Legend of the Jumi Part I, Chapter 3
The Silence of Time
By The Mana Priestess
Esmeralda's name change is deliberate-- despite Xenogears' Emeralda, I thought it would be fitting, as she is the Jumi of the Emerald.
"The Silence of Time" is the name of the song that occurs when you fight the Mana Tree. It's an incredibly cool one.
.
The green-eyed young girl leant over the large, heavy tome that lay open upon the huge mahogany desk before her, her fingers reverently tracing the decorated edges of the gold-laced paper, whose color of old ivory only added to its beauty and testified to its great age. She was an ardent lover of books, and she reveled in the beauty of the ancient volume, relished the antiquated aspect of the old pages. Not for the first time she reflected upon the great fortune of her birth, which allowed her the privilege of a ready access to the great Jumi library in the royal palace, retained by few Jumi; for she was of a great family of an ancient Jumi lineage, and she and her three elder sisters were first cousins to the Lady Diana herself.
The Clarius Florina was sitting at her side, absorbed in her own volume, the thin-rimmed spectacles she used for reading sliding down her small nose. The young girl regarded her quietly, and reflected that she appeared a sight at once touching and comical. Touching, for the wide-sleeved blue silk dress wrapping around Florina's body could not conceal her piteously thin figure; comical, because the unusual sight of the spectacles seemed strange to the Jumi girl, who had never seen such a device in her life. She watched her covertly, but her sense of the droll vision represented by Florina was diffused through a heartfelt respect and reverence for the Clarius, that kind and intelligent young woman who was the great scholar's daughter. She admired Florina's intelligence, envied her scholastic knowledge; and she earnestly wished she could become as wise and as learned as she is. Noticing Florina's preoccupation with the tome before her, she suddenly addressed her with an earnest question:
"Florina, did you find anything in that volume?"
Florina's attention was diverted for a moment. She turned towards her companion and her slow, beautiful smile appeared, the smile that offset her pale features with a unique attraction that was all their own. "Nothing concrete, if this is what you were hoping for," she replied.
"Oh." The young girl could not conceal the disappointment in her voice; she straightened in her seat, her hand sweeping the shortish, feathery strands of her green hair-- for she was the Jumi of the emerald-- back from her face. "You were so absorbed in reading that I thought that you might have found something."
Florina's grey eyes glimmered with amusement at the girl's displeased aspect. It was so like Emeralda's earnest nature to thirst impatiently for the truth to reveal itself, to demand immediate results. "Patience," she said with her gentle voice. "You wish to be a scholar, Emeralda, and the first thing that you should cultivate is the quality of painstaking patience. You should learn that it doesn't take a week, or a month, or perhaps not even many years to fully conduct a research, or to arrive at results. My father devoted a lifetime to searching Jumi history, and years for searching this particular material. He discovered many clues; but there are still a few crucial pieces missing in the puzzle, and these are the pieces that I mean to uncover and place at their proper location-- but first I mean to be patient."
Emeralda understood the reproof. "I'll keep it in mind," she said coolly; and though her tone was reserved, it did not indicate any resentment; Emeralda’s thoroughly practical nature, old for her years, enabled her to concede to criticism that she considered constructive with placid acceptance. She leant back in her chair, her fingers running across the golden lacing of the sleeve of her bright, grass-colored shirt, and her voice was speculative. "Tell me something, Florina: do you personally believe in the legend of the angel? Do you truly think that once an angel existed that taught to the Jumi the power of their healing tears?"
Florina corrected her sliding spectacles with a soft motion, her eyes smiling at Emeralda through the obscuring, reflective lens. "It's a three-thousand years old legend, Emeralda. There is a definite evidence that it might be based on certain facts; whether the facts reflect the details of the legend with one-hundred percent accuracy, I cannot tell."
"True," Emeralda responded reflectively. "For example, the legend says that the angel had 'hair as bright as the sun, and eyes like the sea at summer'. But old legends always describe beings of supernatural beauty this way, always give them bright hair and blue eyes. However, my question was directed at a different issue. You see--" and her tone now contained a great deal of critical censure, "--I personally think that no truth can be declared as such unless we indeed are a hundred percent sure of it. And as such, it seems silly to stick to an old legend whose facts have yet to be ascertained." She then observed Florina, and a rare glint of humor stole into her eyes. "Your glasses slid down again, Florina."
Florina pushed the spectacles back up her nose again with a resigned smile. Alex had somehow managed to procure them for her from the outside world after he discovered that Florina had difficulty reading words from a close proximity. Their measurements were unfortunately not quite correct for Florina, and this produced that continual struggle against their tendency to slide down, which she accepted with her usual humorous submission to the inevitable and absurd; for Florina did not mind to laugh at the ridiculous, even if she knew that the object of ridicule was herself.
"True," she responded to Emeralda's stern lecture, her eyes twinkling. "For example, it's an absolute crime to declare all beings of supernatural beauty as having golden hair and eyes as blue as the sea, unless they are one-hundred percent proven to be so." She regarded the young girl with an expression of indulgent amusement. "You have quite the scientist's mind, Emeralda."
