A/N: first things first-IM SO SORRYYYYY HUHUHUHU DDDD': I just couldn't get my hands on Internet last Saturday HUHUUUU :(( I know I have to make it up to you all, and I'm so sorry for disappointing you all for making this thing pretty late :P don't worry, Imma make it up to you all-I can't thank you guys enough for your warm support! Thanks to all for your continuous and patient viewing (OMG THANKS TO ALL THOSE WHO ARE FOLLOWING AND FAVORITING AND READING THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU ARIGATOU SANKYUU 399999! yeah, that includes all the guests who have been reading this :) , and I hope that my fanfics will continue to make u gaiz happy :) GO KYOTEN!
KYOTEN CRAP 10
"My brother says I have no choice."
Arion is absolutely relieved that their plan can continue, but at the same time, he'd rather die right now. Dance? With Victor? They did it, yes, and he wasn't that bad at remembering Vladimir's moves-but he wasn't that good either (well except for the dirty stuff; he was excellent there.).
"What do you think you're doing?! Do you even know the whole routine?!"
"It's a thing between me and my brother. Just do your job; I'll be fine," Victor replies in a hurry, but Arion is given no chance as the music starts to play.
It starts when the three girls and some of the boys start moving. They dance around, feet barely touching the ground in a light cadence as they mingle with one another. It's the part where they introduce the animals. Now, it's Arion's turn to come in. He slips in gracefully, twirling and using his arms to portray that he's 'flying'. The 'animals' around him pay him respect, while others dance away to show cower and envy. Well yeah, they have to focus on the moves because their facial expressions won't be seen.
Then, the men start prancing in. At first, the animals enjoy their company.
This is the part where they invite some of the guests to dance with them for a little while
"Hey, are you near enough?" Jade whispers under her breath without letting anyone hear her.
"Not a chance, J," Aitor's scowl is dripping through the magical communicators they have, which is actually an enchanted feather on the spy's mask.
Jade frowns for a second before resuming. The Sentinel chose a seat directly opposite the side of the table nearest to them. It's difficult to dance all the way there, especially with the other guests in the way.
When the girl sees her chance, she gets near Rosie and nudges her slightly with her elbow. Rosie immediately gets her cue, and she deviates from the circle that her companions have formed.
Others start inviting the guests to dance, and Rosie executes plan B.
"It would be an honor if you joined us, Deity Fey Rune," she says sweetly, and the other man smiles back at her.
"I suppose that it would be rude to turn down an offer from a charming young lady," he says as he rises, and he offers his hand. He leads her to the dance floor, and they start dancing.
At this point, Adé sees that Rosie has completed phase one. He looks at Rick and at Gabriel, who immediately start dancing in the rotation going towards Rosie.
"Can you reach it?" Riccardo whispers as he and Gabriel link arms and switch positions.
"I'm trying to find it."
"It's supposed to look like a cross!"
"What cross!? I don't see anything-"
Just then, he sees a spark of light from the Deity's waist. He squints, and on the man's belt, made of white and gold with a few rubies studded here and there, a cross-like embellisment of gold looked too embossed to be part of it.
"Is that just a design? Or..."
Gabriel whispers, but Riccardo interrupts him.
"I think it is! Go get it!"
Gabriel starts shifting backwards, trying to get in contact with the Sentinel. But thanks to their positions, the man would move forward every time Gabriel and Rick move backward. They can't just ruin the sync or else the others would notice. So the frustrated pink-haired make just tries to snatch it without making it obvious.
"Sorry!" Gabriel says a little too loudly as he bumps into Fey's side by 'accident'. In the scuffle, the guest is momentarily off-guard, and he doesn't notice anything as Garcia's hand swipes the small cross from the belt. They move farther away from each other just before the light dancing slowly intensifies, taking the dance number another step forward.
