Crystalline Chaos

by Gabriela Voelske

  “Your friend is inside,” he offered, gesturing to the doors near them. Lauri gave him another questioning gaze, before walking over to the doors and entering the house. Ferdan was busy examining Crono so he didn’t look up to investigate who had entered; Crono, however, checked and was stunned by who he saw.

  “How are you alive?” Ferdan had now stopped and looked up, his jaw dropped when he saw her stood in the entranceway.

  “Lauri!” Ferdan shouted, he stood up and ran over, sweeping her off her feet with a warm embrace. She laughed and returned the hug, burying her head deep into his shoulder. “I thought you were dead,” he whispered, stroking her head softly.

  “That seems the general opinion,” Lauri chuckled, noticing the glances as they continued. Crono smiled, he felt bad to break up the reunion but they were rather in the middle of something that he would prefer not to have left. He cleared his throat to get their attention. Ferdan turned around, apologising to Lauri before walking back to tend to their wounds.

  “I remember you,” she directed at Crono, who was rather embarrassed, he had been rather curt to her after all.

  “I half hoped you wouldn’t,” Crono sighed, “I apologise for how aggressive I was towards you, it was undeserved.” The apology pleased Lauri enough, though in hindsight it would have been nice to have some more support during that ambush, perhaps then more would have survived than just her.

  “Why did you react that way?” Lauri enquired. Crono squinted at Ferdan, if he did not tell her himself than Ferdan certainly would.

  “The West has its secrets that we prefer to keep hidden,” he admitted; the statement even attracted a dubious look from Drake, who was sat down on the ground near him.

  “Like Amnur,” Ferdan replied. He was investigating Crono’s wound; from opening it up and inspecting it, it appeared only to be a broken rib and some bruising. Lauri stared at Crono, of course she knew his name. Nearly everyone did.

  “Don’t be blinded by his past, he’s actually quite amiable once you know him,” Crono pleaded, Lauri was not so convinced by it, though.

  “Well he’s not wrong, it’s still hard to overlook such a massive thing, however.”

  Lauri stared at Ferdan in disbelief; the man she knew would not admit to such a thing, not with his position within the Council.

  “Have you forgotten your title?” she retorted, watching as he looked at her with a pained smile.

  “No, but I do not wish to condemn him or his family to death; after all, it was that process that created the problem we’re facing now.”

  She was dubious. The exact details of what they were facing had yet to be passed around to her, but from what she was hearing it appeared to be the fault of the Council themselves.

  The door behind them opened and Amnur stepped in, Crono’s slight warning peek towards him informed Lauri exactly who he was. She marched up to him and glared, she was a fair way shorter than he was and the effect of the display was lost.

  “Can I help you?” he enquired, crouching down so he was closer to her height. Lauri slapped him, immediately regretting it after; Amnur’s face was solid and unflinching and it had hurt her more than it hurt him. Amnur raised an eyebrow, somewhat amused at her pitiful attempt.

  “Why the hell can you walk around here like some glorified saint?” she spat at him. His expression changed to one of contempt, causing her to flinch; she was far too close if he suddenly decided to attack her.

  “Because I allow him to,” Crono spoke up, to the surprise of both of them. Lauri shot him a dirty look but the demon was unfazed. “He has helped neutralise many threats; your race enjoys overlooking the fact we still have an enemy.” She couldn’t deny the truth of the statement, while the Ranger’s Guild did try to keep peace in the East, the West was often overlooked and ignored. If anything the West were more likely to be targeted she thought, as their distance from Shadekeep made them vulnerable.

  “So you actively seek the help from one such as him, as opposed to asking Shadekeep?” Her question infuriated Crono, Ferdan pulled back in response to that fact.

  “They abandoned us!” Crono bellowed; the door cracked open and the others peered through the gap, curious as to what angered him.

  “Besides, I was the one who turned up and started living here, opposed to any invite,” Amnur spoke up, hoping to turn the conversation towards something else before Crono snapped completely. “He found me one day after I had ventured into the West, dehydrated and starving,” he continued, twisting back towards those that were peeping from behind the door.

