I'm getting a little sick of writing disclaimers, so I tell you what, feds—ill put an extended disclaimer up on my profile page soon, and after that, I'm not writing another one, but ill be updating it as things become revealed in the tale. So for now be satisfied with the fact that I don't own dbz, or id have a mountain of cash!
Enjoy! And yes, I have noticed that each chapter is steadily getting longer, but hey, that's what the story seems to want right now—so who am I to argue? Lol
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At the end of chapter 3…Almost against his will, he craned his neck up. The huge man loomed above him, covered in scars. He wore the skins and razor sharp fangs of some unimaginable beast, and even without seeing the star of the royal family tattooed on his arm, he knew exactly who he was dealing with. King Vegeta's older brother…
"Ah, well met, King Pellinore"
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Several of the villagers began to chatter at once, and he held up a hand, cutting them off.
"Well met." His voice was light and conversational, but Bardock wasn't fooled.
Pellinore's expression was stony and unreadable as he looked around at the odd scene he had stumbled upon, looking from the desperate, wild-eyed southerner, to Jenner, silently shrieking on the ground, to Seraphim.
"Your Highness! They were going to burn this visitor illegally!"
"Actually," Jenner snarled, "we were given permission to kill this demon vermin long ago. He just took off before we could."
Bardock lost his temper again. He'd had enough nonsense for one day. "Alright—number one, I'm not a damn demon. Number two, I didn't fricken' DO anything! And number three, I was pardoned of not doing anything, because the old priestess had more sense then all of you losers put together!"
A collective gasp and shocked silence followed that. He briefly wondered what the problem was, then his eyes widened in panic. Had he just called Seraphim and the King losers? He hadn't meant to! "I mean besides the two of you!" he indicated the king and Seraphim.
The kings face darkened, and Seraphim wore an awestruck expression that said, "what the hell are you thinking?" almost as if she had whispered it in his ear. Oh crap! He thought desperately, what have I done?
"I…I meant—" he motioned toward Seraphim and met her moonlight blue eyes with his own hazel ones. "You're great." He said in a small voice, with a 'thanks for trying' air.
Seraphim smiled warmly at him, and then shook her head with a 'god you're hopeless' air, and a silent laugh. Everyone saw.
"Lady Majora's good sense, or Lady Seraphim's greatness notwithstanding…" The King began to circle him. Bardock got into a fighting stance. Everyone laughed, knowing he was all out of energy and luck. Pellinore paid it no attention.
"Of all the rare occasions that someone is nearly put to death here, this is the first time anyone has returned." He stopped pacing before him. "So…Bardock, is it? I'm willing to hear an interesting story for novelty's sake. What brings you back?"
Reluctantly Bardock stepped out of his stance, and, shocking everyone, he knelt.
"I've come as a messenger. I bring important news of…a serious and sensitive nature. I can't reveal anymore to you out in public. But you've got to hear me out. You're the only one who—"
Jenner piped up, his tail dangling at an unnatural angle. "Messenger! Hah. A messenger of Bolero Himself…I caught him in the sacred palace! He tried to burn it down—!"
Bardock resisted the urge to rush Jenner and tear his tail off altogether, but held himself back at the last minute. "No, that isn't entirely accurate, I swear!" —and it was all that ridiculous bastard's doing anyway! He wanted to add, but he forced his traitorous mouth to snap shut.
Seraphim shot Jenner a venomous look, and looked up directly to meet the King's eyes. "Jenner just wants him dead because Bardock made a fool of him, your Highness. A bigger fool, at any rate."
The chatter in the crowd rose up gradually, and they all had to shout over each other to be heard through the din.
"ENOUGH!" King Pellinore roared. In his anger, Bardock sensed enough energy in his aura alone to kill him three times over, and knew there really was no possibility of escape if it came between running and dying. He glared down at Bardock. "Who sent you?"
"No one. For no one else wishes to hear it. Lives hang in its balance." As he said this last, he looked straight into the King's eyes.
The next time King Pellinore spoke, his tone was quieter. "Where are you from, boy?"
Bardock never broke eye contact as he answered simply…" The great Kingdom of Hyuka, which you know well."
"Faith…I do…at that…" He cast a sideways, questioning look at Seraphim. She nodded back. She felt that Bardock was for real.
