Here we go! And for anyone who was paying attention when I mentioned Path in the Fun Fact a few Parts ago, you'll know exactly who I was talking about by the end of this chapter.

Such annoying characters. I tried to kill them all, really, I did. They're not cooperating.

On that note, a monotonic Bela is just terrifying. –Kairi

"Oh gods... I hate that laugh. That laugh never precedes anything good." –Dark

Chapter 12.6 – Out of Time
Part 103

"There it is," I announced.

"Finally..."

I rolled my eyes at the people who'd grumbled. "Yeah, yeah. Jade, can you shut it down?"

"Yes, I—Uh-oh."

I looked up, noting what he'd spotted. Guy gasped.

"Mary?!"

I scowled. "She's a replica, but yes."

"Why do you oppose the birth of our brethren?" the blonde girl asked as she, Ari's replica, and Van's replica reached the ground floor. I crossed my arms.

"I've got nothing against replicas. On the other hand, the extraction of replica data can be deadly, or at least cause problems for the original. There's also the problem of seventh fonon consumption. With the passage rings out of order, we can't raise the Outer Lands again, and the Planet Storm is working over-time to compensate for the lack of seventh fonons. Original or replica, we're all dead if the miasma and liquefaction aren't dealt with, and right now, these large-scale replica facilities are only making the problem worse," I said, drawing their attention to me. Jade stepped past me as I spoke, walking over to the terminal with Asch and Selenia to guard him as he shut it down.

"We replicas will have a place on the holy land of Eldrant. Mohs has promised us this," Ari's replica said. I sighed.

"I know what Mohs has promised you and yours, Apathy. But Eldrant itself is a replica, and it, like this facility, is a risk to the lives of everyone on Auldrant."

The Ari replica tilted his head to the side. "Why did you call me Apathy?"

I couldn't help it. I smiled a bit. "You're not your original. It would be wrong of me to call you Avarice."

Silence reigned for a moment before Seth, Flick, Ion, Sync, Luke, and Dark grouped up and stepped forward. "The six of us are replicas, ourselves," Ion said.

"And yet Mohs claims we have no place in Eldrant," Sync added. "I for one don't trust him to keep any of his promises."

The Van replica looked at them, then seemed to realize that Luke and Asch were identical. He then noticed Jade, then looked back at Seth. "Two of you travel with your originals."

Tear stepped forward now. "Yes. And the man I called my older brother was your original. This plan that Mohs and his allies are following is Van's plan. And I agree with Kairi. Replicas are their own people, and have their own right to live. But so do the originals."

Mary's replica looked over at Guy. "You knew my original as well."

He nodded. "She was my older sister."

"Was... She is dead," she realized. I nodded once.

"All three of your originals are dead. Though, as far as I'm aware, only Ari died of having his replica data extracted. Van died from poison, Mary during an attack on Guy's home," I said. Apathy gave me an odd look.

"You were a friend of my original... and you do not hate me for killing him?"

I sighed. Children. These were basically children. "You aren't the one who killed him. You were born afterwards, and I can't hold you responsible in any way."

"The machine has been shut down. I've installed a passcode that should keep anyone from starting it up again," Jade said as he walked back over. Then the ground shook, and my eyes went wide.

"Oh, hell! Tell me that wasn't—"

Yet another familiar face came racing in. "No! Mohs has betrayed us! Eldrant is rising!"

I stared openly at Bela. Oh, if she hadn't survived her replica data being taken, Rialle was going to be so depressed... On that note, a monotonic Bela is just terrifying.

The three replicas we'd been talking to followed the Bela-replica outside, and the rest of us followed them.

Sure enough, we had a clear view of the sky, where the behemoth that was Eldrant was halfway out of the water already. I swallowed as it rose ever higher, pausing at one point as cables started snapping from the strain.

"That's it... That's Eldrant..." I murmured, watching it rise, spinning slowly as it went. A shining shield suddenly formed around it, swirling down in a vortex that displaced the water underneath the replica Hod. I closed my eyes. So, I'd failed at stopping this.

"That... That's the replica of Hod?!"

I nodded. "Yes." My eyes snapped open. "That is what will kill Auldrant if we don't stop it, and quickly."

Apathy turned to look at me, then looked back up at the floating citadel Van had started, and Mohs and Zion had continued to build. "Mohs has forsaken us..."

"No. Rem. We go to the Tower of Rem. Mohs will surely come for us," Replica-Bela said. The other replicas in the area nodded.

"To the Tower of Rem..." they agreed. Most of them turned and walked away. Apathy and Replica-Mary stayed behind. I noted that Replica-Van left with the others, though he did glance at Asch, Luke, and Tear as he went.

