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Chapter 01: Ruin Among Ruins
As Rei walked among the hallways, kicking pebbles of what was formerly the walls, and even ceilings of the order buildings. Everything was a mess. She, along with the majority of the higher members, among the Holy Order had survived the recent onslaught by the V league, as she had learned they were called. But still, they had paid a price for it, with many lives, and many repairs needed to this place. It was likely, she thought, that the leadership would just as soon abandon this place and start over fresh, somewhere safer. Then, the headache started.
Rei rubbed her forehead around the gem. She cursed, the loss of the tiara, knocked from her head during the fighting. She'd liked it too, it was the last thing that reminded her of her former image, before the procedure, and the machines in her body. Rei shook her head. It was all still worthless, she'd still been too slow. She was put on the defensive way too early. Her headache once again reminded her it was still there. Rubbing her head as she cursed it, "Damnit...go away already. Why the hell aren't you soothing the tissues already-" Suddenly, Rei realized, it was no headache. Nothing to be healed, it was a summoning. "...Oh no...not now. Mother..."
Rei tried to run further down the halls, as if it would help. The pain in her head like a presence, she had to answer her mother's summon. "What the hell does she want?! I'm busy! Can't you-" Suddenly, Rei stopped, horrified. She'd uprooted the wings from her head during the surgery. It was a Valkyrie's trademark, something they were born with. She'd had them removed because their magic had been interfering with the new artifice to her body. Obviously, Rei had forgotten that. If her mother could no longer sense her, she'd fear the worst, and come after her. That, was NEVER, a good thing. Especially for anything that got in the way, but especially for Rei.
Rei sighed. "The longer I wait, the worse it's going to be...I guess it's time to go see my mother..."
~~~~~ To the skies above Gaia
Rei had rounded up her Angel Imp, Bitsy, from the order before departing. The imp had been a bit roughed up from the attack, but she was still alive Rei was thankful for that. Craddling the imp in her arms, Rei soared through the skies over Barton, headed for Mount Pinnacle. Aptly named, on of the highest mountains in all of Gaia, and upon the top, as a gateway to Valhalla, stood the castle her mother guarded. To break the otherwise silent journey, Bitsy suddenly squeaked, "So...why did you bring me along again?"
"Well...she's going to have my a** for removing my...erm, wings. It's, a Valkyrie thing, you wouldn't understand."
"So...what does it have to do with me? You're going to steal my wings or something?!"
"Bitsy, stop panicking. No I'm not, but...if there's company around, she can't really yell at me too much."
"Is that really gonna work? I'm not catching flak for your idiot idea of, 'hey! Why don't I just get a light bub installed in my forehead and a rocket stuck up my a**!' So don't get any ideas!"
"It's not a rocket up my a**, it's a very sophisticated set of jet wings, installed into my spinal cord! It's very handy. And you don't even have the slightest idea about the power in this little 'light bulb' on my head, do you?!"
"Roc."
"It's not a rock, it's made out of-"
"WATCH OUT FOR THE ROC!"
Looking forward, Rei shrieked, just barely avoiding an encounter with a trio of winged rocs. The birds screamed in protest and regathered into formation, opting not to go after the flying woman. "Saddles? They must be trained rocs. I used to fly them all the time as a kid. We're getting close."
((*Author's note: Roc, are a very fast type of griffin-like creature*))
~~~~~Fortress Entrance
As Reishadowen lowered herself down onto the brick-lined platform, all eyes were upon her. Passing children and women in armor looked at her with surprise, awe, and fear. As Rei surveyed the small platform, she remembered to quickly get moving, as not to get smashed by any incoming rocs or pegasus. The mountain around her was carved up for paths, leading around to the platforms on the mountain sides, guarded by several balistae turrets, a pair of them were watching Rei very closely. "Wow, they've really upped security around here since I've been gone. Alot of the turrets used to be hidden, now they've added those?"
"I guess they must have recognized you, otherwise they would have shot us."
