The world was between heartbeats. That was the closest you could come to an explanation of the events happening. Something that moved between moments of the Heart, the darkness and silence between heartbeats had forced a strange effect over the world.
Also, you found something more important.
"Riku, I have found a vending machine. You will receive snacks," you called as Riku moved around with his sword at his side. A vending machine of snacks. You went to request snacks for your charges, but the vending machine dispensed thick torrents of blood that ran past your feet.
This was... sub-optimal.
"Eraqus, do you hear that?" Riku called suddenly from the opening of a street.
You sort of did. A hum that broke the silence of the night.
"Sounds like the monorail in Twilight Town," Riku muttered. You looked between the tower and the noise source before deciding that the tower gave off a vibe of being too annoying to deal with right now.
"The noise. Might be some helpless sad girl who actually kicks ass. I seem to be finding them a lot," you explained. Riku nodded, taking off with you close in tow.
The streets were twisty and confusing, but space eventually widened to a train station covered in those protective coffins. Deciding with Riku being the front liner and physical attacker, you could change it up and become a Sorcerer to back him up. The station front had steps smeared with more fresh blood.
A real iconic vibe for this World.
Riku moved to climb the first few steps and you paused... wondering if you felt something...
You turned too slowly as the giant metal mount tried to crash into you. Riku's hand shot out and pulled you to his side before the red-head on the bike could smear you under her wheels.
The bike spun once as the girl lashed out in a warning stance with a long rapier.
"Well, that is a rather rude way of introducing yourself," you said dryly as Riku pointed his Souleater at her with a narrowing of his eyes.
"Do you attack everyone on first sight, or am I special to have earned your ire?" you added.
"People who can move around the Dark Hour are either victims of Shadows or soon to be awakened potential... neither of those applies to you. You arrive the same time as something tries to destroy the Monorail... hardly a coincidence," the girl said with a frosty accusation.
"What's it to you? You don't exactly make me feel chatty," Riku threw back. Ah, there was the grumpy cookie you knew so well. The girl kicked her bike's stand down and dismounted, her face turning as hard as the ice in her tone.
"Mitsuru Kirijo. My team is investigating powerful Shadow in the station. Name yourself," she ordered.
"I am... A Nobody of Importance. Please, call me Eraqus and this is my Grumpy Cookie, Riku." you introduced. She eyed you with both surprise and alarm.
"What... are you?" she asked but Riku spoke up.
"My friend. Did you say Shadows? You have Heartless here?" he asked and Mitsuru frowned at the terminology.
"Heartless... Not the term we use, though I can see the logic. The creatures that manifest in bizarre shapes in accordance with the darker side of humanity," she admitted. She looked around before holding a hand up.
"Don't make sudden moves or such and we can keep talking, I need to update my team," she warned.
"Very well, though I do have a question. What makes you -and presumably, this team of yours- different, that you are not locked in those protective coffins? Does it have something to do with that 'potential' you mentioned before?" you asked but Mitsuru merely narrowed her eyes and repeated the hand motion, insisting that you wait.
That was when she took out a gun and shot herself in the head.
"Wait-" Riku yelled in alarm, but it all went quiet when an imposing spirit of sorts rose up behind Mitsuru after a shattering bang that made Mitsuru jerk slightly.
"Well, that was unexpected," you said as the spirit of a woman in armour and frills rose with twin swords grasped in hand. The air around you dropped slightly in temperature. The spirit scanned the area, lingering on you for a moment, which made Mitsuru frown harder, but she spoke and a wave echoed across the air from the spirit.
"The Shadow will be in the monorail ahead... I've run into complications here, I'll keep you updated," she warned.
"So, the Heartless, or... 'Shadow', is the one causing the commotion? Shouldn't we go help them deal with it?" you asked and the woman turned as the spirit hovered behind her.
"No. I don't trust you near my team or in general. But I-" she stopped as her spirit snapped her head to Riku then past him.
Riku was stunned.