"Alright then. I will hear your words…and if they aren't words worth hearing…you will not leave this village with your life. Not if Ophelia Herself came to your aid."
Bardock shakily found his feet, but never broke eye contact.
The King caught her eye. She knew that he wanted her to perform her trade, and see that he wasn't a demon. In either event it was time to take him away from the villagers.
She turned to Bardock "Do you have enough strength to fly to that hill over there? Its that house with the lights on. Above the valley."
He wanted to boast that he had enough strength to take down all the guards, the King, and still circle the Kingdom twice, but he almost couldn't get up from that kneel before. So he settled for a simple "Yeah." and hoped for the best, flying slowly, and pacing himself. She matched his speed and stayed within catching distance if he were to suddenly drop from the sky.
The tall grass in the valley rippled in waves beneath them, and it was a relief as they gradually left the smoke and the noise of the village behind. He was forced to land at the foot of the hill, and even though Seraphim wouldn't have minded giving him some energy, she knew the ways of men well enough to know they were often prideful about such things, and that getting saved by a woman in the first place was probably killing him.
In truth, Bardock was too dead on his feet to notice or care in any way about pride by the time he landed. He was happy to be alive and had this woman to thank, though she was so unrealistically beautiful that she could have easily been a hallucination. Somewhere above him, on a gentle slope that seemed like a vertical wall, there was light, and warmth, and food. He drove himself on and up, and when he finally reached the doorway his first step inside was shaky and she felt his already weak energy level plummet. He was about to collapse. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders and guided him through the little house to her bedroom. Enough was enough. She told him to lie down a while, he mumbled something that might have been "thankyouthankyouthankyou", let himself fall onto the bed, and he was instantly deep asleep.
She stood there for a long moment, and took full opportunity of a chance to get a really good look at him without making him feel strange, the way she sometimes felt when people looked at her white hair and tail and whispered to each other. She never saw anyone like him before. His skin was the color of the wet sand on the beach. His hair was blacker then the spaces between the stars, yet when firelight shone on it, it turned iridescent blue. His tail was black too, and she saw that the hair on his tail was short and bristly looking compared to the tails of the other people in the village, meaning that more than a few of his ancestors came from the hotter climates farther south. She wondered at all the places he must have seen before…all the amazing adventures he must have had…
Those feelings she had for him before were even stronger now. Back there…she hadn't really meant to call him her mate...but it felt so right and natural to. And she realized that even though he heard her say it, and they'd had time to discuss it since, he hadn't brought it up once. So maybe it felt right to him, too. How exiting!
Happily, she stepped back into the front room, and closed the bedroom door just enough so it wouldn't click the latch. She knew he wasn't a demon, so she would carry out a simple test later solely to prove it to the King. Probably even just reading a few passages out of the Dinen should do the trick. If he didn't fall ill when he heard it, it was a good sign. If she could touch the book to his forehead afterward, without it causing a burn mark, he was home free.
And if they wanted to hear his message that night, she would simply turn them away. He needed his rest, especially if Jenner found some way to get even for his tail.
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A few hours later, she was stretched out on her couch, knitting a surprise for a friend of hers, just to busy her hands. It was for Pellinore's sister-in-law, Dynasty. She was expecting, and since she had some extra yarn lying about, she decided to make her a little baby blanket with it.
Soft snoring floated through the gap in the door, but it couldn't quite conceal the sound of crunching footsteps on the gravel path leading up to her door. Annoyed, she watched the outside window. She saw a huge, looming shadow fall on her closed curtains, and then the sound of a soft knock carried easily into the warm, quiet house.
She answered the door quietly. King Pellinore was standing outside, and she invited him in.
"So, Seraph? What do you believe we're dealing with here?" the King sat at her table, and she followed suit.
"I believe," she began, "That we have an exhausted, desperate man in our midst, and it doesn't get much more complicated then that. I haven't seen the slightest bit of evidence that he has anything to do with demons in any way. When he told me his name, he looked me in the eye. And he trusted me enough to travel with me, and turn his back—even in his weakened state. He was even able to come in my house with all the charms I set around it."
"Unless he has such power that they don't affect him. Where is he now?"