Emeralda frowned; she was habitually candid-- almost severely so-- and she never hesitated in voicing her opinions. "It's just that it seems too optimistic," she explained. "Everyone knows the legend of the angel who will come back to heal the entire Jumi race, but it's a mere children's tale now, a fable, and I don't think anyone believes it anymore."
"This is the purpose of the research," answered Florina, passing her white fingers over her brown hair. "I am trying to find the clues as to the exact location of the temple in which the angel was said to first appear."
"But," Emeralda persisted, with systematic efficiency that justified Florina's remark about her scientist's nature, and which was born out of a limitless curiosity and a strong wish to arrive at precise truths; "even if the temple does exist, what could it mean? To prove that the angel existed-- and still exists-- much more than this has to be uncovered."
"Enough of that tiresome crossfire, Emeralda," a voice commanded brusquely from behind the two women. Florina's lips quirked at this brutal termination to Emeralda's insistent query; she turned in her seat slightly and looked towards the large bookshelves neatly ranged in the quietly shadowed recesses of the library. "I can see that you have been tuning on our conversation all the while, Alex. Have you found anything interesting?"
Alex, who had accompanied the two young women to the library, had been walking around the hall and rummaging the bookshelves with what seemed to Florina a peculiar purposefulness. He had been participating in the study for over two weeks now, plunging into it with an amount of energy that had slightly surprised her. He now came over, a slim volume in his hand. "I'm not sure whether this might be of help. You'll need to tell me yourself."
Emeralda bristled at Alex's authoritative tone, her green eyes flashing rebelliously. She did not mind criticism from Florina, whom she knew and admired since she was a child; but Alex, with that aggravating self-possession of his that often verged on the autocratic was another matter entirely. "Since you are so very interested in the research, Alex, I daresay that you could think of a better way to contribute to it."
"I can certainly think of a better way to spend my time than tormenting Florina with tedious questions to which she can't possibly have answers to," replied Alex ruthlessly. "And besides" he added with that callous humor which sometimes exasperated Emeralda, "you should know, Emeralda, that there is nothing more repulsive than a cynical child that tells adults that their beliefs are founded on a silly fable."
Emeralda could not pretend anger despite her chagrin, her sense of humor responding to Alex's characteristically satiric tones. "Are you saying that I am repulsive?"
"You are too logical for you age," answered Alex, selecting a comfortable chair near Florina, and insinuating his slim body into it smoothly with one of his cannily quick movements. "It's extremely odious. I used to be exactly like you."
"Which means," Florina supplied with a twinkle in her eyes, "that he has changed with age."
"Precisely. I grew worse. Take it as an adequate warning." Alex leant forwards and opened the volume he had carried.
Emeralda regarded Alex with some resentment. He was a good-looking young man to be sure, rather older than she was-- for, in Jumi terms, he seemed no more than twenty-- with fine features whose sharp, delicate attraction was enhanced by a ready smile, and incredibly handsome green eyes; but she couldn't quite like his personality, that all-too-closely matched her own logical character. "Very well, then," she said tartly. "I would certainly heed that warning, as I would do anything rather than grow up to be like you."
"Unfortunately, you already seem to have embarked on a fair way to becoming exactly like me."
Emeralda gave up on the argument. She was a fair opponent, and could acknowledge a decent enemy. "I only hope your volume will prove useful," she said, choosing to ignore the provoking look Alex stole at her as he leant over his book. "Florina, how much information do you think is missing because of the books the dissenter has taken?"
"I'm not sure," replied Florina, shaking her head with resignation. "But what he has done detracted a good deal from the available resources left to us on the legend. Indeed, he seemed to have been interested in anything that had to do with the angel; particularly in the information regarding the location of the ancient sites pointed at by the legend. Some of the volumes he took away may have contained valuable and even vital clues."
Alex stirred now with a somewhat self-conscious expression at this last remark; but he said nothing, and remained leaning over his volume attentively. His momentary action, however, drew the observant Emeralda's attention again. She examined the young Jumi knight's profile silently for a moment or two, and then a deceptively bland expression displaced her steady, thoughtful aspect. "Alex," she begun with a deliberate tone-- which, to anyone who knew Emeralda long enough, would have supplied a fairly good warning of what was coming-- "I have been meaning to ask you something. I recalled it because Florina told me you said that the southern peninsula, where the temple might be located, takes two and a half weeks' travels."
Alex, who was acquainted with Emeralda for only two weeks, but for whom this duration had been adequate to fully asses her character, glanced at her with one eyebrow raised speculatively. "And that signifies-- what?"
"Well--" Emeralda's voice retained the same suspiciously measured tone-- "I thought that you knew this because you once visited the peninsula."
"Which I did," Alex agreed with deceptive affability.
Emeralda's gaze remained calm as she brushed a wayward lock of hair from her cheek again. "I was thinking," she finished, stowing the unruly strand of hair behind her ear and bestowing a mild look on Alex, "that a former thief would surely know something about the location of an ancient temple."
