Ambrosius, the Spirit of Creation
Following Jinn's directions upon leaving her realm, Aqua walked in the direction of the grassy plains. As she walked, Aqua noticed everything beginning to change around her and the ground beneath her had vanished. Aqua panicked for a moment, thinking she was going to fall or suffocate since there was not a planet anymore but to her shock nothing happened. Instead of the blackness of space she floated in a multi-colored void.
"Well, well, what do we have here?"
Aqua looked up and saw a man who looked similar to Jinn and Drasil. He had the same blue skin was larger than a human with the ears and eyes. The difference was that he had short spiky blue hair in a ponytail leading down to his thighs. Like Jinn he appeared nude while missing some human anatomy(much to Aqua's relief) and wore golden accessories like Jinn: the golden earrings, a ring for his pony tail, an arm ring on his left upper arm, bracers on his wrists with chains dangling from them like broken shackles, vine like ornaments on right thigh and lower left leg and an ankle bracelet on his right n chains around his torso crossing his chest and terminating in a point.
"A Human is somehow in my realm. Now this is a rare occasion." The man leaned in with an eager grin. "And you're not an ordinary human are you? You have the scent of magic on you but different from the first batch of humanity."
"I…" Aqua looked down, seeing the void they were in. "My name is Aqua. Are you Ambrosius?"
"That I am!" The spirit known as Ambrosius happily introduced himself with a bow. "Now if you are worried about not being on solid ground, try to imagine this forest as something else. Think of a planet you have been to and project that image. Remember to consider the images, the shapes, the color, and the smells."
Aqua took a deep breath and did as she was told. She tried to imagine her home, the Land of Departure as she best as she could recall despite it falling into darkness. She remembered the clear sunny weather, the mountain, and the temple she raised born in.
Then to her surprise the void slowly morphed into an exact copy of her former home, standing before the temple
"A wonderful first try." Ambrosius praised as he enjoyed the scenery. "Such detail too. I love it when they come with a clear image in mind. The exactness, the attention to every conceivable detail. It is always so beautiful."
"This was my home." Aqua said, sadness and longing in her voice.
Ambrosius noticed the sad look on her face and sighed. "Oh boy. I am not one for emotional support and all that. I just build and create things. I am an artist, an entrepreneur, not a psychiatrist. You'd be better of seeking for that kind of help from Nimue."
Not that she would be of much help in that regard.
Aqua sighed as she faced Ambrosius. "I came for help because I am lost. Drasil sent me here so I could find answers. First she sent me to Jinn who answered my question and she sent me to find you because might be able to help."
"Oh, a chance to engage my creative wiles! All I say it better be worth it after my last project. A floating city?" Ambrosius rolled his eyes in disdain. "How pedestrian."
Aqua ignored that. "So you can help me?"
"Sure. Just as you know, I'll make what you want exactly the way you want it and I want no complaints when it doesn't turn out the way you want." Ambrosius said as if he knew exactly was going to happen.
"I need a way to return back to my world." Aqua explained. "" Can you create a door or perhaps some sort of vehicle capable of traversing worlds?"
"Sure, I can. I just need coordinates and specs for building a door through space and time and if you want to make a vehicle I need to know the shape, what powers it and what it will be made of." Ambrosius answered.
That surprised Aqua as she hadn't expected that. "…I'm sorry I think this might be harder than I thought. Can you explain how your powers work?"
"Oh sure. Well, first thing is I can't bring the dead back to life but I can make anything as long as you explain how to make it. Like any real blacksmith or artist, I will need references, blueprints, every single detail helps and I can only make one thing. Anything else I have made before will disappear." Ambrosius explained, holding a single finger up and then counted down the rules of his powers.
Aqua then remembered something else he had said. "And you made a floating city last time?"
"Well, I supplied an infinite amount of energy to lift a city up from the surface in the mortal realm." Ambrosius clarified.
