The Second Archon War: Comoedia Glacialis 1 (Patreon)

 Comoedia Glacialis 1: The Queen Enters, Stage Left

Conjuring up a fireball, the Tsaritsa threw it with all her might at Lumine, snarling in rage. 

“Don’t you UNDERSTAND!? This is what I have worked towards for CENTURIES! You would undermine EVERYTHING!”

Lumine, silent as always, didn’t respond as she dodged, then a wordless cry as she swung her glowing golden sword with all her might. It struck through her barrier of Geo, and Lumine sent a wave of her own Pyro energy at the Tsaritsa.

Screaming in pain, she was flung down to the cold, stony ground below her. She raised a hand to send forth more ice, but Lumine plunged out of the sky, her sword pointed directly at the Tsaritsa’s heart, the winds of that treacherous Barbatos at her back. The Tsaritsa screamed, and-

Pain. Horrible pain. This was IMPOSSIBLE! She had all Seven of the Gnosi! She was all-powerful! She should have torn Celestia from Heaven itself, and instituted her new order! She screamed in pain and rage, a primal cry imbued with divine power, and a rejection of reality itself. 

NO!

And then the pain fled entirely. Reality itself was torn asunder, and for a horrible moment, she saw clearly. Saw what a monster she had become. Saw that in her madness, she would have destroyed her beloved Snezhnaya itself. For one moment, she regretted everything.

And then she saw the face of her mother in her mind once more. Blood on her lips, her eyes dull and lifeless, as she wept and held the body of her only family in the cold snow where it had fallen after being cast down from heaven. 

I will freeze the entire world to have my revenge. Her heart whispered, and froze solid once more. 

When the haze cleared, she found herself amidst the ruins of a dead city. The ground here was lifeless and poisoned, the buildings frozen ruins and burned out husks, and there was barely a sign of life. Only the lower-order creatures persisted here; mortal men would be killed within hours if they lived here. 

In numb horror, the Tsaritsa looked around. She did not recognize the place, but the deep connection she felt in her very essence told her where she was. Zapolyarny. Capital of Snezhnaya. 

“No,” she whispered again. Then a scream of anguish burst forth from her again, a wordless cry of agony and despair as she struck the earth. 

WHAT HAVE YOU FOOLS DONE!? She screamed. 

If she had been more lucid, or less exhausted from battle, she might have noticed the metallic husks of vehicles or the writing that persisted in some places that was in a tongue of men not found on Teyvat. Perhaps the Tsaritsa would have realized that this was not Zapolyarny, but another place to which she belonged. 

But with the power of seven gnosi thundering in her veins and the trauma of her recent defeat hazing her mind, the Tsaritsa was not in an observant mood. Instead, she sent every bit of her pent up grief and rage into her gnosi, causing the very world itself to quake. 

YOU WOULD DARE DESTROY MY SUBJECTS!? LET THE WORLD KNOW MY HEART, AND FREEZE SOLID!

Mere moments later, she sensed the approach of the one she both sought and feared. 

SUSTAINER, the Tsaritsa hissed, turning towards the approach of Heaven’s Enforcer. LET ME GIVE YOU A PROPER SNEZHNAYAN GREETING!

With that, she loosed terrible lightning and ignited the very air surrounding the Sustainer, clawing at them like an enraged beast even at a distance of a thousand miles. For a moment, the Sustainer’s progress was halted, their advance stymied by the Tsaritsa’s wrath. 

Then, to her disgust, the Sustainer shrugged off the assault and approached once more. They were fast, faster than the Tsaritsa had expected, moving at speeds greater than even lightning. 

Snarling in rage, the Tsaritsa sent waves of ice and howling gales at her foe to slow them, only for them to be slapped aside as though they were nothing. At the last moment, she drew a shield of Geo about herself, clumsily manipulating the alien energy through her stolen gnosis. 

The blow from the Sustainer was enough to send the Tsaritsa crashing into the ground, where she impacted with such force that the reverberation was felt around the world. Still, that was not enough to destroy her, and she turned like a beast at bay, roaring her defiance as stood. 

SUSTAINER! I WILL CAST YOU AND ALL OF CELESTIA DOWN TO EARTH, AS YOU ONCE DID MY MOTHER! 

Through eyes of madness, she saw only what she thought to see: an imposing figure of gold with an aura of great power. She didn’t notice that this Sustainer was male, not female, or that there was no divine spark in this being. 

