Author's Note:Twelve now? You guys are too much! Well, let's get cracking. Every single scene in this chapter counts for the plot. Every scene I do has hidden clues. These ones though… are not so hidden.
PS: Answering two anonymous reviews here. I normally answer by PM so yeah.
Number one: They get their Keyblades when and IF the story has them get it. Don't wanna ruin the surprise. As for Ven... here he is.
Number two: Gratuitous SoraxKai coming right up.
Normalcy? Extremely Overrated
Part 2: Mysteries of the City of the Dead
Chapter Fourteen
Teach Me Master!
Pure white was the room where we now find ourselves, thirteen pilla… You know what? Screw this, you all know where I'm going with this, it's the Organization's meeting room! Now that I avoided a wasted paragraph describing stuff EVERYONE KNOWS, let's get back to the matter at hand. All but three chairs were occupied.
"Why did you summon us big X?" Braig asked, strangely not referring to his boss by his true name. That was what they did when not in battle… right?
"Well, for once, Dyme managed to be… useful." Xemnas said, causing everyone in the rom but him and the person he was talking about to gasp in surprise. Heck, Braig off his chair completely, falling ten meters head first into the ground.
"Dyme as in… Demyx? You're pulling my leg here, aren't you boss?!" He asked, stuttering as he did so.
"Hey! I'm a member of this Organization too!" The man with the pronounced blond mullet and blue eyes known as Demyx to outsiders and Dyme to the ones on the organization shouted.
"Of course you are. Every good company needs a mascot!" Elenar released in-between her laughter.
"That was uncalled for…" Dyme whined, slumping down on his seat.
"Now that you have become silent… can I continue?" All the members acknowledged that as they noticed an inkling of frustration on their leader's voice. "Very well. To tell the full truth, Dyme's usefulness came at the cost of a failure. He was found scouting the Coliseum by Lenneth Valkyrie… who proceeded to beat him until he was an inch away from death. As expected really." Elenar started blaring out her guts in laughter.
"HEY! She's Class Zero! Not like I was beaten by a First Class… or got myself frozen by a THIRD!" Dyme spouted, for the first time shooting something back to the woman who tormented him for fun. Now, if we were playing Pokémon, I'd bet Blaine would erupt into the room shouting "YOU BETTER HAVE SOME BURN HEAL!" because I can smell the burn from here. However, burning Elenar wasn't his best idea. Her laughter ceased and the only thing left was an expression that had come all the way up from the seventh ring of HELL.
"You are worse than dead…" She hissed.
"No he is not. He speaks the truth." Xemnas intervened, to which Elenar pretended to let the matter go, but when he wasn't looking, she signaled decapitation at the younger man.
"I'm boned…" Dyme told himself.
"Now… without further interruptions…" That came off as more of an order than a request. "Dyme of course opened a Corridor of Darkness to escape HOWEVER, as he was traversing it, a stray spear of light entered with him and exploded, knocking him out of his senses." Of course this originated tons of snickering among he crowd, quickly silenced by Xemnas' cold look. "This caused him to fall into a precipice of nothingness. According to what he said, when he woke up, he found himself in a barren wasteland, nothing in sight but a river, a town, and a castle. He tried to escape using the corridor, yet, he found himself unable to for reasons still unknown to me. However, interestingly, Even's network was able to track him. As he did not come back, I thought it would be him wasting his time as usual, so I proceeded to go and teach him not to take his missions so lightly. When I arrived, he told me not to close the Corridor and, once I stepped onto the world… I understood. It is there."
"What do you mean with "it" sir?" Aeleus asked from his seat.
"The Jury." Xemnas replied, his list curling into a twist smile.
Kairi's PoV:
"Okay everyone, time to hit the showers! Kairi and Terra's match is postponed for a couple of hours, be back after lunch if you care." Jecht shouted just as Sora had bolted out of the room. How could I care? He was completely broken by what had just happened, showers my ass! I started to run in the door's direction, but I saw his brawny shirtless body blocking my way. I didn't care, I pretended to go to one side, to which I saw him jump to that side then bolted straight forward, almost touching his skin as I jumped over his outstretched leg. I heard him whistle:
"Some moves you got there! The match will be interesting!" I heard him scuff as that was the only thing that mattered. "Oh one more thing… monkey boy, stay here."
"God no…"
Sora's PoV:
I had hit my lowest low. I mean, holly shit did this make me realize how much of a joke I had been for the last two months. It's not like I was blissfully unaware of how the others were working their asses off, no, it was hard to not hear Kairi working her ass off just outside the house for more than half of her free time. The others weren't even half as radical, but they still practiced. Me? I had clung to the "guarantee" of becoming a hero and slacked off…
Feeling like trash, I just stumbled away aimlessly to the outside of the gym, ignoring any questions about my well-being. It was not until I had almost left the gym's sight when I heard a voice.
"Sora! Wait up!" I recognized the voice and that's exactly why I kept going. Heck, I started to run… as if I could outrun her. "Oh no you don't!" She shouted as soon as I began running. Now, I could run a lot faster than a normal person due to… it, but to think I could outrun the fastest runner in High School was just stupid of me. Not even a minute later she landed on top of me, tackling me to the ground.
"The hell is your problem?!" I shouted after I got back my senses. That had actually hurt a lot, falling face first on the floor was never pleasant. She didn't care one bit, before I knew it Kairi had flipped me to a ventral position, staring me right in the eyes.
"That's what I should be asking you!" Kairi blared at me, eyes burning mine with the sheer intensity of her stare. I turned my head sideways and replied:
"You know what's wrong with m-"
SLAP!
That would've taken a lesser man's head off! I swear my jaw was broken by that colossal slap.
"Snap out of it Sora!" She demanded, grabbing my face with both hands and making me stare right in the eyes. "This isn't the person that managed to change me in only a few days!" I stared back at her blankly, still stunned by the pain but especially so because of how Kairi of all people had disobeyed the teacher just to come and… tell me I wasn't useless? And even then, Kairi didn't CHANGE, she just stopped hiding what she was, so her point was mute.
"People don't change Kai. They just-"
SLAP!
"BULLSHIT!" I was beginning to think the best way to approach this was to close my mouth and keep it that way… "I knew you'd take it hard, but now you're just getting ridiculous! People change Sora. If you don't like what you are now then stop being a self-loathing oaf and DO SOMETHING! Prove to other people that you aren't what they think you are! YOU taught me that!" Wow… she really jumped directly into her point. And I don't know what it was, if she actually made sense in my mind or if it was something else. Some of that little irrational emotion that you may or may not have when near another person. Of course, the answer only came much later. I exhaled sharply and took Kairi's hands off my face. She had the courtesy of taking her knees off my shoulders as I nursed my nearly broken jaw.