"He's sleeping. Another point of evidence, I might add. Powerless or not, a demon would never sleep in my presence."
"True, yet how could such a weakened man be capable of breaking Jenner's tail? Like him or not, we both know what kind of power he's got."
"Desperation, and anger at being humiliated, of course. Its nothing we haven't witnessed before, in some form or another. Some hunter is about to get eaten alive by god-knows-what, and finds the strength to make it his kill." She made her point, but continued on anyway. "And let us not forget that fool Jenner had his guard down at the time."
"With respect," He interrupted carefully, "Jenner was acting for the well being of the village. He shoved Bardock into the Palace hoping that the magic of the place would decrease his power."
"In that case, he is an even bigger fool, for not contacting me with the information of a demon in the area. He knows that if one was to ever show up, I'm the only one who could take care of it. Look at what kind of example he just set for the villagers! And he disrespected me, too. In all honesty if Bardock hadn't taken the liberty, I would have broken his tail." She didn't like the way he kept contradicting her. If he seriously trusted her judgment, why wouldn't he just accept it? It was clearly an open and shut case…
Pellinore looked at her intently, as if measuring her. Finally, she got fed up with it. "What? What is it?"
He chose his words carefully. "All of those things make excellent points. And I do trust your judgment on the matter. But I also don't think that you're fully aware of what we have in our midst---now don't misunderstand me. You know your business, and the fact that we haven't had hardly any demon encounters since you joined the village is not a coincidence. But I was there. I saw what happened. No one else there will ever forget it. And I don't believe that whatever is at work with this fellow is all that it seems."
"How is it that this other thing he has done is so unforgivable, yet he was already pardoned for it? And by my mother, no less?"
His eyes were serious, his voice low. "No one is really...completely…sure of that. Lady Majora wasn't one to justify herself." She saw the ghost of a smile on his grizzled, bearded face, and felt herself return it a little.
Her mother had been close friends with the former High King and Queen, and whenever they had business to attend to, she would often be called upon to help keep an eye on their rambunctious, impossible sons, Pellinore and Vegeta. She was dear to them, and a comfort when they lost their parents, long years later. When she finally heard the call of Ophelia telling her that it was time to take her own final journey north, a few short years ago, both of the brothers went with her, as far as was allowed, to send her on her way and wish her well.
Out of nowhere, Pellinore began to explain. "It was a clear night, much like this night. The sky was clear, the Sea was calm, yet it was a year or two before you showed up, and the moon was low, and slight. The village was sleeping soundly. I sensed a low ki signature, strange to the village, but at once I sensed aunt Majora near it, so I stayed on alert, lest she needed some help I was capable of offering."
She nodded. Demons were immune to ki attacks, so only skilled priests and priestesses could do anything with them. He hadn't wanted to rush out and complicate matters, but also hadn't wanted to leave the Priestess to herself in the face of something dangerous. Especially when the moon was in its small phases and unwelcome spirits and servants of Bolero were more active and powerful.
"I felt things quiet down, and like a fool I let the matter fall, thinking that it was over. It almost cost us all our lives, or worse. I felt the energy return, and I finally set out. Silently. Yet I was loud as compared to the silence of the darkness. There wasn't hardly any moon…and I stalked the strange ki to the edge of the cliffs. And that was when I saw him. He was facing the Sea, and he was reaching high, as if to catch something."
He paused, as if to collect his thoughts. "And it was…it was a glowing thing. About the size of the moon. It looked actually something like a ki blast, only it was different. I felt no ki signature from it, yet it gave off a strange green light—the likes of which I haven't seen before or since. And as it drifted down to meet him, and I saw how he caught it thoughtlessly, and threw it about, and watched it…and caught it again…I realized that I was watching the unthinkable theft of one of Ophelia's jewels."
"…What?…but that was…that's not…possible." Was all she could manage.
"But even worse…was the realization that I was watching a dark being that was powerful enough to do it. No one…not even in the Dinen…had that kind of terrible power. The kind of power to take a star from the sky itself, and play with it idly like a child's toy. As I watched him, I also realized that he hadn't come only for that. If he wanted to take one of Ophelia's jewels, he really could have taken one from anywhere. But the only business that would bring a creature like that to us, up here, was the Palace. At that moment I was sure…that he had come—he was sent to topple the Palace of Bones into the Sea, and that he was only biding his time."
