The Discombobulated Tale
Alright, well, to be honest I don’t know what to say. This all began when I ranted to Denny (Mew Master for the clueless) about being jealous of those who seemed to be able to write like it was nothing. In particular it actually angered me to see him pump out that many words when I could barely spit out a thousand words for an RPG post. Needless to say I apologized, revealing that it was a mixture of unhappiness with my writing ability, and my block on Kingdom Heartless. For whatever reason I said I just wanted to write a story that didn’t have to fit some sort of really plot or guideline.
What I got was a very confusing imagination trip that included lightsabers, world governing crystals, evil triangles, and fallen governments. To top it off, it was revealed in further brainstorming that it wasn’t just one world, but many worlds.
I told Denny of this and he wished my good luck linking it all together.
Well I succeeded, or I think I did. And I’m giving it over for the great TPM Fanfic forum to look over, I would appreciate thoughts, and I’ll update this whenever I get a concrete ‘vision’ (I need a better word, it makes it sound as if I’m prophesying). That is, at the point where I have enough to tell another tale worth telling.
The only hindrance is I didn’t wish to read it over before I posted it. Thankfully that problem was solved when VirtualPlay offered to edit it for me.
:3
Without further ado~
The Discombobulated Tale
Inspired by dreams, brought about by Mew Master, Written by Crystal Tears, Edited by VirtualPlay
Strong Language, Violence, Gore, Etc
I
Ghost
“Zealots,” muttered Rex as he shouldered his rifle. “I hate zealots…”
The group he moved with consisted of five people: himself, a large black man they called Whip, a gruff woman called Belle, a short man called Big, and a sort of lanky teenager who had yet to really earn a name for himself, so they just called him whatever fell into place. Rex was the leader, if the group of ragtag thieves and roughnecks really had anyone who fit that definite position. Rex himself was pushing into the late forties, with graying hair and wrinkles around his eyes and creases in his forehead. The rest were younger than him; in order it was him, Big, Belle, Whip and the gun fodder.
“Why’re we rippin’ off the Zealots anyway?” Whip asked from the back, watching as Rex browsed the upper lobby area, and then took a particular interest in Belle, who was leaning over to inspect a computer. “Thought you said it was better to leave them alone.”
“It is,” Rex grumbled, watching as the teenager gulped and fiddle with the door’s controls. “But we’re short on cash and that crystal is supposed to be pretty easy to swipe.”
“Whip, you keep staring at my boobs and I’ll cut your balls off.”
Big snickered and Whip just huffed.
“Just admirin’.”
“Stop admiring.”
“Fine, you don’t put out anyways.”
Belle looked up from the screen, her gaze challenging. “Not to any of you.”
The man just grumbled.
The door hissed opened after another moment, and Rex took point, this place sure was quiet. The silence was unsettling, sure, his source had said the security was weak, but hell he didn’t expect it to be non-existent. The group was tense; he could feel it as they rounded another corner. They were light on their feet for the most part, though occasionally he caught the louder tap of the untrained rookie. He’d learn in time, Rex supposed, as he tightened his hold on his assault weapon.
Something was wrong; he could feel it in his bones.
“Crystal chamber should be just up here…” Big grunted, shifting his rifle into a more comfortable position. “Where’s all the guards boss?”
Belle stopped suddenly, listening closely to the silence. She could’ve sworn she heard a computer booting up, or something of the like. With a frown she hurried to catch up, grabbing Rex’s shoulder.
“Rex, what the fuck is going on?” She spoke in a hushed voice as the group stopped, looking back at them both. “There’s no one here, but I swear I just heard a computer boot up.”
Rex frowned, running a hand through his hair he motioned the others to keep going. “My source said security wasn’t tight.”
“Alright, so where is SOME of the security? You know? The morons we’re supposed to kill for this crystal?”
He gritted his teeth. “I don’t know.”
Belle’s glare made the man turn cold. “This could be a trap.”
“Or an opportunity, if it gets too hot we’ll vacate as soon as-“
“REX!” The teenager’s voice crackled through the comm and shattered the silence that the two had been chatting in. “Oh my God! Rex get the fuck outta-“ The line went dead, and both stared at each other, clearly unnerved.
