Chapter 9: Ellesmir

They emerged through the dark clouds and finally landed on a cobblestone street, lined with Victorian style houses, leading up to a tall hill. Upon the hill, sat an elegant castle. Its white turrets gleamed in the sunlight. The road leading to the castle wound around the hill, and led to a stone bridge over a small river. The grass was lush and green, and the water was clear as day. It took Nadia a moment to realize that the town was floating. She looked around, seeing that the city was surrounded by clouds.

As she took a closer look at the castle, she realized that the islet holding the castle was only attached to the main square. Otherwise, the other islets were free floating. There were windmills on almost every islet; small rivers also ran through many of them.

                “Why, I mean, I meant to say that I mean, how exactly…” she trailed off, her thoughts lost in the wonder of it all.               

“Long ago, Ellesmir was an entire continent, attached to the rest of the world of Nirvana,” he began to explain. “But, as the Wisdoms have told us, there was a curse that lifted Ellesmir from its groundings, and made it float up into the sky. Only the magic of the Yume kept it from completely flying away from Nirvana. They tied it to the rest of the world via portals.” Nadia nodded.

‘So that’s why we had to come here that way, unless we were already here, it would have been impossible!’ she thought.

“As time passed on, Ellesmir began to break apart. Before it was too broken however, masons were sent to the castle to build a bridge from the castle to the town square. This way, the castle still had access to the town and the portals.” She nodded. It seemed to make as much sense as anything else she had experienced that day. After all, she had just traveled between worlds (or was it dimensions?) by jumping through mirrors. Anything was possible at this point. He turned to her.

                “Walk with me, Miss Nadia?” she smiled at him and curtsied.

                “Don’t mind if I do, Mr. Hatter.” She replied. He put her arm in his, as they began to stroll through the streets.                  

                “Nadia, please,” he said, taking her hand in his. “Call me by my name. It’s so strange when you call me otherwise.” He said with a smile. She nodded, shyly smiling back at him.

                “Alright, Jiyong.” She said. She looked up. Embrie was circling the floating city, trying to find an appropriate place to perch. She finally seemed to find a place behind a grand building.

                “Jiyong, what is that building over there?” she asked, pointing.

                “That is the Capitol Building, where the Royal Court resides.” He smiled. “Let’s go.”

                “You don’t mess around, do you Jiyong?” she said. He shook his head.

                “The safety of the citizens of Nirvana comes first,” he said. “We’ll have plenty of time to gallivant about after we save the world.” He said. She nodded as they walked off to the Capitol building.

*****

                They walked into the building. The ceiling towered over them, a golden dome atop, blooming out from it were dark navy blue clouds, which seemed to move upon the ceiling, drifting lazily outward. The walls were a deep crimson; a golden crisscross pattern lightly embossed upon the wall shimmered in the dim light.

                Jiyong grabbed her hand and nodded towards her, bringing her down the hall. The hall was lit with gas lamps mounted on brass holders upon the wall. As they approached the end, they could see two tall, stately looking guards standing outside two tall dark doors. Jiyong gripped Nadia’s hand tightly as he proudly approached them. As they came closer, Nadia realized that the two guards were giant crickets.

                The one on the left came forward, brandishing a spear. “Halt, who goes there?” he cried. Jiyong bowed and tipped his hat.

                “Tis I, Jiyong the Hatter. I am here to see the fortune teller, Mother Shiva, is she here?” he asked. The spear wielding cricket looked at his partner. He nodded.

                “Who is she?” he asked, pointing his spear at Nadia. Jiyong shot them a broad smile.

                “This is the Chosen One, Nadia. She took down the witch Isolde, with this sword,” he said, holding up her right hand, where the sword shined and glimmered in the din of the hallway. Their feelers twitched at they looked from one another to Nadia. The spear wielder set his weapon aside and bowed.

                “Forgive me.” He said, bowing deeply. She nodded. They opened the grand doors, and let them into a dark room.

                The room was pitch black, save for a roaring fire at the far end of the room. Near the fire, was a high backed armchair. Nadia could see an arm resting on the chair. A figure rose from the chair, turning to them as they came closer.

                Nadia recognized the figure. The woman’s dark skin was wrinkled with age, her black hair frizzing beneath her colorful scarf wrapped around her head. Her green eyes shone in the darkness, piercing through the din. “Don’t I know you?” asked Nadia. The woman smiled, walking forward.

