Chpt 15: King Again
"You lost your mind in the sound
There's so much more, you can reclaim your crown
You're in control
Rid of the monsters inside your head
Put all your faults to bed
You can be King again."
-"King" by Lauren Aquilina
August 13, 2010
Mikoto's 22nd birthday.
He's so young and yet, at the age of 24, Tatara will be murdered, and he'll die avenging his best friend.
I slammed the HOMRA bar doors open, yelling out, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"
Half of the boys in the room startled and got into a fighting position, thinking that it was an ambush.
The other half rolled their eyes at my antics, but also yelled out, "Hana!"
"Where have you been, punk?!" I heard someone shout.
"None of your damn business!"
"Hana?" A soft voice calls out next to the sleeping figure on the couch.
Damn, of course. It's his birthday and he's spending it sleeping on that damn couch of his. Stupid Mikoto.
I dropped everything I was carrying and ran over to Anna, "Anna-chan!"
"You smell like cows." Anna murmured after I gave her a giant hug.
"Ha." I ruffled her head, "How do you even know what cows smell like?"
"The boys took me out. We went to a zoo a few weeks ago."
"That so sweet! Tell me all about it, even the parts when the boys got in trouble."
"...How did you know?"
"I always know."
I greeted everyone, laughing and smiling. It feels good to be back.
Bantering with Izumo, flirting with Tatara, and teasing Misaki. Anna and I even got our girl time.
We spent most of the afternoon talking, and then we held a small party with just the core members of HOMRA to celebrate Mikoto's birthday.
Although the party lasted long into the night, Mikoto headed up into his room earlier.
No matter how much he slept, it seemed like he was still exhausted.
It wasn't until Tatara confirmed my suspicions that I knew it was time.
"How is Mikoto?" I leaned over into Tatara as we both watched Mikoto make his way up the wooden stairs.
We both had drinks in our hands, mine of course was non-alcoholic. There was something important happening and I needed to be sober for it.
Tatara glanced around us, and seeing the rest of the members preoccupied or drunk, he lowered his voice, "I don't know, Hana."
His breath ghosted over my cheek as he had leaned in to whisper Mikoto's condition. Tatara's long, pale fingers brushed up against a tuft of my pink hair, pushing it out of the way.
I stared into his hazel eyes, clear and unwavering, and yet there was an unmistakable hint of concern and sadness. Mikoto was not one to share his feelings or problems openly. He always blazed on, head first when confronting delicate matters. Tatara and Izumo are able to figure out his troubles because they have been his closest friends for a long time, even before he gained his King powers.
The ever-optimistic Tatara was showing concern.
My voice was barely a whisper, "Is… is he okay?"
Soft brown hair shook from side to side, "It's these nightmares. They've been… they've been bad." This was really unlike Tatara, from the very core of his being he always believed in things working out. "Haaa… I'm just unnecessarily worrying... There's probably nothing to be afraid of." Ah that's more like the Tatara I know.
Tatara has always spoken from his heart. He doesn't tell meaningless lies to make other people feel better. If he truly believes everything will turn out alright, then he conveys that message. But something's wrong. I think I changed some of the timeline. The nightmares don't happen until after Tatara is killed.
It seems like I've been gone for too long. Every time I visited HOMRA, I did my best to alleviate the burden of the Sanctum. I didn't want anyone to worry, so I would discreetly heal Mikoto as much as I could. Not even Mikoto knew what I was doing. The power of fire is a double edged sword. Mikoto is free to wield it, but with great power comes great responsibility. It takes a toll on one's body to support such a large and powerful clan. Mikoto isn't really known for his self-control or patience.
My hands trembled slightly, so I grasped the larger, warmer ones to stop the tremors. It's time. Even if I'm not ready to take the risk, if I wait any longer, things will only escalate from here. Still gazing into Tatara's eyes, I replied, "I think I have an idea to help with the nightmares. I'll talk to Mikoto."
I slowly rose from the bar stool. Before I let go of his hands, Tatara grasped mine back and gave them a small squeeze, "Don't stress, things will work out."
I only smiled in return.
