Kingdom Hearts: Apocalypse ~Part 1 Rebirth " Machinecken Town"~

[Eternal Dream]

~- First Things First -~

Just admit it, boy, you're lost.

"Being unfamiliar with my surroundings and lost are two entirely different things. And another thing, this is an entirely different World from the God Realm; I think being unfamiliar is forgivable!"

Yeah, Sevastion was pretty sure that if any of the locals heard him arguing with himself like this, it would make one hell of an impression on them; and trying to explain that he was arguing with the god in his head, who was now taking the moment to cackle like a lunatic at him? It would probably land him in this World's version of a mental institution or send them searching for a priest to perform an exorcism. Or just turn a Keybearer loose on him.

Right. Because that one always works.

This time, Sevastion did ignore Susanoo as he examined his surroundings. Most worlds had laws and rules in regards to visitors and newcomers, and while Sevastion could understand the need for these laws, he also preferred to sidestep and avoid them as much as possible until he had a handle of his situation. He hadn't traveled to many Worlds outside of the God Realm, but Machinecken also wasn't his first foray, either. He knew how to keep a low profile for a time as he watched the locals go about their lives. He didn't realize it, but as he watched these people going about their lives, Savy was one of many newcomers that day to feel ill at ease with how bright and cheerful Machinecken appeared to be.

This place feels f.ucked up.

"Thanks for that observation, O Mighty One," Sevastion muttered, even as a frown of agreement crossed his features. He was ready to quit for the day, in all honesty. He hadn't come further into the town then the outer edges; he didn't want to even think about approaching the castle at its heart until tomorrow. However, an uproar seemed to start at the same time that a rain shower did. For the moment, Sevastion kept himself still, sending his senses soaring through the pelting rain drops to investigate the different prongs of this conflict.

Izanami? The Ronin boy is here?

Okay, that was interesting. While Sevastion only had a passing understanding of the other denizens of the God Realm, he knew that they all had their own ways of binding the gods to those that could handle their power. For the Imperial Island, there was the Binding Ceremony performed by the most revered of the many temples. A Ronin like Henry had a god tied to them without performing the Binding Ceremony; a condition that was quite rare among their people, and one that was looked down on by many.

Almost as much as having the eyes of an Outsider.

Before Sevastion could examine the direction that Henry had been taken further, the rain pulled his attention down a different path. It was easy to see why, once he focused. There were multiple bodies disrupting the rain's path to the ground, and he could sense the electrical energy that charged through the water drops. His curiosity over the full situation there overrode his curiosity of Henry for the moment, sending Sevastion at a run in the direction of Jacen and the others.

~---~

“Ya know, I’m not one to judge, but kinda gross bearing it all out there with this kid present. Just my two cents. You do you, Honey BooBoo.”

Sevastion glanced to the rooftops just in time to hear that comment. Personally, he had to agree with the one saying it, but he'd also learned how to keep his own comments to himself, if barely. Being on the receiving end of Asuna's sun fire tended to teach discretion to a guy, after all.

Where he had no problem losing his discretion, however, was with the guards that were still standing on the ground, shouting at the various men on the rooftops for "violating the law" and "walking around town without a visitor's badge." Sevastion didn't even bother with calling his glaive from the falling rain, or even with checking his stride. He slid into a low kick, knocking the feet out from underneath one of the guards. Using the momentum, he rose into position to elbow another guard in the gut before he straightened himself to his full height. For the moment, he kept his back to the others as he focused on the guards still standing in front of him.

That was quite the entrance. So much for a low profile.

Sevastion had to agree with Susanoo, but for the moment, he let a smile flick across his face as he said, "You know, I'll willingly admit that I'm probably butting in where I don't belong. You gents could quite possibly have full right to be carrying out your duties here, protecting your town and king and all that. However, it also seems to me that there's a good chance you boys are being nothing but bullies. So what's one more to the pile, right?"

Damn, if Asuna heard of this, she was going to rip him a new one.

 

[Ðari]

1HKO

I'm feeling abnormally sick, how about we start there?

Machinecken Town~


My name is Gavin, we'll start with something of a base introduction for those that aren't familiar. I'm an islander, turned desolated, turned dark, turned vagabond and disruptor. My father gave me a gift, what feels like an eternity since then and it's felt like bad luck to be completely honest. Look at my hands...look at my chest and tell me what you see. You see a gauntlet I can't remove on the left arm and a watch I can't remove on the right, and that relic? It's embedded in the middle of my chest highly visible to everyone, even my threads can't conceal it, it's like "Hey! Kill me now with a punch dead center!" you know? If anyone could understand what a miserable existence I currently have lead for what feels like...ever now, I'd be surprised.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure I rambled about me, but where the hell was I? Last world I remember kind of reminded me of this one, but this world, I think the residents called it Machineck Town or whatever, sure it looked harmless. It's strangely calm here, I actually feel something, a glow thats likely responsible for taming a wild darkness that normally will slightly permeate from me, but now here. Hell, anything that aids in cloaking me is welcomed. I sat atop the highest building and just peered down with my amber eyes at the town and the lay of the landscape. Civilians, guards, a lot of moving parts with carriages as a form of transport.

It's funny; my father used to talk all the time about keybladers and I was never interested. He said after the initial battle with Xehanort which happened right before I was born, in the following years more and more people were becoming inducted with the power from those that were initiated as masters. We knew the three on our islands were legends sure, but I would've never guessed there would be more on other worlds. This Machinecken Town, you'd think I would be excited to be here, traveling is really all I've ever wanted to do. Theres a level of grief that you just can't scrub unfortunately, screw these people and their happy-go lucky reality they've convinced themselves is real. The threat that took my home, scrubbed out what mattered, as much as I don't care for it, it's alive and it's to right to be stopped now.

I stood up once I heard the cast of what sounded like some form of thunder-spell. It was easy enough to trace from my high perch, looking down, there were guards forming around what looked to be a young guy somewhere in my age group. A key blade in the ground, and him making eye-contact with another person above his eye-level positioned atop a building. A chilling predicament, no pun intended, that must've been a display of active vagrancy and being on the wrong side of the law. Total amateur at best, but who am I to judge right? Slumping over to watch, the lad was nimble, it felt like watching a comedy sketch as even the guards were tumbling over him, landing a shot or two, one even hit him square in the face which I lightly chuckled at.

"And I thought this was just going to be another town of stiff shirts. Cool, well these people seem to be off-worlders, then that should make things easy."

I stood up and drew the deepest breath that I could possibly muster. I was cold. I actually kind of, exhausted with this idea of still being here and I really just wanted a way to show the reaches of where I stood, just exactly how that feels. When I was in the realm of darkness, that agony expanded to an exponential reach I didn't think possible...so I did exactly what I said I was going to do.

Plunge them all down with me. Scrubbed~

My icy hands buried into my chest and I used every last ounce of strength I possibly had, even freezing my fingers to claw under my skin, and I ripped the prism that was embedded out of my chest. For just a fraction of a moment before I realized, I definitely felt it. I felt perpetual harmony, but the devastation would follow suite very shortly. I froze it, and crushed it in my hands, instantly my left and right limbs also disintegrated instantly and I knew this was what I wanted. Just like that time, from way back when...I just let everything.

