Chapter 6 - The Empress
Chapter 6
Location: Everonth Mountain Excavation Site
Elcypse neared the top of the summit which was now obscuring his vision from the frequent dust that kept blowing into his large and beady rat eyes. He had lost sight of Freya a while ago who had climbed up ahead, undisrupted from the dust that was blowing all around the rocky cliff face.
Elcypse sighed as he dangled from the shear cliff face trying to not look down at about a hundred foot fall below him to the jagged rocks of the mountain. He could not believe that he had gone along with Freya's suggestion to climb this rock face, without any climbing equipment! One wrong move and Elcypse would certainly plummet to a nasty death.
The path up the mountain would have been a lot more simple if the road was intact however half way up the mountain path, they had discovered a huge crack in the earth which spread out along the mountain path. This crack was way too precise to be caused by a natural anomaly and there was nothing in geographical world which could have caused that so what had done?
Finally putting his hands up onto the summit, Elcypse let out a large sigh of relief using his claws to climb his dust body up onto the ledge, he then saw what looked like other pieces from a machine, like the one he had seen when climbing the mountain path however this one was massive, hundreds of meters across and spread out in pieces along the mountainside. One piece was letting out a faint, ominous blow glow that appeared to ripple and contract, almost like a human heart.
Elcypse pushed his body up onto the ledge while exclaiming loudly, that climb had been long and difficult for him but Freya had seemed to climb it with ease.
"You certainly took longer than expected" said Freya, her eyes narrowing on Elcypse's furry body that was still panting. Elcypse looked up and straight into Freya's dark, uncaring eyes. What was happening to her!?
"I am..." he said, getting up and pausing for breath. "Sorry...It was a... hard climb" he wheezed just glad that it was over. "So...where is... this kid...the one from your vision... that you wanted... to help."
Freya got up and moved coldly over to the ship remains, she peered at the blue glowing sphere which created the ominous glow from the ruins and picked it up. The sphere was no bigger than a basketball but it glowed brilliant blue which seemed to pulsate lightly and in the most beautiful pattern.
Freya turned around and smiled. "I lied"
Elcypse felt his world shatter at her words, he stared at her cold face, desperately searching for her to say that she was joking but he could find none. He felt shocked and in his disbelief he said. "You... WHAT!?"
"There was no child from my vision... my soul purpose of coming here was to find this..." she held up the sphere to Elcypse who looked at her darkly. "Of course I could not tell you what I planned to do with this... and I won't now but this is the Pegasus Drive Core from the Valkyrie... this ship. Thanks you... I have succeed where Kestra failed."
Elcypse looked over at Freya shocked. "Freya... what are you talking about?"
"I'm not Freya..." smiled Freya which made Elcypse look back in fear. "I am Ada..."
Elcypse looked back, he suddenly felt strange, like his head exploded, a powerful rush within his head which caused him to drop to his knees. Freya watched carefully and with intrigue at what was going on.
Elcypse felt his head burst with new information, just bits and pieces, he saw a smattering of images, he saw the Valkyrie reformed and flying through space with an Echidna, a now extinct race commanding it.
He remembered...
He opened his eyes and flipped out a small tube of metal the ejected from his arm, as he grabbed it, it extended into a lavishly beautiful spear. Elcypse remembered now... his forgotten memories and memories of his predecessor.
"Ada... Summoner of Silmeria" he said, almost surprising himself when he realised that he recognised her coldness. Ada was a human Asgardian spirit that was banished from the plane of Asgard due to her experiments. She caused thousands of years of strife on the planet Silmeria and its local Dragoona population and was their ruler poisoning the planet with her experiments and forcing the inhabitants to build her great palaces. That was until, a lowly rat that had mutated because of the radiation to become a super-genius had found a way to contain her powerful magic by binding her within a "Soul-sphere", a sphere that was made out of the most powerful alloys around that created a special field that contained her for almost 7,000 years until she broke free again, seeking to change the flow of history in the galaxy and was believed destroyed when a clone of the original Elcypse helped the Terran Starship Valkyrie to defeat her. How had she broken through her confinement again and why did Elcypse remember events from 200 years ago?