“Get back to the truck.” Rex shoved Belle back towards the way they had come. “Get the hell outta here.”
“But-“
“I’ll get the others, GO. If we’re not out in five minutes, you fuckin’ leave, got that?”
Belle gulped and nodded, clinging to her rifle like it was her only lifeline; she bolted back down the hallway.
Rex turned around; his teeth clenched shut as he sprinted as fast as he could down the hall. He didn’t see Big or Whip, but he found the rookie, hanging from the ceiling, something stabbed into his head attached to a thick cable. Blood poured from his mouth, drenching his shirt and splattering onto the ground.
“Holy mother of God…” He took a step back, eyes wide and his body feeling so vulnerable despite the reinforced vest he was wearing.
The sound of gun fire broke his shock and the man went bolting down the corridor, grabbing onto the doorframe and swinging himself inside the wide, cubical office area one of his men had run into. For a brief moment he saw something move, though he couldn’t tell what it was, and despite what should be possible he swore it was crawling on the ceiling.
Rex didn’t hesitate a moment longer; he took aim and fired a burst towards the blur. There was the sharp tangs and pelts of bullets hitting metal, and then whatever it was was gone. With his heart pounding a mile a minute, he ran into the confusing maze of workstations.
“Whip?” he called, “Big?”
“Rex!”
He hurried towards the back corner of the room and saw Big leaning against the wall. His vest had what looked like an arrow sticking out of it, with a hefty steel cable dangling from that. The commander gawked, helping his friend to his feet.
“Are you alright?”
“Aye, I’ll be alright. Damn thing hits harder than a mini-cannon shell,” Big huffed, fixing his red cap. “Don’t know what the hell it is, but it…it scattered us. The kid had the radio equipment, did he tell you to run?”
Rex nodded, and both readied themselves as they moved back out into the corridor.
“What happened to him?”
“He’s dead.” Rex’s tone ended the discussion there. “We gotta find Whip and get the hell outta here; Belle is waiting in the truck.”
“You sure about that? The thing is wicked fast, Rex.”
“I’m sure.”
“Whip just went sprinting down the hallway; we should just follow it and find him.”
Belle had never ran so fast in her life, the last few flights of stairs she had skipped and just jumped the railing. Her knees ached from the landing, but she would live. Gulping, she brushing some of her bangs from her face and threw open the door, finding herself back down in the formal greeting lobby of the building.
It was dark outside, though the true time eluded her at the moment. She glanced around the room, finger on the trigger, when suddenly there was a light from outside. She frowned, straining her eyes to see through the tinted windows. She gulped as the figure stopped at the door, looking at it in some interest, Belle assumed, as the apparently locked building opened. The person stood in the doorway for another second, before a capital T shape appeared on her face. ‘Damn…’ Belle murmured, ducking back behind the desk. ‘That’s the signature T visor of the old Spec Ops…’ She frowned, hearing only rumor of the silent war between the former government and the new regime known as Zea (or Zealot as many called them). ‘What the hell is a rogue doing here?’
Chancing another look, she watched as the figure, notably female with the slimness and the curves of the body, moved towards the elevator. Her armor was skin tight and very high-tech, a moldable metal suit with the flexibility of cloth. Belle held her breath, her eyes barely catching the shadow of small armor plates on the woman’s back.
It was then that the rogue stopped and looked right at Belle, who froze with fear. Wearily she pointed her rifle at the shadow, gulping.
“Just let me go.” Belle spoke, licking her lips. “Me and my friends just want to get the fuck out of here.”
The rogue looked at the rifle, and titled her head. “Thieves?”
“No.” Belle growled. “We’re victims of false information, just let us go.”
The woman turned from the other, and headed through the door. “You should leave. Zealots are coming.”
“Listen,” the thief moved closer to the entrance. “There’s something up there, it must’ve been triggered by us, but it’s probably already killed one of the guys…” The ex-Spec Ops kept going, though she did look over her shoulder slightly at Belle, who was still standing in the lobby.
