Yay! Weekend!!! I'd forgotten how torturous homework was. No wonder it took me so long to update last year... ^_^'
Anyway, back to the uplifting weekend stuff, I am feeling wonderfully inspired and super-psyched... for the last chapter. Which this isn't. Ehehe... but don't worry, I've got a few ideas for this one, too! Don't hurt me...
Disclaimer: Me? Own Golden Sun? Wow, and I thought I was crazy...
Ah, let's try a few little replyish thingies... whateveryoucallems. (I'm not gonna do every single one of you... so don't be offended if I don't answer you. ^^)
Griffinkhan: Yeah, Ivan does seem to get hurt quite a lot... probably because he's cute when he's vulnerable. ^_^
Wild Fox of the Wasteland: I'm glad you can enjoy it despite your feelings on Windshippyness... ^^
Ivan's Kitsune: Hey, we're talking about my all-time favorite character here. Don't worry, I'm not gonna neglect him! ^^ But I'll keep that in mind.
Ice Princess: Heheheh... only the authoress knows what the future has in store. I don't really know how I got the idea for that attack (it just kinda popped into my head). Thanks!
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"Ugh, I can't see a thing..."
"Consider us lucky. This is nothing compared to Altmiller Cave."
"Um...?"
"Oh, right, you weren't there, were you? Let's just say that somehow the cave walls managed to continuously collide with Garet's head."
"...That wasn't funny, Isaac. I came out of that with a lot of bruises."
"Thanks for enlightening me... oh, this is ridiculous. Shine, get out here!" The Adepts had to shield their eyes as the cave was suddenly lit up with a bright flash. "Um, thanks, that's what I needed, but could you maybe tone the light down a little?" Jenna asked, blinking slightly.
"Sure thing, Jen!" the Djinni replied happily as it settled onto the Mars Adept's cinnamon ponytail. As the light dimmed, Sheba surveyed the path in front of them.
"Wow, this tunnel seems to go on forever," she mused as she stared ahead from the front of the group. Shine's light cast long shadows on the walls of the tunnel, giving the path ahead of them an eerie, surreal look.
"When that worker described this cave, I pictured something a bit shorter. We've been walking for a while now," commented Ivan as he came to stand next to her. After a pause, he narrowed his eyes slightly. "What's that sound?"
The group stopped to listen as the sound grew louder. Sheba listened harder. It sounded almost like... wings. Thousands and thousands of wings...
Suddenly high-pitched screeches were echoing off the cave walls as a dark cloud engulfed the party. Bats. Normally a small threat, but there had to be over a hundred of them! Temporarily forgetting their Psyenergy, the group shielded themselves with swords, staves, and even their packs as they swatted at the creatures surrounding them.
Sheba felt Ivan grab her free hand. A thought passed between them. "Back up!" Ivan yelled to the rest of the group. They quickly obliged, pressing themselves against the cave walls.
"Shine Plasma!" two voices yelled, and the bats fell like rain. Sheba shook one off her shoulder and onto the ground, wrinkling her nose in disgust. But the rest of the creatures weren't giving up.
"Inferno!"
"Ice Missile!"
"Stone Spire!"
"Wait, wait!" Mia yelled, dodging a pillar of flame. "We can't all fight at once in such a small space! We'll kill each other!"
"She's right," Felix agreed. "I can't even see the rest of you! Garet and Picard, you two back up with me and don't attack unless we're needed."
"Aw, come on," Garet muttered as he backed away, fire fading from his hands. "Why do I have to sit out?"
"At least they are only bats," Picard stated, then gave a sudden, startled cry, hitting the ground as large claws flashed in front of him.
"Heat Wave!" Garet shouted, sending red-hot flame shooting toward where Picard had been standing. There was a shriek from amidst the cloud of bats as something even bigger hit the floor.
A bright blue light pulsed at Garet's feet, and the Lemurian slowly stood. "So much for only bats."
"We've got a problem!" Felix yelled to the others. "There's something much bigger than bats in there! You'll want to deal with this fast!"
"We're trying!" Mia yelled back as the room began to dim. "Jenna, what's going on?"
"Shine can't last forever, you know!" Jenna replied, getting annoyed as she continuously threw balls of fire into the cloud around her. She was more likely to hit her friends than hit a monster; what was the point of this? Her attacks grew in size and heat as she took out her frustration on the enemies around her.
"Uh-oh," Garet muttered. "Jenna's pissed..."
Finally, her patience snapped. "I summon Mars!" she cried, ignoring her friends' startled shouts as they dove for cover.
