Omni POV:
A year had passed since Serah, Noel and Mel departed through the gates of time from New Bohdum through the historia crux. The trio just up and vanished through history, taking the information in front of them in and mentally preparing themselves for what is to come ignorant to what lies beyond the gates.
The gate in Lake Bresha opened and allowed the three to pass, upon arrival rain pelted them softly as a greeting of another place and another time and in the skies lightning flashed and thunder roared while the storm continued. Serah and Noel watched the skies while Mel and Mog watched the rain fall feeling peaceful, until 'it' decided to attack.
"Serah, Noel move outta the way!" The teen shouted towards her comrades. Noel pulled his blades out and pushed Serah into the wall behind them while he rolls on his shoulder to dodge the giant sweeping arm. The attack created strong gusts of wind Serah struggled to remain planted to the ground and Noel had a hard time recovering from his roll.
"An arm?" The brunette man shouted as he watched the limb move through the air. Serah came to his side and shouted in shock,
"That thing is huge!" And it was true for their enemy was the one named after the Greek Titan: Atlas, the one who bears the weight of the world on his shoulders, seems fitting for the enemy for its massive size, however only the arm could be seen while the rest was invisible.
"We just got here, too, damn it!" Noel complained but charged anyways. As he charged Noel threw several spells at the enemy hoping to hit something where the arm was located, Serah who was yards behind him had a similar idea by shooting magic enhanced arrows hoping to hit anything right now. Mel walked calmly toward the pinknette and said to her above the roar of the storm.
"Switch your role to the Saboteur! Use deprotect and the spell will envelope the enemy and possibly show how big it is and where it stands." Serah hesitated a little and nodded her head, she raised her left arm in the air and a glowing grey light surrounded her arm and upon the ground of where she stood meaning she changed her role.
"Deprotect!" She shouted as loud as she could, waving her arms through the air similar to Vanille casting her magic to debilitate the enemy. Though Atlas was not affected by the spell the glow of the after effects did do its wanted job and showed the trio just how great this mighty Goliath stood, it was actually as big as the base of the crystal pillar holding Cocoon unlike its original form similar to its game counter part
"Holy shit, that thing got bigger." Mel said at a normal voice level quivering, her eyes comically wide at how massive this crystal paradox became. Serah was paralyzed with fear as she clung to her comrade upon seeing the same image and shakily asked,
"Do we still have to fight this thing?" Her knees shook almost violently from fear and her face suddenly became pale. The Interloper shook her head out of her dazed state and pulled out her weapon.
"Yes, we stay and fight. But let me handle this one okay? I haven't fought in a long while, so I'm going to cut loose on this one and let you guys finish it off, okay? That fair enough?" With her scarred arm, not allowing Serah to answer, revealed lightning shot out of the teens palm and the light caught Noel in his back and pulled him backwards from avoiding getting hit from the side by a powerful punch. When he landed on the stairs and hit his head his glare became poison when his eyes met the earthling.
"What was that for!? I was doing fine until you pulled me out of the fight! I'm not letting you take over, damn it!" Noel shouted as he hastily stood on his feet nearly stumbling over. Mel ignored him and stood before Atlas. Noel was close to grabbing the teen by the collar but Serah intervened.
"Let him go! Mel is just trying to help Noel, give him a chance! Please? He said we will have to finish that thing off anyways. Please be patient with him." Serah tried her best to diffuse Noel's anger but the rage swelling within the brunette grew and he scoffed heavily and pushed the pinknettes hands off of him.
"Whatever. He's bold like all them murderers, if he dies then I'll be glad he died because of his pride." Obviously annoyed Serah pouted and stomped her foot to the wet grounds speaking in a stern voice,
"You're impossible to work with Noel! If you're not willing to try and get along maybe I should have just left with Mel and left you behind do deal with your own problems!" Serah had snapped and rushed away from the brunette not even going to give him a chance to speak.
Battle Sequence Activated:
Mel watched the sky brighten as lightning flashed and thunder clapped. She felt agitated, feeling nothing but hatred and her heart became stone, gripping her swords hilt tightly she sprouted her wings and flew straight for the hand. Serah was down below watching with amazement but shook herself out of her awe and rapidly shot arrows toward the massive arm.
Atlas saw the winged teen coming and shot shards of crystal in a hail storm. Dodging and weaving out of the way the best she could Mel brought her left arm in front of her and pushed the air with a force she never wielded before to force the large shards back. Atlas moved slowly to avoid being stuck by his own attack but failed and crystal impaled its own crystal flesh and chipped its weak spot on its crown.
'Whats kind of power was that I just used? Force Push, like from the Fable series by Lionhead? Whatever it was I need to finish this quick.' Mel thought to herself and flew faster despite the weight of the rain soaking her wings, making the teen move at a slower pace than normal.
