"So, what's the next step in Operation Minx?" Henry asked as the three of them left Granny's diner.
Fang, holding Minx's hand as they walked, sighed and brushed her hand through her hair with her free hand.
"Well, I suppose we first go and look for the pendant containing Sai that Rumpelstiltskin threw away. After that, we'll have to look for Alek and Aloja and retrieve that book from them, which could be easy or hard depending on the situation. I still wonder why they took the book in the first place. They should know that the faster I release Sai, the better."
"So Master Sai's in a pendant?" Minx asked.
"Yes, and we're going to have to release him with a spell. Now that I think about it, maybe having an Illustrator around on our side will actually help us immensely."
"How so?" Henry asked.
"Inside the book that Alek took is a spell, consisting of a series of magic symbols that have to be drawn and then enacted. Having an Illustrator will make the process ten times easier, as Illustrators specialize in spells drawn from symbols. Minx has been doing this all his life, and I'm sure he can free Sai."
"Anything for Master!" Minx said resolutely.
"Why does he call you Master and Mistress?" Henry asked.
"It's an old habit from the people we found him with. Despite our attempts at having him call us by name, he says he isn't comfortable doing so. It's like growing up calling your mother, well, "mother," or "mom," etc., but then having to actually call them by name. It just feels weird and not right. Anyway, you and Minx are about the same age."
"Really?"
"Yeah. He looks like he's seven or eight, but really, he's at least twice that. And, he uses his tail to draw his creations. I, personally, find that adorable."
Minx's tail waved as he walked, seeming to have a mind of its own and reflecting Minx's emotions. At Fang's comment, Minx's tail froze and his ears perked up in surprise, before his tail then curled to his side and his ears fell in embarrassment.
"Oh…uh…thank you…" He said quietly. He wasn't used to compliments, and he was still learning how to react to them. Sometimes he was confused on when he should say thank you, and most times he was too flustered to say anything. It was so adorable.
Fang scooped up the small boy into her arms, and he squealed in surprise and delight. He loved being carried in his Master's (or Mistress's) arms. They were always so gentle with him, unlike some people in his past, and they were so comfortable, he could just fall asleep there all day and night.
"Well, off to the well, then. You think you can make something that can scale down the sides of a well and retrieve the pendant, Minxy?"
"Yes ma'am!" He said happily. Fang squeezed him in a hug.
"You are amazing."
In truth, the neko was being raised by the counsel since he didn't have a family, but Fang was seriously considering adopting the cute Illustrator. Of course, he'd be getting assigned a Creator once he was trained up, but Fang would take any excuse to keep the little boy by her side for as long as possible. Besides, she was old enough to have a son, and it wasn't like she was able…
Fang shook her head of those thoughts and focused on the child in her arms. It made her warm inside to think of adopting him, and she knew that the neko would be delighted with it as well. She had planned to tell Sai about it, as they lived together as partners, but he was captured before that was possible. Of course, she might be fired if things didn't work out, but as long as she got Sai back, it was likely that Alek and Aloja would vouch for her not to be punished that harshly for bringing back an Illustrator and keeping his powers from being abused.
The trio was about to head into the woods, when they saw someone sprinting out and heading right for them. At first, all they could really see was a streak of blonde, and then Minx jumped out of Fang's arms, landing gracefully on all fours like a cat before standing on two legs once more.
"Master Alek!"
It was indeed Alek that came running out of the trees and towards their group, but he didn't even seem to be paying attention to where he was going. He sprinted towards them, and they saw that he had his eyes covered with his hands. Once he got close enough, they heard he was sobbing hard, and he ended up running into Fang blindly. She caught him with a grunt, bringing him to a stop from his desperate flight.
"Alek?! Alek, what's wrong?"
"Aloja…! Aloja, he…! He was taken! Before I knew it he was…he was being taken away…and then he tried to run, but we were being sucked into this thing…and he made me let go…!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down. Take a few deep breaths. Breathe, Alek. Come on, stay with me here. Now, explain what happened from the top."
