A Wrinkle in Time

[jiahao_94]

Gimme your MSN >=D

[gutterball930]

THE IS STILL A BLANK GRRRRRRRrr

[jiahao_94]

And Gasy hasn't given me his MSN address.

Edit: Chapter 29 is done! Finally!

[jiahao_94]

Chapter 30
I looked interestedly into the sky. The sun had been blocked out by a solar eclipse, and a glow had leapt from it; a legend sprang to my mind, the story of the Dodekatheons; Apollo was the god of light, healing, music, poetry, prophecy, archery and truth. I wondered what was happening, and inadvertently, we glanced at one another. Alexis and Jessica looked dumbly back at me; I held the Dark Fairfrozen tightly, observing blankly the dark crystals letting off their glow. There was a pounding sound, and Tim appeared in the clearing; the three of us jumped. Gasping, he said, "Kira... Apollo... Ivan... " Upon hearing the bowman's name, Alexis leapt up and charged her weapon whilst running; Even when her weapon was shielded by her body, the glow that leapt up in auroras was beautiful; in the darkness, her mace acted as a beacon; I jumped over a large tree branch and stumbled into a clearing.
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Ivan leveled his bow. The Dark Arund glittered threateningly in the light, as did his attacks; the Inferno was parried by Apollo, but barely; the god had trouble keeping with the speed that Ivan easily reached; he increased it by a knot. The flames danced around the clearing, and the Phoenix looked impressed by the skill of the Hunter; even though he was relatively low leveled, he could use bows far higher, and utilize the attacks of a Bow Master. "Dragon Pulse." Not noticing the Phoenix watching him intently, he fished out a Summoning Rock and pressed on the rune. The blue rock let out a red glow, and shattered; a flaming bird appeared above him, darting wildly at Apollo. The Iron Arrow nicked his heel, and he was surprised, but the Hunter merely commented, "Achilles' Heel." Enchanting music leapt around the clearing, and I felt myself being drawn in, but there was a slash from behind me, and a gigantic roar; Alex panted, and raised his spear. Jumping, he quickly tapped the air just as he started to fall; there was a flash, and he propelled himself up. A black dragon appeared behind him, surrounded by green thorns; he slashed downwards, and there was a red flash. Apollo blocked the Sacrifice with his hands, which left him open; I managed to land an Angel Ray on the cloud he was standing on; it sank a feet. Rapidly, Alex raised his spear again, and I felt the mana flow rapidly; there was a whoosh of air, and the Dark Fairfrozen slammed into the ground, causing a shockwave to rise upwards; the black dragon ate at Apollo's platform and armor, causing him to roar in anger. The sun grew darker.

Lacus casted a shield, which pushed the spirit beasts backwards; they were surprised by the force of the shield, even Gaia, who could manipulate everything on this Earth. Apollo formed a gigantic bow from his hands, and aimed it at Ivan; unimpressed, he said, "Astral Bow." The spirit bow glowed black in response to his hands; Apollo raised an eyebrow. He was clad in white, as were his platform and bow; Ivan's equipments were all black, including his spiritual bow. Compared to the Dark Arund, this bow looked more powerful, but I knew, from experience, that Astral weapons cost a lot of energy. Trying it out, I said, "Astral Staff." My staff glowed black, but I felt drained, and had to take some time to calm down and regenerate energy. Meanwhile, I watched with fascination the three warriors slashing rapidly at the god standing on the by now halved cloud, trying his best to keep his balance. Soon, he sensed that it was futile, but before he disappeared, he tossed a flaming spear at Alex, which tore the entire back of his armor.

"It's been fun meeting you people. Tata!"

