In a cataclysm known as the Nightfall, the worlds were almost completely destroyed by a harrowing surge of darkness.
In the shadows of the ensuing chaos a new group has taken shape. Led by an Aegyl named Kalos, the 11th Hour touts an esoteric knowledge of how to combat the darkness and restore the worlds. They might be the worlds’ best chance at survival; but nobody really knows enough about them to confirm or deny their claims.
On the brink of collapse, the universe holds its breath in anticipation. Of restoration? Of destruction? It is up to individuals like yourself to decide.
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There aren't enough praises in the world I'd like to give to wonderful coders for the Proboards community. The following have contributed to World Destiny in some way: W3 Schools for countless how-tos and countless of other souls who have helped get WD up to where it is.
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Synthest found himself with his back firmly against the ground. His head swam for only a moment before his senses sharpened.
What had happened? That light-- it had just taken control, throwing him across the room. He couldn't know what magical attack that was- he'd never seen it before. It was so fast. He groaned, his senses still trying to understand what force that was. He had been hit by the Corona, right? And then- just a bright light. Now he was here. His blue eyes opened and he sat up to see Kuu in a similar position. His dark hair was everywhere, revealing his eyes, still lit up with confusion. The Zantetsuken had left him breathless, to be honest, and as he pulled himself up he began to laugh. He couldn't stop as Kuu walked closer to apologize. It had been a long time since he had so much fun. How wrong was it that he could only find joy in the midst of a good battle? That he felt more alive when he had a direct purpose?
He settled down and wiped his eyes as Kuu spoke of the technique. He... was using a tactic he had never tried before? That was pretty risky- it kind of shocked Syn. Using a technique he had only guessed at in the middle of a battlefield; indeed, it was destined to fail. But at the same time, it had at least some sort of effect, seeing as Syn had been thrown a ways back. He shook it away- it was all a part of the brawl. They both sat and Synthest listened to Kuu's analysis, feeling his energy slowly flood back into his body. The metal around them began to slide across the floor towards Synthest and he melted the scraps as they came close. Eventually, all of the metal had been regained and he threw the weapon to the side, the crystals on the open face of it gleaming.
"I first learned how to Synthesize on my home world- it was, uhm, not an ability I was born with." He wasn't so uncomfortable about the ability; he just didn't want to talk about Sin. "It allows me to bestow the blade with magics, and assists me in powering up my own- but I don't know if I can do anything else with it." Synthest didn't admit to being good with words so he shut up and stood, dusting has back off from the collection of dust he guessed he had gathered while sliding across the floor. He was now listening intently to the shopkeep.
His magic was weaker. Yeah, he got that- on his original world magic didn't exist. It was only when that creature had attached itself to his body that he discovered he could use it. But his fire magics, they were the best he could do. Ocean... was the only one who ever really complimented him though. Ocean, the creature who wanted to eat his Heart. How ironic. But after Kuu told him what he needed to do he nodded. As he stood he felt the energy returning to his limbs, taking away the pain and heaviness. He rose his right arm, leaving his weapon on the ground beside him, and focused. His proficiency allowed him to control his fire spells' form, instead of them just following their normal elemental affinities.
He nodded. Small spells, as quickly as possible, right? He could do that. His hands met his chest and he felt his mana reserves returning. The flames coated his arms, the centers of his palms being his medium. With that, he began to let loose the flames. As he did, he attempted to take his mind away from the strain. "So can you tell me about this shop and how it came to be?" he asked, looking towards the silver-haired shopkeeper. "Or how you came to be here?" After all, he did travel the worlds, did he not?
Kuu gave an awkward smile. 'Sorry, maybe we can make that a tale for another time,' he said, attempting to focus on pulsing his magic evenly through Syn's body to gradually loosen his magic flow. 'Right now, let's just focus on sorting out your magic circulation.'
As he became more used to the magic running through Syn's body, he began to understand what Syn had meant when he mentioned his abilities not being something he was born with. There was an unusual erraticism about the way his magic fluctuated and travel through his body. It was peculiar, and the closest likening he could visualise was the way magic coalesced just a moment before a fire spell - except it continued to fluctuate in that never-ending flux without cease. It was if it was constantly preparing itself to burst into flames.
No wonder you're having such a hard time casting spells, he thought. Your entire flow is so volatile you could almost blow up in flames at any moment. Looks like this is going to have to be a bit more drastic than I thought.
'This is going to be... a bit on the painful side,' he warned him. 'So... it's gonna be hard, but you've got to try and relax.'
He placed both hands on Syn's back, preparing himself for the rather extreme procedure. After taking a breath, he mustered a large swell of magic and released it directly into the dark-haired man's body, controlling it so that it washed over the fluctuations of Syn's magic flow, containing it and calming it - it was like attempting to roll fire into a ball without it burning your hands. While trying to keep the magic flow subdued, Kuu began pulsing his magic through Syn with more force - otherwise it would get caught within the tumultous flux of Syn's fiery magic circulation and not serve to achieve in helping the efficiency of his flow.
