Disclaimer: Neither Solaris Requiem nor I own any of the referenced properties.
NOTE: The following snips were written by Solaris Requiem, but they are not complete. For the previous and following parts, check the previous and following chapters.
[Persona 3], [Future Card Buddyfight]
Having Death as your Buddy – parts 3 and 4
"What kind of Monster is that?!" Rouga demanded as Orpheus slid the Golden lyre upon his back. The manifestation of Minato's own psyche hovered protectively over his body, the expression on his colorless mask grim yet stoic.
"It's not a Monster," Minato said blandly as he spun the silver gun on his finger. "It's called a Persona. It is not limited by the flesh and blood; it exists as a concept and an identity given material form."
"Stop talking in riddles dammit!" Rouga grit his teeth before Armorknight Ogre charged with his metal club raised. Minato's Persona responded in suit, wordlessly following the order that its master had given. The construct brought forth the lyre on its back and met the ogre's charge with its own attack. The two weapon collided with the thunderous sound of clashing metal, yet despite this it was not the smaller persona's weapon that was cast aside, but rather the larger ogre's.
"The hell?!" Rouga watched in almost disbelief as his larger monster was pushed back by the small and lithe Orpheus. Minato's expression was unchanging as the ogre was forced on the defensive, Orpheus' titanic strikes pushing the larger monster back. Upon the third strike, the ogre's club shattered into pieces while the lyre that the Persona wielded did not even have so much as a blemish.
"Agi," Minato commanded, and Orpheus obeyed without a single moment of hesitation.
Power coursed through Orpheus' body as its pale eyes glowed with power. There was no other warning before a fireball flashed into existence, engulfing the armored monster in flames as it screamed in agony.
"Ogre!" Rouga cried out in alarm as the smell of scorched flesh filled the air. Defenseless, the Monster could do nothing but burn to death. The monster's body shattered into dozens of pieces, dissolving into motes of energy that streamed back into Rouga's spear.
"Had enough?" Minato replied coldly as Orpheus floated back into its original position near him. The area still burned with the residual flames from Orpheus' attack, sending smoke and ash into the air.
Rouga grit his teeth in rage before he drew another card from his spear. "Cast: Drill Bunker!" he declared. A torrent of silver energy, designed to pierce and maim, streamed from the card and towards the two of them. But Orpheus was already there with its lyre at ready. With a single swing the torrent of energy was batted aside into the wall of a nearby building, sending shards of concrete and metal flying.
"Wait... Isn't Drill Bunker a spell card?" Gao asked as he shielded his eyes from the shards of concrete. "How did he cast it in the real world? I thought they only worked in Buddyfights!"
"You're asking the wrong person Gao!" Kiri shot back, despite knowing the answer to that question already.
"Dammit." Rouga cursed as he considered the last options he had. He was currently outnumbered two to one, and he didn't have a single idea about the capabilities of that... thing that Minato kid had summoned.
As much as he hated it, the only option he had was to retreat and reorient himself.
"Eagle, Cerberus, to me!" he commanded before he pulled another card from his spear. "Cast: Thunder Devastation!" The card dissolved into light as his spear began to charge with electrical energy. Minato braced himself for an attack but, was caught off guard when Rouga stabbed his own spear into the ground rather attack him. Thunder crackled around Rouga before the ground exploded, sending dirt and dust flying into a thick cloud of debris.
"Garu." Minato replied coldly as Orpheus swept a hand sideways, dispelling cloud of dust and smoke with a small emerald hurricane. But Rouga was already gone and out of sight.
"He got away," Minato sighed as Orpheus dissolved back into motes of azure light. Although as powerful as Orpheus was, Minato couldn't track down his enemies like his allies from his home Loop could. All he could really do right now was to retrieve the two other students.
"Are you two hurt?" he asked as he turned to Gao and Kiri. He expected them to be slack-jawed, stunned, and unharmed. He did not expect Gao to punch him in the face.
"Why the heck did you do that?! You didn't need to point a gun at your own head!" Gao hissed. Minato felt his cheek throb painfully, but he had faced worse before.
"It's not a gun, it's an Evoker. It doesn't have any bullets." To demonstrate Minato pointed the gun downwards and pulled the trigger. There was a short burst of blue light and energy, but the ground remained completely and utterly unharmed.
"But still! You're not supposed to point that at your own head! Can't you call your Buddy without using that?!"
"I can, and Orpheus is not my-"
"Then why did you need to use that?!" Gao shouted as he gestured at the Evoker in Minato's grip. The blue-haired teen just shrugged.
"It's easier to use an Evoker than to summon my Persona manually," Minato stated in a matter-of-fact voice.
Gao looked like he wanted to protest but then a large explosion caught their attention. High above and far ahead from them, Cerberus was engaged in combat with a green dragon while the masked thief was facing off against another kid around Gao's age with sky-blue hair.
"That's Tasuku and Jack!" Gao realized. "They're with the Buddy Police! They must have found that guy from earlier!" Without so much as hesitating, Gao ran towards the fighting to see if there was any way he could help.
Minato sighed in exasperation as he followed after Gao. The red haired teen reminded him a bit too much of Junpei, one of his closest friends. Both of them seemed to rush into danger head-first without thinking things through.
Meanwhile, Joker landed next to Kiri with half of a silver briefcase in tow. "Mission accomplished, my lord. The bird has been put... on ice. Unfortunately, it looks like I was only able to recover half of it."
"Good job Joker," Kiri smiled as he took the case back. But then he frowned as he searched through his memory.
Why was that word, 'Persona', so familiar to him? He was positive that it had not existed in the original timeline. What had changed?
…
"Future Force authorized," the communicator in Tasuku's ear rang. The blue-haired officer sighed in relief as he closed his eyes. He focused on the well of power within him as the blue gem in his Star Pulsar, the item his deck case had become, flashed crimson. His body began to glow with golden light as he felt his powers rise.
With this ability, Tasuku was able manifest cards into reality: the perfect counter to the Disaster Force that Rouga was using currently to manifest his items and spells into the real world.
"Equip: Dragobrave." With a flash of golden light, armored gauntlets and boots manifested before he gripped a large zweihander in both hands. He tightened the grip on his weapon before he brought it down upon Rouga's guard. The wheels of light around Tasuku's feet allowed him superior mobility in the air, allowing him to easily maneuver around the slower Rouga and exploit openings in his guard.
CLANG! CLANG! The ringing of manifested metal on metal sang in the air as Tasuku easily outclassed Rouga's close-combat abilities. He had received training in Dragon World alongside Gao, Jack, and Drum in the previous resets after all. Compared to that, Rouga might have as well been a kid with a toy.
