The Chiyu Star poll closes next week. If the tie for first place remains, I'm probably going to just flip a coin to determine the Star. Make sure to vote in it before the poll closes next Saturday. As always, you can also leave your votes in a review on this story if you can't participate in the poll. Here's the link: topic/180690/135923192/1/Who-would-you-like-to-be-the-Chiyu-detective-Star-in-my-Suikoden-VI-fanfic
Part Ten
"'The Great Cistern'?" Surya echoed. He looked at Daunte. "What is that?"
"All of you out!" Clara snapped. "If you're not assisting in the delivery, then you're just in the way!"
The group begrudgingly left the isolated area of the infirmary, and Clara swiftly closed it off by pulling a curtain closed. Daunte spared a glance at Felicity and the poor girl had a look of dread on her face.
Well, she survived the Dark Chasm. Hopefully witnessing childbirth won't be too bad for her.
Gunther swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. "The princess told you guys something, right?"
"Archana," Surya said, shaking his head. "She was taken to a place called the Great Cistern."
Gunther winced and rubbed at his nape. "That's not good."
"What is the Great Cistern?" Israfil asked. "By the name alone, it should be a reservoir of fresh water, correct?"
"Well, yeah." Gunther shook his head. "Golden River is technically the only source of fresh water in Nagarea. Well, except for rumors of a fresh water spring in the Red Tundra, but that hasn't ever been confirmed. But in any case, the Great Cistern is a reservoir that a portion of Golden River flows into underground. It stores all of the fresh water in Nagarea."
"If the Great Cistern is a freshwater reservoir, then why do you look so anxious?" Mokuren asked softly.
"Because monsters have invaded the Great Cistern," Daunte said softly. He got looks of horror in response and he shrugged. "From what I've heard it didn't use to be so bad. I mean they already had a problem with monsters, but the workers of the Cistern were able to tolerate it. Then a couple years ago I guess they lost control of the number of monsters coming into the Cistern and were forced to abandon it."
"There are still people working at the Cistern," Gunther said. "But they're outnumbered by the number of monsters in there. As such, unfortunately, some of the vaults of water down there have been contaminated."
Surya turned green and shuddered. "No offense, but now I'm going to think twice about drinking water here."
"They've isolated the vaults that have been contaminated," Gunther said. "But…the Theocracy hasn't done much otherwise to try and contain the problem. It's rumored that they're keeping those vaults contaminated on purpose just in case they want to unleash them on a group of people. Like us."
"And you guys don't get contaminated water?" Mokuren asked, rubbing at her arms slightly.
Gunther shook his head. "We've made sure of it."
"If Lady Archana is in such a place, then we need to get to her as quickly as possible," Israfil said insistently.
"I agree," Surya said. "We should go—"
"Just hang on a second," Gunther interrupted. "She was taken there for a reason, right? A valuable hostage like her taken to a monster-infested area? This is obviously a trap, guys!"
"It might be, but I'm still going," Israfil told him.
"Look, it's the middle of the night and you guys have been running all over the Northeast without stopping. Since you're going to be walking into a trap, you should take a breather and head out in the morning."
"If we wait, then they might move her somewhere else!" Surya snapped. "And what if she gets attacked?! Archana has no combat experience!"
"They're expecting you to come for her, so they won't let anything happen to her. Besides they've already taken the trouble of removing her from Uaminifu to the Great Cistern, so they're not going to remove her from that place so quickly. I know this is difficult to think about, but you must think rationally and get some rest! If you keep rushing from one to another without pause, you're all going to collapse. Just sleep it off until the morning and we'll head out after sunrise."
"'We'll'?" Surya echoed. "Weren't you suspended, Gunther?"
"Perhaps," Gunther said. He grinned. "But I can talk myself out of anything."
Daunte looked at the Falenans and then looked at Gunther. He knew time was of the essence, but he also knew that even they had their limits. Behind them Kaylani let out another scream of pain and they all flinch. Daunte waved to them to go into the hall, and he was surprised to find all of them following his direction. Arin was about to climb out of bed too, but Daunte signaled to him to stay in bed.
"Guys," he said when he was in the hall. "I know that time isn't on our side but Gunther has a point. If we're walking into a trap, then we need to be prepared for it. That means resting up so our Runes are recharged, and so our bodies are recharged."
"Daunte—" Surya began.
"I know what's at stake, and I know it's important that we keep moving. But Gunther is right, we can't keep running around like this. We'll need to give one hundred percent in order to rescue Lady Archana and the rest of your cousins. We just need a few short hours of sleep in actual beds in an actual safe place."
Surya was silent for a long moment. He looked at Mokuren and then looked at Israfil. Finally, he nodded. "All right. Let's bed down for the night and move out early tomorrow morning."
"To be honest, I haven't gotten a full night's rest since we crossed the border," Mokuren admitted. She yawned loudly stretched her arms over her head. "I could use a little sleep."
"I must admit the last several days have been very restless for me," Israfil agreed. "In between the running and fighting Lord Silvano and I did before coming here, neither of us has rested much."
"I'm plenty rested," Freyr said. "Can I come with you guys to the Great Cistern?"
Surya shook his head. "Please just listen to us and stay here, Freyr. We'll bring Archana back in no time."
The younger prince looked irritated, but he ultimately didn't argue any further.
"The sleeping area is three floors down from us," Gunther said. "There's individual rooms to sleep in, but we also have a barracks with more available beds. We don't have assigned beds there because we're all always running around doing something, so just grab an empty one and get some sleep. In the meantime I'm going to go see my Commander and see about getting my suspension lifted."
"Good luck," Surya said dryly. The group steered towards the stairs to the lower levels, but Gunther touched Daunte on the arm and stopped him briefly. "Good job, kid. You were able to sway them where I failed. Maybe we ought to use you for our diplomatic missions?" he snorted. "Hell, I might have to take you upstairs with me to speak to Lord Bearyl on my behalf!"
Daunte shook his head. "I didn't do anything special. Surya just listened to me because I'm his friend. And Mokuren and the General listened to me because their prince agreed with me. That's all, really."
"I don't think so." But Gunther let his arm go. "You have a natural power of persuasion, and though you don't talk much I can bet you have natural charisma. Someone like you can go far in our Army, Daunte."
Daunte shrugged. "I don't know, really. I'm just trying to survive, and look after my brother. I'm not trying to stand out."
"All right. But I'm not joking when I say you have potential." Gunther put his hands behind his head and steered towards the stairs leading upstairs. "Well, time to work my own political magic. With any luck I'll be joining you guys tomorrow."
Daunte watched him leave, and looked down at his right hand. I still don't get it. Why is everyone treating my words and actions as though they're something extraordinary? All I'm doing is being practical and looking out for a friend. And my being here is because I wanted to bring Arin to a safe place. Is this True Rune causing me to emit some sort of influence on people?
"I don't know if you realize this, but you've inspired a lot of children around here."
Yet Dr. Yulin told him that before the True Rune chose him. Was there then some truth to what Gunther was saying?
He shook his head and turned towards the stairs. My ego is starting to get the better of me. I have other things I need to worry about.
Daunte reached the barracks, which in it of itself was a giant room filled with over a hundred beds. There was very little privacy, but he was so tired that he didn't care. He saw that Surya and Mokuren had already fallen asleep in their own beds, and though Israfil was still awake he was quickly drifting off. Daunte himself didn't realize how tired he was until he sat down on an empty bed and pulled off his boots.
And the next he knew, a hand was touching his shoulder. He opened his eyes and realized he was sprawled at an awkward angle in the bed, and he blinked and looked up at the person leaning over him.
"Daunte." It was Roen. Daunte was awake in an instant and sat up, though his friend remained kneeling. "When did you get back?"
"Last night," Daunte said sheepishly. He rubbed at his eyes and looked towards the window. The sky was turning dark pink. "Did you just get back yourself, Roen?"
"Yes," Roen said, yawning. He sat down beside Daunte on the bed. "I met with Jantu and he gave me my assignment. We were supposed to go Uaminifu and raid a shipment of arms that were supposed to go to the city. The mission was originally supposed to last for ten days, but we found the sellers so quickly on the road that it went by pretty quickly."
"Arms?" Daunte asked.
"Swords, spears, you know." Roen shrugged. "Isn't it strange though that Uaminifu ordered so many weapons? Do you think the city is preparing for something?"