The Dark Knight collapsed on all fours, panting. The dragon on his back was ebony in color, letting of a menacing glow as frightening as the spear he now held in his right hand. Pushing himself off the ground, he tore off the top of the Battle Road and tossed it on the ground nonchalantly; the dragon glowed once, then stretched and emerged from his back. The roar it let out shook the trees, and the retreating Apollo flinched slightly, causing the moon to move away from the sun once more. The glow brightened the clearing diminutively. The shattering sound that followed rang through the clearing; the Dark Fairfrozen was now lying in pieces on the ground. Alex collapsed.
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The next few minutes passed in confusion. Everyone was shocked, but none more so than the Dark Dragon; he himself knew what went wrong. The weapon was bound to both him and the host, and now that he'd left, the weapon cracked, causing the bond to shatter. The boy was now near inevitable death; the only matter was how long he'd take. If he had resilience, then he could last for one day, enough to get help; if he didn't... the next minute would conclude this. A young female crossbowman staggered into the clearing, her eyes searching and locking on to the figure lying on the ground, his eyes ominously closed, his breathing shallow. In a moment, she was beside him, seated, looking down on the young Dark Knight. A strong pressure began filling the clearing, causing all the beasts to glance around, searching for the cause of the change, which immediately became clear. A young Bishop, no more than two years older than the rest, had entered, together with a Fire Mage. Exchanging fleeting looks with each other, we looked at the ten children now assembled. Half of the group were twelve, the other half fourteen; they were young ages, and shouldn't have been subjected to this suffering and threat of death.

Especially clear was the Ranger's suffering, his hands covered with blood from the Astral Bow spell that he'd just used to counter Apollo; by far, he had shown the most endurance of the group, and being of the younger age, he was very much ignored by the others. He stumbled out of the clearing, desperately clinging on to his left arm. Taking pity on him, I flew silently above him, tracking his progress as he moved closer and closer to the north-west. Soon, he was at the densest part of the jungle, a favorite training spot of thieves, as it provided the most cover. Three steps more, and he collapsed, sending a cascade of leaves up. I landed and observed the blood clotting quickly, but not fast enough to render him safe. For the time being, I had to intervene.
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Flame suddenly danced, not far away, which caught Seaph's attention. Drawing his other dagger, he stepped cautiously, for fear of enemies; I followed closely behind, readying the throwing stars I had. Ahead, a patch of flames stood, unmoving; near it, there was a pyre burning, but not injuring the trees in the least bit. The still patch of flames let out a cry, which was musical, bitter, mournful and hopeful all at the same time. I felt myself being choked, and wiped off the tears that had sprung out; Seaph's expression softened, for the second time in his life. Daringly, he strode into the clearing and faced the spectacle; a figure was being surrounded by flames, the injuries on his arms healing rapidly; beside him, standing guard, was a phoenix.

The bird turned and gave a nod, returning to its duty. The Dark Arund beside Ivan was trembling at the presence of the spirit attending to its master, causing mana to oscillate all around us; I felt slightly weak in the knees facing a legendary creature. Before I could even utter a sound, the Ranger woke up, and sighed, turning to acknowledge the presence of the Phoenix. They exchanged hushed words, ignoring the both of us standing here; when they were finished, Ivan stood up with a contented smile, gratefulness filling his expression. There was a flash of flames, and the Phoenix was gone, entirely; the Dark Ades on his back glowed red, shining with the symbol of a bird. We remained silent till the glow faded entirely, whereupon Ivan greeted us, for the first time.

"Hey you," Seaph responded, smiling.
"Hey yourself. And hi, Karen!"
I was speechless. The Ranger seemed changed since his rampage in Sedna. "How did you get injured?"
"Haha, that's a long story." He took the next fifteen minutes to fill us in, between leaning a tree. Every time he did so, he winced in pain; Seaph looked sympathetic. When he saw the look on my face, he said, "Try summoning an Astral weapon." Confusedly, I asked, "What's an Astral weapon?" Sighing, he explained that it was a weapon created from the soul, which was potentially taxing, but much more powerful, and that it worked on the same concept as a weapon which was connected to a soul. Concentrating on my Dark Craven, I said, "Astral-" Before I could finish, Seaph grabbed my hand saying, "If you do this, you're gonna kill yourself. Try casting Soul Javelin first." Ivan had noted the blush that had sprung to my face, and smirked. I prayed that Seaph wouldn't notice.

