Approaching the Tower

"Your necklace protects you from the storm?" Aurora's mouth hung slightly open.

"The storm attacks anything on the ground that it thinks doesn't belong. That is the only way your fairy can go as he pleases. The only safe place is the Forbidden Tower itself. Otherwise, a chain is needed to keep the storm at bay."

While the Empress knew that Osis was referring to the chain around his neck, Aurora remembered the metallic sound she had heard as the sun set.

"Is there a chain within hurricane too? A big one?"

"Ah, you mean the fail-safe? The storm was not prepared for so many beings. When the last of you exited, it began to close in. My Master triggered the fail-safe to stop the storm and sent us to deal with you. Otherwise, it was possible the storm might come all the way to the tower. My Master could not allow that."

Aurora noted something in his words that gave her hope. But she also realized that having so many people with her was what had kept the storm at bay.

It was made to attack one creature at a time not over one hundred. So while the cold had been nearly unbearable, it had not had the strength to kill them.

"I am thankful your master did not let us perish. He must be very protective of this place if he is willing to go to such measures to make sure no one enters." Aurora looked at the tower ahead.

"He will protect it with his life." Osis said no more, nor did he need to. The rest was clear.

Do not go against my master or you will regret it.

"I look forward to meeting him. May I know his name?" The Empress felt that knowing the name of the one whom she would need to convince to save the world would be immensely helpful. 

"He has no name. Or if he does, I do not know it," Osis answered, unconcerned. "He does not need one." 

'I suppose if everyone around you is serving you then, no name is required'

How many people actually called Aurora by her given name? Very few. 

"Is he kind?" Aurora could see she hit a nerve.

Osis's tail suddenly ceased moving. "Kind? He does not need to be kind. He is just." 

The Empress blinked a few times at the statement. "Is it not possible to be both?" 

The cat had no response to that. "Are there any other questions?" 

Aurora pursed her lips. This is not how she thought this conversation would go. The information about the hurricane was useful.

She could kindly ask the Master of the Forbidden Tower to stop the storm for them to exit. Assuming everything else went smoothly, that was.

But the lack of information on the person she was going to meet was frustrating. The conversation was going nowhere, and Aurora could feel the leopard was getting frustrated. She changed the subject slightly. 

"Yes, I have another question. You sent three of your kin to find the two missing from our group. What will happen when they are found?" 

Osis's tail began to move again, its rhythm more relaxed than before. "If they are dead, they will make sure that they are properly taken care of. We have a place where we send those who have left this world." 

Aurora gulped. She did not want to have her husband's body entombed in the South. How would she ever visit him?

'No! You cannot think like that. Devrim is not dead.'

"What will they do if they find our friends alive?" 

Osis spared her a glance before training his eyes forward again. "They will do whatever needs to be done. Nothing more. Nothing less..." 

Immediately Aurora wanted to know exactly what needed to be done, but Osis was done speaking. He leapt high into the air--impossibly high-- and came back to the front of the circle. 

"Did that seem odd to you?" Aurora asked Isbora as she watched the cat finish his jump. 

"You will have to be more specific," the bear's chest rumbled in what the Empress assumed was a chuckle. 

"That jump was so big, much bigger than even the elves can do. If I didn't know better..." The Empress fell deep into thought for a moment. 

"I thought you were going to talk about their chains," Isbora interrupted the lady's reverie. 

"What about them? I mean they are very interesting, and they help keep out the cold. Oh!" Aurora touched the chain around her neck. She had been rescued from the cold by the Fate's chain once at the Ice Barrier. 

Even now, she could feel its warmth dully against her skin. It was so subtle that she had not noticed the change until now.

Although she had not gotten a close look at the chain hanging from Osis's neck, she could see that it was woven metal, just like hers. 

"Do you think those were made by the Fates?" Aurora wondered. If the bears had helped make her chain in ages past, maybe Isbora had some knowledge on the white chains as well. 

"I have never seen them before. My kind did not help make them as far as I know. But they do seem like a dim copy of what you possess." The bear grumbled. "I do not like that the cats think they are doing us this great service. You are the one trying to help the world." 

"At least they are not stopping us," Aurora pointed out. 

"I would prefer they not act so proud." The bear fell silent. 

'At least I know she won't side with the leopards.' Aurora smiled. 

The day wore on, and the tower loomed ever closer. It grew taller and taller with each passing hour. 

'Sooner or later, it will reach the sky!' 

There was something else interesting about the Forbidden place. It was not made of any material that humans would use. No stones, wood, or metal graced its walls. 

The entire structure was made of what looked like polished glass. But it wasn't. It was ice. 

"It's beautiful!" Alvar's bear ended up beside her as he marveled at the tower. "And I thought the Mystic Spires were impressive. How does one even make a thing so thin and so tall?" 

"Magic," Aurora responded with a grin. She looked at her elven companion and her smile faded. "Your skin!" 

"I have made it a more human shade. So have Brinn and Gandr. Even Reyan has managed to pull in his wings. We wanted to blend in when we get there." Alvar explained. 

"After seeing you in your golden form for so long, this looks strange," Aurora admitted. "The Maker made you exactly as he should." 

Alvar smiled. "That goes for you as well. You are looking much better than you have since the accident." 

"I think my chain is working again, which means it is helping my body. I will never understand why I was given this gift, but I won't take it for granted again." The Empress caressed the chain under her clothes. 

Finally, when the sun was beginning to get low in the sky, Aurora spotted more figures on the ground. A second company of leopards was around the Forbidden Tower, vigilantly watching the approach of their kin. 

One of them stood and roared. Osis responded with one of his own. Those were the only audible sounds as they came close. The cats moved about silently. 

The wide, impossibly large tower had only one door. It was a different color than the rest of the icy structure. Aurora wondered where the metal had come from in the glassy tundra. She had no doubt that the entrance was magical. 

If she was correct, then the Seed was hidden within. 

The door opened silently. If Aurora had not been looking, she would not have known that it occurred at all. 

A figure in a white robe stood in the doorway. His face was obscured by his hood. 

"What have you brought?!" he boomed at Osis. He spoke in the Ancient Tongue with such strength that the Empress flinched. 

The leopard, on the other hand, stepped forward and looked at the figure unafraid. 

"They have come in search of the Seed," Osis explained. 

"And you brought them here?!" the booming voice became even deeper and filled with anger.

The leopard did not cower. He stared unblinkingly forward. "She has been marked by the Maker. Twice." 

This caused the cats' tails to twitch. Suddenly the landscape around the tower looked like a field of swaying white reeds. 

"Enough!" the figure held out both hands. "Anyone can fake that kind of mark. They must think we are stupid." He looked down from the steps at the Empress with contempt. "Leave now or suffer the consequences."

"I cannot," Aurora told him. "For you see..." 

The figure sighed loudly. "Then that settles it. You can meet the Maker now..." 

"No!" Reyan marched forward. "You want her? You will have to go through me! And we both know you don't have the stomach for that..."