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Post by notbanned on Jun 30, 2006 10:29:28 GMT -5
Chapter 1 - Forgotten“Reports are coming in of a strange creature on the Urbis in Manchester City Centre,” the news reporter said, scanning through his paper. “It appears to be a gigantic white bird. It is reported to have already attacked the Triangle, ripping out one of its walls, and has already killed many people.” Vincent glanced in the window as he went past, going about his not-so-daily business. Normally, he wouldn’t be caught dead outside a Curry’s Outlet shop (they often overpriced the things he wanted) but the news of this strange creature had intrigued him. He was, after all, in the area and he had been looking for some good training. Anything to occupy him, at least for a little while. “I didn’t want to ruin my new clothes… but why not?” He said to himself. He had, barely twenty minutes ago, bought himself a new outfit. He was now wearing some new shades, which had light blue lenses instead of his usual dark ones. His shirt had been replaced with a pink top that had “Redemption” embroided on the back. He was wearing some casual, semi-baggy jeans that had some ‘fashionable’ rips sewn into them. His usual trainers had been replaced with some grey Vans skate-shoes. He did still have his new weapon on him, however. His double-bladed katana. It wasn’t even a minute’s run away. Vincent promptly dropped all of his shopping (his old clothes being the only ‘shopping’ he had) and sprinted to the location of the phoenix. He ran around the corner to find it burning down the Triangle. “Dammit, I was gonna go to Free-spirit today and everything,” he joked, raising his hands. A beam of electrical energy blasted from his hand, cutting through the air, resembling a rocket. A super-charged, electrical rocket but a rocket all he same. It hit the phoenix’s wing and exploded, but it didn’t appear to do much damage. It just served to irritate the creature. “Not done yet,” Vincent said, shooting into the air. He drew his katana and focused, a ball of fire forming in the air in front of him. It changed colour, changing from red to blue to green. Vincent snatched it out of the air, and threw it at the phoenix as hard as he could. It was about to connect when the phoenix was blasted out of the air by an unknown force. Vincent dropped to the ground, looking around for the source of this attack. He wouldn’t have found it if it wasn’t for the ear-splitting shriek the phoenix let off. Vincent’s eyes snapped to the phoenix. There was a blur darting around it, like a troublesome fly around a busy person. Every so often, Vincent would hear the sound of a blade cutting something and see a splash of blood covering a small patch of the phoenix’s feathers. “Wake up, idiot,” Vincent told himself. He had been stood there for at least a minute, not doing anything. He shook his head and ran forward, launching himself into the fray. He shot through the air, a cloak of flames gathering around him as he did so. This attack would hopefully catch the phoenix by surprise and knock its guard down, so that his unknown ally would be able to launch a proper attack. He caught the phoenix’s head with his attack. The head was knocked to the side with a sickening crack, Vincent wondered if he had broken one of the bones in its neck. The attack had done what it needed to do, though. His ally launched another attack, a powerful blast of some unknown energy. The phoenix was blasted backwards, flying through the air with no apparent ability to recover. Vincent threw out his hand, a white beam blasting from it. It circled the phoenix like a rope, binding it. The energy grew until it completely covered the bird, and then shrunk out of existence. In Vincent’s hand was a translucent, red triangle-based pyramid with the phoenix inside. “Phew,” Vincent said, turning to face his ally. “That was pretty tough. Thanks for your… help…” Vincent stopped talking when he saw the person’s face. There were some changes, of course. Spiky green-turquoise hair that seemed to defy gravity. A pale blue jacket that was zipped up all the way. Navy blue jeans that were brand-new. There were changes, but Vincent would recognise that face anywhere. It was Yoshimitsu. “No problem,” he said, shrugging and shaking a few strands of hair out of his face. “Just doing my job. I’ll see you again sometime.” Yoshimitsu (or the person Vincent assumed to be Yoshimitsu) turned to leave. He took a few steps and vanished before Vincent could say anything. “…Yoshimitsu?” It was, indeed, Yoshimitsu who had aided Vincent against the phoenix. He had changes vastly, in both appearance and in who he was. When he was revived, they had nothing to go on. All they could do was revive the body and hope for the best. All things considered, it was the best possible result. They could not restore his memories without somewhere to base them during the revival process. He did, however, gain a strange combination of powers. His old powers had somehow fused and clung to his remains when he had died. Because of this, he had somehow gained incredible speed and he could draw energy never before seen on earth. His body had been restored perfectly, every detail identical to what it was before he had died, except for his hair. Yoshimitsu glanced in a window as he walked past, looking at his reflection like he did so often. There was something bugging him. Every time he saw his reflect, he could feel memories buried deep in his brain, begging to be freed. However, they would not surface and he could do nothing to make them. He sighed slightly, and continued walking. Today had certainly been eventful. Nothing beats a random monster attack. The white phoenix attacked right when he was stood in the Triangle. It ripped out the wall he had been standing next to, almost catching him with its talons. Naturally, he had been annoyed – it had caught one of the shirts he wanted to buy. He also felt a strong sense of duty, unlike anything he had ever felt since being revived. Partway through the battle, he saw the phoenix being absorbed into something that his ally had used. An unbidden memory surface. That phoenix. Its name was Altana. Yoshimitsu tried to remember more, but that was the only thing that came to him. Altana? Where had it come from? What was it really? It couldn’t just be a phoenix. Yoshimitsu couldn’t stop thinking about it. “Just who am I anyway?” He thought to himself. Vincent fell backwards onto the grass, his eyes closed, his mind racing. The noises around him, the sea crashing into the cliff-side, the breeze, the seagulls squawking as they chased their dinner, all of them meant nothing to him right now. How was he alive? There was no sensible explanation – the last necromancer to revive him has Yoshimitsu turn on him. It made no sense. What purpose could be served by it? And what about the phoenix attack? They were connected somehow. Vincent thought hard. It was definitely Yoshimitsu, he’d recognise him anywhere. Everything about him… Vincent thought back – Yoshimitsu had rushed off after the battle. That was another point – why had he rushed off? Surely, Yoshimitsu would have wanted to say hello to him, at the very least? They had been friends… Very close friends at that. This was Yoshimitsu he was talking about – Yoshimitsu wouldn’t just leave without a good reason. “What reason is there?” Vincent thought to himself.
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Post by Beelzebibble on Jun 30, 2006 11:12:10 GMT -5
I take it that all the business about clothes at the beginning is meant to signal a more figurative rebirth on the part of Vincent to mirror the recent rebirth of Yoshimitsu and the perpetual rebirth of the phoenix?
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Post by Prof. Cinders on Jul 1, 2006 10:08:26 GMT -5
Ack! Want... to... RP... this... plotline... *falls off chair* Anyway, brilliant start! I hope you actually finish this story. Each one's better than the last.
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Post by notbanned on Jul 4, 2006 15:45:19 GMT -5
I take it that all the business about clothes at the beginning is meant to signal a more figurative rebirth on the part of Vincent to mirror the recent rebirth of Yoshimitsu and the perpetual rebirth of the phoenix? Or a wizard did it.
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Post by Beelzebibble on Jul 4, 2006 17:11:27 GMT -5
Wizards are the bane of literary analysis, but somehow we love 'em anyway.
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Post by notbanned on Jul 6, 2006 13:50:47 GMT -5
Chapter 2 – Memory
Vincent’s mind snapped back to reality. He sat up, yawning and stretching, searching with his left hand for his shades. He slipped them on to his face, and looked around. Home sweet home, eh? Well, it would last him a while anyway. After clothing himself, he stepped out of his ‘house’ (it was more of a hut, really) and thought about the events of the previous day. “If he is alive,” Vincent thought to himself. “I know he’ll take care of any other monster attacks. Maybe if I’m there when they-“
Vincent’s thoughts were cut off by a loud, shrill shriek. He spun on the spot and looked around for the source of the strange, sudden noise. Above him, high in the sky, was a… horse? A gigantic silver horse with a pure white, glowing horn and two golden wings to match its mane and tail. Could this be related to the last monster attack?
“Definitely,” Vincent muttered to himself, launching straight into a flight. He cut through the air, keeping the same speed as the winged unicorn, following the dips and rises of the land. They spared over land and sea, Vincent not daring to attack until they found an area to suit him.
Yoshimitsu was at on the top of a traffic light in Florida. There were so many questions running through his head. Who was he? Where did he come from? Why did he have next-to no memory of himself? He had one clue to go on – that phoenix, Altana. That had somehow triggered a memory, a memory of the bird. It was a guardian. But what was it guarding?
Yoshimitsu’s thoughts were interrupted by an ear-splitting cry. He turned his head to see a flying unicorn. Once again, an unbidden (but entirely welcome) memory surfaced – Ryga, another guardian. Yoshimitsu did not have time to ponder this fact, though. A familiar figure was chasing the creature. Maybe he should lend a hand again…
The pair of them gave chase, not stopping until the unicorn did. It did stop eventually – it had reduced a stadium at Sea World to ruins, and managed to kill a number of the killer-whales living there. Vincent came to a sudden stop in mid-air, Yoshimitsu standing on a chunk of floating rubble. Vincent glanced at Yoshimitsu. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, this was not the time to ask questions. “I’ll distract it,” He yelled at Yoshimitsu. “You find a way to hurt it!” “Right!” Yoshimitsu shouted back, jumping out of the water and running around the edges of the ruined stadium.
“Hmm… Let’s see…” Vincent muttered. He raised his voice. “Oi! Ugly! Yeah, you with the four legs and wings! I bet you couldn’t beat a disabled chicken you’re so weak!”
This had the desired effect – Ryga reared up on its hind legs and fired out a white beam of some unknown energy at Vincent. Vincent threw up a shield of energy, only to have it shatter when the beam hit it. Vincent was thrown back by the force of the attack, momentarily stunned. What was that energy? He recovered quickly, not dwelling on the attack. Best avoid it in the future. He drew his double-bladed katana, his hair fading into gold.
Vincent shot in, moving faster than the eye could follow. He did not hack, punch or kick – he rammed straight into the unicorn’s side. It didn’t connect, however. A force-field had seemingly appeared out of nowhere, blocking the attack. Vincent kicked off this mysterious shield, and fired out a powerful blast of concentrated flames. It hit the force-field, naturally, but that didn’t concern Vincent. He needed to see the shield from a distance. It had no apparent weakness. This would be tough.
Yoshimitsu ran around the outside of the stadium, searching for a way to the roof. He couldn’t see once, so he simply scaled whatever wall he could. Unlike Vincent, he couldn’t fly, so he had to resort to whatever methods available. He scaled the wall and watched Vincent’s assault on Ryga. Barely half a minute in, he saw the first problem – the force-field. Yoshimitsu studied it carefully. Every attack was defended against, but… “Only a part of it shows at once – it can’t cover Ryga’s whole body!” Yoshimitsu breathed, jumping from the roof and drawing his naginata. He put all of his weight and strength into the tip of the blade. It cut into the force-field, revealing a portion of a sphere around the unicorn. “Attack its underside!” Yoshimitsu shouted. Vincent shot unto the unicorn, blasting another beam of fire at the creature. There was no force-field protecting it. The unicorn reared on to its hind legs again, and stomped down on Vincent. Vincent rolled out of the way, then jumped out of the way of the other stomp.
“Where’s the force-field coming from?” Vincent asked, dodging another stomp. “Its horn, maybe?” Yoshimitsu replied, dragging himself to his feet. “Let’s try it. I’ll get its underside,” Vincent said, jumping back a few feet.