"It's...like Ansem and his Guardian," he mumbled but Mitsuru's eyes went wide, her reddish-brown eyes looking alarmed.
"A second Shadow?" she hissed. You turned to see something formed out of the station's clock that was set high above the entrance. It emerged as a long purplish snake that seemed to be an undulating scroll that ended in a dove-like mask. The symbol on the chest below it bright red an elegant black heart ringed in red with barbed wire stitched across it.
Mitsuru frowned as she focused on it.
Your scan worked for the first time as you saw an 'enemy' for the first time. There was a wave that you sent into it that seemed to be waiting for protections, but finding none, suck into the Heartless.
Purity Scroll: HP: 50
A Heart consumed by Darkness that was usurped by the High Priestess. Now it guards the way forth at her whims.
"Well. That's not your average Shadow. Full fledged Heartless, and a rather large one at that. Would any of you know what a High Priestess is?" you asked.
"One of the main Arcana that influences different Personas and Shadows by some unknown means. My team engaged a Shadow that has taken the avatar of that name just now," Mitsuru stalked forward, her rapier flicking.
"Stay back, you've never fought these before and you're just the kind of person they love to target," Riku muscled past with a grimace. Mitsuru's shocked expression turned to annoyance as she elbowed past Riku.
"Little men should stay back and out of harm's way," she gritted out.
"Children, get along, we all want to kill the monster," you said as the Purity Scroll Heartless lunged forward, its bird mask opening to show long snake fangs. Riku made to lunge forward, but Mitsuru leapt, using Riku like a springboard to fly overhead as you moved to the left.
The 'chasing too many rabbits' problem arose as the scroll tried to attack all three of you in rapid succession, hitting none of you.
Mitsuru twirled as her spirit took aim still in mid-air, pointing both swords.
"Penthesilea, Bufu!" she called and the magic of Blizzard rose around her. The blast of ice shot towards the scroll who was still trying to reorient itself and couldn't dodge.
It screamed in a most unsettle noise as the ice speared through its scroll-like body.
Mitsuru magic damage: d8+5 = 12!
Weakness discovered!: x1.5! Total: 18
Purity Scroll: 5032
The scroll did not like that. You held out your Volume of Lies, the non-existent pages flipping as you gathered ice yourself.
The pages stopped in the middle.
The unconscious purity of the priestess fades when her pews are visited by only silence.
Less ominous messages book, more ice. You smashed a block of ice into the snake's face, lacing the sheer power Mitsuru had because her Soul and Heart were gyrating in the open like indecent teenagers on their first date.
3229.
Riku came dashing in, slashing his sword across the lower body as he passed. The sword did something, but it was clear from the sparks on contact that the scroll didn't care for physical contact like it did for ice.
2926.
The scroll turned and lunged towards Mitsuru despite the distance between them. Clearly not a fan of Mitsuru's icy demeanour. It threw its whole body at her and space did give a chance for Mitsuru to have a decent moment to dodge.
Mitsuru pivoted like a dancer in the air, her body twirling gracefully to the side as the scroll shot past, missing by a huge margin.
"Not good enough," she told the scroll seriously. She focused her spell again, ice forming and the scroll pressed against the station as something in the distance began to screech and the sounds of a train coming nearer and nearer became obvious.
Her magic shot forward rapidly. The ice formed rapidly along the front of the station as the scroll slithered along the wall faster than before. The trailing just too slowly to hit it.
"Riku use magic!" as you charged another block of ice. The magic took a moment to charge, but you used that to aim.
Magic aim: 90+5 = 95
Purity Scroll: 87+10 = 97
The block of ice rocketed towards it but the scroll rippled outwards in like a doughnut forming a space in its middle to make the shot fly through.
NP Remaining: 3
Riku leapt off a car and up towards it, hand glowing with a normal fire spell. It missed completely and the scroll curled up a large flagpole, staring down at you before it's body bulged rapidly to its head and vomited a dark sickly gas at the three of you.
