FOREVER DESTINY : Ancient Era Arc 1
Before the Beginning
Episode 17:
"History in the Making"
Story Focus: The Dekutan's Chosen
By Nekochan
Author's Note
Yay for epic battles. Let's get straight to it!
Arigatou Minasan! (Thanks everyone!)
Nekochan
(-)(-)(-)
5:19 AM Monday- Hell, G'gonstrm May 9th- 981 D.A.
"Please wait just a moment," Acuashy begged from her position in the middle of the group's marching order. She hunched forward, hands on her knees as her yellow aura pulsed.
Saberstryke, Rafakoh, T'myra, and Shedosh were in the lead with Acuashy behind him, followed by Kokuen-oh, Sashyrary, and Najyana. The whole group stopped and turned towards her; everyone was on edge.
"Acua, what's wrong?" Shedosh inquired, the Ancient Staff jingling as he did so. He bent down so he could try to get a look at her face. "Are you in pain?"
"No, but," Acuashy gulped once before continuing, "I fear that I have reached my limit."
Shedosh gasped, "What do you mean?"
"She means the Light spell; she can't keep it up any longer," Najyana called from the back. "It shouldn't come as a surprise considering that massive spell we just performed . . ."
T'myra looked down at her feet, feeling a little ashamed.
"It's probably better this way, at any rate."
"How do you figure?" Rafakoh asked, quirking an eyebrow.
Najyana pointed ahead. "Somewhere ahead of us is a whole bunch of Gizmutan and their lackeys, just waiting to tear us to shreds, right? Well, then it wouldn't exactly be a good idea to just barge in with our light source giving us away before we even have a chance to defend ourselves."
"What do you propose we do then? Not everyone can see in the darkness; we need a light of some kind," Saberstryke spoke as though reading everyone's thoughts.
"No, we don't," the purple-haired woman insisted. "I have a Night-eyes spell that will grant the rest of us the ability to see in the dark." As Saberstryke once again opened his mouth to protest and Rafakoh fixed her with another confused look, Najyana continued speaking, "I didn't cast it before because it's a more powerful spell and thus I can't maintain it for as long as Acua managed to keep her Light spell going. If it doesn't last beyond this battle, then we've got bigger problems than seeing in the dark," she explained grimly.
Everyone appeared to contemplate her words for a moment before Najyana addressed Acuashy again. "Friend Acua, do you think you could manage an Invisibility spell or two?"
"They would not last long in my-"
"That's fine, don't worry about how long it will last," Najy cut in. "As long as it lets us sneak up on them."
"They'll hear us coming anyway," the Lord pointed out, motioning to his armor.
"If I cast a Silence spell then the girls and I can't cast anything else save a few minor spells!" Shedosh exclaimed quietly, trying to keep his voice down.
"Actually," Sashyrary spoke warily, "It'd put me totally out of commission."
T'myra looked up at the ceiling with a finger to her chin as she thought about that. "So, we need it b'fore we start fightin', but not afta' . . ."
Shedosh piped up again. "Perhaps just give it to the Lord Saberstryke?"
Saberstryke quirked an eyebrow. "Give it to me?"
"Cast it on you . . ."
"And what will that do?"
"The spell's effect will be centered on you, wherever you move."
"Even better!" T'myra said excitedly, "Shedosh, jus' cast th' Silence spell on somethin' we can give to Lord Saberstryke an' then 'ee can toss it away when we don' need it anymo'!"
"Do you mean like a rock?" The Lord asked.
"A coin!" Kokuen-oh hissed in realization.
"Okay and I just, what, throw it out somewhere after we start fighting?"
"I'd say throw it at 'ooeva's got Cotton," T'myra said angrily.
"Well, why not?" Rafakoh wondered aloud. "That's who we're after anyway, right?"
"She's right," Saberstryke agreed as he shrugged, a little bit of pride evident in his voice; he felt like the only two non-spellcasters in their group were dictating to the spellcasters how some of their spells should work.
