NationStates Jolt Archive

"It gets better. Myself and Vedt left here, looking for the cure. We ended up in the Eye of Terror, and found a ship that was known to have commited acts of piracy on a number of commercial shipping lanes over the past few years"

He paused, reluctant to carry on the story

Her fingers curled around his hand, and she waited for him to continue in his own time.

After all...she wasn't going anywhere.

"We managed to find the cure easily enough... getting it, on the other hand, was another matter entirely. As you know... The Leviathan Project tried to clone me. The records say they failed... the reality, sadly, is another matter entirely. In a strange, twisted way, I am the champion of Chaos Undivided... or at least, another version of me is"

"That is fairly odd."

"Try encountering it... it's even worse than you think"

He paused, and then pushed on,"Anyway, long story cut short, I used an incantation I've never used before to seperate my mind, spirit and soul from my body. That way, I didn't have to risk death... but of course, he didn't know that"

"Vedt said he sent your body and that stone here via portal. The cure came a few minutes before through a different portal."

"Yeah, pretty much. And so, Renor called in an eldar he knows, and thus, here I am"

"How does Renor know an Eldar?"

"He saw through this particular one's illusion of humanity"

She shakes her head, not knowing what to say.

"There's not much else I can tell you, except this; when the time comes, don't try and stop me, please. I am going to kill this brother of mine"

"You've only listened to me once when I tried to get you to stop something...and that was because it was both blatantly stupid, and dealing with magick. Even if I tried, I doubt you would listen. Aside from that...someone has to kill him. Why not his original?"

Why indeed...

"In any case, that time is some distance off... all that matters now, is that you recover"

"That could be some time."

"At least the cure worked... it may be worse for a while, but at least you will be better at the end of it all... at least you will be alive"

"That is true. You don't have to stay here for all of it, though. You might love me enough to...but you get far too fidgety after a couple of days."

He smiled, and kissed her softly,"I wouldn't want to annoy you"

She kisses him back. "You don't annoy me...but you migth annoy Mith, which is worse. Aside from that...you need to move around. I've known this since before I married you."

He nodded in agreement,"Alright, I'll either be in Mithdelmar or in the surrounding countryside... I'll find ways of keeping myself occupied"

She nods.

"Are you sure you're up to this?"

"Probably not, even though I'm not doing anything."

"Just rest. It's really all you can do"

Her grip on his hand tightens slightly for a moment, then she lets her eyes close.

He squeezed her hand back, and then kissed her forehead as she fell asleep. He stood, and moved towards the door,"Sleep well"

He left, to do whatever he could to prepare

D'anthe, in mostly-cylinder form, fell out of Cougar's pocket and changed as he hit the floor.

Cougar wasn't really going that far, so he could stay with Rhenna, where he belonged.

Cougar didn't quite know where he was going... but it seemed like a good idea to go the Council. But not yet. Instead, he returned to Rendelmar, grabbed his gear, and returned to Mithdelmar. He left the city, and began to walk. Where, he did not know. It was hilly, but not so much it made walking difficult. After a while, he came to a forest, about a mile to the west. Once inside, for no apparant reason, he climbed a tree, and sat in the uppermost branches

The trees are unlike anything that grow in human lands. The tree Cougar's sitting in is solid, with smooth bark. It has a fairly sweet smell, and cheerful looking flowers on its branches.

He breathed in the scent of the bark... he'd never really lived in the forest. He'd lived in the mountains for his early life... then the clean lines of the cities. Since then, he'd worked in every theatre of war: desert, urban, mountain, arctic, jungle... at he was only thirty-three. Dead once already. He opened his eyes, and just sat there, watching the natural wildlife pass him by

A week and a half later (by Kaymirilian consideration of a week), Rhenna was finally recovered enough to go home. She was limited in what she was allowed to do for another week and a half, by which time she would be almost at full strength.

