Madame+Cho's+Quest

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Beware the sleeping Dragon. For when She awakes Tetravier will shake.--Xandi-latan proverb
Madame Cho swept into her room and hastily began packing things into a traveling bag that she had flung over her shoulder. She packed clothing, a healing kit, bandages, and journey-bread. She could easily find and get other food if she needed it. She also packed the letters that she had exchanged with Simeon and several maps and books. Although she could rely on her memory in most cases, it was always good to have a ready reference source.

Dorje entered the room and watched her silently, Norbu on his heels.

"Most Holy!" Norbu exclaimed. "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I am doing, Norbu?" Cho snapped. "I am packing."

Norbu looked confused. "But //why//?"

"Tell him, Dorje," Cho commanded.

Dorje bowed briefly. "Because she is going questing, young one," Dorje answered calmly. "I knew this day would come."

Norbu turned to Dorje, questions in his eyes. "How did you know, Master?"

"I knew that Her Holiness would have to go searching for her lost brother sooner or later. It turns out that it was later than I thought, but no matter. She must go and we cannot stop her."

Norbu looked between the two of them and a steely resolve seemed to wash over him. He straightened and turned to face Cho. "Then I shall go with you."

"Don't be ridiculous, Norbu," Cho said, exasperated. "I will be more than fine on my own. I am quite capable of taking care of myself."

Norbu nodded. "I understand that, Most Holy. I will go with you nevertheless, unless you order me to do otherwise."

Cho sighed. Norbu meant well, but she would be able to do what she had to do more quickly on her own. Still, the Universe seldom gave gifts without a purpose. "Very well," she said at last. "You may accompany me. However, you must follow all of my orders no matter what the circumstances, do you understand me?"

Norbu beamed. "I do, Most Holy. In all things, I will do as you say."

Cho turned back to her packing. "We leave at first light tomorrow. Be ready."

"I will," Norbu replied.

When Norbu left to pack his own things, Cho turned to Dorje. "Take care of the library for me, old friend. I do not know how long I will be gone."

"Never fear, Your Holiness," the old man replied. "The library will be safe in our hands. May the blessings of the Creatorix go with with you, and may you find the Fiery Feather which was lost so long ago."

Cho stopped dead in her tracks.

//Fiery feather.//

The words from one of Simeon's letters echoed in her brain. The fiery feather, the Phoenix, her beloved brother, her equal and opposite. What was the rest of that prophecy?

//Hello, I am new and old,// //You are young and ancient,// //I know who you are fiery feather,// //Follow the warning,//

//When the three children of nothing join,// //They shall herald windy wings,// //One of four shall be lost, Two shall leave,// //And the pen and paper shall be the last to stand,//

//To stop the red wind, the fire must return,// //The world's hearth must be warmed// //Or the night shall overcome.//

//The mountain must find the fire.//

//Heroes of the books,// //You are all that is left.//

//New and old, young and ancient.// That could refer to her or to Simeon, as unchanging as they both were. There was something odd about that, something not quite right, but what? The more she tried to pin it down the faster it sped away from her, like the fish in her jade green pond.

//I know who you are, fiery feather.//

That must be the Phoenix and he was being warned. But warned by whom?

//The three children of nothing// was easy. That must indicate Acasius. His coming must mean that they had at least a chance of finding the Phoenix. The rest of that stanza must be talking about the guardians, and she herself must be the //pen and paper//, of course.

The next lines were simple enough to decipher, in order to stop the coming storm, the one that she and almost everyone she knew had felt, the Phoenix must be returned.

And she would be the one to do it. //The mountain//, oh how clever! //The mountain must find the fire.//

All this flashed by her in an instant but she felt a thrill in her heart, a giddy wave of emotion. Yes. She //would// do this.

Dorje cleared his throat. "If I may, Most Holy, you have looked for the Phoenix before. What makes you think that you can find him this time?"

Cho smiled. "I will find him this time because I //must// find him this time. He must return, otherwise Tetravier will fall into darkness. I cannot allow that to happen."

"As you say, Most Holy. However, perhaps you should take one of your militia with you as well. Not for your own protection, of course, but to...err...keep an eye on Norbu."

