©2000
Sapphire smiled at the Elders of the Elemental Gods. Akbar and Kari were the oldest and most powerful of all of them. Akbar was the god of Time, Kari was the goddess of the Earth. She was called Mother Earth and he was called Father Time. It was what mortals had named them long, long before.
Suddenly, the realm began to shake. Loki's face was a mask of horror. "Daemos," he said, gulping. "He's out."
"But how?" Lael cried.
"A mortal with the blood of a god," said Bernfrek, god of water. He grabbed a pillar to keep from falling as the ground shook and rocked.
Daemos appeared in a fury of black flames. The mortals also appeared, and looked stunned. Daemos' eyes were wild.
"My darling, where are you?" he called out, eyes searching for Sapphire.
Sapphire suddenly doubled over in pain. Power flowed throughout her body like liquid fire. She felt like she was on fire, worse than when her memories had returned. And she knew why. She was herself again, a full goddess.
She stood up, drawing herself to her full height. "Right here, Daemos," she said, her voice cold, clear and ringing in the pandemonium. The gods disappeared, except for Daine, who worked her way through panicked gods over to the mortals.
Daemos turned and stared at her, as did the mortals. His face formed an evil smirk as he surveyed her form, hunger in his eyes.
Daine felt her jaw drop. The goddess was more beautiful than the Great Mother Goddess was! Even more perfect. The dress was the exact same blue-gold it had been, and the veil was still a sheer gold one, but a small chain with black and silver moons in the different cycles were on her forehead. The chain became a more elaborate headdress in the back. It was a gold chainmail lattice on the top of her head, then fell down to the back of her neck loosely. It had sapphires and emeralds and moonstones and diamonds all worked in to it, as well as moon and star charms.
Along with the collar-like necklace, there was a slim golden chain with a moon eclipsing the sun as a pendant of ivory and black onyx. Sapphire's earrings were a complex work of fire opal, black opals, and plain opals. They had black onyx, diamonds, sapphires, and emeralds all in a complex design. Rings decorated her right hand, but only one ring was on her left hand, and it was an elaborate ring with the sign of an Angel's feather. Two or three braclets decorated her left wrist. Her coppery hair had an elaborate design of the breathy curl she liked and a tiny braid with three pure white Angel feathers and gold, silver, glass, and sapphire beads on three slender strands of black silk clasped into the braid.
Sapphire glowed a brillant gold, but as Numair saw, her aura was slwoly becoming a gold-silver aura with black moons and sapphire stars. At that moment, George wished she was still mortal. He had always known that Alanna was a beauty, and in the right clothes, she would outshine Thayet. Jon could not believe that it was the same person he had loved as a youth.
Daemos went to her and went down on knee to kiss her hand. She slipped her hand out of his. He stood. "My sweet one. You have not changed an inch!"
Sapphire punched him, the impact sending him flying into a pillar across the room. Daemos stood, his face a mask of shock. His lower jaw was just under his right ear. He pulled the jaw into it's proper place as Sapphire stalked over to him and punched him in the stomach.
"I learned something in the mortal realms. Never let an enemy close enough to do damage; let it always be you to do the dammage!" she snarled at him, as he doubled over in pain.
Raoul, Gary, Jon, George, Numair, and Daine clapped as Sapphire pummled him. She was angry and all the elemental-gods knew it. They were on the floor laughing their heads off. Loki and Lael were laughing loudest of all. When it looked like Sapphire was doing serious damage to Daemos, Loki walked over to her and held her wrist. She gave voice to a little squeal of outrage and dropped her fight when Loki put his arms around her wasit and murmured something.
Daemos looked at her, his wounds healing incredibly fast. "I swear to you this day, Sapphire. No one you love is safe! Not your mortals, not your gods, not your family, not anyone! My revenge will be swift and hurtful! No matter what you do, I will not rest until I see your life destroyed!"
"Lock him up," Bernfrek yelled. Angels of Divine Justice descended on them. Daemos screamed a word and smoke filled the air. As the smoke left the sky, they saw two Angels dead: Adonia and her brother Ketrick.
