starlit heroics chapter 3

~*~*~* Chapter 3: Fantastic Stones And Where To Find Them *~*~*~


“Dan. Danno. Buddy. Friend. You up yet.”

The prince woke up in his bed, being tapped by the broad side of a katana. The sun was setting now in his bedroom window, and even though he was being roused, he felt like someone had tied lead weights to his limbs.

“Uuurrgh... what happened, did I sleep through the fight...”

“So uh... no, you didn't. We did it! We won. We got your little princesses out of there and found out what was going on. But that's just the good news. The uh... the bad news...”

As Dan woke up more, the memories started to return. He had waited in the foyer with Danielle and Letro, but he had gotten ambushed. Thinking about what happened to Danielle in that few minutes was like putting your hand on a burning stove. He knew what had happened, but his mind reflexively turned away when he tried to play out the sequence of events.

“...I know, Letro. I know.” The defeat in Dan's voice at that moment alarmed even Letro. “I failed her.”

“No no no no. Let me tell you what happened after that. It was awesome.”

“I don't want to hear it.”

“No I think you need to hear it.”

“I don't want to.”

“Too bad I'm telling you anyway. Okay so. The uh... the thing happened to Danielle, and you? You went fucking berserk. I don't think I've ever seen you use Space magic, dude. I didn't know you could do it.”

“I... I can't.” Dan lifted his hands to his face and stared at them. He couldn't remember anything after the moment the tigers attacked Danielle. “...Tell me more. I'm interested now.”

“So, okay, you teleported the cats to the ceiling and threw them into the ground first of all, right? Okay, but then, you knock out berserker bitch by throwing her into a wall. And then, you take catboy and you put him in like three different bookshelves. Then we all ended up back here after that, and then you passed out.”

“How long have I been out...”

“Couple hours, about. Don't worry buddy. I've been taking real good care of you.”

“Letro that's really gay.”

“But it got you to smile. See? Heh.”

“Ugh... enough joking around though. Tell me what's happened since I passed out. Where's Dani's body? What happened during the rest of the battle?”

“Well they cleared out the monsters, so I heard. Some serious barrier magic happened around the castle. Most of the soldiers got out before they ended up stuck inside, but... well to put it shortly Purple is still in there.”

“What?! God damn it...”

“Okay but listen to me. I've got a plan.”

“I'll hear anything out at this point. Hit me.”

“So. We need to get back in there and rescue your little buddy, right? I've already got Kaj on board for this. It's pretty brilliant. You ready for it? Here it comes. Okay. Gonna say it now.”

“Just spit it out, Letro.”

“We go to outside of the castle while they're not paying attention. Alright, you with me so far?”

“I'm listening.”

“We go there at like midnight or something, all stealth like, and you know how we get in?”

“Go on.”

“We dig a tunnel into the castle.”

“...You know Letro. That is a completely and utterly mundane plan and you know it. But I am so groggy right now that it sounds genius. The perfect crime.”

Glad you agree. You in?”

“Guess so.”

“Okay good, now hear me out some more. We gotta take a little retribution, yeah? You know, eye for an eye. But we've also got to be the better men. We're not killing their sisters because we are better than that.”

“Also because they're our friends, Letro.”

“That too. So we've gotta claim something else, right? Hear me out one last time. The Zempheriean Crystal. Just like the one sitting pretty in this here castle. We steal it. Yeah? They'll be hurting for that thing.”

“Letro are you crazy? That thing is a power source!”

“But! But but but. A power source to what. Do we actually know? Can't be the whole kingdom, can it? It doesn't look like it powers a damn thing. It isn't the element because we got gods, Guardians, all kind of things for that. So. We take it, and I figure not only do we have a precious artifact of theirs to atone for a precious thing of yours, we get to try science and find out what it does. You follow?”

“I... guess your logic is pretty sound, yeah. Alright. Count me in.”

“Good. Now I couldn't get ahold of those Lumentian girls, but-”

“Hang on. Before you go on. You never answered my other question. What happened to Danielle?”

“...Right. That. Okay so. Your mom's on the line to Lumentia to arrange a Reviver Stone. In the meantime she's been put into the crypt in Time's End for safekeeping. You know, just so rogue necromancers don't happen.”

“Letro please don't imply necromancers want my sister's skin.”

“I dunno I think a lot of people would want her skin. I mean think about it. It's simply divine.”

“Letro no. Letro stop.”

“For eight thousand dollars, I will stop.”

“Letro please.”

