In the shadows of the night/When you face the darkness/Call the power of the light/Let your heart be fearless
Never give it up never give it up, if you're strong enough, get the power!
Huntik, keep the faith and you'll survive/Huntik, is the seeker you're inside
Shout it out and make it loud, Everybody huntik go!
There's a secret lost in time/There's an ancient story/One for all and all for one/Fighting for the glory
Never give it up never give it up, if you're strong enough, get the power!
Huntik, keep the faith and you'll survive/Huntik, is the seeker you're inside
Shout it out and make it loud, Everybody huntik go!
Ohh Yeahhhh... Everybody
Huntik!
Training is proceeding well for Cathy, who has a knack for defense, and she begins to proceed with Seeker spells and Titan summoning. Soon after their initial session, Dante Vale visits the team on official business, part of which is to give them new Titans. However, soon he and Zhalia are alone under this cover, which results in a close moment between them. But all is not happiness, regarding the dangerous specifics of making a portal to the Spirit World, Huntik, and the proceeding plans of the The Professor and Blood Spirals.
"Turbulence"
Episode 63
Casterwill Townhouse
Venice, Italy
"I think Zhalia always had something for Dante, but she never struck me as one to be... openly affectionate."
"Well maybe not, but no one said they had to be public about being together. If they are actually talking about being like that."
Sophie replied to Lok, but in a lower voice, so Den wasn't able to hear anything else they whispered.
He had to admit, though he wasn't sure how he felt about their (potential) romance, he did understand Zhalia not wanting to be public about it, to a degree. Having had to protect Harrison from bullies meant he'd learned to be tough, to keep up a facade. The difference was that while his facade was (sorta) just that, it was basically a part of Zhalia, having grown up to be an infiltrator and all. Even talking about being together with Dante must be massively embarrassing... well, if they were talking about that right now, like Lok just said.
He made a sound, arms crossed.
Beside him though, Cathy was still excited that she'd summoned Springer, scratching him behind the ears. "Hey, Den?" she asked, which got his attention. "For future reference, how do I call him back?"
"The desire for them to go back, or a simple 'Return', should do" he said easily. "And now that you've summoned Springer, Seeker spells should be easier. You've already got the concentration down, you just gotta learn to use it at will, and with distractions."
She nodded slowly. "Training today is gonna be hectic" she said nervously, but she managed a smile, which he returned.
"Well, I'm glad to hear that, Cathy."
The entire group turned; Dante and Zhalia had returned, looking/acting entirely like their normal selves. Unnoticed by everyone but Cathy though, there were other elements bubbling beneath the surface.
Dante merely smiled a little. "But, unfortunately, my official business here is concluded" he said, a little heavy. "And not only that, the Council was only able to arrange a return flight that leaves two hours after my arrival, because they were so booked today. If I stay too long, I'll be left behind for a day or more - and much as I'd like that, you know how it is with my job."
"We'll be sad to see you go" came from Sophie, but understanding.
"Well, not really sad" Zhalia added, arms crossed.
"This is not the time to dismantle a metaphor, Zhalia" she responded, with a look.
All three boys merely chuckled at this rivalry, with Cathy seeming sheepish in the background, though she still glanced between Zhalia and Dante. Then Cherit momentarily took his place on Dante's shoulder: "Until we meet again, Dante" he said cheerfully.
"Same here, old friend" he said, gently shaking his paw.
Still chuckling a bit, Den stepped forward, holding his fist. "See you around?" he asked, Lok also adding his fist.
Dante easily returned the three-way fist-bump. "You know it."
"Wait."
Surprised, everyone turned toward Cathy, who was looking at Dante.
"Yes?" he asked, the door open and his hand on the knob.
A brief moment, aware everyone was watching, before: "Uh, before you go, is there a spell that causes amnesia?" she asked carefully.
Everyone in the room reacted differently, but they all knew exactly what she was referring to. Dante himself merely glanced up a bit, then, "Well, yes, there is; it's called 'Simplemind'" he said, not noticing he'd opened the door even more.
Cathy looked miffed. "Then that second time you visited, you did that to me; you Simpleminded me!" she exclaimed. In the process, Springer wobbled on her head, seemingly worried.
No one responded, but Dante in particular took his time, glancing around the doorway. Then he carefully moved himself further out the door, "Maybe" he said slowly, in that kind of tone that you just know is saying 'Yes'.
Then he closed the door, and he was gone.
/
"Seriously, how could he do that?"
"Well, that was when we were still trying to keep things from you... sorry, Cath."
Cathy responded to this, still miffed, which Zhalia noted yet again. Much like her brother, she was pretty much nice to the core, but when she was annoyed or angry, that changed in a hurry. Something she approved of, just a little.
"I was afraid she might ask about that" Cherit said with worry, flying right beside her. "Now she's angry... or maybe that's not the right word" the Titan continued, reconsidering.
"Either way, she has every right to be" she noted. "But Cathy will get over it; she's too nice to hold a grudge."