The gods looked at Sapphire, there was a cut on her wrist, and it was quickly healing. She had the strangest look on her face, one of fear and one of hatred. "He must be stopped," she said softly.
"But," said a small girl, who was radiating with silver power, "how can we stop him? He is so powerful."
A goddess that was transparent, yet beautiful shook her head. She was The Oracle. "He is but one god," she said in her booming voice. The voice was like canons firing and exploding; like the mist surrounding the forest to the mortals. "But much will be sacrafised to bring him to a halt."
Sapphire looked away from The Oracle. "I will pay the price. He must be stopped before he does unfixable damage." The god-elementals yelled their agreement. Though, the Tortallans were shaken considerably. Many began to gather fire in their hands, and many began to take out glowing weapons. "But, wait," Sapphire said. "Daemos is in the mortal realms, most likely Tortall."
"We should send the mortals back, then arrange for a little payback on Daemos!" a god snarled.
"Daemos needs to pay!" cried a beautiful goddess in wispy white cloth.
"Daemos will pay!" Sapphire cried. "But he will pay by my terms, and then by our terms! We can no more kill him than we can kill ourselves." Yells of outrage and anger that met that were loud. "BUT!" Sapphire yelled. "But, we can imprison him, as he did to you, my siblings. Imprison him until the end of time."
"First, shouldn't we send the mortals home?" Asa asked, taking Lael's hand. "We should not let them stay. It might be a danger to them."
Sapphire looked at the Elders. "What say thee, Elders?" she asked, bowing her head.
Kari raised her eyebrow, a smile of amusement on her face. "A goddess who demanded that she be crowned queen is asking what others think? For what they think, and what they opinionate?"
Sapphire looked up. "A true queen knows her people feed before she sits to feast. A true queen know her people safe before she takes her rest. Though, a queen may be the head of state, she is the least. She bows to those of her council, to those who request things that are in her power to grant, so long as they hurt none. Power is a heavy burden. A true queen should think once, twice, and thrice before she makes a request of her people. I have tried to learn this, and I believe that I have learned it."
Kari nodded her great, silver head. "Then you have learned why you were put in the mortal realms to learn. And as it matters, I believe we should send the mortals home. They have no affair in the affairs of gods."
Daine would have made a comment, but the look of these immortals told her they would not heed her protests. She frowned and stepped forward. "May I go with them?"
The great immortals turned to look at Daine and the Tortallans.
"And who are you?" asked an aged old man, his face weathered and tanned. He was Radwyn, god of the mists.
"I am Veralidaine, daughter of the god Weiryn."
"And what business do you have with them?" Rhemis, god of the Southern Wind, demanded.
"It's all right, Rhemis. She was mortal before. Sarra's daughter," Sapphire said, hands folded at her waist.
"The one with all the wild magic?" Akbar queried.
"Yes," Loki replied. "She was here before. She stopped Chaos from destroying the realms."
"The one in the prophecy," Kari replied, with a nod. She began to walk over towards Daine and the Tortallans. Her silver hair floated behind her, glowing almost. Her green eyes were almost golden with their light. She put a hand on Daine's cheek. "And why do you wish to go to the mortal realms again, my child?"
Daine gulped and met the great green eyes. "They are my friends, Great One. I wish to know they are safe. And how may I know it for certain unless I am with them?"
Kari raised a delicate eyebrow. "Such knowledge in one so young. So much courage, yet so much fear." She nodded. "You may go with your friends, but only if you choose to become mortal, yet again."
Daine looked puzzled.
Sapphire smiled. "Daine, the only way a god can go to the mortal realms, to do anything in the mortal realms except talk, is to become mortal. Well, except for Opal," she said, chuckling.
"Opal has a sweet deal!" a young god chimed in.
"Opal?" Daine asked, slightly puzzled.
"Opal is the goddess of revenge, younglin'!" the young god told her with a wink. "One beautiful goddess with gold and dove wings and lovely arrows that will kill any twelve mortals if they are in a straight line. Right on through each of the twelve's skins."
