Finding Caidence

___“Why did this thing have to be buried in such tough clay! It better be worth a lot after all that effort!”
___“So what do you think it is?”
___“I dunno, but Dr. Sacred might...”
___“Yeah, let‘s go show him!”
___Moments later both young research assistants were standing before Siren with anxious expressions. Even with his gentle smile he still made them uneasy, his statuesque beauty almost unnatural. Noticing them he quickly finished his business with Thirteen to properly address them.
___“So, what can I do for the two of you?” Siren welcomed then, his turquoise eyes sparkling benignly.
___“We just found something we think might be important!”
___“Yeah, it‘s some sort of silver capsule?”
___“Really now, let‘s take a look then,” Siren exclaimed, his calm never wavering as they unwrapped the recent find. His pale slender fingers expertly caressed the surface, his keen eyes detecting the nearly imperceptible line of demarcation running it’s length. One smooth motion had the device sliding open, two astonished gasped falling from the assistants lips as a tight hiss sounded out.
___“So what do we have here?” Siren breathed, carefully inspecting the contents. The inside was filled with what some sort of white cloth, a protective cushion it seemed for a small grungy dark blue pellet.
___“It‘s a rock?!” one of them blurted confused.
___“The ancients had air tight containers for their special rocks?” the second research assistant commented equally baffled.
___“I‘m as surprised as you but I venture to guess it‘s a seed.” Siren explained, tilting the container left and right for further inspection.
___“Must‘ve been a highly prized plant for it to be carried like that.”
___“Yeah, I wonder what kind it was? We should do a comparative analysis to find out!”
___“Actually I think I’m just going to plant it.” Siren decided, sliding the casing closed. “Now that it‘s been compromised by the atmosphere I hate to lose it‘s germinating potential by putting it through a lengthy analysis.”
___“Oh, I guess you‘re right…”
___“Do you want me to take it to the Hydroponics Lab?”
___“No, I‘ll take care of it myself. Why don‘t you continue your dig in the plot site. Hopefully there‘s more where this came from.”
___“Yes Sir, we‘ll get right on it!”
___“And thank you for your diligence with this project. I appreciate everything you‘ve done to help me.”
___“There are hundreds of people who would kill to be here. It‘s an honor Dr. Sacred.”
___“I feel like your praise is a bit unwarranted but I hope this assignment stays in such high regard among my assistants.” Siren demurred, smiling gently once more. His expression was so beautiful it literally took both assistants breath away, each stupefied into silence as he walked away.
---------
___“Legato?” Siren breathed, surprised to find her in the Hydroponics Lab. It’s expansive structure resembled a true Urth garden more than anything and she was obviously taking advantage.
___“I know,” Legato sighed exasperated, rolling her eyes. The crew had been griping all afternoon about her lazing. “I really don‘t have anything better to do.”
___Siren couldn‘t help but chuckle, appreciatively taking in the long lines of her supple body stretched across the lounge chair. Her usual form fitting combat attire- which was sinfully delightful in itself -was now replaced by an even more tantalizing deep purple swimsuit. It was entirely one piece but split erotically down the center with revealing curves along the sides. Her pert round breast were proudly displayed for a certainty.
___“I apologize for the lack of excitement my dear.” Siren laughed. “Tis better to err on the side of caution I‘m afraid…”
___“My kittens are sleeping under the Hydrangeas if that‘s any indication of how much erring is involved here.” Legato informed her client as if to drive home her point.
___“Well that‘s most certainly a first, but if they can rest I know there‘s nothing to fear.”
___“Absolutely nothing,” Legato pouted, stretching with a small moan before rolling over to let the artificial sunlight warm her back. One smooth flick of her head removed the glistening blanket of raven hair from her back, showcasing her curvaceous body. A ludicrously slim waste tapered into two thick thighs and a perfect bubble of a rump. It was almost distracting, but Siren was no stranger to her beauty. In fact he didn’t give it more than a passing thought as he turned to leave.
___“Enjoy your rest while you can,” Siren recommended, leaving Legato and her 'kittens' behind. It was time to see if his new seed would germinate.

Soul Theory

I, don’t… want to die Caidence-
(sighs. Looks up at Ezmeralda)
Even with everything I can do...
(looks back down at the water)
I don’t care! I still want to live, to feel everything there is to feel.
Is life really worth it?
(Looks at Caidence bewildered) How can you say that? Of course life is worth it! Doesn’t Siren complete you... I know you love him.
I do love him, with all my heart… but, if the only way I can offer him peace is to die-
(Forms a tear out of anger) You idiot! Siren knew your risk. He could of turned around anytime he wanted to. He chose to follow his path! You merely kept him alive along the way.
Either way we can’t stop it, no matter what we want. In the end we’re always going to be simple plants, created only to wither and die. Just our existence proves nothing last forever…
The universe is always changing. Stars die, planets crumble, but they are reborn into new stars and planets. Life and death are an endless cycle, so why- why should we be any different. If we truly are Destruction and Creation embodied, shouldn’t we live forever as well.
You know it can never be that simple. We aren’t Destruction and Creation. We’re works of foolish people. Foolish people who tried to personify the cycles of the universe. We’re nothing more than a failed project with no purpose. Does it really matter if we die? Can, you tell me if we’re even alive to begin with?
I can’t, but I can tell you I don’t want to die. I don’t want to cease to exist and lose all the memories I’ve gained. I want to continue to love… to laugh, cry, fear, and- and everything else!
That’s just it. What we want doesn’t matter. We aren’t real people nor entitled to their emotions. Just the few memories we’ve gained are more than we deserve. Our purpose is to kill them... to create something better from their remains. Doesn’t death seems like a fitting reward for that?
Our purpose doesn’t matter! Just because we can doesn’t mean we have to. So far we’ve only done good. Shouldn’t there be some kind of reward for that? Shouldn’t we get something for being... righteous? Anything?
Like our bodies our fates were manufactured. We have. no. choice.

