Hi guys! I know, it's been a long long time since I last uploaded, and I am very sorry about it. The main reason behind the delayed upload is my laziness, and schoolwork, and laziness... Once again, I am sorry. :(
Alright, enough me. Now back to the story.
After a few hectic hours of tidying and cleaning up , Morgana was glad that she was inside her living quarters within the Institute of War once again. Her shop, the Sinful Succulence, was almost engulfed in flames three times within an hour today, the third being Annie, she was so mad she almost set the bakery on fire when she realized Morgana had burnt her cookie. But thankfully her assistant, Pantheon, left early to meet Leona, which helped the already distressed shopkeeper a lot. I swear if anyone tires to set my bakery on fire, I shall personally burn them to death.
Morgana made a beeline to her bathroom and shut the door behind her. The bathroom was plain, yet comfy. A white bathtub was to her left, mirror and sink directly facing her.
Already frustrated by the day's events, Morgana needed a nice hot bath to relax. She wrenched the water taps to let water fill up the tub, but instead ripped the handles off, causing the water to gush out uncontrollably.
Damn it!
Not bothering to fix the taps, she hastily undid the buttons and threw her top onto the marble floor. Unbuckling her belt, the Fallen angel let gravity pull her dress down. Through the mirror, Morgana carefully observed her long, lithe, yet curved figure. Her pale skin had a slight purple hue, coupled with her violet hair, the fallen angel gave herself a small, approving smile, despite the tired eyes. Turning around, she took a good look at her back, and her smile vanished, quickly replaced by a deep frown. Between her broken, charred wings, the Fallen saw an ugly, inch-wide scar stretching straight from the center of her shoulder blades all the way down to her waist. Morgana had tried a dozen healing spells on it after she received it, but the jagged mark simply refused to fade away. Snapping her eyes away from the mirror, she removed the remaining undergarments and stepped into the hot tub.
Having Kayle to recall the shameful... Encounter with her sister Morgana seemed a bit too much for the troubled Judicator that sat opposite Jasmine. Seeing her Champion completely out of her usual professional, distant demeanor was quite unnerving to Jasmine, and she immediately regretted forcing the angel's to air out her deepest and darkest secrets, but it was too late.
"A-are you okay, Kayle?" the summoner asked meekly, but the angel did not respond, her face still buried in her palms. Jasmine extended her hand to comfort the Judicator, but she stopped half way, and retracted. The young girl had never felt so helpless before. All she wanted to do was to help Kayle, but it seemed the more she tried, the worse the things became. Jasmine could hear how the Judicator was breathing. Rugged and short, the girl could easily sense Kayle's distress spreading throughout her room, but she could do nothing about it. Desperate to open up a new conversation, Jasmine poured some tea into her guest's teacup, "H-here, have some more tea..." But the angel paid the gesture no mind.
Jasmine returned to her seat defeated, sat down, and waited for Kayle to calm down. She had screwed up. Hard. And there was nothing the novice summoner could do besides being patient. She has just told me her most-hidden secrets, give her some time to recover. Taking a sip from her own cup, she sat back, and looked at the angelic being in front of her.
I knew it was something to do with Morgana, but this was like nothing I have imagined... Two sisters, one of them was expected to be a future leader, a heroine that delivers peace and justice, but has crossed the line set up by the people. How confused has she been feeling? And then the other sister became her sworn enemy... Jasmine sighed inwardly. Can it be more complicated? I don't really -
"Jasmine, do me a favor..." the angel looked up, cupping her hands together in front of her mouth and nose. The sudden noise in the once dead silent room caught Jasmine off guard as she flinched with surprise. Kayle's eyes were red and swollen with tears, the authority of a thousand years of leadership gone, replaced by plain misery. She was begging the girl for help. But what can I do?
"Do what summoners do best." Kayle said, less of an order, but more of a plea.
"Enter my past. There is this one more thing that I... would rather show than tell."