"Perhaps" Cherit mused, fingers to his chin. As they watched, Lok quickly took his sister downstairs, trying to soothe her, "But I better go see how she's doing myself."
"Knock yourself out."
"Poor girl" Sophie noted after Cherit left, who flew down the stairwell after Lok + Cathy.
"So what was this official business Dante wanted to discuss?" Den asked, Sophie giving a little start at that, since she apparently seemed to have forgotten about that herself.
"It's fairly big, but it needs the entire team" Zhalia admitted, glancing toward where Lok and Cathy had disappeared to. "Which doesn't seem likely to happen for a little awhile. I'll mention to them that we can meet together around three; should be plenty of time."
"Seems we have it to spare" Sophie noted, looking at Den with a small smirk - Den appeared less than enthusiastic at what she seemed to have in mind. "After all, Dante's surprise visiting or not, we still had plans today."
Zhalia smirked a little at Den's 'predicament', but still moved to go after Lok and Cathy.
Before she got there though, she had a thought, fresh from her encounter with Dante. Vaguely, she felt she might be able to get used to this (the relationship)... but her comforting Dante would take a lot longer to sink in. She lingered on it a moment, before shaking her head; if she started thinking about that now, it'd draw her back into her previous mood. She needed to focus on other things, help make her feel better, and then she wouldn't need to fake it much longer.
...
Just as she came down the stairs: "Come on, Cath-"
"I'm fine... really. Just annoyed; that blank spot always drove me crazy, trying to remember!"
"I understand that, but when you're annoyed, I feel bad."
"Then perhaps a distraction is in order?" Zhalia asked of the room, getting into view now.
"What kind of distraction?" Cherit asked, even as the surprised Lok and Cathy turned (Springer was at the latter's feet now).
"I'm thinking training" she said mildly, arms crossed. "A little physical exertion clears the mind. Sound okay to you, Cathy?"
Cathy looked nervous, but she managed to nod. "Okay" she breathed, even as Lok gave her shoulder a brief squeeze, no doubt non-verbally saying she'd be fine (then he and Cherit got out of the way, while Springer stayed put).
"Alright" Zhalia continued. "You've already hit the ground running with martial arts, and you've summoned your first Titan. I think you should get your first Seeker spell out of the way as well."
Cathy looked at her own hand for awhile, then nodded and turned toward a wall, taking in a long breath.
She aimed her hand: "Boltflare!"
Her hand managed to crackle with energy, but it didn't shoot.
Cathy grunted, partly of nervousness. "Boltflare!" she said, the energy fluctuating. "Boltflar-ahh!"
BOOM!
After the smoke cleared, there was a small 'burn' on the wall, smoking for a sec - Springer took that moment to climb up the wall, sniffing the spot and giving his owner a little smile.
"Yeah, that's the spirit!" Lok said, grinning even as Cherit cheered her on.
Cathy looked at her palm, which was still steaming a little, and she laughed out of relief (and surprise). "Woah!" she exclaimed, then aimed again, after Springer had moved of course. "Uh, Boltflare!"
This time it shot out with no problems, creating another 'burn' beside the other, then another as she shot again.
"Okay okay, Cath, we don't want to bring the wall down" Lok said mildly, taking his sister's arm... his timing could have used work though: just as he yanked, her fourth Boltflare spell shot off almost directly in front of his face, making both siblings cry out differently.
"Lok, you okay!?" Cherit asked, flying just in front of Lok, who'd staggered backward.
"Yeah" he breathed slowly, the very tip of his nose steaming, which he poked at. "Yeah... I'm not cooked or anything."
"Lok, I'm so sorry-!"
"Why are you sorry? That was scary, but cool!"
This set off a small round of talking between Lok, Cathy and Cherit, leaving Zhalia to glance at the abused wall. "Gonna have to call Sophie in to use Findshape, again" she thought, amused but also approving; the girl had potential, as the three spells had created a small crack from force. She just had to learn how to get past her attacking issue, then she'd be good.
"Still, that power felt pretty good to me-"
"If you think that was good, Cathy" Zhalia said, cutting across her, though mildly. "Then you haven't seen a full-on Titan battle yet."
"Oh yeah, that's right" Lok said, rubbing his head, looking at his sister. "We've been teaching you how to use this stuff, but we've never shown you what the real situations look like."
"Please, can you show me?" she asked, surprising him (and herself). "I-I mean- if I know what it's all like, I can prepare for it, at least" she quickly added, still nervous, but determined.
He made a sound, reluctant, but also that she had a point. "Zhalia?" Lok asked, turning toward her.
"Ready when you are, Lok" she answered, flexing.
"This way, my lady" Cherit said graciously, gesturing, which Cathy accepted with a little smile. She took up her position near the door, giving the two space to fight, for which she looked nervously determined to watch, as from before. However, when Springer got on the table beside her, she felt a little better and hesitantly pet him a few times, with his permission. Meanwhile, she and Lok were at the ready position, and across from her, Lok smirked.
