by Jeremy Dwyer
Judith and Ovid each drank anew of the waters of the Ursegan Ocean from their vials. Zoe drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from her own vial. They followed Romana’s instructions and watched the anchors sway and the waves of water move, then traced them back toward what they thought was the source of the storm.
“That way. I believe,” Judith said, pointing in the direction she believed was the center. She wasn’t completely sure, however.
“More to the right. That way,” Ovid said, pointing in a slightly different direction.
“Way to the right. There,” Zoe said, pointing much further to the right than the two (2) Chroniclers.
A large wave of water slammed against the Persistent and knocked everyone backwards. The ship was traveling at one hundred twenty (120) feet of altitude and the wave was over two hundred (200) feet in height.
“Make a decision, now!” Emerond shouted as he stood up.
“While we still have a ship to steer!” Rayner said.
Romana considered what she had been told based on the directions in which the others had pointed and made a rapid geometric calculation, although rapid wasn’t the way her mathematical skills usually worked if she wanted accurate answers.
“That way!” Romana said, and she pointed in a direction significantly to the left of the direction from which the large wave came. The water was tempestuous there, and more waves were building up, but none as large as that last one.
“That’s not where the storm is! She won’t be there!” Rayner said.
“Can your eyes see through illusions? Don’t always trust what your eyes tell you,” Zoe said to Rayner.
“That’s where my calculations tell me,” Romana said.
“The glowing lines on the Spirit Sword point in that direction, also. The sword is true,” Joshua said.
“That’s our direction,” Emerond said.
The crew of the Persistent raised their anchors and steered in the direction that Romana had pointed.
~~~
The Hidden Paladins also saw the illusions created by the tiara channeling the light bending powers of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean. Furthermore, they also saw through those illusions by using the dark powers of the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean which they drank. By this they were able to identify the true location of Victoria without being distracted by her illusions.
The Hidden Paladins moved in quickly on their small ship, despite the rough waters. Their ship was small, though not hidden in the darkness. They, however, were. They threw up grappling hooks and boarded the Tidal Sovereign where they saw Victoria on deck. She did not see them, despite having the tiara to use the powers of light, as she was not actively looking in that direction. However, her light scouts did see the Hidden Paladins, as they had the powers to see into the darkness, being drinkers of the Lujladia Ocean water themselves, and they were looking in the right direction at the right time.
“Four (4) Hidden Paladins are here! I see them!” one of the light scouts said, pointing. Another light scout threw a dagger in their direction, but the dagger was destroyed by the Vague Blade that one of the Hidden Paladins wielded when he sliced it.
One of the Hidden Paladins thrust his Vague Blade into Victoria personally – directly into her abdomen – and she screamed and bled.
Another Hidden Paladin swung his Vague Blade at Victoria’s legs, and knocked her to the ground.
Victoria screamed and was more angry than afraid. The demon, Matatirot, protected her, despite the terrible wounds she just received.
Her light scouts ran in front of her and surrounded Victoria to protect her, as they could see where the Hidden Paladins were in the darkness.
Then, Victoria stood up and opened her eyes – her violet eyes. She could not see their eyes, but they could see hers, and were hypnotized.
“I command you, enemy forces hidden in darkness, to lower your weapons and reveal yourselves to me,” Victoria said.
At this, the four (4) Hidden Paladins each threw down their Vague Blades and eased their powers of darkness, thus becoming visible. They in their armor, and their weapons on the deck of the ship, could now be seen by the unaided eye.
“You are my enemies and have done harm to me. You could not kill me, as you are weak and I am protected by a greater power. However, you may yet be of use to me,” Victoria said.
The Hidden Paladins looked on, unable to resist the powers of this woman.
Victoria looked directly at the one on the far left and said: “Pick up your weapon.”
That Hidden Paladin did as instructed.
“Now, cut off the head of this one,” Victoria said, pointing to the one to his right.
The first Hidden Paladin decapitated the second Hidden Paladin, despite trying to resist the evil command. His will could not overcome the orders of this woman with the violet eyes. He felt deep disgust – not only at Victoria – but at himself. The two (2) other Hidden Paladins were revolted, but could do nothing, as they were also hypnotized by the woman with the violet eyes.
Victoria held out her hand to make a gesture that her guards understood. One of the light scouts handed her a cup and she held it under the decapitated head and filled it with the blood drained from that Hidden Paladin. Then, she drank the blood.
“I offer to thee my Master, this warrior’s blood that I drink. May it quench thy eternal thirst, while the enemies’ hearts do sink,” Victoria said, triumphantly.
The three (3) living Hidden Paladins were sickened to their souls at this sight, and powerless to even look away.
~~~
A moment later, three (3) blue fires appeared from the sky and then landed on the deck of the Tidal Sovereign.
Victoria immediately saw that it was the Torches of Majesty – they were not deceived by the illusions.
They looked directly at Victoria and she looked directly at them with her violet eyes. They were now under her hypnotic spell, like the Hidden Paladins next to whom they now stood.