"And if you make something for me right now, it will fall back to the surface?" Aqua asked, now imagining a floating city crashing down and everyone dying.
"Well, that is a good question. Now, technically I can only make one thing in the mortal realm while you are somehow in my realm. Just how did you get here again?" Ambrosius asked.
"I was sent here by Drasil. She thought you and Jinn could help." Aqua answered.
"Ah, Drasil. I had no idea she was even still active. After all these years, I figured she up and decided to quit." Ambrosius said dryly. "Anyways, in my realm I can create almost anything, any time. Allow me to demonstrate."
Ambrosius gestured for Aqua to follow which she did, following Ambrosius through sceneries which changed every few dozen meters, turning from some vast cityscape to an elaborate garden teaming with life forms she could never imagine and then to a field of elaborate ice sculptures which seemed to shift and move. "Amazing. It's like anything can exist here!"
"That is rather the point." Ambrosius chuckled softly, "There are no limits here that are imposed everywhere else. Time and space have little meaning here, save what we allow them. Now then, here I am able to create what I please. Outside however, I can only create one thing at a time and the staff that is used as my vessel channels my power to ensure whatever I create exists."
"And right now you are keeping a city afloat." Aqua reasoned as they stopped in the middle of a field. "So you can't create anything else?"
"Well that is not true. I can create what you want me to create here in my realm without sacrificing what I have made outside. However, even if I create a door to another world which I would need the coordinates to, factoring in an explanation for bending space and time to account for your travel from one side and the single point to the other." Ambrosius explained.
Aqua thought over what she had learned in her mind, trying to see if there was a way to make something that could help her. So Ambrosius needs description of what he makes and can only use his power to create one thing at a time outside of his realm along with the fact that even if he makes a doorway to exit this world he can't send her back to the Realm of Light because he doesn't know where it is.
So creating a doorway was out.
Perhaps she would just need a way to recreate her armor and a copy of her old glider so she could leave herself but that still didn't solve the problem of how Ambrosius could only create one thing at a time with his power.
His own power…
"What if you didn't use your power to create something for me?" Aqua asked suddenly.
Ambrosius raised an eyebrow. "And how would I do that?"
Aqua summoned her Keyblade, surprising Ambrosius who stared with wide eyes before leaning in with a magnifying glass.
"Fascinating…" Ambrosius whispered in slight awe. "And what is this?"
"It's called a Keyblade. It's my weapon but it's capable of many things. One of those things is being a natural conduit for magic." Aqua explained, holding it out in both hands for the spirit to see.
Ambrosius floated around Aqua, staring at the Keyblade, admiring its shape and form. "Yes, I can feel a great power in it. Unlike anything I have seen before. How did you make it?"
"Well, the Keyblade chooses its wielders." Aqua explained, deciding she had no choice but to explain. "It has a will of its own and it's born from the hearts of those who are worthy."
"Hearts?" Ambrosius leaned in. "I assume you are not talking about the organ that pumps blood."
"No, I mean the emotional core of a person. One of the three components that form one's being. Hearts are responsible for our emotions, have strong bonds with others and allow us to even feel the emotions of others." Aqua explained. "Those with strong hearts can wield a Keyblade."
"And you say it is a natural conduit for magic?" Ambrosius asked, looking over the Keyblade in detail.
"That's right. Even a novice with no formal training can be capable of rivaling an experienced mage. Perhaps this can be used as loophole." Aqua suggested, holding the Master Defender up to Ambrosius. "Rather than use your own power, you channel your power through the Keyblade to create something new."
"Channel my power through another source of magic? That's never been done before." Ambrosius said with an intrigued look on his face. "And its magical power is unlimited?"
"It only limited by the wielder. If one has experience and is skilled enough it might work." Aqua reasoned.
"I see where you are going with this." Ambrosius said, smiling at the possibilities. "You are connected to this Keyblade because it bonds with your heart as you say, making you a conduit for powerful energies. You could act as a vessel for my power, and I could create what you want through you and this Keyblade. Such a thing has never been done before."
