Faybourne (PAST)

The Fall and Sealing of Faybourne

It was a beautiful morning in early spring. The earth and light elements were beginning to emerge from their long slumber into the world once again, as darkness's power faded. All was well in the realm-for the moment.
The Council was having a meeting, discussing the upcoming apocalypse that they were certain was coming. One of the youngest members of the Council of Elders and one of the oldest were currently locked in a verbal spar about where to send the princesses and their guardians once the storm of Chaos hit.

"I'm telling you, Oracleon is a perfectly suitable planet! It has every comfort the Twelve could ever wish for!"

"But Earth is full of life, and Oracleon is barren and abandoned. So it is a shadowed planet, yes, but at least it has a humanoid species of life!"

Taurus, the older elder, glared at the younger. "There is no way we are sending them to a shadowed planet! Chaos has its sights set on Earth, you know that as well as I do, Aquila!"

"You only want to send them there because you are the one who will be escorting them and you've always desired to go to that horrid planet!" she snapped.

Polaris, the head of the council, had been watching the exchange with narrowed eyes. "Enough!" he cried, rising. The two feuding council members quickly sat down, still glaring at each other. "I have made my decision. The Twelve shall go to Earth. It is the most lively planet and they shall most likely be protected better there than anywhere else, simply due to the sheer size of the population. Meeting adjourned."

The Council members filed out, Aquila smirking at Taurus as she went, closing the door behind her. As the Council members returned to their homes by various means, the brunette took a moment to appreciate the lovely blooms of spring....

And screamed, horrified, as the skies rained fire and Chaos unto Faybourne.

Nerissa was alone when the sky went dark. She had escaped her training for a few moments to sit in one of her favorite trees for some peace and quiet. Suddenly everything became cold and dark and her father was running up to her. "Nerissa!" He yelled up to her. "Chaos is coming. You must protect your princess now! Go and help her to escape. Keep her safe." Nerissa, didn't question her father, she just climbed down from the tree, nodded to her father, and ran off as fast as her eight year old body could carry her. She ran through the palace grounds, skirting the many ponds and streams crisscrossing the area. Finally she reached the palace and saw the palace people rushing about in fear. She pushed her way through the fray, using her small body to squeeze through tight spaces as she went. She went through the halls, trying to remember the right door. It took a few tries before she found it. "Princess Genevieve?" She said in a quiet voice, poking her head around the door. Seeing the princess huddled under the blanket she entered in and said in a little louder voice. "P-Princess Gevevieve. I'm- I'm your guardian and theres... danger outside. I'm supposed to bring you to safety now. Will you come, please?" She was nervous at actually speaking to her highness, it wasn't one of her strong points to talk to others.

"Time's up," Aquila mutters, palms extended. She quickly puts up her emotional shields; as an empath, she can feel everyone's emotions, and she doesn't want to be crippled by pain. As a chaos minion rises in front of her, she quickly banishes it with a pulse of light, before turning around and running back to the Council chambers. She knows she will be safe in there...at least for now.

Panting, Aquila barely manages to lock the heavy doors behind her before she is ambushed by three more minions of Chaos. She shields herself with fire, sending them back into the abyss, before rushing up the crystal staircase, heading towards the Gate. The Twelve, or at least the Guardians will know what to do, the Council member assures herself. Aquila suddenly falls to her knees, gripping the green crystal stairs tightly as she feels something...evil reveal itself. She presses on, finally reaching the Great Hall. Aquila is protected, though tremors wrack the Hall every few minutes.

She just hopes that her fellow Council members and the Twelve are alright...

Evangelina was outside when all hell broke lose. She was making a flower chain when she heard all the commotion and noise. Instantly she could feel outside emotions enter her being. She looked up and say fire raining down. The site horrified the young 12 year old. Screaming, she ran for the castle. She and the other 11 princesses of their world were staying at this one place at the moment. In vain, she looked around for her guardian, Jagus.

"Jagus!! Somebody!! Anyone!" she screamed.

Hearing screams, she saw people become engulf in flames. This only made the situation worse as she screamed out in horror, dropping to her knees as she put her hands over her ears and closed her eyes tightly.

Jagus had been running drills with the guards when the attack started, so he was right on the front lines of defense. As the first wave of Chaos minions climbed the walls into the castle, Jagus charged at them with a fervor no ordinary 13 year old could possess. At the time, he was wearing just a leather jerkin, not ready to wear the plate armor that had been set aside for him. He cut down a good number with his longsword, and smashed a few against the wall with his shield. When the first wave was done, he ran right up to the Captain, who was coordinating the defense. "Captain" he said. "Can you hold the line without me? I need to protect Evangelina." Jagus was especially protective of the princess. Though she was often quiet and shy, he considered her a good friend. "We will be fine, Jagus." the captain responded. "You just make sure that Princess Evangelina is alright."

