Text Afterworld

[Sarrin 100]

Yes things are moving along nicely, i can't way for it to all go up in flames, and thats not a figure of speech, i'm expecting actual flames

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, I know, right? Things are definitely heating up, and thanks, I'm glad you like Bane so far! I'm sure you'll like him even more as the story progresses!

 

To Sarrin, lol, thanks man, I appreciate the feedback! Oh, and you want to see flames, eh? Well, things will definitely heat up, so to speak!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope that all of you are doing okay! So then, here is another chapter! I hope you all find it to your enjoyment! And well, I hope you’ve all had a great May so far! For me, at least, it’s been an awesome month, and it’ll be even more awesome once Comic-Con rolls around! I’m going to go on the 27^th and 28^th, cosplaying as Sora in his Kingdom Hearts III outfit! I couldn’t be more excited, the wait is just killing me!!!! But anyways, I’m rambling on, here’s the next chapter, everyone!

 

Chapter Eighteen: A Deteriorating World

 

(Start Song Here)

                Ilia was at unease. Over the course of the past few days, the situation has gone from bad to worse, and the people have sunken into outright panic! She has tried her best to soothe them, tried her best to ensure them that things will turn out okay. But no matter how hard she’s tried, her attempts have failed, and now, everyone is in a state of ultimate unrest. The Everbloom Knights are finding it hard to contain the panic the people are feeling, and they themselves are starting to feel the weight of fear come onto them.

 

                She hasn’t been sleeping for the past couple of days, and her stress and tiredness was immediately apparent by the bags under her eyes. The dark shadows beneath them showed her fatigue, and her usually elegant and beautiful appearance was dimmed out, for the stress was getting to her. She didn’t know what else to do! And so she sat just outside of her home, looking at the trees, and seeing how even they seemed to stay stiff, with not a single bit of breeze passing through! She put her hands on her face, and she started to weep. She couldn’t hold face anymore…she had to let this out…she couldn’t take any more suffering! She was frustrated, sad, worried, all at once! She sighed and looked up at the sky, and saw that it was overcast. She closed her eyes as tears streamed down her face.

 

                “So, I take it you aren’t okay…?” a voice asked out of the blue. Ilia looked to her left and saw Saphira coming towards her. She gave her a sad smile.

 

                “Is it that obvious?” she asked sarcastically. Saphira sat down beside her, and they both looked on towards the trees, observing their grim nature.

 

                “Everything has gone to hell, Ilia…with Vincent gone, and with Eros saying that he won’t come to any more of our counsels…I believe we’re at a point where this alliance is crumbling, and it’s crumbling fast…” Saphira said, also bearing the hint of depression in her voice. Ilia observed her and noticed that she wasn’t as beaten down as she was, but even so, she could still tell that Saphira was also having a hard time sleeping.

 

                “In only a matter of days, the world we’ve known up till now has crumbled down. Who knew that we were so dangerously flawed?” Ilia asked, chuckling to herself out of despair.

 

                “It’s the Calamity all over again, I suppose…” Saphira thought aloud.

 

                “Do you think we’re in a similar situation?” Ilia asked, curious over Saphira’s comment. The Stormtracer leader kept quiet for a moment before answering.

 

                “Well, think about it this way.” she started.  “The Calamity occurred because mankind was heading towards a downward spiral towards destruction. What we’ve known our whole lives is that the Earth we live in now is a changed one, different, vastly different from the one our predecessors lived in. Back then, before the Calamity struck, the world was completely different! There were no powers, there were no circumstances like the ones we face now. Mankind was a different kind of species back then. Their hunger, greed and lust for power blinded them…and it looks like that is what’s happening to us, but with different circumstances.” she explained, as she put a strand of her hair behind her ear. “The world as we know it is crumbling because of our differences, our fear and our flaws. The darkness that’s coming is just another form for the Calamity to take. Whenever this planet is in danger, whenever it feels that its life is threatened, things like this happen in order to eradicate the threat at hand.  And I think this time…we are the threat…” she said bluntly. She then shook her head, as if she had said something unbelievable!

 

                “Well, that’s what I think, anyway…but I do often read much, so maybe I’m just letting the books get to me…” she said, waving her hand dismissively.

 

                “No…you’re right.” Ilia replied, a serious look on her face. “We are the cause of this. Our refusal to help Vincent, our stubbornness when it comes to dealing with other clan’s affairs…we are scum…” she said, disgusted! Before anything else could be said, their conversation was interrupted by the Oracle, who had come by, and he seemed to be bearing some ill tidings, for he was hurriedly approaching them.

 

                “Lady Ilia…things are quite grim…” he said.

 

                “What is it now?” Ilia asked, worried.

 

                “I must show you two, inside….” the Oracle gestured to the two, as they stood up and followed him into Ilia’s house. He seemed to be holding something in his hand.  A round object that had a blue glow to it. What could it be was the question, and they would soon find out the answer to it! They kept walking until they arrived at Ilia’s garden. In a small table, the Oracle laid out the sphere he was holding, and he placed it firmly in the center.

 

                “What is that?” Ilia asked.

 

                “A vision orb. It’s a rare item, and one that allows you to see what goes on in other places. I was able to get my hands on one, given how the situation stands, and I decided to bring it here. I’ve heard from many people that things are getting considerably worse the world over. With this orb, you can see how it’s all faring…” the Oracle explained, as he waved his hand over the orb, transferring a bit of his energy to it. Saphira and Ilia both fixed their gazes upon the orb.

 

                At first, there was nothing but gray mists, nothing in particular was showing. But then, the mist started to dissipate, and slowly, things started to take form!

 

                First were the Wildlands. The darkness was spreading, rotting everything in its path, causing the trees to die and the grass to burn! The very earth itself was crackling and floating slowly up in chunks, as a vast void was laying its way through the broken land.

 

                Then, there were many towns and cities being shown. Shadow Blights were overrunning them, and the people of said towns and villages were being devoured and slaughtered! Bandits, enemy armies were laying siege and plundering the villages and taking over the towns. They were setting up outposts, and were driving the clans back! Homeless children were crying for their parents, fearing that they were dead…thousands upon thousands of dead, torn apart by Shadow Blights, decimated by enemy soldiers!

 

                Afterwards, they could see Pyros. Vincent’s fiery homeland seemed to be dimming, as if the great fires that boiled from Mt. Terios were being snuffed out! The people of Pyros seemed to be safe, but unknown to them, their land was also suffering. The Barren Plains were giving way, what once was solidified lava was now melting into the fiery liquid once again, forming a sea of lava from which no one could pass! Ember Town seemed small compared to the vast change the landscape was going through…

 

                After that, Stoneberg came into view. Eros was hard at work with Grall and his men, trying to repair the city. But even so, they had their own crosses to bear. They were laying to rest brothers in arms, as Saphira and Ilia could see the dead bodies of Eros’s people, as they were being buried into the earth. Stoneberg as a whole was fractured. The people could be seen packing their things, apparently ready to leave. Many wanted to stay with Eros, but others feared for the worst and wanted to leave. It was apparent that this was all bearing down on Eros, who was truly trying his best to unify his people…

 

                And finally, they saw World’s Edge, and they could see that now, a giant, slow moving sphere of darkness was slowly trudging its way throughout the land, spawning countless hungry Shadow Blights that were on the prowl! All nearby life was being snuffed out by the darkness, and more abysses kept appearing everywhere…it was getting catastrophically worse.

 

                Saphira and Ilia drew away, and their faces bore grim expressions.

 

                “That is all that has come to pass for now…” the Oracle mentioned, as he then drew silent.

 

                Saphira and Ilia were at a loss for words. They knew that things were incredibly bad, but to think that they had gone to this extent was nothing if not overwhelming! The three of them remained silent in the garden, as grim silence overtook them, almost as if everything around them had completely halted, as if time itself had been rattled at its core!

 

                “There’s no way to remedy this…it’s all gone too far…” Saphira expressed, a bit breathless.

 

                “I fear that we may already be too late…” Ilia said, her voice breaking slightly.

 

                “That’s not necessarily true! Yes, the situation does look bleak, but as long as you two keep heart and that things are able to get under control, surely there’s still a way to turn this situation around, don’t you think?” the Oracle spoke, trying to reassure them.

 

                “I don’t see how we can turn this around. Eros and Vincent are off the radar, so to speak, and our own forces are disoriented. We’re all just sitting ducks at this point…” Ilia answered, rubbing her head as she gave out a heavy sigh.

 

                Suddenly, the ground started to shake violently!

 

                “Huh? What is this!? Why is the ground shaking so violently!?” Saphira exclaimed, as she nearly fell to the ground!

               

                “I-I don’t know! It’s so sudden!” Ilia replied, balancing herself. The Oracle wobbled a bit, but managed to remain on his feet as well.

 

                “That was surely ominous…” the Oracle replied, somewhat worried. And then, almost as if his words had been caught by the wind, the whole garden suddenly started to deteriorate! The plants were withering away and rotting, and their once vibrant colors were now being stripped off! The waters feeding the plants dried up, and the garden as a whole became dim, lifeless! Saphira, Ilia and the Oracle looked towards the entryway to the garden in alarm, and they saw someone coming towards them! He had a cloak on, and underneath his cloak there seemed to be garments such as a gentleman would wear! The man stopped a short distance away from the others and then revealed his face!

 

                “Ah, hello there ladies, and hello there, Oracle. I do apologize for the trouble, but I fear that urgent business has me moving about.” he expressed in a gentlemanly manner.

 

                “Who the hell are you!?” Saphira exclaimed as she summoned her lance and immediately lunged towards the man, who dodged the attack quickly and then summoned forth his sword! He smiled at Saphira, which greatly annoyed her! Ilia knew better than to recklessly charge in, so she remained in place, observing the man closely.

 

                “Well then, I am Beriel, and I know that you two are Saphira Sablewind and Ilia Thornwood, leaders of the Stormtracer and Lifespring clans, respectively! A pleasure to make your acquaintance face to face! I had always wondered if the rumors were true! It seems that the both of you are quite elegantly beautiful women indeed! And to think that you have such power! That is worthy of respect, my esteemed ladies!” the old man said, in a form of wicked compliment.

 

                “What is your purpose here, Beriel?” Ilia asked, hostility apparent in her voice.

 

                “Ah, well, you see, my business is not with you, or with Saphira.” he said, as he brushed off Saphira’s lance and then disappeared momentarily, only to reappear behind the Oracle, placing his sword near his throat! “You see, I’ve come for this lad right here! He proves important, so I suggest that you let me take him peacefully, or otherwise, I can’t guarantee that there won’t be any bloodshed. And if we’re honest, I do hate spilling the blood of a lady…” Beriel answered, with a sly smile on his lips. He seemed quite pleased with himself, while the Oracle was struggling to break free of his hold!

 

                “Let me go!” the Oracle exclaimed. Ilia, on instinct, placed her hands on the ground, and sharp thorns jetted out, and one of them almost pierced through Beriel’s foot! He jumped back, with Oracle and all, and he looked at the thorns, and he seemed impressed, but then shook  his head, almost disappointed.

 

                “Hmm, you know, for being the leader of the Lifespring, your powers are surprisingly weak!” he expressed. Ilia couldn’t help but agree, for she did feel weak!

 

                “W-why? Why are my powers dwindling?” she asked to herself, as she tried summoning forth her thorn blade, but the attempt ended in failure, the blade coming out misshapen and withered!

 

                “It seems as though Vincent’s exodus is starting to have its effect…” Beriel mentioned.

 

                “What the hell do you mean by that!?” Saphira growled as she shot forth wind barrages towards the man, but he merely dodged through them and even jumped through one of the wind barriers, coming out unharmed, and with the Oracle still in tow! He then landed a bit further away from the two and looked at an alarmed Ilia!

 

                “Remember, Vincent and his clan are responsible for bringing light to the world, and as such, that light, those flames, they are essential to everything you do, madam Ilia! Why, without the sun, do not plants die? Without the light of life, they do not bloom. And so, it seems, that your power is starting to be snuffed out for lack of that essential flame…” Beriel explained. Ilia looked at her hands, his words ringing in her head.

 

                “That’s…that’s bad…” Saphira stammered, looking to Ilia and noticing that she was on the verge of having a breakdown!

 

                “Indeed, it is! I know not what danger should befall the Lifespring if they continue going about without the light of the Scorched. I think that’s something you should look into, don’t you think?” he asked. Saphira was enraged, and she was just about to get the jump on the man, but he foresaw her sneak attack and blocked her lance with his sword, all while still holding the Oracle close, while the Oracle was desperately trying to free himself!

 

                “Madame Saphira, I do believe that this rage is unbecoming of you! Aren’t you supposed to be the neutral one in all this? That means you should have a level head! But what I have seen so far does not symbolize any level-headedness of any sort! Not in the slightest!” Beriel said, in a disappointed tone.

 

                “Shut up!” Saphira shouted, as she attempted to thrust Beriel, but he only kept dodging, and then he counterattacked with a quick flurry of attacks with his sword! He then leapt back and caught his breath.

 

                “Hoo. I will admit, this little back and forth has taken a bit of energy from me! You are a lot heavier than you look, young man!” Beriel said to the Oracle, who was trying to shake himself off from the old man’s hold!

 

                “You come back here!” Saphira shouted, but was then repelled by a dark wave that came from behind Beriel! He glanced back and then realized that this was his cue.

 

                “Well then, my esteemed ladies, I do believe this is where we part ways for now. This was a nice chat! We should gather together again, if it’s this much fun to be around you, then I will gladly treat you two to a good time once more!” he said, as he began to walk away, while Shadow Blights started to materialize! Saphira clenched her fists as she saw the man disappear with the Oracle, and she felt frustrated and helpless!

 

                “Damn it, this can’t be happening!” she thought to herself, and then she looked at Ilia, who had a blank stare on her face, as if she had zoned out completely!

 

                “No, no, no, don’t do this to me now, Ilia!” Saphira said in panic, as she shook Ilia, trying to snap her out of it! She could stand her ground and attempt to hold off the Shadow Blights, but too many of them were forming, and even she wasn’t going to be able to hold them off and protect Ilia at the same time!

 

                “Damn it!” Saphira thought, as she then concentrated her energy and formed a wind bubble, where and Ilia took shelter!  Carrying her on her back, she leapt out of the garden, and out of Ilia’s house. What she saw once she was out was a disturbing sight…Eternia Glade was rotting, burning, being overtaken by darkness!

(End Song Here)

---

 

                Elsewhere, Vincent and the others had already passed beyond the bridge they had been meaning to cross in order to get to the Northern Continent. Ever since then, they had traveled through vast expanses of ruined cities, skyscrapers tall and grim, overtaken by nature and crumbling from such long ages in abandonment. Through these ruined landscapes, they came upon nothing, except for a few rare creatures here and there and some small number of Shadow Blights, but it wasn’t something that bordered on life threatening. In fact, the last life threatening thing they had faced was the creature that had been blocking the bridge!

 

                And so, the small group of Scorched travelers kept pressing onward, to whatever awaited them! There were a few times when they had stopped to take some rest and eat, but the further they went, the less frequent these rests were. Time was of the essence, and Vincent felt uneasy, for he could sense that things were not okay.  Audrey noticed that he was troubled, and she walked towards him, as Seth and the others remained behind, vigilant over the terrain they were walking on. Not to mention that Kalciru was there as well, having decided to keep closely to the group!

 

                “Hey, you okay? You seem to be particularly troubled.” she asked, observing his face as he was going through the motions. He stopped for a moment, and he seemed uneasy. His fists were trembling, and he found himself shaking slightly! When he realized this, he quickly brushed the feeling off, and he gave off a deep sigh.

 

                “Audrey…I can feel that things are starting to get worse. The darkness…it’s growing ever closer…and even my flames…I can feel that something’s changed within…have you felt it as well?” he asked. Audrey admittedly frowned and nodded, looking at her hand as she summoned forth a spark of flame that seemed to be slightly dim!

 

                “Yeah…I know what you mean. All of us have felt it too. And I don’t like what this entails. Yes, I know we want to get rid of our powers, but in order to reach the Northern Continent, we need to be able to still have our powers so we can survive the journey…and as things stand now, well, I honestly don’t know what to make of this!” she answered, feeling a bit distressed herself. Vincent put his hand on her shoulder in reassurance, and he looked onward, to the barren ruins that lay before their path.

 

                “With each step we take, we’re getting closer to our freedom. I’m telling you, after we have everything solved, I know that we’ll have a different life. A life where we won’t have to fear death at every corner…it’s almost there, Audrey! I can feel it!” he said, as he grasped the air, as if grabbing an invisible object in midair! Audrey gave him a smile, and she put her hands behind her back and gave a relieved sigh.

 

                “That heart and determination is what keeps us going, you know? As long as you have heart, we have the strength to follow you.” she said. They looked into each other’s eyes at that moment, and it seemed as though time had stopped momentarily. They were soon snapped back into reality when Seth came to them in a huff!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Guys! It’s one of ours! Lita! She’s gone ill all of a sudden!” he exclaimed in alarm! Vincent and Audrey quickly ran towards Lita and the others that were gathered around her. They all had worried expressions on their faces. Vincent took a good look at her and noticed that she was deathly pale, and her eyes seemed to be glowing with a faint, yellow light.

 

                “Lita…” Seth murmured, as he felt frustrated and held her hand, trying his best to hold back his tears. Everyone else bowed down their heads, and Vincent held her hand, and his eyes began to water.

 

                “What is this…? Why have you gone so ill so suddenly?” he asked, not understanding why she was going through this predicament! Lita only shook her head and closed her eyes, her veins starting to glow with a faint orange tinge.

 

                “My body is failing me, Lord Vincent…I think that I’m about to die now…” she said, almost in a whisper. The others were weeping and cursing under their breaths, and some of them walked away, not being able to take the grief of the situation! Kalciru seemed to be sympathetic towards the situation, as he sat behind her, and he rested her head on his lap. He placed his hand on her forehead and calmed her.

 

                “It’s alright now, soldier. You’ve come on a long journey, and you’ve made it this far. You’ve sacrificed much for your people and for the ones you love, I’m sure. I’m afraid you are correct, though. You are going to die.” Kalciru said. Vincent and the others looked at him, and they couldn’t find any words to say to remedy the situation. They fell silent, and let Kalciru speak to her.

 

                “No doubt that you have wondered all your life what happens when you die. Have you ever wondered about that?” he asked to her. She looked up at him, with tears in her eyes, and nodded slowly.

 

                “Well, let’s just say that I have had a…”near death” experience, so I can tell you more or less how it feels. For a moment, it feels cold and dark, as if all essence of light is leaving you. It’s like you are sinking in a black hole, unable to escape. And when you start to feel the cold get to your eyes, suddenly, it all falls into place. You feel a certain peace…you suddenly start to feel warmth. You see, death isn’t the end…it’s a beginning. Or, well, at least, that’s what I’d like to believe. As I said, “near death” so I don’t know what it means to completely die…but I have no doubt that your soul will find its rest peacefully.” Kalciru said in a soothing voice. Lita’s eyes remained fixed on him the whole time, and she stopped crying, almost as if she had calmed down. The others were spellbound by Kalciru’s words, and they were left speechless.

 

                “And now, here you are, your body about to give way to the cursed flames inside you. But rest assured, know that you died doing your best to help your people be free of this fiery burden. Go to peace knowing that, brave one.” Kalciru said, as he placed his hand on her forehead. She closed her eyes, and then she opened them again and looked at Vincent.

 

                “I’m so sorry that I couldn’t do more to help, my lord…” she whispered. Vincent held her hand tightly.

 

                “You don’t have to apologize.  You did everything you could and more for our people…you can go in peace…” Vincent said, with a sad smile as tears rolled down his face. Lita smiled, and as she let go of Vincent’s hand, her body slowly became ash, as the flames inside her incinerated her, and in a sudden burst of flame, she completely turned to ash, and the wind slowly carried her ashes away…

 

                “Damn it…damn it!!!” Vincent cried out, as he slammed the ground with his fist, as tears of frustration and sorrow came down! He lay down on the floor, and Audrey hugged him, crying as well. Seth also hugged Vincent, his tears rolling down, and all the others wept, as another of their own faded away into nothingness.

 

                “It’s not…fair! It’s not fair, damn it! She’s another of the countless of lives that have paid for having these cursed flames inside us! Damn it all to hell, it’s not fair!” Vincent cried, as he kept pounding the ground in frustration, his fists getting bruised…

 

                “This is no life…it’s hell! I can’t let this happen to us…I can’t bear to lose anyone else!” Vincent said, as he completely lost his composure. He let his emotions completely take over, and he wept uncontrollably, cursing the fate of his people…cursing himself for being helpless to do anything, and cursing the world for making his people what they are…Kalciru seemed to have been affected by Vincent’s words, for his expression had turned completely grim. He turned away from the others and looked towards the horizon, as if contemplating something in his heart…of memories from another time…

 

                “Vincent…there’s nothing that we could have done…her time was up. She’s gone….” Seth said. “We have to carry on for her, and for all those we’ve lost!”

 

                “Seth’s right, Vincent. We can’t stop…we’re getting closer and closer, like you said! It’s just a matter of time, and we’ll finally be free!” Audrey said, holding Vincent tightly. After a few seconds of silence, Vincent slowly stood up, his eyes red from the tears. He looked at the others, and his face bore a grim, defeated expression.

 

                “We keep moving forward…we won’t stop now. For everyone we’ve lost…we have to finish what we started…now let’s go!” Vincent commanded, and the others loyally followed him, with anger, despair, determination, drive and sorrow in their hearts all at once!

 

                “I’m sick of this…this isn’t a fair thing to happen…it’s injustice, and I won’t stand for it!” Vincent thought to himself, as he clenched his fists and kept walking. He walked ahead of the others, wanting to be left along with his thoughts, and the others remained silent and followed him.

(End Song Here)

---

 

                Back to Saphira and Ilia’s situation, Saphira had taken Ilia a ways away from Eternia Glade. She didn’t know how she’d tell her friend that her home was being destroyed…she was in too much shock as it was, and bringing down the news that her home was being decimated would not help matters. Saphira was at a loss with what to do, and she paced back and forth worriedly, mumbling to herself and trying to think clearly in order to come up with some kind of plan. Right now, Ilia’s forces were scattered, divided, or worse…they could have been consumed by the darkness that overcame Eternia Glade! In any case, things were dire, and right now, Saphira couldn’t wait around and hope that Ilia’s people would find them. She then stopped pacing when she saw Ilia talking to herself, cradling herself back and forth, her eyes wide and her irises like dots…she looked pitiful and broken.

 

                “Ilia…please don’t do this to me now…don’t break on me when things are at their worst…” she said, kneeling in front of Ilia and putting her hand on her shoulder. Ilia got alarmed and backed away a bit, and then she looked down to the ground.

 

                “This is not going to remedy itself, Saphira…we’re all going to die…it’s over. We’ve lost, and we were blind to everything else that was happening…I let this happen.” she mumbled to herself over and over, every time she said that sentence, it was like she was punishing herself with a whip! For each time she repeated that sentence, she winced and trembled!

 

                “This is bad…this is really bad…” Saphira thought as she stood up and placed her hands on her forehead, as she felt a slight headache come over her.

 

                “We’re pitiful…we’re nothing more than useless puppets in an ongoing game played by the cruel hands of life…heh, we’re nothing more than pawns…” Ilia rambled on. These words caused Saphira to snap, and she then turned around, forced Ilia up and then smacked her right on the face, and hard! Ilia was taken aback by this, and for a moment, she seemed to have frozen in place! She then rubbed her cheek and shook her head and snapped out of it, and she realized that she had been lost within herself!

 

                “Saphira…I’m so weak…” Ilia said, as she wept and embraced Saphira, who embraced her back. Saphira sighed and rubbed her back, trying to comfort her as best as she could.

 

                “We are all weak, Ilia…this isn’t a burden just for you to bear. It’s a burden for you, me, Eros and Vincent to bear. So don’t feel like you’re the only one who has to deal with this. I’m here, and together, I know that we can at least try to make things better…” she said, trying her best to reassure Ilia that things were okay for the moment. Ilia then walked towards a small hill, and she kept walking up, until she stopped and then sighed.

 

                “Eternia Glade…it’s no longer there, is it?” she asked. Saphira remained silent for a moment, not knowing how to answer. Ilia took this silence as confirmation, and Saphira saw her clench her fists. She then turned around and walked past Saphira, until she reached a small patch of dirt.

 

                “Ilia, what are you doing?” Saphira asked, as she saw Ilia putting her hand on the dirt, and then focusing her energy on it. Saphira could then see that small roots began to form, but they were not fully powerful, due to the power of the Lifespring dwindling…

 

                “This is a message to all Everbloom Knights…to all my people who have survived! If any of you still live, make way for any safe haven that you can find, and remain there until things are remedied. Everbloom Knights, do your best to find me. I will be on the move alongside Saphira, leader of the Stormtracers. The Oracle has been abducted by a mysterious enemy, and we’re going to get him back. I hope that we’ll meet any of you along the way. Please be alive, and above all…please be safe.” Ilia spoke to the roots, and then she buried them underground, where the roots traversed through all the land! Even though her powers were weakening, she figured that at least this simple communication technique would work, sending her message to any of her people that would hear…

 

                “Then how are we going to find the Oracle? We don’t even know where that man took him. For all we know, he could be hundreds, even thousands of miles away from us! We wouldn’t even know where to begin to look!” Saphira explained, placing her doubts. But Ilia shook her head and then closed her hand into a fist, concentrating her energy on it and then placing her hand in front of herself, then opening it into a palm and releasing some form of energy, a small green mist, as it were!

 

                “He has the essence of our people, and as such, I can be able to track him if I focus my energy hard enough. I know that my powers are weak as of now, but I think I can put them to good use by tracking him!” she explained. Saphira shook her head, and she looked rather uneasy.

 

                “I don’t like this, Ilia…that enemy is someone we’ve never encountered before, and he seems to be quite powerful. What could he possibly want with the Oracle, and the question also is, are there more like him?” Saphira asked.

 

                “That’s just something that we’ll have to find out! But all I know is that we can’t leave the Oracle…I don’t want to imagine anything bad happening to him. We have to save him!” Ilia said, firm in her conviction. Saphira, though readily uneasy, gave out a sigh and then nodded to Ilia, and then put her hands on her hips.

 

                “Alright then, but let’s hope that your tracking skills can be able to lead us to the Oracle quickly…there are many other things we have to attend to, not to mention that the state of the world is getting worse by the minute. We have to be quick about this!” Saphira urged. Ilia nodded, and then she pointed southwards, towards a downward leading path.

 

                “This way is where we should start.” Ilia state.

 

                “Right. Lead the way.” Saphira replied, as the two began their quest to rescue the Oracle. Hopefully they could be able to save him in time…

 

---

 

                Meanwhile, Beriel had arrived at what appeared to be an ancient sanctuary! At least, it looked to be ancient, for it looked like no one had used it for many centuries! He bound the oracle in dark chains and then sat him on the ground, near the entrance to the sanctuary, and then the old man sat beside him, and he gave out a yawn.

 

                “Ooh, these events can be quite exhausting, if you ask me!  All these theatrics, all of these machinations and opposition. It really tuckers a gentleman out!” he rambled on, as the Oracle simply remained silent. “But all this mess will have been worth it when our ultimate goal has been achieved. After that, I think I can finally get myself a long deserved rest…” he said, and then he too, fell silent, as he clasped his hands together, and then closed his eyes.

 

                “A long deserved rest…” he thought to himself, as old memories came to him in brief flashes.

 

                A wife and a daughter.

 

                A small but beautiful house.

 

                A simple life.

 

                “For things to be as they were…” he thought to himself, as he let his thoughts take wing, departing on a trek through his memories…

----------------------------------------

 

Eternia Glade is being consumed by the ever threatening darkness, and the world continues to deteriorate at a rapid pace! With the Oracle now captured, Saphira and Ilia set out to rescue him! Will they be able to do so? That remains to be seen, but next chapter, we will venture through the memories of Beriel in Chapter Nineteen: “A Gentleman’s Life.”

 

Well everyone, that’s it for today! And yes, you read right! Next chapter, we’ll be delving into Beriel’s backstory! So you’ll finally get to learn more about him! I hope you’ll all look forward to the next chapter! Thank you all for your love and support, and I hope you keep sticking with me as this story continues! Let me know what you thought about tonight’s chapter, and as always, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

This was intense to read, wow.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, heh, you won't be emotionally ready for what's about to go down!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope that all of you are doing okay! So then, here’s another chapter, and this time around, we’ll be delving into Beriel’s backstory! I hope you all find it interesting to read! Because I’m sure you’ll like what’s in store! Anyways, I’m not gonna keep bragging, so let’s just get to the chapter at hand, shall we?

 

Chapter Nineteen: A Gentleman’s Life

 

(Start Song Here)

                Beriel then found himself going back into his own mind, tracing through his memories, as he traveled through long forgotten things about his life, and things he cherished. Eventually, the memories passing him by halted at one particular one. A small house, made of wood and concrete, surrounded by countryside. There was a chimney, and there was a small well just outside of the house. It was the middle of summer, as he recalled, and the sun was high above the sky. He stood there, watching this memory play out in his mind, and he saw his daughter running out the door. An adorable little girl, seven years of age! She had dark, silver hair, tanned skin and green eyes, and she wore a blue shirt with a cat emblem on it and some shorts! She was barefoot, for she loved to feel the grass underneath her feet! Even though her mother had told her time and again that she should have her sandals on, the little girl would just giggle and run away to cause mischief.

 

                “My little Esmeralda…” Beriel whispered to himself, as he choked up on just mentioning the name. The name of his dear daughter…

 

                As he saw her play, he also saw someone else come out of the house. A beautiful woman, with long, dark silver hair, tanned skin, and green eyes. Esmeralda was a spitting image of her! She had a long, white dress that shone brilliantly with the sun!

 

                “Lania…” Beriel whispered, reaching out, though he knew it was for naught. He knew that this was just a memory he was witnessing, and nothing more. He couldn’t even speak to them, and it hurt him deeply.

 

                Then, he saw a younger version of himself passing just by him. He chuckled as he saw himself. Back then, he was a person who loved to work and provide for the family. Right now, in this particular memory, he remembered that he had just come home from the woods, looking for some logs for the chimney. He had his axe, and he had tattered working clothes, and he had quite the sweat worked up!

 

                “Hello, my dears, I’m home!” his younger self declared!

 

                “Daddy, daddy, you’re back!!!” Esmeralda squealed in joy, as she raced to him and hugged him as he picked her up and gave her a hug as well.

 

                “How’s my little girl!? What have you been up to since I was gone this morning?” he asked with enthusiasm, a shine in his eyes!

 

                “I had just come out of the house to play! I was going to see if I could discover some new bugs! That way, I can become famous!” Esmeralda declared, with the fiery determination of the most inspiring of people! This made a young Beriel laugh, and he enjoyed his little girl’s response!

 

                “Oh, that’s my girl! You’re always doing amazing things!” he replied with great joy, making the little girl’s face brighten up even more!

 

                “Well, it looks like our daughter is on the hunt for legendary bugs. Let’s see how far that search takes her, am I right?” Lania asked, her bright smile illuminating and refreshing. It was the smile that Beriel had fallen in love with, and the two of them kissed each other, while Esmeralda made puking faces!

 

                “Ewww, mommy, daddy, go do that somewhere else! It’s disgusting!” Esmeralda said as she squirmed out of her father’s arms and then ran towards the yard to play, giggling all the way! Beriel and Lania watched her play, and they smiled as she did so.

 

                “So, I see that you got enough logs for the chimney, so that’s good!” Lania said, observing the results of Beriel’s work.

 

                “Yep! Should last us for a while!” he replied. He then seemed a bit nervous, for he was twiddling his fingers and seemed to be trying to say something. Lania caught on to this and she crossed her arms.

 

                “Hey, you okay? You get awfully quiet when there’s something you want to say. What is it?” she asked.

 

                Beriel, watching this memory unfold, chuckled and shook his head slowly.

 

                “Heh, you were always quite the astute observer, my love…” he said to himself, as he watched his younger self trying to find what to say.

 

                “Well, you see…oh, I was going to wait until next week for our anniversary, but I just couldn’t wait any longer!” he exclaimed! Lania was caught off guard and she seemed a bit confused.

 

                “Wait, what? What do you mean? What is it?” she asked, hanging on Beriel’s words!

 

                “Well, it’s my Anniversary present to you…we’re going to travel the world together, along with our daughter! I finally have enough money, and I’ve talked with a few of my friends! I already have everything ready, it’s all just a matter of waiting till next week, and we’ll travel the world and see new sights! Surprise!” Beriel said, extending his arms wide and making a silly pose! Esmeralda was shocked for a moment but then her shock became a smile, and then she hugged him and kissed him.

 

                “That’s wonderful news, darling! Such wonderful news!” she said. The two of them smiled and held each other’s hands. Beriel was happy he had told her ahead of time about this surprise, and he couldn’t wait for that trip.

(End Song Here)

 

                “It was to be a simple, beautiful thing…so simple…” Beriel thought, as that memory faded away, and then brought to light another memory.

 

                A week had passed, and all preparations for the trip were made ready. Beriel couldn’t have been more excited, and he could see that excitement on Lania and Esmeralda’s faces as well! He had been looking forward to this for quite some time! He had been working hard to ensure that this trip would happen, since it was something he had talked about with Lania since long before they had their daughter. And now, they were finally going to live out this dream!

 

                “Oh, I almost forgot, I need to get my bag!” Beriel said, as he went into his room and searched for a big, black bag. He had a few things in it, such as clothes, utilities and other things of the sort. He was double checking everything to ensure that everything was in its place, when suddenly, he heard an aggressive knocking on his door. This jolted him out of concentration, and his heard immediately looked at the direction of the door to his room. He heard the knock again, and then he saw Esmeralda running from the living room straight to where Beriel was, and she seemed to be startled, for she was hiding behind him!

 

                “What is it, sweetie? What’s wrong?” Beriel asked, kneeling down and petting her head, confused as to what had just happened.

 

                “Some scary looking men are at the door! They have sticks and scary looking clothes!” she explained. Just with that, Beriel’s face grew grim. He felt a lump in his throat, and he tried to retain his composure.

 

                “It’s alright honey, daddy will see what’s wrong.” he said, as he walked towards the door. On his way, he saw Lania at the door, and she had an alarmed expression on her face. They both looked at each other with uncertainty, and then, Beriel slowly opened the door. When he opened it, he saw three soldiers clad in black armor that looked quite intimidating! The helmets bore some draconian features, and the armor in and of itself was in the form of scales!

 

                “Beriel Erickson?” the middle soldier asked. Beriel nodded.

 

                “Yes, what is it?” he asked, fearful of what the soldier would answer.

 

                “The Draconian Knights have been searching around nearby residents, recruiting strong and able bodied people to join our ranks. War is about to break out with our rival kingdom, and the dark creatures known as Shadow Blights are on the prowl. We’re coming to take you into service!” the soldier explained.

 

                Beriel’s heart sank.

 

(Start Song Here)

                Watching this memory play out, his heart still ached, and he clenched his fists, his teeth gritted.

 

                “W-what do you mean? I’m just a simple man, with a simple life. Please…I just want to be left along with my family…” Beriel stated, trying to avoid meeting his eyes with that of the soldier’s.

 

                “I’ll have none of this nonsense! Those who refuse to answer the call of duty shall be sentenced to death by treason! Either you come with us, or we kill you where you stand!” the soldier barked out! Beriel flinched in fear, and then Esmeralda came out and stood in front of her father, stretching out her arms.

 

                “No, no!!! Don’t take daddy away! We’re going on a trip together! You scary men stay away! I don’t want you to take my daddy away!” she shouted, as tears rolled down her face.

 

                “Shut up, brat, you have no place in this affair!” the soldier growled, and at that, Beriel quickly stepped in defensively and raised his hand.