Trying to forget the embarrassing expression, I said, "Soul Javelin." There was a wrenching at my heart, and my holster felt much lighter; two hundred stars were gone. Seaph explained, "This skill replaces two hundred throwing stars with mana, giving you infinite stars to use as long as it doesn't run out. Astral Weapons work the same way, replacing the actual weapon with something from your soul, not trying to transform the way the weapon is constituted." Trying again, I said, "Astral Claw." The Dark Craven glowed, before transforming into a glove that fit my hand, glowing black. "Wow, that's just..." I felt drained, and yet more powerful, knowing that I could transform my weapon. Seaph gave a warning, "Ivan had a higher mastery of Astral weapons than you did, but he was still injured terribly, so you should try to fully master Soul Javelin first. By 'fully master', I mean using the skill without spending a single star in return." Nodding my understanding, I couldn't help but think, Is Seaph actually caring about me? I felt my face flush; Ivan smirked again.
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Where's that idiotic Ivan? Running off with the injuries that he had... Just at that moment, he appeared on the path from the river, chatting animatedly with Seaph and Karen; I ran over and mock-strangled him. "Where have you been? Everyone was so worried about you..." I trailed off. Karen smirked, and mouthed to Ivan "payback", before moving off. "By 'everyone was so worried', you mean yourself, right?" Ivan joked. Laughing, he gave me a small hug, and I returned it. Everything was forgotten; it was as if we were back in Ellinia again, on that fateful night where Ergoth's fire changed everything... Ivan kissed me, taking me by surprise, but I returned it anyway.

Blushing, he released me and walked slowly back to the hut; I was arrested by the glow on his back. The flaming bird only appeared for a second; nonetheless, it had been visible, and I shouted, "Ivan!" Turning, he gave me a questioning look, but before I could mention the phoenix, he summoned a bow and shot at something behind me; my warrior reflexes kicked into action, and I flipped backwards, turning quickly. A blue creature was hovering in the air; it had two wings that only comprised of three spikes each, and its two arms ended in a sharp icy spikes. "I need to talk to the Paladin." Ivan calmed down slightly, and the spirit bow shrunk back into the Dark Arund. He sat down on the ground, refusing to move, but when the creature tried to attack him, it was blocked by a wall of fire, but he hadn't moved; a ball appeared, and exploded, producing a flaming bird from within; I was unfazed. Bow Masters could focus their Fire powers into a summon in order to produce an extra form of attack-

"Do not attack this boy, Elquines," the bird commented, in a sing-song voice.
Shocked, I stuttered, "B...but I thought..."
"That I was a mere summon? Yes, that is an ability of Bow Masters, but I am, truly, the Phoenix." Turning to the creature, it continued, "If you have got business with this girl, I'm sure you can share it with Ivan here; after all he..."
"Is part of it," Elquines sighed, and said, "Very well."
Taking an icy, rattling breath, it said, "I am sure that you have been pre-informed of the twelve beasts of the elements; two each for Ice, Fire, Poison and Lightning, one each of Holy, Darkness, Air, and Earth. I am one of the Lightning creatures, and therefore am able to manipulate both light and sound, as thunder originates from the strikes of lightning." Pausing to make sure I was still on track, it went on, "I already know who will host which creature." Ivan gasped. "It has already, anyway, been decided by a prophecy set down long ago, but the others have yet to prove their worth. The Sniper and Ice Mage will get the two Ice creatures, as is certain that you have gotten the Phoenix. The others have yet to get the creatures, and I will not spoil it for you." Turning, it addressed me directly, "I have a... proposition for you. As you know, your abilities are mostly very well developed, your Fire and Ice skills having the capability to trap opponents. I can help you increment the power of your lightning attacks, in addition to gain the power of sound, if you will host me."

Incredulously, I asked, "There must be a catch, right?" Nodding its head, it answered, "Yes. There is. Your weapon... will be sacrificed, and you must master Astral Mace." That sounded like another gain of power to me; if I could master Final Attack, Astral Mace would be nothing to me. Watching my agreement with a degree of sorrow, it said, "You have no idea of what's involved. Once you've started, there's no turning back. In addition, you're required to go through a strict training regime. Are you sure?" Nodding again, I sensed a cold sensation flow into me, and a disembodied voice spoke. "Good luck." Confused, I turned to the Phoenix, who sighed, and vanished. I turned to Ivan, who merely rolled up his sleeves, and I gasped. There were freshly healed scars traversing his arms, which were getting fainter by the minute, but still present. I examined it closely; there were still scars from about a week ago.

