Sorry, but this is a bit late because I've been cramming for Regionals in Band. Also, I'm failing math right now because I didn't understand some of the questions on a test. Anyway, this chapter is going to feature some odd visions from out Hero and Heroine's infanthood. Basically, little flashbacks that occur because of certain little things.
Also, let us just say that that freaky bracer thingie Elazul wears can be reomvoed. M'kay?
The grandeur of the Bejeweled City was always lost at sunset, or, at least, until moonrise. Moonrise always made the city look eerily beautiful, but tonight even that was not so. Heavy, depressing clouds hung in the sky, allowing for only the slightest illumination to penetrate. Lamps were lit everywhere, but the open corridors were still dense with humidity.
Through this miasma, Kieru walked. She had no destination in mind, as long as it was devoid of Elazul or Reia or anyone she was otherwise known to in the city. She had dodged both in question twice that night already. However, she found that by descending down to the lowest tier on the city allowed for her privacy.
The lowest tier was the most amusing to wander; the only rooms down here were derelict, and the lamps were often few and far between. She could see where she walked over her own path in the muffling, thick dust that carpeted this level. It was as depressing as it was needed to be, and only Kieru had taken any interest in it at all.
She had just departed a short hallway that cut through the center of the middle of the city when something out on the land caught her eye. A storm of dust could be seen, rising and settling in the wake of something. She made short work of finding one of the many of Sappho's gates and ascending rapidly, hailing her brother as she went.
The act of hailing him was actually rather simple. They had been born with a slight telepathic bond, and could express basic thoughts though it. They had practiced hard for a few years, but were now accustomed to it. She 'reached' in her mind for a vague little bundle of thought that she knew to be Danatoth's. She 'grasped' it, her mental fingers describing to him something to the land side of the grand city.
After a moment, there was a grasp that signified compliance to the un-'spoken' request to look that way as well. After a moment, someone cried out above. It had to be Danatoth; the sound had been derived from the war cry of a fictional army that their aunt had told them stories of many times. She heard him clatter up stairs, and knew that he was going to go tell Blackpearl and Rubens. Kieru clattered up to the top tier, and waited for her brother and the two stronger fighters to join them.
"I saw them down on the bottom level." Kieru added after her brother explained the phenomenon At that moment, Marinyx, Elazul, and an unfamiliar male Jumi trotted up the stairs, the stranger swearing vilely . After a moment, Esmeralda joined the motley group, bearing a rather dangerous looking halberd, similar to Kieru's.
"Damn!" The stranger swore, summoning a gigantic claymore from condensed darkness. He was dark-skinned, with a proud, angular jaw, which seemed to fit his proud, humorous personality. Kieru derived this from the way that he carried himself, and the gleam in his black eyes. He was one of the largest men, human or non, that she had ever seen; he could, very possibly, match Lan, minus his horn, of course. His gigantic shoulders and thick, muscular arms flexed as her described an immediate attack with the gigantic sword. His plain black tunic was tight enough to display that there was no extra weight to him; he was solid muscle. It also covered his core.
"What, Olex?" Rubens asked, drawing his own rapier from some place about him. Elazul's sword appeared in his hand, and Marinyx summoned a bow in a similar way.
"That, Rubens, is the largest hoard of monsters I've ever had the displeasure to see. We need to protect the Guardians and Acolytes; we should move them up here." After a moment, he looked over his shoulder at Esmeralda. "And you'd better not get hurt. You're supposed to stay back, but, knowing you, you won't anyway. And," He turned to Kieru, an odd look sparking in his eyes. "You'd better watch out for yourself."
"Oh, and, you think that I'll loose myself on the battlefield? I'd watch it, were I you; try guessing just who I am to even have entry to the city!" The butt of her halberd came down on the ground as she slammed it down to test the hardness of the aged wood. It didn't even shudder for very long before falling still and quiet.
"Good question. Who are you?" He sounded oddly humored, as if he found her funny. But, then again, she thought she was being silly, too.
Esmeralda decided that she'd answer for her friend and mentor. "She's the one who revived one thousand of our people." Kieru nodded at Esmeralda and smiled behind the large man's back. "And, I'll go and sound the alarms now." She finished, tossing Kieru her halberd and rushing down the steps. A minute later, a deep, resonating gong began to thrum richly, and then another. The peals were forceful and loud, and Kieru could swear that the cobblestones were shaking.
