Existentially Bound: Part 3
Desolate & Desperate
Paige wrinkled her nose, trying her best not to comment on the overwhelming stench the sulfur steamed into the air. The group had finally made it to their destination, and she was very intent on finding answers. Even her insatiable curiosity at the legends surrounding this magnificent spectacle were quelled by the noble's resoluteness.
Ember took in a breath, forgetting for a moment the funk the giant lake of sulfur below the palace caused. On her face -whether she meant to show it or not- was a look of uncertainty and desperation. The last time she was here, she was being led by the Djinn Valandra; Okht they had called her: an ancient word meaning, 'sister,' according to the Djinn. It was with this familial connection in which they allowed both women into their inner sanctum. Yet the Djinn had proven they were picky on who entered: Demitra was denied entrance when she journeyed here while Ember fought the war in Kourna. And, they very cryptically said the woman was impure. While it was later discovered this was due to Valandra's presence in Demitra's bracers, Ember couldn't help but worry she would also be 'impure,' due to the binding of the ice queen to her person.
"I worry too," whispered Valandra in her ear. "But, I believe that was due to two Djinn being bound to the same artifact. You and I are essentially bound together, correct? I do not believe they would be able to deny entry based on this. After all, Djinn do not procreate, remember?"
"Yeah, I remember: they watch people… watched us… do it," Ember said loud enough to make the other women uncomfortable, but her eyes remained staring at the floating sanctuary.
Valandra cleared Ember's throat. "As I was saying, they no longer have offspring of their own. They are a fusion of the primordial element they belong and another being. Which would mean that most have been, at some point in their past, mortal beings."
Ember nodded. "Right, so who are they to judge us?"
Paige took a few steps to stand beside Ember. She had tried a few times to make her presence known, but the conversation with herself seemed uninterruptible. "Emily… What does Valandra think? She has experience with the Djinn. I have read that Djinn which guard entrances and the like have tests and riddles which are a requirement to proceed. Can we count on her? You? You both?" Paige had difficulties knowing how to address the woman, and tried her best not to make any assumptions.
A smile came to the woman's face. Whether it was originated from the ice queen within or Ember was unknown. The combined voice of both women were resolute and confident. "We will gain access, whether they let us or not. We're going to get some gods damned answers."
Taliha was a large woman, but her footfalls were completely silent, and had their attention not been of such a grave quest, her sudden presence would have startled them both. "Something is strange. I am not sure what it is, but it is though there is a quietness here…"
"It is indeed eerie, but I am not quite surprised it is so empty, given this hostile location. The Djinn no doubt chose this for that reason. They probably have wards to expel ambient creatures from it too," Paige stroked her chin for a bit, then shook off the overwhelming need to explain how wards worked.
"I hope you are correct," Taliha mumbled as the group began to make their way to the entrance portal.
Taliha scanned the area with eyes unseen. "There are no souls present, save a faint and very distant one."
"That's expected though, right? If Djinn are… different, you wouldn't be able to see them like that… right?" Ember's head actually ached trying to understand the rules of the Whisperer's powers. But as they drew closer to the doorway, her assertion aligned with Taliha's. "Where are the Djinn? They… They wouldn't leave this portal unguarded," she said gesturing to the gateway. At once, a swirling portal of sand blinked into existence, as if reacting to Ember's presence.
"And they left their door open, as well?" Paige said, already inspecting the gateway and portal. It was like a candle, flickering on the verge of extinction and it hummed with a tone which appeared to struggle to retain the harmonious sound. "Something seems a bit off about it though…"
"Well, it looks as though we are not impure," Valandra and Ember praised themselves with a grin.
Paige understood the implication. "So it would have stayed off for us, but as a Djinn yourself-"
"Selves," Ember and Valandra said in unison. "But, we shall follow your lead, Lady Paige Dejarin."
An exasperated breath was exhaled from the woman, partly due to the correction and following formality, but moreover, their predicament. It felt… wrong. Ember knew it, Taliha could sense it, and everything in Paige's stomach told her they very well be walking into danger. Her hand clasped the bracers in her side pouch. "We didn't just come here to turn back. Not now. We have to know what's going on."
"Then we all go together," Ember said, stepping through the portal alongside Paige and Taliha.
At once, they exploded, scattering into a million pieces then promptly rushing back together like a tidal wave of sand which was their person. On their previous experience here Ember and Valandra had felt the overwhelming sickness and they both prepared themselves for it this time. Yet, this time, it was different: The incredibly nauseating experience was absent.
