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 Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 8:23 pm
Ilandere stirred a bit in the corner and Themba went to her side. Her eyes fluttered open and she stared for a moment, trying to process things. She looked to Themba tiredly and he gave her a weak smile.
“How long have I been asleep?” She asked.
“Twenty suns.” He said jokingly. At first her eyes widened and she tensed but when she caught the sarcasm in his voice she let out a breath.
“Don’t scare me like that.” she said flatly. Themba smiled a bit and took her hand.
“Sorry, I couldn’t help it. How’s your shoulder?”
“Hurts.” Came her simple reply, “I feel like I broke my collar-bone again. I can’t even sit up.”
Themba helped Ilandere sit up but as soon as she did so her face paled and she swayed. Themba was about to ease her back down when she grabbed his arm and shook her head. The pain was unbearable but she had to get over it if she wanted to get better.
“Ilandere you should lie down, you are still ill.” Themba said softly.
“No, Themba. Help me stand.”
“Ilandere—“
“No.” Ilandere said firmly, “Themba, help me up.”
Themba sighed worriedly and draped her arm over his shoulders. He stood slowly and noticed Ilandere become even paler, if at all possible, when they were standing. This simple task was extremely difficult for Ilandere’s weak legs and she nearly collapsed twice but was able to steady herself finally.
She looked to Izzy and Lily then noticed that there was another in the room. Someone she didn’t know or recognize. She held onto Themba’s tunic a little tighter and glared at the man.
“Who is this?” She said coldly.
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 8:48 pm
Artemis turned at the new voice. He saw Ilandere, standing there glaring at him and he slowly stood. When she tensed, he stopped and fell back down. He smiled while he pulled out the rope that contained his ring. He didn't want this Traveler to accuse him of being Saint Dane.
"My name is Artemis Xard. Or known as Xarda the Vicious, according to Loor. I am a Traveler from Second Earth. And to make things clear, I am not, I repeat, not Saint Dane. It's bad enough that Lily and Izzy accused me, I don't need another Traveler accusing me. Here's my ring if you don't believe me. If you still don't then I'll bring my laptop up here and show you all of my journals."
He returned the glare with more intensity. He leaned back against the wall and grabbed a cig. He put it in his mouth and started chewing on it. After a while he spat out the pulp and tossed it.
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 9:12 pm
“You do not need to prove to me you are not Saint Dane.” Ilandere seethed, “If you were then I would be dead by now.”
“Calm down Ilandere.” Themba said softly, “You are not in well enough shape. You shouldn’t even be standing.”
Ilandere turned her glare to Themba, “I cannot just sit around and let Saint Dane destroy my territory. You should feel the same.”
“I know Ilandere, but right now we don’t have a choice.”
Themba sat Ilandere back down, pain contorting her face. When she was back into a sitting position Themba helped her to lean against the wall for support.
“How did Artemis come to be here?” Ilandere asked.
“He says that someone wrote him something.”
Ilandere sat in thought and if anything had occurred to her then she didn’t show it. Themba soon got up and went to the other room to get Ilandere water.
After he left Ilandere kept her eyes to the ground and said, “He’s pooling us together. Saint Dane is pulling us all into the same place so he can keeps us here or kill us. He’s not after Zadaa just yet. He’s throwing a loop so we’ll follow and get trapped. Then He’ll move onto Third Earth. We have to get out of here.”
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Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 10:05 am
"What are you saying?" Lily asked desperatly. "Are you saying..." Abruptly she stood and started for the door. "Jake. He needs our help. He'd have written back if the other Travelers were there. WE have to get to Third Earth!"
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Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 3:40 pm
Artemis sat up quickly. "He's after Third Earth? How do you know."
He jumped up and started to pace irritably.If that's the case, he thought, then why are we here? Why did he pool us all in Zadaa? Why not something more dangerous, like Quillan, or Eelong. He has an advantage in those territories. He shook his head.
"If you know, then why are we here?"
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Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 5:46 pm
Izzy jumped into the conversation. "Hobey guys!" She said, trying to get them to be quiet for a second. "Lily, I thought we agreed that you would stay till you were better. We can't go making fast descisions. Let's talk about this first."