Vincent hopped back, and ascended a few meters, drawing level with Ryga’s head. How to launch this attack… He thought for a second before realising that he was hovering about three meters away from a very sharp, stabby object. Shaking his head, he darted around to the back of the Unicorn, gathering up energy in his hands as he did so. He spun in the air, and fired a powerful beam of energy, forcing the force-field up.
Yoshimitsu leapt into the air, gathering energy into the blade of his naginata. The energy, an unusual one, not seen on earth. He frowned, spinning the naginata in his hand, and aiming briefly. Best not mess it up - he didn't want to suffer a retaliation, if one came. He dropped, straight through where the force-field would have been if Vincent wasn't attack. The blade connected with Ryga's horn, sending out a shockwave of energy. Electricity flowed around the horn for a second, before the glow faded. The force-field fell.
"Now we have to take it out," Yoshimitsu said, landing next to Vincent. "That'll do fine, actually," Vincent said.
He threw out his hand, a beam of energy extending from it, wrapping itself around Ryga. It was the same move that he had used on the phoenix - the beam covered the unicorn, and then shrunk it down, trapping it in a small triangle-based pyramid. Yoshimitsu watched, frowning slightly. "What did you do?" He asked, still frowning. "I call it a Hypermid, its like what the summoners use," Vincent explained. "It traps the object in question, shrinks it and puts it in a small pyramid. Inside, its a lot different than it looks from the outside. More space, for one." "Why do you do that?" "Hmm? Summoning builds power, so I might live through an encounter with something really nasty. Like Miko," Vincent said. "You should know all this." "Huh? Should I?" Yoshimitsu asked, taken aback. "You don't remember anything?" Vincent asked.
"...Who are you?" Yoshimitsu asked, taking a cautious step away from Vincent. "... You don't..." Vincent said. "I'm Vincent Li. You used to know me... but this makes no sense... You're supposed to be dead." "What?" "I saw you die. I buried you myself," Vincent said. "You were my friend..."
Vincent had casually left out how Yoshimitsu had died. That event still haunted him, tormented him. Nearly every night, when he was asleep, he saw it all over again... The fight, the pain... And just what he had done...
"But I'm not," Yoshimitsu said. "Come with me," Vincent said, extending his hand. Yoshimitsu considered it for a moment. Slowly, he reached out and grasped his former friend's hand.
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Post by notbanned on Jul 8, 2006 17:11:15 GMT -5
Chapter 3 - Home?
"Where are we?" Yoshimitsu asked.
He was stood on a higher ledge of a mountain. The mountain was positioned in the centre of a floating island, surrounded by a number of different climated. He could see a forest, a lake, a waterfall, a desert and a wasteland on one half alone. He had never been here before, had he? There were... memories? The remains of a dream, fading away. Something was familiar about this place.
"Your little getaway. You called it Mist. I don't doubt that a certain cat'll be checking in on us soon," Vincent said, turning his head slightly. "This... I don't understand," Yoshimitsu said. "Oh, exposition time," Vincent said. "Well, technically its my island too, but I didn't really care for it. I still don't. We found it a while ago. There was a time when you came here, and rarely left. I came once to find that you'd completely warped this thing. It was a giant metal disc at first, but you turned it into this."
"I made this?" Yoshimitsu said, his jaw dropping. "Yup. Still don't remember anything?" Vincent asked. "Something... Like the leftovers from a toublesome dream," Yoshimitsu said, rubbing his forehead. "Oh, there's one last thing."
Vincent closed his eyes and placed his palms together, focusing. There was a quiet rumbling, like the start of a weak earthquake. Yoshimitsu looked around. Where was it coming from? He looked out towards the island. Then he saw it - a tear in the air. It was glowing slightly, but it was as blue as the sky. Something shot out of the tear (which promptly sealed itself) and rocketted into the sky. It swooped down, and came to an abrupt stop in front of Yoshimitsu and Vincent.
A dragon. A blue dragon, with a massive wingspan. Its scales on its torso had somehow adapted and formed body-armour, including shoulder pads. Its head had a strange plume on it, but it gave it a certain level of elegance. It was clearly a powerful dragon, but there was something more to it.
"Yoshimitsu," it said in a very deep voice. "You returned to us, finally." "This," Vincent said, "is-" "Bahamut," Yoshimitsu said, smiling faintly. "I remember." "Anything else?" "Not really. Just bits and pieces. I remember you, though, Vince," Yoshimitsu said. He turned around, a broad grin on his face.
"That was some last fight," he said. "We should do it again some time." "...Yoshimitsu," Vincent said, returning the grin. "Only if you wanna get beaten again." "Fat chance," Yoshimitsu said. "So, what else?" "Nothing, really. You, Bahamut, and the guardians. Only one more to go, now." "Is there?" Vincent asked. "But of course," Yoshimitsu said, winking.
"What is this?" Yoshimitsu asked, eying Vincent suspiciously. "A portal. What does it look like?" Vincent replied, smirking. "A portal," Yoshimitsu said, grinning. "Where does it go?"
"Once a month, this portal appears somewhere on the world. It links this world to another, naturally, and I'm all-too familiar with it," Vincent explained briefly. "Recently, this other world was reduced to ruins. It should help, though." "Alright, but how do you expect me to reach it? I can't fly, and its probably a thousand foot that way," Yoshimitsu said, pointing up. "Watch. I'd say hold on tight, but you wont get a chance to," Vincent said, smirking.
"Hey! Hold on! What are you-?!" Yoshimitsu started. He was interrupted by a pillar of ice shooting up below him suddenly, sending him rocketting into the sky like a firework. Vincent couldn't supress a grin, and quickly gave chase, following Yoshimitsu's ascent. It didn't take long to catch up - Yoshimitsu had already started slowing, and he was barely two hundred foot high. Maybe it wasn't as well thought out as Vincent believed. However, that wasn't an issue. Vincent grabbed Yoshimitsu's wrist, and shot directly at the portal.
Yoshimitsu tried to shield his eyes with his forearm when they entered the portal - a swirl of bright colours surrounded them, the colours ever-moving and ever-changing. A green was replaced by a red, that changed to blue, which moved away to make space for a pink, which mutated into green again... Yoshimitsu felt slightly sick just watching the portal. Feeling like he was being sucked through a very tight tube didn't help either. He glanced up at Vincent, who was staring ahead with steely determination.
"How the hell do you stand that?" Yoshimitsu gasped as soon as they left the portal. "After the first two times, you get used to it," Vincent said, shrugging. He dropped Yoshimitsu on a pillar, preferring to land three or four meters away. He looked around for a moment, and closed his eyes.
"Something's wrong," Vincent said. "This shouldn't be here..." "What shouldn't?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Everything. We destroyed this place, completely levelled it," Vincent said. "Nothing should be here - all this energy should have faded away when we... Dammit! This makes no sense!" "What are you talking about?!" Yoshimitsu demanded, his voice rising.
"No time to explain, I'll tell you later, promise," Vincent said. "Follow me, and stay close."
Vincent lead them to a ruined city. It had clearly been a majectic city once. The bricks and stoned that littered the roads were blue, more like sapphires than stones. The tall towers that still stood were sky-scrapers, filled with holes from the decay. There was a castle in the centre, but it was smashed beyond repair. Vincent stepped on to a chunk of dislodged earth, looking around. Yoshimitsu followed, but he kept his distance from Vincent - he may remember his friend, but there was something odd about him right now... Yoshimitsu shook his head. This was his friend, he must have a reason.
"We're headed up there," Vincent said, pointing at the castle. "How come?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Because we might find some answers there," Vincent replied, hopping off the earth and starting his walk.
It was a short walk to the castle, sped up slightly by Vincent's apparent eagerness to reach it and Yoshimitsu's desire for his past. This place... It seemed so familiar to Yoshimitsu, but he couldn't place where. Like the remains of a dream, the same as so many other things he'd seen so far. It seemed too good to be true, remembering Vincent. Did he really remember him, though? The name, the face, sure. But anything else? Except for a strong sense of loyalty, there was nothing.
"We're here," Vincent said suddenly, making Yoshimitsu jump. He'd been so lost in thought that he hadn't been paying attention to where he was going. Up close, the castle looked positively massive. It hadn't looked so big from the gates, but now... He wondered whether they'd even have time to explore the whole place. Or energy. Even though it was ruined, it still had an aura of majesty. What was going on here?
Vincent pushed open the door, it moving surprisingly easy considering it was massive. They stepped inside, into darkness. Yoshimitsu looked up. Why was it so dark? There were massive holes in the whole castle, so light should be able to filter through. Something very strange was going on here. Somewhere to his right, Vincent mumbled something incoherent, and fire formed in his hand. Yoshimitsu blinked, and then created an orb of energy in his hand, lighting about three meters around him. The floor all around was cracked, filled with small craters. Maybe a fight?
"No fights," Vincent said, apparently reading Yoshimitsu's mind. "This world should be gone. It's probably just decay."
Yoshimitsu nodded, and looked up. Above him, there was nothing but darkness. No surprise. His energy couldn't light up that much. Vincent's flame seemed to light the same amount of his energy, though. "What d'you reckon?" Yoshimitsu asked. "I'm forced to say split up," Vincent replied. "We'll cover more ground, and we can both handle our own in a fight. Meet back here in fifteen minutes, 'kay?" "Alright."
Yoshimitsu took a few cautious steps towards a nearby door, moving very slowly, clearly thinking there might be traps or alarm systems. As soon as he reached the door, and as he placed his hand on the handle, he thought for a moment. Someone had lived in this place. There would likely not be many traps, if any. Slightly more confidently, he pushed open the door and stepped through the doorway, met by ever more darkness. He didn't understand. Why was it so dark? His light seemed weaker, as though the darkness was slowly consuming it.
"C'mon, focus," he muttered to himself, stepping forwards again. His sudden confidence had vanished, replaced with a lingering, nameless fear that had suddenly appeared in his heart. Why? Why was he scared? What was he afraid of? So many questions... He stepped again. Behind him, the was a slam. He spun on the spot, looking for its source, energy flaring in both hands. The door had closed - that's right, he hadn't closed it. Sighing with relief, he turned back and took a step, only to trigger something with his foor. Dozens of arrows shot from the walls, all down the corridor. Yoshimitsu instinctively tried to dodge, but there was no safe spot. He clapped his hands together, releasing a wave of energy that caught all the arrows and pushed them away.
Behind him, there were sounds of metal clashing. Without thinking, he ran back towards the door he had come from, wrenched it open and shot through. In front of him, he could see two figures, both armed with swords, clearly fighting. He lifted up a ball of energy to see Vincent, armed with his double-bladed katana, and an unknown figure who was armed with a longsword. They lunged, dodged, slashed and blocked continuously as Yoshimitsu watched.
This other figure looked familiar. His hair stuck out in about ten different directions, and was a blue-black combination. His eyes, rather close together but still natural looking, were as blue as the deepest ocean. He wore clothes suited for combat - a tight top over what looked like light leather body armour, with camo-pants tucked into his combat boots.
"Who are you?" Vincent asked, jumping back and lifting his weapon sharply, knocking a stab away. "The only one remaining here," the other male said, lunging at Vincent. Vincent jumped and landed on the sword, swinging his left leg around at the man's head. The man grabbed Vincent's foot with his free hand and swung him round, throwing him away. Vincent flipped in the air, landing on his feet. "I meant your name," Vincent snapped, running at the man. He jumped and drew his sword back, challenging the man. "A name? You may call me... Furrien," the man said, jumping after Vincent. He, too, drew his sword back, but he was the first to attack, swinging his sword violently. Vincent immediately swung his sword round, meeting slash with slash.
