Hey, I'm still alive... cool!
(Char): Not for long!
(Dew): I second that!
Darn things... that's all I need. Psychotic little sugar addicted gnats.
(Dew): We're djinn, thank you very much!
Or Imps.
(Char): (aside) Didn't you call them to change those initials?!
(Dew): (aside) I forgot...
(Char): (aside) Then we hurt him for mentioning it.
Moving right along...
Review Responses:
Cowpuppy: I beg to differ. I can and HAVE killed Isaac. Not that that's anything to be proud of...
Ivan of Vault: In the words of one Strong Mad: RAWG-raa...
Griffinkhan: I'm happy you like it! And to answer your question, the Ice Missile attack was indeed fatal to Isaac. Her dream was not reflective of Isaac being swallowed up, but rather how it was Shalex that stole Isaac from her through death.
Knightblazer 88: This chapter is actually a lot of filler too, sad to say, but no worries, I've got some major action scenes coming up soon. Now, what's the next review... huh? ACK! DARK SHADOW!!
0==|=R=a=g=n=a=r=o=k= : A grand adventure, huh? That would denote that I'm writing remotely well. Thank you! And congrats on beating the living daylights out of Dullahan, especially in Hard Mode. I'm still satisfied with beating him normally, thank you very much.
QueenDragonGoddess: Consider it updated.
MercuryAdept: There are days I think no one is safe from Dew and Char...
Midnight C: Isaac-chan was supposed to be a joke? Whoa...it seems to work so right, though. *shrugs* Good stuff. At any rate, I think my goal for this story should be to get 'Shalex' to be half as recognized as Isaac-chan. FEAR THE NAME!!
Jupiter Sprite: Don't worry, I'll keep the other Adepts in it. No problems there. It would be hard to write about just Mia for about 10-15 chapters. In fact, I may even add a few...
CS: Roller coasters are fun ways to write. They keep you in total suspense. Go cliffhangers!!
Akachi: Of course Mia's scary when she's angry. She's MIA. That's like saying Kraden is annoying. It's so... true!
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Picard walked slowly up the long, narrow plank that lead to the deck of his ship. The fine Lemurian vessel was among the sturdiest crafts to ever sail the seas of Angara, due mainly to its Psynergetic propulsion, which let it glide smoothly across the water as opposed to being subject to every crest of the waves.
Picard shifted his grip. In his hands was a very large wooden crate, loaded with supplies, mostly of food. He grunted slightly with each step he took, the weight of it bearing down on him, but he kept his pace up. Mia was pushing them all to get ready as soon as possible, and as a result, he was determined to get the ship ready to sail by noon. The other Adepts were helping, of course, but as much as he would have loved to be able to cast Move, he didn't particularly want Garet helping to load the food. Naturally, this brought Garet barrelling down the plank from aboard the ship.
"You need a hand with that, Picard?" Garet asked, trying to grab the crate. Doing so only weakened Picard's grip, and he fumbled to hold onto it.
"No... no, really, it's fine," Picard said quickly, trying to move forward, but the short-sighted Fire Adept was absent-mindedly blocking his path.
"No, really I can help you with that," Garet said, all too eager to get the food on board. He tried to grab the crate again, but only succeeded in making Picard drop it. It fell right on Garet's large foot. He promptly pulled it away and hobbled back on his good foot, while massaging his bad one. Unfortunately, his lack of co-ordination caused him to overbalance, and he toppled over the edge. Picard glared at him, although he was struggling to keep from laughing.
"I told you I could handle it myself," he smiled. Garet spluttered.
"Picard! Help me, please!! I don't like water!!" he cried.
"You don't like water?" Picard asked with an air of false injury.
"Water is terrible stuff!" Garet shot back. It's full of disgusting little creatures and everything is so... wet!!" Picard frowned at him.
"So you really hate water?" he scowled, taking this as a personal insult to his own element.
"Absolutely! I mean I'm a Mars Adept, I... Picard? Why are you glowing blue? Why is your hand outstretched? Why..."
"Douse!"
"Ack!!" Garet cried as he was rained upon by a heavy flood of water. Picard smiled to himself and went to pick up the crate, but Garet rose to the surface, a picture of mock hatred on his face. "So that was funny, huh?" Garet called up. Picard nodded. Garet raised a rand to him and called, "Flare!" Unfortunately for Garet, his aim was off, and instead of singeing the Lemurian, he blew up the food crate.
"Hit the deck!" Picard cried to Ivan and Mia on the boat while he ducked to the plank, as food was sent flying in every direction.