Rei shook her head. "I dunno, it's been several years since I've been here. I can't believe they would be-" Suddenly, a tall woman approached them, dressed in fine silks, and greatly ornate armor, flanked on both her sides by a pair of nearly as impressive and armored valkyrie. "Reishadowen Ayluvie Daris." the woman paused, as if unsure what to say for a moment. Rei finally answered, "Yes...Captain Aleena?"
"Lieutenant Colonel now, actually." The woman corrected. "You've...changed, Reishadowen." Rei's eyes shifted down, trying to avert her gaze, as she defended, "It's been awhile, I've had to...adapt."
"You'd be the first to go this far. Your mother will not like your new...'adaptation'."
"That's why I brought this little fella!"
Rei cheerfully raised her angel imp Bitsy, suddenly blushing in the spotlight. "Uh...hiya!"
Aleena stood impassive for a moment, before commenting, "You haven't really thought this through, have you?" Rei sighed, "Only on the fly." The officer chuckled. "Well at least you've retained that much. Come, your mother has summoned you. This way."
~~~~~Castle of the Valkyrie
The stones the paved the street were a brilliant white marble, lined on the sides with gold-colored marble. The building were carved into the very mountain itself, or crafted of bricks so fine and measured they could have only been made by divine hands. The crystals lamps that hung near the sides of the pathways shed far less light than those near the landing docks. As the six, well, seven imp included, approached the next rise in the road, the castle came immediately into view, not more than a few hundred yards away.
Nearly twenty stories tall, the castle looked as a pair of stout, round pillars, connected by the main front wall, with several bridges connecting four towers spanning up from the main keep, and two large castle wings spread from the sides, that ironically, looked like full out, spread eagle wings, colored a bright pearl silver. As Rei approached, she gasped at the sight. From under the "feathers" in each of the castle wings, it looked as if openings, with battery emplacements inside. "You've....increased security since I've been away..." Aleena responded, "You've been gone for years. We've had...a few undesirables come up towards us now and again. At first it was demons, trying to gain entrance into the heavens, but recently, it has been more the local Gaian population. For what reasons, we have no idea."
"I do." Bitsy commented. "Because they're f*cktards. That's why." Aleena raised an eyebrow as she told Rei, "That's...one foul-mouthed little angel imp you've got there."
"Tell me about it." Rei admitted. "I think she's possibly a relation to Gimpi or something. The little troublemaker...."
~~~~~Reunion
Led into an Ornate, moderate sized room, Rei figured at first it could have been a fancy bedroom without the sleeping furniture. Lt Col Aleena turned to Rei, giving a slight bow, wishing her, "Good luck, Miss Daris." and left the room, taking her entourage with her. Rei protested, "W-wait! Don't leave me! You're supposed to-" Suddenly, Rei detected movement. It was coming from behind one of the curtains over a doorway. Rei quickly turned back just in time as a woman in a long, flowing red and subdued pink dress walked through. Wearing a flowing dark pink sash, that seemed to blow and flutter, even in the absence of a breeze, she had dark brown hair, held up in a high pony-tail, that spread into several strands all down and around the back of her head and her sides, cascading gently, but somewhat stiffly down across her form to her waist-line. Bright, pristine white wings peered through her hair, trailing back they were sleek as icy snow, fluttering too gently for the eye to see as first.
Rei swallowed hard. It was the moment she'd been dreading since she'd asked for her "upgrade". Her mother, stopped in mid-step once through the curtain. Looking at Rei, she seemed more confused and speechless, more than anything else. More than anyone else, had been. She didn't know what else to say, and at this point, there was little she could do to stop the inevitable. "Uh....Hi mom! I'm home!" Rei cheered, raising up with one leg bent behind her, and her free hand raised up in a comical waving.
Rei mother Rebekkah just stared "...Rei...? Darling, is that you?" Rebekkah asked, afraid of just what it was she was seeing. "What....what is that sticking out of your head?!" She asked, putting one hand in a fist on her hip. "Here comes the hurricane..." "Uh....oh, these? These are my Laser Antennae, they help focus in and transmit signals I use and communicate with."
"Uh huh..."
"-and they help channel in the energies I use to other parts of my-"
"And that lightbulb stuck to your forehead."
