Episode 2.3: Deep Freeze
Avihs this weird guy holding a long sword before us. I had Flame Buster drawn and I was ready to fight but...something just told me no. I had to figure this out, why in the hell did we have to fight this guy? I lowered my weapon and stood up straight, his eyebrows jumped alittle.
"What are we doin here?" I asked looking at him. " Come on do we have to fight?"
"Oh crap don't tell me we've got one of those peace talkers here?" Kizer said with a straight face.
" No really, Avihs. What's up with the Aeons and the Espers? Why are we at war...I mean we're all conformers. Besides most of us don't even know why we have to fight." I said with a shrug. It was something I wanted to know if I recall correctly Leroy didn't know why he was fighting in the war either yet he just rushed me trying to kill. Avihs looked at me for awhile then finally spoke.
"It's true, most of the Aeon Conformers don't know why their fighting either...as I'd suspected of the Espers." He lowered his long sword then turned his back to us. "But do we really have any choice in the matter? Do we really have the right to question?"
" What?" I said with wide eyes.
" All Conformers are brought about through near death or life threatening situations. These creatures, Aeons and Espers have sacrificed their very souls to save our misearble lives. Do we not owe it to them to take part in this war?" He asked. I raised both of my eyebrows.
"I...I didn't think.." I started while looking down. Belias said nothing he just stood there, as if what Avihs was saying was true to him.
" They saved our lives, a debt that cannot be repaid easily." He replied.
" Yeah so what!!" I yelled he stopped talking and turned to face me. Clo and Kizer faced me as well. " There are other ways to resolve a war! We don't have to kill eachother!" He held his long blade up like Sephiroth as if he were through with talking. He phased out and appeared just infront of me with his blade to my neck, the tip of it pierced my skin and a trail of blood went down my neck.
"Such talk of peace and reluctance to kill your own opponent ultimately is the cause of death to most soldiers." He said. " What does it matter your cause for combat? You are a soldier in this war...you have not the right to question...you must only follow orders." He lectured.
"FOLLOW ORDERS?! BITCH I'M KIZER ZIN! I FOLLOW NO ONES ORDERS!" Kizer yelled swinging King towards Avihs from the side. I leaned backwards watching Kizer's staff slide right by my head. Avihs raised his long katana up vertically blocking hus staff with ease.
Chloe flew off from the side with a spiral like spin kick but Avihs ducked and slid back from the both of them. As he was siding back he phased out and appeared behind Kizer with blinding speed. "You...Kizer Zin you say your name was?" He said holding his blade to the back of Kizer's neck. "You...are a very pathetic individual..."
"Zhat so?" Kizer grinned as he spun around with a whinding blow, Avihs grabbed his staff with ease. I just stood there to watch as both Kizer and Chloe fought with Avihs at the same time growing closer and closer to Invocation.
I closed my eyes and when I opened them. I wasn't on Mosphoran Highwaste anymore, I was standing at the edge of a live volcano. I leaned forward and fell straight into the infinite lake of lava, the fire was soothing against my skin like water and I sank deeper and deeper until I heard a voice.
" What is the matter? Chloe and Kizer are fighting! We must assist them."
" I know that but...what Avihs just said...am I...do you really believe that I'm in debt to you Belias?"
"..."
" You do don't you?"
"..."
" I thought so..."
"No."
"Huh?"
" I don't believe you are in debt to me at all."
" Wha..."
" I asked you if you would assist me, and you replied with a yes. So there is no debt to be paid...none to be paid at all."
" Your right... I bet your pissed at me though."
"Why?"
" Because I was right there agreeing to fight and everything, then when I finally get on the battlefield what...I'm questioning everything trying to figure out shit instead of destroying...I'm trying to compromise with the enemy...I'm sorry."
" There is nothing to apologize for, I don't want to fight this war neither does the others. Zodiark, Zaleras, Ultima...we all don't want to fight this war...niether does the Aeons...Anime, Bahamut and the others."
"THEN WHY!! WHY ARE YOU GUYS AT WAR?!"
" Because it is what we must do."
" BECAUSE ITS WHAT YOU MUST DO?! IS THAT THE BEST ANSWER YA GOT?!"
" CALM YOURSELF!"
