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Post by hoodwink on Nov 23, 2020 13:37:23 GMT -5
Henoke swam forward, frustrated and visibly annoyed as he allowed the mild rage to fuel his inner fire. Slashing forward with a powerful overhand swing, the teen shouted out victoriously as he felt his Keyblade connect with the eel’s dark form, rather than being repelled like last time. ”Take that!” Following up the initial attack with a powerful combo, Flotsam and Jetsam dispersed for a moment, untwining and swimming in their own directions to avoid the worst of the damage. Tch—slippery bastards! Despite his physical attacks working, the very nature of these eels were dexterous and fast underwater in their own right. For a slower attacker like Henoke, who was still a novice at swimming in this form, the speed was hard to keep up with. ”Urgh!” Lashing out with their tails, Flotsam and Jetsam’s bodies were reinforced and enhanced by the darkness pulsating around them, unleashing a slicing wave of darkness with the swipe as they attacked. Though he had lifted his weapon to block the brunt of it, the sheer force and pressure from the attack knocked Henoke back into the cavern wall, slamming with a thud!
Just then, Tori’s Fire Toss blazed through the water, arcing and hitting Flotsam and Jetsam just as they were preparing to follow up with another attack. ”Pests…hardly worthy…to swim in the same…water…” Though the attack had landed its blow, the additional magical damage of it hadn’t seemed to do much. It was moreso the fact that the weapon had connected that had bought Henoke enough time to recover. Readying his Keyblade once more, the teen swam forward with a wicked grin. ”We’ve got ya now!” Crackling with a sparking golden energy, his steel grey Keyblade lashed out as he went to unleash his Blitz attack! Sadly for the hotheaded youth, Flotsam and Jetsam had coiled together once more during his charge, their form glowing with a darkness as the cauldron flashed once more. The vibrant purple hue frothing from the boiling black pot was soon replaced once more with a sickly green—the eels aura shifting to match. BBZZZZZT! Shouting out as the voltage connected once more, Henoke’s Blitz attack was knocked uselessly to the side—repelled once more as the aura’s shift had happened before the attack connected.
”Huh?! But it just worked a second ago…!?” It seemed Henoke hadn’t actually been noticing what Tori had—but merely was acting off of his emotions and gut instincts, per usual. It seemed the girl had the right idea though, as the light changing from the cauldron seemed to also change the eels aura. It seemed this indeed was the key to piercing through the enemies defenses!
[[ENEMIES: Flotsam & Jetsam]]
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 23, 2020 14:12:31 GMT -5
“Got it!”
With her Keyblade now back in her hand, Tori grinned —now completely confident in the battle ahead. It was still 2 on 2, though —and the fact that their current enemies were a pair of slippery eels didn’t help at all.
Nothing a bit of magic wouldn’t help with, though —once the opportunity showed up.
The darkness in their aura only kept growing stronger, and it continued to annoy the Spirit that was now their enemy. If it depended on her, Tori would’ve tried breaking through it already, but she knew it wouldn’t help her currently. While her power flourished around her in the form of mist, yet slightly waning already, she wanted to get as much as an advantage as she could.
“Henoke —follow my lead!” she shouted, “I figured this one out!”
She noticed the shift in hue once more —back to green, which meant magic would help this time. With the mist swirling around her, she readied her spell —a much stronger one. Not wanting to fight fire with fire, Tori instead chanted Blizzaja. The ice spike shot upwards, wanting to trap the two eels and limit their movement as much as possible, before continuing the onslaught. How long would it take for the aura to switch yet again?
She was limit-testing the enemy now, after she figured the pattern to follow in order to achieve victory. How long would they continue with their tricks, before giving it up?
“Come on… Either you make this quick, or I’ll do it and end it for you” she thought, glaring at the two eels in front.
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 24, 2020 20:41:21 GMT -5
”Henoke—follow my lead!” Tori’s shout caused him to pause in his onslaught, his form smoky and bristled from the countless volts he’d taken this battle already. Seeing the girl’s Blizzaja lance through the water, Henoke shouted out with a wide grin as Flotsam and Jetsam split, trying to weave around the large pillar of magical ice. Though one of the eels managed to slip past, the other shouted out as it was struck and frozen in place momentarily by Tori’s magic. ”No, you don’t!” Seeing that the spell had worked on one of them, Henoke lifted his large Keyblade in the air above his head as he chanted his spell. ”Thundara!” Pillars of lightning sparked through the water, erupting in a radius around the teen as his spell echoed throughout the cavern. ”Foolish…boy…” Flotsam, the free one of the two eels, cackled as their body erupted with a sickly green lightning of its own, just as one of the Thundara bolts lanced through them. BZZZZzzzzt! Absorbing the magical energy, the eel seemed unharmed. "Shit! Thunder doesn't work on 'em!?" CRACK! Just as Henoke was shouting out in confusion, one of the bolts from his spell crackled and sparked against the large cauldron in the center of the room.
BBZZZZT! A visible crack emerged towards the pot edge, the chunk exploding around the seafloor as mist and darkness spilled slightly from the shallow wound. ”Imbecile! Don’t you…dare touch…that!” Roaring out in anger, Flotsam surged forward, still sparking with electricity as it went to bullrush Henoke! Jetsam had finally freed themselves from the Blizzaga spell, aiming directly for Tori as its aura surged and shimmered from green back to the dark purple. Similarly, Flotsam’s aura shifted as well, green lightning turning purple as Henoke met their attack head on with their Keyblade, surged by an electric volt in the process but managing to hit the eel back, despite their powerful aura. It seemed in that regard the shift had happened too late. Boiling and frothing, the contents of the cauldron had shifted as well—the light in the room waning to match the purple hue as dark tendrils surged up from the ground around it as though protecting it.
SHWOOM! Spinning as though doing a barrel roll, the dark aura around it pulsing as it lashed out with its tail in Tori’s direction. A slicing wave of darkness followed forth, aiming horizontally as it swept through the water and went directly for her!
[[ENEMIES: Flotsam & Jetsam]]
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 28, 2020 12:12:03 GMT -5
The mist around Tori finally waned, the Keyblade’s shape returning to its “fake” appearance. Even though she wished it lasted longer, there was so much she could do, with her power so weak to begin with. Instead, it was best to focus on the battle ahead, rather than on a power she could work on later on.
SHWOOM! Perking up, Tori narrowly dodged the wave of darkness aimed her way, but not unscathed —the cut in her cheek would prove it. And it only fueled her further, the grip on the blade in her hand firmer than ever, to the point it hurt even.
“So, I was right…”
Not only had she noticed the shift in auras, but something else, as well —whatever the cauldron was, it was sentient. She noticed part of Henoke’s spells hitting it, but did that mean anything at all? Glancing over at the spot that had taken her focus first and foremost, Tori thought quickly.
Would hitting it cause anything to happen? The eels seemed adamant to keep them away from it… Maybe it was best to attack it?
The lighting around them was now purple —meaning physical attacks would help now. In any case, though, supportive magic still worked (hopefully, anyways). Chanting Curaga onto the other Keyblade Wielder, Tori charged forward with impressive speed. Wanting to catch one of the eels off-guard, she used her Flash ability to cut the distance as quickly as she could before trying to land a hit.
It was better to just see what happened for a bit, regarding the cauldron —although she really wanted to get rid of it by now. It was both pissing her off as well as giving her a chill.