It took some maneuvering in the narrow, rocky corridor before Najyana managed to reach each of her fellow Chosen to cast her Night-eyes spell. With that taken care of, Acuashy was able to dismiss her Light spell and cast her Invisibility spell first on Lord Saberstryke and then on Kokuen-oh, the respective leaders of their separate combat groups. While she did this, Shedosh pulled a coin from his purse tied off at his belt and prepared the Silence spell right as she finished the second Invisibility spell. Shedosh then stuffed the coin in a pouch at Saberstryke's waist to conceal the effect.
"When we get a little closer, then you can take this out so the magic works," Shedosh explained. "T'myra, do you think you could give us an idea of when we're getting close to this chamber where they're holding Hariel?"
T'myra nodded. "I'll try."
The Dekutan's Chosen didn't have to wait long. After a few more twists in the craggy path ahead, T'myra hissed for Saberstryke to stop. She pointed at his belt and so he pulled the coin out before they walked any further. The group walked for another five minutes before catching their first glimpse of the ominously large 'room' T'myra had been leading them to.
The first thing that Saberstryke noticed was the sheer number of what he assumed were Gizmutan amassed facing one corner of the room. The two raised levels leading up to a kind of stone table were covered in runes he didn't recognize and some were glowing, though he couldn't tell what color it was. Around the table were a handful of larger Gizmutan and two that towered above the rest. He was also sure that the sharp contrast of white on the table was Hariel, but he looked like he was in pain.
Where's Badamon and his gang? Saberstryke wondered. I would've bet money that they'd have engaged us by now! He quickly surveyed the situation before turning to his companions and ushering them to backtrack down the passageway they'd come from as fast as they could go.
When he'd put the coin away again, he motioned for them all to be as quiet as possible and gather around him before he whispered, "Okay, we need to change the plan a bit. There's way too many of them for Shedosh to try to just blast through. Hariel's in a back corner - there's another entrance back there - an open space, I mean. If you can get the three of us there, Shedosh, we have a shot at grabbing Hariel and running for it."
Shedosh nodded. "I think I can manage a short distance like that."
"Great, then, R'rufu . . ." Saberstryke turned to face her, "I need you to focus on getting Hariel out of there - he's bound, so he'll probably need carried out, meaning T'myra and I need to try to fend off the Gizmutan surround him so you can cut him loose."
"Got it," both women acknowledged.
The Lord turned to the Seer. "Kokuen-oh . . ."
"We're decoys now, aren't we?"
"Can you handle it?"
Kokuen-oh gave a resigned sigh. "Not forever."
Shedosh nodded. "We'll be as swift as we possibly can. I don't think any of us are prepared for an all-out melee; this is purely a rescue mission."
"If I'm lucky, I may be able to Rage," Kokuen-oh pointed out, the turned to the three remaining Chosen, "and if you girls can just back me up, that'd be great."
"I will stay at your back the whole time in order to heal your wounds," Acuashy offered.
"I can summon a few shadow-buddies to help you out," Najyana put in.
"I'll try to mess with 'em a little, slow 'em down a bit!" Sashyrary giggled.
"I didn't see Badamon's group, so everyone stay sharp and keep an eye out for them," Saberstryke reminded them. "They're not to be underestimated."
"Don't we know it," Rafakoh grumbled.
"Ya' said there's eight o' 'em now?" T'myra inquired.
"Yes; the new addition is heavily armored wielding a glaive," Saberstryke replied.
T'myra moaned as she shook her head, ponytails swaying, "Those aren' pleasant."
"I'm well aware," Kokuen-oh said, rolling his eyes before instinctively reaching for where the wound on his left arm had been.
"Hey," K'kedki made sure everyone's eyes were on him before he continued. "Remember, everyone . . . Watch each other's backs, okay? If you have to retreat, then do so. Kokuen-oh," he paused to look the Seer in the eyes, "Don't start attacking until after our group strikes - we're trying to divide their attention, not prove we're the superior warriors-"
" 'Cuz we're totally not," Sashy cut in.
"Hey, no pessimism, Mysti!" Kokuen-oh chided, giving her a quick hug.
