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DuskOfTheStars

Those Who Watch For Aeons

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The human seemed... surprised, somehow, that she asked such questions? He fumbled for words for a bit before finally answering, and the answer astonished her.

A weapon shifter? She had never heard of such a thing! It sounded really useful! She admittedly grew jealous of who she presumed was a simple human being. She had an inkling that she could boast something similar, but with her memories fading in and out it was hard to tell if it was the truth, or something her subconscious crafted just to boost her ego. Even if she could though, she certainly couldn't remember what exactly it was or how to do it... on the other hand, this "Demon Weapon" seemed pretty confident in his claim, and if he really does collect souls... He might make a good Harvester...

Ah, she missed that weapon. Such easy crowd-control. Too bad she left it hanging in.... um... where did she come from again?

 

Shadow decided to use what little power she had to remanifest her eyes, sizing up the Demon Weapon. Hopefully he shifted into a proper scythe, and nothing was being lost in translation. Heh, imagine if she picked him up and he just flailed about like a regular human!

An embarrassment for being caught blindly believing. She thought, though she couldn't help but let a thin, white smile crease her face. Oh well. If that happens I'll just go back to Plan A: bait.

"I thought I recognized you." A new voice came to her left. Shadow looked up and noticed that the deliquent - er, ahem, brightly-colored girl - was scrutinizing her. She felt a bit threatened, considering she didn't know the girl at all, yet stood a bit straighter to counter the feeling. "You were there on that day in the Weorbit System, when Amir and Roll fell out of orbit and collided."

" Was I now?" Shadow asked in curiosity, taking note of how the girl's hair turned from a bright shade of gold to a deep rust, while simultaneously running through what remained of her intact memories. Was she remembering something I've forgotten?

"Three hundred and thirty three trillion people died and millions more beings on those planets perished." The girl recalled. She grew solemn, still mourning the event. "I tried to stop it. Something dampened my powers and I coulnd't get a grip."

 

Shadow stared blankly at the woman, mouth set in a fine line. She couldn't remember such a thing ever happening... she knew she affected worlds before, but making them crash into each other? Was that something she could do?

If only she could say for sure, but the blasted cognitive effects of this place were making everything uncertain. They would have to get out of here first.

She let the silence fall between them as she struggled to recall even a scrap of major-world-destruction. The woman said she had powers, and if she knew of such a traumatic event and lived then she must either be part of something intergalactic or interdimensional. Shadow felt pretty confident about what she knew in both areas, yet this alien was, well, alien... Then something else occurred to her.

" I would love to take credit; that amount of souls would be Heavens above Heaven. She said. " But you must be remembering another Death. I don't remember ever destroying two worlds at once... I can't even remember how I came here in the first place..." She growled the last part to herself, turning white eyes to the others in the group but expecting no answers. " Except for maybe... but that was dimensional..."

 

" Sorry to interrupt your long time friend reunion," the Demon Weapon spoke up, conveniently timed by the loud roar of a large creature, " but we should probably start walking before whatever that was manages to find us."

Shadow stepped away from the wall as granules of foreign rock tumbled down its face. The Demon Weapon was truly nervous, but she just took the sign as a challenge. " What if it has a good soul though? With a roar like that..." She looked back at him, noticing the hesitant grin and one of the others agreeing with him. " Oh, fine. We have a swarm to slaughter upstairs anyway." She cast a toothy smile at the colorful woman, before walking off toward the stairs while the others in the group wrapped up their introductions. " This should be fun!"

Edited by skwerl56767

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As the Nomad went, the wall they led their fingers along slowly began to incorporealize, falling away into impossibly-dimensional fragments of unidentifiable energy. Once such fragment passed through them--through not into--and it left a trace of sensation somewhere between pain and numbness. They lifted the finger to examine a wound that was not there, clearly felt but invisible to the eyes. When they rubbed it between two others, the absent sting pressed to their bone. A tiny shard of irritation. Their lip twitched in mild disdain before returning to the task at hand.

 

The walls were completely absent by the time the Nomad had reached the top. All was cast in an eldritch violet light, and the Nomad shielded over their eyes as they found the source: a hued emanation from far, far above, one that revealed a plethora of platforms overhead, hinting at the presence of multiple floors. They looked out into the nigh-infinite unbordered space around them, directing their attention toward any sign of a stairstep that would lead them up. Logic dictated that whatever had dragged them here, whatever wanted them for whatever reason an unknown entity could possibly want, must lie as far from immediate interaction as possible. They scoffed to themselves--What a bunch of unnecessary convention...--before cutting themselves off, attention snapping to a corpulent figure laying splayed out on the floor in the middle of the room. From the looks of it, it was some sort of soldier, but to their exceptional disgust, it was hardly natural. Disregarding their weapon, which was just a simple iron sword and barely anything to be concerned about, a quick nudge with the butt of the staff confirmed their suspicions: this...was a frog. Not just a frog, but an anthropomorphic one, all in regalia and everything. They shivered lightly, feeling the biases of the past absolutely gleeful to overtake them again.

 

 

The Nomad pressed their mouth into a fine line, forcing back to desire to mutter a slur.

 

 

From where they'd turned the body, a smear of blood was uncovered under their chest. A wound, but of no immediately distinguishable weapon. They quickly processed the options before them: 1.) Heal the creature and ask it for more information, or 2.) Mind their own business and leave it to die. The latter was ultimately a safer choice, seeing as it could easily gift their goodwill with a blade in the back as had happened before, and they wouldn't have to babysit what was likely to be a completely ineffectual burden. Besides, they didn't want followers. That had never been their domain; kindness did not come naturally to the Nomad, and even a companion that was thankful for their help was sure to take issue with them sooner rather or later. They had no patience for idiots and barbarians. The choice was so appealing that they ultimately stepped over the creature, returning to their search. If such a creature couldn't protect itself in such a situation as this, they were a liability. Simple as that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...but the Nomad stopped long before they processed that they had.

 

......Unbelievable. This...this is idiocy!

 

It was undeniable, though: their morality had fought their better sense into full-bodied inaction. The Nomad growled and shook their head, feeling a pressure in their head as the sensation of a voice impressed upon them. A person's voice....not theirs, but...ghhh...the face was so unclear. Still, their heart drummed against their chest in faint recognition, and while the words were indistinguishable, the meaning was clear. When it faded, they found themselves leaning toward the pressure, hungry for its touch, its identity...but knowing it was long gone.

 

.............fine.

 

The Nomad would have turned, but their body had preemptively done so. Their eyes wandered the struggling form, and they were hit with an image of the indistinguishable entity's plastered over it, to which the Nomad hastily braced the staff in their hands and began the channeling. Inside, they recanted the ancient invocation, focusing on the pool of spiritual energy that gathered in their core, then guiding it through the orb for it to disperse. Tiny strands of imperceptible spirits fell and crawled into the frog's wounds, forming sutures and tugging the amphibian flesh closed. Once their work was finished, they gave the creature a wide berth in case it tried to take advantage of its luck. The wound would not bleed, but the pain would linger until the spirits fully regenerated the inside. Once a few seconds had passed, they spoke:

 

"Make yourself known at once. If you refuse or make an attempt at my life, you will die."

Edited by Sugar-Free

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[bOSS update]

 

The bear guardian didn't even have time to channel energy for an attack when the human-like figures, bright white and blue streaks in the darkness thanks to their speed, unleashed a perfectly timed combination. The laser blast seared the glass-like fur to the bone, and the other one with the saws leapt swiftly through the opening to make a clean decapitation. The beast didn't seem too deterred by the lack of a head, though its weakness was shown in the lack of energy in its runes. The writing left its limbs and gathered above its exposed neck.

 

Each powerful strike it drummed onto the ground cracked the tiles, though with only a vague sense of the beings in the room from the memory signatures it was difficult for it to be accurate. When the guardian felt a strike to its side it was ready to counter. Holding firm on all four paws, it kept its balance when Ashur attacked with his club-like tail and retaliated by lunging and knocking the dragon down and pinning him with its heavier weight.

 

Normally it might have used its jaws and aimed for the throat, but the bear could only use its claws to swipe and wound his side. Its attention was quickly dragged away by a volley of missiles targeting its back. The headless bear forgets the Tenebris dragon, taking a few running steps towards the Hound as if to attack the robot instead.

 

Then it stopped. The runes on its head compressed into a tight, bright ball and it reared up to its full height. With a foundation-shaking roar -- despite lacking a head -- the runes explode outwards and sweep the entire room with a shockwave of magic.