"Jenna, what are you doing?" Ivan yelled, pressed into a corner. "We're all going to be deep-fried!" Sheba was beside him, shielding herself from the singing fire as best she could. This was exactly the wrong time for a summon! What had she been thinking?
"When I said I was hungry, I didn't really have Adept casserole in mind!" Garet shouted, sounding annoyed. "Calm down!"
When the fire had finally died down, all that was left was a slightly sheepish Jenna and several fading bats littering the floor. "Um, sorry... you all survived that, didn't you?"
"Barely..." Isaac and Felix grumbled in unison, picking themselves up from the ground. Both were badly singed, and the fact that they were Venus Adepts didn't help any.
"Oh, man, I'm really sorry... here." Jenna held out both hands as a red light surrounded the other party members. The burns quickly disappeared, and angry expressions softened a bit.
"That's all right, Jenna," Mia replied, brushing her robes off. "At least it got rid of all the monsters." She looked around at the now empty tunnel they stood in. "Hey... didn't someone find a bigger monster? We never even found out what it was."
"It had claws," Picard supplied, rubbing his arm. "Sharp claws."
"Well, I'd say it's best to get moving now," Felix suggested, peering into the darkness warily. "There's bound to be more where those came from, and with Shine gone, we won't even be able to see."
"Oh, that's right," said Jenna. "Shine... are you charged up again yet?"
"Well, I would be," echoed the Djinni's high voice, "but if you recall, a certain Mars Adept used me for a summon. It'll take a while to recover."
"Oh, Mars, I'm an idiot," Jenna mumbled. "We can't waste Psyenergy on a flame, either; we're already tapped from that fight."
"Well, we can't stay here," Isaac sighed resignedly. "We'll have to keep going in the dark. Let's make... two lines. Just keep in contact."
Sheba felt a touch on her shoulder, and almost jumped before she realized it was Ivan. Reaching in front of her, she realized there was no one there. She was at the head of the line.
"Who's in front?" Isaac called from somewhere close behind her.
"I am," she heard Mia say from her left.
"Me too," she said. Her heart was racing; from fear, she suspected. She would much rather have been in the middle of her line. As the group began to move, Sheba was acutely aware of Ivan's hands on her shoulders.
"I feel like a little kid playing choo-choo train," Garet joked as they shuffled along. No one responded; an eerie silence had blanketed the group. Sheba was very uneasy. She wished she had someone in front of her to hold on to - she felt vulnerable. The party trekked on in silence; the minutes piled up. From time to time, the group began to notice a strange purple crystal glowing in patches on the walls and floor.
"What is it?" Mia murmured softly.
"No clue," responded Isaac from behind her.
Suddenly, Mia cried out. A split second later, Sheba stepped into thin air, and with a strangled gasp, began to fall downward. More startled cries, dropping weapons, and scuffling sounded behind her, and arms fastened around her waist, stopping her with a jerk. Her legs dangled out into space.
A flash lit the scene, accompanied by a cheerful cry of "I'm back!" The little Djinni squeaked in astonishment moments afterward, and the light wavered. "Oh my..."
Sheba stared down at her feet, not wanting to comprehend what she saw. The pit below her faded into blackness. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, trying to make the panic that had filled her body disappear. Maybe it was better that she couldn't see the bottom...
Remembering the arms locked around her waist, she looked down and saw familiar purple sleeves. "I-Ivan?" she stuttered. Her terrified brain couldn't seem to make her mouth work right.
A voice spoke startlingly close to her left ear. "Right here," Ivan responded shakily.
Turning her head, she surveyed the scene behind her as best she could.
"Oh, Jupiter..."
Ivan was directly behind her, arms wrapped around her waist in a death grip, back against the cliff face. Clutching his cape with one hand was Jenna, balanced exactly on the edge of the drop and looking as though she was about to faint. She clung to Picard's wrist with her other hand.
Also attached to the Lemurian's wrist was Felix, who had remained firmly standing and was linked to Garet, who in turn clung to Isaac's ankle. Isaac himself was on his stomach, half on and half off the cliff. Mia, to Sheba's left, clutched Isaac's hand in both of hers, petrified.
The group's anchoring force was Picard's crimson wristband, which had caught on a rock jutting out of the wall.
"Picard..." Jenna moaned, "could you maybe switch our weight to something more... substantial?"
"My other hand is rather occupied at the moment," he responded through gritted teeth. Sheba saw his point. She fervently prayed to the gods and goddesses of Jupiter that his arm wouldn't be torn off. "I hope we have a plan," he added, sounding a bit panicked. "My joints were not designed to bear so much weight."
