dg_cain | Whispers of the Heart-Chapter 4: What Dreams May Come

Here is chapter four of my story Whipsers of the Heart.
Enjoy the fic guys and dolls!

Title: Whispers of the Heart
Author: nadeshiko1
Characters/Pairings: DG/Cain, Glitch/Az, multiple Tin Man characters, mutiple 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.
Previous Chapters: Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3

Chapter 4: What Dreams May Come

DG walked silently, slowly through the halls of the palace towards her bedroom suite. After Wyatt and Jeb had left the sitting room, Lavender had summoned household and kitchen servants to prepare food and clothes for the group’s journey ahead. Since they didn’t know exactly where in the O.Z. they would go to find the guardians, Lavender instructed the household servants to pack for all kinds of climates, but to pack lightly to not cause a burden in case the group had to make a run for it.

Touring the O.Z to check up on reconstruction was the excuse Lavender made for the “spur of the moment” trip. DG smiled and gave a small chuckle. She couldn’t believe her mother could lie like that and keep her composure.

She made it to the door of her room and was about to go in, to enjoy probably the last good night’s sleep she’d have for a while, when she saw Cain out of the corner of her eye walking towards her. She closed her eyes as her heart clenched at seeing him. Knowing that he was only going on this trip to free his mentor and because her mother asked him to, did not make DG feel good. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves, and then faced him with a smile on her lips.

“Checking up on me, Tin Man.” Cain chuckled at her as he stopped in front of her.

“Just wanted to have a few words with you about tomorrow morning before I turn in for the night. We’ve arranged for a few horses and a wagon to hold all the supplies. I’m worried though.”

DG saw the worry in his eyes and thought he was talking about Az. “I’m sure Az’ll be alright; she’s stronger than you think. And maybe Mother’s right, maybe Althea can heal her with her powers.”

“It’s not just that, Princess.” DG looked up at his words. “I’m more worried about going out there without proper guard for you both. These creatures that the wizard will send after us are like nothing we’ve ever faced before. They have some of the same powers as the guardians, but there twisted into something cruel and evil. They use their gifts for harm and not for help.” Cain chuckled darkly. “Kinda reminds me of Zero and me.”

DG was confused. “What do you mean?” Cain looked at DG and cursed his ignorance. He always had to remind himself that DG hadn’t been in the O.Z. for fifteen years and had missed out on a lot.

He looked around the hall. “Is there someplace we can do this more out of the way?”

DG understood, this was to be a private conversation and eavesdropping servants were around every corner just about. She opened the door to her suite and gestured him in with a wave of her hand. “Shall we?” Cain went in and DG followed behind him and closed the door. “Have a seat.” She went to the fireplace to grab a few logs out of the wire basket to add to the small fire. Even though it was spring in Finaqua, it was still cold at night.

Finished, she turned to see that Cain had removed his fedora and duster and was sitting on the couch beneath the bay windows. She quietly sat beside him waiting for him to initiate the conversation.

“If I’m gonna tell you about Zero and me, then you need to know the whole story. My father died when I was ten. Took a stray bullet meant for the Mystic Man while he and I were visiting Central City for the annual Spring Festival. My father was a retired Tin Man, but that didn’t stop him from caring for others, especially the Mystic Man. My mother had died when I was young and I had no other family to take me in; I was on my own. Instead of having me live with strangers or go to a workhouse of some sort, Althea took me in; no questions asked no strings attached.” DG’s eyes widened in surprise at the new insight into Cain’s life. No wonder he was so honorable, strong, and kind-hearted!

She reached over and put her hand in his as a comforting gesture. She felt him tense a little, but he didn’t pull away. “She raised me the best way she knew how. It wasn’t at court in Central City, the Northern Island, or Finaqua. I lived at the guardians home in the Eastern Mountains near the Paypay fields.” Cain turned to her and gave her a small smile. “That’s one of the reasons I built the cabin there; it was the land I grew up in. Althea was the only mother I ever knew and a wonderful one at that. For being a person with so much power and wealth, she’s a very humble person.”

Then Cain turned back to the fire as his face became serious, his eyes showing pain. “When I started at the Academy at seventeen, I experienced a lot of hardship from the rest of my peers. Many thought that since I had a personal relationship with the head of the Tin Men, I had gotten in easy; maybe even learned a little magic to make my training easier for myself. I had no friends for the first year. There were so many times I just wanted to quit because of the isolation and the degrading things others said about me.”

