Safe Haven? [FINISHED]

[Squall Leonhart]

Well, can't blame a guy for trying.

Leon was slammed into the rock wall behind him and he fell down to the floor face-first. The swordsman still gripped his weapon tightly, but he was clearly dealing with that mysterious pain again because he didn't get back up as fast as he might have. He probably could have mentally muscled through since it wasn't so bad now and didn't seem to have any lasting physical effects, but when combined with the two real shocks he'd just taken he needed another moment to collect himself.

He felt just like Squall Leonhart again... and that wasn't a good thing. His world was under sage once more and once more he seemed powerless to stop it. But why? What was happening to him?! That unknown question seemed to put a fresh spike in whatever ailed the warrior, causing him to clench his teeth rather uncomfortably.

Once more he was wide open to any follow-up attack the strangers had for him.

[Kadaj]

"Mother won't be pleased by this delay," Kadaj said with childish self-pity as he rolled Yazoo's bike up to where the beam had once stood.

Being the faster of the two, Yazoo quickly got to Loz's bike and then drove it up to him. Apparently he would have to ride as a tag-along on his own vehicle. Clearly that was the middle child's intent.

Kadaj would hit the gas and start driving up the narrow path. His brothers would certainly flow him unless there was a surprise attack. If they managed to get as far as the broken gate with the stairs that led up to the Bailey band the beginning of the back path that led to the Castle Postern then Kadaj would come to s stop. It wasn't the sight of the second nearby beam that halted him, though.

'Someone is here.'

He couldn't feel it before because of the battle he had been fighting, and it was still quite the distance away, but the feeling was unmistakable. He didn't know why, who, or even how, but someone important to mother was up ahead. Perhaps... they would take care of things? No. Kadaj couldn't think like that. he was the one who knew Mother's will!

"You two go on ahead to the lab Yazoo found," he would say, then turn his gunbike towards the stairs nearby. "I must take care of something in town." And with that the youngest brother would ride the motorcycle right up the stairs and through the Bailey into the Borough. meanwhile, the other two siblings were instructed to continue the charge straight ahead towards the second pillar of destructive energy,

Assuming they were allowed to go even that far without more interruption, of course.

[yami]

May 13, 2009 15:15:09 GMT -5 Shinn said:

[Yami there are so many things wrong with that last post of yours I can't even begin to start. Props for your effort and figuring out where I was talking about. But how the hell would Cloud know exactly where it was. The Room of Sleep wasn't exactly something that was well known by everyone even though I had written that there is a huge hole in the ground where it is now. Plus saying that there were no interruptions along your speedy travel is not up to you. This complete knowledge of the castle and it's weakness doesn't seem like something Cloud would just know. If anything Leon and Cid would probably be the only two who MIGHT know about the Room of Sleep. This is borderline Metagaming in my opinion, unless you or anyone else can come up with valid excuses for your post. If not you'll need to edit the crap out of that post. I strongly suggest deleting that one and post after me. If you do that then I won't count this post as a turn.]

It seemed that Yazoo had been stalling time in order to get the masked creature close enough to the beam behind him. In one flawless move Yazoo quickly ended the masked creatures attack and threw it into the beam where it was instantly disintegrated. This caused the beam to expand some two feet before finally shrinking into nothing. The beam was gone leaving nothing but a deep crater in the ground.

Leons assumptions were right but his perception of the distance between the two were all off. Sure they weren't that far from each other but it was enough for it to simply pull back a mask and scream even with Leons increased speed towards it. The attack progressed as he fired his gunblade at it. The sheer force from the sonic wave would slow the bullets down eventually stopping them dead in their tracks. As for Leon, he would be hit full force by the wave as he came closer and closer to the masked creature.

Meanwhile Cloud had flown past the Postern and now entered the castles Corridors. The maze of a room would be no trouble for the "SOLDIER" to get through but what was waiting at the end of the room would. Standing in front of the door that led to Ansems Study Room was the voluptuous woman in the black and yellow striped skirt. She giggled upon seeing the arrival of Cloud. "Well aren't you cute. Are you here for little ol' me?"