"This... is the result of using an Astral Weapon."
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I sat in front of the fire, part of a small semicircle comprising five people; myself, Jessica, Julian, Seaph and Karen. The three Clerics were out healing Alex, while Reika was caring after him as he did when she was still recovering from the fire; Alexis was still having her confrontation with Elquines, Ivan looking on. We were quiet, reflecting on how weak we still really were, and trying to figure out a training regimen. It was certain that the north-west jungle provided a good training spot for thieves, but we mages needed a wide area to train in, as well as the warriors and archers. The clearing appeared to be a good spot for all of us, but only a group at a time; it was too small. Contemplating the situation, I walked out of the house; nobody followed me. Giving my staff an experimental twirl, I headed towards the south, where the center of the island stood. Soon, I'd arrived at the gigantic monolith, admiring the wide empty space around it, and how a rock barrier collected the water in a moat, pouring it out towards the river, which flowed northwards, from where I came. Somewhere to the right, there were people; Alex was still being healed. From here, I could see the glittering ice that the Ice Dragon had created shortly before Apollo arrived; I admired the beautiful glow. This was partially why I'd chosen to become an Ice Mage, above everything else; ice held a strange beauty that few appreciated.

Ifria stepped out of the clearing, and stretched, her golden hair shining in the afternoon light, as dim as it was. The trees were extremely sparse here, but the branches were long, and provided a cloth-like cover, letting the sun rays slant, casting spots of light on the ground; the Bishop happened to be standing on the border of one, deflecting the ray obliquely, and yet letting it shine over her body. My heart trembled slightly, and I averted my gaze; not having seen me, she turned and walked back into the clearing to continue the healing work; I wondered why it had to take that long, and I couldn't help but feel a let down. Sighing, I continued to search for a training spot; the Ice Dragon wasn't around to help, and I had to find the way myself.

I trekked eastwards, away from the sun, and soon, I emerged onto a small rise that I hadn't seen before, and was certainly shrouded from everywhere else; when I climbed up it, I gave an involuntary gasp. The hill ended in a gigantic plain, and from here, the mountains of El Nath, far away, was visible; I made up my mind to come here one sunrise, with... Trying not to think of her, I turned around, facing the slope; it descended into the forest, and far in the distance was the wide open sea, leading to... what was that, anyway? There was no horizon visible, and yet there wasn't any land beyond; I wondered whether the world was really flat; no one had ever ventured that far, and even if they did, they hadn't reported back, so... there might be an inescapable abyss beyond that sea...

I forced myself to look down, and took three steps backwards. Any daring soul would be afraid of this height; but I wouldn't know; I was afraid of heights, which was a disadvantage in the high mountains of El Nath, where I knew I would go eventually. We'd originally planned for a week's stay, but the discovery of spirit creatures... I knew that they wouldn't give in too easily; it had taken massive injuries to get the Phoenix to take Ivan in as its host, and the others wouldn't be as soft-hearted; we'd definitely have to go to Ossyria to "prove our worth" before they would accept the rest; that much was certain. The sun had begun setting, highlighting the island. Far off in the distance, there was a disturbance in the forest; the south-west portion of the island was slowly unfreezing, causing the birds to panic with the sudden amount of water. I laughed. This would be a good training ground for warriors, but the bowmen needed ranges to train at, and I looked down to my right. The north-east portion of the island had a great rectangular plain, and that would be good enough for them, I hoped. The mages could train near the river at the shack...

Ifria sat down. It hadn't taken her long to find me, with my troubled thoughts casting mana eddies all over the island. Electricity sparked; I couldn't control the adrenalin anymore, and wondered whether she noticed that my hands were jerking, trying do decide whether to move or not. The sun descended even further, turning into a flaming incandescent ball hovering above the horizon; it was then that I saw it. The swiftly dying light of the sun highlighted the water's sudden drop, a blackness just over the horizon, separating the sun from it. The theory that the world was flat was proven true then. All of a sudden, I felt my adrenalin pump again, the thrill traveling through my body.

AN: God, forgive me for this sin I'm about to commit. The following content should NOT be read by minors. Just skip the next paragraph.