“Although…” a thought crossed her mind, “Maybe…?” She still had an ace up her sleeve (well, not physically speaking) —one she could try to use. A faint mist gathering in her palm, she would wait for an opportunity to show up, before trying something with her Illusions. She’d noticed the tendrils protecting the cauldron, which meant that attacking it would be useless —but she wouldn’t attack it, if possible.
Rather, if she could just enforce her view to one that would give them the upper hand… Then maybe they had a winning chance.
“Hey!” Tori shouted, glancing over at Henoke, “Lend me a hand —there’s something I wanna try!” she added with a smirk.
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 28, 2020 13:59:15 GMT -5
Henoke felt rejuvenated as his form was enveloped by a warm green light, flowers blooming from above as Tori’s Curaga magic healed him. He got mad when the weird pot got hit…right? With a cocky grin, the teen was swinging wide and strong—forcing Flotsam to swim on the defensive. Meanwhile, Tori’s Flash ability had worked in catching Jetsam off guard, hissing out in protest as the girls hit struck true. Squirming out of reach of the Keyblade, Jetsam glared at Tori as she shouted out to Henoke. ”Lend me a hand—there’s something I wanna try!” Currently exchanging blows with Flotsam, the hotheaded teen grinned at Tori’s request, glancing at her between swings. ”Heh—alright!” For a moment, the teen wondered if she had the same idea as him. Spinning while swimming up, Henoke broke free from the struggle as Flotsam and Jetsam hissed out in unison—their voice echoing throughout the cave. ”Urchins! Nothing…but…pests!” As the teen swam up to Tori, Flotsam and Jetsam met back up themselves, intertwining once more as the light in the cavern begin to shift again. Boiling and splurching!, the cauldron’s inner ‘light’ began to shift once more from the dark purple to a bright green, the darkness around the eels shifting in color once more.
”They don’t want us hittin’ that pot…” Having made his way to Tori’s side, Henoke kept his voice somewhat lowered as he faced the two eels, keeping his battle stance up. ”I can keep their focus!” Giving her a nod, the teen wore a confidant smirk—regardless of what her plan was, he trusted her. After all, his own solution was rather easy. "C’mon, you slimy bastards!” With a wide and devious grin, the teen aimed their large Keyblade at the cauldron. ”You don’t want me messin’ with this, right?” Diving back down, Henoke laughed as the eels roared out in fury as the teen swam near the cauldron. Though the darkness swarming around it seemed to be protecting the smoldering and boiling pot, the darkness across the ground was still the ground, right? ”Take this!!” Slamming his Keyblade into the darkness below, Henoke unleashed his Quake spell—causing the seafloor to shake as the cavern rumbled. ”Imbecile! Urchin! Bottomfeeder!” Flotsam and Jetsam were completely focused on Henoke, rushing forward with fury as they watched the cauldron tip and splotch! as the tendrils around it squirmed and writhed in agony from the spell.
”Be gone!” Darkness and an icy mist began to swirl around the two eels as they swam, a powerful Dark Blizzaga spell bursting forth ahead of them as the magical ice shot forward and lanced in Henoke’s direction! Combined with pure darkness, the spell was far more powerful than a standard Blizzard spell. CRACK! SMASH! Gritting his teeth as part of the spell landed a hit, the hotheaded youth swung his large weapon and shattered parts of the icicles that lanced his way. The force of the spell had pushed him back through the water, though the damage only seemed to fire him up. Some still scraped or gouged him—the occasional cut now lingering on his arms and shoulders, faint blood seeping into the water around them as the salt stung his wounds a bit. ”Tch—is that all you’ve got!?” With a reddened face and vein emerging on his forehead, the teen continued to contend against their opponent. It seemed for now, whatever Tori was planning, the two eels were solely focused on the boy who had struck their cauldron with magic…
[[ENEMIES: Flotsam & Jetsam]]
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 28, 2020 14:28:58 GMT -5
Tori swam a bit back, pushed by the momentum of things, yet the grip on the Keyblade was as firm as ever. After her hit connected, she had to back off before a hard retaliation was aimed her way. Once Henoke swam near her, he looked at him by a glance, her entire figure facing the two squirming eels in front of the two as they hissed, the aura around them as well as the light in the chamber changing yet again.
”They don’t want us hittin’ that pot…” Tori smirked, relieved to see that the teen that was her ally also noticed what happened. Hasting a plan that Tori was suggesting from the beginning, she nodded back as Henoke threw himself into the fray once more, taunting the enemy with his usual cocky attitude.
This time, though, it came in handy.
While his Quake spell served to distract the two eels from her, mist on Tori’s hand consensed rapidly. The girl chanted twice —first, a Faith spell to increase her magic output, then a powerful Thundaja. The sparks of electricity gathered near the cauldron, the thunderbolts of the powerful spell gathering in a single, concentrated spot —aimed to completely destroy the thing. Tori’s gaze said it all.
She wasn’t playing games anymore —not that she was before.
“This, we end here —like it or not!” she thought, keeping herself at a fair distance in case something were to happen next.
Would that end the battle, or not? And if it didn’t end it, would it at least give them an advantage? Tori couldn’t tell, yet. There were many variables still on the air, but she wasn’t giving up yet. She still had a lot of fight in her —especially now that she was dead serious about it.
“…I just hope Flounder’s doing alright. He should be, but never hurts to worry a little bit.”
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 28, 2020 15:21:36 GMT -5
Pushed back from the initial dark spell the enemies had cast at him, Henoke didn’t stay down for long. Rushing back towards the eels, the teen wore a devious and somewhat maniacal grin as he swam through the water, hefting his large Keyblade up and aiming directly for the two. ”Burn!” Fire brimmed around the tip of the steel grey blade, launching forward with a skooooom! as the water around it boiled and frothed. ”Ignorant…boy…” Casting another spell of their own, Flotsam and Jetsam chanted a Dark Reflega spell, a purple barrier waning in front of them as the fireball exploded with a BOOM! Smoke smoldered and bubbled the water around them, but the two eels were unharmed. ”Tch—damn it!” Truthfully, Henoke hadn’t expected them to know defensive magic, something that was lost on someone like him. Having wasted one of his most powerful spells at such a crucial time, the teen grit his teeth and tightened his hold on his Keyblade in agitation. Bzzzzzt! CRACK! Just as Henoke was about to wing it with his assault, a crack of lightning from behind caused him to pause and turn his head in surprise. Tori’s powerful Thundaja spell was only further powered by her Faith spell, boomed and clashed against the cavern, echoing thunderously as its yellow flashing light burst radiance throughout the dark place.
CRACK! SPLOOSH! Frothing darkness and boiling bubbles spilled over the cauldron as yet another severely large chunk was blasted from it. Though the dark tendrils had snaked around it for protection—it seemed that it shared the eels weaknesses with the aura around it. Smoking and lowering to the seafloor, some of the tendrils seemed defeated, unresponsive from the damage. Other paused, jolted by the shock—stunned momentarily. ”NOOOOOO!” Flotsam and Jetsam roared out in unison, visibly shaking with fury as they glared at Tori and the cauldron. Darkness below surged and squelched as it shifted like an ocean, the waves clashing up to match the eels rage as their form radiated with a powerful dark aura. ”It is…time…to see…the fruits of our…labors…” Hissing through gritted jagged teeth, both eels glared as the large shell in the back of the room began to shake and wriggle as though alive. Darkness surrounded it, causing it to glow a faint purple as it was released open with a cascading torrents of bubbles.
