-Paramahansa Yogananda
The ride back was unbearably quiet. Luke bit his lip hard in anger, as he knew he couldn't do much else. Guards surrounded every inch of the vessel, and Guy was locked in the small little cramped dungeon that was usually held for stowaways or offenders of law. Damn it, this was all wrong, and now Guy was going to get in trouble for something he did! Luke hated guilt, he knew that, that's why he had tried so hard to avoid it when he was younger, and why he had tried so hard on this quest. This was so stupid, and...and Luke just felt depression trying to slow down his thought process and limbs. NO! Luke stood up anxiously then, peering out of a round window to see a guard, but beyond that the ocean glaring back at him.
There had to be something he could do to get out of this, or even get Guy out of that dark dank pit cell. Luke moved away from the window as it was an endless reminder that he was stuck on this ride back home, then marched up to his prison door and knocked on it once, forcing himself to adopt his previous personality.
"HEY! HEY! WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA LOCKING ME UP IN THIS STUFFY ROOM! It's hot and the bed is WAY to hard to take a nap on!" Luke hated how his voice sounded, and how well he managed to complain. The guard outside his door opened it and started to speak, but Luke gave him a swift punch to the stomach, and watched as he fell to the ground. Luke then glanced around, smirking slightly as there didn't seem any more guards down the halls. Now if he were to remember correctly...Luke rushed down to the lowest part he could find and took out the prisoner guards with two clear hits to their heads with a good knockout.
"Luke!" Guy blinked surprised and Luke just grinned. "Where did you learn how to do that?"
"Jade taught me a little about human anatomy when I got sick once," which was not an experience he ever wanted to go through again. Guy rose an eyebrow as a pale look momentarily crossed the redhead's face but then simply replied,
"What are you doing here?"
"I didn't want you to be stuck in here."
"You're not thinking of escaping are you?" Luke gave a sigh and moved to search the guards for a moment for the keys and emerged victorious in his battle.
"I wish to say I wasn't, but I am."
"Luke..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. There's no way, this ship has way to many guards, and even if we did manage to get to some life-boat or something, it would be difficult to lose them."
"Especially with no navigation chart of compass." Guy inputted sadly, but cheered a little when Luke let him out. It was starting to stink for some reason, then the blonde looked at Luke as he stretched his arms a little in anxiety. "Sorry there's nothing we can do Luke."
"It's fine Guy. I just don't want to get you into trouble."
"You'll be in more trouble then me," Guy simply replied with a distinct frown, "Luke, you could have just waited until we got back home." Luke shrugged and folded his hands behind his head, looking a little bored.
"Like I said, I didn't want you to get in trouble." Guy gave an exaggerated sigh as Luke started to lead him back to the boy's 'stuffy' room. Guy didn't want to even think of what trouble the boy was going to get in when they got back to the kingdom. Though it was odd to see Luke so non-caring about his own troubles. As soon as they got back to Luke's room, the guard awoke from his sleep and scorned and lectured the one he was guarding, and tried to take Guy back into the prisons, but Luke stopped him with a spoiled rant of needing someone to keep him company. Though the guard tried to argue, Luke forced himself to abuse how spoiled he was and threw a temper tantrum. Guy was the only one who could calm him down, and the guard let the blonde stay.
The ride continued, the guards discussing to themselves of the fact that Luke had gained many abilities over the last span of days, and guarded the area around his room immensely, arming themselves with imitating objects. Guy and Luke both talked in hushed tone so it was hard to hear them through the doors or windows. It took them the entire day, and when they had arrived to port, they chained the blonde and escorted the redhead back to his home. Luke demanded the immediate release of his guardian, but he was refused face out and forced into a fight back into the mansion. There the many maids greeted him, but Luke brushed by them, growing angry at the thought of Guy being locked up in a stuffy dungeon for no reason.
Luke marched to his parent's room, and frowned as he only saw his mother in their shared bedroom. Suzanne immediately tried to emerge from her wrathful blankets, but Luke rushed so she didn't have to put herself in any physical danger and sighed sadly as his mother's arms wrapped tightly around him.
"Oh Luke." Her tears covered his shoulder and her arms squeezed around him tightly. "Oh Luke. I'm so relieved." It was strange to see his mom worrying even more then she had in the future, but then again, in the future he had been with Tear, the sister of Van and someone who was a trained melodist. Luke sighed and returned his mother's hug and muttered softly,
"I'm sorry."
"Luke, Luke, it wasn't your fault. I'm just so glad you're safe." Luke frowned and pushed his mother away, noticing that he wasn't taller then her, and that the woman seemed confused.
"Mom, I told you in the letter, I planned this. Guy came to protect me, but all of this was my fault. I'm sorry that I had you worried, but I needed to get out of here." Suzanne gave a confused stare to the teenager,
"But why Luke? It doesn't make any sense. I know that you've been wanting out of the mansion, but..." Luke hesitated then shook his head sadly to his mother.
