A Mirror To The Past

[Jent]

The booming voice disregarded the dragon's question, for it had been preoccupied in its aforementioned goal of his destruction. Lunging at the vacated space, the Furnace apparition snarled at its agile prey, sweeping in a loop after the swerving Ice Dragon. Nestled deep in its core, a rumbling torrent seared from its maw in ejected spewed flames targeted at Permafrost.

Tages in comparison faced his addressee more professionally. “My horns for stabilizing for starters,” he answered, stretching out the red spikes in a rubbery manner. “So long you aren't doing any hand-stands, you should be fine. Now get on!”

Plucking the Split off her feet, the psudeo-Charizard dumped the disgruntled women on top of his back. “Hang on, I need to compensate for the added weight,” Tages declared, oblivious to what possible torment she'll have for the off-handed remark. Flaring his wings, the tertiary pair of limbs broadened out to the ground at a lengthened span, generating enough lift for their flight, with those horns spoken of curled over Swix's arms for safety. This precaution branching to her and the counter, whom he quickly mindspoke through the mirror armlet.

~Stay where you are. The battle that is about to occur is in the realm of the sky.~

In the air, he gleamed at the aerial combat between the two dragons, with his heart sinking at the intricate design of the apparition. Tages was puzzled at how this monster generated a near perfect likeness of the resident hoarder so fast. That which increased his confusion still further, fueled by the larger picture in dead sight.

Swirling, the cloud-beast had yet to cease in growth. Its massive billowing mass spread itself around in a ever flattened disc that loomed above the Encampment, drenching more of the surroundings in silent shadows. He couldn't imagine how far its influence radiated in the short time it had arrived. Nearing the 'ground of the cloud,' Tages reared back as blue smoke swarmed from his claws.

Two glowing chains thrashed at the darkened mat, skittering about as it sensed the reactions against it. “Cleared for landing. Though, if you are still cautious, just stand on your own shadows,” the blue mage advised. Settling his flutter, Tages slowly dropped onto the murky floor, stirring particles of dust in his foot steps. “I know I had faltered in my recent actions. This time, I won't be swayed so easily.”

“Hehehe, what a pitiful confidence you have, Tages. I apologize for not breaking smashing both you and the girl's skulls before Ullikummi's return.”

Leaping off the giant spiral sprouting from the ground, the chortling woman smacked hard on the blackened earth, her vibrant cloak dancing along as she faced the intruders. “Really, I would have enjoyed playing with your lovely body for a little while. Now I just have to settle with shattering those delicate bones.”

[Vegoia]

“The unruly tempest that which threatens these parallel worlds is challenged by the most pathetic 'heros' Pax could muster.”

A lone woman rose from the mystical light of the lake, her blank visage gave no tint of joy or despair, yet emanating a glare to which the water in fear parted in wake of her floating body. Stationed in peaceful orbits, twelve symmetrical spheres drifted around lazily as her own speed, occasionally sparking tinges of electricity when in close proximity to one another. “That, and the fact my only visitor to this wasteland seems to be mechanical in design, if I'm not mistaken?”

To her credit she assumed correct. The large blue mech approaching the trans-dimensional waters appeared as such, its hulking mass slugging closer to the shore. “Mechanoid, identify and state your purpose!” she snapped at the mech. The strain of shouting irritated the red mage greatly, a manner that she loathed dearly.

---

The two of them left the foul corridor quickly, leaving behind a trail of laughter in their wake. Not something that the Alchemist felt very comfortable doing, but it couldn't really be helped. The beast had the right intentions, and Alex knew squabbling about the state of the ship would lead them no where. But, what she was about to see was not something that thrilled her. No, it burned a throbbing pain in what stood for her heart.

This Manticore drove her directly to a chamber door fitted with a dead-lock seal. Alex did not spoke of why she dismounted from the chimeric being hurriedly, nor did she turned back to show the swelling sorrow on her face. In what seemed hours to her, she faintly gasped at the barely legible words etched across the bio-metal blockade. “Alb-Reudh-Kers... Black, to white, to Red,” Alex uttered bleakly.

“WELCOME TO THE KRAI-ARK. PLEASE PRESENT PROPER IDENTIFICATION TO PROCEED.”

Had she went alone, the waves of shame overtaking her would have gone unnoticed. However, that was not the case. In her time since her childhood, the scarred girl never trusted anyone with her past. In attempt to conceal the truth, Alex risked the pathetic option of her hand-print to activate the dead-lock.

