A/N: CHICKENS!!! (Chases chickens)
Kioko!.! RHEA GET BACK HERE!!!
XP
We buried Tormal in a large pile of sand which I turned into glass so that he would be preserved forever, and then we buried the glass deep into the ground, marking it with a cross I fashioned from two sticks. I explained that, in my world, those solders who died in battle had their graves marked with crosses. It was a religious symbol, and I knew it wouldn't stay there forever, but the sentiment was there.
I slept fitfully, that is if I ever slept at all. I couldn't really tell if they were dreams, visions, or a combination of both. All I could think about was Kassima, all I could hear were her cries for help. Several times I saw the same scene over again.
"Mommy will come for me!"
"Your mother is dead, stop talking nonsense and eat your food!"
"My mommy will come and get me! And she's going to kill you! She said so, she said she'd kill you!!!"
"Shut up you stupid girl!"
"MOMMY IS THE EMPRESS OF TIME AND SHE'S GOING TO KILL YOU!!!"
"Don't you dare speak such blasphemy ever again in my presence you little heretic!!!"
"THE EMPRESS OF TIME IS COMING TO KILL YOU, THE EMPRESS OF TIME IS COMING TO KILL YOU, SHE'S MY MOMMY AND SHE'S COMING TO KILL YOU!!!"
My eyes shot open, seeing the flame embers not very much less than they were the last time I had seen them. My stomach was lurching, my vision was blurring.
All that night I was tossing and turning, I kept seeing her, I kept seeing Kassima, she was all I could see. I heard the prince once or twice, heard him reach out and try to grab me back to those purple beaches, heard his concerned voice asking me what was wrong, why I kept pulling away. But I couldn't help it, I couldn't stop thinking about her, and I couldn't stop thinking about Tormal. Tormal, dead, Tormal, laying deep in the ground, eternally resting in a casket of glass.
Morning could not have come soon enough.
"I'm going alone." I told the others.
"No you're—"
"Yes I am, for this part of the adventure, I'm going alone." I said, and I began to shed my disguise, "I'm going as the Empress of Time. I don't care anymore, I'm going to expose Mychala for the fake she is, and then I'm going to give her a fate worse than death." I said. Just like the legends of the Empress of Time, just like what Farah told me they knew of me.
For I knew now, I had Seen it, I knew Mychala was nothing more than a fraud, relying on spies and the words of the true prophets that came before her. I knew, and she was going to pay dearly for this.
XD
"Right, rule number 1: Be dramatic…how the heck do I do that!?" I demanded to thin air. I sighed, I needed to make sure there was no doubt in anyone's mind that I was, indeed, the Empress of Time. But how to show off my powers when they mostly consisted of battle prowess, time-manipulation, and my own special form of 'summoning'? I mean, I couldn't just waltz right in, tell them I was the Empress of Time, and then demand to know where Kassima was. They had to know for a fact just who I was, and that I was seriously freak'n pissed.
If only I knew how their legends said the Empress would appear, then I'd have an idea of how to do this. But it looked like I was going to have to—
The wind will pick up, and in the distance the sand shall rise in a great and terrible force, spinning and whirling, rising to the heavens. Then two brothers shall appear to dance with it. From these destructive forces of nature, a creature shall emerge, the likes of which thou has never seen. It will have the body of a man, but the head of a fierce bird, with four arms from which its wings grow, and great terrible talons for feet. It will speak in a voice like shattering waters, and it shall declare the arrival of the Empress. As the wind calms, there the Empress shall emerge in anger. Three have done her wrong, two of them will die by her hands, and one will wish to join them soon.
—or not…
There was just one problem with that, I COULDN'T CONTROL THE WIND!!!
But then as I thought this, I suddenly remembered something, I remembered Kaileena, I remembered how she used whirlwind attacks to knock the Dahaka over the edge of the battlefield and into the water. Could I do that too? And if I could, could I do it to enough of a degree that it would constitute as a set of seriously daunting twisters?
And if I could…
Hey Deskor, I said, drawing him out of the Manor and into my mind.
"Yes?"
Were you listening to that too?
"Naturally."
Are you willing to play the part?
"As long as I do not have to do the 'sea-gull thing' I shall be happy to fill the hearts of men with fear of your arrival." He told me, and I could sense that he really was looking forward to this, and would play his part like he meant it.