Cho embraced the old man. "Dorje, you schemer," she said, kissing him on the cheek. "Very well. I shall take Norbu and..." she paused, thinking of the members of her militia.

"Perhaps Captain Isiriel Aldamin? She is quite skilled, devoted to you and very clever. You could do worse than to have her on your side."

Cho nodded. "A good suggestion. Yes, see to it please, Dorje."

"At once, Your Holiness." The lama bowed deeply and left Cho to her packing.

If you don't know where you are, any road will do. Xandi-latan proverb
The next morning dawned clear and bright, with a crystal blue sky. Cho smiled to herself as she made her way through the lamasery. A perfect day for flying.

She reached the clearing where Norbu and Captain Isiriel were waiting for her. They would make an odd company, Cho thought. The tall young monk in his blue and white robes was quite a contrast to the lithe warrior, clad in leather armor beside him. Norbu's skin was golden, his eyes brown and almond shaped. Isiriel was silvery pale, and her long dark hair blew in the breeze. Norbu bore no weapons, while Isiriel had a bastard sword in a well worn scabbard strapped to her hip. They both looked up with a smile as Cho morphed quickly into her dragon form. Isiriel and Norbu attached the flying harnesses to her, and placed their belongings in a small net slung under her belly.

"Where are we headed, Most Holy?" Isiriel asked respectfully, as Cho lifted her into position on her back.

"Wherever the wind takes us, Captain," Cho replied.

Norbu was lifted up and settled in, although he kept muttering apologies under his breath, for being disrespectful.

"Norbu," Cho warned, "don't make me leave you here!"

"Yes, Most Holy. Apologies, Most Holy."

"Norbu!" Cho exclaimed.

"I'm s...." Cho swiveled her head around to fix Norbu with a stare. "Never mind," he whispered.

Cho made sure they were buckled in securely and then flung herself off the mountain, mighty wings biting into the thin air. She drew in deep lungfuls of air, gaping jaws wide open, tasting the currents as they flowed over her tongue. She turned to the South, slipping into and out of thermals, riding the wind. After a few hours they landed and Cho had Norbu and Isiriel stretch their legs, and take some light refreshment. Then they were up in the air again. They did this three or four times until at last they stopped for the night.

"Make a fire and find some water," Cho said. "I'll go get us some fresh meat." She stalked off into the twilight.

Norbu turned to Isiriel. "Does Her Holiness seem...different...to you?" he asked.

Isiriel nodded as she picked up some kindling. "Yes," she replied.

"I've never seen her this way," Norbu sighed.

"I have. Once, many years ago." Isiriel straightened up, a pile of kindling under one arm. "Norbu, you must understand. She is grieving."

"Grieving?" Norbu repeated, obviously confused.

Isiriel moved to the firepit and placed the kindling in, expertly starting a small blaze. "Yes. She may look like us, but she is not mortal. She has seen almost everyone she has ever cared for pass on to be one with the Divine Essence. For millennia, she had her beloved brother, the Phoenix. He disappeared. She mourned his loss for almost a thousand years! Then she found Simeon. Now he is gone, too. She feels his loss keenly, as he was the only other being who could even begin to understand her, and so she grieves. The last time I saw her this way was when her family was killed by Xanges Deroche, and I trust you remember what she did to //him//. We must forgive her for her anger, and be there for her if she should need us."

Norbu nodded gravely and soon enough Cho returned with a brace of rabbits to roast over the fire. With the journey bread and some cheese, it was a sufficient meal for all. Cho dismissed the suggestion of setting watches. Who, after all, would challenge a dragon? She assumed her draconic form and Norbu and Isiriel nestled under her protective wing. They drifted off to sleep listening to Cho humming snatches of a song under her breath: //The Lament for the Lost Phoenix//.

The next few days passed quickly as they flew from Xandi-lat to Utaea and then on to Zanana. They would rest overnight at each stop and then press on. Eventually, they came to the Numidian Steppes. Cho landed near the shore and instructed Isiriel to get out their packs. Inside the packs were two sets of white robes made from a lightweight but sturdy cotton.

