What a feeling. Her lithe body uncoiled itself and stretched luxuriously. It had been so new and refreshing, but in so many ways familiar, that it was like returning home after a long journey. She cracked her eyes open, and saw him. He stood beside what looked like a block of marble, set into the balcony. She sat up, the sheets falling around her waist, exposing her naked torso.
"Leave, now." Came his quiet words.
Surprise and hurt registered within her. She had not been expecting that. She bit her lip, why did she feel so upset? Silently she pulled on her clothes and headed towards the door, but paused beside a small table, her eyes drawn to something there. She gasped.
"I know you said your wife looked like me…. But… She IS me!" She breathed, picking up the small picture of the heavily pregnant Aika. Ramirez turned and stared at her. The sheer enormity of his discovery the previous night was still with him. There was no doubt in his mind now that this lady was his dead wife, and she had somehow forgotten him. But, then, here he stood, beside her very tomb.
"Leave!" He suddenly shouted, unable to stand her company any longer. His sudden volume caused her to start, the picture falling from her hands, the glass shattering and exploding out across the floor and over her bare feet like a ripple.
Without a word she turned and left, carefully avoiding the shining crystal slivers that would slice into her skin easily. Finally the doors closed behind her.
Ramirez allowed his emotions to take over, his confusion, love, anger and pain welled within him. He let it out in a furious snarl, summoning the strength of the Silver Moon, he brought his clenched fist smashing down upon the smooth surface of the grave.
A loud bang resonated around the room and a cloud of dust rose from the crumbled marble. His feelings all released with the energy he had spent breaking through the rock, he waited for the air to clear, his heart pounding…. What had he done? He had desecrated the tomb of his wife. He had destroyed everything she had held dear in her life, now he had destroyed her last resting place. Shame washed over him like a cold tide.
He waited for an eternity, standing still merely looking down into the small space, which was a chasm full of answers to his questions… the chasm where he knew her skeleton would lie.
He felt a painful contraction in his chest, to be replaced with rage. Swiftly he lowered himself into the hole, crafted for the one purpose of housing her body… a purpose which was being left unfulfilled. The grave was empty. Some one had taken her corpse, they had stolen her body from him! But how…. He had lowered her in and sealed it irreversibly himself. But, the cold truth remained. She was gone….
Celeste was furious, she glared down in anger at the red haired woman, who was clutching at the side of her face where a new bruise was forming. As soon as she had entered she had caught the scent of the Emperor like a foul odour, and she had gone into a wild rage.
She had never intended for this to happen. Atai had never showed an interest in other men, none. Celeste had often encouraged her to use the stables and select a man from the many serving men they had to bed her, but she had always declined. Because of this, Celeste had assumed that her memory had been so expertly wiped that she did not have any devotion to the opposite gender. How wrong she had been! The bond between the two of them was clearly stronger than she had counted on.
"How dare you betray me!" She hissed, the venom pure in her voice.
"I have not betrayed you!" Sobbed Atai. She did not understand her lover's rage, she had seen the dark woman bed other men countless times, she had even been urged to take a man of her own… now that she had, Celeste had struck her down. "I don't understand."
"You wouldn't!" Celeste replied. Now was the time to act, today was the day.. .but first, first she would do what she had been wanting to do since their arrival. "I will be back soon enough, I am going to pay the Emperor a little visit. When I return, this land shall be ours."
The door shut behind the woman, and Atai could not stop the tears of sorrow that fell. Ramirez would die at Celeste's hand, or be forced to please her. The thought of that filled the woman with such unimaginable anger, why, she did not know.
Thoughts whirled through his mind, so fast that he did not know how to process them. Her body was gone. He had buried her. She was alive. He had taken her that previous night. She was the lover of a woman….
He growled and closed his eyes, trying to slow his mind. He bowed his head, breathing deeply.
Even if this woman was not his wife… was it possible to love again?
He turned from the wreckage of her tomb, and froze. She stood just inside his door, which she was silently closing behind her, the lavender eyes were filled with lust.
"Ramirez…. Its me, Aika… I … I remember."
He blinked, surprise working its way into his system.
"Aika…."
"Celeste… she destroyed my memories, she was going to use me against you… but I remember.. now we can be together again." She started forward, and the Emperor made no move to stop her.
At the touch of her soft lips he seemed to shake himself out of trance, and allowed his arms to slide around her hips. She was truly his again.
The kiss broke, and his hand slid up to her face, drawing her thick hair off her neck, and he stopped.
"What is it my love?" She breathed in his ear.