"I guess it's just how they say… when you're sad, stop being sad and be awesome instead." Yeah, I said that.
"You did NOT just say that…" Kairi sighed, picking me up forcefully. "Look, don't try and sweep this off like it was nothing. I know you're feeling bad and really… you should. But use those feelings to do something productive, don't wallow like a crybaby." Holy shit… was I being emotionally consoled by… KAIRI?! She HAD changed…
"Fine… I'll just see if I can find a way to not hold you guys back." I told her, scratching the back of my head and giving one of those completely sorry excuses for a smile. She giggled at that, she seemed to do that a lot recently…
"Now let's cheer you up… and what better way to do so than with Ice Cream?!" Okay, now she was just getting WEIRD.
"It's lunch time!" I shot back but it was too late, she had already gotten me in a headlock and up up and away!
"Oh yeah… well, what better way to cure a depression than an industrial quantity of miscellaneous sweets for lunch?!" Interesting proposal…
"I'm… I'm down with that!" I exclaimed as we landed on the parlor. Kairi just dragged me in and we noticed we weren't alone on this. Just one more table occupied. I didn't notice who they were but well, Zell came to take our order immediately so we didn't care. "Zell, give me pancakes, waffles, cakes… whatever! I need to get this guy out of his depression." She told the boxer, who looked at her like she was crazy.
"You're… going to have all that for lunch?" He asked, inspecting the outside just to see if this was not a joke.
"Hey! It works when I get down so shut up and take his gil!" Wait… what?
"Hum… MY gil?!" I asked her, confused to if that was a mispronunciation of "our" or if she was really going to make me buy her lunch.
"Yeah! You know how much I own that smartass because YOU didn't train? Twenty gil! That's three lunches right there! You're getting off easy!"
Elsewhere:
"Pay up Riku." Shinryu told the silver haired teen.
"Tsk… I should've known Kairi would try and lighten up his mood." Riku cursed, giving Shinryu his twenty gil.
"And that's one hundred…" He snickered, thinking about what to do with it.
Back in to Sora:
I have to admit it. Even though I'd wake up tomorrow with serious stomach problems and my teeth would fall out from all the sugar, this actually felt good. I mean, really good. I found myself with an honest smile on my lips before I knew it. We tried most of the stuff the store offered us. My wallet would suffer if it wasn't still filled with cash after that whole mission. Besides, the SOLDIER 3rd Class gave me a twenty-five percent discount in everything within the school, so that was definitely a plus.
"Cheered up yet?" Kairi asked, staring at me with one hand supporting her head while she held a waffle on the other. I replied the only way I knew. The goofy way. I instantly shot my head up, all of my face covered in the different toppings, from caramel to vanilla, passing through chocolate, cheeks full of food and even my hair joined the food party, and I nodded… furiously. Of course, any pieces of stray food on my hair flew everywhere, especially on top of her. She laughed and so did I after I swallowed the food. After that fight of laughter, she looked at me with a more serious look. "Look, Sora… I may have a solution for your "problem"." I tilted my head to the side, confused. She sighed in response to my obliviousness. "I mean, I know how to get you in shape."
"Oh… that. What do you have in mind?" I asked her, all my worries dissolving. If she knew what to do, I trusted her.
"Well, there are two ways to go about this." She said, holding up two fingers. "One. You go to Eraqus and ask him to tutor you, explaining just what happened." Well, that one was obvious.
"And the second one?" I asked. She giggled.
"We do the same thing… except we get Terra to ask him." Flawless logic.
"So in essence, blackmail him." I pointed out. She shrugged. You gotta do what you gotta do, huh?
"Well, we're done here. Let's get an ice cream for the road and go." She told me, I nodded in agreement and slipped in the last piece of cake. We headed to the counter and Kairi asked: "I'd like a strawberry sundae…" She ordered, to which Zell rocked his head.
"Sorry, but those guys got them all." I looked to the side and saw how the table that we saw going in was still filled. Was that…
"BRAAAAAIN FREEEZE!" Dante hollered, slamming his head on his table.
"Tsk… this is why I don't like coming with him anywhere. Isn't that right Nero?" Patty asked a Dante lookalike... which was now on the floor, clutching his head. "I'm surrounded by idiots…"
"Fine… I'll have whatever spikes' having." Kairi told him, looking at me for an answer. I didn't think twice.
"Sea-Salt Ice-Cream!" I shouted, clamoring for my favorite treat.
"'Kay. Coming right up!" He exclaimed, dunking bellow the counter. Little did we know at the time, he encountered something bellow. Yet, he came back up swiftly. A giant cone of sea-salt ice-cream in his hand. "Here you go!" He exclaimed, handing us the cone. That thing was too big even for me! I wondered what he was thinking.
"Zell, aren't the cones usually half the size?" I asked him, to which he gave a confused expression and replied.
"I gave you the couple-size. What, you mean you aren't on a date?" Thank God we hadn't picked up the cone yet. I would've dropped it for sure and by the looks of it, so would Kairi. Shocked was an understatement. The cogs in our heads started to turn and we realized just what we looked like.
"Get your mind off the gutter Zell! We're just friends…" Kairi shot back, losing the power in her voice by the end of the phrase. Zell rolled his eyes in response.
"Well, you could have TOLD me that. The shipment for the cones is due to this afternoon so I only have this sea salt cone left. It's take it or leave it." He told us, crossing his arms. I was about to send it back but I didn't do it in time.
"We'll… take it." Kairi said, handing over my card and taking the ice cream. "It's not like we have anything to hide, is it?"
"Yeah. Pft…" I agreed and, to my defense, it was "kind of" true. My conscious being wasn't feeling anything it needed to hide. Yet, we all know how there's always more to it. Anyway, with that, we hesitantly left the shop to go to Eraqus' office… little did we know what happened when we closed the door.
Back inside the shop:
"THEY FELL FOR IT! Oh god… you are right, they ARE gullible!" Zell exclaimed, looking down the counter, finding no one.
"Embarrassment always decreases a human's perception of the situation… one of the many quirks of the heart." Cuore snickered, now sitting on Zell's shoulder. "You did great though, could have sworn you were an actor."
"Aw shucks, don't sweat it. Now go on and… totally not stalk them!" Zell told the girl that had approached him just as he was going for the ice-cream. He already knew the kind of "work" she did.
