ARC I:
Antinomy
Chapter VII
RAREST MINERAL
It was a peaceful, sunny day. The birds were chirping, a pleasant breeze blowing the leaves off the trees in this forest. No touch of human corruption or influence to be seen in this wonderland of nature. A place completely free of human civilization, a place where animals could roam freely, a place that lacked the single bit of darkness. But that all changed in a matter of seconds, quickly following a violent gust of wind, and a loud roar in the distance. I was surprised by the sudden change in the atmosphere. I frantically observed the area all around me, looking into the sky, a dark-purple shadow was spreading in the sky, the light being cut off, causing the area it covered to have a dark shadow over it. From there, the animals ran away and Heartless started to emerge from within the dark forest. Within the dark trees, I see a silhouette running towards me.
"Kazu!" a familiar voice yelled in desperation, I realized the silhouette following me was Yuro, extending his arm out to me, and running with an expression full of fear. Behind him, was a huge shadow, I couldn't make out the body shape at all, actually, it didn't have one at all. It resembles a virus spreading, trying to engulf everything in a world of shadow; the true darkness. I extend my arm towards him, running towards him, trying to shorten the distance between us. The shadow behind him grew larger as I got closer, engulfing the trees around us.
"Yuro!" I desperately called out, only to stop abruptly in my tracks. My eyes widen at the horror I'm seeing.
Yuro stopped, he hung his head, looking down at his feet, his brown locks covering his eyes. "Kazu, you.." he spoke in a low voice, then lifting his head up, his face filled with fear. His eyes filled with tears, he started backing away from me, lifting his hands and shaking his head. His body language communicating: "get away from me."
"What are you?!" he screamed in a freaked out tone, pointing towards me.
I looked at him in confusion, "what? I'm Kazu, what are you talking-" I was cut off, following another outburst from him.
"Get away from me, you monster!" his voice still kept that desperate call for help vibe. I could only stand there, as talking wouldn't do a thing. "I don't know you anymore...! You aren't the person I knew, I want the real Kazu back! What did you-wahhh!" he was prematurely captured by dark-purple vines that emerged from the shadow behind him. They wrapped around his wrists, ankles, and his neck. He didn't have a chance to struggle, he was pulled back with tremendous force as soon as he was grabbed; his screams echo in the distance and the sound of his feet dragging across the ground before disappearing into the dark forest.
"What the..!?" I take a step forward.
Before I could process what happened next, three figures appeared, surrounding me. They were Selena Rose, Xiu Li, and Scarlet Rose. Prepared for combat, Keyblade in hand.
"Die!" Selena made the first move, dashing towards me and firing an onslaught of Firaga spells and knocking me down with one strike of her crimson Keyblade. She slid across the ground slapping Xiu's hand; tagging out.
"Disappear," Xiu's expression was dead, lacking any real emotion, her tone reflected that very well. She held her ultra-blue Keyblade with both hands, rising to her head and pulling it behind her. Around a half of a second later, she twirled around on the heel of her boot, swinging the blade, whipping up a strong wind in my direction; an offensive Aeroga. I got swept off my feet, the powerful wind that lifted me off the ground subsided. My body fell under the force of gravity, scraping across the dirt and grass. I use my left arm to support my body, as I slowly lift myself off the ground. My body wouldn't respond to me at all, I could only get back up on my feet, anything else, like dodging or attacking, were out of my control. It felt like I was being suppressed in some form or another. I looked at Xiu, who signaled to Scarlet, who was a few meters behind me already.
Scarlet had an angry expression on her face, her eyes brimming with disappointment and anger. "You know the price of dishonorment, right, Yuuki?" her voice was ice cold, lacking the warmth I would hear in a big sister's voice. My body wouldn't respond to me anymore, like it had a mind of it's own. I didn't face her, I couldn't face her, my body wouldn't let me. I hear her footsteps as she slowly wanders over to me. A few seconds later, we were inches apart, to the point to where I could feel her breath on the back of my neck. She grabbed my shoulder and held her mouth up to my ear, "that price is death, you monster," before I could register those words in mind, she penetrated my sides with her Keyblade, the dark green tip punching through to the other side. The pain was enormous, yet, my body wouldn't express that pain. I could imagine myself being driven through dozens of knives to meet the pain that I was feeling, but lacked the control to show that pain on the outside.
For what seemed like forever, was only a few minutes. Scarlet withdrew her dark-green Keyblade from my body, and backed away from me. In the next minute or so, the same dark-purple vines that grabbed Yuro emerged from the shadows once again, dragging those three off. They didn't emit a scream or a plea of help, nothing of the sort, just pure blankness. I stood in that spot, not moving, and not uttering so much of a word. I've lost my voice at that point, not only have I lost my body language and control over my body, but my voice as well. Funny enough, the wound that Scarlet left in my sides didn't hurt anymore, as if it's purpose was to hurt me, but not linger around for prolonged writhing.
The wind whipped up, more powerful than before, the leaves on the trees disappearing as they're torn off by the violent wind, which was so powerful that a few of the trees were pulled out of the ground and lifted into the sky, spinning. My black blazer was flapping behind me in the wind, my hair wildly dancing according to the wind. I didn't feel any pain for them, I didn't feel any sort of remorse for them, they didn't feel anything for me; except anger, hatred, and disappointment. Yuro was generally concerned for me, calling to me for help, but like the others, he grown to be afraid of me. This felt like a nightmare, a nightmare that I wouldn't want to live in, a nightmare that would pull me into the deepest pit of despair if I allowed it to.
In the distance in front of me, a strong, blinding light appeared in its wake, I closed my eyes, trying to endure the sudden appearance of light in such a dark area. A person emerged from that flash of light that now overlaps the spreading darkness around us, in a split second, I was surrounded with light. No trees to be seen, no sky, no moon, no sun, just a bright light with me and the lone person who appeared within the light. The violent gust of wind that covered the area I was previously in remained, but it was much calmer than before; now it was the pleasant breeze I loved. I turned my attention to the girl in front of me, who was Ayako. She had a disappointed look on her face, her short white hair dancing in the wind. She walked towards me, very slowly, as if she was hesitating on coming closer.
