Responses, responses…

Zafara: I'm here, I'm here. Don't shoot me pleash 0o.

mk2136: This soon enough? Enjoy.

celeste9: Will Borus be okay? Will Chris save the day? Will I ever finish this story? STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT! Thanks for your faithfulness… better late then never, eh?

Aeonian Dreams: Now, now, laziness is the path to… I dunno, something. Anyway, here's what I do next: I write, see? Psst, look down below, that's where the story starts. Again, thanks for your faithfulness, hope I've worked for it.

OMFG. I just thought of the best knock-knock joke. Ready?

Me: Knock knock!

You: Who's there?

Me: Sasarai.

You: Sasarai who? (stfu)

Me: Sasarai! I got the wrong address!

Hahahahaha! Get it? Sasarai? So sorry? HAHAHAHAHA!

You guys hate me, don't you. Well, at any rate, here's the newest update to Losing Control. Sorry for the HUGE delay, it's been hell at school n' such.

Anyway, no more delays. Here yah are. Seriously. Right here. Right. Here. Here. See? Here.

………

Chapter 15: Hell in a Nutshell

A tiny square of light lit the cramped space. Borus moaned. Where was he? Where should he be? What should he be doing? He coughed, and in what little light there was, he saw his breath puff and curl before him.

Why can I not remember? The question floated through his consciousness. He did not know where he was or why he was even there. He tried to move, but in the dim light he saw the glint of iron. He was chained to the wall.

Something began to well up inside him. A longing, an urge for something… no, someone. Chris. The name whispered itself inside his head like the soft touch of silk. He remembered silver, he remembered violet. But try as he might, it was all he could remember.

Who am I?

……

The mirror seemed to mock her. She raised a hand to her short, grubby hair. I need a bath. She scowled at herself. How, she asked herself, could you possibly think about a bath when Borus is in danger? She brushed her hand down her face, and for a moment willed everything to go away. She remembered the bed of death she had slept on, the feather bed that would have been her end had she fallen asleep. She remembered its comfort… and shivered. It had felt wonderful, but, she wondered, what could be so wonderful about death?

A watchman called out the time loud and clear; "Half past three n' all's well!" She needed sleep. As much as she wanted to remain awake and plan for the saving of, not only Borus, but the whole world as they knew it, she knew that she would require sleep, real sleep, to be able to do anything about it.

Limply, she removed the leather bandit armor and dirt-caked clothing and let herself collapse onto the over-stuffed bed in only a thin layer of under-clothing. She was barely able to pull the wool cover over her already shivering body before she fell into a deep sleep.

……

Warmth greeted her as she found herself awake. Bright sunlight streamed in through the tent's front flap, and for the first time in a long time, she felt refreshed… at least physically. She forced herself to get out from underneath heavy winter covers and noticed someone had placed a fresh set of clothing at the small table by her bed. She groaned inwardly at the thought that she would have to don the heavy armor that she had left behind for bandit-wear.

As she pulled on the brown outer suit of her attire, she silently made a list of things to do.

"So many things to do, so little time." She heard armor jingling outside as soldiers ran back and forth. She moved quickly to get her armor on, and with a gasp of surprise, noticed it had been polished for her. Louis… She fastened each strap of her armor in place, last pulling on and tightening the leather boots. She quickly glanced at a small mirror above a wash bin and noticed how dirty her face was.

Just as she had finished scrubbing the grub off, there was a call of alarm from outside her tent. She pulled her gloves back on and dashed out the tent door. Salome noticed her first and moved to where she stood.

"Milady, scouts have spotted Geo's troops, battalions of them, headed across the Grassland. Though they are not moving toward our current position, they are moving toward Zexen." In the rush of all the soldiers around her, she spotted Louis and caught his eye.

"Milady! So glad to––" She held up a hand.

"Hardly the time, Louis. Quickly, bring me my sword and horse… on second thought, bring me any horse that is ready for combat. Pack on it five rations, a blanket and as many water skins as you can fit." Salome raised an eyebrow.

"Take my horse, milady," he said gently, "He is better trained then any of the extras stabled." Chris nodded and Louis ran off to do as she had commanded.

"Salome, am I correct that Hugo and Geddoe have been warned?" she asked hastily, heading in the direction of the armory. "Percival told me so last night." Salome followed close behind.

