The Dark World part.15 (finale)

         Pan, Lucy, and Big-Bad had found themselves out of their beds in the hallway; the world became a twisted shadow of its former self. Creatures of both Earth and Dark World abounded about the castle as darkened unspeaking silhouettes of the local inhabitants stood around not noticing or being noticed by the monsters. They each found that for some reason they possessed three stones, one for each of them that when thrown in the air, something a weird narrative voice had explained to them, that they didn’t question, it would glow and summon one of three powerful allies to perform a single action. Lucy had a white stone that would summon Hollia who would heal everyone, Pan had a red stone that would summon Rhulan who would throw a Fire-Sphere spell that would explode amidst their enemies but not harm them, and Big-Bad had a black stone that would summon Rhoan who would fire a plasma beam directly a head the way Big-Bad was facing.

 

    They traveled five floors this way, each filled with increasingly dangerous enemies, their allies only appearing and quickly disappearing and the stones needing recharge time. At the end of each floor they battled against a boss like enemy, some strong armored knight or giant hideous bug thing blocking the doors to the stairs in this abstract replica of a palace they never explored. At the very end they came face to face with a woman they had never met before, a woman with grey hair, wearing a wedding dress lined with knives sown into the stitching. Their un-natural cliché spouting allies came as a surprise to this woman who called herself the Queen of Carrion and mother of the three Kain brothers. She wouldn’t listen to them explain that they had nothing to do with their deaths.

 

    After a long deadly struggle against her, as she fell a man’s voice echoed from the very walls, “Foolish wife, our sons were not murdered by these three. Those who killed them have minds blocked against your magic. Your spell graced off of them and into the minds of these other three near their physical proximity.”

 

   The downed woman looked up to the ceiling as the walls began to melt like sidewalk chalk in the rain, “Then why were the three I sought after here helping them?”

 

   As everything went black and white and barely visible the man’s voice spoke, “I did that, shadow psychic golems. No more need to die than have to.”

 

   In this instant the three from Earth awoke in their beds confused. They met in the hallway to confirm that they had indeed shared the same experience. Rhulan, Hollia, and Rhoan met them, Hollia speaking, “Hey guys! Yo, sleepy heads, finally up? They called our rooms for breakfast like ten minutes ago. We came by to make sure someone hadn’t murdered you in your sleep.”

 

   Rhulan stifled a laugh, “Come on, you don’t want to be hungry when you go home do you? You might never get another feast like this again from what you tell me.”

 

 

   Rhoan smiled and with a shrug said, “You also do not want your stomachs growling when you meet the Empress. Yes you will be there, under my protection before the Empress, otherwise your nocturnal enemies may become reality in this shadowy nightmare world.”

 

   Rhulan elbowed him whispering, “Sheesh, ever hear of subtlety? Why not just say, yeah some nut-job called Necrose called, said, don’t worry about killing my kids but their mother tried to kill you in your sleep and hit those three other guys instead with a death by nightmares spell, don’t worry I got it covered.”

 

    Rhoan shrugged as the three, still confused despite overhearing this explanation, followed along the very different hallways than what they had seen in their shared dream.

 

     After the lavish meal, they headed out along a red carpeted hall to a two door exit. Before them a pair of black clad guards held the doors open to what looked to be a terrace with out a railing, or upon closer look a landing dock for an air ship. As they headed out Rhulan leaned in to Rhoan, “you sure this Necrose guy wont try something? I know you said he worked for you, but come on, they were his sons.”

 

  Rhoan waves a dismissive hand and with a broad smile said, “Trust me, he wont have any problem with it. He fully intended to kill them him self at some point, if anything he’ll begrudge me beating him to it.”

 

   Rhulan eyes him, “You live in a really fucked up place, you know that right?”

 

   Stepping out onto the terrace Rhulan and Hollia stayed back near The Queen of Thorns with Pan, Lucy, and Big-Bad staying back near the door acting the part of “guards” as they were told to pretend to be. Something that to Nobles was more for show than actual protection anyway. Rhoan stood a few feet back from the edge of the open terrace, just standing waiting.

