Piccolo Sky's Quote-for-the-Day: "If ever you find yourself stranded at sea and you end up on this island covered with bizzare architecture that is oozing green slime and you happen to come upon a giant stone monolith that's covered with images of this hideous half-squid/half-dragon on it and it has a giant door...do yourself a favor and don't open it."
Three Months Later
The atmosphere around the cave, and around the world itself, had changed. Now, with Bahamut's support, and the revival of the community, the dragon monitoring of the Light Warriors went into full swing. Day and night, the dragons prayed for the safety of the humans. They monitored them constantly, reporting on the slightest detail. Some even began to record the legend down for what they were sure was the greatest historical act of all time. Others began to research other human legends and lore, seeing what other validity there was to such tales. And every new victory was celebrated with a grand party on the Dragon Isles. For the first time in a thousand years, the world looked like a brighter place as it slowly began to come back to life.
Bahamut continued to watch with new hope and faith as well. However, he was continually fearful for the humans regardless. They were still weaker than him, after all, and the Four Fiends had given him problems before. He feared that other, stronger fiends would prove too strong for them. But he held on and continued to wait through every new crisis, and they did not disappoint him.
A new worry had arisen right after the relighting of the Earth Crystal. Almost as soon as it was relit, Bahamut had barely any time to rejoice before sensing a new disturbance. The Fire Crystal began to fade rapidly, and he sensed growing evil from it. Evidently, the Four Fiends had sensed that the Earth Crystal was relit. So they were trying to hasten the destruction of humanity by causing the great volcano Mt. Gulg to erupt. The lava and eruption itself would likely destroy all life on the continent, but the ash that arose in the wake would usher in an ice age far worse than the one that Bahamut and his brethren had experienced in the days of Griever. Yet the Light Warriors leapt on the opportunity immediately. They rushed into the heart of Mt. Gulg itself, fighting through hoardes of creatures in the lakes and waterways leading to it. On reaching it, they faced the horror of the Fiend of Fire, Kary of Maralith. But they killed her as easily as Lich, and soon the Fire Crystal was relit. The sun shone more brightly than it had in generations, and the polar icecaps receded somewhat. To celebrate, Bahamut demonstrated a fully-powered Sol-Pyrin for his kin.
By now, the two remaining Fiends had sensed what was happening, and struggled to intensify their own actions. Kraken moved to disrupt the gaseous cycle of the world's oceans. It would kill all life in the water, starting with the deep dwelling mermaid race. The gluttonous, pompous creature no doubt thought the Light Warriors would never reach it, for it dwelled in the Ocean Palace far below the waters. But he and Bahamut alike were surprised as the humans perfected a small machine that could travel underwater and supplied it with Oxale, so that they could breathe deep under the sea. They went to the bottom of the ocean and slaughtered the beast, and then relit the Water Crystal. With that done, the dragons could once more dive and fish. Bahamut smiled as he sensed the water creatures preserved in Terratopolis at last released back into the oceans. The rivers flowed clean and pure again the world over.
The arrogance of Tiamat, Bahamut knew, would be his downfall. Rather than try to intensify his destruction, he waited patiently within the flying castle of the Lufenians. He believed that the humans would never reach him there, or if they did they would have to battle their way through too much, and would be drained when they reached him. Bahamut smiled at the thought. Tiamat underestimated their powers, which had only grown since they left him. They could match his power and even exceed it at this point. Bahamut had been a bit worried, until a report was issued not but a few minutes ago. The Light Warriors had destroyed the ultimate Lufenian creation: the WarMech. This machine had been designed to be superior to even the Fiends. Bahamut knew its own battle power exceeded that of Tiamat. If WarMech was destroyed, he knew Tiamat couldn't win. It was only a matter of time now...and the last of the Crystals would be relit. After a thousand years of darkness, the world would be pure and clean once again.
The dragons prepared for one last grand celebration. All were coming out now, from the largest to the smallest. They knew, within a short period of time, the wind would return. Then they would be able to soar and fly again as they did in the times of old. They all looked forward to that, as well as the grand celebration of the end of the reign of Chaos. All over the world, in fact, the various races were preparing a celebration. All free peoples watched the actions of these Light Warriors with expectation and hope. Bahamut himself lingered for a deep breath of clean, fresh air after so many years...and to once again soar on the wind. With the Crystals restored, he knew it would be his time to leave. He would celebrate for a time, but then he could fly back to his home in Terratopolis. Soon, things would return to the way they were, once he sensed the last Crystal being restored.
And yet...he was still sad.
Bahamut alone remained back in the grand hall. His eyes were closed, and he was in a position of meditation. He was silent and didn't move. Outside, he could still hear the clamor and revelry of the dragons as they prepared to rejoice. But he paid it no mind for now. At length, however, he heard something else. Footsteps were coming. At that, Bahamut cracked open an eyelid and looked forward down the hallway. What he saw was Singh, emerging into the light and coming on down the hall. When she was within range, however, she bowed before the Dragon King, and then rose again.
"Master, we are almost ready. The latest report says they are ascending to the heart of the flying castle now."
Bahamut opened both eyes, and gave a nod to this. "Thank you, Singh. I shall be out shortly."
Singh nodded. After that, she paused a moment and smiled. "Well, they did it."
Bahamut smiled as well. "That they did."
"The humans certainly have become strong."
"That they have."
Singh paused for a moment, and her smile faded. "Something bothers you, master?"
Bahamut's smile slowly faded as well. His head bowed slightly. He let out a long, slow sigh. "...I still sense the growing evil, Singh. Humanity has not changed."
Bahamut's assistant frowned a bit at this, and bowed her head as well.
"The Light Warriors...my friends...have labored for so long and so hard..." Bahamut slowly went on. "By their blood and bruises is the great mistake of humanity undone. They deserve to live in a peaceful world now. But what will the rest of humanity give them in exchange? How long will it be before their sacrifices are for nothing? Will it be within their own lifetimes that the Crystals turn dark once more?" He sighed deeply at this, and shook his head.
Singh stayed silent at this for a few moments, but at length shrugged. "It was their choice, master. This generation of humans might have spawned great evil, but it also spawned them. Without them, the restoration would not be possible."
Bahamut smiled a bit at this, and gave a small laugh. "Again reminding me that I focus too much on external things, I see."
Singh smiled in reply and laughed a bit as well.
Bahamut gestured to her. "Go back outside. I will be out soon."
Singh bowed in response, and then turned and walked back out the way she came. It took a few moments, but soon she was gone and joining the revelry again. Bahamut smiled for a bit longer, but then frowned again. He paused for a few minutes after this. He thought long and hard about all that had gone on. He considered the Light Warriors, and considered the Planet of which they came from. All of this wretched evil that surrounded him...it angered him to think about it. How could humanity be like this? How could they harbor such hate? Was there some source of it? Were there some people that the Light Warriors shouldn't have saved? He wished he could find the source and stomp it out, just like back in the days of Griever. Surely there could be something else done. What was the cause? Was humanity so wicked that it had been entirely perverted? What basis was there for such hate he was sensing? What were they doing that was perverting the world?
