melodiesofeternity | [Closed] Serge has a present from the Cloud

"The first time..." Kid's wiping at her brow again speaking in a lower tone as they walk behind Serge towards the dias, "The first time I— No, we... There were all those switches or whatever, an' then Old Man Viper, he..."

But why did things get so fuzzy after that? Why couldn't she recall the details of what had happened after General Viper had fallen...? "Bollocks, it gets so hard to remember!" she was frustrated with herself, and rather than acknowledging all the things wrong with what was happening here, to her and to Serge, she used those feelings to fuel herself further onward.

"So we're just gonna have to keep goin' to find out!" She grew loud again, with that. Dragging it out just made it all that much worse— which is why she's back to her spot alongside Serge as he takes his leap of faith. Looking down, that sinking feeling that takes a hold of you at a great height swims up from her stomach to her throat, but she swallows it down, and makes her jump, landing on a bent knee.

Corrin nods. It looks like Kid's already realized that they're in a memory, or...or something. "Sounds good to me. Let's go!"

As Kid propels herself across the gap, Corrin is right behind her. "Sorry about that, Serge." She apologizes. "What happens next?"

What happens next, indeed? Serge crosses the threshold under the Dragon Emblem, into a chamber with an orb of black energy at the far end, hovering innocently over a pedestal. “That’s the last one, has to be,” he says, quietly. “I don’t see anything, but then White looked pretty innocent too-” He steps forward, ready to shut down the seal-

Something prickles, in the back of his mind. He’s rolling out of the way immediately, as a hair behind him a
massive, toadlike creature crashes down, a deep bellow of rage ringing out as it turns to face Serge. “Figured it was too good to be true!” The Swallow spins, and he’s charging, a dervish of metal for an instant and catching the counterattack on the haft of his weapon. “It’s… Red? The hell- Either of you remember to bring that IceBlast?”

Innocent? That wasn't exactly how Kid would have described that son of a—... ah, no time to even curse the thing, huh? Well at least this one didn't look as unnerving as that smiling bastard did. She's quick to get into her fighting stance, running up behind Serge to build up her combo into a dagger-uppercut.

"Red?!" What, again? That didn't seem right. "Don't look at me!" Was her response to the Ice Blast inquiry, as she jumps back to use something less powerful, but hopefully still a bit helpful— an Aqua Ball.

"Just kill it quick!" It didn't look particularly tough.

"Uh, I don't...w-wait, I think I might have it." Corrin isn't sure how she knows this, but there are words like "Black innate" and "Element grid" floating around in her head now, and she understands what those terms mean; no doubt the Dream Width at work again. And how to make use of them.

Rather than drawing her sword to attack, Corrin raises her hand and a blast of ice explodes outwards from her palm towards the toad-beast. From the way it recoils from the blast, it's clear that hurt.

"I don't think it liked that!" But the IceBlast is spent for now...she draws her sword and gets ready for another attack.

Serge drives his swallow forward, leaving a gaping cut in the beast's hide- and it plainly doesn't enjoy the spear of ice piercing it, or the concussion of water around it.

The creature shrieks, and retaliates, charging for Corrin in a gout of flame and a heavy blow- only to shriek in rage, when Serge throws his own Icelance at its back while it's distracted. Its flesh is peeling, black ichor pooling on the floor, looking for all the world as though it's dying. "I think we've got it-"

Serge is cut off, staring in horror. It vomits, spewing something that looks like crude oil and reeks of decay, the greasy substance seeping into the stones, into the walls, blocking any exit- and the creature moves, then, clawed limbs forming out of the ooze, supporting it, a massive eye opening where there might otherwise be a head...

"What the fuck-"

"Bugger!" is Kid's choice to express her feelings on the matter, face screwing up into a mix of both disgust and horror. She should have expected this honestly, having gone through the motions of unlocking the Fort before, but her mind was a mix of past and present; the worlds of Home, Another and Vaikuntha... but the end goal was still clear. She needed to stay focused, had to ignore that nagging feeling in her head, and that surge of pain in her gut.