 

    Hollia looked out amongst various floating stone platforms, each with a different Noble of this world upon them, a woman dressed as an Egyptian queen, a green woman surrounded by flowers, the grey haired wedding dress wearing woman whom the three Earthlings also noticed with concern in their eyes, amongst various others in this bizarre collection. Hollia noticed something rather odd and squinted her eyes, next to the woman in the wedding dress on a floating platform of his own was a man whose body was an exoskeleton made to resemble human bones with the skull head laying low in a creviced top.

 

   “is that?” asks Hollia tugging in Rhulan’s cape to draw her to wear she is pointing.

 

   Rhulan sees this man and tilts her head like a confused dog, “what the? A Necro Soldier?”

 

 

    Hollia and Rhulan look at each other remembering fighting a horde of these death golems that were summoned by a crazy woman wearing a skimpy dominatrix out fit and glowing crimson hair, a crazy woman who called her self Sickle, and wielded two on chains as weapons, a woman who claimed to be a Death Hunter, a reaper from the Land of the Dead. These were mindless golems, not something that could ever be a noble anywhere.

 

    “That’s Necrose.” came Rhoan’s voice from Rhulan’s cape. Rhulan pulled out from the shadows of her cape her own small circular device similar to Rhoan’s instead marked along its border as “Aesperia Prime”. His voice had come from over it, something that did take Rhulan back, she had forgotten over her thousand years of rest that this device was still functioning, hidden safely in its sub-space pocket, let alone about its long un-used communication function. Rhoan must have altered his own to function with out being held for this purpose, Rhulan is amazed that he still had his own, and would still be using it to the degree of altering such a function.

 

   He spoke no more as a great blue light appeared in the sky, a vortex had opened, and from it a black armored ship nearly a hundred feet in length. The crowds far below on the ground cheered as the ship lowered, the Nobles however remained silent. Rhoan knew as did the locals that this was but a shuttle, the personal limo to the one they called The

Empress.

 

    As the ship hovers before the platform, a door forms in its side. Rhoan bows to the ground as two women exit the craft, one is a Japanese woman wearing white royal robes and carrying in each hand an oval mirror with a bar hand on the back crossing the short length, the other a darker skinned South East Asian woman wearing grey royal robes with electric sparks dancing between her fingers. The two women stand aside as a third figure emerges, something alien to anything seen yet. This woman appears to have a body with or somehow skin tight black insect or solid reptilian exoskeleton like armor. Her head is clearly wearing a face concealing mask, with no mouth or nose to speak of save for a shape to indicate where they would be. Her eyes are black lidless lenses. Around her body flows a shadow, like smoke imitating a reapers robe, becoming rags, strips here and there and briefly forming fully for an instant of a second.

 

    The woman, the Empress, speaks, “My children, Nobles and denizens of Dark World, it gladdens my heart to see you all here to greet me…”

 

   Her voice snaps Hollia’s and Rhulan’s attention, they look at each other confused and mouth, “no way.”

 

    “Before I begin the official meetings with my Nobles I would like to speak with my special guests. Rhulan the sorceress, and Hollia child of light, come forth.”

 

    Hollia follows behind Rhulan, who proudly with a smug smile on her face walks right up to the Empress face to face, surprising Rhoan while is standing causing him to stagger back.

 

   Rhulan looks right at the face of the Empress, “There is no fucking way,” she says, “No possible way, that you are who I think you are.”

 

   The black lenses of the Empress’s eyes open to reveal a burning blue glow, a glow that sparks and burns the very air. A collective gasp could be heard from the Nobles and crowd at the sight of the Empress opening her eyes, a seldom seen, and worrisome happening.

 

   Rhulan on the other hand hoffs and throws her hands in the air, “I knew it, I bleeding knew it!”

 

   She turns pointing an accusatory finger at the Empress, “Don’t you even tell me, you were behind all this. You somehow orchestrated this, you dragged me, dragged Hollia, out of our homes and…” her harsh tone stops as she realized, “and you re-united me with my brother.”

 

    Hollia has dropped to the ground and ushers a prayer, “Great Goddess, the one beyond good and evil, holder of chaos, mother of all that is, I pray you…yet again…forgive Rhulan.”

 

   Rhoan looks between Hollia and the Empress not knowing how to react.