OOC: Figured I'd clear up some confusion here ^^;

i) My reference in regards to no resistance was getting to the castle, my post assumed Cloud would indeed meet resistance on his path.
ii) Thanks for giving away the secret ;] Though in all honesty I didn't really know ._.; My memory was hazy as to the difficulty of getting to that place since I didn't recall it being as difficult in he first place.
iii) My appologies, I mis-worded my post, it's been awhile since I've played KH2 so accessibility and room layout are very fuzzy right now. Just did a quick video play-through, so I'll do my ammendents in this post to clear confusion.
iv) As narrator I assumed you'd add resistance to Cloud somehow so don't take as me attempting to undermine your posts or anything, I'm just going with your flow.

IC:

"Destiny lead to unexpected encounters..."

Zipping through the complex hallways of the castle, Cloud's priortiy was to make it to the Study, so that he could venture to the Secret Lab as instructed by Leon previously. The speed of the zipping blod was a key in the reduction of time through those hallways, added knowledge...albeit still limited to all the Castle's secrets; was another key factor in the seemingly mad-dash. Now the fruits of his labour were coming. He was heading towards the door of the study as he saw an unusual obstacle in his path. A Voluptious woman clad in black with a yellow skirt.

...Yeah, that was quite the obstacle/distraction. Unfortunately the SOLDIER was on a mission and thus First Tsurugi was ready. His aura of blue was indeed winding down so he had to take this oppertunity to make one final act. At the speed he was moving towards her, as well as the furious slashes with a fierce strength to match, in the mind of the SOLDIER there was no way this possible enemy would dare to stay infront of that door. He simply aimed to remove her from his path and this seemed to be the best way.

Should either the high speed dash or the possible slash get her to move aside he'd simply cut down the door to the study. If she decided to stand ground, the speed combined with the strength Cloud would put behind this final wave of Omnislash would send both of them into the study which would allow Cloud a chance to follow up with his finishing blow.

This finishing blow could go two ways depending on the scenarios above.

i) She avoids the speedy dash and cloud slices through the door of the study. This results in Cloud moving up to the center of the study before crashing down. First Tsurugi would split the table in the middle and the shockwave would unlodge the hidden door which lead to the Secret Lab. Of course, it'd also keep the woman from entering at least for a brief moment. Thus his eyes would be focused on this hidden entrance.

"This must be it..." he'd muse to himself.

ii) Due to Cloud pushing forward and through the door, more than likely some of his slashes may have been blocked through this rather rough maneuver. Certainly not the best way to handle a lady. It also allowed for an oppertunity to render her immobile as his actions would escalate the duo to the centr of the room before he slammed First Tsurugi down to the ground below. The damage potential varied depending on if she'd catch the blunt of such a blow but she'd certainly be affected by the immediate shockwave.

Just as before it would unhinge the hidden door which caused Strife to momentarily take a glance before looking back to his 'opponent'.

[Shinn]

[Another shortcut Nascent? Lucky for you Yamis cooperation is making me feel very generous today so I won't say anything about that. And since Yami was such a good sport, this post will not count against you guys so thank Yami for that one.]


Kassoms ears helped the feline anthromorph into finding the right direction to go. While he would be a while before reaching the very bottom of the castle there was a small glimmer of hope that he could make it in time.

Kadaj and the other two brothers would split into two different paths one headed to where Leon was at while the other headed for the town. Lucky for them they would not be interrupted by anymore of those masked creatures for the moment.

Leon, who was busy handling several masked creatures of his own, was now on the ground pretty much helpless now. The strain on his body from the mysterious ailment as well as just taking a direct hit from the sonic wave was starting to get to him. The creatures now had a perfect chance to finish him off. But they didn't. They all stood there motionless once more.

Meanwhile Cloud had just encountered the lady that seemed to be in charge of what was going on. And in a complete ungentlemanly move he dashed off to attack her. In his mind there were two outcomes, but like all villains they never follow the rules.