To See Again, and Know Anew

---13---
___“I thought we discussed this.”
___“You don‘t have to actually eat it,” Brian calmly assured his master. “It‘s purely for my own personal enjoyment.”
___“I’ll never understand your fascination with these bizarre traditions.” Winston sighed, shaking his head at the inelegant brown paper sack being extended to him.
___“Is it the bag, cause I thought about getting you a Poke‘mon lunch box?”
___A stoic stare was all Brian received in reply.
___“Oh come on, it‘s just some cheese wontons,” Brian sighed, smiling cheekily as Soketsu snatched the offering and stalked off. After two hundred years even the dullest of fools could figure out what foods the Great Shaman preferred.
___Today he was officially starting school though, albeit a few months later than everyone else in the 10th grade. He looked like a young prince, posture perfect and clothes uniquely foreign but beautiful all the same. At five foot three he was short even for the youths in his supposed age range, but hopefully he could work that to his advantage.
___Brian had only jokingly referred to him riding the bus back and fourth to Cimmerian High, which was met with a wave of power so cold and dark he wondered if his master ever put any value in his life. Soketsu could switch between playful doting and menacing rage so quickly Brian had given up on trying to track his moods.
___Still, they were both about to embark on a new existence, Brian’s small musty office patiently awaiting his arrival. His degree in Psychology and Sociology would serve him well as the new Guidance Counselor.
---14---
___Now of all the moments shared between them this was probably the only one in all of recorded history that didn’t appear to be anything other than ordinary. The tense line of the boy’s mouth, his eyes furious and steps a bit too forceful spoke volumes. He was small, adorably tiny even, and that meant he was likely the target of someone’s cruel attention. It wasn’t hard to assume he was the unfortunate tool a gangly bully had chosen to briefly forget their many teenage insecurities. It was all the more plausible when he barged his way into the new guidance counselor’s office.
___“I‘m done.” Soketsu dryly proclaimed, eyes locked on the back of Banyu’s head, further irritated by the grin he was yet to actually see.
___“You got here late, and the noon bell just rang for lunch…” Brian laughed, “Please tell me you‘re not finished with this charade already.”
___“My mind isn‘t capable of sustaining all this! I feel like I can‘t even breathe surrounded by all these chained mongrels.”
___“And here I am debating where to put all the family portraits?”
___“Banyu,” Winston commanded, wiping the jovial smirk of his servant’s face. “The emotional torrent is sweeping me away. Can‘t you feel it, the repression biting at your skin? There‘s just so much desire here, frustration and rage… It‘s a wonder there isn’t an orgy of blood every day?”
___“They‘re teenagers,” Brian stated matter-of-factly. “Did you honestly expect something else?”
___“…no.”
___“So what really brings you here then?”
___“I‘m here… because you‘re bored.”
___“Oh really, is that it?”
___“Yes, yes it is.” Winston smiled, mischief sparkling in his green eyes. “After all this time you don‘t think I wouldn‘t be able to single your frustrations out from the rest. My breaking point is you it seems?”
___“Well, I can‘t say my day has been quite as eventful as yours, but surely nothing to worry over.”
___“Nonsense. You know I never worry.” Sokestu chided. “Still, I feel this problem of yours warrants my attention. You have been such a good boy about this after all.”
___Brian merely arched a skeptical brow. He could never tell if his master was toying with him when he dangled such obvious compliments.
___“I think it‘s time we played a new game. How about you let me serve you for awhile? As long as we‘re here I‘ll answer only to you.”
___“Agreed.” Banyu breathed, always quick to accept such lies, fully aware this ploy would grant him no true power. Still, he would take it for what it was. “I would ask you to get me food, but I think I’d rather play now that you‘ve given me the option.”
___Soketsu only shrugged, already content with where this would end. It was a much desired distraction and the added possibility of real pain held a certain allure to it after all this time.
___“Come here, and let‘s see just how subservient you can be.”
---15---
