[Edited]- a small change was made but if you're seeing this for the first time then you don't really have to worry about it.
Chapter 6 – The Goddesses
"Hurry! I think she went this way!"
Footsteps crashed in the darkness of the forest. Dark purple hair whipped around, as a girl ran at full speed. Her white and light purple Adonis dress was ragged and torn beyond recognition. Scrapes and bruises covered her exposed arms, her dark tan doing nothing to conceal them in the full light of Ladeca. She swore as her bare feet slipped in the mud. She pushed herself up, ignoring the filth, and continued running.
"The potion won't last much longer! I have to hurry! GAH!" It felt like a bomb went off in her chest, and she crashed to the ground. "Damit!… Not again." The power in her throbbed, searching for release. It was as if something was squeezing her living heart. "Have to… get… away." Clutching her chest she forced herself onward.
Another throb burst from her chest. The Mana was out of control. If I can't release it soon…
"Now really. Why can't you just give up and give us what we need?"
The girl froze and looked up at the voice. A man stood high above her on a cliff, the moonlight shining on his back. The man adjusted his glasses and looked down his nose at her. His dark coat flapped in the wind. Casually he stuck his hands in his pockets, while the moonlight glinted menacingly off of a well-polished Alchemist's cylinder secured tightly on his left arm.
"Go to hell!"
The man laughed. "This world already is hell. You Milletians cannot see it for how it truly is, but I can." The girl glared up at him, but this only seemed to further his amusement. He adjusted his glasses again and a glare passed over them, momentarily hiding his eyes from view. "So stubborn." In a flash he pulled his left arm from his pocket and a Water Burst exploded on the ground inches from the girl. She stepped back covering her face. The man's voice was condesending, "You can't win and you can't escape. Just give up and you can die knowing your soul helped save this world."
"JARLATH! You Don't Understand! That world is not AHH!" An orb of condensed air slammed into the girl's side. With bone crunching sound, she was slammed into a tree and crumpled to the ground. She fought the blackening of her vision. From the pain in her side she knew there must be at least two broken ribs. Her right arm wouldn't respond either; something was seriously wrong if she couldn't even feel the dislocation of her shoulder. Fluid filled her lungs and she coughed up blood.
The feet of her attacker moved into her field of vision. Her purple eyes tried to look up at his face.
"I'm surprised you're still conscious after that." This was a different voice, but her vision was fading and she couldn't focus enough to remember if she'd heard it before. "No matter, you won't be running any more. Even a master of healing like yourself would be hard pressed to fix you now."
Sliding rocks and a cloud of dust, the first man had rushed down the rock face. "What are you doing!? We need her alive!"
"Open your eyes fool. The Mana is already attending to her wounds, or are you so blind you can't see that blue glow?"
"That's No Excuse! Without her we'll never find where she hid the key to that other world."
"There can't be many she would trust it with. Human, Elf, Giant, or Milletian, no one can hide from us."
"Yes well let's not destroy the world just yet shall we? Not with the next phase of the plan about to begin."
The first man scoffed. "Suit yourself then." He walked away when the first man turned the girl over to begin the healing. A practiced hand slid a knife through strings of her corset, pulling it off to survey the damage. Kathy blacked out before he could even begin to treat her wounds.
XXX
"There's not much time left. Hurry to Emain Macha and stop them from finding the lost goddess. Unless you succeed, both Erin and Maple will be in grave danger."
The Demon Slayer woke slowly, on the fringes of that dream. Was it even a dream? That girl in the black dress. He had seen her before. His red eyes shot open as memory flooded back to him. That was the girl that had brought him to this world! What was it the human had called her? Nao?
"Huh wha? Wuz gon on?" Josh sat up groggily, having been shaken awake not a minute later. "Slayer? Gawd what time is it…"
"That girl you spoke up, the one who commands the soul stream, I believe I saw her in a dream."
"Awh hell… it was a dream..? Go back to sleep." Josh began to roll over in his cot but fell to the floor with a yell when the Demon Slayer flipped the mattress and dumped him to the floor.
"Obnoxious child. Do you really think I would bother making a ruckus if it were merely a dream?" He slammed the cot to the ground. "I know that this was a vision!"
Josh crawled up, resting his head on the top of the mattress. "A vision… really… of what?" His tone was far from eager, not really appreciating being dumped from his bed in the middle of the night by a demon from another world, whom could easily kill him.
The Demon Slayer scowled and rolled his eyes, "That girl you said brings souls to this world, Nao, I think you said."
"Wah… Nao sent you a vision? Of what?"
"She said, 'to go to some place called Emain Macha. Something about finding a lost goddes."