"Oh," Daine said faintly. She now had no doubt in mind that she did not want to meet this "Opal."
"So, my child," Kari said, dropping her hand from Daine's cheek. She walked over to a fountain and made a tugging motion. Soon, a vile made of ivory floated up out of the water and sailed into Kari's hand. "What is your choice? Guard them as a mortal, or watch and break those silly laws Mithros and Selene set eons ago that forbid gods to intervene with a mortal's life?"
Daine frowned. "They can be broken?"
"They never existed," Loki said, laughing. "They forgot a small law that the All, parent to us, and parent to the gods' parents, set. All gods must vote on a law, or decree. They forgot that, and now that we are free, we control them. Break all the laws you wish. None exists until all vote on new laws. That means every god in the Divine Realms."
"Even Chaos?" Daine asked, shocked.
"She is a goddess, is she not?" Kari asked. "She has a quarrel with Mithros and Selene, not with us. Should she dare attack us, we can more than contain her. We have done so in the past, and will do so in the present and future."
Daine looked surprised, but shook the mood away. "If I choose to become mortal, how long will it last?"
Kari looked at her brother, Akbar, then at the others. Sapphire shrugged. "The last one who used it was Chaos. Should I go and make a query of her, Elders?" she asked.
Akbar hesitated. "You are at full power?"
Sapphire nodded. "I am."
Kari looked at the vile, then at Sapphire. "Then ask. It will be good if we record it in the annals so we don't have to chase after the last one to use the spell like a tell-tale."
Sapphire bowed, and vanished, gold mist with black moons and stars enveloped her.
"And now," Kari said, "we wait."
The Tortallans, gone unnoticed, were more than a little unnerved. Jonathan and George were visibly shaking. How had he gotten out?
Numair was have a whispered fight with Daine, and Raoul and Gary were smartly staying out of it. They stayed next to Jon and George.
"This thing with Al--Sapphire," Gary said, making a face. "I don't actually believe that she's the same person we knew in Tortall."
"She isn't the same person, that's why," Jonathan snapped.
George sighed. "She has to be, the same person. I mean, here she's a goddess. In Tortall, she was mortal. There's a huge difference in the way the two act."
"Uhm, not really," Daine said. "I'm a goddess, but I haven't changed."
"Are you a goddess like them?" George asked tiredly.
"Well, no."
"And all you've even known was how to act mortal. How to be yourself. Alanna is just another aspect of this 'Sapphire.'"
"Not truly," Lael muttered. "Not at all, actually."
They turned to look at him and Loki. "What do you mean?" Raoul asked.
Loki eyed Lael. "He has a warped way of saying things. 'Alanna' is Sapphire. That's what you all don't understand. Uhm, let's see. Give me a quality Alanna had, and I'll match it to Sapphire."
"Joy of a Battle," Jon said automatically.
"Joy of seeing fighting, no matter what form it is. I would guess because of her slightly dangerous side," Loki said.
"Temper," Gary and Raoul said at once.
"The temper of the gods," Lael said. "God turned mortal always have their tempers and pride. And stubbornness. There is nothing in any world that could change that, except for the All."
George looked at Loki. "Children," he said. Everyone knew what he meant. Alanna had despised children to begin with, but it had been her that suggested it when the two of them had been married for three years.
Loki and Lael laughed. "Oh, she hated children. I have no idea where that came from!" Loki said. He shook his head. "In a way, your right. Alanna is an aspect of Sapphire. But, this Alanna is like…."
"Like Alan turning into Alanna," Lael said automatically.
"Hah," George said. "The only change in that was clothes."
"Yes, and in name. But, truly. Alanna and Sapphire are nearly the same physical type. I'll admit, height and eyes, and facial structure has changed, but other than that, nothing," Loki said.
"Nothing?" Sapphire asked, appearing next to Lael. "You will be dealt with later, Warrior. When Daemos is captured and imprisoned for good. And don't try to explain to them! When I explain to them, they'll be all twisted with the inane explanations you have given."