"Where's father?" His mother blinked, rubbing her eye for a moment and continued to look confused at the abrupt change in her baby's attitude and stance. She had noticed just before he had left, but it didn't seem so dramatic as it did now.
"I-I'm not quite sure." Suzanne replied, but gave Luke a brilliant smile, and gave him another hug. Luke supposed it was because he was younger too, that his mother was being so protective of him, after all, in this plain it had only been three years since the kidnapping. "Luke, please explain to me why you thought you had to run away?" Luke sighed,
"I wasn't running away mother, I told you in the letter." Suzanne gave her own sigh then moved around for a second to give her son his space, then frowned for a second as she thought about Luke's letter. She then realized that she never read a letter that may have been addressed to her. It was strange that she had just noticed what her son had been saying,
"Luke, what letter are you speaking about?" Luke blinked, a tad-bit from frustration as to the new news of the fact his mother did not get the letter he had made specifically for her.
"Nevermind," he dismissed it, thinking his father had been behind the disappearance, so that his mother didn't panic even more. A sudden change in your son could cause a moderate amount of worry in a mother or a father. Luke then moved around the room anxiously, thinking quickly of where his father could be. Suzanne watched him pace then sighed as the door opened wide and a body threw herself unto the redhead. Luke yelled of course, not expecting the sudden grasp, then moaned as the princess slapped him in disapproval.
"Luke, do you have any idea how everyone was worried about you? Father nearly had to send out an entire army to search for you! What on earth were you thinking?" Oh great. Natalia...and she was younger. OH NOOOOO. Luke rubbed his cheek with a distinct frown on his face, he really did not like being home now.
"Yeah, yeah." Luke grumbled, glaring at the girl who just sighed in a relieved way that sounded very much like his mother. In fact his mother was smiling just for the sheer fact his 'future engagement' was here and had worried about him. "Look, I need to talk to my uncle, Guy didn't do anything." Natalia blinked at the news and folded her arms.
"Oh really?"
"Yes." Luke sternly insisted, "I took Guy with me, and he has no reason to be in that dungeon." Natalia blinked and seemed a little surprised at the teen in front of her. She surveyed him with a studious glance (one that Luke did not like) and nodded, a smile had appeared on her face momentarily and turned around in her princess outfit.
"I'll ask father to release him on your testimony," God, no fourteen-year-old should talk like that! "But I must implore you to never do something like that again. It was foolish and it seems you have no justifiable reason behind your runaway." Natalia narrowed her eyes momentarily and stopped to think and Luke blinked as she smiled, "It's good to have you back Luke." And with that all said and done, she turned and exited out of his parent's room.
"That was nice of her." Which meant he might owe her a favor later. Luke liked Natalia...after she had changed a bit, and matured. Natalia wasn't that much different then in the future, she only became stronger and more determined to help the people for their sakes and not because of the influence of Asch in the future. Augh, that was going to be hard to change...if it really needed changing at all. Luke supposed she had been happier when she knew how to be a more just ruler and had met her biological father and confronted him about the truth of her birth. Luke supposed that would make anyone stronger...
"Yeah, I guess." Luke then smiled, Natalia's father would listen to her, and Guy may be out by nightfall. Luke then turned back to his mother and debated inwardly. How would his mother react? in the future she was accepting and shocked, but so many things had happened so it was easier for his mother to accept. The redhead knew that his mother wanted to know...however as soon as he opened his mouth, Luke groaned as an eerily familiar screech appeared loudly in his head, and Luke grunted as he could only handle the strange simple words of,
"Luke...Asch...Yul..." Before he blackened out.
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Asch woke up with extreme irritation. What the hell? Why the hell was Lorelei trying to contact him? It made no sense, and he was sure that the sentient was trying to say more, but he could not make it out. Asch moved up and growled inwardly as he noticed where he was right away. The hospital ward in the huge cathedral of Daath. Younger times Asch had constantly visited here due to injured either he made by accident (as handling a sword never guaranteed accidentally cuts) or had made unto him. Asch had also been here many times when he was younger because of his practice of some fonic artes and apparently whenever he used these artes, his blood levels would rise a bit.
Asch sighed and jumped out from the bed he had been lying in and thought about it for a moment. Now he was sure he had heard that dreck's name in that incomplete sentence, so that meant he had been trying to contact the replica at the same time. Which was stupid of the 'holy' being, because there was no way that he and Luke could have handled that strong surge of fonons to their minds. So whatever it was, it had to have been urgent, and that just irritated him. Damn it, he should be so pissed off! Asch paced around the room quickly to see that all the other beds were empty before he started to muse outloud. This was a horrible habit he had picked up from when he had been bonded with Luke, as the redhead constantly talked to himself, seeing nothing wrong with it.
