Alright then. Chapter 12. Depending on how I set it up, this will be the first chapter with major violence. Well, not major, but enough to spark things that really up the rating.
This is Chapter 12, unedited from last version
Disclaimer: Standards apply.
Date: 12004 B. C.
The plane was fantastic.
It was a small craft, really, no longer than a few meters in breadth, and with modest seating for a few hundred. The Blackbird must have been many dozen times bigger than it. However, the technological achievement that must have been needed to complete it was amazing. There wasn't the slightest jostle when it was met by strong winds, unlike the Epoch; the seats were wide enough to sleep in; and, considering there were forty aristocratic Zealian diplomats on the ship, it was certainly well-pressured, heated, serviced with food, water, and whatever else. The one thing Lucca was slightly angered at was the lack of windows. Seeing the surface in the dead of night from above would have certainly been a stunning sight, but that option was off the table.
The inside was luxurious as well. There were chandeliers hanging at regular intervals to provide visibility (though some magically blocked themselves off from the light to sleep), and the aisle between the two rows of seats was adorned with velvety carpet.
"We will arrive at our destination in an hour." The pilot called from inside the cabin. Lucca hadn't heard it, too busy on being anxious to arrive. She hadn't been this expectant of a destination since she was a child, yet, she had visited this destination already!
Sitting next to Lucca was the Princess, her slender fingers intertwined in each other, and her chin resting on the small dome the action created. She was deep in thought, as hinted by the slight furrowing of her brow.
"This will not go well…" Schala murmured out of nowhere. Lucca gave her a sidelong glance, which the Princess interpreted as undivided attention. "I have a hunch-or a bad feeling maybe," she continued, "but no good can come out of this."
"Don't be so pessimistic." Lucca said simply, smiling slightly. Schala gave a weak nod and resumed her assumed position. She was quickly taken out of her trance when she picked up a slight dispute among some of the other diplomats. Turning her head, Schala noted that it was Khadgara's fiancée arguing with an older woman.
"There will be no reason for me to make this trip again. The land shall be annexed, with their consent or not!" The lady said. Khadgara's husband frowned.
"Only with their consent. That was her majesty's words, were they not? How would you feel if someone took away what you worked hard to cultivate without your approval?" He answered angrily. The woman scoffed, giving him a hateful glance.
"Queen Zeal is incompetent! She's been proposing ridiculous things for years now. Besides, Zeal Kingdom is entitled to whatever it wishes, and conversing those swine will do nothing but waste my precious time! The nerve of you, sympathizing with them! I'm not surprised, though. You don't know what has happened between our races. You are still a little boy after all. Whoever appointed you must have been just as insane as our precious Queen. The minimum age requirement for the council used to be above the level of a toddler." The lady said, her voice dripping with sarcasm and scorn. A good number of people's faces hardened at the attacks against her Majesty, and Lucca could clearly see Khadgara tensing a few rows ahead and gripping her pike until her knuckles were white. Her husband harbored the same rage and rose to his feet abruptly.
"Lady Kasmarek, Ladrius. I will not tolerate any such arguments before a summit," Schala said fiercely, though her voice was relatively calm. "This is not the time for petty fights. Save it for your personal time."
"Silence, child. You cannot give me orders until your deranged mother goes to the grave." Lady Kasmarek snapped. Lucca placed a hand on Schala's thigh, silently prompting her to remain silent and let it go, to not lose her temper. The Princess complied.
"I can, on the other hand, and I would appreciate it if you were quiet, Mabria." The man with the scrawny beard who had announced their departure earlier said. Lucca turned around and eyed him closely. She nearly gasped when she recognized him as Melchoir, and was an instant away from embracing him when she remembered that he didn't have the slightest clue who she was. He was addressing the spiteful woman that been arguing with Khadgara's husband Ladrius and Schala.
Mabria Kasmarek did not reply, though she cast a spell blocking out all sound and light. Lucca blinked when the entire debacle had ended. The prejudice against Earthbounds was more severe that she had thought.
"Schala…" Lucca muttered, intent on asking what was wrong with that middle-aged woman, curious as to why Lady Kasmarek disliked negotiation so much. When she turned her head to face her Highness, she found the girl shivering fiercely and holding back tears, her fists balled and shaking. Lucca hadn't expected the princess to react so strongly.
