Heartfelt Adventure : Active Time Event Thread

[Enji_Chou]

{ATE : Healing Bonds : 33}
{Kyla/Louis : Disney Castle : Kyla's Station of Awakening}

James was right, and as the child looked concerned between Bobbi and Louis, Kyla looked to the spirit who still had hold of her hand and nodded to James’s suggestion.

Louis met her gaze, brows raising was if asking- me? Really? Even with the entity hanging onto him like that he seemed dumbfounded he could be of any use beyond simple word service.

“That’s a place meant to seal up and keep things inside. If we went in there I’m not sure we can come out. James is right. I think- this is something only you can do.” It only took a few steps to being the artist to stand before him. She turned towards the opening in the lotus.
“I’m scared of the dark. No matter how pretty the dim lamp light can be, or how shiny the stars are in comparison. I know I’d be scared. So please-“ she reached up and put one hand on his shoulder, eyes pleading and meaningful.
“- please keep this part of me company. It’s weak, scared, easily frightened when facing the dark alone. As long as I wasn’t alone, then I wasn’t afraid.”

Louis stood there a moment, eyes flickering between the tiny Kai with the ‘horn’ on her head, and the grown one before him with no welt to be seen.
Something only I can do?

Up to this point, back in those other dives, those other fights, he had been utterly helpless. All he could do was stay at this girl’s side, like some angel on her shoulder..
Or a demon.
But did that really mean anything in the end?

Right now, right in this moment, he realized he wasn’t the same as Carbuncle. He wasn’t an entity born from a lonely heart, he must at least have been part of some other person once. It was this significance that mattered. He was a friendly outsider willing to take her by the hand and walk into the dark. No more pretending, or making believe, or fashioning friends from fragments of yourself. Though Carbuncle was hardly a figment any more- the origin still mattered.
It mattered to them.

Tiny hands clasped hold of his and he was forced to look at Kai fully. She gazed up at him with questioning, and his resolve clicked into place with the strength of a metal latch closing shut.

This is something only I can do.
I can help.

“I’ll go.” He replied, taking both his larger hands to grip the child’s fully and giving them a tight squeeze before turning to the other three.
With Bobbi’s motherly comfort, James patience, and Louis companionship, the child didn’t resist as he began to walk towards the opening of the lotus.
"Let's go lil one, to a place where nothing bad can find us."
Kyla watched on in rapt silence, grateful beyond words that he’d do this. She simply smiled, that real smile he knew was hers.

When they crossed the threshold he could feel Kai pull closer to him as they slipped between the petals and only then did he looked away from the other three, facing the free fall where darkness flowed past. Submerging he could feel himself fall deeper, the tiny form clinging to his front as they fell and flew down into the deeper dive to a sanctuary below, were fears, and lies all melted away… were the memory of the child could find rest.

Kyla stared where they disappeared a moment before looking to James and Bobbi. Taking the archers hand she squeezed it- “Thank you, for that. I- she, we…won’t forget that. I’m sure of it. She’ll take what you did to a place where most precious memories are kept. When I need it most. I’ll know it’s there.”
Now all they had to do was close the opening.  

[Jeimuzu Kuro]

{ATE : Healing Bonds : 34}
{James : Disney Castle : Kyla’s Station of Awakening}

{{Cue: Always On My Mind}}

James fell silent again, he did that a lot. Probably always would, he was a listener more than anything it seemed. He watched as Kyla approached the spirit of Louis, yet again agreeing with his idea that the fragment was the only one who could really go with Kai deeper into Kyla’s heart. He had refused to allow himself to grow attached to either Kai or the fragment, unlike Mizu. He had feared that openly displaying emotions would distract from the task at hand, cloud his judgement. As real as this appeared, as she appeared she was a figment, part of a whole. Part of Kyla, that was all. When Louis accepted the task that Kyla had asked of him and led the girl into the lotus, deeper into Kyla’s heart the corsair finally allowed himself to smile.

His smile widened and he nodded his head as Kyla thanked Mizu and himself for their help. The corsair was just glad that he was once again able to help his new friend. It was moments like this that forged and strengthened the ties that bound them together as friends. Their task wasn’t finished quite yet though.

“All that’s left to do now is close the lotus and the wound on your back can finally heal,” The corsair stated as he made his way back over to the opening in the lotus, placing his hands upon bent outward petal, ready to push when the others were ready. “Let’s get this done.”  