As Serah continued to fire magic arrows made of flames Noel came from behind her and tried to take her bow away, Serah saw his hands on her weapon and gripped it harder in her own palms.
"What are you doing!? Your going to compromise this mission we have!" The pinknette shouted over the thunder.
Noel kept trying to take the bow blade away from the smaller girl and shouted back to her in equal fury,
"That's not my problem now is it!? You keep siding with the enemy and I'm going to show you just how much that earthling is going to turn on us if we don't leave him now and finish that thing on our own!"
Fighting for the weapon Serah had to let go of her arrow otherwise it will explode and harm her, Noel and Mog. Noel knew that effect all too well and took advantage, being stronger Noel raised the bow to the sky and added more unstable magic to the bow and fired; straight for Mel.
Mel was fending off Atlas's attacks of crystal projectiles and the forces of the gales its massive arms created with each move the monster made. When Mel was about to summon powerful magic at the Goliath's weak spot a powerful burning sensation erupted through her spine. It felt like her back was dipped in a pool of lava, mixed with the firm pressing of heated metal against her bare skin, unfortunately the burning sensation had struck the Interlopers left wing leaving her to flying asymmetrical and fell from the heavens she flew within straight back to the earth.
Serah released her weapon and ran toward her falling friend, Noel watched with pain and hatred that he was left with no choice but to fight the monster himself. Rushing through the rain, that had started to fall more violently, Serah could barely see Mel but soon located her when a large explosion in the far corner from the time gate occurred. Debris and smoke appeared and disappeared quickly due to the rain and laying in the rubble was the teen, bloodied and beaten trapped between stone. Dropping to her knees Serah started to feel helpless.
"I'm so sorry! I don't know how this could have happened!" She began with tears falling from her eyes, mixing in the rain similarly to how Vanille did with Sahz.
"Noel, he. He hates you because you come from a different world! He took control of my bow and I couldn't get it back. If, if only I tried harder maybe that blast could have hit Atlas than you..." Mel looked at her companions sister and sighed, feeling defeated herself that she was hit so easily and fell from grace, however smiled.
"Don't worry, I'm fine, Serah. Don't worry, we have to be more concerned with Atlas than me. Look at Noel he isn't doing so well since he's so prideful, doing things himself than wait for assistance." Serah watched Noel fighting alone throwing wave after wave of fire magic and ruin spells at the towering beast while dodging every attack that came his way simultaneously, an offensive and defensive strategy, Noel seemed capable to end this fight even if he is alone his endurance and stamina is terribly low. His breathing is forced and laborious, his movements are slower his arms shake with strain. Maybe it was time to step in.
Mel showed Serah her weapon once again and she took it willingly. When the weapon was taken Mel's scars started to react similarly to how it did back in Palumpolum when she, Fang, Light and Hope were caught in the crossfire of the Ushumgal Subjugator. Serah's face looked at the light bouncing and streaming through the air making her face glow radiantly and she jumped away from the teen faster than when she scolds her students. Serah looked pale and sick, her body trembling from the sight her hand shook profusely while she pointed to the lightning coming out of the Interlopers arm and asked shakily,
'Wh- wha-whats up with your arms!? It's glowing like the lightning that flashes during a storm!" Mel knew this familiar feeling and pointed her arm toward Serah, looking more afraid and ready to vomit.
"What are you doing?! Hit Atlas, not me!" She protested but Mel appeared stoic, but answered simply,
"Do you want to get stronger?"
Serah calmed down by the question and looked at the teen curiously.
"If you want to become stronger in order to find Lightning then I will train you two to fulfill your duty. To get this over with trust me and this power I bestow upon you and Noel will be the outcome of your training." Serah now stood to her feet and looked at the light, feeling brave, and nodded her head.
"Good. Now, end this as a team." Once she finished talking the lightning produced from Mel's limb shot towards her friend and hit her square in the chest, the light lifts the girl of the ground and envelopes her in the force. When she was placed back on the ground Serah's clothing changed to her 'Style and Steel' costume and her blade a powerful brilliant glow surrounding the weapon. Mel shot lightning towards Noel and he was struck square in the back, the same process was done with him and his default clothes to Ezio Auditore's armor and his weapons glowed brilliantly. Atlas felt a tremor in its being and bellowed loudly the ruins and the ground shook but Serah and Noel were unfazed. When the two stood ready together Noel felt his anger wash away and felt regrettably bad for his actions and promised to make it up to his team mates.
"Ready to work as a team?" Serah asked Noel with a playful seriousness in her voice. Noel smiled from beneath his hood and replied positively,
"Yeah, lets do this!" And they charged.
