She considered him for a long moment.
“At least for now, Ty, just leave it alone. Promise me.”
She pursed her lips. “I won’t disrupt the energy without discussing it with you.” She finally allowed.
Okay, that was something. “Unless, I agree.” Gion pressed. “Don’t disrupt it unless I agree. I should have a vote. The connection is half mine.”
And he’d never fucking agree to get rid of it.
Ever.
So, her promise meant that their connection was safe. Gion watched Ty, closely, willing her not to notice that small detail.
Another long pause. “You won’t get rid of the energy without me agreeing to it, either?”
“I won’t.” It was the firmest guarantee ever made.
“Alright.” She murmured. “That’s reasonable.”
Relief flooded him. Not just because she’d agreed to forget about her research, but at his new discovery. Ty shut him out when Gion pushed and threatened. When he asked her, though, she compromised.
That was huge a breakthrough.
Gion smiled. “Thank you.”
“Just don’t try to intimidate me into getting your own way, again.” She warned. “I don’t like it and it won’t work.”
“I know. I’m sorry. Give me some time and I’ll adjust to life here. I can be right for you.”
“I don’t want you to be ‘right.’ I want you to be Gion. I want you to be the better man that I see in you.”
He had no idea what that meant, but he nodded anyway.
Ty sighed, apparently picking up on his total lack of comprehension. “Come back over here.” She gestured to his chair. “We can go over the report.”
Gion debated that. Not that it was much of an internal struggle. His obsession with Ty made the outcome pretty easy to predict. “Very well.” He took his seat. “If you’re sure you want to do this with me instead of an independent third party.”
“I’m sure.” Ty said gravely and moved the report so it sat between them. “I wouldn’t trust anyone else to do this as well as you can.”
Gion shot her a sideways look and cleared his throat. “Right. Well,” he focused on the neatly typed pages, “I am concerned about a few areas.” He frowned. “Actually, I’m concerned about a lot of areas, but these eight on page one are the top priorities. That’s the immediate action section. I go into more detail about each problem in their individual chapters, but we should start at the beginning. Here, I brought a highlighter for the bullet points.”
Ty glanced up at him and smiled.
Chapter Five
These elemental furies are coming at him with a purpose of malice, with a strength beyond
control, with an unbridled cruelty that means to tear out of him his hope and his fear, the
pain of his fatigue and his longing for rest
Joseph Conrad- ‘Lord Jim’
Chason, of the Magnet House stared at his Match’s grave.
The white marble sepulcher stood in pristine silence amid his decaying world. The Magnet Kingdom had fallen into a deep, gray gloom since the Fall. The buildings and grounds wasted away under Chason’s neglect, but Mara’s tomb remained surrounded by roses and lavished with attention.
Chason saw to it personally.
Everything here had been done to his exacting specifications. He’d forced Stone Phase artisans to redo the structure three times until he was satisfied that it was perfect for Mara. The craftsmen created beautiful Art Deco carvings on the mausoleum’s surface. Languid women in flowing dresses danced among weeping willow trees. Their lovely faces reflected the joy and life that his Match had brought to the world. Every figure held a different instrument: harps and flutes and Elemental lutes. Mara loved music and, in death, Chason made sure that it surrounded her. The crypt truly was a work of art.
Chason hated it.
Hated envisioning his beautiful bride trapped inside of it for eternity. Hated the marble walls that separated them. Hated that he couldn’t yet join her in endless silence. But, the tomb was all he had left of Mara, now, so he came here every day. It drew him. In the entire Magnet Kingdom, it was the only spot that held any meaning. The only spot where he could still feel his Match.
Chason no longer cared what happened to the rest of his homeland.
He no longer cared about anything but revenge.
Once, Chason had been a good man. He’d been raised as an officer and a gentleman. He sacrificed for his people and followed the Council’s laws without question. He protected anyone weaker than himself. He believed in honor, truth, and justice. He was a dutiful son and a pious follower of Gaia. Cason had tried so hard to do everything expected of him.
