2003-12-21 - 11:03 p.m.

(I'm really happy with how this turned out, but I haven't gotten a chance to edit it yet. So, be on guard, I've spotted some pretty hideous errors.)

Jade

"Yes! Who else could it be?" She gestured towards Lance and the heroes inside the prison. "Them? Don't make me laugh, they couldn't have even found this place without my help."

"I don't understand, why would you do this to your own kind?!"

"My own kind? Those who have hunted down my people and taken them to the brink of extinction?" As she spoke the color seemed to be blown away from her hair and wings leaving them jet black. Realization dawned on Scarlet.

"A Dark Faerie... but they were all destroyed."

"Not all. My name is Jade, and I alone remain, but that is enough for our revenge. Defenseless now, you will be destroyed by the Humans just as we were destroyed by you." Scarlet was desperately trying to form a plan. She could free the others if she only had her staff. But it was inaccessible, Iris, or rather Jade, was between it and her. Perhaps if she could keep her talking.

"But your people served Rhadamanthus. He was invading our home along with the rest of the world. We couldn't just forgive you when he was defeated. The servants of darkness don't deserve to live." Scarlet spoke with all the hatred she had learned for the Dark Faeries while growing up. Jade raged.

"And did my parents serve Rhadamanthus, did my brother, only an infant when your people slaughtered him, pay homage to the dark lord?" Tears wet her cheeks. "No, but that didn't matter. All you saw were the black wings and you assumed we were evil." A child... Scarlet had never considered just how far the Faeries had gone to end the threat of the Black Faeries. In her mind, she could not believe them to be anything but evil, yet to condemn a child. Her faith in the teachings of her people began to crack. She could not lose control now though, too much was at stake. She tried to move around the room inconspicuously as she spoke.

"Even if what you say is true, why prove us right? Those purges were generations ago, why punish even those who had nothing to do with it?"

"I have no choice. Your people sealed their fate when they refused to forgive us for our mistakes." There was no uncertainty in her voice. "I cannot forgive them now." Scarlet looked to the cage and saw Raviht looking at her. Her experiences with the heroes came to her looking at his gaze. All this time, she was so sure that they were not to be trusted. She had almost been happy when she thought her fears had been justified by the attack on the Faerie's Kingdom.

It wasn't them at all though. All this time she had spent worrying about Humans and Felis and Dwarves, and turned out to be another Faerie who betrayed her, who betrayed her people. Looking back, she realized that she hadn't been fair at all to Raviht. He really was a good person, if she'd only given him a chance. Seeing the look on his face, she realized that even then he believe in her, the she would do the right thing. But what could she do?

"If your people truly were good, they would not have wanted this. No Faerie will ever be able to forgive you after this, and you the last of your kind. Now what will be left." As she spoke the words, Scarlet realized that she really meant them. Couldn't Dark Faeries exist along side the rest? Why should it have to come to this? She just had a little ways to go before her staff would be within reach.

"You're a fool, for my wings alone they could never forgive me. But enough talk, the Humans will arrive soon, and I can't have you intefering with my plans." She raised her cane in an incantation. Scarlet didn't have any more time, she flew for her staff. It was too far, Jade saw what she was after and with her magic she sent the staff hurtling beyond Scarlets grasp. "Not so fast." Then with a swift movement of her staff, Scarlet felt a great force knock her back against the far wall, pinning her there. Jade gazed over her menacingly.

"As a Faerie, the use of Space magic comes to me quite naturally of course. But did you know that as a Black Faerie I can bend the powers of death to my will as well?" Jade began an incantation as she continued to hold Scarlet to the wall. Without her staff she was powerless to stop her. All she could was wait for the next blow to come. She knew it would be her last.

She looked again to the barrier that the heroes were trapped in. Raviht was striking the sides with his axe in a futile effort to escape. But this time it wasn't him that caught her attention. She saw Lance sitting off to one side, staring at her. As she met his eyes, he suddenly closed his eyes and his arms went slack to his side. Was she just remembering it, or could she hear his voice again, "I can see your Will... it's so strong just like the other heroes. But you're hardly even using it with the staff." Those words, the peril that she was in, suddenly she felt something within herself she had never noticed before. It had always been there, but for some reason she hadn't ever perceived it before. Even now it was only vague, but it was enough; it was power.