"Dammit! First that blue haired kid with that weird Buddy Monster, now a guy that has Future Force?!" Rouga snarled in frustration as he blocked a heavy kick from Tasuku.
"Blue-haired kid? What are you talking about?" Tasuku frowned. He was sure that there was no such 'blue haired kid' during this part of the timeline.
"None of your business!" Rouga snarled in defiance as the two continued the one-sided clash.
Jack soared through the air with his armored wings as he engaged Cerberus in combat. Cerberus snarled as the missile pod on his back fired off a salvo of drill-tipped missiles at the green dragon. But like his partner, Jack had far more experience fighting than Cerberus could have even dreamed of. Jack ducked and wove through the hail of explosives effortlessly, baiting the missiles into each other and causing them to detonate into each other in a flash of light and energy.
"Hold still!" Cerberus snarled with his three heads as he followed up with his Gatling gun. But Cerberus' targeting systems were too slow to keep up with Jack, causing the storm of lead to miss Jack's soaring form by at least a foot.
Drum on the other hand watched the fighting from above, taking a brief break to catch his breath. There were some dents in his armor from a few close calls with Cerberus, but it was nothing that he couldn't fix. And even then, shifting back and forth from card form should repair all of the damage that he had sustained. Unfortunately he would leave Cerberus up to Jack: his current form wasn't really that good at aerial combat. Besides, he had other matters to attend with.
"Hey, stay awake!" Drum gently shook a Buddy Police officer, trying to keep him conscious. He had taken a nasty hit by Rouga's spell card and Drum's own makeshift first-aid measures were slowly losing their effectiveness.
"Drum!" Gao called out. The armordragon looked towards his buddy and grimaced when he saw Gao covered head to toe in dust.
"Gao! You alright?" he knew that he could rely on Kiri to protect Gao, should it have been necessary, but it was still relieving to see his Buddy unharmed.
"Yeah, Minato saved both of us. He summoned a cool Monster to beat up the ogre that thief guy sent out."
"Wait, what?!" Drum gaped. It was only then that he noticed the weapons in Minato's hands: the strange sword and the short-barreled gun.
"Later," Minato replied, cutting Drum off before any questions could be asked before he nodded towards the injured officer. "I'll heal him."
Gao looked visibly annoyed. "You're not going to shoot yourself again, are you?"
"What the heck are you talking about?!" Drum blanched, "Did you just say 'shoot yourself again'?!"
Minato sighed before he shook his head. "I won't." He closed his eyes, focusing and breathing for a few seconds. He already summoned Orpheus earlier so as such he did not need to invoke his Persona again for what he was about to do next. He laid a hand on the injured man and whispered.
"Dia."
The man's body began to glow with a green light before his wounds slowly began to close. His breathing got easier and after several more agonizing seconds, the worst of the man's wounds were fully healed.
"Ugh..." the man groaned as his mind slipped into unconsciousness. But other than that, he was perfectly healthy.
"It's the first time I've seen a human use magic directly," Drum noted as he frowned at Minato. "We'll talk later though. We need to take care of that other guy, although I think Tasuku and Jack have that under control."
As he said those words, Tasuku sent Rouga flying downwards with a spinning kick. Rouga recovered and landed deftly on his feet, panting in exertion before Cerberus joined him sporting his own share of injuries.
"This entire heist has been a complete mess," Rouga snarled. Cerberus readied whatever weapons that were still operational. Armorknight Eagle appeared next to Rouga, depositing half of the briefcase into his hands and returning himself to Rouga's spear.
"Now would be the best time to leave before we lose any of the other cases." Cerberus rumbled in his distorted, tri-tonal voice. But before either of them could even think of escaping there was a flash of golden light from high above. The sky was dyed a golden hue as a golden barrier of light surrounded the area.
"Too late," Tasuku replied as Jack took up a position next to his Buddy. "As long as this Buddy Police Barrier is active escaping here will be impossible unless you beat me at a Buddyfight."
"How convenient," Minato mused as he walked closer to Rouga. "So as you don't agree to a Buddyfight, he'll be trapped here. Correct?"
"Yes, but who are you?" Tasuku asked, unnerved by the fact he was seeing an unknown face after so many resets.
"You again?!" Rouga hissed as he brought his weapon up.
"Later," Minato shook his head as he brought his Evoker up as he addressed Tasuku. "Don't Buddyfight him, I'll just knock him out while he can't escape." He pressed the muzzle of the Evoker against the side of his head and, before Tasuku or Jack could even protest, pulled the trigger.
"Not again..." Gao groaned as Orpheus Telos manifested himself once more in all of his ethereal glory. Rouga grit his teeth and prepared for battle, but his Buddy Monster had an entirely different reaction
"Orpheus? That's... How?" Cerberus' center head whispered, his eyes wide and his voice disbelieving. Rouga looked up towards his partner in what looked to be concern for the briefest of moments.
"We'll talk about this later," Rouga replied. "Can you fight him?"
Cerberus grunted, "I will try." With a roar he brought his salvo of weapons online and fired everything towards the gathered group of people.
"Cast: Green Dragon Shield!" Tasuku declared. Before him, a large green shield decorated with the head of a dragon manifested in the air, nullifying Cerberus' the dozens of missiles, bullets, and other projectiles with ease.
"Zio!" Minato ordered. But for the briefest of moments Orpheus seemed to hesitate for the briefest of moments before attacking. The resulting thunderbolt seemed to barely miss Cerberus' armored form, allowing the enemy Monster to escape unharmed.
Minato frowned at his Persona's hesitance to harm his opponent. That was something that had never happened before. Could it be that this Loop changed the very nature of Personas ever so slightly? Regardless of the reasons why, he wasn't sure if he could properly damage Cerberus directly with Orpheus. Therefore...
"Heat Riser." Minato commanded.
Orpheus began to play his lyre with masterful fingers; each string sang in a frenzied harmony that roused the blood and strengthened his allies. There was a pulse of crimson light that engulfed Jack and Drum, filling them with titanic strength, agility, and endurance.
"This feels amazing!" Drum grinned as he felt the Persona's energy flow through him. He revved up his Drill and charged forward towards the injured Monster. Jack spread his wings and took off, the blade on his helm already unfolded and ready for combat.
"Tch, Armorknight Demon!" Rouga called out. From his hand emerged a hulking, blue-skinned monster onto the field armed with a battle-ship's worth of weaponry. It materialized on the battle field covered in healed battle scars and with its weapons glowing with power.
