I found Larka's worst memory hard to write for some reason, even though I had it completely planned out. So that is the main reason for my delay. Sorry.
John: …Right…
Captain Obvious: One does not simply ROCK their way into Mordor! …Go ahead and smack me if you want. But I had to say that.
DesVostgalph: That might work on Kuribow, but what about Kuribo? Either way, it's nice to see a new face. Thanks for reading!
Epyon: TAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY! –Is smacked again-
Chapter 9: Trial of Friendship: Larka
Larka opened her eyes, and found that she was no longer in darkness.
Now she stood in an open meadow. She realized that she was in the plains of Teknisk Wereld. Except she could not see the mountains anywhere. That meant she had to be very far into them to be unable to view them.
But when she looked down, she was taken by surprise. Instead of the short grass she had expected, there were flowers everywhere around her. They came in all types, with many colors and shapes.
"Wow…" Larka said in wonder as she kneeled, carefully avoiding crushing the flowers. "It's been a long time since I've seen so many flowers…" She smiled as she ran her fingers along the petals of a large, white one in front of her. "I've missed them."
Larka tried to recall when she had last been able to look at flowers without worrying about anything else at the time. "It was… before Viken took us. It had to be," Larka said softly. Then she winced as she remembered. "That's right… it was the same day that he came. I had forgotten about that…"
To get her mind off the unpleasant memory, Larka looked around the field. The flowers were calming to her, yet she was beginning to feel something else. Unsure of what it was, she continued to scan the flowers.
As she did, she caught sight of a flower by itself, surrounded by grass. It was a blood-red rose that stood there. Larka found herself moving closer to it at once.
Once she got there, she looked down at it. "It almost seems… lonely…" Larka glanced at the field again. "That's it… although I love doing this… whenever I do it, I am alone…"
Larka turned her gaze to the rose again. "Even when it was just Fell and me, my activities with flowers were always done… alone." She closed her eyes. "Living in Viken's lab only made me more… afraid… of being alone… it is still my biggest fear. I… never want to have to be alone. Never again."
After a moment, she continued. "Fell might wish to go on his own someday. I was worried about what would happen when he did… but now I don't have to be afraid of that anymore, because my other friends will always be there… especially Zack." Larka smiled to herself. "Fell would never abandon me forever, but… I am glad to know that I will not be alone when he leaves for other things."
Not knowing what else to say, Larka bent down and carefully plucked the rose out of the ground, avoiding the thorns. Then she carried it to the other flowers and laid it down amongst them. "This may be a silly thing to do… but I did not want to leave you in that position either," Larka said to the rose.
As she did, she suddenly realized that she had seen a rose identical to that one before. It was exactly the same as the one she had gotten when picking flowers the last time she had had the chance. "…That was probably intentional," she thought out loud.
She probably would have continued to talk, but at that moment, the ground began to grow black. All of the flowers besides the rose became darkness, leaving a hole for Larka to enter.
"I guess that's how I go on," Larka said. "…I won't gain much from staying here, anyway." She jumped into the hole, giving herself no time for second thoughts.
She landed on a metal floor. Puzzled by the sudden change of scenery, she began to look around.
Larka instantly recognized the room she was in when she saw the metal examining table, the clasps unfastened.
"Viken's… laboratory…" Larka whispered, trembling at the sight. Although she was well aware that this was not real, that Viken was already dead, she still felt old fears rising. All of her instincts told her to get out of there at once.
Larka forced herself to calm down a bit. She had to find her way out of here by doing something besides standing there. So she looked at the doors in the room, trying to decide which one to enter. She felt compelled to enter the left door, so she went over to it. Surprisingly, it was partially open. She pulled it open and went inside, bringing it back to its original position as she did.
The room was fairly barren, but the five people inside it caught her attention instantly. Two of them were the guards that had monitored her and Fell, and the third was Viken. They were standing in front of two large, glass cylinders.
Larka stared at the two figures inside them. Although they were younger, and still had human appearances and brown eyes, she knew that they were Fell and herself. Her younger self was watching them nervously from her kneeled position. Fell was glaring at the trio, but made no other movement.