An amused look from Alex informed Emeralda that he appreciated this underhanded conclusion. "I can see that you've been subjecting Florina to one of your inquisitions again." He glanced accusingly at Florina who immediately bent low over her book and pretended to read it, though a guilty laugh trembling at the corner of her mouth provided all the evidence that Alex needed.
"Well, yes," Emeralda admitted without as much as a blush. "I think that you're an unusual person, and I have no doubt that you have an interesting history."
"I would be flattered by this remark; except that I can already envision you using exactly the same tone for commenting upon a rat that you skinned alive and whose inner anatomy you examined."
A reluctant smile escaped Emeralda, but she chose to ignore this deliberate provocation. "Do you know about the temple, then?"
"I already told Florina everything I know," Alex replied. He crossed his arms and leant back in his chair, smiling at Emeralda. "I hope this answer satisfied you."
Emeralda leant forwards now, and Alex could plainly perceive that she was not finished-- indeed, he thought wryly, to judge by her look, the best part is coming. "Tell me, Alex," said the girl, an eager gleam in her eye, "do you know about the famous thief, Reynard the Fox?"
"The details of my past is not something I would like discuss too deeply," said Alex coolly.
Emeralda examined his countenance silently for a moment, then said decisively, "Don't try to trick me-- I can tell that you know something about the Fox. Please tell me what you know."
Alex glanced at Florina's profile, but she shook her head adamantly and refused to look up from the book. "You're a coward, Florina," he said disparagingly.
"So I am, my dear," she agreed placidly without looking up from her tome. The young man seemed to resign himself to his fate; he inclined himself forwards again, his fingers running across the crisp pages open in front of him, a slight smile on his lips. "The Fox," he said, "was the leader of the bandit group I was in."
"So I thought," said Emeralda triumphantly, pleased at her clever deduction. "Now please tell me, Alex: the Fox's last name is Reynard-- is it not? But what is his first name? It begins with an 'A', but few seem to know it. Do you know it, Alex?"
"Yes," he answered. "I do know it."
"Could his first name happen to be--" Emeralda's tone was insidious, "perhaps 'Alex'?"
"If it was, I would be the last person to tell you," Alex answered with a perfectly cool tone. He kept his absorbed attention on the volume in front of him. Emeralda examined his profile, but seemed disappointed at his indifferent manner, reflecting that either her suspicions were wrong, or that Alex was a consummate actor, a possibility which she could not easily dismiss. But she gave up on the investigation and settled back in her seat, crossing her arms.
"I wish that I could travel as well," she remarked shortly. "But the farthest I myself will ever get is the university."
"I doubt that you'll even get this far," Alex said flatly, without averting his eyes from the book.
"Well, I am determined to get this far," Emeralda declared, a stubborn gleam in her eyes. "I am going to be a scholar, like Florina's father. I am going to be acknowledged as the first Jumi female scholar. Though truly," she added, prompted by her characteristic honesty, "I think that Florina deserves this title."
"You are ambitious," Alex commented. "How about trying to become the first female Jumi knight instead?"
"Because it can't be done, that's why." Emeralda's green eyes darkened. "Women are not allowed to do anything in this city. They are not allowed to be knights-- not allowed to leave the city without their knight, either. But in the outside world I will become a scholar. I shall go to the university and study there."
"I have a better plan." Alex closed the volume, his teasing smile appearing again. "You should make everyone afraid of you, like Black Pearl did. Then you can become a knight."
"Black Pearl is officially the Knight of the Clarius," said Emeralda, considering this suggestion with a meditative frown. "But it's a little different than regular knights. She is the only one," she added, "to hold the title for hundreds of years."
"Then become a politician, like Diana," Florina supplied now, apparently deciding to join the fun.
But Emeralda wouldn't take the bait. "Diana is the daughter of the late high councilor, this is why she is allowed to lead," she countered. "And she took advantage of a pretty bad time some one hundred years ago."
"Well, at the least you should get a knight, so you would be allowed to leave the city," Florina suggested, smiling.
Emeralda considered this possibility. "It's not going to be that hard," she said decidedly. "I shall tell Elazul to become my knight."
"Nicely said," approved Alex, his green eyes dancing. "If anyone would be able to coerce Elazul to actually come up to this point, I am convinced it would be you."
"I think I'll keep this daring conjecture suspended in mystery, because I'm sure it will be more interesting than the truth," a voice responded unexpectedly. Emeralda swerved her head towards the sunlit door of the library, from which it came, and an uncharacteristic flush of embarrassment stained her cheeks. But she said calmly enough, "Well, you don't have a guardian yet, Elazul. Besides," she added with grave naiveté, "I know that you like to travel. We shall travel together."
"As far as the university, I presume?" asked Elazul ironically as he advanced into the room. He was well acquainted with Emeralda's plans.
"Why not?" retorted Emeralda. "I shall use you for my plans; you shall use me as pretense to escape the city, and no-one will be able to brand you a deserter. We shall both benefit from the situation."
