Other [FanFic] Rose & Sunflower 2: Vox Arcana (Updates MWF) -Ch 51 [27 January] -COMPLETE

Discussion in 'Fan Works' started by Risukage, Oct 3, 2016.

  1. Minimanta

    Minimanta Spaceman Spiff

    Oh I'm well aware this would happen! My own cat (the guy in my avatar) is a victim of this xD
    My cat is not the playful type, but he currently lives with my parents who have a kitten who is super playful and she will full-body tackle my cat when playtime hits. And my cat then responds with grunts of disapproval, it's hilarious to watch.

    And ferrets, oh my goodness, they're so playful.
    I love those snake cats, I'd love to own a couple one day <3
     
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    • Risukage

      Risukage Giant Laser Beams

      *Laughs.* That's so sweet! And for what it's worth, ferrets are an interesting way to not only test your patience but see how ready you are for kids.

      I HAVE NEITHER. JUST NO. D:

      Seriously, though, ferrets are bloody well clever and sneaky, and have NO self-preservation instinct or fear. The cats ran from the vacuum cleaner but Spaz (the crazy one) would war-dance at it, basically all "COME AT ME BRO! YOU WANT SOME OF THIS?!" The other one didn't give a damn and would almost let it run over him... They will take anything, anything that catches their fancy, and if you take it away, THEY WANT IT MORE. They're basically boneless toddlers on methamphetamines. They also need LOTS of room to play and explore, and need lots of attention, so if you're short on time and/or space, best off getting hamsters or other caged animals that don't need as much work. I wouldn't do it again, but it was worth it for the time. :)

      Also, yay, I was wondering if that was your kitty or not. It always makes me smile. SO FLOOFY.
       
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      • Risukage

        Risukage Giant Laser Beams

        //Warning, this chapter contains science! Sebastian is setting up to be the Neil DeGrasse Tyson of thaumophysics. GODS, I love writing this geeky stuff. I really, REALLY need to have another go at that magic-and-tech series I've been meaning to write for the last five years...//


        Abigail glanced over at Sebastian and grinned, prompting a frustrated sigh.

        "Don't be like that, I'm not giving you grief, I can see why he mistook you for his last sweetie. I just think it's funny that he's romanced almost all of us in some fashion before he..." She trailed off as her eyes unfocused, thinking of something. Sam knew exactly what it was, his grin getting even brighter.

        "Are you thinking of-"

        "Yes! Ohmigosh, yes!"

        "Visual novel!" they exclaimed together.

        "For the love of..." muttered Sebastian, facepalming again.

        "Yes, we'd all have our own routes, even Alex, we'll figure something out for that."

        "And he's just androgynous enough we could have both a male and a female option-"

        "Lysander and Lysandra-"

        "YASSSS!"

        "Sebby! You've got to help us with this!"

        "NO. Sweet Yoba, no. You are on your own. Besides, games of any kind are a hell of a project and we've got enough going on, you can't-"

        "Oh wow," Haley giggled, "for my route, if we're doing our own voices, I wanna be all sexy, but in the 'romance' scenes I wanna be all squeaky and high-pitched." Abigail laughed and high-fived her before running back to the house.

        "I need my sketch pad, I have so many ideas! C'mon!" She was followed by Sam and Haley, and eventually by Sebastian, after heaving yet another deep sigh of long-suffering patience. Scratching his head, Alex turned to Elliott and Lys.

        "What's a 'visual novel?' Like a comic book? But Seb said something about a game."

        "A visual novel is a style of video game, of which dating simulators are a popular genre."

        "Oh, that's neat, so-" He blinked as all of the puzzle pieces connected and he saw the full picture.

        "Are... Wait, Abby and Sam want to build a dating sim where Lys is..."

        "Apparently," smirked the man in question, shrugging with amusement, "I'm not encouraging it, but at the same time, eh, it sounds like harmless fun for a little while. If it keeps their minds off of everything, well, I'll play along a bit. Besides, I am kinda interested to see what artwork Abby comes up with, she's really become good in this last year." Shaking his head, Alex walked back to the house, curious as well. Lys noticed that Elliott hadn't relinquished physical contact and had an idea why. Hugging him, arms around his waist, Lys gave him the smile that belonged only to him.

        "I know that look, love. What's on your mind?" He leaned into Elliott's hand as the blonde man traced familiar lines down the side of his face.

        "Over and over I am able to heal your body, but it seems that I know nothing of healing your mind. I saw your psyche shatter and I hesitated, terrified that you had been finally broken. Then I felt loathing for myself as another came to your side to provide support. I do not feel animosity toward him at all. He said the words that I did not have and brought you peace again. You seem to be in a better state of mind, but you are a brilliant actor and can wear a mask under which few can see."

        "I'm okay now. Really. I guess...yeah, for a moment, I was broken. Everything that had just happened finally hit me right in the face, since I'd just been running on adrenaline and anger up until then. The moment that it ran out and I started thinking again... I supposed I needed that, to cry and get it all out rather than bottle it all up. And he's right, for everything that I've ever said, I've never said that I won't. That's not changing. I'm going to fix things, and I can do it as long as I have everyone behind me and you at my side." Elliott's smile was one of relief, and Lys could feel it as he pulled him in for a kiss, holding on just a little longer before they had to join everyone inside. At the table, Abigail was quickly drawing, nodding and making changes as Sam and Haley, seated on either side of her, made suggestions.

        "Okay, honest question," she remarked without stopping her pencil, "is Lysandra gonna be average or racktastic?" Haley flipped her hair over her shoulder and sniffed haughtily.

        "Average, of course. I'm already racktastic, and there's not enough space on a game disc for two of us." She bounced and jiggled a little to prove her point, which was appreciated by everyone at the table. Looking up, Abigail finally paused, glancing between Lys and her work, and grinned again.

        "Nailed it." She handed over the sketch pad, and even the work of a few minutes had yielded two decent bust sketches, one of Lys as himself, but the other as a decent "female" variant that still looked like "him." A few lines had been softened into curves, and some features enhanced or diminished, but it was easily recognizable as Lys.

        "That's pretty good. Reminds me of those pics I showed you last year."

        "Yeah, that's how I knew how to do it like this. This is going to be so much fun!" She took back the pad and continued drawing. Sebastian rolled his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

        "I'll just let them get it out of their system. They'll get bored in a few days. Right now, since we're here, might as well test to see how many loaded gems we can have in one area at once." Eyeing the trio hunched together with amusement, Alex nodded.

        "Sounds good, I didn't do much in that fight, so I'm good to start crafting. You've got the materials for it?"

        "Yeah, I stored everything in the mine by one of my waypoints. I'll jump over now and grab the mats, be right back." He stood up and away from the table, teleported out, and returned in less than a minute, burdened with several backs and backpacks. "Let's do this outside, I'd rather not risk blowing up or otherwise making a mess of their house." Taking a couple of bags to lighten his load, Lys led the way out.

        "I appreciate the thought, especially since you hate being in direct sunlight."

        "You've got enough trees around I can sit in the shade somewhere."

        Sebastian, Alex, and Elliott sat in the shade, but Lys, naturally, sprawled in the sunshine. Crafting with confident ease (the Stardrop boost was definitely being felt!), Alex made several gems in a short amount of time, and the other three examined and experimented with them.

        "Okay, I'll be our test subject," offered Sebastian, "since Alex is crafting and I'll want Elliott on-hand for heals, just in case."

        "It could be dangerous, maybe I should-"

        "The hell you will, Lys, you're already taking on most of the risk here. Anyway, I'm the one with the Earth affinity, so I'll have a better idea of capacity and limits than you will. If you really need to do something, make a pot of mana tea, I might end up pretty drained after all of this."

        "You're right, yeah. Be right back, try not to blow up my garden," Lys sassed, getting to his feet and dusting himself off.

        The other three at the table were still working on their project, so engrossed in it that they didn't notice Lys walk past them, fill a teapot with water, grab the tin of tea and a couple of mugs, and walk back out. With barely a thought, Lys warmed the kettle to the optimum temperature to steep the tea as he returned, setting it on the ground in the sun and adding the tea. Sitting down cross-legged, he continued to provide the thread of mana to the tea as he put his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands, watching Sebastian and Alex work. As soon as they were fabricated, Sebastian took the fresh diamond, synchronized with it, poured in as much mana as it could hold, and set it in a neat pile to one side. This went on for a quarter of an hour, and Lys resisted the urge to prod the diamond stack, not sure how stable it was. Sebastian noticed this and picked one up, bouncing it on his palm.

        "They seem to store it pretty well. I'm not getting any sense that they'll 'leak,' though I'm not sure about how we'll they'll respond to shock damage. No time like now, you look like you're itching for something to do," he smiled, handing Lys a gem.

        "You know me so well. Okay, I'll see what this can do. Ready to shield?"

        "Yup. Go ahead." Shrugging, Lys walked toward a nearby rock, now the one to bounce it on his hand as he got the feel for its weight.

        "Right, here we go. Fire in the hole, or not!" Throwing it with most of strength, he ducked behind an earthen barrier that Sebastian had raised for him as the diamond impacted the stone. Nothing happened, and he waited a few seconds longer, just in case, before vaulting over it and examining the gem. A quick prod with a tendril of mana to ensure that it was stable, and he scooped it up again, having a closer, if careful, look. It was completely intact and unmarred despite the force with which it had been thrown, and Lys returned it to Sebastian for further quality control.

        "Well, it looks like we can rule out the risk of them going off if physically disturbed. That's one less thing to worry about. Now we just need to see how many we can keep in proximity to each other without going off."

        "There is another consideration," Elliott supplied as he turned a gem over in his hands, "from how far away can you draw mana from it? It could be possible to set up 'caches' all over the farm in order to have a ready source of mana greater than what we could carry alone." Sebastian's eyebrows went up as he considered this.

        "That's a damn fine question. If we can have our own stash out here that won't cause an overload that'll give us a lot more power available than just what we can carry. Here, Lys, walk off while I draw mana from this. I'll let you know when you're too far for me to effectively pull from it."

        "Sure. I'll also test line-of-sight, too, see if you need to visually see it or if you can hold a connection mentally."

        "Nice. Okay, get going, I've got a thread." Walking south toward the forest to give himself the most possible distance, he was eventually stopped by Sebastian over the Link.

        Starting to lose it there. That's the farthest I'd want to be if I'm going to be pulling as much power as you say we need to. Let's keep testing distance and terrain, walk in a circle at this radius, but see if you can head out just a bit.

        As requested, Lys circled his friends, moving in and out at his behest until he was recalled.

        "Okay, looks like that's my distance. Elliott, snag a fresh one and see what yours is, let's see if we're all different or if there's a thaumic limit to this." Elliott took the next gem to be fabricated as Sebastian returned to charging and stacking the gems, pausing at one point to look critically at his stack. Like before, Lys walked away, and, at the same distance that Sebastian had called, Elliott stopped him as well. Walking the same path, they found that both of them had the same distance limit. A third test with Lys (who everyone was pretty certain had the greatest mana cap as well as thaumic capability) yielded the same results. Making notes on a pocket notepad, Lys took a look at the diamond stack that Sebastian was arranging and re-arranging.

        "This seems to be the most we can keep in proximity without instability. I'll make another batch of the same amount and see how close they can be before we start getting thaumic interference- What are you laughing at?"

        "Not at you, mate, it's just... I'm laughing at all of this. Here we are, testing magic in a scientific manner, as if it were some mundane project. And you've always wanted to be a wizard of some kind, so seeing you throw yourself into this makes me happy, I bet you're just feeling totally fulfilled right now." The soft violet smile returned and he ran a hand through his hair as he looked around.

        "Yeah. Every time I sit down and think about it my mind is kinda blown, and it's awesome. This is just so...cool. I love it. I know we're doing something unexplored and dangerous, but damn if this isn't thrilling in a way. Also...I kinda had an idea how to set these up once we've got 'em charged, but..." Lys fixed him with a grin of anticipation, knowing that his friend just needed a bit of a nudge to open up.

        "Tell me, I bet this is gonna be awesome." Another flash of that smile, and Sebastian gestured at the ground, creating a scale model of what he had in mind.

        "I was thinking spires. Rather than just piling them up somewhere or what, build 'towers' or something for them that will be sturdy enough that nothing gets damaged or scattered. I'm worried about them being too conspicuous, but I really had a fun idea for them."

        "Make 'em cool, mate, worst case, I can find a way to- Ohhh, I've got some climbing ivy we can plant on them. It would look totally awesome and I could use the excuse that I'm building something and those are the foundation pieces for it."

        "...Damn, Lys, that's brilliant. Yes! So I was thinking slim spires, almost like lightning rods, with the gems lined up in them. I was thinking of having smaller 'indicator' stones, probably in our own gems, to signal whether or not a diamond has charge or has been expended. Alex, can I bother you to make some fast obsidian discs? About half the size of your palm or so."

        "Sure, hang on, I'll need some of this stuff here... Got it." Fashioning half a dozen of the requested items, he handed them over and returned to his original work.

        "Okay, first, where are you gonna work on the lock? I figure we're gonna want to be a bit away from the house, just in case, but I'm not sure what you're working with."

        "This way. From what I've been able to work with, they built it right...here. This will give me the best access and focus." Sebastian created a small spire to denote the center of the circle he was planning to start, and walked away the distance he remembered would be the farthest he could reliably draw from. He had brought along six of the charged diamonds and channeled up a slim pillar of stone, which after a bit of skillful manipulation and transmutation, became pearlescent white marble. Lys whistled with approval as Sebastian merged the diamonds into the pillar, stacked yet spaced atop each other, and pressed an obsidian disc into the marble surface where the gem behind it was. Another moment of arcane manipulation left the obsidian glowing faintly.

        "Oh nice, I see that you've linked them. As long as there's a charge in the gems the discs will be lit. Once expended, they go dark. I really wish we'll be able to keep our powers after all of this is done, you've got amazing ideas that I want to see happen so bad."

        "Same here, but at the same time, we both know that the desire for power is what caused all of this. One thing at a time. But yeah, this, it's gonna work great. Lemme do the math and pace out the other six spires. I'll also have to go do a bit more mine-diving to get enough materials for all of this. Looks like my coding work will be on hiatus for a while." Lys left him to his work and returned to the tree, as the eager Wizard returned to the center of the circle, looked to the distance of the spire that he'd created, put a hand on the ground, and sent up six more equidistant from each other, though plain stone for the moment. Elliott gave Lys a warm smile as he returned, still experimenting with the gem.

        "It appears that we have a solution to one of our problems."

        "Yeah, and he's having a total blast with it. I'm really glad to see him having fun like this, it's what he's always dreamed of. ...It's all I ever really wanted, y'know, to make people smile and help them see their dreams..."
         
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        • Minimanta

          Minimanta Spaceman Spiff

          Science need no warning! Science is awesome :D
           
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          • Risukage

            Risukage Giant Laser Beams

            //Just a bit of late-summer shenanigans, because it effing snowed again today and will continue to do so tomorrow, so I'm a bit grumpy. TAKE YOUR DAMN MEDS, NATURE. Why won't winter please die with the rest of 2016?...

            Also, I've finally updated my avatar, 'cause some amazing person did a sexy-awesome redraw of Lysander, and it's too nifty to not use. I wonder if I should post it on my Tumblr, I'm not sure of the etiquette on this sort of thing...//


            An hour or two later they were joined by the other three, who had paused in their game design efforts. Lys caught them up to speed, and Alex sighed with exhaustion and leaned back against the tree.

            "Damn, I'm done for the day. I'll take a cup of tea but I won't be able to fab any more until tomorrow." Sebastian examined the remaining store of materials and nodded.

            "That works, we're nearly out of mats. I didn't do much today so I'll go do a bit of exploring in a little bit. I've got a better idea of what we'll need and how much of it."