 

   “Stand my child.” says the Empress, “Yes, my dear Rhulan, I am who you think I am.”

 

   “and,” says Rhulan, “you’re posing as the Empress of a demon world?”

 

   “I am the Empress of this world.” she says, “When my gaze fell upon it, it was a stagnant world, un-balanced, held by a monster by the name of Darmagion. I killed the beast, and in return gave this world order, gave it evolution. I am law, I am order, until the day they are fully on the right path.”

 

   Rhulan looks at Hollia and gestures towards the Empress, “See Hollia, what’d I tell you. The goddess is crazy. Creates a whole universe and then has to balance it out by ruling evil worlds or some other crazy shit.”

 

   “shhh” says Hollia, “please Miss Rhulan,” she looks up at the Empress as she stands to her feet per the orders of the Empress, “Please forgive her, we can not hope to fathom your mind. Although…I am a bit conflicted. But…YES!” She abruptly cheers up and smashed her fist into her palm, “This world was being enslaved, you freed it, you made order where there would be chaos. Oh yes! Great glory to the goddess!”

 

 

 

   Rhulan shakes her head, looking at the two other women just watching them, still, yet eyes clearly set on them. She turns back to the Empress, “Okay, at the very least tell me how you actually managed to pull this off.”

 

   The Empress’s eyes close, much to the relief of the audience, and she laughs holding the back of her hand to her mouth, “My dear, I am your goddess, I am Empress here, Empress to many worlds. The forms I take are for the benefit of those I meet, they get a shell, a fragment, enough to maintain order with out burning their universe to nothingness.”

 

   “Like that actually answered my question.” says Rhulan rolling her eyes.

 

   Rhoan alarmed quickly looks between his sister and the Empress, unsure of what is happening, pondering the ramifications if his sister would strike the Empress, wondering now if his sister is able to strike the Empress.

 

   She looks to the white robed woman, “rise and summon Fira, Mirror Maiden.”

 

   The Mirror Maiden stands; the mirror in her right hand expands slightly in size and shows the same white archaic symbol Hollia had used to banish Fira, and shows it being evaporated. A portal appears on the ground with Fira rising from it.

 

   The Empress looks past them, “Come here, Beast-Shifter Big-Bad, Myth-Shifter Pan, Myth-Shifter Lucy, and Noble Demon Queen of Thorns.”

 

   These four come in behind Rhulan and Hollia. The Empress holds up her hand for them to stay there.

 

   “Queen of Thorns, do you now not think it odd that you cared about the fate of your nephews. That amongst all that is, that you would even caring about them summon of all thing a chaos demon?”

 

   The Queen of Thorns thinks about it and answers, “No, my Empress, I do not believe under normal circumstances that I would, in either case.”

 

   The Empress looks now to Fira, “my dear. As you recall I had you watch Rhulan and Hollia, and their friends on their adventure. It was I who had you then watch these three from Earth-P and keep them in this world. These people, to whom your nature is not drawn to at all. But to Rhoan, and to that which you had recently watched.”

 

   Rhulan crossed her arms, “you really had this all planned out didn’t you? Messing with people’s lives, altering people’s free will all to fulfill some cosmic scheme that just needed your direct interference this time huh?”

 

 

 

   “Freewill. I only suggest, Fira controlled outright the actions of the one who summoned you. A gamble, if not this time then another would have sufficed, as is my want. My reasons, are for a greater good. Be assured of that my child.”

 

   Hollia speaks directly to Rhulan, “Miss Rhulan, please, she is the goddess after all. She reunited you with your brother, she saved this world from destruction before. Why question a divine gift?”

 

   Rhulan looked down at Hollia and sighed a sigh of defeat. Her own time being worshiped she knew gave her a grim outlook on anyone calling themselves gods, she would never have dreamed to talk this way before to this being, something about this current form however made her want to talk more freely. In the past she was a massive form, glowing with a calming light that brought peace to the minds of everyone and even forced away her darker side, something she said herself would rip apart the souls of demon, a light she saw briefly in her eyes, but this shell seemed to bring something more hostile out of her. “Of course!” she yelled in her mind.

 

   The Empress nodded at Rhulan knowing her thoughts, good to one is evil to another, as is the balance of all things.