When the darkness came, it flooded from where I stood, higher than everything else, racing down the building, as I was just slowly but surely becoming covered in frost from where I stood, missing both the lengthy parts of my arms. The darkness didn't let up as I blew forward, and brought forth a decent front of cold before my lips themselves froze. I trembled, but I was ready, with my last bit of endurance and mobility I dug as deep as a could and jumped straight ahead feeling my skin peel and break as brittle as glass, as the darkness and ice mixed in the frigid vestige was starting to crack what remained of my body, I hovered over the square before surging a pulse of darkness that scattered the rest of my form all over the town.

This was my gift to their boring lives. This was what I planned on doing all along. Robbing them of any peace they thought was everlasting, and brought with it the enemies that lingered in the dark. The air would turn cold and spread, for how short this duration, it was a statement my antithesis to harmony in Machinecken Town.

[DEAD]

 

[Shinra]

Renn just kept running through streets and alleyways trying to still ditch the guards that were chasing him, weaving through the different routes was draining his stamina but as he turned into another alley he saw a kid further down, about 20 feet forward and he was trying to fight off some guards then bounded the roof of one of the buildings beside him and he saw a jolt of yellow lightning dancing about him as he did so. The boy reached the roof and Renn was awestruck but he was soon knocked into the wall beside him by one of his pursuers. "God dang it..." Renn summoned his keyblade to knock the guard away but he was surrounded by the other guards who were chasing the boy from before were flooding the alleyway and Renn was against a wall and Renn had no means to hold them all off. He decided to try something else other than magic to get up to the roof, He pushed the guard towards the wall in front of him, jumped backward, spun to face the wall behind him and used that momentum to jump to higher points on the metal walls surrounding the buildings. one tried jumping after him during his first jump towards the other wall, but he used a fire spell's recoil to to keep the guard off him as well as get a little bit more height.

After about 4 jumps he gripped the edge of the roof the boy reached. Only to be met by not only the boy he saw but two other dudes as well. He was already drained as he fell back first on the roof. "Man... these guys won't... give up." he was tired and sore but then he looked at the boy beside him who was clearly injured. "Hey you okay? Let me help with that." He pointed his Keyblade at Jacen, casting Cure. "It's not that powerful, but it's should help."

 

[Hazen Gregory]

Topsy, looked at the newcomer to the roof, not impressed but certainly not unimpressed. He smiled a wry smile, shaking his head a few times from side to side at the man's comment but didn't give him an immediate response other than a more than obvious wink. The man by his standards was absolutely gorgeous, he had a build body that was particular in its muscle mass but what Topsy adored more was the fact that the man's skin was the perfect complexion. His hair golden and beautiful. "Damn, I could just eat you right now." He snickered, senses being on point and immediate observing that the man had a strange power about him. Not strange in the sense that it was out of place however; it was strange because Topsy could sense the gathering of magical miasma about the man's body. Any kind of human with an ability like that would be GREAT for research purposes. For the time being, Topsy decided to leave it at that but not before making another comment. "I don't have it ALL hanging out. Peep the slight glow and my groins covered??" He sighed, "I'm from Galbadia. I know better than to get arrested for lewd conduct guy."

He then turned to look back at Jacen whom had leaped down from the roof, making an valiant effort to retrieve Progonoskes from the ground where Topsy had planted it. Topsy watched with glee, seeing that it was possible that maybe he'd overdone it a little by because Jacen seemed unable to immediately pull it out from the ground. "Heh, kid sure is a trooper." Topsy was a bit surprised that Jacen didn't actually try to wield the keyblade itself, he had the heart to do so and probably could have caused some extra devastation with it had he done so. Reasoning told Topsy that the young man didn't have such thoughts on his mind and eventually made it back up to the roof, clawing his way up the side and reaching toward Topsy with the keyblade in his hands. He took the keyblade and nodded.

"Well, you did great kid, as promised, I'll do anything you want at anytime so long as it is actually possible." Topsy was about to say more when two things happened. First, another young man climbed to the roof and fell backwards when he arrived. "What's this a roof party??" Topsy rolled his eyes and ran both hands along he sides of his magically clad booty, then watched as the man healed the boy by casting cure. Topsy thought the idea of helping those in need was great but he was wondering why both the golden boy AND this new person had decided to come up to this particular roof. He laughed. It must have been his great looks and even greater aura.

Then the second thing happened, "What the hell?!?!" Topsy watched as a thick reverberating darkness was unleashed across the town, not only could he feel it but he could taste it. The entire time Topsy had been on the roof, he'd been drawing in any ambient magical particles he could, just because the soldiers hadn't stopped coming. This new mix to the magical forces floating around was fresh with the essence of both darkness and death and Topsy was shocked at it being there so suddenly. Either somebody had been killed, or somebody had released a magic force that was powerful enough to influence the magic in the atmosphere and overlying area.

Topsy looked up, not feeling the coldness because of his clothing, but still knew that the temperature had dropped substantially; at least to less than 32 degrees because it had instantly went from raining to snowing. "Dear Lord, what is this about...the darkness is so thick that I'm not even surprised that there aren't....great." Topsy spied that small yet intensely dark clusters of darkness were forming all over the place and he already knew what was coming next. The orbs twisted and stretched, shaping into heartless monsters that made sense considering how cold it had gotten. "This is all getting stranger by the minute..."

Topsy stopped his draw ability then because he didn't want anymore dark magic flooding into his system but it seemed that it was already too late. He could hear an annoying voice inside his head, "Look...look...looky looky looky!!! Frieends are here now maybe I can have some fun!!!" Topsy didn't respond an forced a fake smile to form on his lips before stabbing Progonoskes into the ground.

"Prepare yourselves. I'm certain that all of us have dealt with the heartless threat before this but just in case any of us ARE inexperienced, take caution and take care." Topsy's eyes were already glowing like they were before. He patted Jacen on the shoulder and chuckled. "I have the upmost faith in your will to not only survive but your ability to grow." He nodded to the golden man, "You can pull your own and I'm sure that you can as well." He pointed at Renn. Topsy straightened up and sighed, "Kid, you've already taken it out before, so if you wanna, go ahead and test out my keyblade. I'm nearly certain that Progonoskes likes you already. If it didn't your arm probably would have torn off when you tried to pull it from the ground before."

He clasped both hands together and bowed to them all. "By the way, I'm Topsy. Topsy Kretts. Nice to make all of your acquaintance. Oh and kid, if you don't have a master or whatever, maybe you'd like to come under my wing??" Topsy shrugged and smiled, "Or not, that's up to you. The offer will always stand." He then began chanting, "Oh force of ether, the ambiance that causes fate to falter and magic to take shape, come to me and maim my foes, those of the dark and those of the cold..." He jumped so high into the air that his form was barely visible from the rooftop, falling rapidly, his body aglow with a thin white aura.

"AMBIENT METEOR FALL!!!" Topsy collided with the area below the roof, maybe five feet into the street and there was a fairly massive impact, a burst of force coming from Topsy's falling body that disintegrated several of the heartless nearby and also knocked away more of the guards that had continued to appear.

 

[Story Keeper]

~- Aftermath -~

Henry was dreaming, he knew that for a fact. Looking around him, he took in the rock walls of Yomi. He knew this wasn't where he'd last been, but that didn't bother him. He'd frequently visit Yomi in his dreams, walking along the path, he ignored the dead that was calling out to him, trying to capture his attention. Side stepping a particularly feisty spirit, he flicked his wrist in a dismissive gesture. He saw the hurt on the ghost's face, but it moved away as it had been ordered to do so. He felt guilty about the coldness, yet he couldn't show it to the spirit. If he did it meant his destruction, Izanami had made sure to teach him that long ago.

