Chapter 878: Yui's Voyage |
"The nerve," clapped Eira, "-how dare you," her knees rose in stride, her index followed below Yui's chin, pointed upwards. The cool, composed Empress lost her footing – mist grew at her feet and froze the marble floor. Sat at arm's reach, Vengeance escaped from the line of fire, pulled his phone, and dialed. Yui's words cut to the heart – an entourage of 'yes-man' wasn't healthy for a person, let alone one of her stature. The entire world crashed and fell; splinters from stands dropped, '-Igna's gone,' wrote amidst the crash. The slow realization of what had happened clambered past the misdirected norm of which she'd grown to understand.
"Family are those who're ready to bleed unconditionally. Igna bled, and bled, nothing ever mattered; in the end, there was nothing left. He accepted the grand truth of survival of the fittest, true to Hidros's culture. Time was at an end, and he left."
"…"
"Empress Eira," gasped Éclair against the doorway, "-my apologies," he ran in-between the disagreement and motioned for breathing space, "-I'm late. You must call before arriving. A woman of thy caliber can't be allowed in harm's way," he flashed at Yui, "-please, let's move to a more open area."
"No," her heels hammered onto the ground, "-I will not move, nor will I speak until I know the truth," she glanced at Vengeance, "-Éclair, is he truly my brother?" she pointed.
"By all means, ye-"
"-and don't make the mistake of lying," she narrowed, stunting any rebuttal he might have had.
"My lady," he moved and spoke in a lowered tone, "-wise not to scream, wall have ears."
"So?" her arms crossed coldly, a hardcover book of light-blue summoned, the pages flipped by aid of an invisible hand, it drew onto a red bookmark upon which a bubble expanded, "-there," she said, "-the ears have been cut. I need the truth, speak. Is what Yui said the truth?" her heart raced, '-please don't,' passed fragmented thoughts, '-I won't accept it. How could I have been blind to my little brother's disappearance, how could I have been,' another thought interjected, '-Markus…'
"I'm confused," she blinked, "-Iqeavea knows of Igna's death?"
"No, not death, they simply know the King's very receptive to innovating ideas. If they push their luck – we can always call favor from Kreston. Allies turned adversaries and vice-versa, the world's funny, isn't it?"
"I'm not laughing," interjected Yui, "-understand, empress."
"What we say in this room, stays in this room," a suspicious frown rose at Eira, "-Empress?"
"My lips are sealed," her knees weakened, "-here I thought everything was peaceful."
"Peace comes at a heavy price, and sometimes, that price is the life of a loved one."
"What about Igna, where is he, I presume he went into hiding?"
"No, we don't know," he returned, "-as for Loftha, I'm sorry to say, she's dead."
"Dead… I thought she was-"
"Staying in Rosespire? Yes, I know. Emperor Markus knows the truth, don't underestimate the four great's reach."
"My little sister's dead… I never thought."
"That's the problem," fired Yui, "-no one ever thinks," she sidestepped and glared Éclair, "-I'm done serving those fuckers from the council. Enough is enough, my created purpose was to assist the family, not enemy. No more, I quit," she exhaled, "-I'm going to find master."
"-And where do you think you're going?" her body froze, not on the ice, but on a gesture from Éclair, "-remember thy place, puppet. You're nothing without me or my soul, you weren't even supposed to be alive…"
"-But master whimsically created me?" she laughed, "-I know, I was made for a purpose, whim as is, master created and birthed me, I won't, I can't, I've had enough. Unfreeze me, Éclair, threats are master's specialty, not you, not me."
"Sharp tongue of yours," he sighed jovially, tenseness between them subsided. The storm left – calmness washed the shore after the sand rose alps, Eira growled from up above, "-and she's off."
"Off to where?" arms akimbo, "-is Igna alive or dead?" she glared, "-ÉCLAIR!"
He but simply smiled, "-who am I to say?" he shrugged, "-no one knows what he thinks, really. I don't doubt his return."
"What about Yui?"
"She's going through one of her episodes; It's the third this year – she'll be back before long. Her journeys are quite the tale to behold, I wonder where she'll fly to this time."
"Cthulhu," muttered, the words fell on drunk ears. The harsh booze had the innards in relative warmth. By which, most of the innards slumbered as charcoal. Eira's barrier vanished, a glance at the drunkard prime minister didn't spawn much confidence. Cries from her babe took the attention.
Time followed into the evening, nothing much changed – all was the same. People returned from work, others headed to work, and mostly, the air felt little more than a casual breeze. The drift settled onto Rotherham's runway. A slick jet equipped for strong weather toggled its engine. The pilot, a graduate from Sotepios, and a plane made by the geniuses at Midas, her belts strapped, luggage kept to the side.
"Lady Yui, I must ask again," said a friendly air hostess, "-have you read and understood the risks this flight poses?"
"Yes," she returned, "-long as I'm there, I'll be fine."
"Understood," she shuffled for the cockpit, where the engine's thrust. '-Please be right,' her fingers crossed, '-master Julius mentioned a continent where magic and beings of old existed. The origin of demi-humans and inhabitants of Arda in general,' a map drew on her laptop, '-an area far to the west, accessible only at certain times throughout the years, a place where questions prevail more than answers. The continent of Marinda,' said a book to her side. The jet pushed, and off they were, lights blinked and an arduous trip to the famed land began. Months of planning culminated said instant; Yui's unlimited access to the Arcanum and Phantom's network allowed for quick information gathering. Her attention was drawn to the mystical continent by a book written in the early X050, a very old piece by a known voyager – Aidn of the Western Wind. The rustic, leather-bound book replaced the laptop, "-by god, our week spent on an island similar to paradise, brought on us, travelers, a hope of land for resupplying. Let it be known, many o' ships have suffered to the sea's fury, tentacles large as mountains, waves reaching the sky, fireballs falling from the heavens.. We sought in to discover the mystic land, by the many trips, tis understood the seas calm at a certain time and rages on others," she flicked the page, "-on arrival, the landscape is one straight from a fantasy novel," beside which laid an illustrated picture, "-flying island, gigantic trees, a rumbling volcano and the presence of beings we know not."