Hollow Refugees [a Big Damn Heroes production]

[turin]

Blake finally lowered ADDAE. After letting the gun cool for a few seconds he whipped it over his shoulder, placing it in it's sling on his back.

"Glad that's finally over," exclaimed Blake.

He took a second to decide on the best path to take, then made his way to the survivors. Trekking through the dark water and jumping from icy-stone plateau to icy- stone plateau, until he made it to where the majority of the refugee's were. The ground was charred. There were patches of giant hoof prints across the area as well as patches of blood. The air was cold and a cool breeze moved across the plane. Blake glanced around to make sure everyone was alright, There were a bunch of injuries, but everyone would live. Through his previous battles, Blake had managed to scavenge a handful of potions and a few Hi-potions, so if anyone really needed help he could assist them.

But before that Blake made his way over to the massive heartless that he helped bring down. Standing their in front of the felled beast, Blake felt a sense of joy, awe, wonderment and most importantly hope. He was no longer alone, there were other survivors. Moreover he felt awesome taking down a beast as big as a castle.

Then Blake did something he had not done since the heartless first appeared on this world, he smiled. After the Behemoth faded away into the shadows. He turned to the red headed girl next to him, who had dealt the finishing blow to the heartless. "Good Job," Blake said.

The statement was directed at the girl. but Blake really meant it towards all the refugees who helped bring down the monster. Their victory was truly a team effort. And for the first time in a while things seemed to be looking up.

 

[Aphex]

Derrick watched as the Behemoth in front of him fell over after having the final blow struck upon it. It staggered forward a bit, one of its large legs nearly crushing the boy. Instead it fell over onto its side, the goggle head quickly running away from it in case it were to land on top of him by any chance. The ground shook violently once the Behemoth landed onto the ground, causing Derrick to stumble and fall right onto his stomach. Its entire body began to diminish, fading until there was nothing left of the Heartless.

Flipping onto his back, Derrick examined his surroundings after the defeat of the Behemoth. Hell, he didn't even had to do anything at all which was a good thing on his part. But who was the one that took care of it?

Then, after taking a good look, the boy realized that he wasn't alone. There were others there with him just a few feet away. Apparently, they had been the ones to defeat the Heartless or so the boy figured. But there was still one question left to be answered:

"What the heck was that thing?!"

 

[Star Light]

Nicole ran over to the other people there. She saw the girl who finished the last of it off.

"Hey congrats, you and everyone else. Is everyone ok, might I ask? I know curaga if any of you need healed. Plus, what was that?" Nicole said. She turned to the others. She leaned on her staff. This was a good thing that she had one thing with this magic staff. She still preferred her struggle bat, and if possible if it could have magic. She looked into the sky. The sun was getting low. She tiurned back to the others waiting for an answer about her two questions.

 

[afrobutt]

What a waste of inner conflict..., Himmel said sullenly, metal pipe hanging from his palm. In the few seconds he'd decided to be courageous, others had come to defeat the beast. Each seemed to have some supernatural quality, or an odd weapon of sorts. In a moment, it had been felled by their combined efforts.

Tsk, if only you had been a little quicker... Proxy Kaila murmured.

"If only" what? All I had was a metal pipe, I would've just ended up hurting myself.

Well, at least you showed a little more backbone then usual!

Himmel sighed, it was like talking to himself. He blinked, realizing the irony of this statement. Slapping himself in the head, he walked off quietly. His body was still shaking, and he started taking deep breathes, willing his body to calm.

Where are you going?! Proxy Kaila asked

Away, why?

Aren't you going to stick with these other people?

Himmel took a glance at said group, having forgotten about them. They seemed to chatting amongst themselves, and didn't seem to notice Himmel.

No, I don't have any reason to stick around, he answered. And he really didn't. These people all had special skills that made them useful. Himmel had pink-tipped hair, a metal pipe, and growing mental issues. He'd be better off by himself, figuring out how to... what? Himmel had no idea where he would go or do now.

