Makai Gaiden: The Unbroken Seal

[scikaiju]

A lot of thoughts crossed her mind as she kept her eyes on Jonathon. Things like, how lucky was this bastard? How many Priest and Knights were still alive? Why didn't Shae just run when she had the chance? But one thought in particular would have surprised the lot of them if she said it out loud, of course Carter wasn't here when she had the cooler entrance. But Jules shoved all of those thoughts aside as he she stood, fully at the ready in case he tried to attack. Instead he took a step back himself, slowly twirling the spear in his hands. Then he looked around as more Makai Priests and Knights dropped down from that upper tunnel they took to get here. They circled him as the group that originally found him joined in. Jonathon tried to keep his eyes on her and the group at the same time. Jules looked over at one of the Priest she recognized from the meeting they had right before setting off into those rediscovered tunnels, “I thought I told you all to have somebody drag Shae back to Olivia's office when you spotted her.”



That person looked back at Shae and shrugged his shoulders, “It got busy.”



“I'm trying to,” Shae started to protest until Jules held up a finger while making sure Jonathon wasn't going to take advantage of the situation.



“We'll talk later,” Jules told her sternly. She briefly recalled Vincent using a similar tone with her and Reks on occasion after he started mentoring the two of them. But she could not have been this much trouble when she was Shae's age. Not wasting another moment she jumped at Jonathon. Sliding under a swing from that spear she swept her leg out. He jumped over that move as Marcus and Hector joined in on the attack. The two of them worked together to keep him off balance. Jules was used to fighting with Carter but they all practiced what was basically the same fighting style, with the two of them being more straight forward in their technique and her more dancer like movements being two of several variations so she was able to mesh with them rather easily. Of course Jonathon was more than familiar with the fighting style they used as well and did what he could to anticipate what they would do.



Jonathon started swinging wildly again, the last time she saw him do that one man died and Emily got hurt. So she pulled back a bit. Marcus and Hector did the same while making sure.nobody else tried to get any closer. He did bring his brush out. It took Jules a moment to realize the glowing bristles weren't aimed at any of them. He was aiming it at Shae. Turning around she dove for the girl and dragged her to the ground as the bolt flew over them. She looked to see the barrier Shae put up fade away. Jonathon saw it as well and ran for it. “No you don't,” Jules muttered as she quickly got to her feet and started to chase after him.



Jonathon had already crossed over to the other platform. Then he used his Brush and spear again to create another energy arc. Jules and the others had already stopped to get ready to jump over it when they realized that it wasn't directed at them. The bridge that he took just crumbled as the arc hit it. One of the Knights ran at it full bore and jumped. Jonathon was ready for it and threw the spear at him, impaling him in the gut. A few of the others caught him before he fell onto the floor below. Jules didn't want to think how far down that bottom actually was or how to get down there to retrieve any body unfortunate enough to end up down there. “Come on,” Jonathon taunted her from across the way, “You were brought in to stop me, so stop me. Or are you just going to let me get away like a failure and prove Walter was right?!”



“Seriously,” Jules mumbled. She wasn't so eager to shut him up to not realize this was a trap. He wanted her to try and jump over. Oh she was going over there all right, just not in the way he expected. Keeping him in sight she shouted, “Shae!” Pretty sure she had her attention now she called out, “I need a bridge.” She took her eyes off Jonathon just long enough ro see Shae work the string between her fingers and throw her arms toward the gap. One she saw the tell tale glimmer of the barrier she just cast form Jules took off in a dead run. Not even hesitating she used that barrier to reach the other side. Seeing this Jonathon fired off a blast from his brush. Rolling under it she came back up in a run. Jonathon saw this and started to run away. He didn't go far before he realized that there was no where to go from this platform. By the time he turned back around his head snapped back from a straight punch from her.



That didn't stun him for as long as she would have liked. He staggered from the blow but he quickly faced her and went back to a fighting stance. Jules didn't give him a chance to do anything as she launched herself at him. Jonathon covered up as best he could as she tried to break his defesnes and finish this before this went on any further. He tried to surprise her with a sudden kick. Jules jumped up, and landed on the outstretched leg long enough to nail a short kick of her own.Staggering back again he got a grip on his brush and lashed out with it. She bent backwards slightly to avoid it. But doing so left her off balanced enough for a quick trip that sent her to her back. She rolled out of the way as his foot came at her face.

