Eternally Bound: Part 15
----- Explanation -----
"I mean, I'm sorta viewed as a war hero, I guess? When we took down Joko, I-"
"A hero? One whom stabs their companions?" Valandra interrupted.
Ember paused on the stairs of the entrance and winced as the insult hit like the arrows she'd taken during the War in Kourna. She spun around, looking up at the woman with a stare the ice queen usually gave. "Listen here… You… You forced the blade; you made me! You know I didn't want to!"
Valandra's brow furrowed, her words fused with unusual angst and hurt. "Didn't you though? You wanted her back so badly…"
"You were controlled by Joko!" Ember spat.
"And then you… You married her," the last word came out as the normally stoic ice queen's voice cracked like a frozen lake.
Ember frowned at the woman. "Yes I did! Like I always dreamed! I'm trying to settle down; trying to start something new. You… You were dead!"
Valandra inadvertently ran her hand over the large scar on her shoulder. "Perhaps I still am," she muttered.
Paige slapped her hands together. "Kormir's tits, I think I got it!" she exclaimed. She was never good at swearing.
Ember angrily clomped down the stairs with heavy footfalls. "What is it, Milady? Do you know where we have to go?"
Looking up from her musings, Paige found herself in the company of the ice woman again. For a moment, she weighed their previous conversation against the likelihood that the same insulting banter would undoubtedly not end well. She decided to try a more diplomatic approach than she'd done before.
"I believe we got off on… the wrong foot (as they say). I would like to welcome you to the Dejarin estate. This is Sebastian, my steward, and, as I've said, I am Lady Paige Dejarin, of House Dejarin. Now, unless you wish to introduce yourself, we can proceed with business, if that suits you." Paige placed her hand over her heart and reached out with her palm up.
Valandra folded her arms, looking up at the mansion, only slightly acknowledging the woman's gesture or her steward. "You know who I am," she said, not buying into the Lady's attempt at resetting their acquaintance.
"Of course I do, but usually a 'queen' would relish the chance to talk about themselves. Perhaps just going to business then. I have a query for-"
"I have no need to impress you," the woman barked.
Paige sighed, tried not to show it. "Perhaps not; though I assure you actions speak louder than words to my ear, so perhaps it's best you-"
Valandra interrupted again, "Just ask your damned question."
The noble sighed, obviously not getting through to the woman in the slightest. "So the gloves are a doorway, right? Like a… pocket dimension that connects to the Realm of the Djinn. You are bound to the gauntlets, just as Demitra is, and I'm guessing you wearing them won't release her. Is that a fair assumption? See, my theory is that when Ember touched them, you channeled through her to override Demitra's resistance." She paused to study the woman's expression.
"Those are two questions and a statement. To which do you expect a response?"
Ember grinned coyly. "Told you she was smarter."
The ice queen shot a look to Ember. "Smarter than you perhaps."
"Smart enough not to turn myself into a Djinn!" Ember fumed.
A sly grin came to Valandra. "Yet, not smart enough to escape the suits…"
"Oh right! Like you escaped them so easily! Besides, you got in it willingly, ice-for-brains!"
Paige cleared her throat. "Look, there's a difference between intelligence and wisdom. For instance: not slapping the hand that is offered in friendship!"
"I have learned the hand offered in friendship often turns into the hand which slaps you. Joko taught me to take…"
"Then you were taught wrong! I sympathize you were raised by that monster, but he's dead! And, you don't have to be a monster, too. You've come into our live (my home!) and been nothing but rude, yet, I still offer a hand to you. Don't be so quick to slap it away; give us a chance," Paige appealed earnestly.
The woman unfolded her arms, looking over Paige and back to Ember. "Joko had his harems as well; I was a part of one. It is how I was discovered and rescued…" She paused, considering her words for a moment. "Discovered and taken for my abilities to serve in His name and in His image. Perhaps," she inadvertently touched the scar upon her shoulder, "such things can be… put away."
"I think you'll find that if you're willing to trust, and not just take, you'll get the same trust in return. I'm not an unreasonable woman. Look around at my people: the commoners, the staff. You can point at any of them and I know their name and can tell you their birthday down to the year. A noble looks out for those that serve them, and I respect each and every one under my care, just as they respect me. It is a two-way path!"
Valandra stared, arms still folded a few minutes after Paige had stopped. She glanced to Ember. "Does she always ramble this often?"
Ember conjured a small flame and flicked it at Valandra. "Be nice," she said with flashing red eyes.