“INVALID KEY. PLEASE PRESENT PROPER IDENTIFICATION TO PROCEED.”

[Laur]

The gleaming blue and red Mechanoid refused to halt it's advance towards the trans-dimensiol waters, the machine had been forced to reboot itself after it's initial leap into the unknown, and thus had been rendered inoperable for those few initial seconds when entering this alternate reality. Perception sensors within the Mech scanned the area, along with the lifeform burning brightly ahead simultaneously. It raised it's pair of arms pointing palms forward at this irritated lifeform, a panel opened upon the left shoulder, a gun rose from within the confines of the machine to target lock the female.

"Female lifeforms observational analyses incorrect. This Mechanoid unit is bio-mechanical. Outer shell deemed necessary for biological processes to continue uninterrupted. Identification unnecessary. Purpose is only to be stated to authorised officals. Database shows you are an unknown"

The Bio-Mechanoid aimed it's gun at the female, and fired the tranquilizer darts that were loaded within.

[Swix]

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH" Permafrost yelled as the confusing flames were fired at him from the impostor, scorching the Ice Dragons tail as he slightly opened his wings so he didn't smack straight into the ground. The blue and white mythical creature snapped his wings open so he glided across the air with his forward momentum and then used that and the beating of his wings to rise steeply to meet the strange creature head on.

Permafrost let loose a torrent of icy breath at the clone as he rose, but he didn't halt his ascent. No, even if the ice breath had no effect whatsoever the bulky monster sent his whole body full force to shoulder barge his opponent.

Meanwhile, Swix's eye twitched at quite a few of Tages comments in annoyance, but stayed silent anyway. The thing above them was the main cause of her anger right now and she shouldn't waste it on him. he appeared to be a sort of goody goody to her, or at least, good natured-which was almost as bad, so if he didn't die up here she was sure she'd see him again.

"Stand on a shadow?" she said incredulously after they'd landed and she'd dismounted "Just what sort of shadow mage do you think I am?" but then, then, there was a red woman in front of them making all sorts of threats and claims, and that made her angrier. "My body is crowded enough as it is, I really don't think you have any idea the sort of grief you'd have had to deal with if you'd managed to inhabit it" ES said, as her arms suddenly became dark from the tips of her fingers all the way up to her shoulders. In the air, a pair of 'copy' shadow arms appeared suspended near the red mage "I think I owe you for injuring my legs" ES set the shadow arms on the woman-one would try to punch, the other grab her. Possibly her hair, but a handful of that clothing would do just as well

[Vegoia]

The red mage gave her unwearied stranger a callous stare, the movement itself sapped the indolent women of any sympathy towards it. Drowsily, Vegoia examined the mechanoid unit's each action unfold, responding subtly to them. What a bother, she groaned, tilting her her to the side as the mech spoke. This blue menace, as expected, retaliated with a introductory projectiles primed to sedate the already drained mage. However, the trajectory of those tranquilizer darts didn't travel as it would have been calculated.

Like a mirage, every one of the tiny missiles flew past a blurry Vegoia, implanting themselves a ways behind her confusingly. The red mage yawned when she turned a bit to see the scene of the failed strike. "Unknown, that's a pleasant surprise," she remarked. "Though, as you may be aware... or not... there are strange things happening to this realm, whether you care of the dilapidated clouds is none of my concern." Reorienting six of the spheres as points of a meta-physical, octahedron-space, her remaining spatial tools fashioned to two additional triangular planes: one above and one in front. "But please, go on and waste our time, my immovable body won't be swayed by your unstoppable means," she cringed sarcastically.

---

"Damnitt!"

Slamming a fist against the door, Alex's bruised hand aroused a chorus of red sparks sipping past her fingers. "All these years, all these years..." she seethed in a whispered voice. All she wanted was to leave her past behind, yet every turn in her life kept bringing it back up. Drawing a few tears down both cheeks, the alchemist silently wailed against the cool metal. The Manticore was thoroughly displeased.

"Could you stop feeding the mold, this place is stuffy enough," retorted the beast, sharp teeth peaking through his lips. "That or I can give you something to really cry about."

Sniffling, she glanced at the tail hovering her near the neck, recalling the agony from before. "I rather not," she dejectedly replied. Looking up at the ceiling, memories of a once happy childhood flashed quickly in her mind. Friendly norns, curious ettins, and ravenous grendels all brightening the grim notions they co-sided with. Smiling in ambivalence, she made her choice.