Summoner and champions' consciousness were connected to allow formerover the latter on the Fields of Justice. That was a daily routine for every summoner. What Kayle was asking Jasmine to do, however, was much deeper than normal summoning: minds were actually fused into one when said type of summoning was performed. Memories were stored somewhere much deeper inside a person, and to surface them was no simple task, let alone experiencing them first hand. The few who mastered this art were dedicated to the Reflection Chambers of the Institute of War, the place that differentiates Champions from normal men and women.
Jasmine was not Reflection Chamber grade just yet, but she was far from clueless. Excusing Kayle for a moment, the girl hurried into her room and leaped onto her bed. On top of the shelf above her bed, sat a thick book with leather backs. On its spine, tarnished golden letters wrote "Summoning - Diamond Class".
Without a second thought, Jasmine reached for it and returned to the angel.
Setting the giant of a book on her wooden table, the young summoner tore through the pages, scouring the words for the knowledge she needed. Page by page, bookmark after bookmark Jasmine turned over.
Summoner Spells... Masteries... High Tier Runes Advanced Application... Rune Combinations and Theories... Urgh! Who reads this stuff?
"Jasmine, i-it is getting late now. You have already done more than you should, and it would be very selfish of me to ask for more favors from you. I wish not to cause you more inconvenience, so goodnight." Kayle's sobful voice rang inside Jasmine's ears as she lifted up her head and saw the leaving Judicator. The angel turned around and lifted her helm above her head.
Just as the champion was about to conceal her face once more, Jasmine stopped her. "Wait Kayle!" quickly setting the opened book on the table, the young summoner rushed to the departing angel, grabbing her by the hand, and lightly pulled the angel back towards the table. "I think I know what to do now. Please, come sit."
Jasmine urged harder. She could not let Kayle leave right now, not until her burdens were shared.
After a short struggle, the girl was victorious, as the Judicator followed her back to the table with a slight reluctance.
In one swift motion, Jasmine pulled her chair back, lifted the book from the table, and sat down. The novice summoner read the page as fast as she could and began summoning. Closing her eyes, Jasmine focused on the angelic being before her. Slowly but steadily, she could sense the presence of Kayle forming in her mind. Each of the Judicator's breath, each heartbeat, all echoed within Jasmine's head.
It's just like any other summoning sessions. Open your mind. Feel the being.
Now focusing on her palms, the summoner created a ball of arcane energy between her petite hands. Jasmine's room gradually dimmed, her crystal ball stopped emitting smoke, as if the ball of magic drained nearby sources of energy into it, yet the girl did not pay any attention to her surroundings.
Now enter her mind.
Everything went dark. A familiar feeling of weightlessness rushed in and replaced the original calmness Jasmine felt earlier on. Gone was Kayle's heartbeat and breathing, substituted by distant echoes , or what the summoner could comprehend as "thoughts".
Is this not a normal summoning? One of the distant echoes suddenly became much more audible.
Yes Kayle, the first procedure is connecting your mind with mine. What you want me to do comes next. So, shall we proceed?
Go ahead Jasmine.
Kayle, I need you to recall the memories you want to share with me.
Upon hearing the angel's agreement, Jasmine inhaled deeply, clearing her mind for the final step.
Now join her.
A spark of white light grew brighter and brighter within the darkness. Taking a deep breath, the summoner embraced the blinding luminance.
Jasmine woke up from what felt like forever, and gasped for air, but her body did not respond: her mouth still shut, breathing in a steady pace. She also felt heavier. A lot heavier. Glancing down, the summoner was astonished by what she was wearing. Metallic armor covered the majority of her body, only exposing her head.
A gust of wind rushed by Jasmine, blowing her hair into a mess, strands of golden blond hair draped over her eyes.
Hmm, my hair is blond. Does that mean...?
"My apologies, Commander Kayle." Jasmine turned towards the voice, hand risen to comb her hair, both actions were not controlled by the young girl, but by the body itself. An angel. Tall, masculine, and very handsome indeed, the angel that stood before the summoner was clad in the same set of armor she was in. "The rest of the Battleborns are waiting for the briefing, Commander. This way, please."
I knew it!
Jasmine, or rather, Kayle's head, nodded. "Then let us not waste more time, Algernon."