“Your power of fire is nothing to me. I will watch you kill each other, and drink of your blood, sacrificing it to my master. You are nothing. You serve the suns, who are lesser beings. The water is greater, and I serve the master of the water, who will give me the power to crush all of you,” Victoria said.
~~~
The Persistent wandered through the maze of light – illusions of ships with illusions of Victoria standing upon them. The Spirit Sword helped them to find the right direction. They saw the blue light in the sky descend upon one of the ships.
“The Torches of Majesty, as they called themselves. They landed upon the true ship,” Romana said.
“How do you know it’s true?” Brant asked.
“Illusions aren’t solid! You can’t land on them,” Zoe said.
“Right. What was I thinking?” Brant said.
“That’s our target,” Emerond said, pointing.
The crew of the Persistent moved the ship in the direction indicated.
~~~
On board the Tidal Sovereign, Victoria delighted in the evil she now planned.
“I now have at my command the Hidden Paladins. You are the protectors of the innocent, yet you kill each other at my command. I also have before me the Torches of Majesty, as you call yourselves. You uphold the laws of the sky kingdom. Each of you is filth and will be destroyed to serve my master. Yet, before I have the pleasure of watching you slaughter each other according to my instructions, I want to give you the displeasure of watching a massacre that you cannot stop. I want you to see it clearly enough,” Victoria said.
She held out her arms again and the blue diamonds in the tiara, which were still powerful, glowed brightly. The illusions around them were dispelled by her own design and she disturbed the waters even more than they already were. Enormous waves of water – over two thousand (2000) feet in height – rose up and struck at the distant shores.
Victoria’s light scouts looked into the distance and saw the deaths grow in number greater t
han the first wave of attacks she launched before the illusions.
“Over eight hundred thirty thousand (830000) have been dragged out to sea and drowned from the lands around us! The tempest is even more powerful now,” one light scout said.
“Do you see now what power that I have? Do you see now that filth such as you cannot overcome me, as my master is greater than any of you?” Victoria asked them.
The Hidden Paladins and the Torches of Majesty stood motionless, still under her hypnosis by the power of the violet eyes.
~~~
The high waves of water raced out from around the Tidal Sovereign in all directions. However, the illusions were gone.
“I can see her now. Just one of her,” Emerond said.
“Can you see that big wave? Please tell me you can see that,” Rayner said.
The crew maneuvered the Persistent because their view was no longer confused by illusions. However, the natural distortions of the water were with them, so their navigation was imperfect, and the water struck part of the ship.
Daven sang his music again. The natural visual distortions dissipated for a moment ahead of them, giving a clear view of the Tidal Sovereign’s true location.
“I have a clear sight. There she is,” Zoe said, pointing.
“Fast. That way,” Emerond said, and the crew moved the Persistent in that direction.
The Persistent approached the Tidal Sovereign and they saw that Victoria was standing on the deck of the ship with the Torches of Majesty and three (3) armor-clad warriors standing around them. There was one (1) decapitated warrior lying on the deck of the ship.
“Who are those warriors?” Rayner asked.
“Look! She killed one!” Emerond said.
“Hidden Paladins. Few have ever seen them out of the cloak of darkness,” Joshua said.
“They looked into Victoria’s eyes. Do not look into her eyes!” Judith said.
“I don’t need to look!” Zoe said and fired off an arrow to strike Victoria. It hit her in the neck and she screamed.
In return, Victoria’s crew pointed their cannons at the Persistent and began firing, forcing the Persistent to maneuver to avoid the shots.
“Better plan, anyone?” Emerond asked.
~~~
From the spirit world, Lavakara was still watching. He saw no need to interfere until this point. Victoria was clearly getting the upper hand. He had no sympathies for the Hidden Paladins or the Torches of Majesty. Rather, he did not care to see Victoria survive, and she was now more powerful with these others under her control. He considered the possibilities and came to one conclusion: he would have to leap from the Persistent onto Victoria’s ship and momentarily incapacitate her to break the hypnosis.
Lavakara moved quickly and jumped – through the spirit world – onto the Tidal Sovereign. There, he moved behind Victoria, momentarily returning from the spirit world to the material world. He then sliced the backs of her legs with a dagger as quickly as he could and returned to the spirit world, and returned to the Persistent. He did this without being noticed by anyone on board the Persistent, however.
Upon feeling the dagger strikes, Victoria screamed and fell on her back and lost her concentration. The hypnosis brought on by the violet eyes was ended and the Torches of Majesty were the quickest and first to act.
Blazer Luken called forth the powers of the ocean waters and turned them to fire and burned Victoria. Blazer Endrit and Blazer Darakizar did the same, and Victoria was now on fire.
The demon, Matatirot, was compelled to use his own power to extinguish the flames and protect Victoria. To all who looked on, it seemed as if the fire died without cause.
The Hidden Paladins took up their Vague Blades and each one struck Victoria – in the chest and in each arm. They had not yet returned to the darkness, so they could still be easily seen.
Victoria was now furious and used the tiara to call up a wave of water against all of them, even though this meant striking her own ship.