"Yul...You'll? You'll what?" Asch felt his face grimace at the fact that he didn't know the rest of the sentence. "You'll...be in danger? You'll...need to do something specific?" Asch shook his head and his hands momentarily to the air, as though it would reply in an anxious answer. However nothing happened and Asch had no idea what to believe.
"There didn't seem to be anything wrong with him, in fact he didn't even seem that malnourished, are you sure he hasn't been sneaking in snacks or something?" Asch frowned, oh great, that know it all doctor. Oh well, he was going to die soon if Asch remembered correctly. Asch then quickly moved back to his bed and forced himself to calm down and fake the fact he wasn't out.
"I don't know, I wasn't here the last couple of days." Van's voice seemed loud as the two men entered the room. Asch felt a shadow overcome him as the figures loomed over, the doctor taking his forced limp hand to test his pulse.
"I'm sure it's just his teenage hormones finally kicking in, some people get more testosterone then others." 'I'll show you people who get more testosterone then others' growled in his mind and almost cursed at the fact his face almost tensed with his thoughts. However the doctor let go of his hand and Van gave a sigh,
"I'm not sure if that's what could be causing any of this doctor." Asch very rarely blacked out because of his headaches, and Asch knew why Van had been worried about that. Another thing to blame on the replica, it really was hard to get used to the fact that he was back in his own thirteen-year-old body, rather then in the body of an almost completely adult body. Asch wasn't quite sure why it was taking so much time to adjust, it was one of the reasons why didn't feel hungry as much as he should have. He felt displaced and foreign because of the change from comfortable mingling to forced reality.
"There's no need to worry, I'm sure he'll be up in an hour or so." The doctor paused in his sentence and Asch took the reason of that pause to wipe his filthy glasses (as it had been his habit during talking), "Now I'm sure you should attend the meeting the Fon Master has called rather then dally your time worrying about a silly boy." Asch almost felt himself twitch angrily but avoided it with a rough grind to his teeth.
"If I must." Van had a retreated tone in the back of his voice and the redhead lying down knew that this meeting meant something that Van didn't want to hear of. Asch heard the light sounds of a person walking off and the other one walking out, after waiting for a few minutes, Asch flung himself up and threw himself to the ground. With a careful glance, the teenager could tell that the doctor was too busy handling some form of paperwork to notice his wakening. Quickly Asch ran (glad his armor was taken off) and exited the room, following after what he thought to be Van's footsteps. Surprisingly, even with the huge hallways and many alternating paths, Asch found his way to voices.
"Mohs got an interesting letter the other day." That was Ion's voice! Though not the Ion that Luke had known and loved, but the Ion that not many knew about. Asch felt himself freeze momentarily as he peeked his way through to place where Ion and Van sat. Ion was waving his finger around and had some strange circle around it to entertain him momentarily. Van seemed extremely stoned in, letting the man talk. Asch frowned, studying the Fon Master to faintly remember that the man was extremely strange. Cruel in some ways, and extremely bright, a man whose entire life was devoted only to the Score and its fulfillment. It was funny how these two could take advantage of each other, Asch paled, glad that the man had died before he could inflict any damage upon the world.
Asch's imagination ran loose on the thought of the Fon Master releasing the seals, of taking full advantage of his Daathic artes. The artes only he could cast. Asch shook the horrible image from his mind to listen to Van's faint-like reply.
"Yes, I had momentarily heard about that." The redhead hid behind the wall, not even bothering to see the men's faces anymore, all he needed was their voices.
"So I was wondering...how did that replica get away far enough to meet up with a guardian in training?" Guardian in training? Who could that be? And replica...That had to be Luke! Luke had really escaped from the mansion, and apparently got far in his quest. Asch actually felt a smug smirk spread to his face for a moment but then growled as Van answered,
"There are only the rumors to answer that question Fon Master." Rumors? What rumors? What the hell did that boy do!?
"And what rumors are associated with that question?" Van gave another sigh, as though he had been questioning the truth in the rumors.
"Well when he had first escaped there was a rumor of a light..." The redhead outside the conversation felt himself freeze. Did Luke try to use hyperressonance to teleport? THAT IDIOT!
"A light?"
"I'm not sure what to make of it myself Fon Master." There seemed to be an acknowledged silence fleeting in the room and Asch had to bit his tongue as he heard the next sentence, "But I will approach Luke about this subject as soon as I return to Kimlasca."
"Oh, that's right. He got captured by Grand Chokmah. Isn't it curious how he ended up there?" Grand Chokmah? What the hell was that idiot thinking?
"I'm sure it was a coincidence Fon Master."
"Hmm...I find it funny." Ion replied to the pony-tailed man, and Asch could imagine a sneer upon the Daathic artist. Of course it would be funny to the man who could read the score and know the future of the war between Kimlasca and Malkuth. It must be hilarious in the mind of that twisted...
