Chapter 7:Prelude to Ascension

"Then it's decided,"Said Justice as he stared into a black tunnel."We're going down." They were standing in the house of white birch, half an hour had passed since the old mock had drawn his final breaths. Celine had yet to regain consciousness, now she lay pale and sickly as a wilting flower. Her injuries were much more serious then justice had thought. Finding bandages in the still burning city they had dressed her wounds, but still her health continued to falter. With no one to treat the dryad, justice was out of options. There was one hope of saving celine's life however. Before his death, white birch told of a secret passage that lay within his own house. The old mock seemed to hint too something that might save her, alas he died before saying exactly what lay inside. Now they stood before it, a dark, earthen tunnel heading underground.

Wasting no more time justice led his two companions into darkness, carrying celine with them. They traveled down a flight of stairs which were horribly uneven and crumbling after years of disrepair. It was difficult and tedious work, each had to be careful for a single misstep could spell disaster. The jagged steps worked well for Stone claw however, they kept him from sliding down uncontrollably. Finally they reached the bottom and were surrounded by a thick blackness. There was no light whatsoever, the darkness so heavy that none could see through it. Justice could no longer even find the stairs they had just come off.

"This is crazy, we can't see anything!"Claw complained"Lets wait till morning. Maybe some light makes it's way down here."

"She might not make it till morning!"Beatdown said"We can't let celine die, we promised white birch."

"Justice promised white birch,"Claw hissed"Thanks alot old man. Once again your poking around were you don't belong. We should be chasing our enemies, not messin around here. We should just leave her."

"Would you really just leave her to die claw?"Justice said"If so I'm beginning to understand why they locked you up in the first place. Beatdown and I will keep going, with or without yo-" He stopped, the ground seemed to tremble slightly. Suddenly it gave way and the floor beneath them collapsed, hurtling them into darkness. Justice fell for what seemed an eternity before crashing face first into what felt like solid rock. He pulled himself off the ground, noticing a dent in his armor. He now stood in an underground cavern. It was dark, but still some light illuminated the cave just enough to see, though justice had no idea where it originated from.

"Claw! Beatdown!"He called out to them and claw emerged from the shadows, still carrying celine. Beatdown then appeared, she had managed to grab hold of an outcropping of rock during the fall and now climbed down to join them. Both were fine but celine looked much worse from the harsh descent. What was it that white birch wanted them to find in this place?

Justice decided to continue a bit further, perhaps they may find something yet in this forsaken place. The cavern was huge, the narrow tunnel walked in becoming wider every yard. The walls seemed to resonate a strange energy. Ocean blue gemstones were encrusted in the very stone and appeared to give off a feint light, creating an errie glow all around them. The sound of running water could be heard in the distance. As they descended further it began to drip from overhead. Aside from the annoying sound, the water was also very acidic and burned even the steel armor of justice. Deeper still they went, a light up ahead growing brighter, finally they came to it's source.

The tunnel opened wide before them revealing a tremendous cave. To the left, far below them was a large lake filled with a fluorescent blue liquid. Before them a long path descended in a spiral before coming to the lakes edge. Sparkling skalagtites hung from the ceiling, which was at least a hundred feet over them. Strangest of all were the gaping holes, each measuring nearly two meters across, lining the stone walls. Approaching one, justice saw claw marks around the sides which suggested that these holes were dug by something other then nature.

"Whats wrong with the water?"Beatdown asked, holding justice's shield over her to ward off the drops."Where do these holes lead? I'm gonna checkem out!"

"Wait!"Justice grabed her,"It's pitch black in those tunnels, what if you get lost? Forget them for now...I'm wondering if that liquid is what white birch wanted us to find..." Justice looked at celine, who's health continued to deteriorate.

Before he could investigate further however, another problem barred the way. Out of one of the holes crawled a large monster the likes of which none had ever seen. It stood nearly seven feet tall, it's ebony body was bulky and it moved on four insectiod legs. The monster had a small head with no eyes, six black spikes jutted out of it's back and wrapped around it's form, pointing them at it's prey. Most visible of all were it's long arms which held talons that seemed composed of some sort of metal. It did not attack and merely stood on the path, blocking their way.

