--------------------------------------------------------------------------- This story is entirely fictional and does not imply anything about anyone featured in the story, whether they be celebrities, friends of mine, fictional characters or Greek gods. Also, if you are under 18, you should be FAR FAR FAR away from this story. Comments, questions and feedback can be sent to ensstyenlc@hotmail.com ___________________________________________________________________________ |The BSB NSYNC Chronicles - Chapter Thirteen| Joey screamed as the sharp, large claws of the winter wolf embedded themselves into his left arm. He fell onto the ground, the winter wolf on top of him. Joey rolled to the right, causing the winter wolf to fall off him. He immediately got up and tried to run away, but his feet slipped on the ground, causing him to run on the spot like some corny cartoon character. The winter wolf opened its mouth and emitted a cold cone of icy breath, catching Joey's left leg. Joey felt all the warmth drain out of his leg and he fell, clutching his freezing calf. The winter wolf stood over him, its malevolent yellow eyes glaring at him. It opened its mouth one more time, no doubt to finish him off with one more freezing breath. Before it could do so, however, a familiar-looking arrow struck its shoulder, causing the creature to whimper in pain and scamper back into the bushes. Joey turned to see a young elf with green eyes, wavy blonde hair and clad in leather armour standing over him before the world turned black.
Joey awoke to the sound of someone singing beautifully. He opened his eyes and looked over at a young female elf, also with blonde hair and green eyes except that she was wearing a long, flowing, white silk and lace dress. Joey groaned and shifted, discovering that he was lying on the forest floor.
"Am I in Heaven?" Joey asked aloud without meaning to. The elven woman stopped singing and began to giggle a soft musical giggle.
"You're not in Heaven," she giggled. "Though I'm flattered that you think I'm an angel. My siblings think otherwise."
"With good reason, sister," the young man that had shot the arrow at the winter wolf said, smiling mischieviously. "With good reason."
The woman stuck out her tongue at her brother in a childish manner, causing Joey to giggle, and then wince with pain. The whole left side of his body ached from cuts, scratches, and the freezing breath of the winter wolf.
"You should start singing again, Nirnaeth," the elf said. "He's still in pain."
Nirnaeth nodded and began to sing. Joey listened to the beautiful language of Quenya and although he did not understand much of it, the little he understood of it told him that it was a song about a warm, summer day. Somehow, the song magically seemed to warm his body as well, the cold in his leg becoming warmer until it was totally gone. Nirnaeth finished her song and began to sing another one, this one of healing. Joey felt a strange tingle in his left arm and the wounds given to him by the winter wolf began to feel itchy. Joey resisted the urge to scratch but the ithcing became worse and worse. Finally, Joey reached out a scratched his arm. To his surprise, the wounds were gone, and there were four thin scabs on his arm. He scratched lightly to sooth the itch but not hard enough to cause the scabs to fall out. Soon, Nirnaeth had finished her song, and the scabs fell off, leaving Joey's arm as though nothing had happened to him.
"Thank you," he said, getting up. "I have to get going."
"Already?" Nirnaeth asked, surprised. "You are very hasty."
"Yeah," her brother agreed. "What's the rush?"
"I need to contact my friends and tell them a few things, pass a few messages," Joey explained. "And I'm also being stalked. I think that winter wolf was sent by Shareela to kill me."
"Who's Shareela," the elf asked, frowning. "And why would she try to kill you?"
"Shareela is the queen of the Medusae," Joey replied. "She's trying to kill me because I know too much about her and her people, though my friend has probably been bewitched by her magic."
"Medusae?" the elf asked. "Where is their lair?"
"Now then, Larel," Nirnaeth said in a warning tone. "Don't do anything foolish. Think about Crewellan."
"I am thinking of Crewellan," Larel said angrily. "I'm thinking about how she got killed by those foul creatures."
"Your name is Larel?" Joey asked. Larel nodded his head in response. Joey continued, "You are Crewellan's bethrothed?"
"I was," Larel said. "Until she was killed by the Medusae."
"I have a message for you from Crewellan," Joey said. "She says to tell you that she loves you and not to do anything foolish. She said that she knews she will be freed and when that happens, she'll marry you. She just says to have patience and all will be well."
Larel stared at Joey, intrigued and confused. "Where's Crewellan? And how did you talk to her?"
"She's back in the Medusae lair," Joey replied.
"And you left her there?!" Larel shouted, lunging at Joey but Nirnaeth grabbed his shoulder, preventing him from getting near to the bewildered Joey.
"I couldn't take her with me," Joey argued. "I would have loved to, but it's impossible to run away from someone who is chasing you when you're carrying an ice statue with you."