"Don't hold back, Zhalia" he said, pulling out an amulet. "Take control, Dendras!"
From the icon emerged a masked humanoid, who wielded marionette strings in both hands, attached to which were two dragon puppets. Dendras flourished them both, the red one shooting fire, and the blue one shooting ice, then both of them hovering as the Titan waited.
"Never do" she added slyly, her own amulet already out. "Put them in their place, King Basilisk!"
Known across many mythologies, the basilisk was a feared creature for it's toxic breath and petrification abilities, and this one was no different. Fanning out his wings, King Basilisk briefly ran across the ground, hissing as he regarded the floating puppeteer, his tail whipping through the air and ready to strike.
Both Titans adjusted to the knowledge that they would have to fight each other, but their Seekers' thoughts reassured that this was merely a training exercise.
"Let's start things off" Lok called, before running straight at her. "Overslam!"
Knowing she couldn't divert that, she moved quickly. "Shadowspeed!" she called, moving out of harm's way, and thus the mock serious battle began. They left seconds in-between attacks, to give their particular audience time to take things in, of course.
Lok came in charging with Dragonfist, and she countered with Venonhand, which hissed and sparked upon contact with the other spell. Even as they 'struggled' like this, Dendras attacked with blasts of fire/ice, which King Basilisk blocked with his wings, roaring somewhat at the puppeteer before he hovered. Dendras flung his marionettes at the reptilian Titan, who dodged the red dragon, but the blue one hit the tip of his wing, coating it in ice. King Basilisk recovered before he hit the ground, and hit his wingtip against the wall, shattering the ice easily even as he rejoined the fight.
"Touchram!" she called.
"Armorbrand!" he responded, blocking her attack, then waiting till it went down. "Raypulse!"
Zhalia dodged that one, then: "Mindsight!"
Lok registered this, but still came charging straight at her - they both knew that was stupid, but she let it go (theatrics for their audience). And true enough, when Lok used his arsenal of punch/kick attacks, she dodged them all easily, seeing exactly where they would go before he did. In fact, it was too easy. But after fifteen seconds of this, she held Lok's wrist in one hand, and placed her other one near his chest. "Nursecall!"
Lok grunted as he was flung, but she kept herself at the ready, as it (purposefully) hadn't done much damage.
Meanwhile, Dendras blocked King Basilisk's slashing attacks, then both dragon marionettes chomped on his shoulders, making him hiss slightly. However, King Basilisk grabbed the strings and flung Dendras to the ground, where his marionettes were pushed out of his reach. He attempted to get them back, but he found King Basilisk hovering over him, his red eyes glowing. Dendras started turning to stone, but halfway through the process, he disappeared in a flash of light that returned to Lok.
He grunted upon his return, breathing out a bit, while Zhalia eased back a little. King Basilisk slowly returned to her side, directly behind her.
"Zhalia" Lok chided a bit.
"What?" she questioned mildly, holding up her hands. "You said no holding back."
He chuckled after a moment, smiling. "Yeah, in a fight where we were holding back anyway" he acknowledged. "Well, it was a good one anyway. Rather short, but good, even if I didn't get to showcase Dendras' control abilities."
"Holy..."
Both of them turned, seeing Cathy standing there, looking rather stunned.
"That was just- uh, terrifying" she started, then her demeanor changed instantly. "But that was also the coolest thing ever!"
"Where have I seen that enthusiasm before?" Zhalia mock-wondered, her comment aimed at Lok, who sheepishly chuckled.
"I'm glad you approve, Cath" Lok said to his sister, arm around her shoulder. "But was it really that terrifying?"
She made a sheepish sound. "Completely, if I imagined that going at full speed, like I'm sure they all do" she admitted, but shook her head. "But, I'll try to get used to it; I do want to help."
"With more training, you certainly will do well!" Cherit added, which made her laugh.
Now from the sidelines, Zhalia mentally approved of Cathy's determination, even being more nervous than she was letting on. At the same time, she saw hints of Lok approving, even if still worried under the surface. Okay, let the two have their sibling moment now - however, she motioned Cherit over.
"What is it, Zhalia?" he asked, curious.
She mentioned their planned meeting time-
/
Meanwhile
"Well, I definitely like the unusual nature of these questions, but I can't say much for their use."
"They're brain teasers, Den" Sophie said mildly, lightly flicking something off her jeans. "Solving these means you have intelligence, but also that you know how not to overthink. It's an important trial for strengthening both qualities halfway, and I want to make sure you get them for your schoolwork."
He glanced down at his latest problem for a moment. "If you say so" he said, not entirely convinced.
She probably knew that, but still smirked. "Now, try it out: How many triangles are in this image?"