Replica-Mary stepped up to me. "You gave one of my comrades a name." I nodded. "Apathy and Avarice..."

"Sloth and greed. Ari's little brother is Hubris, pride," I admitted, looking over at Apathy. Hmm... Path. I think I'm just gonna call him Path.

"I have no name. Only a designation."

I looked over at Guy with a small, sad smile, and he gave the replica a sympathetic look. "Fallon. Mary's favorite fairytale character was Fallon."

The girl—because she was definitely still only a teenager—tilted her head back and forth. "Fallon... Fallon..." She nodded then, a healthier gleam in her eye than I'd ever seen previously. "I like it. Thank you."

She turned to look at Path, and the two then walked off to follow the other replicas. I sighed as they went, heart aching because I knew they would die soon.

"That's kind of sad... And even worse, that I understand how they must feel..." Ion said, watching them leave. Sync looked over at him curiously.

"What do you mean?"

I sighed. "He doesn't have a name of his own. 'Ion' was his original's name. Zion couldn't keep it, but he tried his hardest to stay close. Florian was a lot like those two when I gave him his name," I said.

"That is really sad..." Anise admitted. Then she looked up at Ion. "You know... if you want to pick a new name, I don't think anyone will mind. It might take us a little while to stop slipping up, but..."

Ion looked so shocked, and Asch chuckled.

"In your case, I have to agree with Anise, but if Luke tries it, I'm gonna knock him upside the head."

Luke snorted. "You don't want your name back, do you?"

"Not anymore. 'Light of the sacred flame' just doesn't fit me," he said. I hummed, and Ion turned to look at me.

"Okay, I've learned to fear that particular tone..." he admitted. I giggled.

"Suuure... Anyway, I was about to say... You know that arte you and Luke do? You did it with Twilight once, but I don't think it was meant for Twilight..."

"Sunset Faith?" Luke guessed. I nodded.

"It reminds me of... well, the assassin Dark and I were talking about earlier and his best friend. Roxas is light and Axel is fire."

Ion tilted his head to the side. "Huh..."

"Food for thought. Now then... Hehehe..."

"Oh gods... I hate that laugh. That laugh never precedes anything good," Dark said as I ran back to the building the fomicry machines had been housed in and up to the second floor. I'd been looking for it the moment we stepped in, and I'd thought I could feel it, but hadn't been able to investigate since Fallon, Path, and Replica-Van had interrupted us.

Huh... Replica-Van could use a new name... Neh, I'll leave that to Tear.

"Oh, no. No. Not again."

I laughed at Sync's tone of voice. "Aw, what's wrong? You don't wanna fight it?"

"No, the twice was more than enough for me."

I shrugged. "Okay, fine. Seth, Flick, Asch?"

"Oh boy..."

"Whoo!"

"So glad I got some forewarning..." Asch muttered softly enough that only Luke and I heard him. I glanced back at Flick, who looked excited for the challenge—and I was starting to wonder if I'd ever get my bow back, at this rate—and Seth. He and Reighn were having a staring contest. Then...

"I'd like to face off against it a second time myself, if you don't mind," Reighn said. "Since Seth and I have similar fighting styles..."

I shrugged. "Okay. Twilight, you helping?"

He growled what I just knew was a 'duh, you stupid?'

Jade sighed. "There's obviously no talking you into coming back later, is there?"

I shook my head. "Now or never," I said. "We'll be too busy later."

He acknowledged that, and moved to the edge of the room. Everyone except for me, Flick, Asch, Reighn, and Twilight did the same after a moment, and I walked over to Ultimatus.

:So, the time has come... Prepare!:

Resisting the urge to add 'to be amazed', I turned and ran, not wanting to be right under the Sword Dancer when he appeared.

Once I was safely out of range, I drew my sword and ran back in. This time, it would come out in one piece. This, I swore to myself...

Mind you, that doesn't mean something else won't get broken.

Okay, I needed to stop being so pessimistic. "Havoc Strike!"

"Dragon Dance!"

I nodded approvingly at Flick's arte. Pretty little thing. And I'm getting distracted again... I rolled to the side to avoid a slash, and sighed. This was going to be a long battle.

"O sacred will, strike down those who would be mine enemy... Divine Saber!"

I jumped back as Reighn's arte landed, shot a nasty glare at him, and then ran in again, twirling on my heel. "Guardian Field!"

The Sword Dancer roared and unleashed a shockwave, and I got thrown back a ways. My sword got dropped somewhere along the way, and I glanced around for it as I pushed myself to me feet. I ran in, grabbed it, and then rolled as I avoided a slash. My choice in dodging method meant I did get hit with the shockwave that followed it, though.

"Kairi!"

I glanced back at Reighn, then nodded and started gathering second fonons.

