Apparitions of Melody [Raen/Zack/Animositas]

[Aerith]

Stranger Things I Have Not Seen

After they had left the islands, the trio had flitted between worlds, not doing anything of much importance. No more encounters with the dark figure or those black-cloaked people hindered them, and after a while, boredom began to set into Lanying's mind. This gave her far too many opportunities to dwell on their current circumstances. The Champion's words bothered her. She knew that Raen was following a path she didn't want to touch, but that didn't mean she was going to be his enemy so long as he kept his sanity intact. And even then, she wasn't sure she could repeat the events of Beast's Castle.

She was tucked into a chair and staring aimlessly out of the window when an unfamiliar world came into view. From here, it looked very dry, filled with parched rock and dust. She couldn't help but wrinkle her nose a little in disappointment. They weren't going to land here, were they?

Casting a glance in Raen's direction, she could tell he was already intent on setting down. The Gummi Ship identified the world as "The Keyblade Graveyard," and Lanying's eyebrow arched. "Keyblade" reminded her of the mouse king's strange weapon. But a graveyard? That was an odd thought.

When they finally landed, Lanying was the first to exit the ship. And now she knew exactly how descriptive the world's name was. A sea of rusted weapons greeted them, all of them vaguely resembling keys. Mickey's weapon had been simple and easily identifiable as a key, but many of these were far more elaborate in design and appeared much more deadly. What were they all doing here? The world was so empty.

"What is this place?"

[Nothingness]

The Desert Wasteland

Truth be told, Raen only landed the ship for the moment because of how long they'd been cooped up inside. Plus, it didn't seem particularly threatening, just very barren. He couldn't picture anything living here--human, Heartless, or Nobody. It was such a harsh environment, what with the dust storms in the distance, whipping winds, and lack of any vegetation. In the distance he could make out a massive spire of rock that seemed to scrape the ceiling on the sky itself.

Stepping off the ship after Lanying, he heard her muse about what this world was. "I've heard of many worlds, but never anything like this. I...I don't know what this place is." Closing his eyes, he could almost feel a pulse from the very world itself. So much anguish...pain...rage...despair. If it wasn't for the Champion's assistance, those emotions would have easily taken him over. Still, despite having control over it, those emotions managed to make him feel somber.

Taking a few steps forward, a part of him wanted to see what all was in this world--if there was any sort of bastion of serenity--while another part of him just wanted to leave now. Still, there was something significant about this place. Regardless, he was going to be letting Lanying and Zack take care of the leading here. If anything did live here, he doubted that it would be friendly, and he'd much rather have their backs.

[Aerith]

Oddities Abound

Once again, Lanying found herself taking the lead, though she wasn't paying much if any attention to either Raen or Zack. She did hear Raen speak, but Zack seemed to still be on the ship. It was possible he was snoring somewhere in one of the corners. She did not, however, wish to wait for him.

Without a word, she struck out in a seemingly random direction. Through the forest of keys, she wandered, oblivious to any attempts made by Raen to stop her from going too far. Something strange drew her. A hollow sense of inevitability pulsed in her chest. Suddenly, an ache throbbed in her head.

Do you hear, Small One?

The voice, while possessing the feeling of great distance, still rumbled like waves against the shore inside her head. It almost swallowed her. Reflexively, she pushed back against the mental blanket that had settled heavily over her mind. It was a struggle for spiritual oxygen.

Ah. I see the time is near.

Just before she thought she might drown, the voice receded, leaving a clear feeling of approval in its wake. The cryptic words were more than a little frustrating to Lanying. The voice hadn't bothered to explain itself or where it was.

To her surprise, she had been walking during that whole episode and only now just realized she was in a completely different place. The area was pock-marked with craters, still as barren as the rest of the world. But something nearby immediately caught her attention, and she moved over to give it a closer look.

Leaning against a rather strange and large weapon was a suit of armor. From the way it was sitting, if there was a person inside that at all, that person was probably dead. The thought made her take a step back, but there was something off about this. No stench of rotting flesh hung in the air. There couldn't be a dead body here, unless there was nothing left of it at all.

Curious, she reached out a hand toward the helmet.

[Lagunamov]

_______________

[/center]

On the barren soil at the Seat of War, gathering dust and slowly starting to get covered by sand. How long had it been since it last moved? Animositas remaining fragments of mind could not remember at all. So many years had passed since its creation, left resting there, immobile and purposeless. Or maybe, that’s what it now thought. After all, after so many years, who was to say its mind hadn’t degraded to such a point where the thought of moving wouldn’t occur to it?

Of course, said thought never crossed its mind. Visitors were a very rare occurrence. Unflinching, it sensed three new presences in the world. The first moving creatures in who knew how long. However, that changed nothing. They were far, somewhere close to the last location that had witnessed battle at the Graveyard. The armor’s faint interest subsided, its consciousness going numb.

