A/N: So as part of a way to get back into writing after a period of silence, I came up with this. Of course, this is just sort of a stepping stone to get to the next story I plan to write for this fandom, but this story is still came out quite nicely with structure.
Disclaimer: Mana Khemia and all related material are owned by Gust, all ideas and text here is a work of fanfiction and completely unrelated.
A/N (2): Italics are thoughts by individuals; bolded text is usually telepathy messages or letter messages. Normal text covers descriptions, actions and all others.
Spoilers: The time-frame that the story occurs in Chapter 12, but before the final dungeon. In addition, there are spoilers for Jess/Philo and Roxis' chapter four character quests.
Restored Time
Jess entered the workshop and scanned the area for anybody that might be around. It was no surprise that nobody seem to be in the workshop considering the circumstances. Even now Jess could barely take in what the truth from Isolde, much less actually fighting and leaving a teacher unconscious.
"I wonder if everyone is going to be all right..." Jess muttered, not used to seeing the dead silence in the workshop.
As Jess seems to be in thought, her Mana appeared beside her. "Well, there's no use thinking about it too hard. It is only the next day. In fact, everybody may just still be sleeping or trying sleep" The Mana of Wind suggested.
"I guess... well, might as well try to do something else in the meantime..." Jess said, eyeing the vacant cauldron and having in mind something to synthesize.
"Aren't you afraid it might fail again though?" The mana suggested, recalling the two times where the Workshop was covered in black smoke.
"It won't happen now! Vayne helped me last time, so I am just doing an old synthesis that worked," Jess explained as she put down her bag and began to unload the materials for the synthesis.
Within a few minutes, Jess seem to be about to completing the synthesis as she got to the last ingredient, an idea came to her attention.
"I need salt for this last part... ooh, I know! Maybe I should substitute it with Black Powder for increased effects!" Jess smiled at the idea, while her Mana seems to have a bad feeling about the suggestion.
"But if you deviate from the original plan, it might explode again!" Warned the Mana.
"It won't! Besides Vayne does it all the time for his recipes to invent new items, so maybe this could have the same effect," Jess reasoned with her Mana that have very low confidence in the alchemist-in-training's abilities.
"But it's usually the first item that yields results, not the last..." The Mana tried to reason again as Jess ignored the comment and dumped in the bag of Black Powder. "Oh, I give up. I am not involved in this if it turns out wrong…" The Mana finished as she disappeared.
As Jess is about to complete the synthesis, another figure walked into the Workshop. "Hmm?" Hummed a voice from behind before a fast rising black smoke rose from the Cauldron and spread across in the whole Workshop. In addition to the black smoke filling up the open space of the Workshop, a large banging sound followed.
Jess slowly regained herself after the big explosion, she had failed again, and it was all because of a change in one ingredient. "Ack... Again..." Jess said regretfully, as the smoke cleared up.
"Well, I guess that changes my plans making some basic materials..." Said a voice from behind the thick black smoke.
"Huh?" Jess muttered as she heard the voice. Scanning the figure as the smoke seems to dissipate a little to reveal the form of Roxis. "R-Roxis! How long were you there?"
"Just a little while before this mess occurred. And if I may ask, what were you trying to make?" Roxis questioned as he held back from coughing through the smoke.
"Her own crazy inventions. Last time she even had Vayne to help her figure it out, but this time she substitute one ingredient and this happened. You can say that the failing chance is about to rise to 5/10 from 4/10" Jess's Mana informed while appearing again and blowing away some smoke being the Mana of Wind.
"Hey! It's not crazy, and I don't fail that often anymore!" Jess complained to her Mana while Roxis continued to scan the Workshop for the damages as the smoke seem to lighten up through leaving the window.
"At least this will put the 5/10 chance to fail to a halt for now..." Roxis said, looking at the wall of the Cauldron, noting there were only a few spots of blackness.
"Hmm? What do you mean by that?" Jess asked as Roxis pointed a finger to where the Cauldron is. Turning around to take a look, Jess noticed the few leftover ingredients from the failed synthesis as well as the Cauldron broken into a few pieces. "Oh no! What should we do about this?" Jess panicked, while trying to think of something to do about this situation knowing that unlike before, this would require thought.
