The Aegis Awakens
/Chapter Twenty-one: Maddie/
Walking back to the training area, Regan paused as she saw Vandham and Rex talking. Both Malos and Ethan seemed intrigued as well, and they followed her to the crate Rex was sitting on. "He brought me back from the dead, gave half his life force to save mine," The Leftherian explained to the mercenary leader.
Malos stopped at the fifteen-year-old's words, even though he knew Rex was unaware of them sharing injuries. Even still, it made the Aegis a bit uncomfortable to hear the boy talking about their situation. Vandham appeared to be a very observant person, so part of the Blade worried that the Urayan would figure out the truth.
"Huh, so that's why you've got that Core Crystal in the center of your chest? I thought it was just a decoration or something."
The kid shook his head, "It shows what he did for me. Malos saved my life, so I want to take him home to Elysium."
Malos' eyes widened a little at Rex's admission, wondering if he truly meant it. The Leftherian had agreed to take him to Elysium; however, Malos was surprised at just how sincere Rex's tone was.
"That's why you ended up in Uraya? Trying to get to the World Tree?"
Rex nodded, "Yeah. We were almost there when something attacked us. It looked like a snake made of metal."
"Ophion," The dark Aegis interrupted, unable to bring himself to just listen to their conversation any longer. When they both looked at him, Malos quickly cleared his throat and explained. "The thing that stopped us is known as Ophion."
Vandham nodded his head before he turned to face Malos, "Why do you know what it was? Does it have anything to do with you being the Aegis?"
The dark element Blade nodded, "Yeah. It's an Artifice from Elysium," He explained simply, and Rex looked up at him. The fifteen-year-old looked curious, and Malos realized his Driver was about to ask a question. The Aegis had a feeling what it would be, considering he had yet to explain the concept of Artifices to Rex.
"What are Artifices?"
Malos sighed, "An Artifice is basically a metallic being that can receive commands from an Aegis such as myself or Mythra," The man explained, making sure he did not mention Snow. He could see the relief in Regan's expression as he did not bring up Winter's name.
"I see. There are other Artifices then?"
The Blade nodded his head. "Yeah. I commanded Artifices called Gargoyles during the Aegis War. I only have a few of them now," For obvious reasons, he did not bother to mention his Siren. "Mythra was the one that gave orders to Ophion," Rex's eyes widened a little at that, and he stood up from the crate he had been sitting on.
"Really? Is that why it acted like it was going to attack us?"
Malos shook his head, "The thing is...Ophion shouldn't even be there. From what I-" He cut himself off abruptly, trying to put his fragmented memories together of what was supposed to be the final fight with Mythra. Once he managed to put more of it in place in his mind he spoke again, "I defeated Ophion through commanding my Gargoyles to overwhelm it."
"Someone repaired it then?" Nia asked as she moved to stand next to Regan.
The dark Blade looked down at the Gormotti, "Definitely. I have no idea who fixed it, unfortunately."
Regan crossed her arms. "That sucks. I did notice that Ophion left us alone once we turned around and moved away from the World Tree," she commented, remembering how the Artifice had only stopped them from going to the World Tree and had not tried to follow them any further.
"Yeah, I noticed that too," Rex responded.
Malos shrugged. "I have no idea. All that matters is that it stopped us from getting from the World Tree," He let out a sigh before looking at Rex, "We'll have to find a way to deal with it, so we can get to Elysium."
Sounds of boots crashing upon the ground interrupted their conversation. "Elysium? We can't possibly let that stand."
Maddie grimaced as Akhos spoke, internally hoping that neither Regan nor Malos would notice her. She knew it was stupid to hope for that, considering that she was standing right next to Akhos and Obrona. As everyone in the training area turned to look at the three of them, Maddie avoided eye contact with Regan as the Elf looked at her.
The Gormotti looked at the three people, "Akhos, Maddie," Nia narrowed as she looked at the two of them. She did not mention Obrona, likely because she did not want the Blade to start speaking. Considering the high pitched tone Obrona always had, Maddie would have probably done the same if she was in Nia's position.
"Ah, Nia. Jin said to deal with you in whatever way I please, so you know what that means," Akhos stated sadistically while adjusting his red glasses mid speech.
"No! He wouldn't," Nia shook her head before giving him a disbelieving look, "You're lying," She accused.
Akhos chuckled, "What's the matter? Did you think he would still care about you?" Maddie turned to glare at the man; however, he ignored her. "Oh, to live in your reality!"
Beside Ahkos, a blade floated down. She had pieces of thick armor covering her face, and brilliant yellow wings her ether lines went through. "Traitor, Traitor, Traitor! You're one of the bad guys now, Nia, you villain!" Obrona exclaimed as she put her hands together.
