<\/p>\n
Act 01: Something Wicked Comes<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n It took Allan and Dionne almost a month after the defeat of Nekhbet\u2014a corrupt sehashi who had come to be known as the Lord of Chaos named Vulturia\u2014before they worked up the courage to go back to the site of her lair. Cory and Hatemi, understandably, refused to go with them. They had made it clear that they wanted nothing more to do with sehashi business after what had happened to Cory. Hana agreed to help with anything they found in the lair but had no particular urge to go there herself.<\/span><\/p>\n Despite what had happened and despite their differences of opinion regarding all things sehashi, the four girls stayed friends. They\u2019d been friends for a long time before they\u2019d become sehashi and wouldn\u2019t let something like this get in the way.<\/span><\/p>\n It was another month after that before they were able to get past the rubble blocking the entrance and get down into what remained of the lair. The ornate columns had lost all of their vibrant colour and had toppled over. Large sections of the stone had crumbled away into dust. The small pool was full of sand instead of water. Morbidly, Dionne could see a skull partially buried in the sand. It didn\u2019t look quite human.<\/span><\/p>\n Of Vulturia\u2019s remains, there was no sign. The spot where she had fallen was empty. Her clothes had dissolved along with her body. Dionne went over to the spot and looked down, a feeling of helplessness washing over her. It made no sense.<\/span><\/p>\n Vulturia had been her enemy. She and her fellow Lords of Chaos had tried to kill her and her team mates. They had succeeded in wiping out Allan\u2019s team along with their spirit guardian, Freyn. They were evil, servants and devoted followers of the Ssu-Ling\u2014corrupt sehashi trapped at the end of the Great War\u2014and sought their release. Yet, despite all the horrible things they\u2019d done, all the pain they\u2019d caused, Dionne couldn\u2019t bring herself to hate Vulturia.<\/span><\/p>\n After all, Nekhbet was just a sehashi, like me until she was corrupted by the Lords of Chaos. It could have been a conscious choice, but it could also have been an accident, like what happened to Cory. Maybe she didn\u2019t have a spirit guardian like we do who could help her or maybe they couldn\u2019t cure the corruption in time. I just…don\u2019t know. How could I hate her for that?<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n She shook her head.<\/span> I need to focus here.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n Dionne looked over at her older brother Allan. He was rooting around the crumbling wreck that had once been Vulturia\u2019s throne. \u201cHave you found anything yet?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNot yet, but I\u2019m not holding out hope that anything survived. I mean, look at this place. In another month, maybe less, I don\u2019t think there\u2019ll be anything left.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe have to try on the off chance that we can learn something useful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not saying it\u2019s a waste of time, I\u2019m just saying we shouldn\u2019t expect much. Documents are more fragile than stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne joined him by the throne. \u201cVulturia was an Egyptian sehashi before the corruption. Maybe she used stone to record things on.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEgyptians used papyrus more commonly than stone,\u201d Allan reminded her. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot easier than chiselling stone and, unfortunately for us, it\u2019s also more fragile.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne sighed. We should see if there are any rooms besides this one. I don\u2019t think that they would have all slept and eaten in here.”<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s assuming they needed to do either of those things at all.\u201d He stood up straight and looked around. \u201cI think it\u2019s a good idea, though.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll take one side, you take the other?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDeal.\u201d Allan walked over to the opposite side of the lair, leaving Dionne to search the area around the throne.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n *~*~*<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Three exhausting hours later, Dionne slumped down onto the dusty, rubble strewn floor, worn out and frustrated. Allan had found a pair of rooms, but they weren\u2019t useful. One was inaccessible with all the rubble in the way. The other was a simple room that had most likely belonged to one of Vulturia\u2019s followers. There were bits of broken jewellery littering the floor. He had picked up the largest piece: a circular medallion with an unfamiliar symbol etched into it, and put it in his pocket, thinking it might be useful or maybe even valuable. It was pretty if nothing else.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne\u2019s search had produced nothing and it was getting to be too late for her to stay out much longer. If it hadn\u2019t been for Allan telling their parents he was taking her out for a late pizza dinner she would have had to call it quits at least an hour ago.<\/span><\/p>\n Allan sat down beside her, pulling out the gold medallion, rubbing some of the dirt off it with his fingers. \u201cWe can come back another time.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne shook her head, wiping the sweat off her forehead with one hand. \u201cThis is my last free weekend for the next few weeks. I have tests to study for and all my extracurricular clubs will be starting up soon. Plus, I know you\u2019re busy with your courses.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo this is it? All this work and you want to just call it quits?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI guess so.\u201d She stood up, her legs shaky from exhaustion. \u201cI was hoping there would be something here that could tell us how many of these people there are or what brought them to Elysium Valley in the first place.