___Frustratingly… tangy? For a supposedly nonexistent scent, the surgically sterile smell of fresh latex was actually beginning to truly irk Soketsu. Now, normally he could simply tune the world out, especially in this class, but for some idiotic reason the lab today required those nasty off-white hospital gloves. The pungent aroma was practically assaulting him, a faint snarl beginning to shape his mouth as he turned his attention to the cause. He wasn‘t even wearing them and still they irritated him. Even the sound annoyed him, the rubbery stretching squelch they made with every gesture. He’d be lucky if he didn’t end up massacring the entire class, or at least just that pompous bastard of a teacher.
___“Can you believe this thing is still alive?!” Zach exclaimed, grinning excitedly as he pinned the last slimy fold of skin down. “Look, it’s heart is going crazy!”
___He looked around the table for confirmation only to find Winston looking down at his hands with a look of the purest contempt. He couldn’t help but doubt himself for a moment, breathing a small sigh of relief when the small transfer student finally returned to just staring out the window. At almost twice the kid’s size he shouldn’t have even cared but something about him…
___“It’s gross!” Ashley grimaced, missing the moment entirely as she read her most recent text message. The neon yellow cell phone in her lap was definitely more important.
___“It‘s awesome, what‘re you talking about?” Zach laughed nervously, pushing Winston from his mind. He flashed a small smile as Ashley rolled her eyes without even a brief pause in her texting.
___“It feels kinda weird cutting him open while he‘s blinking at us though…” Ryan admitted, leaning in to take a closer look. “Hey lil buddy, how you feeling?”
___“You‘re so dumb baby,” Ashley sighed, grinning as she finally slid her phone closed. She had a whole seven seconds before it‘d be time to reply.
___“It‘s technically still humane since the sedatives don‘t allow the frog to feel any pain.” Jimmy quietly explained, his eyes never leaving the lab notes on the table as he wrote down the group findings. “We need to remove the intestines now.”
___“I hate Biology…” Ahsley muttered, glancing once more at the somehow solitary figure on the outskirts of their group.
___Soketsu sat confined to the communal desk, staring lazily out the same window he did everyday, head supported on his elbow as Mr. Phineas droned on further about amphibian biology. Currently, he was immersed in a ‘group’ project, clearly doing nothing but not bothered in the least for it. In fact, the beautiful ‘popular’ kids around him and the one socially awkward genius he’d chosen to adopt his workload all felt lucky to even be able to share the time with him. Somehow over the last two months he’d become ‘popular’ himself, a mysterious prince among the common and revered accordingly. At any rate the culmination of his work sat around him, the four students pulled into his inner circle of… friends, if they could even be called that?
___They all had their limited uses and the list broke down like this: Ashley Aquinas -a Water Sprite if Soketsu had ever seen one- with her radiant waist length blonde hair, crystalline blue eyes and the smallest red lips imaginable; Drama Club President and Chorus super star. Her talent seemed limitless and beauty unfair, much like her boyfriend Ryan Geolechski, which should have been a mouthful but instead was a sort of school mantra. Everyone said his full name, chanted it in the halls, and roared it in the bleachers for whatever sport he happened to be playing. The fact he was male perfection didn’t hurt either, his smile the kind of magic that lulled entire conversations to silence. Then there was the eternally smiling Zach Watkinson, the Indian Irish mix that kept every single class falling on the floor with laughter. He just happened to be darkly handsome himself even if rather skinny compared to the hulk of Ryan. Soketsu had made sure to have the sophomore beauty queen, varsity sensation, and class clown in his pocket along with the lesser needed up-and-coming valedictorian Jimmy San. In short, Jimmy could get the information no one else cared to have, and with the four Soketsu would find out what was so damn important for him to be here. He’d been having strange nudges at his lines of fate for quite some time and they all pointed at this particular moment. Something was going to happen here and now that changed the very fabric of his existence. He highly doubted it revolved around the sedated frog being dissected beside him though, and therefore didn‘t even bother to notice the Jimmy’s secretive gawking.
___What he did notice was the small girl walking to the administration office across the courtyard with a giant manila folder in her hands. She wasn’t exactly extraordinary, or at least from what little Soketsu could tell at this distance. Still he couldn’t take his eyes off her entranced by the subtle red glare of her dark brown hair. It was fashioned simply in a high ponytail with a sweeping bang across her forehead, the length reaching her lower back and ending in a gentle curl. She walked with reluctant steps, her pace unhurried and if possible… heartbreaking? It all seemed so familiar, and as she disappear into the main office Soketsu found himself truly excited for the first time in a century and for no reason he could even begin to imagine.
___He just, wanted her…