He began to increase his pace, sweat beginning to break out over his brow at the effort of controlling the even rate of magical expansion while working to prevent Syn's magical turbulence from distrupting his own flow. He began to release short breaths in an attempt to better focus the timing of his magic, but he was increasingly feeling the toll on his magical stamina as trying to subdue Syn's magic while expanding his circulation with his own was proving to require more and more magic from his reserve.
Just a little more... just got to... hold it out for a bit longer...
Kuu let out a slight growl at the mental strain of channelling such copious amounts of magic while instructing two completely different paths of thought, and with a yell, gave one final push through his hands and pumped a wave of magic throughout Syn's entire body. His knees gave, and he supported himself on one hand, panting at the effort of such a punishing ordeal.
'I... I managed to clear your magic flow a little,' he gasped, fumbling at the pouches at his waist for an elixir. 'You should... you should find it easier to cast magic multiple times without it causing you discomfort - I'd say the way you are now, five spells would be your limit. You should also be able to cast two spells at the same time, but it'll cost you more magic.'
He downed the contents of the bottle, and gave a sigh as he felt his magic rushing back. 'Right, much better,' he breathed, wiping sweat off his brow. 'Alright, give it a try.'
Synthest listened intently to the silver-haired man, his smooth words once again reminding him of Ocean. The Firesoul wondered if it was alright to remember and miss somebody that caused nothing but problems... A person that wanted your Heart. His blue eyes were lost in thought as Kuu summed him up. The hands on his back awoke him from his memories and Synthest suddenly had a horrible thought.
His magic. What if Kuu discovered Sin? Was that creature one of the reasons he couldn't cast magic well? He felt a shock go through his body as foreign magic was introduced to his system and realized that heightened emotions would only assure that Kuu found out about his secret. Pain shot through his chest as his inner chi was forced out of its fiery state. Kuu was behind him, struggling to keep his fire contained. Synthest closed his eyes and searched through images, memories, anything that would bring him peace as another burst of magic flooded through his chest.
A man with dark hair stood before him. Keyon. The man's scarlet eyes gazed into his, but instead of indifference, he was grinning. Just like he used to, when they were friends. "Vonne, today we'll be learning about you body and the neverending flow that travels through your veins." The memory of his mentor made him grin and as he closed his eyes, the walls of the Mu darkened into a moonlit forest. The man sat across from him on a treestump, his crimson eyes soft. "It has many names: kai, chi, zen- but in essence, it is the same thing; your soul. It changes as you do. If you're sick, it will be different. If you're sad, it will change. If you're happy, it will be harmonic with your body. It will be something you must take care of- keep it healthy."
The thought made Syn realize what was wrong with him. The reason his magic was so erratic was because he had a disease that his body was constantly fending off- and it came to the point when his body didn't know when to stop. Now? His body was an inferno in an attempt to keep the virulent intruder way, despite it only being awake in times when Syn left his Heart unguarded. His chest burned, but his body relaxed, the constant flames within him dying. The circle was restored, to the chagrin of the man behind him, now on his knees from fatigue.
Synthest had to admit, it hurt to move, but he did his best to help the shopkeeper. It was all for naught though for the man had items on-hand to help. He felt a little ashamed- he'd never been one to carry items. It wasn't that he couldn't find them, it was just the fact that he never stayed at one place for long- traveling light had always been his best bet. The silver-haired fighter looked up to him. 'Alright, give it a try.'
Syn nodded. While he didn't really feel different, he did feel a bit less tired. He rose his right arm, the scars clearly visible (yet with Virtegon on the floor they did not reveal the black veins of metal). The circle inside of him retained his shape, but it intensified as he began to cast the spell. When it finally released the energy, the sensation was... different. Concentrated. Amplified. Whatever Kuu had done to him, he had given Syn a little more control...
And Sin wasn't making a single noise. He turned to Kuu. "I think that I need to explain something..."
Kuu gave a satisfied smile as he saw the result of his work. 'Very good. That's coming through better now. I mean, something like improving your flow is going to be a lot harder than just that - it's a process which occurs over a long time with a lot of work. But this should at least give you a step in the right direction.'
Though that magic flow was something else, he mused. I've never come across one quite so turbulent. I was almost about to lose control there in those last few moments. I've got to work on my own methods, it seems. It's a surprise he can pull off other magics at all with that kind of explosiveness running constantly through him.
'Yeah, so it seems,' he said, crossing his legs. 'That took up for more magic than I thought it would. But there's no need to explain - what's done is done. In regards to what's occurred to you, what problems you may have, if you truly wish to tell me, let's leave them for when we leave the dojo. Remember, this is still the Mu. Even information has its price.'