He allowed his feet to guide him to the center shrine, the area that Izanami frequently resided. He could hear her talking, and he knew by all respects he was a rogue, a Ronin in his people's mind because he didn't follow standard procedure for the Binding, but he didn't care. He couldn't care. It would have meant his death if he would have done it properly.

Walking into the room, he didn't flinch as Izanami turned to focus on him directly. Dark black hair hung to her shoulder, and sharp, cold dark brown eyes watched him from behind her bangs. Izanami was fairly slim in build, and her height put her at about his chest. He saw the new kimono she wore, a dark charcoal grey with red trimming, it was tattered at the edges but he could tell that it was fresh. He almost thought about asking if Izanagi had come to visit, but he knew better, he knew it'd just anger her.

Sitting on the ground so he was lower than her, Henry asked politely, "Why have you called me here, milady?"

Izanami cocked her head, pondering the question. Or contemplating if he'd been loyal or not, he always had a hard time telling. "You need to be prepared to reap, child. An action is about occur that will bring death to the world you're on. It's an act of deepest despair." Izanami spoke, her eyes growing gentle for the briefest of moments.

After all, she considered all spirits to be her children, no matter their heritage.

Henry nodded his head in understanding, he bowed low and asked, "May I leave?"

"You may, and Henry? Do take care of that Seaweed Brain, you know how much I despise the insolent whelp." Izanami purred, before a flick of her wrist sent Henry's spirit back into his body.

Bolting up right from the dream, Henry looked at his arms. He could tell that he'd had medical attention based on the fact his jacket had been taken off and his sleeves had been rolled up, exposing his skin. Shivering due to the damp cold, he saw that the purple had grown to be more intense. It also didn't help that his wrists and ankles were shackled too. Rolling his eyes, he saw his jacket on the floor and bent over to pick it up. He couldn't under how they'd gotten it off, but oh well.

A shock wave of darkness and cold collided with his soul, and a quick glance out the cell's door told him that he was the only one that felt it. Was it because of his connection with death that he felt it so strongly? He could tell whatever had caused the shock wave was a result of someone dying, but it didn't make sense. Before he could ponder things much more, he heard the sound of running footsteps and shouts.

Shrugging his shoulders, Henry decided to chill for now since it wasn't his problem.

~- What's Going On Here?(Toukan) -~

The guards were making slow progress on getting this masked brat to the castle. He wouldn't stop yelling! Looking at each other, one of the guards smacked him in the back of the neck, hitting a pressure point and knocking the boy unconscious. It made it easier to carry him to the castle, now that he wasn't fighting against them. Getting the kid the destination in mind, they noticed the sudden snowstorm that had moved in. A moment afterwards Heartless spawned near them, looking at it in surprise, the guard on the left looked at his partner and said, "Get the boy inside, I'll take care of these things."

His partner nodded and continued to take Toukan into the castle, while the guard charged his weapon with reddish-black electricity. He could see the way the Heartless were planning on moving before they had a chance to do so. Lunging at them, the guard quickly set to work to cutting their numbers down, only for him to realize that with every one he killed, two more sprung up to take its place, almost like a Hydra.

~- First Wave (Topsy and Savy) -~

The guards decided to divide and conquer, half the battalion went after Jacen and followed him up onto the roof. The other half decided to stay on the ground. The half that decided to stay on the ground quickly came to regret it, because one of them got an uppercut dealt to them from a weirdo with black hair and blue eyes. Another member in their group basically had their feet knocked out from them. Then there was the near-naked guy that decided to body slam the ground.

Yeah, not the best day these guards have experienced.

"You know, I'll willingly admit that I'm probably butting in where I don't belong. You gents could quite possibly have full right to be carrying out your duties here, protecting your town and king and all that. However, it also seems to me that there's a good chance you boys are being nothing but bullies. So what's one more to the pile, right?"

Smiling in answer, one of the guards said, "Well, for your information Outsider. We're just doing our duties, we're supposed to bring in anyone who enter's this world without a visitor's pass to stand before our king. You're the ones who are 'nothing but bullies' since you won't let us do our jobs! Most visitors come quietly with us."

The guard that had spoken took a step forward, raising his weapon to prepare for battle. He could tell there was something different about this man, they'd probably need more force than what they had here to take this guy and the almost nudist down. Looking between the two gentlemen, he commented, "I'm only going to ask once, put down your weapons and come with us quietly."

He was trying to ignore the cold and darkness, it wasn't something he particularly liked. Although he could see how it could be used to their advantage. Spotting another person off to the side, he sent a small fraction of his men off to deal with that person.

- Rooftop: Second Wave (Shinra, Lannit and Jacen) -

The guards seemed to rise from the tiles of the roof, their eyes appearing to glow in the sudden dark snowstorm that had appeared. The guards looked at the group in turn, sizing them up one by one. They could tell that the blonde would be a challenge, but the two kids? They'd be fairly easy to deal with, one was clearly a mage and exhausted, so they just had to keep pressuring them until they collapsed. The other? Well, they've been managing him and they nearly had him defeated. They would have, if it wasn't for that pesky, meddling naked guy!

Charging their weapons with dark electricity, they moved forward in unison before they lunged at their targets. Some of them melting into the roof and suddenly appearing by the mage, slashing at him with their blades. Another third of the group tackled the blonde haired pirate-looking dude, slashing their weapons and casting various spells at him. Another group went after the dark-haired boy, fingers curled to resemble claws even as their sword hands swung their blades, coming down on him in different angles.

~- Moth to the Flame (Syn) -~

Andrew had been ordered back onto the streets, he wasn't sure what the king had planned, all he knew was that the king wanted the outsiders brought to him. Walking through the street, he somehow found his way to the center of the storm. Feeling something cold touch his arm, Andrew looked down to see the snow resting there. Confusion furrowed his brow, this wasn't normal for their sunny, happy little world. He was also hit by a rush of darkness, which when mixed with the cold had Andrew falling backward.

He looked around him to see the Heartless spawning, and a lump jumped into his throat. It wasn't normal, this many heartless wasn't normal. Leaping to his feet, he rolled the summoning stone in his hand. It was something he hadn't told any of the other residents, that his parents weren't from here. It was why he sympathized with off-worlders, because he was an outsider.

"Ramuh!" He shouted, calling forth the thunder god.

He caught glimpses of four people on a roof, erm, three after one of them body slammed the freaking ground! Running over to the group, he made a note of two men separated from the group. One was actively fighting the guards, and one seemed invisible to the other people. Other than his fellow guards.

Ramuh naturally decided to show up and pick Andrew up, tossing down his rod, it basically electrocuted the guards that weren't immune to thunder magic. Wiping out a third of his "comrades" ranks, causing Andrew to flinch in answer. The other-worlders though were unharmed. Directing Ramuh to set him down, Andrew finished sprinting over to the man. He could sense the hybrid lurking beneath the boy's (Syn's) skin, sliding up so they were back to back, Andrew snarked, "Keep your friend under control and I won't have to fight you too."

Looking at his brothers-in-arms, Andrew saw the guards hesitation before the line split off to fight the others, leaving only five behind to take him on. A smirk spreading across his face, Andrew prepared himself for the fight to come.

