Oh, yeah: Behold the awesomeness. I told Katie about it, and she said it was awesome, how I planned to end it. And it is. Here you go, one chapter chock full of fight. Unleash the Windgates! Yeah, Stromwind is my favorite character out of all the badguys. Eriks and December don't really count as bad guys. To respond to reviewers, I have to say that Stromwind is an OC. I have never had InuYasha stuff in my fic. And I'm glad that someone else thought the line about the dirty mags was really funny too. Lastly, anyone who thought Arc went through a lot of pain, well... let's just say that Orchid got off easy with the Anti-Sora because she's about to take her beating from Stromwind. This is the most pain I've ever written into one chapter.
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It was at that time, that Arc, battered, bruised and bloody, stumbled to his feet, and dragged himself to the stairs upwards, trailing red behind him. As he reached the stairs, he fell down, and promptly became unconscious. This process would be repeated for the next part of an hour, until he reached the top.
-
It was also at this time, that Montblanc, considerably less battered, bruised and bloody, paced about the cabin of the gummi ship, considering his next move. He did not notice the two glowing yellow eyes amidst the shadows in the back of the ship.
-
"Now you shall die, Flower of Arcadia," said Stromwind. He raised his mace before him, and a magic circle appeared in the air as he started chanting.
"I won't!" she shouted as she ran up. She swung with the keyblade, but he easily blocked with one arm, then sent her flying back with a blow from his mace. She landed hard, skidding across the stones of the tower. He completed his incantations as she got to her feet and took a step forwards.
"I summon the 1st Windgate, Kjellnor, the Burning Wind!" he called. The sign before him split down the center, then opened unto its fury.
Fires unlike any Orchid had every seen burst out from the gate, consuming all about her. They raged like uncontrolled tempers, swirling and burning all that they touched.
She dodged and rolled out of the way as quickly as she could, but her skin still burned, turning red and feeling raw. Her clothes smelled singed, but she had avoided anything more than superficial wounds.
"Moonlight Rave!" she called out, blurring out of sight. Stromwind winced in pain as the Glass Rose struck him and he turned just in time to watch her pause gracefully, then blur out once more. "Step!"
The next blow hit him in the side. He turned quickly, his eyes glinting coldly at her as she momentarily blurred into view.
"Step!"
The moment she moved, he swung his mace sideways so that he held it horizontal, parallel to the ground, a good length of it sticking out to either side of him. He grinned smugly, then grunted a little as he was struck in the side again and sent off balance as something ran into his mace. He watched with satisfaction as the young girl went skidding across the floor hard.
"All flash and no brains," he observed. "I knew you'd have to pass close enough to hit me. And my staff has a far longer reach than your blade. So I just had to stand there and let you clothesline yourself, foolish girl."
Orchid growled lowly and cursed at the insult as she got to her feet again. She charged him again in rage, and he easily leveled her with a deft swing of his mace, though not before he was struck with the keyblade.
"You're persistant," he said as he started chanting and drawing the magic circle before him.
It was done and flashed a bright blue as she got to her feet. She held the keyblade before her, unsure of what to expect.
"I summon the 2nd Windgate, Korshana, the Freezing Wind!"
The runes split down the center as the symbol had done previously, but this time when it opened, instead of blazing fires, freezing wind came howling out, harsher than any blizzard and easily more powerful than any spell Orchid knew. She could feel her eyes freezing shut as she closed them against the biting cold, and when she tried to move, her feet stuck to the ground. Pain prickled her flesh as ice frosted over her arms and legs. When she finally felt it stop, she could no longer move, and her limbs were already going numb.
"To think you could beat Vins...pathetic," said the druid as he walked over. "Gali and Garn, I could believe. But I had more respect for Vins."
He swund his mace hard, and the ice shattered. Orchid went tumbling back, almost to the edge of the tower amidst shards of ice. She got unsteadily to her feet, not sure if the pain in her chest was a broken rib or not. She readied herself as the man walked over to her. Then, as Stromwind stood before her, she ducked his blow as he swung, surprising him and coming up to strike him in the jaw with the keyblade. The man stumbled back, then took several more blows before his equilibrium was regained and he managed to block her. He sent the girl flying again with another blow of his mace. He was already summoning the next gate by the time she managed to shake off the dizzy feeling in her head and stand up.