 

[scikaiju]

Getting to a knee she was knocked back down from a kick from his other leg. He gripped her neck to keep her in place as he raised his brush above his head. She kicked him in the back and made him stumble forward a bit, but he let go of her neck. Raising up a bit Jules rolled back a bit to get to her feet, grabbed his arm and got it in a hold using her legs. Now she had several free shots at his head. Now either he was as stubborn as she thought he was or had a harder head than anticipated because he was not going down. She faced Horrors that were easier to take out than he was turning out to be. Alright, new plan, gripping the wrist of the arm she trapped she pulled and twisted on it. Break the arm and the battle was part way done, and it was working as he screamed in pain as he tried to move with her to relieve the pressure. With another yell he planted his feet as slowly got her off the ground. She lost some of her leverage but Jules hung on like her life depended on it. Then he slammed her down to the ground, knocking the breath out of her.



He shook his arm once it was free. Then grabbed her and hauled her up. Jules shot her head forward as soon as she could. Both of them staggered back a bit. She cleared the cob webs first and went at him again. Again he wasn't as stunned as she'd hoped as he grabbed her arm when attempted a backhand and twisted it with all he had. She gasped out in pain as she went to a knee. Jonathon kept twisting, Jules went with the pressure and rolled forward to her back and kicked him in the head. . When she got to her feet to face him she was met with a hard knee to the gut that dropped her to her knees. He started kicking her in the side, not giving her a chance to get back to her feet. “You just had to ruin things!”, he shouted at her. “It was supposed to be easy!” he said with another kick. “All of you stay back or this ***** dies now!”, He suddenly screamed at the others right before he kicked her again.



Knocked down Jules ignored the pain and kept rolling until she was far enough to get to her feet. She ran at him again. Jumping up she twisted in the air until she landed on his shoulders, straddling his head. Making sure she had a solid grip on his head with her legs she let herself fall backwards, gravity and momentum making Jonathon fall with her and crashing hard on the ground, practically on the top of his head. Now fully stunned as he got to his knees Jules came in with a knee to his head that knocked him flat on his back. He barely moved at that point, he was staying down. Holding her side Jules looked back at the others looking at her. Walking forward she went to the gap and tested something with her foot, Shae's bridge was still in place. “Well tie him up already,” she told them.



Cautiously a few of them did the same test that she just did before slowly crossing over. Once Marcus and a few others did a cough caught their attention. Jonathon was getting up again, he pulled his hand out of his pocket, holding some sort of circular device with a large red jewel on it. Jules immediately held out her arms to keep the others back. He started grinning, “You're afraid of this little thing? It's gotta do something good then.”



“Put it down and walk away from it,” Jules ordered him. “You have no idea what that is.”




“Yeah but you do,” he sneered. “I didn't want to use anything I took, but I got no choice now so this is on you.” With his brush in his other hand he ran the glowing bristles over the jewel. “It can't be that hard to activate.” The jewel kept glowing as Jules tried to back everybody up.. Jonathon stared as the device left his hand than plant itself on his chest, right over his heart. “Argh,” he grunted and started to tear at it as it dug in deeper into his skin. Then it started to expand around him, first forming a chest plate then covering his arms and legs. With pain filled eyes he looked right at her, “What is this th...” He was cut off as his head was covered.

 

[scikaiju]

“We got to get it off of him,” Jules quickly said as she ran forward. Jonathon pounded the ground causing a shock wave that knocked her and the others off their feet. Standing a little straighter he looked at his armored limbs then at them. Apparently not feeling any more pain he came at them with slow steady steps. A few blasts hit him. On the other platform Olivia had joined Shae and a few others Priest to attack Jonathon from there. Jules got to her feet and fired off a few blasts of her own, in particular aiming for that jewel. Or at least she was trying to but he kept moving so she couldn't get a clear shot at it.



“What is that thing?”, Marcus asked as he and Hector joined in on the blasting.



“I told you something would get out,” Hector said, fear evident in his voice. Jules was afraid right along with him. But fear wasn't going to help right now. Just pretend it's another Horror you hunted down with Carter.



“Hcetor, Marcus grab some more Priest and bind his limbs, fast!” She hoped the urgency she was feeling was understood by the the rest of them. Apparently it was as they went in different sides of Jonathon. He looked undecided as he went back and forth between both sides. It was enough that a few made some sort of energy rope come from their brushes that wrapped themselves around his legs and forearms. They struggled and pulled as he fought to free himself. Running in Jules jumped on him, getting a grip on the back of his head then jammed her brush at the jewel. Jonathon started to struggle more as she tried to deactivate the jewel and get him out of there before it was too late. Getting an arm free he tore her loose and tossed her into the other group making them drop the binds on their side. “Bind him again!”, Jules yelled. Then Jonathon stopped and hunched over slightly. A muffled scream hit their ears. “No,”, she muttered.