"Ah, that's a flash drive projection device, and it helps me keep stored information on-"
"Rei...where are your wings...?"
Rei's heart, if it hadn't been regulated by cybernetics, would likely have stopped right then and there under her mother's gaze. Half-filled with fear, the other half with absolute rage, both of what Rei would say next. Rei tried to buy herself some time. "Uhhh, oh, I use these now." Rei said, pointing to her jetpack.
"I don't care about some jetpack. Where are your wings? I can't...I cannot sense you."
"Uh...er..."
Rei fidgeted, and Bitsy protested and flew up from her arms,"Ow! You're cramping my wings!" Rebekkah stepped back in surprise. Flustered, her expression returned gentle, as she addressed the Imp, "Oh, I'm terribly sorry, I almost mistook you for a toy." The imp shrugged."Eh, it's okay. It's alot better than what she calls me sometimes." The imp said, motioning to Rei with her tail, who retorted, "That's because you earn it!"
Rebekkah chuckled, and stepped towards the Imp. Holding out her hand gently, she said, "I'm Rebekkah, Rei's mother. It's pleasure to meet you." Bitsy smiled, wrapping her tail around the woman's hands in a shake, saying, 'She calls me bitsy, but my real name is unpronounceable by humans." Rebekkah gleamed, "It's nice to meet you, oh!" Rebekkah gasped, holding a hand up to her mouth, almost embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I'm so thoughtless! You must be tired and hungry from your journey!"
Rei's stomach turned to lead. She knew where this was going. And Bitsy was falling for it hook line and sinker. "Oh well, I guess I am a bit hungry!" Rebekkah smiled gently, saying, "If you like, I was preparing dinner in the next room, but I have a platter of fruits and cheeses out already if you'd like!" Bitsy didn't need telling, she didn't even need directions. If there was food around somewhere, then by damn, she'd find it. Permission was all she needed as she screamed out of the room with joy. Rei began to trot along, "I better go too! I'm feeling kinda hungry my-"
"Sit down Rei."
"Damn."
~~~~~Confession
Rebekkah turned to the curtain from behind Bitsy flew off into, and softly spoke an incantation, raising her hand to the doorway. Rei knew this was just so no one outside the room would hear them. So very, very, not good. Turning back, her smile had faded back to her previous expression of anger and terrified sadness. "I am going to ask you again. Where are you wings?"
Rei stuttered. She knew this was coming and she had the whole flight up here to think about. She still had nothing. Finally, she managed to somehow speak without thinking. "Well, you know that's a very interesting point to talk about, you see, I was thinking, that since wings are supposed to fly, right? and, I have those now, and-"
"Rei. What Have You Done?!" Rebekkah thundered. Her voice raised incredibly, but she was still not yelling. Rei shuddered, trying to defend herself, "Th-they were interfering with my laser array and throwing off my signals! I couldn't even coordinate down to my jet wings down my own nervous system because the magic kept stopping the artificial-...oh, snap." Rei stopped talking as she looked back to her mother's face. It was now completely terrified. "THOSE...THINGS...ARE....are...IN YOU?"
Rebekkah dropped her head, trying to hold it up with her hands covering her face. "You....you didn't...please tell me this is a joke..." As she looked up to Rei, tears streaming down her face, contorted in rage, she screamed, "You...removed your wings?!"
"I...I had to get stronger. It was the only way I-"
Well, trying to convince her mother of seeing things her way had been a nice attempt at least, but unfortunately, it had backfired as dramatically horrible as she was afraid of. The sounds of thunder crackled throughout the room. Dark clouds began to shift and take from from around Rebekkah as the room's lighting dimmed. The woman's eyes began to glow, and eerie white, gradually taking on a purple aura. Within moments, it was as if the entire room was gone, replaced by the night-sky, covered in dark clouds, a purple flashes of lightning, and thunderclaps echoing through the room, but it seemed like they were somewhere else now.
As great and terrible, iridescent purple, teal, blue scintillating wings spread form from around the form of her mother, she seemed to change, her entire form nothing but a black silhouette, her eyes haunting enough to pierce the soul of the surest being, and bring them to their knees. The floor was still present, but there seemed to be nothing there. All Rei knew is that she was standing -albeit barely, under her mother's gaze- but it no longer felt like the soft red carpet she had been on just a moment ago.