"And how did you talk to her then?" Nirnaeth asked gently.
"I just touched her and then I just found myself in a strange world with only grass and she appeared and I talked to her," Joey said.
Apparently, Larel and Nirnaeth had read some prophecies and legends for both of them opened their eyes wide and exclaimed at the same time, "You're the Chosen One!"
"That's what Graelynia said, yeah," Joey replied, enjoying the surprised looks that Larel and Nirnaeth gave each other.
"So Graelynia's in the Medusae lair as well?" Larel asked. Joey nodded slowly, wondering how Larel would react.
"Well, now we know what to do," he concluded. When he noted Joey's confused face, he added, "We need to bring him back to Caeranos and tell everyone about him. He needs to be trained to use his powers. When that's done, we can rescue all of our people trapped in the lair."
"This is the second time were bringing a human into Caeranos," Nirnaeth warned. "Just as long as he doesn't die like the last one did."
"How did the other human die and when was this?" Joey asked.
"It was a few weeks back, I think," Larel said. "The human's name is Justin and he fell off a very high platform, which according to another human called AJ, is three hundred feet."
Joey felt his heart stop. Justin dead? He suddenly felt queasy. "Wha-what happened to Justin's body? Was he given a decent burial?"
Larel replied. "No, I think he was resurrected by our sister Lalaith, and another human called Bri Anne, I think his name was."
"No, it's Bree Ann, I thought," Nirnaeth corrected.
"Actually its Brian," Joey replied, feeling a great weight lift off his shoulders. He picked up the tattered remains of his backpack and changed his mind. He left the remnants on the ground, picking whatever food was not ruined by the winter wolf's attack. He followed the two elves into the forest back to their home of Caeranos.
Nick cursed as he tried to pull the gem-studded arrow out of his arm. He had returned to Shareela and told her that he had failed to kill Joey because he had been rescued by two elves. Shareela was not very happy when she heard about the elves getting involved, and she told her servants that she wanted to be left alone for a few days to think a few things over.
Nick yelled in pain as he finally got the arrow out of his arm. He quickly put his other hand over his wound and closed his eyes. There was a burning pain in his arm where the wound was, but it faded away, leaving a small scar. Nick cursed again and threw the arrow across the room. He used his magic to shatter the arrow into dust.
Shareela watched the turtledove transformed into a human figure. The woman was beautiful, far more beautiful than Shareela, and Shareela was one of the most beautiful creatures in the world. She looked on at the goddess that had appeared before her.
"What do you want, Valar," she sneered, knowing that the Valar hated to be called Valar, especially since the humans called them gods. The beautiful woman ignored the remark, tucking her long blond hair behind her ears. She slowly turned her gaze onto Shareela.
"I need help to fight against mutual enemies of ours," she said slowly. "The gods are fighting amongst themselves, and as always, it spills into the world of mortals..."
"Cut the crap, Aphrodite," Shareela interrupted with a snarl. "You just want the 'mortals' to fight each other, and some of the other Valar don't agree with your reasons. So who denied your beauty this time?"
"The sister of the elf who shot your own lover," Aphrodite said in her seemingly ever-calm voice. "The one who harbours the Chosen One, who will bring death to all the Medusae."
"That one?" Shareela referred to Joey with a sneer. "That one cannot even cast a simple spell, or even wield a dagger without cutting off his own fingers. He is no threat."
"Do not underestimate that one," Aphrodite said calmly. "He is one of the more major threats. The Weave is strong in him."
"As it is in me and my people," Shareela argued arrogantly. She glared at Aphrodite with anger in her eyes. "Leave me now, bitch, or I will kill you."
"You can't kill me," Aphrodite said. "Who can kill a god?"
"You are no god, bitch," Shareela taunted. "You are a good for nothing ungly hag."
Aphrodite's face turned purple with rage. She gave a shriek of fury and disappeared in a flash of light.
"I told you that would get rid of her," a woman's voice said from behind Shareela. The raven-haired woman was tall and beautiful, but not as beautiful as Aphrodite. Her sharp, cold, black eyes glinted with cunning. "We will need her help, but she will be as a servant to us, not as the master. She will do my will alone."
"I will see to it that she does, Queen Hera," Shareela replied.
"Why are we here?" The blonde haired man asked his twin sister. He was handsome by everyone's account, and seemed to glow with an inner radiance. His sister was dark-haired and clad all in silver, unlike her almost nude brother. They stood in a large hall surrounded by columns that were later called Greek columns. There was a large crowd of people of all sorts, muttering and asking themselves similar questions.
"I do not know why Father has called us here," she said. "But I have a good guess."
