Chapter IX: Betrothal Ceremony

Something dark is creeping into the world, and it is time to gather the Spirits - special individuals burdened with the duty of bringing a tilting world back into balance.

Chapter IX:

Betrothal Ceremony

Rubedo looked onto the floor of what appeared to be an outdoor theater.  It was an odd place, nestled in the bottom of a steep, small valley.  Stairs had been made from cutting into the soil.  On each stair was a row of pews, curving into a complete circle.  On the ground there were seven flat areas of stone, each inscribed with a symbol.

They were the signs of the Seven Spirits, what many believed to be, in collective spirit of the Creator.

“ ‘Those who clash and those who create...’ ”  Rubedo quoted in a soft  voice.  The Spirits were common knowledge throughout the world, They were more symbolic than anything these days, merely a metaphor for the elements and virtues that shaped the Creator. There was a time when the Spirits were worshiped as demigods, but as time passed they dwindled away into simple symbols representing a higher power.

His sister smiled at him, glad to see he had forgiven her.  He turned and returned the grin - that lopsided grin of his.  Down below, people were already seating themselves. Rubedo smiled to himself, thinking of the day ahead.

“What are you so happy about?”  Azara asked.

Rubedo sighed, shaking his head, “Nothing.”

His sister shot him a skeptical look.

“Honestly,” He assured, “I’m just looking forward to the festivities, that I am.”

Azara rolled her eyes, “Alright, lover boy, where are we sitting?”

Rubedo didn’t seem to hear the “lover boy” comment.  Either that or he was choosing to ignoring her.  “Princess Lunamis made sure we had nice seats, she said where we’ll be sitting I’ll be able to see her perfectly...”

Another roll of the eyes from Azara, but Rubedo didn’t notice and continued, “Hey... Zara.”  Her old nickname caught her attention, he hadn’t called her that since their parents death.

“I think... I thought about what you said.  I’m going to try...” He winced, as though physically pained, “This isn’t easy you know... I’m going to try to... be more... you know...”  He paused and continued, “And about me yelling, I’m...”

Azara laughed, “That’s alright!  I forgive you, little brother.”

“Stop calling me ‘little brother.’”

“But I like calling you by your title!”

“Don’t kick me out of my good mood.”

Azara laughed, “Alright, alright... little brother.”

Rubedo groaned, putting his hand to his forehead and rolling his eyes.

“Oi!  ‘Ello again!  If it isn’t the Black Mage lass and lad!”

The siblings turned to see Atticus standing behind them, grinning widely.  “Oi, ye two should be getting to the stadium!”  He winked at Rubedo, “Her fair lady is ‘bout to make her entrance.”

“Right.”  Rubedo nodded, shooting a glare towards his giggling sister.  He told Atticus where they were sitting, admitting his was a bit confused where exactly their seats were.

“Aye!”  Atticus exclaimed, “We be sitting in about the same spot!  Come on, we better be gettin’ there.  You two remember Puren?  He and a friend of his - name be Togashi - are sitting along with me!”

The siblings looked at each other, an expression of annoyance on Rubedo’s face at the thought of sitting near, “That show-off, Puren.”

“Scrape along, scrape along!”

They seemed to be sitting with a large group of Alchemists, a couple of dark dots amongst reds and yellows.  The Alchemists were a friendly bunch, one boy offered Azara his seat.  “Here you are, love.”  He had said, “This seat is in the shade more, it be much cooler than out in the hot sun.”

“Hey!”  Rubedo burst, “What the hell?  Don’t call her love!”

“Rubedo!”

“Calm down laddie!”  Atticus said, moving his hands the same way a person does when they tell an angry dog, ‘down boy!’  “We tend to call all girls that!  ‘Tis a expression!”

Puren neither went to Rubedo’s nor the boy’s defense.

The boy smiled, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know she was yours.”  He bowed apologetically, “Forgive me.”

“What? Mine?  That’s my sister you twit!”

“Both of you.”  Puren’s deep voice cut off their argument.  “Shut it.  It’s about to start.”

“Rubedo!”  Azara whispered, “What’s gotten into you?  You didn't react like this when Atticus called me that!”

“That.”  Rubedo responded, “Is because when Atticus called you that, it was sweet and with innocent intentions, like when Grandfather would call you that.  But when that... boy... said it, it was suggestive!  Didn’t you hear that?”

“You’re being paranoid.”  She mumbled, tossing her hair slightly.  “Besides, you’re not going to care in about five seconds.”

Rubedo rose an eyebrow, “Oy?”

“Because the Princess has entered the stage.”

Where exactly Luna had entered the stadium was debatable, the only evidence that people had noticed her appearance was the sudden hush that swept across the vast crowd.  She wore a simple gown, similar in fit to the one she had worn the night before but with a simple rope cinching around her waist instead of the finery her ballgown had boasted. Her hair was covered by a veil, held by a simple chain around her head, the only decoration a single pearl that hung between her eyes.

