((Author's Note: First fic I wrote in a long time and posted it. It's about the happenings at Fort Dragonia with Lynx and Serge. I even wrote down what everyone said during the scene to be as accurate as possible. It is a MAJOR spoiler towards the end though so I don't recommend this to anyone who hasn't played the game and doesn't know what I'm talking about unless you don't mind having stories spoiled.))
The chamber was lit only by the power of the dragon statues centering upon the pillarr in the center of the chamber. The pillarr holding the precious dragon's tear. Lynx's yellow eyes slitted to adjust to the lighting of the room as he watched General Viper battle Serge and company. Kid kept her eyes on him except when she made her attacks on the General. Serge was careful to make sure Kid didn't fall victim to distraction. Pip made a few attacks here and there before being flung back by the General as Serge kept his swallow ready for attack or defense. Finally the General put down his guard with a hearty laugh. A laugh that sounded almost like he was being entertained by a group of clowns.
"Hah-hah-hah!... You are a worthy opponent... but let us see how you do now. I shall give it my all..." spoke the General almost in a humorous yet honorable tone. He lifted his sword to stand by his think waist. He was pleased with the battle and seemed to want another one, however, the chance had gone and passed.
Lynx stepped up behind him. Serge, Kid, and Pip noticed the feline demi-human make his move. He had drawn a weapon of some sort and had swiftly taken it to the back of the General causing the elderly man to lean forward and drop his sword with a loud clang. The General tried to look back at Lynx as his body fell forward off of the knife used to dig deep into his back.
"L-Lynx...you...traitor...!" gasped the General as he landed on the ground near his fallen sword. His eyes shut in pain as he slipped into unconciousness. Lynx stood over him with an evil feline grin on his furry face. As the General slipped out of conciousness, Lynx spoke to him or perhaps more to himself in glory of what he had done. Serge and Pip were stunned about Lynx's betrayel to the General. However, Kid didn't look so surprised. She knew Lynx wasn't one she would trust nor would she expect anyone else to. Fate, however, has a sense of humor.
"You were extremely useful in helping me make my way around these islands. I appreciate your help, General. However, I no longer ahve any need for you. This fort shall serve as a fine grave marker for you and your dragoons. May you rest in peace."
General muttered a few words that echoed almost too quietly to hear in the chamber. "D-Damn...! Forgive... me... Riddel..." Then his unconciousness was definite and spared him from the incoming speeches Lynx would be giving. The feline demi-human took his attention to the three standing in front of the tear. He passed the tear with his coat following his leg movements. He stopped and held his scythe over his shoulder.
"Now, let this be your final resting place as well."
Kid took the chance to reply immediately. "C'mon Lynx! You're goin' down!" She was as confident as ever as she lifted her dagger. Her cerulean eyes glared down the feline demi-human as Serge was cautious to watch that which Kid hated so much. There was nothing to compare to Kid's hatred for the demi-human it seemed, but Lynx was still far more dangerous. That, Serge, was sure of and prepared to defend Pip, Kid, and himself.
The first attack was started by Kid. Her dagger going for a swipe across Lynx's chest, however, his scythe shielded him and with a shove forward, she was sent back before he swung his scythe at her. She dodged back a bit. He swung at her again with the large weapon, this time she was pushed aside as Serge took to her defense. He spun around quickly to send one end of the scythe at Lynx, which he easily blocked, then the other side of Serge's weapon spun at him. His clawed wrist took the hit but it couldn't dig deep due to the light metal over his clawed hand.
He used his other hand to flip Serge's weapon and Serge to the ground. Serge landed on the ground with a thud before quickly standing again. Pip hopped over and attempted to hit Lynx with his tail only to feel the scythe knock him aside. Kid decided it was her turn to attack again so she lunged at Lynx only for him to dodge to the side and watched her avoid the pillarr. She lunged at his back this time, however, he was prepared as usual, and grabbed her weapon before throwing her forward. Serge caught her and helped her up as Pip bobbed from side to side beside them.
Kid smirked as she looked up at Lynx for she knew she had done a little damage and it was soon to be apparent on Lynx. He felt blood oozing down his arm and noticed the cut Kid had managed to sneak in on him. He didn't seem to care nor mind though. It was like he knew something she didn't and that irritated her. Lynx looked at the group with his feline eyes still expressionless.
"You're more trouble than I thought... but do you really think your skills are superior to mine?"
Kid responded, "Sore loser!" Then to her surprise, he disappeared for a moment then reappeared a second later, this time floating in the air. His gaze was on Serge and Serge alone as he ignored those around him. He seemed to have one focus on his mind and Kid didn't like what she was seeing worse than before she had walked into the chamber. Lynx was up to something and it had to deal with Serge but what, Kid couldn't figure out.
Serge eyed Lynx with a hidden anger and a silent caution. He hadn't spoke at all during their encounter feeling no need to for Kid was doing all the talking that needed to be said at the time. He could also sense, Lynx was up to something. Especially considering the stare of the demi-human. It was almost like the stare he gave when he called Serge the assassian of time and the chrono trigger. Startling because he knew Lynx had something on his mind and it had to deal with Serge, himself.