With a snarl Ramirez pushed her away.
"You are not my Empress." He snarled, he had instantly noticed that there was no bite mark, his personal brand.
The woman smiled, but not a soft smile, a sick, lustful one. She raised a hand, and instantly the Silvite felt a chill run through him, and to his horror, he found he could not move. He watched, hatred dripping from his gaze, as the lady before him seemed to blur out of focus, before clearing as a different person.
Celeste held the powerful man before her and laughed softly.
"Another useful asset of Black Magic… illusions." She said, with a flick of her index finger she sent him sliding over to the bed where he was forced onto his back.
"Release me!" He all but spat.
"No, I prefer you better in this position. Far more… accessible." She said, walking up beside him.
"I will kill you for what you did to her!" He promised, his voice sent shivers over her flesh.
"Quite the opposite. You are going to watch as I take everything you hold dear, after I am done with you today, I will release the Black Gigas upon these lands. Then, once your world has fallen before me, I shall teach your boy in the way of pleasing a woman, and my daughter, that adorable little Fina. She will be raised to follow in my steps. Your fate is to live through this all, you shall have the honour of pleasing me every night." She breathed as she straddled his hips. She bent low over him so her breath tickled his neck, and her tongue lashed out and touched his ear. "Then I shall kill that red haired whore you hold so dear before your eyes."
Despite his overwhelming fury and hatred, the Emperor remained powerless against his invisible restraints. As she sat up his eyes were drawn to something which slipped from the neck of her low blouse and a leather thong. It was small and black, and shone with a dull power.
Celeste smiled coyly at him, again she pointed her index finger. Ramirez snarled as he felt himself involuntarily rise, despite the fact that this woman lit no desire within him.
"I have been waiting for this for too long, Ramirez. Finally my wants will be met." She whispered, as she prepared to rape him.
At that moment the door banged open, a moment later a whirling noise sliced the air. Celeste screamed as the cutlass sunk into her side, below her ribs, she turned painfully, but before her mind registered who stood in the doorway, the second cutlass shot forward and buried in her chest.
The woman was dead before she hit the bed. Her dark eyes were open, lazing over, her mouth open, and a small look of surprise written on her face.
Ramirez instantly felt his power over his own body return, and he sat up, and glared at the dead body. Despite the fact she had blades in her body, the woman was still strikingly beautiful, a small trickle of blood escaped her mouth, leaving a dark stain down her porcelain chin. The green eyes narrowed in hatred at the corpse for a moment.
He turned to see he son, accompanied by Atai standing in the still open door. Before any words could be spoken, the ground began to rumble ominously, and a high pitched howl, close to a screech filled the air. All three cast their gaze out of the open balcony doors, to the skies beyond.
In awe, the Silvite watched as something rose from Deep Sky. The titanic monstrosity that was Dalamez, the Black Gigas cast a dark light for miles. The air chilled and clouds rolled in. Again the great wolf howled, its voice causing glass to shatter at its colossal volume.
"Zelos!" Summoned Ramirez from the balcony. Instantly the orb floated up from the already destroyed peak of the tower, swiftly growing in size as it did so.
The wolf took one step closer to Soltis, but then paused. The trio watched in fascination as the vast creature stumbled, and seemed to retch, and gasp.
"What's happening?" The Silvite asked quietly, looking at Atai. The woman shook her head.
"I, I don't…." She paused, and thought for a second. "Vyse get me the necklace from around Celeste's neck. Hurry!"
The boy obeyed without question, and was back almost instantly, handing the jewel to her. She took it, and closed her eyes for a moment.
Father and son watched, in confusion, as Atai frowned.
"She is chocking on the air up here! In Deep Sky there is barely enough oxygen for humans to live on, but Dalamez is clearly so unused to this quality of air that it is killing her!" She said, opening her eyes.
"How do you know this?" The Emperor said.
"This is the Black Crystal that bound Celeste to Dalamez. It is not the same as a Moon Crystal in that anyone can employ control over the Gigas, but it does allow, those that know how, to communicate with Dalamez." She replied.
Ramirez smiled coldly.
"Destroy her." He barely whispered, Zelos heard the command. In the weakened state that the Black Wolf was in, it could do nothing as the attack, charged with the energy of a thousand suns crashed into it's chest.
There was an eruption of power, and all who were watching the extraordinary battle had to turn their eyes from the magnificent glare, as the Black Gigas was simply obliterated.
Wild-Roze: Ooookay then…. Lots happened there. BUT now comes the problem of how Aika is gonna remember…. Tricky…