            "Thanks, bro. And thanks, 'cuz." Alex gratefully took a mug of tea from Lys and sipped it, already feeling better from just the one taste. With great interest, Sam was having a look at the spires that Sebastian had created, all of them now marble, and poked at the one with the obsidian discs in it.

            "So we'll all be getting one of these? That's pretty sweet. You're a proper Wizard, dude, already crafting magic items. How much XP did these take to make?" he asked, grinning broadly. With a chuckle, Sebastian stood up to walk over and look at his work again.

            "No, no experience needed, this just took mana. Besides, since they're stationary and going to be used by a specific person only once, it would have made the crafting cost crazy low anyway." They shared a quick grin of mutual game referencing, and returned to the rest of the group. "Lys, Elliott, pass me your gems, I'll get them locked in, along with the indicator discs. We'll get everyone else as Alex recuperates. It looks like we can carry the same on us personally, but I recommend that once we charge them we store them all separately, to avoid the risk of thaumic overload." He blinked as he thought about his statement and laughed.

            "Listen to us," Abigail grinned, "sounding like total pros, even though we've only been doing this a couple of months. And people say that video games are bad for you." Haley sat down next to Alex and gave him a supportive hug.

            "You are amazing, sweetie. And I'm not just saying that because you can create diamonds from scratch! Are you going to be okay for practice tomorrow if you keep this up?"

            "Yeah, I won't be able to make anything tomorrow, just in case, but I'll bust my ass the day after."

            "That'll give me enough time to get everything we need," remarked Sebastian, returning again from installing the next set of gems, "maybe we should call it for the day. It's been busy, and if I'm tired then half of you have to be exhausted." Lys took the empty mug from Alex to refill it and agreed.

            "Yeah, I'm starting to feel the edges of getting tired, so I'm probably not going to last much longer. How about you, love?"

            "I likewise am fatigued, but not as much as I had expected. Though it drains me to heal, it costs you more because you are consuming your own body's resources in order to repair. Further, do not sleep until you have had something to eat."

            "Yeah, I've got just enough left in me to grab food and that's kinda it." Sebastian gathered up his bags and stood up.

            "I'll head out, then, nobody's expecting me home for a while so I can do a bit of resource-gathering." He paused again to think about it and laughed almost until he cried. "Oh wow, Lys is the one with a garden, but I'm the one doing farming right now." Sam burst into laughter again, holding his sides.

            "If you start spamming us over the Link to buy gold I'm gonna kick your ass myself."

            Shortly after everyone gathered up their gear and left, once again leaving the house in relative silence. Bahamut watched Lys and Elliott enter the kitchen with one, white, slit-eyed glance, still in the kitty bed with Xander draped across it, though it no longer had a foot in its face.

            THOU HAST RETURNED. IT APPEARS THAT TODAY'S WORK WAS FRUITFUL.

            "It was, we've got a lot figured out and done. Provided Maurice keeps his nose out of our business we've got a solution to all of this. Though...we need to get working on dinner quickly, I'm really feeling it." He poured himself a mug of tea from what was left in the pot, putting the pot in the sink, and having a drink of it while he had a look in the pantry. "Something fast, I'm probably gonna be unconscious in about two hours."


            In less time than that Lys undressed for bed, starting to feel the effects of the day weighing down on him. Tossing his pants over the back of a chair, he dropped into bed, suddenly feeling even more tired now that he was sprawled out. Elliott sat down next to him, brushing hair out of his face, looking content.

            "If you can stay awake a little longer, I would examine you to ensure that there is no lingering injury. My skill has increased, yet I would be certain." Stretching and straightening out, Lys nodded.

            "Yeah, have at it, I feel good, but it's better to check rather than wake up tomorrow to find that something didn't heal right."

            Diving into Lys with his mana, Elliott checked him physically and mentally, remembering what work he had done with the residue of the power that he had used earlier that day. Usually Lys would find this sort of touch to be quite arousing, but this time it was comforting, and he relaxed into it, "watching" Elliott's thaumic delving. He toyed with the thread, seeing how it connected them, and allowed some of his own mana to flow "upstream." Smiling at the sudden rush of warmth, Elliott sat back up.

            "Once more my skill is unsurpassed, you show no lingering signs of injury. I for one will rest much easier with this knowledge."

            "I'm gonna sleep better than you will, I'm drained. C'mere, I want to hold you as I pass out." Elliott pulled the blanket over them both as he slid into place next to Lys, but pulled him on top of himself, kissing him on the neck.

            "I shall hold you this time. Rest on me and be restored." Yawning, Lys snuggled into his hug, only partially aware of both Xander and Bahamut joining them.

            "Getting a bit crowded here," he muttered before he drifted off to sleep.


            The warning had been heeded, as there was no sign of activity from Maurice or the remaining Reclaimed (Sam confirmed his docile behavior his next day at work, barely able to hide his glee), and the next few days allowed them to finish preparations on the farm. The spires had been adorned with the beginnings of some climbing ivy and morning glory, and the whole thing had a bit of an "elven ruins" look going on. The season was now over as well, and the final celebration of summer was about to begin by the shores of the Gem Sea. Since the entire town would be present, it would be a bad idea to teleport, but it was a lovely evening and nobody minded the walk, even Sebastian, who found the daytime to be too warm. Holding hands, Lys and Elliott strolled south through the town to the beach. Lys had a quick moment of panic as they saw the first couple of people and checked to ensure that he'd used the color-changing enchantment on his eye and hair.

            "Oof, good thing I've been doing that spell every morning after the shower. I totally didn't think to check before we left."

            "And I am so accustomed to your appearance that it slipped my mind to think of it myself. To be honest, I was more preoccupied with the thought of revisiting my former home. It is not that it has been completely abandoned, nor has it been that long, but to see again the place in which I had unsuccessfully sequestered myself brings about curious thoughts and emotions."

            Lys flashed him a smile as warm as the evening, and they said nothing more until they reached the dock to the far east of the beach, where they had all met the year previous. Bahamut circled down to land upon a support pylon, having flown high overhead to avoid detection. They were the first ones there, and Lys sat down to remove his boots to enjoy the sand again before it was too cold to do so. Shrugging out of the short-sleeved overshirt, he emptied his pockets into it, just in case. Elliott sat next to him, lacing his fingers with Lys's, watching the sun setting.

            Familiar silhouettes came into view, framed by the sunset, and in minutes they were joined by their friends. Abigail approached Bahamut first to give it a friendly pat, who seemed to be confused by the affection but allowed it. Penny barely contained a squeal of delight, further confusing Bahamut, but once more permitted a hesitant scratch under the chin. Everyone else followed suit, discarding shoes and overshirts or coats to better absorb the radiant warmth from the sand, contrasting with the cool breeze that was already beginning to blow from the ocean. Leaning into Elliott's shoulder, Lys smiled faintly and scanned the beach, docks, and cabin, lost in pleasant memories of the year past. Seeing the rest of the town converge on the other, larger dock, he got to his feet and offered Elliott a hand.

            "It's almost showtime, it seems. Shall we get front-row seats?" This year Haley had remembered to bring a good camera (having recently purchased one that could record and photograph something like this), and she was the last to join as she pulled the camera from her bag. Thumbs hooked into his belt loops, Lys strolled casually to the far end of the dock, gazing out over the nigh-endless black-and-blue of the Gem Sea.

            "You are no longer afraid," Elliott noted, brushing the small of Lys's back with a gentle hand.

            "I have you to catch me. And even if I didn't, I've mastered that fear. I respect the water, but I no longer fight it, I know how to move and dance with it." Sam moved past them to sit at the very end, his legs dangling off as he swung them back and forth idly.

            "Yeah, well, I'm still sorry about last year. Bad enough that I deliberately do things that go wrong, I nearly got you killed 'cause I was screwing around with someone else." Leaning down, Lys ruffled his hair fondly and leaned against a pylon.

            "I keep telling you, it's okay. You mess about, that's you, and I don't want you to change. Sometimes shit just happens, and we were lucky that Alex and Elliott were there and have their skill sets. As long as I have all of you, things will be alright. You're my friends and family, and I can do anything as long as you're around." Penny looked concerned at this exchange, and Lys rubbed the back of his neck, realizing that she hadn't been there the year before.

            "Oh, yeah, you weren't here. Um, the short of it is that we were here, too, last year, and after the jellyfish had finally left, we were kinda roughhousing and stuff went a bit wrong. I didn't know how to swim then and got knocked off of the edge. Elliott went in after me, Alex got me to shore, and fortunately he knows rescue breathing, 'cause apparently I had inhaled half of the bay. No lie, it scared the shit outta me, and I had nightmares for a while after that. But Alex gave me some swimming lessons last year, and I've been practicing here and there, so it's not a worry anymore." Eyes wide and hands over her mouth, she still wore a look of shock and vicarious horror.

            "That must have been terrifying! But you talk about it so casually." With a sigh, Lys shifted a bit and looked back out over the ocean.

            "It was, and when I really sit down and think about it, it still is. But that was the second time I nearly died, and after all of this Chosen stuff... If I can't find a way to be a bit flippant about it I'll- Heh, too late, I had a mental breakdown the other day. Surprising it took this long, really. But then, that was the fourth time I nearly freakin' got killed, so a little bit of post-traumatic stress is probably in order. Oh... Sam probably didn't mention that, either. Run-in with Maurice and the Reclaimed of the Wind, got ambushed, took a volley of arrows because I'm a dumbass who tried to defend someone who not only didn't deserve it, but literally backstabbed me at the same time." He grimaced and rubbed the spot on his lower back where the shadow-blade had entered. "I'm still amazed that nothing left a mark, even that. You are simply brilliant, love." Penny relaxed a little, but still looked sad for him.

            "You've suffered so much, but you still smile so sweetly. You really are special, Lysander."

            "Heh, maybe. I don't feel special, I'm just me. But I guess to a few people, and someone in particular," he reached out for Elliott's hand and squeezed it, "I mean something, and I can at least believe in that." The horizon began to glow a bit, and everyone's attention turned south. "And the curtain goes up."

            Like the year before, it was a slow transition from dark to less-dark, to slightly brighter, to softly illuminated. Pastel lights in blue, green, yellow, pink, and violet speckled the ocean, just below the surface, pulsing as they flowed with the current. Randomly multicolored, the creatures were a living reflection of the bright but unmoving sky above. The only sound was the gentle whisper of the breeze above the muted crash of waves on the shore, wind and water singing in organic harmony with each other, a soothing soundtrack to the spectacle that unfolded. For a length of time that nobody was certain of, the show continued until the final light had faded into the distance. Haley lowered her camera, having stopped the recording, and moved back toward the center of the dock to begin reviewing what she had taken. Standing and stretching, Sam very carefully avoided bumping into anyone.

            "You really are hell-bent on avoiding a repeat of last year, aren't you, mate?"

            "Yeah, well, I'd rather not risk something going wrong, y'know?"

            "True, but you failed to account for one thing."

            "What's that?" Lys's grin was cheeky and showed most of his teeth.

            "DARK VENGEANCE!"

            "What- SHIT!!" Faster than Sam could react, Lys darted over, grabbed Sam around the waist, and threw the both of them over the edge into the water. Sebastian dropped the cigarette he had just retrieved from his hoodie on the sands and knelt on the edge, one hand on the pylon as he scanned the water for his friends.

            "What the hell is he- Elliott, aren't you going to do something?" The answer was apparent, as Elliott was chuckling, face in his hand and elbow in the other as he shook his head. At the sound of splashing, everyone looked over to see Sam surface, but not Lys.

            "Ohhh, shit shit shit, where is he-"

            "Shark attack!" Lys shouted, coming up behind Sam, wrapping his arms around him and biting him on the ear.

            "AHHH! Wait- You ass! You scared me!"

            "Turnabout is fair play!" he laughed, splashing his friend. Sam returned the favor, and they swam under the dock to the other side, where Elliott had constructed a staircase of water for them to get back up, so they wouldn't have to go all the way to the beach. Once on the pier again, Elliott pulled the water off of them (even the brine and other dissolved bits one finds in seawater), leaving them as they had moments before.

            "Have you gotten it out of your system, dear?"

            "Yup, feeling better about that. I think I'll grab a smoke, too. Spare one, 'Bas?"

            "Hmph, you owe me next time," replied the dark-haired man in good humor, flicking over a cigarette. Catching it with ease, Lys snapped his fingers and produced a flame for the both of them to light with.

            "Can do, didn't occur to me to bring 'em along this time." Bahamut had watched the entire evening silently and almost without moving, so much so that they had forgotten that it was there until it watched Lys and Sebastian smoking with curiosity.

            A STRANGE HABIT. THOU SOMEWHAT CLOSELY RESEMBLES THE DRAGONS OF THY STORIES. I BEGIN TO FURTHER COMPREHEND WHY THOU HAST NO FEAR OF ME.

            "Nah, this is just a bad habit. I wasn't scared of you because I'm a reckless idiot." Blinking, Bahamut considered this and appeared confused, yet another impressive emotion for a creature composed of solid shadow.

            I FEAR THAT I SHALL NEVER QUITE UNDERSTAND HUMANS. AND YET I FIND IT AN INTERESTING ENDEAVOR.

            "Depending on how things go with the barrier, you might have plenty of opportunity."

            YOU IMPLY THAT I WILL KEEP THIS DIMINISHED FORM ON THIS SIDE AS WELL AS MAINTAIN MY CONSCIOUSNESS UPON THE OTHER.

            "Why not? Could be useful. And fun." Lys exhaled a stream of smoke and laughed. "The shit we get used to. When we all started out and found out that we're a part of the stories, I was spooked. I couldn't believe we were gonna go at it with a beast of legend and death. And now here I am, figuring out how to fix magic in the valley so this never happens again, while keeping that same beast almost as a pet. I am un-freaking-believable." Elliott took his hand and kissed him under the ear, enjoying the laugh it brought.

            "Perhaps it is because not only were you not told that you could not, but every time that you are told that you cannot, you do everything in your power to prove them wrong. Spite is a strange but sometimes useful motivator."

            "Truth. Well, time to see how far spite will get me, and if all of this self-professed cleverness will pay off."
             
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            • Risukage

              Risukage Giant Laser Beams

              //Damn this story has stretched on too long... The end is in sight, though, just taking care of a couple of last things before we get on with the finale. There's still a few weeks left of this story, and it looks like it won't be quite as long as the first book, but to be honest, I'm surprised that it ran this long in the first place.//


              A few days later, Lys busied himself in the kitchen with making lunch while Elliott put away laundry in the bedroom, observed by both Xander and Bahmut, the former hoping for a tidbit, and the other watching with interest.

              THOU HAST NOT SPOKEN MUCH OF THY PLAN, TALIESIN. NOR HAST THOU INQUIRED ABOUT THE SEED THAT I EXTRACTED AFTER THY LAST BATTLE.

              "Well, not much to be done about the plan until we've got enough power stored up. I need to see if we can try a few more Stardrop fruits, too, we could use all of the stat boosts we can get. As for the seed, well, to be honest, I was trying not to think much about that day because it scares the hell out of me in retrospect, and I kinda forgot. I think you said something about it being interesting. What was that?"

              IT IS A FRAGMENT OF MYSELF.

              Lys dropped the knife and leapt away from the counter, having had a bad experience the last time that he'd tried to catch a falling blade. It clattered to the floor and Lys stared at Bahamut.

              "Wait... No way. How?"