  “We allowed him to stay, if he pledged his allegiance to the West,” Na-ri remarked from the doorway, “he agreed and that’s how it went.” Lauri sighed, there was not much she could say to argue the point; at least it comforted her to think they didn’t immediately accept him because of his past. The situation remained tense, the others disappeared from the door to remove themselves, leaving Lauri stood awkwardly in the room while Amnur stared at her and Ferdan quietly tended to the others.

  “Ferdan mentioned you had a family?” she spoke. Her voice wasn’t much more than a whisper to Amnur, the last thing she wanted was to anger Crono further.

  “Trying to change the topic?” Amnur remarked, “why the sudden interest?”

  Lauri puffed and looked away, unwilling to take the bait. “I get the idea that I’m going to be stuck with you, regardless of my personal opinion,” she sternly replied, folding her arms as she stood in front of him. Amnur chuckled and shook his head. The woman was too resentful for her own good; her negative undertones were never backed up with physical motion.

  “I have a daughter,” he replied, turning his gaze away from her, something which Lauri picked up on.

  “I haven’t seen her, or anything who I would have taken to be her.”

  He exhaled. By now Crono had picked up on their conversation, he gestured to Amnur to see if he was alright, which Amnur waved off. “Neither have I.” He stood up and walked away; Lauri knew she had hit a sore spot so she dropped the subject.

  “She disappeared a few days ago,” Drake spoke up from the corner; Lauri regretted bringing the topic up now, the demon must be distraught.

  “I’ll just leave now,” she stated and strolled towards the door. Given the situation, Ferdan thought it best not to try and stop her.

  Once she had left, Crono turned to Amnur. He wasn’t holding up well after her aggressive barrage, even if he was managing to repel her fine at the time. “Is this what I have to look forward to my entire life?” Amnur questioned; he did not direct it at anyone, but they all regarded him.

  “Some people require proof that you’ve changed,” Ferdan replied; he was holding onto a broken rib bone from Crono, inspecting the area it had broken off from. “Tell me something; do you regret what you did?” It was a bold question, the answer to which would make a massive difference.

  “There isn’t a day that I don’t, but most are unable to accept that my actions were done under duress,” Amnur let out a deep breath, the fact was even starting to sound like an excuse to him after twenty-five years. Whenever he pulled on that claim he was always asked why he didn’t fight back, the truth about it was that it was impossible. He still couldn’t fathom who managed to eventually kill the King, he had enough enemies but certainly none that could have defeated him, or so he thought. His body was never found either, or at least that was the last he had heard regarding the whole thing.

  “I don’t doubt you,” Ferdan said. Amnur was stunned by what he heard, considering all that Ferdan had said to him and about him in the past.

  “You… don’t?” he replied; he was sceptical but relieved.

  “Let’s face it, you could have easily killed Ciel by now,” Ferdan remarked. Drake appeared less than amused by the man’s talk. “But you haven’t, if anything you’ve been nothing but friendly towards him.” Minus a few incidents, Amnur thought to himself, but he had not threatened to kill him during any of them, admittedly. He was
unsure how to respond to Ferdan’s remark. It was certainly an odd reason to pull up for his innocence, or thereabouts anyway.

  “Someone’s praising you for once,” Crono chuckled, breaking up the conversation. Amnur stared at him in response. “He’ll keep us safe in the upcoming days, don’t worry,” he grinned; he had a lot of trust in Amnur, he knew that he would not let them down.

  Chapter 14: The Fated Day

  It was a bitter day across the Central Isles. The wind blew harshly, sending chills down the spines of those who had woken up to prepare for the march north. No one had slept well that night, tensions ran high over the worry of a last minute siege; nothing had come to light, however, much to their relief. Sebastian was shuffling his armour while waiting on the final report from Iomor. It had been a long time since he had last worn the full set of royal armour; it displayed his rank firmly to everyone, a banner of strength to those of his own race. He was not the fondest of the armour but it certainly had its uses, it was crafted from rare metals, so it should be able to repel the hits of most attackers.

