Cassandra Pendragon
"I think I've seen… Jesus Christ, that's John, Richard's brother!" My voice was cracking and I felt the blood drain from my face as if I had seen a ghost. Which, in a way, I had. In case you've forgotten, John was the hapless mercenary whom I had dragged from the "Gilded Dream" only to get cursed for all my troubles. Seeing him again… the cold shivers that still crawled up my spine every time I remembered the godforsaken kiss were one thing, but he should have been dead. Nay, erased, his soul gone and burned to fuel the despicable magic the Emperor had used on me. But there he was, battered and naked, but obviously alive. Simply put, it shouldn't have been possible. Not even with the help of an immortal. What the actual…
"Are you sure," Ahri asked quietly, her eyes burning with a dark, dangerous fire. Apparently she hadn't forgotten, either.
"Trust me, I'll never forget his face. That's the man Amon used to curse me. I'm sure of it. But… how did he get here? Better yet, how in hell did he survive?"
"The latter part is easy to fix," the angel replied dryly. There was a sharp edge to her voice that didn't necessarily bode well for John's future.
"You realise he's just as much of a victim as me, if not more," I mumbled quietly.
"I do and I'm not going to skin him alive. Doesn't mean I don't want to." I tilted my head to the side and stared at her, but I became distracted immediately.
While we were having our private discussion, the roof top garden was slowly turning into a verdant paradise. Greta's essence was spreading and with it came the smell of cherries of and the power of a dryad's magic. Roots slowly, but inexorably dug their way through soil and cement, seedlings of arcane plants were blooming before my eyes and the deep gashes our fight had left behind were scarring over in green and brown. The wind was once again rustling through a sea of leaves, the familiar, almost soothing murmur of growing life filled the air and piece by little piece a sanctuary of foreign magic took shape on one of Shanghai's skyscrapers. A soft smile played around the corners of my mouth when I focused back on the love of my lives.
"Fair enough." I closed my eyes and massaged my temples in an attempt to block out the noise and figure out anything resembling some answers, but unfortunately I came up blank. I just didn't know which way to turn, everywhere I looked one thing or the other demanded my attention and despite my powers I couldn't very well be everywhere at once, could I?
"You don't need to," Ahri whispered in my thoughts. "Earth is not going to collapse or change overnight. Our home, on the other hand…"
"Just might. You're right, but I…"
"You're afraid of disappointing Anna and her coven, aren't you? Gods, Cassy, how old are you again? You really have to learn to say no. Otherwise you're going to become a servant, a convenient ace in the hole. It's as they say, everybody's darling is everybody's doormat."
"I don't think anyone has ever said that," I snorted, "but I see your point. I'm still not overly comfortable with dumping the bunch of second rate, unconscious wizards downstairs on them without a proper warning."
"One, we can warn them. Two… I don't think the witches would mind. On the contrary, I bet they're dying to discuss the current power structure without you looking over their shoulders."
"Maybe. Fine, back home it is, then."
"We could spare an hour or two for a proper meal, though. Just the two of us. What do you think? You did promise me a date and never delivered."
"True, but I did make you breakfast in bed. Considering I didn't writhe on the floor in agony it has to count, doesn't it? Still…"
"You're not going to sneak off," Viyara interrupted my train of thought. Sometimes I actually forgot that she could listen in whenever she felt like it. "It's a brand new world. Aurelia and I are coming with. We came here to help you, but we also want to see as much as we can. Better yet, taste as much as we can. And I'm certain Erya won't stay behind on her own. That is, I'm pretty sure you don't want her to stay behind on her own with a bunch of young, pretty and naive girls to keep her company." For a dragoness, who had barely hatched by the standards of her own race, to call anyone young or naive was truly rich, but I chose to suppress that particular thought.
"So much for a quiet, romantic evening," Ahri groaned. "That wasn't what I had in mind."
"You can feel your lover up whenever you want, but there are only so many chances to dine on a different planet." "You realise this is now literally our backyard, don't you," I grumbled. "You can come here anytime you want to."
"I don't even speak the language. Who's to say I won't confuse the waiter for an item on the menu? And from what I've seen it wouldn't even matter. What are they going to do? Come at me with those metal sticks you pointed out? Please… Is that a risk you really want to take?"