He took a step forward, but his movements were more automatic, almost robotic looking. Then the casing around him expanded as he grew in size and height. Everyone wisely stepped away from what they were seeing, even on the other platforms. Then spikes formed on the outside. One flew off and impaled one of the Priests. Her blood was seen going through the tube that attached the spike to the armor. Once she went down another spike launched ir\rself. Marcus pushed the intended target out of the way but fell victim to the spike and suffered the same fate.



“Keep moving!”, Jules said to the rest of them. No time to mourn now. They all did so, some barely avoiding the spikes that kept firing out. “Try to get the jewel!”



“Easier said than done,” Hector said as he side stepped on of the spikes.



“I know,” she said as she flipped over one herself. Putting her left hand in her pocket she grabbed the sparking device she created and put it on as she kept running to avoid the spikes. Everybody struggled to keep their footing as he pounded the ground again. Olivia, Shae and the other Priest fired at him. Jules shouted out, “Drop the bridge!” Eventually that thing was going to discover or remember that it was there and they needed to keep it confined here for as long as possible.



“But you'll be stuck with him!”, she cried out.



“Just do it!” she shouted back. Even after Olivia told her it was all right Shae was still reluctant but but she removed the bridge she made. “Keep it distracted but don't get hit,” she told one of the remaining Knights who nodded along with some Priest and circled around the thing. Like she hoped it looked confused but kept firing the spikes out that were being avoided. Jules retrieved one of the grey slips Shae had made earlier. Making sure she was at the right distance she held the slip in the same hand as her brush. Holding both hands in front of her she snapped her fingers on her left hand and drew her brush away from it, drawing a flame from the spark. Pirouetting the trail of fire spun around her as she raised her hands over her head. The fire collected itself in a ball over her head as she grabbed the grey slip with her left hand. Jonathon stopped what he was doing and faced her, but those tubes were still moving menacingly in the air, the spikes started to point toward her. But she had a clear shot at that jewel now. Lowering her arms she ran her brush and fireball over the grey slip. A flaming spike fired out of her hand. Jules held her breath and barely dared to move as she watched spike fly toward the armor. It impaled the jewel and he barely reacted. Then the spike exploded, destroying the jewel in the process. It fell backwards as Jules slowly stepped forward.



She was the only one who didn't jump back as the armor began to shrink and retract itself back into the original device. Everybody stared at the skeleton that was left behind, all meat and blood picked clean from the bones. Jules just looked on as the Jewel quickly reformed itself and sighed. She was really hoping that was going to be the end of this thing.



“What the hell was that?”, Hector said loud enough for everyone in the cavern to hear. Jules looked around until she found Olivia, who nodded at her.



She nodded back, they deserved to know after facing this thing. “It's called the Condemned. It was created right before the Makai Knights were. It was to be used by a Priest who was too injured or outnumbered to come out alive, hence the name. It was also designed to make sure nothing was left behind to be eaten by a Horror or anything else. It was powered by it's wearer, but that fuel source was quickly ran through so it would go looking for more, even draining the blood and bodies of those that were under attack from the Horrors,” she looked back at all the fallen on the ground, including Marcus, “Or those who were fighting along with it. Even using the dead body as a fuel source if it had to.” The rest of them looked at the fallen as well, fully understanding the weight of her explanation. “If I didn't get the jewel the only other choice was to wait for it to run out of gas.” She looked around again, “And that wasn't going to be any time soon.”



Reaching down she carefully removed the device from the skeleton's rib cage. As she studied it she really wanted to chuck it over the edge and let the cavern have it. But it wouldn't be any safer down there. No, there was only one place were this thing belonged. And after today Jules figured nobody was going to let this out of the vault any time soon. “Shae, we need a way back across,” she called out and she obliged by remaking her bridge to let them back across. “Triple seal this thing,” she told Olivia as she handed it to her.



“I'll do more than that,” she said as Shae came in and hugged Jules around the waist, wrapping an arm around her Jules started walking to the path that would take them out of there, Olivia and the others soon followed.

 

[scikaiju]

It was too much to hope that what just happened was the end of it. Shae saw the healer waiting for them once they got close enough to Olivia's office. There was a look on her face she thought her father once wore when he told her that Grandma had passed on. Jules seemed to tense up as well as Olivia walked past them to the healer. “Emily?”, she asked. There was some murmurs behind them, She felt Jules grip her a little tighter.



The healer shook her head and lowered it slightly. Hearing somebody punch a wall made her jump slightly and look back. The vault guard that was still with them, his hand was still in place but he had this look on his face that made her step a little closer to Jules. “A few minutes ago,” she said. It took them that long to get back here.