He stood up, flexing his neck slightly to stretch off any tenseness. 'Okay, sorry if this is going a little fast, but it's best for the both of us if the exchange can't stretch on for too long,' he said apologetically. 'Now, the synthesis materials that you have there aren't merely for applying attributes to your techniques. Oh no, you're just scratching the surface. Only the Moogles know the full potential behind all these materials that we find, but I can help you go a little deeper.'
Fishing about in his belt bag, he picked out a set of gems. 'Now, from what I can see of your crystals, they've been infused with various elemental-based gems,' Kuu said. 'But if you capitalise on their infusion abilities, you can use some of these.'
He held out the synthesis crystals in his hand. 'These are some rather particular materials, used in a rather special synthetic process,' he explained. 'They affect enchantments in very particular ways. For example, when you use this Shimmering Crystal, it boosts your fire magic, while the Fleeting Crystal speeds up your magic recovery. These two crystals positively affect your vitality. This Pulsing Crystal makes you invulnerable for a short while, and the Wellspring attribute on this one makes it easier to fight in the air.'
Kuu offered them to him. 'Go on, take it,' he said. 'See if you can synthesise them with the crystals in your weapon. If you can manage to channel them, then...'
Then you might be able to achieve a command meld at will. That would be very interesting to see.
Synthest nodded. Kuu dumped the gems in his hand- they were smaller than his Elemental gems. And they worked in conjunction? The Shimmering Crystal was enticing. He was already able to cast Firaja- that took forever to finally master. And since he would never have any chance at casting a Blizzard spell, might as well get better at that. Oh man, did he not wanna deal with Blizzard right now. He'd end up bleeding from his freaking fingertips again. The cold did just NOT work well with him. He pulled his weapon from the ground and immediately felt an icy pain. Sin, the Heartless that had bled the metal black, was awake and curious. He felt a tendril of Darkness reach for his Heart, realizing that the temperamental state of his magics had fallen slightly...
And Synthest burned the little bastard right back into its hidey-hole. There was no outward signs of Syn's burden, but the shadowy parasite jumped away from the sudden flux in his magic, and he took a deep breath to push it back into its better state. He held the Shimmering Crystal in front of his eyes, held the weapon against his chest, and pushed the gem against the metal. The fire flared underneath his palms and the liquid melted. Synthest focused harder, sending a better-focused channel of magic into his hands, and the gem eventually settled in the steel, opening its channels- Synthesis worked through the user's magics and the weapon's conductivity, and Virtegon was prime for that, fortunately. Maybe it was Sin's influence on it, but Synthest had never once found difficulty Synthesizing anything with it.
He held the blade out in front of him, the new crystal glimmering in the dull light of the Mu. He let his magic flow into it and the crystals took control from that point on. The blade burst into flame, a low, red heat with only a bit of magic. But that was the thing- Syn had barely put an activation into it. Nothing should have happened. Indeed, the Shimmering Crystal worked, and he did NOT want to test how well. Seeing as he could already use Firaja with just his normal charge, using the Shimmering Crystal to boost that might actually make the spell dangerous to him.
He let the flames extinguish, wondering if he had done enough to show Kuu his abilities. Channeling was nothing- he had done that over the years without difficulty. It was just another form of multitasking, and it became a menial task that you could perform without thinking over time. He had never been afraid of his flames- he knew that they were fickle, but they couldn't hurt him. He could wear them and they would not bite.
Kuu gave a nod as he looked over the process. 'Well, you certainly seem to have gotten the hang of that,' he said, unable to prevent his brow from furrowing slightly at what he had noticed. '... As promised, I won't pry, but your magical attribute seems rather unusually affined to the fire element - I don't think you need to use this ability to upgrade your flame spells. I'd focus on using the Fleeting and Wellspring attributes to help you fight against magic users.'
He gestured towards Syn's arm. 'This technique is a rather unique and rare form of synthesis called a Command Meld,' he explained. 'Very few people are capable of it, and the ability to synthesise at will means that you are as far as I know the only person who can manipulate its effects freely in the midst of battle. By harnessing the combined energy of particular materials, you can amplify your powers.'
'You'll probably need some time to get used to it,' he continued, 'And unlike your crystals, the Command Meld isn't infinite - you can only use what materials you've got, and they run out once they've been used. This also means that in order to use a new Command Meld while one's already in effect, you'll have to cancel the previous enchantment as well as use up a new set of crystals. The ones I just handed to you are the purest form that you can find - this means that they last for longer, but they're rather rare. Keep this in mind when you pick which ones to use.'
'But we could do this for ages, and you're a fighter - I know things like this best serve you in combat, so that's probably the fastest way to learn for you,' Kuu said, drawing his sword. 'And this way, we can begin our exchange. Defend yourself - this is going to be a rough ride for both of us.'