"I don't know." Daunte slowly stood up. "We found another royal yesterday, and luckily it was Lady Kaylani, Surya's pregnant cousin. We managed to get her back here before she gave birth."
"Oh, so that's what all the screaming was about at the infirmary?" Roen asked. "Clara has barred anyone from coming and going in the infirmary. I guess too many people were going in to gawk."
So that meant Daunte wouldn't be able to see Arin before he headed out. He scoffed and shook his head. He looked over to where the Falenans were and saw that Israfil was already awake and polishing his nodachi. Surya was doing stretches, but Mokuren was still fast asleep. "We're going to be leaving in a little bit, Roen. We received word that another one of Surya's cousins was taken to the Great Cistern."
Roen blanched. "Why would they take a princess to a place like that?!"
"As a trap, no doubt."
"Probably." Roen shook his head and stood. "Lord Bearyl cleared me for the time being after we finished our mission, so I'll go with you."
"But didn't you just get back?" Daunte exclaimed. "You're probably exhausted!"
Roen snorted. "I completed a mission that was estimated to last ten days in less than two days. I'm perfectly fine going with you guys. Besides, I like putting my Fire Rune to good use."
"Spoken like a true pyromancer," Daunte said. Roen laughed a little more loudly this time. "So we—"
There was a sudden 'thud' at the door of the barracks. Daunte and looked up and saw Felicity leaning against the doorway. The teenage girl was panting heavily and she looked exhausted. Daunte was shocked to see how tired she was. She never looked this bad before, not even when they'd been in the Dark Chasm!
"F-Felicity," Roen said, standing up as well. Before he could speak, Surya stepped forward. "Is it over? Are Kaylani and her baby okay?"
Felicity said nothing. She took two steps towards a bed and promptly fell face-first upon it. They rushed to her side in alarm, only to find that she was already fast asleep.
"If she's here, then that means the baby was born," Surya said. "Either that, or maybe Dr. Clara kicked her out of the infirmary?"
"I'm sure if she had bad news, she would've told us," Roen said. "So, when are we heading out?"
"In just a moment." Surya reached down and got his tri-nunchaku from beside the bed he'd slept on.
"Isn't Mokuren coming with us?" Daunte asked, gesturing to the still sleeping girl.
"Of course she is," Surya said. "But she was just so tired from yesterday that I decided to let her sleep in a little. Or at least I could gather as much, considering that she's usually awake before I am, and wasn't this morning."
Mokuren had been so chipper and talkative that Daunte hadn't noticed that she'd been very tired. "Felicity is obviously in no shape to come with us, but Roen said he'd like to come."
"Sounds good," Israfil said. He strapped his sword to his back and stood. "Then are we ready?"
"Mokuren." Surya leaned over his bodyguard and gave her a light shake. "Hey, wake u—"
"I'm coming!" Mokuren shrieked, startling all of them. In an instant she was awake and standing on the bed, swinging her naginata. She stilled though when she saw Surya. "A-Ah, Prince. What are you doing up so early?"
"We're leaving early, remember? You just slept in a little."
"I-I slept in?!" Mokuren let out a dramatic wail and held her hand to her forehead. "Oh, what a terrible folly! I am a disgrace to my position! May the power of the Sun Rune strike me down!" she then dramatically fainted, right into a bemused Surya's arms.
"Is she always like this?" Roen asked, not really caring if Mokuren heard him.
"Well, the theatrics tend to make people underestimate her," Surya said dryly. "You'd be surprised how many people fall for this 'fainting routine'." He set the girl upright. "Are you done?"
"Yes," Mokuren said, suddenly chipper again. "Let's go and rescue Lady Archana."
"We should probably go and see if that…fellow was reinstated by the Commander," Israfil said. "We will most likely need him in order to get to the Great Cistern."
The group turned to leave the barracks. Daunte turned to go, but paused. After a moment he turned back to Felicity and rolled her onto her side. There. Now she won't be smothered by her own pillow.
The infirmary was indeed still closed off, angry note on the door and everything. "'No entry unless you're bleeding to death'," Daunte read in a monotone voice.
Surya pressed his ear to the door and listened for a long moment. "I don't hear anything. However if anything did happen to Kaylani and her baby, then they definitely would've told us."
"I agree," Mokuren said. "We'll see them again after we come back with Lady Archana."
Daunte sighed, and pressed a hand to the door as well. "Bye, Arin," he said softly.
They walked up the stairs to the main hall, where a familiar face was there to greet them. "Yo! Are we going to go save a princess or what?"
Daunte arched an eyebrow at Gunther, and then looked at his hip. Gunther's talwar sword was strapped there. He looked back up at Gunther. "Lord Bearyl reinstated you?"
"Of course," Gunther said easily. "You see, I'm quite the master of persuasion."
"He was probably crawling on his knees begging for his sword back," Roen muttered in Daunte's ear. Daunte almost snorted.
"So it will be the six of us, then," Gunther said. He nodded his approval. "Did you guys stock up on items when you left Tenaga? Unfortunately we don't have any merchants here yet, and though Agameru will sell us anything it's in the opposite direction of the Great Cistern."
"We got some items," Daunte reassured him. He ruffled through his bag and found a couple medical herbs and the escape scroll and handed them to Gunther. "So we should be all set."
The courtyard of the castle was all abuzz about Princess Kaylani and her baby. Daunte kept his ears open and he thankfully heard nothing about either being in danger. Yet strangely, nobody was discussing the baby using gender pronouns. It were as though nobody knew whether or not Silvano and Kaylani's baby was a boy or girl.
Well, we're bound to find out eventually.
"The Great Cistern is due south of here, just northeast of Winter Hill," Gunther said. "If we don't run into too many problems, we should get there in about four hours."
"Let's see what sort of ambush they have planned for us," Surya said grimly.
They took off riding and followed Gunther southward. The Great Cistern was close to the capital and was the epicenter of all of Nagarea's plumbing. It put Daunte on edge to be getting so close to Mlkwt Alsmwat while as a wanted man, but he knew he had no other choice if he wanted to help rescue Archana. Luckily they faced minimal problems on the road. Only the occasional monster and a handful of travelers steering towards Mlkwt Alsmwat.
"If you don't mind my asking," Gunther said suddenly, after three hours of riding. "What kind of person is Princess Archana? If she's half as beautiful as her sister, then…" he chuckled to himself.
"Lady Archana is a fine woman with a kind heart," Israfil told him curtly. "And she is spoken for."
"Really?" Gunther arched an eyebrow. "By you?"
Israfil gave Gunther a glare that was so dark, Daunte was certain it could've killed Gunther if it had been a weapon. But while Israfil remained silent, Surya spoke up. "Archana is widowed and is in her mourning period. She cannot legally take a husband until it is finished, but she doesn't seem inclined to anyways."
Gunther looked surprised. "Widowed? Just how old is she? Princess Kaylani looks younger than me, so I can't imagine her sister being too much older than her!"
"…Archana isn't yet thirty years old," Surya said. It was a vague answer, but he said it with obvious reluctance.
"By Nagar, she's a widow so young?!" Gunther shook his head. "That's a terrible shame!"
"Yes, it is," Mokuren said softly.
"But what's her personality like?" Gunther continued. "I mean, the fact that she's a widow before the age of thirty shouldn't be her defining character trait!"
"I'm sure you'd get along with her," Surya said dryly. "Archana used to be a…uh, weirdo. She had very eccentric mannerisms and no matter what was going on or what type of day it was, she always seemed to be in a good mood. Her behavior tended to be infectious though, and everybody always started acting weird whenever she visited Sol-Falena."
"Remember when she got the bright idea to paint the main hall of the Sun Palace emerald green?" Mokuren laughed. "That was before Princess Signe was born. Lady Archana thought that green paint would complement the carpet and the floors! We all got really excited and we were ready to paint! Oh—it got everywhere! Little Princess Farrin got green paint all over her dress and there were tiny green footprints all over the floor! And Prince—you and I kept flicking our paint brushes at each other so we became covered in paint! And-and, remember when Prince Freyr accidentally hit Lady Archana's hair with his wet paintbrush? She just laughed and grabbed handfuls of green paint and rubbed it in her hair! And Lady Kaylani was making green hand prints on the walls!"