"The day has finally arrived," Viken said with a smirk. "At long last, the experiments may truly begin."
No… not this… Larka thought, a small hint of panic entering her as she realized what she was seeing.
The younger guard was the one close by the younger Larka. At Viken's words, he brought out a black handgun and shot through a small opening in the cylinder. A tiny dart hit Larka in the arm, causing her to slump over, paralyzed. Viken opened the cylinder and pulled her out, removing the dart in the process.
"Unless I call for your assistance, you are to stay here and guard him," Viken ordered. The two guards nodded in response. Content with that, Viken started to walk back to the door with Larka in tow. The real Larka could see the terror in her eyes.
Perhaps Fell could too, or else he was simply reacting to what was happening. Whatever his motivations were, Fell suddenly lunged at the cylinder he was confined in. He hit the glass with a sharp crack, and then slowly slid to the floor, eyes glazed over before they closed.
"…He actually damaged the glass," the older guard stated, indicating to the long and narrow crack left from the attack.
"That's far more impressive than anything else before," Viken said, looking at the results with interest. "They are indeed getting stronger."
The older guard glanced at Larka. "Sir, I believe his desire to assist his sister also aided in the ferocity of that assault. It might be a combination of both."
"Possibly. We will know once I am done with them today." As Viken walked out of the door, he added, "It will be necessary to replace that weaker glass with a stronger material. Be sure to remember that." Then he went into the other room. The real Larka hastily went out as well.
Viken set her younger self on the examining table and then closed the clasps, binding her to it. He went over and shut the door before returning to the table.
Already the paralyzing effect was slightly fading. Larka shut her eyes as Viken came over to her, and the real Larka found herself doing the same. Both of them heard Viken's words though, as much as they did not want to.
"This will be one of the most painful experiences you ever have to go through. Feel free to scream when you must; it will be unpreventable." Then she heard him preparing an injection. The cry that came a few seconds later was more than enough to tell her that the process had begun.
From there on, the memory was very hazy. Larka could sometimes open her eyes long enough to see for a few seconds before she forced them shut again. Even when she did see, the room was almost blurry.
Maybe this is happening… because this is my memory… Larka thought as she heard yet another scream of pain. When I was experiencing this… I did not see much… So I can't look back on things I never saw…
It seemed to stretch on forever, an endless session of torture. Larka could barely catch any of the muttered words Viken said; all that she heard was her own screaming. She wanted to cover her ears, to block out all of the suffering, yet she didn't. For some reason, she knew that it was important to observe all of this to the best of her ability. Why that would be she would probably see soon enough.
At long last, it was over. Larka opened her eyes and saw Viken pressing the button to open the clasps. Then he lifted the younger Larka and went to the door, going in again. Once again, Larka followed.
Fell had come around some time before. When he saw the state his sister was in, his eyes widened as he began to tremble.
I think… that was the first time and last time… that I saw Fell look frightened… Larka realized.
Viken put Larka back into the glass cylinder, locking it again. The older guard took out an identical gun to the one his companion had used and shot Fell in the arm, paralyzing him.
"I want the two of you to find something to replace this glass while I am busy with him," Viken instructed as he took out Fell. "Do not worry about her; even if she were not confined, she is not about to be going anywhere right now."
The two guards nodded again and went out of the door. Viken went as well, closing it behind him. Both of the Larkas were left there, technically alone.
Her younger version stirred, and then shakily sat up. Her hands went to her ears, but she pulled them back quickly after she felt what they had become. What had recently been round, smooth human ears were now triangular, furry wolf ears. She looked at her hands, and moaned as she saw that her fingernails were much longer and sharper. Then she glanced up at the glass, and drew back at the sight of her own reflection. She had been expecting the ears, still bleeding slightly, yet seeing them shocked her. But what had really horrified her were her now-yellow eyes.
Larka could clearly remember the thoughts that had been going through her mind at that time. "Now we are truly secluded. Even if we eventually escape, nobody will accept us. We are not human anymore. We are going to be alone… forever… even Fell realized that…"
As though to back up her thoughts, a cry from her brother suddenly came from the other room. It was all too much for the eight year old. She began to cry uncontrollably from the pain and hopelessness that lay on her heart.
