Part 9: Shadows at the Gate

Uli got tired of waiting, tired of everything. He was ready to go. The light looked so warm. Even that Death guy seemed friendlier than the first time he saw him. He stood up, brushed the dirt off his pants, and headed for the light.

“Wait! Uli Nakamura?”

Uli stopped and turned to see who called his name. A man was standing behind him with inky black skin, shadows swirling around him. “Who are you?”

“My name is Obsidian. I’m one of the Darkling Sidh. I’ve come because I need your help. Hypnos told me you would be here.”

“Look, mister. I don’t know what you want, but I can’t help you.” He started back towards the light.

“Even if your friends needed you? The Ronins and Sentinels?”

Uli stopped again. “They’re in trouble?”

“Yes. They could use your light now, the brightness of your innocent soul. They are suffering.”

Uli kicked at the dirt, his eyes downcast. “What could I do? I’m dying. Besides, I’m just a kid. I couldn’t really help them.”

“You didn’t used to believe that. You used to believe that you could do anything, be anything.”

“That was stupid. Getting bit by a poisonous snake-guy showed me that.” (*author’s note—waaay back in Land of H’ris)

“Dreams are never foolish. They are the heart and soul of who we are. I want to help your friends fight this new foe they face. What if I told you I had a way for you to assist them, as well? Your role would be critical, for I cannot do this without you.”

“You need me? Really? I…I could leave here? It’s a nice place, but…” Uli saw Hypnos in the distance. The ancient god nodded. Follow your heart.

“I have a way, Uli. But only if you are willing. Will you let me explain more fully?”

Uli then looked back at Death waiting patiently. He shrugged his shoulders. “Sorry. I gotta go. See you later.” Uli ran over to Obsidian. The two of them walked off away from the light.

Thanatos smiled and sheathed his sword. The light behind him dissipated in an instant. He spread his wings and flew away.

Astarte followed Stygia’s magical trail with her heightened senses, teleporting herself and the others from place to place as they got closer to their quarry. They were now somewhere in Ireland. Stygia was near, very near. Astarte could almost smell her—especially with the essence of Mia and Ryo clinging to her. A strange darkness spread across the isle—not unlike the evil darkness the witch, Hecate, had once tried to cast over the earth. (*author’s note—Sentinel Warriors: 1) “Wait here for me. I will scout ahead and see exactly where she is and what she is doing.” The goddess disappeared in a flash of red.

Astarte reappeared on a craggy cliff behind a grouping of rocks. She crouched low to the ground and made her way to the edge to look down below her. She knew this place. It was the First Gate to the Shining Realm—home of the Sidh. Even if she hadn’t visited the Realm before, she couldn’t miss the unique feel of an Elven portal. Below her gathered a small army. Perhaps several hundred Darkling Sidh. That explained the shadows across the land. The Darklings could not move about in the day otherwise. They were planning to storm the gate itself. There were three gates, each stronger than the last. Few beings had the power to pass through uninvited.

She hadn’t recognized Stygia’s name when Mia mentioned her, but she knew the leader of this group even though her appearance was much changed. There was no mistaking her aura from so close a distance. She must have changed her name during her years in the dark. Astarte remembered her as Aureole—so named because a halo of bright beauty surrounded her. Everyone assumed she would take the throne, but she didn’t pass the Test of Royalty. There was a civil war. The defeated fairies were cursed and exiled. Astarte had no idea what had become of them after that. She had been preoccupied with her own problems.

They could not let this witch take the Shining Realm. The Realm conferred great power on the one who ruled it. And it was one of the closest dimensions to earth with strong ties of sympathetic magic. If the land of the Fairy were ripped asunder by war, the earth would feel the effects of such devastation. The last Fairy war caused great strife and horrible suffering for humankind. Astarte did not trust that this evil creature would stay in the Fairy Realm, either. She would be the type to want dominion over all the worlds she could grasp. They could not let her take her fight to the Realm. Nor could they allow her to get away with what she’d done to Mia and Ryo. Astarte would take her apart with her bare hands if she had to in order to take back what was stolen. She moved back out of sight again, hiding behind some rocks before teleporting back to the others.

Uli opened his eyes. He was at Mia’s house. His mother was asleep in a chair by his bed. Silent as a shadow he slipped out of his bed. Weird. He didn’t feel any pain at all. He wasn’t tired or weak. Was that Obsidian guy just a dream? He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. His eyes were completely black. He was also…a grown-up?

A soft voice whispered in his mind. “It was real. Your friends need us. Are you still willing?”

Uli stared at his own reflection. A dopey grin spread across his face. He was an adult! And he was going to help the Ronins and Sentinels against some evil, bad guy. How cool was that? “Oh, yeah! Just tell me what to do!”

