Welcome to Gaia! ::

Colette blushed at the compliment. Being humble in nature, receiving praise wasn't something she let herself get used to. "Alright then...but please take care. I'll let the others know." The little angel then proceeded on to the mansion, making it just as Sheena and Zelos were getting off the Rheaird. She then went back into the house with them, finding Azriel bowing deeply and fervently spewing apologies before Kratos. Giggling a bit, she went over to the winged half-elf and patted her on the shoulder. "It's okay, Azriel, really. ^_^ We're not mad at your or anything like that at all. In fact, I think it's best we end this not pointing any fingers at anyone at all."

"Y-yeah, that would be swell. I mean, I just wanna bring the good spirits back, y'know? sweatdrop Say...where's Rhone?"

"Oh...well... He's just...feeling a little down and all...after Oscuro got angry with him. He said he needed some time alone to think. He thinks that...if Oscuro's mad at him, you might be too. Is that true?"

"AAACK! gonk Th-th-that's not true at all! I mean...I'm aware you guys were right and all! It's just that...I can feel the loyalty Chiaro and Oscuro have for Master Eloysio, and how much they revered him. They know you're right too...but they can't help but feel rather offended after you all started scolding the man that feels like a father to them." sweatdrop

Colette patted her on the shoulder again. "...I can understand that. And like I said, it'll be best if we just forgive and forget from here." ^_^;;

Azriel sighed and bowed her head, her hair shadowing her eyes. Her wings also drooped to reflect the guilt she was feeling. "...I would like to go apologize to Rhone, though." She turned and headed back for the couch she was sitting on, plopping down and leaning forward. She rested her elbows on her knees, then with another sigh, sank her head between her hands. "Chiaro...Oscuro..." She uttered their names with a sort of groan in her voice.

Sheena frowned sadly after having heard everything. Turning to the red-haired former Chosen, she asked, "Augh...where do you suppose he's gone, Zelos? How long do you think he'll take?" She felt he knew more than she did, having been Rhone's friend for a while now.

Overhearing what Zelos had said, Azriel perked up rose from her seat. "Back to the Fooji Mountains, huh? Then I'll be right back." She turned and began to head for the back door again.

"Wait, Azriel!"

She stopped at Sheena's call and turned around to face her. "What is it?"

"It's broad daylight and all. And Meltokio is always bustling as the morning goes on---more people are entering the streets; what if theywould look up and see you in the sky? I know the King pardoned you a couple days back, but you do have a bounty on your head, right?"

Azriel sighed and bowed her head. "Ugh...right."

"You can always say what you want when he comes back to us," Eloysio spoke up, "Besides, do you not need some rest?" His energy hands appeared again to pick up Azriel's coat from the living room table. As they lifted it into the air and had it unfurl out, Eloysio flew out of it. Those hands then proceeded to carry the coat over to Azriel, who took it as a cue to hold her arms out while they slipped the coat onto her body. They disappeared once they were done. Then, Eloysio looked out to the rest of the group. "All of you as well? You were awake the whole night."

Colette was yawning while the small man was speaking. "...Oh! I guess you could say that."

The little angel's yawning made Azriel yawn as well. It was really Oscuro who was up all night, but they were still sharing the same body. So, the fatigue was still there. Sheena yawned too, proving it to be contagious. "Yeah...I guess we could all use some sleep before we set out for our next course of action."

"Yeah...Colette, Azriel...let's take the guest room," said Sheena, looking back for a moment as she was heading toward the stairs.

"Actually...that room seems to have only two beds. I'll be fine right here on the couch. Go on and take the other bed in that room, Colette." ^_^

Colette hesitated, a little guilty about leaving Azriel to sleep on a less comfortable surface. But, she was the one who gave the okay, so there wasn't anything she felt she could do to change her mind... ><;; "Ooh...alright then. I hope you rest well." ^_^;; She then turned and followed after Sheena up the stairs and into the guest room.