Ada spent no time in drawing a blade made from pure light energy and smiling widely at Elcypse. "Your grandfather and father were strong but you are not the same... now this is your futures end!"
Elcypse took up a defensive stance that he did not even remember, he could not even remember why there was a weapon in his body. This frightened him but he had to be strong... for Freya. This was going to be the fight of his life.
Location: Adamanta Village â€" 30 Miles West of Everonth
Diamond and Lance had been in Adamanta for only a few hours but had said nothing to each other. Both were still feeling uncomfortable about kiss that had happened the night before and Lance just sat quiet while Diamond tried to make arrangements for transport back to Chentrilla.
Adamanta was a simple farming community that lived on the outskirts of the Viridian forest which was their most abundant resource. The people of the village had limited contact with the outside world and were almost completely self-sufficient, only with a population of less than a hundred all farming and living a simple existence away from the industry of the cities.
Diamond sighed and looked over at the person who ran the only hotel and shop in the entire of the village. He was a curious little badger that smiled up at Diamond from his small stature. He was not tall and both Diamond and Lance towered over him which made him feel slightly intimidated.
"I am sorry sir but there are no cars that come up this way" he said with a country accent.
"I have not seen one in these parts for about twenty years, we have no use for them."
Diamond kept his cool and let out a frown at the badger who was peering at him through his large white spectacles. He was an older looking badger for sure which made Diamond take his time.
"Look..." said Diamond feeling his temperature rising as Lance was examining the posters on the wall. "We need to get to Chentrilla quickly... we are working for Phoenix Grace..."
The badger stared at him blankly and it was almost as if he was repeating the same thing over.
"I'm sorry..." he started before he was interrupted.
"You want transport?" said another voice that had just come from the door. Diamond and Lance both turned to watch a large white tiger walk in with his fire-like eyes glaring at both
Diamond and Lance. Diamond immediately felt intimidated by the tigers powerful presence leering over him.
The tiger was several inches taller than Diamond and was all white except for black stripes down his back and on his head. He had beautiful white hair that complimented his pure colour however his tail had large patches of orange on it which made it look more interesting then your generic white tiger. He was wearing blue denim jeans and a shirt that was open to reveal his white fur chest along with a strange looking cowboy hate. Diamond could not help but let out a short internal laugh but did not show it to the tiger and kept his face blank still feeling a little intimidating.
"Well..." said the tiger looking down at the two. "A horse... and a wolf eh.... Hmm...." He stated pondering. "Unusual mix to see you this far out?"
"And who might you be?" asked Diamond who walked straight up to the tiger as if to challenge him. Lance stepped back slightly, if there was going to be a fight, he did not want to be in it.
"Friends call me Argus" said the tiger looking down at Diamond and feeling quite annoyed by his challenging demeanour. "I take it, you're somebody special or you would not be standing there like that."
"Diamond Dust, Lead Cryptologist for Phoenix Grace Corporation" said Diamond, obviously getting a thrill from saying his title. Argus just looked down at him and let out a terrible yawn, he smiled and then looked back at Diamond.
"Oh sorry" he smiled sarcastically. "I have had a busy day". He then looked back to Lance who was pretending not to look back at him. He wanted to hide behind his dirty lab-coat and pretend that he was not there.
"Eh..." said Lance.
"Lance Amaro" Diamond cut in, obviously sensing that Lance was feeling a little uncomfortable. Lance shot an annoyed look at Diamond who just scoffed at him.
"Oh... I see... well" said Argus scratching the back of his head. "You were looking for transport back home?"
"Yes"
"No"
Diamond peered over to Lance who had just said "No" to Argus. He raised him hand to him, Lance was quickly annoying him again with his scared attitude. "Lance, be silent!" he barked at him and then turned back to Argus's inquisitive face.
"Ignore my co-worker here, he is a little bit nervous sometimes" apologised Diamond which made Lance speak up.
"Di... I'm not...!"
"Lance...SILENCE!" said Diamond, raising his voice which made everyone in the room stare at him with eerie silence. Lance just sat down and crossed his arms.
Why was Diamond always so mean to him and pushing away his friendship?
"Yes... we are" said Diamond looking up at Argus finally. Argus thought about what he had just seen and looked deep into Diamond's eyes wondering why he had became so annoyed when somebody challenged his authority.
