Disclaimers: I don't own Tales of the Abyss.

Author's notes: Meh… nothing much… Just another one of my plot bunnies acting up once again…

Title: Never Losing

Summary: Luke was back. But he wasn't actually the Luke that they knew. It was Asch. However, if Asch was there, where was Luke? And when they found him… He wasn't the same… GuyLuke and some AschLuke.

Pairing: GuyLuke and some AschLuke

Author's notes: I'm not really that fond of OCs, but I guess I have to put two of them in. Don't worry. They won't be playing major roles…

WARNING: I will warn you for the first and the last time. There will be major spoilers for the game and major OOC-ness at parts. This will occur after the game so there is a reason for the changes.

Ehem… now let the fic start!

Bold is for Luke's group

Normal is for Guy and Asch's group

"Punching me once again won't bring him back, Gailardia!" The longhaired monarch exclaimed as he wiped away the blood that dripped out of his lip due to the punch that he received from the blonde haired noble. Asch was annoyed. The blonde came all the way from Malkuth just to "negotiate" things with him… which weren't even negotiatable in the first place.

It had been six months since Asch came back from Hod, and now that he resumed his rightful place as the duke's son, everything was going fine…

Not exactly…

"It was your fault! Where is Luke?!" The blonde monarch demanded as he held onto the red head's collar tightly with his two hands. "What happened to Luke?!"

"Guy, stop it! He is the real Luke!"

"Shut up, Natalia!"

Ever since Asch came back, things were never the same. Asch refused to bear his former name, Jade was becoming more sarcastic than ever, Natalia was starting to become more bratty, Anise… was… still a gold digger, Tear was even more silent that before, and Guy… well… Guy could no longer hold his temper that well as we can all see.

"Guy," The necromancer's voice came. "We came here for peace negotiations between Malkuth and Kimlasca. You came here as the peace ambassador of Malkuth, and Luke… ahh… I meant Asch fon Fabre is your counterpart as Kimlasca's ambassador. It would be a pain to see the both of you fight while representing each country in a peace conference." His voice remained cool and calm… as if nothing was actually happening in front of him.

Guy gave out a small glare. "How can I not be calm when I know that I'm facing him?!" He exclaimed as he held on tighter. "How?! When I know that he's the cause of Luke's death!"

Asch gave out a glare as he forcefully pushed the blonde noble away from him. "Don't blame me! It's not my fault that he's gone. I didn't even ask to be revived!" That comment earned him another punch on the face, and this time, it would seem like the others had to interfere. Natalia was right by his side as she started to heal his wounds with one of her healing fonons. Anise made her way in front of Guy, her tokunaga ready for action. Florian stood by the sidelines, afraid to enter the scene despite the fact that he was wearing the former Ion's clothes. Anise gave the green-haired boy a small reassuring smile – a smile which said that she wouldn't allow anything to happen even further.

"Anise…"

The younger one faced Guy as her eyes slightly narrowed, child-attitude abandoned. "Guy, as the colonel stated, you all came here to Daath for peace negotiations, and so as the current representative of Fon Master Florian, I am telling the two of you to stop and do what you're supposed to do…!"

The shadows were lurking at every corner of the room as he walked by - the soldiers surrounding him giving out their salutes as a sign of respect and allegiance. His superiority was obvious in the way he dressed and walked. He carried his sword with confidence even though his eyes displayed calmness that almost seemed to be real. His feet stopped its movements as he heard something collide within the room above him – which happened to be the cathedral. He placed his chin on his hands, contemplating on the fact whether or not he would go to help out. Maybe yes… Maybe no…

A young soldier wearing black robes ran by the hallway, his long green hair falling off its ponytail as the wind flew by him. He stopped as he bumped into another soldier wearing the exact uniform that he was wearing – his green eyes meeting with red ones. The red-eyed soldier merely stared at the green-eyed one, confidence being displayed on his face. "What's the matter, Ran?"

The younger one's eyes widened – obvious panic displayed in his eyes. "Yulan! Where's the general?!"

"Anise… are you saying that you're actually accepting the fact that Luke is dead?!" Guy demanded as he took a step nearer them, his hand on the hilt of his sword but not making any movement to pull it out. "Are you saying that you want to forget everything and just move on?!"