              IT IS RATHER CLEVER, IF I MAY SAY SO MYSELF. WITH HIS CONNECTION TO MY REALM THROUGH OUR CONNECTION HE WAS ABLE TO SUMMON SMALL FRAGMENTS OF ME INTO THIS REALM. "SEED" IS THE BEST DESCRIPTION FOR IT, AS IT CONTAINED THE POTENTIAL TO BECOME SOMETHING GREATER, BUT IT DID NOT CONTAIN ANY PORTION OF MY MIND. IT DID, CONTAIN, HOWEVER, SOME OF MY...NATURE, I SUPPOSE THAT I CAN CALL IT. BY IMPLANTING THAT SEED INTO SOMEONE POSSESSING OF MANA, IT FED OFF OF THE DARKNESS IN ONE'S MIND AND THE MANA IN THEIR BODY, TAKING OVER AND CONTROLLING THEM. IT ALSO PREVENTED THEM FROM DRAWING UPON THE ENERGIES OF THIS REALM AND GAVE THEM AN ARTIFICAL LIFE WHERE IT NORMALLY WOULD HAVE BEEN EXTINGUISHED.

              "That... So if we remove the seed they'll be okay! We can still save-"

              NO.

              "What? Why not?"

              THOU ONLY ART LISTENING TO WHICH THOU WANTS TO HEAR. THEY ARE DEAD, TALIESIN, THEIR BODIES ARE BEING SUSTAINED BY MY POWER ALONE. SHOULD THAT SEED BE REMOVED THEY WILL PERISH. THE ONLY WAY TO "SAVE" THEM IS TO DESTROY THEM.

              "But... I..." He picked up the knife and put it in the sink, staring off at nothing for a moment. "Damn it, I was hoping I could..."

              THOU DESIRES TO RESCUE THY ANCESTOR.

              "...Yeah. I kinda wanna kick Edelweiss's ass for what she did to me, but at the same time, it's not her fault. But Leo... I don't want to have to fight him."

              THAT MIGHT NOT NEED TO HAPPEN.

              "Hunh? But you said-"

              I CAN CONTAIN THE SEED IF I AM ABLE TO OBTAIN PHYSICAL CONTACT WITH THEM. AFTER CONSUMING THE ONE THAT I EXTRACTED FROM THEE AND ANALYZING IT, I HAVE GAINED SIGNIFICANT INSIGHT INTO THE RECLAIMED. IT WILL BE A TEMPORARY MEASURE, AND WILL NOT PROLONG WHAT IS LEFT OF THEIR LIVES, BUT IT WOULD GIVE THEM CONTROL OF THEIR OWN MINDS FOR A LITTLE WHILE. FURTHER, NOW THAT I EXIST ON THIS SIDE I BETTER KNOW HOW THE CONNECTION TO MY REALM FUNCTIONS, AND I AM CERTAIN THAT I CAN SEVER THAT CONNECTION IN OTHERS.

              "Then we might be able to cut off Maurice and keep him from bringing you over in your full state."

              HE CANNOT DO THAT RIGHT NOW ANYWAY.

              "Why? Because he doesn't have enough power?"

              NO, IT IS BECAUSE I AM HERE ALREADY.

              "I... What?!" Bahamut tilted its head to the side, strangely catlike in its mannerisms.

              THOU SUMMONED ME, TALIESIN, AND I ANSWERED. MY MIND NO LONGER EXISTS IN MY REALM, IT IS HERE IN YOURS. THOU MUST DISMISS ME IF HE IS TO ATTEMPT TO BRING ME OVER.

              "Wha... I..." Lys's legs gave out and he hit the floor roughly, blinking in surprise as he processed and comprehended this information. "But why aren't you in your huge form, then? I mean, you act like my cat!"

              THOU HAD NOT MUCH POWER TO SPARE, AND THOU GAVE ME A FORM INTO WHICH I POURED MYSELF. THE SHAPE OF THIS VESSEL'S MIND AND BODY WAS SHAPED BY THY DESIRES AND NEEDS. IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THIS IS ALSO WHAT THOU SEES ME AS IN THY MIND; DIMINISHED, DOCILE, AND DOMESTICATED. THOU HAST STATED MORE THAN ONCE THAT THOU ART NOT AFRAID OF ME, EVEN WHEN I TOWERED OVER THEE IN THY MIND WHEN WE FIRST SPOKE. AND I CAN SEE THE NEXT THOUGHT FORMING IN THY MIND. YES, IT WILL PREVENT MAURICE FROM ACTING, BUT NOT THE RECLAIMED. THE DRAGON THAT THEY SUMMON IS AN EXTENSION OF THE SEED WITHIN THEM, AND THEREFORE REQUIRES A GREAT AMOUNT OF POWER BUT NO CONNECTION TO ME. FURTHER, I AM CERTAIN THAT I MUST BE BROUGHT OVER IN MY TRUE FORM IN ORDER FOR THEE TO SUCCEED.

              "You mean the whole barrier thing? How? I'd think you'd need to be on the other side."

              INITIALLY I HAD THE SAME IDEA, BUT NOW THAT I HAVE BEEN ON THIS SIDE AND HAVE EXAMINED THE BARRIER FOR MYSELF, AS WELL AS KNOWING THY BLOODLINE'S LINK TO IT ALL, I HAVE COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT WE MUST BOTH USE OUR POWER TO UNDO THE LOCK. THE REASON THAT THOU CANNOT SEE THE ENTIRE STRUCTURE IS THAT PART OF IT EXISTS WITHIN MY REALM. I DID NOT NOTICE OR UNDERSTAND IT BEFORE, BUT NOW THAT I SEE THIS SIDE OF THE PUZZLE, SO TO SPEAK, IT HAS ALL COME TOGETHER. I WILL DO WHAT I CAN ON THIS SIDE WITH MY POWER, AND ONCE EXPENDED AND DISMISSED, CAN DEACTIVATE IT OVER THERE WITH IMPUNITY. THOUGH... IT GETS COMPLICATED AFTER THAT...

              "What will?" Bahamut paused for a moment and leaned over to scratch itself behind an ear-hole with a back foot.

              AH, WELL, AS I STATED THE LOCK EXISTS ON BOTH SIDES. IT WILL REQUIRE ME TO EXPEND MYSELF HERE FIRST AND THEN THE OTHER SIDE. ...IT MAY REQUIRE THE SAME OF THEE...

              Lys felt a cold, sharp pain in his chest as it grew tight.

              "I... No, that's... Look again, there's got to-"

              I HAVE, TALIESIN, IT IS ALL THAT I HAVE DONE SINCE ARRIVING HERE. I AM QUITE CERTAIN OF THIS. PERHAPS THOU ONLY NEEDS TO POUR THYSELF INTO IT HERE AND NOT CROSS OVER, BUT SEEING THE LOCK ENTIRELY NOW, I RAISE THIS POSSIBILITY SO THAT THOU ART NOT CAUGHT UNAWARE.

              His eyes stung as his vision blurred with tears, almost unable to breathe. He could feel himself start to shake in the beginning of a panic attack.

              Not again. NOT AGAIN!! NO! I... I can't die here, I promised. Everyone comes home. I...

              Shoulders shaking with quiet, irregular sobs, it took him a moment to realize that Elliott was holding him and calling his name. He looked up into those deep blue eyes, wide with concern, tried to speak, and was silent as several thoughts tried to manifest themselves at once.

              "Lysander! Dearest, what happened-"

              "Stop it, I- I can't stop it! I'm- I keep trying and I- I promised you and everyone, but every time, EVERY DAMN TIME- I didn't want this. I DIDN'T ASK FOR THIS!! WHY?!" He was incoherent and shouting now, fingers digging into Elliott's arms, and after failing to say something, he buried his face in his husband's chest and held him tightly, grasping for the one bastion of stability he had left. Shocked, Elliott supported him, noticing the way Bahamut watched them, and had an idea of what had happened.

              "What did you tell him?" The dragonling glanced between the two of them before connecting over the Link and relaying their conversation. He didn't say anything, only running his fingers through Lys's hair, as much for the comfort of the other man as his own.

              "'m sorry... I'm trying to be strong," Lys whispered, feeling very weak, "but, this... Every time I find a solution, some kind of happy end, I keep getting punched in the face. I'm scared, I haven't stopped since we were brought in to all of this, despite everything I've said. I don't know if I can keep going. I..."

              "You want to back out. To let it be someone else's problem, find another way to deal with it, or not at all."

              "Yeah. I'm such a damn coward-"

              "Good."

              "...What?..." Lys pulled away and scrubbed the back of his hand across his eyes. "Love, you-"

              "Don't do it. If this is what will happen if you try to fix things then leave it. Someone else can do it. I don't care who. I will not lose you. I care not how selfish it is, if it requires a life to undo what happened them someone else can pay that cost. You have suffered enough from the mistakes and greed of others. No more. I refuse to let you die. Someone will bear this burden." He put his hand on Lys's face, trying to find a smile for them both. "Nobody will fault you if you walk away, you know that. There is not a single one of us who would ask you to put your life at risk like this."

              Somehow, this should have been reassuring and the words that Lys wanted to hear, but they only produced a cold emptiness. Putting a hand over Elliott's, he leaned into his touch and closed his eyes, trying to find mental stability and a coherent thread of thought. After a minute of consideration, he stood up and pulled Elliott to his feet as well, extending an arm for Bahamut to climb up so that it could settled upon his shoulders.

              "We're going to have a look. Together. Then I decide."

              Outside, in the center of the pillars, Lys conjured up the lock-hologram. Bahamut, through its connection to Lys, borrowed his power to augment and adjust the lock, bringing into view parts that they could not perceive or understand before. The three of them rotated, resized, and examined it in silence, finally seeing the gestalt of its design. Jaw set with resolution, Lys made his decision.

              "I'm going to try. Now that I know the whole thing, I know what we'll need to do and how much power it will take. I can do this. I will do this." He heard the unspoken question from Elliott and squeezed his hand reassuringly.

              "Don't worry, love. I chose this path long ago, and I will walk it to its end. I won't be alone, because you'll be here with me, and if I lose my way or my self, you will be right there to call me back." He found a small smile and shared it with him, recalling something.

              "Do you remember when I had that fight with Alex, that first week I was here? I heard you call to me; you were worried, and I stumbled because I didn't want you to get involved and hurt. But you caught me as I fell, even though you could have been hurt yourself, and though I was still barely more than a stranger, you tried to protect me from Alex. That that's the moment that I fell in love with you. Ever since then you've been by my side, never asking for anything, but always giving. Now I ask you to stand by me again. You know my flame, and how to make one of your own. Be my strength, and this time, be my guiding light in case I get lost." Elliott looked over at the lock again, thinking, and finally nodded and pulled him close, holding him softly.

              "As my king commands it, I shall obey."

              "Oy! I thought we'd had enough of that royalty nonsense," Lys pouted, and realized the joke as Elliott began chuckling. "Hmph. I may have to demand things of my 'consort' if you keep this up." Elliott pulled away just enough to kiss him.

              "Demand all you like tonight. For now, I believe that you were in the middle of preparing a meal, and it is the regular sort of hunger that I wish to sate right now."

              "Fine then. I could use a meal, now that I'm thinking about it."


              A few hours later, after having eaten, Lys sipped a coffee while he bounced a diamond on his palm, examining it thoughtfully. Setting it on the table, he leaned back in his chair and sent a message over the Link.

              We're doing it. I'm going to contact Maurice and call out the Reclaimed, to fight them at a time and place of my choosing. I'm tired of having to screw around with playing catch-up, and while I scared him, I know at some point his hate and insanity will override and he'll do something completely reckless. I'm setting the terms and playing field, and we're going to fight them once and for all.

              Whoa, what? You really want to challenge them all like that, 'cuz?

              Yeah, dude, we're strong, but they're not pushovers.

              As much as I wanna show that elf-guy who really owns the skies, this sounds dangerous.

              It will be alright, I know what I am doing. Further, we have a wild card that I just discovered. It appears that Bahamut can seal away and extract the seeds, same as it did the one that Maurice infected me with. If it can get close enough we can shut them down quickly and avoid a massive fight, neutralize the last three opponents, and leave the Echo completely without assets. Further, the Reclaimed summon the dragons off of their energy, so while we might have to deal with those three, we won't have to worry about the full summon, as I already pulled Bahamut across myself. Until I send it back, it's here and can't be called by anyone else. We will do everything from here on out on our terms.

              There was silence across the Link for a moment as everyone digested the new information.

              Damn. Can't argue with that, Lys, you've covered every angle. And if we deal with them now it leaves us all the time in the world to deal with that barrier problem. I say go for it.

              Miscellaneous forms of agreement followed Sebastian's statement, and Lys found himself smiling from their support.

              Good. I wanted everyone to be in on this first, and since we're all keen to do this, I'll make it happen. Time to make the call. Bahamut?

              The dragon, sitting on the table, nodded and reached out to its other connection. It said nothing for a moment, then turned and gave Lys a look of satisfaction.

              HE ANSWERS MY CALL, AND AGREES TO THY PROPOSITION. WHAT ARE THY TERMS?
               
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              • Risukage

                Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                //Today's chapter needs a properly epic soundtrack, so queue these up (in this order for best effect) before you start reading. No, really, I've had these on loop the entire time I've been writing. :)







                //


                Two days later Lys waited outside, in the southern area of his home that was still largely undeveloped at this time, and therefore would not suffer from any side effects of the battle. Already in his Empowered armor, he stood straight and tall, his hands folded behind his back, awaiting the Reclaimed. In contrast to his silent, stoic pose, the rest of the Chosen milled about, also fully powered and armored, mentally and physically preparing themselves for the ensuing fight. They had used one more each of the Stardrop fruits, as there were just enough, and there was no reason to do this halfway. Elliott put a gentle hand on Lys's shoulder, and the red-haired man smiled fondly.

                "It is strange, isn't it, how none of us are worried. Prepared, wary, even bored in Sam's case, but I do not detect a trace of concern in anyone. How much has changed since we first obtained our abilities." Elliott nuzzled his neck in reply, holding him around the waist from behind, and idly scanned the sky and any other approach to the farm. Shortly, two large shadows disrupted the late-morning sunlight, and Lys's smile became dangerous.

                "It's showtime."

                High overhead, two enormous dragons of shadow wheeled and circled, looking for a suitable place to land. Those on the ground ceased their aimless tasks and watched their enemies approach. Sending up a small cloud of dust as they flapped, Umbra Aero and Umbra Ignis landed with stately dignity, the former being ridden by Anadlwyn and Edelweiss, and the other by Leodegrance. He was the same as the charcoal drawing that they saw before; a tall, imposing, lion of a man, with a fiery mane of red hair. Even without the vibrant color, the family resemblance was easily seen between him and his descendant, who strode forward, with Bahamut perched on his shoulder.

                "I welcome you, last of the Reclaimed, and I thank you for honoring my request to settle this in a civilized manner. I am not naive enough to believe that this cannot be resolved without a fight, but I am relieved to see that you all still retain the honor to end this properly." Edelweiss sneered at this and Anadlwyn sniffed, noticing the verbal barb, but didn't rise to the challenge. Leo, however, looked down at Lys with contempt before dismounting and swaggering forward, eyeing Bahamut with a further lack of disrespect.

                "You think that your tiny little beast can stand up to us? I expected better from my host's lineage. The blood has grown thin and weak, I see." Not bothered by this jab, either, Lys extended his arm, and Bahamut unwound itself from his shoulders and bounded across his arm to fly over to Leo.

                "I am amazed that none of you has yet learned to not underestimate me." Snorting with disdain, Leo eyed the dragon as he folded his arms across his chest. Bahamut hovered in front of him, flapping to keep itself in flight, examining Leo with a catlike air.

                "As if I could ever be bothered by such a miniscule thing. I am disapp- Gah!" He yelped in pain as Bahamut lunged over and sank its jaws into Leo's neck, wrapping itself around his shoulder for support. Birgitte laughed harshly and Anadlwyn smirked at his pain.

