“So what now?” Aria asked her single partner. She and Cassandra had decided, at Cassandra’s urging, to search out and resurrect the water guardian, Abby, on their own, without the knowledge of their comrades. The two were standing on a beach, looking out from the white sand into the teal blue waters that reflected gray against the dim sky. Cassandra frowned, glancing at the crumpled piece of paper in her hand.
“This is the right place. I can sense her, but…” Honestly she had no clue where to look. There was nothing around them save the beach and the water, no small mound or sign of where the water guardian might be hidden. Aria thought to herself, gazing out at the water.
“Could she be in the water?” she asked. Cassandra looked at her, then out at the ocean.
“Maybe. It’s the only place I could think of. Abby is the Water guardian after all,” she replied, glancing at her scythe. Crackling power ran down the staff, rippling and spreading. “Come on, I think I can shield us from the water,” she told Aria. The small spirit guardian nodded and edged as close as she could to Cassandra as a shield of crackling red and black energy formed around them.
Cassandra stepped towards the water, not even flinching when the waves rolled up to crash against her shield. Her power would protect them on the way down. She just hoped they could find Abby before they ran out of fresh air.
“She WHAT!” Anna shrieked, honey-brown eyes flaring in anger. She and Mark had just returned to the small fortress, where Anne had mischievously informed them of Cassandra’s little escapade. After all, she was the only one who knew where the spirit and death guardians had gone, as she had followed them into the tunnel and watched them disappear. Leaning against the wall, Joe shook his head.
“I still can’t believe she would do that,” he muttered. Anne shrugged.
“That’s just the way she is. Cass doesn’t like to involve others in things she thinks she can do herself if she doesn’t have too,” she told them.
“She involved Aria,” Marina pointed out.
“True, but as far as we know, Aria is the only one who can awaken us,” Anne answered. Marina could only shrug at that. Anna folded her arms, glaring at the wall.
“I haven’t even had a chance to go on one of these missions yet,” she complained. Joe chuckled.
“You’ll get your chance. We still have three more to go,” he told her. Or do we? Anne thought. She shook her head. Where had that come from? Of course there were still three more… Earth, Wind and… Anne’s eyes widened, then narrowed again. Was it possible that her counterpart had awakened without Aria’s help? A hand brushed her shoulder, causing her to jump.
“You alright?” Mark asked her, smiling kindly. Anne smiled back, looking up at him.
“I’m fine,” she answered, lying. “I’m glad you made it.” Mark smiled and hugged her, finally taking advantage of the chance to great his siblings again.
“I’m glad you did too. I’ve been worried,” he told her.
“That’s nothing new,” Marina laughed, before walking over to hug the two of them. “But hey, now we’re back together and we’re going to take Balthas down,” she told them with a smile and a wink. Mark and Anne smiled back at her, Anne’s true doubts hidden behind her grin. There was something else at work here, and she got the feeling that it would be a long time before this war was finished.
Later that night Anne found herself alone in a small-secluded room of the underground fortress that the boys had created during the ten years of their sleep. Why hadn’t she thought of it before? Maybe it was because there was no reason to think of it, but she couldn’t help but feel that the bond between herself and the Guardian of Light was much stronger then the bonds between the other guardians.
So then why didn’t I think of this? she wondered.
*Because, by all rights you shouldn’t know,* a soft, feminine voice whispered in her mind. Anne leapt to her feet, spinning around until she came face to face with the figure of a ghostly woman in the doorway. The figure was small, a slight woman with dark olive skin and crimson eyes that stared back at her with a cool expression.
“Who are you?” Anne asked, surprised. The woman shook her head, ruffling her short, wild midnight hair.
*It doesn’t matter now. You have never known me. But the thoughts you are touching at this moment, while quite true could lead you down a dangerous road. I am here to warn you. Don’t draw up the past; it’s only what he wants. The past is the past, and will always remain so; it does you no good to think of it, however unconsciously you may be doing so. There is nothing you can do to change it. Heed my warning, do not dig into the past,* the woman murmured, before turning as if to walk out the door, her midnight demonic wings brushing the dull wooden supports.
