rave
/rav/
verb
1. talk wildly or incoherently, as if one were delirious or insane.
2. speak or write about someone or something with great enthusiasm or admiration.
Hippy
hip·pie
/ˈhipē/
noun
(especially in the 1960s) a person of unconventional appearance, typically having long hair, associated with a subculture involving a rejection of conventional values and the taking of hallucinogenic drugs.
life
/līf/
noun
1. the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
"the origins of life"
2. the existence of an individual human being or animal.
3. a particular type or aspect of people's existence
4. the period between the birth and death of a living thing, especially a human being.
5. vitality, vigor, or energy.
6. (in art) the depiction of a subject from a real model, rather than from an artist's imagination.
Magic
mag·ic
/ˈmajik/
noun
1. the power of apparently influencing the course of events by using mysterious or supernatural forces.
2. mysterious tricks, such as making things disappear and appear again, performed as entertainment.
3. a quality that makes something seem removed from everyday life, especially in a way that gives delight.
4. something that has a delightfully unusual quality.
mag·ic
adjective
1. used in magic or working by magic; having or apparently having supernatural powers.
~Plot Stuff~
Hundreds and hundreds of years ago, there existed an otherworldly arcane essence that existed by the name of Magic/Magick. This essence was a variety of things. Lush and in great abundance, full of life and a energy that science had become a pale reflection of in the years that followed. However, it was also an essence that harbored a wicked face as well, bound to attract misfortune and death to all who were able to understand and or obtain it if not tamed properly. The secrets of this essence falling into the wrong hands would bring nothing but catastrophe.
And catastrophe it brought, those hundreds a years ago. One that thrust magic into an era in which it had began to fade and a new form of energy created at the hands of man became the new. The world in which magic had come from became a myth, magic itself became a myth as time progressed and left it to fade and never be seen again.
Or perhaps....what isn't seen isn't truly gone. And perhaps...the world thought to be myth is much more than just so. But what is certain is that what has lurked in the veils of shadows within the darkness, behind illusions of people, places and things. Forces that had managed to slip into the ages of the new world. Those of good. Those of evil and malice. Those of...magic. And perhaps...hope. But...will the newest of generations derived from those hundreds of years be able to face what comes?
And so we fly ahead in time to the present, where villages have become cities of tall structures, and dreams of flight have become a reality.
"You can't be serious. There's no way Sammy is a Keeper or a Wizard or Witch either" Mason replied in a hurried tone, as if to completely dismiss the thought entirely. Before he let out a sigh, he stuck his head out, honking the horn as he shouted, "Hey Sammy?! You around!?" As he was able to make out a few figures, he could see two people standing by the wall of a store. Seeing one of them turn their heads towards the van. It was no doubt, given the hat she was wearing. That was definitely Sammy
Sammy gave a sigh at Raven's response, crossing her arms, "Yeah, sure, But I'm serious, I don't need to be looking for someone peeping at me everywhere I go." Before Sammy could add onto it, she could hear the sound of a car horn going off, as well as someone shouting
"Hey, Sammy!? You around?!"
Turning her head to see who it was, she gave an exaggerated sigh of relief, "Oh, thank god". With that said, she picked Raven up from the ground, holding onto her hand as she exclaimed, "Alright, you can get in here if you want. This should get us out of here."
(hm, well hopefully there's something in this dimension because it looks like Yoonie is gonna be here for a while.)
Yoon kicked a pebble as she continued to walk down the cracked road. "This is so stupid." She told herself. "He's stupid---monsters are stupid--MAGIC IS STUPID!" She corrected. But then she yelped again when she heard another shriek. Although she was more than happy she didn't see any monsters, she was still annoyed at that teasing fact that they were out there, most likely playing games with her.
* * *
Meanwhile, Mrs. Park was panting as she rushed inside the Police station where she had received a call regarding her runaway son. Her outfit was soaked from the mild rain outside since she had to come running now that all buses weren't open and for some reason Yoon's car was unavailable. One of the officers was kind enough to open the glass door for the tired woman, in which she hurried passed him–her eyes widening when she recognized her trembling son in PJs sitting behind bars as a way of detaining him from escaping. There was an orange juice bottle and a bag of cookies that had been inched towards him in efforts to make him talk, but he refused and denied any bribery.
"Sangeon!!!!" Mrs. Park shrieked, already making her way past the offices and front desks to see him. "무슨 일이야?!" But before she could get any closer, one of the sheriffs stopped her, having to push her back a little so she would respect the office boundaries.
"Mrs. Park, I'm glad you could make it. We received calls that your son was making a ruckus up by the residential areas in Oakland." The tall man in his uniform commented.
"He no dog!" The Korean woman screamed, angered by where her son was locked in and such false accusations.
"We tried to get him to talk, but all he would blabber about is a monster and a kid and I believe his sister. However he informed me he was watching a scary movie earlier, so the registering fear must have lingere--"
"NOW LET HIM GO! RELEASE AT ONCE!" Mrs. Parked ordered brokenly.
"Of course, of course. But first we need you to fill out these documents." The officer handed her over a stack of papers in a language she was nowhere near fluent in.
"이해가 안돼요--- I n-no write English!" However, the first title of the document was something she recognized: Child Custody. Her eyes widened at the sight and she gulped.
"Come on lady, it's America. Pretty sure you should know English by now." One of the seated officers snickered.
