Altered Tundra

Shuffle your music player and post the first 10 songs

Seventeen — Winger — 100 Hair Metal Essentials
A Modern Myth — Thirty Seconds to Mars — A Beautiful Lie
As A Butterfly — Dead By April — Let the World Know
My Apocalypse II — Falling In Reverse — Just Like You(Deluxe Edition)
Stage XIV(Inside a God) — Tetsuya Shibata — Devil May Cry IV: Original Soundtrack
Our Whole Lives Tonight — Eyeshine — Tone of Echoes
The Tide Raises Every Ship — Silverstein — A Shipwreck in the Sand
Sonny — Funeral For A Friend — Hours
Atlas, Rise! — Metallica — Hardwired...To Self-Destruct(Deluxe Edition)
Dante’s Inferno - live in Athens — Iced Earth — Arrive in Athens

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

Almost effective immediately, Zodiark noticed a shift in the Hume girls’ composure. Before, she was almost to the point of being crushed to bits by the weight of his spell and now she seemed to have more confidence than she did before. It was almost as if she had a stronger resolve. Or maybe Ultima gave her a stern talking to. There really was no telling what exactly became the deciding factor, but suffice to say, Zodiark approved. The fact that she decided to stop kid around and got serious meant that Zodiark could at least give her a chance to test the limits of her power.

And as she sent forth an impressive display of elemental prowess, it was obvious to him that she was aiming to kill. Those waves of various elements all came for Zodiark all at the same time. Each seemed to be the highest form they could possibly be and all with the intent to kill. This was good. He appreciated that she dug deep.

When the elements were about a foot away from making contact with him, Zodiark brought back his arms and thrust them forward. When he did that, a glyph appeared in front of him. In that same moment, the glyph opened up and revealed something that looked like a black abyss. There was a strong wind current that picked up, originating from that abyss and it sucked up all of the elements from Nadeline’s attack. Though, something that Zodiark wasn’t expecting happened: he underestiamted the strength of Nadeline’s spell as the glyph broke and the elements of drain, sap, water and lightning struck him. The water soaked him and the lightning struck him, getting an enhancement from the water. After that, drain would transfer some of his life force over to Nadeline and the sap, though only lasting a few seconds, seemed to also wipe a moderate portion of his energgy reserves.

Getting struck by Nadeline’s attack was a miscalculation of her power. He staggered back as he simply grinned at the girl. “And she continues to impress,” Zodiark said, panting lightly. “But that won’t happen again.”

Thirty more seconds had passed and Zodiark would rid himself of the extra arms, his movement-limiting form, and all but one orb. That last orbs would shape itself by using Zodiark’s putrid mist. It would go from the spherical mass into something nearly as long as his body but hardly as wide. The black mass kept its shade in this transformation but it came out to be a lot more silkier than it was before. When the transformation was complete, it appeared to be a spear of some sort. It was black throughout except for a part of the blade that seemed to pulse with a vile red Mist.

And as he stepped forward, Zodiark’s own form would change in an instant. GRand and Nadeline would recognize the form he took as it was the same form he took before. His entire body became encased in a black armor that had a red star emblem on the belt and on each hand. This armor had two horns that were colored a withered brown and a tail just as black as his armor was. He also had two wings made out of black Mist.

Gripping his spear in his hand, Zodiark’s helmet faded away. He had a more youthful appearance now. His skin was of a more healthy tone and his eyes were piercing red while his hair was as black as the dead of night. “Very well, now shall we begin?” Zodiark would take the first lunge. His speed so fast that no one other than an Esper or one who has unlocked their seal would had seen his movements. To the outside eye, it was just a flash of black and red. He rammed Nadeline with the bulk of his arm, forcing her to the trashed building just twenty paces behind her. Then, in another quick movement, he followed her as he appeared above the girl’s form. He turned his form into a shadow and went through her, appearing below her and unleashed a powerful pulse of ancient magicks that sent her flying up.