"Yes, milady, we got word earlier this morning that the scouts sent by Percival achieved their goal. Hugo and Geddoe are safely hidden at opposite sides of this land. It may be best that you do not learn the exact locations."

"Are either in Tinto?" she asked. Salome looked surprised.

"No, milady, they are not."

"Then that is where they are," she stated firmly. Salome looked at her, confused, but knew he could not begin to fathom what was going through her head in wake of a plan. "Tell me the truth. They're in Tinto, right Salome?" Salome only shook his head slightly before catching on.

"Yes, milady, they are in Tinto." She nodded. Just then, Louis appeared around a tent with Salome's horse, tacked and ready to go. Chris wasted no time, and was on the horse within seconds. She turned the calm mare toward Salome. "Point me in the direction of Geo's army." With a word of luck, Salome pointed to the east. Chris looked up and marked the position of the sun.

"Salome, I will be back as soon as possible. Send warning to Budehuc by any means necessary. You are in charge. Louis, my sword." The squire threw her the sword. Without another word, she reined the mare to the east and galloped out of camp.

Salome watched her retreating figure for only a moment before setting off to work. Louis stayed and watched his captain gallop toward dark clouds, and silently wondered if he would ever see her again.

……

She pushed the horse only as hard as she dared, speeding to catch up with the fast-moving enemy. At last, the huge mass came into sight, thousands of soldiers on both foot and steed, thousands of those betrayed. Chris mentally shook her head; how could so many Harmonians have been fooled? Did this number of Harmonians travel to Tinto, or did Geo accumulate this army in some other way?

She rode Salome's mare parallel to bandit army a mile off, and upon reaching the front of the army, she moved to the left to flank them. She halted her horse a few hundred feet from the head of the army. Calls flew out, and the entire army came to a halt. One rider moved forward, and it became clear as the rider moved closer that it was Geo.

"You… you are dead one hundred times over, Lightfellow! What brings you to me, defenseless as you are?" he called from across the plain.

"Give me the location of my soldier," she commanded loudly. Geo laughed.

"Give me the location of Hugo and Geddoe, woman, and then you'll get what you ask for," he shot back, though not expecting her next words. Chris thought carefully.

"They are in Tinto," she said firmly. There was surprise in his pause. Then he did something curious. He raised his right hand.

"Say it again." He did not stutter.

"They are in Tinto," she said slowly, all the while thinking, 'Salome told me they are in Tinto,' over and over again. She felt a curious feeling pass through her mind. He lowered his hand.

"So you speak the truth, Lightfellow." He paused again, then laughed. "To think the great hero of Zexen would hand me the world for a stupid boy! And all these years, sending you little orders as a councilor, I thought you were a perfect little angel." He laughed again. Chris remained silent, her suspicion confirmed. Geo held the True Rune of Truth, a rune she had heard few stories about. Hugo and Geddoe were not really in Tinto, but Salome did tell her so. Geo read her mind, and was easily convinced of her lie. Geo's laughing subsided.

"I have given you what you wanted, now tell me what I want to know." Chris stared levelly at the insane man. He spat to the side.

"He's in a hidden cave guarded by a few of my men 'bout a few miles west of the city's entrance." He smirked. "Get past my men and you can have 'im." Chris glared at the man in disgust before reining the horse around the army and storming back alongside the army, heading toward its back. A few bandit heads nodded to her as she swept by, and it took her only a moment to know that these were part of an inner rebellion. They would aid her when their time came. She took a moment to estimate the number of soldier's in Geo's army; the number came out to be twenty-five thousand, a number that greatly dwarfed her own army and the Grassland's combined. At last she passed the army's rear and was in open Grassland again. She urged Salome's mare into a breakneck canter toward the enemy's underground city.

Borus, I'm coming.

……

A soldier in black with a brown armband tied around his arm thundered past the stopped army on his black gelding. He slowed only upon reaching the front of the army, walking his horse up to Geo. Geo smirked at his servant.

"The wench of Zexen has just relayed to me the location of Hugo and Geddoe. They hide in Tinto." The man in black, he who had surveyed the intrusion of the Zexen camp many nights ago, shook his head. He was known as Krick.

