The Mage War
This story is rated PG-13 for sexual situations
Chapter 3 - The Silver Palace
The Silver Palace was called the most beautiful castle ever to grace the five worlds. It was made of the purest white marble available inlayed with silver. It was nestled in the snowy mountains that bordered Suzaku and Spirit World and from a distance it sparkled with mystical splendor. Bakura and Rye cautiously exited the portal. Before them stood the silver gate of Arista's palace. The gate has once been beautiful, intricate scroll work of pure silver -- now it was torn from its hinges and twisted into something ugly. Just past the gate were the torn bodies of over a dozen guards who had soaked the ground red with their blood.
"Give me room in case I need to change." Rye told the mage and Bakura nodded, moving further apart from the Dragon.
Bakura looked up at the backdrop of snow-capped mountains and saw the shimmer of the mystical barrier that separated the worlds. One could walk forever and never reach those mountains. It was ancient magic and no mage had ever managed to duplicate it. All they could do was to keep the barriers strong. But just to the north of the Silver Palace, the mountains blurred slightly, their image not quite perfect. That must be where the barrier had been breached.
Bakura and Rye continued walking until the reached the Palace doors. They were the same as the gate, completely destroyed, their beauty forever lost. The pair continued silently through the Palace, stepping gingerly over the slain bodies of the guards and servants.
They walked up a stairway that had once been one of the most beautiful ever created, white marble steps inlayed with silver with scrolled silver handrails on either side. Now it looked like a battlefield; torn bodies lay crumbled on the stairs and red blood ran down the steps like a river. Bakura was very grateful that the Princess did not insist on going with them, but he had a terrible feeling that she already knew what they would find.
Bakura had never been to the Palace before; none of the males had. He wasn't even sure if the Princess herself had been here. The Princesses seem to know what was happening with their sisters, but rarely visited each other. Whether they were truly sisters was not known; they had been given to the people one at a time, about a year apart, and were called sisters, but no one knew their true relationship. The fact that Vara could not sense Arista's death seemed to imply that they were not blood related at all.
Bakura and Rye searched the Palace, looking into each room. At the very back of the second floor was a huge set of double doors, made of pure silver and set with elaborate designs. Blood had seeped under the doors to form a dark red pool. The Mage and the Dragon stood before the door and looked at each other. Bakura nodded and Rye opened the door and they walked into hell.
Directly on the other side of the doors were the bodies of approximately twenty guards. They had died where they stood, toppled over like broken toys, broken and torn as if some petulant child had hurled them to the floor. It was their blood that had stained the floor and gone under the doors.
Sitting in a large chair in the center of the room, looking very much like a queen on a throne, was Arista. Her wrists and ankles were tied to the chair and there was a thin rope around her neck holding her head up. She stared at them with dead eyes. Her long white hair had been arranged around the chair, and laid out in front of her, like spokes of a wheel, were the bodies of her five males, forming a semi-circle around her body. Every inch of her body had been torn apart and her blood covered her like a cloak. Her death had been cruel and it had obviously been long in coming.
Bakura turned ashen and turned from the gruesome tabloid, almost falling into the guards' bodies. All he wanted to do was to run screaming from this terrible place of death. His stomach turned violently and he leaned against the closest wall, with tears running down his face, and heaved up everything his stomach contained. When he was done, Rye silently handed him a clean cloth he found in a nearby drawer and waited for the Mage to compose himself.
"What are we going to do with the bodies?" Rye asked. "Bury them?"
Bakura shook his head and together the men walked out of the Palace and outside the gate. Bakura began to incant a spell and a ball of blue fire appeared in his hand. He sent it into the Silver Palace and chanted while it grew, until it engulfed the entire edifice in blue flame. Long minutes passed as the enchanted flames did their work and then the Mage stopped chanting and the flame dissipated, leaving nothing but ash behind. The beauty of the Silver Palace was only a memory now. Bakura and Rye returned to the portal, Rye returning to his mate, and Bakura returned to the Castle to report -- and to bury himself in the arms of his Princess. What he had seen would haunt him for the rest of his days. Kurama stood before the huge gate of Spirit World. He had already knocked and was told to wait. Finally young girl with a blue ponytail opened the door and came through, closing it behind her. She looked like a normal teenage girl, but in Spirit World, things are not always what they appeared to be.
"I am Botan. One of Lord Koenma's assistants."
"I am …"
"We know who you are, Kurama. And we know what has transpired in Otherworld."