Jules let go of her and went to Olivia and put a arm around her shoulders. “I'm sorry,” she said softly to her. Turning her attention to the healer she said, “The reverter, the Madou flame?”



“They healed her physical wounds,” she said. “But there was something else, something we didn't detect until it was too late.” She looked at them, “The weapon he used, do any of you know where it is?”



“It's right here,” Olivia said as she handed it over. They all watch as the healer examined the spear. Putting it on the desk she searched her pockets. Shae joined Jules and Olivia at the desk as more came into the office. Producing a vial with with a clear liquid she removed a wooden tube from it, a finger tight against one end. Holding it over the spear head she carefully let a few drops fall on to it. Shae, Jules and Olivia all watched as those drops instantly turned black as they hit the metal. “That's what I was afraid of,” she said.



“What does that mean?”, Shae asked Jules.



Jules looked angry for a moment before answering. “He did something to his spear,” she told her. “Poison?”, she asked the healer, who just nodded.



“It's probably more than that,” Olivia told her. “That spear is how he got past the barriers. We all saw it.” Jules looked down at her. Shae just nodded. Olivia took back the spear and handed it to vault guard and told him. “Hector, examine this to figure out how he did what he did to it.” With a bit more sadness in his voice she added, “Then tell Jasmine and Trevor, they been out of t his loop for too long, for good or bad.”



“Of course Olivia,” he said with a slight nod. But Shae did hear him say, low enough that he thought nobody would have heard him, “Bastard's lucky that thing got him before I did..” Jules heard it as well and stared after him until Olivia grabbed her arm.



“He's dealing with this in his own way,” she told her. “As we all will. As we all do, in our own way and at our own time.” She looked at the rest of the group,”Thank you for what you've done today. I know you want answers, and I'll supply what I can. But I'm under orders from the Makai Senate so I won't be able to answer everything, no matter how much you deserve to know.” She leaned against her desk and looked... numb for the lack of a better word. “If you will excuse me for a few minutes, I need time to process everything that's happened, and make a report to the Senate.”



Nobody said anything as they left her office. Jules pulled the two of them in a different direction to let the rest go out the door. Shae looked up at her, “You were still trying to save him.” When she looked at her she went on, “After everything he'd done. With everybody he'd killed, you still tried to save him from that thing.”



“Because I knew what he had, and nobody deserves to go like he did,” she told her. “No matter how much you think he actually deserved it.” Sighing she added, “Just part of being a protector kiddo. You don't get to pick and choose who to save. You do what we do and you have to try and protect who you can.”



“I don't think I like that,” Shae told her.



“Don't tell my husband, but there are some days that I would agree with you.” she looked back up to see most of the crowd was mostly gone. “Come on, let's find Nadia and show her that you're still in one piece.” Holding her side a bit she added, “Maybe see the healer myself right after that.” They walked out of the building, for some reason it looked too bright and sunny out considering everything that's happened under everyone's feet.

 

[scikaiju]

The healers gave her a clean bill of health. The still painful ache in her side begged to differ. But they assured her that nothing was broken and she'd be fine in a few days. Not only that she was good to leave whenever she wanted. Shae heard that bit and it apparently didn't sit all that well with her, as she was already gone by the time the healer was done with her. Jules exited the building and looked sround trying to locate her. She didn't see Shae any where close, although she did spot Nadia. “Have you seen Shae?”



“Yeah,” she said and pointed behind her. “The spot she's usually at when she's thinking about her crush.” And that wasn't all that helpful, at all. “She looked upset about something and told me to leave her alone.”



“I guess she would be,” Jules said, mainly to herself. Nadia started to walk away so she called out again, “And this spot would be?”



“Where she found those notes.”



Okay that made sense. Shae didn't seem the type to just examine something like a pile of rocks just because she saw it for the first time. Actually Jules didn't think anybody would have, otherwise those notes would have been found long before now. “Thanks Nadia.”



“Not a problem.” Both of them turned and headed in different directions.



Maybe being a technical outsider Jules noticed everyone seemed to be on edge more than they were when she first arrived. Then again that was normal considering everything that happened today. Jules still wasn't sure how Olivia was going to handle the aftermath, while they probably didn't know it was a forbidden vault just about everyone knew something was here now. And that was going to be a rumor around here for a long, long time. And said vault was currently down four guards now so they were going to have to be replaced. Now if Olivia had the final say in choosing those replacements or the Senate was going to send them, she didn't know.,either way she didn't envy the woman.



