Snippet #1735869

Ari let out a snort as Jet ‘reassured’ her, “I would like to see you try…” She muttered to herself before talk of a voice came up, “I heard the voice as well, and it spoke to me of the myth as well.” This she spoke loud enough for all of them to hear. She crossed her arms and frowned, leaning against one of the pillars with her bag at her feet.

Ven frowned a little before shrugging, “Suit yourself, although I must say that even if the child were real, he is clearly not here. Someone would have noticed a baby by this point.” He was trying to be helpful, but he realized that he probably sounded condescending, “Allow me to introduce myself, the name is Ventaro, ma’am. Ventaro Sartagus. Or Ven if you like. I’m a traveling machinist. ”

Suddenly, everyone in the group felt a rumbling. It didn’t come from any direction, but simply everywhere. It was as if they were at the epicenter of an earthquake. Then, suddenly, it stopped. There was a moment of relative silence before what seemed like an explosion ripped the cavern’s air in two, the sound echoing off of every rock. When it stopped, the cavern was much more majestic than it had been, and the wall at the ‘head’ of the chamber had quite literally ripped open. Torches adorned every pocket of darkness that had existed moments before, and the wall’s now looked less like a cavern and more like a man-made structure, though it was akin to the cave before, in that the structure looked perfect, as if someone had simply molded the earth itself. High above them, about forty feet or so, was a gigantic chandelier, made not of glass, but of ice, as well as containing fire, though neither the ice nor the fire seemed to acknowledge the other’s presence. A gentle breeze flew through the chamber, though there was no source for it to come from. Both Ven and Ari looked up from their place on the ground, both having been there for different reasons. Ven had hit the deck, as he knew quite well the effects of an explosion. Ari had simply fallen there on her wounded leg, and now looked irritated both at the explosion and herself. The wall that had blown itself out (yet there was no rubble) now shifted, revealing a series of staircases. And atop each of the six separate staircases were massive plateaus of stone, the likes of which Ari had never seen. Upon each plateau was a structure about three feet tall and at least twice that in length. They looked like…tombs. This was a burial chamber, a grand one at that, for six people. Displayed on each tomb was a gem, not grand and alluring, but actually quite small. They were roughly the size of a doorknob each, maybe smaller. One could easily close their hand around it should they hold it in their palm. The chamber itself was even grander than the one they were standing in at the moment, though it seemed to compress, matching itself against the wall until the tombs themselves had pressed into the room, and the wall where they had entered was sealed. Again there was a moment of silence, broken only by Ven raising a hand to draw attention before saying, “I just wanna say, for the record, that I had nothing to do with this, whatsoever. Just saying.”

A voice that was familiar to each person standing in the room now spoke, or laughed, actually, as it split into six separate voices. As the voice split completely, figures appeared upon the tombs, some standing as if ready for confrontation, others sitting loftily, as if expecting company. Three men and three women, all looking down from atop the tombs at the people they had gathered. Finally, a man with great wings upon his back spoke, his voice serious but also very lighthearted, “Pretty good turn out, wouldn’t you say, Eliya.” He shifted slightly where he was leaning on the tomb, but other than that, he made no move.

The woman, clearly an Aquarian, sitting atop the second tomb nodded, “Indeed. We have but six hosts, thankfully. Do we not, Balaan?”

The man sitting on her left, occupying the fourth tomb, nodded, though his eyes were locked on Ari, “Indeed, though they do not look like they will be able to handle what we have in store for them.”

The first tomb’s man now spoke, his arms crossed and his stance akin to that of a Pyrian battle stance, “I don’t want to hear it, Balaan. At least yours looks like she can hold a weapon without dropping it. Look at mine! A wee little girl who lost her brain when an illusion baby goes missing. Sheesh. She’ll be real scary when the Chaos Gem’s new master is snacking on her. And what is with all the women!? Are there no men capable in taking up our task? ‘Tis a sad, sad day and age indeed.”

The woman kneeling atop the third tomb held up her hand, “Corton, hush. You need not intimidate them before their journey begins. It will be difficult enough as it is.” She spoke, her voice both soft, yet strangely commanding. She turned to look at the last to speak, “What say you, Daliea?”

The final woman, easily taller than the rest of her fellows, was giving the group below her an appraising look, “They will grow and adapt, with time, Serenity. The trials chose well, I think.” She said this with a kind smile.

Serenity now turned to look at the Sorian who had spoken first, “There you have it, Tamlin.”

Tamlin smiled, “Indeed. There I have it. So, I think we ought to fill these folks in on the actual reason they’re here, instead of bantering back and forth like a bunch of crazy people, yes?” The group sounded in agreement and Tamlin smirked, “Ava Martel, please step forward.” As he spoke, he stood up, crossing his arms.

Daliea stood next, “Elise Tertarun, please step forward.”

Next stood Balaan, “Arienna Intuneric. Step forward.”

Serenity hopped off the tomb and stood, “Jet Vareli, please step forward.”

Eliya stood next, her eyes on Marina, “Marina Caspian, please step forward.”

Finally, Corton stood begrudgingly, “Scarlet Zaion, step forward now.”

The first five cast a small glare in Corton’s direction, but other than that they did not speak to him. Instead, they turned and waited until the six they had called out stood before them before speaking again, their voices blending together almost into one, “The six of you have been chosen to protect Elenia from a great evil, the power of the Chaos Gem. The trials that you accomplished to set you in this very room were nothing compared to the trials that you will face along your journey. But do not fear, as you will be gifted a great power of your own, with which you will be able to defeat the Chaos Gem, but only so long as you work in conjunction. Should you turn on one another, or separate, the power of the gems we give to you shall be naught against the might of the Chaos Gem.”

They then turned to those who had not stepped forward, “Those of you we did not call. Zetisuke Krovi. Ventaro Sartagus. Drindiil Shontoll, and Nadanna Ember. You have all been chosen for your various abilities. Some of you will protect the Gem Hosts with your blades; others with your mind. Some shall fulfill roles you never thought possible. But all of you have one thing in common. You must work together to end the reign of Drake Rune, the present wielder of the Chaos Gem. He is your greatest enemy. And if you should fail, then the world shall be plunged into a darkness so deep, it will consume every light. If you fail…you will all die.” The six paused for a moment, letting everything sink in before they continued, “We will be there to guide you should you truly need it. We, and all those before us, will be with you always. Do any of you have any questions before we bequeath the hosts with their gems, and we give the guardians their Oath of Guardianship?” They asked, all six pairs of eyes scanning the crowd.