Should I go home? But he didn't know where home was, or where he was. That brought to mind, "Why am I here"? He sighed, realizing this wasn't the place to be thinking of such things. He wasn't safe out in the open. Scanning the area quickly, he saw a lone street that seemed to lead to homes. Glancing back to check if anyone had spotted him, he walked away.

Himmel had made about 10 minuets progress when he saw a seemingly empty house. "That should be a decent enough place to gather myself", he decided, picking up his pace towards the building.

Bang Bang-Bang Bang

The gunshots echoed into the air, originating from the house he himself was walking towards. Himmel froze, pipe held out before him in defense.

Bang-Bang-Bang

Then silence... Himmel dared not move. Had he been thinking rationally, he would've run from the gunshots, instead of standing in the open. After a few moments, when nothing else had happened, he slowly walked over to the home, praying whatever had been making those gunshots was friendly (or dead). Heart beating in his throat, he looked over the corner of his side of the house. A girl was sitting against the wall, looking worn out. It was the girl from before, the one who'd run down the hill after that monster.

Himmel released a breath, once again trying to calm his beating heart as he walked out from the corner. Two steps out, he realized he'd made himself noticed. Looking at the girl, he started blushing.

"I-I'm sorry", he babbled, not knowing what he was apologizing for.

Keep your hands to yourself.

"I don't- why.... what kind of guy do you think I am?!", he asked. For the love of... he was beginning to wonder if this really was a personality created by his mind, or if Kaila's spirit had been following him. Himmel noticed the girl again, and it dawned on him that he had said that out loud.

His face turned a deeper shade of red.

 

[Xinjust]

Dux stumbled away from all the comotion, a sickening taste in his mouth from something called a "potion." He snared back at Karinne, anger and hatred would be filling his heart, if he had one. A "Heartless" had saved a non-existent one, and this shouldn't be the case, he was suppose to be stronger than his sister'en. When he looked at the wound in his side, his entire flesh had been regerated from Karinne's gernerosity. He snickered, no longer having to use The Harp Sword as a cain. Dux stood up straight, glaring at Karinne.

"There's no 'I' in team, but there is a 'me'. Never forget that," he said.

Satisfied with his words, he drifted away, still not strong enough to fly again just yet. He felt a sense of justification, as he felt the Behemoth's tainted aura leaving this world. Smirking, his giant Lady Bug summon vanished without a trace, leaving only sparkles from it's disapperance.

Limping slightly, he slowly passed up the girl who arrived in the gummi ship, a feather from his wing falling just before her. Dux was planning to make his way down to the basement of Hollow Bastion's castle, where cellars and dripping ceilings rein supreme. He always slept on the damp cement at night, now he was going to restore his strength.

 

[OmniChaos]

Hollow silently stood atop a piece of stone architecture, apparently invisible to the group below. Well, that was probably since he has arrived only a few minutes ago. The wind pushed his messy, white hair into his eyes, forcing him to brush it out of the way. Hollow's golden eye carefully focused on each person, making sure not to miss a single detail on their body or their fighting techniques. He was interrupted with the defeat of the heartless.

As the ground shook from the monster's fall, Hollow shifted his weight now and then, making sure as to not loose his balance. Once the quake had stop, Hollow watched, slightly surprised, as the heartless faded away. He had not thought that they could have done it, but of course, they had it out numbered. They reminded Hollow of ants: Alone, one would fail, but in a group, they could take down a far greater foe.

He slowly started to clap, with each one echoing throughout the area. Each clap was about three slow beats from the one before it, making the clap slow and facetious.

"How... Impressive," he said in a sarcastic tone. Hollow folded his arms in front of him. "I mean, does it really take a whole group to take down one simple Behemoth? It's pretty sad."

Hollow jumped from the architecture, the wind catching his trench coat and opening it up a bit. He landed near the group, his legs bending to the extreme as he hit the ground. The nobody slowly rose upright, his head hanging low. Once he was fully upright, he lifted his head, letting his golden eye rest on the group.

Hollow silently stood there, as if waiting for something to happen.

 

[GuardianOfHearts]

Seraph had been checking herself for remaining bruises when she heard footsteps.

Few a few minutes the only noises had been that of her own heartbeat and breathing; she was all alone in a dead town. So when she heard the distinct sound of someone or something approaching behind her, her first thought was, More Heartless.