---

Even though he knew this wasn’t his Emiri, there was no mistaking that she had the same fire in her belly that his beloved had. She wasn’t going to go down without a fight. It became clear to him as she forced his grip of her to break. Though, based on the expression plastered all over her face, that action of pulling away was not an easy one. He noticed that she winced as she pulled away. That took an inmeasurable fortitude to commit to that.

Jaakuna noticed how her emotion skyrocketed when she mentioned the pain she went through, which could only make him feel sympathy for her. He had been there for a lot of the traumatic experiences in her life - or at least been there for her when she told him about past trauma she went through, but losing her mother and then almost losing her father...she was alone through that. It was that feeling of lonesome that Keiran must’ve fed off of. Because he wasn’t there to help her through it, that abomination was able to warp Emiri into this...thing that he saw in front of him. That was the exact reason why he had to pressure on. In order to get Emiri back to the way she was before, he had to push on with cleansing her of Keiran. Even if it meant that she would experience pain dealt by him, he would have be strong.

But, as seen by her constant refusal to let him do it as he wished, that wasn’t going to be easy. While he still had her close, Emiri would surprise him with a rather old fashioned move in the form of a headbutt. This caused him to stagger back a few steps, to which allowed her to go for an odd attack. She dealt an open-palm slap clear across his face. Though it stung, he didn’t understand why she chose something like that. After a moment passed, he felt something explode on his cheek and he was sent flying to the left about five paces.

As he tumbled, Jaakuna recovered himself and saw Emiri. Even though he was sure this was another gesture on behalf of Keiran, he couldn’t help but smirk. He held his cheek. It had a fresh burning touch to it. Still tender, he brought his healing fire to it and would stop the bleeding. “Quite the move there.”

Jaakuna rose up from the ground and reignited his fists. He knew that he would have to get close to Emiri somehow. Now that she was well aware of his abilities to cleanse her of Keiran’s influence, her guard would be up. Even worse than that, the look in her eyes gave him a clear indication that she wasn’t going to hold back. He knew that she would use her time powers as she saw fit. That was the one thing that was constantly on his mind. If he happened to get close to her, he knew that she would use those powers to do something to get him away or use it to her advantage. In her doing that, she would inch herself closer to nothingness. What he needed to do was stop that from happening altogether.

Jaakuna was going to try something else. It was an alternative tactic of sorts. This was no fantasy. It was reality, but it wasn't going to be final. He was going to make her see that. “Don’t you see that he’s just using you for his own pleasure, Emiri! You have to snap out of it!” Jaakuna yelled, trying to bide himself some time. He knew his purifying fire was still active on her arm, so maybe if he could get her talking and not doing anything else, then maybe he wouldn’t have to hurt her for a bit. “Remember all the times we shared together. Remember when we first met, how I was going to bring you to Grant because Vlyn and Aloa commissioned me, but I didn’t. And do you know why? It’s because I didn’t like being used either.” As Jaakuna spoke, he would take steps forward to her. They were slow steps. He didn’t want to alert her. “Not I nor you liked to be used by the governments that rule this world. We just wanted to be free. And for a while, we lived in bliss. Just you, me, and the Ifrit. Don’t you want that again?” By now, Jaakuna had closed three paces between he and Emiri.

Crooked Young - An Altered Lies Production

---

---

After news broke of Francis, everyone was up in arms about a lot of things. Florence’s family trying to do damage control. Alex’s family trying to be there for them as the best they could, but due to a phone call from Florence herself to Alexandros, it seemed that the best thing for the respective families was to cut ties immediately. Florence was going to focus on being there for her father and trying to do what she could to help control the press’ aggressive coverage. Meanwhile, Alexandros and his family had to move on.

Though the majority of the Mossos Clan wasn’t too bothered by this, it had been evident to them that this set Alexandros down a peg or two. He had distanced himself from the rest of the family. In the entire week, he was only home for a few hours. He hadn’t attended school in the entire week. For someone of his status, his absence would be noticed. Maybe not from everyone, but those who noticed him when he was there, it would raise a few red flags. It would be much like when he disappeared for a couple of months after Audrey’s summer bash.

In that week, Alexandros spent the majority of the time out on the streets, with his crew at various parties, and practically regrouping, thinking about what he was going to do. Florence was essential to his plan and now that she had cut ties with him effective immediately, he had to think of something else.

