Go to Mistral. Seek knowledge of the Spring Maiden.
And if we find her?
Await us. You are unprepared to combat a Maiden, should such become necessary.
Anything identifying we can use? You're not giving me a lot to go on, here. Roman and I are good, but...
You have witnessed the power of a new Maiden in Cinder Fall. Seek out one who wields magic; who commands the elements.
Neo tapped her foot several times before nodding. Okay. We can work with that. After a moment, she frowned. Listen...I agreed to do your dirty work because it was a better deal than Cinder's. It still is, but you're sending us back into the line of fire, here.
Cinder Fall remains a threat. If you seek security, she must be stymied.
I get it. But I'm asking; if it comes down to it, are we going to have support, or are you going to hang us out to dry? Because if I have to choose between you and death? Or you and Roman?
If you require aid, it will be given.
...Yeah. Right. Look, you mentioned back when this all started...this connection of yours is how those girls learned their new tricks, isn't it?
She took a deep breath, crossing her arms and staring at your avatar. I want it. You want me sabotaging the enemy, that's fine with me – give me the tools I need to do it.
...I will examine our connection. If it is sufficient, that may be possible.
After a long second, Neo nodded once more. We'll see, then. Roman and I will start getting ready.
And with that, you allow her to fade from the Dream.
As she opened her eyes to the Dream, Yang was surprised to find herself alone. Blinking, she looked around the the cliffside that had become the norm for their meetings, her eyes finally catching sight of Obsidian's form.
"Hey, Obsidian...what's up? Are we doing solo training or something...?" She licked her lips, slightly nervous.
Yang Xiao Long. You have come far. If you desire, we may share a Dream.
She glanced to the side, scratching her neck. "Oh, yeah. Uh...you can call me Yang, Obsidian. Feel a little ridiculous being the only one that hasn't asked you yet."
Very well, Yang.
"So...a Dream, huh? Like Rubes and Blake? The whole...magical knowledge deal?"
Yes.
She stared at the sea as she considered it. "Who would I even Dream of? I'm not really...well, you said it. I'm no good at magic. Not the old way."
There is a simple solution. You need not Dream of magic.
Before her, hovering in the air, an image appeared. A tall, muscled blonde amazon, clad in roughly-stitched furs and pelts, a confident smirk on her face. "...Ayla? That bi-uh, the Hero who fights bare-handed?" When Obsidian nodded, she frowned in thought. "...So, what, I'd learn to fight better?"
The lessons learned from a Dream depend on the Dreamer.
"...Right. How do you even pick out our Dreams anyway? Is there some system?"
I search for those past that are echoed in you.
"So, what, I remind you of her? I mean, I can see the resemblance and all, but..." She trailed off, staring at the image before her. Considering Ruby, before and after her Dream of Melchior. She remembered a forge, and a blade of black and crimson.
"...You really think this will help me get stronger?"
Yes.
"Then let's do it. No point hesitating. What do I do?"
The Dream grew hazy around her, as though a fog were seeping out from the very air she was breathing.
Close your eyes, Yang. And listen.
She did.
In the distance, she could almost hear someone calling her.
She spun, gripping the man's shoulder despite the sheen of sweat, pivoting her body around his and sending them both crashing into the dirt. She scrabbled over the larger man, pulling the sharpened rock from her waistcloth and holding it just above his throat.
Below her, Kuna breathed heavily for a moment before finally chuckling. "Ayla young, but strong...Kuna convinced. Tomorrow, Ayla come hunt."
"Yah!" She leapt to her feet with a victorious cry, her bright laughter filling the corner of Ioka village. "Ayla be strongest hunter!"
"One day, if big head not get her eaten!"
The teenage girl stuck her tongue out at the hunter before blinking up at the sun. Then, she reeled back. "Gah! Kuna take too long when lose! Ayla late!" She scrabbled away on all fours, weaving around and through the huts and other tribespeople in her way. A few of them grumbled at her, but all were accustomed to the antics of the Chief's teenage daughter.
{I'd...forgotten what it was like to be a kid like that.}
When she arrived at her mother's hut, she was only lightly out of breath. Hah, run here harder than beat Kuna! Think he big man...
