NOTE: Okay I screwed up. Chapter 5 was chapter six before. THIS IS THE REAL chapter 5. -- Now that this is cleared up...
Xantcha: This is most likely my largest chappie yet!
Tyson: Good! Uh... Am I burned?
Xantcha: Nopes! But there is.. -looks from side to side with shifty eyes- A reference to .Hack!
Kai: -coughs- Didn't you just read your manga on .Hack/Legend of Twilight again?
Xantcha: -nods- Yup! -waves- By the way, there's been questions in my email about some japanese words! So I included a small vocab at the bottom!
Tyson: Xantcha doesn't own anything but her own character and her necklace and her bitbeast!
Xantcha: R&R!
Song: Gamble Rumble - Initial D 'Move'
Open Your Soul, Open Your Mind
Chapter 5: Finding You, and a trip to Gaea
Chapter 5
Back at the mansion, most of the bladers had decided to check in for the night, and everyone except for Acirimik, Tala, Kai and Xantcha went to get some sleep. The small group was sitting in the large living room until Tala broke the silence. "So, about how dangerous this 'other world' is... You mean that if we get a cut on our arm or something, it will still be there when we get back?" Acirimik and Xantcha both looked at each other and Xantcha laughed almost nervously. "That's the thing, here... look." Xantcha showed the two captains a large scar on her ankle. "That's from two weeks ago... I think it's still healing." Acirimik laughed as she glanced at her right arm. "Yeah, I guess we were kinda training a bit hard at that time..." Kai was wide eyed, and after taking a look at Tala, noticed that the other captain was just as shocked. "So... That's what will happen when we get hurt? It'll carry on..." Xantcha nodded and stood up. "It works just as well with the other..." Kai looked at her quizzically and Acirimik smiled sadly. "Let's just say, try to stay... alive?" Tala swallowed as Kai let a small shiver up his spine.
The Bladebreaker's sensei stood up at that moment and sighed. "In any case, it's just the fact that you should be ready to get beaten up the moment you enter battle, unless you are more than a little careful. Your soul is the only thing keeping you in contact with your body." Kai studied her as the platinum haired girl walked outside into the gardens. Acirimik stood up on cue as the door shut and yawned. "Well, I'm going to get some sleep..." She then turned to glare at Tala. "And if you so call, 'accidently tripped on some stupid suitcase', I'll kill you for waking me up." Tala widened his eyes then glared as Kai snorted. "Graceful." Tala just slunk away to his room where his laptop sat.
Kai waited until the two walked up the stairs, then walked out to the gardens to find Xantcha. Just as he expected, she was sitting on the railing of a bridge just outside of the door. "So, you wanted to talk to me?" Kai simply nodded at the corner of her eye and leaned on the rail she was sitting on. "First of all..." He took out a small box from his coat pocket and handed it to the mysterious girl. "I...got this for you..." 'What did Tala say to say to her? Right...' "As a peace offering." Xantcha merely laughed a she recieved that small gift. "Yeah, well you didn't have to, Hiwatari." "Didn't I tell you to call me by my first name?" "!..." Xantcha was wide eyed at how he shot back at her without blinking an eyelid, so she smiled and nodded. "Hai, I guess so."
Another painful silence ensued before Xantcha proceeded to open her present. "Sugoi..." Kai had given her a crystal pendant that looked like a phoenix, and it simply reminded her of Dranzer. "How'd you know that other than dragons, that was my favorite fantasy creature?" Kai let a small tug at his lips as he looked down into the sparkling waters. "Let's say that Kivanov was useful for information." Xantcha nodded as she lifted up the pendant in her hands. It was indeed pure crystal, and was attached to a beautiful silver chain. The phoenix had it's wings spread, and it looked almost regal in a way. 'Once more, another silence...' The captain was getting to be annoyed by the quiet atmosphere, as surprising as that was. "Arigato, it's really kawaii...Kai. You called me out here to give me this?" "There is something else..." Xantcha was curious as to what this 'something else' was, but patiently waited as he looked up at the dark sky.
