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Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2012 0:43:39 GMT -5
Sky fear watched the tension in the faces of the two outsiders that were not speaking. It was their reflexes that signaled to him that he should be ready. "A hunter must always prepare." The words were written in his mind like it was a piece of paper. When the other outsider summoned a weapon, Sky took a single step back.
It might have come off as if he looked like he was ready to perhaps back up, but in reality he had gotten into a better stance to fire and draw more arrows if this turned into a battle. "You must make your movements deceitful. Lure the pray."
Truthfully Sky didn't know why the outsider was so interested in the Villagers of Stem or why he was on the borderline. He had never known the villagers from Stem to rely on the help of outsiders. There conflict was between those who lived in this world. Outsiders should stay out of it. Yet... this was a different situation. It was one that he had never been prepared for by his mentor.
However having left this world for the first time about a year ago, he learned to act outside just of the Vuli. He had been to other worlds, and learned other cultures in his quest. "No.... Vuli did not travel across your border. Vuli dead. I am... Vuli." A look of slight sadness threatened to break through his hard face. When Sky said that he was Vuli he meant it. He was all that was left of the Vuli. None of his kind were here in the past months. That was what he took for what Darius meant when he asked if he'd seen anyone pass by here.
Sky noticed the white hair share a glance of surprise with his other companion with the spear. Sky wondered what that meant. To Darius's second question he said, "Dark ones kill Vuli. Dark ones have appeared across border. Vuli hunt dark ones before they kill Stem too." Of course at the moment Sky had only seen one dark one. And not the one who had killed his village.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 11, 2012 1:00:41 GMT -5
Lance didn't make any hostile movements, just simply had his lance out in the open for the other to see to show that they weren't just unarmed here. If this figure did mean ill intent, which he didn't think so but had his weapon just in case, then he'd be ready for anything. He remained calm and collected during the whole thing though he did watch the subtle hints the Vuli tribesman was giving off. He was different but Lance could tell this one was an experienced warrior just by looking at him. He would really give them a hard time if this were to turn into a fight. Hopefully, that wouldn't be the case here seeing as he had rescued White from certain death.
It wasn't exactly easy to tell if this young man meant them trouble but the way he moved made him unpredictable. He had moved so fast with drawing his bow and arrow that Lance wouldn't doubt what other things this individual might be capable of. Standing there, Lance listened to the conversation between Darius and the Vuli.
Darius listened intently as the youth spoke. No Vuli had traveled over this border. The Vuli were dead and he was what was left by the sound of it. Immediately, Darius felt sorry for asking him such a question. He was looking for information for the Stam tribe though, not of the Vuli but hearing that the Vuli were dead was troubling. If the Vuli were dead except this one, what did that mean for the missing Stam tribesmen? "I'm...I'm sorry." Darius wasn't sure what else to say to that before the youth continued.
Lance had noticed the look of surprise on White's face. Like White, Lance wondered what was going on here. No doubt, something more serious was going on than what appeared to be a war between two tribes. Had the fissures come here too? What for though? This youth didn't appear to be a keyblade wielder of any sort. Wait...what of that keyblade master that was suppose to be here somewhere? Was there a chance he was then for the fissures to beat them here or was this just coincidental? Maybe it wasn't the fissures but then again, what else and who else could it be?
"Dark ones? Do you mean that thing that tried to eat our friend here? If that's the case...maybe the missing Stam tribesmen were killed or eaten?" Darius said, his last question more so directed towards Lance and White.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 11, 2012 12:54:09 GMT -5
White felt sorry for the Vuli. He had taken him for an enemy, but it was beginning to appear that he really wasn't. White knew what it was like to loose your family, your "tribe". He could understand the sorrow the Vuli tribesman must feel. White decided that he wasn't an enemy. He had saved him after all. Returning his kantana to the sheath on his back, he noticed that even though the tribesman was not staring right at him, he had noticed his movement.
When Darius asked him what he meant by dark ones, the tribesman nodded. "Dark ones... creatures of darkness and destruction." When Darius mentioned the Stem tribesman being eaten by heartless, White wondered if he had hit on something. That could very well be what happened here if this man's people were all killed by the dark ones.
"Dark ones no eat nor kill. Dark one's nature is the nature of conversion. Darkness in heart consumes tribesmen. Tribesmen loose to the darkness and become dark ones. Missing Stem most likely dark one's now, like Vuli."
White nodded at the man's explanation. For someone who was only around their age, he sure seemed to know a lot more about heartless and such then they did. "So you are hunting the dark ones who killed your tribe?"
The man seemed to pause. White saw his mouth open as if he was going to say something, but then close again. To White it seemed he was having a hard time trying to explain what he wanted to say for he opened his mouth again just to close it. After a short moment, the man spoke again.
"Hunt dark ones yes, but search for one who sent dark ones. Skull man sent dark ones to village. Skull man, outsider. Sky find Skull man. Kill Skull man." That brought White to a pause. Skull man.... for some reason the word Skull rung a bell in White's head. He didn't know why though. The question though was, what should they do now?
"We need to become stronger... perhaps we should help him hunt the heartless. It might give us some good training?" White asked Darius and Lance.
"You want to become strong and hunt dark one's with Sky? Become Vuli! Sky make you strong." Suddenly Sky was smiling at them as if what he said was the brightest idea he ever had.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 11, 2012 21:18:54 GMT -5
Lance watched and listened for the time being. After seeing the Vuli's expression, Lance decided that this young man wasn't here to do them any harm. After having been pretty much just using his lance as a means to keep himself propped up, Lance stood back up straight again and made his lance disperse and return from whence it came. Now, everyone was just listening to the young Vuli.
Darius listened closely as the young tribesman described what "Dark Ones" were. Apparently, they were creatures of darkness and destruction. Considering what he had seen, it wasn't difficult to figure out what he meant. No doubt, "Dark Ones" meant Heartless. He went further to state that they didn't kill but converted others into being what they were. The Heartless didn't eat their enemies except converted them into being what they were. They made the darkness in one's heart consume the tribesmen and then they lost to the darkness and became them. Most likely, this was what had happened to the Stam tribe according to this Vuli since that's what happened to his tribe.