"Stay focused," the Lord insisted, "keep your heads cool, do what you have to do to stay alive. Okay?"
Everyone nodded.
The group suddenly heard what sounded like excited cheering come from the big room they'd just come left.
Saberstryke looked over his shoulder and smirked. "All right, then, people." He stood up straight and pulled his helmet down as he released his wing-locks. "Let's go rescue Hariel." With that, he pulled out the coin and the group started walking back to the room where their companion was being kept.
When they'd come back to the entrance, Saberstryke looked to Shedosh, so Shedosh moved to the front of the line, to get a look at where exactly he was teleporting to. When he had determined the distance, he made sure to lock eye contact with Rafakoh and T'myra before beginning his spell.
Due to the silence, Shedosh knew he couldn't complete the spell on his own power and thus tried to draw out the Dekutan's power from the Ancient Staff to cast the Teleport spell. Across the room, diagonally, four of us . . . across the room, diagonally, four of us . . . he mentally recited to focus the spell as best he could.
Pleasantly surprised, Kokuen-oh and the three girls blinked dazedly at the bright blue light that flared and then disappeared before it flashed again far ahead of them in the other corner of the room.
As they crowded around the craggy entryway and screams of frustration rang out from the Gizmutan, Kokuen-oh turned to the girls hiding behind him.
"Looks like it's our turn."
(-)
5:28 AM Monday- Hell, G'gonstrm May 9th- 981 D.A.
The Great Father held up his left hand to admire it. The Gold Lightning-bolt . . . gone forever . . . Hariel had already assumed the Snake rune from his left shoulder and the Diamonds from his forehead. "+"All that remains . . . is the Mountain."+"
A great cry of joy rang out from the innumerable Gizmutan eagerly awaiting the completion of the Ceremony from below.
"Be grateful, Focus; your task is nearly complete," the Duhnoh Zuhnmah hissed merrily.
"How . . . do you figure . . . that?" Hariel asked, quite out of breath.
"There is but one Rune left on my body," the Great Father replied, in a noticeably lighter mood than he'd been mere minutes ago. "The remaining seventeen have ALL been taken care of . . . thanks to you."
"Don't thank me . . . just yet."
The Gizmu's large navy-blue eyes narrowed and his tail resumed its position under Hariel's chin. "EXPLAIN!"
"There's no way I plan on-" he sneered.
Hariel didn't have the chance to complete his remark as twin flashes of blue light startled every single one of the Gizmutan, dazing them and making them cry out loudly. It made Hariel see stars for an instant, but he could tell one flash came from almost directly behind him while the other came from the wall to his far left.
"HEY, OVER HERE, UGLIES!"
Cocking his head to the side, Hariel managed to see through the darkness a brilliant green aura flare all around a being that he quickly determined to be Kokuen-oh. The Seer had Raged and now his whole form appeared backlit by green as he spread the wings of his Demidon form and drew his shortsword.
A handful of Gizmutan scrambled toward that side of the room and Hariel saw Sashyrary step up beside Kokuen-oh. She opened both of her hands palm up right near her mouth and blew outward. "(ACIDIC FOG!)" She screamed, making a cloud of dust hang magically in front of Kokuen-oh that easily covered the entrance to the corridor he was standing in, it was so immense. The Gizmutan that ran through it immediately started coughing and rubbing their eyes with a few falling to their knees - one even threw up - making the others directly behind them stumble over their kneeling brethren, a few managing to spread their wings and glide a bit to resume their balance.
The group that made it through Sashyrary's cloud to Kokuen-oh were met with a surprise. Najyana also stepped up, flung her arm toward the ceiling, and cried, "(SHADOW MARIONETTES!)" Instantly, the shadows cast by Kokuen-oh's aura quivered on the cavern floor before rising up to create three distinct shapes. Najyana continued to slice the air in front of her with her arm while, simultaneously, the three shadows fended off the Gizmutan with their own flailing limbs, some cutting into Gizmutan flesh while some missed their opponents, who were proving to quite nimble.