I couldn't help but remember the Sixth Commandment: Thou shalt not commit adultery, even as I began to feel something I hadn't before; what happened next was too embarrassing to describe, especially when Ifria noticed it; surprisingly, she didn't seem to be angry or anything, laughing at my reaction towards the sudden adrenalin rush. I felt emboldened by her reaction, and stepped closer, wrapping my arms around her; she pressed back against me, and I tried to say the three words, but merely choked. She was making me even more excited by pressing her body so hard towards me, and yet I tried, fervently, to control it; I felt the impulses waning, and heaved a sigh of relief; I let go of her. Apparently, she'd sensed everything that had happened to my body, and was now smiling coyly; I didn't know fourteen-year-olds could be so... so... I couldn't think of a word for it, but I felt as if I could spend my entire life with her... her hand slipped into mine, and I tightened my hold; in that moment, everything that had happened before was wiped out; there was only now.
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The world was silent. Far below the drop of the sea, Bahamut let out a breath, the first in a hundred thousand years. A bubble of air spat out, and its mouth closed contentedly. Moments later, its eyes flashed open, shining yellow; its fin waved, sending a pulse of water that shot through the seas, causing earthquakes to happen within the lands below; in the laboratories of Magatia, seismographs whirred, moving quickly to record the change in balance of the seas; the test tubes tinkled. Looking at each other, the scientists confirmed one thing: the giant fish that held up the world had awoken.

[Timmias]

Thanks dude

"More!" roared Tim

[gasy222]

DAMN IT!!!! Got me..................................

WHY MUST LIFE BE SO CRUEL???????????????????????????????

ah well Its [email protected]

[jiahao_94]

Author's Note
First off, let me congratulate myself on the completion of the thirtieth chapter.

I'm sure you all read that scene. Even Gasy. Even though I'd intended for you to read that scene, I still put a disclaimer, because every time there's a disclaimer of this sort, people WILL be tempted to read it. Always. For example, when you put a disclaimer on a website saying "The following content is not work-safe", people will be tempted to scroll down, due to 1) carnal hunger 2) boredom 3) the apparent challenge thrown at you.

FYI, I originally intended it to be more visual, but seeing as they're fourteen, I can't possible describe it in a more visual way than I am now. I should probably PG-13 it right now, but I'm just tempted to carry on and see what happens to all of you. Yay.

Okay, anyway, thank you for the really long (or rather, big) sentence, Gasy. You really made my browser's day by causing it to give me a long horizontal scroll bar, which hasn't appeared for a long time. Happy, Firefox? The only other time my Firefox has been so happy is when it crazily wiped out all my bookmarks, causing me an hour of despair and twenty hours of agony trying to find it back. But I don't mind. Really. I don't get angry easily =)

Back to the "visual descriptions" topic. I really didn't think that I'd do it, but it was to satisfy myself, because I'm going crazy trying to find a training spot for the ten idiots. Note that in no way are the characters like anyone I know irl, including Tim, Jul, Ivan, Kira and Lacus. They're totally different, the real life ones being better =). Oh, and talking about Ivan, I should probably try to add some perverseness to the fanfic, to perk up my day. He really writes those stuff well >.< Although he's gotten less good at it since he gave up being perverted =( I really need your help!

Nice long author's note, again. And this time, I shall add a disclaimer. Note that it may not happen, but this is to save trouble later on. If you sense PG-13 or above content, please SKIP IT, unless you want to get in big trouble. *Points at the kids* Understand? *Fervent nodding* Good.

...

*Catches the children reading it* I thought you said you understood?

Warning: PG-13 language and actions may follow. Please read with caution.
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Chapter 31
I laughed it off. "What? Me? Having an erection from hugging Ifria?" Everyone was shocked at the words, and Lacus winced slightly. "What?" I asked, incredulously. "We're all old enough to understand it, aren't we?" Still wincing slightly from the word, Lacus said, "Number one: I'm twelve. Number two, I'm a girl." Countering her, Kira said, "Like you're not perverted in the least bit..." He received a punch to his arm, which sent him rolling on the floor in mock pain; Lacus rolled her eyes. "So.. have you found a training spot for us yet?" Julian asked, somewhat pissed. "You've found the mountain for warriors, a range for bowmen; the thieves found themselves a forest. That means we're left with here and that small clearing!" I contemplated that. The others had told me that they'd be staying at their respective training spots for some time, to be able to save traveling time; Without thinking, I said, "The rock pool." To my surprise, they agreed with the decision, as the rock pool was nearly a five minute walk from here. The two girls were enthusiastic, and immediately headed off for the waterfall; the three of us looked dumbly at one another.