Cougar had adheered to her wishes, and although he had been there as much as possible, he also got enough movement in to prevent him becoming fidgety whilst she was recovering. He was still there when she was allowed out for the first time though,"It's good to see you up and about"

"It's good to be back up." She smiled at him. Even though she knew he'd been gone for much of the time she'd been asleep, he'd also been there most of the time she'd been awake...so all in all, it was a lot like he'd never left her.

He smiled at her,"You're under doctor's orders, light duties for the next week and a half"

"Yes, I know. Mith told me, and several others 'reminded' me."

He laughed,"Well... like me, you can sometimes push yourself harder than you should... although unlike me, you normally listen to what the doctor has to say"

"With results being that I heal faster." She grins at him. They'd had this conversation many times...from both angles.

He smiled, and kissed her forehead. He could feel one of the missing scales, the one on her side... it would never grow back. Mith had told them both as much

She stood there a moment, glad to be able to get up...glad to be still alive...she knew just how close she had come.

She then looked up. "Come on, James. Let's go home."

"In seven years, those words have never sounded better"

He teleported both of them back home, and smiled as he saw the near-tide of Rendelmarian children coming to greet her,"Looks like someone's got some fans"

"You could say that." She smiles at him, then at them.

"I guess I'll be seeing you later...not really much choice in the matter."

They were basically being dragged apart, so he grinned wryly,"I'm sure you will see me later... although you'll have walked so many times round the city, you'll never want to move again"

"That is the likelihood we face."

She grins, before disappearing behind one of Rendelmar's false walls.

Seven years... and I still always forget that wall isn't real

He watched the last of them dissapear, and walked off, chuckling to himself, thinking about how the kids would want to show her everything new... it was entertainment for free. He went back to the room, and grabbed a few hours sleep. The past few days, he hadn't slept much, and he now needed it more than ever

She got back to the room after several hours, and sat down on the bed, next to him.

He'd let his hair grow out some recently, and she started running her fingers through it. She might tell him to get it cut later, but in all likelihood, it would start bothering him soon, so he'd get it cut on his own.

He stirred, and opened his eyes to look up at her,"Well, that's a nice thing to wake up to"

She smiles at him, then moves a little to lay down beside him. "Good morning."

"Is it actually morning?"

"It's actually early afternoon...but you just woke up."

He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes a little bit, and smiled,"In any case, how many times did they drag you around?"

"Only a few. Renor told them that I couldn't walk around too much, so after an hour or so, we wound up in the Sand Room and I got to hear about everything that happened these past few weeks."

"You must have had them scared as hell... if my reactions during these past few weeks are anything to go by"

"They worried...but it's over now."

He snuggled up closer to her,"Yes... it's over now"

For the time being

She cuddled closer to him, as well, enjoying the sensation of warming up for the first time in too long.

She kissed him. "Don't worry about what is to come next, James. Not until it's actually time."

He kissed her back,"I know I shouldn't... but I can't help it, y'know"

"Yes, I know...all to well."

He closed his eyes, feeling her warm up against him, and breathing out a long-held sigh of relief. It was over... for the moment. For now, they could rest, relax, and prepare

The eye of the storm...

Rhenna closed her eyes, letting herself relax. There wasn't too much more time before they went back out...so she stayed where she was, holding and being held by her husband, safe and warm...for the moment, at least.

He ran his fingers down her spine slowly, making sure to hit every nerve on the way down. He also was relaxing... just being able to hold her close again was enough for him

She shivered slightly as his hand ran down her spine, and kissed him, her thumb traching gently along his shoulder.

He smiled as he kissed her back, drawing it out... it was the first real kisss they'd been able to share in ages... what seemed like forever

She let it linger for as long as it would, then smiled at him.

"I love you, you know that?"

He looked into her eyes, and smiled,"I know you do, and I love you"

She smiles, then leans up to touch her forehead to his.

He leant in willingly, touching his forehead to hers

"You never did tell me the details of your fight with your clone."

"That's because that fight... is something I'd rather forget... he told me alot of things I didn't want to hear"

She nods, putting a hand to his cheek.

"Some of the worst times of my life were down to him... that's all I can say, without going in specifics"

She nods. "It's okay, James. If you don't want to talk about it, don't."