Battle Sequence Engaged:
Atlas summoned storm clouds to its will and crystal shards, larger than an Adamantortous's tusk, gown upon the pair. Serah shot several luminescent arrows at the shards and each one exploded upon impact, Noel came in front of her and used his swords as a shield upon contact with the two blades a large magical shield appeared in form of the Assassin's Creed insignia protected the pair from the hail storm of crystal of all shapes, sizes and smoldering heat. Whatever was caught on Noel's shield was sent back to Atlas like a miniature version of Sahz's 'Cold Blood' attack only the shards penetrated through the crystal beasts arm, torso and head molten burn marks appeared upon where they hit and Atlas seemed to have faltered and stumbled when struck in the head. Seizing the opportunity to reach the weak spot Serah leaps meters in the air and Noel catches her with ease on his left arm, he shucks her with tremendous strength the girl was shot through the pouring rain she cleared a path the rain stopped falling for a few minutes, Noel squatted low to the ground and pushed with every ounce of energy in his entire being shot in the same direction of his comrade the rain seemed to shatter like ice and none fell again.
Watching from afar the power Mel temporarily gave to her two friends amazed even her.
"Holy shit! That's the outcome of the training I'm going to give them along the way?! Oh my glob! What did I do right for them to reach that kind of power!?" Amazed and in pain Mel watched the fight purposefully and noticed the glow from her soon to be students weapons were dimming and that could only mean their time was running low.
"Hey! Stop futting around around with your fancy powers and end this fight! Your weapons glow is dying down and when that glow stops your powers and strength go with it, then its back to square one!"
Noel and Serah heard what the teen said as the run up the beings body from the arms towards Atlas's crown moving urgently to the top. Atlas did whatever it could to shake these pests; thrashing, bellowing, summoning crystal storms but nothing could touch these two, barriers of magic enveloped them and kept them from harm. At the base of the shoulders both warriors jumped into the air with great power Atlas's arms were severed from the force and crashed landed to the ground, watching the two humans in the air both of their swords glowed brightly probably the other side of the world could see the glow. Gravity taking its course Serah and Noel were falling at high velocity and their blades shattered through the topaz colored crystal on its head and cut the monster clean in half. When they landed on the moist floor the luminescent light from their weapons vanished and they collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.
The Interloper rushed to their side even with a bad limp in her flesh and bone leg, forcing herself to crawl on all fours if she has to, and examined her two friends.
'Must have been the after effects of whatever I shot them with. Like all things power comes with a deadly price, good thing they are suffering from fatigue and nothing worse.' Thought the Interloper as she watched the world turn black and the skies opened up again, ready to let rain fall if need to.
'If only I learned more healing abilities from Vanille then I could have healed all three of us with enough energy to continue on, oh well. This is what I get for being so hesitant.' With a wave of her scarred hand Mel summons a strong curasa spell and healed the injuries and fatigue of the slumbering pair, when the light faded multiple sounds of what sounded like a stampede came their way, by the time the weak teen looked a butt of a weapon clocked her square in the head and was taken over by darkness.
Serah's Thoughts:
I fell into a fitful sleep, that is all I could remember after I helped beat the Titan, and everything I see in my head are my memories of when I was twelve. Light and I were walking home from school and it was getting later, the streets were never safe at night but we lived close by to the school so we were heading home to safety. Lightning would always smile while we walked and giggle about what we would do over the weekend, her bright blue eyes shining with nothing but a free spirit, the Lightning I used to call Claire my older sister. I remember how she would let me hold her hand even if I out grew the action with age I just always felt safe with her. But that same night as the hours went by we stayed up late waiting for our parents instead our fathers commanding officer came and told us our parents were caught in a brutal car crash, our mother survived with a few cuts and bruises but dad was killed upon impact.
The next day we held his funeral, the Guardian Corp gave the reception, and it was a horrible day. Mother fell on her knees and clutched the coffin crying her heart out nobody could hear their own sobs through hers, I cried terribly hard that day to but Claire she was stoic no tears were in her eyes but she was hurting inside too. Later in the evening I called the ambulance for mother but it was too late, Claire was told that our mother died of a broken heart but we both saw her with several pills bottles spilled across the floor. Claire didn't cry that day either and we had school to do and money was an issue for us. Our parents were dead and we were left alone to fend for ourselves, Claire stood with her head held high and took the abuse sent our way... I still remember the words she told me the day before she was about to graduate high school when I was being bullied the day before,
"The only reason why people pick on you is because they have no idea what hardship is. We survived because we pulled ourselves out of that pit and continue to become stronger without the abuse of others."
She dropped her name then and became 'Lightning' and her care free spirit left without a trace with a colder and stronger form of what remained of my sister.