"That was great," Surya admitted, grinning a little. "Until Aunt Lym and my parents brought their full fury down upon us and forced us to clean up the mess. It took over a month to wash away all the green paint!" he shook his head. "That was…ten years ago, I think."
"I remember that," Israfil said amusedly. "I was visiting Sol-Falena that day with my father and two of my brothers, when we heard the Queen's screams all the way from the Parliament building. We ran as fast as we could to see what was the matter, only to find a quarter section of the wall and floor—and all of you, of course—covered in green paint. And Lady Archana…" he laughed softly. "She was trying to excuse your guy's actions by claiming the color green warded off bad omens. Then she slipped in a puddle of paint and fell right into it, and it stained the entire back of her dress. And she just kept laughing!"
Daunte couldn't help but laugh. The story sounded so outrageous that it was difficult to picture in his head. But he knew a story so outrageous had to be true.
"It was hard taking Father and Aunt Lym seriously when Archana and Kaylani were laughing so hard." Surya's expression grew grim and he looked down. "I miss that Archana. I haven't seen that side of her since…" he shook his head and straightened in his saddle. "We're wasting time. Let's get going."
They reached the Great Cistern just a little over an hour later. As the reservoir was located underground, the main building looked like nothing more than a small, one-story white house. They found a safe placed to secure their horses, but Daunte was on edge.
There were no guards on duty. There was no one guarding the door, and he saw nobody inside when he looked in the windows. He tested the door handle, and sure enough it swung open with little effort. He looked at the others and saw they were also on edge.
We're definitely walking into a trap.
"We'll need to be careful from here on out," Surya said softly. "With any luck Archana is all right, but they might have hurt her in order to get at us."
"I will make them pay if they did such a thing," Israfil said. His tone had become dark and was filled with ominous promise.
They entered the building and saw that it was indeed empty. There was a giant manhole opening in the center of the room and it was open fully, revealing a set of metal stairs. Along one wall were two treasure chests, also undisturbed. Inside one was a strong medicinal potion. Inside the other one, however…puzzled Daunte.
He lifted his loot in both hands, brow furrowed in confusion. It looked like a book, but it had no cover. The pages were secured together with tightly wounded string. He flipped it open idly, scanning the pages, before closing it again to see the cover. He traced the title with his finger before reading it aloud. "'Beauty and the Beast'." He looked at the others. "Does anyone know what this means?"
Surya took it from Daunte and flipped it open. "It looks like a book, but the writing style looks strange." He closed it shut and handed it back to Daunte. "We'll worry about it later. Just stash it with our other items."
Daunte complied and the group turned their attention towards the stairs. They led down into darkness. He could hear nothing but the sound of water from inside. The group moved single-file down the stairs, not letting their guard down. The stairwell was narrow, and the walls closed tight around them.
Daunte wondered to himself how the monsters could've gotten into the Cistern, if the main entrance was a narrow staircase, but he ultimately surmised that there had to be more than one way to get inside. Much like the ruins they'd found in the Dark Chasm.
They reached the Great Cistern. It was a chilly environment dimly lit. They were on a stone, damp walkway over water. Tall pillars lined up and reached the high ceiling. Below them, the water from Golden River rushed in, forming a deep river between the walkways.
"Archana?" Surya tried calling out. They received no reply.
"This structure is incredible," Israfil said softly, running his hand along the wall. This reminds of what my father used to tell me about with a castle in Ceras Lake. How despite the fact that it'd been submerged in a lake for hundreds of years, there had been no structural damage and no decay to the foundation."
"Mom told me about that castle, too," Surya said. "She'd said that they suspected that it'd been built by the Sindar race. Perhaps this place was also built by them too?"
"I don't know what the Sindar are, but the Great Cistern is one of the oldest structures in Nagarea," Gunther said. "It was here even before the Great Earthquake. Whoever or whatever built this place built it in a way so it could last."
A low growl reverberated from the darkness and the group quickly armed themselves. "Here we go," Surya said softly.
Because of the close quarters of the Great Cistern, Daunte did feel like they were being overwhelmed by monsters. He saw the giant rats again, but their fur was tar black this time and their eyes were eerily gray in color. They were also much stronger, too. And if that wasn't enough, they also kept running into spiders that were the size of dogs that spat poisonous venom. Those battles were far from pleasant, and while Daunte didn't like getting hit with their venom, he liked it even less when the venom missed them entirely and flew into the water below.
No wonder the water's contaminated down here.
They fought the monsters off, trying desperately to kill them with minimal mess, and trying even harder from preventing their dead bodies from falling into the water. It caused their movements to slow down, and it didn't help that the layout of the Great Cistern itself was confusing. They could never stay on one walkway for long; it kept reaching a dead-end, sometimes punctuated with the odd treasure chest, but then they would have to cross an arched bridge to get to the other side. Every so often Surya called out for his cousin, but the only thing that greeted them was either silence or the answering cry of a monster.
That was when it happened. Daunte had taken the lead and was rounding a corner when he felt something slam into him. He hadn't been expecting it, and the momentum knocked him straight off the walkway and into the water below.
"DAUNTE!" Roen shrieked.
Daunte frantically waved his arms underwater. He had no idea how to swim. He bobbed to the surface long enough to get a huge gulp of air before the water swallowed him up. He was only vaguely aware that the water had a sour taste, and that the color was darker than it had in other areas.
This is contaminated water.
He couldn't have imagined any worse death than drowning in polluted water. He squeezed his eyes shut and gripped his right wrist to his chest. True Rune, HELP ME!
He suddenly felt heat on his chest, and within seconds the burning sensation in his lungs relaxed. He opened his eyes and looked down. The True Rune was vibrating in time with his own heartbeat.
Daunte became aware that the water around him began changing. With each vibration of his True Rune, the color lightened more and more. Soon he could see more than just a few centimeters in front of himself. He could see the walls, and he could see the floor.
And he could see the bodies of several monsters floating around him. But…it was strange. As the clear water stretched out and enveloped the bodies, the bodies simply…disappeared. They evaporated into nothing, as though they'd never been there at all.
W-What the…is my Rune purifying the water?!
Daunte jolted as a hand grabbed the back of his collar and yanked him up, pulling his head out of the water. "Got him!"
Daunte took in a deep breath of air, and began gagging. He realized he didn't have much strength to keep himself up, but the hand held him steady. He looked up and saw Surya, hanging upside down along the wall. Above them, Roen and the others were holding Surya tight, two holding each ankle.
"Pull us up!" Surya shouted. The other four complied and pulled Surya up, and by extension Daunte. Daunte was soaked to the bone, but he barely noticed as he was dragged up onto the walkway. Now out of the water he began coughing even more, and was alarm to see that he was vomiting water.
"Daunte!" Roen knelt down beside him and grabbed his shoulders. "Are you all right?!"
Daunte nodded jerkily. "W…What attacked me?"
"It looked like a giant bat or something," Mokuren said. "It blindsided you and knocked you into the water. Thankfully we got to you in time."
"T-Thank you." Daunte cleared his throat, satisfied he'd coughed up all the water he'd inhaled, and struggled to his feet. Roen helped him stand. "Thank you all so much."
"Hey," Gunther said suddenly. He was looking over the edge. "Does anybody else notice that?" he pointed.
Daunte looked to where he was pointing. He hadn't been paying much attention to the water, but now he could see that it was…greenish brown. Just seeing it made him want to vomit again.
But in the center of the river, he could see a large circle of crystal clear water. Daunte gestured to it. "I-Is that where I fell?"
"Yes," Surya said. He looked at Daunte. "What did you do?"
"The Rune activated—I think it was reacting to me drowning." Daunte looked down at it. "It started vibrating, and—and I noticed that the water did clear up around me."
"It purified the water?!" Mokuren exclaimed. "That's incredible!"
"Quick, do it again!" Gunther insisted. "Try purifying this whole section of water!"
"As important as this is, shouldn't we continue moving?" Israfil asked softly.
"Yeah, Archana is waiting for us." Surya looked indecisive. "Daunte, go ahead and do what you did before. Then we need to get going and fast."
Do what he did before? But Daunte didn't intentionally purify the water! He just asked the True Rune to save him!
But I can't leave it like this, can't I?
Daunte nodded, and took off his tekko. "Can someone lower me back down there?"
