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tsukikoayanosuke · 4 years ago

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A Reunion Between the Waves

Summary:

Azul is indentured to a horrible captain on a routine ocean trip with his master's goods. He doesn't know what to expect when the ship is attacked by the notorious and mysterious ship, the Night Raven, but it's certainly not this.

(’Twisted-Wonderland: Our Precious Treasure’ 5000 hits celebration!)

(Fantasy/Pirate/Steampunk AU)

(A suggestion from @sanata101 )

Azul did not know what to expect when his master's ship was attacked by the most feared pirate ship in these seven oceans, but he was sure he did not expect to be HUGGED by the captain.

Azul's head suddenly felt dizzy, uncertain of how to react. This dizziness was partly from getting cuffed upside the head by his master just a moment ago, but the rest of the shock he was sure came from a sudden hug from Captain Argentum, the captain of the Night Raven. How many navy ships had this guy taken out? Maybe Azul needed more than two hands to count them. He was the only known captain who dared to sail the ocean in the dead of the night, the only captain who managed to attack his opponent amid complete darkness and steal the treasure without leaving a trace.

And now, he was in the arms of the captain who was almost younger than him. He had lost his hat during the sword fight with Azul’s master and revealing his reddish-brown hair, tied in a loose ponytail. There was a scar under his black eye-patch, rather than make him look dangerous, it almost made him look somehow…softer. Vulnerable. The effect was also helped along by the fact that he was crying a little, a tear rolling out of his other eye.

“Azul, it’s you, right, Big Brother Azul? Please tell me it’s you.”

Azul's mouth opened, but no sound came out, opening and closing like a fish. How did the most famous pirate in the ocean know his name? How could he possibly know Azul Ashengrotto- an orphan who worked because he was forced to employ a minor master?

Captain Argentum seemed to be able to get his bearings back, but his hands were still on the shoulders of Azul. His head dipped slightly for a moment, catching his breath. Then, his eyes met Azul's, and for the first time since the captain had landed on his ship, sword flashing and coat tails swirling around his legs, Azul could see his eye - black as the night sky above them.

And he felt like he had seen that eye before.

His mouth opened again, then closed. Finally, he whispered in a hoarse voice. "How… Do you know… My name?"

Captain Argentum's breath hitched, and Azul could see the light slowly disappearing from his eye - as if he was losing hope.

"I- Sorry," the captain murmured, his hand falling from Azul's shoulder. "I'm sorry, this might be... Too much for you. I... I’ve been looking everywhere for you and..."

He turned his eyes away, pressing a gloved mouth to his hand for a moment. Azul found himself stepping forward automatically, hand reaching for the pirate’s shoulder. It felt natural - like something… He had done this before…

"I ... I'm sorry," he said, not too sure for what reason.

The captain’s head jerked up. He turned to Azul in a rush, almost stumbling over his own words.

“Oh, no, no, no, Big Brother Azul, please don’t - it’s not your fault you don’t remember; it has been ten years, after all, no wonder you don’t remember me. I’m sorry to frighten you I just-saw you and I got overwhelmed and-”

Is this really the captain that many people fear? The same captain whose face was drawn on the wanted poster? His face was so open, Azul thought. So…vulnerable, so genuine.

Azul took the captain's hand, making him stop talking. He squeezed the hand, felt the warmth through the gloves. This felt very familiar. This ... felt right. He raised his face so that he met Captain Argentum's eyes again and there, he saw a glimmer of starlight.

"How do you think Captain Flint did it, Azul? How'd he swoop in out of nowhere and vanished without a trace?"

"I have no idea."

"You think somebody will ever find Treasure Island?"

"Maybe one day... You can."

"Me?"

"Yeah. You'll finally be the captain like you always dream off."

"Yeah... Yeah! Captain Jonah Argentum and his first mate, Azul Ashengrotto! Sailing across the seven seas in search of the legendary Treasure Island! An adventure of a lifetime!"

“Jonah…?” he murmured.

He felt the young man’s hand tighten against his, and his eyes half shut with a soft shudder at the sound of his name on Azul’s lips. Could this be the little Jonah from back then? The little Jonah who cried for his name when their old island was invaded by pirates and he was captured?

Feet stampeded over the deck, shattering the moment. Azul's heart jumped to the base of his throat as he wheeled around, his hands were still holding Jonah's.

His master, a female captain named Athena, appeared at the higher deck. Her hand still clutched at her side, where the barest bit of blood seeped between her fingers and into her fine dress clothes - Jonah had cut her there during the fight, that’s why he had run in the first place. Jonah had looked about to go after her before he had been distracted by the sight of Azul on the ground, and now the small captain swore under his breath, raising his sword with the hand that wasn’t still holding Azul’s.

Azul’s throat clenched up at the way his master looked – wild-eyed, pale-faced, her normally red hair half out of her braids. His head throbbed where the woman had struck him only minutes before the fight had started - he couldn’t even remember why she had hit him. Not that Athena ever needed a reason. Behind his lord, three soldiers armed with muskets jogged up, two of them dropping immediately to their knees to aim their weapons at Jonah.

Jonah shifted, pushing Azul behind him despite him being shorter than Azul, hands still clasped between Azul's.

"Back off now," said Jonah. "You don't know what you're dealing with."

Athena's eyes flashed, but she smiled, removing a few strands of hair from before her eyes with her hand still holding her sword.

"There are five guns aimed at you, Star Thief," Athena said, speaking Jonah’s ocean nickname with the same venom one might use to swear. "And that's not included in front of you."

Her eyes suddenly landed on Azul and he felt himself shrink. He gulped. Why is this woman so scary?

"Boy, come here," Athena snapped. "Now."

Azul flinched, chest tightening. He saw Jonah’s eye flicker back to him.

"Who is she?" he asked.

Azul gulped. "I work for her," he muttered. At that moment, Jonah's black eye narrowed and a spark of anger appeared on his face. He turned to Athena, his hand squeezing even more tightly into Azul.

"Uh... No," he said. "Looks like he'll just stay with me."

Athena laughed. "You think he’s worth it as a hostage? I can buy ten slaves for half his price. "

Azul could already smell the anger coming out of Jonah. "Well, it looks like you have to shoot us," he said calmly. "Because we are not going anywhere."

"So naïve, Captain Argentum," Athena laughed. "I knew you were young but I assumed being as successful as you are, you’d know better! You’re worth far much more to me alive, and I’ll be taking you all the way to the courts with me. I will greatly enjoy watching you hang."

Jonah only blinks. Azul's gaze went back and forth from Jonah to Athena - Jonah could not go with him. Athena would rip him apart - before they even arrive at the harbor.

"Jonah, go," he whispered in Jonah's ear. "Go, now - If you run to the lower level, the door is unlocked, you can escape through one of the windows-"

Where would you want him to run off to? Azul stopped. Come to think of it, where was Jonah's ship? How could he suddenly appear on his ship? Azul couldn’t see anything in the dark but he was pretty sure there weren’t any ships pulled up near them.

"Go," he whispered again. "I will protect you."

"Not without you," replied Jonah, holding his hand tighter.

"It’s fine, I can handle it - she talks big but she won’t actually hurt me, I promise."

"No!" Jonah hissed back. "You've been protecting me since we were kids. Now, it's my turn. I won't let you stay here and be treated like a dog! ”

"I'm the older one here. The one who should be protecting is me!" Azul replied. "If you die, I don't have anyone I could protect!" He could feel Jonah's hand tightened. "I will complete my contract with him and I will look for you-"

"Boy!" snapped Athena. "Come here, or for the sake of everything in the sky, I will gun you down! Someone go arrest this child already!"

One soldier dropped down to the lower deck and advanced on Jonah. Jonah backed away, still keeping Azul behind him.

"Azul!" Athena shouted, her patience was up. "For the love of- Captain Argentum, if you don't lower your sword now, I'll just shoot that boy if you like him very much."

Jonah actually growled.

“You’ll be dead where you stand before you could even touch him,” he snapped.

"Jonah, stop!" Azul shouted. "You can't die!"

He just can’t let his precious childhood friend die. And that was why Azul knew in his bones he couldn’t let him get hurt, couldn’t let Jonah die in front of him - he had to do whatever it took to keep Jonah alive. He couldn’t - Couldn’t watch him –

"That boy is mine, Star Thief! If I want to shoot it, then I will do it!"

“Jonah, technically - technically I do belong to her, so please, just go before you-”

And then, from overhead, there was a sudden roar.

Azul gasped as the very air seemed to vibrate through his skull, rattling his brain and his bones. Light exploded around them from something far above. There were several screams - a ratatat that was like musket fire but somehow stronger and more powerful, a thwump thwump thwump of something thick smacking the deck.

When Azul’s eyes cleared, he was standing in a spotlight, a whoosh of air like a wind current spinning around him and humming overhead. He tried to look up - something big and black, right over the ship, blotting out the stars. What had happened to Athena?

When he looked back down, he saw that the soldiers with the muskets were down, unconscious on the deck. Athena was standing alone, her eyes so wide that they were mostly whites. Her arms hung uselessly at her sides, sword on the ground.

Azul's eyes widened when he looked at the sky.

An airship. A ship that can fly. That thing is real?!

A rope was thrown down and Jonah caught it. He raised his face and continued, "Thank you, Ace!" Azul could vaguely see someone saluted, it seemed like a member of Jonah’s shipmates. The captain himself tied the rope to his waist and stepped on the anchor like a swing that had been lowered. Suddenly, Azul felt his waist being hugged and he was pulled closer to the captain, making his cheeks heat up.