YOU SEEK TO DISRUPT THE CYCLE. The Sustainer replied, their voice booming through the Tsaritsa’s mind. I AM THE WARRIOR. YOU WILL CEASE. 

That made no sense to the Tsaritsa, but she was far past the point of caring about such things. Her rejoinder was to cast out lightning and detonate it with pyro in a massive overload reaction, but when she attempted to send out a wave of Dendro to complete the chain, nothing happened. Buer’s gnosis was silent and dead. Enraged, the Tsartisa instead used Anemo to swirl both. 

To her delight, this time, the reactions worked, shredding flesh from the Sustainer’s body. They staggered back in mid-air, touching their burned and scarred face, where golden ichor dripped. 

SO, IT SEEMS HEAVEN ITSELF CAN BLEED, the Tsaritsa crowed, as she forged a massive spear of Geo, and hurled it with all her might at the Sustainer. 

To her horror, the spear shattered as the Sustainer sent out a wave of golden golden light. They rose above the Tsaritsa, and slowly, their dispassionate face shifted into a bloody grin. 

THE CYCLE WILL CONTINUE, the Sustainer decreed and sent out a similar golden wave at the Tsaritsa. She dodged out of the way on a gust of wind, and the impact rang the earth like a bell once more. 

I WILL CAST YOU DOWN LIKE THE WORM YOU ARE! The Tsaritsa raged, and summoned a blizzard that crackled with lightning. 

Let it all be swept away. For there was no Love left in her heart. Only power. 

It was early in the evening when the Scream was heard and snow began to fall in Tokyo. That was unusual, but not unheard of, for it was late December and the first day of Winter. 

What was unusual was the reaction of the Shogun and her dragons. 

MOBILIZE THE SENTAI, Ei ordered, storming out of Euthymia in her Divine form, and causing all the human servants who saw her to fall to their knees in awe and terror. Her blade laid bare in her hands, and the sky crackled and roared with thunder. She opened a gateway to the skies above her city, and hovered up to several thousand feet, looking to the North and West. 

DANTALION, Ei growled, as the blizzard raged about her. WHAT MADNESS IS THIS? 

The Tsaritsa, however, was not listening to Ei, and only raging in pain and madness. 

EI, WHAT IS HAPPENING? 

Keiga and Mushu rose up beside Ei, both dragons having grown to well over 100 meters in length. 

FOLLY, Ei responded, shaking her head in disgust. DANTALION DOES BATTLE WITH THE SUSTAINER. 

Keiga let out a fluting note of anxiety as she looked about at the ice and snow raging around them. THE CRYO ARCHON? SHE FIGHTS SCION? 

SO WHAT DO WE DO? DO WE GO TO AID HER? Mushu demanded, getting straight to the point.

For a moment, Ei could feel the future and Fate itself rested on a razor’s edge. A part of her, a large part of her, wanted to summon her forces and go immediately to the field of battle, to fall upon the Sustainer while he was engaged and strike a decisive blow. 

But she could sense only grief and madness from the newly arrived Dantalion. Along with something else: the fool had bitten into the poisoned apples of heaven. She was doomed to madness and death now. 

I MUST CONSULT BUER AND BARBATOS. SEE THAT OUR FORCES ARE PREPARED, AND DRIVE OFF THE STORM, Ei commanded. She hesitated, then added, SHOULD AUGHT HAPPEN TO ME, TSUKUYOMI MUST LEAD YOU. 

Then she cut a hole in reality, and stepped into the Dream. It was not something that she did often, and her method of entry was crude at best, but there was no time for niceties. 

She found Buer standing atop the highest point of her own city, chanting a spell as great rings of life energy surrounded her. Around her, the Children of the Forest sang a dirge of dread, reinforcing the warding spell Buer wrought. It was a finely made thing, and Ei did not speak as Buer completed the ritual. 

“This must be the Dantalion you spoke of,” Buer said at last, her ward settling into place. Ei watched with approval as the blizzard was driven out of her lands, then frowned. 

“That ward will not hold for long,” she said, noting as the spell groaned under the weight of the Authority that the Tsaritsa brought to bear. 

“It will not, but I am afraid to draw on the Dendro Gnosis, and to put more power into it would be dangerous,” Buer said with a shake of her head. “Besides. She will fail before long, and the ward will not need to last more than a day.”