"He's gone! Aloja's been taken by the guy that took Sai! He's been put in a fucking gem and his powers are being used against his will! And I tried to save him, but I couldn't do anything! I was helpless…!"
"Dammit, that wizard…" Fang muttered. "I need to have a few words with Gold about this. Alek, did he follow you?"
"I…I don't know. I just ran. I think…I think there was something, but…I managed to ward it off. I'm not sure when it stopped attacking me and when it stopped chasing me."
"If that man has Master Aloja…does that mean he also has Master's power to summon?" Minx asked. Realization dawned on Alek's face.
"Oh my…that's…that's not good."
"What is it?' Henry asked.
"Aloja is the Seventh Summoner of the Utakata line," Fang explained. "He's the most powerful Summoner I've ever met. If that wizard figures out Aloja's capabilities…he'll be nearly unstoppable, even with two writers and an Illustrator against him. With the right summon, he could destroy this entire town in a heartbeat. Heck, he could destroy most of the enchanted forest within the span of one summon. If he summons the wrong thing or doesn't do it properly though, Aloja might die within the pendant."
"We need to get Aloja back," Alek declared. "NOW!"
"Calm down, Alek. We'll get him back." She scoffed lightly. "But I suppose he could always be replaced, right?"
Alek looked appalled, before realizing what she was actually saying.
"I'm sorry…about what I said about Sai. I didn't mean it. Well, okay, I did mean some of it, but I'm over it now, all right?"
"What?" Fang blinked in surprise. Alek would never take anything back when it came to insulting Sai. Whenever confronted about it, he would usually brush it off or just flat out declare that he wasn't taking anything back. Aloja's capture must've really shaken him, Fang decided.
"I'm sorry. For all the times I've started fights without needing to, for being such a jerk of a friend when Sai came into our lives. I'm over it. Now what are we supposed to do to get Aloja back?"
Before Fang could answer, a loud roar echoed through the forest.
"Please tell me that's not Bahamut," Fang muttered.
"It's not Bahamut…?" Alek tried unconvincingly.
A large dragon flew up and into the sky, its darkly colored wings sending pulses through the air as it ascended and then loomed over the town. The Dragon King roared into the sky once more, probably waking up people on the other side of the planet. The summon's low growls as it breathed could be heard even from the ground, as its eyes searched for its target.
"What is that?!" Henry exclaimed.
"Bahamut, a mid-scale summon," Fang explained. "Plenty powerful enough to do major damage to this town. Alek, think you have enough strength for a protection barrier?"
"For a class B summon?" He asked skeptically. "Sure, why not?"
Fang and Alek stood side by side, putting their hands together in front of their chests as though they planned to pray. The two Writer's closed their eyes, took a pair of unison deep breaths, before their hands suddenly moved into a bunch of signs that looked to come straight out of Naruto. Their hand signs were formed in perfect synchronism, the result of years' worth of practice and repetition.
When the pair made their final hand gestures and froze, their eyes opened together to reveal a turquoise symbol glowing on each of their eyes.
"Utakata! Hogo!" They shouted together, their entire bodies pulsing and glowing with an aura the same color as the symbols in their eyes. The ground pulsed as though an earthquake had struck the town, before a wave of their turquoise energy flowed into the earth and a barrier began to rise up. A dome formed, encompassing the town in its protective glow.
"That should hold him back," Fang said, her and Alek returning to normal.
The Dragon King charged the barrier, and though it hit with a booming impact, the barrier held fast. The summon raked its claws across the light blue barrier, even blowing fire and then blasting it, but the protective wall held.
"What is that?" Henry asked.
"A barrier of Oracles," Alek said. "It's an Oracle's duty to protect his people-"
"Or her people," Fang interjected.
