125. Fear the Black Tempest part 6
"This is it," Tula said.
Beast Boy scratched his head. "What exactly is 'it'?"
The dark corridor underneath Atlantis yawned open into a humongous cavern, the size of a giant lake. The ceiling to the cave stretched high and wide. Hundreds of electric lights pinned to the rock glowed brightly and together they created an illusion akin to daylight overhead. The underground acreage was covered with very....recognizable buildings, both short and tall. Among them were three or four huge glass domes filled with vegetation, much like greenhouses. And between the structures walked men, women, children, families....
A small, glowing community underground. Very happy and sunny for a place where there was no sun.
I walked out of the corridor with Fraust's limp body in my arms. I squinted my specked eyes and took everything in from where I stood beside Beast Boy and Princess Tula.
After a minute or so, Beast Boy looked the princess' way and spoke: "I entreat thee humbly, your highness.......but.....................what the Hell???"
"This is sanctuary," Tula said.
"Sanctuary?"
She looked down at the changeling and smiled in a betrayingly soft manner. "The Sub-Lands. It is a secret most precious."
"So.....um...," Beast Boy blinked at the community. "Where's all the water?"
Tula chuckled. "The people here don't need it quite so much."
"How come?"
"Follow me. We have to get this girl to the infirmary. My people here will tend to her."
I nodded.
Tula descended down a tall set of stone stairs. I followed with Fraust. Beast Boy took the rear.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
"This sanctuary was constructed in a joint effort by both Poseidonisians and Idyllists," Tula spoke. We walked between buildings and past a garden. "It's proof of our loyalty to each other. I've been here many times...and so has Garth."
"Do the Atlanteans know they're living above this place??" Beast Boy asked.
"King Orin does," Tula confessed. "But it wasn't until three years ago that we told him. As you can imagine....he was a bit miffed at the news at first. Especially since the news hasn't been too---well—'new'."
"How long has this place been here?"
"Well over a hundred and fifty years," Tula said. "There are many places identical to this one all over the sea, and many of them much older. There's one under the city of Poseidonis...and another under Mount Sedna, or what you people call 'Easter Island'."
Two kids ran past the path, chasing each other, giggling.
I watched them, smiling slightly. I leaned my head to the side, startled by the sound of songbirds......
"Feel like you're at home?" Tula smirked.
"Well...y-yeah! Actually....," Beast Boy nodded. "These people are---"
"Not Atlanteans," Tula shook her head. "They're surface dwellers. All of them have lived their entire lives down here. According to rumor, though, some of the other sanctuaries house people of your present generation. But for the most part, it's a self-contained society."
"But....like.....how'd they all get here??" Beast Boy cackled.
"Quite an unfortunate irony of fate," Tula sighed. We walked up a hill towards a contrasting building of white metal and Atlantean architecture. "A long time ago, before Paleo-Poseidonis sunk into the sea and became the first city of Atlantis, there was an ancient race of nonhuman ocean-dwellers who set up a far-reaching civilization under the world's oceans. In our history books, we call them the Syrens. The Syrens were a people of fierce power-mongering and advanced technology—many of which we've found relics of and have adapted into Atlantean civilization. The Syrens died out by their own hand before our culture had its four millennia to flourish. Much of the Syrens' tragedy falls in the hands of their war technology. In three strategic places in the sea, they constructed Obsidian Crystals for powering a weapon so big that it feasted on the electromagnetic field of the earth to deal magical blows of ferocity against whatever foe they chose. According to legend, the aura of evil that these Crystals forged brought the Syrens to their end. The Crystals' energy faded, but they never truly lost their wicked luster. In the last four thousand years, the three structures have randomly fluctuated...causing all sorts of global repercussions. About two hundred years ago, the Crystals pulsed and caused a terrible volcano to shudder a good fourth of the Earth. A century later, they accidentally caused a gigantic explosion in the lower atmosphere over the northeast hemisphere. Even now, the ferocity of these sleeping Crystals cannot be predicted. We guard them with extreme apprehension."
"If you know where they are, why not just simply destroy them?" Beast Boy asked.
"It would not be wise to attempt such a feat," Tula shook her head as we ascended the last lengths of the hill. "The Obsidian Crystals are too deadly and mysterious to tamper with, and besides...they would still pollute the oceans in some fashion or another if we were to dismantle them. I believe it's much like surface dwellers and their problems with the endless array of nuclear weapons."
"Eheheh....yeah, that," Beast Boy sweatdropped with a simper.
"Nevertheless, the Obisidian Crystals are in our seas...and there are a few of us who feel very much responsible for what they do to the Surface World," Tuls explained. "And there is one thing that—over the last three centuries—have been a constant side effect of the ancient weapon."
"And that is?"
"Innocent surface-dwellers, traveling in various different ways over the ages, have been subjected to the Crystals' dark energies. Specifically, this seems to take place within the area of ocean set between the three Crystal points. Humans started losing their lives to the waves when their vessels fell out from under them by the wicked pull. So much of a waste of life this was, Atlantean secret societies flocked to the rescue. We have since been saving the lives of the sunken surface-dwellers with our submersibles and bringing them to these sanctuaries to live out their lives instead of tasting death. For as much as we wish to uphold their lives, we cannot—at the same time—give out the secrets of our underwater civilization. Secrecy has been a way of ocean-dwellers' culture for as long as we've been that which we've been. But now...young torch-bearers of the sanctuaries are hoping for a change. People like Garth and I are doing our best to impress King Orin with the job our societies have accomplished in preserving these innocent people all these years. If Junction goes well—and groups like the Poseidonissians and the Idyllist are allowed back into the Atlantean collective, then releasing these people back onto dry land may be the next step. And if we're willing to do that...what will stop us from finally reuniting? All of us! The surface-dwellers.....the ocean-dwellers....the entire world?"
"Whoah....sounds like big stuff...," Beast Boy scratched his head. "How does Senator Chasma and Slizzath's dark energy fit into all of this?"
"Chasma is a man who wants power, and he uses conservative parties and radicals to back him in the Senate," Tula said. As she reached the top of the hill, she paused and sighed. "But Chasma is also a fool. He thinks—or at least he once thought—that using Slizzath's black magic is the key to dominating the power that he desires. He probably figured that the only way to stop someone as powerful and revitalizing as King Orin from ushering Atlantis into a new age of social integration would be to wield fear and darkness. So he dabbled in Slizzath's sealed essence, and the Senator's mind was polluted. Now Chasma is nothing more than the mere puppet of Slizzath. He tried to make his final move to shut us up with the dark assassins. And if indeed we've fought off that attack, Slizzath will be angry. The retribution would be fierce and merciless. We must be prepared for anything, and work the hardest we can to ensure political Junction. Once that is done, all of Atlantis will be united...and the oceans will be strong enough finally to silence Slizzath's reemergence for good."