It wasn't the only thing different…
Before them lie the Djinn Sanctuary, the once great and mysterious stronghold… now completely in ruin. Pillars holding the structure had long since fallen, scores of sand piled upon the flooring where once intricately designed tile had decorated. Entire sections of the sanctuary were completely missing, and those that still stood had gained giant cracks upon various stages of broken and dilapidated walls. The framework of some areas stood completely exposed, threatening collapse with every creak. The marvels of the floating islands alongside the structure had completely been destroyed, all remaining was a shell of what had once been the home of the Djinn.
Ember's heart was on the floor as Valandra grappled with the sight. "What… What happened here?"
The sentiment was shared among the group. It was only after the initial shock wore off that Paige returned to her analytical investigative mindset. "We… We haven't been gone for that long. Look. This erosion isn't natural. Perhaps magic cause this?"
"Or perhaps the lack of it," Taliha concluded.
Ember yelled into the hallowed rubble, "Hellooooo? Anyone around?"
Paige turned to her comrades. "Do either of you sense anything? Emily, you're a Djinn now; do you feel any others around? What about you, Taliha? You mentioned there was a faint spirit? Anything?" Desperation tinged the woman's words, with a determination that their journey and last lead didn't meet a dead-end.
Taliha cleared her throat. "I do not hear anything. It is eerie; no peep from anyone otherworldly. The spirit I felt is a bit stronger here, but if it is here, it is very weak."
"Okay, so Djinn aren't spirits, so what is it? And… do you pick up anything from them? I can't believe there are no Djinn in the Djinn Palace!"
The Whisperer looked around, expanding her mystical sight. "There is only a residual energy from various objects. No beings I can tell."
"Objects?" Ember asked trying to build the puzzle. "Okay, don't yell at me, but maybe we should rub a lamp! There was a lamp in my vault that a Djinn popped out of. Djinn love lamps," Ember offered the unprompted explanation to Taliha.
Valandra responded. "Ember, you fool! There isn't any-"
"Don't call me a fool, dammit! I'm trying," Ember yelled.
Valandra forced Ember to look around. "There is not a lamp to be rubbed!"
Paige was going to scold the women for yet another interruption as the outbursts were getting more frequent, and this was certainly not the time for their bickering, but Paige had been told of Valandra's strategical insights, and she was in a situation it may help. Given this, Paige swallowed a slight lump. "What is it, Valandra?"
Ember raised an eyebrow, was about to interject, when Valandra took her voice. "Emily… I… apologize. My epiphany was this: When last we were here, there were rows upon rows of shelving along every wall. Among them were various pots, pottery, lanterns, weapons and unassuming objects. These were their vessels; they were bound to them… And now…" The woman's voice trailed off but her words continued in Ember's head. "They are… all gone; all destroyed."
All three women were statues, the only sound was the breeze and rustling sands on the flooring that had accumulated. After a long moment, Paige finally reluctantly shook her head. "No. I do not believe that. I… I can't believe that! Not after all this!" She dropped to her knees, began to frantically dig at the various broken pieces of pottery. "Demi! I can't lose you again! Come back to us!"
Both Ember and Valandra sympathized with the scene being played out, recalling Ember's frantic digging at the sandfall, crying her lover's name. It was during such times that Ember relied on the ice queen's calmness. The approached her panicked friend, knelt down beside her. Both halves acted in unison as they placed their hand upon Paige's shoulder.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this," Paige sniffled. "We were supposed to find her… not… not this… emptiness…"
"Valandra and I aren't so good with the speeches, Paige… I…" Ember's eyes dropped to where she was kneeling, feeling a hard surface beneath the sand. She slid backward, searched the sands and retrieved what appeared to be an armor piece.
Paige looked up, wiping her cheeks. "Is that… Is that biotech armor?"
Ember rotated the panel to catch the light causing its red coloring to glisten. "It looks like the… prison suits we were in," Valandra and Ember both said. There were several scorch marks around its edges as if it had been forcefully separated.
"A why would a suit like that be all the way up here? Oh… no…"
Valandra made Ember's head nod, much to her annoyance. "The suits were powerful, but I doubt powerful enough to clear this place. What has she done?" Valandra asked, an obvious pain in her voice.
Ember raised an eyebrow. "Who?" she asked, but as the question left her lips, Paige and Valandra both said the dreaded name.
"Kievaa."
Taliha stepped toward the women, interrupting the scene. Her head tilted and turned at awkward angles. "Wait. Please, can you be silent a moment? I… I hear something."
Paige and Ember looked up at the woman as she seemed to scan the area with covered eyes, stopping on the rubble a few feet from them. Paige followed the woman's unseen gaze, quickly began to move the wreckage, hope filling the optimistic-prone woman. When the last piece of stone was moved, she paused and raised her eyebrow.