"No... you deserve to know"

He paused, and then launched into it. He told her everything he knew that his clone was responsible for. The brutal torture that James endured upon capture by certain factions, the damage they inflicted upon her all those years ago... the murder of their child.

"He wanted to destroy us... and thus, I will destroy him"

Her eyes had hardened during the tale.

"I'll be there, as well. If I can't rip him apart, I'd at least like to be there to see it."

"I doubt it's going to be as straightforward as I somehow made it sound... another major battle is coming... but where, I do not know"

"We'll know when the time comes for it."

"I think it would be fitting if we finished him together"

She nods. "I wish we'd known of him earlier."

"How could we? I have no direct link to him, and he is also me, remember. He's done what I would have done in the same position - hidden behind a mask, never allowing himself to be seen or directly linked to any of this"

"True...there's another advantage and disadvantage to all of this. You know how he thinks...but he also knows how you think."

"Which means, it needs an objective mind to anticipate the next move..."

"True. However...you can do that. If you can't, I don't know who you've been taking your lessons from these past five years."

"I know I can do it... all it takes is time"

She nods and kisses him softly, before resting her head on his chest.

He smiled, kissing her back and just laying there, his arms around her

She sighs softly, comfortable and content.

"Someone seems happy"

"I'm home, and I'm comfortable. What's not to be happy about?"

"Obviously, everything is good when you've just come home... I know this for a fact"

"True...you're out enough to know how good it feels."

He sighed,"Sometimes, it's like I don't live here, I'm out that much"

"Yes, I know. But there are also times that you can stay at home for up to a month. Then you're always glad to be out."

He smiled,"Well... I'm just odd"

"I've known that for how many years now?"

"God only knows"

She laughs. "It hasn't been that long that I've known you...you haven't been around that long."

"To any human, I've been around a lifetime... always with the age difference"

"Well...you knew how old I was when we met, and certainly before we married."

"Of course I did... but it doesn't matter to me. You're still beautiful"

She smiles and gives him a kiss. "Is that the only reason you married me?"

"Not at all... you know that, or, you should"

"True. I'm still not sure how this entire relationship started...but I know I don't regret it."

"I don't regret it either... nor do I care how it started. It started, that's all that matters"

"True."

That's all that matters...save that we both live to make it continue.

He held her close, just enjoying the moments they had

I won't be giving this up for anything, not ever

They'd fallen into a silence, but it wasn't at all an awkward silence.

The silence could have lasted forever... if it had, they would have understood each other perfectly

As afternoon wears into evening, she drifts off to sleep.

Mith had correctly predicted that she wouldn't be up to much, even if released.

Having slept earlier in the afternoon, he allowed her to fall asleep, before casting a powerful heat spell, and letting her lie there. He pulled up a holo-screen, and started to work

Cougar's presence made the room he shared with Rhenna the most technologically advanced room in the city, a fact that she had shaken her head over many times, and accepted long since.

For now, though, as he worked, she got four hours of sleep, before waking up.

She dismissed the heat spell, and looked over at him.

His features always tensed up when he was working, and that was how she could tell he was working now and not giving in to insomnia, or keeping himself busy because he'd slept that afternoon.

Only this time, his features were more tense than usual. The hard lines had come out in his face, lines that only rarely came out, when he was worried about something...seriously worried.

He looks centuries older than he is...

The hard lines on his face peppered his brow, and deepened the slight wrinkles under his eyes. When he worked hard, bags appeared under his eyes, making him look far more tired than he actually was. Rhenna was right, he did look far older than he was... his eyes bore that hollow look. He had indeed been working hard, under extreme pressure, without a break. He looked over as she dismissed the heat spell, and forced a smile,"Sleep well?"

"Fairly. Don't let me stop you from what you're doing."

She was slightly worried about him...but she knew why he was doing this. When it was over, he'd relax, she knew from experience.

