The sceptre, learning, physic, must
All follow this and come to dust.
All lovers young, all lovers must
Consign to thee and come to dust
-Lyrics to 'Cymbaline' performed by Loreena McKennitt

Elements of Great Design Part 23

Wufei made his way back to the ring of sleeping bodies slowly, enjoying every step that he was able to take with his own two feet. Nothing about his being back in his natural body was taken for granted, right down to the feeling of the jagged wall of stone and rough dirt that he would occasionally run his hand over.

And when he was back in his lover's presence, his small grin grew and he lowered himself to stretch out beside Fraise.

Lightly tracing the edge of his fingertips along her jawbone, he took in the electricity between their skin that he had ached to feel again. With a deep sigh of contentment as he pulled her close, he rested the side of her head against his shoulder, he whispered, "I love you, Anna. Sleep well, my heart."

Pressing a kiss against her chilled lips, he lowered his head and closed his onyx eyes. As he entered the oblivion of a beautiful dream, he found a familiar, smiling redhead waiting to hold and speak to him.

Deep in the dark reaches of the cave, well beyond the team, a pair of glowing yellow eyes watched the whole scene. Hissing lowly, the creature spying on the Alliance awaited its Mistress's orders when she had seen all that he had to show her.

*   *   *   *   *   *

Mariemaia shook as she stared into the brilliant display of an image that hovered and waved as though under water before her. Focused on the two star-crossed lovers that she had damned, her whole body quaked with fright and disbelief.

This was not possible... the spell that had been cast was unbreakable. And yet, here the Earth Keeper was back in his true form while his beloved remained in the world with him. Perhaps she was unresponsive, but there was still enough of a gap for there to be a possibility of returning that Monk to his influential shape.

In time, there might be a way for the Elementals to find a way to restore themselves to their full power... back to both being able to stand against the child that had cursed not only them but the entire world....

...and they would fight with everything that they had in them to see that Mariemaia would not be the victor a second time.

Pacing the floor of her elaborate bedroom in swift and anxious steps, the child reached up to cover her mouth as she ran over and over the scenario of what had come about in Eblan. Her whole arrival to the desolate location was only to have it serve as a place where she could train with her uncle... to exercise her powers in peace.

Only when she opened the gates to Hell to bring the start of a few demons into Gaia, Dekim had taken the situation into his control by tricking his niece...

~   ~   ~   ~   ~   ~

(Flashback)

"Now, if anyone were to know of what you were capable of, they would want you wiped off the face of this world," Barton warned.

Holding a hand out to the ogres and other beasts that had bowed lowly before their Mistress as they all stood hiding atop the wall protecting the land of the Monks, he smirked, "But look at the army that you could mount to your defense, girl. Should anyone be against you, what would your orders be on how they should handle anyone who rises against you?"

It was all a game... nothing that would actually come about. Dizzy as she was over the power that she wielded, it was all supposed to be so innocent...

Smiling, Mariemaia replied in what she thought was good humor, "Kill them all."

(End Flashback)

~   ~   ~   ~   ~   ~

Her eyes watering over at the horrific memory, the newly ruling Khushrenada sniffled and shook her head. The army that she had brought into Gaia mounted up on her words, charging into Eblan before she could stop them.

And when the people living there had fallen under attack, they were witnesses to her dark magic... unfortunate souls in the wrong place at the wrong time. Dekim had insisted that no survivors could remain lest they alert other lands so that they could kill her before she had the chance to stir Abaddon's minions again.

It all happened so fast, every decision her uncle's along the way... except when it came to the Keepers and how they were handled. That Mariemaia had control over, made sure to have control over. There would not be another life lost because of her foolishness. And at the same time of keeping the Earth Keeper alive, so did she prevent any chance that he might be able to be of potential harm to her or Dekim...

Oh, her uncle had never let the dark sorceress hear the end of the decision for a long time. And just when she finally convinced him to hold his tongue over the matter, the proof that his concerns were not unfounded was staring right at her.