"My own sources have revealed their location. They are on opposite sides of this land… Hugo in Vinay del Zexay, Geddoe across the mountains to the east. Neither are in Tinto, m'lord." Geo's jaw dropped.

"How in all Hells did that woman…" Then he remembered her thoughts. 'Salome told me they are in Tinto.' "That rotten bitch!" he cursed under his breath, anger taking a hold of him.

"M'lord?" Krick questioned, backing his horse away slightly. Geo ignored him. The leader turned his head to one of the nearby soldiers.

"Water mage," he commanded, "flood the bloody knight's chamber. I want him dead before she gets to him." With a nod, the water mage began to chant, focusing his energy on an underground chamber a few miles west of the underground city…

……

Chris swept through the plains as fast as the horse would take her. There was something wrong, she knew, something that made her journey more urgent. She knew the poor beast beneath her could not go on like this for much longer, but she also knew Salome would forgive her if anything happened. She only willed the mare to go faster, as fast as the horse had ever gone. The intelligent animal sensed her rider's urgency and sped up.

The opening in the ground to the underground city appeared just ahead of her. Swiftly, she veered the mare to the west. The ground swept by underneath them. Chris drew her sword and prayed to the Goddess for the horse to fly. Wind whipped through her eyes and face, and a trail of snow and dirt followed the mare's fury. They flew forward like a bullet, and she saw the two bandits appear ahead of her. She skipped formalities and mercy. The first's head fell to the ground. She wheeled the mare around, and the horse stumbled but regained balance. Chris's sword was faster then the bandit could have ever suspected, and the second soon joined the first on the ground. She spotted the hole in the snow a little ways off. She was off the horse in only a few seconds. There was an iron grate in her way, and she lashed a rope around the one of the bars, tying the other end to the saddle on the mare.

With a loud cry, she sent the mare forward, tearing the grate from the ground. She slipped down into the hole, and landed in water.

……

Geo, satisfied that there was no way Chris would reach the soldier in time, beckoned two of his teleportation mages over. "I think it's time I skip a few things and get on to the main event. No more stalling, no more games. Lock on to Hugo and Geddoe's locations. One is in Vinay del Zexay. The other is across the mountains to the east. Find them, and bring me their runes."

"Yes, m'lord," the two mages responded, beginning their chant. Within seconds, the two men disappeared. Geo laughed.

……

The water was up to her ankles. "BORUS!" she called into the darkness. "Damnit, Borus, where are you?" She heard a muffled grunt from a section of the room with more light, and waded across the floor in its direction. He was in a cell composed of rock on three sides that rose to the ceiling. In front of what would be the entrance to the cell, there was a huge stone, taller then she was. Chris looked through a crack between a rock wall and the stone, and inside was Borus, wide awake, chained to the wall, and staring at her with a wide-eyed, childlike gaze. "Hang on, Borus, I will get you out!" Chris called over the roar of water that was filling the room. It was now up to her shins.

She needed to move the stone blocking the cell's entrance. But the stone weighed at least three times her weight, was taller then her, and did not look like it could be easily moved. She took a deep breath, and thought. She called to her father, asking him for help. No help from him came, but a memory emerged, unbidden…

She was a child, watching her father train by himself. He called her over. "See here, Chrissie, see that large barrel?" Little Chris nodded, looking up at the barrel that was taller than her father by a good foot. Her father ruffled her hair. "Sometimes, I have come across people this big that I need to take down. They weigh more, are taller, and usually have a lot of muscle to back themselves up. But there's a trick to taking them down. Do you understand?"

Chris nodded in her memory, and her father commanded her to step back. She did. "Now, there is a risk of damaging your body if you do not do this right. Also, if the enemy weighs too much, you will damage your body. Because this is training, I know this barrel does not weigh enough to hurt me. So, watch carefully." Her father took a few steps back, then rushed at the barrel, throwing his weight into his shoulder and jumping at the top of the barrel. His shoulder connected with the barrel's top rim. As her father landed, the huge barrel toppled over. Her father gave her a huge grin and she returned it.