Bahamut didn't know, but he no longer intended to sit by and wait for it to present itself. Instead, he closed his eyes. He inhaled deeply, and placed himself back into his highly meditative state. He separated himself from his surroundings, and began to look at the world differently. He looked for the evil that surrounded it, and tried to see a source to it. He went back and searched harder, looking for a cause. But he could see none. The entire world was shrouded with the ever-growing darkness. It was thick and nasty to behold. The three Crystals shone only like dim little torches out of it. It sickened Bahamut again to see the depth of human wickedness. But then...he got a new idea. Until now, he had been focusing on the evil. Why not focus on the people themselves? Perhaps then he could see a source. Perhaps then something better could be done, and this crisis could be averted. With that, Bahamut swept down and focused on another place...the people of Cornelia.
Let us see... Bahamut mused as his consciousness focused on the nation. His senses were so great, he was able to travel actually to individual minds and hearts, and see the darkness that lurked in them. He moved about to the royal family first... The king...a bit weak, but a decent man, untainted by greed. Hmm...his heart is actually fairly kind. Nothing wicked or twisted in it. What of his offspring...? Hmm...he picked a good wife, with a similar heart. And his offspring are innocent and kind as well... The Princess Sarah seems to have a heart almost like the Light Warriors, in fact. Perhaps the Chancellor perverted the king's decisions... No, he too is faithful and loyal. The soldiers...they too are devoted... The people? They seem innocent as well... Hmm. How remarkable...there appears to be an entire nation that has not devoted itself to any base desires or evils. There is some wickedness, but nothing severe. Nothing corrupting. This kingdom is innocent...with people that seem to be after the hearts of the Light Warriors themselves. I must say, it is a relief. If the last human kingdom is good and true, then perhaps its influence will save this perverse planet yet... My source is not here.
How about Pravoka? That place was a hive for scum and villainy. However...the people are decent. I can sense no true evil in their hearts. But those pirates...surely they... Well well, this is surprising. Their interaction with the Light Warriors seems to have changed them. They are crooked, but not nearly as much as before. Even that wretched specimen of a man Bikke has had a change of heart. This is very encouraging. Another good town. Perhaps the Light Warriors influenced it, which is good news as far as I am concerned.
Melmond...yes. That Dr. Une has a prideful spirit. And the Earth Crystal affected it worst first. Perhaps it was just punishment... No...no, the people there are innocent as well. It seems they were innocent victims. Even this Dr. Une isn't a bad person, just a bit arrogant. Nothing standing out. Hmm...they seem to not be so bad either... That's interesting and...
Abruptly, Bahamut froze. Something wasn't right here...
Wait a minute...
Crescent Lake? ...No. Gaia? ...No. Onrac? ...No.
Nothing there. There's no excess of dark hearts there. No true evil...
This...can't be right...
Elfheim? ...No... Mt. Duerger? ...No! That witch Matoya? ...Not even her!
No one! No one on this Planet!
But...this evil power...it's growing...
What in the world is going on?
"Master...the Wind Crystal has been relit! Come out! We're all starting to fly!"
Bahamut's eyes shot open as he was returned to reality. His face was now stricken with shock and astonishment. He only slowly became aware of his surroundings, and the fact that both Khan and Singh were standing eagerly before him, earnest for him to come out. Their eagerness, however, began to fade soon. They saw the concern on their master's face, and they soon began to mimic it as well. Meanwhile, Bahamut began to make a startling revelation. He was wrong...he had been wrong for years...
It wasn't the humans that were perverting the world.
It was something else...
This couldn't be. How could Bahamut have failed to sense it thus far? How had it just escaped him? He didn't know...but he planned to find out. Somehow this thing had to be blocking his vision to the source. He would have to rely on more power. And so, he suddenly looked up, realizing his two attendants were there.
"Khan! Singh! Come here at once!"
Immediately, their faces turned to puzzlement. "Master, is something wrong?"
"Just do it!" The Dragon King blasted in impatience.
Both were taken aback for a moment at Bahamut's sudden urgency, but then they both did as they were told. Quickly, they rushed up to Bahamut's podium, and then stood there and waited.
Bahamut responded by scooting back more, giving some room on it. "Come up here, and join me like this."
Khan and Singh immediately did so. They stepped up onto the podium, and then sat down as Bahamut was. They both looked and faced him afterward. Bahamut, in reply, extended his claws out to them.
"Now, take my hands and concentrate. Clear your thoughts as I showed you to. I'm going to use your own powers to boost my sensory abilities."
Khan and Singh visibly didn't understand this, but they nodded. They both took a hand of Bahamut, and then closed their eyes. It took them a few moments to get it right, during which Bahamut grew more impatient. However, they eventually cleared their minds. They weren't nearly as good as Bahamut at it, but it didn't matter. The esper immediately closed his eyes and focused again. He didn't search right away. First, he extended his presence outward. He moved his aura and consciousness beyond his own body and into the minds of Khan and Singh. There, he allowed it to rest a moment, gaining control of their own faculties and auras, and commanding that power under his own. It was much easier, now that they were allowing him. It took some time, but eventually he felt his own sensory power grow. He simply hoped that it was enough, and immediately focused his new power of three minds outward, to look at the Planet once again.
His consciousness left the chamber, and ascended high and far above the Dragon Isles. They shrank into little strips of land, and the rest of the world with it, until he could see the vast Planet from miles and miles away. He looked at it now, sensing over it, trying to find the source of the evil. He was clouded at first. At first, he sensed only the familiar sensation of the whole world being evil. It tried to delude him. It made him think it was coming from everywhere. But he didn't believe it this time. He continued to focus harder, trying to look past it to a source. To his surprise...he met with some resistance. Apparently the force actively went against him. He sensed something else as well. As he continued to focus...the light of the Four Crystals seemed to grow stronger. It was almost as if the Crystals...were attempting to resist the force as well. Finally, it began to break down...and with the help of Khan and Singh Bahamut went in deeper. He began to trace threads of stronger evil, and follow them back to their source. As he did, he could sense the darkness solidifying...growing stronger... It brought more resistance to him, but with the help of the Crystals and his assistants he continued to push it back...and search on...