“Anyway. So, think of it this way. We run in, we get your little dragon and the crystal. We go home the winners, then we go to Lumentia to pick up that stone. How's that sound.”

“I already said I was in. When are you planning on trying this?”

“Tonight.”

“Once again, I ask if you are crazy.”

“No no no listen. See, if we do it tonight, we catch them off guard, yeah? They're gonna think, oh they killed the princess, we're going to be reeling and trying to recover for at least a few days. No. Not so. We are striking back tonight and they'll never see it coming.”

“...I hate that you're right. I really do. Fine, I guess we're going tonight.”

“That's the spirit. Alright. Get up, get a shower, get some dinner, we're gonna do this. We're gonna make this happen.”

“Yeah, yeah. Least I know she's not gone forever...”

“That's the way. She's just taking a nap. In the crypt. With all the actual corpses. Having a tea party with Death herself.”

“Letro I swear I will actually pay you eight thousand dollars if it will make you knock it off.”

“Wow, gee, really! Golly gee whizz, I didn't think you cared about me that much, good buddy, I love you too.”

“Letro what am I going to do with you.”

“Love me.”

“Yeah yeah, whatever.” Dan stretched out a little, and finally sat up, patting down his messy hair. “I guess we're making this happen.”

“You bet your ass we are.”

~*~*~

“Any word on that Reviver Stone yet?”

Starr leaned back in a seat with her hat once again pulled over her eyes as the two sat around a large library. She looked outright angry, tapping her fingers against the opposite arm as she listened to her sister shuffling through books.

“No, nothing yet.” All three of Spirit's eyes were locked on the book she was flipping through. “Aunt Lucidia's going through the motions now, as far as I know.”

“What are we even in here looking for?”

“You don't understand, Starr. I need to know what I saw. What was wrong with them? They would have never...”

“I know they would have damn well never, but they did. And you know what? I'm kinda pissed about it. I wanna go back and give 'em hell.”

“You didn't see what I did, Starr.”

“That's kinda tough. You have three eyes. You see in like the fourth dimension or something.”

“Okay but that's not what I mean? You can't see auras. They were wrong. It's like I said, it was like someone spilled red wine on a carpet. I've never seen something like that before. You heard him talk. What was that? It was like someone else was talking over him. They were seriously, legitimately wrong and I need to know what happened.”

“If you can find something, be my guest, I guess.”

As they spoke to one another, a man with his dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail approached them with another stack of texts, gingerly setting them down on the table next to them and then adjusting his tie. Spirit's third eye looked up toward him.

“What have we got, Hayward.”

“Studies on the conditionals of aura, the effects of Psionic power to the end of direct mental manipulation and historical documentation on other incidents like this.”

“Appreciated. Thank you, Hayward.”

“May I make a guess, though? A personal theory on what may be happening.”

“Go on.”

“The Queen and myself have been doing some research into the Cerphixen Cataclysm. Young Princess Librata had been aiding us in the last few days after the attack, actually. Reports from refugees at the time stated that similar incidents began happening prior to the proper Cataclysm, of loved ones of power acting strangely and speaking in dual tone. Some stories seem to suggest similar conditionals to what you described, of auras that looked like they were stained with wine.”

“...I'm listening.”

“We had been researching the purpose behind the portal to Ethernealrus being deactivated and what might be done to restore it to working order, as the royal Teleporter Stone has been misplaced recently, and we had wondered if such a system could truly be considered efficient. That was among what we found. We also tracked down a theory about the crystals the kingdoms guard so closely.”

“Well... it's only tangentially relevant to my research, but if you've found something interesting I'd like to hear it.”

“The theory states that the Eight Crystals may be tied to the gateway to Ethernealrus. The reports from one hundred years ago suggest that at one time they were installed in the gateway, and the condensed elemental energy kept it powered and opened. When they were removed, the portal closed, never to be opened again.”

“Fascinating...”

“They were supposedly removed in the first place to prevent the Cataclysm from spreading to our planet. A similar deactivation was performed on the gateway from Cerphixen to Ethernealrus, and the artifacts powering it were stored in a yet-unknown location. The Teleporter Stones, eight of them, were made shortly thereafter, leading us to where we are today.”

“Interesting... I remember Danielle talking about researching the Cataclysm. She said it might have to do with what was happening with Zempheriea. I guess she was right... that gross sick guy we saw in front of the castle even said something about 'Lord Xerizero'.”

“So, he may be seeking nothing less than a repeat of his victory. A conquest upon us and our home.”