Chason had thought that God rewarded his efforts when he found his Match. Mara gave Chason’s strict, disciplined life meaning. She played music and made him laugh. She warmed him and made him better. Everything he’d ever wanted was because of her.
Mara was the light in his world.
Then, the Air House killed her and the world went dark.
Parald released the Fall and destroyed Chason’s soul. Watching Mara die had extinguished every drop of compassion and reason he’d ever possessed. Chason was a shell, now, existing purely on rage and bitter hatred. His faith was gone, burned out of him. Nothing remained of the man he’d been, except a gaping hole where his heart had once beat.
Chason wanted to follow Mara into the next world. Every second without his Match ate at him like acid. But, he couldn’t leave, yet. Couldn’t allow the Air House to get away with their treachery. Chason planned to kill himself, but, when he did, he’d take the rest of universe down with him. Every Air Phase needed to die. Without Air, the world would end, but Chason didn’t care.
All he cared about was revenge.
Once everything blinked out like a porch light, Chason could finally rest.
“Commander.” Lansing, of the Dust House walked towards him across the dusty, gray soil. “I’m sorry to disturb you, but we have news.”
Chason left strict instructions that no one was to bother him when he was with Mara. He turned away from the tomb, frowning at his second-in-command. “What?”
Chason had an army of followers, now. The Reprisal. Phases who’d survived the Fall and despaired at what they saw. Phases who knew that the world would never be right, again. Men and women from nearly every House joined Chason’s war on the Air Kingdom. It was only a matter of time before they succeed in destroying the universe.
Only a matter of time.
…Time that he might not have.
“Sir, we know where Gion is.” Lansing nervously cleared his throat. “The Water House gave him amnesty yesterday.”
Chason heard a roaring in his ears and a terrible rage filled him. From childhood, he’d possessed a horrible temper and he’d tried to master it. Since the Fall, though, it had been slipping beyond his control more often. Everything was slipping beyond his control, now. One day, Chason knew that he’d lose his grip completely and careen into total madness. He could see the bottomless pit looming ahead of him; the laughing, merciless specter of insanity ready to pull him under. If he didn’t kill Parald soon, Chason feared that it would be too late for him.
Chason was going crazy.
Not metaphorically crazy. Honest-to-God, straightjacket and rubber room crazy. He could feel the blackness spreading in his mind. Sense it shadowing his movements and clouding his thoughts, luring him towards the edge of oblivion.
But, he no longer cared.
Chason had just enough awareness left to realize that he was running out of time.
The Magnet powers jerked free of his restraints and slammed out over the kingdom. The magnetized rocks beneath his feet shifted and groaned from the strain. “The Water House took Gion in?” He ground out.
“Yes, sir.” Lansing warily glanced down at the shaking ground. “Parald put that price on his head last week, so it looks like Gion went to Ty for help.”
Next to Par
ald himself, Chason hated Gion more than anyone who’d ever existed in the history of creation. Parald never would have seized control of the Air House if not for Gion. That bastard paved the road to Hell. And now fucking Nia, Tharsis, and Ty wanted to adopt the son-of-a-bitch?!
Chason squeezed his eyes shut, trying to reign in his fury. It was Job’s fault. The Elemental’s own Dr. Manhattan thought he could control everyone; make them all play nice and make peace. He was wrong. Job’s fucking amnesty idea had incensed Chason to begin with and now, to see it applied to Gion, of all people…. Gion, who stood at Parald’s side while Mara rotted in a tomb…
No.
It was intolerable. Gion couldn’t just walk away from the misery he’d created. He had to pay. There had to be justice.
“Why would Gion go to the Water House?”
That question was delivered in a distinctive raspy tone. Raiden, of the Radiation House had his throat slit in the Fall. The untreated wound hadn’t healed properly and it affected his voice.