”Attack them!” Shouting out to the creature that emerged from the shell, Flotsam and Jetsam glared once more at Tori. ”You’ll...pay…girl!” The aura around them increased as pillars of darkness shot up from below, aiming to lance Tori with the sudden attack! Meanwhile, Henoke was gaping and shouting out in surprise at what had emerged from the large shell. A rather large (nearly the size of Henoke himself) clawed creature emerged, darkness morphing its features as its bright yellow eyes found the boy. With many legs and what looked like an armored shell adorning its body, the tailed creature swam with surprising speed, its larger claws lashing out towards Henoke! ”Meet…Atlantica’s…Royal Advisor!” Cackling maniacally as the possessed and transformed Sebastian slammed into the surprised Henoke, Flotsam and Jetsam continued to put pressure on Tori, launching out multiple orbs of pure dark energy that showered across the room!
[[ENEMIES: Flotsam & Jetsam, Sebastian]]
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 28, 2020 16:37:31 GMT -5
Grinning with confidence, Tori saw the fruits of her own work. The spell hit its mark cleanly, unleashing its fury for everyone to see, and destroying the source of her annoyance by quite a bit. The fact that their current enemy was distraught only served to widen her smirk, knowing she’d secured an advantage for her side, and leaving a hindrance on the opposing one. The glare the two eels shot her way was met with ice cold resistance, quickly changing from a confident grin to a cold glare.
One could cut the tension between them with a knife.
Sensing the nearing darkness, Tori readied herself. The sudden movement caught her off-guard, immediately looking at where it was coming from —a large shell, consumed by darkness, and with it, a surge of power. Shuddering faintly as she recognized immediately what it was, Tori was forced now on the defensive.
Raising her Keyblade in a defensive maneuver, Tori blocked the orbs of darkness aimed her way, pushed back against the wall. Once she could break her guard, Tori would swim as fast as possible towards the shelled enemy, yet fearful to attack it. She could still sense them, amidst the dark mist that now enveloped his heart —that was the person —or rather, lobster— they were looking for.
“We can’t fight him —at least, not to the point we beat him…” Tori said, bitter, “…If I lock him in place, can you do it again?” she asked Henoke, looking his way.
Maybe just the action wouldn’t be enough —dispelling such an amount of darkness would take time, for sure, and Tori was unsure if Henoke could do it all at once. Yet she was reluctant to attack it, worrying that they might actually hurt the real being behind the layer of darkness.
Which one would it be? They would have no other choice if the Illusion failed immediately —Tori couldn’t trap Sebastian into an Illusion and hope for him to remain there. Clicking her tongue, she realized they were being pushed into a corner. The shelled creature Sebastian now formed was strong, evidently, and they had two other enemies to deal with.
The battle would get longer and longer, and if Tori did her tricks then and there, then Henoke would be on his own —she couldn’t afford that.
“…Tch —screw it” she cursed, readying herself, “Let’s weaken him first —if my Illusion fails now, you’ll be on your own. I can’t let that happen. Weaking him a bit should help in securing him. But” Tori looked at Henoke, “We need to do this now —before the darkness trapping him consumes him completely.”
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 28, 2020 18:27:08 GMT -5
Henoke gaped at the possessed local, jacked up on a crazy amount of dark energy as it lashed with powerful claws—forcing the teen to swim back and raise their Keyblade in a guard. Royal Advisor?! Wait—hadn’t he heard that title somewhere? ”Oi! Is that Sebastian?!” Blinking in surprise as it finally dawned on him, Henoke’s face quickly shifted into one of indignant anger. ”We can’t fight him—at least, not to the point we beat him…” Of course, they couldn’t just beat Sebastian up! They had to figure out some way to save him. What did they do to him…? The teen grimaced at the sight of the menacing lobster, possessed and not in his own mind any more. ”If I lock him in place, can you do it again?” Tori’s question caused the teen to blink in surprise, glancing her way as he recalled their earlier use of the Keyblade. ”Oh, right!” Flotsam and Jetsam weren’t merely sitting by while the two chatted, though. As the two faced the possessed Sebastian, the eels had quietly begun to swim back to the cauldron, which despite cracking and shattering in a few areas, still maintained its broiling bubbling contents and grotesque light. ”Tch—screw it. Let’s weaken him first—“ As Tori explained her plan to Henoke, Flotsam and Jetsam submerged themselves into the cauldron, the tendrils remaining sheltering it as the frothing contents boiled over and burst with bubbles at the sudden submersion.
”It…is…time!” The two voices spoke in unison, echoing throughout the cavern as the cauldron thumped! and writhed on the seafloor. For a moment, it looked almost as though it would fall over. Sebastian flailed his large powered up claws, roaring out in a consumed rage as his enhanced armored tail pumped powerfully behind him. Charging at the two teens with force, the possessed local aimed to pierce both with each claw! SHOOOOM! At the same time, the contents of the cauldron shot out, acting as though a geyser, darkness and purple and green hues mingling as it spewed into the water around it. "What the—!?" Focusing on parrying Sebastian's attack, Henoke could only spare a quick glance over his shoulder after hearing the sound. Emerging from the mess was the two eels—transformed and consumed into one another. No longer two separate entities, Flotsam and Jetsam had seemed to merge into one grotesque monster. Their heads still resembled eels, though their body was a twisted mass of darkness and tendrils—giving them an appearance similar to a Darkball Heartless. A purple and green aura swirled around them, shifting in color continuously as they roared out once more, green lightning lancing through the water in all directions!
It seemed they cared not who they struck—no longer fully in control as the darkness consumed them. The cauldron, now empty, still shimmered with a faint aura—flickering between purple and green before finally fading completely. Now empty and mostly broken, the cauldron simply sat smoldering, though a dark presence still emanated from it.
[[ENEMIES: FlotJetsam & Possessed Sebastian]]
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 29, 2020 9:35:43 GMT -5
As yet another shudder ran down her spine, Tori forced herself to block. The claw aimed her way was really strong —one she struggled to fend off of her. A second later, it would’ve hit its mark. Glancing to where Henoke was looking at, Tori grit her teeth fiercely.
The battle was turning annoying already —they found the lobster they were after, sure, but the load behind that was really troublesome.
“If I try using that again, I’m done for sure!”
Tori didn’t have what little power she’d used before —using it again so suddenly was bound to take its toll on her, starting with the cracks and fatigue. While not the only option, it was by far the easiest one, yet the drawbacks at the moment were severe. Still, she had to persevere.
If she could stall, just for a bit longer…
Using those powers by herself wouldn’t help, either —only cracking her form, instead. The mist around her was wavering, faint and barely visible, unlike before. Tori gritted her teeth, chanting Ruinga and tossing it towards the now fused enemy that were the witch’s henchmen. It was a gruesome sight, as well as troublesome.
There were 2 enemies now —one of which they couldn’t exactly damage fully.
Taking her distance, Tori tossed her Keyblade surrounded by flames, her Fire Toss trying to help Henoke a bit, but watching the damage it dealt to Sebastian. They couldn’t hurt it —they had to tire him, first. If it was at a point where she could trap him within an Illusion… Then the mist would surround him immediately, as soon as the opportunity rose.
Of course, that would come with an obvious cost —that being Tori’s stamina. The more she forced it, the worse it would be, with her power weak as it was. Not only that, but she was keeping another Illusion active, in order to protect Flounder.