Jagus nodded gratefully, and gave the captain a quick boost, using the power of light to heal some of his minor injuries. Satisfied, Jagus took off for the gardens, where Evangelina normally spent this time of day. He arrived, only to find that the princess was no where in sight. He called out repeatedly, only to be greeted by the sounds of battle, and the screaming of those slaughtered by Chaos. Finally, after an agonizing few minutes of searching the garden, he spotted the princess within the castle doors, on the floor in a state of panic. He sprinted towards her, a feat rather difficult with his heavy sword and shield, fearful for her current state of mind. If anything has happened to her, he thought, I'll never forgive myself. He knelt down next to her, and grabbed her shoulders in an attempt to get her attention. "Princess," he said calmly. "I'm here, ok? I'm right here. Listen to me! I know you're scared, and I know it's hard, but I need you to be strong, ok? I need you to focus. Can you do that for me?"

Jagus just shook his head as Evangelina started to cry. Damn empathy!, he muttered to himself. Evangelina had told him about her power of empathy, and frankly, Jagus thought it was more of a curse than a blessing. However, he had no time to dwell on that now. The princess he had sworn to protect was in dire danger now, and he wasn't about to let her be harmed. "Listen," he said quietly to her. "I need you to block all of that out right now, ok? I'd help all of them if I could, but you are my first priority. We need to get to the council They will know what to do." He couldn't help but notice that Evangelina was in no fit state to run with him. He glanced to the left and right, and didn't see any chaos minions coming. He had time to plan his next move.

Jagus considered the possibility of carrying the princess. It wasn't his optimal for choice for speed, as he was already carrying a heavy sword and shield. However, Evangelina certainly wasn't getting up anytime soon, so his only other option was to wait, and risk being found by chaos minions. Of course, if the chaos minions found him while carrying her, that would be a problem too.

Jagus decided on the former plan, as he figured the faster they found the council, the better. "Ok," he said to her quietly. "We need to go, right now. I'm going to carry you for now, but let me know when you feel up to walking. It will be easier on both of us if you do." With that, Jagus scooped up Evangelina's small figure like a proper gentleman. Should any chaos minions show up, he decided he would create a light barrier to buy enough time to put her down and draw his sword. "Don't worry." he said as he held her in his arms. "I'm right here." With that, Jagus took off towards the council chambers, with the princess in tow.

Nerissa smiled at the princess as she took her hand and gave a little squeeze of reassurance before leading her away. Through the hallways they ran, Nerissa leading them through crowds of frightened servants. She was trying to make a beeline toward the councils chambers, as she remembered her father always instructing her to remember in times of crisis. On a couple occasions, chaos minions broke the long glass windows that lined the corridor in order to get inside, but Nerissa just picked up speed, doing her best to lead the princess to safety. "Almost there." She said. A hoard on minions were chasing them and Nerissa just managed to get to the door before they caught up. She wedged open the council chamber's door, pushed Genevieve inside and managed to squeeze inside herself. The little eight year couldn't quite get the door shut in time, however, and black groping hands were trying to get inside against the guardian's efforts.

Evangelina finally snapped out of it when Jagus lifted her into his arms and took off running. What in the world had just happened? It was then she looked around saw what was going on. The emotional pain she was experiencing was still there and it tore into her. However, this time her practical mind refused to let her emotions get the best of her. And of course, Jagus was doing his best to protect her right now, she could sense his emotions loud and clear and suddenly recalled one of the lessons she was taught by one of her magical mentors.

You have so much potential within you Evangelina. All you have to do is believe in yourself.

That's right, she had a duty to herself, Jagus, and to all who protected her. Still, it was easier said than done. Seeing the destruction around her was pushing her to her limits. It was then she felt anger rise inside of her.

"I am sorry . . Jagus." she murmured to him.

She saw something coming after them and knew instantly they were chaos's minions. They dark energy was immense and painful. No, she was slowing Jagus down! She knew he was suppose to protect her, but she never wanted to be a burden. It was then she felt a light inside of her bloom and instantly put up her strongest light shield around her and Jagus. The light was emmense, but because she was young and had yet to tap into her true potential yet, the move effectively knocked her out. However, it did drive off the dark minions.

Aquila waits in the Crystal Tower; that is where Polaris had told all the Council members to go when Chaos' attack finally happened. She was meditating, trying to ignore the tremors and occasional screams from the outside, when two young girls came in. But not just any two young girls; the water princess and her Guardian had arrived.