"Don't just stand there all slack-jawed!" its the thief's version of a pep talk apparently, as she runs in again with her dagger, aiming to slash the thing right in the eye... and avoid that black goo as best she could.

"It ain't red no more, that's for sure!"

Corrin can only stare in horror as the creature...transforms? Is taken over? What the hell even is this thing?!

"Dear Gods..." But then Kid's exhortation to act snaps her back. "Right! Let's take this thing out!" Deciding to follow up her earlier element attack, Corrin unleashes another element at the beast. "Take this! [Gravity Ball]!"

Edited 2018-12-12 23:53 (UTC)

"Noted, on it!" Serge charges in with Kid, thrusting a blade into its body to let Kid get at its eye. The moment of distraction costs it, and there's an unholy scream as the beast rears back, bleeding profusely- and then Corrin's element strikes it, blasting away its mass.

Its retaliation is swift, however, black ichor reforming once more. Its eye dilates, energy building- and Serge has enough presence of mind to hit the deck as the monster unleashes a torrent of energy that burns the air black. There's a cry of pain as the beam clips Serge's shoulder, and it sweeps around in an effort to strike the others-

Serge draws from his elements, and throws out a [Recoverall] to try and ease the pain. "Okay. Black. Definitely black now. Crap, that hurt..."

"Look out!" she's about a half-second too late to cover Serge from the blow, but she winds up by his unscathed side all the same, hovering close-by, almost protectively. "Tch..." The Recover All washes away the burning of the... whatever that black liquid was, and Kid's expression darkens almost as if to match it.

"I've got ya this time..." as she channels a Meteorite, ponytail lifting in the surge of energy as she concentrated on her cast.

Corrin sees Serge hit the deck, and attempts to dodge, but isn't quite as fast; the beam catches her in the leg as it sweeps around, crying out in pain. Thankfully, the Recoverall isn't long in coming, leaving Corrin mostly back on her legs afterwards.

"Blast, blast, blast..." She mutters under her breath. Does she have anything that can help? No...wait. Yes. Maybe. Serge mentioned it had switched to Black now, after that attack. So then...

"Let's see if I can take some of the beast's bite away!" She says, casting a [Diminish] element at the creature to weaken any further of its elemental attacks.

The beast turns to Kid, the source of the spell that hurt it so, and releases a blast of energy that, if the magic hadn't just been sucked out of the room, might have thrown her skyward and then back to earth in a deadly [Freefall]. But, diminished as it is, it can barely manage to lift her a dozen feet.

Serge takes advantage of the distraction, running in with blades flashing, leaving oozing gashes across the beast's ichorous flesh. "We've got this! All together now!"

The party's combined efforts seem to have found purchase, and though the beast tries again to unleash that devastating beam of [DevilThunda]... but it's much less of a threat now.

Serge charges forward, blade-first, leaping to drive the point of his Swallow into the Bunyip's eye. There's a shriek that makes the walls shake, the ichorous mass convulsing in agony for several seconds, bubbling like oil, and then- it simply collapses, flooding out onto the floor, receding from the walls, the discarded shell beginning to decompose at an accelerated rate.

Panting, Serge tries to muster a [Heal] for Kid, before crossing to the glowing core and placing his hand on the altar. With a low hum of magic, it flickers- and dies.

"That's six. All of them, I think. Hope, at least. Let's go, Lynx is all that's left."

Corrin manages a satisfied laugh as the Bunyip finally expires for good. "Good work, you two. That was a challenging fight." She had not been expecting the beast to so radically change, but they handled themselves well.

When Serge activates the last altar, she nods. "We're right behind you, Serge. Where will we find Lynx?" After that battle, one man by himself shouldn't pose much of a threat.

There's a groan that sounds from Kid, as she rubs the sorest spot she can find thanks to that Free Fall— counting her blessing that it had been a Diminish'd one, at least.

The Heal perks her up again, as she shakes off her dagger with an unimpressed "Yeesh," as the black goo drips off of it. The more she focuses on it, the quieter the voices of her companions become, a static starting to overpower them, becoming a deafening until she eventually broke out with a, "Huh?" at the mention of Lynx's name.

"Yeah..." she replaced the weapon on her belt. "C'mon I bet that funny lookin' platform's workin' now!"