"Furrien," Yoshimitsu muttered. The name sounded strange, familiar but entirely new, like so many things nowadays. He shook his head, and looked up again, watching the fight.
"How did you survive? This place is supposed to be gone," Vincent said as he landed. He shot from his position, sword held strategically to allow perfect movement. He drew his sword down in a vertical slash, only to have it meet Furrien's sword. "As long as one Ryuga is left, the place still stands," Furrien said, forcing energy through his sword, blasting Vincent's sword off of his. He shot forwards, and spun into a slash. "How d'you explain the decay, then?" Vincent asked, jumping right over the sword and dropping to sweep-kick Furrien. "It took time for me to be accepted as the ruler," Furrien replied, jumping over the kick. He jumped backwards, drawing energy in his blade as he did so. After about three seconds, the sword was glowing magnificently, lighting the whole area. He cut through the air in front of him, releasing a powerful blade of energy at Vincent.
Vincent smirked, drawing energy into his own sword. As he did so, he started spinning, his sword leaving a slight blur as he moved. He quickly picked up speed, the energy in his sword growing more and more, now starting to discharge into the air. Very, very quickly, there was a huge hurricane of energy around Vincent, with him in the centre, spinning faster and faster, now a blur. The blade of energy hit the hurricane, and was absorbed into it, adding to the power. Suddenly, Vincent stopped, holding his sword above him. The hurricane shrunk, but raged on. It was converging at one spot - the sword. Vincent was now holding a glowing blade of incredible energy.
"How's this for an attack?" Vincent said, a smirk forming on his face. He slashed the air in front of him. With the sound of a thousand cannons being set off at once, a huge missile of energy cut through the air, faster than light. It smashed into Furrien, knocking him back and through the wall behind him. However, when Vincent went to check if he was alive or not, Furrien shot from the next room, ramming Vincent's stomach with his shoulder. The attack was powerful, yes, but somehow Furrien had nullified the energy, taking minimal damage. He rammed Vincent straight through a wall. And another. He grabbed Vincent's neck, apparently oblivious about Vincent's foot making contact with his chest as Vincent kicked violently. He threw Vincent right into another wall, head first. Vincent slid down to the floor, blood trickling down his forehead.
"Now to finish you, insect," Furrien snarled, walking over to Vincent. He raised his sword, the tip pointing straight down as he held it directly above Vincent's heart. He was about to stab it through the teenager when a blast of energy threw him sideways, away from Vincent. Yoshimitsu crouched next to Vincent, looking for a pulse. Thank God, there it was. He looked over to Furrien, who was on his feet again. How strong was he? Could Yoshimitsu take him? No time to worry about it now - he snatched up Vincent's sword and raised it, preparing for battle.
He ran forwards, holding his sword just in front of him. Furrien laughed, and met his action. They were locked in a stalemate, swords crossed, faces just inches from each other.
"Do tell me you're joking," Furrien said. "Shut up," Yoshimitsu said, rather quietly. "You think you're a match for me?" Furrien mocked. "SHUT UP!" Yoshimitsu roared. With a sudden surge of power, he pushed his sword, launching Furrien across the room. Furrien landed painfully, but not nearly as painfully as Vincent had previously.
"Good, very good," Furrien said, pulling himself to his feet. "Time in that world has taught you well... But do you really think you can defeat your own father?" "You're no father of mine," Yoshimitsu retorted, throwing his sword directly at Furrien. Furrien dodged, how could he not? Yoshimitsu was too far away. It was a foolish move... Or was it? A second later, the blunt end of Yoshimitsu's naginata smashed into the side of Furrien's head. Yoshimitsu planted the bladed end in the ground as Furrien dragged himself to his feet and spun around it, extending his leg to kick Furrien in the chest. Furrien was knocked back, but he was far from defeated.
"Yoshimitsu," a voice said, a voice in the back of Yoshimitsu head... Or was it? "Remember, I am here... I shall aid you, if you wish me to..."
Of course. Bahamut. Yoshimitsu thought briefly. Summoning in here... there wasn't even remotely enough space. He thought for a moment. "There's no space, what do I do?" Yoshimitsu thought, slightly desperately. "Don't fear, just think. There is more than one way to summon me," he heard Bahamut's reply. Yoshimitsu took a deep breath, and thought. How else could he be summoned... Within an object? Yes, of course! It was so obvious! Yoshimitsu jumped back, and crouched down, wrapping himself in energy, just in case something went wrong.
Under the cover, Yoshimitsu could feel his body changing as he summoned Bahamut. His top was ripped off his torso as it grew, almost doubling in size. His jeans were more like shorts now, ripped beyond repair. His trainers simply split. He could feel his head changing, his eyesight suddenly growing a lot sharper, along with his hearing, taste and smell. He could feel wings growing, but he tried to stop them. He couldn't entirely - what he didn't stop formed elsewhere, like blades on his fore-arms. Instead of skin, his body was covered in scales. A tail had grown at the base of his back. He knew now. He was the Bahamut Knight.
"Oho!" Furrien said, his eyes sparkling with curiosity. "What made you stronger?" "Like I'd tell you," Yoshimitsu snapped, his voice somehow... lizard-like. He inhaled deeply, and he felt a gooey liquid form in his mouth through what appeared to be a gland in his upper-mouth. It answered his fire-breathing question. Without thinking, he blasted the breath out of his lungs, sending out a powerful fireball at Furrien. It burned through the air, crackling sinisterly. Furrien jumped up and brought his sword slashing straight through the flames. Yoshimitsu shot in, flexing his arms, getting a feel for his new weapons. He launched a punch past Furrien, so that he was dealing with the blades rather than his fist. Furrien's sword scraped across Yoshimitsu's blades, sending sparks flying. The blades, more like metal than wing...
"You've got once chance to give up, Furrien," Yoshimitsu growled. "Sorry, not in my vocabulary," Furrien replied, gathering energy in his sword again. Yoshimitsu jumped back, drawing his arms in so that his arm-blades were shielding his body. He felt energy roll off him moments later. This transformation was incredible, but it was time to end things.
"You had your chance," Yoshimitsu said, shooting at Furrien. He moved too fast for Furrien to react, grabbing the front of his top. Still moving incredibly fast, he pushed the warrior into a wall and held him there. He drew back his fist, and sunk it into Furrien's stomach, smashing the wall behind him. Furrien spat a little blood, and swore. Yoshimitsu punched Furrien again, knocking him straight across the room. He didn't bother seeing whether Furrien was down or not. He just wanted to get out of there. Now.
Yoshimitsu spun on the spot, his scales fading into skin again. He shivered as his head changed back into his normal head - his clothes, except for his ripped jeans which were still securely on his legs, were still ripped into pieces and lying scattered across the room. No time to worry about that now, though. He ran across the room to where Vincent was lying unconsious. After checking for a pulse again and half-fusing with Bahamut to gain wings, Yoshimitsu launched himself into the sky, holding Vincent close to him.
"This is madness, I have no clue where to find the portal," Yoshimitsu thought. As he thought this, Vincent stirred, waking from his slumber. Without thinking, Vincent raised his hand to his head, the cuts on his head glowing green and sealing themselves. All other wounds on his body were covered by the same glow, and they all faded. "Let go, I'm fine now," Vincent said, his hair sparking into yellow. Yoshimitsu nodded, and released his grip. Vincent dropped for a second, but he soon picked up and was flying ahead of Yoshimitsu.
"You'll need some new clothes when we get back," Vincent said. "Our trip's told me one thing, though. There's gonna be hell to pay back home." "Why? What's wrong?" "Your race are plotting revenge," Vincent said, very seriously. "And they needed you out of the way for it."
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Post by notbanned on Jul 31, 2006 8:18:39 GMT -5
Chapter 4 - The castle
"What's up?" Yoshimitsu asked. "It's nothing, I'm just thinking," Vincent replied, sitting on a cliff overlooking a waterfall on Mist. "Try not to think too much, it can hurt your head," Yoshimitsu commented, sitting down next to him. "So what's on your mind?" "I'm not sure. There's supposed to be an attack of some sort on the planet, but so far, nothing's happened," Vincent said, sounding troubled. "There was someone waiting for us in that place, but while we were gone, nothing happened. D'you think they realised we're both not the only people willing to defend the planet and not the most powerful people on it?" "I wouldn't count on it," Yoshimitsu said. "That's part of the reason I'm here, too." "Oh? What's happened now?" Vincent asked. "Well, a castle's just appeared on the other side of the island," Yoshimitsu said. "I didn't will it there, and no one else could have made it appear." "Sounds suspicious enough, let's go."
"It's official," Vincent said as he looked at the castle. "Your race are a bunch of weirdos." "What can I say? We aim to please," Yoshimitsu replied, grinning. The castle was the strangest building Vincent had ever seen. It looked like it had been carved out of a huge slab of white stone, rather than built brick by brick. Towers and seemingly unnecessary points stuck out at random. It was very tall, and Vincent reckoned it went right into the earth too. The front doors were huge, but they were nothing compared to the sheer size of the castle. Vincent walked up to the doors, and turned to Yoshimitsu. "Shall we knock, or just let ourselves in?" He asked. "It's my island," Yoshimitsu replied. "So I'll play by my rules." He walked up to the doors, and pushed it very hard. It opened with apparent ease, almost slamming into the wall. Yoshimitsu stepped inside, with Vincent right behind him.
The inside of the castle was vastly different to the outside. There were no tiles on the floor - it, too, appeared to have been carved out of stone. However, the stone in question was pure black and reflective. Looking into it was overwhelming, it looked like you were standing on black water, like you could fall in at any moment, sucked down, never to be seen again... The walls held torches which lit the room, not dimly but it did not light much, the black floors and walls absorbing the light before it could get anywhere. Ahead of the duo, there were about a dozen visible steps heading up, and the same number heading down. Staircases, obviously, leading to different floors. They would have to split up to cover the castle quickly.
"Up or down?" Vincent asked. "I'll head up," Yoshimitsu replied, grinning. "You're awfully calm, considering you don't have a clue where this castle could take you," Vincent commented, walking to the descending steps. "Eh, how bad could it be?" Yoshimitsu said, shrugging and climbing the ascending stairs. "Maybe you're right," Vincent muttered to himself.
Yoshimitsu found a corridor made out of the same black stone waiting for him at the top of the stairs. It was thinner, shorter than the last room, with some more stairs waiting at the end, leading up to a door. Yoshimitsu took a few steps towards it. Suddenly, he heard a strange noise behind him. After jumping away, he turned to see what was trying to sneak up on him.
It was a humanoid figure, wearing a cape of some sort that covered his head. It was a white cape, a nice contrast to the blackness all around. He didn't appear to have any weapons of any sort, but perhaps he didn't need them? Yoshimitsu gripped his naginata cautiously. "Memories run loose, controlling this place," the figure said. His voice was soft, yet it had sinister undertones and the potential to sound unbelievably harsh, or cruel. "Are you prepared to face them?" "Who are you?" Yoshimitsu asked, his grip adjusting slightly. "You, who have been faced by trials so often, have come to seek answers?" The man said. "Answer me!" Yoshimitsu said, suddenly sounding angry. "A quick temper will lead you nowhere," the man said wisely. "I am, and that is all that matters right now." "Tch. Fine, where am I? What is this place?" Yoshimitsu demanded. "A place that memories control," the man said. "Here, truths will be revealed, whether wanted or not. Mysteries are solved, but not all of them will tell you what you want to know. Here."