Instead the third option which she had in her head was put into affect. The two large rings which she wore on each wrist began to spin around on their own. When Cloud went for the first strike the blade met with the metallic ring bouncing his sword back a little bit. The shock wave that would have occurred seemed to be absorbed into the ring. This would occur with each and every swing that Cloud would attempt on her and with his final move as the only chance to do anything, it would also prove to do nothing.

Depending on if he would attempt to hit her with the sword or just slam it into the ground in front of her would determine her next action. If he were to slam the sword right into her the rings which had gathered and absorbed the force and strength of the SOLDIERs sword strikes would be released in one wave of force that would act as a barrier to repel the final attack and settle the after shock preventing any damage to her or to the surrounding area. Instead that force would be sent right back at Cloud knocking him backwards possibly immobilizing him for a moment.

But if he were to just slam it in front of her then the rings would simply shoot out a wave of energy in front of her creating a barrier that would block the force of Clouds after shock.
[Four turns left]

[yami]

"His destiny tended to clash with others..."

Cloud's forsight seemed to fail him though perhaps one could give the SOLDIER some credit for attempting such a brash move off the cuff. Upon the first strike of First Tsurugi, Cloud had picked up on the basics behind this woman's defense. With the sword somewhat pushed back, his mind began to race with thought. Engulfed in the blue aura that Omnislash evoked upon him, his form began to blur as other "strikes" were made in feints in order to better understand this woman's defense. His body of course aimed to slash the vixen towards the right side.

cloud said:

"Just who are you and what have you done to Radiant Garden...?"

His voice lacked the same hostility that his physical actions portrayed. Despite this, he attempted to aim his slashes away from these rings. The feinting actions of his slashes would help in providing him some additional leverage. The fact that he aimed at various directions (above, below, left side, right side, etc) would also be an added boon to his efforts. Thanks to the power of Omnislash his overall slashing speed was increased and he made sure to put this into effect. Throughout his slashes from the right and left side respectively, he arked First Tsurugi in a mannor that caused the walls to become deeply impacted from his strikes. Considering the strength he possesed within this heightened state, more than likely there were several small horizontal openings in the wall.

cloud said:

"Now then...how can I get passed her?"

Upon the final attack Cloud indeed flew up into the air, his actions made it seem as if he was going to come down on her but instead a different situation occured. Before he could reach her head First Tsurugi was instead impounded into the wall. As a result, the majority of the shockwave traveled through the walls and went down where the rings would shield Cloud's opponent as stated. With his blade sent into the wall, there was a possibility it would collapse and as a result Cloud would be buried in the rubble. However due to the strikes impact most likely the study's walls would either collapse entirely or be very weak. Regardless Cloud was going to be out for a little while considering the circumstances.

[Loz]

[Yami's posts are prettiful. .__.]

Loz, at the sign of his younger brother driving his motorcycle, jumped onto the back of his vehicle with a smirk. The three beams have disappeared, and Loz and his brother, at the command of Kadaj, sped up the road to the castle to meet the second row of beams blocking their path. Even without Kadaj, Loz and Yazoo were sure that they would be able to advance without too much trouble. The duo were invincible when working together.

Arriving upon the second barrier, two pairs of cat like green eyes observed the scene. A man, no doubt a villager, was on the ground, seemingly useless for the moment. Loz smirked at the sight of the man before turning to face the creatures. The two brothers were more concerned over the three that was once again blocking their way. Loz stood up on his motorcycle as Yazoo pulled to a stop.

Yazoo pulled out his Velvet Nightmares, and Loz drew the same gun from the holster attached to his thigh. It was apparent that the two were hostile. Hostile enough to garner a response from the three creatures.

The two opened fired on the three masked monsters, never stopping to load or pick a specific target. The fallen villager would have to be careful to avoid the rain of bullets.