A moment later, a hustle of confused people were amassed on the second highest tier of the city. "Alright." Rubens started, borrowing Kieru's spear and clacking it onto the ground in order to make himself heard. "Guardians, Acolytes, please enter the Clarus's chambers; we are in imminent danger." After a moment of milling, a slow line began filing into the large chamber.
"Knights, please join me on the upper ledge." And, after a moment, Kieru was interested to note that there was well over three hundred people standing around her. Apparently, their race had been growing quickly. "Now, as you just heard, there is a stampede of creatures heading straight for Etansel. What we must do is post bowmen on the gate and keep everyone else spread out in front of the city. If you can, corner then against the water."
After a few minutes of answering the few inquiries the defending force had, they journeyed to the bottom and possibly imminent doom. The bowmen, commanded by Marinyx and one of Esmeralda's sisters, were well protected but the high walls, but everyone else was out in the open.
Olex, Elazul, Kieru, Danatoth, and Esmeralda formed into a loose group, keeping one another in sight the whole time. On the horizon, the cloud rose and convulsed, shrouding the already shrouded moon. It wasn't dark near the ground, though; all of the lamps on the city had been lit, and the reflected glow was bright enough.
For some reason, Kieru could swear that she was being watched. She twitched her head and realized that Olex was eyeing her figure. He's not too bad looking himself…She though, before grabbing a fistful of her hair and yanking it stiffly. No! Save it for the one you've liked for a couple of years!
Yes, but why did I like him? She asked herself, her eyes twitching over to the blue haired man. What was interesting was that it was blue, not stained but naturally so. His eyes were nearly the same color, but tinted with green. He had surprisingly smooth features, rougher than those of her brother but not dissimilar. He wore a dark blue tunic, but the characteristic teal sun cloth was absent. On his right arm, a protective brace encased from shoulder to fingers. It was there to make up with his somewhat atrophied fingers in that hand, as well as some other reason that was vague and unknown to the woman who had revived him.
Because. Her mental voice chided as she quickly turned back to the ever-growing cloud of dust. He looked at you for many things for a long time. She knew what was coming; it was an odd mental habit of hers. She would think about something before the battle started, and, if it were possible, begin reminiscing on related subjects. The battles of the past would be articulated again and Kieru would repeat things to her advantage and disadvantage.
By the time the hoard was in bow range, the air around the acre or two covered with the distributed forces of the ancient city was thick and palpably tense. The first hail of arrows set the battle in motion. The first rank of mismatched creatures went tumbling to the ground, though those fallen were soon passed by without thought. The defenders were making quick work, though the hoard still had a chance by sheer force of numbers.
Kieru was twice as efficient as Olex, her halberd cleaving heads and biting into throats with deadly accuracy. Olex sought only to kill, by any means, where the woman sought to be efficient. Elazul and Danatoth were no less efficient, their backs to each other. They wouldn't stray from one another's rear guard; it was a deadly tactic. Eventually, they brought Lan and Ryo into the group; the larger male fought with an elegant flail, though Ryo used a thick-hafted spear to do his dirty work.
Kieru was so wrapped up in the battle, her clothes so bloodstained, that she did not know whose blood stained her. She had been hit quite a few times, but the euphoria of adrenaline and an odd vision kept her up and killing.
Smoke rose heavenward, tainting the crimson dawn gray with its presence. Bodies were strewn about the ground of the small village. It angered her to see small children numbering the highest in casualties. She dove at an assailant as he dove at her, coppery hair streaming behind her as she plunged a knife between his ribs hard enough that her fist cracked his ribs.
She knew that the thieves target was the mansion in the center of the village, and that was where she was going. She knew what these evil people wanted, and she wasn't going to let them have it.
As she drew near, the lustful cries of multiple infants spurred her on. The mansion's west wing was in flames, but the east wing was what housed the village's nursery. When the woman reached the source of the cries, the building had begun collapsing on itself. A blonde man was shielding the pair of infants as they wailed with confusion and despair.
Quickly joining her husband, for that was who he was, the woman assessed her screaming babes. She glanced up after assuring herself that they were alright and into a mirror. She could see her husband's sculpted features, his soft green eyes gleaming with love for his children and the woman near him; she could see her own, vivid blue eyes filled with adrenaline masked terror…
Kieru realized that she was kneeling near Elazul, who had been cut unexpectedly across his chest. It was laid open grotesquely, though she did not realize that she was in the act of bandaging it until her shaking hands nearly dropped the wad of gauze. After a moment, she assessed her messy work and decided it would do.
