This chapter is again mostly talking, but it has more backstory.
Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Dragon Quest IX, those rights belong to Squaresoft.
Chapter XXI: The Realm of the Almighty
The Starflight Express flew all the way to the Observatory, Arianna and her group left the train as soon as they landed. Lester breathed"I feel so alive again, I bet Apus Major would be happy to see us."
"He should be on the second floor, let's hurry and report what we saw to him" said Arianna.
As they entered the main structure of the Observatory, Jessica addressed the violet haired Celestrian"You're really from this place, aren't you?"
Arianna nodded"Yes, mortals are not usually allowed here though."
Apus Major sat at his throne-like chair when he saw the heroes and their allies"Welcome back, I feared you were lost to us, Arianna."
The younger Celestrian responded"It's good to be back again, there is something you should know about Aquila, he turned on us."
Apus Major frowned"Why would he do that? Aquila returned the Fyggs to the Observatory, that is not something a traitor would've done."
"I'd wager that he was only pretending, if what we hear just now is true" sighed Lester.
"Would you mind introducing your other companions? You've brought more people here today" said Apus Major.
The purple-haired Celestrian replied"Astrid, Raymond, Sasha, Jessica and Angelo are more of my companions, the latter two are guests from another world. Lester here seemed to know of my true nature and claimed to be my brother."
Apus Major was surprised when he noticed a familiar aura from the mysterious man"Hm? You've met a similar fate to Arianna's, have you?"
"Yes sir, a lot has happened" nodded the man.
"Would you mind telling them our story? I am not feeling very comfortable at the moment" sighed Astrid.
Lester nodded, then spoke"Arianna, I know this would be difficult to believe, but now I will tell you the full tale. My teacher was the guardian of Coffinwell, which is Astrid's hometown. I was watching over the town in my teacher's stead, when the Light Storm struck."
"You are speaking of your teacher, wouldn't you mind telling us about your family?" interrupted Sasha
The blue haired man flushed"Sorry, I must have been getting ahead of myself. Arianna, do you remember our parents?"
Arianna replied"I have no memory of my father, but my mother is one of the most beautiful Celestrian females of our race. Apus, was her name Florianna?"
Apus Major nodded"Florianna was around Corvus's age, but she was the guardian of Stornway's apprentice. Another apprentice Celestrian, Harkin, was her best friend. As you know, Celestrians very rarely concieve any children. But when a child born of our people is born, there is much rejoicing."
"You mean Lady Florianna? Wasn't that the name of your daughter, Apus?" inquired one of the recently rescued Celestrians.
The elderly Celestrian nodded"I was surprised, but pleased to learn of their union, which was shortly after finishing some tasks on the Protectorate with their respective teachers. They shared an amazing chemistry and power beyond our youngest Apprentices, which allowed them to perform feats which even astounded their masters."
Trent was astonished"If you don't mind me asking, how old were they?"
"We Celestrians age far more slowly then mortals, but even then we do not take ill easily" said the dark purple haired woman whom Arianna had rescued along with the other missing Celestrians.
Arianna addressed the older woman"Wasn't there something you needed to tell me?"
The woman nodded"I am Lady Florianna, you should already know that names, the very name of your mother."
Arianna flushed"Sorry if I didn't recognize you."
"I cannot blame you, I didn't exactly recognize you either" said Florianna.
Apus Major was surprised, but he addressed Florianna"It's been a long time, how fare thee?"
"Just the same, the empire would need more then what they had to break me" smiled the older purple haired Celestrian.
Astrid, who was listening nearby, sighed"I guess I will take it from here. A terrible earthquake hit my hometown of Coffinwell, and I could see powerful flashes of light in the sky above. Trent, Alicia, before I continue to this next part of our past, I must ask that you bear with me."
Trent hesitated at first, but nodded. Alicia piped up"Please continue."
The woman nodded"Lester was well aware of the Contagion, which was sealed away in the Quarantomb. I guess his teacher taught him the history of my home village, he was keeping watch over the town as was his supposed duty to his master."
"But I had my sights set on Astrid, who helped refine the ancient style of fencing that Trent's father, Sir Matt taught him. The Contagion's curse struck, not long after the dreaded light storm, all but Matt's two children and the son of a renowned thief were infected by the contagion early on" interjected Lester.
