dg_cain | Whispers of the Heart-Chapter 1: The Messenger

Here is chapter one of Whispers of the Heart.
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Title: Whispers of the Heart
Author: nadeshiko1
Characters/Pairings: DG/Cain, Glitch/Az, multiple Tin Man characters, multiple OCs
Rating: PG-13
Warnings/Spoilers: Tin Man, all three parts. L. Frank Braum's Oz books.
Summary: The Eclipse is over, but the O.Z. needs to heal. DG & Az can only do that by finding its missing guardians before evil tries to destroy the land once more.
Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Just like playing in the Tin Man sandbox!
Previous Cahpters: Prologue

Whispers of the Heart – The Messenger

Lavender and Ahamo looked up from the sea of papers, charts, and books that covered the desk at the entrance of their two daughters, Ambrose, and Cain. When Lavender caught sight of the utter happiness in her youngest’s eyes, she shared a knowing smile with Ahamo, who had noticed this as well. They both knew that her sadness over the past few weeks had been mostly due to the Tin Man leaving. However, it was Lavender’s idea to summon him in preparations for an awards ceremony. Both parents had seen the secret yet subtle looks that DG and Cain had been giving each other since the Eclipse and hoped that this wasn’t just some flying fancy. Lavender, for one, didn’t mind if this turned into something more, despite the negatives that seemed to weigh against DG and Cain. She herself had fallen for someone that wasn’t necessarily approved of.

As Lavender’s eyes turned from DG to Azkadellia, her smile was replaced by a worried frown as she saw her oldest being supported by Ambrose to a plush chair near the desk next to a fireplace. She heard her husband’s quick intake of breath as they both headed over to Azkadellia.

“Azkadellia, my darling, are you alright?” said the queen in soft, soothing tones. She sat in the chair across from her eldest as DG stood beside her clutching Az's hand, worry all over her face. They all knew about her condition, but couldn’t help but worry over her.

“I’m fine, Mother,” Azkadellia said a little breathlessly. “Just a small bout of fatigue; nothing to worry about.”

“You are following the healer’s orders?” asked Ahamo at the Lavender’s side. “Lot’s of rest and not any overexertion on your part.”

“Of course, Father,” she replied sweetly, but DG could tell her voice sounded a bit tense, like she was getting annoyed. She looked up at Ambrose who was standing behind Azkadellia’s chair. They locked eyes for a moment and DG willed him to say something in defense of her sister. Her mother, after all, trusted his word above everyone else’s.

He got the message, loud and clear. “I can attest to that, Majesties.” At this, Lavender and Ahamo looked at Ambrose. “You see, just before I escorted her in, I found Princess Azkadellia in a lounge chair out in the gardens reading. She’s taking the healer’s advice very seriously, I assure you.” This made relieved smiles cross over the royal’s faces. DG gave a grateful smile to Ambrose and mouthed, “Thank you.” Ambrose returned the smile and mouthed, “Your welcome.”

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. The queen stood and returned with her husband at her side to her desk. “Come in,” she said in a soft regal tone as DG took her mother’s empty chair across from Azkadellia, Cain behind her and Ambrose stayed behind Azkadellia.

The door opened and a page walked in accompanied by a very familiar Viewer. “Raw,” DG squealed as she shot up from her chair and rushed into the Viewer’s arms.

His hug was long and deep, as he was very glad to see her. When he pulled back from DG, he gave her a quick look over. “DG happy again. Happy that friends and family are all together.”

“Yes, I’m very happy.” They walked arm-in-arm to the others where greetings were exchanged between friends.
Lavender and Ahamo smiled at the exchanges. That was the other surprise they had. When they received word that the Viewers had found a home for themselves and settled down, they had immediately sent for Raw. Since he had greatly helped Azkadellia with her recuperation process and he was a great and loyal friend of DG’s, they both decided to invite him early for the preparations for the awards ceremony. At the ceremony, they were planning on offering commissions to hopefully keep both Raw and Cain in the palace. Raw, they were sure, would accept, but Wyatt Cain they weren’t so sure of because of his son Jeb and, in Wyatt’s eyes, his complicated relationship with DG.

With a slight clearing of the throat, Lavender had everyone’s attention. “Well, I believe that now is a good time to go over some of the awards ceremony details since our guests of honor are here.” Lavender picked up a portfolio and headed over to the group.

Unfortunately, the queen’s plans would have to wait since there was a knock at the door. Lavender looked at the door and then to the clock on her desk, which said half past five in the evening. That was well past the time she went over matters concerning her kingdom unless it was an emergency. As she went back to her desk, she said, “Enter.”