DG understood completely. She had been an odd child and an even weirder teenager growing up. Because of that, she was ostracized, degraded, and isolated during middle and high school, which only made her want to leave Kansas more. She squeezed his hand as tears of empathy came to her eyes. “I’m sorry, Cain.” Cain looked at her and was surprised to see a tear fall down her cheek. “I know what it feels like to be different. I was the loner at school. Nobody really liked me because I was the ‘weird child’. Spurned me to plan to runaway somewhere else, where I could start over and possibly be accepted for who I was.”

Seeing DG cry, made Cain feel very uncomfortable. The last thing he wanted was to make DG cry. He brushed the tear away with his thumb. “It’s okay if you want me to stop, kiddo.” DG then looked at him sharply.

“Wyatt Cain, don’t you dare stop or say you’re sorry!” she said sharply. Then, in a much softer tone, she said, “I’ve always been curious about your life before we met, but I’ve never had the guts to ask because I thought it might be painful for you to remember.” She stroked the top of his hand with her thumb. “Please continue.”

Cain was surprised, to say the least, that she had been curious about his life and also felt a deep respect for her that she cared enough to not bring up any unpleasant memories for him. He remembered seeing the pain in her eyes as she talked about setting him free from the suit. “Things did get better over the next few years. I made a few friends, one ended up being my partner after I graduated. I met Adora and we married at the end of my second year at the academy. I also graduated the top of my class; I’d never seen Althea so proud. Then I met Adrian Zero.”

DG noted the bitter tone his voice took with that last statement. “He came to the academy a year after I did. A lot of people said that we were alike in appearance, but that was just about it. Zero was young, greedy, and impulsive, but an extremely gifted soldier. He was also prideful and cocky, constantly having to prove he was better than everyone else. Everyone, including me, advised Althea to let him go; said he was a bad egg, but she said she saw something in him and left it at that. He was watched, nonetheless, in case he did something stupid, which he did five years before I was locked in the suit.”

Cain’s eyes then became as hard as steel and anger etched his face. “By that time I was on the Mystic Man's detail and Jeb was a boy at the time. I was with my partner and some other Tin Men along with some cadets in their final year. We were in the Red Light District, tracking down a group of vigilantes that had it out for the Mystic Man. Zero and a few others tracked a few of the criminals down to a whorehouse. He called it in and we told him to wait for back up, but he became impatient and riled up the others to raid the place. A lot of innocent people died that night and the real criminals got away.” DG gave a small gasp. How could Zero be so reckless?!

“After the mess was cleaned up, an inquiry was held for the men that had conducted the raid. It was found out that Zero had actually seen the men and had taken a shot without thinking. But instead of hitting the criminal, he hit one of the women and that’s what spurned the others to start shooting. In the end, Zero was held responsible since he had disobeyed a direct order from a superior Tin Man for which his commission was terminated for.”

“Oh Cain.” Cain looked at DG, sadness across her face. “Althea must have felt terrible!”

Cain nodded. “Broke her up real bad. No one felt more sorry to be wrong about someone than her.”

But DG was still confused and looked at Cain with questioning eyes. “But…why does Zero hate you? What did you have to do with him losing his position?”

“Nothing, he just hates me because I’m as good as Althea’s blood child and since he can’t hurt her because she’s immortal then he’ll hurt her through hurting me and my family.” DG looked at Cain incredulously and felt a horrible feeling in her stomach. Zero wasn’t just sick, he was insane!

Something still bothered DG though. “You said that the creatures that the White Wizard and the Black Witch created that fought against the guardians centuries ago were like you and Zero. How?”

“Althea used to tell me stories of the adventures of Queen Dorothy Gale I before her reign when I was young. She also told me in great detail about the battle with the wizard and witch and their minions.” Cain looked at DG and she almost did a double take. Was that fear in his eyes? She’d only seen him show fear once and that was right before they went into the tower to stop Az. “Those creatures used to actually used to be close companions of the guardians before the Ancients granted them their power. But they loved power and that’s what the witch and wizard offered them and they took it without a second thought. Fighting against them was like you fighting against your sister; it was strenuous for them, to say the least. They actually almost died trying to defeat them. If it hadn’t been for your ancestor holding the emerald during the Double Eclipse five hundred years ago, they never would have defeated them.”

Cain’s grip on her hand became tight, almost painful even, but DG said nothing about it. After telling her about what creatures they might have to face on their journey, he had every right to fear for himself, for her, for Jeb, for Az, for Glitch, and for Raw.

“Promise me,” said Cain. As DG’s brow furrowed in confusion to his request, he breathed in deep. “Promise me that if anything goes wrong on this journey, you will get yourself and your sister outta there.”