He floated up and around Aqua, conjuring transparent screens that he drew on, twirling in the air to make a series of complex hand gestures, apparently doing some calculations.
"The possibility of a human being able to handle divine energy." Ambrosius muttered, drawing an outline of Aqua and then one of himself. "This is exciting and very dangerous. I don't know what the results are going to be."
"It doesn't have to be very long. Can I project what I want?" Aqua asked.
"By all means." The spirit of creation gestured.
Aqua closed her eyes and focused on creating a copy of herself in front of her. That copy raised her hand one of the armor pieces and in a flash of light she was covered head to toe in armor.
"This is Keyblade Armor. We used it to travel between worlds and it protects from darkness and even space since that's kind of what the Lanes In Between resemble." Aqua explained and then conjured an image of her glider form. "This is a Keyblade in its glider form. Mine doesn't have a glider form unfortunately. If you can't create a portal for me maybe you can recreate the tools I need to leave."
Ambrosius leaned in close, taking in the details of the armor and glider. "Well, it is possible but it would have be done at the same time so I am not creating two things at once. So you conjure the armor from one of the pauldron's but you can't change your Keyblade into one perhaps it is stored in the other paladin."
Aqua looked at the paladin on her right arm. "I suppose that will have to do."
"So we can add magical conjuring, possibly creating a pocket dimension in those spheres which can act as the reference." Ambrosius noted, adding some more details to his calculations. "And what is the power source?"
"My Keyblade." Aqua answered. "It would be the same with my old armor and original Keyblade. All of it is tied to Keyblade which is tied to my Heart."
"Hmm…" Ambrosius brought a hand to his chin before snapping his fingers and smiled. "I love this plan! I'm excited to be a part of it! Let's do it!"
Ambrosius stepped forward and raised his hands as the atmosphere turned dark, making it appear as if it was nighttime and the area around them slowly morphed into what appeared to be a shrine with pillars and statues of alien looking deities lining the walls, its style seemingly gothic with its mix of black and dark blue coloring lining the walls and floor while a glass window shined a pale light on Aqua and a mirror with a watery surface showing the armor and glider she wanted to make.
"Just a reminder, if you die I am forbidden to resurrect the dead." Ambrosius lightly said, floating around her.
Aqua watched as Ambrosius appeared before her, taking a deep breath before he changed into a blue mist and that shot towards her, engulfing her in a bright blue misty light as the impact of the misty formed Ambrosius entering her body through her chest so quickly launched her off the ground and into the air for a moment before she slowly levitated softly back onto the ground and opened her eyes, revealing them to be match for Ambrosius, Drasil and Jinn.
"By…By the worlds." Aqua whispered, looking down at herself.
"As the Spirit of Creation, I was made to guide mankind, creating whatever they deem fit." Ambrosius whispered in Aqua's mind. "You are not from this world and yet you have the same drive and determination that fascinated my creators. Now let us see if you can exceed my expectations."
Aqua clapped her hands to her head as pain began to build within her skull, but over the following moments Ambrosius' voice s began to speak harmoniously, forming a melody as the essence of the Spirit of Creation poured himself through the conduit that was her body and soul, tapping into the flow of her bond with the Keyblade and reaching beyond the boundaries of the rules dictating his existence. She witnessed countless forms, blue prints and ideas that were what Ambrosius created and the knowledge of every creation past and present, made him, humanity and even the gods.
She could see it all.
Every invention.
Every ingredient used to make whatever was the result.
Every living form made by the gods.
For a mere second she saw it all.
"You are viewing the infinite forms of what has been created, Aqua. Block them out, deafen yourself to what could be and focus your vision on what is now."
Aqua did her best to comply, pushing the visions away. She brought her Keyblade up and Ambrosius poured his power through it, harnessing its nature as a natural conduit of magic combined with Aqua's own skills and ideas.
There was a flash of light and she blacked out.