He did actually smile, and turned back to his work, his face becoming blank once more... he was absorbing information as fast as he could, his mind working faster than most humans could comprehend

She got up and hugged him gently from behind, kissing him on the top of the head before disappearing off to the library.

No doubt there would be things of...interest...there.

He leant into the hug slightly, and then stopped to watch her walk out the door. He smiled slightly, and settled back to his work. He worked solidly for another few hours, then crashed out on the bed. He didn't have a class the next day, so he decided he could afford to sleep in

Meanwhile, D'anthe and Rhenna were looking up other information. Rhenna fell into an old pattern...it had been seven years since she'd done it, but now, if ever, was the time...

He slept far longer than normal, and then saw she had not returned from the library. He knew what she was doing, and he also knew she was in no condition to try that old trick, especially after seven years. He decided to let her be for the time being, and simply went to his training, pushing himself harder than ever before, for he couldn't believe how much damage his clone had done in such a short time.

Rhenna's work went more slowly than she'd cared for, partly because some of the books were older than she was.

"D'anthe, remind me to assign students to rescribe these books."

Why not create new copies yourself?

"Because...rescribing is one of the worst forms of punishment we have."

So, now you just need someone to get into trouble.

"D'anthe, this is Rendelmar. That happens on a weekly basis, at the least."

Cougar finished off the final target with a devastating blast of power. The raw energy surged around him, but he forced it down, breathing steadily. He was as powerful as his counterpart... but had not the same mastery... and there was no time to gain that mastery

"You need work. I wouldn't have to say this if you'd actually been paying attention to Vedt these past few years...however...with what time you have, I might be able to help you."

Renor had watched the 'match' impassively, hidden. Now he spoke up.

Cougar was stressed, but he fought back the tide of anger and resentment he felt at that moment, instead talking in a near normal voice,"Without meaning to cause offence, I am well aware that I need work"

"First of all, you need to lock your emotions away. You are fighting chaos, and from thence all emotions come."

Does he think I'm stupid... wait, that question has already been answered many times

"And how do you propose to teach this foolhardy human a technique that takes years to master, in a smattering of days"

"Funny. I thought that as an elite version of soldier, you would already have at least the fundamentals mastered."

"I do. But to resist Chaos is different to resisting the tortures of the body... Chaos affects the mind. You must know this"

"Then I will teach you to fight Chaos...through experience. When you return to your rooms this evening...you will be more exhausted than you can imagine."

The room shifted around them, and it didn't stop shifting.

"We encourage fighting with Order, which is why one of your first lessons was to NOT use your emotions in combat. This is a section of the Chaos planes...removed enough from its gods that our presence will go undetected.
"There are creatures all around us, all of them hostile. First, attack with your anger, attack with all the emotions you've been storing, and watch the effects."

Cougar knew what he was being asked to do was completley against his training... he'd got that so engrained, he had trouble letting go. But when he did, the light was blinding. It shone like a beacon in the darkness, tearing without control at the Chaos all around them

A beast that hadn't previously seen them was hit by the power, and snarled.

It grew, and morphed...it became stronger, in proportion to Cougar's powers.

It charged straight at the human, with the intent of murder.

Cougar reacted by moving himself away, bringing up a barrier he had learnt to prevent the creature getting to him

Renor sent a small spell at the beast, just enough to distract it.

"Now, seal your emotions away. All of them. All you have is a purpose. Clear your mind of everything. You should feel an emptiness...but beyond that, peace. You are calm, and nothing can shake that calm. Nothing."

Cougar did as he was told. He emptied his mind of all emotions, everything. It was something he could already do... commonly called letting yourself go in military circles. He felt a sense of inner peace, of calm... but nothing more

"Now, your purpose is the destruction of this beast. You do not hate it, it is merely a hinderance to your purposes, and cannot be allowed to stand in the way. However, as long as it lives, it will hinder your purposes. Destroy it."

Cougar didn't even look at the creature. There was no emotion in his heart at that moment, just the calmness. He raised a hand, and loosed off a single blast, much more powerful than anything he had ever used before

"Your attack is too unfocused. Against a master of Chaos, it would splinter. You must force it into a shape. Something perfect, whose form cannot be broken."

