[IC] Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

[Hero]

As Jaakuna left, Emiri would wince. She held her head, feeling a very odd kind of pain. It hurt, but it wasn't like a headache...or at least she didn't think so. It was a very foreign feeling that she didn't like, but she knew she would have to sit through it. It would be worth it. It was worth it. Jaakuna made it worth it for her. She let out a slight groan, though she would put her hands on her lap and open her eyes. As she did Jaakuna would walk in and take a seat next to her. A part of her wanted to tell him that it hurt, but really, it didn't matter. They were coming back...one way or another.

---

"I can't believe we haven't found anything yet."

The uncharacteristic complaint from Grant would not fall on deaf ears. The very real truth of the matter was that they were lost. Grant thought he could keep track, but they had gone in so deep he just was not sure where they were. Nadeline would keep going with a small frown. For her, she thought it was very quiet, all things considered. Her eyes would search the crystal walls, expecting an attack that would never come. Where had all the monsters gone? She could not chalk it up to luck either; the Mist had changed around them as well. There was...something nearby, but for some reason she just did not think it was Ultima. It was very strong, but she had no idea what it was. A strong monster? No, it wasn't.

"Let's be on our guard." Nadeline muttered, gripping her rapier as they continued.

[AlteredTundra]

As Jaakuna sat down, he just looked at Emiri. He just sighed and looked around for no reason whatsoever. It was actually done because he was stretching as heard by the slight cracks in his joints. Jaakuna would then bring his sight back to Emiri. "We need to make a trip, but the ship can't move from this location, not without the others." Jaakuna said as he bit his thumb. He had to think about how exactly they would get to The Gilmore Jungle. He knew that they couldn't take the ship cause it was too big and in case the others were to come back earlier than expected, it would need to be here. "IRIS, is The Prototype done?" Jaakuna asked Iris.

"Yes, Master JAakuna, it is. Would you like to use it?"

"That would be lovely."

"Doing it now."

As Iris and Jaakuna exchanged words, a platform of sorts descended from above them only to reveal a little steel rectangular container with the word "Prototype" written across it. Jaakuna would take it and put it into his pocket. He then stood up and looked at Emiri. With his arm extended, Jaakuna was inviting Emiri to follow him.

---

It seemed like they have been walking forever. Wesley couldn't remember when exactly it was that they entered the Great Crystal. Timed seemed to be moving differntly within this place and to make matters worse, every path they would take be it up or down, looked the same and it didn't seem to start to appear as if it were changing. Truly, they had to be lost. Wesley just didn't know if they would even be able to backtrack their way out of the Great Crystal. If they couldn't, then they would be forgotten and never to be rescued. Still, WEsley had to remain on the calm side. They would find something eventually.

As they continued, Savayna noticed the lack of monsters. "Um, where are all the beasts?" Savayna asked.

Wesley looked and slumped his shoulders, and he suddenly felt the tingling of mist in the area. "Perhaps they've all ran away due to the origin of that mist." Wesley said.

Following Nadeline's lead, Savayna and WEsley followed her and both kept a keen eye out for whatever might come. They knew one thing: whatever was around was strong and they would be in for one hell of a fight.

[Hero]

"Prototype?" Emiri asked as she looked at Jaakuna with a small frown on her face. It would seem that he wanted to go somewhere, but where? She tried to imagine where, but nothing really seemed to come to mind. She would also think that it was odd that he wanted to go somewhere. Either way Jaakuna would extend his hand out to her. She would smile lightly, though her curiosity would overcome her. "Where are we going?" She asked him.

---

"What is that?"

It would seem that the group had reached their destination...or at the very least, the place where the path had lead down to. Instead of finding Ultima, however, there was only a room with what appeared to be a ginormous treasure coiffer in it. Not only did it seem extremely out of place, but in this crystal haven it simply looked bizarre. Nadeline couldn't help but muse that for once it was a good thing that Jaakuna hadn't been around, he would have charged to try to get the treasure for sure. Grant would frown slightly as he inspected it. "You know...what does this remind me of?" He asked, truly puzzled. "I have seen this somewhere before...but where...?"

"Have you truly?" Nadeline asked him curiously. "I don't believe I have ever seen anything like this."

Grant nodded at her, crossing his arms as he thought to himself. Yes, this definitely looked familiar. But from where? That was when it hit him. "Oh, I know. It reminds me of a Mimic, does it not?" The group would fall silent, though all eyes would turn to the giant thing before them. As if on cue, the mechanisms within would activate. Grant would silently curse and flinch as no doubt everyone had thrown a glare at him, though their attention would soon be grabbed by the creature in front of him. Just like a Mimic, it would unfold before the, albeit a little slower than the usual quick Mimic. Grant spotted an inscription and peered at it. "Omega Mark XII...? Oh. OH. Oh no."

[AlteredTundra]

“Oh you’ll see~” Jaakuna playfully said.

