Pt.26
"Was that a threat?" Galen asked, quizzically.
"Not really," Marianne replied . "He's just over protective of me. Andre will keep him calm. He's probably the only friend my Swordsman has – besides me." She looked at Gideon with a frown. "I wouldn't worry about losing your box, Captain Gideon. It wouldn't have helped you in your search. It would have led you a merry chase before it destroyed you and your hopes for Earth's survival. Andre's probably correct in assuming Damien is already taking it apart to get to the prize inside."
"You were going to tell us the end of the story," Sarah said quietly. "I, for one, would like to know why your brother and your guard hate one another so much."
"As would I." Alwyn replied.
Marianne shrugged. "It's rather a predictable end to a sad story and was the start of another, grander one."
Marianne slid to a halt outside of the castle entrance, the Swordsman coming to a halt beside her. Behind them she could hear the remnants of the castle tumbling to the ground, dust rising in a choking cloud around them both.
"Next time," she gasped, "warn me I'm about to literally about to bring down the house."
"If I'd known what you were attempting I would have." The Swordsman snarled, coughing from the dust. He reached up and felt the metal collar still around his throat. The subtle cold heat and smell of decay that he had long associated with his demon master was gone, replace with subtle warmth and a faint scent of roses. The Jinn's oppressive hold over his will had disappeared yet he instinctively knew the spell was not gone.
She glanced back at him and caught the glint of the collar. "Are you still bound to the collar now that the Jinn is dead?"
"I do not know," he replied quietly, mentally calling his sword back to his hand, then gestured towards the road back towards the village. "But I fear we have other problems to deal with."
Marianne glanced down the road and sighed. The villagers were coming up the path, most dressed in rags and waving whatever crude weapons they could find. "Lovely. Just what I need right now. A bunch of raggedy peasants storming the castle."
"What have you done?" The elder of the village screamed, shaking an angry fist at the duo. "The Jinn will come and punish us for this. They will destroy us because of you!"
"I can only hope," Marianne snapped. "From what I've seen you deserve far worse. You betrayed your friend, enslaved his son, and who knows what you've done with any traveler fool enough to come in this little slice of Hell. Good riddance if the Jinn come and wipe you out. It'll save me the trouble of having to do it later." She glanced back at the horizon and her eyes widened. "Crap! This is getting better and better."
The Swordsman followed her gaze. Coming over the horizon were waves of horsemen and foot soldiers, many holding banners depicting a phoenix on a field of flame. A tall blond man wearing silvery body armor riding astride a dark horse surged forward, coming to a halt between the angry townspeople and the Jinn's former assassin. He waved a lazy hand in the direction of the angry mob. A shimmery wave of fire and wind rose up and drove the terrified villagers back towards their homes, burning anything or anyone not quick enough to get out of its way.
"Sister? Am I interrupting?" The man asked, gracefully dismounting to stand in front of her. He glanced back at the fleeing villagers then back at the girl with a wolfish grin.
"I think they are annoyed with us," she replied, nodding back at the retreating crowd. "Not, however, as annoyed as I am. They sold out to the Jinn for riches. Frankly they should be thrilled I don't firebomb their sorry asses back to the Stone Age." She glanced at the Swordsman briefly then waved her hand vaguely in the direction of the armored man. "By the way, this is my older brother Damien. This little escapade was his idea."
The Swordsman looked up at the man coldly. "Did you know what she would face when you sent her?"
"Of course I knew," Damien replied in amusement. "I told her she needed to find a sword for me and sent her on her merry way, knowing she's do whatever it pleased her to do while looking for it. Not that the sword was all that important. Moving my soldiers from the borderland into the interior was the ultimate goal. I had complete faith she would find a way to keep her pretty head on her shoulders while I moved my troops into position. She's quite clever that way."
"Clever?" the Assassin stared at the man in disbelief. "I nearly took her life and for what? For the sake of a blade you didn't really want or so that you could move chess pieces on a board? This Jinn was a minor demon at best – he had little magic of his own other than what he has stolen over the years. There was no need to distract him. There was little he could have done against so many soldiers. You could have taken this ground without risking you sister's life."
Damien shrugged. "I wasn't willing to take that chance." He looked closely at the collar around the other man's neck. "So you wear the Malfious collar – which means if I am correct that you are bound to the master of the spell."
"The Jinn is dead." Marianne commented, searching the ranks for her twin.
"Did you kill him?" a voice asked from behind them. Marianne whirled and happily hurled herself into her other brother's arms. He twirled her around in a circle then set her on her feet and quickly kissed her cheek. "No seriously, did you? Because if you did then you are technically the Master of the collar now."
The Swordsman felt his breath catch in his throat. The scent of roses made sense now. The collar was merely projecting the aura of its master. He stared up at the horseman whose blue eyes looked back at him in disdain. He went to his knees in front of his new master and held out his sword to the woman. "As my lady commands, so shall I do."
Marianne frowned at her twin then up at Damien. "Surely not. You know how I feel about slavery. Can't I just take the collar off him and be done with it?"
"No." Damien replied shortly. "We have need of good soldiers. Just make sure to keep this dog on a short leash when he is not needed."
"He's not a dog," Marianne shot back angrily. "He's a man. No man deserves to be slave to anyone, not to a Jinn and certainly not to me."
"You will do as I command!" Damien roared, rearing up in his saddle.
"Since when?" she snarled. "I never have before. The only reason I agreed to this little farce was because I wanted to get a better feel for the world we were trying to free, not to get you some free help. And keep in mind, brother dear, that you may have all the power of magic at your disposal but your soldiers still look to me for their orders. If you want to win this war, you'll stay out of my way and let me do my job."