"Lucca…you can't believe how much I want to tear her head off…" Schala whispered, enraged. She sucked in a deep breath, and buried her face into Lucca's lap, sobbing softly. God…I never thought you took this much crap from people. I certainly wouldn't have restrained myself like you did, Schala… Lucca thought, rubbing the girl's back comfortingly. Not long after, Schala rose, adjusted herself and sniffed a few times, and put on her usual warm, soothing face.
"I'm sorry…I don't know what came over me." The princess said to Lucca, her eyes slightly downcast. Lucca smiled back at her.
"There's nothing to be sorry about. I would have murdered her by now!" Lucca exclaimed, laughing a bit at the end. Schala giggled and sank into her chair slowly, rubbing her temples repeatedly. Lucca felt an overwhelming desire to hug the princess until Schala spilt all her unshed tears, but it was best to let her recuperate.
"We are now commencing our descent. Please, gather all your belongings and prepare to exit the craft. Terra Cave will be situated fifteen minutes from the landing site. That is the closest I can get without any danger to the passengers." The pilot announced. Though no one responded, Lucca noted how uncomfortable they suddenly became. Maybe Schala was right; they were about as tolerant to bad weather as a slug was to salt.
But not without reason. It was enough colder now than it had been when Lucca first arrived, and it wasn't even snowing. She attributed it to being on a heated airplane. There was no other explanation, for the contrast of temperatures must have made this one seem so extreme. Lucca couldn't help but give a smirk to Schala when Lady Kasmarek noticeably shivered. Looks like the weather was initiating revenge for the Princess.
Lucca, due to the nature of her magic, was naturally unaffected by the cold. She strode ahead of the group, anxious to reach the cave and its cozy atmosphere. Part of the reason was that it was well sheltered, but Lucca felt more excitation because of the luxury (relative, of course) found in Terra Cave. The Earthbounds had done a good job of making with what was available to them. This Ice Age made trees nearly inexistent, yet they managed to scourge any stray branches and make beds out of the stale and frozen bark.
Terra Cave was situated in a small nook in-between two of the largest mountains around, and led to Algetty, village of the Earthbound. The entrance was at the base of the larger of the two peaks, the terrain impassible except for a number of hills around the massive mountains. Therefore, it was necessary to traverse the hills, the smallest one, preferably, in order to gain easy access to the cave. The mountain that housed Terra Cave was almost completely hollow at its bottom, except for extremely strong rock at the edge of the radial base. It was a mystery how the mountain continued to stand, but it would be destroyed by Lavos and the tidal wave the creature created in a few years.
"We're almost there!" shouted Lucca over the crowd. She had unofficially become the leader of the pack, even though there was already someone designated for that job, because of her resilience against the current weather. The cave indeed was situated a mere 300 meters away, and everyone began to pick up their pace. It didn't take long for them to get over the hill that led to the valley housing Terra Cave. As soon as they had passed over the knoll, the assembly stopped. From their position, they could see the large number of lanterns and people that had assembled to greet the diplomats. The crowd must have been at least ten thousand strong, littering the area and creating a clear path into the cave, the entrance designated by red carpet. Lucca wondered where they had found the materials to make carpet in these conditions. Whoever had the time or energy to kill an animal with strong enough hide to make such a carpet must have been immune to nature.
"Finally…" Schala mouthed. She had been shivering slightly, though a lot less than the other ambassadors. As if on cue, four of the soldiers pulled out massive, one at each corner of the rectangle made by the procession, golden horns adorned with velvet tassels that made the seal of Zeal Kingdom when the strands were close together. Lucca noted that Khadgara was one of them, standing on the top-right corner of the rectangular group. The notes blew into the air in an anthem lasting nearly ten minutes. The melody was loud at first, until a short and frail woman produced an ocarina from her robes, and played a solo that lasted the rest of the song. The horns joined her melody at its conclusion, the crowd bursting into applause and cheering as the song died down. The procession began down the hill.
"What was all that for?" Lucca whispered curiously to Schala, after having retreated to the back of the rectangle to join her friend. The Princess smiled slightly.
"We do this every time there is such a meeting. The Earthbounds will come out and greet us. A song is played to announce our arrival, though it's not really needed for our presence to be noticed…" She trailed off. She was right. After all, Earthbounds wouldn't travel in such a large group except if wild game had flooded into the valleys by the thousands. And that could only happen during the summertime. It was very clearly winter, but who really made the distinction? It was always cold.
"I didn't know so many people lived here!" Lucca said in amazement. There must have been more people here than in Zeal Kingdom, which Lucca had always thought to be very heavily populated. This must have spawned from her heritage in such a small village as Truce.
