Home Sweet Home [Skylar, OPEN]

[wanderingknight]

A voice echoed throughout the seemingly empty mansion. It seemed to come from everywhere, and it was difficult to tell from what direction it was coming from. Apparently there was someone, or something, else in here, someone who didn't sound very happy. "What are these strange smells? Who dares come into here unannounced? It seems that some souls decided to sate their curiosity and barge into this place without thinking. Unfortunately, curiosity can be a very dangerous thing. Perhaps I need to teach these adventurous fools what price discovery can have?"

The voice definitely sounded annoyed, and seemed to mean what it was saying. After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, a new sound resounded through the room, that of soft footsteps. Then, the scraping noise of a sword being unsheathed, followed by deep growling. Something was approaching.

Soon, a dark figure appeared on the second floor, looking down at the injured person below. In the skimpy light, it was hard to make out what it was, but it didn't seem human. Suddenly it leapt down, landing just across the room from the other with a soft thud. It seemed to be some sort of humanoid red fox, with dark blue eyes that glared at him under spiky, blonde hair. His fluffy tail twitched in interest at this unwelcome visitor, and he wielded a large sword more than half his size at six feet tall, a blade that had cleaved many enemies in the past. However, the creature did nothing but watch the other person, without a word. He seemed to be watching for a reaction.

[skylar]

Skylar was currently laying on the ground unconscious with a broken and bleeding arm. The young 16 year old teenager looked like he has been through quiet the ordeal. After a few minutes of laying there a new figure seem to make its way into the old room. The sound of the creature jumping to the ground floor cause Skylar to regain a bit of consciousness.

As Skylar lazily looked over to where the creature was currently standing looking down at him, he first thought it was Axel but quickly notices it wasn't him. Skylar's vision was blurred out and couldn't make much of the creature out with much detail. The figure was to tall to be Axel and it seemed to have a big fluffy tail. Obviously it wasn't human but the question was is it friendly? "Who... Are... You?" the boy said with a weak tone in his voice. "Have you... come to... help? Or beat a kid... While he's... Down?" He asked with a smirk as he once again fade from consciousness. The boy was hoping to appeal to the creatures good will and help him or to put him out of his misery with a quick death.

Skylar's injuries look to be pretty bad but not life threatening. With a quick patch and some rest he should be fine. But his arm will take some time to heal due to it being broken. Will the creature help save the life of a young teenager who has yet to really live his life? Or will it end it here today?

[wanderingknight]

The creature, known as a Taranian, looked down at the human, who seemed only a few years younger than he was. The scent of blood coming from him was strong, and he had trouble making out any other smells besides it. Obviously, this kid had come into some sort of major trouble upon stepping into here. There was no need to teach any lesson, it seemed the kid had already been taught. Slowly, the red fox sheathed his weapon and approached the unconscious boy. There was no threat here.

He looked around before getting any closer. He thought there had been another around here, but it seems that the other person in here had left, probably gone to get someone to help? Well, if he was gone, there's no need to worry about that. The Taranian tended to focus more on what was the bigger issue.

He knelt beside the injured teenager and picked him up with ease. He leapt back to the second floor and brought him to the room that he had been occupying for a while. While he could easily find a place to sleep in the town, he liked how quiet it was out here. And being in the forest reminded him of home. He laid the stranger on a mat and looked over the wounds. He'd live, but maybe not without a bit of medical attention. He set about wrapping up the wounds and making a splint for the broken arm. After that it would only be a matter of waiting for him to wake up.

[skylar]

After several hours of rest Skylar finally started to come around. First thing he wondered was where he was. It seemed to be a white room with a dinning room table in the middle and a bed in the corner with drawings on the walls scattered across the room. He quickly found out where he was by looking at the window. He saw the familiar curtains that he saw on the second floor window from outside the mansion.

Next thing that Skylar wondered was who fixed his arm? Whoever it was clearly new what they were doing, Skylar's arm hardly hurt at all. He looked around the room in hopes of seeing his rescuer but no one was in the room at the time but him. Skylar slowly got up and on his feet and began to look at the drawings on the wall. Most of them seem to be a boy that looked to be a bit younger than him with what looked like a duck and a dog humanoid while the others seem to be about other people in black coats. "I wonder who these guys are. Must be pretty important to someone to have drawn so many pictures of them." Thought Skylar.