He slung the Star Shard off his neck and fastened the chain about his free hand, the jewel resting in the palm of his hand. His fingers gripped the inner edges of the star-shaped stone as he prepared to begin his technique. Now then, the Star Shard uses the Heart as its navigator, so it's most likely that instead of basing my co-ordination on my vision, it should be more to do with my memory and my sensations. Feeling where I should be - the feel of that single wooden tile under my foot, the light from the window, the darkness of my shadow. Let's try just a small step...
Kuu activated the Star Shard, and in a flash of light, he was standing by the wall of the dojo. Okay, off by about three metres - not great, but not too bad either... let's try again.
This time he was in the right spot, except two metres off the ground. By his fourth attempt, he was beginning to get it - he realised how strange it must look to Syn when he had told him to defend himself when all he was doing was just warping around the room in a starry blur. 'Sorry. Just trying to get the groundwork right,' he said. 'I'll be coming at you for real now.'
Taking his stance, he decided to apply the same principle as the short-distance warp he had done to a combative tactic. Use these light rail warps to zigzag towards the target at a high speed - it might make it less of a surprise attack, but the light produced by the technique distracts the eye.
Activating the technique, Kuu shot towards Syn, leaving a zigzagging trail of stars behind him and he was upon him in a flash. Suppressing the feeling of euphoria and shock at the sheer speed of the technique, he executed the next part of the plan.
Capitalise on the speed of the warp to attack from multiple directions.
Kuu slashed down at Syn, before warping behind him, and delivering a swift uppercut. He then flew around to his right flank and struck his side, then flying about to the left side of his head to throw a kick into his face. He wasn't putting much force into it, as he was simply seeing how many hits he could get in with the advantage of the almost instantaneous movement power of the Star Shard. He attempted to finish with a single downward slash from above, but the amulet shone in his hand and suddenly he found himself shooting down to the ground at a phenomenal pace, and his sword gouged itself into the ground inches away from Syn's shoulder.
Pulling the weapon out, Kuu warped back away to a safer distance, before shooting straight back in, knowing that Syn would not let a chance slip. However, he suddenly found himself about five yards out from where he had intended to go, almost colliding headfirst into a weapons rack. Kuu looked back at Syn in confusion, and spotted the mark on the floor where his sword had struck it.
What went wrong? Did I miscalculate? I'm pretty sure I directed my focus onto the spot just behind him... ah. Wait. That scar on the flooring wasn't there before. I didn't take that into account when I tried to feel my way to that destination. It looks like I have to really know in my memory where I'm going before I warp successfully.
Kuu took his stance yet again, excited at what further possibilities and discoveries he could unravel. 'We're not finished yet,' he said with a smile. 'Let us continue, then.'
Syn nodded. Now it was Kuu's turn to experiment, no? The teen put his hand over the crystal he had only recently placed on his blade, removing it from the metal. He didn't want it there, not yet. It was still far too uncontrollable- he didn't want to hurt his acquaintance. But still, it was scary to feel that kind of flame. He had spent so long caressing the flame, controlling it, that the moment it had dived beyond his hold it inflicted fear upon him. He understood why they were fighting so much- it seemed that it was the only way Syn could learn nowadays. Or perhaps it was the quickest, he didn't know. But a life of servitude to the military, then a second life of killing Heartless- he could understand where the traveler was coming from. He lifted his sword at Kuu's command after listening to the man's explanation.
And now Kuu was teleporting.
A numbing mix of fear and nostalgia ran through Syn's body, making his face burn as he watched Kuu fumble back and forth with streams of light. Teleporting... The silver-haired boy was reminding him more and more of Ocean, a man who could teleport through water. Ocean was perhaps Synthest's most personal enemy. There were... circumstances that Synthest was forced to consider, and he had to kill Ocean. It wasn't as simple as all this Darkness and Light stuff, because neither parties were good or evil. But these flashbacks were making his skin crawl, bringing back memories that he didn't want to remember. All the same, Synthest had a feeling that he knew what Kuu would do, and he was already beginning to see how he would defend against the teleportation device. His blade rose in defiance of the teleporting and his eyes did not follow the light-
No, he listened for traveling sound more than he watched for movement. Also- direction. The way the shard works was understandable. It wasn't teleporting, per se, just extremely fast movement. It was directional. Meaning that maneuvering, while on the dime, required turning. That gave Synthest time. Kuu struck, Syn's blade clashing with his. His right hand left, the metal cutting in half, and he held a short sword and shield combo, blocking the first hit. He knew where the second would land before Kuu flashed away- his shield blocked it, sending a shockwave up his right arm. Ocean used to do the same thing- attack the back. But he also wasn't confined by direction. As long as there was enough congruent water in a rough space, he could send his form through it, re materializing inside.