White then asked if he was hunting the ones that had killed his tribe. Only then did he managed to answer White after a moment's hesitation. Yes, he was hunting them but to also find the one that had sent them here. It was then that he mentioned "Skull man" who had sent the Heartless here. Sky was to find Skull man. Who was Sky? Was that this tribesman's name? It seemed it. Unless he was making an odd reference to the heavens above but how was that to kill this "Skull man"? Also, why was "Skull" ringing a bell? The entire time, Darius did not see the coloring in Lance's face turn from regular to white at that.
White went on to suggest that maybe they should help this tribesman hunt the Heartless and that it might be some good training. They did, after all, come here to get stronger. At this, the tribesman seemed delighted at the idea as he stated that they should become Vuli and that he would make them strong. He was truly delighted at the idea.
"I don't see why not. These Heartless are clearly a problem so what better way than to help hunt them? Sure, we'll hunt with you, Sky."
Lance finally spoke up though, getting over his uneasiness. Granted, back in Land of Dragons he had heard that name because of the fissure but it hadn't been Skull. He didn't hear Smiles and Ivory call the man in the armor Skulk either so he hadn't recognized him. However, hearing this Sky mention someone by that name, Lance couldn't help but feel alarmed. "Skull...you said Skull did this? The most dangerous being that had attacked Land of Dragons twenty years ago?" Of course, Lance did not expect Sky to know of the last part but hearing "Skull man" made him think "Skull".
"Can you tell us what he looked like?" Lance inquired further. It was obvious to Darius now that the young Wilder had a white appearance to his face as if he had just lost the coloring in it with what he had realized.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 11, 2012 22:59:06 GMT -5
Sky Fear was truly excited that the three outsiders were going to become part of the the Vuli. What White, Darius, and Lance didn't understand though was that Sky really meant that they become part of his tribe. Only the Vuli were allowed to hunt the dark ones here on this world. They were the only ones who knew how.
Techniquely one had to either marry into the tribe or be born into it to be blood. However there was another way to become a Vuli hunter. And that was exactly what Sky planned on doing. It would take till night to reach the caves by his home. "Only those we approve may enter the caves. You must remember that only the strong can survive the trials of the cave." The words rang in his mind once more.
Sky was about to ask if the outsiders really wanted to do this when the outsider with the blue hair spoke up. Sky listened to him, and did his best to answer that question. He remembered the scene he had returned to like it was just yesterday. He remembered the back of the outsider with the skeleton helm.
"Man. Outsider like you. Skeleton.... hat." Sky paused touching his head with his hands to indicate hat. It really wasn't a hat, it was a helm, but Sky couldn't think of any other way of explaining it. That was all Sky could really say about the outsider. He was as odd as all Outsiders were. Sky didn't understand how he controlled the dark ones. That though, didn't matter. He had chased the man off the planet, and had yet to find him since.
"You sure you want to be Vuli?" Sky asked again.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 12, 2012 0:25:06 GMT -5
Darius didn't know how they were to become Vuli but he figured whatever they might face would be good training in the long run. After all, Darius wasn't exactly skilled since he was basically running off of forced experience gained from just winging it most of the time. He hadn't a master to teach him like White had or Lance. So, out of the three, Darius had to be the most inexperienced when it came to fighting. He was eager to get more experience on his hands since the other fights had been basically based on sheer luck. That and he knew the times with Smiles were luck only because the guy wouldn't kill him because of Ivory.
It was strange how that guy worked considering he made it clear if Ivory became "uninteresting" that he'd kill her. The way he said it so emotionless it was disturbing and yet he held himself back for Ivory. Yes, Smiles was a confusing guy alright but at least somehow Ivory remained interesting for the time being. Even still, Darius couldn't help but feel anger towards her for what they did in the Enchanted Dominion. He didn't know Skull actually did that in the tower though.
He looked over at Lance when Lance asked Sky questions about "Skull man". Lance's coloring seemed to return a bit though as he listened to Sky's explanation. According to the Vuli, the man had a skull hat. Lance wasn't sure what he meant by that and for a moment, wondered if he was over thinking things. "Hm...maybe I'm over thinking things? Still...Skull..." Lance trailed off. If Skull really was back, that meant really bad news for them all. Skull took two keybladers just to take him down after much destruction and lives lost. Apparently, according to what Master Jasper said, his own mother had been a victim judging the implications. Lance was lucky he was alive since Lance had to have been born the same day or around that time just before then.
It was after this, after a moment of silence, when Sky asked if they were sure that they wanted to be Vuli again. Darius glanced at the others before looking over at Sky and nodding. "Yes, I'm sure." Lance eventually gave a nod too but appeared to be troubled with thought.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2012 13:46:11 GMT -5
White, perhaps most of the three, had no idea what Sky meant. He caught on about the man's name, but that was about it. "So where are we going? How do we hunt the heartless....er... dark ones?" He asked.
Sky glanced at him and shook his head. "Hunt later.... train now. We go to caves." With that Sky turned from them and very casually climbed up the tree. White just stood there stunned, watching the man climb and boost himself up by strength alone. There were no indents in the tree for him to boost himself up. It was done by pure strength alone.
"I want to learn to climb like that." White thought to himself aloud. Once he reached a branch that supported his weight, Sky looked down at them and nodded in confirmation to them.
"Follow." Was all he said before he ran across the branch and leaped onto another tree. There was no time to wait. They would have to run to keep up the pace that Sky was going from tree to tree. White slugged his kantana more securely before breaking into a jog below. He had no clue that by the time they actually reached the caves that he would be beyond exhausted. Sky was in prime condition and expected them to simply follow as he leaped from tree to tree.
