To Find an Angel

Jet suddenly felt a sensation; one he'd never had before. It was a light, coming from an area to the west of him. The power emitted was similar to that of the Guardians. In fact, it was almost like that of the Light Guardian Stare Roe. He should know, he Invoked that one. Someone was casting the spell Spectre, but on a level way above what Jet could accomplish through a Medium. Could it somehow be Virginia.

The boy decided to follow the direction where the light led. As he crawled through the ducts, the sensation began to get stronger. Jet closed his eyes, not wanting to be distracted by other elements, and let the light's feeling draw him closer. Something was calling to him from deep inside of his own body. If he stopped to think about it, he'd have realized that it was similar to the sensation he felt when he turned off the Yggdrasil System Generator. But to dwell on other thoughts would distract Jet from following his sensation.

'It feels like I'm almost on top of it,' Jet told himself, 'Just a few more steps. For some reason, I feel calmer the closer I come. Come to think of it, Virginia makes me feel the same as this too. Perhaps there is a connection to this energy and her. But what could it be? Something to do with the mysteries of the people of Adlehyde?' As he crossed the metal grate, it opened up and dropped him into the room below.

S...S

Virginia had continued her assault whenever she could. She shot the computers a few more times, as well as scorching the door and walls. It was her hope to anger Siegfried enough to get him and the Prophets to come in and slap her around a little. If they paid all there attention to keeping her from making a mess of their precious laboratory there would be fewer obstacles for her friends. Since she was needed to complete their wicked plan they wouldn't kill her. Thus, she was not afraid of the four Demons one little bit.

Suddenly, as she closed her eyes to concentrate on blasting the speaker system in the corner, an object fell from above and onto the table. Since it was only a cheap rolling one, to make it more mobile, the legs collapsed; knocking the girl and whatever fell on her to the floor. Pain shot through her physical body.

The girl slowly opened her eyes. When she did, she saw a pair of dazed purple spheres right before her. As she regained focus, Virginia could make out the form of a young man with silver hair had landed on top of her. She suddenly became redder than she'd ever been. The youth had also turned bright crimson.

"J…Jet. What a nice surprise. Hey, do you think you can get me lose? Siegfried and the Prophets have a wicked scheme that they plan to use me for," she informed him. At no time did she think to ask where Clive and Gallows were. Nor did she inquire about what happened to Maya and her team. All that mattered in her heart was that Jet was there. Of course, Virginia herself had no idea why she thought that.

The boy began undoing the straps that bound her. He could see the clothing that they'd dressed her in was thin and worn. So worn, in fact, that he could actually see her skin in some spots. It was a good thing that she was still wearing her bra and panties, else Jet would be comatose by now. He thought again about the vision he had aboard Lombardia; of him taking the beaten and haggard woman into his arms and loving her. This time, he didn't faint. He simply shook it off as simple nerve. Soon the girl was free again.

Jet said, "I'm going to go scout around. Make it look like you're still trapped, and I'll check to see if the enemy is around. Although I saw Siegfried and Leehalt having a conference a long way off, I have no idea where Melody and Malik might be. Besides, we need to find you a weapon before you can fight them."

Virginia smiled at him, and smirked. "It's ok, I have a weapon already. They can strip me of my ARMs, and Tools, but my Crestboard is invisible unless I want to use it and the Mediums can only be taken off by me. I was always better at magic than physical attacks anyway. But we still need to find my stuff."

So they walked through the corridors together until they found what appeared to be a storage room. Jet rammed into the door, but it would not budge. Virginia walked up to it, and pulled out her Crestboard. Holding it up, she muttered something under her breath. Suddenly, the Saint spell lit up the air, and broke the door down. Now Jet was certain, this was the power he'd felt in the ducts. It was Adlehyde's strength.

"I guess you're wondering about this," she stated, "I mean, everything has been thrown on you all at once. Adlehyde is an ancient kingdom dedicated to serving the Guardians and Crest Sorcery. It used to only be a tradition of the royal family, but once the royal blood spread through having multiple heirs instead of one the power was distributed. A millennia ago we were nearly wiped out by people who feared our power had summoned the Demon that attacked Filgaia. My ancestor survived at the cost of his mother's sacrifice. He hid our family treasure, which I now know is the Teardrop, changed his name, and suppressed his power. Everyone did that. Now, we are just shades of our former glory. We live day to day only wanting survival."

She walked into the room. There, on the counter, lay her ARMs and belt. Her Tools had been left on a shelf nearby. But no trace was found of Virginia's missing clothes. At least she had something to wear in the meantime. Also in the corner was a new Crest; Changecrest. Virginia decided to take it to get back at the Prophets for how they treated her. All they needed to do now was reclaim the Teardrop.

"Well, we should find Siegfried and pay him a visit. Do you remember where he and Leehalt were talking? I have a score to settle with that jerk. Oh, and don't worry about Melody and Malik, they're in the other half standing guard. Since you're here alone I can safely bet the others are in there as well, and they can take care of those two. They'll do their part, and we'll do ours," Virginia said to Jet. She winked at him.

Suddenly, a voice boomed, "Not so fast Maxwell. You're not getting away that easily. To think, a brat like you is the key to our plan. If you surrender, I'll spare your friend. Resist and he will die by my hands." The two friends turned around quickly. There, in the doorway, was Leehalt. He had a smirk on his face, and a wicked fire in his eyes. The man picked up his hand, and fired off an Eliminate Scanner spell.

- - - -

Teefa's Last Words…

And the blushings will now commence. Ok, and the battle too…