[fractalJester]

{ ATE : Beyond the Towers : 1 }
{ Basically Everyone : Narnia : Louis' Heart }

"So everyone succeeded?" Sora asked as he made his way down to the central platform once again, spotting everyone else slowly funneling out of their towers--all of which had shifted to some new glimmering view.

"You could say that," Riku said, looking around as he stood in the center. True, everything had changed, but it didn't seem like the fighters were shining quite as brightly as the scenery, even though they each came out with their own new shard. "Could have gone a bit better, though."

[[ On the off-chance that there are some people who genuinely want to talk about their tower experiences, here's the outlet for it. We sped up the main thread because it was a situation where, regardless, the same outcome was going to happen one way or another.

Feel free to add on, or not at all. It's totally up to you.

Empty quotes for notifications follow: ]]

show spoilerhide spoiler

AldrickZearse

LevDa

Kaegoe

Psalm Grasshopper

Enji_Chou

Mizu_Kage_Hikari

Gentleman Knives

Jeimuzu Kuro

ArcanaFate

Pie Thrower

 

[RhikoDemson]

{ATE: Last Save : 1}
[[Lady in Blue : Louis' Heart : Final Rest]]

[[BGM: Fortitude from Umineko]]

As luminescence engulfed the battlefield and turned everything to white, something shifted in Kyle and Jenny's view. From the light, stepped forth a figure in blue. From the illusion, she was the hostess of Liar's nightmarish gala. The inset of pain that perhaps should have been present as Rachel's spell laid waste to the battlefield, did not connect with Kyle or Jenny, instead there was a cool and gentle breeze.

The woman simply stood there, watching Kyle and Jenny as the world bled life onto its canvas once more like watercolors that swiftly gained definition.

First from the floor around his and her feet, outward to reveal vividly dyed rugs, atop rich hardwood flooring. Next, walls of stone, decorated with lavish curtains, paintings of unknown origin, framed poems, as well as scrolls of musical note. A piano faded into view next to the woman on her right, along with a violin on the musician's seat which itself was a matching black wood with red cushion.

The rest of the painted world filled in bit by bit till a room Kyle recognized relatively well from his previous visit became clear. The fire that burned in the hearth next to the armchair and bed oddly cast no shadows and gave off no heat as upon closer inspection was clear did not actually burn and was actually still... frozen in place.

Upon the bed on the left of the woman in blue, lay Louis, sleeping beneath a single sheet of pale moonlight piercing the curtains that glittered with dust which hung perfectly still in the air. There was an uncomfortably blue tinge to the boy's face paired with heavy bags under his eyes. He looked sick, if not worse.

There was a soft sound, music playing quietly matching the two styles of instruments found laying untouched.

The woman nodded quietly to the visitors, a lock of her porcelain white hair dropping before her face, her eyes revealed between half-closed lids that gazed softly upon them were frosted over like snowflake-shaped cataracts, "Don't be alarmed. You are in no danger here. We... have much to discuss. I fear this may be our last chance to do so as it will not be long before they make their way here and even this final resting place is overrun."  

[fractalJester]

{ ATE : Last Save : 2 }
{ Kyle ; Jenny : Louis' Heart : Final Rest }

The appearance of the unnamed host in the midst of the magic was confusing for more than one reason, but as the world itself began to shift into something vividly distinct, Kyle merely held onto the shards in his hands and braced himself. When this new pocket of reality became clear, Kyle was all too familiar with the setting--yet surprised all the same to find Jenny there with him.

He raised an eyebrow toward her. She was in the midst of trying to compose herself; this was entirely new for her, but worse, it was another shift in the make-up of Louis' heart, which meant another abrupt change in melody ringing through her ears. When she caught sight of Kyle's gaze, she only shrugged, hugging her flute silently to herself as she tried to gauge the situation.

He had a guess as to why she was here, but made no effort to dig for the moment.

They...?

He wondered. Could she mean their group? Or the shadows of the Darkness? Or maybe she meant two different sets--one group who would arrive, and another which would overrun as a result.

If the identity was important to the present, apparently urgent conversation, though, she wouldn't have glossed over it was a pronoun.

So onto matters.

"What..." he began, hesitating, closing his mouth to chew on his tongue. How to proceed? "What needs discussing?"