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIs Laira still clinging to her artefact theory?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYeah. She\u2019s convinced that there\u2019s a relic here that could help them locate one of the keys they need to free the Ssu-Ling.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll probably never know.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne turned to face the wall, slamming her fist against it. \u201cWe\u2019re in the dark and I don\u2019t like it. There could be dozens, maybe hundreds of these Lords of Chaos out there planning an attack and all we can do is sit here and wait for it to happen. There\u2019s nothing we can do about it!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s pessimistic.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThink about it, Allan. In every movie, cartoon, or story you\u2019ve ever come across, the heroes can only ever react to the things the villains do. It\u2019s the villain who controls the story; they\u2019re the ones who make all the plans.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWell, yes, you\u2019re right about that, but I mean you\u2019re pessimistic about not finding anything. Look behind you,\u201d he said as he stood up.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne turned to see that a section of the wall had vanished. She looked at the wall under her fist and then back at the gap. \u201cMaybe I hit a switch or something?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEither that or the mechanism keeping that hole covered has failed.\u201d He walked over and looked inside. \u201cIt\u2019s dark in there.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Armed with their flashlights, the siblings entered the newly discovered room. This one was much more elaborate than the other two even though it was falling apart like everything else. Dionne imagined that it must have been very beautiful once based on what remained.<\/span><\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t long before they found something. A small shelf beside the bed contained a book, two engraved metallic tablets, and an armful of fragile scrolls. Their elation was muted by the additional discovery that they were all written in what appeared to be Egyptian hieroglyphs. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI guess we have some research to do before we can decipher these,\u201d Allan said. \u201cBut it\u2019s better than what we had before.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI should have expected this. Now I wish Cory would help us out. She\u2019d probably love this stuff.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll poke through the university library and see if I can find something that will help us translate these.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf this wasn\u2019t sehashi business, I\u2019d suggest talking to some of the professors.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s out of the question.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll take the book if you want to take the tablets. The scrolls we can split between us.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSounds fair.\u201d He nodded. \u201cI wonder if I could convince Cory to let me borrow Peltoren to help out.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if she\u2019s spoken to Peltoren since she got out of the hospital. The pendant she lives in hasn\u2019t left her room since then either.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Allan frowned, carefully putting the tablets and scrolls into his bag. \u201cThat\u2019s not good. I was always under the impression that spirit guardians need to be spoken to or they start to fade away.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cLaira says that Peltoren probably understands what\u2019s going on and has put herself to sleep for now. This shouldn\u2019t hurt her at all as they go dormant between sehashi partners to keep them from going mad with loneliness. She\u2019s never heard of a situation like this before where a sehashi has refused contact with her spirit guardian after awakening.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t blame Cory for her reaction though,\u201d Allan said, shouldering his bag. \u201cI walked away once. I probably would have stayed gone if it hadn\u2019t been for you and Hana.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf we can\u2019t get Cory and Hatemi back, will you keep on helping?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n He nodded, heading for the exit. \u201cI\u2019ll do what I can, but you know what things are like right now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s all I ask.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n *~*~*<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Monday morning came along as it always did. Dionne grumbled as she got out of bed when her alarm clock went off to go have a quick shower before putting on a clean school uniform. Downstairs, breakfast was waiting for her on the table. She nibbled on toast and bacon while she packed lunch. Her completed homework was already in her school bag along with the books she\u2019d taken out from the public library on Saturday about hieroglyphs. <\/span><\/p>\n Laira hadn\u2019t been much help with the documents she\u2019d brought back. In life, she\u2019d been an alien sehashi called Xiosh from a faraway place known as the Trios Cluster. As such, she had no knowledge of Earth languages. They were only able to understand each other because Laira was communicating directly to her mind as all Spirit Guardians did.<\/span><\/p>\n After saying goodbye to her parents, Dionne pulled on her long winter coat and headed for the bus stop. At that time of the day, it was only a fifteen minute ride to get from her house to the bus stop a short way down the street from Elysium Valley High School.<\/span><\/p>\n February was nearly over but the weather was still cold and there was plenty of snow on the ground. As much as she disliked snow, she supposed that it was good that there was still some around as the school had ski trips planned for the following week.<\/span><\/p>\n Her locker was her first stop rather than the cafeteria as was her usual habit. She put the books she didn\u2019t need away and took what she would need for first period and then she went off in search of Hana.