More then once as they ran, White wanted to stop. But he didn't want to look weak. It took much more strength to leap from tree to tree and perfect balance to prevent oneself from falling below. Yet, Sky made it look easy. As he jogged, and the day wore on, the man finally came to a stop after about five hours of running. The sun had begun to set by the time they actually came to a halt. White's legs and limbs were on fire and he was breathing very heavily.
Sky had stopped before the foot of a waterfall. White, being extremely thirsty and tired, walked to the edge and just dropped his head into the ice cold water. Sky had leaped from on top as gracefully as before. He looked not a bit tired. Glancing at the three of them he let out a chuckle at their state.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 13, 2012 0:52:05 GMT -5
Darius glanced over at Lance before looking between White and Sky. White had asked Sky where they would be going to hunt the Heartless. Sky, on the other hand, had different plans. He informed them that instead they were going to train first before they were to go hunting with him. "Oh, okay!" Darius agreed. Lance just remained quiet, lost in thought but focused enough on them enough where he'd know when they were leaving somewhere.
With that, Sky turned and climbed up the tree with graceful ease. The way the Vuli tribesman did it was amazing. Darius knew that if he tried that, he'd pull a muscle or something. In fact, he'd probably fall off the tree in his attempt too. As White spoke, Darius looked over at him, chuckling a bit as he gave a nod. "I think the rest of us could think the same."
As he glanced back upward, he saw Sky nodding down at them after stopping on a branch. He said only one word "follow" before he took off with startling speed in the trees. Darius and Lance found themselves having to run in order to keep up with the Vuli. How could anyone move so fast in trees where branches and things were at risk of breaking under you or you losing your balance from moving so quickly? It was a wonder Sky moved like that, making it look as easy as walking to the supermarket. Sky was definitely more than he appeared to be and that gave him the advantage in a fight.
By the time they reached their destination, Darius was just barely keeping himself up. His knees were shaking as he gasped for breath, bent on his knees to keep himself propped up. Lance seemed a bit better off than White and Darius but not by too much. Even he had to wipe sweat from his brow, pausing to catch his breath too but didn't have to bend over like the others to do so. His training with Grand Uncle Ray and Brayden consisted of running routines among a number of other things.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2012 14:00:36 GMT -5
White lifted his head after not being able to hold his breath anymore. He glanced over to Darius and was glad to see he wasn't the only one who felt like he was dying. But looking over at Lance he saw that the teen wasn't nearly as bad as they were. Perhaps not as well off as Sky, but Lance didn't seemed to winded. "I've got to become stronger. Like them."[/i] He thought to himself.
Sky had joined them and was standing by Darius and Lance. "Cave behind waterfall. We go now." Sky walked over to the edge of the pool of water. It wasn't like a beach, the whole pool was a drop. Who knew how far down the water actually went. The waterfall above was about twenty feet high.
White wondered just what they were going to do in a cave. Why were they training in a cave in the first place? White figured they'd find out soon enough. He sighed and stood. His legs were still aching from the run, but he knew that the Vuli tribesman was not going to wait for them.
"I guess he doesn't believe in rest." White murmured to Darius. The Vuli went ahead and dived into the water without a second thought. White really didn't want to get his clothes wet, but he figured if they were training he would need his weapon. Being already by the edge of the pool, White gathered his courage and dived in.
White couldn't help but be reminded of being back in Neverland, where he had first met Darius. This time though they didn't have to worry about pirates. Once everyone was in the water, Sky led them in the swim to the waterfall. He came before the rushing water and paused. With only his head above the water, he began to tread and paused. "Swim under water. Or water no let you through."
White nodded in understanding before following Sky underwater. Kicking his feet he felt the rush of the water as he came below the rushing water. It shoved him down a couple of yards, but he got past it. Coming out of the water, White was greeted by a large cavern opening. They were at a mouth of a dark cave.
Sky swam over to the edge first and pulled himself up. Then he helped White and everyone else by extending his hand and helping them out of the deep water. On the shore of the cave, White got his first look around the cave. The light from the other side of the waterfall only showed about ten feet into the cave. And it was in that ten feet that White saw the various amount of carvings onto the walls of the cave. The majority were in blue or red color and depicted many different pictures, symbols, and scenes.
Walking over to them, White asked about them. "What are all these paintings of?"
Having finished helping everyone, Sky had walked over by White. "Vuli story. Vuli past. Cave of Volwasse. Cave make you strong. Ten paths in cave. Outsiders take only one. No same path. No Ida." Sky indicated White's kantana. "No klere." This time Sky indicated White and Darius's shirt. He took off his loin clothing, being fully exposed the way he was born. "This way."
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Post by Sprow on Sept 13, 2012 22:44:58 GMT -5
Darius was a bit relieved too knowing that he wasn't the only one huffing and puffing. Although, he was admittedly surprised to see Lance wasn't having as much trouble as they were. No doubt, he had more extensive training than they did. The way Lance spoke about his family made it sound like they trained every day for a certain number of hours, if not all day save for eating and sleeping. Sky, out of them all, didn't even look tired and he did more than they did.
Sky came over to them and told them that they were to go to the cave behind the waterfall. With that, he lead them towards the pool of water with the waterfall. The waterfall at least was twenty or so feet in height. As they went, Darius heard White speaking and smirked. "We just gotta grin and bare it, White."
Sky dived into the water without even saying a word when he did so. Darius looked down at the water. It definitely reminded him of Neverland. If the Vuli was diving in without an issue, Darius guessed that they would be fine too. As soon as White had dived in after Sky, Darius followed his lead and then Lance, whom took a moment to place the little book in a container so that it wouldn't get wet. As soon as they all landed in the water, Sky headed towards the waterfall. When he did, he took pause and looked back at them informing them to go through the waterfall by diving under it or it wouldn't let them through.
Lance and Darius nodded, both of them following Sky's and White's lead diving under the water. It was a nice reprieve from the humidity they had felt out in the sun and from all the running. By the time they got out, Darius and Lance could see the maw of a large cavern before them. White was helped out and soon, the other two got out as well. There were carvings all along the walls in blue and red. White questioned Sky about them who informed them that it was about the past of the Vuli. The caves were to make them strong. However, they couldn't go in with their weapons from what Sky was saying and probably not with their shirts. At least, that's what Darius had thought until Sky took off his remaining clothes and turned from them to lead the way, saying that way.
