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Chapter Two
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The hall of the ancient round table of Mosel was cold, despite the scorching desert heat outside. Gooseflesh formed on Fayt�s arms, though he was not certain if it was the chill or what he had planned to do that induced it.
As the group made its way down the dark stairs, Fayt lingered behind and waited for everyone to disappear into the blackness. Maria had triggered the lightstone from the front, casting long shadows over the stone of the cracked stairway. He took a deep breath and grabbed hold of Albel�s right arm before the trailing man could follow the rest. The swordsman whirled around angrily cast a disbelieving look at Fayt�s hand.
The blue-haired boy released Albel�s arm instantly.
�What�s the meaning of this?� Albel asked suspiciously. No one had yet noticed that the two weren�t following.
�Whatever happens in there, I believe in you.� Fayt said as if it were well rehearsed. And indeed it was. That morning in the bath room had left him feeling edgy, like there was something he simply had to say to Albel before they found Owner�s sphere. Before everything came to that one final moment when all their hard work, the extent of their belief, was put to the test. He had run over several different things to say in his mind as they made their way across the burning sand before choosing this one. But now that he had said it, he was not so sure it was what he had meant to say. It seemed ridiculous once spoken.
Albel raised an eyebrow and said nothing.
He didn�t know whether to feel hurt or relieved. Instead, Fayt felt like an idiot. Growing pink in the cheeks, he nodded shortly in affirmation and began to retreat toward the stairs. He was startled to feel Albel�s bone-crushing grip close around his wrist and yank him back. He was at a loss for words or even thoughts when his back slammed against the unyielding wall. The impact stole his breath and bruised his spine.
Albel held his wrist fast, even when Fayt was trapped between stone and the swordsman�s strong body. Green eyes looked with panic into red ones. The Elicoorian was leaning his weight into Fayt�s body and hovering close. Even if Fayt could breathe, he wouldn�t remember how. Albel�s knee was wedged between his thighs, the man�s breath swirling lightly over his mouth. Fayt waited, his sore muscles tight in a mixture of fright and desire.
But Albel�s face wore no expression, gave no answers. �I don�t need your confidence.� Though his tone was stern, the sentiment was whispered. The biting mockery that normally pulsated within every word that issued from Albel�s mouth was subdued into something strangely sensual when its volume was taken down.
The only thing Fayt felt when Albel released his aching wrist and moved toward the stairs was disappointment. Maybe some confusion as well. He rubbed the sore skin that was already showing signs of a nasty bruise and began to breathe again.
�Yo, Fayt! You comin� or what?� Cliff�s voice boomed from the base of the stairs.
Fayt hurried to join his party, convincing himself that forgetting about what had just happened and moving on with the job was the only way he�d be able to keep his mind on the battle at hand.
They had come far. Suffered anguish and cruel losses. Fought, fell, and stood back up too many times to count. And now they were there. The end of it all.
Fayt had never believed in the existence of so many stairs before that day, though the burning in his legs told him that he would stay away from them for a while thereafter. That is, if they survived this. He clutched the hilt of his weapon tightly in his sweating palms, watching the extravagantly clad young man in the center of the room closely. The handsome blonde was not exactly the picture he had in mind for the Creator of all things he had ever known.
Luther tilted his head back and gave each of them a cold look of disparagement. �I don�t know how you managed to get this far, but be assured that you�ll go no further.�
Blair stood at a safe distance and pleaded with her brother to rethink what he was doing. Luther looked as though he would spit on her for a moment before ignoring her in favor of the others.
�Realize, that I created you all. You are nothing more than subservient strings of information made for the entertainment of others. I am your God!�
�You�re wrong! We�re more than just data: we have thoughts and feelings!� Sophia cried.
Luther laughed. �What nonsense. Programs have no souls.� His lips curled smugly when he looked at a disbelieving Fayt.
�That�s a lie!� Fayt bit. �We lead real lives just like you.�
�Pretentious�� Luther seemed to be considering something. He was watching the blue-haired boy with eerie calm.