“Leave. If the Zealots catch you here, that thing upstairs will be the least of your worries.”
Belle booked it then, rushing through the lobby, out the door, and down into the alleyway where they had parked the old rusted Jeep. It had no doors or roof, but it was versatile and reliable. She slunk into the seat and gave out a sigh as she let the cool air calm her shaken nerves.
“Come on Rex…” She gritted her teeth. “Just find them and get the hell outta there.”
Sadly she looked at the clock.
[3:03 AM]
In five minutes, she was gone.
They had found Whip hiding in a small computer office at the end of the hall; he was scared, saying he could hear it moving around some place. Big and Rex didn’t have time to calm the man down; instead they had just motivated him to move, and move the robber did.
They were booking it towards the fire-escape, barely checking their corners and behind them as they barreled through the ever unnerving dark hallways. They could see the escape, and Whip was relieved, picking up his pace he led the pack by a good ten feet despite the order from Rex to slow the hell down and be careful. The elevator door behind them hissed opened, and Big swung around. Rex bit his lip as he slowly turned and Whip paused, gulping.
It was silent and unmoving as it hung from the roof of the elevator, watching them with wicked yellow eyes. They almost seemed to narrow at the group, waiting for one of them to do something. It was careful and it was thinking, something that Rex found extremely unsettling.
He shined his gun’s light on it and felt his heart sink. Its body was made of metal, the shine-less belly of the monster was splattered in blood from the rookie, and its eight legs all ended in sharp, blade-like knives that were stabbed into the roof of the elevator.
It also had a small barrel hanging from its belly, and what looked like an arrow was loaded in it.
‘Fuck me…’ Rex growled inside his head.
Whip ran, he waited no longer, and that triggered Rex to fire and step back rapidly towards the emergency staircase as Big ran as fast as he could. The creature crawled out of the elevator in such a fashion it chilled the commander to the bone, and before he knew it, it had fired the arrow.
Or rather, harpoon.
It smacked into Big’s back and sent the short man spiraling to the man. “RUN!” Big cried, desperately reaching for his gun. “Fuckin’ run, Rex!”
He heard something start reeling, and suddenly Big was being dragged back towards the monster. Rex fired some more, bullets pelting on skin of the mechanism, but doing nothing in the long run. He held his breath, taking aim at his friend, and fired a single shot into Big’s head.
As the body fell limp and the screaming stopped, the spider seemed to lose interest in the dead dwarf and turned its attention to Rex.
Rex, however, was already gone, sprinting down the stairs as fast as he could.
[3:05 AM]
Belle was getting impatient, her nerves were shot and she just wanted to hightail it out of this city and back out to the wasteland outpost. At least the quiet out here was natural; there was the wind, the dog barking in the background…various city noises that gave her comfort as she waited for her friends.
It was then that the natural quiet was broken abruptly by one vehicle. It was large, looked relatively armored, and had a turret mounted on the top. Plastered on the side of it was a giant black triangle pointing down with a smaller white one in the middle facing upwards. Belle leaned forward at the sight, watching the back ramp slowly lower; soon afterwards Zealot soldiers appeared, all dressed in glossy black suits except for a single man at the end.
He was about a foot taller than all the others around him, he was massive, and his one exposed arm was muscular and looked as if it could lift up a car. His face was hidden as it was under a stainless steel helmet with black vertical slits for eyes. The woman slunk down in her seat as the massive man looked around, before the majority of the group headed inside.
“Damn…” She whispered. “Hurry up Rex…”
Whip and Rex had made it pretty far; round and round they went as they tried to reach the bottom floor. Rex had nearly tripped over Whip’s rifle he had dumped in favor of speed, something that made the man curse his friend; if there was anything else in this place, he might need that gun. He thought briefly of picking it up, but passed up the chance. He had no idea where that mechanical fiend was, and for all he knew stopping would give it a clear shot.
Rex was so concentrated on running he almost slammed into Whip who had come to a complete and rather sudden halt. He grunted, readying his gun.
“Why’d you stop?”