<\/span><\/p>\n After the excursion into Vulturia\u2019s lair on Friday, Dionne had been too tired to call Hana, so she\u2019d done it Saturday instead. They\u2019d discussed the recovered documents and the problems they presented. Unfortunately, Hana had been too busy that day with homework to go to the library with her, but promised to help her after school on Monday. <\/span><\/p>\n They had no classes together in the second term. For that matter, Dionne didn\u2019t share any classes at all with any of her fellow sehashi. The only time she saw them at all at school was before classes started and at lunch. They all lived in different parts of the city, so they didn\u2019t even take the same buses home. It made her sad as this was the first time she hadn\u2019t been in at least one class with any of them. Not that Cory, Hana, and Hatemi were her only friends at the school, but they were her best friends.<\/span><\/p>\n She found Hana\u2019s locker, but Hana wasn\u2019t there. A glance at her watch told her that the last bell would be ringing any second now.<\/span><\/p>\n Uh oh!<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n Her first class of the day, General Science, wasn\u2019t far, but the student population would all be rushing to their classes to avoid being marked as late, crowding the hallways more than usual. As it was, she barely managed to get seated at her desk before the bell rang.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re almost late,\u201d a snide voice commented.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne didn\u2019t even bother to turn her head. \u201cGood morning, Danika,\u201d she said, trying to be polite.<\/span><\/p>\n The girl in the desk beside her, Danika Green, smirked, toying with the ends of her grey tie. \u201cWe wouldn\u2019t want to ruin that flawless record of yours now, would we?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n She ignored the remark. Mr. Dawson had finished attendance and got up from his desk. Shortly after that he began writing on the board. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cTurn to chapter six in your textbooks,\u201d he instructed. \u201cAnswer the following questions and hand them in to me when you\u2019re finished.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Danika looked at the board with a complete lack of interest. Rather than complying with the instructions, she opened her binder to a blank sheet of paper and spent the rest of the class doodling.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne shook her head, trying not to let it get to her. <\/span>Just because she\u2019s semi-famous now she thinks she can do whatever she wants. The teachers ignore her, let her get away with slacking off in class. It makes me wonder what her grades are like. I know it\u2019s not nice, but I hope she\u2019s failing everything.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n *~*~*<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Social Studies was one of her least favourite subjects and had been for years, but it was becoming one of the best classes she had this term. It was a relief to get away from Danika. As a bonus, she was in the same class as Teir, a boy she\u2019d shared several classes with in the first term and in the year before that. Separated from his friends Yan Diamono and Kousei Prince, he was almost a decent guy. He was the sort of person that got picked on a lot. Or rather, he would if it weren\u2019t for his friendship with Kousei, one of the most popular boys in school.<\/span><\/p>\n Teir was usually willing to help others when they were stuck on assignments, something Dionne knew would happen to her eventually. She was already having a hard time keeping all the names and dates straight in her head.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne looked over at his desk. The thick binder he hauled around with him everywhere was closed, showing the cover. She didn\u2019t know what it was, exactly, but the picture was something from a science fiction movie.<\/span><\/p>\n He turned his head slightly and saw her looking at his binder. \u201cCan I help you?\u201d he asked blandly.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNo, sorry, I didn\u2019t mean to stare.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThen maybe you should be more careful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne stared at him. The outburst was very out of character for him. He was usually a very laid back and quiet person.<\/span><\/p>\n Teir sighed. \u201cSorry. Look, Dionne, you\u2019re a decent enough person, but I really don\u2019t want to talk to you, ok?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDid I do something to upset you that I don\u2019t know about?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou stood Kousei up and didn\u2019t even have the guts to apologize.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat was months ago!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou say that like it makes a difference. He kind of likes you and that hurt his feelings. You\u2019re just lucky that he\u2019s a cool guy and isn\u2019t holding a grudge or shouting it all over the school.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf it makes you feel better, I\u2019ll go talk to him later today.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhy couldn\u2019t you have done that in the first place?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou really want to know?\u201d He nodded. \u201cBecause I was embarrassed. I got home from shopping and fell asleep. I spent my whole weekend in bed. By the time Monday came around I remembered about the date and then it was too late. I thought anything I had to say would just sound lame. He didn\u2019t say anything about it when I saw him that day so I just…assumed things were fine. He didn\u2019t act any different.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a cool guy,\u201d Teir repeated. \u201cIt\u2019s not like he can act like he\u2019s hurt. He likes you, so he keeps it in so no one harasses you for it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s…really considerate of him.