"Perhaps, perhaps not. But either way if there's the slimmest of chances, they are chances that you surely do not want to take," Jackie had replied to Mason as he started honking the horn. But then she sat up straighter in the seat. "The mana if felt, it's here."
But little did Sammy know, this was one of the worst possible things for Raven. Shit shit shit SHIT! Raven felt like her heart had stopped, and in no way a good way. She was going to have to make a run for it. And so while they were approaching the van from the other side of the street, she slipped her hand away from Sammy's while whispering that she was sorry and already turning on her heels to jump into crowd of fleeing people. The sound of sirens from the next block were echoes in her ears. Before she knew it, she was running full force and as fast as her legs could carry her.
~
By now, Nicholas was already being half dragged by the compass as he was guided in directions that he could only trust were right despite the fact that it had seemingly thrown him into this situation as it was. With him he kept only a few bottles of the water that was left. He had already come to figure out that everything here was the opposite of what it was supposed to be, and so he also came to realize what it was that the compass was doing. It was taking him in the opposite directions to those that he would have theoretically taken in his "dimension". So instead of taking a left at the rusted out and falling about Burger King, he was pulled into taking a right. And where a right would have usually been taken, he was pulled into taking a left instead. But even while on what he had hope was the right path, he was tiring both mentally and physically. Never had he used this...this compass to such an extent. Never had he relied on what he had been told were hallucinations and overactive imagination all his life so heavily. His life had never been endangered to such a heavy degree that he was forced to use it. And now all he could do was hope that his plan worked.
"H-Hey, wait!" Sammy shouted as she saw her dart off through the crowd of people running away, only able to look back in total shock before the van came to a stop next to her, the door opening from the back
"Sammy!" Mason said now as he got the back door, throwing it open as he saw people running by and spoke, "What the hell is going on here?"
Sammy was tempted to run back after Raven hoping to get answers from her, but seeing as it would just create more problems if she ran from Mason, she just shook her head, "What happened? Mason, there's a goddamn monster in that night club!"
"A-A monster?! Here?! Wait, what were you doing in a nightclub!? I thought you were at the gym!"
"Nevermind that! There's a fucking monster in there. I think it killed someone!"
"Yeah, and I almost got killed by one. There's monsters everywhere. Also, this is Jackie" He said as he now hurried Sammy into the van now, getting back to the wheel of the car. Sammy didn't even wave to Jackie as she got to the front and continued, "We gotta go after that girl. She knows my name somehow!"
Mason turned to her in a shocked expression, putting the car from park to drive as he got the van movie and responded, "Are you crazy? We don't have time for that. Besides, for all we know, it could be a monster that was sniffing you out. We can't just go trust some people you met at a club, Sammy."
"No, it's not that" Sammy responded in annoyance, "I think she was in trouble too. And if she wanted to kill me, she clearly wouldn't have waited till I was alone. This monster just started attacking out of nowhere. Plus she kissed me and stuff, so I think she was into me, not wanting to kill me, but she knows my name somehow and I don't remember running into her."
"Jeez, the day I've gone through and you still sound like you're talking absolute nonsense" Mason replied as he got the car off the block, turning the car down the street, "So Jackie, do you still sense that. mana thing you said?"
It took Mrs. Park around an hour to complete stacks of paper that any other English speaker could have completed within ten minutes. She was very unsure of many of her answers, and wished Yoon were here so she could help her write them for her. And the woman was very scared for the answers she put in regarding the custody she had of her children.
"엄마!!!" Sangeon squeaked as he was finally released, rushing towards her and embracing her leg in a hug.
Mrs. Park sighed of relief, squatting down to pick up her son and hug him tightly as he straddled her waist. She placed a kiss on his forehead and promised him everything was okay.
"You are free to go! We will review the documents and notify you of any problems sometime this week. And tell your son no one likes a kid screaming for no reason at midnight." The officer chuckled.
However, the mother just remained silent with angered eyes towards him, waiting for her driver's license to be returned to her.
"Oh by the way, if you don't mind," The officer retrieving her documentation began, "I'm taking my wife and I to eat sushi tomorrow night, do you have any recommendations?"
Mrs. Park blinked, processing what she had just heard. She cursed at him momentarily in Korean before she cleared her throat. "I Korea, I no Japan. Ugly man. poor you wife arranged marriage!" She pointed at him, snatching her license before stomping her way out the police station with her son in hand.
* * *
Click, clack, click clack...
"I mean, what's the problem with making the lemonade pink? It's already lemonade, just add a dash of coloring and plop some berries into it." Kore had a normal conversation on the phone as she walked down the block still half naked, her heels marking different noises with the different pavements she walked on. She was still talking to her friend about their late dinner–police sirens being heard in the background. "Yeah yeah, a few people got crushed or whatever, but I mean technically that's a free chiropractor massage... --whaaa? Come on, that was funny!" She exclaimed.
* * *
Meanwhile, Yoon searched for a place she could take cover for now in attempt to try and meditate and force her body to react with some form of magic. But all she could see around her was more and more land, hardly any secure places. And with that, she quickened her pace.
Jackie didn't answer immediately, partially because she was staring at Sammy to the point where it was almost as if she were staring through and around her. It's on her as well... The more she focused, the more she able to see the physical traces of magic that had been left on Sammy. It was like a string that had been severed and just left there to flow in random directions. It was identical to the fading strings she had saw on the other people. "Yes," she finally said to Mason, her head turning for her to look at him. "However the mana that I sense isn't the threat. What I smell most definitely is." Her gaze drifted back to Sammy. "You said that there was a monster of some sort? Tell me, did you happen to catch its appearance? Did it attack you specifically?"