"I know. I had never seen so many people gathered at once before I first came to one of these things. I had made many visits before, too," said Schala casually. The lanterns glowed brightly, though the moonlight was illuminating enough. As the diplomats came closer, the crowd began bowing their heads. When Schala and Lucca began passing through the outlined path, the crowd got on their knees altogether, bowing at the two in reverence. Lucca assumed the respect was directed to the Princess, however.
"You don't have to do this. I'm not as special as you are made to believe." Schala spoke softly, stopping near the middle of the outlined path. Reluctantly, the crowd got back to their feet, and Lucca smiled before continued. She strode with unusual grace, something which had disappeared from her lately, Lucca noted. The purple-eyed girl walked at her friend's side, glancing at the crowd often. They were all dirty and dressed in rags, though the rags were significantly cleaner, and some even wore skins. Perhaps, this was their "best clothes".
The pair entered the cave, and Lucca was filled with even more wonder than when she would first entered Algetty. The cave was bare compared to Khadgara's, or even more so, Kajar, but it easily rivaled most of the houses in Truce Village. There were a lot less people inside than outside, but there was a multitude of relatively comfortable chairs and tables set up containing refreshments. An Earthbound woman was directing the procession down a number of ladders and through the door that held the waiting room, where they were to place their possessions during the negotiations. There were five Earthbound guards standing outside the "door" (a hole in the cave covered with an ornate flap of hide), but the Zealian guards insisted on taking care of security procedures. The land-dwelling guards were in no position to argue.
"Are you guys going to start already? I wanted to explore the place with you." Lucca asked, whispering. There was no reason too, as exploration wasn't illegal or something, but the purple-haired girl felt compelled to keep conversations limited to just her and the second person.
"Yeah, we'll start now. I'll like to linger and party, but the rest don't have the same intentions." She answered, an air of disappointment about her. The princess sighed as she entered the door, and Lucca followed.
The room was extremely large, but held forty only well-organized chairs, and large banquet-like tables in front of them. Both the tables and chairs were constructed from modest-looking wood and were more than enough for the forty diplomats. Lucca noted that there wasn't any place for her to sit, but she wasn't in the mood for discussions anyway. She would linger and participate in the festivities organized for this reception until the others were finished. Perhaps, she would stick around some more before heading back to the city, but that would mean making the walk back alone, the plane being gone, and worst of all, leaving Schala alone. Lucca could almost predict the more radical Zealians biting the girl's head off on their way back for her much more moderate views.
Lucca left the room bypassing the ten guards that stood at attention outside the cave. Again, Lucca wondered what was the need for them. Most of the ambassadors were elders well-studied in magic and its applications. They were certainly powerful enough to defend themselves. Besides, the worst that could happen was a sneaky Earthbound pickpocket attempting a pretty robbery of someone's spare headband, or one of the older ambassador's walking staff. Even that wouldn't happen for fear of execution.
The rooms had begun to fill with the people that had been previously standing outside. They siphoned through the large cave entrance to various parts of the massive village of Algetty, most returning to the recesses of the mountain were most of the "houses" were located, intent on returning to their work. Unlike Zealians, Earthbounds had very little free time, their existence mostly consisting of hunting, cooking, making clothing and furniture, and so on. Lucca walked to the first room she had entered, desperate for something to eat. She had spotted some cookies on her way in. How the Earthbound Ones had gotten the wheat to make the dough necessary for the cookie was a mystery still to be resolved. Nothing grew other than the sturdiest of trees. To think that, in a few thousand years, the area would be littered with plant life.
"Lucca!" a voice called in excitement. Lucca turned her head to find the source of the voice, and found Hexia waving from far away. Exholia was trailing behind, playing with a piece of cloth, until she too spotted Lucca and ran to hug her.
"Lukwa!" the girl said, leaping into Lucca's arms. A number of people turned to face this, as if expecting a reaction of some kind. Perhaps, hugging an Enlightened One was impermissible under normal circumstances. I wouldn't be surprised if it was a sin…
"How's my favorite little girl?" Lucca said warmly, kissing the child on the cheek before placing her back on the ground. Lucca offered the girl half of the cookie, which she took reluctantly.
"What's wrong? It's very good." Lucca said in surprised when Exholia hesitated. Eventually, the girl smiled and stuffed it into her small mouth, chewing happily. Hexia gave her daughter a mindful look, before looking back at Lucca.