Algernon flashed Kayle a small smile, turned, and leaped into the air without another word, leaving the summoner dazzled, her heart fluttered.
The summoner felt something on her back twitch. They felt like an extra pair of arms, but were much stronger and less flexible than the other four limbs. Fully extending her magnificent wings, Jasmine tried to put away the odd feeling of the foreign limbs flapping in a steady pace, but with no avail. Gradually, she was gracefully lifted off into the air by her wings.
She quickly caught up to her fellow soldier, despite wearing a suit of heavy armor. The flight to wherever the rest of the Battleborns gathered was quiet as the sun set, both angels kept their mouths shut, and Jasmine was grateful for that. All of a sudden, her head was directed to the ground, her eyes tuned to focus on the little details on the ground, as if to judge the altitude.
Solid ground was thousands of meters away from Jasmine.
Looking down from a high location could make anyone feel acrophobic, and the girl was no exception. Jasmine winced when she saw the land and structures below diminished as she ascended. Who said flying was fun? Her head tilted back up once more, and a sense of relief washed over the summoner. The horrifying altitude checks were done every few minutes, and they caught the summoner off guard each and every time, scaring the life out of her.
After half an hour of being forced to look down occasionally, the girl finally became comfortable enough to take a good look at the angelic homeland of Kayle's when her head was down. The scene was breathtaking. Magnificent islands levitated about the endless orange, dusking skies, bobbing up and down in a gradual pace. Lush, green grass covered the surfaces of the huge floating rocks; and on top of the islands, sat pillars, domes and arches that were made of what looked like marble. From afar, Jasmine saw silhouettes of angels taking off and landing on various islands.
It took the two angels a bit more than ten minutes to reach the training camp that was located at an island further west, ten exhilarating minutes filled with ups and downs literally.
The camp was encircled by a high wall along with four watchtowers. Faint clangs of swords echoed from the coliseum that sat in the center of the camp. Beside the wall that stood between the north and west towers was a small, temple-like structure. The summoner felt Kayle's wings fully extend as she descended.
In one smooth motion, Jasmine was once more on solid ground. Flying was an experience the young summoner found unexpectedly pleasant, despite the lack of control over Kayle's body. The girl considered asking the angel to carry her around Valoran after all this, as a "payment" of sorts, but she brushed the idea away.
Algernon walked ahead of Kayle and pushed the door wide open. The angel gestured his Commander to walk in, and she strode proudly into the temple.
The summoner would have gasped in awe if she could. Marble pillars stood at least a few meters tall, the arches cross-linked them at the top, forming a domed ceiling. The dome above her was mosaicked by colorful semi-precious stones, forming some text that was incomprehensible to Jasmine.
A group of armored angels stood in a tight circle directly below the center of the dome, surrounding an solid obsidian cuboid, all leaning towards the black table, discussing about something the girl could not hear. Their armor, however, was what caught Jasmine's immediate attention - all clad in silver colored heavy plated armor, she knew they were the Battleborn.
As Kayle and Algernon arrived amidst the other angles, all of their discussion ceased. The Battleborn, along with the Algernon, stood up straight and saluted her with their blades, and remained absolutely still, waiting for orders.
The Commander leant in, pointing at a spot on a leather map on the table, and began her briefing. Jasmine did not pay much attention to what Kayle's mouth was saying, however. Instead, she tried to observe the other soldiers around her as much as possible through Kayle's occasional glances. All of them were male, apart from one that stood to the summoner's right.
Streaks of platinum blond hair flowed from her head to shoulders, and her bang covered her most of her right eye. A red headband was fastened to her forehead to keep it in place. Amber eyes darted left and right to track Kayle's finger's movements. Behind those beautiful eyes, Jasmine saw anxiety. On her back, a pair of wings was folded tight as usual, but the tips of her feathers were different. They were blood red instead of pure white, nothing like the rest of the angels in the hall.
Kayle's head rotated slightly towards the female angel, which gave the summoner a better look. Jasmine felt her heart flutter again, yet this time, it did not feel the same as looking at Algernon. This time, the feeling was radiated her avarta.