She immediately clicked the safety off again and swung the gunblade up in the direction of the house's cornerstone, finger on the trigger. But what appeared was not a Shadow or a Defender or even another Darkball. It was a boy, a little younger than she was, looking scared and bewildered and holding a very non-threatening pipe out in front of him.

Seraph blinked, green eyes a little blank for a moment. Then she looked away with a sigh, flicked the safety back on, and flipped Icefire behind her, sheathing it on her back. Realizing that she was still sprawled on the cobblestone street and probably looked equally ridiculous, she stood up and shook her mane of brown hair from her face.

She cocked her head a little, eyeing the boy silently, about to call him out for skulking around and nearly giving a girl with a loaded gun a heart attack, but stopped before she could open her mouth. She let him babble instead.

Great. He sounded like a paranoid and he acted like he had the spine of a jellyfish. Just what she wanted to deal with now.

"I think you're the kind of guy who has no idea what the hell he's doing," she responded. No one ever accused Seraph of being sensitive. She gestured around her with a sweep of her arm. "You got a reason for wandering out here, or did you wanna see how long you'd last with that pipe after getting swarmed by Heartless?"

Typical Seraph. All with her usual tact and dignity.

 

[turin]

Blake's joy over this ragtag teams victory seemed shirt lived. As he glanced around he noticed each refugee slowly going there separate ways. 'Well so much for being social,' thought Blake. 'But it doesn't matter, it is not like I was looking to team up with anyone. I've got to stay on track. I'm sure I will find the answers I seek in the castle.'

Blake was just about to take off and head inside the castle when he heard something. The sound echoed around the whole area reverberating off of everything. 'What is that sound,' thought Blake. He began to scan the area until his gaze finally settled in the source of the sound. It was a figure high above Blake resting on some type of stone architecture.

"How... Impressive," said the stranger in an obviously sarcastic tone. He then proceeded to cross his arms in front of his chest. "I mean, does it really take a whole group to take down one simple Behemoth? It's pretty sad." mocked the stranger.

He then jumped down from the architecture, the wind catching the stranger's trench coat and opening it up a bit. He landed on his feet with a thud near the group. As Blake analyzed the stranger he got an uneasy feeling. Something about this guy did not sit right, beyond his unusual appearance.

The stranger's left eye appeared pitch black. His right eye was a bright golden color. He was donned in a black trench coat and decked out with black clothing.

'Great who is this weirdo,' thought Blake. 'Some goth dude with a bad sense of humor.'

Blake reached back and grasped his blaster, ready to pull it out in a second. Whatever it was about this guy that bothered Blake even he didn't know, but he knew he was troubled.

"Who are you?" Blake asked the stranger. "What are you doing here and what do you know about the heartless?"

Blake was tired of running around for his life, having no idea what was really going on. He wanted answers and he wanted them now.

 

[Star Light]

Jenny stopped and looked as well. She did see someone. He must have been evil. A nobody or something?

"Who are you!?" She yelled louder than the one boy. She took he staff out of the ground. She looked up at him. She was so curious of who could think that it was not impressive. Then she thought about it. For her the great struggle champion of Twilight Town and a great mage, it was not impressive. It took a bunch of them to defeat it. She could have probaly defeated it on her own if she wanted to. I'm sure everyone there could hvae. Which turned her reaction to who's enemy was it. She went and helped when she saw the boy she somehow knew went.

"Yeah, I guess it wasn't impressive. We all could have defeated it on our own, but it took a bunch of us." Jenny said. She sighed.

"Well I better find somewhere to stay for the night before going back home to Twilight Town. I'm not from around here, so umm anyone know where Twilight Town is?" Jenny asked then, realised she was not in Twilight Town anymore she then realised that she was in Radiant Garden/ Hollow Bastion. She would need a gumi ship to go back home.