Then Axel began to linger in his mind. "Axel... was it you who saved me? Or... Was it that other guy? Did you bring him here to help?" Skylar then walked towards the door to the room to see if anyone was outside. When he walked though the door he saw the familiar room where he just had the intense fight against the mysterious white enemies. As he looked around he didn't see anyone around at this moment in time. "Where is everyone? Did something happen?" Wondered Skylar as he started to make his way back to the room.

[wanderingknight]

In another one of the several rooms of the "abandoned" mansion, the Taranian examined the surroundings. One other reason that he had been staying here was to examine this place. No doubt that this building was one of the most mysterious places in Twilight Town, but no matter how long the red fox hung around in this place, the mystery only deepened, never getting any clearer. Why was this place abandoned for so long? Surely this place must have been occupied at some point in recent times, judging from those strange drawings that seemed to have been drawn somewhat recently.

The sound of movement made his ears flick back towards the door which lead back into the central room. Having once again learned nothing from looking for clues, he decided to check on his guest, who seemed to be awake. Before opening the door, he took one last look at the room. His curiosity of this place was over the top, and nothing satisfied the urge to figure out this place.

He entered the central room and leapt back up to the second floor. Sure, he could take the stairs, but it was much faster this way. Walking back into the weird white room, it seemed that the teenager was up and about. "Nice to see that you've awakened. How are you feeling? And what put you in such a bad state in the first place?" He asked, having not much thought about it until now. Not even falling from the second floor could cause such an injury. Something must be up.

[skylar]

No sooner than three seconds after Skylar walked back into the white room, Aidan walked in. At first the creature surprised him due to never seeing anything like this before. When Aidan said his first statement and questions Skylar's eyes where pretty much at the rim of popping out of his eye sockets. Skylar was at a loss, is he really just about to have a conversation with some kind of humanoid fox creature? He tried to say something back to not be rude but no words came out.

Finally after almost a minute later Skylar finally got over the initial shock of being in the presence of what he believes has to be rare type of person and finally answered his question appropriately. "Uh... Yeah. I'm fine." he respond with a little confusion in his voice. Skylar was more than a little confused with the fox's second question than anything "Guess Axel didn't go find help after all otherwise he probably would already know what happened. Then what happened to him? Hope he's alright." Skylar wondered. "My friend and I were attacked by these weird white creatures they proved to be stronger than any heartless we have encountered yet." Skylar answered.

Skylar decided to ask a few questions of his own "You didn't happen to see anyone else here have you? He wears a blue armor like suit with a big blue helmet? And sorry if this next question offends you in any way but.... What are you exactly? I've never seen anyone like you before at all." As Skylar waited for Aidan to respond, Skylar couldn't help but have a bit of worry and concern written all over his face for his friend.

[wanderingknight]

After asking the questions, the kid seemed to just freeze in shock, which confused Aidan at first. Perhaps he was new here? Almost everyone else in Twilight Town seemed to be used to the red fox's appearance by now, to the point that Aidan had forgotten that he must look strange to humans. He waited for the guy to slowly come to terms with the reddish-orange fur, fluffy tail, big ears, and intimidating fangs that, as he had been told before, were the most prominent features that made him stick out in a crowd like a sore paw.

Eventually the wild-eyed youth managed to answer his questions. It was good to see that he had recovered from his previous state in a well enough manner. Upon hearing the answer to his second question, Aidan frowned a bit, raising a paw to his chin in contemplation. Friend, huh? So there had been another with him after all. And white things attacking people? That sounded like...

He thought a bit longer after hearing the concerned boy's questions before lowering his chin and responding, "When I walked into the main room, there was no one else besides you in the mansion. Of that, I am certain, otherwise I'd have sniffed him out and confronted him before having to tend to you." He paused for a bit before continuing, deciding to answer the second question the way that didn't make him seem too crazy. "I'm a Taranian, a race of people much like you humans but... a bit more animal-like, as you can see. And I'm not surprised you haven't seen anyone like me, I'm... from a distant land. And there was an incident in our homeland. I'm not sure if anyone besides me survived the ordeal, I can only hope."

