Interlude IV - Desperate times.
Mentor's pride.
Jonus-Elnun
She would miss Shakuras.
The eternal twilight that dominated its sky was the fondest memory she could still recall from her birthworld.
The echoes of the shrines near Telamatross served as a sweet reminder of the souls that now rested while looking out for the eternal twilight of her world.
Jonus was special amongst the Nerazim that remained, for she was the oldest surviving member of the tribe now. With her mother being one of the original followers who had fled Aiur under the mantle of matriarch Razagal.
The death of that esteemed leader coupled with the disappearance of her sole remaining daughter, Vorazun, placed a swift and untimely end to the line of that beloved person.
All because Jonus had failed.
"THIS IS BLASPHEMY!" the voice of an angered Ihan-rii took the dark prelate out of her own thoughts altogether.
The Nerazim warrior gazed up at the other protoss that were in the room while she shifted uncomfortably on her old shadow hunter garment since the remaining matrons of her people had asked for her return to that former post of her while they decided on who the next matriarch was going to succeed Vorazun.
Dawning the guise of a dark templar after her centuries of service as a centurion felt strange, but her station demanded that she now represented what remained of her tribe in the same form by which they were usually seen by outsiders.
"But Admiral you surely realize tha-" Executor Aitan tried to placate the irate Ihan-rii in front of him who glared at the poorly chosen words of the Khalai.
"Your insinuation that we would subject ourselves to your will is laughable" Admiral Kiot was the highest remaining leadership amongst the enigmatic Ihan-rii with which they had been forced to mingle and work alongside with for the last few months "Your hierarchy may have been established to ensure some sort of cooperation between your people but we have no reason to follow your commands nor do we recognize you as the leadership of all protoss!".
Jonus knew very little of the enigmatic protoss who had emerged out of deep space in their hour of need since they mostly kept to themselves and were even more secretive of their costumes than the most reclusive of Nerazim hermits, to her dismay.
What little she knew came out of an unexpected source as it was their former leader who shared openly what made his people the way they were.
'Elder' Xiltar had been a strange individual by all possible definitions of what being a protoss was supposed to be. Never sporting the adorned and complex dressing of an executor or admiral but rather a simple armor of a warrior ready for combat as if he was to charge alongside his warriors rather than remain behind while being protected by the walls of a Nexus or a command vessel.
Being an elder solely in name, the young protoss had led this fleet of warriors into some of the only victories they had achieved against the forces of the fallen one with honor and distinction while not being beyond working with the remnants of the Daelaam.
Once he had been given his mission of protecting the last of the protoss by Artanis, he had championed the idea of creating a council between all factions so as to not hold onto power by himself while favoring cooperation.
But this had been an idea she had originally opposed as he knew fairly well that the endless debates that would occur along the chambers of the umbral choir would devolve into nothing but petty squabbling and inaction much like those of the now gone twilight council.
But this wasn't the case with Xiltar and the Ihan-rii…
In what little time he had acted amongst the members of the umbral choir, he had placated the most ardent of opposition with swift rhetoric and the support of his executors and admirals who dearly followed his suggestions and commands while also looking out for the interest of those protoss that weren't his people.
He cared for them all. Be it Nerazim, Khalai or Ihan-rii. He heard and respected all of their suggestions in their strange endeavor that was trying to survive in a dying universe while being hunted down by the hybrid hosts of the fallen one.
He would have been more than worthy of standing with the executors of Hierarch Artanis if the end war had gone in their favor.
"Esteemed companion. Our partner may have not chosen his words wisely but do not mistake his intentions as that of a tyrant" Jonus interceded for the executor as she knew that the strange protoss would not tolerate any kind of reversal on the orders from their now gone leader.
This was the case as Aitan had suggested that the umbral choir should reorganize itself under one particular figure to mirror the presence of the now gone elder and join the Khalai and Nerazim in the process of choosing a new hierarch for all of them.
But she could see that this notion would never come to pass.
The aged admiral was ardently opposed to replacing the elder in any sense of the word as he and the Ihan-rii executors debated that they should not disgrace the memory of their fallen leaders by dissolving his final edict in supporting the umbral choir.
But on the side of the Daelaam there was no clear signal that their system could work with the strange and vexing traditions of Ihan-rii leadership being conflictive with those of the allied protoss.
Criticizing their methods that had served them, while they had not even appointed new members to the council in order to take the place of Xiltar and the two admirals who had also died during the attack.
"Our leadership remains divided and your people have yet to appoint other members to the council. You can't simply consider-" Aitan began before he was interrupted yet again.
"You understand little and dare to overstep" the grizzled admiral began before one of his compatriots placed a hand on his shoulder and shook his head "We simply cannot replace the position of elder and of those leaders that are not present none would tolerate your words and even less your presence in this chamber".