He and Emiri went hand-in-hand to the Beaming Station. No doubt she was even more curious and perhaps, given how Jaakuna could be, maybe Emiri also felt a little annoyed cause Jaakuna would tell her what The Prototype was. Jaakuna just wanted the mystery of it to remain until he could show it to her and see the look on her face as she saw it. Eventually, they got to the Beaming station and within the minute that they had, they were transported down to the ground, to which Jaakuna looked at Emiri, still holding her hand, and smiled.

“Well, I hope you’re ready.” He said grinning.

Jaakuna pulled out the metal, rectangular box from his pocket, and opened it up. He would take the capsule that was labeled ‘The Prototype”, and he would press the top of it. Hearing a clicking sound, Jaakuna through it up in the air and it would land about five feet in front of them. Three beeps would sound off, three seconds each away from each other, it would cause a rather elegant explosion of magick. The area around to which the capsule landed would be covered in teal and turquoise-hued magicks. As a minute go by, the magick would had already faded away and in its place was a futuristic-looking bike.

“Emiri, I would like to present to you my baby — well, my other, OTHER baby — The Aegis War Bike.” Jaakuna told her as if presenting to her like some model presenting a new car on game shows.

---

Moving along the deepest regions of the Great Crystal, the group would find themselves in front of a crystal, but it was oddly shaded. When Grant would ask the group — rhetorically no doubt — that if it reminded them of a Mimic. Wesley looked at it and Grant was absolutely right. It did resemble that of a mimic, though Wesley had this bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that something horrible was about to happen.

It was, as if the thing heard Grant, would shape itself into a rather large form. It was Grant announcing it that Wesley’s bad feeling was rightly placed. To think that they would have the horrible luck of running into the Omega Weapon XII, one of the most revered creatures in all of Ivalice. Just the tales that Wesley remembered hearing from the Hunters of Rabanastre and the stories written about this beast made Wesley fear the day that he would run into it. He would have hoped he never have to face this beast, but alas that seemed to not be the case.

Savayna looked at the beast and while she was scared out of her mind, she would not stand down. She would hold her ground as the beast would prepare to attack. “Here it comes! Brace yourselves!” Savayna cried out as the green light-like eye would shine and send a full circle ocular beam to the group. Savayna would jump back, and Wesley would jump up, both evading the attack.

[Hero]

Emiri raised her eyebrows, clearly having been caught off guard by Jaakuna's surprise. She hadn't really seen anything like it, and it was certainly a first. He seemed proud of it--did he build it, perhaps? Jaakuna still hadn't told her where they were going, which put her a bit on edge, but she trusted him enough to just go along with it. She did chuckle lightly at his antics, though she would nod in approval. "How exciting!" She would tell him as she looked at the bike before her. "Well then, shall we get going? It won't do to go and have the others waiting for us, right?" She secretly found the idea of riding with Jaakuna thrilling.

---

"Oh shi--" Grant's curse was cut short as he lunged towards Nadeline, knocking her down in time to avoid the beam. The princess shrieked lightly in surprise, having been prepared to mimic Wesley and leap over it, though judging by the height as the beam zipped over her, she may not have been able to jump high enough. The two scrambled to their feet, Nadeline whipping her rapier to the side in preparation for a frontal assault. Grant shot at Omega several times, prompting the giant machine to raise a leg in defense. Nadeline would dash forward, ready to strike, though she would find that simply attacking wouldn't be as effective as she would have hoped.

As she struck the enemy, it was as if she had decided to attack a wall. Her entire arm shook as her attack was bounced back. Sure she knew she was weak, but she didn't think her attack would be full on useless. Grant's eyes would widen slightly as he watched, though he would take another approach. "Darkga!" He called as his magic would blast Omega, giving Nadeline time to jump back and regroup. "Perhaps you and I can stay in the fight with our Magicks, then." He would tell her as she raised her rapier in the air.

"Agreed. Flare!" Nadeline swung her rapier as the non elemental flames erupted around Omega.

[AlteredTundra]

Nodding at Emiri's words, Jaakuna found himself grinning ear-to-ear, something he thought that only Nadeline did. Still, Jaakuna and Emiri got on his bike, Once both of them go on, Jaakuna would turn on the bike, the sounds of the engine roaring loudly. Jaakuna would lean forward and as he tested to see that the bike was ready, he would push a button and the bike would then start to lift off the ground. It was as if on his cue that the bike ripped through the air, going about twenty feet in the air, and roaring through the shallow skies,

The sounds that the bike made as it roared off were much like that of a grounded bike going sixty-plus in the streets of a silent town in the hills with only the rider, his or her bike, and the open road to guide them. Jaakuna definitely felt the same way as he rode The Prototype with Emiri latched on along for the ride. He wouldn't have it any other way and at the speed that they were going, it was no doubt that the arrival to the viera village of Eruyt would only be a matter of minutes.

