Title:ÊPavane
Authors:Stana and Kit
Dec.8, 2001 
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Something was certainly wrong, Audion guessed as he watched the Earth chosen 
pitched forward. Then he felt the wave of energy, a sporadic inferno of magma 
and chilling burn. The avatar of fire was freed for certain, he thought as 
he moved forward with what seemed like infinite slowness. The timeless feeling 
passed as suddenly as it had come, and he sprinted to the girlÕs side in an 
instant. 

"Chosen, " the elementalist gently gripped the back of her raised shoulder, 
"Chosen are you well?" The girl only mumbled softly and incoherently through 
her lips. Audion gently raised her and leaned her against his chest, cradling 
her head against his shoulder while holding her chin up to face him. 
"Fire is released. Concentrate on your own element, not Fire, or youÕll burn 
yourself on its essence."

Her eyes were not even half-mast, glazed and empty. Audion delicately caressed 
the paling, freckled cheek with his palm, making sure to comfortably support 
her weight with his other arm. The last thing he needed was two unconscious, 
incoherent charges. His brow furrowed, and he concentrated the emptiness inside 
on the wealth of fire magic around them, creating a shell of the void around 
them to lessen the impact and flux into the earth chosen. Hopefully the brief 
reprieve would give her a chance to come out of her swoon. 


The intensity of the heat around her lessened, flickered. One of her hands 
strayed tentatively to her cheek, and she flinched at the chill touch of her 
fingers. 


Then the flood of raging flame slammed into her again and she gasped, 
pupils shrinking eyelashes sweeping along ashen, shadow chalked flesh. 
An exaggerated shudder as her other hand reached blindly out, to be gripped 
and held in an icy grip. 


*your own element...* she heard dimly. 


::Concentrate on your own element:: Stana heard again, the voice ricocheting 
in her mind. She tried, shaking her head, or trying to, fighting to stand, 
or at least intending to. But nothing seemed ready to respond. All there was, 
was the voice in her head, and the dull burning. It was so hot. Why was it hot? 
Where was she? 


Slowly the answer came, but gave her no comfort. She was in the temple of 
fire, and her element had no sway here, under the wings of the phoenix. 
This was the god of fire Audion had spoken of, and he was flying free within 
the walls of stone. 


In the elemental ring, the cycle of life, earth covered fire, but was 
scorched to ash...


"Clip," she whispered, in echo of an earlier plea; one where the Unicorn 
was still alive and able to assist "Clip help me." 
Audion frowned, she was getting worse, and even delirious. It appeared 
that gentility was the incorrect choice then. The hand that had been courteous 
and tame left her cheek and she was lifted away from the chilled support of 
the elementalistÕs body. The heat in her mind exploded violently in her body, 
swelling and ebbing against the side of her face with a sharp crack. 
"Control your senses." AudionÕs hand swung back in reverse, hitting the other 
cheek harshly as well, leaving the girl with matching red welts. He held her 
there upright, his expression inimical.


The image of the phoenix shattered against two sharp staccato flashes of pain. 
The fire wavered and sank as she gasped. 


"oh god!" she panted "oh god this hurts! What's happening?"


"The power of the Fire avatar has been released." Audion repeated, his voice 
coming from a distance, but clear to her otherwise ringing ears. "In this place, 
the element has magnified power and is overshadowing yours, if you do not 
concentrate, you will surely suffer worse."


"There's *worse*?!" she answered, feeling dimly the impression of his hold on 
her. "What could be worse than feeling like I'm about to turn into a pile 
of cinders?"


"Actually doing so." he answered with a frown. 


She chuckled grittily, ending in a shiver. "Can you help me? What do I do?"
"Focus inward, on your power, on the potency of the marble, the structure 
of the building and its capacity to contain. It is marble, a jewel of your 
element. It contains fire, houses it, nurtures it then smothers it. Smother 
the flames in your breast and in your mind, quiet the spark until a later 
time. Feel your immortality of spirit, and the kiss of your mother, Queen 
Geanitoah. She came before, and will exist long after. " The elementalistÕs 
eyes saddened at the name of the deity, at his lack of being able to call her 
capacity to blanket and comfort her follower. He settled for a more permanent 
shield of void and stopped the flux of fire into her altogether to give her 
the chance to acclimate. He grimace at the sudden increase of magic into 
himself, a flux of magic he already had. His gaze darkened, and he hissed 
through his clenched teeth, "I will slowly reintroduce you to the flow, you 
have a minute before I will start. Focus."