When the following Monday rolled around, Alex finally made an appearance at school. Granted, he arrived a few hours late. By the time he finally graced them with his presence, it was nearly lunch time. In fact, when he had showed up, the bell to signal lunch had started, that’s when he waltzed onto the campus. He looked as presentable as he had always looked: upscale attire and hair groomed to perfection. It wasn’t a suit this time, but it most certainly was something in that neighborhood.

Everyone talked in hushed whispers as he walked through the courtyard. It wasn’t until he stopped where they were really talking. He stopped in front of Audrey’s table. He looked at her, ignoring her friends, and took it upon himself to sit at her table, not even factoring in how her friends might take it. “Real clever, Huntsberg.” Alexandros stated, taking one of the french fries on her plate. “Using your contact in Francis’ office to take him down and removing Florence from the equation.” He took another fry, this time dipping it into some hot sauce.

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

Yet another example of The High Seraph's influence on the girl. His attack was quickly deflected and shot into nothingness. In that same moment, it seemed as though Nadeline had wasted no time as she would cast a high-level black magick spell, layering it twice: once above Zodiark and once below him. In that very same instnace, she layered protective magicks over her comrades without losing any focus of her offensive spells. It was remarkable.

As she called out the spell's name, it activated. Tentacles summoned from the void aimed to trap Zodiark within its clutches. A respectable attempt. If it were anyone else, perhaps it would have maimed them. But, yet again, just not close enough.The Keeper of Precepts waved another arm and one of the orbs that floated around his form would expand, surrounding Zodiark in a veil that was very reminiscent of shell and protect. Not only did it give him protection from any physical damage that those tentacles might've caused but it also would give him magical protection. It would last as long as Nadeline's own spell would last.

After that duration, Zodiark would simply gaze upon Nadeline. A full minute has already passed and she's proven to be more than just a pretty face or a burden on her comrades. It wasn't enough to take her seriously - not yet. If she wanted him to get serious, she would have to show him something really impressive. Until then, he would simply hold her at bay.

As he held up one of his arms, one of the floating orbs would land perfectly in his hand. He smiled at Nadeline twistedly as he hurled it at her. When half of the distance between the two was covered, the orb simply disappeared. In just three moments, it would reappear above Nadeline, casting a large-scale graviga not only over her but everyone under her protection.

“I’d act fast. Time isn’t on your side, Rozarrian Hume.”

---

“I did what was necessary.” Jaakuna simply stated.

As he noticed the distinctive change in Emiri’s demeanor, Jaakuna was more than confident that just a few more doses of Purify and she would be closer and closer to returning to her normal self. However, while that was true, Jaakuna knew that, the closer he would get to ridding his beloved of Zodiark and by proxy, Keiran, the higher the difficulty it would be to do that. If he has learned anything in these past months of having to deal with Zodiark, it was that the closer you got to something, the harder it was to succeed. So he knew he would have to watch his step.

That would be especially true as he saw Emiri go at him like a wild animal. She swung ferociously. He stepped to the side to dodge her first strike. When the rest followed, he side-stepped her a few times and blocked a few of them with his fists of flame. He noticeed that the purify spell had a major impact on her form, so she was less graceful and not in a sound mind when she went for those strikes.

As she would come in for another one, Jaakuna blocked it with one hand, the blade of her sword meeting his flame-covered fist, and grabbed her wrist with the other, intent on purifying that arm. “This might sting a bit,” Jaakuna warned Emiri.

His left hand began to shine a brilliant gold. It began the process of burning away the dark influence of Zodiark from that hand. It would feel as any fire would on the flesh - well, at first anyway. Once the initial phase of fire on flesh was gone, there would be this warm feeling followed by an excruciating pain worse than just a physical fire sear. This was more on the spirutal levels. Jaakuna was essentially cleansing Emiri of her darkness, so this would hurt more at the soul than anything else.

“Emiri, if you’re in there, just hang on. I’m going to save you, my love.”