The men start grabbing and pushing, making their actions more forceful until the animals start resisting. All except for Arion, who is expressing great distress at the suffering of his companions. Then, with a little bit of effects from loud cymbals, they all disperse in a flash, and thousands of beautiful feathers fold over Arion like wings before he disappears, leaving only traces of the avian covering. The crowd is astonished-where did their beloved main character go? They look left and right in confusion, more so when the candles are all blown out. Even Lord Wunderbar stands up in alarm. However, the Deity remains calm even if it's just moments after he has returned to his place. He had jumped up in shock, but he sat back down in an instant, showing almost no emotion.
"Hey. Are you there?" Rick whispers, feeling his way around in the dark.
"Yeah. I got it."
Upon closer inspection under the moonlight, the cross sparkles alluringly. It apparently was attached to the belt by means of an elongated stem, so one of the sides was longer than the other. It looked similar to the handle of Venus's mirror, only with runes inscribed on it.
After exchanging a high five, Rick tucks it into a lightweight pouch strapped around his leg but hidden inside his boot, and they go to their positions as the lights slowly brighten to a faint dim, showing the bird on its escapade as it hides somewhere.
Then, the lights come back on. Everyone claps, some howling and others giving a standing ovation at the wonderful performance.
"Please, ladies and gentlemen-that was simply a spectacular Act I. We will be having a short intermission for you to do your personal business. Please, do enjoy the night."
At this, the place becomes noisy again. The travelers proceed to the nearby room outside the hall, which served as the dressing room since Lord Wunderbar always had performers at his place.
At the back of the room, laying on a collapsible bed near the window, is a sweating Vladimir. He looks pretty bad, and his body is mildly shivering but Victor just freezes on his spot, not daring to come close but not daring to take his eyes off his brother either.
-*- Victor's haunted eyes could see vividly the pain on the pale face. His eyebrows were knit, body convulsing from the stress and pain going through him.
"Victor-I can't...I can't feel my legs!" -*-
"...Victor... Victor!"
He snaps out of his frightening trance, thanks to Jade waving in his face. He promptly walks over to his brother.
"Hey, Vladimir. Are you feeling better?" He asks sincerely, wiping his brother's forehead before taking the flat shallow disc, scooping some of the clear liquid in the bowl on the table and raising it to his brother's lips so that he could take a sip.
"I'm feeling a little bit better now," he says with a forced smile as he reclines into the cushions, trying to make himself a little bit more comfortable. "How was the dance?"
"We were able to get the handle."
At this, Vladimir sits up straight, supporting himself on his elbows as he tries to look at Victor seriously.
"May I see?"
Rick steps forward at once, pulling out the small pouch from inside his boot to give to Vladimir. When the man unfolds it, he observes it under moonlight.
For a few minutes, they all just watch him turn the long rood-like handle around and around, looking at something that is obviously what it is-the first half of the Sacred Moon Mirror made of gold and inscribed with the language of gods long lost and 'made from the fires of Hephaestus' like the legends say.
"What's wrong? We got the first relic, but you seem to be uneasy," Sam Gook comments, but none of them have time to react as the handicapped man suddenly straightens his back and hurls the piece directly into the fireplace.
"VLADIMIR!" Gabriel can't help but shriek in horror as Skie grabs the pitcher on the table to douse the fire, but Subaru holds her back.
"Look!" Riccardo shouts, and they all watch as the relic starts melting.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? IT'S MELTING!" Gabriel screams at the top of his lungs, and he grabs the pitcher and throws it into the hearth. The embers die at once, sizzling before the black smoke fills the room. Roma opens the window while Jade brings out her huge Japanese-style fan to push the smoke away. When they all crowd closer to the ashes, the only thing left is a charred wooden cross that is crumbling at the edges.
"What the?!" Gabriel could barely contain his fuming as he scoops the cross in his hands.
"It's a fake. I was wondering how you got it so easily. Then, when I saw the inscriptions, I knew that it was immediately a replica. I don't read runes, but I've looked at the detailed sketch from the forbidden books long enough to know that these aren't the Tamara Runes like the books describe-they're just similar."