She looked up, startled to see that there was a defined lessening of the ranks of beasts nearby. She also realized that the gate had been opened enough for one or two people at a time. None of the beasts were small enough to fit.
Arranging Elazul across her back like a large bag, she was dimly aware that she was in the act of carrying him up the first tier, onto the second, where people were being tended. Right away, an unfamiliar Jumi who appeared to have an opal core assisted her in relieving herself of Elazul's unexpected weight. She was so tired...
The man was hastily rigging a sling to carry the two infants. His wife was struggling to stay conscious, but her minutes were slowly dimming. Her hands weakly went out and gingerly touched the obsidian knife embedded in her ribcage. How ironic that it was the same knife with which she had slain that man in the street.
Her vision was slowly fading. She struggled to stay awake, struggled to breathe. She was dying; life was seeping from her body. At last, the end was hovering. She realized that the two infants were staring at her. The girl-child had pretty green eyes, like her father. The boy was still sniffling, but the crying had stopped, and his infantile ice-blue eyes, so much like her own, already understood. He knew that he would never see his mother again. The girl did, too. It saddened her that her children had to suffer so much at such a young age.
At least their father wasn't badly enough injured that he couldn't get them to their aunt. She was sure that he would join her in the deathly dark of eternal sleep after that; it had been one wedding vow he had made on his own honor; there was no way to spare him. At least her children were safe…
"Mother!" Kieru gasped, eyes forcing themselves open. The dream had been so vivid…she had been that woman who she was sure was her mother. She was laid out on a cot with a blanket strewn over her prone form. She slowly sat up and took her bearings. She was in one of the rooms on the bottom tier.
She heard someone murmur softly and realized that she was not alone in the room. Elazul's mouth twitched and he shifted in his cot, entranced by some dream. In the warm glow that penetrated through the doorway, Kieru could see that obviously he had been healed. She had been, as well, but by who was what she didn't know.
She was contemplating getting up, when the opal Jumi entered the room. "Ah, mistress Nivare, I trust that you are better?" The girl was pretty, with a smooth pale face and lovely rose eyes. Her hair was the color of peach steam; it made the young Jumi look old beyond her years.
"I am better. I have two questions: One, how long have I been out, and two, who healed us?" She had tens of more questions to ask, all of which buzzed infuriatingly in the back of her skull, but she ignored it. She was wearing a plain white gown, and she was really curious as to what had happened to her tunic.
"Well, you've been out for a day and a half; all of yesterday and some of today. I'm the one who healed you." The last was said with triumphant pride. "Flourina says that I will probably be her predecessor when she's trained me." She paused to regard Kieru with an odd look. "You've made yourself quite a figure. Everyone who was in the relief team is buzzing about how you carried Elazul back into the city."
Kieru thought about it. "What's remarkable about that?" She asked at last, watching as Olex passed by outside, pausing to wave jovially at her. After a moment, Marinyx and Danatoth passed by as well, her brother giving her a look of praise and from the little archer there was reverence. Occasionally, people would pass by, though most paused to stare admiringly at her for a moment in passing.
"When Elazul is wearing his bracer, it adds quite a bit to his weight. He's also more heavily muscled than you; he's heavier than he looks. Add that to the fact that if you'd stayed out much longer you'd be in shock from loss of blood, and it is rather appreciated with what you could do in that state." She paused to signal a small child as she stopped to gape at the Mana Heroine. "Would you like to help me?"
"Yes!" The little girl said her voice somewhat low for such a small little thing as her. She was solemn faced, with large gray eyes and a short amount of black curls. She wore a little brown tunic and no shoes, and her small, smoky core glinted in the light from outside.
"Could you tell the cooks to warm some of the morning meal up? I'm sure Miss Nivare is hungry." The little girl nodded and trotted off, not in a particular hurry, but still reasonably quickly. The opal Jumi turned to face Kieru after the child left. "What we found odder was that you were saying something about dead children. You would flail occasionally, and you were constantly murmuring about your beloved and children. Then, you went stiff, and you haven't moved since."
"I need to speak to Danatoth. Could you please get him to come here?" She sounded confused, and, suddenly, the sight returned. It was horrifying; she remembered vividly, the screams, the cries, the death, it all was there. And then, seeing herself and Danatoth as infants, being carried away from the carnage by their father. It was too much. She sagged and lay back on the cot.
