Binding Circles

Binding Circles

Part 15

Shamise

~(*)~

It was quiet, extremely quiet, and Rebecca carefully moved through the halls. The guard patrol had doubled, and the entire city was in a state of unrest. She wouldn't see her grandfather for another handful of days, and she herself was confined to only certain parts of the palace. Ritoceh was under house-arrest, and despite what Dartz had said only two days ago, she was hardly ever allowed to be in there with him.

Stupid barbarian. She cursed silently. It was that monster's entire fault. If it hadn't broken into the city and stolen Ritoceh while he was alone and defenseless, then none of this would be happening. She wished Master Dartz had just executed the monster right then and there, but the elder said he "had plans" for it. What kind of plans that could involve a barbarian, Rebecca had no idea; but she still didn't like the fact that it was still alive. Holed up in one of the dungeon cells with at least a dozen guards watching it at all times.

Something that bothered her though, was how Ritoceh reacted to his kidnapping. The teen had seemed…relieved and reassured by the monster's presence, as if he had no idea what kind of destruction it could cause. Instead of jumping at the opportunity to escape, he had gone back to help the monster. She rubbed her side, wincing at the tender, now blue, skin. He had actually hurt her in an attempt to help it.

She passed the archive, pausing only a moment to watch the scribes bustle about in normal, everyday work. Her eyes lingered at that one secluded area, where the old records were kept. She thought back to two days ago, when she and Ritoceh had showed up in this very room only to find no one there. Now, she realized why all the people were gone. They had probably heard from a passing guard that a C'intal had been spotted, and went to go check on their wives and children. The C'intal were notorious for stealing unmarried youth and spiriting them away for their own sick purposes.

Bile rose in her throat as she remembered the old scroll Ritoceh had found. Honestly, she had no idea what was in it, but she knew it was something that the scribes tended to stay away from, and she had seen master Dartz looking in a few times before. She had just thought it was some kind of spell book, since that's what he excelled in, yet it had glowed to Ritoceh's touch. It could have been a reaction to his budding seer talents, but the sudden rage and fear that had taken over her thoughts couldn't mean anything good. Seer magic was never violent, and if he had other talents then if would only react to being threatened. But she had only threatened Ritoceh after she had a grip on the scroll. She…couldn't understand it.

If they hadn't of touched that scroll, then Rebecca wouldn't have snapped at Ritoceh, he wouldn't have swam off, and this whole mess could have been avoided. She felt horrible for snapping at Ritoceh, and she wanted desperately to blame it all on that scroll. However, she knew in her heart that what she had said was what she felt deep down inside.

Furiously, she wiped away the tears that pooled at the corners of her eyes. It was all her fault. If only she had been able to contain her fears and uncertainty, then Ritoceh wouldn't be holed up in some room by himself, with his health deteriorating rapidly. She had been allowed to see him once, and the sight of him was not a good one. His arm was pussy and infected, and his skin had begun to blotch. Weren't they trying to keep him alive? She thought they needed him to be their Fyl'ic, not some rotting corpse in a pretty room.

Everything is just so wrong. She continued on past the archive, wondering where she would end up next. That C'intal had the perfect opportunity to kill me, and yet…. Rebecca slowed her swim as she worked things over in her head. And yet he didn't even try to kill me. The monster had merely thrown her away, it hadn't tried to break her neck or beat her gills like he had the guards. What had made her different? Was it because she was a girl? Or was it something else?

What if…what if the barbarians weren't so…barbaric? When she thought about it, the C'intal had fought out of necessity; it attacked the guards because the guards tried to attack it. Maybe she just hadn't been perceived as a threat? But then, why had it tried to steal Ritoceh? That fit in with their reputation, even if Ritoceh didn't seem too worried about being stolen.

This was so confusing. If the C'intal weren't as monstrous as they were depicted as, then that meant that the Council was lying to everyone. Especially Master Dartz. They all preached about that dangers of a C'intal and the best way to avoid one was to marry young and obey the laws of the Council. If they were lying about this, then what else were they lying about?

Stop it, Rebecca! She scolded herself. This is mutinous thought; you could get in big trouble for it! Just the thought of mutiny could get her in trouble, but if she acted on it….Who knew what would happen to her. Her grandfather's position as a respected scholar was not enough to give her immunity, and if she didn't show any sign of having a gift, then they could do whatever they wanted with her. Charger her with treason, banish her, feed her to the eels, there was no limit on the punishment for treason. Master Dartz, no doubt, would take great pleasure in finding her guilty, considering just how much she had screwed up lately.

As if summoned by her thoughts, Dartz appeared around the corner. He was discussing something with a trio of priests, one of them Rebecca recognized as the head of the archives. The other two much have just been lackeys, or a devoted follower since they hung on Master Dartz's every word. What was he talking about anyway?

"-would really be best to wait." The archive-priest was saying. "These kinds of things are near impossible to do even with the right conditions."

