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[OOM] Day 250, Part 2
The Heartless’ blade crashes down against Eden’s, rattling the delicate filigree of his keyblade so hard that for a moment Eden wonders if it will snap. He digs his heels in, squares his shoulders, and shoves back, sending the Heartless skidding across the bridge.
Adelle is on it immediately, dashing towards its side and striking across it. A swing of its blade nearly catches her, coming inches from grazing her leg. She almost stumbles off the bridge avoiding it.
“I don’t think we’re hurting it at all,” Luso grumbles, throwing a Fire spell at the Heartless’ face. It lands dead on, but the Heartless barely seems to even notice. “It’s just shaking off everything we throw at it.”
His Chirithy materialises across his shoulders, winding around his neck. “He’s drawing power from the Corridor. A Foreteller will need to shut it before he can be harmed.”
Adelle ducks under the Heartless’ sword again, slashing it across the stomach. As she retreats back towards the group, the Heartless roars and charges after her, sword swinging down. Eden darts in, catching the sword across his keyblade again.
Pain shoots through his eye again, rippling across his skull.
“Eden, only a Foreteller can -- …”
A beam of light pierces the Corridor above them. With a snap of energy, a keyhole appears across it, carved out of motes of light.
Eden flicks his keyblade, turning it like a key in a lock, and the keyhole flares as bright as the sun.
“Well, there isn’t a Foreteller here,” Luso says. “They’re all who-knows-where doing who-knows-what!”
“What?” Eden asks, still dazed from the vision. The Heartless is still pushing against his keyblade, leaning in closer and closer.
“No Foreteller,” Adelle says. “We’ll just have to hold out until one of them closes the Corridor.”
“We don’t even know if they’re going to close it!” Luso protests. “If we all team up, then we’d be powerful enough to -- …”
“It isn’t an issue of power, Luso, but authority,” Luso’s Chirithy says calmly. “It is only with a Foreteller’s permission that a Corridor to Daybreak Town may be opened or shut. The town won’t let just anyone do it.”
“Then what the hell are we meant to do?!”
Eden grimaces, digging his heels in as the Heartless keeps pushing. It shoves him back a step, then another, forcing his keyblade back towards his face. If he doesn’t do something, it’s going to break his guard.
An ice spell slams into its face, followed by a lightning spell. With a sharp grunt, it stumbles, losing its footing just enough for Eden to drive it backwards, shoving it back along the bridge.
He turns. Mateus and Arty are approaching across the bridge, keyblades raised. It occurs to Eden that it’s the first time he’s seen Mateus since he chipped the boy’s keyblade, and he looks … bad. His long hair has been cut short and ragged, and there are red circles under his eyes like he hasn’t been sleeping. The chip in his keyblade has started to heal, looking more like a crack now, but it’s still very visible.
“Honestly,” Arty says. “We came here looking for Master Aced, and instead we find you. Rather a disappointing result.”
“Let me guess,” Mateus drawls, with a confidence Eden’s not convinced he feels. “You’re here searching for your Master Gula? It seems all the Foretellers have simply vanished.”
Luso gives them both an expression of disgust, then jabs his thumb at the Heartless on the bridge. “This big guy is keeping us from getting any further.”
“We need to shut the Corridor,” Adelle says. “But we can’t do that without a Foreteller!”
Eden tilts his head. Is that actually true? Chirithy has no reason to lie about it, and it sounds true, but he just saw himself shutting it. Haven’t all of his visions played out exactly as he saw them?
“Can you four hold that Heartless off?” He asks.
“Of course,” Mateus says.
“Highly doubtful,” Adelle adds.
“Cool!” Eden chirps. “I just need a few minutes. I think.”
The Heartless comes charging back in, sword raised above its head. Eden taps his foot against the ground, then dashes forward, rushing past it to land at the other side of the bridge.