"Here, we'll all do it," Surya said. "Just lie down and scoot yourself over the edge. We'll lower you the rest of the way."
"I just hope this doesn't drain the True Rune of its power," Roen said softly.
Two grabbed one ankle, and three grabbed the other, as Daunte was lowered back down towards the water. Now that he had control of his senses, Daunte could smell the water. It smelled as unpleasant as it looked. They lowered him as far as they could, and he reached out the rest of the way, submerging his right hand in the water.
"True Rune," he said, staring at the symbol on his hand. "I've seen what you can do to this water. Please, use your strength to clean the rest of it up!"
The Rune didn't have a habit of responding to his verbal commands, so Daunte was very shocked to see it glow with this one. The water surrounding the hand immediately cleared, and within seconds it billowed out, swallowing up the unpleasant color and odors and replacing them with clean, fresh water. It was clean enough that he could see through to the bottom, even in the dim light!
Then just as abruptly, the Rune stopped glowing. Daunte stared at it in confusion until he felt the others pull him back up. "We did it!" Roen cheered. "Look, Daunte!"
Daunte did look. The murky, polluted water below them was gone. Now it was just as fresh as the Golden River on the surface. "I can't believe that worked," he breathed.
"This is very impressive," Surya admitted. "I guess the citizens don't have to worry about contaminated drinking water anymore."
"No, not quite," Gunther said grimly. "This was just a small section of free flowing water. There's at least three vaults of water down here that are even more contaminated than this one was."
"We should find them and clean them up as well!" Roen said.
"I agree, if we have the time," Surya said. "But my cousin is somewhere down here and we need to find her before anything else happens to her!"
"At least those vaults are separated from the rest of the water supply," Gunther offered.
"…All right," Roen agreed.
They continued on the path. Daunte hung back a little, still staring at the True Rune. What are you, exactly? You act as a healing rune, but you also trigger flashbacks at random for me. AND you can purify contaminated water? Is there anything you can't do?
The True Rune flickered briefly and Daunte started. He didn't expect the Rune to react to his thoughts.
But it's sentient, right? So it's like a living thing attached to my arm…and you choose whether to react to my words and thoughts, or act out on your own.
Daunte knew that the Great Cistern housed all of the fresh water in Nagarea. But never did he anticipate how…large the place was. It seemed to go on for kilometers.
They got lost multiple times. Many of the walkways seemed to lead to nowhere and Daunte questioned what their purpose was. Admittedly he was glad to find that many of the workers of the Cistern had stashed healing items in treasure chests (and they were even lucky enough to find a rune scroll—Surya said it contained a lightning spell, "Angry Blow"), but the endless corridors and the sound of rushing water became troublesome after a while.
"Do we still have that escape scroll?" Surya asked at one point.
"Right here," Gunther said, pulling it out. "Don't worry, I won't lose it."
"Good. I don't intend walking back out of here after we find Archana."
"This is very strange," Mokuren said softly. "I thought we were walking into an ambush, but no traps have been sprung upon us."
"I'm sure there'll be plenty once we reach my cousin."
Daunte heard something just ahead and stopped in his tracks. He signaled to everyone else to stop as well. "What's wrong?" Roen asked.
"Does anyone else hear that?" Daunte asked. He listened more carefully. It didn't sound like an approaching monster. But the sound…it was out of place for a place like this. "It sounds like…singing."
"Singing?" Surya surged forward. "Is it Archana?!"
Daunte moved closer, following the sound. The others followed quickly behind him. The sound got louder. It was a female voice, but…
"That's a Nagarist hymn," Roen said as they drew closer.
"Then it's not Archana?" Surya drooped his head.
"Damn it all!"
They were all startled by this sudden shout. They rushed forward and ran into a room on their left. Daunte was immediately struck by the same sour smell he'd experienced before, when he'd fallen into contaminated water.
"I can't get the octaves right! Why I can't it right?!"
There was a young woman standing in front of them, who was standing in front of a large basin of dirty water. Her indigo hair was cut short, like a boy's, but she wore a pale yellow thin veil on her head with a matching tunic and dark pants. The woman was shaking her left hand in frustration. "I went through so much trouble to get you, Sound Rune! Why aren't you working for me?! Is my voice not good enough for you?!"
"Excuse me?" Daunte said.
The woman shrieked in alarm. The Rune on her left hand suddenly glowed, and her shriek amplified and vibrated off the walls. Daunte's ears rang painfully and he slapped his hands over his ears. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the others mimicked the motion.
"A-Ah, I'm sorry!" the woman turned, revealing a youthful face and wide blue eyes. "I haven't mastered the use of my Sound Rune, so it reacts to the octaves of my voice at random! W-What are all of you doing down here?"
"We could ask you the same thing," Surya said, wiggling at one ear with his index finger. "Haven't you noticed that this place is monster-infested?"
"And how did you get down here anyway, miss?" Roen added. "The Great Cistern is a restricted area."
The woman waved a dismissive hand. "There's more than one way to get in here! I thought that with such close quarters I could work on getting my Sound Rune to work, but it's not listening to me! I'm starting to wonder if I even have the proper voice for it!" she huffed and hung her head slightly. "Maybe if I had a sound set, I might get this Rune to work properly…"
"Excuse me Miss, uh…" Surya floundered.
"Liron," the woman replied. "My name is Liron."
"How long have you been down here?"
"Four days."
Daunte arched a brow at this answer, but Surya continued. "Okay, Miss Liron. Did you happen to see anyone be carried in down here?"
Liron thought about this for a long moment. "…No. I haven't seen anyone besides the six of you."
"Da—"
"But I heard something odd two days ago."
"Really?" Surya perked up again. "What did you hear?"
"Two women's voices," Liron told him. "They were very distinctive. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but I could sense the emotions in their voices by the different octaves they emitted."
"What did they sound like?"
"One woman had a harsh tone. Very authoritative. My Sound Rune reacted negatively to her voice and it actually seemed to amplify it. And the other…" Liron shook her head. "The other voice was beautiful. Very melodic. But by the octaves in her tone, i-it sounded like she was crying."
Surya surged forward and grabbed Liron's hands. "Which direction did you hear these voices from?"
"Northwest of here," Liron said, pointing in the opposite direction from where they came. "Based upon how the voices echoed off the walls, they seemed to be coming from a rightward direction."
"Thank you!" Surya let her go and took off running out of the room. Mokuren and Israfil quickly followed.
"Thank you for your help, Miss," Gunther said to Liron, using the same deep tone he seemed to reserve just for women. "Why not accompany us out of here?"
"I can't leave!" Liron protested. "Not until I get the octaves right!" She turned back around to face the contaminated water. "I wish I had a sound set. The Sound Rune would surely listen to me if I had a sound set!"
"Daunte," Roen said, nodding to the water in front of her. "That must be one of the contaminated vaults, right? Do you think you can…?"
Daunte wanted to catch up to Surya and the others, but he also didn't feel good about leaving this vault like this. After a moment he nodded. "I'll make it quick."
It was much easier reaching into this water, but it seemed to be ten times more contaminated than the river he fell into. There was an oily film on the surface of the water, and Daunte saw visible growth spots of bacteria. Daunte himself felt dirtier just having his hand in it. "True Rune, please purify this water," he said softly.
The True Rune glowed, and within seconds the water reacted to its power. The oily residue evaporated and it quickly cleared until there was nothing left but fresh water.
"You did it again!" Gunther praised. "That just leaves two vaults! Too bad we don't know where they are…"
"We'll find them another time," Daunte, wiping his wet hand on his pants. "In the meantime we should catch up to the others." He glanced at Liron one last time. "Are you sure you don't want to come with us? It's very dangerous down here."
Liron shook her head. "I won't leave until I unlock the mysteries of this Sound Rune! If I had a sound set I might be able to do something, but…" she shook her head. "If you guys like, there's a hidden ladder back that way." She pointed in the direction they came from. "It leads right up into Winter Hill, but it points to the southwest provinces."
"Thank you," Daunte said. Liron turned back around to face the now fresh water and they ran from the room. He could hear Liron begin singing again even as they rounded a corner.
"She said the voices came from the right, right?" Roen asked Daunte. "So we should stick to the right until we find the others!"