 

                “Stop it!  I’ll….I’ll go with you…” he said, his heart stinging. Esmeralda remained in shock for a moment, and Lania began to cry.

 

                “N-no daddy, you can’t go! You just can’t go! It’s not fair! It’s just not fair!” Esmeralda cried out, clinging on to her father desperately, while Lania knelt on the floor and cupped her face in her hands, as tears streaked down her face. Beriel remained silent for a moment, and then he knelt down eye to eye to his daughter. He put on a smile and patted her head.

 

                “Hey, it’s okay…it’s not like I’ll be gone forever! I’m just going to help these people get rid of some bad guys. Once it’s all over, I’ll come back, and we can  all take our trip together!” he said encouragingly, trying his best to lift his dear daughter’s spirits up! She rubbed her eyes, which were puffy from the tears, and she sniffled and then calmed down.

 

                “D-do you mean it?” she asked hesitantly. Beriel hugged her tightly and closed his eyes.

 

                “Of course, sweetie…you know that I mean it!” he answered, and then he pulled away and went towards Lania and embraced her tightly, holding her as if it was the last time that she’d ever hold her.

 

                “Lania…take care of our baby while I’m away…I have no choice but to do this…otherwise, we’re dead…” he whispered to her. She shook her head and sobbed.

 

                “There has to be another way…there has to be a way out!  There just has to…” she murmured, trying to get herself together, but being unable to do so. Beriel held her hands and looked at her in the eyes.

 

                “I’ll come back for the two of you. I promise.” he said with firm conviction. Lania seemed to have found peace with those words, for she calmed down and nodded slowly, and the two kissed passionately.

 

                “Enough already, let’s go! We have to get you to the line of duty!” one of the soldiers barked. Beriel clenched his fists, but nevertheless, he left his family with a smile on his face, giving them hope that he’d return. As he unpacked his bag and then packed other things into another bag, he then set off with the soldiers, and before leaving his home, he turned around and waved his dear wife and daughter goodbye. They waved back, with tears in their eyes, but with smiles full of hope.  It killed Beriel that he hadn’t been able to do anything to stop this situation. It killed him that he had left them like this.

 

                “Such a fragile thing…such a fragile existence…” Beriel murmured to himself, as this memory faded away from view, and then, another one came…

(End song Here)

 

                This time, the sky was dark, overcast, and the clouds seemed to have a sinister air about them! Explosions could be heard left and right, and the sounds of people dying could be heard as well. Growls and roars pierced through the explosions, sending chills down everyone’s spines. It was something grim and ominous…

 

                It was war.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Get to the front, now, now, now!!!” a soldier shouted out, as a group of them, shields raised, mobilized through a trench, with large pikes placed on either side. These pikes were thick, almost like columns, actually! They had been placed by the Craftsmen as a means of defense! Among the soldiers, there were Scorched and Craftsmen allied together, and they were marching through the corpses of fallen enemy soldiers! They were weary, and they were spent! They had been battling through hordes upon hordes of enemy soldiers and Shadow Blights, and they had lost a great many men and women! It was a massacre. Through the trench they kept traversing, alert at all times. Inside the group of huddled up soldiers, Beriel was looking tense. He was paranoid, and he wanted nothing more than to be rid of this circumstance. He wanted to be at home with his family, not out here in some godforsaken battlefield! But he kept saying to himself that the sooner he could get this over with, the sooner he could get to return to his family!

 

                “Up ahead, Shadow Blights!” one of the soldiers shouted, and they all formed a defensive formation, with their shields raised and their spears extended forward! They formed a line, and they saw the creatures approaching rapidly!

 

                “How many?” Beriel asked.

 

                “More than fifty…” a soldier replied.

               

                “Keep the formation, and don’t let any of these damned things make it inside the trench!” Beriel relayed.

 

                “Yes, of course!” the soldier replied.  Beriel then walked past the defensive perimeter, and then he cracked his knuckles. He looked at the horde of Shadow Blights approaching, and he gritted his teeth, his hands starting to get ablaze!

 

                “You fell beasts…I’m going to take you all down!” she shouted, as his arms completely burst into flame, and he charged into the horde of creatures! As they attempted to pounce on him to devour  him, he dodged and weaved his way through the creatures, burning them to ashes within seconds with arm swipes and flame barriers! He even made whips out of the flames and lashed them out at the creatures, burning them instantly into nonexistence! He then ran towards another group and punched the ground, sending an explosive charge of fire crackling through the ground until it erupted under the feet of the beasts, blowing them away!

 

                Suddenly, a gunshot could be heard, and a bullet grazed right past Beriel’s arm! He felt the momentary sting, and he looked at his newly born wound! He could see the blood trickling down on his ripped piece of cloth, and then he saw, a short distance away, a line of gunmen, with long guns packed with Scorched firepower! There were also men with crossbows at the ready, and they were just about to fire off a deadly volley towards Beriel and his group!

 

                “Fire!!!!” the enemy shouted, and the volley was released in an instant! Beriel could see the arrows heading his way, and he could see the lines of smoke the bullets were leaving behind!

 

                “Alright…time to put this into action…” he thought to himself, as he clasped his hands together and then extended his arms wide, creating a giant wall of flame that melted the arrows and bullets, therefore making the volley useless! The enemy seemed to be taken aback by this, but they attempted another volley, this time, aiming exclusively for Beriel!

 

                “Kill him!!!” another enemy soldier shouted, as the second volley was released! But when the projectiles came near him, a pillar of flame rose in front of him, defending him from the onslaught!

 

                “What? Impossible!” another enemy soldier replied.

 

                “My turn…” Beriel said, as he then raised his arms up, and then he took a stance. He stretched his legs out so that his right leg was forward and his left leg was behind him. He then clasped his hands together, and multiple spheres of flame started to form out of thin air! He then extended his arms and harnessed the flame from the fiery wall he had made, and in turn, this made his fists glow like the sun, blinding the enemy!  He then concentrated his power on the flame spheres, and then he swung his arms down, unleashing a deadly volley of his own!

 

                Upon firing off his volley, he decimated the enemy line, burning them into ashes, and charring the battlefield before him! It was quite a sight to behold and fear! Once the flames died down, and the enemy was defeated, the soldiers behind Beriel cheered, for victory had been achieved!

 

                “The fort has been defended! You saved us, Beriel!” a soldier commented, as the others cheered him on! Beriel really didn’t pay attention to the praise, though, for as he looked at his hands, only one thing was on his mind.

(End Song Here)

 

                “Esmeralda…Lania…I’ll come back home soon…” he said to himself.

 

                “How life can take such cruel turns…” he thought, as this memory faded as well.

 

                What came next was a memory that took place many years later. At this point, Beriel was already a middle aged man, and he looked angry and resentful. He was in what seemed to be a waiting room, and there, he was awaiting word from one of his commanding officers. Beriel was getting impatient, and he looked at his hands, his thoughts always focused on his wife and daughter. He was so into his thoughts that he didn’t notice when the door opened, and a secretary, with a black dress, came out.

 

                “The commander will see you now, Mr. Erickson.” the secretary said. At that, Beriel stood up and quickly rushed in. There, he saw that his officer was sitting in his chair, his back turned to Beriel, as the officer was looking out the window.

 

                “You wanted to see me…officer?” he asked.

 

                “Yes, I did.” the officer replied, his tone strict. He then turned around to reveal a dark skinned man with a scar running from his forehead to his left cheek, one eye blind and the other colored silver. He was bald, but he had a silver beard, and he wore a uniform adorned with numerous medals. He also bore his nametag. Commander Sanin.

 

                “Well…what is it?” Beriel asked, wanting Sanin to get to the point.

 

                “We have need of you, and therefore, I’m going to be sending you to uncharted territory. An outbreak of Shadow Blights has been reported, along with suspicious activity from a group we can only assume to be enemies. You are to depart immediately. That is all.” Sanin said, his voice hollow and uncaring. Beriel seemed to have snapped, for he slammed his fists on Sanin’s desk in outrage, his face plastered with rage!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “What the hell!? I was supposed to be discharged! I’ve done my duty, and I’ve served dutifully for years! I was told that I would be able to go back home to my family! And now I find out that I’m being screwed over!? What kind of justice is this!?” Beriel exclaimed. Sanin stood up and confronted him, their eyes meeting each other, as if they were stinging rays of thunder! Sanin had a scowl on his face, and he crossed his arms and looked at Beriel with disgust.

 

                “You are so pathetic. Duty always comes first! So you’ll shut your mouth and head to the rendezvous point without any further outbursts!” Sanin commanded. Beriel then stood, his arms relaxing, and then his body slouching slightly. His gaze was cast low, and he seemed to have lost it, for he was muttering something that Sanin couldn’t quite understand.

 

                “Hey, soldier, I gave you an order! Now get yourself in line or you’ll—“ Sanin began to say, but he was quickly caught off guard, as Beriel furiously swung his arm, covered in flame, right at Sanin’s face, burning him quite fatally! Sanin fell to the floor, screaming in pain, his face pulsing from the flames that had just boiled him! Beriel looked at Sanin with hateful eyes, and then he spat just near his head!

 

                “I’m not going to take your shit anymore…” he said, as he stormed off from the office! The secretary who had called him ran towards Sanin in alarm, while Beriel simply brushed past her.

 

                “My family…the suffering those bastards made me feel…by keeping me away from my family…” Beriel muttered to himself, as he turned away from this memory. His body was tense, and his mind was weary. Going through all these memories was always a time of great suffering for him, but it was through these memories that he’d find the strength to keep going…

(End Song Here)

 

                Then, another memory came to his mind…

 

                After journeying for a month or so, Beriel had finally made it to his hometown. All these weeks of traveling had made him weary, but the thought of seeing his family again was all it took to make him feel youthful again! As he made his way through town, he noticed that there were some people gathered around, and they all seemed to be concerned about something! He headed towards this group, and one of these people recognized him!

 

                “Beriel? Is that you? My God, it is!” the person said, a woman, middle aged!

 

                “Melinda? What’s wrong? Why’s everyone gathered around like this? What’s happened?” he asked, a bit worried. Melinda then cast her gaze down, for she couldn’t find it in her heart to speak.

 

                “Melinda…?” Beriel asked again, not liking this silence…

 

(Start Song Here)

                “It’s Lania and Esmeralda…they’re gone….” she said. At that, Beriel’s heart sank. He dropped his bag, and he felt weak all of a sudden. He shook his head and fought back the shock that was wrapping his thoughts!

 

                “What do you mean gone?” he asked, looking at Melinda, who was in tears and silent. Beriel clenched his fists and ran towards his home! He ran at great speeds, until finally, he came upon his home…or what was left of it…

 

                “No…” Beriel whispered to himself, as his eyes widened and he got on his knees. “No, please…no…no…” he kept muttering to himself, as the sight before him was one to truly be seen in horror.

 

                His house had been burnt to the ground, ashes everywhere….

 

                Beriel quickly ran towards the ruins of his home, and he looked around desperately, seeing if he could find the charred bodies of his wife and daughter. He searched and searched but couldn’t find them!

 

                “But if there aren’t any burnt bodies…” Beriel thought to himself, and he dared to hope they were okay! He searched frantically again, until suddenly, he noticed something gleaming in the ground among the ash. He knelt down and picked up what seemed to be a crest! A crest that he knew all too well! The military he had been serving! The Draconian soldiers that had recruited him all those years ago!

 

                “Those bastards…” he whispered to himself.

 

                And so, with one clear thought in his mind, he went straight towards the base of the Draconian soldiers. It was a trip that took a good month, sending him back the way he had come, and once he arrived, he noticed that the soldiers that had fought alongside him were murmuring to each other, no doubt surprised by his return! He walked through the barracks until he made his way towards the training yard, where he spotted the soldier that had recruited him, and Beriel flung the crest to the soldier’s chest, as it clanged on his armor and then clinked as it fell to the ground!

 

                “What the hell did you do to my family!?” he growled through gritted teeth, his hair messed up, his arms fully ablaze! The soldier only chuckled, but the other two that were with him backed away!

 

                “Heh, you had to pay the price for deserting, traitor. Your family got what they deserved! Your wife…heh, she made for quite the riveting woman for me to lay with!” he answered, Beriel’s eyes flashing wide with despair! “Oh yes, I made her mine! Truth be told, she resisted and fought and even scratched me up! Heh, she left these scars on my face.” he explained as he showed the scars of her nails on his right cheek. “In the end though, she didn’t have a choice…”

 

                “You bastard, you raped her!!!” Beriel shouted, as he launched a punch, which the soldier held.

 

                “Oh, don’t worry, though. She’s no longer around. She was too much of an annoyance, what with always trying to resist me, I killed her.” he said bluntly, causing Beriel to go blank. His eyes turned into tiny dots, and his mind went numb. His heart sank, and he could feel as if his whole being was being ripped apart!

 

                “As I said, traitors pay the price for d—“ but the sentence was never complete, for Beriel instantly grabbed the soldier’s head, incinerated it, and blew it up, causing blood to gush and turn to ash, the soldier’s headless body falling to the ground! Beriel’s eyes were now flaring with unholy fire…he slowly turned his sight towards the other two soldiers that were there with him…

 

                “N-no, please, don’t hurt us! W-we’re sorry!” one of them said, but Beriel had already burnt his whole body into ash! The remaining soldier whimpered and shrunk as Beriel’s now demonically expressed face bore on him, his eyes like daggers stabbing against the soldier’s very soul!

 

                “What did you bastards do with my daughter…” he asked, violent flames crackling all over his body!

 

                “T-the last I heard of, she was sold to the black market! I think one of the merchants took her to sell her off as a prostitute!” the soldier yelped, and at this point, Beriel had snapped.

 

                “Lania…Esmeralda….” he whispered softly with great sorrow, and tears rolling down his face. His whole body then burst into flames, and his whole body became alight, and he let out an apocalyptic surge of flame from his body!  “YOU BASTARDS!!!!!!” he shouted out from the depths of his soul, burning down the entire fortress and everyone in it!

 

                As Beriel left the ruined ashes of what was once the Draconian base, his heart grew dark, and his body was completely aflame, and with each step he took, he could feel the rage inside him boiling up even more! His heart was now set on killing anyone and everyone who had a hand in the destruction of his family!

 

                And destruction he did cause…over the course of many months, Beriel descended into the underworld of the black market, hunting down all merchants and dealers, burning down their business, killing them all without mercy! He took down all Draconian soldiers and anyone else that stood in his way! With time, he rooted out major black market merchants, eliminating them from the map all throughout the world! These barbarous acts were praised by a great many, while others feared the potential threat Beriel was. But he didn’t care. He never once cared for anyone else’s opinion on the matter. All he could focus on was finding his daughter.

 

                He mourned Lania’s death every night, suffering and cursing himself for not being able to do anything to have prevented her death. He cursed the day he left his family, and he cursed himself for feeling so powerless…

 

                With time, he took down major underworld organizations, and he got information on his daughter’s whereabouts. Apparently, she had been sold to a rich businessman, and that the sale had occurred in the last twenty four hours! With this newfound knowledge, Beriel headed towards this man’s home.

 

                He arrived only to bear witness to a horrible sight…his daughter was lifeless on the floor, her eyes wide open, her throat slit. She was naked, and she was bloodied and bruised all over. The police and the detectives who had come to investigate this case had taken notice of him, and they saw how he wept, holding his dead daughter’s head on his lap. Her hair had grown a bit since the last time he had seen her. It had been beautifully braided, and she looked like a fine young woman. He had missed out on watching her grow…and with mournful eyes, he looked to the police…

 

                “What happened to my daughter…?” he asked, his voice broken.

                “So, you are indeed this young woman’s father?” one of the police asked. Beriel nodded slowly.

 

                “It’s hard for me to say this…but you need to know.” one of the other policemen said. “Your daughter apparently killed herself. She slit her own throat, and from what we were told, she had been bought recently by the man in question who isn’t present here at the moment…but apparently she wanted nothing to do about it. She didn’t want her body to be used the way the black market merchants had advertised her for…and she ended her life.  And…the worst part about this is…the person who bought her defiled her body…in death. The evidence shows her body was indeed defiled by the man…I’m sorry.” the policeman said, with sorrow on his face apparent. Beriel lost all sense of time at that moment. He felt as if the last remnant, the last shred he had of hope, had just withered away…

 

                “Where did he go…?” Beriel asked, his voice hollow and lifeless.

 

                “Eyewitness reports said they saw him run off south a while ago…I don’t know how far he might have gone. Our men are hunting him down.” the policeman answered.

 

                Beriel only stood up, walked out of the house, and disappeared from sight. The policemen kept calling to him to come back, but their calls fell on deaf ears. He was driven by nothing but sorrow and hatred. Now, he would burn down this man who had caused his daughter such misery! Somehow, someway, he would find him!

 

                And in a matter of three days, he did find him! The man had apparently taken to the streets to lay low. But Beriel had gotten information from reliable sources that this was the man on the run. Beriel approached the man, and his fists were already ablaze! The man noticed him and panicked, fell to the ground!

 

                “N-no, please, don’t hurt me! I don’t even know who you are! If you want my money, you can have it!” the man begged. Beriel remained silent and grabbed the man with his blazing hands, burning his shoulders, causing him to scream in agony!

 

                “W-what are you doing!? Why are you doing this to me!?” the man exclaimed, as he cried!

 

                “For the life my daughter can no longer live…” was Beriel’s cryptic answer. The man soon came to a realization, and his face grew wide with fear!

 

                “No…you are…” he shivered.

 

                “Your hell…” Beriel finished, and instantly, he burned the man’s shoulders and then his arms, burning the skin right off, but not burning him to ashes! No, he wanted this man to suffer! Death wasn’t going to be a good enough punishment! And so Beriel began bashing on the man’s head with his flamed fists, burning off chunks of skin from the man’s face, all the while the man was screaming in horror and agony! Beriel’s eyes held an unholy flame to them, and he wanted nothing more than to blow this man up to kingdom come! But no, suffering was the only way this man could truly feel the sorrow Beriel was feeling! He then burned off the skin from the man’s legs, and then his entire body, and then he proceeded to beat him up, punching him relentlessly, breaking his bones and rupturing many organs, but not vital ones! The man was crying until his tears were dried up, and all he could do was scream!

 

                “You will live the rest of your life in a living hell, wishing that you would have done things differently, but you won’t be able to...” Beriel said, and in a final fit of rage, he burned the skin right out of the man’s genitals, making him yelp in suffering! He then grabbed the man by his neck and dragged him along until he brought him over to the police! The policemen were shocked to see the state of the man’s body, and Beriel simply flung the man right at their feet!

 

                “That piece of trash is all yours now…” Beriel said, as he then looked to his daughter’s body, which had been cleaned and was in a body bag.  He went towards his daughter, and he could feel the tears coming.

 

                “My dear Esmeralda…” he thought to himself.

 

                And so, after talking things over with the policemen, Beriel was allowed to take his daughter’s body, for he wanted to give her a proper burial. After the policemen took away the man whom Beriel had brought, he left with Esmeralda’s body. By nightfall, he found a spot to bury her that looked like something one could find only in dreams. It was a beautiful field of grass that shone in the dark with a luminescent green color. There were neon blue butterflies flying here and there, and fireflies were also showing themselves. Atop a small hill, there was a tree that was in bloom, and beside it is where Beriel buried her.  He put his hands behind his back and he bowed his head, as the night eclipsed the land, and a soft breeze blew past. He wept in silence, and he knelt on the floor. He then gave out a sorrowful shout to the skies, cursing his fate, and cursing anyone who would be watching him of the tragedy that had befallen him…

 

                And with that, Beriel opened his eyes, and he found that his eyes were wet from tears. The Oracle had been looking at him in silence, apparently contemplating the man’s current state.

 

                “Well, my boy…I have lived a long life…unnaturally long because of the cursed power that sustained me. The power of the Scorched…but thanks to my Master, I was able to be rid of this power. But even so, for reasons I cannot fathom, I continued to live on in this wretched existence…but once this world meets its end, I will finally be able to rest, and reunite with my wife and daughter…I’m so tired of it all…how I wish to see them again…” he spoke, as he looked up to the sky.

 

                The Oracle only remained silent…

(End Song Here)

----------------------------------------------------

 

What will the Master do with the Oracle? What are his plans for him? And how are our heroes faring as the world continues its downward spiral into chaos? Find out in Chapter Twenty: “Multiple Paths.”

 

So yeah…that was intense, wasn’t it? There ya go! A glimpse into Beriel’s troubled life! Maybe you feel more sympathy towards him? Maybe you all feel a bit more sorry for him? Well, whatever the case, I hope that you enjoyed the chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Make sure to leave your comments on what you thought about tonight’s chapter, and as always, thank you for all of your support! Until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

This was deep.

[Keyblade101 526]

You sure know how to write some intense stuff. Keep going.  :smile:

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, indeed, I wanted to make Beriel's story one of pain and hardship, and I think I pulled that off!

 

To Keyblade101, thanks, I try my best! With my years of experience, I think I've gotten better with my storytelling! Thanks for the support!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope all of you are doing okay! Wow, can you believe that June is right around the corner? And you know what that means! E3 is fast approaching, and with this big gaming event, here’s hoping that Kingdom Hearts III appears and makes headlines! I’m sincerely hoping that we get a new trailer, because I’m dying to see some new footage, be it story or gameplay! Or both, if it’s possible! But anyways, I’m straying from the point, which is to bring you all a new chapter! So here you go, and enjoy!

 

Chapter Twenty: Multiple Paths

 

                It was nighttime now. Probably close to midnight, actually. The pale full moon shone down its soft, white light on wide expanses of grass that stretched as far as the eye could see! This landscape seemed to have nothing else but grass, for there were no trees, no rocks, no anything. It was just an endless sea of grass on the ground, and an endless sea of stars blanketing above. Everyone in Vincent’s company was asleep, except for Vincent himself. The others had set up camp nearby, but Vincent was laying on the grass, watching the stars as they twinkled in the sky. He felt at peace, but at the same time, he felt troubled. He’d lost another comrade, and the fact that they were running out of time was not helping matters at all. Vincent sighed softly and reached out his hand towards the sky, as if attempting to grab some stars. A soft breeze blew past him, and he closed his eyes as he allowed the breeze to refresh his troubled mind…

 

                “Well, it looks like you can’t sleep.” Seth said, as he approached from behind and stood by Vincent. He looked up at the sky and admired the stars. “It is a beautiful night though, so I get why you’d be stargazing.” he commented, as he laid down beside Vincent.

 

                “So, you can’t sleep either?” Vincent asked, starting up the conversation.

 

                “No…I just don’t feel like it. Normally I fall like a log, but I just feel this heaviness on me that I just can’t shake off…so I couldn’t sleep, no matter how much I tossed and turned. But I see you’ve been awake longer than me…” Seth replied, noticing the bags under Vincent’s eyes. The two of them remained silent, until Seth gave out a small sigh and then looked to his friend.

 

                “Hey, don’t put the blame on yourself, Vincent. This isn’t your fault.” Seth said. Vincent remained dead silent for a moment.

 

                “I know that you’re trying to keep it all in, and you’re being harsh to yourself, and I know that you’re constantly blaming yourself for what’s happened. But please, don’t let it get to you…” Seth said, trying to soothe his friend. Vincent sat up, a look of stress on his face.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Seth, you know damn well that it is my fault! Yes, I want our people freed, but look at the cost that we’ve had to pay just to get this far! I never expected to lose so many people! And now that we’re here, it only gets worse, because fear and doubt start to take root in my mind!” Vincent expressed, trying not to speak too loud so as to not wake the others. “I’m scared of losing everyone…I’m scared that by the time we get to the Northern Continent, there won’t be any of us left…that I’ll have brought everyone to their deaths…” he mournfully expressed, clenching his fists and closing his eyes, trying to hold back the tears!  “This is all my fault!”

 

                “Now you stop there, Vincent. We all decided to come with you. We all wanted to come here of our own free will, because other than being our leader, you are our beloved friend, and we’d all follow you to the death! I still can’t believe that you’d doubt us this way! You know that no matter the cost, we follow you to the bitter end! You should know that by now! Death is something that always comes for us, be it now or be it some other time…we have no control over these things!” Seth explained.

 

                “Oh, but we do, Seth. We decided how we bring our own ends! Bad decisions lead to multiple deaths that remain on the person’s hands for having made the choice! That’s what I struggle with, Seth! My decisions put everyone in danger!  I just…I just can’t bear losing anyone else because of a mistake…” Vincent replied, laying back on the grass.

 

                Seth fell silent, for he knew that no matter what words he’d say, Vincent would just contradict him and find more things to worry about. He felt frustrated that he couldn’t lift Vincent’s spirits up, and he didn’t know what else to do!  And so, he simply remained on the grass with Vincent, keeping him company. For what couldn’t be said in words could be said in companionship.

 

                Just then, they heard someone else coming their way. They saw that it was Kalciru, and he had his hands behind his back, and he stretched his arms and gave out a yawn before sitting beside the other two.

 

                “Well, if this isn’t a sight. It’s not every night that you get to see such a lively blanket of stars so bright. You see, with nothing else around providing light, the light of the starts resounds so much stronger! It’s quite a sight…” Kalciru said, catching Vincent and Seth’s attention. He noticed this, and then he looked at Vincent. “Say, have you two ever heard of a certain legend from your home country?” he asked.

 

                “What legend?” Seth asked, curious.

               

                “Well, it’s a very old legend about someone who had been leader of the Scorched at one point. I think this was many, many centuries before now. I wouldn’t be surprised if you two didn’t know, since this legend is as old as time…” he said, and then he paused before continuing.  “You see, I don’t recall the man’s name, but he was apparently a great leader! Much like you, Vincent! He was a person that cared deeply for his people, and as yourself, he was deeply worried over the circumstance that befell them. He wanted to free the Scorched from their predicament, and he set out on his own to do so.” he explained, as he waved his arms about, as if he were a master storyteller!

 

                “Some say that he was a person of great respect across the whole world! He was a great hero, who had won countless conflicts and helped other countries in their time of need. So if he had won so many conflicts, apparently he thought that getting rid of the powers of the Scorched would be a similarly easy task. He had many worries on his mind, and he constantly fretted over the possibilities that would lay beyond, and the danger to the ones he cared about. It’s something that reminds me of you, Vincent.” Kalciru expressed, as he gave him a smile.

 

                “…And what happened to this man?” Vincent asked, expecting Kalciru to finish the story.

 

                “Well, as you can probably assume, he failed at his task, otherwise, you two wouldn’t be wielding Scorched powers now, am I right?” he replied with a slight chuckle. “But alas, I know not what happened after. All records of his existence reach to a point where his legend is inconclusive…”

 

                “This man must have gone to great lengths for his people. He did sound like someone of utmost respect.” Seth commented. Kalciru nodded in agreement.

 

                “Indeed!” he said. “But anyways, what I’m trying to say with this account is that you shouldn’t so hastily think on danger so much, Vincent. From what I can tell, you have a very loyal group of followers, friends, who are willing to die for you. Not everyone has that mindset, especially in these troubled times. So you should just ease up a little. I know that it isn’t easy, for in your shoes, I’d probably be distressed as well! But I’d also be relieved that I have people I can depend on when I’m at my weakest, don’t you think?” he said, suddenly bringing calm to Vincent.

 

                “Yeah…you’re right.” he replied.

 

                “You’ll always have our support, Vincent. You know that.” Seth said with a reassuring smile.

 

                “Ah, well that’s good! I already feel Vincent easing up quite rapidly! Quite good, if I do say so myself!” Kalciru mentioned as he yawned again.  “Well, I’m off to sleep! Beautiful a night as this may be, I do want to get myself some shuteye, so I will be seeing you two in the morning. Good night to you!” he said as he stood up and bowed courteously before heading towards the camping site.

 

                “Good night.” Vincent and Seth replied in unison. The two of them remained where they were a little while longer, continuing to look at the stars. Seth could definitely tell that Vincent was now more at ease. As if a great burden had been taken off of his shoulders. While danger and uncertainty laid ahead, there was still that air of hope, and that hope is what would hopefully lead them to their destination. Seth smiled, and he felt in his heart that things would turn out okay!  After a while, Seth stood up groggily and yawned.

 

                “Well, I’m going to call it a night as well. Gonna see if I can get myself some sleep as well. Good night, Vincent.” Seth said.

 

                “Good night…” Vincent replied, as he remained where he was, his gaze fixated on the stars. As he watched the stars twinkling, he found his eyes closing slowly, until he fell asleep, right then and there!

(End Song Here)

---

 

                At that same moment, Zaria and company had set up camp as well, and they were all gathered together around the campfire. They had chosen a cozy little spot that sat next to a small pond, and there were trees all around to give them shelter in case it rained. But with the night sky being so brilliantly clear as it was, it was doubtful that rain would come. But the breeze the trees provided was simply too good to not be underneath them! They had all just finished eating, and they were now letting the food they ate digest itself accordingly!

 

                “Well, I say that we have ourselves a great day tomorrow! I can feel it!” Tatsumaki said.

 

                “Well, considering how peaceful and breezy the night has been so far, dare I say that you may be right!” Grim followed, optimistic in Tatsumaki’s view.

 

                “Indeed. But we must keep our wits about each other. For some reason, I feel a certain unease…” Laren commented, as he looked out to the small open field that lay beyond their campsite.

 

                “I know what you mean. I feel it too. We have to keep our guards up, guys!” Zaria assessed. The others nodded. Bane said nothing.

 

                “Hey, I’m curious. Are you really mute, or do you just not like to talk all that much?” Grim asked, genuinely intrigued! “You are practically a mystery to us, Bane. We don’t even know where you’re from!” he pointed out.

 

                “That is true. Tell me, from what country to you hail, Bane?” Laren asked.

 

                Bane simply shook his head.

 

                “You’re a wanderer, then?” Zaria asked. Bane nodded in reply.

 

                “So you don’t live in any of the countries, eh? You just come and go, wherever you want to go?” Tatsumaki deduced. Bane gave more of a shrug than anything else, and he took out his dagger and began carving something on the ground. He seemed to be writing something!

 

                “I’m just a drifter.” the words spelled.

 

                “Huh, so you are indeed a man of mystery! So tell me, what is it that drives you? What drives you to be who you are, and what drives you in these times?” Grim asked, interested in what Bane’s answer would be. Bane apparently gave Grim’s question a bit of thought, and then, he wrote something else on the ground.

 

                “I prefer not to say…” the words spelled.

 

                “Heh, so you like to keep to yourself? That’s fine, as long as you are here with good intentions.” Laren said. Bane nodded in agreement, and then he put his dagger away.

 

                “Hey guys, what do you all plan on doing, once this is all over? What do you want to do with your lives?” Zaria asked suddenly. This question caught the others by surprise, and they didn’t quite know how to respond!

 

                “And where’s this coming from?” Tatsumaki inquired.

 

                “Well, considering that we’re practically risking our lives to save the world, I’m just curious. I want to know what it is that you all want to do once this is over.” was Zaria’s reply.  There was a bit of a silence after that, but then Grim stroked his beard, for apparently, he had something on his mind.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Well, personally, I’d like to live a quiet, sheltered life after all this is over. I’ve seen many battles in my day, and right now, I want to be able to put that all behind and settle down and live a quiet life, so that I can enjoy my final days in peace. Do things I couldn’t do before, like taking up a hobby such as painting, or something along those lines.  I haven’t put too much of a thought into it. Heh, I remember when I was younger, I had a girlfriend named Saya, and she was quite the feisty one! She always had that spark of life in her eyes.” Grim said, as he reminisced of this woman that he was speaking of.

 

                “Heh, so you are the romantic type, eh?” Zaria teased, elbowing him. He chuckled as he blushed a bit.

 

                “Well, not that romantic, but I knew how to win over a lady’s heart, that much I can say.” he answered, causing a rather humorous reaction from the others. He laughed himself, and then he stared off into space, with a calm, peaceful yet sad smile.

 

                “When I joined the Everbloom Knights, I knew that I had to devote my life to Eternia Glade, and to protecting my people. It was a job that took much responsibility, and there was always the possibility of danger at every turn. Saya couldn’t stand that, and she didn’t want to live her life dreading over mine. So she left me…and I completely understood.” he said, as his expression had turned somber.  “If there’s one thing that I want to be able to do after all this is over…it’s live the quiet life she would’ve wanted to have alongside me.” he said. The others fell silent for a moment, thinking upon Grim’s story.

 

                “I think that’s something great to aspire to. Having a peaceful life, I mean.” Zaria commented.

 

                “But anyways, enough about me, how about you, Laren? I’m sure there’s something you want to do as well!” Grim said, shifting the focus of the conversation unto the Dragoon!

 

                “Well, there’s nothing really much to tell…” was Laren’s reply, but the others gave him funny looks!

 

                “Oh, come on, I’m not buying that! I’m sure that you’ve got something you’ve been dying to try out!” Zaria pointed out. Laren scratched the back of his head, and he seemed to be struggling with what to say, until he drew a deep breath and then put his hands together.

 

                “Well, honestly, I haven’t really put too much focus into what happens after our mission is over. But, there is something I’ve wanted to do all my life.” he said, then he paused. “I actually want to try the different foods of the world. There’s so many different dishes made all over that are different in every way, and I’m sure there must be many tasty varieties, and perhaps new, exotic things that I haven’t even considered!” Laren said, speaking with the voice of an inspired individual! The others looked at him quite surprised!

 

                “Huh, so your interests are culinary, eh?” Grim asked.

 

                “Yes, what of it…? Is it silly?” Laren asked, apparently embarrassed. Tatsumaki then hit the back of his head gently and she smiled.

 

                “Of course not, you dimwit! I think it’s awesome that you want to try out different foods from around the world! That’s quite the ambition! But my question here is, what if one of the foods you’d eat would be so intolerable to your stomach that you’d be barfing for days?” Tatsumaki asked, with the demeanor of a small child! The others chuckled, and Laren blushed a bit.

 

                “Well, uh, if I’ve taken many risks on my life as a Dragoon, then surely culinary ventures are equally worthy risks!” Laren answered, crossing his arms.

 

                “Well, aren’t you the brave one?” Tatsumaki purred, definitely flirting with him. Laren stared at her and then his face grew a deadly red, and he became a bit fidgety!

 

                `”I swear, you are a troublesome case sometimes…” Laren sputtered out.

 

                “Hey, what’s that supposed to mean!?” Tatsumaki asked with a pout. The others laughed.

 

                “Anyways, I’m going next!” Tatsumaki replied, as she smiled and then put her hands on the ground. The others looked at her attentively, to see what it is that she was going to say.

 

                “Well, after all this is over, I’d like to amass a huge collection of books! I love all kinds of literature, and I love learning about new things, and there’s so many books that have so many things, and I especially love books that have to do with the world before the Calamity struck!” Tatsumaki excitedly said. “Those kinds of books are rare today, since most of them were destroyed when the Calamity occurred. But the ones I’ve been able to see or get my hands on have interesting things and also pictures of things called planes, helicopters, all kinds of machinery from the past! Not to mention that there’s also books that have stories about beautiful landscapes that this world had before the Calamity. It’s all very interesting stuff! And so, I want to be able to get a huge collection, one for me to enjoy!” Tatsumaki said, quite enthusiastic with her wish!

 

                “Ah yes, I’ve heard you talk about that on other occasions. It’s a big dream of hers.” Laren pointed out.

 

                “So does that mean you’d open up your own library so others could see your books too?” Zaria asked. At that, Tatsumaki thought long and hard.

 

                “Well, I don’t know, I guess it depends. I’m very touchy with my things, and if my books are mishandled even slightly, I freak out! So I’m still on the fence about that! But I would love to share my knowledge with others, so it’s not something that’s completely impossible!” Tatsumaki answered.

 

                “Heh, well that sounds wonderful!” Grim replied.