It's on land... Somewhere there definitely... Now, go in closer... The Southern Hemisphere... Keep focusing...it's getting stronger... Push it back, find it's source... The Southeast... Yes...Damn, it's getting stronger... Keep at it... Khan, Singh...just hold on a bit more... The Continent...yes, it's there...getting stronger... West of Pravoka...in the Kingdom of Cornelia...nearly-
GO TO HELL YOU PIECE OF SHIT
A tremendous surge of power...cold as ice and numbing like lightning...suddenly surged through Bahamut's system. His view of the world, focused over Cornelia...suddenly turned black as a hideous demonic face, burning like red fire from hell, suddenly shot out and screamed at him in a voice so hideous and evil that one would think he had just seen Satan. The words were so fierce and strong it was as if a huge blow of pure dark power has smashed into Bahamut's face and pierced him right to his mind and soul. Bahamut's mind was painfully torn out of its meditation and thrown right back into the Dragon Isle cave...before the force acted so strong that it ripped the Dragon King right off of the ground and flung him across the room, smashing him into the wall against the back. His hands had been ripped out of Khan and Singh's, luckily, and they seemed not to notice it. But once Bahamut was gone, they immediately snapped out of their own trances, and turned and looked to Bahamut. Their faces immediately turned to shock, as the esper slowly slid off of the wall...debris from it slowly crumbling behind him.
"Master!"
"What on earth happened!"
"You're...bleeding!"
Bahamut coughed once, and shook his head. When he did, he noticed a warm feeling in his nose, and raised a claw to it. Sure enough, on pulling it back, he noticed a drop of blood. He inhaled a few times to get his bearings, and then he began to lean up. However, he stayed quiet, and his demeanor began to grow dark. He was a bit wobbly when he got to his feet, and he limped a bit on the way back to the podium, but he moved none the less.
Both of his attendents looked at him anxiously. Their faces were creased with worry.
"Master?"
"Are you alright?"
"No..." Bahamut slowly breathed. "I'm a fool... Give me some time. You two, go outside and start gathering all the dragons."
Khan blinked. "Pardon me sir...but all the dragons?"
"You heard me correctly." Bahamut answered darkly. "Hurry."
Bahamut began to breathe deeply again as Khan and Singh looked to one another. They paused for a few moments, but then they turned and did as they were commanded. Bahamut was soon left alone in his chamber again...to ponder this latest turn of events.
Bahamut ended up having to wait a few hours. His head hurt from the blow. What had done it had not been weak by any means. However, he was beginning to recognize certain things. He began to see where certain problems had conflicted with his thinking, and he began to see what all had gone wrong in the past thousands years. Ruefully, however, he began to sense certain things as well. He couldn't sense that well, but he did risk sensing a few times. As he did, he looked out and saw the lights of the Four Crystals. They were still burning brightly...but something was already wrong. They seemed to be flickering a bit...like candles that were burning so bright that they were going to spend themselves, or like fires that were struggling to stay lit although something was desperate to put them out. And when he focused on them again and again, he always saw the same thing. They were resisting something powerful...and they were losing. The evil was threatening to smother them again already.
In his waiting time, Khan and Singh had managed to gather every last dragon they could find. They had been forced to stop their revelry and brought right here to the main Dragon Isle, and none of them were too happy about that. But they obeyed their master to the end, and so they sat and waited patiently. They did so as Bahamut slowly recovered.
At last, hefelt as if his senses had recovered sufficiently. That meant one thing. It was time to contact again.
Once more, Bahamut inhaled a deep breath, and then placed himself in his meditative stance. He focused after that, and began to reach out into the darkness-covered world. But it wasn't for the evil source again. This time...it was for other lights in the darkness. People he knew were still alive and out there. At long last, however, he found them. They were in Crescent Lake now, having made good time from the Flying Fortress. Now that he had them, he suddenly spoke aloud. This aroused the attention of Khan and Singh, but he didn't care.
"Darwin! Tuck! Harbaro! Lucinda!"
He waited for a moment, hoping to get a response. His telepathy was strong, but they were weak. He literally had to reach out and boost their own ability just for them to respond. It was a bit awkward, but finally he did hear something.
...Master?
"Yes, it is I. Bahamut." Bahamut responded quickly. "I am contacting you through telepathy. I had to reach you because something serious has come to light..."
We know, master. We just heard.
Bahamut froze at this, and became visibly puzzled. "Just heard? Just heard what?"
The sages at Crescent Lake have already told us. Somehow, our mission is not complete.
We don't know why, but something is going on.
Somehow, it seems as if time itself is reacting...changing. Something is happening that is coming from the distant past. We don't know what it is or why it's doing it...
But we believe them. And if they are right, something is reaching out again to darken the Crystals again!
Bahamut paused at this. He took in this new information, which soon gave him more to consider. However, it also reduced some of his theories...and made him feel more aware of others. "...Do you have any idea where the source of this is coming from?" Bahamut finally asked.
Yes, master. We do.
We saw it in the Flying Fortress, on a map overlooking the world.
It's in the center of all Four Crystals.
It's the ruins of the Temple of Chaos.
At once, it hit Bahamut as solidly as the mental blow had. It all made sense now...in his vast array of wisdom and experience. To a regular person it may not have, but he had many details to consider and had thought of this for some time. Now, at last, it was all clear.
"Damn...I am a fool..."
As expected, that sort of response caused some puzzlement on the other end. ...Master?
Bahamut scowled and shook his head. "Damn...damn it all... Why didn't I think of this before?" He mused to himself. He paused for a moment, and then sighed again. "All of you...I owe you...indeed, I owe your entire race...a deep apology. For years I thought it was all your fault...but I didn't suspect him. I should have done that from the start. I never should have believed Tiamat..."
Master, what are you talking about?
"I'm talking about what caused this...all of this." Bahamut responded. "It wasn't humanity...at least, not now. It was Hades."
Hades?
Who's Hades?
"There's little time to explain. Suffice to say he was a dark esper, all the evil inside one of us. He wanted to destroy the world. He was the one who perverted the monsters of your world to evil. He was the first dark conqueror. Odin went to slay him, but when he killed him he claimed that we wouldn't be able to get rid of the 'foundations' of what he had done. We never found his magicite, so after that it became possible that someone was still working. We never found out who, but centuries later someone completed the Temple of Chaos. When it was finished, I sensed a terrible evil coming from it. Only now, however, do I understand the source of that evil. It wasn't being generated by a dark heart...it was something else that Hades built. Somehow, he found a way to concentrate and gather all the pain, misery, anguish, hate, wickedness, and other works of darkness into a single point. He was doing that this whole time. Then, somehow, when the tower was complete, it was unlocked. It transfered into one person. When we destroyed the tower, we thought that it was over.
"But we were wrong. This is what Hades meant, and now I understand. We destroyed the person who bore all this hatred and evil, but we didn't destroy whatever was absorbing all of this darkness. It lost most of its power when we destroyed the person who had inherited it, but we didn't destroy it. And so it continued to gather whatever hatred it could find. In those days, there was a dark generation of humanity. But they have long since died. I assumed they hadn't because all of their negative actions and hatred persisted, because they were once again being drawn into this source. And it continued to add whatever hate it could find from anyone else to it, so that the overall power always continued to grow."