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

If he were a normal man, perhaps those lightning-fast jabs would have been the end of him, but Zodiark was no man. He wasn’t anything close to a man. He was the Keeper of Precepts - the strongest of the Espers. Though, be that as it may, even he couldn’t very well stand there and do nothing as Nadeline would jab at him — especially since she had the aid of Ultima’s Seal behind each of those jabs.

One arm came forward and so did one of the orbs. It span nearly at the same speed that her jabs did. It took both jabs and expelled Nadeline back, dealing the same kind of damage that she would’ve dealt with those jabs of hers. Once she was pushed back, Zodiark waved that same arm forward and that rob would follow the direction, but this time changing its shape into several spears the length of the Zodiac Spear. It would be sent straight for Nadeline at nearly the same speeds that her rapier jabs were.

---

It was evident to Jaakuna that she wasn’t going to play around — something that Jaakuna was doing. He was trying not to kill Emiri with that strike. If it had connected, it would have been enough to knock her out but nothing more. He didn’t want to kill her, but as seen from her blatant use of her powers, Jaakuna was certain that she aimed to do that for him. Plus, she seemed intent on bringing all that she had in her reserves to fight him. Despite that resolve, Jaakuna could not bring himself to do that.

So he would simply remain on the defensive as her kick came in from below towards his midsection. He brought both flaming hands down and grabbed that leg. He not only held tightly onto it until he was certain she would not try anything further. She wouldn’t dare use her time powers with him in physical contact with her. If she did, he would be brought along with her on that ride. So that was one of the reasons he held contact onto her. Another was on the wise counsel of Belias. He figured out some working mechanics from that first strike.

“Now try and hold still, you,” Jaakuna said as he flared up his hands with bright flames. In the next series of moments, Emiri would see that the flames were starting to purify whatever stench of Zodiark she had. And once Jaakuna became confident that he was at that point of total purification, he would lift Emiri’s tiny body by the leg and whip her to the ground like a ragdoll. Again, I’m sorry my love.

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

Seeing what just unfolded before him, Zodiark found no more use for Grant. so, rather cruelly, Zodiark literally tossed Grant aside as he threw him like a bag of trash to the left of him near where the unconscious Savayna still lay. His attention was now dedicated to Nadeline who happened to finally unlock Ultima's Seal. In got his attention so much that he stood up. As soon as he did, his throne disappeared and his tome would as follow suit.

"You continue to impress me, Rozarrian Hume girl." Zodiark cracked a smile, "is this Ultima finally deeming you worthy of her power? Or is this her commanding your body?" Zodiark would do something that resembled a shrug, "it matters not. I accept your challenge girl. If you think you can handle my power, then last five minutes and I will tell you three truths that you desire - anything at all." Zodiark said as his arms began weaving handsigns. In only one second, orbs of arcane magick surrounded him. They floated as he would give her the first strike.

---

“I am never doing that again,” Jaakuna groaned as he gripped his head.

From doing battle with Hamut to getting tossed out by that intruder who had no business interfering to then waking up briefly only to find himself thrown into a wormhole through space and time for Gods-know how long, Jaakuna felt like he was going to be sick. All of those events happening so quickly(or at least feeling like they did) was too much for him to handle. There was also the fact that he spent most of his Mist reserves, so he was magically and physically exhausted on top of possibly having fast travel motion sickness.

Yup, Jaakuna felt he was going to throw up. He had to find a place. “Aha,” Jaakuna found an elaborately designed trunk at the edge of some bed. It looked nice. Well, it was about to look even nicer with some nice yellow-green goo all over it as Jaakuna let the spoils of war free upon that very nice-looking trunk.

He hurled semisolids on it for a few moments until he was able to walk. As he would turn around, Jaakuna couldn’t believe his eyes. Or maybe this was a dream? It sure would explain the odd traveling he did. “Is this real life or is it just fantasy?” Jaakuna inched closer to who he thought it was. Sure, it looked a hell lot like Emiri, but today had been, if nothing else, weird as all hell, so he poked the possibly-real, possibly-fake Emiri on the cheek. “You sure seem real, but dreams tend to be very lifelike.”