Directly behind Kokuen-oh, Acuashy whispered, "I will heal you if things get bad, but for now please accept my spell of protection." When she'd seen Kokuen-oh nod, she threw her hands out in front of her and on either side of Kokuen-oh's waist. "(Atmosphere Alteration,)" she whispered almost too soft for the Seer to catch it.
However, Kokuen-oh noticed the effect right away as his form shimmered; he felt like he had a second layer of skin made out of water that was making his form blurry.
Shocked and furious, the Great Father shouted, "+"FOOLS! All those bearing the Mountain Rune get your asses back over here NOW!"+" As his vision became clearer, though, he suddenly perceived four forms standing in the corridor almost directly behind Hariel's head. The only thing standing between them and Hariel was the ring that he, D'no B'ma, and their Children formed around the stone table.
Shedosh took a few steps toward Hariel, out of the range of Saberstryke's silence. He held the Ancient Staff high, right hand about halfway up the shaft and left hand at the tip. He swung it behind him - down towards his feet - and then out in front of him such that the golden top traced three-quarters of a circle. "(Aqua Force Blast!)" He shouted as a wave of water materialized around him and shot outwards, washing over the Gizmutan surrounding Hariel.
The Great Father, Mother, and their Children braced themselves while a number of their lesser guardians were knocked over. Hariel, despite getting wet, remained attached to the stone table.
Saberstryke jumped into action, flying low such that he made the Gizmutan surrounding Hariel duck to avoid getting hit by him or his Fervor Swords. He landed right between the two males that, to Saberstryke, were 'black' and 'dark grey' according to his vision in the darkness (R'nast and N'denz immediately to the Great Father's left). He silently dared them to attack with his blades crossed in front of him and, at the same time, got a good look at the huge Gizmu next to them. Now he looks like he's gonna' be a challenge.
T'myra quickly Raged and was hot on his heels in flight, but then hung back to hover near the small female with dark brown skin (N'kndi) so that she could cast her own spell. "(Gusting Cone!)" She shouted, drawing her whip as she did so. She gripped the air in front of her by spinning her fingers in a conical shape until her hand was in a fist facing the ceiling, then tugged violently toward herself, into her chest. After just being thrown in the opposite direction by Shedosh's wave, a couple of the elite-looking Gizmutan slammed into each other and were holding onto their larger-looking male companion with deep purple skin.
"Magical Strength!" Rafakoh screamed, making her armguards flare with light. She flew in last, practically standing on Hariel as she landed with a foot on either side of his head. She leaned down to grab a dagger out of left boot with her free hand, smirking at Hariel as she did so and winking teasingly.
'I'm really glad to see you guys-' Hariel tried to say, but soon realized that no words were coming out of his mouth and figured some kind of spell must be preventing him from speaking out loud. Still, Hariel couldn't refrain from commenting inwardly, Thank Cuamyjy Rafakoh wears pants or I'd be worried about explaining myself to Saberstryke later.
In one smooth motion, R'rufu cut the wrist and leg binding on Hariel's left side, allowing him to start working on undoing the other knot on his right side.
Aww crap, Hariel cursed, realizing that he was unable to undo the other knot with only his awkward left hand.
R'nast, N'denz, T'vda, and R'skan - the Children on D'no Z'nma's side of the table - stood up and tried speaking to one another, but discovered the Silence spell quick enough.
'Use your G'zma! We should be more powerful without the Runes!' R'nast insisted through telepathy before invoking his telekinetic powers. He tried debasing Saberstryke by mentally picking up the stone tile the Demidon was standing on, but the Lord only stepped off and regained his balance.
N'denz nodded, balling his fists as his dark salmon-colored aura rippled over them. The Gizmu launched a barrage of punches against Saberstryke while he was still off balance. However, N'denz frowned when he realized that the force of his punches were affecting Saberstryke, but the secondary effect of dazing his opponent never came.