---

As they each had dodged the first attack from the Omega Weapon, WEsley and Savayna saw as Nadeline and Grant would go for the first go of attacking. Granted, both of them seemed to have failed as their attacks did little to nothing in harming it. That was to be expected. The Omega Weapon has been one of the most feared beasts in Ivalice and to expect it to show weakness to a few gun shots or a swing from a rapier wasn't going to cut it. Wesley would notice that Nadeline and Grant saw that and they would go to magic, to which Darkga and Flare were shot off. That proved to be much more effective as the beast showed slight damage from the high-leveled spells.

Wesley and Savayna would also go on the offensive of the beast. "Have some of this!" Savayna said as she had her sword tightly in her grip and as she gilded through the air, she waved her sword downward as it would release a wave of ice magick, much to the level of power that Blizzaga contained. Wesley would follow up as he got his Sword of Order and slashed ten times, as fast as he could. "Heavenly Strike!" He called out as he strike was that of the level of Holaga. Each strike would criss-cross each other, hitting the Omega Weapon.

With the combined efforts of the group each piling on Omega, it was slowed for a brief second. It released a subtle roar of anger and pain, no doubt from the onslaught that it received from the group. Still, it would look them dead-straight in the eyes and as it would leap into the air, it would shape its body into that of a ninja throwing star. It would start to spin its body at high speeds, releasing hundreds of magick-infused orbs of energy from the tips of its reconfigured body. These orbs would make its way to the group and around them. Wesley noticed the balls, as did Savayna. Both of them would revert to evasive maneuvers, trying to dodge as many of the orbs as they could.

[Hero]

Oh this suddenly felt like a very bad idea. Under normal circumstances (not that this wasn't normal already or whatever) Emiri wouldn't object to any of Jaakuna's ideas, but this bike didn't seem very safe. Still, she swung her legs over and would wrap her arms around Jaakuna, and before she could even brace herself they were off. This earned him a squeal and the brunette would have a vice like grip on him. It should have been exhilarating but the truth was that she was absolutely terrified. She almost preferred that they would have walked, but after a while of clinging onto her boyfriend for dear life the ride got...a little better so to speak.

"We're going really fast!" She yelled, her arms shaking lightly from terror.

---

"That isn't even fair." Grant would state as he watched Omega's attack. How the hell would they dodge all of those attacks? Nadeline would respond by stepping in front of him, drawing a circle with her rapier. Six Blizzard spells would line up and once she would swing her rapier they shot off, piercing through several of the balls. Still the sheer number of how many they were only cleared a path, to which Nadeline would spin around wordlessly, a Protect erupting around them. Several of the balls would crash into the barrier, threatening to crack it. "We need to place a decisive attack on this thing." He told Nadeline, scratching his chin. "You're surprisingly nonchalant all things considered."

"[b]It eats my physical attacks and my magic doesn't seem to be phasing it. I almost wish Jaakuna and Emiri were here.[b]" The princess sighed, watching her Protect.

[AlteredTundra]

"Oh this is nothing." Jaakuna smiled.

Knowing that the bike could definitely go a lot faster, Jaakuna was really tempted to push the speed up to the next level, but based on the tightness of Emiri's grip, perhaps that wouldn't be such a good idea. It was a shame too cause Jaakuna really wanted to see exactly how fast his bike went. He wasn't even sure how fast it could go. Of course, he had his estimations, but this was the first time that Jaakuna has used it for a long-distance trip, so of course he wouldn't know the maximum speed of the bike itself. Still, it's not like he would have to use the full speed or even the current speed because Jaakuna saw that they had arrived to the entry to Eruyt, to which the bike would come to a stop slowly as Jaakuna would make it circle a small radius so that the stopping wasn't out of nowhere.

The bike would land on the ground and small click would be heard, which was the bike turning off. "Well, we're here~" Jaakuna said as he turned his head to Emiri, making sure she wasn't sick or anything of the sort.

---

The balls of magic that the Omega WEapon had launched towards them were large in numbers and even though Nadeline's attack seemed to dwindle the numbers a good deal, there were still so many balls. Savayna just couldn't understand how such a strong monster even existed in the first place and what was even worse, she just couldn't believe that it wasn't even damaged in the slightest. It was like the beast itself was immune to their attacks. Savayna turned to Wesley and they just exchanged a look. They were thinking the same thing and they knew that if they didn't do something soon, they definitely would not see the light of day ever again. As if they mentally talked about it, Wesley and Savayna lifted up their right arms and the wrists of those arms glowed with a glow of icy-blue and orange for Savayna and Wesley respectively. The minute that followed the glow, the two had summoned their respective Espers: Mateus, The Corrupt, and Hashmaal, Bringer of Order.

"Wesley, I am glad you have summoned me." Hashmaal said as he gave Wesley a smile.