Chris shook her head, back in the present, and studied the stone carefully. The water lapped at her knees. She would hurt herself, but that would be okay, as long as her father's technique worked. She took a few steps back, then launched herself at the large stone. A foot from it, she jumped, letting her left shoulder smash into the very top of the boulder. Her shoulder snapped and fell limp, but to her great relief, the huge stone toppled over with a huge crash. She landed and stumbled, but steadied herself. Taking a deep breath, she snapped her dislocated shoulder back into place before unsheathing her sword and moving into Borus's cramped cell. The water now swelled to her thighs. Quickly and efficiently, she used her sword to snap through the iron chains that held Borus to the wall of the chamber. She took no time to grab his arm and pull him underneath the entrance.

Without a word, she intertwined her fingers with each other and held out her two hands for Borus. He understood immediately, and placed his foot in her cupped hands, reaching up and grabbing the ledge at the entrance. He disappeared momentarily. The water surged above her waist, then her stomach, then her shoulders. She refused to let panic hold her. Finally, a rope dropped down from the entrance, and she wrapped her hands through it before giving it a tug. Rather quickly, she was hoisted out of the chamber.

She scrambled onto the entrance's ledge, on hands and knees, and released the rope that Borus had had the mare pull. Gasping, wet, and freezing cold, she rose to her feet and embraced Borus, holding him close to her. "B-Borus, I am so glad you are okay…" she panted. He patted her on the back uncertainly.

"Madame, I am afraid I do not know who you are…" She looked up at him, into his eyes for a moment.

"You… You do not know who I am?" she asked. Borus shook his head. She stepped back. He has lost his memory… For some reason, some hope buried deep inside her crumbled. But then a thought came to her. A crazy thought. A thought that should have never occurred. A thought that she knew was her only hope. "Perhaps… perhaps I can remind you…"

She took a deep breath, leaned forward, and gave him a long kiss. She let her mouth linger on his for a few moments before attempting to move away and see if her tactic worked. But to her surprise, his hand grabbed her arm, pulling her back in, and he kissed her back. "Milady…" he whispered to her lips. "I remember…" He let her go. She looked into his eyes; the child's curiosity was gone, replaced with the serious, but happy face of the Borus she knew and loved. When he said nothing more, Chris, completely embarrassed as to what she just did, gestured him to follow her to Salome's mare. The horse eyed the two curiously as they mounted. Together, the three of them cantered back to camp.

……

Geo, breaking the laws of nature, absorbed the True Fire and Lightening Runes into his body, joining the True Water Rune and the True Truth Rune that were already within him. Around him, ten powerful mages chanted to ensure his safety and aided him with the absorption. Fire erupted from the sky as Nature realized what was going on. Lightening joined the ground in a moment's dance, attempting to thwart the all-powerful god that was being born. Stone burst from torn earth, flinging itself at the monster being created, and columns of water sprouted from black clouds. All rushed at the creature, but were deflected by the ten chanting mages. The bandit troops were in a panic, unsure of what to do as the elements swamped them. But suddenly, hundreds of them at a time were thrown into the sky and sucked into a great tear in space that appeared within Geo's gut. All of twenty-five thousand troops were sucked into the great abyss, including the ten mages that sought to protect the master they trusted so much.

One by one, each of them were sacrificed to their great leader, and in an explosion of light and rock, what was once a mortal man became a three hundred-story hulking beast. Wings each the size of Vinay del Zexay sprouted form the beast's fury back, and a tail as long as the Zexen Forest sprung forth, creating tornados of wind with each of its sporadic lashes. Clawed hands emerged from the light, attached to arms strong enough to throw mountains. A head of a dragon came to being at the beast's top, with long shafts of bone materializing and growing from the skull-like skin. What was once Geo roared.

"I AM UNSTOPPABLE!" it said in a voice loud enough to kill anything near. With the end of the world drawing near, all hope was placed on one woman's shoulders. Salome, hearing the roar and seeing the beast, silently prayed for his Captain's return.

………

DUN DUN DUNNNNNN.

Alrighty, folks, two more chappies to go. You guys looking forward to 'em? Hope so. There's a rather large quicky of a drawing I made of Geo's all-mighty monster form thingy that you can find the link to in my profile. Also, I've uploaded a few other pictures, labeled accordingly.

All feedback appreciated, and my sincerest apologies to those of you who may have lost hope in this piece. Till next time.