"Yours, huh?" said Jonah to the still gaping Athena. "We’re pirate remember? Stealing other people's belongings is my job!"

He smiled at Azul. "Hold on tight."

Azul quickly hugged Jonah, feeling slightly awkward because he was taller than the captain, and then they were being pulled up along with the anchor.

After all that had happened - relief at being taken from Athena's grasp, amazed at the presence of an airship, and all the mixed emotions from the first time his silver-blue eyes met Jonah's black eye. But for one thing, he knew he was happy with him.

He felt Jonah give a kiss on his cheek. He whispered. "Let’s sail for an adventure of a lifetime."

#twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland fanfiction #twisted wonderland fanfic #twisted wonderland fic #twst fanfic #twst fic #azul ashengrotto #jonah argentum (my oc)#5000 hits celebration #cross-posted on ao3 #Azul/Jonah what should I call this pairing?#twisted wonderland oc #twst oc #is azul too ooc here?#tw:opt gaiden #jonazul #serving raspberry

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torendheavenandearth · 4 years ago

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2.3

“There comes a time when thou must take up responsibility. Thine responsiblity is a broken sword, a battered shield, a melted helmet. This responsibility shalt shield thee all they days against all unworthy opponents, upon those that should challenge your ideals and will. Verily: only those with sharper beliefs will cut thee. Therefore, sharpen the blade of thy truth, repair the shield of thy faith, and reforge the helmet of thy passion, for only through those canst thou survive in this hollowed dream, this fantasy regurgitated from the mind of the All-Loving Christ, which thou didst make weep.” - From Ang Mga Kanta (The Psalms) from the book Ang Pangatlong Bibliya (The Blasphemous Third Bible of Heresies).

▼

Angela is awakened by the crows of roosters: an all too familiar waking call. She opens her eyes and almost jumps out of bed to prepare for school, until she remembers that she’s in another world, in another universe, which has demons and monsters and angels that want to kill you.

She sighs. Hoping it was a dream was wishful thinking, she mutters. Angela writhes about in her bed and rubs her eyes. Eventually she pushes herself up to sit, just as Ang Nilapastangan walks in with a simple cloth wrapped around her.

Angela blinks at first, and then looks away, abashed. She can’t help but notice all the tattoos and scars that line her body, like intricate latticework or a net of tree-roots keeping her together.

Ang Nilapastangan doesn’t miss a beat, though. She continues and grabs a few of the clothes that have been folded and stacked neatly on a nearby table and changes behind a few bamboo panels.

Angela sighs. She could use a bath. She rises and looks around, and sees the drying cloth for bathing. Large enough for her, but then again she isn’t exactly tall to begin with.

She goes out and sees that there are other men and women already going about whatever they were supposed to do for the day. Some struck out with bows and arrows at the ready, seemingly going out to hunt. Others were also readying weapons, although they brought with them large rattan bags.

Angela sees Jaime. “Good morning.”

Without looking at her, Jaime says: “You should get out to the river if you want to bathe. There’s a section further east that has a bunch of boulders that you can safely hide behind.”

Angela sighs and nods. “Thanks.” She curses that she doesn’t have any shampoo or soap. She’ll only be able to rinse. Then again, it is a luxury she can’t afford right now.

“Where are you going?” asks Angela, walking up to Jaime.

“Another expedition,” says Jaime. “Another resource run. Looking for survivors, maybe, and then grabbing as much leftover stuff as we can. There’s some fresh bread in the panaderya there.”

“Angela, go wash yourself, quick.” It’s Ang Nilapastangan, her voice booming from behind. “Jaime, how long before your team leaves?”

Jaime shrugs. “Tito Adlay is still prepping, so we have some time. Why?”

“Good. Angela and I need to get into the barangay. I’m looking for an Albularyo.”

Jaime raises an eyebrow.

“She’s the only one I can trust with spiritual excisions,” says Ang Nilapastangan. She puts a hand on her hip and raises an eyebrow. “Is there a problem?” Angela notices that Ang Nilapastangan is now wearing a simple baro that slightly reveals her midriff, making it look like she’s wearing some kind of traditional crop top, and then balloon pants. Angela wanted the balloon pants. Instead she’s stuck with some more saya.

“No,” Jaime says, crossing his arms. He’s tall, taller than Ang Nilapastangan, so he’s looking down at her. “It’s just dangerous and… the albularyo lives in the forest past the barangay. It’s going to be risky.”

“We’ll manage.”

Jaime nods. “I’ll point you in the right direction. We’ll wait for you.” And with that, Jaime turns and walks to the rest of his team.

Angela sighs. She reaches up and touches her horns. “Right. These.”

“Go get washed up.”

▼

Angela manages to wash herself in the privacy of two boulders blocking the view. While she was washing she kept looking behind her to see if some kind of monster would pop out, like a horror movie, but nothing ever did. In the tranquility of the scene, with the river rushing through the thick stone, it was almost calming. Behind her rose the edifice that was the mountain--the name of which she wasn’t sure of yet--while she was washing. The trees were swaying in the temperate breeze. That moment of peace… she cherished.

It didn’t last long, unfortunately.

As she washed, she noticed that she still wore the anting-anting that Makabintang had given her. She sighed. Poor Makabintang. She quite literally barely knew him.

Now she’s washed up and fresh, wearing a long baro that reaches her thighs and a saya underneath that. She’d been given some nice wooden tsinelas, wooden sandals, that she could use to walk more or less safely over earthen ground.

She walks out of the house and over to where Ang Nilapastangan and Jaime and the rest are waiting. “Do you have a spare bolo we can borrow?” asks Ang Nilapastangan.

Adlay grins. “Why? I thought you were the Swordbreaker?”

Ang Nilapastangan nods. “I am. Now do you have one? It’s no worry if you don’t.”

Damian rolls his eyes at Adlay, neighs. “Yes, we do, po ma’am. Although we only have one po. Our apologies.”

‘“It’s okay. It’s mostly for Angela.”

Jaime looks over Ang Nilapastangan’s shoulder as Angela approaches. “You know how to fight with a bolo?”

Angela shrugs. “Not really. I have some practice but I doubt it’s applicable.”

Damian gives a spare bolo to Ang Nilapastangan. “Thank you,” she says, and then turns and gives it to Angela. “Since we don’t have the weapon Makabintang gave you anymore, you’ll have to make do with this for now. I’ll teach you some practical techniques before we get into true violence.”

Angela takes the bolo and ties it to her waist. “Got it. So, we’re getting the bug taken off of me?”

“Hopefully, with albularyo’s help. That branding will be a huge problem.”

“Let’s go,” says Adlay, after finishing strapping a last piece of equipment to himself. The three of them all are fully equipped. Damian is wearing a piece of kalabaw-hide armor over a chain shirt, and wields a bow and arrow. Jaime is wearing a simple shirt and pants getup but has a kalasag and a bangkaw on both hands. Adlay is bringing a luthang, a kind of musket, along with a kalasag of his own, and is wearing kalabaw-hide armor, although he wears a threaded abaca undershirt instead of a chain shirt.

“Wait, one last thing,” says Ang Nilapastangan. She asks for cotton-padded armor, which they apparently have. Angela sees that it is slightly bulky when Damian brings it out, but it is made of beautiful and colorful fabric. Ang Nilapastangan tells her to wear it over her anting-anting so that she is protected from most harm. She agrees, and puts it on. It’s a bit stifling, and she wonders if she was expecting it to be hotter, but it actually isn’t that bad. She puts up with it, lets it protect her.

“All right,” says Adlay. “Let’s ride.”

▼

They all get on their horses and ride away. Jaime and Adlay share a single horse, Damian follows with a smaller horse, and Angela and Ang Nilapastangan follow Jaime and Adlay back into the barangay. On both sides, Angela sees, now in clear daylight, that the fields have been ravaged and the rice left unharvested. She frowns at it. She wonders if there are any amalanhig that would have the humor of ambushing them right then and there.

As they near the barangay, from this entry point, Angela notices how abnormal the barangay actually looks. It’s too quiet, it’s too… dead. She knows how towns should look, even in places like these. There’s no bustle of people, no mooing or anything. Probably the most jarring thing is how no roosters are crowing. An impoosibility.

What’s even weirder to Angela is how it doesn’t look like it’s been ravaged or anything. It just looks like it’s… dead. Or has been sleeping for a really long time. Nothing is coming out of it, and a prickling sense of dread spider-climbs up Angela’s spine as she thinks what really has happened in the barangay. What strange sorcery has risen from the cursed earth of the town?

Thankfully, there are none. They ride into the barangay more or less safey. “We have all day to gain resources,” says Adlay, turning to Ang Nilapastangan as they slow the pace of the horses to a trot. “We’ve already assigned roles. You can go and do whatever you need to do, po. If you can bring back any useful thing that can still be used, that would be greatly useful.”

Ang Nilapastangan nods. She turns to Jaime. “Tell us where the albularyo is.”

Jaime nods. He brings the horse to a canter, and both Angela and Ang Nilapastangan follow after him. In the morning sun rays, Angela finds shadows cast upon the houses, both those that are bamboo-stilt as well as those that are bahay-na-bato. She sees shadows where there is none. She sees eyes peeking out from the gaps between doors left unclosed. She sees whispers whistling through the wind chimes that hang from some of the houses. She sees children playing under bamboo stilt houses, where the carcasses of dead pigs and chicken rot.

Jaime stops them when they come across a corpse in the middle of the road. It is unmoving, bent in unnatural angles, and stands like a black blot in the sun-bleached earth.

Ang Nilapastangan raises an eyebrow. She lifts her finger. “No,” says Jaime. “Stay back.”

