Chapter 37: Six Shall Be One

Thanks to Scotstigger for beta-reading this!

Saturday, January 29th – Sahabah, The Hidden Realm

Kyle had failed his mother, Christy, and all his wives.

He stared up at the diamond ceiling of his jail cell. The diamonds prevented any teleportation in and out of this room. Beyond the diamond walls were sapphire ones, blocking any telepathy. He couldn't summon his sword if he wanted to, or even speak to Aaliyah.

Kyle and Christy were going to spend the rest of their lives in this cell. It may be richly appointed, decked out with all the luxuries of home, but that didn't change the fact it was still a prison.

Christy's head rested on his chest. He didn't understand why she wasn't furious with him. He had led her into this trap. He hadn't listened to Britney or her arguments against this plan. He had been so certain that he was better than Rashid. That he could pop in, grab his mother, and escape.

But she hadn't really been his mother. Some spell still dominated Faiza, forcing her to aide Rashid.

Muffled voices came through the diamond door of his cell. They grew louder, shouting. Kyle tensed, sitting up.

"What?" Christy asked, blinking her hazel eyes in surprise. "Have you thought of something?"

Another muffled shout.

Kyle did not like the sound of that. He quickly rose, standing before Christy and falling into an aikido stance. He wasn't completely defenseless without his sword. He had been trained in hand-to-hand combat by his uncle.

But any foe here is going to have powers that no human possesses.

Christy pressed stood behind him, her breath warm on his neck. "What's going—"

The door flew open.

Makerah strode in, the Unbound Marid's eyes wild. His right hand was dripping with blood, a mass of red flesh in his hand. A heart. Whose? Kyle's mother strode in behind him, naked, her breasts splattered with blood.

"You cut me, mortal!" hissed Makerah. Kyle saw insane death in his eyes.

"Rashid promised us safety!" Kyle shouted, ice pumping through his veins.

Makerah brandished his bloody fist. "He had a change of heart," he cackled.

The Unbound Marid surged at Kyle like the violent sea. Kyle lashed out his arm, grasping Makerah's wrist. He pivoted, using the Marid's momentum to flip him over his hip. Makerah landed hard on the ground.

"Ishtar, defend your servant in her desperate hour of need!" Christy chanted.

"That pathetic whore cannot help you!" Kyle's mother shouted, striding at Christy. "You never should have betrayed me! I never forget those who break my oaths!"

"Hecate?" Christy gasped. "You're possessing Faiza?"

Kyle barely had time to process that. Makerah lashed out with water, striking the young man in the chest. He was thrown off his feet, landing on the pillowed floor. He struggled to get up, but the water clung to him, pinning him to the floor.

Makerah rose, flexing his left hand. Kyle's heart beat faster as he struggled against the heavy water.

Khoshilat Maqandeli, The Hidden Realm

Fumi adjusted Windfeather, pushing the green glasses up her face. She kept having to stir currents of air through the room to see. The sapphire war room was airtight. No drafts squeezed in to stir the air for her.

Her wives and the concubines were painted in green, their faces animated as they discussed plan after plan to save Kyle. Every attack would first have to breach the defenses of Sahabah, and that would leave the Marid time to go through with their threat to execute Kyle and Christy.

What was the point then?

Fatima was the most passionate, standing up, slamming her fist on the sapphire table and demanding that they go now and fight their way in. "The Djinn are all slow to act! They are planners! They would never expect our attack to come so swiftly. We could burst through their defenses and reach Kyle before they react!"

"Yeah!" Chyna agreed.

"It is too risky!" Aaliyah countered. "Rashid is a planner. He has to anticipate this as a possibility. We need some way to bypass the defenses and land inside the prison itself."

"I know where they are keeping him," Zaritha said. "But it is deep within the palace. Sure, we could assume the form of our essence and fly fast through the corridors, but the moment we are in the palace, the homunculi defenders will activate. They will slow us down."

There has to be a way for us to move through the palace. These Djinn are masters at moving through the spaces between realities. Aaliyah had riddled Kyle's school with that pocket dimension that could be accessed from... Fumi's eyes widened. " ... anywhere."

"What was that, Mistress?" Tarah, her Si'lat concubine asked. Tarah's twin, Naila, reached out and touched Fumi's arm.

"Aaliyah," Fumi said, hope beating in her heart. "At Kyle's school, you made it so [that] any door led to a pocket dimension that could be accessed with a special key."

She nodded.

"Then let's do it at Sahabah. I wish that there was a pocket room for Kyle to go and enjoy his harem, accessed through every door in Sahabah!"

Aaliyah shook her head. "I was able to do that at Kyle's school because it was part of his life. He went there every day. Sahabah is Rashid's palace."

"But Sahabah is Kyle's prison," Fumi countered. "That is a part of his life."