Luna stood in the middle of the circle of symbols, facing the symbol of Time. She breathed a deep breath and raised her arms in front of her, her palms facing outwards, and closed her eyes.

Silence...

It stood like a shadow behind everyone.  Nobody moved, nobody breathed.  Even the birds had stopped singing, not a single quivering note was sung.  It seemed as though nothing would happen.

Then ground had started to shake.  Luna’s eyes flew open as light began to form in the palms of her hands, creating a shining orb.  Her amethyst eyes were glinting, narrowed in concentration.  Wind began to whip and tear at her, her veil fluttered wildly until it was torn from her head, the now-uncovered braid flailing and unraveling.

With a sound like thunder a pillar of light burst from the orb, rocketing towards the sky.  Clouds gathered, and lightning clashed and around her as the clouds rolled, growing thicker and blacker by the second.

As the pillar of light collided with the billowing clouds a huge explosion racked the whole stadium.  The pillar began to spread, like oil on the open seas, electricity ricocheting inside the ever-widening circle.  The clouds were being pushed!  At impossible speeds they were shoved away by the maelstrom of energy.

For a fleeting second, all activity ceased, even the lightning seemed to be frozen inside the circle, not even crackling and sparking with electricity.  Then the clouds and lightning rushed towards the pillar, concentrating into a tiny orb and disappearing, leaving behind a clear night sky.

It had barely been past noon when she begun and less than a moment had passed.

Now this was magik.

With a loud crackling the wind started to tear around Luna again and as quickly as it shot up into the sky, the pillar was absorbed back into the orb with a sound like swords colliding together.  With the sound came light, bright and unyielding, tearing its way through the stadium and blinding the whole crowd.

Rubedo found his arm flying up to shield his eyes, but not soon enough to miss the violent flare of clashing white light as it unsighted him.  Atticus was making choking sounds and saying something to his comrades in his own tongue, use a strict tone that didn’t seem to match the tremor in his voice.  Rubedo lowered his arm, but for a long while saw nothing but blackness, as he blinked his vision cleared, first to dark shapes, then to colors, and finally to normalcy.

Luna stood in the middle of the circle, a staff materialized in her hands.  It was a staff of the purest white, with silver rivulets flowing around it. They seemed to move and snake around the white orb pulsing in the same spot the nexus crystal should be.  Then she faced towards the sky, the orb illuminating her fair face.

“Oh great Spirits from beyond - Spirits of Light, Shadow, Air, Water, Flame, Earth and Time.  Grant me thy powers, lend me thy strength!  Cast away thy seven-picked disguise.  Come before me and unite into the One!  Grant me thy grace!”

As she spoke in her own tongue, everyone heard both it and their own languages.  The foreign tongue was still heard, but was lost somewhere between their ears and minds, translated into their own language.  Her original tongue was like a whisper in their ears and her voice speaking their own echoed in the forefront of their minds.

“Guide my hands to healing, may I cause no pain.  Oh Spirits!  Grant me light to hold as a beacon in a chaotic world.”

She turned and walked to one of the signs on the ground.  She stopped in front of the swirling symbol of Air, bowing to the emblem.

“Air, grant me thy grace and swiftness to go where I am needed with haste.”

The wind whipped harder as she stepped onto the circle.  It began to slice at the symbol, eroding the stone with massive power and forcing the sign of Air to sink deeper and deeper into the stone. Her robes whipped around her wildly, but she seemed otherwise unaffected by the slashing wind.

Luna turned walked to the green symbol of Earth. Atticus’ and the other alchemists’ words had grown louder and Rubedo had to concentrate to hear over them. “Earth, grant me thy sturdiness so I may stand as a rock for the beliefs of the good and pure.”

The ground’s shaking increased in magnitude, splitting the circle of Earth along the lines of the symbol.   With her eyes still closed, Luna turned and walked to the deep blue symbol of Water.

“Oh Water, oh Aqua!  Grant me the powers of healing only you possess.”

A violent squall overtook the entire area, falling from nothing.   Only the stars resided in the skies, not a cloud in sight.  Rain filled the engraved sign of Water, the burst outward like a fountain, its geysers shaped as the lines of the emblem.

When the spraying ceased Luna walked towards the red symbol of Flame.

“Oh mystic Flame!  Grant fire in my heart and mind so I will never yield to oppression and mockery.”

Sparks rose from the circle as a torrent of fire rocketed into the sky, seeming to rise forever.  Hundreds gasped and stood, fearing the Princess would catch fire.

“This has never happened before!”  Atticus yelled as he tried to sit steadily on the shaking pew.  This isn’t part of the ritual!”