“What’s he going to do?” asks Angela, but none of them answer. Jaime brings out a matchstick and lights it against one of the bamboo ladders, and then tosses the lit match to the corpse. It catches fire and it doesn’t do anything. It simply lays there, burning. A horrible stench wafts from it.

“Come on,” says Jaime, and canters his horse quickly around it so that their horses don’t have to linger and be scared. It works, for the most part. Their horses flail about when they have to come near it.

Eventually they canter out into an area that opens up again into the road. Nothing but trees on this side, however. Jaime points up the path. “Follow the path, and you’ll find a simple house. That’s where the albularyo stays.”

Ang Nilapastangan nods and thanks him. Jaime tells them to stay safe in the name of the Ninuno, and Ang Nilapastangan returns the greeting, grateful. They don’t tarry: they ride up the road and follow it.

Here, birds don’t chirp. It is an eerie silence--as if to say a silent song is the only fitting dirge for a world such as this. The wind rustles against the leaves of the trees, sending them swirling to the ground, but even that has a sad melody.

They encounter almost no further problems in the road, and Angela was half-expecting it, due to all the excitement that has happened so far. “So, Nila,” says Angela as their horses canter up the road. The silence is choking, and Angela feels too stifled. “You’re going to teach me a martial art?”

Ang Nilapastangan nods.

“Then, what kind of martial art is it? Is it like the one you’ve been doing? Dropkicks and names that appear in the air?”

Ang Nilapastangan shakes her head. “I’ll be teaching you a simple style, one that is not too hard to master but will surely help you survive whatever tribulation or trouble you’ll have to face ahead. It’s a well-rounded style, giving you ample defense and strong offense, built to adapt to any situation, whether you have a weapon or not.”

‘“What’s it called?”

“Skirmishing Kalis,” says Ang Nilapastangan. “Sometimes also known as the Skirmish-Armor Style. It’s the bedrock for many other styles. If you ever decide to learn other Martial Arts, perhaps one of the more complex ones, then Skirmishing Kalis will give you good fundamentals.”

“Huh. Thanks, Nila.” They move on a few more moments without noise, and Angela decides to fill it in again, mostly to ignore her from the growing devil-anxiety in the back of her neck. “So, you’re a Karanduun, huh? Whatever that means?”

“I’m sure Jaime has told you.” She canters a good few feet ahead of her, so Angela is unable to see her face.

“Well, yeah. Why didn’t you tell me, though?”

“There was no need to.”

“Seems like you’ve had quite an exciting life.”

Ang Nilapastangan doesn’t answer.

Angela looks for other subjects to fill the void in, but as she finds one--”why did she change her looks to a demonic visage?”--Ang Nilapastangan looks up and sees, upon a small hill surrounded by a quaint little garden of flowers and other herbs, a simple house. It’s a bamboo stilt house as well, with seemingly two large annexes, making it look like an L.

“I suppose that is the house,” says Ang Nilapastangan, and Angela can smell the hint of relief in her voice. Angela smiles at that.

“It looks like the barangay,” says Angela as they slow their horses to a trot and get off right at the base of a hill. They tie their horses to some trees. “Dead.”

“Well,” Ang Nilapastangan stares at it for a bit more. “Let’s hope not.” They trudge up the path and up to the bamboo ladder, leading to a small elevated porch. Vexingly, one thing they both notice are the corpses that lie around the area, some of them stacked on top of each other, others simply laying there, fresh and strewn. More amalanhig? wonders Angela.

Ang Nilapastangan knocks on the bamboo door.

No answer, at first.

Eyebrows furrowed, Angela looks up at Ang Nilapastangan, but she doesn’t look back. After a few seconds pass, Ang Nilapastangan knocks again. When she gets another silent response, she raises her voice.

“Hello? Is anyone in there, po?”

No answer. Angela finds it funny now, seeing Ang Nilapastangan saying “po”. She’s like a superhero, she didn’t need to say that. But Angela appreciated the politeness.

No response again, though. “We just have a few questions we need to ask, and then we’ll be off and well. We’re sorry for intruding po!”

There’s a shuffle within the house. Angela feels it--the floor of the porch is the same floor as the insides of the house, after all. After a few seconds, the door opens, just a creak, and then a voice. “What is it you need?” No head, no mouth, no person. Just a voice.

Angela was expecting an older sounding woman. She’s heard tales of albularyo back at home, even if she’s lived most of her life in the Metro. Men and women with knowledge of medicinal herbs, powerful spiritual healers that could heal some sicknesses that even doctors could not handle. Exorcizer of demons other times, and usually also good at sorcery, or whatever sorcery meant in their respective probinsyas. They were revered and depended on in communities that didn’t have clinics or healthcare, because the Philippine Government doesn’t really care for the wellbeing of its people.

So here, hearing a young girl talking is kind of jarring when Angela’s been conditioned most of her life to expect some kind of lanky old man or heaving, creaking old woman.

It seems like Ang Nilapastangan has the same thoughts, because the first thing she says is: “Hello there. Is your, ah, mother home?”

The peeking eyes pause for a bit, and then she closes the door and says. “I’m sorry, my mother is not at home right now.”

Angela looks up at Ang Nilapastangan, who crosses her arms across her chest. “Where is she? I was told that the albularyo would be here.”

“I am the albularyo,” says the little girl.

Ang Nilapastangan raises an eyebrow. “Well, okay. Great albularyo, will you tell us where your mother has gone?”

There’s another silence before she speaks again. “She’s gone into the barangay, to look for the Aswang that caused the outbreak of maranhig.”

Angela’s eyes widen and she looks up at Ang Nilapastangan. The wind turns colder. “When did she leave?”

“Just two nights ago,” the girl replies. “She’ll be back.”

Ang Nilapastangan nods. “I don’t doubt that, at least. What’s your name?”

“Samanta,” says the girl, and nothing more.

Ang Nilapastangan sighs and says, “All right then, Samanta. We’ll go into the barangay and if we can help your mother. Stay here until then, okay?”

There’s a short silence on the other side. Samata says: “Hey, if you have any albularyo services you need help with, I can probably do it. If you need it soon, at least.”

Ang Nilapastangan turns to Angela, raising an eyebrow. “Can you do a spiritual excision?”

There’s a short silence, before she says. “It will be better if you get my mother for that. I can try, but I haven’t attempted yet.”

“Then it’s best we go get your mother. We can’t afford to mess up the excision for this one.”

She’s greeted back by silence. Ang Nilapastangan simply nods. “We’ll retrun to you when we have your mother. Be safe, okay?”

“I am,” she says. Angela turns around again and looks at the corpses strewn about, haphazardly, as if some invisible god started stacking them on top of each other and gave up halfway through.

“All right then.” Ang Nilapastangan turns around and gestures for Angela and her to ride back home.

▼

“It seems she’s been fending them off on her own for a while now,” says Ang Nilapastangan as they near the entry back into the barangay. “She must have some sort of skill to manage that, at least. Or great knowledge.”

“I dunno, she sounded like one of my classmates or something.”

Ang Nilapastangan turns to her and raises an eyebrow. “And that means?”

“Like, she’s a high schooler, then.” Angela bit her tongue. “Okay you have to remember that I’m pretty stupid so what I just said is also pretty stupid.”

“I know.”

Angela frowns and pouts, but she doesn’t say anything more.

They ride into the town. The tropical sun bears down upon them, even as a cold wind refreshes them. Thankfully the cloth of their clothings is light and thin, made for climes such as this. “Now where could that albularyo have gone off to?”

“You knew her?” asks Angela.

Ang Nilapastangan nods. “Albularyo Gumamela, her name was,” she says. “She used to help me back when I was just settling in after the Hagdanan. She would treat my wounds, heal me, and offer protection. She would grant me wards that would throw off the dogs that would seek after me. She would teach me how to perfect Hiyang, Oneness with Nature. She was a great teacher, one that stuck by me through thick and thin.”

“She must mean a lot to you.”

Ang Nilapastangan nods. “She and Makabintang are the only two people I can trust. Well, were.”

Angela bites the inside of her cheek. “We’ll find her, trust me.”

Ang Nilapastangan nods. As they enter into the barangay, she gets off at a junction. To their left is a road that continues on to the plaza, but standing from here Angela can see that they’ve piled on furniture and wood to somewhat barricade the plaza off. “Huh.”

“I can see it,” Ang Nilapastangan says. “The’re blocking off the plaza.”

“Why?”

“The source, whatever it is, might be coming from there. Or there might be a large number of corpses there and they barricaded it off so that they won’t get out every night. It’s a nice thought.”

“Why don’t the amalanhig invade other barangay?” asks Angela as Ang Nilapastangan walks over to the middle of the dirt road.

“The amalanhig cannot go too far from who summoned them, if they were summoned.”

“If?”

Ang Nilapastangan nods. “Naturally born amalanhig can come up as well, but they’re rare, and usually only happens due to residue of dark sorceries or dark passions.” She sits down on her knees in the middle of the road and puts both hands on the ground.

“What… are you doing?”

Ang Nilapastangan closes her eyes, and hums a soft tune. As she does, Angela can’t help but feel like looking through Ang Nilapastangan, as if she’s vanishing, even though she knows that she’s right there.

Angela shuts up and lets Ang Nilapastangan do whatever it is she’s doing. When she exhales, there’s a subtle, silent recognition. Recognition of what? Angela isn’t quite sure.

“I can still feel her Gahum,” says Ang Nilapastangan, still in that position. “She’s somewhere here. But it’s fuzzy. Her Gahum is being blocked by something else. By some strange sorcery.”