Mikoto's Room
Quiet, low knocks echoed through the silent room.
The silent figure on the couch was completely still except for the periodic rise and fall of its chest.
The door cracked open, "Mikoto?" A soft voice called out into the darkness.
Then the room was bathed in light.
The figure, revealed to be Mikoto lounging on the couch, grunted as brightness filled the room. His feet were propped up on the coffee table and his arm rested on his forehead to shield his eyes from the light.
"Can I come in?" I asked as I was already halfway to Mikoto's couch. It's a bad habit, even though I knock on the door, I open it anyways. I ask to come in, yet I'm already in the room. Not like Mikoto would say anything in response anyways.
"...What do you want." Not an accusation, not a question, just a simple statement.
Knowing Mikoto isn't one to admit to the nightmares plaguing him or the troubles he's having with his own sanctum, I decided on another approach.
I sat down next to him on the couch, leaning back and relaxing.
"An old man once told me, 'A King's powers are not meant for destruction. They exist to protect.'"
"... It was Tatara wasn't it."
"Hehe, maybeeeee."
Mikoto remained silent.
I started, "Your Weismann levels-"
"I know."
"I can help alleviate the burden…" I clenched my hands tightly together. "It's true. What Tatara said…. They exist to protect." I took a deep breath, "Do you trust me?"
Mikoto closed his eyes.
I repeated the question with the same patience and soft tone, "Do you trust me?"
His amber eyes stared unwaveringly into mine. His voice, still gruff from disuse, rang out, "Yes."
"Then here goes nothing." We sit side by side, but to access his head, I crossed my legs over themselves and turned towards him. I reached my hands out to both sides of his head, while I leaned forward until my forehead rested on his.
Everything went dark.
In the darkness, there were multiple pulses of energy.
That energy. It is reminiscent of the energy that was in the air when I met Dresden a while back. Each Sanctum has a consciousness that's linked to Dresden's consciousness.
Slowly, multiple objects came into focus around me. I was standing on top of the Dresden Plate, not unlike how I first arrived in this universe. Around me were the 7 Kings' Sanctums.
The Red King's looked like the Sword of Damocles was trapped in the center of a volcano. Lava bubbled everywhere, and below the Sword sat a lion made of lava. The lion was sleeping under the Sword, calm and content. Vibrant red flames danced around it as it slept. Yet, as you get farther away from the center of the Sanctum, where the lion is, the edges of the sanctum resembled a blackened field.
The Sanctum is slowly going out of control, tainting everything from the outside in.
My eyes focused again on the Red King's Sword of Damocles. It has an irregular blade that bends near the tip. The cross guard has a red orb in the middle with the guard protruding to the side. The grip has a swirl-like shape. But despite these characteristics, the Sword's state is what caught my attention.
Parts of the guard and the blade were splintering apart, as if it was put under a tremendous amount of pressure. Small pieces of the Sword of Damocles was breaking apart and drifting down towards the lion. Every time a piece of the Sword landed on the sleeping lion, the lion would shake its head and give a small rumble before falling back asleep.
My eyes followed the rope to where it led off into the distance. I stood there for a few moments, unsure where to start. I could "see" my translucent body and it didn't take long until I noticed Dresden's ethereal form materialize beside me.
"It's been a while." I mentioned, "Not since… The Gold King's palace right?"
"That was the last time I materialized in front of you, but I've been watching over you and the people around you this entire time."
"So, what's the plan?" I balanced on the balls of my feet, trying to hide my nervousness.
"Do you see these threads?" Dresden gestured at the seven threads surrounding us that were connected to each King's Sword of Damocles.
Although they were called threads, they resembled rope more so than actual threads.
Each rope had its own distinct quality.
My eyes followed each one until it disappeared, probably connected to its respective king.
"The more frayed the rope becomes, the more dangerous the Sword of Damocles is. The rope is worn out by several factors. A king's power is like fire. The rope is connected to each king, but the less in control of their sanctum they are, the more tension the rope is under. Over time, this leads to the rope weakening and weakening until it snaps. In addition, the more two kings battle, the more damage their rope becomes. That is why only a king can kill another king, but both kings suffer major damages that is reflected in this realm."