"I summon the 3rd Windgate, Elemtii, the Purging Wind!"
Orchid screamed in pain as every nerve in her body was set afire. Lightning crackled through the dry starlit air, and the girls body writhed in agony as she hit the ground, electricity racking her every cell with its power. She lay there, gasping on the floor and sizzling slightly as it ended, eyes wide and too shocked to cry.
"Don't worry...it'll soon be over," said the druid, almost sadly as he walked over to her. He stood above her, mace raised to deliver the final blow.
"When I win!" shouted Orchid. The keyblade slammed hard into the man's shins, and he stumbled back, cursing loudly. Pushing to her feet, she quickly struck him again and again to cover herself as she got back up. Her final blow sent him reeling back, and when he spat, it was red against the cold, white stone.
"You are...amazingly strong," he admitted. "I see why you have managed to stand against us this long. But it is no matter. Endurance can only hold out for so long."
He started walking backwards as he chanted and signaled. Orchid charged forwards, but it was already too late by the time she got close. Instead of cutting him off, she only made it easier for him to hit her.
"I summon the 4th Windgate, Barshinae, the Exploding Wind!"
The seal opened, and there was a rush of wind about her. Then the explosions started. Orchid's ears rang with the noise and her body was tossed this way and that like a ragdoll paper in a hurricane by the massive concussive forces going off around her. She could practically feel her bones starting to break as she was thrown from one explosion into another. There was a sickening snap as it ended and she landed hard on her left arm. She screamed in pain and curled up on the ground, her entire limb aflame with agony like she had never felt before. When she looked, through watery eyes, she could see that her arm bent where there wasn't a joint, just a little above her elbow.
"Had enough?" he asked as she glared at him angrily. He walked over slowly, his staff clicking against the tiles loudly in the silent air. "I'm surprised you're still alive. Most people would've been ripped apart. But even in the midst of such chaos, you still managed to dodge all the fatal blows, even if it was only subconsciously. I'm impressed."
"Impressed, my ass!" she shouted, spring up suddenly and swinging the keyblade. The druid dodged back, having learned from his last experience. Orchid stood, angrily eyeing him with her left arm hanging limply by her side. She cocked her sword arm, then threw. "Shooting Star!"
The Glass Rose went flying, and not expecting the long range attack, Stromwind was struck in the head by the first blow.
"Strike!"
He managed to block it this time, though the keyblade still packed a lot of force and went spinning back to her hand, no momentum lost.
"Strike!"
One huge paw of a hand shot up and grasped the haft as it flew towards him. Orchid stared in stunned disbelief as he held the keyblade, caught as easily as an underhand toss. She concentrated, which was hard with all the pain from the burns, both fire and freeze inflicted, the broken arm, and the general nervous paralysis. The keyblade shimmered in the Shadowless's hand, then disappeared, reappearing in its master's grip.
"I summon the 5th Windgate, Charostor, the Darkness Wind!" called the druid, having been chanting the incantations while she retrieved her blade.
"I think..." started Orchid, staring at something glimmering. Then the seal opened, and wind as black as sin came pouring out like the river of the damned.
Darkness engulfed her, and shrieking winds howled like lost souls around her. Terror like she had never felt before, irrational and filling all her attention, tore at her mind, and she screamed in pain, confusion, and fear. Things tore at her arms, not just wind things, dark things, but things of nightmare, clawed things, fanged things, things that tore her open and drank her blood as it fell. She fell to the ground, and curled up in a ball, begging for it to stop, a little girl crying for her mother, crying for Eriks, crying for a father she hadn't seen in years. For anyone, anyone who could make it go away.
Then it was over, and she was a young teenager again, lying on an ivory tower beneath a starlit sky.
"I am truly sorry," said a voice. As her senses started coming back, she recognized it as Stromwind's. "But I cannot let you interfere with the Master's plans. If only you had let go within the first four gates..."