“Looks like it, after all. We won today, so I hear. The sick guy retreated and all the monsters were squished. The King and Queen are sealed inside the castle and are licking their wounds after Dan freaked out. Doesn't mean it'll last.”

“Perhaps he didn't expect as much resistance as he received. Another move to rectify this will have to be swift. Else they take Zempheriea and strike down on the other kingdoms.”

“Agreed. I'm going to bring this to the ones in Librata. Maybe Dan's woken up by now... I've done some looking into that, too.”

“You did?” Starr finally looked up. It looked like she had been beginning to fall asleep. “Good, all the nerd talk was boring me. Lay it on me.”

“The phenomenon of channeling the power of the gods. Rare, but not undocumented, and usually first provoked by severe emotional trauma or a sudden, sharp influx of power. We know Dan can't do Space magic. I think what we witnessed was a channeler.”

“No shit. So Space. That means he's channeling Ranthael.”

“You got it. That's fascinating if it's true.”

“I'll say. Wonder what that means for him.”

“Hopefully that this won't happen again...” Spirit finally rose from the table, with a moleskine of hastily scrawled notes in her hand. “I think we're ready to head back to Librata. Thank you, Hayward. Truly.”

“No trouble. Good luck, you two.”

“Yeah. You know the deal. Keep an eye on things for us.”

“Of course.”

–

It was dark by the time the Lumentian twins arrived at the doors of Librata Castle. Gentle knocking gave way to the doors swinging open a lot sooner than they expected, revealing Dan's surprised face looking back at them.

“Oh... ladies. Come in. Letro's been trying to get in touch...”

“We've been busy researching.”

“Researching...?”

“What I saw in there.”

“Well... come inside. We were in the middle of talking.”

The two sisters entered and gently perched on a nearby bench. Letro was immediately on them. “Hellooooooooo ladies~”

“Back off.” Starr warned.

“Alright, alright. Can't blame a guy for trying. Anyway. The plan. So. We're going back in.”

“But... they put a barrier around the castle.”

“Yeah, but hear me out. We tunnel under the castle-”

“That is really obvious. Too obvious. Are you sure they won't think of that? Maybe, say, put a barrier under the castle?”

“You're right! It is too obvious. That's why they won't think of it! No one takes the easy route, right? The ground is too easy. It kind of acts like a barrier on principle. But the barrier of principle is much easier to break than the barrier of magic. Ergo, we tunnel.”

“Okay, next question. Why exactly are we going back?”

“Dan's dragon pal is still there. He got stuck in the barrier. Also, we're gonna steal the crystal that's in there.”

“Oh... that actually comes around to what I was able to find about the auras I saw.” Spirit held out her moleskine for the rest to read from. “Incidents like this were seen in people of power about a hundred years ago, before the cataclysm.”

“You don't say...”

“They linked back to mind control, it looks like, but it would take a supernaturally potent psionic to hold that control for more than a minute or two. It would have to be powerful enough to seriously stain an aura...”

“...Like a god hellbent on taking over the planet.”

“Exactly. But that leads me into the next thing I learned. The Cataclysm is the reason the portal was closed. But! Apparently Aunt Lucidia was looking into reopening the gate. The librarian handed me some theories on what might do the trick, and one of them was that the kingdom crystals are meant to power the archway at the Crossroads.”

All of a sudden, Dan thought back to the night before, at the Time's End Cemetery. He remembered his visitation, and the mission he had been tasked with.

“Then we need to get that crystal.”

“Well, that's a change of heart.” Letro laughed. “What's on your mind, Danno?”

“Last night, when I went to sit at the Cemetery, right after you left... I got visited.”

“Well yeah, I mean I saw Danielle on her way there-”

“Not that. I was approached by Lilith. You know, the goddess.”

“Well aren't you special.”

“That's not all. She came to me with a mission. To go to Ethernealrus and get to Arman's palace, then go through his gate to the immaterial planes. I have to go to Hell and get something called the Black World Crystal and bring it back to her, because this Xerizero guy is after it, I guess.”

“Well why can't she get it?”

“She feels like she can't look away from the two remaining planets or he'll strike with no resistance, I guess. Who am I to turn down a god, though...”

Spirit looked him up and down, and nodded firmly. “You have my support. We're with you.”

“Me, too.” Starr folded her arms. “I guess the fate of the whole world is at stake, so let's save it.”

“Eh, sure.” Letro shrugged. “Could be fun.”

“Well, I guess first thing is first, then.” A little smile crossed Dan's features. “We break back into Zempheriea Castle, get Purple and the crystal, and come home. After that, we can get the Libratan crystal. Now, you two. I have a question.”