This last statement brought new information to her camp as she now knew that the military leaders were not the only ones that remained but were the most moderate of their clans on the side of the Ihan-rii.
"As we remain at an impasse and the guardians of Zhakul continue to deliberate on our proposal then this session was for not" Jonus stated the obvious "We shall continue to wait for a response to our proposal on their part while we continue to monitor the system".
This session had been called by Jonus herself as she had made some progress in her negotiations with the reclusive guardians of Zhakul on the world down below, who had originally been in the process of gathering their fellow tribesman to join them in their exodus as Xiltar had managed to negotiate their addition to their numbers.
But the immediate threat of the hybrid was now gone and they had no reason to join them.
Even six months after their sudden exodus into a place that was neither their universe nor somewhere they could escape from, they remained reluctant to speak with the ever arrogant Khalai or the enigmatic Ihan-rii in further negotiations.
They had only approached Jonus and her people since she was the de-facto leader of the Nerazim while the matrons appointed a new matriarch from her people and they had a debt of gratitude to the exiled Prelate Zeratul of all protoss.
But they had rescinded their offer for a parley as soon as she had mentioned the possibility of either Aithan or Kiot joining the negotiations for asylum on their world for the rest of their people.
"Agreed" the admiral nodded and departed with his posy. Jonus and Aitan remained while their lieutenants departed to tend to their duties as well.
"They are vexing to no end" the Khalai said as he rubbed the back of his neck as best as he could with his nerve cords and armor on his way.
"You are just too stubborn to compromise" Jonus replied as she shook her head disapprovingly "I know it was difficult for your people to adapt to our traditions and ways on Shakuras but you must realize that these protoss are even more different than what both of our societies have met".
She placed a hand on the shoulder of the taller man but knew that this kind of gesture was not easily appreciated by the protoss who adhered to the Khala.
"..." Aitan sighed "You may be right. But our people have no hope if we cannot find a way out of here and their unwillingness to cooperate with our efforts places all of us in peril".
Jonus nodded and stared into the window that showed the lone star that was their refuge.
"Time will only tell if we are to survive" Jonus said as she let go of the executor and left the chamber.
She walked along the corridors of stone-like material that made the composition of this ancient vessel that she had come to know as a home for the last few days.
Jonus knew little of these strangers but she was surprised to find that most of their technology mirrored that of her kind and the Khalai in a strange display of harmony she could not even fathom.
But whenever she approached the mysterious engineers or the places where certain components would be on other vessels, she would be barred passage by warriors who were adept in the use of the void just like herself.
This strange and darkly skinned protoss would find her no matter where she tried to hide or go and as such she had been limited in her access of the vessel to certain corridors.
She thought about looking for one of her daughters as she began to head towards the hangar where that child had been taking her oracle vessel with worrying persistence.
Jonus felt glad that most of her family had survived but she still felt sorrow at the memory of those few who did not make it.
As she began to walk through the light bridge that would take her towards the entrance to that place she was surprised to find a figure sitting near the edge of the platform on the other side of the chasm.
The Nerazim approached the figure and as she made sure that her presence was not known to Othan the Aspbad.
Or Othan the executor if her predictions on internal Ihan-rii governance were correct.
"Greetings, Othan" Jonus spoke as she looked over the warrior as she had gotten at a tolerable distance from the dark gray figure of the girl.
Othan had abandoned her heavy armor and instead wore a simple gown of black color that was adorned with a simple white pattern.
But even as the older protoss kneeled next to her, the girl failed to respond to her presence.
She just saw as Othan stared at something in her hands without blinking or even acknowledging her surroundings and Jonus saw that a sphere of dark material was the focus of her complete attention.
She could not tell what compelled her to reach for the orb but once she touched it the reason as to why the girl didn't acknowledge her surroundings became clear…
In an instant she found herself standing next to several figures in a sharply lit auditorium that contrasted the almost pitch darkness of the Ihan-rii vessel quite vividly.
After her eyes adjusted to the difference in lighting, the Nerazim found herself next to a host of aliens that she did not recognize and she instinctively activated her warp blade to defend herself.
But not one of them acknowledged her presence.
What was this?
Jonus did not recognize most of the aliens in the place she found herself on but some figures that she did recognize got her attention.
Were these… Terrans?
The figure of such a hated foe brought a feeling of uneasiness and nostalgia to the aging templar.
"Jonus?" A voice next to her broke her out of the trance she found herself in as she continued to inspect the crowd.
She turned to see that it was Othan who spoke to her now.
"Wh- How are you here?" Othan asked as her presence was something unexpected to them both.
"I would like to ask the same question" Jonus replied in turn.
But before Othan could answer, a great commotion rook the chamber as the aliens around her began to move towards an edge that she had managed to miss.