T'vda noticed the difficulty N'denz was having penetrating the Demidon's armor and so flexed the claws on her hands, setting off a spark of fire that consumed both of her arms. Mouth open in a silent scream, she lashed out at Saberstryke and latched onto his pauldrons, trying to melt the metal protecting him with little success.
R'skan, being closer to the female standing on the stone table, tried to swipe at her legs to knock her off balance, but she kept jumping into the air with her legs tucked underneath of her while hovering so as to avoid his attacks.
Drops of poison fell to the stone ground and Rafakoh realized they had come from the burgundy-skinned Gizmu in front of her.
Meanwhile, D'mri and N'kndi detached themselves from K'rant, but N'kndi fell to the ground when she tried to run with wobbling legs. D'mri reached out to her sister with her left hand, which was now glowing purple, and dragged her to her feet such that they were both launched in T'myra's direction. Gliding a bit to maintain their balance, both sisters grabbed the whip T'myra had swung in their direction and pulled apart, snapping it.
K'rant decided to stay put while holding onto the edge of the stone table and glared daggers at T'myra, trying once again to force his way into her mind. I took you over once, Demon-sister, I can do it again!
Thoroughly panicked at the melee that just started, the Great Mother cradled her baby close to her chest and started backing up until she could hear herself yelling, "+"--TECT ME! Some of you - any of you - PROTECT ME!"+"
Your Chosen will pay for their insolence, Koe-maijai, just you wait! The Great Father growled inwardly before heading for Saberstryke. He took a few steps, pushed T'vda away from Saberstryke and, simultaneously, R'nast out of his way. Then, he slammed his tail into the Demidon's helmet, making him reel in pain.
"+Looks like your plan to be in the corridor the Dekutan's Chosen used has failed,+" Arago insisted angrily, looking out at the ensuing battle from another corridor leading to the large room. "+Now what? They're in two groups!+"
Badamon sighed heavily. "+You two-+" he pointed at the Sandstrikers "+Go attack those little girls from behind - they don't have their precious shield-caster this time. The rest of you,+" he sneered at the other five fighters, "+Follow me. We're going after that Demidon brat and his girlies from the front.+"
"+With pleasure, boss, they'll be no match for us,+" they twins hissed before melding into the craggy wall.
"+And what about the other group, O Great Strategist?+" Arago demanded, pointing towards the stone table.
"+Those four will be taken care of,+" Badamon replied, "+The Great Father will see to that. Those mob-minded morons, however . . .+" He gestured towards the masses of lesser Gizmutan trying to work their way through Sashyrary's poison cloud. "+Need a bit of assistance it would seem.+" And I'm not about to help that bastard D'no Z'nma out directly after the treatment he gave me.
"+Fine, let's just go already!+" Arago complained as he raced out into the darkness with the others behind him.
"+Along the wall! Avoid the cloud!+" Badamon shouted as he took the lead.
They slowly made their way along the wall while more Gizmutan tried to force their way through the acidic mist.
Najyana was pleased with her shadows' work, but knew that Kokuen-oh needed space in the front line to help do some real damage. "Kokuen-oh, get up there, you lazy bum!" She teased while shifting one the shadows to actually give him a space to move into as well as a flank.
"If you insist!" Kokuen-oh chuckled before moving forward to slash a Gizmutan in the arm.
Satisfied, Najyana kept slashing her arms out in front of her, trying to get the shadows to damage the same Gizmutan that Kokuen-oh was attacking. At the same time, she began singing, this time ensuring it was in Sahngellian from the start.
"From
charms made with evil intentions
Be Free . . . I want to help!
We
are sunshine . . . the one who taught me that was you
Come on . .
. there's no time like today, yet
The number-one coolest thing I
can give is just to . . .
Say Hello!"
Sashyrary and Acuashy were merrily humming along with the tune when they felt a presence behind them. They turned around just as the Sandstrikers appeared from the rock-face to snicker at the girls in anticipation.