Maddie could not stand it and turned to glare at both the Blade and her Driver, "Shut it you two. Nia was well within her rights to leave us," She crossed her arms over her chest as Akhos looked at her.
"By that tone, you're jealous aren't you?"
"Doesn't matter," Maddie avoided eye contact as she responded.
"Doesn't it? I'm sure Mythra would be very thrilled to learn of that," The woman rolled her eyes at his sarcastic statement.
"She already hates my guts anyway, so it does not matter."
"Alright, can we just cut to chase and get to why you're here?" Maddie knew that voice, and she instinctively looked at Regan. Instantly, she regretted her decision when Regan made eye contact. Able to feel the sadness and agitation of the Elf, Maddie took a step back.
Akhos turned his attention to Regan then, "We want the Aegis of course. I doubt he'll just come with us willingly, however."
"Who are these guys?" Vandham questioned as he looked at all three of the newcomers.
"Members of Torna. They've been trying to capture Malos,"Rex explained to the mercenary leader. The man flinched in response as he glared at Akhos, Obrona, and Maddie.
"Torna?!" Vandham exclaimed before he suddenly grabbed Roc's Twin Scythes from his back and got into a combat stance. "I know the name Torna. They've taken the lives of too many Drivers. My people included," The man stared at the three Torna members for a moment in thought of what to do next. "If these people really are members of Torna… Yew, Zuo, get everyone out of the village!"
"You want me to stay and fight with you?" Ethan asked the mercenary leader as he prepared to grab Lucy's Knuckle Claws to fight with.
Vandham nodded to the Elf's question, and Ethan took the Knuckle Claws from his belt and readied to fight. Looking somewhat reluctant, Regan stepped back as she stared in Maddie's direction.
Still unable to bring herself to accept eye contact with the Elf, Maddie stepped away from Akhos while refusing to summon her weapon. She knew Mythra would see such an action as betrayal; however, the blonde Aegis already was looking for any reason to get rid of her.
"You're not going to fight?" Akhos asked as he looked towards her, and Maddie shook her head. The man looked a little annoyed at this as he drew the Brilliant Twinblades from his hips. "Fine then. I'll do this by myself with Obrona's support," Maddie knew full well the man was refraining from yelling curses at her.
Ethan looked towards Regan, "Stay out of the way for now. Just act as support," Regan nodded, knowing that it was likely for the best when she was not wearing her armor. Backing away until she was out of close combat range, Eva handed the Ether Bow to her.
As she watched the fight, Regan would fire off bolts of ice in Akhos' direction. Obrona would usually be a second too late to pull up a shield, so Akhos was caught off guard a few times as Rex took the opportunities to get in close and strike at the man. Akhos narrowly managed to avoid the blows before he parried Nia's attacks as the Gormotti jumped at him.
Knocking Nia away from him, Akhos seemed to realize he was outmatched. It was difficult to even focus when he had to turn and block constant attacks that Obrona was unable to shield him from. Being hit with bolts of ice Ether certainly was not helping, and Akhos knew he would probably have to target Regan if he was to be able to have a chance.
Akhos doubted targeting Regan would be simple, considering that the others would likely protect her if he attempted it. If he was able to knock her down, Akhos might be able to use that to be able to gain the upper hand with the rest of them. Looking at Obrona, he tossed one of the Brilliant Twinblades at her.
Effortlessly catching it, Obrona seemed to catch on to his plan. Flying up in the air, she sent a wave of electric Ether at Rex and Malos. The dark Aegis created a shield, preventing the electricity from hitting either him or his Driver. With a little less pressure on him, Akhos spoke to Obrona. "Now!"
The others seemed to not realize his intentions, with the exception of Nia. She was unable to warn everyone before Obrona flew above them and her body glowed with a red light. Malos instantly felt the change, wincing as his Ether link with Rex weakened. His Monado had deactivated, much like it had when they had fought against Vandham.
Taking the opportunity, Akhos gripped one of the Brilliant Twinblades in his hand while he sprinted around everyone who had stopped what they were doing when their weapons no longer worked properly. Regan noticed him running towards her, and she managed to dodge his first attempt at striking her.
She tried to fire with Eva's bow at him; however, he was too close to her before she could. Ducking under his arm at the last second, Regan managed to once again avoid getting hit. If she did not feel exhausted, she would be sure that she could dodge all the attacks that Eva would be unable to shield her from.
Resting a hand on her left thigh, Regan suddenly parried one of Akhos hits with her knife. It was not a perfect parry by any means, but Regan knew it was better than allowing herself to be hit. Her armor did not protect her much to begin with since it was so light. Without it though, the Elf had nothing to prevent getting cut if she failed to dodge. Eva managed to shield her at times, yet she could not create an infinite amount of shields.