"...Thank goodness we don't have Arya or Princess Leliana with us or this would be awkward." Darius, obediently, took his clothes off. It felt awkward but they were all guys and weren't up to anything except fighting whatever was in this cave or something. Were they fighting anything? Lance could only think wryly how the girls back in Land of Dragons would act if they saw such a thing or that woman from the tavern in Enchanted Dominion as he too removed his clothes. Now, they were all without clothing.
"Okay, ready Sky."
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Post by Deleted on Sept 14, 2012 12:55:16 GMT -5
White blushed at the thought of Princess Leliana seeing him naked. As if she needed another reason to hate him. White didn't understand why they needed to do such a thing, but this was Sky's game. They played by his rules. Once the three of them were as naked as when they were born, Sky lead them deeper into the cave.
The light around them slowly began to fade, and White's eyes began to slowly adjust to the darkness. Thankfully it wasn't pitch black yet. White hoped there was some sort of lights to help guide the way through this cave. The cavern led to a a large open space where they faced several paths. Looking down each one, White could see nothing past a few feet into the path. He wondered which one they were supposed to take.
Sky had paused and turned to them. "Each pick path. No eyes for see. Must use head." Sky indicated the side of his head by tapping it. White understood. They were to use their mind to see, not their eyes.
"Are there enemies in this cave? Dark ones?" He asked.
Sky shook his head. "Fight come later. Must learn to see without eyes. Path dangerous, path move like serpent in grass. High and low. I meet you on other side of path. Go now." Sky waited for them to pick a path.
White glanced over at the paths not knowing what really was in store for him. How was he supposed to see without his eyes? How was he supposed to know if he was going to run into a wall or where to go. What Sky was asking them to do seemed impossible. But White knew that he couldn't just sit here and do nothing. He had to try. How else would he become strong. Gathering his courage, White stepped into one of the paths. In his mind he wished luck to everyone.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 14, 2012 20:40:45 GMT -5
Darius and Lance hadn't a clue as to why they had to run around like this but whatever. It was Sky's rules and customs. For now, they had to comply in order to become Vuli. It was just a good thing that none of them here was a lady. Hopefully, Princess Leliana wouldn't locate them at this unfortunate time. Otherwise, well, it would be tough to explain. Not to mention the fact it would be the most embarrassing thing ever to happen.
According to Sky, they were to pick any of the paths he had brought them to. They had to use their heads and not their eyes in order to see. Well, glancing at the paths, Darius figured they were too dark to see in properly. No doubt, someone could easily thwack their head on a rock on accident. No wonder Sky stated they should go in without clothing since the clothes would just protect you from most of the jagged rocks on the cavern walls.
When White asked about Dark Ones, Darius and Lance looked over at Sky in wonder. Were they going to end up fighting Heartless like this? That wasn't a pleasant idea. No doubt, they'd be taken down in seconds without armor and weapons. When Sky said that they wouldn't the two were relieved but that didn't mean their situation would change all that much either.
"Well, see you guys on the other side...maybe..." Darius stated before looking at the paths and choosing one of them. Entering it immediately, there was quite some trekking before it finally got pitch black for Darius. Outstretching his arms and hands, Darius tried to make his way through his path while Lance was pretty much doing the same in another path.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 15, 2012 1:25:34 GMT -5
Two things occurred when White took the path he selected. The first was that he really learned what it meant to travel in darkness. He could see nothing. At first his own heartbeat sounded so loudly that he couldn't hear anything around him. Because of this he found himself periodically running into things. Sky really did mean that the paths all moved like a snake. They curved, the dropped, the sealing above dropped, the ground rose, everything one could think of occurred in every path.
There was nothing but darkness, and nothing White could do could fix that. He was as naked as he was born, and sore from falling and running into things. Currently he was stopped, unaware of even if he was facing the way forward or back anymore. How could he even tell? He had tried to step forward, but he kept running into the wall.
He felt frustrated, and continued to feel so for what felt like an hour. As his frustration rose, his fear rose as well. White began to face his biggest fear. He felt like a child again, taking care of his depressed mother. She would do nothing, and White knew that he could do nothing to help her. He was that young child once again and he feared for his own life. Giving up had caused his mother's death, and he was going to die the same way.
White could hear his heavy breathing, the sound of his heart beat in his ears like a drum. He tried to feel around again, but found only wall forward. He had thought that this was the right way, but with the wall in front of him he couldn't be sure. White wanted to stop. He could hear the laughter of that strange masked creature, the fissure who could have easily taken his life. He could see Princess Leliana laughing him as well. If only he could see! If only he had some ability that could bring light. He knew though he did not.
What could he do? White felt the tears running down his cheeks, and it took all of his being to not cry out. Was this all some trap to send them to their deaths? Was the Vuli man lying all along? White had so many doubts.
"Trust your friends." White remembered the words that Justice had told him. He had to trust in his friends. Sky, even though he just met them, had saved his life. He had no reason to suspect him. There must be a way through this path. White just had to stop paying attention to himself and start focusing on things around him.
White listened to the silence around him. At first for a while he heard only his breathing. But as he continued to simply live in the moment, he began to hear the sound of a "drip". Focusing on that sound he traced its origin until he noticed it was coming from by his feet. Crouching down, White felt along the wall until he found no wall. There was a two foot opening half way down. He could feel a steady airflow coming from it as well. It could only mean one thing. It led to outside!
White made his way into the opening, crawling on his stomach through it. White at first feared that he might be trapped into the cavern, but he trusted his senses. Something told him this was the way. Crawling for what felt like another hour, White almost gave up when he noticed he could see the edge of the cavern in front of him. It was no longer dark!
That could only mean there was light ahead. With new found rigor, White continued through the path and like he thought the cavern began to appear around him. Coming out White found himself in the middle of a large cavern like the one they had come to before. This one though was lite by torches around the room. Sky stood in the center.