Uncontrollably afraid, Sashyrary hurled a spell in their direction. "(P-poison Orbs!)" She squeaked out as a multitude of tiny spheres materialized in front of her before streaking towards the Sandstrikers. Much to her surprise, a few managed to hit their target - the eyes of her opponents. While she was certain that her spell wasn't nearly as effective as she'd have liked due to the armored masks the two wore, she was a little more confident when she heard their high-pitched screams as their hands went to their faces.
Acuashy sighed audibly and simply moved to stand behind Kokuen-oh once more, preparing a healing spell so that at the precise moment he became injured, she would be ready to help him.
Kokuen-oh was feeling rather pleased with his abilities as a decoy when he saw the Gizmutan that were injured actually back off, but his stomach sunk when he realized that it was because fresh ones were taking their place. These unhampered ones tried to take most of their frustrations out on the wispy darkness that Najyana had conjured, but one came straight at Kokuen-oh and began tearing into him.
It was the oddest sensation to Kokuen-oh as his skin was cut into by claws and then immediately scabbed over due to Acuashy's healing spell. He smiled back at her briefly before returning his attention to his new opponents. "Thanks a lot, Acuashy."
She tried and failed to hide a tiny smile. "You are welcome, Kokuen-oh."
Shedosh looked on as his flying companions took on the ten Gizmutan surrounding Hariel, trying to determine another spell that would aid them without hurting them. However, his train of thought was interrupted by the sight of a group of Gizmutan flying straight towards him, then landing and scurrying towards him with abandon evident in their screeches as well as flailing limbs.
The Ancient Staff began to glow and chime, nearly making Shedosh jump right out of his skin. What could that possibly mean? He gripped the staff with both hands, but it suddenly jerked downward, planting itself in the ground as the glow spread into crevices in the rock floor and the noise of the rings became louder.
The reckless Gizmutan stumbled backwards at the sound, crushing their ears to the sides of their heads with their hands, and Shedosh noticed that many other Gizmutan nearer to Kokuen-oh's group appeared affected by the noise as well.
The Silence is preventing the effect from working on the ones Saberstryke and the others are fighting! Shedosh realized, But how . . . I'm not doing any- AH!
Shedosh was startled by the line of glowing aura that suddenly shot out in front of him, towards the Gizmutan affected by the chiming and straight on to the large Gizmu with skin so dark a blue it could have been black, as well as a few more Gizmutan in-between. Then, a rumbling sound compounded with the ringing to force Shedosh himself to let go of the Ancient Staff and clap his own hands over his ears.
An . . . earthquake? Shedosh wondered as his mouth hung agape, watching the floor crack open in front of him. He was pleased that it startled the Gizmutan directly in front of him as well as all nine of the Gizmutan still in Hariel's vicinity; eight of the Gizmutan were able to react quickly and grab onto the sides of the rocky crevice. However, the biggest Gizmu, caught in the middle of the conical effect, fell in before he managed to suspend himself in the air by flapping his wings quickly.
Shaking his head from the ringing in his helmet, Saberstryke decided to make a dive for the falling Gizmu, stabbing both of his swords into the Great Father's chest as hard as he could and making the Gizmu howl silently. The Demidon then felt the Great Father grab him and slam him against the rocky wall of the opening in the earth in spite of the two swords still embedded in his nearly naked form.
"+"FATHER!"+" The four eldest of the Children cried out, both at their Father's pain as well as the horrid chiming. N'denz, T'vda, and R'skan could only fall to their knees at the edge of the chasm, desperately trying to block out the noise.
Stumbling blindly into the crevice, R'nast welcomed the Silence he encountered after he'd fallen in and hovered for a moment before turning to send his thoughts to his Father, desperate to know what it was he should be doing. 'Father, what is your wish? Think it and I shall do it for you!'
Simultaneously, Rafakoh was desperately trying to cut off the remaining ties holding Hariel to the quickly falling stone table. However, she settled for pinning the heavy thing against the wall with her body, letting it slowly slide down as she cut his right wrist-binding.