"You know how you were searching? For the guy who gave you that." He pointed at the necklace hanging from her neck, and she smiled while she picked it up. Twirling the small key in her hands, she nodded. "I got it covered in gold awhile ago..." "Well... What else were you searching for...?" Xantcha laughed as she put on her phoenix pendant and sat straight up. "I guess the lock as well, who knows?" Kai nodded as he took the small chain out of his jean pocket. "Like...this?" Xantcha suddenly emitted a small gasp as she lowered herself to the ground from the railing. "That..." She took her key pendant off and slowly studied it. "...looks like it's that same make as this..." Kai nodded as he handed the platinum haired Egyptian the small lock. "If I'm correct, than this is..." The two were interrupted by a startled scream. Xantcha, suddenly feeling panicky, tore off towards the house. "That sounded like Riyo!!!"
The minute that the magenta haired girl heard the scream, she growled. "Tala, stop watching that damned T.V." Tala twitched as he stared wide eyed at the door. "Anou... Acirimik...?" "I TOLD YOU TO..." "The television is off." "...What do you mean that the.......OH CRAP!" Shooting up out of her bed, not bothering to change out of her night clothes, she ran out the door. "C'mon!" The sapphire eyed boy watched after her for a moment before shaking his head and chasing after his roommate.
The two frantic teens met at the same time at the door to the room where the computers used to get into Gaia lied. Xantcha blinked as she stared at her fellow sensei. "Wait... Xantcha, if you're here then..." The two's eyes widened as they both thought of the same thing. "RIYO!" "TAKA ICHI!" Both yelling out the missing teacher's name, the two bolted into the room and saw what they feared...
Riyo was lying in one of the machines that holds your body while you are in Gaia, and the computer was sending distress signals. Running up and starting up one of the 'pods' for herself, she sighed. 'I told her that it's dangerous to go alone without Acirimik or myself...' Kivanov did the same, until Tala put his left hand on hers. "What's this all about?" "This, Tala, is how Xantcha and I get into Gaia." Kai walked up, and, wordlessly, nodded at Xantcha. Xantcha, getting the hint, sighed. "It's dangerous, are you sure?" Hiwatari nodded as he speed-walked to an empty pod. "How do we do this?" Acirimik smiled sadly as she walked over and got the four pods ready. Tala, however, had noticed that she did this without even asking him. 'She knows me too well even now.' "Acirimik?"
"Okay, Tala, hang on. There. Now," She nodded at the two team captains and smirked. "right now, Riyo and the White Tigers are in Gaia, right? Well, when you enter these pods, (it's completely open mind you, it's not sealed), you get a pair of high tech glasses...Like this." She held up a pair of silver glasses that had an odd stone in each side. "Pressing the stones in at the same time sends a shock through your body, which, in turn, activates your sub conscious. When it does, you'll experience a period of about one minute of total darkness, and appear at the location you've selected, as long as you have two or more passwords for them. In other words, we typed in 'Dark Oasis' because that's where Riyo and company are." Xantcha nodded at her signaling that she could get the last pod ready and explain the rest.
"When you arrive at your location, you will be placed in front of a 'save point', which is a large piece of precious stone, like emerald. When you find a save point, you can get the passwords for that area and return there later if you like." Kai seemed to be in a trance while letting it all sink in, and Tala was busy listening while watching Acirimik plug in the passwords. "When you're ready, sit in the pod and put the sunglasses on. Push the stones in and close your eyes." The two did what they were told except they didn't push the stones in. The magenta haired blader passed the two each a sheet of paper with some info on. "Put the info of your character class and race. For instance, I'm part Night Elf, part human. That's a race. Then there's class, like a swordsman or mage. They're listed on that paper." When the two were done, they handed Xantcha their papers and watched as she handed them to Acirimik, afterwards the two then laid in their pods. "Xantcha, you ready?" "Hai, you guys," The Russians nodded at Ojanen. "Come after us. Here we go." Pushing the stones in, the two entered into a trance followed by the captains.
