Last chapter Godot made an appearance bent to do something. Let the story continue.
"You will call me Godot." The masked man stood at the side looking over the city. "Let me be the one to relieve you from your duty." He jumped, picked up Phoenix and threw him a few feet.
"Oof" The adventurer picked himself off the ground and stood up. "What the hell was that for!?"
Godot drew the sword on his back. It looked like a staff, but in reality a skinny, deadly blade was concealed. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe the fact you can't use the sword on your back, unless you can prove me wrong in battle." With that a magical barrier appeared around the two combatants, blocking the view of the outside world.
Ergh What is with this guy? The battle commenced with a full frontal attack by Godot. It was blocked with ease by our hero. Godot backed off a little bit winding up for another strike. Phoenix, as the opponent's blade was brought down, rolled out of its path.
Outside the barrier Pearl and Maya were looking intently out of worry. "Pearly, I hope Nick is okay."
Pearl, unsure of herself spoke, "S-sure Mystic Maya, your special someone will be fine." When Pearl uttered the words "special someone" Maya shot a glare at her.
Back inside the ring of magic, the mysterious man kept on swinging at high speeds. Finally he stabbed and it connected with our hero's left shoulder. "AAAAAAHHHH!" His cry of pain reached outside of the barrier. Clutching his shoulder he resumed his fighting stance more defensively.
The battle raged on inside. Our protagonist was panting heavily as a break in the fight opened up. "Trite, I will take that blade from your cold dead body or you can give it to me. A man who can't tell the truth will never be able to cut with it and does not deserve to wield it."
I won't give him this blade now or ever. The counterattack began. Phoenix sliced at a diagonal from his lower left to upper right. Attack after attack was blocked by the Godot's glaive. Finally an opening came to light. "I will defeat you!" He placed all of his strength into a stab towards the stomach. The blade disappeared again like before.
Godot laughed as the swordsman aimlessly swung the sword with no avail. "Ha, have you forgotten that blade will only make contact if the one who wields it tells the truth. So please just hand it over."
Maybe, just maybe, I can win. If I tell the truth I can cut him. A smirk came over our hero's face. "You want to know what I lied about? I'll tell you. I lied about Maya being my fiancé." The sword regained its original form as he revealed his deception. I'm back in business.
(*SMACK*Of course she still slaps me even though this isn't a real event)
Godot expecting such a turnabout grunted "Hmph, now I can face you with all my skills." He reached into a satchel on his belt. A roasted coffee bean was pulled out and he popped it into his mouth. His pupils dilated as he ground it up in his mouth. "There we go, time to die Trite."
They exchanged blows with each other until Godot became faster than lightning. Swings connected as they grazed the adventure's armor. Soon Phoenix's body lay on the ground battered and bruised.
"Take this!" Godot was ready to give the final blow. Phoenix was able at the last second to parry the sword and stabbed the chest of the assailant.
"You win this round." His body faded from existence and the barrier disappeared.
Maya seeing the bruised man ran over to his side. "NICK!"
"I'm fine, I just am a little beaten up, that's all." A small amount of blood dripped from his left shoulder.
A laugh came through the air as it came from a distance. "Nice job," The man Phoenix thought was dead appeared from the forest around the city giving a slow clap. "You only defeated an illusion created by the two of the greatest Illusionists Zak and Valant." The two mages appeared from the shadows one wore a pinkish color the other yellow robes.
Pearl who was completely shut off from the outside world asked, "Illusionists?"
Grasping his shoulder now with a cloth he was given, he explained what they were. "They are mages who use magic to trick and confuse their opponents. They are very powerful in groups as they can magnify their powers to life like illusions." Those must be two very powerful mages as they could have killed me.
Godot turned his back as he made his way to the woods. "Trite, a proverb for you, the hammer that strikes too fast has no time to aim, adios, auf wiedersehen, and good riddance."
Phoenix dumfounded by the cryptic proverb sat and yelled. "What the hell was that about?"
"Maybe it was saying that you should think before doing something, or else it could backfire on you." Maya now was in full thinking mode without breaking focus.