He did not get an answer.
"Very well" said Argus finally, with his hands on his masculine hips. "Meet me up the road in ten minutes, I will take you there in my car" he said.
Diamond looked relived. Finally... today somebody was able to help him.
Location: Everonth Mountain Excavation Site
Elcypse charged with all the rage that had gathered inside him over the duration of the fight. He had been very quick to dodge Freya/Ada's very powerful shockwaves of purple magic that she casted whenever he drew close to her.
He was more raged with the fact that she was simply manipulating the body of his best friend of years and was using her as a puppet. Ada was obviously a very powerful and capable woman if she had fooled him so completely however when Elcypse thought back he realised that all the changes in Freya's behave could have been explained by this.
Elcypse brought his staff down onto Ada's head in an attempt to knock her unconscious. It was not his intention to harm Freya but more to force Ada out. Ada anticipated the attack and parried it with perfectly graceful precision and causing Elcypse to be knocked back by a powerful cascade of magic that almost sent him flying off the edge of the cliff.
Ada floated just above him as he rose to his feet again looking up at her with pure rage in his heart.
"Had enough?" said Ada in an uncharacteristically sympathetic voice until she showed her true sadistic nature. She shot out her hand and as if by some invisible hand was protruding out from her picked up the dazed Elcypse and hung him in the air, suspending him there with her telekinetic prowess.
Elcypse felt defeated, his body had been through enough punishment from Ada who all the way through the fight had just stood there, expertly deflecting any attack he tried. He was convinced now that she had just waited for him to tire himself out to show him how futile it was to fight her.
Elcypse felt warm, red blood trickle from out his nose as he was suspended a few feet off the ground by some invisible force that he could not break.
"You know..." said Ada cheerfully, who sat in the air smiling and crossed her legs.
"Spending time in isolation is not really that bad. After all, I get to see the next evolution of society.,, I must really say I am disappointed with Terra" she confessed while glaring wildly at Elcypse. "But the one thing is... who decided to make another copy of you? More useless than the one before" she laughed.
Elcypse gazed back into her eyes searching desperately for a weakness that could defeat her. He had no idea about his origins or why he had indeed been created with all the memories of both Elcypse's before him who had existed hundreds of years ago.
"How...?" he struggled to say in Ada's unbreakable psychic grip on him and feeling gravity attempt to drag him back down. It was most uncomfortable to be suspended like this, completely defenceless, his staff fallen on the ground below him. "Did... you get out?"
"Get out" said Ada intrigued, speaking through with Freya's voice. "That is an interesting question. Technically I am still inside that sphere, my body confined in orbit around Silmeria however after years of sleep, my mind somehow awoke and I found that I could sense people from very far away, can you not sense it from this girl?" chanted Ada, tightening her grip on Elcypse and smiling.
"S..se...sense what?" said Elcypse who had suddenly come up with a plan, he fought the force she was exhuming at him to reach into his pocket and take of a small device. One of Elcypse's hobbies was to play around with technology and he seemed to be able to create things that nobody had ever conceived of before, this was one such invention. Elcypse felt her grip choking him slowly, he took deeper breaths, knowing that each one counted. He flipped a switch on the device and all he had to do now was wait for it to charge, if all went according to plan this could either kill him or save him but he really had no choice.
"This girl... locked away in her mind!" smiled Ada with a long and powerful grin on her face. "She is the reincarnation of the Asgard Spirit Freyja who must have died at some point in history. I sense great power in her, unawakened but she may become a threat so it is better to keep her under control..." said Ada confidentially and showing an expression of pure glee and sadistic qualities as well as a hint of sexual perversion.
Elcypse let out a sigh. Freya to Freyja? Could the great writer of the cosmos not be anymore obvious? He seemed compelled to learn more about his friend as his device vibrated in his hand. His time had come as he took his last breath.
"See... you in hell... bitch!" he shouted and pressed the activation button causing a massive amount of electricity to pass through him and shoot in the direction of Ada who was not prepared this time and was shocked completely, loosing concentration and causing her to drop to floor unconscious and for Elcypse to roll of the cliff... to his death.