"These are Numidian robes, they will protect you from the sand and the heat. However, we will have to watch out for sand snakes and scorpions." Isiriel expertly wrapped the robes around her and then helped Norbu. The sand stretched before them in undulating waves, a seemingly endless and unchanging vista.

"Can we fly?" Norbu asked faintly, clearly uncomfortable with the vast expanse of sand.

Cho shrugged, an oddly human gesture from a dragon. "I suppose we could," she said. "It certainly would be much safer. We shall have to stop at several oases though, to get directions from the Numidians."

Norbu looked around him, aghast. "You mean, someone actually lives here?" he asked in strangled horror.

Isiriel laughed a little at that. "Norbu, you live on a nearly inaccessible mountain in a region which most people believe is a myth and you think that //this// is strange?"

Cho rumbled with laughter. "She has a point, Norbu."

"Most Holy," Norbu said tentatively, "why can't you just use magic to get us where we are going?"

"Norbu," Cho said patiently, "you know who and what I am. I was formed when Tetravier was born and I am tethered to this place. I //cannot// leave. If I were to use magic to transport us to the end point of our journey, two things would happen. First, it would put me in almost debilitating pain, and I would be unable to function well for a few days. That would be...inopportune, at best. Secondly, for those few seconds, I would not be on this world. That would cause great imbalance in Tetravier. I cannot risk it. Besides, I //like// flying."

They remounted and she took off. The heat was oppressive and the wind like a furnace in their faces. They flew a few hours until they saw a spot of green in the ubiquitous tan sands. Cho adjusted her course and then folded her wings, coming to land just outside of the oasis.

"I wish you a morning full of jasmine," Cho called out.

Several forms dressed in Numidian robes stepped from the greenery, as if materializing from thin air. A tall, handsome man stepped forward, his brilliant smile of welcome flashing whitely against his tan and weather-beaten skin. "I wish you a morning full of light," he returned. Then he threw his arms open wide. "Cho! he exclaimed, "It has been long and long since I have seen you!"

"I know, Aadil. I have been very busy of late," Cho replied, moving to embrace the man. "These are my companions, Captain Isiriel Aldamin and Norbu. This is my friend, Aadil ibn Noor of the Numidians."

Aadil greeted them all and then brought them in to the oasis. They took a seat near the clear blue pool of water and Aadil offered them dates, honey, bread and cool tea.

"So, my wise friend, what brings you to the Steppes?" Aadil asked.

"A quest, Aadil. I seek writing that was carved into a cliff." She took out Simeon's letter and handed it to the man. He glanced over it, face clouding briefly.

"I know where this is, Cho," he said. "But you still must travel far. This is written in the mountainside near the Star's Pass. The way is dangerous and beset with many traps and pitfalls. However, we have traveled that way a time or two. I can at least give you a map and warning of where the most peril lies."

Cho smiled. "Thank you, dear Aadil. I knew I could count on you."

"Always," he said, taking her hand and kissing it.

Later that night, Norbu slept, snoring gently, exhausted from the heat. Isiriel had sharpened her weapons and then moved into one the the tents provided by the Numidians. Cho remained wakeful. She walked quietly to the edge of the pool in the oasis and sat, staring at the moons reflected in the water. The night air was cool and she dipped her feet in the pond, creating ripples and swirls. Silently, Aadil appeared next to her and took a seat close to her side.

"Cho," he said, "dearest Cho. What troubles you, light of my eyes?"

She took his hand. "Dear Aadil. I would not encumber you with my worries."

He smiled at her then. "A burden shared is lessened," he said. "You taught me that."

"And so I did," she returned, sighing. "I cannot share this with Isiriel or, Creatorix forbid, Norbu. I must be strong for them. But it hurts, Aadil. My heart aches. Simeon is gone and it is like I lost my brother yet again."

She rested her head on his shoulder, his arm going around her waist to pull her closer. "My light," he said, "I cannot heal that wound for you, but I would if I could. I will comfort you, if you will let me. Your brother is not gone. He cannot be, just as you could not be. You and he will live forever, as the Creatorix decreed. What is greater than the Creatorix? Nothing! Therefore, the Phoenix must still exist, somewhere. And this quest you are on, it is to find him, yes?"