"And he's the rightful Sultan!" Fatima declared. "Sahabah is his seat of power! Rashid has usurped it from him. How is that not Kyle's?"

A smile crossed Aaliyah's lips. "Make the wish again."

"And add that Khoshilat Maqandeli connects to it," Britney added.

"And the keys to open the doors," Toni added. "That's how me and Chyna figured out the school one."

Fumi made the wish and Aaliyah proclaimed, "Done!"

"Zaritha," Fatima snapped, "conjure a map of Sahabah and show us exactly where you believe Kyle is held."

The Ifrit waved her hand, fire flowed from her, forming a three dimensional map of Rashid's massive palace. The image zoomed into the basement of the palace to a large room built of sapphire surrounding three smaller rooms. Two were antechambers, the first also made of sapphire, the second of diamond which led into a larger diamond room.

"This is where important political prisoners would be held," Zaritha said. "The emissary claimed Kyle would be kept in comfort. This room is quite comfortable, for a prison. It is furnished like any guest room in the palace. Of course, it is guarded."

"And designed to hold Djinn," Britney nodded. "If only one door is opened at a time, there will never be a breach in the sapphire or diamond enclosure."

"Those two diamond doors will not be accessible from the pocket dimension," Aaliyah added. "Diamond prevents such work. We could enter through the second sapphire door and then force our way through the two diamond doors."

"Then what are we waiting for!" Fatima declared, holding Kyle's sword in one hand, her fiery yari in the other.

Chyna was already racing towards the door, her key in hand. She opened it up onto a new room. "Let's save Master!"

Sahabah, The Hidden Realm

Fatima stepped out of the pocket universe into a short, diamond hallway. Chyna, Toni, and Alexina charged ahead of her, reaching the first diamond door. The concubines threw the door open, screaming with desire.

Two watery homunculi guarded the room. They activated, sweeping tides of water at the concubines. But they all had been enhanced by Christy, moving with grace and speed that no mortal woman could. Chyna ducked the water spray while Toni and Alexina leaped over them.

"We'll handle the homunculi! You save Master!" Toni shouted.

The door to Kyle's cell was open. And her brother was in trouble. Makerah stood over him, prepared to finish off her brother.

"Banzai!" Fatima shouted, dropping Earthbones and setting her spear. She charged forward.

She raced through the diamond antechamber, passing the concubines dueling the homunculi. Fire burned at the tip of her spear, bright and hot. She burst into Kyle's cell. Makerah looked up in surprise. Her spear plunged into his chest.

Makerah became water.

Fatima didn't hit any resistance like she expected, her spear sliding through the Marid's liquid body. She tripped on Kyle and fell through Makerah's watery form, falling to the floor on the other side drenched. She didn't like that. The water pulled off of her as Makerah reformed his figure.

She used her fire to warm her body. Steam flashed around her as she rolled to her feet. She fell into her stance, thrusting her spear with precision at Makerah. He flashed to water each time her weapon's point found his flesh.

Britney leapt into the room, Waterclaw flashed, pulling the water off of Kyle. Her husband rose, freed from the Marid's watery grip.

"Summon Earthbones, big bro!" Fatima shouted as she worked through her katas, her spear forms, driving Makerah back towards the wall.

Fumi shot a green arrow at Christy and Fatima's mother, pulling Christy away from the murderous rage in her mother's eyes. "She's possessed by Hecate!" Christy screamed. "Watch out!"

Fumi screamed as an unspoken spell struck her, wracking her body. She fell to the floor in convulsions. "This is getting meddlesome!" Hecate snarled.

A great anger boiled inside Fatima. Her mother was possessed by that hate-filled Goddess. She stabbed harder at Makerah.

"Kyle!" Aaliyah shouted, rushing into the room.

"You need to get out of here!" Kyle called out. "It's dangerous."

"No!" Fatima declared. "We're finishing this today! You'll be the Sultan, big bro!"

Fatima had Makerah backed into the corner, Ann and Kayleah—her two concubines—joining the attack. Petite Ann danced, her strawberry-blonde hair flying as she kicked and punched, enhanced by Christy.

"He is not the Sultan!" raged Makerah. "No insect can lead the Djinn! I am the Sultan!"

Water exploded.

Fatima was hit by a wave of water, throwing her and the two concubines back away from the Marid. Mad rage swam in Makerah's eyes. Water spouted from all around him. It was chaos in the room. Concubines were hit by the lashing water, sent sprawling as Makerah strode across the room. Other concubines swarmed towards Faiza. But Kyle's mother was possessed by Hecate. The dark goddess cast her spells with ease, and Kyle's concubines were falling unconscious or were wracked by pain.

"Ishtar, come to our aide against your dark foe!" chanted Phillipa as she and Sable strode into the room.