Kratos, remaining silent, leaned upon the wall by the doorway again, keeping a watch on the area. Not like much was going to happen, but there was nothing to lose in expecting the unexpected.

Azriel plopped back down on the couch, leaning back...then finally noticed the state her coat was in. "Oh...the holes are all fixed up...and it's all clean!" O.O she thought out loud.

Eloysio grinned at her realization. "That was my doing. My style of magic is more inclined toward the powers of the mind and matter manipulation. Thus I never really versed myself in the elements. Ah...I also repaired your boots."

"Gee...thanks, Master Eloysio!" mrgreen

Not a problem at all, my dear. Now get some rest." ^_^

Azriel nodded, finally leaning her head back and closing her eyes. Eloysio cocked an eyebrow for a moment...he had something on his mind as he looked at her...but shook his head and flew off to examine a bookshelf. He wasn't tired yet, having awakened just at the end of night, and he figured he would kill time trying to find something to write out his plans on.

Just as she thought she was alone, Azriel slowly opened her eyes again. All was quiet enough...she carefully leaned forward and stood up.

"Hah! I knew you wouldn't be swayed that easily!" ^_^ Eloysio exclaimed. Startled, Azriel let out a yelp and almost jumped. She looked down at her small master with wide eyes, seeing him with sheets of parchment strewn about the coffee table. He chuckled, then began to look serious. "Relax. Go on, do what you must...but be careful. And be sure you can be back before the others awaken."

"Yes, Master Eloysio," she whispered, "Thank you." After bowing in gratitude, she put on her boots and tiptoed out the back door.

Eloysio then looked in Kratos' direction with a knowing glance and adjusted his monocle. He knew he was still there and awake, but apparently he was so quiet that Azriel had forgotten he was there... He arched his eyebrows with a sort of look that questioned, "So, what are you going to do about that now?"

Kratos didn't answer him and only glanced back with a neutral expression before quietly trailing after Azriel.

"GA---mmph!" Azriel clapped both her hands over her mouth to mask her shouting. All was quiet and she was trying to be extra careful, so the sudden sound of Regal's voice startled her and also got her wings flapping wildly. After catching her breath, she regained her stature and gave Regal a grateful bow as well. "Thank you for understanding," she uttered out before taking to the sky.

Kratos stepped out just as she had gone. He wasn't at all surprised to find Regal there as well, giving him a nod of acknowledgment. If Regal didn't follow...he figured he had the same assumption as himself, that Azriel could take care of herself. Still...after a pause of staring in the direction she went, he used his wings to leap up to the roof and continue keeping watch from there.

Going as fast as she could, she reached the Fooji Mountains in a few minute's time, to see the area at the highest peak kind of banged up and an unfamiliar man approaching Rhone, who seemed to be in terrible shape. Putting two and two together, she assumed the stranger was the cause of Rhone's injuries. Alarmed, she landed right away and called out to the stranger angrily.

"HEY! Who are you and what do you think you're doing to my friend?!"

This close to the foe, Oscuro was beginning to pick up on a scent so appealing to her senses. It made her grin quite insanely.

"...Oscuro?"

Azriel started walking toward Dameo, drawing her saber and dagger. However, the jewel on her collar began to fume with dark energy. Azriel's eyes turned into the color of Oscuro's, and she began bearing the same wide, insane, fanged grin. Her fingernails stretched out into black claws---and that was as far as the manifestation could go.

"Ohohohoho...hoohoo...aheehee...ahahahahahah... And who are you who has a soul so delectable, teeming with so much evil?! I daresay I even may try to manifest fully in the daylight just to devour you!!! Azriel, Azriel...let's take him down! I hunger...I've not chanced upon a soul like his in AGES!!!"

Azriel, partly under control by Oscuro, made a mad dash for Dameo, brandishing her saber and cackling in a voice that was a combination of hers and dark self's.