'This... it feels odd... I can't see a thing.' Kai finally opened his eyes and gasped at what he saw. The group had appeared at a river in the middle of a desert, and Xantcha was sitting at the edge, but, on the other hand, this wasn't an ordinary Xantcha he was seeing. Where Xantcha's ears should have been, her hair was curved, and instead she had... "Dog ears?" Xantcha laughed as she stole a glance at Kai. "Hai, I'm a half wolf-demon. But my favourite part is my tail." Kai looked down and went wide eyed. Xantcha's tail was a very fluffy black one, and she wagged it just like a dog. "That's my race. A hanyou wolf. And because my dexterity, or accuracy and speed with weapons, is so high, I was able to be a twin swordswoman. That, and I know a bit of magic." She looked at the boy once more before laughing. "THAT'S your attire?" Kai looked down and blinked. "What? This is what I wear normally." "Hai, well... I'd rather have traveling clothes." Xantcha had black shorts and a black t-shirt on. Her dark-blue-almost-black cloak went down to the ground, and she was wearing the pendant he gave her. All-in-all, it was typically... Xantcha. The Russian sighed as he looked out across the river. He was a Chaos Paladin, which was like a dark elf's attributes mixed with a swordsman, and, of course he was human.
"Xantcha, you ready to go?" Acirimik walked up in her usual clothing, but two added things that made a rather large difference. One, the insanely huge silver swords she had. One was at her left side and one on her back. As lethal as it looked, Xantcha knew it was even more hilarious when she fought. The two swords were heavy to many a person, but she knew how to use them perfectly fine. Two, the cloak she had was a deep purple, and Xantcha knew that purple stood for mentality, and that Acirimik always played mind games with her opponents. She was a human swordswoman, but she excelled in the two weapon fighting technique. Last, but certainly not least, was Tala.
The Captain of the Demolition Boys Team walked up to the group, and he was absolutely content with his choice of clothing. He had a pair of blue jeans on, a white shirt with a blue jean vest that was open, and a pair of black leather boots. He had a pair of pistols at his side, and Xantcha laughed when she saw his choice of weapon. "How'd I know that was going to be what he took for a weapon?" Looking closer, she snorted and tried to hold in her laughter. He had a black leather choker on and was giving the two girls the most hilarious, and disturbing, look. "Hey, you know," He took his guns and twirled them in his fingers as he spoke. "I could really be in a playgirl magazine with this look. I bet even Kivanov thinks it's not bad, right?" Acirimik let a smile grace her face slowly as she laughed. "I agree that it's better than Kai's..." Kai glowered at the two girls as they laughed and Tala just smirked.
"Well, we better find Riyo and the others, ne, Acirimik?" The female Russian of the group nodded as she took her sword out of it's sheath on her back. It had a black handle with silver dragons on the hilt. She had named it Purifying Death, which, Xantcha considered, made no sense. But, neither did her weapons names. She had named one Tranquil Destruction, the other, Demonic Peace. Xantcha slowly stood up, and, taking one last look at the view before her, turned around and entered the oasis, the others not far behind.
Not long afterwards, the three Russians (A/N Yeah, Acirimik is Russian) entered a clearing while following Xantcha and her 'nose'. "I cannot believe that Xantcha's got a nose like a canine. You know, Ojanen, I'll never let you live this down." Xantcha turned her nose to the air once more and sighed. "Yeah, Tala, I know. By the way, it's this way." The whole group, even Kai, laughed. While walking, however, they met with a surprise. A panther that had red spots on the tail came flying out in front of Xantcha, so she cried out and backed up. "Stupid thing. Hey, boys. Time to learn to fight." Acirimik walked up and laughed at how wide eyed they were. "Yeah, that IS your opponent. Don't worry, he's not that powerful. So, you know your bitbeasts?" The two nodded, still obviously nervous from having to deal with something twice their size. "Well, you can summon them here, but not like you're used to. Hold out your right hand. See that bracelet? Hold your hand in front of you and imagine your bitbeast right in front of you, but in smaller form. Say, half your size? Here, watch me."