The man threw Yoshimitsu some keys. Yoshimitsu caught them, and quickly inspected them. Each one had an unusual pattern carved into it, and all of them were vaguely familiar to Yoshimitsu. "Each one will lead you to a new area of your memories," the man expained. "I suggest you go now, and find your past."
Yoshimitsu looked up to stare at the man, as if to say "Are you on drugs or something?", but by the time he had raised his gaze, the man had gone. Yoshimitsu looked back down at the keys, and then at the door. "May as well," he said, inserting one into the keyhole and unlocking the door.
"You seek freedom?" A voice said as soon as Vincent's feet touched the bottom step of the stairs. "You have been touched by darkness, fear and hate. You wish to be free from these things?" "What are you talking about?" Vincent replied, speaking to apparently no one. "You do not know? Then why have you come here?" The voice asked. "This is the place of realisation. You seek knowledge?"
Vincent considered it for a moment. "So you're saying," he said, choosing his words carefully, "that this place will tell me the things that I want to know?" "You're smarter than I thought," the voice said. There was something familiar about this voice. "You will be thrown into a number of situations, some familiar and some not-so familiar. It is up to you to choose what you will do." "I... understand," Vincent said. He walked to the door in front of him and examined it. Nothing out of the ordinary. He turned the handle and stepped through, into the light.
"This is..." Yoshimitsu said to himself, looking around. It was a... cave? More like an arena... Carved out of stone, but for what purpose? Yoshimitsu reckoned it was in a mountain of some sort, somewhere beneath it, maybe. His footsteps echoed against the stone as he took a few steps. Suddenly, he heard some quick movement and someone jumped out of the shadows. "Who are you?" A voice demanded. The owner stepped out from the darkness. He had messy black hair that looked like it'd never seen a brush in its life. He wore a plain red top under a blue jacket, and some black jeans, all of which looked rather worn. In his hand was the handle of a sword. Yoshimitsu realised he shouldn't use his proper name, but he didn't know why. "I'm... Daniel," he said, coming up with a name on the spot. "So how did you get here?" The boy demanded. He looked no older than twelve. "I'm... not sure," Yoshimitsu said. "I just found this place, I was exploring." "Uh huh, yeah sure," The youth said sarcastically. "Sure you were." Yoshimitsu said nothing.
"Well, whatever, just don't do anything. Go and sit in a corner or something, I don't care," the kid said. "I don't want you messing up what I've got-"
He was interrupted by a sudden banging sound. Both males' eyes shot to one point in the darkness. A number of... things appeared. They had four arms each, and were covered entirely in black fur. They had strange, elongated heads, maybe those of dragons. They also had long, whip-like tails. "Friends of yours?" The kid said. "No," Yoshimitsu replied, gripping his naginata. "Tch. Then their lives will be cut short." "What's your name, kid?" Yoshimitsu asked, gathering energy in his left hand. He frowned and concentrated briefly as he gathered the energy. "Vincent," the kid replied. "And don't call me kid."
Yoshimitsu thrust his hand forward, releasing a beam of energy at the nearest creature, sending it flying backwards. Frowning, he prepared for battle. Vincent? Was this his Vincent? Did he really have so much hate and hostility in him? Yoshimitsu shuddered slightly as he thought. It was not comforting, to have him fighting by his side. He seemed more likely to stab him in the back at the first given opportunity. Still, he couldn't be as strong as Yoshimitsu.
Vincent launched himself headfirst into the fight, surprising Yoshimitsu. Vincent wasn't a very skilled fighter, it seemed. He swung his sword wildly, not following any technique or pattern. It was almost admirable, but Yoshimitsu paused to realise that it was random and no move could be repeated. Sighing slightly, he shot into the fray, weaving through the beasts with remarkable dexterity. He stayed quite close to Vincent, but far away enough to make it seem like he wasn't deliberately interrupting the youth. With one swipe of his naginata, he'd sliced straight through the flesh, muscle and bone, the whole arm of one creature. It howled as its blood sprayed everywhere. Yoshimitsu flipped over the creature, and fired off a powerful blast of energy, knocking it clear across the room.
"Arrrgh!" Yoshimitsu heard Vincent's voice and immediately looked in his direction. The creature he was fighting had rid him of his sword and knocked him to the ground. It was moving in for the kill. Without thinking, Yoshimitsu fired off another energy blast, knocking the beast away. He shot over and lifted Vincent to his feet, but immediately spun and sliced through an incoming monster, cutting it cleanly in two.
"I could've handled that," Vincent said, rubbing the dirt off his clothes. "Yeah, sure," Yoshimitsu said, holding up a beam of energy.
"You have learned enough from here," a voice said through the room. Instantly, Vincent and the monsters melted away into nothingness. Yoshimitsu looked around wildly. "Who's there?" He demanded. He heard a sound behind him. Then another. And another. He turned to see three figures wearing identical black cloaks.
"This is the boy?" A female voice asked. "Yes, it is. Can't you feel it?" A male voice said, sounding somewhat soft. "You two, silence," Another male voice, a strong voice this time. "You, Yoshimitsu. You have learned what your companion was before. Knowing this, will you still fight alongside him?" "Why wouldn't I?" Yoshimitsu asked, gripping his naginata. "Hm. You must ascend the castle, and learn more. This place is built on memories, and whether you remember or not, this place will show you your true memories," The strong male voice said. He gestured and a door appeared behind Yoshimitsu. "Go."
Yoshimitsu turned the handle of the door. With one last hesitant glance behind him, he stepped through the doorway into another blank corridor.
*****
"This... This is your idea of realisation?" Vincent asked, surveying the scene below him. He was hovering, practically invisible to anyone who might happen to be looking, at the very top of a room. He appeared to be lying down on the ceiling, his arms folded, frowning. Below him, there were a number of figures fighting. An older form of Yoshimitsu, with black hair and a dual-voice. A blue-haired Hector, fighting with the Tiamat blade and a number of elements. Miko, using his jade magic to combat a feline creature. A strange purple tiger, which was holding back opponents with powerful wind control.
"Perhaps you will realise what you managed to do to this child," the voice said, sounding as clear as if the owner was stood next to Vincent. "You can't tell me I ruined his life," Vincent replied. "He was better off when I was a part of him. He had a goal to shoot for, for one. And he was a lot stronger." "You managed to ruin his friendships with people," the voice stated. "He got back together with them, didn't he? And made a few new ones," Vincent said defensively. He threw up a water shield as a tidal wave splashed through the small room. "But for that time, he was alone. All he had to comfort him was you, and you weren't much help," the voice said. "You know an awful lot about this, don't you?" Vincent pointed out. "Of course. I have dived into your memories and the locked memories of your friend," the voice said. "I know what happened, and why." "And you wont make this easy on me, will you?" Vincent asked, sighing. "You must discover the truth yourself." "Figures." "Perhaps you should ask him about it when this is done," the voice suggested. "I might just do that," Vincent replied.
Below him, it seemed the fighting was finished. The tiger had vanished, and the people were standing around, throwing insults at each other. He watched as Hector left in disgust and Miko departed in a hurry, leaving only Yisimentsu behind. Vincent dropped from the ceiling.
"Where did you come from?" Yisimentsu demanded, spinning on the spot as he heard Vincent land. "The moon," Vincent replied. "Where do you think I came from? The ceiling." "Funny, I didn't see you before," Yisimentsu said. He had drawn that blade, the Bahamut Blade. Vincent glanced at it, and drew his own. "No, that's because I wasn't there," Vincent said. "Besides, how I got here isn't what I wanna talk about. You don't recognise me?" "No, why should I?" "Hm. Well, that's fine. So, after that display, do you feel proud? You've managed to cut any ties you had with Hector. What for?" "What do you mean, what for? I'm stronger now, I have Kapora," Yisimentsu snapped. "Power... I refuse to believe I was that driven," Vincent said, rubbing his forehead. "Powerlust..." "What was that?" "Nothing."
Yisimentsu was acting slightly oddly, Vincent noticed. "Y'know what? I don't think I like you very much," Yisimentsu said. "And if I don't like someone, I let them know about it."
Suddenly, Vincent was thrown back by a sudden rush of energy, pinned against the ceiling by a beam attack. He drew his arms and knees over his chest and stomach, defending against the not-so-powerful attack. Yisimentsu may have been a lot stronger than Yoshimitsu was, but he still wasn't as strong as Vincent was when it came to using his powers. Suddenly, a surge of energy rushed through the beam attack, causing the stone around Vincent to crack. Vincent slapped the beam attack away with more power than he thought he had, and turned to face the stone. A wide beam, maybe three meters wide, cut through the stone like a hot poker through snow, with Vincent following it. He glanced behind him to see Yisimentsu following him. Vincent frowned. He couldn't fly when he first fused with Yoshimitsu.
"What is this?" Vincent said to nothing in particular. "I didn't have this power when I initially fused." "This place is built on your memories," the voice said. "You may not remember, but your true memories state that you did, you just didn't know it." "Ugh... This is so stupid," Vincent said, aiming his palms at the ascending Yisimentsu. He fired off three bursts of energy at the youth, but Yisimentsu shrugged them off and continued his ascent. Vincent quickly drew his sword, seeing that if he wanted to win this, he'd have to tire Yisimentsu. Yisimentsu drew the Bahamut Blade, and shot at Vincent. Vincent blocked Yisimentsu, holding his katana tightly, with a decent amount of power put into his guard. "So you're going to kill me with no real reason?" Vincent asked. "Why shouldn't I? I have the power to do whatever I want," Yisimentsu snapped. "We'll see about that," Vincent said. He shifted so that Yisimentsu was sent flying straight past him. Quickly, Vincent turned and fired another blast of energy at Yisimentsu. It hit him right in the centre of his back. If there was one thing Vincent prided himself on, it was his amazing aim. Yisimentsu dropped slightly, but he quickly raised himself again, ready for the next round.
"You're not gonna win. If you don't give in, I'll end this now," Vincent said, his face cold. "I wont give up!" Yisimentsu spat. Vincent sighed. He'd tried to be reasonable. His hair flashed red, and his eyes lost their pupils. Or perhaps the pupils simply got so large they covered the rest of his iris. Vincent had a steely look on his face. Without thinking, he discharged a massive amount of energy. Shockwaves emanated from him, pushing Yisimentsu back. Yisimentsu flipped through the air, but he cut through the shockwaves and shot at Vincent. Vincent didn't hesitate. He threw his katana right at Yisimentsu. Yisimentsu didn't see it coming. Until it went straight through his head. Vincent shot in, and grabbed the hilt of his weapon. He shook Yisimentsu's body off of the blade, not wincing when he heard the corpse slide slowly. The blood on the blade dripped below him. Vincent glared at the blood, fire eating it off his blade.
"Is this what you want me to do?" Vincent asked. "Go through my memories of myself and kill them, one by one?" "It was expected that you would pity yourself. Even feel remorse for your actions," the voice said. "I may not be proud of the things I've done, but you want me to pity myself? What next, you'll ask me to cut myself?" Vincent said. He raised his left arm, and formed a blade of ice in his right hand. "Shall I? Is this what you want me to do?"
"...."
"I'll take that as a yes," Vincent said. He pressed the blade to his wrist, and cut the skin. He formed the letter 'H' at first. Blood spilled over his wrist, and dripped below him. Then, he carved the letter 'A'. The blood spilled over his forearm, as he cut his vein. The letter 'T'... A deeper cut... He cut the letter 'E'.