Hariel knew from her loud grunts of effort that she couldn't manage that for long and decided to try his attack, hoping he was outside of the Silence effect. "RAGE OF INFERNO!" He shouted, aiming up at the Gizmutan he saw surrounding T'myra. He was extremely grateful to see the cloth binding burn away. One column of fire blasted the wall directly behind him, merely melting it a bit, but the other column from his left arm managed to hit directly at the Gizmu he recognized as Kuhrant, T'myra's possessor and the one who'd led him - tricked him into coming - to the room in the first place.
Seeing this, D'no Z'nma yelled in his head, Do NOT let them leave with the FOCUS! Only ONE Rune is still in effect!
T'myra, meanwhile, had been dazedly trying to withstand K'rant's mental onslaught. She'd been desperately trying to put up a Mind Shield to prevent him from getting to her again, but was spared any more effort when the ground split open beneath her, breaking her eye contact with K'rant. She smirked at the enraged Gizmu and quickly dove to protect and retrieve Hariel with Rafakoh, cutting his final ankle bond with her sharp claws. This allowed him to latch onto Rafakoh and T'myra as they hovered in the air when Rafakoh released her hold on the stone table.
K'rant tried going after her, but was consumed briefly by Hariel's column of fire and screeched his pain, making his sisters rush to his side. However, D'mri heard a distinct cracking above her and, upon realizing what was happening, called to her older sister. "+"Sister, the ceiling! I'll take care of Brother!"+" She then started to maneuver her singed brother away from the open crevice.
N'kndi also looked up and found what D'mri had been referring to: the ceiling was cracking open since the effect of the earthquake had hit the far wall. When the crack in the rock hit the ceiling, it had started opening up and breaking at the same time. Pebbles and boulders alike were starting to rain down upon their heads, so N'kndi flew up and unleashed her powers there, effectively tossing each boulder of any consequential size away to the far edges of the room. A pinprick of light startled her, making her shout after her younger sister. "+"D'mri - the SKY! I can't close it off!"+"
D'mri glanced over her shoulder, seeing that N'kndi meant the new crevice in the ceiling opening to the world above. With a single look, she willed the darkness enveloping them to form a makeshift ceiling. "+"How's that, Sister?"+"
"+"Thanks, D'mri!"+" N'kndi replied as she began to focus on closing the ceiling.
With a wailing G'kret in her arms, the only thing the Great Mother could think of was retreat. "+"You men there, PROTECT ME!"+" She cried again before flying off down the corridor leading to her bedchamber. Now's my chance, while they're all distracted!
Badamon glowed bright blue for a moment as he summoned the power to speak to the Gizmutan. "+"MOVE! MOVE! OUT OF OUR WAY, YOU DIMWITS!"+" Badamon shouted as Saranbo took the lead, shoving the remaining lower Gizmutan out of the way with his glaive. "+" LET US IN THERE!"+"
Kokuen-oh soon found himself faced with Arago, Dara, Badamon, and Saranbo in order from left to right and knew they would attack at any instant. That leaves Gnash and Sun Devil in the back, since I heard the Sandstrikers behind me. I hope the girls can take care of them - I'm about to have my hands full up here.
Sure enough, Arago cut clean through one of Najyana's shadows in one swing. Dara swiped at the one in front of Kokuen-oh so he didn't hit Badamon, but it was enough to dissipate that shadow as well. Saranbo and Badamon both struck the remaining shadow near Kokuen-oh's right, leaving the Seer unprotected by Najyana's magic and Badamon's group unaffected by Sashyrary's cloud, since the Gizmutan's Chosen had managed to avoid the foggy area.
The Sandstrikers began to move back and forth in the corridor, kicking up sand and dust as they did so. "+Try to stop us, Mageling Girls! If you can see through the sandy swirls!+"
Thankfully for Kokuen-oh, he was facing away from the Sandstrikers and was thus not affected by the dust whipping up at his back. He focused on the opponents in front of him. "I was wondering when you guys would show up," Kokuen-oh jeered . "LIGHTNING SPEED!" His green aura returned and the Seer was pleased that his casting abilities were still intact. He tried to step forward and attack Dara, Badamon, or both when he felt a tugging sensation at the base of his neck.