“Gr… They might both break…” she thought with a grimace, “If I force myself like this, then…!”
She had to, though —a nuisance for an effort. Without it, then they were bound to lose to the lobster they were trying to save. Whatever happened after would be an issue for later —right now, Tori wanted to help.
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 29, 2020 11:12:12 GMT -5
Bzzzzt! He was getting too used to be electrified during this fight. Green volts shook through tight muscle as Henoke winced from the attack of the now combined Flotsam and Jetsam. Roaring out with a vague fury, the possessed and enhanced lobster that was Sebastian continued to rampage. Thankfully Tori had managed to block the large and dark claws that slashed through the water, though Henoke’s guard was sloppy and slow, due to the vague stun of the prior attack. ”Hngh!” Forced back a bit from the attack, the teen managed to avoid taking more damage, though his balance had been thrown off a bit. ”Damn! He’s strong...!” There was a mixture of worry and excitement in his voice as he regained his battle stance. Just as the fused Flotsam and Jetsam were preparing to attack, Tori’s Ruinga spell would find its mark! ”Hssss...perishhhh…” Hissing out an angry retort through fanged mouths, the two eels seemed weaker to the light attack than before. Perhaps due to the pure dark energy that now composed them? It was more than just an aura, the two’s bodies had literally formed together, fused by darkness—forming a whole new dark entity in itself out of the two twisted hearts.
It seemed they were weaker to Light now than before! The girl’s extra Fire Toss aided Henoke in getting some room, the sudden attack catching both him and Sebastian off-guard. ”Grrrrooooooo!” Clang! With an armored claw, the lobster spun and slashed at the flaming Keyblade—hitting it off-course (though it would return to Tori’s hand nonetheless…because…well y’know, Keyblade things) but distracting it perfectly. ”I got this!” Shouting out, Henoke spun in the water, seeing Flotsam and Jetsam recovering from Tori’s spell. ”Hyyyyup!” With a powerful swing of his arms, the teen hurled his large steel grey weapon directly towards the fused enemies, using his Reflect Raid! Just as Henoke hurled his weapon, Tori’s mist would begin to close in. Not fully tired out yet, Sebastian immediately began to thrash about—until Henoke followed up with his own plan. ”I don’t think so!” While his Keyblade ricocheted off of the seafloor and cavern walls, bouncing around to hit Flotsam and Jetsam and infuriate them further, the barehanded teen swam directly for Sebastian! Distracted by the small amount of mist at first, the possessed local didn’t notice Henoke until he had gotten a grip on the lobster’s armored back.
”Quit…movin’…ya…jerk...!!” Huffing a bit as he grit his teeth and wrapped his arms around the lobsters two larger arms that held the claws, Henoke essentially was putting a giant lobster into a headlock! Thrashing about, Sebastian roared and attempted to flail and hit Henoke off of their back, unable to reach with their lobster appendages (it was actually kind of a funny sight, if so much wasn’t riding on this going well…). ”Now, Tori! Trap ‘im!” Sure enough, as Sebastian roared and thrashed about, slamming itself against the sea floor and cavern walls in an attempt to knock the rowdy teen off, the girls mist would sense the lowered energy from the being—rising up to surround Sebastian and ensnare them as Henoke held on. Slowly becoming pacified by the illusion, the thrashing ceased, just as the teen’s Reflect Raid finished, his large Keyblade arcing through the water and back to the free hand he was now able to raise with Sebastian subdued. Flotsam and Jetsam were further back in the cavern, having been struck and trying to avoid the multiple hits of the ranged attack. With the extra room to spare, the two were able to pacify Sebastian until they merely floated, making low growls but otherwise not responding to much. ”Alright!” Swimming around the large lobster to face its front, Henoke wore a confidant grin as his Keyblade began to shimmer with light.
”C’mon, Sebastian! Don’t quit now!” The light continued to gather as Henoke spun his large weapon, aiming the tip directly towards the creatures heart (at least, where he ‘thought’ a heart should be…he wasn’t sure how fishes ((it’s a lobster, Henoke…)) worked) as the light gathered and shot forth in a bright lancing beam. SHIIIIING! Piercing the distance between Henoke and Sebastian within the blink of an eye, the light beam connected with the possessed and pacified creature, a loud CLICK! resounding through the cavern as light began to emanate and surround Sebastian. ”Nooo!!!” Roaring out in frustration as they witnessed the darkness around the lobster begin to wane, their form shrinking and changing as a blinding light filled their form, Flotsam and Jetsam rushed forward through the water. ”Tori—cover ‘im!” Acting fast, Henoke gripped his Keyblade tight as he swam away from the now normal and passed out Sebastian—a tiny red lobster floating quietly in the water. It seemed the toll of the transformation had wiped the local out. They’d have to wait to get their answers. ”I’ll take on ugly, over here…” With a cocky smirk, he gave his friend a ‘thumbs up’ before focusing on the enemy at hand! The battle was back on!
[[ENEMIES: FlotJetsam]]
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 29, 2020 11:50:12 GMT -5
The Keyblade found its way back to its wielder after the Fire Toss connected, the opportunity having been there after pushing Floatsam and Jetsam back with her Ruinga. It didn’t hit only those two, but Sebastian as well —although it didn’t deal damage, but rather distracted it enough. Henoke could take it from there, surely.
“H-Hey, what—?!”
Tori blinked in shock as she saw the teen tried to hold Sebastian back for her to trap within an Illusion. The mist did it’s magic easily enough, although it caused the girl to click her tongue a bit. It stung, forcing herself to use it like that —but she had to. Once the mist trapped its target, Tori quickly brought her hand towards her, feeling almost like a burn on her wrist —a crack.
“Shit… I knew it…”
It was just one, for now —but who could say how many would come after, if she forced herself further? She couldn’t be careless with that power, or else her body would quite literally break. The sudden light show caught her off-guard, distracting her from her own thoughts as she saw the darkness being dispelled. In the beast’s wake was a small red lobster —Sebastian, the “Royal Advisor” they’d heard so much about.
At least her hunch was right…
”Tori—cover ‘im!” Henoke’s following order was met without resistance, instead with a nod as Tori let go of her own problems to help Sebastian out. Swimming swiftly to his side, Tori kept him close to her, the small lobster size allowing her to protect him in her arms. Sebastian was unconscious —that was both good, and bad. She could tell he was okay though, and just tired —most likely because of the fight.
Not that she could blame him.
“Here!” Tori shouted, chanting Curaga onto Henoke, a faint smile in her face —a trusty one, confident in the teen now fighting on his own, “Now give them hell! Don’t worry about us —I’ll keep him safe!”
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 29, 2020 13:43:13 GMT -5
”Now give them hell!” Tori’s encouragement as well as her healing spell caused Henoke’s already cocky grin to widen as he swam towards the fused enemy. Writhing in green sparks of lightning and a dark aura, Flotsam and Jetsam were consumed by their rage—the darkness in their hearts fully controlling them at this point. Hardly daunted by the eels charge, Henoke’s smirk widened as his Keyblade began to crackle and spark with orange energy. ”Futile…useless…disappear!” Roaring out in protest to the eels demand, Henoke swung forward as the two collided—his Blitz ability sparking and crackling as though lightning as the large Keyblade sliced through water and hit its mark. Zzzzzzt! Despite the voltage from the eels aura, Henoke had gotten a bit too used to getting zapped—allowing him to continue his powerful attack as the fused enemy was launched backwards and slammed! into the cavern wall. ”Tch—dream on!” Not allowing them a moment of respite, the teen was already rushing ahead, pumping his powerful whale-like tail with all his strength as he readied his weapon for another combo. ”Eat this!” Aiming his Keyblade at them during his charge, an orb of light began to flicker and spark into existence at the tip of the blade. Unleashing his Raging Heart ability, the orb burst, forming multiple sparks of orange and gold electricity like energy that lanced out through the water towards the eel.