"I know." Cuore told him, already at the entrance. "Want to see just how much they progress." And with that, she vanished.
Back to Sora:
This was so… awkward. Thank god most people were at lunch right about now because every random person we passed through stared at us wide-eyed. Kai had gained quite the reputation on the school, being a newcomer and a genius, and to have her share an ice-cream cone with me gave all the wrong vibes. Hell, even for me it was giving too many bad vibes. Every time I tried to go for a lick of it, bam, Kairi tried it as well. Of course, this led to both of us backing off… and I was totally NOT blushing!
"Look, the ice-creams melting… let's just take turns." Kairi suggested, me acknowledging it with a nod I wasn't sure she saw. "I'll go first… Hum… salty, but sweet!" She said just after taking a lick. "I like it!"
"Never heard that comment before…" I commentated sarcastically as I did the same. "OH wait…" And well, it seemed to work out of a while, us taking unspoken turns at the ice-cream as we approached our destination. The ice-cream quickly dwindled and it was now on the last licks. Now, thing is, we were now arriving to the directory so I thought it would be a good idea to take a huge bite of the ice-cream and leave the rest to Kairi, so we could go in faster. Now… remember what I said about great, or not-so great minds thinking alike? At first, it was all going smoothly, the flavor was the same, the temperature of it was the same, the texture was the same but THEN… I swear ice-creams aren't supposed to be soft… and warm. I wasn't really paying attention and boy oh boy should I have. Yeah, for those of you who didn't realize it yet, me and Kairi were in the very intimate position of locking lips. I was shocked and, apparently, so was she. So shocked that we did nothing but stand there like morons, staring at each other as both our faces burned red and our hearts stopped beating. I must say though, she looked quite a bit more attractive than usual.
"Hum… am I interrupting something?" Oh by all that is holy… Out of all the times we could have run into LEA, it HAD to be now, hadn't it? "Because it sure looks like it!" Needless to say, we both woke up from our "trance" and quickly tried to muster a straight face. We really and I mean REALLY couldn't. We were doing that one face, you know, the one where you twist your lips while looking at everything BUT people's eyes? "Kairi and Sora sitting…" I couldn't let him sing that!
"Look, Lea, I KNOW what it seems like but it was an accident!" I shouted, trying to shut the red-haired guy before it was too late.
"Yeah! It's not like we're dating or anything! We just went for the last bit of the ice-cream at the same time that's all!" Kairi agreed, even though we could FEEL the cynicism coming from Lea's expression.
"So you were sharing an ice-cream…" I knew where he was going with this.
"Which was the last one on the store. Not our fault." He told him. He nodded and kept going.
"And casually took the last bite at the same time… and ended up in a smooch?" He was scratching his chin, as if he was a cop evaluating if a testimony was correct.
"T-that's about it…" I replied, stuttering at the mention of smooch. To think I'd actually accidentally locked lips with her. Does that count as a kiss? More importantly, does that mean I'm dead?!
"Meh, figures. Kairi is way out of your league spikes." I had no idea if I was to feel happy he bought it or if I was to feel insulted. But then… betrayal.
"True!" Kairi exclaimed after a giggle. I thought we were on the same boat!
"Of course I'm way out of her league. I am on league of my own!" I exclaimed.
"The League of Extraordinary Dorks?" Kairi asked.
"UUH! You better have some BURN HEAL!" He would know all about that… damn pyro.
"Oh you're gonna get it!" I threatened. Kairi laughed and proceeded to flick her finger on my nose, I swore she was this close to breaking it. "I immediately regret my statement!" And with that, the atmosphere was gone and everything went back to normal.
"Well, gonna go have lunch with Isa. See ya later, totally-not-lovebirds!" I swore I detected a twinge of sarcasm… but I digress. We nodded at each other and went to see Eraqus.
"Oh, Sora, Kairi. Hello! How may I help you?" Éclair's memory was as flawless as ever it would seem.
"We are here to speak to director Eraqus. Do you happen to know where he is?" I asked the platinum blonde.
"You're the second ones in a few minutes. He's in the training room, but do wait till he finishes talking." She asked us. We nodded and off we went. But again, we missed something.
"That was… beautiful…" Cuore said, whipping a tear from her right eye.
Arriving at the large open tilled white space, we were greeted by… Roxas?
"Is that… Roxas?" Kairi asked as she saw that ass black haired lookalike of me send a blonde spiky-haired teen to the wall.
"Looks like it… but can't be. One, he has a Keyblade, two, he's using it backwards." I pointed out. He was just a freakishly similar lookalike, even more than… him.
"Took you long enough to put that in those eggs you call heads! That guy is my brother Ven. He's like a shitty version of me!" I'll leave you to guess who was saying that. "So… what're Miss Bitch-Turned-Princess and Sir Shit-For-Brains doing here?" He got instantly nailed in the face for that.
"People like you just tick me off the wrong way…" Kairi hissed, rubbing her fist. Vanitas laid down on the floor, staring at the ceiling before starting to bellow laughter.
"You got quite the right hand girlie! Eraqus is over there if you need him. Me? I have to teach my brother some lessons." Damn, and I thought Kairi had been a bitch…
For our own sake, we got away from Vanitas before Kairi went Terminator on him and headed towards the corner of the room, where Eraqus was talking with a man I'd never seen before. The man had shoulder-length jet black hair and wore a jeweled tiara but what made it weird was how everything he wore was medieval looking, from the black plate with silver linings to the matching cape. As we approached we decided that it would be best to take cover the best we could behind a nearby throne-like chair.
"Yes Eraqus, the Feymarch is still divided in two as of now. Normally, I'd ask for some help with the situation, but I think human interference would only make it worse. The reason I am here however, if far from being a scuffle between beliefs in the Feymarch. Didn't you or any of your mages feel it yesterday? That swift familiar touch of ancient magic inside your bodies?" Eraqus stroked his beard and nodded.
"I did and it was more than tingling for Merlina and Merlin. Neither of those could sleep. Shantotto even came to my room to warn me of it. It did not last long, but apparently any mages and the ones that were on the Dreadnought felt it… Dante included. It was like… an echo." Whatever they were talking about, it seemed BIG so we just listened.
"An echo from the past… Eraqus, the city's seal has been broken." Eraqus cringed.
"The destroyed capital of Palamecia…" He whispered.
"The "Jury's" resting place. What you felt was merely an echo… of what broke the worlds." We had hit a mine of gold when we got in on this precise moment, hadn't we?! This was HUGE.