 

                “Thanks!” Tatsumaki said with a smile, then turning her gaze over to Zaria. “Well, what about you? You were the one to first ask the question, so now you get to answer it too! What do you want most?” she asked, as everyone turned their attention to Zaria. She was a bit silent at first, and she even blushed, what with everyone looking at her, but then she just looked up to the sky while laying herself on the grass.

 

                “Well…if I’m completely honest with myself, what I want to do after all this ends is a fresh start.” she answered plainly. She then decided to continue, to add more detail.  “As Laren and Tatsumaki know, I’m a mercenary, and well, the nature of my work isn’t exactly something you’d call a neat little job. I’ve had to do lots of dirty jobs for higher ups and people who don’t want to get their hands dirty…I’ve done lots of inexplicable things. I’ve probably murdered many people who probably didn’t deserve it. But since I was under contract, I was always bound by this sense of duty to complete my work…and for many, many years, that’s how I kept moving forward. It’s what I needed to do in order to survive, since trying to do things honorably has never really worked out for me.” she explained, the others remaining silent as she continued to speak.

 

                “I’ll admit, I have many people that want to see me dead. I’m not exactly the world’s most exemplary citizen, and I probably won’t ever be. But when I got this job with you guys, it felt different. From the get go, I always felt it was going to be a change of pace, and it actually was! From what I thought was a simple job ended up being a world saving affair. Pretty impressive stuff, considering my background, and the fact that I also don’t wield any powers like any of you. So really, all I want is to start fresh after all this comes to an end.” she finished. She thought the others would look at her with disdain, but they actually looked at her with understanding!

 

                “Yeah…we all want a fresh start.” Grim agreed.

 

                “I’m sure you can get your wish, Zaria!” Tatsumaki encouraged.

 

                “From the time we’ve known you, you’ve shown you have indomitable spirit. I have no doubt you can make your wishes a reality.” Laren state. They all smiled and looked at the fire as it crackled softly and blew to the left due to the slight breeze passing through them.  Zaria then looked at Bane, who had been silently listening to everything, and he had a pondering gleam in his eyes, as if everyone’s words had put him to think.

 

                “What about you, Bane? I’m sure there’s something you want to do as well.” Zaria asked, even though she expected he wouldn’t say anything. Everyone else looked at him, and he simply turned his head sideways, and he looked at the pale moon as it shone in the distance. He clasped his hands together and thought deeply on what to answer.

 

                “An end…” he answered, and the others perked up at hearing him speak!

 

                “End? What do you mean?” Tatsumaki asked. Bane shook his head, and his fists clenched tightly.

 

                “It’s a long story…one I don’t like telling.” he answered.

 

                “You feel sorrow in you, don’t you?” Zaria asked, looking at him with a saddened expression on his face. He looked at her for a long time, his eyes piercing into hers, and he seemed to ease up a bit, and he laid his back on a tree that was behind where he was sitting.

 

                “Life has many ways of being difficult…I’ve faced a lot of that difficulty…and let’s leave it at that…” he said, as he then laid down on the grass and blanketed himself with his cloak and decided to call it a night.

 

                “I guess we’re going to sleep, then. Good night, everyone.” Tatsumaki said, as she felt the conversation had ended right then and there.

 

                “Good night.” Grim said, then Laren. Zaria was the last one to say it. They then all got themselves comfortable on comfortable patches of grass, and then they fell into slumber. Zaria was the last one to remain awake, and she looked at Bane for a while, and she wondered what it was that made him so miserable.

 

                “I guess I won’t find out for now…” she thought to himself, as she then laid herself on the grass and slowly closed her eyes, until sleep finally took her.

(End Song Here)

---

 

(Start Song Here)

                In the meantime, Ilia and Saphira were moving under the cover of night. They hadn’t spoken to each other in a while, and they were alert over their surroundings. Everything was awfully quiet, and it was the type of quiet that didn’t sit well with Saphira. They were coming through a narrow pass that led to a road that connected to all countries, and the silence that was engulfing them was nothing short of intimidating! Saphira at one point wondered if they were being followed. For a while, it felt like it, but Saphira then just dismissed it as her own self being paranoid.

 

                Ilia, on the other hand, was having multiple thoughts course through her. Thoughts of her home, her people, destruction and hopelessness…and she also found herself thinking about Vincent. But those thoughts were best left unattended, for those were wishes long gone.  Whatever future she wanted with him could not be had. Not like this. She gave out a soft sigh, and then they both stopped when they reached a cliff that overlooked a river trail. They saw that the waters of the river had decreased. It wasn’t a good sign.

 

                “I wonder where the Oracle could be now?” Saphira asked.

 

                “I’m not sure, but we should find something, somehow. I can sense the Oracle’s essence not too far from here. Come on, let’s go.” Ilia urged, as the two went walking down the river trail.

 

                “And exactly how far off can you feel him?” Saphira asked, as she eyed the river that was slowly trickling down as they walked alongside it.

 

                “I can’t say for sure. All that I know is that his essence hasn’t vanished, which means that he is probably near, but at the same time not so. I just have to trust in my tracking, and hopefully we’ll get to him before the trail goes cold.” Ilia explained, as they kept walking. They soon began to sprint, as they felt that time was pressing on them to keep pushing forward at a faster pace!

 

                “That man Beriel…I could sense a powerful energy within him. And a sort of driving force pushing him on. He seemed to be filled with purpose as he abducted the Oracle. What could his aim be?” Saphira wondered aloud.

 

                “I really don’t know, but if he’s related to the current state of the world and everything that’s happening, then he has a lot to answer for…” Ilia replied, as she clenched her fists.

 

                As they continued onward, they passed through the silence of the night, and for a while, the air was stiff and humid, and it was slightly uncomfortable for the two of them. But as they kept going, a small breeze started to pick up, and before long, their hair was flowing with the small wind currents as they now began to run faster!  They were going at a good pace, when suddenly, Ilia fell to the ground abruptly, as if she had stopped cold and been dropped by an unseen weight!

 

                “Ilia!” Saphira exclaimed in surprise, as she stopped and checked on her, noticing that she was growing pale!

 

                “Ilia, what’s happening to you? You look way too sick now…” Saphira said, looking at her worriedly. But Ilia shook her head and struggled to stand.

 

                “No…we can’t stop now…we need to keep going, otherwise, we’ll lose the trail! We have to…” she tried to say, but then she fell again, and her whole body resounded with weakness! Saphira looked at her sternly and shook her head.

 

                “No. We can’t keep going, otherwise, you’re going to tucker yourself out to the point of exhaustion! We’re going to rest now!” Saphira urged, but Ilia tried to resist again.

 

                “No, I can’t stop now! Too much is at stake!” she said, trying to get on her feet again, but Saphira held her and prevented her from doing so.

 

                “If your condition worsens, then you’ll only be a liability to yourself, and you won’t able to do much, and that includes tracking! You need to recover your strength!” Saphira said, challenging Ilia’s conviction. After a short silence, Ilia gave in and sighed.

 

                “Fine…” she huffed, and Saphira gave her a soft smile. She then carried her and then scouted around briefly for a good resting spot. Eventually, she found a small circle of trees that laid next to the river, and the cool feel of the grass was perfect for resting! As soon as they got to the spot, Saphira laid Ilia on the grass gently, and then she touched her forehead.

 

                “You’re burning up…that’s not reassuring.” Saphira said. Ilia closed her eyes and sighed.

 

                “I think this is a result of me starting to lose my powers…I can feel every bit of it slipping away…I think that I’ll end up being useless in the long run…” Ilia said, as she coughed a bit. Saphira summoned forth small tornadoes and placed them around Ilia’s body so that they could provide a cool breeze for Ilia to cool down!

 

                “Don’t say something like that…you just need your rest, is all.”  Saphira said, trying to encourage her friend.

 

                “Saphira…what’s to become of us? Are we doomed to repeat the Calamity?” Ilia asked, her voice slightly breaking as she was holding back her tears. Saphira felt a bit torn inside, seeing Ilia like that, and she bit her lower lip, trying to compose herself so that she could stay strong. She took a small breath and then sighed.

 

                “I don’t know, Ilia. I really don’t know. But hopefully, we’re not too late to turn things around. Sure, it all seems hopeless and grim now, but I’m sure there’s a silver lining waiting up ahead. We just have to storm through the hardship, so to speak.” Saphira said.  Ilia nodded slowly and then her breathing became more calm.

 

                “We’ll turn this around somehow…and we’ll make things right by Vincent and his people. They don’t deserve the hardship that they get…” Ilia said, as she slowly started to drift into sleep. Saphira watched as she struggled to keep speaking, but before long, sleep took her, and she was soundly slumbering. Her face turned peaceful, and Saphira guessed that Ilia hadn’t been able to sleep like this for a while, which is why she had summoned the small tornadoes. Their cool breeze was effective, and for the moment, Ilia could at least regain her strength. Saphira looked up to the stars and shook her head, her face grim.

 

                “This is not how things are meant to be…” she thought to herself.

(End Song Here)

---

 

                And just in that moment, at Beriel and the Oracle’s location, Lucilda and Ellene and arrived. Beriel smiled as they came, and he nodded at them and signaled to the Oracle.

 

                “I got him hours ago. It seems you two took longer with your task.” he stated. Ellene didn’t reply, while Lucilda growled.

 

                “You always have something to say, you old corpse…” she hissed, making Beriel laugh.

 

                “Ah, how I do love your curious banters with me.” he chuckled.

 

                “Enough…” Ellene commanded.  “Everything has gone according to plan. The towns have been torched, and the Oracle is ours now. We have to mobilize.” she urged.

 

                “Ah, so the endgame is finally going to be put into motion?” Beriel asked, seeming to brighten upu after hearing Ellene’s comment. She nodded.

 

                “Yes. It’s time that the whole procedure gets under way. We have to move now.” Ellene confirmed. Beriel chuckled as he stood up, and then he dragged the Oracle up to his feet and then patted his back a bit hard!

 

                “Well, did you hear that, friend? It looks like things are going splendidly well! And you’ll do splendidly well with us!” he said.

 

                “You won’t get away with this…” the Oracle said under his breath.

 

                “What was that?” Beriel asked. The Oracle remained silent. “Eh, well anyways, let’s be off, then!” Beriel said, as he dragged the Oracle with him. Lucilda and Ellene remained where they were for a moment, and Ellene was looking towards the south, her gaze seemingly fixed on the horizon. Lucilda took notice of this and she looked at her with curiosity.

 

                “What is it? You seem awfully distracted…” Lucilda pointed out.

 

                “We’re being followed…” Ellene answered. Lucilda then smirked, her red eyes gleaming with delight.

 

                “Heh, the windbag and the tree hugger?” Lucilda asked. Ellene nodded. “Heh, they’ll be in for quite a surprise when they catch up to us…” was all she said, as she went forward and followed Beriel. Ellene soon turned around and did the same.

 

                “The time is almost come…”

 

------------------------------------------------

 

What awaits our heroes next, as the world keeps inching ever closer to ruin? And just what are these group of mysterious people aiming to achieve with the Oracle in tow? It’s unknown for now, but next chapter, we’ll see what Zaria and company encounter in Chapter Twenty One: “Burnt To The Ground!”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it! So, what do you think is going to happen next? How dire do you all think the situation is in the world of this story as it currently stands? What dire events will occur? Keep following me on this journey, and we’ll find out together! Thank you as always, for your love and support, and be sure to comment on what you thought about tonight’s chapter! Well then, until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

I wonder where they're going to take the oracle. This is getting more interesting.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, oh, just you wait, things will get ever more interesting!

 

Hey there everyone, how’s it going? So then, here’s another chapter! Forgive the slight delay, I’ve been busy with a few things, and plus, with my other hobbies taking up my time, I’ve been a little divided here and there. I don’t have the ability to form shadow clones like Naruto, otherwise I’d get multiple things done, which would be convenient! But anyways, here’s another chapter for you all, and I hope you enjoy!

 

Chapter Twenty One: Burnt To The Ground

 

                And so, the morning came, and Zaria and company slowly awoke, one by one, dazed by the heavy drowsiness from the night before, and slightly disoriented! They had slept so well that waking up felt like a heavy burden for them! Zaria was one of the first of the group to awaken, and after rubbing her eyes and stretching her arms, she noticed that Bane was just a short distance away, and he was staring downward, towards their destination, and he seemed fixated by something! Zaria was curious about this, and so she went towards him while the others woke up. She walked up right next to him, but he didn’t seem fazed by her presence. That, or he didn’t notice her walking up to him. Zaria remained silent, and she was eyeing out to see if she could find what it is that Bane was looking at so intently!

 

                “Something’s wrong…” Bane uttered silently.

 

                “What do you mean?” Zaria asked, as she looked at him. He glanced at her and then shook his head.

 

                “The path we tread is not one that will lead to any good…something grim awaits ahead…” Bane answered, as he crossed his arms.

 

                “But why are you saying that? Did you see something unusual? Or do you just feel like something will happen?” Zaria asked.

 

                “Something is off…that’s all I know…” Bane replied, as he then grew silent and remained staring towards where he had been previously staring at. Zaria was concerned, but before she could say anything, Grim came up to her and patted her back.

 

                “Hey there Zaria, help me with breakfast?” he asked. This snapped her out of it, and she quickly took some logs that Grim had and she nodded.

 

                “Yeah, sure thing, I’m right behind you!” she said as she then accompanied Grim to their campsite. All the while, she thought about what Bane said, and she was worried about what they’d find when they’d get to their destination! When they arrived at the campsite, they got a small fire started, and then they cooked some eggs and some bacon that they had within their supplies, and they also took out some bread from their provisions, and they all sat down around the small fire. After a few minutes, the eggs and bacon were readily prepared to eat, and then everyone was served. Bane came a minute or two after the breakfast was ready, and he too took his fill and sat down. He undid the bandages in his face a bit so that he could get his mouth out, and as soon as he did, he began eating.

 

                “So then, after we finish our breakfast, we are to head towards the village. We’re close by, so we should get there soon!” Laren said confidently.

 

                “Yeah, well, let’s hope things are okay. And we have to give a report to Lady Saphira soon! She’ll be expecting word from us right about now!” Tatsumaki added in.

 

                “Yes, that’s right! Thank you for reminding me of that, Tatsumaki!” Laren said appreciatively as they ate.

 

                “And the good thing is that we just need one more person to round out our group, since we got Bane here!” Grim said, and then he seemed to have thought of something and turned his attention to him. “Say, now that I think about it, what’s your power, Bane? I mean, I’m from the Lifespring, so I have Lifespring Powers, and Laren and Tatsumaki are Stormtracers. What about you?” he asked. The others hadn’t thought about this, and now they were genuinely curious as to what Bane’s specific power was. Bane took a few bites from his breakfast before answering. He then set down his food for a moment and looked at everyone. He then extended his hand, and out of thin air, small strands of stone materialized, until they then shifted in form and changed material and then coalesced into a longsword! The others were baffled by this, for they had only seen him fighting, but they hadn’t seen him doing this before!

 

                “I am a Craftsman…” Bane replied, as he then dematerialized his sword and then proceeded to get back to eating.

 

                “Impressive. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that kind of power from a Craftsman before! It’s quite unique!” Laren said. Bane just shrugged and kept eating, apparently wanting to drop the topic.

 

                “So anyways, guys, I think we should head towards our destination with caution.” Zaria said.

 

                “Why do you say that?” Tatsumaki asked.

 

                “Well, Bane said that something felt off, and I think that we should listen to what he said. We have to be wary. With the way things are going now, we need to be on our guard at all times!” Zaria explained.

 

                “Something off, you say?” Grim asked. “And what would that be?”

 

                “Negative energy…too much of it…” Bane said as he swallowed a piece of bread.

 

                “Negative energy, hmm…everyone, as Zaria said, we need to keep ourselves on our toes. We may be heading into danger, so we have to be ready for anything.” Laren said, and the others nodded.

 

                “Alright Eluzia, you’ve had your rest. Come out now, boy.” Grim said, as he petted the ground, and from it, Eluzia slowly emerged, the branches, roots and twigs coalescing together into his wooden wolf form! “Go and scout on ahead. If there’s anything dangerous, come back to us quick. Don’t linger around too long.” Grim said, relaying his orders, as Eluzia nodded and then turned around and headed towards the direction of the village they were to go to!

 

                “Well, we have caution on our side, so now we can be able to make way.” Laren said. “Let’s get a move on!”

 

                “Right, let’s go!” Zaria replied, as they all finished their breakfast and then prepared themselves. After a few minutes, they were ready to set out!

 

                They headed downwards towards a slightly steep path, and as they went down it, a very slight mist shifted around them. It didn’t seem like anything unnatural, as it was most probably the morning fog that sometimes brewed up. The grass was wet with dew, and everything was quiet. Zaria and company kept to their designated path, and they remained cautious at all times, keeping their wits about them, and keeping their eyes here and there, watching for anything suspicious!

 

                As they kept walking, they came upon what seemed to be a set of stairs, but they were heavily covered by moss and vines. Apparently, they had come upon what was most probably a ruin of some sort. Be it of a temple, a fortress, or maybe even a stairway to a house, none of them knew. The slow passing of time vanished all traces of what these ruins could have been. Laren walked up the set of stairs and followed it upwards until he reached the top, and he saw what seemed to be a broken down bell. He then eyed the environment around him, and he noticed that this had the look of an outpost. There were two towers that were noticeable, but they were both overgrown by vines, and therefore looked like they were useless. He also noticed what seemed to be an armory, and a courtyard. He wondered what this outpost was, and from what nation it hailed. But all those thoughts vanished when he saw something to his right. He looked towards the sea of trees, and he couldn’t help but feel slight goosebumps all over his body! He then turned around and walked down the stairs and then reunited with his friends, whom had been investigating the area.

 

                When they gathered about again, they kept walking. They eventually walked out of the outpost, and now they were walking through a cluster of trees that led towards a plain area where only a few bushes and rocks were seen here and there. It seemed this clearing marked the end of the path they had been traveling on. As soon as they reached the open field, they stopped for a moment, and they all felt a certain sense of unease.

 

                “It’s quiet…too quiet…” Bane mentioned, as he seemed to be anxious. Zaria could tell by the way his body was tensing up, and he clenched his fists and readied himself, almost as if expecting an attack to come from any corner!

 

                “I agree with Bane…I don’t like how suspiciously silent this area is…” Tatsumaki said, as she eyed everything around her suspiciously. Suddenly, they heard a noise coming from up ahead, and soon, Eluzia came into view! He ran towards Grim and then stopped, and he whimpered, apparently bringing bad news!

 

                “What is it, Eluzia?” Grim asked, and his faithful companion shook his head and whimpered, apparently giving off a bad sign.

 

                “It’s just as I thought…something has happened. Eluzia here looks uneasy…” Grim said.

 

                “We keep for our course towards the village. When we get there, we’ll know what we’re up against…” Laren said. The others agreed, and then they cautiously continued on their way. A short while after, they finally made it to their destination! Only that when they arrived, they were treated to a horrible sight!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “No…” Zaria muttered to herself, as the whole village had been…burnt to the ground!

 

                They all stood there, and it was a horrible sight to see. Houses had been utterly turned into ash, and they had been malformed by the flames, which had also engulfed the surrounding trees, causing them to wither and die! There had been signs of a struggle, as there were burnt carcasses everywhere! Everbloom Knights had apparently tried to hold their own against whoever or whatever they had fought, and the end result was their ashen deaths…and they could see countless other carcasses which they assumed were of the villagers. Most of the facilities were burnt down or turned black from the flames, and ashes floated here and there. It was definitely a daunting sight.

 

                “What happened here…?” Zaria asked aloud.

 

                “It doesn’t look like Shadow Blights caused this…no, this place was ambushed by a group, or someone really powerful…” Grim deduced as he analyzed the ashes. “They’re still warm, so this happened not too long ago…dare I say that it might have even happened while we were asleep last night…” he said. The others looked at him uneasily and they looked around, hoping to see if there were any survivors. But everything looked damaged beyond repair, so it was doubtful that there were any survivors at all…

 

                “This is heinous to no degree…” Laren said, as he clenched his fists. “This is…this is unforgivable!” he exclaimed!

 

                “A means to an end…” Bane uttered, to which those words caught everyone’s ears.

 

                “What do you mean by that, Bane?” Tatsumaki asked.

(End Song Here)

 

                “This…all of this.” he said, waving his hand across the burnt village. “This is all part of a plan…it’s a trap…” he said. And no sooner than he uttered those words that a barrier formed around the perimeter of the village, leaving them trapped inside! They all summoned their weapons, and they remained prepared for anything that might be waiting for them!

 

                “Stand at the ready! We can’t let our guard down!” Tatsumaki ordered, and they all formed a defensive circle, keeping their eyes everywhere, ensuring that they didn’t leave a blind spot between them!

 

                “I see something…” Bane said, as he then outstretched his hand and formed a sphere of spikes, and then he launched it towards the direction he was gazing at, and when the spiked sphere hit, it delivered a powerful explosion that sent whoever or whatever was lurking there flying! It then landed on the ground, just a short distance away from them! That’s when they saw that it was a person! A female! She had a mask covering the lower half of her face, and her eyes looked stern and unamused. She sported her military like attire and heavy duty boots, looking ready for battle! She stood across from them, and she only crossed her arms.

 

                “You have all become quite the troublesome lot, and that’s something that doesn’t sit well with my Master. You’ve all come far enough…” the woman said sternly, making her presence known as an intimidating one! Laren glared at her and then pointed his lance at her in defiance!

 

                “Who are you!? Are you the one responsible for all this chaos, for this burnt village!?” he demanded.

 

                “Yes, that’s correct. I am Ellene, and I’m the one who burnt down this insignificant village. This, and many others suffered the same fate. We couldn’t have anything standing in the way of our plans, so these villages had to act as…sacrifices.” she explained in a cold, uncaring tone! Laren was about to lunge straight towards her when Bane held him back with his left arm.

 

                “That’s what she wants…don’t let her bait you…” Bane said.

 

                “She’s cruel! She’s wretched! She destroyed innocent lives!” Laren exclaimed!

 

                “And there’s a special place in hell for people who destroy innocent lives just because they want to…” Tatsumaki said, as her lips twitched slightly in anger.

 

                “And what are you lot going to do about it? Do you honestly think that you can defeat me? You are all preparing yourselves for a fight that you will lose.” she warned, outstretching her arms in a casual way.

 

                “You seem to have a high and mighty opinion of yourself, lady. I think we need to teach you a lesson!” Grim challenged!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Just try it…” Ellene answered, beckoning them all forth! Bane was protesting, demanding that they all stay put, but Grim, along with Eluzia, were the first to charge in! Grim lashed his vine whip towards Ellene, trying to aim for her legs, but she quickly darted to the right, and then she swooped low and grabbed the vine, pulling it forcefully and making Grim tumble forward! As he was falling to the ground, she slammed his jaw shut, sending him up with an uppercut that made him fly upward! Eluzia caught her arm and bit it fiercely! She winced slightly, but she didn’t even do so much as scream! Instead, she yanked Eluzia with her other arm and then flung him to the side, crashing towards one of the destroyed buildings!

 

                “Damn you!!!” Tatsumaki roared, as she headed towards Ellene like a wind arrow! She was stopped short by Ellene’s palm as she had struck Tatsumaki’s forehead, instantly knocking her out and making her fall with a sickening thud to the ground!

 

                “No!!!” Laren shouted, as he squirmed his way out of Bane’s hold and then flung himself towards Ellene, with lance at the ready! He almost managed to pierce his lance through her stomach, but she held the tip of the lance and then flipped it over, switching it over from Laren’s hands to hers, and then she slashed at him and pierced his stomach, sending him falling to the ground!

 

                “No!!!” Zaria shouted! She was just about to storm towards Ellene with fury, but Bane held onto her and forced her to stay put!

 

                “You damn people don’t listen…she’s a powerful foe! Our friends here now won’t be able to get back to their feet, so I suggest that we remaining two try to figure out how to outdo her…” Bane said, as he stood with caution, keeping a constant eye on Ellene, as she stood a few feet away from them! Zaria let her blood simmer down, and then she gave out a sigh. It pained her to see her friends lying on the ground like this, but Bane was right. If she headed towards her on her own, she’d probably end up like them, leaving Bane alone to fend off against Ellene’s power. So she decided to stay put and help him, and the two of them stood across from Ellene, keeping their guard up as high as possible!

 

                “So what do we do now…?” Zaria asked as she glanced at Bane, whose eyes were fixated on Ellene.

 

                “We carefully watch her every move…” he answered. And just as he said those words, Ellene sprung into action, heading straight towards an unprepared Zaria! She was about to strike at Zaria’s head, when Bane immediately stepped in and held her attack, pushing her back with force and sending forth a crackling shock of yellow electricity!

 

                “Hmm, impressive…you are as fast as I am, it seems.” Ellene said, acknowledging Bane’s abilities. She then leapt forward and attempted to strike at Bane, but he blocked her attacks and counterattacked with a low sweeping kick that made her fall to the ground! But before Bane could deliver a critical blow, Ellene got to her fit and dodged the attack, and then she stepped back a few feet, and now she was the one being cautious!

 

                “I have to say…you have extraordinary skill. A shame you have to waste it on meaningless efforts…” Ellene mentioned.

 

                “Hey, what do you mean by that!?” Zaria exclaimed, but Bane shook his head.

 

                “Don’t let her bait you…” Bane said. Zaria then went silent, and she stood by Bane, as the two of them were waiting for Ellene to make her next move!

 

                Within a split second she darted between them, and she attempted to jab them both across their stomachs, but Bane held her right hand while Zaria blocked the other hand with her sword! They both pushed against her and tried to pin her down, but she ducked and slid out of the way! Zaria then delivered a series of swings, which Ellene barely dodged, until she caught Zaria’s sword, and they reached a stalemate! She was holding her sword with the palms of her hands while Zaria was trying to push down harder! Just then, Bane came from behind and he summoned forth a large dagger, and he was just about to slice Ellene’s nape when she got out of the way, causing Bane to almost cut Zaria! Luckily, she managed to back away just in time!

 

                “Hmm, and here I thought you’d hit her…” Ellene muttered to herself. She then darted forward anew and started to deliver a flurry of punches and kicks, and with said attacks, red archways formed, apparently raw energy made visible! These archways crackled slightly, and Bane and Zaria ensured to keep their distance! As the battle dragged on, Ellene’s attack became ever more ferocious, until her eyes turned a dark silver, and then, she let out a powerful aura that made Bane and Zaria fall back!

 

                “Just what is this woman!?” Zaria exclaimed, impressed by Ellene’s power.

 

                “Not someone to take lightly…” Bane answered.

 

                “You mean you’ve fought against her before?” Zaria asked, curious as to how Bane seemed to know more about Ellene than he let on!

 

                “Yes, I have…she’s strong. Like I said, not someone to be taken lightly…” Bane repeated. Ellene caught wind of this, and then she started walking towards them, her every step making the ground crumble and sink! The sheer energy her aura produced was making the environment shake to its very core! The already destroyed village was becoming an unrecognizable mess!

 

                “Ah, yes, I think I remember having faced you before…but you didn’t have that mask covering your face. You bore different attire.” Ellene recalled, as she waved her hand forward, and an energy bolt shot out right at Bane! He was caught unawares, but Zaria came in and blocked the energy shot with her sword! The recoil was considerable due to the force of the attack, but Zaria had been able to block it successfully!

 

                “Stay awake, don’t die on me now!” Zaria said, as she glanced back! Bane nodded, and the two of them then leapt back, to survey the surrounding area and see how they should proceed.

 

                “Her energy is so powerful…I can feel goosebumps on my skin! This is unreal! Did she unleash this energy before!?” Zaria asked to Bane.  He shook his head.

 

                “I didn’t last long enough to find out!” he answered. Zaria didn’t like the sound of that, and then she saw their friends, unconscious and still reeling from their wounds, and they noticed how Ellene’s energy was threatening to consume them!

 

                “We have to get them out of here! Otherwise, we’ll lose them!” Zaria shouted. Bane nodded.

 

                “I’ll cover you, get them to safety!” Zaria said, as she ran towards Ellene in an attempt to hold her back! Bane then proceeded to quickly go towards Tatsumaki, Grim and Laren. With all the strength he could muster, he carried all three of them on his back! He then whistled to Eluzia, who was limping, and then he set out to get them to safety, Eluzia following behind as best as he could!

 

                “Your friends will meet their ends soon…it’s all a matter of time.” Ellene said, as she stopped, apparently amused by Zaria.

 

                “No, we’re going to stop you, and you won’t be shown any mercy!” Zaria barked back! She then leapt forward and attempted to perform an overhead slice, but Ellene ducked and almost managed to strike her chest! But Zaria’s quick reflexes allowed her to steer clear of the attack, as she then tumbled into a dodge roll! Once out of harm’s way, she attempted a vertical slice now that Ellene’s back was turned, but when she struck, her sword was repelled by the sheer energy Ellene was seeping out! Zaria then leapt back, trying to avoid contact with the aura at all costs!

 

                “I’m tiring of this, girl. I have work to do, and you are in my way…” Ellene said, annoyed, as she shot forth multiple gusts of powerful energy, creating shockwaves that were brimming with jolting power! Zaria now had her work cut out for her, as she not only had to dodge the attacks, but she had to avoid touching the ground! She quickly ran towards a boulder, and then, with all her strength, she propelled herself upward, leaping as high as she could!

 

                With the attacks dying down, Zaria darted down like an arrow, in the hopes she could pierce through Ellene’s guard, and when she did, she actually managed to do so! She cut through Ellene’s aura, and then, with this slight opening, she was able to strike at her shoulder, forming a considerable gash! Ellene quickly winced and immediately fell back! She touched her shoulder and then saw the blood in her hand. Her dark silver eyes seemed to be flaring with annoyance, and now, apparently, she had lost her patience!

 

                “I have no use for distractions…” Ellene said.

 

                “Come at me, bitch!” Zaria smirked.

 

                And just like that, Ellene pierced through the air like a lightning bolt, and she grabbed Zaria’s head with tremendous force, then slamming her down to the ground and then grinding her through the ground, flinging her towards a rock wall! Zaria’s body crashed with a sickening thud, breaking through the rock wall and causing some chunks to fall to the ground! Zaria’s eyes had gone white, and she coughed up a considerable amount of blood! She felt her lungs give way, her breath becoming still!

 

                “W-what…?” Zaria wondered, to her surprise, as she was now being suffocated! Ellene walked towards her with a calm composure, and then she stood where Zaria was. She was just about to unleash another energy bolt, when Bane came all of a sudden and yanked her back, slamming her to the ground and punching her repeatedly, taking her by surprise!

 

                “B-Bane…?” Zaria asked, listening to the sounds outside. She then got a massive headache, and right now, she couldn’t feel anything more but pain!

 

                “Insolent fool…if you couldn’t kill me before, what makes you think that you can do it now?” Ellene asked in an annoyed tone. Bane’s eyes flashed and glared at her as he then summoned forth a thin sword with a very sharp blade, and he swooped it down, about to deliver the fatal strike!

 

                “Die…” he said, but when he went for the killing blow, Ellene vanished! This caught Bane by surprise, and by the time he could turn around, he was flicked with a single finger from Ellene’s hand, sending him tumbling a considerable distance, his body raggedly jerking here and there, crashing through a few boulders! He stopped when he hit a cluster of trees, and they fell in all directions!

 

                “W-what? Impossible!”  Bane thought to himself, as he couldn’t comprehend the situation, his head in a daze!

 

                Then, out of nowhere, Ellene appeared, and she started delivering fatal punches to Bane, but he just barely blocked the attacks, but every time he tried to counterattack, she just pinned her weight on him so that he couldn’t move!

 

                “My aura allows me to teleport from one place to another at will. True, I can’t teleport to far off places…but for battles, it’s quite a useful skill. Now you die, and I can complete my mission.” Ellene said, as she aimed to dig her hand into Bane’s chest, but he managed to catch her hand and then squeeze it tight, making some of her fingers crack! Ellene winced and shouted a bit, and she quickly fell back! But before she could get a safe distance away, Bane rocketed forward, grabbing her by her hair and proceeding to slam her to the ground forcefully! He summoned forth brass knuckles that formed on his fists, as trying to summon a bigger weapon would probably just give her a chance to teleport away!

 

                And so, with the brass knuckles equipped, he proceeded to bash away at Ellene, managing to hit her quite a few times, causing significant bruises and cuts on her skin! He bruised up her face, but she managed to block a bit of the attacks! But Bane didn’t let up, and he struck harder and faster! He then delivered a fatal punch that made the ground beneath him crush down, causing Ellene’s body to sink into the small crater! Bane then felt as though his energy was being sapped, and then he quickly drew back.

 

                “Have to be mindful of my strength…” he thought to himself, as he unequipped his brass knuckles and stood cautiously! After a few seconds, Ellene emerged from the crater, her clothes considerably damaged, and her body considerably bruised!

 

                “This is too much of an inconvenience…I need to end this, or else my mission will be in jeapordy…” she thought to herself, as she pondered what her next move would be. In the meantime, her aura healed her wounds, and before Bane’s eyes, she healed just like that! He clenched his fists, apparently frustrated!

 

                “Damn…all that damage and it’s like nothing hit her…” he thought.

 

                “I grow tired of this. Stop pestering me…” Ellene said, as she then charged her right hand, forming a sphere of pure light energy! It was slowly swallowing anything near its vicinity, causing the earth and ash and ruined buildings to turn into dust, being absorbed by the light! The sphere grew in size until it covered her completely, and it enveloped a huge portion of the field!

 

                “This is bad…very bad!” Bane thought to himself. There was no way that he was going to be able to counterattack against this! He was trying to find any place at all where he could cover himself, but that was proving a task in and of itself!

 

                “There’s no escape…” Ellene noted, as she then prepared to launch her sphere of light! But just then, the sphere suddenly went upwards, as Ellene was taken by surprise, her stomach pierced through by…Zaria’s sword! She glanced behind in shock and saw that a weakened Zaria firmly held her sword, piercing it through her stomach!

 

                “Damn…girl!” Ellene spat, as blood came out of her mouth! Zaria, though weakened and battered, managed to deliver a cocky smirk!

 

                “Never turn your back on the enemy!” Zaria said. Ellene struggled to be free of Zaria’s sword, but she found that this was proving difficult. As a last ditch effort, she broke the sword, freeing her, but at the same time leaving a good chunk of the blade in her gut! She winced in pain, and Zaria, shocked,  leapt back, prepared for any counterattack! But the sphere above burst and divided itself into many small light spheres, each brimming with destructive power!

 

                “This is my chance…” Ellene said, as she took advantage of this momentary distraction and quickly fled! Zaria noticed this and she was just about to go after her when Bane came and stopped her!

 

                “But she’s getting away!” Zaria squirmed, anxious to get to Ellene, but Bane simply carried Zaria and then darted as fast as he could through the destroyed village, getting out of the range of the spheres of light! He ran and ran, until they made it a considerable distance away, and they reached a hill high up that overlooked the once existing village! The explosions blanketed what was left of the village, destroying everything in its wake! The light was so much that Bane and Zaria had to cover their eyes and avert their gazes!

(End Song Here)

 

                When the light died down, they saw that the entire village was no more! Now, only a giant crater remained! Zaria looked on in shock, while Bane’s eyes were grim.

 

                “That whole village…it was destroyed…” Zaria whispered to herself, and then she looked at the hilt of her broken sword. “And she broke my sword…” she thought to herself.  Bane stood by her and looked at the destruction their battle with Ellene had left behind!

 

                “Now we know the strength of our enemy…or at least one of them.” Bane said.

 

                “It’s unbelievable. The amount of strength is unreal! That woman is crazy!” Zaria said, as she sat on the grass, still reeling from the battle that had just transpired! She then opened her eyes wide and quickly darted her gaze towards Bane.