Sheba squeezed her eyes shut. Come on, think! Her stomach had begun to ache from gravity's determined attempts to pull her down into the black abyss below her. Looking down at the spot in question, she saw that Ivan's knuckles were white, and felt his arms trembling slightly. This must have been putting a huge strain on him; she knew she would never be able to hold up for this long in his position. She could feel his heart pounding against her back.
Her thoughts began to drift. In the back of her mind, Sheba considered the thought that she was too scared to think straight any longer. Now she saw his face - funny, his eyes were almost the same hue as that strange purple stone they'd seen...
Her eyes snapped open. Maybe...
"Picard! Is there any of that weird purple crystal near you?"
"What? Yeah, actually I'm standing on some of it... but isn't that a bit off to-"
"I think that's the same stone that's used to power hover pads - listen, I'm going to toss you the Hover Jade; lift us up and swing us all back onto solid ground!"
Tuning out the rest of the group's panicked, confused chatter, she made her way into Ivan's mind.
Ivan, hold tight - I'm turning around.
Sheba hesitated for a moment before attempting this maneuver. Would she fall? But no, this was the only way. Gently gripping Ivan's arm, she began to wriggle her way around to face him, slowly and carefully lest he drop her.
She slipped only once, but it was terrifying. Forgetting her attempts to be gentle, she clutched his arm tightly enough to cut off his circulation. His grip tightened, but it wasn't as strong as it had been when she first fell. "Keep going," he urged her, but his voice was shaky. She had to do this quickly. She forced herself around with a final tug, eyes squeezed shut.
When she opened them, Ivan's face was inches from her own. When had he gotten so close...?
Shaking her head, she pulled the Hover Jade from her pocket, where it had thankfully remained throughout the entire ordeal. She eyed Picard's wrist, which was occupied by the hands of both Jenna and Felix.
"Alright, Picard, I know you can't move your hand, but just keep your palm facing up and I'll try to direct it in. Ready?"
She tossed the small stone into the air, throwing her arms wide and calling on the wind. Concentrating hard, she guided the Jade toward Picard's outstretched palm. A little to the left...
Thunk. Picard closed his fingers around the gem. "Mercury, let this work," he muttered.
"Hover!"
Sheba's eyes brightened with surprise and relief as Picard's boots rose off the floor, the air around his feet shimmering colorfully. Seconds later, the rest of the group followed, holding onto each other for dear life. Sheba's toes were inches above the level of the cliff when the whole group began to swing backwards.
A loud ripping sound echoed above her as Ivan's cape finally gave out, severing his link to Jenna and sending the two Jupiter Adepts crashing to the floor. Ivan let go of Sheba and landed gracefully in a crouch before being buried under the rest of the Adepts.
Sheba, who had managed to land on the edge of the pile, giggled slightly as a muffled groan came from the middle of the heap. Slowly and dazedly, the group began to untangle themselves, Ivan emerging from the middle and Jenna staring at the piece of green cloth in her hand as if not quite sure where it had come from.
"That was fun," Picard muttered, massaging his wrist and gazing thoughtfully at a patch of the Hover stone.
"Those guys went through all this on the off-chance that they would find some treasure?" Garet mumbled, rubbing his head. "What morons..."
"No," Mia said, looking to the other side of the gap. "There used to be a path crossing this." When the others followed her gaze, they saw that she was right. A stone walkway extended about a yard from the other side of the pit. Its edge was jagged, looking as if the rest of it had indeed broken off sometime recently.
"Well," Picard said, tossing Sheba the Hover Jade, "it seems as if we'll be leaving the ground again quite soon."
Many minutes and a lot of Psyenergy later, the group stood on the other side of the gap, catching their breath. Sheba was lost in her thoughts, reflecting on their ordeal.
It had been one of the most terrifying experiences of her life... but with Ivan supporting her, she had felt safe in a way she never had before.
For a fleeting moment, Sheba wished he was holding her again.
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Okay, I know, that was corny. But I'm going through romance withdrawal! Surely all you other romance addicts out there will understand...
Oh, one more (completely off-topic) thing I wanted to say. Have any of you noticed how Ivan's always left out of pictures of the first group? It really bugs me! I can think of at least two pictures showing Isaac, Garet, and Mia... but no Ivan. ::fumes::
I really need a muse. Maybe I'll hunt down one of the Djinn.
Anyway, review!!!