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Lord Constance reached into his jacket to remove a Halcyon. Unlike the ones he had forced upon promising little mages, this one exploded into fine crystals at the utterance of a spell. Little light beams connected each of the glowing crystals, forming a barrier around him. As she drew closer, the Halcyon began drawing its power from Emma.
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Emma charged forward almost as if she had been blind to the man's actions. She wanted to thrust her blade into the man's flesh, rage filled her mind. It was all she could taste. When the Halcyon began to draw its power from her however, she furrowed her brow, but didn't stop her attack.
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Lord Constance stepped back, allowing Emma's attack to hit his shield. The crystals began to glow brighter as they sucked away her energy upon impact.
"My my...What should I do with this?" The man laughed and drew his sword from its sheath. "I do believe it is MY turn to strike now." Utilizing the magic he had taken from her, he swung it back at her with his sword. |
Emma grunted as the shield absorbed her energy and she stumbled back as Lord Constance drew his own blade. She tried to parry the attack; shield herself, but she was only thrown back. Stubborn as always, Emma got herself back to her feet for another attack on the man. Emma was exhausted but feuled with such anger, she wasn't about to give up. SHe'd been pushed around harder by her fellow Bianco people when training, if she had survived the Tribe's training, then surely this would have been a piece of cake!
She stood there, panting though. That shield was troublesome. |
Aidan rose to his feet, still feeling very much ill.
"Stop it, Emma. It's not worth...dealing with him." Honestly, he did not want to have to drag her to her room once she knocked out, drained of all of her power. "You've never battled someone using a Halcyon," he said, shielding his eyes from the glow. |
"But Aidan--" Emma huffed out, irritated, but she knew it was for the best. She didn't know how to fight the man; how to get around the Halcyon. She hesitantly sheathed her blade however and moved over to Aidan again, furrowing her brow a bit as she looked at him, fingers touching the mage's arm in clear worry. Aidan didn't look very well at all, what had happened?
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"I'll ask you...one more time...Where is Danny?"
Lord Constance did not lower his shield. "He'll come out when he's good and ready. It will do that kid no good to his pride if you were to find him in the state he's in." He laughed. "It took a lot of pushing to get him to break his limits. Much more than any child I've seen so far. And that's saying a lot since I have no grouped you with the others." |
Emma furrowed her brow and fisted her hand in Aidan's sleeve angrily at the man's words. Poor Danny! She was worried about him, she wanted to find him and protect him; motherly things overwhelmed her instincts. She was trembling a bit, both from the battle as well as her own fury. She wished he would come out from behind that shield of his and fight her face to face!
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Aidan clasped Emma's hand and began running once more, still clutching his abdomen. Once his sense of smell was freed from the scent of the man, he felt better. It made no sense to him why he should fall so ill when there was nothing disturbing him beyond the sickening mixture.
He would check everywhere Danny would frequent. He was sure Emma had checked already, but there was a possibility that the boy could have moved his position since then. He shouted for him desperately, fearing for his safety more and more. When Danielle was away, Danny had such great power. Was he really drained by a Halcyon? What kind of crystal could contain so much energy? Not finding the boy by the time the sun set, he stopped, dropped Emma's hand, and felt the tears fall. |
Emma looked everywhere with Aidan again--revisiting old spots, looking in new ones, but still, they found nothing, even together. As the sun set and Aidan dropped her hand, the girl watched him with a furrowed brow. Her arms wrapped around him, pulling his taller body in against hers with a frown, hugging him tight.
She didn't want to see him cry, and this awkward comfort was all she could offer at her height, a hand reaching to slowly wipe Aidan's tears away as she peered up at him through her own wet eyes. She had not let her tears fall though. "Don't you worry.. Aidan, we'll find him." She whispered softly, attempting to reassure him, though she knew it would be of little help. |
"I'm scared," he murmured. "I'm scared for that little brat. He pisses me off so much, but I love him." His long bangs shielded his face as he shook his head, trying to gather up the energy to move on again.
Finally, he reached the last place he could imagine finding the child. And finally he found some confirmation of the child. A trail of blood. Danny was kneeled before his bed, arms folded and his head resting upon it. He was still, the front of his clothes red with blood and his knees soaking in the puddle he made. |
"I know, Aidan..." Emma dried his face before they continued on, and her hand linked with his again, giving it a gentle squeeze as they made it to that last place. The trail of blood was discomforting, but not as much as seeing Danny himself.
Emma rushed forward to the child, crouching beside him as she so carefully touched his shoulders. "Danny.. oh my..." THere was so much blood. Her fingers trembled as she looked at the boy's bloody body, moving him so carefully in an attempt to lift him and place him onto the bed, her tears finally falling. |
Aidan felt over his paled face, slightly chilled by the room's cold atmosphere from the setting sun. Beyond the tears that stained his face, he looked as if he were sleeping peacefully.