"What is it?" Ember asked, a small spark of hopefulness also finding its way to her. Surprisingly, the feeling was matched with Valandra's own anticipation.
Reaching forward, Paige retrieved a small device, obviously asuran in design. It was the size of two of the woman's hands and a bit heavy and sturdy-built, a design clearly not meant for mobility. The entire thing seemed to be made to blend in; had their Whisperer not heard the device, it could have easily been overlooked. Paige deduced this aloud as she examined it for the benefit of the others. Turning it around, there was a small dimly-lit display on the side the muted test upon it alternating between two asuran words. The noble knew the language well; she had trained for a time under the tutelage of an asuran mentor. It was switching from the word "activated" to "movement detected."
"Oh no…" Paige was barely able to say before movement above them drew their attention upward.
A pale-skinned woman with scorched cheeks and a dark visor peered down at the group before leaping from the broken pillar. She was covered in bio-tech armor, wielding two smoking axes of blood, which immediately sought out Paige.
"Lady Paige, look out!" yelled Taliha, rushing to push the woman out of the way, but the surprise came about too suddenly. The armored woman slammed into the ground, sending a shockwave outward, blowing everyone away with the impact. Her lidless visor was already scanning through the dirt and rubble thrust into the air, seeking out her target.
The visor belonged to the woman named Shiera Soelnarr, otherwise known as Fifteen Omega, a designation given to her by her creator, the necromancer Kievaa. Her purpose was to serve the vile asura and do her bidding, to which both the visor she wore and she suit she was imprisoned in ensured her loyalty. Ember had run into the woman before, back during her own experience trapped in a suit designed by Kievaa, and had made a promise to Shiera to save her from imprisonment. It was a regret that haunted her and came to meet her face-to-face back during the battle at Lennk's lab. She failed to save her before and failed to save her then, with the fight culminating in the Number's death. Ember could still hear the bones of her neck snap at her assault -a chilling sound which often kept her from sleeping.
She landed with a thud against a broken piece of wall, sat up in disbelief. "Shiera? H- How?"
The ice queen's voice boomed in her head, as her hands began freezing the air around them. "On your feet; there is no reasoning with this one, for she is a product of that despicable-"
"Stop it!" Ember screamed, both at Valandra and at Shiera.
Shiera seemed to ignore Ember, her visor steadfast through the dust at Paige. She darted forward, leapt in the air, to come down and slaughter the cowering woman. In an instant her descent abruptly stopped. She wiggled, suspended in air with mystical sage-colored smoking translucent chains surrounding her. Below, Taliha stood, arms outstretched calling forth the magic to bind her, attached to her very soul.
"She's… Weakened… Her soul is barely there; barely anything to chain down. Hurry, Lady Paige… retreat!" the Whisperer grunted, straining to sustain the magic.
The impact of the assault swiped into and through Shiera's being. It shattered the chains and would have reaped the woman's soul, had the chains not been holding her. She flew with the force of a thousand spirit's fists, her suit sparking as she slid.
Paige suddenly fell to her knees, reverting back to her normal form. Ember wanted to check on her friend, the spectacle being something she'd never witnessed and uncharacteristic of what Paige had done previously, but her attention was on the dust cloud where Shiera had landed. The ice queen had already electrified he space between her iced hands, and launched an lightning-infused plasma bolt as soon as Shiera rose to her feet. The impact hit hard, caused damage to the suit, ejecting a panel due to a miniature explosion underneath.
"The panel we found… It's from her suit!" Taliha concluded. "If we damage it enough, maybe we can speak with her… I think we should-"
Shiera was suddenly upon Taliha, her bloodstone axes high in the air, ready to penetrate the woman's shoulder. Instinctively, Taliha called upon the spirit of a dwarf to grant her protection. Shiera's blow would have severed the woman's arm had her skin not been magically turned to stone. The impact however, was still felt and she fell hard, causing the spirit to leave and returning her skin to its normal vulnerable state. Shiera reared back for a killing blow.
Ember screamed at Paige who was closer. "Protect our Whisperer!"
Paige shook her head, attempting to shake off the dizziness that was the aftermath of her unexpected magical transformation. It was intoxicating, a feeling of invincibility and invulnerableness the young woman wasn't used to… but wanted more of. At Ember's voice, however, she was brought to the present, saw the situation and quickly jumped to action. She stood and magically propelled herself toward Shiera, leading with her shoulder which frosted with the coldness of death. She slammed into Shiera, instantly knocking her back, and stood defiantly over their newfound companion. Her only weapon, the torch.