They all look at Vladimir speechless. He may be physically incapable of doing things, but his intelligence and keenness of observation made him completely indispensable. They wouldn't know what to do without him. Gabriel sheepishly scratches his head, turning red from embarrassment.
"Well, uh, sorry for overreacting then," he mumbles, but the still sick man just laughs it off hoarsely before relaxing once more.
"It's fine. I'll just take a nap-meanwhile, you guys should focus on looking for the real deal."
They nod and they run off-they have to resume their places. Everyone goes to their place except for Arion, who decided to have a drink to perk him up a little.
At the drinks fountain all the way across the room, the angel pours himself some juice, enjoying the refreshing feeling of finely crushed grape going down his throat. He turns around swiftly on his heel, but just before he could register anything, something bumps into him, causing him to lurch forward and watch in horror as the drink splatters everywhere on the person in front of him. Everything happened in slow motion, that the boy only comes back to his senses when he realizes that the man is reaching out to grab a napkin to clean up the spill.
"I'm so sorry! I-I can clean up the mess!-" Arion stutters, but the person just shakes his head while smiling, trying to reassure the disconcerted angel.
"It's fine," he insists, but Arion starts wiping away at the white coat which started forming a purple stain. When Arion looks up, he jumps a little backward when he sees bright sky blue eyes.
"D-DEITY?! I'm so sorry for ruining your coat-" Arion begins again, but Fey brushes it off.
"We're all just guests here," he says with a laugh, "go ahead before you miss your performance."
Arion nods gratefully before running off to the dance floor once more. Then, they commence Act II.
This time, it's just Arion dancing around the space. He is alone, in hiding, and he is flying around in the morning like he always does. Then, he trips and falls onstage, sprawled across the floor as his wing gets injured in the hunter's trap. He looks around alarmed, and even more terrified when Victor steps out of the shadows and circles around him.
'I don't even get this dance routine,' Victor mutters deep inside as he kneels beside the bird who was trying to escape. He's supposed to scoop up the boy, so he grabs him by the waist and puts his other arm under the brunette's knees, inside the skirt as he carries the other off bridal style.
"WHAT. Are. You. Doing?" Arion seethes, kicking away, but Victor squeezes the boy's thigh in public (though discreetly) to shut up his noisy little bitch. Then, they go to the part where they spend time together and the bird 'falls in love with the man and learns to trust again', while the man helps him fly (well actually, it's a pretty funny story, since Victor kept touching more than he needed to. By more, Arion means everywhere on his petite, nearly girly torso.). Then, the bird starts flying, thanking the man by wrapping him with its wings in a hug before flying off.
Right on time, Wanli charges forward, disguised like a bear, and attacks Victor. The henchman is left wounded, and Arion, who was flying around the sidelines, rushes in to see his beloved companion dying of a fatal gash to the side. Despite the shaking from the nervousness at what is to come next, the audience thinks that Arion's shivering is just part of the act of the bird's sorrow. It unfolds its wings, carefully pulling the man close, and this is where the orchestra starts to soften so that everyone can hear Arion's singing voice.
"Audi vocem meam..." The words come out in a slight croak from Arion's trembling lips, and the angel is pretty sure he hit a flat note, but the point is to get things over with. As he tries to distract himself from stage fright by staring at Victor, he immediately regrets doing so when he looks at the man's skin peeking out from underneath the way too huge slashes that Wanli had made. Thanks a lot, libido-now isn't the time to imagine a glorious six pack!
"...Implens auribus vestris..."
He caresses Victor's face tenderly. It feels weird on his fingertips, and the vampire flinches, but they can't do anything except express this awkward sense of PDA while looking for a stupid handle.
"Somnus, deliciae meae,"
He coaxes thean into a light sleep instead of an eternal one, and Arion lays his palm on that handsomely buffed chest for effect (it's stupid but it's more natural this way.). Victor only makes it convincing by stirring a little like he was about to sleep.