Judgement: Absolute

____Jeremy couldn’t begin to know how many times he’d waited in this dismal room, sat in this particular chair just on the edge of the solitary lantern’s flickering light in this regrettably familiar silence. The steady scratching of a black quill against brown parchment was the only sound to be heard, well besides his father’s occasional strained cough and sputter. It was a tradition Jeremy never understood, content to simply comply night after night with his father‘s desire for his presence never once asking the question why. It was an implied contest of will, both waiting for the other to concede defeat with the few words that mattered and so neither spoke. Jeremy wouldn’t ask why he was always called here and his father wouldn’t tell him.
____Looking up, the sharp pointed features of his father’s face were somehow more imposing than usual, the sole lantern behind him casting harsh dark shadows about his crimson eyes as he worked. The effect was fitting considering he was unquestionably the most powerful man alive. His father literally ruled the whole world with terror, but even he had weaknesses. Time- the only thing he couldn’t control -was slowly taking its toll, his aging body breaking down under the stress of a rigorous life. His obsidian helmet and armor may have hidden his growing frailty from the world, but here in his private chambers in the eyes of his eldest child he was dying. Even still, he was no less terrifying, the threat of excruciating death lingering around him like a tangible dark mist. No one crossed the Judge Adonai, least of all his son.
____Bored and drifting, slumped in his chair, Jeremy looked every bit like a child compared to the supreme ruler before him. At twenty one he was very much a man though, but that meant nothing in the eyes of his father. All that mattered was his willingness to continue the rule of the Ordained Judges, and in this one matter he was deficient.
____"Do you know what I’m working on son?”
____The question seemed to come out of nowhere, Jeremy looking up to find his father still intently writing away. “Uh, no father…”
____“It is an Edict of Life.”
____The answer did nothing for Jeremy. He still had no idea what it really was and honestly didn’t care. The only ‘dick’ he cared about was his own.
____Sighing, his father finally looked up, laying down his black quill with a stern and borderline malicious glare at his child. Was it really asking too much for his son to show any interest in ruling the world? Could maintaining the prominence and power of his people really be that terrible? He’d devoted his entire life to maintaining the current world order, and here his son sat before him without the zeal to even know what an Edict of Life was.
____After years of merely hoping his son would let go of his childish dreams it was time to force him to comply. His reign was drawing to a close, a fact he couldn’t afford to ignore any longer. The next generation would have to see Jeremy as its god. He would be the only law, his judgment irrevocable.
____“There is a small outlying colony that seeks to oppose me… to oppose us. My son, even you can understand the gravity of this. The Judges’ rule is absolute and that is why I am writing this Edict of Life.”
____“You‘re going to give them a chance to survive then?” Jeremy asked hopeful, finally perking up in his chair. “I‘m sure once they know revolt is pointless they’ll give up!”
____“You‘re right,” his father sighed, “Everyone around them will give up once they see revolt is pointless. This edict is for everyone within two days travel of Errata Colony. Once their destroyed we must rebuild faith in our promise of protective grace to the other settlements. I‘m going to remind them what it takes to avoid similar Oblivion.”
____“Wha-wait, so you‘re just going to kill everyone there?!” Jeremy stuttered, shocked at his father’s calm words. He spoke of killing hundreds like it was nothing.
____“Yes.” his father coolly answered. “Swift decisive action is the only course they have left me.”
____If Jeremy paid any attention he might have noticed the subtle regret in his father’s tone, but his mind was too wrapped up in the massacre about to happen. He didn’t know much about Errata Colony- or anything at all really -but he correctly assumed it wasn’t just a small group of revolutionist. There were children, mother’s and elderly souls, animals and even plants that deserved better than the destruction his father was about to bring. He firmly believed no living thing should ever be touched by their power. His weak morality wouldn’t allow it.
____“Rise, it’s high time you joined me in the Tower.” his father decided, deep black cape unfurling around his slender body as he stiffly stood. For a short moment he resembled a demon, feeble body masked by the harsh angles of his mantle and cape, crimson eyes dancing with wickedness. Grabbing his waiting helm, he fixed his son with a piercing blood red glare, jaw clenching as he let the mounting disappointment pass.
____“Come Jeremy.” he commanded, donning his helmet without any doubt of his son‘s compliance.
____A cold shudder passed through the younger Judge’s body as his father left the room, and before he even knew why he was briskly marching to keep up with the indomitable man’s determined pace.
____I, can’t do this, Jeremy panicked, thoughts racing with some possible way he could escape. He knew perfectly well what the ‘Tower’ was used for, and he wanted no part in it. Simply turning around and leaving never even occurred to him though. Disobeying the Judge Adonai wasn‘t ever an option, and so one gloomy hall after another passed in tense silence until finally they began to ascend the legendary winding staircase of the watchtower. It was rumored to lead to heaven, making gods of all Judges who traversed its great length, granting them the power to adjudicate the world as they saw fit. Jeremy could almost believe it too, watching his father fearlessly walk to the high terrace edge at the summit. For some reason beyond his knowledge no railings were ever used in Judicial Architecture, and so his father stood gripped in a fierce gale, cape fluttering behind him madly as he dared the spirits above all to knock him down. This was the test of his worth, of his right to place judgment and once again he stood resolute finally turning to fix his son with an expression of nothing less than pure pride. Crimson eyes warm and inviting, sparkling in the brilliant moonlight he motioned for Jeremy to join him.