"So let me get this straight....," Beast Boy held a hand out. "All of this is tied together. Garth's near-execution. Chasma's conspiracy. Slizzath's reemergence. The blonde snow chick in Noir's arms...."
I simpered.
".........and now these surface dwellers living underground," Beast Boy blinked. "So....like....if these humans can be granted safe return to the surface world, that'll mean happy times for once between both of our peoples. But in order for that to happen, Atlantis first must reach the Junction. But in order for THAT to happen, Chasma has to avoided in all of his death traps and whatnot. But that won't be easy, because Slizzath is empowering Chasma. And while we're trying to let Junction take place, we're also trying to fight back Slizzath under the political radar so that Atlantis will gather together AFTER Junction to kick his magical butt. And the keys we have to doing that is Garth and his essence-ties and Noir's masquerade as the Idyllist prince in the meantime!"
Tula nodded. "Yup. That sounds about right."
"Ha!" Beast Boy proudly planted his hands on his hips and smiled my way. "And who says I don't pay attention to the plotline?"
I whistled innocently.
"But still....," Beast Boy simpered. "There is one thing I'm curious about."
"Mmmhmmm?"
"Where'd you say these Crystals were? The ones sucking up these people that you've brought to live here?"
"I'm sorry....I'm not well-versed on Surface geography," Tula remarked. "All I can say is that it's low in the Northwestern Hemisphere. And the vessels that they sank in....," Tula motioned towards the other side of the hill, "...they are preserved in part here."
Beast Boy's eyes thinned curiously. He marched to the top of the 'hill' and looked down the other side of the huge cavern. His breath left him.
"???" Curious, I walked over and stood by his side. I gasped and tried my best not to drop Fraust.
The cavern floor on that side was devoid of houses and terrariums. Instead, there were seaships. Yachts. A huge tanker. And then airplanes. Retro fighters from the 40s. Sections of a jumbo jet. And dozens of small, propeller planes.
Beast Boy gasped and pointed: "Dude!!" He emphasized an old-fashioned cargo ship across the way. "It's the Cyclops! The U.S.S. Cyclops!" He looked around excitedly. "Holy crap! Look at those bombers!" he pointed at a group of planes. "That....th-that's Flight 19!!"
I looked at him funny.
His eyes were wide as he glanced back at me. "Bermuda Triangle, man...." He grinned drunkenly. "Bermuda-tapdancing-Triangle!! Hahaha!!" He pulled at his hair and beamed. "'Three Obsidian Crystals' indeed....HA! Dude...this is so cool!"
I simpered. I looked back at Tula. I motioned with my head at the girl in my arms.
"Knees getting weak, handsome?"
I smirked sarcastically.
"In here," she pointed to the infirmary building. "Come on."
I nodded and walked with her.
Beast Boy stood alone on the hilltop, gaping in awe. "Duuuuuuuuuuuuuude."
A beat.
Tula marched back, sighed, and yanked him towards the building by the collar.
"Yaaah!! Just lemme stare a little longer, please???"
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
There were two Atlantean nurses helping me lower Fraust down to a soft bed inside a darklit patient room.
"Y-Your highness...," one of the nurses stammered. "This girl....sh-she has powers. She must be working for—'
"We know," Tula nodded. She glanced at me. "But....we think we can still salvage her. There's time to fix the damage Chasma has done yet."
I smiled softly at her.
"We shall do our best to tend to her, Your Highness," one nurse curtsied.
The other was examining the blonde specimen. "She's burning up. Her body temperature is one hundred and two. Not good by human standards."
"Was she ill when you fought her, your highness?" the other nurse asked.
"Perfectly fine......er....f-for a black magic assassin."
I knelt by the bed. I squinted my specked eyes. I ran a hand across the girl's bangs. I felt moisture leaking off them. I rubbed my wet fingers together.
"................."
Melting.........
I parted my lips. I looked up at one of the nurses. I charaded 'shivering' and pointed all around the room.
The nurse smiled. "Good idea." She placed her instruments down, stood up, and rushed over to a console on the wall.
"What're you doing??" Beast Boy asked.
"Making things more comfortable...," the nurse said. She accessed the console—which served as thermostat of sorts. She turned it down....all the way down.
Gradually, it got very cold inside. All of our breaths turned visible.
Beast Boy hugged himself and his teeth chattered.
I shuddered, steam coming out of my lips.
The Atlanteans seemed rather oblivious to the drop. When it reached fifty-five (the room's limit), the nurse turned around and pointed at her assistant. "Check her vitals now."
The other nurse picked up the instruments and examined Fraust. A beat. She smiled. "She's becoming stable." She looked up. "It's like her element."
"Right now it is," Tula said. She pointed. "You two see if there's anyway to undo the effects Chasma has put her through."
"But, your highness, if it was truly Slizzath's power that manifested—"
"Try," Tula uttered.
"Yes, your highness."
Tula shuffled over and stood between us. She spoke quietly while all three of us gazed on Fraust's figure.
"As you both know....this girl is a surface-dweller. But I don't think that's as far as it goes. She's a surface-dweller who was acquired because of the Obsidian Crystals."
"You mean....she's Bermuda Triangle victim like all the rest? Beast Boy cackled.
"Most likely a descendant of one," Tula said. "We—and when I say 'we' I mean the Idyllists and Poseidonissians—cannot account for every surface dweller who suffers submergence and isolation because of the Crystals. We try to save and provide habitat for as many as we can...but that doesn't mean we're the only ones who get to them first."
"Meaning.......?"
Tula took a deep breath. "It's quite possible that Atlanteans of evil persuasion—like Chasma and his men—have been stealing these humans and using them for dark purposes."
"Like kidnapping?"
Tula nodded. "We've lost nearly sixty people in the last twenty years. They could be anywhere among the secret societies of Atlantis..."
"What would Chasma do if he got his hands on such people?"
"Neptune help them is all I can say." Tula sighed. "I think we're looking at a product of Chasma's dabbling in the dark arts." She gestured. "Fraust...the essence of Slizzath's frozen magic."
I looked at the blonde girl. The blood inside of me began to boil.
"Whoever would have done that to her would do anything to screw up Junction for sure," Beast Boy said. "I'm beginning to hate more and more the creep that we're up against."
"You're not alone. In the meantime, I gotta go somewhere," Tula spoke.
"Where to?" Beast Boy asked.
She smiled. "I've got my own element, ya know."
Beast Boy blinked.
"Noir?" the princess spoke.
I looked at her.