“Gahum?” asks Angela, tilting her head to one side in confusion. “God, all these terms.”

“Gahum. You’ve probably heard us use it before already. It’s the spiritual power that emanates from within every souled being. Everything has Gahum, but mostly only mortals and immortals such as diwata and bathala have Gahum that burns through our skin. The color of our soul.” As she says that, her fingertips sizzle with a bright, searing crimson.

“That’s your Gahum?” Angela knows now, that all those displays of power when Ang Nilapastangan was enveloped in that burning crimson light, is due to her using her Gahum. Her spiritual power shining through.

Ang Nilapastangan. “The light burning through is Usbong. If it gets strong enough, strange things happen. But we shouldn’t talk about that yet.”

The travel, Angela notices, has taken them most of the day. It’s afternoon now. She’s hungry. “We should get back,” says Angela. “I’m hungry.”

Ang Nilapastangan smirks. “Take the horse and go back. I’m going to try and see what’s ove the barricade.”

Angela rubs her face. “You’re fucking crazy.”

Ang Nilapastangan doesn’t respond. She stands up, lets the burning of her Usbong fade away, and she ties her horse to a nearby bamboo post. She turns around to walk away, stops, and then goes into the house that the post she tied her horse to supported. She finds no corpse in there, and then goes out.

“I’ll be quick. Before twilight hits so that the amalanhig don’t get to Stella.”

“Stella?”

Ang Nilapastangan nods, gesturing to the horse. With that, she takes off, walking down the dirt road towards the barricade.

Angela sighs, rubbing her eyes. Somehow, she feels safer if she’s with Ang Nilapastangan. Especially knowing now that she’s some kind of superhero here.

So, with that in mind, she ties her horse next to Stella and says, “Stay here and keep quiet, okay? Uh… Donnie?”

The horse, now Donnie, neighs. She pets him once, before turning and running after Ang Nilapastangan.

Table of Contents.

#karanduun #outbreak #2.3

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blastovkatamarinecromancy · 6 years ago

Text

[OC] Chapter 4 - The Phantom Revenge Strikes Back!

And the 4th chapter of my OCs, the Mu5keteers. You can see more about them in my blog by following this link. Anyway, big shout out to my boy @theoneandonlyspudbud for being so awesome!

ENJOY!!

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*******Scene 1: school daze (I just got this pun!)********

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The ancient Bell of Atlantica Academia's famous clock tower clanged loudly in a melodious tune, signaling the end of classes for the day. Soon afterward, a throng of students filled the quad, as some made their way toward their extracurricular clubs. Others hurried outside to spend the rest of their afternoon in the city before either returning home, or getting back to their dorms before curfew.

Among them, Lance and Bob walked leisurely through the quad.

"Maaaaan" Lance yawned, stretching his arms "you wanna hit the city? I don't want to hang out here much longer..."

"You're trying to avoid her, aren't you?" Bob smiled slyly

"Ugh! You would, too, if you were me! Every single day, I hear that annoying shrill voice-"

"Yoooohoooo! O Sir Laaaance!!" The annoying shrill voice rang out behind the two, sending shivers down Lance's spine. Lance begrudgingly turned toward the voice.

"Hi, Zilvana..." Lance sighed as he addressed the smiling Fencing club captain. Her coiling long blonde hair gleamed in the afternoon sun as a single streak of pink hair playfully curled in front of her face.

"Oh I am ever so glad to have ran into you" Zilvana tried to speak casually, failing to hide her shortness of breath "but drat it all, I must be off to attend my club duties!"

"Hmmm, yes..." Replied Lance curtly, seeing a variation of this scene replaying for almost every day since the school year started "...well, I don't want to keep y-"

"I know!" Interrupted Zilvana awkwardly, her face blushing red "how about you accompany me there? We c-can talk...um..and th-then maybe you'd consider sparring for a bit, y'know, up to you whatev."

"For the last time, Zilvana" Lance sighed irritatingly "thanks, but no, thanks! I don't want to join the fencing club. Period!"

"But why not?!" Zilvana asked in frustration, stomping her foot on the ground "is it because of what happened on Orientation Day?! I already apologized to you two about that!! And also..."

Zilvana looked around cautiously at the nearly empty quad before whispering "...I kept 'Bob's' identity a secret, just like I promised!"

"It's got nothing to do with that!" Lance irritatingly replied. "It's just...ugh...how do I put this-"

"WHY DON'T YOU JUST SAY IT ALREADY?!" Zilvana shouted suddenly with her head down, shocking Lance and Bob. They looked toward her as she slowly raised her head, tears streaming down her puffy red cheeks.

"...you just don't like me, do you?" Zilvana blurted as she wiped her tears ineffectively with her hands and sleeves "no matter what I do, you'll always hate me!"

"N-no, that's not it" stuttered Lance, trying to avoid Bob's accusatory glance while reaching out an uncertain hand toward the crying third-year student "...Zilva-"

Suddenly, Lance felt a playful pounce onto his left shoulder as a slender arm wrapped around his left arm, and soft fingers casually grasping his own.

"Aww, you heartbreaker. You made another girl cry! How mean~"

"Yu-Yukio?!" Lance was startled by the sudden entrance of the former Motorcycle Bandit, of the now-defunct Wheely Rad Bandit team/family. She wore Atlantica Academia's uniform with the plaid skirt and long black stockings. The notches on the shoulder decorations of her jacket identifies her as a second-year student.

"Aww, you do remember me!" Yukio smiled, gently caressing the arm of the blushing Lance "I guess our kiss made an impression on you~"

"Ki-KISS?!!" Bob and Zilvana shouted in unison, before looking at each other for a second and glancing away in embarrassment, their cheeks burning red.

"Haha!" Teased Yukio "y'all Jealous?"

Yukio's satisfied smile quickly changed when a bike helmet lightly smacked her over the head. She rubbed the top of her head, letting go of Lance and looking toward her attacker.

"Owie! What the heck, Randy?!" She groaned at her brother, who was wearing a one-piece biking suit, while walking beside a red ten-speed bike.

"Quit teasing the kid, dum-dum" Randy scolded "you just stole a peck on his cheek when he wasn't looking. What are ya, his Grandma?!"

"Wow! I didn't know you two went to school here!" Lance exclaimed, trying to change the subject and avoiding the glares of Bob and Zilvana.

"Hey there, Lance!" Randy beamed an earnest smile, that's missing a few front teeth "well, she is, but I ain't. My street smarts ain't good enough to get me enrolled here. Not like mah smarty-pants sister!"

"Aw it's a darn shame, Randy!" Yukio pouted "I would've liked if we went to the same school together..."

"Now now, sis..." Randy patted Yukio's head affectionately "ain't no use hitching yer wagon to a derailed train like me. You're gonna do great things, kid! Yer the only one who can keep up with Pop when he gets all science-y on ya." Randy then turned toward Lance and the others, bragging while beaming with pride "did y'all know Yuki got'erself a full scholarship, on account of her engineering smarts?!"

Lance opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a shrill bird noise blaring from his SmartBand. His brows knit as his face took on a serious expression. He whipped the SmartBand in front of him, with the HoloOrb facing upward.

"Lance, here" he spoke clearly toward the blinking HoloOrb, which immediately glowed and a rectangular HoloScreen floated in the air at eye-level. "What's going on, Feiroz?"

The former Leader of the Love Maidens furrowed her thick eyebrows "Lancelot! We have a situation at a construction site downtown, near 4th and Bradley Street! Details are sketchy, but it looks like a Challenger Team. The rest of the team are en route, proceed with caution!"

"Understood!" The HoloScreen flickered off, while Lance took off his backpack hastily.

"Lancelot?!" Snorted Bob derisively

"You shouldn't make fun of other people's names, 'BOB'!" Lance said defensively, throwing his backpack toward his dorm mate "can you please take this back to our room with you? Sorry, but I gotta go, guys!"

He then sprinted toward the general direction of downtown, bringing the SmartBand closer to his mouth as he yelled into its microphone.

"ONE FOR ALL..."

Holographic spikes of ice sprawled across his body, covering him whole in an unintentionally comical running ice cocoon, before shattering completely as he emerged fully clothed in his Ice Musketeer outfit.

"...AND ALL FOR VICTORY!"

The Ice Musketeer switched from sprinting to summoning a patch of ice that appear slightly in front of him, allowing him to slide endlessly if he wishes it. He used his cryokinetic Psy-Q ability once more to create a huge ice ramp to clear the school main building in a single leap, accompanied by the thrilled cheers of the students watching in the quad.

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********Scene 2: Demolition ZOOne***********

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"RRRAAAGH"

A primal roar emerged from a hulking figure in the strange black outfit with a slight owl motif. Her fists curled up inside the unusual gauntlets she wore that resemble giant wrecking balls. She punched another steel beam in the almost empty construction zone with her massive fists, completely bending it out of shape and nearly tearing it out of the ground where it was firmly rooted in the foundations.

"GRAHAHAHAHA! Ja almust gutt it, Sally" a thick Scandinavian accent bellowed from behind the muscular woman, which belonged to a big-bellied, half-naked, bearded man.

"What's it to ya, Bull Dozer?" Growled Sally, flipping her neon-purple hair that's jutting out of the modified boxing headgear she wore.

"Isa nice puunch but iv ja vanna do some real damage..." Bull Dozer boasted, a strange mechanism on his back lifted his massive shoulder pads and locked them firmly in place on top of the long bullhorns attached to his hardhat. He turned toward another steel beam and knelt down, aiming the gigantic shovel-like contraption on his head. "...joo call da Bull!"