Were that not a challenge enough, the Fire and Earth Keeper had not only found a way through her magic, but they had united with Water and Air as well. All that they needed was a guide to the Elemental Stones that she had secured and they would be able to turn that immeasurable energy on her.

There would have to be more killing... the very last thing that Mariemaia wanted to see happen. But her life had become taking lives to spare her own. It would only be a matter of time before the masses might come and claim her. And she could not blame a single one for wanting that as she was beginning to grow more and more frightened of herself.

From that terrible day in Eblan and every day since, the girl's world had fallen into ruin and chaos, leaving her now completely uncertain how to reverse everything that she had done. If she feared herself, she was terrified of her Uncle Barton.

The old man had become drunk... lustful for power. And if she were to work against what he had destined as their rule over Gaia, he would most definitely turn on her. She had to remain strong in his eyes as she had to act when the land of the Monks had been laid to dust and ash.

Now that the ball had stared to roll, there was no way of veering it from its course. All that could be done was everything and anything that would guarantee self preservation. It was Mariemaia or all those living in Gaia from here on out.

Still... she hated this.

Her hands folding before her face, Mariemaia whispered brokenly, "Creator, I do not want this... I do not want this.... IdonotwantthisIdonotwantthisIdonotwantthis." But there was no turning back now. She knew that.

No longer could she allow herself to feel remorse or warmth. The choices she had made and the horrendous acts that she was responsible for had forever sealed her damnation. Any prayers that she had for the Creator would go unanswered as even He would never be able to love her after all of her crimes.

Wiping a stray tear that had begun to roll down her face, Khushrenada paused before the warped image of the warriors coming for her. They had to be stopped before Dekim learned of them... before he worked against her for standing up against his logic.

"Kill them swiftly," Mariemaia ordered, a slight whimper hitching at the end of the demand. "Do not allow them to leave that cave. From dust they came, to dust they must all return."

*   *   *   *   *   *

As lost as Heero was to his thoughts over how to come clean to Duo with his feelings for the Black Mage, the Fighter's hairs on his arms still stood on end when he suddenly felt as though he was not alone. Standing upright sharply, his widened cobalt eyes at first scanned the pitch of the rainy night when another startling sensation came over him...

...that unwanted presence was not outside of the cave... it was inside.

His hand automatically lowering to the satchel at his hip, Yuy squeezed the orb within to call on his thick armor. Gripping the hilt of his sword, Yuy removed the blade in a swift pull that caused its metal to ring over the sound of the rain that had only picked up since the start of his watch. Cobalt eyes narrowing, he held his weapon in both hands and silently crept back to the rest of his team.

The silence from deep within the cave in light of the clear and present danger was more than unsettling to the soldier. Either his friends were deep in their sleep and unable to defend themselves or they had already fallen under attack by whatever had snuck up on them. Whichever the situation might be, neither was exactly reassuring. With each step he took, all that Heero could hear was his quickly rising pulse.

About the only reassurance that the Fighter had was seeing the glow of the fire that had been left burning. Moving for that light as a moth would take to a flame, he swallowed roughly and readied himself for whatever was waiting ahead.

At the sight of Duo curled up in his bedroll and sleeping peacefully as the first of the Alliance in view, relief washed over Yuy and he breathed a small sigh from the air that had frozen in his lungs. From where the boy stood, he was able to make a quick assessment that the Keepers seemed to also be well. Curled up with their lovers at opposite ends of the fire pit, there was no sign of distress on their restful faces.

But it was upon raising his gaze from them, Heero found a pair of glowing, yellow eyes from the darkness just beyond them. Another floating light contained within a hand-held lantern just beneath that dead and haunting stare lit the brown cloak that was wrapped around the short being. A black, snake-like tongue darted out from between two long lips and reached up to lick a smooth, green cheek.