"The children aren't allowed to have any of the food meant for the visitors. I would have punished her had you not offered first," Hexia explained, upon seeing Lucca's confusion. "Which is silly, since they never eat what we offer them. Well, none besides the elders or Schala. I suppose the food is too lowly for them." She added sarcastically. Lucca could sense the scorn in her voice. Perhaps she still held that mysterious grudge against Zealians, even after one year since Lucca had seen her. Hexia shooed her daughter away, signifying that she wanted to speak with Lucca alone. The little girl gave Lucca a quick hug around the waist, and ran off to the recesses of the village.
"Anyway…what brings you here? Are you a guard?" Hexia asked. Lucca shook her head.
"I'm Schala's visitor. She offered for me to come, and I didn't want to disappoint her." Lucca explained, the two walking unconsciously near another part of the room. Lucca made sure to snag a few more cookies on the way.
"Hwauant hwon?" Lucca offered, holding a cookie out. Hexia took it and ate the snack slowly.
"It's better to eat it now, so we don't have to throw it away later." She said, almost as a defense for her acceptance of the forbidden food. Lucca nodded, and the two women spent the rest of their time catching up with each other.
Before Lucca knew it, an intermission had been called, and the negotiatory party streamed out of the councilroom. Lucca headed into the waiting room, and noticed Schala sitting at a chair near the middle of the forty arranged in a row. She looked exhausted.
"How'd it go? Any luck?" Lucca asked anxiously. Schala sighed.
"The Earthbound ones proposed the annexation in exchange for two thousand bundles of wheat that they would use for the rest of the winter, before their own started growing. We could have ended this right then. It was reasonable enough, but the four elders, Khadgara's husband and I were outnumbered in our agreement thirty-four to six. The other diplomats are demanding 750 bundles instead. That's barely enough to feed all the Earthbound for a few weeks." Schala said sadly. Lucca patted the woman on the back.
"Relax, relax. Let's take a walk around, so you can get some fresh air." Lucca proposed. Schala agreed.
"Just give me a second. You can go ahead. I need to ponder a bit." Schala said. Lucca mentioned that it was easier to ponder while eating or walking around in the barren fields outside, but Schala reiterated that she would be done soon.
Lucca left the girl to herself, and headed back up the stairs. She saw Hexia standing behind the refreshment table, apparently on duty for serving the guests that were currently in intermission. Exholia was sitting down in a chair at the other end of the room, playing with a piece of cloth.
"Excuse me…" a voice said from behind Lucca. It was Lady Kasmarek, and she hastily walked in front of Lucca, obviously in a rush to do something. The Enlightened One walked towards Hexia, who sat behind the table.
"Where are the bathrooms?" She asked with a slight sneer. Lucca assumed the poor woman couldn't help but act superior at every available opportunity.
"Head through that door, down the hall, first door to your right." Hexia answered. The Zealian crossed her arms.
"I hope it isn't as dirty as the rest of this place." Lady Kasmarek said sardonically. Hexia noticeably cringed, but forced in a fake smile. Exholia was staring at the exchange in surprise.
"I assure you, it isn't, milady." Hexia said, her voice quivering heavily, as if she was restraining herself from assaulting the woman in front of her. Lady Kasmarek huffed, and began to walk towards the door, when she noticed Exholia staring at her intensely, her dark eyes brimming with curiousity.
"And what are you looking at? Are you stupid?" The lady spat. Perhaps being stared at that way was destabilizing for her. Lucca saw Hexia cringe again, and ball her fists. Exholia gave a small 'oh', and strode forward reluctantly. Lady Kasmarek looked at her in disgust. The girl got on one knee, and reached for the Lady's hand. She was going to kiss it, a customary sign of respect.
"Don't touch me, you dirty thing! I don't want to be any filthier than this place is making me!" She said, pulling her hand back. The girl was taken aback by the harsh words, and started to walk backwards towards her chair, her eyes brimming with unspilt tears. Hexia rose from her place, and walked in front of her child.
"How dare you. What do you think gives you the power to insult a little girl like this!" Hexia said, her voice shaking with rage. Lady Kasmarek smirked haughtily.
"Don't waste my time. I've had enough wasted talking with those swine." She spoke contemptuously. Hexia stared at the woman straight in the eye.