Jenny stood next to Kyle, keeping close mostly for solidarity than anything, but her gaze shifted between the unknown woman and the ill young man they had come to stop and, perhaps, save.  

[RhikoDemson]

{ATE: Last Save : 3}
[[Lady in Blue : Louis' Heart : Final Rest]]

The woman released a small sigh of relief, "The fate of this child," she motioned to Louis, a full grown man by any account, but perhaps to her... all of them were but mere children, "It is... my hope in this last moment of stillness that I can bring to light what was meant to be shrouded forever in shadow," the woman looked pained slightly in her expression, "I go against his will, but I can not stand by and let this opportunity pass. He would have me remain silent, allow you to venture forth and strike him low without allowing you a full understanding, believing it to be in the best interest of all... but that is why I called you here, so I could reason with two who have seen a different side to him... and possess the power to correct my mistake."

"You see... the truth is... the truth is..." the woman hesitated, repeating herself, looking to her side at the boy who lay still, "the boy you know as Louis-"

"Is dead."

 

[fractalJester]

{ ATE : Last Save : 4 }
{ Kyle ; Jenny : Louis' Heart : Final Rest }

So he was planning to die.

Kyle couldn't say he was terribly surprised, given how the layout had been. Everything had been so...

He pursed his lips together, as if having tasted something exceptionally bitter, and stared at the woman.

"Dead?" Jenny said, looking significantly more concerned, though still confused, as she now looked solely upon the sickly body in the bed. "But... we're in his heart."

"Indeed, I'd appreciate if things were laid plainly," Kyle said, even as he chewed on the side of his cheek, a brow raised. "He's obviously not dead in totality, and he's obviously not dead metaphysically, as both would imply his heart was no more. Sure, it's broken down completely, but it's still beating, so to speak."

"So either you mean conceptually dead, such that the identity we have come to call Louis is no more and the man we come to purge has become, is, or will be someone distinctly 'not Louis'," he said, hesitating just enough that there was a noticeable pause before his next statement. "Or you mean physically dead because his body, once separated from his heart, was not kept in a proper stasis and has such begun to decay beyond healing. If that's the case, then there's little we can do besides purge what remains and hope his time in the Underworld is cheerier than it would be if it were solely defined by his actions."

Jenny's expression grew more worried as Kyle spoke, her gaze lingering on the pale blue parts of Louis' face before turning back to the woman. "We can't... undo death. What are you getting at?"  

[RhikoDemson]

{ATE: Last Save : 5}
[[Lady in Blue : Louis' Heart : Final Rest]]

[[Cue: Wingless from Umineko]]

"Have you ever heard, the soul is stronger than the body," she posed the rhetorical question, "When this child performed the spell you've been trapped in for some time, he created a sort of paradox between physical and spiritual, as you've likely noticed. The castle, much of Narnia's countryside, as well as many of its remaining residents were... copied over into a spiritual representation of reality... the two intertwined and not at all separate from each other as they should be. The same... goes for his own body."

The lady in blue walked around to the fire and stared at the still flames, "This preserved the body... for a time, as it was still connected to the heart that was separated from it... only in reverse of the usual order. Here, body contained in heart, he retained control. However, his heart, was long since infected... a seed still grew and now in this unstable space where time flows differently than in reality, his body was affected more than ever as time what felt like years passed in a matter of what may have been only a few hours outside. They... that is, the darkness, would not leave his betrayal to stand."

At last she broke her gaze from the fire and looked to them, "Before the darkness could take his body fully, we decided to seal his body here. Frozen, in time. Alas this has only delayed the inevitable... and now when all might be set right, no one sits upon the throne, and shards of his heart thought lost forever restored, I can not undo the seal as I have been drained near dry of my power."

"Which brings us to your role," she brushed the hair from her face and stared at them with her eyes of frost, "I have watched you for some time, and know you have powers over time. If any could thaw the seal I placed on this boy and set time back in motion, it would be you."

"But it is your choice and I would have you know what it is you'd do. As it stands, this child would remain this way forever. He will not age, he will not change, he will never wake... and when the darkness reaches this place they will torture him in dreams not unlike what Liar placed upon you, for all eternity. Some of your group might think well upon this, perhaps finding justice in subjecting him to such a fate... but it is my hope you are not of this mindset."