She concentrated her entire being on it and her purpose. Suddenly Jade's hold on her was broken, knocking her back as Scarlet fell to the ground. Even as she fell, she reached out with her hand to grasp the willow staff as it returned to her purely through the force of her will. As she grabbed it in her hand, she stood up focusing her power in it. She brandished the staff and barrier around the cage disappeared. As Raviht swung at the edges once more, the glass cracked and then shattered around them.

Jade stood up and faced Scarlet. "You!... How?" She gripped her cane fiercely. "I won't let you ruin this!" Rigju lept forward to immediately, katanas drawn. With a flash we was sent flying across the room as if hitting another barrier around Jade. When their vision cleared, Jade could no longer be seen.

"Where'd she--" Tomir started, but Scarlet cut her off.

"Don't let your guard down, she's still here. She's using the space magic to hide her body." Her eyes darted about the enclosure rapidly. "Look out!"

High above them in the chamber they could see the tip of Jade's cane and surrounded by a glowing black light. It formed into a ball and shot down among the heroes. Tomir pushed Lance from the blast path, Silva flew from it towards its source, and the other heroes fled to safety. The orb detonated on impact sending shrapnels of the tree fying through the air and knocking over one of the many desks covered in scrolls.

Raviht shouted to the rest. "Someone needs to warn the other Faeries. Lance, Tomir, Rigju, go to the king, the rest of us can handle this." They didn't question his orders but left for the entrance at once. Rigju was first to reach it, followed by Tomir. But as Lance was crossing the threshold the ground rose beneath him to close the entrance. It sent him flying off to the side, and he felt a sharp cold pain as his head hit the edge of a sturdy bench. The pain lasted only a second, follow by a black emptiness. He thought he might have heard the Raviht and Silva shout through the fog before all was silent.

The heroes saw Lance fall to the ground unconscious. "Gelandel!" Raviht began to call, but the Muse was already floating to Lance's side. Silva, was suddenly knocked out of the air as Jade's cane appeared once again. Raviht was under Silva immediately to catch her fall, the force of her momentum sent him sprawling wit her. Meanwhile Scarlet watched as another orb formed at the end of Jade's cane.

"I've got you now!" She thinks. She darts to Lance and Gelandel and raises her staff just as the orb was released. Concentrating she swings her staff at the ball forming a reflective barrier in front of the three of them. The upon meeting it the dark mass almost seems to freeze before hurtling back towards its source at many times its original speed. There was a great dark explosion in the air and Jade appeared screaming in agony letting go of her cane as she fell supine to the foundation of the tree. She kicked her feet and stretched out her arms, struggling to move, her breath was coming out in short gasps. And then life fled her altogether, and she was still. She layed there on the ground her wings crumpled in a black heap, like some unfortunate insect.

---(Ommission)---

"What happened back there, when I lost it for that moment?"

"You mean you don't remember?"

"No, well, I remember something. I felt like I had escaped for just a moment."

"I don't understand it either."

"Strange. Ouch, why is my head throbbing so much?"

"You hit your head, remember. You must be about to wake up."

"Yeah... I think I hear something."

"Well then, open your eyes."

As Lance was lying there, he realized he felt warm. Vague lights danced across his vision. It took him a moment to realize his eyes were still closed. He could hear something, it was a voice, pure and sweet. It was singing, an beautiful song, yet the voice was so sorrowful. His head hurt so much, it took him a moment to realize that it was resting on something soft, and thin fingers stroked his hair. He finally opened his eyes to see a figure looking down over him. As his vision cleared, he made out two eyes the color of flames looking down at him. As he looked into them, he could see no fear or hate or distrust. She was smiling, and there was only concern in her eyes; concern and tears. He felt fall on his forhead, it was still warm. "It's alright," he said, as he closed his eyes again. He found he was still very tired, and listening to that song, he was soon asleep once again.

previous - next