Now that she says that, it makes sense. "Well, what does our map say about this first so called courtroom?" A map was pulled out haphazardly by the older medium. "Watch it! We have to have that intact."
"Don't be such a baby Nick, live on the edge once in a while." She studied the map intently flipping it over and over again. A gasp released from her mouth.
"What is it?"
"This map shows the best spots to find burgers and ramen. Who knew such an old map could tell me where I can get food." Thoughts of dinning establishments filled her mind.
"Give me that!" Our hero snatched the map out of Maya's hands.
"Be nice to Mystic Maya! She's your special someone, remember?" An icy gaze peered into his soul.
"I'm neither her fiancé, nor her boyfriend as a matter of fact." I doubt this will keep my face from bearing handprint of small girl justice, but if I want the blade to accept me I have to tell the truth all the time.
To his surprise no hand swiped across his face. Instead a fist punched him in the arm. "Oh, so when it gets tough you will abandon your special someone. You're such an immature boy."
Ouch, that hurts in more than the physical pain. His attention returned to the map. "Let's see, the courtroom is… In the woods where three eyes disappeared into!"
Maya pointed over her shoulders to the forest "So you mean the woods of nightmares. They say that many weak minded people fall asleep to only find themselves lost in the darkness of their minds."
*Grunt* A quick spin on her heel was all that was needed to for Maya to set off into the dark woods.
"C-come back here we don't even know if we're ready."
The young woman kept up the pace and started to march. "Onward, we only have to run in and out. It's that simple."
"B-but you said we could never wake up."
"That's what they always say about these spooky places. It's only a legend. Come along unless you're chicken. Bawk bawk."
"They say you are what you eat. Not surprising that I am a chicken, because I eat it a lot." Phoenix stood in place as he refused to enter such an evil sounding place.
Pearl grabbed Phoenix by the arm as she pulled the swordsman into the foreboding area. "Be a man, and escort us lovely ladies."
I am really starting to regret even buying this weapon.
They reached an inner grove. A lone stump resided in the clearing. There they found a most macabre sight. A skeleton of what appeared to be two mediums and a warrior lay at the stump. "This is starting to creep me out." Phoenix examined the bones to find the resemblance to their own party. I hope we don't end up like that. So they passed the stump into another direction.
About an hour later they came to another grove. It looked the same as before. They paid no attention to anything as they wandered for four more hours, each time passing the same stump as the previous encounters. "Umm Mr. Nick, I think we're lost."
"Don't be stupid, I know exactly where we are. We are umm, in that one place right next to the pink elephant thing." Phoenix started to scratch his head trying to regain his bearings.
Maya gave a large sigh, "Just admit it we are lost."
"Fine, we are lost. I just hope we find our way out before night falls…" A revelation dawned on the vigilante. "Wait one moment. There's something fishy here. Look up at the sky." All three cranked their heavy heads up to the sky. "The sun it hasn't moved from that position at all."
"WHAT!?" The mousey girl yelled as she gave a shocked expression. "The sun can't stop. It defies logic."
"B-but it's right there not moving at all!" Pearl was pointing as she squinted at the star.
Phoenix turned his attention to the remains lying there. He investigated and found some words carved into the stump. This was what was written, "Sorry Maya, I couldn't keep that promise."
Pearl approached the scene Wright was looking at. "Huh? How would any of these remains know who Maya is? And what is this promise?"
It dawned in an instant inside the mind of Phoenix. "These are our remains, but that means…"
("Nick, you just created a paradox. Now everyone is going to be dragged into a rift in time and space."
"Why don't you sit back and just be happy I am even bothering in the first place. Besides, it's fiction Maya, fiction.")
Suddenly a void swallowed our three friends. Phoenix lost consciousness. When he came to his senses he was lying on a floor. A large room with eleven seats in a circle loomed over Maya and Phoenix. For some reason Pearl was not to be seen.
A voice boomed in a type of rhythm, "I see you have solved my puzzle. Too bad it took you two tries to find the truth."
("I don't understand at all what happened, Mr. Nick."
"Ermm. The endless forest is in a place where time is in a sort a limbo, speeding up and slowing down. An anomaly happened and time sped up and slowed at the same instance causing two different versions of the protagonists. The ones in the super sped up one died without figuring out anything. The ones that slowed down considerably were able to find the other selves' bones and well you can figure out the rest."