Kyle reached out with his powers and commanded Earthbones to his hand as Makerah advanced on him. The sword flashed to life in his hand, shining with gold light. He fell into his stance, cutting the lashing water that the Marid threw at him.

"You will submit to my will!" Makerah cackled, driving back Toni and Alexina as they tried to leap on him from behind.

"I should have killed you in the throne room," Kyle growled. "This time I'll make sure I finish the job."

He advanced on Makerah, swinging his sword. He reached out to the diamond walls, commanding them. Unlike sapphire, diamond couldn't resist his telepathic command. Shields appeared, ripped from the walls and floors, deflecting Makerah's watery attacks.

Makerah hissed in frustration. Kyle closed with his foe, hacking with his sword. He knew the truth. His sword could hurt Makerah even in his watery form. He believed it and his sword shone with the strength of his conviction.

The Unbound Marid howled in pain as Kyle's sword found flesh. Blood streamed down the Marid's body. But the wounds did not slow him. He cackled, his watery attacks coming faster, battering into the diamond shields that whirled about Kyle.

"I am so much more than any Marid!" Makerah cried out. "I have been transformed by Hecate! Perfected!"

Kyle groaned. "She made you her familiar?"

"Yes!"

"So you're her slave? I thought you said you were the Sultan?"

"I am not her slave!" Another gout of water exploded from the Marid. Kyle's shields barely held back the tide. Shannon screamed in pain as she was caught in the tidal explosion and was sent crashing into a wall. Kyle hoped her enhancements would protect her.

"All familiars are slaves!" Kyle laughed. "I know. I have a bunch of familiars!"

"That's right!" gasped Shannon, forcing herself to rise. "I'm Master's familiar! I'm his slave! Just like you are, Marid!"

"I AM NO SLAVE!"

Water slapped into one of Kyle's diamond shields, knocking the chunk of translucent wall out of the air. The angry Marid channeled his ferocity into his attacks on Kyle, slapping shield after shield out of the sky. Water billowed around him, lashing at him from every direction.

Kyle didn't have the reflexes to stop all these attacks. Makerah left himself completely open, pouring all his energy into killing Kyle. Chyna, Toni, and Shannon took the opportunity to attack the Unbound, landing powerful kicks and punches on the Marid. But Makerah ignored them. All the Unbound cared about was Kyle's death.

Pain cracked across Kyle's leg. A tendril of water slammed into him with the force of a semi-truck. His thighbone snapped, a jagged piece of bone splintering out the side of his thigh. Kyle fell hard, screaming in pain.

Water lashed down onto his chest. Ribs cracked. Pain erupted. Another tendril fell. And another. His body was broken. His ribs crushed. He coughed blood. It hurt to breath. His lungs felt heavy, filling up with his blood.

Kyle's sword fell from his hand.

"Master!" Shannon cried out in fear.

"Brother!" Fatima snarled.

Christy was battered by Hecate's spells, reeling back before the Goddess's power. Phillipa and Sable's spells helped, but none of them were a match for the Goddess's awesome strength. Christy wasn't even sure how her wards were still standing. She had been stripped of her amulet, the focus for her power.

But Ishtar's power still rushed into her, building in her stomach. Growing. The memory of suckling at the goddess's breast, Ishtar's mother milk pouring down into her hungry stomach, consumed Christy. It had been so intimate to suckle from the Goddess. She had been adopted by the Goddess, made a part of Ishtar's flesh.

I've been prepared for this moment. Christy's hazel eyes widened. Ishtar and Hecate had long been rivals, each disagreeing on how magic should be used. Christy always assumed Ishtar rescued her that terrible day as part of the Goddesses ongoing feud. What if it was for this exact moment. To see Hecate defeated.

I need to kill a Goddess to power the unity spell. And I need a Noble Djinn for the focus. All the pieces are here.

"Aaliyah, Zaritha!" Christy shouted, beckoning with her hand. "I need you."

Aaliyah, crouched in the corner watching Kyle's duel with Makerah, whirled into dust, flowing across the battlefield, past all the wounded concubines. She flashed back into the flesh, taking Christy's hand. Zaritha rose in a cloud of steam, her arm dangling, broken by Makerah's mad flailing. She zipped across the room, landing next to them.

"Feed me your power through Zaritha like you did at the school!"

"What are you up to?" Hecate hissed through Faiza's mouth. She clawed through Sable and Phillipa's spell, her eyes dark with rage.

"Britney! I need you to grab Hecate and hold her!"

The Rakshasa stood next to Phillipa and channeled water at Hecate, swirling around the Goddess. Energy poured into Christy, all the power of a Noble Jann. She reached her hand out and grabbed Hecate as the Goddess destroyed Britney's watery bonds.

"Ishtar, send me into the mind of Faiza so I may free her from your enemies bondage."