-Chapter 2: Restoration-
Slayer relaxed comfortably within his office chair, biting down gently upon his pipe. It had been at least six hours now since the unexplained disappearance of the "self-proclaimed" leader, Venom. Frankly, the nightwalker could care less about the prideful bastard, let alone his whereabouts. But, as the Guild's former chieftain, he would have to track down Venom, whether he liked it or not.
"Sharon," he murmured gently as his eyes watched the dusk slowly descend into the mountains far from the manor.
"Yes, my love?" Sharon replied almost shyly as she appeared in his doorway. Slayer stood up from his seat, walked around his desk, and began to seep into a nearby shadow.
"I am going out for a while. It seems one of ours decided to take an early leave. Would you mind dealing with any business concerning me while I am away?" his voice echoed as he disappeared. Sharon nodded as if he were right there before her.
"Yes, dear. I will take care of everything," she whispered.
-
Johnny looked at his watch a moment as he stood out on the Jellyfish, watching the sun melt away and leave behind a deep reddish purple hue in its wake. Dizzy had been gone for some time now, and he was beginning to worry. Not only about her, but about his own life as well.
"Where is Dizzy?" A dark, haunting tone split through the air. Johnny yelped, spinning on heel to turn around and see who it was that had spoken so abruptly, derailing his train of thought. It was Testament; his ghostly figure standing upright as a raven perched upon his shoulder, glaring at Johnny as well. Johnny murmured feebly underneath his breath.
"Gah!..Oh..you see—."
"Where is Dizzy?! Have you lost her again?!" Testament bellowed. Johnny could feel a cold sweat beginning to break out upon his face.
"Jeez, man let me finish! She left earlier without warning. May told me that she said something about helping mend some sad guy's heart," Johnny finally uttered. Testament closed his eyes, sighed, and rested a pale hand on his forehead.
"I knew I shouldn't have left you humans as her caretakers," he muttered. Johnny's brow arched.
"Yeah right! Like you could have done better!" he yelled. "Dizzy means a lot to us, Testament. But we can't keep her caged in up here like an animal, for cryin' out loud! If she wants to do something alone, we should let her, don't you think?!" Testament sighed and turned his back on Johnny.
"Very well. Do as you will. But if I find that any harm has come to her, all of you are to suffer," he threatened. Johnny sighed and wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Yeah, I hear ya," he muttered. Testament began to walk towards the bow of the Jellyfish, the raven on his shoulder shrieking every now and then before leaving its perch. Johnny watched him leap from it and transform into nothingness before turning back around to watch the sky.
Dizzy...hurry up...
-
Testament sat down upon the ground, sweeping the dust off of his boots before tilting his head back upon a rock, which served as a pillow for the moment. Exhaling gently, he closed his eyes a moment before opening them again, and looked at the night sky. A cold breeze swept over him suddenly, forcing him to sit up abruptly and tend to the flickering flame that was too annoyed by the wind. Silence again. Testament loved it...other times, an odd feeling of loneliness and wanting to rid himself of it would occur, and he'd still cast it aside.
"Do you like feeling like shit?" a gruff voice asked, forcing Testament to look up. Sol Badguy?! Why the hell would he be here, of all places?! Testament disregarded his feelings immediately, and looked back down at the ground. To his knowledge, Sol was taken by that Ky Kiske, anyway.
"How I feel has nothing to do with you. If you are here to kill me, Gear Hunter, then do it now," he muttered. "Or rather...attempt to do so," he added. Sol snorted.
"I don't hunt Gears anymore."
Testament's eyes widened slightly. What?! Sol was no longer a Gear hunter? When did this happen?!
"What made you decide to give up such a prestigious duty?" Testament asked, almost mockingly, his pale features seeming to pale even more as he spoke. Sol chuckled.
"A lot of things, but mainly you," he said, his tone and expression not changing their expressionless form. Testament fell silent. Sol still stood over him, looking him over in his slightly lounged state. Testament knew....he could feel his eyes wandering.
"And what of Ky Kiske?" Testament asked abruptly, looking at the dying flame nearby them. Sol again snorted.
"What about him?" Testament sat up finally, then slowly rose to his feet. Meeting Sol's expressionless gaze with one of his own, Testament exhaled harshly, then turned his back on him.
"I thought the both of you....you and Ky...were together," he murmured. Sol chuckled faintly, as if those words were never true.
"Exactly: 'were' together. Things change, Testament."
"I see....and, because of your undying lust, you would rather throw away a man that could be longing for your heart simply to indulge yourself with another?" Testament asked plainly, all the while looking at the ground. Sol scoffed.