"Alright then." I said, bringing him out into the open.
His eyes smiled, "Create the whirlwinds, and I shall feed them power until they are forces of true terror." He told me.
I did so. I felt myself rise into the air and the first whirlwind emerge from me. I watched its progress with my eyes, and felt Deskor feed it with his own power until it grew and rose, higher and higher, until it became a fully fledged twister.
I didn't need second sight to know that I'd gotten their attention. Even from this distance I could see the crowd gathering. It was time for the second. We repeated the process for this one as well, and I let the two of them get friendly for a bit, before adding the third.
Now this, was cool. Twisters were awesome to watch so long as it was on TV in any case, but this was not only real life, but I was also controlling them. And the power of these twisters…I realized that like this, I really could bring an entire nation down. Of course…I had known that all along. All I needed to do to destroy a nation was let loose all my inner demons and say the two magic words, "Have fun". There would be nothing left larger than a quarter.
"Give me the word." Said Deskor.
"Now." I told him, and he took to the skies.
I watched him with my mind's eye while still controlling the twisters as he flew through them, and Saw as the cultists realized that there was no mistaking what he was there for, and watched as most of them bowed low to him when he landed. He spoke in a loud, carrying voice to them, "Let all bear witness! The Empress of Time comes upon the wings of the dragon god! She sees you, and she knows you! She knows, too, those three who have wronged her and moved her to anger! See her wrath, know that her judgment comes upon you now!" He called to them.
Oh I was so going to get him for the 'dragon god' thing. Oh well, I guess I could let him have his fun.
I allowed the storm to die down, and then I teleported myself to where Deskor was hovering above the sands, and immediately the cultists began scrambling to make a path towards the grandest tent, where I knew Mychala was, and then falling go their knees before me.
I walked forward, allowing my cool anger to show, and no one spoke. Not one person dared make a sound, even those in the back asking what was going on were silenced swiftly.
It was as though I were walking down a path of ice.
About half way towards the tent I froze, and Deskor paused as well, still hovering in the air beside me, over the heads of the cultists. I then pointed, I didn't even have to look, I knew where one of them was.
I Saw him, I saw him grab Kassima, saw him slap her in order to make her stop screaming, stuff cloth in her mouth and bind her tightly with biting ropes just to get her to be still. I saw him hold a knife to her neck, and my heart filled with fury.
Deskor swooped down and picked him up in one of his large talloned feet. "Silence fool! Your blabbering will do you no good!" Deskor ordered as the man began spluttering out how he was a faithful servant and had done nothing at all against me. He quieted after that.
A few more yards, and I stopped again. I pointed to the one who killed Tormal, who ran his blade through his center, when he could have simply knocked him out. Who made an 'example' of him, who made it known that this was what happened to any and all who defied the Empress of Time's will.
He too, didn't seem to understand what he had done when Deskor scooped him up in his other talon, but he didn't gibber as much, knowing better, and only cowering in fear.
As I neared the tent and Mychala came out, sweeping down and bowing so that her face was to the ground like the rest of them, there was a murmur of confusion, of knowledge that there were only two. And a question of who the third was.
"Oh Empress!" Mychala cried, loud enough for all to hear her, "We have been waiting so long for your arrival. Forgive us, Empress, forgive us all! I know who the third is, Empress, and he is not here."
"Oh you do, do you?" I asked in a cool voice that nonetheless carried.
"The traitor heretic, Amon, oh Empress!" She said, raising herself so that she was sitting Japanese-style now with her legs tucked under her, and her hands together as she looked up into my face, an ignorant look of joy in her expression, and of gravity. "Empress, he came to me, he came to me claiming to have been used by you! He told me your Dagger was taken from it's safeguard by one of its protectors, the royal Vizier, Zervan, when it was he who took the dagger! He told me that Zervan sent the bandit summoner to kill me, when it was he who sent the bandit! He stole from us one of your treasures, even, but while we recovered the treasure, we have yet to find him! Give us more time, oh Empress, I promise you we will find the heretic and bring him to you for judgment!" She said, and she lowered her head again and returned to pressing her hands to the ground.