Cliff noticed this and ground his teeth. �And just what do you plan on doing about it?�
Luther�s stare never left Fayt�s face. �That depends.�
Albel�s eyes narrowed dangerously. �On what?� He could hardly mask the suspicion from his voice. Something was not right, and he could tell from Luther�s expression that he would not like whatever would come from the programmer�s mouth.
Luther�s blue eyes flickered disdainfully over Albel�s. �On what your leader decides.�
Fayt blinked. Was it really a possibility to reason with this man instead of fighting him? It sounded too good to be true. �What do you mean?�
With a flourish, Luther turned away and approached the terminal. Everyone stared at him in anticipation. Even Blair was on her toes. Suddenly Luther rounded on them and folded his arms. �I�ll give you two choices. You can reject my proposition and face deletion, or you can accept and continue running, though under certain conditions.�
�What�s the proposition?� Fayt asked.
The reply was delivered without hesitation. �You must become my personal subordinate.�
Everyone was silent and nearly every mouth was agape. Only Albel registered what Luther had said, and his teeth were grinding. Finally, seeing the addressed was still dumb with shock, he spat: �What the hell are you trying to pull?�
Luther snorted. �I�m sure my meaning was clear.�
�Y-you�re insane!� Cliff sputtered.
�Wait,� Fayt said, furrowing his brow. �You�re saying that you�ll stop all this if I just promise to go with you?�
Luther gave a somewhat assenting gesture by jerking his head slightly to the side.
Green eyes closed briefly. ��What are the conditions?�
�Fayt!� Maria exclaimed and turned to face him. �You can�t be seriously considering this guy�s offer!�
�No! I won�t let you go!� Sophia was already on the verge of tears as she tugged on his arm.
Cliff placed a sturdy hand on Fayt�s shoulder. �Listen, this is crazy. Let�s just take him out!�
Fayt�s eyes opened wildly. �But if I can end this right now without anyone else getting hurt, why shouldn�t I?�
�How do we know he�s telling the truth?� Adray piped in from behind.
�My conditions,� Luther said as if he hadn�t been interrupted, �are but one. Come with me, and your friends here may continue to exist in a new universe of my choosing.�
�What?!� Peppita cried. �But what about our friends and families?�
�Everything else will be erased.�
�That�s not fair!�
Luther glared at her. �I feel it is a very generous offer.�
�For the likes of you, maybe.� Cliff cracked his knuckles.
Luther approached Fayt slowly until he stood within inches of the boy. Fayt refused to flinch or take even one step away. But his grounded stance was shaken when the blond man reached out and seized his jaw roughly. �Well? What do you say?�
Fayt glared and everyone braced to attack. When he didn�t answer, Fayt was shocked senseless as Luther�s lips suddenly pressed against his. He hardly felt the sword slipping from his grasp. Hardly heard the metallic clattering of steel against the floor. Hardly sensed anything at all. It was if the world around him disappeared and only the cruel kiss and rough hands on his shoulders preserved his existence.
�Bastard!� Cliff shouted and sprung toward the pair with his fists balled tightly. He was only stopped from slamming one into the side of Luther�s face by a long blade already pointed at the programmer�s jugular. Cliff nearly fell over from the balance loss when he saw the bloodthirsty grimace on Albel�s face, the swordsman�s body crouched low in order to drive the blade in with more force when the cue came. Cliff was nearly as speechless as Fayt.
Luther felt the prick of sharp steel against his skin and slowly drew out of his forced embrace with Fayt. With even greater caution, he lifted his hands into the air to illustrate his willingness to surrender. But his voice reflected none of that. �Strangely passionate a reaction, wouldn�t you say?� His blue eyes slit and swiveled to look at Albel from the side. �Does this boy mean so much to you?�
Albel growled. �I was just thinking how nice a maggot like you would look covered in blood.�
Luther smirked and looked at a recovering Fayt. �Not nearly as good as he would, I imagine.� By this time, Fayt had viciously wiped his lips on the back of his hand, his green eyes poison upon Luther as he retrieved his sword.