“Mmmmm?” Spirit tilted her head.

“What's the status on Reviver Stones?”

“...Oh! You must mean for Danielle. No word yet. Aunt Lucidia is going through the motions to get you one, though. Given her status, she'll be back by tomorrow, or hereabouts.”

“Good to hear.”

“So once we're done here, we can go home and pick it up, and get that crystal too.”

“Great. After that comes the hard ones, I guess. How are we gonna explain to the other royals that we need the crystals they were sworn to protect?”

“That's easy, Danno.” Letro put on his best poncey gait. “Oh, pardon me oh fellow royalty. I've been sent on a divine quest, and I require the acquisition of your kingdom crystal! What do you mean where's my proof? I was sent by Lilith! Where are you going? Okay.”

Dan sighed heavily. “I... guess we'll take care of that when it comes. You said you had that Kaj guy on this. Where is he?”

“He's been taking care of Princess Luna since things settled down. She's kinda torn up about it. Can't imagine why.”

“Letro. Really. Don't be that guy.”

“What guy? I'm just stating the facts, my dude. Keeping it real. Anyway, he should be on his way soon--”

“I'm here!” The dark-skinned, hooded man skidded into the foyer. Following him was none other than a silver-haired girl, with a dark red shawl wrapped around her shoulders. She looked dejected and defeated.

“Princess Luna. We weren't expecting you...”

“I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything. I should have gotten help sooner, before that man showed up, but I was scared, we were scared, Selene said she felt something seriously wrong but... but now you're going to kill them because of Danielle. And... I know she got... really badly hurt, but... I can't let you do that.”

“...Who told you I wanted to kill them?”

“Back in the castle, you were screaming, that you would kill them...”

“...No, Luna. I'm not going to kill them. We're going to fix this. Somehow. I promise. We have to, now. The whole world is at stake now.”

“I still want to go with you. Maybe, just maybe... I can help. I can try. I need to.”

“Then we need to get moving. We need to do it while they're reeling, so Letro says. With any luck, it'll be in, out and done...”

“They'll never even know we were there.” Letro smirked. “Steel Gear. Nanomachines, son. Just get us some cardboard boxes and cigarettes.”

“Ugh, please don't. Disgusting habit.” Spirit made a face. “Stinks up the whole place and you can never get rid of it, and never mind about the cancer, do you know how hard it is to perform proper surgery on cancer, you can't just use your magic to keep things stable because the tumor will feed on it and get worse and-”

“Spirit.” Starr glared at her.

“...Sorry. Still. No cigarettes. Banned.”

“Okay. How about headbands and eyepatches.”

“Headbands and eyepatches are perfectly acceptable.”

“Look, can we just get some shovels and get on the road? We're running out of night, here, alright?”

“Alright alright, yeesh.”

~*~*~

The exterior of Zempheriea Castle was still and quiet in the dark of the night, the moon hanging large over head of them. The stains of the day's battle had by now soaked into the ground, leaving not much more than faint blotches on the dirt. Around the outside was a shining shell of silver, patterned with bright fuschia runes on its faces, and the symbol of the crescent moon in the center on any given side.

The six heroes and their shovels approached quickly and quietly, and looked up at it.

“Yeeeeeeeeeeeup, that sure is a barrier. That is in fact what it is.”

“Letro, please just tell us where we need to start digging.”

“Alright, alright, okay jeez. Let's see here, if we start digging right... there, we're gonna be out of sight of any windows and it'll let us break right through to the foyer. All the foundation is gonna need is a few swift smacks and we'll be in. Sure, that might tell 'em where we are, but all we need to do is get in, and then get out.”

“Alright... I think I like those odds.”

“Once we're in, you and I go find your dragon pal, and these four here go get the crystal. They can't stop her if she's the one who brings them into the vault.”

“Letro I'm not sure legality matters to them right now.”

“I mean they literally cannot stop her opening the vault.”

“...Right.”

“Once we've got 'em, we make a break for it. Even if they follow us, they're vulnerable out in the open. We could run far enough we'd have backup if we needed it.”

Luna made a motion to object, but decided to give up on it. She knew that man had locked all the cats in the basement. It could be worse, she thought. They could handle two tigers, who out and out recognized her, right? Danielle was defenseless. They weren't. It would be simple. It would be fine.

Right now she really felt like the metaphorical dog in the burning building.