Arty blocks the Heartless’ blade on her keyblade, holding it steady with one hand. As its horned head turns to stare at Eden, Luso and Adelle circle behind it, slicing at its legs, putting themselves between it and Eden. Mateus drives his keyblade into its side with a yell, releasing a cloud of black miasma.
Eden sucks in a breath, raising his keyblade towards the Corridor. He just needs to close it, right? Locking things up tight is what keys do.
Chirithy materialises next to him, winding a tail around his ankles. “Eden, only a Foreteller can -- …”
A magic circle expands beneath Eden’s feet, traced in lines of light. The winged heart of Daybreak Town appears beneath him first, then the circles of runes, and then, one by one, animal symbols: A leopard, a bear, a fox, a snake, a unicorn, a goat, and then finally, at the twelve-o-clock mark, burning gold against the blue of the circle, a lion.
His keyblade hums. A beam of light bursts out of it, piercing the Corridor. With a snap of energy, a keyhole appears across it, carved out of motes of light.
Eden flicks his keyblade, turning it like a key in a lock, and the keyhole flares as bright as the sun.
Then the Corridor is sucked inwards, spiralling like water in a sink, until it vanishes altogether. The sky of the town flickers back to its static dawn shades.
He feels sick. More than that, he feels tired, in a way he hasn’t before. He doesn’t let it show on his face, just lowering his keyblade and giving Chirithy a raised eyebrow. Chirithy watches him for a moment, then vanishes without a word.
“Corridor’s shut!” Luso yells. “Let’s take this guy down!”
Three yells of assent rise up from Mateus, Arty, and Adelle.
“Limit Break,” Adelle says, tracing a hand over her keyblade. “Viola.”
“Limit Break,” Mateus says. “Absolute Dominion!”
“Limit Break,” Arty says. “Sorceress Heart.”
“Limit Break,” Luso finishes, spinning his keyblade. “Skyfury Blade.”
The four attacks land against the Heartless in an explosion of magic and colour, forcing it towards the edge of the bridge. It bellows, thrashing its sword this way and that, hooves scraping against the bridge’s flagstones.
Then, with a roar, it opens a Corridor behind it and dives into it, shutting it behind itself.
For now, Daybreak Town is quiet again.
Adelle is on it immediately, dashing towards its side and striking across it. A swing of its blade nearly catches her, coming inches from grazing her leg. She almost stumbles off the bridge avoiding it.
“I don’t think we’re hurting it at all,” Luso grumbles, throwing a Fire spell at the Heartless’ face. It lands dead on, but the Heartless barely seems to even notice. “It’s just shaking off everything we throw at it.”
His Chirithy materialises across his shoulders, winding around his neck. “He’s drawing power from the Corridor. A Foreteller will need to shut it before he can be harmed.”
Adelle ducks under the Heartless’ sword again, slashing it across the stomach. As she retreats back towards the group, the Heartless roars and charges after her, sword swinging down. Eden darts in, catching the sword across his keyblade again.
Pain shoots through his eye again, rippling across his skull.
“Eden, only a Foreteller can -- …”
A beam of light pierces the Corridor above them. With a snap of energy, a keyhole appears across it, carved out of motes of light.
Eden flicks his keyblade, turning it like a key in a lock, and the keyhole flares as bright as the sun.
“Well, there isn’t a Foreteller here,” Luso says. “They’re all who-knows-where doing who-knows-what!”
“What?” Eden asks, still dazed from the vision. The Heartless is still pushing against his keyblade, leaning in closer and closer.
“No Foreteller,” Adelle says. “We’ll just have to hold out until one of them closes the Corridor.”
“We don’t even know if they’re going to close it!” Luso protests. “If we all team up, then we’d be powerful enough to -- …”
“It isn’t an issue of power, Luso, but authority,” Luso’s Chirithy says calmly. “It is only with a Foreteller’s permission that a Corridor to Daybreak Town may be opened or shut. The town won’t let just anyone do it.”
“Then what the hell are we meant to do?!”