Jumping up, I said, "Well, I think I'll take a bath. No peeking." Before I could leave, Julian was on his feet, saying, "C'mon. We're all guys, aren't we?" Pointing at Kira, I tried to articulate what I was thinking without harming him, but he said it before I could finish formulating the argument. "I'm twelve, yeah, I know," he said, rolling his eyes. "But it doesn't matter, does it?" I countered that statement. "Since you're twelve, you don't stand to lose from swimming with us, but because we're fourteen, we do. Q.E.D., you're saying this because of the above two arguments." Not defeated, he argued, "But still, it wouldn't make a difference unless you're scared." Julian immediately agreed; I rolled my eyes. He was hot-headed and I was cool-headed, another reason why we chose the jobs we did. "Two against one, we win," Kira said, laughingly. Groaning, I took off the robe and started out. Again, I was arrested by Julian's words.

"You gonna wear that to bathe?" he asked, somewhat incredulously.
"If not? In underwear?"
"No..." Julian trailed off. He began to unzip his pants, and I looked away. "What? You a girl?"
Groaning, I headed out, but changed my mind. If they wanted to play that way...
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The silence was immense, as I tried to track the presence of anyone else. My concentration lapsed for just a moment, which was enough to be my weakness; the throwing stars that came flying at me nicked my leg, slashing open a wound. Inwardly groaning, I pressed my hand to the wound; it healed quickly. Picking up my dagger, I headed towards the direction of the stars, but they came from another direction this time. Turning, I took a step, and accidentally stepped on a small wire. From all sides, ninjas jumped out and slashed rapidly; as did a stream of stars; I couldn't block all of them, and they managed to land three cuts on me. I dropped my dagger three feet away, and said, "I give up." A voice far away countered, "I'm not falling for that this time!" I could now sense the mana of the Hermit; she'd made a vital mistake by answering. She'd already fallen for it thrice... Seeing a figure ahead, I used Assaulter; there was a rushing sensation, and I felt my dagger plunge straight into the figure...

Which split into two. The wooden figurine was designed so well that-

"What the hell!" A gigantic volley of stars were flying my way, and I got hit by three of them, which pinned me to the wall; I gasped, and said, "I really give up this time!" Laughing, Karen stepped into the clearing and took my daggers, before pulling the javelins from the tree bark, freeing my impaled right hand; I saw the black glove covering her hand before it vanished, turning back into the strapped version. "Astral... Claw?" I said, unbelievingly. "Yep! Took me quite a while, though," she said, pulling back her right sleeve; her entire arm was covered in scars.
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"You did all this... just to master a claw skill?" he asked. The Shadower ran his finger up my arm, and I felt a sensation running down my neck; I shut my eyes, bathing in it, but he asked, concernedly, "Are you all right?" Answering to the affirmative, I headed towards the small hut in the distance; he followed swiftly. Unlocking the door, I stepped in and collapsed on the ground, stretching; hiding from Seaph wasn't easy, but I'd managed to do it, and injure him, which was more than enough as a reward for me. The Shadower had gone into the toilet; some time later, he came out, his hair wet and clinging to his forehead; he was wearing a bathrobe, which revealed the long scar running down his right arm; water was dripping from his hair, hands, and head, making him look cool, in my opinion.

Pointing at the bathroom, he said jokingly, "In. I don't want the house to stink of sweat." Laughing, I entered the bathroom, and cast a cursory glance around. This toilet was cleaner than any toilet I'd ever entered in my life, probably because my toilets were mostly bushes, to relieve myself, and rivers, to clean up. I took the next half hour to bathe; when I emerged from the toilet with a full-length bathrobe, Seaph was trying to style his hair with his dagger as a makeshift mirror; sensing me, he blushed and let his hand drop. His hair was entirely straight, his fringe covering the entirety of his forehead; he looked cool, as usual; I wondered if there was a single moment where he wasn't. The Shadower quickly hopped off the bed and headed out of the hut, presumably to let me change; I was done in a couple of minutes, whereupon I exited the house; he was missing.