Cougar's blast had killed the beast, but another was bearing down on them, again, having been strengthened by Cougar's anger.

Cougar once more did not look at the beast, but instead altered his attack. Perfection... a perfect sphere is too difficult... a triangle on the other hand, that I can do.

Both his hands came up, forming the delta attack he had forged all those years ago. He knew that it was perfect, there was no doubt in his mind. The triangle tore into the creature's flesh

The creature was destroyed, but there was a horde coming.

"Against this, you will too quickly deplete your fashka. You are using lawful energy, while all around you is chaotic. You must draw in chaotic energy and convert it into orderly energy before you can use it. The best way to do this is to continuously take in a stream of this fashka, and as it enters you, make it part of you...part of your emptiness, part of your peace."

Cougar tried this... and tried. And tired. He was struggling, and failing. He was doing everything Renor told him to the best of his ability... drawing in one type of fashka, altering it without ever being taught how, and then using it to fuel his attacks. All this without emotion. If Drow found this hard, humans found it harder. Much harder.

"That will be enough for now, Cougar."

Renor raised his hand, and a sphere formed, and grew. When it had grown enough, in the mage's opinion, he released it. It smashed through some of the chaos horde, and then detonated, finishing them off.

The world shifted back to the room that Renor and Cougar had left.

"Do you understand now?"

Too tired to talk, or even to think straight, Cougar merely nodded.

"Draw in fashka. It is easier here, with a fashka you are more familiar with. Then drink this *conjures a small bottle and hands it to Cougar* and wash yourself. Tomorrow, be in the room of sand by three in the afternoon. Tomorrow, you learn the nature of Chaos, the day after, the nature of Order."

With that, Renor disappeared.

Cougar did as he was told, and collapsed, freshly washed and dried, into his bed that night. Rhenna would be able to feel just how exhausted her husband was, simply by the lack of things coming through the bond

Rhenna knew what state Cougar was in...but she also knew what was going on.

A few hours later, D'anthe decided that it was time for the workday to end. He argued/pecked/scolded her into her room, then sat outside to make sure she stayed in long enough to get some rest. After all...just because she wasn't contagious anymore didn't mean she was anywhere near where she needed to be.

Rhenna went into her room, and, seeing how James had just collapsed on the bed, gently rearranged him so that there was at least a blanket over him.

She laid down next to him and cuddled close, closing her eyes. She'd have kissed him if he were anywhere near awake, but he wasn't, and it wasn't the time to wake him.

He stirred slightly in his sleep, a small smile curling on his face, and he moved closer to her, but he didn't wake up

She fell asleep quickly...not surprisingly, if anyone asked the raven perched in the hall.

He woke about seven the next morning, to find her there next to him. He smiled, but resisted the urge to kiss her, so as to let her sleep. They both needed it... her moreso

She slept for half an hour more, until the feeling that he was awake crept through the bond.

Her eyes opened sluggishly, and she looked up at him, smiling slightly. "Good morning."

Meanwhile, Riptide and Mirroden now had a Sphere of protection against Chaos, simply as a precautionary light defense. Circles of protection were okay on the ground, but entire worlds needed a Sphere of Protection. Warfare no longer had the strength necessary, recent events being to blame, thus, it was either Gypsy or Arianna's work, though that was not for certain.

OOC: Just to remind you of my presence, and because I haven't posted anything in a number of pages.

He smiled back at her,"Same to you... although, by the time the day is out, I think I'll regret getting up"

"Well...what Renor's putting you through is fairly advanced...I won't say that it isn't needed...but I do remember how hard it was to learn."

He rubbed his temples slightly,"Expect very little in way of actual speech in the evenings for a while... it's more going to be sleep than anything else"

She smiles. "I remember what that was like, believe it or not. You'll come out of it okay."

"Excuse me if this seems like a stupid question, but how old where you when you did it? And how long had you been learned magick?"