The Tortallans tried not to show they were laughing at the look on Loki's face, but it wasn't hid very well. Sapphire gave Loki a nasty look and walked over to Kari.
"It lasts until the job is done, is what Chaos said," Sapphire said. "So, possible, once your need is done, you become what you once were."
Kari nodded and looked at Daine. "What say ye, sister?"
Daine nodded. "I choose to go to the mortal realms with my friends."
Sapphire didn't look surprised, in fact, none of the gods looked surprised. Kari walked over to Daine, and gave her the vial. "I suggest you drink this once in the realms. It will not due for you to take it here." Daine nodded. Kari looked at Lael. "You know more about these magics than I ever could, Lael. Will you not?"
Lael nodded. "It would be my pleasure, Elder," he said, bowing with his fist over his heart. He raised his hands to the sky and said a few words in a language older than the scrolls Myles had found in the Old Ones' ruins at Barony Olau. Blue lightning crackled and suddenly, Daine and the Tortallans were enclosed in a blue and gold bubble. Of course, they could still breathe, but looking down as it floated down was a very nauseating experience.
It floated down to the palace, but to a place that was very old, one that Jonathan had never seen.
"What is this place?" he asked, as the bubble released them when it had landed.
Raoul shrugged, and Gary was examining a few of the carvings on the three stones shaped like a doorway.
In a complete circle, stones stood. They were spaced out normally, and would allow a man to walk next to a wagon comfortably between the doorway shaped stones. For all of the stones that were standing were shaped as doorways. Two stones stood up straight, reaching towards the heavens, and one slab of stone was laid flat across the two standing stones.
Looking around, they saw the stones formed a perfect circle, with one of the three stone doorways in the exact center of the circle. Gary noticed that all of the stones had strange markings, and Numair saw that there was a deeply etched circle around the stones. The circle marking was as wide as thirty-five feet and the as tall as thirty-five feet as well. Numair would have laughed at the perfection of the circle, if he didn't feel very old magics stirring.
"Numair, come take a look at these markings!" Gary called from the center of the circle.
Numair came over and stared at the markings. "These are runes the Old Ones used to write in."
"Who created them again?" Gary asked.
"Two gods. One was a goddess, the other a god. I'm not sure of their names. They were very powerful," Numair said, looking around him. There were mage energies here all right. And bad ones.
"Hm… As I recall, Lael said something about Sapphire and Loki creating them, and a third intervention," Jonathan said, looking at the circle. He stooped down and tried to pick up some of the dirt and sand that had formed the circle. He touched the sand, amazed to find that it was not sand, but sand that had long ago been melted into glass. "George, come take a look at this."
Numair looked at the stones. A symbol of a goddess, a symbol of a god; symbol for man, symbol for woman; symbol of victory and of comfort, fertility and love; the symbol of Eternity, or Immortality. "I think this main one is a gate of some kind. One that takes you to a different world or something. Or brings something in," he stated.
Daine shook her head, and looked at the stones. "These markings are ones I've seen before," she said, toying with the vial. "In the Realms, there's a place--a doorway, actually--with these same markings." She shrugged. "Shall we continue?"
Numair looked around. "Yes, I think we should. I get the feeling that something is here and it does not like us being here."
That was when the circle began to glow with a blinding white fire. The heat cast off by the magic was intense. It was so hot that Jon and George could feel their skin begin to crack and peel. They hurriedly stepped away from the circle and over to Numair and the others.
"What's going on?" Jon shouted, shielding his eyes from the light with his arm.
"I don't know!" Numair shouted back, blocking the light from his eyes with his wrist and hand. "Something isn't right! These magics should have stayed dormant! There is nothing to have awaken them!"
"Why don't we all shut up!" Gary bellowed, hiding his eyes with the cloak he was wearing.
Then the light, and heat left as suddenly as it had appeared. Standing near the circle were men and women glowing a sickly yellow-green. They were taller than Numair easily, and very beautiful. It hurt to look at them, for the beauty hurt the eyes if looked at too long. Power danced across their bodies, and Jon knew them right away.