“Wait. What do you mean the past? Who wants it? What the hell is going on?” Anne yelled, unable to keep her temper in check. Every thing that had happened was just building on her, crushing her in an emotional flood. “I need to know! People are going to die because we don’t know what to do! Tell us, who are we fighting! Is it Balthas, or is it something else?” The demonic woman gave her a sympathetic look over her shoulder, a sad smile gracing her lips.
*Believe me, if I could tell you I would. There are things that happened, once a long time ago that could very well cause you to fail. I do not wish, nor have I the power to tell you of these things. But take heed, Guardian of Darkness. Sometimes the past harms more than it helps.* And with that the ghost woman disappeared, leaving a furious and deeply confused Anne behind her. Anne growled in her throat, glaring at the place where the woman had vanished.
“Harmful or not, these feelings, these senses of things that I remember and yet don’t may be the only thing that can help me get Tooya back. And I’m not going to stand here and do nothing when there may be a way of finding out what I need to know,” she hissed under her breath, clenching her fist in defiance. “No ghost is going to tell me otherwise.” Anne stalked out of the quiet room, her mood darkening considerably. What was it about the past that the woman had refused to tell her? What was so dark, so dangerous that not knowing it was safer?
They were deep underwater, the bluish light that filtered from the clouds above barely enough to see by. All around them the waters were still with barely a hint of the life that may have once lived there. Cassandra gazed through the murky darkness, half wishing she could have done something to give them some light.
All around them, ancient masses of coral and rock stood in sculpted peaks reaching towards the water’s surface.
“How are we supposed to find her down here?” Cassandra muttered aloud as she surveyed the scene. Aria gazed around, her eyes wide in wonder as they took in the blue waters. A ripple of blue light caught her eye and she tugged on Cass’s sleeve.
“Over there,” she murmured, pointing towards the ripple of power. Cassandra nodded and directed their floating shield towards the disturbance. As they came closer, they could vaguely make out the shape of a sunken pyramid-like building. Cassandra directed her shield towards it, allowing the pull of power to draw her in.
Suddenly the protective bubble shattered, leaving them floating in the deep water. Aria clamped her hands over her ears, choking on the water she had swallowed. There wasn’t time to return to the surface. Cassandra winced at the added pressure on her eardrums. She plugged her nose and blew out to equalize the pressure and then grabbed Aria by the arm and swam towards the building’s entrance.
Just as she had hoped, inside of the pyramid was a bubble of air that had probably been trapped their for centuries. Cassandra took in a deep breath and pulled Aria up onto a small stone ledge. They were safe for the moment, but where to go next? Aria coughed and gagged, spitting the salty water from her mouth.
“Let’s not do that again,” she begged. Cassandra chuckled.
“Agreed,” she replied and stood. “Now let’s try to find where Abby is hidden.” She glanced around, then looked up. Her blue-gray eyes widened in surprise. Above them, the ceiling seemed to have taken on an exact replica of the sky at night. “Impossible…” she murmured.
“Look!” Aria exclaimed, pointing out across the flooded floor. Pillars like stepping-stones extended just above the water’s surface and glittered in the false moonlight. At the far end of what had to be some kind of ancient temple, a small ivory alter had been built. It was simple, and painted with delicate pale patterns that seemed to reflect both the water and moon and ripple across the floor.
Cassandra frowned, her wings extending from her back. “Come on,” she murmured and took off over the glistening water. Aria followed carefully, gazing around the strange temple. They landed on the dais before the small alter, gazing up at the sapphire coffin that rested upon it. Just as she had suspected, Abby lay there encased in her own seal of sapphire crystal.