"Where do I come in? You said something when I first arrived, that I'm connected to all of the kings."
"Only you can heal the rope. You have the ability to repair and enhance."
"That seems like too much power for one person, what if it had fallen into the wrong hands?"
"Good thing it's in your hands." Dresden placed a warm hand on my shoulder before disappearing.
"Damn it, beating around the bush and not giving me a straight answer. I guess even he doesn't have control over who gets his power. Okay, okay. So he said that I have the ability to repair and enhance. Repair and enhance…" I murmured, pacing in circles.
I looked up towards the threads. The Red King's thread was like a fraying rope. It was in a bad condition, like it could snap at any moment. The Colorless King's is hard to see, like a faint spider thread that is only visible when it catches the light at the right angle. The Silver King's is a pure white thread, delicate and dainty, but looped around into infinity circles before going off into the distance. The Blue King's...
Okay getting distracted, need to get back to healing Mikoto.
I "walk", more like mentally approach, the Red King's dilapidated rope and hesitantly reach my hands toward it. It didn't burn like I thought it would, but as soon as my hands made contact with the thread, it glowed bright red.
My hands begin to glow its normal pink color that appears when I heal people as I tap into Mikoto's sanctum. Slowly, I begin to replenish and strengthen it with my own. I could feel my form pulsing with energy. I was channeling the power of the Dresden Plate like an adaptor connecting a nuclear factory to a car battery.
I had to be careful and avoid channeling too much energy, or not only would I short circuit, but I would completely overwhelm his Sanctum. In addition, as I accepted the Plate's power, I had to expend my own energy to convert it from raw, pure power to a healing element. I would use an analogy about cancer and oncogenes right now, but I have to stay concentrated.
I concentrated on allowing discrete, minute amounts of energy to flow through. It didn't take long before the threadbare rope began to repair itself. Despite the happiness bubbling inside me, I contained my grin because the slightest mistake could result in both of our deaths.
Thirty Minutes Later
I opened my eyes and shook my head to clear out the blurriness.
When my eyes finally focused, I was staring right into Mikoto's amber eyes. My hands still clasped around his head.
With a pink blush on my face, one that rivaled the color of my hair, I jumped to the opposite end of the couch. Despite my embarrassment at being so close to Mikoto's face, I maintained my professionalism. As a doctor taking care of her patient, I had to keep my composure. "How do you feel? Try accessing your Sanctum."
"Not bad." Mikoto held his hand our in front of him, freely and easily calling up his aura. "It's better."
"Good, because I'm exhausted. That took a lot outta me." I rolled my shoulders to release the tension.
"Don't go becoming an old hag, watch those wrinkles." Mikoto's lips quirked into a smirk.
Guess Mikoto is feeling better too, he's back to bantering with me like normal.
I shook my head to hide my laughter, "I hate you." Smug bastard. "Happy 22nd Birthday, Mikoto."
I left the package with him as I exited the room.
A deep chuckle followed me out of the room. I ignored it as I met with Tatara at the bottom of the stairs.
Innocently placed on top of the table was a bolo tie. Instead of an ostentatious jewel to hold the two ends of the tie together, Hana had chosen a simpler design. There was a metallic pendant in the shape of two "K's" placed back to back that held the two ends of the thin, yet durable red thread together.
(Look up Mikoto's necklace to view an image).
A/N: I hate keeping people on their toes and slowly updating. So what I'm going to do is completely finish this story. Once I'm done I'll post it all within the same week so you guys aren't getting random updates once every few months. There's about 7-8 chapters left until the finale! I don't know how you guys will feel about this, but I'm pretty sure this is my plan. Follow me so when I finally finish everything, you'll be notified! I'll try to get it all done… within the next year or two.
Also, as you can see, although Hana has a good relationship with Mikoto, her and Tatara are getting closer! I'm planning on pairing her and Tatara, but again it's not the main focus of this story. Maybe, when I have time in the future, I'll write a new story that focuses on her and Mikoto's relationship more. Maybe even pair them together. But for this one, nahhhh.