Regaining her footing as she was knocked away, Azriel saw the dark wave come at her...so she held her saber vertically in front of herself and began to spin it furiously. "Black Hole." A vortex of darkness appeared before her, though not at as full in its usual potential, since Oscuro wasn't fully manifested. It was smaller than it should be, but it served to at least edge off the brunt of Dameo's attack. Azriel was sent skidding backward quite a distance, however.

"'Tche! 'Too strong', eh? Then I don't mind letting Chiaro play, so long as I can gobble up that soul in the end! AHAHAHAHAAAA~"

Oscuro's shrill cackling abruptly stopped as her features on Azriel regressed. Azriel looked a little winded from letting Oscuro do that...but still, she resolved to press on and ignore Rhone's plea.

"Well you heard Oscuro, Chiaro! Let's do this!" she exclaimed, sheathing her weapons.

Slightly panicked, Chiaro protested. "Azriel! I understand, but Oscuro tired you out some! And then having me manifest..."

"We've got to pull out all the stops and SAVE Rhone!" she retorted, "After all, isn't it kind of Oscuro's fault he came out here all on his lonesome?! I believe in you anyhow, Chiaro. You can take this guy down!"

"HEY! He was the one who...aw, SCREW IT! IN ANY CASE, WE CAN'T LET THAT SCRUMPTIOUS SOUL GET AWAY!" twisted

". . ."

Her glare still focused on Dameo, Azriel's eyes began to glow a bright red, followed by her body glowing a blinding light. After a flash, Chiaro was revealed in Azriel's place. "...Let's keep this short. Don't waste so much of my time..." she growled, materializing her axe. She then made a dash toward Dameo and spun, the head of her axe flaring with light energy. "Blazing Punishment!"

~

Back at the roof of the mansion, Kratos could feel the surge of light mana coming from Chiaro's manifestation. His eyes expressed a slight shock for a moment, then his brow creased in light annoyment.

"...That's a foolish move on her part..."

Back inside the mansion, Eloysio was still upon the coffee table, using a smaller version of his energy hands to lift a pen and write upon the parchments. He suddenly stopped and jerked in surprise, having felt the surge of Chiaro's power as well. After rubbing his chin for a moment, he sat cross-legged and began adjusting his monocle until he could get a view of what was going on wherever Azriel was at, from her point of view. He was the collar's creator, after all, thus he still had a connection to it and could exercise that kind of power with it.

Chiaro narrowed her eyes into a dry stare. "What is this foolishness, really," she uttered flatly, "It takes more than a pathetic, cheap trick to distract me from my target." She caught the shadowy Azriel's attacks with the side of her axe, flinging her aside a good distance with a swing of her arm. Ignoring the doppelganger at that point, she continued on toward Dameo. Once near, she leapt and made her axe blaze again, then descended, crying out, "Flash Destruction!"

Unable to exercise much control over the follow-through of her assault, Chiaro had no choice but to let it fall upon the shadow copy of Azriel. Down it went, smashed into the earth, disintegrating among the surge of light energy dispersed into it.

In the mindspace, Azriel let out a shrill gasp and toppled over, feeling as if an immense weight had just been dumped on top of her. She also felt very drained and weakened. Oscuro gasped as well and her eye twitched as she saw her host fall down, and she rushed closer to her side and dropped to her knees to look over her.

Breathing heavily, Azriel uttered, "What...the hell...was that...??"

Seeing that Azriel reacted as she laid that blow on her shadow copy, Chiaro pieced together what was going on, and her eyes began to blaze a brighter red in anger. "Azriel!!! ... ... ...You...YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!" She held her free hand out before her in the direction of Dameo and began charging a sphere of light before it. At the cry of "Catena Luce!" several strands of light-energy chains shot our of the sphere toward Chiaro's target.

~

In the mansion, where Eloysio watched through his monocle, he caught sight of the underhanded technique that this purple-skinned enemy used and understood the context. He began to clench his fists and seethe with anger...all of a sudden, rattling and rustling sounds could be heard throughout the manor. It was as if there were an earthquake...only it wasn't the foundation that was shaking, just every loose object in the house.