"Tch. Lust is indulged upon constantly, with many people. Lust is what I had with Ky, but...my intuition tells me that with you...things are gonna be different," he said, his boastful tone at first dying to a harsh, yet somehow soothing one. Testament could tell the difference, and his black heart was slowly regaining its composure...but...very slowly. In an instant, Testament was pulled back-first into Sol's body, welcomed by nothing but his warmth. Sol breathed into his ear, smiled, and began to whisper into it.
"So you tell me. Is this lust to you?" Testament was speechless. So many feelings that were lost when he was transformed into a Gear were slowly beginning to return, one after another! But he dare not show it!
"I would not be able to decide between the two..." Testament confessed. Sol let him go, sighing some, but that smirk still was plastered upon his face.
"Because you've never felt it since your decent into a Gear's world?" he questioned. Testament shook his head, throwing away a fondness that he'd possessed for some time.
"Perhaps," he said finally. Sol chuckled some, and turned around to look at the dead forest that surrounded him.
"So this is your idea of paradise?" he asked. Testament looked at the forest as well, and nodded slowly.
"Yes...as decadent as it is...yes...it is beautiful," he said gently, reminiscing. However, as the memories were returning, voices flooded his audible radar with them. He turned quickly, and began to follow his senses. Sol followed closely behind.
"By the way, I'm still waiting for an answer, Testament," he added.
"To which question?' Testament asked. Sol grinned.
"If you'd consider my offer...and trust me with your heart. I would gladly give mine to you into return," he said, still grinning. Testament, if it were at all possible, would have blushed had it not been for his current state. Still following the voices, the two finally found the source.
"Dizzy," Testament whispered. Sol glanced in his direction a moment before continuing to watch the unfolding events. There was someone else with her. A tall, white-haired man with an odd pattern dyed into the portions of hair that hid most of his face, except for a single eye. He was dressed oddly, and he carried a....pool stick? The two still watched as Dizzy and the man spoke to one another.
"So..where is it?" Dizzy asked. "Right here," the man said sadly.
"I carried his body here after the fight...buried him with..my own hands.." Dizzy looked at the man and rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't be sad, okay? You did what you had to do..." she said, comforting him as best she could. "Now...Venom...would you mind stepping back a little? Necro will try his best at this," she said, motioning him away from the grave site. Venom did as told,. And watched quietly. Dizzy stepped back a few paces herself, then raised her arms over her head.
"Necro..I ask of you..please....please cure this man of his sadness! Let him see that which he has lost! Wake his soulmate from every plane of existence and bring him here, his own soul and no other's! Free him of his parasites and demons!!" she yelled, her voice echoing throughout the forest as her darker of wings spread forth, and the dark lord was summoned. He released a screech of a howl as the winds picked up from every direction, and rustled the leaves about them in every fashion. Venom raised a hand to protect his sight from the flying debris, and squinted as the wind blew furiously about them. Dizzy began to pant as the winds receded, and Necro returned within his confines. Holding her head, she sighed, and then looked ahead of her. What stood...no...lay before her was the naked body of Zato. Face down, and unmoving. Venom lowered his hand from his face, and what he saw brought tears to the corners of his eyes...though...he could not weep.
"Za...Zato..." he whispered as he rushed to his Master's side, and knelt to touch his shoulder. It was cold at first, but was beginning to slowly heat. Venom wanted to cry for joy...but even that was to be contained at the moment. Hugging the still unconscious body against him, Venom only sighed, rejoicing in this that he'd so long ago lost. Coming to his senses finally, he scooped Zato up into his arms, and turned to face Dizzy.
"We must get him cleaned and clothed quickly!" he said. Dizzy nodded, but before a word could erupt from her lips, another spoke instead.
"We'll take him in," a gruff voice said. Venom and Dizzy turned to locate the owner of the voice.
"Sol.." Dizzy said, nearly surprised, but then was very surprised as another stood and spoke.
"There is reasonable shelter nearby," Testament said as he rose beside Sol. Dizzy was at first speechless, but at the same time wanted to ask so many questions! Noticing the still unclothed and cradled body of Zato in Venom's arms, Dizzy snapped out of her daze.
"R..Right!" she said, following Sol and Testament beside Venom into the forest.
-
May watched as Johnny stormed down a hall, passing her cabin, but then turned back around to enter it.
"Man, where the hell is she?! If we don't get her back, Testament's gonna kill us!!" he yelped. May sighed and returned to watching Bridget's yo- yoing lesson.
"And this is what I call 'loop the loop'!" he said enthusiastically, ordering the yo-yo about with his hands. "See? But it's only really cool when Roger's with me! I left him at home today, though," he said. May nodded, and picked up her own yo-yo; a gift from Bridget.