But why? Why would it do this?
"I'm not exactly sure, but if what you said was true...I'm starting to find out. I'm thinking that not only Hades' consciousness, but that of every other being that was dominated by evil, when absorbed into this source, becomes a part of it. It makes it a conscious entity. So now, that source is an amalgamation of every dark heart that ever lived since its construction. The result...is an entity of pure chaos...pure evil. Because of this, its not just simply carrying out an original task. It's actually changing in order to adapt to a new situation. And I'm beginning to think it found a way to get around us destroying it as well..."
How?
"Hades knew that if it ever tried to contest us head on, it would lose. It tried to build this thing so that it could eventually gain enough strength to destroy us, but it failed. It found out that we'd know what it was doing and destroy it before it became strong enough. So it developed a new way...destroying the Crystals. By turning them from light to dark, Hades would carry out his goal of creating total chaos and would eventually turn this world into a wasteland. And we would die with it. But it lacked the power. And to gather the power would mean alerting us. Now I understand, I believe, how it meant to get around that... Rather than have a dark-hearted person from the present inherit the power...it drew out one from the future. It used its power that it had gathered then to tear a hole through time and bring back someone with a wicked heart from this generation. Then it gave its power to this person...but not for him or her to keep. Instead, it wanted him or her to summon the Four Fiends...to call out for the Crystals to become dark. But it didn't want it to happen at that time. It wanted it to happen in the future, long after the one who had called for the Fiends was dead. That way, it wouldn't matter if we killed this individual or not. The damage would have been done. Even if we tried to undo it, by the time we recognized the problem it would have been too late. It would have been years since the summoning occured. In the meantime, this source would continue to gather the dark energy of the people in this world, and would use it to make the summoning take place." Bahamut paused, and scowled. "The bastard expected us to destroy the Temple, and whoever had claimed its power. So it must have left a remnant of itself still within the source, so that it could build itself up once again.
"When the Fiends finally did emerge, we were out of luck. With the Crystals dark, we couldn't destroy the Fiends. But it still considered the possibility that we might one day relight the Crystals. Unfortunately, that would only help it. It waited throughout history until this moment that we are at right now: when the Crystals are relit. Only now did it chose the person from the distant future to inherit the power. Somehow, it signaled itself in the past, or perhaps the past signaled the future, that now was the time to pick someone. Someone that was small and unexpected. Someone we would never sense, and one we couldn't stop. This whole time, we believed our foe was the humans. But even if we didn't we would have expected that the person was in the past. But that was its intention. It would take someone we would never suspect or even be able to locate from this time, bring him or her back in time, and then give him or her the power...long after our past actions hadmade the fatal mistake. It would never give us a chance to make up for it. It could chose anyone from any point in time, while we would have already failed to destroy it in the distant past. That way, it wouldn't matter who we destroyed in the past, because that person wouldn't even be born again until the future...where he or she could be pulled back.
"I believe I know what its doing now. The source has sensed that the Crystals were relit. So it sent back that individual from our current time back in the past. Perhaps there's a slight variation. Perhaps he put him a few seconds ahead or a few seconds behind. It wouldn't matter, it would only need to be small. But it would cause our entire timeline to be reorganized as a result. This individual would again summon the Four Fiends on a different timeline than the one we are on right now. Because of that...everything we did would be undone. A new timeline would result in which the Four Fiends were summoned. And if they were destroyed...it would simply repeat the process. Time would be in an endless loop of destruction...until it succeeded...until you four were finally killed."
Bahamut sensed the pause on the other end, and for good reason. Bahamut had to pause and take in what he was hearing himself. As for his attendents, they were turning white as ghosts. They gaped at this new revelation, shocked at what was going on. Bahamut cursed Hades. Damn him...he predicted what we would do from the start. How could anyone be so obsessed with destruction? At last, however, he heard a response.
Master...we have to do something!
We have to stop this!
How?
"I believe you may have the key already." Bahamut answered. "This source, whatever it is...seems to be acting in opposition to the Crystals. That's why it intersects all four. When the Crystals were dark, they were helping it. But now that they have been relit, they are in opposition to it...fighting it. This won't last long. I already sense time beginning to change, and we have precious little time. That source is the key to going back in time. No doubt, whoever the source picked to summon the Fiends has already gone back. If the Crystals are opposing it, it may yet be possible to follow this person back. You still have the shards, so it is likely you can command the Crystals in some aspect to help you get back in time. If you can go back into the past, you must find this person in the ancient Temple of Chaos and destroy him or her."
Do you think we can without causing the loop to happen again?
"I don't know, but we have no other options. This thing may have waited until we obliterated it to summon the Fiends, so that it could leave a piece of it behind in the soruce.. It expected us to come the whole time. However, if you four were to follow it...it may not expect that. It will need to leave a piece of itself behind in this source. If you were to encounter it...and see its true intentions...it would likely bring out its full power in an attempt to destroy you to make sure you couldn't stop what it had started."
Fine. We'll destroy it instead when it attempts to.
It sounds like a good plan to me. We'll leave at once.
We'll put an end to this, master. We promise.
With that, the psychic connection was cut. Bahamut inhaled deeply, thinking over this again. This shot was one in a hundred. The great esper wondered if it would even work. Worse, however...he worried about what awaited these four in the past. This monster, whatever it was, represented the evil energy of a thousand years worth of hatred. It was powerful...much, much stronger than the Four Fiends had been. Bahamut still remembered the terrifying amount of strength he sensed radiating off of it... It was horrible...almost too much for a human to withstand, let alone battle. Before he had doubted the humans...but now he was thinking very realistically when he believed that they could not beat this horror. It represented a level of wickedness and evil far beyond that of any other foe they had seen thus far. Could it be done?
He didn't know, but there was only one way to find out. The great esper might not be able to accompany his students back...but he believed he could yet see what was going on in that time period. It was time for him to stretch the limits of his own power. And he wouldn't be doing it alone...
Bahamut snapped out of his thoughts and looked down to his attendents. They were still frozen with shock, but he addressed them none the less with a new command. "Bring the dragons inside at once, and have them all begin to clear their minds and lend me their power. I will need the help of all dragonkind to be able to transcend this next boundary..."
An hour later, everything was prepared.
Bahamut's attendants had insisted on giving the low down to the other dragons. Bahamut didn't approve, thinking that would only cause a panic. There was no time for worry or distress anymore. However, it mostly served to make them work faster. They soon filled the cave, from the front all the way to the back. Dragons stuffed the area now, and the entire floor was nothing but a crowd of dragons save for the front podium. Khan and Singh themselves were seated in the front, and all of them were in the ready positions to begin meditation. They all faced the central podium, and had their heads down awaiting commands.