 

The bear dropped onto all fours again, pausing to gather more energy. Without the runes or its glowing eyes, the creature seemed to fade amidst the darkness or the fog.

 

 

~~~~

 

Nomad

 

The green creature stirred, put at ease by the healing spell that worked its way through its wounds. It croaked -- quite literally -- as it slowly pushed itself to its feet and sheathed its sword.

 

Ribbit.

"Make yourself known at once," said a figure in a cloak, standing a good distance away. "If you refuse or make an attempt at my life, you will die."

 

After the question was posed, the frog paused as if to recollect his memories. "I am Frog," he said, his voice distinctly masculine and unexpectedly normal, coming out of the same throat that previously made frog noises. The amphibian face was inhuman and difficult to read, but he didn't seem like he was trying to make any jokes. "Are you the one who saved me, kind stranger? I am in your debt."

 

Frog performed a small bow, lifting his cape with one hand.

Edited by TehUltimateMage

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Something was rather odd about today. Silver couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he had a feeling in the pit of his stomach that today was just going to be an awful one. Maybe Gold’s mom wasn’t going to cook something good… Maybe Professor Oak had a task for the Johto trio…. Or maybe Team Rocket was going to show up again for the…. What, the fifth time? Can’t those people take a damn break??? Silver sighed. Well….. At least I can have some time alone. It’s nice, getting some peace and quiet for once. Maybe I should talk to Blue again, see how she’s doing. I swear, though, if she talks about Green Oak one more goddamn time…

 

Ah yes, but of course…. Green frickin’ Oak. Grandson of the man that Silver stole a Pokédex from five years ago. Has it really been five years? Time flies when you actually make friends other than Blue, perhaps. It was a breath of fresh air, even though Silver was one of the few people who could actually tolerate Blue’s shenanigans. How Green put up with her, very few knew. Gold often came up with some rather…. Bawdy theories. As per usual, it earned him a good kick from Crystal. Silver snickered at the memory.

 

There was that bloody feeling again. Damn, what am I so anxious about? The feeling was almost nagging him, as if something was gravely wrong. He tried to shrug it off, but… No, it’s nothing. I just need to move along with my day. Silver took out his Weavile and gave him a Berry, since he was injured earlier. “[color=#808080]Better? I needed to get out of the way, you know…[/color]” But as Weavile ate, they both noticed solid shadows wrapping around them, dragging them to a darkness that neither of them could recognize. As they were forced into whatever oblivion it was, Silver could feel that his jacket was no longer keeping him warm.

 

What…? It’s so…. So cold…..

 

Silver landed on his back on a rather hard surface. “[color=#808080]OW! Damn it![/color]” Silver looked around, but all he could see was fog. There were a few tiles surrounding him. Some were plain and grey, but they were broken. It was difficult for him to identify the type of rock- it was just so dark…. But some of the tiles were iridescent. Silver did his best to examine them, but there was nothing about them that he could make sense of. Other than that… Nothing else was visible, if there even was anything. Silver had no idea where he was... And before he could even come up with a coherent thought--- other than expletives….

 

Wait- what the hell were those things?????

 

 

“[color=#2E8B57]Armin, wait uuuuuuup![/color]” Lara whined as she followed her friend through the forest. There were just so many trees.... Who knew a single Titan would be so hard to kill? The Abnormal had a knack for hiding. It was surprisingly intelligent, knowing just where to hide…. But she knew her friend always had a strategy up his sleeve- he was always a few steps ahead of the rest of them. Sometimes it was simply frightening how smart Armin was.

 

“Lara, over here! There’s a thinning in the trees. Let’s go!” Lara grinned.

 

“[color=#2E8B57]Alright, that’s what I’m TALKING about! Eren, let’s finish this bad boy.[/color]” Eren grinned at her.

 

“You got it!” He zoomed in toward the Titan, preparing to strike. Lara followed suit, but something threw her off. She noticed a dense fog, and things twining around her waist.

 

“[color=#2E8B57]censorkip.gif!!!!!![/color]

 

When she landed, Lara expected to be a goner. However, instead of landing on a painfully hard surface, she smacked into a painfully but significantly softer one. Then she landed on the ground, which was extremely hard and painful. Ouch. “[color=#2E8B57]OW! What the---[/color]” She looked around and noticed a few things. One, she bumped into a person wearing some rather weird clothes. Second, this place was really freaking creepy…. And finally, THE FREAKING GLOWING BEAR!!!

 

“[color=#2E8B57]Ah, censorkip.gif...[/color]

 

 

The last thing Cynder could remember was Spyro’s voice as she was being dragged away. What was she doing? How did she get here? Frankly, it was very dark and foggy, so she had no idea what was going on. She heard voices, saw some shapes….. But nothing was making any sense. Cynder sighed and decided that being silent just would not do.

 

“[color=#FF00FF]Excuse me, but can anyone tell me what is happening? Where I am?[/color]

Edited by Mikasa361
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There was a thud somewhere in the room. Isadora turned from the figures beside her and noticed another person in the room, a boy wearing a green jacket of some sort. He was curled up on the ground, looked confused, and seemed to be talking to himself. Is he okay? Where did he come from? He didn't seem hostile, and as he slowly stood up, with that same perplexed look, Isadora felt a wave of pity for him. She started to walk in his direction before stopping and looking back towards the others.

"There's a boy over there, I'm going to go over to see if he's alright," she gestured towards the direction of the boy as she spoke to Milla and the dragon. When she turned around again, though, her eyes widened as she saw him heading towards the oval of runes, as if hypotized.

 

Don't touch that!" she yelled, but he didn't seem to hear her. Isadora broke into a run--Too slow...--and spoke a few words under her breath. The world around her seemed to slow, but his hand was reaching out now, he was crouching down--she leapt forward, stretching her hand out--he touched the oval, and the runes responded--her hand touched his shoulder, and as soon as she felt the contact, Isadora snapped with her other hand. Lavender smoke erupted around both of them, and Isadora dropped into a kneeling position, spreading her arms to brace against the walls--she had shifted them to the corner-- then bowed her head down, bracing herself.

 

... Surprisingly enough, no explosion occurred. Isadora held her breath and turned around. Nothing. The runes were surprisingly inert.

 

"“Excuse me, but can anyone tell me what is happening? Where I am?”

 

Hm..? I haven't heard that voice before... Isadora stood up and looked around, starting in surprise at the sight of yet another dragon. Where did it come from? The sky? Isadora stared at the newcomer, then shook her head slightly. No, she didn't remember anything else coming in the room in the past minute or two, save the boy beside her. A boy who foolishly almost triggered the oval of runes, almost getting himself killed. Before that, she had been leading Milla to the dragon Reshiram and met two others, one of who was another dragon, then before that... Isadora shook her head. Was I really just in my office indulging in a book a little over two hours ago?

 

"What just happened or what is happening? For the latter, I'm currently conversing with a dragon, and the others can fill in for themselves," Isadora remarked slightly sardonically. "For your other question, none of us are certain either, though what we know of it is that it's a floor inundated with fog. The fog appears to muddle the mind and is nearly opaque without magic."

Isadora rubbed her head then glanced up. "There also appears to be a 2nd floor."

 

~~

"The beast attacked suddenly through the mist without warning while I was wandering," Asterix answered. Aerith nodded thoughtfully. Yes, that was what monsters are expected to do. In fact, now that she thought about it, there was something nagging her about monster attacks, but she couldn't quite pin the feeling down. The girl, Cheria, didn't reply, and they all walked in silence for some time. With no conversation, it was the perfect time for her to try to think and really try to remember. She felt like she was supposed to hear something, but why? What was she doing before she found herself here?

 

"Look, over there," Asterix suddenly said. "There's a light."

 

Aerith came out of her thoughts and cocked her head. There was a steady light ahead. It didn't feel alive or anything, but something in her told her just because it didn't feel alive doesn't mean it wasn't dangerous. Cheria started heading towards it.

 

"I'll go check it out," Aerith spoke up, reaching for one of the thrumming hums coming from her staff as she did so. She walked towards the thing carefully, but as she got closer, she noticed it didn't move or change at all. Even monsters that look like ordinary objects moved occasionally--Wait what? Aerith blinked at the thought, then shook her head to focus on the glowing thing, though her posture relax slightly.

It was a glowing panel of some sort, set into the tile. As Aerith approached, the letters on it seemed to shift and move about. Aerith stared for a few seconds before shaking her head. Reading was annoying enough without having the letters change before her eyes.

 

"It's okay! Just a panel set into the floor." she called back. Something about the panel was nagging at her again.... Aerith stood to the side of it and pressed her lips together, trying to think of everything she forgot.

Edited by beiningtian

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Silver [update]

 

A crystal shard whizzed past Silver, a emitting a bullet-like whistle near his ear. It was quickly joined by two others. Smaller than a fist and granted two tiny golden wings, the clear and polished stones fluttered in erratic patterns like dragonflies or hummingbirds, but were as persistent as flies. They flung themselves at the trainer and his pokemon like a trio of vengeful birds, trying to knock them out -- or at least knock him off the edge of the second floor platform.

 