 

                “Our friends! Are they okay!?” she asked worriedly! Bane pointed behind him, and when she looked back, she saw that they were laying on the grass a short distance away, being sheltered by a tent that Bane had put up, most probably before the battle.

 

                “That’s a relief…thank you so much for this, Bane. You saved us again…” Zaria said, as she bowed appreciatively. “Will they be…okay?” she asked, remembering that they all suffered quite the gruesome beatings! Eluzia, who had been laying by Grim’s side, went over to Zaria, and she petted him as he sat beside her.

 

                “While their wounds were quite something, I believe Eluzia was able to heal them with the healing properties his body contains. Remember, he’s roots, twigs, leaves, earth and grass. Such things contain many minerals that can prove beneficial to the body. I believe they’ll be okay, but they won’t make a swift recovery…” Bane explained.

 

                “Ah, I see. Well, what do you think we should do now?” Zaria asked, wondering what was next.

 

                “Rest, rethink our battle plans, and think about how we’re going to handle things when another enemy like Ellene comes…because more will come.” Bane assured.

 

---

 

                Meanwhile, Vincent and company had continued their march, and now, they had travelled quite a ways! They had crossed a mountainous path, followed by a large river, and now, they were traversing through another abandoned city. They were all silent and alert, looking everywhere for any signs of the enemy. They couldn’t let their guard down for a moment.

 

                Vincent was ahead of everyone, and he seemed particularly determined. He held his fists at the ready, brimming with small sparks of flame. Audrey, Seth and the others followed closely behind, and they didn’t seem to notice a sudden flash in the sky! Kalciru was the only one who turned around, and he looked at that flash in the sky, and he pondered for a bit what it could be.

 

                “Hmm…is that…no, it couldn’t be. I must be imagining things…” he thought to himself, as he then turned around and followed the others as they continued their journey northward!

 

------------------------------------------------

 

Our heroes now find themselves in need of a strategy! With their numbers down, how will Zaria and Bane be able to manage? That will have to wait, for next time around, we’ll see just how far Vincent and the others have come! After a grueling journey, will they finally be able to reach the Northern Continent? Or is all in vain? Find out in Chapter Twenty Two: “A Lingering Shadow!”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Thank you for your patience and support, and as always, please let me know what you thought about tonight’s chapter! Well then, until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

My word, an entire village was destroyed, just like that. What will happen next?

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, yep, just like that! Pretty destructive, huh? And well, you'll see what happens next!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope that all of you are doing okay! So then, here’s another chapter of my story, so I hope you’ll enjoy! Boy, the summer heat is really getting high up, ya know? I’m burning to a crisp over here, and I might soon melt! Lol, the heat is insane, but it’s a part of the Summer season, so what can you do, eh? But anyways, let’s forget about the heat and get on to the chapter!

 

Chapter Twenty Two: A Lingering Shadow

 

                Vincent and the others had travelled far now, and they were undoubtedly far away from any of the countries of the four clans. Right now they were possibly in the furthest reaches of uncharted territory that anyone had ever ventured to! The journey has been long and harsh, and now, they are all running low on supplies, and soon, they could find themselves in a troublesome situation. Vincent knows this, and then he stops as they approach a steep hill that leads downwards into dark woods. The only thing that can be seen are the tops of the dark trees, as they take the form of a giant dark blanket covering most of the path that lays beyond them. The others stop and rest for a bit while Vincent thinks to himself. He wonders what they should do next, considering that the woods look quite vast!

 

                “Thinking of what to do?” Audrey asks as she walks up behind him. He nods and crosses his arms.

 

                “Yeah. Right now we’re low on food and water…but I’m thinking that those woods may have some water for us to drink from, and possibly animals for us to hunt. It’s strange that we hadn’t encountered any creatures on our trek from where we last rested.” Vincent said.

 

                “Yeah, well, remember, this part of the world is fairly unknown, and for all we know, there could be next to no creatures around here. But, there is the possibility that those woods may be home to some animals we can indeed hunt. We’ll have to see for ourselves!” Audrey said, as she looked at the edge of the woods, and how the roots of the trees were firmly planted into the ground.

 

                “Well, then I’m going to scout the woods. Wanna come with?” he asked, as he glanced over at her. She smiled and nodded.

 

                “Sure thing. I’m game!” she replied.

 

                “Right. Then give me a sec.” Vincent said, as he then walked past Audrey and walked to the others and called their attention.  “Everyone, Audrey and I are going into those woods and scout out the terrain, we’ll see if we can find any food so we can refuel on our supplies since we’re running low. All of you stay here. Seth, you’ll be in command, and make sure no one strays away. We’ll come back as soon as we’re able.” Vincent explained, relaying his orders.

 

                “Of course, Vincent. If there’s too much danger though, don’t you two go facing it all alone!” Seth remarked.

 

                “That is correct. We wouldn’t want to lose any more people now. You two do be careful in there!” Kalciru added in.

 

                “We will.” Vincent replied, as he then turned to Audrey.  “Let’s go.”

 

                “Right!” she said, as the two of them then darted towards the woods, while Seth and the others remained where they were.

 

                “You know, it won’t be much longer till we reach the Northern Continent.” Kalciru said all of a sudden. The others looked at him with surprised eyes, Seth in particular!

 

                “Wait, what? How do you know this!?” Seth asked, wanting to know! Kalciru then pointed to the sky.

 

                “Look at those clouds. The way they are formed indicates they are more robust then most clouds we tend to look at. I believe those are concentrations of snow, and if you look beyond the dark woods that lay before us, you’ll see a line of mountains. If I am correct, the way to the Northern Continent is made fairly open there. So after these woods, we should finally make it there!” Kalciru explained, and the others started muttering amongst themselves, as they were daring to hope that this journey would soon be over, and that they would live long enough to have the curse of the Scorched removed from them!

 

                “That’s wonderful news! Oh, I’m sure Vincent and Audrey will be happy to hear that when they come back!” Seth said excitedly!

 

                “Indeed. I am sure that the news will come as great tidings to them.” Kalciru expressed, as he put his hands behind his back and watched Vincent and Audrey enter into the woods.

 

                Upon entering said woods, Vincent and Audrey found that it was a great maze, as trees were everywhere and were closely cluttered together, with great branches and inclines and bushes and pathways dotting the landscape! They quickly took notice of a stream flowing by to their right. They followed momentarily and then they saw that the stream split up into four different directions, and in turn these four splits split up into even more streams further down. Even the water itself was disparate and all over the place! The two of them stopped for a moment and then they looked back whence they came, and they saw that there were two grand trees that were arched in a certain way that it almost looked like a gateway.

 

                “That’s our landmark. That’s how we know where we came in from. It looks as though we might get lost here…” Audrey said, examining the area.

 

                “You know…I almost feel something sinister about this place…and I don’t like it.” Vincent said, his fists clenched, small sparks forming. “We should be at the ready in case anything happens.”

 

                “Yeah, I know.  Come on, let’s go, we don’t have time to lose!” Audrey said, as the two of them then headed deeper into the woods!

 

                After a little while, they saw a grand circle of trees that opened up into a small glade, and in that small glade, they saw wilted and withered flowers all across the ground! There was also the slight stench of putrid fruit, and the ground itself seemed to be ashen. It was a strange sight, and when they looked at the trees, it almost looked as if they had eyes and they were looking at them with sinister intent! Vincent felt goosebumps, while Audrey tried not to linger too long on the trees. Instead, she remained with her gaze cast on the path and not the trees.

 

                After going through the glade, they came upon a narrow passage that had two walls of nothing but vines and branches. It seemed quite close in space, but the two of them could fit just fine. The others would probably have a bit of trouble trying to cross through, and big creatures would probably not be able to get in either. And so, they slowly and cautiously made their way through this narrow passage, and all the while, they could feel the very air they were breathing growing stiff and still!

 

                “It’s getting hotter the more we delve in…I don’t like this…” Audrey whispered to Vincent.

 

                “Let’s just concentrate on getting through. If we stay here too long, we don’t know what could happen…” he replied, as the two of them picked up the pace slightly and squirmed a bit as they made their way through the narrow pathway. After a few minutes, they were able to get out!  But once they did, the pathway closed on them, as the branches snapped shut, like if they were jaws!

 

                “What the hell!?” Vincent exclaimed, as he quickly drew his fists aflame, but he soon noticed that the branches didn’t seem to be affected by his flames! Rather, the flames seemed to be nothing more than just hot air for them! This surprised Vincent, and he immediately snuffed out the flames from his fists.

 

                “Those branches…they don’t seem to be affected by our fire…could it be because we’re getting closer to the Northern Continent?” Audrey wondered.

 

                “Hmm…you may be right. If that’s the case, then our journey may soon be finally over…and we can finally be free.” Vincent said, with a hopefully tone in his voice. Audrey put her hand on his shoulder and smiled at him.

 

                “We’re almost there.” she said. The two of them looked into each other’s eyes, and everything seemed to quiet down for a moment, but then they were snapped back into reality when they heard a noise coming from behind them! They quickly turned around, and they noticed a deer who ran away at the sight of them!

 

                “Food!” Audrey shouted!

 

                “Let’s follow it!” Vincent said, as the two of them began giving chase to the creature, heading left from the narrow pathway they had just come out of!

 

                But they found that as they followed the creature, it sprinted ever faster, almost with an unnatural speed! This was something that was particularly noticeable to them, but they decided not to give this too much thought, and they continued on with their chase! After a few minutes, they found themselves running through a small field of what seemed to be thorny grass! It was gray colored, and there were small blue floating orbs that were floating around the area. They passed through it, and then they saw that the deer stopped! Vincent and Audrey came to a complete halt and remained as still as possible! The deer looked at them with attentive eyes, and Audrey slowly stepped to the side, while Vincent tried to keep the deer’s gaze fixed on him! For the moment, it was working, and Audrey was drawing ever closer!

 

                “Almost…there…” Vincent thought, as he shifted his eyes to the left, seeing Audrey get closer to the deer. And just when she was about to deliver the killing blow, the deer suddenly became twisted and disfigured, and then it changed its form! Audrey quickly drew back, and Vincent was alarmed at the sudden change of pace!

 

                “Wait, so that thing wasn’t even a deer!?” Vincent exclaimed.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Apparently not!” Audrey replied, as they saw the creature changing its form, and they found that it was a Shadow Blight! But unlike other Shadow Blights, this one seemed noticeably different! It had what looked like a silver, shell-like armor on its back and arms and legs, and the rest of the body was a shadowy mass that was like a mist, but at the same time, it had a certain physical form! And instead of its eyes being a dark, piercing red, it was a vibrant, electrifying yellow! Its tail was spiked and long, and it looked particularly fearsome! Vincent and Audrey looked at the creature, and it looked like they were to fight, given they had little other option!

 

                “Damn…we’re at a disadvantage here…we don’t know this terrain, but this creature does. We’re going to have to improvise!” Audrey said, assessing the situation!

 

                “Oh, we’ll improvise! But we need to be quick, otherwise the others will start to worry! We have to stop this thing as quickly as possible and get ourselves some food!” Vincent said, as the two of them set their fists aflame, while the Shadow Blight remained eerily silent, as no roar or growl came from it!

 

                Audrey and Vincent stood across from the creature, trying to ensure that the creature’s focus could only be on one target! But the creature was smarter than this, and it swiped its tail in a round circle, causing a small gust of wind to make Vincent and Audrey drop to the ground! They immediately got back up and changed up their plan! Instead, they scaled up the trees and tried to see if a ranged approach would work! Audrey fired off repeated fire bursts, and while they hit the creature, it seemed to be absorbing the flames, taking them into its shadowy mass! This, in turn, gave the creature what was apparently a boost in strength, and with one punch, it tore through the tree that Audrey was on, and she had no choice but to quickly jump off to another tree!

 

                Vincent concentrated his energy and fired off three considerably sized spheres of flame, and each of them burst into smaller spheres that were bombarding the creature, but in actuality, the attacks were doing nothing, only serving to make the creature more powerful! It proceeded to claw its way to the tree Vincent was at, and since he knew where this was going, he jumped off of the tree and landed on the ground! Audrey was firing off concentrated heat blasts from her palms at the creature’s armor, but it was having no effect!

 

                The creature then stomped the ground with just one step, causing the ground beneath it to crackle! From the cracks, dark spikes came out like teeth from a giant monster, each of them sharp and deadly! Streams of darkness were oozing out of the spikes as well as the cracks, and Vincent was avoiding getting hit as much as he possibly  could!  Then, the creature slammed its tail on the ground and swept away many trees in one fell stroke, causing them to fall in all directions! Audrey scaled down one of the falling trees, and then, she summoned forth a flame blade and jumped on the creature’s arms, trying to chip off the creature’s armor! She slammed her sword against the armored shell as much as she could, and she only managed to graze it before the creature grabbed her and then slammed her against the floor!

 

                “Audrey!!!” Vincent shouted, as he darted towards her! The creature immediately fixed its gaze upon him, and then, with a wave of its hand, summoned forth dark portals that shot out numerous dark thorns, which Vincent was blocking and dodging with his flames! He then leapt back and then looked at Audrey. She was laying on the ground, and she was struggling to stand, but at least she was alright, and more importantly, the creature was not paying attention to her, so this would give her time to recover and fall back! Vincent then channeled the power he acquired at Mt. Crescent, and then he shot forth silver flames! Once the flames hit the creature’s body, the creature was actually affected! The dark mass shifted and chunks of it deteriorated away, revealing a skeletal body beneath the mist!

 

                “Ah, so this is your weakness…interesting.” Vincent thought. The advantage would now be his!

(Stop Song Here)

 

                Meanwhile, Seth and the others were in place, and a bit of time had passed since Vincent and Audrey had gone into the woods. Kalciru was calm, cool and collected, while Seth was getting impatient, and he was getting anxious, for that matter! Kalciru then put his hand on Seth’s shoulder and then patted his back.

 

                “Calm down, boy! You look like you’ve got ants in your pants! Are you that worried about your friend? It’s not like he’s going to die or anything.” Kalciru said casually.

 

                “Sorry about that. I can’t seem to help it. I mean, I’ve been friends with Seth since we were kids, and Audrey’s been an important person in our lives too, so of course I’m worried!” Seth explained. Kalciru seemed curious about this, and he put his hands behind his back and then looked towards the woods.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Ah, so you and Vincent go back since childhood, eh?” he asked. Seth nodded, and then he stopped pacing, as he smiled.

 

                “Yeah…things were different back then, you know?” Seth said, reflecting upon the past. “Back then, I remember that I wasn’t too much of a talker. In fact, I was alone a lot of the time in the village. I’d be bullied by the local kids, and I didn’t have any friends. Don’t get me wrong, my family was always there for me, and even though they gave me moral support, I still felt a certain loneliness. I mean, there’s only so much family can do, you know? I mean, they can’t be around me twenty four seven! And well, there was this one day that I stood up and I said that I’d grow up to be someone brave, someone the world could look up to! And apparently, that caught Vincent’s attention.”

 

                “Ah, really? He heard you say that?” Kalciru asked.

 

                “He did, actually.” Seth remarked.  “I remember it like it was yesterday. He told me that I had a good goal, a dream to set forth to fulfill. He also had a dream too. He wanted to be able to protect the ones he loved, and protect all that mattered to him. He wanted to become strong and ensure he wouldn’t have to lose anyone. And well, we bonded over that, and that’s when our friendship began. After that meeting, we would hang out around the village, and eventually, he introduced me to his friends, and I slowly began to thaw away from my loneliness. And it was all thanks to Vincent and him taking notice in someone like me.  Afterwards, I did my best to be the best I could be, and well, here I am now.”

 

                “Yes, yes, you seem like you’re a fine boy, with noble heart and bravery to spare. It’s quite impressive, if I do say so myself.” Kalciru added in.

 

                “Yeah…and I’ve fulfilled my goal. I’ve fought for my home and for my people, and they look up to me, and it’s something that gives me the strength to go on when I’m at my lowest. And well, anyways, he’s my brother, so of course I worry.” Seth finished. Kalciru smiled in reply, and then Seth continued with his pacing, while Kalciru remained still and pensive.

 

                “How very interesting…Vincent seems to have a powerful influence over this boy, along with all these others…he’s quite the leader. How very intresting indeed…” he thought, as he stroked his chin, looking upon the dark woods.

(End Song Here)

 

(Continue First Song Here)

                Back at the battle, Vincent was now concentrating his fiery fists with the power of Mt. Crescent, infusing the power from within and turning his flames into a bright silver! The Shadow Blight was now approaching him with great caution, and at great distance, avoiding any close contact at all costs! The two of them stared each other down, and then, Vincent fired off a stream of silver flame, which caressed the ground and traveled through the cracks that the creature had made, and this caused the flame to expand and divert itself into all directions! The creature was desperately getting away, trying to find a point of advantage where it could attack Vincent! But Vincent remained steady, and then, he propelled himself towards the creature, and with his arms completely cloaked in the silver flames, he proceeded to dish out critical damage on the creature, chipping off its armor and making the dark mist covering it disappear!

 

                “That’s it, now you’re finished!” Vincent shouted, as he then leapt back and extended his arms, and then, the flames formed a sigil above, around and below him, and said sigils bore some sort of markings, and from them seeped out blinding light! Vincent absorbed this light, and his eyes turned a bright white, and they beamed through, and he could feel the energy coursing through him, and then, large silver blades formed from the palms of his hands!

 

                “This…this power….I’ve never felt such power before!” Vincent thought to himself. When he unleashed the power from his whole body, a blinding explosion and a sudden rush of wind passed through him, and this made his entire vision blur!  All he could hear was a high, screeching noise and the creature howling! The creature that had been silent had finally let out a howl!  And then, just like that, he dropped to the ground. He felt his body was heavy, and he felt greatly weakened! He still had the silver blades, though!  He slowly stood up, and he looked around, noticing that his attack had left quite the devastation in its wake!

(End Song Here)

 

                “This power comes at a cost…it makes me weaker…I can feel my head so light and lucid…I feel like I might pass out at any moment…” he thought to himself. He then saw that the trees had been laid bare, and most of them had turned to ash, and the ground had opened fissures, and some chunks of earth were raised up! He then opened his eyes wide in alarm!

 

                “Audrey!” he shouted out loud! He looked around and then groggily walked, searching for her, worried that his attack on the creature might have affected her too! He looked here and there, but there was no trace of her!

 

                “Audrey! Audrey! Please, answer me!” Vincent shouted, as he kept looking. “No, no, no…this can’t be happening…” he thought to himself.

 

(Start Song Here)

                His thoughts were then vanished, for he heard a low rumbling sound coming from behind him! When he turned around, he saw that it was the creature he thought he had killed! Only that the shadowy mass was gone completely, and instead, what remained was a sharp, skeletal body that looked deadly and fierce! The creature let out a harsh growl, and Vincent clenched his fists, and then he took hold of his silver blades, and he gritted his teeth!

 

                “I need to get you out of the way…I have to find Audrey!” he shouted! The creature growled, and just as it was about to deliver an attack, it was harshly attacked by the side, and it tumbled and rolled until it crashed on a rock wall! Vincent looked at the source of the attack, confused, but then his confusion gave way to relief, as he saw Audrey, defiant and inspiring, with flames burning bright!

 

                “I think you have to take a rest, Vincent. You look tuckered out!” she said with a smirk. Vincent scoffed and chuckled a bit before growing dizzier!

 

                “Heh, tuckered out…aren’t you one to talk!” Vincent replied, and the two of them nodded. They then went towards the creature, who was still down, and attempted to deliver a final killing blow! But before they could land it, the creature immediately whipped them away with its tail, sending them flying back quite a ways!

 

                Now, they could see that the creature’s speed had increased, and now, it seemed more feral than before! Vincent and Audrey made sure to keep their distance this time, but the creature closed the gap by pouncing on them instantly, and then, it drew its sharp claws and attempted to gut them out! But they were barely able to dodge, and then they counterattacked! Audrey struck at the creature’s shoulder, while Vincent slashed at the creature’s right arm! The creature then gave out a painful growl, and then it whipped at them again with its tail! This time they made sure to dodge, and then Vincent propelled himself towards the tail, and with Audrey’s help, landed a devastating blow to the creature, cutting off its tail with a  fiery strike that made the creature yelp out in pain!

 

                “Audrey, now!” Vincent shouted!

               

                “Right!” Audrey responded, as she then punched the ground, causing her fist to be engulfed by volcanic looking flame! The ground then spewed out flame as well, and then she covered her body in a fiery aura, her eyes glowing a bright orange! From her fists, the flames formed into giant claws, and then, she propelled herself towards the creature’s head, and then, with two fatal claw slashes, she severed the creature’s head from its body, and then proceeded to set the body aflame, completely turning it into ash! She then landed on the ground and quickly reverted back to her normal form, while Vincent withdrew his blades, and he dropped to the ground in exhaustion!

(End Song Here)

 

                “Well…looks like we did it!” Vincent puffed out, as he lay himself on the ground, breathing in and out! Audrey walked to his side and then lay beside him.

 

                “Yeah, we did!  But God, did that take out a lot…I don’t think we’ve ever faced such a powerful Shadow Blight before…Vincent, are you okay?” she asked, noticing that Vincent was notably tuckered out.

 

                “Yeah…it’s just that summoning forth the power within me, that holy power…it drained out a lot of my energy, and right now I feel spent. I’m sorry I had to resort to that, but I didn’t know what else to do…that creature was going to kill us otherwise…” Vincent explained, as he closed his eyes.

 

                “You don’t have to apologize for anything. You did everything in your power to ensure that we’d stay alive. And we’re still here. But make sure not to get so reckless again, you hear?” Audrey asked. Vincent smiled.

 

                “I make no promises…and by the way, that was an impressive display of power. It looks like you’ve mastered the Demon’s Claws, huh? I haven’t seen you use that technique in a long time.” Vincent said.

 

                “Heh, so you noticed that, eh? Yeah, well, I’d been honing my skills before heading out on this journey with you, so of course I had to master Demon’s Claws, and I’m glad I did! It came in handy with this situation!” she pointed out. The two of them looked at each other and smiled, and then, Vincent sat up, a bit stiff, but still, he was able to sit.

 

                “Audrey…we have to get food for the others…” Vincent said.  “We still haven’t gotten what we came for. Come on, let’s get to it.”

 

                “I don’t think that we’ll have to worry about that too much…” Audrey said.

 

                “Why is that?” Vincent asked. Audrey then pointed behind them, and there, they found a small grove that held an abundance of trees filled to the brim with fruits, and there were also bits of vegetables scattered around!

 

                “Food! We’ve found food!” Vincent said in surprise!

 

                “Yes…this is a miracle!” Audrey said with a look of relief in her face. The two of them then stood up and went to the grove, and they gathered as many fruits and vegetables as they could!

 

                At that same moment, Saphira and Ilia were heading towards what seemed to be a large bridge. They had rested up a bit, and even though Ilia was  a bit worse for wear, she insisted to continue onward, much to Saphira’s relent. The two of them proceeded, though a tad bit slower, for Saphira insisted that Ilia take care of herself as she walked. But even though they were proceeding with care, Saphira could tell that the damage was done. Ilia looked deathly pale, and she was greatly weakened to the point that she was walking groggily, and Saphira had to be an extra leg of sorts for whenever she’d tumble! A few hours passed and they crossed the bridge, and then they came upon an abandoned outpost. It looked like it had been abandoned recently, and there was no banner from any of the clans, indicating that it was anyone’s for the taking. Saphira looked around and then she looked at Ilia.

 

                “Well? Anything?” she asked.  Ilia nodded slowly.

 

                “Yes…from that direction.” she answered, pointing to the north. “I can feel the Oracle’s essence near…I think we may be near Beriel’s location. We’ll…have to be ready.” She groggily said, as she then knelt on one knee and took a deep breath. Saphira quickly went towards her and helped her up.

 

                “You’re in no condition for anything, Ilia…just make sure to find the Oracle, and I’ll take care of the rest. Your condition is too dire!” Saphira warned, but Ilia only shook her head in stubbornness.

 

                “N-no…I’m not going to be a useless burden…I will help get the Oracle back with my power…” she said weakly. Saphira could do nothing but bite her lip, for nothing she said would sway Ilia’s resolve. She only sighed, and then she looked towards the direction Ilia had pointed, and she noted that this outpost had an upper level, and they were to ascend it. The eerie quiet was settling in at that moment, and Saphira didn’t like a bit of it…

 

                “Let’s proceed, Ilia. Let’s not linger here for too long. I’ve got a bad feeling running up and down my spine, and I don’t want to stick around to find out if my paranoid self is right about this anxiousness…” Saphira said, and so, the two of them walked upward, passing through the outpost entrance, and then going through the courtyard. They then walked up the soldier armory and recreation room, and then they ascended to the next level.

 

                When they arrived to the next level, it was a flat expanse that overlooked the area around them, and there were four towers placed evenly, to provide for four different viewpoints around the outpost. Ilia then walked at the center of these towers, and she looked around, somewhat confused. Saphira noticed this and then she walked over to her.

 

                “What is it, Ilia? You look confused!” Saphira mentioned.

 

                “It’s just…this is strange. The Oracle’s essence…it’s right here, and I can feel it strongly, but there’s no one around. Just what sort of trick is this?” Ilia thought out loud, looking left and right. Saphira could feel that Ilia was disappointed, and she wanted to find some words to encourage her, but she couldn’t. Just then, they suddenly felt a cold presence pass through them, and both of them got shivers down their spines!

 

                “W-what is…?” Ilia stuttered. Saphira then realized what was happening, but it was too late!

 

                Immediately, the whole floor turned pitch black, and Saphira and Ilia couldn’t get their feet out of this pitch blackness that had overcome them!

 

                “Damn it, no! It’s a trap!” Saphira exclaimed! The two of them then felt the pitch blackness shift, and darkness started to seep out from the floor, as it turned darker and darker! Soon afterwards, they saw gleaming red eyes coming from the floor! Saphira tried to strike at those eyes with her lance, but it proved futile, as the eyes simply morphed and disfigured and then adjusted themselves again. The eyes then gave way to a shadowy silhouette, and a sinister grin arched the shadow’s form!

 

                “Heh, all too easy…” the shadowy mist hissed in delight.

 

                “Who are you!?” Saphira demanded, but only received sinister laughter as an answer!

 

                “Oh, I don’t need to answer to you, windbag. Now then, I’ve got you two, and now you’re coming with me…” the shadowy mist said.

 

                “We aren’t going anywhere with you! Not without a fight!” Ilia said with defiance! The shadowy mist went silent and then burst out laughing!

 

                “Ha, a fight!? This coming from a woman who’s clearly looking at death’s door! Ha, this is rich! You are one amusing person, Ilia Thornwood!” the shadowy mist mocked.

 

                Before any of them could react, the shadowy mist consumed them and then made their vision blur, until everything was black!

 

                “Almost there…”

 

                Back at the dark woods, just outside, Seth and the others were staring towards the woods, worried that Vincent and Audrey hadn’t come back. It had been quite some time now, and they were starting to fear the worst! Kalciru remained quite calm and collected, though, and he didn’t seem particularly bothered. Rather, he seemed amused!

 

                “Where are they…? They’ve been gone too long! This isn’t a good sign…” one of the soldiers said.

 

                “This doesn’t bode well for us…what if they died in there?” another voice questioned. Seth immediately reeled back and glared at them all!

 

                “You guys, do you hear yourselves!? What makes you think that Vincent and Audrey died in there? There’s no telling what’s happened, but we can’t jump to that conclusion! Not just yet, anyway! I’m sure that they’ll be here any moment now!” Seth said, trying to calm down the others.

 

                “But what happens if they don’t make it out…?” another soldier asked. Seth thought long and hard about this question, and then he gave his answer, with determined eyes.

 

                “If the worst should come to pass…I’ll finish this journey. Because Vincent came all this way hoping to lift us from our Scorched curse, and he wouldn’t want us to give up! So if anything happens, I’ll lead the way until the end!” he answered. The others remained quiet, and they looked at Seth with eyes of admiration and respect! Even Kalciru was impressed! He then looked to the left and then gave himself a chuckle. Seth heard this and turned to face him.

 

                “What’s so funny?” Seth asked, a bit irritated. Kalciru simply pointed downward.

 

                “All bets are off, it seems! They’ve returned!” Kalciru said. Seth opened his eyes wide, and then the others were caught by surprise as well! They all ran towards the incline, and indeed, they saw Vincent and Audrey coming out of the dark woods, and they were coming towards them with food!

 

                “They did it…they did it!” Seth shouted in delight! “Everyone, they’re back!” he shouted, and the others cheered as Vincent and Audrey caught up to them!

 

                “Vincent, Audrey, you two are okay!” Seth said as he hugged the both of them. Vincent smiled and then winced in pain a bit.

 

                “Yeah…just barely, but we’re here…and we’ve got food, so help yourselves!” Vincent said, as he and Audrey laid down the food, and the others quickly came and began to eat! They all looked at Vincent and they noticed that he was notably tired.

 

                “Hey…what happened in there?” one of the soldiers asked.

 

                “Yes, you look quite exhausted. Did you come upon any trouble?” Kalciru asked.

 

                “Were there any problems?” Seth asked as well.

 

                “Well, Mr. Reckless here decided to use that power he obtained to dish out some fatal damage on a Shadow Blight we encountered in those woods. Long story short, the two of us defeated it, but it took a toll…” Audrey explained, as Vincent didn’t want to talk.

 

                “Audrey…you two look like you’ve been beaten like rag dolls!” Seth pointed out. Audrey laughed a bit and shrugged.

               

                “Well hey, when faced with danger, there’s always the chance we’ll get that kind of beating.” she replied.

 

                “Please, don’t worry yourselves.” Vincent said, breaking the conversation. “Just eat, and rest up a bit, for we’re going to cross these woods and head northward. We have to make fewer stops now.” he explained. The others nodded silently and then kept eating. Vincent laid down to rest and Audrey watched over him. Kalciru remained silent, and he looked like he was in deep thought.

 

                “So, the power of Mt. Crescent has served him again…and it seems as though the power he attains from it is indeed strong. That is quite interesting….” he thought.

 

-----------------------------------------------------

 

Vincent and Audrey live to fight another day, and their friends are able to recover their strength to continue their journey! But what awaits Saphira and Ilia, who are now captured? Where will they be taken? And will Ilia’s condition worsen? Find out in Chapter Twenty Three: “A Battle For The Truth!”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it to the max! And also, I think I should all tell you that big revelations will be coming soon, so I suggest you all prepare yourselves for what’s in store, for I’m going to make sure it blows your mind! Haha, just you wait! Until then, I want to thank you all for your immense support, and for always commenting on my stories! It really means a lot! Anyways, let me know what you thought about tonight’s chapter, and until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

Oh no, I wonder what that shadowy figure intends to do with it's new hostages.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, oh, you'll see!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope that all of you are doing okay! So then, I hope I haven’t kept you all waiting, cuz here I’ve brought another chapter for you all to read! Things are starting to get interesting, and it’ll only continue to get interesting as the chapters keep rolling out! And also, GOOD GOD, I’M STILL SO HYPED OVER THE AMAZINGLY EPIC KINGDOM HEARTS III TRAILER WE GOT! MY MIND IS RACING WITH HAPPINESS AND HYPE! I can’t wait for D23 next month, I’m sure we’re in for some big surprises, what with the new trailer, new world reveal and final information! Gahhh, so much hype!  But anyways, I’m talking too much! Lol, here’s the next chapter, enjoy!

 

Chapter Twenty Three: A Battle For The Truth

 

                “W-where am I?” Saphira though to herself, as she found herself coming back to consciousness. The last thing that she had remembered seeing was darkness. Darkness enveloping her and Ilia. And after that, everything had literally gone black. She didn’t know if she had been knocked out for quite some time or if it had been just a few seconds, but all she knew is that now she was shaking off the heaviness she felt on herself. She opened her eyes, and then she noticed that she was sitting on the floor, her hands tied behind her back, and her legs tied together. She glanced back and noticed that Ilia was suffering the same predicament, and with her continuing illness, she was worse for wear.

 

                “Damn it, this is not good…” Saphira whispered to herself, as she darted her eyes here and there, trying to get a sense of where she was. But she didn’t recognize anything. Right now they seemed to be in a dark, dim lit room, with four torches, two on the left and two on the right, lighting up the room. There was nothing except for a table and of course, a cell gate.  Apparently, this was supposed to be some kind of prison! She glanced back at Ilia and worried that she was still unconscious.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “We’ve been here for hours…” Ilia whispered, putting Saphira’s worries to rest. “We’ve been kept under here for who knows how long…and that thing that got us here…it’s been staring at us for all this time…” she said, as she was looking towards the end of the room that was covered in pitch black. Saphira noticed the red, eerily gleaming eyes that were staring back.

 

                “Who are you!? And what’s this about!?” Saphira demanded. The shadow on the wall simply chuckled, for it seemed to be enjoying itself. Upon hearing closely, Saphira could make out that it was a female’s chuckle.

 

                “Well, now that you’re finally awake, things will take a very interesting turn…I’m Lucilda, if you wretches must know…but knowing who I am won’t really make a difference.” Lucilda remarked with casual and almost delightful fancy in her voice. She seemed to be enjoying seeing her latest prisoners in this situation they were in!

 

                “What’s your game here…? What are you after?” Saphira asked. Lucilda then shifted along the wall, coursing right along it and then merging her shadow with that of the one’s the flames of the torches were emitting. Now her presence was literally all over the place!

 

                “It’s not a question of what I’m after. Apparently, the Master wanted you two to be here, so it seems that you two are important to him. Ever since we got you too in here, he’s been in quite a peaceful mood. So whatever he’s got planned for you two must be special indeed!” Lucilda went on to explain.

 

                “And who…is your master?” Ilia asked weakly.

 

                “Oh, what’s that, withering flower? I do believe I can’t hear you!” Lucilda mocked, to which Saphira glared intensely at her!

 

                “Don’t play around, you heard the question!” Saphira barked. Lucilda then quickly outstretched a clawed, shadowy hand and held Saphira’s face firmly, ensuring that she couldn’t move! Saphira was quickly silenced, and she was just glaring at Lucilda’s eyes. It seemed as though she could almost hear the slightest hint of pleasure from this disturbing shadow.

 

                “You are a feisty one…heh, I like your fire, and you aren’t even a Scorched! What are the odds of that!?” Lucilda asked all of a sudden, as she then burst into laughter. She then quieted down and then retreated back into the darkness of the wall.

 

                “As for who my Master is…let’s just say that he’s a unique guy. He has a purpose for everyone, including that friend of yours…” was all she answered with.

 

                “The Oracle...” Ilia said as she coughed.

 

                “Yes, that friend of yours is truly something! He’ll come along greatly with our plans!” Lucilda said.

 

                “Whatever you’re planning, you won’t get away with it!” Saphira said, to which Lucilda only chuckled.

 

                “Heh, any more outbursts from you and I might have to do something about that…” she hissed in delight, when suddenly, they all heard the cell gate clank open. Lucilda turned back and noticed that Beriel had come in. Immediately, Lucilda hissed in annoyance, and she went silent as he passed her by with a smirk on his face.

               

                “What’s the matter, Lucilda? No words of welcome for me?” Beriel asked mockingly. Lucilda hissed and her eyes glared at him with murderous intent, and she seemed to be muttering something to herself. Angry words, Saphira deduced, based on how her tone had changed from pleased to enraged. She then seemingly vanished, and now only Beriel was in there with them.

 

                “I take it that you are wondering why you are here? If so, then may I remind you that you were looking for your friend, the Oracle, am I right?” he asked.

 

                “You know damn well that we were looking for him! We weren’t going to let you keep him!” Saphira burst out.

 

                “Temper, temper! You’re too similar to Lucilda for your own good, but at least you have some different kind of fire in you. Yes…it seems the Master knew how to play his cards right…after all, you people who possess extraordinary power are meant to serve his purpose fully…” Beriel commented.