"I fully believe that this child will be able to unnerve Black Pearl herself," muttered Alex. His countenance changed, however, as he glanced at Elazul, and he reverted his gaze to the volume in front of him, and pretended to pursue it attentively. Since Alex's elevation to the position of Florina's guardian the severing of discourse between the two intensified; and though Elazul accepted this situation with strained silence, he thought it was a mere continuation of their former coolness and did not know that it was due to his all-too-visible infatuation with Black Pearl, that Alex deeply resented.
Elazul's attention seemed to fix upon Alex, and he barely listened to Emeralda's reply; he hesitated for a moment at Alex's visibly cool reception, but then Florina stepped into the breach by inviting him to sit with them at the table. He complied with his usual briskness, placing himself at Florina's side. Ever since he met her he was strongly drawn to her warm, gentle air and the intelligent, humorous expression in her quiet eyes, and despite the lack of communication between Alex and himself he managed to occasionally fall with Florina's company, which he liked. To Florina's amusement this often resulted in a disjointed, two-sided conversation when Alex was present, both knights addressing her from either side, but rarely each other.
Elazul's first question as he seated himself in the chair was, "How are you feeling today, Florina?"
"Oh, considerably better," she answered, pleased at his obvious concern. "Alex and Emeralda always cheer me up."
"I do especially-- I am Florina's personal comic relief," muttered Alex with a wry smirk at Florina. She uttered a small laugh, but Elazul, though a reluctant smile bent the corner of his mouth, kept his gaze downwards. He refrained from responding, knowing that Alex's remark was not addressed at him, and he thought, you still look pale, Florina-- pale and unhealthy. He picked up a volume lying in front of him and flipped it over quickly, his eyes pursuing the text inside. "What's this? You're reading history?"
Emeralda replied to his question. "We're doing research," she informed him. "I-- and Alex as well-- are helping Florina to look through the books for clues about the southern temple."
Elazul did not know much history, and he was not particularly interested in the subject. "I am glad that you are feeling well, then," he said, addressing Florina. "I heard that you had an attack of fatigue just two days ago, but it seems that you recovered from it well enough."
"It's all thanks to Alex's medicines," said Florina. "They help ease my illness somewhat."
Elazul's gaze traveled over Florina's head to Alex; their eyes met and Elazul, gathering determination, seemed about to address him; but Alex shook his head suddenly, as if wishing to prevent Elazul from speaking.
A dark look stole into Elazul's eyes; he obeyed Alex's silent command, though with obvious reluctance. The next moment Alex rose to his feet all at once and said, "Florina, I almost forgot-- I must make more medicine today. I shall be back in an hour." He ignored Elazul's vexed expression and walked out of the library with his quick stride.
Elazul stayed for a few moments more, but then he excused himself. The suspicion that he was looking for Alex, rather than for either Emeralda or herself lingered in Florina's mind, and she wondered whether Elazul was attempting to heal the breach between them. She learned about their former friendship in bits and pieces, for Alex sometimes spoke of his traveling days, and his days in the Jumi city before he became a knight, and Elazul's name was inevitably included in the narratives. What he kept silent about Florina guessed, especially after she drew from Alex the details of the incident with the murdered girl. After the narration was completed he seemed to be awaiting her judgment cynically, his eyes challenging her to condemn his behavior; but she had refrained from any comment.
Her thin, pale hands now smoothing over the pages of the book before her, and her eyes not really seeing the text, Florina sighed inwardly. She had come to know Alex better-- much better, these last few weeks; and she already understood a few things that Alex probably did not suspect she had. Her thoughts were interrupted by Emeralda, who suddenly remarked soberly: "Elazul and Alex used to be friends, didn't they? I wonder why they avoid each other now. Personally, I think it's because Alex is so extremely odious. I can understand why Elazul would not wish to continue to tolerate his company."
Florina smiled at the girl. She reflected how this girl and Alex shared a similar logical streak in their personalities, that managed to both clash and provided a strong, unspoken sympathy at the same time; she knew that Emeralda's remark was not entirely serious. But her only reply was, "All I can say is that I hope they manage to become friends again."
"Good luck to Elazul!" said Emeralda dryly.
.
The summer sunlight blinded Elazul as he emerged from the library, and he blinked, shading his eyes; a retreating blur in his vision, a shadow, pinpointed Alex's location. He hurried after it but Alex was quick and quiet, and for a few moments he nearly lost him as he rounded a corner.
He managed to accost Alex near an outer balcony. This confirmed his suspicions; Alex had not gone to prepare any medicine, but was purposely avoided him. Reflecting to himself that this might be tougher than he thought it would be, and angry at Alex's stubbornness as well as at his own earlier behavior, which he knew served to worsen the breach unnecessarily, he called out:
"Alex, wait!"
Alex halted. He did not turn around, but stood with his slim figure perfectly poised, his shoulders straight, his back to Elazul. His reply was steady and detached:
"What is it, Elazul?"
Elazul paused, catching his breath. "Turn around," he said, somewhat roughly. "I can't speak to you this way."
Instead of obeying, Alex walked to the balcony and leant over it, his elbows resting on the railing, one hand supporting his chin as he gazed out at the outspread view of the city below, into the dazzling white day that signaled the summer's end. "I'm listening."