"We shall see, sister," the man replied. "We shall see."
A tanned man wearing black leather armour pushed his way through the two talking siblings. He sported a short, black beard which matched his wild black hair.
"Out of my way," he pushed the two aside, forcing his way through the crowd. He bumped into another woman wearing armour and a helmet, a shield attached to her left arm and her sword in a sheath at her side. She glared down upon the man who stepped back from her fierce gaze.
"You must learn more manners, my 'dear brother'," she said snidely.
"And since when have you been so concerned about manners," the man asked in his gruff voice.
"Since the day you were born," the blonde man replied truthfully.
"Stay out of this Apollo," the black-haired man warned. "It's none of your business."
"You pushed him and thus it is also his business," the armoured woman stated calmly.
"Don't worry about it, Athena," the other woman said. "Ares will never learn manners."
"I don't remember asking your opinion, Artemis," Ares replied with a growl. He turned back to Athena. "Watch your back, Athena. I'll be after you."
"What are you going to do to me?" Athena taunted. "You cannot even kill your mortal brother, Hercules. What makes you think you can even harm me? I am the oldest of Zeus' children and his favourite."
"But you're not the most powerful," Ares said angrily.
"But I am," Apollo replied, light streaming from his body as he spoke. "I am second in power only to Zeus."
Ares mumbled something about daddy's godlets under his breath and stalked off. Apollo turned to Athena. "Do you know why Father has called us here?"
"Yes," Athena replied, looking troubled. "A war is brewing. A war among the gods."
"Is that why Ares is so hurried to get to Father's side?" Artemis asked in her silvery voice.
"I'm afraid so," Athena replied. The three siblings stopped talking as they heard Hermes announcing to the gods to be silent while Zeus entered. The room fell silent as the King of the gods entered and sat down on a throne at the front of the hall. Hera was seated next to him, looking proudly at the other consorts of Zeus, especially Ganymede, Zeus' only male consort.
Zeus stood up and cleared his throat. "It has come to my attention that a game of war has been brewing, planned against the Faery Folk. I have heard many different opinions about what should be done, and I'm getting very sick of it, especially since people wake me up in the middle of the night. Not that I was asleep, mind you."
He winked at a lesser known goddess and she blushed, avoiding Hera's vengeful eye. Zeus, oblivious to the exchange continued. "I have decided, for the sake of everyone here, to let each one decide for themselves which side they choose to be on. Hopefully when all this dies down, we can all be friendly to each other again?"
Murmurs spread through the shocked and confused gods, who began talking amongst themselves, some with concern and some with anticipation of the war. Zeus raised his hand and the room fell into silence again. "There is only one rule. We are not allowed to kill another god or goddess. Any who do so will be condemned into Tartarus. This is meant for fun only."
Once again, the room buzzed with murmurs and then fell silent once again. Athena, Apollo and Artemis looked at each other with worry, wondering how many of the non-Valar people would die from this deadly game of the gods. Ares stood at the front of the hall and proclaimed himself the leader of the anti-Faerie forces. Athena immediately made her way up to the back of the hall and proclaimed herself leader of the forces allied with the Faeries. The two gods of war waited for the other gods to rally under them. Zeus and Hera chose not to participate, and some of the other gods rallied under them.
Athena glanced over at the gods that had gathered under her. Among their numbers were Apollo, Athena, Nemesis the goddess of justice, Hermes the god of invention among other things, the three Furies, the three Graces and the nine Muses. Eris the goddess of discord had immediately joined with her brother Ares, with her son Strife. Ares' sons, Deimos and Phobos also joined in the throng of gods. Aphrodite and Eros had declared themselves out of the battle, as had Poseidon and Hades. Once the gods had settled down again, Zeus grabbed Triton's horn and blew one long note.
"Let the games begin!" Zeus announced, lowering the horn. Bright flashes of colourful light filled the room as the gods began to follow out their plans for their deadly game.
AJ dismounted Tilkeleb, his leather armour soaked with the sweat of his training. Tilkeleb trotted off into the forest towards a nearby water hole to soak and relax. AJ headed into the bathroom. He took off his clothes and stepped into the bath, the magical hoop of water immediately filling up the tup. After a long soak in the perfectly temperatured water, AJ got out and dressed himself in another suit of leather armour. He was supposed to meet Brian, Lalaith, JC and Lance for dinner. As he headed out of the house, he was not surprised to see a small group of young Faeries standing outside of his opal house. His name had spread through the village as the only human to ever become a Unicorn Rider. Curious youngsters would often stand outside his house and point at him until Tilkeleb told them that it was rude to point. The youngsters would scamper into the forest and be replaced the next day by another group.