Bull Dozer's massive mechanical boots hummed softly as their light-up display glowed red, just before he thrusted his massive body with astonishing speed! He kept his head low as his tree trunk-like legs propelled him ever closer toward his helpless target. The impact was undoubtfully devastating, the steel beam completely got torn from its foundation and was sent flying to the far side of the construction zone.

"Gahahahaha! JA! I am de 'Epic', ja?" Rojoiced Bull Dozer triumphantly, patting the dirt from his thick fur loincloth.

"Bah!" Spat sally disgustingly "all you did was send it flying away. What if that was an opponent and they landed safely on their feet?"

She turned back toward the bent steel beam she punched earlier and expertly took an orthodox boxing stance. Her blue eyes grew colder as she stared down the steel beam.

"It's easy to destroy the weak." She unleashed a flurry of jabs at the steel beam, bending it in different directions with each punch.

"But it's so much fun to play with someone strong. Someone who's almost at your level, who thinks they can beat you." Her eyes lit up with chilling bloodlust as she switched up her stance and delivered explosive right-left hook combos, causing the steel beam to bend and twist in uncanny angles.

"And then mercilessly maul them in the ring" her relentless barrage became even more savage, the steel beam is practically putty between her fists! "Destroy every shred of hope, every iota of self-confidence, watch their very essence drip away with every punch that pulverizes their pretty little face..."

Suddenly, Sally stopped her murderous assault and smugly sneered at the steel beam as it stood twisted beyond recognition for a few scant seconds, before collapsing sadly to the ground.

"...and then watch them wither away right before your eyes." Sally flashed a sadistic grin as she looked at her handiwork with a perverse sense of pleasure.

"...I-I uh joost leik rooning into things and watch them fly off rully far..."

"Pathetic" snorted Sally in disappointed disgust.

"Quit yer belly-achin' and get ta smashin'!!" Growled a hairy, hunchbacked man carrying a gigantic wrench that's almost as tall as he is.

"You're sure this will get their attention, Seamus?" Asked Sally.

"Dun ya worry none, Wrecking B-owl. Nuthin' attracts a super-team more'n property damage-"

The rest of Seamus's words were drowned out by the deafening sounds of an erratic locomotive a few feet away from them. They both turned toward the source to find a thin tall girl hopping on one prosthetic peg leg, while the tip of her other peg leg extended and retracted rapidly like a mini jackhammer.

"Umm...Mr. Chang, sir?" Meekly implored the girl with the mostly shaved head, a tuft of blonde hair with red highlights just above her forehead shook violently with the vibrations from her malfunctioning leg "it's happening again..."

"Aw, fer Christ sake, Jackie..." Seamus Chang slid a hidden knob on his gigantic monkey wrench while making his way closer to the frightened girl. The side of his wrench opened up like a Swiss army knife, revealing an assortment of tools. He grasped the Phillips head screwdriver and pulled it out along with a long retractable cable attached to the end of it. Then he grabbed the erratically shaking peg leg under his arm in an attempt to stabilize it while using the screwdriver to navigate its circuitry.

"I tol' ya ta be careful with the controls, lass. These things are very sensitive." Seamus grumbled, finally able to shut off the incessant hammering. He tugged slightly on the screwdriver, and the retractable cable dragged it back into its compartment.

"S-sorry, Mr. Chang..." Jackie answered pensively.

Seamus's features softened as he extended a giant hairy hand, stroking her cheek reassuringly "Ah, it's all right, lass, it's what I'm here for. Are ya ready fer action, Jackrabbit Hammer?"

Jackie smiled enthusiastically at the mention of her superhero name and she replied confidently "You know it, Monkey Wrench!"

With a click of a button on the built-in controls in her gauntlets, the jackhammer tips of her peg legs were replaced with two powerful springs. She took a few practice hops, reaching higher and higher with each leap, before crouching low upon landing with her third hop and shooting up three stories into the air!! She pressed the buttons again at the acme of her ascent, switching back to the jackhammer tips upon her descent toward a pile of stacked cinderblocks. The thunderous impact tore through the blocks faster than a greased up hamster shooting out of a potato gun, while Jackrabbit Hammer maniacally laughed in satisfaction.

"I'm all for destroying private property of those capitalist tower tycoons" Sally sighed "but I don't know if clearing out the area was a good idea. They may have gotten here sooner if we had a few hostages-"

A whizzing whistle ripped through the air, forcing the weirdly-garbed vandals to look upward to the source of the sound. Only to be met with a good-sized ball of fire whose size keeps getting gooder and gooder with each passing second.

"Look out!!" Monkey Wrench shouted as he leapt backward to avoid the fireball, which exploded threateningly in the empty space between the criminals.

"First contact!!" Panted the low-flying Fire Musketeer "I win!!"

"Tristan, you flying butt!" Priya slid from a nearby street light and onto a stack of steel pipes with the aid of the electromagnetic soles on her boots, acting like a miniaturized maglev train. "Throwing stuff doesn't qualify as 'first contact', you dork! I was way ahead of you!"

"Be that as it may-" Tristan rebuttal was interrupted by the sloshing sound of an oily projectile that hit its target with a satisfying SPLAT. Tristan looked down at his clogged up boots, then at Monkey Wrench holding what used to be his namesake and now is a weird-looking greaseball shooting catapult, and finally looking down at the rapidly approaching ground. It all happened within the span of one second, which is why he didn't even have a chance to yell for help.

Fortunately, help was already on its way in the form of leafy vines forming a soft intertwined ball to cushion Tristan's unscheduled landing.

"Phew!" Sighed Tristan in relief, turning toward the Green Musketeer with gratitude "thanks for the save, Blossom!"

"Any time, fearless leader." Smirked Blossom, riding on a throng of sturdy green vines.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Lad!" Monkey Wrench pressed another hidden lever on the catapult, returning it to its original wrench form. "Was I supposed ta wait fer ya ta finish yer squabblin'? Too bad the Demolition ZOOne ain't so accommodating ta yer domestic nonsense. How's about you concede yer sanction to us, and we'll let ya be?"

"Blossom, watch out!" Priya shouted to warn the Green Musketeer of the 400 pounds of Scandinavian fury barreling down toward the redhead. Blossom used her Botankinesis to manipulate the vines, vaulting her into the air and over the head of the charging Bull Dozer; who crashed into the cluster of vines as they were tightening around him while Blossom landed gracefully behind him.

Priya was so captivated by Blossom's performance, that she barely noticed the huge fist charging ominously toward her face. Fortunately, the Lightning Musketeer anticipated it with cat-like senses and dodged it with even cat-ier reflexes!

"VANDERLUSS!" A chilling scream echoed through the construction site/warzone as Wrecking B-owl stared at Priya with menacing glee.

"S-Sally?!" Priya flustered "didn't recognize you in that outfit...they say black is slimming, but you're still as massive as ever..."

"YES!" Sally snarled, grabbing a steel beam and lifting it like a gigantic baseball club "spout your boastful quips! Your bravado will make your crushing defeat all the sweeter!"

Wrecking B-owl swung the steel beam in a sweeping wide arc, barely missing the ducking Tristan who was fighting the strangely agile Monkey Wrench.

"Ach! Watch where ya swingin' that thing, ya daft-EEEEEE!!" Screeched Monkey Wrench as he narrowly dodged Sally's second swing.

"I got'em, Mr. Chang!!" A cheerful shriek arose from Jackrabbit Hammer as her peg legs sprouted springs to enable her to swiftly cross the construction site in three long leaps.

Just as she was about to land the third leap, a sheet of ice formed underneath her projected landing spot. The slippery ice robbed the teenage dynamo of her equilibrium, causing her to slip and fall comically on her face.

"I got her!" Proclaimed Lance, approaching the fallen rabbit to deliver the not-really-final-but-still-quite-incapacitating-and-involves-an-ice-prison blow. But before he could even form a single icicle, Jackrabbit sprang to her feet with an impressive somersault launching over Lance's head. She switched her peg legs' configuration to the mini-jackhammers in mid-jump, crushing the icy ground as she landed. With a flick of the built-in controls in her gloves' palms, the motors on her legs came to life with a terrifying roar! She lunged at Lance, delivering a spinning flurry of kicks and somersaults in the direction of the retreating Musketeer.

"Uhhhh, I DON'T GOT HER!" Lance yelled panicking as a high-kick knocked his rapier from his hand and lightly grazed his cheek.

"LANCE!" Cried out Blossom, inadvertently loosening her Botankinetic control over the vines ensnaring Bull Dozer. The energetic Scandinavian took the chance to wiggle his way out of his leafy prison.

"Guahahaha! Worry about yooself, gurl!" Bull Dozer snapped the vines like a stick of slimjim! His mechanical boots glowed red with a menacing hum before he charged toward the distracted Blossom. Suddenly, a heavy figure crashed from the sky between Blossom and the charging Bull!

"Looks like I'm just in time for the rodeo!" The Love Musketeer girded himself for the ensuing impact, as the two giants collided violently "Blossom, go help the kid!"

"Thanks, Lee!" Blossom yelled back, allowing a cluster of sturdy vines to carry her rapidly toward the struggling Ice Musketeer and away from the brawling titans.

Nearby, the battle between Priya and her hulking rival still rages on, the Lightning Musketeer staying on the defensive as she dodges Wrecking B-owl's wild swings.

"You can't Rope-a-dope me, Vanderluss" snarled Sally ecstatically "I can do this all day! On the other hand, you're looking a bit sluggish!"

Sally swung the massive girder in a vicious low arc, sending the gravel and dust bellowing upward. When the dust settled (literally), Sally was surprised to find that Priya was nowhere to be seen!