Whip turned; his finger to his lip in a sign to be quiet. Rex listened, and they could hear numerous footsteps coming up the stairs. Taking a chance, he peered over the railing and saw numerous men in black armor racing up the stairwell, right towards them.
“Shit…” Rex snapped, “it’s Zealots. Lots of ‘em.”
Whip plucked a small grey object from his belt and held it for a second. He turned the black knob on the top as far as it would go before pulling the button up. The device beeped quietly, and with an approving nod of Rex, the runner tossed the item down the stairs, hearing it clank and roll to a stop.
They both hightailed it out of the stairwell, bursting into another cubicle office and racing towards the opposing side.
The floor rumbled and they could hear numerous cries of surprise and anger as the staircase was rendered useless.
Their moment of temporary relief was shattered when Whip let out a pained cry and went crashing into one of the cubicles. Rex turned, eyes wide with fear as he saw the contraption on the ceiling, steel cable hanging loosely from its belly until that familiar winding noise started up.
Whip started to scream, grasping at the carpeted floor.
“Jesus Christ, Rex! Shoot it! Shoot it!!”
A barrage of fire erupted from the gun as Rex gave out a roar of anger. That thing had already claimed two of his men, he would be damned if it got another one. The bullets went flying off the metal hide like before, but that didn’t stop the commander this time. He pulled a grenade for his own belt and armed it. With a light toss the object landed right under the creature.
The shock-wave snapped the cable, and the explosion caused the creature to slam into the floor, sensors going haywire and legs trying to correct themselves. Its eyes narrowed as Rex helped Whip to his feet. The poor man was hobbling away with a harpoon in his calf.
If it could feel anger, the machine hit its boiling point and leapt at the man with the gun. Rex dropped to the ground, feeling the brush of a knife against his armor as the monster put itself between it and their exit.
Rex opened fire again, blasting at its legs, belly, back, anything that didn’t look as armored as its face. It was to no avail; the creature seemed impervious to damage. Rex didn’t have to time to react as it fired a harpoon and it slammed into his chest, the tip of the arrow just touching his skin.
“Aw shit.”
It began to reel him in; Whip desperately grabbed his friend’s arm, straining to keep Rex away from that thing.
There was strange noise from beside them, and then a blur of light cut into the cable. As the rope whipped back into the creature, the two got a look of who had saved them.
Standing between them and the creature was an armored woman holding a sword made of brilliant blue energy. The suit was black with flecks of yellow on the back plate’s edges, though slightly worn out; a triangle was on her shoulder pad, yellow in color with a smaller triangle inside pointing down. She spun the blade, readying herself while the creature let out an enraged groan as its eyes turned red.
“Run.” She ordered. “Take the third elevator.”
With Rex helping Whip, the two moved for the elevators as they tried to ignore their exhaustion and frustration. The third elevator opened as they pushed the down button and they hurried inside. It was cramped inside, and blood had drenched Whip’s pant leg and was running down onto the floor.
“Damn…” Whip groaned, running a hand over his shaved head. “I think it’s gonna leave a mark.”
Rex smirked, sighing in relief as the doors closed and the elevator began its descent. “Who the hell was she?”
“Didn’t catch the insignia, eh? Two harmonious triangles…she’s from the old world government.”
“I didn’t think you could use a word like ‘harmonious’.”
Whip chuckled, and as the elevator slowed down, he stood up. “Let’s get the fuck outta here.”
“Agreed.”
The doors opened, and a barrage of fire pelted Whip’s body, making it shake and fall dead on the elevator floor. Rex couldn’t believe it; as he stared at his dark skinned friend, rage finally boiled through whatever control he had. He let out an angry war cry and rushed out of the elevator.
The world almost seemed to slow for him as he fired round after round, watching the soldiers in black armor collapse onto the ground from each volley of bullets he released. The computers on the desk exploded, the books were torn up as he kept his finger on the trigger. The two from outside rushed in, but were blasted away as Rex tore his second grenade from his belt and whipped it at them. The explosion shattered the glass and sent debris everywhere.