�Shut up, sicko.� Cliff spat. �No bargains, no deals. We�re taking you out. Now!�
�By all means, try. You won�t win. He�s already mine.�
The confident smile on Luther�s pale lips triggered something in Albel. His blood boiled and he simply had to see red spilling. Normally during moments like this he didn�t care whose it was, as long as it flowed freely enough to slake his thirst. But now there was something that tamed him from going completely berserk, stopped him from becoming the monster that, despite any rumors that claimed otherwise, had earned him his infamous nickname. He just wanted to see Luther dead. Nothing else mattered.
But as he moved to plunge the blade into the Creator�s throat, the blonde swiftly maneuvered out of its way. Luther chuckled.
�It�s not wise to attack rashly.� Lifting a hand, Luther summoned a ball of light that sped from the bleeding floor into Albel�s right arm.
The swordsman couldn�t stifle a scream of pain and dropped his blade, his steel-encased arm twitching to instinctively clutch the wounded one. But he couldn�t. Instead, he growled and dropped to his knees, blood spilling thickly from the charred laceration.
The response from the group was synchronized. Weapons were drawn and raised, spells were muttered, and feet rushed in Luther�s direction. But the Creator swept his arm in a wide arc to dispel more condensed energy. The burning globes connected with each of their targets and everyone was knocked back. Everyone but Fayt, who had foreseen what was about to happen and had already began concentrating his will into casting a healing spell. But Luther had swung out with his staff to catch Fayt in the back and halted the execution of that spell.
Fayt dropped to one knee, the tip of his sword bracing him from falling. He coughed and a small stream of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
�Please sit still. I�d hate to have to kill you while I terminate your friends,� Luther said to the blue-haired boy.
�You�ll�pay�for that,� Albel said between pants.
Luther swirled around and quickly sent the swordsman onto his back with a sharp foot in the chest. That foot wormed its way to the faintly smoking wound on Albel�s arm. The Elicoorian vainly clamped his teeth like a vise to keep from screaming when Luther dug and swiveled his heel in the marred flesh. His cries echoed between the constant ticking of the clocks that lined the space.
�You fail to convince me that I�ll do any such thing. You are all weak,� Luther mocked.
Seeing Albel�s agonized face accompanied by the groans of pain from the others behind him, Fayt felt himself seething with rage. The power that was instilled within his body stirred, though he could not find the will to release it. Deep inside, he feared that he would ultimately destroy himself and the others if he were to unchain such destruction. Fayt automatically drew back his arms and plunged his blade through Luther�s turned back.
Staggering slightly, Luther turned slowly to face his assailant. He wore a cryptic smile under the blood that streamed from between his lips. Fayt saw red gushing in pulses from the programmer�s belly. From the corner of his eye, he could see it pooling on the floor around Luther�s feet.
Luther shook his head at Fayt. �I warned you, boy, and you should have listened. Now, I must eliminate you.�
When Luther raised his hand to summon something from the floor, Fayt was already too paralyzed with pain to see what it was, or if it was even embodied. Something had a hold of him, crushed him, squeezed out his life second by second with every flex of its muscles.
He forced his eyes open, teeth clenched fiercely against the pain, and watched as Luther staggered toward one of the terminals. The man�s eyes were blazing with madness as his fingers flew over the keys. Fayt couldn�t tell what Luther was doing, but it was clear that its intent was malicious.
Luther eventually slowed his movements and finally dropped his arms down to either side to support his slumping weight. He breathed hard before whirling around and shooting a wild stare at Fayt. Even in his present condition, Fayt could tell that Luther was completely gone.
�So be it. But when this program is set in motion, even if you succeed in destroying me now, I will win. My will shall forever live on! Now, give in to absolute pain!�
Fayt couldn�t hear himself screaming. He only felt agony like his mortal mind could never imagine. When blackness crept over his conscious eye, he was certain he would die. The darkness quickly consumed everything, and Fayt fell limp.
When he awoke, Fayt was surprised to find white light glaring from a clear blue sky above. He blinked several times to adjust his eyes. Sophia�s blurred face moved into his line of vision.
�Am I � dead?�
The girl smiled. �No. You�re fine. We�re all fine.�
Fayt sat up and was surprised to find that he was in no pain. He looked around, gradually focusing. �Then what happened? I was sure I blacked out.�
Sophia nodded. �Yes, Fayt, you did. But we did it anyway. We beat the Creator.� She paused to look at something behind him. �But it was mostly because of Cliff and Albel. They saved us.�
�Yo! You�re finally awake!� Cliff called and stepped up behind Fayt.