"Welcome outsider. First path, passed."
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Post by Sprow on Sept 16, 2012 1:15:51 GMT -5
As soon as Darius had gotten into his path a significant amount, he noticed just how dark it really was in here. Well, Sky had forewarned them to not see with their eyes but their mind. Even still, he had to wonder how such a thing was even possible. Even with his arms outstretched, it wasn't that easy from keeping himself bumping into something blindly. It was because of that, he received a few welts that made him pause for a moment in frustration. Maybe he needed a different kind of tactic?
'I can't see...I can't rely just on touch...so what else?' he wondered, glancing around him merely out of habit rather than being able to actually see. Futilely, he gave the air a sniff. Well, so much for that attempt. All Darius smelled was the moisture in the air and the dank smell the cave kept inside of it. There was no way for him to distinguish where to go without hitting something or running into it. At least, not yet anyways nor did he think his sense of smell would pick up on anything different while he remained in the cave.
Not really sure how else to use his senses, Darius remained like this for a moment. Going onward by just touch alone but achieving only the same results. Lance, in the meantime, was having some difficulty and not with just the darkness of the cave and hitting things. No, in his head, there was a conversation going on between himself and the spiritual invader that was known as his ancestor. "Get out of my head!" he growled aloud finally, having enough of the spirit's intrusion. Rowen had suddenly decided to pop up, poking fun at the fact that Lance and his friends were running around in their birthday suits and had gotten themselves hopelessly lost.
"Fine, fine! I know when I'm not wanted...but I certainly do know when I'm needed. You really have no idea what you really are, do you? Welp, guess I can't help the fact a fellow Wilder is too much of a greenstick when it comes to their powers and refusing help! And we all were hoping you'd amount to something in history too! Oh well!" Rowen stated before finally parting from Lance's mind. Lance scoffed at what the spirit had said before he was truly gone from his mind for now. He didn't think it would be the last time he heard from him though. He wasn't sure how he knew this but Lance could just feel it. Besides, whatever the spirit was hinting at, Lance figured he'd find out eventually on his own. He didn't need Rowen bothering him when he was suppose to be taking this trial himself without help.
Much like Darius, he wasn't making much progress either. Eventually, it came to a point where he just stopped and allowed himself to take a moment to think. As he did so, he could feel a gentle sensation on his skin. Blinking, Lance tried to locate the direction of the sensation. It was air and it seemed to be lightly headed in another direction. Carefully, Lance followed it. As he did so, his only problems were with the ceiling and the rising floor or dipping floor. Usually, with the ceiling, he'd learn that the air seemed to circulate around certain parts of the ceiling forewarning him to pause before smacking his head into it.
As he walked, his mind wandered to the time when he met Darius and White. Just what was the purpose of him coming along anyway? Also, what of Skull? Was he truly dead or was he back? He didn't know why but he had a sense of foreboding. That monster had killed a number of family members and people on Land of Dragons while also leaving a path of destruction in his wake. If that monster were truly still around, then their battle just became ten times greater than they had thought. Even this training from Sky might not even be enough. On top of it, their numbers weren't big to begin with. They could easily be overwhelmed with numbers alone.
As his mind wandered, Lance continued to follow the airflow and would eventually come out of the path looking banged up here and there, even with a nasty bump on his head but alive and squinting at the sudden light here.
Darius's mind wandered to when he saw Ivory again just recently. It seemed that Smiles had gotten more of a grip on his twin sister. Even when she was faced with fighting his group, she didn't falter. Although, they had allowed them to live again. 'There is still some good in you...although very minimally. What am I going to do when the time comes to decide whether we fight and kill one or the other? Will it even come to that? Can I even just sit by and let my friends take care of your in my stead as to what to do with you punishment wise?' he wondered, shaking his head. His mind was always troubled whenever Ivory popped up in it. It was still difficult for Darius to believe she was no longer the sister he remembered and now this.
They were twins, their bond was strong. The thought of having to eliminate her probably bothered him greatly since it would be like killing a part of himself. Of course, they were siblings with only a relationship like that of siblings but twins were a special case. If one died, eventually the other would from heartbreak because their best friend just died. It were almost as if they shared the same soul but not like soul mates, no nothing that intimate but it was another strong and powerful bond that was just a step below that. Killing Ivory just might make Darius go insane if he didn't end up dying from grief later.
Forcing himself to train his thoughts on the path and getting out of it, Darius eventually stumbled upon a means of getting out. He had been relying on just touch but he also noticed the temperature in the air changed a little here and there. Whenever it didn't feel chilly, he was away from something solid but likely to bump into something. When he was a bit cold, he was either too close to something in which his breathing often forewarned him of when it returned to him after he exhaled or was able to get further down the path. After what might've seemed the longest out of the three, eventually, Darius exited his path.
"My god that took forever!" he exclaimed with a bit of a chuckle.
"Took you long enough!" Lance mused.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 17, 2012 0:45:11 GMT -5
Sky watched them all come one after another from the paths. He had his own way of getting up here, and had his own task in these caves. He was the "guide" as it was known in his tribe. He was guiding them on their quest of becoming Vuli. At the moment they were not Vuli, simply outsiders and prey to everyone. However when the time came to exit this cave, they would be prey no longer. They would be hunters, they would be Vuli.
But first there were still two more things for them to do. Sky watched White arrive first, then Lance, then Darius. As his mentor had explained after he had made his way through the cave, "The Ten Paths. Each man has his own path to take Sky and none are the same, however they all accomplish what they could not before. They open their mind to the nature around them. The first step in becoming Vuli is to open the mind."
By the look of it, they had all accomplished it. Sky was proud of them for doing such a task. It had taken them about two hours each before they had made it into this room. Sky was sitting on his knees, still naked, and had three wooden bowls in front of him. These bowls were needed for what came next.
If the three of them looked behind Sky, they could see a single path that was also lit by lanterns going down even further. That path came last. Sky looked to the three of them, and indicated that they should sit in front of him.