“No escape from reality,” Keiran commented, lightly pushing a reluctant Emiri forward. “Beautiful, isn’t she? Go on, say something. You’ve been wanting to see him for some time, haven’t you?” He insisted, even taking a step back.

Jaakuna…! She should have been happy, but there was a part of her that was not only highly suspicious, she also half convinced that the Jaakuna in front of her wasn’t real. It’s him. I know it is. Her inner self seemed so sure, but Emiri was expressionless. She looked at Keiran, raising an eyebrow at him. “Very funny, Keiran. Is this one of Lola’s tricks?” She asked him, clearly annoyed.

The black haired man shook his head, lightly pushing Emiri forward, then going around and lightly pushing Jaakuna forward so that the pair were closer. “Come on, it’s a lovers’ reunion! Torn apart by fate itself, yet overcoming all odds to see one another once again. Romantic, isn’t it?” He sighed dreamily, laying his elbow on Emiri’s shoulder.

Jaakuna raised an eyebrow at the dark-haired man. “Alright, now just who exactly is this chump?” Jaakuna asked. Dream or not, this guy was getting on his nerves.

“Me? Keiran, charmed, but who I am is not important,” He dismissed Jaakuna’s concern entirely, prodding Emiri. “No, who’s important to you, my friend, is this young lady right here. The love of your life, right? Though, she’s awful quiet, isn’t she?” He feigned disappointment, a spark in his eye as he looked at her. “Come on now…speak. Tell him exactly who you are.”

She seemed to try to resist the order, but she ended up mumbling, “I...I am Emiri.”

Keiran shook his head. “You can do better than that,” He urged, making sure to lift her face so that Jaakuna could see her red eyes--the ones that were no longer violet. “This is your prince. Tell him how how happy you are to see him.”

“I’m...so happy to see you…” She said, a little more clearly.

He couldn’t quite place it, but something just wasn’t right about this. Maybe it was this putz practically telling her what to say and do or something he felt in the air, but it wasn’t exactly how it was before. Emiri usually had more life and joy when she saw him. She used to show more affection than she was showing now. Jaakuna was not the most observant man by any means, but people have to give him some credit. When it came to Emiri, he just knew things. And he knew that something about her was off.

Before you ask, Jaakuna, no I don’t know what’s going on.

Wonderful. Jaakuna put on a brave face and then looked to the guy that Emiri called Keiran. “Beat it, you. I need to speak to Emiri alone.” Jaakuna said, hoping Keiran would give him a reason to punch that smug face of his.

He was catching on. And to think, he figured Jaakuna was an idiot. He nodded in understanding, turning as if to leave, though he would stop. He then turned around, wrapping his arm around Emiri’s shoulder. “You two have a lot of catching up to do, that I agree with. But you see...our relationship is…special,” He told Jaakuna, though he would look at Emiri lovingly. “But I understand that the two of you need your space. Do you want to be alone with him, Emiri?”

The brunette’s eyes widened as she looked at him, shaking her head. Don’t! She knew what it was that he was going to do. “I...I need to speak to him. Alone. I’ll be fine,” She said, still shaking her head.

Keiran then looked at Jaakuna, smiling. “As the lady wishes,” He said, leaning closer to her. She reached out, closing her eyes for a moment as she would place a small kiss on his cheek. “I’ll be right outside~” He said, though as he reached the door, he looked back at Emiri, his eyes flashing red. “Behave, Emiri.”

The door would close behind him, leaving the pair alone.

As soon as Jaakuna saw the door was closed, he sighed. “Goddamn, I thought he’d never leave,” Jaakuna took a seat on the bed. “That guy has some nerve. He actually thinks you’re going to do what he says? You wouldn’t even listen to your own parents, let alone that idiot.” Jaakuna laughed as he remembered the first moments they met and when he found out her reasoning for leaving. It seemed like forever ago.

Emiri managed to look up at him. “I never thought you’d leave, either.” She replied quietly.

Oh that stung. Not even Savayna’s Blizzaja was as cold as that.