Despite its appearance, it was all light energy—not thunder or lightning. Due to its appearance, Flotsam and Jetsam merely smirked as the attack came. ”Foolish…ARRRGHHH!” Having been too confident due to their misunderstanding of the nature of the attack, the two took the light-based attack head-on—weakened to it due to their current state. Illuminating the cavern for a moment, the burst of light also worked in blinding them, leaving them unaware to how close Henoke had gotten within that short time. ”ZAAAAN—“ A faint golden aura began to surround his large weapon as a look of fiery determination took over his face. ”—TETSUKEN!” Within the blink of an eye, the teen had seemed to pass through the enemy—a faint golden line being the only sign of what had happened. Lowering his weapon, a burst of light streaked across the eels, who screamed out in protest at the powerful attack. Slowly, the darkness among the seafloor began to retract, slowly, back towards the once empty cauldron. The darkness emanating from Flotsam and Jetsam began to flake apart, bits trailing through the water as the two’s forms were unfused and released from the power and madness possessing them.
Falling to the now normalized seafloor, the two eels returned to their normal visage, a dark teal body, sleek and slimy, with faint paper-thin fins trailing along the edges. Clearly weakened, battered and bruised, the two eels struggled to keep afloat, all darkness beginning to drain from them as it all began to gather in the cauldron. Though no longer broiling, foaming or bubbling, the dark black vessel no longer seemed wounded and cracked—almost as if the darkness itself had repaired it. ”We—…aren’t…done y-yet…” Struggling to float up, the two eels glared at Tori and Henoke, clearly being sore losers. Swimming above them, the teen lowered his Keyblade menacingly as he gave a glower of his own. ”Can it! Y’all are toast!” Lowering himself, Henoke pinned both eels under his large and powerful whale-like tail, dismissing his Keyblade and crossing his arms with a hmph! Looking over at where Tori floated, cradling an unconscious but otherwise unharmed Sebastian, the teen beamed. ”Ha ha, it worked!” With the eels defeated and Sebastian returned to normal, it all seemed to be going pretty well. ”Shshieohshshshsoi” Incomprehensible whispering lurked, echoing faintly throughout the cavern.
Henoke blinked in confusion, as it didn’t really sound like words…glancing around, he tried to find the source of the weird noise. There was nothing else in the cavern…other than the odd cauldron. It didn’t emanate any light or auras like before, but was simply full of a weird dark liquid that sloshed and rippled on its own. ”Weird…” Eyeing the cauldron with a wary glance, Henoke didn’t want to move from his spot, where he was pinning Flotsam and Jetsam. The odd whispers seemed to be coming from there, though…was that the source of the darkness?
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 29, 2020 14:19:59 GMT -5
Cradling Sebastian near her, Tori watched the battle unfold. The stinging from the one crack turned out to be a few, her gloved hand’s side having faint cut-like cracks from the wrist, going upwards. They glowed a faint light, surprisingly, unlike a proper bleeding, but they hurt worse than a cut. She held the pain to herself, though, not wanting to worry Henoke further.
How two-faced could she be, when it came to stuff like that? The thought lingered in her head for a bit. Hadn’t she worried about him doing something reckless before? So why was she hiding it now?
Ignoring the conversation of victory Henoke held, proud at the success, Tori noticed the faint whispers from the cauldron —which was odd. Shuddering a bit, her curiosity took hold, but knowing she was holding Sebastian with her was probably enough to stop her. Who could say what would happen if she approached?
“It’s been bothering me ever since we first saw it… Just what’s the deal with it…?” she asked herself in thought, “It’s not just a source of power, right…?”
Even though wounded, Tori wanted to finish things properly —the mystery behind the cauldron being one of said thing. Not moving from place, the girl’s mist did her bidding. Faintly swirling in her palm, she tried to figure out what was going on, and with the help of her powers, she could probably figure something out.
Manipulating light and darkness to follow her word was child’s play, despite the toll it took on her. She tried to do it further, but her body felt tired —completely exhausted. Her vision a bit blurry, Tori found herself wobbling a bit. Had she been on flat earth, she would’ve probably fell down on the floor.
Instead, still holding Sebastian close to her, her body seemed to float, yet her expression said it all.
She’d passed out.
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 29, 2020 15:33:14 GMT -5
Henoke blinked in surprise as he watched Tori command her familiar mist—swirling around the cauldron brimmed with darkness. With her powers of introspection, the girl would feel a faint yet menacing presence—one that signified a lingering will—the pure intentions of what had once been a powerful heart. It seemed that some being close to the darkness had used the cauldron as some form of catalyst, the result causing some of their presence to linger and spread its tainted will via the vessel itself. ”Oi! You okay?” Having finished successfully tying the weakened Flotsam and Jetsam together in a knot (sure, it was rough, but effective!), the teen noticed the look on Tori’s face as her form went slightly limp—her powers taking their toll. It seemed the information she’d gathered had come at a draining cost. Swimming to the girls side, Henoke’s face mingled with concern and annoyance as his eyes fell on the faint cracks shimmering on her arm. ”Damn it, Tori…again?” The same thing had happened back in that castle…healing magic was useless for such wounds. Sighing a bit, the teen would urge her to dismiss her spell, grabbing at her shoulder (the unwounded side) and giving it a light shake.
”Snap out of it! We won, but we still gotta get back to Flounder and the Palace!” Grimacing and shouting out in surprise, Tori went limp and completely passed out. Sighing in frustration, he glanced around the room warily. What the hell... Though he had incapacitated the two eels (who were currently shouting obscenities unfamiliar to the teen from their little balled up form on the floor), it wasn’t like they could just leave them in this cavern. That, and that pot’s givin’ me weird vibes… Glancing at the menacing vessel, the faint whispers still echoed throughout the cavern—though he still couldn’t understand what they were saying. Regardless, it was kind of creepy, and he wasn’t opposed to simply breaking it. With Tori passed out, it wasn't like there was much else for him to do, anyway. Summoning his Keyblade in a ray of light, Henoke scrunched up a face of focus as he swam over to the cauldron. CLANG! Slamming his large weapon against the vessel with a powerful arc, metal sparked as the cauldron was sliced clean in half, its dark contents pouring out into the water below. "Urgh...gross..." Grimacing at the darkness that seeped out, the teen felt his Keyblade vibrate slightly as a faint golden aura began to shine around it. "Huh?!" A familiar yet different sensation came over him, it was almost like when he had used the Keyblade against Sebastian, and the shark...but slightly different. Instead of a beam concentrating, the Keyblade continued to glow with a powerful light until even Henoke found himself squinting against it. "Urgh! Fine!" Following nothing but his gut intuition, he scrunched his eyes shut and gave another powerful overhanded swing.