"You're wasting our time. You know what, you stupid woman? You are the lowest form of existence on this planet," Hexia said. The Lady gasped at the insult. "I don't understand what satisfaction you get from attacking my children, but it doesn't make her inferior to you. Quite the opposite, in fact." Hexia hissed, never breaking her monotonous tone. Lucca stared at the two intently, as silence passed between the two. Silence ensued, and a cold wind blew in from the entrance of the cave, which they were standing right in front of.
"H-ho-how dare you!" Lady Kasmarek said, still in shock. Hexia continued to glare at the woman, her fists shaking at her sides. Lucca could see her knees quaking with anger.
"You don't deserve to live up there. Acting high-and-mighty from a privilege you did nothing to deserve…you make me sick." She said this last part much calmer than the rest of her speech. A number of people turned to face the two. Lady Kasmarek was seething, even more so than Hexia had been a few moments before.
"You Earthbound bitch!" She said in rage. The Lady brought her hands together, her eyes wild with fury, as a white vortex contorted above her head. The lightning in it grew larger, slowly taking up more and more of the massive room. It gave off bright white light and an overbearing scent of sulfur. Lucca could easily tell what Lady Kasmarek was doing. It was the first stage in the casting of Luminaire. Soon, the ball would come to take up all of the room, and it would explode frying everything in it. Insanity. Not only were there innocents inside the room, but such a powerful spell inside a cave could easily make the mountain collapse.
Lucca was speechless. This couldn't be happening. What madness had gripped these two. It would kill everyone here.
"Lady Kasmarek! Stop it this instant!" Schala screamed, running up the stairs. Lucca held a hand out to stop the Princess, though her eyes didn't move from the white ball that hung in the air. The lightning was reflected in her eyes, making them seem white as the snow outside. White as the spark that would set the lightning into an amazing explosion, vaporizing whatever its essence could get its hands on.
"Shut up! I'll kill her!" The Lady said. The ball was about ready to be launched. It wasn't as large as Lucca had seen Crono make it, but it was certainly enough to produce an explosion strong enough to destabilize the mountain. Lucca felt something to her left. Her eyes turned to Hexia. A red aura was around her, her eyes glowing amber. Fire rose from her body, lifting her hair off her back, her clothes off her skin. The fire took a mind of its own, swaying in the air like a snake, the sound of crackling flames imitating that of a hiss. Wait. How was this possible? Earthbounds couldn't use magic!
"What's going on here?" Lady Kasmarek screamed, just as surprised as Lucca was. As if heaving greatly, she pushed her hands forward. The ball moved according to its master's orders, swaying listlessly towards the great snake that continued to mount. The snake flung its head forward, striking the ball of lightning with unimaginable force. Light flailed through the room. Women shrieked, grabbing their children and running to the back of the mountain. Schala stared in shock, Lucca in amazement. Exholia ran to Lucca's side, grabbing her leg in fear. She couldn't have possibly imagined that her mother was capable of such a thing.
A crowd began to form, consisting mostly of soldiers and diplomats, and whatever Earthbound were courageous to remain. All were a measurable distant away. The ball faltered, pushing back towards its master. The snake had lost its form, now just pure magical form, its scales reverting back into embers, its fangs into scythes of flames, impaling the lightning. The ball crackled and sizzled in weakness, its defeat imminent. In an instant, it dispersed, the fire victorious. It assumed the form of a snake again, plummeting towards its intended target, striking Lady Kasmarek in the chest, and propelling the woman outside the cave into the snow-laden, permafrost ground. Smoke rose from the defeated's chest, her body limp and unconscious.
Hexia sighed, her anger quenched. She walked over to the closest chair, and a lengthy silence gripped her and the crowd. She closed her eyes, as if waiting for something, or someone. Exholia whimpered on Lucca's leg, and cried. Schala stared, wide-eyed, her eyes darting from Hexia to Lady Kasmarek's smoldering form lying outside Terra Cave's entrance. The crowd stared at the woman that beheld their eyes: she sat in the chair, her eyes closed, her hands folded across her lap. A man stepped out of the crowd and pointed accusingly at her.
"Arrest this woman!" he spat, rage in his voice. Lucca continued to stare, as did the rest of the crowd. There was nothing that could be said, no action that could explain the spectacle that had just occurred in less than five minutes. A guard shuffled, the another, then another, until there was five of them, gripping Hexia's arms, raising her to her feet, declaring her arrest under the name of Her Majesty, Queen Zeal. Lucca could still not speak, could still not move, sounds only registering as faint murmurs. But her eyes were aware. Her eyes had been aware the whole time, and her eyes were aware when a smile came and went, in a split second, on Hexia's fair face.