But still, Kuu was way ahead of him speed-wise. It was too hard to keep up and he didn't have the advantages that he had over Ocean. His hands and a Reflect spell materialized around him, blocking the brunt of the blow to his back. The next was a kick that he threw the shield out to deflect, knocking him backwards. Still, he knew how to regain footing and paused, looking around. Kuu was gone. It was at that moment he felt it. Call it a soldiers' instinct but something was coming at him. He grinned as the blade hit the ground less than a foot away from him. Whatever this guy had, he respected it. He turned to see Kuu aiming at him and raised his weapons, watching as Kuu disappeared. Only this time, he felt something was off as soon as the man warped. His path was too wide, too easy to read- there had to have been a mistake. He turned to meet his colleague's eye- there was a mistake.
Syn felt he knew what to do now and raised his blade. He had to test Kuu, to make sure he got the fullest out of his abilities. He had to understand their weaknesses and strengths. That was the deal. "I'm ready."
Kuu gave a grin. He wasn't particularly a battle-hungry person by nature, but he'd spent enough time in the combative arts to feel the relentless energy of the fight, and taste the apprehension of facing an opponent who could take the force of his attacks. There was no need for him to hold back, there were no techniques that were too risky, no moves that were too uncertain - he could trust Syn to take them and respond to the best of his abilities, and his role was to test and trial his abilities to outthink and outmanoeuvre his responses. There were few ways he knew of that would be able to top the sheer speed of the Star Shard - after all, it was able to reach a velocity that broke through world barriers, which was no laughing matter. He hadn't been able to reach the speed he'd used when using it to travel to the Land of Dragons and back, but then again, that had been a far vaguer target. He'd just have to practice until he could manipulate all aspects of it perfectly.
In a way, this was an ideal combination for him - combined with his acutely analytical processing abilities which allowed him to take in his surroundings in an instant, he could easily plot the warp route for the Star Shard without the need for changing direction. He just had to play around with the mid-travel navigation - turning happened in an instant, and it was difficult to manage. It was going to take a lot of concentration to get used to this.
First, to test the combination of attacking and warping simultaneously.
Activating his Star Shard, Kuu struck with his sword, a single slash across the middle of the target. He timed it so that the weapon made contact the moment he passed by him, but he was too slow with the slashing motion and missed. Using the opportunity to practice an advantageous retreat using a warp, he shot off to the side and warped straight back at Syn once more for another attempt. This time he got the timing right and moved the sword quickly enough to match the speed of the warp.
It's impossible to completely match the warp speed, so my best bet is to have it already in motion by the time I move. It'll make it slightly more predictable, but if I perhaps combine it with another technique or multiple attacks, it will work better.
Then next test - to combine the warp with multiple attacks collated into a series of curving paths.
Kuu reached up to his face and removed his spectacles - a bit excessive considering he wasn't looking to face Syn as an enemy, but he wanted to make sure that things didn't go wrong, and he needed to use his full observational abilities for this. As soon as the mismatched lenses were removed, everything became instantly clearer, and Kuu became aware of every nook and cranny around him - this would make things far easier to confidently guide the memories of his heart to direct the warp. He first began with three slashes, attacking from three different angles in a similar fashion to his previous attack, but then followed up with an arcing downward cutting motion that struck from slightly further away, but at a faster pace. In this manner, he continued to speed up his movements, always plotting new routes for the Star Shard to follow to strike at different parts of Syn's body, attacking relentlessly in twisting arcs while trying to hit points Syn was not moving to defend. From the outside, it would have appeared that the pyromancer was caught in the middle of a crossfire of bright sparking lines lancing through him from all directions above and below in a complex spiralling flux of shining blurs.
Kuu warped out of the chaotic flurry and prepared for the final part of his test. A warp could be combined with an attack, provided the attack was already in motion at the time of the warp. This made the attack more predictable to a trained eye, not entirely covered by the advantage of the sudden covering of distance. This could be covered instead by a chain of such warp attacks in a rapid combo, and while this was a perfect combination of both speed and accuracy, it lacked in power due to Kuu not being able to move sufficiently to build full momentum into each and every attack, which he had attempted to make up for by starting the combo at a slightly slower attack rate then building in speed. Now he had to try to see if magic could be combined with the warp.
Charging himself with light magic (for some reason he felt that this would work best with the light attributes of the Star Shard), he focused on a single route straight for Syn while building up the magic to shine from all over his body while moulding it tightly around him so that it wouldn't disperse during the warp. He then activated the Star Shard and shot towards the pyromancer while timing the release of the light energy with the moment of impact, as he had done with the warp attack manoeuvre. The light exploded about him like a meteor smashing into the ground, and Kuu dropped to the floor in recoil, reflexively leaping back to a safe distance, panting.
'... That went... far too well...' he said, breathing deeply as he tried to blink the remainder of the light from his eyes. 'Syn? Syn, are you okay?'