"Ayla late." She winced as her mother's voice whipped across her like a whip. Slowly, head low, she slunk towards the unlit fire pit.
"Kuna fight hard. Ayla win in end, but take long." She paused near the chief, waiting for permission. After a stern look, her mother finally smirked and tapped the stump next to her. Thus invited, Ayla happily hopped up on it, curling her knees under her chin and waiting.
"Ayla hunt soon. Fight, so Ioka live. Maybe fight animal, maybe fight Reptite. Time Ayla learn: what difference between Ioka village and Laruba village?"
She wrinkled her nose at the mention of the other village. "Laruba coward! Hide, not fight. Run and hope Reptite die of boredom! Ioka strong. All Ioka fight Reptite when come!"
Her mother shook her head gently. "Ayla right, but not know story. Sit and listen." As Ayla opened her mouth, she was cut off. "Quietly." Obediently, she closed it and pursed her lips to show how quiet she was. Once satisfied, her mother nodded.
"Many sun and moon before, only one village. Reptite come; fight and lose. But many tribe hurt. Man, woman, kid. Many builder, stone-chopper, gatherer...even herb-man hurt. Chief fight hard, but die killing many Reptite. Leave behind two son: Big strong Ioka, and small clever Laruba." Ayla's eyes widened, and her mother nodded. "Ioka eldest, become new Chief. And Ioka say, 'If all man and woman fight, Reptite never win. We beat Reptite, once and again, until they remember forever.
"But Laruba look at dead and hurt tribe. Look at dead father. Laruba say, 'Too many die. We hide, let Reptite think win. Grow strong, and fight when weak.' Ioka big mad, think Laruba insult dead tribe. 'Why die for, if we run? Abandon village?' Ioka say.
"Laruba beg. No want more dead, but Ioka no listen. Too angry. Ioka forget self, hit Laruba many time. When Ioka pulled away, he realize mistake. When Laruba run, Ioka try to follow, to apologize...but too late. Laruba gone in jungle."
{No...that's not what family is! Family doesn't do that!}
"Over many moon, some tribe vanish. Whisper of Laruba secret hide, talk that Ioka too angry. Ioka let tribe go. Ioka fight Reptite; some time win, some time lose. Many Reptite die; many tribe die. Ioka never forget look on Laruba face. Ioka never stop hope to see brother again.
"But Ioka die, leave new Chief behind. Many sun pass, many moon pass, Ioka tribe still fight. Laruba tribe still hide. Many forget brothers' story. But I no forget, and now Ayla no forget." Her mother looked down at her, still holding her lips pointedly closed even as her eyes shined. Finally, her mother smile. "What Ayla think?"
{...That's...such a shitty ending...}
"Laruba wrong." The words came out before she could even think about them. At her mother's raised eyebrow, she coughed. "If tribe run, Reptite think weak. Take food, take stone."
Her mother sighed. "Yes. But Laruba also right. If whole tribe die, what left?"
Ayla frowned. "Ioka fight long time, still stand."
Her mother ruffled her hair. "Ayla young. Not remember. Ioka many time weak, Reptite almost win. Only cold winter keep away."
She stared into the pit where the fire would be come night, thinking. Imagining. Finally, she stood, one hand in front of her heart. "Fine! If Ioka weak, then Ayla be strong! Ayla fight and win! Ioka live!"
Her mother laughed. "Ayla fight all Reptite? Ayla beat all dino?"
"If must, then yes! Ayla never let Ioka lose!"
With a soft smile, her mother knelt down in front of her. "Ayla strong. And Ayla grow stronger." She placed a hand over hers, pressing it gently against her sternum. "Ayla heart big and strong. But, one day Ayla be chief, and must remember lesson of Ioka."
She'd never forget the look in her mother's eyes as she spoke.
"When Ayla chief, Ayla choose. Ayla heart never chief; never choose."
The Reptites had ranged out from their lair, swarming the Mystic Mountains. Ayla had no idea what their purpose was...but it didn't matter. What they wanted, they wouldn't get.
So she followed them, dashing through the forest at their flanks. Whenever one of them fell behind, she fell upon them like an animal. Reptites were clever, and their scales were hard, but Ayla was cunning. They had weak spots.