"'Hate'? Why would you choose to carve that into your wrist?" The voice enquired. "Out of all the emotions I feel, hate manages to top them all." "Maybe we have made progress after all," the voice said. A door appeared in front of Vincent, who promptly opened it and stepped into another empty corridor.
Mhm. More to come.
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Post by notbanned on Sept 17, 2006 8:27:28 GMT -5
Chapter 5 - Progress
"So what's going on with this castle?" Vincent asked as he glanced around the corridor. He noted down a few things. The stone, for one, wasn't nearly as polished. It was a dulled image he saw staring back at him as he examined the stone. It was a bigger corridor, longer, wider, taller, there was plenty of space to... to what? Fight? Vincent kept that thought in his mind. This corridor held some significance with movement, that was for sure. "What exactly are you asking?" That voice asked. "You said this place is built on memories, and even if I don't remember something exactly, it still plays out as if I did, right? Well, what purpose is supposed to be served by going through these floors?" Vincent asked. "I shall explain something to you now. You are a being of darkness," the voice said. "Explain yourself, voice," Vincent ordered harshly.
"Cast your mind back, to your first, second and third fusions with Yoshimitsu. Your first, you still had unfinished business, and you would resort to anything to finish it. You became and entity of darkness, just so you could force yourself upon Yoshimitsu," the voice said. "Ok, but that was only for a little while. How did it stick with me?" "Darkness cannot be so easily thrown away. You can't use it without paying for it. In this case, the darkness stayed within you, hidden, hibernating if you will. Your second fusion was not strictly your fault. However, you had the darkness forced upon you, and you were once again turned into a spirit of darkness. Again, this was only temporary. However, it added to the darkness inside you. You had it inside of you, slowly gaining power," the voice continued. "And the third fusion?" "The darkness awoke. You found yourself in control of the darkness, even if you weren't aware of it. All your power was fuelled by the darkness inside of you. It still is. Can't you feel it? You manipulated it. Now you know, you can easily use it, however you want," the voice said, sounding slightly excited. "I don't use the darkness to fight now," Vincent said roughly. "I knew I had the darkness inside of me, though I didn't know how. I knew it was fuelling my powers. So I stopped it. I don't use the darkness, voice, and you can't make me either." "Is that so?" A voice somewhere behind Vincent said. Vincent spun on the spot, to see an all-too familiar figure.
"Yisimentsu," he breathed. "I should have known." "Did you forget me so easily?" Yisimentsu said. "After all I've done for you so far." Yisimentsu was mocking him now. He stood, his spiky black hair blending in with the walls, his blue shirt, his black jeans, his masamune... Everything about him screamed of the darkness. "You got one thing wrong with your explanation. All the time when you were around, you used the darkness to fight." "When you were around, you mean." "No, I don't. I'm not like you." "We'll see about that."
Yisimentsu ran at Vincent, his masamune glinting in the very dim light. He jumped, and would slash his sword down vertically at Vincent when he was close enough. Vincent raised both hands to block, and simply willed to have something to defend himself with. He didn't care what. Just something. As he thought this, two swords formed in his hands. They were unusual swords. They had a hilt and a blade, yes, but no guard. The blades also extended past the hilt, and connected to the bottom of the hilt. They way Vincent held them made Yisimentsu's sword colide with them, unable to pass the defense. "You conjured the blades through darkness, too," Yisimentsu commented, pushing off the blades and landing nearby. "No, these are through light," Vincent replied, running at Yisimentsu. He lunged at the warrior, stabbing his right sword at Yisimentsu who sidestepped the attack brilliantly. Vincent, however, stabbed his other sword in the ground and used it to old himself up as he kicked Yisimentsu in the stomach. Yisimentsu grunted slightly as he slid back, but seemed to take no damage as he launched his attack immediately. He threw up his arms, creating a pillar of fire that stretched three meters around him. Vincent dived out of the way, rolling to his feet and aiming at Yisimentsu, his swords melting out of existence. Instead, a slightly curved rod formed in his hand. He threw it at Yisimentsu, stopping his attack. Vincent extended his hand and the rod returned to him. The rod then melted away, replaced with a standard, unmarked sword.
"Been learning some new tricks, I see," Yisimentsu stated, running at Vincent and flipping over him. Vincent spun on the spot and launched a powerful kick at Yisimentsu, catching him off-guard and knocking him back. "Going to tell me how?" "Ok then," Vincent said, backflipping away from Yisimentsu's swipe attack. "First, I admitted to myself, 'Vincent's better than me and I should just give up.'" "I must watch myself so that I don't cut myself on your wit," Yisimentsu replied, jumping over a sweep-kick from Vincent. He jumped high into the air, and released a number of black-and-red orbs, which homed in on Vincent. Vincent's eyes narrowed, and he formed a bladed shield on his arm, holding it against the incoming orbs. He moved to the shield to see Yisimentsu running at him. Without thinking, he punched with his shielding arm, sending the blades straight through Yisimentsu.
"Very good," Yisimentsu said, pulling himself off the shield. He made a screeching sound as the blades slid out of him, leaving blood on them. "But you may not have noticed that I'm just an illusion. I do, however, have a present for you."
The illusion threw something to Vincent. Vincent caught it and examined it closely. It ws a pendant. "What's this?" "A present. It lets you take on a form to fight using your true darkness," Yisimentsu said. "A being such as yourself needn't worry about the darkness overrunning him, though. You are too strong for that." "Right, I'll keep that in mind," Vincent said, tying the pendant around his neck.
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Feb 22, 2007 15:37:37 GMT -5
A change of pace should be injected
"Oh please, now this is just too much," a figure said. He was quite tall, standing at six foot two with a fairly slender build, though with evident muscle definition. His hair was a lighter shade of blonde, with a darker underside, though it was still quite light. His eyes were black when they should have been white, and blue where his iris and pupils should be. He had a rather thin face, though he appeared to be no older than sixteen, maybe seventeen. He wore a light blue t-shirt, that had a darker blue pattern covering it all over, making the shape of flames. He wore darker jeans, that were rather baggy and frayed at the bottom. His boots were dirty and damaged. Araini adjusted his bladed gauntlets, and looked up again.
Facing him were roughly twenty similar-looking figures. They looked human, but it took Araini maybe four seconds to realise that they weren't. Violent and bloodthirsty, they had only stopped their rampage of the city because something stood in their way. They all had identical, apparently mass-produced swords. They were all also restless, and apparently unsure what to do with this obstacle. "So, what? Who are you, then? You've interrupted my search, the least you can do is explain yourselves," Araini said. "Save your breath, puppet," a familiar voice said. Another figure landed on a rooftop, the rooftop of the nearest building to Araini. He was also tall, but he stood taller than Araini due to a hat that was perched on his head, two rodent-like ears sticking through holes on opposite sides of the hat. His face was extended, a rat head, but bore some human resemblences. Size, for one. The figure wore a deep green jacket that stopped at his mid-forearms, obviously for optimum arm movement. He wore a black top underneath the jacket, and a thin silver chain hung from his neck. His pants matched his jacket in colour, and slowly got baggier as they extended down his legs, but were held close to his legs by shin-guards. He wore no shoes, but instead had rat-like feet. His hands were also rat-like, but more human-like than he feet. Sir Fratley, the last remaining Dragon Knight of Burmecia, the sole survivor of his race.
"Puppet? Frat, that's kinda harsh, isn't it?" A third voice said. Setsuko landed opposite Fratley, on another rooftop. Her hair glinted in the sun, appearing blonde, but not quite pure blonde, extending perfectly straight until it reached her shoulders, where it branched out slightly, becoming curls of blonde-ginger, covering the collar of her denim jacket. The jacket was a standard denim colour, and was worn over a plain black t-shirt which seemed to absorb all light. Her jeans matched her jacket, demin and the same standard colour, falling to her boots, black leather, slightly marked by years of adventuring. "It was until I learned of some of his old activities," Fratley said. "Araini, a murderer, a destroyer... But above all, he's a friend." "Yeah, and I'm sure friends don't call friends 'puppets'," Sets said, shooting Fratley a strange, almost critical look.
"If you two are quite finished," Araini interrupted, "we have a slight problem down here."
Araini stopped waiting, his patience spent. He shot right into the crowd before they knew what was happening, and plunged his gauntlet right into the stomach of one of the Ryuga. He twisted his hand, then ripped his glove back out, sending blood spilling all over the cold floor. He turned, and saw a sword making a swift downward slashing movement at his head. Suddenly, a cane appeared from nowhere, stopping the sword. An orb appeared where the two weapons crossed, and Sets quickly moved away. Araini followed suit, and the orb suddenly imploded, and released a surge of energy that blew a good few of the crowd away. Fratley's spear caught one of the race that had been blown clear, the body turning limp. Fratley shook the dead corpse off, and jumped twenty foot into the air, shifting his spear slightly, and pointing the tip directly down. It cut through another of the crowd, pinning the corpse to the floor. Fratley yanked his spear from the ground, then jumped out of the fray again.
"So what's going on with these guys?" Setsuko asked, unleashing a flurry of sword strikes with one of the swords that she had strapped to her back. Two swords clashed in the air, clanking and scraping off each other until Sets jabbed her cane under the person's guard, shoving an orb of energy at his chest. This, too, imploded and burned the Ryuga into submission. "Not sure, Sets," Fratley replied, observing for a moment, then throwing his spear powerfully at one of the Ryugas. He then jumped on to the spear, pushing it straight through, halving the crowd's number. He stood on the shaft of the spear, then gestured to a nearby warrior. Immediately, a ghostly dragon appeared over the Ryuga and grabbed it, constricting it, slowly breaking every bone in its body. "Ryugas, this is a feeble attempt at an invasion. Sure, against a police force this would be easy for them. They didn't count on our appearence, obviously," Araini explaining, releasing a wave of lightning that electrocuted the final three members of this attack. The bodies fell to the ground, all of them dead.
"Ryuga? Why?" Fratley asked. "Unsure. We have a Ryuga in our world, though, you might know him..." Araini said. "Who is it, then?" Sets demanded. "Yoshimitsu, obviously," Araini said with a slight smirk.
*****
Vincent brought his sword sweeping round his head, to his side, vertically, horizontally, a flurry, a dance of sword swipes, constantly clashing with another of his former selves. This one was also a Yisimentsu, but it was not the same one. No, this one was more than just two souls inhabitting the same body. It was a fusion of two souls, an inhuman experiment. Yisimentsu, armed with a rapier, parried all of Vincent's shots, and quickly lunged, stabbing at Vincent. Vincent grabbed the blade of the rapier, and twisted the metal round, rendering the blade useless. "Please, this is just a waste of time now," Vincent said, bringing his sword round and stabbing through the memory's heart. A ghostly image of Yisimentsu appeared at his shoulder.
"Is that really what you think? You're killing off all of your negative memories, surely this is what you want?" It said. "Ha, don't make me laugh. These memories'll still be there, you stupid fucker. They wont fade that easily," Vincent snapped. "Oh, is that what you think? Let us ascend further, then we will see."
Vincent pushed open the next door and found himself stood on the side of a mountain. Surprisingly, the weather was pleasent. It was a warm night, with no clouds, and a crescent moon, the stars twinkling overhead. There was no wind, rain or other unpleasent weather. Vincent took a step forwards and slid down the side of the mountain, landing on a rather sizeable ledge. It was roughly the size of a football pitch, uneven ground littered with rocks, boulders and the like. Grass was growing, an emerald green.