"What I propose is this, break my seal... and set time in motion once more. Doing so will likely kill this child... but in doing so, will free him of an eternity of torture. He doesn't deserve such a fate. I have seen his light... as I feel you have too. Corrupted as it may have been, this child only wished to save everyone... and yet how easily the desire to save others could be twisted by darkness. Even this plan of his, enticing you, infuriating you, driving you forward, encouraging you to strike him down, was in hopes of protecting you. He wanted you to hate him, to loath him for what he'd done... and in his death solidify in you the resolve to do what needs to be done to survive and win this war against the darkness. But I can't let that stand, not when hope still remains... when I've seen your efforts to rekindle the lights. Please, Mateus' crimes should not be his... work with me to fix this... then maybe... we can hope for an even brighter future."  

[fractalJester]

{ ATE : Last Save : 6 }
{ Kyle ; Jenny : Louis' Heart : Final Rest }

Kyle resisted the urge to grimace as the woman spoke, an urge felt for multiple reasons.

The first reason was picky, so he did what he could to push it from his mind. The second was, of course, the foolishness of his attempt. He knew of the Darkness. Hell, he had warned Louis. And the man's great plan was to lay his heart out in the open... to die.

So blinded. So... stupid. The irrationality irked Kyle more than he cared to admit. Louis wanted to help? Why not come to Disney and be treated? Yes, he would likely be imprisoned, yes, he would likely be dealt with justice, but he would be alive and he would certainly be more useful than here as some pointlessly sacrificed pawn when there were so, so, so many other life forms in the world for the Darkness to possess.

Briefly--ever so briefly--he couldn't help but compare the man to Dawn and her pathos-driven choices. But no, perhaps that was too harsh. Perhaps.

And of all the ways to attempt some ploy, to literally open your heart to the most powerful, unimaginable foe they could encounter... What did he believe his sacrifice would do? 'Solidify their resolve,' the woman said... no, even at that line, he couldn't stop his lips from curling in distaste, at least for a second.

Some of them were lackhearts, yes. But Kyle would see the world aflame to get his brother back, and there were others who felt the same. Their issue wasn't a weak will, but an obsessive drive. Louis...

Feh.

The third reason he had to restrain his expression became obvious long before she ever made her point clear: Kyle and Jenny weren't here because they had "seen a different side." She kept mentioning it every few lines... time. They were here because they had powers over time. The woman meant well, but her choices spoke louder than her words, for where was the ever-passionate Dawn and the savior-complex'd Kyla?

And worse, she kept out those that might oppose the idea. Enter resisted-grimace four, that she believed there were people among them that would actively choose to sentence him to eternal suffering when a kinder, safer route was optional.

No, she wasn't blinded by bias at all.

Also, was everyone in this universe so possessed by an unnatural need for prose?!

"Why... didn't he just come to us for help?" Jenny asked, and she could feel how Kyle just barely held his tongue. "This whole thing... it's so..."

"When you forfeit to darkness, all you see is victory by your means or death," Kyle responded, cutting off that particular thread of conversation--whether because he didn't care or didn't want to tread for some other reason. His word choice could have been better, but he pushed on.

"You realize what you propose threatens to sentence him to eternal torment anyway, right?" Kyle said, raising a single brow in the woman's direction again, though his other eye remained narrowed. "If his body gives out before his heart, then he could be trapped in a limbo-based loop for eternity as his body rots but his heart powers on--or it could fade away and become a Nobody instead, and if he appears on the wrong side of the border, he'd just become a vessel for the same forces he wants us to oppose so badly."

"The only guaranteed way this ends well for him is for his heart to be cleansed first, and then try to restore it to his stasis-bound body--and that's only under the assumption that his heart can be properly healed to begin with," he said. There was doubt in his voice, but the source was less critique for the sake of critique, and more out of what seemed to be... concern. "Everything else is beyond risky with abysmal chances of success. The simple fact that his heart and body are not one as he approaches death basically damns him no matter what we do, save... something ridiculous. If we succeed at the core and end this spell, will his body not be freed?"  

[RhikoDemson]

{ATE: Last Save : 7}
[[Lady in Blue : Louis' Heart : Final Rest]]

"That's yet to be seen, I worry for what happens if it is not," the woman said looking at Kyle before shifting her gaze to Jenny, "If only it were so simple for him to have gone to you directly. Mateus made that nearly impossible. He stole memories from the boy, corrupted others... he did the same to entire parts of who the boy was. The pieces that would drive someone to ask for help, to think themselves worth helping were easily the first to go."  