His eyes glanced at Emiri, though he didn’t know what to say to that. She knew the reasons why he had to leave, yet, as he saw the rather empty expression on her face, maybe she thought otherwise. But what else was he supposed to do? He had to be there for negotiations between the countries. He had to be there as a trueborn son of the Darcone house. He had to be there for his family. But maybe he should have been there for Emiri. Or maybe he should have brought her with him.

After taking a moment and a half, Jaakuna spoke.“ I have done a lot of things that weren’t always right. I’m not perfect, Emiri. You, of all people, should be able to understand that.” Jaakuna couldn’t think of anything else to say. That was the only thing that made sense.

As if reading his thoughts, Emiri nodded. “That sounds logical, doesn’t it?”She asked rhetorically as she would walk to the window, looking at the distance. “Any other time...you would’ve been right. But right then, I needed you. I don’t know what was worse, the fact that I couldn’t bring myself to beg you to take me with you, or the fact that you couldn’t even finish that sentence.” She smiled, her voice gaining some of its energy. “I wonder...you’ve come all this way, and yet...you know nothing, do you?” She turned towards him, still having that small smile on her face.

Don’t go there. Her inner self pleaded. Keiran, don’t do this!

Placing a finger on her chin, she examined Jaakuna. She chose to step a little closer, a little more confident, still smiling. “After you left...I met Keiran. Wouldn’t you know, he was...a little odd, but encouraging. I ended up turning back time for Papa...and he’s all better now!” She nodded, a hand to her chest. “I couldn’t save my mother...but I saved him.”

“You..what?” Jaakuna couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Do you have a deathwish, woman!?” Jaakuna stood up instantly. “You know that every time you use your powers, you’re slowly being pulled an inch closer to Zalera’s gates.” Jaakuna was livid, “I swear to god, Emiri, it’s like your mother’s life meant nothing to you.”

Emiri watched Jaakuna’s reaction, though her smile fell. “It meant…’nothing’...huh?” She repeated his words slowly, looking away from him. “It meant so much that when the love of my life decided to abandon me again, I crumbled. It meant so much I grew desperate, buying into whatever Keiran told me. It meant so much that it is the reason we are here now,” Her voice seemed to rise with each sentence, though she seemed to catch herself, instead letting out a sigh. “It meant so much that I made a deal with the devil without so much as a second thought.”

She forced herself to stare out the window, not wanting to see his disappointment in her. “I couldn’t handle any of it. And then...she appeared before me. Dressed in blue colors that matched her hair, Shion approached me,” She said, closing her eyes. “She wanted to cleanse me...to free me from Zodiark’s seed.”

Unable to hold it in, Emiri let out a burst of laughter, finally turning towards Jaakuna, her eyes sparkling with glee. “She tried...oh, she tried. And you know what? I won. I won, Jaakuna, you couldn’t even defeat her! But I did...and I left her a present to remember me by, at that!” She informed him cheerfully, a hand over her mouth as she tried to suppress her laughter.

It took him a moment - a long moment, but Jaakuna was putting the pieces together. He was starting to unravel the puzzle. The reason Shion had to speak to him. The reason why she seemed to be so insistent on seeing if he could handle himself against Hamut ..it was about Emiri. It was because she had given herself to Zodiark’s influence..no, not influence. This was much more than a simple influence. This was more potent than anything that had happened to him. When Zodiark gave Jaakuna a small dose of his powers, it completely consumed him, but with Emiri, he was noticing a different kind of change. There was a natural merge of sorts. Instead of it altering some physical aspects of her looks and personality, it completely warped her into someone else, something else.

Jaakuna sighed, taking in that deep breath that he heard Belias tell him to take. As he exhaled, everything was becoming so clear to him. Before Belias’ Seal was unlocked, Jaakuna only saw the bits and pieces of what he might’ve suspected, but now it was as clear as the thickness of putrid Mist that he sensed before. “So, this must be what Aloa meant by something foul in you when your memories came back. It was that Keiran..” Jaakuna closed his eyes, taking in as much pure Mist as he could.

In the moment that followed, Jaakuna zipped past Emiri and burst through the door, grabbing Keiran by the throat and pressing him against the wall, not giving the spawn of satan any time to react or prepare.