"I thought I'd never get out of that path at first." White commented to Darius and Lance. Taking a seat he glanced at the three bowls in front of Sky. They each held a forest green liquid that seemed to be made of different sorts of roots and plants.
Sky picked up the first bowl, and handed it to Lance. He then handed out the other two as well. "You drink. You learn to grow strong. You open Sahasra." The Sahasra was the third eye. Inside the bowl was a mixture of different plants and minerals that were found only in the cave. Two things would happen when one drank the concoction. They would first face their gravest fear. And then their full potential would be unlocked.
White, glancing down at the bowl in his hands, nodded. He had come this far, mine as well not stop now. Despite the taste he downed the mixture. As it sank into him at first he felt nothing, but then the world began to spin. Sky watched them each drop their bowl as they fell backwards onto the floor. He would wait for them to finish. The shortest time a person had ever taken to complete this phase was 48 hours. Sky was prepared to wait.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 17, 2012 3:07:28 GMT -5
When the three of them were finally out of their paths, they looked at Sky. He had been waiting for them all right here all along. Upon seeing them, Sky had sat on his knees with three bowls sitting on the cavern floor before him. Whatever was in them, neither of them knew as Sky gestured for them to sit. So, Lance and Darius followed White's lead and sat on their knees.
"Yeah, it was pretty...interesting." Darius remembered how he had to fight through his dreadful thoughts of his sister.
Lance nodded at that. "It really...was." His memory was the argument he had in his mind. Even now he still had some anger towards the ancient spirit for always messing with him. He always came from the other side to bug him, it seemed.
As soon as the three of them had sat down, Sky had handed them each a bowl. Lance looked at the contents of his in curiosity. Were they to eat this or something? Just what was this? As he was wondering this, Sky told them that they were to drink this in order to become stronger. They opened Sahasra. Just what was that? Some kind of hallucinogenic? Or alcoholic beverage? Hopefully not.
"Ah, alright then...guess we'd better get started..." Darius said. He trusted Sky, he just didn't know what this stuff was going to do to them. Maybe it was just a drink? Shrugging, Darius drank the liquid as he lifted it and tipped the contents into his mouth. It was a bit bitter but it went down fine without nauseating him. Lance had done the same and one by one, they dropped off as the world went spinning crazily out of control and they lost consciousness or went into some sort of state.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 17, 2012 16:03:22 GMT -5
White fell back to the floor, not exactly loosing conscious but entering a dream like state instead. The whole world around him was gone. Instead he was thrown into what could only be described as a nightmare. And for White it was the worst nightmare imaginable. He was chained to a wall in a cell. He had no idea how exactly he had gotten here, but at the moment that didn't matter at all.
What mattered was the fissure who stood in front of him. He looked exactly like he had appeared before him in the tower, dressed in very little armor with mostly a bare torso, and the lower mouth guard. The fissure's eyes were full of menace, and White was very aware of the amount of pain the fissure had caused him before. Once again he was at the fissure's mercy.
This was finally his end. He could accept that. At least his friends were safe. Perhaps he could do some good for once before he died. "Do it! Give it over with!" White challenged the fissure. Even though White could not see the fissure's lips, by the way his cheeks rose White figured he must have just smiled.
White expected the fissure to come to him but he didn't. Instead he looked behind him. The door to White's cell opened. White's eyes widened as well as Arya was thrown into the room. Why was she here?! It was only supposed to be him! White looked to Arya to the fissure in shock. Arya's face and posture were full of fear. She tried to run back to the door she had just been thrown into. But Skull locked his hand on her head.
"Please no! Let me go!" She shouted as Skull dragged her by the hair over to him. She let out a scream that sent shrills up White's spine. This wasn't supposed to happen this way! She was supposed to be free.
"White help me!" She begged of him. White struggled against the chains with all his might. He watched Skull's arm flex as her grip on her head began to tighten. Arya screamed at the top of her lungs, and White struggled all the harder.
"Let her go!" He screamed at the fissure. Arya's head popped as Skull crushed it with his bare hand. The fissure let out a chuckle as Arya's screams stopped. He let her drop to the floor, her expression of horror and eyes locked on White's face.
Tears dripped from White's face and his eyes couldn't leave his dead friend. Not Arya! She was so young! She didn't deserve such a death. "You bastard!" He screamed between sobs. It was Justice all over again.
The fissure glanced over to the door again. This time Lance was thrown into the room. White's eyes opened and he tried once more. "Run Lance run!" White tried to warn.
Lance had just looked at White with a questioning look when Skull grabbed the teen by the neck and lifted him off the ground with just arm strength alone. He began to squeeze and Lance's eyes began to bulge. White struggled against the chains once more, not being able to fight the tears and sobs. "Please let him go. Take me instead. Please." This time he tried to plead with the fissure. Looking for any humanity that the fissure might have.
Lance's last words were spoken at just above a whisper. "White... help....me...." And then it was it. Lance's face grew completely White, and the crunch of the neck snapping in the fissure's hand was just too much for White. If it wasn't for the chains he would have fallen to the floor. He had no strength in his legs. His cries had turned to a shouting cry.
The fissure looked to the door again and this time Darius was thrown into the room. "What's going...." Darius had begun. White's head lifted up quickly. Not Darius! He was his closest friend! Not Darius. He'd rather it be anyone then his best friend.
"No please no!" The fissure grabbed Darius by the back of his hair and threw him to the floor in front of White. Darius was as powerless as White was. The fissure strolled over to Darius and planted his boot on Darius head. The cheeks of the fissure lifted again.
White was sobbing uncontrollably. He was completely helpless, his worst fears realized. His friends were all dying in front of him, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Now Darius was going to die too. He was going to be alone once again in his life. He would have no one.
The fissure began to step down on the foot and Darius began to scream. White could only cry. He was worthless and hopeless. There was never anything he could do to protect his friends. Just like Justice. He could do nothing. It was all going to end here, and White was so powerless to stop it.