The Ronins and Sentinels teleported in the valley behind Stygia’s army. Their warriors who could create the most overall destruction attacked simultaneously. Gilgamesh crossed his twin battle-axes in front of himself with a scowl. “SONIC SHOUT, HEEYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

His sonic blast cut a swath through the dark fairies before they even had a chance to react. He held the blast for as long as he could, longer than he ever had before. By sheer will power he increased the intensity of his energy until it liquefied everything in its direct path—including the Sidh unlucky enough to be in the way. He knew they had to take out as many as they could and quickly. Their armor gave them the strength to fight on a more equal level with the fairy, but not enough stamina to carry them through a protracted battle against such numbers. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Anubis doing the same.

“CHAOS FURY!” Anubis spun his scythe, generating a vortex of power. He rooted himself to the spot as he felt the suction of his black hole reach out for the enemy. The others knew to stand back, because his power knew neither friend nor foe. It only knew destruction. A group of Sidh was caught in its power, unable to resist the pull of an energy older than even their ancient race. Their bodies were twisted and pulled apart by its force until there was nothing left.

Ryo burned with anger and shame. His wild emotions fueled the power of his Armor of Wildfire. He drew his katanas. “FLARE UP NOW!” Waves of flames pummeled the still surprised Sidh. He watched their flesh burn and tried not give in to a feeling of satisfaction that he knew was wrong in the face of such carnage.

Black clouds rumbled overhead as Jack gave himself over to the storm. He was usually so careful, so in control. But that witch hurt Mia and Ryo. Mia was like a sister to him. He didn’t care if his armor was tainted or not. He just wanted to hurt Stygia as much as she hurt his family. Mia’s screams from that morning still echoed in his head…and he let the power have its way. “DEATHSTORM STRIKE!” Multiple bolts of lightning streaked through the sky, striking any of the Sidh they could find. All of them would pay. All of them would suffer. Some of his bolts didn’t kill their prey right away. Good. They could feel the heat of their burns until other bolts found them and put them out of their misery.

“SUPERWAVE SMASHER!” A tidal wave of concussive force slammed into the Sidh army, knocking many of them from their magical steeds. He sent another blast that smashed a bunch of them into the cliff side.

The valley was green and fertile, feeding Trace with its natural energy. He banged his staff on the ground. “RAGE OF THE WILD!” Trees of unnatural strength burst up through the ground to ensnare the Sidh. Their wild branches slammed the warriors into the ground, the rocks, the cliff side. Some of his trees grew up around them, encasing them inside.

Astarte surveyed the damage. The element of surprise had allowed them to destroy over half the fairy warriors. But now they no longer had surprise and the numbers were still greatly against them. If the Daylings intervened, the battle would be theirs. But they could not be counted on. They were capricious in their ways and might not enter the fray until they had no choice. They cared little for what occurred outside the gates of the Realm, and less about the fate of mankind. Cold, calculating King Breon would weigh all his action before acting. Then it might be too late for them. Nevertheless, the battle was joined. The first wave had attacked. Now the hand-to-hand combat would begin. With a blood-curdling battle cry, she rushed the army before her.

Astarte could move as fast as any Sidh and was just as strong. In the days when she wielded the full power of her godhood, she could have disposed of these beings with much less trouble. Now they were her equals in physical ability. But none of them possessed a sword forged from the elements. Her father made it himself from the sky, the clouds, the rain, the wind, and yes, the sun. They could not look at her sword without pain. The touch of it dropped them to their knees. Like a whirlwind, she flew through the air, her sword and her fists a blur of devastating motion. When her feet touched ground again, several Sidh fell to her feet—dead.

Sage swung his no-datchi with all his might, needing it to cut through the tougher skin of the Sidh. He used his “Thunderbolt Cut” to even the odds, but he still wasn’t confident of the outcome. They were outnumbered and outclassed. They might be able to do a lot of damage, but Stygia’s people were going to win. He pushed that thought from his mind and lunged at an oncoming warrior. Doubts on the battlefield could get you killed. He sliced back at another creature to his side, cutting a deep wound across his stomach.

Mia spun and kicked the warrior beside her. The dark woman staggered back and laughed. Their blades clashed as the Sidh swung her two-hand sword at Mia’s head. They pushed away from each other. Mia ducked as she sensed another behind her. She released a shuriken into her hand and used it like a knife to cur her opponent’s leg. The earth magic of the Sentinel’s weapons would be painful to the Sidh. She remembered that from her battle with Stygia. She cartwheeled to the left and rolled low to the ground. She raised her sword like a pike and skewered the creature charging her. Dark fairy blood dripped down her sword onto her gauntlet. Her armor was already splattered with it. She barely noticed.