"Oh thank goodness!" the brunette cried, before she saw the shadowy hands attempting to enter. Palms extended, she attempted to get the two girls behind her as a horde of Chaos minions forced their way in.

As Jagus took off down the many hallways of the castle, he faintly heard Evangelina say "I am sorry . . Jagus." Jagus simply smiled at her and responded, "Its fine. There is nothing you need to apologize for." Eventually, Jagus heard more footsteps behind him. He glanced back, only to see more chaos minions behind him. "Hang on" he said to Evangelina as he picked up the pace. "I'm going to quite a bit faster now." Unfortunatly, while carrying the princess along with his sword and shield, this was quite a difficult feat. The chaos minions were still clearly gaining. Inside his head, Jagus was screaming at himself. Move faster, you moron, he thought to himself. or you and the princess are as good as dead!. However, it didn't do any good. The minions were still coming. Thats when a burst of light brighter than any Jagus could create blasted from Evangelina.

As it faded, Jagus noticed that the minions were gone. "Wow," he muttered to himself after he blinked a few times in surprise. "That was quite impressive, princess." Then he noticed that the princess had fallen unconcious. "Princess? Oh, no no no no no no no! Princess! Stay with me here! I need you awake!" he said as he snapped his fingers a few times by Evangelina's ears to try and call her back, but it was no use. She was out cold. In his head, Jagus was furious with himself. You IDIOT!, he thought to himself. Had you moved faster, she never would have had to save your hide and do that to herself! Still aware they weren't in the clear yet, Jagus kept running to the chambers.

When he finally reached the door that led to the chambers, Jagus couldn't help but notice that chaos minions were swarming all over it. He quickly ducked back behind the corner before they noticed him. "Oh, come on" he muttered to himself. "I don't have time for this!" He gently set the princess back down, and created a weaker but long lasting light barrier around her. Determined to push through the wall of minions, Jagus drew his sword and shield, and charged them.

Jagus started his attack by creating a burst of light in front of him that stunned the minions. He immediatly followed up with a dervish of sword slashes, each one dispersing the minion it hit. Eventually, they got back up from the blast, but he just knocked them back with is shield when they did. After this, the minions decided to suround him, but Jagus just compensated by blocking with the shield and countering with his sword. One, however, got lucky and slightly cut his back. Barly registering this, Jagus slammed it into the wall with his shield, and ripped it apart with his sword. He turned around, only to be stabbed in the edge of his torso under his ribs by one right behind him. Not registering the pain in his fervor, Jagus smashed it against the floor with his shield untill it was nothing. Not wanting to prolong the fight any longer, he created another flash of light, and finished off the rest.

With the last of them dead, Jagus finally felt the pain of the stab wound on the side of his belly. In serious pain, he staggered back over to the princess, and lifted her back up, with some difficulty. This could cause some problems..., he thought disjointedly to himself. Holding himself together by sheer force of will, he walked over to the door, and kicked it a few times, his hands being full and all. "Please open the door!" he called out in desperation. "Princess Evangelina is in danger!"

Aquila flashes a hopefully comforting smile at Genevieve before turning back to the advancing Chaos. Narrowing her eyes in concentration, she first puts a wall of fire between the Chaos minions and Genevieve and Nerissa, staying on the Chaos side. As they seem to merge into one large monster, she attacks, darting around and blasting it with fire in the back. Barely dodging a strong punch from the creature, she closes her eyes and concentrates, gathering up a reserve of power, before forming a large ball of light and slamming it at the creature, dissipating it. She smiles widely before falling on her hands and knees, the fiery barrier dissipating as her strength ebbs.

She forces herself to get up as a desperate cry for help is heard at the door. The princess of light is indanger, it seems, and she quickly lets the girl and her Guardian inside, shutting the door firmly behind them.

Jagus staggered slowly through the now open door, with the princess in hand. He didn't even acknowledge the others in the room to begin with; Evangelina was his first priority. He walked over to a corner, breathing heavily all the while, and gently placed the princess against the wall in as comfortable a position as he could. He turned and began to stand up, when a sharp burst of pain shot through his wound, and he fell to the ground on his side, right next to the princess. He instinctively grabbed at his stab wound, and finally inspected it. He moved his hand away from the wound, to find it covered in blood. As he looked at it, he saw that the stab wound went clean through to the other side of his body. This could cause some problems..., he thought to himself again. He normally would simply heal it with the power of light, but he didn't have nearly enough energy to do so yet. The fight had cost to much of it.