~
Nicholas eventually started to slow down all the way until he had no choice but to stop to take a break before he ended up collapsing. And he couldn't do that, especially not here. Once again he found himself breathing heavily, sweat covering his face. At this point, he wouldn't doubt that he smelled almost as half as bad as the pointy heads did. He desperately wanted to shower. To sit down. To go to sleep and wake up to find that all of this was just some really bad nightmare. But at the moment, what he wanted was not what he needed if getting out this place wasn't the priority. A man, was it a priority. He cried a little but wiped at his eyes. His chest hurt from breathing so hard, but he kept going but at a much slower pace.
Sammy's eyes turned back to Jackie in curiosity, looking at her, a bit surprised at how, now getting a good look at her, gave a snarky remark, "Look, if you're checking me out, I already had enough tonight." But after Jackie's response, and thinking it over, she came to a conclusion, "Well, it looked like a rotted corpse that was just sitting in water for too long. And it smelled really bad. It's arms were long and it looked... not... right. And no, it didn't seem to attack me. It was going after that girl that you saw run off." Sammy's mind went back to the DJ girl, thinking about where she ran off to, "Hey, if you know about this, can you find her? I need some questions answered about her"
"Oh ease your worries. You're certainly not my cup of tea," Jackie replied, though spoken in a much calmer and unworried manner compared to Sammy's snark. But when she was given the description of the creature in question, her brows lifted in surprise. That sounds like a... How? How was that possible? And now the number of questions she had herself was expanding. And then her thoughts went to the girl that Sammy was saying had ran off. "With the amount of individuals running around with traces of her mana attached to them, it would be a difficult task and chances are what creature that you witnessed tonight will be lurking after them as well if the mana isn't detached in time. Luckily it already seems to be leaving on its own, potentially returning to its owner. Which is interesting within itself." And the twinkle in her eyes seemed to mirror that interest as she spoke of it.
"Dammit!" Sammy said as she sat on the mattress in the back, her eyes now moving to the slashes in the side of the van that were caused by the supposed monster that Mason mentioned. Looking over it in shock, she turned back to Mason and responded, "Jeez, this is gonna make our plans tomorrow a lot more stressful."
"Wha-Yo-You and I were both almost killed by monsters and you still want to hang out with that girl!?" Mason shouted, fumbling with his words as he had to keep his eyes on the road
Sammy just gave a shrug and responded, "Hey, I lived. I fail to see how this monster has anything to do with me."
"You can't be this carefree, Sammy. It was an abomination that attacked you!"
"Eh" Was all Sammy let out. It was unclear if she was still under the effects of the canibus she had earlier, but all she could think about was what she would do tomorrow
Unlike Nicholas, Yoon wasn't tired at all. The adrenaline kept her awake, along with her sleeping schedule being that of staying up all night watching anime and eating. She reached for a piece of gum she had gotten from her car, unwrapping the rectangular shaped item and chewing it. Yoon sighed softly, food being something that always brought comfort and reassurance to her. She decided to rest momentarily against a dried tree stump, attempting to channel any magic within her.
Yeah because unlike Nicholas, Yoon had been sitting on her ass watching tv and snacking while he had been running for his life the entire time XDover a year ago
30 more minutes later of walk, jogging, running, and then walking again and Nicholas was running on fumes. His feet started dragging themselves along the cracks of the concrete, which caused him to stumble forward a time or two when hit foot came across the areas where cement jutted upwards from the rest of the ground. The hand that held the compass began to slump further and further until he had to use his other hand to keep it up right. But he kept the thought of what he needed to be directed towards strong in his mind.
-
On the other side of things however, the stench of the creatures lingered heavily in the area Yoon was in. And at moments, the chuckle of the cloaked man seemed to be carried in the nonexistent wind, mocking her well-being. And as near as it may have sounded at times, he was no where to be seen. The pyramid-headed creatures, however, lurked close. The shadows, they moved.
~
"Considering that Mason here is another target, I'd say that it has plenty to do with you and any who may accompany him." Jackie cleared her throat and continued. "With the situation this dire and more on the line than you will understand, the both of you cannot remain as you are. Especially with one of you not yet tapping into your potential. And I fear that this...DJ, may be just as oblivious to her capabilities as you are," She motioned towards Mason. "The essence of her mana was still immature and sporadic. If I were to guess, that may very well be a way that she was able to be located to begin with."
"Huh, wait what's she talking about? What potential?" Sammy asked, looking around curiously now
Mason had to inhale through his nostrils, letting out a breath before he spoke, "Well, you see... Apparently you and I have magic."
"... huh?" Sammy said casually, with Mason confirming after. As Sammy was nodding, she asked, "What? Like Harry Potter or something?"
"Yeah, something like that" Mason said as he found that Sammy was taking this better than he thought, but that stopped when she asked him a question
"So have you done any tricks yet?"