"And guide them forward. The weight falls upon us to make sure our societies advance and survive. We see the future, yes, and then we guide our people on the correct path towards that future, keeping our citizens safe."
"I thought you said you can't do anything to change the visions you see," Henry said.
"We see limited things, and it's an Oracle's job to reveal the right information, and find ways around visions that don't bode well for their people. Think of it like when someone spoils a movie or a book for you, or you saw/read the ending before you read the rest of the story. You may know what happens in the end, but that doesn't mean that the path to get there is set in stone yet, and visions always have limits, meaning we can work our way around them. Here's an example. Say there were three paths on a road, and you saw a vision of them taking the left path, but the vision cuts off there. That vision doesn't show them walking the entire length of that path and reaching its end, meaning, you could interfere the moment that the vision cuts off, maybe have someone walk up to that person and convince them to take another route after what you've seen has happened. Is this too complicated?"
Henry shook his head.
"No. I think I understand."
"Mistress is very wise, and a good teacher!" Minx declared, his tail wiggling expressively behind him.
"Anyway, the point is, it's our job to protect and guide our people, but we don't only do it by seeing visions of the future. We assist our people when battle reaches our shores by protecting our homes, like with a barrier, for example. I could make a barrier on my own, but not one this big. With my corresponding Oracle with me, we can protect this town from the majority of summons, at least for a while."
"Henry!" Someone called.
Three of them looked toward the direction of the voice, while Minx straightened in surprise and dashed behind Fang's leg in panic. Emma Swan and Regina were hurrying over to Henry.
"Henry, are you all right?" Emma asked.
"I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" Regina asked.
"I swear, I'm all right," He insisted. "I've had Fang, and Minx, and now Alek too."
"Who?"
"Creator powers are weakened when Oracle powers are busted out in a big way," Fang explained before sighing. "I hate explaining things manually. I'm Fang, this is Alek, this is Minx." At his name, the neko gripped her leg and tried to hide behind it. "It's okay, Minxy. They're not gonna hurt you. Come here." She knelt down and picked up the little boy into her arms.
"They put the barrier around the town up," Henry explained.
"What exactly is that thing?" Emma asked.
"A class B summon from the Seventh Summoner of the Utakata line. Right now, he's being held hostage to a wizard who is apparently determined to destroy us and this town."
"Will that barrier you made hold for long?"
"As long as we need it to. Fatigue from energy expenditure only hits us after the spell has been dismissed."
"Bahamut's being dismissed," Alek announced, and the group looked up to find the dragon glowing white before dissolving into glowing white particles. Those particles faded to nothing with a small flash, and Bahamut was gone.
"I'm guessing that wizard dude isn't just gonna go home," Emma assumed.
"No," Alek agreed. "Aloja's got a lot of tricks up his sleeve, and he's the most powerful Summoner out there. If only I could've stopped this and protected him…"
"No sense beating yourself up for it," Fang said. "What's done is done. Now we have to focus on getting him back rather than wasting our time dwelling on what we could've done yet can't change."
"So what exactly is the plan then?" Regina asked. "Who the hell are we facing, anyway?"
"Some wizard. That's all I could find out before we had to run for our lives. Alek, you find anything out?"
"Only that he disguised himself as me to get close to Aloja," Alek said bitterly, kicking the ground and giving it a death glare. His hands were in his pockets, but they were very clearly clenched into fists.
"He did that with us, too," Fang admitted. "Transformed into Sai's master. I don't know who Sai's master is, since we're not from the same village, and so I had to trust him on the matter. Bad decision on my part. I sensed something wrong, but brushed it off. Now Sai's gone. I hope that Sai's pendant didn't fall into his hand too."
"I have it. Aloja and I retrieved it just before he was captured."
"Who's Sai?" Emma asked.
"Again with the explaining thing," Fang muttered. "He's a friend of ours." She went into an explanation about Writers, Illustrators, Oracles, Summoners, etc.