"The 'right conditions' can be made." Priest-number-two jumped in. Rebecca quietly drifted back behind a corner as the quartet slowed. Dartz kept his eyes forward, but the tilt to his head showed that he was listening. "There are some old spells that can shift nature to fit our bidding."

"That would be unwise." Archive-priest was saying. Rebecca tried to remember the old man's name. It was Tyr-something. His pepper-colored hair swayed with the light current and his dark blue-gray eyes were sharp. "We wish to keep the Fyl'ic alive, correct? And since it is a fact that the C'intal," he spat the word, "has bonded with him. That in itself is dangerous enough, with what you plan to do with it, and no matter how much you suppress that bond it won't change the result if you ignore the natural boundaries." He glanced over to Dartz, watching the man with his blue-gray eyes. "It would be best to do as the scroll says and wait for the Full Circle. It is only a few days away; surely we can hold one C'intal in place till then.

The argument was cut short as they rounded the corner and a brown-haired Muer'in barreled into Rebecca. With a squeak, Rebecca fell to the floor, rubbing her head where their craniums had connected rather harshly. With the few precious moments Rebecca used to still her throbbing head, the other Muer'in was already on his feet, ranting up a storm about 'stupid blonds.' Miffed at his rudeness, Rebecca opened her mouth to give the idiot a piece of her mind.

"What are you doing out here, Miss Rebecca?"

Oh shit…. Rebecca's tirade stopped dead before it could even start. Dartz stared at her, his eyes betraying none of the annoyance she knew he was feeling.

"S-sorry," she stammered. "I was on my way to the kitchens. I wasn't feeling good earlier…so I missed lunch." She bowed at the waist, trying to hide how her hands were shaking.

There was a pause, and Rebecca tried desperately to keep her trembling secret.

"Hurry along then. I believe the cooks have begun to light the boilers for the evening meal."

"Thank you, Master Dartz." It was all the opportunity Rebecca needed and she swam away as calmly as she could.

Something was really wrong, and Rebecca didn't know what was right and wrong anymore. She…she needed to see Yuugi.

~(*)~

It hurt, so much. It was an all-consuming green and gold fire that ripped at his entire being. Why did it hurt so much?

His body was numb, aside from the pain. He could no command his fingers to move, or his toes to wiggle. Wait, 'toes?' What were toes? They were small…and…widened out in to a fan…and…it hurt too much to think. Too many contradictions. Up was down, wet was dry, green and yellow fought for supremacy.

I…don't under…stand.

Foggy images tried to penetrate the green and yellow storm, one side trying to bring them closer, and the other trying to push them away. Why the conflict? Why did it hurt so much?

Too many questions clamored for answered he didn't have. What was his name? Yuugi, the gold light whispered; Ritoceh, the green light imposed. Why did he have two names?

Which name is real and which is fake? Were they both real? Who was she? A girl with brown hair and an infectious laugh; a girl with blond hair and serious demeanor; and the two images superimposed on the other till there was hardly any difference between them. Anzu, the gold light persuaded; Rebecca, the green light pushed. A city made of glassy blocks and a cit made of spherical cylinders, pleaded the gold light; a city made of towering spirals and hidden agendas, shouted the green light. A teen with red eyes; and a man with green and yellow eyes.

The gold light begged for a savior, and the green light demanded solitude. They both confused him, and they both hurt.

"Ritoceh." A far off voice whispered. The green light pulsed towards it, dragging him along. The gold light did not resist, but it wrapped a tight hold on him. "Ritoceh! Wake up!" The voice was familiar to the green light, and the image of the girl(s) from earlier flickered by. Anzu, Rebecca. Were they even separate people?

"Come on! Wake up!" He barely managed to open his eyes. His vision was blurred by pain, and his thoughts were almost coherent. Someone stood over him, hands pressed against his shoulders and then his face in what could only be an attempt to 'wake him up.' Blond hair cascaded down from the person's head, and blue eyes were glassy with tears.

"Re…becc..a…" he managed to whisper. His voice was a wispy thing, and he wondered if he had said anything at all. The green and gold light were fighting again, tearing away his newly acquired attention. He…he had to tell her, before-!

"-caa." He tried. "Hel…p, I…eed….A…Ate…m."

His vision and voice was swept away, and he was back in the gold and green space. Would it ever end? How long could this pain last? How long had it lasted already?

Please…somebody help me.

~(*)~

Rebecca couldn't sleep at all that night. Too many thoughts plagued her mind without any answers. She starred blankly at the ceiling, and her fingers worked wrinkles into the loose blanket that covered her. Her stomach was queasy, and the simple meal of fish had done nothing to soothe its churnings. The uneasiness eventually drove her from her bed, and she proceeded to wander the halls, trying to understand everything that was going on.