"What should we do?" Eraqus questioned.
"Firstly, let's ask the rapscallions what they are here doing." Aaaaand our cover was blown. Before we knew it, the man had vanished in a silver blur and was now standing just in front of our crouching selves. "It's been quite a while." Wait… he knew us? The voice WAS surprisingly familiar but I couldn't remember any guy I'd met who had the same one.
"Don't take this the wrong way but… I don't remember who you are." I told the tall man, causing a chuckle to escape his mouth.
"Every human has the same response…" He mused, closing his eyes and opening them, revealing the iris of a lizard. Wait… lizard?!
"B-Bahamut?!" We both spurt, looking at each other in shock and then back to him. "But… how?!"
"Surprisingly sharp… the spiky one at least. Yes. I am Bahamut. To answer your question… it is common knowledge between SOLDIERs that the upper Escalon of Espers all possess human-like bodies. Espers like King Leviathan… Queen Asura… Odin… may Espers can do what I can do." I honestly was so desensitized to this kind of stuff I went along with the fact that dragons had human forms that barely looked any different from ours… A psychologist would kill himself if he saw me.
"Well, Mister Bahamut, I can say you do look badass in that form!" And that was the "Sora" side of me talking. He did, but that served no purpose whatsoever but gain a little favor off him.
"Why thank you… but enough of that. Why are you here may I ask?" He asked, Eraqus just now arriving at our location.
"Sora needs to ask something of Eraqus." Kairi explained, forcefully pushing me to the front so I could confront Eraqus. I looked into the Master's analyzing eyes as I thought of things to say. I won't lie, I was sweating and my legs were shaking. I had to hold back the urge to fall on my knees and beg for him to accept me.
"Master… I know I've been a lazy, good for nothing, cocky brat now. I felt that in first person not much longer than an hour ago. I now know what I was missing when you told me I did not qualify for apprenticeship… I lacked drive. Well, I can promise you this Director! I'm all about drive now!" Okay, It was by then that I realized the conversation was taking a turn for the worse very fast, so I quickly finished it with a: "So… would you give me a chance to prove myself?" Eraqus looked pensive for a moment, even going as far as to shake his head. My heart fell.
"Director! I've seen what happened to him. He realized what he was doing was wrong! I swear!" I eyed Kairi strangely. There was despair in her voice… why would she care so much? Not that I had much time to think over, as the elder man just chuckled before laughing happily.
"I was going to accept him either way, but it is good to know you care so much for your…" He coughed. "Friend."
"What's with all the people just ASSUMING any of us has any kind of feelings for the other? Now that's just silly, isn't it?"I mused in my head, missing the giant blush from someone right next to me. But still, I was happy as all hell could be: "Thanks Dire- I mean MASTER Eraqus!" I exclaimed, grabbing his hand and shaking it furiously. The dragon/adult to the side chuckled.
"Now who does that remind you of?" He asked Eraqus who smiled back.
"Hard to say." He replied sarcastically. Of course, I had no idea what they were on about, neither was I gonna have. "Now, go take a bath you two, I can tell you've been through Jecht…" Now that he mentioned it… he was right. We kinda smelled. The sweat had already dried up yes, but I still felt… dirty.
"Let's go to the dorm Sora. Maybe the rest is there, we still have two hours till I actually have my test-slash-spar." Kairi suggested, grabbing my wrist and bolting away again. I swear I was getting tired of those spurts. And you know what we missed…
"At least ONE of the halves is starting to work. Today has been a good day…" The mystical little girl mused before vanishing in a cloud of mist.
Nothing much happened when we got to the dorm. No one was really there. We just jumped to one of the showers each and took a quick bath. Kairi was honestly the only girl who didn't take a billion years when entering or leaving the bathroom, which was good. We were fast enough to take the shower and make a break for the consoles just as the rest of the group arrived. We bantered there and explained just what had happened, leaving out "that"… and Kairi gave Shinryu the rest of his money, which, by the way, made it so most of everyone was pissed at me for THAT and not what you expected them to be. Terra wasn't there and I kinda expected that, but Shin for some reason refused to say what had happened on the tower, he just kept saying that she was going to be alright now… Well, we shrugged it off and waited for the spar, we could ask her personally.
Now, back on the virtual reality arena room inside the gym:
"Well, this is gonna be quite the show! And I'm going to memorize every single move they make!" Bartz was exclaiming as we got into the room. And boy I didn't expect… THIS.
"Is the whole freaking school here?!" Kairi blurted at the giant congregation of people there for what was to be, in essence, the end of a P.E. Class.
"Well, it would be only natural. Even when the birds are young, one can admire them." Speaking like he was acting, delicate movements, long, flowing lavender hair… yeah, that was Zidane's brother. "That and I must say, the opening act is rather ecstatic." Kuja said, looking at the screen where Zidane was getting the living shit kicked out of him. No other expression could apply.
"What about monkey boy? Where's all that strength you showed me not even a week ago?! Don't worry, we'll do these "special training sessions" until you get it back!" Damn, Jecht could hold a grudge. I don't see how, "getting obliterated" cuts it as training either.
"I can't believe HE'S here…" Kairi hissed in a way I'd honestly never seen do. She was clutching her fists and staring intently at the other side of the room. I followed her eyes and came to lock eyes with the silver-haired Mister-Perfection that was Sephiroth. Wasn't that Rufus Shinra's kid? He was talking with a couple of people but seemed to sense the stare, turning his head just to send the smuggest smirk imaginable to Kairi. He even went as far as to mouth "Good Luck". I already didn't like that guy.
"Kai, don't let him get to you." That guy… Cloud was it? For someone who was Kairi's brother I rarely saw him. He seemed really quiet and serious, not sure if I liked that. "Just do your best. It's just an overblown spar." And he had just summed up this entire thing in one word. Overblown. I mean shit, I got how the high school students would like to see it, and even then, I thought most would bail, but the room was brimming with people. We should have charged tickets. Kairi nodded at her brother and rushed to the virtualization ring just to get away.
"Jecht, that's enough really, let that poor boy go." Merlina told from the microphone at the computer. No, I did not see her come, she just kinda… appeared.
"Pft. Fine!" Jecht retorted, reappearing on the ring together with a mentally scarred Zidane. Of course he didn't have flesh wounds… just spiritual ones. "Whoa, lotsa guys here!" Captain obvious. "Wouldn't this be a problem? She's doesn't exactly "like" crowds. She's more… afraid of them." He asked. As they talked however, I saw Shinryu have a quick exchange of words with Kairi. Wonder what it was…
"Correction. It WOULD be a problem!" Mer exclaimed, snapping her fingers, to which Terra appeared on the virtualization ring, confused as the mage pressed the button. "If I weren't so good at what I do!" I had to ask her what she DID but oh well, I think most of the people realized how the match was starting and they all shut up and looked to the screen.