                "We told you that he is an irritating and annoying little pest. You really- Wait..." She trailed off as Leo stopped fighting to remove the dragonling, his eyes unfocusing as something changed, and the humanity returned to his eyes. Lys smiled in dark satisfaction while everyone else gasped, as Leo suddenly turned and punched Umbra Ignis right between the eyes. Stunned, the dragon collapsed, and Bahamut returned to his previous place atop Lys's shoulders. Blinking again, Leo smiled, an old echo of the one that his great-grandson often wore.

                "By the light, you really are brilliant, my boy. My line continues to breed true. You are my son's grandson, yes?" Nodding Lys's smile became warmer and touched his eyes.

                "Correct. I am Lysander, son of Arthur, son of Alexander." With a booming, resonant laugh, Leo applauded and put his fists on his hips, extremely pleased with his descendant.

                "A good, strong name! I am certain that you've lived up to it. Now, I think it's time that you showed me your power. Show me just how strong my blood sings!" Edelweiss and Anadlwyn knew that the tide of battle had shifted drastically, losing not just their companion but a dragon to the other side. Despite this, she leapt off the back of Aero and summoned her sword of ice with a flick of her wrist.

                "Light-damned keeper of flame, I will carve out your heart myself like I should have done so the first time!" Chuckling, Lys ignored her as Elliott stepped forward, holding open the book in one hand while summoning his own sword in the other.

                "This time you must contend with me. I still have not forgiven you for what you did to him. You caused great suffering to my beloved that he only survived due to my skill. I will now exact my vengeance, and you will find me a challenging foe." Sam watched open-mouthed as Elliott strode toward his opponent, who glowered at him and promptly called to herself what was left of the pond after Elliott had also done so.

                "Um, Lys, I know you believe in your man and all, but he doesn't know how to swordfight." Once again Lys's smile touched his eyes, radiating pride in his husband.

                "At first he did not, and neither did I. But she and Leo do, and because of that, we learned from each other. We have done more than tend to the garden and each other's physical needs, you know."

                "...You two are sexy and scary. I like it."

                With a short sniff of irritation, Anadlwyn leapt off of the back of his dragon to take to the sky, summoning his bow and nocking arrows to it. At the same time, he commanded Aero to charge into the remaining Chosen, targeting Lys first. The smile became almost fanged as Lys stood his ground, unmoving, and Alex intercepted the beast of wind with a wall of his own shadow. Further experiments with the diamonds had given him amazing insight into molecular structures, and his armor was no longer steel; he had developed carbon-fiber, and the sleek, ebon suit he now wore was both futuristic and elegant. He maintained the floating armor pieces as well as his warhammer, and the new material was even stronger and lighter, giving him almost unbelievable speed in his offense. Three solid hits to the head in less than the same number of seconds forced the dragon to stagger back, and it hissed and flew off the same as its master, taking the fight to its own domain. Flicking his smile to Sam and Abigail, Lys drew his swords and shifted his cloak to wings.

                Give us our targets, Haley, and I'll guide Leo. This fight should end rather quickly.

                Already on it. Sam and Abby, keep Anadlwyn busy but give Alex flight so he can tank the dragon. Lys, you and Leo are DPS. I'll keep an eye on Elliott, but he seems to have things well in hand.

                That I do. Our practice has paid off, my dear, I know all of her moves and abilities, and there is nothing that I cannot counter. Fear not, I shall not become overconfident, and will treat our duel with the dignity it deserves.

                The grin of triumph now flashed to Leodegrance, and was returned twice as wide.

                "So, great-grandfather, shall we celebrate our meeting with a bit of dragon hunting?" The laugh was again loud and hearty as Leo mounted back up again, standing on Ignis's back and summoning reins from the dragon's own form.

                "Let us make this a battle to be sung about for generations to come! Onward!"

                Spreading its wings wide, Ignis obeyed its master's command and launched itself into the sky to pursue Aero. Lys followed close behind, kicking off of a hard light platform for added speed. The battle in the sky was already commencing between Alex and Aero, as he also sported wings on his armor, but not the organic mimics that Lys and Abigail had, these were the sort one would find on aircraft. But with clever support from Sam and Abigail providing electric and aerodynamic lift, he danced and tumbled like a fighter jet, too fast even for the dragon of wind to make a successful hit. Hissing again, it rolled, dove, and arced through the sky, snapping and clawing at the foe that always disappeared at the last second. Then it roared as Ignis slammed into it, biting and clawing as it grappled its foe and sent them plummeting from the sky. With difficulty, Aero broke free and maneuvered defensively, flying away as fast as it could, but this time found the twin blades that Lys wielded, wrapped in flame, interrupting its path.

                Change of plans, Alex, Haley Sent, busily monitoring the battlefield with her thaumic heads-up display, Lys and Leo have the dragon well in hand. Join Sam and Abby on Anadlwyn, they can better support you up there and you can neutralize any of his shots before they're even sent.

                Got it. Damn, I wish I'd discovered this armor type earlier, this is awesome!

                The Reclaimed of the Wind now looked worried, being harried by three Chosen now, and could do nothing more than dodge and defend, as while his bow shots were powerful, Alex was sending carbon-fiber plates out to intercept any arrow loosed, no matter how powerfully they were enchanted. He attempted to call his dragon to him to assist, but it alternated between being mauled by Ignis or menaced by Lys, both of whom were doing visible amounts of damage. His defenses were impressive, however, as all attacks by his opponents were deflected with wind or some variant of the hard light platforms that Lys used, but he was showing signs of fatigue, and dividing his concentration between them and the dragon was quickly taking its toll.

                Lys and Leo, however, were enjoying themselves thoroughly. Leo laughed and whooped with delight the entire time, a bombastic soundtrack to the epic fight. Lys was silent, but the smile he wore was darker and more dangerous than anything that a dragon could have. Concentrated fire as plasma spiraled around him at his command, scoring deep marks on Aero and shredding its wings, weakening its ability to fly. Eventually, the damage was so great that it could not keep itself in the air, and, in a move similar to the one he used on Umbra Terra, he landed on its back and plunged both swords deep into the beast. With a keening roar it fell from the sky, bouncing and skidding on the ground for several feet. With difficulty, it tried one last time to get to its feet before Lys pulled his swords free, leapt up and over to land in front of it, and once again stabbed with both blades, directly into its skull. The dark monster went limp and began to dissipate into wispy shadow.

                Got it! Right, time to seal up the Wind.

                Nodding to his ancestor, Lys sheathed his swords and once again used the thaumic surface to send himself at his next enemy, Bahamut's claws digging into his shoulder as it was almost thrown off by the sudden acceleration. Alex kept Anadlwyn's attention on him until Lys got close, and though the Reclaimed blocked the expected attack from the fire-wielder and threw up a column of wind around himself to keep away Bahamut, it left him open to attack from Alex, who dizzied him long enough for Bahamut to bite deeply into his arm. Shouting in pain, he tried to shake free the dragonling, but after a moment his eyes unfocused as well, and he lost control of his flight. Lys caught him and eased them into a controlled descent, setting the other man on the ground as Bahamut released him and once more took his place on Lys. Same as Leo, Anadlwyn blinked and looked around, then stared at a hand as he flexed it experimentally.

                "I... I have control over my own body once more. It has been so long..." He looked up at Lys, awe in his eyes. "What is it that you have done? I feel the seed within me but it no longer exerts control over me."

                "Bahamut has sealed it temporarily, the same as he did for Leodegrance. It will not last long, but for a little while you will be yourself." He did not reply, but the tears in his eyes as he hugged himself were the silent thanks that Lys heard clearly.

                The clang and clatter of a swordfight attracted Lys's notice, and he once again folded his hands behind his back as he watched the duel. Edelweiss was clearly tired and almost out of power, while Elliott effortlessly blocked and parried every attack while returning each with two of his own. Numerous cuts in Edelweiss's armor spoke of his skill and greater level of power, as his own armor was completely unmarred. Breathing heavily, her footwork became unsteady and unbalanced, and she was forced to defend, having almost no strength left to fight.

                Seeing this, Elliott drew on his reserve stores and doubled his attack, pressing forward with speed and ferocity. The rapier of ice shattered in her hand, and a solid block of ice slammed into her midriff, sending her flying. She hit the ground hard enough to make everyone else wince in sympathy, and she was unmoving for a moment before coughing and pushing herself to her elbows. Noticing a pair of boots, she weakly looked up and saw that she had landed at Lys's feet, who watched her with neutral indifference.

                "So, it will be you that kills me, Chosen of the Flame," she snarled, still remarkably defiant despite her situation. Lys extended his arm, and Bahamut snaked down it to land in front of her.

                "No, I will do no killing today. Rather, I will set you free." As with the other two, Bahamut's bite lasted several seconds as it contained the seed within, but not removing it. As the light returned to her eyes, Edelweiss tried to reach over to pet the dragonling, but didn't have the strength. Lys knelt and offered a hand, his smile now warm and welcoming. It took two tries for her to successfully grasp his hand, and she required his help to stand, but once on her feet she was steady.

                "You... You have done it. I am free. You could have destroyed me for what I did to you and the cruelty that I have shown, but instead you showed compassion. I cannot thank you enough."

                "It is alright, my only regret is that we could not have done this for the Earth or Lightning." The three Reclaimed shared a glance and nodded.

                "We are grateful for your gift. We all feared that we would forever be trapped inside of our own minds, cursed to scream helplessly while a monster controlled our bodies. And now I ask of you one last request; extract the seed." The other Chosen had landed and joined the conversation, and immediately Abigail broke in.

                "Whoa, we can't just do that, it's keeping you alive. We take that out and you die for real." The smile that had for so long been cold and full of hate was now soft.

                "I know that, but I died the moment Umbra Volatus dragged me beneath the waters of the lake. What I have lived so far has been an artificial existence, and while I am still in control of myself and my senses, I would use this time to make amends and peace, so that I can go into oblivion without anything left undone." Anadlwyn nodded, echoing her statement.

                "I perished in the forest, but my death was stolen from me, and I was forced to live something worse. If I may have a final request, it is to see my grandfather again so that he may have closure." Lys looked over at Leo, knowing what he would request and silently hoping that he would be wrong. Knowing what he thought, Leo put a hand on his great-grandson's shoulder and gave him a soft smile that looked both strange and yet fitting on the enormous man.

                "Aye, lad, my story ended when I rode the beast into the heart of the lake. Seeing you wield my blades and your flame with such skill and ferocity has given me the contentment I need to go to my final rest. Further, you and your..." He paused as he sought the correct word as he looked at Elliott thoughtfully, though not with disapproval.

                "Husband," Lys stated, with a hint of a challenge in it. Laughing again, Leo clapped him heartily on the shoulder again, making him stagger.

                "Do not take offense. I do not quite understand, but that doesn't mean that I don't approve. Clearly he makes you happy, and from everything that I have seen and heard I have never seen someone more devoted and in love than what I see between you two. You are equals, and that is rare to find in a companion. May your union be long-lived and full of light and laughter."

                "...You're not mad that your line might end with me?" The smile was now a little sad but wise.

                "Everything dies, lad, nothing lasts forever. And if you are the last of my blood, well, I can think of no one more worthy and honorable to be the final one to carry the Morgensonne name. You have done well, be proud of it, and don't worry about what others think." Eyes beginning to fill with tears, Lys threw his arms around his great-grandfather's neck and hugged him, finding it hard to remain strong, and sniffed as he felt the other man's arms around him in turn.

                "It's alright, lad- No, you're not a boy, you're a man. A warrior, and one noble of heart and mind that inspires others. That crown suits you, and I can see that you wear it in spirit every day. I am proud to call you family." Lys let the hug linger a little longer before stepping back, taking a deep breath, and squaring his shoulders.

                "I will send you off as you wish."
                 
                  Last edited: Jan 17, 2017
                • Risukage

                  Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                  //Wow, so I've got the next few chapters blocked out, and it looks like Vox Arcana will finish next week! We're almost at the end of this (bloody long) journey, woo-hoo! Once more, thanks to all of you who keep coming back to read my silly little story, knowing that I'm entertaining people keeps me coming back to do this.//


                  "My thanks, I know how difficult this is for you, but I cannot think of anyone else I could trust to do this." Leodegrance looked over at the Stardrop tree and nodded. "There. I will go to my eternal slumber under the tree of life and mana, perhaps I can watch over and protect future guardians this way."

                  "I choose the same," Edelweiss said, leaning on Alex for support, "let my final act and penance be that of pledging my soul to the defense and sanctity of your home and your descendants. I do not know what awaits me after I pass through that dark curtain, but if there is a way, I will ensure it." Lys clenched and unclenched a fist a couple of times, unable to speak again for a moment.

                  "...Very well. Let us end this." Leading the somber procession, Lys was silent, stopping at the base of the tree as he waited for everyone to catch up. Leo and Edelweiss sat down under the it, leaning against the trunk, looking quite peaceful. Jumping down from Lys's shoulder, Bahamut approached them, pausing to look back for confirmation. Still silent, Lys looked inward for the words that were needed.

                  "You both are powerful warriors who fought with honor, conviction, and hope. You were denied the deaths you earned, as well as the remembrance of your deeds. I will now correct what has been wronged, and grant you not only your rest, but I will ensure that your deeds are known, to be remembered by future generations." It was strange seeing a happy smile from Edelweiss, and she weakly reached up again to squeeze his hand.

                  "You rule wisely and with compassion. I am honored. Thank you." For the last time, Leo laughed, though it was a deep, warm chuckle.

                  "Do not weep for me, Lysander, for I already lead a life fulfilled. Sing instead, and send me off with a song in my ears."

                  Swallowing a lump in his throat, he nodded, and Bahamut padded over to Edelweiss. With a wavering voice, Lys sang his song, slowly gaining clarity as he went on. Both Reclaimed relaxed against the tree, smiling as the dragonling extracted the seed within, removing the final link that had bound them to that plane for so long. Calling flame to himself, Lys wrapped them in fire, hot and bright, yet leaving the tree untouched. The song became an ethereal lament, as sparks floated up and away, carried by the thermals made by his fire. Eventually, the fire died out and Lys went silent. He pulled a portal shard out of his pocket and turned to Anadlwyn.

                  "I will take us to the tower." Elliott put a hand on his arm, and Lys hesitated for a moment before nodding. "All of you, I... We will do this ourselves. You are welcome to stay until we return." He opened the portal and followed the other two through, standing in the middle of the circle in the tower. Rasmodius looked up from his work table at their arrival.

                  "Lysander? Was there another- Oh... I see. I shall fetch Linus." He vanished in a swirl of light, reappearing in less than a minute with the Elder Wind. Linus was speechless, but his silence said volumes. Lys and Elliott walked over to Rasmodius's table in order to give the other two a bit of privacy, and the Elder Fire noticed his descendant's unusual companion.

                  "By the light, did you really..."

                  "It is diminished, but yes, I brought Umbra Volatus over for the time being. Though I've taken to calling it 'Bahamut' lately. It can temporarily seal and permanently remove the seed from a Reclaimed. We..." Lys trailed off at the too-fresh memory. "We subdued and sealed the Fire and Water just a bit ago, and removed the seed. Anadlwyn is also sealed, and he asked to see Linus one last time before we removed his as well."

                  "...So you have removed the last of his forces and still have all of your own. You have the enemy king in check. Well done, Lysander. You have managed a nearly-impossible task. You are to be commended, and should be proud of what you have accomplished." The two Wind had finished their conversation, and Anadlwyn beckoned Lys over.

                  "It is time. You have my eternal thanks for giving us both closure." He sat down on the floor and laid back, smiling as Linus took his hand. "I still hear your song, Lysander. I shall sing it on the other side when I arrive, so that the restless dead may likewise know peace." For the third and last time, Bahamut removed its seed, and the final Reclaimed breathed his last. Head bowed, Linus squeezed Anadlwyn's hand.