"Ayako," I muttered, and without realizing it, I extended my arm forward, having regained control of my body.
"Kazu Yuuki," she spoke, in a strict tone, "how long are you going to be pushed around?" she questioned, still walking forward at a snail's pace.
"Pushed around? What do you mean? I-" I was cut off by a loud noise, Ayako had summoned her glistening white Keyblade and struck the ground with it, as if she was using it to gain my attention, which she did.
"I don't think you understand," she spoke, her tone growing colder. Her walking pace slowly increasing as she dragged her white Keyblade across the ground. It made a screeching sound, similar to the sound of a nail scraping across a chalkboard, an annoying, ear-bursting sound that no one liked.
"What do you mean?" I asked, curiously.
She scoffed, "I'm not going to feed the answer to you, you're going to figure it out yourself. You'll need to wake up from the cage you have been placed in," her words were cryptic and could be passed off as a lunatic.
"W-wake up? Do you mean literally or figuratively?" I asked, dumbfounded.
"Both," she said, her feet firmly planted on the ground, halting her movement, "this place is a dream."
"A dream? So what are you?" I asked, honestly confused.
"Ayako Tsumura, your pathetic excuse for an ideal image of your subconscious" she spoke, in a silly tone that you wouldn't take seriously. She cleared her throat and began to speak again, "Enough with the jokes. I'm your subconscious, merely taking the form of your rival, Ayako Tsumura."
"My subconscious? So this really is a dream, thankfully," I hung myself over, breathing a sigh of relief.
"But it's about time you left and woke up."
I frantically run over to my subconscious, slamming both of my hands on her shoulders and shaking her desperately, "I need answers! You have them, right!?"
In a calm manner, she shook her head, slowly taking my hands off her shoulders, "I told you, find those answers yourself, I'm here to guide you, not spoon feed you answers to life; that wouldn't be very fun, now would it?"
"Even my own subconscious is a dick," I said almost instantly, insulting myself. "Takes one to know one," my subconscious lifted her hand, jabbing it into the wound I received from Scarlet, and turning his hand, mimicking the unlock of a door. The continuing, "you'll have to awaken eventually, I am merely here to guide you on that path and make sure you stay on that path. You are aware that the path you are taking now is different than the one that you have previously walked on up to the point of meeting Ayako Tsumura. I am one that influences you on the path what you believe to be correct, as simple as that. But you are straying from it with your doubt, so this is something to put you back on the path you still believe in. I know you have a lot of questions, but you don't have the knowledge to answer them yet, which is why I cannot provide you with all the hints in the world if I so wish, even if I wished it, I still wouldn't give you so much to ace the test of life. Now is the time you leave, and remember: wake up."
In the next second, I slowly closed my eyes, upon reopening them, I found myself in the cave that I slept in last night. The light rays of the morning sun burning my retinas.
"Uuugggghhh..." I groaned, lifting myself off the cold pavement of stone I was laying on last night. "A dream..." I muttered to myself.
Suddenly, bits and pieces of that dream come flooding into my mind as I try to remember what I dreamt about. "I'm not going to feed the answer to you, you're going to figure it out yourself. You'll need to wake up from the cage you have been placed in," I slowly repeat the line my subconscious said to me.
"Kazu, wake up from whatever fantasy you were just in," Xiu slapped my head with the palm of her hand.
"Ow. I was already awake," I pouted, looking up at her, who had a dumb grin plastered on her face.
"Well, you were sleeping for such a long time. We got up two hours before you did, we thought you were a zombie or something, haha!" Xiu laughed, clearly having a good time messing with me.
"Very funny," I hissed, standing up and looking at my surroundings.
Yuro, Selena, and Scarlet gathered around eating an energy bar or two with another can of meat beside them, a morning breakfast it seems. The light shined in through the entrance, the sun was slowly rising over the horizon and covered a bit of the area with its rays of light. A slight breeze shook the trees that were covering the entrance to this cave; it was a peaceful morning.
"Morning, Kazu!" Yuro ecstatically greeted me like normal.
"Morning," I gave him a small smile as I greeted him with more energy than usual.
At the same time, I had visions of Yuro in my dream pop back into my head. Yuro desperately calling for my help, and in a sudden change in nature, backed away from me as if I was some sort of beast ready to ravage his entire family. To be honest, I was afraid of a situation like that ever happening, a time where my friends would be afraid of me, to the point that they have to put me down like Old Yeller. A chill ran down my spine as I pictured an image of my death in my mind.
I looked over to Selena and Scarlet, greeting them, "morning, you two."
Selena narrowed her eyes at me, "you know.. you sometimes blank out during conversations, it's kinda freaky."
"Do I? I must've been deep in thought, oh well," I shrugged it off, as long as it wasn't interfering with combat, I couldn't care less. I might have the wrong attitude since Selena is significantly freaked out by my constant disappearance into the realm of thought that I've grown accustomed to doing time and time again.
"He's doing it again.. someone help him," Selena's concerned voice reached my ears, snapping me back into the boring reality I'd lived in.
"Sorry. I was in the realm of thought again," I shrugged it off again.
"That should be a habit worth fixing," Scarlet acknowledged.
"...Maybe Kazu really is a zombie," Xiu muttered out loud, as if she wanted everyone to hear.
"No, you're just an idiot," Selena sighed.
".. But I thought we all agreed that Yuro is the bonafide idiot among us?" Xiu retorted.
"We did agree, but I'm considering a retake on that topic," Selena answered.
"You two are harsh, you know that?" Yuro complained, gulping down the last of his beans at once before pouting.
What a lively bunch these guys are, even in the morning, I don't think I can handle exerting all this energy as soon as I wake up, I thought to myself.
".. Don't we have a mission to complete?" I asked. Instantly, everyone's attention shifted over to me.
"Why did you bring that up now?" Xiu complained, leaning forward like a sloth.
"Because we need more fighting and no more Yuro abuse," I said in a toneless voice.
This is so I could apologize to him while everyone else is distracted, that, and he doesn't need more punishment from his own friends, as natural it would seem to an outsider.