"Te autem senetur..."
The words are growing fainter as Arion, weakened, lays his head on the vampire's chest. It's so weird because they look like they're a couple sleeping in front of a huge crowd, but it's 'art' anyway. Then, moments later, Victor awakens to see a beautiful bird resting on him, but peace could not last long enough, for the men rush back in with their [fake] swords and ropes, grabbing the unconscious animal from Victor's grasp. Then, the action starts rolling in-they couldn't cut it off at an intermission like they planned because the audience is so engrossed by the flow of the story.
As Victor is busy chasing them, the girls, who were animals at the start and now have no part, look at the Sentinel.
"Look for something shiny! Maybe he's wearing it as jewelry!" Jade fusses as they stare intently at the man. "Rosie, did he have anything suspicious? Like a necklace or a brooch or something?"
"I noticed that something was off with his belt, but that's what Rick noticed too...it wasn't that, apparently."
"Maybe he disguised it as something else! Like a pen or something," Skie chimes in, almost laughing at her own ridiculous idea. A pen? Really?
Back to the actors, the audience is deadly quiet, at the edge of their seats when Arion appears in a golden cage at the balcony while being guarded by the 'men'. Victor rushes in, and he draws his sword (yes, a fake sword thanks to Rosie's super fast props making skills). Arion seems hurt, and red liquid is seeping through the side of his arm while the other one remains limp. The men, namely Aitor and Gabriel, grab on Victor and hold a fake dagger to his neck, while Aoyama and Hugh secure the bird who slams on the cage while crying.
"Sing, my sweet angel!" Riccardo exclaims as he waves his hands like an orchestra conductor, and the bird sadly does as it is told. It opens its mouth to sing the spell which would make Riccardo, the evil man, the most powerful sorcerer in the world, but Victor surprises the audience once again, making them gasp as he snatches the dagger and throws it at the bird, cutting its other wing. Arion cries aloud, and a bright light issues forth from the boy's heart (using magic, of course, and flash paper which each of the performers ignited). In that blinding moment, the audience looks around in confusion, only to see that the iron cage is deformed, and the man carefully frees the bird from the cage and sets him down at the middle of the stage, assessing its limp form.
'I can't cry,' Victor thinks to himself, so he puts his head down and his body starts quivering just to give the impression that he's weeping. Rosie and the props men get the cue, so they immediately release the doves that they put in cages somewhere around the area, and the audience is amazed when the flock gathers around the two main characters. When the birds depart, they no longer see a bird-Arion had taken his mask off, and it turns out that some parts of the splendidly crafted dress were gone, such as the skirt part which is now just like a skin tight body suit with skin-tone shear on the thighs and feathers here and there on his hips, knees, and on the shins and ankles. His arms have less feathers, and the claws are now dainty and bare human feet. It made him look less like a bird and more of a human. (A/N: hahah I know that u gaiz might not be getting the picture, but let's just say that he's a cutie :3)
The bird and the man look at each other with joy.
'Now all that's left is the kiss,' Arion thinks to himself.
As he leans in to do the final act, he stops midway. He didn't really give so much thought to it at first, but now, a strange feeling in his chest is bothering him. Is it right to just give his kiss away like that? It's his first kiss after all.
"Kisses are very special. It means that you love someone with all your heart and with all sincerity. Don't give thm to just any girl-or anyone, in general."
Those were the words of Auntie Sylvia when he had his very first crush on this girl back in preschool. He never understood why, or what a 'kiss' was, but now he does. Even for the sake of this acting, he can't do it.
Instead, he leans forward and pulls the man close, bringing them close enough that their noses were touching, but he tilted the angle so that the audience wouldn't notice that their lips weren't touching at all. Then, the whole cast comes in, doing a final song, and they part to dance as well and take a final bow. They invite the guests to dance formal this time, and the San de Salvatorre is given a standing ovation-the howling and cheering wouldn't stop as they are all basked in glory. Arion escapes the people, running to the dressing room before people (and Lord Wunderbar) could stop him and ask for autographs or questions.