Now it was time. Synthest had to give Kuu a challenge, else this entire thing was for naught. Equivalent exchange, to the best of his abilities. He watched Kuu charge forward and changed his weaponry as the man did so. Twin black gauntlets stretched up his arms, a more personal (and manageable) form of combat. Kuu rushed forward, faster than light, and Synthest pushed his hands together. Stopra encompassed him in a nine foot radius. This wouldn't slow Kuu down to his level but it would allow manageability.
Blue eyes flashed behind dark hair as a bead of sweat rolled down his body. How funny, that fire could not touch him yet a battle of endurance would burn his body in this way. The black gauntlets rose as Kuu bolted forward and fire rippled on their surface. He understood now that he could go full-out against Kuu. He could handle this as long as he kept the Stopra going. The silver-haired warrior, his eyes fiery with the joy of battle, burst into the warped zone and Synthest dodged his first attack. Kuu was experimenting and Synthest was ready for it. Instead of finding joy he found anxiety- too many bad memories. But this was a part of the deal. The past was the past and he'd have to get over it eventually. This was about Kuu and him learning how to mess with all this teleporting business, right?
Get over it, Vonne. It's not always about you. A brief image of a man with scarlet eyes passed through his vision and he faltered.
Kuu jettisoned in once more and Synthest threw his arms out, knocking his attacks aside. The silver-haired agent disappeared and reappeared, leaving the ex-soldier under constant duress, and he moved back and forth, carrying his Stopra with him as he fought off his opponent. He felt Kuu's weapon batter the metal that coated his arms, leaving bruises underneath, but a healing light enveloped them, the white crystal imbedded into the metal shimmering through the darkness of the time-based spell. He felt cuts graze his arms as he dodged back and forth in an attempt to avoid the man and as fast as they were cut, they healed. It was Syn's Cure. One for the Stopra, one for the Cura. The last... He didn't know if he could afford another spell just yet. And now he watched through the haze of the time warp to see a body of pure white, blinding, heading his way.
Whatever happened next was whited out by the magic that had been summoned. Synthest found his back to the ground for a second time on this odd, odd day. His right arm smoked, the Heartless that thrived inside crying in agony, and he held his breath as the agony that ran through his limb and up his neck began to subside. The pain seemed to take color in his mind, from white to a vibrant red, then to a dull, pulsing brown, until it subsided into darkness. Sin was hurt- it was the first time Synthest had ever seen it respond negatively. That teleporter majig... It was powerful. But Synthest had the feeling that if he were to use it on his parasite, it would most likely hurt him gravely. Well... at least that would keep the beast at bay for a short while longer. It would keep the fever from coming back.
The dark-haired one pulled himself back to his feet, his body still letting off a mix of smoke and dust. He could taste the remnants of the area Kuu had destroyed. His gauntlets pulsed white- his Light magics had protected him from the attack to an extent, but his body was already telling him that it wasn't prepared for whatever just happened. He took a deep breath, waving away the debris floating around his head, and let his Light magic do what it could before his mana reserves went dry. "Yeah... I'm somewhat good," he replied, chuckling. "What the hell just happened?"
Kuu smiled, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief. Though he was reluctant to admit it, not all of what had just transpired had been fully under control. Warping in such rapid succession while maintaining a proper attack pattern was an incredibly complex sequence for his mind to process, and being distracted by thoughts of wariness for Syn's safety, working to best chain the attacks and pinpointing the weak points in his target's defence while at the same time avoiding fatal strikes, compounded with the euphoria of learning and experiencing something new meant that the combo had run away on its own a little by the end. And that final technique had potentially far more power for less magic consumption - he was still getting used to the feel of molding light magic and it was going to take time to combine it perfectly with the warp.
But there had been something else a little off as well - when he'd made contact with the light magic, there had been something a little more abnormal than the regular magical damage that would usually have occurred. He'd felt a similar sensation to that he experienced when he struck a weak point in one's armour, or a doused a fire spell. And Syn seemed somewhat refreshed - not just because of the Cure magic, but his breathing seemed freer, his features more relaxed somehow. He wondered how what had happened had made it so.
'Thank you for defending so promptly,' he said, sheathing his sword. 'Such progress would have been difficult otherwise. But rather, why didn't you try using a Command Meld? You would have been able to maintain your magic reserves for much longer had you used it.'
'Because of the unique way you synthesise, your Command Meld is a little different,' he continued. 'Usually, you would meld it straight onto another technique so that it activates whenever you use it. This way, you can use a Command Meld to cover for a technique's weak points. But the effects for you seem to just keep going until the material's power runs out. This means that every technique you do will be affected by whatever enchantment you've just synthesised. In a way, I suppose it's more of a Command Bind than a Meld.'
Fishing around in his pockets, he threw an ether to Syn. 'Here, take that and get some of your magic back,' he said. 'Then why don't you try attacking me again, except this time, if you combine the Shimmering Crystal with that Ruby - that's a fire-type, right? With those two enchantments together, your fire might be refined into something absolutely incredible. But only a little bit. Focus it so you release only a little of a pure flame - you should be able to do it now that your magic circuits have cleared somewhat. If it gets out of hand, I can warp away, don't worry.'