“What?”  Rubedo yelled.

“The Elements shouldn't be here-”

The ground lurched again, “But the symbols-!” Azara started.

“Not like this!” The old alchemist cried.

“Princess Lunamis!”  He shouted, his voice joining the others as they called out to her, “Stop!  This isn’t supposed to be-”

Luna hadn’t heard him.  She walked towards the black Shadow sign.

“Shadow, the demented!  May thy wisdom be given to me, may thy headstrong nature become my own!”

All light disappeared.  The stars, moon, and all other sources of light diminished, only the pulsing light that stood captured on her staff gave any glow.  A scream somewhere in the crowd ushered in a full panic.  Luna seemed not to notice this, she hadn’t heard any of the pleas for her to stop.  Deaf to their cries, she continued to the symbol of Light.

“Beautiful Light!  May thy healing, thy warmth, thy kindness and hope be one with my own.  Lend me thy hand, I beg you, Light, help me fear not the darkness!”

The stars and the moon flared back to life brighter than before. However, the eyes of the crowed were not on the sky above, but on the light below.

Lunamis was glowing.

A bright light seemed to be coming from her and the orb of her staff was pulsing brighter and quicker.  She turned and walked towards the head of the circle, to the symbol of Time.

“Time, give me thy patients so I need not hurry through life, give me thy power of secret, so as not to betray my people or the trust of another.”

The ground started to shake more violently, and with another burst of light the moon disappeared and the stars dulled.  In seconds the sun had appeared from the west, and rose to the top of the sky.

Luna had begun to quiver, and with trembling steps went to the center for the last time.

“Spirits I ask thee now!  Give unto me thy powers, choose now, oh Spirits!  Am I accepted, or rejected?”

The light emitting from Luna intensified and flashed, a brighter flash than even the first.  When it subsided, the staff was gone.  Her eyes fluttering, Luna stumbled forward, once... twice... then fell.

All hell broke loose.  People were rushing towards her, guards had positioned themselves to hold the crowd back and people were shouting for healers and doctors. Rubedo found himself pushing his sister towards the front until he realized she wouldn’t have any of the healing herbs she would need for such a problem.  Instead, he shouted for her to go back to their room as he ducked into the crowd.

After much fighting, Rubedo was by Luna’s side, trying to lift her.  She was completely limp, her breathing so weak it was hardly noticeable. “Princess!”  He shouted, trying to bring her around.  “Lunamis!”

“Move!”  Someone pushed Rubedo out of the way as seven White Mages shoved through the crowd.  Each bent by Luna, murmuring incantations as Yami held her, murmuring with them.

After a few excruciating seconds, Luna’s eyes opened wide and she sat up with a sharp gasp. Her eyes fluttered and she fell back against her guardians’ chest as he barked orders to everyone, shaking as he did so, his voice trembling.

“Look!” Someone yelled, “The symbols!”

The symbol of Light was glowing, pulsing gently.  With every pulse a bright note emitted.  It was a strange, echoing sound like a fork tapping an empty wine glass, but it had alien, almost foreboding undertones.

Shadow’s emblem began to do the same, the sound and pulse synchronizing with Light’s.  Soon Air joined in, then Time, all pulsing in unison and glowing.  After a few united pulsations the notes dwindled, so only the lights remained.

For a long time after, many stood and watched the symbols pulsing, even after the princess had been taken to the clinic.  All the birds had left the stadium - in fact there wasn’t an animal in sight.  To add to the strangeness, the ground was littered with the petals of wilted flowers and dying plants.

Luna lay in her bed with Yami by her side.  Rubedo had stubbornly posted himself outside the door, his entrance forbidden.

Azara stood alone near the stadium, she felt an odd stirring in her stomach.  She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was happening.

“There are Spirits about...” An ancient White Mage said softly, pushing white hair out of her eyes and into her hood.  “That’s why the symbols are glowing... Spirits... four of them...” Azara turned to stare at her, shaking her head and following the old woman’s eyes to the symbols below.

What was happening?

Author's Note

I'm interested in anything that you think will improve this writing. From grammar and spelling errors, to funny dialogue and plot holes that I've missed, to things that just don't sound right.

Reviews

[Barry]

Okay so it has a lot of dialogue in the beginning , and i think you did really well with that. Dialogue isn't really my thing. It's very interesting so far. I haven't read the other chapters. I randomly clicked on this. Keep up the good work

[Spider Rose]

Thanks so much! If you read the other chapters let me know -critique is welcome.

[Spider Rose]

I try to do a lot of conversation (when needed) because so much of life is talking. Conversation reveals a lot about a person - especially when it is obvious that a character acts drastically different depending on who they're around.

[Barry]

yea I tend to avoid it as mine can drag on.