“What did you say Mateus?”“Zodiark has awakened. As I’m sure, Zeromus feels it too.”Savayna couldn’t believe they were going through this
again. Back when Venat was believed to be Zodiark, they all thought the end was nigh. They all thought it was going to be the end of the world, but it wasn’t. Savayna wasn’t usually the optimistic one, but given the company: Grant was the resident pessimist of the group, so she couldn’t count on him being hopeful. Lorenzo was too stupid to understand what was happening, so no guarantee there. She was the only one who happened to know for a fact that, even though the realization of Zodiark being free wasn’t exactly the best-case scenario, she also knew that there was a possibility they could get out of this with their lives.
“Let’s just keep going, I’m sure--”Suddenly, Savayna felt something deep, way deep in her gut. Added to the shaking that she felt, she saw soemthing tha tlooked like a towering beam of some kind, but she couldn’t quite make it out. The only thing that made sense was that she not only saw the slithering form of a snake, but she heard it..it..
“We have to hurry.” Savayna said out of urgency,
“Zeromus, get your ass out here and make Grant cast an anti-gravity spell.”“I don't think that's your call to make, Savayna,” Mateus stated.
“Shut up,” she quickly silenced him.
“You hear me, Zero. Get it done! Zodiark isn’t the only thing we have to worry about..”
The spell Jaakuna had cast over the entire group had done its part, but it appeared to have a greater effect on him and Emette. He didn’t understand why it enhanced their movements more than it did the others. That curious thought would soon leave his mind as fast as it seemed he was running because soon, in the limited illumination that the worn out magicite placed throughout the mines, a path was revealed to them where it seemed light was stronger, but there was also a presence of something ancient and vile - even more so than Venat.
As Jaakuna and Emette ran, the blond male stopped as he felt something uneasy. He looked back, hoping to spot Savayna and the others, but the mines weren’t bright enough for him to see past ten paces behind him. Wherever they were, they were out of his periphery.
He shook off that feeling and continued forth, easily catching up to Emette as the two had continued their sprint to the eerie glow in front of them that made Jaakuna’s insides churn and twist. The thickness of the mist that was present would’ve made a normal man vomit and bend him to his knees. And yet, Jaakuna didn’t feel that. It was as if he was being drawn to it the closer he got to its source.
And when they entered a room that was boarded with wooden planks all around from wall to ceiling to the floors, it wasn’t exactly where he expected the end of the world to start. There was a statue in the center, which looked like a serpent of some kind, Lola and Keiran on opposing sides of it, and Emiri looking at it. He remembered Emette’s words about a ritual. He couldn’t shake the feeling that, somehow, they were too late. Call it a gut feeling or whatever, deep inside the pit of his stomach, he felt unease on top of dread rising from the pits of hell that evil crawled from.
“Emiri..” Jaakuna cautiously approached her.
The tension in the air as thick as the mist that clouded normal sight. His heart was pumping faster than usual and his mouth had gone dryer than the sands of Dalmasca’s Easter and Westerlands. The closer his feet moved towards her the worse his body reacted. Heheard every voice in his head from his conscious to Belias telling him to not go any closer, but Jaakuna refused to listen. She was right there and no matter what was happening, he had to save her. He had to get her away from Keiran and Lola. His urge to save her activated a light from his arm and arms were shining like the sun - the same brightness that it had when the sun first rose in dawn.
He was a mere five paces away from her and as he aimed to close that gap, a sequence of events halted that. She turned around, her eyes red like blood and then she spoke, but it wasn’t her voice - not really, anyway. Added with her own, peaceful tone, there was a gruff voice in there. Distorted. It was oddly familiar. It was as if he heard it before. Only when it spoke and it displayed crazy ideal did Jaakuna realize who it was. That male-sounding, vile, growly voice was Zodiark.
It’s time. Jaakuna heard Belias speak. Through his heartbreak was obvious and how Jaakuna seemed frozen in place, he nodded, accepting this as being the only chance.
He had his left arm outreached towards Emiri. As he did so, a glyph colored gold and white, with layers of red and black appeared. On it was the symbol of the Ram: a beast’s head with two spiraling horns with flames dancing around it.
“Transcend from mortals, ascend from scion; burn with fire; extinguish the ire.” Jaakuna’s hand, in unison with the glyph, gathered the mist around, purifying it, and converting it with his own mist. Without warning, over a dozen sigils of the Ram appeared around the room, trapping those inside. Following that chains from all directions: the ceiling, the ground, the walls, and the ground, shot up and targeted those of who were the False Scions, trapping them in holy containment.