"You're making this a habit, aren't you?" Mateus said as he sighed.

The two espers looked at each other and then looked to see who was in front of them. They both had to admit something very troubling to their mental selves. They couldn't believe that the product of man's misfortune was what they were looking at. Still, it didn't make the very moment any different. They would both protect their masters. Mateus would raise his trident and with a single wave, chilling icy winds came forth and froze what was left of the balls. Meanwhile, Hashmaal would jump high into the air and as he would flip his body several times in the air, his claw-like things would transform into hands and as he would near Omega Weapon's body, his right hand would glow orange. For a moment, it seemed that time was still. In the moment that Hashmaal's had handed on Omega's head, he slammed the beast hard into the ground as the force in which Hashmaal had in his hand was enough to physically harm the beast. In doing so, there was a moderately large crater with Omega in the center of it.

Wesley and Savayna looked and they just couldn't believe that their espers were so strong. "Damn Mateus!" Savayna said in complete awe.

"Nicely done, Hashmaal." Wesley simply said.

By the time both of them said their words, Hashmaal was in front of Wesley and then he looked to NAdeline and Grant, but specifically Grant. "Prince of Rozarria, I wish not to impose my authority over you, but to win this battle, you must summon your own Esper. Omega is not a foe you beat with mere worldly magick." Hashmaal said to Grant, offering up his wisdom, but it might come across as an order rather than advice.

[Hero]

Emiri's death grip on Jaakuna would not cease until the bike came to a complete stop. She both immensely relieved and slightly trembling, she swore she could have fallen off at any moment. She absentmindedly patted her head, only now remembering her wreath. While she was glad it didn't fall off, she had to admit she had forgotten all about the thing. That wasn't good; she wanted to remember more, not continue to forget. Still, as her feet would touch the ground, she would take a look around. This place was more than too familiar; it was her second meeting place and reunion spot with Jaakuna. Although she couldn't truly fathom exactly what they would be accomplishing here at the moment.

"Why are we here?" Emiri asked Jaakuna. "This is...actually, I do not think I've ever been to this part of Golmore. The viera live around here, right?"

---

Nadeline was more then glad to see Mateus and Hashmaal, though the pang of slight jealousy did prickle her heart as Hashmaal would ask that Grant do the same as Wesley and Savayna. The prince would nod and look back at Nadeline, who would do the same and step back. Grant clenched his hand into a fist, though he would raise it, the glyph glowing a dark violet color before erupting. A fierce wind would pick up around Grant and Nadeline would close her eyes for a moment. As she opened them, she would see Zeromus standing before Grant, looking lightly peeved.

"The foolishness of humes truly knows no bounds. Create something and then become unable to control it. Pitiful." He scoffed, clearly displeased.

"Care not about its origin, focus instead on obliterating it!" Grant would tell him, pointing to the weapon.

"Tch. Obliterate it we shall.[b]" He replied as he raised his own hand and extended it towards Omega. "[b]Graviga." The spell was one no doubt the others were familiar with, but not at a force that they had ever seen. The sheer force of the spell threatened to crush the weapon, leaving Nadeline in slight awe. She had always thought Grant's Arcane Magic was strong, but an Esper truly put any hume's magic to shame, it would seem.

[AlteredTundra]

At the point the bike was going at a fast speed, Jaakuna couldn’t help but smile and laugh slightly as she would grip him as tight as she could. Perhaps the speed that he had the bike going at was a little too fast for her. It’s not like it wouldn’t matter much as the view of the entrance to Eruyt came to view. On the very second that it did, Jaakuna had stopped the bike, placed it down gently and the both of them got off of it.

As Jaakuna would get off the Aegis War Bike, he heard Emiri ask him exactly why they were at Eruyt and she would further state that she hadn’t been to this part of the Gilmore and she would ask and/or to confirm to Jaakuna. “Yeah, this is where they live.” Jaakuna told her. He then looked at the obvious darkness that the way to Eruyt had. It was always weird seeing that knowing that on the other side was something way different from anything in Gilmore. “We’re here to visit someone. There’s something I need confirmation on.” Jaakuna told Emiri.

---

It was like everyone was summoning their espers. Wesley and Savayna had done so and it proved to be effective, so of course, Grant would join the party with Zeromus, though it did seem that the Gravity Esper wasn’t all too thrilled to see The Omega Weapon XII. His annoyance was in the form of some rather brutally-honest words about how it was an abomination and that the humes themselves created something far out of their control. The other Espers were slightly annoyed by Zeromus’ annoyance, but once he activated his unique form of powers in the Arcane arts, that would put a small smile on both of them as the pure force of Zeromus’ Gravija spell almost crushed Omega to death.

Wesley looked on and he couldn’t believe that Zeromus had such strength within him. Sure, he knew that the Espers had magick that no hume could even dream of achieving, but he never believed that with just one spell that the Omega Weapon could be drawn to its metaphorical knees. Truly, the espers were great in every sense of the word.

