[center][hider=Previously... (My post before the recent GM post, complete with Mio Collab)][b][u][i]Fenix Tear - Foyer[/i][/u][/b]

It seemed the one to answer his question wasn't the ice woman herself, Ur, but the ghost girl floating about, and apparently jumpscaring him by coming just short of his Reflector's shield. Too bad it's the most absurd reasoning he's heard. Most guilds would help him out of goodwill? He's a Vampire! Most guilds would see him either captured or dead out of an instinct of monster hunting, or is he supposed to believe all his experiences so far were just outliers? Moreover, the idea that Ur did it just to essentially adopt the lil vampire was more silly than aggravating. Adoption... Probably not the kind of adoption a parent would have with a child but a person would have for a pet...

More importantly, however, before his thoughts could continue to spiral, something caught his attention almost immediately. Her hand going past his reflector, making his eyes widened. Normally it's not that much of a surprise; Reflector can't distort organic matter like human bodies, so naturally a person's hand would be immune to the distortions and get through to him.

...But this wasn't a human. From the looks of it, she wasn't even an ordinary ghost, instead, she was some entity made almost entirely of magic, something that Reflector [i]should[/i] have distorted upon contact, yet for some reason, didn't. She completely bypassed his Reflector in a way he can't even truly fathomed. The moment she touched his neck, a sense of cold as if touched by Death itself, a feeling temperature he thought he lost when he turned made him immediately and instinctively jump away from. Of course not before she touched where she wanted, the button on his collar, forcing Yuna out and into a human-like shape.

Aki was shocked by this form, to a point where he couldn't really recognize Yuna at first as herself in this state. Throughout their time together, she was a formless almost abstract entity, a voice in his head and dark mass of spiritual energy and not much more. Now...well, aside from the mythical ghostly attire of white robes, it's as if she never died that day, looking around his age, the age she would have been.

[color=lime][b]"...Huh? ...Wh-...What the fuck!?"[/b][/color]

...Still as uncharacteristically profane though.

Yuna looked at her hand and form in confusion and awe as if only seeing it for the first time herself.

[center][i]“ You must be Yuna, don't hide yourself, us ghost girls should get along but like seriously though you too should start talking to people if I had to give a suggestion probably Aiko that's the person you try to cut their head off She's probably the most normal of our guild. “[/i][/center]

Both Aki and Yuna gave Mio a look like she just told them to jump off a mountain because someone put a mattress to land on at the bottom that'd break the fall.

[color=lime][b]"Uh-huh...I'm guessing your cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head."[/b][/color] Yuna bluntly and sarcastically said once Mio finished her statement.

[color=red][b]"Yuna..."[/b][/color] The other ghost girl looked at Aki when he says this and sighs.

[color=lime][b]"...Look, I'm grateful you found a way to materialize me into a proper shape again, I really am, but I'm only here for Aki and him alone. Personally, I'm not interested in being around anyone else, especially not a pack of suspicious lunatics that could get him into problems he doesn't need right now, or worse, outright killed! Hell, you literally just suggested that the most sane one here is the samurai lady that almost did exactly that!? I have no idea how long you've been dead for, but even you should understand how FUCKED that sounds!"[/b][/color] She said. Aki simply looked at her in silence. He's gotten used to it now, but this truly did show how different this Yuna was to he little girl he knew in life back then.

The Yuna he knew would have agreed with this other ghost girl, would have been immediately talking with these people and getting to know them already, to an almost irritating degree in fact. In her life, she was a social butterfly of sorts; from his perspective everyone in the village adored her - the exact opposite to Aki's own position. Yet in spite of being scene as the outcast, she was the only one who bothered to talk with him, let alone play with him. She was well-mannered, polite, and always seem to be in good spirits, ever the optimist. To tell the truth, it annoyed the hell out of him back then, almost as if she was mocking him; a little goody-two-shoes that refused to leave the black sheep alone, out of what he could only assume was a sense of pity or sympathy he felt he didn't need nor want. Yet when all others blamed him for anything and everything wrong or when the bullies came around to mess with him, she was the only one aside from the Kunihisas who stood up for him, and the best the latter could do was shelter him further from the negativity. She was the only one who helped Aki live a relatively normal life there, and became his first, best, and really [i]only[/i] friend.

Now here she was, so drastically different. She's brash, cynical, thinks ill of others, extremely protective of Aki, and as blunt as a block of wood. Back when she first haunted him at his lowest point, the only thing convincing him that this wasn't someone pretending to be her, or his mind playing tricks on him in madness, were memories only the two of them would know, memories only [i]she[/i] would know. Whether this some kind of effect of being a spirit haunting him, or simply her true feelings that she hid when around him or the rest of the village when she was still alive, he doesn't know. All he knew for certain was that this ghost has been his companion in the loneliest days of his life, and that's good enough for him.

That said, her abrasiveness [i]does[/i] seem to put him into trouble quite a lot. This other ghost girl seems to have moved things along as a response.