“So soon?” Ei felt the echo of the battle, then grimaced. “I fear you are correct. And she seems to possess all the gnosi. If this is all that the combined might of the Seven can bring to bear… it does not bode well.”

“Not all Seven,” Buer said with a slow shake of her head. “She lacks mine. It seems that more than one gnosis cannot exist at the same time.” 

“Logical,” Ei agreed. She frowned, turning as a gust of wind blew towards them. “Well, Barbatos?”

“This isn’t good,” the adorable little wind spirit said, shaking its little head. “Sorry, this is just a fragment of me. I’m trying to shield most of Europe from this, but it’s bad. I was tempted for a moment to put an arrow in Scion’s behind, but I think if I attracted her attention Dantalion would lash out at me too. She’s gone completely mad.”

“Even gods are not meant to hold such power,” Buer agreed. “I know not the time and place Dantalion comes from, but she seems full of grief and sorrow. I wish we could help, but…”

Gritting her teeth, Ei nodded. “But I will not risk everything on a foolish, ill-conceived gamble.”

“If this was Dantalion’s plan, I find it sorely lacking,” Barbatos agreed. “I’m being forced to try to protect my own lands from this early blizzard. Most of the crops are in, but people aren’t ready for this, and they will suffer.”

“I fear if she is not stopped soon, she will begin an Ice Age,” Buer said worriedly. “I do not wish for her death, but…”

“But if one challenges Heaven, one must be prepared to meet death,” Ei said grimly. She cut open another portal, turning her face towards her people. “I must attend to my own lands. But we must speak again when this settles. This changes much.”

Then, Ei stepped forward into an uncertain future. 

Another wave of golden power crashed against the Tsaritsa, and she screamed in pain and frustration. This was nothing like what she had prepared herself to face! Unable to fully harness the majority of the powers she had usurped, she lashed out with icy fury, trying to freeze the very essence of the Sustainer as they dueled in the skies above the desolate ruins. 

While her most potent powers did scar and disrupt the Sustainer, to the point where they had lost an entire leg in the battle, they were not completely stymied. Worse, their attacks were growing ever more furious and deadly, while also becoming more refined and precise. It was as if the Sustainer had never before seen most of her powers, and was rapidly adapting as to how to combat them. 

DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS TO HOLD THE CORPSE ONE YOU LOVE MOST IN YOUR ARMS, MONSTER?! The Tsaritsa howled, the image of Cocolia dead in her arms, body turning to ice before it faded away entirely. I SWORE ON THAT DAY YOU WOULD REGRET THE POWER YOU GAVE ME! NOW, I WRECK MY VENGEANCE! 

The Sustainer had been mostly silent aside from their initial chastisement about the “cycle”, but this seemed to take the Enforcer of Heaven aback slightly. 

I AM… INCOMPLETE. THE THINKER PERISHED. BUT I HAVE FOUND A NEW ONE. 

Thinker? That made no sense. Did they mean Samiel? That was nonsense. Celestia had been as much responsible for her death during the Cataclysm as anyone else. 

NOTHING CAN BE ALLOWED TO DISRUPT THE CYCLE. THE GREAT WORK MUST CONTINUE. 

This Sustainer seemed different from what the Tsaritsa remembered, but that didn’t matter. Rage and grief were all she had left, and this was a suitable enough target. 

YOUR GREAT WORK IS A SHAM! YOU ARE AN ALIEN WHO WOULD OPPRESS THESE LANDS WITH YOUR DICTATES, CLAIMING TO SHELTER WHEN YOU TRULY STIFLE ALL LOVE!  

Concentrating all the might of the global storm she had conjured, the Tsaritsa encased the Sustainer in a mountain of ice, reinforced with Geo and bound together by Hydro. She grinned in triumph as the monster was swallowed up wholesale. 

Then wailed in despair as the Sustainer shattered the million tons of ice and rock with a bellow of power. 

Normally, even this time of year, Arizona was warm and sunny. The forecast had been for clear skies, with a daytime high of 62F, and an overnight low of 40F, well above freezing. That was why Alexandria had planned a rally at Bank One Ballpark in downtown Phoenix. She was still working on securing the Democratic nomination, though she did have it mostly locked down. 

Still, it was never too early to start, and indicators were that with a little work, she could flip the traditionally red Republican state to Democrat blue during the actual election. 