"Here," Alek said, handing over the pendant and the book he'd stolen. "Can you free him?" She took the items, Minx crawling on her shoulder to allow her hands to be free, nimble as a cat.
"Yes."
Before she could elaborate, the skies suddenly began to darken and tint blood red. The group looked up to find wisps of red energy appearing in the sky outside the barrier - which looked more purple with the blue tint - that were all flowing towards a single point. Hovering just above the trees was an object that looked to be a metallic lotus flower bud not yet in bloom. As the energy gathered, the petals slowly opened to reveal an egg-shaped ruby gem that pulsed as the energy conglomerated within.
"Oh no, he's not…" Fang muttered.
"What?" Emma asked.
"He's going to try and summon a Verboten Eidolon," Alek said.
"Little more explanation please," Regina requested.
"A forbidden summon, only to be used in extreme emergencies, and whenever a summon like that is used, the Summoner dies afterward."
"Will your barrier be able to hold it off?" Henry asked.
"Just the summoning of the thing will destroy a good deal of land," Fang said. "One attack from that summon and this entire town is toast. Heck, this thing that he's summoning could turn the entire Enchanted forest and all its people to dust in seconds. It's one of the most feared summons there is, and only the best Summoners stand a chance at summoning this guy for a minute at most, and they die afterward."
"Will Master Aloja die if he's in the pendant?" Minx asked.
"I hate to say it, but it's entirely possible. The gem will just lose all its power, on the outside, at least. And once started, any spell, summon, or otherwise, can't be stopped. That's why training to know your limits is so important, since a spell and such will drain your power until you die if you overtax yourself. Our barrier won't stand a chance against this thing. It would take every Oracle from our village to even stand a chance, and even then, all of us would probably have to give our lives or be on the verge of death if we had to try and block a direct attack."
"So what are we supposed to do?" Emma asked. "Run for it?"
"Evacuating the entire town would take too long. Summons like this take a while to charge, but not that long."
"Well we're not just gonna sit here and wait to die," Regina declared. "We've been through way too much to fall right now without a fight."
"I never said there isn't anything we couldn't try. We'll free Sai then try and find this wizard. If we can free Aloja, then…we might be able to stop the summoning."
"But you said you couldn't stop…" Henry began.
"I know what I said."
"We can't kill him," Alek declared, but he didn't seem as angry as he was desperate. "Please, Fang, we can't! He's our friend! He's one of us! An Oracle protects their people, and that includes him!"
"You think I like the position that we've just been put in?! I like Aloja! I love him like a brother, and I care for him as a member of my village, someone I took a vow that I would do anything to protect! I want to save him just as much as you do! But-!"
"If you really wanted to save him, you wouldn't be giving up on finding another way so easily!"
She gritted her teeth and looked ready to retaliate, when she hesitated as a realization hit her. Slowly, she relaxed her tensed muscles.
"You found out, didn't you? About Aloja."
"Y…Yeah. Right before he ran away and…and this happened."
She sighed and looked to the ground beside her, the energy seeming to drain from her system.
"So that's why you're acting like this."
"You knew?"
"Of course I knew, dumb-dumb. Come on, the guy was so obvious, and so I became friends with him, deemed him worthy of you, and introduced you two. I thought when you became partners, you'd eventually notice, or he'd get comfortable enough with you that he'd tell you or something. But apparently, when something is placed right in front of you, you are blind to it."
"Speak for yourself."
She blinked, her eyebrows raising in genuine confusion.
"Huh?"
"You can't be serious," Alek muttered.
"What?"
Alek sighed, throwing his hands up in an exasperated motion.
"Nevermind. It's not important now."
She shrugged.
"If you say so. Anyway…I think there might be a way we could save Aloja."
Alek perked up, suddenly listening very closely. Had he been a neko, his ears would've risen and his tail would've froze. Fang could just see it now.