"Care to come with me? We have much to talk about for the coming day."
I nodded.
"I'm gonna stay in here," Beast Boy said...despite his shivering. "You never know when you'll need a Titan handy," he smiled.
I rolled my specked eyes and gestured with my hands: 'It is because of the nurses, right?'
He merely blinked at me.
I sighed.....I wished Cyborg was there.
"Well, let's be off," Tula spoke. She ruffled out of the room.
But I hesitated. I turned and looked sympathetically at Fraust's silent figure.
The nurses were tending to her. Preparing a hospital gown. Fixing her scrapes and bruises. Their arms brushed against her fair skin and short blonde hair.
I inhaled painfully.
Funny......she almost looks like her......
"Noir??"
I snapped out of my memories, spun around, and followed after the princess.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Tula walked into a round room with a wide, shallow pool in the center. The pool was in the shape of a pure circle, and the only light from the room was from a ring of illumination under the water. The dark blue walls reflected with dancing, kaleidoscopic beams. There were doors on six places in the walls, and it was in the center of the Atlantean building. It must have been a public pond or something.
"Ah...finally...," Tula murmured. She hoisted her shredded skirt a bit and sat herself in the pool, dress and all. I came to realize that ocean-dwellers got their clothes wet as a rule of thumb, and the cloth was woven accordingly to accommodate such.
The princess slowly lowered herself and sat in a submerged 'seat' that wrapped around the interior of the pool in a ring. She sighed long and hard as she did so, very much relaxed.
"Don't mind me...," she chuckled a bit and glanced at me. "Atlanteans and water........it's a thing as old as blood."
I shrugged with a slight smirk.
She rested her head back on the dry surface behind her and just let herself............soak.
A beat.
I shifted where I stood.
Silence.
I narrowed my eyes, waiting..........waiting............waiting............
Then.........
"I don't know why I'm trusting you two so much.......to be honest, Noir......."
I looked at her curiously.
Tula still had her eyes closed. She took a deep breath. Her torso was resting comfortably under the rippling surface. "I mean....two surface dwellers have just dropped in my lap upon the eve of the greatest political function of my life....and here I am treating you as allies in the most crucial moments ever....."
Silence.
I bit my lip.
She opened her eyes and looked at me: "I think it's because you look so much like him........"
My specked eyes fell to the floor.
"Those eyes...."
I winced.
Tula twisted around and wrested in the pool with her chin propped up on her hands as she looked at me. "Only Garth's family has it," she spoke. "He and Praetor Ivan are the last ones left with the trait. Tell me.....are they your real eyes?"
I chuckled breathily.
She raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny?"
I shook my hand...and my head. I smirked....then sighed.
Tula blinked. Her gaze narrowed. "The scar....."
I waited for her to say it:
"It's how you lost your voice, isn't it?"
I nodded exasperatingly.
"It must be hard being a hero on the surface-land when you can't talk." A beat. "Or maybe," she smiled. "It's absolutely easy?"
I twisted my hand from side to side.
"Garth has always been the quiet type...," Tula turned around again. She hugged herself, half submerged. "And lonely type too. I wonder what scars he hasn't told me about..."
Here we go......
I sighed. I sat down on the edge of the pool and leaned my hand against my head. 'Listening'....
"At first, I thought it was just an act," the princess confessed. "Like he was playing tough or 'hard to get' or something. But as it turns out, he's had a pretty tough past. I think it has a lot to do with the curse on his forefathers. But—pretty much—he has no family."
I listened....
"He gets nervous around lots of people. Heh....I can't imagine why he decided to become an ambassador for the Idyllists. But then again, maybe he didn't have much of a choice."
A beat.
She added softly: "Garth thinks he has no future. As long as Slizzath's power looms, Garth will blame himself for the evil essence that he carries. And he's told me......h-he's told me that he would rather live life alone and rejected till he dies rather than share it with someone and possibly spread the curse to her as well...."
I took a deep breath.
Tula looked my way. "If only he knew....if only he knew that I'm so happy for all the things he's done for me and the Poseidonissians that I would gladly use whatever's in my power to release the curse from him..."
I smiled slightly.
"It's not very fair for you that I ramble on about Garth in your presence, Noir," Tula said. "Everytime I look at you, I see his face. And I think of him. And I know that—like always—he's far away and battling demons on his own. Only this time...the demons are everywhere. I'm battling them myself, but he's not here. And it's such a sick....sick feeling...."
I scratched my head and my eyes trailed off. I suddenly longed to be home at the Tower inside my room with my laptop and the instant messenger program....
"Don't mind me, Noir. Heh....if you're anything like Garth, you're bound to have girls pining over you somewhere too," she winked. "That true?"
I chuckled. A soft grin.
"Heh....thought so."
I blinked.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Somewhere in the southern Atlantic...
An armada of submersible craft were soaring mightily through the currents.
There were four of them. One was of amazing girth, practically an aircraft carrier underwater. It took point with two medium submarines the size of surface-dwellers' nuclear potential flanking it. Following at the rear was a smaller craft roughly a third of the size of the large one taking point. All four vessels cruised through the depths in perfect coordination. Atlanteans rising water bikes numbering in the dozens circled all around the four submarines, acting as guards and watchmen.
It was the Idyllist excursion to the Atlantis. The large ship at point housed Praetor Ivan and most of the higher delegates from the Hidden Valley. The two medium sized ships held passengers wishing to take part in the Junction. The small ship to the rear acted as a mobile command post for the guards on their sumbersible bikes.
The bottom of the large ship with Praetor Ivan had a huge docking bay at the bottom of its hull for accepting and deploying smaller submersibles...
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Robin stood on a metal walkway inside the large vessel's docking bay. The T-Sub hung beside him, suspended by steel bracers in the ceiling of the hangar. Pools of water gathered above the closed bay doors below.
"What are you trying to say, Cyborg?" Robin spoke into his communicator while pacing the catwalk. "Is Aqualad feeling better or something?"
"It's not that simple anymore, Robin."
"Explain."
"I wish I could. Did you ever know that Aqualad wields some of Slizzath's magic because of a curse?"
"Not until recently. Why?"
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Cyborg was gathering various tools into a huge 'backpack' of sorts that only him and his titanium girth could hope to carry. Weapons, explosives, computer equipment...it all went into the collection.
He went about his task at the far side of his laboratory while talking into a headset. "Well, he really cleaned the clocks of one of Slizzath's sorcerer guys, not to mention one or two of the minions sent with him to attack the Tower."
"Miist, right?"
"Well, he was Miist. Now he's nothing. Kinda like that Fryte guy you told me about. Though—from the sound of it—Fryte wasn't all too gung-ho about trying to attack you guys. Am I wrong?"
