Author’s Note (A/N): Basically the same as I always say. I should stop doing these A/Ns at the beginning of the chpts…
Shadow calls the Council again. He sends Eriol and Sigma to go find Candice, the Fire ruler, and Solana, the new Wind ruler. They have no trouble doing so, and find their way through the said Realms was particularly easy.
by Shadowpheonix
Sigma and Solana stepped through the Portal and found themselves right next to Shadow’s castle. “This is his castle,” Sigma said, leading Solana inside.
“Is it always so dark?” Solana asked, barely able to make out Sigma.
“No, it does get a little brighter, but not much. Don’t worry; parts of Shadow’s castle are lit.”
Solana told Zephyr to stay while Sigma walked into the castle to be greeted by Eriol, on his way out. “Good afternoon, Sigma.”
“Good afternoon. Where are you going?”
“Out for a walk. Shadow wants to speak to you and Solana. I’ll see you later,” Eriol said, walking out the door.
“Who was that?” Solana asked.
“That was Eriol. He’s not from a Realm, but instead, from one of the worlds perpendicular to our Realms.”
“Why do I feel so much power coming from him?”
“I’m not sure. I know he uses some type of magic, but none from the Spheres. I never got around to asking him how his magic worked,” Sigma replied.
They walked into the dimly lit living room and were greeted by Shadow. “Good afternoon. I’m glad you’re here, Solana. I’m sure you didn’t have too much trouble going through the Wind Realm, Sigma. Please, have a seat with Candice.”
“Hello, Candice. It’s been a pretty long time,” Sigma said cheerfully.
“Yes, it has. How has your Realm been?”
“It’s been fine. It was recently attacked by someone. I’m pretty sure it was the Summoner, but I’m not completely sure.”
“Ok, now that the formalities are through, I have a job for the three of you. I need two of you, the two that can move the fastest, to go to the Light Realm and speak with Abner. The other one can go to the Thunder Realm and find Tyrell for me. After that, we’ll hold our meeting, provided, of course, that Matriana makes it here by the end of the day. So, who’s going where?”
“I’ll take Flame and find Tyrell. I haven’t seen him in a while,” Candice said. “That leaves the two of you with Abner.”
“We’ll do it. Zephyr can get us through the Light Realm quickly. She never was comfortable in the Thunder Realm,” Solana said, brimming with energy.
Sigma stared at Shadow and kept silent. Well, I suppose as a ruler I should learn to enjoy flying at some point. It may prove to be a useful experience…
“Alright. You two go find Abner. Here’s the invitation. Here’s yours, Candice,” Shadow said, handing both parties an envelope. “We need to do this quickly. Get going,” Shadow commanded, turning away from the group.
“How did he ever become a ruler? He has no manners,” Candice muttered to herself.
I have to agree, Sigma thought, feeling uneasy about riding Zephyr again. “Let’s go then, Solana.”
“Alright!” she replied, still bristling with energy. The two of them walked out of the castle and found the Portal again. Eriol stood next to it, seeming to examine every inch of it.
“Eriol, what are you doing?” Sigma asked.
“I’m studying the Portal. I’m curious as to how they work.”
“I’ll try to explain them to you when I get back,” Sigma replied, trying to remember Light’s incantation.
“Let’s go!” Solana shouted from atop Zephyr as Sigma began the incantation.
“Lighted path,
Pure and strong,
Light the way,
To Light’s own Realm.”
The portal flashed a bright white, nearly blinding Sigma. What’s going on? Slowly, the light dimmed and the Portal lay, no different from its original form.
“What happened?” Solana asked, recovering from the blinding light.
“I’m not sure. Let’s go,” Sigma said, stepping up to the Portal.
Sigma stepped through the Portal, followed by Solana and Zephyr. There was no temperature change as he stepped through. The world melted around him, fading out of existence. Suddenly, he was standing on solid ground.
Sigma scanned the horizon, looking for a castle. The entire Realm was composed of rolling hills or flat plains, covered in lush, green grass. Atop many hills, there were groves of cherry trees in full bloom. Clear, blue streams elegantly weaved themselves through the landscape. Behind Sigma, a white castle stood, shining in the light.