"Get out of my way!" Drum shouted as he brought forth his drill. The mountain of a monster brought forth the two massive arm cannons he carried, the insides of their barrels glowing violet with latent and earth shattering power. It released the six beams of unleashed energy, but it was hopelessly futile. With a sudden burst of sped, Drum ducked under the massive attack and leapt upwards.
"Eat this! Drill Ram Bunker!" the dragon roared as his body and weapon began to glow red hot. With a mighty shout, the augmented weapon tore through meat and metal like tissue paper, obliterating the monster's entire right side.
Jack followed up shortly afterwards, flying down from an attack and bisecting the remaining part of the Armorknight cleanly in half. Armorknight Demon exploded into a shower of red fragments instantly, defeated before his body hit the ground.
"Dammit," Rouga snarled in rage. "If that blue-haired brat wasn't here..." But before he could finish his thought, Orpheus was before him with his lyre raised for a crushing blow.
"Wolf!" Cerberus cried out in alarm and he intercepted the earth-shattering strike. The weapons that the hound had used to block to strike began to spark and smoke as the Monster and the Persona locked weapons.
"Orpheus, snap out of it! Don't you remember me?!" Cerberus cried, desperation in his voice for the first time during that entire struggle. The Persona remained silent, only tilting his mechanical head slightly. And to Minato's complete and utter bafflement, his Persona spoke.
"I am not who you seek. I am nothing more than echo of the one you knew as Orpheus, one among many in the Sea of Souls."
"You have his voice, you have his lyre, and you have his skill! How can you not be him?! How can you not be the first friend I ever made?!" Cerberus snarled. Minato was confused by the interaction between the Monster and his own Persona.
How many things had changed during this Loop? He had encountered minor changes to abilities throughout the Loops, but not one so... extensive.
"I inherited his identity and memories, but I am not who you seek. I am merely a reflection. The Orpheus you knew died when his counterpart was destroyed; he drowned in despair and took his own life. I am merely an echo of the person who he once was. An almost perfect echo, but an echo nonetheless."
"I don't care!" Cerberus growled as he pushed back Orpheus with whatever strength he had left. Orpheus complied and allowed himself to be pushed back. "Stop this! I do not wish to fight you."
"Then surrender."
"You know I can't do that..." Cerberus growled. Rouga clenched his fist was he watched his Buddy Monster. He did not envy his position of fighting a former comrade.
But then there was a flash of light, as the barrier slowly began to crumble. Sunlight streamed through the fading curtain of energy before black thunderclouds formed overhead.
"About time," Rouga snarled. But in the back of his mind, a part of him was relieved that Cerberus would not have to fight his former friend. There was a crack of violet thunder before a bolt of energy engulfed the two of them, sending the two to a completely different location.
"They got away..." Tasuku sighed as he looked towards Minato. Although he was relieved that they had only gotten away with three or so of the deck cases, the most recent changes had troubled him: specifically the anomaly that was known as Minato Arisato.
…
Minato exhaled once before he sent his sword back into his Pocket and re-holstered his Evoker. Orpheus dissolved into particles of blue light shortly afterwards and vanished back into dormancy within his mind. He would attempt to ask Orpheus a few questions later on; some of the changes that had occurred during this Fused Loop needed to be answered.
He turned back to Gao and the others and groaned mentally. He still owed them an explanation, and there was a lot of things that he needed to cover.
"You shot yourself again." Gao glared at him, anger simmering in his eyes. "You... You didn't even hesitate. Is your life worth that little to you?"
"It's not that," Minato sighed. "I just don't fear death." As the Looper looked around him at the gathering figures, including Kiri who was quickly catching up with the others, his experience Looping gave him a valuable piece of insight. Normally the Anchor of a Loop had a major role in the events in a Loop's timeline, and Minato was sure that this large scuffle qualified as a major event in the Loop's timeline.
Therefore, the Anchor of the Loop or at least some of the Loopers, should be currently present here.
"There's a lot of things worse than death..." Minato ventured as he observed the expressions of the people around him. "Like being stuck in a Time Loop and being forced to repeat things over and over again."
Minato was adept enough at reading people to recognize a flicker of recognition on every single person present. Except for Gao who just looked confused but still angry.
"Don't try to change the topic!" Gao hissed before Drum had to physically stop him from charging at Minato.
"Enough, Gao. We need to get back to the others. They're probably worried sick. I wouldn't be surprised if they called your Mom already," the dragon rumbled.
Gao wanted to argue but clenched his teeth, "Fine." with those words he stormed off back to the other students at the entrance. Drum sighed as he watched his partner go.
"Sorry about that," the dragon sighed. "Gao's brother died of illness several years ago. It's rare to see him act like this though, your whole shooting yourself thing must have really hit a nerve.
"I see..." Minato frowned before he looked to the others, "I'm guessing the rest of you know what I'm talking about then, correct? About the Loops?"
"The what?" Jack asked.
Minato sighed, "Looks like I'm going to have to explain everything. Weird, usually the Ponies are the ones who do it."
"The what?" Drum echoed.
"...Never mind. Let's just go somewhere private so I can tell the rest of you what's going on."
…
Kiri's house, barely furnished and completely ordinary, lacked the warmth one would typically expected find in a home. It was the home of a person who lived far too long alone. Majority of the furniture was untouched, and only one of the two bedrooms had been used recently. There was no TV installed, only a small table that only Kiri used. Indeed, only Kiri and occasionally Joker had ever set foot in this place more than once throughout the resets.
The exterior of the house was modest and simple enough that everybody who saw it merely turned a blind eye to it. It was registered under Kiri's father, who also did not actually exist. As such it was the perfect place for private discussion without the danger of eavesdropping.
"Sorry about the mess. I didn't expect to have anybody over... well, ever," the disguised Omni-Lord admitted as he started preparing a few small snacks and refreshments. "Gao's place is a lot better to have people over. Since my human identity involves me moving around a lot, I don't really have that many things to pack when I do move."
"Human identity?" Minato inquired. Kiri smiled before he stepped out of the kitchen and concentrated. There was a torrent of light and water and before the Looper's eyes Kiri had changed.
Kiri was now cloaked in silver and black armor with gold trimmed sapphires set into his boots, gauntlets, and breastplate. A white cape with a gold rim curved around him protectively as the three horns circled his head like a crown.
"My real name is Miserea, Third Omni Water Lord of Dungeon World. It is a pleasure to greet you properly, Minato," he nodded ever so slightly and when Minato acknowledged it, Kiri shifted back into his more ordinary human form.