[fractalJester]

{ ATE : Last Save : 8 }
{ Kyle ; Jenny : Louis' Heart : Final Rest }

Jenny frowned, looking back toward the body in contemplation.

Kyle expression remained frustrated, tense, as he looked away from the women and toward the time-locked fire.

It was riskier to free the man from his temporal prison than to leave him. If the body loosed its final breath before the heart was replaced... it was unprecedented. Yes, the fool boy had somehow reversed the natural order of things, but they were still tied.

If the body died before they finished with the heart, it wasn't just Louis that might be trapped in eternal torment. It would be everyone. The heart could collapse back into the body and take everything and everyone with it down into the Underworld or worse, and that's assuming the Darkness itself didn't take him from Hades entirely--it wasn't beyond reason, when Hades was just a small god for one measly world.

If they left the body in stasis but purified and fixed the heart...

... well, how would they get out? No matter what option they took, Kyle finally burrowed down to what had frustrated him so much since breaking free of Liar's illusion: how does one escape a heart? Could they count on Sora and Riku to break them free? They had the most experience... or maybe Ajora's spirit? That's right, the fraction of the Replica had been placed within the threshold of Louis, betwixt heart and body and more...

He sighed. So few guarantees. But he knew, or at least he felt confident, that what the woman suggested risked more lives than it chanced to save.

"We can't," Kyle finally said, his voice indifferent, and though Jenny cringed, she did not vocally disagree. "We can't unlock him, not the way your suggest. Should he die and his heart collapse inward before we're free, then he would drag all of us into death with him. I cannot, and will not, gamble so many lives on a plan that barely, if at all, improves a single person's chances."

"If his body could be healed--if his life force could be sustained or improved--such that his body would survive long enough outside of stasis for us to complete our tasks, then I would consider it," he said, only just then turning to face the woman. "If not..."

His hands squeezed what they held, and after chewing on his cheek for a moment, he lifted up his left hand, revealing a dull blue gemstone.

"This was once Nemesis, correct?" he asked, raising a brow. "What was he before? Before this taint and corruption?"  

[RhikoDemson]

{ATE: Last Save : 9}
[[Lady in Blue : Louis' Heart : Final Rest]]

"You saved him," the woman looked visibly surprised as she stared at the small blue crystal then smiled, "Friendship... or perhaps in another light, Rivalry."

She nodded and closed her eyes, still smiling, "He was the strongest of the shards... with the exception of Liar, who's strength only existed as long as someone believed his tales. However, Friendship was reliant on the existence of those he cared about. He held on, kept fighting, until he saw the last of his friends die in battle. That remained true and he was dormant until you brought him back. You, Kyle, gave him hope that Ajora still existed... even if only as a figment, you reminded him that his friend still existed somewhere in you. But, he is still Nemesis, and that was the closest to friend that this boy could perceive. Both, tied to the same passionate concept, it's no surprise that this boy perceived those as friends when they were someone he was at strange odds with."  

[fractalJester]

{ ATE : Last Save : 10 }
{ Kyle ; Jenny : Louis' Heart : Final Rest }

When the woman confirmed that he was Friendship and-or Rivalry, Kyle gave little reaction beyond a small nod; he had figured it was something along those lines, but he needed to be sure for his out-of-left-field idea.

However, when she stressed that he had brought him back, Kyle tensed, his jaw clenching. He briefly looked over to Jenny, who was raising a brow in his direction as well. All he could muster was a charm-based message: "Joe never hears about that."

Still, the information was useful. Of all the shards that might be most vital to one's core, Friendship was the one that proved most positive; Creativity and Curiosity were great as artistic traits, but hardly enough to support a healing heart; Justice and Morality were powerful drives but were much too easily persuaded by subjectivity; Hope, Compassion, and Esteem were certainly powerful, positive influences if nurtured, but alone were easily conquered; and Innocence... Innocence was always a fleeting concept. To be frank, Kyle wondered about the man if he still had innocence so deeply that a piece of his heart took its form.

Friendship, however, was practically the very core of Light. It was the concept of unity, of togetherness, of support. Of course, it had some concerns like all the rest: it could be persuaded into negativity by the choice of friends, and it would falter—literally—if left alone. But Kyle held on to one fact: even when breaking apart, even as Mateus tore him piece by piece from within, Louis had insisted that he was doing the best for them, in his own twisted, corrupt way. Kyle wondered, perhaps, if that unyielding drive to help was the last breath of Nemesis, because Louis all seemed to grow apathetic toward them—in Bobbi's heart—after Ajora's death.