[Heroic Bilby]

Somewhere on the world once called Hollow Bastion a great light stirred. Perhaps it was a reaction to the appearance of the mysterious strangers and their hidden agenda. Perhaps it was deliberately triggered by a person for their own reasons. It could have been because of the potential danger the world faced. Whatever the reason, something vast and powerful had been unleashed.

It appeared the same to those who had been fleeing for Gummi Ships hoping to escape any calamity that might befall them as it did to those fighting to prevent it and to those acting out their own unknown goals. From somewhere, its origin almost impossible to determine, a bright royal blue light appeared. At first it was like a rising sun, but its illumination spread so swiftly it could hardly be believed. Soon all was awash in this sea of blue light, infiltrating all senses and shining through all barriers though it was not painful to the eye to look at. Even those deep within the old castle itself would find themselves completely immersed in it amidst their own struggles and business, and to all who were engulfed within the light a strange feeling would forcibly penetrate their hearts.

Hope. And undeniable sense of unspecific hope.

The entirety of the world was filled with this power, so much so that to those looking at the stars in the sky on other worlds, this star would suddenly appear as cobalt against the black night sky instead of white like all the rest, and shine even brighter than usual. It lasted for only a few, amazing seconds. After that the shining light faded away and the natural world returned to its usual state, recovery from a hazy perception quickly. The feeling of unnatural hope faded away but for some perhaps they would feel it all their own now, because the world was not as it had been before.

The strange invaders in masks were gone. the beam from the sky that barred passage to the castle Postern was no longer there. Within the castle itself no trace of any non-residents of the Garden remained amidst any rubble or otherwise. The ship that filled the entire sky was gone.

Radiant Garden was.... saved? In truth no one truly knew what these strangers were even trying to do in the first place so that would have to remain an assumption. But were they destroyed or simply... forced away? The light had felt immeasurably powerful, but not hostile. It was hard to imagine it had done anyone harm. The real question that remained now was where had all that power come from and why had it appeared?

And what would those who had fought for their home or their own personal agendas do now in the aftermath?

[High's .Valentine.]

“Yer comin’ with me,” Cid growled, grabbing Tifa’s arm and proceeded to pull her out of the building in order to point her in the direction of the gummi ship. He had growled, but the confidence there was gone. Nor was there any hostility. Rather, it was just a blank flat utter. They had failed. One failure after another. Cid just felt like sitting on the step in front of Merlin’s house and smoke a cigarette. Get some toxins into his lung. Fill it up with disappointment. Nevertheless he pulled Tifa along, refusing to let go lest she disappear on him too. He had to save someone. He only managed to get a few steps out of the door before suddenly, a dazzling blue light filled the sky, the streets, everywhere, as if the whole world itself had been turned on, illuminated like a disco light.

The pilot slowed to a stop, his calloused grasp never releasing Tifa’s arm as he stared up at the sky, wonder in his weary blue eyes. He didn’t program that. Maybe Leon had succeeded? Leon and Cloud, saving their world with such fanfare. Cid broke into a smile. Those brats, what a bunch of show offs, just like Sora. Not once did Cid question that it might have been the end of Radiant Garden and that the blue light belonged to the ship he saw above the town. It just couldn’t be possible. This feeling of hope…it could mean nothing other than their success. Finally, he released Tifa’s arm, too wound up in the choked up feeling to really bother with anything. Somehow, some way, they were safe.

If there was any moment for Cid to bawl like a child, now was it.

Thankfully, he was spared the embarrassment. For as soon as the light had arrived, it was gone. His mood, though deflating slightly, remained elevated even as the cyan drained from the streets and the buildings. It remained in the sky. Cid looked up at the grandest beauty of this world that moments before had been hidden behind smoky clouds and sighed contently. He couldn’t be sure until he sees it with his own eyes, but he could feel it in his guts. The masked beings were gone, along with the woman in yellow, the towering ship, and any sort of fear that had been brewing in the pits of his stomach. Leon, Cloud, and everyone else in the town were safe. Everything was going to be alright.