Pellinore's eyes had taken on a haunted look that she had never seen before. She couldn't imagine what it must have been like for him to witness that. He was like most of the men of his line—possessing great power, and a will to match, so seeing him so shaken about the encounter was almost as rattling as the tale itself.
"I knew that Lady Majora couldn't drive him away, despite her skill. I knew that the combined strength of myself, my brother, and every army between our Kingdoms wouldn't be enough to end his existence, but I had to try. So I invoked the power of our line to try and weaken him, to dare him to take a physical form that could be injured, then I stepped forward and raised my ki. He finally noticed me, and placed the star at his feet, and greeted me as a friend. Several warriors from the village were creeping about the shadows by then. The beast either didn't know, or didn't care. I don't think he knew he had been found out, but I was doubtful. Yes, I'll admit it, only to you. I was doubtful as to whether the trick had worked."
Ouji was the first and only Oozarong to ever challenge Bolero, and he was both credited, and blamed, for it—depending on what part of the world you happened to be in. King Pellinore and King Vegeta were both his direct descendents. There was more superstition and rumor surrounding them and their family then either of them could ever guess, but this was the first time she had heard either of them actually mention having some kind of secret ability. She would ask him about it later, under different circumstances, but not now.
"So you can imagine my relief," He continued, his mood improving. "When we took him down much easier then we ever could have hoped. I would have been rather embarrassed for having summoned the others, if not for how badly it could have been. I decided to have him killed quickly, of course, before he could escape from his physical state, but first I wanted him to put the star back. The fool was full of stories about how it wasn't a star. He said that it was something that he found on the road—the road! Can you believe it? A road in some busy village on the mainland that he passed through on his way. He said that he didn't know that it lit up when it was touched by ki, for he had never seen one before, but he guessed that it was some kind of child's toy. Of course we weren't about to be fooled--"
Poor Bardock…she thought, he must have been so frightened…and that was years ago. Almost—wait—no. At least ten years. Ten years of training and power increases weaker then he is now. Just a scared kid.
"—So we," He chuckled savagely, "encouraged him to do it. So he took it, and threw it high. For a moment we all watched it on its way back up to join the rest of the stars…and then we watched it fall down…and crash into the Sea. As we watched, before anyone could make a move to get it back, something came up out of the water, and swallowed it."
Her eyes were very wide.
He went on matter-of-factly, "So I ordered a burning, so at least Ophelia could clearly see that we didn't abide by that kind of nonsense. We were just about to get the mess over with when aunt Majora stepped in. She was saying that we were making a big mistake, and she pardoned him right out from under me—in front of me, and began to pray to Ophelia for him and all the rest of us that some great wrong had just been averted. I think that he bewitched her before, instead of harming her when he had the chance, yet I didn't want to undermine her in front of the village. I knew she'd be angry with herself when the enchantment wore off, and besides—I knew my trick would work anytime. So for Majora alone, I allowed him to run. And never return. Do you know what she said to me? After he was out of sight? She said that he was chosen by the fates to do important work, that no one had any right to hinder."
"But not all things that are important are great, and now he's back, Seraphim. He's back, and much, much stronger then before. And what's more, he seems to have bewitched you, too."
"I would never, ever play with such a serious matter, Pellinore. I swear to you upon my mother that I sense nothing strange about him."
"I know. I know that you don't. You can't help it. But now I hope that you do understand that I cannot permit him to gain more power and come back to us again in ten more years. He might find some way to get around that trick I caught him with last time, if he hasn't already. Fight back against whatever spell he's put you under—I know that you're strong enough! Fight back, and let us end this!" He unsheathed a long, curving dagger, made of polished, serrated bone, and went to the bedroom door.
Before she knew she was up from the table, she was between Pellinore and the door, bristling.
"And who are you? Who are you to come into my house with such ideas? Yes, you're the King, and yes, you're my friend. But you don't have the right!" she let her ki flare up a little, and little flickers of white lightning danced across her skin.
He blinked, and nearly backed up in spite of himself, though he concealed it well. "I have the right to defend Ganymede! I have the right to stop the apocalypse—as only one of my line can! I will have no further objections!" he snarled. "Stand down!" His gaze was hard.
