A/N: Sorry everyone, fell way behind. Here we go. Diclaimers in perivous chapters.
The next morning Kate woke before dawn and slowly sat up. She was exhausted even though she had slept relatively well. She couldn't focus so instantly she set her senses out and began to speak within the walls of her mind.
'Neo,' her voice rang out within the pendants.
Neo jerked to attention causing his horse to shift beneath him. 'Kojika?'
'Neo, I'm scared. We're close to the kingdom. They've tied me up.'
'We're coming Kojika.'
'But what if you don't get here in time? What if they kill me?'
'Don't think like that,' he answered, trying to keep his nerve. 'I know you. You won't let anyone kill you. Be strong for Veronique, for Onyx, for Sarah and for me.'
Tears streaked from her closed eyes. 'I'm just frightened. The visions have come true so far and now I'm being taken somewhere so they can steal my pendants and Troy can….'
'Don't think like that either. Be strong and remember I love you. I always will, no matter what happens.'
'I-I will try.'
'Keep strong. Remember what I've taught you. Stay in control of your emotions and don't let Troy touch you in any way.'
'I will be strong.'
'Just remember I'm coming for you.'
'I do.'
With that their conversation ended. Kate jerked her eyes open as she sensed Troy getting closer to her. She could always tell when he was near now. His presence made her stomach twisted and her body fell cold.
- - - - - - - - -
Onyx turned in her saddle as she heard Neo gasp behind her. A single glance at his face told her what she needed to know. Relief at first; Katie had contacted him, then pain; the news was obviously not good; then a grim expression that said he was trying to reassure her.
"I take it the news is ill?" Onyx questioned him privately once he'd ended the conversation.
"She fears for her life." He answered simple and Onyx cursed under her breath.
"Everyone, prepare to move out!" the Yami shouted suddenly, her eyes flashing with barely suppressed fury. Behind them a dragon's shrill scream hit the air as Daragon guided Rojaron into the still dark sky.
The rescue party and all their horses were waiting for dawn near the west end of the village, close to the door to the outside world. When questioned why they hadn't started earlier, Onyx had grumbled something about protective charms working best at dawn and left it as that.
"Onyx!" The older Yami twisted in her saddle, glancing down at Veronique. She hadn't heard her approach over the constant jangling of armor, bits and weapons.
"Veronique, are you sure you will be all right?"
The younger spirit was pale, her eyes dark and her cheeks sunken. She seemed to have aged ten years overnight.
"No, I'm not sure. I need my Hikari back."
"We'll get her back." Onyx replied, leaning down to squeeze the woman's shoulder.
"You sound so sure."
"She is sure." Sarah interrupted as she pushed Trinity up next to Masabi. "She's Onyx."
"No." Veronique answered, looking at the ruby-hilted sword and the red and black shield her counterpart carried. "She's Victorianna."
Onyx's mouth twisted a little at that, but she didn't reply. The door to the outside opened at her command and Veronique leapt back as fifty horses streamed out the door at a full gallop. Veronique stood in that empty doorway long after the rescue party vanished from sight. It was not until Garrus came up behind her and set his hand on her shoulder that she reacted at all. Silently slipping away from him, she waved a hand to make the door vanish.
"Good luck," she whispered as the outside world faded from sight and she turned and walked back to the village not bothering to wipe away the one tear that ran down her face.
- - - - - - - - - -
Troy's soldiers had been riding most of the day when the sky had abruptly darkened. Kate felt a shudder run through her. She could tell they were getting closer to the kingdom, the last place on Earth she wanted to be.
The land around them had begun to change. Instead of green fields and forests, there was barren ground scattered with boulders. The path they were taking was clear but Kate froze when they crested the hill. Fear and terror filled her body at what she saw. Below her lay a kingdom as grey and dismal as a tomb.
The castle was shaped in a shallow curve, five stories tall with great turrets that bristled like spears. Between the turrets was a high wall where the soldiers walked. On the fourth story was a balcony, ringed by a waist-high railing of wrought iron. Extending straight out on either side of the great, barren courtyard were four enormous towers, eight in all. Through the darkness she could see people emerging from these towers, many brandishing torches. Everyone was dressed in shades of black and grey. In the torchlight, they looked more like shadows then true humans. Every face was grim as Troy rode by, and Kate could see mothers pushing their children back into doorways. The men glared up at Troy and his men but none spoke.