"Wait a second, why the heck didn't you stop the Ragin' Contagion yourself?" exclaimed Trent.
Lester looked at him sadly"The Contagion's power could not be easily contained, and I expended my power to save Astrid from her friends' fate. This was not long after her children left to avoid the curse, my friends."
"So as punishment, you lost your powers, and your halo and wings" whispered Arianna.
Lester shook his head"I still have a small bit of Celestrian magic left deep within me. I believe the loss of our wings and halos to be the work of another higher power. Anyway, as we met outside the village to discuss a way to resolve our quandaries when we were ambushed by Sluggers and other monsters."
Astrid continued"Sir Aquila had somehow become visible when he saw me and Lester. He saved us from the encroaching monsters, and we formuladed a plan to retirieve the Fyggs and find his missing comrades. The Gittish Empire was not part of our plan, but Aquila had me and Lester look for the Fyggs and Arianna ourselves while he attempted to deal with the empire."
"This all sounds so complicated" sighed Conrad.
"Was that too much to absorb? We have not much time for a recap" spoke Apus Major.
"No, it's okay, Apus Major. In fact, I wish to travel to the Realm of the Almighty right now, Lester and Astrid just gave me a lot ponder" requested Arianna.
Apus nodded"I shall go with you, your friends can join us if they wish."
The entire group left for the Observatory's third floor and entered the Starflight Express. Stella was surprised to see the elderly Celestrian"Arianna, who the heck is he?"
Apus Major addressed Stella"Ah, are you the Stewardess of the Celestrial Carriage? I am Apus Major, I ask that you take us to the Realm of the Almighty."
Sterling, who stood next to the controls, nodded"No problem, let's get moving."
The train, much to Trent's surprise, began to fly even higher then he thought possible. Raymond, Alicia, Sasha and Conrad gazed out the window of the passager seat at the starry skies.
"Whoa, the stars are so beautiful from here" whispered Alicia. Raymond put his arm around her as they watched the stars go by.
Trent, after a moment's hesitation, spoke"What happens exactly if a Celestrian dies?"
Arianna shifted uncomfortably at the question"Celestrians have no spirit of their own, we are merely the protective incarnations of the Almighty, or so I was told. When a Celestrian has used all of the magic power in his or her body, or is struck down in battle, he or she becomes a star in the skies as the body fades."
"It is the way we Celestrians were created, no one truly comprehands the whims of the Almighty" whispered Apus Major.
The Starflight Express flew through the starry skies, until they passed through what looked like a greenish portal that the heroes had not ever seen. On the other side was a lustrious building at the top of a set of golden stairs and platforms. Trent, Alicia, Conrad, Sasha and Raymond were astonished at the sight.
Jessica and Angelo were even more surprised, the female mage sighed"I never saw anything like this in our hometown, Angelo."
The Starflight Express landed right next to the lowest platform, the heroes and their allies disembarked to explore the strange land. Alicia whispered"Is this the fabled Realm of the Almighty?"
"There is no mistaking it, young one. Long have my people dreamt of visiting our supposed birthplace, the domain of the Almighty himself" responded the elderly Celestrian.
The group proceeded up the stairs, taking in the sight of the mystical structures of the land. The air, Conrad noticed, was hardly any different from the Protectorate.
As they traveled even closer to the temple at the uppermost platform, Arianna frowned"I sense a faded aura here, I don't sense anything in that temple over there."
"I'll go first" said Trent, putting a hand on his sword's hilt as he walked ahead.
The group entered the temple-like structure to find the nearby throne room cracked at the center. The upper platforms of the Temple of the Almighty were intact, but the crack stood before them.
Apus Major was shocked"Could the storm have struck even the Realm of the Almighty itself?"
"After all the trouble it took to get here? This is King Godwyn's doing" scowled Lester.
"No mortal can do this much damage, a higher power may be responsible for this" said Arianna, inspecting the damage.
Suddenly, a soft, female voice echoed in Arianna's head as a blue aura emmited from the throne. The voice spoke"You have arrived, children of the Almighty."
Trent was shocked"Who are you? Where are you hiding?"
The female voice replied"Do not be frightened, young man of the Protectorate. I am merely hear to speak with you all of the evil you face in the earth far below."