Lowering his eyes, Den carefully tried to figure that out. The image in question had three triangles as a base, two in the gaps to make a 'rectangle' (and two to build on top of that base), and one capping off the next gap and the point itself. That lead to nine triangles right off the bat, but he knew that couldn't be the answer; too easy. Then he saw three medium triangles out of the smaller ones, making up the big one, but twelve wasn't one of the answers- guh, how did he just forget to count the big triangle?
"Thirteen?" he finally asked.
"Correct! See, you can actually learn this if you mind to it."
"Can you not bring down my moment?" he asked mildly, but both merely chuckled; their teacher-student dynamic did that a lot. "But still, I really got that right?"
"Perfectly" she said sincerely. "Perhaps this is your strength."
"Yeah, you say perhaps, but I don't want to be an expert at brain teasers" Den said, lightly scratching his right arm, right around his Blood Spiral mark. When he realized this, he got a little more serious, looking at it.
Truth be told, even when this thing sat there doing nothing all the time, he didn't trust it; it set him on edge. It hadn't glowed or done anything since the battle with The Betrayer, but he wasn't fooled; this thing still had some connection to those bullies, some power to it. Nothing had been able to convince him otherwise, and he wished he could get rid of it, but nothing had worked! He'd even been to a tattoo remover to do so, but aside from a lot of pain, the ink or whatever in his arm hadn't budged. And he'd had to Simplemind the artist in charge when this had baffled him.
Across from him, Sophie noticed where he'd been looking. "It's okay, Den" she stated, drawing his glance. "We'll find a way."
"Well, sooner is better as far as I'm concerned" he said, quickly pulling his sleeve down over the mark. "And their sudden silence worries me - didn't they not show up during that Nexus mission, directly after Cathy came here? Or the one after that, that me and you went on?"
"Very true" she said, lips pursed. "But we can't exactly draw them all into the open, or dare them to come get us; there's still hundreds of them. Plus I wouldn't want to without a good reason."
"Yeah" he answered mildly, not looking forward to the idea of being bait anyway. "Now - uh-"
"Yes?"
Den slowly shook his head. "Nah, it's better I get my mind off the Blood Spirals for now" he said, then wondering if he was slightly insane, he changed the page to another brain-teaser. "So uh, next question?"
"So uh, next question?"
"Alright. Well, the next one involves a bunch of numbers in order, the trick being that you have to understand why they're going down (or up) the way they are."
"Sounds complicated, but the answer might be simple, right?"
"Right, so let's-"
Shauna grunted, looking over at Murdock, who was monitoring his own mark, where the voices of the Casterwill girl and the traitor were audible. "Why must she prattle on about such trivial matters?" she demanded.
"Got me" Murdock said carefully, half-turning toward her. "If this is bothering you, I will move until the information becomes relevant."
"Do so then, and find Kiel" she said, still disgruntled that they suspected their sudden silence, regardless that their plans demanded it.
"Right here" Kiel grunted, moving past Murdock, the latter of which set off after a moment, right out of the throne room.
"And where have you been?"
"Observing the team's hiding place" he said, then with excited anticipation, "We can attack them at any time!"
"That is good, but the time is still not right for the attack" she said, still disgruntled.
"Why?" Kiel demanded. "That Casterwill brat is right in my grasp-"
"Details of their spell remain unclear!" she cut him off. "And until they try it, or we hear those same details, whichever is first, there is unnecessary risk!"
Kiel was thrown off, but he stepped forward. "Since when have you worried about unnecessary risk?"
"Since it is part of my orders to consider it, Kiel" she said, every word hard as the rock around them. "But I did need outside help to ease my rage, as I wish to eliminate the Casterwills as much as you!"
When she mentioned 'outside help', she noted Kiel slowly glanced over at Wind, who stood ever silent. "Eyes front, soldier" she said quietly, snapping him to attention; even he did not wish to get on her bad side. "Now, there is a certain Titan you will find for us, for use in our plans much later."
Kiel merely grunted in response, until he heard what orders she had in store for him.
"You know, Cath" Lok said bracingly. "Perhaps if you tried out a Titan battle yourself, just 'really' slow at first, then it wouldn't seem so terrifying."
She was nervously surprised. "A-Are you sure, bro?"
"Absolutely!" Cherit said cheerfully, flying in front of her. "There is no better teacher than experience, especially a base to build upon before the real action!"
She managed a small smile, turning toward him. "But even if we go slow, isn't starting off with two Titans too much?" she asked. "Solar and Lunar work best together, o-or so I feel, and I don't want to separate them."
"Very good points" Cherit considered, but with a little smile that she was already considering her Titans that way. "Two Titans, even easy ones, is never usually a great starting point."
"Actually, I have an idea about that, Cath" Lok said gently, surprising her as he dug around his pocket, pulling out an amulet.
"Who's that one?" she asked, also watching as he held up his Holotome.
He merely smiled, opening it up, then held the amulet over the Holotome, which began scanning. "Ironsquire" it spoke, showing the heavily-shielded warrior. "Attack: 2; Defense: 4; Type: Draco-Titan Warrior; Size: Average; Special Ability: Defender"
"He's one of the newer additions we've gotten recently" he said with a grin. "I have one just like him, which I've had for awhile" he continued, pulling out an identical amulet from his other pocket.