After a momentary hesitation, Elazul said gravely: "It's about Florina."
Alex remained silent, and Elazul could not tell from his reaction whether he was listening. "Alex," he continued, "many people think that you are in love with Florina."
At this, Alex turned his head, and Elazul could now see his profile. He glanced at Elazul from the corner of his eye, but the cast of his countenance was unperturbed, and a slight smile tugged at his mouth, a smile that seemed to Elazul derisive. This expression had always been one that Elazul disliked on him the most; it reminded him of that part of Alex's personality that so jarred with his own, and always made him uneasy, on his guard. Alex said coolly:
"And what does it matter to me?"
"It's Black Pearl," Elazul said with a sudden spontaneity. "She doesn't like it, Alex."
Alex's fine features were overcast with a hard look. "And why should it matter to the Lady Black Pearl?"
"She--" Elazul could not help but speaking with consternation, "apparently she doesn't wish you to get too emotionally attached to Florina, because--"
"Florina will die soon?" Alex supplied cynically.
Elazul looked away, but his innate honesty prompted him to answer the inevitable. "Probably, yes."
"Well," said Alex, and averted his face again, "I thank you for the warning, Elazul, but you don't have to worry about me. I can handle the wrath of the Lady Black Pearl. You are deep into her confidence, aren't you?" he added sardonically.
Elazul reddened, but would not take the bait. "It's not true," he replied. "It's all rumors, Alex; rumors travel quickly. I am doing it out of concern for you. It's not wise to cross Black Pearl."
Alex said nothing. Elazul hesitated for a moment, then, with one of his characteristically blunt gestures, he approached Alex and leant over the balcony at his side, turning his face towards him, his eyes searching his countenance demandingly, compellingly.
"Listen, Alex," he begun, very quietly. "It's been many weeks since we spoke together. Can't we let past differences go for the sake of past friendship?"
Alex's expression was for a moment impenetrable. He did not turn his head towards Elazul but kept his gaze on the blinding day. "It was largely out of your own choice," he answered with an indifferent voice.
Elazul watched his profile attentively. "I am not apologizing for what happened; I am setting it aside for the sake of the present. You must make your own choice to do the same."
Alex was silent, but he lowered his head now, the fingers of one hand sliding down the smooth red railing. "Well spoken. I did not ask for an apology, Elazul, for I do not think I deserve any." He glanced at Elazul now, his ready smile suddenly surfacing. "If I was you, I would have avoided me altogether. People like you cannot co-exist with people like me."
Elazul was slightly surprised at what appeared like a severe self-condemnation; but he sensed that Alex was not apologizing for any of his actions; he was merely stating what seemed to him like a clear, realistic truth. He knew his own failings and he accepted them fully, without regrets or self-searching; and he did not seem disposed to make an effort to change or remedy them. Elazul, used to the moral thinking of his upbringing, to the self-searching, self-doubt, self-correction, realized this amoral way of self-acceptance was yet another alien characteristic in Alex. Either I accept Alex the way Alex is, he thought suddenly, or I shall never be able to accept him fully for what he is, as a human being. He hesitated between two choices, for, recalling both Alex's dark, brutal logic and his deep anger on that unfortunate day, he knew that he could bring himself do neither; he could neither accept Alex nor reject him, and could only live in a present, momentary, fleeting twilight of constant doubt.
It was Alex who therefore made the first motion of conciliation; no doubt he read the conflict in Elazul's averted countenance, and the bright smile turned mocking. His hand shot out with one of his quick, spontaneous gestures; for whatever Elazul felt, he knew that he, himself, could not afford to lose Elazul.
"Let us shake on it, then," he said cheerfully. "To friendship, Lapis Lazuli knight."
A reluctant smile stole to Elazul's mouth and he took Alex's hand for a moment; but then Alex drew back and, unexpectedly, ascended onto the balcony's railing. He seated himself on it, swinging his legs, but a moment later he rose to his feet, poising his slim body on the thin edge.
Elazul, startled at this action, looked up at him. "What do you think you are doing?" he asked.
Alex grinned at him mischievously. "I wish to show you something."
His fingers moved to his belt and expertly loosened the roll of rope attached to it. He then tied a loop at the rope's end; after he finished, he looked up at Elazul, the smile still tugging his mouth. "Look."
He swayed on the balcony for a moment-- then seemingly lost his balance and vanished off the edge. Elazul, feeling as if something sunk to the bottom of his stomach from the shock, leapt after him to the edge of the balcony, with an intent to try and catch on to anything he could save Alex with; but even as if he was springing forwards a rope swung past him and towards the railing of the balcony above him, the loop tied to its end catching onto a large projection just below it and fitting neatly over the upwardly-curved edge. Elazul, leaning over the railing, could see Alex hanging on to the edge of the rope dangling just below the balcony and gazing upwards, his eyes laughing at him.
"Were you impressed with my performance?" he cried.