"Now these white things you mentioned, I think I have a pretty good idea of what you are talking about. They're called Nobodies. I don't know much about them, but they seem to be smarter than the Heartless, if you're familiar with that term. Though it's not very often that they show up and attack people. Perhaps they had something to do with your friend's disappearance?" he mused. The events seemed a bit too coincidental to ignore completely.

[skylar]

Skylar was disappointed that Aidan didn't see Axel anywhere. Was he really taken by these... Nobody's? What are those things? Lots of questions ran though he young boys mind. First things first think it was time Skylar introduced himself. "Well for starters the names Skylar. I live here in Twilight Town although I never really got out much mostly spent my time learning how to fight or doing my school work. I'm currently on a journey to find a Darkside here in Twilight Town. Lets say its more revenge than anything else. Me and my friend Axel thought sense this was the most remote and suspicious place in town then we might find something here. Obviously you know what we found and how it turned out."

Skylar observed his savior a bit and noticed his rather large weapon on his back. No way someone could lift that thing unless maybe... "Say... You wouldn't happen to know how to use magic would you? Cause if you do... Could you possibly teach me how to use it?" Skylar asked. Skylar has seen plenty enough people using magic to no its an necessity in this fight against the darkness so its time he searched for a mentor.

After a few minutes have past and the discussion on magic has passed, the encounter with the nobody's was still racing in Skylar's mind so he had to ask "What are the nobody's exactly? Are they just like the heartless? Where do they come from? I know the heartless come from the darkness in peoples hearts but these creatures seem... Different and where do they come from?" If he was going fight off those creatures again, it would be best to know his opponents in and out so is to not make the same mistakes again.

[wanderingknight]

Aidan listened intently as Skylar introduced himself. Of course it was respectful to pay attention, but also the Taranian needed to make sure he knew what kind of person the teenager was. Afterwards, he proceeded to introduce himself. "Name's Aidan. Woke up in this place about a month or so before, doing odd jobs and such to pay for food. For a while I've been hanging out in this mansion to try and curb my curiosity of this place."

Another thing caught his attention. "You're looking for a... Darkside? That's quite an adversary. I'd been trained for many years to fight Heartless and still have trouble fighting them. However, in the time I've spent here I don't recall seeing a Darkside. But if you want, I'll try to help you find it, if it's here," he offered.

He tilted his head a bit at the next question. "Magic? Sure, all Taranians are gifted with a good ability handling magic. But I was only able to learn one spell: Fire. I'll teach it to you, sure, but if you're serious about learning magic, a more experienced magic user might be a better teacher. Of course, if you practice it might be possible to eventually learn new spells. Later, though. Once we get outside."

Skylar certainly showed an interest in getting a better understanding of the Nobodies. "Well, the Nobodies that appear here most often are the Dusks, which I'm betting you were fighting. Slippery creatures that use their elastic bodies to twist to avoid attacks while delivering their own. They can squirm through the air, too. Nobodies...well I can't say for certain but from fighting a few strays, they don't seem to have a heart, like humans and Taranians. They're just... empty husks. They're also not like the Heartless. Heartless ruthlessly attack anyone they see, while Nobodies don't do so very often unless for a reason. I don't know where they come from, but back where I'm from, we never saw a single Nobody. So I think that there's some sort of connection with them and Twilight Town, though I don't know what's so special about this place. However, I have no idea what causes them to appear," he shook his head. They just seemed to...pop up around here. No one knew where exactly the abominations came from.

[skylar]

"Nice to meet you Aidan. So you've been here for a month now huh? That's about the same time I was forced to Traverse Town by the Darkside. No wonder I've never seen any Taranian's around." Skylar replied. When Aidan mentioned helping Skylar find the Darkside a mix of joy and concern fell over him. He's happy for the fact that he now has someone to help him fight this thing but Axel was still on his mind and Skylar now has a broken arm. Skylar would be in no condition to fight anything for at least six weeks for his arm to heal and not to mention getting his arm back up to strength for not using it for so long. He decided to leave the details for later and focus on whats happening now.

