FicWad

Chapter 9

"So your brother was Larissa's lover..." A soft sadden voice whispered in the first early rays of the morning as twilight surrendered to the sun. There was no need for a response, it had been clear and the silence was answer enough. "We lost them both on that day..."

"It won't be in vain, Michiru. I promise you that." A raw tired voice of a battle worn solider replied, which internal wounds were opened again in order to be tended and treated, for them to ever heal properly. Anger was also apparent in her voice as Uranus continued in a dangerously low whisper, mostly for her self.

"He caused this... That bastard did all this on purpose. He knew damned well what would happen in the end; he planned it so no one but him would win. No, I wont rest till his blood runs by the edge of my blade. He will not get away with this."

The knight felt the maiden shivering within her arms and held her closer, aware that her words affected her and hid the anger for her sake.

"You could die," The mermaid sobbed against the warm skin of the warrior's shoulder with growing fear for her winged champion's life. "He's too powerful for you to beat alone."

"He has gotten stronger then before." Uranus agreed reluctantly with a scowl. "He has mage magic; dark and powerful magic. He uses energy from the elements and I'm afraid I only have the powers given to me by birth. But it can't be helped, I must fight."

"I wish there was someway I could help you..." The teal haired woman said regretfully then, looking into her winged warrior's eyes and framing her face with her hands. "I wish I could fight with you."

Uranus smiled softly, genuinely and nuzzled her forehead gently trying to push away the growing heart ache within her chest. It was going to be painful to leave her, she realized.

"You have helped me, in so many ways and if he got you too, I wouldn't know what I'd do. It's my duty to protect you in any way I can. I will try my best to give you back what you lost." The knight blushed a little form the emotions that coursed through her all by the presence of this strong willed yet gentle maiden. "I promise."

They both leaned in and kissed with loving gentleness. A moment later, when the kiss had broke Neptune searched her love's eyes again before tucking her head under her chin. A single question posed by the maiden then lingered in the air.

"Why did you become a knight instead of a lady if it was so dangerous? In my kingdom, women never fought..."
A young child about the age of four was brought into a marbled floored room full of adults and strangers she didn't know and glanced around with wide sky blue eyes. The room had been decorated just for this occasion with shields and banners from all lands and kingdoms, and the carpet she walked upon was a stretch of dark blue carpet that was sewn with gold thread.

Before the girl, the King of the Heavens had stood in front of his throne. She wondered why she had been brought there and away from her brother who she was with when they took her. She was afraid it was because of her clothes, earlier that day she had tugged off the frilly dress her nursemaid pulled over her head after a stubborn protest on her part, and pulled on a linen shirt and britches. By then, from rough housing outside with the courtyard animals and things ladies in training shouldn't do, her clothes were torn in places and smudged with dirt. Even for a young child however, she didn't show much concern for a punishment if there was one. She simply wanted to get back to what she left from and away from all those strange eyes and disapproving glances and murmurs. As she approached two objects were laid before her.
"Why choose a life of fighting?" The maiden's question continued.

"I never really had a choice. Since my brother and father were killed, my kingdom needed a leader. Its not like I'd want it any other way though..." Uranus added at the end thoughtfully before continuing urges from Neptune, who made a small curious noise, listening.

"I was given a test when I was a small child. A mirror and a wooden sword were laid on the floor and I had to pick one. I had been playing with a wooden sword ever since I was two with my brother; therefore I went for it, since I didn't know what the other was..." Her eyes grew distant for a moment and she frowned lost in memory.
The young girl had looked to the two objects wondering what was expected of her, confused.

"Thank you for brining my daughter here." The king addressed the servant who bowed and stepped away. "Of course M'Lord"

"Now we shall see." A man standing to the kings right murmured mostly to his self and waited as the girl was confronted. Uranus remembered out of all the people there, his eyes were the strongest. She wanted to turn and run away, what did they want from her?
"No one told me a thing, and I did the only thing that came to my mind, then. I figured they weren't going to leave and were just there so I did what I thought was right..."When the young girl reached down and picked up her toy sword, soft gasps came from the group of finely dressed people, other royals like her father who had gathered for that ordeal. The man beside her father grimaced a little and leaned over to say something into the king's ear. To this day she remembered that moment.

"Well, there goes your bloodline. And to think, she would have given me plenty of sons to rule after you passed on..."

Uranus was too young to understand what the man meant but she did however pick up a few words and grew scared. It was then her nursemaid took her hand again to lead her away. The girl turned and watched her father and his reaction to the man's words, steadily.

The king's grip tightened on the hilt of his blade as the words of his long trusted friend came into his awareness and pierced his heart like a dull arrow. Normally, anyone who would dare address a part of the royal family in such a way would be punished but the lord of Uranus merely rubbed his wearily eyes which had dimmed a little after that fact had been presented to his ears.

"Aye. Thank Goodness her mother wasn't alive to see her only daughter rebel in such a way."

Ever since Haruka was small she knew of the sacrifice given by her mother. The servants in the castle as well as her father on occasion mentioned it often. Especially on the events in which she refused to wear a dress, participate in a courting or even down to the simplest lady like mannerisms, preached to her by the palace instructor of proper etiquette and manners.