"The power test... Why here?" Vincent asked, drawing his double-bladed katana. "Don't you remember the pure power you felt when you were here?" Yisimentsu asked. "All that rage you felt when Hector Cruz showed up? The energy you felt when duelling with Lee?" "I remember. Why bring me here though?" "Because you had so much drive to fight when you were here. I want to see that drive again."
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Jul 27, 2007 18:40:11 GMT -5
Skipping ahead, because I'm quite sick of that part of the story. It makes no sense whatsoever, and is badly thought out.[/u][/i]
Chapter 6 - The Final Memories[/u]
"Well, this is awkward," Yoshimitsu said, stood at one end of the corridor. Opposite him stood something oddly disturbing, he thought. It looked like him. He had the same hair, that slightly-darker than aqua hair colour, the same unruly spikes, that exact length... His eyes, mirrors of his own, the same deep blue that seemed to absorb all light... His face was exactly the same, a face that showed signs of a fighter, the scars that had never gone away. All of it, identical to his own. The attire of this imposter, however, was different. He was wearing a fastened coat that shielded his underclothes from view, aside from the bottom of his black, baggy jeans and combat boots of the same colour. Yoshimitsu drew his naginata and pointed the blade at this 'clone'.
"So, who are you?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Well, my talent is mirrors. There are few who have seen my true identity," the imposter said. "For now, you can call me Ain." "Alright then. Tea and biscuits, is it, Ain?" Yoshimitsu said. "Just stopped for a friendly chat?" "Oh, I wish. Alas, I'm always the bearer of bad news," Ain sighed. "It seems your friend is having some issues of his own. So you have a choice." "A choice?" Yoshimitsu said. He paused, then added, "Vincent can take care of himself, I'm sure." "Yes, a choice. You can go and assist your friend, or you can stay and receive your explanation, of who you are and why you came to be."
Yoshimitsu considered this. On one hand, Vincent could handle himself in nearly every situation. Yoshimitsu had never known Vincent to be in any real danger due to his sheer skill. While he was probably not as powerful as Yoshimitsu in terms of power and speed, Vincent made up for it with his skill at fighting. On the other hand, why would Ain be telling him of difficulties for Vincent? Maybe the boy had gotten into far too much trouble. Something he couldn't handle. Yoshimitsu thought, his eyes never leaving his double, his weapon staying raised all the time.
"Time's up. What is your choice?" Ain interrupted Yoshimitsu's thoughts. "... I don't supposed you'll tell me what Vincent's having issues with?" Yoshimitsu said hopefully. Ain chuckled darkly. "He's fighting some of his demons," Ain said sinisterly. Yoshimitsu felt a stab of worry, but he recalled Vincent's attitude. He was so sure of himself. Yoshimitsu made his decision. "I'll take the explanation."
Ain clapped his hands together, and Yoshimitsu felt a jerk around his navel, like he'd just been tugged suddenly. The room around him melted away, replaced by something much brighter than the black stone. It was a vivid blue colour. Medium, almost ocean blue. Everything around him was blue, the vials and the tubes, the interfaces and the worktops... Or maybe it was all clear, and the room was just blue. It looked almost organic. Everything was glowing and seemed to pulsate, breathe... Yoshimitsu could hear a heartbeat, or maybe it was just his heartbeat, pounding insistantly. Something was not right here. And everything was so familiar.
"Do you recognise this place?" Ain asked, gesturing around him. Yoshimitsu looked around. Running through the uneven walls were, what looked like, purple veins which had some unknown fluid flowing through them. Yoshimitsu could sense an imitation of life, and a very good one at that. It was all too familiar. He ran his hand over a wall, feeling its sharp coldness. "...Sort of. It's familiar. Like the remains of a dream, or maybe deja vu?" Yoshimitsu said, thinking. He ran a finger over one of the tubes. It was warm to touch, but responded to his finger, the fluid gathering where he touched it. Yoshimitsu withdrew his finger quickly, and looked at Ain. "If I could draw your attention to that wall over there," Ain said, pointing behind him. Yoshimitsu looked at the wall for a moment. There were two capsules there. Big things, big enough to hold a good sized elephant. Ain gestured to them, and Yoshimitsu nodded, walking over to them. They were a polished metal, only appearing blue due to the surrounding glows. On the door of the nearest capsule was a window. It was only a small window, but a window nonetheless. Yoshimitsu looked inside...
There was a person in there. Well, most of a person. He looked like he was being digitally constructed. Completely naked, he was missing patches of skin. Yoshimitsu looked a bit closer, and saw that the missing skin was in patches... But in squares. Like his skin was made of square pannels. Unerneath, he could see all the muscles and veins, blood and everything, but none of it was spilling. He was being held in suspended animation, and panels of skin were slowly being added to his body. Yoshimitsu's gaze rose to the figure's face. His hair, a vivid blue, matching his deep blue eyes...And that face... devoid of any scars. "That's... me?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Very astute. Yes, that's you. Many years ago. You were created, with the body of someone roughly six years old. Haven't you ever wondered why you had no memories before the age of six?" Ain commented. "Wouldn't know. Amnesia and all that," Yoshimitsu replied. "So, what, I was created in that other dimension?" "Indeed. You, and a select few. You were meant to be the Lord's elite guard. Unfortunately for him, you were taken into this dimension before you could start your training. Already an efficient fighter, you managed to scavenge your way through the next few years of your life. However, some of the personality input stuck with you, and you were a londer for a while," Ain explained.
"...I was... created?" Yoshimitsu said. "... Just to fight..." "That was the intention. However, you did not stick to that, did you? No, your life had more meaning than that. You found friends, and a reason to fight," Ain continued. "You know where you came from, and now you know where your life went from there." "There's two things I want to know. One, if I'm a creation, why do I live, breathe, get hungry, feel, everything?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Oh, that's simple enough. You are entirely biological. While we say you were 'created', you were actually born. Yes, you were pieced together, but it is in a similar way as pregnancy. So yes, you were created, but you were also born," Ain explained. "Right. And two, how did I end up in this world instead?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Ah, yes. Well, I shall show you," Ain said, raising a hand. The room melted away, and Yoshimitsu felt that sudden jerk at his navel.
*****
Vincent smashed against the ground, his sword flying from his hand. "Damn. I didn't realise how strong we were..." Vincent thought, dragging himself to his feet and extending his hand, his sword flying back to it. The dual-bladed katana whistled as it returned to Vincent, and he jumped to his feet, tapping his necklace. Instantly, with a bright flash, Vincent's attire changed. He was wearing a pure black, long sleeved shirt, the first few buttons undone. His pants were also completely black, and looked very much like the flared pants dancers wore. He also wore black combat boots. Finally, to top off the attire, he was wearing a silver visor. Vincent, using his Dark form. His katana exploded in black flames as he charged Yisimentsu, who was laughing.
"Come on then, Vincent. Show me your true power!" He mocked. Vincent lunged at Yisimentsu, sword first, but Yisimentsu sliced straight through the attack. However, the Vincent faded, and a second dropped from above, cutting through the Yisimentsu. The Yisimentsu also vanished, fading away. Vincent spun on the spot, meeting a slash from Yisimentsu equally. Vincent disappeared, leaving a small black flame on the floor. Yisimentsu raised his sword and a wall of fire formed in front of him. The black flame exploded, powerless against the wall. Vincent reappeared behind Yisimentsu and kicked the fighter in the back of the head, but the Yisimentsu faded away. Another copy. Vincent vanished, kicking off of the wall, flipping and shooting down at the Yisimentsu who was stood just behind the action.
Suddenly, he felt something slice his side. The Yisimentsu observing the action below had been another copy, and the real Yisimentsu had just attacked him from the air, cutting clean into his side. Vincent dropped to the floor, running his finger along his side. It was warm, and wet with his blood. Swearing to himself, he stood up properly and raised his sword again. "Haha, that's more than enough," Yisimentsu said. "What do you mean?!" Vincent demanded, pointing his sword at Yisimentsu. "Try to heal. Go on," Yisimentsu ordered. Vincent raised his free hand to his wound and tried to let his healing powers fix the cut. What came instead was a black flame that burned the wound. Vincent grunted in pain, then called off the attack. He raised his hand to his necklace to try to change back to his regular form. Instead of changing back, he felt a sharp pain in his body. He couldn't pinpoint where the pain was coming from, rather it seemed to be his very essence that was hurting. He stopped trying to revert forms.
"Understand yet? The darkness has gripped you, your soul, and it will never let you go," Yisimentsu said. "You're wrong!" Vincent shouted, sending out a wave of dark energy. Yisimentsu slashed right through the wave, that ever-present smirk even more pronounced. "Oh, but am I? You know it's true, Vincent. Accept it, and boost your powers!" Yisimentsu urged. Vincent's head dropped. He raised his hand to his visor and pulled it off, throwing it to the side. "I don't need that... What use was it against you? Stupid fashion statement..." He said to himself. His shoulders started shaking. Yisimentsu's smirk left his face. What Vincent crying?
"...Haha.... ha.... ha ha ha...."
No. Vincent was laughing.
"Of course! Why not?! Let's just use the power of darkness! There's no force that can destroy it! No wonder I couldn't defeat you, you're just some stupid manifestation of that power," Vincent said, looking up, a manic grin on his face. His eyes were completely black. "No more, Yisimentsu. I'm going to destroy you now."
Yisimentsu laughed, then spread his arms wide. "Go on, then! Let's see you use that power, and wipe me from this place!"
Vincent grinned, the blace flames solidifying on his sword. It was roughly an isoceles triangle now, completely black, resembling the stone he was stood on but much stronger. He ran at Yisimentsu, his sword scraping along the floor, sending sparks flying. Vincent jumped up, and drove his sword through Yisimentsu's chest. As soon as he punctured the skin, Yisimentsu let off a vivid white light. Vincent twisted the sword, then yanked it out. "Well done, Vincent. Now direct that power... and... des... troyyy..." Yisimentsu gasped, then dissolved into nothingness. Vincent let out a manic laugh, then shot straight up, through the stone, through the roof and straight into the sky, where he vanished in a flash of black flames.
*****
Yoshimitsu felt his feet hit solid ground again as his eyes tried to focus on the new surroundings. The sky above was completely black, with a glowing blue sun in the sky. Yoshimitsu paused for a moment. If there was a sun emitting light, why was the sky black? And why was the sun blue? Ain turned to him, chuckling. "This isn't the dimension you're used to. This is your home dimension, before that Mercury Adept eradicated Lord Dran," he explained, apparently reading Yoshimitsu's mind. Yoshimitsu nodded, looked down and gasped. He was stood on nothing. Thin air. But it felt solid, as solid as the stone of the castle. Suddenly, something in his memory sparked, and he recalled...
A large room, from a castle. A deep wood-like red colour made the walls, but they were tougher than metal. The ground was a solid black, but not reflective, nor carpetted. It was just stone, it felt. Ahead, a figure clad in jewelled armour. Next to him, Vincent, looking strong as ever. The figure ahead raised a hand, and the floor seemed to melt away without disappearing - they were still stood firmly on ground. An image below. An illusion floor. Yoshimitsu inhaled sharply, then slowly released the breath as his heart slowed to a normal pace.
Yoshimitsu snapped back to reality. "I see... so this is just another illusion floor. What for?" Yoshimitsu said, looking below. He saw that room. The room he had just remembered. There were two guards stood at the side of every exit, and that armour-clad figure sat on what looked like a throne, looking thoroughly bored. The doors creaked open, and a figure wearing a crimson lab coat entered. He was holding a clipboard, and had what looked like a piece of someone's skin. The scientist approached Lord Dran and offered the skin sample. Dran accepted it and stared at it for a few moments, apparently analysing it, though Yoshimitsu could not understand how. One of Dran's crystals started glowing, and the skin sample wrapped around his hand and sunk into his flesh. The scientist nodded.