 

[Eternal Dream]

~- Twenty to One -~

"AMBIENT METEOR FALL!!!"

"And Theresa says I have a flare for the dramatic," Sevastion muttered, shifting his position slightly to avoid the other man as he landed next to him. Sevastion wouldn't dismiss the help this man could give him; truth be told, Sevastion thought he might have heard a few tales during his travels about this man, and what he'd heard suggested that this guy could handle himself with magic. But what was his name...? Flopsy? Popsy?

Does it really matter? It's not like any help is really needed.

Ever hear of the law of conservation? I seem to remember you mentioning it once or twice; maybe even every other week... Sevastion snapped back at the god. Even so, he turned his attention to some of the Heartless that had survived the falling beef cake. A surge of darkness had come from out of no where just a little while ago, turning what had once been rain into snow; while it was irritating in many ways, the change in weather condition made it where Sevastion had to take one extra, small step, which was turning the snow that was falling around him back into rain. He had about four feet in any direction to work with, because it turned back to snow from there, but that was still plenty of water to work with.

That is, until the guards started talking again.

"Well, for your information Outsider. We're just doing our duties, we're supposed to bring in anyone who enter's this world without a visitor's pass to stand before our king. You're the ones who are 'nothing but bullies' since you won't let us do our jobs! Most visitors come quietly with us. I'm only going to ask once, put down your weapons and come with us quietly."

Sevastion stiffened slightly, even as he tried to force himself to relax again. Outsider. Sevastion hated that title. Even so, he still attempted to talk himself down from it. He really was different here, being from a different World and all. This guard didn't mean anything by it; he didn't realize the significance of the title, and he certainly didn't mean anything by it. Sevastion raised his hands, saying softly, "Again, I can't speak for the others, but I think it's kind of obvious I'm unarmed. Although something still seems rather rank here; I'm almost getting the feeling that these folks weren't even given a proper chance to pick up their passes..."

Another guard, perceptive enough to realize how Sevastion had reacted, cut across him with a sneer, "Enough with the silver tongue, Outsider. The word of the King is absolute; now, you're all..."

This guard suddenly found his words to have died in his throat. It was only a natural reaction, after all, when one finds a large, heavy, and rather deadly looking glaive suddenly in his face, one that he could have sworn wasn't there before; it was almost as if Sevastion had pulled the weapon from thin air. He'd actually called it from the falling rain, but who was going to argue over tiny details? This guard, unlike the last one, had meant something by calling Sevastion an Outsider. The guard tried to sputter something else, but Sevastion wouldn't have it.

"Wash your neck and wait."

The words were a soft growl, but they, along with a solitary whorl of blue that had appeared on the the back of the hand holding the glaive, made the guard's voice die again. Turning to face the original guard, Sevastion kept the other one at glaive point as he said, "I understand this situation looks rather bad, but I will say it one final time. Leave these men be to pick up their passes in peace, and I'll leave your world entirely. I think after this altercation, I would be understandably unwelcome here. So, did I hear something about an arrest, or are you finally going to treat these visitors as the guests they are?"

 

[King Sora X]

The usually laid-back Lannit had been doing everything within his power to not show just how annoyed he was by the current situation that had unfolded on the roof and the ground level of the area of the city he was in. The guards unjustly attacking those who entered aside, Lannit received an odd comment in response to the nearly-nude man (who later revealed himself as Topsy) and then more guards appeared near Lannit. It was almost as though they really wanted to piss him off. He had no problem with authority, but everyone be damned if they kept on pursuing him.

Even though Lannit’s better judgment was telling him to allow the guards to take him and it all be done with, the sudden exposure of darkness and ice-cold temperatures all thanks to the suicide bomber, Lannit needed something to increase his core body temperature. Staying still simply wouldn’t do - especially since the guards were the least of his worries. Undoubtedly, the little ice cube beasts that have appeared was what Lannit would have to be on the lookout for. Whatever the reason for their appearances, the magical signatures that they gave off rubbed Lannit the wrong way.

But first thing’s first!

“The name’s Lannit,” he said to whoever was in earshot.

As Topsy had jumped from the rooftop and had displayed a flashy demonstration of his power, Lannit laughed to himself. Something told him that Topsy and Lannit would get along just fine, though he couldn’t help but feel just a bit wary about that comment Topsy made about wanting to eat Lannit all up. Well, that could be addressed at a later date. Lannit was currently having too much of a party on the rooftop thanks to the guards who were, ironically, were caught off-guard by Topsy’s display of power. Nevertheless, they came at Lannit and the other kid who had displayed some fire magic before, though Lannit noticed he was wiped out, so it was up to the blond to handle the guards.

Easy enough.

Directing his undivided attention on the guards who shot dark lightning bolts towards Lannit and Renn, Lannit took a deep breath, drawing in the darkness and ice magic that was flowing all around him. This magic was different than the residual lightning magic he absorbed before. It was full of wonder and pain. The darkness and ice were so different, yet their origins made no difference because they were closely attached to each other. A dark wasteland creates cold temperatures because, without light, there cannot be any heat. And to Lannit, this was the perfect answer to the lightning spells coming from his front and the sword strikes that came from behind.

Lannit’s energy built up almost to the point where his body had started to be wrapped in a layered aura of sorts, radiating with icy blue and a dark, almost sickly, gray hue. It protected him from the physical attacks. It might’ve with the magical but Lannit acted first. His hand was extended forward and first, a pulse of darkness first halted the lightning strikes and protected Renn from any damage. Then, not long after, a fog of ice pushed the spells back and directed a combo of ice and dark magic produced from the magic that Lannit had absorbed just a few moments ago. However, this had a downside, for Lannit was no longer protected by the aura from before. Which meant…

Lannit dodged to the right and he produced his needle gun which would respond to his Magicite Core. By dodging to the right, the guards were undoubtedly caught off balance since they were held in place against a force that met their claws with equal defensive capabilities. As soon as Lannit saw an opening, he shot a dozen, amethyst needles towards their way. The magical energy condensed into their form would be enough to send them off the roof.

“Stay here. I think the guards are more concerned with me, anyway.”

Shortly after, Lannit hopped down to the ground, shooting precision-aimed strikes at the creatures that were in his immediate pathway. When he landed on the ground, which was just a yard and a half from TOpsy, Lannit gave him a saluting gesture. “Hope you don’t mind if I help you out. You don’t look like you need it, but I’m not going to give you a say in the manner.” Lannit proclaimed, shooting a few more needles at a few of those ice cube-looking creatures.

 

[Lunarmaster54]

The welcoming touch of healing magic did a lot to soothe Jacen’s aches and pains. Sure it was only a first level cure spell and as such couldn’t exactly mend broken bones and the like, but the pain was gone for now. Jacen gave the boy a smile of appreciation. He even had a favor owed him by the perfect stranger! Things were finally looking up.

As soon as he thought those words darkness swept over the town, showing Jacen that that phrase was just as much a jinx as it had always been.

The weather was cold, Jacen could see snow falling, his breath coming out a mist from between his lips. This was the first time he had felt such darkness, something similar had happened to Traverse Town before the attack there as well.

And he had turned his ass around and left.

Jacen pushed down the guilt as he watched Heartless begin to form. He clenched his fists again at the very sight of those monsters. The very monsters that had taken everything away from him that he cared about..