“Wow, it’s beautiful,” Solana said, stepping through the Portal. “This is the Light Realm?”
“Yes. I’ve been here twice before, about eight years ago and during the end of the war. Sections of this Realm were burned during the war. I hope it doesn’t happen again.”
Sigma stared at the sheer beauty of the Realm, remembering its appearance at the end of the war.
“Sigma? Let’s go,” Solana said, tapping him on the shoulder.
“Yes. We have a mission. If we fail, this Realm could burn again. We have to prevent that at all costs,” Sigma said, mounting Zephyr behind Solana.
Sigma spent the ride remembering what the war had done to this Realm.
“Sigma, I know it will be difficult for you, but this is the last Spirit. You know we have to weaken it first. Come with me,” Abner said, motioning for Sigma to follow.
“Lead the way,” Sigma, now in his early twenties, said.
The Spirit, in the form of a mounted knight, blazing with pure Light energy, sensed their presence and turned to face them. It stood ten feet high from the hooves of the horse to the top of the horseman’s head. It stood in the middle of a large, burned patch of land, laughing in a low rumble as it turned to them. It lifted its sword, a rapier, above its head. At the tip of the sword, a ball appeared, pulsing with the pure Light energy it was made of.
“Look out, Sigma!” Natara called from a tree.
The Spirit’s sword collided with the ground and the ball of energy flew away from the sword, disintegrating everything it touched. Sigma and Abner instinctively jumped out of the way, seconds before the ball collided with the spot where they were. style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Natara! What are you doing here? You were supposed to stay home!” Sigma cried.
“I couldn’t let you do this alone. You may not be able to tap into the Earth Sphere alone, but with my help, I’m sure you can!” Natara cried, jumping down.
“Natara, go back! You can’t be here! I don’t want you hurt!” Sigma cried.
“Sigma, look out!” Natara cried, running to Sigma.
Sigma turned around to see the Light Spirit sword hurling through the air at him. Time seemed to slow down as Sigma’s life flashed before his eyes: every little thing he had done, everything he had yet to do.
“Sigma!” Natara said, pushing him out of the way to be hit by the sword herself.
Time resumed its normal course as Sigma realized what happened. Natara lay lifelessly on the floor beside him, the glowing sword dissolving as it hit. “Natara! No!” Sigma cried, running over to her. “No, you can’t be dead,” Sigma said, holding her close. Natara’s blood poured out from her chest, washing over Sigma’s hands and clothes.
Sigma looked at the beautiful face of his dear friend. “I was going to ask you after the war. We could have married!” Sigma cried, hatred in his heart for the Spirit that did this. He set Natara down under the tree she had been in. Running his hand through her golden-brown hair one last time, he turned to Abner. “I’ll lead,” Sigma said shakily. “I will get revenge! This Spirit is mine!”
Abner stared at Sigma for a few seconds. “Ok, Sigma. Get the job done. Lead the way.”
Sigma searched within himself for the power that ran through his body. An image of Natara, lying lifelessly by the tree filled his head. Concentrating on her, he gathered the strength he needed to destroy the Spirit. Pooling all of his emotions into one, he tapped into the Earth Sphere, drawing upon its unimaginable power. He filled himself with it, fueled it with his emotions, and dashed at the speed of sound towards the Spirit.
“You asked for it!” he cried, flying into the air. A second later, he was ten feet above the Spirit and diving straight for it.
The Spirit turned to Sigma, forming a sword in its hands. “Foolish human!” it hollered, raising the sword against Sigma.
Sigma continued towards the Spirit, waiting for the last possible moment to strike. Time slowed, almost stopping, while the Spirit swung its sword at Sigma. The sword sped towards Sigma, threatening to destroy him.
Inches from the sword, Sigma unleashed the large amount of energy he had mustered, shattering the Spirit’s sword and creating a giant axe in his hands. He swung the axe, wrought of pure Earth Energy, at the Spirit, causing it to stagger backwards. Abner jumped up from behind the Spirit and produced a large half-golden, half-silver ring in his hands. He soared towards the heart of the Spirit, pressing the Ring into its back.