"You're taking Miserea's identity well," Tasuku noted. Minato shrugged in response.
"Nothing really surprises me anymore," Minato shrugged before Kiri brought out a few glasses of water and a single cup of soda.
"Thanks Kiri," Drum said as he took the single cup of soda, deciding to forgo his normal form for his teenage, or as Paruko called it his 'bishie', form (although Drum for the love of him never really figured out what that word meant). Everybody else simply took their glasses of water.
"So, you ready to explain what is going on?" Jack asked. Minato shook his head.
"I'm not good at explaining. My friend will do it." Minato got up and concentrated; it would have been impolite to use his Evoker here as Kiri's guest. He reached into his own psyche and found a dark spark in the depths of his soul. It took a little effort but Minato grasped onto that dark spark and pulled.
The others could feel something shift in the air, as all of them felt at an instinctual level that something was very, VERY wrong. The blue energy that heralded Orpheus' manifestation was completely absent: and instead next to Minato the space next to him seemed to recoil and shift. There was a small crack in what seemed to be reality itself that hovered and grew, before a pair of white gloved hands shot out of the crack and pulled.
"What the hell!?" Drum exclaimed as he bolted back from the table, shifting into his Omni-Lord form alongside Jack and Joker. Tasuku and Kiri backed away slowly with the latter shifting into his true form.
What emerged from the crack oozed wrongness from its very frame. The abomination that emerged from the crack in reality was cloaked in a black garb and with silver chains. Around his shoulders lay an array of coffins, creating an eerie and unsettling set of wings. Sheathed at its side was a silver blade with a serrated edge that seemed to devour the light around it. The figure's fanged fanged silver mask, its teeth as sharp as razors and a maw as black as the abyss itself opened to scream forth the wail of the-
"Ryoji, cut it out," Minato frowned. The mask snapped closed as it looked at Minato almost... petulantly?
"You're no fun," a voice echoed throughout the room. It was a voice that DID not match its owner, reminding one more of a high school play-boy rather than the grim harbinger of death itself.
"We're guests here. It's not polite to go full Thanatos when we're being hosted here."
"You always summon Orpheus Telos and not me," the grim figure huffed. "Am I not good enough for you anymore?"
"I didn't want to traumatize everyone within a mile radius of me. Now go into your other form so you can help me explain the Loops."
The figure, the one that Minato had called Thanatos, sighed in exasperation before he shifted forms. The were a pulse of blue energy as the wings, the sword, and the mask vanished into the ether, leaving a pale boy a few years older than Minato and Tasuku in its place.
"Yo," Ryoji waved at the shell-shocked Monsters and the lone human. "Did I give you a good scare? I've been practicing that for a while!"
"Ryoji..." Minato warned.
"Fine, fine. You better make it up to me though. Maybe if we did a Buddyfight together..."
"It's a waste of time."
"You're no fun as usual." Ryoji pouted before he turned towards the others. "Flies might fly in if your mouth is open like that." he winked.
Miserea was the first person to regain his composure, followed by Jack, Tasuku, and finally Drum.
"Did you just summon the 4th Knight of the Apocalypse to help you explain?" Drum asked. Ryoji tilted his head.
"4th Knight of the Apocalypse? No, you must have gotten confused with Pale Rider." At the blank expression from everyone else save Minato, Ryoji rolled his eyes.
"Really? You know, the Pale Rider from the Book of Revelations, 'and all of Hell followed him'. Does that ring a bell?" When everybody shook their heads Ryoji grinned.
"No," Minato shot back. Ryoji deflated.
"Come on, please? I never got to do this before! You let Orpheus do it earlier!"
Minato pinched the bridge of his nose, anticipating the headache that was going to happen. "Fine. But only do the voice. No transformation."
"I'll have to make do with that," Ryoji sighed as he cleared his throat.
"I am Thou. And Thou art I. From the sea of thy soul, I come. I am the end of the beaten path. I am the herald of the endless night. I am Thanatos, Harbinger of Nyx. From thine I was born, and by thy side I shall walk."
When those echoing words finished, Ryoji let out a mischievous grin, "Well, what do you think? Was I impressive or what?"
"...I expected the grim reaper to be, you know. A bit more grim," Drum deadpanned. "But anyway, about that explanation..."
"Alright then," Ryoji clapped his hands together as projection equipment manifested into the air around him and hummed to life. "So there's this tree called Yggdrasil..."
…
Drum's head hurt from the sheer amount of information that Ryoji had thrown his way. He hadn't even understood half of the terms that Ryoji had used, like 'Fused Loop', 'Branch', 'Sakura Syndrome'... He wasn't really the kind of dragon who was interested in the tiny details. That was more of Axia's thing. He then realized that he would have to explain all of this all over again to the dragowizard, and resolved to get help from Tasuku.
"So basically," Tasuku summarized as he looked up from his notes. "The computer that runs the multi-verse is currently being repaired, and time is Looping to keep everything from falling apart?"
"Pretty much," Ryoji answered. "You, Drum, are the Anchor. You're essentially the guy who's keeping everything held together right now and you're always the one who remembers everything."
"Yeah I know... But, why me? Why not Gao?" Drum asked.
"Gao is 12 years old; he's not as stable as you are." Minato replied.
Ryoji sighed. "Listen up Drum. I know you're upset that your friend isn't Awake, that is that he doesn't remember anything. But it'll only be a matter of time before he does become Awake. You just have to be patient."
"I know..." Drum said. "It's just that..."
Minato sighed as he took off his headphones and laid a hand on Drum's shoulder, much to the dragon's and Ryoji's surprise. "I know it hurts; I've been in your situation before. Hang in there, you can pull through it. I know you're strong enough. When he does Awaken, it will be worth the wait. Okay?"
Drum flinched at Minato's touch before he sighed. "I... thanks, I guess." Minato nodded in response before he put went back to his seat.
Ryoji whistled, "Wow I'm jealous. Minato never did anything like that with anyone in Baseline. That's the original timeline by the way, just in case you forgot. Aand I think that's it."
"Not quite," Jack rumbled. "You still need to explain your powers. Tasuku's superiors are going to expect a report about your powers and capabilities. Although both Tasuku and I wish to tell some of them to shove it, we're quite curious ourselves."
"I can help explain it," Joker preened. "Even without these resets I've guided Miserea ever since Yamigeddo was originally sealed all those years ago. After searching my memories, I finally managed to find what I was looking for. Please correct me if I'm wrong, Minato."
When Minato nodded in agreement Joker cleared his throat.