"Nevermind. Well I better get going." Jenny said. She needed to go though and find that angel boy again. She had a feeling that he would know why she was here. Plus they're was nothing else going on, so she created a pltform. She stepped on it. It rose to the sky. It overlooked the town. She saw him going to the Radiant Garden/ Hollow Bastion Castle. She ran over that way torward where he was. Platform after platform appeared. She went down to it. She no longer saw him. It was late now. She sighed and looked around. She saw an opening into the castle, she decided she would stay they're for the night she went inside. She found a library still furninshed and all. It was dusty and smelled like mildew, but she sat down on a chair and passed out into deep sleep.

 

[Tobuoi]

Kairinne: Kairinne contained herself, getting to her feet, straightening out her clothes, and so on. As she went to sheathe her katana-like shortswords, the sound of clapping hands broke the silence. Kairinne knew without looking at him that he was the same unnatural creature as the harp-playing angel. She sensed no heart within him, light or dark. It was as if he did not exist at all.

The darkly dressed stranger made some mocking remarks Kairinne could hardly care less about. Whether she needed the help of others to stay alive and defeat the Behemoth was irrelevant. All that mattered was doing so and so far, they had succeeded. The boy with the gun and the light mage--both seemingly younger than Kairinne--demanded the name and the intentions of the unfriendly stranger.

"I don't know who or what you are," Kairinne started, calmly. "But I would suggest leaving. This is no place for the likes of you."

With that, she turned back to the castle doors, catching traces of smokey darkness where the Behemoth had once been. She leaned into one of the large doors, pushing it open, slowly. Though it was growing late in the evening, it was still lighter outside than it was inside of the castle.

Kairinne did not doubt for a second that she was fully capable of taking down the cloaked stranger. Despite the fact that Rupal was starved for a heart that the stranger could not supply her, she could easily rip him to pieces...but the violent rage of the Heartless that was Rupal was something Kairinne feared only death would subdue, and she would do everything in her power to keep that rage at bay.

 

[Aphex]

Derrick remained lying on his back, noticing that he had been completely ignored by those around him. He gritted his teeth while standing, dusting himself off upon doing so.

"Hey!" the boy shouted in an attempt to grab everyone's attention. "Can someone please tell me what's going on here or at least tell me where the heck I am?!" he questioned loudly. "First, I'm at home trying to take care of the Heartless and they pushed me into a portal which brought me here." The goggle head began to calm down after his little temper tantrum, letting out a sigh afterwards.

"Look. I'm sorry for raising my voice here but I'm just a little confuse at the moment." the boy apologized, wondering if anyone was even listening to him. "The name's Derrick by the way. . . mind telling me where I am?"

 

[turin]

"Hey!" shouted a voice . "Can someone please tell me what's going on here or at least tell me where the heck I am?!" he questioned loudly. "First, I'm at home trying to take care of the Heartless and they pushed me into a portal which brought me here." Blake quickly glanced over at whoever was speaking. He appeared to be a kid around the same age as Blake, with jet black spiky hair and a pair of goggles resting right above his forehead. Then Blake quickly returned his gaze to the stranger in the black trench coat. He took extra care not to let this individual out of his sight.

"Look. I'm sorry for raising my voice here but I'm just a little confuse at the moment." the google headed boy apologized. "The name's Derrick by the way. . . mind telling me where I am?"

After hearing this Blake was a little surprised. 'I guess all these strangers are not from Radiant Garden. Interesting. But I guess it makes sense. I feel like I would have seen or heard of at least some of these guys by now, if they were all from around hear. Its not like these guys could easily blend in with the crowd,' thought Blake. 'Well I should at least answer this kids question. I know I would want that much.'

"Your in Radiant Garden kid. Or what use to be Radiant Garden." stated Blake in a loud voice. "How you got hear I have no idea, but you couldn't of picked a worse time for a visit. Right now this whole world has been overrun by heartless, were probably some of the last remaining people alive in all of Radiant Garden. I don't really have the answers, just a bunch of questions myself. But hang around kid things are just starting to get interesting."

Now Blake turned back to the mysterious figure giving him his full attention. He took two steps forward and pulled his gun out from the holster, on his back, letting it rest in his hand by his side. "Old golden eye over hear was about to answer all of my questions," said Blake. "Your not from this world are you? Why don't you tell me everything from the beginning and make sure you don't leave anything out." Blake was determined not to let this man leave until he got some answers.