 

                “Just who in the hell is your Master, and why all this secrecy!?” Sahpira demanded, as her eyes trailed Beriel, as he sat down across from them. He stretched his arms out and yawned, and then he crossed his legs and rubbed his chin, examining her, analyzing her behavior.

 

                “Oh, you want to know who our Master is. Don’t worry, you’ll find out soon. And then it won’t matter. Finally, after preparations are complete, this wretched world will finally be free of its suffering…” he said.

 

                “S-suffering…?” Ilia asked, overhearing the words Beriel was speaking.

 

                “Yes, that is correct, Ilia. My, you look deathly pale…” he answered, then apparently showing concern on his face. But Saphira could notice that this was genuine concern, and not an act. He stood up and then turned to Ilia, and he knelt in front of her and touched her forehead.

 

                “Ah, this is bad…her fever is quite high. Any higher and she might not make it…no, this will not do. This won’t do at all! The Master will be displeased if something happens to her!” Beriel said.

 

                “What do you mean? How bad is she?” Saphira asked, glancing back.  Beriel then stood up and seemed to be taking something out of his pocket. It looked like a small pouch, and within it, there seemed to be coins, for there was the rattle of them sounding throughout. From out of the pouch, he drew a small glass bottle. It held what seemed to be a blue liquid. He opened the bottle and then carefully applied the blue liquid across Ilia’s forehead.

 

                “There, that should do it! While this won’t heal her completely, it’ll reduce her fever and symptoms greatly for a good amount of hours. It’ll slow her decay, but it won’t stop it completely.” Beriel explained.  Ilia muttered something incomprehensible, and she seemed to have passed out. No doubt from the effects of the blue liquid! Saphira hung her head low, and she gritted her teeth, feeling helpless! The fact that she wasn’t able to do anything regarding the current situation was gnawing at her greatly!

 

                “Why are you doing this…? What do you all get out of putting the world in such misery…?” Saphira asked, hoping she’d get an answer. At that, a short silence came. It seemed as though Beriel was thinking deeply upon her question. When she looked up, she noticed him looking at the ceiling, almost as if he had gone off and drifted into some distant memory. After a few seconds, he glanced downward at her, and he shook his head.

 

                “Poor, misunderstood child. You really think that we’re putting this world in misery? I don’t think that you realize just how dire this world is…how problematic things have become. The very fact that things are the way they are now is why we are doing this. Before the Calamity, there were no such things as Scorched, Lifespring, Craftsmen or Stormtracers. People lived life normally, they didn’t have all these troubles bearing down on them…I do hope that when all is revealed to you, you’ll understand.” Beriel said, and this time, he seemed to be speaking with a sort of compassion and sympathy in his voice. Whether this was an act or sincere sympathy, Saphira couldn’t tell this time.

 

                “I want to speak to your Master!” Saphira said, her face in a scowl!  Beriel turned to leave and he smirked as he did so.

 

                “Soon enough, Lady Saphira…soon enough.” he said, as he clanked the cell gate shut as he left. And afterward, no one else came down to see them. For the moment, they were all alone.

(End Song Here)

 

                Saphira heard nothing out of Ilia. She was definitely knocked out! She glanced back and noticed that her head was resting on her back, and she was breathing softly, almost peacefully!

 

                “Even though that man has us here hostage…at least he eased Ilia’s pain, even if only for a little while…” Saphira thought to herself.

 

                And so, hours passed, and eventually, sleep drew over Saphira. She had tried to keep her eyes open, she had tried to remain alert and awake, but she was exhausted, and she needed rest! And so, unwillingly, she fell into slumber.

 

(Start Song Here)

                And even in sleep, she did not find peace! For as she slumbered, strange things were occurring within her mind. She was having a dream, or a nightmare. She really couldn’t tell, as everything was distorted and disorienting, with no way to unravel just what the heck was going on! All she could hear were disparate voices, speaking in different languages and speaking different things, all at once! It all seemed like horrid background noise, and she really wanted the noise to stop! And before her eyes, she saw what seemed to be strange markings! These markings were large, and they appeared as if though they were some kind of ancient language! When she reached out to touch one of these markings, she found that everything in her subconscious was folding into itself, until everything turned white! Now she was floating in a white, empty space!

 

                Looking around, she noticed a tiny black dot in front of her. Naturally, she was inclined to touch it, but when she did, she was pushed back considerably, the black dot turning smaller and smaller as she was pushed away from it! Eventually, she came to a halt, and then, she saw the black dot, exactly where it was, and then she saw it expand!

 

                From this expansion, she saw that darkness was seeping out of the black dot, which had now turned into a gaping black hole! But at the same time, light was pouring out! It was all a mystery, and then, she saw a hand cloaked in shadow reaching out to her! As it did, she felt as though her whole life force was being drained from her! She was getting weak, and she felt her head growing lighter! Lighter, lighter, until…

(End Song Here)

 

                “Wake up…I said wake up!” a voice said. Saphira groggily shook her head and slowly opened her eyes, snapping back into reality, and then quickly looking up upon remembering where she was! She saw another person this time.  A woman. She had some military-esque combat gear. Her eyes seemed to be dull, almost void of life!

 

                “It seems you’ve finally awakened…and just in time, too. The both of you are coming with me…” the woman said.

 

                “Who are you?” Ilia asked, now looking a bit better than before, as the two of them were dragged up to their feet by the woman.

 

                “Ellene. But that’s not important. Now come on, it’s time.” she said.

 

                “Time…time for what?” Saphira asked herself, as she and Ilia were being dragged forcefully by Ellene, who was walking in front of them!

 

                As they walked, they ascended a spiraled staircase, and after clearing these stairs, they made their way upon a wide hall, which was dimly lit by torches left and right, with the occasional window placed to provide some shred of sunlight! The ambience felt cold, almost as cold as the stone that was the floor of this place Saphira and Ilia were in. They remained quiet and asked nothing. Saphira was relieved to see that Ilia was looking a bit better compared to earlier before, but she still worried that she’d collapse at any moment!

 

                After a few more minutes, they stopped at a large door. Ellene knocked on it, and immediately, the door slowly started to slide open! Once completely opened, the door revealed what seemed to be a large room, one that seemed made for gatherings or big events. There was nothing at the center, only a large, outlined rectangle and black curtains covering the walls that faced either side. Across from where they were standing, Beriel sat on a chair, while Lucilda kept her shadowy self close to one of the curtains, her eyes being the only thing that were visible! A bit higher up, someone was sitting in a large, throne like chair, but Saphira couldn’t make out who the person was due to the light that was emanating from a window behind him. Ellene then unbound Saphira and Ilia, and she walked towards Beriel and sat beside him.

 

                “What’s the meaning of this…?” Saphira asked, cautious, her eyes ever alert!

 

                “You want to know the truth…about our Master and about this world, yes?” Beriel asked.

 

                “Yes…I want to know everything!” Saphira answered.

 

                “And we want you to give us the Oracle back!” Ilia added in.

 

                “Well, there is something you two must do before learning the truth…and that’s to see if you two are ready to know it…” Beriel explained.

 

                “What do you mean?” Ilia asked. At that, Lucilda gave out a delighted chuckle!

 

                “You are to face me…and if you manage to defeat me, then you’ll get your answers…” Lucilda said, as her shadowy self slithered down from the curtain to the floor, until she reached Saphira and Ilia, her dark self passing through them and around them!

 

                “Let’s see if you two have some bite to your bark…”  she whispered to Saphira’s ear, in a way that made Saphira’s skin crawl!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Saphira!!!” Ilia shouted, as she pushed her out of the way and then summoned forth a shield of branches, protecting herself and Saphira from a sudden attack that Lucilda had delivered! A sharp dark spike!

 

                “Ah…it seems that little flower still has some fight in her!” Lucilda purred, as Ilia and Saphira drew back, and they stood across from Lucilda!

 

                “It looks like we have no choice…” Ilia said.

 

                “Yeah…we’ll have to put up with this bitch, it seems…” Saphira said.

 

                “Heh, this’ll be fun…” Lucilda said with a smirk. And so, the three of them stood, looking across from each other! The light coming from where the mysterious Master was sitting was shining down on the middle of the large space! Saphira analyzed this, and she figured that since Lucilda was a being who thrived in darkness, light would no doubt have an effect on her. But obviously, Lucilda wouldn’t fall for any traps and would avoid contact with the light at all costs! Saphira then looked at Ilia, and the two of them nodded, and then they pounced forward, making the first move!

 

                Though Ilia’s power was weakened, she was at least still able to summon forth vine whips, and with them, she lashed at Lucilda, only to find that her attacks were feeble and weren’t having any effect whatsoever on her! Instead, Lucilda grabbed the vines and pulled Ilia towards her, and just when she was about to form a dark blade and pierce it through Ilia’s head, Saphira got in the way and she blocked the attack with her bare hands, since her lance was unavailable to her at this time! But just when she had gotten a firm hold on Lucilda, she dissipated into the dark again.

 

                “So, it looks like she does all that she can to avoid being touched as well…I’ll have to use that to my advantage…” Saphira thought to herself, and then she looked to Ilia. “Are you okay?” she asked. Ilia stood up and nodded, brushing herself off.

 

                “Yes…but we must get this over with as fast as we can!” Ilia urged, to which Saphira agreed!

 

                “Enough talk!” Lucilda shouted, as she then extended her dark self all across the room, save for the sliver of light that was shining through! And from the darkness, countless portals opened up, and from these portals, sharp, glowing objects emanated, and then they started to dart towards Ilia and Saphira, and they had to desperately dodge each and every attack, as it could be fatal to be hit! Considering the small shockwaves that each dark blade made when it hit the ground, the damage could be considered exponential! And from these dark blades arose countless black masses, and these masses held humanoid form, and they swarmed forward, threatening to engulf Ilia and Saphira!

 

                The two of them stood back to back from each other, and they made sure that they were standing at the center, where the light was shining! Beriel and Ellene were watching on silently, and Saphira couldn’t even tell what the Master was thinking! The swarm of humanoid darklings were practically gnawing and gnashing and clawing towards them, but the light prevented them from getting any closer!

 

                “Ilia, I know that this is too much to ask of you right now, but do you think..?” Saphira began to ask, before Ilia shook her head.

 

                “You don’t even have to ask…” Ilia answered, as she then clasped her hands together, as if in prayer, and slowly, from her hands came a small, ephemeral glow! It was a bright, vivid green, and at the center, was a tiny  yellow orb of light!  “I may not be at full power…but this should be enough!” Ilia said, as she then cast the sphere aloft, as it then shone like the sun, causing the humanoid darklings to screech and wither away, while Lucilda actually found herself scrambling, searching for a dark corner in which she could avoid getting into contact with the light!

 

                “You can’t hide forever!” Saphira challenged, as she then ran forward with a sliver of light from Ilia’s attack, and she leapt towards Lucilda, managing to reach her in the corner she was at, and exposed her to the light, causing Lucilda to scream and yelp in pain!

 

                “Damn it, get away!!!!” she exclaimed, as she drove away Saphira with a swipe of her arm, the darkness encroaching and enveloping the light that had burnt Lucilda! The darkness now formed a barrier, and tentacles were rising, as if the darkness was using a sort of defensive mechanism to avoid anyone from coming into contact!

 

                “Self defense…you’re resorting to defending yourself from attack! We’ve got you!” Saphira said. “Ilia, one more!” she said, and Ilia nodded, as she drew another sphere with light, and this time, she concentrated a bit more of her power into it, causing the sphere to glow brighter and increase in size!

 

                “You’re finished!” Saphira shouted, as she then summoned forth countless wind needles! On her signal, Ilia flung the sphere of light, and it dispersed among the needles, coating them in Ilia’s power, and then Saphira launched the hail of needles straight at Lucilda! She received the full force of the attack, and all that could be heard were her agonizing screams! Saphira and Ilia backed up a bit due to the energy burst of the attack, and then waited in caution to see if Lucilda had been defeated, or if she was still alive…

(End Song Here)

 

                Silence reigned over the room now, but Beriel, Ellene and the other man remained silent, almost as if nothing at all had happened! This caused Saphira to worry. If they weren’t doing anything, that of course meant that Lucilda couldn’t be dead! But just as she was about to make absolute sure, the floor beneath them grew completely pitch black, and a veil of darkness was cast over the entire room, turning it completely pitch black! The light was all but snuffed out, and now, only Lucilda’s piercing red eyes shown, the only thing that could be seen in the darkness!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “I won’t be ridden of that easy, my dear…heh, if it were that easy, then I’d be quite useless…but you did do me harm…and for that, you’ll pay!” she hissed, as the darkness seemed to increase in intensity, and before long, Saphira and Ilia could feel head splitting headaches bearing down on them, blurring their vision and making their bodies stiff as logs! They fell to the floor and they heard screeching sounds that deafened their hearing! They were going through incomprehensible amounts of pain right now, and there was no way they could get out of this attack!

 

                “Hmph, and the Master has use for the two of you? I can’t even imagine for the life of me why…you two are weak!” Lucilda hissed, and then she glared at Ilia, who was starting to fall ill again! Saphira could feel her ragged breath, and she crawled through the darkness, headache and all, and she kept crawling and crawling until she made her way to Ilia and felt her hand! It was deathly cold!

 

                “Oh ho, it looks like the little flower has grown pale again…it looks like she doesn’t have all that much time left…but we can’t have her dying…” Lucilda murmured to herself. Saphira gritted her teeth and tried to speak, but even trying to utter a single word caused her pain, so instead, she helped Ilia up, and the two of them stood in total darkness. Saphira had no way of knowing what Lucilda would try, so she could only brace herself for what was coming!

 

                “Now…you shall know true terror!” Lucilda spoke, and when her eyes vanished, that’s when the true nightmare began!

 

                Right out of nowhere, horribly disfigured beasts and people started to materialize from the darkness, and they were all whimpering and roaring in agony, their voices and growls coalescing together into a truly disturbing harmony! Ilia, whom was already greatly weakened, was now feeling worse, and this disturbing chain of events seemed to be getting to her, for she started to scream in unbound pain! Saphira held her tight, reassuring her that everything was okay, but no matter how hard she tried to get to Ilia, she was far entranced in the hellish nightmare that Lucilda had left them in!

 

                Saphira trudged along, and she could see the disfigured beings making their way towards them! Still she pushed forward in an attempt to avoid conflict, but then they appeared just in front of her, and one of them held out a sharpened, clawed hand, and it instantly swiped at Saphira’s chest, causing her to gasp and then cough out blood as a result! Due to the shock of the attack, she forcefully let go of Ilia, whom fell to the floor, convulsing, her eyes turning white and her body growing ever more pale!

 

                Saphira was breathing shallowly, and she could feel her body weakening, and she felt her chest getting wet with her blood…she clung to her chest and breathed in and out, in and out…but it resulted in much more pain, and right now, it was to the point that she couldn’t even think! Then, she began seeing demonic beasts emerging alongside the disfigured ones, and they were all merging their wretched selves, their flesh meshing together and forming what seemed to be a closed room, completely made out of rotting flesh! Saphira knew that this had to be some sort of illusion, but it felt so real and horrifying that she was staring to sink into the nightmarish abyss! It all went from bad to worse as she saw Ilia being swallowed by one of the walls, the flesh consuming her, her ragged breathing being silenced by the darkness that then engulfed her!

 

                That is when Saphira reached her limit…

 

                “Enough…” she whispered, whimpering and shaking. She had never felt this kind of horror before! “Enough…” she thought to herself, when all of a sudden, the noise stopped, and for the slightest of moments, she felt that everything else had blinked out of existence! She could swear that she was seeing some sort of image now. It was far off at first, but when she narrowed her vision, the image became clearer to her!

 

                A little girl, with long black hair reaching down to her back and pale white skin, was holding hands with an adult woman who looked much like her. Probably her mother. The little girl was smiling, and even though she looked ill, her smile looked like it was one of a fighter. She seemed to be a kind, gentle girl.  But then the image blinked out, and then Saphira was brought back into the nightmare she was facing!

 

                “What was…what was that?” she asked herself, even though the pulsing flesh around her was suffocating her! Her thoughts were soon consumed by dread, as she saw that the fleshy walls that were surrounding her were starting to close in on her! Slowly but surely, she was being enclosed!

(End Song Here)

 

                “No…I’m not going to die here…” she thought to herself. “I’m not going to die…I won’t die…I CAN’T DIE!!!” she shouted all of a sudden, as she summoned forth all the energy she could muster from inside herself, and in an instant, a violent explosion of wind burst out of her, pushing back the fleshy walls and destroying them completely, vanishing the darkness and breaking Lucilda’s nightmare! The wind was so strong that it made all the curtains around the room fall! She then knelt on the ground, panting and suffocated! Ilia was beside her, weak and breathing faintly! Saphira quickly went to her side, and she put her hand on her head, and she cursed under her breath, again feeling helpless!

 

                “N-no…” she thought.  When she looked up, she saw Lucilda materializing from the darkness at the corner of the room!

 

                “Impressive…not one soul that I’ve encountered has broken free from my nightmare…quite impressive indeed.” Lucilda said, though she sounded more disappointed than impressed.

 

                “You are a witch…you are nothing more than a cruel witch! You have no soul!” Saphira exclaimed, and those words seemed to strike Lucilda, for her shadow quickly grew in size and she darted straight towards her, until they were literally inches apart from each other, staring each other down!

 

                “You are nothing!” Lucilda said, as she forcefully held Saphira’s face, her claws digging into her skin, making her bleed ever so slightly!

 

                “Hmph, I saw something in that nightmare…something that I bet had to do with you…” Saphira mentioned, not taking her eyes off of Lucilda’s.

 

                “What the hell do you mean!?” Lucilda demanded!

 

                “A little girl holding hands with her mother…but that’s about all that I saw until your nightmare threatened to consume me.” Saphira answered. At that, Lucilda seemed to make an odd expression, for her eyes seemed to have narrowed, as if discerning whether Saphira was telling the truth or not! Before Lucilda could do anything more, the mysterious man, who still couldn’t be quite noticed due to the darkness that had now engulfed where the light had been shining down, raised his hand.

 

                “Enough. I have seen enough.” the voice uttered. At that, Lucilda quickly drew back, and Beriel and Ellene exchanged glances at each other. It only took Saphira a moment to recognize the man’s voice!

 

                “Wait…no, don’t tell me…” she started, but before she could finish her sentence, she found herself growing heavily drowsy. All she could see was a blur, as she saw someone approaching her. No doubt it was the same man that just spoke, but she couldn’t tell anymore, and then her consciousness gave way to darkness…

 

                A while later, she opened up her eyes, and she shook her head a bit and wiped her eyes, and her vision started to clear up again. When her vision completely cleared, she noticed that she was in what seemed to be an ancient throne. She looked to her right and saw Ilia sitting beside her, and she looked slightly better! Saphira then remembered what had transpired a bit ago, and then she looked around, and noticed that no one was there with them! That is, until she noticed someone standing away from them, looking towards the horizon!  And then Saphira realized that beyond the horizon, the world was being gnawed away the the World’s Edge, and the darkness that was encroaching slowly!

 

                “This is worse than I ever feared…” she thought, and then she looked at the man, whit hands placed behind his back.

 

                “Saphira…he’s…” Ilia whispered, as the man turned around, and then unveiled his cloak, revealing his face! His eyes bore a strange color, a sort of purplish black, and he had long, dark silver hair! Saphira’s eyes grew wide, and chills went down her spine!

 

                “The Oracle!?”

---------------------------------------

 

And so, the mysterious Master turns out to be the Oracle! What kind of madness is this? Was he always an enemy? Saphira and Ilia are shaken by this revelation, and now, they will bear witness to the truth, and the fate that will befall the world! What is this truth the Oracle will bestow upon them? Find out in Chapter Twenty Four: “For The Sake Of The World!”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter! I hope that you all enjoyed it! Sorry if it seemed a bit short, but I still hope you all enjoyed it to the max! What do you think of this new revelation, though? Did you expect the Oracle to be the Master, or were you expecting someone else? Let me know what you think! And as always, thank you very much for your patience and support! Until next time, stay tuned for the next chapter!

[KHLegendIII 709]

The oracle is the bad guy?! Wow...

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, oh, just you wait and watch, read this next chapter and be blown away!

 

Hey there everyone, how’s it going!? Good evening to you all, and I hope that you are all doing okay! So then, I’m sure you were all left reeling by the previous chapter’s revelation, and now that you all know the Oracle is the Master, just what will happen next? What’s the truth behind everything? I’m sure you all want to find out, so keep on reading and see what awaits!

 

Chapter Twenty Four: For The Sake Of The World

 

                Saphira was beyond shocked! Ilia was silent, and she apparently had nothing to say, and Saphira was still wrapping her head around this!

 

                “You’re…leading these people? Just what’s going on here? I can’t even…” Saphira said aloud as she then stopped speaking and cast her gaze downward. Had all of this been in vain? It turns out that attempting to rescue the Oracle only resulted in them being captured by the enemy, and the Oracle no less being said enemy! She looked up again, and saw him walking towards them. She also noticed that the others that accompanied him were not with them. In other words, it was only Ilia, Saphira and the Oracle! When he was a few feet away from Saphira and Ilia, he turned around and looked to the sky, as it became dark in the distance, due to the darkness from World’s Edge expanding!

 

                “Now is the time for you to know the truth. Yes, I am the one who leads this group of individuals. Beriel, Ellene and Lucilda. We all share a common goal, and though we have our variances and our own motivations for doing the things we do, we all eventually want the same thing.” the Oracle spoke, with a calm, almost enlightened voice!

 

                “And what would that be…?” Ilia asked softly.

 

                “To put an end to this world, and therefore end the cycle that has defiled it for countless centuries!” the Oracle answered.

 

                “What? Just what do you mean by that? What cycle!?” Saphira asked, confused at everything that was being mentioned!  “Just who are you!?” she exclaimed. The Oracle put his hands behind his back and continued looking at the sky, and then he glanced over his shoulder at her.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “My name…is Chozetsu. And even though you’ve known me as the Oracle, I have walked this earth much longer than you would guess…” was his answer.

 

                “Longer than we would guess…? Do you mean to say that you’re immortal?” Ilia asked. Chozetsu then turned around then sat across from her and Saphira.

 

                “In a sense, you could say so. But though I have this “immortality” that sustains me, it isn’t a gift that I am very fond of…in fact, the only reason that I still choose to be like this is because I haven’t fulfilled my goal yet…” he answered, his eyes seeming to reflect a time long past.

 

                “And what’s this about a cycle…?” Saphira asked, now regaining her composure, but looking at Chozetsu with glaring eyes. Obviously understandable, since she feels betrayed. Chozetsu rubbed his chin and then put his knees up to his chest and held them with his arms, and then he closed his eyes as he went into his own thoughts.

 

                “Ah, of course…you two only know what’s on the surface. But it’s what you call the Calamity. The event that changed everything.” he said.

 

                “The Calamity…the cataclysmic event that changed the face of the world forever and then reincarnated it into what it is today, with us centered as the people to protect this new world.” Ilia said.

 

                “Yes, but you only know what you have been told since you were little. Only vague details, as it were. But, I shall tell you the truth, and in so doing, I do hope that you’ll come to understand the motives behind my actions.” Chozetsu said. Ilia and Saphira remained silent, so Chozetsu knew this was his sign of continuing to speak.

 

                “You see, a good many centuries ago, as you know, the world was not the way it is now. In fact, the world was far different. Back then, no one had any powers. People led ordinary lives, and they all worked to better their lives as best as they could. There were great cities, people of great reckoning, and technology was an ever expanding asset in mankind’s repertoire. Naturally, the world kept evolving throughout the span of centuries. And though the world had its flaws and it had a great darkness bearing upon it, people lived as well as they could.” Chozetsu began. He then opened his eyes and looked at his knees.

 

                “But you see, as time passed, mankind became ever more so obsessed with changing things. They wanted to be the master of all that surrounded them, and they wanted dominion over all things. With this greed, political people rose to power, and slowly but surely, unbeknown to the people, the world started to fall in decay. While people were living in bliss, wars were being waged, lives were being lost, and nature was being uprooted for greedy, financial gain. As progress continued to march onward, it brought grave consequences. Nature soon started to dissipate due to man’s industrialism, and political unrest eventually broke out, leading people to realize what was happening to the world. They began to riot, and civil wars all over the world began to take place. Each country was a battlefield all on its own, and the people in power began to feel overwhelmed.”

 

                “And even with this change, humanity ever still wanted more. Not having enough with the chaos that war brought, they wanted to push the boundaries of what humankind could do. They wanted to push the limits beyond their mortal hands. And so they began to craft mighty weapons of war that could destroy entire countries. They started traversing to other planets to mine them for resources and strip them of their life energy…and scientific research continued to delve deeper into the mysteries of the universe. And even with all this, mankind still wanted even more than that…”

 

                “Over time, uneasy peace treaties were formed, in the hopes that war could be held off. And for a while, it seemed to work…only that this was a cover for the people in power. While war was postponed, each country prepared themselves, prepared their military might, and they prepared themselves for all manner of warfare and conquest. Eventually, the peace treaties were all for naught, as war rang anew. And the weapons they wielded were horrifying indeed. Weapons that could fire off energy like a thunderclap…guns, tanks, and all manner of modern warfare. It became to a point that the world was starting to collapse. The economy broke down, and the people in power chose to flee and live for themselves, leaving the rest of the populace to rot and fend for their own selves. The governments crumbled, and war was soon the only thing that the world knew…gone were the days of peace, or at least the illusion of peace that mankind thought to have had…” he said, and then he stopped momentarily. Saphira and Ilia were silent, hanging on to his every word, and they were taken aback by just how much he knew about the Calamity. He looked at them and gave a smile, and then he put his hand over his head, rubbing his hair, and then he continued with his story.

 

                “But, even with this, mankind still wanted even more! While wars were being waged left and right, man’s greedy mind sought their next goal: to attempt to create life. They became so lustful of this divine ability, that they wanted to be able to lay claim to the title of God. And so, mankind began to tinker with corpses, with living beings, with all manner of experiments they could conjure up…and they were horrifying. Disfigured beings rose from these experiments, and it brought a stain in humanity’s history. Their attempt to be God backfired on them horribly. Experiment after experiment, it came to a point that a set of experiments had gained a consciousness of their own. The blasphemous creatures struck back at their creators, and they eventually multiplied. These blasphemous humanoids and creatures were henceforth known as the Shadow Blights. Unholy things tainted by the darkness of man…” he said, his voice now becoming grim.

 

                “The Shadow Blights…” Saphira whispered, surprised by their origin! “I always thought that they came from World’s Edge…”

 

                “Well, now you know that much…” Chozetsu said, and then he proceeded to continue his tale.

 

                “And so, as Shadow Blights broke out across the world, they spread rapidly, and with all nations of the world already being in dire straits, the political hypocrisy, the senseless fighting, all of this nonsense came to a head, and thus, the greatest war mankind had ever faced was waged. For not only was it against the Shadow Blights…but it was also against humanity itself. They all destroyed each other vigorously, and with the very things, the very weapons they had forged, they sent countless people to their deaths. They all charged forward, with lies fed to them by the people in power.  And that’s  when it happened…” he motioned, as he then waved his arm and slowly arched it, as if something were coming from the sky at this very moment! Saphira and Ilia remained silent as he continued to speak, and they didn’t know what to make of all this, for the more they heard, the bigger in scope everything seemed!

 

                “The very world itself was alarmed at the fact that humanity was bringing this destruction, and then nature took its course…and the Calamity began in earnest. Horrifying storms, inexplicable shifts around the whole planet, and falling meteors from the heavens laid waste to the world…and the whole world burnt…the very fires of destruction they had beckoned consumed them all…but yet, this was not the end…” he said, as his voice fell into a whisper and then he grew silent, as if contemplating on those last words. Saphira was now skeptical of how he knew so much, and then she dared to think up the question that was brewing in her mind just a few moments ago.

 

                “How exactly do you know how all this happened? You make it sound like you lived through that yourself…” Saphira deduced.

 

                “That’s because I did. I was there when the Calamity happened. In fact, I was one of the very people in the senseless war that fought for a faceless cause.” Chozetsu answered, leaving Saphira and Ilia with surprised and shocked expressions on their faces!

 

                “But wait, the Calamity happened such a long time ago! How is it that you’re still here? How are you even alive!?” Ilia asked, everything brewing in her head like a storm!

 

                “That, Ilia, is where the next part of the story begins.” Chozetsu added. “When the war was being waged, I was fighting alongside many whom I called brothers and sisters in arms. We all fought together, and the war was hard fought…and I followed so blindly to the rules of the world, that looking back…it sickens me. And the ironic thing was that I wasn’t even a properly trained soldier. I was a normal human being with a normal life. I had just entered college, and I was still starting out my life, so to speak. I was planning on becoming an administrative businessman, but I was also intrigued by history, and so I also had wanted to delve into being a history teacher, or a paleontologist! I had many dreams, and I had a loving family, true friends, and I was even in the process of meeting someone special to me…but all that came crashing down as soon as the war began. Generals were recruiting from everywhere they could. You should’ve seen that…elderly people, drug addicts, every kind of person, no matter their skill or condition, were forced to participate in the government’s senseless war…and so, with no choice given to me, I had to claw my way through to survive…”

 

                “As the war raged on, I had many thoughts swirling in my mind. Would I die here? Would my dreams be put to a halt? Was my family dead? My loved ones, all dead? Would the world end right then and there? All these questions, all of these doubts circled in on me every time I killed an enemy…and I even hesitated at the fact of killing another human being, even though they were an enemy…” Chozetsu expressed, as he waved his hands around expressively and his eyes seem to vibrate with a sort of sadness and yet enlightenment to them. Saphira couldn’t help but notice that small detail!

 

                “And then…when everything came to a halt and the world was being consumed by flames, I was one of the very last to die…oh yes.” he interrupted. “I did die…I was burned alive, and yet, for some odd reason, I could still feel everything around me, and I hadn’t been burnt into ash…it was the most surreal thing ever. And then that’s when I saw this strange light from within the flames. It was a sort of white, golden light, and it beamed at me, shining through the boiling flames that were consuming everything. And I believe that is when I came face to face with God…or at least, whatever could come close to that mystical being. I felt as if though all my pain had washed away, and the flames, I could no longer feel them.” he said, as he stopped, his eyes opened wide, as if he was reliving the moment right now!

 

                “God…the Maker…? The one who granted us our powers?” Ilia asked, trying not to get confused. Chozetsu looked at her and gave a slight not.

 

                “If that’s how you want to put it, then yes.” he answered, as he then stood up and started to pace here and there, all the while looking up to the sky.

 

                “Anyways, in that moment…I heard the voice of God…it told me that this was not how it was all supposed to end. This was not how things would go. I didn’t even know what to make of God’s words, and before I could ask anything, I suddenly blacked out, and when I awoke…the world was renewed. As if nothing had ever happened!” he said, the last words of his sentence spoken in a sort of awe-inspiring tone!

 

                “Renewed?” Saphira asked.

 

                “Yes. I didn’t understand it myself at first, and when I inspected closely, adapting myself to this new life, I found that none of these people were people that I knew. At least, not the ones I had come to grow up with. My first instinct was to search for my family. I looked left and right, up and down, desperately searching, hoping to reunite with them! But when I found them, they were not the family I had grown up with.” he stated.

 

                “What do you mean by that?” Ilia asked.

 

                “They were my family. But for some reason, they weren’t at the same time. Back then I didn’t understand, but now I consider that they had reincarnated. They, whom had been my family in the previous life, reincarnated into different people in this new life. They shared the same faces, the same voices as my loved ones, but they were completely different people, if that makes sense…” he said, as he trailed off, but then he regained himself again. “It took me a long time to discover this, but from the very instant I had seen them, I thought it was best not to interact with them, because I didn’t know what would happen if I did. And when I discovered that they were reincarnations, I realized that the whole world had been reincarnated. I then thought that this was God’s way of giving the world a chance to better themselves! A new beginning, one where the harsh fate of the previous life could be avoided…or so I thought.” he said, and now his voice began to ring with the slightest touch of anger.

 

                “Over time in this new life, people started to go about doing the same things as they did in the previous life. Greed, power, lust for control and the desire to be the creator soon spread like wildfire once more. I saw how this happened, and this time, with the knowledge I held from my previous life, I sought out to stop another war from destroying the world! I spoke to the masses, and I talked to them about my experiences…but they all shrugged or laughed off my experiences, saying that I was deranged and delusional…no matter how much I warned them, they kept going. And soon enough, war was waged again, and soon after, the Shadow Blights reemerged, and the world was cast into hell again…and yet, I survived through this chaos yet again, and I saw that same light, but this time, nothing was said, and when I blacked out again, I found myself waking to the world renewed again!” he said, stretching out both of his arms forward!

 

                “A cycle…” Saphira thought.

 

                “With this third life given to me, I decided I would take action, to ensure that these wretched things wouldn’t happen again. And something I noticed about this renewed version of the world is that there were many things that were absent, such as active use of technology. As if humanity had taken a step backwards, but not completely. And so, I sought out to travel the world, seeking people who would be willing to join my cause to protect the world. And I found many who believed my story. Whether it was because they too felt the sense to protect the world, or if it was for some other reason, I know not. But I think that I was the only one aware of all my past existences, while the rest of the world solely thought of their current life as their only life. Hence why I didn’t think that the people who joined me believed me to have been through these past lives. But they still joined me all the same.” he explained.

 

                “And what happened after that? Were you able to assemble a big enough force to defend the world from war?” Ilia asked.

 

                “Indeed so…but even with my force assembled, it was still not enough. Together, we tried to convince the world of the horrors that awaited should they follow the path of war anew. But in their ignorance, humanity claimed that through power and through force, one could establish peace. I was a fool for having thought that a collective would be able to persuade the greater majority. How wrong I was…and again, the world faced destruction, and it burnt to ashes once more. And yet again, I lived on once more, and was brought back to another renewal of the world. Another step in the cycle…” Chozetsu said, his eyes drifting from left to right, as if remembering these events was taking a toll on him.

 

                “With each reincarnation that I went through, I tried to stop the world from falling into chaos. I tried to be a threatening entity, hoping to strike fear into the hearts of the mighty and powerful, but that failed. I tried to destroy the weapons of war that man had wrought, but I failed on that as well. I tried to stop the experiments that created the Shadow Blights from happening, but I failed on that as well. It came to a point where I didn’t know why I was being brought back every time from the brink of death. I was becoming tired of trying to right the wrongs of the world. And even though I grew tired, seeing those innocent few, those who believed in a better world…seeing their hopes and their dreams…it gave me a willing push so that I could keep moving on. And then a realization hit me…” he said, and there, he stopped for a moment, as if pondering those last words.

 

                “And what is that realization?” Saphira asked. She couldn’t help but feel sympathy for Chozetsu, even though he had caused such chaos. Hearing his story, she could feel the burden he had on himself, as apparently, he wanted to do right by the world.

 

                “The realization came to me in the next renewal that I bore witness to. It dawned upon me that the world kept reincarnating, constantly adapting to whatever shape existence would take there. And I realized that these people, people whom I knew but were total strangers to me, they kept coming back, and they never moved onwards beyond the cycle, the vicious cycle of this existence…and then, that’s when the light that had saved me countless times appeared before me again. Only this time, I saw something divine and beautiful…something that wasn’t of this earth…” he said, as he stood up and motioned his hand upwards, as if the very sky might open up at any moment!

               

                “What did you see?” Ilia asked.

 

                “Paradise…a world without war. I saw what the future held, the glorious utopia that awaited for all the distraught and tired souls…it filled me up with such warmth inside, and as I reached out for this paradise, it disappeared before my eyes. But that joy still resonated inside me, and that joy instilled inspiration and the will to keep going forward…and that’s when I realized what my true purpose was. What it continues to be!” he said.