She was scared to bump into them but the figures passed through her as if Jonus wasn't even there, she then realized that this was not but an illusion.
"What is this, Ihan-rii?" Jonus asked the nervous Othan.
"I-I'm not sure" Othan then approached an empty edge of the balcony where they stood and pointed towards something beyond her sight "And I do not know what that is".
Jonus approached the girl and saw what she had been overlooking.
It was elder Xiltar.
"What the-" before Jonus could ask her question, a force reaped her from the dream state she was in and found herself back on the light bridge of the mentor's pride.
But it soon dawned on her that it wasn't just her who had woken up.
"Brother… no…" Jonus turned to see that Othan was now kneeling on the light bridge as the orb lay deactivated on the ground "Don't leave me".
…
What compelled her to act, Jonus would never know.
But as the girl kneeled distraught, she approached her and hugged the younger being as her sadness emanated from her mind.
"It's alright" Jonus reassured the child as her mind emitted the sorrow of loss.
"He was here-" the poor child said "And he left me".
Jonus began to gently stroke the back of the girl as she continued to mourn her family.
But there was more to this…
Jonus remained with the child until she could feel that the episode of sorrow had passed.
Once she finally deemed it appropriate to stand she turned to Jonus and spoke.
"I apologize… dark one" Othan said shyly as she and Jonus began to stand up.
The Nerazim then placed a hand on her shoulder in order to calm her down.
"There is no reason to apologize, young one. But know that you should not mourn alone" Jonus said this in the same manner she would have to any of her daughters.
The girl closed her eyes and nodded "Thank you".
Jonus nodded back even as the child remained with her eyes closed and sorrow emanated from the edge of her thoughts before she parted and knelt to take the object that remained deactivated.
It was deactivated, right?
As she handed the strange object back to Othan rather than touch it directly, the Ihan-rii covered the strange object with the sleeves of her robe rather than touching it directly.
She could see some happiness return to her spirit with this gesture.
"What is this?" Jonus asked after her curiosity got the better of her judgment.
"I don't know" She answered after some hesitation "It was given to me by a strange being that I did not recognize. It showed my brother in a place I have never seen before. What could this be?".
Jonus remained silent after this revelation of a place and a time that not even her sister could recognize.
But this aligned with what Xiltar had shared of the Ihan-rii's history within the galaxy as their people had never met with the perfidious terrans.
Seeing them once again made her blood boil with a hatred that she hadn't felt in years.
They would pay for the death of his mate.
But what was that vision then?
(It was a glimpse into his fate) a third voice answered their question to her surprise.
Jonus turned around to search for the origin of that voice and found that it had come from a veiled figure who now stood at the far end of the bridge from where she had come.
And in her hands was another one of those relics.
"You?" Othan sounded confused with the sight of this being but quickly changed from said confusion to anger as she glared at the smaller being "I want answers".
As did Jonus.
The figure did not answer but began to move steadily towards them while looking at them through golden eyes (And I brought them to you).
She continued her approach, but as this creature got closer Jonus began to feel… strange.
She felt as the air around her crackled with empyreal power, it felt as if the pressure of a collapsing star threatened to overwhelm her.
Jonus activated her warp blade and stood in front of young Othan to protect her. The creature stopped in her step and looked directly at her. As Jonus prepared to stand against this being she saw as psionic energies emanated from the veiled being in a chaotic manner.
Such raw power.
Only the most adept of the Khalai high templars could even compare to the raw energy that the strange creature in front of her was exuding.
And even then it felt as if it was only a fraction of its power.
She readied herself for a psionic storm or a discharge of energy in any way that she could think it could be conjured.
But there was no fulmination.
Only a feeling of calm and collected peace stood where she thought annihilation would come.
And to her honest surprise she had extinguished her own blade without even realizing it.
As she turned to the creature, Jonus was surprised to see that the smaller being had closed the distance between them in an instant.
(Your people did not believe in the promise your brother ushered onto minds far greater than his own) the being extended her arms towards Jonus and presented another orb to her (Witness how he sways the hearts of those that are neither).
Neither Jonus nor Othan reached for the object and rather than that, the two protoss glanced at the other for reassurance.
Jonus could see the sadness in the eyes of the young Ihan-rii that still remained confused on what was happening with this strange creature.
So the Nerazim just hoped that she wouldn't regret her actions.
Jonus reached for the orb and touched the stone one more time, and just as before she was transported to an illusion that told a story of forgotten pacts.
But she wasn't alone…
She found that in the darkness she was accompanied by young Othan.
She tried to ignite her blade to light her path as all dark templars were taught to do but the fire of her blade did nothing to banish the darkness.
Instead light emanated from the floor as ground beneath their feet came to light and the whole room was swiftly illuminated.