She glanced a weary eye toward the pacing Artemis.
"Maybe Saint Dane is pooling us together, but I think we can figure something out instead of freaking out about it. Ilandere could be right. Maybe he is. Artemis' arival is unexpected."
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Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 8:15 pm
"I agree completely. But what are we going to do? I mean, yeah, we have to go to Third Earth. But the question is when? When we are all at full strength? That, in my opinion, is the most logical choice. But as we wait here, healing up, Saint Dane has more time to screw us over in Zadaa, while he terrorizes Third Earth. But, if we go now, we will be handicapped. Either way we will have severe problems at hand."
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Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 10:35 am
Lily sat back down and put her head in her hands. Now that the need for them on Zaada was being questioned, the pull of home was even stronger, even if she wasn't fully healed. Bruises dont' matter when you're working with computers. But she couldn't leave her friends, and Ilandere still wasn't ready to come.
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Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 4:18 pm
Ilandere’s brow was furrowed in thought. Maybe . . . no, he’s clever and that would be too easy. What about . . .?
“I don’t understand.” She said, “It seems like the breaking point on Zadaa is so close. Why would he change territories at such a crucial time?”
Ilandere followed Lily’s suit and put her head in her hands. She sat silently for a couple moments trying to figure things out when she noticed Themba hadn’t come back yet. What could have taken him so long? He was only going to get water.
There was noise in the other room and Ilandere pushed herself up the wall to stand. Her other arm hung uselessly at her side as she made her way around the corner. This took more than she thought it would and this simple task was incredibly difficult. She rounded to corner to the next room and nearly fainted because of what she saw.
There was Saint Dane standing over a huddled figure on the ground. He didn’t even appear to have received any injury and was as menacing as ever. A pool of blood was forming rapidly around the figure on the floor and his white tunic was crimson. He was bent doubled over with a knife in his gut and chest.
“Themba!” Ilandere shouted. She knelt next to him with a sudden returned strength and laid him back. His eyes were glazed over and blood was dripping from his mouth.
“I heard about your little conference and thought I’d join in and shed some light on the topic." Siant Dane seethed, "You’re wrong Ilandere. The turning point here won’t come for a long while. Third Earth is nearer than all to its turning point and all this time you’ve been here on Zadaa. No, Ilandere, I’m not here to run Zadaa into chaos, not just yet. Zadaa was all about you. I told you one had to die, and you let it be him. I was here to kill him. Guess what? That job is done and it’s time for me to move on.”
“You . . . you monster.” Ilandere cried, tears rolling freely down her cheeks. She remained bent over Themba, not looking to Saint Dane.
“I’m sorry, Ilandere.” He grinned cruelly, “But the truth is the truth, and this is the way it was meant to be. Unless . . .”
Ilandere looked into Saint Danes cold eyes unflinchingly and glared, “Unless what?!”
Saint Dane gave an evil chuckle and said, “You can save him. You always could have. Just say the word and he will be there for you forever. You will see him tomorrow, and the next day, and the next year. You will see him on your wedding day. Just say the word. But with this comes the understanding of what I expect in return . . .”
Ilandere felt someone touch her hand. She looked down and saw Themba look to her gravely, his face pale, his lips stained with his own blood.
“No, Ilandere. Don’t,” he rasped, “It’s not worth it. Think of all the people you will hurt. Think of Izzy, Lily, and your father. Think of me.”
“How touching,” Saint Dane said mockingly, “Yes, Ilandere, think of them, but also think of me. I could give you Zadaa. I could give you whatever you wanted. You could have Halla wrapped around your little finger. You could have everything imaginable, and you would have Themba there with you. All it takes is one . . . simple . . . word . . .”
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Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 4:31 pm
Artemis walked over to Lily and sat down next to her. With a fatherly concern he put his arm around her.
"Guys. We need to figure out when we will go. Lily seems to be aching to go home, as are we all in some way. But instead of just that, Saint Dane is probably there. I say those of us that are strongest should go first. Then the rest should heal up and then follow suit. I don't who else is fully healed, but I know I am. Plus, I think the flumes help us heal faster. But you know what? I'll go to Third Earth now, then you guys can follow later. Deal?"