                  "Thank you. I do not mean to be rude, but I ask that you now leave me with my grief."

                  "I... I'm sorry. I wish I could-"

                  "You have done more than anyone ever thought you could, and I cannot ask for any more." Casting one last look over at Rasmodius, who offered them both a silent touch on the arm, Lys and Elliott returned to the farm and released their Empowered forms. The others were in the house waiting, sitting at the table or on the couch. Sam and Sebastian were quieter than usual, but only Elliott noticed, as Lys snarled with anger at himself.

                  "...Damn it. I couldn't save them. I was so close..." Sebastian shot him a dark, angry look.

                  "At least you tried. I just murdered one without a second thought." Sam hugged himself, staring at the floor.

                  "I was so caught up in trying something cool that I didn't stop to consider that there was a person in there. Birgitte at least got a moment to herself, but I just obliterated Nikolai. I..." With a cold jab of guilt, Lys wasn't sure what to do or say.

                  "I... Damn again, you're both right. I wasn't thinking. But neither of you knew we could do that, and the Earth had hurt me badly enough that he was a legitimate threat and you didn't know what else he could do." Standing up suddenly, Sebastian knocked over his chair as he stormed over to Lys.

                  "You think that makes me feel any better? As soon as I learned that these were people taken against their own will I realized what I did! I killed someone, Lys, and I felt good for it. I took delight in someone's death!" Sebastian's posture showed anger, but Lys could see tears starting to form in his eyes.

                  "And I laughed when I used that railgun attack," Sam whispered, curling up even farther on himself, "gods, I'm a terrible person." Abigail sat on the couch with her hands between her knees and head bowed.

                  "We're all terrible people. We treated all of this like a game, and them like just a bunch of fictional characters. Lys was the only one who tried to talk or find a peaceful solution."

                  "None of us are 'terrible people,'" Elliott spoke up, "yes, we all treated this like a story, because it was so strange and fantastical. Even I felt myself drawn in and enjoyed the 'game,' as it were. But every time we learned something new we adapted, and we continued to try to find a different way to fight, to perhaps not even fight at all. Yes, we all did things of which we are not proud, but we are human, and we make mistakes. But listen to yourselves now. You reflected upon your actions and re-evaluated what you did and why. That you feel regret for what has happened proves that you are still moral, decent people, and I for one am proud to fight alongside of you."

                  The room was silent, but it was thoughtful, and Sam and Sebastian no longer looked quite as angry with themselves as they had a moment ago. Lys scratched Bahamut under the chin, thinking.

                  "We end this. In three days, I will dismiss Bahamut so that Maurice can summon it himself. Then I can tear down the barrier between the worlds and put an end to all of this. Are there any objections?" Everyone glanced between themselves, gathering strength from solidarity. Alex stood up and folded his arms across his chest.

                  "It's your call. You're in charge, and you're the one assuming the most risk with your project. We'll follow you anywhere." Haley took a deep breath and let it out slowly, focusing inward for a moment.

                  "I'll make sure that you have the power to do this. Let's finish this story." Everyone else voiced agreement, and Lys sighed, smiling with relief.

                  "Relay it, Bahamut, let's see if he's going to play along as well." The dragonling's wings twitched as it reached through the connection to its other master.

                  HE AGREES. FURTHER, IT APPEARS THAT EVEN AFTER ALL OF THESE YEARS HE STILL SWEARS IN FRENCH. THAT WAS A SURPRISING YET IMPRESSIVE DISPLAY OF EPITHETS.


                  That evening, Lys swirled the contents of a half-drunk beer as he reclined on the couch. Idly, he scratched Xander between the ears as Elliott sat down next to him.

                  "You appear thoughtful once more, dear."

                  "So tomorrow's your birthday."

                  "It is, but I had no plans, nor did I expect to make any."

                  "I do."

                  "We do not need to-"

                  "No. I want to. Nothing big, I was thinking that we could just do dinner somewhere, take a trip to the city. We haven't been in a little while, and I want to do something with just the two of us." Pondering this for a moment, Elliott petted Xander as well, who enjoyed the attention from both of them and purred loudly.

                  "I would like that. Thank you." Lys smiled and leaned over to kiss him, brushing his fingers across his husband's face.

                  "Besides, I want to celebrate the first time I got to have all of you. You finally healed the last of the damage and pain that I had been carrying and set me free."

                  "Ever the romantic, I notice," Elliott teased, returning the touch, "but I also find this day to be a celebration not of myself anymore, but one of us. Did you have a place in mind?"

                  "Yeah, but it's a secret."

                  "I shall wait with anticipation."


                  Elliott's phone was flooded with celebratory messages the next morning, several of them extremely (and hilariously) risqué (and from the obvious two culprits), and though he tried to appear embarrassed about the digital attention, Lys could tell that Elliott was happy to have friends who cared about him. They took care of the house, garden, and other chores as usual, as though it were a regular day. That evening, however, they put on nicer clothes than usual before strapping their riding gear over it and rode into Zuzu City. They both welcomed the ride in, as they hadn't been out of town since their last band gig, and the evening was still warm from the early-autumn sun but already tasting of the cool night breeze. Lys brought them to his favorite place, which was nothing special or fancy, but Elliott had never been before, and found it to be delightful.

                  For a few hours they allowed themselves to forget everything else, enjoying each other's company, good food and drink, and reminiscing about the time that they had spent together before they "got together." After, they found a spot in one of the parks to sit and have a coffee, where Lys pulled out the pack of cigarettes and almost lit it with his own flame before he caught himself at the last second. As he laughed at himself and retrieved his lighter Elliott took one as well. They sat there in the smoky, warm silence for a while, until the cigarettes and coffee were expended and they could feel the chill of night. Putting the riding gear back on, they returned home quickly, as it was already getting cold rapidly, and their riding gear was made with safety and breathability in mind, not warmth.

                  At home, they put all of the gear away neatly, grateful for the warmth of their home. Lys wrapped his arms around Elliott's neck, kissing him softly for quite some time, enjoying the touch, then smiled and traced his fingers across the lines of the other man's face.

                  "It's still fresh in my mind, that night. I was so worried that you would reject me when we got back here, that you'd be concerned about taking advantage of someone emotionally compromised like that, or that you just weren't ready to go any further. I was so empty and cold, I felt like I'd just been scrubbed raw from the inside and out, but at the same time I felt free, because the chains I'd put on myself had finally fallen off. All I wanted was give myself to you. You deserved everything I could offer, and I didn't want to hold anything back any longer." Elliott nuzzled Lys's neck and ran his fingers up and down his back.

                  "I hadn't mentioned my desires because I knew that you had been through something that held you back, but I trusted and respected you enough to wait to tell me. Despite that, I ached to touch you further, to explore all of you, and when you asked me to stay I thought that I had misheard you. Then you told me that you needed me, and though I had long burned with desire for you, at that moment all that I wanted was to ease your pain and bring you peace of mind once more." Lys kissed him again, slowly dragging him to the bedroom, careful not to trip over anything. Elliott's touch became more demanding and amorous, and he nibbled on Lys's ear, smiling at the gasp of pleasure it produced.

                  "I do not think that we will be getting much sleep tonight."

                  "You planned to get any at all?"
                   
                    ApertureGaming011 and Minimanta like this.
                  • Risukage

                    Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                    //Like I said before, the 11th Doctor's series has some music that just nails the mood I'm looking for. Queue these up once Lys pops into town, you won't regret it. :)





                    //


                    Lys stood outside of his home, the thumb of one hand hooked in a belt loop while he scratched Bahamut under the chin with the other, the dragonling perched as ever on his shoulder. Elliott stood by him, waiting for the command to deploy.

                    "Today's the day, love. Bahamut, are you ready?"

                    LET US END THIS CONFLICT AND BRING A LASTING PEACE TO BOTH OF OUR WORLDS.

                    "Where is Maurice? Might as well take the fight to him." Bahamut was silent before he heard a mental sigh.

                    HE IS IN THE PLAZA IN TOWN. IT APPEARS THAT HE WISHES TO SEND A MESSAGE. IT IS FORTUNATE THAT THEE HAVE ALREADY SUMMONED ME, ELSE HE WOULD HAVE DONE SO BY NOW.

                    "I am not the least bit surprised. See if you can get him to get over here or up the mountain or someplace less visible." Once more there was silence, and then a mental chuckle.

                    OH. HOW CURIOUS. WHEN I ASKED HIM AS THOU REQUESTED HE BECAME HIS "ECHO" SELF AND BEGAN RANTING. HE IS DRAWING QUITE THE INTERESTING CROWD.

                    "Oh, for the love of..." Facepalming, Lys Sent a broadcast.

                    He's in the middle of town making a scene.

                    I'm not the least bit surprised.

                    I thought the exact same thing. This is why I chose this time and day, so most everyone would be at work or someplace NOT in the middle of town.

                    You two aren't the only ones.

                    It appears that we must take the fight to him, dear. Though I am at a loss for how we shall explain this to the town.

                    We'll mess with that later. I'm going to get over there now and get this started.

                    Wait- You don't mean to-

                    Yup. It's showtime.

                    Empowering, Lys checked Maurice's location through Bahamut, and flashing Elliott a smile of determination, teleported to the plaza. The Echo was surprised by his entrance, but it only served to pause his rant, not end it. With a patient sigh, Lys leveled a glare at him, ignoring the stares from the few people were there, wondering what was going on.

                    "Shut up. I had hoped to settle this discretely and honorably, but once again you desire an audience. Very well. Let us play your little game. Bahamut, you are dismissed." As they had practiced before (though not to completion), Lys pulled back the mana that he used to keep the beast in its physical form in that world, allowing it to completely return to its side. He also felt its influence retreat from his mind, but it did not disappear completely, it simply seemed to "pause." Folding his hands behind his back, Lys stood tall and silent, watching Maurice stoically.

                    "Fool! You have given away that which has so far protected you! Now I have the power that I need to crush you and all who follow you!" Sniffing with dignity, Lys continued to give him a look of disdain.

                    "Chosen, to me!" he commanded, Sending it as well. As one, everyone jumped to his location, trying not to react with concern when they saw that they had an audience.

                    Ohhhh shit, dude, this is bad, we-

                    It is fine. Pay them no attention. Let's give them a show they'll never forget.

                    The mental conversation had taken only a second, and Lys's smile was dangerous and confident.

                    "You call me a fool yet you stand alone against the one who has so many times defeated you. Were I a lesser person I would have crushed you like the bug that you are, but I seek a different resolution to this conflict, and I will have it. I am not merely the Chosen of the Flame, I am the Draco Rex, the Lux Votum, and the Vox Arcana. This valley and all within it are under my protection, and I no longer see any reason to let you continue to threaten that which is mine. So continue, Echo, summon your champion. I will take it from you as I have all of your previous warriors and show you what true power is." The color drained from Maurice's face before it was replaced with red, and he ground his teeth in rage.

                    "You dare speak to me like that?! Your death will be slow and painful. Umbra Volatus, I summon you!!"

                    The crowd was now getting interested, and several had begun filming it with phones even before Lys had arrived. Arcane circles flared out from Maurice, providing the stability and structural matrix that he needed to form and shape the energies he wielded. It was interesting to see it happening, as when Lys had done the same it had been on a much smaller scale, though he had also been slowly dying of serious injuries at that moment, so he hadn't been able to appreciate it. Maurice had clearly been storing energy for a very long time, as Lys noticed that the markings and runes in the circles were for something very, very big, and there were a lot of stability runes in use. After a few moments the light around him dimmed as the shadows seemed to coalesce into a point in front of him, drawing in more darkness and becoming solid. Maurice poured his energy into shaping and guiding the Shadow energies, and Lys felt his smile widen as he saw the thread that connected the other man to the other realm pulsing and flaring as he drew upon every final scrap of power that he could access.

                    Quickly, the beast took shape, at first a wispy cloud that resembled a dragon but began to gain solidity, mass, and "realness." Finally, after only a minute, Umbra Volatus shook itself off and flapped its wings, roaring loudly in triumph. It was much larger than any of the previous dragons, and even Lys had to admit to himself that it was very impressive, and were they not in the position they were in now, the fight would definitely end differently. Laughing maniacally, Maurice turned his attention back to his opponents, who were preparing to fight.

                    "You stand face to face with your deaths, Chosen. Choose your last words carefully." It was Lys's turn to laugh, though darkly and arrogant.

                    "You have given me the final key that I need to unlock the future and secure me my victory. However, this also means that you are no longer useful to me. Thank you, and goodbye."

                    Raising his hand, he snapped his fingers. It wasn't necessary to complete the action, but it made for a good show. As he did this, he reached out to the thread of shadow that connected Maurice to the other realm, and as he and Bahamut had also practiced, severed the connection. Eyes wide and bulging, Maurice tried to speak but choked on his words, confused and terrified by the sudden change. No longer under his control, Umbra Volatus bellowed again, feral and mindless. Outwardly, the rest of the group was calm but over the Link there was chaos. Ignoring them, Lys strode forward with confidence.

                    Shaking its head as it cleared the last of Maurice's influence from its mind, it saw Lys approach and hissed. Narrowing its eyes from white discs to slits, it leaned down to snarl at him, showing fangs that were easily as long as his arm. Unconcerned, Lys reached out and placed a hand on its muzzle, and in the thaumic equivalent of plugging something back in, reconnected with the dragon's mind.

                    "Bahamut, you have been summoned." Something indefinable yet visible changed in its posture, and it sat down, catlike, wrapping its tail around its feet and folding its wings behind its back.

                    "I ANSWERED." The voice was no longer limited to Lys's mind, and Maurice snapped out of his confusion to look up and gape at the two of them.

                    "...You..." Ignoring him, Lys formed hard light stairs that he climbed to stand up on Bahamut's back and nodded to his friends.

                    "Alex, secure the Echo, and all of you return to the barrier. We will commence the rest of the plan upon my return."

                    Wait, that's it? I thought there's be more to this.

                    Yeah, not that I'm complaining, but this was almost too easy.

                    Given everything that we have encountered thus far, I at least am pleased to see something go our way easily for once.

                    Sam pulled out a portal shard and used it as Alex dragged Maurice to his feet, who was still dazed. Approaching the dragon, Elliott regarded Lys with a fond smile.

                    "You know, you once offered to take me flying. I believe that I shall take you up on that offer now." Laughing, Lys offered a hand as Elliott traversed the steps that he had not yet dismissed.

                    "Is this supposed to be romantic? If it is it's an unusual way to go about it." As the others disappeared through the portal, Bahamut spread its wings and crouched, gathering energy for flight, with Lys summoning reins for them to hold onto for balance and stability.

                    "IT WILL BE GOOD TO FEEL THE WIND AGAIN. LET US DEPART."

                    In a powerful jump, Bahamut launched itself into the air, flapping with wings that darkened the entire town when fully outstretched. Gaining altitude quickly, the town was very shortly left behind, and once more Lys laughed, enjoying the feeling of flight, but in a manner different from his own. With Bahamut having extended its power to its riders to prevent the wind from being a bother or a danger, Elliott looked around with delight, not the least bit bothered by their altitude. Lys noticed this and remarked on it. The smile was warm as Elliott squeezed his hand.

                    "I have no reason to fear, because I know that should I fall you will always be there for me." Returning the smile, Lys watched the world shrink below them.

                    "Well, we've got a little bit of time. These forms don't take as much power from us anymore, so we can afford just a little bit of leisure."

                    We'll be there in just a minute. This is kinda cool and I want to enjoy it before we have to send Bahamut back over.

                    Don't tell me you two are gonna try to join the mile-high club.