Aria smiled and pressed her hand to the cool glass, watching as it began to glow and ripple with blues and teals and grays. This one did not shatter, but instead became a whirling cyclone of water that slowly dissipated and ran down the steps of the dais. Abby blinked, looking up with sleepy eyes. She sat up on the alter and swung her legs over the side. Cassandra smirked.
“I’m surprised we haven’t found one of those little spirits yet,” she murmured. As if to answer her question, a spout of water shot up from the base of the dais and formed itself into a small, scaly creature with bluish-green hair and emerald eyes. It smirked at them, it’s iridescent blue-green tail twitching.
“My test has nothing to do with actually finding the guardian,” the sprite told them with a wink.
“What?” Cassandra asked. She glanced back at Abby, who seemed to still be half-asleep. “What did you do to her?” she demanded. The sprite flicked a spray of water in their direction.
“She will fully awaken when you answer me a single riddle. If you answer correctly, she will awaken and you may leave. If you fail, you will remain trapped here for eternity and she will fall back into slumber,” the sprite answered. Aria’s eyes widened.
“What riddle?” she asked.
“It’s a classic one really,” the sprite told them. “Alive without breath, As cold as death; Never thirsty, ever drinking, All in mail never clinking.” Cassandra blinked, shaking her head.
“Alive without breath…” she murmured. Beside her, Aria had her chin between her fingers and her face screwed up in a thoughtful expression. Time passed, neither of the two guardians could tell how long it had been. Both were still stumped. The tiny water sprite was beginning to get impatient.
“You have two minutes left. Either answer or be trapped here for eternity,” it hissed. Cassandra looked up, eyes wide. She cursed silently. She had never been good with riddles, and a wrong answer would trap them anyway. Aria opened her mouth, then closed it again. She was also stumped.
“One minute,” the sprite told them. Aria winced.
“Is it-“
“Fish,” a third voice echoed through the strange temple. Cass and Aria both spun to see Abby leaning back on her elbow and smirking at them. The sprite’s eyes widened.
“It is… but… you…” the tiny creature didn’t know what to say. Abby hopped off the alter, turning to her two companions.
“Haven’t you two ever read the Hobbit?” she asked. Both shook their heads. Cassandra raised an eyebrow. Caitlin had been trying to make her read that book for a good long time before they had become guardians.
“What do you mean?” the death guardian asked. Abby chuckled.
“The riddle comes strait from that book,” she told them. Aria smacked her forehead.
“I finished that book only a few days before-“ She stopped, glancing at the two. Cassandra sighed, while Abby shrugged nonchalantly.
“There’s nothing we can do about it now Aria,” she murmured and turned to the water sprite still leaning on the dais. “What’s your name?” she asked. The sprite smiled.
“Alemenia,” she replied. “I was surprised that you awoke completely. That’s never happened before.” Cassandra tilted her head.
“Others have been here?” she asked. The sprite grinned devilishly. Cass shuddered in response. Death she could handle, but being trapped for eternity was another story.
“What is this place anyway?” Aria asked, still gazing in wonder about the temple.
“This temple is a dimensional portal. Kind of a bridge between one world and another. Outside of the temple is earth, and the doorway between the outside and inside is the portal itself. This dimension was created by the ancient celestials to protect their knowledge and remnants from outsiders. Most of the ruins are buried beneath the water, but this part, this temple, still remains above water,” Alemenia explained.
“What can you tell us about the ancient celestials?” Cassandra wondered. The water sprite shrugged.
“They were a crossed breed of angels and humans that existed before prehistoric civilization was created. They were the ones that prophesized the coming of the guardians in a time of darkness in this world. Their ancient language can only be read by their descendants and others of mixed angelic and human decent so it has been all but lost to the modern world. Even we don’t know much about them, as we can’t read it,” she told them.
“You said ‘this’ world,” Abby stated. “Does that mean there was another world that we came from or…” Alemenia shrugged.