"Then you know that Arista is dead and Koenma lies wounded in our Castle?"
"Yes."
"We would like some answers if you have them. Do you know who did this?"
"We are reluctant to inform you of the happenings of Spirit World."
Kurama glared at the girl. "Don't you realize that we are all at risk? The border between Spirit World and Suzaku is no longer protected. Please tell me what happened."
Botan remained silent, but appeared to be listening to something, perhaps a voice in her head. Then she looked at the Fox. "Very well. We will tell you only because you have protected our borders for many years. But the shame of Koenma is upon us all."
"I know about Koenma and Arista's affair."
"Foolish child!" Botan growled, suddenly sounding like a grown man instead of a young girl. King Yama was speaking through her. "He has brought shame upon our house! He is no longer welcome in Spirit World."
Kurama protested, "Your son is badly wounded. We can bring him to you for healing and for his protection."
"Koenma will not set foot in Spirit World until we feel him worthy." Then Botan returned to her normal voice. "Three mages escaped from Spirit World and many other lesser demons also."
"Who are the Mages?"
"One you know, the other has been incarcerated for centuries, and the third, the most powerful, has been here for eons, dating back to a time when the five worlds were one. Their names are Jodah, Shinjou, and Ryoku-Ashi."
"Jodah! That evil mage has returned? But if they are in spirit form, how did they kill the Princess?"
"Shinjou has the power to recreate their bodies. They live once more."
"This is sad news indeed if Jodah walks the land again."
"Jodah is but a shadow of Ryoku-Ashi. It was his power that slew the Silver Princess and her males. That is all that we can tell you."
"NO!!!!!!!"
Tekki screamed, the sound coming out like a cross between a howl of pain and a cry of rage. He turned over a table, sending its contents shattering across the room. Kenru stood against the wall, desperately wanting to go to her mate, yet afraid to. Vivid red demon markings scored his face -- she had never seen them before and they were terrifying.
Jodah!
Not Jodah -- not the demon who was responsible for his torture and abuse! Tekki simply went crazy when he heard the news. More items crashed to the floor as he overturned more furniture.
Finally, he stood there panting and the markings faded from his face.
Outside of their room stood the Princess, her hand on the doorknob. Then she felt Tekki's rage stop and stayed her entry.
Tekki slowly crashed to his knees, his head hung in despair, his shoulders shaking. Kenru rushed to his side and enveloped him in her arms. He buried his head in her arms and began to cry. The rage had given way to the pain and the shame of being used and tortured for so many months. Kenru murmured soft words, soothing her Bobcat, holding him tight.
Outside the Princess shook her head at the people who had gathered and turned from the door. Kenru could handle him now.
She moved the crowd downstairs to the meeting room to discuss the problem further. "Kurama, do you know of these other two mages?" Aara asked.
"No, but I will ask Jaal. She has long studied the five worlds. If anyone knows, she will."
"Why did they want to kill Koenma?" InuYasha asked.
"The Spirit King thinks it was just to keep Spirit World busy. And they certainly accomplished that. Hundreds of spirits escaped with the mages and the eye of King Yama was on the Silver Palace instead of the escapees. It will take many days to capture them all." Kurama answered.
"And he has no idea where they have gone?" Aara questioned.
"None at all, but I didn't get the feeling he was actively searching. I think once the mages became corporeal again, they were no longer a concern of Spirit World."
"I can't believe he discarded his son like that." Rin said.
"King Yama has always had Koenma on a short leash. He obviously did not approve of the affair with Arista."
"Well, we cannot just wait for mages as powerful as these to strike. We must find them." Hiei said.
"I'm not sure how. Jodah can create portals and I'm sure the other two can as well. They could be anywhere."
"Perhaps not. I do not think they would be welcomed in very many places. Even Jaal hates her father. And the Seiryuu palace is gone." Aara commented.
"I think we should send someone to check the Black Tower." Bakura said. "If Jaal knew of it, then it is likely that Jodah did also."
"Good idea. Tomorrow morning, open a portal for Kamui." Kurama agreed. "Kamui, search quickly so no one senses you and come back immediately, whether you find them or not."
"I understand." Kamui said.
"Then let's turn in and get what sleep we can. It is only a couple of hours until dawn and it has been a very long night." Aara said.
"I think that until these mages are returned to the Spirit World, all our days and nights will be very long." Kurama said sadly.
Aara stood up and all six males stood up with her. She looked at them and sighed. None of them wanted to be apart from her. "It's a good thing I have a very large bed."