"That is what Luke would want if he were given the chance to say so." The seventh fonist spoke up, taking a step forward for the first time ever since the argument started. "He wouldn't want anyone blaming another for his death. Do you think Luke would be happy with the fact that your desire to kill Asch is almost nearing?" She asked, her eyes boring into his own… Her eyes were mature, but not cold. They were warm, but not exactly not caring. They were serious, but not silent. She had grown a lot during her travels with Luke, and her feelings for the now deceased warrior hadn't faltered ever since. His ideals were etched deep within her heart. She knew that he wouldn't want anyone to fight over his death… "Luke would want nothing more than for all of us to move on with our lives… He gave up his life for us… He gave up his life for… him."

"I haven't seen him." The dark haired, red-eyed soldier – Yulan – answered as he stared at the panic-stricken face of the green haired, green-eyed soldier – Ran. "Maybe he's walking aimlessly around the place. You know how stupid our dear general is." He said, obvious sarcasm placed over his words as a smirk came upon his lips. "I know what's happening above."

"You know about it?"

"About those Kimlascan and Malkuth people upstairs? Yeah… In fact, they're making quite a ruckus. The other soldiers came to me and told me to go get the general. It would seem that they're fighting over someone named "Luke"."

Ran gave a confused look. "Someone named "Luke"? What do you think the general would say about that?" He asked, temporarily forgetting about the situation at hand.

The other one smirked. "They said that this "Luke" gave up his life for someone or something. I don't really know… Sounds rather cheesy to me." He then crossed his arms. "Want to know what the general would think? Let's go and ask him ourselves then."

"Nicely said, Tear." The necromancer stated as he took a step nearer towards them. With that smile on his face, no one could say whether he was giving out a real compliment or being sarcastic with that statement. "I'm sure that Luke would say the same thing if he were here to say it."

"Hn." The former god-general snorted as he narrowed his eyes towards them. "What do I care about someone who's dead? He's dead, isn't he? Then it wouldn't matter what I want to say about him." He stood up, his hand on his sword's hilt, fully prepared for what would happen next. "Replicas like him shouldn't have even existed."

…Guy couldn't hold himself any longer.

"General!"

Calm green eyes flitted over in front of him as he saw the green haired soldier latch himself onto his waist. He gave out a calm smile as a pair of teary eyes glanced up at him. "What is it, Ran?" He asked.

"General! We have trouble!"

Guy pulled out his sword and attacked, surprising Anise and successfully slicing tokunaga in half. Asch pulled out his own sword just in time to collide it with the blonde's blade. The red-haired monarch gave out a low growl as he felt the force that was trying to push him down. He gave out a pained smirk as sweat started to trickle down his temple. "You're really strong… I'll give you that." Asch told him as he started pushing back. "But not good enough!"

Natalia could do nothing but stare as the two men fought. She knew that there was no way to stop them from fighting, and it was all because of Luke's death. Tear and Jade could do nothing as well. They both knew that if they joined the fight, their fonic attacks could possibly destroy the cathedral if they were not careful. They couldn't take that risk.

Florian, from his hiding place, stood up. With a weird burst of courage, he alerted the nearby soldiers to call the one person who might be able to stop them…

The young replica, who had just started to learn more about life, could only wish that he was doing the right thing…

"Trouble? What kind of trouble?"

Yulan took a step forward to face his superior as he placed a hand on his hip before speaking up. "Apparently, the ambassadors from Kimlasca and Malkuth are having a little brawl over a person named "Luke"." He stated. He saw his superior raise an eyebrow, which he took as a sign to continue. "As what I've heard, they were supposed to be having peace negotiations. However, what they're doing is far from their original purpose."

The general sighed, pushing back a strand of orangey-red hair behind his ear as he allow the rest to fall back. He gave out a "look" before looking at the soldier in front of him. "So… what do you want me to do?" He asked.

"General!"

The red head sighed as he stared at the random soldier with an exasperated look on his face. "What now? What's up with all of you and calling me from all over the place?"

"My sincere apologies, general. But the fon master is wishing for your presence at the cathedral. Apparently, he wants you to help stop the ambassadors from Kimlasca and Malkuth from fighting with each other." The soldier stated. The superior one sighed as he glanced at the green haired soldier who still had his arms around his waist.

"Is this what you were telling me about, Ran?" He asked.

The younger one nodded. "Yes… They're fighting in the cathedral! What they're doing is total disrespect!" He sighed as he stood up, giving a bored-annoyed expression as he faced the red-eyed one a few feet away from him. Yulan gave out an amused smirk.

"Well it looks like you have no choice, general. It's a direct order from the fon master himself. Even though he's a weakling, we can't deny the fact that he holds the highest authority over this place."