Her fingers bit into the arm still holding on to her, her nails digging into 
the bared flesh. For a moment she felt free of the pressure, but the crushing 
weight of guilt replaced it as she saw Audion's expression darken with effort 
and restraint. 


The mention of Queen Geanitoah brought an un-goddess like image. It brought 
instead the memory of her own mother. It was only fitting. Her god was not 
the goddess of this world. She felt the kiss of her mortal mothers' lips on 
her forehead and blinked back the tears of remembrance. But in that sorrow 
she found some determination, and her resolve solidified.


*Focus.* she agreed, casting her eyes to the ground, trying to feel the 
coolness of the marble stone under her feet. She tried to let it become a part 
of her, the cool veins of white running through her body, carrying strength 
and hardness. She tried to let it build in her, a wall, a pillar that could 
help her stand. 


Her own pain brought her up and she hitched her breath into a small gasp 
as a backflow of the burn washed into her psyche. Gritting her teeth she 
forced past it, through it, trying to reach back to the cool stone underneath. 


She remembered Sullam telling her that pain could be controlled because 
the mind registered pain to begin with. if you could out-think it, you 
could channel it elsewhere. Slowly she reached down into some secret part 
of her, into the part of her that held the secret memory of S'Kaes' 
Earthen cavern, and she placed herself there.


The phoenix beat its wings against the wall she had built up, and it 
became the easiest thing in the world to do at that moment, for her to 
merely bend her thoughts outward and repel it. 


Stana opened her eyes, staring intently in front of her as if she could 
still see the fiery talons, feel the slight heat against her already 
inflamed cheeks. 


Slowly she removed her hand from the grip she had on Audion, not noting 
the deep impressions she had marked in his flesh, nor the blood. Still 
gazing eye to eye with the bird, she pushed herself away from him and 
stood alone. 


The pressure around her increased dramatically, the walls in her mind 
bent, turning inward against her, and she felt sweat rolling down her 
face. The heat began to grow, to envelope again, then suddenly the flame 
bird looked up, and soared through the ceiling, taking the fire and pressure 
with it. 


For the second time that hour, Stana nearly fell over. This time from shock 
of effort and nausea. 

Audion seethed, "Damnit woman, how could you possibly be so weak?" He released 
the void-shell, she was not doing her part, only crumbling in the face of 
adversary. "It is little wonder why you had need of a guardian, and of why 
that guardian is dead! Erect your column of force and be your own brace for 
once." His flame ring was flashing madly. Audion sneered, holding it in check. 
The extra power may become useful soon, considering all the hostilities that had 
been erupting. He stood, looming above the girl disgust plainly on his pale 
features. 

At the mention of Clip, Stana flushed nearly bloodless, but then blood 
suffused her face and she glared angrily at Audion. 


"How *dare* you!" she said, her voice flush with emotion. The moisture in her 
eyes were more from anger than anything else, and did not fall, but brightened 
her gaze until it made her earthy hazel eyes sparkle like jewels.

"Clip is dead because of Chaos! He died protecting you as well as me, and 
you dare deride his memory with your haughtiness?" She straightened her 
legs, which felt unreal and rubbery. "And you call me weak? You don't know 
a goddamned thing about me! You don't know where I have been, what I have 
done, or just how fed up I am with this whole "prophecy" business. You come 
across me when I'm being half driven mad by your "goddess" and you *dare* 
call me weak?!"


She advanced a step until she was nearly face to face with him, her 
head tilted back "Everything! Every damned thing that this whole world 
has asked of me I have done! I've been driven willy nilly across this 
continent, my own desires placed upon hold to dance the pretty waltz you 
all have played out for me." 


Her face was inches from his, but he hadn't moved in the face of her rage. 
"I've been shot at, hacked at, impaled, nearly fried to a crisp, suffocated, 
forced to crawl among dead bodies, face their dead eyes, I've been forced 
to try and tackle a power I don't even have a *clue* how to control, or 
how to work-save in brief moments of madness where all hell broke loose, 
causing people to *die*, and you sit there and *dare* judge me?!"