                “Perhaps.” She said, inching forward. She came close, bending down so that she was face to face with Nadia, squinting to get a better look at her in the dim light of the fire. The woman smiled. “Well, well, well, it seems that we have met, Nadia Im.” She said. Jiyong looked from Nadia to Mother Shiva, thoroughly confused. “Come,” she ushered them towards a dark corner.

                There was a small door, hidden within the wall. She pushed the panel forward, leading them into a dark room. Inside the room, the walls were draped in plum purple curtains, swooping up to the ceiling to form a tent-like atmosphere. There were stands of black candles surrounding the small wooden table, giving the room an eerie glow. She bade them to take a seat at the table.

                “What do you wish to know?” she asked. Nadia looked at Jiyong. This had been his idea, after all. He cleared his throat.

                “We need to find the ice queen, Azura. I believe she has something to do with the disappearance of the king.” Mother Shiva nodded.

                “She has everything to do with his disappearance.” Nadia gasped, and Jiyong’s eyes grew wide.

                “H-how? Why?” she looked at him.

                “What do you think?” she asked. Nadia figured that even Jiyong would be privy to the cliché, “Take-over-the-world” kind of plot.

                “Oh,” he said quietly, as he finally came to the quite obvious realization. Nadia looked at Mother Shiva.

                “What do we need to do to defeat her?” she asked. Mother Shiva smiled.

                “The Yume contained magical properties within their bodies. They were protectors of the magic of Nirvana. Without them, the magic that keeps our world together is slowly weakening.” She said. Nadia stole a glance at Jiyong, who was looking into his lap. “Without their magic, the world will slowly fall into the abyss below, and we shall sink into nothingness.” Jiyong’s eyes grew wide. Nadia swallowed hard.

                “Well then, how do we prevent that? Besides obviously vanquishing Azura and restoring the throne to the lost king, once we find him that is.” 

“This,” she said, pointing to Nadia’s sword. “Go back to Isolde’s castle. Take in the aura of the Yume.” She turned towards Jiyong. “You might want to stay a good distance away.” She said. “The sword you hold is able to draw on aura. You can use the sword to draw in the aura of the Yume,” she said. “You must go to the Temple in Bagehli. There, you must set the sword in the stone, and recite the incantation to set our world right.”

                “And what is this incantation?” she asked.

                “Sun and Moon,

                Dark and light,

                Bring back the balance

                And restore what is right.” She stood up. “The faster you leave, the safer we are, and the closer you are to restoring the world.” She said. Nadia and Jiyong stood up.

                “Thank you,” said Nadia. Jiyong bowed politely. They left her in the room, and made their way out. The cricket guards bowed to them as they left.

                “Good luck on your journey!” said the cricket who had wielded the spear. Nadia waved back jovially.

                “Thank you! Good day to you, kind sirs!” she said. They turned back through the doorway and into the sunlight. Jiyong grabbed her hand. She looked around. There, in the distance, she saw the intimidating building that was the Imperial Inquiry, where the portal to Jaihran resided. Jiyong turned her about to face him.

                “This is quite unsettling.” He said. Nadia cocked her head in curiosity.

                “Which part, exactly?” she wondered. He looked off.

                “You, using the remnants of my people as a weapon.” He said. She bowed her head. Of course.

                “It’s not like I think it’s a good idea either, but I have to, in order to save Nirvana.” She said. He shook his head.

                “That doesn’t make it any less disturbing.” He said. He looked quite disheveled. How could he not be? If she were forced to use the remnants of her parents to save the world, she too would be deeply disturbed.

                “I don’t know what to say,” she said. Which was true, what do you say to someone when you figure out you have to use the remnants of his slaughtered people as a weapon?

                “You don’t need to say anything, let’s just get this over with,” he said, putting his fingers to his lips and letting out a sharp whistle. Embrie flew out and swooped down. Jiyong grabbed tightly around Nadia’s waist, and jumped upon Embrie’s back. They flew through the air, and swooped through the clouds.

                “Where are we headed?” Embrie inquired.

                “Back to Isolde’s castle in Iguadan,” Jiyong muttered through gritted teeth. Nadia wrapped her arms around his waist as the wind whipped through her hair. She wished he would calm down. She did want to do this either, but she had to. She could hear his heart beating wildly.

                As they passed through the white clouds fading from white, to gray, to black, Nadia couldn’t help feeling uneasy. It wasn’t even the fact of what she had to do anymore. It’s what lie in the ruins of Isolde’s castle.

*****

                Embrie settled in front of the castle, letting them down. Nadia turned to Jiyong and set a hand gently on his shoulder. “Mother Shiva said it would be best for you to stay outside.” She said. He grimaced.

