Ch 54: I'll Never Forgive You

Preparing for the assault on Xandaris, Alexander receives a call from Amy requesting a ride from the Tentrion's landing site. Learning of Grave's escape, he knows they have to act fast.

            Laying out maps and schematics of enemy territories on a table they’d moved into the audience hall, Alexander was about to explain his battle plan to Loki, Xanth, and Baron Kaiser. It was the late afternoon, everyone having been busy readying the troops for the ever approaching confrontation with the Church of Light. Placing a hand upon a detailed map of the continent, Alexander smoothed it out for a moment as he said, “Now as I said earlier, in order to turn it into more of a spectacle, the mautauians are very particular about the rules their worshippers must follow when launching a holy war. By law, the halmans will be preparing themselves for three full days after issuing their declaration of war, meaning we still have two days before they mobilize their forces.” Once he was satisfied that it was lying flat enough, he moved his finger across the map to stop at Xandaris, saying, “So let’s get down to business. Our target is the capital, Xandaris.” Staring at Alexander in confusion from the other side of the table, Xanth said, “Aren’t you getting a bit ahead of yourself Gabriel? At the moment Xandaris is a bit out of our reach, a great deal of terrain and several halman settlements standing in our way.” Unfazed, Alexander simply said, “Oh don’t worry, we’ll be bypassing all that.” 

Absolutely perplexed by this statement, Baron Kaiser repeated, “Bypassing?” Nodding, Alexander moved his finger to various strategic points as he said, “Yes, our troops will move to surround Xandaris and cut off the various routes through which enemy reinforcements could arrive from, the most important of which will be the bridge running across the Trulana River to the southwest and the hover train route that comes in from Syriota from the southeast. Both will need to be disabled.” Thinking he had seen through Alexander’s plan, Loki said, “Forgive the interruption Gabriel, but moving our main forces stationed here in Daemonholm by air all the way to Effretia, the only demonfolk settlement close to Xandaris, would be too difficult and time consuming, not to mention predictable.” Nodding as he momentarily glanced away from the map to look at Loki, Alexander said, “I know Loki, that isn’t what I had in mind.” Still struggling to see how it could be done, as Alexander returned his gaze to the map, Loki asked, “Then might we know just how you plan to simply bypass almost half the continent?” 

Adjusting his signature shades as he continued to look over the map, Alexander replied, “Magic. Teleportation magic to be specific.” Starting to think he’d lost it, Baron Kaiser said, “You missing a few screws there brother? There ain’t no mages in Daemonholm’s ranks that could pull off a stunt like that!” Thinking he understood Alexander’s plan once again, Loki said, “Even if it is the Spellweaver herself, can she really raise a portal powerful enough to transport an army?” Looking up from the map quickly at this comment, Alexander said, “Mythra? No, her talent with portals is certainly on that level, but her roundabout methods and required materials make it extremely impractical. We’ll be utilizing the abilities of the Seeker for this operation.” Holding his hands up before him and dramatically gesturing for Alexander to wait, Baron Kaiser said, “Whoa nelly! We talkin bout THE Seeker?! I ain’t got no beef personally, but pulling her in is gonna be one hell of a PR disaster!” 

Suddenly speaking up from behind him, having appeared from nowhere, Claire said, “Oh, that sounds rather scary.” Loki and Baron Kaiser turning about, before they could ask, Claire smiled warmly and said, “Claire the Seeker. It’s a pleasure.” As they stared at her in surprise, Xanth addressed Alexander and said, “Are you sure about this Gabriel?” Meeting Claire’s gaze with a sigh, Alexander replied, “As much as I dislike it, she is a powerful ally whose abilities will be crucial to my entire plan. Ending everything in a single blow would not be possible without her.” His cell phone suddenly ringing, Alexander pulled it out and answered, raising it to his ear as he said, “Alexander here.” Amy’s voice came across saying, “Hi, it’s Amy. Uh, is there any way you could get us a ride to Daemonholm? We had trouble finding a place to land.” Confused by her statement, Alexander responded, “Land?”