"I see... So this one is stronger than all the others..." Dran said. "Yes, my Lord. With the right training, he could easily surpass all of your other guards," the scientist said. "Very well. Continue your tests," Dran said, waving his hand dismissively. The scientist bowed, and marched out of the room.
"That skin sample..." Yoshimitsu started. "They got a copy of your body and made an extra copy of skin. The skin contains all the necessary information regarding who you are. Dran has absorbed copies of all of his guards," Ain explained. "Dran knew everything he needed to know about you then, when he absorbed that sample. He couldn't predict what would happen next, though."
The scene underneath shifted again, to the laboratory where Yoshimitsu was made. The boy was still in the chamber, held in suspended animation, doubtless to make sure he was stable, and to allow the tests to be completed. The scientists, all clad in identical crimson lab coats, rushed about the lab, quickly typing things into computers that seemed to be integrated into the walls, pouring liquids into various vials and making notes. "Stran, test complete. Successfully created the amplifier formula. Permission to administer it?" One scientist said. The one he was addressing, Stran, turned to him. "Granted," he said, writing a few notes and watching as the first scientist slotted a vial into the machine Yoshimitsu was being held in. Another scientist looked over.
"Stran, the second subject is showing signs of development," The new scientist said. "What? Are you sure, Diar?" Stran replied. "How much development?" "More than we expected. Look at the readings," Diar replied. Stran rushed over to the moniter, where a humanoid figure was displayed. The readings on the screen were slowly rising. Stran rubbed his forehead for a moment. "Diar, reduce the dosage given to Orasin," Stran said. Diar nodded, tapped a few keys, then returned to the second chamber and removed some of the vials.
"Stran, Naruk is responding to the formula a little too well," the first scientist said.
"Let's go for a closer look," Ain said, waving a hand. He and Yoshimitsu suddenly found themselves inside the chamber, with the child Yoshimitsu. The smaller figure was twitching violently, his limbs jerking violently. The wires that were attached to him came loose and fell from him. He fell on the floor, continuing to twitch in his reaction to the formula. Suddenly, the twitching stopped.
And the small figure opened his eyes.
"Here is where all hell broke loose. You'd be proud to see what kind of mayhem you caused," Ain commented, transporting them above the scene again. Yoshimitsu looked down to see all of the scientists gathered around the chamber, all nervously and agitatedly fidgeting. Suddenly, a bright light shone through the small window, lighting the room thoroughly. The scientists all tried to look through the window, when...
BANG.
The door of the chamber exploded and shot across the room, taking three of the scientists with it. The boy Yoshimitsu was on his feet, his hands and eyes glowing with an unearthly energy. He channelled the energy through his hands and blasted it right through the scientists, blasting them all away from the pod. The Yoshimitsu ran out of the pod, quickly finding the prepared clothes and putting them on. The scientists were stirring as he fastened his shoelaces. He looked around and ran from the room. Yoshimitsu opened his mouth to ask Ain why they were not moving, but Ain just pointed to Diar, who was on his feet. Diar pushed a button on the wall, and said very loudly:
"Subject Naruk has escaped. Subject is violent and extremely powerful. Capture the subject and return him to the laboratory."
And the scene below changed, following the child Yoshimitsu. He ran along the corridors quickly. The corridors themselves seemed to be trying to stop him - pannels slid back and the crystal shone. Wires with hooked claws shot from the walls, trying to ensnare him. Lasers shot across the room, attempting to block his path. The child weaved around the wires, showing skill that the older Yoshimitsu found admirable, he hopped over lasers, ducked below metal poles that tried to bar his path. The child found himself face to face with a metal gate. Without thinking, the child punched the grate, smashing it as his hands glowed.
"I had that much power right after waking up?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Initially, yes. As you spent more time in this dimension, however, you needed to use it less and less, and you simply forgot about it. You didn't have the training required to maintain this power, though that isn't to say you were a bad fighter," Ain explained. "No, you kept a hold of the physical qualities. You were a powerful fighter regardless." Yoshimitsu nodded, and returned his attention to his younger self.
They were out of the building now. It had been the lower levels of the castle where the lab was. The child Yoshimitsu had blasted a hole straight through the main doors and ran out. There was a straight path from the castle out of the city, and the child ran straight along it. Behind him, at least ten guards had followed him, attempting to restrain him. Half of them had already been injured, but it did not stop their pursuit. Yoshimitsu ran through the barrier that protected the city and hopped along the chunks of crystal-like rock that made up the rest of the planet. He could feel some unusual power ahead of him, something that did not belong in this dimension, and he wanted to know what it was.
Suddenly, some of the guards landed on the rock in front of him. Behind him, the others were stopping. Some landed on the structures on either side. He was surrounded. "Naruk, give it up. You're surrounded, and you can't defeat the elite guard," one of the guards said, brandishing a sword. The child Yoshimitsu saw the sword and was enticed. The sword looked so inviting... He wanted it. He wanted to wield it. Without thinking, he ran forward and shot from his structure, headfirst, shooting at the guard holding the sword. He headbutted the guard powerfully, sending him staggering back. The child hopped up and grabbed the sword from the guard's now-lax grip and kicked the guard, knocking him from the structure. The two other guards on the structure started on Yoshimitsu's younger self. However, the child had apparently lost all interest in fighting and had already jumped to the next structure, continuing to make his way to that energy reading he could sense.
"So, I was going for the portal?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Yes. You've seen enough now, the next part is predictable. Take a guess at what happened next," Ain said. "I found the portal and, in a trance-like state, jumped in. Am I right?" Yoshimitsu guessed. "That's exactly what happened, actually," Ain said, clapping his hands together. The pair returned to the black corridor of the castle. "And that tells you who you are and what you have done. You have finished in the Castle of Memories." "Oh good. All this black is just too depressing," Yoshimitsu said, grinning. "I've gotta catch up to Vincent now and see-" "Ah, yes... About him... Your companion has..." "What? He's what?"
"He's fallen to his inner demons. You wont recognise his character any more. He's no longer your friend," Ain said. Yoshimitsu's jaw dropped. Vincent had fallen to his inner demons... "A vision from his past caught up to him." Yoshimitsu closed his mouth, and thought. Vision from his past? That could only be...
"Yisimentsu."
Not quite finished yet
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Mar 10, 2009 13:43:25 GMT -5
Chapter 7 - The Chase
It had been over a year. Over a year since Vincent had fallen to his inner darkness. And in that year, Yoshimitsu had been trying his hardest to find his companion. If there was so much as a whisper of Vincent's location, Yoshimitsu was there. Any leads he found, he followed. In that year, Yoshimitsu had encountered Vincent three times. Each time lead to a fight. Each fight lead to the blue haired teenager's defeat. Knowing that he could not face Vincent while he was so powerful, Yoshimitsu started training instead. He knew that he had to get more powerful so that he could finally defeat his former friend.
With a sigh, Yoshimitsu slid from the wall he was sat on. The night was cold, far too cold for him to be out without his jacket. Nevertheless, he was out. Trying to collect his thoughts. He had improved, he had strengthened himself. Actually, he was fairly confident that he could at least pose a threat to Vincent now. Calmly, apparently oblivious to the chilling wind, he walked up the road he was on. No one was out tonight. That suited him just fine. No random passers-by staring at his odd appearence, or intimidated by the sword hanging at his waist. The Bahamut Blade.
"Bahamut, what do I have to do?"
"Vincent is your friend, no matter what." Yoshimitsu sighed again.
"I know that. But what am I supposed to do? Kill him?
"He needs help."
"You're not being helpful."
"Figure it out. You know what has to be done."
Yoshimitsu gave a grim smile. He did know what had to be done. But doing it was the hard part.
*****
"So let me get this straight."
Yoshimitsu was not alone. Actually, he was as close to the opposite of alone as could be. A group of people, sat on the island of Mist. Currently, they occupied the space on the mountain, one of the few places that was devoid of any danger. With him stood a number of people. Kilik was there, apparently devoid of any weapons, his attire calm for once. Fratley was on edge, as usual, his spear drawn. Araini stood looking casually indifferent, his ice blonde hair playing over his eyes in the breeze. Even Ain was present though he was still assuming the appearence of Yoshimitsu. To finish off the group, Alex had arrived in a flashy manner, melting into existence through water.
"Yeah?" Yoshimitsu asked.
"Vincent's gone psycho, you have no clue what he's up to and we have to keep an eye out for you?" Kilik asked, shifting on his feet.
"Essentially, yeah," Yoshimitsu replied.
"What's triggered all this, then?" Fratley asked.
"I'm not sure. I think it has something to do with my race, and I think they're planning something. But Vincent's a bigger threat than my race are, so he's my primary target," Yoshimitsu explained.
"You're a bigger threat to them though," Araini interjected. "If I were among them, I'd consider trying to distract you so that they can enact their plan. With Vincent running wild, you're out of the way."
"Maybe, but I'm not the only person who can fight them off," Yoshimitsu replied, shrugging.
"No, but you know them better than anyone," Araini pointed out.
"Even if I do, there's still other people who can sort them out. Vincent's probably a bigger threat than they are," Yoshimitsu said. He glanced out to the sky, his eyes slipping out of focus for a moment.
"And Vincent's stronger than you," Alex said simply. Yoshimitsu's eyes snapped to him.
"How... yes, he is."
"If you want to stand a chance against him, you need to strengthen yourself," Alex continued. "He's harnessed his own inner demons and embraced them. He's running wild with the darkness in his heart, and you have no way of fighting that."
"He's right," Ain agreed. "He's basically fighting as you when at your strongest, if not stronger. Utilising the power of his heart and soul, he's perfectly capable of killing you many times over."
"What do you propose I do, then?" Yoshimitsu asked.
"Figure it out," Alex said. "I'll keep an eye out." With that, he melted away. Yoshimitsu watched him leave with a look of distaste on his face.
"I think I shall take my leave too," Fratley said. "I'll focus on your race. Their observation will be my number one priority."
"Thanks Fratley," Yoshimitsu said, nodding. Fratley turned and leapt from the island.
"Kilik, you wished to speak on some matter?" Araini asked, his eyes moving over to the brown haired teenager.
"Yeah, but in private. No offense, Yosh," Kilik replied. Yoshimitsu just nodded. Araini raised a hand and their pair of them teleported elsewhere. Only Yoshimitsu and Ain were left.
"What didn't you tell me?" Yoshimitsu asked, shifting slightly.
"A great deal, if I'm being honest. Your assumpted are close enough to the truth," Ain replied.
"Which parts are off?"
"Vincent is not necessarily the bigger threat, but if you chase him... well, you will learn more. If you focus on the Ryuga, then Vincent may become a threat to the world."
"Since when did you care about the world?"
"I don't, truth be told. But your story interests me. I'd like to see where it goes."
"So you're not here to help me?"
"Did I say that? Your life is yours to shape, but if you need a push in the right direction then I'll be more than happy to help."
"Alright then, point me."
"That's easy enough. What exactly changed Vincent?"
"That's easy. He's lost himself to his darkness."
"Very astute. And entirely correct. However, more detail. What darkness?"
Yoshimitsu considered this. "His past. Yisimentsu changed him."
"Good. Now, becoming Yisimentsu was not just his actions."