"So, some of them aren't the only one of their kind?" she asked, very interested.
He briefly laughed. "Hardly" he said. "Sure, some of the more powerful ones are rare and limited, but there are a few common ones. Ironsquire is one of them, and he specializes in defense, something you're very good at, Cath."
A little pleased, she looked back at the amulet. "So, he's mine?"
He merely held out the amulet, where she slowly extended her hand, touching it by the jewel. With an orange glow, an aura briefly enveloped Cathy, surprising her - but lasted only a second.
"Wow, that was fast" Lok noted, surprised himself.
"I know" Cathy breathed, excited yet also interested. "He felt my instinct for defense right away, and my understanding nature. I-I get him so well; our bond is strong. I can feel it!"
Cherit hovered just by her hand, touching the amulet, where the jewel briefly glowed in response. "She's right" he said, surprised and impressed. "I've never seen a Seeker bond with a Titan so much so fast before. Not that she's breaking any records exactly, but still!"
"You just might give me a run for my money" Lok said, impressed but also unconsciously playful.
Maybe the impressed aspect was stronger, because she rapidly waved her hands: "Hey, let's not get crazy!" Cathy exclaimed, making them laugh, herself joining in slightly after a moment. "Now, uh, shouldn't I test him?"
"Test, yes" he said lightly, taking his spot (Cathy quickly going to hers). "It'll start off slow though, even more than my battle with Zhalia."
She smiled. "Thanks, bro."
He smiled back, pulling out his amulet: "Finish them off, Raijin the Thunderbolt!"
Elf-like, this Titan nonetheless possessed long, green hair and blue skin, who flourished his sword even as blue lightning appeared over his palms and his feet. Hovering just above the ground, the electricity he rode cackled audibly - however, when he understood this was a slow test battle, he dismounted to ground-level and held his sword at the ready. Near the corner table, Cherit hummed a bit, then his tail accidentally hit a button on the Holotome (which he reacted to), and it began scanning again.
"Raijin the Thunderbolt" it spoke, briefly surprising everyone. "Attack: 4; Defense: 3; Type: Yama-Titan Sorcerer; Special Ability: Lightning Master"
Lok briefly threw up his hands, showing 'What are you gonna do?'
Cathy smiled again, returning her attention to Raijin, then remembered her own Titan, which she quickly switched from holding by the chain to the amulet itself. "Here we go" she said faintly, adjusting her grip a little, then braced herself. "Mmh... Charge, Ironsquire!"
Onto the scene came the robotic Titan, largely orange and steel-blue, bearing a shield as large as himself. Grunting a bit, Ironsquire regarded Raijin as it held it's shield at the ready - at the same time, Cathy regarded the full-size Ironsquire herself.
"For right now Cath, we fight with Titans only" he spoke after a moment, still smiling. "Start off slow, and the works. Now then-"
Raijin ran forward after he said so. Ironsquire immediately stepped protectively in front of Cathy, holding up his shield, which Raijin attacked in short order - every strike was slow for his speed, but they rang through the room, and most of them bounced off harmlessly. On the fourth strike, Raijin deliberately backed off his attack, as if he'd lost strength. Cathy moved a bit as she saw this, and Ironsquire responded as if that was a command, the result being that Raijin was pushed backward by a light punch.
"He attacked him" Cathy breathed, sounding amazed. "I saw that opening - well, that fake opening - and he saw it in my mind!"
Lok smiled. "It's that bond that is so important between Titan and Seeker" he said, then slowly chuckled sheepishly. "And to sound less poetic, that's only part of what we can do with it. Try attacking now."
"Uh... Ironsquire, get him!"
Ironsquire obeyed, and Raijin defended as well as he could at the same speed from earlier, but Lok noted how hesitant she suddenly was (even if she pushed it aside for a moment). "When she's not defending herself, she has a real aversion to attacking" he realized. He knew she didn't like to attack in general, but only now did he see how deep it went. That could be a real problem, but what could he say? Imagine the Titans are blood-thristy beasts, that the enemies will hurt you if you don't, or otherwise say that that she needs to get over herself?
Not a chance in hell.
The test battle raged back-and-forth for awhile, and at one point Lok stepped it up, Raijin now permitted to use his lightning abilities for movement purposes only. Ironsquire did fairly well, thanks to Cathy's instincts, but he got few chances to attack, and even fewer connected.
Just then, it hit him: maybe he didn't need to have Cathy be an attacker, of any kind. She had an instinctive understanding nature, right? Well, if she could understand just about anything easily, people and Titans included, then that means she'd have a hard time attacking on purpose, because it went against her nature + she automatically emphasized with them. Sure, the team's ability to attack the enemy was important, but just as often if not more so they were attacked in return, and frequently prolonging the battle because they had to defend themselves. And well, it's a good thing self-defense is not nearly the same as attacking.