Bahamut himself was on the central podium with the silver hourglass. He turned it to set it to one year. That was more than enough, and Bahamut knew he would be left alone in that chamber for almost an entire year with nothing to do. However, he was ready for it. He knew he had to set it at just the right moment, after they crossed into the past. Because of that, he put his arm down in a certain way, ready to set it and begin it the moment that it was time. With this done, he was satisfied. The dragons before him were all ready for a command. The chamber was silent. Bahamut looked over this for a moment, but then issued his order.
"All of you...clear your minds now. Lend me your power. I will need the strength of our entire race to be able to follow the Light Warriors, and they may yet need my help before this is over."
The dragons merely bowed their heads a bit lower, and began to do as Bahamut had requested. Soon, they were all in meditative positions. Bahamut nodded, and then bowed his own head and closed his eyes. He too began to meditate. At first he only prepared himself. But then, once established, he began to reach out to the minds of others. Sure enough, he found willing minds almost immediately. He quickly went into them and gained their power for his own. As more minds relaxed, he was able to travel into them and establish himself as well. He worked quickly, knowing he had little time left at this point. But soon, he had traveled throughout the entire multitude, and claimed all of their powers for his own. His mental strength had now grown a hundred fold.
Bahamut thought for a moment of testing the strength of this new power...but he quickly relented. No time for mischief. He needed to get to the Light Warriors, and so he immediately reached out for them next. With his new power, it was easy. Searching the entire world had been a shady and tiresome searching business before. Now, the world seemed clear, like a book waiting for him to flip to the proper page. He soon found them, and to his approval he saw that they were already in the Temple of Chaos. He could sense the evil radiating from it more than ever now... Not wanting to risk another lashing out like last time, he instead focused on the warriors. He quickly established contact and called out to them.
"My students...have you found the source?"
There was a pause on the other end, obviously of startled humans suddenly hearing another voice. But then, they spoke up again.
Master...you won't believe this!
There are six bats in here. They can actually talk to us! They claim they're Lufenians!
They said they tried to research this area a thousand years ago, specifically they tried to research this dark stone that we see in front of us... When they did, it turned them into immortal bats, cursing them to live in these bodies.
Bahamut paused, intrigued by this latest information. However, he quickly pressed on. "Is it the source?"
It looks like it, master. I'm reading...terrible, terrible evil from it... Just to try to sense it feels like numbing pain... I feel like death just looking at it...
The power that stretched out to affect the Lufenians seems to have receeded. I think the Crystals are blocking it.
We're ready to try and use it, Bahamut. The Lufenians in here agree that it's possible.
"Good." Bahamut responded. "Tell me the exact moment that you pass through."
With that, Bahamut primed himself again. He tensed his muscles, ready to drop the hourglass at the exact time. He also focused harder, bringing all of his new power to bear to focus on the Light Warriors. He had to stay linked to them. They and their shards were the key to this. He only prayed that this would work. They may yet still need his help... He waited a few moments longer, but then finally he heard the word.
Now, master!
Immediately, Bahamut turned over the hourglass and put it on the floor.
The familiar blinding flash of light struck him immediately. The rush of cold, dry air slammed his face, and the world grew heavier at once. But that wasn't all. His mind suddenly felt a terrible pull. As he crossed into the new world, he felt a great tear on his mind. Contact between the dragons and the others immediately was pulled, and he felt as if it would be broken up. Visible strain appeared on his face. But he didn't quit. He grit his teeth and bore through it. He struggled to reestablish himself, calling on all the power he had to bear. It was only a moment, but it felt like hours as he struggled to pull through this strain and change and keep his link, as his mind and body were thrown through two different lines of time and space. It was a horrible ordeal, and it nearly ripped his mind apart. But finally...he felt the buffering stabilize. As he settled into his separate world, everything else became calm. The link became steady, and he was able to grasp it. At long last, he bent forward and sighed in relief. And, to his pleasure, he still was linked to the others. He still could focus on them.
Without delay, he immediately called out. "Darwin?"
There was a pause on the other end. But then...a very puzzled response came back. ...Master?
"Yes, it is I."
What?
How is this possible?
"There's not much time to explain. Suffice to say, I have entered the special chamber, where time has no meaning. Therefore it doesn't matter where the rest of you are in time, so long as I can stay linked to you. Where are you?"
There was a pause of confusion, but then the Light Warriors accepted what was said. They began to speak more calmly. We are in the Temple of Chaos, master. Only its different. It's complete now. The entrance is gone. And it's much larger.
There's no one here...but the moment we arrived I sensed a great explosion of dark power from the top of the tower. Whoever took the power must already be there.
Bahamut didn't answer this right away. He quickly took in this new information. So...it seemed as if they were back to the exact moment that the power was released. It made sense. After all, the power was only released once the host for it went back in time, so typically he should have received it when they arrived. However, Bahamut quickly began to realize something else. It made him fearful to think about it...and he tensed up at the thought. There was a new problem, one he forgot to consider before. Immediately, he called out to them again with a new constraint.
"You all must hurry. If my calculations are correct, you have arrived in the Temple of Chaos the moment that the dark spike of power was first released. That means that at this exact time, my past self is sensing what is going on. That means you only have three hours and seventeen minutes."
Huh?
Why?
Bahamut paused and smiled at himself. Some useless bit of information he had remembered for centuries...one he would never think of...and yet he remembered it. It made him want to laugh. Perhaps Providence made him remember that fateful bit of knowledge. However, he quickly addressed the group again. "That's how long you have before I arrive at the Temple of Chaos. Once I get there, Odin will join me and he will proceed to destroy the entire Temple with one shot. If you don't complete your goal...not only will the time loop continue but you will be destroyed. Go quickly, now."
There was a pause on the other end to this. It was a shocking new bit of information, after all. But the Light Warriors, on task as always, quickly spoke to each other and departed.
You heard the master. Let's end this.
Tuck had just finished driving her blade into the head of yet another green dragon. Those things were infesting the Temple, along with about a million other foul creatures far more deadly than they had ever encountered. After doing so, she quickly turned and followed the others as they ran up yet another flight of stairs in the maze like Temple. This was a horrible place, no doubt. It pulsed with evil, and they all felt cold and numb just being there. The feeling only got stronger as they got higher and higher, and at this rate it would get much worse before it got better.
Lucinda had discovered, fortunately, that the key to getting into the upper tower seemed to be none other than the Lute they had obtained long ago. None of them were sure how this worked, but somehow playing it unlocked the way into the inner sanctum of the Temple of Chaos. Now they were in the inner chambers, and climbing up higher and higher.
"How much time has passed?" Darwin called out as they rushed up the stairs.
"I'd say we have about two hours and forty-five minutes left." Harbaro answered.
"Good. That means we're making headway. God knows how long it will take us to kill the thing at the top of this tower."