  The King was wary, however, Uriel had still not talked to him since the attack a few days ago. If the angel did not turn up on the battlefield the effect on morale would be terrible. The first one to know if Uriel was present would be Thardosean; the plan had been for them to approach from two different angles, to divert and divide any ambushing forces. Thardosean would be meeting up with Uriel before marching north over the top of the Skyrend mountains, while Sebastian would be leading his army north via the southern tip of the mountains. Those who were less battle-able had already been moved to Aelburn in the early hours of the morning; a large group of those who were not as capable in combat would stand a better chance at defending themselves than small groups of the same. All that remained at Shadekeep now were those who planned to march with Sebastian, to victory or death.

  “The preparations are ready, Sire,” Iomor spoke up, startling him. He hadn’t been paying attention.

  “You don’t need to call me that, you know,” he replied. He really hoped that nothing went wrong, the fewer people he would have to say a final farewell to the better.

  “I know. It felt right, considering the situation,” Iomor smiled; he knew Sebastian was no fan of formalities, always insisting that people talk to him casually.

  “Any news from Uriel?”

  “Arariel’s been trying everything he can to get a reply, but nothing’s succeeded,” Iomor replied; they were going in blind then, he knew. Sebastian contemplated for a minute; if Uriel didn’t show up they would be relying on Ciel’s success in getting a force from the West too much, possibly enough to cripple them.

  “Well there’s no point in delaying it; let us march,” Sebastian announced, Iomor gave a bow and escorted him to where his army stood waiting for his command.

  They regarded him with a mixture of excitement and fear. It was the first time since he had taken power that he had to order the assembly of the army, as well as his first time leading one. Iomor gestured for him to begin; any army needed a motivational speech, not everyone was so keen on blinding marching to their deaths.

  “All of you know the potential danger of our enemy,” he began; his voice was firm and unwavering, “if we do not act now, then the consequences will be unthinkable.” Voices whispered in the audience but Iomor silenced them with a gesture, focusing their attention back on the King. “So today I ask you all to march with me, to defend the land we call home from the clutches of a madman!” Sebastian continued. His voice echoed around the expansive corridor, reaching everyone inside. Unbeknown to him, Kaiser was watching from the doorway; he had just returned from a final perimeter check. “I cannot guarantee you will all come home alive, but I have no intention of leaving any of you to die,” the King spoke; the crowd was starting to respond positively to him, a few cheers erupted from various places. “Now, let us march!” he bellowed, the place erupted into a unified cheer as Sebastian turned to walk out of the doorway.

  “Not bad,” Kaiser chuckled, opening the doors wide, “we’re all clear to go, by the way.”

  Sebastian gave him a nod and gestured for him to follow. A few demons gave him a cheer as he assumed position alongside the King; the solid wall of muscle that was Kaiser provided a formidable defence against attackers, something that they would be using heavily.

  They marched north, keeping close to the Skyrend Mountains to protect themselves on one side if anything attacked them. The odd Nightmare met them, but none of them was overly interested in fighting, instead opting to run around the marching demons.

  "They're scouting us," Solomon remarked, watching as an Acromantis was struck down by arrows before it made its way to the back.

  "That's why we're going to startle them," Iomor grinned. He had been informed of Solomon's plan, though Sebastian was still in the dark about it, or as far as Iomor knew. Sebastian raised an eyebrow, he somehow doubted that they were thinking the same surprise but he knew Iomor would not betray him.

  As they neared the top ridge of the mountains, the army started to become nervous. They had expected more resistance on the way up, all of the remaining creatures must be nestled up within the main towers. The alternate suggestion was not one they wanted to consider; they had left their cities vulnerable to an assault. If the Nightmares had managed to sneak around them the result could be devastating.