"Serge, have you ever questioned who you really are?" asked Lynx in a calm tone though curious. He narrowed his eyes upon the blue haired boy who looked away for a moment. He wasn't sure how to answer that and Kid quickly stepped in.
"Serge!"
The feline demi-human continued, "What has been the significance of your existence up until now. On that ominous day 10 years ago, the boundry of space and time was torn, and part of me, in fact, died..." He spoke of the panther demon, he had one been. The same panther demon which seeked to hurt a certain blue haired boy. The same blue haired boy who stood as a teenager before him now. "You cannot defeat me, Serge... This is because denying me is the same as erasing your very existence."
Feeling the urge to step in, Kid spoke up, "Don't be taken in by his rubbish, Serge! This guy's full of it!" She knew Lynx was trying to manipulate. Something he seemed to be rather good at, except he made the mistake of trying to manipulate Kid's friend. Serge had grown quite close to her, though she didn't wish to reveal it too openly. She also knew Lynx better than she liked, and she knew he would go for what she cared about.
Once again Lynx spoke, "Huh... we'll see about that. There are two sides to every coin. Life and death... love and hate... they are all the same." For some reason, that struck a fuse in Kid for she quickly grew defensive. She stepped forward a bit before getting into yet another offensive stance. Her gaze upon the floating demi-human.
"What'd you say! Talk some sense, will ya!"
The tear began to glow strangely before anyone could proceed to say anything else. The glow drew Serge in. His gaze completely drawn on the tear as it glowed. In it, he saw his image which quickly warped into the image of Lynx as Lynx stared down at it from above. His eyes adjusting to it as his body lowered to the floor. Serge's legs collapsed beneath him as he grasped his bandana covered head. Kid stood stunned and confused upon Serge's fall. However, the pain within his head seemed to go away as he lowered his hands away from his head.
"Serge! What's wrong!" questioned Kid in concern as she took to his side. Her glare quickly went to Lynx who was now grounded once more. Her glare was deep with anger. "What have you done to Serge!" However, she returned her attention to Serge as she took hold of his shoulder. "Serge, you alright?"
In a calm voice, Serge replied to her, "Yes...I'm fine... I'm just fine, Kid." He slowly stood as Kid released her hand from his shoulder. He looked at Lynx with an unlikely confidence. However, Kid was glaring at Lynx once more, and didn't seem to notice the unlikeliness in Serge's expression. However, Lynx was also behaving strangely as he stepped back and looked at his hands. He shook lightly as he looked down at them.
Amazingly Serge was the first one to speak, "What are you doing, Lynx?" Recieving no answer, Serge looked over at Kid. "Now's your chance, Kid. Kill him!" He was demanding and urgent on the matter causing Kid to sense something wrong. There was something wrong with Serge and she was sure it had to deal with that tear.
"Yea... I know," she said as she took out her dagger once more. She already planned to trash the tear once she was done with Lynx for whatever it did to Serge. The demand in Serge's voice and the near nervousness Lynx was expressing. It was as if they had switched. However, she shook it out of her mind and stepped forward. Lynx looked at her and took a step back. She approached closer. "This is the end of you, Lynx! Say yer prayers!"
"Lynx" realized he was holding his scythe and defended himself against first, Kid's attacks. He looked at her pleadingly causing her to raise a brow at him. She backed up to prepare an element on her grid. Serge charged in confidently and fearless. He lacked his once attractive caution suddenly, leaving Kid puzzled. Pip bounced in but also seemed puzzled by Serge's sudden burst of steam. "Lynx" continued to defend himself.
His first offensive manuver came during his chance when he used meteorite on Serge. Serge fell back, for some reason, not expecting the element so soon. Kid was furious but the next move left her stunned. Lynx charged at Pip with a technique she recognized as Serge's dash & slash. The only difference was the weapon held. He moved just as Serge did in their previous battles. Kid remembered Lynx doing a move similiar to that, but not just like it. Not like he did now. Pip was also down for the count and Lynx looked at Kid.
With a glare and a huff of anger, Kid reached behind her. Serge recognized the attack as her Red Pin technique. He used black hole to absorb all of the red daggers flying at him then closed his eyes before casting Fireball. Choosing that technique to lessen the pain on Kid. She fell back with a soft thud. He opened his feline eyes and looked down at his scythe then back to the group. He approached Serge in big steps and heard shuffling as he approached.
Rising to her feet slowly, Kid stumbled towards Lynx. In a moment of relief, Lynx reached out to catch her. The second he touched her, she lunged the dagger into his gut causing him to fall beside her. He looked at her as he struggled to kneel once more. He backed away while holding onto his gut. Kid looked up at him as Serge also began to stand. He kneeled on one knee and looked at Serge while holding onto his arm.
Serge grinned as he said, "You did it, Kid." He watched Lynx as Kid gazed over the fallen form of Lynx. She wondered why she felt so much regret for her last manuver. Something about stabbing Lynx didn't feel right though it was something she had wanted to do for so long. She was slow to respond and quiet.