SHWING! SMASH! BLING! The whispering ceased as the Keyblade sliced through the darkness, the light radiating around it bursting forth to eradicate what would remain. Blinking in mild confusion as the light and his weapon disappeared, Henoke was left alone in the cavern, Flotsam and Jetsam crying out in frustration, with Tori and Sebastian passed out, floating aimlessly in place. Tch... It felt like a hollow victory. "I'll...live on..." A faint voice, one he almost didn't notice--but the prickling on the back of his neck caused Henoke to turn in the water, whipping his head around. It almost seemed like there had been the vaguest imprint of a face, in the darkness that had slowly dissolved away...was he just seeing things? "Man...screw this place." Shrugging the odd moment off, the teen noticed Flotsam and Jetsam had also become unconscious. "What the hell?!" Was that because of what he had just done?! Groaning and grabbing at his spiky orange hair, the teen had a visible look of frustration. If he still had his feet, he'd have slammed one down on the ground. "Just how many of you do I have to carry?!" Flounder would hardly be any help in that regard... It was then that a low rumbling took hold in the cave, causing Henoke to jolt in alert as rubble began to fall from the ceiling. "Are you kidding me?!" Scrambling with as much speed as he could muster, the teen was quick to grab Tori in one arm, swimming over to grab the bundle that was Flotsam and Jetsam in the other. Thankfully, the passed out girl still held Sebastian, somehow. Pushing off of the seafloor with his tail, Henoke dove for the exit of the cavern, just as it began to collapse around him.
Emerging from a cluster of bubbles, rubble and dust, Henoke emerged with both allies and enemies in tow. Thankfully the teen was rather muscular and strong for his age, able to heave all parties as he swam without getting buried. "Henoke! What happened?!" Flounder was quick to swim his way, a clear look of worry on his face. The light had disappeared as well. The fish had been left alone in the darkness, knowing something had happened, but thankfully Henoke had emerged right after, so they weren't completely panicking yet. "We beat 'em, but Tori's messed up!" Grimacing a bit, the teen chucked the bundle of eels to the side as he focused on Tori, resting her against the seafloor and odd cavern walls. "Tori! Wake up!" Shaking the girl lightly from the shoulders, Henoke tried to wake her up as Flounder wore a look of concern, swimming to his side. "What...happened?" Repeating his question somewhat dumbfoundedly, the fish seemed forlorn. "She used too much of her powers...I think?" He was a little blurry on the details at the moment, literally and figuratively juggling a lot. Both allies would try to stir Tori awake, though they could only try for so long. The dark Lair ahead had been caved in, though thankfully the rest of the caverns seemed in tact.
Even so, they had to leave, in order to make sure the Heartless were at bay and to find this worlds Keyhole!
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 29, 2020 16:11:22 GMT -5
While unconscious physically, and being jostled around by Henoke’s actions, Tori was awake in her head, at least to the point she could make out coherent thoughts. It was pitch black, no matter where she looked —but surprisingly, she wasn’t scared. Her wrist still hurt like hell, but it was the least of her concerns now. Watching in her mind, she felt it —the presence that had made use of the darkness in the area, and its will. Although the first time seeing something like that as far as she could tell, something about it felt awfully familiar.
"I'll...live on..." She heard a voice echo in her head, looking around to try and see who had spoken, but finding no one there —only the lingering will without shape around her, amidst the thick darkness that comprised her thoughts at the moment. She looked down at her wounded arm —the cracks going up to half of her forearm. Tori clicked her tongue, opening and closing her hand as she tried to see if she still had any feeling left, which, thankfully, she did. However, it meant that she couldn’t force herself too much, or else she would become dead weight for Henoke.
“I can’t let that happen —not here…” she thought, “If it were anywhere else, it’d be fine, but here… Sufficed to say, even if he’s improved with the tail, he still struggles to keep up…”
There were so many thoughts in her head at the time, yet the lingering presence in the cauldron left an impression on the girl —a bad one, one she just wanted to get rid of immediately. She had an idea or two as for what was happening, and based on the actions of both eels, so adamant in keeping the cauldron out of the battle, and retaliating whenever it received a hit.
“Could it be that, maybe…?”
Her thoughts were cut short, as her body finally began to regain movement —she noticed she was being jostled lightly. Next thing she knew, Tori found herself groaning a bit. The cold touch of stone against her exposed back was enough to alert her that she was now waking up, having passed out after forcing herself so much. The searing pain in her wrist came like a train —sudden and sharp, causing her to click her tongue, before looking at it.
“…Damn…” she muttered with an uneasy smile, “I overdid it…”
Blinking a bit, Tori noticed how close both Henoke and Flounder were to her, trying to wake her up from her slumber. Seeing them caused her to look down at the lobster cradled in her arms, somehow still completely unharmed after the battle, and just still unconscious. Thankful that even unconscious she’d managed to keep him safe, Tori loosened her grip, looking at the unconscious Sebastian with concern.
When would he wake up?
“…” with a sigh, Tori glanced over at Henoke, “Sorry I worried you…” she apologized, “But… I guess I just… Overdid it with this power… Even though I know it’s not at its strongest point yet…” she chuckled with unease. After a moment of silence, she spoke again, “…This is Sebastian, right?” she asked, looking at Flounder, “Your friend?”
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 29, 2020 16:54:25 GMT -5
”Damn…” Tori’s sudden muttered response brought a cheer from both Henoke and Flounder. As the girl came to, straightening up a bit, the fish was for the first time able to see the cradled lobster she held. ”Sebastian!” Tori’s next question was answered, as Flounder pushed past Henoke and swam up to where the lobster was held. ”Sebastian! Wake up, buddy!” Nudging at the unconscious lobster with a blue fin, the fish sighed a bit with a vague look of concern. "Well…at least he’s safe.” A mild look of relief came over them as he glanced between Tori and Henoke. ”Same for you two, too!” Glancing down at the overgrowth below, the local saw the bundled pretzel that was Flotsam and Jetsam. ”Aha! See! I knew it! Told ya so, Doris!” Swimming around in circles, the local seemed in much higher spirits with the conflict having died down. ”Still, what’d’we do ‘bout that…?” While Flounder celebrated, Henoke grimaced and gestured at Tori’s wound. ”We’ve still gotta bring Flounder out o’ here, and bring those dumb snakes to the guards…” Sighing a bit, the teen rested his hands on his hips and shook his head. It was then that Tori would begin to feel a stir within her arms as Sebastian became to come to! ”Oh…my poor achin’ shell…” Groaning a bit as he did so, the lobster wobbled and would blink in surprise.
”Ah! Who in Triton's beard are you two?!” Pedaling with his claws and smaller legs, the lobster was quick to squirm free from Tori’s grasp. ”Sebastian!” Rocketing through the water, Flounder tackled the lobster into a tight hug with both flippers, causing the ‘Royal Advisor’s’ eyes to practically bulge out of their head! ”Oh! I’m so glad you’re okay!” Gasping for air, Sebastian tried to push Flounder off, though the fish was slightly bigger than him, making it difficult. "Don’t worry, these are our friends! That’s Tori, and that’s Henoke! They saved you!” That, and it was clear that indeed the ‘transformation’ had taken a toll, as the lobster had a general aura of fatigue about themselves. ”Alright! Alright! Back up, Flounder!” Finally managing to push himself free, Sebastian took a moment to collect himself, before gawking at their environment. ”Ah! Why are we here?! We should leave ‘dis place straight away!” Henoke’s face fell a bit, forming a slightly soured expression as he crossed his arms over his chest. ”Geez…you’re welcome…” Rolling his eyes a bit, the teen was ignored due to Sebastian still panicking over everything. ”Is that Flotsam and Jetsam?! What are dey doin’ here?!” Flounder merely laughed and swirled in the water at his friends panic.