“We don’t know. It may be that the prophecy was first created in heaven and not on earth. We don’t know what it means. As I said, we can’t read their language,” she replied. Abby nodded and turned to Cass.
“Well, we should return to the others. You do know where they are don’t you?” she asked. Cassandra nodded.
“Yes, but I don’t think I can teleport us from here. If this is a separate dimension then I need to be outside the temple,” she answered. Aria smiled.
“Then let’s go.” Alemenia smiled as she watched the three guardians depart.
“Good luck, guardians of earth,” she murmured. Slowly, water wrapped around her form as she grew and shifted. When the water died, a creature with shimmering crystal wings protruding from her back and wavy pale blue hair stared out over the waters with deep emerald eyes. “I have helped you as much as I can,” Alemenia murmured as the three vanished from site. Beside her, another figure appeared, this one the same dark-haired demoness that had confronted Anne.
“You gave them a little to much information,” Jayne told the ice haired spirit/angel. Alemenia smirked at the demon woman.
“We can’t hold the truth from them forever,” she replied. Jayne’s scarlet eyes narrowed.
“He’ll use it against them, any memories that come from this,” she murmured. Alemenia nodded, gazing out over the flooded temple.
“He will, but they will have to accept their past someday, whatever the consequence. I have the feeling that he would draw up those memories even if they had no knowledge of them,” she answered.
“The others do have no sense of the memories. Only darkness seems to sense the truth,” Jayne told her. Alemenia nodded.
“Then light will as well. Those two are the most sensitive to the past, as it affected them the most. We’ll have to watch them closely. It’s difficult not being able to interfere much,” the emerald-eyed celestial murmured. Jayne smirked.
“There isn’t much can do now that we’re dead,” she told her. Alemenia laughed.
“No, there isn’t.”
Cassandra, Aria and Abby returned to the base to find an extremely annoyed Anna waiting for them.
“Why the hell didn’t you take me with you!” the flame guardian shouted. “Do you know how damn bored I am!” Cassandra chuckled while Abby smirked at her guardian counterpart.
“Trust me, you would have hated it,” the death guardian told her. Anna glared.
“And how do you know!”
“Well, we were stuck at the bottom of the ocean in a half-flooded temple,” Aria answered. Anna rolled her eyes.
“What makes you people think that I hate water?” she asked them. Cass, Abby and Aria all shrugged. Anna pouted. “Just cause I’m the guardian of fire doesn’t mean I despise water you know,” she hissed, glaring at them. Abby laughed.
“Never thought it did,” she replied with a smirk. Myrandel, who had finally gained enough of his strength back that Marina had let him wander around, couldn’t help but grin at the situation.
“Looks like you two did fine. But Cass, I did ask that one of us go with you,” he told the death guardian. Cassandra winced and nodded.
“I know, but we need to awaken all of us as soon as possible, and none of you were exactly up for it,” she replied, looking him in the eye. Myrandel nodded.
“Did you guys find another one of those sprites?” Marina asked them. Cass nodded.
“Yeah, clever little one too. She made us answer a riddle to get out of there. Her name was Alemenia,” she answered. Myrandel’s eyes widened.
“What was her name?” he asked. Cass tilted her head.
“Alemenia, why?” she asked him in return. Myrandel shook his head.
“It’s probably just a coincidence,” he murmured. “Alemenia was the name of Tooya’s mother.” Abby raised an eyebrow and shrugged.
“I doubt a water sprite and an angel are related. It’s probably a coincidence,” she murmured. Myrandel smiled and laughed.
“You’re right,” he told them. Anna grinned, glancing around the room.
“Well, three more to go,” she murmured. Abby nodded.
“Three more.”
Caitlin stumbled over a rock, nearly loosing her balance and falling to her knees. She steadied herself, shaking her head in a vain attempt to clear it. Renian was getting worried. It had been two days since they had found anything edible, and the light guardian was too tense to sleep. In fact, anytime she had tried to sleep she had woken up screaming from dreams that were getting progressively more violent. Dark circles smudged the skin beneath her eyes and the eyes themselves had lost any sort of luster, appearing dull, almost dead.