"I saw a vision when I prayed before the Yagdrasil Tree, I even heard voices echoing in it. Are you the woman who spoke in my dream?" inquired Arianna.
The voice replied"I am Celestria, daughter of the Almighty. I'm attempting to communicate with you through telepathy, you do not have much time to act."
"How could a Deity have children?" gasped Alicia.
Celestria replied"It is a story for another time, we have more pressing matters. The Gittish Empire's revival was caused by dark power emitting from the bowels of Gittingham Palace."
"We managed to defeat Goreham-Hogg of the Triumgorate, what's the worse thing Hootingham-Gore can do?" said Arianna.
Celestria spoke again"Goreham-Hogg was indeed the weakest of the three members of the Triumgorate, which composed of the unjust King Godwyn's finest military leaders. But beware, for your next foes will be progressively more powerful."
Trent shrugged"Between my friends and my sword, we can handle anything. I don't care what foul demon we're up against, in the name of Stornway, I would gladly offer my life. It's the least I could do for my father."
"Living up to your parents' reputation or trying to live it down is a sad waste of talent, but you can be assured that you will prevail if you work together. Arianna, you have your friends, the light within you shall indeed conquer the shadows of the Empire. Now, I must rest and watch what events may unfold" whispered Celestria.
"Wait, what of the Almighty?" inquired Alicia.
Celestria replied, albiet tiredly"He was badly injured by the light storm which struck him and this very realm. He must now rest, as his strength was sapped by the evil responsible for the light storm."
As Celestria's aura faded from the temple, Trent sighed as he put a hand on his sword"On my family's honor, I will slay the spectors of the Empire."
"The same goes for all of us, the Empire shall be punished for it's recent deeds" said Arianna.
The heroes and their allies returned to the Observatory, Apus Major addressed Arianna"I am too old to fight, you must undertake the task that you were given."
"We will do whatever it takes" whispered the violet-haired Celestrian.
Jessica spoke up"I'm a bit tired. As much as I don't want to let you all do the work, I'd say it's about time we part ways."
Angelo shrugged"Well, that's fine with me. I will simply pray for you, Arianna."
Trent nodded, then the heroes and Angelo, Jessica, Milly, Astrid and Lester entered the Express one more time. Sterling nodded as the group made their requests"Right, now is the time to strike at Gittingham Palace. First, it's back to Stornway, right?"
The Starflight Express flew down to the Protectorate, and hovered just above the ground near Stornway. Arianna and her group jumped off the train and headed for the inn.
Erinn smiled as she saw her friend"How are things going out there?"
Arianna replied"My companions and I are now making ready for a very important quest. We brought Jessica and Angelo back with us."
Jessica addressed the Innkeeper"We want to stay for two more nights."
"No problem, I kept your rooms ready for you" nodded Erinn.
Milly addressed Arianna"It was an honor to meet you, warrior of the Stars. I pray for your safety."
"The honor was mine, Milly" said Arianna.
Angelo blew a kiss towards Alicia and Sasha"Take care now, wouldn't want to mess up your pretty faces, would we?"
Jessica rolled her eyes at her male companion's flirting before addressing Trent"Well, good luck. I hope you can bring peace to this land before a war starts."
"Arianna, I need to have another word with you" said Florianna as she caught up.
"Yes?" inquired the younger violet-haired Celestrian.
Florianna replied"I would've preferred that you never put yourself in any danger at all, but I suppose that fate had other plans besides peace. If you see Aquila, tell him he'd better return because I want to have a few words with him."
"I will do my best" nodded the Warrior.
Arianna, Trent, Alicia, Raymond, Lester, Sasha, Conrad and Astrid went outside, held hands and teleported to the Gortress.
The land was as barren as ever, save for the now-abandoned Gortress and the imposing capital of the Empire: The Gittingham Palace. The heroes warped to the entrance of the Gortress, where they camped for the night in preparation for the attack on their enemy's base.
Trent and Alicia cooked up a salad dish from the last of their rations, which the group ate in the morning before their mission.
As they neared the gates of Gittingham Palace, a voice greeted them"Well, well, look who's escaped the Gortress. Hoo!"
Lieutenant Hootingham Gore greeted Arianna's group at the gate, accompanied by a pair of armored living statues called Bad Karmdours. The Lieutenant sneered"This is as far as you'll go, hoo! I will destroy you here."