“But…but Cain…I can’t do that.” How could she promise such a thing?! After everything they’d been through, he wanted her and Az to back out at the first sign of trouble or danger?

Cain kept his hard grip on her hand and put his other against her neck under her ear, his thumb brushing against her cheek. “Princess, you have to promise me this. I don’t know what I’d do with myself if anything ever happened to you or your sister on my watch.”

Cain just wasn’t protecting her because she was his charge, he was protecting her because he cared about her more than he ever let on before. She gave him a sad watery smile and whispered, “I promise, Cain; I will get Az and myself out of danger if it comes our way.”

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As the moons rose into the sky with the ice covered Northern Island glistening it its light, the dark wolf of the White Wizard sat at the banks of the lake. On the shores beyond the island lay the base of the Fenora’s Peak, the mountain border of the Northern Realm named after the Ice Ancient. The wolf could see the mouths of caves here and there at the base of the mountains.

All of the sudden, one cave began to cast a red glow. The wolf’s ears perked up and his eyes stared intently at the glowing cave. He shuffled, but made no move to go towards the cave. He knew his master’s orders and could be a patient man, when prompted. So, you are sending out for your saviors to come and find you. No matter. They may come for you, but they will never get close enough to touch you. No one gets by Braxus the fire demon and lives.

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DG opened her eyes and found herself in one of the rooms in Finaqua, but it was someone else’s room and not hers. The room was furnished quite eloquently, but the colors wore more subdued than the brightness of her room. She was on a canopy bed with sheer lace curtains. The bedspread was a deep blue with cream moons, silver stars, and golden suns dancing across it. On her right, she saw a set of double doors, no doubt leading out to a balcony of some sort. On her left was a set of open double doors leading to what seemed to be a sitting room. She sat up and saw that beyond her was a full-length mirror next to a closet. Beside the closet was a vanity table with a three-paned mirror. An assortment of jewelry, cosmetics, fragrances, and hair accessories were strewn in organized piles over the vanity.

DG would have found this predicament fine, if not for the body, moving slightly, right next to her. She didn’t even notice the extra weight until she really woke up and studied her surroundings. She closed her eyes and turned to the person, expecting the worse. She opened them and saw the sleeping form of her sister. They both were in their outfits from earlier in the evening.

“Az,” DG said quietly. Her older sister’s eyes flew open at DG’s voice. She sat up slowly and looked at DG.

“Deeg,” asked Az tentatively with a little fear in her voice, “where are we?”

“You’re in our quarters in Finaqua,” said a feminine voice from the entryway. The sisters turned to see a man and a woman standing at the entrance of the bedroom.

The couple were complete opposites of each other in that of appearance. The woman had deep Prussian blue eyes and dark brown hair that was swept up in a hairdo similar to that of Lavender’s with a white rose in her right ear. She wore a white spaghetti strapped dress with a crew neck and A-line skirt. The dress was accentuated by the material being pulled to the right of her waist with a bow at her right hip.

The man with her had platinum blonde hair and Cerulean blue eyes. He wore a plain white tunic, a charcoal gray vest over the tunic, black pants, black knee-high boots that covered the calf part of the pants.

DG knew she should have felt afraid, but wasn’t. There was something very familiar about the couple.

Az was the first to find her voice. “Leora? Hadrian? Is it really you?” DG suddenly remembered Az, Glitch, and Cain telling her that Leora and Hadrian were the guardians of the Light and the Dark and were also the guardians’ leaders.

The guardians smiled and walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge to give DG and Az enough space. Hadrian across from DG and Leora across from Az. “Yes, it is us,” said Leora. “Our bodies may be trapped, but our minds and magic are as strong and active as ever. Ever since you came back DG and brought the light of the Gale family with you, it has only made us stronger. This allows us to have influence over things and that is how we are communicating with you now.”

“Why now?” asked DG. They had everything they needed and they already knew what dangers were ahead of them; what else did they need?

“As much trust as we already have in you, my dears,” said Hadrian, “we all know that Az won’t last long on this trip without a cure for her fatigue.” Hadrian’s shifted from DG’s to Az’s, who hung her head in shame for the witch leaving her this way.

“Hey,” said Leora said leaning forward and tilting Az’s chin up to make her look up at her. “Don’t think that for one second that anything the witch made you do or did to you is in any way your fault. You were just a child when this happened and still trying to control your magic. You stood no chance against her.”

“So if you know about Az’s problem, then you know of a cure?” DG asked hopefully.