Elazul was torn between vexation and relief. He remained leaning forwards and looking down at Alex. "Are you trying to kill yourself?" he asked with a grim smile, glancing at the city spreading hundreds of feet below them.
Alex raised an eyebrow, but his teasing look remained. "Not at all. I am just having a little bit of amusement, challenging Fate a little." He swung the rope a little using the motion of his body, his straight figure hanging to it with wonderful balance. "For a great part of my life, Elazul, I was confined, told what do. Freedom never felt so good-- freedom to do just what I like."
Elazul could sympathize with this sentiment, but not with its present expression; and Alex, reading this thought in his eyes quite plainly, said with mock accusation: "I thought you would be a little more pleased to see that I didn't fall to my death."
"I have half a mind to sever this rope right now," Elazul answered brutally, though his cheeks turned red with chagrin and he avoided Alex's eyes. Alex stifled a laugh at this reply, but he climbed the rope quickly until he was hanging over Elazul's head; then he jumped back onto the balcony and straightened himself before Elazul.
"Safe," he said. "Pleased now?"
"Yes. Just don't repeat this performance again."
Alex shrugged, glancing at Elazul. "We shall see," he said, discouragingly.
.
The morning room was suffused with warm September sunlight. Lady Diana, Jumi of Diamond, was seated on one of the antiquated, extremely expensive chairs, the billowing skirt of her cream-colored gown of lace spreading around her on the dark-red and gold pillow, and falling down to her small, diamond-studded slippers. She and Rubens were to have an informal meeting with Black Pearl today, for tomorrow the Knight of the Clarius was to finally commence on her intended journey to the distant mountains. Black Pearl's mission had been delayed by Florina; the scholar's daughter had conducted a strenuous and laborious research for a full year in order to translate the runes that opened all the doors in the Tower of Leires; but though she had thought that she would finish her labors by the end of the summer, she suddenly seemed unsure of certain parts of the chant that opened the final door. Black Pearl, who believed in a correct and orderly proceeding that ensured the precision of every detail in any venture, had told Florina to inform her when she was finished proof-reading her translations. The task was finally completed, and Black Pearl was ready to leave.
The door opened, but it was only Rubens, who peered inside and watched Diana silently, a quiet glimmer of amusement in his eye. Sitting in the profuse sunlight she appeared a pretty, elegant little lady, with a certain dignified air to her repose; yet there was also something almost childlike about her for just a moment, as she was gazing outside the window with a pensive expression, her feet not-quite touching the floor. She noticed his entry after a moment and turned towards him, returning his smile.
Elazul has met Rubens as the councilor was walking down the narrow side corridor and continued at his side for a short, impersonal discussion about some matters pertaining to the evening-duty; he had halted at the door, not wishing to infringe upon the meeting, but he had been standing next to Rubens and had noticed his expression as he watched Diana. For some reason it caused him a strange, sudden pang as, for just one moment, the shallowness of his own feelings for Black Pearl seemed suddenly exposed by the depth of the emotions he witnessed on Rubens' countenance; and he thought to himself-- I wish I could love someone this way, that someone would love me this way-- I could only wish that-- he bit his lips, thinking of a woman with cool, intelligent, dark eyes.
"Sir," he said, barely containing his sudden embarrassment at witnessing such an intimate moment between Diana and Rubens; indeed, the feelings he witnessed seemed so private, so personal, that he felt as if he had unlawfully infringed on something without consent. "I shall go now."
Diana, however, had signaled Rubens to enter with her hand, her jeweled bracelets glittering in the light. "Please come in, and invite that young man with you-- it's Elazul, I believe!" She welcomed the Lapis Lazuli knight with a friendly smile. She liked handsome men, and the Lapis Lazuli knight, brusque and reserved but sometimes strangely shy, was more to her taste than, for example, Florina's temporary knight, who had an air altogether too cynical and self-possessed, and whose gaze on the ladies was always more critical than admiring. "Do enter, Elazul; the meeting is not quite begun, and you can continue with whatever you were discussing with Rubens."
Elazul made a shortly-uttered acknowledgment to her gracious invitation; but though he followed Rubens a step or two into the room he seemed to hesitate near the threshold, inclined to leave. "Thank you, Lady, but I think-- I think I had said all that I wished."
Diana slid off the handsome wooden chair and, leaving the sunlight, walked towards the two men with her demure, delicate stride. She allowed her large eyes, whose color of clear brown usually conveyed a false impression of softness, to twinkle with artful mischief. "Oh, come now, sir knight! The Lady Pearl will be here soon, and I think that you would not miss on the opportunity to meet her again. She shall be leaving tomorrow, as you must know."
To Diana's well-concealed delight, Elazul could not help the flood of color that stained his cheeks. "The Lady Pearl," he said stiffly, "has my best wishes for the journey; but I must not tarry, Lady Diana."
He was further disconcerted at her look of cool surprise; Rubens, who watched the conversation with some amusement, took pity on Elazul and intervened. "Elazul may leave, Diana; we covered all the information we needed. The Lady Black Pearl shall be here soon."