                    We weren't, but now that you mention it-

                    Don't give him ideas.

                    Again, Lys burst out in laughter as Elliott shut him and Sam down. He grinned at the look of mock disapproval from his husband.

                    "What? You can't say you didn't think of it, either." The look intensified, but there was amusement in it.

                    Bahamut wheeled into the sky and turned toward the mountain, then continued its turn at the lake to follow the river south. The town was tiny beneath them as they passed over it, too high for anyone to notice them. As sandy shores came into view, Bahamut once again dipped a wing, turning west to follow the coast to the forest. The soft beige slowly transformed into brilliant green as the forest canopy obscured the ground. For the last time, Bahamut changed direction, flying north to their home, descending rapidly as the forest gave way to the open land of the farm. The Chosen looked up at their arrival, watching Bahamut flap rapidly as it braked, sending up an enormous plume of dust. Abigail channeled wind to disperse it while Lys re-formed the stairs, allowing himself and Elliott to dismount.

                    "You know how to make an entrance," Sebastian remarked, "ready to do this?" Patting Bahamut on the muzzle, Lys trotted over, feeling energetic and excited.

                    "Damn right I am. Things went perfectly, and I'm feeling good about this." He went to each of them, offering a hug and a quick peck on the cheek before taking their hand and loading their rings with a bit of mana, making them feel hot to the touch, but not painfully so.

                    "You won't need much, but that'll let you 'mix' yours with mine as you connect the first time so you have an easier time of sending it over. It's intuitive for Elliott now, but I don't think any of you have tried anything like this yet, so I'm giving us all of the bonuses we can get." Despite his assertion that Elliott was already proficient, he still loaded that ring as well, in addition to offering him a much more personal kiss. Sam rolled his eyes and made a gagging noise, sending Abigail into a fit of giggles. Watching them with interest, Bahamut barked a laugh and flapped its wings.

                    "I HOPE THAT THEE DO NOT PLAN THE SAME FOR ME, TALIESIN, IT WILL NOT BE NEARLY AS PLEASING AS IT IS WITH THY MATE."

                    "Of course it won't, I like using tongue and yours is as big as I am." He chuckled as everyone laughed, and took a moment to enjoy the sensation of confident warmth that he felt.

                    "AH, OUR CHATS HAVE BEEN DELIGHTFUL. THOU HAST MADE MY LONELY EXISTENCE INTERESTING, EVEN FOR A SHORT TIME. I WOULD SAY THAT I WOULD MISS IT, BUT I SHALL NOT EXIST AFTER THIS, SO IT WOULD BE SPOKEN IN ERROR." Lys was taken aback by this statement.

                    "Wait, what? We're just going to send you back!"

                    "I STATED THAT I WILL BE EXPENDED, ON BOTH THIS SIDE AND MINE. THIS ENDEAVOR REQUIRES ALL OF ME, AND I AM PREPARED TO OFFER JUST THAT."

                    "I...thought that..." Bahamut tilted its head to the side and blinked.

                    "ONCE THY TASK IS COMPLETE THERE IS NO NEED FOR ME. I WAS CREATED TO RECTIFY THE FOLLY OF THY ANCESTORS. ONCE THOU HAST BROKEN DOWN THIS WALL MY NECESSITY WILL COME TO AN END." It regarded him with a smile, a strange expression on the monstrous creature. "THIS IS PROOF OF THY NOBILITY AND COMPASSION, THAT THEE SEEKS TO EVEN PROTECT THE INCARNATION OF DEATH. THIS IS WHY THOU SHALT SUCCEED, AND WHY I ACCEPT MY FATE WITH DIGNITY AND PRIDE. ATTEND TO THY TASK AND SET US ALL FREE." Silently, Lys considered this for a moment, then laughed at himself and shook his head.

                    "I'm a bit of a twit now and then, aren't I?" His grin was energetic, and he punched a fist into the palm of the other. "Everyone's got their satchel of gems? Get to your places and let's do this!"
                     
                    • Risukage

                      Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                      //Only two more chapters left after this before book 2 is complete. WOW. This has been a hell of a ride, and it's almost over. Get a snack and a drink, things get crazy today. Once again, this requires ambiance. Queue these up as soon as Lys gives the call to action, you won't be disappointed.




                      //


                      For a moment Haley stared off distantly before nodding to herself.

                      "Rasmodius and the others are on the way." Lys blinked and winced, grinning ruefully.

                      "Man, I'm glad I've got you all to do the thinking for me, it totally slipped my mind that they'd want to be here for that. And it also gives us someone to keep an eye on Maurice so he doesn't try to shank me at any point." Juggling a few gems with surprising skill, Sam smirked at him.

                      "Of course we have to remember all of the normal stuff, you're the one coming up with crazy plans and new projects. I really hope we keep our abilities so we can finish that series, I am getting such a kick out of working on it."

                      "I still feel a bit silly about the way I dropped it, but yeah, it's been fun so far!" Abigail folded her hands behind her head and thought about something.

                      "That concept art I drew up is pretty good, now that I've had the chance to come back to it a bit later. Still kinda wanna do that visual novel, even if it is a huge project." Rolling his eyes, Sebastian did one last check of the spires as Alex inspected the gems they all carried.

                      "As silly and weird as the idea is, I'm interested in it for the coding aspect. I've done a lot of database and scripting work, but game design is sorta a new field. I started looking up some stuff and even I'm a little on-board for the idea, if anything as a chance to learn some new skills." Their banter was interrupted by the arrival of the four Elders, who teleported in to their location through Haley's Link. They all instinctively reached for mana and weapons at the sight of Bahamut, who found it extremely amusing.

                      "SHEATHE THY WEAPONS, ELDER CHOSEN, I AM NOT THY ENEMY TODAY, NOR WILL I EVER BE AGAIN. THOUGH I DO FIND IT FLATTERING THAT THE MEMORY OF MY RAMPAGE STILL REMAINS FRESH IN THY MINDS." Marlon grunted loudly with a lack of shared humor and sheathed his sword.

                      "It's hard not to, since that fight was the last time that I had depth perception." His expression changed as Bahamut shuffled its feet a little, somehow looking embarrassed.

                      "I...DID NOT MEAN TO OFFEND OR MAKE LEVITY OF THE TRAGEDY THAT I BROUGHT UPON THEE. THERE IS NO WAY TO MEND THE RIFT BETWEEN US, THOUGH FOR WHAT IT IS WORTH I NOW UNDERSTAND THY LOSS, ALL OF THEE, AND I DO THIS NOW TO ATTEMPT TO REPAY THE DEBTS THAT I HAVE INCURRED." Maurice snarled at Bahamut and the Elders, now having regained his senses after the mental trauma that he had just experienced.

                      "You...all of you... I will have my-"

                      "Oh, get stuffed," Lys snapped, slapping him upside the back of the head, "we get it. 'Blah blah revenge, blah blah suffering.' Whatever. I don't care. Just shut up and behave yourself while I fix the shit that people like you keep breaking." This produced surprised stares from all five of the older men, though also a laugh from Rasmodius.

                      "You have changed so much yet your core remains the same, Lysander. It appears that even the most powerful and ancient are not safe from your verbal wrath."

                      "I just don't have any more cares left to give at this point," he sighed, shrugging, "I just want to fix all of this and give the story a satisfying conclusion. Besides, I've been stressed out of my mind this last month over everything and if I go from red to gray because of it I'm setting everyone on fire. Since we're all here, let's do this. It's showtime!"

                      Everyone went to their assigned spire, save for the Elders and Maurice, who watched from the sidelines (and Maurice watched by his four former peers). Lys and Bahamut took places in the center, and, closing his eyes and breathing deeply and slowly, Lys opened his mind to the world, seeking the lock to the barrier. Finding it, he probed it with a tendril of mana, and once he made contact, connected with it. Taking another breath, this time to prepare himself, he stretched his arms over his head.

                      "Okay, I'm connected, ready to do this. What order are we going in?"

                      "Sam first," Haley replied, ticking the names off on her fingers, "then Abby, Alex, Sebastian, Elliott, and finally myself. Bagged gems first, then the spire, then internal reserves. As soon as I feel someone hit their limit I'll drop the connection, just in case. Don't want to accidentally pull too much."

                      "Got it. Well, first one up is Bahamut, really, I'll load-balance between both energy types as we go along, but I don't think that this will overload me."

                      "CONCERN IS UNNECESSARY. I SEE THY CONNECTION AND SHALL MAKE MINE THROUGH THEE MOMENTARILY. LET US BEGIN."

                      Joining the Link with Haley, he nodded to Sam, who did the same, bouncing a gem on his palm as he drew stored power from it. Lys felt the energy flow through to him, changing "flavor" to match his own mana, as well as the power coming over from Bahamut. The dragon was now connected as well, and he could see it guiding the flow of shadow through the lock, in the places that he could not see or access. On "his" side, he poured in power, carefully, not entirely certain of how much he could safely wield at once, how much the lock could take, or how long he'd have before he felt fatigue setting in. Quickly, he got the feel for all of those concerns and devoted his concentration to his task.

                      Humming his song to himself, he found himself swaying in time with his own music, as well as he ebb and sway of power as he channeled and guided it. Bahamut was doing the same, keening his song in harmony as it rocked back and forth, its essence slowly spooling off like thread from a skein. He laughed as he now danced with the energy, finding it somehow easier to manage and shape, letting them guide each other. To an outsider it would seem a strange sight, but to those who had the gift of mana, they saw him weave a visual tapestry with threads of light, his body the shuttle that moved across the loom of reality. The first gem in Sam’s hand crumbled to dust as the last of its mana was expended.

                      “Whoa, looks like these are a one-time use kind of thing. I guess it means I won’t accidentally reach for an empty one. Feeling good over there, dude?” Without missing a beat or losing his rhythm, Lys split his focus enough to reply.

                      “Yeah. Just keep doing what you are now. I won’t be able to keep this up all day, but I’m good for quite a while.”

                      The song returned as did the silence, and Bahamut started to get a bit
less
 It didn’t get smaller, but it became less opaque and solid, slowly beginning to resemble a being of shaped darkness than a physical creature. Lys noticed this, though the flow of Shadow energy didn’t change. Reaching for a third gem, Sam checked in his bag for the number remaining and glanced at the spire behind him, fully understanding the level and amount of power that Lys was and would be working with. Not wanting to distract, however, he kept it to himself, though he shared a glance with the others, who also saw the same thing. Finally, Sam ran out of gems in his bag, looking a little tired, and put a hand on his spire, pulling from the first of the embedded stones.

                      “Halfway done here, you still holding up okay?”

                      “Still going strong. I’ve got the rhythm and flow of all of this. I can feel it, this is going to work.”

                      The last of Sam’s stones were expended, and the indicator gems were dark. He slumped to the ground as his armor vanished, his back to the spire, and sighed with relief as he felt Haley disconnect him. Abigail was next, and the look of concentration on her face said that she was already connected and uploading. Pulling out his focus, Sam held it loosely in his hand, borrowing a little bit of strength to keep from completely falling over. He’d be better in a minute, but that had been exhausting. Like Sam, Abigail pulled out new gems as they were expended, and once her bag was empty, also maintained physical contact with her spire. Her armor vanished, too, as the final gem crumbled within the stone edifice, and she sat down heavily, smiling faintly as she was the second to be cut off.

                      “Shit, I dunno how he’s doing it, that wiped me the hell out.”

                      Showing no sign of fatigue or a loss of concentration, Lys accepted power from Alex, continuing to dance tirelessly, weaving mana into the lock, feeling bits of it beginning to come undone. Bahamut had said nothing new or done anything other than resonate the song, still moving in time with it, and it continued to fade away as it poured itself into the arcane device. The carbon-fiber armor was replaced with Alex’s familiar jeans and jacket as he was the third to expend himself completely. The five older onlookers watched with silent admiration, somewhat awed at the amount of energy being thrown about almost haphazardly and being concentrated and focused in one area.

                      “Nearly halfway there,” Lys remarked, his voice somewhat distant, “and I can feel it working. We’ve got enough mana to pull this off, and I can feel it getting easier to work on as we go on.”

                      Sebastian tapped his resources, sharing Lys’s confidence, though he also shared his companions’ breathlessness when he was removed from the Link, adjusting his hoodie as he ran a hand through his hair. Smiling at the same time at the familiar sensation, Elliott and Lys connected, and Elliott found himself sharing the dance as well, caught up in the moment of it and reading his partner’s mind. It took him much longer to drain his resources than the other four, as though he had the same number of gems, his greater personal mana pool and ability to regenerate more quickly than them from his surroundings gave him much more mana to send. Despite this, his power was not unlimited, and his armor reverted to his usual waistcoat and trousers as he dropped to one knee, breathing heavily.

                      “I certainly hope that this is easier on you than it is on us, else I fear for your health, my dear.”

                      “I’m doing good, love. Feeling a bit tired, but I can still pull Haley’s power without trouble. It’s when I draw on mine that we might start getting problems. Catch your breath while you can, I may need your stability here soon.”

                      The last of the group, Haley now diverted her complete focus to sending Lys every drop of mana that she had, with Alex holding her had for mental support as she clutched the opal focus with the other. Sam and Sebastian were better, no longer as weak as they felt, but they still sat comfortably as they watched. The atmosphere was charged, literally and figuratively, and even Maurice seemed entranced by the events, offering no attempt to disrupt the proceedings. Bahamut was nearly transparent now, and seemed to move less under its own power and more with the gentle push and nudge of the breeze. At last, the final gem crumbled and Haley leaned into Alex, feeling very dizzy.

                      "That's everything, we're all out. It's up to you, Lys."

                      "You heard her, Bahamut, let's finish this."

                      "OUR WORK IS NEARLY COMPLETE, AND I FORSEE A SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION TO OUR EFFORTS. I DO NOT FEAR THE END, RATHER, I WELCOME IT, FOR MY DISSOLUTION MEANS PEACE FOR THY WORLD. ALL THAT I ASK IS THAT THEE WORK TO ENSURE THAT THIS HAS NOT BEEN DONE IN VAIN."

                      "I promise. We're telling our story to the whole world. Nobody will forget."

                      Lys was a little tired from the effort of focusing and managing all of the power that they had sent, but for the most part it had required little from him mentally, as the power almost seemed to flow of its own accord, slotting into the arcane notches and nooks of the lock. There was a nearly unimaginable amount of power being channeled into such a small area, that normally would have reacted like a thaumic fusion reaction under other circumstances, but though the magic pressed against the "walls" of its prison, it also functioned like a key in a mundane lock, pushing aside the pins just so in order to allow it to open.

                      Now he was truly feeling fatigue as he burned through the gems in his bag in short order (not having to worry about modulating it like his friends), and the spire was likewise drained in less. It was now pulling on his internal reserves, and he drew from the bright afternoon sun, feeling light-headed as the device hungrily devoured all of the power that he had to give. Curiously, his armor was beginning to fade as well, though not the crown or swords... Elliott noticed this, frowned, and shifted his "vision" a little to better examine it, then-

                      "No... No! Dear, stop this! You're-" He had stood up to run over to Lys before Alex grabbed him and pulled him back.

                      "Don't! We don't know what'll happen if we stop the process now."

                      "It's consuming him!" shouted Elliott, struggling in Alex's grip, "if we don't do something he'll-"

                      "You think that we can't see that?! We can't do anything for him and he'd get angry if we tried. Besides," Alex relaxed his grasp on his friend, offering a look of sympathy, " we can't stop it anyway. It's pulling him in and he knows it. It's his choice. Just...trust and believe in him..." Alex saw the words that Elliott couldn't say and pulled him over again, this time into a hug. "Give him a reason to fight, something to come back to. He's your light but you're the one he draws strength from."