Serge nods, and leads the way back into the main chamber, the ringing silence now overtaken by a low thrum, coming from the center platform. He climbs up, kneeling at the edge of it, looking at the strange symbol so prevalent in the fortress. "This is... important. Right? It's right in the center of the room and everything's sort of built around it..."

He looks up, at the ceiling, unable to escape a sense of simultaneous foreboding and... purpose. "It'll take us up." He's not certain how he knows that, but he waits until the other two join him, before stepping forward.

What follows is the curious- and unpleasant- sensation of rising at speed, seemingly passing through the ceiling- before coming to a stop, feet on solid stone once more.

"Whoah," Serge mutters, steadying himself. "That... that felt weird."

The top of the fortress, it seems, is a free-floating structure, hovering over the main body of the fort. The landing the three of them have stopped on is small, and largely dominated by a massive metal door which, somehow, feels to draw all attention to it. Serge hesitates. He remembers this door. There are Bad Things on the other side of the door.

Kid was on a knee by the end of the teleportation, this time both arms wrapped around her gut as she looked up with a grimace. One eye was squeezed shut, but her reaction could probably be attributed to the sudden impact... right?

"Felt like my body passed through the floor just now..." she winced, picking herself back up again, and letting one arm fall away from the spot she seemed to almost he guarding. She made a move to peer over the ledge, the colour coming back into her cheeks again with a slightly more animated—

"Bugger, we're so high up..." Turning her attention to Serge, she squinted just slightly at his hesitation. They'd come this far already, hadn't they...?

"You all right, mate? You've been actin' all weird." Like she hadn't been.

The sensation of being lifted up was disorienting; going through the ceiling, even more so. Fortunately, as uncomfortable as the experience is, it's over relatively quickly, though Corrin still takes a moment to put a hand to her chest to steady herself. "Gods..." She looks over at the other two.

"Let's not do that again soon, yes?"

But Kid is looking at Serge, and so Corrin turns to look at him as well. For all Kid talks about how weird Serge has been acting, so has she. This place has entrapped both of them.

...Will it do the same to her, when the time comes? She still has something out here to claim, after all. There are so many memories she's not in any hurry to revisit. Or that she would want to show her two friends...considering the things she had to do during the Hoshidan war, no matter the reasons for them, she-

No. Don't do this. This isn't about you right now, Corrin. Put that away for later. Your friends need you.

She comes up behind the two of them, looking towards the door. "Remember." She says quietly. "This isn't real. Nothing past there can actually hurt us. It's a memory, that's all." She places a hand on Serge's shoulder. "And we're with you till the end of this."

"Memory? What..." Serge is... pulled out of himself, for a moment. Everything clicks into place. Serge, Kid, and Glenn had stormed this fortress- together. Fought their way past traps and monsters and dragoons-

And He, Kid, and Corrin had stepped into those roles as they'd sunk into the memory. It wasn't his. It was Serge's, the other Serge, the one Kid had known. Somehow the two had become confused, blended, memories sticking to each other- "It's only a memory," he mumbles, reaching up to touch the metal. "Eidolons- This is..." He shudders violently, pulling back. "How long have I been acting like this? Everything's fuzzy, can't remember a thing, it's all twisted up..."

In spite of everything, the hand on his shoulder, warm and familiar, calms him. It's much clearer now. He's Serge, the one from Vaikuntha. It's only a memory.

He reaches up... and pushes the door open.

The voice that answers is a low growl, commenting casually but dripping with menace. It's a voice that Kid knows better than anyone, and even Serge feels his other self shudder.
"Finally... we've been expecting you."