He barely slides down the wall before Rick comes in, seeing a tense Arion curled up against the wall.
"What happened back there? You stopped before you did the final act," he asks with partially chiding words, but Arion could sense the concern underneath that strict facade.
"I-I just couldn't-" he says, eyes wide open but staring at the ground. He's too confused-should he have kissed Victor or not? Was it wrong to stop or not? Does he-
...does he love Victor or not?
The question always lingered but was never asked. He'd stop his inner voice from saying it in his mind the moment the idea even crossed it. It's just a horrible fucking Stockholm Syndrome torturing him like crazy.
"It's okay. Your performance was nonetheless excellent, and I'm surprised that my brother didn't affect your performance whatsoever."
Vladimir changes the topic at once to spare everyone from the confusion and tension.
"Did you find it yet?"
"I'm afraid not, brother. But we are speculating that he doesn't have it right now-or maybe, we aren't looking hard enough." Victor answers to keep up the conversation so that everyone else could forget Arion's momentary shell shock.
"Let's try to think what he might have done with it."
Gabriel steps forward from the back, as if meaning to say something useful.
"My mother used to tell me stories about the Golden Shrine Maiden. I'll admit that I didn't recognize it at first, but i finally remembered that my mother used to sing thr Maiden's song before I went to sleep. I only remember one verse though," he says regretfully, but someone's hand lands on his shoulder.
"Could you sing it?" Aitor asks, and Gabriel turns shy all of a sudden, but he knows that it was inevitable.
"Okay...it went like this," he says, takes a deep breath, and starts.
Bright and blazing, beacon of hope
Protector of the people who mope
With the bow and arrow of the sun goddess
The Golden Shrine Maiden defends the less
"Beacon, bow and arrow, and sun goddess," Vladimir says to himself as if analyzing the deep meaning.
"Something shiny? Bright like the sun?" Roma suggests, and Jade rolls her eyes.
"You're taking the song too literally!"
At this, they start arguing again, but Skie just shakes her head. "Let's just try talking to him. Maybe we can infer something from the way he answers."
"Right. I'll try to figure something out-I can't really join your party," Vladimir says wistfully, but they all nod before exiting, each one bidding him a word of encouragement before leaving.
"Arion."
At the sound of his name, the boy turns around before he could depart. He moves closer when the older one asks him to, and it's just the two of them in the room.
"You couldn't kiss him, could you?"
Arion nods. Somehow, he's thankful that the Blade family's mind-reading skills are making it easier for someone to understand him. Vladimir sighs, and he ruffles the brunette's hair.
"Thank you."
That is the last thing Arion expects to hear.
"Why? Did I do something?"
Vladimir's smile just makes Arion more confused.
"My brother has lost the meaning of love. He cannot trust just anyone. You can't deny that you care for him-I know you do."
Arion doesn't know if he should be surprised, taken aback, or embarrased, because he knows that the man is right but he just doesn't want to admit it to himself.
"He thinks that you don't care for him, just like everyone else. If you kissed him back then, he would get angry, because he knows that kisses are special, and receiving it from a stranger like you for the sake of acting would only make him think that you do not realize the value of that kiss. He must realize first how far you'd go for him and how far he's go for you before he'd accept that kiss."
Arion has no comment whatsoever. All he feels is pity for the boy who has not known the feeling of love-or rather, has forgotten what it was like.
"Pretty complicated, don't you think?"
After a few seconds, they both laugh. Actually, it is. But in the end, at least Arion knows what he feels for Victor. And it isn't just attraction anymore.
Back at the ballroom, Arion's heart feels less heavy. Now, he has to help his friends get that relic so that he could help the people. It's his destiny to sacrifice himself after all, and he's slowly accepting it.