"Hey Mychala?" I said, and as she looked up, I summoned the dark violet ribbon that she had given to me as Amon, "I am Amon." I told her, throwing the ribbon down in front of her. "You are the third, Mychala. They, they get to die," I said, jerking my thumb at the two that Deskor was holding for me, "But you, Mychala, I'm afraid you won't be so lucky." I hissed, and I grabbed her by the back of the head, holding her by the hair, and I pulled back so I could point a knife at her neck, "Just how long did you think you could keep up the charade? Did you really think I wouldn't figure it out? That I wouldn't know? You were staring me straight in the face and you didn't recognize me for what I was. Now, either I'm a really good actor, or you are a bald-faced fraud. I'm personally fond of thinking it's a combination of the two, and I might have forgiven you for pretending to be my prophetess, but you went too far, Mychala, you went too far."
I grabbed her by her fancy silks and threw her, bodily, across the path that had been cleared for me to walk. "WHERE IS SHE, MYCHALA!?" I roared, "Where is the girl!? Where is Kassima!? Where is the child whose mother you slaughtered!? The 5-year-old girl that you have been torturing! That you turned into a weapon for your own use! WHERE IS SHE!?" I shouted.
"Empress, p-p-please, I-I beg you, I-I didn't know, I d-d-didn't realize, I—" she tried, but I snarled, teleported to where she was sprawled, and grabbed her by the hair again.
"The problem is that you didn't know, Mychala!!! You got yourself in too deep, didn't think I'd ever arrive in your lifetime, did you? Didn't expect me to really come, did you? Did you even believe I would? Did you?! SHE, IS, A, CHILD, MYCHALA!!! She is not a weapon! She is not a 'treasure'! She is a living, breathing, human being!!! And you turned her into a thing, a trophy!!! You forced her to summon that creature, even though you knew, you knew how painful it was for her! How could you not know!? You gave her a life she couldn't bear, one that forced her to the breaking point! She is 5-years-old and she wants to die!!! She would rather die than continue being your tool, your puppet!!! But she doesn't have to die, and you? No, death would be too good for you." I threw her head down onto the ground and slammed my foot on it, grinding my heel into her ear like I had Malik's not long ago. "Just tell me why, Mychala, tell me what the hell was going through your head when you were doing this! Did you enjoy listening to her scream!? Did you enjoy it when she cried about how much she wanted to die!? Well?" She had no answer for me, she was trembling with fear, and there were tears in her eyes from it.
I hated her so much.
"It's people like you, Mychala," I said in a low, hissing voice, "Who, for some unholy reason, think that they're somehow better than their fellow humans, who hold no value for the lives of others, for their thoughts and their emotions, it's people like you that give such dark dreams to the few who sleep in innocence. Kassima was a human being, but you didn't care. All you saw was a weapon, a way to push your way into power. And for that, for that, you are going to wish you had never been born. For that reason I hate you, Mychala, may you suffer for eternity." I said, and with one final look of hatred into her eyes, I sent her into the Manor, directly into Wemlast's room, where I could hear her begin to scream before I shut the door again.
Deskor forced the two others to fall to their knees before me, and I glared at the two of them hatefully, "You? You will die for the way you treated Kassima when you stole her from me, and you? You will die for the murder of Tormal, of my friend, of the one who fought to save Kassima from you. Consider yourselves lucky." I told them.
For a more dramatic effect, and because I wanted to make a good clean cut, I first brought out my blades, and then I froze time in place so that I could slice their necks off at once, and move back into the position I was in before allowing it to move forward again.
Their heads fell from their necks, and the blood lightly stained my blades. A gasp ran through the crowd, and I turned from them to walk back to the tent, where a man dressed in dark leather armor and wearing a hood rather than a ninja-like mask stood with Kassima there, waiting for me. He didn't have her bound or anything, she was standing there on her own, but I could see dried blood where ropes had been, but when she ran the rest of the distance to me, and I scooped her up in my arms, I could feel my wrath melting away to be replaced with warmth, with the sunshine that she had somehow become.
"I knew you'd come to get me, Mommy, I knew it." She said.
The hooded man pulled the curtain aside and bowed to me as I walked into the tent. I would stay for a little longer, long enough to get a few things sorted out, and then Kassima and I would be going back to the others.