The Spirit disintegrated, leaving only the ring, pulsing with energy.
“Well done, Sigma. Candice!” Abner cried, seeing Candice stagger towards them.
“The smaller Spirits disappeared. I guess that means we’ve won.”
Sigma ignored the two of them and walked over to Natara’s body. “You always loved this Realm. I will protect it with my life.”
“Sigma! We’re here!” Solana yelled. “What are you thinking about?”
“The battle that won the war for us. It was held here. The last battle was against the Light Spirit.”
Solana gave Sigma a sympathetic look. “Let’s go. We need to talk to Abner,” Sigma said, dismounting Zephyr.
The two of them stepped up to the bright castle and knocked on the door. “Come in!” came a voice from the other side.
Sigma opened the door and stepped inside with Solana.
“Good afternoon, Sigma,” a brown-haired man in his forties said. “How are you doing today?”
“Good afternoon, Abner. I’m fine. I’ve come to call you to a Council Meeting. Shadow, the new ruler of the Dark Realm has called it and sent you this invitation,” Sigma said, giving Abner the envelope.
“I see. So the Summoner has finally shown himself. That’s peculiar. I wonder what his reason could be for kidnapping a little girl. Speaking of which, has my daughter stepped into your Realm recently?”
Sigma stared at Abner for a while, unsure what he was asking. “What’s her name again?”
“You remember Elaine, don’t you? She was born during the beginning of the war. She’s fourteen at the moment. She disappeared about ten days ago.”
“Why did she leave?” Solana asked.
“She left a note saying she didn’t like the pressures of being a ruler’s daughter. She said I keep pushing her too hard to hone her skills.”
“No, I haven’t seen her. At any rate, will you come to the Council Meeting?”
“Yes, I have to. It’s my duty as a Council member to come and I will do so,” Abner said. “It will take me a few minutes to pack.”
Abner turned from Sigma and walked up the stairs. “We’ll wait for you at the Portal,” Sigma said, turning to leave”
“Ok, I’ll meet you there,” Abner said, walking up some stairs.
Eriol stared at the Portal for a few moments longer before turning back to the castle.
“Eriol,” a voice said from behind him.
“Shadow, how did you get there so quickly?”
“Eriol, I need you to help me out for a moment,” Shadow said.
“What do you need?”
“I need you, your guardians, and Sakura’s to go check on her for me. You have to be careful when you do this. Altarrin may be able to sense when you approach.”
“I see. Is there anything you’d like for me to tell her?”
“Just give this to her,” Shadow instructed, handing Eriol a folded piece of paper.
“Ok, I’ll go. Where’s everybody that’s supposed to come with me?”
“They’re ready to go, waiting for you on the other side of the castle. They have directions. I’ll hold the Realm as it is until you get back.”
Eriol turned from Shadow and walked around the castle to find Suppi, Kero, Yue, and Ruby waiting for him.
“What took you so long, Eriol?” Ruby asked as soon as he rounded the corner.
“Come on, Eriol. Let’s go!” Kero yelled, holding a slip of paper.
“Are those the directions?” Eriol asked when he saw the paper.
“Yes, they’re the instructions. Here,” Kero said, giving the paper to Eriol.
“Let’s go,” Eriol said, walking away from the castle.
An hour later, they found the Desecrated Lake and turned to their right. They walked for about fifteen minutes before stopping, just as the instructions said. “The mansion should be just ahead, Eriol. How are we going to get by without being noticed?”
“Quietly,” Eriol said, walking fifteen steps to his right. He turned back towards the mansion and crept through the dark, confident that he wouldn’t be noticed. Suddenly, he felt an aura around the mansion that he identified as Shadow’s. “Let’s go,” he whispered, running up to the mansion. He took out the paper and followed the instructions given on it.
Find the third window from the corner where you arrive. Crawl through the window and walk down the stairs. Sakura should be in the first room on your left.
Eriol found the third window and did as Shadow said. He found the stairs directly across the hall, walked down them, and found Sakura’s room. Suddenly, there was a loud explosion outside, shaking the foundations of the house.