He stood there for a moment, looking down at Whip sadly before heading for the door in a hurry. Rex watched the Jeep pull out of the alleyway with Belle inside, looking worried.
“Are you alright?” she questioned.
“Fine,” he nearly spat, and slipped into the side seat. “Just drive.”
“What about the-“
“Drive.”
Belle fell silent as her foot pressed on the pedal and they drove away. Faster and faster through the streets as she tried to put as much distance between them and that place as she could.
[center]* * *[center]
She didn’t have time to put up with this creature; it swayed and faked lunges, trying to get her with its harpoon. The rogue had not travelled all this way for a second-rate android to stop her here, so close to the goal. Those people, they had been thieves, their minds and body so easy to read. She spun her blade again, listening to swishing noise it made as it created a trail of blue in the air.
Shiva hadn’t been this close to real society in a while; for the longest of times she had been asleep, drifting in orbit around the planet, waiting for something her mind couldn’t quite remember. It was a sort of hassle, really, as she moved through the office, watching the spider slink back into the shadows it was so comfortable in. In the darkness all one could hear was the soft click of her boots on the tiled floor. Her visor lit up the building, outlining each and every wall and object. Most of the lines were in yellow, friendly forces were in blue, neutral were green, and enemies were red. A system that made hunting so much simpler.
But she wasn’t hunting the spider, and so she broke from its trail and began to make her way up, staircase after staircase. The hilt of her energy sword hung from her hip, and instead in her grasp was a rather large pistol. It looked hefty and packed quite the punch, though for convenience in travel it folded up when required and hooked onto her lower back. It was red and black, with a small blue glow emitting from the barrel to signal it was ready to fire.
Quietly Shiva grasped the doorknob of the exit and turned. It opened up to another cubical room that looked like the spider had been crawling around in.
‘I know you're following me…’ She thought, smirking behind her helmet. ‘It’s unwise to stalk a rogue…’
She was just about to head into the hall when she froze. She could hear the heavier steps of soldiers; one of them was heading right towards her. Shiva pondered for moment over exactly how to take the situation. Guns a blazing was fun, but risky, they might be packing heavier fire power than the others she had encountered. There was also the concern of the disruption she felt; these soldiers were much more confident than usual, and something was giving off a sort of malicious vibe.
‘Esper…’ She thought in anger, and her hold on her pistol tightened as the soldier drew closer. ‘Unnatural alliance between the ethereal and mortal…’ Shiva holstered the firearm and moved closer to the door, leaning up against the wall right next to it.
The door opened slowly, and a darkly armored soldier moved inside. He spun to the side when he caught sight of her from the corner of his eye. His finger was just about to squeeze the trigger but it was too late. She moved up against him and pressed her wrist up to his throat.
With a simple thought, the hidden knife in her armor shot out, piercing through mesh between the plating and slicing his throat.
The soldier’s weight became dead weight, which she slumped on the ground quietly before moving into the hall.
The two guards in the entrance chamber to the crystal never knew what was coming. They looked up only for both of them to be shot in the head, one right after another. Shiva smirked at their bodies, and quickly glanced at the body of a young boy with a harpoon in his head; the cable had been crudely cut, and the rest of it was hanging in the doorway.
The sight of him jogged her memory, if only briefly.
“This isn’t wise,” Shiva had frowned, following the man known as Cid through numerous hallways. People of all sorts were trying to get past, moving from place to place. “Whether or not that facility is where they’re containing a fragment, infiltrating it will only draw their attention.”
The young man looked back, his shining green eyes piercing into her ocean blue ones.
“Shiva, the council approved the mission.”
“The council is on Titan, they have no idea what’s going on Eridos.”
Cid rolled his eyes and led the way into a large room with numerous pods sitting inside. Each was attached to a track on the floor, which lead to a circular opening in the wall. He frowned, fixing his leather pilot’s jacket before crossing his arms.
“Red team has Exodus distracted. They won’t be sending a fully fledged Esper to come find a single rogue as long as that distraction stays up.”
“Underestimating the apprentices of the dark lords is what led to the downfall of Earth, Mal, and Iko.” Shiva frowned, plucking the HF-50 firearm from its case. “What proof do you have that there is even a fragment there?”