The real Larka watched sadly as her younger image faded away. "Back then, I believed all of that. Even if we, by some miracle, managed to get out of there, we would still be rejected. Nobody would accept us because of what we were." Larka then managed a small smile. "But I was wrong. Even after they learned what we were, the group accepted us. Hope knew all along, but she didn't mind. When the others found out, their views on us were not changed. I finally have… friends. People I care about… and love. Never again do I have to fear seclusion from what Viken made us…"
"Keep telling yourself that; we will see how far it gets you," her reflection stated, coming in front of her.
"So you were here all along…" Larka said softly.
"Of course. I decided to let you deal with the first trial before I showed myself." A Duel Disk appeared on her left arm. "I am the second trial. If you are ready, we shall begin now."
"I am," Larka assured.
Larka: 8000
Dark Larka: 8000
"I start? In that case, I'll summon Dunamis Valkyria. (1800/1050) I lay two cards down and end my turn," Larka said.
"Those will do you little good," Dark Larka stated. "I summon Mirage Dragon. (1600/600) Then I equip him with Shine Castle! (2300/600) He attacks Dunamis Valkyria!"
The Mirage Dragon shot a beam of light at the Dunamis Valkyria, tearing through her to hit Larka. She gasped in pain, but it was soon tolerable.
Larka: 7500
Dark Larka: 8000
"Go ahead," Dark Larka said.
Larka knew her traps were not going to be affected by Mirage Dragon, but she wanted to save them if possible. "I lay one monster in defense mode and end my turn."
"I summon Blade Knight (1600/1000) and play Shine Spark." (2800/200) (2100/600) They both waited for their eyes to adjust to the bright field before Dark Larka continued. "Blade Knight attacks your monster."
"It is my Twilight Zone Female Warrior. (2000/1200) I will not remove your Blade Knight," Larka said.
Dark Larka gave her a doubtful glance. "If that's what you want… Mirage Dragon attacks directly."
This time, the attack hit Larka dead on, burning into her fiercely. She managed to remain standing, but the brutality of the attack had nearly forced her to the ground.
Larka: 4700
Dark Larka: 8000
"You may go now," Dark Larka said.
Trying to ignore the pain, Larka made her play. "I summon Wandering Hero, Freed! (2200/700) I'll remove Dunamis Valkyria and Twilight Zone Female Warrior from my Cemetery to destroy Mirage Dragon!"
"I should have seen that coming," Dark Larka growled as Freed sliced apart the Mirage Dragon with a glowing sword.
"Then Freed attacks Blade Knight. I'm done."
Larka: 4700
Dark Larka: 7900
"Freed is still too weak to stand against many monsters in this deck," Dark Larka stated. "I summon Ninja Master-Sasuke (2300/600) and attack him."
Sasuke seemed to blend with the brilliant light, making him almost unable to be seen. Then a handful of kunai came flying down, piercing Freed. One managed to nick Larka as it went by, leaving a very shallow scratch.
Larka: 4600
Dark Larka: 7900
"I assume you're done," Larka said as she looked at her hand. It wasn't a reassuring sight. Currently, she had no cards that could withstand another attack from Sasuke, unless she used her traps…
"That's right. Take your turn."
Luckily for Larka, she drew a good card to stall with. "I summon Magic Reflector Reflect Bounder! (2200/600) I'll end my turn at that."
"Ugh… I have no desire to take damage from an attack," Dark Larka stated. "I lay one card down. That's it."
The next card Larka got was even better when it came to destroying Sasuke. "I summon Volt Girl! (2400/400) She attacks Sasuke! Then Reflect Bounder attacks directly!"
The reflection seemed to be especially pained as the Reflect Bounder assaulted her, reflections of the piercing light going into her. But she was far from done.
Larka: 4600
Dark Larka: 5600
"I'm done," Larka said.
"You will not be able to stay on the offensive for long," Dark Larka threatened. "I activate Cry of the Living Dead to bring back Blade Knight. Then I summon another! I lay two cards face down as well. (2500/600) My first Blade Knight attacks Volt Girl!"
"I activate Emissary of Harmony!" Larka countered.
"Fine," Dark Larka growled. "It's your turn."