"No, I think you're right on the money. But enough about the magical assassins. Where are you people going?"
"Atlantis."
"How??"
Cyborg shrugged. "Aqualad's got some means of getting us there."
"Did he explain—"
"No, he didn't, Robin!" Cyborg barked. "I'm sorry, but things haven't been so pretty here. The Tower got royally beat up and waterlogged by the attack we had. Raven got shook up. I had to spend four hours repairing my body. And to make things worth, Aqualad's Renzukkan friends are dead."
"Which ones?"
"All of them," Cyborg paused and exhaled. "Tram too, man. The little dude was practically butchered by Miist and his clan."
"I......I had no idea......"
"What damage did Fryte do over there?"
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Robin cleared his throat and spoke while pacing the catwalk:
"Besides nearly implode the entire freakin' capitol building of Idyllist?? No deaths reported...but there are at least ten Idyllists stuck in their hospitals undergoing extreme anxiety and duress. I wouldn't doubt it if Fryte's mental manipulations turned them insane for life."
"That's gotta suck, man."
"Well, it makes the fight against Senator Chasma and Slizzath all the more important," Robin said. "Praetor Ivan snapped out of his funk and now he's taking Star, Nova'm, and I—along with a bunch of his most trusted allies—to Atlantis. If luck is on our side, Chasma will have more than he can chew....or at least more than his magical minions can chew, what's left of them."
"How's the T-Sub, man?"
Robin paused. He bit his lip. "The T-Sub?"
"Yeah, dawg. Tell me that at least my baby survived in one piece."
Robin looked at the T-Sub to his side.
The entire craft was dented, scratched, and scarred in numerous places. The front cockpit submersible was still partially detached from the rest of the vessel. With a swift kick of his steel-tipped boot, Robin awkwardly snapped the compartment into place—CRAACK—with a resonating crack down the already shattered cockpit of the front.
"Yup!" Robin pleasantly uttered into the communicator, sweatdropping. "All in one piece!"
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
"..........," Cyborg's eyes scanned some unseen horizon. He frowned. "It'd better be."
"How is Aqualad doing? Is he letting anger take control of him?"
"What do you mean?"
"Miist's attack. Tram's death. Is Aqualad taking you two to Atlantis out of vengeance?"
"I dunno, man. But if you were to ask me—"
"And I am."
"---I would say let him do what he needs to do. This is his nation, man. This is his future. Raven and I are going to trust him from hereon out no matter what. And it's a good thing that we'll have Raven there too."
"How so?"
Cyborg smirked slightly. "I think the two are on the same page about many things."
"You okay with that?"
Cyborg frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Never mind. I need to go check up on Star and Nova'm. We're on route to Atlantis ourselves. I have a feeling that—if you guys leave now—we might meet at around the same time."
"I bet that'll make Noir and Beast Boy happy."
"We'll know eventually. Robin out."
-click-
Cyborg shuffled the headset off. He held up the last of the items going into the pack before him.
Myrkblade.....
"We're coming for you, buddy," Cyborg smirked. He put the blade away, fastened the pack closed, and exited the laboratory.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Aqualad's face reflected against the waters lapping up against the rock bluffs of the Tower's island. It was still overcast from the evening previous. The sky still stained with the gray somberness.
He took a deep breath, his dark eyes thin. He reached hand down and dipped it into the water. The ripples spread everywhere, distorting his reflection into chaos. And into that chaos he peered and entreated a dozen images....
But mainly one...
"Tula....you're all I have left...."
Silence.
A voice from behind him cleared.
Aqualad slowly stood up and looked around.
Raven looked up at him stoically. "Cyborg's ready. He radioed me to let me know that he's coming with all of our equipment."
"Good....we'll be going soon."
A beat.
A cold wind kicked against them. Summer mist mixed with autumn chill.
The year of the surface world was slowly dying and even an Atlantean like Aqualad could sense it.
"May I ask you something, Raven?"
"You may try."
Aqualad looked at her. "Are you alone?"
She paused for a few seconds before answering that. "I once was. Before the Titans."
"What's it like to be alone?"
"I'm surprised you wouldn't know," she droned. "With the life you live."
He smiled slightly. His face faded to stone as he glanced out onto the ocean. "Idyllists believe in something that we call the Principle of the Crying Brill. I think it's something very similar to what surface dwellers call the 'butterfly effect'. My culture maintains that—if plankton had tear ducts—a single sobbing one of them would add teardrops into the ocean that could be felt thousands of miles away by the king of Atlantis itself. The ocean is one huge unit of matter, in our eyes at least. We share the same water to breathe, sleep, live, die, sob, and laugh. There is no single thing committed by one Atlantean that can't—in some remote way or another—affect the life and habitat of another. It's the basis of Idyllist ideology to believe that the only way to keep the same ocean everywhere for everyone remotely safe and sound, people must live a life of peace...and not of war. The city of Atlantis did not share this belief. In their minds, the Ocean was something to segment politically. And whenever you divide the Ocean up—just like land—you set things up for war. And Atlantis has always been a culture of war. My people didn't want tears of anguish to flood the Ocean, so they broke off and settled in the Hidden Valley. Even today, every Idyllist boy and girl is taught by his or her household that the best way to confront a dangerous situation is to minimalize it...to put peace above one's own aspirations or will. Well...I was born with the evil of Slizzath in my being. I grew up knowing that I may very well be the proponent of some wicken reincarnation of an imprisoned sorcerer. And, much like you Raven, I took the beliefs I was given and determined that the only way I could bless the world was to forfeit it. I never stayed in the Hidden Valley for more than a week since my later childhood. I've always been on the move. Doing my best to stop the likes of Trident, Black Manta, you name it. I've met a select few in my life with the strength and capacity to understand who and what I am....but even still, I can't stick with them long. I have to keep moving. I have to be alone. Because of what I am."
Silence.
Raven stared at him.
Aqualad ran a hand through his long black hair and sighed.
"Tell me....do you think someone like you....someone like me....someone like any of us...can find a time and place to sit down, make a home, and no longer be paranoid?"
Raven inhaled, then said: "Paranoia never leaves you, Aqualad."
He glanced at her.
She added: "And for me...fear is a dangerous emotion. I cannot admit having paranoia over the evil potential inside of me. At the same time, I cannot deny its presence. So I found an alternative way of solving my own concerns."
Aqualad leaned his head to the side.
She smirked slightly: "I am a far more frightening individual than what my fears are. If evil were to sink its claws into my throat, I would give it Hell to pay. Not just for myself...but for my friends. Because—when or if you finally decide to settle in with a family, Aqualad—you realize that you are worth more than you ever thought possible. And you are definitely worth more to innocent people who care about you than you would ever be worth to some powermongering demon desiring the essence that sleeps inside of your person."