"You told me to trust my friends! Now there will be no one to trust!"[/i] White said to Justice in his mind. He was not a keyblade hero. He was not a great fighter. He was nothing. White could still hear Darius's screams as the boot began to step harder and harder.
If only he wasn't chained. If only he wasn't so weak! "I never trained you to be a quitter..." White remembered Justice's words. They were right. He was quitting... He was giving up on himself. Facing his strongest fear, White was giving up. "You are alot stronger then you think." That's right. He was strong. He had potential. It was about time he reached it.
White began to pull with all his might against the chains that bound him. Darius's cries motivated him to pull harder even when the chains began to tear into his own skin. He continued to pull against them with all his might. His voice came out in a grunt of intelligence as he pushed past his own personal block.
The ring that held the chains to the wall were pulled out. Instantaneously White felt something in himself finally break free. Something that he could only explain as an inner understanding of his abilities, strength, and powers. The chains he had on his inner self had been set free, and with it the scene around him faded.
White rose to find Sky sitting in pretty much the same position he had left him. The Vuli warrior had a surprised look on his face. But White saw everything in a new light. He felt stronger, he could feel the electrons in the air around him and knew that he could use them to do virtually everything. The blocks that he had held on himself were gone, and in its place was a new White. One who understood himself and his abilities.
Sky looked shocked but happy. "24 hours outsiders." White hear the plural term. Had all three of them woken at the same time?
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Post by Sprow on Sept 17, 2012 22:27:39 GMT -5
Whether it were unconsciousness or a dream-like state, none of the boys really knew. All that was known was that each of them appeared to be thrown into some sort of nightmare. Lance figured that this had to be considering he didn't recall getting there. All he knew was that he was back home in Land of Dragons but things were different this time. He wasn't really sure how to describe it but something felt off. Despite that, he didn't suspect himself being in a nightmare and for some reason, it felt so real.
Standing there in the midst of bodies was a lone figure drenched in blood. Furrowing his brows, Lance walked towards the figure. As he came closer, he realized that the figure was Brayden. Judging by the look on his cousin's face, he was mortified by what lay all around him, in a catatonic state as he stared wide eyed out at nothing. He was as rigid as a board, unmoving and didn't even seem to blink when Lance approached him, calling out his name.
"What happened, Brayden? Who did this?" he tried to ask his cousin but he was unresponsive. Then, a dark laugh filled the air. Turning around, Lance found himself facing a set of fissures. All of them were possessed friends. Yes, that's right. Darius, White, Mr. Thomas and Arya were all standing there with dark, twisted smiles upon their faces and their eyes were yellow. His friends had become fissures!
"Wha-?! Who could've done this?!" he exclaimed. It was then that a dark figure but difficult to make out had appeared walking into the scene rather slowly. Yet, every step made Lance's spine tingle unpleasantly. Whoever they were, their stature was threatening with each footfall they had made. Try as he might, Lance couldn't see his face even if he wanted to. The man was shrouded in darkness as if a shadow followed him wherever he went. "Who are you?!" Lance demanded but the man just chuckled darkly in response.
"I think you know the answer to that one, Lance Wilder. I've come to finish the job...I only managed to kill your mother. Who knew the woman had a child? No matter, you'll follow in her footsteps soon enough. It'll give me great pleasure for killing all of you finally for interfering in Land of Dragons!" Lance didn't know how but he figured by the way this man was speaking that this had to be the proclaimed Skull. Almost instantly, Lance froze on the spot. Since he hadn't seen Skull before, his visage was enshrouded in mystery. No wonder Lance couldn't see him! Even still, it made the man all the more frightening just because Lance couldn't even see his face or make out any of the figure's features to help him identify him.
The man took a step forward before extending an arm out. As he did so, his friends were set loose on him! All of them came to attack Lance! "No-! STOP!" he tried to say but Darius and White were already near him, trying to stab him with their swords. Arya was conjuring something in the back and Mr. Thomas...just where had he gone? Suddenly, an arm came out of nowhere and Lance had dodged the attack. There was Mr. Thomas! Apparently trying to whack out Lance's brains.
Lance was at a loss here since he didn't want to fight his friends but he had no choice. What else could he do? His family was dead and his friends looked as if they were under control of the fissures but did this mean they were dead as well? His friends...his family...all of them were dead and that bastard was using them against him! Brayden remained motionless, not even registering the danger around them. Lance felt so hopeless and helpless. How could he have failed them all? How did that monster get to them without his noticing?
As he avoided the attacks coming from his friends, Lance set his sights on the shadowy figure that had to be Skull. Summoning his lance, Lance darted right for him and took aim. He was scared of confronting this villain but what other choice did he have? As he made the attempt, the scene disappeared and Lance found himself waking up. He was probably the last to wake up.
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As for Darius, while Lance's and White's nightmares had been taking place, he found himself in a strange white room. There was a table at the center of it with chairs gathered about it. There had to be around twelve seats. One at the far end was facing away from him. He had been standing at one end of the table looking forward. He couldn't tell if there had been anyone in the seat as he glanced around.
"Where am I?" he said to himself aloud, as if someone or something would answer that question for him if he asked it. Then, the seat turned about to face him and sitting in the seat was none other than Smiles! "Y-YOU-!" Darius exclaimed, hopping back a few feet in alarm. Smiles just simply smiled in response to Darius's reaction. No doubt by the glint in that one's wide open blue eyes that there was a gleam of sadistic amusement.
Darius admittedly did find himself fearing Smiles in the living world. Why? Well, it was generally difficult to decipher what this man was thinking. On top of it, he somehow brainwashed his twin sister into becoming one of the assassins. At least, that's what Darius had thought since he appeared to always be the one leading Ivory in each encounter they've had so far. The fact he admitted that he would kill Ivory if she became boring also unnerved Darius since the guy acted so sincere with Ivory there until she was gone. Showing a much more violent side to him but yet, never having killed Darius when he could have. The fact this man could have killed him also disturbed Darius. He had his sister and could easily kill Darius. Honestly, Darius knew he was in real danger here.