The other shards had connected, some literally, to the group. The group had fought for them, insisted on saving them...

Kyle lowered his hand somewhat and stared down into the sapphire-like stone.

"If we could purify this shard," he said, almost as if talking to himself. "And then, maybe, establish a link between it and his body, like a... like a more solidified leash than just some natural connection, then maybe..."

His confidence fumbled as much as his words.

"I don't know. I don't know, I don't know!" he growled, turning to briskly walk away toward the empty seat, where he plopped down in frustration. "The whole thing's shot to s**t."

"What were you thinking, Kyle?" Jenny asked. "It can't make things worse to say it out loud."

"It's as much a hopeless shot in the dark as everything else."

"That's Ajora talking."

Kyle went silent, chewing on his cheek, lifting the blue shard up so that he could stare through it into the firelight, frozen in time though it was.

"Friendship is the strongest shard for the job—Liar, or Creativity, is not only not here but just in general wouldn't fit conceptually," he started. His bare arms were beginning to alight with iridescent circuitry as a soft, white flame enveloped the blue stone. "Or even if it were simply Rivalry. The point is, this is the shard that embodies connections. In the end, if... when we stop Mateus or the Darkness or whatever lies down there, when we do that, the goal is to reunite the shards of the heart, to bring them all together."

"This shard will be a part of that, but more than that, it could feasibly be the strongest catalyst for the process. All the shards have become friends, or rivals, or just comrades in general with us, with each other—and through those bonds, they could unify. This shard could draw on the power of those bonds, just like anyone else, just like Sora, and give the... reforging a better chance," he said, and though the soft flame grew more vivid, he turned to look at Louis' body. "If we can find some way to... I don't know, magically tie this shard to Louis' body, to embolden the connection between them, then upon completion, upon this spell shrinking and the heart coming together..."

"You're hoping that the connection would draw the two together again."

"It's the closest thing to 'togetherness' as we're going to get. But more than that," he said, and his shoulders seemed to sag as he sighed. "More than that, if for some reason we can't get out... then with Friendship being the foundation link of this new heart, he might have a better chance of letting us out. Or even just considering it."  

[AldrickZearse]

[ATE: Clash of Fiery Tempers]
[Vivienne: Fire Crystal Temple: Fire Crystal Room]

Vivienne walked down the long hallway, the heels of her boots clicking against the stone floor. The clerics of the temple had been clamouring about an odd disturbance lately. She had just thought it was them being paranoid from the odd way the world had changed...but now even she had felt it.

She could feel the gentle but constant heat of the fire crystal even before she entered the crystal room. It was always...comforting to her. Of course, that comfort wasn't enough to cover up the fact that the crystal was...quivering. She couldn't quite explain it, even to herself. But as the Gria entered the room, she immediately went on the defensive, her hand going to her sword on her hip, her skirt swishing around with the sudden halt.

There, right in front of the large, red crystal, was a man. He wore silks and furs, his back to her as he was bathed in the light of the crystal.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?"

The male turned, a small white stick of some sort sticking out from between his lips. He raised his thumb, the tip of it suddenly on fire, and lit the stick. He puffed on it a few times, smoke coming out of his mouth and nostrils. Vivienne realized it was a cigarette, then. They stared at each other, before the male turned back to the giant crystal.

Vivienne's grip tightened on the handle of her rapier. "State your name and purpose here, or by the Light of the Crystal I will strike you down."

The male fully turned towards her now. It was somewhat hard to make out the fine details, the light of the crystal shadowing his front, but the woman could see enough to tell that he was scruffy. The bandana on his head covered what she guessed was short hair, the vest of fur open, and she couldn't tell if that was body hair, scars, or an armor of some type beneath. She could, however, tell that he wasn't happy with her warning.

"Look, lady. I don't like threats." He puffed on the cigarette again, letting the smoke blow out of his nose, creating a vague haze around himself. "Just trying to find something."

The warrior drew her sword then. The only thing in the crystal room besides the Fire Crystal was the Orb. And there shouldn't be anyone allowed in here besides the clerics and herself without permission. And she could definitely tell he didn't have permission.