She, and everyone else, stopped momentarily when there was a muffled explosion and the ground seemed to shake slightly. Everyone else looked around, she just kept on walking. If she was right then Olivia took her advice and destroyed that tunnel she found. Well that was one way to the chamber they didn't have to worry about any more.



Walking to the far end of the training ground she found the brook, then followed it until she found Shae, sitting on a rock. And almost looking as miserable as when she first saw her. Jules heart broke a little as she realized she was the reason why. That was the last thing she wanted to do the girl, but seeing how she was leaving it was inevitable. Hopefully what she was able to arranged would make it up to her. Once she was a few yards away she stopped and said, “Mind if I join you?”



“There's no barrier up,” was her answer. Jules stepped closer and sat on the rock next to her. Luckily she didn't move away, she still wasn't looking at her though. Jules sat there and waited for her to say something. Anything. She eventually did, “So you're leaving.”



“I'm afraid so,” she told her. “I was only asked to come to deal with what was going on. That job is done and Olivia doesn't need me around any more.” She specifically mentioned Olivia because she didn't want Shae to think her feelings didn't matter, not after everything she did today to get her to open up more. “But I wasn't going to leave until I talked with you. And let's be honest, the instructors around here don't want me corrupting anyone else.”



“Somebody like Nadia?”, Shae asked. Was that a smile? Jules was pretty sure that was a smile she tried to hide just now. She was at least willing to joke back.



“Nadia doesn't need my help,” Jules told her. She might as well admit it out loud to somebody. “She's pretty much me when I was her age. So there's a possible look into the future if the two of you are still friends by then.”



“Oh no,” Shae said with a little laugh. Then she got all sad again. “I knew you were going to leave once it was over. But,” she went quiet. Jules was silently begging her to don't stop speaking now. “But I was hoping that you'd be my new mentor once it was done.”



“Oh Shae,” she said as she put an arm around her and gave her a quick squeeze, “I would have loved to be you mentor. I really would have. But I'm not an instructor here, so more than likely you would have to come with me. Now I don't know you parents, but I doubt they'd be thrilled with the idea of you going on the occasional Horror hunt.” Not to mention that Carter probably wasn't ready to have a teenager in the house just yet, but she didn't say that out loud.



“No they wouldn't,” Shae agreed. “In fact they would freak.” Jules smirked a bit. Her parents weren't exactly thrilled when they found out Vincent was training her to hunt down Horrors. Finally she looked up and smiled. “My new one can't be worse than Walter.”



“Olivia was going to have to try and find some body worse than Walter.” Hearing people approach Jules looked up and saw Olivia and somebody else, a Makai Priest with dark red hair, walk up to them. She started smiling, this timing couldn't have been better. To Shae she said, “But I did talk Olivia into letting me take a shot at it. Shae,” Jules gently pulled on her arm to get her to stand up, “This is my friend Sharron. Luckily she was in the area and agreed to met you.”



“Hello,” Shae said softly.



“Hi,” Sharron said as she took a step forwards. “I heard you found my notes.” At that Shae looked at her with a little wonder.



“You're notes?”, she asked. Sharon gave her a quick nod to confirm what she said. Shae looked at Jules with a bit of confusion.



“Well I figured the two of had something in common with the string thing,” she told her. “But don't take my word for it.” Gently she pushed Shae toward Sharron, “Go for a walk, talk for a bit, get to know each other. See if this will be a good fit for both of you.”



“It couldn't hurt,” Sharron said. Both of them started to go. Then Shae went back to her and hugged her around the waist. Jules grimaced in pain a bit but hugged her back.



“Thank you for believing in me,” Shae told her. Both Olivia and Sharron smiled at the two of them.



“Thank me by becoming an awesome Makai Priest,” Jules informed her.



“Let me guess,” Shae said as she pulled away a bit, “You didn't say great because you're the great one?” All right maybe she was that bad of an influence after all. Another reason for Sharron to mentor her.



Still she grinned and pulled her back into another hug, “You got that right, and I don't need the competition” With one last squeeze they both let go. Shae went to Sharron who had a smirk on her face.



“I see some things haven't changed,” she commented as they started walking away. “I heard you made a bridge, I never even thought of that. You're going to have to show me that one.”



Once they were around the bend Jules sighed a little. She would have loved to have kept that girl under her wing, help her grow into being somebody truly spectacular. But her current occupation didn't really allow for it, at least not easily. Olivia seemed to sense the sadness in her and put a hand on her shoulder. “You made the right choice. But a good fit?”



“It's how Vincent explained it when I asked him why he took me and Reks on. It felt like a good fit.” Jules sighed as she thought about her former mentor. “I should probably stop quoting him considering what he tried to do.”