"We?" Roxis repeated, hinting that it is Jess' fault for blowing up the Cauldron and getting into this mess.
"Ummm, can't you help?" Inquired Jess as her Mana disappeared as promised not getting involved.
"I suppose, since this could be a determining factor between being able to graduate due to such a thoughtless synthesis..." Roxis trailed off, not really wanting to get into the situation. However, he knew that besides possibility of disciplinary action on top of what is already is in place for the Isolde issue could be extremely severe. Besides, the benefits of helping to restore the Cauldron will also give him the necessary equipment to synthesize what he needs.
"You don't have to say it like that..." Jess responded quietly.
"Well, I will ask questions later, and let's see what we can do about this mess..." Roxis said examining the situation with the broken Cauldron as Jess followed behind.
Picking up the pieces, Roxis could see that the Cauldron was beyond all hope and would be nearly impossible to fix in this condition. Meanwhile, Jess thinks quickly of a solution to the problem to avoid unnecessary delays.
"Oh! I know, how about going to the Althanor Room and synthesize a new one!" Jess suggested, but Roxis frowned at the ludicrous suggestion, knowing the costs of that.
"That may not be possible in this situation. Seeing as how it must be made to be able to hold and mix ingredients along with being able to be easily cleaned once synthesis is finished. Also, we would need a lot more materials than just your average synthesis considering the size of the Cauldron, and I'd expect a copious supply of Black Steel that we'd have to buy since we can't synthesize it. Not to mention that we don't even have the recipe for such an item, it would be just walking blindly like you've done with this..." Roxis explained, rubbing salt into a wound with the last part.
Jess looked down; it seemed like that it would have been best to listen to her Mana from before. She didn't think a change in one ingredient would cause such a catastrophic event. "I'm Sorry..."
"No use apologising now, if worse comes to worse, then we'll--" Roxis began when Jess interrupts with another suggestion.
"Ah, I know! I will just throw away this one, and Roxis... can you go to the empty Workshop and get that Cauldron..."
"What! You want me to..." Roxis trailed off surprised at the suggestion.
"Please! You said it might affect graduation, so we'll have to do what we can..." Jess said as she began to stuff the broken pieces of the Cauldron into her bag while running out, leaving Roxis speechless.
She fit the pieces of the broken Cauldron in her bag? And also... this is really not good idea, and there is no guarantee that somebody won't find out either... Yet, this is a risk I'll have to take... Roxis thought, weighing out the success chance of this duplicity action. Nevertheless, even with every urge to not carry out the dishonest action, Roxis did what he had to do while Jess threw all the broken Cauldron pieces into the incinerator along with the burned materials.
After "replacing" the Cauldron and not seeing Jess in sight, Roxis synthesized some Polishing Powder and managed to make the blackened wall spotless again. As he finished the polishing, Jess came back into the Workshop, and seeing the place clean and just as it was before the failed synthesis calmed her.
"Oh, you managed to clean this place up..." Jess said.
"Yes, and I am not going to ask about the synthesis. However, since you mentioned Vayne I suppose that this is not the first time this happened, am I correct?" Roxis asked as he gradually planned to resume on his intended synthesis.
Jess nodded in sadness at the correct assumption. Perhaps it would be better if it was Vayne since Vayne would understand even if the situation with Isolde and the school seemed unfavourable.
"We were able to fix it up this time, but if this occurs too often it may not be as easy to cover up... So please at least have an idea of what you want to make before attempting the synthesis. I saw at least six materials in there, even the trickiest known synthesis only takes about four to synthesize, please be careful..." Roxis warned while he got ready to mass-produce his own item.
Jess nodded in response and sat down on the carpet at the other end of the Workshop, feeling disappointed and defeated at how everything turned out. Why did it turn out like that? I guess it doesn't matter if it was Roxis, Vayne or anybody if I fail and make a mess every time… Jess thought sadly as she slowly laid down her head and closed her eyes to take a break from all that's happened. At least she is thankful that Roxis did help with fixing her mistake as well as just a warning instead of a scolding lecture of some sort.