 

[OmniChaos]

"This is no place for the likes of you."

Hollow let out a small 'hmph'. The girl appeared to know exactly what Hollow was, just like he knew exactly what she was, though that didn't really matter right now. No, what mattered is that Hollow wanted to test her. He wanted to see just how long she could last; How long it would be before she cracked.

"But it fits you just fine, doesn't it?" Hollow replied, his voice void of any emotions. "In fact, I would venture a guess that it would be the only place you could ever be accepted."

Hollow had thrown the bait. Now he simply waited to see if she would bite the hook and fall into his trap.

"Old golden eye over hear was about to answer all of my questions."

Hollow suppressed the urge of bursting into laughter. Hollow turned his attention to the dirrection in which the voice came. His golden eye finally came to a stop on a kid. He was brave, Hollow gave him that, but there is a fine line between bravery and stupidity. The kid taking out his gun and threatening Hollow was a grand leap over that line. Hollow stared at the boy and then at his gun, completely unimpressed.

"Oh, am I?" he asked, a hint of sarcasm on his voice. "Well, I don't ever recall making such plans." He placed his hands into his trench coat's pockets. "Regardless, you are in no position to be making demands. You are completely and utterly outmatched. Plus, that little Pea shooter of yours is anything but intimidating, so attempting to scare me with it is a loss cause. Now, if you are finished wasting my time..."

Hollow turned his attention back to the girl, waiting to see her response.

 

[Star Light]

Late at night Jenny tossed and turned and fell out of the chair. She woke up. She walked over to the stain glass, little light was outside. She looked at her watch- 11pm. She looked up at the window. She looked out a small crack, it was a full moon. She summoned her staff. She looked around the library. It was dusty and dirty. She walked down the stairs and out the door. She decided to explore the castle. She walked through the dark halls. She had the endo her staff lit up to see. She went deep down to the basement. She saw a door and opened it. She walked in the. The room was dark, but it seemed like an office to a scientist. There was broken glass. Blue prints were on the wall. Jenny turned and looked to see a picture of a silver hair man up on the the wall. She looked at it. She right away a name popped in her head. Xehanort. She looked at the picture. She turned around and went to the desk. She picked up papers and looked at them. They were all dirty and dusty. She then saw a giant spider appear.

"Ahh!!" She yelled real loud. She heard it ecco through the castle. She jumped back against the wall. Her hand touched somewhere. She felt the wall disapear behind her. She fell back. She found a secret room. There was light here meaning electricity. She stood up and dusted herself off. She waked over to the railing. She looked down and to her surprise, she saw millions of heartless, oddly they did not attack. She was confused by this. She then saw them all disapear. They were defeated? Jenny was surprised by that. She backed up. She then tripped. She fell on the ground. She tripped over a locket. She picked up the locket. It was the shape of a crown. Twilight Town was engraved in it. The train station really stuck out. She opened it up. A song started playing. One her mother would sing while cooking and to her when she was a baby. There was a picture of Jenny and her family. She never remberred taking this picture. It showed Jenny at weilding her staff and wearing diffrent cloths. They were bright clothing. Her father was wearing his mechanic cloths. Her mother was wearing an old traditional women wear in Japan. She looked at the locket. She bit her lip. Then something diffrent appeared. The lights went out. Jenny heard a voice.

"Your family and home are gone, they joined the darkness. Will you join them?" The voice asked. Jenny jumped up staff at hand.

"Who's there!? Liar my family would never become evil and Twilight Town is fine, I just need to hop on a gumi ship and go back home." Jenny said.

"You think? Hahaha, you don't get it. Well your mistake, every heart belongs to darkness. You know that. Your choice, leave your family. Your still a heartless for not loving them and oining them." The voice said. Jenny bit her lip. She then saw a fade vision of her parents. Then she saw them turn into heartless. Jenny w=jumped back. She jumped back into someone. A man with a brown cloak on.

"Whoa! Who are you? What have you done to my parents?" Jenny yelled she was angry. She then saw a light. And heard another voice and saw noone.