____It was such a strange feeling, walking the few small steps to his father’s side, feeling without really seeing the pleased smile behind the black stone mask and contemplating his murder all the while. It would be so easy to push him, to end the madness that held the world in fear… and yet Jeremy couldn’t bring himself to do it. Instead, he let the Judge Adonai place a cold armor clad arm around his shoulder and draw him close, peering out at the view reserved for only the greatest of Judges. To anyone else it would’ve been nothing more than thick clouds and dark sky, but the gift of all Judges was a sight beyond seeing and this Jeremy used for the first time without obstruction.
____Now nothing can truly block a Judge’s sight to begin with, their eyes magically empowered to pierce through all barriers without any need of actual light to help them, but obstacles do steal a bit of the raw beauty. This is why the watchtower was the prize of the Judge’s capital city. Standing atop Zion Tower absolutely nothing stood in Jeremy’s way, his eyes bombarded with the brilliance of true color from halfway across the globe, in places where the sun was actually still shining. It hurt to put it plainly, but he couldn’t stop looking, mouth agape with the sheer majesty his gaze found. At the moment his wandering attention was high in some distant mountains curiously watching a strange lightly furred people go about their lives. They lived in small huts it seemed, and all were occupied with some manor of agriculture, tending to the most beautiful trees he’d ever beheld. Exotic leaves ranging from neon orange and yellow to cherry pink filled the mountainside, unique feline people calmly making their way between.
____“It‘s glorious isn‘t it.”
____And then it was gone, his concentration lost as he remembered his father at his side. He was momentarily blind, blinking uneasily as his piercing red eyes slowly readjusted to the conspiratorial darkness surrounding him.
____“Y-yes father,” Jeremy replied, shivering slightly from the bitter cold.
____The characteristic dark insulating armor of the Judge’s never did suit him, his tendency toward rebellion evident in even his choice of clothing. He didn‘t want to stand out, to attract too much attention, and so he wore what the common nobles did. At the moment though he might’ve preferred the warmth of his imposing hand crafted armor.
____“I remember the first time my father brought me here…” the Adonai sighed, crimson eyes softening with the memory. “And here the cycle begins anew. I have many things to teach you my son, and normally this would be the last lesson, but some rules were meant to be broken…”
____Jeremy couldn’t help but raise curious eyes to his father’s face. The Judge Adonai was the last person in all of creation he’d expect to speak of breaking rules, but his attention was soon directed to the marbled stone beneath his feet.
____“Do you see the many deep grooves etched in the floor my son? They all radiate outward from a central point in the middle of the floor over there. These lines help define our sense of direction from the tower‘s height. The single red stripe you see denotes North and everything else can be determined from its bearing. With that said, the direction of importance at the moment is in the Eastern hemisphere…”
____It was easy to tell by the leading tone of his father’s voice and unerring gaze that Jeremy was supposed to locate the eastern quadrant himself. Unfortunately, after walking to the room’s epicenter, it suddenly became quite apparent that he had completely forgotten how the cardinal directions worked.
____Alright, if I’m facing north right now, which way does that make east? I know it’s either left or right but which one?! Why couldn’t he just ask me about the southern hemisphere? Ugh, all I can do is pick one. Left it is-
____“My apologies,” his father coughed, rolling his eyes at his son‘s ignorance. “I meant your other east.”
____The seemingly subtle correction was dripping with sarcasm, Jeremy’s face blanching with embarrassment as he turned back around to the right instead.
____“Now then, Errata Colony is located along the 140^th degree between the third and fourth Jurisdiction Towers.”
____The Jurisdiction Towers, Jeremy repeated internally, praying his father wouldn’t put him on the spot again.
____Geography was never his forte and this his father knew, so the rest of the conversation declined into a tutorial. The Judge Adonai felt no need to overly emphasize his son’s ignorance.
____Eventually, after much careful instruction, both Judges found themselves staring into the humble wooden structures of Errata Colony, dawn just breaking across the distant horizon. It definitely wasn’t a grand place, but it was quaint in its simplicity, beautiful even. Jeremy couldn’t bring himself to look away, sweating now even in the gripping cold as the bleak reality of what was about to occur fully sank in.
____They’re all, just… going to be destroyed.
____“Reach out your hand!” the Adonai demanded, his startling voice booming across the vast empty expanse.
____Jeremy couldn’t help but flinch, crimson eyes wide and panicked, breaths labored and heart pounding as his trembling black hand seemed to reluctantly stretch forward of its own accord. In sad imitation of his father’s resolute posture Jeremy stood anxiously waiting, hovering just above a full blown mental breakdown with the knowledge of what was about to take place. There was just no way to avoid this, his own life just as much at risk as the waking Colony before him.