"Uh..... no"
"Uh huh" Sammy spoke, nodding her head before she followed up, "Look, I don't know what happened in there, but I think I would know if I was a witch, lady. I think you got the wrong group, So I would suggest not filling Mason's head with fairy tales. He's easily impressionable"
Yoon's closed eyes twitched, her nose scrunching at the icky smell that invaded them. She opened her eyes, searching her surroundings only to find nothing. The familiar voice she detested made her growl underneath her breath. Meditation was clearly not working with what was going on around her. She sighed, retrieving the stick she was gifted for Christmas by Yasha. Staring at the magical wand, her brows furrowed slowly. "Come on, I know you have magic in you....... please.... do the thingy..." She swayed it around, a growing annoyance setting on her face. "Hmmm... what would Yasha do?" She scratched her head with the magical wand. Yoon stood up from the stump, clearing her throat and standing in a position that Yasha usually stood in, along with mimicking her voice almost perfectly. "Hmmm~ Yes, I am a powerful magical being that also is very rich and have so many followers---blahblahblah--Abracadabra doooo----Pew pew!" Yoon shook the wand in sync, only for no reaction at all. She groaned.
"You haven't the slightest bit of magic in you," Jackie spoke to Sammy, almost interrupting her completely. "I have more magic in the nail of my pinkie toe than you do within your entirety. Moving on, I'd suggest you make it easier on yourselves and erase any knowledge that you soaked up from Hollywood nonsense and media portrayal. Most if not all of it is skewed representation, especially in these modern times." She uncrossed her legs only to cross the left over the right in a motion that was almost whimsical. "Furthermore, magic doesn't consist of "tricks" nor does it rely on them."
~
Thud,
Nicholas finally fell to the ground, his body giving out completely from exhaustion. The tingling in his body became a heavy weight that loomed over him. At first he started to crawl, or at least try as the compass wavered and withered, becoming smaller and smaller within his hands. It wasn't until it dispersed completely into mere scraps and slivers and disappeared did he finally give up. He wanted to sleep so badly.
Clak clak clak clak clak clak clak clak.
His heart sank when he heard the chattering of teeth so close that he would have thought that it was right next to him if it weren't for his eyes being wide open, searching from where is death would come from. A few eerie short screeches filled his ears and he saw one of a twin-headed nemesis stagger from the building just in front of him.
Tar colored liquid oozed from the space in between the heads, and its already disgusting body sizzled harshly while it clawed at itself. And as soon as Nicholas tried sought to get to his feet and hide, the moment he made the movement to attempt to get up, its attention was caught.
Nicholas only managed to scoot himself back across the ground, fumbling for the pistol.
Bang! Bang bang bang! Gunshots rung in the air, yet the bullets were only enough to make the monstrosity jerk back upon impact with his shoulder and chest while the bullet that struck its head only caused a spark. Its recovery from its small staggers was near instantaneous and went for him, its limbs and body turning and making its jittery movements look like some sort of twisted dance that only it could perform.
Nicholas surely thought that he was in its clutches, but fired the rest of the bullets anyway out of some stubborn instinct to survive despite looking death in its face. Or faces. When the creature was just inches away from him, he shut his eyes tight. But even behind his eyelids he could see a flash of teal. Yet as long as he waited, death never came.
"Okay, well... that didn't work." Yoon muttered in discontent. She eyed the wand closely. "I am one with you." She spoke to it, repeating what Yasha told her earlier. "And you are one with me, so why aren't you listening?!" She yelled. "HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE A STUPID KEEPER IF I CAN'T CONTROL MAGIC?!" She yelled to the sky this time. Yoon panted softly, her eyes still in the sky. And as she glared at it, she couldn't help but think the clouds resembled.... cotton candy? Her head tilted, eyeing the particular cloud that made her think of the treat. And when her eyes squinted, the cloud parted in two. Yoon gasped, taking a step back.
"That's cool and all... BUT HOW DOES THAT HELP?!" She scolded the sky, falling to the ground with her face still facing the endless sky. She took in deep breaths for another attempt.
"Sheesh, someone's touchy" Sammy said under her breath, followed by Mason kicking the mattress once he reached a stop sign and his attention was brought to her.
Letting out a sigh, Mason looked back at Jackie and responded, "So what do we do then? If what you say about me having some semblance of magical abilities is true, how do I use it? Can I use it even? I'm not really a fighter, to be honest. I never really had a reason to"
"That's because you just apologize your way out of a situation even when you're not in the wrong" Sammy said casually as she rested on the mattress, hoping to doze off and forget about the events of the day, at least in her sleep
"Pathetic," The raspy voice spoke from behind her. However, there was no one. "Speaking of controlling something that you aren't even able to conjure. And yet you're what they place their hope within? A brat that is as hopeless as their efforts will be." There was a droning chuckle that deepened to such a degree that it could be compared to crackling embers. "Your savior, absent. A stick in your hand. Oh how foolish you must feel." Each time he spoke, his voice sounded closer and closer until it was echoing in her thoughts.
~
"Well I think that you will agree when I say that it is time you learn if you seek to live." Jackie said this quite straightforwardly, her eyes leaving Mason and resting on the road. "If you are indeed a Keeper, then drawing out what's been suppressed should be possible. Which is why we'll be going to Montana tonight."
"Sheesh, you could've just said yes" Mason said at the thought of it, a bit shocked at the thought, but as soon as she brought up Montana, he turned his head to her, "W-Wait, Montana?! I don't think you understand, Jackie, but I can't really rive us to Montana in a single night. That's like way up north from here. And plus, I can't just leave. I still have some stuff to do here with my job. And since it's our only source of income, I can't exactly tell the owner of the website I'm heading to Montana for who knows how long. Can I take a rain check on those stories? Besides, what's so important that we gotta go to Montana right now?" Mason was doing his best to not let this all get to him now, trying his best to stay calm under the situation but finding it more and more difficult
"---GET OUT OF MY FUCKING HEAD!" Yoon suddenly jumped back up straight, pointing her wand around a full 360 before stopping. "Geez..." She scratched her head against with the very tip of the wand, grumbling to herself. However, the muttering diluted to a sigh. She needed someone to teach her magic. Someone who wouldn't baby her, someone that would train her without mercy. "Hey, you! Stupid voice, come back! You're a demon right? Can you confirm if you pathetic creatures make deals like they do in movies?!"