The four turned and exited out of the stairs into a new hallway. As expected, it was lined with columns and corridors as the others were, and as before they all knew that only one of them would lead through. Perhaps this Hades person had planned on humans trying to get through the tower. He was sure making it as confusing as possible. The four soon turned into this hall and began to run down it. But they only got a few feet before Harbaro suddenly screeched to a halt. They all noticed this, and then turned to him.
"What is it?" Lucinda asked.
"...Something evil is here..." Harbaro darkly answered, his yellow eyes warily looking forward.
Tuck frowned. "Tell us something we don't know."
"No, this isn't the source." Harbaro immediately replied. "It's a lesser evil...but its right here...and it's coming!"
As if on cue, a massive shudder hit the ground that was obviously the sensation from a rather large footstep. The Light Warriors immediately snapped to attention. They wheeled around and brandished their weapons. As they did, they heard the footstep again. And again. It was definitely walking toward them now. They stood and waited bravely, ready to assault the first thing that came through. And finally, they saw it. A massive being, about three times their height, turned the corner of one of the corridors and entered the main one that they were in. The creature was swathed in a purple robe, but they could see it poking out from within, and saw that it was a gigantic, monstrous, demon skeleton. Its eyes gleamed like red coals within its eye sockets as it turned its ravenous head toward them, gazing out both from its skull and from under a massive horned helmet. The Light Warriors suddenly relaxed a bit at this, for they were astonished at what they saw.
"...Lich?" One asked.
The creature froze at that, seeming puzzled. "Eh? How do you know who I am?"
"It's Lich from the past." Lucinda immediately corrected. "It must not know who we are."
"Fine then. Let's kill it again." Tuck snorted.
The monster looked at all this, and bellowed a chuckle. "Hmph. You humans have no respect these days. I've been out of it for too long. You know how many of your kind I've devoured raw and wiggling? I lost count myself...but you can tell me how many you found once I send you to join them in Hell!"
With that, the monster gave out a terrible roar. It shook the walls of the Temple itself, and it blasted horrible foul air. Then, with that, the monster bellowed some Arcane word, and then stomped its foot down. To the shock of the Light Warriors, the ground immediately swelled and cracked. A massive divide burst through the earth and shot straight for them like lightning. Quickly, they all split and scrambled, avoiding the massive quake as it tore apart the hall to get to them. They managed to avoid it, but soon they were all on their stomachs from having dove.
Darwin quickly began to pull himself up. "A quake spell?"
"He's improved..." Harbaro answered as he began to rise as well.
"What are you four babbling about?" Lich snorted. "No matter. You won't be around for much longer anyway." With that, the massive demon charged forward with its long, bony claws outstretched, looking for the nearest person...Tuck. But she was much too fast for the creature. She quickly got to her feet, seized Lucinda, and then leapt out of the way to ensure that neither of them got hit by the strike. The beast snarled, and then spun around with its other hand outstretched to claw at them as they shot by the beast. However, Tuck was too fast, and the claws merely raked streaks into a nearby column instead. The monster turned around, and followed up with another gesture of his hands and arcane word. With that, a massive stone column shot up out of the ground right under Tuck's position. Tuck, however, saw this coming, and quickly flung Lucinda in one direction while leaping up herself. The stone materialized right under her feet, but she managed to kick off of it. It was an imperfect kick, and she gave a mild yelp of pain from it. However, she avoided most of the attack, and did a mid-air spin to take her away from the blow. Moments later, she fell to the ground and landed on her rear with an "oof".
Lich grit his teeth. "You little rats have gotten speedy in a few thousand years. But that's not good enoug- ACK!"
Lich suddenly winced, because he had forgotten totally about Darwin and Harbaro. Darwin was now behind him, and had sliced a great cut down his back with the legendary sword Excalibur. Hissing in rage, the monster spun around and smashed its fist into Darwin. The knight was sent flying through the air and smashing into one of the stone columns that held up the room. He slid down it immediately, stunned and dazed, but still very much alive. As for Harbaro, Lich soon saw him as well. Balls of red light were gathering around his hands, and he was focusing a spell.
Lich hissed again at this. "So, you little morsels have learned magic too?" With that, he extended his hand and threw out another spell. Immediately, another column of earth erupted from the ground, and shot at a diagonal angle straight for Harbaro. The black wizard was shocked, but quickly redirected his spell down at the column instead. Soon, a ball of fire erupted from his hands and connected with the ground. The result was an explosion of earth and fire, scattering molten fragments everywhere. Some of them struck the black wizard, and he cried out as he staggered back from it.
The Fiend of Earth sneered at the fallen human...when suddenly he felt something. A bright, pure, white light suddenly erupted from behind him. It shone glorious rays of heavenly light down on the area in front of it, and soon bathed the Fiend in it. However, these lights were not healthy for the beast. Soon, the monster began to feel horrible pain as white fires burst out on its clothing. The bones began to erode wherever the light hit. He began to smolder and burn in the light. The monster roared in pain, and spun around in fury at who was causing it. He soon saw the white wizard, eyes closed and a peaceful appearance on her face as she looked to the heavens and summoned this white light to blast the creature.
"You bitch!" The thing spat. Immediately, it summoned another quake, splitting the earth and shooting it straight for the white wizard. She was in such a tranquil state, it seemed as if she was doomed to be hit by it. She did not move or react to the spell. However, just as it was about to strike her, the ninja Tuck shot in and pushed her out of the way to safety again. No sooner had she done that, then she crouched and leapt again, shooting this time for the monster's face with her sword drawn. Moments later, the thing hissed in pain and twisted its head to one side as a slash went across the bone on the side of its head. It cut through half the jaw, and the thing's monstrous mouth soon dropped down and hung at half an angle. In fury, the creature spun around and shot out a bony hand. This time, it managed to seize Tuck as she flailed in mid-air. She gave out a cry, but then soon brought her weapon around and struggled to break free of the monster's grasp.
Lich grinned at her with his broken mouth. "Now...I'm going to squeeze you into- URK!"
The Fiend couldn't finish, for Darwin had recovered at this moment and shot forward to Tuck's aid. With one flash of his sword, he nimbly severed Lich's arm from his body. The monster sneered from the blow, then roared in pain. But Tuck wasn't finished. The moment she hit the ground, she darted inward again and sliced at the monster's side, cutting into its ribs and making it falter in agony. Its remaining arm turned around and seized its side. It glared up hatefully at the humans, as both Tuck and Darwin halted and stood on the ground. From two different angles they glared down on Lich, as if he was a hunted animal and they were closing in for the kill.
Lich sneered and fumed at them. "You...what are you...? No human is this strong...! I've killed hundreds! How did you get...this power!"
"You haven't seen the half of it."