"Krai-Ark, human refuge of the desolate planet Khymos reporting under the protection by the Five Herald Shee. Name...." her throat clenched, having difficulty uttering her birth name in full. "Tracy 'Alex' Valens."

"WELCOME TRACY, PLEASE ENJOY YOUR STAY."

Panting, the alchemist watched blankly as the door unhinged itself apart, not noticing the basking sweet smell vanquish the atrocious stench around them. The new white chamber that revealed itself held countless tiny tables monitored by studious ettins, garbed in classically scientist uniforms as they immersed in their work.

[Jent]

The tormented howls of the Ice Dragon pleased the apparition's reconstructed ego, bringing about a toothy grin across its face. Unfortunately, the glee was short lived. Permafrost's fierce bombardments scored a chilly graze against its scaly frame, freezing up its muscles as the incoming dragon slammed into the shadow being. However, such damage goes both ways.

... A searing pain bored its way at the core of the infuriated dragon. Any breath he may have took in the moment of contact whirled a harrowing inflammation about the lungs and heart, festering next to the bright crimson crackle over his scales. His doppelganger, blinded briefly by the cold, flailed near the inflected Ice Dragon. Its rivaled torture flung the form, and whatever close to it, down in a nose-dive to the ground.

"I think I owe you for injuring my legs"

Lashing at the standing homunculus, the women's shadowy claws sank deep in the lavender cloak of their target. The accompanying blue mage reverted to his regular self as he raced to the stricken being, only to be knocked aside by a swift kick to the head.

"Gah!" Tages gasped, bouncing along the solid cloud rolled to his side. The jubilant attacker vaulted over the likely outraged shadows, piercing only the discard cloth in its claws. Laughing, she landed beside the fallen blue mage, leveling a rousing foot harshly at him. The attack returned his body near Swix. Spitting blood, his mouth went agape as he saw the recognizable figure. "Tr-Tr-Tracy?"

"Yes and no, Tages. It is not quite the same as it should be by now," the homunculus answered in a befuddling manner. Cracking her neck, 'Tracy' grinned as she stood in a fighting stance.

[Swix]

Permafrost harshly drew in breath after he'd hit the black apparition of himself, wondering where on Pax this pain had suddenly come. The reptilian Homunculus flailed around after he'd partially frozen it, smacking the currently incapacitated Ice Dragon in the head as he hovered there and knocking him a couple of hundred metres lower in the sky before his powerful wings could catch him. Permafrost snarled and then roared at the monster who'd managed to flail about so much it'd made itself fall down. The Ice Dragon sent another breath weapon at the thing-this one making icy spikes fly off in the direction of the breath.

ES simply watched the altercation between the pair after her attempt to grab and punch with her disembodied, humanoid shadow hands failed as the red woman apparently disappeared, leaving only a torn cloak, then reappeared to confusingly vault over the limbs (apparently this one just really liked showing off) and decided to concentrate on kicking the blue man.

Swix sighed as her shadow arms disappeared as did the darkness on her own arms, and simply folded them as she stared "Who's Tracy and why should we care?" she asked, tilting her head.

[Jent]

The dragon-homunculus's massive figure plummeted from the lower atmosphere. Even with frost-bite waning, it couldn't prevent the inevitable crash due to its draconic joints still being locked up. The apparition carved through the Encampment's outer streets, a destructive line leveling any opposing structures in its wake. A frightful massacre to the townsfolk hiding away. Eventually, the terror ceased to a smoldering mark on the ground, where in the end, the beast exhaled a final breath.

Frowning, she placed a hand to her hip, bothered Swix took the boring route. "Just a friend of the Blue Mage," dully replied the homunculus. Checking her forearm, she smiled as slight arching of red light clung to the vessel's skin. "You may say she is the pièce de résistance."

The parasite's elation fell prematurely. Behind them, particles of smoke rolled over to the homunculus, condensing as a gaseous worm slithering up to her head. "Oh, deary," she groaned. "So it bite the bust, eh?" Enveloping the left side of her face, Tages leered at the shadows as the homunculus stomped on the 'ground.' The cloud shuddered. "What are you doing?" he shouted, rapidly inhaling air to his lungs. 'Tracy' refused to answer Instead, teleporting away from the sparkling white winds blowing out in front of the Blue Mage.