"Hey, look, I don't want to fight. No point in it, you know?" He took the cigarette out of his mouth, flicking the ash onto the floor, before sticking it back between his lips. "Put the blade away already."

She struck, thrusting her blade forward. For a moment, nothing happened. The male smirked, before raising his head at the sound of a bird of prey coming from above and suddenly tensing. Her attack, a mass of energy in the shape of a large, purple hawk, dived at the male, the energy screeching like it was the real animal.

He moved to the side, body bending back so the large bird just barely missed his front. As he started to come back up, Vivienne struck again. Only this time, she had moved forward while he was distracted by her first attack. Her blade flashed as she thrust it forward, the male wobbling as he started to bend backwards again.

She withdrew, back stepping to a safe distance, blade still at the ready. She watched as the male straightened himself out, felt himself up, then look down his nose at what was left of his cigarette. Vivienne had sliced off most of it, leaving a tiny nub that the male spit out, frowning.

"Leave now. You will get no more warning strikes." She shifted her stance slightly, ready to move into an attack, while also preparing a little magic spell to cast.

"Yeah, you're pissing me off now." He whistled, and...nothing happened. Not that she could tell, anyway. There wasn't any magic she could feel directed at her, at least. But she made her move.

She dashed forward, her spell going off as her sword was suddenly encased in ice, causing the male's eyes to widen, back stepping and arms going up in defense. As she was about to strike, she felt something behind her, causing her to switch tactics. With a final step of her dash, she spun on that foot, using her wings for balance, her blade slashing out with an almost razor wind effect coming off of it, glittering from the cold and ice that encased her blade.

She was spinning a little too fast to fully grasp what happened, just the feeling of her weapon cutting into flesh...but also grazing across metal. She dashed to the side, quickly trying to assess what happened. Apparently, a very large bat had tried to come up from behind, while the male was suddenly wearing a pair of large claws on his hands. Where had the bat come from? She knew there were some bats around, but one of that size was odd, as was it randomly attacking. And where had the claws come from? What in the name of the Crystal was going on?

The male was waving his claws like one would wave their hand when they hurt it, sprinkles of ice scattering. "What the hell?! I thought you were fire, what are you doing with ice?"

Vivienne refocused on the fight instead of the growing questions of who the man was. She moved forward again, her ice-covered blade thrusting rapidly at the male, who was on the defensive, dodging as he moved backwards, the blade glancing off his claws as he attempted to protect his more vital areas. She was still getting through, though. At least, she was managing to make glancing blows, small cuts appearing on his arms and face as she kept up her assault.

She kept pushing him, and felt a little smug as her assault worked. He was now backed against the wall, no room left to backstep. She pulled her blade back, and thrust it forward with all her strength, aimed directly for his heart. She was going to end this fight with one final, lethal blow.

He was suddenly gone, out of her direct line of sight as her blade connected with the stone of the wall, the ice shattering, the blade slicing into the stone as she suddenly felt pressure on her gut.

She flew back, her grasp on the blade gone. It was left in the wall as she went backwards, toppling over once before skidding to a halt on her knees. Apparently, the intruder had ducked down suddenly, and kicked her away. Now she was without her weapon, and he was smirking.

She got back up into her fighting stance, and concentrated on her empty sword hand. Stone suddenly appeared, her hand grasping at it as it shaped itself into a crudely shaped sword. True, it worked in a pinch, but it wasn't going to be as effective as if she had used it on an actual weapon. But she didn't allow herself to show the possible weakness of her situation. She stood strong, crude weapon at the ready as the intruder rose from the ground. His smirk lost a little of it's smugness, but it was still there.

"I can play with rocks, too." He whistled again, and Vivienne braced herself. Of course, she wasn't expecting a...what in the world was it? It burst from the male...or perhaps behind him from the wall and just moved through him. The large reptile, transparent and incorporeal, barreled towards her. Her eyes went wide, her guard going up as the thing(which she sudddenly realized was a large wyrm), even though it touched nothing before, suddenly barreled into her, the scent of rocks and earth overpowering her nose as she once again flew back, barely managing to land on her feet.

"What...in the world was that?"

The male smiled. "A new friend of mine. I have a lot of friends now. Wanna meet another?"

"Not particularly."

"Oh, but you might like this one...hey, what's your name?" THe male seemed curious as he crossed his arms.

"My name is Vivienne." She shifted her weight. She was going to try something that she hadn't done often, but she felt like she needed to do something. Anything, really, before he called that giant wyrm thing again.