“It’s Shadow!” came a voice from above them.
“Relax, he won’t try to save Sakura. Let’s go see what he wants,” came another voice.
Eriol walked into Sakura’s room and found her facedown on a dusty block of wood. “Sakura,” Eriol called, shaking Sakura awake.
“Erio –”
Eriol clamped his hand down on Sakura’s mouth. “Shhh!” Sakura nodded and Eriol let go. “Shadow sent me to give you this. How are you doing?”
Tears came to Sakura’s eyes as she explained everything that had happened. A few minutes later, Kero floated over to Sakura to examine her wounds.
“Can you do anything about this, Eriol?”
“No, I can’t. Not without arousing suspicion. We’ve stayed too long. Read that note when you get the chance,” Eriol said, leaving the room.
“Thanks for visiting Eriol. Thank you, Kero, Yue. When we get out of this, I’ll make you the biggest cake in the world,” Sakura said, crying as she hugged Kero.
“It’s ok, Sakura. Don’t cry. Just remember, no matter what, everything will be ok.”
“Thank you, Kero. I’m glad you came.”
“We have to leave!” Eriol hissed from the top of the stairs.
“Bye, Sakura!” Kero whispered, following Eriol.
The five of them left the room, leaving Sakura in her room. “Goodbye, Kero. I promise about the cake!” Sakura whispered as they disappeared.
Eriol led them out the window one by one. As soon as they were out, they all ran from the mansion, hoping they hadn’t stayed too long. They made out Shadow’s shape at the front of the building, speaking with someone roughly his height. “Hurry, let’s go,” Eriol said as they ran from the mansion. Suddenly, Shadow stepped out of the darkness in front of them. “So, you made it,” he said. “How’s Sakura?”
“She’s fine,” Eriol responded, walking past Shadow.
Shadow stared after Eriol for a while before fading into the darkness and disappearing.
“What are we going to do about Sakura? We can’t just leave here there!” Kero yelled emphatically.
“We’ll do as Shadow says, for now,” Eriol responded.
“You don’t trust him! What makes you think he didn’t set this all up?”
“No, I don’t, but that’s the only thing we can do.”
Kero drifted back and whispered something to Yue, shooting suspicious glances at Eriol while doing so.
Half an hour later, they arrived at Shadow’s castle to find Sigma and another man stepping through the Portal.
“The castle’s right there, Abner. Shadow will probably want to speak with you before you get settled.”
“Thank you, Sigma. I’d like to meet Shadow. He sounds like an interesting character.”
“I assure you he is,” Sigma replied.
“Hello, Sigma. Who’s this?” Eriol asked, stepping up to them.
“Eriol, this is Abner, an old friend of mine and the ruler of the Light Realm. Abner, this is Eriol, from a world perpendicular to the Realms.”
“Pleased to meet you, Eriol. Do you know where Shadow is?”
“No, I’m not sure where he is. He’ll probably be waiting for you in the dining room.”
“Thank you,” Abner replied, walking into the castle.
Eriol and Sigma stood near the Portal, staring at it. “How do they work?” Eriol asked.
“No one knows for sure. The only reason any of us are able to use them is from stone tablets that we found throughout the Realms. They had the incantations on them and described in great detail how to use the Portals, but not why they worked. As far as we can tell, the Portals work by linking similar areas from Realm to Realm. How these areas are similar, we don’t know. Nor do we know how the Portal links these areas. So, really, all we know is that the Portals work, and nothing else.”
“I see. Is there an incantation to get from the Realms back to my world?” Eriol asked.
“I don’t know of one, but someone else might. Each of the Council Members has a library full of ancient texts. Maybe in one of these books, we can find a way for you to get back. Perhaps it tells you in the book you gave Li. I never had the chance to read through that one,” Sigma said, lost in his own thoughts.
“Thank you. I’ll be going now. I’d like to get some rest before we do anything else,” Eriol said, turning towards the castle.
“Good night, Eriol. Maybe we can puzzle out how the Portals work tomorrow.”