 

   “Now then,” says the Empress turning to the three from Earth, “Yes I know of you as well. Fear not those who went ahead of you to Earth are safe, they are in the protection of powerful warriors. It seems now would be a good time for you to go.”

 

   As she held up her hand with a glowing blue light Lucy yelled out, “Wait a minute!”

 

   The Empress stayed her hand.

 

   “Uh, yeah, I don’t know anything about this demon Empress or Goddess stuff. But I know you’re helping us out for some reason. But could we, you know, at least have some name to call you ourselves other than Empress Goddess lady?”

 

   The Empress laughs a laugh that echoes as thunder, “Yes, my little pawn. You may indeed. I am Ro-Ko-Naka, Empress of the Empire of Eternal Darkness, and Goddess of Other World. I am light and dark, death and life, creation and destruction balanced by the cycle of chaos. I am, I am beyond I am for a million, million worlds.”

 

   With out a second word or another motion they found themselves standing back where it all started, on the dirt road with its ruined concrete blocks back on Earth where they first fought the teleporting demon.

 

    Pan and Lucy offer to help Big Bad as they head towards his shanty town village. As they crest the hill they see a heart stopping sight, a hoard of zombies are being ripped apart in the middle of the town by what look to be three large monsters. One is an eight feet long white furred, wolf headed Japanese dragon, the second a ten foot tall feminine framed yet muscular brown furred werewolf, the third looks to be about fourteen feet tall and at first sight also looks to be a werewolf of some kind despite having overly long ears, a more pointed muzzle, and a very long tail, from their vantage point they can’t see that the larger one also only has three toes on its hind feet.

 

    They shift into their demonic and wolf like forms and descend the hill. They can hear their town’s people, Big-Bad’s people, inside the houses cowering in fear. A quick look tells them these three others are clearly keeping the zombies away from the buildings, if they can even be called buildings. They rush in side by size fighting the zombies, their battles in Dark World have made them stronger than they knew, compared to the denizens, the beasts of Dark World these zombies are soft and easily ripped apart in their fury. The ease at which they sever limbs and reduce skulls to bloody sprays surprises them, comparing their strength to those fantastic beings that were with had left them un-aware of their strength.

 

    Despite their increase of strength the three before them showed a greater display of power, the dragon ejected streams of water from its mouth that cut like lasers, the she-wolf easily lifted and used the zombies as weapons to smash into each other in her ferocity, and the last one, caused Big-Bad to stop in his tracks is this massive creature sent forth a blast of lighting from its mouth incinerating the last group of zombies.

 

    As the smoke clears the tall black furred one yelled out, “It’s safe to come out!”

 

   The black furred giant’s body morphs as though it were made of shadows into a six foot tall man wearing a black denim jacket and jeans with shoulder length black hair. His haunting blue eyes make Lucy’s heart skip a beat, which she quickly shakes off looking at Pan. They revert back to their human forms as well. The she-wolf shrinks down to become a Native American looking woman, the first, the man with the black clothing, manifests some cloths from nothing for her to cover up her nakedness, which she shows no sign of carrying who sees her. The last however grabs Big-Bad’s attention, the dragon shrinks into the form of a Japanese woman with short black hair, to whom a man hiding in a building nearby gives her some bundled up clothing to put on.

 

   “I though that was you.” says Big-Bad to the Japanese woman, “Yoko-Ryu.”

 

   She smiles, “well, looks like that demon lady told the truth. We’ve been waiting around for you, and these new friends of yours to get back. Nice job, nice pay, crazy client.”

 

   “Don’t get me started.” says Big-Bad, “Let me guess, Fira the lady of Chaos, yeah she told us some quote un-quote bad-asses were back on Earth watching over everyone. Damn psycho-bitch made us stick around that god-damned world for some reason that doesn’t make shit’s worth of sense.”

 

   Pan and Lucy look at each other, Big-Bad hadn’t been the type it seemed to them to

talk so openly, this woman must be an old friend or something.

 

 

   Yoko-Ryu turns, “My manners, I forget them, these are my current traveling companions. Crystal, as you could see she is an Arctic-Werewolf. That’s right an actual giant were-wolf not a beast-shifter, and her boy-friend is Rish, who guess what, has connections to the owner of the New York Dome.”