"Let's see...I was...Two hundred and twenty, or somewhere within a decade of that, and I'd been learning magick since I was ten...then again, your training is being rushed by force of need. Renor's doing this to you to even the odds, at the least."

"So I noticed"

He picked up his pillow, and put it over his face. His speech was muffled, obviously,"What did I do wrong in a past life?"

"Or, rather...what is an alternate life of yours doing wrong now?"

He moved the pillow away, and looked at her,"I'd rather not think about it. I do know this though... he's the side of me that I don't acknowledge... because I know what it can do"

"If you don't acknowledge something, it might be able to sneak up on you and just take over."

OOC: Gyah! Do you have any idea just how...*guy that did the repressed memories, think it was Freud* that sounds?!? *camera*

OOC: Sorry -_-

IC:He stared at the ceiling, and laced his fingers over his chest,"All I can do is learn more in a shorter peroid of time than ever before... we'll just have to wait and see"

"You'll come out all right. After all...Renor's the one teaching you."

"I know... I learnt alot from him very quickly... it was he, after all, that started my magickal training"

"And now there's a real reason for him to train you harder than ever before."

"It's been a very long time since he's trained me personally"

"He doesn't train anyone personally anymore, really. There's always more than too much for him to do in a day."

"I've got to meet him at three... todays exciting lesson, the nature of Chaos"

"That was confusing, it always was. Because, you see...well...he'll explain it."

"I'm sure he will... and my nanites will release so much painkiller to stop my head hurting afterwards"

He said the second part smiling slightly, before saying,"What time is it?"

"I don't know. My timekeeper's outside the door making sure I got enough sleep."

He laughed slightly,"At least your's does that for you... all mine is after... ah here we go"

Rosie jumped onto the bed at that point, and started rubbing herself against the back of his hand,"You want food don't you?"

She purred

"Alright, alright... c'mon, I'm up"

Rhenna laughed. Over the five years that she'd been there, Rosie had become a common sight around Rendelmar.

She was starting to get old, though...and Rhenna knew that there were children that would miss her terribly, should she die in Rendelmar.

James knew that his cat was getting old... but he also knew that Rosie would live quite a while longer. Half-wildcat, half domesticated, they normally lived until at least fifteen, if not longer. He gave her some of the food, and rubbed his hand along her back. She arched her back, purring slightly as she dug in. He shook his head, and then fell back onto the bed,"At least it's happy for a while"

She smiles. "I'm surprised she comes to you for food at all anymore, as much as the children feed her."

"HAve you ever watched her with the children? Some of the stuff they give her, she drags off and then leaves, because she can't eat it"

"That was when she first came. The children are smart enough to figure out what she will and won't eat."

"And she's smart enough to know how to fend for herself... still, she'll keep coming back"

"She's been with you too long."

Rhenna settles back down next to him, laying her head on his chest.

It really hadn't been a good idea to put in a solid day's work so soon after having been released.

He looked at her, and smiled. She was tired, still, and although she wouldn't admit it to him, he could feel it. He kissed the top of her head, and lay there, just relaxing whilst he could

*Three o'clock, the sand room*
He'd been there five minutes already, just making the sand shift. He'd gotten better over the years, and the structures had become more complex, and harder to demolish

Renor stepped into the room, giving Cougar some time to focus in before he said anything.

The constructs fell away as he entered, and Cougar stood up to greet his master. Words weren't needed. He merely nodded

The door closed as Renor stepped the rest of the way in.

"Pure chaos is completely and totally without constants. It cannot be predicted or controlled...or effectively combatted. What you are facing, however, is not pure chaos."

No... it's me

"What I'm facing has all the boundries of a physical body... you cannot push pure chaos through something like that without destroying the body, which would effectively eliminate the threat,correct?"

"The limits of the physical body can be worked around, removed entirely, or altered, to a certain degree. So while what you are saying is partially correct, it is also partially incorrect. Name some constants of this entire situation."