The door opened to reveal Jeb Cain in his captain’s uniform. Confused, Cain took a step towards his son. “Jeb.” But one look at his son’s face told him that this wasn’t a social call. His face was very serious, which meant that he was here on business for the Queen.

Jeb bowed before Lavender and Ahamo. “Majesties, as you are aware, on of the squadrons of the militia just returned from the Eastern Realms. They reported an interesting find of sorts there.”

Now Lavender was really interested in what he had to say. “Continue Captain.”

Jeb nodded and cleared his throat. “The find, as it were, turned out to be man claiming to bear a message for Princess Azkadellia and Princess DG. He said that the message had to do with the guardians of the realms.”

At this, the Queen's form faltered as she took in a quick breath through the nose. She turned to her husband, who looked grave, but gave her a nod of approval. The Queen looked back to Jeb. “Send him in.”

DG was thoroughly confused. The guardians of the realms? What could that possibly mean?

She didn’t have time to ask as Jeb opened the door to reveal another man standing in the doorway. DG tried hard not to gasp at his appearance. His was face was a sickly yellow color that seemed to stretch across his face. His eyes were sunken with deep, dark circles beneath them and their color was a lifeless shade of brown. His hair barely covered the top of his head and was a wispy white color. His bony, gnarled, dirty hands were bunched into fists at his sides. His robes were black, but were so filthy and tattered and so big on his small body. Poor man looked as if he hadn’t eaten in weeks. As he entered the room, he did so with a slight limp on his right side.

When he came into the light, the Queen gave a loud gasp and covered her mouth with her hand and Ahamo looked thoroughly surprised. “Adonis?!”

“Majesties,” the man rasped out as he bowed low before them. Violent coughs shook his body as he rose, but he held his ground.

Lavender seemed to recover from her shock as she said, “Where have you been? The kingdom took you for dead when you disappeared.”

“Nay, Majesty,” he replied as he drew closer to Queen and Prince Consort. “I have been living in the Eastern Marshes these last few years.” At this DG stiffened slightly and squeezed her sisters’ hand. The Eastern Marshes was a place nobody ever dared to enter. It was a maze of toxic waters surrounded by poisonous trees and even deadlier animals. Only a fool with nothing to lose would enter such a place.

“Why ever there?” said Ahamo. “The place is a deathtrap!”

“Althea, the fire guardian, provided me a hiding place for me, Majesties, just before she was captured.”

“Captured?!” said the astonished Queen. “I had every reason to believe that the guardians had left the O.Z. to escape the Black Witch’s grasp.”

At this, Adonis’ face grew dark with pure fury. “And abandon the O.Z., a world that they had sworn to protect and serve as long as they lived! Do you have such a low opinion of them, Majesty? How do you explain the destruction of the Fields of the Paypay? Or the fact that the Northern Island is submerged in ice and has not seen a spring in almost ten years? Lakes and rivers have dried up, the Old Road has turned to dust, the tik-tok community has turned against humans, the Viewers are near extinction, the Tin Men disbanded, and the light from the twin suns and the moon with her stars have lost their glow over time. This world is still dying even though the Black Witch is gone and the eclipse is over. With the guardians still captured, true darkness can still destroy our world!”

Everyone had been rendered into silence, but DG still had no idea why these people were so important. She stood up and addressed the messenger. “Adonis.”

He turned and bowed low before her. “Princess DG.”

DG felt so embarrassed by asking this, but knew it had to be done. “Who are the guardians of the realms?”

Adonis stared at her for a moment and then gave her a soft smile. “I had forgotten that you have spent half your life outside our world, little miss. The guardians were once warriors that aided your ancestor Dorothy Gale in the violent capture of the Black Witch and the White Wizard five hundred years ago. They were both once the most powerful magical beings in all of the O.Z., but were corrupted by their power and began to throw the people of this world towards destruction. The Ancient Ones decided that as punishment, they were to be imprisoned for all eternity. Alas, it did not last long.”

With everyone’s rapt attention, he continued. “Five hundred years ago, they both escaped and began to rein tyranny over the O.Z., even trying to use the Double Eclipse to blacken the sky with true darkness for all eternity. The guardians and Dorothy Gale stopped them and the Ancients sealed them away in separate tombs. One was near Finaqua and the other was near the Northern Island. As a reward for saving our world, the Ancients proclaimed Dorothy Gale as the first queen of the O.Z. and the guardians were gifted with elemental powers of the realm. They swore to protect the realm in any and all ways possible and have ever since.”

“But when was the White Wizard released?” asked DG.
“Right after I was possessed, Deeg.” DG turned to see that her sister had come up beside her. “During our stay at the Northern Island, before you were murdered, the Black Witch had me go someplace outside the castle without attendants, but I don’t remember much about it.”