            Driving a hover carriage through the snowy mountain around Daemonholm, from where he rode beside Xanth up at the driver’s seat reading the map, Alexander said, “It should be just ahead. They landed in a crater in the mountainside.” Driving the hover carriage onward up the sloped path, Xanth started to say, “What manner of craft would have to land…” Clearing the peak of the slope, Xanth trailed off as he brought the hover carriage to a halt on a ledge overlooking the crater in which the Tentrion rested on its landing gear. Staring down at the airship in shock, Xanth uttered, “By the ancients! What is that thing?!” Unable to believe his eyes as well, Alexander said, “A Titan Class Carrier in this day and age? This might be trouble.” Then they both turned away from the ship as Rufus’ voice called out, “Hey guys!” Making their way out of the crater and up the mountainside towards the carriage, Rufus and the others soon reached them, a big grin on Rufus’ face as he gestured to the airship and said, “Introducing, the Tentrion!” 

Smiling in spite of himself, Alexander called back, “Quite the name you’ve given it. I assume you had a hand in that Fenrip?” Grinning back at him enthusiastically, Fenrip replied, “I really think it suits her, don’t you?” Chuckling, Alexander said, “Yes, yes…” Disembarking from the carriage driver’s seat and walking over to stand with them all, Alexander fixed his gaze on Guru and said, “Not only is the ship a surprise, but what in the world are you doing here Guru?” With a quick wave, Guru replied, “Beats me. Being away from the inn like this, I’m probably losing business left and right, but one way or another I still gotta make sure my granddad’s legacy here is in the right hands.” Crossing her arms with a sigh, Mythra said, “We have more to worry about than Guru or the ship. Notice anyone missing Alexander?” Searching the group with his eyes for only a brief moment, a serious look crossed Alexander’s face as he said, “Grave…” Nodding, Amy said, “He got away when we were attacked by a wild anomaly. We took the Tentrion so Altera Veritas didn’t get it, but…” Gritting his teeth in frustration, Alexander thought, “If he knows the location of the Vinculus, we don’t have any time to spare! Alastor could be on the move as we speak!”

            Standing guard at the Bone Wall ramparts, Bella stared out at the snowy mountain beyond its reaches, deep in thought about what Maribell Blossomheart had told her the night before they’d left Verdend. “Chimera’s are created sprites who bear a makeshift soul. Bound to them through forbidden magic while the body is conditioned with unstable aeternium, it’s most common to see a fusion of fragmented animal souls and the soul of a person, though it’s possible to have a soul made from numerous sources. Somehow the process that creates them gives them power far beyond normal sprites, but at the same time it comes with a terrifying price. After time, most chimeras fall into madness as their body begins to reject the soul, becoming monsters that destroy everything around them. It’s not guaranteed, and I’m sure it will be a while before such a thing occurs, but I at least felt that you had the right to know. I only wish there was more we could do for you after all you’ve done for us…” 

Speaking from Bella’s brooch, Mai suddenly interrupted her thoughts, saying, “Hey, you ok sunshine? You’ve seemed real depressed since we got back from Fairy Hollow. Are you worried about what Maribell said?” Stepping away from the rampart and stretching, Bella replied, “I’m tired from being on guard duty so much.” Quickly Mai retorted, “Don’t give me that bullshit! You’re the one who’s been asking to take extra shifts!” Sighing in defeat, Bella stared at her hands for a moment as she murmured, “I want to stay with the others, but I won’t be able to someday…” The two of them remaining silent a moment, Mai finally said, “Nothing lasts forever sunshine. You’ve still got time, so don’t waste it. And if you do go mad, I’ll claim your soul and set you free.” Strangely comforted by this thought, Bella said, “Thanks Mai.” With a chuckle, Mai replied, “Thanking me for taking your soul to the beyond? That’s a first!” Then Bella’s cell phone began to ring. Taking it out of her pocket and answering it, Bella said, “Yeah?” Alexander’s voice responded, “This is Alexander. We’re meeting up at the citadel. I’ll explain what’s going on when you arrive.”

            All gathered together in the entry hall of the Obsidian Citadel, all the members and allies of Angelorum Lux currently present in Daemonholm waited for Alexander to speak. Standing before them all with Mythra and Claire at his sides, Alexander cleared his throat and said, “After consulting with Loki, we’ve decided our attack on Xandaris must be no later than tomorrow. His scouts have reported the enemy is already gathering its forces in Syriota and other nearby halman settlements, likely for an attack on Daemonholm once the three day window is over. This said, we have a matter of our own we must attend to first, and we have little time to spare. We must rescue Grey and Saria from the Vinculus before Alastor and his forces can capture them.” Nodding, Mythra said, “It’ll be a race against time alright, not to mention getting in won’t exactly be a walk in the park. Now that they know where it is, Altera Veritas will probably send a large force to take back the Vinculus. There’s also the issue of breaking through the Eye of Chaos. There’s no way the Audentia can pull it off, but as lucky as we seem to be, we recently acquired a ship that can. A Titan Class Carrier like the Tentrion should have no trouble piercing through that storm.” 

