Part Four of S3 (revised Version): Riches Beyond Compare
By Snow Moon
GldnJewl@aol.com
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Journeys can be long and hard, though they are often worth it at the
end. Getting a glimpse of what lays ahead can be a blessing, or it can
be a curse. Sometimes, time can be altered. But never forget, it can
alter you, as well.
********************
The five travelers found themselves in front of a giant, golden
palace. The domed peaks stood shining against the dusk sky.
"Here it is... after all of that..." Kakou said in awe.
"It's beautiful..." Yukiko breathed.
"Kaijin, are you coming with us into the palace?" Yuushou asked.
Kaijin nodded. "I'll come. Someone I know is here."
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go." Hikaru said.
They entered the giant, jeweled dooors.
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Unlike they expected, the hall was completely desserted. They were
standing on what seemed like the top of giant steps, which decended
into lush ferns and the sound of rushing water. At the end was a door.
There was no ther way to go.
"Let's go!" Kakou said, and ran forward, anxious to leave.
The others followed.
Yukiko was in awe. She hadn't seen such riches in her entire life.
There was gold everywhere...
Just before they got to the door at the end, Lock appeared in a
tempest of silver petals. They stopped short.
"Ah, so you've made it. It's about time, Queen Electra has gotten a
bit imapatient with you."
"Lock!" Kaijin said. "You're behind this?"
Lock looked at Kaijin. "Jonathan?"
Kaijin shook his head. "No. That's not my name anymore."
"What are you talking about?" Lock asked. "That's what your parents
named you. Of course it's your name!"
"Not anymore."
Lock looked impatient. "Then what am I supposed to call you? Hmm?"
"Kaijin."
Lock smiled. "Well, I suppose that's fitting."
"Cut the small talk! Are you going to take us to Queen Electra or
not?" Hikaru demanded, sick of standing around.
"Follow me, please." Lock turned and went through the huge
golden doors. He led them through several rooms, each more
richly decorated than the last. Finally, they came to a dead end.
"What is this, some kind of joke?" Hikaru asked, extremely
impatient. Lock shook his head.
"This isn't what it seems. I must go tell my queen that you are
here. Then, the door will open." He explained, then disappeared in a
flurry of silver petals.
A few moments later, Lock reappeared, along with a door where the
dead end once was.
"All right, you may see her majesty." He said, and led them through
to the golden throne room.
When they stepped in, all of them kneeled, either out of common
sense or experience. Electra smiled.
"Finally. I have been waiting..." She giggled and walked up to
Yuushou. "Yuushou, how could you keep me waiting for so long?"
Kakou looked up, startled. "She... she's only a child!"
Electra turned to her, glaring. "Shut up!!"
Yuushou stood, angry. "Who are you?!"
"Electra... You should know that..." Electra turned to him, an
evil smirk on her face. "Or maybe, I'm not..." She slowly grew to an
adult. Her hair and clothes became slightly more silver than before.
"What?! How can that be?" Hikaru said, shocked.
Lock gasped in shock.. He ran forward, sword drawn. "I'll kill
you for impersonating her!!" But when he got there, she was a child
again, the exact form of Electra.
"Lock, you wouldn't hurt me, would you?"
He stopped dead in his tracks.
Kaijin stepped forward. "Do it, Lock. Kill her. That's not the
queen!"
"Lock?" Electra said, looking up at him.
"I... I can't..." Lock said. His sword clattered to the ground.
Yuushou growled and narrowed his eyes. "What have you done with
Electra?!" He demanded.
She turned around. "Now, I am Electra..." She started to laugh, a
laugh that echoed through the room, not insane or evil, just a happy,
carefree laugh... Electra's laugh...
"Why are you doing this?" Kakou demanded.
Electra stopped laughing. "You wouldn't understand."
"I do! You're insane!" Hikaru accused.
"SHUT UP!!" Electra demanded.
Yuushou growled and drew his own sword. "You're not even half-way
there. " He ran forward, but before he could get to the imposter, he
found himself in a deadlock with the silver knight.
"Don't... touch my queen..." Lock growled.
"She's... not... Electra!" Yuushou grunted back.
"Stop!"
The voice was commanding and clear. Everyone stopped dead in their
tracks, even Electra's impersonator. All of the light in the room
seemed to turn silver and go to the figure that was floating in the air
above them.
"Queen Rin!" Kakou gasped in disbelief.
Yuushou and Lock brought their swords down.
Rin turned to Electra's impersonator. "You have disgraced yourself,
Pyrite. Impersonating the queen is a serious offence."
"I AM the queen!" She demanded. "And I command you to leave my
palace immediately!"
Rin ignored her. "Lock, you can see that this is not the kind,
gentle queen that you serve. Why are you fighting against my life
servant?"
Lock didn't answer. He didn't know what to do, whether to believe
his eyes or his mind...
"Lock, trust me." Rin floated to the ground. "This is Pyrite, not
Electra. She may look like your queen, but she is, in reality, an
imposter." She gestured to Pyrite, who screamed and changed back into
an adult.
"Where is my queen, then?" Lock asked.
"Her spirit has been trapped. Pyrite has used a magical item to lock
her somewhere."
"Shut up!!!" Pyrite screamed. "I AM THE QUEEN!!" No one was
listening.
"Lock, you must find Electra." Rin told him. "Leave this place and
search for her."
Lock turned to Pyrite, fire in his eyes. "I'll kill this imposter
first. The penalty for committing such a crime is death!"
"No! She doesn't understand what she had done." Rin explained. "It
is her destiny to impersonate, though not to this degree. Only those
who know her can tell the difference. I will take her to my own
dimension and make sure she is never free to do such a thing again."
Rin smiled and began to fade out of sight, along with Pyrite.
"My queen, wait!" Kakou said. "Where's Yukiko?"
"Do not worry, Kakou. Yukiko is home, on Earth. and that is where
you belong, to continue your training. I am waiting..." She and Electra
slowly faded into nothing. The light returned.
After a moment of awed silence, Lock spoke up. "Yuushou... I'm
sorry. You were right. That wasn't my queen. I guess I must have
snapped..."
Yuushou shook his head. "Don't worry."
Kaijin looked at his old friend. "Lock, I'll help you search for
her."
"What? You don't have to." Lock said.
"I want to. It can get lonely, searching by yourself."
Lock smiled. "Thanks, Kaijin."
"As for us," Yuushou said, "We should get back to Earth, like
Queen Rin said."
"Yeah," Kakou agreed, "I hope this dimension's time isn't the same
as the Earth's..."
"So what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Hikaru said.
********************
A few minutes later, Yuushou, Hikaru, and Kakou were back in the
alley. They restored their human forms and started back home.
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The End!
Notes
Pyrite, for those who don't know, is fool's gold. I thought that the
whole Electra/Pyrite thing was perfect. It's actually what started S3
in the first place.
I hope I didn't drive anyone too insane with the ending!
(
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