"No!!" Garet cried. "The food!!" An orange fell and hit him square on the head. He dipped under the surface and rose again to see some fruit floating nearby him. "The food!!" he exclaimed happily, as he started eating everything in sight. Picard sighed and walked back down the plank. Thankfully, he still had a crate of food waiting to go. He wondered how many of crates of food he would have to prepare before he could get one on the boat.
********************
Shortly after noon, the ship was fully stocked and ready to sail. It was docked on one of Angara's many rivers that lead to the open ocean. Kraden called out to them from the shoreline. He wasn't joining them, as he claimed he still needed to do some work on the Golden Sun, though Ivan thought he was simply scared of Mia.
"Remember," Kraden called, "Alex is much more powerful now!"
"Shalex!" Jenna called back, correcting him. Kraden shuddered.
"Ah... yes... he's much more powerful. He may have new abilities I know nothing about!"
"Nothing?" Ivan shuddered. It was bad enough earlier when they had no idea what was happening to him, but now they were going into a total unknown situation against an enemy that was a Psynergetical demigod. How could they fight that?
"Yes!" Kraden said. "And remember, the Sword of Hilda is a legendary blade!"
"Blowing your own horn a little, Kraden?" Sheba joked.
"This is no laughing matter! That sword is immensely powerful! You need to watch yourself carefully!"
"Anything else, Kraden?" Mia asked hopefully.
"Shalex can also cast Psynergy spells of any element," he warned. "That means he can heal himself with Mercury, foresee events with Jupiter, and destroy things with Mars!"
"What about Venus?" Mia wondered.
"Venus works best with other people there to use it for," he said. "That may very well be his weak spot," he answered. Kraden fixed his glasses. "I believe that is all I can tell you."
Garet feigned fainting. "I think that's the first time I've ever heard that..."
"Then let's go," Mia said, moving to take the helm. She took the wheel with ease and activated the Black Orb. The boat hummed with Psynergetical power and sailed off for parts unknown.
********************
"Here's a question," Felix asked, lounging on the deck. "Where are we going?" Jenna turned to answer him, then fell silent.
"Good question. Mia, where are we going?" Mia kept her focus on the boat.
"The Lighthouse," she answered simply.
"Uh... which one?" Sheba questioned. "There are four, you know." Mia withdrew her hand from the Black Orb and paused.
"Oh. I forgot about that..." she trailed. Picard pointed ahead.
"The ocean is there," he said gesturing ahead to where the river they were on lead out to open ocean. "We have to decide."
"I can't believe this," Mia said. "We don't even know where to start...!" She pounded her fist against the wheel in frustration. "Where are we going?!"
"Mars Lighthouse," called a distant voice.
"What...?" Ivan asked. "I know that voice..."
"Me, too," Garet said. "Check it out," he said, pointing over the edge of the boat.
Standing on the riverbank, staff in hand, was a young girl of about 17, with purple hair and staff in hand. She looked very beautiful and official, with the wind ruffling her hair and clothes. Behind her stood a larger man, with a sheathed sword. He looked like a formidable fighter, but then, Garet, Ivan and Mia already knew he was as they had seen him fight before.
"Feizhi!" Ivan cried, leaping to the side of the boat to greet her. Feizhi was a Wind Adept, like him and Sheba. Though she had not started life as an Adept, after the transfer of the Reveal Psynergy by Master Hama unto her, she began to develop the trademark characteristics of a Jupiter Adept. Felix didn't know how much her power had developed since he saw her last at Champa, but she looked extremely well travelled.
"And that's..." Garet said, blinking. "Is that you, Sean?" He nodded.
Sean was a warrior that Mia, Ivan and Garet had met on the boat across the Karagol sea to Colosso. At the time, Sean was dead-set on participating in the tournament, but in a bizarre twist of fate, he was unable to compete, and instead, Isaac was forced to enter and he ended up winning the entire tournament.
Sean himself, however, was no weakling. He was a truly gifted fighter that fought off waves of cuttles without the use of Psynergy.
"What are you doing here, Sean?" Ivan asked of him.
"Well... I kind of was... recruited," he said. "But it's more Feizhi's story to tell than mine."
"May we come aboard, please?" Feizhi asked politely.
"Of course," Picard answered, lowering the ladder.
"Thank you," she replied, daintily climbing the rungs. Sean followed quickly.
"What were you saying about Mars Lighthouse?" Mia asked of her.
"That is where you will find this... Shalex character," she mentioned with a glance at Jenna, who smiled. Before Mia could say anything else, Feizhi added, "And yes, I intend to follow you for the time being, so you may start moving now." Thankful, Mia promptly started the boat moving in the direction of Prox, and Feizhi sat down to relate her story.
