Heirot

Mizuki answered meekly, "Yes." and that was it. She was still struggling with the jealousy she was feeling. She never felt this way with Luc....

Mayn thought for a moment, oblivious to Mizuki's anger and jealousy. She was trying to devise a way out of the barrier... Soran was connected to Reya; she knew that much. She recognized the trace of her magic on him the moment she met him. She's recognize that aura anywhere; cold and powerful. If Mizuki was connected to him strongly enough, there was a chance they could break through her defenses using Soran as a medium. All they had to do was shoot a bolt of energy through her defenses at a moment when her focus was sub-par, and the barrier would weaken and become brittle enough to break through. It would take a lot of power though...

"I might know a way out of here," she said to Mizuki.

Mizuki narrowed her eyes dangerously and sideglanced her. "Oh really?" she was only wary because Mayn used to be one of Reya's minions. But since now that she was in there with them, and she hadn't attacked them out of rage since getting trapped with them... well, the line of trusting her and not trusting her was blurred.

Siren pulled out her sleeping blanket from the pouch vortex and wrapped it around Rai to keep her warm. She stroked the hair off of her face gently, in a soothing manner. Staying awake was probably the safer, although far less comfortable, path to take.

She looked up and glared daggers at the man who had pretended to be their ally.

Rai sighed and rested weakly against Siren. She kept her eyes on Soran, though she couldn't hear or understand what was going on. She didn't think at the moment she wanted to know what was going on.

Jhaptal just stood back, watching Reya do whatever she was doing before she killed the elf. He had heard the sound of electricity running through a body a bit after he entered the room, and it came from the direction of the barrier. He gathered that it was someone who was disgruntled with him due to the timing. Of course, he didn't know who it was, perhaps somebody that came to free Soran to spite him.

Mayn nodded at Mizuki, ignoring her skeptical tone. "I have the power to send a bolt of energy directly into someone's nervous system as an attack. Against Reya, normally that attack couldn't work, because her external defenses are so great. But if someone were already past them, someone who shared a link with her psyche, that would present a loophole. That guy, he's connected to her. I have no clue why she would be careless enough to leave herself open that way, but I smell her magic all over him. Through you and him, I could attack her. It wouldn't be enough to kill her, but it would frazz out her arcane focus for a while." She looked at Mizuki eagerly. "If you connect me to him, I can do it!"

Of course, following that logic, a connection like the one she was talking about would make it just as easy to fry Mizuki or Soran instead, or everyone at the same time.

Mizuki thought it over. She wasn't that knowledgable with magic. She didn't weight out each possibility, instead she agreed. She stood up and told Soran what they were going to try.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked Mayn at the same time, knowing Soran would be wary.

OOC: let's move guys! I leave for a week in 5 days!

Reya’s fingers stroked Soran’s abdomen thoughtfully, exploring his muscles, the texture of his skin. She had never been able to touch him like this. If he’d been able to move, she knew he would strike her away, but that just made her more determined to stay in contact with him. Her hands and eyes trailed back up to his face, and she was surprised by what she found there. She’d expected fear or anger, but what she saw instead was wary fascination. “You know something,” he said firmly, calmly. “About me.”

Reya cocked her head sideways. “I do. Do you want it back?”

“No. I want you to get the hell off of me,” he returned, voice warping back into anger; dangerous, black anger.

Reya grinned, touching his face. “Are you sure?” she whispered. She ran two slender fingers along his upper lip and slid them into his mouth, stroking his chin with her thumb. She bit back a gasp as his teeth closed down fiercely over her skin, crushing to the bone. She’d half known it was what he would do. Maybe she’d wanted him to. It gave her the last bit of resolve she needed. She clenched her other hand tightly over the scar on his stomach, and he let go, vivid green freezing into her like ice.

* * * * *

Mayn grinned in relief at Mizuki’s acceptance. For just an instant, she was jealous that Jhaptal had been sent to be their friend undercover instead of her. She could have liked these people. Then again, that wasn’t what undercover was for, she thought. “Great! Just focus on me for a few moments, and I’ll be able to jump from your aura to Soran’s, to Reya’s.” She worked on making her essence solid and open, so that Mizuki could find it and connect to it without too much work.

Suddenly, her focus fell. A powerful magical force from outside the barrier had distracted her. Glancing outside the cell, she saw that the rune circle around Soran was beginning to glow brilliantly. “Uh oh,” she said faintly, awed by the massive power.

Reya looked into Soran’s eyes, a sad ache lying in hers. “I’m tired of carrying your scars, Soran. Want them or not, it’s time to take them back.” She leaned in and pressed her lips to his.

Soran felt the contact like a shock, feeling instantly that something was extremely wrong. Power that wasn’t his was surging through him, scalding into his brain like acid. He groaned against her lips, unable to move away. More and more energy poured through the link, increasing the pressure until it felt like an unseen force was crushing his head. The runes on the floor burst to life, leaping into the air in beams of green and swirling around them both.

For a dread moment that was stuck in time, Soran felt Mizuki’s presence in his mind, and struck out for that truth and the image of her, and Rai and Siren and everything that he called reality. Then the pressure broke all at once, and in every way that counted at the moment, his head exploded.