After a few minutes of thinking, Jess eventually fell into a light sleep for a short time. About half-hour later, she woke up by the sound of her own coughing, and the coughs continued well after she awoke as she gradually stopped the coughing. Is it happening again? I hope not, I should be able to last just a little longer... Jess thought as her condition seem to be worst than before.
Meanwhile Roxis looked up to make sure Jess is not suffocating, as the coughing seemed to sound deathly. After a few minutes without a response, Roxis continued with his book while leaning against the wall of the Workshop.
The Mana of Wind appeared again next to Jess, worried now that it seems like Jess could be in trouble. "Are you feeling sick again?"
"I... didn't think it would get this bad..." Jess wheezed out her response to her Mana as she closed her eyes in pain. It would seem that her time would be near, way sooner than she had expected.
"This is not good, what should we do?" The Mana asked, as Jess stood up to think of a solution.
As Jess stood, she released a terrifying half cough and half scream before collapsing onto the ground and seemingly writhing in pain.
"Hey! What's going on!?" Roxis asked as he stood next to the struggling Jess.
"Oh, this is really bad! Looks like she won't make it this time..." The Mana of Wind said gravely.
"You know something about this?" Roxis asked.
"Yes, I do... I will make this short," The panicked Mana responded.
The next few moments, the Mana explained about Jess' illness and how it occurred along with some of the other background information such as illegal alchemy practices. The most surprising fact to Roxis was how Jess was cured of the illness from a young age.
"Wait her illness and the way she was cured..." Roxis noted.
"Yes, it matches to what Isolde said about Theofratus, and so we really don't have much time, we need to bring Jess to the Infir--" the Mana of Wind continued as she felt a tug by Jess' hand.
"It's ok... I really won't make it this time..." Jess whispered.
"But...!" Jess' Mana protested.
"Don't talk; you're only going to waste your strength..." Commanded Roxis.
"I am sorry... I only..." Jess began again as Roxis interrupted once more.
"Don't speak!" Roxis pressed on.
Silence seems to fill the Workshop as Jess slowly closed her eyes and laid there while her Mana seem to panic even more. "Can't we do anything!?"
"I honestly don't know... but there may be a way..." Roxis suggested, getting attention from both Jess and her Mana. "I will need some time for this, so just stay there for now..."
The next half-hour seem to be the most stressful hour, as Roxis is seen entering and exiting the Workshop with various items, but nothing seemed clear to what he was doing. Meanwhile Jess and her Mana exchange faint whispers, knowing that this is something even Theofratus could not prevent, so what were the chances of anyone coming up with a remedy? Even the most experienced teachers would not be able to figure it out, let alone Roxis. However, Roxis persisted in his intense work, whatever it may be that is unknown to Jess and her Mana as they just accepted the inevitable.
With Jess' last remaining life fading away, The Mana of Wind disappeared; not even wanting to witness the horrifying experience as Jess even stopped responding to the whispers. Soon, evening came as the sun seem to set, and the darkness starts filling the Workshop, the same way it would seem for everybody's emotions if they know what is going to happen to Jess.
As the last of the golden rays seem to fade away through the window, Jess slowly opened her eyes, and the colours seem to re-energise her, perhaps it was already the end and that there would be no more pain and suffering after this, and perhaps Jess had already left her physical form and now the soul is released from suffering. However, nothing seems to happen as Jess blinked. Slowly, Jess opened her eyes to their full extent and slowly sat up; trying to figure out what is going on. As much as she expected herself to be a ghost or something else, she was not. Jess could figure out she is somehow living, but she found herself asking the question of how?
To verify this would not be a dream, Jess summoned her Mana, and the Mana of Wind came out, surprised to see her master alive, there was a cry of joy as the two seem to see each other in good shape.
"But how...?" The Mana asked, unable to figure out how Jess seems to live through that, was it a miracle?