The team began to dig into the earth below them. It wasn't particularly difficult to do, and thankfully with six people, the job went relatively quickly. Before long, the party stood staring at a ceiling of concrete and stone in a small, circular dirt room, enough to fit all of them.

“Alright, here we go.” Letro procured his katana. “Stand back, this'll get messy.”

The other five backed off, as he jumped up and gave the concrete a swift smack. With a bit of a rumbling noise, the area he struck cracked and began to fall apart in chunks. Luna, for one, felt like she should object about the repair costs, but figured now really wasn't the time and once again stayed silent. Dan and Spirit watched him with morbid curiosity, and Kaj and Starr just looked impressed.

After a few more strikes, the light from inside the castle began to shine through to the dirt chamber below. Letro leaped up once more, bounced off of one side of the hole to another, and soon dropped a rope down.

“Come on, step it up.”

Starr huffed, and marched forward. A jet of sudden wind nearly bowled over the rest of the team as she shot through the hole, landing perfectly in the castle foyer. She helped pull the rope up as the others grabbed hold, one by one, and soon enough all six of them once again stood within the entry hall of Zempheriea Castle.

“Hello darkness my old friend...” Letro began to sing as he took a look around. Everyone seemed to prefer to ignore the bloodstains on the ground in the northeastern corner of the room, but other than that, no traces of Purple to be seen.

“Nnngh... let's maybe get the big stuff out of the way?” Dan groaned, “Let's get the crystal, make sure they haven't noticed us, then scour the place for Purple.”

“Oh, doing it the hard way. I get it. Well, have it your way, chief. Princess Luna, could you be a dear, and-”

“Fine, fine... it's this way. But just... be mindful. If we go through here, there's a good chance they'll see us. I'd rather not have to fight...”

“None of us would.” Spirit sighed. “Especially not after last time... We aren't here to kill anyone. We're here to save the dragon, get the crystal and then go home with the crystal. And fix this, if we can right now. They're under the thrall of something potent. But that doesn't mean it doesn't have a source. Eliminate the source, and they'll be free. Status quo is restored, and we all go back to our lives. Plan a movie night for next week. Bring extra popcorn for having to put up with this.”

“Right... follow me, then.” Luna led them straight back through the main hall, to a large pair of oaken doors. She opened them with a surprising amount of ease, leading the group into a grandiose chamber full of tapestry and art. In the back-center, there stood two tall chairs, plush-looking and cozy, made of silver with lavender upholstery. The throne room, to be sure. But something was odd here, in that it was completely empty. Not a king or queen to be seen, though they had been in here during the last assault.

“Well... that's a good sign at least. They got him out of the bookshelves... but where are they hiding. This is way too easy.” Dan squinted a little. “Be on guard.”

They were led into one of the passages behind the thrones, up staircases that seemed to spiral on forever. As they ascended, the grey stone faded into some strange material that shimmered like space, and the lunar imagery became more frequent, and almost seemed to shine. When they reached the top, they stood in a small room before a large door, ornately decorated with a landscape painting of the Zempheriean fields.

But what was most noticeable to the group was that the door was already unlocked.

As it dawned on them that somebody was already here, there came a roar and then two white streaks. For a moment, time felt like it stopped as everyone felt their stomachs drop. To see two repeats of this mess in one night would be unthinkable.

But as suddenly as they struck, the tigers were thrown back, and locked in barriers not unlike those protecting the castle. Luna stood shaking and wide-eyed as her siblings emerged from the room. This time, it was the woman to speak. The same voice seemed to overtake Queen Lutrine's normal, somewhat harsh speaking voice.

“Oh dear, dear Luna. If only your mind wasn't so strong. You could be great, with me. You could be powerful. You could crush any man who opposed you. But no, you choose to fight for inferiors? Why, it's simply quaint.”

“I- I don't know who you are, but let my brother and sister go...”

“Mmm, and leave my son high and dry? ...Worth considering. I wanted a daughter. Would have been better off. But we're already so far in, you know... no, I think they'll be mine. She'll be mine. This one... mmmh. This one can rot for all I care. But he's still useful to me, for now. Oh well, what a pity. Now I couldn't help but overhear your little chat...”

She reached behind her back and pulled forth a pulsing, glowing pink crystal, which radiated with energy and slightly distorted the air around it. “Is it this you're looking for? That is adorable. I think it's mine now. You should run along back to your bedroom, little girl, and let big sister have her way. Isn't that how it always works? The older sister gets her way and the little one will always be chasing after her. Even when she's always one step ahea--”

Luna dashed forward and, in a bold move, punched Lutrine and her possessor in the gut, causing her to drop the Zempheriea crystal. “Shut up and listen to me. I don't know who you are, but I will find you, and I will make you let them go.”