Cougar had a quizzical look on his face,"I'm afriad I don't see any constants in this situation... all I see is a crazed rogue"

"The rogue must act as he is told to, to acheive his greater goal. The gods backing him are predictable. Tell me the goals of each of the four Chaos gods."

"Khorne desires only bloodshed... Tzeentch, control over magick... Nurgle, to spread disease and pestilence across creation, and Slaanesh... wants to spread pain and pleasure, for to him, they are one and the same"

"Thus, the puppet must act to please them all. The next obvious step is war. Bloodshed, which is always followed by pestilence. The very act of killing brings pain to some, and to others a sick sense of pleasure...not to mention a common mechanism used by invading armies against women and children. And control over magick...well...that many souls, that much fashka...that would be easy.
"Do you remember the trip we took last year, Cougar? Had it been pure chaos, we would not have been able to survive. The ground was firm, and even though nothing made sense on first sight, everything had a purpose, a function, a reason for being. This Chaos depends upon its amount of Order, or there would be no way for them to do anything. They have codes of conduct for acting among each other, and even rules to dealing with mortals, as your counterpart illustrates."

"So, Chaos and Order are intertwined? They have to be for the other to survive... it makes sense when you think about it... to defeat them, we must exploit this fact"

"Chaos and Order juxtapose and complement each other, but that is not the lesson you are here to learn today."

"Alright, we're here to learn the nature of Chaos"

"In order to grasp the idea of Chaos as you'll face it, you need to know what real Chaos does."

Renor raises a humanoid figure out of the sand.

"This is a sphere of true Chaos, contained within a thin layer of Order. Watch the effect it has on a normal human body."

The sphere moved over the figure, and it quickly distorted into many and painful-seeming shapes, before being unable to hold its form.

Renor collapsed the sphere in on itself.

"It destroyed it... completley warping it"

"And yet, we were able to survive, in 'Chaos.'"

Cougar looked at his teacher,"How?"

"What did I just tell you about that place, Cougar?"

"It has rules it must obey... that is how we could survive"

"Yes. Now...you need to learn how to channel Chaotic fashka."

Wouldn't it be better to have learnt that yesterday... oh well, this is the way it goes

"Simply channel it, or convert it also?"

"Simply channeling."

Cougar nodded, telling Renor he was ready to learn

Renor took them back to the Chaos planes.

"You can recognise the fashka...now, make it work."

Cougar rubbed his temples, in his mind at least.Be more specific, why don't you... wait, why am I thinking like this?

He could see the energy all around him, now he had to make it work for him. It was going to be harder than normal, he knew that... but it could be done. He decided simply getting a ball of it to appear in his palm would be a start... it might not have been useful, but you had to start somewhere. He concentrated harder than he had to now, more akin to what he had done to when he had first met Renor. The sphere appeared, spluttered, almost died, and then solidifed in his hand.

"This is chaotic energy, it works best when only controlled just enough to get it to acheive your purpose."

He let the sphere vanish, and tried again. And again. Each time, it was different. He was straining himself... much more than he had to normally.

"Don't strain it. Chaotic energy is the easiest to weild...and the most dangerous to the caster."

He couldn't help but strain... it was easy to weild, but he kept trying to control it in order to prevent himself coming to harm. This next attempt, he stopped straining, not exactly letting the energy flow, but not trying to control it to such a large extent either

"Can you feel the power it gives you? The temptation to weild it more, and more, give it more and more freedom, give you more and more power, raw power, with which you can do anything you want, to anyone you want, to any purpose you want?"

"It is a tempting lure, to be sure... but that is Chaos' power. It lures you with promises of power... that is it's nature"

"In all actuality, Chaos is neither good nor evil...nor is Order. Power is a tool...to be used as the bearer chooses. However, this fashka, unfortunately, is tainted. By evil. It makes it even more likely for a weilder to succumb to the illusion of control. That is Chaos's greatest danger...it grants power, but it can consume you alive."

"Isn't that true of any power?"

"But Chaos especially so. Order is logical, and can see the flaws of absolute dominance as well as the values of it. Therefore, it is more likely to strive for balance."