“I have the upmost faith in your ability to not only survive..but grow as well.” A clap on his shoulder and Jacen looked up to see Mr. Perfect looking at him, eyes glowing. The worry that had been quietly clawing at his insides was eased at his words, just a little. He could, he WOULD grow!

"Kid, you've already taken it out before, so if you wanna, go ahead and test out my keyblade. I'm nearly certain that Progonoskes likes you already. If it didn't your arm probably would have torn off when you tried to pull it from the ground before."

Jacen shuddered at the mental image. Having an arm torn off? By a keyblade? Since when could they do that? Could his do that?

"By the way, I'm Topsy. Topsy Kretts. Nice to make all of your acquaintance. Oh and kid, if you don't have a master or whatever, maybe you'd like to come under my wing??" Mr. Perfect, no..Topsy Kretts, smiled at him and shrugged "Or not, that's up to you. The offer will always stand."

Jacen was already shaking his head, his own keyblade appearing in his hand in a flash but he was pretty sure Topsy never saw any of that. He was chanting and jumped high in the air, only to crash back down to deal a devastating attack that destroyed several heartless and took care of a few guards as well. Jacen had issues just staying standing on the roof as the whole building shook from the shockwave.

Which was a problem because guards were coming again, rising from the tiles of the roof. Lighting shot down from the sky as someone summoned Ramuh to assist them. The fact that someone could just up and summon the god of thunder was something Jacen would unpack and marvel over at a later time. Could other gods be summoned? How was it done? The golden stranger (who introduced himself as Lannit) shot several of the guards off the roof as he joined Topsy, while Jacen fought a few coming his way. He wanted to join the battle on the ground but guards and heartless were arriving on the roof in larger numbers now and he couldn’t just leave the mage who had helped him. So Jacen closed ranks, moving towards the other boy, deflecting claws and swords away from him and his companion as best he could. A few blasts of lightning handled the heartless just fine but those damn guards were proving to be an issue. He had been fighting them for too long, they knew his attack patterns. He wasn’t like Topsy, he didn’t have the obscene power level to just blow through them like paper. He needed a new approach.

“I think we need to get to the ground dude.” he said to the mage, swatting a heartless away from the boy with his keyblade “Form a group with the others so we aren’t such easy targets. You wouldn’t happen to know some boost magic would you? Something like Haste or Shell or something?”

What he wouldn’t give to have Penelope with him right now. That shit was her specialty.

 

[Key Wielder]

See, this? This was why Yoake shied away from socializing with other Keyblade wielders. A peaceful day had turned violent and dark purely because they couldn't follow the rules.

That, of course, wasn't to say that she hadn't gotten a bit tired of hearing the same platitudes droned in different voices ever since she arrived. There were only so many times you could take the word lovely before you were ready to burst. Regardless, this wasn't her world--from the looks of it, this wasn't their world either. The troublemakers that had roused the guards and caused this mess didn't appear to care, though. Just like the wielders that had visited her world on more than one occasion, they appeared to believe that the rules weren't for them and that the punishment for breaking them was beneath their stature.

Typical.

Yoake, on the other hand, had never ventured forth from her home world. She had never visited Machinecken Town before today or anywhere else among the stars. What had been her first stop when she'd arrived? The front gates. To see if there was something she needed to do in order to be welcomed rather than harassed. To ensure that she followed the rules of a people who made their own just like her village. That was what all wielders should do--it was what anyone who traveled between worlds should do!

But Keyblades were more than merely a weapon. They were a free pass to do as you pleased without a care for who you hurt in the process. They were a symbol of station and, therefore, privilege.

Yoake needed to figure out how to get rid of it--and fast.

Unfortunately, it looked like that was going to have to wait. The wielders were out in full force, and rather than reprimanding one another for disrupting the peace like they would have in ancient times, it appeared that they were more enthusiastic about banding together against the native population. Answers wouldn't be forthcoming here, not when the conflict had drawn the same creatures that had infiltrated other worlds in droves. Instead, she found herself merely asking more questions. Like where they had all come from, why they had chosen to congregate here...

And why on earth it was snowing.

It wasn't merely a typical snowfall, that much was certain. At home, snow was cold to the touch but accompanied by a crisp, clean aura that left her feeling refreshed. Even though it could be a pain to dress warmly and attend to her chores when there was a foot of the white stuff on the ground, it never failed to make her smile.

This was not the same. This snow was cold, yes, but there was nothing rejuvenating about it. In fact, Yoake got the strangest feeling that if she closed her eyes and simply listened, she wouldn't hear the sweet silence of winter weather. No, there was something insidious about this sudden shift that set her nerves alight with unease and reminded her that darkness was everywhere--not just in people's hearts. No matter how light a world seemed--no matter how lovely--it was just as susceptible to the shadows that drifted at the corners of the universe as anywhere else.

Someone needed to do something. She needed to--

No. That's not what I came here for. I'll just cause even more trouble.

That was, after all, what Keyblade wielders did.

But there was no denying that she couldn't simply stand there and do nothing. There were Heartless here, drawn by whatever had caused the freezing precipitation, from the looks of it. If she didn't summon her Keyblade, if she adhered to her resolution to leave that part of her beneath the surface where it belonged...

“I think we need to get to the ground dude. Form a group with the others so we aren’t such easy targets. You wouldn’t happen to know some boost magic would you? Something like Haste or Shell or something?”

Today was just getting better and better.

Peering up towards the roof, Yoake had to bite her tongue against a groan when she spotted a few of the perpetrators above her. Of course. Because it wasn't bad enough that she had to utilize the one tool at her disposal that she would rather have left alone, but she'd be forced to do it in front of other wielders in order to protect herself.

They'd think she was one of them. One of the others.

Perfect. Well, I guess I don't have much of a choice.

As far as boost magic went, Yoake had no idea what they were talking about, not that that was much of a surprise. She hadn't avoided using her powers for nothing: without tapping into them, she wasn't quite sure how far her strength extended, if that was what she could call it. Part of her--a large part--thought it was more of a weakness, but that was a matter to be pondered later.

Either way, she had no choice but to summon her Keyblade and put her back to the wall. If she was fortunate, the overhanging roof would hide her from view.

The Heartless she was forced to fend off in her corner of the street, however, less so.

 

[Shinra]

“I think we need to get to the ground dude. Form a group with the others so we aren’t such easy targets. You wouldn’t happen to know some boost magic would you? Something like Haste or Shell or something?”

As Renn had been saved by the other keyblader he forced himself up.

"Sadly no my magical talents are pertained to two types of spells at the moment. Fira and Cure... and my magical reserves are pretty drained as is. I had to use a lot of my mana to fight my way out of the castle by myself... I probably took out 30 or 40 guards on my own before I could escape. But that is a good idea... as for that..." he looked to prognoskes. "Why don't you give it back to him if you're not going to use it... He looks pretty strong so it will probably help him out a bit more." He then noted a brief glimpse of light as he saw a keyblade appear in the hands of a young woman, she seemed to put herself into a corner so to speak as she back up to the of the building that he, Jacen, and Lennit were standing on.

He soon jumped as he saw shadows creeping toward her and then stomped one into the ground as he landed with his back against the wall of the opposite building and slashed his keyblade horizontally slicing through two other shadow heartless with relative ease but he soon realized he overdid it and fell to his knee but he kept fighting off the heartless that kept appearing and made his way back to his feet before casting cure on himself. "you okay miss?"