What stirred beneath the hide of beast rose to greet the people above. Hissing through its scaly jaws, the colossal serpent craned up in breaching the surface, her glorious horns shimmering with a crimson glow. 'Tracy laughed earnestly, closing the eye not shrouded in darkness as she applauded the new homunculus. A blast of one's past. Tilting her head, the apparition sensed her surroundings with the exotic perception this form entailed. To their misfortune, she slowly unhinged the sealed veils on her eyes, purring in delight.

Awe-struck, the Blue Mage abandoned the sheer amazement pertaining to the apparition. He rather reprised his torment at the basilisk, spouting a torrent of obtrusive blue smoke at her face.

[Laur]

The blue menace of a Bio-Mechanoid ceased it's attack, the technology encased within remained actively scanning the lifeform along with the environmental conditions that enveloped the pair. The gun was withdrawn into the panel atop the machines shoulder, expending expensive tranquilizer darts upon an incorporeal being was a pointless effort in futility.

"Emotional content responses to outward stimuli were nullified upon this units creation Caring about anything is impossible and irrelevant. This unit has not encountered any such 'dilapidated cloud' phenomenon of which you speak. Explain"

[Swix]

Evil Swix let out an exasperated sigh,and held her hand up to the side of her forehead like she had the mother of all headaches. "Neither of you have even bothered to really answer my questions, especially not the most important part, which is why I should care. I'm not interested in French references either. So you know what?" Swix raised her hand, palm outwards, at the snake monster "I can't be bothered with you either. You can have your little family feud or whatever, and you can leave me out of it! SHDSK!"

The last word was magical, and brought down a 'cloud' of absolute darkness in the indicated direction before the Split turned away, fully intending to leap off the back of the monster.

[Jent]

Aggravated by the two-pronged smokescreen obscuring, the apparition roared an unearthly howl. The homunculus had hardly notice any heat signatures of the two in the ruckus, instead been blinded to a seething fury to those around her, thrashing madly with body and all. Picking up on this, the summoner teleported aways from the skirmish.

Like I'd enjoy being caught in that mess. Landing roughly on her hands, 'Tracy' sneered at the darkness enfolding over the basilisk-being. The only thing the homunculus could look forward to is imagining the Blue Mage tossed about about like a rag-doll.

[Swix]

ES had very nearly gotten to the edge of the cloud beast, but she stopped when she got there all of a sudden. Not as though she had intended to, she literally just stopped mid - stride, like someone had switched off time and she'd been caught in motion.

Her eyes had suddenly gone entirely black once more, and she heard a voice in her head.


'Where do you think you're going?'

The voice was the silky one of The Collector, and she didn't sound very pleased.

'I'm leaving. This has nothing to do with me'

'I think not'

ES lowered her foot, slowly, so she didn't topple off. But that was all the locomotion the entity seemed inclined to allow.

'Why not?'

'You don't think I spent all that time planning just to see this place get turned into nothingness by some sort of void creature do you? Dear me, you are slipping'

'What do you want?'

'Go over there and finish the fight you started. If this place goes, that's going to make me angry after the work I put in. And then I'm just going to have to take that out on you. Maybe I should add another scar to that one on your leg'

'You uh, you don't have to do that'

'No, I don't, but I will. Or maybe I should accelerate our contract seeing as you will have failed me if you leave...'

'No! Please, please don't do that. You don't have to do that'

'Then do as I tell you, go back there and deal with this problem'

'... Fine' ES's eyes were returned to their natural colouring, the woman clenched both fists together as she turned around and gritted her teeth. She really didn't want to do this... but now she had no choice.

'What about the abilities you gave me? Can I use them now?'

'Here I was enjoying the show of you fighting without them.... but seeing as this is more for my benefit than yours....'


As ES walked over the darkness covered her, every part apart from her eyes turning black. Behind her, the four large tendrils exploded out of her back once again, and ES sighed. "You know, if it were up to me I'd have just left you to it, but apparently my 'boss' has decided she doesn't like you very much" ES held a Shadow Sphere in each hand, and proceeded to throw one at each adversary.

[Vegoia]

"Eh, these guys got some weird priorities."

The Manticore became engrossed at the chamber's interior. There were hundreds of experiments worked on by the little creatures, but none that interested Tracy, as by the upset stomach she had to quarrel with. Stationed alone, a elegant figure arose from his seat, obscuring the visage of excitement by the kooky plague mask. He was dressed similar to the scientists below, but embroiled his lab-coat with icons and ancient writing of all sorts. "This is a feat, I never thought I have two visitors bargaining in my laboratory." He said calmly, craning his bird-like head towards the intruders. The being enjoyed a nice surprise now and then, especially seeing he was on the closing chapter of his magnum opus, nipping residual errors to the plan wouldn't sour his mood.