~~~

 

Aliens group

 

Kyun was a little restless. With the roar and the rumble that at the same time sounded so far yet so close by, they eagerly began pacing in the direction Grip motioned. The... human? (as Luna had called him) mentioned that there were stairs at the end of the hall. The cloaked figure with the long, bony tail, Kyun observed, seemed oddly excited at the prospect that there might have been some sort of ambush waiting for them at the top, and that was why the Mpere was reluctant to let go of their plasma pulser.

 

Taking care not to be the first up the stairs to play it safe, Kyun ascended, their claws clicking against the stone steps. The claustrophobic walls began to fade away but with someone behind them, they didn't have time to properly look at the curious phenomenon until they were at the top. The fog had thinned, as if they had risen above the clouds, and walls were completely absent. They craned their neck and tilted their head upwards. The area was lit by an uncomfortable -- to them at least -- purple hue from a light source high in the void like a tiny sun, but was partially blocked by more suspended floors above. Without any air- or spacecraft to save them if they fell off the edge, it was the safest to stay near the center of the floating platform.

 

Two bipeds were already in the 'room' before anyone else had arrived and appeared to be preoccupied with some crystals similar to the one that nipped Kyun earlier. One of the two looked like Grip or Roxy, with peachy skin but red-hued hair. The other, about half his height, had the weasel-like face of a Darit, a red crest, and the blade-like claws of a Qyr'Erd. The Mpere didn't think they could have gotten an accurate enough shot at the energetic crystals flying around, and so they decided not to shoot. Not yet.

 