The blue-haired boy stood hastily and looked with such naked relief on Cliff that the blonde took a step back. But when Fayt saw Albel approach just behind, his happiness was transferred to the swordsman.
Sensing Fayt�s overpowering emotions, Albel stopped and said, �If you even attempt to embrace me, I�ll run you through.�
His voice was devoid of tyranny, though Fayt was not willing to try it anyway. He pounced on Cliff instead. �I�m so glad you�re all okay.�
Cliff stuck his tongue out at a wincing Albel and ruffled Fayt�s blue hair. �Hey, it was no sweat.�
�Somehow I don�t believe you. But how come we�re not hurt? And, where in the world did we end up?� Fayt released his arms from around the muscular man and looked at the rest of the group approaching them.
�We�re not really sure just yet,� Maria said.
�At least we�re still alive. It was all because we prayed so hard,� Peppita informed him.
�And we believed,� Sophia added.
�Still,� Maria said, �I can�t help but feel like something�s not right. What did Luther mean by what he said about that program?�
�Who cares? The nutjob�s dead now,� Cliff said. �More importantly we should be thinking about getting back.�
�Back?� Fayt asked.
�Yeah. Come on, Fayt. I�m sure everyone else believed just as much as we did. If so, then everything must be back to normal. Your mom is probably worried sick,� Sophia said and took his arm.
�And the troupe is probably wondering where I�m at,� Peppita said and frowned.
�Then let�s get moving. We�ll find a way,� Mirage said.
Everyone looked expectant, but Fayt couldn�t help feeling sad. Now that he had seen what he had seen, learned all that he had learned, how could he go back and study symbology? The footprints he was meant to follow wound up at a dead end. His father was gone. He could never be the way he was before all of this happened.
For some unknown reason, he looked up at Albel. The Elicoorian was the only one not watching him. Albel�s eyes were far away, staring blankly at the trees. The sight made Fayt�s heart sink. What would the swordsman do now? He couldn�t possibly go back to Elicoor and be content. He�d be completely alone.
�Fayt?� Sophia asked and rested her hand on his shoulder.
The blue-haired boy snapped out of his thoughts and looked down at her. �Okay. Let�s go.�
As the Diplo�s landing blew the grasses violently around their feet, the group watched the giant ship. Sophia and Fayt sat separated from the rest, talking about what they would do once they got back home. But a moment of silence fell between their good-natured conversing. Sophia suddenly pulled Fayt in and hugged him earnestly.
�I was having bad dreams, Fayt. I kept waking up thinking you were dead.�
She said it so out of the blue that Fayt didn�t react.
�It was such a horrible feeling; I cried every night. That�s why I was talking to Mirage in the store that time. She�d heard me and made me tell her what was wrong. I felt embarrassed, but I actually really needed to tell somebody.� Sophia paused and brushed a hair from her eyes.
Fayt was still surprised, but managed to cohere her words. �You had nightmares every night?�
The brunette nodded. �Every time it happened the same way. You�re fighting someone whose face I can�t see, and the sun turns bright red in the sky, like it�s bleeding. The next thing I know, you�re falling�. I thought that those dreams were trying to warn me. I didn�t want to believe it. But when I saw you go unconscious, I �.� Her face crunched as though she would suddenly cry.
Fayt pulled her into a tight hug. �It�s okay, Sophia. They were just dreams. Everything�s over now.�
�I know,� she said. �But it scared me. I don�t ever want to lose you.�
The ship settled onto the grass of the wide plain and the doors opened. The group, having all agreed to be transported to their own worlds, began to board.
�Let�s go, they�re waiting for us,� Fayt said and helped her up.
From the time of their departure from the place where he had awakened to their arrival in the plain from which Mirage contacted the Diplo, everyone had been talking amongst one another animatedly. Plans for the future, resolutions, the things they missed. Only Albel was silent the entire time, and Fayt was painfully aware that he was the only one who had noticed or even cared.
Now, as he boarded the ship, he was beginning to rethink his trip back to Earth.