He shook his head sadly, then started chanting again. Another magic circle formed in front of him, and Orchid watched carefully, even in her stunned state, watching for that little glimmer she had seen before. She didn't try to rise, but merely curled up more, hoping she could survive what would come next, and maybe make it hurt less.
It didn't.
"I summon the 6th Windgate, Alavastier, the Light Wind!" he shouted. The seal opened with a blinding white light and there was searing pain, pure and simple, for Orchid. She screamed and closed her eyes, but the light painted the insides of her lids bright white anyways, and her flesh felt like it was burning. She writhed in agony, too pained to even notice when she rolled over her broken arm in her suffering. The light was all-encompassing, and there was no escape from it. It was not terrifying. It was not malicious. It merely was, in that same cold way that the Shadowless merely were.
Then it was over, and she was gasping, fighting to stay conscious, to stay alive. But despite what the pain she felt, she smiled, secretly and subtly, in a way the man could not see. She had seen it. She knew how to end this.
"Never, in all my years, have I ever met someone who could survive six Windgates," commended Stromwind. "You are a most worthy adversary."
He watched in amazement as the girl stumbled to her feet, then started walking slowly towards him. Her body swayed and her back was hunched, but still she held the will in her to fight. She stumbled up close, then lashed out with the keyblade. He blocked easily, then knocked her away with his mace. She fell back onto the stones and he sighed and moved to go to her. But the she stirred. And she got up again. And stumbled forwards once more, that determined look smoldering in her eyes. She struck again, even more feeble than the last, and he blocked it with his arm, barely feeling the blow, and knocked her away with an easy backhand. Stumbling back, the girl regained her balance, but swayed unsteadily. Despite all this, she stepped forwards again, then swung with the keyblade. Not even moving to block, the druid let it hit him in the chest. The blade bounced off ineffectually, the force behind it pathetically weak. He watched sadly as she struck at him, blow after worthless blow, not even with enough force to raise a bruise.
"I am very sorry... but I have to end this now," he said, raising his mace. It was when he was about to bring it down that she surprised him.
"Then don't do it!" she yelled, suddenly staring at him with flaring intensity. She swung the keyblade back, then forwards with hidden power she had been holding in reserve. It caught him square in the jaw, as his mace was above his head, to far away to block. "Meteor Barrage!"
Stromwind went stumbling back as he quickly took another blow to the chest.
"Slam!"
The next blow struck him in the side, causing him to wince and almost double over.
"Slam!"
The keyblade came crashing down on his head, and Stromwind reeled back, his head spinning painfully.
"Slam! Slam! Slam!"
She struck three more blows in quick succession, and the last one sent the druid flying upwards into the air. She jumped up above him, the keyblade glowing with power gathered from the previous attacks.
"Apocalypse!"
Orchid came slamming down, the keyblade almost smashing right through him as she hit the ground with an impact that shook the tower from its top to its very foundations. The Shadowless's body hit the floor hard and skidded to a halt as Orchid collapsed on the ground.
He was already standing when she swayed unsteadily to her feet, stepping towards him. He was bleeding from his mouth, and there were several other wounds and bruises across his bare chest and jaw.
"I see... that you are more than I could have possibly imagined," he said, watching as the burned, stunned, broken and battered bloody girl walked limped towards him. He held out his staff before him and started drawing a magic circle before him. "For you, I shall unleash that power long ago fobidden, for I must not fail, no matter what the cost."
He began chanting, and the design took shape before him. The outer circle was filled with complex runes and figures, but the center remained empty, even as it neared completion. Orchid increased her pace as she walked forwards, watching for the glimmer that meant the difference between life, and death.
"I summon the 7th Windgate, Omega, the Oblivion Wind!" roared the druid. The circle completed, then the split of light went down the center of the symbol. As it began to slowly open, Orchid lunged forwards and slammed the keyblade into the glimmer of light she had seen before. The keyhole of the gate.