The tiny light spirit could do nothing as his guardian slowly faded. He didn’t know much about the mortal world, only what to avoid, and he was too small to really defend them if they were attacked, a possibility that was becoming all the more real as they traveled.
They had passed numerous small villages, all deserted and destroyed; probably by the various demon patrols they had seen flying the skies. Caitlin had finally given up on remaining in her transformed state. As convenient as it would be should they be attacked, it was too conspicuous. Not for the first time she cursed the fact that she had been born the guardian of light. Her powers were not naturally subtle, while her mind preferred delicacy to aggression. It just wasn’t her nature to announce her presence to the world around her.
She had thought of experimenting with her powers, trying to find a way to split her light magic into different frequencies, like a rainbow. Something like that she might be able to work with. She wouldn’t be able to create shadows, but the darker pieces of the color spectrum might allow her to create a somewhat believable illusion. Something of that sort would be more than useful in this situation. But sadly, she was too weak physically to try anything right now.
Caitlin’s head jerked up. A screeching sound above had startled her, clearing her head for a short second. Her eyes widened, panic sparking a small flare of life back into her eyes. A trio of demons were circling her above. They had obviously spotted her and were descending slowly.
Renian panicked, his eyes darting about, searching for an escape. It was no good, they were completely in the open.
“Lady…” he whimpered. Caitlin sighed, bowing her head and attempting to calm her nerves.
“You can enter the astral realm from anywhere right?” she asked him, dull eyes blinking open. Renian nodded slowly, glancing up again at the nearing demons.
“Yes…” he responded, voice wavering.
“Then go. I’m not having you captured. I’m too weak to use my powers well right now. I may be able to pass off as a human…”
“They’ll sense your powers, even if they’re weakened,” Renian exclaimed. “You can’t do this, you’ll die or they’ll capture you!” Caitlin laughed wryly.
“It doesn’t matter. I can’t do much now anyway. But you are not getting hurt for my sake,” she stated, eyes gazing up at the three descending demons. They were laughing amongst themselves, pointing downward at the ‘human’ below. A light wind from their wings blew a lock of hair off Caitlin’s shoulder and into her face. “Go Renian. If I do get captured you might be my only chance,” she murmured. The tiny sprite nodded, eyes creased with worry.
“Alright, Lady. Be careful,” he whispered, and faded out into the astral realm, leaving Caitlin alone to deal with the three demons. The creatures landed in a circle around her, blocking off all possible exits. They’re leader, a tanned demon with dark blue hair and reddish-brown eyes smirked at her, reaching out and brushing Caitlin’s hair back. The light guardian didn’t react.
“It seems we have a brave one this time,” he chuckled, eyes glinting. “Who are you, foolish human, and why do you dare travel in the open?” he demanded. Caitlin continued to keep her eyes downcast, hoping they would continue to think of her as a normal human. She was far to tired to fight them. Apparently, the blue-haired demon did not appreciate being ignored. He growled, jerking her head up with his hand and glaring into her dull eyes.
“I’m lost,” Caitlin replied to his earlier question, keeping her voice as toneless as possible. What she said was true enough anyway. The demon smirked and dropped her head.
“For a moment I thought you were stupid enough to defy one of Balthas’ commanders. Now answer me, who are you and whom do you seek,” he snarled. Caitlin’s eye twitched. She was getting dizzy. Obviously the combination of going a few days without food, traveling, and being unconscious for ten strait years was getting to her. She heard a gasp from the demon to her left, a pale creature with dark green hair and sharp golden eyes.
“Eris? What is it?” the demon commander snapped. The green haired demon, Eris, Caitlin reminded herself, shook his head.