"So, what does this tell me? I know that Chaos is going to be doing the opposite to Order, trying to upset the balance of things"

"I'm saying that in the end, there will be balance. The 'order' of the universe requires balance. This is why you must understand Chaos and Order both, so you can understand the balance that they come to."

"So, you cannot eliminate one entirely, because that would upset the balance... prehaps the balance has already been upset"

"It's starting to be."

The training session had come to an end, and Renor brought them back to the sand room.

"But there are more safeguards than just you, Cougar."

The room opened, and light came flooding in.

"We are done for today. Meet me here, at the same time tomorrow."

"Whilst there may be more safeguards... no one understands this enemy better than me. But for now, good night Renor"

The mage was already gone.

Cougar could feel the tiredness washing over him, but drove himself to do the basics before retiring for the night. It was eventually about eleven in the evening... he hadn't eaten... he'd wait until the morning. ONce more washed and dried, he lay back and pulled the sheets up to around mid torso, turned on his side, his head resting on his arm, the other arm laid along his side. He was asleep quickly

Rhenna, once more chased back to the room by D'anthe, took a shower and laid down next to him to sleep. She knew that if she really did anything tomorrow, she was liable for at least one of two things: Being confined to the room so she couldn't do anything, or picking up some other type of illness from having pushed her immune system too far too fast. Again, preventing her from doing anything.

He snuggled closer to her as she lay down, almost by instinct, for he did not wake up.

She smiled slightly as his arm went around her, and cuddled closer to him, as well. She let herself drift off to sleep...after all...what else was there to do...aside from stay there and be warm and comfortable?

He slept heavily, eventually waking much later than normal. He smiled as he saw her next to him, and just lay there, enjoying the closeness and the warmth.. though truth be told it was all his.

She was still asleep...fairly much out of necessity.

He just rested, reluctant to move... both of them were exhausted, in their own ways. She, because she was driving herself too hard too fast, and him because Renor was pushing his limits. Cougar may have learnt faster than the average Drow, but he was still so young... Rhenna hadn't learnt what he was learning till she was over two centuries old

She woke slowly, but didn't move.

He kissed the back of her neck, and spoke softly, his lips now brushing against her neck,"Morning"

She smiled softly. "Good morning."

"Sleep well? I trust D'anthe forced you back last night?"

"Again...for the best, really."

"You drive yourself too hard"

"No harder than usual...but the circumstances aren't usual."

"Exactly. You've got to calm down slightly"

"Your people have a saying, don't they? If you're told something three times, by three different people, it must be true?"

He smiled, and she could feel it,"Something like that, yes"

"Then what do you suggest I do, as opposed to what I've been doing?"

"I'm not saying you have to stop doing what you've been doing... just do it less strensouly, or not as much in one sitting."

"Thiat's the least strenuous activity there is to do, in all honesty, James." She turned over so she could face him.

His lips brushed hers as she turned over, and he grinned,"You're more like me than you think... you have to be doing something"

"Well...we have to have at least some common ground, or else this would never hold together."

"That's true enough. Still, even I know that sometimes you've got to take it easy"

She manages a laugh. "Don't we normally have this conversation the other way around?"

"This isn't exactly a normal situation," he laughed, kissing her just before he did so

"All right...I'll find less to do today."

"Hey, I can't stop you doing what you want... only D'anthe can, and we both know what he's like"

"Yes...we do..."

"You say that as if dreading what he's like"

"It's hard to get things done when there's interference."

"Yet another reason I'm glad Snake Eaters enver saw the need for them... although their construction is nothing short of a miracle. Incredibly adaptable, to be sure... but I don't like 'pets' answering back"

She laughs. "Your cat 'answers back' to you all the time."

"The advantage to that relationship is that I can't tell what she's saying, can I Rosie?"

Sod off. Eating

"I think you can." She kisses him. "You just don't admit it."

He kissed her back, and tapped his nose,"Well, we may never know"

"Perhaps not."

"Oh yay, more fun learning with Renor this afternoon"