"At least someone understands," Yuro sticks his tongue out at Selena and gives me a thumbs up behind his back.
"Bite me," Selena scoffed, punching Yuro's right thigh, causing him to jump in pain.
"Ow!" he screamed, jumping around like an idiot.
"Scarlet, please do something about this," I look over to Scarlet, who was just standing by and not doing a thing.
"Me? I'd rather not," she shook her head, and continued watching.
"When did you become so lax?" I sighed, scratching the back of my head, ruffling my messy hair.
"I don't know what you're talking about! I'm as responsible as a person can be!" she boasted, in a higher tone.
"Are you trying to sound cute? Because it's not really working," I sighed with disappointment.
I don't understand how they can be so lax, on a mission no less, am I missing something? Am I taking this way too seriously? Fitting in with people around your age group is a tough to do, especially if you have trouble expressing yourself in the way you want. I have been working on this whole "expressing yourself" for quite a while, but in way that is unsatisfactory to what I'd envisioned. Now I'm branded by the group as an asshole, oh well, more I'll figure it ou along the way.
I sighed, taking another good look at my comrades, who were either goofing around or being lazy. "Shouldn't we be heading out?" It's nice to relax and all, but this is the wrong place and time to enjoy youth," I sighed, with a hint of annoyance in my voice.
I sound like a novel character, I thought.
"Oh, that's right!" Yuro perked up.
"... What kinda fantasy world have you four been living in for the past few hours while I was asleep?" I blurted out loud.
Oops, the fruits of my training are bearing rotten apples, I thought.
"Fantasy world?! What are you talking about?" Selena roared, looking at me with disgust.
"For some reason, you guys are very relaxed, despite the situation and area," I said.
"True. You guys have been very out of place this morning, it's worrying," Scarlet agreed, leaning back on the cave wall.
"... You have no place to talk, you were just as relaxed as them a few moments ago," I slapped my face with the palm of my hand.
"... No~.." she hummed, trying to fake her way out of the situation.
I groaned in disgust, wandering off into the forest, annoyed by our "leader."
The rest of them chased after me, leaving Xiu to become the packmule once again. The sky shone brightly in the spring season, the slight breeze blowing against the shrubs and the leaves on the trees, as green petals fly through the sky. A nice day for any normal teenager to have fun with his friends and enjoy youth, not kill shadowy creatures with your friends. Although, I hardly believe we are normal, seeing how my comrades are so lax despite the situation from last night, I am stuck with an odd bunch, not to say that I am exempted from them, but far from it.
I turn myself around, taking a look into the mountains, it was covered in grass and was very rugged as expected. I guide my eyes up the mountain, examining it, I can see several other Illusion Academy students hiking out of another cave entrance further away from ours, and I see a few teams settling some sort of bout by battling with each other. I decide to climb up the mountain, as I saw no traces of the students in the forest area, so I assume that they all ascended to the mountain area. The rest of my squad followed, their eyes set on scaling the mountain with me, it seems that their duty as a soldier has finally kicked in, thankfully.
".. Tch.." I groan, trying to scale the rocky surface of the mountain.
At this point, I was nothing but annoyed, and I'd successfully expressed it too. I felt accomplished that I'm developing as a person, so in order to keep this to make it genuine to them, I kept to myself, the "Silent Treatment" as Emigrace would call it. It's exactly as the name suggests, I just ignore everyone trying to communicate with me, showing either annoyance or a need to be left alone. Emigrace would often give me the silent treatment if I've disappointed her in some form or another, in some cases, she would do this around Ace. Which brings to light how immature a person can be, despite how they usually are. That makes a person unique in a way, and really brings out the surprise in someone you think you know very well, and have them do something you would never expect from a person. In that sense, I guess I'm immature too.
I lifted my body upward, trying to grab onto a sticking out stone to pull myself up. As I successfully do that, I briefly turn behind me, my teammates still behind me, they scattered apart from each other, to prevent any problems. I sigh in relief and continue climbing.
We finally made it to another side of the mountain after a good thirty minutes of climbing, far from the top, but I doubt anyone else would actually scale to the top since this is our first time patrolling the area, so we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, but that's my opinion.
We set foot on the grass-covered ground and rested for a bit, trying to catch our breath.
"Whew.." Yuro sighed, brushing off sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.
A male voice called out, "huh? Yuro?"
Yuro turned to the man who called, his eyes widening from surprise and a smile smearing on his face, "Dennis! How ya been?!" he perked up instantly.
"How you relax in an instant is beyond me," I muttered in confusion.
"Good~... but, for Illusion Academy's Elite Division, you guys are here pretty late," Dennis giggled.
Scarlet busted into the conversation, "we were caught up in something last night, and we were forced to retreat to a nearby cave because of a sudden downpour,"
Dennis rubbed the back of his neck, "is that so? Well, I have to take your word for it. Me and the Advanced Division had to quickly switch to a cave because of the stupid rain," he bitterly stated.
Dennis is a member of the Advanced Division of Illusion Academy, and from Yuro told me, he is a close friend. I don't know much about the guy, seeing as I only met him a few times during my interactions with Yuro. But it is what you would call an "average-joe" type of guy.
"So how did your hunt go?" Scarlet asked, curiously.
"Oh. It went well.. got a few new stones, but most of the are already materials we are able to identify, but at least we got a good number of them, around twenty or so," he sighed, being disappointed with the hunt.
"Ahhh... huuugghhhh... dammit all!" Xiu screamed to the top of her lungs as she finally reached our location, her face filled with rage. Our attention automatically shifted to her. "What great friends you folks are!" she roared in rage.
Come to think of it, when I left the cave in bitterness, the three of them came chasing after me, leaving Xiu by herself to clean up. We put ourselves in a real pickle here, Scarlet is already trying to calm her down, but to no avail, Yuro is trying to assist Scarlet but it hardly makes a difference, and Selena is standing, watching the scene play by her.
"You guys are a messy bunch.." Dennis stated, looking dumbfounded.
"You're telling me... but I'm one of that 'messy bunch'," I muttered to myself.
...