____“It‘s boiling inside you isn‘t it. I bet you can feel it crawling under your skin right now, eager and pushing, just begging to be released.” the Adonai whispered, fully aware the longer the tense moment drew on the harder it would be to resist. Jeremy’s power desired to be used, and faced with such a blatant ultimatum it couldn’t help but radiate from his outstretched palm. The air glimmered, a sparkling dark haze drifting in the breeze from his slender finger tips.
____“The responsibility for the world’s peace will finally be shared between us. Show me your worth Jeremy!” his father decreed, his haunting words latching on the younger Judge’s very soul. “Help me remove the taint of Errata Colony from this world!” his father concluded forcibly, finally allowing his own dark oblivion to take flight with a decisive sweeping gesture of his arm.
____With tears in his eyes Jeremy weakly did the same, watching their combined destructive power stretch across the heavens. This was to be the moment that would haunt him for the rest of his life, crimson eyes unable to stray from the quickly building cloud of vaguely sparkling darkness swarming toward Errata. Soon the mass of shifting shadow was so great it hid the colony itself from view, Jeremy finally certain he failed watching the magic settle across the ground in a gigantic veil of blackened night. He’d tried his best to stop the vicious force from reaching its goal, foolishly think he could release just enough to fool his father but he'd failed... and miserably so.
____Without being able to actually hear the devastation taking place it was pretty uneventful watching their oblivion work. A shifting sphere of power concealed everything from even their sight, gradually withdrawing after a final feverish gust of wind erupted across the land.
____It was with a shocked horror Jeremy realized that absolutely nothing was left within. The darkness shriveled away, collapsing upon itself to reveal a geometrically perfect crater. Their power was replaced by a pure and complete emptiness. It had all been obliterated, erased from the world as if had never even been, a strong wind rushing to fill the perfect void evidenced by the wave of motion in the surrounding forest.
____“And so it‘s done.” the Adonai tonelessly stated, leveling a small empty stare at his son before pertly turning to leave the tower’s height. He’d explain the importance of the ordeal and what it meant for Jeremy’s future more fully tomorrow. With every day and year that passed releasing his Oblivion became an even greater task it seemed.
____Jeremy heard nothing of his father though, practically catatonic after the ungodly display. He didn’t even realize he’d left, dropping down to his knees with tears streaming down his face. A short moment passed before he suddenly lurched forward, stomach heaving uncontrollably as the sour contents of his stomach fell down the great tower’s height.
____Hours passed. Sprawled out like a drunkard Jeremy honestly considered just letting himself roll off the terrace. It really wouldn’t be that hard, and it would benefit the entire world. He’d failed to kill his father, but that didn’t mean he had to follow in his foot steps. He could end his life here and the chain of judgment with it… but it wasn’t to be. After an eternity of staring dazedly off the edge he couldn’t find the resolve to do it. It seemed he didn’t have enough willpower to do anything that truly mattered.
____“I don‘t want to die… but I can‘t live like this either!” Jeremy sobbed frustrated, finally sitting upright. Pounding a clenched fist into the marbled floor he screamed until his lungs burned into the smothering night sky. His beleaguered emotions refused to be bridled. Haggard and panting, the only thing he knew to be certain was that he could no longer stay within reach of his father’s hand. The Capital of the Judges would see him last this very night.
____“I‘ll leave and find someplace where even he can‘t see me.” Jeremy childishly decided, face resolute and determined. Before the Adonai awoke tomorrow he would be gone forever.
-----
____“Adios, you‘re back!” Sonya gasped, a small smile breaking across her lips. The same gentle flutter of love always erupted in her stomach with his return, even after all these years. “How did it go with Jeremy? …was he able to pass the test?”
____“Errata Colony is no more.”
____A solemn silence settled between them as the words sunk in.
____“I had hoped for Jeremy‘s success.” Sonya lightly breathed, walking forward to embrace Adios.
____“He has proven his worth,” Adios replied, his voice strong and steady, even as his eyes began to tear. Trembling, he pulled his cherished wife closer, a hundred emotions battling inside him. He was angry, infuriated even, but even more depressed. His heart would never heal from this devastation and in the end he couldn’t help but blame himself.
____“I swear I tried my best. I did everything I could…”
____“I know dear… I know,” Sonya whispered, her warm hands holding her most precious Judge’s face.
____“It wasn‘t supposed to end like this,” Adios sobbed. This would be the only time in all his life he openly cried before anyone.
____“…but it did, and now we must act accordingly.” Sonya reminded him, forcing him to draw strength from her tone. She looked at him directly, her rare violet eyes never flinching as she spoke. “We both expected this, even if we never spoke our thoughts aloud. The answer is sleeping just across the great hall though. All you have to do is accept it.”
____“There is no doubt of that Judge‘s character, but granting the position would be sacrilegious. The responsibility has always fallen to the Eldest son. It is our way…”
____“The test has been failed. An entire colony bears testament to this. Jeremy is no. longer. worthy. She is the next in line plain and simple. Would you entrust the wellbeing of the colonized world to the younger instead?”
____After an uncomfortable silence Adios had to agree. Jordhen and Jonoven were far from responsible in any sense of the word. “Of course you‘re right my queen.”
____“Then let us rest, for tomorrow will be a trial all its own.”
____“One we shall face like every other…”
____“As Judges.”