===============================

[center][hider=Collab with Thanatos_07 (With some narration from Dane]" Aki it is time for you to begin your initiation ritual you don't have to worry too much It seems to me that hard for you remember the goal is to show off. "

[b][i]★Universe Icelus★[/i][/b]

A large pure white magic circle appears over the arena 

Reality shifts or is cracks it's hard to tell everything Become unreal is the only word you could do to describe it

A nearly two year long wolf with blue fur so dark , it's closer to black maureen it's body crimson wounds you seem little petrol of not quite healed but not quite injured either

[i]The big bad wolf Boss fight[/i]

[img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1500343469091328042/1500965447804387389/300px-Big_and_Will_be_Bad_Wolf_Sprite.png?ex=6a02ec41&is=6a019ac1&hm=831d49b0603e721c2d9bf210ba5403928bce17b353668ba5eed28c1fe4cdbb9a&[/img]

Words could not quite describe how the boy was feeling seeing his reality fall apart to reveal the kind of realm one may see only in their strangest fever dreams. In front of him, however, is a giant almost undead-like wolf, large enough that it seemed like it could swallow the boy whole.

If there was one silver lining to all this, one thing keeping his mind somewhat intact and keeping him  from just running off to literal parts unknown, was the familiar shape of this creature. A Vampire he may be now, but he was also a Kunihisa, born and raised among hunters of his home village. Wolves...were a common prey of the family.

That said, magical creation or no, he has to assume there's something organic about this creature. Therefore, he can't rely on his Reflector's Defenses, especially since the Ghost girl herself was so easily able to bypass it.

Unsheathing a short sword, he got into a cautious stance taking a few steps to the side, waiting for the big wolf to make his move silently. 

The beast radiates heat from its body increasing the temperature of the room it's like the sun blazes down upon you a sensation Aki is very familiar with

The great wolf circles Aki blue flames, flickering around the creature and suddenly a loud how comes from the great beast making waves of fire luckily Aki reflection magic wards against the flames however it still covers his vision i'm from a blind spot The wolf attacks

[quote][i]Universe Icelus

A Lost Magic from a distant past, Mages don't often start with their Universe but for those who do, they are a rare kind
 
The peculiar nature of Mio is what allows her to start with a Universe to use Dream-Make, this means that the she don't belong to a standard class like Alchemist, Enchanter, Requiper, Assassin, Farmagia, Gatekeeper & Magus. 
 
Mio, the Ghostgirl of Fenix Tear, most dunno how long she's been a ghost is a bearer of a Second Origin & holds both Alchemist & the lost class type, Spatia.[/i][/quote]
 
[quote][i]Aki has the natural & biologically magical ability of Refractor since he is a Vampire.

Refractor can distort most magical constructs except those with sentience.[/i][/quote]

As much as he didn't enjoy this situation, he had nothing to worry about from these blue flames as they encroached upon him, the wave passing right through without touching his body, as if covered in an impenetrable glass egg. ...Too bad it comes with the price of the flames being so close that it practically render him blind. He was trying to spot the wolf, but couldn't find it by the time it started to make its move to pounce on the vampire child.

Fortunately, even if Aki couldn't see it, Yuna most certainly could.

[color=lime][b][i]"Behind you!"[/i][/b][/color]
She told him from within his head. Aki was quick to move in response, jumping out of the way of the Wolf's attack before beginning to make his own to counter it. Normally, with a hunt this massive, it'd take more than one person to hunt it in his family. They'd need both short-range to keep it distracted, and long-range to shoot it down from a safe distance.

Fortunately for Aki, however, he could do both.

Using his sword as a medium, he slashes with it, creating a distortion in the air as if a long blade in camouflage was thrown, then another, then another.

[color=red][b]"Invisible Scythe!"[/b][/color]

ne after the other, the wolf was cut into pieces, before fading and dispersing like a cloud parting the sky. (Had permission to do this)

(He's  most certainly a vampire it seems but He hasn't learned any skills outside of his swordsmanship in the fact he's figured out how to apply a direct application of reflector magic give him some promise combine not with the help he will seize from his ghost girlfriend 
You can make it pretty far in this line of work.)

(The real question how did he become a vampire i doubt any from my homeland So most likely one of his parents were vampires i should go with with to the trial i trust Ur turn resolve anything with a fire lord but
I can feel that something really funny is going to happen with this kid.)

These Were the thoughts running through Mio's head while watching Aki fight the monster she created despite the kid not doing anything particularly impressive after all , it was only a particularly interesting dire wolf Mio has come across in her journeys any respectable C rank mage could probably take the Beast down.

“ SPECTACULAR TRULY AMAZING ”.

Unfortunately mio has an unconditional love for all demons even if Aki somehow lost this fight she would have cheered him on like he wanna tournament.

Mio floats down to Aki eyes level and padding the poor kid on his head once again subjecting Aki to mio profoundly cold body.


“ you have one truly blessed to have interesting days ”.

For people who are familiar with mio the phrase you're one blessed with interesting days is something like a catchphrase for her She says quite frequently but for people who truly know the proverb it is one of the cruelest things you can ever say to a person for one who is blessed to have interesting days are curse to never have a normal one ever again.