Shiera was already steady on her feet, again, pulling swinging a downward axe at her foe. Paige held the ancient metal torch up to block her. The impact was blinding. It shattered the bloodstone axe and sent Shiera flying backward. She slammed into a pillar which promptly collapsed onto her. A quick glance to her companion showed Taliha was stirring and rising to her feet. Paige looked over to Ember. "Emily… Valandra, can you trap her with ice?"
Nodding, Ember began to channel her magic and formed walls of ice to encase Shiera. Within, the rubble was tossed aside as the armored assailant rose unsteadily to her feet. A few more sparks came from the suit as parts of it appeared to be missing, the remaining lights upon it flickering. Her visor was also sparking, but remained affixed to the woman's face. She scowled beneath it, forcing words to surface. "The beacon… Master knew you… would… come…" Despite the words, her actions were in complete contrast: she stormed to the wall, began to punch at it repeatedly. Each punch added an additional crack in the magical wall of ice.
"What beacon?" Taliha groaned.
Paige looked around, her eyes stopping upon the piece of asuran tech they had discovered. "That beacon! It's… It's gotta be! Ember, can you…"
Ember was already over to the piece of tech. She pulled out her sword of fire. To her dismay, it remained unlit. "What the hell?"
Shiera's leg sparked and went limp. She stared through the ice at Ember, then promptly slammed her head into the ice, forcing the crack to spread. "Beacon," she groaned.
"Light damn it!" Ember swore, shaking the sword.
Shiera slammed her visor into the ice, which sparked again and exploded outwardly, the force bursting the ice-wall.
"Ember!" Paige yelled.
Ember frowned, "It's Emily!" she screamed as the sword ignited and she held it aloft.
Paige and Taliha leaped forward, both women holding back the weakened Shiera. "Do it now! Destroy the thing!"
The fire sword struck the beacon, causing another shock-wave knocking everyone over again. Ember scrambled to her feet, as did Paige and Taliha. Shiera was on her hip, reaching forward blindly. Several more pieces had fallen from the suit, and the last of the energy which lit it flickered and faded.
Taliha approached the feeble woman, kneeling down to her. "You are it. The lost soul; an ancient soul… The reason I am here." She turned to Paige. "It is a weak soul. Very weak."
Paige took a step closer kneeling down. "Are you… are you yourself now?"
Shiera collapsed, rolled onto her back. Her eyes were obsidian orbs, from them, charred burned flesh streaked down. She blinked a few times, yet no images came to her. She was again blind… but now, she was free. "I… couldn't… resist…"
Ember crawled to the woman. "Shhh. Here. Grab my hand. I'm right here for you," she said more sincerely than Paige had heard in a long time. Ember glanced up, saw the expression. "She was a prisoner with me with Valandra gave me to that asura. I promised to free her. Are you free now, Shiera?"
Shiera fumbled around and found Ember's hand. Her face was full of fright; no voices in her head, no controls, no impulses. "I… I thought I had resisted. I thought I was free, but… she knew. She knew and she let me think I was escaping. She let Six and I think we could…"
Paige gasped. "Six! What… What happened with her? Do you know where she is? Was she here as well?"
Shiera tried to sit up, but found her body no longer responded to her command. "Mast- Kievaa and Lennk… they still have her… aboard their airship. Six… she helped me escape… (Or at least I thought I had escaped on my own volition…) I think Kievaa wanted me to think that… or wanted Lennk to think I had. It's all hard to grasp."
"Do you know what happened here?" Paige asked, desperately.
"I know only that I was… compelled to come here, due to the beacon. I think Kievaa knew you would eventually come. I was to attack when the beacon was disturbed. This place was destroyed when I arrived. I am only grateful I was not made to commit this… genocide."
Paige lost her balance, fell back at the word, barely able to utter it. "Gen… Genocide?" She instinctively reached into her side-pouch, sliding her hand into one of the bracers. Her eyes glossed over and distantly traveled over the pieces of broken Djinn vessels littering the floor.
Ember did the same and felt her other heart -Valandra's heart, breaking. "Your family… Our family… I'm… so… sorry."
Paige turned to Emily and threw her arms around her, sobbing. A somber sadness filled the area. Neither Ember nor Paige moved from their cradle -the first time they had hugged each other in so many months. Ember tried to minimize the coldness of her touch as much as she could for her friend's comfort. Paige simply sobbed, and it took all of Valandra's strength to keep Ember from doing the same. Neither said a word, yet both had an overwhelming dread that it was the last chance they had to save their wife, lover, and friend, Demitra Naja Nyimah.
[To Be Continued...]