A beat. Aqualad smiled slightly. "I envy you, Raven. You know the truth so....well."
She droned: "Truth is relative."
"Yeah.......it is.....," he sighed.
"...........," Raven looked to the side.
So did Aqualad.
Cyborg stepped up to the water with the pack. "Allright.....how're we gonna do this?"
"We'll need something to stand on," Aqualad said.
Cyborg raised a human eyebrow. "Something to stand on?"
"Something firm," Aqualad said. He glanced at the rock bluffs. He glanced at Raven and Cyborg. "How about it?"
"Step back...," Cyborg said, switching his right arm into a sonic cannon.
Aqualad stood out of the way.
Raven floated above Cyborg.
"Ready, Rae?" he asked, aiming at the rock bluffs.
"Shoot."
He did.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAP!!!!!!
The cannon blasted the rocks. A huge, square chunk fell loose.
Raven meditated and extended her fingers. She floated the rock above the waters, the flat part up.
"Good," Aqualad hopped off the bluffs and onto the floating rock. "I'll take it from here. Come on."
Cyborg jumped and landed beside him.
Raven floated above the rock, still floating it telekinetically.
Aqualad concentrated this time. His eyes flickered purple.
Water rose up in a column and 'cradled' the rock from underneath....supporting the weight.
Raven released her powers. She landed down between Cyborg and Aqualad. The two Titans watched Aqualad do his thing.
Prince Garth concentrated. He sunk the rock the three were on into the waters. But instead of drowning the three in the sea, he extended a force above them. Manipulating the water, he formed a dome of air smoothly over the rock. The three sunk deeper and deeper into the Bay beside the Tower's island.
Raven and Cyborg watched in wonder as the seawater bent over and around them.
"Whoah....," Cyborg breathed. "It's like 'The Abyss' The Ride!"
"Hang on...," Aqualad said. "I'm taking us to Atlantis...and I can't waste any time."
"What do you mean---WHOAAA!"
SPLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!!!
The rock streamed through the waters like a meteorite. Aqualad—in his concentrated magic—spread and parted the rocketing waters constantly to keep the 'riders of the rock' safe and dry.
"This could be rather hectic...," Raven blinked.
"Don't worry," Aqualad said while guiding the waters. "I know what I'm doing."
"I sure hope you do!!" Cyborg exclaimed. "What if one of us fell off and into the ocean?"
"Then hold your breath till I come around back for you."
"And just how long would that have to be?"
"At the rate I'll soon be going," Aqualad spoke, "Four minutes to slow down and go back."
"Four minutes?? I sure don't like your passenger insurance!"
Aqualad smirked slightly. "I knew you wouldn't."
Cyborg frowned. "Sheesh....I don't know whose more ambiguous. Noir because he can't talk, or you because you don't talk enough."
Raven said: "At ease, Cyborg. He's getting us to Atlantis much faster than the T-Sub ever would."
"Oh go make love to him already!"
"......"
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Schwissh!!!
An automatic door swung open.
Robin stepped into a passenger compartment and paused.
The seats were full of Idyllist men, women, and families migrating to Atlantis to witness the Junction. Most were still shaken up by the recent attack on the Hidden Valley. Gradually, they were all calming down as the voyage went on its way. Dim lights kept the corners of the room shadowed, and portholes warbled with passing, oceanic scenery from beyond the hull.
Robin gazed over to the right. He caught sight of two familiar figures by the far wall.
He walked over to them.
Starfire sat on the floor with her back against the wall. Nova'm sat to her side, asleep. His head was leaning against her shoulder gently. She rested a hand on his side, softly half-hugging him into her as he slumbered.
She glanced up at Robin.
"Hey....," he quietly uttered.
She smiled gently. "Greetings to you too," she whispered. A beat. She glanced at Nova'm. "He is quite...exhausted from our recent adventure." She sniffed forth a slight giggle and looked back up at Robin. "It is safe to assume that his fervor outshoots his physicality."
"He's kinda small for his age, don't you think?" Robin scratched his head.
"Tamaranian children—in a sense—experience growth from puberty later in their lives than Terrans," Starfire quietly explained. "But as soon as they do start to grow, such growth is in earnest. Hehehe." She leaned her head to the side pleasantly. "Blackfire is at the head of my family's offspring. She should be taller than Cyborg in about a year now." A beat. She bit her lip. "Providing they properly nourish her in prison."
Robin cleared his throat to leave that topic. "So...I guess that explains why you're so...uh...."
"Tall?" Starfire giggled.
"Yeah, I guess," Robin scratched his head. A beat. He raised an eyebrow: "Say...how old are you anyways, Starfire?"
She answered: "Thirty-two fliggemborgs."
Robin's eyemask bugged. "Th-Thirty-two?!?!"
Starfire giggled. "More eloquently put: seventeen of your earth years."
"Oh....heheh...," Robin sweatdropped. "I was gonna say...."
"You were going to say what, Robin?"
"Um....."
"........."
"Never mind...," he sighed and sat down beside her. He stretched and rested his back against the wall.
Silence.
"Cyborg, Aqualad, and Raven are going to Atlantis," Robin said.
"And is it true that they have suffered casualties?"
He nodded somberly. "Tram and about seven or so other Renzukka are dead."
She bit her lip. "I....I-I see...."
Silence.
"This mission has turned out to be of greater magnitude than we have imagined," Starfire said.
"Pretty much, yeah," Robin nodded.
Starfire gently stroked Nova'm's hair as he slept. "I am....glad, now, that Nova'm did the 'stowing of the away' with us. I do not think I could have beared being departed from him during the attacks on the Hidden Valley and the Tower." A beat. "Were Noir and Beast Boy similarly assaulted?"
"I dunno," Robin grunted. "I was unable to contact them."
Starfire looked at him, concerned. "Do you have reason to believe that they are in danger?"
"Their communicators are still on," the Boy Wonder explained. "There's just interference keeping me from reaching them." He gestured: "With so much ocean and rock and stuff in the way, I wouldn't doubt it. The key is to keep trying and—hopefully—I can get them to set up a meeting point so that we can wait for Cyborg's crew and swap Noir out with Aqualad." He took a long breath. A beat. "Besides, I'm sure Noir and Beast Boy can handle themselves."
"I do hope so," Starfire nodded. A beat. "It is not so pleasant to be away from our friends during times of peril."
"You're right about that," Robin nonchalantly said.
".............," Starfire glanced across the room.
Robin looked at her curiously. "Star?"
"Yes, Robin?"