"Ysandir," he breathed.
Ylon stretched his arms widely and to the skys above. "It has been so long," he said, opening his eyes.
Ylira looked at them. "Souls," she hissed. "So much life!"
"Jon?" Numair asked. "Who are these people?"
"The Ysandir," Jon said, looking at them with a slight horror. "The Nameless Ones to the Bazhir. They takes souls and lives. Alanna and I destroyed them a long time ago. I was seventeen at the time."
"Well," Daine said, laughing nervously. "You didn't do such a great job!"
Ylanda saw Jon and her eyes blazed. "You!" she cried, pointed a red-nailed finger at him. Jon winced. "You! The pathetic mortal! The one who's boy companion was a girl!"
Jon sighed. "Point?"
Ylon chuckled. "You are not armed with their weapons anymore!"
"'Their weapons?' Jon, what is he talking about?" Raoul asked.
Suddenly, three gods appeared. Sapphire, Asa, and someone with a wicked looking long bow.
"The Old Ones' weapons," the woman said. "And our weapons!" She gave voice to bloodcurdling war cry, much fiercer than Thayet's or Alanna's ever were.
Ylon threw magic at Asa's chest as she twirled a battle axe with a wicked blade. It was nicked heavily, and cutting someone with it would be very painful to the person, or demon.
Sapphire extended a hand, and a ball of light appeared in her hand. It lengthened until it was the length of a sword. Then it materialized. It was Lightning, but it looked newly minted, not a nick nor a scorch-mark was on the blade.
The woman with the bow took three deadly looking arrows out of her quiver and pulled the string back to her ear. She released the arrows and they thudded into their targets. The three Ysandir the arrows hit laughed at the arrows in their chest until the woman gestured and the arrows became fire. The Ysandir screamed as they became living torches. Sapphire twirled the sword, slashing anyone who dared come within her range. Asa's battle axe was quickly reducing the Ysandir to a little more than limbs.
Then they vanished. Daemos appeared, floating in mid-air. He did not look happy. "Have you forgotten, Sapphire? Nothing can kill them!"
"Fire can," she yelled. "The Old Ones can!"
"Yes, but the Old Ones no longer exist!" Daemos said, laughing. "Making them once depleted your energy to nothing, even with Loki's help! Not even Lael could help you!"
The woman with the bow rolled her eyes. "Enough talk, Daemos," she said. The arrow that was notched on her bow sought it mark in Daemos' chest.
He clutched the shaft, and laughed. He pulled the arrow out and threw it to the ground, blasting it with sheer power. "None of your arrows could kill me, Opal! Not one of your pathetic weapons! And you forget again! You can no more kill siblings than you can kill yourselves!" he said nastily. With a mocking salute and bow, he vanished.
"Damn, damn, damn!" Opal snapped, picking up her shattered arrow. Her eyes became pure white, with no iris or pupil. Power pour from her eyes into the shattered arrow. It became a whole arrow, but with blood dripping off the end.
"He will pay," Asa said quietly. She looked at Sapphire, who's sword had vanished. "He is right. You cannot remake the Old Ones."
Sapphire closed her eyes. "They were never dead," she said. "So I do not have to remake them. Some I will, for the souls are terribly old and can no longer fight."
"Why are the Ysandir back?" Jonathan demanded. "We killed them!"
Sapphire looked at Jon, her eyes showing no iris, pupil, or white. Only an endless field of stars. "They were destroyed, all right. He has remade them. Only fire and my people can destroy them." Daine began to feel weak, Sapphire looked at her, and the full vial. "Drink the vile, or you'll be pulled back into the Realms."
Daine nodded, and took the stopper out. She quickly drank it, and a pain went through her body. She lost the godliness at once. And she was as mortal as she had been when that spideren had killed her.
Opal looked at the mortals, her eyes back to a peaceful and sober hazel and silver. "The Ysandir will not come again. Asa can make sure of that with Jesrek." She bowed in Asa's direction.