Swimming over to where the two locals were, Henoke glowered a bit and gestured towards Tori. ”Oi, hold up! Tori’s gotta rest a bit…that fight wore her out.” He didn’t mean it in any type of way, though maybe he could have worded it more delicately, for his friends ego’s sake. Well, at least his heart was in the right place? Turning to face Tori again, the teen gave her a slightly concerned look. What could they do about her bizarre wounds when Fay wasn’t around?
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 29, 2020 17:27:08 GMT -5
Tori smiled a bit, seeing Flounder’s reaction as he saw Sebastian in her arms. The feeling was short-lived, as the lobster was quick to wake up from its unconscious sleep. Sebastian was quick to leave Tori’s embrace, flustered and caught off-guard. Still on the low end of the sea floor, Tori didn’t move much from her spot, instead watching with an uneasy smile as Flounder made the introductions.
Being honest, she had seen a reaction like that coming…
She glanced once more at her wounded arm, the cracks seemingly stopping to spread. Was one already closed back? She couldn’t tell, although it felt less vivid than before… Ignoring the conversation around her for a bit and instead focusing on the pain she felt, Tori tried to see if there was anything she could do to hasten the healing process.
Magic or items wouldn’t work —not on those wounds. They weren’t normal to begin with —they didn’t bleed out, instead faintly glowing white. They seemed more like cracks from the start, rather than wounds…
“…Am I really just… Like a porcelain doll…?” she wondered to herself, “Everyone that knows about these wounds keep saying that… Eventually, they can crack me apart if I'm not careful…”
Focused as she was in her thoughts, trying to draw a possible action route regarding both the wounds and her power, Tori didn’t notice what was going on around her. She didn’t say a thing when Sebastian began to panic, or smile when Flounder eagerly swam around him, happy to find a lost friend. It wasn’t until Henoke chimed in that she lost sight of her thoughts.
“Tori’s gotta rest a bit…that fight wore her out.” Perking up suddenly, Tori’s eyes widened as she looked at Henoke, noticing a faint embarrassment rising to her cheeks —but most of the feeling was bitter. His concern was ignored, as Tori glared back with her face red.
“Henoke…” she growled, a dark grin rising at the edge of her mouth, “What. Did you say? Just now?”
She knew he was concerned —anyone would be, if they knew what Tori’s powers were, and the price to pay for them. Yet despite that, the way Henoke worded it out was far from perfect, annoying Tori to no end. She wasn’t weak to the point she couldn’t move —that much she could do by herself.
They had time to think about it later —she was sure about that. Besides, it wasn't the first time she had those wounds appear, and they healed just fine over time. Wasn't that the only known treatment at the time?
Rising from the ground and able to float by herself just fine, Tori was clearly annoyed. Without warning, she grabbed Henoke’s cheek, pulling it mercilessly, and with a frown in her face. Not letting go, she berated him.
“I appreciate the fact that you’re worried, but you could word things much better than that, y’know” she said, bitter, “I can go on —so long as there’s no fighting in between. If it’s just going back to the Palace, I can handle that much. So please” the grip tightened a bit, “Don’t paint me like I’m suddenly unable to do things by myself, thank you very much.”
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Post by hoodwink on Nov 29, 2020 21:38:27 GMT -5
Tori’s reaction caused Flounder to laugh aloud, while Sebastian merely rolled his eyes. Henoke, meanwhile, shouted out in pain and flailed an arm, wincing as the girl squeezed his cheek. ”I appreciate the fact that you’re worried, but you could word things much better than that, y’know.” It seemed regardless of her wounds, the boys words had perked her up enough to be much more lively. In a sense—maybe that was the best medicine (probably not Henoke, but okay). "So please, don’t paint me like I’m suddenly unable to do things by myself,” Finally smacking the girls hand away, ignoring Flounders open laughter, Henoke rubbed his cheek while giving the girl a bitter glare. ”Tch—then don’t pass out on me, next time!” Despite the throbbing, the teen found himself smiling shortly after, glad to see that regardless of her wounds, Tori seemed back to her usual self. ”Heh—I guess I’ll just handle any Heartless that might pop up~” With a slightly teasing and devious tone, the boy swam away from her before his cheeks were in for another massacre. "Ha ha! C’mon!” Waving a hand for the others to follow, Henoke grabbed the pretzeled and k’o’ed eels before he began to lead the way out of the cavern tunnels—though the scenery would be somewhat different.
Countless space on the seafloor, once occupied by bizarre and tiny headed wisp-like beings, now lay dormant and vacant. What had once been heavy shadows now was normal dimness. It seemed even though they hadn’t closed the Keyhole just yet, their battle had resulted in some sense of progress. ”Woah, it’s way less scary, now!” Flounder chirped up as they made their way through, eager to see the foreboding aura once plaguing the caverns to be gone. "Speak fo’ yerself!” Sebastian had an indignant look as he glanced around the dark caverns—his eyes brimming with wariness. ”This place gives me da jitters! What the shell are we doin’ here?!” Though Sebastian wanted some explanations, it would have to wait. While Henoke swam forward, carrying the unconscious Flotsam and Jetsam, Flounder swam beside his friend, twirling in the water with a curious expression. ”How much do you remember, Sebastian? After King Triton left?” While the lobster swam (a rather comical sight, as he literally paddled his claws and multiple smaller legs to stay afloat), he gave a rather confused look as his brows furrowed in contemplation. ”Hm…I remember King Triton left…and everything was goin’ pretty good until dem weird monsters popped up!” With a gasp, the lobster hesitated for a second. ”Did dey try ta eat me up?!” Laughing aloud, Flounder shook their head. Even Henoke had an amused look on his face as he continued ahead.
”No! You went crazy bonkers! You got kicked out of the Palace!” A look of pure horror came across Sebastian’s face. Before now, Henoke and Tori might not have known that a lobster’s face could pale. ”What?! Me?! Kicked out’ta da castle?!” Clear disbelief saturated his tone. ”We’ll fill ya in later.” Henoke hollered over his shoulder, as the two locals had lost some momentum during their conversation. ”C’mon! I’ll leave ya behind!” Laughing out as he pumped his tail harder, the teen began to speed up, causing both Flounder and Sebastian to scramble after him. Of course, with how tired Tori was, he wouldn’t go too fast.
After making their way through the countless caverns, Gorge’s and other areas of the ocean, the small group would finally come across the Palace Grounds. Their way had been unbothered by Heartless, causing Henoke to wonder if Flotsam and Jetsam were behind the creature’s appearance or movements. Or…that thing…? He had heard a voice in the cave, hadn’t he? Shrugging the thought off, Henoke thudded! the tied up Flotsam and Jetsam onto the seafloor as the group would emerge before the Palace Gates, where Elane and Jed waited. While Elane greeted them all with an eager smile and friendly wave, Jed crossed his arms, glaring in Sebastian’s direction as they swam up. ”Oh, you’re safe! And you found Sebastian!” For a moment, it almost looked like the merwoman had suddenly remembered something, glancing over at Jed only to flinch at his glare. ”Why did you bring him back? He’s exiled, remember?” Keeping his arms crossed, the merman gave Henoke and Tori a harsh look—though not nearly as harsh a look as he gave Flounder. "Just because he’s your friend—“ Swimming up a bit to cover Sebastian and Flounder from Jed’s glare, Henoke rested a hand on his hip, his other hand pointing out at the merman’s face.