"What are you doing?" raged Stromwind. The keyblade, all the way past the crystal rose, had disappeared into the magic circle drawn in mid-air, but did not stick out the other side. He watched as Orchid turned the blade, and felt the gate close, sealed against him. "But...how?"
"I'm sorry," said Orchid softly. There were tears in her eyes when she looked at him. She knew what she was about to do, and she knew that she had to do it anyways. She turned the key, and there was a loud click.
Stromwind stared in horror as the line of light cut down through the symbol in front of him. And then slowly, like the footfalls of a giant, the gate swung open. And all of oblivion was loosed.
Orchid did not hear him scream. She did not see him swallowed by the seventh wind. All she saw was nothing. And tears, tears shed for a fate that no one deserved. And then she closed the gate, for what she hoped was the last time that it would ever have to be closed.
-
Arc stumbled heavily onto the roof of the tower. He wandered slowly over to a still form, lying on the ground.
"Orchid...?" he said. She was battered, bloody, bruised and burned. He had never seen her look nearly as bad. "Orchid, are you alright?"
She groaned fitfully as he shook her shoulder gently with one hand.
"What do you want?" she mumbled as she turned and looked up at him. "Where the hell were you?"
"Being dead."
"Oh. I guess that's okay then."
Arc flopped down beside her, and they both sighed.
"So I guess this means you won?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said. "So how do we get this damnable barrier down?"
"Well... judging from the large explosions... the lack of an enemy... and the fact that the magic seal on the tower has been all but blown away... I say you've already taken care of that," he said.
"Great..." she said. Then she was quiet and started patting herself down. "What the heck? Something vibrating in my pocket..."
"What?" said Arc, sitting up. "You're only fourteen, what are you doing with-!?"
"Oh, here it is," said Orchid, pulling out the keychain for the Clockwork Grape. The little book on a chain, covered in green vines, was shaking like it was about to explode. Suddenly, it did, after a fashion. Purple and red flowers burst out along the vines that covered the tiny book of magic, each beautiful and fragile. They were vibrantly colored, and sparkled in the starlight of the tower.
"A new keychain..." said Arc.
"But why?" asked Orchid.
"I think... since the seal is gone, all the magic is flowing again, and since this seems to be the keychain for magic, it caused it to bloom," reasoned the man. "Well, try it on the keyblade!"
Orchid shrugged, and sat up. Then she called the keyblade to hand, then hooked the new keychain on as soon as the Glass Rose was in her hands. The change was immediate, as always.
The green vibrant haft gained a sparkling texture to it, as if diamonds were mixed in, and the leaves on the handgaurds were replaced by spikes of shining crystal. The glass rose, which had given the last keyblade its name, was now replaced by a vibrantly bright purple flower, hued crimson at the edges of its petal. It sparkled in the center, and when she swung it, it trailed shining, glittering dust.
"Mage Bloom," she said softly. Then she smiled. "Gravija instead of Demi, Stop instead of Slow. Nice."
"Maan, I wish I could get new toys every coupla days," complained Arc.
"Well, I paid an arm and a leg for this," said Orchid, turning so that her broken arm faced him. "Well, part of an arm, at least."
"Oh, my god!" he said, jumping back at the slightly twisted limb. "Does it hurt?"
She glared at him balefully.
"Okay, dumb question," he admitted, raising his hands in surrender. "So do we have to go down to Montblanc?"
"No, I think he's here already," said Orchid, pointing up with her good arm. They watched as the gummi ship came sailing down erratically, finally landing quite roughly on the stones before them. They watched cautiously as the door opened, then jumped to their feet when they saw a Heartless shadow poke its head out.
"Fira!"
The Heartless exploded in a burst of flames and a little moogle, slightly battered and spattered with inky darkness, which soon melted away, came walking out.
"Kupopo... what a rough ride..." he said, shaking his head. "Well, let's get you two on board. I'll get you all fixed up, then we got a castle to crash, right?"
"Yeah..." said Orchid. "Right."
She smiled. Finally, they would get there, close the door, and it would all be done. She'd go home, and she'd get to tell Eriks all about her adventures. That's how it would happen, right?