Rei swallowed hard as she looked up upon her mother, the Valkyrie of Dark Thunder. "Look, mom....you're, you're blowing this way out of proportion! I-" The sound of a roaring thunderclap silenced Rei in mid-speech, as her mother called out, "Do you have any idea, what sacrilege this is!? You've been a fool to place your faith in artifice! You've turned your back on your holy gifts!"
"I only wanted to become stronger! I needed to!"
Rebekkah simply raised one hand forward, almost immediately ending the argument with a single bolt of lightning to her daughter's jet wings. Rei fell to her knees, screaming in pain and clutching her sides. Her back felt like it had just been hit by molten lava, and her insides were in a blender. Rei tried her hardest to hold onto her consciousness, seeming ready to fail at any given moment. Sparks danced across and just under her skin. The Dark Valkyrie told Rei, "How could you have done this to me...to yourself?!" Rei said nothing but groaned in pain.
Rebekkah lowered her head, "You are not a valkyrie anymore. You are only a disgrace like this! How am I supposed to just accept that?!" Struggling to one knee, Rei commented, "Oh...get over yourself!" What happened next was far too fast and even less expected. All Rebekkah could see was a design forming on the blue crystal on Rei's forehead. In a bright flash of light, the design was projected forward two feet before Rei's face. Two glyphs, one super-imposed on the other, encircled by several dozen Kanji runes, Rei immediately smashed her outstretched hand, palm-first into the center of the circle, shouting "Kordehroz HAIJIEN!"
Rebekah wasn't even fast enough to stop it. The circle exploded into a burst of light, sending a torrent of small, fist-sized orbs of intense luminosity towards Rebekkah. Recoiling back and taking flight through the "sky" around them as it was, the ground beneath Rei's feet seemed to vanish, they were both stuck in a cascade of clouds amidst the endless night-sky, filled by thunderclaps around them. As Rebekkah quickly found herself unable to out-pace, or out-maneuver the homing orbs, she was even more horrified after she summoned her most powerful magic barriers, to find the orbs simply flying right through it unimpeded.
Rebekkah screamed, cursing Rei's name as she held her hands and wings in front of her to shield herself, her vision clouding with the orbs of light. Then suddenly, a hand reached around from behind her, as the soft buzzing of electricity hummed next to her ear. Rei's voice said, "Checkmate mom." Rebekkah opened her eyes, still horrified, but unable to understand, as the lights in front of her simply remained in front of her eyes. Suddenly, the lights vanished, revealing Rei's Plasma Blade humming loudly just inches from her face. "Can....can we please just go home now? I hate this place..."
~~~~~The Hybrid
Both women were panting heavily as they lay sprawled across the red carpet, back in the castle and out of Rebekkah's dark realm. Finally, the mother, in her dress just as she was, asked, "How....How did you do that? I didn't know you had gotten so powerful with your magic..."
Rei started to chuckle. Well, grimace really, she was still feeling the lightning's effect on her internals. "I didn't do any overpowering attacks, all I did was combine the glyph for Light and the glyph for Homing. There was no substance to that attack at all, just light." Rebekkah, jaw nearly on the floor, finally retorted angrily, "...You....little, sneak!" Rei could only chuckle as her mother's frustration. "Mom...you have to get used to the fact that I'm not just a Valkyrie. I'm a ninja too. And I'm in the Order of the Seeker. I'm not held down to any one way of thinking."
Rebekkah, sitting with her knees off to the side, asked "Is...is that why you took out your wings...?" Suddenly, Rei was beginning to wish she was still facing her angry, dark thunderbolt-chucking mom. She couldn't bear doing this to her mother, but there wasn't anything she could do now. "Mom...no. I..." Rei shook her head vigorously. "I don't know! I just...I wasn't thinking! I just wanted...to be stronger..." Rebekkah shifted over to Rei, placing her hand on her daughter's shoulder, saying, "You were already strong, and I couldn't have been any prouder of you. You know that. I just....I'm not as proud of what you've done sometimes."