"Up here!" Sally turned her head to see Priya perching atop the far end of the girder, the soles of her Tesla Boots stuck on the metal surface like magnets.

"I wasn't trying to tire you out" Priya smirked as she used her Fulgurkinesis to gather the static electricity in the air toward the coils on her Tesla Gauntlets, which channeled the electric current throughout its conductive lining. "I was just learning the timing of your swings so I can do ...THIS!"

Priya thrusted her left hand on the girder, sending a massive electric shock toward the unsuspecting Sally. The gigantic brute let out a short yelp as she dropped one end of the girder onto the ground, which was more a reaction of surprise than a response to pain. Priya, still magnetized to the fallen girder, took advantage of Sally's brief opening to build up the charge in her right hand, which ended up becoming almost twice as powerful as the one she unleashed from her left hand just now.

She then used her Psy-Q ability to build up a magnetic charge on the soles of her feet to do something slightly different. Priya always used the magnetic capability of her Tesla Boots like a maglev train, allowing her to simply hover and slide over most metallic objects. Now, she's building up opposite magnetic charges around the girder and herself, her Tesla Boots lighting up like a Christmas tree.

Like a flash of lightning, Priya shot up the length of the metal girder toward the unsuspecting Wrecking B-owl, who was still holding up the girder with both hands. Priya's right fist clenched low as she aimed it at Sally's face to deliver a...

"Railgun Uppercut!!"

Her fist exploded into Sally's unprotected jaw in a fury of sparks! Sally's whole body lit up with electricity as it went stiff, she then immediately fell flat on her back.

"You always did have a glass jaw..." Mumbled Priya as she rubbed her bruised knuckles.

"HA!" Heckled Tristan, as he dodged another wide swing from Monkey Wrench's monkey wrench “I thought you were too embarrassed to do attack names!"

"It was embarrassing when you said it, nerd." Priya materialized a pair of handcuffs from her SmartBand's custom teleportation app, and used them to restrain the unconscious black-clad behemoth. "When I name them, they're awesome!"

"Just keep yappin' yer fool mouth" grunted Seamus "it's anglin' for a good smackin'"

Suddenly, an 8-bit rendition of William Tell's overture blared from Tristan's SmartBand, before a holo-screen floated from the glowing HoloOrb.

"Now's not a good time, Sarah!" Cried Tristan, ducking another close swing before Priya stepped in to divert his attacker's attention.

"Well, make time!" Sarah replied impatiently "you have to get everybody out of there! The area's not safe."

Tristan somersaulted over the charging Monkey Wrench, letting Priya press on her attack, and answered Sarah as he tumbled on the ground "what do you mean it's not safe?"

"I had Theresa run a topographical and spectrographic scan of the area" Sarah leaned slightly off to the side to reveal the smiling former Love Maiden beside her on the neighboring dispatch console "and we found that the construction crew didn't dig deep enough for their foundations! There is an underground air pocket approximately 200 meters below the surface, which does not correspond to any subway or sewer tunnels"

At that moment, Tristan glanced around to account for his teammates and their opponents. The Lightning Musketeer was keeping Monkey Wrench occupied. The Love Musketeer was locking arms with Bull Dozer, neither of them budging an inch. And finally, the Green and the Ice Musketeers were fighting off Jackrabbit Hammer, who launched herself into the air, only to dive feet first into Lance with her mini-jackhammer peg legs chugging away madly.

Lance deftly dodged her attack as she sank into the soft ground that he occupied seconds ago.

"Haha! You're good, little flea!" Chuckled Jackie trying to free her peg legs from the gravely surface, only to be surprised when the ground sucked her in further! "Wa-Whoah!"

"Oh no!" Tristan shouted in panic, both members of the Mu5keteers and Demolition Zoone alike watched in fear as the ground around Jackie crumbled and the sinkhole kept getting wider and deeper.

"JACKIE!" Shouted Monkey Wrench, ignoring his fight with Priya.

"BLOSSOOOOOM!!" Yelled Priya, panicking as she saw Blossom stumble into the sinkhole while trying to rescue her opponent!

"LANCE!" Tristan cried out, running in his gunked-up boots toward his brother who struggled to hold up the weight of the two girls, before the ground crumbled underneath them.

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************Scene 3: Down the Hatch!********

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All members of both teams still above ground (and conscious) rushed toward the edge of the sinkhole-

"STOP!"

Blossom's voice bellowed from below, causing everyone to tense up and slowly look into the abyss anxiously.

"Blossom..." Priya dried her tears, looking toward Blossom while feeling partially relieved. "...you're ok..."

"Not ...ungh... for long" Lance replied, his back pressed against the wall of the hole, as his feet are firmly planted on one of Blossom's vines portruding horizontally a considerable distance down the dark chasm.

"Lance is right, this hole could collapse at any second" she was nestled gently in an outcropping of vines as she was cradling an unconscious Jackrabbit Hammer in her arms.

"Dammit! My boots are too gunked up to fly down there to you guys!" Yelled back Tristan in frustration.

"M-my girl...how is Jackie?" Seamus trembled as he inched closer to the edge to look at his teammate with a terribly worried expression. "...please tell me she's all right...?"

Blossom gave him the most reassuring smile she can offer given the circumstances as she said "It's Mr. Chang, right? Well, she's still breathing, but I think she's concussed from one of the fallen rocks hitting her in the head. We need to get her medical attention immediately!"

"Well -unghhh- we can't have her shimmy up the wall" Lance winced "I'm doing all I can just to keep this -urrgghh- hole from collapsing on us any further."

Blossom glanced up at the partially frozen, muddy wall, as she fumbled with the controls on Jackie's gauntlets. Blossom pressed the button that she saw Jackie press earlier which retracted the jackhammer tips of the unconscious girl's peg legs and produced the industrial-strength springs she used to hop around.

"Tristan!" Shouted Blossom standing up with the comatose Jackie, getting the girl up on her springy legs and angling her body carefully "I'm going to make her hop up to you guys-"

"WAIT" Tristan shouted back "don't let her hop straight up, she needs to be launched at an..." Tristan paused, his lips moving soundlessly as he did the math in his head "...82 degrees angle- just lean forward a b- no, that's too far- yes, perfec-"

"NO, ya rube!" Seamus interrupted gruffly, trying to hide the tears in his eyes "ya need to account for wind resistance, lean her back a bit more! I'll catch her...please..."

"Ok, Mr. Chang, sir." Blossom smiled sweetly, obliging Seamus's instructions.

"Ungghh, Blossom?" Inquired Lance, straining against the steadily collapsing wall.

"Yes, sweetie?" Replied Blossom casually, readying Jackie's limp body for its flight.

"Your vines, rather -urghh- this wall, can't support the recoil from launching her up in the air. You do know that, right?"

"We don't have any other choice" Blossom answered resolutely "she needs to be looked after right away."

"I think I heard some of these -unghh- fallen rocks hit water down there. If we fall, actually when we fall..."

"Yes, I heard them, too."

Lance looked at Blossom with determination "...do you trust me?"

"Always."

Blossom smiled as she made the springs on Jackie's legs coil tightly, before they unfurled upward, launching Jackie's unconscious body at the agreed upon angle into the arms of the relieved Seamus. As predicted, the recoil from the jump tore the vines viciously from its roots on the wall, bringing a good chunk of half frozen earth tumbling down.

In the mess of tangled leaves, clay, and ice, the two Musketeers were free-falling down toward the abyss. Lance dove quickly like a bird of prey toward the fallen Blossom. He embraced her tightly as they fell into the nearly-bottomless pit!

"LANCE!!"

"BLOSSOOOoOM!!"

The cries of the panicked Musketeers aboveground barely reached their two fallen comrades as the hole started expanding and collapsing in on itself.

"Hold your horses!" Leopold yelled anxiously, firmly restraining his two friends from getting closer to the dangerous abyss "you'll fall in, too!"

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*************Scene 4: The Hole***************

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"Ok, Blossom" Lance was closing his eyes in deep concentration, letting his Cryokinesis reach the mystery body of water far below- hopefully faster than their bodies would physically reach it "Get ready..."

Lance somersaulted in mid-air with Blossom in tow, making himself stand upright while princess-carrying the Green Musketeer. Suddenly, a spiral of ice sprang from the dark depth of the pit, connecting perfectly with Lance's feet.

"...hold on tight!" Blossom obliged, grasping her arms around his neck closely. Lance's eyes glowed a faint blue as they widened in gleeful terror. The downward spiral they were sliding on gradually slowed down their insanely fast descent. After several dozen spirals, they were finally at a leisurely speed where they gently skidded to a peaceful stop, barely causing the water at their feet to ripple upon their intrusion.

Nonetheless, the tension and strain from this harrowing ordeal brought Lance to his knees as he groaned with exhaustion and relief. Blossom, who landed gracefully on her feet, knelt down beside Lance while tenderly caressing his cheek.

"You did it, champ!" Blossom said affectionately.

"Y-yeah..." Lance mumbled, his cheeks blushing, as he gently patted her hand away. He stood up and looked up at the far dim light up above. "...we're a long way down..."

A distant creaking sound emanated from the ceiling, just before a handful of dirt floated down to the waters below.

"It's not safe to stand here" Blossom commented, using the Lantern App on her SmartBand to look around.

Lance wiped some of the fallen dirt off his hat, only to halt his hand while touching the blue feather adorning it. He took off his hat to have a closer look.

"Blossom?"

"Yes, sweetie?"

"There's an air current here, see?" He pointed the feather gently wafting to a faint breeze "there must be another exit somewhere..."