Aki is a child truly cursed to have interesting days.[/hider][/center]

What happened next, happened so fast that Aki couldn't quite make heads or tails of it, as almost immediately after the ghost girl's trial, guards barged in and arrested the Vampire boy.

[hr]

[b][u][i]Imperial Palace[/i][/u][/b]

...Yeah, he really should have saw this one coming.

How he even really got to this point is unclear to him, as it felt like it happened so fast that he experienced mental whiplash. Almost immediately after Mio's "test", he gets arrested and Mio decides to pull Yuna out of him as he gets sent to the Imperial Palace of all places. Why? No idea. The ideal answer may have been that she was trying to keep Yuna from getting effected by whatever was about to happen to him in particular - although considering the nature of her spirit as was told to him, he couldn't help but worry about the possible ramifications of a Spectre being away from their haunt for a prolonged amount of time.

But the cynical realist in him has a much simpler answer: He was right to be suspicious of this guild, and they tricked him back into the hands of people who want him dead solely for the profit.

It was the only thing that made any real sense. Aki's wanted poster was surely all over Hizuru by that point as a both a criminal and a monster, and it's common logic in bounty hunting that a target captured alive is worth more than if they're dead. Moreover, if the government themselves capture their target, obviously they wouldn't feel the need to pay the reward money to anyone else. This guild must've broke him out of the execution, just to sell him back to them for that profit. Sure it didn't make any sense if someone rational thought about it for more than a few seconds, but right now the teenaged boy can't find any other reason he was in this position. Normally, Yuna was in his head calming him down and making him see reason amidst his paranoia, but for the first time in a while, she's not there thanks to Mio.

As if things weren't bad enough for the boy's mood, there's that noose of truth they put around his neck - a flexible rope like this can't be distorted by Reflector - and being asked to tell the truth or he gets magically hanged with it. A silver lining: At least this time, they aren't just gunning straight for killing him and actually made it a trial. Though given the circumstances he's in and how much of a formality this probably is, it almost makes him [i]wish[/i] he was back on the gallows.

Ur and the fox then showed up to give him..."Word of encouragement"? That was probably the intended way to view what she said, but given what's happened, Aki couldn't help but think she's just mocking him. Truth be told, he almost wanted to lunge at her in a fit of rage for putting him back into this position, but what would be the point of that? He can't even really be angry at her; it's not like she showed any real reason to trust her or her guild to begin with. No, the anger phase is just about over, and a mixture of depression and acceptance is settling in, creating a sense of despair. She's right about one thing: He's no longer human, maybe it's best he dies like the monster he is. He thought about just lying his ass off and letting the noose around his neck strangle him to death just to get it over with, but it doesn't feel right to embrace death when Yuna isn't at his side with him.

No... That's not quite it. Perhaps deep down it's more that, he's tried so hard to survive after his transformation and the death of his family, and even if he doesn't really know [i]why[/i] he's trying to survive, it would be a waste at this point to just give up now. ...If he's gonna die anyways, then dammit, at least he'll make them suffer for it.

[color=red][b]"...What answers? What am I even being tried for? Is it for what happened to my Family, or is it simply because I'm a monster now? Either way, I don't know anything... and it's not like any of them will be willing to listen if I did."[/b][/color] He simply said to Amano.[/hider][/center]

[hr]

[center][b][u][i]Imperial Court[/i][/u][/b][/center]

[center][i]Blessed to have interesting days, indeed...[/i][/center]

It was the last thing Aki heard from Mio just after her "Test" against him, fighting some twisted Direwolf in her domain right before getting arrested and thrown into trial. The days have been nothing but "interesting" since he was thrown into Fenix tear, and it's hardly even been that many of them.

The Trial itself, he wasn't paying much attention to, his thought knee deep in paranoia for why he's even put on trial to begin with. From his perspective, after all, he was about to be executed, "rescued" from said execution, dragged to a guild to join it, got tested by a ghost in Dreamland, and then immediately arrested and put on trial in the Imperial court, likely to get sentenced to death all over again, thus coming full circle.

The only difference in his mind between the first and second time: Fenix Tear's involvement. 

The only reason he can think of: Reigning in and selling out a "Monster" for profit.

Normally, Yuna would be trying to give him rationale to keep him from spiraling, but they removed her from his head, and so he was lost in his thoughts.

The trial proceeded without much incident as Aki's thoughts burned with anger, only to be aggressively doused in despair. He didn't even bother to look up at those who prosecute and looked at him with judging eyes.

While he wasn't listening to what everyone was saying in the trial, what could reach him wasn't anything he hasn't already heard before. 

[center][i]He's a monster.
He slaughtered his own family.
Oh, he doesn't remember the deed?
Oh, it could be someone else?
Mere convenient excuses! 
Just trying to save himself by pinning it on some imaginary killer!
He was the only survivor, he was the only one there, and he's a Vampire besides, therefore he should be killed![/i][/center]

Good Ankh, it was like he was back in his village all over again! This whole thing was pointless; it was just adding insult to injury! Just shut up and get it over with!

It was then he heard something he did [i]not[/i] expect to hear near the Trial's end.