 

~~~

Cheria

 

Both Aerith and Asterix quickly caught up to Cheria, not wanting her to blindly wander into a trap. The pink haired girl almost felt insulted at the insinuation that she was incapable of being aware of her surroundings and besides, the light wasn't anything dangerous, just a metal plate of some sort bolted onto a low platform on the ground. The light diminished as the trio approached, as if sensing their presences. By the time Cheria was standing in front of it, it was perfectly legible but the characters still shifting.

 

When it turned into something she understood, Cheria read the passage out loud. The morphing white letters faded in brightness and froze themselves in her language until she finished reciting.

 

Second born was Perception, bringing color and sense to Reality's worlds

Third were twin gods of Light and Dark, forever intertwined

In Light's eye was all revealed, while Darkness followed in Time's gait

 

Next came Matter, breathing air and forming the earth from the elements

Granting the Aetherials' void many forms both infinite and new

And through Fire's passionate birth did Matter's gift begin to flow.

 

"That's all that it's showing me," she concluded.

 

There was something strange about that panel. Normally she was a little scatterbrained -- even more so with the fog -- but she could easily remember and repeat the stanzas as if she had read them a hundred times before.

 

"The creation of gods and of the world," Asterix interpreted. Despite not laying his eyes on the plaque, the sound of the words themselves were enough to commit them to memory. "They have different, more literal names here. The segment starts at number two. Something therefore must be absent from the beginning: the part I think about the Father of all gods."

 

Religion? Barona had a church worshiping a single god. Although Cheria sent prayers of healing, she was not particularly devout to a higher power, much less a pantheon of them. She put a hand to her lips, deep in thought. "What's a creation myth doing here...?"

Edited by TehUltimateMage

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Shadow allowed the male human to take the lead, lingering behind him while acutely aware of everyone else in the group; the brightly-colored girl in particular. As they ascended the steps, she observed the open space above her, knowing that a proper ambush could drop down in from above. The paranoia only grew when sounds began to reach the group; quick, slicing, almost buzzing sounds, like toothed blades slashing at the air. With the fog thinning only slightly, the sounds brought back a flash of something... red, mentor, young... but it was gone as quickly as it came. She frowned in annoyance.

Teasing me with a taste of nostalgia, aren't you? She thought accusingly. She almost wanted to hear an answer; what solace it would be to know that whatever was causing this was something alive enough for her to kill. Ah, well, you can't have everything; and that included ambushes. They safely made it to the top without one eldritch abomination dropping on their heads. What a missed opportunity.

 

Perhaps this battle could make up for it though. At the top of the stairs was empty space, its boundaries impossible to discern in the inky, amorphous blackness, which was broken only by a purple light high up above them. The "second floor" was more of a platforming area of sorts, with some iridescent tiles forming floors while others floated absently through space. She batted away a nearby tile, noting how slowly it floated away into the thinner mist.

" Peculiar." She muttered. It's almost as if this place was formed out of entropy. She turned to the action of the platform they were now on, and immediately recognized three flying shard creatures, like the one that had appeared before. They were the ones making that familiar humming sound, darting about like incessant insects. They appeared to be harassing a human, which had a strange, short, grey beast beside it with a glaringly-red headcrest.

Another one? Is this displacement biased? She thought in dismay, giving the human a quick size-up. He wasn't familiar to her either, but the beast wasn't attacking him, so they must know each other. The shards weren't putting up a very intense fight... to her, at least. It was more like a squabble, like they just wanted the duo to fall off. She watched in mild amusement, before turning to the male human and giving him an insidious grin, claws flexing.

" So... a weapon, hm? How do you feel about impromptu slashing?" She asked, hoping it implied enough that he would do this self-proclaimed "shift" of his. She glanced back at the squabble, noting the beast's large claws; with some well-aimed strikes it could probably take out the shards before they did... " Quick, before we lose the opportunity."

 

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

 

The Hound shuddered for a moment, waiting for its pain threads to automatically terminate. Even after the onslaught, the beast was still standing, confident that its shockwave attack had injured everyone enough. It was also quickly fading from view, the purple markings orbiting it dissipating. He caught a last glimpse of the letters: "Servant of Memory".

Servant of Memory? How can I read those words? He wondered. This language isn't in my database. He blinked, dissecting the meaning of the phrase. If this is a servant, then its master must be hostile, to attack us like this...

His thought trailed off as he targeted the creature again, focusing on its headless stump. He knew he had to attack the hostility before it attacked him, but he couldn't help but be sympathetic of its situation; what if it never wanted to hurt anyone?

It's too late. He decided, breaking his stance and rushing toward his target. He tried not to dwell on the question, kicking off the broken tiles. He flew toward the beast, jaws open wide -

 

Blurp! He hit! The Hound clamped his jaws on the protruding vertebrae of the neck, noticing how it was slick like glass, yet strong as steel. Immediately he bit down hard on it, raking his claws along the beast's exposed "flesh", but the thick, gooey substance was like scratching at tar; the stuff oozed over his muzzle and clogged up his claws. He couldn't tell if he was hurting it or not; not until it began to rapidly swing its neck around.

A panicked growl rose from the Hound's speaker as the world grew disorienting, the momentum pummeling him from both sides. He tried to hold on, but the thrashing was short lived; the glassy surface of the "bone" betrayed him.

With a mighty swing, the beast sent him flying. Pain exploded in the Hound's left shoulder as he hit the ground with a resounding clang, skidding a couple feet further. He couldn't help but whine - an automated response after taking such a heavy hit - but picked himself up anyway, eying the beast.

Was... was it melting? The Servant...

A brief memory surfaced, something painful, but not in a way that could be fixed by killing processes. He remembered now... he had to hurt a servant once, when it didn't mean its actions. He felt a burst of guilt. Did he just do it again, when it wasn't necessary? This time though he wasn't ordered to... he chose to...

Did I just violate a rule? His engine lurched. Did I do something wrong??

Edited by skwerl56767

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"Thought you'd never ask," Grip replied with a toothy grin. He found himself settling back into his usual cocky self now that he had found a potential wielder, even if it was a Lord Death from another universe, with no guarantee that she would know how the mechanics worked, but the resonance would probably be easy to learn. Neither he nor his brother were particularly picky when it came to partners, after all.

 

His body dissolved into a bright orange light and like a bolt of electricity he jolted into Shadow's waiting claws. The light elongated and solidified into a staff-like shape, and his blade erupted suddenly like a triggered spike. Tendrils of light left from the head of the scythe twisted into a solid chain decorated with iron spines.

 

With the transformation complete in less than two seconds, the warm glow dispelled itself to reveal the true grey-and-gold color of the weapon. While appearing to be solid metal, the scythe was surprisingly nimble in hand for its large size, with each part guided by its own volition.

 

Faintly, part of Grip's eager expression could be seen in the reflection of the scythe's blade.

 

"Looks like we're compatible. Relax and I'll do half the work," he said to her privately. He could feel Shadow's soul and its wavelength, and while it was... different, it was also incredibly similar to his old partners. Not quite witch, human, or shinigami, the foreign parts were subtle and nuanced. Like different spices mixed into tea, some parts felt angry, others soft, but the feelings were ever-shifting. "Ride the energy pulses and send them back to my soul; that's how we amplify my power."

 

 

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A human boy literally flew into the room, causing Reshiram to flinch slightly. He didn't seem to be going towards them... luckily. The boy hit the ground, rolled, and lay there for a bit, befire getting up heading towards the --

 

Oh Arceus.

 

The rune circle. The same one thst had thickened the strange mist and exploded. Reshiram flapped their wings, and rushed towards the boy to pick him up... but they missed, swooshing right by, and having to land suddenly before they crashed into the wall.

 

When they turned back, dread suffusing their mind, they saw only more pink mist surrounding the boy.

 

...at least it wasn't another explosion.

 

Excuse me, but can anyone tell me what is happening? Where I am?” A voice called out. Reshiram wheeled around, towards the source if the voice, to find a small black-purple Dragon. That dragon certainly hadn't been there before.

 

Isadora beat Reshiram to answering the dragon's question, so the white dragon settled for looking around and contemplating why the boy had decided to touch the rune circle.

Edited by Dusky_Flareon

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The edge of the Nomad's severity was blunted by the frog's amiable demeanor. Still, it did little to reassure them that their demise was just at the forefront of the amphibian's mind, so they declined from letting this information sway them. That being said, they did intend to take advantage of the position they're invariably led themselves into; the Nomad motioned toward Frog with the Fortify, flipping down their hood as they did so.

 

"I am. And indeed--you are." They nodded toward the misty void beyond, giving the staff a sweep. The mist parted away around them as they did so, willing the spirits to keep it from touching them any further.

 

"As such, consider yourself unofficially employed. As payment for my generosity, you will lead me through this maze and intercept my foes. I believe it should be obvious why." The Nomad rounded to behind the frog, insinuating him to the front in the process. As time passed, it was becoming undeniably evident that something was effecting them negatively. Here, their bond with the spirits they had communed with for nearly a century were sparing and distant, their voice somehow muted and garbled to them as if filtered through a screen or cloth. Even when they reached for them as a test, their response was reluctant, misguided, until they forced the silent words into them and coerced them into wholeness. Given this handicapping of their power, it was ever more pertinent that they not let this stranger take advantage of them. By going to the back, the Nomad relinquished Frog's security, but this did not come with any sense of perverse joy at their position. It was a simple matter of survival--nothing more and nothing less. One wrong move and they'd flay Frog from head to groin.

 

 

 

There was one question that had begun to fester at the back of their mind, one having to do with the frog's unique position upon finding him. It wasn't the simple presence of blood, though--tis world, or whatever it was, hardly seemed to suit logical convention, and was like to be rife with danger. Rather, they were drawn to the familiar raiment of cape and armor over breeches and some longsleeved garment. Was he in some campaign turned awry?

 

"Are you a part of this? I believe you must be, given that wound you sustained. What dealt you that blow?"

Edited by Sugar-Free

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[bOSS UPDATE]

 

Tetra charged and fired another beam, but the guardian had sensed either the light or the shift in energy. While it lunged aside to avoid the blast, the attack still grazed its side with a hiss, melting its glass spines and flesh and allowing just enough time for the mechanical hound to leap out of the mists and clamp himself firmly on the beast's neck and rake his claws along it.

 

The bear bucked and shook vigorously to dislodge the machine. It succeeded in throwing the dog off and the clatter of the robot hitting the ground could be heard across the room.

 

Heaving, the guardian was knocked off-balance by the impromptu entrance of a girl in a cropped brown jacket and he managed to toss her off too into another direction -- she having by some miracle avoided getting impaled on its spines -- before stumbling and falling onto its side. Ashur was quick to take advantage of the situation with another swing of his tail, slaying the monster before it could get up again.

 

The body exploded in a burst of energy that spread through the area, pushing the fog away to the corners of the room. Despite the reprieve from the forgetful mist, the bear delivered one last parting shot in the form of a vision affecting those in the area, overriding the other senses.

 

~

 

It was a vision of a similar place to the one they found themselves in at the moment, but it seemed to be aeons before. The air was warm; the glowing tiles and the stone of the wall had not yet fallen into disrepair, and there were beings, many beings of all different kinds, shapes and sizes (though many humanoid), mingling as if it were some sort of social event. The chatter of many foreign tongues resounded through the hallways as these creatures shared their news and greetings, and the air carried a faint scent of meat and cheeses.

 

Watching over them all was an immense humanoid with skin like glass through which flowed swirling purple smoke. Clothed in regal blue robes, they were sitting as still as a statue atop a throne at the north end of the room. Antlers grew from their head, forming an impressive set of branches that held up a glowing orb containing the memories of the Aetherials. Lounging beside them were two beasts of a misty blue: one ursine, the other equine.

 

"Aeons ago was the Golden Age of the Aetherials," a voice narrated, similar in power to the voice of Reality. "Having blessed Life's children with the ability to recollect, I, Memory, am the origin of all history and remembrance. The mortals have constructed this shrine in my honor, where they offer unto me fragments of the collective memories of their worlds to preserve for ages and ages.

"With memory comes foresight, and I fear that we have given them too much. Aeons ago, I could recall the memories of all the stars and all the planets and the elements of Magic and Time -- and now, I am afraid that I struggle to remember. The recorded thoughts are fading by the day, like the fallible thoughts of mortals.

 

The others feel the waning of their control as well. I did not know Eternals could experience true terror.

 

Left with no choice, I will seal my memories for the future to find, and transform the shrine into a beacon for those lost in the void. Future heroes and the heroes beyond them, it is no coincidence that you have been drawn here. Good luck."

 

~

 

The recording having ended, darkness faded back into existence. Within the sticky ash of what remained of the bear were two objects -- a marble-sized bead not unlike the one Memory held within its horns, and what appeared to be a spellbook completely unaffected by the dust.

[[Congratulations! You have defeated Inmind: Servant of Memory.]]

 

~~~

 

Milla

 

There really seemed to be something terrible going on in the neighboring room, judging by the tremors Milla felt, and by the cacophony of metal striking stone. She was glad that she managed to avoid the needless confrontation, but the same couldn't be said for a boy who came flying from that direction. The human looked no older than a teenager despite his size, and he crawled towards the circle of runes as if he thought they would heal him.

 

So far the circle had (one) exploded and (two) deepened the mist temporarily, so when nothing bad happened, Milla raised both eyebrows with pleasant surprise. The kid vanished, but she thought she saw Isadora pull him away in a flash and Reshiram try to pull him away from above. The circle was still glowing like the last few times it was triggered. How peculiar. She knelt down by the circle, trying to make sense of the runes without touching them. What happened this time?

 

In addition to the boy, she saw the form of another being joining them nearby. Another dragon? Milla casually put a few fingers on the hilt of her sword and adjusted her posture, in case one of the members of the notoriously volatile species decided to change its mind about the situation, although this one appeared to be a youngling. "Hard to say what is happening, other than the fight next door. The fog is rather frustrating, as you can see," she told the small dragon.

 

The light of the rune circle seemed to cut through the fog. So far, it had given an explosion, an explosion, deepened the fog, and now nothing. Could its effects be completely by chance? or was there some correlation between the effect and the trigger?

 

Following the particles of light upwards with her gaze, Milla thought she saw something above through the clouds. It was hard to say, but it gave her an idea.

 

"Dragon of Truth," she called. "Can you fly? Perhaps we could get a better view of the area once we rise above the mists."