We finally got Xiu to calm down and worked things out with her, and in the end we got Selena to carry the rest of the load till the end of the mission. In between that whole situation, Dennis and the rest of the Advanced Division took off into the woods in search of new Heartless to hunt. After regaining our composure, we decided to line around the mountain's second level in search of Heartless residing in caves. Along the way, we fought many Shadow-variant Heartless and defeated them with ease, stacking up our supply of Dark Shards in the process. We did see a few of the other teams along the way, but we decided to leave them be and kept to ourselves. At this point, it was already noontime, and the sun was over our heads with several clouds in the sky, we decided to take cover under a tree and revise our plan of attack.
"Sheesh.. it's hot out," Xiu sighed in displeasure, constantly waving her hand as if it was a fan.
"We're under a nice, cool shade, let's just figure out this plan and get the mission over with," Selena said, a bored expression on her face as she pressed against her cheek with the palm of her hand.
Scarlet spoke up, "... up to this point, Yuro and Xiu have been our ranged attackers, using magic to as primary damage dealers. Selena and Kazu are the versatile attackers, using both magic and melee in their attacks, gradually switching it up based on the situation, and the ranged attackers supporting them. I, have been giving orders and providing support. How should we change that?" she looked up, expecting a response as soon as possible, taking Selena's boredom into consideration.
"Switch me and Xiu, I'm carrying the luggage now, so Xiu should be on the front lines," Selena suggested.
"Any objections, Xiu?" Scarlet asked Xiu, who shook her head in response, showing no signs of displeasure for the change.
"I think we should be fine with this line-up for now," I muttered, just loud enough for the group to hear.
"Then, we have to plan out a strategy to take out a boss Heartless, we don't want another fiasco like last night to happen again," Scarlet said, then continuing, "we have a strategy but not one with Kazu or Yuro in it. I'll tell you anyway so you know, usually, we would have Xiu target the opponent's-Heartless-limbs to weaken its arms and legs, allow an opening because we hindered its movement. Selena and I would perform reckless attacks in this stage to overpower it, rinse-and-repeat, done,"
"Yuro can do the limb-weakening, he done it last time," Xiu added.
"Yup," Yuro nodded, confirming the information.
"Kazu has shown to be good in head-on attacks, so he should join me, Selena, and possible Xiu in the reckless attacks team. I'm considering Xiu providing support from a fixed distance just in case the enemy still has some means of countering us," Scarlet added, holding her chin with her hand.
"Xiu is more skilled in magic than I am," Selena admitted.
Scarlet nodded to herself, "and now taking that information into consideration, Xiu will be providing help from a certain range. Yuro will be supported and in charge of taking out the limbs that support the Heartless. Selena, me, and Kazu will be performing head-on attacks as soon as the enemy is down," she said with confidence.
Everyone agreed with that notion, no signs of doubt in the success of the plan or signs of displeasure with the assignment. Even if they were displeased, I figured they would be mature about it and tolerate the job they were given.
"That ends our overview of the strategy, now let's continue on, we don't have much time," Scarlet commanded, standing up.
What did we have to wait for? I don't think there was a stable objective, just a simple hunting mission for two days in a new area, supposedly for building of our relationships and adjustment to new environments. I guess Scarlet just wanted to find something worthwhile, or finds our cooperation unsatisfactory. She may be a very lax individual, but she certainly shines when she deems it necessary to step in.
...
We roamed around the area for a few, till we reacted to the sounds of screams and snarling coming from a nearby cave. We stumbled into the cave, to find a few groups of Illusion Academy students on the verge of losing to a boss Heartless. The two students who were still standing rushed over to us in joy, they were a male and a female.
The boss Heartless screeched an ear-piercing sounds as if acknowledging our presence. It had two horns on his head, the head shaped like a horse and hunchback stance. It had bulky arms that had purple ooze drip down from its shoulders from within a hole that emitted a weird smell. Its feet were hooves and the legs were bulky as well, it was similar to a minotaur.
"What happened?" Scarlet asked the pair, who were overjoyed in our presence.
"T-the boss Heartless wiped out our entire team and few other teams, we thought we were done for if no one else showed up," the girl said.
"What happened to your potions?" Scarlet asked.
".. We ran out of potions during the fight..!" the girl admitted, stomping her foot on the ground in anger.
"Aaaaggghhhh!" the minotaur Heartless screeched restlessly.
"Selena, get the potions from the bag and hand it to these two," Scarlet commanded Selena, who nodded and removed her backpack and started taking out the potions from inside, and then directed her attention to the pair, "you two will hand it to the injured students, we'll take it from here,"
"A-alright!" both of them nodded, taking the potions from Selena and started handing them out to the injured students scattered around the area.
"Be careful, that purple ooze is poisonous!" the girl shouted to us.
All five of us summon our Keyblades and prepare for battle, me summoning Two Become One. Yuro summoning Starlight, Selena summoning her crimson Keyblade, Scarlet with her dark-green Keyblade, and Xiu with her deep-blue Keyblade.
"We'll keep that information in mind!" Yuro yelled.
Scarlet pointed towards the ankles of the minotaur, commanding, "Yuro, we'll support you, just stick to the strategy we discussed!"
Yuro nodded and jumped several meters in the air, landing on the cold, stone floor of the cave, dust dispersing around his feet as he dashed forward, launching a Blizzaga orb in front of him and striking at the the left ankle of the minotaur. The minotaur slowly lifted its fist and prepared to bash Yuro, Xiu used a Firaga attack to intercept the attack and stagger the minotaur as Yuro slashed multiple times at the right ankle, causing the minotaur to fall on its knees. Yuro ran up the wall near him and jumped off and back flipped onto the ground near his team.
"Rush in!" Scarlet commanded, running ahead of everyone.
Me and Selena followed, while Yuro and Xiu provided back-up. The ooze of the minotaur Heartless started to bubble up and eventually exploded into the a cloud of purple smoke, clouding our vision. We covered our mouths and noses with our hands as the gas was poisonous. Which strikes another thought to mind, the other students might die due to the poison. I turned around and shouted, "you two! Get all the students out of the cave!" I shouted, lifting my hand off my mouth to tell those two. I quickly cover it as soon as I finished, but I felt a bit of pain circulate through my body. I felt drained.