Reighn raced in toward the Sword Dancer, unleashed his over limit, and then ran back out. Once he was at a safe casting range, he started casting, while I ran over toward the Sword Dancer.

The world faded out into a blur of white and shadows—a blizzard.

"O jewel of the arctic, beautiful and deadly, set these mortals free from their shells!" I heard Reighn chanting. Then he appeared and pointed at the Sword Dancer. The blizzard seemed to condense around it, white and glittering and really, really pretty. "Diamond Dust!"

I grinned when the blizzard turned into a sandstorm. "Not even your soul can escape this!" The sandstorm condensed into a dusty tornado. "Naga's Woe!"

The Sword Dance screeched as the extension ended, and after giving Reighn a thumbs-up (we'd practiced this before, but never used it against an enemy yet) I ran back in, letting loose Havoc Strike and Guardian Field in quick succession.

:You know the words...:

I jumped back, only to land just in time for a shockwave to hit me. I glanced around. No one else seemed to have heard the Sword Dancer's comment. That was odd... Why would he be speaking to me like that? And... what did he mean, I knew the words?

'Stars, something about newborn stars...' I thought to myself, mulling over the odd 'riddle' I'd been given as I unleashed a blue Infernal Prison and almost lost control of it. I scowled and started casting again, this time with my fonslots. While the second Infernal Prison wasn't quite as pretty, I didn't have to worry quite so much about it going wild.

Once again cursing Star for breaking my Energy stabilizer, I ran back in, a Havoc Strike and then some frantic rolling getting me back out of the way.

"Sandstorm!"

I tilted my head to the side, then looked over at Reighn. "Decided you like that one?" I asked. He nodded.

"It fits well with the rest of my arte set." I nodded and made good use of the leftover FoF, unleashing a Guardian's Pain on the Sword Dancer and then turning to run away from him again. Twilight roared, his Thunder Lance discouraging him from following me. Flick ran over and poked me.

"Hey, hey, I need a Cluster Raid!"

I frowned. "Okay, but I'm not sure why..."

"Oh, but I know! So it should be fine!"

I sighed and glanced at Asch, then made a couple hand signals. Basically?

'Be ready to heal.'

I had a feeling Flick would need it before this was over.

Still, even as I was casting Cluster Raid, I was a bit distracted.

'Newborn stars, and now something about an ancient melody? ...What in the world...?' "Rain down, o crystals of light! Cluster Raid!"

And then, as Flick did another Dragon Dance, I felt it—the arte slipping completely out of my control.

"Flick!"

"I've got it, Kairi!" she called back. "Flames of life!"

The crystals of light formed by my Cluster Raid were suddenly enveloped by fire, and I felt control slipping back and forth between me and Flick. I smiled as I realized what had just happened.

"Crystalline focus!" I added my part of the verse. Flick grinned at me.

"Dragons' Hearts!"

Flaming, glittering crystals rained down on the Sword Dancer, and I grinned when I realized the light show was more blue and gold than red. Truly, we'd unleashed dragon fire.

:Yes, yes, you've found these artes... But you're still missing something yourself.:

I got the impression that the Sword Dancer had projected the first half of that to everyone, and then saved the other half for just me. I scowled. The verse, what was the verse?

'Ancient melody of newborn stars... Hope? Something about hope... Dammit!' I cursed out loud as well as the Sword Dancer sent me flying again.

"Cure!"

I shot a grateful look Asch's way, and then decided to run over next to him.

"You've gotten very distracted this battle," he noted. I scowled.

"It's playing games with my head, I think... You haven't heard him talking to you, have you?" I asked. He frowned, then let off another Cure for Flick.

"No. Aside from just a minute ago, the comment about us finding artes... To be honest, that confused me, too..."

I shook my head and unleashed the Maelstrom I'd been casting. "No, I think I get it... That part, at least. He's trying to get me to do something else, I think..."

Then we had to jump apart, and I scowled. "Demon Fang!"

Fun Fact: I hadn't intended for them to really be finding so many Combo Artes already. I really hadn't. And yes, Sunset Faith is very heavily based on Axel and Roxas.

On that note, these are the Combo Artes they've found already- (Slight spoilers since some of this info hasn't been stated in the story yet, and one of them isn't revealed until next chapter)

Ion (Prism Gale) & Luke (Phoenix Dance) – Sunset Faith
Kairi (Infernal Prison) & Jade (Infernal Prison) – Ground Zero
Kairi (Cluster Raid) & Flick (Dragon Dance) – Dragons' Hearts
Reighn (Final Embrace) & Kairi (Final Embrace) – Deep Freeze

I think there will be one or two more before the end of Re:AST. Then we get to AEtT and things get even more interesting...