“I thought I sensed something,” he replied. “Forgive me, Azriel.” The commander, Azriel, nodded and glanced at his second companion who stood to Caitlin’s right. She was the only female of the trio and quite obviously Eris’ twin with her short dark green hair and golden eyes, and in reality the only female demon Caitlin had ever seen. Or is she? the light guardian thought idly. She winced. Now was not a good time to get distracted.
“Do you sense anything Erinai?” Azriel asked the female demon. Erinai shook her head, running over Caitlin with sharp, emotionless golden eyes.
“No,” she answered shortly. Azriel smirked.
“Do you know what the punishment is for wandering alone mortal?” he asked Caitlin with a menacing smile.
“They die,” Caitlin replied, her emotionless voice echoing Erinai’s.
“At least you are intelligent, if only mortal. Good bye.” Azriel stepped back, as did his twin companions. The dark eyed demon raised a hand, gathering tainted dark power too him. His pupils suddenly contracted, giving him the look of a mad man. He released the tainted energy. Caitlin cursed and attempted to throw herself out of the way, but only managed to trip and fall. In a last ditch effort; she attempted to summon her magic, knowing it was probably useless at this point.
A shimmering flash of light hit the oncoming blast. Caitlin’s eyes widened.
“Renian,” she breathed. The little light spirit was hovering before her, pale eyes wide with fear and arms outstretched as if to defend her. He was breathing hard, having exerted a large amount of energy to create that small shield. As the smoke from the colliding energies faded, Azriel’s eyes narrowed. There was something different here. What was a tiny spirit doing with a mere human? A spark of power caught his senses.
“Azriel, this is…” Eris murmured.
“I know what this is,” Azriel snapped in return. It was the same, the very same as the power he had felt ten years ago when Lord Balthas had conquered earth. That same power that had awakened when his own soldiers had attacked a small groups of strange humans in that large building… “You’re one of them,” the blue haired demon hissed. Caitlin’s head jerked up.
“Huh?” she asked, that spark of life glinting in her eyes again for a second before vanishing.
“Eris, Erinai, return to the fortress and report to Lord Balthas. We have discovered another of the rebels. Give him her description,” Azriel ordered. The twins nodded.
“Yes sir,” Eris murmured, before taking to the air with his sister close behind. Azriel smirked down at the trembling light spirit and the obviously exhausted young woman before him.
“Clever of you, to attempt to pass as a human. But I know what you are, guardian.” Caitlin’s eyes widened sharply. How had he… “It’s no use trying to fight me,” Azriel continued. “You are obviously in no condition to attack. To think I would be this lucky, to find one of you too weak to retaliate.” Caitlin winced, shifting to her knees and standing, swaying as she did so.
“If you’re going to kill me get it over with. I have nothing to give you,” she replied, staggering slightly. Renian, scared stiff by the situation, could only hover their terrified as the guardian stepped forward.
“You do have something. Information on where the other rebels are hiding. We know your kind are in league with them,” Azriel told her, tapping his tanned chin thoughtfully. His eye twitched at Caitlin’s wry laugh.
“If I knew where they were, I’d be there already,” she replied, her expression unnervingly calm. Azriel’s eyes narrowed. He stalked forward, grabbing her by the neck and lifting her from the ground. Caitlin clawed weakly at his hands, gasping for breath.
“Lady!” Renian launched forward, only to be confronted by Azriel’s raised hand.
“Lady, you call her. So this is the light guardian then, judging by your element.” Renian’s eyes widened at that. “Attack me, and I kill you and her where you both stand,” the demon snapped.
“Renian,” Caitlin choked, fighting for breath. “Fly…” The poor light spirit didn’t know what to do. Azriel shook his captive, smirking when she winced.
“Yes spirit, run. Your ‘Lady’ is going no where.” The demon let out a high-pitched shriek of laughter, causing Caitlin to wince again. There was no way out of this one.
Author’s notes: Hehehe… cliff hanger. ^_^ Aren’t I mean.
-Cat