"Is there something on your mind?"
She hesitated...but eventually uttered: "My mind has been vexed by something."
"Okay."
"....something which you have said."
"Um.........o-okay."
She glanced at him. "You told me that you hired me for Team Nautilus in hopes that I might be essential in convincing the Idyllist people to move on behalf of Aqualad."
"That's correct."
"And yet...Praetor Ivan was motivated into action not by my part in the diplomacy, but rather in retribution of the recent tragedy befalling his Capitol."
"True."
"Did you not anticipate this, Robin? Usually your mission plans are much more thought-out in expectation of any eventuality...," she looked aside meekly as she added: "I feel as if you were in the error regarding my potential on this mission....or...."
"Or what?"
She blushed, as if ashamed to question the Titan leader. "....or perhaps....th-there was another reason for your asking me to team up with you after all...."
Silence.
Robin cleared his throat, simpered, and said: "Well....you see, Star....I......uhm....that is to say.....we....."
She stared at him.
He bit his lip. He looked at Nova'm. He looked at her again. With a new bout of confidence he spoke: "You just said you were glad that Nova'm stowed away, right?"
"That is correct."
"And....i-it would hurt you and make you worry if he was---I dunno---in the Tower instead? Like...when it was attacked and stuff?"
"True."
Robin leaned his head to the side. "That's....kinda sorta the same thing with me, Star," he said.
"How so, Robin?"
He winced. He tried to explain: "Because.....well....." He looked around the passenger deck. "This submarine...this sea....this mission...." A beat. "It would really suck for me to be here and......well...."
"......"
"....a-and not have you be here too."
"Why is that?"
"The same as Nova'm, Star."
"???" she glanced at the boy. She glanced at Robin. "You would....be worried for me if I were at the Tower or with Team Archimedes."
"Yeah....," the Boy Wonder scratched his black head of hair. "Something like that."
"...........," Starfire blinked. "So, am I to assume that you chose for me to be on this mission with you so that you would not have to worry about me?"
"I guess...."
"And it was not because of my abilities as a superheroine to assist you in diplomacy and action?"
"N-No, it's not that!" Robin gestured emphatically. "Second to Beast Boy, you're great underwater and...um...I was being honest about the diplomacy thing..........a-and the way you handled that squid......uhm......"
Starfire stared at him.
Robin sighed. "You're mad at me now, right?"
Slowly, Starfire shook her head. "No, Robin. I am not mad at you."
"But....I-I wasn't so honest about telling you why I wanted you with me," Robin said. "I didn't mention that I would be worried—"
She rested a hand on his shoulder and smilingly said: "And I have been on Earth—and in your company—long enough to realize, Robin, that telling me what you did tell me about this mission was your roundabout way of being honest."
"..........," Robin blinked under his eyemask.
She leaned her head to the side and softly grinned. "There are aspects of you that are not very mysterious after all, Robin," she said. A beat. She seemingly looked beyond him and said in a deflated breath: "And still, parts that are."
"I hope I haven't hurt your feelings, Star."
"On the contary, Robin," she looked back at his eyemask. "I am........glad."
"What for?"
"The fact that you selected for me to accompany you on this mission," she explained. "I have no reason to fear or be concerned. For you and I are not apart. And....a-and I can feel safe that you yourself....are undamaged."
"Yeah....fancy that," he chuckled.
A beat.
They looked at each other. For the first time, they realized how close their faces were.
And in the descent of two and a half seconds, their faces became even closer.
Then...
"Nnnghh....," Nova'm stirred in his sleep against Starfire. "Raven....," he murmured.
"..................." Robin and Starfire snapped out of it.
They both looked at Nova'm.
The sleeping boy had a drunken grin on his face.
"........................," Robin stood up. "I'm going to go visit the mess hall......see if they have ice water."
"Yes...," Starfire dazedly nodded. "Please acquire some for myself as well."
The Boy Wonder walked away.
The Tamaranian girl blushed.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Beast Boy rubbed his hands together and blew hotly into them. He stood at the far end of the patient room, shivering. Three times already he had morphed into a snow hare, a polar bear, and even a penguin. But he kept reverting back into elf form—despite the cold—to most properly grace Fraust if she were to finally wake.
The snow mage lay in a hospital gown on the bed...completely relaxed in the low temperature of the room. After a good hour and a half, her eyes fluttered open. Frost flaked off of her lashes. After a second or two, she sat up with a gasp. "!!!!"
"Whoah, there...easy...," Beast Boy rushed over. He didn't touch her—for fear of arousing the black magic of Slizzath's frozen fury—but he stood a mere foot away, smiling gently. "You're with the good guys now. We're not gonna hurt you or anything."
Fraust trembled—but not from the cold. That was impossible. She clutched the bedsheet to herself and stammered: "Wh-Who are you??"
"I guess you could say I'm a tourist," Beast Boy said. "My flight was supposed to land in the Denver International Airport and I ended up here instead."
"..........," Fraust stared with a twisted expression of confusion.
"Yeah...," Beast Boy breathed vapors and scratched the back of his neck. "I-I get that look a lot when I tell jokes." He waved. "The name's Beast Boy. Don't mind the green skin. It won't bite, but the pointy ears might. Eheheheh...."
She relaxed a little. Her blue eyes looked all around the dim room.
"What's your name, if I may be so gentlemanly to inquire?" Beast Boy winked.
She stuttered: "F-Fraust.....F-Fraust, imbued with the power of—"
"N-No...not what that jerk Chasma gave you," Beast Boy said. "Your real name...."
"............," Fraust took a frozen breath. "Amy.....Amy Sm-Smith...."
"Pleased to meet you, Amy," Beast Boy smiled. "I've always liked girl names starting with the letter 'A'. Must be some fetish that the Internet hasn't documented yet."
"Why are you so curious as to my real name?" the girl asked.
"Well.....um....it's your name. That's important. R-Right?"
"........," Fraust leaned her head to the side. "None of them ever asked of my real name."
"Who're we talking about?"
She bit her lip. "Ch-Chasma. He says that I am Fraust. Now and forever."
"And do you wish for that?"
"................"
"Allright...," Beast Boy sighed and put on a weathered smile. "Let's do this slowly. After all...you collapsed big time, from what I've been told."
"I....I-I do not understand," she uttered. "I was....I was enacting Slizzath's will....I was inflicting harm and.........wh-why was I spared?"
"Um...."
Her eyes welled up with icy tears. "I....do not understand.....why they could not just free me...."
"Free you? Listen, Fr-er...Amy. You don't need to die!"