"Claire.." I was at a loss of words and nothing came out, I was weak and she was strong. I couldn't help shoulder the burden she carried because I depended on her and I still need her with me. She had a drive, she gave me everything. And I didn't do anything great for her in return. Now that things were changing and with her gone I want to show her that I can be her rock when she needs it no matter how stubborn she is. The last words she told me before she left for basic training was,
"I'll come home an create a new future, for you. No one will pick on you and nothing will drag you down, we survived these past years we'll continue to do so until the day we die. I won't let nothing happen to you, even if I were to vanish from the face of Cocoon I will always find a way to protect you."
With those words she gave me hope and when she looked at me I thought I saw her smile but I couldn't be sure, I'd give anything to see her smile again to hear her laugh.
Omni POV:
"Lightning.." Serah was thinking about her sister while she slept, Noel and Mel, however, were looking through the bars of their prison cell while a new soldier came to take the last ones place. A day or so had passed since they were captured by the PSICOM soldiers after Atlas was defeated and there was nothing they could do to get out.
"Do we have to wait or what?" Noel asked as he tried to burn his way through the bars from behind the tower of crates but the metal was too thick, Mel tried a similar method but on their guard just to entertain herself watching the poor guy catch fire on his rear running around in circles until he found a good size puddle to dip his butt in. The teen tried stiffing her laugh but was caught and was threatened to get shot in the head by the same guard. Mel pretended to be scared and backed away but stuck her tongue out at the guard when he turned his back to her.
"We wait, we can start training now. Wake Serah up for me Noel." Mel said and the brunette complied. He shook Serah's shoulder and she woke up slowly. When she was fully awake the two greeted her with a simply wave.
"Where are we?" She asked.
"We are in a small prison out in the ruins." Noel answered bluntly.
"Who captured us!? We didn't do anything wrong did we?" The pinknette asked fearfully, she never knew what it was like behind bars and was now on the verge of panicking.
"Calm down Serah, we will get out soon enough trust me. I asked Noel to wake you guys up so we can begin your training." Mel entered the conversation calmly with her eyes closed and her hands folded together in her lap breathing in and out steadily.
"Training? We're training now? How? We don't exactly have enough space to use our weapons."
"Training doesn't need to be with just physical strength. Fighting is part of the battle the body must be strong. However, if the mind and spirit is weak the body will fall and will lose the battle and the war. I will train you two to strengthen you body, mind and soul so you will continue to fight and tear down the heavens with your strength like you two had done against the Titan. Bear with me but I am not that great of a teacher but I will try and help you reach the power you two wielded before. Now sit down, cross your legs like so and fold your hands together. Close your eyes, try to breathe in as evenly as you can and visualize the goals you are striving for, this will teach us patience, as we remain in this cell, and strengthen our resolve, so we don't lose sight of what gives us power and persistence." Mel instructed and explained calmly to her comrades. Serah and Noel looked at each other and did what they were told, meditating with the thoughts of why their actions are so and who they are fighting for, for those they care about. Before they began Noel tried to find the right words to say to the teen as an apology but ended up saying what came to mind..
"I'm sorry about the way I treated you you know? I just have some back blood with your world in my time and I couldn't help but vent my frustration on you out of impulse and..."
"Its okay Noel, I forgive you. As long as you acknowledge your negative actions you will be forgiven. Hehehe, listen to me, sound like a preacher. But, enough. Close your eyes and begin your training." Mel said calmly and full heartily. Noel seemed satisfied by the answer and began his meditation.
An hour and so passed as the exercise continued when a high seated guard came to the cell door and opened it with a girl breathing heavily behind him.
"You three are free to go, your superiors have cleared things up. Sorry, about the misunderstanding." The guard said apologetically but the three did not stir.
"Thanks for letting them out, you can go now I'll straighten things out with them." The girl said and the guard walked away. Mel opened her eyes first and they met light blue ones with a familiar blond standing by the door.
"Your three sure know how to cause trouble." The girl said with her hands on her hips, breathing normal now. To play it safe similarly with Hope and Vanille in Hanging Edge Mel looked at the girl without disturbing her students by asking,
"Who are you?" Cautiously and sternly. Walking into the cell the girl came into the light and showed her every detail of face, figure and clothes.
"My name is Alyssa Zaidelle, I work for the Academy."
A/N: Finally, I managed to get another chapter done before Christmas. Sucks being a Senior, too much on your plate and stuff like that. Making me tired from tying so I don't have much to say about this but hope you guys liked it. As always, please leave a review, comment, like, whatever to see how the story is going and all that stuff I have put in previous chapters. Too tired to rewrite everything right now, so yeah... Until next time, Ciao!