Valandra took a step back to avoid the mini-fireball. She exhaled a frosty breath. "Fine. Respect notwithstanding, I choose to answer your question so we may join in order to find the rodent, Kievaa. Before you launched into your definition of nobility, I was going to explain."
"Then do so," Paige said, folding her arms, tired of the bickering.
The puffy-haired woman's defiance stance made Valandra grin as she continued, "I have spent quite a bit of time trapped within the Realm of the Djinn. You correctly surmised how a vessel works; it is essentially a holding place before a gateway, which allows for traversal. While there are many vessels which hold doorways to the Realm for a Djinn, each Djinn has but one key. I could not use another vessel to re-emerge without being bound to such, and from what I understand, each Djinn has an artifact they - and they alone - can be bound to. Thus, our artifacts: Demitra's bracers, and my sword of ice."
"But, you're both bound to Demitra's gloves. That's what you said, right?" Ember said, tilting her head, trying her best to follow along.
"Indeed. This is why we cannot both emerge. I attempted to claw my way from the entrapment, yet on the cusp, I was thwarted," the ice queen said as she tapped her cold chin.
"You mean, when I made Demitra take off the gloves? You were trying to merge… or replace her! She was having trouble controlling her powers, because you were forcing your way out! I made her remove them so she could be free of whatever you were doing to her!"
"Which allowed me to reach you with our link. And without the obstruction, you heeded my call."
Ember clenched her fists, began to emit heat. "Demitra is not an obstruction! She's my-"
"Wife. I know. You have made such abundantly clear." Valandra's voice had a tinge of bitterness and hurt, covered like a snow-capped mountain, but the shape was still visible.
"Don't you dare undermine their marriage!" Paige blurted, stepping between the women.
Ember puffed, bit her lip, fighting back the urge to incinerate the woman. "I had to go through a whole hell of a lot to get her back!"
"You didn't die," Valandra's response was quick and sharp.
"I would have gladly! You were the one that fell off the-"
"Enough!" Paige stomped the ground. "Just stop, both of you. This isn't helping. I've been nothing but courteous to you and all you've done is be condescending and mean. Just tell us what we need to know and we can all just get this over with."
"The artifacts. I have come to learn a bit about them. Their true purpose is a bit elusive, as trying to obtain straight answers from Djinn is rather… difficult, unless they wish to divulge such. I have come to understand that these artifacts, guarded by the Djinn, are weapons for a perceived future threat. As to what such a threat is, I do not know. But, there are four: the gauntlets, the torch, the sword of fire and the sword of ice. Demitra was to receive her artifact much as you two did. I discovered she however, she was bound to them long before she was supposed to find them. I do not believe this to be the original plan. While she was chosen at birth to become a Djinn, it was done ahead of schedule."
"If that is so, then how are you also bound to the wrong artifact?" Paige asked, finally glad to be getting additional pieces to the puzzle.
"I sacrificed myself (with the help of Ember), which released Demitra, but since I had the Djiin's essence inside me, I was also bound to the gauntlets in the exchange of power. If we are to find my artifact-"
Paige gladly interrupted the woman, as she had done so many times to her. "Yes, yes, your artifact. We know. We can bind you to it and save Demitra. But tell me: how do we save her?"
Valandra turned to face the women. "I am uncertain we can. I was able to reach out to Ember since we were share a link; before that, I was pushing my way from the realm, but Demitra was resistant. She is trapped there, and must, herself, reach out."
"Or you can put them on and let her take you over." Ember moved to stand beside Paige, with her hands on her hips.
"Sacrifice myself again to save your wife? You would condemn me to a lifetime of entrapment? I spent what felt as though it were an eternity within the Realm of the Djinn; I am in no hurry to go back."
"You don't need to exchange places. Not if we can find the asura and get on with the plan. You're going to need to trust me though and follow my lead while we solve this problem. I can figure this out, but you've got to stop spitting in my face. Hate me all you want, but at least act like you have some vestige of kindness." Paige turned on her heel, began walking to the raptor pen, without waiting for a response.
Valandra looked over to Ember. "I don't… hate her; I barely know her."
"Then stop being an ice cold bitch! You're acting like you did before… the tent," Ember said, blushing, but resolute.
"And yet you married Demitra," Valandra muttered.
"I followed my heart. It took a long time for me to get over… I built a damn statue of you! I did what I thought best, and I moved on… You were dead, remember?" Ember stormed off, following Paige's path.
Valandra ran her finger over her scar. "Perhaps it would have been better if I stayed that way," she whispered to herself.
[To be Continued...]