They followed the right-side walkway and kept making right turns. Daunte was concerned they might have lost them, but he saw more than one dead monster along the walkway, so that was a big indication that Surya and the others had come this way. "Surya?" Daunte shouted ahead of them.
Five minutes later, the three Falenans were running back towards them. "There you guys are!" Surya panted. "What took you three so long?!"
"Daunte purified the contaminated vault," Roen said, pausing to catch his breath. "Is something the matter?"
"Yes," Israfil said. "We're on the right track…and we found our trap."
"Really?" Gunther said, sounding amused.
But Mokuren shook her head. "This isn't good. We might not be cut out for this fight."
"How so?" Daunte asked.
Surya waved to them. "Come and see."
They followed the path and it lead to a giant room. No sounds could be heard beside the explosive sounds of rushing water from multiple sluice gates below. Daunte looked ahead and saw a narrow walkway over the water. But at the end of the walkway was…
Roen reeled back, and pulled out his bolo knife. "I-Is that a dragon?!"
"Looks like a Water Dragon," Surya said. Daunte assumed such since the dragon was bright blue and his tail was hanging over the ledge and into the water. Surya clenched his right hand into a fist. "Which means your Fire Rune won't do much damage to it, Roen."
"Aw, dammit."
"I'll lead from the front," Israfil said softly, also drawing his weapon. "I'll strike it quickly with the power of my Titan Rune. With any luck that will disorient the beast and we can move in for a swift kill."
"I'll take the front with you," Mokuren volunteered. "With my Counter Rune I'll reflexively strike back when it hurts me. It'll be easier for my Rune to activate if I'm out front."
"It won't activate if it uses magic," Surya warned her. "Especially if it starts breathing blue fire at you."
"I know. I'll be careful."
"Damn, my Rune is useless against a monster like this," Gunther grumbled. "Next rune shop we go to, I'm getting a Lightning Rune."
"That's not going to do us a lot of good now, will it? If we leave to go to one, then we'll still have to travel all the way through this place."
"Which is why I'm going to do it after. I don't intend to die down here."
Neither do I, Daunte thought.
It was unnerving to approach the Water Dragon in such a way. It stood its ground and did not take to the air. It watched them approach patiently, and its patience made Daunte even more worried. It wasn't acting like a normal monster.
This is definitely the trap they laid out for us.
"Daunte," Surya said suddenly. Daunte turned to look at him. "Don't use your spell until we absolutely need it, okay?"
"All right," Daunte agreed, focusing once more on the monster ahead of them.
The Water Dragon didn't remain idle for long however. The moment Israfil reached the platform it let out a loud roar. "Get into formation!" Israfil shouted.
"Prince, stay behind me!" Mokuren shouted.
"Can't let a lady stay on the front line by herself!" Gunther laughed. He raced up to stand beside Mokuren and Israfil, while Daunte, Surya, and Roen took to the back row. Daunte looked down at his tekko, a short-range weapon, and wondered how his fists were supposed to reach the dragon.
Just stay alive, and keep your friends alive too.
Israfil struck first, utilizing the power of his Titan Rune and delivering a devastating blow to the Water Dragon. The beast faltered, but it did not become disorientated. "Fog of Deception!" Surya called out, activating his Water Rune.
"Can I at least try a fire spell on it?" Roen wondered.
"Certainly, but it won't affect the beast much," Mokuren said over her shoulder.
Roen raised his right hand. "Flaming Arrows!" A bright red symbol in the shape of a flame rose into the air briefly before a shower of fire rained down upon the dragon. It roared in pain, but Daunte noticed that its scales didn't even become scorched.
It was a tough battle, but Daunte felt reassured by the presence of four seasoned warriors. Nobody hesitated when they attacked the beast, but the dragon usually attacked with two strikes. Sometimes it clawed at them, sometimes it swung its tail, but more often than not it breathed blue fire upon them. It was the color of clean water, but it burned like a hot flame. The beast was unrelenting.
"Angry Blow!" Gunther shouted, unrolling the rune scroll. Not even a second later a massive blue lightning bolt consumed the Water Dragon. The air crackled with the electricity. It roared in pain and faltered, but it remained steady on its feet.
"Damn, I'm definitely getting a Lightning Rune!" Gunther exclaimed.
Daunte did feel like the odds were in their favor. However the fight continued to wear on, and because it did they wasted most of their spells and techniques. And though the Water Dragon was injured, it was still standing.
The beast roared again, and turned its body to swing its tail again. Daunte saw who the target was and shouted, "Surya, look out!"
Before the prince reacted, Mokuren jumped in front of him and accepted the blow to her torso. Daunte flinched as he audibly heard her ribs break from the blow, and the bodyguard skidded across the wet stone floor. "Mokuren!" Surya hollered.
But just as quickly, Mokuren was on her feet lunging at the Water Dragon. She swung the naginata and hit home, managing to draw blood. As the creature reeled back Mokuren coughed into her hand and stumbled backwards.
"You damned idiot!" Surya grabbed her to hold her steady. "What were you thinking?!"
"Only of you, Prince," she answered quietly, without a hint of irony in her voice. Daunte saw that she had coughed up blood though, and his stomach twisted. He raised his right hand, just saw Surya shouted, "Daunte, now!"
"Howl!" Daunte shouted. The True Rune's symbol flashed in the air before all six of them were surrounded by the golden-green light Daunte had become familiar with. He felt his injuries heal up, and he saw the others straighten a little more. Mokuren herself also looked much better.
"M-My Titan Rune is restored!" Israfil said with astonishment. He looked at Daunte. "Your Rune can restore spells on other runes?!"
Daunte shrugged. "I suppose so."
"Then I'll finish this quickly." Israfil activated his Rune and lunged at the Water Dragon again. He delivered another devastating blow to the monster, and the beast faltered considerably this time. The dragon however ended up falling when Roen called for the Flaming Arrows spell again. Though the damage was minimal, the dragon's battered body could take no more and it collapsed in a thunderous heap.
"Is everyone okay?" Surya asked. He looked at Mokuren in particular. "How are your ribs?"
"Well, my chest doesn't feel like it's caving in on my heart so I think I'm okay," Mokuren told him cheerfully.
"Just don't do that again. I don't appreciate you hurting yourself for my sake."
"There's nothing for you to worry about, Prince. I'm your bodyguard, so I will look after you."
"But look after yourself, too."
"Ooh, jackpot!" Gunther hollered. He was currently looting the Water Dragon's corpse. "Dragon armor! This costs an arm and a leg at the shops!"
"The dragon was carrying bits…somehow," Roen said, pouring the coins into his hand. His eyes went wide. "By Nagar…this had to be 30,000 bits!"
Daunte noticed something beside the dragon's body. He knelt down on the ground and picked it up. It looked like a piece of a crystal, but…but it had a symbol on it. The symbol looked very familiar to Daunte.
"That's a Resurrection piece."
Daunte looked over his shoulder at Surya, who was leaning over him. "Gather three more pieces of the same, and you can take it to a runemaster to form the Resurrection Rune."
Resurrection Rune. The Rune that his True Rune may or may not have been the parent rune of. I-If I assemble this rune, will I be able to figure out how to control my True Rune?
"Prince?"
Daunte looked up at Israfil's call. The General hadn't taken part in looting the Water Dragon's corpse. He was standing in front of the far wall in front of a statue of Nagar, holding something between two fingers. They hurried over and Daunte saw that it was a black lace ribbon that had been tied in a cheerfully large bow around the statue of the War God.
Surya quickly untied the ribbon and held it in both hands. Moments later his hands began trembling. "This is Archana's. This is Archana's!" He bolted to the right, where there was an open passageway.
"Prince!" Mokuren shouted, but Israfil took off running after him. The others quickly followed, running swiftly down the narrow corridor. The lights down this way had suddenly grown dimmer, but they didn't stop.
They reached a large room, even larger than the one before, and to their left was a sluice gate that was high enough to reach the walkway. They rounded the corner towards the staircase, their eyes struggling to adjust to the dimmer light.
They walked two-by-two up the stairs when Daunte heard it. The rushing water was surprisingly quiet in this area, but Daunte still heard it. The sound of uneven, frightened breathing.
They reached the top step and up ahead on the slush gate Daunte saw a woman standing huddled in the dim light. She was dressed entirely in black and had her back to them, and her silver hair was curly and worn long and loose to her waist. She was hugging her arms, and she was shaking violently.