Stepping forward with a warm smile, Claire said, “It will take a number of us to pilot the Tentrion, and we also cannot in good faith send all our forces away from Daemonholm at this point. While some of us head off to the Vinculus, we’ll leave a few behind and send the Audentia to Rusfa Isles to bring the others back and request aid from the dragons. With a bit of dragon wind magic, the Audentia should be able to follow after the Tentrion and bring the others to back up our main forces.” Trying to think of anything else they could do, Alexander turned to Claire and asked, “What of the Observers Claire? Can we count on any additional aid from them?” Shaking her head sadly, Claire replied, “I’m afraid Archon has been keeping them on a short leash now. I have however spoken with Tepes, who searched the Eye of Chaos with her mind’s eye on my request. The Vinculus is definitely there, Grey and Saria within it. She has also heard from Eazel about a matter concerning Grey, but he was very cryptic about it. He said he was able to communicate with Grey briefly in a pseudo space within his heart, and that Grey is deep within the darkness of his heart, training with his ‘Master’.” 

Not sure what she meant by this, from where she stood with the others, Amy said, “His ‘Master’?” Giving her an apologetic smile, Claire said, “I’m afraid I couldn’t say for sure.” Unable to shake a strange feeling, Amy thought back to how Grey’s appearance shifted during the time she entered his mind with Persona, and as Eazel’s words to her right before she used Persona that day rang in her mind, she thought, “What did Eazel mean I may learn more about him than even he knows? Is there some other mystery surrounding Grey that we don’t know about?”

            After the meeting, Amy asked Mythra to go for a short walk in Daemonholm with her while the others made last minute preparations. Walking down a sidewalk with Amy in tow, Mythra looked around at all the reconstruction work that was being done, and with a nervous laugh, she said, “And here Alexander was complaining so much! Pretty soon you won’t be able to tell I broke anything at all!” Trying to be understanding, Amy hesitantly said, “Well, it was a tough fight, so I guess you couldn’t help it…” Crossing her arms and nodding approvingly, Mythra said, “Exactly!” Then stopping and looking back at Amy, a mischievous Mythra convincingly said, “Anyways, asking me out like this is kinda sudden. You weren’t thinking this was a date right? I don’t swing that way just so you know.” 

Caught off guard, Amy turned bright red and said, “WHAT?! N-n-n-no! No, no, no, no, no! It’s not like that! I have Grey, why would I-” Bursting out laughing at her reaction, Mythra said, “Jeez Amy, you’re even easier to mess with than Grey is!” Greatly irritated, Amy exclaimed, “Mythraaaaa! I called you out here for something serious!” Stifling her laughter, Mythra said, “Sorry, I’m just getting tired of all this serious atmosphere lately.” Turning back to the citadel with a pouting face, Amy stormed off as she said, “Just forget it!” Quickly following after her, Mythra sighed and said, “Oh c’mon, don’t be angry!” Turning back to her, Amy stuck out her tongue and said, “Gotcha!” Smiling reluctantly, Mythra crossed her arms and said, “Why you little…” Satisfied with her revenge, Amy said, “Anyways, I wanted to talk about Grey.” Raising an eyebrow questioningly, Mythra said, “What about him?”

            Explaining all of what happened back in the world of Grey’s mind, as Amy finished, a puzzled Mythra said, “White hair? That is kind of weird…” Nodding, Amy said, “I’m wondering if that could have been because of this ‘Master’ Claire mentioned.” Standing there thinking for awhile, Mythra finally said, “Well, with the information we have now, standing here wracking our brains isn’t gonna do any good. Besides, if this ‘Master’ of his is training him, it doesn’t seem like he’s in trouble or anything. I mean, aside from being kidnapped and all.” Still worried, Amy said, “Still, Claire said he was deep in the darkness of his heart again. What if he gets attacked by his darkness again? What if something happens and I’m not there?” 