The opal Jumi nodded understanding and departed in search of the male Nivare. Now that the conscious Jumi had left, the unconscious one held her attention. However, he was not foremost right then.
Our mother…She thought, crackling her knuckles idly. I know what happened to her, but not father. I wonder what our parents were like…She realized that there were tears at the corners of her eyes, but made no effort to stop them. The parents they had never known; she had seen the end of their lives, but no more.
Elazul moved again in his sleep, and her attention retuned to him. He looks so helpless…She had seen him look so only one time before; when Sandra had damaged his core. She realized that she cried partly for him. It felt good to cry; she had done it so rarely that she nearly didn't know what it felt like. Her tears had just begun to stem when Reia, Danatoth, and Taayx all entered the room.
"What's wrong, Ru?" Her brother asked, going to her side and placing his hand on her shoulder. She seemed more distressed than he had ever seen her; even when Elazul had been damaged so badly the first time she hadn't cried openly.
"I saw father…" She began, bleakly, idly musing the bejeweled ceiling.
"And I saw mother. And us. It was awful; mother died."
"And it was so vivid that Taayx and I nearly screamed out heads off when we saw it from the third person." Reia said, sitting on the edge of Kieru's cot. "It was awful…"
"I know mother died, Toth. I was mother, so to speak. By the time she closed her eyes for the last time, I was already unconscious and here." She realized that he had obviously lived the dream from their father's perspective, but it had been the same dream.
They discussed it for a few more minutes before the trio of better-off people departed, leaving her alone once more with Elazul. However, her solitude was broken after a few minutes by the little girl. She had a companion, a gangly boy who could have been in his teens. He was very thin to match his stature, and, with his unusual, vivid gold eyes and dark brown hair, it was nearly impossible to imagine him with such a vibrant core as his. He was obviously the Jumi of Citrine, and the girl was either flint or obsidian; they might not be precious to most, but she had once met a tribe that had considered both flint and obsidian to be worth their weight in gold.
The boy was holding a generous portion of stew in a large stone bowl. "Kieru Nivare?" He inquired, surprising her with the lack of formality. However, he was still respecting her higher 'status', and the little girl behind him didn't make a sound.
"Yes please." She said, pleased to hear the shaking go out of her voice. "What are your names? You're some of the new generation, correct?"
The boy nodded as he handed her the slightly steaming bowl of rich stew. "I am Seadran, and this little fiend is Sirea." She giggled at his use of the title, and hopped happily in order to see Elazul from her position in the doorway. She saw his face and giggled again.
"How long have you been awake, 'Zul?" She asked, trundling over to his cot and standing on tiptoes to look into his closed eyes. Or were they closed?
One of them twitched open lazily, startling Kieru. "How could you tell?" He asked, agitated somewhat by the intuitive child.
"I could see the slit between your eyelids." She said, giggling as he opened his other eye and sat up.
"Damn…" He murmured moments later, his hand clutching at the side of his head. "Did I get drunk last night Kieru?"
"No. You were unconscious last night, and all of yesterday. You got clubbed by a gigantic land dragon during the skirmish, remember?" She said, sitting up again herself. Both yawned widely, nearly in unison, and stretched in a similar manner.
"Yeah, and Miss Kieru carried you all the way back into the city!" Sirea piped up, giggling nearly insanely at the two adults who were so thwarted by her childish games.
"Yeah, she totally redefined adrenaline. She was close enough to half-dead when she performed this act. And she was delusional and killing like an army of demons." Seadran said, stacking praise atop praise. She blushed as Elazul shot her a slightly skeptical look.
"I had a rather personal image that involved a lot of killing. Part of it was tending to a fallen comrade." She lied, cracking her neck with a grimace. It was partially a lie; the scene had been full of death, but there had been nothing about tending a comrade. She had had an impulse from her sub-conscious mind. And all because it had been Elazul receiving the attention.
"Indeed." He muttered dryly before falling silent. His eyes slid closed, but he was obviously awake.
When Kieru finished her stew (all of it, despite the large helping) she leaned back and unobtrusively studied her once-more only companion. Mixed emotions ran through her head, mixing her thoughts up with one another until they all ran in one thick stream. She felt drained over nothing.
During her intense study, Kieru failed to notice the slits of dark blue studying her.
Well, sorry it took so long to update. I had a little school trouble and I nearly failed arithmetic. Ni. Anyway, I hope you enjoy, To those of you who reviewed, thanks for your coments.