"Y-Yeah... I showed him..." She seemed hesitant to say so. The guilt in her rising. Somehow she felt like she wasn't stabbing Lynx. Rather it was Serge she was stabbing. The pained look in his eyes told her so. She was no longer sure what to think. It seemed like friend and rival had switched places but she was there and saw nothing that could've switched them. Nothing that was obvious enough for her observation.
Yet another demand came from Serge's calm voice. "Now finish him. What's wrong? Settle it once and for all." It unsettled Kid's stomach even more. There was something terribly wrong here but perhaps it was not believing they had Lynx at their mercy. He would finally suffer for what he had done, but something still held Kid back. She was silent in reply as she continued to stay kneeled over. The pain in her gut intensifying. "Kid, you're injured... Here, hand me your dagger, I'll finish him off."
She could hear Serge approach her. His footsteps so even, and still so confident, so unlike him. She was nervous, even as he took the dagger from her waist. He stepped beside her and eyed Lynx evilly but she couldn't bare to look at him. She was also looking at Lynx and she saw the pain in his eyes. Pain, she should've seen as pleasure, but instead she felt more guilt. He looked like he had been betrayed but then in his eyes, he seemed to be concerned with her.
"Watch this, Kid... I'll avenge Lucca for you! Die, LYNX!"
That did it. There was her proof. She shouted, "WAIT!" Looking up at Serge as she struggled to stand, she watched him. Finally realizing, this wasn't the Serge she had rescued at Cape Howl. This wasn't the Serge who rescued her with the Hydra Humour. This wasn't HER Serge. He looked back at her confused.
"What, Kid?" He's your foe, isn't he?"
/That's what I thought until.../ she thought. Though she already had her suspicians confirmed, she decided to throw in a question, "... how do you know Lucca's name?" She didn't want to believe it. Something had happened to Serge. Even as he looked at her with a confusion. He seemed to be clueless on what she was asking of him.
"...? What are you talking about, Kid...?" He asked in return. Behind the confusion, was the slight evil behind his normally sincere blue eyes. The eyes she had known before this damned chamber.
She explained, "Not once did I ever mention Lucca's name to you, Serge..." Her instincts told her who he really was and now she was about to find out. She saw Serge widen his eyes but only for a moment before he closed them. He seemed to be thinking of something deeply. "No...Don't tell me you're...?"
Glaring at him with a deeper intensity than ever before, he suddenly opened his eyes and leaped forward sending Kid's own dagger into her abdomen. Her eyes went wide as she brought them to gaze at him. Her vision beginning to blur his blue hair and red bandana like a badly soaked picture. She fell against him as the dagger released from inside her body. As she fell to her knees, she heard what sounded like a sad roar. A cry for her.
The real Serge in Lynx's body watching with sadness but too tired to do anything for her. Instead of crying out her name, he could only manage a roar-like cry. Kid fell to the ground as his body smirked evilly at her fall and the blood dripping off her own dagger. He was exhausted emotionally and physically. Ever since the switch, he felt tired out. He didn't watch as what used to be his hand took hold of Kid's hair and yanked her head up as Lynx in his body held the dagger ready for the fatal blow.
"This is the end of the road for you, Kid," he said with that evil smirk continuing to play across his face in a sickening display. Kid spoke but did not look at him. She was also weakened to the point of exhaustion. Her weakened voice could be heard by Serge's newly given cat ears.
"U-Ugh...! Y-You're Lynx...ain't ya!"
The evil Serge let a small psychotic laugh escape his throat as he eyed her and lifted the dagger. The fatal blow was so close. Kid was sure it was over. She was just glad she was able to find out the truth before she died. Though she wished to apologize to the real Serge. She understood why he had given her the betrayed look yet he also understood her confusion in the matter. Even he was confused about the entire thing.
"Heh heh heh...! I'll send you to see Lucca!" he said in a fit of laughter. However, he looked at the real Serge lying helpless on the ground and thought of a better reason to keep the radical dreamer thief, alive. He released her head and tossed the dagger to the side before. "... I'll finish you off later." Then he walked up closer to where his former body laid. He smirked as he looked down upon the body of the demi-human. "Look at yourself, Serge... I mean, Lynx! heh heh heh...excellent! The enmity is growing!... The only thing pure in this world is enmity!...Well then, the time has come for the curtain to fall. Your services are no longer needed. Even your very existence worthless... farewell, Serge."
Lynx, now occupying Serge's body, took the tear on the pedestal. He looked at it in his hands as he spoke, "Finally, I have the key. The key to the gate of Fate. The time has finally come for the Frozen Flame to awaken!" Suddenly he pulled off the levitation technique again and looked down at Serge. A purple cloudiness picked up Lynx's body and held it before Serge's former body. "Come to the sea of Eden, Serge... should you wish to end your dream of 10 years ago."
Everything turned black for the real Serge. He could hear Lynx's words but he saw nothing as he kept his eyes closed. Unable to look at Kid, after what had happened. He didn't know what was going to happen to either of them, but had a feeling Lynx had something planned for both of them. He heard words in the darkness.
Now, let love bleed!
/Kid.../
Darker and deeper than the seas of hell! Heh heh heh...! Hah hah hah hahahahaha...!
Fin
((That's all for this one. Read and Review if you like.))