Turning, he glanced at Tifa. Though he was no longer smiling as he was before, under the rays of the blue light, the fatigue was erased, rubbed away along with the disappointment and doubt.

“Come on,” Cid headed back towards Merlin’s house, beckoning towards Tifa. The computer there was no longer working as it should be, but Cid felt that he needed to be back where he belonged. Maybe Leon and Cloud would meet him there.

[Iris|Kairi]

Yeah, Tifa was beyond...'disappointed'. It could be seen in her stance, by her slumped shoulders. She could save...none of them? Once it was seen as futile, her mind became confused. Should she be flying into a fiery rage, trying to destroy any of the masks she could in revenge? That didn't feel her style. But neither did this overwhelming sense of complete and utter defeat and uselessness. Carefully, her feet shuffled back, distancing herself from what was going on before her. She'd failed. Those people were gone.. Tifa had been of absolutely no use, even with all her strength at her command. It seemed pathetic. A slap in the face.

Before the brunette could think herself into a full self-questioning depression, a strong arm took hers and pulled her along without permission. The martial artist put up no fight, but instead blindly followed who she now knew was Cid. Where did he come from? Following obediently, she too stopped once the cobalt light filter infected everything, including her own body. Thankfully, it ridded her much of her thoughts of complete inadequacy and failure, though naturally not all. She had failed her personal mission after all and watched people be lost for perhaps ever.. No! She had hope they'd find them and everything would be back to normal! Back to rebuilding... The hope warmed her. It didn't make her feel safe, but then again, she had never really felt like she was in danger. Tifa had an odd knack for that... but as quickly as it had exploded from it's mysterious source, the light retracted and faded away. The attack was over...but the people weren't back. One step at a time, though.

After Cid spoke again, she nodded and pulled a half smile.

"Coming."

[nascent]

Hope... and falling.

As the overpowering wave of hope's light washed over Kassom, he and the demon within his blood found themselves unable to concentrate. Will itself is what makes a Kinzoku's metal manipulation work, and when something so penetrating interrupts that will...

In this case, the result was free fall.

The entire debacle was proof that hope isn't all its cracked up to be. In those few moments Kassom hoped he would stop falling, hoped the metal floor would flex like a trampoline to Ilaelis' will, hoped that any number of unlikely outcomes would occur. Ilaelis hoped Kassom could pull off a decent landing. Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment.

CLANG!!

"What... what the **** was that?!" Kassom asked, picking himself slowly up off the unmerciful metal floor. He'd managed to avoid landing face-first, but his shoulder was pretty badly banged up now in spite of his metal over-skin.

<<Heck if I know.>> Ilaelis replied, clearly as shocked and disoriented as his host. <<Last time I felt anything like that... was the Celestial War. Oh ****, don't tell me there's a god getting involved here!>>

"So... that wasn't the weirdos from before?"

<<Could be, but I somehow doubt it. She said they were gonna destroy this place, not shower divine light on it. Only one way to find out, though...>>

---------------------------------------------------------------

As her eyes flitted open, the wind-knight Melana Sonalir found herself in unfamiliar environs. These buildings, the dark starry sky, the cobblestone she was laid out on... even the air seemed different. Gone was the salty flavor of the ocean's presence, borne upon the humid vespers. She could only conclude that she was now... somewhere else.

Was that... light? A fading light, lingering in the air around her? No... surely just her exhaustion playing tricks on her eyes... though as she slowly sat up, Melana discovered that she no longer felt exhausted at all. In truth, she felt... hopeful? It didn't make much sense.

Footsteps. She looked around, and at the other end of the alleyway she saw two people walking. One was a woman clad in black and looked like a martial artist... the other a scruffy-looking man who, by his clothes, looked like some manner of engineer. From what she could see, the man looked pretty beat up, some of his injuries more severe than others.

"Excuse me!" Melana got to her feet and chased after Tifa and Cid. "Where am I? Are those creatures attacking people here too?"