The chamber in which they were in showed some pictograms as they could tell.
They showed the story of the protoss, the exile of the terrans… and the rise of the zerg.
"What is this place?" Jonus asked Othan as she turned towards her but the prelate found that something else had gotten the young protoss' attention.
On the far edge of the room where the light was brighter they saw as people descended the stairs beyond a gate of darkness.
One amongst the group got her attention.
"Elder Xiltar?" Jonus asked while she approached the figure as Othan had done before "How can this be?".
The young warrior did not acknowledge her presence and to her surprise she saw as Xiltar just began to stare at the pictograms in the room with the other beings that had followed after him.
Jonus could not make out what they were saying but she could guess that these people who surrounded him were asking questions related to what was shown in the pictograms.
His choice in companions was… concerning.
"What are these creatures?" Othan asked as her gaze had left her brother and instead fell upon his companions.
"I recognize the terrans amongst them… all the others I have never seen before" Jonus said while she examined one of the aliens, a crimson warrior who towered above the rest safe for Xiltar "But how can this be? Their kind was exterminated in the Koprulu sector… Are these terrans from their lost homeworld?" The prelate continued to stare at the aliens but no answer was given to her.
"Is this supposed to be a terran?" Othan asked as she paced around a figure adorned in purple cloth that seemed to be the same height of those aliens but some details were wrong "Strange".
She found it peculiar that this strange being resembled them so much.
(They are his allies) the voice of the creature spoke once again as the veiled figure appeared next to them (Those with whom he journeys across the stars to save your future).
"Wh… Are these creature supposed to defeat Amon? Terrans and aliens?" Jonus asked in indignation.
(No. That fate was written in stone) the creature pointed one of her fingers towards the far end of the room where the group had moved.
They did not manage to reach that part of the room in time and only saw as Xiltar destroyed the wall at the end of the corridor.
They did not know this but the creature had spared them from the sorrow of the truth.
The dust settled and the two women were made privy to what laid beyond after the elder had opened the way.
A fate written in stone.
With that, the vision ended and the illusion dissipated.
…
Jonus sensed as she regained the feeling in her legs and arms once again.
What had the creature done?
(I showed you the truth) the voice spoke.
She opened her eyes and found herself staring up at the same creature who had shown them the strange vision.
The orb was still in her hands.
Jonus quickly rose to her feet and ignited her warp blade once again "Explain" she saw as the creature kneeled and left the sphere on the ground.
"Jonus, wait" Othan called for her to not attack the creature as she quickly rose to her feet and stumbled her way to stand before Jonus.
"We can not trust what this creature has shown us, child" Jonus glared at the Ihan-rii as she placed herself in between her and the creature "Her sorcery may as well be a trick of Amon. Conjured so he can torment us in order to-".
(Do not mistake my actions for those of Amon's slaves) the creature began as she glared at the pair while mounting psychic pressure on their minds (I… I'm sorry) the creature dissipated the strange psychic field that had formed at the edge of Jonus' thoughts and it was then that she realized that this creature not only knew of the fallen one but also knew of its slaves.
But it wasn't a protoss… and no other creature had survived armageddon as far as she knew.
What was she?
"Jonus…" a voice from her side made the old warrior turn her sight from that of the veiled creature "She… she may know what happened to elder Xiltar. We must hear what she has to say".
Elder Xiltar… not her brother.
Jonus knew not if this was a matter of secrecy or a strange stance of the Ihan-rii but she would get nothing out "We must not let our guard down, young Othan. There may be more deceit from this than we know".
This seemed to pull a string in Othan's soul as the aspbad seemed rather conflicted by this last part while staring at her own orb in contemplation.
What were these relics?
And what were the intentions of this creature?
But just as Jonus was about to turn and confront this creature once more she looked at an empty corridor where there was nothing but darkness.
The orb remained on the ground.
This elusive creature had left it behind for some reason.
(Doubt leads to folly…) the voice of the creature echoed across the chamber where only the two protoss remained (Trust that my actions will reunite you with your kin… and usher you onto hope).
Jonus remained silent at these words as she mused a deeper meaning behind them, but it seemed that young Othan had not taken this stance particularly well.
"Is there any truth to your words? Can we trust your motives when you fail to reveal the truth to us?" Othan asked with good reason.
The voice remained silent for a moment (It is only so because the last two paths have yet to be walked upon… two lessons yet to be taught… two souls who remain unaware of what you now know).
"And what is it that we know?" Jonus asked in turn as she approached the inert orb.
(That there is something beyond the darkness…) the orb began to glow slightly (That there is still hope for your people) without touching the object a strange light began to emanate from it and took the shape of a protoss atop the object.
She knew this protoss.
(That Xiltar of the Ihan-rii lives).