Diana shot at him a reproving look for spoiling her fun; but a steady voice behind them surprised Elazul into a dismayed start. "Indeed she shall."
Black Pearl was standing just behind Elazul, watching the trio coolly; Elazul could not help but wonder how much she has heard of their discourse, and his face burned. His thoughts raced guiltily; did she hear his awkward words, worse, did she Diana's mocking, insinuating taunt, did she understand it? And though he could barely look into her face, the general impression of her unruffled poise, her impenetrable composure also strangely disgruntled him. Nothing, he thought, nothing seemed to break through that self-possessed air, that cold equilibrium; nothing betrayed her into displaying any feelings that burned through the icy boundaries of her logical, practical, censorious mind.
He muttered some curt apology, not quite knowing what he said, and after bestowing a quick farewell on Diana he departed. Black Pearl did not look at him, nor made any further comment on the previous conversation, but advanced into the room and stood by the window. The early autumn sunlight poured on her tall, stately figure, rested on her beautiful face, illuminated the dark honey of her thick, wavy tresses, and flared over the gold and silver and red in her clothes. Her black eyes remained cool and opaque, reflecting, rejecting the light.
"Shall we start the meeting?" she asked.
.
After the meeting was finished and Black Pearl left, Rubens turned to Diana. She was sitting on her giant chair again, looking absurdly little and dainty; and he reflected how deceiving appearances are. He sighed to himself but addressed her, a hint of amusement nevertheless creeping into his reproof. "Diana, that was heartless of you; badly done. You shouldn't have teased him that way when anyone can see that--"
"This boy is in love with Black Pearl?" finished Diana with a malicious smile that fully justified Rubens' reproof. "Not just anyone, my dear; to put it simply, just about everyone can see it. He's a fine handsome one," she added coolly; "a pity he's so easy to see through. But I like him very well."
"The real question is not if you like him, but whether Black Pearl is inclined to return his feelings," Rubens replied gravely. He felt a little more worried about this question than he admitted; Elazul, he could plainly perceive, was one who would be easily hurt by a woman like Black Pearl. Rubens never felt that he understood Black Pearl well enough to be able to discern the true state of her feelings-- indeed, he never made the attempt, her nature being so alien to his own; but he was sure that Diana might know, and he waited for her answer with a somewhat disquieted air.
Diana shrugged her pretty shoulders. "I'm afraid that I can't tell you anything definite at present. Black Pearl sees through people much more quickly than they can see through her. As far as discerning his feelings, I assure you that she had, a long time ago. Sometimes I envy that perfect control of hers," she added.
Rubens was silent, thinking, and I, Diana, am glad that you are not that much like her-- I would have been happier, indeed, if you had not understood her so well. After a short pause Diana continued, "She usually doesn't take with his type, however-- he seems too emotional."
"I think Black Pearl needs a little spontaneous emotions infused into her life," Rubens remarked dryly, his expression betraying his feelings about the lady in question quite plainly. Diana could read them, and she raised an eyebrow. "Well, perhaps, but then again he's so very volatile-- delightful to be sure, but unsteady. He's famous for his repeated desertions, you know, and as for his training that upstart Alex and purposely staging a defeat in the contest-- I confess that I can't comprehend that kind of a behavior, and I'm sure that Black Pearl doesn't approve of it."
"But he did settle down and entered the guard," contradicted the ever-kind Rubens. "He's an excellent soldier, too; one of the best that I have seen for a while."
Diana's light laugh sounded at this typically naive remark. "Rubens, my dear, let me tell you the reason that Elazul joined the guard: Black Pearl asked him to join. His emotions guided him in this matter, as always; if nothing else, he would have displayed a greater resolve had he refused her summon and stayed away. But he's drawn to her like a moth to a flame-- or perhaps like a mouse fascinated by the hypnotic gaze of a snake. I truly pity him, but I'm not surprised that Black Pearl isn't inclined to receive his attentions. Her previous lovers had always understood her situation, and if any of them showed a jealous disposition she got rid of them quickly enough. She doesn't have time to deal with those."
"She seemed to have passed through numerous lovers," Rubens said soberly. "I cannot say that she experienced much steadiness in that respect. And I don't even know her as long as you did."
"Well, I tend to believe that she got tired of them," said Diana reflectively. "Or perhaps they could tell that the relationship led nowhere and left to settle down with a willing girl. Besides, my dear, not all men are like you." She bestowed a loving smile on him and placed her white fingers on his hand. "Indeed, I am glad that Black Pearl did not discover you before I did-- for she has a frighteningly determined will, and manages to acquire pretty much everything she sets her mind on."
Rubens returned her smile; but he found himself pitying the inexperienced young knight that had such a turbulent expression in his eyes. Whether or not Black Pearl decides to turn him into her lover, he thought, that young knight is bound to end up experiencing a loss; and to Diana he replied, "For this young knight's sake, then, I can only hope that she did not resolve to have him."
.