Across the room, he immediately spots a tuft of mint green exiting the door and going down the stairs to the courtyard. On instinct, he rushed to catch up to the Sentinel.
He keeps a safe distance, and once they descend, he watches as the boy takes a seat on one of the benches facing the lake.
"Mind if I sit here? I'd like to look at the lake too."
The other one looks up at Arion's face, shining with light, and he smiles.
"No, not at all," he says as he scoots over.
"Wonderful performance back there."
"Thanks. Sorry for spilling my drink on your shirt."
They both laugh at the comment that Arion had brought up. It's kind of weird chatting with the Deity of the land whom no one ever approached out of respect for his space.
"How are you enjoying the Gala?" Arion asks, turning towards Fey.
"Actually, I'm not having much fun. It's like they all give me a five-meter radius wherever I go. They think I'm too 'divine' to be near to. You're the only one who has talked to me the whole night aside from Wunderbar; I take it you're not from here, then?"
'The man said Wunderbar,' Arion takes note in his head. Does it mean that they're close enough to address each other like that without titles? Fey seemed respectful enough to consider every mortal's title, so why just Wunderbar? Is there something that the bear hasn't been telling them?
"You're right. We're just a band of travelers who love to sing and explore. We all have mothers who don't like us being stuck in our own little hometowns and comfort zones," Arion says with a chuckle.
Fey laughs, but less mirthfully and more reminiscently. "Mother, huh?..."
Arion turns red, saying, "did I say something quite sensitive?"
"No, no! I just miss her," he says while waving his hands in front of him in a friendly way. Then, he loosens his cravat a bit and reaches in, pulling out a six inch rod on a chain around his neck. The rod had another extension at its left side, forming a perpendicular line, like a letter 't' cut in half. It was simple, just made of pure white gold. He shows it to the Seraph.
"My mother gave this to me a long time ago. She says that it's a lucky charm, to protect me while she's away. I just miss her."
"Ah..." Arion says, and it goes quiet between them. Arion misses his mother too-he hasn't seen her since-since-he can't even remember.
"It's getting chilly-I shall be heading back inside. It was nice chatting with you," he says courteously with a bow as he stands up and returns the pendant in its place.
"Alright then. I'll catch up to you later," Arion replies, watching the man leave. Somehow, the pendant looked achingly familiar, but he couldn't remember what it was about it.
He has to tell the others.
Arion rises, making his way to the stairs just in time to see Victor descending. He waits for the other, who doesn't seem to notice him, until the henchman reaches the bottom. He doesn't show any reaction when he sees Arion, despite how beautiful the angel looks in heaven's moonlight.
"I was talking to the Sentinel."
Victor becomes alert, forgetting what it might be like to dance with the other without anyone watching.
"He was talking about his mother, the Golden Shrine Maiden. She left him a pendant, which is a lucky charm. It looked like a 't' cut in half," he says. Victor processes the information in his head.
"Maybe it's-" Victor is abruptly cut off as the sound of women shrieking and breaking glass soars overhead.
"Let's go!" Victor says as he runs up the stairs, with Arion tailing closely behind. When they reach the ballroom in less than a minute-everything looks like a Junior Prom in a horror movie that got trashed by King Kong-the plates and dishes are scattered with the floor, food is everywhere, women are looking for cover as the men usher them to safety. Some of the tables and the chairs are broken, and in the midst of the madness, swinging on the chandelier is what Arion describes as a silver-haired madman with a huge smoking weapon in his other arm.
"Who is that?!" Arion screams over the noise, but he has no answer as Victor dives on top of him, pushing him on the ground to shield him from a flying table that he didn't see. When they both scramble to their feet from the uncomfortable position they're in, they see a couple of men with grey uniforms and black combat boots, wearing shades and having fancy heavy artillery aimed at the madman.
"I'm not after you bunch! I'm looking for the Alpha!" The man hollers over the ruckus, firing a crazy missile at a bunch of the soldiers and knocking them unconscious.