Syn shrugged as Kuu questioned him. Command meld? "I don't know what it would do, and you weren't defending. Things could have gone wrong- you don't test out a technique you've only heard of in the middle of battle. It's just one way to make sure your metaphorical gun jams on you." He held his hand over his weapon, toying with the idea... His revolver would be too dangerous. "Keeps both of us safe." He drank the ether, his jaw clenching as the liquids crossed over his tongue. He was never the fan of the taste- None of it tasted natural.
His blue eyes searched Virtegon for any scratches as he took stance. Nothing. The weapon was a single piece once more, a two-handed broadsword, with a style that he had never seen on any world before. Not fantastical in nature, it just held a strange influence. The straightness of the blade's edge, like that of a katana, but the handguard resembled something closer to a claymore, with the crystals traveling up the length of the sword after the hand-guard. This was the shape that the metal took naturally, oddly enough, and it would revert when the battle ended. It was also the shape it would conform to when he took it from his arm. He never thought that he would put another crystal on the blade...
Considering the circumstances in which he got them. Synthest pressed the Shimmering Crystal into the weapon, letting the metal settle around it.
He settled into a basic battle maneuver and rushed forward, his weapon immediately blazing into life. The sharpened edge of it seemed to glow at first, the edge of the blade burning blue. But it wasn't the blade itself on fire- instead, a second overlapping plate of heat had been generated, the heat and shape channeled by Synthest. The shimmering crystal was indeed doing its job, helping him to hold such a heat. It kept his mana use relatively the same to a lower level, but allowed him to wield it without damaging himself.
"Get ready, I'm just using basic maneuvers but they'll be strong... And hot."
With that, he rushed forward, the fire on his blade surging, and at the last moment he pulled a string of metal from his weapon. In his left hand he held only a hilt, and the blade itself was a blue laser-like beam of energy unattached to the metal piece. Synthest still feared holding it directly, as he could with other flame types. At this point, through the control that Synthest kept it under, the weapon ceased to exist as fire and became hot enough to be considered plasma. But, if kept in a stable form, it would not splash to other objects and would only melt if kept pressed against something for a long enough time. Thus was the nature of fire- if controlled, it would not bite back. The reason the hilt existed is because the shimmering crystal still shone brightly at its guard.
He rushed forward, delivering a strike Kuu's way with the plasma weapon. He threw his second blade in a wide arc to his right, which would mean that Kuu would have to avoid his right side for it was ready for an attack. Therefore, the best available options would be to go to his left or his direct opposite, his back, seeing as waiting for his right-handed attack to subside would give him the opportunity to respond. Unfortunately, his left also had a flaming blade of murder-death, and if her were to get too close with that, things might get a little bit more dangerous.
Kuu watched as Syn began to summon his fire magic, closely marking the manner in which he channelled the power of his fire crystal and the Shimmering Crystal together. He noted that the flame wasn't actually touching the metal at any point, but that Syn had deliberately conjured the flame to form an extra layer. He admired the degree of control he had over his flames - few he had encountered before were as adept at molding fire magic as the warrior before him. It seemed that he knew to be cautious with such a dangerous flame, which looked like it could burst into a lethal plume of burning blue at any moment.
A flame the like of which I've never seen before - it looks like something out of an old wives' tale to conjure demons to scare children to bed.
As Syn spoke a warning and began his attack, Kuu had time to note dryly, And it's coming my way.
Kuu leapt back to dodge Syn's attack with the fiery blue blade, and blocked the arc to his right side easily with his sword - since it was such a wide movement, he could have seen it coming from a mile away. He guessed that Syn would probably attack his left side again with his flame, but since this was a duel where they were testing new techniques, he deduced that there would be most to learn from an attempt to block the attack to see just how powerful this blue flame could be.
With a flick of his wrist Kuu summoned a wind that flung one of the swords - a Chinese dao - from the rack on the wall and into his hand. Swinging it around in his palm, he gripped it backhand and raised it to block Syn's blade of blue fire while simultaneously conjuring up an Aerora. However, the moment the blade made contact, he knew that he had made a grave miscalculation. The fire blazed straight through the barrier of wind and began to melt straight through the metal of his broadsword, and he knew that the force of the slash would cut straight through the steel and into flesh. He would not come out of it unscathed.
Idiot.
'What?'
What is this stupid situation? Reconnect. Now.
The shield of wind suddenly loses its opaque shimmer, and suddenly a murky darkness surrounds him, swirling ominously in a thorny barrier. The blade of blue flame is halted in its tracks by a jet-coloured veil, engulfing and choking the azure fire using its own substance to subdue it. A gust of black wind explodes outwards to knock back the swords that have come too close, and lifts the swordsman up into the air. A golden glint shines in the dark of his eyes, and his weapons shimmer with a night-like haze.