“Well if that ain't the best damn thing I've heard all day.”

The collective looked over at the sudden appearance of a new voice. Leaning in the doorway was a red-haired woman with expertly done makeup, determination shining in her eggplant-colored eyes. She barely wore anything, simply a bikini top and a swathe of fabric around her waist with the symbol of a heart split in two upon it, one side filled in and the other just an outline. Her aura was one that made you feel a protection in your very soul, but also made you long for a partner to spend the night with. In her right hand, she held a large, pink longbow.

Unlike with Lilith, Dan recognized her almost immediately. “You're...”

“Goddess of Love, Sexuality and sworn protector of the soul's integrity, Kerenza, at your service. And it looks to me like y'all got my latest targets cornered.”

“Targets?!” Luna immediately sounded distressed.

“Targets. See sometimes this kinda mess happens, and the one that's gotta cut 'em loose is me, y'hear? 'Specially when it involves this'n.” She turned her gaze onto Lutrine. “Been about a hundred years, Sunitha. See you're tryin' this again. Ain't this time, no sir.”

“Well well well, speaking of being chased after, look who decides to join the party.” Lutrine, or her possessor, smirked. “Oh, my dear Kerenza...”

“Save it. Let 'em go. You're just gonna kill the boy and you know it.”

“Well, you didn't have to spoil them.”

“We do this song n' dance every time you start croppin' up, I don't know why I bother askin' anymore. Last chance. Let 'em go, or I make you let 'em go.”

“You'll have to catch me first~” From seemingly nowhere, she pulled a Teleporter Crystal.

“Damn it--” In a fluid motion, Kerenza armed her bow and formed a wicked-looking arrow from a bright pink energy. She let it fly just as quickly as she armed it, but it was too late. Lutrine grabbed Monroe by the arm, and just as the arrow was about to hit, they were gone, and it struck the wall and fizzled out harmlessly.

The goddess growled, and shot another arrow, this one filled with stars. When it landed on its mark of the opposite wall, a rift was torn open, revealing a landscape of many colors, almost as if it had been painted by a surrealist. She leaped through, and was gone.

And once again, it was just those six in the room.

“...Welp.” Letro shrugged and picked up the crystal. “Guess we got what we came for. Let's get to finding that dragon.”

Luna stood staring at the spot where her siblings had been. They had just... left, and now this goddess was after them. There was something despairing about the whole thing, even though in her heart she knew that they wouldn't be dead if she caught them. They'd be free. Right?

Right?

“...Luna?” Spirit placed a hand on her shoulder. “I know what just happened was very strange and sudden, but-”

“No, let's go... now we need to get moving more than ever. I need to find who did this. I need to make her pay.”

“Lady Kerenza said something about 'Sunitha'... I'll have to research it. We'll peruse the library when we head back to Lumentia. For now... maybe we should start with the basement. I see a lot of auras down there. Things are still trapped.”

“Fine. It's as good a place as any to start. Follow me.”

She led them back down the stairs and back through the throne room, and eventually the main hall. It couldn't have been directly under them now, as they had tunneled in, but Luna led them further back into the hallways, until they reached a dark flight of stairs. Downward they went, into what was clearly meant as storage.

In fairness, it was storing things. A lot of things. Many cats sat trapped in cages, from lions to tigers to pumas to house cats, all huddled together and meowing and crying and roaring. Other cages contained people, looking sick, or hungry, or bloodied, or some combination. Toward the back, however, there were two barriers set up. Through them were visible three dragons, one very large and the others very small.

“My gods...” Spirit rushed up to a cage containing a woman that looked less like a human and more like some sort of strange alien, whose dusty rose-colored skin was ashen and who looked weak and covered in sores. “Ma'am, ma'am are you with us...”

“I'm here... I'm here... who's there...” Her strange eyes, with orange sclera and white, slitted iris, seemed almost distant.

“Spirit Lumentia, of the Lumentian Healer Division.”

“How did you get in... the King and Queen, and... that man...”

“The man is gone, miss. I need you to stay with me. Can you do that?”

“I feel so sick... It's like I'm wasting away...”

“I'll be with you and all the others in a moment. I promise. But I need you to hold on. Can you hold on until we can break the cage open?”

“I'll try...”

“Good to hear. Starr. Letro.”

“Yeah?”