Walking over to Amy, Mythra bonked her on the head hard. Staggering back and clutching her head in pain, Amy looked at Mythra with tears in her eyes and said, “What was that for?! That hurt!” A stern look on her face, Mythra said, “You’re thinking about your mother’s prophecy again, aren’t you?” Briefly showing a surprised face, Amy looked away from her and said, “So what?! Even if it is selfish, I’m willing to sacrifice myself if it means Grey stays safe! It’s my business, nobody else’s!” Mythra’s eyes going wide in anger, she lunged forth and grabbed Amy by the collar of her shirt, pulling her in so that they were face to face. Meeting Mythra’s raging eyes with a look of fear, Amy was silent as Mythra shouted, “Don’t you DARE say this is no one else’s business! If you think you going and throwing your life away isn’t going to affect anyone else, you’ve got another damn thing coming! Even if you don’t care about leaving all the rest of us behind, do you really think Grey himself will ever be the same if you died for him?! If you want to do something for him, then live! Fight tooth and nail with every last breath in your body to stay alive!” 

Releasing Amy, Mythra walked past her and began heading back to the Obsidian Citadel. Dropping to her knees, Amy started to cry as she thought, “I’m sorry…!” Continuing on her way, Mythra thought, “I know how much you love him, I know you’re afraid to lose him! The fear I felt that day a thousand years ago, when I rushed to find out whether he was alright or not… That fear really can drive you mad! I know I can’t stop you… Even so, you were my first true friend, and as much as you may resent me for it, I’ve enjoyed playing the part of your rival more than you know! I’ll never forgive you if you do it Amy!”

            Standing in the midst of a throne room lit by faint blue flame candles upon the walls, Grey watched the scene before him unfold. Sitting upon a black, spike adorned throne, Alastor stared blankly at the person who walked up to stand before him, who in the dim light was barely recognizable by Grey as Dr. Nova. Wearing bandages over the eye on which Grey remembered him having a scar, as Dr. Nova knelt before Alastor, he said, “I bring disturbing news.” Staring down at him, Alastor said, “My, my, you’ve been injured Schwartz. Last I heard, you set out with my brother to deal with the pair of mautauians who have been attacking our forces. Tell me, where is Alexander?” Reaching up and touching the bandages around his eye, Dr. Nova replied, “We don’t know where he’s gotten to. While fighting against the younger of the mautauians, it seems Lord Alexander had a… change of heart…” 

Narrowing his eyes, Alastor said, “What do you mean a ‘change of heart’?” Removing his bandages to reveal a long wound from a blade across his eye, Dr. Nova said, “I mean he has attacked his own escort and fled with the enemy.” Gripping the armrests of the throne for a moment as though suppressing great rage, Alastor rose from his seat on the throne and walked past Dr. Nova, headed for the door. Rising and turning about, Dr. Nova called out to him, “Lord Alastor?” Pausing in his stride, Alastor did not turn to face Dr. Nova as he said, “Make sure all our forces know to kill Alexander on sight. I have little tolerance for traitors.” With that, Alastor made his way out the door and closed it behind him, and soon the scene faded into darkness.

            Before he knew it, Grey was back on the floor of Vanitas’ Sanctuary, and as he sat up, Vanitas’ voice called out to him, “Another one down. We’re slowly getting there.” Looking over to where Vanitas stood by a window staring out into the nothingness, Grey replied, “I don’t feel like this is getting me anywhere.” With a chuckle, Vanitas said, “Patience is a virtue you know. It won’t be much longer before the darkness shrouding Alastor’s heart parts. That last scene was one of the darkest and most painful of Alastor’s memories. The day he was pitted against his most important person.” Standing, Grey simply said, “It looked pretty mutual to me.” Turning away from the window to face Grey, Vanitas said, “True, I suppose it does look that way from outside, but lost in the grip of the Nameless One, Alastor’s sorrow could only manifest as anger and hatred.” 

Making his way to the black throne in the center of the room and taking a seat, Vanitas continued, “He had been quite strong up until then, despite everything he’d been forced to do. Still, even though he hoped Alexander would be able to save him, upon hearing the news that day, Alastor could not stop crying on the inside when he realized he was alone…” As Grey stood there quietly contemplating this, out of the very floor appeared a dark blob that rose up before him. Stumbling backwards in surprise, Grey landed on his behind and exclaimed, “The hell?!” Quivering and twisting, as the blob started to twist itself into a sword wielding humanoid shape made from pure darkness, Vanitas folded his hands in his lap and called out, “Well now, it’s shown itself at last. The guardian…”