The surprise of the attack coupled by the sheer speed it spread not only caused you and Mitsuru to be struck by the wind, but become weakened, but Riku still had a spark of his fire spell in one hand.
The gas around him exploded violently.
Riku flew hard across the street and smashed into a window, vanishing out of sight.
Riku HP: 3524
You grunted as the gas-filled your form and Mitsuru.
Poison gas: d3 damage on impact and 1 damage per turn for D3 turns.
Mitsuru: 3028. 2 turn poison.
Eraqus: 109. 1 turn poison.
"What is this thing... it's far nimbler than any Shadow I've ever seen," Mitsuru panted as she looked in pain.
"From what I've seen, Heartless tend to be rather nimble. A benefit of not exactly having a normal body. Just be glad it can't phase into the floor," you said and stood back up as the snake scroll seemed to loll its head drunkenly for a moment. Mitsuru noticed it too.
"It's drained. We hit it now!" she ordered you.
You both took aim and Mitsuru aimed her ice and at first, it looked it she missed, but the blocks were too precise and patterned, forcing the scroll right into the path of your ice attack.
Your block knocked it hard off the flagpole.
Purity Scroll: 2624. Below 50%. Bonuses suffer -2.
There was a sudden oppressive aura from behind you and you turned just in time to see a figure floating out of the window, a dark form hovering over them.
A blast of pure Darkness shot forward at the Scroll. The blast turned in the air to follow the twisting scroll easily.
"Get away... from my friend," the deep voice spoke with struggle. The dark blast smashed into the Heartless and drove it hard into the station front where it collapsed in a roar of pain.
Scroll: 2411.
"If I was physically capable of fear, I might be intimidated right now. As it stands, though, it seems the grumpy cookie turned into an angry cookie-cake," you said and Mitsuru was trembling...
"Move... I...have to move," she told herself as the form of the man you saw Riku fight emerged, but the eyes were still the blue of Riku's vs the gold of the man's. Riku twitched and his form was swallowed by a pillar of darkness and his normal form fell to the ground in a grunt.
From the rubble of the station... the Scroll emerged, torn and angry.
"Grumpy cookie! Welcome back! but let's finish this heartless off first!" you called as the Scroll reared back.
It opens its mouth and between the fangs, it gathered heat and flame. It took aim at Riku who tried to make a run for it, but knelt to one knee, clutching at his heart. You threw a reflect spell at him, trying to cover his defencelessness.
You were too slow as the fireball rocketed forward.
"Careful!" Mitsuru warned, her spirit shooting balls of ice in front of Riku the same time you cast Reflect. You would hold your breath to see if it was faster than yourself...but you didn't breathe.
The pillars of ice that rose took the brunt of the impact and shattered, raining ice chips over Riku, but saving him from the impact.
There was a moment of pause between everyone then everyone moved, the speed of battle thrown once again up in the air.
"I'm tired of this snake," Riku snarled as he threw much smaller blasts of darkness at the creature. You counted three of the missiles. The scroll wavered as the attacks impacted its body. The thing caught fire and screamed, collapsing into burning flakes as it finally vanished.
Dark blast: 15
Scroll: 110
"And don't come back," Riku said gruffly and turned to you.
"That... was tougher than expected, If I was capable of fear, what happened would've terrified me. Don't get hurt like that again, cookie." you sagged a little.
That was when a monorail screeched along the nearby tracks, nearly hitting another train.
Mitsuru turned with alarm and fear.
"My team," she exclaimed and at that moment, Riku scooped you up and vanished through a portal, the last thing you saw was the too slow turning of Mitsuru then you were high above the street on a nearby building.
You both rolled along the gravel ground.
"Well, that was unpleasant. Are you alright? And why leave?" you asked after sitting up. Riku grimaced.
"World Order. Mickey explained it, but the basics are the World's are still repairing themselves, the more you mess with the locals and serious events, the more the World will react by...creating solutions to get rid of you. Mickey also said that his own meddling was Hollow Bastion came to be," he said tiredly.
"Well. That puts several of my previous actions in a bad light," you said bluntly.