"Even if you can commit some miracle and overcome me, you will never be able to get away with it—not with all the protective charms placed upon this house and anyone who dwells inside. Bardock will not be harmed by your hand or your will." She levelly returned his gaze, and was sort of surprised to find that she was shaking a little and close to tears. She hated to fight with him, since he and his family were basically the only family she had. "So ill just say good night. Ill tell Bardock that you'll hear his message tomorrow?"
After a long moment, He finally backed up, sheathed the dagger, and wordlessly crossed the front room. She waited for only a second, and followed behind at a few paces, to see him out. Just before he got to the door, he turned. "I will hear his message…in the Palace. Then I will run my test."
She opened her mouth, and drew breath to further plead Bardock's case, but she immediately saw that he wasn't willing to listen to anything more.
Before he left her doorway, he paused and looked back at her. "My mind is made, and if he truly has nothing to hide, he has nothing to fear." She nodded miserably, and the King left, closing the door softly behind him.
She couldn't believe what he had just implied…how could he be so cruel?
The Palace of Bones was a marvelous place, but there was more to it then people could ever know. Everyone assumed that it was safe because Ophelia had made it, but it was still made from the bones of Mouble Alduir. A demon powerful beyond all reckoning. The greatest and most terrible demon that Bolero had ever set on them.
Evil coursed through the core of those bones like lifeblood, and even though every inch of bone was covered with runes and spells to keep it held in, and enchantments and seals of protection lay thick on the air, it would never be enough. The palace still had a heartbeat, and a semblance of life. No one in living memory had ever seen all of its rooms. Not one map of the place existed, or could exist, because the heart of the demon willed it so. It changed its rooms and hallways to suit its own needs. Whether to keep skilled priests and priestesses out of its inner rooms so they couldn't perform cleansing rituals…or draw unsuspecting victims further and further in…
Until there was no going back out.
And as if that wasn't bad enough, there was a rumor that it hadn't always been that bad. Their ancestors lived in the palace, every last one of them, and it all used to be completely safe. But hundreds of years ago…someone, or something…had found a way to reawaken the dormant, damned thing's heart.
And whoever, or whatever had done it…was still in there.
And regardless of her findings…regardless of her tests…Bardock would be tested to walk through one end of the palace to the other.
She restlessly paced a moment, then went to her bedroom door and slowly, silently opened it up. He had moved to lay on his side, but he was still snoring, completely oblivious to the death sentence just passed upon him. There was no doubt that Pellinore intended for him to die. Why else would he want to hear the message before the 'test'?
An eddy of cold wind came in off of the water, and played about the room. He shivered a little, but didn't really stir. She opened a cedar trunk in the corner, took out a light quilt, and covered him up.
She smiled a little. A secret smile. Pellinore could play his little game, but she could play games, too
Bardock shifted a little, tugging the blanket over his shoulder, and stretching a little in the new warmth. She was glad he hadn't woke up to see her--what would she have possibly said when he asked her why she was standing there watching him sleep? She decided to go back out to the couch before she freaked him out by lurking around…
But she couldn't leave…somehow… and she knew it was stupid. It wasn't as if anyone was going to attack him, or her. The rest of the night would be nothing but peace and quiet. In the morning she would figure out what she could do to help him, and he was going to be ok. Everything was going to be ok…wasn't it?
She crept to the empty side of the bed, and got in. Their backs were facing each other, but not quite touching, and the blanket was big, and warm, enough for both of them.
When his tail coiled around her waist, she gave a little involuntary jump of surprise, and a few moments later, she wound hers around him in return, and blushed until she fell asleep.
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So you heard it here first, good readers—and before you come back…I suggest that you do some inner preparing. If we should get separated in the Palace…I'm not sure what will become of some of us. I've never been in there myself, you see. I don't want to go in by myself. I'm hoping that the old adages are true, and that there really is safety in numbers. I really am glad that you're coming in, too. But I plan on bringing at least a bottle of water—and some energy bars in case we have to stay longer then we should like. Its not like it could hurt.
So I suppose we will meet back here in about a week and a half to begin our little adventure…
…Chapter 6: "In the Hall of the Mountain King"
Take care, R&R, and prepare yourselves.