New chapter, new viewpoint, gosh I get around…
Disclaimer: Sunrise plus budget equals Mai HiME. Emiri plus budget equals plotless yuri smut plus pocky and coke. Go figure why I don't own it.
Chapter 6- Catacombs and Cohorts
The interior of the inn in which they had decided to stay was, optimistically, horrendous to the point that one might lose all hope in life is they had stayed there for a period longer than a few seconds. However. The crew of The Princess was by now accustomed to Twyr's less that humane living quarters, and so they stoically sat in their room and attempted to sleep.
There were several problems one encountered when living underground- not least the lack of discernable cycles of the sun, or the claustrophobic living conditions, or the terrible smell that was issuing from the kitchen below; this surely signaled that repast was beginning. Often these days, Chie and her cohorts would barricade themselves in their room when the innkeeper came calling, because the food both smelled and probably tasted similar to the dung that coated the entire Inn.
However, Aoi was an optimist, and thus, a small kindling flame of hope still existed within the group that their travels to Twyr were not in vain. They had contacted the underworld here and requested an audience with one of the principal traders, a wealthy and dishonest man named Trei Swiftfinger. The inn, deceptively named The Crown, was certainly no where near to royal standards, and hopefully the crew would only have to stay here for a few days before their audience.
A distant clanging of bells, not rhythmic at all, made Chie's sensitive ears prickle after the relative silence of the room. Once, Twice, Three times. It was the third hour of noon and the time of audience. With one swift motion, the entire crew stood up and gathered their affairs, heading for the door, thankful to finally be rid of the Inn.
Traversing the gloomy tunnels of Twyr with practiced ease, the group dodged persistent street vendors and crooked alleyways, most likely laden with bandits who would take all too kindly to a band of gypsies with a bag of gold. Chie headed the pack, Tate carrying Takumi cradle-style, closely followed by the rest. Wearing thick, hooded travelling cloaks that concealed a number that greatly exceeded the legal limit of weapons, they advanced lower and lower into the proverbial catacombs of The UnderTwyr, the maze of squats, tombs and burrows that housed runaways, outlaws and vagabonds from all reaches of the Land. This was definitely the place for a man akin to Trei Swiftfinger.
The light created by the huge torch-pillar that lighted most of Twyr waned as they descended deeper into the UnderTwyr, Aoi's lantern a solitary beacon of light. The glowworms that nestled on the walls provided an odd, luminous but not effective radiance, and so the crew became vulnerable to pickpockets and thieves, which were commonplace in these tunnels.
All of a sudden, the tunnel they were walking down opened out into a large cavern, complete with stalactites the size of claymores hanging precariously from the distant ceiling, ominously above the group and all too ready to fall. On the far side of the cavern stood and still pond, black and glassy. This was their destination.
Mai stood firm in front of the pond, her arm outstretched and face set, and began to mumble several incomprehensible words that Chie made out as an incantation.
"Reivœl!" she cried, a shout that echoed around the cavern, and a few stalactites quivered dangerously. Mai was still and nothing happened for what seemed an eternity, but just as Chie was about to speak, the surface of the pond began to ripple. The water caved in on itself, as though it were being sucked into the lake, and a stairway was revealed, as the water magically drained away. Mai dropped her hands, motioning for the rest to follow. Unsure and wary of whatever traps awaited them with Trei, Chie descended into the gloom.
-In the palace of his majesty, Magthor, King of Windbloom-
Natsuki awoke the next morning to a dull throbbing sensation, that hurt all over her body. She cautiously got out of bed and took a swig of her potion before dressing swiftly. She had to be down in the kitchen to spike Magthor's tea, and then up to help Shizuru dress. She was thankful that her busy schedule kept her from pondering the finer points of her predicament.