"Xehanort, leave the girl alone. Quit bothering her." The other voice said.

"You fool, master you never accomplished your work, so I'm finishing it. You would do the same right now." The brown cloak man said. He then disappeared. The light disapeared. Everything went back to normal. Jenny held the locket and turned. She saw the heartless. Were they her parents? She did not know.

"Mom... dad?" Jenny asked the heartless. The heartless looked at each other than disapeared. Jenny felt tears go down her face. She looked at the locket. It changed. The locket was in the shape of a heartless symble. It had a destroyed Twilight Town in the back. Jenny openedd the locket. She was weilding her locket fighting the heartless. She had heartless climbing all over her. Then two figure in the back. Her parents laughing. They weren't wearing nice outfits or were they their usual selves They were full body heartless. A silver man with them also laughing. Jenny was angered and upset by this. She put it in her pocket. She quickly started exploring the secret room.

 

[Wormwood]

Ira was thrown aback at the rumble and shake of the discomfited heartless' death throes, at first he was lent heavily forward, his buttock striking quickly out as to countervail the sudden off-balancing he was being forced to contend with, only to entirely misunderstand where he needed to be to remain upright and, as if on purpose, tumbled backward off the ball of his heel and landing painfully against the stone bottom of the open box of a balcony, his lamp crashing with a clang to his left ad bouncing and rolling around until it came to a poor example of standstill.

The convalescent, Sicarii, achingly brought himself up to his feet, bending over at the waist, re-grasping the thick metallic handle that hinged at the sides of the vessel, coming up, n a rectangular shape, into a straight line almost two thirds of a foot above the actual top of the thing and taking a look back over the solid "half-wall" that had protected him from falling over and noticing the group of warriors below congealing to form a mob, whether they were about to dismember each other or sit in what was probably a most welcomed relief was entirely unknown, but if it were the former he would be sure to get down to their level before anything serious broke out, these were the first living things he had seen in an entirely unknown length of time, and for purely selfish reasons he could not handle having them all die before he got a word in edge-wise.

Thus he ran off through the door he had come to his vantage point from and quickly traversed his way down to the main entrance as the post-battle affairs were being settled and exercised in which ever way they would be and finally exiting out of the main entrance of the castle shortly after a black hooded man had made his way down from atop the castle to converse with the group.

 

[INCALORA]

"Finally I can leave," Cal said unintentionally rude. He picked up his dragon and put him on his head,"You did a fantastic job my friend I think it's time for you to get some rest." Looking around Cal was astonished at the fact that it took so many people to take down one heartless. "We are of no use if we can't take that thing down by ourselves Z," Cal said as he decided he should get a move on. He wasn't the only one to do so a few of the others made there way into seperate parts of town to continue on their journey.

Just as he was starting to jog and run up the wall he heard clapping. It wasn't to long after that a man in a black cloack jumped down from something tall and made his remark on the fact. The thing was everything he said was absolutely true, but a few of the group retaliated in defense. "I don't think speaking to this guy would be worth my time......but I would like to see what happens between these two groups of people," Cal said as he jogged up the wall with Zorox and landed on a tower with a good view.

After sitting there for a moment he realized that the man in the cloak was different. It was as if he was an empty shell, but still looked human in form. "Ok I'm not getting a good vibe from this guy," Cal said to his dragon. The little thing was half awake and grumbled. "I get it get some rest I'll wake you up if I need you," not even a second later the little dragon was sound asleep dreaming of who knows what. "That girl from earlier was different," Cal said as he thought about Kairinne,"It felt as though she had two beings in her that were at war. Though similar to me there's only one difference...I'm made of three parts Light, Dark, an Twilight while she is made out of only two."

 

[Xinjust]

.- sorry, my comp was being spazzy. I apologize for the dbl post everyone.

 

[Xinjust]

Dux was relaxed, residing in a fountain that was placed between twin staircases. A channel of water poured upon his head, replenishing his lost energy. His eyes were closed, shaded by a jungle of lengthly brown bangs. Dux was calm, cool, but most of all collected. Suddenly, out of no where, he felt the presence of another being, much like his own existence arriving in Hollow Bastion. This didn't disturb him though, not in the slightest. That is until Karinne opened the castle doors, allowing a line of light to shine upon his face. He slowly ascended his heavy eyelids, his golden eyes gazing at an assortment of shadows that were gathered on the floor.