---------------------------------------------------------------

Kassom didn't know exactly where he was going, but from the sounds he'd heard earlier he had a pretty good idea. That, and the trail Cloud left wasn't all that hard to follow. Having shed his metal overskin, the feral rogue crept silently along the corridors and entered Ansem's study, stopping there to examine the various curiosities there. Among the broken glass and scattered books were diagrams, theorems... a lot of talk about worlds, hearts, and darkness.

Paydirt.

Now, if only he had someone who could explain all this scientific gobbledygook to him...

[Squall Leonhart]

Just like that, Leon's pain vanished. Once the all-consuming hope, in his case hope that his home would not be harmed in this struggle, invaded his heart his mysterious ailment immediately receded. Of course his real, physical pain remained from the battles so far, but that was small by comparison.

The swordsman pushed himself up and took in the sight of.... nothing. All was as it should be again. Did Cloud do that? Squall certainly retained a lot of that hope for himself. He was almost smiling, even. But, as usual, he had to think of certain concerns first.

Such as those two silver-haired bikers.

"Who are you two?" he asked, knowing for certain he'd never seen them in town before. They'd attacked the strangers so a thank-you might have been in order, but Squall had almost gotten punched full of bullets himself if he hadn't stayed flat on the ground in pain. That didn't suggest much good of the two.

[Kadaj]

Kadaj's, or rather Yazoo's, gunbike pulled to a stop just beyond the town-side gate of the Bailey. After an experience like that the youth was more eager than ever to reach to his goal. Surely that hope was a sign from Mother that her return was within their grasp. He would make sure of it. The teenager dismounted his vehicle there and walked over to the edge of the walkway. He hopped haphazardly over the edge and landed with grace on the roof of a borough building. Kadaj's sharp green eyes spied a rather noticeable hole ina certain house not far from his current location.

'How convenient,' he thought with amusement as he began to walk across the rooftops toward that house.

[High's .Valentine.]

It seemed like he missed someone. Cid stopped, turning to find an unfamiliar woman clad in armor approaching them. It was unlikely that anyone in Radiant Garden would walk around wearing full clad armor and if they were, Cid would have taken notice. She must have gotten here in the midst of the confusion. Gripping his spear, Cid glared at her despite her neutral demeanor.

“Dun know where ye are?” The pilot questioned cynically, raising an eyebrow. Sure, she didn’t seem like she knew what was going on, but you can never be sure.

“Just who are ye and what are ye doin' here?”

[Loz]

One of the best way to exhibit superiority is to simply…ignore.

And that was just what the two silver haired men did. With the sudden coming and going of the shining light, neither Yazoo nor Loz are in the mood for Q and A. The surge of hope and the disappearance of all obstacles only spurred them on even more, Yazoo in his graceful desire for their reunion and Loz in his raw, powerful need for Mother. Thus, it would not be surprising that Leon was met with the sound of a roaring motorcycle instead of words. Revving the motor, Yazoo released the break and the bike sped forward, straight at Leon. At the last minute, right before the bike would hit the man head on, Yazoo swerved the bike and the two drove right past the castle’s guardian and straight towards the lab. If there were no other disruptions, the brothers should reach the entrance to the corridors leading to the lab in less than a few minutes.

[nascent]

“Just who are ye and what are ye doin' here?”

Melana hesitated slightly at the man's gruff demeanor. Wherever she was now, it seemed they didn't like outsiders very much. Acting almost on instinct she made an apologetic bow, the man's voice (grammar notwithstanding) reminding her of the chastising tone of her headmasters back at the Adelpha convent.

"F-forgive me... I am Melana Sonalir, a knight of the Kialon Order." She rubbed the side of her head as she straightened up, feeling a swelling bruise there. "The last thing I remember was Destiny Islands... the town was attacked by strange skeletal beasts abducting unconscious people with some kind of light... I was fighting, trying to save whoever I could... I must have passed out. Next thing I remember is waking up here..."

"You appear to be injured, so I asked... did I assume too much? This place is safe?"