"So hypothetically cluelessly stomping around new worlds and handing out magic muffins would be a bad idea?... I will definitely have to tell anyone I find doing that to stop...if they existed of course," you said calmly.
"A few actions here and there won't be so bad. Mickey knows a duck who has business everywhere but keeps it low-key or simple so the Worlds don't mind. Worlds will just limit you to a small area to confine our meddling. I think this city is as far as we can go or around that tower. It's when you go real bad that the World begins to make guardians seek you out. Outsiders messing on a huge scale is seen as an invasion," Riku added.
"Then why are Heartless everywhere?" you had to ask.
"What do you think the giant unique Heartless are in each World... the Worlds know not to just give the Heartless more fodder," Riku grimaced.
"You didn't answer my other question. Are you alright? I have some medical supplies, if you need them." You took out a medkit and Riku shook his head.
"I'll be fine," he said calmly and looked down at the street as three teens rushed to the red-head that was Mitsuru.
A guy, and two girls.
You paused... unsure of something until you looked across to another roof. Someone was staring down at the scene with contentment...or calmness. The blue-haired teen saw you then nodded in thanks, his ghostly image fading.
"Eraqus..." Riku's voice turned soft and cautious. You turned to see a blue door shimmering in thin air.
"Well, that's interesting. You see it as well, then?" you asked and Riku just nodded.
"Well.. let's explore. This isn't the first time something strange appears around me. It usually leads to something interesting," you said and you both stepped inside the room. The door closed behind you as the room flashed for a moment, making it hard to see anything at all for a long moment.
"My... my...guests so soon?" came an amused voice.
You blinked a few times to see an utterly stark white room with veins of stain glass running through it in vein-like patterns. The lone splash of colour other than that was a blue heart-shaped rug in which a man rested behind a table, slowly doing a jigsaw.
"Woah, look at his nose," Riku said, blurting out aloud. The man looked up and... jeez. Those were some sleepless nights if the bloodshot was anything to go by. He was a strange caricature of a man, balding, but with a wreathe of elegant hair, inhuman but expressive to the point of peaceful. His suit was also rather nice, you had to admit.
"Welcome to the Velvet room. My name is Igor," he bowed his head slightly. His voice rather melodious for his appearance.
"I am Eraqus, and this is Riku. Nice to meet you, assuming you harbor no ill will toward us," you said and Igor chuckled.
"I could never harm a guest of the Velvet Room. Such an idea cuts me to the bone," he promised and there was a movement to the corner of your vision. Riku made a strange choking noise as a girl stepped forward. Her blue dress and a single belt were subtle compared to her dirty blond hair.
Riku might be weird because she looked like Naminé if a bit tanner and shier. The hair darker, with strands of brunette running through it.
"Hello, my name is Agatha. Please forgive me... I wasn't ready to take up the mantle of assistance for some time," she smiled.
"Do not be alarmed. For every great light, a gentle shadow is cast. My assistants often arise from the murky wonders of the human heart," Igor smiled mysteriously.
"It is nice to meet you, Agatha. I am Eraqus, my friend is Riku. Now, do either of you happen to know why we were... Invited here? Assuming the door's appearance was an invitation, of course," you asked. Igor nodded slightly.
"Forgive the interruption, but... it falls on us to ask a tremendous favour," Igor admitted as Agatha came to stand by him.
"My master has become...detached to preserve a perilous balance. His mirror shadow has begun to cheat at the game of gods and mortals. You saw it not long ago. Where once only Shadows and gods could challenge mortals, the black butterfly now invites Darkness itself in," Igor frowned for the first time.
"That Heartless we fought... This 'Black Butterfly' allowed it to enter this World?" you asked and Igor nodded.
Agatha smiled, breaking the sombre mood.
"The Worlds are marching together. New Lights are forming, spreading as Worlds are being reborn. Seven upon seven upon seven… on until light brings hope once more. But they need time and we are unsure if we have it," Agatha explained.