Reya pulled back from Soran’s lips as a raw, agonized cry tore from his throat. She released her hold on him, and he collapsed to his knees, hands flying instantly to his head. Soran felt pain like he’d never experienced, and then, the images came. At first they were just pictures, and then every other sense as well as his entire life played at hyperspeed before him. Himself as a boy, his parents, his name, mining, thirst, fighting, killing, loving, hoping, failing, being betrayed, pain, being betrayed, being betrayed, green light…

He was too awed to make a sound, or even to breathe, unable to think or do anything but ride the wreckage of his past like a tidal wave until it finally broke over him. When it did, he screamed from the bottom of his lungs, eyes clenched tight. He curled forward and leaned on one forearm, hand clenched in a tight first while the other held fast to his forehead. He couldn’t think, or control his thoughts at all. He wanted to tear himself out of his body and get rid of the truth that was crushing his mind. He wanted to scream until it drowned out the screams of the hundreds he’d killed and the false words of those he’d loved.

They were too late. Mizuki was so sure his death was happening right before her eyes as she watched him scream in agony. She could hear his screams in her mind. Then finally, the wave of his old memories over took her. Her legs buckled and she fell. She was in so much shock of what was flashing in her mind that she could only curl up and stare in horror.

Death, pain, loss... there was nothing truely happy in his past. He was indeed, a battle scarred warrior who had endured so much feeling at one point but bottle it away. This was why he looked so lost to Mizuki, that he knew but didn't know, and why he was distant.

'Rhen...', she called out. Because of the flood in her mind she couldn't place how she knew that name instantly, but later she could take a guess. "RHEN!" she cried out for real. Now she was confused, did she know him by Soran... or Rhen? 'Rhen.... Soran....' He needed her by his side, that's all she tried to be aware of. Everything else can get sorted out later, now it wasn't important.

Just now...

In her hands she could feel him. Her desire to go to him was so strong that she could feel herself holding him now. With that knowledge, she pushed aside the pain of the flood of memories not hers in her head, and concentrated on Soran.

"Mayn!" she called out to get her attention. It felt like a dragon was roaring in her mind. "Do it now Mayn!"

Mayn wasn't sure what was going on. Mizuki seemed to know more about it than she did. The elf looked like he'd just been struck by lightning, but she was fairly certain the spell had just been some kind of seal break. At any rate, she called herself to task, tapping into the powerful mental energy Mizuki had just connected to her. She plunged into Soran's power, almost losing her way in the link. It was completely chaotic, like navigating in a hurricane. Somehow she found Reya's energy and honed in on it, and when she made it into Reya's mind it was also far more chaotic than she'd ever expected the inside of Reya's mind could be. What the heck was going on? Regardless, she closed her eyes and began gathering energy for the spell. Don't break the contact no matter what, she thought to Mizuki.

Reya looked down at the rogue braced against the floor, feeling a lightness after finally unburdening herself of the strong weight binding his memories put on her. She pulled two gold bracelets from her robe and looked at them. "These are unique. You've certainly made some interesting friends," she said, fingering the edge of the metal. "You won't be needing these again." She placed his armblades back in her robe. Now it was time to finish it. She was finally unburdened. She raised her hand up and a long dagger of shimmering gold materialized in her hand. "Goodbye, Soran," she said, lifting it up.

Mizuki refused to break contact. She hoped Mayn would be quick with what she was going to do. She could see Reya getting ready to plunge into Soran. Mizuki tried to get him up.

Soran...Rhen, I know it hurts..but please... you have to move. Reya's going to kill you!

Soran cringed at the voice in his head, wanting it out. It was as if he couldn't even recognize it. His past and present realities were muddled, and he hadn't yet resolved the two. All he knew was that the voice was important, and he didn't want anything to be important. He didn't want to care about anyone. Trusting people hurt too much. But his instincts still picked up the meaning of the words; danger, above him.

His eyes flashed open and looked up at Reya's, cold enough to burn. The blade came down, and his hand shot up to stop it. He grabbed her wrist and twisted it; the blade fell to the ground. Reya looked stunned. He couldn't have recovered that quickly unless someone had helped him focus his thoughts. Who could have done that?

Her eyes narrowed as she realized what might be happening, remember the odd power she'd sensed in Mizuki. So she was connected to him...no sooner had the repercussions of that fact dawned on her than she felt an arc of lightning stagger her backwards. Soran's hand let go and allowed her to stumble away. She yelped as energy raced through her head and paralyzed her. She went to summon a warding spell, but her magic would not respond to her call. As easily as it had been erected, the barrier around Mizuki and the others weakened to a fragile shell that could burst with one solid blow.

The barrier was faded. Mizuki tested it with her hand just to make sure, and nothing shocked her. She smirked and congradualted Mayn. She stood up stronger again. Her mind flood was still there, but like distant back noise. She had to be strong...

"Soran..." she whispered to herself then reared her fist back, summoning whatever seer power she had to shatter it. When her fist made contact it broke and sounded as if she had shattered glass.

As soon as the shields were down, Mayn levitated and flew in front of Jhaptal. "Jhaptal, Reya abandoned me! She threw me in that cell!" she said, like a little sister appealing to her brother for defense.

Reya stepped slowly backward, the cold glare in Soran's eyes making her afraid of him. She kept seeking her magic, but it wouldn't focus.

Soran was putting forth every ounce of effort not to show his pain. It wasn't safe to let them see. He would not be made vulnerable. He couldn't trust anything but himself. But when he tried to move, he sank down again, his head pounding. Struggling to overcome it, he grabbed the blade Reya had dropped and held it warningly, telling her not to come near him. Reya retreated to the side of the room, behind Jhaptal.