“What's up, Shiny.”

“We don't have the keys. Break open these cages. Luna, if you can break the barrier magic keeping the dragons locked down, break it.”

It only took one swing for Letro to take the top off of the cage the alien-like woman lay in, and Spirit flipped it off and drew her out immediately, pressing a teal-coated hand to her chest. Within moments, the woman's sores vanished, and her skin regained its full, vibrant color. Her eyes re-focused, and locked onto her healer.

“Thank you... I owe you my life.”

“It's my job, miss, please don't feel like you owe me anything. I need to ask you some questions while my friends and my sister open the rest of the cages, about what that man did to you.”

“One day, he teleported in, and stared trotting around like he owned the place. The King and Queen had already been acting strangely. Before any of us knew it, we started falling ill. I was one of the first... One by one, we became too weakened and sick to stop the man when he had enough of us and locked us down here... After that, he directed the King to lock all of his cats into cages. Soon, even the Royal Dragon fell to the sickness. I don't know how long we've been down here. I don't think anyone has died yet...”

“Then we got here just in time. Listen to me. The man who did this to you is gone. I don't know where he's gone, but he's no longer here and hopefully he won't come back. If he does, you will be ready with the knowledge that he is dangerous. Now, let me ask my next question. Does the name Sunitha sound familiar to you?”

“Only in the way that the man would address both King and Queen by that name. I assumed it was a title in some strange language from wherever he came from, because he kept speaking of us as Xephixerian scum.”

“It isn't a title, miss. It's someone's name. The King and Queen were possessed.”

“I see... what has become of them?”

“They escaped the Castle, pursued by Kerenza. What little she said indicated that she intended to free them from their possession. I don't know where any of the parties involved went after that.”

“That isn't good. But, the man is gone?”

“Yes.”

From the back of the room came a low, rumbling cough, interrupting the discussion. “If I may have a word...”

“Ah, the Royal Dragon...”

“Yes... I am called Moonshine to the common folk, but for saving the lives of myself, my daughter, this young one and all the attendants, please... call me Welunith.”

“Of course, sir... Luna? Could you-”

“I'm trying...” The silver-haired girl knocked on the barrier a few times, tried disenchanting it with magic, tried casting her own barrier, but to no avail. Eventually, she wondered if trying something obvious might work, and punched it. At her strike, the barrier cracked and shattered, freeing the tremendous, majestically-frilled wyrm to fall limp and loose on the floor.

Much like the attendant, his normally vibrant lavender and silver scales were washed out, and blood and pus leaked from under them near his joints and on the softer parts of his underbelly. Spirit moved on to him, next, investing all her power into the healing magic that would bring him back to normal.

While she did that, Luna broke the barriers surrounding the much smaller drakes in a similar manner, letting free two much healthier-looking hatchlings. Upon being let loose from the barrier, Purple took back to the air, spiraling happily around Luna and chirping before returning to Dan's side and wrapping around him like a snake.

The second, however, seemed much more cautious, keeping close to her a book with a silver moon on the cover. Her wide fuschia eyes gazed around at her heroes, and her frills perked up like a dog's ears might, displaying an iridescent purple. Her tiny form was bubblegum-colored, with dark Merlot stripes down her body, ending in a crescent on her flank. She stared hard at Luna, before coming to the conclusion that nothing was wrong with this princess.

“Did he hurt you, too?”

“He hurt me and Selene. We were trapped in our bedrooms...”

“I'm sorry about that.”

“Tsaoketh. Don't apologize for the actions of a heinous criminal.” The older dragon rumbled. “Princess Luna... I am happy to see you safe and sound even in the wake of such terrible news.”

“Thank you, Welunith...”

“Since it would appear that your siblings will be missing for some time, I implore you to take some time to rest. I will resume royal duties. So it is during these times of need, so shall it always be.”

“Thank you. I think I'm as deeply tied to this now as the rest of the people here...” She shrunk away and went to stand next to the silent Kaj, who had become something of a pillar of familiarity.

“Yes... Three other royals, a Libratan knight... and the Shadowrian Ambassador's son.” The lunar dragon chuckled. “I think you'll be just fine. Go with them, Luna. Go with them and save your siblings. But do not forget to take care of yourself. The weight of the world isn't yours to bear alone, you know.”

“I know...”

By now, Spirit was taking the time to fix all the afflicted attendants, while a clowder of cats gathered around the party, meowing and mewling and purring and rubbing against them as cats are wont to do. When she was satisfied with their health, she stood back up, looking a bit woozy as she did so.