The general sighed as he pried the younger soldier's arms off his waist. Straightening himself up, he spoke, "So… let's get going then before things get totally out of hand…"

Their swords clashed with intensity as sparks were being emitted through every strike. It wasn't merely from the blades that they were holding, but from their emotions. They were being burned by their own flames, each one fighting for a while different reason. Guy was fighting for his best friend. And Asch? Well… only time will tell what he was fighting for.

The blonde took off his sword's sheathe and attacked, fighting as if he were holding two swords on each hand. Asch managed to block the hilt, but the next attack shocked him and left him no time to dodge.

Guy attacked once more, his blade glistening with rage. Asch narrowed his eyes. He did not see that attack coming after blocking the sheath. If he did not move, his throat would surely be slit. The look on the blonde's eyes proved the fact that he actually had the intention of killing the red head. Asch tilted his head back, Guy's blade slashing his cheek instead of his throat. He pushed the blonde with all his might, sending him a few feet away from him. Asch stood back, inwardly glad that he was alive.

"This is truly getting out of hand." Jade murmured as he glanced at the scene in front of him. "That last attack that Guy made… He really had the intention of killing Asch."

The Kimlascan princess' eyes widened as she quickly turned to look at the colonel. "Jade, that can't possibly be true. Guy would never kill Asch. Asch was Luke… after all." She stated as she tried desperately to hide the panic contained within her voice. "If Guy is fighting for Luke, then he wouldn't kill Asch since he knows that Luke wouldn't want this." She said.

Jade sighed, his eyes not leaving the scene in front on him. "Do you think so?" He asked. "Look at Guy's eyes. His eyes are filled with rage. That last attack had the intention of killing Asch."

Anise, now in tears, spoke up. "No… They can't kill each other! That would be so wrong!"

Guy smirked, a look totally uncharacteristic of him, as he positioned his sword once again. They were both tired, but he knew that his last attack had its toll on the ex-god-general. Once again, he attacked, performing all the arts that he knew.

Asch managed to block, but still received wounds from the attacks that he got. He was losing this fight… He knew that fact, but he didn't want to accept it. He got thrown back to the floor, the key of Lorelei falling off his hands. He cursed. Guy was serious… He really had the intention of killing him!

Florian couldn't stand to watch any longer. He was still on the process of learning more about life and living, but still… he knew one thing. Life isn't something that someone else should take for his own satisfaction. With that in mind, he ran out of his hiding place and stood in front of Asch. He extended his arms wide, fully intending on taking the next blow for himself.

"Florian!"

"Shit…! I can't stop…!"

Florian closed his eyes tightly… bracing himself for the inevitable pain…

"Florian!"

…but it didn't come.

"Fighting inside the cathedral is one thing, but killing the fon master is another story. It is the worst crime that anyone could commit to the Order of Lorelei."

Florian opened his eyes…

"W-what…?"

Serious yet mischievous eyes glanced at the blonde's own orbs – a maestro sword blocking Guy's own blade… preventing him from hurting Florian… - as an unreadable smile appeared on the person's lips.

"I suggest that you lower your sword now before I decide to take drastic measures."

And everyone could just stare.

"Luke…?!"

End of Chapter one

Author's notes: I… lack… inspiration... It's so dull that I'm almost ashamed of myself. I just had to start it. I don't know why, but it's harder for me to start a story than end it. By the way, let me explain some things:

(1) I made Florian the fon master because I seriously think that it's too fast for Anise to take the role. I'm sure that by this time, Florian would already know the basics of life and its importance.

(2) Guy is OOC here because come on! If you were in his place, and someone insulted your dead best friend, you would feel the same way. Especially if the person who insulted your best friend was the person your friend died for.

(3) Let me introduce the two OCs.

Yulan – a lower ranked general of the Order of Lorelei. Kind of aloof and sarcastic, but knows went toe serious. He's the one with black hair and red eyes.

Ran – another lower ranked general of the Order of Lorelei. He's as short as Anise and acts like a kid most of the time. He's the one with long green hair in a ponytail and green eyes.

(4) Let me explain Luke's new personality as the god-general of the order of Lorelei. Luke still has his "normal" personality with him, but as the god-general, he has to act serious. He no longer has this inferiority complex because he doesn't remember anything from his past. He acts totally different for now because of that. Rest assured. He will act the same way as he once did as the story progresses on since he will slowly remember them piece-by-piece.

Now… I will not tolerate flamers!

Ehem…

Reviews please!