Olivia studied her for a few moments. Jules wasn't sure why she was but it was starting to unnerve her a little. Eventually she said, “Come with me. I want to show you something.” Jules was confused but she followed the older woman.

 

[scikaiju]

They didn't go far, just to the other side of the brook. It was an area Jules knew was there but never once visited, mainly because when she was originally here she never saw the need to. It was a cemetery, mainly where any instructor, guard or head of the training ground were placed for there final rest. Although she heard rumors that others were buried here as well, if the current head thought it was important enough. Again Jules never saw the need to visit this particular area before now so that last part was just that, rumors. Olivia lead them through and she took a moment here and there to check the dates on various headstones as they passed. “I was going to pay my final respects to Emily and Marcus and the others before I left,” she told the older woman.



She kept on walking, “I'm sure you were dear. But there was something else I wanted to show you. Or somebody else I should say.” Jules was confused but she kept on following. Before long they were past the headstones but Olivia kept going. She looked around, still confused about what was going on. As far as she knew there was nothing out here past the cemetery. Then she spotted a series of crypts. Before she could ask Olivia said. “I had someone laid to rest here over a year ago. There was some out cry from some of the others and a few connected to this place on the outside. But I knew him for far too long to let him rest in some unmarked grave.”



Jules stopped as her mind reeled a bit. Over a year ago? Out cry from the others? She knew him for far too long? Olivia seemed to sense she wasn't being followed any more and turned to face her, saying nothing. Swallowing hard she eventually got out a name, “Vincent?” Olivia simply nodded then continued on. Jules now noticing she was heading for one in particular. “Why?”, she demanded but Olivia kept on walking towad the crypt. “After he fell trying to expose our world, why?”



“As I said,” she reached the crypt door and gave it a gentle push. It opened easily and she walked right in, “I knew him for far too long.” Jules stood there a moment, undecided before setting her resolve and followed her in. Inside was a single tomb, there was no markings, nothing to say who it was, but Jules felt her stomach twist any way. Vincent was in there, she should be sad but all she was feeling at that moment was anger. A feeling that almost exploded when Olivia said, “And he didn't fall.”



“He killed a mother and her children,” she said as loud as she dared in the building. “He manipulated and killed Reks. He was going to expose thousands to Horror blood. How did he not fall?”



Olivia was calm as she turned toward the tomb, “That is one way to look at it.” Jules just stared at her, what other way was there to look at what happened? “But if he truly fell then he wouldn't have set things to make sure he was one of those exposed to the Horror blood. He was skilled enough to make sure that happened of that was the case. And it wouldn't be that hard to add a timer to that device he created. I should know, I asked to study the device he was using to use for the task. He was ready to die from his actions. That is not the action of one who had fallen in my experience, not completely any way.”



“And that absolves him from everything he'd done?”, she demanded as Olivia started to leave.



Turning her head slight she said, “Of course not. The simple fact he was going to sacrifice himself tells me he didn't think it would either. Not the man I knew for years. Tell me Jules,” she stopped at the door and turned around. “Was he truly any different then compared to the day the two of you originally left here?” Jules didn't answer, Olivia took her silence as her answer, “I didn't think so. No he knew his actions were heinous and probably felt that would have been a proper punishment for his deeds compared to anything the Senate would have come up with.



Jules had to catch her breath. He did say something similar when she and Carter confronted him that day. On one level it did make sense. But she had a hard time matching the person she loved so dearly to the man who did what he did. Finding her voice she asked, “Why did you show this to me?”



“Because I think you need some sort of closure,” came the surprising answer. “Several times today, when you quoted something he said, you'd get this look on your face, Like you were annoyed with yourself, almost disappointed that you did so.. As close as the two of you were, even doing the things he did, you wouldn't cut out everything he said to or taught you.”



“Normally I'd agree with you,” she countered. Walking away from the tomb she looked the older woman right in the eyes. “But I saw the bodies. I saw Reks die right in front of me. You didn't have to deal with any of that.” Her anger was close to getting away from her. And right now Jules didn't care if she would say anything she'd regret later or not.



“True,” Olivia said which raised her anger even higher. “But at least take this moment to say goodbye,” she was dumbfounded for a moment. Say goodbye? After everything he'd done, was she crazy? “At least get a few things off your chest. It helps more than you think,” she told her. “Think of it as one last lesson from the training ground. I'll be waiting outside when you're done.”



She passed through the door before Jules could even protest. Keeping her back turned to the tomb she stared at the open doorway. It would be so easy to just walk through that door right now. Olivia wouldn't say anything, she might not agree with it but she would respect her choice. Maybe even say she could comeback to say that 'goodbye' anytime she wanted. It would be so easy to walk through that door and forget this place even existed. It would be so easy.