"... Tch.." Scarlet hissed, wiping away the poisonous smoke with a powerful wind that was conjured using Aeroga.
The minotaur stood back up on his feet, towering over us and opening its gaping mouth wide and let out a ear-piercing roar, the pain is similar to hearing someone scratch a chalkboard with their nails. We had to endure the sound since the poison gas was still eminent in the air, and even breathing in just a little bit is deadly.
".. Gahh.." I groaned, bending over and stabbing my Two Become One into the ground, leaning on it as if it was a cane.
My throat was burning, I could barely talk. In addition to an unbearable pain in my body, it felt like I was being sucked of all my energy. My comrades stared at me at concern, but were unable to talk due to the poison. I turned around, it seems like those two got everyone else out of the cave, which means we can focus on the boss.
"...!" we flinched for a moment, the boss reached for a large boulder resting at its side, picking it up easily and tossing it at us. My comrades dodged out of the way, Selena grabbing my weakened body and helped me evade the attack. The boulder hit the ground, creating cracks in the rock around it.
Selena rested my body against the wall and used a potion on me. It helped a little bit, but the strength I recovered back from the potion was instantly sucked away. My vision was starting to flutter, I could hardly make out my surroundings. I can hear the minotaur roar once again and start swinging its arms frantically in the direction of my comrades, but that's about it. Selena left my side and resumed battling with the minotaur.
"... Good luck.." I manage to whisper, but I knew they wouldn't hear it.
This cloud of smoke around me, the dark purple that clouds my vision, seemed so familiar to me. Making ask myself: "where have I seen this before?", that's when it hit me. I've seen this smoke in my dream, it was covering the land around me and bad, uncomfortable things started to unfold around me, then, Ayako appeared out of nowhere, revealing itself to be my subconscious.
"I'm not going to feed the answer to you, you're going to figure it out yourself. You'll need to wake up from the cage you have been placed in," those words from my subconscious echo into my mind.
Figure it out myself, huh? I thought to myself.
I lift my head up, narrowing my eyes, trying to focus my vision on my comrades who are trying to fight the minotaur and protect me. Their attacks just came bouncing back to them, left and right, each side not showing any sign of giving up. They were limited to magic attacks, due to the poisonous smoke, they didn't want to risk breathing it in by going head-on with their melee attacks. Aeroga seemed no good, so it would be a waste of time trying to blow it away. This poisonous fog, which drains the strength from your body, and the effect is still deadly even after a few seconds of breathing it in. That would stop the others from communicating with each other, which is a system needed in each team for cooperation and direction from the leader, restricting that would be like a pair of chickens fighting aimlessly with their heads cut off. In addition, each time my strength returned, the beast let out a loud roar, and thinking further back.
"You two! Get all the students out of the cave!" when I yelled that out while the poisonous smoke filled the room, I felt my strength drain at an alarming rate, and at the same time, the minotaur Heartless stood back up on its feet and roared, as if it just healed instantly.
That's when it hit me, the reason why all the other teams were utterly demolished under this boss Heartless, it absorbs the strength of those who are infected with its poisonous gas, it sucks away the strength out of infected opponents and absorbs it. That way, it can continuously recover as long as it can drain its opponent's strength using the ooze from his body and combusting it into a large cloud of smoke to fill the room.
"You're one of us," Scarlet's words reflect into my mind.
I'm one of them, yet I can't do a thing. Some kinda elite soldier I am, weakened like this, it's quite pathetic once you get down to it. I'm accepted by them, but I've done nothing to help them in any meaningful way. Is there nothing I can do? I thought.
"You can fight," an eerie voice rings in my head.
My eyes widen at the voice, it sounded so familiar, yet, I can't wrap my mind on who it could be.
"Fight to kill, that's your job and your job alone. You have nothing to protect, so why bother with such petty things like compassion and kindness, they'll get you nowhere. You fight to kill, nothing else, do I make myself clear?" the voice was stern, but still pleasing to hear, like it was someone close to me, someone I know that cares for me, like a parent.
"Yes.." I mutter to myself.
"You have nothing in this world to protect! You live to serve others and others alone! That is your existence! That is your proof of living! Nothing else! Show no mercy to those you kill by your hands, after all.. you have no emotions now, right, right!?" in an instant, the voice's stern tone loosens, and turns into a maniacal one.
"Yes..." I mutter again, in a static tone.
"Everything will be killed under your strength! Go, Kazu Yuuki! Show the enemy what it means to feel true terror!" those words echo in my mind again and again, and before I realized it, I was standing on my own two feet independently, my head hung, and my Two Become One drawn to my side. The voice continued, back in its stern tone, "no one can push you down, Kazu Yuuki. You will live to serve those of higher order, forever and ever. Here's your first order, finish off that Heartless," the voice commanded.
"Understood," I nod to myself, extending my arm upwards.
"... Esuna," a flutter a green leaves in a light green aura covered my body, and in an instant, the poison disappeared, restoring my strength. I extend my arm in front of me, a bright, blue light starting to appear at the tip of my Two Become One. I spin my entire body on the tip of my shoe, wrapping my arms around me and the blue light starts swirling around me the faster I spun, till I stop and extend my arms behind me and spreading my legs on the ground, as the light that formed around me dispersed around the cave. "Defensive Technique, Absolute Purification," the light that I conjured purges the dark-purple poisonous smoke, now creating room for us to breathe and communicate.
"Nice job, Kazu!" Yuro jumped up in joy. I paid him no attention and slowly walked forward.
The minotaur lowered down on one knee, seemingly weakened. The rest of my comrades stopped in their tracks because of the sudden recovery I had made.
"About time, we were almost done for," Selena pouted.
"Feeling better, Kazu?" Xiu asked, concerned.
"Excellent, now we can make a charge at the boss thanks to your work," Scarlet said, with a smile of relief on her face.
I walked in front of them, bringing a bit of confusion to their faces. In a cold, dead tone I said, "leave it to me."
"Are you saying you can take it down by yourself?" Selena protested.