 

                “And what would be that purpose?” Saphira asked. Chozetsu then stopped for a moment and looked at the two, and then he put his hand to his chest.

 

                “My purpose is to bring an end to the world, so that all souls whom have suffered needlessly, all who have suffered the horrors of war, sickness, famine, despair can be able to pass on into the next life. So that they can enter the paradise that I saw. I’ve had enough of seeing the world be destroyed countless upon countless times. I’ve had enough of seeing the same people I’ve come to know be engulfed in the flames of destruction…I’m tired of it all…I don’t want to have to go through this again…I want all people of the world to be able to pass on to the next life…so that they can be able to experience the wonderful afterlife that awaits them! For you see, as long as this vicious cycle exists, the world will never know peace. And so, these are my intentions, and you two are vital to the completion of my goal…” Chozetsu said, as he finished. Saphira and Ilia were unsure what to make of this. Of course, his goal sounded noble and it sounded like something that a person with a good heart would do, but the way he was going about it was questionable…

 

                “Tell me something, Chozetsu…if you desire to bring an end to war, then why are you going about it in such a horrifying manner? Why cause all this destruction in the first place?” Ilia asked.

 

                “That is because I set into motion what was already laid bare before your feet.” Chozetsu answered.

 

                “What’s that supposed to mean?” Saphira asked.

 

                “Well, Saphira, you see, before all of these chain of events ensued, the clans were already in unrest, and though you may not have noticed it at the time, there was already a power struggle at play. Vincent of the Scorched was one of the people who woke up, and he decided he would take matters into his own hands and attempt to rid his people of the curse of the Scorched for all time. And right now he is doing precisely that. He’s going to the Northern Continent, and by now he should be close. And once the curse of the Scorched is lifted from them, they’ll finally be free.” he answered.

 

                “Power struggle? But all four of us, all of us clan leaders ensured that peace would be kept, and we always had the best interests of the people at heart!” Saphira pointed out.

 

                “True though that may be, Saphira, people will never stop looking for conflict. It’s a primal instinct of humanity to seek supremacy over something. And now that the balance has been shifted, the time came for myself and my followers to do something about this. And so we unleashed the Shadow Blights, so that they could be able to weave destruction, while the dark abysses appearing over the world could consume it little by little…and World’s Edge, coming closer and closer, will wipe away this world in a clean slate!” Chozetsu said.

 

                “But don’t you realize that you’re killing the very people that you want to save!?” Ilia exclaimed!

 

                “Necessary deaths. And in the end, they will end up reincarnating in the afterlife, not in this wretched world. For you see, once this world is destroyed, they cannot return here. They will all gather towards paradise…they will all have a chance to start life anew, the way it is meant to be…without senseless fighting…” he answered, with an eerie calm in his voice.

 

                “And what are we of so vital importance to you?” Saphira asked. “Why are we so important to your plan?”

 

                “And so we come to the crux of it all. You see, you two, the power that you possess within you, is power that I need to absorb in order to complete the process of this world’s eradication. With your wind and your life creating power, I will absorb them unto me, and I’ll make sure to clean this world from all the filth that plagues it. Then all can finally know peace, and my companions can be able to fulfill their goals as well. Vincent is also going to be of very well use…as for Eros, once this world is destroyed, his people will fade away as well, and turn into lifeless rocks that will vanish with the cleansing of this world…so I have no use for that piece of rock…” he said.

 

                “How dare you!?” Saphira exclaimed, as she leapt up from her seat and attempted to attack Chozetsu, only to be intercepted by Ellene, who pushed her back and forced her back into her seat. Ilia grew pale again, and before long, she started to cough!

 

                “We will have none of that, Saphira. I will not let your tantrums deviate me from my goal…Beriel, give Ilia the medication. I can’t have her growing ill when everything is close to completion!” Chozetsu said, as he began walking away!

 

                “Yes, of course.” Beriel said, as he then came with the medication to heal Ilia and temporarily stop her illness.

 

                “Come back! Don’t you dare leave!” Saphira demanded, as Chozetsu kept walking away, fading from view. Beriel and Lucilda remained there, while Ellene went off elsewhere.

 

                “How…how did it all come to this?” Saphira asked herself, as she felt her head swirling. Everything that Chozetsu had just told them was too much for her to conceive. She couldn’t even begin to comprehend why he wanted to achieve his goal in such a destructive way! She glanced over to Ilia, whom had stopped coughing, and her face bore a worried expression.

 

                “He said that…Vincent would be of very well use to him…I wonder why he’d say such a thing?” Ilia asked. Saphira shook her head.

 

                “I honestly have no idea…but let’s hope that wherever Vincent and his friends are, that they are doing okay…” Saphira said. Ilia nodded.

 

                “Yes. I pray that they are safe…” she said, as they then grew silent in the presence of Beriel and Lucilda!

 

                Chozetsu, in the meantime, had gone down, and he was now walking on a wide, grassy plain that lay beyond where they were currently. He felt a considerable gust picking up to form a strong wind, and as he walked, he saw World’s Edge, inching closer and closer, as it consumed everything in its path! And right below the encroaching darkness, he could see the countless Shadow Blights spawning!

 

                “You foul creatures shall know eternal rest soon…it’s all matter of time. You will no longer plague the world.” he thought to himself. He then thought deeply upon his countless well of memories, of all the lives he has lived, of all the times he has reincarnated. Thinking upon these memories makes him feel pain, sorrow, but at the same time, he feels a sense of relief.

 

                “Soon…all of my efforts will have bore their fruit…all the pain I’ve endured, all the countless lives destroyed…soon the reward for all this suffering will be delivered…and I will know peace.” he thought. “And I expect for Vincent to play his part perfectly, and soon…”

(End Song Here)

 

---

 

                At that same moment, Vincent and the others were resting momentarily at the side of a great mountain. This mountain looked particularly old, and it had a reddish color to it, unlike other mountains. The ground was surprisingly soft despite the rocky terrain, and everyone was ensuring to save up their strength. Seth was overlooking what seemed to be a large valley, and he was surveying with his eyes to see how much further they had to go. After going through the woods, they were able to make it out safe and without incident!

 

                Audrey was working on something, though nobody could tell what, as she wouldn’t let anyone see. Vincent was sitting among the others, and he seemed to be lost in his thoughts. Kalciru was beside him, and he noticed Vincent’s pensive looking face, and then he put his hand on his shoulder.

 

                “Anything troubling you, Vincent?” he asked. This snapped Vincent back to reality, and then he shook his head.

 

                “No…I’m sorry, I just kind of zoned out…I just have this bad feeling all of a sudden…” he said.

 

                “Bad feeling? Whatever for?” Kalciru asked.

 

                “I feel like something horrible is about to transpire…and I don’t know why I feel this way…it’s just a weird feeling I have.” Vincent explained.

 

                “Well sir, maybe it’s because we’re so close to the Northern Continent!” one of the soldiers said.

 

                “That’s right! At the top of this mountain, you can see snow, and bits of it are falling down!” another soldier said.

 

                And true enough, snow was falling, though in a small amount. Vincent then looked towards Seth, who was looking at the horizon, and sure enough, he noticed a massive white mist obstructing what lay beyond! He then looked to Kalciru.

 

                “Are we really finally here…?” Vincent asked, as if doubting if they were actually there or not. Kalciru nodded.

 

                “I would have to say that yes. I do believe we are close. The snow is a dead giveaway.” he answered as he let a snowflake fall on the palm of his hand. “Heh, I can sense that you feel a bit nervous, Vincent. Perfectly natural. After all, few that have journeyed down this path have ever come back, and the fact that you have all succeeded in coming so far…well, I can understand why you feel anxious.”

 

                “Well…the important thing is that we’re here, and given that this is the case, we can all rest easy.” he said, as he stood up.  “We’re this close to finally ridding my people of the Scorched forever…and I am grateful that we’ve come this far…and thank you, Kalciru, for keeping us steady. For believing I could do this.” he said.

 

                “Ah, well, I was merely stating the obvious! I mean, you are a leader, and leaders, the good ones, tend to be esteemed by their peers.” Kalciru said.

 

                “That’s right! Like always, we’ll follow you to the death and beyond!” Seth added in, to which Vincent smiled.

 

                “And I thank you all for following me here…in just a bit more time, we’ll finally be free! Our people will know peace at last!” Vincent said, as he raised his fist up, and everyone cheered! Audrey smiled and looked at him, and then, they all looked towards the horizon.

 

                “Beyond that mist…beyond that horizon…awaits our future.” Vincent said, those last words spoken with utmost hope in his heart.  This was it.

 

                He would finally save his people.

--------------------------------------------------

 

With Chozetsu’s plan revealed and the fate of the world looming ever closer towards annihilation, what will happen next? Will our heroes become aware of the catastrophic events about to happen? What fate will await Saphira and Ilia? And will Vincent and his people finally be freed? Make sure to stick around for Chapter Twenty Five: “The End Of The World!”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter, I hope that you all enjoyed it! And don’t be alarmed by the title of the next chapter! Just because it says End Of The World doesn’t mean that it’ll be the end of the story! Oh no, many interesting things are going to happen in the next few chapters, so I hope you’ll all be ready for the awesomeness! As always, thank you very much for your patience and support, and as always, let me know what you thought about tonight’s chapter! Till next time, see you all for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

My god, the Oracle is insane.

[Sarrin 100]

hmmm this is getting drawn out glad i caught up

 

I also like your theme choices, you know the workings of a scene, and your character's names are interesting

Edited July 1, 2017 by Sarrin

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, ha, you think so? Lol, well, he may be a tad bit insane!

 

To Sarrin, I'm glad you've been keeping up with my story, I appreciate it! And thank you very much for the kind comments! After six years of writing, I think my skills have gotten to the point that I can call myself a decent storyteller! X3 Thank you very much for the kind comments!

 

Hey there everyone, and good evening! I hope all of you are doing okay! So then, we’ve finally made it! We are officialy at the midpoint of my story! With this chapter, my story will have reached a total of twenty five out of a total fifty that I shall be posting! I hope you’ve all liked the story so far, and I appreciate you all for your support and for all the views! It means a lot to me, and it always makes me happy to know that so many people read my stories! And I always love the comments too! So then, as we are now twenty five chapters away from reaching this story’s conclusion, I hope you’ll all enjoy what’s left of the ride! I’m sure you’ll all be entertained till the very end! So then, without further ado, here’s the new chapter! Enjoy!

 

Chapter Twenty Five: The End Of The World

 

                Zaria and Bane had been tending to their friends, as they had sustained pretty heavy injuries thanks to the battle they had against Ellene! And ever since they saw the destroyed village, things had turned complicated. Even though Laren, Tatsumaki and Grim were now slightly better from their injuries, they were at a loss as to where to go to now. With the town they were supposed to go to destroyed, they would have to press on until they’d hit another town. But what if that one was burnt down as well? Things weren’t looking good, and Zaria was getting ever more worried! And what’s more, Grim had begun to look deathly pale! He didn’t seem like himself, and he looked greatly weakened!

 

                “Are you sure that you’re okay, Grim?” Tatsumaki asked, tending to him, but he simply shrugged her off and chuckled a bit but ended up coughing.

 

                “Don’t worry yourself so much about me, I’m fine! Just feeling a little under the breeze, is all!” he commented, but his cough indicated otherwise! Eluzia, whom was beside him, whimpered and licked his hand. Laren was sitting on the ground just beside them, and he was holding onto his waist, as a great pain emanated from there, not to mention his whole body.

 

                “This latest development has slowed us down…this is not good! We have to try and get the lay of the land and proceed forward before things get worse!” Laren said, trying to relay orders, but feeling a bit more pain, forcing him to quiet down a bit. Bane walked over to them, and his eyes bore grim tidings.

 

                “What is it, Bane? You look troubled.” Laren said, hoping that Bane didn’t carry any bad news.

 

                “We won’t be getting any lay on any land…something is coming…something bad…” Bane answered. Zaria looked at him when he mentioned these words, and she couldn’t help but wonder how he knew that!

 

                “And why do you think that, Bane?” Zaria asked. He just shook his head and looked towards the east, as the sky began growing dark, and an increasing gust of wind picked up, blowing towards their direction!

 

                “A nasty feeling…an ominous feeling looms in the air…” was his only answer, as he continued looking at the darkening horizon. Zaria stood up and then walked over to him and stood by his side, and she noticed what he was seeing, and this was something that definitely didn’t sit well with her either!

 

                “What…is that? More of the dark abysses?” Zaria asked, looking at Bane, but he shook his head slowly.

 

                “Something more powerful…more sinister…” was his reply. Zaria then looked back and saw their wounded friends, as they lay sitting. Out of the three, Tatsumaki looked like the most recovered one, while Laren was faring more or less, and Grim was looking worse for wear! She then looked at Bane expectantly.

 

                “So, what’s the plan? How do we move on from here?” she asked. Bane remained silent for a time, as if pondering her question, but he was continually gazing upon the darkening sky, as it became darker and darker, and he could see great expanses of dark streams coming forth!

 

                “World’s Edge…” he whispered to himself.

 

                “What was that?” Zaria asked.

 

                “World’s Edge…it’s come upon the world fully…and it’s consuming the world…” Bane explained. At that, Laren, despite his injuries, stood up in alarm!

 

                “World’s Edge? No, that cannot be! I have to see this with my own eyes!” he exclaimed as he stood up! He almost fell, but Tatsumaki held him, and so she helped him walk towards Bane and Zaria, and once they reached them, he saw towards the direction they were all looking at, and his face grew ill with worry!

 

                “No…we’ve failed…the darkness is spreading unspeakably fast right now…this isn’t good.” Laren said. “Everyone, we need to move on, despite our condition! We must—ngh!” he winced, as he felt his body aching up again. Tatsumaki settled him down beside grim, and she looked at the two of them worriedly!

 

                “Guys…what are we going to do?” Tatsumaki asked, distressed. An eerie silence loomed over them, for right now, the situation was growing ever more dire!

 

---

 

                At that same moment, Vincent and the others had finally walked down the mountain they had been taking their rest, and as they continued pressing forward, the snow increased, and soon, they were walking along snow covered ground! And so, they had finally reached it! The Northern Continent! Vincent and the others stopped for a moment, and they took a good, long look at their surroundings. Snow white lands bore upon them like a blanket, with snowflakes falling gently down to the ground! The trees were fully adorned by the snow, and a long, straight path lead to a mountainous range, and beyond the horizon, a tall, spiked mountain towered above the land, and it seemed to radiate a sort of mythical energy! Vincent couldn’t believe that they had made it here, and the others were crying tears of joy!

 

                “We made it Vincent…we made it!” Seth said, putting his arm around Vincent’s shoulder, as tears of joy rolled down his face!

 

                “After so much struggle and hardship…we’ve finally come here! The Northern Continent, it’s in front of our very eyes!” Audrey spoke, her voice breaking!

 

                “We’ve done it sir, we’re actually here! This feels…so surreal!” one of the soldiers commented, and the others agreed. Kalciru looked at them with a smile, and he looked towards the path they had yet to walk, and he gave out a satisfied sigh.

 

                “Well, it does look like you have all made it here…and soon, the fruits of your hard labors shall be rewarded! Freedom is just a mountain peak away, after all!” he commented, to which the others smiled, their eyes filled with hope and determination!

 

                “Yes, now that we’re here, we’ll finish this, and we’ll finally free our people!” another of the soldiers commented, to which everyone else cheered!

 

                And so, after taking in their surroundings, they pressed onward, hoping to cut through the snow as fast as they could! They applied heat to their feet so they could melt off the snow beneath them faster, and that helped greatly in them avoiding any slowing down due to big patches of snow. They all walked forward, and as they traversed this void, silent winter landscape, Vincent couldn’t help but think of how far they’d come. He still couldn’t believe that they had made it all this way to the Northern Continent! Just a short while ago, he’d been telling himself that he’d free his people, and now, he can safely say that he’s about to meet his goal! And having all of his friends helping him along the way has only strengthened his resolve to see this through, as everyone else has.

 

                The hours passed, and still they continued traversing through the snow. Even though the highest mountain peak looked close, it was actually still a bit off, and right now, no one could tell if it was morning or afternoon, due to the white snow clouds covering the sun! But the fact that they could still see their surrounding environment indicated that it was still daylight! Vincent had thought about stopping somewhere to rest, but given that a snowstorm could pick up at any moment, he opted not to go for rest, and the others didn’t look keen on stopping either. They all trudged along silently, and as the hours continued to drag on, the snow didn’t seem to affect anyone in the slightest! If anything, they were that much more determined to reach the end of their journey!

 

                But even with this drive and motivation, Vincent still couldn’t shake off the feeling that something terrible was about to happen. He was convincing himself that he was being paranoid, but with each step they took, he got just as excited as he did scared. What would await them at journey’s end? Would they all be okay? And what would happen after they’d be rid of their Scorched powers? What would be the next step? These were things that were swirling inside his head, but he knew that he’d keep a level head in order to be able to lead his people into a new era. He had to remain strong and keep heart! He just had to!

 

                “You seem heavily weighed, Vincent.” Kalciru said. Vincent jumped a bit in surprise, and then he noticed that he had been walking ahead of the others for quite a distance, and the only one keeping up to him was Kalciru!

 

                “Oh, sorry about that, I guess I didn’t notice how I just up and left everybody behind.” he answered as he stopped to wait for the others. Kalciru put his hands behind his back and looked at the snow around him. A brief silence surrounded them until Kalciru started to rub his chin.

 

                “Hmm, I have to say, this has been quite an interesting journey…quite an interesting experience, if I do say so myself…” Kalciru said. Vincent turned to face him.

 

                “That so? Well, I guess that you’re right. I don’t think that a journey like this had been in my plans either. But it had to be done. And though there were losses, I am blessed that they weren’t many…we’ve still got many with us.” Vincent said, as he watched his friends catching up to them.

 

                “Indeed, indeed. You remind me of myself when I was your age. I too, had this passion for friends and for people. You could say that I was almost your predecessor.” Kalciru said. This sparked Vincent’s curiosity, and then he thought of asking him something.

 

                “Say, you know something? I never really did ask you why you decided to stick with us all the way here to the Northern Continent? I mean, you don’t have any Scorched powers, so I’m curious as to why you kept tagging along with us.” Vincent spoke out loud, voicing his thoughts.

 

                “Well…you could say that I was intrigued by you and your group. And I wanted to see if you could all truly make it this far. And from the looks of things, you have all exceeded my expectations! It truly amazes me what humans will do for survival, for themselves, to better themselves in life. I guess you could say I came along as an observer.” Kalciru answered.

 

                “Heh, well, you’re about to witness history being made, so be sure to mark that on your observations.” Vincent chuckled as he turned to face his friends, who had all caught up to them! Kalciru only smirked.

 

                “Well guys, we ready? We’re almost there!” Vincent encouraged.

 

                “Let’s finish this!” Audrey said, and the others cheered, for their destination was so close at hand!

 

                And so, together, they continued walking along the snow, and after about an hour, they had finally reached their destination! They had stopped right at the foot of the tallest mountain, and at the very top, they could see the mountain peak radiating with a transcendent light! Everyone stopped for a moment to catch their breath, and they also noticed that at the foot of the mountain, there was less snow than in the field. They all sat down and rested up a bit, eating up some of their provisions while making sure to save some for the journey back home. God knows they’d need the food! After their rest, they readied themselves to climb atop the mountain.

 

                And so, they began their ascent. The foot of the mountain was very steep, and as such, Vincent and the others had to go through quite a bit of climbing before they were able to firmly set foot on flat ground. Once they did, they followed a winding path that cut into the mountain’s wall, almost as if the path had been made years before! At many times, they had to carefully skid along the walls, for the path was at times very narrow, and they would have to pass one at a time in order not to fall to their deaths. Sometimes chunks of snow would fall from above, but they weren’t life threatening. At most, they’d cover one of them completely in snow, but with their Scorched powers, they’d melt the snow off quickly!

 

                While climbing up the mountain, Vincent and the others noticed that there seemed to be unfinished carvings within the rock of the mountain itself. Almost as if someone had been trying to make a sculpture, or maybe a tribute to some fallen hero or god. Whatever the case, the passing of time had left that carving unfinished, and that is how it would remain. There were also strange markings on some parts of the mountain, but Vincent and the others paid them no mind. Kalciru would often walk behind them all, taking a good long look at these symbols and carvings. He seemed particularly interested in them!

 

                Making their way further upward, they came upon a giant wall that had a very small slit where a person could pass through. Not wanting to linger long enough for that slit to suddenly close up, Vincent and the others passed one by one quickly, until they all made it to the other side!  Once on the other side, they came upon a small rising, and when they walked up, they could see the Northern Continent below, all of it covered in a blanket of white! It was truly something to behold! Then they noticed that there was an entrance to their right, and they cautiously went in, just in case something awaited them inside!

 

                But as luck would have it, there was nothing or no one around, just an empty space with more unfinished carvings. This place looked as though it could have been some sort of training ground, or maybe a place of meditation or worship. Whatever the case, they saw a steep staircase that led upward, and at the very top, they could see the mountain peak, and the light shining from above grew ever brighter! And that is when Vincent himself started to glow, his body radiating a white aura! The others took notice of this and got startled!

 

                “Hey, Vincent, what’s with you getting all shiny like that all of a sudden!?” Seth exclaimed. Vincent didn’t seemed surprised, and Kalciru clasped his hands together and approached him.

 

                “Ah, so this is the power of Mt. Crescent! It seems to be resonating with that of the Maker right up there! Well then, let’s move on!” Kalciru urged, as they all started to ascend the staircase!

 

                As they continued to climb up the stairs, Vincent’s aura became brighter, and he could feel the power within him swelling up! And with this, he felt calm and at ease. He didn’t feel any worry or pain at all. If anything, he felt relaxed! The power within him rested like a calm ocean, and he put his hand to his chest, feeling his heartbeat.

 

                “Almost there…” he thought. “Just a bit more!”

 

                A short while after, they finally reached the peak, and now, the only thing that was standing between them and the power of the Maker was a tall, stone gate! The others were starting to shed tears of joy, and Vincent closed his eyes, feeling immense relief! He turned around to face the others, and he looked at them, one by one, giving them reassuring and comforting nods. The fact that they all made it here was testament to Vincent’s promise to them. He put his hand on his chest, and tears started rolling down his eyes.

 

                “Everyone…we’ve finally made it. In just a few moments, we’ll finally be free! We can be able to live the lives we want to live, without fear of dying early deaths! This  is our time, and I wouldn’t have made it here without all of you…we’ve earned this together!” Vincent said, giving out his speech, and the others cheered!

 

                “Let’s do this, boss! Let’s take the final step, together!” one of the soldiers said.

 

                “Yeah, let’s do this for our loved ones! So we can go back home!” another soldier encouraged.

               

                “We’re right behind you, all the way!” Seth said, and Audrey gave a bright smile. Vincent nodded, and then he faced the gate that was before them. It had strange markings, and the gate seemed to resonate with the aura Vincent was emanating from his body. Naturally, he assumed that this was some sort of connection, so he outstretched his palm, letting out silver flames from inside his body. The flames caressed the stone gate, and it lit up with a brilliant and radiant light! It was almost blinding! Everyone covered their eyes, and when the light died down, a loud clank was heard. No doubt this was the mechanism of the gate!  And sure enough, it began to open slowly, revealing a short hallway, and just beyond it, a shining light was emanating.

 

                “The power of the Maker…” Vincent thought. Just then, he felt something odd, almost as if his body was telling him to turn around. Following this odd instinct, he turned around, and then he could see that the sky was darkening in the distance! And it was quite the ominous looking darkness! The others noticed this, and they murmured to themselves, wondering what was causing all this! Kalciru was just ahead of them all, and he seemed to be particularly entranced by the darkened sky, as he didn’t turn around for a moment. He seemed to be taking in the sight!

 

                “Kalciru…what’s wrong?” Vincent asked. A momentary silence followed. Then, before their very eyes, his body disintegrated, much to everyone’s shock and surprise!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “W-what? What is this!?” Audrey exclaimed! Vincent turned around again, towards the Maker’s light, when he saw that Kalciru had already gone ahead and reached for said light! In fact, Kalciru had grabbed it and was now holding it in his right hand! He had a wide smirk across his face! Immediately, Vincent knew this was going to take a turn for the worse!

 

                “Kalciru…what’s the meaning of all this…?” Vincent asked warily. Kalciru looked at him and then looked at the power that was dwelling in his right hand.

 

                “Ah, the Maker’s power…it feels light yet heavy at the same time…I had been waiting a long time for this, and thanks to you fools, now this power finally belongs…to me!” he declared, much to everyone’s shock!

 

                “What!?” Seth exclaimed, dumbfounded!

 

                “Simple, really. All of you were a means to an end. I had difficulty coming here in previous attempts, mostly because I could not take hold of the power of Mt. Crescent…but thanks to your fearless leader, his power allowed all of you to come all this way to the Northern Continent…so of course I had to follow you! A chance like this wouldn’t come twice in this lifetime! So I capitalized!” Kalciru explained.

 

                “Wait, what do you mean, exactly?” Vincent asked, confused.

 

                “Hmm, yes, I suppose some explaining is in order…allow me to illuminate you before you all face your end.” Kalciru replied.

 

                “Our end!?” Audrey exclaimed, now glaring at Kalciru.

 

                “Just what the hell is going on!?” Vincent demanded. Kalciru simply chuckled and waved his hand dismissively.

 

                “Well, it all goes back quite a few centuries…oh yes, just as you heard.” Kalciru replied, letting his words sink in with the others, whom were still shocked and couldn’t comprehend this sudden betrayal! “You see, I’ve been a part of this world for quite some time now…and I’ve had quite the unfinished business! You see, I used to be leader of the Scorched, very much like you, Vincent.” he explained.

 

                “What!?” Vincent exclaimed.

 

                “That is correct. Like you, all those centuries ago, I wanted to be able to free my people of the curse of being Scorched. Like you, I questioned the way the world worked, and how things worked. I wanted to bring a great change to the world, a change unlike any that would ever be replicated! I was a man who had it all. I had a country, people who admired me, great power, and a magnificent woman who was my true love. I had everything, and at the same time, I had nothing. As long as we were cursed to be Scorched, I was always under the fear that these joys of my life would be taken from me…”

 

                “And so, in addition to wanting to free myself and my people from the curse of the Scorched, the world was being encroached by darkness at the time. All countries of the world were in crisis, and the decision was  made between myself and the clan leaders of that time that we should unite forces and fight against the darkness together, to drive it back. And so, that is what we did. We formed a great alliance, and our united efforts helped to keep the world at bay from destruction, and bought time for our peoples to prepare for any impending disasters. But even though we all worked together, there was still much unrest, particularly with the constant threat of the Shadow Blights. The world was being consumed, and hopelessness was in the air…”

 

                “It was at that time of turmoil that my love and I decided that we would venture forth and try to obtain the power of Mt. Crescent, for we had heard at the time that the power that mountain held could be strong enough to beat back the Shadow Blights. It was a perilous journey, and back then, the path was far more dangerous. My love and I, we went to the mountain by ourselves, and we endured the harsh climate and dangerous twists and turns. And when we reached the mountain, the one who dwelled within the mountain said that I was not worthy of the power…and this angered me greatly.” he said, with a bitter sound to his voice at that last sentence.  Everyone else remained in silence.

 

                “At a lost for what to do next, my love and I returned to our allies and explained our situation. Things were dire, and we had little options to consider. It was then that the Craftsmen offered to build me a weapon with which I could amplify my Scorched powers and channel them to great lengths. I wanted to have more power in order to save the world, so I agreed to this, and the Craftsmen forged me a gauntlet, which is the one that I wear now.” he said, as he showed his gauntlet to the others for them to look! “And once I had this gauntlet, my powers did increase…and with them, I was able to help the other clans in our efforts to push back the darkness! I was in the front lines, and I risked my very life in order to ensure that the lives of others would not be wasted! Lyda, my love…she fought alongside me, and my people pushed forward…we were the bravest of all, the most fearsome and powerful force to walk the Earth…and after we eventually beat the darkness back, peace had finally come…but it was not to last.” he said, then stopped for a moment, looking at the Maker’s light, and looking at it with great anger in his eyes!

 

                “After peace came, my mission was to try to find a way to get rid of the curse of the Scorched. Back then, I knew not of the Maker’s power being in the Northern Continent, and so Lyda and I went to every corner of the earth, to all the clans, asking for their help. But they either denied us assistance or told us that our quest was impossible. This greatly angered me…and that wasn’t even the worst part!”

 

                “At a time where I was desperate, an unknown band of strangers came to my door, and they offered help to us. They said they could help us get rid of our power for good…and even though I was wary of these strangers, I wanted to believe that they could help us, so I agreed to let them help, and I welcomed them into my home. Not long after that, we set out for the Northern Continent, for they had heard that a great power lay there, and supposedly, it was a mystical power that could be capable of doing anything! So if that were true, I deduced that it could get rid of the curse of the Scorched! So Lyda and I, along with a handful of our soldiers, headed to the Northern Continent with these strangers. Only that on our way, we were betrayed…” he spoke.

 

                “Betrayed…?” Vincent asked warily.

 

                “Yes, betrayed, Vincent. Thinking that we were all on the same page, it turned out that the group of strangers had lured us into a trap! They never meant to help us! No…they wanted the power I possessed for themselves! Of course, it made sense!  I had held back the darkness and the Shadow Blights with my power, and it was a great one that many coveted…I would gladly give away my power, but I could not do such a thing, for it was not up to me, which is why I wanted to be rid of the cursed flames inside me for good! But they saw it another way…they saw my power as a means of controlling the power struggle that reigned over us…and so, in a desperate attempt to escape, we caused quite a fiery explosion, Lyda and I…and we were almost able to get away…but then we were trapped anew. It came to a point when we were being chased, hunted down like savages…until finally, Lyda and I were able to escape!”

 

                “Afterwards, we quickly went back to our home, fearing for the safety of our people…only that when we had arrived, our home was destroyed, and our people slaughtered…very few survivors remained. It was a horrifying sight, and it was too much for us to bear…and knowing this, I went to the other clans, and they too had suffered attacks and slaughters the likes of which were unspeakable…and they had the audacity to ask us for help, when we had asked for theirs, and they had not given it to us. But yet…we decided to unite with the clans again. This time, it was no mere darkness we were battling against! This time, it was against the greatest darkness of all…mankind itself.” he said, as he then looked up to the ever darkening sky, his eyes now seeming to be empty and lifeless.

 

                “Greedy, despicable mankind…they gathered together against the clans, and they desperately wanted the power of the Scorched. A great war waged, and many lives were lost…and among those was that of Lyda. Ah yes, she made a noble sacrifice…” he trailed off.

 

                “What do you mean by that!?” Vincent asked.

 

                “…The battle was reaching its breaking point, and we were beset everywhere by enemies…and soon after, Shadow Blights started to emerge as well, and we were being cornered! It was then that I decided to use the power of the gauntlet the Craftsmen had forged me, to put it to good use! And to good use I did put it…from it, unspeakably powerful flames spewed out, as if I were a great winged dragon myself! But even with that, it was not enough. No, for the enemy had become unholy, and their power had become overwhelming, and with the hordes of Shadow Blights coming, I could not fell them all at once…and that’s when Lyda decided to channel her power into my gauntlet. But doing so exerted her to extreme pain, the likes of which I know you’ve all felt. She basically shortened her life to the point that she became nothing but ash…and there I was, taken aback by despair. I had lost my love…I had lost her over such a petty thing as power…over the greed of man. And then, in rage and despair, my flames empowered, and I remember taking the form of a giant dragon completely wreathed in flame. I turned all my foes into ash, and that was the end of it.” he finished, letting his words hang in the air.

 

                “After that, even though I had saved the world, people began to shun me. They had beheld my power, and they began to fear me and curse at me. They wanted nothing to do with me, and they damned me, condemned me. I was now a walking demon among them, so to speak. And that is how I spent the rest of my life. As a former shell of who I once was, with my people in ruins and my own self cursed to wander the world as a demon in the eyes of the people…that is, until the world renewed…” he explained.

 

                “Renewed? What does that mean…?” Audrey asked. Kalciru seemed to have traced himself off, but then he regained his composure, and his face grew grim.

 

                “I’ve done enough talking. Now you all die.” he said, and as he crushed the light of the Maker in his hand, bolts of light pierced through Vincent’s friends, killing them all instantly, except for Seth and Audrey, who had just barely managed to dodge the light bolts! They looked in shock as the bodies of their dead friends fell to the floor, and then they turned to ash almost instantly, being blown away by the wind!

 

                “No! What did you do!?”  Vincent exclaimed!

 

                “You bastard!” Seth protested, his eyes awash with rage!

 

                “Enough of this…” Kalciru said, as he snapped his fingers, and dark tentacles came out from the ground and started to drag Vincent, Seth and Audrey down into the unknown!  They were trying to crawl their way out, but the more they resisted, the faster they were pulled inside!

 

                “No! This can’t be how it ends…not after everything we had to endure!” Vincent cried out, frustrated and cursing himself under his breath! Kalciru calmly walked towards them and then knelt in front of them, watching them drown in the darkness, as the tentacles had already dragged down the lower halves of their bodies! He looked at the three of them and then he smiled.

 

                “Life is not what you make it out to be, Vincent. Sometimes, you have to be ready to be disappointed.” he stated. This angered Vincent greatly, and just when he was about to say something, he saw Seth and Audrey sinking into the dark, their hands outstretching in desperation!

 

                “Seth! Audrey! No!!!” he exclaimed, trying to reach them, but he himself found that he was already sunken into the ground as well, the last thing he saw being Kalciru, looking at them and then turning away.

 

                And then, darkness…

(End Song Here)

 

---

 

                Meanwhile, Chozetsu, Ellene and Beriel were all standing upon the edge of a cliff, and they were watching as the sky was darkening ever more! The sky was pitch black in color, and white lightning bolts were flashing here, there and everywhere! World’s Edge had consumed a great chunk of the surrounding area, and Shadow Blights were spawning at an alarming rate! The wind was picking up, and there was a certain feeling of heaviness in the air.  All of a sudden, Lucilda emerged from the darkness, her red eyes looking at Chozetsu.

 

                “Preparations are ready, Master.” she reported.

 

                “Ah, so you did things proceeding smoothly, eh? I’m impressed!” Beriel chuckled.

 

                “Shut up, old rat!” Lucilda growled, but Chozetsu raised his left hand.

 

                “Enough, you two.” he commanded, as he then looked up to the sky and smiled.  “The time has come.” he said. With those words alone, everyone remained in silence, and all their faces grew serious. Just then, Kalciru appeared in a fiery blaze, and he was holding the light of the Maker in his hands! Chozetsu looked pleased!

 

                “Ah, I trust that everything went smoothly, then?” he asked. Kalciru nodded.

 

                “Almost like if it was scripted, my friend. I assume the preparations are ready?” he asked. Chozetsu nodded.

 

                “Indeed…now come with me, everyone. You are all about to witness our passing into paradise!” he claimed, as he then went inside their lair. As they did, the wind picked up ever more!

 

                Once inside, they walked towards a wide chamber, and there was a hole in the ceiling that was big enough for daylight to pour in considerably! Saphira and Ilia were bound in chains, as they were hanging in midair! Saphira was defiantly struggling, trying to fight her way out of the chains, but Ilia was too weak! She was spent, and her skin looked even more deathly pale! She saw Chozetsu and the others come in, and she glared at them all. Despite her circumstance, her fighting spirit had not ceased. Chozetsu couldn’t help but let out a chuckle!

 

                “Ah, well it seems you are still fighting! How very noble and defiant of you!” Chozetsu clapped, his claps resonating in the chamber. “And though I admire your persistence, there is no escaping the inevitable. Now, you two are going to help me achieve the end of everything.” he said, as he then clapped his hands together, and when he outstretched his palms, the whole chamber lit up with candles, and then an enormous sigil formed underneath Saphira and Ilia! The sigil was a giant circle which had many strange markings within!

