Golden Lights Part Forty Seven

By SilverLady

Another harsh laugh echoed in his ear. "I have waited long for this moment. You will do as I tell you and perhaps you will live a bit longer."

"Who are you?" Trowa whispered.

The knife pressed a bit deeper into his unprotected throat, causing a drop of blood to well up. "Silence. I will be the one to do the talking. Not you. Now, start walking and don't even think of trying to escape. I have no qualms of stabbing you in the back, pretty prince."

Moving slowly, Trowa did as he was told. He just hoped he could keep the person talking long enough for someone to find him.

"Turn left at the next corner."

Trowa did as he was told, realizing that they were headed of the vast expanse of gardens behind the castle. He groaned mentally, it would be difficult for anyone to find him in the huge maze of plants and buildings.

Both Trowa and his capture were so engrossed in what they were doing that neither of them spotted the brief gleam of gold that followed them out into the gardens.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of walking to Trowa, they arrived at a small building. It looked like a tent carved of stone.

"Inside."

Trowa stepped into the building, surprised to find it lavishly decorated with pillows and rugs. In the center of the room was a large chair, covered with rich silk draperies and surrounded by thick pillows.

The figure behind him laughed. "Lord Dermal does have his fantasies, doesn't he."

Trowa was suddenly shoved towards the chair.

"Sit."

He had barely sat in the seat when the figure moved forward and swiftly bound his arms and legs to the chair. Trowa studied the figure as he was bound, but could tell nothing about it. It was too heavily concealed in the clothing it wore.

After the bounds were made sufficiently tight, the figure stepped away to survey its handy work. Another harsh laugh echoed eerily through the enclosed area. "An appropriate place to die, my pretty prince."

"Who are you?" Trowa asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know. You wouldn't know me even if you passed me in the street. I am but a nameless stranger to you."

"Then why?" He paused. "Did my cousin hire you?"

The figure stepped forward, raising the knife into the air. "Silence. I don't want to hear your pitiful voice."

"Don't I deserve to know who is going to be my murderer and why?"

"Murderer. Such a base term. I prefer avenger." The figure turned away for a moment. "Very well, ask your petty questions. They will not change the out come of this night, though. That has already been written."

"Did my cousin hire you?"

A laugh. "Foolish, pompous man. He thought he was so wonderful. He gave me money for something I would have gladly done. To rid him of his dear cousin and his companions. Too bad you have the devil's luck. I took great pleasure in finishing him off. He didn't know that he was part of the problem and must be eliminated. And now I will finish it."

"Who are you?"

Suddenly the figure pulled back it's hood, revealing a young girl with short black hair.

"The girl from the inn."

She grinned, an almost mad look on her face. "And so many other places. But you and the others continued to elude my grasp. Until now." She held up the knife and looked at it. "A beautiful piece of work, don't you think? I'm sure he was quite loath to lose it, but he had no more need of it. I do think it sang when it drank his and his master's blood."

Trowa's eyes narrowed. There was something familiar about the knife the girl held. It looked like…. No. Oh, dear god, no. It can't be… It can't be Duo's knife. She can't have…

"And now it will taste you sweet blood."

"Why?" Trowa choked out.

"To avenge my beloved, my golden prince.  For all the humility you have dared to lay upon him. For taking him from me and turning him into a play toy for you and yours. For destroying our people, who only wanted to live in peace. I will destroy you and he will be free to return and lead our people to the golden land that was promised to us when he was born. The golden prince will take us away from this accursed place and we will finally be happy. And I will be by his side as his loving wife and bearer of his children. It is so written the the Scrolls of the Great One."

Suddenly there was a soft sound from the doorway and a figure stepped into the room. "Carlia?"

The girl spun around. "Beloved. You should not be here. I will come for you when the time is right."

Quatre walked up to the girl and looked at her sadly. "Carlia? What did you do to you hair? Why did you color it so dark? And cut it?"

"For you, beloved. I would not sully your golden light by allowing my hair to be as it was will you were not free. I died it to show that I would seek vengeance for all that was done to you."

"Carlia. Please untie Trowa. Nothing will be gained by hurting him."

"No. You will be free. I will kill him and you will be free. We can return to Arbiria and bring about the Golden Age that was promised to us."

Quatre sadly shook his head. "No, Carlia. Killing him will change nothing."

"You will be free," the girl insisted.

"No, I would not. I would be hunted for the rest of my life, as an escaped slave and a murderer. That is no freedom. Not for me nor for you or our people. Let Trowa go and end this now."

An odd look entered Carlia's eyes. "They have befuddled you. It will be all right, I will cleanse you at the Springs. The Great One will clean you and make you whole once again." She laid a hand on Quatre's arm. "I will take care of you, beloved. Just as I always have."

Quatre sighed. "Carlia, I am no longer worthy of you. I am no longer pure. You deserve someone…."

Carlia shook her head. "The Great One will understand. That they made you do things against your wishes. He will not hold that against you."

"But Carlia, not all of it was done against my wishes. Tonight I went willingly. And I enjoyed what I did."

Carlia patted his arm again. "It is all right. I understand. It is not truly you that is speaking. They have befuddled you mind and made you believe that you liked it, but I know you didn't."

"Carlia."

Carlia turned to look at Trowa. "You will befoul him no longer. I will destroy the foul magics that you have wrapped him in and make him pure once more. You will no longer tarnish our Golden One with your touch."

Carlia stepped forward, raising the knife to strike Trowa down, but before she could complete the move, Quatre grabbed her arm. "Enough. Carlia, the only one befuddled here is you. He has not magiced me, nor drugged me, nor tricked me. He has been unfailingly polite and kind to me from the day he saved me from far worse fates. He has tolerated my foolishness and showed me there is much more to life that the narrow view of it our people have had. He has shown me that love cares not for the form but for the soul the form hides, be it male or female.

"I admit that in the early days I would have gladly fled with you, but I have realized that it would be dishonorable. My binding to him is more than Master to slave, or even Lord to subject. I love him and I think I have from the day my cell door open and revealed him to me. I know in my heart that this is what the Great One planned for me, that this how I will lead our people to true freedom. By showing those that do not understand what we really are. By showing that love knows no boundaries, not those made by man or even those of gender.  Together we can bring true peace, to his people and to ours.

"But what you do is no better than what was done to us. You use tricks and dishonesty to hurt those who have done nothing to you. Who have had nothing to do with what was done to Arbiria. You took money from a dishonest man to take another man's life, just because he was angry with him. You are the one who has turned your back on the teachings of the Great One, seeking vengeance for something that was never yours to begin with."

Carlia turned to look at Quatre. "Oh, Golden One. Have they befouled you so much? How can you say such things." An gleam entered her eyes and she nodded. "I now understand. I must free you from this torment now, so that you can be clean. The Great One waits for you, beloved." And with that she lunged at him, the knife gleaming in her hand.

All Trowa could do was cry out in horror as the two figures went down.

NOOOOOOOO!!!!