                      Nodding, Elliott returned the hug and watched Lys again, whose armor had almost completely dissolved. Lys was very tired now, feeling the drain on both his mind and body, and the exhaustion of everything was being exacerbated by the lock draining his life from him. Despite this, he continued, only worried that he didn't have enough power after all... Bahamut was almost little more than an outline of itself, and it blinked slowly as it flexed gauzy wings one last time.

                      "THIS IS THE LAST OF MY ESSENCE. FAREWELL, TALIESIN. MY ONLY REGRET IS THAT I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO GREET THEE ON THE OTHER SIDE." Faintly, Lys smiled.

                      "A pity, since I'll be going that way pretty soon."

                      Upon hearing this, Elliott tried to rush forward again, but he was stopped, but not by any person. Bahamut faded as what was left of it swirled around and was absorbed by Lys, who stumbled, as the sensation of an arcane click was felt by all. He was thrown aside as the energies under tension released, freed from their prison, and lashed out across both dimensions. Everyone was knocked to the ground, and a thaumic shockwave rippled outward across the landscape, shattering the stone spires but causing no other damage. In town, everyone noticed...something... But since there was nothing else, they all returned to their business. Scrambling to his feet, Elliott ran over, pulling Lys into his arms and frantically checking him for signs of life.

                      "Lysander, my dearest, please-"

                      No breath.

                      No pulse.

                      No mana.

                      He reached inside Lys's shirt to retrieve the garnet focus.

                      It was cracked.

                      Feeling the sharp, cold stab of terror, he looked to Haley, who stared off at nothing, eyes wide with horror, her hands over her mouth.

                      "I can't... It's not like last time where I couldn't connect. There's nothing to connect to at all..."

                      The cold was gone, replaced by empty numbness.

                      "My dearest, my guiding light... You...you promised..." Shoulders shaking, he held Lys close, taking his hand to hold it tightly. "...I cannot lose you..."



                      *Whistles to self, puts on firefighter's outfit.*
                      ...
                      Oh, hi there. Don't mind me, just off to stay in a fireproof bunker until Wednesday. See ya.
                       
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                      • Minimanta

                        Minimanta Spaceman Spiff

                        Oh that bunker of yours better be bombproof too, 'cause I'm gonna throw a couple of mega bombs at it! D:
                        This was good, though. I'm so looking forward to the conclusion to this story, it's been an exciting joy to read!

                        Also, the music you're using for the chapters is awesome. Actually not much of a Doctor Who fan, but the music is so good <3
                         
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                        • Alkanthe

                          Alkanthe Supernova

                          I EFFING KNEW IT.
                           
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                          • Risukage

                            Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                            Heeee, I telegraphed the hell out of this, but still, I'm glad that the, um, well, for lack of a better term, execution of the concept went well. I had been carefully trying to space and pace chapters so I wouldn't drop this on a Friday, 'cause waiting over the weekend would just be cruel! Also, as is quite obvious, I'm a total audiophile, and a fair chunk of my music collection is totally kickass soundtracks. I can see "I Am the Doctor" being an excellent theme for Lys, especially if you've seen what Matt Smith's performance as the Doctor is like. (You know, more of the "being totally brilliant and optimistic" bit, not so much Lys's proclivity to flirt with and try to shag nearly anything...) ...*LAUGHS.* Ha, every regeneration he complains that he's "still not ginger." Hunh, so that's how Lys is gonna get out of this, he'll regenerate and be revealed as a Time Lord... :rofl:

                            :3

                            Also, one of my readers on AO3 chewed me out for this cliffhanger, 'cause they did a simply excellent job of importing my boys into Sims 3 and felt it was extremely rude to try to kill off my ginger nuisance three days after they painstakingly spent several days looking for mods and skins. No joke, I am just proper chuffed, and they came out just... Here, go and have a look, links go to my comments. *Laughs.* I'm still grinning, this is just amazing, I am so flattered. :D

                            Lysander:
                            http://randomsquirrel.tumblr.com/post/156141944766/nanasamantha-randomsquirrel-nanasamantha

                            Elliott:
                            http://randomsquirrel.tumblr.com/post/156120935741/nanasamantha-ive-been-reading-a-fanfiction

                            I tried to link these a bit more cleanly, but forums are sometimes pants-on-head stupid about parsing HTML properly. *Sighs, shrugs.*
                             
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                            • Risukage

                              Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                              //One more chapter after this and our story is over. Then book 3 starts up on Monday. Oh yeah, that, remember? Not quite a "book three" so much as "book one but more." I really do want to tell R&S from Elliott's side, as it was told mostly from Lysander's perspective for a lot of it, and I want to go into Elliott's motivations, desires, and thoughts. Will it be any good? Maybe. Will it be bad? Probably not. We'll find out next week, but for now, let's see how our heroes deal with the aftermath of Monday's events. Also, have more BGM for today, be sure to queue up and start these before you read or you're really missing out.






                              //


                              Elliott's words were quiet but they were heard by everyone in the stark silence. Barely in time, Marlon and Linus kept Rasmodius from hitting the ground too hard, but he still fell with force as his legs gave out.

                              "He did it, but the price of his victory..." Gritting his teeth he glared at Maurice. "This is what you wanted, isn't it? Our line is finally dead. You've won. Why aren't you celebrating?" The other man stared over at the limp form of his descendant, his face a mask of horror.

                              "I... I was wrong. I thought that this is what I wanted, but now... I know now the suffering you felt when Violette fell, and how selfish I have been all of these years. Lysander was right all along, and every time he offered peace I turned him away in anger. Light help me, I was wrong..."

                              Elliott closed his eyes against the burn of tears, holding Lys's hand tightly, pressing the ring to his lips one last time. ...It was warm. No, not quite, it wasn't the warmth of body temperature, it was hot. The tingle of hope made his hand shake as he rotated the ring with his thumb, that simple platinum band...with the garnet chip. His breath caught in his throat as he realized that there was one last chance. He closed his eyes again and opened his mind, seeking that inner flame he so often saw within his partner...

                              There.

                              It was faint, so impossibly small, there was almost nothing left of it, but he could see it now. Drawing out the faintest bit of mana from the ring, Elliott wrapped it around his own, as though his was the needle through which Lys's was threaded. The flame was growing dimmer, but he couldn't hurry. Carefully, ever so carefully, he spooled the mana from the ring, pulling it along entwined around his, then with the gentlest of touch, connected with the flame. He felt a sudden jolt of panic as the flame sputtered when his mana made contact, but Lys's flowed along the "guide needle," successfully connecting. This had to work. It had to!

                              "Lysander, I summon you."

                              The flame pulsed weakly as the mana all-too-slowly fed into it, then flared brightly as it pulled the rest to it in one burst, having finally "caught."

                              With a loud, ragged gasp, Lys inhaled deeply and coughed, breathing irregularly but strongly.

                              "...I...answer..."

                              Caught between wanting to cry, laugh, and smile, Elliott hugged him close, knotting his fingers in his husband's hair. They heard the sound of their friends cheering and shouting with relief, but for the moment, the only thing in the world that they noticed was each other.

                              "My dearest... For a moment I had lost you. My brilliant, beautiful phoenix..." Weakly, Lys brushed Elliott's cheek with his fingertips and looked up at him through bleary eyes.

                              "Sorry, love, wasn't quite expecting that to happen. Good thing we're both bloody well clever, yeah?" Something was different, and Elliott took another look as Lys blinked away the haze.

                              "Your eyes... They're both hazel again." Everyone approached as Elliott helped Lys sit up, leaning into him for support.

                              "They're what? That's- Oh gods, no..." He gazed past them, with that familiar squint he always had when viewing the arcane side of the world, and his eyes went wide with realization as he put a hand to his chest, feeling the cracked focus. "Light help me, my magic, it's...gone... I'm..." He held up a hand and snapped his fingers-

                              -And nothing happened. Even drained of mana he would have felt the "pull" to try and draw energy to complete the action, but this time, there was nothing at all. Haley took his hand, trying to reconnect through physical contact, but her face said it all; there was nothing to connect to. Lys felt himself on the edge of tears, but shook his head.

                              "No, it's not the end of things. I'm not going to cry. I'm...damn it, I'm alive. If it weren't for Elliott I'd have died from that, and I should just be happy that I'm still here."

                              He tried to stand but didn't even have the strength to push himself out of Elliott's hold, gentle though it was. Sighing, he leaned into his husband's shoulder and closed his eyes, trying to sort out his thoughts. The group of Chosen parted as the Elders approached, led by a very morose-looking Maurice. He took a knee in front of Lys and at first unsuccessfully tried to start a sentence.

                              "I was wrong, Lysander. All of these years, all of this time. Even with the connection that I had forged, I never once used it to help or make things right. I was selfish and chose to wallow in hate and self-pity. And when you came to me, more than once, bearing the banner of truce and friendship, I cast you out every time. If you refuse to forgive me then you are within your rights and I do not begrudge you that." Lys failed again to sit up and resigned himself to sitting.

                              "If you want to make it up to me, then use the time you have now to make things better where you can. The barrier is gone, so is the dragon. Everything we've all fought for has finally paid off. Let's make the best of it. Oh, for the love of- Augh, this is so annoying!" He growled in frustration at not being able to stand under his own power, and began protesting loudly as Elliott picked him up.

                              "It is unknown how long you will be unable to walk, so allow me to provide assistance."

                              "This is so embarrassing..." Sam's grin was face-splitting once again as he sidled alongside them.

                              "Awww, the handsome prince has rescued the pretty princess from danger." Lys put a hand to the crown that had not been consumed with the rest of his armor (he still had his swords as well), and glared at his friend.

                              "Just when I really need to set someone on fire..."

                              They followed Elliott to their home, where he helped Lys remove the swords so he could sit on the couch, and ended up reclining against the armrest, too exhausted to sit up under his own power. He removed the crown and barely set it on the coffee table without dropping it, grunting with pain as Xander hopped off of the back of the couch to land and sit on his chest. The house wasn't quite set up for this number of guests, but not everyone felt like sitting just yet, still riding the adrenaline high of a successful project. Elliott made a batch of mana tea, as it wasn't just Lys that was very low on power. The Elders were quiet, almost appearing lost despite their obvious relief and pride in their younger counterparts. Rasmodius had taken out his pocketwatch and was staring at the photo within, wearing a faint smile. Sebastian sat down on the couch next to and perpendicular to Lys, allowing his friend to drape his legs over his own, dislodging the cat as he did so, who gave them a look of disdain before padding over to headbutt Haley's ankles, seated by the table.

                              "Damn if you don't always make good on your promises," he smiled, "and you are the luckiest son of a bitch I've ever met."

                              "No joke. I'm glad I remembered to charge my ring as well ,'cause I knew I'd need it, but I didn't expect to get completely drained. I figured I'd just need it in a pinch so I wouldn't be totally wiped out when I was done, not get crazy-lucky because my totally amazing husband was skilled enough to use it as a lifeline for me. Still, we did it. All of us. We fixed what was broken and nobody else is going to have to fight. I don't know what's going to happen after this, but..." He sighed and flexed his hand, resisting the urge to snap his fingers, knowing that it wouldn't work anyway. "I know I can't complain, since I'm not dead and all, but even so, it hurts, losing my power. Feels like some kind of bullshit 'having to sacrifice something' trope, because 'reasons.' At least all of you still have it, and I'm not envious at all. I really hope that everyone keeps what they have, that it won't fade as magic stabilizes between the realms." He gratefully accepted a mug of tea from Elliott and forced himself to sip the very hot drink slowly, as he was no longer protected from that sort of thing. Sam approached him again, prodding his braid with curiosity.

                              "So if your magic is gone why did your eye change and not your hair?"

                              "Probably because my eye is living tissue but hair isn't. Whatever the dragon did was an active enchantment that directly affected me, due to our connection. Now that it's gone, that enchantment is gone as well, but I bet you a beer that this grows out red from now on."

                              "I hate to interrupt and run, but we have a lot of things to discuss," Marlon remarked, glancing at the other four, "we'll take our leave now. Not that we don't want to celebrate, but this is your victory, and in any case, there are a few things we'll want to check on ourselves back at the tower." Linus placed a portal shard and opened a hole in the world, through which Marlon and Gil promptly walked. Hesitating, Maurice looked to Rasmodius for confirmation, who nodded.

                              "We have much to reconcile, it has been a very long time. Perhaps it is possible to make amends even after all that has happened."

                              "...I do not deserve mercy or reconciliation, but I will no longer push aside those who offer it."

                              The last three vanished through the portal, leaving the seven Chosen. Everyone else was drinking their tea as Elliott made a second pot, having distributed the first one already, and found seats for themselves. Elliott moved over to the couch, and Sebastian took Lys's arm to help him sit up enough for Elliott take the spot at the end, allowing Lys to recline in his lap, stroking his hair with his free hand.

                              "It's weird. Still can't wrap my mind around it," Lys remarked, holding his half-empty mug in both hands, "we really did it. You all are totally amazing." Poking him in the knee, Sebastian smiled again.

                              "You're the one who came up with this plan and put yourself in danger for it. We just gave you the tools and power to pull it off." Returning the smile, Lys finished his drink and put the mug on the coffee table.

                              "I'm trying to be modest for once. Fine, I'll own it, I'm totally brilliant and there's not many other people who could have done any of that, assuming they even thought of it. But I still owe my life several times over to you, love," he remarked, reaching up to brush Elliott's cheek again, "four times so far, and as much as I'm grateful for it, I hope you never have to do that again." Elliott took his hand and kissed it gently, radiating contentment and satisfaction.

                              "You are not the only one. I feel pride in denying the reaper their quarry so often, but I too hope that this is the final time that I need to call you back from oblivion." Alex finished his tea and sighed gratefully, leaning against the table.

                              "I'm gonna go ahead and feel pride in my craftsmanship. All of those gems worked perfectly, though it kinda sucks that they broke after being used, it almost feels like they were wasted."

                              "It sorta makes sense," piped up Sebastian, "in most magic-based systems items like that are cheap and easy to make precisely because they are a one-time use sort of thing. If we'd had the time to sit down and do a bit more research and experimenting we could have made reusable items, but that would have taken a lot more time and resources, and-" He was interrupted by a soft snore, and tried to frown in irritation but smothered a laugh instead, as Lys had dozed off in Elliott's lap. "This isn't that boring," he grumbled in good humor.


                              Over the next couple of days Lys recovered, back to his full strength by the morning of the third day. However, while his energy and stamina had returned, his magic had not. That morning he allowed himself a small, fast cry about it, to get it out of his system and take the time to sit down and really think about and go over what had happened. He tried to keep it from Elliott, but the other man unexpectedly returned to the house to get something after being out in the garden. Still, Lys did appreciate the comfort and support, and felt better for it after he was done. He missed the connection that he'd had with his friends and husband, feeling a bit empty and alone, as well as that constant warmth and energy he'd become used to having. He very nearly burned himself quite badly while making dinner the second night, as he was used to grabbing hot pans while protecting himself with his power (something that Elliott continually scolded him about!), so he could only feel quite silly as he was gently lectured by his ever-patient husband as he healed the injury.

                              Haley remarked that she wasn't sure how they'd "film" the rest of the series without him, as they'd lost his "camera," but he pointed out that there was still a lot she could pull from, and since he was the one "on screen" for quite a bit of it, it wasn't really an issue. Life seemed to return to "normal," for given values of the word, and Elliott brought a bit of cheer to the day by reminding Lys that not only did they have a performance in the next couple of weeks, but their novel was opening at the theater soon as well. Between this to look forward to, the work in the gardens, and band practice, the days after the "event" were busy enough that Lys didn't find himself dwelling on what had happened and becoming depressed or despondent about it. Things were looking up.
                               