"Relax, relax, have a seat my fine friends. Just no snacking on my assistants, kay?"

Chuckling, he began to descend down the stairs into the hall. The alchemist beside the beast growled, contempt following Tracy's seething remarks. "You're still alive after these years on Norn's Rock? I thought you off'ed yourself by that explosion!?"

"My dear Tracy-"

"Don't call me that!"

Reaching the bottom, then sighing in acceptance to the woman's shout, conceded. "As you wish, shame though, it was cute. Then again, Ashapala flies off the tongue better than my old name." "Why did we find you here, of all places?" "Questions, questions; is that all you got?" "There is a pair of fangs liking to shear your neck if both don't stop daddling!"

The atmosphere became tense once more, and Ashapala's bony legs glided him to a safer distance of the deadly tail. "All this hostility is going beyond the figurative, you should know," the scientist commented, creepily sliding his fingers in the alchemist's hair as he circled them slowly. "You both are in middle of my domain, to be precise. Any ideas of escaping or delaying my work will be dealt with, Manticore."

"Like what would frighten me, egghead."

"Her worst nightmare."

---

Lazily counting her boundary stones, the Red Mage hovered statically in the suspended space, mulling over words the mech requested her to speak. "The aforementioned 'clouds' are those currently stirring over lake," she replied languidly. Betwixt one of the folds of her crimson garb, Vegoia causally procured a tattered vellum scroll. Centered in the expressionless face, she addressed the dilemma to the reserved being. "They are the source of our world's troubles, mechanoid. The lawless beast has awoken."

Vegoia unfurled the aged parchment before her. Scattered across the long canvas, etches detailing the mage's great work gave a uncanny glow off the black letters; most of which written in a script similar, but different to that of the common variety. Her fingers glazed through the several citations, trailing a few more often than others. Murmuring, she settled on the largest printed phrase detailed above an image of creature's liver.

NORULE.

She glanced at the clouds, cross-examining the lightning strikes on the scrolls to that clinging on the darkness floating across the lake. So, becoming impatient? Waving her head, the boundary stones rotated even faster around the mage, indicating something. "You better watch your step, it is about to fall," Vegoia told the mech, unfazed by the five giant tendrils streaking down from the clouds, piercing the ground around them and the lake.

[Laur]

Stepping back, the blue and red Bio-Mechanoid turned it's mass of sensors towards the 'cloud' that moved to skewer the very ground upon which it stood, an attempt to assemble as much information as was mechanically plausible before possible engagement. The most miniscule movement may provoke a response from the Mech, should it be deemed required.

[Jent]

The apparition continued to flail about in the amalgam armor concealing the humanoids from her sight. A harsh shrill of the contacted combination by the contrasting orb attacks hammered the scaly hide, to great effect. Tages leaped across a recent tail swipe, stumbling out of the veil. Tracy' fared no better. The dark particles clinging to her face violently broke out in a cascade of pain before the sphere cam close. "Dammit!" the homunculus roared, the Split's strike diverting her escape as the shadows slammed into her leg, spiraling the host body along the clouds. "You! I aughta slit your-"

For the people of Pax, the final curtain drew near. Ullikummi, anxious at the pathetic insects attempting to undermine its destiny, expedited the synchronizing wavelength between the two worlds' dimensions. Beneath the feet of the mortals straddled on its back, came a loud rumble thundering.

~I WILL REACH THE IMMORTAL REALM.~

An intense shock-wave rained down on the Encampment as tendrils of the beast cleaved through air. Streets, ravaged already by the strife caused its spawn, spluttered further in gargled mess. The weakened structures shivering in the direction the five limbs fell apart shortly when they plunged deep to the foundation of the town. 'Tracy' still splitting blood from her mouth, stood back up from the recent crash, groaned as the smoke engulfed more the host's body.

"So, getting antsy, are?" she spat out loud, obviously talking to Ullikummi. "Well you better take care of those portals. Remember? I told you about those stupid things."

Agitated for answering to a homunculus, the beast agreed it was for their best interests. The basilisk-homunculus in response froze when the new order came it her mind. It hissed pleasantly. As Tages watched, the massive serpent dissolved in the air, carried by the currents to the Ana-side portal.