"I'll equip Volt Girl with my own Shine Castle!" Larka said. (3100/400) "She attacks a Blade Knight! Then I'm done."
Larka: 4600
Dark Larka: 5000
"I pass," Dark Larka said, glaring at her hand.
"I'll attack your second Blade Knight with Volt Girl!" Larka declared. "Then Reflect Bounder attacks you directly!"
Larka: 4600
Dark Larka: 2200
Larka seemed surprised that Dark Larka had not activated either of her two face down cards, but decided to risk bringing out another monster anyway. "I summon my own Blade Knight!"
"In response, I activate Tidal Wave," Dark Larka said.
Larka winced as she saw all of her monsters get washed away by the fierce waters. "Well, at least I won't have to worry about it later. I'm done."
"I summon Dunamis Valkyria and attack directly," Dark Larka announced.
The Dunamis Valkyria's hands began to glow. She brought them up in front of her and unleashed a blazing surge of light energy from them that engulfed Larka. When it was over, Larka had to grab onto the wall behind her to use it as temporary support.
Larka: 2300
Dark Larka: 2200
"You are all so fragile, physically and mentally," her dark counterpart murmured. "If you feel as though you can go on, do so."
"I'm not about to give in!" Larka said. "I lay a monster in defense mode and activate Sealing Swords of Light! That's all."
"Beyond irritating… I have no choice but to pass," Dark Larka stated.
"Then it's time to finish this!" Larka declared. "I flip over Saint Magician! (800/0) I'll use her effect to get back Shine Castle. Then I summon another Volt Girl and equip her with it!" (3100/400)
"I will not lose all of my Life Points from just those two monsters," Dark Larka pointed out.
"That's why I'm going to activate my trap card, Solar Ray! Since I have two Light Main-Types, you lose 1200 Life Points!" Larka said.
Larka: 2300
Dark Larka: 1000
"Volt Girl destroys Dunamis Valkyria, and Saint Magician does the final blow!"
If the occasion had not been so grave, Larka probably would have laughed at the absurdity of the Saint Magician smacking Dark Larka to death with her staff.
Larka: 2300
Dark Larka: 0
"How… humiliating…" Dark Larka gasped before she vanished.
"…That is one way to put it," Larka said as the room faded away. She waited until the darkness cleared, showing her where she now was.
Much to her surprise, she was now at the Elemental Spring. She looked around, but nothing seemed to have changed.
"What am I supposed to do now?" Larka said to herself.
Before she could think of anything, she heard something. Turning to where she thought the source was, she suddenly found herself being tackled, the person excitedly exclaiming, "SOMEONE'S HERE! SOMEONE'S HERE! SOMEONE'S FINALLY HERE!"
Larka fell back onto her rear as the very young girl had her arms locked around Larka's waist. Although she was out of focus, Larka could tell she had to be far below an age allowed to enter Teknisk Wereld. The surprise of the hyper assault made her more questioning on other matters though.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Larka managed to gasp out, trying to recover from having the breath knocked out of her.
The girl leapt back and then began jumping up and down energetically. "I was told to wait here until they were done, but it was so BORING! That's why I'm happy that someone's come, especially someone I know!"
"Huh? You know me?" Larka said, looking rather confused by the whole thing.
"Of course, silly!" The girl stopped jumping in place and gazed at Larka with a tilted head. "At least, I think I do… I remember seeing you before, anyway!"
"But how?" Larka kneeled down in front of the girl, trying to get a good look at her.
The girl thought for a moment, and then said, "I can't remember now… That isn't supposed to happen! My memory's really good most of the time!" Then, without warning, she leapt on Larka's back, grabbing onto her long hair. "Oh well! I know you somehow! So let's play!"
"Ow!" Larka exclaimed. "Play? I can't-argh-do that! I have somewhere I-ouch-need to be! Hey, go easy on my hair!"
"Sorry!" The girl latched around her neck instead. "What do you mean, you have to go somewhere? But that's no fun! You just got here!"
"I apologize… but I am expected to be back with my friends shortly…" Larka gasped out. It was hard to talk with the girl hanging off her neck. "Or else… I would… stay with you…"
"No! I don't want to be left alone again!" the girl protested, letting go and running in front of her. "That made me feel lonely!"