"Is there anything else you need to discuss with me Fon Master?"
"Not particularly...but I will require a report of your interrogation to the sacred flame." Asch felt anger rise and disappointment for a mild second. Luke had got caught? Damn it! Asch then heard the hesitant chairs scoot and rise and he trusted his instincts and fled further into the halls, quickly diving into different doors and avoiding the other men and women in the building. It was when he had finally stumbled to the bottom of the training area, a way so close to being outside the cathedral when he stopped. Asch paused on the stairs and sat as he watched two knights charge at each other and spar at the escape.
A moment of silence passed through the redhead's mind, he brushed his hair back uncomfortably because of he lack of chaos in his mind. The knights paused in their sparring and both took of their helmets. One was a woman and the other was a male, the female couldn't have been older then nineteen while her teacher was well over his thirties.
"Hello Sir Asch." The lady addressed him, bowing as Asch was known as a respectful apprentice throughout the cathedral. Asch just nodded to the girl who gave a smile to her teacher.
"What are you doing down here, Young Master?" The teacher asked and Asch surveyed the two. The man was obviously very skilled and had been for a long time, while the girl knight had probably just recently made it into the higher ranks. Asch considered but just shrugged to the much older man, not caring to give him an answer. The man frowned momentarily then just nodded, "Excuse us then." He bowed and Asch blinked as the two made their way upstairs. It took him a moment but Asch stared at the closed exit and back up to where the knights just left, and looked back at the exit. Was this something like incredible dumb luck? Asch started to slowly crawl to the exit and frowned, thinking it was entirely too easy.
However the boy continued moving, then carefully pushed the door open when he got there, casting a quick glance back to see if anyone was following him and then ran outside into the sun with only his gray suit on. Asch quickly glared over at the entrance not to far and smirked cheerfully as none of the knights seemed to be out there at the moment. They were more then likely switching posts, so he had to move much faster, and that's what he did. Asch jumped roughly at the posts and avoided the people walking around and admiring the stones. The teen ducked and thought about it for a moment, this was stupid, there was just no way that he could escape and make it all the way back to Kimlasca (or hide out even at a different place).
But the teenager's body did not follow his thoughts and continued to jump and hide until he made it to the entrance of the entire city. Asch had embarrassingly persuaded the hidden vender to sell him a fork (put it on Van's tab) and ran out into the wild. Once he was in the 'safety' of the mountains he felt himself twitch because of the fact that he had gone completely on instinct and intuition...as a complete idiot. He wasn't even completely armed, he was lucky to have an item bag, but was much more considerably poorer and he was completely angry that he stranded himself out there...with a goddamn fork.
Well...what was he to do now? No doubt he would soon be discovered missing and he would immediately be questioned on the fact why he had escaped into the world he supposedly knew nothing of. Asch gave a sigh and brushed his hair back as wind blew it in his face, he felt so stupid! The longhaired teenager then surmised that because he had heard that Luke had been captured back to Kimlasca, his mind had felt no hope for the idiot to escape again. Asch looked back and could see the peek of the cathedral then folded his arms and set his mind on a strange thought. Somewhere Van wouldn't find him immediately and give him time to hide out.
"Alright, off to Yulia City then."
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Natalia rose an eyebrow from her throne, then stood up from her throne...only to sit back down with slight confusion. Her mind felt extremely strange, and her mind wasn't the only one. There had been a few cases around the castle lately of guards remembering Luke beating the crap out of them and running away, and everyone would faint before these new memories. It was alarming when Lady Suzanne fainted and wept at the strange memories of her son running away. Things were going on in her kingdom, and she didn't know what to make of it.
"Oh Tear." The woman stood up, ignoring her slight dizz building up in the back of her mind. Natalia gave a smile to the other woman and she seemed a little more distressed then the other woman would have ever cared to shown. Natalia understood why though, as Tear had cared so much for the sacred flame of light. Tear also looked formally distressed of the fact that the Queen of Kimlasca was getting up to address just a soldier of a dying army.
"Queen Natalia, please-" Natalia sighed and folded her arms with a charming smile to the younger person.
"Just because my father stepped down from the throne not to long ago, does not mean I'll let you call me by my newest title."
"Oh yes, of course." Natalia sighed, Tear really was down. It was sad, but at least Luke hadn't been missing for long. Well as long as he had been when they all thought he was demised in that explosion at the final battle.
"Tear, is there a reason why you're here?" Tear nodded and her voice came out in a compliant tone,
"Luke's mother decided to inform you of the newest memory she's had of Luke." Natalia blinked in curiosity and Tear sighed, "He's back, but he hasn't told her anything of why he even did such a strange thing." Natalia 'hmmmed' and went back to her throne for a moment, telling the writer at the side of her throne to stop writing their conversation. Said writer stopped, bowed, and left while Natalia sat back at her throne to make Tear feel more comfortable.