Kairi's PoV:
"If Terra is acting strange… please go easy on her. The moment you see her normal self though, you can go all Gung-ho on her." What the heck did Shin mean by that? The doubts plagued me as I got myself up from the sudden virtualization and saw how even Terra wasn't expecting it. Well, she seemed normal for the most part, if a bit… off I dunno how to describe it. You know when you wake up and you have no idea where you are? That's the kind of vibe she was giving. The I looked around…
"The school?! Really?!" I shouted to out loud.
"Mister Eraqus thought it would be… interesting for you to fight in a place you know off. Gives birth to more… Creativity." Tron told me. "Now, if you would."
"Well Terra… you ready for this?" I asked her. She just nodded and summoned a small short sword with a thin blade and pinkish handle. "Why? She can handle broadswords her size, why would she pick, in a world which provides you with anything you ask for and have been in contact with, a small sword like that?" I decided to start going easy on her. She did seem a little out of herself.
"What're you waiting for?! Boss Music?!" I heard Merlina shout and, as if it was not enough of a punch to the fourth wall… she literally gave us boss music. She had clubbed the fourth wall with a friggin' mace.
*Cue: The Decisive Battle from FFVI*
"Ah, the wonders of virtual reality…" I sighed sarcastically. "Well, here I come Terra!" I announced, lunging at the girl in front of me. She poised her sword to discourage a frontal assault… as if. I kept running but, just as I was about to touch the sword, I ducked and swept with my right leg. She expected this however and jumped. Yes, jumped. She didn't fly. Why, I couldn't answer. Anyway, my response would be the same either way. I back flipped, half-hoping to Terra's chest. Surprisingly… I did. She coughed and was projected upwards. Now, I could have followed up, but I was still stunned that I had… hit and I was trying to figure out what was wrong with her so I let her land safely on the ground. She then proceeded to slice the air with her arm.
"Blizzara! Fira!" She chanted, hurling her characteristic chunk of ice in my direction, followed by a ball of fire. I jumped over it easily only to feel thunder cackling. "Thundara!"
"Oh crap!" I cursed as I noticed how most the air was. The fire had vaporized the ice. Needless to say, I was quite… shocked at the development. Get it? But not nearly as much as I thought I was going to be. I thought I was a goner right there, but she only hurt me, I didn't even lose any of my senses when the electricity reached my nervous system. "Is she… going easy on me? No… No she isn't." There was something fishy there, and I was going to find out what. I landed on my feet and readied myself for another lunge. When I did so, I saw Terra took a more proactive stance on it. She charged me. Again, it felt weird… she was so slow. She had been two times faster than me on the test. Yet, she was as fast as Sora now! This lead to me simply twirling around her, making her miss her slash completely and pressing both my palms into her back so strongly she was sent hurling through the ground.
Sora's PoV:
The crowd was speechless.
"W-what's happening?" I blurted, seeing as how Kairi was completely annihilating Terra.
"She told you she didn't feel she could do it." Shinryu told his mother. Just what had they done to her?
"It's normal that she feels on another person's body… but I had to see if I didn't seal her powers too much. Her body is still way above the average. Comparing it to Kairi is almost unfair though. See how she is as fast as Sora even though she is still getting used to the body." Merlina replied back. I was completely confused as to what she meant.
"Yeah, but Mom… one freaking percent?!" One percent of what!?
"I cut her to one-tenth of what she could control. It's not that much when she was WAY above her peers, reducing her powers to one-tenth still leaves her very much like you all." Merlina was dismissing any and all aggression and contempt Shinryu had.
"You sealed my sister's powers away?!" I needed Terra to say that out loud, only by then did I realize it.
"Not all of them… most of them. And she can't handle it just now as you can see. I didn't expect her to go so low though… she can't fly huh? Well, we'd better turn it up a notch, just for this spar. I want to see just how she reacts to it." Just what was she…
"Mom, if we keep messing with it in public… people may find out." That could lead to trouble.
"Wait, wait, wait… people don't know yet?!" She exclaimed, as if we had just told her something barbaric.
"She wants to be normal. We can't tell them she isn't human." This time it was Terra explaining.
"That boy over there has a TAIL! A. TAIL!" She yelled, pointing at Zidane. "You'll never convince me that is human!"
"But she…" Terra began.
"Look at me." She ordered, pulling the right side of her hair back, revealing her elf-like ear. "Do I look human? Disregard the fact that I am, do I look like a normal human?"
"No…" Terra confessed.
"Do you think I got off easy by having these ears?" She asked, Terra shaking his head again. "Yet, looking back, I don't remember a darn thing. I know it happened, but you eventually grow thick skin around it. You NEED that in life. I'm not her mother, but I can tell that you two… PAMPERED her. Nothing short of that. I'm surprised she's not a spoiled brat by this point. Point is… The people she can rely on won't care about it. The bullies would bully her anyway since you can tell she's different one way or another from what I read on her first two months of classes." Terra lowered his head. "But, before you ask… I'm not showing them she's an Esper. That's up to her to reveal. Son… Ramuh." She simply said, to which Shinryu sighed and nodded. Luckily though, as soon as he reached for his pocket and took out a… rock from it, Terra crashed into a classroom. The "camera" was following Kairi, so she was unseen for now.
Terra's PoV:
"This… isn't my body. This can't be. It doesn't move as it moved, magic doesn't show up the way I want, or it doesn't even show up… how can they pit me on a spar like this? Aren't there better ways to test just how much I can do after the seal?" Terra cursed as she got up by using the tables on the classroom. "I don't like fighting… I'm not enjoying this... I never do. But this?" She looked at her hands. "I'm fighting without even knowing who I AM right now. I feel like they have stolen something from me. I feel safer yes, but also… empty." She looked up and saw Kairi approaching. "Should I… forfeit?"
"Terra. Mother is telling me to put you back on the position you were before being sealed. Do you want me to do it or do you want to quit?" It would take time before she adjusted to how her mind was now an open intercom with her crystal. Still, what Shinryu said changed it all. She could feel like she used to? She could be herself again? That alone made her tear down the idea of ever quitting.
"I'd love to return back to normal… even if it is for a short time." At first there was silence, but then…
"Releasing seal restriction Level-4. Code Ramuh."
