Chapter 9

"No, you dumb idiot. How many times must I say it. Don't break it! Pulverize it! Union with your ÄRM! Sixth sense!" An older woman in an outfit similar to Merilo's barked at Jack. Guardian Bumoru had round ears to Merilo's pointed ones and a ball with an upside-down heart as opposed to Merilo's bell.

Jack panted, exhausted after trying for hours. So, Sol is doing the same thing…? I wonder if her guardian is this nasty…

*TUNK TUNK* Turning his head as the sound, Jack saw two of the purple fruits next to his feet. Looking up, he saw Dorothy munching on one. "Eat. Their on the trees over there. I found them while looking for a place to sleep." Jack picked up the fruit, nodding his thanks. "I'm gonna want a bath when I wake up. Anywhere I can do that?" Dorothy asked Bumoru. Jack's face turned bright red.

"There's a lake around back."

"Great! Jack, you peek and you're dead." Dorothy informed the still blushing male. Jack nodded, a chagrined expression on his face.

So Sol and Jack want to get stronger, eh? Won't be easy. Making a dimension with slowed time and remote guardians… that old geezer doesn't mess around. Work hard, Jack! You don't want to be left behind! Dorothy dozed off.


Merilo and Snow watched as Sol stood quietly. "What do you think, Merilo? About Sol's abilities?" Snow asked.

"Hmm… she's somewhat hard to read, but… the talent is there! She does seem to have a form of sixth sense. If she challenges the gate several more times, she may be able to adapt it and pulverize the gate!"

"No. She'll do it with the next strike. I can feel it." Snow stated.

"Well… you think very highly of her, Snow. Or is that your sixth sense?" Snow smiled at Merilo.

Sol could faintly feel what she was looking for, but not clearly enough to know where it was. Babbo could also pick up on it. The two were just out of sync. They pushed back and forth, attempting to find the same viewpoint. Finally, Sol bumped Babbo just right. Their "vision" snapped from hazy to clear.

There!

Sol jumped and smashed Babbo into the point on the gate where the "neck" of the face fused into it. The gate shattered.

Merilo stared in shock as Snow giggled. "See. I had a feeling." She winked at Merilo coyly.

Some time later, Sol, Babbo, and Snow were eating some fruit. "Your period of training is 180 days in this dimensions time! 'Don't let them out any earlier!' That is the command of my master, Alan." Merilo informed them.

Sol looked surprised but didn't say anything. "I've never heard of such a long training period!" Snow said, "Ed's really serious this time! But remember – only three days will have passed outside!"

Sol inclined her head. "True. Jack's working hard, too." Sol stood and reached down to help Snow up. "Let's do this, Snow!" Snow smiled.


On the Northern "Hild" Continent, not very far south from where our group was training, the leader of the Thieves Guild of Luberia had returned to find most of his people slaughtered. The calling card of the Chess Pieces had been left behind.

"So… the thugs who destroyed the fortress of Luberia… seek justice for past losses?" The long-haired blonde examined the card. "The world trembles before these 'Chess Pieces'…" He crushed the card in his hand. "The world of cowards!" he snarled.


As the days passed, the Chess stormed and dominated town after town. By the time the third day arrived, three quarters of MAR Heaven had been conquered.

At the floating Lestava Castle, Phantom stood on a balcony, overlooking the devastation with a smile. Behind him, stood three people. A man in a black robe and tall pointed black hat with a twisted grin. A young man with wispy beaten-gold hair in a pale blue jacket and white pants with a dreamy expression. And a young woman with shock white hair in black leather armor and a bronze mask covered in gears, giving it a steampunk look, that covered the upper half of her face, her bright red eyes blazing in the sockets.

"Look. The world it alive again. Flames rise from every kingdom. It's beautiful. It excites me. But wouldn't it be even more fun… if a fore emerged to bare it's fangs against us, as in the time of the last war? Six years ago I lost to a man named Danna… but I enjoyed the fight. This Danna died at my hand, I hear. Will the Cross Guard challenge me to another battle such as that…? Another outlander will make things interesting. I hope they find one worthy of us… Because if we took over too easily… wouldn't that be boring in itself?" He looked to those behind him, who all smiled in response.


At the Training Gate, Ed was breathing harshly with exhaustion. Today is the third day… I knew I'd get sleepy but… Damn it…!

"Found you! Mr. Doggy!" Ian stepped out of the woods behind Ed with a Pawn. "Very impressive. Cloaking your magical powers were you? I had to work hard to find you."

A Chess Piece – Why now?! "What did you come here for, brat? Another taste of me?"

"Where's Solara?" Ian demanded.