[center][b]"I wish to hear from the defendant..."[/b][/center]

The voice itself sounded about as kind but firm as the words, not the kind of voice one would hear in a murder trial, and certainly not the words one would say to a potential murderer. After spending all this trial with his eyes cast downward or closed, not paying attention to much of anything going on, he looked up towards what seems to be the judge's area, where the Empress seems to reside, and saw a woman with long locks as red as his own. Now that he's got a good look at him, the Prosecutor also has red hair just like his own. It wasn't too much of a surprise; it all but confirmed what his village taught him about red hair in Hizuru being a symbol of nobility. More notably was the overlooking the trial, and someone behind her, sitting on a throne behind some kind of magical veil where only their silhouette could have been seen. But Aki could see closer, could see beyond it, and noticed it to be another woman.

Aside from cosmetic differences such as age and hair length, these two women looked practically like twins.

The one behind the veiled throne looked somewhat older than the other out in front, and had a sharp yet disinterested look in her eyes. There wasn't any hatred or malice, just indifference, as if she's seen hundreds of Vampires standing trial and grown tired of it. By the looks of things, she must have been the empress herself. Doesn't come as much surprise then; he probably looks like an ant to her, and this whole trial a farce she's obligated to take part in. She clearly wasn't the one who said that, so it must have been this other one standing at the judge's podium.

That one looked so similar to the Empress it felt unreal, but she was younger, and that fierce look in the Empress' eyes were nowhere to be seen in this one's. Her eyes were softer, rounder, there was more of an innocence to her in comparison. Yet her face still looked firm, taking this matter seriously. She must have been the one who said it.

[b]"...Vampires are not like other demons born to their nature. Some are born that way, but most vampires were once human; the demonization process for them acts as a virus infecting a victim into forced conversion. All evidence and testimony presented has proven to the court that Aki Kunihisa was one such victim, a former human inflicted forcefully with vampyrism. But as we don't know when he was bitten, the question of who the Kunihisa family still remains with doubt. Therefore, The court would like testimony from the defendant, regarding when he was turned. ...Ur-San, I apologize in advance, but I'll need to borrow that choker of yours for a bit."[/b] She said. Without waiting for a response, pointed towards Aki, a tiny ball of white light floated just above the tip of her nail, and as she moved her pointed finger as if writing something, the ball followed leaving a trail of white fading light behind.

When she was done, he noticed something different about the magic surrounding his choker, the feeling was still restricting, but in a different way than before. He couldn't see it himself, but the runes on the choker changed, both in shape and color. It seems this woman managed to overwrite the runes originally on the choker with her own.

[b]"...Defendant, State your name and occupation for the court."[/b] She asked. Aki raised an eyebrow as he looked towards her.

[color=red][b]"Aki Kunihisa, Former hunter, no current occupation. ...!!"[/b][/color] He said, before gasping and looking taken aback. He wasn't going to say anything but the words came out on its own. Almost on instinct he touched the choker itself, did she add some kind of control rune to it!?

[b]"Kunihisa-San, you were a human up until the moment of the tragedy, is that correct?"[/b] Aki nodded in response. [b]"Please testify to what happened that night."[/b] Alice said. Aki looked down at the podium he was standing in front of, clearly hesitant, but as the runes on his choker glowed, the words started coming out in spite of him.

[color=red][b]"We were out in the forest together, there was rumor of some horrific monster that threatened the village's existence nearby, something bad enough to warrant all of us uniting to fight against it. During the search, I...There was this sudden pain like something was stabbing into my head, my senses were getting overwhelmed and I...I blacked out. When I came to, They...They were all dead, every last one."[/b][/color] Tears starting to well up in Aki's eyes as he tried resisting the spell Alice placed on his choker, not wanting to remember that day. Alice looked at him with sympathy and pity, it was easy for her to see how much he's been through in such a short time. Still, she had a job to do; she couldn't let emotion get in the way of the truth.

[b]"...One more question, Kunihisa-San. ...During that hunt you and your family were a part of, before this blackout or perhaps even after, did you see anything suspicious in that forest, anything at all?"[/b] She asked.

[color=red][b]"I...I don't know. Everything about that moment was blurry to me, it all feels like a fever dream now. I...I think, there was a shadow. Far off into the distance among the trees. I couldn't make anything out of it...But...I think it was [i]after[/i] I saw it that the pain started. When I woke up...There was nothing."[/b][/color] Aki said.

Alice, lost in thought, looked towards the veil behind her where her mother resided and watched over the court, then towards Siegrain and Aki's lawyer, before finally closing her eyes. With a wave of her finger, the mark she made on Aki's choker faded away, coming off in pieces and dispersing like glowing white dust in the wind.

[b]"...The Court is ready to announce a verdict. Everything seen and heard suggests the possibility of a third-party who could have sired this boy into becoming a Vampire, and by extension could have been the perpetrator of this murder. However, the Prosecution's case is compelling. As we have no eye witness testimony save the defendant, and the defendant admitted to blacking out during these murders, it becomes just as likely that Kunihisa-san unintentionally killed them during the painful transition, and while he is just as much a victim, the dangers this implies cannot be ignored. ...Knowing this, on the charge of the massacre of the Kunihisa Clan, the court find the defendant, [i]not guilty.[/i]"[/b] Alice said. Needless to say it caused an uproar in the audience as the room went loud fast. Aki himself was utterly dumbfounded by this decision, especially it sounded at the end like she was gonna put him to the axe after all. Why on earth would this lady find a Vampire like him innocent of his charges? Nepotism towards the Nobility perhaps, but even then why do it for a monster, noble blood or no?

