by SunnyJustice » Fri Apr 14, 2017 3:35 pm
The Sanctuary
Rowan smiled in an encouraging way as Xia enthusiastically devoured what was on her plate. He couldn't see it, but judging by the delectable smell, it was rich in melted cheddar cheese.
"Having fun?" He chuckled warmly. Xia was going to get more food, which made Rowan glad. He was happy people were eating well. They needed to be strong and in their best shape.
Lily was making scooping motions, and Rowan guessed she was getting food for both of them. He accepted what she handed to him, which seemed to be a plate. It was slightly warm from the food on top. Rowan followed Lily to the couch, where he sat down beside her and put the plate on his lap.
"Thank you," He said, gently reaching out to touch her arm. "I'm alright, and I feel a lot better since you're here. You make me much braver. How are you doing though?"
Gavotte politely but quickly started to eat everything on his plate. He finished off the bread before starting on the salad and pasta. It not only filled his belly, but also made him feel warm from the inside. He wasn't quite a muscular or big person, and he was quite skinny. He did get cold easily.
He nodded to Jen when she suggested going back outside, but he didn't reply with words because his mouth was full. He didn't want to be rude or worse, have something fall out of his mouth!
Once he had cleaned off that plate, he set it down on the table. He was a growing boy and he had been very hungry. In Windwoods, he was well-fed and always got enough to eat. He wasn't used to missing a single meal, and now he didn't know how many he had skipped. It was good to finally fill his belly.
"Lead the way, sunshine," He said with a smile. After he ate, he always liked to get some fresh air. He was used to it because in Windwoods, he would join his dad on the roof and sunbathe.
He missed his father, but that just gave him more incentive to fight for Hesenia.
Timpani could feel her heart, made of steel forged in the depths of a volcano, melting at the sound of Mayne's soft voice. This must have been how her mother felt towards Juniper. On the outside she was all tough, but she just wanted to protect him. And inside she was just a teddy bear. She might have been made from cold metal, but right now she felt strangely warm and fuzzy. It wasn't normal for her.
"Now let's go eat," Timpani said with a warm smile as she took that last step forward, into the kitchen. Xia was already eating and so were the others.
"Finally come to join us, you adorable little chickadees?" Luno cooed, clasping his hands together. Timpani glared at him, but he met her gaze with a knowing wink. Boy was Timpani glad she wasn't her half-sister. It would suck to have that creepy mind-reader present in everybody's mind, but mostly in yours.
I can hear that, sweetie! Luno giggled. Why don't you ask Sunny when she comes back?
Think I will, Timpani retorted. She shook her head disapprovingly at the small man and walked towards the table, ignoring him in favor of the food. Now what to eat...
---
Birvale Beach
Everything was in a crimson haze. Solara knew she was dying, but she couldn't recover from a death directly caused by cold water. Her return would be delayed even if they killed her now. The longer she was exposed, and the more water was involved, the longer she would be out.
At least Agatha was gone. She had disappeared with a laugh as the bolts of electricity struck her. The beach had still been tainted by her presence, and her two attacks had crippled the Queen even further.
She wasn't fighting her strongest, Luno told her. She was using your protective instincts, so she could attack you and leave you weaker. She set both of us up.
The problem was, Luno couldn't read Agatha's mind. He had confided this to Solara a long time ago. But there was no time for agonizing over regrets now. Solara needed to die before the cold claimed her.
"... Find some driftwood," She told the teenagers calmly but quietly. Vivien didn't have her weapon. Neither did anyone else gathered here.
"I picked up this walking stick when we were in the forest," Waverly spoke up. He was holding up a long branch that was splintered at one end.
Solara turned to face him.
"... Stab me."
Waverly looked completely taken aback, and he stared at her in astonishment. His hands were trembling so hard that he ended up dropping his walking stick. Solara looked at each of the other teenagers in turn. This was wasting time, and she was running out of time fast...
"I'll do it," Samuel volunteered. He picked up the stick and grit his teeth. "Uhh, ready?"
She nodded. "... Take care of the Timekeepers. Protect them until I return."
"Understood." The redhead nodded solemnly as he stepped forward, then closed his eyes tightly and plunged the sharper, splintering end into her throat.
---
Celestial Tower
Cilan was asleep, deep in another memory.
The royal siblings were playing in this room, except it wasn't much fun for twelve-year-old Cilan. He had been duct-taped to the wall. There was a target right above his head, and his evil sister was chucking scary-looking big knives at the target. Cilan's mouth had even been duct-taped shut.
"Stop squirming!" Clotilda whined. "You know I never miss."
He wasn't so sure about this. What if she decided to miss on purpose!
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. What a relief.
"Coming, mom!" Clove said in a hurry. She quickly hid all the knives under the bed, including the ones already thrown. She untaped Cilan, took all the tape, and hid that under the bed too. Cilan glared at his evil sister. She ran to the door and yanked it open before their mother could rip the thing off its hinges, like that one time he had slipped in the bathroom and hit his head. He woke up in his mother's arms, while people were trying to fix the destroyed door.
Cilan was walking towards the door slowly. His sister wore a completely perplexed expression, but then she suddenly smiled. "Oh. I was really expecting Mom to come get us in trouble... I'm not doing anything bad, I swear! But come in, Amber..."
"Amber!" Cilan exclaimed and ran forward, almost crashing into his sister.
"Watch it, you ruffian!"
Cilan didn't even look at Clotilda. He tilted his head to one side. Something seemed different about Amber, and he frowned. "What's wrong, Am?"
---
The Underworld
Alastair wasn't sure where he was. He had never seen this place before, but it looked like some subdivision of the Underworld. Maybe he was dead. That would actually be a relief, considering what Agatha had planned for Hesenia. He feared facing a fate worse than death from her torture. Despite all he had done, Alastair knew Agatha would torment him to death just for kicks. Dying in his sleep would be much preferred.