The Hidden Paladins were knocked from the deck of the Tidal Sovereign and into the Lujladia Ocean below. They looked for their own ship, but it was already destroyed by the tempest.
The Torches of Majesty were also knocked from the ship by the sudden wave of water, and fell into the ocean below. They then raised themselves up above the water by their power to turn water into fire, and they turned their wrath in a new direction.
Blazer Luken looked at the Hidden Paladins and said: “We know that you struck at the Temple with your blades. You have made enemies of the Sky’s Nine (9) Kings. Soon, the Ahitan woman will be destroyed and your kind with her.”
The three of them – Blazer Luken, Blazer Darakizar and Blazer Endrit – sent flames at the Hidden Paladins, burning them to death, and their corpses sank into the sea.
At this, the Torches of Majesty used their powers of fire to soar into the sky and leave the area.
~~~
Victoria had been heavily wounded and called out, saying: “Master, take me from this place.”
Matatirot heard her call and opened up a portal, sending the Tidal Sovereign through it.
After this, the tempest soon ended.
~~~
All on board the Persistent saw this, and were stunned at the loss of the Hidden Paladins and the enmity between them and the Torches of Majesty.
Judith and Ovid recorded all of the events of this battle in their books.
Judith was very distressed by the turn of events – losing Hidden Paladins was painful, as they were the selfless protectors of the innocent. She knew of them and their many purported victories, though she had rarely seen them. Seeing them soundly defeated was disheartening.
“What is the matter with those flaming freaks? They couldn’t burn her one last time – no, they had to pick a fight with the paladins? Whose side are they on?” Brant asked, furious.
“Apparently, they’re on their own side,” Emerond said.
“They’re no allies. Don’t trust them, ever,” Romana said.
“And don’t look in Victoria’s eyes! Ever! Remember that. Her eyes can put you into a trance. That’s what happened here. She could even turn us against each other,” Judith said.
“How do we prevent that?” Emerond asked.
“Hit her from behind. Or just look away,” Joshua said.
“Or hit her from a distance,” Zoe said.
“I can throw this really far. Once,” Brant said, making a motion with the sword he carried.
“If that works, I can get you a replacement,” Joshua said.
“I just might take you up on that offer,” Brant said.
“Everyone keeps hitting her. Us. The Paladins. The Torches. Yet, she won’t die. Are we just wasting our time?” Emerond asked.
“It’s going to be difficult and take many wounds,” Romana said.
“We have to defeat her no matter the difficulty!” Joshua said.
“Yes. We have to defeat her. But hitting her isn’t the same as defeating her. How many wounds does she have? She’s been cut and burned how many times? If I thought a thousand (1000) times would work, I’d gladly do it two thousand (2000), just to be sure. How do we know that this is even working at all?” Emerond asked.
“She’s protected by a demon. He keeps her heart beating even when our attacks should make it stop,” Romana said.
“When will the protection end?” Emerond asked.
“When the proper time arrives,” Romana said.
“Proper time? What is that? It doesn’t sound like it’s another fifty (50) hits with swords and arrows and whatever else we can use. I want to put all our energy into what works, and none into what doesn’t,” Emerond said.
“That’s fair enough. But we can’t measure what’s left of her, only what we’ve done,” Zoe said.
“Maybe time is the answer,” Daven said.
“Please explain,” Romana said.
“Yes, please do,” Emerond said.
“When she arrives, the
tempest begins, or does soon after. When she takes enough damage, she leaves, and the tempest ends. The time in between is the tempest. We need to make that time as short as possible, by moving as quickly as possible,” Daven said.
“The Spirit Sword tells us where she is going, so we don’t lose time searching,” Joshua said.
“That’s not good enough – we still have to travel. We need to be there instantly,” Daven said.
“How? We’d have to be on her ship with her,” Emerond said.
“Yeah. I’d like to take a ride on her boat and smash her face in for the whole trip,” Brant said.
“The ship is moved by a demon,” Romana said.
“Then let’s break the ship!” Rayner said.
“I like that you’re being creative, but this line of thinking isn’t going to work. The demon isn’t going to overlook the need to protect her ship as well as her,” Romana said.
“I’m running out of ideas. We’ve got to try something,” Emerond said.
“The lines on the Spirit Sword are indicating that she is going south,” Joshua said.
“Set your course due south,” Emerond said.
The crew of the Persistent steered the ship toward the south.
“What are you planning when we get there?” Romana asked.
“We have to hit her with everything we’ve got!” Brant said.
“Hit her, of course. Just be sure to hit her thoughtfully,” Emerond said.
“All I can think about is hitting her, and breaking her in half,” Brant said. He made a snapping motion with the sword and it actually took on a curve, from back to front.
“I’m glad you’re on our side,” Rayner said, looking at what the strong man did with the sword.
“That’s why I love you,” Zoe said, and she kissed Brant on the lips.
Judith and Ovid both recorded the bent sword and the kiss in their books, as well.
“You have to write everything in your book?” Zoe asked.
“Yes. Everything I see,” Judith said.