 

   “What?” says Big-Bad, “I thought you wanted in the Las Angelus dome?”

 

   Rish speaks up, “Litmet rules the Las Angelus dome, that creature won’t give me the time of day. However the domes are all connected via a portal system, my older sister runs the New York Dome. I know she’ll let me and anyone with me in. We we’re waiting for you three to return so as to take all of you with us.”

 

   Big-Bad thinks, “Rish? I remember that name!”

 

   “Yes,” says Rish answering his thought, “I am the one and the same. I am Rish the butcher. Feared by all undead.” He smiles, “yep, big-bad-ass supreme.”

 

   Crystal laughs as she playfully nudges Rish who smiles in return.

 

   Big-Bad looks around and sees that everyone in his town is ready to go. He shrugs, “Okay, off we go then. After what I…we…just went through what’s a little trek across a zombie and freak filled country side? No more Dark World demons, no more freaky sorcerers, and no more hopefully Ro-Ko-Naka psycho goddess messing with us.”

 

   A flash of lightning another giant black creature looking almost exactly like Rish appears.

 

   “Who speaks the name of the goddess?” demands the imposing figure.

 

   Rish looks back and forth between Big-Bad and the new comer, looking up he says,

 

“Dad? What are you talking about?”

 

   The giant looks down with his glowing blue eyes, “I have been watching your adventure my son, ever since that, misbegotten traveler Fira dared step foot on my world. And now this spawn of my daughter’s sorcery and science speaks the name of one. One whose name draws her attention. I would rather not have the goddess intervene in my affairs.”

 

   He looks over at Big-Bad, “Tell me small creature. Speak truthfully, for the ears of Rhuen hear lies and my fury burns worlds.”

 

   “Uh,” says Big-Bad, “We were just in some demon world, being played by that Fira bitch, and she was taking orders from that goddess lady.” He turns to Lucy and back at Rhuen, “yeah she told us her name like the last second before we got here. I don’t anything about her, what’s going on, any celestial shit, or about Rhulan, Hollia, Rhoan, or any of that stuff.”

 

   Rhuen’s brow raises, “Rhulan? Rhoan?” he growls, “those two in the same place at the same time? So much for my ancient theory about that.” He laughs, “Very well small creatures, you were but pawns, and it seems the all-mother of my home world is up to something. What I hope has little to do with this Earth. Be let it be known, if Rhoan does dare return to THIS world. I will not tolerate his interference a second time.”

 

   In a flash of lightning Rhuen vanishes to the heavens.

 

   Big-Bad looks at the concerned look on Rish’s face, “gods.” says Big-Bad, “what ever happened to the good ole days of mutant freaks and zombies. Seriously, I want nothing to do with this crazy shit.”

 

   He looks back at the faces of his family as his nephew runs up to him, crying and happy to see his uncle back alive. He looks back up and back at the others, “Okay,” he says with a determined tone, “what ever happens happens.”

 

   He looks at Rish, “Okay, man, I got nothing to do with this guy whose name sounds a lot like your dad’s okay or his sister that Rhulan lady. I just want to make sure these

people are safe.”

 

   Rish smiles, “good to know. I don’t know anything about any of that stuff either. I may look like him, but I’m only twenty something years old. My dad is…who the hell knows, he’s got enemies who fought dinosaurs. Don’t worry about, you’ll probably be long dead of old age before anything comes up between him and what ever the hell else.”

 

   With out another word they begin their long trek away from the shanty town, the thirty some people group saying good bye to their strong hold home and moving on to hopefully better places.

 

    Meanwhile back in Dark World the Empress has continued her scheduled appearances and inspections, Rhulan and Hollia had in the same instant that Pan, Lucy, and Big-Bad found themselves back home, found themselves as well back on their own world. Under the well lit day in the green forested outskirts of the world famous campus of Stratalia. As Hollia praises returning home and the benevolence of the goddess Rhulan looks at her long un-used Aesperia Prime device, a new setting has appeared, a dimensional window and locater. She clicks and sees her brother’s signal across the dimensional divide.