And yet she wasn't moving any closer to that open door. When she did take a step it was backwards toward the tomb. Turning around she stopped by the side of it and just stared at it for the longest time She didn't have a need to say goodbye, but there were things on her chest she could get rid of all right. Slowly she started walking around the tomb, not taking her eyes off of it. “It's been a while,” she cautiously said. “A lot has happened. Me and Carter got married a few months ago. Just about everyone I knew was there, Just about, of course you weren't there. You should have been, you should have been the one performing the ceremony.” she stopped talking, she did not want to say that, out loud or otherwise. Softly she added, “You were the reason why we met, it should have been you. But no, you had the damn broken dream of yours that you tried to make happen.”



She paused again, to choke back a sob she felt coming. She felt her anger rise again and she didn't try to hold it back. “You set yourself up to die, if you felt you deserved that fate after everything you did fine. You got exactly what you deserved. But did you stop to think about afterwards? At how many eyes would be looking at me for answer I never had? Did you even care?” There was enough of a ledge around the tomb that she sat on it, trying to get herself under control, still she wiped a tear from her cheek



Taking a breath, she calmed herself down enough that she felt she could continue. “I was gone for a while, even though the questioning only took about a month. I told Carter that I had to figure things out before I came back. He never once asked what I was trying to figure out, I should probably tell him one of these days.” Getting off that ledge she walked away a bit. She still didn't want to say this next part out loud, but she knew she had to. “You manipulated Reks,” spinning around she faced the tomb and got closer, “You saw how he felt about Carter and the other Makai Knights. Instead of trying to talk him down or find out why you fed it, you fed his anger and disgust and used him as cover for your real plan. And that got me to thinking, if you manipulted him, his feelings. If you did that to him who else did you manipulate? Did you do that to me and Carter?” Tears started to fall again, “I started to doubt how I felt about him. And I hated you for that doubt being there. Almost as much as what you did to Reks.”



Sitting back on that ledge, she let the tears fall for a bit. When she finally started wiping them away she was softly chuckling to herself, “Then I remembered that stupid love spell. Do you remember? You caught me trying to get it to work, you didn't even know I was going to use it on you because I wanted to see you happy with someone. You told me that even if it worked it wouldn't in the long run because it wouldn't be real.” Leaning back she rested her head against the tomb. Feeling how cold the stone felt against the back of her head, “That the best you could do was get two people together that you'd think would be a good match for each other and hope for the best.” She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out, “That's what you did with me and Carter wasn't it? You just introduced us and hoped for the best.:”



Standing up again she dusted herself off as she faced the tomb. “I don't know if I can ever forgive you for doing what you did. I know I'm never going to understand it. But what done is done, you can't go back and change the past.” Putting a hand on the tomb she softly said, “Goodbye Vincent.” Then she left the crypt. Olivia was there to greet her as she exited. Closing the door she put a arm around her, gave her a quick, comforting hug. Then the two of them walked away, although she wouldn't admit it to her at that particular moment, Jules did feel a slight sense of closure she probably did need after getting all of that in the open.

 

[scikaiju]

It was already dark by the time she got to the path that lead toward home. Jules stood there remembering all the times she took this road to see Carter, maybe see if she could stay the night for whatever reason. Before they became engaged Jules started to wonder why he never protested when she started to make her way to his room instead of the guest room she used to use before then. In hindsight it wasn't the most subtle way to get him to realize the feeling she had for him at the time. Then again as Xypher once said he was too proper of a Knight.



Taking the path she was soon greeted by the familiar sight of the softly glowing lanterns that illuminated this path at night until the early morning. She smiled as the house came into view and quickened her pace slightly, and briefly holding her side when she started going too fast. Bur she was home now, and at the moment everything felt right in the world. Despite knowing better, part of her couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that Carter wasn't there to greet her. But given what they did that wasn't a realistic expectation. She should have told that to Shae when she had the chance. Well some things were better learned by life experiences than just being told. Going up the steps she opened the door and walked through. Might as well give it a shot, “I'm back.” she called out.



She was slightly surprised when Mason stepped into the hallway, “Welcome home Miss Jules. Am In correct in assuming that task you were asked to preform is over?”



“For better or worse, yes,” she told him. Still she looked up the stairs then into the den, no where to be seen. He was probably out on assignment somewhere.



She was aware Mason was staring at her, and after a moment spoke up, “Is something wrong Miss?”