 

[Hazen Gregory]

Topsy took a long glance at the man next to him. He'd mentioned his name being Lannit. It was certainly an interesting name he'd be sure to remember it, especially because now he'd already witnessed the type of abilities that Lannit possessed, one much like his own. He was aware that there was no purifying factor involved which meant that however Lannit absorbed magic, it was based off accumulated magical force, not the ambient magical essence. "Hmm...intriguing to say the least." He'd voiced this aloud and sighed. Things were already much too chaotic and they were just bound to get worse. After the release of darkness that had now put this world under a literal plague, it wasn't likely that the heartless would stop spawning anytime soon. In fact it probably would cause even more heartless to start appearing. He guessed that they'd be lower level heartless types such as shadows or dark balls.

For a moment or so, Topsy thought about his options, weighing the situation in his mind before taking appropriate action. "Ok guard. First, consider the fact that there is a crisis going here. Secondarily, consider the fact that while the others from what I've seen, don't have a visitor's pass, I do." He motioned to where the badge seemed to be embedded into his clothing, even having the intricate code on the bottom that proved it was authentic. "As for putting down my weapons and coming with you quietly, I don't have a problem with that either." He laughed at his own comment before continuing. "I'm unarmed, see??" He then vanished and one could see him reappear several times in the immediate area, popping up in front of several of the icy heartless before punching them into the ground. When he reappeared before the guard once more, Topsy sighed again with just the slightest hint of annoyance in his tone.

"I'll come with you if that means that we'll get some answers about this damn place. But heed my warning." Topsy raised an eyebrow, "If anything bad happens to my impromptu comrades or Jacen, there WILL be severe consequences. I'm acting as an Interworld Researcher and I'm also the Ambassador of the world called The Garden." Topsy wasn't trying to act big, or put fear into the guard at all, he was merely stating a fact that would come to pass if he sent Progonoskes back to his home world as an emergency beacon. Randomly, Topsy's voice increased to the point where it was booming from his mouth, the decibels were loud enough to where everyone within a block could hear him. "Jacen, Mage, Lannit and company. I suggest that you all surrender like I am going to do now. In our best interests, maybe going with them will prove that we aren't trying to cause a calamity here. powers aside, I'm also a world diplomat."

Back in his normal tone, Topsy nodded to the guard and licked his lips, "Ok. Shall wee??" He then pulled his credentials from nowhere and handed them forward.

 

[Lunarmaster54]

Huh. The mage had a point there. Jacen considered doing just that, it went along with what he had just proposed after all. However then he watched the mage jump off the roof again into the alley. Jacen followed him with his eyes and watched him defend a girl from some shadow heartless. Looking from Topsy’s keyblade and then back towards the alley Jacen made a snap decision.

He jumped from roof into the alley.

Now partly it was because there was strength in numbers and partly it was because a guard had slipped up behind the two. Said guard hadn’t actually done anything but at this point Jacen didn’t trust any of them to be anything but antagonists. Mid leap he activated his thunder armor along his left arm, the one not holding Midnight Roar. At just he right time he grabbed ahold of the guard’s helmet and slammed him into the ground as he landed with a shove. The guard was motionless as Jacen straightened up.

“It might be a surprise,” he said to the two behind him “but I don’t think that guard had your best interests at heart.”

The alley was a little cramped truth be told, and more guards were filling both sides of the area. It was baffling to Jacen just how many of them there were. His magic was on the low side now and he really didn’t like the idea of another fight. Not when he had to protect the mage and the girl too...

Heh. He said that like he could even protect himself worth a damn.

"Jacen, Mage, Lannit and company. I suggest that you all surrender like I am going to do now. In our best interests, maybe going with them will prove that we aren't trying to cause a calamity here. powers aside, I'm also a world diplomat."

There was a pause in the action as a moment passed. Jacen's mind whirling as he thought over Topsy's plan and weighed it against his own plan. A plan that would end with them all captured anyway.

Might as well skip the extra steps.

Jacen sighed as the guards got closer and dismissed his keyblade. “Topsy’s been pretty on top of shit so far.” he said, raising his hands up “Hopefully he can negotiate as easily as he can fight.”

It wasn’t like they had much choice anymore.

 

[Shinra]

"I suppose both the Thunderboy here and Topsy are right. Like what are we going to do anyway? Fight until we can't anymore?" He dismissed his keyblade then reached in his back pocket to pull out the visitor's badge and pin it to his shirt. "One thing I don't like though is when people assume stuff of people they don't even know. Still... Now's not the time to fight." He extended his hands out in front of him to the guard. "By the way the name's Renn, Renn Gurski..." Renn didn't want to say anymore until he had the attention of his new comrades... he knew that time would come soon enough though.

The guard cuffed Renn's hands behind his back and he sighed. "Can't believe my first visit to a new world ends up like this. cuffed for a crime I didn't even commit."

 

[Story Keeper]

~- Caught on the Tracks -~

Andrew shoved one of his fellow guards backwards. Looking around him, he did a quick head count of how everyone was fairing. It did catch his attention (rather painfully mind you) that this was a guy who was pretty close to naked. His cheeks started burning, and Andrew looked away, trying to distract himself from what was going on over there. It took a moment, but then one of the guy's called out, "Jacen, Mage, Lannit and company. I suggest that you all surrender like I am going to do now. In our best interests, maybe going with them will prove that we aren't trying to cause a calamity here. powers aside, I'm also a world diplomat."

A quick glance told him which guy it was. Swallowing, Andrew looked away to meet the irritated gaze of one of his coworkers. Taking a step back, Andrew was about to say something when his arm was forcefully grabbed and he was all but dragged over to the others. He was aware of the spear he was using vanished into particles of snow, making Andrew feel vulnerable. Keeping his head down, he tried not to say anything when they suddenly stopped by the captain of this force. Being shoved toward the officer, Andrew stumbled a bit before coming to a stop. Keeping his head bowed, the slim blonde muttered, "Sir?"

He didn't have to look to know his commanding officer was irritated with him, he could feel it in his gaze. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, Andrew's blue eyes widened slightly in surprise as he saw a boy that had black hair and blue eyes. He could also see the deity standing next to the man, daring to lift his head, Andrew looked at the green haired god and laughed, "You're short!"

"Andrew Orlov!" The officer barked, silencing Andrew's laughter.

Looking to the man, Andrew stepped back and listened as the other guard said, "Of course Topsy (he got it from the badge), we'll honor your request. Now, if you'll please be kind to follow us, we'll get you people settled in."

Andrew picked up the underlying trace of danger, but he knew that none of the others would catch it. A frown coming to his face, Andrew was about to protest when the guard who'd originally escorted him over grabbed him by the arm and started to pull him away. Wincing in pain at the pressure on his arm, he glanced back at the man that had the ocean blue eyes and pleaded with his eyes.

Wait a second, this man...

"Sevastian! Help me, please!"

Andrew was rewarded with a smack to the back of the head for his plea. Glancing over his shoulder at the guard, Andrew was getting ready for a fight when the guard sneered, "Honestly, why would you call on that Outsider for help? Then again, it'd take one to know one, huh?"

Andrew felt his blood start boiling, and it wasn't because of the slur against him. It was the slur against Sevastian. Snarling low in his throat, Andrew swung with his free hand and decked the guard hard in the jaw, knocking him out cold. Glaring down at him, he spat, "Wash your neck and wait dumbass." Then glancing back at Sevastian, he commented, "Never mind, I'm good. But you'd better follow me and cooperate." Before he started moving toward his commanding officer, who was openly glaring at the blonde now. Meeting his commanding officer's gaze, he silently dared him to say something.