"The only place and people I know that will and can help," Jackie emphasized. "Besides, you have nothing to worry about. After all, we're merely going to get a proper perspective on things from someone with much more experience than I have to offer. You'll be back by tomorrow if not by sunrise. Also–" She looked over at him with a sly smirk. "Who said that I gave you an option? You may want to hold on to that wheel. Winthaega!–"
The front of the van, little by little, began to rise from the ground until the entire vehicle seemed to give a small leap. Suddenly, the road was the smoothest ride that the van would have ever been on. As they passed other vehicles, Mason would be able to see the completely horrified and astounded faces that stared at him as they passed by. And if he were to look out of the window, he would find that the tires of the van were spinning still. However they were no longer on the ground.
~
"You'd be wise to go about using that tongue of yours with a bit more care, or your mother may find herself... choking on it." There was a sound that came next, one that sounded like coattails flapping in a hard breeze. The man appeared before her in a blink, glaring down at her. Down at the measly thing that was but a child to him. Something just short of a being belonging on a leash. He began to walk around her, his steps slow and calculative. "What a poor...poor..misguided thing you are."
"Keep my mom out of your damn mou---ahh!" Yoon took a step back when he suddenly made an appearance in front of her. She gulped, her trembling hand pointing at him with her wand upward thanks to the huge discrepancy of their heights. "If y-y-you wanted t-to kill m-me you would h-have already!" She squeaked. "N-Now tell me how to get out of here! How do I c-channel that maga thingy or whatever!" Yoon tried to keep her hand still, but it trembled against her will.
As Mason listened to her give her spell chant, he only realized too late what she was up to and called out, "Wait, don't!-" But it was too late, as the van already started to rise up off the ground, flying passed the other cars as Mason was quick to slap his seat belt on, screaming a bit in fear as he was off the ground once more and shouted, "I thought I said no flying!"
Even Sammy was taken by surprise as she watched the ground below them, staring down at the ground as she held onto her hat from the van's passenger window "Holy shit! This is awesome!"
"No, this is the worst!" Mason shouted back as he was searching for his inhaler, finally finding it in the glove compartment and was quick to star tot suck on the air that came from it. Though it didn't help him with his fear any
Claudio was sitting at yet another street light, having tried the radio again, but at the mention of what was said to be a mass murder at a night club, he turned the radio off once again. "This world is too much for me" he said to himself in silence, taking the time to pull a cigarette from his pack, placing it on his lips and lighting it with a lighter. But as his eyes trailed up back to the road in his attempt to get the lighter started, his eyes widened at the sight of seeing a flying can pass them by, getting the look of what looked to be an Asian-American holding her head out as she smiled with glee, while a large white man in the driver's seat looked on in total horror. Claduio stared at the sight in awe, the cigarette falling from his lips as he watched on before he shook his head out of it, "W-Well that's... something"
"Oh but dear thing, I do want to kill you. And in due time, I will." He stepped forward without hesitation, and with no warning his arm swung like a branch, the back of his hand striking Yoon's face with force that was bound to knock any man to the ground easily. "But for now...I'll use your screams to call the pohji here. Yes...yes. And she will come running accordingly like the fool she is to her death. Or perhaps she will leave you for dead and take what the only thing she can. The boy." The thought of it brought laughter from him.
~
Further and further than van came off the ground until shot upwards above the traffic. From the outside, it was like a ghost that faded out sight of the naked eye in an instant, another spell from Jackie.
While Mason freaked out and Sammy admired a view that usually would only be seen from jets and plains, Jackie relaxed into the seat. Though she remained focus, of course. "We should be there in about three to four hours or so once things really pick up. I'd take this time to relax and enjoy."
"How can I relax?" Sammy said as she kept looking down with excitement "This is so much to take in."
"How the hell am I supposed to relax!?" Mason said once again as he gripped the bottom of his seat, looking around in fear. It felt as though his heart was pounding against his chest like a hammer, trying his best not to pass out from the panic or get sick from the sight of how high up they were
Sammy rolled her eyes at his response and spoke to Jackie, "Hey, this won't take too long, right? I gotta be back as soon as possible. Got an important meeting."
"--wah!" Yoon flew back and fell flat on the ground with a heavy thud. The wand fell out of her grasp, and she whimpered some as she forced herself up to retrieve it. "...ooowww...." She stroke her face gently, not even being able to scrunch her features in anger since it was too painful at the moment. She stayed in the ground and kept her wand aimed at him. "T-Tell me h-how to channel that mana thingy... a-and i'll be nice enough to s-spare your life..." The young woman mumbled some at the end.
The cloaked figure continued to laugh over Yoon's words until it came to an abrupt stop. "You have yet to realize it...have you? The weight of your situation. The scales...steadily tipping away from the grasps of the weak." He rose his hand, and layers of the wands material began to tediously peel back. And as he stepped forward, it peeled a little faster.
And when it reached the grasp that held it, it continued across the hand of the owner. It would start at the fingertips, the thinnest layer of skin peeling back and continuing up her hand.