Well, it seemed he was about his answer as Alice slammed a rune-inscribed gavel upon the desk, the sound being thunderous and letting out a wave of magical energy, the room once again going silent.

[b]"Order in the court! I'm not finished yet! ...There is no proof showing one way or the other that this boy killed his own family. However, that's not the only charge he has on him. Though by circumstances beyond his control, there is no denying that, as a Vampire, he is a potential danger to society. Evidence provided the prosecution has shown that danger between the time of his turn, and his capture and...[i]"failed"[/i] execution..."[/b] Alice's eyes looked towards Ur, knowing she was responsible for the stopping the Execution. For some reason though, there wasn't any anger or frustration in her eyes...A mild annoyance to be expected, but Aki couldn't quite make out any other emotion she was showing.

[b]"...It has been shown that he had restraint in his actions and choices of target, showing a sense of control. Nonetheless, a Vampire's bloodlust overwriting the senses is a well-known phenomenon that we cannot ignore. On charge of public endangerment, the court finds the Defendant guilty. However, In light of new information and the previous Verdict hereby overturn the death sentence given upon capture. Instead, In the name of our Firelord Shangri-La, I sentence Aki Kunihisa to indefinite probation and rehabilitation. Ur-San, You and your guild's actions regarding Aki are noted. Your indictment is low-priority, but know that it [i]will[/i] happen. Until then, I am putting you and your guild in charge of his probation, and restraining his Vampirism. Know that if he harms and drinks the blood of innocent lives, we'll be forced to reinstate his execution, and hold your guild responsible."[/b] She then said. This in particular made Aki tense up, knowing that he was now truly stuck with this asylum of a guild, he almost wished for death. It was around she finished speaking that the Fox lady - that little fox that was on Ur's shoulder apparently - stepped up to add more runes to the Choker. Immediately, he felt...different, it's hard to fathom for him, but he felt...closer to how he was before all this vampiric nonsense happened to him.

But he also noticed something...[i]Wrong[/i]. A feeling of dread and concern he couldn't explain crawled down his back. But it wasn't because of this lady - nor the other one, as intimidating as her silhouette was - it was...

[color=red][i]"...Yuna?"[/i][/color]

[center][b]"Court..."[/b][/center]

He could hear her grunt in pain, hyperventilating as she did. Connected as their souls were he could feel as she felt, that dread and concern, the fear and anxiety starting to bubble up, it wasn't his; it was [i]hers.[/i] He looked over to her with Mio, she was clutching her head as if suffering a major headache, her eyes glowing green rather than their usual red coloring.

[color=lime][i]Aki....I...get out of there...![/i][/color] She said amidst the noises.

[center][b]"is..."[/b][/center]

Aki looked around; he knew whatever was causing her to be like this had to be somewhere in the Court room as the audience's noisy nature started riling up again.

[center][b]"Ad-...[/b][/center]

But before he could find the cause of whatever's happening to Yuna, All the noise stopped...[i]all[/i] the noise. Including that of Yuna's pained gasps and breathing.

[color=red][i]"Yuna...? Yuna!"[/i][/color]

But no response. Taking a look towards Yuna and Mio, then looking around, it all made sense.

Everything was frozen, not literally, but rather, time itself seemed to Pause, with only Aki himself moving. He's heard of Time magic capable of this kind of thing, but he's never seen it in the flesh.

[center][color=orange][b]"...It begins."[/b][/color][/center]

He heard a voice among the absolute silence. Turning towards it, there was someone in front of him, between the witness stand and the Judge's podium, standing at what felt like the center of the room. A small girl, with red locks and eyes much like his own, giving him a light smile as she stared at him. Was this another noble-lady? Was she the one who froze time?

[center][color=orange][b]"...Don't Cry."[/b][/color][/center]

She then said, and without elaborating, as he blinked, she seemed to vanish as if never there to begin with.

[center][color=red][b]...What the f-[/b][/color][/center]

[center][b]"...-Journed!"[/b][/center]

With that, Time unfroze...

And with it, chaos awakened.