“Then, shall we finish this?” Hashmaal said as he started to crack his knuckles.

“About damn time!” Mateus said as he raised his trident up.

Working as a team, Hashmaal would jump about five feet into the air, and punch the ground with his ring hand, sending a ripple through the ground and in quick succession, the area beneath Omega Weapon exploded with liquid hot magma and it sent the machine beast flying into the air. As it was in suspended air, that’s where Mateus entered the fray as he swam through the air. His Trident would pierce through the beast’s center, sending a Blizzaja-level spell through it’s body, freezing it internally and eventually, externally. About three seconds later, it fell to the ground, cracking into dozens upon dozens of mechanical bits, thus killing the ever-so famous Omega Weapon XII.

Both Wesley and Savayna looked at each other and then to the now dead Omega Weapon. They were literally speechless about what they had just witnessed. Be it the fact that they killed Omega Weapon or how they did it, the both of them stood still in awe. Hashmaal looked back and saw the expression on Savayna and Wesley’s face. He smirked slightly. “Our job is done.” He said, "Call upon me when you need my assistance further, Wesley.” Hashmaal said as he would disappear from their sights.

“Try not to die out here.” Mateus told Savayna as he too disappeared from their sights.

---

“It is done.” Said Levi.

“Good. Our plan is coming full fruition.” Said a deep, ominous voice.

“Yes, you’re right. It’s as you’ve said from the very beginning.” Levi replied.

“You sound like you doubted me..?” Asked the voice.

Levi laughed slightly. “Oh come on now, there has been plenty of reasons to doubt you, but worry not, with the recent developments, my doubts are non-existent.” Levi informed him.

“That’s good to hear. Our plan relies on the trust in both. I know that I’ve placed my entire trust in you for my plan to work.” The voice told Levi.

“And it’s rightfully placed. The Time Scion has one of your Dark Seeds, and by the time she uses her powers once more, she will be so consumed by your darkness, that she’ll have no choice but to come to you for it to be removed, Master Zodiark.” Levi said.

“This is all true, but the wildcard in this all is Chaos. The fool almost wrecked our entire plan by resetting her memory. If he feels that she is slipping again, there is no guarantee that he won’t do it again.” Zodiark said as if troubled by Chaos and what he might do.

“Don’t worry, Master. If I’m not mistaken, you yourself said that the other espers were not happy with Chaos, so I doubt he will do anything like that again.” Levi said, as if trying to reassure him.

“I hope for both of our sakes that you’re right.” Zodiark said.

[Hero]

Something he needed confirmation on? Emiri looked at Jaakuna rather curiously. What could it be? Before she could properly ask about it, however, a rustling sound would be heard. She nearly jumped out of her skin as the path to Eruyt would reveal itself to the pair. For a moment she looked at it in awe as it was the first time she had seen something like this. At the very least now she knew now how the viera were able to seclude themselves from the world for so long. As the pair would walk in she couldn't help but look around, curiousity abound. Yes, it was fact that this was her first time seeing all this, though surprisingly no viera were around the entrance of the village. The very few that were around pretty much ignored the pair as they walked in.

Not too far in did Emiri spot a peculiar sight. A few viera had gathered around in a group, though as a few of them would disperse would the scene be revealed. A viera clad in red was on the ground, writhing slightly, looking very pained. It was Ryua, and a very distressed Mtra has dropped to the ground, shaking her lightly. Whatever had happened, it was recent, and soon enough Aloa herself arrived at the scene. She would say something to the other viera, and they would hoist Ryua up, taking her away to somewhere deeper within the village.

"...the influence of him grows stronger by the day, and with only the High Seraph...the Mist will overwhelm us all." Emiri heard Mtra tell Aloa.

"I understand." Aloa replied, and at that point she would turn to the pair. "You've returned. The fates do not seem to tire of surprises, it would seem."

---

Grant let out a huge sigh of relief, not even having realized this entire time he had been pretty much holding his breath. They had lived to tell the tale of the Omega Weapon, something people had only ever heard of. He had a hunch Emiri would definitely throttle them for not bringing her along now. He looked at Nadeline, who only shook her head. Zeromus would scoff once more and leave without saying a word. Why did he look so annoyed? The princess would then sheath her rapier, looking to the rest of the group. "Well then...I suppose...we return and go the other way." She shrugged.

[AlteredTundra]

As they went through the apparent darkness that hid Eruyt from the outside world, they would soon make their way into the village. It didn’t matter how many times that Jaakuna saw Eruyt. He was always blown away at how such a large village was hidden away from Ivalice. Of course he knew clearly it was the manipulation of mist, but that still didn’t stop him from being totally surprised by it. Even more so how perhaps living in the village was starting to appeal to Jaakuna. Maybe it was that one mention that Aloa made of him living among them. That still resonated with Jaakuna.

As he kept thinking about it, Jaakuna and Emiri kept on walking and it wasn’t until that they saw the viera gathered around as if in a circle of some kind. When Jaakuna and Emiri’s presence became known, the viera dispersed. By this point, it looked like Ryua was in pain and Mtra was trying to help her out. Jaakuna wondered what exactly had happened, but before he could even get the chance to ask, Aloa came into view and Jaakuna heard something about the influence of ‘him’ and The High Seraph. He could only assume that they were talking about Zodiark and Ultima. On to what exactly it was had Jaakuna wondering.

Aloa would soon turn her attention to Jaakuna and Emiri and would further state that fate does not seem to give way to surprises. Jaakuna laughed slightly at that. “Good to see you too, Aloa.” Jaakuna said with a sly chuckle. He then looked to Emiri with a half-smile, then he gave a look to Aloa. “I wish I could say that we’re here for a casual visit.” Jaakuna admitted, “It is urgent that I speak with you in private.” Jaakuna said, looking at Emiri briefly before turning his gaze to Aloa.

[Hero]

Emiri stared at Jaakuna with a lightly confused expression on her face. She would catch Aloa also looking at her, though the viera made no attempt to look away. She blinked a few times, obviously unaware, though Aloa would briefly look at the wreath on her hair. Her eyebrow twitched ever so slightly, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly, though she would then close them. The brunette would absentmindedly touch the flowers on her hair, as if knowing Aloa was eyeing them. The viera would open her eyes again, this time looking at Jaakuna.

"Of course." She simply turned and began walking away from Emiri, no doubt knowing Jaakuna would follow. She wasn't going anywhere in particular, just getting away from everyone. "She looks quite pale. I hope she is doing well...though she seems better than we." Aloa said, clearly referring to Emiri. "As creatures of the Mist, we viera have always been rather sensitive to condensed Mist. The Espers keep Ivalice in balance, and without them Mist runs wild. Humes do not usually feel it, though many of my fellow viera have been put to sleep, unable to handle the changes. I am sure the entire village will soon need to sleep...dreaming until Zodiark is vanquished. I only wonder how much longer I will be able to last."

She noticed she was rambling at this point. "What is the reason for your return? I do not believe you've come to meddle in viera affairs."

[AlteredTundra]

It was as if Jaakuna could feel Emiri’s confused eyes at him. She no doubt was feeling that kind of way when he mentioned about wanting to speak with Aloa in private. He felt bad that he didn’t tell her, but before he could, he needed to be sure that what Levi did wasn’t harmful to Emiri and that there wasn’t any consequences of what she did for Emiri. So, in wanting that, Jaakuna followed Aloa and she would start to speak about how Emiri looked well for the most part, but she would also make a note that she seemed to be doing better than the viera. At that point, Jaakuna arched an eyebrow, but would stay silent.

When Aloa finished, she would then ask why Jaakuna had returned to Eruyt. Jaakuna sighed as if unsure how to word it. He looked at Aloa and just decided to speak. “The reason I’ve come back is for a confirmation about something.” Jaakuna said. “Just an hour or so ago, Levi came to my airship, The Ifrit, and told both Emiri and I that she could restore Emiri’s memory faster than what it was.” Jaakuna said. “I didn’t know what to make of it at first, but she presented her case and Emiri wanted to at least try, so I let Levi do it. It went well at the end of it. I mean, it didn’t seem that Emiri was poisoned or anything, but I don’t know..” [‘b]Jaakuna bit his thumb as he definitely was unsure of something. [b]“There was this moment of a flash of some kind. I only caught it for a second, but I could instantly feel something very off-putting about it.”

Realizing that he too was taking too long to get to the point, Jaakuna would just say it. “And that’s the reason I’ve come back. Could you perhaps aid us, yet again, and see if you can sense anything off within Emiri?”

[Hero]

"Levi...Leviathan." Aloa mused outloud, though she would continue walking, considering Jaakuna's words. "His Highness--Grant--referred to her as 'That treacherous Archadian snake woman' once. I would have thought you would be more cautious around her." She said as she turned the corner, and in a few seconds they would end up back at the center of the village. Without so much as a warning, Aloa headed start for Emiri, who had stayed in the same spot since the pair had walked off. She looked between the two somewhat curiously, though for some reason Aloa looked more menacing then usual.

"Um..." Emiri started, though she was quickly silenced by Aloa.

"Be still, child." Aloa instructed, placing both her hands on the sides of Emiri's head. The brunette squirmed lightly, clearly discomforted by the viera. "The Dream Powder...it's been hastened tremendously. I have to admit myself somewhat impressed, the properties of Dream Powder are so intricate that even the slightest slip up may have had dastardly effects for the worse. But this...this was done well." She muttered, staring intently at the wreath. "...Her magic has been laced into this, that much I can see. The recovery has been enhanced greatly. Of course, this woman..." She trailed off, narrowing her eyes and remaining silent for a moment. Emiri let out a small whimper. Her head hurt more now that Aloa was poking around.