He finally acknowledge the others in the room, his voice still raspy from the pain. "Councilwoman Aquilla...." he managed to say. "Thank you... for the help." He glanced around to find he was not the first to arrive. The water princess, the same age as him, and her guardian, the youngest guardian of the current group. "Princess Genevieve..." he continued. "It is... an honor. Nerissa... likewise with you. I'd love to... continue the plesantries.... but as you can see... we have a... situation.. Gah!" he cried out as a new burst of pain shot through his body. He grabbed his wound again, grimacing in agony. "Well," he said. "This is... just perfect! Just what we needed....... a wounded guardian."

Aquila smiles comfortingly at the light Guardian, she says, "It's nothing, really." Noticing the blood, she gasps, before her attention is diverted by yet another pair at the door. Ushering the earth princess and her guardian inside, she turns back to Jagus, her blue eyes dark with worry.

"Unfortunately, I cannot heal you. We-" she gestures to Genevieve and Nerissa, "-were attacked by a large monster of Chaos, and much of my energy was sapped trying to fight the creature." Her eyes brightened as she realized another solution. "But I know someone who can!" Rushing over to the other end of the room, where an enormous green crystal resides, she takes out a small flute from a fold of her dress and plays a few notes. After a few moments, an odd sound reverberates through the chamber.

"Asclepius, please hurry," Aquila whispers, hoping the great healer of the Council will arrive in time.

Aquila quickly rushes to Nerissa's aid, helping her get the air duo inside, and shutting the doors behind her, leaning against them. She falls on to her knees as a large tremor rocks the entire structure, knocking the Council member off-balance. Several crystal shards fall from the ceiling as Aquila cries out a warning to the others in the room.

Someone knocks on the door, and Aquila barely hears through all the commotion, but she opens it cautiously. A wide smile spreads across her face as she engulfs Asclepius in a hug, his presence comforting her. "Thank you for coming so quickly," she murmurs, the smile still on her face.

Her fellow Council member-the closest thing she has to a father-surveys the room with his brown eyes, before asking in a deep baritone, "Who is my patient?"

Jagus turned as he heard the knock on the door, though he didn't hear what they said. He was surprised no one had commented about his incredibly rash self healing. He was feeling a little better now, enough to stand on his feet, but he wasn't sure how long it would last. He looked over to the door to see the air princess and her guardian come in. "Princess Aurora," he said. "Its a pleasure. And Leiyon. Its good to.... Leiyon!" He staggered over to the air guardian, his jaw practically on the floor in surprise as he looked at all of Leiyon's wounds. "Jesus Christ! What in the world happened to you?!" The injuries that Leiyon had taken looked far more painful than his. "Just hang in there." he said. "There is a healer on the way. He will do what he can to patch you up." As Jagus stood back up, the tremor hit.

Jagus nearly fell over, but he pulled out his sword and used it to support himself. As the tremor ended, Jagus noticed the crystals begining to fall. Thats when he noticed Evangelina, on the floor trying to stand back up, and directly in the path of one of the shards. "Evangelina!" Jagus cried out as he put on a burst of speed he didn't know he had left in him. He ended his dash in a slide, ending up right next to the princess with his shield out. Jagus used the shield to cover him and Evangelina from the crystal, which smashed against it and mostly shattered, the last few pieces scattering around them. Jagus leaned Evangelina back against the wall. "Don't worry." he said in a calming manner, pushing a few strands of hair out of her eyes. "I'll protect you." As he moved to stand back up, Jagus found out the hard way what happens when you use the last of your strength in an instant, and fell back over, now leaning against the wall. He coughed up a slight trickle of blood. As he wiped it away, he commented "Its just a trickle, at least. It could be worse."

As Asclepius entered and asked for his patient, Jagus smiled and answered him. "If you had entered a few moments ago, that would have been just me. However, Leiyon over there needs far more medical attention than I do. Take care of him first. I can hang in there for a few more minutes, at least.

Rushing towards the clearly hurt air guardian, Aquila hung back as Asclepius ran a quick diagnostic check, closing his eyes shortly after. A sort of white flame burst to life around his hands as he leaned toward the injured guardian. "This won't hurt, but it may...tingle a bit," Asclepius says as he touches Leiyon's body. The white fire spread, engulfing them both and lighting up the entire room. As Asclepius healed, Aquila took a defensive stance in front of the doors as odd, inhuman yells were heard from behind them and the great crystal doors shuddered and groaned under a large amount of pressure. "Help me cover them!" she yells to the other guardians in the room, gesturing to the motionless healer and Leiyon.

The air duo quickly took care of the foul minions, but Aquila narrowed her eyes, feeling a strange energy outside. "Thank you," she said gratefully to them, giving a quick nod of acknowledgement. "Stay here, please," she addressed the others, before quickly slipping out the already cracking crystal doors. Blasting the remaining minions with a combination of light and flame, she crept around the corner-

Only to scream, discovering the bodies of several Council members strewn about the area.