                “But they are my people,” he objected. Nadia nodded, but stayed firm.

                “If you’re near me while I draw out their aura, you could be in too, and I need you here, with me.” She said, her face flushing with color. He too turned red, and nodded.

                “Then I shall stay here.” He said. She nodded to them as she headed back inside.

*****

                It was just as barren and destroyed as when they had left. She set the sword upon her shoulder as she stepped through the rubble. The vultures and other vermin had already cleaned the bones of the griffon. Its skeleton stood there in the foyer, a warning to others. She stepped into the middle of the throne room, she saw Isolde’s stone carcass. She tried to look past it as she walked through the room.

                “Foolish girl,” a whisper floated through the air. She looked back, upon the stone. “You think you can just vanquish me like that, you think I don’t have a back-up plan?” the stone whispered. Nadia smirked.

                “Do you have minions?” she asked. “I’d love to meet the ones that Embrie hasn’t destroyed and have been eaten by vermin. You are the master of your own undoing. Your temper tantrum collapsed the ceiling, all I did was take advantage of your misfortune.” She coolly explained. She turned to the wall of glistening hearts.

“This is not the end, you filthy human,” the voice echoed.

                Nadia ignored her voice as she raised the sword from her shoulder, and held it out in front of her. Mother Shiva had not told her how she was able to draw out the aura. For now, she just closed her eyes, and concentrated as hard as she could.

                ‘Come to me, I can save you, but in order to do that, I require your aura. Please, help me save your world.’ She felt a strong hum resonate throughout the sword. She opened her eyes. The sword glowed with renewed brilliance, and the hearts of the Yume glowed brightly too. The walls hummed and pulsated. A warm wind blew through the castle as the aura flew out from the walls and circled her head. She heard a whisper, as lovely as a harp.

                ‘We shall give you the aura you require,’ it answered. ‘But, our help costs a price. We, who were sworn to protect Nirvana from the sealed evil that hath escaped, named Azura. Once she is defeated, and the magic restored to Nirvana, we shall disappear. Our purpose will have been fulfilled, and there will be no need of us any longer. We shall return to the Realm of Dreams, where we shall reside for eternity. All shall leave. All shall be at peace. Good luck, dear warrior.’ The sweet voice stilled as the aura swept into the sword. Her legs ached as she struggled to stay on her feet as the aura entered her weapon. She was thrown back as the sword sealed the aura within its blade.

                Nadia struggled to her feet. She withdrew her sword from the stone floor, and stood there. The walls were dark. The hearts were no more than dark stones upon the wall now. She quickly walked out.

                “You are no better than I, if you use those souls for your own purposes.” She glared back at the stone witch. She walked back to her.

                “For my purposes? I am saving the world you helped destroy by slaughtering these people.” She turned to the sword, pointing it at the stone witch’s bosom. “Do you wish to deal the witch her own hand?” she asked the aura. The sword glowed in response. She felt the aura pulsating through her veins. A hot wave overcame her as pure energy burst through the blade.

                An awful shriek resounded as Isolde’s carcass exploded, setting off an explosion that destroyed the walls. A plume of smoke emitted from the rubble, swirling up to the eternal night sky. The hearts of the Yume broke and fell from the wall. She was about to cry out, before she remembered that she held them within her hand. She sighed heavily as she made her way out of the ruins. There was dead silence as she left.

*****

                Jiyong ran to her as she emerged through the rubble. He threw his arms around her neck. “I was so worried about you when the explosion happened. What exactly went on while you were in there?” he asked. Nadia smiled, lifting the sword. It glowed and hummed, vibrating as she neared it to his face. He smiled.

                “Here they all are, and Isolde is finally finished.” Embrie and Jiyong looked at her thoroughly puzzled.

                “Whatever do you mean?” asked Embrie.

                “Her soul was encased in the stone,” she explained. “I asked the aura if she should be finished off, and a blast emanated from the sword. That’s how the explosion happened.” She finished. They nodded.

                “Good. Now we surely are finished with her. Good riddance.” Said Embrie, lowering her wing so that they could climb upon her back.

                “Where is Azura’s castle?” she asked. Jiyong pointed to the east. “At the edge of Iguadan. You can’t miss it.” She nodded.

                “Fine then, let’s be on our way, shall we?” she asked. Embrie beat her wings and flew up, speeding off towards their last foe, the Ice Queen, Azura.

END OF CHAPTER 9