Closest to the castle, nearly against its edges were two great piles of rubble – the only remnants of the two greatest houses of the king. A rumor that the rubble had been cursed by its last inhabitants had kept it from being cleared away, so it had festered where it lay for nigh two hundred years.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Kate felt so cold in this place. It was nothing like Sacelon. There was no love, no beauty, and no happiness in this kingdom. Its people had no light in their eyes, only fear, anger and despair. It was like looking into dark voids. Kate shivered as they moved on. They rode up through the dark wooden gates into the main courtyard. Kate stared up at the great height of the castle and felt the breath leave her lungs for moment. She moved her eyes back down to the front steps. There on the very top stood a dark figure, cloaked by the blackness of night. Troy stopped his horse and dismounted before pulling Kate with him. He dragged her up the marble steps and forced her to her knees before the shadowed figure. Troy himself bowed before he spoke.
"My Lord." Troy said. "I have returned with news and a kingly gift."
Kate slowly lifted her head to look at the man. The light from numerous torches hit him now. He was tall, perhaps a little over six feet. His hair had been dark once, but was now grey as storm clouds. His face bore the lines of age, but Kate realized that that was deceptive. The man's broad shoulder suggested his power – Kate had no doubt he could kill with his bare hands. He was dressed entirely in black, and a long cloak hung from his shoulders. His eyes were the darkest shade of pewter- grey, and when he looked down at her, Kate felt a sudden chill.
Upon his head he wore a silver crown in a design Kate had never seen before. The crown rose to a high peak over the center of his forehead. At it's apex sat a diamond-shaped piece of polished jet, gleaming darkly. Below that a splendid ruby nestled deep into the silver of the crown. Etched lines spanned out from the ruby making it look like a blood red sun.
'Black and red.' Kate thought. Those two colors were everywhere, darkness and blood. This kingdom was bathed in them both.
"What is this Captain?" he demanded, and his voice made Kate shiver again. It was deep and cold and completely without mercy.
"My Lord, maybe we should go inside to discuss this." Troy said, bowing once more.
The King turned and walked inside. Troy grabbed Kate's arm and pulled her up before walking her into the castle. That cold feeling just got worse as she entered the darkness of the building. There were torches everywhere in the black hallway but still Kate felt cold seeping through her body. Troy followed his king into a large sitting room where a fire was lit. The King stood by the fire while Troy pushed Kate into a chair of black velvet.
"My Lord, I have found the hidden village," Troy announced without preamble. "It is called Sacelon and it's full of majical beings."
The King's eyes narrowed. "And how do you know all of this, Captain?" he demanded, turning his cold gaze on Troy.
"Because, this young woman is one of the masters of the village. She has powers that can be of use to you, My Lord. She commands part of an army that is strong enough to take over any land."
The king's eyes fell on Kate. "This young woman?"
"Yes My Lord."
"Well Captain, it seems you have indeed brought back a kingly gift. Tonight, we will feast in honor of this gift," The king said before calling to some servants. Turning from them, the King clapped his hands twice. Two servants entered at once, one a young woman, the other, a man. Both wore clothes of rough grey cloth and both looked as dismal as the rest of the kingdom.
"Take this young woman upstairs. Have her cleaned and dressed for dinner. There will be a feast tonight in her honor." The King's cold, mocking tone did nothing to reassure Katie.
"Yes, My Lord." The young woman said as she took Kate's arm.
"Yes, My Lord." The young man said before leaving to alert the kitchens.
"You must tell me more about these powers and this army at dinner, Captain." The King said.
"Yes My Lord."
"Go rest and prepare for dinner."
"Thank you, My Lord." Troy said before bowing once again and walking from the room.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The young woman took Kate up several flights of stairs to a large bedroom. The first thing she did was to untie Kate's hands. Grateful, Kate rubbed the raw skin as the young girl walked away.
"I'll start your bath, My Lady." The young woman said.
Kate didn't say anything, just looked around the room. Everything was in dark colors. The wood of the simple furniture was so dark it was nearly black and the curtains of the windows, as well as the bedclothes and hangings were all of the darkest crimson. The only decoration in the room was a large tapestry on the far wall. Scowling, Kate walked over to the far wall, and looking closely at the tapestry. It depicted two warriors on horseback surveying a battlefield. The field itself was strewn with corpses of men in black robes while the army of the two warriors stood, mostly unharmed. There was something eerie in this tapestry, it looked familiar. She was so deeply involved in examining it that she did not hear the soft footsteps behind her. When a gentle hand landed on her shoulder, she reacted on instinct; seizing the arm she spun around, twisting it behind its owners back. Only then did she realize it was the servant girl.
"I-I'm sorry." Kate said as she let the girl go.
The girl looked startled and rubbed her arm as she backed away from Kate. She had black hair but her eyes were a dark blue, and stood out form her pale face.
"Th-they say you are a witch," she mumbled, clearly fearful.