“Now, that is just plain rude,” Keiran told him as Emiri would run out into the hallway. “Though expected, I suppose. And here I thought we’d be here all night before you noticed, but congratulations, Darcone, you figured it out--or at least, part of it,” He managed to wag a finger at Jaakuna. “In the spirit of good sportsmanship, I’d like you to give you just one chance at victory.” As Jaakuna would non-verbally respond by tightening his grip, Keiran would point at Emiri. The girl was gasping for air, her hands around her throat as she struggled to breathe.

As Jaakuna choked his boytoy harder, he noticed Emiri. “What are you doing to her?!” Jaakuna switched gazes from Emiri to Keiran, increasing his grip on Keiran as he would force him deeper into the wall, this time his left hand covered in a bright crimson flame.

“No, Jaakuna...what are you doing to her…” He managed to speak, watching as Emiri dropped down to her knees. “Surely you’ve realized it by now...I told you before, didn’t I…? We have a special relationship...the truth is I have no physical body on this plane...instead I cast a shadow on her, making it so that she and I are connected...You should’ve seen her when Shion decided to behead me…” He coughed. “Do whatever you want to me, just know whatever damage to inflict, she feels it too…”

Going against everything that he wanted to do, Jaakuna would release his grip of Keiran. He hated that this pathetic trash was able to keep living as whatever kind of being that he was because, if he was hurt in any way, Emiri would feel it. It was one of those lose-lose situations. And Jaakuna hated it.

As he would look at Keiran, he gritted his teeth. The more livid and anger he felt, the brighter the flame in his left hand would get and his hair started to spark little specs of fire. His eyes also were alternating between crimson and emerald. It got to the point where he closed his eyes and punched. He felt his hand connect with something. Only after a moment when he opened his eyes that he knew it was the wall, which he saw a crater the size of Keiran’s body and at least with enough force to kill a man ten times over. It was nearly five inches away from Keiran himself.

“Scary...quite a punch you’re packing,” He couldn’t help but comment. “Belias chose well...but I’ll keep to my word.” He stated, showing a surprising amount of strength as he would pry Jaakuna’s hand away from him, though only enough to give the pair some room. He sighed, walking over to Emiri as she tried to regulate her breathing. He offered her his hand, pulling her up to her feet. His eyes flickered over to Jaakuna briefly, a dark look on his face. “I really don’t enjoy being pushed around like that. Not like I did anything wrong! I was born for one purpose, and one only--to invade the mind of the Scion of Time, as was planted by Leviathan, granted permission by...yourself.” He said, wrapping his arms around Emiri.

“Stop…” Her small plea didn’t go unnoticed as Keiran would pull her closer to him.

“We’re intertwined so deeply...I can make her do whatever I want. I can ask her to...dance--” He stepped back as Emiri would spin around once. “I can ask her to harm herself, too.” He motioned towards her as she would withdraw her dagger, aiming it at herself. “But none of that is fun, is it? No...I should ask her to strip down in front of you. You’re both going to get married, right? You’d love to see her naked body, right?” He asked, satisfied as Emiri would begin to unzip the back of her dress, her sleeves lowering.

She shook her head. “I don’t want to do this…!” She protested, clearly frustrated.

Keiran clucked his tongue. “Hmm...right...I did say I would be a good sport, didn’t I?” He murmured, snapping his fingers as her dress would fall. Instead of exposing her body, it would evaporate and wrap itself around her body, forming her attire. “How about the two of you duke it out? If you win, I’ll leave Emiri entirely. I mean, since you’ll have the power anyway, there’s no reason for me to stick around. What do you say, Darcone?” He asked him, patting Emiri’s head.

I know that you’re angry, Jaakuna. I am too. I want to kill this abomination as much as you do, but we can’t. If we do, Emiri dies as well.

Gods damn it all! Jaakuna knew Belias was right. He knew that if he laid a hand on Keiran, Emiri would feel the brunt of it. And yet, at the same time, he was being backed into a corner. Keiran was making it to where he would have to fight Emiri. He didn’t want to, but he was controlling just about every little thing she could do. Nothing he would do could break that hold. It was useless.