"Nick, I think you're bluffing like you do in court."
I don't bluff! I merely say things that make it look like I DO have the evidence to convict them.
"So you are bluffing"
AIYEEEE! That's creepy it's almost like she can skim my thoughts. "Um, back to the story…")
A figure dressed in a black robe sat in a seat with a hood over his head. Behind the mysterious being a large contraption was moving continuously. Sand fell at a constant rate and filled a container and that container spilled over into another and another, until all the sand drained from the machine.
Maya demanded an explanation. "Where's Pearly? If you don't say I'll stick Nick on you."
"Her? Oh she's more than okay. She's back in the woods where you three entered one of my dimensions." That voice continued to talk in monotone and in tempo.
"Dimensions?" The adventurer raised his sword against him.
The voice replied, "I wouldn't do that. Do you realize I could kill you before you even blink? After all I am the Justice of Time and Space, Zeitplatz or Zeit for short." His hood flew off and revealed a grey haired man with deep wrinkles.
"J-justice? Are you a god or something?" The young medium looked absolutely terrified.
Zeit's hand made a fist and rested it on the bench in front of him at a controlled pace. "That's what the ancient civilization that made the sword you bare called the Justice's. If that's what you wish to call us, I will allow it. In reality though, we are just powerful beings that cannot die from age."
"Zeit right?" The Justice nodded his head slowly in response to Phoenix's question. "Why are we here?"
"You ask a good question my friend. You two are entangled with each other's path and I am here to help guide you. I have slumbered for many years and this is what we have searched for..." The man disappeared and reappeared. "Who are you two?"
Uh, does this guy have a memory problem? "We are the two you've been watching."
"I don't watch people. I have a civilization to father, along with the other Justices" Another fade and appearance passed. "Congratulations it is a girl…"
Maya and Phoenix stared rather unamused at the old Justice. "IS THIS SOME SORT OF SICK JOKE!? WE ARE NOT A THING!" They both shouted in unison.
"Uhh, you're not Mr. and Mrs.… It looks as if I am in the wrong place, again. Sorry you two, remember that one time where you were stuck in the courtroom in Zheng Fa." He gave an uneasy laugh. The switch happened once again.
Wait a minute he was a future Zeit that means the other was the past and this could prove a problem with communications with him.
"I'm very sorry if it looked as if I had multiple personality disorder, but being able to move through time can make strange things occur."
Great, this guy can just confuse our enemies to death with his many paradoxes.
"So why are we both here?" Maya now was demanding an answer. "I must know now!"
"Basically that sword calls out to be reawakened."
Maya now was getting impatient with the very slow speech of Zeitplatz. "Tell me why am I here?"
The Justice of Time and Space tapped his finger every second and spoke, "I have no idea as to why you are here. Maybe there is a larger role you will play."
The medium's face turned sour as she crossed her arms. "I don't want to run around this continent. You just shoved this quest on us. It's not fair."
"Time is not fair, it slows down when we are bored and speeds up when we have fun. Just accept this duty. Our time is up; I have nothing to give you right now except knowledge. Time sure does fly." The entire scene changed back into the forest they entered.
They found themselves in front of some old ruins lying in decay. I guess this is one of the courtrooms. Phoenix was slightly afraid, "Ladies first."
"Age before beauty." Maya shot back.
Pearl bounced up and down happily. "Let's all go together into the scary looking building."
Bracing themselves for what was to come the three entered the ruins.
*Yawn* "I'm getting kind of tired from storytelling. So it's time to sleep Pearls." He brought the covers of the bed over the girl.
Pearl gave a pouty look, "Mr. Nick you have to tell more, you gave us a cliffhanger."
"That wasn't a cliffhanger. It was a transition to what's to come. Please don't argue."
He left the room to leave the two girls to their own thoughts as Phoenix collapsed on the couch in an adjacent room.
A/N The Justice's name is German. Zeit is time and platz is space or place. Yeah... not very creative.
Anyhow, let me know what you thought or don't, your choice, by leaving a review. Enjoy the rest of your day.