"I don't know, but... ah!" Jess gasped as she looked behind her Mana and rushed forward to unconscious Roxis sitting on the floor against the wall. Slowly examining the body, Roxis seems to be alive and breathing, albeit very exhausted. "What did he do?"
"Who cares about that, we should get him to the Infirmary..." The Mana of Wind suggested.
Seeing as the day seem to end after bringing Roxis to the Infirmary, Jess went back to her dormitory room and rested there, but could not really sleep. What did Roxis really do? Why and How? Did he really save me...? Jess continued to ask in her thoughts as she thought about the question over and over again. In any case, she was glad in a way that she was alive.
As the next day dawned, Jess entered the Workshop again early in the morning to rethink about the situation from yesterday and how it all came out the way it did. Roxis... did he use alchemy to transfer his part of his life span to me? But that's almost impossible and most likely forbidden, so how...? Jess thought as she saw Roxis standing against the wall next to the Cauldron and reading again.
"Roxis!?" Jess said, catching the attention of the alchemist.
"Hmm? Oh..." Roxis said in response to seeing Jess as he put away his book.
"Umm, how did you..." Jess began as Roxis answered before the question finished.
"Your Mana told me everything about the situation, and I also knew of a risky solution to that..." Roxis partly explained.
"But what did you do really?" Jess asked again, wanting to know what was done.
"First of all, I am sure you want me to keep this as a secret, right?" Roxis asked in response to the question.
"Oh, yeah... just don't tell anyone else, only Vayne knows..." Jess responded.
"I see. What I am about to tell you here you will also keep to yourself... I cannot allow anyone else to know this..." Roxis said.
"Huh? All right, I won't tell anyone, so what did you do...?" Jess asked as she promised not to tell.
Roxis took a few seconds to gather his thoughts as she was about to reveal his darkest secret that was almost as fearful as Jess' secret.
"You see, I looked into Theofratus and the last of his research... Isolde opened up the path in the Resource Centre to the Unorganised Zone, where I checked out some of the things there. I came across this section that contained everything about Theofratus up to and including his last days. Perhaps it was curiosity that led me to do this... but I found some of his alchemy notes as well as his synthesis texts, and I know I should not do this, but I even took some of those notes with me... I was just curious as to what he used to cause a life-shortening effect and even studied the potion he used. I also found another recipe, and it was the recipe for reversing the harmful effects of the curing potion, it was almost complete but it would look like that either he failed to actually complete it or whatever reason, but it was still good enough to get a good idea for a complete synthesis," Roxis explained.
"But... if it wasn't complete, then what would have happened?" Questioned Jess.
"I will explain that later, but even with the recipes his synthesis is truly magnificent and beyond the normal... The most expensive items we had available weren't even the cheapest alternative for his formulae, although it was still a standard four-item recipe. At least the cheapest alternative for this item was in range with some of our most expensive items... The first, Green Liquid I was able to get after some struggle to melt a Jade Tablet with Flame, even though it would have been dangerous. The second required a Gold Steel that could be in colours of Black, Red, Blue, or White. Luckily there was a Gold Bullion and some Black Steel that I could synthesize and get that. Next is a herb that I never seen or heard of before, but there was the Moon Flower that I could use since Sulphur doesn't need it anymore. Finally, it also required a high quality Elixer with Cure Jar effects needed in the Elixer..."
"Wow! That's really something else, and those were the cheapest alternatives you say?" The Mana of Wind asked.
"Yes, I assume the finer items would have taken days or even weeks to synthesize and prepared... Anyway, even the slightest mistake could have proved fatal and caused unpredictable results... To prevent that, my Mana and me used up nearly all of our powers and was somehow able to create the item... Since this is not from the best items available, the effects are not as strong as they should be... But it was all I could do in that situation since any other alternative would take too long to complete. I think that these notes may have been taken away from Theofratus from Isolde for whatever reason... Anyway, the effects of the original remedy he used on you the side effects that he didn't anticipate was that the potion actually contained material that would break down your body from the inside slowly over the years... It looked like he almost completed the cure for it, but it looks like that guilt overtook him and made him create Vayne for his own purposes before he was able to complete the cure... For this reason, I ask of you not to tell anyone. Including Vayne..." Roxis finished as he warned about telling this incident again.