I… I'm just not sure any more. At the beginning, I could say with all conviction and certainty that this was just another job. Aye, an unorthodox one, but a job nonetheless. No strings attached and no guilt. However, deep inside me, I believe that something has stirred. I just… I cannot bring myself to face the ultimatum of the king's death, and I can't help but wonder who this benefits. And… what about Shizuru? What will she do with her father dead? What will become of the crumbling pillars of this once happy kingdom? Damn, I just can't seem to think straight!
Battling with her inner demons, Natsuki slid down one of the many spiral staircases used to discreetly traverse the castle's huge interior. Once down in the kitchen, she checked in with the head maid Maria (who seemed never to sleep- however early or late Natsuki came, she was always here), and went to prepare Magthor's tea. Duly putting in a few drops of the poison, she stirred in a single sugar and brought it over to Maria so that she could take it up. Giving Natsuki a nod of approval, a rare sight indeed, Maria left, leaving her alone in the kitchen with nothing to do until Shizuru woke up in another half-hour.
Deciding that she would take a stroll in the gardens, Natsuki weaved her way through the corridors and out into the open-roofed courtyard, overflowing with beautiful trees that were loosing their leaves fast. The whole area seemed to be ablaze, with hues of brown, red, yellows and hundreds in the spectrum in-between. It was there that she saw King Magthor resting on a bench, his eyes heavily lidded and his face pale. He looked very ill indeed. Natsuki felt an unfamiliar mixture of sensations inside her, which with some consideration, she placed as guilt, pity and remorse. It was an uncomfortable thing to feel, and made one question one's actions.
Natsuki didn't need this: it was her job to keep these feelings under control and execute the will of Sergay. All these new conflicts would only make her work harder.
Then, out of the corner of her eyes, Natsuki spotted a movement. Quickly appearing incognito, she strolled out of the courtyard in time to see Miss Maria carrying a tray of tea over to Magthor. Deciding that she could wait in Shizuru's bedroom, Natsuki returned upstairs and left those troubles behind her.
Opening the large doors that led into the princess's chambers, Natsuki was surprised to see no sign of her: Shizuru was obviously not anywhere in her rooms. So Natsuki went to look in the next most obvious place, the bell tower. Before she even got halfway down the stairs, the maid heard the most wonderful sound: it was like the melodic and slow sound of a flute, or a wind instrument. It was Shizuru's mournful voice, singing a ballad that Natsuki had never heard before, but was nevertheless beautiful.
O'er the lonely peaks of mountains bold,
The melancholy wind a secret bears,
Within the roots of time is told,
But naught the ancient guardsman shares.
Fly, O, Fly, Dove of my heart,
Soar O'er those misty peaks of old,
Break from chains to new a'start,
And with this love, a new dawn mold.
Grasping at the red thread of fate,
Yet to live within our mortal fold,
I will exist, forever reaching, too late,
But, O, my heart still flies free of hold.
Shizuru was silent for what seemed like hours after this, and as Natsuki inched up the stairs, she began to see the princess in her nightdress, her silk hair fluttering in the breeze and tears running down her porcelain cheeks. Basic human instinct undermining over ten years of training, Natsuki reacted to those sad tears and rushed up the stairs to attempt to comfort her charge. Shizuru was facing outward, so the best Natsuki could do was gently embrace her from behind. Although Shizuru's crimson eyes slightly widened at this unexpected gesture, she was thankful that her maid was finally opening up to her.
"Natsuki?" she asked curiously.
"Uh… Shizuru, you looked sad. I thought…" Natsuki was obviously uncomfortable with expressing herself in this way, so Shizuru took the initiative.
"So Natsuki does care about me?" She pouted slightly and Natsuki detached and they turned to face each other.
"Eh? N-no! that's not what I meant, I just-"
"Then Natsuki hates me?" Shizuru teased, wiping a fake tear from her eye.