-)(-
Kokuen-oh's vision went fuzzy and the step he took made him stumble, falling to his knees. What surprised him was not that he'd fallen, but that it hadn't hurt; when he looked up, it looked like wisps of fluffy clouds had settled all around him, yet there was only blackness. As he stood up, he could discern nothing but the fog curling at his feet and the perpetual void wherever he looked.
'Is this a vision?' Kokuen-oh wondered out loud.
'It's something like a vision, yes,' a voice called out to the Seer, but no body materialized to claim the voice. 'However, we have not time to dally playing guessing games, I am afraid.'
Frightened that some sort of spell had been cast on him, Kokuen-oh demanded, 'What do you want with me?'
'Still yourself, My Chosen, for I mean you no harm,' the voice replied. 'No, I could not - would not - harm you, but I digress. You, My Seer, have a task you are about to complete-'
'What's with all the "my" stuff-'
'Thus far you have been the voice of The Prophecy and the Will of the Dekutan. The time has come for you to become a True Seer - a Prophet. I cannot tell you what it is you must say, only that you must tap into the deepest reserves of the power you have been granted as My Chosen and give voice to that which you find there. Separate what you know from what you feel; what you can see from what you want to see.'
Kokuen-oh's heart skipped a beat. 'Are you . . . K'kmaj? The High Deku?'
'In a manner of speaking. I bid you good luck, Ch'tsu K'kbo called Kokuen-oh.'
-)(-
The feeling that someone had a tight grip on his windpipe came and went as his vision cleared. It was then that Kokuen-oh realized Sashyrary had turned around to stand beside him and had her arms thrust forward. He looked at Badamon's group standing in front of him, expecting them to be attacking him, but everyone one of them - and a few Gizmutan standing behind them - were nearly dancing on their tiptoes as they tried to pluck sharp quill-like objects from their faces.
"You okay, Kokuen?" Sashy asked, beaming up at him.
The Seer smiled back at her, "Yeah, thanks Mysti."
"Acua, gimme some more light!" Najyana pleaded, rapidly preparing another spell to cast at the Sandstrikers.
I don't know why Najy needs it, but okay! Acuashy decided as she held up both hands above her head, forming a ball of light-energy there.
Najyana's grey aura swirled around her as she flung one arm up and the other out. "Thanks, Acua!" She laughed, "NIGH-KINESIS!" The shadowy illumination caused by Acuashy's orb of light flickered at Najyana's feet before shooting straight out at the Sandstrikers. She then thrust both hands down at her side, making the Sandstriker's feet jerk backwards into the darkened ground.
No matter how much the Sandstrikers groaned, they couldn't release themselves from the black tendrils holding them in place. They tried to claw at the ground to prevent the shadows from drawing them further down the corridor, but that didn't work either.
"+BADAMON!+" They shrieked helplessly.
"Look out!" Sashyrary screamed as the horde of Gizmutan in the center of the room took flight, half heading over the line made by Badamon's group while the other half headed straight for Shedosh. She clutched Kokuen-oh around the waist, who spun her around so his back was to the flying Gizmutan.
What neither expected was the flash of light that illuminated the whole room behind them.
(-)(-)(-)
Continued In: Desperate Times
4/23/2007
Believe me, I did NOT want this to spill into another chapter, it just kinda' happened. The battle was running long and this stopping point suddenly presented itself. Hopefully the battle's relatively clear thus far . . . it's so hard writing a two-front battle, you just can't imagine. It also occurred to me in the middle of writing this that the Children hadn't been doing much of anything and had to go back and fix that (laughs).
NOTICE: Since I will be starting on the second arc of Forever Destiny soon, I am looking for someone (or multiple someone's) to help me by beta-ing my stuff. This may or may not include helping me rewrite the first 6 chapters or so in Before the Beginning as I have finally managed to get fed up with the poor quality of those chapters, decided to scrap them, and started working on new ideas for how to start this story off right. (When I get it completely rewritten, the story will get reposted.) If anyone is interested, please PM or e-mail me and thank you in advance.
Nekochan