"Hey! Who are you! Let us pass!"Claw yelled but the creature didn't move an inch. At last it spoke, but none could understand it's words. Only one coherent word escaped the beasts fanged mouth, 'dryad'. As though summoned by the word itself, several more rushed out of their holes and surrounded them. Justice looked for an escape route, the only alternative was to jump over the cliff. That plan was scratched quickly enough, as he glanced over the edge only to find many more creatures waiting around the lakeside.

Then, without warning they attacked and were swiftly upon the party. The creatures moved with a speed that seemed impossible for anything of that size. Before he could raise his sword, justice was taken. Two creatures grasped him, he struggled but failed to free himself. Beatdown was also quickly captured but Stone claw was not so easily caught. The trident dropped celine and hurled himself at one of the strange monsters, knocking it to the ground. Justice and beatdown were carried away into the dark tunnels as Celine was scooped up by yet another of these foul creatures. The durahan again fought to free himself but the grip of his captors only tightened. The last thing he saw before being pulled into shadow was Stone claw, surrounded by six of the hulking brutes.

For some time they were dragged into the murky depths. At last they came to what looked like a throne room, probably where the creatures leader resided. It was an unusual place, the arched ceiling was covered with the blue stones they'd encountered earlier, filling the entire area with their light. At the summit of a stair was indeed a throne fit for a king. Upon that great seat was a durahan breed. It was black with shining silver on the legs and forearms. Cruel spikes stuck out from it's shoulders and knees, some even forming a circle around his helm to resemble a crown. At his side was a wicked looking ebon sword, it's blade sharp and jagged. The shield laden with metallic shards and could be used as a weapon itself. The throne was made of some kind of stone and covered with intricate designs carved into it. They were very detailed, justice couldn't imagine one of his captors creating such art.

"Well, look at this. Visitors...."He said towering above them."It's been along time since anyone has come from the overworld. I am Edgegar, lord of all you see before you and much that you will never have the pleasure of seeing. I hope your trip was...pleasant."

"Shut up! Where is Celine!?"Justice raged and struggled but still couldn't get free.

"Yes the dryad,"Edgegar shrugged"She'll live, our medicines are quite effective. Of course she'll need to be in good health for the merger...."

"Why would you do such a thing?"Justice said"Whats going on here! Who are you?"

"I just told you who I am,"Edgegar said, seeming alittle annoyed"I am lord of this place, ruler of the Zozar. Have you ever seen a pixie/Zozar? I haven't, and I'm curious to see what happens. You too will have the honor of being combined. Alas, I must extinguish your souls in the process but hey, sacrifices must be made..."

"You can't do that!"Beatdown said.

"Oh course I can,"Edgegar motioned toward his servents"Take them away until I'm finished with the dryad." The Zozar's dragged justice and beatdown into another black tunnel, descending even deeper into the earth. Soon enough they came to some sort of prison. The two were casually tossed inside and the metal gate shut behind them. There was no light, except for the feint glow of a blue stone on the wall. The three Zozars remained outside as guards, then one said something to the others and the trio left in a hurry. A few minutes passed, a large form moved toward them from the shadows. It was Stone claw, he used a key to open the lock.

"Thanks claw,"Justice said"I thought you'd been captured."

"By these idiots?"Claw laughed, before handing justice his sword and shield."A few things I picked up. Come on, if you wanna escape we'd better move fast. This place is crawling with those freaks."

"But what about celine?"Beatdown said"We can't leave her behind!"

"Sure we can, if we want to live."Claw hissed"Now lets get out of here. When they find the mess I made upstairs every one of those things are gonna come looking for us. If you want to survive, this is our chance."

"We're not leaving without her claw."The durahan said"She's still alive somewhere in this cursed place. Now are you coming or not?"