His eyes growing with a shark gasp as his vision adjusted to the strange creature that was coming more and more into view, Heero's skin chilled at its paling. Though the round-headed monster only stood at about the Fighter's waist, its deadly intent was made known through the glisten of a long and curved blade in its other green hand.

Coming out of his shock at the sight of that knife, Yuy had the rage that he needed to ready himself to stop the threat. "Get up!" he shouted to the others without taking his glare from the small beast that was now slowly creeping forward. "We're not alone!"

The first to stir, screeching neighs rose from the horses as they reared up on their hind hooves at the sight of the demon. Turning, they charged out to the mouth of the cave for a hasty escape into the cold rain. Duo, Trowa, Quatre and Wufei shot upright and wide-eyed as they got their bearings quickly enough to notice their visitor.

Only eyes growing all the more in panic, Chang breathed, "A Tonberry." Growling deeply, he warned in a yell for his comrades, "Do not charge it. Those things are incredibly fast when engaged and even so much as a nick from that Chef's Knife will kill instantly!" [1]

Rushing to move to his feet, he was pushed back by the sudden blow of energy that shot from the green creature's lantern. Knocked from his feet, the Earth keeper was pushed back against the wall behind him in a violent blow that stunned him.

Their hands raising to send off their powers when they were given just enough time to stand, Trowa and Quatre cried at the same force that sent them sailing back until they collided with the rocks waiting to greet them. Chirping and growling in a series of frightening sounds, the Tonberry managed to dodge the wave of spear-like darkness that the son of Shinigami had sent off.

Slowly lifting the lantern to swing it back and forth, the small creature unleashed another powerful blast of shimmering purple smoke that claimed Duo with Heero right behind when the soldier attempted to make a run for the beast.

A ghost of a chuckle broke from the monster as it continued to creep into the scene. Then, reaching the bedroll where Anna lay, the Tonberry raised its knife overhead.

Groaning as he regained his focus from a few feet away, Wufei pushed himself up just in time to see the start of the downward stab aimed for his lover's throat. "NO!" he screamed. Eyes glaring fiercely, he slammed his fisted right hand against the ground beneath him to begin a massive quake that rocked the whole of the cavern.

Knocked off balance from the violent shaking, the Tonberry shrieked while losing its hold on the Chef's Knife. From where Chang had struck the earth, a crack ripped the ground into two parts and screamed for his target. Too short-legged to move fast, the cloaked monster bellowed in its animalistic sounds as it was swallowed whole by the gaping 'floor'.

When Anna's body began to fall as well, a series of thick vines materialized from the stone ceiling of the cave to reach down and wrap around her in a protective hold. As hand-live twines lifted her safely above the crevice, the Monk ended the quake. Coming to their feet again, his 'brothers' moaned and rubbed their heads while they tried to get their bearings again.

"Nasty things," Wufei mumbled in a sigh. Resting a hand against the tip of the split ground, he sealed up the two halves, forever burying the Tonberry. "Back to Abaddon's realm where you belong, demon."

Sheathing his wide sword, Heero frowned deeply, "Abaddon? You mean that creature is not something normally of this world? I have heard stories of all kinds of frightening monsters that dwell in caves and the like."

Trowa brushed off his green tunic as he replied, "Tonberries are Gaia dwellers, but they are also believed to be directly tied to the Dark Lord... messengers from Hell who do their master's bidding." Muttering a curse under his breath when he looked to where their steeds had been gathered, the Dragoon announced, "I'll go wrangle the horses back." That said, he literally vanished into the thin air that gusted from the cavern.

He paused to blink widely when Chang bent on one knee over the place where the green beast had fallen. Only that small bit of ground shook, violently. From the shifting, breaking sand and dirt emerged the long, curved Chef's Knife. "And these are nearly impossible to come by," the Monk smirked. Carefully lifting the deadly weapon by its hilt, he turned towards Duo to ask, "Can you sheathe this?"