Skylar new it, Aidan did posses the power to use magic. Not only that but he agreed to teach him what he new. Got to start somewhere he thought but finding another mentor might be the more challenging part. Maybe once he learned Aidan's spell he could use that to experiment and try and figure it out on his own. In regards, Skylar couldn't help but ask "How does magic work exactly? Could someone learn a lot of different spells just by being taught how one works? And if so, what are the risks?"

As Aidan explained about the Nobody's, Skylar listened very carefully so he can possibly find some way of fending them off. After Aidan explained about the dusk Skylar answered "Yeah. Those sound just like the little midgets." After hearing the rest of what the fox had to say about the Nobody's, Skylar pondered for a minute before asking "The way you make them out to be, its like they just popped out of thin air..."Kinda like they were never meant to... Skylar's mind trailed off pondering his theory for a few moments. " Wait could it be possible that they are exactly that. Get this, what if they were once human but an incident happened like they were attacked by a heartless and had there hearts taken away. So all that would be left is nothing more than the body and its memories AKA the Nobody's. Its just a guess but it makes sense." Skylar waited with anticipation for what the Taranian had to say on the subject.

[wanderingknight]

Aidan decided this was a good start to teaching about magic. "Well, magic is basically manipulating the energy inside you into different forms of energy. You have to concentrate that energy together, transform it, and then release it. Knowing how to do that with one spell can eventually lead to learning others, because many spells take the same general steps to cast, whether it's a Fire spell or a Cure spell. Maybe once you get the hang of the Fire spell, you'll see what I'm talking about. Of course, some people have a better affinity for magic and learn faster than others. As for the risk of learning on your own, I don't think there are many. I mean, if you cast a spell wrong, usually nothing will happen. The spell simply fails. At least that's what happens to me," he explained carefully, departing his knowledge of how the phenomenon seemed to work. "It's just easier and a bit faster to learn from someone who knows the spell, I think."

Aidan nodded after hearing Skylar's thoughts on the subject of Nobodies. "Yeah, that was the feeling I was getting, too. If they don't have hearts, then I know few other reasons for them not to have one. The Heartless take hearts, these things pop up without hearts... it was something that I had been contemplating for some time. But my guess would be that not all humans that lose their hearts turn into Nobodies, because if that were the case, there'd probably be a lot more of them."

Taking one more look at the strange room, he asked, "You think that you want to head back into town? With you injured like this, this place might not be the best to stay in. Twilight Town may look quiet, but the threat of the Heartless is still here, not to mention the Nobodies. If we get attacked by a swarm, I'm not sure that I'd be able to protect you. Safety in numbers, that's how our kind handled the Heartless. Plus, who knows? Maybe I'm wrong and your friend is somewhere around here. Not likely, but still," he shrugged.

[skylar]

Skylar was exited to hear that once he learned how one spell works he could potentially learn multiple spells. "Well if i can't find a mentor its at least good to have a back up plan I guess." Skylar still had one more question on his mind on the subject though. "What if you don't have enough energy or whatever is used to use spells could that be dangerous or will it like you said just fail?"

After thinking over the subject of the Nobody's, Skylar decided that they should be avoided in the future at least until he gets to know about magic than he dose now. "If there as rare as you say they are then I don't think I should fight another one anytime soon at least till I get stronger and can handle more than two without taking this much damage." Regarded Skylar motioning to his broken arm. "Next time I see one afterwards though... They better be ready for a real fight."

Skylar thought long and hard for the next few minutes regarding Aidan's question on moving to a different location. "The only other place I know that I can go is my parents place but...." Skylar remembered they day he left to start his journey. How he just left without a word to his parents. The letter he left for them promising his return someday. "Lets just say I can't go back yet. I... I told myself that I wouldn't go back till I finish what I set out to do... And that's to make my mark in this fight. To do what I can. To make a difference."

Skylar thought about everything that's happened sense he left on his journey. The attack of the heartless at the train station, the Darkside sending him to Traverse Town, the encounter with the White Witch, and Axel and all the help he gave him. "Besides... Axel is probably still around here somewhere or at least a clue to what happened to him. I owe him that at the least. Without him I don't know were I'd be right now. Probably lying dead in the snow somewhere in Traverse Town."