"You attached us first!" A man with black gloves and a professional gray suit different from the rest answers back, ordering another shot to be fired at the intruder. A magenta net springs from the spinning sphere, but the man nimbly jumps off the chandelier and lands on some tables stacked on top of another, only to have to jump off again when it gets sliced into two.
"What the?!" He says in confusion as he looks up at a mint green-haired man with a stunning rapier in his hands. "Fey?! Whose side are you on!?"
"Don't you dare think you can make a fool out of me! You're hurting my people!" The Sentinel lashes out, sending a few waves of light from his sword when he slashes it in the air. The agile missile-shooter evades them all, as well as the blasts of energy from the men's guns.
"Didn't Wunderbar tell you?!"
Again with the Wunderbar thing. Arion is starting to think that the blue bear cannot be trusted despite how adorable it looks.
"Are you alright? The others are at the dressing room with Lord Wunderbar-come this way!" The two are surprised to find Riccardo suddenly at their side, but nonetheless Victor and Arion start following.
"Found you!"
From nowhere, a uniformed man leaps out in front of them, grabbing Arion but gets blasted away shortly after by another smoking missile. All heads turn to the stranger, who runs towards them.
"That one's off limits!" He shouts, running towards the trio, but Fey rushes in.
"They aren't my responsibility, but nonetheless you cannot just abduct them!" Fey shouts, angered by the other's display of bravado, as he draws his sword in a battle stance.
"Watch me!" The man replies, pulling on his goggles and cranking up a lever on the side of his weapon. It's parts start shifting and elongating, the gears and axles turning visibly to make an even bigger weapon. And the ammo didn't look friendly either.
"Run. Now. I'll be fine!" Fey orders, and Victor and Rick do as they are told, but Arion stays in place.
"We have to help them!" He screams, refusing to budge, but Victor grabs him by the waist and slings the boy on his shoulder.
"VICTOR! LET. ME. GO!" Arion nags, banging on the henchman's back as he is getting father and farther away, all the way to the dressing room where Victor slams the boy against the wall.
"Listen to me!"He raises his voice, and everyone in the room goes quiet except for the heavy breathing.
"Those men," he growls in Arion's face, eyes dangerously narrowing that it scared the angel, "they are Zabelle's lackeys. They are after you! If you stayed, you would have made things worse!"
Beneath that anger, the boy could've sworn he felt Victor's concern, his need to protect the angel not just because it was necessary, but because he felt like it. He could see Victor's innate kindness and nobility shining faintly in the gold eyes that have seen too much but have known too little.
The, another crash rings out in the hallway, making all of them flinch in distaste. They hear a familiar muffled voice rise above the rest.
"Lord Wunderbar! He's out there!" Jade shouts out loud. "We have to help the guy, you know?"
They all think of what to do.
Riccardo speaks up instantly.
"Victor, Roma, Sam Gook, and I will go out first. If we need help, we'll call."
"But Rick-"
"-don't worry for me, Gabriel," the captain cuts him off. "I trust Vladimir, the Seraph, and the girls with you and the rest. I know you can do it."
With a heavy heart, Gabriel agrees, and right after the other men bust through the doors, the door itself is sent flying off its hinges thanks to a bomb fired by the man with black gloves and spiky black hair.
"Cease this fire!" Wunderbar's voice rises above the smoke, coming from nowhere, and all of a sudden, a rainbow of colors explodes like a nuclear bomb, setting of a technicolor fireworks display on the third floor. However, the grey men are relentless; they continue to waste the ammunition of their fancy, advanced Armalites as they shoot blindly and destroy the beautiful frescos. But the kaledoscopic waves of light around them burst into flames as huge silhouettes come into view. Arion and the others crane their necks to see what it is, and the see...flying penguins! Everywhere, each in a different color of the rainbow. The men are forced to huddle in a clump, retreating back into the wasteland of a ballroom only to have the madman (who is still fighting Fey, by the way) shoot at them with his dwindling supply of missiles.