"Yes," Cho agreed quietly.

"Then find him you shall!" Aadil lightly kissed the top of Cho's head.

"But...what if I don't? Aadil, I have searched for him for ten thousand years! Why should I succeed now when I have failed so often before?"

Aadil took her face gently in his hands. "Perhaps, because //now// is the right time. Have faith, my heart."

As the sun rose over the Numidian Steppes, Cho, Norbu and Isiriel crouched next to Aadil as he sketched a map in the sand.

"Here are oases," he said, pointing to several spots, "and you should be able to spot them easily enough from the sky. Here," he said, pointing to an area just to the north and east of Star's Pass, "is the writing in the cliff. This area is very rocky, with sandstone towers and deep canyons. It will be difficult for you to fly here, Cho. You must walk."

Cho nodded as Norbu grimaced near her. "What about the traps, Aadil?" she asked.

"They are more like a series of tests," he replied. "Some physical and some mental. I would think that you could handle them all with ease."

"Let us hope," Cho murmured.

Aadil chuckled. "All the same," he said, "you could avoid them altogether. If you enter through this canyon," he pointed again, " then you should be able to evade all but the last one."

Isiriel looked puzzled. "That seems like a serious lapse in the defenses," she stated.

"Indeed," Aadil agreed. "However, when the writing was placed on the cliff, only one entrance existed. Over time, things have changed and shifted and this new path has opened up."

"Very well. We shall leave immediately," Cho said. "Norbu, Isiriel, please go and pack up your things."

They left to do her bidding and Aadil turned to Cho. "You could forget this and stay here with me," he said, wistfully.

"A lovely offer, Aadil," Cho replied, "but the desert is not my home. Nor is my mountain yours. No, I think, for the moment at least, we must be content to meet in the middle."

Aadil nodded. "You would not be you if you had replied otherwise," he said, "but it was worth a try."

They walked out to the sands surrounding the oasis and Cho transformed. Norbu and Isiriel soon appeared, applied the harnesses and they took off, flying ever southward. They flew throughout the day and rested overnight at another oasis. The next day, after half a day of flying, they found themselves at the entrance to the canyon that Aadil had mentioned.

Cho shimmered back into her human form. The three began walking, Isiriel in front, then Cho and finally Norbu. They walked a for perhaps an hour, alert to changes around them, but seeing none. Finally the canyon they were following opened up and they could see the cliff face ahead, looming over them, writing scrawled across its face. It was slightly obscured with a haze, as if a mist hung in front of the opening.

Cho breathed deeply through her nostrils. "Magic," she said. Norbu and Isiriel nodded. "This is where we part from each other, my dears," Cho said.

Norbu opened his mouth to protest, but Cho put a hand up. "Remember your promise, Norbu. This I must do alone. You can serve me best by staying here. I will return."

Norbu bowed his head. "As you wish, Most Holy," he said.

"And you must not come after me, no matter what the circumstances. Do you both understand?" Cho, during this exchange, was pulling back her white hair and securing it in a bun on the nape of her neck.

Isiriel spoke, her hand clenched over her heart. "We hear and will obey, Your Holiness."

"Good," Cho nodded. "I shall return soon, Creatorix willing."

She turned and walked forward to the haze that hung like a gauzy curtain between the canyon walls. She reached out with one hand, the mist sparking and crackling around her fingers. She drew them back with a hiss of pain. Very well. This would be the test then. Mentally, she prepared herself and then she stepped forward. The fog clung to every part of her, spitting sparks. It felt like acid or against her skin, eating away at her flesh, but she clenched her teeth against the scream of pain that boiled in the back of her throat and continued on, each step an eternity of torment, like she was walking though fire. A voice thundered in her ears. //Who are you?// it demanded.