The teacher walked forward, and, holding her arm out, sighed to relax and closed her eyes. A minute later, a golden wolf slowly took form out of her crystal blue and purple glowing aura. The wolf slowly opened it's eyes, and to the shock of Kai and Tala, did something never imagined. "Good evening, mistress. How was the dance?" She had a calm, cool voice and spoke almost spirit like. "Not bad. So, Takashie, think you can help us teach these guys how to fight?" The golden canine studied both of them carefully, and finally walked over to Tala. "Hmmm... He has an aura similar to yours, interesting...Ah, I believe that can be arranged..." Walking up to Xantcha, she sat down and waited as Xantcha went through the same process Acirimik went through. A silver-white dragon the size of Takashie emerged from the light and uncurled it's tail from around itself. "Ohayou, mistress Xantcha. I suppose you are finally teaching the two boys how to fight? You did mention teaching them earlier than the others..." Tiamut spoke almost as if she was royalty, but that comes with being named after the 'Queen of Dragons'. Xantcha laughed nervously from the 'oh really?' look on Kai's face before answering. "Uh, yeah Tiamut. Just so that they could help us show the others. Now, there's your enemy to show them how to fight. Could you...?" "I could, but I prefer seeing their bitbeasts first. Gentlemen? Be quick about it." Tala frowned at her tone of voice and did as told.
A white wolf with blue ice shards on his back appeared. Looking at it's surroundings confusedly, it spoke."It's about time! Finally, time to relax without a fight! I was looking forward to this. " Tala went wide eyed staring at Wolborg as he wagged his tail before responding. "... Well... I guess that's good." "Yes it is. Now, perhaps I could..." Tiamut walked forward with Takashie and snorted. "You are to learn to fight melee combat." Takashie walked even closer to the white wolf before speaking. "You shall be first. Use an attack on that enemy. Don't worry, you cannot kill it at your level." Breathing harshly through his nose, Wolborg walked up, growling. "It's not that tough looking. A good ice blast shall do it." A wind of cold ice came from the wolf's breath as he aimed it at the panther, only to growl once more and brace himself as the panther went to attack.
Not noticing Kai, or the new addition to the now large party, Wolborg was saved from an attack by a wall of fire. "Good, Dranzer. Now, Flame Pillar!" The large-dog sized phoenix flew forward and summoned a fiery pillar from the ground, severely damaging the opponent. Tiamut and Takashie nodded at each other before jumping into the fight. Tiamut breathed out a black fire at the enemy and Takashie sent a dark ice crystal right through it. As it disintegrated into data and disappeared, Kai stood smugly in front of Xantcha. "Well, that wasn't so hard." Acirimik sighed as she walked passed the two in the direction they were heading before. 'Great, now he's gonna have a big head.' "Don't be too sure, Hiwatari." Xantcha followed suit after Acirimik and smirked as she walked by. "You wouldn't stand a chance in even the beginner's field, Kai. Try sticking to the smaller size of ego." With that, Tala followed, quietly laughing to himself. 'I win.'
The party soon came to an opening, but gasped at what they saw. Xantcha stared into the opening as her ears went back. "Oh, Ra no..."
Xantcha: Wheeeeee! -wags her tail- I actually created my own race for Dungeons and Dragons, and it's a hanyou wolf! ;
Kai: oo''
Tyson: ...What?
Kai: ...She's very... distracting... -looks away slowly-
Xantcha: ... -laughs as she looks at her tail- ...Oh, right... Well, it certainly does stick out...
Tyson: -coughs- Uh... Review please! Oh, and here's the vocabulary for the japanese words used!
Hai - Yes, Yeah, etc.
Anou - Umm..., Uhhh
Sensei - Teacher
Sugoi - Wow
Kawaii - Cute, Cool, Scary, Awesome, etc.
Ohayou - Hello, Hi, etc.