After a moments hesitation, the trident agreed at last and they set off. Taking the same tunnel that brought them here seemed the best thing to do. What none realized was that the tunnel branched off, and when they emerged from shadow justice realized they had gone the wrong way. They stood now before another huge, cavernous area. Peering down from where they were shocked by what they found. Zozar's were assembling in the pit, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands and more still poured from the tunnels to join their kin. One exceptionally large Zozar stood upon a rock and addressed the crowd in their strange tongue. Justice had no idea so many dwelled beneath the earth, but now, watching them grow into a frenzy, he feared what might happen if they ever attacked the world above....

"What?....Where am I?"Celine awoke in a steel cryo chamber. To her left was another, a frozen Zozar within. A durahan type monster strode toward her, stroking his blade like a pet cat.

"Awake?"He said"Your alright I see. Had a pleasant nap?"

"Edgegar!"Celine realized who her captor was and banged her fist against the glass."Let me go now!"

"You remember me, I'm honored, been along time my dear."Edgegar laughed"I have always admired you dryads, no pixie type lives longer. I'm most curious to see the result of this combination...."

"You can't, what about the deal you made with white birch?"Celine said"You swore to stop your twisted games and remain here. What do you think will happen if you break the agreement?"

"You surprise me celine,"He said"I never thought of you as a liar. I already know the mock lord is dead and your little city ruined. Therefore..." Edgegar brought out a long paper document and tore it in half."All agreements are hereby void. I'll do whatever I want with you. But I don't want to kill you my lovely, in fact, I'll let you keep your soul after the merger. You need only to remain here afterward, by my side. It'll be like old times, Ah, sweet nostalgia."

"Never,"Celine said defiently"Not a chance in hell."

"Huh? I'm sorry, did I say you had a choice? Forgive me,"Edgegar walked over to a control panal."But your going to be combined anyway. You will remain here with me and bear witness to our ascension. But enough talk, it's time." Edgegar reached for the button that would begin the entire combining process. Suddenly he was hit with a blast of energy and fell to the ground. Celine turned and saw Justice, beatdown and Stone claw. The fairy hare jump kicked the cryo chamber, the glass shattered, freeing celine. Before Edgegar could recover justice attacked the control panel. Meanwhile, claw decided to take advantage of edgegars vulnerable position. But their enemy was far from helpless. Edgegar thrust his palms forward, black energy building between them.

"Lights Bane!"He cried, a wave of dark energy struck the trident with such power some of his stone chipped off. Claw fell back painfully and looked at his chest, a small crater was visible."Ouch, that must hurt."

"Nice shot Edge,"Claw mocked, hiding his pain"But we'll have to be going now." Justice then lead the retreat as several Zozar's appeared. Never ones to do anything without the lords go ahead, they waited.

"Hmmm, Edge...I like that."He said as the Zozar's awaited his order."What are you standing around for!? Bring them back here, in bite sized pieces if you must! No one escapes from...Edge, lord of the Zozar. Has a nice ring to it, hahahahaha."

Justice and the others ran through the mazelike tunnels. Celine led the way, saying she knew a way out. Finally they came to a path that went up instead of down. It wasn't long before they found an opening, the sunlight pouring through, piercing the darkness. They had been down there all night and morning had come. Climbing out of the earth's cold clutches, justice was glad to behold the sun again. Even better was what he saw next, half a mile away was a large military camp...with the flag of the IMA rippling in the wind.

-- Black Razor (Allanmontalvo@mindspring.com), May 17, 2000

Answers

Oooo... cool! Love the name Edgegar...

-- Justice (demoncougar@hotmail.com), May 18, 2000.

i know ive said it before, but, great story. now that they're here together, i can ask - any relation between the justice in your story and the justice who posts here?

-- torey luvullo (toreyluvullo@hotmail.com), May 18, 2000.

I'd have to say no Torey. I began this story before I met Justice here on this board. In fact, it was only after the party that I began to come here on a regular basis.

-- Black Razor (Allanmontalvo@mindspring.com), May 18, 2000.

*nodsnods* Yeah, I never met 'im untill the party... *smirx* I guess the name "Justice" is just cool er sumthin'...

-- Justice (demoncougar@hotmail.com), May 19, 2000.

I too have began coming to the board as a regular since the party. Oh by the way good story.

-- Aaron Guest a.k.a. Magma Bird (frogmike@excite.com), May 20, 2000.