"Is something wrong?" Emiri asked.

Aloa would finally release her at this point, though her stare was still intense. "...Nothing I can pinpoint, per se." She admitted. "That kind of magic isn't very common for most Humes to know of." She fell silent, clearly in deep thought.

[AlteredTundra]

When Aloa made a comment about how she was surprised that he agreed to let Levi help, JAakuna found the surprise to be also within him. All the things that Levi has done to not only him, but those he loves, Jaakuna knew that if there were any other way for Emiri to get er memories back and in an hastened way, then he wouldn't have let Levi help. And yet, there wasn't, so he had to let her help.

When Jaakuna found himself in a deep thought, he noticed that Aloa was already walking away back to Emiri and the other viera, so JAakuna followed suit, not saying anything. Once they got back to where Emiri was, Emiri was about to say something, but ALoa silenced her and would examine the wreath and then state that the dream powder's effects have been hastened a great deal. She would further state that since the properties of Dream Powder were as complicated as they were delicate, that even the slightest bit of altering them would be grim for the one who had it on them.

Jaakuna saw Aloa poke around Emiri's hand, which caused her to let out a slight sound of discomfort to which Emiri questioned what was wrong and Aloa responded by saying that the magicks used shouldn't be anything any humes know. Jaakuna instantly became alarmed by that. "What do you mean by that, Aloa?" Jaakuna asked as his worry was raising every second.

[Hero]

Emiri rubbed her head though she would lightly pat down her hair. She had a small frown on her face, her head pounding harder than before. Whatever Aloa did made her pain worse, at this point there was no hiding it. Still, she had to admit that what bothered her more had to have been the look Aloa had on her face. It was completely unreadable. Sure, Aloa was usually bearing that kind of expression, but it was usually cool looking and somewhat confident. This one was unsure, uncertain, and worst of all, it was completely confused. She was shocked to see this expression, but apparently, this was not the worst of it. The worst part seemed to be what she would then go on to say:

"I do not know."

"You don't know?" Emiri reiterated, completely shocked. "What...What does that mean?"

Aloa shot her a look of mild annoyance. "I am not omniscient." She retorted, clearly displeased. "It means exactly that. Whatever brand of magic it is, it is something even we of the Mist do not recognize." Emiri winced lightly under her rather scathing glare.

---

"This time...this way!" Nadeline would rather proudly declare, marching onwards.

The princess' enthusiasm returned with such vigor Grant had to wonder where she got the energy from. He had a slight headache just from looking at the crystal's dull colors. They blended together and the fact that everything looked the same just didn't help any. He was just as sick of this place as he was last time, and he had to admit himself mildly annoyed that Nadeline kept trooping through no problem. It wasn't her fault entirely, he was just that sick of the damned place. He let out a sigh, rolling his shoulder around. It was then he decided to initiate a conversation, mainly one about something that he had thought about.

"Ultima, the High Seraph. If the other Espers are any indication and Zodiark reigns over the darkness, that would mean Ultima herself reigns the light." Grant said. "Which means Holy and its variants won't be of any help. I wonder, however...she will be quite a foe to conquer. If Omega was any indication of a difficult fight, would we be able to rely on our powers for this fight?"

[AlteredTundra]

If Jaakuna's worry scale was at maximum before, then by when Aloa had revealed to which she was unsure of, Jaakuna was shitting bricks. He didn't eve know what to make of it. For Aloa to say that whatever magicks that she sensed inside Emiri — the same thing that Jaakuna was worried about beforehand — was something the viera were not able to recognize meant that whatever was in Emiri was something worse than Jaakuna could even imagine. To make matters worse, Levi was most likely the one who did this, which also meant that everyone would blame Jaakuna for this.

Taking everything into account, Jaakuna did have one question he had to ask. "You said that this kind of magick is one that humes should not possess." Jaakuna said, "well, then who — or what — possesses that kind of magick?" Jaakuna asked Aloa.

---

The group would follow Nadeline's lead, who seemed extra chipper since the defeat of Omega Weapon. Wesley found it cute, but along with Grant, Savayna found it rather annoying. It wasn't that she didn't think that Nadeline had any right to be so positive, but it was so much so that it was getting on her very last nerve. Savayna really wanted to whack Nadeline over the head, but she had to contain herself. Instead, she would grit her teeth and stay silent.

Along the way, Grant would bring up a topic of conversation about Ultima and how most likely she would be the Esper of Light. That made sense. COnsidering they've encountered espers who all have their own elemental affinity. When Grant would mention the fact that Holy and other such magicks wouldn't have any effects, WEsley found that troubling as that completely reduced the group's own magick and abilities in half when the time came to face Ultima.