Artemis left before anyone could answer. He left soon because he didn't want to chicken out. Facing Saint Dane again was hard enough, but now he has to do it alone. He realized that it was futile to think of the negativity. He reached the flume just fine. When he went down the first thing he did was open his laptop and write, It seems to me that the other Travelers do not trust me well. But who could blame them? I appear suddenly and they think I'm Saint Dane. I'm a little terrified at the aspect of being placed in the same league of that hellion. He closed up the laptop and pulled out his lighter. With a grin, Artemis slipped a cig into his mouth and lit it. He took a puff and enjpyed the taste of nicotine and such.
But he forgot his pack of cigs back in Loor's house. So he went up and returned to see Ilandere slip into the other room. He quietly followed her and saw Saint Dane, in the flesh, standing over Themba. He started to gape.
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 8:04 am
Lily looked up, and noticed that Themba and Ilandere were gone.. "Izzy, where'd they go?" she asked desperatly. Before her friend could answer, she heard the voice of someone all to familiar in the other room.
"It's Saint Dane! He's here!" Lily whispered to Izzy. She got up and ran towards the other room. She the demon Traveler, along with Ilandere and Themba, who was lying on the ground, blood gushing from his wounds. "Themba! Ilandere!" She cried, and without thinking, rushed to her fallen friend.
((OOO! Let's see what happens now. Lily, stop getting yourself into trouble, why don't you??? EDIT: Sorry, Je suis. I fixed it.))
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 8:33 am
((Yeah, Lily, your gonna get shot . . . or something like that. Erm . . . now what should I write next? I'm having a block xp ))
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 11:07 am
((I have no idea either.))
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 1:35 pm
Artemis ran back to the other room and picked up a stave. He went back to the other room and stood behind Saint Dane.
"Hey Saint Dane, knock knock." Saint Dane turned around and Artemis crushed the stave against Saint Dane's head. He pulled everyone off the ground except for Themba. "We need to leave, now!"
He picked up Themba, quickly, yet carefully. He ran out of the room without jarring Themba, and nodded to Izzy for them to leave. He took off in the direction of the flume. He got there undistracted. He set down Themba, and started to tend to his wounds.
He started singing, "Memories consume, like opening the wound, I'm picking me apart again. You all assume I'm safe here in my room, unless I try to start again. I don't want to be the one the battles always choose, but inside I realize, that I'm the one confused. I don't know what's worth fighting for or why I have to scream. I don't know why I instigate and say what I don't mean. I don't know how I got this way, I know it's not alright. So I'm Breaking the Habit. Tonight."
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 2:42 pm
((Erm, guys, where did the head wound come from? He was stabbed in the chest and stomach. Maybe someone read something wrong xp ))
Themba was going to die. There was nothing they could do for him now but make him comfortable. No one bled that much and lived. Never. The knife in his chest had pierced a lung though the knife in his abdomen had amazingly missed any organs, buying him a little more time.
“Ilandere . . .” he gasped, his vision failing him, “Don’t cry, Ilandere. I’m here, I’m here.”
“No, Themba,” she sobbed, “You can’t die. You shouldn’t have to die! Not now! You can’t leave me, Themba, please, you can’t.”
Ilandere draped herself over Themba, avoiding his wounds. She cried into his blood stained tunic as he held her weakly.
“Ilandere, look at me.” He said, lifting her to face him, “If I were m-meant to live than I would. Things h-happen for a reason. Don’t cry, Ilandere, don’t cry for me.”
“Themba, please . . .”
“Ilandere, you c-cannot save Halla alone. Do not fight alone. There are people who love you right here, I am n-not the only one. Let them help you.”
Ilandere took Themba’s hands, tears flooding down her face, “Why can’t I save you?”
Themba looked deeply into her eyes with what he had left and said, “Because it was the way it was meant to be . . . I love you, Ilan—“ and he was gone.
Ilandere found that she couldn’t cry anymore. She sat next to Themba staring at him. Her mind locked and her breathing became shallow as she went into shock. He was gone. He was actually gone. And she let him die.
She let him go.
((OMG. I . . . am . . . a murderer! *sob*))
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