There was something about the way she said that that made Larka think she did not mean her being left at this spring temporarily. "What do you mean?"
"I was always alone, although I didn't know it!" The girl hesitatingly put her hands over where her heart was. "I wasn't supposed to have emotions, but now I'm experiencing them all the time! I don't know whether that's right or not… but now I can remember how lonely I was, and I don't want to have to go through that again!" The girl was shaking by then, glancing at Larka nervously.
Larka could easily sympathize with the girl, although she did not understand why she said some of the things she did. "I've always feared being alone, so I know how you feel. If I didn't have to leave, I would stay as long as you wanted."
"You… really have to leave?" The girl abruptly grabbed Larka around her middle again, sobbing, "I DON'T WANT YOU TO GO I DON'T WANT YOU TO GO I DON'T WANT YOU TO GO!"
Although her exclamations hurt Larka's sensitive ears, she did not protest to the reaction. Instead, she gently put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "It's only temporarily. If we have met before, I'm sure we will again. This time, I won't forget you. When we do see each other once more, I won't have to do this. We can… stay together, for a much longer period of time. I'll be with you for as long as you want then, so that you don't have to experience that again."
"Really?" the girl said, gazing up at her hopefully.
Larka nodded. "Yes. So wait until then, ok?"
"All right! I can do that!" The girl jumped back, now seeming as cheerful as she had first been. "I may be impatient, but I'll wait this one time!"
"Good." Larka got up. "Then we'll see each other soon."
"I hope so, Larka!" the girl said.
As Larka began to fade, the girl waved to her. It was then that Larka could finally see who she had been talking to.
What? But that makes… no sense… Larka thought as darkness closed around her.
…
Larka was greeted by a blur of brown fur tackling her in the same section the girl had. She fell over again, wincing as Malon licked her face eagerly.
"Look's like you're finally back!" Miles said.
"We were getting worried. You were in there for a long time," Hope explained, gazing at her friend with concern.
"Sorry," Larka apologized, getting up. Malon rubbed his head on her leg, whining happily.
"How did it go?" Zack asked, looking concerned.
"It was fine. I got injured in the duel, but it's not bad at all," Larka replied.
"…Are you harmed mentally?" Fell inquired.
"No, I was able to handle it," Larka assured.
"Seems like it," Draken said, nodding to the mirror. They turned to see that the image had appeared. It was a blood-red rose.
"…Fitting," Fell muttered.
"Yes, it is," Larka agreed. Then she said to Max, "How is Brandi doing?"
"She's been no better, but no worse either," Max answered as Larka sat down next to him.
"I see…" Larka put her hand on Brandi's shoulder, but did not say any more on the matter.
"Well, we're coming down to the wire," Gen stated. "Only two more people have to go; Hope and Zack."
"Place your bets, people," Miles said with a grin.
"No thanks. I've already lost one," Rue muttered.
They did not have time to say anything else before the reflection appeared. Zack gazed at it intently. "It seems to be my turn."
"You'll breeze through it," Rue said with a shrug. "You seem to have come to terms with your past a long time ago, and that was the hardest part by far."
"Amen to that," Miles said with a shiver.
"…I doubt you will have much trouble," Fell stated.
"But please be careful," Larka added.
"I will." Zack stepped through the mirror without looking back.
"…So, you're going to be last," Gaston said to Hope. "How do you feel?"
"Fine. I'll be ready when the time goes," Hope assured.
Gaston seemed satisfied with that, but Hope was secretly worried. It was possible that mirror would show her why she desired the God cards so much, and why she kept dreaming of Satan. She knew the answer to that was important. Yet she found herself fearing what it would be.
…
"You were right, Kisara," Amy said as Larka reappeared. "She doesn't look hurt."
"Yes," Kisara replied, smiling.
"Fifty-fifty chance of who goes next," Claire said.
"…Seems like Zack was chosen," Matt stated.
They watched him enter the mirror. "Soon, it will be over," Sarius said. "Then we will see what it was all for."
"I've been wondering that myself," Aya stated before they became silent again.
To be continued…