Daunte looked to Surya. "Is that her?" he asked softly.
Surya didn't answer. He took a couple of steps forward. "Archana?" he called out.
The figure stiffened and slowly turned around, revealing a stunningly beautiful woman with a face streaked with tears. Lady Archana was alone and unguarded, yet the distress in the twenty-seven year old's expression and in her dark bloodshot eyes unnerved Daunte. Her lips moved, and she spoke in such a soft voice that Daunte almost didn't hear her.
But he did hear her. "Stay back."
"Archana!" Surya surged forward, quickly followed by Mokuren and Israfil. "Archana, you're saf—"
"Stay back!" Archana shrieked suddenly.
The group stopped at her shout, and they looked at each other in confusion. Daunte then noticed something. Archana's complexion was very pale, but her forehead looked scorched, as though it had a sunburn. In the center of her forehead was dark red, and he could've sworn—it was strange. It looked like the dark red spot on her forehead formed the shape of a skull.
He was so surprised he nearly held his tongue. But he found the courage to shout, "What is that thing on her forehead?" and pointed.
"Forehead?!" Surya looked as well and his eyes widened. "A-Archana—is that a Rune?!"
"How very astute of you both."
Archana flinched violently at this voice, and Daunte's body quickly filled with dread. No…it can't be.
"Good thing all of you know how to keep on the trail, like good dogs." On a separate platform meters away, a figure emerged from the shadows. Daunte tensed as he recognized the Dark Chasm's Matron standing there. "Allow me to introduce all of you to the Exploding Rune. It's a Rune that I developed myself. You see, with just a little bit of power…" she raised her right hand and it glowed pale red.
The Rune on Archana's head began to glow and she went rigid. She threw back her head and let out a blood-curdling scream of agony as the glow increased in size and vibrancy.
"Lady Archana!" Israfil shouted. He started running towards her, but Archana threw up her hands. "S-Stay away from me!" she choked out between her screams.
The Matron lowered her hand and the glow immediately faded from Archana's head. The Princess fell to her knees, her breathing ragged. "With just a little bit of power, the Rune will explode," the Matron continued. "The blast from the explosion is powerful enough to rip its host's body to pieces, and rip to pieces anyone who happens to be standing within two meters of the host."
"You bitch!" Surya raged, drawing his tri-nunchaku. "I'll make you pay for doing this to my cousin!"
"Are you insane?!" Mokuren also shouted. "Lady Archana is a Falenan Princess! She is one of your hostages! How can you conceive of throwing her life away so savagely?!"
"True, she is a princess," the Matron agreed. "But Princess Archana is merely fourth in line for the throne, isn't she? So her value isn't as potent as, say, Princess Farrin or Signe is it? So what does it really matter if she dies here? Your country wouldn't crumble to ashes with her demise, would it?"
Israfil swiftly drew his sword and pointed the tip towards the Matron. His body was trembling with unchecked fury, and he looked like he was snarling. "Know this. I will never forget this, and I will not rest until I see you pay for what you've done to Lady Archana!"
"Oh?" the Matron turned her gaze towards him, completely unperturbed by his threat. "Such strong words from a man in no position to be making threats. And with such feeling, too." Israfil flinched, but it was so slight that it was practically unnoticeable.
"Lady Matron," Daunte said, stepping forward. "You didn't attach an Exploding Rune to a valuable hostage without a reason. What do you want?"
"And here I thought you were a smart boy. What do you think I want?" The Matron glared at him. "Hand over the True Rune on your hand or else I'm going to blow the Princess into pieces."
Roen looked at Daunte with alarm and Daunte raised his right hand. Of course the Matron wanted the Rune. The existence of the Dark Chasm was in part due to the hunt for the Rune. But it still amazed Daunte that she would continue to go so far to force him to give it up.
"Daunte," Surya said softly. Daunte looked at him and the prince had a look of desperation on his face. Mokuren had her hands clasped tightly in front of her.
Daunte knew that if he didn't hand the Rune over that the Matron would most definitely follow up with her threats and kill Archana. But there was also the overwhelming consequences that could follow if the Matron obtained the Rune.
"D-Don't…" Archana pleaded in a soft voice. She was slowly rising back to her feet. "Don't give in to her. Don't hand over such p-power to her. Please…"
"I want to save my cousin," Surya said, his tone still soft. "But based on my dealings with this woman, I don't trust her to let Archana go once she has the Rune. Daunte…" he gripped his own bangs and ducked his head. "Daunte, what should we do?!"
Daunte looked back at his hand. He'd tried before to give the True Rune the command to leave him, and it didn't. How was he supposed to get out of this situation?
"My patience is wearing thin," the Matron said irritably. "You need to make a decision, or I'm going to activate the Exploding Rune. Will you give me the True Rune, boy?"
Daunte glanced towards Israfil and Archana. The General was still the minimum safe distance away from the princess but his desperation mirrored Surya's. Archana was shaking her head at him, clearly indicating to Daunte that she didn't want him to hand over the True Rune.
Swallowing thickly, Daunte squeezed his eyes shut and raised his right hand. "T…True Rune. Please leave me and go to Lady Matron." One second passed, and then another. After several more seconds passed Daunte opened his eyes and lowered his hand. The True Rune was still branded onto the back of his right hand.
It's still refusing to leave me! What am I supposed to do?!
"Am I supposed to be amused by that cute display?" the Matron demanded sardonically. "Maybe you aren't taking my threats seriously enough, hmm?" she raised her right hand again at Archana. "No!" Daunte hollered. "Please don't!"
Archana screamed again as light lit up from the Exploding Rune. It lasted much longer this time, and the rune began to sizzle on her skin as her body shook violently. "STOP IT!" Surya shrieked. He snapped his tri-nunchaku into a pole form and chucked it at the Matron like a javelin. She stopped triggering the Exploding Rune and swatted the air at the tri-nunchaku. Just centimeters from her head it whipped away and spun through the air, clattering to the floor.
Archana collapsed again, half-sitting, half-lying on the damp stone ground. "My Lady!" Israfil sheathed his sword and tried to hurry to her side, but Archana raised a trembling hand. "Stop! I order you to stop, General!"
Israfil stopped immediately with her command. His arms were raised slightly as though he wanted to reach for her but couldn't. "I…I understand, my Lady."
"Lady Archana, are you all right?!" Mokuren rushed forward to stand beside Israfil. Both were just a little over two meters away from her.
Archana raised her head weakly. Her eyes were closed and her whole forehead was now bright red. Daunte could see small blisters forming on the skin surrounding the Exploding Rune. "I…I'm dizzy. I feel so sick…I…"
"What do you want from me?!" Daunte hollered, losing his temper. He glared murderously at the Matron. "I commanded the True Rune to go to you, and it wouldn't! I can't force it off my hand, no matter how many times I tell it to leave me! Do you want me to cut off my hand and throw it over to you?! Huh?!"
"That would suffice," the Matron told him.
Surya grabbed Daunte's wrist and jerked his hand down. "I want to save Archana, but there must be some other way! There must be!"
"My Lady." Israfil had knelt down on the ground so that he was the same level as Archana. He was keeping his voice low and calm. "My Lady, I swore an oath to Queen Lymsleia and your parents that I would bring you home safe. I intend to see that oath through to the very end. I'll save you from this, I swear."
Archana shook her head, but by that point she was so weak that her head simply rolled around on her shoulders. "D…Don't worry about me. My sister…and Farrin and Signe and Freyr. They—They n-need more help than I. I…" she was gasping for air but she forced the words out. "I know where Signe is!"
"You do?!" Surya shouted with excitement. "Where?!"
"A-A town south from here…it's called Kõrkus."
Kõrkus? Daunte looked at Roen, who was equally shocked. Kõrkus was his hometown after all. He also saw Gunther, who'd been uncharacteristically silent throughout all this. The lieutenant had a grim expression on his face.
"So d-don't worry about me. Save Signe, and save my sister. Kaylani…she's about to have her baby. I…"
"Archana, Freyr and Kaylani are safe!" Surya told her. Archana was struggling back to her feet without saying another word. "We left Kaylani in a safe place and she's having her baby in that place! She begged us to come here and save you, Archana! Don't try to make yourself sound insignificant compared to them! We're not leaving here without you!"