She didn't expect what she saw at the base of the mountains, though. Three figures, clad in bright and colorful furs, and a fourth clad from head to toe in shiny stone. They fought Reptites together, the two men in front and the women behind. They killed many Reptites, but they were only four and their enemies were far more.
But Ayla knew a secret: Reptites tended to panic when startled from behind. So she burst from the trees, and tore into the melee from behind them.
Between every blow, she watched the strange figures fight, considering. And when they were finished, she moved forward.
"This female is highly agitated. Provocation would be unwise!" The stone-man said a number of words she didn't quite understand, but it mattered not. Enemies of the Reptites were friends of Ioka.
So she stepped forward, clasping the young leader by the arm. He seemed so frail, yet... "You small, but strong! Ayla like strong man."
The golden-haired one stomped her foot once. "Crono! Tell her to get off of you!"
"I, uh...?" The boy said, and Ayla laughed. She turned to the women with a big smile.
"You strong too! Ayla like all strong person, and all strong person welcome in Ioka! Come, come! We eat, and drink, and party! We tell story of Reptite lose!"
"We, uh...well, that sounds nice, but we're actually looking for some Dreamstone...?" The boy scratched his head.
She blinked. "Stone all around! Many stone between here and Ioka, and many in village! Ayla give, but come! Want new friends to see Ioka!"
The party had been intense, and Ayla learned much of the strange ones. They used words she didn't understand, but it was clear they were bound together by deep friendship and shared purpose. When they explained that they needed the Chief's red stone to help someone at their home, she allowed them to challenge her for it. And she would never admit going easy on the poor boy that tried to out-drink her, but in the end he 'earned' the stone.
But, in the aftermath, the Reptites came. And they stole away with something important.
"Without the Gate Key, we have no way of getting home...ugh. If my head wasn't pounding so, I would never have been caught off guard like this..." Lucca clutched her head and groaned.
"We must follow these footsteps. The thieves cannot have gotten far," the stone-man, Robo, replied. He had remained stoic all through the night...but here, Ayla agreed with him.
And so she nodded. "Ayla know where Reptite hide. Lead Crono and friends! We take back what Reptite stole!"
Crono smiled at her. "Thanks, Ayla. We...really need that back."
"What is this...could those filthy apes truly have created something so advanced?" The voice from ahead was irritatingly familiar to Ayla.
"Azala!" Her snarl was visceral and immediate, and the Reptite queen turned to face her with a sneer on her reptilian face.
"Ah, and the apes have finally arrived. At least these new ones seem better than you, Ayla. Tell me, apes, what is the purpose of this device?"
Crono, Lucca, and Marle shared a look, before Crono answered. "It's...complicated. Look, we really need it back. It's important. Without it..."
"Hmhm. Well, if you have no interest in talking...!"
As Reptites swarmed in, accompanying a massive breed she'd never seen before, Ayla's fists clenched.
The way Azala talked like they were nothing...really made her angry.
Crono and his allies were strong, and Azala had been forced to retreat with her tribe, flinging Crono's treasure away to distract them from following. Once they'd retrieved it, Crono and the others had left to return to their own village, with a promise to return someday.
But without them, life continued on. And with it...
"Ayla! Ayla! North wood burn!" Kino rushed in, breathing heavily, face drawn. "Reptite with fire-sticks!"
"What!? Kino, stay with tribe! Ayla go!"
Her mate nodded wordlessly, turning to corral the other tribesman as she dashed away...but there was nothing she could do.
The fire had already raged far out of control, tearing through the trees and leaving only charred husks behind. For a moment, Ayla could only wonder at the purpose of this...the Reptites never did anything with no reason, so why?
Then she saw the people. Badly burned, stumbling about...many already dead. Some, though, were searching through the burned husks for survivors, and she followed them, helping where she could. She lifted debris from the fallen, carried the wounded where the needed to go, and whatever else was necessary.
Finally, an old man with grayed hair stepped towards her.
"Stranger. Who you? Why you come?"
"Ayla, Chief of Ioka! Come to stop Reptite...but too late."
"Ioka..." The old man eyed her for a moment before he sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat. "Aye. Too late. Reptite already win. Laruba burned."
"Laruba...? This Laruba village?" Her gaze swept around, noting what remained of houses carved into trees or built between trunks.