The room beyond is clearly designed for a ritual of some sort. Six dragon statues surround a central pedestal, where a single, shining jewel sits. Two men stand, the first elderly, holding a sword, with a stance that suggests decades of battle experience. He cuts an intimidating figure, but that's nothing compared to the man behind him. He almost seems to suck in the light, a figure dressed in black, a cruel and wicked scythe resting against the wall behind him. Yellow, feline eyes fall on Serge, watching almost hungrily. Serge finds himself rooted to the spot, everything in him screaming danger, cat, monster, hurt-

But it's not the feline that steps forward to stop them. It's the old man. "Hello again. I have nothing personal against you, but anyone who hinders our plans must be eliminated. I am rather sorry about that..." And the strange thing is, he does look as though he genuinely regrets it. "You've made it this far. That means you'll be a worthy opponent. Let's see how you do, and I shall give it my all-"

The old man's breath leaves him in a pained gasp, and he staggers. The cause reveals itself to be a dagger, protruding from the joint between arm and breastplate. "L-lynx...? You... traitor..." He collapses.

The feline man watches him fall with an impassive stare. "You were extremely useful in helping me make my way around these islands. I appreciate your help, General. However... I no longer have any need of you. This fort shall serve as a fine grave marker for you and your dragoons. May you rest in peace."

He turns his gaze upon Serge, and Serge can't help the rising panic in his chest, the sense of terror that fills him, the certainty that something awful's about to happen.

"You've been more trouble than I thought. But do you really think your skills superior to mine?" There's a low chuckle, and he approaches the central column, resting his scythe on one shoulder. "Serge... have you ever questioned who you really are?"

The question comes out of left field, and Serge is taken aback. "What...?"

Lynx continues, unperturbed. "What has been the significance of your existence up until now? On that ominous day ten years ago, the boundary of space and time was torn, and part of me, in fact, died... But you cannot defeat me, Serge. This is because denying me is the same as erasing your very existence."

Edited 2019-01-21 04:32 (UTC)

Kid was too focused on what was ahead to overhear what Corrin had told Serge, her eyes were locked on that door and when they finally opened, that voice is enough to make her emit a growl of her own, through her clenched teeth.

There he was. Lynx. With excrement spilling out of his mouth, just like always.

She had no love for the General, but even this thief was disgusted by the underhanded way he disposed of someone that was no longer of use to him...

"You ain't gettin' away with what you did, Lynx!!" That smug look, gods it was infuriating! But when he started to hone in on Serge, there was a sinking feeling that started to set in, worse than before, worse than the teleportation pad up here...

"Serge...?" she took a half step forward, turning towards him, shaking her head. "Don't be taken in by his rubbish, Serge! This guy's full of it!"

”Huh... We'll see about that. There are two sides to every coin. Life and death... Love and hate... They are all the same.”

Something… changes. The jewel in the center of the room, sitting so innocently atop its pedestal, glows faintly. As though drawn by a magnet, Serge finds his gaze locked on it, stepping forward, mesmerized by the cerulean light shimmering within as Lynx watches, the faintest flicker of triumph in the feline’s eyes-

The moment of tranquility is broken, when Serge staggers. He’d barely noticed it at first, a growing pressure in his skull as he’d approached the pedestal, but it’s become too much to bear, now. He hisses in pain, pulling away- but it’s too late, it seems.

He screams, then, as the Dragon Tear bathes the room in light, clutching his head in both hands, feeling surely that it must have burst open, voice crying out in agony as he falls to the floor.

And then, just as suddenly as it started, it stops. The Dragon Tear shatters, and Serge is left on the floor, breathing heavily, staggering to his feet.

Lynx looks… honestly, shocked, and confused. Clearly whatever he was trying to do didn’t work. “Wh-what…”

When Corrin enters the room and finally lays eyes on Lynx, she blinks in surprise. "Oh, so you really weren't kidding when you said his name was Lynx." She notes.

The older man with him-the "General"-almost reminds Corrin of King Garon, though without her father's fearsome bearing (or at least the monster that pretended to be him). But then he is betrayed by Lynx without a second's hesitation, as a matter of convenience and Corrin realizes the General was not the one like King Garon.

"Serge, be careful..." She warns him as he approaches the crystal. This may be a memory, but this entire situation is unnatural, and there's still so much she does not understand about the Dream Width. Then the crystal erupts in light, Serge screams...and nothing seems to have happened? Serge is on the floor, trying to get to his feet, but from the look on Lynx's face, whatever he was hoping would happen when the crystal activated...didn't.