I found him sitting by the sea, on a rock-face about one feet off the water level. He was leaning backwards, his two palms pressing into the grass, his legs swinging back and forth, causing ripples to spread in the water. Picking up a pebble, he threw it into the water with a slight spin; it bounced for some distance before sinking. I threw a throwing star connected to a string; it deflected the sunlight and shone as it jumped over the tides. I tried to reel it in, but the currents were too strong. Seaph was laughing as he watched me valiantly trying to pull the star back like I was fishing; I blushed, and let go. Sighing, I plopped down beside him and was quite surprised by the contrast of our skin colors; Seaph was very tanned, while I was still quite pale, in comparison.

The sun fell further. It was now flaming above the horizon, highlighting the phenomenon that Tim had found; the end of the world was there, before my sight, but there was something wrong with the water; there seemed to be two opposing forces fighting, bordering on the top of the waterfall; there was an extremely strong force below blowing the water up, resisting the gravity pushing the ocean down. I ignored it for the moment, and looked at the flaming star plunging into the sea. The water now resembled a fire, rippling from flaming red to a light shade, slowly transforming into the pale blue of the water; the seabed was visible, and I could see, far below, all sorts of creatures were swimming around, darting in and out of the corals.

There was a slight pressure on my hands; looking down, I saw Seaph's tanned hand pressing down on mine, but he was looking out at the sunset nonchalantly. I blushed and looked away, but he tightened his grip, and looked at me. I flushed, and from the heat on my face, I judged that my face was already very red, and was slated to grow redder; I couldn't hold it in anymore. "Seaph?" I asked, in a choked voice. "Hmm?" I wondered how to say what I wanted to, but decided to test the waters. "That day... in the Lith Harbor hospital?" Thinking, for a moment, he said, "Yeah? You wanted to say something, but the Victoria blew up, and there was the Kentauri invasion... I'd been wondering. You wanted to tell me..." I thought of how best to phrase it to him... "I... like you."

At first, the Shadower was stunned, but he asked, brightly, "Really?" I nodded, and watched for his reply. He gently took my other hand, causing me to topple backwards; lowering himself, he pressed his face to me, and it took almost two minutes before I could push him off me; he pulled me up along with himself. He hugged me, and put his head on my shoulder. "Are you sure we should be doing this? We're only like... twelve?" Without even thinking, he whispered, "I don't give a damn," and pressed his face to mine; the moment was indescribable, and it was hard to imagine that we were once enemies in the thief school, trying to outdo each other.
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"Another couple at it, huh?" Alexis commented, looking at the couple on the beach in a far distance. Even across the island, their effects on the environment was visible and widely felt, due to the pair's mastery of alchemy. "Speak for yourself," I lazily commented, lying down beside the spear of Alex. The night was catching up to the sunset, a solitary blue border splitting them; the Dark Dragon bathed in the darkness, his eyes glinting. Come to think of it, Alex hadn't shown the Dark Dragon's abilities, besides allowing him to use the Dark version of his abilities. The water frothed, and light streaked across the skies. A fireball appeared in the air; Alex suddenly knelt, facing the night and the mountains in the distance. As it streaked down, he clasped his hands and whispered a prayer. When he was done, I commented, "I didn't know that you were so religious." Not answering, he held out the Dark Fairfrozen, and said, "I think you're wondering what this... Dark Dragon does."

Stepping out, he held it out, and whispered a Latin sentence which I couldn't make head or tail of, but Alexis appeared to be surprised by it. "Aquilus Lumen." Shining black pillars slammed down into the ground, and the entire mountain shuddered. Before it could collapse, he continued, "Terra Contineo." The ground growled, and held fast. Turning around, he addressed us. "I've never been to this island before. Prior to me gaining the Dark Dragon, I was already a personal student of... him, and I learnt many skills from him, the most prominent ones being the art of the Pirates. He was the one who smithed me this weapon, and he was the one who handed me ownership of the Dark Dragon..."

The dragon growled, and asked, "Are you talking about Tylus?

