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Post by Squall Leonhart on Sept 24, 2009 22:10:38 GMT -5
Squall halted only briefly at the strange light of a motorcycle left ion the hall seemingly disintegrating into nothing, but quickly pressed onward toward the chaos ahead. The entrance to Ansem's Study was filled with ruin, not an easy job for them to repair, and the inside fared little better. He slid to a full stop just inside now torn-apart room with his gunblade in hand, just in time to witness the last seconds of the three brothers disappearing.
"Cloud, what happened?" he asked aloud, not sure of anything that had occurred in the castle prior to or after the strange hope-filled light had swept the land. The scarred warrior also turned to face Kassom's possessed form. With the metal covering his body Leon was just barely able to connect the dots in his mind to match him to the one he'd seen just briefly in the alley as this had all started.
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Post by yami on Sept 27, 2009 18:23:51 GMT -5
((OOC: Wow, this was an awesome start to forgiven a SOLDIER's story plot. Thanks for the great thread everyone. Now for the next step))  "What was that just now...darkness, one that was pushed to the deepest recess of my memories...?"
It rendered Cloud in a state of stop, the outside world become distant as his mind's eye took over. Images of Sephiroth began to haunt the SOLDIER's memory. It was as if his victory was being pulled away from him.
"Damn it! WHY?"
Cloud's right fist slammed into the ground. It wasn't supposed to be like this, yet no sooner did Cloud's senses trigger. He looked up sharply, then his head looked to the left, followed by the right. Somebody was there, watching him but who? Regardless, this would come as quite the sight for Leon. Seeing Cloud looking about utterly confused, no wonder he broke the silence. Turning almost jumpy, Cloud caught sight of the lion hearted young man. Letting out a very audible sigh, he'd respond to Leon shortly.
"Some intruders got into here and proceeded to threaten this guy with me."
"Why do they remind me of him...of myself?"
This latter part caused Cloud to wince before attempting to regain his composure.
"I'll find them...they won't get away with this."
....but why did the sensation of being watched continue to irk Strife?  "What is the key to your heart's dark power?"Hidden perhaps within the shadows or hiding in plain sight, a being was observing Cloud. Considering the battles that took place in the study, perhaps her position was masked due to a lack of focus on Cloud's part. Regardless of the stealthy feat, a golden occulus was fixated on the SOLDIER. Just what was the secret to his heart? How did he produce such a powerful darkness that it manifested into a being separate from himself? Was he just a magnet to those with dark hearts? These were research notes taken down not from today's experiences, rather from a past event.
Yes, these two had met before but would Cloud recognize as such? That depended on if anyone would pick up on her presence. It was only recently that she made herself known, bridging the digital gap and thus manifesting her "being" into the world. Therefore, recognition of her presence would perhaps come to pass much quicker. |
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Post by nascent on Oct 1, 2009 23:55:02 GMT -5
"Kah...!" Ilaelis grunted, stumbling to a stop half a dozen feet past where the silver-haired trio had been. Beneath a mask of metal was an expression of sheer disgust, both with himself and his enemies. Back during the Celestial War a cheap trick like that...
A strange glow... and energy. Powerful energy. The demonic scout's gaze turned left... and froze.
The brothers had been standing in the opened entrance to the secret lab when the feral scout had charged them head-on... now, because of that he stood on the walkway leading to the computer room, overlooking the vast hallway-like chamber that stretched outward unto a distant white light. Along the walls were large transparent tubes, and in each tube... rested a glowing, radiant heart.
Not since the war against the gods had Ilaelis sensed as much power as was present in this secreted laboratory. The demon's head spun, overwhelmed by the sensation. How... how had he not felt this before?!
For several long moments he just stared, awestruck. Humans... were capable of this?!? He'd never thought it possible. Slowly, the Kinzoku turned his head to the two swordsmen standing in the study.
"Can I assume," His tone was perfectly calm and neutral. "That neither of you will try to kill us if I ask what all this is? Or should we just take our leave now?"
Even if they told him to get lost, Kassom and Ilaelis had both decided they weren't going anywhere without answers. Whether that meant more fighting... was for the humans to decide.
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Post by Squall Leonhart on Oct 2, 2009 0:12:48 GMT -5
"Hey, calm down," Leon instructed rather steadily. The thought cleaning all this up wasn't going to show any wavering on his exterior, after all, He was too well-practiced in keeping a cool outer shell. "We don't even know what it was they got away with yet do we?"