"..." I payed no attention to her and ran straight ahead, extending my arm in front of my, I launched a series of Firaga attacks at it, I targeted the head, which they exploded and combusted the head into flames, blinding the beast for a while. It screamed in pure agony as the flames scorch its dark blue skin and fur. The Heartless started to swing both its arms in both directions frantically.
"You have successfully blinded your opponent, finish off the job in any way you want," the voice rang in my head again.
"Understood," I said out loud, jumping several meters in the air to dodge the minotaur's desperate attempt to attack incoming enemies and landed on its back on both feet.
"Who is he talking to?" Xiu wondered.
"He always has an earpiece in his ear, is he receiving orders from someone?" Scarlet speculates, tapping her head.
I carved a small "X" on the back of the minotaur using the end of my Two Become One, marking it as the point of strike. "Try to finish it off quick.." I mutter to myself, lifting my Two Become One upwards hovering over the "X" I had just carved on the beast spreading my legs evenly for good footing. The minotaur seems to have halted all movement, so this is the perfect chance to strike the body with everything.
"We can't just stand here and let him do this!" Selena protested.
"If he wants to be the star of the show, let him," Scarlet said coldly.
"Why!?" Selena continued to protest.
"..." she remained silent, ignoring her sister at this point.
Selena expression switched from annoyed to angry, she slapped her elder sister's left cheek with the palm of her hand and wrapped her hands around her shoulders, shaking her back and forth, "answer me!"
"Ridiculous.." I say to myself. I drive the blade into the designated "X," the minotaur suddenly roared in agony and started struggling. I held my ground to stay mounted on the top of the minotaur. I lost my footing a couple of times but I managed to hang on to my Two Become One, which kept my in place. There was a small period of rest between its struggle, giving me the chance to attack. I drive my blade deeper inside its body, Xiu did this against the last boss Heartless we fought, no problem doing it now. I launched a Blizzaga attack inside its body since there is no path to take when launched, as soon as I projected it, it exploded into the formed crystal form it usually takes when it hits an enemy or an obstacle. The sharp crystals pierced through its skin and extended several meters out of its body. Thankfully, none of them hit me.
"Die a slow, painful death for me," I mutter coldly, addressing the minotaur Heartless.
I ignite a small burning flame at the tip of my Two Become One, melting the ice that formed inside and slowly focusing on expanding the flame, eventually combusting the entire inside of the body on fire.
"Aaaaaaarrrrrrgggggghhhhh!" the minotaur screamed in agony once more.
My Two Become One disappeared in a thin light, I held my hand up to my face and close it tightly, then jumping off and returning to the crowd that was watching in annoyance. "Mission accomplished," I said to myself.
"Good work, Kazu Yuuki," the voice rang in my head again, then in the next second, I heard a snap. A snap of two fingers. As soon as I heard it, my head started hurting, I fall on my knees and grip my head and tried to shake it off. I managed to do so, I take a glance at my comrades, who were bitter and annoyed at me, the reason why is unknown to me.
I turn around, looking straight at the minotaur Heartless, I get back up on my feet and take a step forward, extending my arm out to it, only to stop prematurely and pull myself back. The minotaur Heartless started to deform and wrinkle, as if it was being sucked into a black hole. Its screams echoing off the cave walls, filling our ears with pain as we heard it die a painful death. It exploded into pieces halfway through dropping the materials we would have to gather on the floor. The only thing I could do was stare in awe and confusion.
Selena started speaking in a low tone, but eventually exploded in anger, "what the hell was that!?"
"What do you mean?" I asked, not understanding the current situation.
"You were just.. just... so dead and cold to us just now! What the fuck happened!?" Selena burst out again, her eye's narrowed down on me, clearly irritated at me.
"I don't understand, could you make that statement clearer?" I asked.
Xiu stomped the floor with the heel of her shoe and stole our attention, "how do you expect us to act so calmly after what just happened!?"
Then Scarlet joined in, "absolutely! Kazu, what are earth were you thinking? We are supposed to be a team, this is not some sort of competition to be at the top of everyone else! You know that, right!?" her tone was full of disappointment and concern.
"Wait, hold on. I don't know what's going on, can you at least explain?" I said that, but I didn't get any explanation of any sort, only sour looks and Yuro walking closer to me. We were a meter apart, his expression never changing, carrying the same disgust and disappointed vibe everyone else had.
He spoke in a dead tone, "listen to us instead of answering our questions with questions! Get your head out of your ass and hand it to us straight!" he pushed me with everything he had, causing me to fall onto the floor. He continued, "you do this after they put their trust in us, trust in people that just joined, and you took that trust, and threw it away," his tone was dead.
I didn't do anything, all I could do was sit there, dumbfounded, unable to understand what I had done. Yuro, displeased by my lack of an answer, turned away and wandered out of the cave with the rest of them, leaving me alone in the dark cavern. I held out my hand to the beaming light from the sun that lit the cave, "I'm sorry, everyone,"
I don't understand all the details, but I felt like I still had to say it, they were upset about something I did, after all, it was only natural for me.
"Kazu?" the girl from earlier peered into the cave, looking at me intently.
I stood back on my feet, dusting my pants and calling my attention to her, "yes, what is it?"
"Why aren't you leaving with the rest?" she asked.
I adverted my eyes away from her, "oh.. we had a falling out, so I got separated." She stepped into the cave, "I can somewhat imagine that" she admitted, "you aren't a cooperative person, after all."
"Tell me. How do you know?" I asked immediately, seemingly threatening.
She took a step back, shocked by the sudden question and my rough tone, "w-well.. many people who were on the same squad as you told me that you were very distant from the rest and worked on your own," she answered, stuttering.
I sighed deeply, "they're right about that," I bitterly said, while rubbing the back of my neck.
She perked up, clenching both of her hands, "but! I want to believe you're more than that!" she said honestly.
I smiled slightly, "you're looking at the wrong guy," brushing her words off, I wandered to the entrance of the cave, focusing on the sunset. Then continuing, "you don't want to keep your team waiting, right? Get going, it's almost time to head back."
I heard no response from her, only loud footsteps, growing more distant by the second; she must have run into the cave, for what? Oh, that's right, the boss materials.