"Was village. Now nothing. No more forest to hide." The old man looked at the aimless people milling about, his face drawn tight. "Reptite win."
Ayla's fists shook as she looked at him, feelings crowding her heart until she felt like she might burst. "Win? Reptite not win! You alive! Laruba alive! How you give up?"
He shook his head. "Laruba not strong like Ioka. If fight, only die. Now, no choice...so no choice but die."
"You...! You chief!?"
"No more Laruba to be chief of."
She stepped forward, her fist rising before she could control it. "You - while Chief live, Chief job keep tribe alive! To fight even when lose! If Chief stop fight, tribe die!"
"What Ayla want do? All Laruba burned. Many hurt, many die. Nothing left fight for."
She stepped forward again, poised to strike the old man.
But he simply looked at her, tired and lifeless, and she remembered words from long ago.
When Ayla chief, Ayla choose. Ayla heart never chief; never choose.
She lowered her fist. "...Laruba come Ioka."
"What Ayla say?"
"...Laruba come Ioka. Good huts here...Laruba build, and Ioka fight. While Ioka live, Laruba live too."
The old man scoffed, but his eyes weren't quite so dead. "Ioka feed all Laruba? Fight off all Reptite? Hah! Ioka think they that strong?"
She pounded her chest. "Ayla that strong. Ayla fight Reptite and win. Ioka and Laruba live. What have lose?"
He stared at her, and she stared back. He broke eye contact, looking around him one last time. "...If Ayla lie, Laruba die. But, if do nothing...Laruba die.
"Laruba come Ioka. But, need help with hurt. Too many carry."
Ayla simply nodded.
"Crono! Lucca! Marle! Robo!? All hurt? What happen!?" The four were resting in the hut she and Kino shared, along with a fifth - a beastman in the shape of a Frog.
Kino shushed her. "Find in Mystic Mountains. All sleep, all hurt. Heal what can, now need rest. Ayla talk when wake...now, who these come? Many people with Ayla."
"...Ayla find Laruba. Laruba burn..."
She explained as quickly as she was able. By the time she was finished and Kino hurried off to arrange things with the rest of the tribes, Crono and the others had begun to rise.
"Ugh...Magus!?" Crono grasped at his weapon for a moment before his eyes focused on Ayla. "Er...Ayla? Wait, how did we end up here...?"
"Kino find in mountains. Say all hurt, all sleep. What happen!?"
"We...were fighting with someone, and something weird happened. I suppose...we ended up here..." Marle looked at Lucca for a moment. "So, wait...is this when Lavos was created?"
"Lavos? Marle talk like Ioka now!"
"Huh? Ayla, you know 'Lavos'?" Crono scratched his neck.
"Of course! Ioka words! 'La' mean fire, 'vos' mean big! If you look for big fire, you find at Tyrano Lair! But, that Reptite place. Many strong ones there."
The frog nodded. "Then, 'twould appear we shall head into the enemy's lair." As they prepared themselves, Ayla found herself smiling.
"Wait! If fight Reptite, Ayla come. Reptite kill many Laruba...now, Ayla protect. Stop Reptite hurt more."
"...If you want to come with us, Ayla, you're welcome to. In fact, that sounds great." Crono smiled at her. "Let's fight together, yeah?" He held out a hand.
Ayla crushed him in a hug.
The Tyrano Lair had been a story told when she was a child. The home of the Reptites, past the mountains and in the base of the fire-mountain. A fort of black stone, filled with the strongest and cleverest Reptites, where their queen had her throne.
Yet, the six of them had torn through it without stopping. Her allies had strange skills, and forced the world around them to fight for them...but the Reptites had no answer for it. They shied away from the frost and the cold waters, and shuddered at the touch of the sky-thunder. And when they came upon the Queen herself...
"At long last, the final confrontation has come. So, will we Reptites inherit this world, or you soft-skinned apes?" Azala's scornful gaze locked straight into her eyes.
"Strong live...weak die. Ayla, just fight!" Her fists clenched.
"Feh. So simple...then, come. Let us fight at the crown of this world!"