"Hm, that's very interesting." Natalia nodded momentarily then blinked as a messenger entered the room. The boy blinked and seemed extremely hesitant for a second, in fear that he was interrupting something important. However the confident smile on his queen's face made him feel more confident and he moved to the lady. The blonde took his message and watched as he walked away, bowing to Tear when he left in a former manner.
"What does it say?" Tear's curiosity getting the best of her. Natalia tilted her head, rising one of her brows once again and replied,
"Anise is heading here with Guy and Jade." Tear blinked and couldn't help but ask,
"Why?"
"To tell us of their new memories." There was a silence among of the two and a series of confused stares between the two women.
"Huh."
"Yeah..." The two just became confused, not knowing what else to think about the strange letter and strange conversations.
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Jade Curtiss walked through the Grand Chokmah halls, known as the emotion of being bored out of his mind. The only thing that had kept him from wandering off back into the forests was the fact of the strange dark-haired girl seemed to have gained some strange 'attraction' to him and Peony warned him not to leave otherwise the girl would more then likely follow him. Jade knew it wasn't a crush, but rather because he knew so much. Jade then paused at his walk and looked into the library, where he had found the two Kimlascans.
The man would not admit it out loud, but he had stumbled upon their conversation earlier then he had seemed. Jade had came around at the point where Luke had been discussing the fact that Guy was his 'best friend' and something about not being chained to something he couldn't remember. So you could all imagine how interesting conversation went when it came to their discussion of the future.
Luke had not said anything about the future directly, just mentions of techniques and ancestors of Guy (which Jade thought immediately that the blonde was connected to one of the previous families). But it was interesting, beyond interesting actually. To find someone who knew about the 'future' and seemed to speak with such confidence and knowledge was extremely...
Well, Jade had no idea what the vocabulary for it would be, it went beyond any fathomable thing he had ever thought could happen. It was beyond strange and just something that could completely revolutionize the world, of course that's what Jade normally would have thought. But actually proof of Luke knowing the future was something incredibly unreal.
But...it would be...incredibly remarkable if what little things he heard from Luke were true. It would be something to actually amuse him...Jade found himself smiling momentarily, perhaps he could persuade his emperor on an embassy to meet with the easily interrogated Luke fon Fabre.
"Jade, what are you doing up so late?" Jade turned to see the girl, still covered with bandages and looking incredibly frustrated.
"One could ask the same from you."
"I can't sleep." Anise grumbled to the older man then frowned at the man who so easily overcastted her. "Mind answering my question?"
"Hmm...same as you." Anise disagreed with this, but said nothing, taking the time to settle near the walking lieutenant.
"Hey, what'd you think about Luke being a royal?" Oh? Was she pretending she didn't know? Well the girl was a good actor, he'd give her that, but just ignored her question outright. At least until she kicked him at his knee, apparently not wanting to deal with the mystique of the lieutenant.
"I found myself shocked and appalled." Jade replied, trying his best to fill his voice with sarcasm but did not succeed as Anise nodded to purposely follow his lead.
"I know! What was a royal traveling the world just to find himself? That's kind of stupid, isn't it?"
"Quite." Though Jade knew that was not true, a discovery of self was not at all stupid. It may have seemed stupid, but it really wasn't, at least that's what he believed personally, as he had always been on a quest of self. Jade also knew however that what Luke had said of his quest was a complete lie from the boy's gestures (which was odd, Jade may had been good at reading people, but he had never been THAT good).
"I mean, don't they have religion in Kimlasca?" Anise really didn't know, she lived in Daath all of her life and had only went to the country to read the stones that she could.
"I suppose they don't." Jade dully replied, this girl like to talk, didn't she? Anise gave him a stare as though she knew that the older man wasn't paying that much attention to her but continued,
"Why would he have to travel anywhere though? I mean, he's got everything he would ever need, right? Hell," Jade found himself blinking at the fact that a nine-year-old was cursing, "he could GET someone to teach him what he needed to know about the Score. So why?" Anise asked the red-eyed man, confusion apparent. Ah, so that's why she was bothering him. She wanted answers, answers an adult would probably be able to give.
"Who knows?" Anise was not pleased by this answer but turned away, accepting it in anger. Oh how terribly upsetting. Jade gave a sigh and gave his opinion, "Chances are, he would need to see things for himself."
"But why?"
"Why not? You had to travel the world to read all of the stones didn't you?"
"Yeah, what does that-?"
"So why not read a book on what they have written from the stones? Why go out on a journey to read them when you could easily do that?" Anise paused in her offended look and stared blankly at the man who had managed to give her an answer.
"...Oh..." Anise finally replied then walked away, leaving the adult alone to contemplate what she had been told. Huh, that was amusing, even for a moment. It was very rare to find nine-year-olds that could think on a higher plain of understanding. But now, he would have to find a way to visit a certain royal, if at all possible.