Is that... Morgana?! I never knew she was so... Pretty.
Morgana seemed to notice the stare and gazed back at the staring angel. After a split second, the younger sister blushed slightly and averted Kayle's eyes. Turning her head away, she continued studying the map. Jasmine felt Kayle's eyes lingered on her sister's figure slightly longer than necessary.
The briefing continued for around ten minutes. Jasmine half listened to the conversation. All she caught was something about an illegal gathering of a treasonous organization.
Soon after explaining the plan to the rest of the Battleborns, the elite soldiers took flight in a delta formation, with Kayle leading at the tip of the triangle.
The sky was already dark by the time Kayle and the angels reached their destination. Jasmine could barely see a thing besides the moon and stars that hung in the night sky. Flying further down, she saw a house in the middle of an island. Quiet as the night itself, the Battleborns circled above a small house, forming a parameter as they slowly descended.
Upon landing, Jasmine felt her legs paced forward in a hurried, yet controlled manner, and the soldiers followed suit. Arriving in front of the door, the girl noticed Kayle's left arm rose, and firmly gave the wooden door a knock.
No response.
Jasmine held her breath, her heart growing all but more anxious as the tension in the cool night grew. Her, no, Kayle's eyes scanned each of her soldiers that surrounded the house, and all of them returned her with a assured gaze. They were ready.
The next moment came and went in a flash. Before the summoner could realize what was happening, Kayle's hand hurled a golden fire ball at the door, blasting it wide open. Without waiting any further, the Commander burst into the house, with her Battleborns charging in beside her, all of them had their blades drawn.
A group of young angels surrounded a table of sorts discussing, just like what the Battleborns did earlier on, although their discussion was halted by a sudden, violent entrance of the soldiers.
"What is this about?" A young male exclaimed as he turned and walked towards the intruders, hands empty.
Stepping forward, a towering Battleborn known as Tyson singlehandedly lifted one of the male angel up by his collar and pinned him to a side. His sword was pointed at the young angel's neck, threatening him not to move.
Bringing up their blades, the soldiers backed the young angels to a wall, far away from the table. Knowing that the Battleborn was a force to be reckoned with, the cornered angels complied without resistance. Through the Commander's eyes, Jasmine saw fear among the angels. They dared not fight against the armored soldiers.
"You are all under suspicion of treason, sedition against the High Council. Algernon, Faytos, leave no stone unturned." the leader of the Battleborn ordered with such authority that no other being moved, besides the two. Affirming their Commander with a nod, the two angels broke away from their impeccable formation and searched the house. Two soldiers automatically stepped in and took their spot, maintaining the semicircular arrangement. Watching attentively, Jasmine was amazed. The efficiency Kayle possessed, the unity of each individual Battleborn, and the coordination between Commander and soldier bested all of the city-state representing summoner teams.
Algernon walked up swiftly, and presented his Commander a small stack of paper. Kayle's eyes narrowed to a slit, eyes darted from left to right. Jasmine recognized the texts from the dome, but she still did not understand a word on the sheet. As Kayle moved further down the list, the summoner felt her avatar's tighten, leaving it devoid of space for mercy.
Caught red-handed.
"By the authority vested upon me by the Archangel and the High Council, you are arrested and condemned." the Commander declared. Jasmine had never heard Kayle speaking in such a harsh tone. It was nothing like the angel the girl knew. The first row of Battleborn stepped forward and forced the cornered angels one by one to their knees, hands behind their heads.
"The penalty is death. "
No. Jasmine tensed. The cornered angels shuddered in fear, blood drained away from their faces, leaving them ghastly pale.
"No!" A clear voice spoke up, "Stop Kayle! This is not justice! They are only young men and women, and we are not older than them by much. Do they deserve death?"
The girl's eyes widened in astonishment, as much Kayle's as it was hers.
Morgana stood in front of Kayle, amber eyes opened wide with plea and desperation lingering within, hands and wings extended, sword laid uselessly on the floor. "Please, sister. They do-"
"Stand aside," The older sister barked, cutting Morgana abruptly. "That is an order!"