Once again dodging as Akhos jumped at her, the left sleeve of her shirt getting nicked by the weapon. Knowing full well she needed to get away from him, she attempted to run around him. He managed to strike at her again, this time the Brilliant Twinblade slicing through her right sleeve and cutting her upper arm.
The cut was very much a minor wound; however, it did catch Regan off guard. She winced slightly, and she spotted everyone trying to get to her. They only made it halfway across the training ground before Akhos was lunging at Regan again. The Elvuenian was able to dodge out of the way, but she lost her balance and fell to the ground onto her side.
Akhos smiled at the sight of her lying on the ground, knowing the others would be unable to get her in time. Raising the Brilliant Twinblade, he swung down only to be met with the sound of Obrona's weapon clanging off of something metal. Eyes widening, he looked to his right and realized what had happened.
Gripping her staff tightly, Maddie glared at the man. "You really are something, Akhos. She's already lying on the ground, so just leave her alone," The Flesh Eater would have much preferred for Akhos to have not hurt Regan at all; however, she refused to continue to just stand there any longer.
"You really want to go this route, Maddie?" Akhos questioned as Obrona came to his side and handed him the other Brilliant Twinblade. The blonde looked over Akhos' shoulder at the others who were now staring at her. She looked Malos in the eyes, trying to convey an apology to him.
"Maddie?" The sound of Regan's voice almost made Maddie loosen her grip on her silver colored staff. Not answering, the Flesh Eater looked at Akhos and narrowed her eyes. Meeting her gaze, the man appeared to realize Maddie was not going to back down.
"So, this is it, then? You're betraying us for them?"
Maddie did not say a word in response, yet Akhos let out a sigh of disappointment. "I see." The man was silent for a moment before he suddenly lunged at her. Raising her staff, both Brilliant Twinblades collided with it. She winced at his attack, almost losing grip on her weapon.
"Your skills are rusty, Maddie," Akhos commented as he tossed the Brilliant Twinblades at Obrona. Electricity shot in Maddie's direction, and the Flesh Eater winced before the end of her staff started to glow. Through the use of the light coming from her staff, she was able to counter.
While she was unharmed, Maddie quickly took note that Obrona was no longer holding the Brilliant Twinblades. Eyes widening, she turned to her left and was unable to raise her staff in time as Akhos jumped at her. Maddie flinched as her staff was knocked from her hands, watching as it fell far enough away that she could not grab it swiftly.
The Flesh Eater looked up and was greeted with the sight of Akhos tossing the twin blades back at Obrona. Putting a hand up, she felt her arm tremble as she attempted to put up a barrier. Akhos grinned as he watched the shaking of Maddie's arm.
A burst of electric Ether came down upon Maddie, and she looked behind her on the ground at Regan. She knew moving out of the way was not an option for her as she looked back at Elf. Shutting her eyes, she prepared for the surge of electricity to hit her.
After a moment, Maddie felt nothing. She opened her eyes, only to see the familiar black plated armor of the dark Aegis. "Malos?" Looking past him, she could see the shield he had created. Malos was quiet for a moment as the barrier disappeared, and Akhos stepped back with Obrona in tow with him.
Just as Maddie was about to question the dark Blade again, he turned his body to look back at her. "Just get Regan and yourself to safety." Nodding at his words, Maddie turned around and saw Regan already attempting to get up. The Elf's right leg was shaking, and Maddie simply grabbed one of Regan's arms and pulled it over her shoulders.
Lifting the shorter woman up, Maddie moved with her toward the others. Rex watched them for a moment, his eyes looking over Regan. Once he seemed satisfied that she was alright, the fifteen-year-old turned his attention to Malos. Just as he did, Rex suddenly felt a sharp pain in his palm.
The Leftherian instinctively looked down at his left hand, taking note of the wound that seemed to have no cause. Shaking his head, Rex ran towards Malos' side with the Blade's sword in hand. Glancing at the Aegis, the boy's eyes fell onto the Blade's hands.
The man's right hand was normal; however, Rex noticed that his left hand had a cut across the palm. Pushing down the urge to start questioning the Blade, Rex directed his attention to Akhos and Obrona.
"Stop this! Akhos, this isn't necessary!" Nia pleaded as she watched him preparing another attack.
Watching as she stood next to Rex and Malos, Torna's sworn enemies, Akhos snapped. "Shut it, Nia. How could you leave us? Pyra fed you, just like she did for all of us. You left us for a kid you barely knew. We were supposed to be a family, yet you abandoned us so easily," He turned his attention to Maddie then, "Same goes for you."
Nia's ears pinned back on her head, and she looked down at the ground. "It wasn't easy, believe me," Despite seeing her expression, Akhos gripped the Brilliant Twinblades in his hands tightly as he prepared to lunge at her. He was interrupted by shots of wind Ether being launched at both him and Obrona.