Kairi's PoV:
I was simply walking towards the building when the inside of it just began cackling with lightning. I was confused since, but what I had seen, Terra had no will to fight back, I was even going to ask her to postpone or even cancel this. But oh, I was wrong.
"FLARE!" I had to trust my instinct on that one. My body alone felt the danger and jumped high into the air, moments later the ground where I was on was now smoldering wreckage, a gigantic blaze had erupted from the classroom and taken everything in a straight line with it. On the entrance to the building was Terra, looking at her hands. "I feel… how I used to be." When she looked up to me I knew that I could, to quote him, "Go all Gung-ho on her". "Sorry for that Kairi… let's go!" And hang on tight guys, this is where things went down.
For the sake of sportsmanship, she let me land because she knew I was helpless on the air. As soon as I did though, there was NO ceremony. I wanted this match for two months now and she apparently wanted to put her powers to use again so we both just went right onto business. I was planning on running up to her and go physical on her, but as I ran I noticed a small flame traversing the ground into me. It didn't seem like much, but I wasn't gonna risk it. I jumped over it and decided to just axe kick her directly as I went down. She knew it.
"Zero Graviga!" Before I could do anything, I was falling… on reverse motion, AKA; I was rising up into the skies, where she KNEW I was helpless. Can't really blame her. And yes, she could fly again. As the spell timed out and I saw her bolt in my direction, sword ready, the first thing I thought off was to kick her back as she reached my level. She blocked it by chanting: "Protect!" Encasing herself in a green shell that was harder than stone. But then a flash of inspiration struck me. With all my strength, I used the shell to propel myself backwards, flying through he air and spinning so that I landed sideways on Merlin's tower. I looked to Terra and saw only a giant bolder right next to my face and I took it like a champ, crashing into the inside of the tower. I looked around me as I entered it and saw I was at the spiral staircase. I smiled, landing on the rail, begging to skate along.
"This is awesome!" I exclaimed with joy. Look, she may not like fighting, but I sure do, and it's not every day that I'm not in advantage the whole damned battle. Just then, Terra appeared just on my side, flying as she waved her arms, firing barrages of pure white orbs that I dodged by flipping in midair and dodging them in almost artistically poses. I continued skating down the rail, waiting for Terra to let up. She did and as that happened, I pounced her, grabbing onto her to stop her from casting magic. Even if it was her own magic, it blow up in her face too. After I wrapped my legs around her, we both had the idea of exchanging blows. Unfortunately, the amount of weight seemed too much for her to take and we began to plummet as we exchanged blows. I took most of her level one spells since I had to care for the sword on her right hand the most but I also got in quite the amount of hits. Yet, you do understand we were falling down a building, right?
CRASH!
"HOLY SHIT DID THAT HURT!" I screamed inside my mind as I rolled on the floor, clutching to my back. There was too much dust for me to see how Terra was, but I knew she wouldn't stay down for much longer. And neither would I. I reached for the wall and with its help I managed to trudge myself back into standing position. The dust was clearing and, with it, I saw a silhouette already standing. I bit my tongue a pressed a pressure point to alleviate the pain of my back, getting into fighting position soon after. The surprise however, was not how Terra got up faster. No. The surprise was on her hair. It was… green.
"Don't slow down now Kairi! Firaga… FISSION!" She exclaimed, creating a large circular ball of fire and hurling it against me.
"Well… shit."
Sora's PoV:
"Shouldn't we stop this? She's… changing." I had never saw her hair go green, yet, that couldn't be normal.
"Don't worry Sora. That is part of the release, it just needed to ramp up. She should be at ten percent now." She explained, urging me to look at the screen. Not a soul was speaking, or even blinking. Hell, some of the weaker college members had left in shame.
"But I'll keep an eye on her." Shinryu said, to which his mother acknowledged.
"Yes, I'm still not sure she is able to put ten percent of her power under complete control." Merlina told us. "I mean, she CAN'T I'm just not sure of how long she can keep it under control… it adds excitement to the battle! Don't you think?!" It had been too long between the last random outburst it seems.
Kairi's PoV:
She's like a freaking lightning now! I lost a hand to hand clash with her! I was now on the run, purely on the run from her. I jumped into the science department and ran to the cafeteria. I knew she was following me from the distance, but I needed to take advantage of the environment after that unexplained power up. She had what, two now?!
"I know you're in here Kai!" She exclaimed. Her tone was not evil per say, more like… savage. She was still Terra, her aura was the same and when I looked into her eyes they were excited yes, but not crazed, but still, she was unusually pumped to kick my rear. I was in fact, there. Just beneath a table. What? It was the best hiding place I could find before she got in. She began walking, going in the exact direction I wanted. She passed my table and was now a small distance from it so I sprang into action. I jumped outside of the table and positioned myself on the same way an athlete does when he's about to depart on the one hundred meter dash. I took off as fast as I could. She heard me, but she had to turn back, right into my fist. I began just wailing on her, no fancy strategy, I was just kicking her and punching her. As soon as her eyes seemed to refocus, which gave her the chance to counter, I punched her gut with as much power as I could. This stunned her enough for me to jump in the air and do something I had learned from my master but only managed to execute once I got more proficient with magic. That and Sabin, which gave us a lesson in P.E. a couple of weeks ago taught me a secret to use it. And no, it wasn't to press quarter circle right and punch. Wow, Street Fighter jokes… I cupped my hands on the side of my waist.
"Aura Canon!" I exclaimed, propelling both hands forward and shooting a ball of energy downwards.
"Glacier!" Terra groaned.
"What?!" I gasped. The air around her had frozen into a makeshift shield that shattered at the energy wave. But it did its job, the aura didn't reach her.
"And now… spears!" She exclaimed, using her magic to hurl all of the shards of ice against me. I cursed, my flesh being ripped by the ice. "To finish this… Firaga Fission!" I had my eyes closed, so I didn't realize just how CLOSE she was to me. Needless to say, that stung! I was sent flying to the campus in what would have normally spelt the end for any match. Of course, in this world Normalcy is… I'm so not going to use that joke.