What she hadn’t expected was that her early morning rally would be held amidst a snowstorm that had lasted for nearly a full day now, as earthquakes and tsunamis rocked the globe. Alexandria had considered canceling the rally and had even asked Contessa about it, but the Thinker was currently having a panic attack, curled up in a corner and stroking her Magic 8 Ball while muttering, “She’s here.” And that couldn’t be good. 

She’d had to make the call herself several hours ago, and Alexandria prayed she’d made the right one. Who, exactly, she was praying to, was up for debate. She’d been raised Catholic, and aside from an ever-present sense of guilt, didn’t cling to that faith very hard. 

“Mrs. Costa-Brown? We’re ready for you.”

“I told you before, unless you want me to call you Governor Dainson, it’s just Rebecca,” Alexandria said, turning around to smile at the man in front of her. 

He was quite a bit older than her, with graying hair at his temples, though most of it was still blond. If Alexandria had been into older men, she’d have fallen for this silver fox, with his lantern jaw, broad shoulders, and winning smile. He was tall too, though he had a bit of a stoop to his shoulders from an injury sustained when his helicopter had been shot down during the Vietnam War. 

“Well, in that case, you’ll have to call me Leif,” the Governor of Pennsylvania said with a warm chuckle. He reminded Alexandria of her abuelo, who’d been dead now for five years of a heart attack. Of course, unlike her grandfather, Leif Dainson was a career politician used to the halls of power and the American political machine. He was Alexandria’s current best ally, having forgone his own nomination for President to support her efforts. 

“I think I can agree to that,” Alexandria said, smiling and extending her hand. Leif took it, and gave her a firm handshake, just as another tremor shook the building. 

He grimaced, peering out a nearby window. “Snow’s still coming down. And in Phoenix…”

“Yes, but that’s why this needs to happen,” Alexandria said firmly, and stepped out into the hall. 

A long walk up the hall and onto the field later, and Alexandria broke out into the artificial light of the stadium. The sun had been up for just over an hour, but it was too black to tell that with the clouds overhead. To her surprise, people packed both the field and the stadium itself, despite the blizzard and shuddering earth. 

For a moment, Alexandria considered flying over the people’s heads to the stage, but set that aside. Instead, she took the time to shake a few hands, give a few hugs, and even kiss a baby, who was cold and crying with an anxious young latina mother. 

“Bless you,” the woman said, tears freezing on her cheeks as her breath misted in the air and she tried to comfort the squalling child. Alexandria gave her a squeeze, then moved on as cameras flashed and reporters talked quietly into their microphones. 

At last, Alexandria ascended to the stage with Leif, wiping aside the snow that covered her lectern. She looked out at the crowd, then down at the teleprompter, and finally at her notes. Deciding something, she crumpled up the paper, and very obviously threw it over her shoulder.

“I think my carefully prepared speech is no longer relevant,” Alexandria said, holding out a hand to catch a few drifting snowflakes. That got sporadic chuckles, and she smiled grimly. “There’s been a lot of questions as to why I’m running for president. A lot of concerns about having a Parahuman Executive. Fear that this is my attempt to become a warlord, like Moord Nag or the Raiden Shogun.”

More flashes from cameras, and uncomfortable murmurs from the crowd, and Alexandria leaned forward. “I can understand those fears. It’s one reason I’ve been campaigning as Rebecca Costa-Brown, not as Alexandria. To emphasize that I don’t want to become a despotic tyrant, but instead to serve and protect the people of the United States of America, and to uphold the law of the land.”

Slowly, Alexandria lifted up into the air, carrying the podium and microphone up with her. “The time for that has passed. Why do I seek the highest office in the land?”

She pointed up towards the sky, and at that moment, a shudder ran through the earth, causing the crowd to cry out in panic. 

“This is why! Because the world is changing! Because our people NEED to be protected and defended! I am Rebecca Costa-Brown! But I am also Alexandria! And my Vision for this nation is to defend it and those I love, to make this country stand proud in a world of monsters and gods as a woman and as a Parahuman! A President who will put herself on the front lines to protect you! I-”

Child of two worlds, you walk a narrow path. But your Vision is broad. 

Alexandria stuttered, her eyes growing wide. A voice in her head. Soft and serene, a woman’s voice, one full of both grief, and compassion. 

“I will not give up,” Alexandria managed. “No matter what happens. You will always have me to stand on the frontlines of the fight against evil and oppression.” 