"Of course I can. Jesrek will rain down fire, and I will make sure it touches everything. The Ysandir will never be able to touch Tortall," Asa said. "But of the Old Ones…"
"I will handle the dealings of the Old Ones," Sapphire said, her eyes back to their normal silver-violet. She smiled, "They will listen to me on Loki. After all, we did create them." Opal and Asa nodded, and vanished in flashes of lightning.
"Sapphire," Gary called out, as she began to gather her magic to vanish.
"Hm?"
"Are we going to be all right? With Daemos loose… He can raise the dead, can he not?"
Sapphire froze. "He can," she said, hand going to her throat. "You will be fine. I will make sure of it." She vanished like the other two, except her lightning was fiercer.
"I don't like this," Jon muttered, as they walked into the palace. "I have a strange feeling that things are going to get worse before they get better."
Sapphire looked at Loki. "We have to."
Loki went over to her, and held her. "No, we don't. This isn't our fight. Let the Ysandir do what they will."
Sapphire pulled away from him. She frowned, and looked bewildered. "Then I will do it alone," she said and disappeared out of the room.
When she reappeared, it was in her own realm. The Realm of the Night and all things related to the night. She conjured up the "Alanna" part of her, and sat down on a chair. Alanna looked at her quite frankly.
"Well, you've certainly made a mess of things, haven't you, Sapphire?" Alanna said mildly, sitting down on a black velvet monstrosity that was as comfortable as it was ugly. The chair was overstuffed, and it was one Alanna always liked.
Sapphire looked at her split personality. "Yes. What should I do? I know that wasn't Loki, it had to be Daemos."
"The Old Ones were a great idea," Alanna replied emphatically. "But, a certain few Old Ones would be better than the entire populace. I would recommend the five guardians. Wind, Water, Fire, Earth, Spirit. They each have their own powers, and each of the five are more than a match for the Ysandir."
Sapphire brightened. "Of course!" she said, snapping her fingers. Sapphire stood and brought her hands together and then flung them apart. Five globes of power appeared before Sapphire. Alanna smiled and sipped her glass of wine.
The globes exploded, and it their place, hung five young women. Wind, Water, Fire, Earth, and Spirit.
Wind's name was Trista. Her hair was long and white blonde, and some of it was caught up into a bun at the back of her head. Her eyes were the palest amber possible without them being white eyes. She was the tallest of the Guardians at six feet two inches. She wore white leather breeches that laced up the side of her leg, showing off very golden skin. The shirt she wore was of black cotton and tight. The shirt had no sleeves except for thin straps. It tied in the back, showing skin, yet again. She wore white leather boots, that needed only to be tied at the top, by wide white ribbons. She wore a sash made of black silk, and the browband she wore was gold. The gem in the middle was a crystal clear diamond.
Water's name was Talisa. Her silver-white hair was cropped short, like a man's. Her eyes were the most captivating sapphire blue as there ever was. She was five feet and ten inches tall. She wore dark blue cotton breeches than clung to her legs, and a light blue version of Wind's shirt. The same cotton shirt that had two slim straps on the shoulders for sleeves and laced up tightly in the back. Her skin was just as gold as Wind's, if not more so. The boots she wore were of jet black leather and were tied at the top with a light blue and a dark blue ribbon, on each boot. Her sash was of blue silk, and her browband was of silver. The gem was that of an ocean sapphire, a deep blue gem that was as rare as it was beautiful.
Fire's name was Vesta. Her raven's wing black hair was waist length and loose. Her eyes were a darker violet than Alanna's even were, and were just as captivating as Talisa's. She was six feet tall even. She wore a brown leather hunting skirt that was five inches above the knee. It was a wrap around skirt, and it was laced at the side to prevent harm to the wearer in a battle. Her shirt started under the breasts and was like a sort of vest, only it showed the stomach and laced up in the front, between the breasts. She had gold chainmail on one shoulder and upper arm, and a twining arm-bracelet fashioned as an arrow on the other. Her sash was a brilliant scarlet silk, and her boots were a white leather with the same red silk ribbons as her sash to tie her boots up to her knees. Her browband was of gold, and was a ruby of the deepest red.