"Yeah" Lok thought slowly. "Maybe, maybe that's the key. And honestly, it's better to work with her nature than try and turn it on it's head."
"Time-out!" he called, hands out.
The test battle paused, both Titans straightening, even as Cathy slowly looked at him.
He stepped closer, and had himself at the ready. "Now then, it's time to slow-test Seeker AND Titan battles, starring only us" he said mildly. "Seekers can attack Titans, and vice-versa."
She glanced at Raijin, gulped a bit, but slowly stepped closer. "That's gonna be harder" she said nervously, but still getting into her ready stance.
"Just go with your instincts" he said easily. "If they say anything, do it, no pressure here."
Her nervousness eased a little at that, and that was enough for him, even as the Titans readied to do battle again.
/
Half-an-hour later
"Where are they?" Sophie asked, then with a small scoff. "Don't tell me they're still training!"
Den made a sound. "Since when was that a bad thing?" he asked, hands up.
Sophie crossed her arms. "It's not, but when Zhalia has something to report, we should all be here" she said, then started walking. "I'm gonna-"
"You won't" Zhalia said, stopping her by the shoulder, without even looking. "Cathy needs her brother; let Lok handle things at his own pace."
While surprised, Sophie soon turned toward her. "But I thought you said this was important, Zhalia."
"It is" she admitted, taking her hand back. "But it can also wait a little - plus I did say 'around' three."
Her admission confused Den slightly, and only infuriated Sophie even more, at least for the moment. Still, while she waited in her chair, Zhalia slipped a hand into her pocket and immediately stopped - then she discreetly pulled out the amulet she'd found.
Redcap.
That didn't make sense; she didn't have a Redcap Titan, and her pocket had been empty before Dante came-
She slowly made a sound, not sure whether to be pleased or embarrassed. "Dante, you and your sneaky little hands" she thought. Then she blushed slightly, because that hadn't sounded quite right. If anything though, slipping this into her pocket meant that Dante was somewhat back to normal, even if understandably weighed down.
"It seems that for being in charge of Cathy's training, you guys end up helping her more than I am" Den said, throwing up his hands. "Maybe I'm just not cut out for this-"
"Come on, Den, that's not true" Lok announced, Cathy and Cherit trailing with him. "Just a minute ago, Cathy used a few of the moves you taught her."
He was surprised: "Really?"
"Of course, even if she was holding back because I'm her brother!"
"Now wait a minute stinker-"
This quickly turned into a little 'squabble', overall amusing everyone else.
Zhalia was too, but she also took this opportunity to compose herself back to normal; no one needed to see her blushing, thank you. And after that, she stood up slowly, putting Redcap back into her pocket. "Well, if you two are done, perhaps we can get down to business?"
Even as Lok and Cathy jolted out of their talk, Sophie stepped beside Lok. "That's what I said" she said mildly, making Lok look sheepish, but he put a hand on her shoulder. Sophie relented with a smile, but still turned her attention to Zhalia, as did everyone else after a few moments.
She crossed her arms. "Now, Dante's given me an update on our portal-to-Huntik spell" she said carefully, to reactions all around (except for Cathy, who was understandably out of it). "They've managed to create the spell, though there is a big issue. So he wants our help, unofficially."
"Well, what's the spell called?" Lok asked, quickly followed by Cherit's response, "Yes! Please tell us!"
"Nexual" she said, then smirked slightly. "Not entirely original, I know, but aside from the need to imagine the portal you're creating - a Nexus - it seems to work fairly fine."
"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Lok asked of the entire team, who all reacted differently (Sophie with a playful eyeroll, Den with a chuckle, Cherit with enthusiasm, and Cathy with slight anticipation despite not following some of their terms). Then he closed his eyes, holding his hands out-
Zhalia moved fast-
"Nex- Woahmmhh!"
She'd planted her hand over his mouth, half-tackling him out of their team circle. Her heart remained pounding as this arrangement continued, certain she felt the burning gazes of her (confused) friends, and Lok's sheer surprise. "Lok" she breathed low, but loud enough that the room could hear. "If I'd let you finish that, you'd be dead by now."
The silence heavily reminded her of the one between her and Dante, not hours ago. She was beginning to hate that kind, and Lok's fear didn't help.
With a shaky breath, she backed away from Lok, reluctantly turning to face the others - who were just as stunned as Lok had been.
"Zhalia, y-you can't mean-"
"I do, Cherit" she said with all seriousness, glancing at everyone in turn. She saw the shock, the flashbacks to when they thought Dante had died (the thought shook her deeply, but she refused to let this be be seen), that particular look in Sophie eyes, Cathy's fear, and more - she couldn't blame any of them. "The energy demands of this particular spell are dangerously highly" she continued grimly. "No group of less than four people can do this spell, not without dying. And there have already been casualties; I refuse to have any of us be next."