"Oh but I do!" she hiccupped. She brought her hands to her face and bent over. "You do not know of the evil contained within me! You do not know what I am capable of! What I have been granted by Slizzath's essence—"
"Amy! Just a second!" Beast Boy reached a hand out and grabbed her wrist.
She gasped and looked at him.
His green eyes were firm. "I can imagine all sorts of things....and you know what? None of us cares. You were once happy and safe, weren't you? Living in some underground City? Tended to by Atlanteans?"
".........," Fraust slowly nodded, her quivering lips agape.
Beast Boy said: "What Chasma and his goons did to you was very wrong. But the last thing you should be thinking was that it was your fault. People.....evil, bad people....they manipulate the innocent youths around them and make them do things that they don't want to. And in the end, those young, innocent people think that they themselves are evil when they shouldn't have to. I think you're one of those people, Amy. But—I think all of your friends are too. That Acyd girl for one. She's not evil either. Just...torn apart against her will. I bet all of you have been looking for a release...some salvation. And guess what? You've got it now..."
"..........," Fraust looked down at Beast Boy's hand.
So did he.
A thin sheet of wet ice had naturally spread from her skin and surrounded his knuckles. With a snap! he broke his fresh ice glove off and held it up close to his eyes.
"Heh...cute touch you've got there."
"I-I'm sorry," she shuddered.
He smiled at her. "Don't be. I like a good chill every now and then." He morphed momentarily into a crab, spread his claws, cracked the glove apart, and returned to elf form. "So I guess you're naturally cold and stuff. Bet you own a lot of bras," he winked.
She narrowed her eyes. "You talk funny," she said. "And you have powers." She glanced at his green skin and pointy ears. "A changeling. Do you also work for Slizzath?"
He rolled his eyes. "No, I don't. And neither do you! Come on...open your eyes!" he gestured and smiled. "Just because you have powers doesn't make you a component of evil. My friend and I brought you here because we know for a fact that having special abilities means you can change the world for the better. And I think that—if you had a choice—you'd do the same too."
"Your friend....," Fraust blinked. "Who is he?"
"Noir........," Beast Boy said. A beat. He winced. "Erm....dressed quite obviously as Prince Garth right now. Eheheheh," he simpered. "But you knew that already....d-did you?"
"According to Chasma....Prince Garth hardly possesses the powers that your friend 'Noir' exhibited," Fraust said. "Garth is one of us....but it's because of the family curse on his side. He is Tempest."
"Right, and you're frost. And then there's Acid...Mist....blah blah blah. I got the speech," Beast Boy said. "Princess Tula gave it to Noir and I."
"Princess Tula....," Fraust shuddered. "Surely....surely she will seek my execution."
"I don't think so," Beast Boy shook his head. "She's willing to work things out. You see...she's working her tail off to get things all peaceful and stuff for Atlantis. And that means the whole Ocean, if you're wondering. Anywho...all that's standing in the way is Chasma and his Slizzath-suck-up philosophy. And it so happens that this is a philosophy that bloodlusts. So—you can understand—things have been a little hectic lately, and it would all be a bit easier if we knew a lot more about Chasma. Like—for instance—where his little hive of pro-Slizzath punks are."
"........," Fraust clutched the sheet tighter. Her blue eyes cast aside. "And since I am here...and since I am in one piece...I-I can supply you with information as to how to find such a place..."
Beast Boy slowly nodded.
Silence.
"Is that....the reason why you have not granted me my wish?"
"What wish is that?"
"To die."
A beat.
Beast Boy said: "I wouldn't grant that wish even if I was forced to at gunpoint," the changeling said firmly. "I believe—as do my friends—that life is inherently precious and not something to dash away, no matter how grim the situation may be. I would never want to kill you, and I do not think you would ever want death as a solution yourself."
"How would you know?"
The green elf smiled. "Because this entire time since you woke up, you could have zapped me with that freezing touch of yours and turned me into a dead icicle." He leaned forward. "But you haven't...," he whispered.
Fraust stared at him. She took a deep breath: "If anything is to be accomplished...I must have Princess Tula present."
Beast Boy stood up straight. "That can be arranged."
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Tula walked down the infirmary hallway in a new, clean dress.
I followed close behind.
We were both answering the call of Fraust and Beast Boy.
"You may be yourself when you're in our presence, Noir," Tula said. "But I want you to hammer 'Garth' back into your head. You're going to be needing his persona for the time to come...for now that Fraust is working with us, I have a plan."
I nodded. I was giving her the reins of this operation by this point. I knew Beast Boy wouldn't protest.
"It's gonna split us up, and we're going to have to rely on our own independent strengths. And for you...that means you won't have others around to interpret what you have to 'say' all the time. And it may be most stressful. But I'm sure that—at the start of this mission—you've been quite prepared for this."
I smirked.
She glanced back at me, then up ahead. "Ah...the foolhardy, Terran confidence."
I made a face.
"Here we are..."
She ducked into the patient room.
I walked in behind her. My lips parted slightly at the sight of Fraust...standing tall in the corner. She had her blue jumpsuit back on. And yet—somehow—she no longer looked bitterly threatening like she had during previous battle.
"Before we go on," Beast Boy smiled proudly winked and smiled. "Her name's Amy."
Tula looked at him...then at Fraust. "Pleased to meet you, Amy."
Fraust timidly backed away.
Tula smiled. "Scared of me?"
"Yes'm."
"Don't be," Tula said firmly. "I'm saving all of my bitchiness for Chasma and Chasma alone. There's a soul that'll know no end of suffering."
Fraust smiled ever so slightly...the first time I had seen an upper curve to her lips. It felt painful.
"Okay...," Tula clapped her hands together and rubbed them. "Here's my proposal." She pointed at Beast Boy. "You can change into all sorts of underwater creatures, true?"
"Absolutely," Beast Boy grinned. "Though I'm rather fond of vertebrates."
"Uh huh....well you're gonna do some swimming," Tula pointed. "If you're able, I want you to pay a visit to Senator Chasma's place of hiding. He's got a secret spot where he and people are most likely accessing Slizzath's evil. Once we know where that place is, we can strike when necessary to end his cult and save the victims of his experimentation."
"Aye, my queen!" Beast Boy saluted.
"Princess."
"Close enough."
Tula glanced over at Fraust. "Now he's never going to get to that place if he doesn't know where it is..."
Fraust nodded. "Y-You wish for my guidance in that...." She murmured.
Tula nodded. "Only if you're up to it."
Fraust gave her a surprised look.
"What??" the princess uttered.
"You mean....I-I have a choice??" the girl uttered.
"Well...yeah!" Tula smiled. "Not everyone in the sea enjoys forcing people to do stuff."
Fraust bit her lip and looked away.
"Is there something wrong?"