She graced him with a small smile, “No Mason, everything just fine.” Maybe it was because of his job but he didn't look all that convinced. Should she tell him? It couldn't hurt, “I just got this stupid notion in my head that Carter would be here waiting for me/”



“Oh, that was his original intent,” Mason told her. “But Mr. Eric requested his presence a little while after you left. I believe it was about the number of Horrors he had sealed away since becoming Rook. Mr. Eric felt Carter was ready for a new piece of the Rook legacy. Much like with the armor it is something that has to be earned first.”



“Of course it is,” she said. At this point she was surprised he didn't have to fight anybody to get Mason. “Don't take this the wrong way Mason, but why are you still here? On the days that you're here you're usually gone by now. Not that I'm not happy to see you that is.”



“Of course Miss,” he said with a slight chuckle. “But Carter wasn't sure how long his task was going to last, so he asked if I would greet you in his place in case you returned before he did.”



“After everything that happened today I'm glad somebody did.” They stopped talking when they heard the front door open. She started grinning as a battered and rough looking Carter stood there looking tired, but happy to see her. She walk up to him.



He stepped closer as well, eventually saying, “I'm home.”



“So am I,” she said as she hugged him around the neck, after today she needed to feel his presence against her right now. “You look like hell by the way.” He grunted but hugged her back. Unfortunately squeezing right were that bastard was kicking her earlier. A quick “Ah”, escaped her lips before she could stop it.



He quickly stopped hugging her and looked at her, face full of concern, “Are you all right?”



“I've been better,” she told him, “but I'll be fine.” Giving him a wicked grin she added, “But we might have to wait on a proper welcome home greeting for a couple of days.”



Mason coughed into his hand to get their attention, “I most apologize for one thing.” Carter didn't react but she was slightly confused. “I did promise to have dinner waiting for you when you returned. However I had no idea when either of you would return so I haven't prepared anything.”



“It's fine Mason,” Carter told him.



“Wouldn't be the first time we had to fend for ourselves” she added. A cold sandwich wasn't exactly sounding so ideal at that particular moment. But it was better than nothing.



“That may be,” he said, “however I did phone that cafe the two of you are so fond of. They should be open for a few more hours yet, if you wish to dine there for the evening. And since they knew who the two of you are and what you usually ask for I took the liberty of placing an order for you. It should be ready for you by the time you arrive.”



“Thank you Mason,” Carter said with a small rare smile for the man.



Letting go of Carter she walked over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, “You're the best Mason.”



He looked slightly embarrassed by the show of affection, “I do try Miss.” She gave a quick wave as the two of them walked out the front door. “Do enjoy your evening.” he called our as they went back down the path.



Walkig the path it wasn't long before she felt Carter reach out and grab her hand and give it a quick squeeze. She looked over at him and saw how content he was at that particular moment. “Just out of curiosity,” she said out of the blue, “how do you feel about teenagers?”



“Teenagers?”, he asked, looking understandably confused. Then he looked down at her stomach, given how many times they been intimate since they been married it was a natural conclusion on his part. Even if he did jump to it from the word teenagers



“No,” she said with a slight grin to put him at ease. “At least not yet. But I had an opportunity to mentor somebody today, a really sweet girl. Obviously it wasn't a permanent thing. But it did get me wondering how you felt, we never really discussed it before.”



“Were you going to at least ask our opinion first if you decided to take the kid under your wing full time?”, Xypher asked. Carter gave him a quick flick.



“I would have at least warned the two of you about her first,” she told the pin. Carter seemed satisfied with her answer and they walked in silence for a bit. After her 'talk' with Vincent she knew she couldn't keep him in the dark any longer. “Carter,” she said to get his attention, “do you remember when I told you I had to figure out some things before I saw you again?”



“After they questioned you about what you knew about Vincent's plan,” he said after thinking about it for a moment. “What about it?”



She hesitated a bit before saying, “I think I'm ready to tell you what I was trying to figure out.”



“You don't have to tell me if you really don't want to,” he told her.



“I want to,” she said as she pulled him closer. “And you deserve to know.” She looked up at him, “Just remember, I came back and asked you to marry me. Then you can tell me what my faux,” she said lifting a word her sister-in-law liked to use when calling Carter 'big brother' and he grinned at her use of it, “father-in-law wanted you to earn today.”



“Of course,” he agreed easily enough. Jules took his arm and gave it a quick squeeze as they walk the path. Now all was right in her world. She was home, the love of her life was next to her, and not a red envelope in sight. Maybe for this one night at least they could just be a some what normal husband and wife. And she better not have just jinx this moment.



-----
Credit theme – Halestorm – I Am the Fire

-----