”Oi! Give ‘im a break! He wasn’t 'imself!” Glaring back at the guard, Henoke hardly seemed patient or level-headed. Typical, really. ”Yeah! He doesn’t even...remember what happened…” Flounder piped up from behind, though his comment ended in a mumble as Jed’s glowering eyes found him once more. ”Jed, maybe we should hear them out…” With a conflicted look, Elane spoke up, causing her colleague to also send daggers her way. ”Really, sir! I’m innocent!” Choosing to try and stick up for himself, Sebastian swam before Henoke, getting between him and Jed. ”The last ting I remember is ‘dose weird monsters poppin’ up! Honest!” The merman didn’t seem fully convinced, though Elane stepped in for a moment with a curious look on her face. ”Wait! What happened? Last we saw you, you were checking out that sound by the old ship…is that where you found Sebastian?” Henoke blinked for a moment, completely having forgotten how much had happened since they last had checked in with the guards. ”Oh, it was crazy!” Before Henoke could speak, Flounder swam forward. Suddenly, the space around them was feeling crowded. "They fought the shark! Then, we went into these tunnels—oh man, it was scary!” Coughing a few times into a closed fist, Henoke gave Flounder a raised brow with a slightly sour expression.
”Oh…right…sorry…” Deflating a bit, the yellow and blue fish grew a sheepish grin as they lowered and swam back a bit. ”Thanks, Flounder…” Suddenly the teen’s face looked eager as he lit up, growing rather animated as he spoke, flailing his arms and hands all around. ”It was WILD! The Shark was like ‘aaarrrrghhh!’, and the ship was like ‘BOOM!’—then the tunnels were all ‘wushwushwush’—suuuuuper weird, right? Then everything was all ‘zap zap!’ and ‘pew! Skooom!’” At this point, both Elane and Jed looked equally confused, tilting their heads and raising a brow as Flounder began to nod in appreciation. ”Yeah! I couldn’t of said it better myself!” Sebastian gave a rather skeptical look to his friend before rolling his eyes and putting his face into an open claw. ”Um…Tori, right?” Elane piped up after Henoke had finished, oblivious to the confusion of the merguards. ”Translate this nonsense...please?” Jed looked beyond exasperated, not even bother to glance in Henoke’s direction anymore (not that the ambitious and hotheaded youth notice).
It seemed if anyone was going to give them all a straight answer on what had happened, it would be Tori.
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Post by therunawaygirl on Nov 30, 2020 6:58:51 GMT -5
“Hmph…”
Her hand smacked away, Tori continued her bitter look at Henoke as he retorted back, but the feeling was short-lived. With a sigh, she looked away, although a faint smirk remained in place of the frown. The stinging in her wrist didn’t hurt as much anymore, although perhaps it was because she had gotten used to the searing, constant pain.
Perhaps it was already healing itself? She couldn’t tell —that issue was far too complex even for her to understand, so maybe it was better not to think about it at all. Maybe that’s how they healed to begin with?
Pulling herself together, Tori swam after the group, her distance short to the rest as she tried keeping up. Even if she’d gone overboard before, she could still swim as a decently fast pace, matching her previous one by a bit. She listened closely at the conversation, knowing it was the best source of information at the time.
”Hm…I remember King Triton left…and everything was goin’ pretty good until dem weird monsters popped up!” With one hunch already cleared, Sebastian’s comment about what he remembered help ascertain something —he had been under someone’s influence when he was exiled, and therefore, he remembered very little of how he ended at Ursula’s Lair. Probably didn’t even remember when he was “turned” into that monstrous creature.
Perhaps it was best he didn’t remember, though.
“…Yeah” Tori glanced at Sebastian as they made their way out of the Lair, her eyes vaguely purple as she pried into the lobster’s heart, “He really doesn’t remember a thing, huh? …It’s different from people’s hearts being encased in Illusions, though… So, who’s behind all this?”
Unbothered on their way back to the Palace, Tori looked around a bit distraught. Whatever happened at the lair helped clear the path, but something definitely still lurked near. No Heartless showed up, but the timing seemed a bit too perfect. They hadn’t closed the Keyhole yet —the Heartless had no reason to leave just yet when the world’s heart was still out in the open for them to devour.
It was still a race to find it. They hadn’t lost all of their advantage yet.
“Odd… Maybe someone’s controlling them, other than those two eels…” she thought, glancing over at the pretzeled creatures.
Jed’s glare as he greeted the two was enough of a tell —Tori smiled uneasily at the merman’s skeptical look at Sebastian, only able to sigh with clear disappointment. While Elane seemed relieved at the fact, the other guard was less than eager to greet the lobster with open arms.
He wouldn’t let the grudge go, would he?
”Oi! Give ‘im a break! He wasn’t 'imself!” Well, that was going to be explained, sooner or later. Although perhaps Flounder and Henoke weren’t the ones most capable of it. Groaning with a smirk as she heard the fish and the teen try to explain the events —even chuckled a bit at it. Meeting the two guards’ confused look, and knowing Sebastian was unable to talk his way out, it was clear she was playing the mediator role now.
Something she was used to at this point.
“So, I take it I need to start from when we last saw you two” Tori began, “When we went to explain the noise, by the Sunken Ship, right?”
Her pose steady, Tori crossed her arms calmly, the tail that comprised her lower half calmly swishing away. The pain now nonexistent, yet still evident by the now faint cracks in her wrist and forearm, Tori could think through things rather easily.
Laying her thoughts tidy in her head, she began to explain.
“We went there to check on the noise —only to find a shark, frenzied. …” Tori looked away —how would she explain the darkness in the creature’s eyes? Thinking it a bit, she shook her head, “Henoke and I managed to calm it down, and somehow it didn’t eat us, which was nice… We left to search for Flounder, though, because we needed a guide —and asking you to help us with that would most likely cause trouble here, so it was best to ask someone else” she looked at Flounder, “He told us about the witch’s lair, past the Sunken Ship, and on the way there we fought those monsters. Once inside, we found those two” Tori pointed at Floatsam and Jetsam, “Whatever they were up to, we couldn’t tell —but we fought them regardless.”
“Inside that lair is where we found Sebastian —also frenzied, in a similar way to the shark we encountered before. We beat those eels, calmed Sebastian down, and came back —and now, we’re here.”
Tori took a deep breath, her eyes closed before looking back up to the two. There was something she had to explain though, in order for things to make proper sense. Henoke and her were still at a loss for what was going on —and if they didn’t know what was happening, there was little to no chance that any local did.
After all, they didn’t know about the lurking darkness under the scenes.
“About this… frenzied state I mentioned… It’s not a normal lunacy” Tori explained, “It’s more like… Being possessed, in a sense —acting irrationally, without the host knowing. I can’t say if that’s what happened with the shark, but…” she looked at Sebastian, “It’s definitely what happened with Sebastian, before you exiled him. I can say for certain, though, that he doesn’t know a thing about it —he doesn’t remember being exiled” Tori looked with worry back at the guards, particularly Jed, “...I understand that you’re bitter at what’s happening, but if you remain adamant to change and accepting to give him a second chance, I’m almost certain you will end up in the same boat as him —that, I have no doubts about. If there is someone behind what’s going on… Then they’ll definitely use that against you —controlling you without you knowing a thing. I’m sure that’s what’s happening not only with Sebastian, but with a lot of other people, too.”
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