Looking to the right of them, Nia spotted Vandham standing there with Roc flying within a vortex of wind. The constant projectiles being launched at Akhos and his Blade caused him to realize he would not be able to keep up much longer, even as he managed to block most of the attacks. Backing away with Obrona following after him, Akhos said nothing as they escaped.
"Regan, are you alright?"
Looking up at Rex's question, the Elf nodded her head as Maddie helped her over to the crate in the training area. Regan winced a little as she finally sat down on the crate while she rubbed her right knee. She took notice of Rex's still concerned expression, "I'm okay, Rex. My right leg has just been weaker ever since I broke it."
While the fifteen-year-old's expression stayed the same, he let out a sigh before looking at Vandham. "What do we do now?" Nia asked as she looked up at the mercenary leader with her arms crossed over her chest. "If we still want to go to the World Tree, just staying here won't help us."
Vandham looked at all of them while considering an answer before his eyes fell on Malos. "A friend of mine in Fonsa Myma might be able to help. He owns a theater," The man explained as Malos nodded his head, yet he did not seem to be paying full attention.
"So, Fonsa Myma then, is that the plan?" Regan winced as she rested her left hand on the upper part of her right arm as she spoke. The Leftherian looked at Vandham before he nodded his head and glanced up at the dark Aegis. Malos met the boy's eyes before nodding his head as well. No other words were said until they decided to head out the next day.
Everyone left the training area, except for Nia, Regan, and Malos. Watching as his Driver left, the Aegis looked down his left hand. His face flickered with regret for a moment before he looked at Regan as she suddenly spoke to him.
"You should talk with him." When Malos did not respond, Regan let out a sigh before speaking again. "He deserves an explanation, Malos." After Regan said his name, this seemed to get the man's attention. He looked down at her for a moment before nodding his head.
"You're right."
Uraya, Aegis War Era
"Which one?" Addam asked as he looked towards the Elvuenian woman standing next to him on his right. Looking back and forth between the deep purple and icy blue, crucifix-shaped Core Crystals Ant shook her head.
"Does it really matter? We'll be awakening both of them regardless."
Since he was wearing a cloak with the hood up, Antea was unable to get a good look at Addam's current expression. When he spoke next; however, she could hear the tremble in his voice. "What…if they are just like Mythra? What if they try to-" Placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, the queen's gaze fell onto both of the cores once again.
"You know as well as I do that it might be a possibility…but if we don't awaken them, we won't stand a chance against Mythra," The prince nodded his head before he looked towards the two Core Crystals, his eyes falling and finally staying on the amethyst core.
Reaching towards the purple Core Crystal, Addam hesitated for a couple of seconds before he pressed his fingers against it. Amethyst colored light filled the air around them before a tall man appeared in front of them. Wearing black plated armor with staggered plate pauldrons, the newly awakened Blade seemed fairly intimidating by his height alone.
The man's eyes opened, so Addam and Antea were stared down at by a pair of steely gray eyes. His eyes seemed unfriendly if Addam was honest, and the prince was already worried he would not help them. Letting out a sigh, Addam finally spoke. "My name is Addam. What is yours?"
Watching his Driver closely as he responded, Malos spoke in a surprisingly less intimidating tone than Addam had anticipated. "It's Malos. Why have you awakened me?" The tall Blade questioned, and Addam looked taken aback.
"I-" Addam cut himself off as he glanced at Ant, and she gave him an encouraging nod. Crossing his arms over his chest, he once again looked up at Malos. "We need your help. Another of your kind, known as Mythra, has been causing nothing but destruction and death everywhere she goes."
"How did you get my Core Crystal?"
Addam sighed at the question, "After Mythra abandoned her Driver, he asked for both mine and Ant's presence in Indol. Since he did not trust himself to be able to do something about her, he chose us." The prince explained before he motioned to the other crucifix-shaped Core Crystal.
"I get to fight?" Addam felt a slight hint of worry at Malos' question, already regretting awakening the Aegis in front of him. If Malos sensed it he did not voice it to Addam. "I'll help you. You plan to awaken the other one?" The Blade stated to Addam before looking at Ant.
"Of course. Two Aegises against one should give us an edge against Mythra at least."
Addam looked down at the ground before he finally thought to himself that Malos should have a weapon. "Malos, where's your weapon?" The tall Blade simply summoned a sword like weapon, with a circular shaped part right after the hilt of it. Spike-like things stuck out from the top part of the circular area. The rest of the sword almost looked normal if it was not for the dark purple Ether that ignited from the end of it.
"It's my Monado," Malos explained while looking down at the Amethyst Core Crystal at the latter part of the circle. The prince stared at the Monado for a moment before he looked back at Ant. Antea nodded in response before she moved her hand to touch the icy blue Core Crystal.