I carried Kassima over to the throne-like chair that Mychala had sat in earlier, and parked my own rear end down on it with Kassima in my lap, "Are you the one who's suppose to be in charge here?" I asked the hooded man, who had gotten on his knees before me. The two of us were alone, so I wasn't surprised when he nodded to me. My voice had lost it's wrathful tone, it was now much lighter, and perhaps a bit tired. Kassima wouldn't let go of me, she looked so happy, so peaceful. She knew that everything would be alright now, that her suffering was over. I hugged her tightly to my chest, her own joy seemed to be leaking into me.
"Empress, may I speak freely?" Asked the hooded man.
"Be my guest." I answered, and he looked up, and he pulled back his hood to reveal a dark skinned face with black hair pulled back into a knot at the knap of his neck. He was probably around 30 to 35 years old, clean shaven, and looked to be of Egyptian decent.
"I wish to ask forgiveness. Mychala was a powerful woman, very few dared to challenge her, not even I was brave enough, though I should have acted her superior. I see I was right to question her ways, but I beg your forgiveness for allowing her to continue to be your high priestess. And also…" He shifted uncomfortably and looked away from me, it seemed there was something he wanted to say, but he wasn't sure if he dared to be so bold.
I sighed, "Listen, I get the feeling that Mychala portrayed me as some wrathful deity and over-exaggerated a lot of things about me. I'm not wrathful, I just have a temper, a bit of a vindictive attitude, and the power to act on it. I'm also not a god, I may be as close to one as you'll ever get, but if I were a god I could have brought my friend back to life without suffering the consequences. So if there's something you want to say, say it. I promise not to bite unless you really deserve it."
The man looked up at me, and he searched my eyes as though making sure I was being honest, and then a smile crossed his face, "Mychala told us of an Empress who was unforgiving and swift to judge, to me, she described a tyrant of godly powers. I'm glad to see that she was wrong about you, and happy to know that the prophets before her were not lying when they said that the Empress would be like a goddess and like a mortal at once." He told me.
"Apparently there were some prophets who actually knew something about me, and others who got a little confused. For one, I didn't come to this world to 'create paradise', I have no idea where that came from, I also don't remember asking anyone to create an entire order of followers for me." I said. "I probably wouldn't have even bothered showing up if Mychala hadn't taken Kassima." I sighed, "Believe it or not, I'm not here to rule over you or judge you, I didn't even come to this world by choice, and the only reason I am the Empress of Time is because I became the Empress in order to save my predecessor from a fate she didn't deserve. I don't know why your ancestors or whatnot decided to turn me into your patron deity, because the last thing I want to do is control your lives. I believe people should be free to make their own choices in life so long as those choices do not harm other people nor deprive them of the freedom to make those choices themselves with at least some order involved. I don't want you doing everything I say just because I said it, and I'm not going to force you to do what I say either! In fact, the only thing I really want you to do for me is expose Zervan for the traitor that he is and get rid of him before the war between Persia and India ends in a massacre." I said.
He looked quite taken aback by this pronouncement, not having expected it at all, and did not seem to feel comforted by this revelation, "My people and I have been following the image of the Empress of Time for many generations by the words of the prophets…"
"What do you expect from me then? I'm not a god, I'm not the Empress of the World, I'm the Empress of Time. I know the title implies that I rule over time or something, but that's not how it works." I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair, "Listen, you do what you feel you need to. If you can get rid of Zervan for me, preferably by way of death, I would count it as a great favor. Me? I have a war to stop and a fiancé back in Persia I need to return to. Just make sure your next priestess shows a bit more compassion, and don't follow everything she says without thinking about what it is she's telling you to do." I told him, getting up out of the chair and allowing Kassima to stand on her own two feet, though her hand was still in mine.
"You're—you're leaving?" He asked me.
"I have a life of my own to live, believe it or not. Or at least I've been trying to live it. Hard to have a life of your own when you let stately matters concern you so much. But you and your people have lives to live yourselves. And if you want to continue following my image, I'm not going to stop you. But if you have to work for something, work for the good of mankind. Respect your fellow human beings, respect their dreams and wishes, respect that all humans are born with certain rights, even if most cultures don't allow for those rights and freedoms. We should all have the freedom to choose the direction of our life, but freedom without order makes chaos. The purpose of a monarch is to ensure there is order, a good monarch to make their people happy, a bad monarch to make them appreciate the good ones. Do you understand?" I asked.