Hadrian smiled at her. “Yes we do know of one. Narissa the water guardian made it centuries ago after the witch and wizard were imprisoned for a second time. Possession is one of their specialties for moving around and doing the work without anyone taking notice. Come.”

All four got off the bed and went through the sitting room and into an adjoining office lined with shelves and shelves of books. Leora and Hadrian walked up to one bookshelf behind the desk, Az and DG stayed in front of the desk. Leora leaned forward and pulled out a book on the fifth shelf up. A sound of a locking mechanism could be heard on the other side and the bookshelf swung forward.

DG smiled. “A secret passageway?”

Hadrian gave her a mischievous smile. “Seen by no one else but us. I doubt even the witch knew it was here when she burned the place down.”

Leora handed Az the book. She looked confused at first and then smiled. At DG’s curious glance, she handed her the book. DG looked and saw the title was “Stories from the Brothers Grimm”. Both girls giggled.

Leora smiled at their reaction. “Your ancestor Dorothy I actually brought that book with her when she was blown to this world for the last time. It was always one of her favorites.”

All four walked down a wide stone staircase until it opened up to a cellar below. Instead of items like wine or even coffins, there were shelves of plants, both dead and living; potion bottles in cases, on shelves, and on tables; books on shelves, in piles on the floor, and on tables; and papers, charts, diagrams, and books strewn across a desk in the back.

Leora paid the mess no heed and walked over to the desk in front of the fireplace in the back. DG and Az saw her open the top desk drawer and bring out a brass key with a red cord attached. She went to the glass case above the fireplace and opened it. Inside was a small clear vile with a milky white liquid inside it. She brought out the vile and handed it to Az.

“This is a potion to relieve a person from effects of being possessed by a spirit of sorts. Put a drop of this in any drink when you first wake up and then before you sleep. You should have all your strength back by the next day. Follow the way we have shown you when you wake and you will find it just as easy.”

Az immediately hugged Leora and then Hadrian. “Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me!”

They both smiled, but then Hadrian had a far off look in his eyes. He turned to Leora and she nodded in understanding. “The time has come for us to leave. The sun’s are about to rise and our time only lasts as long as you sleep. If you succeed, we’ll see you down the road.”

Before DG could say anything more, the room began to fuzz out of focus and darkness surrounded her.

DG bolted awake from her dream. She looked out from her bed to her windows to see the twin suns’ first light making the skies a purplish-blue color. Did that really happen? Only one way to find out! DG sprung from her bed, slipped a robe over her bedclothes and then rushed out the door to Az’s chambers.

As she got there, her sister’s door opened and Az appeared in her nightgown and robe. The two sisters shared a grin as they headed deeper into the castle where the unused suites that belonged to the guardians were.

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Wyatt Cain was having the nightmare again.

It used to happen almost every night; it had especially been bad after the run in with Zero in the Eastern Resistance’s camp. Waking up in a cold sweat, reliving that day only to remember everything that had happened since. It was horrible! Now, it seemed as if it only happened during stressful times, like now as they prepared for a dangerous mission.

Wyatt could hear the screams and cries of his wife and child as he ran through the woods searching for them. He’d just been gone a few minutes to get supplies for their journey to the Eastern Mountains.

After the Last Stand and the fall of Central City, every former Tin Man was leaving their home with their families to seek out shelter elsewhere. Some fled to the other realms and others to the Resistance. Wyatt was heading for the guardians’ home in the mountains. Althea had always provided him shelter even though he left home years ago.

He ran through the woods as fast as his legs could carry him. His lungs were burning for him to slow down and breathe properly, but he couldn’t. Jeb and Adora were in trouble so he pressed onward.

He finally made it to the crest of the hill and saw his cabin surrounded by Longcoats being led by Adrian Zero. He could hear shuffling, things breaking, and the heart-wrenching cries of his family.

Cain was about to shoot off from the hill, when he heard it.

Wyatt stop!!!!

Cain did stop. That voice…it sounded just like Althea. But that couldn’t be! She was on official business for the Queen and wouldn’t be back for days. She’d even told him to be extra careful and to not get into too much trouble while she was gone.

Of course it’s me, Wyatt.

Cain looked around him and saw no one. Could this be some new trick of the Sorceress?

Why do you linger here at the darkest time of your life, Wyatt?

Now what was that supposed to mean?

None of this is real. It’s only a memory of what happened the day you were put in the Iron Maiden.

Cain looked down at the cabin again and saw the images of the Longcoats, Zero, and even the house starting to get fuzzy. He walked down slowly and saw them all disappear. The house was now years older and in disrepair from years of neglect.