"KZZzzshhhtt..you guys-kzzhhtt-ear me?"

The garbled voice emanating from the glowing HoloOrbs on their SmartBands startled the two Musketeers. Blossom hurriedly answered back "Tristan? Is that you?!"

"BLO-Kzzsshhhtt-ooomm!! Ar-krsssshhhh-ou Okay?!"

Blossom sighed upon hearing Priya's panicked voice "Calm down, Pri! We're all right."

"But this hole does not look safe" added Lance grimly "it could collapse at any minute. We can't risk climbing out the way we came. We have to find another way out..."

"Where wo-krrssshhtt-ind another-rsshhkkzz-ay out?!"

"Leopold, there's a faint breeze in this tunnel coming from the opposite direction of the hole" Blossom replied "we're bound to find another way out if we follow it."

"NO! It-skkshhhh-dangerous! W-whoaa-ksshhhhhSZZZzz!"

"Tristan? You ok, bro?" Lance asked worriedly. He was alerted to the noise up from the ceiling as Blossom dragged him out of the way of more falling debris.

In a few seconds, the shaft they occupied earlier was completely blocked up with mud and rocks, as the two Musketeers caught their breath in a nearby tunnel.

"Well..." Blossom cleared her throat as she stood up straight and looked toward the far end of the tunnel with the aid of her SmartBand's lantern App. "I guess we better mosey on, yeah?"

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**********Scene 5: The Underworld**********

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The two colourful figures roamed uncertainly through the drab and damp structures underground. The cavernous and drafty path they were walking through is not really a tunnel so much as a geometrical nightmare of collapsed buildings and concrete structures.

Lance managed to stammer an inquisitive "wh-what are those buildings?"

Blossom did not break her stride as she replied "there were many floods during the Apocalypse, many of which were strong enough to destroy numerous coastal cities lining the Atlantic."

Blossom then touched the HoloOrb on her SmartBand which caused the Lantern App's light to condense into a spotlight. The focused beam of light swiveled between the different monuments and mangled street signs, all of them belonging to various countries that bordered the Atlantic Ocean.

"The debris from across the world..." Blossom continued solemnly “...the tides pulled all of those broken pieces into the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. When the Arachnae landed on Earth over a thousand years ago, they decided to build Atlantica city on top of the wreckage."

"That doesn't sound very safe..." Chimed in Lance, while looking around in the dark.

"It wasn't..." smiled Blossom "...sinkholes like the one we fell through were quite common in the early days of building the city. But eventually, they were able to stabilize the foundation to a reliable degree."

"Wow" said Lance "you sure know a lot about this stuff..."

Blossom sighed and replied "...it's kinda hard to ignore history..." She turned her spotlight toward a fallen skyscraper that may have once been a grand hotel. The light shone brightly on the mostly rusted sign with the Stylized 'E' in the logo of the 'Everglades Towers' emblazoned on it "...especially when your name keeps popping up whenever there's mentions of corruption, greed, and total disregard for basic human decency..."

"Blossom..." Lance reached out a hesitant hand towards his teammate's shoulder, only to freeze midway as his eyes see a peculiar movement "...we're not alone here..."

The ominous words hung heavily in the air between them as they both became keenly aware of a distorted space just hovering in front of the stylized 'E' on the rusted sign in front of them.

"Oh no..." Lance muttered fearfully, slowly unleashing his rapier "...not this guy again"

An impossibly white hand burst from the distorted space. The rest of the pale body followed through the distortion and floated eerily in front of them.

"So..." Blossom stood defiant and upright, taking a measure of the apparition "...that's the Phantom Musketeer?"

To say that the Phantom was glowing would be inaccurate, its body simply did not allow for a single shadow to lay its dark tendrils upon its pale form. Even in the dark depths of the underworld, the white ghostly figure was clearly visible.

Blossom took out her wooden rapier from its sheath and said "... I thought it'd be taller."

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*****Scene 6: The Menacing Phantom******

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Lights from the Musketeers' HoloOrbs danced wildly in the dank underground, accompanied by the distorted clangs of metal-and-wood-on-warped-dark-matter. Blossom and Lance tried to surround the Phantom, flanking it from both sides, but it was more than capable of warding them off - even overpowering them a little. The Green Musketeer took advantage of a slim opening to deliver a deadly thrust, but it was anticipated by the ghostly figure as it evaded it deftly before bringing its blackened blade down on the leafy rapier. Blossom rapier's blade broke off cleanly in the attack and she stumbled to the ground due to her unspent momentum.

"BLOSSOM!!" Lance screamed in a panic, a thick wall of ice erected itself between Blossom and their attacker.

"Lance, no!" Blossom shouted after her young friend, a twinge of anger and frustration laced her words. From beyond the wall, she can hear the distorted sounds of swords clashing and the desperate grunts from Lance.

She reached for a grenade pellet from one of the pouches of her belt, which was a bigger version of the pellets that she normally shoots from her sword's firing mechanism hidden in the hilt. She threw the grenade onto the ground, shattering it upon impact, prompting a rapidly growing cluster of huge vines! Each one was as thick as a tree trunk.

"Dammit, boy..." Blossom muttered to herself, her angry eyes smouldered with a faint green glow, as she directed the leafy tendrils with her hands to demolish the icy wall! Lance stared in awe as the vines continued their undaunting charge by slamming the Phantom and carrying it along several feet into the air, before smashing into the ruins of a toppled skyscraper.

"Whoah..." Lance exclaimed before being jerked to his feet as Blossom grabbed him roughly by the collar "B-Blossom...?!!"

"What the hell was that?!" Blossom's brow knit angrily as she spat out those words "that was stupid and reckless!"

"I-I just..." Lance stumbled on his words trying to avoid Blossom's enraged stare "...I was just keeping a p-promise..."

"A PROMISE?!" Blossom suddenly released Lance's collar from her grip, causing him to stumble and fall on his butt "what kind of promise makes you risk your life like that...and for what?! You think it's your job to rescue me or something?"

"B-Blossom" Lance stuttered nervously, slowly getting up and patting the dirt from his outfit "that's not what-"

"I don't need to be rescued!" Blossom interrupted forcefully "I know what you're doing! You're trying to be like him, but you can't! Stop trying to copy Armand, you'll never be like him-"

Blossom stopped herself in mid-sentence, her angered expression quickly changed to one of guilt and regret.

"Oh no...Lance...I didn't mean... I-I'm sorry" Blossom covered her face, backing away slowly, before turning around and running down one of the tunnels at full speed.

"Blossom! Wait!" Lance hastily ran after her.

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***********Scene 7: Big shoes to fill***********

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A pair of green boots stamped through ankle-deep waters covering the darkened tunnels through the underground ruins. Followed closely by a similar pair of blue boots of someone much shorter.

"Blossom" Lance panted behind the Green Musketeer, who was sprinting a few feet in front of him "w-wait up...huff..."

Blossom ignored him as she ran ahead, which prompted Lance to call out to her apologetically "look, I'm sorry! I don't know what I did that upset you...huff puff...so much...but I'm sorry!"

Blossom reached the end of the tunnel that opened up toward a wide open cavern where pipes and various tunnels protruded from all over the concrete and steel makeshift walls, spilling their liquid content in the center where a huge pool of water-like substance sort of rested at the bottom.

Noticing the precipitous drop, Blossom turned around toward the rushing Lance. As he got closer, Lance noticed Blossom's watery red eyes that looked toward him with great sorrow and shame.

"Lance, I-" her words were drowned out by a creaking sound from below her feet, as the ground groaned under her weight and finally gave out with an awful shrieking noise, dragging Blossom downward and out of Lance's sight.

"BLOSSOM!" Lance's panicked shout almost rivaled the cacophonous sounds of the fallen debris, as he sped toward the edge to look for his teammate.

"Stay back!" Blossom called out, hanging on to a protruding pipe with one hand, while her other arm dangled limply by her side.

"What's wrong with your arm?" Lance climbed carefully down the side of the cliff toward Blossom.

"I-I think it got dislocated when I fell. I can't pull myself up..." Blossom winced in pain "I told you to stay back! You'll fall, too"

"No, I won't" Lance's boots froze to the side of the cliff "I told you, I made a promise-"

Blossom's eyes widened in rage as she interrupted him "What kind of promise forces you to risk your life like an idiot?!"

In her outburst, the damp pipe in her hand started to slip away and she lost her grip on it. Lance shot his hand toward hers and grasped her arm firmly.

"The promise I made..." Lance strained as he held on to Blossom's arm “...is the same one you made! I made this promise to you, to Tristan, to Priya and Leopold!! I MADE A PROMISE TO ANYONE IN DANGER!"

"L-Lance...?"

"One for All..." Lance grunted, every muscle in his body tensed and coiled desperately "...AND ALL FOR VICTORRRRRYYY!!"

Lance used every ounce of his strength to pull Blossom to safety, the ice on his boots becoming thicker and spike-ier. With the Green Musketeer sitting safely in the half-collapsed tunnel, Lance slowly melted the ice anchoring him the Cliffside before pulling himself up as well. They both sat in the relative horizontal safety of the tunnel as they panted from relief and exertion.

Eventually, Lance broke the silence, looking at Blossom wistfully "I know I'll never be Armand...he's...he's someone I look up to and respect a whole lot... His are big shoes to fill..."

"...Lance..."

"But I don't want to wear his shoes! I am my own Mu5keteer! I will proudly walk in his footsteps, but at my own pace..."

"Heh..." Blossom managed to smile bitterly "you think you could squeeze in a few more walking metaphors in there?"