Rei gave an exasperated sigh. "Are you STILL going on about the time I accidentally flew your Roc into the hen house? I said I was sorry! I just wanted to see how far th-" Rebekkah reached up and flicked Rei's head, causing her to jerk up, "Ow! Hey, that's still sore up there! I-...oh. Right." The two sat in silence for a moment. The only sounds that could be heard in their room, were the wails of some creature down the halls, but it wasn't coherent at this range.
Finally, Rei sighed, succumbing to tears, "I'm...I'm sorry...I don't...maybe I could re-attach them, if I-"
"No...that's impossible, I'm afraid. Once a valkyrie loses her wings, it's impossible to heal them the way they were."
Rei bowed down, her head hitting the floor as she cried, "It's...it's not fair. I didn't know it was going to be like this...!" Rebekkah then raised herself up to a sitting position again, one hand still on her daughter's shoulder, and thought. Finally, she mentioned, "Well...there may still be a way..." Rei sat up so quickly it almost spooked her mother. "What?! How? I thought you said-"
"It won't be as it was...but there is an old magic. Very ancient. Although, I'm not sure it will work. It all depends on you." Rei simply blinked in confusion as her mother. "Wha-what? I don't understand..."
Rebekkah began to stand up, picking Rei up along with her. "You said there was magic interfering with your artifice implementation. That is because you are a valkyrie, and you are born with that divine magic. Whenever you become implanted to something alien to your body, it will conflict. By the look of you, and how far you have progressed, I'd say that you had to give up most of it to make the implants work. However, if you did, we might actually be able to coax it out, and possibly even recreate your wings."
Rei looked incredulously at her mother. "I thought you said it was impossible!"
"For your original wings, yes. However, that's where the true magic comes in. If we can use a catalyst magic, you can gain ethereal wings of your very own spirit energy. But, you would have to sacrifice your artifice. You cannot have both Divine Blessing of the Valkyrie, and artifice of such magnitude both. It is a mockery to the natural body, and it breeds nothing but conflict within you."
Rei lowered her head, contemplating. "One step forward, two steps backs. I feel as if I'm at a loss, coming out of this." Rebekkah smiled. "Did you think I summoned you just for sh*ts and giggles? I'm your mother Rei. I'm not going to leave you empty handed. Are you sure you want to do this though?" Rei shrugged. "You fried my damn Jet boosters with that lightning bolt of yours anyways. I might as well."
Suddenly, the wailing creature from the hallways had burst in through the curtain. Rebekkah remembered her original ward, but had since forgotten to sustain it. Fortunatly, as the curtain cleared, it was "Bitsy?!" Rei called out. "WAAAH! The Cheese is a lie! The cheese is a lie!" Rei stood blinking, "Wait, what about the fruits?"
Bitsy responded, "Are you kidding me? I had to be quick to get those! Some guy with a garden hoe kept swatting at me after I took them! I STILL couldn't find any cheese!" Rei face-palmed as Rebekkah nervously laughed, "Ah hah ha, uhm, excuse me, I think I'll need to go smooth things over with Farmer Rego. Sorry about that, uhm, Bitsy. Er, Valkyrie business, you wouldn't understand."
~~~~~Standing on Ceremony
Rei stood up, looking as herself in the tall mirror. Her back looked as good as new. No scars or cuts anywhere. It felt good to be back to her old self again, even if she did have to have a few organs regenerated. "And to think, I spent all that gold on those cybernetic enhanced lungs and heart, and now it's back to normal. Well, it was fun while it lasted, however short." Turning back, Rei grabbed for her clothes again, finding a note on them. "Hmm....Dear Rei, Love you much, mom...Nice. I hope to God nobody else saw that." Then, as Rei picked up her clothes, another two dozen copies of the note fell from beneath the folds. "Oh for crying out loud-...Damnit mom!" Rei was positive that if she still had her implants, she could have heard her mother snickering somewhere nearby.