Something is…

Consciousness returning to the armor after an unknown amount of time, it could see that one of the visitors had come to approach it. “Is that… a girl? Yes, it’s female…” Interest was starting to rise within the empty armor’s mind, the visitor slowly coming closer to it. “What is this… a familiar feeling?” thoughts started to rush into its mind faster than it had in ages. Maybe even faster than they’d ever had since the sentiment had been created ages ago. “I know that… Yes… She’s one with…” the thoughts continued, the woman almost touching Animositas’ helmet now.

“Potential,” that single word, a shared thought transmitted to her visitor, was uttered as the sentiment raised its head in a sudden movement. Its limbs no longer numb, it slowly raised its arm a couple of inches. Then, in a fraction of a second, it plunged its right arm forward, its hand pointing forward, light reflecting on its sharp, skin tearing fingers.

[Aerith]

Should This Be Fight or Flight?
[Panic Attack by Dream Theater]

The sound of another voice stopped her, but this voice was completely unlike the one from before. Whereas the previous voice had been deep and soothing in its odd smothering of her brain, this voice was cold. Bone-chilling. Metal grated against metal as the armor moved, slowly at first. Lanying drew her arm back as the armor's arm moved.

She hadn't expected such speed.

The only way she avoided those razor claws was by very ungracefully collapsing to the ground. The shock from her back connecting hard with the rocky ground took the breath from her for a moment. There was no time to linger in once place. Rolling to her feet, she put distance between herself and the apparently alive armor.

"What potential?!" Between the Champion, that strange voice in her head, and this suit of armor, she kept being reminded that there was something about her she herself didn't know. And it was apparently important. Well, someone was going to tell her what it was even if she had to beat it out of them.

The shift into battle mode was quick. Her first problem was the severe lack of water everywhere on this world. No water meant huge limits on what she could do to defend herself. She was fighting a suit of armor, and all she had at her disposal was her bow and her sword. Considering her opponent was completely metallic, the odds for success were not in her favor.

"Who are you?"

While the answer may or may not be helpful, it gave her time to think. Raen and Zack were somewhere. They could help. She inhaled to call out, but then suddenly she clamped her mouth shut. No. She didn't need them. She could do this herself. She needed to do this herself.

"If you cannot even defeat me..."

Anger sparked through her, and she snapped her eyes on the armor, determination in them. Allegretto came out of its sheath, and she tried to clear her mind, grab onto any shred of serenity that she could. She couldn't escape the fact that there was no water. That only meant she would have to improvise.

[Lagunamov]

Mirror Mirror.

[/center]

Dodged. Naturally. Anyone with the potential Animositas had sensed would be able to avoid such a simple attack. Even if it wasn’t done in such a… graceful manner. Its head tilted slightly to the side at the sight of the girl falling on the ground in such a way. The visitor was starting to put distance between the two of them, while the animated armor started to slowly get up. The sound of metal moving broke the silence of the graveyard as it reached an upright position. Sand was slipping through its joints and falling to the ground, showing the age of the armor.

A question was called out. If Animositas were human, it might have chuckled at the girl’s lack of knowledge. “Unaware one…” That was the only thought sent to the girl’s mind. What purpose was there in explaining it? None. If she lived up to the potential, she’d know. If she didn’t… then Animositas’ armor would be bathed in fresh blood.

Another purposeless question. It was what it was. Moving one step forward, the hollow sound of its foot on the ground echoed around them. The armor stared at its visitor, no, at its target. Distortions of light surrounded the sentient object, warping the images as if it were a mirage in a desert, each passing second the distortion getting worse. In a matter of moments, after the distortion had reached a point where nothing could be told apart, it stopped.

“Who are you?” Lanying’s voice asked back. Where the sentiment stood now was an exact replica of the girl. The second Lanying let a slight smirk on her face show up for a second, quickly raising her arm after that and aiming at the original. A red ball of energy, surrounded by a dark mist formed in the palm of her hand and quickly shot towards its target.


[Energy Blast used. Five posts cool down. One more use.]

[Aerith]

Retaliation

These voices in her head really needed to stop. If this went on for much longer, she would start convincing herself that she was actually insane. The two words she heard made her grind her teeth in frustration. She knew she was unaware. Why was no one bothering to fill in the gaps in her knowledge? The armor, of course, wouldn't even give her the satisfaction of knowing who or what it was.

What happened next made her go cold.

The armor shifted, light bending around it, obscuring its form completely. It hurt her eyes to look directly at it for a second. When the distortion cleared, she was looking at a perfect mirror of herself. Reflexively, she took a step back. Just what was she dealing with here?

It even spoke with her voice, but she wasn't going to give it her name. Not that it mattered much, since her mirrored self was now preparing an attack. Lanying tensed, tightening her grip on Allegretto. The small orb of energy shot toward her, and she dove out of the way, a little more gracefully this time.

Now came the question. Since the suit of armor now looked like her, could it be injured like she could be? Or was it still a huge suit of metal? There was only one way to find out. Hopefully, she wouldn't regret the decision later. With her jaw set, she dashed forward, sword poised to deal a blow straight into her unknown opponent's chest.