When Grant would raise the question about how since Omega Weapon was as strong as he was, would they really be able to rely solely on their own abilities. Wesley found that question troubling as well. "It does seem like we're going to be in a huge pickle." Wesley said as he found himself in deep thought, thumb to lips as he bit his thumb.

Savayna looked over to Wesley and she just sighed. "We have our Espers, right? So, what's the worry? We're going to be fine, as long as Nadeline doesn't screw it up." Savayna said bringing up her earlier annoyance with the princess. So much for keeping quiet, huh?

[Hero]

Aloa stared right at Jaakuna, her face somewhat expressionless. For what seemed like an eternity, Emiri looked between the two as she didn't really understand what was going on. The viera leader didn't even so much as blink at Jaakuna, for she knew he knew exactly what she was talking about. "If it is not of a Hume, nor of the Viera, then that leaves but one possibility. Must I spell it out for you?" She raised an eyebrow, though her eyes would briefly flicker to Emiri. "I will say this much: your memories will return in no time. That does not mean that there will not be a price to pay. What it is exactly, I do not know. Tread carefully, child, your Esper will do whatever it takes to keep you under his thumb, and if he must reset you once more, he will not hesitate to do it again."

"What?" Emiri gasped lightly, eyes wide with shock. "No...I can't go through that again! It's torture...are you saying Chaos will continue to do so as he pleases?!" She exclaimed, clearly angry. "I am NOT a tool to be used when anyone pleases!"

"Except that is exactly how the Espers--and the gods for that matter--see us." Aloa replied, exasperated. "I do not know what Levi did, nor do I know its effects, but I strongly urge that you exercise caution."

---

Nadeline whipped around, shooting a look at Savayna. "I haven't done anything to warrant that sort of blame, thank you very much!" She snapped, fuming. After a moment of just being mad, surprisingly she calmed down rather quickly, instead just placing a hand on her hip, resting her weight on one of her legs. "If you hadn't noticed or recalled, my issue is the exact opposite problem. None of my attacks so much as scratched the Omega Weapon. If anything, I'm simply useless. HOWEVER!" She pointed at Savayna, a fiercely determined look on her face. "Do NOT underestimate me! If I have to sit on the sidelines, so be it, but I refuse to be a burden on anyone!"

Grant simply raised an eyebrow at the pair before turning back to Wesley. "Actually...something tells me our Espers may not be as effective as we would hope." He would continue as if Nadeline hadn't spoken. "I am unsure why I have this uneasiness...nonetheless, for the sake of taking down Zodiark, she must be quelled as well. Once she is done, all that is left is Zodiark himself."

[AlteredTundra]

Jaakuna could feel it, her annoyance with him. It was one of those 'really?'-moments, especially just the way Aloa was looking at Jaakuna. It was suggesting that she thought less of how smart he really was. It even got to the point that Aloa would divert her attention to Emiri and she would tell Emiri to watch out for Chaos as he would not hesitate to do what he did with her memory again or how many other times it took for Emiri to stay out of the danger zone of her powers. Of course, Emiri had a big problem with that and Jaakuna did as well. Emiri pretty much said what Jaakuna was going to say himself, but of course in a different way.

When Emiri and Aloa finished exchanging words(more so Aloa responding to Emiri), the viera leader would go back onto the subject of what she was talking about before and said that she didn't know exactly what Levi did to Emiri or even the effects of it, but she advised both Jaakuna and Emiri to have caution around Levi. Jaakuna definitely agreed with her. At the time that Levi helped and when he agreed, he didn't even stop to think what possible consequences could arise from it. Safe to say that Jaakuna was half-regretting even letting her do whatever she did to Emiri.

Before Jaakuna and Emiri would leave, Jaakuna turned to Aloa. "Oh Aloa, I think you might want to return to Stigma. Something terrible has happened and I just think that you might want to check it out." Jaakuna told her, though she probably already knew about it.

---

Why was it always they seemed to get on each other's nerves? Savayna didn't know what it was, but Nadeline always pushed her buttons, but this time around, it was more like that of siblings rather than two females hating each other. It was that very reason that made Savayna smirk slightly and she placed a hand on her hip. She just gave Nadeline a look and she said nothing.

As the two ladies seemed to exchanging certain looks, Grant would speak to WEsley about how he thought their Espers wouldn't be as effective as they all hope they would be. Wesley sadly was starting to think the same thing. It was true that against Omega that their Espers seemed several levels above him in the power department, but that was because Omega Weapon XII was a hume-made machine. Against one of the strongest creation of the gods, perhaps their espers were indeed at a lower level. There was also the fact that Ultima was most likely their leader, which also made it even harder for them and the upcoming fight with The High Seraph. "I suppose you're right, Grant." Wesley said agreeing with Grant, but with much reservation about some aspects. "I pray, for our sakes, that Ultima does not prove to be as strong as the legend says."