"The thing that caught my interest was this 'Sea of Souls' that you kept talking about. I'm sure all Monsters have at least heard some equivalent of it. In Dungeon World, we call it Amala."
"You mean the Lunar Forest? The afterlife?" Drum inquired before he frowned. "Weird, I don't recall anything like that during Baseline. But right now I'm remembering it perfectly."
"That would be Loop memories," Ryoji explained. "Sometimes when a Loop starts your memories are different. Sometimes the changes are small, but other times you might find yourself in a completely different world!"
"Anyway, in Amala all who die have their souls pass through Amala to be reborn anew. Since Cerberus has told us that Orpheus is dead, here's my theory. Do correct me if I'm wrong." Joker replied. "You are either Orpheus reborn anew in this world, which I highly doubt, or you are somehow summoning Orpheus' spirit, or rather something that mimics his spirit, into the world around you."
"Partially correct," Minato acquiesced. "I draw Personas from the sea of souls, or rather the collective unconscious. Orpheus is as much of a part of me as my soul is. My ego and my very being chose to take that form and power. I did not know Orpheus had existed before in this world."
"So in other words: the reason why you can summon Orpheus is because... your mind fit that form better than other things?" Drum asked. Minato nodded.
"That's one way of looking at it," the blue-haired Looper replied before he looked at the time. "It's getting late. I think it would be best to meet up here again later. Will that be enough information to satisfy your superiors?"
"That should be enough. I'll just tell them that you don't really understand the exact details behind it yourself," Tasuku replied as he and Jack got up. "Thank you for the explanation. That cleared things up quite a bit."
"I'll teach you the Ping and how to create a Subspace Pocket. The Ping's useful for figuring out who is Awake during a Loop and the Pocket helps you transfer objects between Loops."
"Ugh, I'm going to lie down for a bit. My brain hurts..." Drum groaned. "But thanks anyway."
You three can stay here if you want," Kiri offered to Ryoji, Minato, and Drum. "Just give me a moment to clean up the guest beds. I'll make sure to give Gao a call to let him know."
"I'll pass. Gao's probably waiting at home for me. He's had enough time to cool down so I'll head back. Thanks for the offer though," the Anchor replied before he exited out of the house. As he looked up into the night sky Drum was filled with determination. Although there was a lot of pressure, being the anchor of his own native reality was definitely not something to be taken lightly, it was comforting that he was chosen for this job.
"Alright then Gao. I'll wait for you to wake up. And when you do, I'm going to show you how strong I've become." Drum clenched his fist and walked off into the night, his stride was a lot stronger and he stood a little taller as he vanished into the night.
[Digital Devil Saga], [Future Card Buddyfight]
Digital Devil Buddies (title assigned by compiler) – parts 1 and 2
Drum had lost count of the times that he had stood in front of the giant coliseum that was currently hosting the ABC Cup; a ploy to open up a portal to Darkness Dragon World and unleash an army to destroy the human world for Kyoya and his 'friends' to rule over. Unfortunately neither Kiri, Tasuku, or Jack were going to be Awake this time around. He had already met up with Axia and confirmed that had all of his memories intact. But there was something else that was bothering the Anchor ever since the Loop had started.
'I got five responses to the Ping early onto the Loop... So who the heck of the last two people?' he wondered to himself.
One of Gao's otherwise most admirable characteristics was going to be a bit of a pain. Had it been anybody else but Kyoya or that cheating scumbag Davide, Drum would have supported his partner's decision every step of the way. But this time was an exception.
"Gao I understand you want to talk to Kyoya, but trust me it never works out," Drum sighed.
"You don't know that! It could be different this time!" Gao protested. "I know him better than I did last time."
"That's what you said last time we got to this point in the Loop," Drum replied. "And the time before that. I know you want to try to change things but, you just have to just have to know when to cut your losses..."
"I'm not giving up on him."
"I'm not telling you to give up on him," Drum insisted as the two made their way closer to the complex. "I'm telling you to be patient. You won't be able to convince him right NOW, so just try again after the tournament."
Gao looked like he wanted to protest but he grudgingly accepted his Buddy's proposal as the two made their way closer to the tournament venue. But before either of them could even take another step forwards a familiar voice caught both of their attentions.
"Drum-kins! Gao-wow!" Axia called out the the blue dragon waved his hand frantically. Drum instinctively flinched as he anticipated the flying glomp from the affectionate dragon... which never came strangely enough. The red dragon took a moment to realize that, for once, Axia didn't shower him with affection for the first time that he consciously remembered.
"Hey, Axia!" Gao waved back enthusiastically as the monster trotted forward happily, "You look like you're in a good mood. What's the occasion? I thought you left to find your Buddy."
Axia looked positively radiant with joy as he got closer. "Yep! I did. I searched far and wide for so long, but I finally found my Buddy!"
Drum blinked as he processed what he just said, "Wait, what!?" Axia had never found his Buddy in Baseline, especially not this early on.
"Yep, I'll introduce you to him!" Axia chirped as he looked over his shoulder. "Hey, over here! Come and meet my friends!" he called out behind him. And Drum watched two figures emerged from the crowd: a boy and a girl that were at least a few years older than Gao.
The girl was dressed in light gray jacket with orange sleeves along with a medium length black skirt. A pair of sleek, knee-high boots with white stockings completed the look. Her eyes and hair were a deep onyx, almost like the night sky, and the gentle smile on the girl's pale face that set the dragon at ease for some reason that Drum couldn't really explain. She almost radiated a warm aura like the sun itself.
The boy wore what looked like an... armored jacket of some sort with a bright orange stripe emblazoned across the chest. A matching set of somewhat armored pants and steel-toed boots completed the ensemble, making the boy stick out like a sore thumb among the lightly clothed civilians around him. It honestly looked like the boy was geared up for combat rather than just a casual walk around the city. The silver hair and the piercing silver eyes did not really help. His skin was as pale as Sera's and there was nothing but a neutral frown on his face that betrayed no emotion.
But the one thing that caught Drum's attention was the simple black tattoo on the boy's left cheek: an eyeless maw with a fan-like crown on the top of it. It reminded Drum of a large geyser or fountain for some reason.
"So," Axia clapped his hands together. "This is my Buddy Serph and his sister Sera. Serph and Sera, these are my friends Gao-wow and Drum-kins."
"It's nice to meet you," the girl, Sera, replied as she smiled at Drum and Gao. "Axia told us a lot about you."
"Good things I hope," Drum chuckled.
"He did," the boy, Serph stated. "He has a very high opinion of you and he really cares about you as a friend."