Chason hadn’t heard him come up, but that wasn’t unusual. Nobody noticed Raiden unless he wanted them, too. His dark hair was shaved close to his head in an effort to obliterate the gamma ray green streak at his temple. His vibrant chartreuse eyes glowed with madness and sorrow and something approaching the divine.
Chason no longer believed in God, but he believed that Raiden saw things beyond the physical world. Whatever else existed out there, the guy had it on speed dial. That was one of the reasons that the Radiation House wanted him dead.
Of all of the Reprisal soldiers, Chason trusted Raiden both the most and the least.
“Well, not many Houses are stupid enough to let the Air Phases in.” Lansing shook his head. “Damn do-gooding Water Phases have always been soft.”
“Why would Gion choose the Water House, though? He knows the Quintessence. She’d accept him.” Raiden came closer, his large hand brushing against the pedals of one of Mara’s white roses. “Why not go to the Earth House with Tessie?”
Chason didn’t appreciate anyone else touching his Match’s flowers. Even through his anger, he saw Raiden’s point, though. His brows came together and he glanced over at Lansing. “Did Job refuse to give Gion amnesty?”
“Job would never refuse Tessie.” Raiden intoned. “If Gion wanted to be there, the Earth House would have let him in.”
“Perhaps, Gion didn’t want to compete with Job for power.” Lansing suggested. “In the Water House, he’ll be the strongest and he won’t have to worry about Job crushing him.”
That made sense, except Gion was too arrogant to be concerned about Job. The asshole would never think that anyone could stop him. Why would Gion choose the peaceful, quirky, Water Kingdom? Even before the Fall, it had been a place of grace and eccentric charm. Gion would fit in like a shark in a school of tropical fish. Nia would never let him have any real influence. None of the Water Phases could possibly trust him.
Why would Gion go there?
Gion was an evil dick, but he was powerful. Chason wouldn’t have been surprised if one of the Houses agreed to take him on as their ultimate super weapon. Or –Hell-- he could’ve even killed Parald, if he wanted to. Chason would have bet on Gion in just about any fight. The guy cheated and played for keeps. As smart and ruthless as Gion was, Parald wouldn’t have stood a chance if Gion pulled an Ides of March on his ass.
Gion could be in charge of the Air House, right now.
So why was Gion with the Water Phases?
“They say he broke Ty out of the Air House dungeon.” Raiden put-in. “She owed him.”
Lansing scowled at the mention of her name. “Ty owes us all.”
Like many in the Reprisal, Lansing hated Ty, blaming her for triggering Parald’s wrath and, with it, the Fall. Chason himself had nothing against the girl. She hurt Parald more deeply than anyone else when she renounced him. That pretty much made Ty and Chason even, in his book.
Raiden’s glowing eyes watched Lansing. “Ty, of the Water House is vital to our world.”
Chason had no idea what that meant and he didn’t bother ask. Half of what Raiden said was like something out of a Nostradamus quatrain. It only became clear after the event already happened. None of Raiden’s soothsaying made much sense and, yet, he was somehow always right.
“She’s a fucking bitch.” Lansing shot back. “Ty and Gion deserve each other.”
“Perhaps they do.” Raiden’s head tilted as if something was whispering in his own fractured mind.
That was one of the reasons that Chason relied on Raiden. No matter how crazy Chason was, Raiden was worse.
For now.
Chason’s gaze went back to his Match’s grave.
“Look, I just don’t understand any of this.” Lansing shook his head. He was a man who preferred neat and tidy explanations for everything around him. “What triggered Gion to switch sides? Why would he want out of the Air House when he was the strongest? Why would he betray Parald for Ty? What can she do for him?”
Ty and Gion deserve each other.
Chason’s head tilted, too.
The writing over Mara’s sepulcher was simple and to the point:
Mara, of the Magnet House.
Beloved,
Forever and Then Some.
His amethyst eyes traced over the words.
Why would a Phase do things that made no sense? Why would he leave his home and risk his life? Why would he free his enemy from a dungeon? Why would he abandon everything and ask for amnesty from a House where he’d never fit in?
