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Thank you to: CyBeastSaber, The Fox Writer, Rocky0825, SpiritGuardian, AAA, Anonymous, Marahute Sol, Kd7sov, 17th warrior, riais, Grayjack72, bente-unerz36, Lofast, and Frutillas for reviewing! You guys are all awesome, especially for giving me advice!

Now, here is the story. I've been working on this chapter for a while now, and while it isn't the best I've ever written, I'm not upset with it. Feedback please!

Tundra

Chapter 8: Darkness and Dawn

"Mia," Felix began.

"Yes, Felix?" she asked.

"Mia, I need..."

The walls of their hut suddenly shook under force comparable to that of an earthquake. Felix instantly leapt to his feet, his hand dropping to his belt out of reflex, only to find it devoid of a sword. Ironically, he had left his weapon inside the ship, which had occurred to him as he made his way to the deck before the storm. Now, he supposed he should consider himself lucky that his weapon wasn't at the bottom of the Western Sea.

The hut shook violently again, and a Felix felt his Psynergy protection flare up as a bolt of flame burst through the earthen walls with a fury, sending him, Mia, and the remnants of their faithful shelter flying back through the air. He put his hands in front of his face to protect his eyes, and when the fire cleared, he found himself on his back and facing an enormous, livid pair of phoenixes.

"Of course… the eggs and the other bird," thought Felix. "They must be the parents."

He chanced a glance behind him to look for Mia. Felix felt a bit of his life drain away as he saw Mia's leg trapped beneath a heavy earthen block from their shelter, totally helpless before their rabid enemies.

"Felix!" she yelled. "I can't move!"

"Hang on," he growled.

His mindset of leadership and protection set in, and he adjusted his battle strategy to compensate for shielding Mia, for his lack of Djinn, and for his lack of a weapon. His first move seemed obvious.

"Ragnarok!" he bellowed.

The swords pierced one of the two creatures, and, though it began to bleed, it keened loudly, and summoned a giant being, half man and half boar. Felix bit his bottom lip in frustration and fear. Nothing could happen to Mia, nothing could happen to Mia, nothing could happen to…

He focused his Psynergy again, and opened up a great rift in the earth, from which poured a powerful barrage of rock. All three of the enemies growled in pain, but Felix took the full force of their attacks in exchange for presenting himself as a target. The cold wind bit at his skin and limbs, while his physical energy drained rapidly from the attacks of the berserk animals.

He cast Ragnarok again, and this time the phoenix fell to the ground, lifeless. With that attack successful, Felix repositioned himself as a barrier in between the path of the two remaining creatures and Mia. The other phoenix attacked him again, and Felix countered with another onslaught of stone as he dodged the blow from its razor-sharp talons. The bird fell.

Then, his foot caught on something, a stray piece of ice or perhaps a rock, but he felt himself lose his balance, struggle to retain it, and fail.

"NO!" his mind screamed, as he careened into the snow.

He pulled himself back up as quickly as he could, accelerating toward Mia's powerless figure, but the giant creature was already in between him and Mia. He felt a metaphorical axe the size of the beast's cleave his chest in two. What could he do?

In a fraction of a second, Felix examined the environment. There was no time to cast, and there was nothing to throw. He had no Djinn with him. She was going to die, at expense of his failure. The fiend picked up speed, charging toward the Imilian's defenseless figure. At that moment, in the midst of crisis, Felix bore witness to the incredible.

The wind, up to this moment fairly calm after the storm, picked up to a ferocious gale. Everything seemed to lose color, as though it were bleeding out of a bleached piece of fabric. The lost color, instead of becoming gray, was replaced by a soft, but glowing, cerulean hue. The woman from his dream appeared, five feet in the air, in between Mia and the minotaur. She was clad in white again, though not quite so blindingly as before.

It was then that Felix recognized the face. The same one adorned the Ply statue that was housed in the center of Mercury Lighthouse.

BEGONE, BEAST,the woman uttered majestically.

Felix struggled to remain standing. The power of her voice was undeniable and omnipresent. As such, Felix felt an urge to remove himself from her vicinity. He didn't deserve to be here. This woman was a greater being than him, much greater. Her consciousness enforced itself on everything around her, attacking Felix's mind at all angles.

Then, just as he was about to run away, the apparition vanished. Felix fell to his knees, feeling as though he had run a marathon twice over.

A ragged breath or two escaped his lips. As his sense of reality returned, his first immediate thought came rushing out of his mouth.

"MIA!" he screamed, as he rushed over to her.

Her leg was completely covered by the block of ice-encased earth, and her face was twisted with pain. She bit her lip, struggling to contain a whimper of agony.

Felix's adrenaline levels spiked again, and his body began to glow with Psynergy.

Lift...

The giant rock was stubborn and slow to move. Felix focused on not disturbing Mia's leg, and she was able to pull herself free from the rock. As soon as she was clear, Felix, whose eyes were tightened in focus, let the giant stone fall to the ground with a resounding crash. He bent over slightly, having lost his wind.

"Is it broken?" he asked.

"No, I don't think so," Mia said with a wince, "It just feels bruised, but I can't tell."

She made a move to stand up, which Felix immediately curtailed.

"Wait," he said strongly. "I'm going to rebuild our little hut, and then we'll check your leg."

Not five minutes later, they had new lodgings.

"Come on in," said Felix. "I made a door this time."