"Aww, shucks Serph. You're making me blush," Axia chimed as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. A flicker of a smile flashed across Serph's face before it vanished without a chase.
Sera laughed softly, "You kept talking about how excited you were to introduce us to your friends. I remember that you tried to get the both of us to practice-"
"Sera!" Axia cried out indignantly before the effeminate dragon pouted, "You promised that you wouldn't tell them."
"Sorry about that," the girl giggled. "But aren't you two supposed to head to the registration desk? Axia told us that you two were competing."
Gao shrugged, "No big deal. We still have plenty of time. Come one, this way! We might be able to get you some good seats. Then we can introduce you to the rest of the team!" with those words Gao charged off past the crowd and towards the place where the registration desk always seemed to be.
"Well then, we better catch up before Gao leaves us all behind... again," Drum sighed as he looked towards Serph, Sera and the exuberant Axia who was holding the hand the smiling Sera with one hand and the somewhat uncomfortable but tolerating Serph with the other. It had been a while since he last saw Axia this... bright and cheerful. He had been searching for a Buddy throughout most of the Loops and he had yet to find a single one. Until this time around at least.
Although Axia was way too clingy for his liking and he violated his personal space more times than he could count, Drum was happy for him.
…
Ten to fifteen minutes later Serph, Sera, Drum, Axia, and Gao were making their ways down the halls in order to meet up with the other member's of Gao's Buddyfight team, the Baille du Sollei.
"You have no idea how long it took to convince Serphy to start playing Buddyfight!" Axia replied, not noticing Serph twitch at the use of his Axia-made nickname. "But thanks to Sera we're both in it to win it!"
"Maybe we'll be able to fight sometime!" Gao grinned, "Don't worry, Drum and I will be sure to give you a few pointers."
"Thank you," Serph acknowledged as he glanced around to ensure nobody else was around. "Axia told us that you had some... problems with Loops."
Drum blinked, "Wait, you two were the ones who sent out the other two Pings?" Serph and Sera nodded in response.
"I found out from them later after I became Serph's Buddy!" Axia cheered. "We were meant to meet!"
Drum rolled his eyes good-naturedly at Axia's comment. Serph and Sera seemed to allow Axia to have his fun, although Drum could tell that they both were enjoying just listening to Axia's jovial laughter and teasing.
"So, how are you two liking this Loop?" Gao asked casually as the five went down to the team waiting area.
"It's... a lot more peaceful than where we are from," Serph remarked. "We really like it a lot here."
"We don't get that many Loops like this," Sera chimed with a bright smile on her face. "So both Serph and I are going to enjoy this as much as we can."
"How was it like back in your home Loop?" Drum asked curiously. Serph and Sera's small smiles vanished nigh instantly and there was a stretch of silence between the group.
"We'd... rather not talk about it," Sera replied as she broke eye contact with Drum.
"Sorry about that," the Anchor apologized awkwardly as he looked ahead, desperate to change the topic. "Hey, isn't that Tetsuya and the others?" he asked, pointing towards a small group 4 teenagers and a single, tall, monster further down the hall. Among them was Gao's old friends Baku and Kurugu. But next to the tall monster was a smaller kind in a yellow hoodie and a white cap that was spun backwards.
"Alright let's introduce you to everyone else!" Gao cheered as went ahead. "Hey guys, over here!" he called out.
"Yo, Gao! What took you so long?" Tetsuya asked, his emerald eyes twinkling behind his golden hair. Accompanying him was a large, well-built... demon for the lack of a better term. He wore a short hooded shirt over his pink-skinned body with a spaded tail resting behind him. It was Asmodai, the Second Omni Lord.
"Sorry, Axia met up with us out front and we got carried away talking," Gao explained sheepishly. "I thought that I could get him and his Buddy some good seats."
"Zanya and Akatsuki already went ahead," Baku replied. "They wanted to scout ahead for our first few opponents. So, you mind introducing them?"
"Oh, right!" Gao realized. "Tetsuya, Asmodai, Kurugu, Baku this is Serph and Sera. Serph's Axia's Buddy."
"It is nice to meet the rest of you," Sera replied kindly. Serph nodded in acknowledgement but remained somewhat silent.
"Same here," Kurugu replied. "It's nice to see another girl around here."
"That's an... interesting mark you've got there Serph." Asmodai replied casually as he peered at the tattoo on Serph's face. Drum noticed that something was a bit off with the Magic World monster; he had his guard up. For some reason, that mark on Serph's face had bothered him immensely. But why?
"I think it looks pretty cool," Tetsuya chimed. "But come we better get a move on! The first match starts in a few minutes. We don't want to be late!"
"Lead the way!" Gao was already charging ahead of the group towards the team's pit. With a knowing groan the rest of Gao's friends quickly decided to follow after the energetic Looper.
"Oi, can I talk to Axia and Serph for a sec?" Asmodai called out before they left. "We need to do some catch up and talk about Magic World stuff!"
"Just make it quick!" Tetsuya called out as Sera was led away by Kurugu. "I'll make sure to save you a good seat!"
When loud chattering group of people finally moved elsewhere, the smile on Asmodai's face vanished instantly as he turned to Serph.
"Listen up, I'm not the kind of person to judge other people by their looks but that tattoo of yours... It's awfully familiar to me," Asmodai stated coldly.
"I never wanted it," Serph replied flatly as he met the Monster's gaze without so much as flinching. "If I could have gotten rid of it for good, I would have already done so years ago."
"I already know WHAT Serph is," Axia hissed, shifting into his larger form. Gone was the small and petite dragon in the small black robe, and in his place was a lithe dragon battle-mage clad in black and gold armor. A winged staff was clenched in his right hand and a thick tome of spells lay in his left. "And I don't care. He's my Buddy, and that's all that matters to me."
Asmodai raised an hairless eyebrow in response. "Do you really know?"
"It was the first thing he told me when I first asked to be his Buddy. And I still agreed to it because in the end, what he was didn't matter to me. All that did matter to me was the kind of person he was. And if you so much as lay a finger on him..." A storm of arcane energy filled the air with latent electricity, surrounding the dragowizard like a cloak of tightly harnessed potential. "I will END you, Omni Lord or not."
"Relax, relax," Asmodai relented. "Like I said, I'm not the kind of monster to judge people at face value. But keep in mind, others might not take kindly to your friend here. Just wanted to give you a heads up, and to make sure you knew what you were getting into." With those words Asmodai put his arms behind his head and walked off to meet up with the others.
Axia glared at Asmodai once before shifting back into his smaller form. "I swear."
"...Thanks." Serph replied simply. Axia turned back with a bright grin on his face.