"…well now. I have no idea. Maybe swimming in the ocean over there?" Ed grunted as something pounded into his back repeatedly.

"You're not gonna retaliate today? Not that that would make me go any easier on you…"

Ed lit a new cigar. "*SIGH* I was just getting bored, alone all this time. This'll be a good way to wake up."

Ian ground his teeth. "I… really hate you. That smug face of yours… I want to see it despair." Ian attacked, his ÄRM launching forward.

Until they return… I must defend this spot to the death! Ed flung off his coat and activated his ÄRM. Dimension ÄRM, Air Hammer! Special power – Air Freeze! Two objects coming at him shattered, but to Ed's unfortunate surprise, there were more. Ed groaned as he got pummeled.

Ian snickered. "Even with your sixth sense, you can't see them all, can you?! I brought this to fight you, not Solara! In the castle, I only had two Python Whips. This is Weapon ÄRM 'Octopus'! This way I've got eight attacks – and regeneration power! Now… where is Solara?!"

That last counter attack… I'm at my limit. "Maybe she's hiking in those mountains…?" he quipped.

The pawn moved, but Ian stopped it. "Really now. You learned about our ranking system in the last war, right, Mr. Doggy? I'm a Rook. I'm aiming for a higher class, but… for now I'm still near the bottom. In terms of strength, you magic powers… would be equivalent to… Knight Class. Six years ago, you fought to a draw with the legendary Knight – Halloween! But today, you can't even anticipate the moves of a mere Rook. Why? Even ÄRM wielders are human. They still need to eat, drink, and sleep. If they fail to meet these needs, their sixth sense falters and their magic weakens. For some reason, you haven't been meeting those needs…for several days. Right now, you're-" Ian attacked Ed again, who grimaced in pain, "just a Rook! As for why you're not moving… it's not that you won't… it's that you can't! You're protecting something! Like, perhaps… those doors behind you! Right?" Ian chirped.

Ed dropped his cigar and crushed it. He gave Ian a vicious grin. "Proud of yourself? Even a monkey could have figured that out! Why don't you try and open them?! That is… if you can beat a guy who can't move!" Ian attacked, driving Ed to one knee. Sol… give me a reason… to believe!

Ian attacked again, intending to end him. Ed squinted through the pain. The approaching ÄRM seemed to shatter.

"I knew the Chess were a bunch of jackasses, but attacking a man when he's down? You're not just an ass, you're straight garbage." Sol was very unimpressed with Ian's actions.

"Hello, Ed." Snow said, as the door the two had come out of closed and disappeared.

"Solara! At last! I've been waiting to…" Ian trailed off as he realized that Solara now had a massive amount of magic power. Huh?!

Sol shifted so she could see both Ian and Ed. "What are you doing on the ground, old man? You should know better than to expose weakness to your enemies." Ed grimaced, knowing she was right.

Snow attempted to defend him, reminding Sol that his movements had been heavily restricted by using Merilo, Bumoru, and the Training Gate. And that he couldn't sleep the entire time, or the Training Gates would have reverted, trapping all of them inside. "Ed was protecting us. Believing in us… and standing his ground."

Sol offered Ed her left hand to help him up. He took it. "Yo. Sol… I've been waiting."

"I noticed. Thanks. Relax. I'll deal with this twit." She turned back to Ian. She lifted her right are, showing off Babbo in his Hammer Arm form. "Neh, Babbo?"

"Indeed."

Ian waved off the Pawn. "This is my prey." He attacked. Sol's eyes narrowed.

"Look closely, Ed. Look at the transformed Babbo!" Snow said.

Babbo flashed. The metal sphere shifted, turning into a blade as long as her arm. In moments, Sol diced through the eight arms of Octopus, much to Ian's surprise. "Version 1-B, Dagger Arm."

Ed looked mildly impressed. "That is the first magic stone's power – 'Hammer & Dagger'! A Weapon ÄRM with two forms!" Snow explained.

"Good one! But the Octopus regenerates endlessly!" Ian attacked again.

"Version 2, Bubble Launcher!" Babbo flashed again. Sol's right hand reappeared, holding what looked like a silver hairdryer. Pink, Babbo-shaped bubbles erupted from the dryer head. They spread out, all floating in the space between Ian and Sol.

"Babbo… divided?!" Ian was shocked. Then he looked closer. "No… are these bubbles!? Camouflage power…? They're… in my way!" Annoyed, Ian attacked recklessly. As his ÄRM hit the bubbles, they didn't burst, they exploded. "Bombs?!"

In the wake of the explosion, Sol got right in Ian's face. "What – Who… are you?" Ian was completely confused.