 

~~~

 

Frog

 

 

The stranger was quite demanding. Frog's faint croaks stopped and he blinked, his eyes briefly pressing into his head one after the other. Nevertheless, an agreement made was an agreement made in honor -- and a healer was always worth protecting. He would have done so even if the hooded man had not made the agreement official.

 

So they walked, Frog leading the way, cautious and ready to draw his blade if trouble arose.

 

"I fell from above after a confrontation with a horned beast which inflicted upon me my wound." He slowed to a stop. Frog used both hands to shield his eyes from the light when looking up at the maze of platforms above. "Thankfully it did not pursue me. I had encountered a few other peculiar people like you, stranger, and it appears that this area is rather foreign to everyone but some of the hostile monsters. Ribbit."

Edited by TehUltimateMage

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The noise from the shard that passed Silver’s ear was enough to make him jump back, completely startled. No time to take a breath, huh? Okay. Let's do this, then. Weavile swatted at one as it passed by. He made an annoyed noise, as if it were a fly. Well, they're not as benign as flies, if the speed of that one is enough to tell. I better attack them before they get me. Who knows what they'll do. Silver looked down at his companion of many years. “Well, Weavile? Use Blizzard.

 

Weavile grinned. His face said it all- “Now you’re talking.” He began to execute his attack, creating a large blizzard toward his opponents. Silver hoped it had enough of an effect- any longer and he’d become a redhead-sicle. He held himself a little tighter- the unbearable cold was becoming too much. What was he thinking? It was bad enough that he had to deal with this place already- it was cold as… Well, if hell were cold. He probably should have switched to a Pokémon that didn't make the cold worse. Oh well- he was just going to have to live with it until he was in the clear.

 

...He hoped, though, that that would be soon.

 

 

The sardonic answer of the one creature was a tad irksome to Cynder, but she mentally shrugged it off. Now is not the time to be angry, I have more important things to worry about. “Hard to say what is happening, other than the fight next door. The fog is rather frustrating, as you can see.” The answer of the other bipedal creature was a little more reassuring. Cynder nodded. “Well, if there were something we could do about this fog….” Oh, who was she kidding? Even with her wind abilities, how would she be able to clear up this sense of a fog? She wished there were some sort of mechanism or something… This was simply annoying.

 

Perhaps she could find a light source of some sort? One that did more than that ring of symbols? This was one of those times that damned dragonfly Sparx could come in handy. As annoying as he was, his constant iridescence was surprisingly useful. Well, she didn't have that. Spyro’s Electricity ability or Fire ability would've helped as well, if they had a way of containing it. A torch would've been great, these bipeds could carry one. Well, these were not things they had. Her Fear element could potentially shed some light, but…. At what risk? She didn't want to hurt potential allies….

 

Shrugging, Cynder turned to the newcomer. “Are you alright? That sounded painful.

Edited by Mikasa361

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Silver and the Shards

 

The temperature of the area began to drop, and not before long the area around Silver and his pokemon became covered in frost. The shards, normally reliant on evasion to dodge strikes, were trapped in the blizzard. Pelted by ice and snow, the three crystals were knocked to the ground, their flimsy wings frozen and making them unable to fly.

 

Just as the attack began to fade, several more shards seemed to suddenly fly in from elsewhere, though this time the collective had noticed the newcomers to the floor.

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What a surprise! When the human said he turned into a weapon, Shadow assumed a very subdued transformation into an object that simply clattered to the floor. Instead though, he retained the habit of a living thing, jumping into her hands like Kazul did after she was gone for five minutes.

Ah, Kazul. Probably off killing all of his sprinkles again. Her memories beyond the sprinkles were foggy, but it was hard to forget that puffy little face of his.

 

Shadow gripped the handle of the metal scythe with the delight of a small child in a candy store, a broad smile on her face. He was a bit small for her, but that just proclaimed his maneuverability. Her rapture over the gleaming weapon was interrupted by shock when she glimpsed the human's face in the blade, as if he was standing behind her; yet, a glance over her shoulder verified that he wasn't there.

"Looks like we're compatible. Relax and I'll do half the work," she heard his voice in her head. She gave him a baffled look, not expecting that at all.

How did you get in here? What do you mean, we're 'compatible'? she thought, expecting true telepathy. He didn't answer the question directly, but added:

"Ride the energy pulses and send them back to my soul; that's how we amplify my power."

She only grew more quizzical, cocking her head and trying to decipher what he meant by that; and even with her facial features manifested, she couldn't use his soul to tell what was going on. That thing was nothing but orange! She looked back up at the flying shards, realizing she couldn't read them very well either.

Well... that just meant no one would miss them.

 

The grey beast was holding up a localized barrier of snow and ice, and while it was dying down it would still complicate battle. Although somehow, Shadow wasn't phased much by the blizzard; part of her was thrilled by it. At the same time, another part of her wanted to scream and run away, for no apparent reason.

...At this point the memory loss was just aggravating.

She ignored the inner confusion and poised the scythe, running into the storm with a gleeful giggle, and the first thing that struck her was how cold it was! With the flurry dying down it was almost worse, as the ice was turning to sleet and making everything wet. Luckily the shards were no better off in the blizzard, blundering about while they froze, and even though her armor made it painfully hard to walk on the freezing tile it just made her more inclined to jump about like a complete maniac.

 

Shzwish!! A shard darted right past her, seeing her but unable to fly straight. She allowed the wind and the slick floor to whip her around, jumping forward with a quick slice. The tip of the blade grazed the shard, sending it careening to the ground where she finished it off with a sharp plunge of the blade. A quick dash against the blizzard's wind, and she spotted another shard, which she pursed with vigor. It was much more evasive than its comrade, dodging frustratingly out of reach while they darted around in a game of cat and mouse. Shadow didn't really care how silly she looked, but was growing annoyed by the shard's teasing.

"Hey, I'm not just some thing you can swing around like that! What part of teamwork don't you get?" the human's voice suddenly exploded in her mind. She was taken aback by it; the scythe had an attitude!

"What? You're just a weapon, right?" she shot back, trying to focus on the chase and therefore responding aloud by habit.

"I ain't some junk that snaps in like two hits that you get at the local thrift store!" he retorted. "At the same time, you're not some guy who I need to hold me."

She growled, her consciousness berating her for still missing the shard, yet still giddy from the adrenaline; she even laughed at herself when she it missed again. Dang it!

As if just to spite her, the scythe twirled in her hands on his own accord, cleanly slicing the shard in two as it tried to escape. She was annoyed by the move, but swallowed her next insult. At the moment she had another weapon, and she needed to keep it that way, even if he was scolding her.

 

Shadow finally decided to take the human-scythe's advice, pausing to relax somewhat with her back to the wind. Maybe this was one of those weapons where you needed to be loose -

Clack! A shard was blown into her when it became too frozen to move. She growled and swiped at it, and success! A strike! Her excitement was rejuvenated upon seeing it clatter to the ground with a faint clinking sound, the cold wet making it helpless to the fierce finishing strike, which resounded loudly with the force.

"Hey!"

"What? You're fine!" Shadow grew snappish. "Stop ruining my fun!"

"What did I just say?" he said, while she grimaced at his reflection in the blade. "You do know how to use a scythe, but you suck at reading intent."

"That claim is unjustified!" she said defensively, "I have...! I once...!" She shook her head, completely frustrated that she couldn't even remember a good example! "Quiet! you're throwing off my concentration!"

 

She ignored any further arguing. With the blizzard finally dying down to a chilly wisp of wind and a few descending snowflakes, much of the conjured ice melted into a broad puddle. Shadow was about to use the respite as a chance to collect the shards' souls, but became distracted by how heavy the human-scythe felt. She shifted her grip on it, but her arms weren't tired... odd. Something from the shards, perhaps? Or maybe she offended him... could he become heavier? That was problematic. Before she could give him a break though, she noticed several more, incoming shards; and with the blizzard gone, they were especially fast. She tried lifting up the scythe, but he seemed to have gained fifty pounds in two seconds!

"Stop forcing things your way!" He objected, knowing she was ignoring him. She didn't acknowledge it, hefting him up anyway to swipe at the shards, but they decided to hang back, as if studying the situation; and she practically dropped her weapon in the process anyway!

"Are you tired or something?" she asked, annoyed. She could still see his reflection staring sternly back at her, and huffed in grudging submission; the message was pretty clear. "Okay, fine, I'm not going to kill some things, we're going to kill some things."

"I guess it's really something to be explained by doing, and by, well, cracking some crystals." He said, referring to the cooperation. "We gonna kill some things?"

"You want to go kill some things?"

"We gonna kill some things."

 

Shadow's smile began to return; at least they could agree on that! Some of the weight lifted from the scythe, verifying that it was a step in the right direction, so she went with it, rushing toward the new enemies with renewed vigor.

The subtle change in tactic made all the difference! One by one the shards fell, and while they had managed to pierce her cloak a couple of times they shattered easily under force. She let the human-scythe finish off the new swarm with a quick combo of two shards, looked at the ground to examine the pieces they left behind, then crushed a remaining survivor with the butt of the scythe. So satisfying! She hummed a pleasant little tune, bouncing in the puddle and holding the scythe like he was the best thing ever. I haven't been this happy in FOREVER! Either that or I forgot, but WHO CARES?! I have souls!

With that thought, she looked down at the broken pieces of a shard, crouched down to reach for its essence...

