The sky turned red, crimson red. Clouds radiated out from where the bolt struck. The sky seems separated, like it split at that point… Reminds me of The Flying Dutchman rising from the sea. Oh crap. Cy realized he stood on a giant metal rooftop. Time to get down. He scaled down as quickly as he could without the aid of Ryoku. By now, the clouds surpassed his field of view. Don't think he's dead, so the plan still stands. He ran toward Jules’ home.
CR-CRACK!!
Thunder erupted from the clouds. Bolts of lightning struck and crumbled a building. Yells came from every direction, and it started to rain. The rain grew strong quickly—red drops that stung at first, then pierced his nerves, and finally melted his skin.
“AHHH!!”
[?2,200 // ?10,000]
Cy dove through the nearest door and into shelter. He laid in the prison’s empty lobby. Bloodcurdling shrieks of pain, not fear, sounded all around outside. People ran past him, their bodies oozing with blood from open sores.
Acid? Poison? What the hell, Jules? What the fuck!?
Cy glanced at his own wounds. All of his exposed skin was slightly bloodied. He’d make it inside just in time. It melted even the chains—Wait, the chains? A terrible idea dawned on him. The Smithy is too far away, which leaves me with no choice. He ran to the edge of the rain, sat down, shut his eyes, gritted his teeth, then stuck his feet out into the rain. He howled, but kept his legs as steady as he could through their convulsions.
[?1,700 // ?10,000]
The agonizing pain spread all over immediately, even parts of him that weren’t wet. Quickly, he withdrew his feet and slammed the shackles on the stone floor until they cracked. He ripped them off, and the acid covering the shackles now burned his hands.
[?1,200 // ?10,000]
"Fuck fuck fuck!"
He repeated the process for his hand restraints.
[?700 // ?10,000]
? Activate ? [?690 // ?10,000]
When finally freed, he activated an Inked Art healing Script. It took effect while he cowered in the fetal position on the floor. He stood again once he was sufficiently healed. The pain remained, but at least he could move his muscles and tendons again. A droplet fell onto his shoulder from the ceiling. He looked up and realized that the building was melting from the top side, too.
There is no way I can make it to Jules’ house now.
[?8,690 // ?10,000]
Thank Salvos that Healing Inked Art finished. Finally a brief—
Someone burst through the window and crashed to the ground beside him. Cy cloaked himself in magic armor.
? ? Ryoku Shield ? ? [?6,190 // ?10,000]
He was afraid to touch her as her own leather armor was wet from the acid. She rose slowly and gently, clearly injured. The acid had melted part of her mask off, and Cy finally saw her face, exposed to the world.
“Hello, Selene.”
They’d had one hell of a friendship since he first saw her in Aquilantis, at the plaza when they met The Painter. She’d been at the Hydromage tryouts, and he’d seen her plenty of times since during his days off at the casino. He’d relied on her to count cards, and he’d paid her heavily to do so as his insider help. They’d shared plenty of drinks together after her shifts.
And then she’d tried to kill him a few times.
“You don’t seem surprised,” Selene said, after studying his face for a while.
“It didn’t take me long. Soon as I smelled lilac on the floating markets, I knew."
“I’m truly sorry it came to this, Cy."
“You sound so sincere. How long have you been working for the Maidens?” Selene tilted her head. “How long?”
“It’s not a story that you want to hear," she said.
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“Did you know about Jules at the beach, at tryouts?”
“No. A mistake for which I was severely punished last week.”
“After you allowed us to escape?” Hope that stings.
“For which I received a second punishment.”
“So what now, Selene? Do we fight until one of us kills the other? Or do we wait until the rain kills us both?”
“I have no choice but to bring you to justice.”
“You always have a choice.”
“I never have.” She attacked him.
Cy avoided contact as much as possible. Tough as he was, the acid rain terrified him. Besides that, his body wasn’t fully responsive. His speed was impaired, his Ryoku low. They fought with their fists, and their legs, and their elbows, and their knees. Cy used his Ryoku Shield to deliver his blows and protect his body. She remained relentless, and he had a serious disadvantage. What the hell kind of armor is that?
Selene finally grabbed his arm and twisted him around. She pulled him close to her, as if to whisper into his ear. Cy braced himself for the searing pain of the acid, but it never came. He felt the water dampen his clothes, but still, nothing. In his hesitation, she removed a dagger and stabbed it through his heart.
[?1 // ?10,000]
Cy’s eyes widened and filled with red at the edges. He wheezed in and expected blood to fill his lungs. Cy reached out a shaky hand. He grazed her hand, her arm, her breasts, and then her face. His breath quickened; his eyes darted all around. His fingers twitched on her cheek.
Cy thought of becoming an Alter, and nothing else.