With this, Lich turned and looked to who had spoke. What he saw was Harbaro again. And now, the black wizard was chanting a different spell. But it was strange this time... He seemed to be summoning balls of flame around him. Not to attack right away, but to gather them up to him. He just summoned one ball after another, and had them all gather around him. But they all burned with intensity and power. They were so strong that they began to turn the air red. Still he summoned them, bringing them up one after another until he finally had a few dozen gathered. With that, the golden eyes of the wizard blazed. He leveled his hands in front of him and aimed them at the beast.
"Flare."
But that wasn't what Lich saw. Instead, he suddenly saw a part of his life flashing before his eyes. Thousands of years ago...when he was about to charge an esper he hated with every fiber of his being...he remembered it simply turning his head to him and saying one word... And now, as genuine fear grasped the Fiend's mind, he remembered the attack again.
"That's..."
But that was the only word Lich got out before he died again at the hands of the attack that had killed him years before.
"Hmm...so it appears as if the Four Fiends were already summoned..." Bahamut thought aloud. "That will complicate things."
Master, Lich didn't know the Quake attack last time we fought him.
"They've gained strength." Bahamut mused. "They're stronger than when I last fought them. They must be getting it from the tower. Be careful. You'll probably have to encounter the others again. And you still have precious time. That encounter with Lich cost you some of what little you have."
We'll try, master.
Icicles rained down on the massive foe, about the size of Lich. Huge shards of frozen water buried it within seconds, and the thing seemed to be annihilated by that last barrage. However, the pause lasted only a moment. Abruptly, the icicles and ice covering alike exploded. Melting pieces of ice were scattered everywhere in a flurry of rage and power, and intense heat flowed behind them. A massive four-armed snake woman emerged from the wreckage, brandishing not one but four Pyrosukens, one for each hand. Her face was full of hate and power, and she laughed madly at what had happened.
"Ice!" Kary of Maralith remarked in insane merriment. "My new body cannot be harmed by ice! I've surpassed even that weakness!"
"Then maybe you'll respond to this!"
Kary snapped her fiery head around, and saw that the white wizard was casting again. She was a bit burned from an earlier attack, but she was primed and ready for action now. She summoned her hands together and concentrated them. A great white power seemed to gather between them, and the force was so strong that it quickly turned the air dark around it. It was a pure light, much more bright and shining than any of the previous undead Dia attacks. She continued to focus for a few moments more, before she aimed her hands out and screamed the name. "Holy!"
Immediately, a blinding white wave of power erupted from the white wizard. It was charged with strength unlike any other attack unleashed so far, and it cut the air with a mild shining noise...almost as if it was some sort of angel singing. The Fiend of Fire glared at this, but then brought her swords around and crossed them in front of her in an attempt of defense. However, the power was far too strong for that. It only gathered strength as it focused in on its foe. Kary could only gape in shock and fear as her hellish fire was drowned out by holy fire. The powerful light smashed through her weapons, breaking them and melting them as it struck them. Then, she screamed as the blast struck her head on, but the glorious shining noise soon drowned it out and enveloped her in the blast. Moments later, the Fiend was ripped off of her feet and hurtled backwards. The blast continued to push her and carry her as it did so, driving her all the way back into the wall. Once it struck there, only then did it explode in a brilliant blast of radiant light. It burned for a few brief moments and echoed throughout the air, but finally it dissipated. When it did, only the smoldering stump of Kary's upper torso was left, along with two of the four arms. The tail thrashed about on its own for a few brief moments, but then it too calmed down. The massive body slid down to the floor after that, and moved no more.
The four were left to breathe hard after that. Lucinda leaned heavily on her staff before bringing out an ether from her clothing to drink. This fighting was taking its toll. As predicted, they had run into the Fiend of Fire...and she was stronger than ever. Ice had little effect on her this time. And she had utilized far more fire spells this time around. All of them were smoldering and half burned, and their stamina was running low. If this kept up, they might run dry before things were done.
Finally, Darwin motioned them on, still breathing hard. "Ok...that's all the break we can manage for now. Let's move on."
One hour and a half left...damn.
Bahamut was beginning to get worried. They had only killed two Fiends so far, and they were already weakening a bit. They had managed to kill all four before, but they had days in between in which to get a good night's sleep. Now they had to handle all of them together. And time was still running low.
Come on, you four...don't hold back...
Tuck leapt back as fast as she could, barely touching down from one leap before heading back again. In front of her, tentacles shot out and raked the ground and the columns, striking madly at her position. Finally, she stumbled for a moment, and one of the tentacles struck her in the head. She gave a cry, and soon she was flung backward across the room like so much chaff. She landed on the floor moments later, right next to Lucinda, who was struggling to drag Darwin back enough so that she could heal him. As it was, he was on his back and moaning in semi-consciousness, blood matting his hair and brow. Harbaro alone was left standing. The black wizard waved his arms and spread out his hands, causing an explosion of a green aura to form around his body. Moments later, the sky grew charged. The air began to crackle. The light dimmed. Then, a massive bolt with four smaller bolts around it erupted from the sky and struck the source of the tentacles.
Kraken staggered back and roared in pain as the lightning struck him. He was like a massive giant squid, spilling his tentacles out all over the hall from beneath his purple cape. They abruptly shrank back like vines withering in flame as the lightning struck it. It writhed and turned as the bolts of electricity whipped around it. But they lasted only a moment, and when they were done...the creature was still alive. Hissing in fury, it immediately shot forward again, seizing stone columns and ripping them down as it did so.
Harbaro panted, his magic nearly exhausted. He needed time to rest, but the beast wasn't giving it to him. Luckily, Lucinda managed to rise from the fallen Darwin. This time, however, she didn't cast a spell. Instead, she brandished her arms, revealing a pair of heavy gauntlets attached to them. She slammed her wrists together and grit her teeth. Moments later, a smaller bolt of electricity shot out from them and tore straight for the beast, striking it in its trident-shaped head. The beast bellowed another hideous cry and staggered back again, writhing from the blast. The assault didn't let up. As Harbaro panted and rested, Tuck shot back to her feet. Immediately, she revealed her own arms...wearing gauntlets of a different kind. She braced them together as well...and immediately a bright light exploded from them and enveloped her weapon. After that, she brought up the sword and dashed forward. The Kraken shook his head from the weaker spell, and then raised its tentacles to attack again. However, Tuck was soon on the first tentacle, and brought her sword down on it the moment it got close enough. Imbued with a new power, her weapon easily sliced right through the end of the tentacle, cutting it off all together.
The monster reared back again in pain from the attack, just as Darwin was healed by Lucinda and jumped up to join the fray.
"Hurry, everyone! You only have fifty minutes left!"