“It’s been confirmed,” Cid frowned, typing away on the keyboard. The second pod hissed opened, and in the tunnel a red light began to flash. “And before you say this fragment isn’t worth the time, just remember that any fragment is worth liberating from the Zealots.”
Shiva couldn’t argue with that; with a sigh she activated her suit and the helmet emerged. It covered her face in darkness before visor activated and returned her sight. Without another moment of hesitation she jumped into the pod and lay down, watching the hatch door seal shut.
The boy looked like a younger version of Cid, though less attractive and lanky. She supposed that he was part of the robbers that tried to get the crystal. She had saved two of them, but something was telling her that only one got out.
‘The chip isn’t working.’ She frowned, moving for the second door. ‘I’m not supposed to be able to recall the briefing…’
Admittedly, the security chip implanted in her brain was old and needed to be replaced.
Her eyes went wide for a moment before the figure swung around, her sword in her hand in an instant. Halfway through the turn the blade ignited in a blue frenzy, and sliced clean through the spider’s harpoon. The now thrown off edge shot into the glass of the door and other half fell to the ground with a clang. Shiva rushed forward, cutting through the creature’s front two legs, causing them to fall to the ground with a bang before spinning the weapon and severing the monster’s head from its body.
The head slammed into the floor, the rest stayed hanging from the ceiling. Sparking wires hanging from the places that were cut off.
With nothing left to stop her, Shiva pressed the switch on the door’s panel.
The next area didn’t fit with the corporate feel of the rest of the room at all. It was stark white, with seamless walls that were rounded. In the center was a simple raised pedestal, with a shining gold-yellow crystal hovering a foot above it. It sparkled and shimmered as Shiva neared it.
Gently she touched its surface, and felt its energy shoot through her.
“So far from home…” The woman mutters sadly, plucking the trinket from its hold.
“FREEZE!”
She stopped, holding the crystal tightly she looked over her shoulder. Guards… Too many to strike down before one of them got a shot off. Shiva narrowed her eyes, slowly turning to face them, watching every one of them tighten their grip on their weapons.
“You’re under arrest!”
‘If only I had earned my gift by now…’ She thought bitterly. ‘I would be able to take them up on their offer…’
Instead, she snapped her fingers and rushed forward. The world turned grey and dark, the people around her moving slowly. Only now, three seconds after she had moved, did they realize she wasn’t where she used to be. Shiva ran, leaping into the air and concentrating. Her body wavered; defying what could be possible she phased through one of the guards.
Her feet touched the ground and she glanced over her shoulder to see the man stumbling back from the move. With that, she broke into a blind sprint as the ability began to wear off. Bullets that the soldiers managed to shoot at her caught up, ricocheting off the walls and floor around her. A few pelted off her back plate, making spots begin to ache from the impact.
She pressed a button on her lower arm, slowing only slightly to take off towards the elevators.
“Operator.”
“Tracer,” Shiva panted, “I need an exit.”
“Give me three seconds…”
Shiva stopped, her heart sinking as her eyes fell upon a massive figure rounding the corner. The disruption she felt, the negativity…it all stemmed from that man; even the crystal seemed to turn cold with fear.
“You got one.”
“Done, get up to the roof.”
Shiva paused at the elevators. Gritting her teeth she grabbed the shut iron doors and pulled with all her might. Slowly the doors began to part, grinding against the controls as they tried to stay shut. Without waiting any longer she wedged herself through, leaping and grasping the hanging cable.
She had only crawled up a few feet when the doors were blown off the frame. It looked up at her with a stainless steel helmet; the black slits almost seemed to glow at the sight of her.
“Aeon…” It growled, “Give me the crystal.”
Shiva had lost whatever control she had over her emotions and mind, she spat at him. Yet still he stared up at her, ignoring the spit running down his helmet.
“Unwise decision.”
The rogue snorted, and began to climb.
“Shiva I’m reading a complete chip failure.”
“No kidding,” she retorted with a frown; it was only a couple more floors to the top.