She moves quickly, interposing herself between Lynx and Serge. "It looks like whatever you were hoping to accomplish here didn't work." She says archly. It's odd, given how Serge and Kid were reacting to having to enter this room, like something terrible had happened here.

Corrin still can't quite shake the feeling that something isn't right, but isn't sure what it could possibly be. "Kid, how's Serge doing?" She asks, keeping her eyes-and sword-pointed at the cat-man.

Kid was down on a knee next to Serge, hands hovering in the space between them. "Serge, what's wrong?!" but there's always time for a hateful glare towards Lynx, which she obliges, with a boisterous "LYNX!!! What have you done to Serge!?"

But there was no trusting words from the devil's mouth anyway, and so her attention goes back to her pal. She was thankful now, more than ever perhaps, for Corrin's presence, keeping that pointy end in the path of her nemesis as she tended to the fallen.

The view of Serge's eyes obscured thanks to the angle of his body, but she leans forward all the same, a supportive hand on his shoulder now.

"Serge! You all right!?"

"Yes... I'm fine... I'm just fine, Kid." Serge stands, grinning savagely. Whatever Lynx attempted, it seems to have gone badly wrong; the confidence, the swagger, the effortless malice has gone from the room entirely. He takes an unsteady step backwards, dropping the scythe.

"What are you doing, Lynx?" There's laughter in his voice, amusement winning out over the momentary pain. The swallow is picked up, spun expertly, and pointed at the demi-human. "Now's our chance, Kid. Let's kill him."

Lynx tries to speak, but his voice comes out as a croak, not the low growl he'd managed earlier. "No, wait-"

Serge doesn't give him an opening. He charges, scoring glancing blows in a flurry of thrusts and slashes that drives Lynx back towards the wall, scrambling to pick up the scythe, if only for self-defense. "Not another word from you, Lynx! After everything you've done!"

Corrin understands Lynx's sudden lack of confidence now that his plan has seemingly failed; Iago was much the same way in her own world. An arrogant, smugly confident snake when he had the backing of his master Garon, yet when she and her siblings finally turned on him when he was deprived of that support, made it clear that he was a disgrace to Nohr, and that Corrin was finally ready to take his life for everything he'd done, all that confidence and bravado melted away into sniveling cowardice, begging for his life. It was such a pathetic display that Corrin hadn't had the heart to kill him despite it all.

Fortunately Leo had had no such reservations and had stepped in to finish the snake off with a blast from Brynhildr.

So Lynx's panic made sense to her. He'd played his last card, and it hadn't worked; of course he'd resort to tactics like this.

Serge's reaction, on the other hand, catches Corrin off-guard completely. His laughter causes her to turn to look at him in surprise. Even knowing that Serge still seems to be caught acting out the memories of another version of himself, it's a stark contrast to how he'd acted earlier...like the Serge she knew. The laughter seems so...unnecessarily cruel.

And then he orders Kid to kill Lynx. And that is cause for concern; not that Lynx should die, Corrin understands that need well enough, and she doesn't know enough about Lynx's crimes to judge whether or not it's warranted.

No, what's concerning is the callousness-the cruelty-in his voice as he orders Lynx's death. No matter the version, Corrin cannot believe Serge-any Serge-would so easily order the death of another being.

"Hold on a moment. I think something's gone-" She begins, but then Serge blows past her and engages Lynx, who seems barely able to fight back. "Serge, wait!"

No, no. This is wrong, this is all wrong. Did the crystal do something to Serge after all? But why on earth would this be a desired outcome for Lynx? What could he possibly have hoped to achieve? At this rate, Serge is going to kill him.

And that's not the Serge she knows. That's not any form of him.

The swallow swings toward Lynx again, but there's a flash of movement and the attack is deflected.

By Corrin. She's placed herself directly between her friend and Lynx, and looks ready to defend the demihuman from any more attacks.

"Serge, you need to stop. Right now." She orders. "This isn't you. Okay? Put the swallow down and we will figure this out."

If it comes to it, Corrin's fairly certain she can disarm Serge herself if need be, but she's really, really hoping it doesn't come to that.

Edited 2019-01-24 04:39 (UTC)

[Closed] Serge has a present from the Cloud

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