“Shhh. Relax.” Selene eased him onto the floor and continued to shush him. “Don't be so dramatic. This blade is Enchanted. It won’t kill you—until you pull it out, so don’t. Fucking. Do that.” She dragged him by the legs out of the lobby, into one of the stone-encapsulated cells. Cy couldn’t speak, only gasp.
“I have only ever used this type of blade to frame someone. So whoever removed it would be covered in blood, so the time of death corresponds to when they arrived on the scene, so someone can walk in when the other cries for help, only to see my target dying… There are a lot of good uses for it.” She spoke clinically, as if such violence were typical.
Selene hoisted Cy up onto a stone bed and laid down next to him. She looked exhausted.
“Please,” Cy groaned. “I have to save my friends. What are you—What are you even doing?”
She ran a gentle hand across his cheek. She nuzzled her head into his neck. He wanted to kill her. Lilac filled his nostrils.
“Bringing you to justice. You’re in prison, so my job’s complete.” What the hell? “You’ve gotta find the loophole, Cy.”
Cy laughed, but stopped himself when he felt the discomfort of the blade. His desire to kill her faded away. He used to always tell her to find a loophole during their gambling schemes.
“No, Selene. I have to go. I have to save them all.”
Selene closed her eyes and sighed. She left their shared bed, walked away, and stopped at the cell door. “There’s no one left to save, Cy. Everyone’s already dead.” She left the cell door open.
“Where are you going?”
“Don’t leave until the rain has stopped.” The smell of lilac faded.
“What about you?”
“If you want to live, then have a Genius Healer remove that dagger for you. I didn't Enchant it—it's well beyond my Skillset. Goodbye, Cyrus.”
?? Rest and Heal ??
Cy tried to get up, but the weight of his eyelids pressed his whole body flat.
ENVY
Kat’s eyelids ripped open. Phantom limb pain spread throughout her entire body again, from the neck down. Stars filled half of her immovable gaze, the other half, what remained of the basket.
Wait—I’ve moved? She would have gasped if she had lungs.
Her eyes darted around. A dark figure moved nearby. Kat died again. A few minutes passed, and she repeated the cycle.
JULES
Jules awoke, naked. The sun set behind him. He found himself sitting with his back against a tree, his knees raised and feet crossed, and the Sound of Fury, or part of it at least, rested between his hands and feet. His entire skull throbbed, and most of his vision was filled with black and white spots that made it hard to focus on any single thing around him.
The Hell am I? Am how'd I get here?
No matter where he looked, nothing seemed familiar, and he saw no other sign of life. Not even animals. Where are my friends? Jules stood up, naked and vulnerable. He quickly became dizzy and fell back down, unsure of which way was up and which was down.
“Siren’s Cove?” Jules looked around.
No, we left there already. Those trees over there, gotta be Coralhaven. Plus, I have the Sound—
[Shrine Hunting — Quest Objective COMPLETED: Capture the Shrine in Coralhaven.]
[The Shrine of Coralhaven — Quest Objective COMPLETED: Capture the Shrine.]
[The Shrine of Coralhaven — QUEST COMPLETED]
[The Shrine of Coralhaven — REWARD GRANTED: Unknown Vessel.]
[Item: The Sound of Fury. Unknown origins. Genius Rank. Level 1.]
[The Sound and the Fury — Quest Objective COMPLETED: Find the missing piece in Coralhaven.]
[The Sound and the Fury — Quest Objective ADDED: Get a lead on the other missing pieces.]
[The Sound and the Fury — Quest Objective ADDED: Train with Kaizen to learn how to wield the Sound of Fury.]
That's right, I pulled the Sound from that Leshen's antlers. What happened after that…? I guess the vortex spat me out back here.
? Conjure ? ? Clothing ? [?4,200 // ?10,000]
Ethereal purple clothes covered Jules’ frame. But since they were ethereal, he still felt exposed.
I need to find real clothes. Jules wandered aimlessly in the growing dark, stumbling and tripping many times over. Slowly, his memories returned.
I saw the monument, I entered the Shrine, I fought the Leshen. But wasn't there something else there?
Jules tripped over a branch and tumbled down a slope into thorny brush. Far too tired, he made no effort to deafen the sounds.
“Oh, Juuuuules?”
Jules knew the voice—but from where? He crouched in the prickly bushes, which opened both old and new wounds. A white fox scurried by, then tackled him.
“Oh—Jules!”
“Hey, Rukia! I thought I recognized your voice. Why do you sound different? What?” Rukia replied with droopy, puppy dog eyes. “OK, seriously. What’s the problem, Ruke?”
“Oh, Jules…”
ENVY
Kat’s eyelids ripped open. Real pain spread throughout every limb, from the neck down. The dark figure moved again. Her heart hadn’t started working yet, so she died again.
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