“Good night.” Eriol walked into the castle and up the stairs to the room Shadow had given him. It wasn’t a particularly large room, but there was a comfortable bed and an attached bathroom. Sakura’s former room, now belonging to Kero and Yue, lay across the hallway and was half again as large as Eriol’s room. Eriol laid down on the bed and attempted to come up with a plan to rescue Sakura when sleep rolled over him.
“Wake up!” a harsh voice yelled.
Sakura awoke with a start and quickly got out of bed. “Yes?” she asked, looking at Lloyd.
“Scared you!” he said, laughing. “You’re so much fun to toy with. Let’s play a game,” he said with a menacing smile on his face.
“Wh-what game?” Sakura asked, fearful of the answer.
“Let’s just call it ‘Cat and Mouse.’ I’m sure you’ll enjoy it,” Lloyd said, motioning for Sakura to get out of her room.
Sakura stepped out of her room, wincing when Lloyd struck her on the back.
“Would you like some ointment for that?”
“Y-you’ll give m-me ointment?” Sakura asked disbelievingly.
“If you don’t let Altarrin know I did,” Lloyd replied sympathetically. “And if you promise to play,” he added with a wink.
“Ok,” Sakura said nervously, but grateful. I suppose he can’t be all bad, Sakura thought as she watched Lloyd walk up the stairs. A minute later, he returned with a bowl of an brown solution.
“Lay down,” he said, dipping his fingers into the gooey substance.
Sakura did as she was told, still unsure of Lloyd’s sincerity. Lloyd walked over to Sakura and set the bowl down on the ‘bed’ next to her. He pulled Sakura’s shirt up and rubbed the substance onto her back, causing her to wince as he did so.
“Hold still. It will only hurt for a little while,” he said, pushing a little harder.
“Ow!” Sakura screamed. “Not so hard!”
Lloyd immediately pressed harder, causing Sakura to bite her lip to keep quiet. “Stop complaining. I’m taking a risk doing this for you!” he retorted, decreasing the pressure he applied to Sakura’s back. He dipped his hand back into the substance and scooped up about a tablespoon’s worth, rubbing it onto Sakura’s back. A few minutes later, he finished and stood up. “Wait here,” he said, walking towards the bathroom. “Let’s see how well you cleaned the place.”
Sakura heard running water and a loud ‘clang’ before Lloyd appeared back in Sakura’s room with a clean bowl. “You ready for our game?”
“Ummm… ok,” Sakura said, getting up from the bed.
“Here are the rules. One, you can’t scream no matter what I do. Two, you can’t leave the basement. Three, no using magic. Four, no kicking, punching, or any other way of injuring me. I think that’s all. If I’m forgetting anything, I’ll tell you during our ‘game.’”
Sakura stared at Lloyd, unsure what she’d gotten into. “What are you going to do?”
“Toy with you, of course. Think of it as a game of tag. Except I’m always ‘it’ and I’ll be tagging with tiny bolts of electricity. I’ll give you a five second head start. You better get going,” Lloyd said, sitting down on Sakura’s bed.
Sakura stared at Lloyd for a moment before turning to run, trying to find a place to hide.
“One.”
Sakura ran into a room next to the bathroom and decided to hide under the dusty bed in the room. What did I get myself into?
“Two.”
Slowly, she got down on stomach and crawled under the bed.
“Three.”
Stupid cobwebs, she thought, squirming further towards the wall.
“Four.”
Pressing herself against the cobweb covered wall, Sakura awaited Lloyd’s inevitable approach with terror in her heart.
“Five.”
What’s he going to do when he finds me?
“I hope you took the time to hide yourself where I won’t find you for the next five minutes. That or in an open area where you can run.”
Sakura stared at the doorway, listening to Lloyd’s footsteps as he approached. Please don’t let him find me! she thought to herself.
Lloyd’s feet appeared in the doorway and walked past, into the bathroom. “Just to let you know, this will be over in four and a half minutes. If I find you before then, I’ll get to chase you, if you can run, for whatever amount of time is remaining. If you can’t run, I’ll just have to zap you until you start running.”
Why did I hide under this bed?