No one said anything, just looked around at each other... until Den stepped forward. "Okay, so-so it's a major risk" he said bracingly, not just for their benefit, but trying to power through for himself. "But- but you said no one less than four, right? Well, what if we all tried it?" he continued, referring to himself, Lok, Sophie and Zhalia.
"According to Dante" she said slowly, still troubled. "In any group of four or more, there is a massive drain of energy. First it drains Seeker energy, and if that runs out, it feeds on our own life energy... that's how the six testers have died, because they did so with less than groups of four."
In her peripheral vision, Cathy looked even more scared, and backed up a few steps. No one else seemed to notice in their own shock, but she didn't blame the girl - she was still adjusting to their world; hearing that it was quite possible to die just like that, even during a rare Seeker spell, would scare anyone. She was sorry that she had to hear it so suddenly like this, but there was no other way to go about it.
Still, Zhalia continued on: "In a group of four, the Seeker energies needed is roughly enough for 99% of the spell's needs" she said, still serious. "There's a 2 percent random deviation though."
"If we tried this spell now, we'd be entirely defenseless should anything happen" Sophie stated, troubled.
"What could happen?" Den asked, before he had several reactions to his own question, one of which involved being frustrated with himself.
"A Blood Spiral attack" Lok said carefully, not noticing this, touching his fingertips to Sophie's. "I kinda agree with Zhalia, now that I think about it: their tactics have been inconsistent, as we all knew. But they haven't attacked for awhile... they must be waiting for something, and the moment they see their chance for whatever it is, they'll strike."
"Perhaps" Cherit mused faintly, claw tips on his chin as he flapped in place. "But about this spell, what if I helped you when you tried it?"
"That'd be dangerous, Cherit" Sophie said, completely worried. "You don't have your amulet anymore; if your energy was completely drained, you could-!"
"If it'd help you get to Huntik and save Eathon, I'm willing to try! I've lived for 10,000 years already!"
"We still need you, Cherit" Lok said, stepping forward, hands out. "You're part of this team, and a dear friend!"
"Enough!"
Heavily surprised, everyone stared at Zhalia.
She coughed a bit. "We all know this will be dangerous" she said faintly. "But, well, as Dante would say, we can't argue among ourselves."
Lok and Sophie looked at each other, rather jolted. Den crossed his arms, breathing slowly, while Cherit just looked down, even as he flew in place.
"Uh, m-maybe-"
Surprised, she turned around (as did everyone else), seeing Cathy step forward - the fear hadn't disappeared, but she was nervously determined anyway.
"You said-" she started, before coughing a bit. "Y-You said four could handle it. So... what if five of us tried it?"
Her eyebrows furrowed. "Cathy, I can't- we can't ask you to do that."
"What if?" Cathy persisted, despite her knees briefly knocking together.
Faintly impressed, Zhalia took some time answering, only peripherally aware that Lok looked ready to talk his sister out of this, until Sophie stopped him with a gesture and a 'Wait' look. "There's still some debate going on" Zhalia finally said. "However, in all but the worst cases, it should only drain Seeker energy... however, Seeker energy levels aren't fixed; they vary between people. The risk is still slight..."
It seemed like a full minute passed, then Cathy slowly sighed. "Well then... let's just try it" she breathed.
"Cath, are you sure?" Lok asked, a tinge of desperation in his voice.
"I am" she said faintly, scared and weak, but resolute anyway. She looked straight at him, "I couldn't live with myself if I did nothing... plus, I'm not gonna let you do something stupid without me."
Seconds passed, then he slowly breathed, stepping toward her. "I've done plenty of stupid things before" he said faintly, rueful, stopping just in front of her. "Just ask Sophie."
The slightest sound: "But now you have me along for the ride."
He made a sound, then he hugged his sister hard, who returned the favor with much shaking.
"B-Besides... if this 'Huntik' is where dad is... how could I even think to say no?"
Lok didn't say anything, but his grip did that for her – they all saw it.
/
"That's so sweet" Sophie thought, observing their hug with a small smile, despite the tension. "But more than that, Cathy's being so brave, just like her brother. She's terrified inside, but she wants to find their father."
And while this went on, she thought about Cherit's desire to help; they could use it, but how did they minimize or eliminate the danger to him? "Perhaps" she stated faintly, then she glanced at Cherit. "Perhaps we can measure the energy drain, then determine how much it drains versus how much you have to give."
The winged Titan brightened slightly. "I'd like that" he said, sincerely.
She managed to nod, then she held up her hands. "Cypher-"
"I wouldn't, Sophie" Zhalia cut across her, stepping forward. "At least not before we begin."
Heavily surprised, the magic died in her hands. "What, why?"
"If you summon it now, the magic could drain all your Seeker energy, then some of your life force." she said grimly. "I think you should wait until after we open our portal; if you still have power, then you can summon your Cypherdex."
"We don't know if I'll have any power left over" she pointed out, much as she hated to remind herself of that.