 

                “Damn it…I can’t believe this…” Saphira said to herself.

 

                “You won’t…win.” Ilia coughed, with what little strength she could muster to speak! Saphira glanced over at her with worried eyes!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “My dear Ilia, this isn’t about winning or losing. This is about redeeming mankind and sending them to the next life, as they have so long been deprived of. You are merely helping me in my goal. And history shall remember your sacrifice!” Chozetsu proclaimed. He then nodded and signaled the others to take their positions around the sigil! When they gathered around, the sigil lit up a dark, blood red!

 

                “All positions are at the ready…”Chozetsu whispered to himself. He then spread his arms out, and he closed his eyes, and the others did the same! Saphira began to panic, her heart skipping a few beats!

 

                “No, no, this can’t be…this can’t be happening!” she exclaimed! Then she felt her very life force weaken, as the sigil beneath her began to glow and ripple! Now she knew that there was no stopping anything. It was over. She had failed the world, her people, her friends and herself. She knew this, and she hung her head low, giving in to despair, letting go of the will to fight. Chozetsu smiled as he felt her power submit to his. He then drew a deep breath and then started to siphon Saphira and Ilia’s energy into his body! Shortly after, he placed his right palm on the sigil, and it rippled with great intensity, and slowly, small pebbles started to rise from the ground!

 

                “Holy light of the afterlife…heed my call! In my hands, I hold the power to change fate! Renew the bond that was once broken! Rekindle our connection to paradise! Grant us passage, and cleanse this world from the filth that plagues it! Bring forth the final rebirth!” Chozetsu chanted, and the others repeated after him! Saphira was shedding tears, and Ilia had fallen unconscious.  Soon enough, the sigil began to glow violently, and then, in a sudden flash, everything fell into silence!

 

                World’s Edge grew gargantuan in scale, and it swallowed the entire world in darkness! Shadow Blights spawned millions upon millions, overtaking all cities, slaughtering all people that lived in them! Tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes and other fatal natural disasters tore through the planet, shifting the entire earth in a colossal apocalypse! All the mighty cities fell, and no military might could hope to stop the Shadow Blights, as they overwhelmed everything and everyone! The sky darkened to the point that it was entirely pitch black!  Electrical currents then weaved and zipped through the sky, and enormous spikes rose from the ground! Mt. Terios spewed out unspeakable flames, and Mt. Crescent crumbled! The world became nothing but a mass of chaos and destruction!

 

                And just then, amidst the chaos and the dying people, a giant beam of light tore through the sky and struck down on the ground, causing a massive shockwave that resonated within a very wide radius!  Soon after, the beam started to spread, and slowly, it covered the world in blinding light! The very foundation of existence itself shook to its core, and everything was forever altered!  There was a great thundering in the sky, and then, within seconds, silence once more.

 

                The world came to an end…

(End Song Here)

 

----------------------------------------

 

Next time, Chapter Twenty Six: “Zero.”

 

And so ends the world…and everything that our heroes had fought so hard for! But what’ll happen next!? What do you all think!? Haha, I hope that I left a juicy enough cliffhanger for you all to devour while I work on the next chapter! I enjoyed writing this chapter, and I hope you all enjoyed reading it! As always, thank you very much for your patience and support, and let me know what you thought about tonight’s chapter!  And until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

My word...

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegend III, yep, I know you'd react this way! Quite a turn of events, eh?

 

Good evening everyone, I hope that all of you are doing well! So then, forgive me for the slight delay, but I’ve been juggling a few things at the same time when it comes to my hobbies and my personal life, so apologies that this chapter came a bit later than usual! But anyways, after the end of the world, what is there left in the aftermath? I bet you’re all itching to find out what happens, next, huh? Well, wait no longer, for the chapter is here! Enjoy!

 

Chapter Twenty Six: Zero

 

                “What is this…?” Bane thought to himself, as he gained consciousness. His eyes were blurred, and he was shaking his head as he groggily stood up.

 

                “What’s going on…?” he thought, as his vision began to clear. The last thing that he remembered was seeing the sky darken, and a strong wind had picked up. After that, he remembered a flash of light, and then darkness! As his vision cleared and he stood firm, he looked around, and the most bizarre of sights was set before him.

 

                He was standing on a large mass of land, but he soon found out that this mass was floating slowly, almost as if he was in outer space! He looked around and saw chunks of rock, trees, debris and other numerous things floating around in the distance and nearby. All the while, enormous streams of darkness lay in the background, looking almost like waterfalls! Bane was confused by all this, but he knew one thing. He knew that the world as he had known it was gone.

 

                “Good, you’re awake!” Tatsumaki hummed out, as Bane turned around to face her. She looked at him with a relieved expression, and she gave out a sigh.

 

                “It looks like things have taken a turn for the worse…and by that I mean much worse…” she commented, as she put her hands on her hips. Bane was still feeling a big groggy, but he managed to say aloft.

 

                “What happened, exactly? All I remember is seeing a flash of light and then…nothing. I almost felt as if I had died…” he said, explaining as best as he could. Tatsumaki shook her head, for it seemed she knew not what had happened either.

 

                “I honestly don’t know. I’m in the same boat as you, and the guys haven’t woken up yet…” she replied with a grim expression on her face.

 

                “Right, the others…where are they?” Bane asked. Tatsumaki pointed just to the left, and there Bane saw them, and they were all lying on the ground. They had all been taken care of by Tatsumaki, as it seemed. She was probably awake before any of them.

 

                “I wonder what this all means…? I have a very bad feeling that World’s Edge destroyed the entire world…but I don’t think that the Shadow Blights were enough to consume the entire world…no, I think that someone was pulling on the strings for this to happen!” Tatsumaki deduced, as she rubbed her chin and looked up at the sky. Well, if it could be called a sky at all. She saw that it had a vibrancy of many different colors, and there were unrecognizable forms that were floating around and dotting the environment. She didn’t know how to feel about all this craziness!

 

                “Someone…capable of causing such massive destruction…?” Bane wondered.

 

                “Yes…and the first thought that came to my head was Vincent, the leader of the Scorched. He had been trying to get rid of the Scorched power from him and his people, so maybe he was the cause of all this…but then again, he’s not someone that would go this far. So he’s probably not the one responsible for all this…and what’s worse, I haven’t seen anyone else. Not another living soul, and that makes me worried that everyone might have been wiped out, and for some freak reason, we managed to survive…” Tatsumaki said, wondering aloud to herself. Bane crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

 

                “Probably one of the people responsible for this was the shadow woman, Lucilda, whom I fought back in Tremaine’s lair…while we fought, I remember her saying that she was a part of a group that was seeking to change the way things worked in the world…and that group may have been responsible for this whole mess…” Bane said, recalling his memories into the surface. Tatsumaki looked at him attentively, and just then, they heard some slight coughing. It was coming from Grim, who was wakening!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Grim! You’re awake!” Tatsumaki jumped up, as she quickly went by his side, and Bane followed closely behind. They both knelt beside him, and he looked even worse for wear! He was sweating, and he had bags under his eyes! His skin was looking deathly and sickly pale, and he seemed to be a bit slimmer! He coughed and gasped for breath, and Tatsumaki cooled him off with a cold gust of fresh air! That seemed to liven him up a little, for he then sat up slowly. He looked at Tatsumaki and Bane, and then looked to Laren and Zaria, whom were still unconsciouss.

 

                “This is bad…” he said. “Really bad…and my powers…they are weakening…” and then that’s when it him him! “Eluzia! Where’s Eluzia!?” he exclaimed. Tatsumaki shook her head sadly and sighed.

 

                “He wasn’t around…I checked around, and he didn’t show up. You don’t sense his presence, I take it…” she answered. Grim nodded and rubbed his forehead in distress.

 

                “It seems that I can’t summon him anymore…I’ve become that weak…” he said.

 

                “But why?” Bane asked. Grim looked at him and then coughed a bit before speaking!

 

                “It seems that without Vincent and his people’s power, the power of the Lifespring literally withers away…after all, we did rely on their flames to help us with our task of keeping nature alive and well…so my guess is that Vincent somehow managed to get rid of his powers, and that of his people’s, and if that’s the case, then things aren’t looking well for me…” Grim said, which was not the best of news! “Without our power, we die slowly…only God knows if Lady Ilia is still alive…” he said, as he started to lose consciousness again.

 

                “No, no, Grim! You can’t die! You just can’t!” Tatsumaki urged, tears starting to form in her eyes! “You can’t just die! We need you!” she demanded! Grim simply chuckled, and he seemed as though he was ready to accept this fate.

 

                “Well, I may not want to die, but things are the way they are…I just regret…that I couldn’t do more to help you all…” he said, as his body started to grow cold and his skin becoming ever more aged with each passing second!

 

                “Don’t say that…you’ve been a tremendous help to us…you’ve been there for us, not only as our ally in battle, but as a true friend! Don’t sell yourself short!” Tatsumaki corrected. Tears continued to roll down as Grim became colder and colder…

 

                “Hmm…I guess having you all as my friends was a great thing…for an old timer like me…” he said, as his voice began to fade! Tatsumaki was about to bawl out, when Bane placed his hand on Grim’s hand.

 

                “It isn’t your time yet, old man…” Bane said. At that, Tatsumaki looked at Bane with confusion.

 

                “Huh? What are you doing, Bane?” she asked, still confused and distraught!

 

                Bane only remained silent, and Grim looked at him, just as confused as Tatsumaki was. But then, they both saw something unexpected! Bane’s left hand slowly shifted, and it started to hum and whir like a machine! Then they realized that Bane was indeed a machine! This was something that had caught them off guard most certainly, for the look of surprise was plastered on their faces! Bane said nothing, and only focused on Grim. From inside the machinery within himself, he summoned forth pure flames that then surrounded grim like an aura! The flames seemed to be seeping into Grim’s body! It was something strange, yet something miraculous! For as the flames seeped in, Grim began to look more lively, and soon after, he was recovering at a surprising rate! It came to the point that he recovered completely, and his skin had turned back to normal! The two of them looked at Bane in shock, but he only reverted his hand back to normal, and then he stood up.

(End Song Here)

 

                “You are important to these people. You aren’t going away so easily.” Bane said, as he then turned around and walked off, no doubt to explore their newfound surroundings! He left a bewildered Tatsumaki and Grim, with Grim looking at his own hands, in disbelief of the fact that he was now perfectly fine!

 

                “He…he siphoned Scorched flames into you!” Tatsumaki said, still surprised!

 

                “He did…but how? This is…this is something truly amazing!” Grim said. He couldn’t even begin to feel grateful for the fact that he was alive! And soon after, Laren and Zaria gained consciousness, and Tatsumaki and Grim quickly headed towards them!

 

                “You two are finally awake!” Tatsumaki cheered in relief!

 

                “That we are…but where are we?” Laren asked, confused.

 

                “And what happened?” Zaria added.

 

                “We’re not sure ourselves. All we know is that our world as we knew it seems to have been…destroyed.” Grim explained. This set Laren’s face into a worried expression.

 

                “No…this cannot be! Then we’ve failed! We’ve failed our mission! I…I can’t believe this!” Laren said, as he laid back down, still feeling weak. Zaria looked all around her, and she looked at Bane in the distance, as he was surveying the environment.

 

                “Whatever happened…it’s not good.”  Zaria thought, as she looked at the others with a worried expression on her face.

 

---

 

(Start Song Here)

                Elsewhere, Vincent found himself coming into consciousness abruptly, as if he had just come out of the worst nightmare of his life! He panted and realized that he was sweating, and his heart was pounding! He could feel his body was weak, but that didn’t matter to him. The first thing he thought about were his friends. All of them had died because of him, because of his foolishness, for being so quick to trust Kalciru, who had turned out to be a manipulator of events all along! Vincent cursed himself over and over for all the lives lost, and he cursed himself that he was still alive at all! But he also realized that he didn’t feel the burning sensation in his body anymore! He had grown so used to the powers of the Scorched inside him, that feeling those internal flames had become second nature to him! But now his body felt normal, with just normal temperature, and an overall feeling that indicated Vincent that his powers were gone! He tried to summon forth flames, and he saw that they didn’t materialize! So it had happened! He had finally been freed of the curse of the Scorched! He knelt down on his knees and cast his gaze downward, looking at the ground with lifeless eyes.

 

                “But what was it worth? I lost everything…and the world…” he whispered to himself, as he looked left and right and saw nothing but chaos and landmasses floating around in disparate places. “Kalciru…was he behind all this destruction?” he thought. But then his thoughts focused again on his friends, and he felt despair wash over him. Not only that, but for his people. If the world was now in this state, does this mean that his people were gone as well? He slowly stood up and grimly looked about him, clenching his fists and feeling powerlessness of the worst kind.

 

                “My promise to my people…my promise to them…I failed them all. Damn it!” he shouted from the top of his lungs, giving in to his frustration!

 

                And so, with no other choice than to move forward, Vincent slowly trudged along in this now unknown wasteland. He didn’t know where he was to go, and he didn’t care. His thoughts were steeped in despair, and he was walking only by force of sheer will! He just wanted to drop dead on the floor and forget about everything that happened. He wanted to erase the pain! But his will never let him lay down. He kept walking along, slowly and ruggedly, a lone man in an estranged wilderness.

 

                Hours passed by. Was it even hours? Vincent couldn’t tell, and as he walked through this empty world, he saw many bizarre things. Streams of darkness were swirling all around, distorting the environment around him. The sky looked like it had been torn in two, and the ground looked uneven and wrecked, almost as if someone or something had caused a gigantic land shift! Masses of land towered high above like skyscrapers, and chunks of buildings and boulders and trees dotted the landscape. Oddly enough, there were no dead bodies to be found. Not a single soul was seen from Vincent’s eyes the whole time he was walking. He found this strange, but at the same time, he attributed it to the disaster that had happened. But if that was the case, shouldn’t he have vanished as well? That was something he questioned to himself, and was left pondering with that lingering thought.

 

                “This world has been torn asunder…” he spoke softly to himself. “An end that no one could have possibly imagined…”

 

                Continuing his lonesome journey, he later came upon a wide gap between two landmasses. When he peeked over the side he was, he saw that what awaited below was pitch black darkness, a swirling portal that probably lead to someplace grim.  When he looked up, he noticed massive streams of lava, almost looking like snakes, slowly floating by! This was no doubt the lava from Mt. Terios, as Vincent had always trained near the mountain, and he knew the flow and energy of the lava, so he could recognize it anywhere! He looked at the massive streams of lava as they slowly floated by, and then he could see chunks of Mt. Terios itself floating aimlessly!

 

                “It’s like someone broke the entire world and left this much destruction behind…” Vincent thought, as he sat down for a moment.  There was nothing else he could do now. His thoughts were brimming, his memories were playing back before him, and he was washing himself in guilt once more…but just as he was about to lose himself in his own thoughts, he felt something. On instinct, he involuntarily felt the need to turn around. He stood up and then turned around, following said instinct, and then, he saw someone a few feet away from him, near some bushes! Vincent was cautious though, so he approached this person slowly…

 

                “Who are you…?” he thought to himself, as he got closer. He was cautious, and he prepared to summon a fireball, but he remembered that he didn’t have his powers anymore, but all the same, he could still hit hard with his fists! So he clenched them hard and headed ever more cautiously towards the immobile body. When he finally got close, he noticed that the body was that of a woman…and it was someone he recognized! He quickly knelt beside the woman and flipped her over, and when he saw who she was, he gasped!

 

                “Ilia!?” he said out loud! And indeed it was Ilia…only that she was deathly pale, and her body was worse for wear. In fact, she looked to be near the brink of death! He knew that she wasn’t dead, though, because he could see her body slightly moving, hear her shallow breath.

 

                “What happened to you…?” Vincent asked, as he placed his hand on her shoulder. And just as he did that, Ilia’s eyes snapped open in alarm, and she quickly squirmed out of his reach, though it caused her great pain!

 

                “Wait, stop Ilia, it’s me, Vincent! I’m not going to hurt you!” Vincent declared!  He approached her and gently held her in his arms, for she looked to be very frail. She struggled to open her eyes, and when she was able to fully open them, she saw Vincent’s face, and she seemed to relax a bit. Vincent sighed and closed his eyes.

 

                “Ilia…” he whispered, as silence surrounded them…

(End Song Here)

 

---

 

                At that same time, Lucilda was shifting from place to place, observing all the chaos that had been created as a result of their actions into bringing forth paradise! She looked at all the destruction and deformity of everything, and she couldn’t help but feel a tingle of happiness inside her. A sickeningly disturbing smirk crossed her face, and her gleaming red eyes seemed to shine with particular glee. She was enjoying this very much. She looked around herself and she let herself chuckle a bit.

 

                “Well, this is quite impressive…to think that we could cause all this.” she thought, as she looked around, passing by a few splintered trees.

 

                She continued traversing through the splintered world, and she was proud of how it all looked. She then passed through a cluster of floating boulders, and she shifted her shadowy self into them, traversing through them until she reached the top. She took in the view of nothingness, the sheer joy of knowing that this was the epitome of chaos. She took it all in and embraced it happily. This was like heaven to her!

 

                “Ah, and that annoying old man isn’t here to mess up my tranquility…thank the Master for all this!” she shouted out loud, in case Beriel was around, because sooner or later, he’d show up.  She then looked to her right, and she saw something in the distance. It looked to be a sort of shining light, almost like a star!

 

                She winced her eyes, looking at it, but she couldn’t discern what it was, for the light was too bright! She sat herself down on the top boulder she had been standing on, and she continued watching that light, until then, multiple other lights started to rain down, almost like a meteor shower, dotting the distorted world, going here, there and everywhere! A few of them twisted and turned where she was, and as they passed through her, she couldn’t help but feel a familiar warmth to them. She placed her hand on her chest, and she could swear that she felt her heart warm up.

 

                “This is…strange. I hadn’t felt like this in a while…” she said to herself, this time in a calm, non aggressive voice! Her shadows then seemed to mellow down, and it was as if she was feeling melancholic, which was strange considering her disposition! It was then that in a small flicker of memory, she remembered this feeling. She looked to the falling lights, and she felt a lump in her throat.

 

                “Mother…”

---------------------------------------------

 

With the world destroyed, what comes next? Is there anything left to do? Has all been lost? What will befall those who have survived this cataclysmic event? And Lucilda, among the destruction, recalls a memory from long ago. Stay tuned for Chapter Twenty Seven: “Mother And Daughter.”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter! Yes, I know that it was short, but I found that everything that had been necessary to point out the aftermath of what happened after the end of the world was portrayed well enough in the scenes I depicted in this chapter! Now you all know that the world is without form and in discord! What happens now is entirely a mystery, but one that shall be solved little by little! I’m sure you’ll enjoy what’s in store! And yes, based on the title of the next chapter, it will be all about Lucilda and her backstory! So I’m sure you’ll all enjoy that! As you can see, I really like providing backstory to the villains in this story, as you’ve seen with Beriel, Kalciru and Chozetsu! Anyways, thank you all very much for the continued love and support, and let me know what you thought about tonight’s chapter! Until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

[KHLegendIII 709]

This is about to get interesting.

[Keyblade101 526]

GAH!!!! I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD MISS 7 AMAZINGLY INTENSE CHAPTERS!!!!

 

I'M SO SORRY FOR NOT COMMENTING ON THEM FOR A WHILE! I THOUGHT I WOULD HOLD OFF ON READING AND COME BACK AND READ 2 MAYBE 3 AT ONCE BUT I NEVER EXPECTED 7!!! I'M SO SORRY FOR NOT COMING BACK TO THIS STORY SOONER! PLEASE KEEP GOING! THINGS ARE GETTING REALLY INTENSE!!!

 

ONCE AGAIN, I AM SO SORRY!

Edited July 12, 2017 by Keyblade101

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, indeed!

 

To Keyblade101, haha, there's no need to apologize, man! I understand that you can be a busy man, but hey, I always appreciate that you read my stories and catch up to my chapters whenever you're able! So worry not! At least now you've caught up and are on par with what's happening to the story! I'm sure you'll love what comes next!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope that all of you are doing okay! So then, I’m sure you’ve all been looking forward to the latest chapter of my story, so let’s have at it and dive headfirst into what the chapter has for us, shall we? My apologies for posting a bit late! As you can probably tell, I’ve been caught up in the hype over the latest trailer for Kingdom Hearts III! You can’t blame me, it’s been fantastic! COMING 2018!!!! THAT’S FRICKIN FANTASTIC! But anyways, I’m talking to much, aren’t I? Lol, anyways,  I’m sure you’ll all find the chapter to your enjoyment! Read on below, my faithful followers!

 

Chapter Twenty Seven: Mother And Daughter

 

                Lucilda lost herself in thought as she watched the lights raining down from the distorted sky. She felt vulnerable and she felt saddened. Normally, she was cold and emotionless, showing particular disdain towards Beriel and always mocking her foes, but now, in her lonesome, she felt estranged from everything around her. Looking at the lights caused her to think back to another time…another place.

 

                “It’s been so long…” she thought, as she reminisced about the past.

 

                She remembered it like it was yesterday. She lived in a mountainous area, her house was one made of wood and sheltered by big trees that provided great shade! She was outside of her house, playing with her toys, while her mother cooked dinner inside. It was just her and her mother. The two of them lived alone in this house, the nearest village at least thirty minutes away by foot! They lived a peaceful life, one that was cherished. Even though they lived in hard times, they pushed forward as best as they could!

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Lucilda, dinner’s ready! Come on in!” her mother called.

 

                “Coming!” little Lucilda beamed, as she left her toys outside and ran in. She ran up to her mother and hugged her legs, and her mother knelt down to see her face to face and smiled. Little Lucilda had such a lively, spirited face. Beautiful, raven black hair flowed down to her waist, big, curious red eyes stood out from her pale white skin! She was small in stature, but big in heart and in deed. She always helped her mother in everything as best as she could. Ever since her father had left them, it was just the two of them. Her mother had suffered the departure of Lucilda’s father, but with time, she overcame that pain, and now lived happily alongside her daughter!

 

                “Always so bright and cheerful. You always bring light to my day, sunshine!” her mother spoke with a hum in her voice, which made Lucilda all the more happy!

 

                “Mmm, it smells good, momma! Did you make what I think you made!?” she asked excitedly.

 

                “Hmm, I don’t know…why don’t you come and have a look?” her mother motioned with her hand, as he pulled up a stool so that Lucilda could look at the pot with the food inside! She stood on the stool and peeked inside, and she saw the delicious, orange broth!

 

                “Yay, it’s noodle soup! My favorite!” she yelped in excitement, and then she noticed another pot with a bright, white content inside! “And rice, too! Yay! Haha, thanks momma! I’m gonna set the table now!” Lucilda said, as she then hopped down from the stool and then quickly went to work at setting up the table. She pulled out the two chairs, and they were across from each other. They always ate that way. Her mother would sit on one chair, and Lucilda would sit across from her! After she pulled the chairs out, she put napkins and plates and spoons, in addition to some salad that she had made herself earlier in the day! She put the salad at the middle of the table, and then she plopped herself onto her seat, excitedly waiting for her food!

 

                “So honey, what adventures were you having with your toys outside?” her mother asked, as she set the plate to Lucilda, and she immediately started digging in, while her mother sat down across from her and helped herself as well.

 

                “Well, today I decided that Tori the Camel had to make friends with my other toys!” Lucilda explained as she chewed her food. “You see, the other toys have been suspicious of Tori because of his “sandy origins” so they aren’t used to him yet! I had a stern talking to with them, and I told them that Tori has just as much a right to be a part of the friend circle as anyone else!” she continued explaining, sounding like a miniature adult! Her mother simply giggled as she talked and ate her food.

 

                “Ah, is that so? And how have the other toys responded to Tori?” her mother asked. Lucilda slurped on some noodles and vigorously chewed on some rice before answering.

 

                “They’re getting along better now! Now they were going on an expedition to find materials to make a giant, enormous castle! It’s gonna be a big project! Probably one of the biggest projects my toys have ever worked on!” Lucilda said, expressive with her hands, showing the scale of the castle they’d build. Her mother continued to smile.

 

                “I think that’s wonderful, darling. You be sure to keep an eye on them, though. Make sure they don’t get into any trouble.” she whispered, as to make sure the toys wouldn’t hear. Lucilda winked at her in understanding.

 

                “Got it!” she responded with a thumbs up. And so, the two of them continued to eat their meal until they finished, and then, Lucilda got off her chair and then patted her mother’s leg.

 

                “Don’t worry about a thing, momma! I’m gonna wash the dishes, so you just stay in your chair and rest your tummy!” she urged as she began taking the dirty dishes to the dishwasher.

 

                “Thank you very much, sweetie. You truly are such a big help to me. Thank you very much!” her mother replied with loving care in her voice. Lucilda happily hummed and bobbed her head to whatever tune she was humming, and silently, she began to wash the dishes!

 

                After she washed the dishes, she went outside and continued to play with her toys, while her mother went out on the porch and sat down on her rocking chair, watching her play. It always delighted her and filled her with great joy seeing her daughter displaying such a vivid imagination. And she’d sometimes think about how horrible her husband had been for leaving them. He had started out well for the first two years after Lucilda was born, but after that, some strange change took over him, and he one day up and left, without any single explanation. This left her torn, and it tore her even more whenever Lucilda asked where her father had gone. She never told her, and she stopped asking, strangely enough.

 

                “Maybe she knows inside…” she whispered to herself, as she watched her play.

 

                After a while, the sun started to set, and then she called Lucilda over to turn in for the night. Lucilda nodded and picked up her toys and then put them in a small chest that was situated in a corner in the porch. She then went inside, and the two of them took a bath together, a bubble bath, which Lucilda loved! After they bathed, Lucilda’s mother prepared to tuck her child to bed. Just when she was about to kiss Lucilda’s head, the little girl sat on her bed excitedly and had a book in her hands!

 

                “Momma, read me the story again, please!!!” she pleaded, with big, puppy dog eyes!

 

                “Haha, again, sweetie?” she asked. Lucilda nodded relentlessly.

 

                “Yes, yes, yesss!!! It’s my favorite story! Please read it to me!” she begged. Her mother simply laughed and then sat down beside her in bed.

 

                “Alright then, make room so we can get cozy!” her mother said, and so Lucilda made room for her mother, and the two of them got comfortable, as Lucilda made sure the pillows were extra comfy! Her mother laid down first, and then Lucilda laid on her mother comfortably, nestling herself like a newborn baby. Her mother opened up the book and cleared her throat to start reading.

 

                “Once upon a time, in a far off land, there was a young girl who had a wondrous gift! She had the ability to bring light to shine through the darkness! She was a girl with a bright heart, one who wanted to heal the world from its broken heart! She wandered the world and visited every place she stumbled across! She was kind to all who she met, and in return, she received much kindness in return!”

 

                “Wow, she sounds like such a good person, momma!” Lucilda pointed out as she pointed to an illustration in the book that showcased the girl’s back, as she was facing the world. Her mother nodded and smiled.

 

                “Yes, that’s right!” she said, and then continued, as she turned the pages. “One day, the young girl met a young boy, and she was immediately interested in this boy, for he seemed different from anyone else she had met up until that point. She tried reaching out for the boy, but he refused to come into contact with the girl, and every time she got close, the boy would distance himself further! But the young girl would not give up, for she wanted to talk to this boy and make him smile! And so she chased after him, day and night! It was a relentless chase, and it was one that lasted for many, many days!” she read, as Lucilda’s eyes were glued to the book, as she looked on with awed silence.

 

                “Then one day, the girl was finally able to catch up with the boy, and at that point, the boy had grown curious of the girl’s insistent nature, and so the two of them stopped near a great tree that towered over them!”

 

                “The boy asked: ‘Why do you keep following me? I only hurt everything that I touch…I’m only meant to destroy! Why would you seek me?’ with great sadness in his tone!”

 

                “The young girl replied: ‘Because I don’t like seeing anyone sad or feel lonely, and I can tell that you have a great loneliness in your heart! I just want to be your friend!’ she replied cheerfully, to which the boy was caught by surprise!”

 

                “And so the boy held the girl’s hand, uncertain of what the future would hold, and he…” and then she stopped, noticing that Lucilda had fallen asleep comfortably in her arms. She smiled and then closed the book and put it in a table beside the bed, and then she gently tucked Lucilda in bed, kissing her forehead as she made to leave.

 

                “Good night, my sunshine. I love you.” she whispered, as she got up and left the room.

 

                When the morning came, Lucilda woke up groggily and lazily, giving out a big yawn as she stretched her arms! She scratched her head and fell asleep again for a bit before fully waking! She got down from her bed and she noticed that the house was particularly silent! At this point in the morning, her mother would be either cooking breakfast, washing the dishes or doing something else, but something was very off. This frightened Lucilda a bit, but she decided to be brave, for she was the only one left to protect her mother, so she had to stay strong! And so, she wandered out of her room and made her way through the kitchen, and then she went to the living room. Noticing that her mother wasn’t there, she went to the porch and noticed that she wasn’t there either! Then, she heard someone talking, coming from the back! Among the voices she heard was her mother’s, so she quickly went towards her, but then immediately stopped once she noticed two more people were present. She went deathly quiet and hid behind the door. She didn’t like to eavesdrop, but something in her gut was telling her that she should! And so, she sat behind the door and put her knees to her chest, and she remained quiet in order to listen…

 

                “Diana…you know that your daughter is dangerous…she has the power of darkness within her. It may be true that she hasn’t unlocked her power yet, but it’s only a matter of time, and if you don’t do something, then this will end up bad…” one of the voices said, a middle aged man, from the sound of it!

 

                “You two are fools for even daring to accuse my daughter of being dangerous! She is a sweetheart with a heart of gold, and she means the world to me! I wouldn’t bring harm upon my own daughter!” her mother defiantly answered, and this stirred Lucilda up a little, as she was uneasy hearing this revelation.

 

                “We understand your position in this, Diana. As someone who’s been our supporter and friend for many years, out of respect, I will not argue. But know that once your daughter’s powers awaken, you will have to take care of her…and it should be you. It would be a mercy if it were you, because if the task befell any of us…I don’t think we’d show such compassion…” the other voice persuaded, this one sounding a bit younger than the middle aged man. Lucilda was confused by all this, and she felt hurt that these men were accusing her of being some kind of monster! She looked at her hands and saw that they were trembling. Her tiny, trembling hands were feeling cold, and before she knew it, she felt a tear run down her cheek! She gasped softly at this, and she looked down at the floor. She didn’t know what to think.

 

                “Diana…do you understand what you must do?” the middle aged man asked.

 

                “Just…go.” Diana ordered. The two men remained silent, but then, Lucilda heard their footsteps as they left, and she waited a while until she noticed that the footsteps fainted. She then quickly made her way to her room so her mother wouldn’t notice that she had been eavesdropping on the conversation!

 

                She quickly went to her room and then got on her bed, and she pretended to still be sleeping! She felt her mother come inside, and she quickly closed her eyes, making sure she was very still! She could her that her mother was breathing a bit harshly. She sounded like she had been crying. This made Lucilda want to cry, but she held her tears, and she waited for whatever her mother was going to do. Soon enough, she felt her hand on her forehead, and then she felt her mother kiss her forehead.

 

                “I love you very much.” she whispered, and so the turned and left, leaving Lucilda with bewildered thoughts…

 

                A few minutes later, Diana called Lucilda for breakfast. Lucilda came out of her room, and she had a distraught expression on her face. She looked scared and vulnerable, and she saw that her breakfast had already been served. It was pancakes with butter on top and some blueberries on the side, along with a glass of milk. She silently took her seat and began to eat. Diana noticed the silence, but she decided not to pry. She thought that maybe Lucilda was still woozy from sleeping! After a few minutes, and just as Lucilda was finishing her breakfast, she put her fork down and looked grimly at her mother.

 

                “Momma…am I a monster?” she asked. This caught Diana off guard and she stopped eating as well.

 

                “Sweetie, how could you even ask something like that! Of course you aren’t a monster!” she answered almost immediately. But Lucilda didn’t look at all convinced.

 

                “I overheard you talking with those mean men…they were talking about me…about some darkness I have, and about you having to do something about it…am I a monster?” she asked again. Silence fell over the room.

 

                “Am I?” she asked again, her voice breaking and tears forming in her eyes!

 

                “Lucilda, you are not anything that those bastards said…you are my daughter and my pride! Never forget that!” Diana answered truthfully and honestly. Lucilda still wouldn’t be convinced.

 

                “Would you kill me if I was a monster, momma…?” Lucilda asked, tears rolling down her cheeks! At that, Diana stood up and pulled Lucilda into a comforting, reassuring hug. She embraced her daughter tightly and held her close.

 

                “My dear daughter…no matter what the world thinks of you, no matter what absolutely anyone thinks…I will not stop loving you! You are my daughter, and I will never bring any harm upon you! You are my life. How could I bear to hurt you? I couldn’t live with myself if I did!” she said as she touched Lucilda’s face. At that, Lucilda’s face seemed to have brightened up a bit, though there was now a hint of lifelessness in her eyes.

 

                “Momma, thank you so much…I love you!” she said as she hugged Diana.

 

                “I love you too, sweetie.” she replied as she hugged back.

 

                Over the next few days, even though Diana had stated that she’d never hurt Lucilda, the poor child had grown distant. Little by little, her cheery self started to drift away, and she became quiet. She wouldn’t even play with her toys anymore, and she wouldn’t go outside now! Her mother tried to comfort her and reassure her that everything was okay, but Lucilda would just nod in silence. Diana cursed those men for having talked the way they did about her daughter. Because of them, she was now probably thinking that she’d end up doing something drastic at any moment, thus the distant pattern in her behavior!

 

                Then, when it was time for bed, Diana came in to Lucilda’s room. She saw that she was already fast asleep. Diana sighed and sat beside her, gently petting her head and stroking her hair.

 

                “My sweet Lucilda…I wish you hadn’t heard what you heard. I understand that all of this overwhelms you. You’re so young and full of life, and I know that something like this is life-changing…I’m sorry you had to hear that. My sweet child, know that I love you, and I will do anything to protect you.” she whispered, as she kissed Lucilda’s forehead and then left her room. Lucilda had been awake the whole time, and she was crying softly into her sheets.

 

                The following morning, Lucilda decided that she’d put aside her saddened thoughts, and she decided that she would be her lively, usual self! She went to her mother and helped her prepare breakfast, and Diana was relieved that Lucilda was becoming more like herself again! After the two ate breakfast, they decided they would go to the village in order to get some groceries and stock up on food and drink. They prepared to go to the village, and when they set out of the house, they began walking along a wide path which was frequented by merchants and businessman and people in general. Many people were passing to and fro while they walked down.

 

                “Momma, can we get the ingredients for Chili Cheese Fries!?” Lucilda beamed, hoping that her mother would say yes. She smiled and nodded.

 

                “Of course dear. But first, we have to get ourselves some apple juice and orange juice, not to mention milk!” she replied.

 

                “Right, then we’ll proceed with that!” Lucilda responded.

 

                After a while, they arrived at the village, and they found that it was packed today. It looked as though business was looking well and favorable today, as there seemed to be people from different countries taking a gander at the local merchandise! Diana and Lucilda walked hand in hand through the busy crowds, and Lucilda couldn’t help but notice that there was an odd amount of soldiers around. She then tugged at her mother’s arm.

 

                “What is it, darling?” Diana said, glancing downwards at Lucilda.

 

                “Momma, don’t you think it’s strange that there’ so many soldiers around? They look scary…” she whispered. Diana observed this and noticed that it was strange.

 

                “Hmm, that is odd…maybe they’re just here to ensure that none of the unfamiliar faces gets away with robbing something from the stores. It’s probably that.” Diana answered.