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                              • Alkanthe

                                Alkanthe Supernova

                                How long are you going to keep writing, Risu?! Not that I don't appreciate it, but dang, you're prolific, and consistent!
                                 
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                                • Risukage

                                  Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                                  Heh, thanks! :) It's been quite taxing, I'll admit, but it's been a strange itch that I've needed to scratch, and I wanted to try to push myself to making a schedule and keeping to it, for once in ages. I think I'll be done after book 3, as there's not much story to tell after that. It's kinda a rehash of the first one anyway, just giving the world and characters more detail. And book 2, well, I suppose I could do a continuation of that one, but what is the "conflict" that sets things in motion that they'll need to address? What's the drama and/or event that takes them out of their comfort zone and sends them off on a new journey? I really can't think of anything plausible, and TBH, this series has run really long as it is. I should have a go at that IRL novel I've been making notes for, especially since I got the chance to test out a LOT of them in Vox Arcana, and I've got a much better idea of the story I want to tell.

                                  I'll probably be completely done with the R&S-verse around summer, and then probably only do small "one shots" or short stories as the ideas come. I've got a couple of small pieces I kinda wanna do (not related to "my" universe), so either I'll post them as I get to them in between writing R&S3, or I'll save the mental mojo for after it's done and focus on the short works then. Not sure how I'd go about posting those here, though, it's kinda easy to do that on AO3, but here, eh, maybe I'll set up a separate "shorts" thread or something. Who knows. :D
                                   
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                                  • Risukage

                                    Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                                    //Was that one last meme in there, you say? Yup! It took me TWO DAMN HOURS to track down the source of it so I could get it right, which shows how much I love you people. *KISSES.*

                                    ...Wow. Book 2 is now over. BOOK TWO, DEAR GODS. Thank all of you, SO MUCH for sticking with this project as long as you have, you have no idea what it means to me. This book was not just a bit of fun, but a chance to test out a lot of ideas I've got for a real novel, and I've got a much better idea of how to do that. Though this didn't actually feel like a "real" story like R&S 1 did, this almost feels more like an alternate universe or fanfiction. Yes, I wrote a fanfic about my own fanfic. How brilliantly meta.

                                    Thus, I ask you all for a review. Tell me! What did you like, what did you think was crap, and why? I can't get better unless I know, and being on this side of the screen, so to speak, means I'm too close to the material and can't really be objective about it. You don't need to be an arse about it, but don't feel that you need to pull your punches!

                                    Further, book 3 starts up on Monday. Wait what? ANOTHER DAMN FANFIC? WHAT THE HELL RISU NOBODY CARES. :rofl: Well, if you do care, it's not a "sequel" so much as it is retelling book 1 from the other side. There's a lot of headcanon character development that I did for Elliott that never made it into R&S, and I feel like there's a lot to be explored there. It could be fun, or it could just be pointless self-indulgence. Who knows! Join me again on Monday for Rose & Sunflower 3: A Different Perspective.

                                    For today, however, our epilogue closes out the series, so queue up these tunes for the right feels, get a drink and a snack, and get comfy. Thanks for reading!





                                    //


                                    A month had already gone by since the barrier had been removed, and though the other Chosen still retained their powers Lys had not recovered his. At first they had tried not to use their abilities around him, not wanting to flaunt what he'd lost, but after a few days he got annoyed and yelled at them for it. He felt quite bad about that immediately after, but it broke the ice between him and everyone else about their magic, and he told them in no uncertain terms that they were not to hold back around him.

                                    They were also no longer the "Chosen," as that term no longer applied and would never again. In discussions with the Elders (who retained that moniker out of amusement and the implied respect) and the Junimos (translated through Rasmodius, as Lys no longer had the magic with which he could do so), they chose a new name and charter for themselves: the Scions of Stardew. Lys was particularly pleased with himself for thinking of it, and even more so when everyone else voted unanimously to use it, though he did feel a small twinge of jealousy and regret that he hastily stomped out. Even though he knew the answer, he asked if there was anything to be done, but even the Junimos were perplexed. There was nothing for them to "fix," because nothing was "broken," yet at the same time there was nothing for them to attempt to take away or give.

                                    Now that there was balance again, there was no need for "guardians," but there was a need for "caretakers" and "lorekeepers." Penny was brought on board to assist with the lorekeeping aspect, as though she also had no power, she was very familiar with stories and research, and wanted to assist with recording and archiving all that they had done, as well as the thaumic memories of their ancestors. The Fire-aspect memories were sadly sparse, as they only were current as of Rasmodius. Lys remembered nothing of the memories he'd accessed before, as they were likely tied to his magic, and with it gone... He at least had his own memories of what had happened, but many of the skills and abilities he'd picked up through his thaumic recollections were...missing... Even the sword-work, which he'd practiced often, felt hazy and unfamiliar, and only muscle memory allowed him to go through the forms and exercises.

                                    They had uploaded a couple of new "episodes," which were already gaining popularity, and Sebastian was working to figure out how to set up a system to allow for paid memberships. It was nearly complete, and there had been significant interest in it, so it appeared that the problem of covering hosting costs (among other things) would be solved soon. They had also had another gig in Zuzu City two weeks after "The Event," and for a little while Lys had forgotten the ache of loss as he performed for an enthusiastic crowd, losing himself to the music as he brought happiness to others. They also uploaded a few "conversation" videos, as people were finding those more interesting and informative than forum posts, and there was a surprising amount of interest in the visual novel game. This went both ways, as Abigail was having a lot of fun designing art and characters for it, and Sebastian was enjoying the challenge of coding for a game.

                                    The week after that was the opening night for the play, and while there had been offers from both families to pick them up, they politely declined in order to take Morgenlied in themselves. Not just because it would be a long round-trip for everyone else, but they knew it would look quite impressive to have the two guests of honor arrive on such an elegant machine and remove their riding gear to reveal clothes for a nice evening out. Lynn and Arthur were also in attendance, talking with Elizabeth and Phillip as the two men rode up, and Lys and Elliott were glad to take a few moments to visit with their parents, as they'd not seen each other since the wedding. Lynn remarked on Lys's new hairstyle, which she thought suited him quite well, and he was nearly unable to hide a flash of sadness at the memory of how it happened and what had nearly happened a few weeks before.

                                    It was quickly forgotten, however, as it was a delightful night, and their book had translated very well to a stage setting. Elliott glanced over at one point to notice Lys watching the performance with a warm, fond smile, likely remembering what it was like to be up there, and possibly dreaming of doing it once again. They were immediately queried as to how soon a sequel would be penned, and they stated that they were in the process of working on it, but were juggling that, the band, and the farm, in addition to work on the video project. When they returned home that night Lys confirmed Elliott's assumption, expressing the desire to be on stage once again someday, but for the moment, delighted in his work being the story performed.

                                    It was now a month later, and Lys and Elliott had returned to their routine as usual. At least, the one before all of that mess had started. They woke up like normal, had a coffee, took care of the garden and arranged for shipments of what needed to go where like normal, and returned to the house when done to clean up. Lys felt particularly energetic that morning, and had quite enthusiastically dragged Elliott back to bed after their shower for a quick bit of amorous activity. He nuzzled Elliott's neck as he got up and found clean trousers, flashing him a grin when the other man made a half-hearted grab to hug him and instead continued to lie back and enjoy the sensation.

                                    "I'm going to have a quick smoke, then, you enjoy the afterglow," he teased.

                                    "It seems that this was good for you, too," Elliott replied, sounding a little winded.

                                    "Not as good as it was for you, apparently."

                                    It was a mid-fall day, and though the days were getting shorter and cooler, and it had rained the day before, today was warm and sunny, one of the last they'd have until spring. Lys strolled out to the porch, his phone in one pocket and the pack of cigarettes in the other, not bothering with a shirt, as it would be a while before he could enjoy the sun again. Further, he remembered how it felt to draw in mana that way, and... Sitting down, he pulled out his phone and navigated to the forums, found the video tab, and pulled up the first of the "conversation" videos that they'd recorded. He tapped it and turned up the volume a little to hear it better.

                                    Lys waves to the camera with that room-brightening smile he always wears.

                                    "Hi, I'm Lysander, bassist for the Elements of Sound, and part of the cast of our own original series, 'Vox Arcana.' We usually do forum posts, but people don't notice those as often, and for some reason prefer these video 'chats.'" He pauses to laugh and waves in apology. "Sorry. So, anyway, we'll be doing these every week or so, maybe more often, in response to common or popular questions we're getting, as well as announcing updates and ideas. First of those ideas is one that everyone else came up with," he says, shooting a meaningful glance off-camera, and Abigail and Sam can be heard laughing, "but we've considered the idea of doing a visual novel based off of, well, us. Personally, I think it's silly as hell and nobody will be interested, but they figured we might as well mention it anyway. Um, so, the basic idea is that you'll play as me," he sighs and rolls his eyes, prompting more off-camera laughter, "as male or female- shut up you two-, as I try to make friends and assemble the band. ...And fans of this genre already know what else there is to do." Sam shouts "everyone!" from off-camera, generating an eye-roll from Lys. "What he said. Anyway, that's all for now, catch you later, when it's showtime."

                                    Smiling, Lys rummaged in his other pocket for the pack, queuing up the next video.

                                    His on-screen avatar chuckles in surprise, rubbing the back of his neck.

                                    "Hey again, Lys here, and okay, wow, I did not expect that sort of reception to the idea of the visual novel. I now need to cover both Sam's and Abigail's bar tabs this week. We've already got a fair amount of concept art up, and being a band and all, music and audio are going to be pretty easy. Sebastian has a good handle on coding, but it will be a big project. We don't have any other coders or scripters on the team, so we don't expect to make much headway on this immediately. In the meantime, though, we are taking questions, so anything that seems interesting or that we feel confident in answering will get posted. So ask away, worst case is that you ask something really dumb and get immortalized on the internet as Sam gives you shit about it. See you all next showtime."

                                    Flicking his wrist in a practiced shake, he dislodged a flavored cigarette from the pack and put it between his lips as he went to the next video.

                                    "Lys again, here to answer a few of your questions. You all had a lot of good ones, and almost all about Vox Arcana, which I thought was pretty spiffy 'cause I'm having a total blast with this project. So, one of the most common questions was my mismatched eyes and hair thing. It's just a bit of dye and a contact lens, so once this project is over I'm growing it back out as my regular color. Much as I'd love to keep the heterochroma, it's just not convenient for everyday wear. So unless I somehow develop real magic powers, I'm just red and hazel. Um, also, the second most popular question was whether or not I really do speak French. Sorry, no, while my 'character' does at some point through their connection, I don't. I just learned enough to make it passable. Elliott does, though, and he's been a great instructor. I do remember bits and pieces, though. Let's see... 'Oui, non,' yes, no, 'rouge, vert, jaune,' red, green, yellow, 'merci,' thanks, 's'il te plait,' please. Umm, what else, oh yeah, 'plus vite,' that's faster, 'plus fort,' harder, 'n'arrĂȘte pas,' don't stop-" He is interrupted by laughter off-camera by everyone, except for Elliott, who is choking in embarrassment, and Lys can't help but join in laughing as well.

                                    "That was rather mean of you," remarked Elliott, who had just joined him outside, bearing two cups of coffee. Like Lys he had also found clean trousers, but had thrown on a shirt, though he had left it unbuttoned and rolled up the sleeves. Grinning, Lys put down his phone, took the cigarette from his mouth, and exchanged a quick kiss for the coffee.

                                    "Damn if it wasn't funny as hell, though. Still, as hard as it is to explain, I really wish I'd been able to keep the mismatched colors. It looked really nifty, and didn't take much mana at all to keep the enchantment in place. I guess I just like being weird. So it really is growing out red?" Sitting down next to him, Elliott took a look at Lys's scalp at the base of the black braid and nodded.

                                    "It is. I...know that you dislike us pitying you, but I am sorry for your loss. I've become so accustomed to this power that the thought of losing it... I do not think that I would be as strong as you are about it." Lys reached over to squeeze his hand before putting the cigarette back in his mouth and sighing.

                                    "No worries, love. Like I said, it hurts, but I'm just happy to be alive right now. I did the impossible, and something that freaking amazing and brilliant had a price. Besides, you all still have your powers and nothing's diminished, so you know what? I'm happy for everyone, I really am. Sebastian is having a total blast studying under Rasmodius, Alex is successful with his gridball career, Haley's photo hobby is really taking off, Abby's making good money doing great art, and Sam has come a long way as a songwriter and musician. I think he's going to take the band to amazing heights, and I'm excited to see that happen. And you? Gods, love, I couldn't do this without you. Meeting you was the best thing to ever happen to me. As long as I've got you by my side I can be strong, with or without magic." Elliott leaned over, took the cigarette, kissed him again, and put it back.

                                    "You've always been the strongest of us." Smiling warmly, Lys snapped his fingers reflexively, then huffed a chuckle as he did so. Then he paused, because something was different. Elliott's eyes went wide with surprise before the rest of his face lit up with delight. Blinking a couple of times as he realized what had happened, the smile became content and satisfied, as he looked over at his hand-

                                    -And watched a flame dance atop his fingertips.
                                     
                                      Alkanthe and Minimanta like this.
                                    • Minimanta

                                      Minimanta Spaceman Spiff

                                      Aww, he got his flame back <3
                                      Have I ever told you the name Lys suits him? Lys means both light and candle in danish :)

                                      But anyway, this was a lot of fun, I enjoyed it from start to finish! I'm probably not gonna be of much help with the reviewing though, I kinda suck at that kind of thing.
                                      I can say there's nothing I thought was crap about it though, or I wouldn't have come back to read it every monday, wednesday and friday :p
                                      The only thing I can think of right now, is that it could be a bit hard to tell who was who when they were communicating over the "link", especially if a lot of them spoke.
                                       
                                        Risukage and Alkanthe like this.
                                      • Risukage

                                        Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                                        I...did not know that, and that is so totally brilliant. I love multi-lingual puns/references! (FWIW, "Morgensonne" should mean "morning sun" in German, if my long-unused high school classes are any good.) I used "Lysander" in the first place because I was looking for a good historical name (given the family tradition on his dad's side to name as such) that could also have a short nickname, and this just hit the sound/style I was looking for. Have a very messy wiki link because FORUMS ARE DUMB ABOUT THIS SORT OF THING. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysander Also, it amuses the merry hell out of me that it's also the name of the primary villain out of Pokemon X & Y, who also has kickass red hair. However, I can't claim accidental similarities 'cause I started writing this way after X&Y came out. :rofl:

                                        And I couldn't let the story end without giving him back his fire, it just feels wrong. I hate stories that are all "BLAH BLAH SACRIFICE SUFFERING" and all that. A bit of burnout (pun intended) for a while? Totally reasonable, especially what he pulled off! But gone forever? Like hell, I put my ginger nuisance through enough. This whole series has been all about hope and things getting better through hard work and perseverance. HE GETS HIS HAPPY ENDING, DAMN IT. :)

                                        Heh, fair enough! Yeah, I wish I had a better way to do the Link-chat. If I had more artistic talent this would make an amazing graphic novel, and the mental conversations would be so much easier to differentiate. As it is, I tried to rely on everyone's distinct mannerisms/slang to help tell it apart, but then, when you have six other voices in your own head at once, it kinda makes sense that it would be a bit jumbled, I suppose.
                                         
                                          Alkanthe likes this.
                                        • Minimanta

                                          Minimanta Spaceman Spiff

                                          Yeah, so he's basicly called Light Morning Sun in english. An awesome name :D

                                          Usually it was easy enough to tell who was who, but it did turn into a bit of a guessing game when there were a lot of them.
                                          One way you could have differentiated them is by color-coding them, going by their assigned gem if you don't mind the color in your text :)
                                           

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