Chapter Ten: The High Priestess
-the conversations in this chapter are spoken in Harpy language, hence the italics-

"I want her here this instant!" the Princess screamed. Sever of the emerald snakes on her head writhed and snapped their pearl teeth at the blonde, kneeling Harpy. Dance Harpy dared not lift her gaze lest she be stunned by it. "No one steals from me and gets away with it!"

"Princess," another harpy said from beyond the shadows. She walked forward, revealing herself as a tall elegant harpy with raven-black hair and sharp fangs.

"What is it, Fighter?" the Princess asked gingerly.

"I think you are being too harsh on Sennymay," the harpy answered.

The Princess stared in awe at her, all of her snakes hissing in unison. "You dare to defy me?!" She screamed, rising from her chair. "I want Sennymay here this instant!"

Dancer and Fighter quietly retreated out of the Crystal Room, neither lifting their gaze. Even though she was not a full Gorgon, Semiramis more than once turned unlucky servants to stone with her outraged stares.

But what was yet her worst curse was that she was immortal. And the only way to cure that was to drink of an impure angel's blood. If only she knew who the angel was…

Semiramis sat on her throne, listening to the quiet hissing and bickering of her snakes. It seemed only they were not afraid of her. But what was so special about that?! It's not like one could be a friend with one's own hair! She sighed and tilted her head to one side.

She closed her eyes and calmed herself. Why was it that she had such an attraction to Sennymay? Whenever she thought of her, her whole body filled with tension and heat. She heard one of her snakes yowl in pain as another one bit it.

There are two angels. One pure, one tainted. There are two demons; one pure, one tainted. There are four stones. Fire, Water, Air, Lightning. One of each. The impure angel holds Air. The pure demon holds Fire. The tainted demon holds … Fire. The other stones are held by Saints.

What puzzled her most was why the two demons held the same stone. She stood up and paced across the mirrored floor, her white dress dragging lazily behind her. She leaned against one of the crystal stalactites growing out of her castle walls.

Two angels. Two demons.

Her gaze caught something moving across the floor. She straightened and looked down.

Only she wasn't seeing her reflection. She was seeing clouds running under her. Her legs gave way and she dropped to the floor. The walls disappeared, leaving her floating above the moving clouds.

Even her snakes were quiet. It was happening again. Then she was it. The angel and the demon. They were hooded, but their wings gave away their alignment. Semiramis stood.

The angel dove. She shattered into four pieces. The four gems were floating around her, glowing. In them she would glimpse the faces of their Holders. She leaned closer.

She saw a little girl. The gems were gone now. The little girl was alone, crying. Semiramis recognized the girl. It was she! She froze as the girl looked straight at her.

Then that was gone, too.

And then she finally saw the face of the impure angel. The angel's hood fell back and up at her stared her own face.

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Etrion, Four Gems and its characters are Copyright © Sennymayy 1997 - 1998.