Eden grimaces, digging his heels in as the Heartless keeps pushing. It shoves him back a step, then another, forcing his keyblade back towards his face. If he doesn’t do something, it’s going to break his guard.
An ice spell slams into its face, followed by a lightning spell. With a sharp grunt, it stumbles, losing its footing just enough for Eden to drive it backwards, shoving it back along the bridge.
He turns. Mateus and Arty are approaching across the bridge, keyblades raised. It occurs to Eden that it’s the first time he’s seen Mateus since he chipped the boy’s keyblade, and he looks … bad. His long hair has been cut short and ragged, and there are red circles under his eyes like he hasn’t been sleeping. The chip in his keyblade has started to heal, looking more like a crack now, but it’s still very visible.
“Honestly,” Arty says. “We came here looking for Master Aced, and instead we find you. Rather a disappointing result.”
“Let me guess,” Mateus drawls, with a confidence Eden’s not convinced he feels. “You’re here searching for your Master Gula? It seems all the Foretellers have simply vanished.”
Luso gives them both an expression of disgust, then jabs his thumb at the Heartless on the bridge. “This big guy is keeping us from getting any further.”
“We need to shut the Corridor,” Adelle says. “But we can’t do that without a Foreteller!”
Eden tilts his head. Is that actually true? Chirithy has no reason to lie about it, and it sounds true, but he just saw himself shutting it. Haven’t all of his visions played out exactly as he saw them?
“Can you four hold that Heartless off?” He asks.
“Of course,” Mateus says.
“Highly doubtful,” Adelle adds.
“Cool!” Eden chirps. “I just need a few minutes. I think.”
The Heartless comes charging back in, sword raised above its head. Eden taps his foot against the ground, then dashes forward, rushing past it to land at the other side of the bridge.
Arty blocks the Heartless’ blade on her keyblade, holding it steady with one hand. As its horned head turns to stare at Eden, Luso and Adelle circle behind it, slicing at its legs, putting themselves between it and Eden. Mateus drives his keyblade into its side with a yell, releasing a cloud of black miasma.
Eden sucks in a breath, raising his keyblade towards the Corridor. He just needs to close it, right? Locking things up tight is what keys do.
Chirithy materialises next to him, winding a tail around his ankles. “Eden, only a Foreteller can -- …”
A magic circle expands beneath Eden’s feet, traced in lines of light. The winged heart of Daybreak Town appears beneath him first, then the circles of runes, and then, one by one, animal symbols: A leopard, a bear, a fox, a snake, a unicorn, a goat, and then finally, at the twelve-o-clock mark, burning gold against the blue of the circle, a lion.
His keyblade hums. A beam of light bursts out of it, piercing the Corridor. With a snap of energy, a keyhole appears across it, carved out of motes of light.
Eden flicks his keyblade, turning it like a key in a lock, and the keyhole flares as bright as the sun.
Then the Corridor is sucked inwards, spiralling like water in a sink, until it vanishes altogether. The sky of the town flickers back to its static dawn shades.
He feels sick. More than that, he feels tired, in a way he hasn’t before. He doesn’t let it show on his face, just lowering his keyblade and giving Chirithy a raised eyebrow. Chirithy watches him for a moment, then vanishes without a word.
“Corridor’s shut!” Luso yells. “Let’s take this guy down!”
Three yells of assent rise up from Mateus, Arty, and Adelle.
“Limit Break,” Adelle says, tracing a hand over her keyblade. “Viola.”
“Limit Break,” Mateus says. “Absolute Dominion!”
“Limit Break,” Arty says. “Sorceress Heart.”
“Limit Break,” Luso finishes, spinning his keyblade. “Skyfury Blade.”
The four attacks land against the Heartless in an explosion of magic and colour, forcing it towards the edge of the bridge. It bellows, thrashing its sword this way and that, hooves scraping against the bridge’s flagstones.
Then, with a roar, it opens a Corridor behind it and dives into it, shutting it behind itself.
For now, Daybreak Town is quiet again.