To be Without...

__________She held out her hand to him.

"Give me this memory."

"Only if you promise to share…"

And so they danced.
She traipsed on a violin's tears and he followed on a cello's sighs.
It was a breathless moment, silent and sincere…

Nevertheless, such intangible things could never satisfy him.

"Will this never cease?"

"This dance, my prince?"

"Our dance."

___"We‘re free to dream…"

"We're meant for each other."

Alone,

a single violin heralded the lingering words truth as he pulled her closer.
For this moment, he would have her.

The cello soon began to hum its rich melody though and the violin’s lilting notes ceased.

"The only sure thing is this," she whispered as their hands parted, gracefully executing the rules of the dance.

As was the purpose, he was confined to watch her beauty;
an empty space and sigh all that held them apart.

A weightless twirl, another bow, a curtsey and the looming questions were forgotten.

The entire world yielded to their sonata.

Even the marbled floor dare not grace their feet lest they stumble.

It was a sinister perfection.

For Whatever Reason

____"Yum reds groot," Jeremy sighed contentedly, swallowing the last of the green spiced soup Jimmy was feeding him. He smiled happily as the quiet ninja gently wiped the spilled remants from his dark cheeks. He didn't even seem to notice the harsh penetrating glare the exotic ninja was giving him, busy adjusting the gigantic straw sombero he refused to take off.
____"Did you do this to me?" Jimmy demanded, watching Jeremy silently tilt his head to the side, big black eyes adorably inncocent and blank, mouth agape once again. Why the boy simply refused to breathe through his nose Jimmy would never know. It wasn't long before the stoic ninja let his question drift away, heaving a dismissive sigh as he turned to rinse their few dishes. They both knew the ninja cared for the boy out of his own free will, a fact Jimmy was slow to admit.
____“My life revovles around you… I almost don‘t even care that the world is about to fall apart. I fill my time making sure you‘ve eaten, helping you get dressed and bathed, ignoring everything else that really matters. I wonder what mother would think?”
____“Try kill now,” Jeremy laughed, absentmindedly poking himself in the chest. He was laying on the ground listening to Jimmy’s words as only he could. The infantile telepath was always inside Jimmy's head, something his caretaker knew all too well, and still he spoke. The words he felt always took flight around this peculiar boy, Jimmy aware and content that his breath was wasted, his mind already an open book to the gangly teen. This was the only time he would truly speak, but the time for that was over. He had a schedule to keep, and no matter how far away from the monastery he strayed he always kept to the regimen.
____“Let‘s go Jeremy,” he sighed, eyes closed as he reached for the two waiting swords at his side.
____Two glistening transparent katana’s tasted the fresh spring air once more, their silver glint sparkling in the waning sunlight. A few small flicks of the stoic ninja’s wrist rendered the swords momentarily invisible, light dancing through them inconsequentially before he settled into the familiar stance.
____“Fight, chase, play, try… again, AGAIN!” Jeremy screamed, rolling around in a fit of insane laughter. The boy really was out of his mind, clearly unaware of how many times he really and truly had almost died. Or maybe he did know… It didn’t really matter either way. His new surrogate father was going to attempt to slay him once more, the child’s insight bordering on premonition the only way Jimmy could truly hone his skills. And so they locked eyes, Jeremy’s smile fading to a drooling slack jaw as his eyes shifted, their colorless depths replaced by the calculating silver of his assassin caretaker.
____“Me sees me,” Jeremy whispered, literally looking at himself through the opposing man’s eyes. He felt stiff and brittle, like a salty wheat cracker just waiting to crack with any slight pressure. His scrawny body was now locked in the same Zen like readiness as the ninja he’d slipped inside. He knew what was coming, and could feel the attack changing too, drifting between every single action Jimmy knew in an effort to confuse him, but that was impossible. Unless Jimmy confused himself he would never confound the boy, and so the fight began. Two swift transparent blades sliced through the meadow on courses already known, with alternate routes and second strikes likewise memorized, all in an endless stream of information. A lesser mind would have crumbled under the onslaught, but Jeremy’s mind had collapsed a long, long time ago. He was left with just enough empty space to perfectly ingest it all, dancing through Jimmy’s past even as he twirled around his piercing swords. It took only minimal effort to perfectly evade Jimmy’s incomparable attacks. He’d run, trip, and roll smiling all the while, only to awkwardly stand and cartwheel through the next barrage, somehow unscathed all the while. Jeremy’s body might as well have been clay the way he bent and contorted himself around Jimmy’s strikes, glancing impacts and absorbing kicks with a style beyond ridiculous. At first it had infuriated Jimmy, but the boy was merely playing after all, and no matter how he survived these matches it was still impressive, a feat worth respect by any standards.
____“Sparkly?” Jeremy asked, his eyes still lodged inside his attackers head, their battle taking place in a home long departed. Jenbu monastery lay around them in pristine clarity, Jeremy’s mind working overtime to recreate Jimmy’s birthplace for the both of them. It was how all there matches went, their world transformed within the boundaries of their imagination by the power of Jeremy’s will. For whatever reason the boy regularly took them back to the Jenbu monastery’s white gravel training ground. Maybe the overwhelming urgency it festered in Jimmy’s heart entranced him? It’s not like Jimmy cared, focused only on the waving yellow poncho before him… and the bare black feet walking across his sword?
____It never ceased to amaze him that Jeremy could put himself in such impossible predicaments. Any other person would have seen their foot sliced to shreds, but before he could even flick his sword upward to rend his entire leg the boy was rolling down his back to land behind him… on his face? Their was absolutely no care whatsoever for the proper ascetics of a warrior, no concept of even simple pride. Jimmy heard him quietly munching juicy green blades of grass before he even turned to finish him. His sword cut through the air potent and precise, beautiful in its murderous ark only to clang decidedly with the rock Jeremy was suddenly inspecting. With one squinted eye Jeremy focused entirely on the strange gold streak in the rocks surface, loosing interest as fast as he found it to yawn around the next blow from Jimmy’s ever vigilant swords.
____The match was over, Jeremy curling into a small ball to sleep as the gentle lull of ocean waves took him away. Jimmy had no choice but to concede, unable to force Jeremy to do anything outside his will and so he picked up the almost weightless teen and watched the world around them fall apart. He couldn’t quite remember when Jeremy had created the beach around them, but as his slumber took hold the meadow soon returned. It was time to regroup with the other Elements, and so as Alex requested Jimmy began to bend the earth to his will, silver eyes glaring neon brown as his feet sank into the soil. It was still extremely awkward, but he would keep pushing himself to learn how to control the Elemental power locked inside. Their wasn’t much more he could learn physically anyway. Without growing spiritually his matches with Jeremy would keep ending in failure, and he refused to be weak among the other Elements as well. He’d had enough of that in the monastery.
____This was to be a new beginning for him, and the oddly adorable snoring mess of a boy in his arms was the center of it all.