"Damn it… I can't lose here… not with SEPHIROTH watching!" I cried, landing on the ground with one knee and my right foot. The friction was beginning to burn my hand and knee as the impact was so strong I still hadn't stopped. When I did though, my right hand was already cackling. "I'll show her who's the queen of this jungle…" I told myself, ignoring all warnings from my body to stop moving and running as fast as I could back to where I knew Terra was. I couldn't even distinguish the background from the speed I was going. "Listen…" I whispered as I entered the school by the hole I had made. I could already see her, still panting while leaning against a wall "The lion's roar!" I screamed as I was meters away from her. As she lift her head I could see her eyes jolting open like two violet spheres, realizing that she did not have the speed to dodge. "LIGHTNING BOLT!" The wall couldn't contain the impact my fist had made as it found its mark on Terra's chest. We crashed through it and three more, only stopping on the last one before campus. Terra was motionless. "D-did I win?" I asked myself, not moving. But her chest started moving. And not breathing, no, it was a low cackle, one that then increased into laughter and then exploded into what sounded like a crazy cacophony of screams, Terra's now red eyes staring deep into mine. I was… afraid. I remembered those eyes.
"Win? Against this little pussy?! Of course! But why don't you jump into the big boy's pound?!" Whatever that was, it grabbed my wrist and pressed it so hard I could swear it was going to break. Strangely though, the entire room was filled with a substance very similar to blood, red eyes opening in every direction. Terra immediately collapsed and I could feel myself be de-virtualized. All I could see when I woke up was a completely shocked crowd and Merlina taking Terra in her lap.
"Let's consider this a tie… shall we?" And she signaled me and our dorm to come, leaving the room to stare at us, confused out of their minds.
Skipping to Cid's diner, Eight O'clock, Sora's PoV:
Okay, you can guess what happened next. I'll spare you the reactions we got to what happened to Terra. They told us all about the seal… just not the "the crystal bearer can kill the sealed one with an order" part, because we would've flipped. I only know about it since I'm the future. It was mostly normal, I expected Terra to sulk but she was unusually active. Or at least seemed like it. We were just having dinner there when Aqua put on an interesting matter.
"Hey, today is the day of the Red Moon. Want to see the ritual or do the spell at home?" She asked as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
"Ritu-what?! Red Moon?" I asked, confused as all hell could be.
"Sora… how could you miss the fact that the moon… IS FREAKING RED TODAY?!" She shouted. I kinda admit, I was at fault here. How the hell did I miss that?
"We call our moon… the Dalamud. Legend tells us it is the only thing stopping Heartless from invading with its shinning blue light. Once every year, or twice during the three years Merlina didn't appear, all the people in Radiant Garden join around the great lake at the center of the city and cast the spell that grants the moon the light in their hearts, recharging it for another year. This should be quite the show since Merlina WAS the main speaker and the one leading the spell for years. Merlin was kinda boring really, his voice singing voice isn't the best." Whoa there.
"Singing?" I asked.
"The spell is a song. Here." She laid down a couple of papers through the table. "Memorize it the best you can, it's mandatory for any person in this world to sing this at midnight. The Dalamud is a mysterious protector, but if Merlina and Merlin plus the school board insist it works, adding to the fact Radiant Garden NEVER saw a heartless, I guess a song couldn't hurt." I didn't like the prospect of singing… but since I had too anyway, I decided to go along to the lake. We boarded our express transportation, the Bahamut, at eleven thirty and flew into the lake's shores.
Bahamut landing commanded A LOT of respect so, lo and behold, we got front seats. In the middle of the luscious forest-like garden was the gigantic, crystal clear lake. This lake had one tiny island at the center. If I didn't know any better I'd say it was a pedestal. I guessed the conductor, Merlina in this occasion, stayed there for everyone to see.
We waited for a couple of minutes and bam, out of nowhere, Merlina. But holy crap was she stunning now. She hadn't changed her clothing, but she did have her hair unbraided and let me tell you, her long flowing hair made her a step above… just about anyone really. Okay, maybe not Rydia… tough call. And not Ka… the hell am I saying?! MOVING ON!
"Hello everyone!" She greeted while jumping on the island and almost falling to the water. The crowd laughed and all replied:
"Hello Merlina!" That synchronization… maybe it was what they used to do.
"Now, who's ready to sing their hearts out?!" She was acting like a TV Host… and the crowd was hers.
"WE ARE!"
"Now, just remember. I'm not my gramps. You can only sing the chorus with me. Remember?!" We all nodded and said yes. "Okay! Edward… let'em have it!"
Edward Gilbart Chris von Muir, the resident musician strung a few notes on the harp and then stopped, signaling us to begin.
I close my eyes, tell us why must we suffer
Release your hands, for your will drags us under
My legs grow tired, tell us where must we wander
How can we carry on if redemption's beyond us?
We chanted in perfect harmony, spacing every verse like a professional orchestra. As if to answer to us, small lights began rising up from the lake, the softest warm feeling taking over our hearts. Edward took the chance to begin stringing a beautiful piece on his harp while Merlina close her eyes, her bare feet touching the water as she… began walking on top of it.
To all of my children in whom Life flows abundant
To all of my children to whom Death hath passed his judgement
I was… speechless. Her singing voice… my god! I had no words, even now I don't have them! And I heard Yuna sing. I heard Xion sing. They looked pro, but this? Nothing could touch this.
The soul yearns for honor, and the flesh the hereafter
Look to those who walked before to lead those who walk after
Our bodies, all of them, began to glow in an ethereal clear light, drops from the lake rising in different colors, a banquet for the eyes.
Shining is the Land's light of justice
Ever flows the Land's well of purpose
As she sang, the lights concentrated on our chests, the warm feeling on our hearts departing as they began to rise to the skies, presumably to the moon. It was… beautiful. And I'm a MAN! If I say this, it's because it amazing!
Walk free, walk free, walk free, believe...
The Land is alive, so believe...
We watched as out lights made their way to the Dalamud, the ominous red being purged as the moon returned to its magnificent blue light. We all stood there, looking at the skies for a few minutes. As the first murmurs began to be heard, I had the idea of taunting Xion a bit.
"Hey Xi! You're singing has been deth- Xion?!" Xion had collapsed on the ground… unconscious.
Xion's PoV:
Merlina had ended her beautiful song, or at least the one recorded on the paper. The skies began to darken, something I thought to be part of the ritual. Yet, the singing didn't end. Everyone from the chorus continued. Including Sora and the others, who shouldn't KNOW any more. Me? I couldn't move or speak. That's when I knew something was VERY wrong. The chant was not hopeful, no, it was dark and filled with despair as the orchestra had divided into two voices.