Grinning, the braided Mage nodded firmly and raised an extended finger, pointing it at the blade. A trail of black smoke curled forth, wrapping around the sharp blade to create a solid sheath of glistening black material. "There," Maxwell announced with a pleased smirk. "Nothing is going to break through that."

More than happy with the results of his friend's efforts, Chang smirked back and gave a firm nod as he righted himself. "I'll make sure to keep that safe for when you can use it," Quatre offered, nearing his fellow Keeper. "It will only be a matter if time before the curse is broken, after all," the White Mage added, a reassuring smile on his face.

"I appreciate that," Wufei chuckled deeply, handing the knife over.

The moment his hands were free, Wufei looked up to the hammock of vine that comfortably held Anna over their heads. Releasing a deep sigh of relief he opened his arms. Lowering the redhead into his care, the vines pulled back in a blink to disappear in the ceiling of rock from which they had appeared.

Biting his lip as he gazed down on Fraise's content face, Chang sighed, "Anna will always be at risk whenever I have my true form. That is going to make it... difficult on me, to say the least. But then, I know how badly she wants me to be whole again." Shaking his head, he frowned, "Hopefully we can find a permanent solution to Mariemaia's spell."

"We will," Heero vowed in all certainty. The corner of his lip curling up, he warned, "And I would not even bother mentioning to our 'little sister' that she should never try to restore you this way again just so that she may guarantee her own safety. She is extremely stubborn when it comes to you." Snickering, the Monk nodded as he met the Fighter's gaze.

Barton stepped back into the camp with the team's horses, leading them by their reins in either of his hands as he smiled, "That was not nearly as difficult as I worried it might be since they did not run off very far." The first to step up and greet the steeds, Quatre drew the dripping water from their skin and gently patted SandRock's muzzle. As though in a sheepish apology, the tanned animal nudged his rider's side.

Keeping his cobalt eyes on the black sheath of the blade that Winner secured in a saddle pack, Yuy murmured, "For such a plain looking weapon, it is unnerving to know that so much as a cut caused from it can kill."

With a dark grunt, Wufei glared at the spot before his feet. "I have seen many a Tonberry use those very knives to skin their victims before their bodies had time to turn cold. They steal everything that they can carry on them. Death alone is not enough for them, but the complete mutilation of the humans and creatures that they destroy." Shuddering, he looked to the Dragoon and commented, "I fear that the rumors that they are Abaddon's messengers actually hold a great deal of truth."

His jaw falling open, Barton's face paled. When he could not speak, it was Quatre to face the Monk as he stammered, "W-what makes you say that, Wufei?"

Gingerly lowering his partner back onto their bedroll, Chang replied, "Anna and I have killed many of those monsters since Eblan's fall... only I could not actually tell her that my heightened sense of smell picked up on the stench of ogre and behemoths like the ones that Mariemaia brought into Gaia." Stunned, his friends froze stiffly with wide eyes.

Duo breathed, "D-dear Creator. We were worried about being watched. That only confirms that she could be gathering information on us... and she knows that there has been a breech through her spell." The Earth Keeper nodded gravely. "There are going to be others, then. Who knows how much of our conversation that Tonberry picked up before he was discovered and killed?"

A memory rushing through him, Heero gasped, "We mentioned looking for the Elder Mage... Howard. If that was shared with Mariemaia, he could very well be in as much danger as we are." That sent another shockwave of panic through the team, their backs straightening so tensely that they trembled.

"But we do not know the first thing about how to find him," Trowa managed, shaking his head. "The few people that we thought that we might be able to trust to ask for information knew nothing, not even a direction to who might be able to help us. If all of this concern over whether or not the sorceress knows of our next step, she could have him discovered and taken out of this world before we can reach him."

Violet eyes growing with a sudden thought, Duo whispered, "Wait a minute.... we might have something to show us the way." Running back to the fire ring before his friends' surprised gazes, he threw open the flap of the case that came from the Chemist. Finding one of the random items within, he removed it in a tight fist. Carefully removing the tie that sealed the scroll, he freed a loose paper.