"No problem, anything for my Buddy~" the dragon cooed. "Come on, let's catch up with the others. They're probably getting sick of waiting for us." He grabbed Serph by the hand before leading the silver-haired Looper down the hallway. There was a small smile on Serph's face, one that was impossible to see if you didn't know where to look.
…
The night sky was clear; a deep blue with countless pinpricks of light streaming down from above. No matter how many times Serph saw the miraculous dance of light and darkness above him, he never grew sick of it. In his home world all he knew was the endless silver rain of the Junkyard, where his tribe fought and annihilated its enemies. The night, Shade Time as they had called it back then, had no such things as stars; only a pitch blackness that swallowed everything around them. And even when he and his tribe escaped the Junkyard, all they ever saw was scorching black sun sending endless streams of corrupted data down into the surface of the dying earth.
The moon shone brightly overhead, sending its silver light cascading upon the grass outside of Gao's house while the celebratory party of passing the first round of the Gaen Cup was underway. Serph had chosen to forgo the ceremonies and simply enjoy the relative peace and quiet while it lasted.
Here, at least, there was no constant struggle for survival. The endless fighting, destroying, killing that had permeated every aspect of his home was notably absent. It was a pleasant feeling that he never truly gotten used to despite countless Loops. Sera was more accustomed to brightness of life: she freely made connections and with everyone around her and wove a network of friends nearly effortlessly. Serph, on the other hand, did not feel the need to forge so many intimate connections. The connections with the other members of his tribe: Gale, Agrilla, Cielo, and Heat were more than enough for him. They had conquered and fought side by side, back to back in the quicksilver rain. They had destroyed the other five tribes of the Junkyard to make their way to the world beyond. And even after that, they once more fought under a black and corrupted sun to reclaim and renew the barren Earth beneath them.
What bonds could he truly forge here in this place of peace that would be even comparable to the ones he had already made? Serph only knew the ways of the Junkyard, after all. He was more comfortable in the throes of combat than at a party. He had negotiated between tribes: but he never truly gotten accustomed to making conversations with the ease and grace that Sera had. He was born in the battlefield and lived all of his life there. Now that he came across a place almost completely devoid of combat, he was at a loss of what to do.
REND! SLAUGHTER! DEV-
Serph buried the spike of blood-lust and hunger with practiced ease. There was no need for fighting in this world; there was no enemy to fight yet. In this world he was not truly needed in the ways that his home world had required of him. He did not need Varuna this Loop.
The sliding door opened as a wave of sound was suddenly released into the night air followed by the creaking strain of the deck of the porch. Serph glanced behind him, expecting Axia or Sera to call him back in for something. He did not expect a very tall and broad red dragon that Drum had called his 'dad'. Fang Slade Terrestrial XIII resembled his son closely, although he was much taller Drum was. His skin, crossed and marred by countless scars was dull with age but was still just as strong, if not stronger. Fang's hair was a pale white hue and his eyes were a piercing silver. His armor was worn and rang softly as the older monster took a few steps forward. Serph's silver eyes met Fang's gray eyes for a short moment before the dragon broke eye contact first with a huff.
"You mind if you moved over? The others kids are making on heck of a racket inside, I just wanted to get some fresh air real quick before I headed back in." the dragon rumbled. Serph nodded as he gave the much larger dragon room. Fang rumbled as he appraised the silver-haired Looper before him.
"You know, your Buddy really admires you a lot. It's rare to see someone so devoted, and I've seen a lot!" the dragon laughed before his expression grew serious once more. "But I can see what he's talking about when I take a good look at you, kid."
"What do you see?" Serph asked. Fang huffed before obliging Serph's request.
"I see someone who had seen too much. You've got a warrior's eyes. Not only that, but you've got a leader's eyes. You've lived through things that most of the kids back over there could never really grasp. Makes sense though: the only fight majority of them have seen was Buddyfights. They haven't seen what real fighting's like. Not like how you and I know it."
"You don't know me."
"Of course I don't, we've just met each other after all. But I think we're similar enough for me to take an educated guess. Ruling the largest tribe in Dragon World isn't just about mediating arguments and doing ceremonies. Back in my day when my world was still in turmoil I personally destroyed six of the warring kingdoms there, all in the name of peace. I've had my fair share of blood and death, but then again I'm not an Asura like you are."
Serph sighed, "First Asmodai and then you. I was hoping that it wouldn't be so obvious."
"The Asura are the kind of stuff that parents used to tell their kids to scare them. After all, nothing's scares a bunch of hatch-lings like stories of shape-shifting cannibals. It's one thing for a Monster to obtain a human form... But a human obtaining a monster form? That's something else entirely. The brand on your cheek gives you away for those who know the signs. But those are only the ancient monsters. Most monsters these days only think of the Asura as the stuff of legends."
"Did you come to threaten me to not eat your son?" Serph asked flatly. Fang shook his head.
"As much as I give him trouble, my son's strong enough to take care of himself. He's really changed since the last time I saw him. Sometimes it's like I'm looking at a completely different person!" the dragon rumbled with a small bit of melancholy in his voice. "Besides, I'm a pretty good judge of character. You're not the type of person that would eat people left and right, and you're not the kind of person that would go back on his word. You only fight as a last resort when there is no other option, despite everything that you've gone through. Am I right?"
Serph acknowledged his assessment with nothing more than a small nod, and that seemed to satisfy the older dragon before something akin to a curiosity colored his expression.
"But, you know... Call it an old dragon's whim but I've never seen really seen an Asura in person before and I only heard second-hand information about their strength. Would you mind if you-?"
"I'm not the best at Buddyfight."
"I'm not interested in that. I'm interested in your true strength. I can give you a place to... stretch your legs if you know what I mean. We'll be back before anyone else knows it."
Serph considered the offer briefly and in the end, as much as he enjoyed the peace and quiet, both he and his Asura side both longed for combat.
"Very well," he sighed before Fang nodded in acknowledgment. The dragon laid a hand on his shoulder and they both vanished with a flurry of golden fragments.
…
Serph found himself in a deserted plain in a completely different world. The air was fresh and tranquil; the atmosphere was still and silent. But there was something about this place that resonated deeply within Serph's unconscious mind. The ground was cracked and beaten as jagged mountains dotted the landscape and loomed over head.
"Welcome to Dragon World," a voice called out from the shadows. Serph turned behind him and we greeted by an intimidating sight. Fang stood unwavering before him with his dull armor shining the stars and moon. But his posture was upright and rigid and he looked towards Serph with a piercing gaze. "This place in particular used to be a desolate battle-field torn apart by the warring clans. I fought here more than my fair share of times personally, but nowadays nobody even comes near this place due to how many people died here. We won't be disturbed at all."