Earth's name was Ebony. Her flowing light brown hair was bum length and braided into a coronet at the back of her head. Her eyes were a vivid emerald green, and were as deep as the ocean. She was five feet and nine inches tall. Her skin tight leather breeches were dyed green, and laced up the side, like Wind's. Her skin showed to be as golden as the others'. Her shirt was a loose green shirt, laced at the wrist-cuffs, and draped like silk, thought it was of the lightest cottons. Her boots were like any of the others, tied at the top; her ribbons were of green silk. Her sash was of an emerald green silk so dark it could be considered black. Her browband was of silver and the gem was an emerald as dark as the sash.
Spirit's name was Harmony. Her hair was silver, her eyes were silver. She was five feet and seven inches. She was no warrior, as the others were. She was only a mage, and a spirit. Though the others were warriors as well as mages, no one could compete with Spirit. Her dress was a cotton summer dress of that a lady of a high imperial court would wear. Fancy, jeweled and regal. It was a silk almost tissue like. Her browband was that of gold thread with gold charms of the moon going through all of it's phases. Her shoes were of white silk with silver silk laces that laced up the ankle and the calf. Her sash was of silver silk and a gold pouch hung at the knot of it.
Sapphire was thrilled. "Awake, Guardians. Your Goddess has need of you," Sapphire spoke softly. "Awake, Guardians. Your home is in danger. The Ysandir will destroy everything. Awake, your Goddess has need of you valiant warriors."
Slowly, they began to wake. One by one, as they woke, the spell holding them in air broke. Each of them went down on one knee before her, each whispering her allegiance.
Sapphire looked at her warriors, the ones she had worked so hard on creating. The ones who had died at the hand of the mortals who now ruled the mortal realms. "Arise, My Warriors." Each rose to her feet. "The Ysandir are once again loose. Daemos is wrecking havoc on the realms that were once yours. The mortals cannot hold him, or his fighters for much longer. As you know, Daemos is the god of Death. He will not be able to touch you, for your hearts will be those of the Immortals," Sapphire said. She motioned and a black onyx bowl that glowed gold faintly floated over. She swirled it with her finger and traced the symbol of immortality upon each of the Guardians brows. They symbol flared, then vanished. "A war is brewing in the mortal realms. Between the undead and the living. Some of the living have allied with the undead, and don't bother to spare these.
"I will send you to Tortall, where you will have to explain that you are there on my wishes, and that you have come to fight. They will explain what is to happen."
All five Guardians bowed. "Yes, my Goddess," they said as one.
"Then go," Sapphire said. "And my you succeed in the task set before you." Globes of magic floated above each of the Guardians. Each one was enveloped in the globe and sent floating down to Tortall.
Sapphire sighed, and turned back to Alanna. "Well?"
"You are still not at ease?" Alanna asked.
"No, I'm not."
Alanna looked at Sapphire. "Send me to Tortall."
"What?" Sapphire cried. "You can't exist without being within close proximity to me!"
Alanna looked down and away. "Use the potion that made Daine mortal," said Alanna. She looked up at Sapphire. "How many lives are disrupted because of what we are? Let me stay in Tortall, until I die as a mortal. Then I will rejoin you, but not as yourself, as myself."
"As what? A minor elemental goddess?"
"No. Like the Blessed Trinity."
Sapphire stared. Then began to smile. "You have something here. And I like it." She stuck out her hand. "All right! A deal!" Alanna took Sapphire's hand and felt the flash of pain, then the scream for air her lungs demanded.
Alanna took her first breath and smiled. "Tortall awaits, Sapphire."
"As does George," Sapphire said, grinning wickedly. Alanna blushed and nodded. Sapphire looked at Alanna. "I will miss you. You've always given melight where there has been none before."
Alanna knelt and kissed Sapphire's hand. "It will not be long!" Alanna swore. She stood, and waited as Sapphire's magic carried her to Tortall.