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Asch had made it to the spring by the next morning. Surprisingly he hadn't been extremely attacked by anything but a few bees. Asch had stared at the stream and he vaguely knew how it worked, it wasn't supposed to bring you back to the city unless you had a descendent of Yulia with you. Unfortunately Asch had no such person with him at the moment, and he stared uneasily at the water. Well he could cheat...right? Asch took a step back and rubbed his hands for a moment then jumped into the spring, nothing immediately happening. At least not until he closed his eyes and focused on traveling down into the chaos known as the miasma and into the bright city.
The redhead took a deep breath and let a glow surround him, and in an instant he disappeared down into the stream, grunting as he reappeared to the bottom where the port was. Asch hissed as he felt a huge headache build up in his head because of the simple act of transporting. However that headache quickly disappeared as he took a forced deep-trained breath but looked up in alarm as a voice asked,
"Who are you?" Asch didn't even need to look at the girl to know who she was. Many curses filled Asch's head for a moment to see the girl in front of him, in a dark training outfit and she seemed confused at the moment of why a boy had appeared in the portal to the upper world. Damn it! Why did he have to be so unlucky to have accidentally bumped into Tear? Tear gave the boy a frown but then turned around, shielding the doorway as someone came by.
"Oh look! It's little Tear, whatcha doing here Tear?"
"Nothing." Tear said quickly, and Asch studied as she drew out a knife from her back pocket, preparing to go against the two taunting towering figures.
"Doesn't look like nothing."
"I assure you, I am doing nothing of importance." Tear replied curtly.
"Hey you boys! Stop picking on Tear! Mystearica come on over here, I need to show you something!" An elder lady's voice called out and the boys grunted, both escaping from the unknown wrath. Tear looked back to Asch and narrowed her eyes suspiciously, not that he blamed her.
"I'll be there in a few seconds granny!" Tear politely replied to the waiting old lady and then looked at Asch with a silent careful stare. "Who are you?"
"No one of your concern." Asch replied, standing up haughtily but twitched uncomfortably as a reminder of the huge headache actually popped out of nowhere. Tear drew her weapon uneasily,
"You're wrong, you're plenty of my concern." Asch narrowed his gaze, he really didn't want to fight some melodist who could probably just put him to sleep.
"I'm just an outsider, I fumbled here by mistake." Well he never knew, it could work. Tear stared carefully, her knife still out and probably raised to kill if he gave her justifiable reason. Though she slowly lowered it down and studied him like he was an animal. What Luke ever saw in this strange girl, he would never understand, but Tear walked to him and touched the boy's hair. Asch just let her not knowing what else to do, she was being extremely weird. Luckily for Asch, he didn't know she was thinking who bright and cute his hair was, but she stopped and coughed for a moment and restared at the redhead with new consideration.
"No one just fumbles down here."
"Really? 'Cause that's what I just did." Asch replied and Tear gave a slight glare but forced herself not to care what Asch had said.
"Maybe you should go back up."
"How? I don't even know how I got down here." Asch lied easily through his teeth, staring around the area to pretend he hadn't known the area. Normally he wouldn't have, but Luke's faint memories of this place gave him a clear view, even though he hadn't really cared when they were bonded.
"You seriously don't know about this place, do you?" Tear asked, sounding a little bit astonished. Asch simply nodded, taking a calm breath and staring carefully at the weapon she had. Asch could probably knock her out, but that would be stupid considering he was stuck in the territory that basically treated her as royalty for her grandfather was the mayor of the area.
"No, I don't." Asch lied again, staring directly at the girl, knowing faintly that she liked to be addressed directly (even if the replica didn't notice because of his stupidity). Tear seemed stunned by the honestly that was on his face and looked like she wasn't quite sure what to do next.
"TEAR!"
"COMING!" Tear turned for a moment and then back at the stranger. A range of emotions spread to her face before she stopped and forced a blank slate before taking action. Asch blinked as she grabbed him by the arm and yelled as she started to drag him away from the portal. Asch growled at her, trying to rip apart from the girl, but she held him strongly and dragged him all the way (somehow inconspicuously) to her room. "Now I'm only going to say this once."
"What the hell is the big idea!?" Asch did not like being touched, much less dragged to some stupid girl's room. Tear stopped his yelling though with a fierce glare, and continued with what she was saying.
"You are not to move from this room. If you do, I will catch you and turn you in to the major, and she'll decide what to do with you. There also wouldn't be any point to escape, but you don't need to know that because you are not going to leave." Asch nodded to the stern brunette and watched as she walked down the stairs that had led to her room. Asch stared carefully and listened as she exited the 'home' and took the chance to stand up and look around his new prison.