"You know, I liked you more when you were still trying to get into my my pants… Also, for the record, don't underestimate technology. I don't think those metal sticks would kill you, but the larger ones can definitely hurt you."
"Is that a yes?" At least she was consistent in her impudence. I shared a look with Ahri and she gave me a defeated nod. We really didn't want a dragon, a vampire and a fey running rampant in one of China's bigger cities. That would, most likely, turn into a nightmare I couldn't ignore.
"Fine. Under one condition. With the enchantment broken we can probably take John back home. Get him over there and store him somewhere safe and out of sight. Preferably in a box with a few holes so he can breathe."
"Seriously?" I rolled my eyes.
"Just dump him on the lake shores. Nobody can get down there. Can they, Greta?" The dryad, who had been reaching out with gnarly arms for a towering rhododendron, focused back on us with an almost sheepish expression.
"More or less. I can't do much to stop Sarai or Mephisto. But… you'll see. In a few…" as if on command her coarse trunk shimmered and a rift opened, surrounded by her innate greenish magic, but there were also dark, red sparks, which reminded me of…
"Have you missed me?" Tall, leaning on a black staff with a carved unicorn on top and still dressed like an ancient pharaoh my demonic teacher appeared, his self satisfied smirk wide enough to show each and every single one of his blocky, pearly white teeth. "Either way, I've heard you're going out. If you're buying, count me in."
"And if I'm not?"
"You can still count me in and some entertainment will be guaranteed to boot." Our eyes met and for a few moments I held his gaze until the soft song of unspent magic and the smell of ozone permeated the air. Silver and red sparks danced between us like fireflies, the pressure of an unrestrained immortal aura rose, but then he surprised us all when he spread his arms wide and began to pout. "What? No hug? It'd be the first time I can actually feel something without that blasted construct of mine getting in the way and now you're acting like a stranger? Figures."
I couldn't help myself, I had to laugh and the tension evaporated immediately. With a few, gliding strides I reached his side and wrapped my arms around his lean frame. He smelled differently, darker, richer, like memories made real, like the past brought back to life, and wherever my fingertips trailed over bare skin I felt the thrum of power surging through his veins like an endless river. I felt the strength in his grip when he gently returned my embrace, I tasted the invisible haze of magic that enveloped him like a cloak and I sensed the unfettered power that once again was his to command, but, most of all, I once again saw a friend I had truly missed.
"How's that for a welcome," I whispered hoarsely. "It's good to have you back. You've missed quite a lot."
"I know. When she fed my seed Sarai shared some of her memories." I meant to take a step back, but he didn't relinquish his hold so I simply stayed where I was. "No need to bring me up to speed. Gabriel, the realm collapse… Earth. It's a fucking marvel you haven't managed to run into Michael and his goons while I've been dreaming. You haven't, have you?"
"No… not yet. At least I don't think so. But what about you? Are you entirely restored?"
"More or less. It's still going to take some time for my core to properly function again, but for all intent and purposes I'm as good as new, or rather as good as old. Which poses some interesting questions, doesn't it? With two fully grown immortals around we might have to reevaluate… well, mostly everything. But that can wait for now. I haven't had a proper meal, yet, and for once I wouldn't mind shelving all the gloom and doom of our overly long lives. Why not save the important questions until we're back on Gaya?" He finally let go, but still kept his hands on my shoulders.
"Fine by me. One exception, though. Ahri's power and my own. Can we use them outside of Gaya? I wasn't sure and I didn't want to risk inviting our siblings over for an early lunch."
"Good call, but I think in this instance you've been overly cautious. The entire universe is filled with remnants of your energy. Comes with the territory when you're old enough. Unless you intend to blow up an entire planet I don't think our family would ever know. That's the flip side of what Amazeroth has done on Gaya. True enough, for as long as his wards hold nobody gets in, but once they break… well, the ripples of a spell that size crumbling can be felt pretty much anywhere. There will be no hiding once that happens." I frowned at that.
"Which means I can actually act more freely on Earth?"