Bahamut urged them on although he knew they were doing their best. Their battle with Kraken had drained them, and they still had to contend with the foes of this castle as well as the Fiends. But they were quickly running out of time. He prayed that they were saving something for the monster at the top of this tower. He would make the other Fiends look pathetic by comparison. He could sense through them, and the monster only increased in power the closer they got. This was not good. Not good at all...
Come on... Get there...
"Curse you! Curse you! And all humans!"
Blood splattered from the five stumps of Tiamat's former heads as its one remaining head blasted in rage. Harbaro and Lucinda were on the ground already, torn up, bloody, and looking barely able to move. But Tiamat was also covered with deep lacerations, bleeding all over the place and barely able to stand. However, Tuck and Darwin, bloody and torn, still stood. And now, as one brandished Excalibur, the other brandished none other than the legendary blade of Leviathan and Ogopogo: the Masamune. Unknown to any of them, Gilgamesh had long since recovered it, but in the construction of the maze-like castle he had lost the weapon. Yet it was reclaimed now, and the ninja bore it. Both held a moment longer, but then both shot forward at once. Their twin blades flashed as they shot straight to the Fiend of Air and cleaved his neck. In a flurry of blood, the final head went flying from the neck of the horrible creature. It fell to the ground after that, giving a few final throws of death, before landing and merely bleeding the last of its blood on the floor.
Tuck and Darwin both paused after that, and began to pant hard. Their strength was nearing their limits. Still, they managed to clean off their blades and put them aside. Then both downed their last potions in their belts, which barely served to heal the least of their wounds and recover a fraction of their power. After that, they turned and looked to their fallen friends. They quickly ran over to them, and then reached down to their sides. They bent down next to them and propped their heads up on their laps, and then pulled up. Tuck looked down with some fear, for she realized she had nothing left. Darwin did manage to pull two vials out, however. Yet he froze as well, and regarded them with some fear too.
"Our last two elixirs..."
Tuck paused, but then shook her head. "We have no choice. Let's give it to them."
Darwin paused, but then sighed and gave a nod. Quickly, he passed one to Tuck. Both uncorked them and quickly spilled the liquid down the throats of the two wizards. They paused a moment, gurgled, and spasmed slightly. But then, both of them opened their eyes, their energy looking completely restored. Quickly, they both rolled up into a seated position. They turned and looked to their companions. Immediately, Harbaro frowned from within his dark cloak.
"You should have used them on yourselves. You need them."
"We need you." Darwin responded flatly. "And you needed them much more than us."
Lucinda didn't speak. Instead, she immediately went to work with her spells. She closed her eyes and focused, and a few moments later a light green aura gathered around her hands. She reached down and held them over the two injured warriors. She focused for a few moments, and slowly their wounds began to close. Their stamina returned to some extent. However, once both of them stopped breathing hard, Darwin shot out a hand and seized her wrist, immediately stopping her.
Lucinda opened her eyes and looked to him in confusion. "You're...still hurt..."
Darwin shook his head. "It can't be helped. That was the last elixir. You'll need to save your energy for the top of the tower. And we'll have to be much more efficient than we were for Tiamat..."
The others paused at that, but ruefully nodded. The monster had been far more than they had expected. Tiamat had been much stronger and more fierce, and he had been fond of casting his own Flares at the group. Including those two, they had gone through five elixirs in that battle. Now they had none left. Whatever strength they had now was it...and they could sense that the evil presence above them was far stronger than Tiamat had been. They all rose up, and began to walk down the hall. They only went a few steps, however, before Darwin took a deep breath and began to run. The others paused, but then began to run after him as well.
"You should save your strength." Harbaro warned.
"Not when we have twelve minutes left, which is what Bahamut just transmitted to me."
The group all quivered a bit, and then ran after Darwin. Luckily, the corridor wasn't as mazelike as the lower levels. They soon turned a corner and came to another obsidian staircase. Immediately, they turned and ran up it.
On arriving on the next floor, the group immediately became conscious of a dark feeling on the air. It was cold up here...and there was a numbing sensation to the skin. It seemed to be radiating from the center of the chamber as well. Their teeth chattered just to come into this room. There were torches here...but they seemed dimmer... There were no maze-like walls here, but there were many, many columns. They held up the ceiling of the intricate roof of the temple, and created the illusion of an endless forest of obsidian stretching into the shadows. Involuntarily, the group slowed to a walk as they emerged on this floor. Any fear that was in their heart seemed to be drawn out by this place...and fed by its darkness to become more overwhelming and strong. But they had strong courage too, and they would not break down. They continued to walk forward without hesitation. They became conscious of another feeling here...striking their senses. It seemed as if it was almost like a smell, though they couldn't sense anything coming in their noses. But somehow...it had the feeling of a tomb.
At last, after what seemed like an eternity of wandering, the group encountered something. There was one chamber in the center of the room, surrounded by black obsidian walls that were as dark as midnight. The group paused here, and regrouped themselves together. But then, staying close, they walked around to try and find the entrance of the place. They soon came across it, a set of double doors. They all walked up to them, and then paused again. They turned and looked at each other, each one of them now quivering with nervousness and tension. The feeling of death was stronger here...and they could feel their hearts beating faster. Their stomach began to turn, and their blood seemed to run cold. However, they would not enter like timid fawns into this place. Darwin clenched his teeth, drew Excalibur, and then, with a mighty gesture, lifted a foot and kicked the heavy doors open. They snapped apart easily enough, and immediately he entered. The others followed him closely, raising their weapons and ready for action. However, no sooner had they managed to enter the chamber...then they heard something stronger behind them. The doors were suddenly slammed shut, and the sound of a massive lock was heard.
The four didn't even have time to study their surroundings before they heard that sensation. They turned and looked to the doors, now shut and solid...and seeming to exude more darkness in order to make them loathesome to the touch. But they didn't look at them long, nor struggle to open them again. Instead, they all turned around and focused on the chamber. This area was also filled with columns...but was not lit like the other chambers. It seemed as if specks of pale, ethereal light were imbedded in the stone. They gleamed small and eeriely, and made the room look like it was actually in space. However, that didn't hold their interest long. Their focus was soon on a figure in the center, his back to them. All they could notice, however, was a long black cape on him...and a great horned helmet. Strangely, that seemed familiar...
"Hmph...I figured you'd be coming eventually." The figure spoke in a human voice...although it was cold and deep, like the room itself. There was no doubt about it...this man had inheirited the power. And they could sense a great evil coming from him already.
And yet...that too sounded familiar.
"This is the second time now you interfered where you don't belong. Luckily...it will be your last."
With that, the person at least turned around and faced the four. In response, their eyes expanded. They had seen far too many surprises in their time to be shocked anymore, but this was a true surprise. They had never suspected him...of all people. In the course of everything that had happened, he was almost forgotten by now. And yet...he stood before them.
"No...you?" Darwin remarked.
"...Garland?" Lucinda exhaled in stunned surprise.
To be continued...