Though your heart is troubled, your mind is clear: you will let nothing dissuade you from your Ambition. 

“What you feel today is the presence of a new Archon,” Alexandria declared, barely hearing the shock of the crowd as she spoke the truth, as much as she could. “Some call them gods, some demons, some simply powerful capes. I am here to tell you that today in Russia, a new one has appeared. Will she be a threat like the Raiden Shogun, or a friend, like Nahida Saeed? Only time will tell.”

No matter what the price, you will pay it to uphold your Love for those you defend. 

“And as your President, I swear to you, America will stand proud amongst all the nations, with a Commander in Chief that can look one of them in the eye and demand that we be treated as equals, not as pawns to be manipulated!” Alexandria thundered, now oblivious to the crowd as she poured out her heart. 

Let your Heart be your Guide, my beloved Child of Ice.  

The sky overhead suddenly cleared, and the snow stopped falling as a clear pale blue crystal appeared over Alexandria’s podium. She reached up on hand, clasping her Vision tightly. 

“Choose me, and I promise, America will lead the way once more!” 

The crowd erupted into wild cheers, whether because the storm had stopped, or because of the speech, it didn’t matter. Alexandria gripped the icy Vision tightly, her mind reeling. 

Parahumans… can receive Visions? This had never happened before. 

She set her podium back down carefully and held up her Vision for all the world to see. 

“WE WILL NEVER BOW TO YOU!” Alexandria screamed at the heavens. “WE WILL NOT GO QUIETLY! HUMANITY WILL LIVE ON! WE WILL TRIUMPH!” 

Across the world, the golden man who held up Heaven’s Gift in his hand did not hear her. 

But the bloody girl that lay sprawled in the snow did. And though she was near death, she smiled. 

“Vengeance…” the tsaritsa coughed, scarlet blood frothing at her lips. “Will be yours, my daughter.”

The Warrior regarded the small object in his hand. At his feet lay his opponent, the Being that had dared challenge him. She had been strong. Stronger than any he had faced, even the Raiden Shogun. 

But what was this feeling? Satisfaction? Joy? He felt… complete. Not in the sense of the Cycle, but that he had truly fulfilled his purpose. There had been a threat, and he had faced it and triumphed through combat. 

He regarded the dying creature beneath him as she gasped for breath, her vital fluids leaking out. She had changed. Before, she had been larger, with a greater radiance of power about her. Now, that power had fallen out, and become six small objects. 

The Warrior plucked up another of the objects, testing the weight of the thing in his remaining hand. He felt… the Earth itself. Along with Gravity, Time, Money- He shook his head and shoved the object into a pocket dimension. 

The creature at his feet wheezed something in a language that the Warrior did not know. He was not as adept at reading body language as the Thinker, but he could guess what she said, some sort of curse or vow to slay him one day. 

He picked up the rest of the objects of power, then turned to regard the dying woman. He held up one object, which was full of Ice and… Love? He felt a sudden yearning for the Thinker, in ways that did not make sense to an Entity. Love was not a concept they understood. 

But he had felt Joy at his battle with the Being he had triumphed over. 

For the first time, the Warrior wanted something other than the Cycle to be completed. He wished to experience more battles such as the one he had just fought. To triumph over other foes in combat, to prove his superiority. 

So, he dropped this final piece onto the woman’s bloody breast. “You fought well. If you will serve the Cycle, I will spare you, this time. Submit, and I will allow you to continue.”

The woman regarded him with hate-filled eyes, then gasped, “You know I will one day seek to destroy you.”

A slow smile spread over The Warrior’s lips. “I look forward to it. Do you submit?”

With a snarl, the woman grabbed the object, then raised it in her clenched fist. “I… submit. I will serve your Cycle, Sustainer. For now.”

“Foster conflict. Engage in battle. Gather data,” the Warrior declared, kneeling and taking the woman’s hand in his. She trembled at his touch, and that too brought pleasure to him. Though only because his lack of understanding caused him to view it as fear instead of rage. “And one day, when the Cycle is ready to be completed, we will battle once more. And your strength will feed our children as we destroy the world, and spread them amongst the stars.”

She bared bloody teeth at him. “Very well. Though if you wish me to bear your children, you must make me do so.”

He nodded, then turned about, and departed this dimension. He was weary and weakened, and he wished to study those five objects. What were they? What was the power they contained? 

He would find out. And when he did, the Cycle would at least be restored.