While he would have been able to normally assist his comrades in arms on their injuries, he found his hands shaking far too much to treat Danny, much less expose the wounds. Rising from the bedside, he stepped out of the room to call for someone to get a healer in there quickly. If the bone and blood mages could work quickly, maybe, just maybe they could remove every artifact of the devastation. With no reminders of Lord Constance's torture, then perhaps he would doubt the psychological pain. And maybe...just maybe...he would be fine. Fine enough to be the old Danny... The mages entered, clearing the two from the room so they could work without interruptions. Some of their methods were ghastly to those who did not utilize their craft. Aidan went over to Emma and wrapped his arms around her as he shook violently. Danny's blood had stained his hands, arms, and clothes. |
Emma couldn't bring herself to pull Danny's clothes away from the bloody wounds to see just what Lord Constance had done to the poor child. She sat at Danny's side, holding his little hand in her own as Aidan went to call for the healers. She cried silently as she sat there, shoulders trembling a bit.
When they were ushered out, she stood there, staring at the door silently, her face still wet with tears. She only snapped out of it when Aidan wrapped his shaking body around her own, and she gripped onto him tightly, burying her face into his chest. "It'll be okay now. He'll be okay, Aidan. I'm sure... he'll be okay.." She said, her voice quivering as she fought back another wave of emotions, gripping him tighter. She hugged him so close, inhaling shakily. They were both covered in Danny's blood, but she didn't want to let go. |
"Didn't they treat you just as horribly when they took you? The Bianco?" he murmured into her hair. He just wanted to hold onto something, onto her, for comfort out of fear of collapsing completely under all the emotions that weighed him down. His legs felt so heavy and weak as they shuddered with the rest of him.
It was more than certain that after the shock, he would be consumed with fury. He was just swamped by the devastation he had witnessed. |
Emma grimaced a bit at the reminder of the training she had endured over the many years back and forth between the Tribe's hidden city. "...Yes." She replied gently, burying her face in against his chest a little more, feeling his breath against her head, the weight and shifting of his face against her thick, waves of blond hair.
She stood there, as if she were the only thing supporting him anymore, but in reality, if Aidan's legs were to give out, she would fall with him. She was tired, her body quivering as she pressed in closer for his comfort in exchange for her own. |
For fear of falling and taking her down with him, Aidan released her and leaned against the wall, sliding down it till he sat on the stone floor. His legs were extended, still trembling.
The Council took such measures to find the strength of the children who interested them... So what happened to him? His mind searched, poking around the memories of his past. But so much darkness clouded it. His eyes closed. Folding his arms over his chest, he brought his legs closer to his chest as he rested his head upon his knees. He prayed for Danny silently. |
Emma closed her eyes a moment as Aidan released her so suddenly and went to sit against the wall. She stood there for a moment, trying to keep herself composed as she lost that comforting hold.
She sat down beside Aidan when the mage had settled, and her hand slowly rubbed his shoulder and back where she could reach, petting through some of his hair now and then. She kept this up for a while before her hand slid down and her body slumped against Aidan's. She'd fallen asleep, her exhaustion finally overcoming her. |
Aidan opened his eyes slowly. They felt swollen and tender from all the tears he had shed. Light spilled through the windows and bounced off all the surfaces, almost blinding him.
Once his eyes adjusted to the light, he noticed the blankets wrapped about Emma and himself. Pulling it closer, he stopped to avoid any sudden movements that could wake her. While he wanted to get an update on Danny's condition, it seemed rude to just wake her suddenly. He sighed and leaned back against the wall, relaxing his legs by stretching them out. |
Emma didn't sleep much longer though, her body shifting, eyes bothered by the light and she made a noise, fingers pulling the blanket up slightly as she blinked her eyes open, attempting to shield herself. "Aidan...?" She had such a headache after so much crying and the battle with Lord Constance, sighing out as she began to sit up away from Aidan's body, glancing at him before she looked to the door they had last seen Danny behind. She used the backs of her hands to rub the tear residue from her face, looking at the stains of blood all over her as she slowly tried to get to her feet.
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Both mages lay with their torso sprawled upon the bed. While they had not finished repairing the boy, something had stopped them from completing their work. From the way they were positioned, one moment they were healing him, and the next they were unconscious. He shook them, but upon touching them, he realized they were both drained of their power.
"Completely...out," he murmured. He took a seat and grasped Danny's small hand in his. All of these strange occurrences were far too much for him to comprehend right now. |
Emma furrowed her brow at the sight and she stood with Aidan as the man sat down and took the child's hand. She rested her hand on his shoulder, giving it a tender squeeze. She was quiet though, feeling no need to speak and disturb Aidan from his thoughts at the moment. She just wanted him to know she was there for him, as much as she possibly could be.
Just what had happened? She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment while she stood there. |
Aidan squeezed the child's hand gently.
"Emma...I need you to do me a favor." He took a deep breath and sighed. "I need you to find out what happened to Danielle and Arturo." |
Emma blinked her eyes open and looked down at Aidan as he spoke to her, and she nodded. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders a moment, hugging him as she buried her face into his hair this time. "I'll come find you when I know." She stated gently, not lingering any longer before she turned to leave Aidan there with the unconscious healers and Danny.
She did not bother to change out of her clothing yet, she didn't want to waste any time in finding answers for Aidan, but also for herself. They had taken both the water mage and Danielle. Were they alright? Where were they? Emma went straight to the man she expected would have answers for her: Aviar. |
The King was spending a rare moment with the young twins. The children spent little time in the faces of their future court. He was excessively protective of them due to the world he lived in before their birth. The throne room was empty beyond them and the guards. With Aviar willing to hear out any concerns that day, the guards allowed Emma into the throne room. The twins were sent away and he gave her his attention.
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