Picking up the note, the Black Mage leaned towards the flames for its light to read aloud, "Whispers have reached me that you seek Howard the Elder. My uncle travels widely and quickly. However, this map will show you his every step. Hilde." The others came up from behind to stare down at the unraveling paper that had browned and tattered at its edges from age.

Etched on the parchment in black ink was a detailed image of Gaia and all of its wonders. Within that map, just northwest of Gysahi, in the fields where they were stationed, a brilliant little flicker of white light sparkled. And beyond the picture of the lake a short distance away rose a series of tall rock formations upon which a tiny spec of gold light twinkled.

Trowa smiled in awe, "Epyon Ridge. If we sleep light and move quickly, we can be there in three days' time."

*   *   *   *   *   *

At the first sign of daylight, Wufei sighed deeply at how the cave brightened from the natural aurora. His time in his body had come to an end... his time of holding Anna had come to an end.

Shifting himself to unhook his arms around his lover's waist, the Monk reached a free hand out to hold it above the sand at his other side.

From the ground rose a leafy vine bearing tiny, purple Forget-Me-Nots that speckled its length. Taking hold of the strand, he faced the Fire Keeper once more to tie the bracelet securely onto her wrist, spelling the vines closed to remain unbreakable and forever preserved along with the buds that highlighted it.

"I will make another with a more fitting flower when this spell is finally broken," he whispered.

Gently running his fingers along Fraise's cheek, he leaned in and pressed their lips together for one more soft kiss. "I love you, Firefly," he smiled sadly as he pulled back. "Thank you... for everything." Clearing his throat, his fought off the tears that had begun to build in his eyes. Reluctant as he was to leave his fiancée's side, he knew the mission that lay ahead in finding Howard and pushed himself up to his feet.

The rest of the Alliance was already up and surrounding their 'brother' to offer one-armed embraces and pats to his back. Heero was the last to step up and was pulled close so that Chang could murmur by his ear, "Do not forget what we discussed." Swallowing roughly, the Fighter nodded and stepped back. Contented at that, the Monk smirked to his braided teammate, "Alright. I'm ready, if you would be so kind as to return Anna's soul to her."

"My pleasure," Duo grinned as he opened his right hand with its palm up to reveal the brilliant, star-like charge that he had held fast to. Moving to the redhead's body, he lowered himself to a knee and stretched the humming orb towards it. A bright chirp filled the air just before the soul shot forth to illuminate its vessel.

Sighing deeply, Anna winced in her return to the world. Her blue eyes blinking open and widening with a gasp once she recognized her surroundings, the thief bolted upright to scan the lot gathered around her.

At finding her soul mate sitting at her side in his wolf form, she relaxed. To her team, she smiled brightly, "Good morning, loves," she smiled widely. A small whimper of relief breaking from the animal, he leaned in to lick her cheek and press himself up against her. Laughing along with her 'brothers,' the Fire Keeper wrapped her arms around his thick neck and reassured, "I am fine Wufei. It felt just like going to sleep."

Only then spotting the flower bracelet on her wrist, she gasped sharply and pulled back to appraise it with her enlarged eyes. "It... it worked?" she breathed.

"Yea," Duo all but whispered, a small grin on his face. "It worked." His own breath hitched in his throat when he was all of a sudden wrapped around in a fierce embrace. Stunned for only a moment, the braided gifted sighed and closed his violet eyes and held the thief every bit as tightly.

Pressing a kiss against his cheek, Anna managed through her tears a soft but profoundly sincere, "Thank you... thank you so much, brother." Unable to trust his voice after he heard the endearment, Maxwell swallowed roughly and nodded against the side of her face.

A small giggle escaping her as she stepped back to dry her eyes, the Fire Keeper let go of a deep sigh. Folding her arms, she smirked to the faces around her, "So, did you boys have fun while I was away from the world?"

TBC...

 

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