"There's no use trying to reason with a woman who has a death wish."
A cold chill stabbed through Daunte, and he looked at the Matron disbelievingly. "Am I wrong, Princess Archana?" she asked softly. "Isn't reuniting with your dead husband your ultimate desire? The pain of losing him has never left you, and even now with your official seven-year mourning period drawing to a close you have no desire to seek out a new husband." The Matron hummed, and pressed her covered face into her palm thoughtfully. "Your Darrick must have been quite a man, for you to wallow like this for so long."
"Shut up, you witch!" Surya hollered at her. "You know nothing about Archana!"
"Don't I, now? It's a terrible feeling, isn't it Princess? The overwhelming sense of loss. The emptiness in the bottom of your heart. The void of heartache that makes you feel like you're choking. The never-ending sense of just being alone, because your one true love isn't there beside you."
Archana said nothing to these words, but Daunte saw tears falling from her bent over head. "Maybe this situation I've put you in is a mercy," the Matron continued. "After all, this boy doesn't seem to want to hand over the True Rune, and you've done nothing but object to his handing it over. Does this mean you want to die, Princess? Do you want me to activate that Rune, and—"
It happened so quickly that Daunte nearly fell over in shock. Israfil launched to his feet, unsheathed his sword, and threw it at the Matron like he was throwing a boomerang. It was the same as what Surya had done earlier, but this time the Matron didn't see it coming. She shrieked and ducked out of the way as the massive nodachi embedded in the wall behind her.
As this happened, Israfil surged forward and grabbed Archana by her arms. She cried out in shock as he crushed her against his chest and held onto her in a tight hug.
"General Israfil, what are you doing?!" Surya sputtered.
"Let me go—let me go!" Archana found the strength to shout, but didn't have the strength to struggle in his hold. "I-If she activates the Rune, you'll be killed too! Let me go, General!"
"No."
Archana stiffened. Daunte moved forward and he saw that she was wearing a shocked expression. She opened and closed her mouth silently for several moments before she finally spoke. "Why?"
"Because I refuse to leave you like this." He squeezed his arms tighter around her. "I can't allow you to suffer like this alone, so I won't leave your side. No matter what."
Archana looked stunned, and even a little confused. Out of the corner of Daunte's eye though, he saw the Matron get back to her feet.
"I'm done playing games," she spat. "If you're not going to cooperate with me, boy, then you're going to suffer the consequences!" she gestured sharply at Archana while Mokuren screamed, "Please don't!"
The light reappeared on Archana's forehead again and she threw her head back and screamed once more. So much power was emulating from the Exploding Rune that it seemed to vibrate in the air. Israfil grabbed her forehead in his palm, as though trying to futilely pull the Rune off with his fingers before it fully activated. "Archana, NO!" Surya shrieked, trying to rush to his cousin's side, but Mokuren grabbed him and forcibly dragged him away with surprising strength.
Daunte's feet moved on their own and he charged at Archana. He reached out with his right hand and was shocked to see the True Rune activate with his desperation. He honestly had no idea what he could do, but maybe…maybe he could use the power of his True Rune to overpower the Exploding Rune and prevent it from exploding!
He slammed his hand against Archana's forehead, and his True Rune glowed even brighter. "S-Sir Daunte?!" Israfil cried out in shock. Daunte held his other hand to the back of Archana's head and growled as the True Rune's light melded with the light of the Exploding Rune. Get off her! GET OFF HER! In his palm he felt the physical body of the Exploding Rune's crystal and he squeezed his hand around it. It was fastened deep into her skin and he honestly didn't know how he could remove it without a runemaster's assistance but he had to try. He had to try!
Archana was still screaming in pain, and Surya was screaming behind them while struggling in Mokuren's hold. Daunte was aware that both Roen and Gunther were also screaming something, but he had his full concentration on the Rune. The light from the Exploding Rune hadn't dimmed, and he felt the skin on his palm burn and blister from its power. It was so painful, but he didn't dare move his hand away. "True Rune, I command you to destroy the power of this Rune and get it off her!"
The True Rune quickly glowed with bright light and Daunte reflexively squeezed his eyes shut. He heard the Matron cry out from a distance, but then the air filled with silence. He no longer felt the heat of the Exploding Rune in his hand. He let out a short breath and slowly opened his eyes.
And blinked. Daunte was no longer in the Great Cistern. No, he was in a much more aesthetically pleasing place. It was a grand hall so clean and beautiful that he could see his reflection in the floor. It was full of people dressed in festive clothing. He couldn't hear anything, but he saw that the people around him were smiling and talking and laughing with each other.
The silence was broken by the sound of steady breathing. Daunte looked to his left and jumped slightly. Archana was standing beside him dressed in a giant white dress. She looked younger, almost like a teenager—and she was smiling and looked so happy. She had an arm around a tall, handsome man who looked just as happy and was smiling with a generous amount of kindness. He leaned down and stole a kiss from Archana, who eagerly reciprocated.
The Matron…she said Lady Archana's husband's name was Darrick. This must be Darrick, then. From how they're dressed, they look like they just got married. So this must be their wedding reception.
Archana and Darrick were too busy fawning over each other to pay any attention to the guests. Daunte looked around, searching for Surya, and he started slightly when he caught sight of the prince. But as this was a seven-year-old memory, the prince was significantly younger than he was in the present. Mokuren was by his side, speaking to him in rapid-fire. Whatever she was saying was causing the prince to laugh, but a woman with black hair dressed in a black uniform touched him on the shoulder and gestured to him to keep his voice down. Surya immediately silenced, although when the woman walked away he began giggling again.
Daunte also spotted Kaylani, who was speaking with an older woman with silver hair. The woman looked giddy where she was standing, almost jumping up and down. Daunte wondered if this was Haswar—who Surya had said was Archana and Kaylani's mother. If it was, Haswar looked just as excited about the occasion as her own daughter did.
Daunte craned his neck around, trying to see if he could spot Freyr (and by extension Farrin and Signe), but something else caught his eye. He was startled to see Israfil in attendance, dressed in a pristine-looking uniform. He was standing beside a pillar on the opposite side of the hall from the newly married couple, and he was watching them. He was watching Darrick and Archana talking amongst themselves and stealing kisses from each other—and he looked happy. Daunte was genuinely surprised. Based upon the General's demeanor towards Archana, it was obvious even to him that the man felt strongly for Archana.
Yet in this memory he was watching her shower another man with attention and love…and there was no bitterness or resentment in his demeanor or expression. He was watching the happy couple, at the beginning stage of their new life together, and he genuinely looked happy for them.
The steady breathing Daunte had been hearing silenced, and suddenly the patrons around him threw up their hands and cheered. He looked towards Archana and Darrick again and saw that the cooks had brought out a huge white wedding cake. Archana was clapping, even jumping a little where she stood, as the cake was set down on a table in front of them. The couple was presented with their own plates and forks, and Darrick was handed a knife. He cut into the cake and sliced a modest size that he set upon Archana's plate. Archana returned the favor and sliced a piece for him as well.
"The wedding cake was somehow poisoned."
Horror filled Daunte's body as he remembered Surya's words and he reached out with his arms. DON'T! He tried to shriek the word, but it didn't pass his throat. All he could do was stand there and watch Archana unsuspectingly offer a forkful of wedding cake to her groom. And he couldn't do anything as Darrick ate the cake from her fork.
And Daunte wheezed, still futilely reaching out with his hands as Darrick similarly fed Archana a forkful of their wedding cake with his fork. Oh no! No! Somebody has to stop them!
But nobody saw him. All around him the wedding patrons were soundlessly clapping and cheering. Daunte didn't want to look—he didn't want to watch what was about to happen next.
The servants began slicing up the wedding cake to give to the guests when Daunte heard the first real sound since the memory started. The 'clang' of silverware hitting the floor. Unable to help himself, he looked back to Darrick and Archana.
Archana looked alarmed and Darrick had a stunned expression on his face. Daunte saw that blood was dripping from one of Darrick's nostrils, and Archana quickly pressed a white handkerchief to it. However, not even a moment later blood spurt forth from the other nostril.
And just seconds later, Darrick pitched forward grabbing at his throat. He dry-heaved, as though trying to vomit, before blood gushed out of his mouth. Daunte heard a roaring sound in his ear, like the sound of a surf breaking against the shore. All around him people's mouths were hanging open. They were screaming.