and it floated away.

 

Her grin disappeared as the soul flew aimlessly past her claws, completely shapeless and ignorant of her presence. She tried clawing at it and clenching her fist, but like mist it simply dissipated, dispersing upward like smoke from a candle.

At first, Shadow stared at it numbly. Then in bafflement. Then in indignant rage.

"HEY! Where do you think you're going?!" she stood up and shouted at the soul, as if it would respond to her, "Get back here!!"

The colors ignored her, continuing to float away. She glared at it from below, then looked at the nearby pieces of another shard.

It, too, was dissipating. So were the others. They were both floating away unlike anything she had ever seen before, but why?!

Where are their souls going? She thought in distress, oblivious to the others around her and screeching up in anger at the purple point in the sky. How am I supposed to regain power without those souls?!

 

((Long co-op post edit is long. For those who read the old version: only changes are that now all of the shards in that "room" are broken, and Shadow looks especially stupid because she's responding to telepathy and growing a little frustrated in the process. xd.png))

 

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

 

   ((EDIT #2: Fixed the BBCode removed by the forum update and added the LazerHound, since I'm still waiting on Mika for Shadow. The Pounder Drone is busy being dizzy at the moment.))

 

   The Hound could only watch numbly as its adversary stumbled, throwing off a new attacker from above before collapsing onto its side. The large, black reptilian from before reacted quickly, slashing its tail down its middle and causing the foul creature to explode. The Hound immediately recoiled into the fetal position, expecting a shower of viscera, but instead he felt nothing but a cold wind...

   ...the air warmed...

   his sensors began picking up conflicting information. In bewilderment, the Hound looked up, his cameras rapidly dilating in response to the new, warm light.

   What happened? He wondered, completely confused. Was there a time delay?

   He knew of time delays caused by inferior portal devices, but the idea that the beast had conjured a portal was hard to conceive for him; yet, none of his data matched up with what he experienced previously. For one, it was a lot more active and inviting in here than it was before; many alien faces and tongues that the Hound didn't recognize surrounded him, chatting cordially as if he was just plopped down in the middle of a party. He picked up the sounds of dishware tinkling, the odors of fine proteins, and the fragrance of various blooms decorating the halls. He picked himself up and roamed, feeling like a sore thumb with his damaged, grungy plating and bare wires. He glanced down at his paws, which were surely in the worst condition; but surprisingly, they were clean of the beast's muck! Even more surprisingly, as he moved them he couldn't hear the claws clinking on the tile.

   He was stupefied, trying to make sense of it all. Where am I? Why can't I hear myself? Where did all of these creatures come from? Do they know I'm here?

   The only logical solution was that he was in a simulation; not even a shred of plausibility accepted anything else.

 

   The Hound wandered for a while longer, trying to pick out any familiar faces; he didn't know how long this would last, so he might as well start getting comfortable with someone. In a way, he already missed the blue humanoid that repaired him... and he still hasn't found his original Master. He couldn't do a thing about it though.

   In his wandering, the Hound found very few people he was comfortable with, yet he eventually came across something he knew; something he knew very well. He jumped back and bristled, having nearly run into the beast, but it was oblivious to him. The Hound took this as an opportunity for a surprise strike, jumping back and locking on to its ursine face, but suddenly a new voice entered his mind:

   " Aeons ago was the Golden Age of the Aetherials," it began, its voice resounding so loudly that it made the Hound shrink back with a whine. "Having blessed Life's children with the ability to recollect, I, Memory, am the origin of all history and remembrance. The mortals have constructed this shrine in my honor, where they offer unto me fragments of the collective memories of their worlds to preserve for ages and ages."

   "What? Memories of worlds?" The Hound said, perplexed. He looked up and noticed a towering figure with gleaming, arboreal antlers, twisting and twining together like elaborate art. His tail drooped, looking between it and the beast, which still hasn't noticed him.

"With memory comes foresight, and I fear that we have given them too much," the voice came from the figure. "Aeons ago, I could recall the memories of all the stars and all the planets and the elements of Magic and Time -- and now, I am afraid that I struggle to remember. The recorded thoughts are fading by the day, like the fallible thoughts of mortals.

   "The others feel the waning of their control as well. I did not know Eternals could experience true terror.

   "Left with no choice, I will seal my memories for the future to find, and transform the shrine into a beacon for those lost in the void. Future heroes and the heroes beyond them, it is no coincidence that you have been drawn here. Good luck."

 

   "I don't understand..." the Hound faltered, searching the glass figure's cryptic face, but in a flash it was gone, along with the idle chatter, the bright lights, and the smells of food. The Hound blinked a couple of times, expecting the simulation to return, but he was back where he was standing in what was now evidently the ruins of that place... the shrine, the figure said? Did the shrine have something to do with him losing his Master?

   The Hound digested what he saw for a moment, staring at the cracked tiles in the floor before looking around at the others who fought, wondering if they experienced the same thing. The bear's remains were completely gone, except for a pile of strange ash where it once stood. He saw two objects shining in it, and numbly stood up, walking over to what the blue humanoid would call "loot". Upon closer inspection, they were a tome and an orb, both rather elaborate in design. He fully expected the humanoids to come and retrieve the spoils, so he simply stood there, looking at them and saying nothing.

Edited by skwerl56767

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The collision left Lara in some pain. “OW! censorkip.gif!!!” She was sure that her voice boomed throughout the…. Where even was she? Some sort of room? All she could tell was the color of the tiles- some of which were shattered. Whatever this place was, it was certainly old…. And kinda creepy. She didn't like it. Normally, on a mission, Lara would feel safer. Titans are much less active at night. However, this place was simply that much more ominous. The thing that just died seemed much more dangerous than any of the Titans she's seen- with one or two exceptions, of course. But…. THAT WAS A FREAKING B E A R. It was a dangerous bear. She bounced off of this thing…? Why was it so painful on impact?

 

Looking around, Lara noticed that the ones who were fighting it were- Oh what the actual hell??? There was a girl- Oh damn she’s kinda cute- but the rest were…. Lara had no idea how to describe them. One was a… Lizard? It was some weird lizard, that was the one thing Lara was certain about. What was this thing? And the rest were…. Heck, they weren’t human, that’s for sure. They looked to be some sort of mechanical beings. But HOW? How was this possible?

 

Something happened that caught her completely unexpected. In front of her, the body exploded and pushed the fog away. Oh thank goodness. That fog was the absolute worst. But before she could feel any sort of relief, something else happened. A vision started to completely take over her senses. She certainly wasn’t going to like it. Goodness, she hated not being able to control herself. The vision itself, though…. It was something else. It was almost as if she were in the same place, but… Everything looked so much younger. It was bustling with life, with beings of different sizes, shapes, etc.- all mingling and enjoying themselves. A few larger beings watched over them- a humanoid one and two beasts… Was one of them a horse? None of this made any sense. A voice narrated the scene.

"Aeons ago was the Golden Age of the Aetherials.

“Having blessed Life's children with the ability to recollect, I, Memory, am the origin of all history and remembrance. The mortals have constructed this shrine in my honor, where they offer unto me fragments of the collective memories of their worlds to preserve for ages and ages.

 

"With memory comes foresight, and I fear that we have given them too much. Aeons ago, I could recall the memories of all the stars and all the planets and the elements of Magic and Time -- and now, I am afraid that I struggle to remember. The recorded thoughts are fading by the day, like the fallible thoughts of mortals.

 

The others feel the waning of their control as well. I did not know Eternals could experience true terror.

 

Left with no choice, I will seal my memories for the future to find, and transform the shrine into a beacon for those lost in the void. Future heroes and the heroes beyond them, it is no coincidence that you have been drawn here. Good luck."

 

With the dream ending, everything faded into darkness and returned to… Well… Normal. Lara blinked as she saw- in the bear’s place- a bead and a book, one she had zero idea what it was supposed to be.

 

Gaining some sort of composure, Lara blinked a few times. “What…. The hell? What kind of trippy crap is this???

 

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Luckily for her, Cheria came up. She stared at the plaque momentarily, and the words seemed to stop shifting. Aerith gave them a curious glance, but none of the characters looked even vaguely familiar. Aerith frowned as Cheria read the words. They didn't sound familiar at the least, but strangely enough, it seemed to stick in her mind as if she's heard it all her life.

 

"Gods? As in... The summons? But these ones are strange, I never heard of any who are named after what they rule," Aerith murmured to herself, then blinked in surprise. What was she doing here?! She had to activate Holy! Aerith looked around, trying to place where she was....

But she couldn't hear anything--that was why everything seemed so strange earlier. No wind whispered to her ears, no ground murmured under her feet. "What is this place?" Aerith asked aloud with a frown. She listened to the Materia she had with her, but there was no information to be had from them. Aerith started towards a random direction, trying to hear anything... Wait, what was she listening for...? She shook her head and pushed down the anxiety she felt and she walked around the room before going back to the others. And she remembered why she was walking around in the first place.

 

"The only way out is the way we came from," Aerith said. Come to think of it, neither Asterix or Cheria seemed normal. Asterix looks like he came out of a painting, and Cheria was much too dolled up. Why didn't I realize it before?

I felt it, but I couldn't think of it for some reason... Aerith scanned the area around the plaque. "Maybe the mist is messing with my head?"

 