I turned around, she was holding a star-shaped, aqua colored jewel in her hands.
"That's..." I mutter to myself.
She held her hands out, offering it to me, "you wouldn't want to forget this."
I generously took the jewel off her hands, "it'll be a real pain trying to give this to the rest of my team.. hahaha," I laugh slowly.
Folding her arms behind her, she slowly walks past by me, her soft voice echoing in my ears, "they'll forgive you, I'm sure of it."
I turned to her, "what makes you say that?" I asked, curiously.
"You inhaled that Heartless' poison and Selena brought you to safety and they tried their best to lure it away from you," she pulled to a sudden halt, her soft tone transitioning into a serious one, "they clearly care about you and they still do, but you'll have to earn it back. Simple as that."
"... Where did you find this knowledge?" I asked, walking in front of her, allowing our eyes to meet.
"That's what this mission is about, right? Building relationships with your teammates and learning that importance to rely on each other. Am I wrong?" her tone went soft again. I shook my head, "no, you're right."
Having said that, I turned and walked off, waving goodbye to her. All the way down the mountain, I caught no sight of my teammates, so I continued moving alone, carrying the aqua-colored jewel in my arms, as the sun sets and the sky transforms from the deep orange to a dark purple sky filled with stars and the moon illuminating the sky.
Thinking about it, I was so caught up in the moment, that I never asked for her name, I thought.
...
All the teams returned to the front entrance very late at night. We were all lined up in order, with the Elite Division team-my team-up front. That was the only time that I was reunited with my comrades, but judging from the lack of questioning, they were still sour about what happened. I can gather a rough idea of what happen, but I want to know all the details before going and kissing their feet for forgiveness.
The sounds of horns rave in the distance, a signal that someone of a high class was approaching. At that sound, almost immediately, everyone stood straight in their positions, as if we were robots programmed to react accordingly to a command.
"Welcome back, students of Illusion Academy," Commander Yami spoke in a stern voice as he approached from the front gates, with Vice-Commander Thalus by his side.
Commander Yami was a stern-looking fellow with a neat, sophisticated haircut and a slim-fit military general uniform, and stood tall to exert his authority over all of us, an ideal image of a threatening general, you would forget that he was previously a government official. Vice-Commander Thalus was a tad shorter than him, but still gave off that commanding vibe. His black hair was tied in a singly ponytail that reached his shoulders. He sported the same military uniform as Yami. His posture wasn't as disciplined as Yami's, to accurately describe it; it would be the posture of a tired businessman who couldn't wait to go home to his family. A truly pitiful man.
Yami turned his head to Ace, who as standing next to my team, "how was progress on this expedition mission you prepared?" he asked.
"Oh, It went exactly as planned," he smiled, gesturing over to me, holding the aqua-colored jewel from earlier. He continued, "as you can see, Commander, this young man is holding the fabled Orichalcum."
"As expected of the Elite Division," Yami replied, his eyes locked on me, a small smirk on his face. He turns away to face the crowd, "I have an announcement to make," he raised his voice, loud enough for the crowd of students to hear. "It seems this operation is a success. All of you have developed a bond with your comrades. We had a few scouting operatives from our Stealth Division keep an eye on all teams to evaluate everyone. The criteria has been met for the continuation of the Calamity Project! After ten years, we are finally able to put an end to the war between the factions to create a beautiful utopia. Everyone here has been training to break their own limits! The bonds everyone has made will be carried on into this last step in the Calamity Project, these are the people you will fight with! These are the people you will die with! These are the people you'll trust with your very life!" his powerful voice echoed into our minds, touching our hearts. He continued, "everyone here wants a perfect society for everyone they love, is that not the truth?" he stomped the ground with tremendous force, raising up his fist into the sky, "three months from now, the last step in the Calamity Project will commence! Gather up your very souls! Your will! Your devotion to this faction! And carry it on your back and thrust forward for the betterment of the human race!" he shouted to the top of his lungs, thrusting his fist forward.
Everyone in the crowd raised their fists into the air, cheering. My comrades did the same, but I did not.
Commander Yami's voice is powerful, able to move the audience like that in a heartbeat is very impressive. A fit man for the lead role of this society. I turn my attention on Vice-Commander Thalus, who was staring at me in bitterment. He opened his mouth to talk, but no words came out, only movement. I couldn't read lip movement, so I turned away and lowered my head to face the ground. Their cheering in the back of my mind, I felt myself slipping away from reality as a result, sealing myself in a small cage for myself and only myself. I lost the trust of my comrades, and I can't seem to recall what I did, it's frustrating.
That girl's words echo back into my mind, "they clearly care about you and they still do, but you'll have to earn it back. Simple as that."
If it was as easy as that, it wouldn't be so difficult, I thought.
Another voice echoes into my head, "why don't you try?"
Is there a point in trying? I thought.
"It never hurts to try. You don't want to lose them, do you?"
Of course, I don't want to lose them, I want to stay with them, I thought.
"Is it because Ayako guided you to them, or is it for your own selfish whim?"
I suppose it's both. I want to be with them to find out more about myself, but I never regarded their feelings and how they feel, and only thought to myself. I also want to be with them because of the fresh path lit by Ayako, and I want to look at the end of that, I thought.
"How about you change yourself and learn more about these interesting comrades of yours?"
I wonder how I would do that, I thought.
"That's for you to find out," the voice said.
...
I snap back to reality, feeling someone rock me back and forth, constantly, calling out my name.
"Kazu!" Yuro called out, shaking me frantically.
"... Huh?"
Returning to the peaceful night scenery, I look around, my comrades are gathered around me. Somewhat confused and irritated expressions on their faces.
"What happened?" I asked, confused.
Scarlet sighed and explained carefully, "you were spacing out on your feet for a good ten minutes after the returning speech Commander Yami gave,"
"Pretty rude when you think about it," Selena added.
I look down to my arms, the Orichalcum was no longer in my hands, quicking taking a glance at everyone, Xiu seems to be carrying it within her arms.
I clench my fists tightly, "I need to speak with Emigrace right now," I said in a low, agitated tone.