They'd chased Azala to the very peak of the Tyrano Lair, above the fiery mountain. They fought, there, Azala and her greatest Reptite, Ayla and her allies. And, together, they'd won. The war against the Reptites would finally end. Ayla and Crono were strong, and won, and lived. Azala and the Reptites were weak, and lost, and so would die.
And yet...and yet.
As Queen Azala, that spiteful, hated lizard, lay on the ground before her...Ayla felt something tugging at her heart.
Because Azala's eyes looked just like the Laruba Chief's.
"...Hah. Of course, it turns out this way...if we'd simply had more time, we might have..." With a sigh, the Queen collapsed backwards against the wall of the castle, sliding to a sitting position and gazing at the shining red star that dominated the sky. "...Listen, primates, and hear my words. The last declaration of Azala, Queen of the Reptites. We Reptites fought with pride until our very end...but we understood when we had lost."
Ayla found herself stepping forward. "Azala...Reptite lose. But...not need die. Come Ayla. Reptite and Ioka...no fight more." Her hand reached down, palm open.
Azala stared at it for a long moment, before chuckling. "Hah...how foolish. No...we Reptites have no future. I have seen it. The red star shall fall, and ice shall consume this world. No Reptite will survive for long. Perhaps, if we had the time to build shelter? But no. It matters not." The wounded queen simply shook her head, pushing Ayla's hand away. "Be gone from here, apes. Soon, the heavens shall fall, and nothing shall remain of us but ash and dust."
"Azala! Why give up? You-"
The sky screamed, and Ayla stepped back, her hackles raising instinctively. In the sky, the red star began to grow, as the heavens were lit aflame.
"Ayla!" Lucca had never been afraid, since Ayla had first seen her. Yet, now... "We have to go! There's no time!" She'd already whistled, and the Dactyls that Laruba had given them approached from the air. Ayla stepped toward them... but -
"Azala! Come Ayla! No need die!"
The queen smirked at her. "Foolish primate. What would history say, if I lost to you only for you to die here...?" She gestured out, and in one final flex of her power, Ayla was pushed backwards, only barely catching herself on the Dactyl's harness. As Crono tugged at the reins, sending the dinosaur into the air, Ayla twisted around to stare at the fortress behind her.
She watched the red star fall to earth and explode, leaving behind fire and a crater as it sank within the world.
"...La-vos..."
No matter what adventures came afterward,
no matter what incredible things she saw, walking beside Crono and the others,
Azala's eyes remained her most powerful memory.
Yang's eyes fluttered open as the sun streamed through her window. Slowly, she pushed herself up, looking at her hand as the first sunbeams played across her skin.
"...I really messed up, huh...?"
"Mmh...Yang...? Why are you up...?" Ruby grumbled from the nearby bed. One dull silver eye glared up at her from beneath Ruby's lopsided sleep mask. "Y'okay...?"
Yang stared at her for a second, then chuckled. "Yeah. M'okay, Rubes. Just thinking."
"Oh no...Yang's broken..."
"Shut it, brat." She climbed out of bed just long enough to pad over and tug the mask back down over her sister's eyes and pull the blanket up over her. "Go back to sleep. I think...I'm gonna hit the gym this morning. Got a couple ideas."
"Mm...okay, Yang. Love you..."
"Love you too, Rubes." She stepped back, stretching slightly. Hey, Obsidian? There was no answer, but she could feel the attention come to rest on her. It was...almost comfortable.
...Thanks.
No response except for a sense of acknowledgement...and that was okay. She understood.
Dream: Heart of Bronze acquired. Synergy Bonus: Yang Xiao Long. A girl who dreamed of nothing but to live life and protect her home...who, despite everything in her path, achieved both. A body refined and forged into a weapon, an indomitable soul whose light never flickered, and a heart that only grew with time. Ayla, Chieftan of Ioka, defined the era of history-before-history, and there were none that could claim to be her peer...save, perhaps, one. [Yang has gained a number of buffs. You have gained some insight into some of the ways humans process emotion.]
Yang has acquired a trait! Master of Self - Yang remembers a woman who refused to be anything but herself. [Significantly upgrades Yang's combat instincts, and all Aura-related physical buffs are heavily increased in potency. Additionally, unlocks the potential to upgrade her Semblance in the future as she refines her soul, and mitigates the effects of mental and emotional strain or low morale.]