 

                “Ah, then it’s alright then!” Lucilda sighed, reassured by her mother. Soon enough, they came upon the grocery store, and one of the employees, a young woman, quickly recognized Diana and waved at her with a smile.

 

                “Hey there Diana, how are you and Lucilda doing today?” the employee asked.

 

                “Oh, we’re doing alright Karen, we’re just here for the usual.” Diana answered. Karen then went inside and glanced back at them.

 

                “By all means, come on in!” she invited. Diana went in, but Lucilda remained in place. Diana noticed this and then tugged at her daughter.

 

                “Lucilda honey, what’s wrong? Aren’t you coming in?” she asked.

 

                “I’ll be there in a moment, momma. I gotta check something out!” she said, as she ran off. Diana quickly tried to chase after her daughter, but the ever increasing crowed blocked her way!

 

                “Lucilda, come back!” she shouted!

 

                “I’ll be back momma, I promise!” Lucilda reassured, as she then ran towards a particular part of the village where  she had seen a group of boys go to. They seemed to have been dragging something in a bag! She wanted to investigate and see what was going on!  And so, silently, she walked towards the boys, following them until they reached an alley that had a dead end.  There, the boys flung whatever was in the bag out. It let out a small yelp! This startled Lucilda, and she quietly peeked at them from a wall a short distance off.  The boys seemed to be enjoying whatever it was that they were doing!

 

                “Heh, let’s show this stupid dog a lesson! It’s always around the village, bothering everyone! We’ll show this stupid dog a lesson!” one of the boys said, as he pinned down what Lucilda saw to be a tiny puppy, probably a year or two old! It was a light tan color, and it had panicked eyes, as it was trying to squirm out of the boy’s hold! Then another boy proceeded to brutally kick the poor puppy, making it yelp as it barked helplessly, hoping someone would hear its cries!

 

                “That’s…that’s so cruel…they’re hurting that poor puppy!” she thought to herself, as the boys were continuously beating down the poor pup, as it continued to yelp! This made Lucilda worry ever more, to the point that she started to get angry! She couldn’t understand or explain why, but she was feeling something very dark in her heart, and her eyes started to glow a menacing, gleaming red! She then came out from hiding and planted her feet firmly on the ground!

 

                “Hey, leave that puppy alone!” she shouted, as the boys immediately stopped and took notice of her.

 

                “Huh? Who the hell are you?” one of the boys asked.

 

                “Leave…the puppy…alone…” Lucilda enunciated. One of the boys smirked.

 

                “Or what?” he taunted.

 

                “You’ll pay…” Lucilda answered.

 

                “Oh, you think so? Well how about this for payment!?” another of the boys barked back, as he then kicked the puppy right at its skull causing it to yelp in pain, and suddenly, it stopped crying out! At that, Lucilda’s eyes widened, her heart stopping! The boys noticed that the dog wasn’t moving.

 

                “Wait, is that stupid dog dead already?” one of them asked. Another of the boys poked it and shrugged.

 

                “Guess so.” the boy said.

 

                “Well, that’s a shame. We wanted to dish out more punishment! Anyways, let’s get out of here!” the taller boy, who looked like the leader, said, as they began to walk in Lucilda’s direction. But she remained in the way, and the boys reached her and stopped.

 

                “Uh, boss, she’s not moving.” the shorter boy said.

 

                “Yeah, she’s being annoying!” the mid-height boy whined.

 

                “Heh, well, it looks like we’ll have to teach her a lesson as well! Let’s get her!” the leader commanded, and the other two nodded, as they then surrounded Lucilda. She showed no inch of fear whatsoever, and her face bore a darkened expression, but the boys paid no heed to her face. They were being cocky and overconfident…

 

                “What did that puppy ever do to you…?” Lucilda asked.

 

                “What was that?” the leader asked, pretending that he hadn’t heard her question. He was then abruptly gripped by the throat, as Lucilda choked him with unnatural strength, her red eyes gleaming deadly and menacing, much to the other two boys’ dismay!

 

                “W-what the hell are you doing!? Let me go!” the leader gasped, trying to struggle his way out of Lucilda’s hold, but she only gripped tighter, making the other two boys panic!

 

                “You are trash!” she yelled, as she slammed the leader face first to the wall, with a sickening thud resulting from said action! The other two boys panicked and jolted back because of this, and they began to shiver!

 

                “S-stop that!” one of the boys shouted, but Lucilda kept bashing the leader on the fall, smashing his face on the concrete, until she slammed him to the ground! The leader was immobile, and the other two boys panicked and fled!  Lucilda’s eyes then turned back into their normal red, and then she ran towards the puppy. She was saddened at the state it was left in, but fortunately, it moved as she approached, indicating that it was still alive!

 

                “Go, little puppy…” she whispered to it as it walked away, limp, but able to walk.

 

                Afterwards, she got out of the alley and started to head back towards her mother. A short while after, she saw that people were running away from her, and then she saw the two boys that she had seen earlier, and she glared at them with intensity in her eyes, and they yelped and fled! Some soldiers then came, no doubt because of the boys, and they surrounded Lucilda! She seemed to be indifferent towards them, as she just kept walking, until they lowered their spears…

 

                “Stop right now, little girl!” one of the soldiers barked out! Lucilda stopped and and remained silent.

 

                “Two boys came and told us that you brutally beat a friend of theirs without mercy…you aren’t supposed to do that, young lady, so we have no choice but to force you to understand that you can’t take actions such as those!” another soldier explained. Lucilda gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. As the soldiers surrounded her, it seemed as though something snapped within her, for she then lashed out and suddenly summoned forth a large wisp of darkness that whipped the soldiers like a ferocious chain! Then, it seemed as though her body was seeping out darkness, and her eyes were becoming an even darker red! She lashed out at each of the soldiers, disarming them and brutally beating them, while the rest of the people ran away in panic!

 

                The soldiers tried to retaliate by trying to knock Lucilda unconsciouss with the butt of their spears, but they found that this was proving quite a difficult task! Lucilda kept beating them mercilessly, and then, through all the commotion, her mother came and saw what was happening! She quickly ran towards her daughter in the hopes of stopping her, and as she attempted to put her hand on her, she quickly jolted around, and accidentally struck at her!

 

                “Ma’am, no!” one of the soldiers yelled in alarm! This snapped Lucilda back into reality, and when she realized what she had done, her eyes opened wide, and she started to panic as she saw her mother with a large scar on her left cheek, bleeding!

 

                “M-momma? Did I…did I do that to you?” she asked, hesitantly stepping back. Diana remained silent for a bit, but then she stood up and smiled. 

 

                “That’s right, but it’s okay, dear. You were just angry, was all. But you’re okay now. You just have to learn to control your anger better!” her mother said, as she approached her and held her hand. The soldiers immediately went on the defensive and tried to separate Lucilda from Diana.

 

                “Ma’am, we strongly advise that you stay away from this child…” one of the soldiers suggested, but Diana quickly shrugged him off with a glare.

 

                “She is my daughter! I won’t have you telling me what I can or can’t do with her! Come on Lucilda, let’s go!” she said, as she ignored the other soldiers. Lucilda held on tightly to her mother’s hand, as she looked back, she saw the looks of woriedness, hate and scorn on the villagers and on the soldiers.

 

                After that, Lucilda and Diana went home, and after arriving to their home, Diana was silent for the rest of the afternoon. Lucilda didn’t know what to say, and frankly, she felt quite at guilt for having accidentally hurt her mother. Granted, she knew her mother wasn’t holding it against her, but there was something that was off about her now. Was she beginning to hate her for being a monster? That’s what she thought first and foremost. Wanting to be by her lonesome, Lucilda decided to go upstairs, and she did so without uttering a single word to her mother.

 

                When she went upstairs, she looked at herself in the mirror, and she noticed that her hair was all mesed up, and her clothes were ever so slightly torn up! Her skin looked bruised, and her eyes were glowing a bright red. She quickly looked away, and when she looked again, she saw her normal reflection. She sat down in the corner of her room and she looked down to the floor, and she whispered to herself, reassuring herself that everything would be okay!

 

                “I’m not a monster…I’m not a monster….” she thought. She kept repeating those words to herself until she eventually lulled herself to sleep.

 

                Later that night, Lucilda was woken up by some light shaking. Her vision was blurry at first, but she could hear the voice beckoning to her.

 

                “Wake up sweetie, we have to go…” she heard the voice speaking to her. She recognized that it was her mother’s! Immediately, her eyes opened up, and she jerked herself up, as she began to feel a startling sensation in her chest! Then she saw her mother pacing back and forth, picking up things and putting them into a bag. She looked to be in a hurry.

 

                “What’s wrong, momma…?” Lucilda asked, slightly afraid of what was happening. Diana remained silent for a moment before turning to her.

 

                “Nothing sweetie, we’re just going to go on a little trip, you and I! So get yourself on your feet and put something comfortable!” she said to her with a wide smile. Lucilda was still confused, and she didn’t know what to make of this, and she held onto her mother’s arm and tugged at it, and she looked at her with pleading eyes.

 

                “Momma…I’m scared.” she whispered. Diana seemed to freeze at that moment, and she then quickly knelt down and embraced her daughter, hugging her tightly.

 

                “It’ll all be okay, sweetie!” she reassured. Then, some loud banging was heard on the front door!

 

                “Diana, open this door at once!” a man roared from outside. This made Lucilda yelp in panic, and she hid under her bed. The banging became louder, and exclaiming from a numerous amount of people outside could be heard. Diana went and peeked through a curtain on one of the windows, and she saw that soldiers and villagers alike were gathering together, with torches and other weapons, while the other, non aggressive villagers were looking on in concern. Diana clenched her fists, and then she rushed to Lucilda’s room, grabbed her by the hand, and the two of them ran out!

 

                “Just hold my hand sweetie, and don’t let go!” Diana said as she pulled Lucilda and the two of them ran outside. The soldiers heard her go out the back door, and immediately, they began to circle around the house!

 

                “Momma, but what about our house!?” Lucilda exclaimed!

 

                “Never mind that! We have to survive!” Diana shouted, as the two ran through a wide field of grass. They were already a short distance away, but the mob chasing them was increasing in speed and number! Before long, the angry mob caught up to them! Diana and Lucilda tripped, and before they could get back on their feet, they were already surrounded!

 

                “You are ignorant, Diana, keeping a child as dangerous as her! Let us handle this, you don’t have to take on this burden!” one of the soldiers said, trying to talk some sense into Diana. But she remained ironclad as she stood up.

 

                “I won’t let you lay a hand on my daughter!” she roared back defiantly! Lucilda laid on the ground, her eyes awash with tears and her face stricken with fear and anger at the same time! She looked around and saw the hateful glances the soldiers and the villagers gave them!

 

                “Still so blind…then I have no choice. We’ll just have to take care of this, with or without you on our side…” one of the soldiers commented, as he prepared to fire a rifle shot. But just as he shot out the bullet that was meant for Lucilda, her mother got in the way! She stood right in the middle, and the bullet went straight through her chest! Lucilda’s eyes opened wide, as everything seemed to progress in slow motion now! The soldier’s face grew wide with surprise, for he hadn’t expected this to happen! As Diana’s body fell to the ground, Lucilda quickly laid beside her, shaking her, and trying to patch up the wound on her chest, but to no avail. Lucilda was now bawling her eyes out…

 

                “Momma!!! Momma!!!!” she yelled, as the villagers faces turned from hostile to regretful. They indeed realized the danger this girl posed, but this…this was going too far. The poor girl was suffering…but the soldiers would have none of it.

 

                “See what you’ve done!? It’s because of you that she got shot right now!” one of the soldiers shouted. These words reverberated through Lucilda’s mind, and her eyes began to widen, and then turn a lighter and more sinister looking red! Then, darkness began to seep out of her body at a more concentrated rate, and the soldiers took notice of this and then began to panic.

 

                “Shoot her! Shoot her!” the soldiers shouted, as they began to fire off rounds. The bullets pierced through Lucilda, but she didn’t seem affected at all! Lucilda was just about to strike, when suddenly, she felt an embrace from behind her! She realized that it was her mother! Even with her fatal wound, she embraced her daughter tightly.

 

                “My dear daughter…this world is cruel…and there will be many who want to do you harm…I’ve done all I can to protect you…I’ve done all I can to raise you as best as I can…and now, with my parting breath, I plead to you that you survive…it’s…it’s just like your favorite bedtime story!” Diana said, as her voice started to fade.  “Be the radiant light that has always shone inside you…I love you, Lucilda.” she whispered, and with that, her breath grew rapsy until it stopped  completely, and then she died, embracing her daughter tightly.

 

                An ever eternal feeling silence passed through, and Lucilda snapped. Her entire world crashed down, her reality destroyed.  And then she went blank…

 

                Bringing herself back to reality, Lucilda looked on as the meteor shower ended, and she sighed and stood up.

 

                “Momma…I couldn’t be the light that you thought I could be…but at least I survived…” she said, her voice breaking slightly. Then, after a few more minutes, she headed off to find Beriel, Chozetsu and the others.

(End Song Here)

 

----------------------------------------

 

As each individual wanders in the chaos of this distorted world, what awaits? What will Zaria and company do now? Was their journey in vain? Do they even have a reason for fighting anymore? Stay tuned for Chapter Twenty Eight: “Following The Light.”

 

Well everyone, that was the chapter, I hope that you all enjoyed it! So yes, that was Lucilda’s backstory. Pretty tragic, huh? I know what you’re thinking: “Gee Key, you really love to put some grueling backstories to your villains, huh?” Well, it’s like I say, I really love a fleshed out villain that isn’t your typical mustachioed, evil cackling kind of baddie! I like my villains to have layers to them, ya know? It’s up to you whether you sympathize or hate them, ya know? Anyways, thank you all for your support, and let me know what you thought of tonight’s chapter! So then, until next time, stay tuned for the next one!

Edited July 20, 2017 by The Transcendent Key

[KHLegendIII 709]

This was quite the dark chapter.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

To KHLegendIII, yes, it indeed was!

 

Good evening everyone, I hope all of you are doing okay! Wow, it’s been a while since I posted a chapter, huh? My deepest and most sincerest apologies for that! It seems that lately I’ve been having problems posting chapters! You see, I’ve been busy with life lately, with my personal affairs, and also all the latest buzz over the latest Kingdom Hearts III trailer has kept me busy with me making Youtube videos discussing the trailer and whatnot! And well, because of all this, the latest chapter was a bit delayed, but fear not, for the latest chaper is here! So read on and enjoy!

 

Chapter Twenty Eight: Following The Light

 

                After what seemed to be hours, Zaria and the others were able to find a place where it was safe and they could rest. After everything that had happened, they needed to recover their strength, otherwise they wouldn’t be able to do much afterward. And so, they took refuge around a network of boulders that were all crunched together, forming a sort of cave that was floating! They went inside enough that they wouldn’t be noticed by anything or anyone passing by. If there was anything or anyone left, that is.

 

                Zaria kept her gaze towards the outside. She had decided that she would take watch while the others rested. Laren had been coming constantly to Zaria, checking up on her, but she insisted that he just rest, and that she’d be alright. Eventually, he had given in and he was quite literally knocked out! Tatsumaki was sleeping beside him, while Grim seemed to be meditating. Zaria didn’t wish to interrupt him, so she just let him be. The only one who wasn’t present was Bane. He had gone off earlier to scout the environment, and he hadn’t come back since. Zaria was left alone with her thoughts, and her head was swimming with thoughts of everyting, of what her life had been, and what her life would be now that the world was destroyed.

 

                “What am I to do?” she asked herself, wondering aloud. She looked at her hands, and for the first time in a very long while, she felt a sense of being lost. She felt like she didn’t know where she could go, and she hated that feeling. She then stood up and brushed off those feelings, and she decided to distract herself, and so she took upon herself to look around the cave they were in.

 

                And so, she looked around in the area she was in, because she was close to the entrance, so she didn’t want to stray too far. She looked upwards towards the ceiling and she saw how there were small particles of rock that were floating and at the same time seemed stuck in place, almost as if time itself had stopped them from falling down to the ground! The boulders that were crunched together looked like they could crack at any moment and come down upon Zaria and the others, but for some reason, Zaria didn’t think this would happen. She kept looking at the ceiling until she felt something coming towards the entrance! She immediately snapped herself back into reality and then she hid behind a wall that was near the entrance! She prepared to attack, but noticed that it was only Bane.

 

                “God, don’t scare me like that! You do know that we’re in a tense situation here!” Zaria exclaimed in a low voice.

 

                “My apologies. I didn’t mean to scare you.” he replied.

 

                “Don’t worry about it. Anyways, did you find out anything? What’s around us?” she asked.

 

                “Nothing. As in quite literally nothing. Whoever was responsible for this chaos ensured that the entire world would be swept away. Everything is in disunion and discord.  It’s quite disturbing.” Bane explained.

 

                “That bad, huh? So, do we have any idea on how we should proceed forward?” Zaria asked as she sat down beside Bane, who had sat down on the ground.

 

                “I don’t know what we can do. It’s all out of our hands now.  But I do think that I found myself a trail north. A trail that could lead us to some sort of lead.” Bane said.

 

                “Lead on what?” Zaria inquired.

 

                “On whoever was responsible for this mess. It was something that Tatsumaki and I were discussing about when you were all still unconscious. The world was already in a dire state, but I do not think that the world itself collapsed the way it did. No, someone disrupted the natural flow and distorted the world, destroying it. Now we’re left with the pieces of whoever did this chaos.” Bane answered, as he touched his hand. Zaria noticed this and she attempted to look at his hand, but he quickly backed off.

 

                “What’s wrong with your hand?”  she asked, looking at Bane suspiciously.

 

                “It’s nothing…it just hurts, is all.” Bane answered, and he left it at that. Zaria could notice that Bane didn’t want to talk about it further, so she dropped the topic.

 

                “Well, either way, whatever ends up happening, we have to decide how we’re going to go about things now. We don’t know if there’s any way to turn this all around, so the sooner we get things over with, the faster we can be able to find a solution to this whole mess!” Zaria urged.

 

                “I agree.” Bane said. Suddenly, they heard some noises coming from outside! This startled Zaria and she quickly sprinted up and peeked over to the entrance, slowly peeking her head ever so slightly to observe what was waiting outside!

 

                “Hell…” she cursed under her breath. Bane came up behind her and peeked over her head towards the outside. It was then that he could see what Zaria was seeing! Out of the distortions and increasing chaos, streams of darkness floated down and formed dark portals, and from these dark portals, Shadow Blights began to emerge! Only that these ones seemed to look even stronger and deadlier than the ones they had fought before!

 

                “Well this is just great. Everything’s gone to hell, but these things still stick around? I hate this…” Zaria mumbled to herself. She and Bane then retired deeper into the cavern, and they remained close to their friends.

 

                “So, it seems we’re going to have to deal with that problem outside…” Zaria said.

 

                “Though unfortunate, we will have to indeed take care of things.” Bane concurred. “But first, we have to wake up our friends.” he pointed out.

 

                “Right!” Zaria agreed.

 

                Outside, the Shadow Blights kept spawning here and there and everywhere! Many of them were feral looking and had similar traits to those of wolves and hyenas, and there were also other Shadow Blights that had incomprehensible forms, and some of them were just big, dark masses that were wandering around! A particularly big Shadow Blight, along with smaller ones, wandered through the destroyed world, and they sniffed the ground, as if searching for something! They were on the look for prey!

 

                One of the smaller Shadow Blights stopped and jerked its head, as it caught a scent that was coming from a cavern that was nearby. It then let out some screeches and chirping sounds, and its companions quickly complied, coming to the Shadow Blight and gathering around it. Then, it communicated with them, and then they all looked towards the cavern, and then, as if they were planning an ambush, they began to stealthily approach the cavern. The big Shadow Blight kept going its own way and ignored the smaller ones, fading from view. One of the smaller ones got close enough to the cavern, and its curious nature urged it to go inside. But at the same time, it felt that going inside would be dangerous, so it started to step back little by little. Before it turned around to leave, a wind blade cut through its head, making it fall to the ground with a thud! It then vanished from existence, and the other companions quickly caught wind of what happened! Immediately, they all squawked in unison and charged forward to attack with full force, their gleaming red eyes shining distortedly and their bodies leaving shadowy streams as they ran!  Before they could get the jump on the assailant that killed off their companion, they were greeted with several wind gusts, followed by Tatsumaki, who leapt out of the cavern and swiftly came down upon the beasts, slaying them instantly! Tatsumaki smirked and then she brushed herself off, as if she were brushing off dust from her shoulder.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “Heh, even after the end of the world, these Shadow Blights don’t stand a chance against me! Come on guys, time to get out!” she shouted, as the others came out from the cavern, ready for a fight! The surrounding Shadow Blights quickly turned their attention towards them, and they immediately went forward, hoping to make food out of their newly found prey!

 

                “We need to make quick work of these!” Laren said, as he summoned forth a long wind lance into his hand, swinging it forth with great force, creating wind slashes that slowly grew as they widened in radius, eliminating a great many of the fell beasts on the spot!

 

                “Already on it! Even in this state the world is in, I can still use my powers effectively!” Grim said, as he placed his hand on the ground and caused massive vines with sharp thorns to emerge from different points and locations from across the battlefield, ensaring, suffocating and crushing a great many Shadow Blights! Grim still couldn’t believe that he could still use this much power! He was still thinking about how Bane had given him Scorched flame to revitalize himself! It made him wonder what Bane exactly was, but at the present, he was grateful for Bane’s generous help, for it ensured that Grim could stay on his feet!

 

                “Follow closely…” Bane said, as he then zipped through the battlefield, the others following closely behind! As he ran, he took down Shadow Blights with brute force, powerful punches and kicks that left their mark on the fell beasts, making them burst into nothingness! The others followed closely behind as a unit, each of them protecting each other’s blind spot! They were working well together, and they were succeeding in ensuring that they wouldn’t be overhwhelmed by any Shadow Blights!

 

                “Keep pushing forward!” Zaria shouted, as they all kept going!

 

                For now, they had the upper hand in this battle, as the Shadow Blights couldn’t even get a scratch on them! But soon they realized that more of them began to appear, and in greater numbers, much to great for them to keep fending them off! Eventually, they came upon a steep hill, and they began to run up! Grim then extended both hands to his left and right, and from the disjointed rocks and chunks of earth, he was able to summon thick branches that slammed the Shadow Blights following them and formed a wall that would hopefully buy them some time to escape!

 

                “We can’t fight them for too long! With the state the world is in, I think they’re much stronger than before!” Grim shouted.

 

                “Yeah, I know what you mean! Let’s go while we have a chance!” Tatsumaki urged, and just then, they heard a loud, resonating roar that gave them goosebumps! They all turned around and then saw a giant Shadow Blight, probably the size of a building, heading towards the other smaller ones! It then did the unimaginable! It started eating the other Shadow Blights, stomping a few and chomping off others! It was a strange sight to see indeed, but Zaria and the others didn’t linger long. For instead, they kept running, hoping the giant beast wouldn’t notice their presence! 

 

                “We can’t stop now, let’s keep going!” Laren said, as they all ran for a good while, traversing through many oddly shaped landscapes! They even had to jump from rock to rock in some places, as there was no ground to run on! They kept pushing forward, and eventually, they reached an odd space that only sported a gaping black hole! It wasn’t the most reassuring sight, but right now, there was little other option on which places to escape to!  And then they heard the mighty creature’s roar a short distance behind them!

 

                “It’s catching up to us!” Zaria exclaimed!

 

                “What do we do now!?” Tatsumaki asked, as they were all in a standstill upon what to do! Bane then just did the first thing his gut told him, and he jumped into the black hole!

 

                “Bane!!!” Zaria shouted, as they saw him disappear into the black hole! The others glanced at each other worriedly, but decided it was better to take a leap of faith than to stick around and be food for the hungry Shadow Blight that was closely approaching!  And so, one by one they jumped into the black hole, Zaria being the last one to do so!

(End Song Here)

 

                “Damn it, curse the luck!” she whispered to herself, as she jumped in and closed her eyes, expecting to tumble a great deal!  Except that, she wasn’t tumbling at all! In fact, she was floating! She opened her eyes and noticed that all around her, a bright purple atmosphere resonated throughout, with streams of dark purple flowing here and there, and a sort of luminescent light that shone in some parts of this black hole. She saw her friends further below, and she floated down towards them, as they slowly floated down the seemelessly endless black hole!

 

                “Did we…make the right choice?” Tatsumaki wondered.

 

                “Well, it was either that or being made into chow. And seeing as how we’re just floating here, it can’t be all that bad, I hope…” Grim answered, trying to make light of the situation. They kept floating down for a while, until Laren noticed something coming from below them!

 

                “Everyone, look!” he pointed, and everyone looked down below! When they did, they noticed a bright, golden orb of light floating upwards towards them! It was an orb that increased and diminished in size, almost as if it were breathing! It stopped when it reached Zaria and company, and it remained there for a while, almost as if examining them. The others didn’t know what to make of this, so they just remained silent. Soon after, the orb began to increase the brightness of its light, blinding the others and making them cover their eyes! They winced at the brightness of the light, and when they were able to see well enough again, they noticed that they were in pitch black darkness! It seemed as though they had landed on ground, for their feet were firmly planted, but below their feet, they only saw darkness, so they didn’t know if they were in midair or not!

 

                “What…happened to us?” Grim asked, not sure of if they were alive or not.

 

                “I’m not sure…but right now at least, it seems that we aren’t in any immediate danger…” Laren deduced, as there was indeed nothing dangerous surrounding them, only darkness that extended for who knows how far!

 

                “Guys, look, it’s that orb again!” Tatsumaki pointed, as this time, the orb was floating down from above, until it stopped just in the middle of everyone. The orb then materialized, expanding in size and taking shape, until it took the shape of someone who was dressed in a golden robe that covered the being’s face completely! It had golden eyes that were somehow soothing! The golden being then extended its hand upward, and from the darkness, five doors appeared from nothingness! These doors were large, and they sported beautiful silver decoration, and had intricate designs weaved into them. An air of silence loomed for a bit, and then Laren stepped up, deciding to be the one to break the ice with this mysterious being.

 

                “Who are you? And what are those doors?” Laren asked cautiously.

 

(Start Song Here)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJA2AnzUcYA

                “Be at ease. I am no danger to you.” the golden being reassured, revealing its voice to be that of a female’s. Just as her eyes were soothing, her voice seemed like silk, which immediately made everyone feel relaxed!

 

                “Lady, where are we right now?” Tatsumaki asked. The golden figure simply walked towards the doors and stood at the center, and then she outstretched her arms.

 

                “I am the light that was lost from the world the moment it was destroyed. I am here, in what little power remains inside me, to ensure the world is able to survive. But my power is not strong enough in my current state. The darkness has spread far and wide, and it is almost on the brink of consuming all of existence completely. It is the actions of one man, his ambition to change the world that brought about this predicament.” the being of light explained.

 

                “One man? Wait, who is this man that caused all of this to happen?” Laren asked.

 

                “One whom has lived through many incarnations of this earth. One who wished to end the endless cycle of destruction, but was lost in darkness in trying to achieve this objective. He may be known to some of you.” the light replied.

 

                “Known to us? What do you mean?” Tatsumaki asked.

 

                “One whom you would know as the Oracle.” the light replied. At that, everyone remained silent, and Laren, Tatsumaki and Grim stood especially daunted by what they were just told!

 

                “The Oracle…no, that can’t be right! He was an advisor to Lady Ilia! How could he have caused all this?” Grim asked, trying to make sense of things!

 

                “His true name is Chozetsu. He is one who has lived through many incarnations of this earth, as I have said. He has witnessed the endless cycle of corruption that plagues this world, and he sought to change things. But when nothing changed, he lost his way, and now, he stands to do things his own way in order to achieve peace.” the light explained.

 

                “But…we trusted him! He has been with all of us for years!” Laren said, not believe what he was hearing!

 

                “What I am telling you is the truth. He and a group of others banded together to cause the world to end. Now, what is left are the broken pieces of what was. All of existence is now fractured.” the light went on to say.

 

                “Does…does that mean that the people…everyone is dead?” Tatsumaki asked with fear in her voice, for she dreaded to think that only they survived through this!

 

                “All of their souls have been claimed by the darkness. Many have perished, but those that remain are trapped in the distortions of this now fractured world. Unless something is done, they too shall be swallowed whole by the darkness. Whether it be Shadow Blights or the very world itself, either way, what’s left of existence will be torn away…unless we act.” the light answered. Now, everyone felt a heavier sense of dread be thrust upon their shoulders! If everything was dire previously, now their current predicament was far, far worse!

 

                “What can we do?” Zaria asked. That is when the light glanced over at the doors that she had summoned.

 

                “The five of you will go through these five doors. Within them, you will go through a test.” the light explained.

 

                “Test? What kind of test?” Grim asked cautiously.

 

                “One that will put the limits of your being into full effect. Within those doors, you will face yourselves, you will ponder upon what you may see inside, and if you should succeed in facing yourselves, I will grant upon you great power.” the light answered.

 

                “If you can give us great power, why not just give it to us now?” Tatsumaki wondered.

 

                “Because she wants to see if we are worthy of having her light…” Bane answered. The light acknowledged Bane’s answer and nodded.

 

                “That is correct. While you five may have survived the end, I need to know if you five are worthy of having my power. What little I have left, I want to ensure that I am leaving it in good hands…” she responded. Everyone remained silent, and then Tatsumaki stepped forward.

 

                “Alrigh then, fair enough! Let’s do this, then!” Tatsumaki said, and then the others gathered round and each of them walked up to a door.

 

                “Be warned.” the light urged. “What you see in there may affect you…but if you are true of heart, then you shall overcome.” she said. These words hung on Zaria and the others, but they were already at this point, and there was no turning back now. They had to cross into these doors and face whatever would await them! They just had to! And so, one by one, they went through the doors, and when they passed through them, they vanished, and the light vanished along with them!

(End Song Here)

 

---

 

(Start Song Here)

                Meanwhile, Chozetsu and the others were gathered around a wide space that was floating high above the distortion and chaos below. Chozetsu stood at the edge of the wide space, looking down, marveling at what he had brought to the world. Beriel, Ellene and Kalciru stood behind him, and Lucilda appeared shortly after.

 

                “Master, we’ve done everything as planned, but I still feel as though something is missing…” Ellene mentioned. Chozetsu turned around and looked upwards, pointing above the others!

 

                “Up there, that great distortion in the sky! That radiant blue mixed with silver…that is the final gate. That is the final gateway towards paradise, where we shall all finally find peace. I assure you, everything has indeed gone along as planned, and let me assure you that were are close to achieving our goal…” he said with utmost confidence.

 

                “What’s missing?” Beriel asked, reinforcing Ellene. Chozetsu then turned around and stood over the edge again.

 

                “There are certain…anomalies within our plan that must be taken care of.” was his answer.

 

                “You mean that group that was traveling the world, am I right?” Lucilda asked, referring to Zaria and the others.

 

                “Indeed, the very same. I sense that they have survived the end of everything, and that is something that I will not tolerate. They will be a problem, and they will try to stop us.” Chozetsu replied.

 

                “And what makes you so sure that they’re that much of a threat?” Kalciru asked.

 

                “It is because they possess incredible power. Although they do not know it yet, they have power enough to stop us, and even prevent us from achieving our goal. I fear that they had already made contact with the light of this world. Or at least, with whatever is left of it. Either way, this will be a significant hurdle in our plans, so we must do all in our power to ensure that they do not stop us! Is that understood?” Chozetsu commanded. Everyone nodded in agreement.

 

                “We’ll see that it’s taken care of. We shall take care of them in due time!” Beriel responded.

 

                “They’ll all feel pain and true darkness…” Lucilda purred.

 

                “Good…” Chozetsu said, as he then looked upwards, his eyes focusing on what lay beyond. “Soon…soon all will be as I have planned…soon paradise shall finally be ours…”

(End Song Here)

 

---

 

                At that same moment, Saphira opened her eyes. What lay above her was simply a dark red circle. She didn’t know what to make of it, but then again, she didn’t know what to make of anything anymore. Her body felt weak, and she was wondering how she had come to consciousness in the first place! The last thing she remembered was that she and Ilia were both used by Chozetsu in order to bring forth the end of the world. After that, she collapsed, and she didn’t wake up until now. And she realized that Ilia was gone. Many thoughts were swimming in her head, her main one being that why all of this had to happen. She was still questioning it. She lamented everything that happened, and she thought of all the people that have died because of this…but her thoughts quickly went back as she felt her body being crushed. She didn’t even know what to feel anymore. Her body was numb, so she couldn’t feel any pain, and she found that she was involuntarily closing her eyes…

 

                “N-no..this can’t be how it ends…it just can’t…” she thought to herself, as she felt her breath shortening, fading with each passing second! Her vision was starting to blur, when just then, she was blinded by a radiant light that shone before her! Since she couldn’t cover her eyes, she was completely blinded for a few seconds, but eventually, she was able to gain her sight back. When she did, she noticed an odd, round sphere of light that was floating there, in the darkness that she was trapped in. Saphira knew that this light was special, just by looking at it, she could tell it held amazing power.

 

                “Who are you?” Saphira asked with what strength she could muster to speak. The light then transformed into her robed form, and she placed her hands behind herself.

 

(Start Song Here)

                “I am the light of this world. I am what’s left of all the destruction that was caused. Chozetsu has gotten away with his plan, but he hasn’t fully been able to accomplish his goal yet. There is still a chance of turning everything back the way it was…” the light went on to explain.

 

                “There’s a chance…? How?” Saphira asked, rather surprised!

 

                “There is a group of five people, five who survived this apocalyptic chaos…they have gone through doors that I conjured for them, in order to see if they are worthy of possessing my power.” The light answered.

 

                “Five people?” Saphira inquired.

 

                “Indeed. Three of them you probably know. Two of them are of your kind, and one is a mercenary whom was hired by yourself.” the light replied. This brought an undeniable sense of relief upon Saphira, and she could feel herself smiling, even though she couldn’t feel her face!

 

                “T-they’ve made it!” Saphira said, tears slowly rolling down her eyes. Hope had not been lost as of yet!

 

                “Yes, and soon, I shall know if they are worthy of my power or not.” the light said.

 

                “They will be proven worthy, of that much I’m sure…thank you for telling me this…now I can be able…to rest easy.” Saphira said, as she felt her life force fading away! But the light enveloped Saphira and cleared the darkness, giving way to all encompassing light! Saphira was completely healed of her injuries, and now she stood before a door that the light conjured up.

 

                “Your time is not yet come, Saphira. You too, are to go through this door. You have a strong will, and you have love and compassion for this world. So face yourself and any lingering doubts you may have in your mind, and prove to me you can be able to protect this world…” the light proclaimed. Saphira looked at her hands and then clenched them into fists. She had work to do, and she wasn’t going to sit around and let things keep spiraling out of control!

 

                “Yes…I’ll go through this door, and I’ll clear whatever trial you have for me!” Saphira said, accepting the light’s challenge!

 

                “Good…now step through this door.” the light said. And so, Saphira walked towards the door and slowly opened it, and as she went inside, the door vanished, and so did the light!

(End Song Here)

 

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Our heroes will now face themselves, and hopefully prove to the light that they are worthy of her power! Will they be able to face whatever awaits within? What will they have to do? Will they prevail, or will they falter? We’ll first see how Grim deals with his trial in Chapter Twenty Nine: “A Hard Life.”

 

Well everyone, that was it! I’m sorry if the chapter seemed shorter than usual, but everything was set in place for what I want to do in the coming chapters! I loved the concept of the light being symbolized in some form, and now, with the world out of whack, hopefully Zaria and friends can be able to be deemed worthy of the power of the light, am I right? The next few chapters will be very interesting, I guarantee it! Anyways, thank you very much for your patience and support, and be sure to comment on what you thought about tonight’s chapter! Well then, until next time, stay tuned for the next one!