“That’s understandable, Princess Azkadellia,” said Adonis. “Magical possession often entails the host person sometimes blacking out and the spirit possessing them taking full control.”

“That explains why everything happened the way it did,” said Ambrose as he, Raw, and Cain moved forward to the girls. “Without the guardians in play keeping everything balanced, the world just gave up and began to die.”

“When was the last time you saw Althea?” asked Cain.
Adonis gave Cain an inquisitive look and then recognition dawned on his face. “Ah, Wyatt Cain, you used to be on the Mystic Man’s security detail, didn’t you?” Cain nodded his answer. “I can see why you are so interested in finding out what happened to the leader of the Tin Men.”

DG raised her eyebrows at this. She never thought that a woman would be the head of the Tin Men. Queen, yes; warrior, double yes; but head of a bunch of men, she never imagined it happening.

“When I set out for the marshes over eight years ago, Althea had just come back from the Other Side. Said she had to drop something off there to Princess DG’s caretakers. She started me on my journey as far as the Munchkin villages, but said she had to go back. Told me her Tin Men were in danger from the Sorceress, since many of them had joined the Resistance since they had been disbanded.” At this, DG glanced at Cain, as did Jeb. “She’d found out that orders had been given to lock these men into Iron Maidens for all eternity. From what I’ve seen since I’ve returned, that was how she was captured. She must have never seen the attack coming.”

Cain breathed a sigh of relief. During his time in and out of that blasted suit, he’d always wondered why Althea didn’t save him and his family or warn him of Zero’s coming. After meeting up with Jeb and the Resistance, he found out that all the guardians had disappeared. Many figured that they had run off, but Cain hadn’t bought it. He’d known about the great legends of Althea and the other guardians since he was a child listening to the stories at his father’s feet, who was a Tin Man himself before his mother had passed when Cain was a small boy. He’d known Althea personally since before he started in the Academy. Her and the others just giving up, after seeing their fealty and love for the O.Z. for years, didn't make any sense. Now he knew what really happened.

Something still bothered DG though. “What did Althea give to Hank and Emily before she was captured?” Adonis smiled at her slyly. “Why your locket of course. May I?” He held out his hand so that he could hold it. DG thought about it for a moment, then took it off, and handed it to him.

Adonis held it up to the light and then showed it to her. “Do you see the carving of the bird with the long tail feathers?” At DG’s nod, he said, “That is the symbol of the phoenix. Althea’s family came from an ancient house of the name Merritora. Their crest always had a phoenix in it. Besides this metal does not belong to the Other Side. It is a special type of silver that was found in a mine several hundred years ago. Pieces of jewelry and some armor was made from the metal, much of which are priceless heirlooms belonging to ancient families of the O.Z. now. Light as a feather, but as hard as dragon scale this metal is.”

“But why would Althea have Hank and Emily give this to me?” asked DG in an exasperated voice. “It’s just a locket.”

“Althea told me that the only way to unlock its secrets would be for you and your sister to activate it with the light flowing from you together.” He handed her the locket back.

DG took the locket in her hand and looked at her sister. Azkadellia shrugged and said, “It’s worth a shot.” DG nodded and grasped her sister’s hand. Lavender and Ahamo came closer to watch and to interfere if anything happened, Ambrose, Raw, Cain, and Jeb also came closer.

DG and Azkadellia breathed in deeply and summoned the light. The familiar glow came to their hands as the power flowed through them. Suddenly, DG felt her hand that held the locket burn.

“Ooowww!!!!!” DG dropped the locket to the floor, but never let go of her sister’s hand. Azkadellia took DG’s injured hand in her free one as Lavender and Ahamo crowded around them both. Cain and Jeb had their guns drawn and cocked them at Adonis.

“What the hell was that?!” Cain barked out.

“Just watch,” said Adonis and he looked down at the locket.

Everyone else looked also. The locket began to glow and bright red color, as if it had been in fire for a long time. The locket “clicked” and then opened. It released a beam of red light about six feet tall and three feet wide. Flames began to swirl around the light, as the figure of a person began to show through.

As the figure became clearer and clearer and the flames died down, they could see that it was a woman. She had fair skin with short burnt red hair in an apricut style and emerald green eyes. She was tall and athletic, but still kept her womanly features. She wore a cream long-sleeved V-neck top with, black pants, black high-heeled boots, and a burnt red duster that went down to mid calf.

She gave a soft smile to the group before saying, “Hello DG, Azkadellia. I’ve been waiting for you.”

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Okay, end of Chapter 1 and there’s already drama.

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