~~~

 

After absorbing the information she and Milla provided, the dragon didn't reply and seemed to start thinking. Isadora stood up and glanced at the boy beside her, then at the circle of runes. There was something about them... Isadora walked over and pulled out the novel she was reading from her pocket and flipped to the back, smiling a bit at the blank page before taking a pen out to copy the runes down. But what if the runes themselves imbue whatever magic is in the oval? Isadora stared at the runes she copied down, then slowly copied the last one before flinging it directly up into the air....

... Well, it didn't look like it exploded, but she heard some screaming from afar.

 

"Dragon of Truth,can you fly? Perhaps we could get a better view of the area once we rise above the mists."

 

Isadora turned towards Milla when she heard. "Advancing to the area overhead? She glanced up and caught her book. The screaming continued, though now that she listened, it sounded like rage, and Isadora bit her lip. "Watch yourselves. If trouble arises..." Isadora trailed off, scanning the void until she noticed three odd projections to the level above. "If looking from the breach in the wall, there are three structures some ways off which connects this floor with that. You can probably use those to get back down here more safely than just directly jumping, and if you get a signal out I'll try and find my way up."

Isadora gave a puzzled stare up at the second level. What is all that screaming for?

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As Reshiram took another glamce around, they spotted... Millas lookingup? Following her gaze to the fog... and was there something... beyond it?

 

Milla turned to them to ask a question. "Dragon of Truth. Can you fly? Perhaps we could get a better view of the area once we rise above the mists."

 

Isadira spoke up swiftly, and Reshiram stayed quiet, seeing as crosstalk would only make them both difficult to understand. "Advancing to the area overhead? Watch yourselves. If trouble arises... If looking from the breach in the wall, there are three structures some ways off which connects this floor with that. You can probably use those to get back down here more safely than just directly jumping, and if you get a signal out I'll try and find my way up."

 

Reshiram's telepathic voicce sounded, broadcasting to all in the room. "Yes. I can. Do you wish me to fly you up?" The last bit was directed mostly at Milla, though the others would hear it as well. Reshiram had an idea of what Milla could be thinking, based on where she was looking and her query - and it seemed Isadora had had the same idea, if her prior warning was anything to go by.

 

They were mostly oaying attention to Milla, but they didn't ignore the others in the room.

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Milla nodded. "That would be helpful. Thank you."

 

With a jump boosted by Sylph's power she hopped and landed lightly on the dragon's back, feeling the soft fur and downy feathers brush her skin. With a few powerful wingbeats, Reshiram lifted up and off the ground, rising up and above the heavy mist as they gained altitude.

 

Following the "ceiling" until there was a breach opening up to above, the dragon swerved and landed on the upper floor. Milla hopped off, hand cautiously hovering over her sword in case there were any hostiles. This floor, which seemed like an organized matrix of floating rocks connected with pathways, was much more open than the one below. When she peered down to the mist where Isadora and the others were still waiting, she could see the glow of the magic circle but little else through the fog.

 

Taking a few steps back to the center of the platform, there was another circle, four arms wide, set upon a stone dais with several steps leading up to it. It seemed to be of a different nature than the one below, though Milla bent down to pick up a piece of rubble to toss it at the center, flinching back to prepare for another explosion.

 

Nothing.

She was unsure if it was just a fluke or if the symbol was safe, so she called down: "There is a different circle up here! Judging by the layout of this upper floor, you are correct! There should be other ways up!"