A strong, twisted merge of rage and fear loomed over Jasmine. She tried to suppress the foreign emotions, but it was getting harder as each second passed. Confusion shrouded the summoner, causing her heart to throb in pain.
"Stop this madness at once, Kayle!"
"Read the list, Morgana!" Kayle shoved the stack to her sister, but the younger sister did not take it, instead, her arms remained extended so did her wings. The stack of paper ended up on scattering all over the floor. Morgana's stare only intensified, and so did Kayle's.
"This is an assassination list, sister. Government officials, high ranked military personnel... even the Archangel himself was on that list! Wake up, Morgana! They are no child, they are traitors to our Kingdom; threats to Justice. I have vowed to root evil, and so have you! You dare not to think they can be spared." Jasmine felt the Commander's hand clutched tighter onto Paragon, to fight away the urge to grab her sister by the shoulder and shake her until she was awake from this.
"Yes, they may have conspired such wicked plans, yet we know naught of their intentions, their reasons behind all this. Who are we to judge them when we understand nothing about them?" Morgana snapped back, tears trickled down from her watery eyes. "Please, sister. Blood need not to be drawn."
Kayle could not bear to watch her sister cry for any longer, so she shut her eyes tight, avoiding Morgana's eyes. "I wish not to argue with you anymore, sister. Stand beside me, and this incident shall not exist." Jasmine felt Kayle's right hand rose, her eyelids opening once again, in attempt to take her sister back.
"No. Not until you spare their lives, I shall not stand beside you." the rebellious sister replied, then let out a sigh. "Kayle... so much, you have changed... You were nothing like this before. Never have you thought of killing. Your goal was to root out evil, not slaying people. There is more than one way to bring justice, Kayle... What you are proposing now is not justice, and I deeply believe you know it."
"I am doing this according to the law; to establish an example, Morgana."
"Example of what?" the younger sister doubted, "Of mindless loyalty to the authority?"
"Without justice, there will be no order. And without order, there will be no peace. If sacrifices are needed to achieve justice and ultimately, peace, then sacrifice we must. That is the responsibility of each and every Battleborn." the angel said plainly, but Jasmine sensed something was off... Weaved in Kayle's voice, was a growing conflict. "If you are so eager to protect these wretched traitors, so be it!"
Please, no!
Without pausing, Kayle lifted her sword arm and her double bladed Paragon burst into golden flames. The Commander steeled her mind.
No no no no!
Jasmine mustered all of her will power to stop Kayle, but her arm would not budge. No one could change what had been done. Not even a summoner.
Grabbing Morgana's right shoulder, the Commander forced her sister to turn around with a strong yank, and brought her sword down.
A loud, ungodly screech broke the still night.
Morgana tumbled forward, her wings and their feathers burning. The blade sliced through her armor and flesh, leaving a deep gash that ran down her back.
Cries of agony and pain did not cease. Morgana clutched her fists, tears streaming down her bloodshot eyes, wings twitching in pain as they continued to burn. The summoner could see the anger, hatred and sorrow within those eyes.
At the most unexpected moment, the Jasmine's vision went dark. The summoner thought it was the end of Kayle's sharing, but felt something moist leaking from shut eyelids. Kayle's mouth open once more as she accused with a trembling voice, "You are the one who have changed, Morgana, and it pains me just to think of it."
"I hate you!" the younger sister roared, "I hate you!"
Jasmine could not stand it anymore, and withdrew herself from the Judicator's mind. Breathing heavily, the summoner was speechless by what she had experienced.
Kayle began muttering, her gaze off and distant, but the girl could not tell whether the angel was talking to her or herself. "Then I stepped forward and killed them. Left, right, left, right I cleaved... All of the young men and women died with their eyes open, accusing me for murder... That is why I asked for a helmet when I was entitled as the Judicator after that successful mission, to hide my face when I... murder people. Yet their faces haunts me till this very day..."
The Judicator looked at Jasmine with a firm, but sorry gaze.
"Who am I to judge, Jasmine? "
Jasmine could not give the angel an answer.