In a flash, the swordsman is upon him, delivering one unyielding blow after another, the jian and damaged dao delivering merciless slashes ripping dark scars in the air at a phenomenal rate. The strikes do not tire, and the shadows do not lessen in intensity. With a sweep of his blades that rends the space between them, the swordsman leaps backwards and raises his arms. The darkness gathers above him and forms an incandescent violet globe of undeniable doom.
'Take -'
I think not...!
There was a blinding light, and Kuu fell to the floor. The darkness dissipated into the air above him, and was swallowed by the brightness of the light that shone from within him. The same pain which had shot through him back then, after the training with Kairi, was blazing through him now. Focusing on his light, he tried to meditate through the pain on that glow, trying to reassume control over his mind. As he did so, the pain began to ease, and his senses blearily swam back into focus.
Kuu rose before him and Synthest's eyes opened wide. Darkness swirled around the swordsman as Synthest's fire came too close, and he winced as the veil pushed his weapons back. Sin, hiding beneath his skin, awoke, but did not move. It was still weak... Which meant that Kuu's negative emotions wouldn't spur it to make a move. As if it could- Syn was feeling far too good right now to have the parasite ruin his day. But what happened next was unaccounted for. Kuu counter-attacked with all due haste, but the shadows had given him speed.
Syn knew that speed too well. It was similar to his own... feverish state. He moved back, swinging the weapons around him, the fire and metal clashing around him. Fortunately the Darkness was blunt and straight forward- unfortunately, it was damn powerful. Synthest felt the blows sear the edges of his weapons, sparks jettisoning around them as he tried to avoid getting the flames too close to his friend's form. The Dark form swirled and finally pushed Synthest back, where Kuu raised his arms- the dark veil twirled above him, now a devastating ray of Darkness. Synthest grimaced, his hand going to the white crystal on his weapon. It was his good luck charm, his light in the darkness. "Kuu, wake up!" he said, as the man aimed at him. He flashed back to a point when he was staring at a wall of sharp ice spikes, with Ocean standing amongst them. The man's eyes at that time were hidden by a dark bandana to hide the frostbite that had crept among his face.
Kuu fell to the floor and Synthest blocked his line of sight to avoid being blinded a second time today. He waited for it to disappear now and squinted through the light, rushing forward to help his friend. He bent down, a little concerned about moving Kuu- it could be a bad idea, it was probably best to let him fight this out. The light that was surging through him right now signified that he was working hard to regain control. "Kuu..." Syn held a hand out as the man seemed to regain a bit of consciousness. "So does this mean that I can tell you my secret?" He flashed a smile. "After all, the rules are the rules."
Grimacing, Kuu fought to push the last remnants of darkness out, but instead felt it slip away, back within. It was, however, out of the way at least. Opening his eyes, the golden gleam drained from his eyes, returning them to their original black shade. 'Ouch... what... how did I get down here? What's... did I warp badly again?'
A headache racked Kuu's mind, shooting maddening lances of pain through his memory. The past minutes seemed to crawl through his consciousness like glue - opaque and viscous, making it impossible to think back clearly. As hard as he tried, he couldn't quite take hold of them, and while the stabbing pains began to fade, so did the pieces and distant images that echoed about his mind. In the end, all that was left was an awareness that time had passed and a half-formed memory of a dark shadow and the ensuing pain - beyond that, there was nothing.
Glancing up at Syn, he was confused as to why he was smiling. What had just happened should have shocked him, frightened him - he had found it unnerving himself, after all. As someone who had been afraid of disappearing from one world to reappear in another at any moment in time, memories were a dear possession - it was not at all a pleasant feeling to be unable to remember something which had come to pass.
But perhaps the smile was there for a reason - perhaps there was a sense of familiarity behind Syn's expression which meant that there was something he knew, something that could explain what had just happened. And then there was that strange feeling he had felt when he had used his light magic against him - could it have been...?
Kuu seemed fully awake now, although Synthest had no idea what he was thinking. He seemed dazed- could he not remember it? The soldier mentally grimaced. Some people get all the luck. "Kuu... You're fighting the Darkness aren't you?" It wasn't as much a question as it was a statement. Synthest relinquished Virtegon from its physical form and the dark veins of metal turned the scars on his arm dark. While it wasn't sickly looking, it was obvious that the metal was unnatural.
"You're not alone."
The scars moved. Underneath the scars, a yellow eye opened. "I'm fighting it too- I have been for years. And after we leave this place, I have more to tell you. A favor that I don't want returned." The eye peered around. The Fever was confused- this had never happened before. While Syn wasn't letting him near his heart, the being was revealing him. The Heartless was the entity that made Virtegon's blade back. He was the onyx that glowed ominously while Syn was under duress. And after so many years, it was hard to tell where Syn's Darkness ended and his own began.