[center][color=lime][b]AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAÁ̸̴̵̛̘͍͇̤̠̠̰̟͔̲͙̜̀̿͟A̜̫͖̹̜̹͚̣̟͓̓̂͗ͥͫ̿͒̓ͧ̈́͌̄̉̕͟͜͝A̶̛̛̹̭̠͔͓͉̭͛ͦ̃̔̀́̓̓ͧ̍̏ͦ͗ͧͬͭͬ̊͝_̧̨͇͛ͩͭ̊͛̊͒̾A̢̝̣͕̠ͣA̡̡̛̬̩͓̜͎̪̝͚̩͑ͣͭ͂͛ͨͧ̃̆ͥͦ̅͒ͮ̒͛̊̾ͧ̕̚͢͟͡A̖̍ͨ̽͞A͖̩̅̎_̸̴͈͎͙ͤ̔ͦ̔̄̂̊̿_̸̴̷̴̣̱͈̭̥̤͖̭̈̅ͬ͐ͪ̃͛̔ͬ͢͞͠Ą̴̡̢̛̮̟̘̼̩̺͎̜̣͓̤͓̲̬͚̱͓̆͛̋̈ͫ̎̓͂́̾̄̊̿̋ͥͨ̀͐̆̆͆͞Ą̸͍̺̺̙̱̐ͫͫ̑̀ͬ͟A̜̘̖̤̩̰ͨ̒ͧ̔̔̆ͯͮ͗͂͜ͅĀ͈̏̍̍H̷̷̡̧̩͓͇͉̦̟̮̣̙̗͉ͩ̅ͪ̌̀̎ͪ̈̽̿̓̄͑̔̍ͭ̏ͤ̓͟͝Ḫ̨̧̗̼͉͔̺̤͚̯̠̲̩̖̙̪̻̞̯͕͓̥̳͇̀̓̓ͯͨ̑͐́̿͐̐̕̕͘͘͟͜͝H̸̵̲̣̄̊͑Ḩ̧̳͕̘̠̩͖͔̮̾͗̑̋́̀ͥ̓͢͢_̢̛͕̺̐̄̀ͭ̿͗̉̋͞H̷͇̖̙̬̖̫̜͙͙͒̾̈́͌́́͒̄ͧ͛̐̆̐͜͜͠ͅͅ_͕̪H̵̢̡̛̠̻̱̉͛ͤͧͭͫ̂ͣ̈́̍ͥ̏͋͢Ḩ̗̝̻̝̖̠͖̩̰ͯ͂͛͗̊̿͢͟H̲̭̯̭̤̼̜͍ͫ̍ͫ̐͂͊̌̉͗͒̍ͪͤ͘̕͢͠_̤̞̗͈̹͕͐ͦͧ̕͜͢͢͡͡ͅH̵̰͚̥̫͉̱̝͖͔͇̜̹͕͓̫̭̬͈͒ͦ̉̀̒̋́̈́̾͌̿͐̓ͣͤ̾̓̎́́̔̚͜͢͡HH͈__̶̟̠͚͍̝͐̿̉ͭ̔̂̒͗ͯ_ͥ̽ͯ̉̑ͪ͒ͅH̸̸̴̨͚͙̝͓͓̩̲̯͔͍̮͇͆̃͋ͨ̅͛̅̊ͧ̔͛ͦͮ͂͂̔́ͯ́͘͢͠HH̡̧̛̳͎͔̦͈̻̩͖͚̤̀̅́͂̔̇ͥ̈́͞͠͡_̙_̧̟͎̣͚̝̦̠̞̏̈́ͬ͟H̴̡̜̗̐ͤͫ̚_̶ͮ̈̎ͨ̌̀͋͟͝H̦̘͌ͤ̅͡H̢̡̥̖̫̖̼̝̱̞̗̹̩̤̦͔̔̐ͦͣ̉̔ͤ͛ͦ̉͢͞H̶̸̡̡̡̧̦͎̤̬̦̗̬̗ͣ̀͌̍̈ͭ̐ͥ̈̈̍́̕͟͝ͅͅH̋H̨̨̨͓̖̝̠̦͕̦ͩͤͯ̂̑H̺̦̱̲̮̩̓̂͊̈́̐ͭ̄ͧͥ͛͠H̢̨̡̤̲̼̼ͭ̾̏ͨ̓̃͊ͭͥ̀̂͜͢͝ͅḨ̶̶̸͚̯̣̫̤̙͙̥͔̫̣̞͈̤̣͚͉̗̘̹̩ͯ͊ͫ̀̆̃͗ͪ͑͊͂̂ͮͫ͑͛̚͢͞͡͠H̷̴̸̵̟̖͙̫͍̠̥̮͕̥̭̹͔̩͖ͨ̐͗̅ͦ̇̈́͂ͫ͛ͫͫ͆ͭ̇̿̓͘͟ͅH̷̞͙͎͖͍̘͚̝̳̤͚̮͇̭̫́ͨ͗͗ͤ̾͠H̜H̵̷̢̞̻͉͈̩̊̾ͤ̍ͤ͜H̴̦̲͈̖̩̺̫͓̝̥͕̝̺̹͓ͬͧ͒͂̔̓ͬ̂̎ͦͣ͂̐͛ͪ̚͡͠ͅḤ̷̡̘͔̬̩̞̺̰͚͎̦͕̻̝͓͖͙̣ͯ̿̾̉ͣ̄̋̃̈́̏̆͊ͧ͌̽̕͢͞H̡̞͇͕͉̦̫̲͆̀̈̓́ͤ͊̽ͮ͜͠H̙̤̤̹̙̮̟̳̦̆̊ͧͩ̽ͧ͛͜͟͡_̝̦̬͓̫̆̊ͥ̒̈̌͝H̴̞̱̩̱̝͖̖͍̲͖̠̅̂̑̇̃ͬ͑͗̕͟͠Ḣ͕̝̳͇͇̄ͦ̊̇̄ͤͦͧ̚H̴̨̨̨̛̜̳̮͎͈͓̮͖̦̹̀̉ͩ̃̄͆̅ͬ͋̊H̸̡̨̥͖̖̳͈̜̟̦̪̜̑̓̈́ͭ̐́ͧ̔̇̉̆͛ͥ̀͌͆̉͂̿͜H̴̴̡̨̧̘̗̖̰͎͈̩̲̙ͤ̏͂̀͗͊̈͆̄͆̄̿̈́͌̑͑ͫ̕̚͞͝͞ͅH̷̷̛̛͙͍̻͙̜̦̠̱̣ͨ̀̀ͧͤ̌̈́̔ͥͭͩ͋́ͩḦ̷̨̨̨̛͇͙̹̱͕͎͚̩͔͉͍̰̟̊ͦͯͫͭͦ̋ͩ͋̾ͨͤ̑ͧ̌̈́ͨ̏̈́́̚̚̚͝͝H̶̷̢̞̤͂͑̒̆̆ͯ_̴̶̛̺̬̤̘͍̟̜̯̥̪̐̐̔͛͌̔͌ͪ͌̍̈ͧ̇̃̕͠H̶̷̶̗̗̙͙̣̣̱͑̈́̃͆̓Ḫ̶̷͕͉̖̼ͤ̎ͦ͂ͫ́ͯ͗̊͆͘͞͞͠Ḥ̫̪_̵̸͙͇̬̭̠̀̎ͥ̌́ͭ͌ͪ͋ͫ̄͌ͦ͗͡ͅH̸̛͖̮͔̲̜̙̭̘̳̜̩̣̥̙͍̃̓̍͛́ͬ̇͆ͮ̋̋ͫ̃͑ͦ̌͋̇̕͘͟͠ͅH̴̛̛̻͖̹̼͇͈̬̭ͣͪ̈̾̍ͮ͊̿ͯͫͥ͟͜͞H̸̘͖̭͇͖̞̽́̇ͧ̆ͦ͊̐̌̕͜͠ͅȞ̵̉̿̌͜H̶̶̡̤̟͖̤̤̩͈̘̘̟͇̦̙̓̋ͮ̓͌ͭ̃̍͒̈́̃͢͟͠H̟̠̙̣͌͌́͂̓̏̾ͬͅḨ̵̵̨̩̯̥̮̟͙̫̭̥̫͇̯ͫ̈ͣͨͯ̅̔ͣ̈͂̍̐̂̓̚͢ͅH̦ͫ̔H̵̖͈͍̙̼̭͈̝̖̜̰̯̻̮̣̭ͣͦ͗̆̾ͨͪ͆̆͒̔ͪͨ̉̉̕͟͡͞ͅH̷̹̮͚̻̯̰͍̫̠͙̯͚͈̍ͭ̅̍ͮͬ͑̋̆͐ͮ͂ͬͮ́ͤ̾͊͑ͯ̍̚̚͟͝͝H̹̺̱͇̮͆́̆̑͋̕͝Ḩ̨̜̬̥͔͕̹̪͚̭͙͙̹̻̍̾̎̌ͯ̽͑́ͪͯ͛̽ͭ̑̋͗̐ͮH̪͓̻̰͙̰̫͎̞̰͇͓͎͊̒̈́͆̐̀͆͌̽̿̏͜͜͝͝ͅ!̭̞͕̰̼̣ͨ͌́̓͢!̧͕̬̥̲͍̼͓̘̝̟̠̖͙̬̝͍̍ͯ̍̓ͣͬ͌̓͊̆̅̋̒̄ͫ̓͂̓̆͘͡ͅ!̸̡̨̨̗̪̲̱͉̺̲̠̭̘̟̑̿̓ͮ͒̌̾ͧ͡͠!͓_̴̶̘͔̣̖͍͌̿ͨͬ͊̏ͩ̎̚ͅ!̖̥͙͊̽ͤ͌̈́ͨ̉̃̀[/b][/color][/center]