[wanderingknight]

"Well for me, spells just fail if you don't have enough energy to cast them." Aidan answered, shrugging. He guessed that the same applied to humans, too. He understood what Skylar meant about not being able to go back yet, but there wasn't much fighting he could do with his arm like that. "Here, I'll show you. I was waiting for you to wake up so I could do this." Taking a deep breath, he concentrated and held up a paw towards the sky. "You need to make sure to focus on directing the energy within you into the correct form. Then, once you're ready to cast..." With a sharp glint in his eye, he shouted, "Heal!"

A burst of leaves appeared over the Taranian and two pairs of water drops spiraled around the two. While it had no effect on the red fox, the magic worked to heal the kid's wounds and broken arm. Aidan nodded and removed the splint so that Skylar could check his arm. "A lot of people use different ways to cast spells. I like to shout out a certain word whenever I cast a spell, so that I make sure to use the right one. I also hold out my hand when I do it, too. You don't technically need to do these things, the point is to focus. You need to imagine what you're going to turn the energy into. It's...not exactly an easy concept for me to explain," the red fox admitted.

Reaching into his satchel, the Taranian pulled out a blue cube and used it on himself. "That was an ether," he explained. "Cure spells use up a lot of energy, so ethers can help to restore that energy and get you back to casting quicker. Here, have a few," he offered, handing three to Skylar. "Once you learn how to use magic, that'll help to keep you from running out in the heat of battle."

While Aidan still had trouble telling how much energy he had currently, he did have some general idea. It seemed it would be a short wait before he could cast again. "So, you feeling better? It might be good to have both hands free to search for any clues about your missing friend."

[skylar]

Skylar was in a state of awe as Aidan used his healing spell. The burst of leaves hovering over the two of them, the drops of water spiraling around them. As the spell worked though its intended function, Skylar can feel his arm becoming less and less of a burden on him as if the pain was being washed away. Not only that but he can feel the bones in his arm realigning with relaxing motion instead of intense pain which would usually come when someone tried to realign someones bone structure. After the spell had finished, Skylar checked his arm for any signs of it being broken. He bent, flexed and tried a few of his karate moves and didn't fine one thing wrong with his arm. "Amazing... If I new you were going to put on such a spectacular show... I would have made some popcorn." Skylar laughed.

Aidan continued to explain the fundamentals of magic. He went on to say that different people use different methods to come to the same conclusion for instance Aidan raising his paw and yelling heal. That got Skylar thinking. "Hmm mind if I give it a shot?" He asked holding out his right hand towards the window. "Ok Skylar, concentrate on directing the energy within you into the correct form. Lets start with something basic... Fire." As Skylar attempted to cast his first spell he could fell his hand starting to feel a little warm warm. "Ok your doing something right now keep it up and focus!" Once he felt that there was no more change of temperature in his hand he figured this was it and began to fire the spell. "FIRE!!!

Sadly all that came out of the spell as a very small puff of smoke that disappeared in a second. Skylar stood there in embarrassment his cheeks running red. "Eh... Well... I at least expected a spark or something..." Said Skylar lowering his hand. "Think I'm starting to see why it takes so long to learn."

As Aidan grabbed a few ether's from his satchel and even toss a few to Skylar he explained what there use was. "Ether's huh... I've seen these before at the item shop in town. Never really figured out what they were for. Guess you learn something new everyday." Then Aidan ask if Skylar was feeling any better to go search for anything that could tell him what might have happened to Axel. "Yeah I'm ready for anything! Skylar said rushing towards the door. It appears even a broken arm and a good beating wont dull that reckless spirit of his.

[wanderingknight]

Aidan grinned at Skylar's eagerness. He seemed like a very energetic and upbeat kid. "Keep practicing that spell. That puff of smoke means that you are at least on the right track. Otherwise nothing would have happened. Just remember what I said. If casting a spell one way doesn't work right, try making a different gesture and see if that works. Practice makes perfect."

Aidan decided to look for anything suspicious. He didn't know who Skylar's friend was, but it wouldn't hurt to search for anything out of the ordinary, however "ordinary" this place was. The scent had faded since the first encounter with Skylar, there was not much smell he could track.

He returned to the main room, where some of a fight had happened apparently. Looking around, there wasn't much he could see right away except for the blood staining the first floor. Deciding to check some of the rooms below for anything useful, he leapt down and slipped into one, not sure exactly what he was expecting to find.