Cho drew a shaky breath, knowing she must answer truthfully, despite the agony she felt. "I am Chomolungma, Guardian of the East, daughter of the Creatorix. I am Madame Cho, librarian of the Great Library. I am the unchanging constant in Tetravier. I am the Lady of Wisdom and Compassion, Benevolence and Mercy. I am the Arbiter of Justice and the swift right hand of Vengeance. I am a True Seeker. But most of all, I am a grieving sister searching for her beloved brother, lost these many years."

There was a moment of silence which stretched out like time had ceased. Finally, she heard the voice, pounding in her blood and bones. //Pass, and find that which you seek.// She continued walking and passed out of the mist and into the bright sun. The canyon loomed before her with the prophecy inscribed there. She did not need to read the words, she had already committed them to memory. But who had written them?

She glanced at the area around the cliff and judged that it was large enough to allow her to transform. Then, in her truest form, she opened her mouth and spoke.

"I command thee, by the bond that we share, mountain to mountain, tell me. Who wrote these words on thee?"

There was a rumbling in the distance which grew louder and closer as Cho waited. A crack appeared in the base of the rock face, and it opened like a mouth. "Men," it thundered.

"What men?" Cho persisted.

"The Green Man," the crag boomed, the crack beginning to close.

"Wait!" Cho commanded. "One man or many men?"

"Yes," the cliff replied. Then, with a sound like an avalanche, the fissure snapped shut.

Cho's mind whirled. One man who was many men? Could it be Acasius? He had the ability to affect time, she knew. Could he have traveled back and written those words on the cliff? But what of the Green Man? None of the humans in Tetravier were green skinned. If the cliff had meant elves, it would have said so. So, green as in living in the forest? She thought that unlikely. What about a man who wore green? Wait, what had Acasius said? He had described the man who had stopped time in her sanctum as being dressed in a long, green cloak. Could that mean that Acasius and this stranger were one and the same? Yet, he had smelled different to her. //Another riddle//, Cho mused. //Really, Acasius excelled at them.//

The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it. --Xandi-latan proverb
In human form, Cho returned back through the mist, enduring the stinging pain again. On the other side, both Isiriel and Norbu exclaimed over the angry red welts on her skin, but she brushed them aside. "We have no time for that now," she said. "I will heal soon enough. We must go to Lexico."

They quickly walked out of the canyon and Cho resumed her draconic shape. The flying harness was attached and she took off, heading south to the city of Lexico. Despite the gravity of her mission, she could not help indulging in her joy of flight, swooping through the gracefully sculpted canyons while Norbu and Isiriel clung to her back. Soon the sweeping ravines gave way to larger cliffs and then mountains, jutting up into the sky. The peaks around Phirumsol were spouting ash clouds as lava flowed down their flanks. As they were passing over Star's Pass, Norbu looked down and saw a figure clinging to an outcropping of rock.

"Isiriel! Look!" he yelled, pointing down.

She nodded and then thumped Cho's neck, something Norbu would have thought too disrespectful to do. "Most Holy! There is someone on the cliff!"

Cho's head swiveled around. "Hold fast!" she cried as she angled her wings and dove toward the form clinging to the cliff. Her claws reached out and grasped the person gently. A woman, but gravely wounded. Cho knew that she needed to get the woman out of there and quickly, too.

Cho pivoted on one wingtip, soaring off and back toward the Numidian Steppes. She did not stop until they had reached an oasis. Once there, they all clustered around the petite form. The woman was covered in burns from the lava and lay unconscious on the ground. Cho opened her mouth and breathed a light coating of ice on the worst of the burns while Norbu tipped the woman's head up and poured some cool water down her throat. She choked a bit, and then opened her bleary eyes, fixing them on Cho.

"Thank the Phoenix," she rasped. "I thought that I was going to die before I could complete my mission. I have something for you, Your Holiness." Her hand moved toward a large pocket in her cloak and Cho could see the edge of a small book. "This holds the key to what you seek."

Cho's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "How do you know what I seek, youngling?"

"Fear not, Chomolungma, Guardian of the East. I am a priestess of the Fire. You and I seek the same thing, the rebirth of the Phoenix, but only //you// can accomplish the task."

Cho stiffened, neck ridges standing up, eyes wide. "The Fire? They still exist?"