At this, Natsuki began stuttering cutely, and blushing furiously. She tried to convey her thoughts to Shizuru, but Kuga had never been a people person, and so she ended up just staying silent whilst Shizuru pointed out all the estates in Windbloom, who owned them, how many wives he had and how many times he'd tried to hit on her. Natsuki was amazed at how much Shizuru knew about everything, and the incredulous look on her face prompted Shizuru to explain.
"Ara, Natsuki, you don't think that all I do as a princess is go to parties and stand on ceremony? I know the politics of Windbloom better than any of the spies and assassins in the city, I'd wager," she giggled, "Speaking of assassins…" Natsuki had to stop herself from tensing up. "I'm worried about father. He seems ill of recent," Shizuru sighed and hung her head.
"If he dies, I can't take the throne, everyone knows that. I'm a human girl: only males can take the throne. I once heard that far away. Across the southern seas, the Dark Elves were governed entirely by women. Entirely! Think about it, Natsuki. People who really know what they're doing making the decisions! Freedom…" she drifted off and got a faraway look in her vermillion eyes.
"Hey, Shizuru, is there anything you've ever really wanted to know about the world?" Natsuki asked, twisting a lock of hair around her finger, a foolish habit that she had been unable to break out of since her younger years.
"My, my, Natsuki. What an odd question. I guess there is one thing, though. I always read legends about Halflings, and I never really was allowed to find out much about them. Do you know anything?"
"Good question, seeing as though I'm quite well versed in that subject. Halflings lived as free creatures: they had an organized system, yes, but one that was very localized and relied heavily on family bonds and trust. Halflings lived in packs, which could just be one branch of a family, several different ones, or a random collection. They have the deepest roots in this kingdom, other than the dwarves.
"but it was their naïve trust that eventually bought about their downfall. A young Halfling named Natsuki fell in love with a human, and left her pack. This caused turmoil and discord, and soon they were fighting amongst themselves. It was this that set off the snowball effect that eventually led to the War of Barren's Plain." Natsuki paused for breath and realized that she was getting too far into this.
"So, you're named after the Halfling that stared the war?" Shizuru asked, unbelieving.
"Not by choice, but yes." Was the reply.
Shizuru was silent for a few minutes before voicing her thoughts. "You speak of Halflings with such familiarity and yearning. Why is this?"
"I want the same as you, Shizuru. I want to be free from all of this and run away to where the grass is always greener, on the other side of the ocean. It's a dream I see coming," Natsuki explained, and promptly blushed. She had just voiced her deepest feelings! That was so unprofessional! Natsuki began panicking, but a light hand on her shoulder caught her attention.
"It is indeed a dream we see coming," she smiled and Natsuki had the oddest feeling: as though butterflies had flown into her stomach and were fluttering around.
"Ne, Shizuru… I know the translation of a Halfling Lay. Want to hear it?" Natsuki asked nervously, her finger getting stuck I her hair because she had been twirling it so much.
"That would be lovely," Shizuru answered.
"Hills of the North, Rejoice,
Bound not a captive free,
Raise, in exultant voice,
Rise, to follow thee.
Isles of the Southern Seas,
Deep in your coral caves,
Pent be each warring breeze,
Lulled be your wrestles waves.
Peaks of the utmost east,
Clouded, your heights will see,
Paths that are traveled least,
Life to each flow'r and tree.
Plains, in the west, come hence,
Join our redeeming song,
Come, from your forests dense,
Worth is the journey long."
Natsuki finished singing and looked at Shizuru, waiting for her reaction. The look on her face was unreadable, her mask set over her features.
Very slowly, she whispered to Natsuki, " That was the most beautiful Lay I have ever heard. And it is best sung by the race who wrote it, as you have proved."
--0--
OMG! Cliffhanger. As you are reading this, I hit 5 reviews for the first chapter the night I put it up. Lolz. By the way, the first song/poem, I made up, hence why it sucks. For the second poem, I drew inspiration and a few phrases from a hymn, number 61 in my hymnbook, Little Cornard or something. Just so you know and don't sue me.
Next chappie coming soon
Emiri