"I had a premonition a few nights ago. It told me you would be here today, and that I must follow you," Feizhi said.
"Why?" Garet asked. Feizhi seemed to search for an answer, but before she could answer, Ivan interjected.
"Premonitions are a tricky thing to understand," he commented. "Even I don't know why I follow mine." Sheba smiled and nodded.
"It's just something you have to do," she agreed.
"Thank you," Feizhi continued. "My premonitions told me of this man," she said, gesturing to Sean, "and that we both must join you on this journey."
"So that's why you're here," Garet said to Sean, who gave him a thumbs up.
"You do know this is going to be a very dangerous journey," Picard said. "Don't you? I mean, we're travelling to the four lighthouses of Alchemy, to fight a demigod. That's not a walk in the park."
"I realize that I'm not the strongest one here, but I need to do this," Feizhi said. "Please, you must take me."
"What do you think, Felix?" Picard asked. Felix crossed his arms and slouched against the side of the ship.
"We're all going to be watching out for each other anyway; that's just another set of eyes to notice things," he commented.
"Besides," Sheba said, "I made a similar plea to you once, and you accepted me," she smiled. Ivan took her hand in his and smiled.
"And that was probably the best decision they made," he smiled.
"But what about Sean?" Jenna asked. "He's not an Adept at all..." Hearing his name, Sean spoke up in his defence.
"I may not be a...what did you call it? An adept?... but I have some neat tricks of my own. I don't know about this psynagy or psonergy or whatever you called it, but," he smiled, with a glint in his eye, "I can take care of myself." At the end of this sentence, he raised his hand, and a gentle breeze overtook the boat. A silence followed, and finally, Garet spoke.
"Okay, first, that breeze wouldn't hurt anyone, and second... whoa. Sean's an Adept, too?"
"And a Wind Adept at that!" Sheba smiled.
"That's four!" Ivan laughed, looking at Felix. He was going to mention the lack of Venus Adepts to him, but quickly stopped himself with a glance at Mia. She looked happy to make these new additions, but Ivan could see the hollowness in her eyes.
"Sean, we'll have to explain the whole Psynergy and Alchemy outfit to you," Picard said.
"Just be glad Kraden's not here," Garet laughed, and everyone but Sean burst out in a flurry of laughter.
"Where is Isaac?" Feizhi asked. The group fell silent.
"That's a long story..." Jenna began. Mia tried hard not to listen.
Meanwhile, the ship was pointed directly towards Prox, the winds very slowly turning colder as the boat approached the distant cold land.
********************
Sometime much later, night fell, and the Adepts one-by-one made their way to their quarters to sleep. Mia remained the only one awake, steering the ship through the ever-colder sea. As she sailed, she thought she saw out of the corner of her eye a dark figure creep past the cabin door window with what looked like a corkscrew in hand. Scared, Mia withdrew the Black Orb to her pocket, ceasing the movement of the boat, and slowly looked to the back of the ship. She saw nothing.
Worried that she was imagining things, but more scared that something was wrong, she walked around the deck, but saw no one. To her dismay, she noted the door leading below deck was slightly ajar, light seeping out. Quietly, she crept downstairs, and into the food cabin, which was the lowest room in the ship.
Mia reached inside and lit a candle for light. She thought she saw a shadowy figure in the corner, so she raced over to it, but when she got there, no one was there. She heard the stairs behind her creak and whirled at the sound, but no one was there, either. Frustrated, she sighed heavily.
Mia noticed a corkscrew on the counter and supposed she had been imagining everything. The last few days had been extraordinarily hard on her, and she supposed this was the latest in a long string of errant imaginings she had come across. She was about to leave when she felt something damp on her ankle. She looked down and gasped.
There was a hole in the boat! Water was seeping in at a remarkably fast rate. Panicking, she ran over to the counter and looked at the corkscrew. It was covered in water. There was no doubt now.
They had been sabotaged!
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(Dew): No! Nonononono! That's not fair! You steal Isaac from her, rename him Shalex and now this?!
(Char) You cruel author!
^_^ That's the way the cookie crumbles, huh?
(Dew): Cookie? Where?!
(Char): ... ... ...
My sentiments exactly.
(Char): You aren't allowed to cliffhang like that! It's not fair!
Not fair to who?
(Char): Me, the readers, and reviewers, to name a few!
Oh, yeah... all of them...
Well, go ahead and review everybody. I won't stop you! No, really, I won't. Go ahead! I encourage it!