  A familiar sight greeted them at the edge of the cliff; the bright white wings of angels surrounded by the much smaller human companions. Sebastian was not encouraged by the sight, however. He could see Gabriel but not Uriel. Thardosean was stood next to Gabriel, seemingly discussing something, confirming the fine details of the plan. Sebastian let out a long sigh as he approached the two leaders, as his own army joining the ranks of those that had already been gathered. The humans felt rather dwarfed by their much taller companions, but they knew they had not been brought in as front line fighters. Armed with bows, spears, magic and anything else ranged they would be taking up rear support.

  Gabriel and Thardosean gave Sebastian a bow as he approached them. That was one thing he had to admit with Gabriel, he was politer than Uriel and far more pleasurable to deal with.

  "Good to see you both gathered here," Sebastian greeted them, returning the bow, "though I had expected to see Uriel as well." Gabriel tilted his head and shrugged, not offering any explanation, which came over strange to him. Sebastian glanced over to Thardosean, who was trying to stifle a laugh, or that's what it appeared to him. "What?" he said, being startled by a sudden sharp shove on his back. He turned around, only to be greeted to Uriel who was sporting a stupid grin; the fact he had bandages peeking out from his armour didn't escape the demon’s attention, however.

  "You honestly thought I wouldn't be here?" Uriel teased, giving Sebastian another knock across his back. The demon was starting to feel uncomfortable due to angel's behaviour.

  "Well, I do notice those bandages on you," he retorted. Uriel raised an eyebrow before laughing; he could tell Sebastian was more worried than he let on.

  "I'll be fine, even if I have to act more as a figurehead than a fighter." Sebastian let out a relieved sigh, although he would prefer having the angel as a battling companion. He could not deny Uriel's prowess in battle, the two were evenly matched if they ever faced off against each other.

  "Hate to interrupt but we have better things to attend to," Thardosean spoke up. While watching those two being friendly with each other was a pleasant sight, spending too much time would make their intentions obvious. Sebastian gave the King a bow, pleasantries would have to wait for afterwards.

  The leaders discussed the strategy briefly; it was a simple plan but would be far from easy to execute correctly. Their intended target would not just lay down and die, quite the opposite in fact, or at least it was what they expected. The true extent of his retaliation would not be known until they attacked; as such any pre-made plans would need to change swiftly to accommodate or risk high casualties. That
was also banking on the assumption of the Nightmares present at the spires were of known varieties, unknown ones could wreck morale and break apart the formation, creating vulnerabilities. A forward, armoured line would head the offence; they were intended to keep the lesser species such as the Acromantis or Banshee at bay while ranged units behind take down any stragglers and dealing with anything flying or equally ranged.

  Once the initial garrison had been pushed back, a force would separate to deal with the rogue chaos mage which consisted of Sebastian and Uriel, as well as their immediate strongest companions. Thardosean would continue to serve as an overseer to the combined army, directing any fresh orders that needed to be done. Both races had instructed their armies to respond to the Human King in their stead, a move which not the most popular but none the less accepted.

  Once the armies had lined themselves up, the end result was impressive. Rows of metallic armoured shined in the rising sun, the white-gold armour donned by the angels contrasted the dull shades of silver and black that the humans and demons wore. All were equally efficient as each other regardless of the aesthetics. The angels looked rather uncomfortable being lined up in pairs next to a demon, as the average new blood demon stood notably taller than the average angel; the difference was such that the demons could opt to use the angel as an armrest if they so desired.

  Just behind the main flank was a collection of larger old blood demons, with their extended reach they could assist the front line while providing a defence against any Nightmare that broke through or otherwise bypassed the line. Those near Kaiser were additionally uncomfortable; the fact that if he actively missed a hit the resulting misfire could be strong enough to kill them if it connected. Kaiser tried his best to reassure the angels, but the words were lost on them. There wasn't an angel on the Central Isles that didn't know of the demon's raw strength. He had felled a fair few angels in his time, as well as demons. It was mostly those related to Sebastian's father posse, when he had gone missing the most disgruntled of his followers turned against Sebastian. There had been speculation that Sebastian had killed his father in order to take the throne but the truth as to what happened has never been revealed; certain things were best to keep quiet, regardless of intentions a Kingslayer is not someone who is often kept alive.