" Ah...uh...errr..."
"WHAT DO YOU THINK WE ARE BOY!? GODS? WE HAVE NOT FREE WILL...WE ARE BUT A STEP ABOVE WILD MONSTERS!"
" ERRR...I DON'T BELIEVE THAT!! I DON'T..."
"Kelvis...just listen to me...Aeons and Espers have been at war for centuries using the bodies of their chosens to carry out their tasks. It has been this way sense ancient times.."
" You know what...I don't care anymore..."
"?"
" Belias...this war...I do think it's complete bullshit...but that's an opinion I'll keep to myself for the time being. I'll fight this war and when the time presents itself...I'll stand tall and end it...Not with a crushing fist...but with a helping hand."
" Hm you are a very interesting kid, and I will continue to lend you my power."
" And I'll keep the body that contains your power alive and well."
I opened my eyes to see Kizer lying on the ground with blood dripping from his palms and Chloe standing just infront of him with her fists up like Tifa. Avihs phased out and appeared just between the both of them. My heart dropped as he raised his long katana up with speed.
"Invocate..." I said lightly. In a quick yellowish orange flash I phased out and appeared just infront of Avihs blocking. I raised up Flame Buster with both hands one on the blade and one on the long hilt blocking the katana as it slammed down. A pressure wave shot through the ground underneath us.
Chloe and Kizer slid away from us. I could see the lining of orange fire aura emitting from my body. When the steam around us had cleared Avihs looked down at my feet then slid away from me. He looked up slowly and peered at me with a grin before standing up straight.
"I see...you Invocated only your feet so that you could match my speed...clever." He said. From my knees and down was covered in crimson armor with golden runes. My ankles had two golden rings hovering beside them and spinning really fast while emitting fire. " It takes years for a Conformer to master Invocation on a certain body part while keeping the remainder of their body human."
" Well it took me only three seconds..." I replied with a straight face. The orange aura emitting from my body flowed in a steady and calm nature. "Kizer...Chloe hurry and start towards Rabanstre I'll catch up."
"Not this shit again!" Kizer said crossing his arms to his chest.
" Kel we can't leave you here, this man's Mist Energy topples all three of ours combined. I can't leave you to fight such a fearsome opponent on your own...your too inexperienced." Chloe said.
" Don't worry about me and just go already, besides...I'm not going to die here...I'm...I'm definitly going to win this." I said. I don't know what compelled me to do this...but the feeling wasn't new. I felt the same way back when I offered my life to protect the girls back at Nabudis. To be honest I thought I would defeat Zodiac then too. This energy...this mist was building up inside of me and I was ready to unleash it's fury.
" So what if you got an elemental advantage over this guy...it don't mean shit if your not strong enough to..." Kizer started. I raised Flame Buster up pointing it at the sky while keeping my eyes on Avihs. The aura around me exploded in a spreading heat wave that instantly melted the snow around me. Flowing upward was a rushing geyser of steam surrounding me and pushing my hair up. The steam stopped and cleared quickly revealing me pointing Flame Buster at Avihs.
Avihs was staring at me with abit of surprise but kept the cool guy smug on his face. " I was told that Belias is among the most obsolete Espers of the lot..."
I phased out and appeared just infront of him slamming Flame Buster down, sparks lit up between our two weapons as I started to jog while pushing him back at the same time. "Well I'm prepared to make you and whoever told you that eat your fucking words!"
I slammed Avihs into a wall and started to push even harder as the wall cracked behind him, he held his sword back as I was clashing against him then stepped down hard to push me back as well. I tried to stand my ground be he was pushing me back... I pressed my Mist into my feet as the gold bracelet sized rings around my ankles spun faster like little generators. I pushed forward and as Avihs' light blue aura and my orange fire aura clashed and mixed into a dome.
" Eat my words eh?" Avihs said with a grin.
" That's right." I grinned back.
" Your Mist energy is pathetic...look at you...you have to rely on Invocation just to keep up with me who has yet to invoke any of my true power." He said. " Not to mention your sloppy fighting style and your oversized weapon which slows you down...with every strike you swing I would have struck you nine times."