"Time for you to bow out." Sol slammed Babbo in Hammer Arm form into Ian's gut. He skidded back, doubled over in pain.

Ian spat up a wad of blood. I don't understand! It's been three days! Yet Solara's now fighting with the power of a Bishop!

"Sunny!" Sol looked confused, then shifted. Dorothy lunged at her. "Sunny! I missed you!" Dorothy ended up on Sol's back, pressing kisses anywhere she could reach.

"Hi, Dorothy." Sol seemed confused, but simply turned her face away. She saw someone else looking confused and possibly jealous. "Hey, Jack. 'Sup."

"Hey, Sol. Long time no see."

The Pawn stepped forward. Seeing this, Sol finally pushed Dorothy off, who pouted. "Ian, heal yourself with the Holy ÄRM. I will buy some time!" The Pawn activated a Weapon ÄRM, giving it a fancy looking pike.

"Gido, don't! She's not an opponent you can handle!"

"I know that. But I have to protect you. You have the ability to make Knight, one day. I don't want to see that promise end here. I must target the one… with the weakest magical power!" The Pawn, Gido apparently, charged at Jack.

"Oho! A put down, eh? Guess he doesn't know who trained you! Show 'em, Jack!" Dorothy said.

Jack lifted his Earth Scoop, remembering Dorothy's reaction when she went to put the magic stones in. …what's this? Jack… this shovel still has a stone-embedding system! It must have been used as a weapon in the past! Where… did you get this?

Pa… he set out on a journey, leaving Ma and me alone. He never came back. A man arrived one day with this shovel, saying Pa was gone and he'd left his ÄRM to me. I don't know where you got this thing – but I'm gonna use it to protect Ma! Jack smashed it into the ground.

"Nature ÄRM, Earth Scoop! Earth Wave!" A magic stone embedded in the handle flashed. In response, a wave of energy erupted from the shovel, tearing up the ground in front of it, throwing chunks of earth at Gido.

One of the larger pieces crashed into Gido's stomach, knocking the Pawn back. The Pawn yelled in pain.

Snow's jaw was hanging open. Sol's eyebrows rose. "Nice." Jack grinned at Sol's praise. Ed nodded. I thought a witch would have a few magic stones. Looks like I was right to pair them up.

Ian stood up. "…Solara. Let's make a deal." He held up a small necklace ÄRM. "Holy ÄRM 'Healing Angel'. This can heal injuries – to a point. Let me use it on Gido. If you do… I'll give it to you."

Ed scoffed. "Isn't he just a Pawn? Pretty soft-hearted for a Chess Piece."

Sol shrugged. "Sure." At Ed's surprised look. "We can treat your wounds, too."

Ian helped Gido sit up and pulled off the Pawn mask. Sol blinked. "It's a chick… why am I surprised?"

"I'm sorry, Ian."

Ian tossed Sol the ÄRM. "I lost this one. But, next time it's your turn. I'm climbing the ladder! If you can improve that much, then so can I! You'll see me again! Don't forget me, Solara!" The two teleported away.

Sol had tossed Healing Angel to Snow. Releasing Babbo, she asked how the healing was going. "Great. It's mostly surface wounds. His main problem is exhaustion." Ed grimaced at Snow pointing it out.

"Looks like you've improved quite a bit… so now it's time to head to the Hild Continent! We're crossing the sea and heading due south form Pazurika – and we're gonna save those people from the bitches who started this war! Our mission begins now. So stay… stay…" Ed trailed off as his adrenaline from the fight wore off and his exhaustion hit him full in the face.

Ed passed out. As he hit the ground there was a large *POOF*. The dust cleared and Ed was a dog once again, much to Dorothy's complete surprise and confusion.

"Hello, Ed!" Snow greeted the dog.

"Oh, princess! It's been so long!" Ed cried.

"I forgot how whinny this howler is." Sol mumbled to Babbo, who snickered.

"Ah, Miss Solara! I've been watching. You've grown very powerful. However… What was the idea of kissing the princess in the castle?! So shameful!"

Dorothy freaked. Snow looked confused. Sol just stared blankly. "What?" Ed and Dorothy continued to wig out. Sol looked at Snow, who shrugged. Annoyed, Sol snapped. "Shut up." Both fell silent. Sol thought for a moment, then said, "Are you referring to when Snow came out of the ice?" Ed nodded. "That wasn't a kiss, you dirty-minded dog. She headbutted me in the face!"

Ed looked abashed. Snow blushed. Dorothy and Jack looked at each other, then started laughing. After a moment, Snow, Ed, and Babbo started laughing too. Sol just shook her head. Well… at least they weren't mad anymore.