The ceremony was unusually short compared to some of the ones Rei often remembered attending in her youth. As Rei approached an altar, she saw shimmering grey object in a golden plate. "Is that....A Fallen Wish? No way! I didn't know those things actually existed! Is that the catalyst they were talking about?" As one of the nearby priests continued to speak, apparently reading inscriptions from a sacred text, Rei's mother took the star placing it over Rei's head. Suddenly there was a...surging feeling. It was of both pain, and relief, surging like water through head. Rei fought the urge to reach her hands up to her throbbing head. Suddenly, she could feel something. A light, from the back of her soul, as if it had been turned on again, after laying dark for many ages. She knew it, and was glad it was back. Still, it didn't help the surging sensation. Rei couldn't help but give a stifled scream as an ethereal light streamed up from above her ears. It felt so familiar, yet rather odd all the same.
Rei breathed heavily, as the ceremony completed. As Rei looked up, she didn't even to see the mirror to know what was there. It looked like a constantly cascading flow of an unearthly water, majestic and sparkling. Rei's first thought was, "Now, why did the ninja agree to have two glowing spouts on her head again? Damn, and to think I call my brother a testament to the never give up, never quite think things through, spirit of humanity."
As the priests began to leave, Rei's mother thanked each on of them individually as they passed. After a moment, it was only Mother and Daughter once again. Rebekkah turned to Rei saying, "How do you feel?" Rei shrugged. "It feels familiar, but...I feel more...I feel an energy passing through me, like water."
"It is your very spirit. It empowers you as never before, and I do believe, it has become stronger through all of this." Rei nodded solemnly. "I...I just wanted to say again, that...I'm sorry for all of this." Rebekkah's eyes began to tear up, as she shook her head. Walking over, she embraced Rei in her arms, saying, "No...it's alright now. The only thing that matters is that you're safe, and you're wiser now." Moving to arm's length apart, her hands on Rei's shoulders, Rebekkah said, "Just...feel free to visit more often. I get lonely up here too sometimes!"
Rei nodded, as Rebekkah took and led her through the castle, "Now come, there is something I wanted to show you..."
~~~~~CH.01 Epilogue
Rei was astonished. "Woah, woah, WOAH. What....No way!" Rebekkah smiled softly. The feathers were pristine, whiter than the clearest snow. Cerrulean blue gems adorned the sides of the pivot joints. "It was crafted by the mastersmith of Angels himself. It can bend to your will and be your shield. and fire arrows of pure holy energy. It will defend you against any foe who means you harm, but it is not a weapon to be used frivolously against any target. Any bolt you fire can only harm someone with wicked intent. It will not strike down the innocent." Rei nodded, "I expected nothing less from the angels. But...how did you get this?!" Rebekkah simply smiled. "A friend." There was far more to it than that, and quite possibly something which might start several long conversations over this "friend", but for now, Rei would have to simply let it be. As Rei turned her eyes up from the weapon, Rebekkah asked, "Now then, let's see how much you remember from what I last taught you." Rei smiled. Training with her mother among the clouds. It brought back such fun memories.
Meanwhile, three floors below, a girl gave out a heavy sigh. "Yay. Those Aekea doctors were so rude. I'm glad they left, I wish they'd taken these things with them." The young valkyrie gave a light kick to a cart of glass tanks, emblazoned with the logo of a medical company in Akeea, currently holding the machines taken from Rei's body during the operation. Only now, they held only bloody streaks along the sides of the tall jars.
The woman blinked. She could have sworn, those tanks were full just a moment ago. Looking to the side, everything else was still intact. The operating table still covered in dried blood, red-stained bandages piled on trays with extraction tools...no machines. The woman stepped out, wandering into the next room over, "Joseph...have you seen anyone walk down this way?"
"Shh, not now, Tony's having an affair on Kelly with Sonja! He's such a b*****d!"
"....Right then."
Walking back to the operations room, she stopped at the door. Bloody streaks trailed from the room along the floor. They only led a few feet down the hall before stopping, with a single bloody boot-print that faded not more than three steps down. "....Oh.....s**t...."
 Reishadowen · Mon Feb 16, 2009 @ 10:51pm · 0 Comments |
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