Cain turned towards the lake and saw the Iron Maiden in the dim light. Then he began to remember.

You lost eight years of your life in that suit.

Cain remembered seeing DG running into the illusion of that day, wielding nothing but a stick. Then finding out it was an illusion, seeing him in the suit, and setting him free. Remembered later telling her that he’d been in there since the tree by the lake was a sapling. Eight years was a long time for someone to spend confinement in such a small space.

Your son is no longer a child but a man.

Cain remembered the hood falling off his son’s head. Seeing him again alive, made thousands of emotions run through Cain; the one he remembered most was gratitude to the Ancients that he was still alive.

You lost your wife, but gained a good friend through such tragedy.

The thing Cain remembered most about being at Adora’s grave was, not the pain, as he later thought about it, but the wave of comfort he felt when DG put her hand on his shoulder to comfort him in his time of mourning. He’d suffered loss of Adora the moment he was put into the suit and knew by seeing her grave that it was time to move on.

And you never, ever forgot what I taught you: “If you don’t have heart, you don’t have anything.”

Facing Zero and not killing him had been one of the hardest things Cain had ever done. The man should have died the most horrible death imagined, that was for sure. But that wouldn’t bring back Adora, nor would it have honored her memory. Cain also knew that killing Zero in cold blood would make him just as evil as Zero and he didn’t want that.

Cain looked up at the Iron Maiden as something caught his eye. It was a woman’s hand grasping one of the metal tubes around the suit’s face. Then a woman came around the suit and it took all of Cain’s control to not rush up and crush her with a hug.

It was Althea. Her eyes were the bright emerald green and her hair was the same vibrant red he always remembered. She was wearing a loose fitting, off-the-shoulder, cream peasant blouse, a black lace bustier with read silk trim on the top and bottom, and long red A-line skirt with a pattern of flowers and a bottom trim in a darker shade of red.

She smiled at him as she walked towards him. “And here I was thinking you didn’t need me.”

That did him in. In one long stride he was before her and the next second hugging her tightly as if she would disappear if he let go. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, hugging him with equal force.

After a moment, she took his arms and broke the contact. At Cain’s confused expression, she said, “As much as I would love to prolong our reunion, my son, I must speak with you quickly as my time and energy are short.”

Cain’s face immediately became serious and he nodded his head in understanding.

Althea gave him a brave smile and he knew she was bringing him a warning. “The wizard has released Braxus.” Definitely a warning. “He was my comrade-in-arms once, as you well know. He’s already made it to the Northern Island and is waiting for you. You must understand, he is ruthless and cruel and will stop at nothing to please his master. You must get the girls to me as soon as possible. Once I’m released, he’ll turn to attack me and I’ll deal with him.”

Cain nodded. Distract him long enough to let DG and Az do their thing and then let her do the rest.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt her hand on his cheek. He put his hand over hers and looked into her eyes that were filled with fear. It was an emotion he’d never seen from her before, and it scared him.

“You must be very careful. If Braxus finds out that you are my son and Jeb is my grandson, then he will not hesitate to kill you without a second thought just to spite and hurt me. I would never forgive myself if I let something happen to you, again.”

Cain knew she was talking about the suit and wanted to protest, but a far away look came to her eyes. She then looked at him sharply. “The suns are about to break. My time is up.” She leaned forward, kissed his cheek, and then whispered into his ear, “I’ll see you down the road, my son.”

Before he could respond, darkness clouded his vision and he knew no more.

Cain’s eyes snapped open as the dream ended. He quickly sat up and looked out his window to see the sky lightening from black to a purplish-blue color, to blue, to a dusty pink at the rising of the twin suns. He knew in his heart that that had not been a dream. Althea had reached out to him.

Making decision, he pushed back the covers and walked to the oak chest in front of his bed where his travel clothes were laid out. After he was dressed, with his gun holstered at his waist, he grabbed his fedora and duster, walked out of his room, and began walking towards the royal suites. He needed to see DG and Az immediately.

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So, how was this one? I know the relationship between Althea and Cain is weird, but in Tin Man, nothing was ever mentioned about Cain ever having any family except Adora or Jeb. So I just took that little fact and ran with it! If you don’t like it, I’m sorry, but I like the idea a lot. I did promise you guys a longer chapter this time. Didn’t know it was gonna be this long though!

The outfits portrayed here belong to Nene Thomas’s art creations. Leora’s dress was from Moonfrost and Althea’s outfit was inspired by Flameco. It all can be found at http://www.nenethomas.com. Seeing her work constantly inspire my ideas for outfits of the O.Z. universe as well as others.