...Aki couldn't exactly remember what happened next. The rest of his time there was like a fever dream. He remembered that Yuna seemed to explode into green light everyone around could see, white particles and what could only be described as black ectoplasm began raining down, as if raining and snowing at the same time, the room became lighter, as if he was floating in the air, people were all screaming and panicking as the courtroom began to fill with fluid shapes he couldn't recognize, entities he never seen before almost like a nightmare, Yuna herself seemingly covered in some mixture of white light and black thick liquid, shaping into an almost monstrous shape of her own, but he couldn't quite see or remember what it was. Almost in a flash the entire courtroom was just a pit of bedlam. parts of the audience seats were on fire and crumbled, people were running for the doors as monsters were suddenly destroying the courtroom. Alice may have been fighting them? Or was it Ur and Akane? He wasn't sure... he couldn't focus enough to see it for himself. It felt like the whole courtroom was practically falling apart around him. But what really sealed the deal was that in the distance, by the doors exiting the courtroom, he could see a familiar silhouette...He was certain. It was the same shadow he saw that day.

...Then his mind went blank, all he remembered after that was his body, light as a feather, seemingly floating away.

When he woke, he was somewhere else completely, just outside Hizuru's capital it seemed. A green-haired Yuna lying beside him but facing away from him, breathing heavily as if injured. Her ghostly body was seemingly phasing in and out of reality, as if she was but a glitching hologram. He tried to put his hand on her shoulder, but of course, it phased through her.

[color=lime][b]".҉.҉.҉I҉-҉I҉.҉.҉.҉.҉.҉.҉I҉-҉'҉m҉ s҉o҉r҉r҉y҉.҉.҉.҉A҉k҉i҉.҉"[/b][/color] She said, dispersing into a white smoke and flowing into his choker.

He had no idea what happened, but one thing was very clear to him. He had to run, run as fast as he could, as far away as he could, for both their sakes.

[hr]

[center][b][u][i]Port Hargeon, Fiore[/i][/u][/b][/center]

It hasn't been that long since then, He and Yuna were now on the run, court orders be damned. The entire experience had taught him not to trust a soul beyond himself and Yuna. Which bring him to another country altogether: The Hargeon Port of Fiore. How they even got here is a complete unknown to him, he can only assume Yuna's weird magic had something to do with it. For Aki personally though, where he goes doesn't matter, as long as it's as far away as possible from the village and Hizuru, a place where he can live in peace...Course being a Vampire, he guesses that's not gonna be anywhere pleasant. Oh wait, in a way he's not anymore, not as long as this damn rune formula that fox lady put on him still holds. Well, maybe that's for the best, it's not like he welcomes his vampiric life anyways.

For now, he needs to lay low in this port town, find somewhere he could hide from everyone, and take a second to actually think about what to do next.

Stepping into a back alley, he took a minute to catch his breath. It felt like everything from the court's aftermath was a fever dream, and that he's just been running non-stop.

[color=red][b]"How you holding up, Yuna. You feeling any better?"[/b][/color] Aki asked.

[center][color=lime][b]"҉.҉.҉.҉I҉.҉.҉.҉I҉ t҉h҉i҉n҉k҉ s҉o҉,҉ .҉.҉.҉B҉a҉r҉e҉l҉y҉.҉ .҉.҉.҉I҉'҉m҉ g҉o҉n҉n҉a҉ n҉e҉e҉d҉ a҉ b҉i҉t҉.҉.҉.҉H҉e҉r҉e҉.҉.҉.҉"҉[/b][/color][/center]

It seemed she hasn't fully recovered from whatever that freak out of hers was. There was some kind of static he could hear muffling the sound of her voice, like the thought-communication was a faulty phone with poor reception. It was hard to make out what exactly she was saying. He hasn't gotten used to it yet, but hopefully it's just a temporary issue and she'll go back to normal in time. A black smoke came out of the choker, forming into a small black cloud above Aki's head, swirling around, it began to glow with a green lining, and move towards the red sword on his waist, embuing it with a green aura of some kind.

[center][color=lime][b]""҉I҉.҉.҉.҉ c҉a҉n҉ b҉a҉r҉e҉l҉y҉ c҉o҉n҉t҉a҉i҉n҉ m҉y҉s҉e҉l҉f҉.҉.҉.҉ T҉h҉i҉s҉ p҉o҉w҉e҉r҉'҉s҉.҉.҉.҉s҉o҉ n҉e҉w҉.҉.҉.҉s҉o҉ u҉n҉t҉a҉m҉a҉b҉l҉e҉.҉.҉.҉G҉o҉t҉t҉a҉.҉.҉.҉k҉e҉e҉p҉ i҉t҉ u҉n҉d҉e҉r҉ c҉o҉n҉t҉r҉o҉l҉.҉.҉.҉b҉e҉f҉o҉r҉e҉ I҉ c҉a҉n҉ c҉o҉m҉e҉ o҉u҉t҉.҉.҉.҉t҉h҉i҉s҉ s҉m҉a҉l҉l҉ p҉o҉r҉t҉i҉o҉n҉.҉.҉.҉i҉s҉ a҉l҉l҉ I҉ c҉a҉n҉ d҉o҉.҉ .҉.҉.҉B҉e҉ c҉a҉r҉e҉f҉u҉l҉ A҉k҉i҉.҉"҉"[/b][/color][/center]

He still couldn't quite understand what she was saying, but he could definitely guess by what he little he could hear.

[color=red][b]"Are...Are you sure? ...Thanks Yuna, rest for now."[/b][/color] He said. Taking a few steps out of the Backalley, he began searching around for somewhere he could make a safehouse of some kind, until spotting a rather lavish mansion nearby.

[center]"Everlue Mansion"[/center]

Hopefully it was deserted, but even if someone lived there, it seemed large enough to find a hiding spot he could use for a time.

On the bright side, now that he was in a different country an ocean away from Hizuru, at least he won't have to worry about Fenix Tear chasing after him for a while.