"The sheer forces in which your inferior world will crumble to its knees to is ever so close." The man beamed down at Yoon. "And it will all be thanks to you."
~
"Out of curiosity which do you deem more important. The life of your friend or a meeting?" Jackie rolled her eyes. "With the combined time of a back and forth with the additional time that we may be there I'd say, hmmmmm, it'll be in enough time for the both of you not to twist your underwear in knots tighter than they already are." She answered dismissively, chuckling to herself afterwards.
"You sure got yourself a winning tutor, Mason" Sammy replied sarcastically to Mason, who was still sitting in complete, frozen fear as he didn't dare look down at the ground below again. He felt that doing so would just take some years off his life, and so he avoided looking down completely
"Ow--OWOOWOWOWOWOWW!" Yoon dropped her wand, recoiling a little back now to pat her hand. "h-hey stop that!" However, deep inside her she didn't want it to stop. Because she knew it was actually helping her kickstart her magic. And just how she predicted it, the man in front of her unknowingly served as a teacher that showed her no mercy to push herself beyond her limit. She could feel it, an indescribable boiling bubble within her soul that was being poked at again and again. "y-y-you think y-you're this big scary bully who c-can go around getting what he wants, b-but you're nothing." She growled.
"Yet I will be the one to tear and pillage until the carpets of scarlet and skin are woven for the feet of lords to walk upon. And you will come to know this as truth. The cries of everything you love will sound beautiful under a crimson moon. It is destined to be. Absolute. And it all..starts...here."
~
Jackie's hand rested on Mason's shoulder gently. "There there, Mason. You'll be fine. Think of it this way. There will always be something worse than heights, so this is the least of your worries." When she spoke, her voice was soft. Enticingly soothing. "You're tired. Sleep." Her voice was almost like it had become an an ambiance that encouraged the action of sleeping. And so she began to ease his worries one by one. "Close you eyes....dream. The vehicle will be alright on its own. You're in good care. Trust me...and sleep..."
Mason gave a slight jolt as he felt Jackie put her hand on his shoulder, looking up at her, barely listening to her but soon spoke up, "T-Tired?! How could anyone... possibly sleep... like this?" Mason could already feel his eyes getting heavy, trying his best to keep them open, not sure what was happening. Sammy looked over, wanting to say something, but thought it was best to let Mason go to sleep, thinking he'd piss himself otherwise. Despite his best attempt to stay awake, Mason soon found himself fast asleep, his head slumped down as he started to snore softly
"Y-You have no p-power here... Just the capability to trick people. I-I fell for it o-once, a-and I'm not d-doing it again..." She warned, slowly bringing herself up to a stand. She grabbed the wand she had dropped earlier, immediately it repairing at contact. "I t-told you... to keep my f-family out of your m-mouth...." Giving the stick a tight squeeze, a gentle yellow aura emerged from the pressure of her grip. She inhaled it deeply, sighing softly and opening her eyes to reveal the golden highlights in them. The essence of energy began to swell in her until it finally bursted, the air around her and the man gradually shaking until a sphere of pure mana engulfed Yoon before exploding outwards––sending everything near her vicinity flying backwards with immense strength, including tearing the roots off the tree stomps from the earth.
Jackie watched Mason sleep for a second to two, and when she was sure that he was sleeping she smiled a little. Seeing people at peace just had that effect on her. She even went as far as to lean his seat back for comfort. Afterwards, she rested back in her seat with a sigh of satisfaction. She too had thought that it would be better if Mason slept. After all, she didn't need him having a heart attack before they even arrived.
~
The area was silent as everything came to a settle, clouds of dust falling into a rest. A couple of chunks fell from nearby buildings and glass was left shattered. But amidst the dust, amidst the destruction caused, he stood, his cloak coming to a settle much like the dust around them. And he grinned. "It seems that mistakes were made. You see, I have all the power here. I'll give you a first hand demonstration." He removed his hood, the depth of his eyes within such a bleak place like pits of fire.
"No, no you won't." Yoon aimed the wand right at him, but instead of firing directly, she shot the building he was standing next to with an unstable line of electricity. The building didn't collapse accordingly, but rather, it exploded at touch with parts crumbling in random directions. "I'm g-going to make you explode into little bits if you don't leave me the fuck alone." She yelled, a little raspiness to her voice since she had been yelling previously. The rubble levitated in sync with the sway of her wand, and when her brows furrowed, they morphed into sharp pieces of stone aimed at him.
"And yet you have yet to cast even a single spell. Instead you bring lifeless, nameless chunks of rock to your aid." The man wasn't bothered in the slightest. He rose his finger, it being pointed towards the sky as he slowly began to draw out a small circle. "Sief." The sharpened stones that were aimed at him began to turn quite easily be redirected towards Yoon instead. "And that in which has no dominion is powerless. But enough of this child's play." He began to curl his finger, the stones grinding themselves together until they were but mere pebble pieces. He pulled his arms back, swiping his palms across one another as he cast the spell, "Magi Kvarka–"
There was a flicker of darkness, and then...nothing. Now the man only stood there, his hands at his side. But his grin remained.