Kate sighed. "I am no witch. I'm but a human being who is misunderstood."
The girl stared at Kate for a moment. Kate thought she saw something in her eyes that she hadn't seen in anyone else since she arrived.
"Well, your bath is ready." The girl said finally, still uneasy.
Kate nodded and followed the young lady through a door into the washroom where there was a tub of hot water. The girl just stood there for a moment before Kate spoke up.
"I can handle it from here, thank you."
"Yes My Lady. I will pick out a dress for you."
"Thank you." Kate replied.
When the girl had left, Kate cautiously peeled her clothes off, stacking them on the washstand. She did not remove her pendants of course but sank gratefully into the steaming water. It felt good around her body; it was taking that cold away. She dunked her head under the water before washing and drying off. When she was finished the young lady came back in with a dress. She helped Kate into it but stopped when she saw a long scar on Kate's lower back.
"My Lady, if you do not mind my asking, what happened?"
Kate looked over her shoulder. "I'm not sure. I've had that since I was young."
They pulled the dress on and fastened it. Kate wasn't thrilled by it. The sleeves fell to her elbows before hanging down off of her arms, almost to the floor. It was dark green and had a square cut neck that exposed her breasts slightly. It was soft though and fit nicely to her surprise. The young girl brushed Kate's hair and tied it up for her even though Kate would have preferred to do it herself. Now she had to wait for Troy before she could go down and meet her fate.
Troy had washed and changed his clothes, and now he walked to the room where Kate was being held. He greeted the guard before opening the door and walking in. He stepped inside as Kate stood up and turned. He couldn't help but stare. She looked amazing. He walked in and gently took her hand.
"Come, we must not keep our King waiting."
Kate just sighed and let Troy lead her downstairs to the dining room. It was lit by torches and was of course darkly colored. Kate wondered briefly why the castle was kept in darkness. When they reached the dimly lit dining hall, Kate was seated between Troy and the king. They sat quietly for a moment before the king began to speak.
"Explain all of this to me, Captain." The King ordered as their food was served.
Troy grinned before telling the king all about his mission and findings. He left out a few parts, mostly his attraction to the young hostage and his arguments with Neo.
"They are very powerful people, Sire. They command armies of almost indestructible men and women. They have powers that I think are from their pendants."
He motioned to the ones hanging around Kate's neck. Instantly, the girl wrapped her fingers around them as if protecting them from harm.
"Now Sire, this girl is quite an amazing treasure in herself." Troy said, after relating what little he knew about the pendants to the King.
"She can heal any wound inflicted upon her before your very eyes."
The king looked up. "Is that true?" He looked at Kate only to find her glaring at Troy.
"Yes." Troy pulled his dagger off his belt and grabbed Kate's hand before she could stop him. He dragged the dagger across her skin at her wrist, slicing it open. Kate cried out in pain and pulled her hand away.
"Heal it now!" Troy commanded.
Kate glared at him as fiercely as she could. She would have refused but she would have bled to death had she done so. Moving her arm so that he could see it, she healed it right before the eyes of the king. Troy wiped the blood away to show not even a mark was left.
"Amazing," the king murmured, reaching out to brush his fingers across her wrist. Kate recoiled and he withdrew his hand, frowning.
"That is not all my lord." Troy continued.
Kate growled. "I will not let you use me and my powers for evil!"
"You will do as the King commands!" Troy growled back, moving to rise from his chair.
"I will NOT!"
Troy rose from his seat in a move too fast to follow and brought his fist down across her face, bruising her cheek and causing her to spit out blood.
"You will do as you are told!" He commanded.
- - - - - -
In the middle of the river crossing, Neo cried out and seized his saddle pommel to prevent himself from falling off.
"Neo?" Celtos, the closest to him reached over and caught the swordsman by the arm.
"Ow…" Raising one hand to his mouth, Neo gasped when his fingers came away wet with blood.
"Neo?" Onyx, already on the other bank, turned Masabi around.
"Kate's hurt." He said simply, then healed his own injury and pushed Steel to a canter.
Grimly Onyx reined her horse around and pushed Masabi into a canter as well, forcing the others to follow. The horses were all well bred and kept fit, and could trot and canter most of the day if need be. Thus far, they had covered ground at a steady trot, and would most likely continue through the night.
"Pick up the pace!" Onyx shouted back, spurring Masabi on to a swift gallop.
It meant they would have to walk them to cool later but it would be quicker this way. With a roar of hoof beats like distant thunder, the entire group moved to a gallop.
In the castle, Kate raised her head, her bloody mouth twisting into a slight smile. "My friends are coming."