"Johnny, calm down. She'll come back safe," she said. "Now how do you do this?...Loop the loo—WAH!" May wailed as the yo-yo smacked her in the forehead. Bridget began to giggle uncontrollably. Johnny placed his hand over his face and sighed.
"Oye.." he murmured. Bridget pushed himself off of May's bed and bounded towards Johnny, throwing himself onto him.
"Don't be sad, Johnny! We'll find her!" he yipped cheerfully. Johnny groaned, and pushed Bridget away from him. "Fine, Bridge....but...don't ever jump on me like that again," he muttered, walking out of May's cabin abruptly and returned down the hall. Bridget looked confused a moment before looking at May.
"What'd I do?" he asked. May smirked.
"Something you'll find out about later in life, Bridget. Now, show me another trick. This stupid 'loop the loop' thing isn't working for me," she muttered, rubbing her forehead.
-
Slayer followed his instincts as he slipped expertly through the forest, from shadow to light, effortlessly. He'd picked up Venom's trail a long time ago, but what interested him the most was the scent of renewed death. What had he done now? As these thoughts ran through his mind, Slayer suddenly came to a halt. The stagnant air of death had suddenly been lifted from his nostrils!
"No...it can't be....! This....how.....?!" he uttered. It was an old scent...but he remembered. Zato?! Alive?! No! How could this be?! Slayer exhaled a moment, regaining his senses before continuing through the forest. Zato....this was...impossible!! Venom, what have you done?! Slayer thought to himself as he raced through the shadows and moonlight that decorated the dead forest's floor.
-
Venom watched fondly as Dizzy removed the damp cloth from Zato's forehead. His eyes were closed still, for he had not used them yet, but he was breathing. For the moment, he was given a dress shirt from Venom's own back, and a pair of leather pants that Dizzy had crafted after a long time of practice during Zato's cleansing period. As she wrung the cloth's contents into a wooden pail, Venom approached the still Zato, at first a little cautious, but then became a bit more comfortable as Zato began to take in the sounds around him, and knelt finally beside him.
"....Nn...Where...am I?" he asked, slowly opening his eyes—squinting some to adjust to the exposure of light—and looking around him, and then at the two that were looking back at him. One of them, he was beginning to remember...while the other, he did not know of.
"....Venom..." he whispered almost hoarsely.
"Rest, Master Zato," Venom said gently as he stood from his kneeling position. "You will have a lot to take in, soon..." Venom smiled gently as Zato blinked a few times, then reached out toward him with a hand.
"Am I...dead...Venom?" he asked. Venom smiled and shook his head, the words that came next coming from his heart as his smile widened even more.
"Not anymore, you're not, Master Zato." Dizzy smiled, proud that this was just one step in her quest to end misery. Standing from her kneeling position with the cloth in hand, she left the reunited two alone, and ventured out of the decrepit, poorly lit cabin that belonged to Testament, who could be found outside beside Sol Badguy. Dizzy cleared her throat a moment before speaking.
"Um...Sol...? Testament? I...wanted to ask you two something.." she said cautiously, knowing that Sol's temper could be sparked easily from a past experience in battle. Testament was the one that turned around to face her.
"Yes?" he asked. Dizzy bit her lower lip some, ashamed of her curiosity of the two only for a moment.
"I...I...thought that Sol...was with...Sir Ky?" she managed. No gesture came from Testament nor Sol.
"That's in the past, Dizzy," Sol said, unmoving. Dizzy swallowed hard before the next question came.
"But...Testament?.....I thought that your heart died a long time ago," she said. Testament looked downward a moment before looking at her again, his ghostly features brightened in the moonlight.
"So did I...but...because I was once human....this seems to be untrue..for..my heart...is beginning to fade from a hellish black to crimson...I can feel it.." he admitted. Sol looked at him a moment, then returned to looked at the dead forest ahead. Suddenly, Sol's eyes widened, almost instantaneously as Dizzy and Testament's did.
"Do you feel that?" Dizzy asked the two men as she began to step back slowly. Sol drew forth his blade as he growled lowly.
"Yeah..." he growled. Testament raised an arm, allowing his blood red scythe to take form in his hand. As the trio waited in anticipation, the sound of laughter turned their heads toward the tent, where a tall man stood....old...glasses...was that the nightwalker?!
"Would one of you be so kind as to tell me why Zato is..as my senses inform me...alive?" he asked. Dizzy took a step forward. "Why would it matter to you?" she asked. The man chuckled.
"Because I am his leader, madam.." he said, bowing elegantly.
-End Ch 2-