Black Pearl walked to the golden balcony flanking the side of the royal palace. She looked up into an empty expanse of black sky, and the icy stars pinpointing it like sharp, glittering needle heads glared at her harshly. Tomorrow she was to leave the Jumi city, for the first time in a long while, and something inside her seemed to alter at this realization, at the suddenly uncertain future. She felt the cold night on her skin and her core, at once as black and frozen and ruthless as the night and as bright as the indifferent stars was somehow responding to it with an energy, a strangely throbbing aura like a holy fire that pulsed through her veins with a thinly burning currents, almost too painful to support.
She leant against the balcony's railing, her fingers gripping the intricate patterns of the deadly chilled bronze metal. She did not feel the ache of her flesh against the biting edges of the railing, because the emotions flowing from within, pulsing deep inside her core, overrid any other sensation. Something was calling her; a spirit in the distance, a lure guiding her unto a long-lost memory. Far below her the city of jewels shone darkly, above her head the magic barrier she herself had enacted to enclose the Jumi race pulsed relentlessly. She felt trapped within, lost, and her breath heaved quickly, with effort, a desire to escape rising in her, a longing to reach that distant, calling glow. She struggled to comprehend that burning longing and felt herself trapped by another barrier; a barrier blocking the skies above her, a great rift in space and time that left her floating on a wispy island in the middle of nowhere, a cold mist surrounding her, and she was able to see and hear and sense nothing-- and this lasted not a moment, not a day or a year, but forever-- a loneliness stretching to all eternity.
Black Pearl's face was deadly white, over-wrought with the beating, surging emotions. She leant further over the balcony, her eyes black, empty pools in her white face, gazing unrecognizingly at the lower balconies that stretched hundreds of feet below. A sudden gust of autumn winds flayed her slender figure, and she wavered on her feet unsteadily. The cold currents whipped her long hair across her face, and it disguised her countenance for a moment. It was then when Elazul, who had stepped into the same balcony and perceived the figure of Black Pearl teetering dangerously over the thin railing, leapt towards her and steadied her on her feet. His eyes went to Black Pearl's face, and he could see her countenance the moment when the winds swept her long tresses away again and revealed it; and her expression dismayed him enough so that his grip on her shoulders slackened momentarily.
The presence and the touch of warm flesh on her own seemed to bring Black Pearl back to her senses. The lost look in her eyes vanished; but then her body crumpled under Elazul's grip and she fell to her knees, the red scarf encircling her waist flowing to the white floor like spilled blood. Elazul instinctively sunk to one knee, leaning over her protectively. She whispered something, and he tried hard to catch the faint words.
"Give... me... air..."
"My Lady-- please--" he said quickly, with a shocked, low voice. "May I get you some help?"
Black Pearl's voice became more distinct now. "Leave... me... be... Knight!"
She then looked up into his face, and he was momentarily taken aback by the cold animosity in her black eyes. Her very look repelled him, put a physical distance between them, and when a moment passed he found himself somehow standing with at least a three feet separating them.
Elazul found himself shaking with a purely physical shock; after a moment he realized, with a deeper sense of discord, that he couldn't recall himself stepping backward in any ordinary way; it was almost, he realized, as if she has somehow repelled him physically with that force of will in her mere glance.
He collapsed to his knees, assailed by a sudden, overwhelming physical weakness; as if Black Pearl's previous weakness has been transferred to him, directly infused into his body; and when he looked upwards again he could see Black Pearl standing above him, a tall shadow, her face disguised by darkness.
"I thank you for your support, knight." The tone was cold, the words rang sharply like a clash of steel. "You are Elazul, I think. The Lapis Lazuli knight."
She then left, leaving Elazul sunk on his knees in the empty balcony. He raised a shaking hand and wiped cold sweat from his brow. Somehow he knew that the remembrance would do him more ill than good, and wondered whether his acquaintance with Black Pearl, that seemed to have begun in a strange, unfortunate manner, would end up bringing him more ill than good.
.
Remarks: This chapter was long and rather tough... there was too much information to convey, and I tried to finish it quickly.
I know Jumi women were allowed to be knights, etc. But this kind of a construction to the Jumi society served my ends a bit better.
About Emeralda, her character changed drastically as I revised the chapter. She used to be a kind of a cheerful innocent, but in the revision she turns into a logical type almost as bad as Alex himself. In a way, though, she's now closer to the original Esmeralda, who struck me as very straight-spoken. (though she's also said to be slightly immature.)
In case you're wondering what I think of Rubens, well, to put it succinctly, I think that Rubens totally rocks. I suppose that was apparent from my writing, though. Rubens disappeared too damn quickly from the game! But in this story his role is intended to be somewhat larger.
Wish to know what I envision Elazul and Pearl to be like? I actually envision them as looking more like Hanna Chang's gorgeous pictures than their official profiles, perhaps because they look older there. Her rendition of Elazul is perfect. The pictures can be found on my site, here: Sparkling City of Ruin.
Wonder what ages I assign to the characters? Here's the list, human-terms, of course: (I can guess, though, that the official ages for Elazul, Alex and Pearl are younger.)
Emeralda: 15
Elazul: 23
Florina: 24
Alex: 25
Black Pearl: 27
Diana: 32
Rubens: 35
.