!" the woman snapped. Schala blushed a little at the outburst directed in her direction but didn't lose her resolve. "I am the goddess of death and darkness, Kylin! You are in my realm now, mortals!" Kylin laughed wickedly. The echoes chilled the mortals to their bones.
'Not exactly a welcome...' thought Orlha.
The goddess ceased her laughter and continued. "My realm is full of death so it is naturally a dangerous place. There is little life living in these hostile conditions. The majority of the living population in this realm are your slumbering friends."
"Where are they?" Leena spoke up.
Kylin's wicked laughter returned. "You will love this next part. Look over there." The goddess pointed to their left. They cautiously crept to the left side of the ledge in a single-file line. The ledge rapidly decreased in width until it was only a foot wide. They were forced to slowly shuffle sideways with their backs leaning against the wall. Kid, who was at the head of the line, could see a large pile of dead tree branches as she made it around the curve. The tree branches were tangled roughly into the shape of a bowl. "That is a nest," Kylin explained. "Your friends are inside, protected from the rot of this place by their bubbles."
"Everybody hold hands!" Schala ordered.
"And don't look down!" Leena added, struggling to take her own advice. Suddenly, a piercing croak echoed through the realm, startling the shufflers out of their comfort. Hearts pounding, they stopped all of their movements to steady their nerves.
"Oi! What was that?!" Kid cried out.
"Oh, that was just my pet raven," the goddess of death explained casually. "She is very protective of her babies and constantly guards her nest. She will not hesitate to attack anything that approaches it, excluding me, of course," she smiled devilishly. "Oh! Here she comes now. You should watch out."
The shrieking croak was sounded again, only louder this time. The raven circled overhead. The black-plumed bird had her enormous wings stretched out as it glided on the air currents. She had a wedge shaped tail and a sharp, thick beak. When the sun shone on the raven, her plumage appeared violet. She brought her wings in and fell into a dive. As she picked up speed, she began to spin into a barrel roll and aimed herself at the seven people stuck on the mountainside.
The group desperately tried to slide back to their ledge before the raven could reach them. All of them made it back with the exception of Kid, who was the farthest out. The raven stopped her spin and flew by the narrow passageway in an attempt to blow the thief off. The gust of wind knocked the small frame of Kid off balance and she swayed as she strived to keep her feet firm on the ground. Much to her horror, her efforts failed and she began to lean over the edge. In the terror of the moment, she could not hear the frantic voices of her friends, nor could she feel the hand grab onto her shirt. With a mighty pull, the thief was dragged back onto level ground.
Kid laid on her back with her hands clutching the necklace lying on her chest. 'That was close...it almost activated...' she thought. Kid glanced up and saw Schala bent over her with an equally terrified expression on her face. "Ya...saved me..." the thief breathed.
"Yes...I had to Kid," Schala smiled, catching her breath. "I could not let anything happen to someone so dear to me. I have not been searching for you through every corner of the universe just for the fun of it, Kid."
Kid was speechless.
"Now do you understand that I mean you no harm? I speak the truth when I say that we are the same. We need each other to be whole, Kid!" Schala was holding onto Kid's shoulders.
Kid looked deep within the princess' eyes, searching for the truth, but all she could see was herself staring back. She was uncomfortable with this and sat up. "Thanks for savin' me, Schala. I won't forget it," Kid said warmly.
Schala smiled back, appreciative of Kid's reaction. "It was no problem, Kid. I would do it again in a heartbeat."
"My, how touching!" Kylin sneered. "So, do you like my pet? She certainly is fond of you!"
"How do we get past her?" Orlha asked.
"I am not going to just give it away! You will have to figure it out on your own. This is your lucky day, however. I will give you a hint. I am only saying it one time, so open up your ears! The bird can see for miles around. It keeps track of everything, especially that which shines brightest of all. You must be bright to get the prize. Have fun, now! Ta ta!" Kylin flew up out of sight with the same wicked laugh.
"I'm kind of glad she is gone-hee," Razzly remarked. The fairy found the goddess intimidating.
Norris approached the narrow passageway again. "Let me try something..."
"Norris! What are you doing? Get away from there!" Orlha scolded.
The soldier peeked over the corner and saw the raven circling aloft. She brought her wings in again and dived towards Norris in a barrel roll. He quickly retreated to the others before the bird made her pass. "It's no good. We cannot reach our friends with that damn bird keeping watch," Norris concluded.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious! We already knew that, you dingbat! You didn't have to be an idiot to prove that!" Miki berated.
"I found out the enemy's attack pattern, Miki! What have you done, hmm?" Norris countered.
"Cut it out! Let's just figure out the riddle," Leena mediated. The others agreed and everyone put on their thinking caps. "We know that the raven has excellent eyesight. That much is evident, but what does the rest mean?"
"The word bright seems to be significant," Orlha speculated. "What is bright?"
"Fire!" Kid and Miki answered in unison.
"That is it!" Schala exclaimed. The others could have sworn they saw a light bulb shine over her head. "Distract the raven with fire. Then we can make it safely across."
"I'll provide the fire," Miki volunteered.
"I have a lot of magic so I also volunteer. That should be enough fire power," Schala stated.
The raven continued her circular pattern while keeping a close eye on the nest and the surrounding area. A popping sound caught her attention and she turned her head to see what happened. It was a small explosion and another one popped shortly after.
Orlha led the group as they inched their way along the mountainside in a single-file line. Schala and Miki brought up the rear firing tiny fireballs one after another into the sky. Schala had her hand raised as she launched another fireball when a gust of wind blew and knocked her off balance. Kid, who was in front of the princess, grabbed onto her arm to steady her. "Why don't ya take a break? I'll fire some of my own elements," the thief offered.
Schala smiled and accepted. "Thank you, Kid. That would help me a lot. Heights make me a little jittery,"
Schala and Miki were the last to make it onto the wide ledge where the nest sat. "Let's wake up Harle. She definitely deserves to fight by our side," Leena proposed. The others assented.
They quickly realized that their mission was not yet over when a shrieking croak rung in their ears. They all craned their necks to see the raven diving in another barrel roll straight at them. "Quick! Launch your fire elements at her!" Norris shouted.
Miki, Kid, Schala, Razzly, Norris, and even Orlha and Leena fired their best fire spells at the oncoming bird. The flames combined into a massive orb of fire surrounding the raven. She broke out of her spin and the orb while beating her wings in a panic. Her whole body was aflame. In her effort to snuff out the blaze, she did not pay attention to her surroundings and smacked into the mountainside, high above her nest. Upon impact, a mass of lighted feathers scattered throughout the air in every direction and instantaneously turned to ash. It remarkably resembled a firework. The burning bird bounced and landed on a ledge less than 50 feet above the nest, where it laid motionless as it incinerated.
While the rest celebrated, Leena stepped into the nest and approached a black tinted bubble. When she lightly placed her hands on the surface, it fizzled out, exposing the occupant. "Welcome back, Harle," Leena whispered.
The jester opened her eyes and sat up. "Leena...It iz good to see vous once again. Vous must tell moi everyt'ing."
"Of course, Harle," Leena assured, smiling at the fact that Harle no longer referred to her using formalities. "It hasn't been long since we parted, but a lot has happened. We can save Serge together after all." The champion helped the jester to her feet.
"I am very glad to hear zat, Leena," Harle said as a rift opened beside them. "What iz zat? It appearz to be a gateway into another part of reality!"
"That's exactly what it is," Leena explained. "It's time for us to leave this dreadful place."
The party of eight entered the white rift, unaware of the five bubbles that fizzled out behind them...
By: TenkoStar17