"We do," the woman replied. "Though we have been banked and hidden for many years."

"How will this help me?" Cho asked, eyeing the book.

"Read it, and you will see," the woman whispered, closing her eyes.

"Norbu, Isiriel, you will stay here with the priestess. I will send Aadil to you. You must protect her and make sure that she recovers. Meanwhile, I must investigate this. I shall return as soon as possible." Clutching the precious volume delicately in her talons, she sprang into the air, soaring to the north and east.

After informing Aadil of the injured woman, she hid herself in a tent and read the book from cover to cover. It turned out to be a journal, written in a spidery but elegant hand. The writer was nameless, but a woman, which Cho discovered by reading some of her passages. The descriptions of her life were interesting but not enlightening until Cho came to the last page. Gasping, she read the passage over and over.

"//And so it came to pass that I cast the curse, hurling it with all my bitterness and enmity against my fiery nemesis. He will be lost now, forgotten by all who walk Tetravier. His name will be cast into darkness and his flame extinguished. He will live on and on, as but a shadow of his former self, never knowing who he is, or what he can do. His icy sister will grieve and in time, the world will become so imbalanced that I will be able to make my gambit. And the order and beauty of Tetravier will descend into chaos and destruction and my rise to greatness will be complete. //"

//So, that was what had happened//, Cho thought. Her brother had been cursed. //Odd. Simeon was also curs//...a wave of blackness swept over her. What had she been thinking? She shook her head. She looked at the book, gripped tightly in her hands. The curse. She studied the lines again and again, reading them over and over until they burned in her memory. And then, she saw it. The loophole.

//His name would be forgotten by all who walk Tetravier.// But...what if she flew? What if she flew so high above the world that she was technically not on it any more? Could that work? It might, she thought. It just might. She had never tried to think about her brother while flying. She was always too busy, well, flying. Reading air currents, adjusting wings, finding slipstreams and tailwinds and reveling in the joy of flight. She would have to go high, though. Higher than Norbu or Isiriel could stand. If Simeon were here, she would take him, but he was not. //Acasius!// She could take him. He would be able to survive the height, although Cho did not know how, she knew, in every fiber of her being, that this was true. Now, she just had to find him. She transformed and headed north, making her way to the little cottage that sat near the foot of her mountain.

===To attract good fortune, spend a new coin on an old friend, share an old pleasure with a new friend, and lift up the heart of a true friend by writing his name on the wings of a dragon. --Xandi-latan proverb===

When Cho arrived at the cottage, she was dismayed to find that no one was there. In her haste, she had assumed that Acasius would be waiting for her, but that was foolish, wasn't it? She inhaled deeply, taking in the scents of the place and of Acasius which still lingered there. But...the scent was fresh, like he had just been in the room. She calmed her breathing, sending out questing tendrils of magic. Where was he? Ah! There. The medallion he still wore gave her a direction. Acasius was climbing. Well, not for long.

She sprang into the sky, pivoted on one wingtip and homed in on the glow of magic from the pendant. There! She swooped down and grasped Acasius in her talons.

"I need you," she said, abruptly.

"Then let's go," Acasius replied without any hesitation. In the blink of an eye, Acasius disappeared from her claws and reappeared in the saddle on her back.

"This will be dangerous, dear friend," she said. "Are you sure?"

"You've taken my under your wing and helped me when I needed it, I feel it only right I offer the same."

"There is an old proverb of my people which says that to attract good fortune, spend a new coin on an old friend, share an old pleasure with a new friend, and lift up the heart of a true friend by writing his name on the wings of a dragon. I have spent my coin on my oldest, dearest friend, Simeon. I have shared the pleasure of tea with you, my new dear friend. Now I need you to help me. I think I know how to discover where my brother has been hiding. If I say a name, I need you to write it on my wings. Do you understand? You must inscribe it deeply, you must draw blood. It must be a part of me so that I will never forget it."

Acasius fastened the straps on the saddle and nodded. "I understand. Now, where are we off to?"

"The edge of space. Hold fast."