Lloyd’s feet reappeared in the doorway and continued past. A few seconds later, his feet appeared again… and stepped into the room. “Where are you, Sakura?” Lloyd asked, approaching the bed.
Sakura stared in horror, biting her lip to keep from trembling. Slowly, she saw Lloyd’s knee approach the ground. The world around her stopped as Lloyd’s hand and other knee approached the ground. “I sure hope you’re not hiding under this bed. You’re going to have a difficult time getting out.”
Lloyd’s face appeared in the crack between the bed and the floor, smiling as it did so. I hope he can’t see me…
“Sakura! What a surprise to find you down here!” Lloyd said as a magical aura surrounded him.
Sakura stared in horror, squirming downwards to try to get out. A small bolt of electricity hit her from Lloyd’s finger, causing her to bump her head into the bed. Bolts of electricity came from Lloyd’s fingers in waves, zapping Sakura from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet. Sakura put her hands in front of her to shield herself from the bolts, giving up on escape.
“Don’t worry, there’s only two minutes left,” Lloyd said with a sadistic smile on his face. The bolts of electricity sprang from Lloyd’s fingers at an even faster pace, colliding with Sakura with a greater force each time.
Sakura felt nothing but pain. Every bolt, stronger than the last, more painful. She longed for it to stop, but it wouldn’t.
“It hurts, doesn’t it? Each bolt builds on the pain of the last one, feeling stronger. I’ll give you the next five seconds to get out from under the bed and run. It’s more fun for me to have to chase you.”
Sakura scrambled out from under the bed and ran from Lloyd. A second later, Lloyd was behind her, still surrounded in his aura of magic. Sakura ran, searching for a way out, desperate to find a haven among the filthy objects that lay throughout the basement. “Please, leave me alone,” she pleaded, flattening herself against the wall, cornered.
“There’s only a minute left,” Lloyd said, summoning bolts of electricity which sprang again from his hands at her.
Sakura curled into a ball, attempting to protect herself from every bolt that hit her. Unable to do so, she began to cry, her only comfort. “Please, stop,” she pleaded, somehow managing to get the words out.
Lloyd continued for what seemed like a lifetime, unleashing waves of energy bolts, all of which collided with Sakura. Finally, he stopped and extended his hand to Sakura. “Come on, the game’s over.”
Sakura refused his help and ran over to her wooden bed, crying into her hands. She laid herself down on the bed and buried her head within her arms, crying harder still.
“It wasn’t that bad, Sakura. I know that what Altarrin did to you was worse,” Lloyd said, stepping over to Sakura. “Come on, stop crying.”
Sakura ignored everything that was said to her. She continued to cry for everything that had happened. She cried for the pain she felt now. She cried for the whipping she had received a few hours past. And finally, she cried for Li, Tomoyo, and Meiling, sitting in a cage somewhere above her, submitted to unknown tortures.
“Stop crying, Sakura. Don’t make me count,” Lloyd warned, surrounding himself in his aura of magic.
“Leave me alone!” Sakura yelled, muffled by her own arms.
“Fine. Next time Altarrin does something to you, don’t expect me to anything about it,” Lloyd said, heading for the stairs. He stole a quick glance back at Sakura before walking up the stairs, muttering something to himself.
Please don’t kill me! I promise it will all be better soon. Besides, Shadow’s planning on rescuing Sakura. Or is he? Well:
What’s going to happen to Sakura? Altarrin must want her for a reason, even Abner says so!
Is Lloyd the sadistic creep he sounds like? Or is there something more to him? Why did he offer Sakura ointment to heal her wounds, then turn around and zap her half to death? Why can he use electric powers anyways?
What did Kero whisper to Yue? Might he be planning to rescue Sakura with just Yue? Would Yue agree to this? Is it just that they don’t trust Eriol? Or maybe they don’t trust Shadow…
Well, that’s all I have to say… for the time being. Here’s your wonderful challenge.
Challenge to the readers: Here is a challenge for all you mystery fans: What's up with Shadow? Why does he claim to care so much about Sakura, but show it in such an odd way? What's does he really want with Sakura? Be the first to email me the correct answer to this question, and I’ll post your name at the end of the fic.