Which didn't happen, after all they were only ever scolded in private.

Andrew knew it'd be one hell of a scolding, but he didn't care. Instead he stood by the commanding officer's side as the off-worlders were rounded up. They had everyone restrained except for blond pirate and the hybrid boy that he'd been fighting with, or at least that he was aware of. A thought coming to his mind as he waited for the others to be ready, Andrew looked at the one apparently called Topsy and asked, "Why's that your name, huh? It's weird!" A smile flitting around the edges of his mouth as he waited for info.

 

[King Sora X]

Never in his life, regardless if he was in his native Archadia or was in foreign nations like Dalmasca, Rozarria, or some unoccupied, locally-ruled land, did Lannit ever surrender. Was he a guy who often worried about his own self-interests? Absolutely. Did he like to fight useless fights? That obviously depended on the person he was fighting. With all of that being said, Lannit wasn't, as his dearest Wendy would say, a bitch to be trifled with. Lannit Nidel Kaze was, without a doubt, a fighter to the very end. No amount of force or soldiers were enough to keep him down. At the same time, however, he did have to note that causing a scene in the middle of town wasn't the way to go. If he was going to be the kind of guy who fought his way through situations, might as well do it when you can get the upper hand.

So that's when Lannit would follow Topsy's lead. His will and intent had changed and his Magicite Core recognized that. He voluntarily surrendered. As soon as he raised his hands up, his Needle Rifle-Gun disappeared into fragments of magicite. The shine in his eyes had faded with it, returning to its natural emerald shade.

"Fine, let's go."

 

[Key Wielder]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]This was her chance. In the confusion and downright antagonism around her, Yoake quickly thrust her Keyblade behind her back and let it vanish in a flash of silver. It hadn’t seen much use—thank heavens—but that didn’t mean she was particularly grateful for the other wielders’ interference. After all, how did landing themselves in even more trouble help them? The guard their latest arrival attacked hadn’t done anything, at least not to her. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]She [/FONT][FONT=&quot]had her visitors’ pass. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]She[/FONT][FONT=&quot] hadn’t treated them like second-class citizens in their own world when they were merely doing their jobs. If he was here for anyone, it was that Renn...person.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]And it appeared that they would pay for their hubris, satisfyingly enough. As the guards rounded them up one by one, Yoake couldn’t help thinking that that was how it should be. Her father had always said that your actions dictated your deserts and that no one should complain of hardships wrought by their own behavior. Now, these wielders were going to learn that they couldn’t run around flouting authority and get away with it in this world. Others, perhaps, but not here.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Yoake was liking Machinecken Town already.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Until she made to slip away only to come face to face with another guard, that was. The vindication of his compatriots was noticeably absent, but that didn’t stop him from motioning for Yoake to show him her hands either.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]“But sir, I—“[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]“Were you not part of this skirmish, Miss...?” he interjected skeptically.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]“Aki,” she offered, pointing towards where her name adorned the badge [/FONT][FONT=&quot]she[/FONT][FONT=&quot] had been respectful enough to apply for. “And no, sir. I was just passing through.” [/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Raising an eyebrow, he murmured, “Is that so?”[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]“Yes, sir. I don’t want to start any trouble here.”[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]For a moment, he stared at her with unbridled disbelief that she honestly couldn’t blame him for. It was how she would have reacted if a Keyblade wielder had the gall to claim innocence in a mess like this, after all. She had to give him a lot of credit, though: he didn’t immediately slap her in handcuffs and drag her along as a liar and accomplice. Rather, he gestured for her to follow him, his expression brooking neither argument nor trickery, and led the way to where a couple of other guards were watching the proceedings unfold. [/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]“Boss,” he called to the one whose decorated uniform clearly labeled him as their commanding officer, “got another one here. She’s got a badge and [/FONT][FONT=&quot]says[/FONT][FONT=&quot] she wasn’t involved, but I found her here with these miscreants. Bring her along?”[/FONT][/FONT]

 

[Eternal Dream]

~- Welcome to the New Age -~

Give in? Go quietly with the guards? Like hell he would. It didn't matter anymore to Sevastion if this was a misunderstanding that he hadn't been involved in originally. It didn't matter if it was stupid, or if he was having a huge overreaction to what was going on. It was the principle of the matter, of being looked down upon, and having his freedom threatened. It was having the prejudice of those that felt like they belonged in a certain caste or community turned upon him, of being judged for factors and qualities that were beyond his control, for simply being. It was everything he knew and couldn't stand, all summed up in one arrogant guard's use of the word "Outsider."

"Sevastian! Help me, please!"

Kiba, please!

And just like that, Sevastion's temper turned on him, becoming much calmer as he finally allowed himself to think. Turning in the direction of the boy's voice, Sevastion tried to place the blonde, to understand just how a random guard from a World that he'd never been to before now would know his name. Try as he might, however, Savstion couldn't place the guard, even though there was something almost familiar about him. Again, though, he couldn't place what that familiarity was, only that something in his voice had reminded Sevastion of Asuna. And thinking about Asuna, of how she'd want him to behave in this situation, at last allowed him the control he needed to banish his glaive and bank his temper.

It was still under the surface, however, and close enough at hand that he could recognize the very real threat of it's return if he had to deal with the arrogant guard again. Sevastion turned one final, ice cold glare to the guard, committing his hawkish face to memory even as the blonde guard retracted his plea for assistance from Sevastion, instead giving the other guard the same warning that Sevastion had. Then, Sevastion did something he normally didn't allow himself to; he dipped into Susanoo's power a little further for a quick burst of elemental power. Scrolling blue appeared on both of his hands, the markings writhing and crashing like waves as he sent a pulse of power through the town. The power arced through the town, racing through the snow and those strange, ice cube like Heartless, the two states of water reacting with each other. Snow turned to rain once more, the malevolence drained from it, while many of the Heartless faded away, unable to maintain their forms as ice changed to water, from solid into liquid. It wasn't a permanent fix for how this "beautiful" day had suddenly gone to hell, but hopefully, it would keep the innocents of the town safe from being overrun by these Heartless.

Turning his attention once more to the guards, Sevastion let the power fade from his system along with the god markings on his hands. Fatigue pulled at him, but this had been his intent in the first place; thinking of Asuna had calmed him, but he didn't want any chance of the storm of his temper resurfacing until he had been able to calm himself completely, and wearing himself out was his best bet for keeping that temper in check for now. Giving the guards a slight nod, Sevastion said, "I am saying one final time for the record, and I don't care if this makes me sound broken, but I'm still not entirely sure I'm on board with what you fellows are doing. But I won't be the hold-out to continue causing a scene. Let's just get this over with."

Allowing himself to be quieted for the time being, Sevastion shot another glance at the blonde guard. While they didn't make his identity any clearer, a few details that Sevastion had passed over earlier came to the front of his thoughts. One was of a summoned lightning deity, the vestiges of its power Sevastion could still sense around the blonde. The second was the guard's comment about someone being short, and how Susanoo had bristled... wait.

Could this guard see Susanoo?