There was only one door in front of him. Probably Zelkova was on the other side. He would apologize to the judge, then accept his eternal punishment. It couldn't be worse than what Agatha might have done. Maybe she would have kept him alive forever with her dark magic, and plunged him into a state of never-ending agony for her own amusement.
He placed his hand on the doorknob and took a deep breath. He turned it and slowly let the door creak open. It wasn't Zelkova on the other side, but rather his old friend Brennius. They had grown up together and collaborated from the beginning. Both of them had done horrible things, but none of the scale Agatha was planning.
"Brennius, long time no see." A tired smile crept onto Alastair's face. Bren would have been tough competition for the throne, but Alastair missed him anyway. As strong as he wanted to be, he was growing exhausted. He just needed support right now. Nobody could do this alone.
The usurper King was more than welcoming of his friend's embrace. He couldn't confide in anyone else. Not even his wife, who would lose all her respect in him. Alastair knew Atalanta was very finicky. He hadn't wanted to marry her, but his parents always planned he would. Alastair went through with the marriage as an effort to honor their wishes. He treated her the way they would have wanted him to, and he never took out his anger on her no matter how much he wanted to. Alastair knew he wasn't a good person, but there were some promises he would never break.
When Bren pulled back, Alastair met his friend's gaze firmly. What was about to be said was important. As he listened, it seemed all his suspicions were confirmed. He had already known Agatha was loose in Hesenia, and he had even made agreements with her. It was because of him that her power had increased to this point. Now in some way, he was connected with her. Solara was the only way Alastair could escape from this terrible situation. He couldn't just give up. He had taken Hesenia by force, but now the leadership was in his hands.
It was his responsibility to keep them safe. He was in Solara's position now, meaning he had to bear her burdens. Even if Alastair didn't get along with his son, Cyprian was all he had. Regina was still out there too, and Bren looked so determined to keep her safe. He was even threatening Alastair.
It was a good call to attention, as much as he was ticked off by it.
"I understand. I don't like it, but I understand." Alastair snarled and stood up straighter. "Thank you, Bren. Hesenia is my kingdom now. There is nothing left if Agatha wins, and I won't let her win."
He stepped back, and extended a hand firmly to shake. "She can try. Over my dead body."
Agatha was strolling along in the Underworld, finding this entire situation so funny. She could have killed every one of those idiotic teenagers on the beach. She could have left them alive, but attacked them with her dark magic so they would eventually fall under her control. That was what would happen to their precious little Sunny.
She had been slow on purpose, mocking them. Let those idiots think they could defeat her with a bit of water and a couple of sparks. Those three girls were pathetic. They would be just as pathetic at full power. It was laughable, and Agatha found it so funny, since they probably thought they could fight her now.
This was getting boring, watching these stupid mortals get tortured. Agatha was about to return to the living world when some other stupid mortal called her. She laughed and dragged Regina into a dream of the Underworld. Screams of tortured mortals echoed in the distance, and the air was thick, hot, and stifling.
"You need my help, kiddo?" Agatha cackled. "How sweet... what do you want? Power, love, revenge... I'll give it all to you. Just promise to be loyal to me, and only me."
This would be so funny. Agatha herself was the least loyal of all. No matter how faithful someone was to her, she would stab them in the back and laugh as they died. Eventually she would get rid of Regina too. Just dispose of her because it would be funny, watching the betrayal in her eyes as she slowly bled out. It was the funniest of all when it happened to these tall dumb blondes like this one. It would be even funnier if Regina actually trusted her. Breaking someone's trust and shattering all their hopes, now that as a real thrill.
"SUNNY."
She opened her eyes- her actual eyes. Solara had never been in the Underworld before, but she knew this place without being told its name. She could feel her mother nearby without having to hear her voice, too. Solara had been made from metal in Vulcana's forge, and she naturally sensed the iron-willed blacksmith's magnetic presence.
"... Mother?"
Heavy footsteps made the ground shake, and then Solara was being picked up in strong arms. Vulcana cradled her like Solara cradled anyone else.
Like mother, like daughter. You really are a chip off the old anvil, Luno giggled in her mind.
"LOOK AT ME," Vulcana demanded.
Solara looked up into her mother's eyes, deep russet with an inner ring of fiery gold. Vulcana's gaze held emotions so intense, Solara could not begin to imagine what they were like.
She's looking directly into your eyes, but it's not burning her. Luno's voice was no longer so cheerful. You were always too bright for even Vulcana. Sunny, I think there's something wrong.
A bearlike growl began to sound in her mother's chest. Still cradling Solara like a baby with one arm, she put her hand on the phoenix's forehead.
"JUNIPER, GET IN HERE NOW." Her booming voice made the entire place tremble violently.
Solara's father arrived almost immediately. "Vulcana, what's going on?" He rushed over in a hurry. Solara met his gaze too, which seemed to make him more worried.
"PUT YOUR HAND ON HER FOREHEAD," Vulcana ordered.
Juniper nodded and gently touched Solara's forehead with his palm. "Sunny, you're not as warm as usual. What's wrong?"
I'll explain everything to them. Luno promised.
Solara's parents listened silently to an unheard voice before Juniper finally spoke.
"We need to bring down Agatha quickly, before it's too late. I'm so sorry, Sunny."
Vulcana was more blunt. "YOU'RE BURNING OUT. YOU DON'T HAVE MUCH TIME."
"Five more minutes here," Juniper told her. "Then I have to send you back. Each time you return, Agatha will have a tighter hold on you. Please don't come back here until it's over."
"REMEMBER YOUR PURPOSE."
"... I made a promise. And I will never go back on my word." Solara assured her parents.
"GOOD."