"No, it needed me as well. But I don't understand..."
"Very well. You know what you need to research now. What exactly is fuelling Vincent?"
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Mar 12, 2009 17:20:23 GMT -5
"This is hisroute..." Yoshimitsu muttered slowly, walking along the corridor. His footsteps echoed off the black stone. He couldn't shake the feeling that he might drown as he saw himself reflected in the stone. "He followed his memories down... Were they the same as mine?"
"Essentially. Most of the events you two relived were shared memories of each other," Ain explained as he walked alongside the warrior. "But his take on the memories were different. Neither yours nor his were perfect."
"How's that?"
"The memories are taken from your heart. If you cared to explore the castle differently, you would have relived memories of other events. However, your thoughts of each other were what you were following," Ain explained. "But the heart is not a recording device. Some memories change, for better or worse, depending on how you dwell on them."
"So, even though I didn't dwell on mine..."
"You couldn't dwell on yours. Yours were influenced by your thoughts of Vincent, and as such shaped themselves positively. Vincent, on the other hand, has always had doubts about he acted. His memories were shown in a negative light, and his guide was less than helpful. Undoubtedly, the Ryuga planned this."
"But not you?" Yoshimitsu asked skeptically as they reached the door.
"Hardly. I don't get involved. I sit and watch," Ain replied.
"Right... but what did you mean, his guide?"
"That's simple enough. You were unburdened by this castle. However, his own personal demons manifested themselves to help guide him," Ain said, nodding. "They took on a physical appearence of his worst regret."
"Yisimentsu, right?"
"Of course. Who else would show that?"
"I need to see. I need to find out what's fuelling him," Yoshimitsu said. He turned the handle and threw the door open. The scene around them shifted, and Yoshimitsu found himself in an all-too familiar place.
They were stood on ice. An ice platform, out at sea. In the distance, Yoshimitsu could see Dejurrin island in its original state, the inspiration for Mist. In front of him, he could see two figured fighting. They were throwing themselves at each other with the savagery of lions. Yoshimitsu recognised everything about them, right down to their fighting styles. The younger versions of himself and Vincent. The Bahamut Blade clashing with Vincent's elemental sword.
"This was his first memory here..." Yoshimitsu said slowly.
"Are you surprised?" Ain asked.
"No. This was mine too, but mine was in a different place," Yoshimitsu replied. "It was earlier, still on the island."
"So why is this significant?"
"It was supposed to be our final fight," Yoshimitsu explained. "The last fight to end it all, and see just who was stronger. It was intense."
"Why were you fighting though?"
"Why wouldn't we? Back then, we weren't friends."
"Why?"
"Why? He did everything he could to fuck up my life," Yoshimitsu said thoughtfully.
"And you're friends with him?"
"What's past is past. Why bother thinking about it?" Yoshimitsu asked.
"Fair point. So, why was he fighting you?" Ain asked.
"Because he hated everything I stood for," Yoshimitsu replied. The fighting was entering its final stages, Yoshimitsu knew. Above the scene, Bahamut and Tiamat had been called upon. They fought with unbelievable power. Everything mattered in this fight.
"Which was?"
"I dunno... freedom. Compassion. Hell, even love."
"Why?"
"Because..." Yoshimitsu said slowly, thinking. "He never had that. He resented it. He was jealous that I could do that."
"Jealousy."
"That's the start of it. That's the first trigger," Yoshimitsu said. He pulled out his guan dao, extending the shaft. "I have to end this. I have to move on."
There was a sound like the air particles being torn apart, and suddenly Yoshimitsu was gone. The next second, Tiamat let out a horrifying roar of pain. The younger Yoshimitsu and Vincent both stopped and looked up to see Tiamat with a guan dao jammed into his skull. Yoshimitsu tored the guan dao out, kicked from the dragon's snout into a flip and brought the weapon cutting through Bahamut's head. Quickly, Yoshimitsu jammed his hand in the cut and sent a surge of electricity through the dragon's body.
"You even remember the order?" Ain asked as Yoshimitsu dropped down to the ice again.
"You don't forget something like this," Yoshimitsu replied, moving at a ridiculously high speed again. He thrust the blade of the guan dao into the younger Vincent's head, right where he had ended things all those years ago. As he did so, both he and Ain were covered in a bright light and taken to the next floor.
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Apr 28, 2009 11:40:57 GMT -5
"The first step was jealousy..." Yoshimitsu said slowly, coming to a halt halfway along the corridor. He rubbed his temples in one hand. Another floor, another piece of the puzzle. One thing he could never figure out. Hopefully he would uncover the truth. The floors were not telling him his answers, they were helping him figure it out himself. But there was one question that needed to be answered. Why had Vincent reacted to the triggers the way that he had.
"The first step," Ain agreed, stopping beside Yoshimitsu. "The start. His jealousy escalated, I'm sure you know."
"Mist. But he had no care for it. He never understood," Yoshimitsu replied, nodding.
"Understood what?"
"What Mist was. It was one of the few pieces of our world. That's why I could shape it," Yoshimitsu explained. "I put a lock on it too, so that no one but me could change it."
"Of course. But jealousy wasn't the only thing," Ain said, gesturing to the door.
"What else fuelled him?" Yoshimitsu asked, approaching the door once more.
"This memory has been altered. Within it, you will assume a different appearance. You and his memory of you will be the only two present," Ain warned.
"Why?"
"So you will understand."
Confused but determined, Yoshimitsu opened the door and found himself in another location. The first thing to hit him was how thin the air was. He found himself taking deeper breaths, tasting a slight salt tang in the air. Due to the density of the air, he automatically assumed he was fairly high up. It was also night time, he could tell. And because of this, he knew where he was. The mountain. The mountain of the power test. The first time he let loose as Yisimentsu. And that could only mean...
"Oh, it would be you that showed up," A voice... no, two voices. Speaking simultaneously. Yoshimitsu's eyes shot to the source of the voice, and he saw Yisimentsu. The combined form of him and Vincent. He stood with spiky black hair, a blue t-shirt and black jeans. In his hand, the Bahamut Masasmune. Yoshimitsu frowned. Who did Yisimentsu think he was?
"Don't tell me you're still pissy about leaving you in my dust?" Yisimentsu mocked. Yoshimitsu rubbed his temples again. He knew this... Who had shown up on that night? Lee, he remembered. Lee, who had managed to convert his attacks and send them right back. He vaguely remembered someone else, someone with aqua-green hair. Who else? He knew there was someone else...
"Hector, seriously, let it go," Yisimentsu taunted, laughing cruelly. Yoshimitsu snapped his fingers, remembering finally. Hector Cruz. Which meant that he was assuming the appearence of his friend, Hector. Would that affect his powers? Glancing down, he saw that he had a sword at his waist. A copy of the Tiamat Blade.
"Oh come on Yisi," Yoshimitsu replied, imitating his friend's tone and dialect almost perfectly. "We all know which the better one out of us two is." Yisimentsu laughed. As he did, Yoshimitsu quickly glanced at Ain and muttered out of the corner of his mouth, "Do I still have all my powers, or just Hector's?"
"Try to fight without powers," Ain replied. "And don't talk to me, Yisimentsu can't see me."
"Hector, you need to be taught a lesson. I'm better than you," Yisimentsu sneered.
"Oh yeah?" Yoshimitsu replied. "Bring it."
Yoshimitsu had forgotten how fast he was in the past. As soon as the words left his mouth, he was forced to dodge out of the way of a violent strike. Rolling to the side, Yoshimitsu pulled out the Tiamat Blade and took the offensive. He unleashed a flurry of attacks, his sword moving fluidly as it struck at Yisimentsu. Yisimentsu reacted better than Yoshimitsu thought he would, the masamune weaving through the air as he defended against the attacks.
Knowing that he had to be precise in his strikes, Yoshimitsu quickly ducked around Yisimentsu's guard and uppercutted the dark haired teenager. Yisimentsu was sent staggering back, but as soon as he recovered he was on the offensive. His attacks were strong, fast and accurate. Yoshimitsu was left no opening, forced to dodge out of the way, the sword barely missing him. He could recognise the power behind the attacks already.
"Come on, Hector, you can do better than this," Yisimentsu taunted. Yoshimitsu grinned. He could. He knew he could. With a flourish, he shot at Yisimentsu again and jumped, reverse-spin kicking. His foot met Yisimentsu's arm, the darker haired teenager defending well. However, Yoshimitsu was so much stronger, and he twisted in the air, planting his other foot in Yisimentsu's face. He landed smoothly, then shot after his former self.
Yisimentsu was angry now. Yoshimitsu could sense it. He knew the trigger, but he also knew that he could not advance without winning this fight. Seeking to end things quickly, he vanished, reappearing over Yisimentsu who had still not quite recovered from the kick. However, as soon as he was about attack, Yisimentsu pointed his palm up and blasted out a surge of fire. Yoshimitsu had reacted just in time, blocking the brunt of the flames. He was sent flying into the air, but he was mostly undamaged. Yisimentsu shot into the air after him, a look of murder on his face.
The pair seemed to dance in the air. With their respective weapons, they were experts. Yoshimitsu, who had already become accustomed to wielding a fairly standard sized sword, was moving quickly and fluidly, his strikes executed perfectly. Yisimentsu with the long masamune, his strikes managing to delay Yoshimitsu's retaliation. They seemed evenly matched.
Yoshimitsu had had enough. The fight was taking wholly too long. However, with every strike that Yisimentsu landed, he was more certain of what was fuelling him. He needed to test it and see how angry he could get his former self.
"Hey Yisi," Yoshimitsu said, landing smoothly again. "Tell me something, I thought that you getting that summon was supposed to make you stronger? And Vincent too, right? You're supposed to be at least double strong, right?"
"What of it?" Yisimentsu snapped.
"It's just that... I feel like I'm fighting an amateur. Seriously man, this isn't even a challenge," Yoshimitsu mocked. "Did vincent like, I dunno, strip you of your power by accident? I don't get it, how come you got so pathetic?"
"You son of a bitch!" Yisimentsu roared. Yoshimitsu knew it was coming. The special technique that Vincent had passed on. He felt his clothes rippling as an aura flared up around Yisimentsu, shockwaves emanating from him. Electricity sparked in the air around the black haired teenager.
"You're still not scaring me," Yoshimitsu taunted. Yisimentsu's hair flashed into gold, and Yoshimitsu knew that he was right. He raised his sword, preparing himself. The transformation, calling on that power, it would more than double Yisimentsu's strength. Yoshimitsu had underestimated Yisimentsu before, he wasn't about to do it again. He put all of his strength into guarding the first attack from Yisimentsu, one that pushed him back as sword met sword. Yoshimitsu's guard held strong.
"Show me what you've got, Yisimentsu!" Yoshimitsu roared, jumping into the sky. He pointed both of his palms down and sent a massive fireball exploding down at Yisimentsu. The golden haired teenager cut through the fire and shot after Yoshimitsu, and the two clashed in the air again. Yisimentsu was moving faster, a lot faster. However, Yoshimitsu had four years experience on the memory. With a precise movement, he sent Yisimentsu flying past him and opened a deep cut on his arm.
"Game over," Yoshimitsu said, pointing at Yisimentsu. With the sound of a cannon firing, a beam of electrical energy blasted from his finger. The sheer force of the attack blasted a hole straight through Yismentsu's head. Yoshimitsu felt his body glow as his former self fell and faded away.
"Two triggers down," Yoshimitsu thought. [/i]"Too many to go."[/i]
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