“You could lose control of your-“
“Tracer, I am well aware of the risks, I’ll get Cid to fix it when I’m back onboard.”
There was a pause on the comm. “Red team was annihilated. Cid didn’t want me to tell you, but there might be an Esper on the way.”
“One of their apprentices is here, and rather angry.” Shiva jumped from the cable onto the small ledge of the doorframe.
She forced the doors open, and tumbled out onto the floor. The halls here were as stark as the crystal chamber, with only the simplistic Zea logo painted at random intervals. There were rooms here, important rooms that on any other day she would burst into and begin to steal the information they had.
The crystal hanging next to her sword shimmered, catching onto her thoughts and perhaps reminding her to stay on task.
She burst through the exit door and raced up the last little stairwell. The rogue shoved the last door open and jogged onto the roof.
“Alright Tracer, I’m up here.”
“Fragment first.”
“Aeon.”
Slowly she turned, her visor illuminating the darkness. The massive man was standing there, motioning the soldiers behind him away as he stepped away from the door. Shiva’s heart began to pound faster; for just a moment she thought maybe she had avoided this thing. Yet here it was now, this man that had been manipulated by the forces of Zea into an empty beast.
“Give me the fragment, Aeon.” His voice was dark and brooding, and he outstretched his hand.
Plucking the fragile artifact from her waist, she held it in her hand. Loosening her grip, she watched it float effortlessly. It was memorizing, the rogue felt almost enlightened as she gazed into it. For a split second the negative void in the apprentice seemed to fade, and everything was calm.
Until the crystal began to glow, wisps of energy whipping around it before finally it vanished.
“Adrammelech is on his way,” the apprentice growled. “It is unfortunate you will not last long enough to meet my master.”
Her helmet receded, Shiva’s long blue air whipped in the wind as she stared at the creation before her. Everything was darker without the suit's aid, and in truth she knew she shouldn’t fight this opponent. She was young amongst the Aeons, and without her chip she would lack discipline to keep calm during missions and battles.
“He’s jamming the portal…I need to find you another exit, buy me some time…”
“Maybe the others fear your kind,” she spoke in anger as her irises turned to what looked like ice. Her sword ignited, and she readied herself, sword out to the side. “But I do not.”
There was laughter from the apprentice, as his own sword came to life, glowing a deep, discomforting crimson. “The first Aeon not to run, this day will be remembered.”
They rushed at each other, the apprentice flurrying his blade in an attempt to catch the Aeon off guard. Shiva gritted her teeth, leaping to the side as the attack just barely missed. The Esper smiled from behind his mask; switching hands he attacked her again, forcing the woman on the complete defensive.
There was a blur of red on blue before Shiva was sent flying back as the air wavered and pushed her towards the edge. Her eyes went wide as the red blade came down at her. Desperately she rolled back, getting to her feet only to have to balance on the edge of the building.
Anger boiled to the surface, with a defiant call she rushed him, the rogue’s sword leaving a trail of blue as she came in for a critical blow. He blocked with ease, but was forced back from the sheer force of the hit. The swords sparked and sizzled against each other, gripped in a battle for strength against each other.
Shiva gritted her teeth; managing to catch the enemy off guard, she kicked him hard in the chest. The apprentice stumbled back, but recovered as he twirled around, almost in a taunting fashion. The Aeon growled, narrowing her eyes she charged again, slamming the opponent again and again, gaining ground with each powerful hit she landed on his sword.
The apprentice chuckled, outstretching his hand. Shiva stopped, her body twitched trying to gain control again as suddenly it felt as if she was being crushed. Biting back a howl of agony the rogue focused all she could. A sudden, cold blast of air threw off the opponent enough for her escape.
Shiva gasped, glaring up at the mass of muscle as he approached again, frost plastered on his clothing.
“Unrefined power,” he taunted, twirling his weapon. “It seems only raw power is brave enough to stand; those with real talent run.”
The Aeon roared, her sword shot back into her hand and came to life with fury. A wicked dance of blue and red began again. Low, high, twirling, spinning…it was almost chaotic in its style. The woman gritted her teeth, gliding out of the way of another push before propelling herself into the air.