"WHAT!" That woke him up. The boy bolted to his feet and slammed his head on the low slanting ceiling of the attic above Simon's shop. He swore loudly and a small tear of pain leaked from his eye; he pressed his hand down on the forming lump. "You telling me someone is trying to find the Goddess of Destruction?"
"Clearly I have no idea who you're talking about, but if that is the Goddess that is sealed in Emain Macha, then you are probably right."
"But that makes no sense. Macha was destroyed centuries ago. How could she still be there?" Seeing the Demon Slayers confused look, Josh sat down on the edge of the cot and grabbed his bag, digging through it. He pulled out a map and spread it out on the bed for the Demon Slayer to see. "We're here in Dunbarton. This over here is Emain. It used to be controlled by a powerful Lord, but circumstances revealed that he was being controlled by someone who wanted to seize control of all of Ulahd. Since Erras was brought down by the Knight of Light, the power of the city has fallen."
"So this goddess was destroyed by this Eras?"
"No," Josh shook his head, "Eras was just trying to create a dangerous golem, but even Tabahartus is weak when compared with the might of the three Goddesses." He paused as the Demon Slayer walked over and grabbed a small chair from the other side of the room.
Pulling it around, the Demon Slayer sat across it resting his arms and chin on the backrest, he knew the start of a long story when he heard one. Know thine enemies. Getting comfortable, he flapped his wings then tucked them into his sides. A nod of his head let Josh know to continue.
"The three sisters, Morrighan the Goddess of War, Macha the Goddess of Destruction, and Neamhain the Goddess of Light, each have played their own role in shaping the history of our world.
"Morrighan, the eldest, is the creator of the soul stream. She gave name to the race of beings, which I'm one of, called Milletians, meaning descended from the stars. During one of the great battles of the past, she used up all of her strength to seal the dungeons, where the Fomors dwell, away from this world. But at a cost, for she was sealed in stone. A few years ago, a Milletian fought against the Dark Lord Morgant to free her from her prison. Her current whereabouts are unknown."
"Next is Macha, the fallen one. She gave up her position as a goddess for the love of a mortal, but the man betrayed her and she cursed the world. Legend says she threw herself into one of the lakes surrounding Emain, and the land suffered from drought and famine for many years."
"The last is Neamhain, also called the Great Irinid, the creator of Iria. She wished to create a true paradise, the Tir Na Nog of legend. She created the races of Elves, Giants and Dragons. But this perfect land was never to be, for the Dragons became greedy and tried to destroy the other two races. The elves and giants fought and won, but even they were not above greed, and a second war broke out. Irinid cursed the land, and the races she created. She promised to one day return ad restore the continent to the paradise it was meant to be."
The Demon Slayer sat pensive; these stories sounded so familiar it made him sick. That was the exact promise the Black Mage gave… to make a paradise. But it was always about power. "So two goddesses exist in this world now?"
"Well that's the thing… no one really knows. Many believe they reside in Falias, the realm of the gods, but each is so tied to a part of this world, that some believe they can never truly leave this world. Of course," Josh flopped backwards onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling, "anyone that goes out in search of one of them, never returns." Heart…
"So the one they are trying to locate is Macha. For what purpose? The way it sounds, she is the weakest of the three."
Josh nodded. "Not only that but she's believed to be dead. Though I guess some do think she hid herself by taking the form of a… SIREN! THAT'S IT!" Josh jumped to his feet and once again smashed his head into the slanted ceiling. Tears leaked from his eyes but his excitement wasn't diminished in the slightest. "Heart's message, the Siren of Rundal dungeon. Is Macha! Somehow Heart must have discovered that!"
"And this was why she was taken?"
"It's gotta be!"
The Demon Slayer shook his head, not entirely convinced of this motive. "Assuming that it is," he spoke firmly, pulling Josh back to reality, "It is a safe bet that the enemy has also gotten this information, by one means or another." Josh's face fell at the implication. "I feel it would be in our best interests to head to this Emain Macha and find this siren. Even if we're wrong, we can gather more information."
"Right…" Josh nodded.
"We should leave first thing in the morning."
"Right, right." Josh walked to the door. "I've got some stuff to check out first, I'll be back to wake you and Fantasia at sunrise, in a few hours. We'll go before the Moon gate closes." The Demon Slayer nodded his consent then went back to the corner of the room where he had been resting. Josh rushed from the shop and into the early morning air.
A/N: Hey guys! I know that hardly anyone actually reads this story but if those of you that do read it could leave a review on chapters that would be awesome!
I want to know what people think of the characters and the story line. Maybe who you think might be the bad guys. Stuff like that, it would be a real encouragement. I've been kind of down lately and had so much writers block this whole first week of school. Adjusting to my new collage is tough.