She stood back, and restrained the urge to slap him, knowing he would dodge, 
and she would be more a fool. "Well as to your opinion, oh high and mighty 
elementalist, I say this - to hell with your gods, and to hell with you! "

Audion smiled, demoniacal and grim, his tone incisive, "I dare, girl. And 
you will be asked to do much more then you have already martyred yourself 
for, and you will do all of it. You will perform this little waltz that was 
pushed upon you because if you do not then everything will die, and wonÕt you 
enjoy having that fault on your shoulders? You will do as you are set because 
you are below the gods, be they mine or yours, and apparently they have agreed 
that this is your purpose and your fate." His hand gripped around her throat 
with the speed and accuracy of a cobra, and the intensity of his eyes was 
hypnotic. "I have told you everyone has pain. This is the last I will repeat 
that. To live is to be mad, learn that lesson as well. I have killed, have 
kissed the dead, have danced in their midst. I harbor what isnÕt, and walk 
amongst strangers. I can judge you, and what I see hasnÕt been impressive 
until this little sudden flash of strength in anger. YouÕd do well to keep 
it up, or I will grow quickly tired of you." 

Her neck felt the faintest hints of the death-like cold that had flared in 
her arm and chest so long ago when heÕd grabbed her arm at the inn. Then he 
released her, pushing her back away from him with an air of superiority and 
command worthy of French aristocracy.

"Your threats mean nothing to me at this point!" she shot back. "I'm no one's 
martyr-and certainly not yours! This world can save itself, and good riddance to 
it! And the last time I remember our little "exchange"" she snarled, flashing 
a glance at his arm "you were the one to turn tail and run! Don't think you 
can push me around the dance floor, Audion. You will find my steps are way too 
different than yours."

"What do you expect of me? Do you wish to see me shake the foundations of this 
building? Should I call the earth to swallow us all? I can't do that! Maybe 
someone with affinity to all the elements does not have the problem I am- namely 
being I-have-no-idea-what-I-am-doing. I don't come from a world where this stuff 
is taught with the ability to count and write! For the sake of our argument, 
I managed to stand, even for a little bit, the power of the flame god isn't 
torching me to a crisp. SO then, what is it that you are trying to do? What 
sort of pavane are you stepping to?"

"You can spout your deadly poison however you want to, infect the very air with 
its bile, but you will not find that your judgements touch me. You cannot weigh 
what you do not know! And - and - God!" she turned abruptly, striding across the 
room and looking over Shinji for a moment before coming back to glare at him 
"You are utterly the most self absorbed, pompous, egotistical ass I have yet 
the pleasure of getting my butt saved by. But you deride the memory of my guardian 
again, I shove my alicorn up your pale ass-got it?" she stopped took a deep 
breath and coughed "I'm done now, thanks."

He closed his eyes, smile not fading, then returned to his guarding place against 
the wall "Egotistical? You compliment me, girl. It seems, Chosen, that I have 
already Ôpushed you around the dance floorÕ. Indeed, we are done now. " She 
was doing better at least, he thought, in her anger. Better then searching 
for her element. He was used to her sentiments now, and this fury was certainly 
more familiar. Inside the void-pane, there seemed a sense of pleasure from the 
negativity. It was happier for the break in the threatening pleasant turn of 
their relation. In his own self, it sickened his stomach, though there was little 
else to be done. "The question remains, where is Fire now that she is free?"

Stana looked up at the question, her eyes trailing to Shinji when suddenly 
she started to laugh. Her eyes watered up gleefully and she put a hand to 
her face, giggling. 


Audion looked at her as if she had lost her mind, causing her to laugh harder. 
Suddenly she got up and bowed to him. "Very good turn about the floor - now 
it's midnight and we must turn into pumpkins. " she laughed gain, giving a 
small spin "we're a fine pair, arguing in the middle of the temple while Teri 
is who knows where, and R-2 is likely still skulking about. You would think 
that we had better things to do. And nevermind - but you still owe me a trip to 
the sea." 

The elementalist stared at her incredulously. "You run hot and cold faster then 
the seasons of this continent." 

The girl smiled again, and hummed.Ê THen turning about again, 
"Only when I have time to think of intentions and actions! Come holmes! 
The game is afoot!"