Jaakuna approached them, his hand still out, though there was something clearly different about him. His eyes, much like Emiri’s, changed. Where hers had become maroon, Jaakuna’s eyes had life in them. Like the surface of the sun, Jaakuna’s eyes were raging from pure white to gold; from dastardly fiery orange to blue and green. All colors that have been or will be associated with fire became present in his eyes.
“To grab life so many times, how foolish must you be, Keeper of Precepts?” Now Jaakuna’s voice was the one distorted, only this time his voice, though normally clear, was layered and echoed. His voice now was like that one would hear in a church - the kind that hymns try to emulate.
“Our creators wished to see you destroyed, but your power was too great even for them, so they trapped you in your earliest form. And as luck would have it, the Dynast-descendent sealed you here in the statue. And yet, you still claw your way as only a parasite could.” Jaakuna was looking at the Zodiark-possessed Emiri.
“Emet-Selch failed in her attempts to stop you, that is true. However, she is no longer the Scion she once was - not after having given her the majority of her powers. But, no longer will you threaten this world, for I, Lohgrif, the Transcendent, will cleanse you for good!”In what seemed like the longest moment for anyone in the room, Lohgrif’s body was radiating with a bright, golden light that formed sharp, horn-shaped armor pieces on his shoulders, torso, and back, legs, and a golden helm with the same pattern that Belias’ horns had. Following that, though in the same moment, the chains that bound the False Scions and the Parasite, started to emit such a bright light that it not only converted the putrid mist but it shot a beam of golden mist from the ground all the way through the top of the Mines and undoubtedly from wherever they were in the mines to the surface of the surrounding area.
Things were eerie quiet in the Royal Palace of Alexander in Rabanastre. Without the loud hollers of Savayna, it was actually empty. Sure, there had been some noise coming from Cassandra, especially after Wesley had informed her of what Jaakuna told him he had set up. Before nightfall came, Wesley informed his sister that she would be shipped off to Archadia to have a formal dinner the following day with the Emperor. To make sure that she was on her best behavior, Wesley instructed Alistair accompany them. Truth be told, Wesley had some feelings of guilt about doing that. Alistair, whose family had faithfully served the Alexanders even before they became the Royal Family and Alistair himself, who proved himself a few years ago during a battle in Giza, had been reduced to a babysitter for Cassandra.
Do not feel too bad. At least she’ll be well-guarded. Wesley was thankful for Hashmal’s council. Truth be told, at times, it reminded him of his father, although Hashmal’s blunter and handles his advice with less delicacy than Wesley remembered his father did. All the same, he did feel more at ease knowing that Alistair was with Cassandra to prevent her from doing anything crass like she had done earlier. According to what his mother told him, it got a bit ugly, though Reia took the tough love approach in dealing with his sister. If things kept at the pace they were going, Wesley might die from the stress.
“I’m too young for this shi--”Suddenly, as soon as Wesley felt a surge of powerful mist within the halls he was roaming (his Kingsguard behind him), beasts of shadow (much like those he remembered from that night in Archaida) had come up the walls. It only took Wesley a moment or so to hear the screams from throughout his city. These beasts were mindless and had only violence on their minds. He saw four of them approach him from both sides. Wesley had no weapon on him but he did have his fists and magick.
The beasts had circled around him and his five kingsguard knights. He looked for an opening and saw one just to the left.
“I can handle them. Please, go protect my mother.““But my king..”
“Go now!” Wesley ordered them as a pulse of mist was expelled from his right arm, completely exterminating one of the creatures of darkness.
The Dalmascan Knights pushed their way through as they did as Wesley commanded. The beasts tried to follow them, no doubt to stop them from leaving. Wesley wouldn’t allow that, however. He cast a haste spell as well as brave, shell, and faith. In a simultaneous motion, he shot out an enhanced version of scathe from each hand. The bright light not only paralyzed the beasts the moment the light came into existence, but as the spell shot forth that same light in opposite directions of each other, they were wiped out from their feeble existence.
Impressive, but more beckon you, Wesley.Wesley saw them. At least five times as many were now en-route towards him.
“I shall not rest until my kingdom is safe. But first, the vermin must be extinguished.” Wesley gathered mist from within him, his body glowing ethereally with gold and white.
“By the majestic hand of the Gods, I dub thee intruders of the holy land.” Wesley’s arms started to move around as lines of holy mist began to follow along. The more motions he made with his arms the more lines became shaped like bolts.
“Royal Judgement!” As he called out, the sky lit up over the palace and several dozen bolts of light rained down, piercing those of evil origin, and removing their miserable existence from Ivalice’s presence.
“Now, I must find my queen!” And Wesley had raced off, in search of Nadeline. He prayed that she was safe and unharmed. And if these beasts did anything to her, they will know his name and remember it as they shiver at his might.
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