That was just a guess of course, but an educated one. A mess like this would take at least a little while of fighting to produce even for Cloud, and the gunblade master hadn't been that slow to get here that much more could have occurred. Of course, the open entrance to the secret laboratory of Ansem the Wise was the real concerning image of this little picture. The metal man inside of it made it all the worse.
"I'd prefer if you stayed," Leon answered the demon, now at Cloud's side with his gunblade resting on his shoulder but every fiber of his body saying that this stance was anything but a casual one despite its appearance. He didn't know who or what this thing was but he had stumbled upon an unfortunately big secret... and it looked like he wasn't even the one who had opened the door. More problems to worry about. "A stranger just leaving with knowledge of this place would be pretty unsettling for us."
Leon seemed willing to talk, at least. When the cat was out of the bag it did little good to try and pretend it wasn't there, after all.
[I'm assuming he can't recognize the guy from the alley due to appearance and voice changing]
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Post by yami on Oct 3, 2009 18:26:07 GMT -5
 "His eyes could only see the next fight."
"They took my sanity, that's what..." or so Cloud wanted to say but the thought of them only being here to obtain something didn't cross his mind at all. Caught in the heat of battle and protecting an innocent off-worlder; that was his focus. Positioned just before the doorway to the right side, this would have Leon towards the left and most likely the one who was more visible of the two. His partner for the bout was out in the hallway, peering into the Secret Lab and most likely beyond it's confines.
When he called out to them, Cloud now looked down and out to the hallway at his 'partner'. Despite being toyed with in combat earlier, he now spoke with a calm tone of voice. He certainly had every right to worry about his circumstances. Squall seemed to have this portion covered, yet now Cloud wondered about the area which had been unlocked. It seems there were secrets that still weren't properly explained, in his mind. Moving past Squall and through the doorway, he began his walk down the stretch of the hallway in order to join Kassom.
"Don't worry, you're in good hands."
He wanted to reassure the one whom he joined arms with for combat, cause his goal was indeed to protect him. Now that the fighting was over, Strife wasn't going to turn his back on the off-worlder. Rather, he himself was curious to see what was beyond the study. Though perhaps it was also a desire to just leave the study in general. The feeling of someone watching him had grown stronger. Thus he turned back to Leon now.
"One of them came from this side...we might as well check it out. Is there anyone left inside the study?"
Considering Cloud was trying to return to his cool demeanor, this was more of a stealthy way of asking about his suspicions.
__________________
"Is he aware...?"
What was once a research task soon shifted into a recon/defense assignment. Just ahead was Ansem's Secret Lab, the place where the terminal was located. The terminal was her home and the investigation of that area didn't bode well for her. Thus if Leon were to look back at Cloud's mention of checking, Oriana would be right there. Standing in the middle of the room, her expression was rather stoic. If they chose to continue on ahead, she'd simply follow them in silence and intervene as necessary.
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Post by Squall Leonhart on Dec 28, 2009 18:26:14 GMT -5
"I didn't pass anyone on my way... in."
Leon usually mad eit a point to not be surprised by things. You could lose way too much as the cost for just a small moment spent wasted on surprise. Ready for anything, anytime, anywhere. His instantaneous reflexes were built up on that premise, not wishing to let a microsecond of action be wasted that could be better spent acting. Still, in this rare instance, and while still maintaining his readiness to act as soon as it was needed... Squall Leonhart allowed himself to be surprised.
A purple-haired girl was standing behind him right there in the study. But when did she get there? Leon almost never allowed anyone to follow or sneak up on him without noticing, yet he'd been oblivious to her presence. That was surprising... and worthy of concern if she wasn't the friendly type. He'd still be oblivious to her proximity had Cloud's words not made him turn to look out of sheer habit. 'I wonder why he asked anyway?'
Well, it looked like there was a lot of explaining to do. This man who Leon would soon learn was the same person from the alley this whole mess started in and the new stranger were both outsiders now privy to some pretty big secrets. It was time to sit them down, if he could, and try to get them to understand their cause and reasons to stay quiet. He wasn't looking forward to the RGRC meeting after this, but it was inevitable. Today's attack was nearly unprecedented in a world where attacks were practically expected every week. Only one thing was for certain:
The Black Knight had been wrong. This wasn't a Safe Haven at all.
[END]
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I did post in shades of grey if anyone even remembers that lmao