Zhalia slowly looked down for a moment, then back up. "I know" she stated faintly. "But, I don't want you to- uh, well, sacrifice any more life energy than you have to. As I understand it, you've used Soulburn twice before, haven't you? And besides, Lok's Holotome would save the need for you to use Cypherdex."
Despite the dangerous undertones of the subject matter, Sophie couldn't help smiling just a little; Zhalia was worried about her.
"Okay, we're- we're ready here" Lok stated, Cathy beside him, slowly nodding.
Feeling dread, she glanced around their team, as everyone else did the same thing; the moment had finally arrived, but it wasn't at all how they thought it'd be.
"Alright" Zhalia spoke, then held out both hands with an air of slight embarrassment. "Everyone, hold hands - this will be our test run."
She slowly held Zhalia's hand, holding Lok's with her other one (his lip twitched a bit, trying to smile... no doubt to try and appear brave, which she appreciated the thought), Cathy holding Lok's other one, Den holding hers, and completing the circle with Zhalia after a slight pause. Cherit made a worried sound as he hovered, obviously hating to be left out, as did they all, even if it was for his own safety.
"Everyone who's seen a Nexus, imagine that color, and a portal that's slightly taller than we are, and twice as wide" Zhalia spoke, then looked at Cathy. "It's a fairly light-blue you're looking for, about seven feet tall, three feet wide, and a little uneven in shape; we've all got to be close. And we've all got to keep the image up for about ten seconds, all of us."
Sophie closed her eyes, remembering the Nexus images she'd seen, then focusing on the image that was required. For a few seconds, all she heard was the sound of everyone's breathing.
"One..."
Lok's hand tightened on hers, and she squeezed it back.
"Two..."
Everyone seemed to be holding their breath-
"Three."
"Nexual."
She groaned, the sound almost lost in the cries of the others; the energy drain was immense! In a mere second she'd gone from full energy to less than an eighth! But despite that, she managed to open her eyes, and they stung at the bright swirling light - but she was elated, it was working!
But in her elation, she lost her grip on her mental image... she realized this too late.
The moment this happened, the swirling light jerked wildly, followed by several others in rapid succession as it lost his shape. With a bit of a drone, it went out-of-control, and disappeared with a sort-of roar.
She could only stare in horror.
The silence was profound, until: "No! Damn it!"
"Lok-" came from his sister, who was more than a little shocked.
"We were so close!" he raged. "Literally right in front of us-!"
The horror fully sunk in. "Oh no..." she breathed, looking at her shaking hands, her vision blurring. "I ruined today's chances-"
"Sophie?"
The shock in Lok's voice was the worst part of it all. "I was just so excited, I lost it!"
"Hey hey, come on" Den said, stepping toward her. "So it didn't work out; we can try again tomorrow!" he said quickly, though his expression was slightly stricken too. "It was just a first try. Plus you're not the only one who had issues keeping the image; I only saw it once after all, and that was awhile ago. I admit... I-I lost it too."
She tried to respond, but couldn't; she just felt awful.
"Sophie... perhaps you'd better use your Cypherdex now. Do you still have power?"
Despite the sadness and the regret, she recognized the careful tone from Zhalia; work through it. From anyone else, it might have seem callous, but it was tinged with understanding for what she was going through. Her breath was unsteady, and her hands shook, but she managed to hold them out. "Cy-" she breathed, but it was too weak, so she tried again. "Cyphercall."
The magic drained her even further, and she had to stifle a grunt, but the Cypherdex appeared in her hands. "Cypherdex" she spoke, somewhat weakly. "Scan the recently-drained energy levels of everyone present, including me. And take into account the energy used for Cyphercall."
A mild light ran in a circle across the room, scanning, but she noted it missed Cherit. He noticed as well, so he flew over when it finished, hovering. "Now scan Cherit, and compare his energy levels with the aforementioned drained ones" Sophie said, and it did, briefly covering him in overlapping lines. In the back of her mind, she felt Zhalia had been right, because this was helping, somewhat.
"Question: the energy levels that were drained from all of us recently... would they drain the Titan Cherit of all energy, if he participated in a five-way spell of the same caliber?"
A few seconds of it's scanning noise, then: "Estimating 51% probability for full draining effect" it spoke. "Calculations are incomplete however."
Cherit hung his head with a sound, nervous.
"And without his amulet, if Cherit were fully drained-" she continued, dreading the answer, her hands shaking. "What would be the most likely result?"
A few more seconds of noises-
"Most likely probability: Death."
The Cypherdex dropped from her hands - vanishing into energy streams just before it hit the ground.
No one said anything, only looked at Cherit, who was stricken.
To be continued...
Tense... that is all :(
Still, I'd long established/hinted that the Blood Spirals 'inexplicably' knew everything our team was doing... well, that's how; through Den's mark, along with Zhalia's. I always thought the marks deserved some more exploration, and now I've made a little step in that.
Stay tuned.