He used his Psynergy to open up one of the walls with a hinge on the side. Mia cracked a tiny smile at this, as he lifted her up to her feet, put her arm around his shoulder, and brought her inside.

He put her down along the wall, and after starting a fire brought sat down next to her.

"Let's have a look at your leg," he said.

Mia nodded, and slowly began to pull up the hem of her robe and the layer beneath. As soon as her leg became visible, she wished that she had looked at it herself first – the entire surface of her skin was a spattering of purple, green, and blue hues, and the area above her kneecap had swelled up extensively. She tried not to blanch as Felix slowly and carefully checked her leg for breaks.

"It's not broken," sighed Felix, with evident relief.

"That's good," Mia agreed.

"I should probably heal it though."

His body pulsed with a blue-white glow, and Mia felt the earthen energies seep into her body, alleviating the pain in her thigh. She sighed audibly.

It was silent for a moment, until Mia spoke what both of them had obviously been thinking.

"Felix," she asked hesitantly, "did you see…well, what I saw?"

"I don't know, but I had a dream about her the other night."

"What?" Mia replied in astonishment.

"Yeah. I was looking for Mars Lighthouse, and I was lost. Then, when I was about to give up, she found me and led me to the base."

Mia had no response.

"And after today, I noticed that she looked like the giant statue who Ale… I mean, who we spoke to in Mercury Lighthouse when I was still with Saturos and Menardi, right before we ascended."

"Ply…" Mia whispered to herself.

"What?"

"Ply," she said again, this time clearly. "The angel. That's her statue in the Mercury Lighthouse. She founded Imil, and helped seal away the elements. Then, she became… a part of the Lighthouse, which is why only members of my clan can enter. Only her descendants have the power of Ply…"

She faltered.

"How…" asked Felix.

"I don't know," replied Mia. "I've never heard of this before. Her spirit has never spoken to anyone, as far as I know, except to those who seek to climb the Lighthouse… Only within the Lighthouse..."

Mia's words faded into thoughts. Her mind jumped hyperactively from one theory to another, from one conclusion to the next. Why had she appeared here? Was it because of the ignition of the beacon? And why, then, had she appeared to Felix in a dream? Why not to her, a member of the Mercury clan? And at that, how had she appeared in the first place? It wasn't as though she had been a ghost. She had certainly been corporeal, or as much so as an angel-among-angels could be. Why…?

Mia felt a lurching sense of despair grip her, as though the end of her life was rushing up to meet her, like fire raining from the sky. She buried her face into Felix's shoulder, and cried, the fear of the past several days boiling over again. Felix held her closely as her breathing leveled off, and then drifted off into a tormented sleep of his own, as the dark outside enveloped his weary mind.

He was on the open ice again. He searched for hours, looking for any sign of the Lighthouse, or of the Angel, but he found none. Then, as he stood staring through the frigid winds, a flash of light from off in the distance pierced through the thick snow. He trudged purposefully through the snow again, eager to once more see the Angel. However, as he walked, the graceful woman did not appear to him.

Where was she? Where had she gone? He had seen light, and it had to be hers. What else would carve through the bleakness around him, the dark?

FELIX.

It was her! Felix stumbled toward the source of the mellifluous voice. His hands sank elbow-deep into the snow as he tripped in his hurry. He didn't notice the icy sting on his fingers as he staggered toward her.

He fell to his knees as the graceful figure came before him. His body acted on his own, as though he had no choice.

Rise, child, she said.

Felix pulled himself up to his feet, gazing at the serene woman while carefully avoiding her face. He wasn't worthy to look her in the eye. It seemed inappropriate to breath in her presence, much less to catch even a glimpse of her face.

Do not belittle your worth, hero, said the angel with a melodious voice. Your actions thus far are worthy of praise, and behold me you may, or else I would not have come here.

Felix didn't even bother considering how she had read his mind like a book, but raised his eyes apprehensively.

With me, she continued, I bring a message, a warning. You speed headlong into rapid waters, seas in storm. You float along a troubled river, and the worst is yet to come.

He watched intently, expressionless.

In the trials ahead, Felix, you will be gravely tested, but you must protect her. In this, you must not fail. I see your heart, champion, and I know what drives you, as you know yourself. Bring your heart with you when you ascend the Lighthouse, and it will guide you. Do not forget this. Keep her safe.

Once again, Felix heard a friendly voice as the landscape began to fade away. This time, though, the voice mixed with several others, shouting his name intermittently. One voice rose above the others.

"FE-LIX!" it echoed.

It was a feminine voice. Several male voices followed it. They seemed familiar.

Felix opened his eyes, adrenaline coursing through his veins. He jumped to his feet and pushed the door away. He stood in the doorway, straining his ears for sound.

"FE-LIX!" the girl's voice yelled again.

Felix felt his heart fly out of his chest.

"JENNA!" he shouted with glee.

Mia stirred beside him. He leaned down and shook her awake.

"Mia, wake up!" he gleamed.

"H-huh?" she murmured.

"Mia, wake up, they're here! They found us!"

She stood up as though struck by lightning. She walked out of the hut just in time to see the faces of her friends rise above the snow bank with the dawning sun.

So, the end of this chapter. Please, leave a review to tell me what you thought, especially about the dialogue. I think my dialogue feels fake sometimes, and it's definitely the weakest aspect of my writing, barring my update frequency. Any thoughts?

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Thanks a bunch for reading this! I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it!