She began climbing, huge wings biting into the air and lifting them ever upwards. The air grew steadily colder, ice building up on Cho, Acasius and the harnesses. It became more and more difficult to breathe and the air around them was a deep inky blue, darker than they had ever seen. Soon, the gentle curve to Tetravier could be seen, illuminated by the sun. And Cho began thinking. She thought of her brother, the Phoenix, of what he meant to her. She remembered all their adventures, and how they understood each other so well. She formed a mental picture of him, complete to every fiery feather. The Phoenix. Where was he now?

And almost unbidden, it came to her. Simeon. By the Creatorix, how could she have been so stupid? Where was her vaunted wisdom now?

"Acasius! Simeon is the Phoenix! Write it now, before we both forget! //Fenghuang// is his true name!"

He quickly took out his dagger and started to carve the name into her left wing. She bellowed and writhed in pain before he was halfway done the //F//. "Are you certain this is the only way?" a worried Acasius asked.

"Yes! Ink will fade, paint will fleck off. It must be permanent. Now hurry!" she commanded. Acasius resumed his work. //F...E...N...G...H...// silver blood was flowing out of her wing, washing over his hands. The dagger almost slipped out of his fingers. //H...U...A...N...G!// "I'm finished!" he shouted.

Cho, wrapped a haze of indelible suffering, was fighting to stay aloft. "You must leave me! Get clear. I cannot hold us in the air for much longer."

Acasius hastily unfastened the straps holding him to the back of the great dragon and looked to the planet below. Lake Dawa looked as if it was below them, but there was no way of telling for sure. Certainly //he// could make it by blinking above it, but Cho... "What about you?!" he asked. "I know you can heal wounds, but..." He trailed off as he watched Cho's wings falter and stop flapping and her teal eyes roll back into her head. They began to fall together. "CHO!" Acasius screamed. "Wake //up//!"

In his head, he heard a voice, neither male nor female, but possessing both qualities. It was not Vayle, nor Consil, nor Arden. "//Jump//," It said. "//Jump now!//" Although he did not want to leave Madame Cho, there was no questioning the command of the booming voice and, as selfish as he felt, he did not wish for death. He propelled himself off the side of Cho and began his free-fall. He looked at his falling friend beside him. A shimmering trail of blood was left hanging in the air above her.

//She isn't going to make// //it//, he thought, looking at the trajectory of her fall. //She won't hit the water.// Fully determined, Acasius bowed his head down to his chin and began a dive towards the ground. Faster and faster he fell, his time from impact getting closer. He closed his eyes and concentrated on Cho. Every fiber of his being ached, but he powered through. He etched the picture of her in his mind. Just then, he felt weightlessness, followed by a tight squeeze around him. The next time he opened his eyes, he was above Cho in the air, and was barreling towards her at great speeds, soon striking her in her right side and pushing her towards the great lake below.

"Hold on, Cho," he whispered. He closed his eyes and grabbed her. "I hope this works," Acasius began to blink out of existence, but felt a bolt of energy course through him and was sent flying into the warm waters below in the process.

His head broke the surface in time to see Cho's body streaking from the sky like a falling star, alight with silvery blood and golden radiance. //She's going to die,// Acasius thought. //Nothing could survive that fall.// Tears blurred his sight for a moment and he blinked them away furiously. He looked back at Cho. //If she is to die, then I will bear witness to her doom. I will mourn her//, he thought.

And as he looked on, his despair changed to wonder as he saw two hands manifest around her body, formed from the silver blood and golden light. Again, he heard the ethereal voice, //Fear not, Acasius.// //This is Our beloved daughter. Do you think that We would allow her to perish?// The hands caught Cho, slowed her descent, and then gently laid her on the ground, where her argent blood stained the pristine snow near the shores of the lake. A luminous mist sprang up around her and, when it cleared, Cho lifted her head, crying out her joy, and spread her wings wide. Emblazoned on them, in shining silver letters, was a name. //Fenghuang//.

"Acasius!" she exclaimed, "I remember! I remember!" And Cho's exultation echoed off the mountains, reverberating from Xandi-lat and spreading throughout all of Tetravier.