"Mommy! Mommy!" One of the younsters, a blue-skinned irda, shouted. "Quickly call a cleric! He's got a disease."
"He's got no diseases," the burly irda said, frowning at her agitated son. "Don't be rude."
"But mommy, he's got a disease growing on his face," the youngster wailed. "Look at that growth on his face. It's hideous!"
"There's nothing wrong with his face, Samur," the irda woman said sternly. "Don't be so mean."
AJ just stood there, his eyebrows creased with confusion. The other Faerie children had fled the area when Samur started crying, leaving him alone with his mother and AJ. The irda woman walked up to him and apologised. "I don't know what's wrong with my son today, but I'm sorry that you were treated in such a prejudiced manner. I hope you take no offense?"
"No offense taken," AJ said, grinning. He shook the irda's hand and she turned to leave, trying to drag the wailing Samur away from AJ. Samur suddenly caught sight of Lalaith and Brian.
"Revered Daughter and Revered Son! This human has a deadly disease on his face," Samur wailed to Lalaith and Brian, who immediately rushed over to see what was wrong with AJ. The irda woman slapped Smaur's hand. Samur's tears flowed even harder from the pain, as the irda were known to be unusually strong compared to other Faeries. That strength also affected their magic. Though they were not good for casting complex spells, the irda were able to use simple spells to a power ten times greater than any other of the Faerie races.
As the irda explained to Lalaith what was happening, Brian reached out and touched AJ's chin.
"You look fine to me," he said, examining AJ's face for any lumps or growths. Samur began to wail even louder. "Don't touch it, Revered Son. You may catch it. Can you heal him please?"
Brian and AJ furrowed their brows. Brian reached out and touched AJ's chin again, tugging playfully on his goatee. He looked at the shuddering Samur. "You mean this?"
Samur wailed and nodded. Brian and AJ looked at each other, just as the irda and Lalaith caught each other's gaze. The four adults burst into laughter, much to Samur's confusion. Finally, Samur's mother stopped laughing enough to explain to her bewildered son what a goatee was and how humans could grow hair on their faces while all the Faerie races except the centaurs, felinaurs and satyrs could not. When the embarrassed lad realised his mistake, he began to cry again, this time with sadness that he had wasted many people's time. Finally AJ took Samur into his arms (oof, he's heavy, AJ thought) and carried him around for a while, telling the boy that it was okay and that he had found it funny. He gave the kid a hug and a unicorn brooch that signified his status as a Unicorn Rider. He had learnt the spell to create more, so he did not mind giving it away. Feeling much better, Samur finally left, his cheeks flushed purple. He played with the brooch, which AJ had pinned onto his green vest for him, telling his mother how he wanted to become a Unicorn Rider someday. As the two disappeared up a rope ladder, Brian turned to AJ and said, "You'd make a good father someday."
"You think so?" AJ asked shyly. "I hope so...I miss Amanda."
"Well, I think the news that Lalaith and I announce tonight should cheer you up a little," Brian said, smiling mysteriously.
The three friends walked towards the water-hole to meet with Tilkeleb when they heard some footsteps behind them. They turned around to find five humans standing there, armed and with fierce expressions on their faces. All of them had black hair and blue eyes, and looked about the same. There was only one woman in the group, but she looked stronger and more experienced than three of the men.
"Ares, Strife, Eris, Deimos and Phobos," Lalaith said coldly, calling each one by name. "How 'nice' to see you here. What do you want?"
"We want to kill you," Eris replied nonchalantly. The five gods began to glow at their hands, and the let loose a bright blast of light towards the three shocked friends. The white light glowed brightly, surrounding the three friends for a while, then it closed in. ------------------------------TO BE CONTINUED------------------------------ Well, thanks to everyone who emailed me, precious few though they be. Special thanks to David, Lancefan, Aphrodite, Rune, Neto and many others as well!
These are stories that I enjoy reading and you may too: Nsync Saga (HOW COULD YOU, RUNE?!?!) ;) heh Justin's Dream Week from Hell NSYNC and the Vampires Brian and Justin My Lance West side of Westlife (Where'd this story go to? I seriously remembered it was there!) Xtreme NSYNC (If you're reading this, Bill, please speed up the chapters...I can't wait to read more! A Tale of two boybands (Oops, I did it again, Aphrodite!) ;) Joey and Chandler (Celebrities section) Afflecktion (It's over and quite old, but I discovered it only a few days ago. It's under celebrities, not boybands.)
There are a lot of other good writers out there and if your story is not listed here, it most likely means I haven't read your story yet!
As usual, comments and suggestions are welcome at ensstyenlc@hotmail.com