"The more power you use, the bigger the chance someone notices. But like I said, as long as you don't start casting spells on a global scale we should be fine. Still, a little restraint won't hurt, will it? Now, are we done? I'm much more interested in where they make the best Gong Bao Ji Ding."
"You've been here before," I asked. I hadn't expected the demon to have visited Earth.
"A few times. Like you, I even got my name here. Part of that power which would the evil ever do and ever does the good. I liked Goethe. He was fun to be around, especially when he was sniffing his rotten apple." His gaze flickered over my shoulder and a shadow passed behind his eyes. "If you insist on keeping me here, why don't the lovely ladies over there inquire where we might dine most spectacularly? We're in one of the biggest cities on Earth. It would be a shame to miss the opportunity." He didn't get a reply at first, but I instead heard a cacophony of questions in my mind. Neither Ahri, nor Viyara were buying whatever he was trying to sell. He wanted to talk to me alone, even though I didn't quite see the point. Those two, at the very least, would immediately know what he was up to. I still decided to play along and with much scuffling they followed after Anna and her peers. On a side note, the witches had already… unburied the stairs, so my friends didn't have to take the direct way down.
When we were alone, aside from a snoring remnant of my past and the ever growing presence of the dryad, I took a few steps to the closest tree, a blooming tree of heaven, and folded my arms under my chest. Then I cocked an eyebrow and waited. His chipper demeanour immediately fell off and he looked at me with an expression that made the snark wither in my throat. Oh boy, we were in trouble.
"The realm collapse," I guessed without hesitation. He nodded.
"It's far worse than you might think and this," he gesticulated towards the unconscious human, "proves that I'm right. Can you shut out that dragoness of yours? We're in deep shit, even by your standards. Do you want the long version or the short one?" I frowned, but did as he had asked.
"Short, for now. What's going on?"
"Sarai is an imbecile who doesn't know her spells form her ass and you have way too much power for your own good. Everyone has been focused on the seventh realm, Gabriel's prison, breaking. Which in and of itself would be a catastrophe for a normal planet, but with us on Gaya it wouldn't matter. Much. No, the problem is what was locked inside and is now seeping through our whole world. The magic you and Gabriel used… did you really think it would just… vanish? Let me be the first to disabuse you of the notion. Transcendent forces are eternal, immutable. Yours above all. And now they're free, trickling through the realms, wreaking havoc with reality. This," again he jerked his head towards John, "is the last bit of proof I needed. Everything, the time stream included, is crumbling back home. That's why the gormless bozo can even be here." I paled with every word he spoke.
"But… why here, why on Earth," I stammered, "and why did you send them away?" He shrugged.
"They can't help. Not even Ahri. Heaven, I can't even help. It'll be up to you to decide if you want to burden them with something they can't change. Ahri would understand, but I guess she knows everything I've told you now anyways. Viyara and Erya… Cassy, they are different from us. Home, a place to belong… for us it's an admirable goal. For them it is necessary to live, to develop, to change… to have a reason to fight and bleed. Why Earth? Interesting question and one you might be able to answer much more precisely than me, considering how much time you've spent around here. It doesn't really matter, though. The fact remains, Gaya's future and her past are bleeding into reality and if we can't seal the wound, there won't be much left to hide from our siblings."
"How… how long do we have?"
"At best? Weeks. At worst? Days. Cassandra… I don't mean to criticise you. You've beaten a grown, insane immortal. I'd never have thought it possible. But in doing so…. Nothing but the Void can handle power on that scale. Unless we can somehow fix it, your world… damn it, our world is doomed." Cold sweat was covering my brow by now.
"Fix? I don't even know what I've done. How do you even try to fix something like that?" He shrugged again.
"If I knew I would have already done it. I've got my core back, remember? The prophet might know, though."
"No. No! Never! Not in this life, nor the next. There has to be another way." He sighed and raised his hands to massage his temples. A gesture I found disturbingly familiar.
"There might be. We need an outlet, a place where the power can go, where it can spread without destroying everything around it. Like I said, only the Void is capable of containing transcendent forces. And within the Void only one place comes to mind where you and your energy might actually go unnoticed. As far as I know it's been completely abandoned and with a little luck not even Michael will notice your magic pouring into… hell."