A corona of fire and energy engulfed Fang's entire body, wreathing his scarred physique in a brilliant nova of color. "It is customary for the person being challenged to take the first move. Your move, Asura."
Serph closed his eyes and exhaled. He turned his focus within, to the being that was as much of a part of Serph as his very soul and being was. He had long since accepted his other side, although he had not embraced the savagery and hunger that came hand in hand with his powers. There was no denying his hunger for battle; that there was some part of him that longed for strife and violence. But with that acceptance came power and understanding. Varuna was always at his side and was eager to heed his call. He raised his right hand to the dark brand on his cheek and whispered a single mantra to shatter the chains.
"Om mani padme hum."
A vortex of water and ice formed instantly around Serph's glowing form before it too was rent asunder in a burst of light and force. When the storm parted Varuna, Lord of Ice and Water, roared in triumph to the moonlit sky. Its skin was black and blue in color with nimble digit-grade legs. Thick plates of sharp bone covered its arms, shoulders, and torso as a natural form of armor. Its eyes were hidden beneath a tall crown of shell and bone as the monster bared its sharp teeth with a hiss.
"Impressive," Fang remarked before Varuna surged forward. The armored monstrosity advanced with ground-breaking strides with each step creating a ring of frost with each foot fall. Within less than a second the Asura had closed the distance between the two combatants as it brought a chilling roundhouse kick to dragon's left side. The dragon did not even attempt to move out of the way; only bringing up an arm to lazily block the attack.
BANG!
There was a hiss of steam as Fang blocked the wild kick without so much as flinching before returning with a empowered strike of his own while Varuna was off-balance. The Asura redirected the momentum of his attack to quickly create distance between the two combatants, barely avoiding the otherwise devastating attack.
"Not bad," the dragon grunted as he shook his arm. The kick made by Varuna had left a patch of his arm burned raw by the icy cold that the Asura exuded but Fang merely pushed the pain aside as he waited to counter Varuna's next move.
Although the demonic Looper had many Loops worth of experience to draw upon, the fact that this impromptu duel was non-lethal made it exceedingly difficult for him draw upon his more destructive spells. Under the same reasoning, the blades that were stored in his arms couldn't be used in this scenario; all he could really do was to enhance his kicks and strikes with ice energy. It didn't really help that his current opponent currently utilized fire, his elemental weakness, to a masterful degree.
He drew upon the well of energy within himself as the surrounding air temperature dropped to near absolute zero, flash-freezing the ground around him before manifesting several spikes of pure ice from around the dragon. With but a single gesture the Asura sent the frozen projectiles through the air, whistling as they cut through the frigid air.
But such a simple attack was useless against Fang, who cloaked his body in a nova of heat and charged forwards against the storm of ice. The spikes, held together by Varuna's will were quickly pushed aside and shattered upon contact with Fang's empowered strikes. And before Varuna could even think of dodging, Fang had already gotten back into close-combat range with his fist raised. The Asura could only put up a hasty block before the attack slammed home with a sizzling impact.
Varuna was sent skidding backwards as he felt his arms almost shatter from the colossal attack. The corona of fire only made things worse. But it looked like his opponent hadn't remained completely unscathed.
"Ow!" Fang hissed as he shook his hand. "What is that armor even made out of?!" he cursed. Varuna looked down at where Fang's attack had landed and noted bloody marks where the dragon's unarmored fist had met his natural plated armor.
It took Varuna conscious effort to take his mind off of the tempting sight of fresh blood and refocus on the fight ahead of him. He could feel the hunger slowly begin to make its way through his mind; the urge to devour was growing stronger and stronger with each passing second. But for some reason he could not truly explain, it seemed to be... weaker than how he remembered it to be.
But when Fang charged again with a powerful stride all Varuna could afford to think about was the fight ahead. If nothing else, trying to defeat an opponent like this without resorting to his strongest skills was an interesting challenge.
…
"Will that be enough?" Varuna asked, his voice raspy and distorted. He had long since lost track of time that he and the dragon had spent in this abandoned battle-field. Fang blinked in confusion as he aborted the attack he was about unleash upon Varuna's scorched and beaten body. The dragon himself had his own wounds and bruises from the long and toiling battle between them.
"Is that all?" Fang asked, acting like he hadn't just spent the last four hours fighting fighting against against an the metaphorical bogeyman of the monster Worlds. The elder dragon hadn't even looked the least winded compared to the mentally fatigued Varuna.
"Any more and I might try to kill you," Varuna growled. "And once I get started, I may not be able to stop before one of us dies."
"Fine, we'll cut it off here," Fang nodded before he turned his attention elsewhere. "Although we've attracted quite an audience."
"Audience?" Varuna growled as he looked around before he froze. Along the very edge of his active awareness lay several scattered crowds of dragons, all of which had watched the titanic battle between the clan leader and the outsider.
Varuna hadn't truly noticed them before; such as his focus on the enemy before him and upon restraining the more savage impulses of his current form that he hadn't truly realized that they were there. All of the spectators had stayed just far enough to stay out of the collateral destruction and chaos and to avoid Varuna's passive instincts.
The collected dragons had bore an veritable array of weaponry and armors; indications of the various clan affiliations and races. And they now all cheered and hollered towards the end of the long and toiling fight, which filled Varuna with... something that he never felt before. Was it pride? Triumph? He had previously fought solely to survive and to defend himself and those he considered his allies. It was an unknown feeling that was not completely unpleasant.
"We should probably head back soon, it looks like the sun's about to come up," Fang snapped Varuna out of his thoughts. The Asura nodded before he centered himself, and exhaled. The vortex of light reappeared as the identity of Serph reasserted itself over Varuna. And when the light cleared, the silver haired teen was himself once more; the only sign of his transformation was the dimming brand on his face.
Serph wobbled before a second before he reached into his Pocket and withdrew three crimson capsules. They were tiny things; large enough to only hold a few drops of crimson liquid but Serph swallowed them down regardless, ignoring the taste of iron and gel in his mouth. As he reoriented himself, he could feel the blood capsules begin lull Varuna into a deep slumber once more as the residual hunger vanished for the moment.
"The others are probably going to be panicking," Serph blanched as the elder dragon shrugged.
"They'll understand once we explain everything. Let's get going."
The dragon and human departed for the human world in a shower of golden sparks, leaving the spectators gossiping and chattering about what had happened.