 

[Story Keeper]

~- More Questions -~

Andrew kept his head down, trying to figure out how much ley way he had in this situation. Feeling some rope wrap around his right wrist. Glancing at his commanding officer, Andrew traced the rope to his officer’s left hand. Blue eyes widened ever so slightly in answer to this sight. The officer raised his eyebrow, questioning if there was something wrong. Shaking his head, Andrew glanced back down at the ground, knowing it was in his best interest to stay quiet as much as possible.

Which is a problem when he’s so inquisitive.

Lifting his head again, he eyed Sevastian, curiosity shining in his eyes as he took in the dark-haired man’s appearance. The shape of the eyes were so familiar to Andrew, despite them being a different shade, it reminded him so much of the man that walked out of Andrew’s life when he was a child. Glancing at the naked guy in curiosity again, he waited for the man’s answer only to have another guard bring a girl over and speak to the officer next to him. Looking at her, Andrew took in her features. She was pretty, and Andrew’s cheeks started to burn. He turned his eyes away, shame coloring his cheeks red.

“Restrain her like the others and bring her in for questioning.” The officer ordered.

Head snapping up at that, Andrew looked at him and protested, “Sir, with all due respect, she wasn’t involved! I understand she needs to be question, especially if she knows something, but don’t you think you could be gentler with her? Please sir.”

Andrew smiled a little as his officer looked at him, instantly feeling the cheerful façade Andrew always carried sliding into place. “Andrew, you might be a favorite of the King, but you must remember your place.” The officer reprimanded gently.

“My place as you put it is to judge the character of our guests. This miss doesn’t seem to be a threat, so while I agree we should bring her in to be sure, she doesn’t need the same level of restraint. Are you going to disobey a direct order from the King?” Andrew chirped, only the faintest hint of a threat in his tone. He knew he was pushing his own luck, his ability to judge people wouldn’t protect him forever. Although he never knew why he was supposed to judge outsiders, that was just what the King wanted him doing on top of protecting the town.

Glancing from one person to another, the Hybrid boy had even been restrained with their special magic-blocking cuffs, evaluating them all individually. Pointing to Sevastian, Topsy, Jacen, Lannit and Renn, he commented, “They’re threats, they need more restraints. That one isn’t quite as much of a threat since his energy levels have been drained, but he needs heavier restraints than the girl.” Andrew chimed, he honestly didn’t know why he knew this stuff. It was always just instinct, much like he hadn’t trusted that sharp dressed man he met when he was a child. Although none of these men screamed snake to Andrew the same way he had.

Shaking his head to dismiss that thought, Andrew glanced at Sevastian to see that Susanoo was still bristled over his short comment. Rolling his eyes, he was about to say something when Ramuh whispered in his mind, “Calm yourself Andrew, there’s no need to sink to the storm god’s level.”

He felt an electric shock go through his system as Ramuh touched his shoulder, reaching up his hand he swiped at his right shoulder and grumbled, “Back off Ramuh, I don’t need you right now. Why don’t you go bug him?”

Glancing at Susanoo again, he smiled once more as a light came to his eyes. Stepping forward a bit, he asked, “How long have you been able to work with him? I’ve been able to talk with the Astrals since I was five, even though I’m not supposed to be able to. So? How long?” Andrew always wondered if because of his oddity on Eos and the sudden upheaval to Machinecken was why he could read people so well. He heard that people developed the ability as a defense mechanism.

 

[Hazen Gregory]

Upon having the magic sealing restraints put on his wrists, Topsy shrugged, allowing it to not phase him for the time being. He wanted to wait and see how far all of this would progress before making any more comments, or any other shocking revelations. He turned to the younger one who'd been named Andrew amd smirked. It happened often enough; him being asked about his strange name. Topsy decided to give the same kind of response that he often gave to those whom made such an inquiry. "My name is weird you say?? I certainly can't deny that it isn't." Topsy grinned, cracking his neck to the left and then the right before he spoke again. "Well, your clearance level isn't high enough to actually get a straight answer. My name is classified...as in top secret."

Topsy moved his arms forward, and then without warning, his keyblade dislodged itself from the rooftop beyond them and came flying down to float in front of him, levitating slightly off the ground as he mused at how pitiful this world seemed to be. "I already showed my visitor pass and diplomatic credentials and yet you still have unjustly tried to restrain me with these magical toys??" He wriggled his wrists in the bonds and they shattered into pieces. A short explanation would be that Topsy's ability to draw in magic was partially blocked from entering his body but not the areas around it. "Pathetic, do better next time if you want to break inter-world law and diplomatic policy." The cuffs had broken due to a surplus of magic crushing their physical bonds.

"Now then. I said I would go with you, but not as a prisoner. If I am to be jailed after the fact, then so be it. In the meantime my rank won't be ignored, especially in a lowly world like this that isn't really on the radar to begin with." Topsy dismissed his weapon and shortly after he did this, his miasma clothing began to shift. It glowed brighter pink than is was before, deepening in color while making a disgusting sucking/slurping sound. "Ah, that's much better." Topsy put both hands inside the pockets of his new tuxedo jacket, grinning at how sleek his entire outfit was. It was much more presentable than his previous near nude clothing.

Topsy looked seriously annoyed at this point and rubbed his wrists as if they'd been injured or possibly burned. He tapped his right loafer clad foot on the ground and sighed heavily, "So are you people here wanna-be murderers??" His tone was angry, "My senses certainly aren't wrong about those devices you use to restrain so tell me if I'm wrong. And I'm not..." He pointed to the others. "What if we are hybrids and you using magic to inhibit us caused our inner heartless to go out of control?? What if that particular magic you used in fact, caused our deaths because you sealed away the heartless within us, thus causing them to die." He spit, "Heartless ARE magical beings. If they die inside of us without properly being excised...WE DIE!!!"

He glared at the head guard, "What the hell is wrong with you people, and who thought to make these things!?!? Did your researchers think of that, or are you so concerned with who has a visitor's pass that these violations skipped your minds."

 

[Key Wielder]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Well. That seems like a bit of an overreaction.[/FONT][/FONT]
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[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Yoake wisely decided not to bother pointing that out and instead held her wrists aloft so that she could be restrained along with the others. Much as she appreciated the guard’s—Andrew’s?—interference on her behalf, the decision had been made. She was to accompany these selfish, vastly overdramatic criminals to the castle for questioning. What they could possibly believe she knew was a mystery, especially when she’d be the first to enlighten them to the fact that she was here for answers of her own. It would be like the blind leading the blind in her interrogation, but that was hardly a point to be made now. They’d find out soon enough, and when they did, she’d be set free while the other wielders remained in shackles. Justice would be done; she had faith in that.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]And speaking of justice, she had a feeling that it would only be delayed further if they stood here waiting for round two. That being said, Yoake paused for the guard that had apprehended her (she’d use that phrasing since there wasn’t anything more appropriate) to tie her wrists together before clearing her throat and inquiring, “Not to interrupt, but has there been a great deal of trouble with...[/FONT][FONT=&quot]outsiders[/FONT][FONT=&quot] in this world? I know my own has had its fair share. From what I’d heard, though, I didn’t think that would happen here.”

It was, after all, far too lovely.

When his only response was a dismissive shrug that she assumed she was meant to accept as affirmation, Yoake looked to Andrew and their shared superior in sympathy. She could only imagine how they must feel if this was what they had to deal with on a daily basis. They were fortunate enough in the Land of Dragons to be spared visitors much of the time, but a place like this was noted as an outpost for a reason. With visitors like these... Well, who needed enemies?[/FONT][/FONT]