"Well, we at least can get the second item on our list: the Sacred Moon Mirror's handle!" The man in the grey suit demands as he turns to the Deity. "Hand it over, Fey Rune!"
"So you are the infamous Commander Austin, terrorizer of the innocent and right hand of the evil sorceress Alexandra. Why am I not surprised?" Fey taunts them, as he sends another blow towards the still-evading, goggled attacker.
"Fey! Listen to me!" The madman calls out, only to be met with an angry Deity.
"Why should I?" He heaves out he words with much difficulty as he parries the minor shots coming from Zabelle's lackeys while running towards the silver-haired guy.
"We can deal with each other later! Deal with them first!" He shouts, pulling out a rod from his pocket. It was made of white gold, and it looked exactly like Fey's pendant, only mirrored. Victor notices this in an instant, and he remembered Arion's words all of a sudden. The angel realizes it too.
"Give me your pendant!"
"Never! It's my mother's last memento!" He defiantly cries, slashing the man's right leg.
He cries out in pain, but he grabs Fey by the coat, pulling him down behind a table to shield them temporarily from Zabelle's men (who are thankfully being distracted by the rainbow penguins and the fire everywhere), and he rips open the fabric to grab the pendant.
"Sorry about this, Fey. Sorry about everything. I'll explain everything later," he mutters, before he leaps off to leave a confused Deity and he hobbled on the table despite his bleeding limb.
It doesn't take long for Victor and Arion to put two and two together.
"RICK! The relic!" The henchman shouts, and everyone's heads whip towards the madman who is standing on the table with both pieces in his hands. The white-gloved hands place the two pieces together, and under the moonlight it pulses faintly, forming a light green aura around it until the connected pieces shine a bright white, blinding everyone. The holder could barely keep his eyes open, but he could still see the cracks on the surface of the now complete cross as the inscriptions come to life. Then, a ray of light shoots down from the heavens, swallowing the man and knocking back everyone in the ballroom.
When the lights are gone, the men are nowhere to be found. Victor and the rest get up from where they have crouched in their places, cautiously checking if there's anything out of the blue. The Penguins are gone, and after the smoke clears, they see a Wunderbar at the side of an unconscious Fey Rune. All the members of the San de Salvatorre rush into the ruins, supporting Vladimir as well.
"Are you alright?" Arion asks in alarm when he approaches the body of the boy.
"He's asleep, but he'll be fine," Wunderbar speaks in a serious tone. "Celia, are you there?"
A small trap door nearby opens up. She pokes her head out, and so does Harry, who rushed out to hug the bear.
"You were very brave," Wunderbar says proudly as he grips his apprentice's shoulders.
"Thanks, Uncle," he says as he hugs the bear one more time.
As they both rise to their feet, the company watches as Wunderbar grabs both sides of his head. Then, he does an incredibly weird thing.
His head pops off.
They expected blood and bear guts to explode everywhere, but they see...a man's head! And to make things weirder, Lady Celia walks behind the bear to unzip a hidden zipper. And lo and behold, out steps a full-grown man with billowing red robes or a cape or whatever it was, with hair done in dreadlocks at the top and flowing free at the bottom, and with the weirdest, funky, green-tinted shades Arion has ever seen in his entire life.
"Please ask the servants to bring Fey and Simeon to the resting chambers," he instructs the lady, who immediately calls for the servants as she ushers Harry away to his bedroom to get cleaned up for bed.
Only then does the man then to the company with a knowing smile.
"I am the only one who can help you get to the next relic. For I am Jude Sharp-Warlock of the Night and Day-the last of the Legendary Sorcerers. And you, my young fellows, have passed the first test."
A/N: I FINALLY GOT THIS THING OUT! OMG DAMMET I am so going to make it up to you gaizz this Valentine's HAHAH XDD hope you enjoy, and I'm looking forward to posting the next chapter as well! Thanks for your heartfelt support, and there will be more stuffzzz to come soon :))