I force my way out of the circle, but someone grabbed my wrist and stopped me from proceeding.
I turn to see Selena, "what?" I asked coldly.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" she asked in a serious tone.
I nodded my head, "yes, I forgot something, but I'll return to that matter later," I shook my hand away from hers and continued marching onwards into Illusion Academy.
I wanted to make up with them as soon as possible, but I something urges me to speak with Emigrace first. Something that I need answered, something that I want to know from her. Once I know that, I'll be able to make amends with the comrades whom I've betrayed so suddenly. I'm not running away. I'm not running away. I'm not running away. I'm not running away! I'm merely trying to realize myself! That's it! I'm not deluding myself, and obviously not lying to myself. I'm going to talk to her now and fix everything later! I need someone else's opinion on what I should do, that'll make it easier. I don't know whether it will affect my actions or not, but I have to ease my doubts and do something. Anything.
...
I stormed into Emigrace's office, barging in and rushing over to Emigrace's front desk.
She greeted me positively as usual, "oh, Kazu! Welcome bac-" I stopped her mid sentence by slamming both of my hands on her wooden desk.
"Ah..!" she gasped in surprise, looking at me in complete shock.
I bit the bottom of my lip, "I need your help," I ask in a gruff voice.
"O-of course, what is it?" she stuttered, clearly still shocked.
I take my hands off her desk and place them lifelessly at my side, clearing my throat and speaking: "I messed up big time in the field, both in battle and teamwork," I said in a loose tone, biting the bottom of my lip.
"... I heard," her words caught me off guard.
"From who!? Please tell me!" I yelled instantly without thinking.
She flipped through the stacked paper that laid on her desk, taking a few sheets out and looking over it. "O-our members from the Stealth Division reported that you took down a brand new boss Heartless on your own," her words bring me to shock.
So that's what happened, I thought.
"The reports is as follows," she said, clearing her throat and continuing, "'Kazu Yuuki, who was poisoned by the minotaur-looking boss Heartless recovers in a matter of seconds, returning to his teammates, only to claim that he'll take it down himself. He proceeds to slaughter the boss Heartless and returns to his teammates in shock and confusion, as if he had no control over himself. His teammates got angry at him and left the cavern without him, leaving the lone member in the cave as an act of resentment and bitterness towards the boy,'" she takes her eyes off the paper and focuses on me, "is that what you're here for?" she asked softly.
I nodded, "I had zero recollection of what happened at that moment, now that I know what I had done.. tell me, why does that happen? I want to know," I said, lowering my tone. "I.. do not know," she said, looking down to her feet.
I took a step back, my eyes widening in shock, "if you don't know then who does..? How am I supposed to find it out on my own? No clues, no hints, which means nothing to analyze!" I uncontrollably shouted, gripping my head with both hands. "Who am I? That's all I want to know, Emigrace!" I screamed, punching her desk with my fist with a bit of force. "I don't know, okay!" Emigrace yelled back, looking at me with tears in her eyes.
I gritted my teeth in frustration, "you have to be lying, you knew me longer than anyone else! How could you not know? You're the one who raised me after taking me from the Light Faction! I am brimming with things I never understood, questions that I never asked myself until a month ago, and you should have those answers!" I continue to scream in a blind fury.
Emigrace slammed both hands on her desk and stood up from her chair, screaming, "Operative Kazu Yuuki! I am your caretaker, I advise you to hold your tongue unless you desire severe punishment from the brass! Return to your room immediately! This is an or-" she was cut off abruptly.
"Don't try to bullshit your way out of this situation by bringing your power of authority here," I moaned restlessly, looking at her intently. "You know damn well that isn't going to work..! Now tell me, who am I?" I asked in a gruff tone.
She hissed, "I'm sorry, Kazu, but I really don't," her eyes were dead, focused on me with no hint of emotion whatsoever.
"..." I was taken aback, marching backward in disbelief, "I.. refuse to believe your nonsense!" I blurted out without thinking.
She pulled her right arm back, and swinging it across her desk, wiping out the single pile of paper she had stacked, and let it float through the air, scattered. "Then who will you turn to for the facts? Kazu, you know I care about you, and it hurts me to not even know a slimmer of your gift or you in general. So in times like these, it's best to think them out thoroughly and devise a plan to charge through this challenge you're facing," she said, reverting back to her softer tone.
She walked up to me, pushing me towards the door and forcing me out. She shut the door immediately and locked it. My comrades were standing at the stairway nearby, stunned at the sight of me being thrown out of Emigrace's office. They rushed over to me in a flash, worried looks on their faces.
"Kazu, what happened?" Scarlet was the first to speak up.
I laughed a bit, "hahaha... are you guys over what happened already?"
"Of course not, you idiot! But you got thrown out of Emigrace's office, right? What happened?" Yuro yelled, his expression filled with curiosity and anger,
It would be best to tell them another time, I need some time to cool off, like what Emigrace said. I have been following her orders for a good two or four years, I might as well stay in that rut and think it over. They deserve to know, yeah, but they should know another time. But right now, I should apologize to them.
A tear trailed down my cheek, "I'm sorry," I muttered out, whimpering. "I don't know what happened back there when we were fighting the minotaur Heartless, I don't know what came over me... I hope you can forgive me," I said in a broken tone as I walked away from them, refusing to heard their responses.
"Kazu, wait!" Yuro yelled after me, but I gave him no response.
Scarlet held him back, "give him time, we need to think of something too."
...
I rushed into my room, shutting the door behind me and locking it.
There are things that I want to know, things that I believe shouldn't be hidden from me.. if Emigrace doesn't know, how am I ever going to learn? Am I supposed to build myself from here and forget about myself in the past? Why would I do that!? I thought.
I punched a nearby wall in a fit of rage, "dammit," I hissed. I leaned against the wall, lowering myself to the ground in an act of confusion, dread, and anger.
"... What am I to do now?" I ask myself.
END
NEXT TIME
CONSIDERATION
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I apologize for how long it took just to write this chapter. I was preoccupied with video games and anime so I kinda forgot. XD Anyway, I hope you enjoy today's chapter and don't be shy to leave a review! It really helps!