"I feel the need to go back there," the freezing girl said. "But......I'm scared of what Chasma will do to me. For such an act would be treachery to him."
"Hey, I'll be with you," Beast Boy smiled. "I'm a genuine superhero! I'll kick butt so you don't have to!"
"Or you could just team together," Tula muttered.
Beast Boy glared at the princess.
I snickered breathily.
"In that case, I"ll do it," Fraust breathed. "I....I think there are people there who desire the same I do...but don't know of the hope that makes that desire negligible."
"They're the first and foremost on our minds," Tula said. "I've lived my whole life protecting surface dwellers...I'm not about to stop for Chasma." She looked over at me. "And you, Noir. You're coming with me up to the City of Atlantis itself."
I leaned my head to the side.
"We're gonna appear at the Senate," she said. "When King Orin precides!"
My lips parted somewhat.
Beast Boy gasped. "You're gonna reveal Noi—er, Garth to the Senate??"
"At the same time that you're infiltrating Chasma's hideout," Tula said. "The Senator can't be at two places at once. There'll be a great deal of commotion in Atlantis when 'Garth' is revealed to be alive. Chasma—who has been suggesting a replacement of the Idyllist ambassador the entire time—will have his gills full of confused and angry politicians making a complete turnaround on his recent policy. It'll be the most opportune time to attack on his other front."
"Dude...that's so awesome!" Beast Boy grinned.
I nodded and saluted Tula with a grin.
"Thanks...it's the least I can do," she mock curtsied. "Garth would have thought of something better—I'm sure—but he's not here right now."
"Yeah....he's at the Senate in less than an hour," Beast Boy smiled. He looked over at Fraust. "And you and I got some sneaking to do!"
"Yes....I-I suppose....," Fraust nodded.
"Noir," Tula faced me and spoke. "King Orin is a very straight-forward man. When he witnesses you—alive—at the Senate, he will most likely wish to speak with you.....in private. The entire operation will then revolve around the convincing impression you give. He may be King...but not even he can know of Garth's true condition until everyone has reunited in Atlantis. Do you understand this?"
I took a deep breath. I nodded.
"All right then...," Tula spoke. "It's a go...."
"Oceanic Revolution A-Go-Go! Yeah!!" Beast Boy jumped and cheered.
I shook my head with a helpless smirk.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
SPLOOOSH!!!!
A green porpoise dove into the ocean water. It swam out of a rocky tunnel and glanced back...squeaking.
SPLOOOSH!!!
Fraust dove in after him. A violet aura surrounded her figure. An encasement of magic protected her from drowning. She smiled nervously at Beast Boy and reached a hand out—gloved this time.
Beast Boy lent her a flipper and skirted off, carrying the both of them speedily towards where Fraust gestured.
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
The Senate was a loud place. Twice as many delegates and ambassadors had gathered in the spiraling room than previous. Wild rumors had been flying through Atlantis. Tales of black magic. Of hooded figures and rumbling noises in the deep rock beneath the City. And then there was a tale of an incident in the Hidden Valley...
Senator Chasma was present. He had been calm and contrastingly serene amongst the chaos of the political noise. That is...until now.
A messenger was whispering something to him from his elevated seat. Words that made the Senator's eyes widen.
"What do you mean you haven't heard back from them yet?!?!" the Senator practically snarled. "I mean...Acyd and Fraust, I can understand...but surely Miist would have a report by now!!"
The messenger bowed: "I'm sorry, your honor. But none of the four have shown up at the Orb. And rumor has it that Princess Tula has appeared in the Legislature Building."
"What?? Impossible..."
A voice boomed out throughout the spiraling Senate room.
"All rise for the great and mighty King Orin!"
Everyone shuffled up to their feet in massive cadence.
Chasma spared a moment to say: "Send acolytes out to check on each. I want a report immediately!"
"Yes, sir...," the messenger stepped out.
Chasma stood up straight and stared at the top seat.
There was a pulpit of sorts on a balcony to the very top of the spiral. Flanked by guards, a muscular man approached the podium. He was robed in a tunic that parted and showed off a great deal of his muscular, Atlantean chest. His wavy golden hair matched his full and thick beard.
"All hail King Orin!!"
The King raised his hand. He uttered in a strong voice: "My people...ALL people...be at ease. Junction is near."
Applause. Cheers. A thunderous ovation from the entire Senate.
Chasma flinched nervously.
"First thing's first...," Orin's eyes narrowed. "There is a great shiver of uncertainty running through our kingdom. Something which is most likely vexing your hearts and minds as I stand before you today. I do not know where the rumor started as to the sighting of Prince Garth of the Hidden Valley, but the fervor of such statements have even concerned me."
Murmurs. Commotion. A tirade of voices.
"I do not like to let things bother my people unnecessarily," King Orin said. "If I can clear up any drastic rumors, I will. And I shall." He extended a hand towards a lower seat along the spiral. "Princess Tula of Neo Poseidonis...I summon you to stand forth and speak, as you have volunteered to do so on behalf of this great commotion sweeping through our Capital!"
Senators spun around and faced the seat of Poseidonis.
Princess Tula stood up. She shuffled to the front of her balcony and spoke—her voice echoing—to the entire Senate. "Citizens of Atlantis and Seas Abroad! I understand that your spirits have been troubled! The disappearance of Prince Garth has been an incident that has hurt us all! We have been fearful of his fate and confused as to the Idyllist issue....until now."
Senator Chasma's jaw had dropped about fifty centimeters....or at least it would have if he could manage it. He stared with eyes—twice aged—as the princess spoke and gestured:
"Did Garth disappear? The answer is yes. Is Garth still alive?"
A beat.
Tula took a deep breath. "The answer is yes."
The Senate roared in shock, amazement, disbelief, curiosity.
It became deafening loud.
"Order!!" Orin shouted. "Order!!!"
The noise died down.
Tula's eyes were firm and glaring on Senator Chasma, but nobody knew it but her. "Garth is alive by mere miracles. For—indeed—he was nearly lost to us. Not by accident...but on purpose. The result of an assassination attempt gone wrong! I now present to you...for better or for worse...the prince and ambassador of the Idyllist people!"
I stood up. I stepped into view. Specked eyes and slick black hair. Pale skin under a blue, Aqualad jumpsuit.
One giant gasp fell through the entire building.
The Idyllist delegates jumped up and cheered from their balcony immediately, some of them sobbing with joy.
Tula smiled as she pointed at me.
Chasma practicaly pulled at his hair...and King Orin's eyes narrowed with crucial examination.
I took a deep breath. Over four hundred eyes were on me...and though I knew that there was no backing out of this now, it still didn't feel any bit comfortable.