“Woah there.” Starr rushed to catch her as she swerved dangerously. “You burnt up a lot of energy there. Let's head back to Librata. I think Mr. Moonshine can take it from here.”

“I will address the people and get my noble kingdom's affairs in order.”

“Dad!” The smaller of the two lunar dragons chirped. “Dad I wanna go with them! I wanna go with Suacoth!”

“Very well... heroes of Librata, Lumentia and Shadowrian. Would you allow my daughter to join you on your way back to the castle from which you came?”

“We will, sir.” Dan bowed to the dragon, then looked at the little one who now wound under his feet like one of the cats. “What is your other name?”

“You can call me Rose!”

“That's a nice name. Are you ready to go? We should head back. We're going to Lumentia in the morning. I think we're all tired of tonight. It's dragged on long enough.”

~*~*~

“Virulent.”

Two armed guards held the sickly, shaking man in place as he faced down the person seated on a stone throne before him. He tried not to look the other person in the eye, but staring at the floor didn't help. The many bloodstains underneath him served to remind him of his ultimate fate if his leader wasn't feeling merciful.

Nevertheless, as Virulent stared at the ceiling, the other person continued to speak. “I trusted you, Virulent. Your mastery over plagues was supposed to bring the kingdom to its knees. You were so close. The guardsmen, the attendants, even the dragon. The younger princess whelps were helpless.”

“I- I'm sorry-”

“Silence! You will let me finish, Virulent. Were you never taught how rude it is to interrupt your superiors?”

“Yes, sir...”

“Good. Then allow me to continue. The other troops would have eventually been decimated, surely. The King and Queen were Mother's pawns. But what happened? You called a retreat, as soon as reinforcements arrived. Like a coward. And what do you have to say for yourself?”

“Sir, please try to understand- they were so much stronger than our simulations predicted! The corrupted beasts did nothing! If I hadn't retreated, I would have- I would have died! They figured out my weakness!”

“Ah, your poor, pitiful 'weakness'. Your feeble, flimsy mind which cannot stand the stress of a psionic assault. Weakness has no place in the Darkness Requiem, Virulent. You know that.”

“But- But Lord Xerizero-”

“Enough pleading, Virulent.” Now, the other figure in the room rose from his throne. It would be easy enough to say he towered over the other man, glowering down through thick black bangs with icy blue eyes, pupils contracted into narrow slits. Stark white skin looked haunting in the dim light of the throne room, adding another level of terror to the glare.

He adjusted his suit jacket and stretched a pair of massive golden wings, before flicking his wrist and summoning a blade from the ether. “Perhaps, you need to understand what you've done wrong in a more visceral way. A Darkness Requiem member gets the job done, or he dies.”

“But- but what about when Ank- you didn't kill him! Or when-”

“Enough! He wasn't killed because he remained useful to me. You, on the other hand, served one purpose, and you couldn't even fulfill that much. Your plague sickens even my strongest members. Makes them weak. And weakness, has no place.” The blade held in the leader's left hand began to darken and spark, until it was a pitch black. Virulent looked like he might cry at the sight of it.

“No, please! There has to be a better way-”

“That'll be enough from you.”

The blade went through Virulent's chest with a sickening crack, piercing itself even through bone. For a moment, there was stillness. But then the plague-bearing man began to scratch at his arms, and his chest, and his everything.

It started at the point of impact. Skin began to blacken and melt away, pouring blood from the exposed muscle, bone and fat. Layer by layer, viscera began to disintegrate, pulsating rapidly and without cessation as the muscle rebelled and tried to fight back against the magic and spasmed violently. Virulent began to scream in terror, and pain. Not this, anything but this.

When the skin was gone, the muscle was soon to follow, exposing every single one of his diseased internal organs. During the brief moment they were intact, you could see all manner of abscesses, tumors and ulcers marring all of them. But eventually, those too began to melt away, starting from the tiny lymph nodes and hormone glands and moving up steadily to the heart and stomach and lungs and all the other vitals.

And when those were gone, the skeleton started to go, and only when that was gone did the screaming stop. The last things to melt away were the eyes and the brain, but soon even those were a part of the large puddle of blood on the floor. Xerizero remained stone-faced as he watched Virulent's final moments, and when the terrible magic was finished, simply swiped his blade and spattered what was stuck on it onto the wall.

“Pittance, really. I wonder if my other agents are doing their damned jobs correctly. Perhaps I will worry about it later. I have needs to attend to, and that Libratan royal will do the job perfectly...~”