"Ha...I guess I've been thinking about it a lot...metaphors help me put painful things in perspective..."

"Hey, speaking of pain..." Blossom grabbed her limp arm with her functioning one, and with one sharp motion she shoved her arm back in its socket. Her shrill scream of pain lasted all of two seconds, but it packed so much agony in it.

"Oh Lord!" Lance exclaimed in shock, drawing closer toward the wincing Blossom "are you ok?!"

"M'fine..." Whimpered Blossom sheepishly, while ineffectually rubbing her recently un-dislocated shoulder.

"Kzzssshht~an you hear me~shhzzztt"

Lance and Blossom perked up upon hearing the familiar, yet static-laden, voice of Tristan coming through their SmartBands. They quickly raised the HoloOrb closer in order to hear the garbled words more clearly.

"Tristan!" Lance exclaimed "we must be close to the surface."

Blossom craned her head to look up at the ceiling of the cavern where they almost fell earlier. The ceiling was a tangled mess of girders and concrete that - just barely - allowed a dim light to trickle in from above.

"I have an idea." Smiled Blossom as she fiddled with the capsule-shooter at the hilt of her broken rapier, selecting a specific capsule containing one of her patented mutated Edan plant strains. She then aimed the firing mechanism downward toward the pool of liquid and fired of a capsule.

"I hope that's mostly water down there..."

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**************Scene 8: Rosethorn*************

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Lance and Blossom watched as a single, thick vine rose steadily from the waters below, thanks to Blossom's Psy-Q ability of Botankinesis. The Green Musketeer concentrated on the mutated plant below, her eyes glowing a faint emerald hue.

"Ok, get on" Blossom said as the top of the vine made its way closer to their perch on the cliff's side. It then curled up, accommodating a mostly flat surface for the two Musketeers to stand on safely.

"Now, just like what we did with the Big Bandit a few months ago" Blossom turned her head toward Lance and smiled gently "I need you to slightly freeze the water in the vine, and use your powers to stabilize it for me."

Blossom then lifted her hands dramatically, in an effort to gather concentration for her powers "I'll focus on directing it upward."

"Aye aye, cap'n!" Lance cheerfully answered as he lifted his head up toward the dim light, his eyes glowing a soft blue. Alas, his happy-go-lucky demeanor evaporated once he spotted an uncomfortably familiar ripple in the space just above them.

"Uhh...Blossom..." Lance whispered nervously, a primal fear response urging him to flee just as pure determination roots him steadfastly on the leafy green platform.

"I see it" Blossom pulled out her broken rapier from its sheath and stopped the plant from rising any further "whatever happens, I need you to keep this platform stabilized. I will deal with the Phantom."

"But, you don't -"

"Listen, before we fell in, you asked me if I trusted you." Blossom interrupted resolutely, taking her eyes off of the slowly emerging Phantom Musketeer and smiled at Lance reassuringly "now I'm asking you: do you trust me?"

Lance smiled confidently back at her and answered "always."

His smile wavered a bit as his gaze floated down toward what's left of Blossom's wooden rapier. Upon noticing his concern, Blossom chuckled bravely "haha, don't worry about it. As long as I have water..."

Blossom abruptly bent down on one knee, and in one swift movement, she stabbed the engorged vine at her feet with her broken blade. At the same time, the Phantom Musketeer floated down menacingly, his dark blade shimmer and distort the space around it madly.

"...I am never unarmed!" With another swift movement, Blossom pulled out her newly regrown blade from its wet, makeshift sheath as she blocks the Phantom's strike!

"Whoah!" Lance looked dumbfounded at the miraculously repaired blade, its edge looked even sharper than before.

"Heh, you liked that?" Blossom smirked as she expertly parried the Phantom's furious attacks "well, you're gonna love this!"

With that, Blossom's eyes flared with green fire as the rosebud decoration on the hilt of her rapier bloomed majestically. It caused the leaf-like crossguard to expand outward, the sword's handle elongated far beyond the grip size for a one-handed weapon, and the blade itself thickened and grew even longer.

Lance looked in awe as he witnessed, right before his eyes, how Blossom's wooden rapier transformed into a fearsome Zweihander, its dark mahogany blade shimmered in the dim light.

"Say hello to Rosethorn, the Everlasting Blade..." Blossom balanced the long blade in her hands and lifted it skyward "...there's nothing that she can't cut!!"

With a dramatic flourish, Blossom brought down the gigantic sword down on the Phantom Musketeer, who lifted his blade in an attempt to impede it. However, unlike their previous encounter, Rosethorn was not in the mood for any nonsense from the shifty distorted mess standing between her and the juicy, might-be-flesh of her target. Rosethorn seemed to grow bigger and stronger as Blossom's eyes glowed a brighter shade of green.

With a sound like glass breaking running through a distorted synthesizer, the ebony blade of the Phantom Musketeer cracked for a split second, before shattering in all directions like confetti! Rosethorn merrily completed her devastating arc to slash across the Phantom's chest. Instead of blood spurting from its wound, inky black tendrils sprang out eerily, accompanied by an unearthly silent screech that almost shattered the two Musketeers' eardrums.

Lance and Blossom were conflicted whether to plug up their ears to stop the noise, or to cup their hands over them to listen to it better. It was like the absence of sound made it even more deafening.

The Phantom convulsed violently, as shadows crept along its body, making his features more defined. Blossom's eyes widened in shock, staring intently while the shadows roughly sketch an anguished expression on the blank canvas of a face in front of them. The long nose, high cheekbones, and pointed chin were all too familiar to the two Musketeers; but it was Blossom who tried to reach closer with her trembling hand in disbelief.

Suddenly, a low rumbling like a distant locomotive could be hear from above. Lance looked up - while Blossom was still entranced by the Phantom's appearance - only to find the tip of two miniaturized Jackhammers pierce through the ceiling. Debris fell gently beside them as a ray of warm sunlight gently wafted through, illuminating the whole cavern below.

Blossom and Lance winced, their eyes adjusting to the harsh light, and was surprised to see the Phantom vanishing before their very eyes! They looked around incredulously, and then at each other. Blossom finally spoke, tears welling up in her eyes as her knees fell to the ground "that...that was Armand's face...wasn't it...?"

Lance hurried over and kneeled down besides her, holding her shoulders gently "I...I don't know what we saw...but we'll figure it out..."

Lance then hugged her closely, hearing her softly sob on his shoulder, before continuing "...it's what we do, after all..."

"Hahaha! There they are!" The cheerful cackle from above prompted the two Musketeer to look up toward a smiling Jackrabbit Hammer with a bandaged head while she was being lowered in a harness. "My heroes!"

"BLOSSOOOM!!" Shouted Priya, trying to dry her tears ineffectively "you're all right! Thank goodness!"

"I'm so happy you're safe" Tristan smiled wearily "not that I had any doubts, mind you..."

Leopold put a reassuring hand on both Priya's and Tristan's shoulders and just smiled silently, while watching the two prodigal Musketeers are hoisted out of the darkness of the ruins and into the light of a new dawn.

***************************************************

*********************Epilogue*******************

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"Yes? Sorry, there's no training for today."

Zilvana called out upon hearing the soft sound of the gym door slowly opening.

"Oh, sorry...I'll come back tomo-"

"Oh, L-Lance!" Zilvana whirled toward the familiar voice "I-I didn't know it was you! Please, do come in."

Lance sheepishly entered the gymnasium and closed the door gently behind him. Zilvana looked on with great concern as she inquired worriedly "Goodness gracious! You're all bandaged up!"

Lance absentmindedly scratched at the bandages on his arms, before stopping to stroke the little tuft of hair that managed to peek out from the bandages. He nervously managed to squeak out a reply "Y-yeah, it was one crazy weekend...but listen, that's not why I'm here..."

"Then why are you here?" Zilvana asked sternly, memories of their last encounter still left hanging in the air between them.

"Zilvana...there's something I need to explain to you..." Lance said pensively "...after I became the Ice Musketeer, I began to feel that all eyes are on me... I felt like I'm always being compared to...him..."

"Lance..." Zilvana softly mumbled "...you know that's not true..."

“Of course, I do!” Lance snapped, only to apologetically add “…sorry…I do know that…but the feeling just made me defensive…I wanted to distance myself from Armand any way I can…”

Lance then looked toward Zilvana with a remorseful expression “…which included being in the fencing club…but I was wrong to use my hang up to be so rude to you…”

“Lance, you were not rude to refuse my invitation…” Zilvana replied regretfully “…I shouldn’t have pushed after you have said no…I was just…I was so impressed by how skilled you were! I felt it was a waste NOT to be in the club…”

"To be honest, I was a flattered..." Lance interjected "...I didn't have a fencing club in middle school, so I never experienced someone wanting me to join one so badly."

"Hey, now...I wasn't THAT desperate!"

"The point is..." Lance smiled "...I have to give it a chance...but...I don't think I'm ready to dive deep into the club..."

Lance looked at the excited Zilvana before continuing "...do you think we can start with a few sparring matches here and there?"

"EeEeeeeeeeee!" Zilvana squealed with glee while jumping up and down "that's all I ever wanted! Here!" She then threw some of the fencing gear lying on the ground toward Lance.

"What? Now?!"

"Oh, like you've got anything better to do!" She hurriedly put on the fencing vest, helmet and gloves "c'mon! First to ten points win! En garde!"

Lance sighed concedingly as he donned the borrowed gear carefully. He then adopted an orthodox stance while replying with a smile through the mesh of the face guard.

"En Garde."

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*******The End of Chapter 4*****

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#my art #OC #musketeers #mu5keteers #sci fi & fantasy

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