"I don't need spells to kick your ass!" Yoon growled; however, her eyes widened while witnessing the rocks turn on her. Her entire body glowed a soft yellow in the flicker of darkness, and when she saw the grin on his face, her eyes narrowed in frustration and hatred. "I'll melt that smile right off your face!" A disturbing pressure began to build in the atmosphere with the Droven agitating an unstable keeper. The floors cracked further beneath them, a wave of heat suffocating the clarity of the air. "And then, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU ONCE AND FOR ALL!" Waves of smoke began to emit from the ground, a red tint revealing itself through the cracks that sizzled through the soil and melted away anything it came across with. Yoon didn't know what spell to use, but she knew one thing for sure: She was mad. And that anger expressed itself with roars of aggravation before the magma erupted at Yoon's command, it building a wave of heat like those in the ocean before she sent it hurdling to the standing man.
The cloaked man rose his arms as if to defend himself. Yet he just stood there as the wave of magma crashed down upon him. And as skin melted from flesh and flesh from bone, he began to laugh. And then another flicker of darkness, as flicker as quick as a blink and the area was clear. There was no magma, nor were there cracks within the ground from which it came.
And once again...he was there. Except now, his grin was a bit wider than it had been before. The sharp stones that had been crushed into pebbles began to fall to the ground around them, just as it had done seconds ago. "Such a loud mouth for something so minuscule. Such arrogance for something lacking so heavily in experience."
Yoon blinked. "Oh, you think this is funny?! I---" She was ready to throw another blow, but then she paused. What am I doing? Her brows furrowed softly, placing her hand on her forehead momentarily. "You're just wasting my time. I don't need to fight. I need to get out of here." Yoon began her search, debating where was the better place to conjure a portal, if she could that is.
As Yoon searched around, there was yet another flicker. But this time, something was slightly different.
Whoosh. The sound came again, the one that sounded like coattails being blown in the wind. And just like when it had initially happened, his hood was thrown over his head. "A poor...poor..misguided thing you are." As he spoke, his words sounded more distorted than before. "At what point did you ever believe that you wielded power? Power to escape? To "kill" me? What was it behind those beady little eyes that made you convince yourself that you ever stood a chance?" His grin broadened.
"--Gah! STOP MAKING TIME REPEAT!!!" Yoon exclaimed. This time, she didn't even bother sending another wave of magic because she knew he would somehow just twist it to his advantage, which quite honestly brought down the little confidence she had left. She wasn't even sure if she was actually possessing magic or if it was all an illusion. Yoon panted softly, tired of this game as she began to make her way the opposite direction, even if that meant she'd reappear in the same spot. "I-If I didn't wield any power then you wouldn't want me dead so badly, huh? You wouldn't be picturing draining my mana out of me. Ooh, but lookie, here you are gracing your oh so precious time on someone who doesn't have power, right? Right. I don't know about spells but I know the one you're currently using is that of a baby's potential." Yoon rolled her eyes. At this point, her fear of him slowly became a joke. "W-what was it behind my eyes that made me think I stand a chance? That I will escape? Hmmmm, that's something you don't have: we humans call it a life. You should get one s-sometime." She commented.
"I suppose you're right. Being born to be devoured for a better cause for this forsaken reality would be an honor. But in your case, I suppose that wouldn't be...ideal." He began to laugh himself, his eyes wide. "But alas, I will have that honor." The skin around the corners of his eyes tore, allowing them to widen further. It's already inside you. We're all already inside you. Humor me, imp. Continue to spew your nonsense."
It was distance, but somehow closing in. Yet it was closer than it was supposed to be all at the same time. A voice, one that called out for her in a distorted wrath.
The man's eyes didn't leave Yoon's. His head tipped 90 degrees to the left. "Well well. It seems that your...savior, has arrived."
Yoon's head perked some at the last of the man's words. Her eyes widened with immediate worry, following his gaze to the left. "Yasha..... Yasha!!! YASHA DON'T COME NEAR! STAY AWAY!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. She acted quick, and was determined to detain or weaken the droven as long as she could if possible. The woman suddenly charged towards him, but instead of inflicting any immediate blow, Yoon had the ground underneath him swallow his legs in an effort to hold him back. "Wand, forcefield thinga-majig!" She exclaimed, however the wand simply spat out a few sparkles. "Oh come on..." And instead, she resorted slashing the magical stick across the man's face, unexpectedly leaving a burning cut on his flesh.
The man simply laughed in the woman's face, cackled at her efforts. But then he gave a sudden questioning "Oh?" Suddenly the body melted from under Yoon completely. And with the man, everything around them seemed to melt as well, back into reality.
Yoon would find herself standing where she had been before, only this time around,things were different. This time she would find herself being pulled forcefully in one direction, and a blaze of teal and dark green would blind her momentarily before she would find herself in the familiar arms of Yasha, only for them to crash to the ground seconds later.
"Y-Yasha---aaahhhhh!!!" Her scream was cut short when she was now rolling on the ground within her arms. But once she was able to recover, she instinctively found herself hugging the pohji tightly. "Oh my goodness---Yasha I missed you so much!!! Are you okay?! Is my brother okay did he contact you? " She embraced her like a child would her mother, her eyes faintly glowing gold. "IM GOING TO BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF THAT DROVEN!!!" She spat with anger. "Oh and I can use my wand now!!!" She swung it around, accidentally zapping herself in the process and chuckling the mild pain off.
"Ha! Didn't think anyone would put that giant to sleep* Sammy said with a chuckle and another mild joke as she returned her attention to the window, looking down from the top of it, able to see the outskirt of the city now leading out to more country roads and long stretches of road. Stuff that she would hope not to see too much of on this trip
"Yoon stop!" Yasha spoke sternly. More so than she ever had. And for the first time since Yoon had heard Yasha, she could hear what sounded like unbridled rage quaking within her just barely calm voice. Luckily, it was not Yoon that it was directed towards which was shown by the worry in her eyes. But there was also pain there, pain that she subconsciously attempted to hide.