\u201d Teir looked down his nose at her. \u201cOk, ok, I\u2019ll talk to him. I feel even worse about this now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThanks,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m getting tired of him being sad over a girl.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t think girls are something to be sad about?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if you\u2019ve noticed, but I\u2019m kind of a nerd. Girls avoid me. I\u2019ve gotten used to it so it\u2019s not something I worry about. Kousei is cool and popular and deserves an appropriately cool girlfriend. I\u2019m not saying you\u2019re cool, but you\u2019re nicer than most of the girls he hags out with.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDo I need to worry about Yan being mad at me, too?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYan?\u201d Teir laughed. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t care about this. He enjoys teasing Kousei about girl stuff. According to him, relationships are stupid.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat sounds like Yan.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSquare things with Kousei and I\u2019ll call it good.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The bell rang, signalling the end of class and the beginning of the lunch break. Hungry high school students poured out of their classrooms, making their way towards the cafeteria. Dionne knew that Hana would be there, sitting at the usual table. Cory, who had a free period right before lunch, would already be there. Hatemi was in the same math class as Hana, so chances were good that she\u2019d be with them.<\/span><\/p>\n When Dionne arrived, however, Cory and Hatemi were nowhere to be seen. Hana was alone, her lunch sitting on a plastic tray in front of her: a donair, fries, and a drink.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne wrinkled her nose at the smell of the beef in her friend\u2019s wrap as she sat down and took out her own lunch: a turkey sandwich, yogurt cup with granola, and a can of apple juice.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re eating somewhere else today,\u201d Hana explained.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s going on?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI know they\u2019re not keen on sehashi stuff so I told them we needed to talk about something related to that. If they\u2019d stayed, it would have been ok, too, but I figured they should have the option.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cGood call.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo?\u201d Hana asked after swallowing a mouthful of food. \u201cDid you find anything?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI learned that hieroglyphs are a lot more complicated than I thought.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo we\u2019re no closer to learning why they were here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNot really. All I have is a few words.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI take it none of those words are useful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne shook her head as she opened up the yogurt cup, stirring the granola into it. \u201cI wish I knew someone who could help, someone other than Cory.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe problem with that is that we\u2019d have to explain about sehashi to whoever we get to help us,\u201d Hana reminded her.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve had moments this weekend where I wasn\u2019t sure that would be a bad thing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAre we still going to the library after school?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOnly if you\u2019re up for it. I\u2019m going regardless.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI said I\u2019d help, so I\u2019ll tag along but I don\u2019t know how helpful I\u2019ll be. Research isn\u2019t my strong suit.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cTrust me, I remember the travesty that was your tenth grade social studies essay. An extra pair of eyes would come in handy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWill Allan be there?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNo. Now that Reading Week is over he\u2019s back in class. He said he\u2019d go through the university\u2019s library though.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cGood to know. Their library is impressive. My brother took me there once.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWant to meet at the bus stop after fourth period?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWorks for me.\u201d Dionne took a large bite of her sandwich.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSlow down there! No rush to eat, you\u2019ve got a spare next period.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThey don\u2019t allow food in the library. I\u2019m going to try and get some more work done.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cGood luck,\u201d Hana said, picking up a fry. \u201cYou\u2019re going to need it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n *~*~*<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Hana stood at the bus station near the school, glancing frequently at her designer watch. She had a spare period at the end of the day so she had arrived at the designated meeting point a little early. It was cold enough outside to make her wish that she\u2019d stayed in the school like everyone else. There wasn\u2019t much wind, for which she was profoundly grateful.<\/span><\/p>\n In the distance, she could hear the bell ring to signify the end of another school day. The sound carried easily down the street. She looked at her watch again.<\/span><\/p>\n Dionne should be here soon. <\/span>I think she has Lit last period. That\u2019s not far from her locker. Even at her slowest it shouldn\u2019t take her more than five minutes to get here.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n She looked around. Students were arriving at the stop, getting on the buses they needed. Even after almost three months, Hana still felt very strange being at this bus stop. A small part of her was grateful that there were people around.<\/span><\/p>\n