"Ah, well then..." He whistled once more, and Vivienne made her move. She threw her rock sword at Azrael, quickly moving after it while summoning lightning into her hand, shaping it into a sword-like shape. She barely managed to notice something coming at her, darting along the ground, and she slashed at it with her lightning. Of course, she hit nothing, as her rock sword hit the intruder...except it seemed to do but break apart as it came into contact with a fabric cocoon the male had wrapped around himself.

She felt the small thing rub against her legs, and looked down. A transparent ginger tabby cat was rubbing against her legs. She could feel it's purring somehow, and started to feel drowsy as it curled up on the ground at her feet.

She started to fall, first to her knees, then over onto the ground as sleep suddenly started to take her. The last thing she saw before her eyes closed was the red and blue fabric falling away from the intruder. And she could swear she heard him say one thing before she succumbed to sleep.

"Goodnight, Vivienne."

-------

"Goddammn, this shouldn't have been that hard to find. Wind would have totally been easier...maybe that guardian was just lazy."

Vivienne could hear the voice of the intruder as she woke up. She was sure it was him, and started to attempt to move while opening her eyes. However, she let out a yelp of pain as a sudden pressure on her back right below her wings strengthened, keeping her in place.

She opened her eyes fully, trying to blink out the haze of sleep that she seemed caught in. She was on her belly, her arms beneath her. The pressure on her back kept her in place, but she could at least move her head around.

She could see that it was a large man with a tiger-esque tail was standing over her, his large foot apparently keeping her in place. With another turn of her head, she spotted the intruder, along with a third male, walking towards her. The initial intruder came close crouching next to her, the Orb of Fire in his hands, and in it's light, she could see that his face was free of wounds, as were his arms.

"Ah, awake already? Must be a light sleeper."

"Put that back or so help me-AH!" The b*****d standing on her pressed down again with his foot.

The intruder clicked his tongue at her, as if chiding her. "But this is what I came for. Why would I leave it? Now, if you'll excuse me." He got up, walking towards the exit of the crystal room, the other two males following close behind like good minions would.

As soon as the foot was off of her, she made her move, rolling away and into a crouched position, calling up a crude ice sword to her hand. But before she even finished the sword, the three males were suddenly gone. It wasn't even like she blinked and they vanished. They just flat out disappeared while she watched them.

She slowly stood, the sword of ice dispersing in a shower of snowflakes that sparkled in the light. There was no noise in the room besides her own heartbeat in her ears. It seemed like they were gone, the Orb with them...and the crystal seemingly unharmed.

Vivienne went to the wall where her sword remained, using her foot as leverage to draw it from the stone. With a calculated swing to get the rock dust off of it, she sheathed it, then made her way out of the room.

The clicking of her heels echoed around her. She had to tell the clerics what happened and for them to check on the state of the crystal. She needed to send out messages to the other guardians to warn them that someone took her Orb. And she needed to ready herself. She was going to go on a journey, after all.

Vivienne needed to find the orb and bring it back. Being it's guardian, she should be able to track it. Plus she wanted to give that condescending punk of a man the beating of his life. Not only did he royally piss her off, but he also didn't finish the job. She was going to go after him and make him pay.  

[Kaegoe]

[ATE : Farewell My Friend : 1]
[Dawn : Dawn's Heart : Station of Awakening]

Dawn opened her eyes after recovering from the flash of light in her eyes. To her minor surprise, she was no longer in Louis' Heart. Dawn somehow knew, she was now within the safety of her own heart. Her the light of her own Station served as the only light. Her mosaic painted her sleeping with blue roses surrounding her and a pair of small wings on her back.

[Cue: Into the New World (ballad, piano version)]

The dancer's eyes searched around the platform, and gasped when she spotted him. Louis stood there within her station on the edge. Different than he was before, now he seemed to be at ease, from his posture to the way he dressed. Like he was at peace.

Dawn, meanwhile, must of looked silly. For all she could do was stare at him with her heart racing. Her emotions ran high and held her paralyzed. So much she wanted to say. So much to ask.Yet nothing would come out. Only her eyes seemed to dance with the light with the tears that were building, but not falling.

After what seemed like forever, she took her eyes off of Louis and looked to the ground. Her hair fell in front of her face like a curtain as she whispered.

"I'm sorry..."