Nothing made sense, not as truly as it once had. The C'intal were evil, disgusting barbarians, and she should be celebrating the fact that this one would be executed. He'd unfairly bound Ritoceh, then abandoned him, and now expected that they handed him over with no fight? Fyl'ic or not, Ritoceh was still Muer'in and it would be wrong to just hand him over to some barbarian that couldn't take proper care of him.

But…She had gone to see him today. The guard had been on lunch break when she had snuck by and she took advantage of the opportunity. The sight of Ritoceh had been horrifying. He was thrashing in his sleep, trapped in some sort of nightmare while his arm flashed green and gold. She had tried to wake him up, and what he said when he managed to gain consciousness for a few moments caused her to second-guess everything that's been happening.

"I need Atem."She had no doubt who 'Atem' was, but the fact that Ritoceh had asked for the C'intal through his pain stunned her.

Her glare softened in confusion. But, from what she had been overhearing, it sounded like this wasn't all true. Ritoceh hadn't always been Muer'in; he'd been human. That much she knew was true. Humans were disgusting, too, and she'd heard all kinds of stories of what they were doing to the world they lived in but they had never been as…barbaric as the C'intal. Many Muer'in believed that the humans were better off left alone, and the C'intal were better off dead.

But Dartz had seen the potential in Ritoceh, and he had taken the initiative to bring him in to the city and change him. Rebecca still remembered the day he had entrusted Ritoceh into her care, promising her that this could be her 'big chance' to grow favor in the courts. Of course, that would only work if she could manage to convince the human that he had always been Muer'in. It confused her, but the offer was extremely tempting and it had been easy enough.

"Why did he want that?" Rebecca whispered, raising a hand to stare at it. Ritoceh would have been grateful to be a Muer'in instead of a human, especially when he learned how barbaric the C'intal were. So why did Dartz seal away his human memory?

Something didn't add up right. What Dartz and the priests had been talking about earlier, a sacrifice of some kind did not sound like any formal ritual she had been a witness too. The Muer'in people did not believe in sacrifices, not like the way they had been talking about it. Yes, the C'intal would be executed, but to be sacrificed? For what?

She needed answers, and she needed them soon. She had a bad feeling about what was going to happen.

Eventually, her unease drove her from her bed. She paced around her room for a bit, hoping that the movement would calm her; sadly, it did not. She wandered into the halls after that. It was early morning now, and there was no one to be seen. Memories of Ritoceh's condition earlier that day plagued her thoughts. His scales had begun to lose their color and flake, and his arm was utterly disgusting, to the point where Rebecca had almost thrown up at the sight. However, it had been Dartz's reaction to Ritoceh's condition that had thrown her into nausea and confusion.

"It's only a phase," he had said. "He'll either get over it, or he'll die. I would prefer him alive, but it does not concern me either way."

What made her even more upset was what he was taking an interest in. For all her previous concern on Ritoceh's 'education' and keeping him unbonded from the C'intal, the only thing she had heard him talk about all day was the upcoming festival in a few days. It was disconcerting, for he had never taken such an interest before, and he generally left the preparations in charge of the priests.

She paused as she passed the library and looked in. No one was in there this early; obviously they were all still asleep. She swam inside slowly, and a sudden nervousness overcame her. It was always quiet in here, but the early hour and vacancy of any life aside from her made it down right spooky. Deep, dark shadows covered the bookcases, and only the barest glow from the lanterns added any warmth to the room.

"It's so quiet," Rebecca whispered, as she swam around the room. It seemed even bigger now that she was the only person inside it. Her eyes wandered over the shelves and the assorted scrolls. There, over by the historic scrolls was a light, and she drifted over there. Curiously, she peaked around the shelves and spotted that giant book Ritoceh had been looking at before all…this happened. It was open, and the golden pages were letting off a greenish glow, similar to how it had looked a few days ago.

"What…is this thing?" she whispered. She hadn't seen any of the scholars read it before, but they must have used it often if it was in such an accessible place. Cautiously, she swam up to it. The light didn't pulse in her presence, like it had with Ritoceh, but it did glow, so that had to mean something?

The book did nothing when she reached out to touch it, and she paused a moment to see if she was feeling any different. Last time, there was this explosive anger and…fear from this book. The instant she actually touched it, however, it burst open in a flood of green light. Gasping, she stumbled back and shielded her eyes, afraid that something bad was going to strike her. She waited for several minutes, before cautiously peeking through her arms. No sea monster had sprouted from the book, and all her limbs were attached. The book was glowing a soft green and there were shimmering golden letters on its pages.

Curiosity gripped her, and she leaned forward. The letters were shifting and mutating, and an image began to form on the left page. The image appeared to be a snake of some kind, with elongated fins and wicked teeth. Her attention was drawn to the title, and she read it out loud.

"Leviathan."

~(*)~

A.N.: Sorry it took me so long! I had at least half of this typed up, but I hadn't figured a way to end it. It's kind of a filler, but I need to set up the stage for the rest of it. Thank you all for sticking with me so far! Merry Christmas!