Centurion Pride

___"Aww, what a cute little bunny!" Lillian shrieked, gushing as soon as Thirteen entered the room.
___The malicious snarl that framed the small Centurion's face was enough to kill on merit alone, but of course the young girl missed the gesture completely. She didn't even stop to consider what he was pulling from his tiny white carrier bag, enamored with his huge adorable furry white ears and tiny hands. By the time he'd tossed his handful of paralytic powder into the air it was already to late. Her face was complete bewildered shock as she coughed on the strange yellow concoction, her petite body shutting down almost immediately, even simple breathing suddenly a struggle.
___"Really Thirteen," Siren sighed, shaking his head as he walked in behind him.
___"You know how I feel about being touched." Thirteen reminded him, ice blue eyes fierce and unrelenting. "I'd rather die before I allow such an obvious disgrace to my Centurion pride."
___The small Alchemist folded his tiny arms across his chest and stared haughtily off into the corner, unapologetic to say the least. In his mind he was justified and blameless and no amount of reasoning would convince him otherwise.
___As indignant as Thirteen was though, he still couldn't help the fact he was beyond adorable. Like most Centurions he was just over two feet tall, eight of his twenty-eight inches being tall bunny like ears. His entire body was covered in shimmering white fur, all except the perfectly circular patch of black around his right eye. That seeming imperfection only made him all the cuter, and was even prized as a sign of good fortune. His clothing consisted of only a simple black vest and red tie, leaving his sweet little cotton tail and deceptively strong legs bare. Like most Centurions it seemed he intentionally made himself as adorable as possible, but it was common knowledge that they were never to be told such. They considered themselves warriors, and truth be told the tiny claws hiding in their hands and paws had already killed many of the disbelievers.
___"Your people have an undeniable charm and it's little wonder someone as young and inexperienced as Lillian got carried away." Siren coaxed, reaching down to pet his feisty compatriot's small furry head. "I would never ask you to disregard your pride, but please at the very least refrain from paralyzing the unknowingly offensive."
___Thirteen couldn't help but melt under Siren's patient attention, a small smile fighting to break across his face as Siren began to stroke his ears. He knew he was being manipulated and easily at that, but Siren was always his weakness. It was the only reason he'd agreed to join him on this silly escapade in the first place.
___Now to anyone watching, this whole scene would have been ludicrous, but Siren had earned Thirteen’s respect long before and the right to 'touch' him as well. If anything it spoke volumes for Siren’s character. The Aristocrat was truly blameless, always ready with the right words, quick to take action where others would merely stand aside and for this he had many powerful allies, one of which being the Centurion Alchemist he was currently engaged with. More precisely Thirteen was a Medical Alchemist as the red cross on his carrier bag clearly denoted. The chemical expertise common among Centurions was beyond abundant in Thirteen and this he prided himself on.
___"Now, would it be within your kindness to release poor little Lillian."
___"…Yeah, I guess so," Thirteen relented, blindly digging through his satchel for a few seconds. He quickly produced the necessary pods and crushed them between his tiny hands carelessly tossing the nullifying gray powder over his shoulder in her direction.
___The roam was soon filled with the angry ranting of a newly released young girl, Thirteen causally dismissing it all. He knew she wouldn’t try anything serious. Most only had to learn once before they adopted the proper deference for his kind. Still, he easily jumped the six odd feet to Siren’s shoulder, a small flip setting him lightly atop his usual perch.
___"Lillian dear, I hope you wont stay mad at my friend. I absolutely hate to see my most beautiful girl so angry." Siren coaxed, his tone the exact same he’d just used with Thirteen. She of course melted too, reluctantly walking in to his open arms for the waiting hug.
___"Now, where can we find your mother dear," Siren kindly asked, fully aware of the dwindling time left.