Archana hung onto Darrick, but just as suddenly she grabbed at her own throat and spun around and Darrick collapsed to the floor. Daunte saw that her nose was also bleeding, and her expression was full of pain…and fear.
The roaring faded from the air, but the sounded that replaced it was no better. It was breathing, frantic breathing. It was a woman's voice desperately gasping for breath.
Archana.
Archana collapsed to the floor and she convulsed. There was chaos all around them. People were running in all directions, knocking over chairs and tables. A man with long silver hair dressed in a black uniform was frantically gesturing and shouting. He was the only person in the hall that looked calm. Around Daunte, he saw men and women in similar uniforms slamming all the doors shut and drawing their weapons, preventing the guests from leaving. Other uniformed men and women were racing around securing the remaining royals. Surya was breathing heavily—he was panicking. Mokuren was still at his side, looking in all directions and holding her naginata before the black-haired woman from before grabbed them by their hands and steered them away. Israfil was also helping to secure the guests, though he kept looking in Archana's direction with alarm and horror.
"I don't want to die."
Daunte turned. Archana was lying on her side on the floor, her convulsions weakening. Blood had gushed from her mouth, and Haswar was leaning over her. She was crying uncontrollably and stroking Archana's hair, shaking her head back and forth in denial. Kaylani was standing over her older sister, and she looked so hysterical that Daunte was sure she would collapse shortly.
"I don't want to die. I don't want to die."
Those same five words kept resonating in the air as Daunte stared at the horror in front of him. Tears had spilled out of Archana's eyes and she reached out a violently trembling hand. She was reaching out for Darrick, who lay just less than a meter away from her. The black-haired woman from before had rushed to his side and turned him over onto his back. Daunte saw a blue symbol on the back of her right hand as she lifted it.
But Darrick had gone still, and was lying motionless on the floor.
…Daunte heard a loud 'crunch' in his ears and he blinked. He was back in the Great Cistern, and he was still gripping Archana's forehead.
Archana…she was still in one piece! The Rune hadn't activated!
Daunte was aware he was kneeling on the ground, and Israfil was holding Archana in his lap. The Princess had fallen unconscious, but Daunte felt the Exploding Rune in his hand. It was no longer attached to her forehead. He drew his hand back and looked at his palm. His hand was healed, and there was a shattered crystal in his palm. He looked at Archana's forehead and saw it was still slightly red from burns—but the red skull was gone.
"Archana!" Surya almost knocked Daunte aside as he checked over his cousin. He tapped her cheek with his hand, and Daunte took towards the platform where the Matron had been standing. It was empty. He looked over at Roen, who had his arms folded over his chest. "The Matron fled while you trying to get control of that Rune."
"Archana, are you all right? Please wake up!" Surya looked at Daunte with alarm. "Why isn't she waking up?"
"Prince, please calm down." Mokuren came over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Lady Archana has been through a lot. It's no wonder she fainted."
"But that horrible thing was attached to her head, and that evil witch activated its full power." Surya looked at the broken crystal. "W…What if that thing gave her brain damage?!"
That was a good point, and the thought made Daunte nauseas. He didn't know if he should express his own worry about Archana's health or to reassure Surya that everything would be all right. He even debated remaining quiet. Finally he said, "Surya, don't worry. She'll be all right. I still have a Howl spell left, so I'll cast it over all of us, and then you can add Kindness Drops to it to ensure she fully heals."
Surya nodded jerkily. "…All right. Let's cast these spells. With any luck she'll be all right."
"I believe she'll be all right," Israfil said. His tone didn't falter once.
Surya reached out and grabbed his shoulder. "General, thank you for your help."
"It was nothing."
"Howl," Daunte called softly. The True Rune's symbol glowed in the air and it reinvigorated the group, including Archana. The spell barely finished though before Surya held his Water Rune over Archana. "Kindness Drops."
The two healing spells healed the remaining burns on Archana's head. She didn't stir from her slumber, but her breathing was even. Surya sighed heavily, clearly disappointed, but he shook his head. "I'll worry about whether she'll regain consciousness or not when we get back to the Liberation Army headquarters." He held out his hands to Israfil. "Allow me, General."
"Yes, my Prince." Israfil gave Archana to Surya, who hoisted his cousin up into his arms. "Gunther, do you still have that escape scroll?"
"Ready to go," Gunther said, pulling the scroll out of his pocket. "But don't you have to go get your weapons from over there?" he gestured to the platform.
"I'll get then!" Roen volunteered. He ran down the length of the slush gate to get to the platform.
"Guys, get ready to go!" Surya announced. Mokuren helped to adjust Archana's head more comfortably against his shoulder. "Once Roen gets my tri-nunchaku and the General's sword, we're leaving!"
Daunte stood up, but a hand caught his shoulder. He turned to look at Israfil. "Sir Daunte, thank you for saving Lady Archana. I won't forget this."
Daunte shook his head. "I didn't know if it would work, but I wanted to try anything."
"And I appreciate it." Israfil looked down at his clenched fist. "May I?"
It took Daunte a moment to realize that he was talking about the Exploding Rune crystal. "Sure." He set the Rune in Israfil's outstretched hand and wiped at his palm to make sure all the pieces of the crystals fell to the ground. As he walked away to join the others in using the escape scroll, he heard Israfil crush the remains of the Exploding Rune in his fist.
Takefute was looking over a scroll, walking down a hallway in the Grand Citadel when he felt a presence behind him. "You have a problem."
He came to a stop and turned to face the woman behind him. "Is that so?"
"The boy is getting better at using the Rune of Restoration," she told him darkly. "Not only did he utilize the power of the Rune to destroy my Exploding Rune, but he also used the Rune to purify some of the contaminated water in the Great Cistern."
"Oh, he purified the water?" Takefute asked lightly. "I guess we should thank him, then."
"He has also successfully rescued four royals," she shot back. "You only have two princesses left in custody, and they know where one of them is."
"But only one of those princess's truly matters," Takefute reminded her. "They will never get to Princess Farrin."
She folded her arms over her chest and huffed. "This foolhardy plan of yours is going awry. With four royals already rescued, do you honestly think Queen Lymsleia will hand over the Sun Rune to you in exchange for their return?"
"This "foolhardy plan" is over ten years in the making," Takefute reminded her.
"And it's taken just over ten days for it to completely unravel. You've become too greedy, Takefute. You want to utilize the offensive power of the Sun Rune and have the defensive power of the Rune of Restoration. Two powers you know very little about."
"Maybe I am greedy," Takefute replied. "But you're greedy too, my Lady. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here in the first place."
She visible twitched, and her blue eyes glared at him. "I came here because we have the same goals. We are working towards that same goal. But I warned you at the beginning of this that kidnapping the entire royal family had a great likelihood of backfiring. It is backfiring, Takefute, and even more serious is the fact that the Rune of Restoration chose that boy, and it will not leave him. Not even with a verbal command of its host."
Takefute shook his head and snapped the scroll shut. "I should've killed him when I had the chance. He is Phoebe's son, after all. I should've known he would be as troublesome as she was."
"There is still time to get it away from him and salvage your little hostage plot," she continued. "For though he's getting better at using the Rune, he's only unlocked one spell. And these little miracles he's performed—the water purification and destroying a very powerful rune—were inadvertent actions. He still has no idea what the Rune is or what its true power is."
"That makes him even more dangerous."
"Yes. But that still makes him an easy target."
Takefute waved a hand. "It ultimately doesn't matter. Whether or not we succeed in getting the Sun Rune doesn't mean we failed. It is clear to see that Bearyl Lutis is providing the bare minimum help to the Falenan royals. Queen Lymsleia will not forget this insult, and thus it ensures that Falena will not align with the Liberation Army. It's laughable that Lutis honestly thought he could reform the might of the original Liberation Army in his image."
"The original Liberation Army of Nagarea did pose a threat," the Matron said. "But now it is gone. The new one does not pose a threat to us…but we must still be vigilant. The Rune of Restoration chose that boy for some reason, and if we don't see to him soon then his power will grow—as will his influence."
Takefute barked out a laugh. "What kind of influence can a teenage boy invoke compared to our might?!"
"You'd be surprised," she responded softly.