" Heh...well where there's a will...there's a way!" I said phasing out on the spot and appearing in the air. The cloth wrapped around my left hand and I pointed Flame Buster down at Avihs who just spotted me in the air. Flame Buster opened up and fired three basketball sized fireballs down at him. He flew up using his katana to bat them all out of the way while flying up at me.
As he drew close I sort of let my body flow in the wind asec as I twerled around with a reverse reaction to Avihs swing. His eyes widened as I flew around his sword like a dancing leaf. " I GOT YOU!!" I steeled myself and swung with a full vortex and he raised his long blade as we both clashed a white light bursted out like an explosion.
I flew backwards in a ball and slammed down while sliding backwards I lounged the blade of Flame Buster into the ground to break my power sliding. I turned around to see Kizer and Chloe looking at me.
T.T- Me "Why are you guys still here?"
" Kel... that was a amazing but theres no telling how long you can keep this up." Chloe said sounding like an overly worried mom.
"I doesn't matter how long I can keep it up, cuz I'm gonna win...no matter what. So you guys hurry to Rabanstre...Erin's by herself in that town." I said. " Like I said before...don't worry bout me..I'm gonna win." I kept my eyes up at the sphere of light that Avihs and I clashed in. He finally flipped out and landed up on hire ground looking down at me. A chunk of his samurai armor looked like it was bitten off from his left side.
" Hmm well if you think you can handle it." Kizer said turning his back on me.
" Jin.." Chloe said facing him.
" What...he's a soldier anyway, finish up here and get your ass to Rabanastre. If you don't make it there before us we're leaving your sorry ass." Kizer said I couldn't help but grin at that reply. It's so like him to say that type of shit.
"Errr...J-just don't die kid." She said turning and with that my mind left those two completely.
Avihs and I stared at one another for nearly for nearly ten seconds before he started. "You... out of all the three years I've become a conformer...no out of all of my years in Iraq." He said with a grin. "I've never been hit with such capacity before."
" What?" I shouted. "You were in Iraq?"
" Yes, I was a marine back on earth." He replied.
"Err that probably explains his high Mist Energy." Belias added.
" Well then knowing that I guess I should turn up the heat!" I said raising my lance again as my orange aura bursted from my body like a raging flame. The ground under me began to rumble... while I was powering up again for another onslaught Avihs phased out and appeared just behind me. I stayed calm and my eyes merely followed him. He swung downward with a vertical slash, I was waiting for that moment for me to use the Reverse Reaction again...
Not now..
Not now..
NOW!!
I side stepped and like a dancing leaf again I twirled around the blade and landed beside Avihs. " Nova Slash!" I yelled grasping the cloth and sending alot of Mist into it. Flame Buster caught on fire like a large torch as I swung it into Avihs...it slammed onto his chest and sent him sliding back. He caught his balance and stood still while looking up at me.
" What is that technique, which makes you dodge my attacks with so swiftly?" He asked.
" It's Reversal, something I got from a game called Kingdom Hearts 2 awhile back. You see whenever a sword or any kind of sharp object is swung it cuts the air and parts it alittle, all I do is ride the turbulance of that broken air. Which allows me to dance loops around that sword." I said pointing Flame Buster at him. "So tell me Avihs... whose the novice now? Using this method you'll never be able to touch me, and since my feet are Invocated, there isn't a speed level you can reach that I can't counter."
" It seems...that I've underestimated you." He said with abit a smile. "But playtime...is over." with that his eyes glen a light icy blue as he raised his sword a light bluish aura like a giant satellite beam shot up into the sky. The rocks and stones around us started to defy gravity and his Mist was so concentrated and huge that it started to pull me in alittle like it had it's own gravitation pole.
"He's going to Invocate." Belias said.
" Well let's not be rude, if he's going to show his true form let's give him a show of our own." I said spreading my feet out. I placed my right palm out and spread my fingers as I held Flame Buster back with my left hand like Ichigo when he went Bankai. "HRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!" I screamed calling forth every fiber of spiritual power I had from the depths of my spirit guage. A dome of fire surrounded my body I felt nothing but soothing fire shooting from my skin like I was a human torch.
"IN-VO-CATE!"
Author's Note: Hey guys uh...I know you probably don't give a shit but... 11/19- My birthday