I wouldn’t say that. Belias spoke almost as if he had a plan. We will indulge this madman’s offer for now, but do you trust me, Jaakuna?

Jaakuna would send vibes towards Belias which said yes.

Then accept his conditions. Say the following:

“Fine, Abomination, I accept your terms and conditions with a few of my own.” Jaakuna said, “when I win, you will not only leave Emiri’s conscious, but you will heal Shion, the Blue Rose of any and all influence of Zodiark. Am I clear? And you will surrender yourself wholly to Emiri. Whatever she wills, you will obey. If she tells you to dance, you’re going to salsa for her.” Jaakuna stood firm on the conditions he just laid out in front for him.

Keiran stared at Jaakuna, expressionless. “Abomination...you wound me. Truly, you do.” Ah, Belias was making sure to do the thinking between the two. Still, Jaakuna was...too emotional. He contemplated, though he nodded, snapping his fingers as several letterings along his arms glowed. “And thus our contract has been sealed. I should warn you, though...she’s going to be a toughie~ Give him hell, will you, Emiri?”

The brunette froze in place, though for a moment, she gripped her head. Was she fighting him? He glared at her, clearly displeased. So the little bitch was taking the chance to fight for her freedom? He’d have to deal with that from the inside, though after a moment, he seemed to regain control as she held her hand out, summoning a dark sword.

“Understood,” She stated, holding a stance against Jaakuna, giving him the chance to strike first.

“Please forgive me for what I’m about to do,” Jaakuna murmured to himself as he took a fighting stance. He drew no weapons for he didn’t need to. His fists flared up in bright, crimson flames. His left hand was a bright pinkish-red crimson while his right had a warm, orange-yellow flame. He stepped forward once and he was gone. In the following second, he appeared next to Emiri on the left and struck her with his left hand.

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

Zodiark examined Grant's face. He seemed to have no reaction what he just heard. Interesting. Did he not hear him? No, that wasn't it. Maybe it was too much of a shock. To hear that your brother was executed for a crime that he didn't even commit - not really, anyway. He did the act, but it wasn't his fault. Oh, what a crushing blow to an already-fractured mental state it must've been. nothing could possibly be worse than that.

"Poor, little Grant. someone longing for love and acceptance can't seem to catch a break. You find out the man you respected then hated for killing your father actually died an innocent man. The woman you love doesn't really love you as much as you thought you did. And now.." Zodiark's arms came onto Grant's shoulders, making sure the Rozarrian prince saw into his eyes.. "you're feeling empty, aren't you? Do you wish for me to take away your suffering? I can do that for you. I can reunite you with your brother, Roland and your father, Augustus. Is that what you want?"

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

Zodiark looked at how out of the loop Grant, as well as the others, seemed to be. Did they really not know? Of course they didn't. no one knew the absolute truth. "Just because you've been such a good audience, I will allow you all to know a little secret," Zodiark leaned forward, extending his arms out, grabbing Grant in the same chains from before and bringing him real close. "This is for your ears only." Zodiark made sure he were close enough for him to whisper within his radius.

And into his ears, he whispered.."I was the one who influenced Roland."

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

Zodiark looked at the faces of those around. Specifically, he focused on the faces of those related to Nadeilne. It was quite interesting to see how, for the first time in a long time, they had looks of genuine surprise on their faces. It was as if they had no idea what had happened in Dalmasca. The things that had happened to everyone here -what would happen if Zodiark were to reveal them? In this tome of his, he had all of the answers. Yet, it was not the right time.

"Ah yes, those rumors about The Brotherhood, right? Or was it something else?" Zodiark looked around, stopping at Grant, "no doubt you know about that group. It was the very group you and your beloved there ran into at Omisace, correct?"

Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

He knew nothing of her struggle or what has happened to her, huh? Zodiark saw that as a challenge and not just stating what she thought to be the truth. "If that is true, then explain how, if not for your beloved Wesley, you would have been killed by his own brother." In that moment, Zodiark could sense the air shift. "Or how that, after realizing it was Sylvester Alexander who nearly killed his fiance that young Wesley fell into a coma just out of the pure agony he experienced."