"Yes, Empress, I do understand." He told me, and there was something like a sort of revelation in his eyes, a revelation I hoped would be for the better.
I smiled and I was about to tell him goodbye, but suddenly Deskor shouted, for no apparent reason, "I shall not do the sea-gull thing!"
We stared at him, and I realized that Kassima had turned so she could pay attention to him rather than our conversation, and I hadn't been giving her too much thought until Deskor shouted that for no reason. He looked quite humiliated, and I found myself smirking at him, "She called you 'birdie', didn't she?" I asked.
"What's the 'sea-gull thing'?" Asked Kassima innocently.
"It is human but it has the eyes of a kitten, what is it!?" Demanded Deskor, sweating nervously as he continued to stare at Kassima.
"It's called a child, Deskor. I was one once, don't you remember?" I asked, amused.
"You, Kaida, were never that cute." He answered with dignity.
"Yes, thank you for that." I said, rolling my eyes and turning back to the man with a hand held up, "Don't ask, it would take a long time to explain." I told him.
"I'll, ah, take you're word for it." He said, smiling weekly. "Kaida, that is your name?" He asked me.
"Yes, it is. What's yours?" I asked him.
"Jemal." He answered with another bow, "I…I hope you would consent to visiting us again, as well as our brothers." He told me.
"Um…your 'brothers'? There's more of you?" I asked in a pained voice that made him chuckle.
"The Order of the All-Seeing Eye are the most…prominent of your followers, but there are other sects as well that are also awaiting your arrival. Ah…they may not leave you alone when word gets out that you have, indeed, shown yourself to us. And I'm afraid I won't be able to stop word from getting out." He told me.
"Wonderful." I groaned, rubbing my face, "More crazy cultists to worry about. No offence, but you do realize that you are a cult." I told him.
"Not necessarily, our patron is real after all." He said.
"Your culture is based on serving a person who is not a god with enough blind alliance to constitute a religion. You are a cult. You're thinking of pagans when you say that." I told him.
"You're the Empress, whatever you say." He said, shrugging, and failing in his efforts to suppress a snicker.
"Hey now! Don't you start that with me, you—"
"I BELIEVE THIS IS YOURS!" Deskor exclaimed, holding out an arm, where Kassima had somehow managed to firmly latch herself around and had made a chant out of asking what the 'sea-gull thing' was.
"What's the sea-gull thing!? What's the sea-gull thing!? What's the sea-gull thing!? What's the sea-gull thing!?"
"Um, how did she get on your arm in the first place? She only comes up to your knee." I asked him.
"Don't ask." Deskor glowered. Jemal and I looked at each other, and then the two of us busted out laughing together.
XP
Kioko: Heh, looks like Deskor has a bit of a weakness for kids.
Deskor: Shut, up.
Kioko: Heheheheh.
Kaida: Yes!!! Mychala's suffering!!! (does happy dance)
DP: Heh, too bad you didn't ruff her up a bit before handing her over to Wemlast.
Rhea: Well, I really don't have time for an FAQ, but I will have one Tuseday. As you may have figured out already, we're down to an update every two days…
Kioko: Because the authoress needs a break.
(Flashback)
Rhea: (O).(O) Work, work, work, story, work, work, work, story, work, work, wor—oh look! Free online RPG!!! Sweet mindless fun!!!
(Present)
Rhea: Er…hopefully this next week will be better! Eventually we'll get back to a chapter a day, so, no worries!
DP: Good, because that means it'll take that much longer before I'm in the story! You better get to work!
Rhea: LEAVE ME ALOOOOOONE!!! WAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
Kioko: Oh hell, now you've made her cry. That's another hour of pointless noise I hope you know.
DP: She's the only woman I know who can reach such a pitch of sobbing that the annoyance level is so high it's actually painful.
Kioko: So you just want to make her cry simply to marvel at the pitch of it?
DP: Pretty much.
Kioko: Masochist.
DP: I'm not a masochist.
Kaida: (Snort) Oh yes you are.
DP: Well that's only when you do it my dear.
Prince: HEY!!! BACK OFF!!!
Kioko: So while the children have their little row, I get to say "that's all for now", and also, the last batch of reviews was pathetic, what did we get, two? I'm sure we can do better this time around, right? (Leers)