He could hear muffled voices beyond the doors, seemingly taunting one another. He smirked at their comments, starring into the mouth of a monstrous gold statue that was pouring water. Platforms that were charged by a strange aura ascended and descended up and down on both sides of the rooms mysteriously. He was almost curious as to what they were talking about.

Dux plucked a string on his Harp Sword, casting the spell know as Libra. The entire room became inverted, a negative looking space emoted around the room. A bluish target emblem crawled from the depths of the fountain, moving across the mosaic looking floor and seeping under the cracks of the castle door. The circle stopped, hovering just below the newly arrived stranger in black. In spun in an instance with it's strange written text, spiraling faster with each passing second, practically reading this man from head to toe. After it finished scanning the stranger, it flashed a crimson red, sending a copy of itself back into the castle. The blue target remained under the man in black, as the newly red circle returned from under the castle doors, climbing up into the fountain and merging with Dux's palm.

His eyes flashed a red, the same color as the target. He could visualize the man's image, and began to search for the magical data of his power. Dux smirked, finally realizing what was beyond the doors.

"Intriguing," he said aloud, his phenomenal voice echoing throughout the hollow palace.

 

[afrobutt]

Himmel stared at this girl, face still shining red. Well, at the very least she was blunt (perhaps a little too blunt).

"You got a reason for wandering out here, or did you wanna see how long you'd last with that pipe after getting swarmed by Heartless?"

Heartless... that stirred something in Himmel's memory. The rest of the comment was lost, only that one word pattering around his mind.

Heartless, heartless, heartless...

The memory came flashing to him, like a spotlight had finally revealed it. It was after school, the sun almost laid to rest by the ocean. Stars were awakening, lining the skyline with their drowsy brilliance. Himmel sat by the beach, staring out into the water as he was prone to do. He hadn't been able to go swimming, due to his uniform (comprised of a white shirt with black pants), yet simply staring was adequate. The ocean lapped out to his feet, receding again as it reached the end of it's gravitational leash. Himmel's thoughts were that of the sea, wading and rising, in and out; between "What a beautiful sunset..." to "Why the hell did she put me in Geometry"?

The "she" in question approached him, blue handbag swinging from her wrist. A brown curl of hair fell before her blue eyes, which lay behind a pair of navy rimmed glasses. She sat down beside him, clad in, not a uniform like himself, but a white tank top with a light-blue skirt. She pushed her glasses up against her nose, then spoke.

"So I heard you're not doing well in Geometry."

"...", Himmel stayed silent. When Kaila was like this, it was easier to say nothing. Then she'd go on and on about blah blah blah, and her voice would flow with the waves.

"... I'm sorry Himmel"

He wouldn't have heard her had her tone changed so drastically, into a quality he had never heard before. It was... soft. He remained silent, a tad worried at this change of mood.

"I know you hate anything that keeps you from the sea... I shouldn't have forced you into it".

He couldn't stop himself from blurting out, "I can see the ocean sunset from where I sit".

"Oh...", and then nothing. The waves continued rhythm accompanied the silence hanging in the air, sky turning black, dark clouds moving in front of the stars.

"...what are we?", she said after a time. Himmel looked at her, what could she be talking about? Why was she suddenly so quite, so uncharacteristic from her usual nagging? And what were those gleams of light descending from her cheek?

"I mean... we're friends... right?", she asked, turning toward him. Her eyes were sad, too sad to belong to this girl. This girl who threw books at him when he was daydreaming. Who kicked sand at him when he forgot to brush his hair. This girl who was his... fri-.

A tear fell on the metal pipe, awakening Himmel from his memory. Had he been crying? Aware of his surroundings, he realized he had just shed a tear... in front of a stranger.

"I'm sorry.", he said again, and then asked "What were you talking about... Heartless?"