"Think again, you won't win this time, Hootingham-Gore" said Arianna, determindly.
The bird-like Triumgorate Lieutenant launched a Tornado spell at the heroes, who barely had time to dodge Hootingham-Gore's wind spell. Raymond countered with boom, but the two Karmdours took the full brunt of the damage and charged.
"Didn't even faze him" groaned Raymond. Trent and Sasha intercepted the Bad Karmdours and challenged the monstrous living statues. Raymond took the opprotunity to hit the Trumgorate mage with Ka-Crack, only to be hit by Whirlwind in retaliation.
While Alicia healed Raymond, Arianna and Sasha hacked at one of the Bad Karmdours, blocking and dodging as it swung it's axe at them. As soon as he was healed, Raymond blasted the Karmdour with Boom.
Infuriated, the other Bad Karmdour bashed back Trent and lunged at Raymond. The Mage jumped back out of the way, while Conrad staggered the Karmdour with an arrow. Astrid and Lester joined the fight and staggered the monster even farther back, which caused it to swing it's weapon at them fiercely.
Conrad had fired a second arrow at Hootingham-Gore, who dodged and launched a full Tornado blast at the heroes. Alicia retaliated by casting Multi-Heal on her allies, while Raymond hit the Triumgorate Leiutenant with a Fire attack.
Hootingham-Gore shot a Whirlwind spell at the mage when Arianna stabbed at him. The bird-like Lieutenant blocked with a stave, the bottom of which looked like a bird's beak.
As Arianna and Hootingham-Gore dueled, Lester cast a spell on Sasha to give her an edge against the remainiing Bad Karmdour. The Paladin drove the monster back with a thrust, only to dodge the Karmdour's axe. Raymond ended the Karmdour's rampage with another bang.
Arianna had lunged whenever she could at Hootingham-Gore, but the crafty monster was as quick as she is. Fortunately, the Triumgorate mage was a spellcaster, not a fighter, so the violet haired warrior disarmed Hootingham-Gore with a mighty upward thrust of her blade.
Hootingham-Gore retaliated with a Whirlwind, which Arianna dodged while Trent slashed at the Triumgorate Lieutenant. The fallen Triumgorate mage fell to it's knee"Hoot... I commend you, but the last of the Triumgorate is the most deadly of us all, hoot!"
"Nothing the Empire does can surprise us, bird brain" said Conrad.
In a desparate strike, Hootingham-Gore cast a final tornado spell, which Alicia quickly healed with Multi-Heal. Trent put Hootingham-Gore out of his misery with a thrust of his sword. The fallen Lieutenant's body faded like Goreham-Hogg's as his spriit returned to where it had come from.
Lester addressed Arianna"I have a bad feeling about all this, Astrid and I will wait back at the Starflight Express. I don't know what Hootingham-Gore was talking about, but there is yet another obstacle to overcome."
"I know, and thank you for your help Lester" said Arianna.
Lester grinned"Ah well, it was nice to see you again. Be careful in there, all right?"
Astrid addressed Trent"Your swordsmanship has improved, your father would be proud."
"I bet" sighed the Gladiator.
Arianna shrugged"All right, those of us who are coming will enter Gittingham Palace and defeat the source of the evil wherever it may be. Alicia, how are we doing on supplies?"
"Still good, though I left most of our herbs on the Piride of Bloomingdale" said the Priestess.
"I think we can manage, what's the worst that can happen, eh?" smirked Raymond.
While Astrid and Lester returned to the Starflight Express, Arianna, Trent, Raymond, Conrad, Sasha and Alicia faced the doorway into the castle keep of Gittingham Palace. Arianna opened the door and went in first.
"I sense almost nothing in the palace, it's nothing but ruins I imagine" said Alicia.
"All right, stay alert. We don't know what we'll run into here" said the violet-haired Celestrian.
Unknown to the heroes, an unexpected surprise was lurking within the palace walls, aside from the last of the Empire's sinister shadows.
All right, I finally got this chapter up and running. I know I said I'd cover Gittingham Palace in this chapter, but that dungeon is short enough to warrant all three major enouncters for the next chapter. I threw in the fight with Hootingham-Gore for the heck of it, though.
Please feel free to review.