Mia was used to seeing Astarte and Gilgamesh fight like berserkers, but the others… She didn’t know what they were feeling. She only knew a burning rage was consuming her. She’d never felt such anger, such hatred. Nothing else mattered at this moment. It should’ve mattered to her when Ryo burnt the flesh from screaming warriors. It should’ve mattered to her when Jack laughed at the mounds of dead and scarred bodies his storm had piled up. It should’ve mattered to her when her shadow katana sliced again and again across the bodies of her enemies. But it didn’t. None of it did except the need to kill the creature that hurt her and Ryo.

A golden trumpet sounded with a tune that seemed to vibrate inside their heads. They looked up to see an army of golden-armored warriors leisurely riding towards them. One rode in front, a blood-red cape draped over his shoulder and a simple, but stunning crown on his head. King Breon. He lifted one imperious hand to his troops. They silently fanned out in all directions, attacking any Darkling Sidh they could. The Darklings were severally outnumbered. This time they did not face a small group of mostly human warriors—they fought beings as strong and as experienced as they. The Ronins and Sentinels fought alongside the golden warriors until Stygia’s army was almost completely decimated.

Stygia screamed with rage. “You won’t take this from me! Your mother stole the throne from me! It’s mine by right and I shall have it!”

King Breon raised one condescending eyebrow at her. “You are a fool, Aureole. There is nothing for you here. My mother stole nothing from you. You were not worthy of the throne. The Test of Royalty proved that.”

“DON’T CALL ME THAT! I am Stygia of the Darkling Sidh. I will take my true name back when I sit on the Shining Throne with your bones for my footstool!”

“You’ll have to go through me first!” Mia ran at her, screaming. She wasn’t thinking properly. Only her rage directed her actions.

“Oh, child. You think to stop me? You are pathetic. But I do thank you—you and that warrior of yours. Do you like what I’ve done with your gifts?”

“GIFTS?! You assaulted us, you monster! Now I’m going to take back what you stole!” She swung at Stygia. The dark queen easily jumped out of the way.

Stygia slammed her the pommel of her sword into the side of Mia’s helm, stunning her. Mia fell to the ground. Stygia tried to bury her blade into Mia’s chest, but the young woman still had enough of her wits to roll out of the way. She jumped to her feet. Stygia leaped over her and attempted to back-slice her. Mia thrust her katana to the side to block her. She spun to face the creature she hated. Unseen to Stygia, she palmed a couple of shurikens and charged as if to strike with her sword. When she got closer, she threw her stars at Stygia’s face. They were too close for the Darkling queen to move out of the way. She hissed in pain as they dug into her flesh. Mia was about to swing at the staggered fairy’s head.

“Mama?”

Mia stopped cold. What was that?

“Mama?”

She saw Stygia’s eyes. Something else was there. Another presence. Her anger had blinded her to it. Something innocent and pure called out to her. Their stolen essences had merged into a being all its own. She couldn’t destroy it. It was a part of her and Ryo. Their…child. She couldn’t!

Stygia took advantage of her hesistation. She stabbed Mia through the shoulder, piercing her armor. With a laugh, the Sidh pulled her sword out, moving it back and forth as she did. “I don’t need you anymore, human. Your usefulness to me was brief and sweet. You won’t bother me ever again.” She raised her arm, ready for the killing blow. As she brought her sword down, a hand grabbed her arm, restraining her.

Stygia looked up into the eyes of her consort, Obsidian. The body was not the same, but the eyes gave him away. “I see you have done as I have in the past and taken a human host. Does this mean you are with me now? You are willing to fight by my side to take back our kingdom?”

“I see how wrong I was, My Queen. I have come to rectify my mistakes.” He pulled her to him and kissed her.

Stygia was glad he had chosen to follow her. It wasn’t the same without her prince at her side. But something… It was wrong. Something was wrong! She tried to pull away, but found herself trapped in his arms. She looked up into his eyes. They were glowing. She couldn’t look away. A dark light burst from his eyes and bored deep into her. She felt her very essence well up inside, being pulled forth by his gaze. “NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOO! STOP IT! TRAITOR! TRAITOR! AAAAAAAAAHHHH!”

A cloudy, woman-like form wisped out of the body. Obsidian relinquished his hold on Uli’s body and followed her upwards. He wrapped around Stygia shadowy body. Using the magic of the Nameless Ones he merged with her, the two of them churning and seething in a screaming mass of black. With one last scream that was both Obsidian and Stygia, the cloud dissipated. The shadows across the isle disappeared, as well. The bright afternoon sky shone like an angry god on the remaining Darkling Sidh, burning them to ash.