A woman.
The right woman made everything else fall away. Made you do whatever it took to have her and keep her forever. No one knew that better than Chason. If you loved a woman, logic meant nothing.
Chason’s mouth parted as he realized the truth.
If he’d still believed in God, he would’ve sworn a heavenly choir of angelic voices soared in a prefect, revelatory “laaaaaaaaaaaaaaa” all around him. For once, the reminder of music didn’t cut through him, though. Chason stood at the feet of true inspiration and looked upward at the answer to all his empty prayers.
Gion had a woman.
Gion had a weakness.
Ty.
It had to be Ty.
It seemed so obvious, now.
Killing Ty to punish Parald would have been pointless. The man was incapable of love. Ty was just a possession to him. But, Match or not, if Gion really loved Ty, then losing her would destroy him. That sweet, little redhead was the key to bringing Gion to his knees.
If this was true, Chason could do to Gion exactly what had been done to him when Mara died. He could rip out Gion’s heart and leave him alone in an empty world.
He’d have justice for his Match.
He’d finally have revenge.
Chason very slowly smiled as the blackness in his head pulled him ever deeper into madness.
Chapter Six
I have already moved too long in an environment that is not my own.
Flying fish can live for a time in the air; but soon they must splash back into the water.
I, too, must swim in my own element.
Ivan Turgenev's ‘Fathers and Children’
“You son-of-a-bitch!” Cross, of the Shadow House did not possess a calm and soothing voice. It rumbled with Shadows most of the time and, when he started yelling, it went into complete darkness. “What the hell are doing, coming here?” He stalked forward interrupting Gion’s security check, his mercury eyes glowing with rage.
Dressed in cargo pants and a sleeveless t-shirt, Cross looked out of place in the Water Palace. Water Phases gravitated towards cheerful seaside tones for their attire. Cross gravitated towards black.
Gion didn’t entirely blame the boy.
After all, Gion still wore one of his Air House uniforms. First of all, because he didn’t own any other styles of clothes. Secondly, because he was comfortable in the austere color. And, finally, because it was his.
Gion’s
world was upside down, now. Most of that was because of his own choices. Hell, most of it was part of his own plan. But, it still freaked him out. For so long, he’d wanted to be in the Water Kingdom. He’d wanted to escape Parald and be free. He’d wanted to be with Ty and he’d done everything in his power to make that happen.
Still, the sudden transition from his old life in the Air Kingdom, constantly expecting betrayal and death, to life in the relatively peaceful Water House was jolting. People still wanted him dead here in the Water Palace, but they were a lot more open about it.
So far today, he’d had Nia, Brokk, and Tharsis all threatening him with bodily harm if he so much as made Ty stub her toe. None of them had actually tried to harm Gion, though. In the eighteen hours that Gion had been an honorary Water Phase, he hadn’t once been attacked from behind. Certainly that was a pleasant change, but it took some getting used to.
“Cross. Come to welcome me into the fold?”
“I’ve come to fucking kill you, you bastard. Blackmailing poor Ty is a new all-time low for you and that is really saying…”
“I never blackmailed Tritone.” Gion interrupted. “She and I made a deal. Concerning me heroically saving your Match, as I recall.” He shifted so he’d be able to draw his sword more easily if it came to that. Not that he wanted to kill Cross. The last Shadow Phase alive, Cross’ death would automatically end the universe. That was almost always a bad thing.
Even more importantly, though, Cross was Nia’s Match. Ty idolized her cousins. Tharsis and Nia were the most important people in her world.
Gion wasn’t an idiot.
He’d never get anywhere with Ty if he decapitated her beloved cousin-in-law right there in the family’s living room. Especially, since Cross was the happy father-to-be to Ty’s niece.
“You extorted her out of that promise.” Cross roared. “I was there when it happened, dickhead, so I know how it went down. You refused to help Nia without Ty buying you off.”
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