The blades smashed into each other with so much force the air sparked with black and aqua energy. The temperature was dancing between freezing and cool summer air, the frost on the Esper’s suit switching between small ice crystals and water. She bounced away, trying to get behind him to get in a quick strike. He swiveled around, just barely catching her attack before it tore into him. With a groan he forced her back, switching hands and coming in fast for another flurry. Shiva’s eyes widened; almost blindly she blocked, losing the upper hand almost as quickly as she got it.
“You rely on luck to save your skin.” The Esper shook his head as he attacked again. “That will be your downfall.”
Shiva didn’t believe this; taking another blind chance, she watched as the world turned grey and dull once again. The woman moved, jumping clear over her enemy to land behind him. Slowly he turned, trying to keep up with the woman. She smirked, twirling her saber before slashing clean through his midriff.
“I don’t think so.”
Color returned and the apprentice dropped his weapon. Shakily he managed to face her. Hand outstretched in a futile attempt to attack her. The Aeon watched; one eyebrow raised as the Esper collapsed onto the ground in two distinct halves.
“Shiva! The Redeemer is being hit hard, you gotta jump now!”
Letting out a hiss the woman turned, watching as a chopper appeared. The cockpit’s glass was tinted and probably reinforced, and the two intake engines on the side blasted out enough hot air and fire to keep the contraption in the air. She narrowed her eyes at it, only now noticing that it was so cold around her that her breath was turning to mist.
“I’m coming.”
“Hurry!”
She ran, over the course of this mission she had done much of that. She clipped her sword to her belt and activated her helmet. Quickly it covered Shiva’s head and face before the visor switched on, quickly outlining everything, including the chopper, which was now bright red.
The vehicle moved back, launching one of its missiles that shot just past the woman and slammed into the roof. The shock-wave shot Shiva off the edge, her body doing rolls in the air before she regained composure. The rogue forced herself into a head-first dive towards the ground. Distantly Shiva could feel the unmistakable raging disturbance that was Adrammelech, closing in on the building as quickly as he could.
Faster and faster she fell, the world around her turning into a blur of dark colors. Ever so slightly anxiety began to take hold. She had to break the sound barrier for this to work; the building was high enough but that blast might’ve cost her precious time and energy.
The pressure was mounting though; her suit was beginning to shake and she winced as the gravity well came into effect.
‘Thank God for Tracer…’
There was a very loud crack and then a resounding boom that shattered the windows of the buildings around her.
The asphalt began to waver as the exit began to open up, sloshing and moving like water as Shiva came closer and closer. It began to absorb the tire of a parked car as the affected area began to spin like a whirlpool.
She hated this part, not willing to see the transportation happen, the rogue closed her eyes. Her suits warning alarm began to go off to tell her the ground was coming up fast; it hadn’t been retrofitted to pick up the portal just yet.
In a flash, she was gone. The asphalt splattered like water and sent speckles every which way.
There was no evidence the Aeon had been there, only the mystery of how asphalt ended up on the car doors and the sidewalk.
The Twi’lek boy swung around, goggles spewing out information as fast as they could. He watched in amazement as in a flash an armored figure lay in the jump pod. The numerous computer panels around him kept popping up information on the enemy’s location, fire-power and, right now, the woman’s vital signs.
They were going hectic; but at least her heart was still beating. Urgently he smacked his hand down on the comm.
“She’s on! Go!”
The Redeemer turned, laser turrets and artillery cannons blazing as they pulled away from the desert planet. Behind it were numerous darkly colored ships, blasting away with much more formidable fire power. There was a moment where the rectangular human ship seemed to slow down to a halt, but in a millisecond it was gone, slipping away from the space battle and back towards home base.
Cid ran his hands through his black, shaggy hair and let out a long sigh. He looked down at the blond man who leaned back in his chair, gazing up at the commander.
“That was one hell of a jump.”
Cid gritted his teeth, ignoring the side comment from the pilot as he stomped towards the bridge door.
“I’m gonna kill her.”
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