"Which is why you are asking us for help. An outside factor to help fight another outside factor," you went on.
Igor nodded once.
"Quite. The outside forces cannot be stopped but they can be forced to play by the rules. The Dark Hour, the green moment of time, they cannot manifest outside it," he explained, steepling his fingers.
"You would have us fight alongside that woman's group, then? Assist their efforts at suppressing the Heartless, and these 'Shadows'?" you asked.
"Quite, we cannot for if we move then the other side of the board can move. We stalemate to protect this world. I... apologise deeply for my inability," Igor said and bowed deeply in his chair.
"I have been reminded of my own incapabilities recently. It must be very frustrating to someone that can truly feel. However, We also have matters of our own to attend to. We can't be here at all times." you offered. Riku looked like he deeply wanted to just agree and add this whole world to his workload...
"I sense... the Full Moon is the key for now. A month per request. If you visit this world, you can come to the Velvet Room and we shall move you ahead without changing the time of any other World. This World has...peculiarities about it," he explained then hummed.
"I am not the only Igor as this is not the only Velvet Room. But there will never be more than one Igor per timeline and all timelines exist independent of your need. If we use the Velvet Room to hurry time along and not back instead of its usual purposes... then it will work out," Igor grinned.
Agatha giggled.
"Master is being so honest and straight forward, I can't believe it," she teased and Igor's smile was affection at her light humour.
"These are no Fools... well... not the one this room is for," he admitted. He turned back to you.
"Feel free to... experience the World in your downtime. There are many interesting facets about it besides constant death and cycle... its the small moments between that make it worthwhile," Igor added.
Riku was staring at Agatha and she noticed.
"Yes?" she asked kindly.
"...Nothing, you just look like a friend," Riku mumbled. Agatha blinked.
"Is she a... good friend?" she asked slowly. Riku took a moment to answer.
"Two friends... and they're both good," he nodded. Agatha touched her cheek and smiled gently.
"Then I shall make sure to wear it with pride," she teased. Igor eyed them then turned to Riku and yourself.
"I will not simply ask you for nothing. Compensation is good for the soul," he smirked. He gestured to Agatha who held out her hands, both closed.
"Pick one," she told you and Riku with a mischievous smile.
You picked left and Riku got right.
Agatha handed you a swirling green orb and Riku got a purple one.
"Essences of Chariot and Magician respectively," Igor hummed and the orbs broke.
Eraqus gains +2 speed. (influences dodging and initiative)
Riku gains +2 damage attack to his total damage.
"Now...I bid you both farewell. It seems Theodore requires our attention," Igor smiled to the ceiling.
"Goodbye, it was pleasant meeting you," you said and Riku nodded as the room lit up blindingly.
Then...you were back on the roof and the tower was gone... and the people were free again. The station was still... a little bit broken.
Seems like that didn't fix itself... whoops?
"A month in this world's time... We'll both have to get much stronger before then. Any ideas, Riku?" you asked and he nodded.
"Stop the Organization, where ever they go? Trouble follows," he said.
Riku had such good ideas.
-
50 EXP gained from Purity Scroll.
Sorcerer levelled from 56! Milestone reached. Next level cost 62
Learned: Sorcerer's Apprentice trait.
Sorcerer's Apprentice: Magic is now D4+3 at the base. NP is increased by 5 when this class is equipped.
Cure gained: Heals surface wounds for magic damage. Cost 2 NP.
Sharpshooter level 34!
Accuracy for attacks at mid-range or long-range increased by 5.
All penalties for aiming at any range are removed while this class is equipped.
-
You watched calmly as a long silver cloak formed around your body, the edges tattered while taking a look at the back, you saw a symbol. Not the Nobody symbol you expected... but something else. It looked... like the symbol but flipped and filled.
"Why do you keep doing weird things?" Riku asked, smiling despite the words.
"Because I am weird. Is any other reason needed?" you answered.
"Sora is going to love you," Riku snorted and you both left through a portal, never seeing the blue butterfly flittering in front of the yellow moon.