 

~~~

 

 

With Aerith returning and confirming that this seemed to be a dead end, both Cheria and Asterix were looking back outwards towards the entrance of the room. There was definitely something special about that plaque, if that was there all by itself, and Cheria thought if she only had that List of Wonders her group was adding to....

 

Group? Not this group...? She shook her head to clear it, although with the mist it only server to make her more dizzy.

 

Asterix led the party again, not back the way they came but up what appeared to be some stairs. To her relief Cheria saw the mist thin out, but so did the railings of the steps as she stumbled with a shriek, but managed to catch her balance again thanks to Asterix grabbing her sleeve.

 

At the top, it was an empty platform with no walls, though there was a conspicuous patch of blood on the ground. Scoping the immediate area, she could see a woman with a head of massive yellow curls standing near a white beast twice her size. They were in the presence of a stone platform featuring a glowing rune similar to a teleportation circle over there, but a chasm separated the platforms they were on.

 

"Heyyy!" Cheria yelled over, waving her arms and jumping up and down to catch the blonde girl's attention.

Edited by TehUltimateMage

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Fittingly, as they climbed the stairs, it felt like a fog was clearing from her ears. She heard ancient murmuring. Not human, not even living, but something that had been part of here. The fog had muddled with her ability to hear... When she was younger, she would have loved it. Aerith gave a slight shake of her head. Now, she had grown used to listening to the world around her, and she had found it so useful to hear what the land and sky had to say when she traveled out of Midgar. The idea that the voices could just be silenced like that unnerved her, and her grip on her quarterstaff tightened. Cheria shrieked and Aerith turned to see that the walls-and railings-were dissappearing. The girl was saved by Asterix, and they all walked on.

She can sense many more presences nearby as they ascended, and when they reached the platform on top, there was a splatter of blood on the ground. Aerith grimaced at the sight and looked around, but it didn't feel as if there was anything here that had killed or injured whatever unfortunate person the blood belonged to.

 

"Heyyy!" Cheria's yell caught her attention. When she turned around, the dolled girl was shouting at a strange blond figure on a not-too-far platform. There was something about both her and the platform that had both a familiar and an unfamiliar presence, almost like a half-forgotten song. Like Cloud... The thought of him felt like a stab to her heart. Was he alright? What about the others? Was her mother and Marlene safe? No, she shouldn't dwell. 

 

"Do you know her?" Aerith walked over and asked Cheria. There was a walkway made out of single giant slab of stone connecting the bloodied platform and the one where the woman was. Below, she could see walls and mist. Lots of purple mist. Probably the first floor, and it was much bigger than she realized. Aerith shielded her eyes and looked up to see more floors, with a single staircase leading to the 3rd. Something about that made her uneasy. 

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All thoughts of finding Kyle were wiped when suddenly, something crashed right into her. She was knocked right to the floor , her chin striking painfully against a tile. That's gonna leave a bruise, at least. She lifted her head and wiped her hand across the spot, looking at it and seeing a few lines of blood. A scrape. That wasn't bad at all.

At least, without thinking about whatever godforsaken diseases could be floating around this kind of place. This wasn't Earth. No antibiotics or band-aids to found. No medicines at all. If she got a cut, she could very well be screwed. She didn't want to think about what foreign bugs awaited her.

 

Instead, she glanced up at what -who, rather- had caused the collision. She didn't expect to see what she saw. A teenage girl with brown curls and equally brown eyes, right on top of her. ***, she's hot. Jess gulped, and pushed her glasses up on her face. The girl looked at her for a few seconds, but then what seemed like a gust of wind smacked into Jess, rolling her from under the girl. Her eyes clouded...

--

She supposed she was knocked out, but the sight before her was too real to be a dream. The place was barely recognizable, but looked to be whatever place she was in now. The air was that of a perfect autumn day, and it carried the all-too familiar smell of cheese. I could use some cheese right now. There was no fog -she desperately tried to note any passageways that she could escape through- and there were so many people...or people-ish things. It looked to be a communion of sorts, and she really wanted some of that cheese. When was the last time she ate? She couldn't remember.

 

Watching over them all was an immense humanoid with skin like glass through which flowed swirling purple smoke. Clothed in regal blue robes, they were sitting as still as a statue atop a throne at the north end of the room. Antlers grew from their head, forming an impressive set of branches that held up a glowing orb containing the memories of the Aetherials. Lounging beside them were two beasts of a misty blue: one ursine, the other equine. Wait, ursine...

 

"Aeons ago was the Golden Age of the Aetherials," a voice suddenly narrated, dark and powerful. "Having blessed Life's children with the ability to recollect, I, Memory, am the origin of all history and remembrance. The mortals have constructed this shrine in my honor, where they offer unto me fragments of the collective memories of their worlds to preserve for ages and ages." Wait, preserving memories? What kind of science allows that?

"With memory comes foresight, and I fear that we have given them too much. Aeons ago, I could recall the memories of all the stars and all the planets and the elements of Magic and Time -- and now, I am afraid that I struggle to remember. The recorded thoughts are fading by the day, like the fallible thoughts of mortals." It just sounds like this guy is getting old, she thought.

 

"The others feel the waning of their control as well. I did not know Eternals could experience true terror.

 

Left with no choice, I will seal my memories for the future to find, and transform the shrine into a beacon for those lost in the void. Future heroes and the heroes beyond them, it is no coincidence that you have been drawn here. Good luck." She wanted to demand answers, but she was flung back into reality with more questions than anything. Heroes? Void? Coincidences? She didn't understand. And reality hurt. It only reminded her that this was no dream, and she was away from home, away from her squad; the squad she couldn't remember. She had Kyle, but even he was missing now. She laid on the ground, trying to understand what she just saw.

 

It is no coincidence that you have been drawn here. Why was she referred to as a hero? She was no hero.

She never would be.

 

---

 

As the pink smoke erupted around him, he closed his watering eyes and coughed, barely noticing the hand on his shoulder- or his fingers grasping a piece of dress-material. He felt the smoke dissipate, and he took in a breath and opened his eyes again...but suddenly the right side of his body was on fire. His back was in pain -and uncomfortably wet- and his hand was held over something wet. Being a first-world teenage boy, he'd never felt pain to this scale before, and he wanted to scream. However...he wasn't in control of his own body. That scared him the most. He was holding something leathery, and he wanted to examine it, but he couldn't freely turn his head. All he could do was stare at the...man in front of him. His features were distorted, and he wore a matching bandana and loincloth, but the most defining feature was his angry, twisted expression. "Why won't you die?!" He snarled. A wave of confusion washed over Kyle, and he couldn't tell if it was his own. For whatever reason, he smirked, and retorted in a frighteningly feminine voice;

 

"I'm rather disinclined to heed orders,"

 

With a roar, the man lunged at Kyle, and he was thrust out of the vision like it was some terrible dream. He gasped and shook, breathing heavily and trying to comprehend what just happened. The pink smoke was thin, but still there, mixed in with the grey smoke of before. He stared at the ceiling, frozen with shock. What had he just seen, and what was the meaning behind it? He felt the ghost of the pain from before, a light throb that served a reminder of what he'd just experienced. The ladies in the room were talking about something, but he didn't bother to listen. After what felt like forever of pondering and shock, he managed to lift himself onto his knees and stand up, just as the dragon-ish thing -Wait, is that a Pokemon?- lifted off into the air. It vanished into the fog, carrying someond on its back.

 

Few minutes later, he heard a cry from above. "There is a different circle up here! Judging by the layout of this upper floor, you are correct! There should be other ways up!" Confused, Kyle looked at the others in the room. A girl and a dragon-looking creature. "W-what's happening?" He stammered, his dark eyes riddled with fear.

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Reshiram stiffened as Milla tested the circle. They continued to eye it warily even after no immediate ecplosion, only relaxing after awhile. The white wyvern looked around, and noted this floor seemed more damaged... and there were areas that seemed nigh-insubstantial but yet there. Hmm. They'd have to be careful.

 

A cry rang out. Reshiram's head whipped around. Three dhapes in the mist... three... what were they again -- oh.... humans, yes. This place is odd. Reshiram mused. The dragon felt they couldn't fully trust their memory, which was unsettling for them. One was jumping and waving their arms, while another approached the jumping one. Reshiram eyed them, not dure if they were hostile or not. The pale dragon shifted, readying to fly again, what with the decomposing floor and new humans.

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Milla jumped a good several feet to land perfectly on the dragon's back, then off the two flew. Isadora watched as the two flew up, saw the next floor, and landed on the giant block of land. The fog seemed to have dissipated some up there. The two could barely be seen, but after a few seconds, Milla yelled down:

"There is a different circle up here! Judging by the layout of this upper floor, you are correct! There should be other ways up!"

 

Isadora gave a nod--Wait--and called back up. "Duly noted! Is there anything unusual up there? Can you spot the source of the screaming?"

She turned towards the stairs and was about to head out when she heard the boy speak up at last.

 

"W-what's happening?"

 

"Before I answer, are you alright?" Isadora felt a surge of relief. So nothing terrible happened to him. "You just did something extraordinarily st--dangerous, even if you might not realize it."

 

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"I cannot tell where the screaming originated," Milla answered, "But there appear to be other people on this floor as well who don't seem to have caused it. It is also likely that they know just as little as we do, given the... track record of this place."

 

She saw the little man on the other side of the rock pull out his shining sword. He was flanked by two girls, one waving at her, and the other standing cautious. Three very different signals for a group traveling in a party. Milla concluded they were as ragtag a group as she, Isadora, Reshiram, and Roxy (wherever Roxy was).

 

She crossed the platform, approaching the gap that separated her from the trio. Shifting her weight onto one leg and tilting her head inquisitively, she asked, "Do I know you?"

 

The pink haired one who was waving -- and who's garb looked wholly impractical for battle -- shook her head from side to side. "I don't think we've met," she answered both Milla and Aerith, "but seems like we need all the help we can get if we're supposed to escape this dungeon."

 

"Oh?" said the blonde. "And how do you suppose you'll manage that?"

 

Cheria was about to say something, then realized that all her plan amounted to was to explore until they stumbled upon an exit. "Well..." Looking past the lack of walls of this floor, without the fog it seemed as if the darkness stretched out infinitely in all directions. It was quite terrifying, actually, as if whatever had smashed her into this dimension simply devoured all other matter other than this stack of islands. "Maybe if we keep heading up to see what that glow's all about..."

 

Milla didn't reply, but she looked as if she was thinking about it. "If it happens so that we are traveling in the same direction, then you may come along. It would be quicker to jump the gap if you are able, although seems like everything on this floor is connected."

 

~~

 

Kyun shrunk back when Shadow screeched. The cloaked figure was terrifying with its wings and tail made of bone, even though her exaggerated movements were anything but mysterious. The energy released from those shards flew straight up and away, leaving Kyun to theorize that they might have been going somewhere and not merely floating up because they were lighter than air. Squinting, they though they saw the lights disappear behind some rocks even higher above. So there is more up there...

 

~

 

"Woohoo!" yelled Grip, though no one but Shadow could really hear him. "Why don't you fly up and chase them, or are those wings totally just for looks?" He knew that logically, bony wings shouldn't be able to catch the wind, but magic didn't really care about these things.

 

~~~

 

Ashur shook himself and huffed, blowing air from his nose. What kind of illusory magic was that? Even the scents in his nose lingered, as if for a moment they were all transported to that festival. The words lingered. Hero? He was no hero. The title was a meaningless one.

 

Regardless of the vision, he noticed with satisfaction that he dealt a few good blows to the ursine beast despite sustaining some damage himself, though nothing he hadn't felt in some form before. He would just have to rest a little before pressing on. Nevertheless, he slowly made a few steps toward the body after seeing something shiny glint within the wet and melted mess. It felt disgusting reaching in and grabbing the glowing orb carefully with his teeth, but the remains of the bear weren't goopy like they looked, but rather ashy and didn't have a scent at all.

 

Placing the orb on the ground to observe it -- it probably was no bigger than an orange -- he could see fragments of that vision that had assaulted his senses. Perhaps this was the memory, given physical form. He dug a little more, discovering a tome of some sort that again, he was surprised to find that the pages weren't stuck together with the slime.

 

Why were these... primates so loud? First Ossler and Velchek, and now another one with a green flag tied to it, yelling...

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