"Ok, I won't..." Jess replied. Wow, Roxis is really kind, he went through so much just to save me... and I always thought he was just a meanie... Jess thought.
"As of right now, you should have about two more years to your life, and once we graduate, we can probably think of something to continue saving you..." Roxis added.
"Oh, thank you!" Jess replied, grateful for the efforts of Roxis.
"There is no need to thank me; I had my own reasons for doing this... If I just let this slip by I am quite sure I would be unable to sleep, along with incessant waves of complaints from the rest of the group in the Workshop for abandoning you... that's all..." Roxis said to defend his character's image.
"There he goes again, always acting like he's got nothing to do this whole thing and using the excuse to act cool" Jess' Mana said.
"Really now... Wha!" Roxis said as he felt Jess' arms wrap around him, causing much confusion.
"Thank You for saving me, I always know you're kind on the inside..." Jess said, while Roxis is in much surprise and confusion to speak.
"Hey Jess, that's Roxis there, do you know what you're actually doing?" Asked the Mana of Wind from behind.
At once, Jess pulled away, knowing that Roxis does not like contact very much. "Ah! I'm sorry! I really didn't mean it!"
"It's fine... just don't tell this to anyone either..." Roxis replied, and his face reddened.
"Oh wow! Roxis is blushing!" Noted the Mana out loud, while earning her a glare from Roxis.
"Roxis!? Oh, so you..." Jess trailed off as Roxis half-shouted a response that Jess knew is a defence.
"What, Is there a problem!? More importantly, we still have more important things to worry about!"
"Oh right... so... I wonder how everyone else is or where Vayne is..." Jess thought out loud.
"Everyone else is probably still figuring out how the situation is for themselves and Vayne... Knowing him, he's probably with Nikki..." Roxis suggested.
"Nikki huh... they've been close lately, do you think..." Jess trailed off with her question as Roxis formed a response.
"I don't know for sure, but I am not getting involved... Although I could consider doing something after he played a part in that sinister plan with Flay..." Roxis said, remembering the horrible time when everyone set him up to get rejected by Pamela.
"Oh that... ehhh..." Jess said as she remembered something from that scene also through the Walker Talker. "Hey! What was that when you said I was immature anyway?"
"What? You heard that? Err, I mean how were you even there... wait, what am I saying!" Roxis said as the confusion settled in and Jess' Mana reminded her.
"He doesn't know about the Walker Talker, so you'd better think of something quick!" Suggested the Mana of Wind.
In a quick panic for a solution, Jess said whatever was on her mind, "Oh, I... don't know what you're trying to say, but just pretend I didn't say anything!" As Jess finished, she made a dash out the Workshop, leaving Roxis even more confused than before.
"Hey wait! ...what is all this about?" Roxis said to himself, realising the strangeness of the situation as his Mana appeared next to him.
"You don't need to worry so much about it this is all in the past, hehe..." Said the Mana of Light.
"Do you know something about this?" Asked Roxis, sensing an evil hint of voice from the Mana.
"Oh ho ho ho! Who knows, just don't worry about it... And if really want to repay your friend for the favour, then I guess I could make arrangements... playing a joke on your friends is fine as long as it does not rise up into hate..." Roxis' Mana said.
Roxis thought about the possible scenarios that could be played out if he were to do a similar set-up to Vayne for a joke, and then replied. "Maybe. Perhaps after the current problems are over with..." Roxis replied as he made his way out of the Workshop.
First of all, I would like to say that this story is really inspired by Explosive (Which contains a light JessxRoxis as well, hehe) fic, and some plot flow may be similar but not to the point of an exact copy.
Also, I had thought that Roxis' character could have been expanded more beyond his character quests, and so here he shows a somewhat darker side as to actually touching forbidden material in alchemy as he really does show a big interest in alchemy.