But this was when Yoon would also noticed the blisters and boils that bubbled across her hands and arms, and with it a pain that felt as if hot irons were pressing into both sides of the hand she held the wand in. With it came symptoms of a heavy fever.
"A second too late and that would have been your grave, pohji," The Droven stood idle, wicked aura swimming around his hands. "How disappointed you must be to find that such a simple illusion fooled your oh so prophesized Keeper to the degree that she began picking herself apart with her own magic. Such a shame, isn't it? And now look at yourself."
It wasn't until Yasha began to stand that her trembling, swelled right hand was seen. But what also was seen here was the aura of fury in the air around her, yet despite this she didn't make a move. Waiting for something.
"Careful pohji. Being shelled in that corpse has already been your downfall. Expend too much magic and it certainly won't end well for you. But on the contrary I suppose it won't matter if the results will be the same."
~
Jackie gave no reaction to the joke aside from rolling her eyes and saying sarcastically, "How comical." She pulled out her phone, staring at it and debating if it would be worse if she just didn't make the call at all. Then she realized how crazy it sounded to even consider not calling before hand when it came to her grandmother. And so she dialed the number and placed it to her ear.
The adrenaline in Yoon slightly numbed the pain she felt in the blisters and boils on her arm and hands; however, it was impossible to completely ignore it. "s-s-sorry--" Yoon apologized when Yasha had told her to stop. She felt like she couldn't move her hands, and she didn't dare drop her wand in case she wasn't able to pick it up again. But then her eyes caught sight of Yasha's injuries. "Y-Yasha!!!" She shrieked in horror, quickly coming to a stand herself with a small grunt. Her attention turned to the droven, glaring at him with beaming eyes of hatred. "I-I'm not picking myself apart--I'm going to pick YOU apart!" She exclaimed before sending another blast from her wand. This time, instead of the aura shooting in a straight line from her wand, it shot itself upward unexpectedly below the man with incredible force and clearly unstable fatal magic.
As Jackie was wanting for the phone to pick up, the slow, melodic ringing dragging through the phones speakers, through the corner of her eyes she could see Sammy standing there, like a curious child, trying her best to listen in on the conversation since she couldn't mess with Mason and asked playfully, "Trying to call your boyfriend or something?"
The Droven rose his hand, and without a need for incantation forced the magic to a stop. For as fatal as it was and would have been to an averaged and inexperienced individual, he was neither. He saw clearly the skin that shriveled into charred over blisters with each attempt at magic the girl gave. "Shapeless power," The aura, merely infantile in nature compared to his own, was quickly overcome by the demonic magic that the man possessed. And from there it writhed and morphed at his will, floating above them all in the sky.
Yasha had no choice but to shove Yoon onto the ground behind her, having no time to waste scowling her for her irrationality. She threw her arms up into the air, magic pouring from her hands.. "Equitis Aegis!" Her magic shaped itself rapidly and in a way that seemed less torturous to the energy she used. It became heavy mist upon the ground, but from that mist rose a torso of the avatar of a knight which bore a large crescent shield.
The knight, ranging around 16 ft or so, heaved the shield upwards at an angle above them to defend against the storm of pikes cast upon them by the attacker. And though the knight held strong against the force, it was obvious that this wouldn't be the case for long. But as the web of fate would have it, it wouldn't have to.
HOOOOONK! HOOOONK HOOOOOOOONK! The horn to Yoon's car blared as it came driving haphazardly down the road towards the scene, barely able to stay on a straight path.
The Droven, surprised by the sudden appearance of the vehicle, was forced to shield his eyes momentarily, when the headlights beamed into his face.
Yasha was initially shocked but took the opportunity to strike in what she knew was a now or never window of time.
The Droven's magic lashed out at the car blindly and caused it to swerve into a spin across the road. But he was prevented from doing any further damage, being caught by a blast of magic whipped about and threw him backwards forcefully, the fist of the avatar knight following behind it like thunder after lightning to pin him down.
Yasha was already helping Yoon to her feet, speaking hastily through panting. "Come! We've got to go now!"
~
"Why on earth would I be doing that? To tell him about what a wonderful events of today?" Jackie scoffed sarcastically. "I'm sure if he existed he'd be thrilled." Relationships had been something she had come to give up on by force rather by choice thanks to the danger of her work. One of the many things she had sacrificed. "Now if you'll excuse me for a second–" She straightened out her clothing and unlocked her door before proceeding to roll down her window and whistle sharply.
"Y-Yasha, you're hurt!" Yoon shrieked with worried eyes, limping up to a stand. She hated herself for not knowing how to help Yasha, and instead comforted her with her small hands on her shoulders. "That vessel of yours won't be able to hold up for much longer, will it?" However, she understood that severity of the situation and instead tried helping Yasha to the car. "D-Do you need another body? Wh-What if you use mine?"
Sammy made sure to wave her response off with a slight grin under her hand to keep herself from laughing. But a part of her response did catch her attention, "Doesn't exist, huh? That's rough" Sammy thought casually about it, but she didn't allow the thought to linger in her mind for too long. Mostly because her thoughts were taken out when she saw Jackie whistle out the window. Sammy crossed her arms, sitting up on the mattress now as she asked, "What's the whistlin' for? You don't have like a magical dragon out there that's going to be flying with us, are you?"