"Tylus?" It seemed fantastical to me.
"Yes, Tylus," the Dark Knight said, sighing.
"But... he never told me anything of that sort!" I exclaimed. Immediately, I regretted it; I hoped they wouldn't catch the implication...
"And why would he have?" Alexis asked, curiously.
Cursing, I answered, "Because I am... the descendant of one of Dances' best students."
"The connection is...?"
"Tylus."
"You're... the descendant of... Tylus?" They were skeptical.
Waving my sword, I casted Combo and Advanced Combo. Immediately, the charge meter on my sword filled up by itself, without me having to hit anything. "Enrage." Five orbs were consumed by the sword, and increased my power by enormous amounts. I slammed the sword into the ground; it was consumed by the rock. Before I could react, Alexis had already drawn her mace, and she now charged it with the elements. With relish, she said, "Thunder Charge." A spiritual being appeared behind her, and it was all too familiar: Elquines, the legendary controller of light and sound. Slamming a claw into the ground, it caused spikes to spring out near me. "Appears we are all special, after all," Alex commented jokingly, watching the sudden sparring. Flipping away, I sealed the Devil's Sunrise and drew two twin blades. They shone, glittering, and each of them had diamonds embedded all the way inside the hilt, and the transparent handle let the light shine through. "Astral Sword." They lengthened, and formed into golden blades; this fight was getting pretty interesting. Unable to use an Astral Weapon was one of Alexis' weaknesses, but I knew that she could easily cover that with...

"Sanctuary." At the same time which she slammed the mace down, Elquines stabbed, leaving me cornered; I had to deflect the blow with Blocking, but because I didn't have a shield, it hurt; my hands bled. "Coma." The swords shone, and a gigantic eye appeared; having just used Sanctuary, she couldn't react in time to block it; I watched with horror as the eye opened.
__________________________________________________

Praying I would be in time, I ran up the slope. The shine from Enrage had alerted Reika of a fight atop the mountain; knowing that the Warriors were up there, I ran as quickly as I could. The wind blew hard against me, but I still managed to get up there; the gigantic solitary eye started opening as I summoned Phoenix; acting only on instinct, I moved in front of Alexis. There was a blow to my chest, and I felt winded, but nothing much else happened; I had absorbed a blow from a Crusaderess without a single injury. The top of my Dark Ades fell open, and revealed a small burn; without looking at it, I held my hand up; a flame burst healed it. Apologizing, Jessica walked over to check whether Alexis was okay, and she looked up, smiling. They moved off to the cliff-edge, chatting; Alex and Reika indulged in some intimate chatting. Looking at the moon, I laughed slightly, and heard the Phoenix ask, in my mind, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."
"Really?"
"Yes. I was just thinking... I'd never thought of being here."
A musical laugh. "No one did, and does."
"Even all the people who'd been here?"
"Namely, Tim. Is that what you're thinking?" The voice was sharp, and I winced.
"Yes."
"Well, he'd never been here."
"What?!" The Phoenix angrily gave a screech at my outburst.
"Yes, he'd never been here before, in his life."
"Then the Ice Dragon....?"
"Modified memories, as the result of an accident. I may decide to tell you someday."
"Why not now?" I was quite angry. "I'm like, old enough!"
"You're twelve. As are Alexis, Kira, Lacus, Reika, and the two humans on the beach."
"Then... the others are not much older!"
"Hmmph. I'll let you in on a secret. Your friends... they do not want to leave."
"But they do! I mean, they're even making plans on how to return..." I trailed off, hit by the truth.
"Precisely. No ship, no return. You're stuck here for the next few months. As for food... you never got hungry, did you? The waterfall is the source of water, and food, and life on this island. That's why it didn't get damaged in the slightest by age; it's maintained by the waterfall." the Phoenix explained.
"Then... what sustains that?"
The Phoenix coughed, and choked. "The Gatekeeper."
"Who's... wait. Grendel mentioned it before, didn't he? Who's that?" I asked, demandingly.
"Another day."

Before I could argue, there was a loud explosion; the area around the waterfall had blown up, but it wasn't damaged. For a moment, I wondered what kept it up; I was then stunned.

"The mages... are training down there... aren't they?"

[Timmias]

...Update reading complete

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leave affirmitive

....Go-ooDbye-- MAster Ben-----beep

[jiahao_94]

Gasy have not posted. Are Tim the only persons read?

[gasy222]

nah yesterday i concentrated on reading archer's revolt, im going back there now