Suffer (feel) lonely (face) witness (teach) reason (hear)
Follow (feel) wander (think) stumble (teach) listen (speak)
Honor (speak) value (tell) whisper (tell) mention
Ponder (hope) warrant (wish) cherish (wish) welcome (roam)
Witness (roam) listen (roam) suffer (roam) sanction (sleep)
Wither (sleep) Wander (sleep) Answer (sleep on)
Everyone but Merlina had vanished. And even her I couldn't believe to be the same person. Her hair was now dark violet and her eyes as amber as the heartless'. Yet, another person stood by my side. He was a man in his twenties clad in white and blue robes, a turban over his head.
"You who can touch time… see now what mankind has wrought upon itself. Be the first to witness as it falls…" The man vanished, leaving only me and Merlina.
Again, she sang.
Now open your eyes while our plight is repeated
The skies were burning. There was no better way to describe it. Meteors and flames descended upon the city, taking no prisoners. I could HEAR their anguished cries and how they were swiftly muffled.
Still deaf to our cries, lost in hope we lie defeated
I finally managed to move and I used my ability to try and run to Merlina. As soon as I reached the lake, my perception changed completely. I was now in the skies, falling into the isle that was my school. I knew this couldn't be real. I just knew it couldn't. I had to tell myself that or I'd break down. I couldn't be falling! This didn't make any sense. And it only became worse.
Our souls have been torn, and our bodies forsaken
A roar which would make Bahamut whimper in return tore the skies appear, a massive dragon whose scales were nothing less than crystal flew over the isle, raining down fire and destruction over it. In one fell swoop, the energy the dragon release made a wreckage of all that I knew in this world.
Bearing sins of the past, for our future is taken
In the distance I saw it. It matched Dante's description perfectly. The metal monstrosity all knew as Omega. The dragon halted in front of it, both the titans staring at each other as the world around them ended. I was about to hit the ground, but as I was closing my eyes… my body halted, a strange force cradling me to a standing position. I looked around and screeched.
War born of strife, these trials persuade us not
"Nam? Rox? Aqua?! Zack?!"Half of my in my dorm was there… or at least their mangled… burned corpses. Only Sora, Kairi, Riku, Shinryu and Terra were not there. I fell to my knees and cried.
(Feel what? Learn what?)
"Despair… sadness… chaos… darkness. This is all humanity is moving towards. Never-ending despair." The man of before said. We locked eyes.
Words without sound, these lies betray our thoughts
"Stand for this is naught more than a vision! Let us see it to the end!" He exclaimed. I sighed of relief. That made sense… But why was I having this vision? I had to follow him to find out.
(See what? Hear what?)
We walked through the destruction as I saw fighting of both familiar and unfamiliar faces, like a full on war had erupted. I wanted to see what was happening between ourselves and the black coats, but I was afraid to lose my guide so I skittered past it all.
Mired by a plague of the doubt, the Land, she mourns
Judgment binds all we hold to a memory of scorn
A pillar of light erupted in the distance. I knew where I had to go… not before seeing the unmoving body of Master Eraqus as a person much like Riku vanished into the dark. It couldn't be him… could it?
Tell us why, given Life, we are meant to die?
Help us in our cry!
As I drew closer to the light, the choir returned as the vision reached its climax.
Witness (feel) suffer (think) borrow (teach) reason [hear]
Follow (feel) stumble (think) wander (teach) listen (blink)
Whisper (blink) shoulder (blink) ponder (blink) weather [hear]
Answer (look) answer (think) answer together
(We) whisper (we) shoulder (we) addle (we) weather
(Please) answer (you) answer (me) Answer Together!
I had reached the central plaza right in front of the Director's Manor. I could not believe what the pillar of light was. I even heard the incorporeal voice of Merlina sing in a lower, sadder.
Thy Life is a riddle, to bear rapture and sorrow
A cloaked figure had just tore Sora's crystalline heart out, leaving the poor boy to fall into the still breathing but broken body of Kairi. From the heart came his Kingdom Key and from the man's other hand came another one, their colors reversed.
To listen, to suffer, to entrust unto tomorrow
"AH! So you have come, fellow wanderer of time!" The man greeted, as if he could see me. His blades touched, creating a much bigger pillar of light. The wind it created blew his hood away, revealing one who was nothing but a younger Xemnas lookalike.
In one fleeting moment, from the Land doth life flow
"Welcome! Welcome to the future!" He boomed, the light dissipating to reveal a Keyblade that seemed to be a cross of both Kingdom Keys with a crystalline blade that extended from both ends. "MY future!" He raised his blade skyward and from it a light shot into the moonless skies.
Yet in one fleeting moment, for anew it doth grow
The dragon and Omega appeared at both sides of the plaza, light shooting from them as well. The man which had led me here also glowed in the same light.
"Mark this in your heart… for prophecies cannot be broken… only postponed." The man said before the light covered him as it shot to the skies. The Xemnas lookalike laughed:
"Bask in the glory of the Four Guardians!" He boomed, the clouds parting. "BEHOLD!"
In the same fleeting moment thou must live, die and know…
My consciousness was fading, I was falling back into the unknown. The last my ears could hear was:
"The glory of… KINGDOM HEARTS!"
The skies opened and my last vision was a large, heart shaped moon in the skies. I whispered its name, entranced by its beauty.
"Kingdom… Hearts…"
Next Chapter:
"Kai… me and Zack have a mission."
"Commander... Auron?"
"Kept you waiting… huh?"
"Seal the Keyhole!"
Next time on Normalcy? Extremely Overrated: What a Thrill…
Profiles:
I have one that should've been in the last chapter so here it is.
Hope Skywalker (17, Final Fantasy XIII): Twin brother to Vaan, this computer genius loves two things. Online games and hacking. Both of them he does stupendously. He's a massive fan of the movies "Metal Gear" based on the exploits of former war hero Naked Snake and also a sees Tony Stark as an Idol.
Edward Gilbart Chris von Muir (38, Final Fantasy IV): The king of Damcyan, a nation in the Blue Planet. This man's efforts in the global trade economy have earned him his name on the coin used by everyone. Gil comes from Gilbart. He's also a peerless musician with his harp as he once was a bard.
Post-Chapter Note:That ending. Gives you a lot to think about doesn't it? Well, you aren't getting anymore from me! Just that the music used there was "Answers" from Final Fantasy XIV, composed by Nobuo Uematsu. This for some, is a huge lead already, considering the way the Dalamud was introduced this chapter… but again, my lips are sealed.
As always, leave your opinions, thoughts and anything else on the rectangle bellow! It makes me happy which will make you happy when I release better chapters because of how you share your opinions with me!
Oh, and Merry Christmas. No, I won't make a Christmas special for Normalcy, that's for next year! Cya next time.