The horseman glared at his sister. "I will not be…" the words died in his throat as a blade appeared at his throat, summoned by the black-eyed Swordsman.
"You will not speak to her in this manner." The Swordsman growled.
"Of course he will," Marianne said in exasperation. "He's my brother. He always yells at me. I yell back, it's the way we communicate. " She glanced up at her twin brother. "Tell our Captains that I'll want to debrief them within the hour. Damien, I need you to give me an idea of the lay of the land you just rode over. Andre, did you find the maps we were told about?" She turned to walk away then suddenly stopped and wheeled around to face the Swordsman. She reached up quickly and yanked hard on the metal collar, almost pulling him off his feet. The collar snapped instantly, coming free in her hand. It gleamed for an instant in the sun before it turned dark and rusty and turned to dust. Marianne dropped the ruined metal on the ground at her older brother's feet and then dusted her hands on her pants. "The choice is yours now, Swordsman. Stay with us and fight the Jinn and their allies or take to the rode and find another destiny. Let me know what you decide before we get back on the road." She then turned silently and walked away, her two brothers following in her wake.
"You freed him?" Dureena asked, her eyes still on Galen.
"Of course," Marianne replied calmly. "What happened to him wasn't his fault. He didn't deserve to be punished for the greed of his neighbors. He didn't deserve to suffer for my brother's ambition. Andre and I volunteered to help Damien with his insane plans, Galen didn't."
"Who?" Sarah asked,confused.
"It seems my double not only shares my face but my name." Galen replied dryly.
Marianne grinned. "You two probably share a lot of traits, though I suspect neither of you would admit to it."
"Perhaps," Galen said, glancing around at the Earth Force officers. "I'm assuming your brother's desire to keep him enslaved is the reason for the animosity?"
"One reason," Marianne reluctantly agreed. "It's complicated."
"Not that complicated," Sarah said quietly. "You freed him from his slavery, saved him from more horror and degradation. He probably cares for you very deeply and hates your brother for endangering you."
"And a touch of jealousy on both their parts," Alwyn said, his eyes never leaving the girls.
Marianne shrugged, uncomfortable with the turn in the tale. "Perhaps. At least that's what Andre thinks and I tend to put more emphasis on his opinions than I do most others. Andre has made an effort to befriend my Galen which is good as he needed a friend who wouldn't judge, wouldn't use him, and wouldn't put much pressure on him. He's usually able to distract him when I go walk-about – which I try to do on a regular basis. But that being said, I'll need to return home soon or he'll rip apart the fabric of space and time itself to find me."
"Excuse me," Max interjected, his tone annoyed. "But isn't anyone going to ask how she can still look like she did well over two hundred years ago? Anyone?"
"I think you just did, Max." Marianne laughed. "And the answer is complicated. If I tell you I'd have to kill you – and that wouldn't be good would it?"
Sarah glanced at the girl. "Is there anything your people can do to help with the tragedy on Earth?"
"That would be complicated," she said thoughtfully. "And the plague is the least of the problems President Sheriden will be facing over this. But maybe…" she stared intently at the table in front of her for a moment then smiles. "There maybe a way to move things along without actually interfering myself. My elder Brother did say I win all my battles by cheating but I prefer to think of it as being strategic."
Alwyn frowned. "Why do I think your elder brother will not appreciate your assistance? It appears you are the power behind the throne. Can you not make your will law as you did in this war you speak of?"
"It's not that simple." Marianne let her fingers begin to trace swirls and patterns on the table-top, avoiding the older man's eyes. "You're correct in that I am the brains behind the brawn that won that little conflict but I have no interest in ruling. But for Damien it is almost a calling, the thing he has devoted his life to. Problem is he's got zero people skills. That's what Andre and I are here for, to make plans he wouldn't think of and deal with people he doesn't think he needs to deal with. He'll never think about Earth's problems now just as he never thought about the problems of the people we led into battle. He won't be happy if I interfere either."
Galen glanced at his friend with a frown. "Why would he care? "
"Damien is my King and my brother," Marianne replied with a sigh. "and on a good day a royal pain in the ass. He'll hate the idea of my helping Earth because it means I'm taking time away from him – but then I hate the idea of him torturing a defenseless being for his amusement so he'll just have to suck it up." She smiled mischievously. "And it would be highly entertaining for both Andre and myself." She continued to lazily trace signs on the table-top, absently dancing her fingers across its surface like she was playing a piano. She glanced up at the older Technomage with a grin, then primly folder her hands in her lap.
Alwyn looked at the table for a moment then back at the girl with a grim smile. "Yes, I'm sure it will be quite amusing for you and your brother. Hopefully it will not be at the expense of the population of Earth."
"You have more to fear from the powers that be in Earth Alliance then from me." Marianne rose and stretched out her hand to retrieve her sword. She tapped it the hilt on the bulkhead twice then stepped back as the door of lights re-appeared. "Time for me to go."
"Will we see any of you again?" Galen asked in disappointment, surprised at his own reaction.
"You never know, little brother," she replied with a grin. "Andre, Galen and I tend to run away from home on a right regular basis. We might just pop up sooner than you think." She looked over the older Technomage and nodded to him primly. "Blessed be to you elder brother. May you add more knowledge to your store of information." She stepped through the door with a wave. As soon as she did the door disappeared.
Alwyn moved quickly, sweeping his staff over the top of the table. Fiery symbols and equations suddenly became visible on the bare surface. "Clever girl," he said quietly. "She's left us a clue, Captain. A clue to the end of Earth's story. Now all you have to do is decipher it."