"I see you've finally made it to our headquarters...interesting. You should have listened to your sister, Darius." Darius narrowed his eyes at him. The guy was still smirking at him. It looked rather wicked despite the fact it was a simple smile. The guy just seemed to exude a negative energy in the air that made one's spine tingle unpleasantly just by looking at him. He was an unpredictable guy and one heck of a slippery sneak at that. Darius remained rooted to the spot as he watched Smiles carefully.
"I want Ivory back! I'm not leaving until I do! And Arya too!" Darius growled. It was at this moment that Smiles had stopped smiling. The fact he had done so greatly disturbed Darius. He wasn't sure why but something was telling him that he was in grave danger right now. Smiles had remained where he was though but didn't appear to be amused in the slightest.
"As I've told you before, your sister is the most interesting person I've met and I won't let you take her away from me. However, if this is what you want...then why should I refuse?" Smiles said slowly, standing up and snapping his finger. From behind the chair, Ivory stepped out as her eyes narrowed. Brother and sister were looking at each other from opposite ends once again.
"I won't fight you but Ivory seems intent on wanting to for your abandonment. So, why not let her?" he stated, looking over at Ivory who met Smiles gaze as he gave her a nod.
"Darius..." Ivory stated as Darius faced her, his brow furrowing. How could his own sister want to do such a thing? He hadn't left her on purpose! Why blame him over it all? Why this? Why everything?
Then, out of the blue, White, Lance, Arya and Mr. Thomas appeared. Holding out a hand, smirking malevolently at Darius, Ivory sent a beam of dark energy at them! "NO! IVORY, DON'T-!" he shouted but it had been too late. She had just hurt his friends! Glaring at her, Darius hated what she had done but he couldn't bring himself to kill her. Still, he couldn't just let her hurt his friends. Shaking his head furiously, Darius summoned his armor and broadsword. With that, the two of them lunged at each other and then...one of them went limp as blood flowed down Darius's blade.
His heart gave a terrible lurch as he realized that he had her impaled on his sword's blade but he couldn't have stopped her if he wanted to. Tears falling from his face, he dared to look into his sibling's face. "D...Darius! H-How...could...you?" she said before the life left her eyes. With that, she took one last breath of air and was gone. Darius fell to his knees then as the whole image went away and he found himself waking up. Just like his dream self, tears were falling gently from his eyes as he slowly sat back up.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 17, 2012 23:04:28 GMT -5
Sky watched the three of them awake at once. That itself was miraculous. But even more amazing was the fact that they had accomplished Shasra in such a short time. None in the entire village had done such a thing. Sky was marveled at these outsiders. Could they be.... Sky knew that there was no doubt about it.
Standing Sky extended a hand to each in turn and helped each up from their sitting position. "Sahasra opened outsiders. Now you become Vuli."
Sky led them down the downward path. The incline was pretty steep, and it caused careful footsteps forward. However after everything they faced accomplishing it should be easy with their new abilities. The downward slope led the group to another room lit by torches. This one wasn't as large as the one were in, merely the size of a single room. Two things should be noted about the area they entered. The first is that there was no sealing, at least no viable one.
The second was an outline of a door on the wall at the end of the room they had entered. Sky led them before the outline of the door, and the familiar symbols and runes that covered the door were a welcome sight. They reminded Sky of when he had entered that door, and his transformation had been complete.
"The Dor of Mes may be only opened once. It is the task of the elder to wait until the prophecised time has come. One day Sky, three shall come who are beyond normal. You must tell them these words exactly." It seemed that day had come.
For once Sky's english was perfect. "Death awaits for you on the other side. Seize your destiny. Trust your friends. Place your hands on the door and become the heroes you were meant to be." Sky instructed it exactly as his teacher had taught him. When Sky had asked who it was that had told him those words, his teacher had just said.
"A friend." Sky never knew this friend, but he knew that these outsiders were the three.
White, a bit confused by what exactly the man meant by death, still knew that having faced his greatest fear, he could face death as well. He glanced at Darius and Lance. "Let's become heroes then." He couldn't help but smile. Walking over to the outline, White placed his hand on it. Once all three hands were placed on it the outline, symbols, and runes on the door began to glow.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 19, 2012 22:31:27 GMT -5
Lance and Darius didn't think they woke up at the same time as White. When they realized that they were all looking at one another, Darius wiped away at his eyes as he realized where he was. What he had experienced was a nightmare. Now, here they were, in the real world. Honestly, he was relieved that this was it and not the other. He wasn't ready to face something like that should it ever happen or even come to that. Even still, he sensed something within himself. Something didn't quite feel right about himself. It were as if he had a deeper sense of himself. Somehow, he knew that he had become stronger and had more confidence in himself.
Lance and Darius looked over at Sky as he spoke, stating that Sahasra had been opened and now they were to become Vuli. Sky lead them down a path that lead so steeply that it caused for careful footing. Surprisingly, not a one of them managed to fall or slip dangerously as they went.
By the time they reached the end, they came to a path lit with torches. Going down this, they soon came into a small cavernous room. There was, as Darius looked upward, no ceiling to speak of. At least, not one you could see at a glance from this angle. It was either so far up in the gloom or just simply opened up to the outside that it was impossible to tell. Then, as he looked down, he found a door with all sorts of runes and symbols around it. Darius had never seen a door to light or anything of that sort so he was surprised to be seeing what appeared to be a strange door leading into somewhere. No doubt, it had to be magical.
When Sky turned to them and spoke, Darius was surprised to hear him speak in perfect English. According to him, death awaited them and that they should seize their destiny. Trust in their friends and then place their hands on the door and become the heroes they were meant to be. "...Heroes?" Darius repeated before looking over at the door. White was the first out of them to reach the door, stating they become heroes. Lance followed White's lead and then Darius. No doubt, the real danger was inside of this door somewhere and not here in the room with Sky.
"Alright, here goes nothing!"
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