What rotten luck, he thought at least in Yulia City he could hide somewhere for awhile before deciding what else to do and wait a few days before he escaped back into the outer plain. However now that he was caught by Tear, the only thing he could think was to...obey what the girl requested of him. If Asch was lucky, she was just curious of the outer worlds and wanted to keep him to be company, but he could be completely wrong as he had no idea what to think of Van's younger sister in her younger stages. Asch hit himself once on the head then wondered out to the gardens, watching the flowers shine brightly despite the lack of growing conditions.
All he could do for now, is wait and see, and Asch hated waiting.
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Guy gave a sigh, rubbing the back of his head as he was released from his cell. However he wasn't treated kindly or anything, in fact he was pushed around and treated like scum. But all in all, Guy was still released and was escorted to the mansion and in front of the Duke. Luke was right beside his father, staring at the man with a stern look that told him that he didn't tolerate the guards shoving his best friend around.
"Guy Cecil, of my son's own recognize you have been released for the moment. However if you try to flee the mansion or try to persuade my son from leaving," Luke gave his father a glare, "you will be caught and executed on sight." Guy felt his body tense in anger. BOOM BOOM BOOM, the canons yelled in the back of his mind but were forced to a quick stop when he simply replied,
"Yes sire." The duke frowned at the blonde for a moment and the frown only increased in magnitude when Luke picked Guy up and gave him another not so pleased glare. The man watched as Luke dragged Guy off and he sent two guards to keep watch over Luke's room, which he had taken the blonde previous captive.
"Damn it! This sucks!" Luke had spoke, punching the wall momentarily, then hushed his voice as Guy spoke softly to him,
"Calm down Luke."
"Sorry, I'm just a little frustrated right now." Guy folded his arms and leaned against the wall, frowning as his usual escape-way became surrounded.
"I'm sorry Luke." Luke waved Guy off, putting his item bag down and frowned as he finally had space and time to think about Lorelei. "Is something wrong?" Guy whispered and Luke slowly replied back,
"You know about Lorelei a little, right?" Guy rose an eyebrow in confusion but nodded to the knowledge of the holy being, "Well he's still alive, and he can connect to me and Asch. But I thought he wasn't going to contact me because I already know what he was trying to tell us in the future."
"Wait, wait, wait," Guy tried to stop Luke's ponderings, to ask a few questions but Luke continued,
"And he was calling to both of us. I have no idea what about though." Luke gave a sigh and concentrated for a moment, and Guy managed to get a word in edge-wise.
"Luke, what are you talking about contact you? And why would the sentient of the seventh fonon be talking to you and Asch?" Luke blinked as he forgot momentarily that Guy didn't know about Lorelei as he had in the future.
"Asch and I have Lorelei's..." Luke fumbled with the words for a few seconds, trying extremely hard to remember what Jade had said, but it couldn't come to mind. How strange, so he just continued, "...something. So he can talk to us...he's the one who had been giving me the huge headaches and blackouts in the past." Luke finished.
"What? Seriously?" Guy couldn't help but yell in surprise, which Luke gave a quick look to the door, expecting the guards to jump in, but when they didn't, Guy continued, "Seriously?" He rephrased in a more controlled voice.
"Yeah, he tried to warn Asch and I about something in the future, but we kind of found out to late...well...me more then Asch." The blonde sensed a tone of regret in his voice for a moment but then shrugged it off as he continued talking, "But now he was trying to talk to us...and I have no idea about what."
"Do you think something bad happened?" Luke shook his head,
"No, Lorelei didn't even get into any trouble until the Sephiroth trees started collapsing."
"WHAT!?" Guy yelled, surprised by Luke's new revealment, and this time guards did come in with alarm. Luke immediately banished them with a slight temper and gave his friend a disappointed stare.
"Yeah, they fall. But that's not until far into the future, and it won't even happen if I have anything to do with it." The redhead answered and folded his arms, thinking about it harshly for a moment. "Guy, I may say more things that could happen in the future, but don't freak out anymore, okay?"
"Right, right. Sorry. It's hard to get used to." Because he was telling him so much all of the sudden. Most probably because Luke couldn't get out of the mansion at the moment, so he had to find a way to relieve this stress that must have building up on his shoulders. Luke gave him a quick look of understanding then nodded at the blonde.
"We have to find a way out of here."
"There's no way!" Guy replied back hastily, surprised that Luke was already trying to plan on escaping again. The redhead just nodded and closed his window with a grunt, glad that their whispers probably weren't heard or understood. "Luke..."
"I was thinking of telling mom about Asch."
"What? Luke why would that idea come to your mind?"
"Because then she could persuade uncle to search Daath. If Asch is there then we can get him here."
"Are you sure it would work that way? We should probably come up with a backup plan." Luke nodded a smile coming to his face but the barely adult beside him worried. Luke may act like nothing was wrong but he wasn't even really sure if they should be doing this at all. Luke however took his hesitance and started speaking about possible plans, which Guy would point out obvious faults or speak about how difficult it would be to actually pull it off. This was going to get a lot more difficult then the blonde could ever have taken it to be.