 

[GuardianOfHearts]

Seraph watched, silent again, as the boy's face turned those fascinatingly red colors; not unlike the sky that Twilight Town had once had, though loathe she was to think that she was being poetic about some stranger's cheeks and her homeworld. She must really be losing it. Too many hits in the head by overeager Heartless.

Speaking of which....

The gun mage blinked at him again in almost exasperated disbelief, irritation flashing across her face. He had just come face to face with a Heartless as big as a house, and he was still oblivious? Had his homeworld gotten any news at all? How long had he been here? Because she assumed that no one actually came to this dead world on purpose ... like her, they'd been thrown here by chaos. Or maybe she was just thinking overdramatically. Either way, she didn't want to play teacher.

You're only so bitter because Twilight Town's dead, something said quietly in the back of her mind. Stop being destructive.

She sighed deeply, the careful breath dulling if not snuffing the flare of anger clenched in her chest, anger which this boy did not deserve to be on the receiving end on. She would try harder.

"The Heartless are those monsters you saw ... or maybe you've only seen the one, that big purple thing. I don't know much about them, only what I've heard. That they come from the darkness and destroy worlds. Some people say they eat hearts too." Not that Seraph was exactly skeptical on this count. She'd felt, in ways she couldn't quite describe, what exactly those yellow-eyed Shadows had wanted whenever they approached her with twitching, hungry claws. The darkness like an invisible force creeping inexorably to her, seen only as blackness out of the corner of her eye. Darkness that she could taste on the back of her tongue, a taste like drowning. The was no question about the way something deep and vital within her would resist against the pull, something that she imagined would glow if she could look upon it.

"You've got to learn to protect yourself," she added after a short pause. "This world is crawling with them." Literally. "And you're not going to help yourself at all with that lame-ass pipe."

Seraph frowned, her sharpness back after her brief introspection. She approached the boy, not pausing to warn him first- she wasn't really threatened by him -and took the pipe gently out of his hands. Now the expression on her face was almost clinical, a deep and knowledgable curiosity coming into her green eyes. She gripped the pipe in one hand and ran her opposite fingers over the dented metal, testingly.

"I could transmute this for you until you get a real weapon," the gun mage found herself saying, then stopped to explain herself. "I am- ... was an apprentice in a Synthesis Workshop. I made my gunblade from mostly scratch," and here she jerked a thumb to the weapon on her back, "but it's quicker and easier when you have a base. This pipe doesn't look like much, but with the right materials, I could make a decent sword." She handed it back to him, shrugging. What had possessed her to say that?

She was distracted from that mystery by something she dreaded: a sinking feeling and the taste of darkness in her throat. Eyes hardening, she reached behind her and drew Icefire as several pools of darkness appared on the cobblestone directly behind the boy, summoning a dozen Shadows. The Heartless glanced over at her, but quickly swung their gazes back to the boy instead, antennae twitching as if in sudden interest. She realized that something about him grabbed their attention in a way she didn't....

"Move!" she barked, lunging past the boy and simultaneously pushing him roughly out of the way. Those of less sensitive feelings and deeper insight would realize that this was actually Seraph's wolf-like protectiveness coming out, but to most people it probably just made her look like a glory hound.

There was still a little pain in her joints as she cut the great sword through the first Heartless, but it wasn't anything debilitating. The Heartless withstood three slices from Icefire before disappearing. Hardly significant though, as there were eleven more to take its place, eagerly.

As she stabbed through another, three more leapt forward. One caught and grappled with Icefire, but the other two landed on her, swiping at her chest and legs. Cloth tore, and so did skin; blood surfaced to sting in the open air.

Seraph felt the combined weight of the Heartless [soon joined by more] drag on her; suddenly she was falling backwards, still trying to throw the Shadows off. There was a bang as she shot off her gunblade into the horde, and then she was knocked dizzyingly back onto the street. The darkening sky became her view, which was soon filled with glowing eyes and slashing black claws.

"THUNDAGA!" she commanded, and a moment later thick, crackling bolts of lightning roared down and struck her attackers, a desperate move: she still wasn't quite confident that her strength was back up to prime spell-casting condition. Three more destroyed.

"Get out of here, pipe-boy!"