"It's a very, very long shot, but there is a possibility that if we take control of the pendant, and therefore the summon, we could divert its attack elsewhere, and save Storybrooke. Once the summon is over, we have to release Aloja from the pendant and then instantly heal him, give him more energy so that he doesn't die from the summoning's toll. The only problems lie in actually getting the pendant from this wizard without him absorbing us into pendants as well, and the fact that we have literally seconds to perform a releasing spell on the pendant, which, according to this book, takes a lot longer than that. Also, once Aloja's free, we'll have milliseconds to stop him from instantly dying when the cost of the summoning hits him. The odds are miniscule at best, and I have no idea how we'd pull any of these challenges off with the barrier still needed to any other summons from posing another threat - as multiple summons can be used at the same time - meaning our powers are going to be limited as well."
"We've got plenty of people willing to help you, you know," Emma offered.
"We'd have to bring the counsel into this if we wanted to bring you guys into this. The only reason we're even talking about this is because we need to stop anyone from interfering in your lives in a significant way, and wiping you off the map with a summon fits within that category. In the rare event that someone from our division goes rogue, protocol is to protect anyone from dying with all our power, and then once we're done, leave you with no memories of anything happening. The more you interfere, the harder it is to wipe everything away."
"To hell with all your laws and whatnot," Regina declared. "People's lives are at stake, and I'm not gonna stand by and hope that you guys can perform miracles all on your own."
"We could get fired for breaking protocol."
"Get a new job then."
"In our line of work, getting fired means more than no longer having income. Rogue Writer's and Illustrators can cause major problems."
"So you're killed if you're fired, is that it?"
"No, worse."
"What? Torture?"
"Close, but still no."
"What then?"
"Confidential."
"Well whatever your punishment is, this thing doesn't look like it cares either way. What's worse? You getting fired, or this thing destroying the entire town? I don't know how important you are to the world, but there are dozens of people in this town who don't deserve to get killed because of someone else's mistakes."
"Regina! Don't say that!" Emma scolded.
"What? The truth? You can't sugarcoat the world and expect things to turn out like you want them. If we could save everyone, if we could convince all our enemies to just stand down and become nice, then the world would be great. But guess what? That's not the world, Emma, and you of all people should know it."
"You're not the one who decides who lives and who dies, and you have no right to choose for someone else."
"'Who is more foolish? The one who believes they can choose who lives and who dies, or the one who believes they can save them all?'" Fang recited.
"Obviously the one who thinks they can save them all," Regina said bluntly. "I wish there was a way to save everyone, but this is life, and that's impossible."
"We're not leaving Aloja to die," Alek declared.
"No one's saying that," Fang said. "The only problem here is whether we're willing to break the rules in order to help the odds of succeeding. So, Mr. "Don't Break the Rules," ready to listen to reason?"
Alek winced, realizing how idiotic he had been before.
"Yeah. I'd rather be fired with Aloja than live knowing I didn't try everything I could to save him."
"Then we move swiftly. We free Sai, and you gather everyone you think is willing to help. Gather them somewhere while we deal with releasing my friend in the pendant, and then we explain a battle plan. It takes a Verboten Eidolon at least ten minutes to gather the energy necessary for both the summoning and the attacks. Cut that time short, and you may end up summoning the monster but have it incapable of using an effective attack, or have its attack be in a weakened state."
"Ten minutes isn't a lot of time," Emma commented.
"It's a lot of time if you use it wisely. Regina, you can probably teleport everyone to the same place in seconds. Just explain to them the situation and allow us time to release Sai and test out the spell for Aloja later on. Now go!"
The two women nodded before disappearing in a cloud of purple smoke each.
"All right, people. Time to do about five impossible things all at once."
Don't mean for this to be a crossover. The summons are just there because, A: I am a major Final Fantasy nerd, and B: Anyone who thinks the Verboten Eidolon is weak has never played Final Fantasy Type Zero.