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"Oh shit."
Was all the doctor and his few nurses could say correctly. They, and many others, had looked all over the cathedral in search for Van's loved apprentice, only to see there was no distinct appearance of him anywhere. What was worse was the last two people who had seemed to have seen him had left him alone where he could escape. They were all in trouble, especially the doctor, who had seen him last.
So it wasn't surprising that Van had exploded when they told him the dreadful news. Van immediately tried to search the cathedral only to be assured by the doctor and nurses that he was nowhere in the entire building. Van yelled out to many guards to go searching the area and demanded to Dist to search via air, and tried searching as well. However by nightfall they could not find the redhead and most guards feared the worse.
"How strange." Ion was the first to point out, as they all had came back to the cathedral to prepare for more then a one-way journey.
"I agree Fon Master," Mohs stood by his side greedily and Van his temper rising just seeing the disgusting man.
"why do you think the boy would want to run away, all of the sudden like that?" Ion asked, narrowing his eyes to the taller man who stood in front of him impatiently.
"I have no idea Fon Master." Van roughly replied, his mind bursting in confusion and conflict. This was even stranger then Luke escaping, because Asch usually liked it here, there was no reason to flee anywhere. Van would have said he had been out training but the redhead would have came back long before he had been noticed missing.
"Hm...I'll help you on this matter."
"But Fon Master-!" Mohs had started but the green-haired man forced him to shut up with a quick signal with his hand. Ion then turned to Van with a firm face,
"I'll need something of his to do this." Was he going to cast a Daathic arte? Van nodded, eager to find the redhead and drag him back home. Van lead the fon master to the bedroom and Ion immediately started moving his hands in a gesture to cast lines into the air over his armor. Dist was behind Van and he seemed overly eager to stare at the strange magic. Ion kept moving his hands and closing his eyes, searching and searching. A circle appeared and moved around constantly with Ion's movements, however the green-haired man soon look discontented and opened his eyes in shock as the circle blew up into white energy and fled the scene.
"What does that mean?" Van asked and to which the man turned to him with a curious stare.
"I'm not sure. I was close to finding him, but then..." Ion's gaze turned back to Asch's lame armor with confusion written in his eyes, "Yulia?" He was sure of it, that energy that disrupted him from completing the spell was of the power he often sensed from Van. But the man wasn't doing anything to stop him, he had no reason too.
"Yulia, Fon Master?" Mohs had questioned from way behind them, but Ion just turned a cold glare to all three of them.
"It was nothing, I'm sure your fallen ashes is still near. Go ahead and search for him." Ion commanded, and they all three bowed before leaving. Ion knew that Van wasn't going to be satisfied, but he wasn't going to question him until he had found Asch again. The powerful being then turned back to the armor, and coughed roughly, falling against the bed with an exhaustion spreading to his lungs. There was no doubt, that energy belonged to someone of Yulia's descendant...but why? The cough started to bunch in tighter, but he ignored it, just letting his body produce the carbon dioxide with every cough it needed to make him feel better.
End Chapter V
"Hi guys! That was the end of chapter five! I hope it wasn't too confusing, as a lot happened all at once."
"Damn right it's confusing."
"You're so mean A-chan." A rolls her eyes and I bow.
"Thanks for reading, and I hope it wasn't too much of chaos, as it introduced a little more of the entire plot of this fanfic...wahahaha..."
Thanks To.
Sandy11-1990 ("I didn't update as soon as I could have, since this chapter was shorter then last, but...yeah. Thanks for the review! Hahaha!")
Lexaerilius ("Whoa...that's a lot to say about Jade. Hahaha. Ah...well my friends tell me often, though I act different on purpose. Which is why I have an easy time of writing him...Jade's hair...well I call it 'blonde' because his hair-color really is hard to describe in any normal color, and I once called him the "Blonde-haired Kyoya (Ouran High School Host Club character)!" and left it that way...Um, anyway! Thanks so much for the review and making me happy that I managed to write Jade well last chapter!")
Chaotic Blades ("Well...we saw a little bit of Ion, but sadly Van can't say anything to him right now because of the fact Asch escaped! Hahaha, ah...Of course I enjoy your reviews, I love it when people make their reviews amusing or more then one line! Thanks again!")
Meimi no Kage ("Aha...I'm glad you were happy to see Asch...and I hope I didn't disappoint you on my characterization this time. Anyway! Yeah...thank you so much for blessing me with your review...")
LatyfeSurLeSora ("You flatter me. Thank you.")
killerbunbun ("He didn't even think about using it, hahaha! Ah...anyway...thank you and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.")
Caim soul eater ("Like I said in previous chapters there are no official couplings. Just loads of hints, like in this chapter. Anyway, thanks for the 'great fic' comment!")