Uranus had taken the words to heart once. When she was younger she had tried the dresses and learned the rules but it always felt so awkward and made her feel out of place. She felt vulnerable in that confining cloth of lace and ruffle; tripping on the skirts when she tried to run, or ripping them anyway. The entity of the wind had decided when the first Prince of Uranus was killed that she had no reason to pretend any more and that she would become the prince. As she grew into an adolescent, his clothes become less baggy and fit her more; she was almost like his twin except for the womanly curves that nature had insisted on giving her and the mark of Uranus on her forehead that provided she was the chosen Heir of the Wind.
Uranus explained the man from her past to Neptune as she recalled her memories.

"I remember how he used to give me gifts up until I got older and would attempt to court me. I hated him and I almost succeeded in killing him once when I was sixteen and preparing to leave a few days from then to finish my training to get my shield... but I was stopped too soon. My father took his side of course; he had no reason to suspect him. No one really knew what had happened that night, not even my brother." She left out a shaky sigh while Michiru listened petting the inside of her wing, coaxing her to continue. She knew this was the best way to clean wounds, to let everything out and then apply the bandage; it wouldn't leave scars that way.

"I never trusted him and now I know why. He was the one who killed my brother and destroyed my life even before it begun..and here" The knight hugged her maiden closer as the sun had begun to rise, she would need to leave very soon. She had delayed enough already.

"I remember the night our kingdom fell." The maiden began still running her fingers through Uranus's wing but not realizing it as she was lost in memories.

"There was nothing but panic and darkness, the whole atmosphere of the sea had changed in that very instant."
The sea had churned and ripped itself apart from the inside out, as if tainted by some type of crude poison. Every one was alarmed and in a sense of panic but the king of Neptune did his best to reassure them all."But when the monsters came, when the chaos hit, my father was confronted by something he had never seen before; wicked magic, powerful fighters who invaded the sea and fought our armies."

Uranus frowned a little and glanced down to the woman in her arms who shivered from the feelings within and the memories they brought and held Michiru closer. Her eyes glazed over coolly with hatred for the one who caused such pain but her embrace did no good then. The sea maiden continued lost in her past and couldn't feel the warmth where she was.
There had been darkness; it had seeped through the water like black ink in dangerous rolling clouds and consumed everything in its path. Powerful light blasts shot through the water and were so powerful they shook the sea floor. The walls of the castle and courtyard cracked and shattered under their power. The noise was muted from being submerged but it still created a sick sort of 'thunking' noise as hit and the water pressure swirled, new water from the outside of the crystal in to add with the old; poisoning all within from the water outside.

Among the noise and panic of surprise from the sudden attack, she could still hear her father's mage and advisor calling out and commanding his servants who were controlled by magic and or greed; mostly they were water demons created from his power and he used them to turn on the Neptunian people and kingdom. For the monsters and men who couldn't breathe under the water, a strong air bubble surrounded them as did the mage outside of the disguise he used to trick them all.

The King had fought for control of the sea and used his power to create hundreds of war horses from the foam of the waves and with each break, they charged against the enemy on land before they had a chance to enter the water. But Neptune's memories ended soon after those moments because she had been hidden away and protected deep within a secluded part of the sea and had no coherent thought until awoken again to deadly silence with only the elemental part of her world for company. There was nothing left of her kingdom and she had been bitterly alone and afraid. All of her family, and people turned into sorrowful sea spirits, and sea foam just like her grandmother said.
"Until you came, I had lost all hope." The mermaid had finally concluded, her voice laced with tears. Uranus kissed her forehead softly causing the symbol to glow faintly.

"Michiru, I promise you, I will get him for what he has done. I will somehow make it up to you." Uranus clenched her jaw a little and began to let her embrace loosen letting the maiden slip further into the water. "Just give me time, I will return to you."

Neptune's eyes grew wide with regretful realization as her arms slid down from around the other stronger woman's neck and she reached out and clung to Uranus's arms and then hands as the winged knight slipped away from her and stood on the rock again.

"Its time, I must leave."

"There must be a way that I can help you. Can't you feel it? It's wrong for you to leave now." Neptune began before looking away with doubt crossing her features, was there really a way? What could she possibly do?

Haruka shook her head determined and was about to reply, when both wind and sea, however separate, worked together during the next few moments to give them a very important sign and a push forward to destiny.

Out of no where a strong wind had picked up and caught the key around Uranus's neck and twirled on its chain in the breeze; it was light in the hand of the wind, as if it weighed nothing at all. Her eyes grew wide as she watched this surprised. Michiru couldn't hear what Haruka could as the winged warrior took the key from the air and pulled the chain over her neck holding it close to her heart for a second before glancing back to her, but there was a very rare tear slowly streaming down her face.

Michiru was about to question what was happening when the waves changed suddenly, as if being signaled by the closing of the winds act. There was a soft repetitious clunking sound of a small object being pushed along with various small shells and pebbles and knocked gently against a patch coral not too far off, all from the more peculiar acting of the surf.

Curious and transfixed with the strong urge to see what it was, the mermaid dove into the coves water and reached out to grab the object from the slow tumbling of the current of which it was caught. She cradled it to her chest as she surfaced again, and returned to her winged companion who still looked surprised but calm as if expecting this to be happening now. Still, Uranus couldn't keep the question from escaping her lips.

"What's going on?"

Michiru smiled with tears shining in her eyes and revealed a small treasure chest in her hands, ordinary as ever and untouched from the years it sat idle under the sea. It was as new as the day Larissa had given it to her to hold.

"It's the way I can help you."

Both their siblings, had reached out to them through the elements of their previous birth to give them each a long hidden secret, a powerful solution and their blessing to complete something they never had a chance to do; to join as one forever as partners, both wind and sea.