[Lagunamov]

Taking the gloves off.

[/center][/i]

The girl seemed to be proving worthy of the potential the Sentiment could feel. Of course, not fighting at even ten percent of its capabilities could be a factor in this assessment. Now the target was rushing towards it, sword in hand and ready to strike. "Foolish," Animositas uttered to the girls mind as the bladed connected to the armor's chest. The sound of metal clashing echoed in the usually silent wasteland that was the graveyard. The hollowed sound continued for a few seconds as the Sentiment slowly backed away, the mirrored gazed of the girl never leaving her.

Turning its back on her, the disguised armor reached to the handle of the weapon that, until moments ago, was acting as a tombstone for it. It raised the humongous weapon from the ground slowly, the sand that had accumulated over the ages on it dripping to the ground and blown away by the dry wind of the desert. Facing the girl once more, Animositas changed its grip to the middle handle of the giant rifle and holding it backwards.

"Prove your worth," It once again uttered into the girl's mind. The illusion the armor had created to look like the girl persisted. With no warning, the Sentiment started dashing towards its target, raising its left hand forward midway and summoning four crystalline objects that began to circle it in fixed orbits. Leaping high into the air on approach to the target, the sentient armor raised its weapon upwards with both hands, the tip of the gun pointing downwards and firing five quick shots. Immediately after that, the Sentiment came crashing down on the target, attacking with the blunt backside of its weapon.


[Crystal Stalagmites activated. Three posts to dismiss/use. Four posts cooldown.]

[Aerith]

Digging a Hole

This was not good. Her sword did absolutely nothing against the illusion-wreathed armor, which answered her unspoken question. The collision of metal sent shivers up her arm, and she recoiled. The sound echoed through the desolate landscape while the armor actually moved away from her, surprisingly enough. She would have thought it would press the attack.

When it went for that large weapon, however, she understood why it had backed off for the moment. If the look of the weapon was any indication, great pain was heading her way unless she figured out something to do. But she had nothing. Her sword was useless, as was her bow. There was no water to be found, so she couldn't use any of her magic.

And now the armor was summoning crystals around itself. Wonderful. Who knew what those would do? But for the moment, they were staying in a circle around her opponent. Instead, what she did have to worry about were the shots fired from the giant weapon. Try as she might, the shots came far too fast for her to avoid all five. She took one in her left shoulder, fire blossoming along her nerves, and another grazed her right hip before she scrambled out of the way. The ground shook from the impact of the armor against it, and she was propelled forward several paces, ending up in a tangled heap.

Unwinding herself, she faced the armor and breathed heavily. Her entire left arm was throbbing, which would normally have been an easy fix. Without a source for her magic and with no way to hurt the armor with the means at her disposal, she was useless. The most she could do was keep trying to stay away from the thing's attacks until Raen and Zack found her. What worth could she prove if she had none?

Despair was much easier to sink into than she had thought.

I am sorry, Father. I'm not doing well at being the son you wanted. Perhaps you should have beaten me to death before that night.

[Nothingness]

I Leave You Alone for a Few Minutes...

As they walked along the desert path, Lanying broke off to somewhere else. Raen wanted to follow, but it felt as if something was stopping him from following her. He felt as if his mind had numbed, and, incapable of thought, just let his feet lead him into the sea of keys. His hands glided over various keys as he walked, each filled with so much despair and rage. Raen couldn't help but wonder why so many Keybearers had fought, and what for? Was there any victor, or had they all perished without having completed their mission?

He stopped and tried to pull one of the rusted keys from the ground, but with even the slightest of tugs, the handle broke off with a resounding crack. Looking at it like some cheap toy, he tossed the fragment aside. If he had any mental focus, he would've found something interesting about that, but at the moment could only see it as something slightly odd. Just as he turned around to go look for Lanying, and immense wave of emotion seemed to explode from a singular point. It was overwhelming, and he knew immediately what had happened. Breaking into a sprint, he ran as fast as he could towards the source. The worst-case scenario already entered his mind, but he kept trying to shut it out. Having regained his mental clarity certainly had a downside in that respect.

It was then that he saw them--Lanying and...herself? She was fighting a copy of herself? Well, it wouldn't be hard to tell them apart seeing as how one had what appeared to be a huge hunk of steel as a weapon. He could see the real Lanying, battered and bleeding, barely able to keep fighting. Her arm and hip were bleeding, and it didn't look like she could last another hit.

Raen ran over to her, standing about ten feet away. Drawing his blade, he focused his new-found darkness into the blade. "Sorry to steal the show, but I'd rather not have a vacancy on the ship." He began to slash the air around him, sending out various blades of ice--five cutting through the air and three slicing through the ground--and each blade seemed to have a black core. Not of his own free-will, he raised his free hand, and punched the ground, forming a black portal beneath him, and a mirror beneath Lanying's doppleganger. He could feel the darkness pouring out of his body and into the portal, and without any warning, a black mass with two eyes were bulging out of the mirrored portal, and quickly raised itself up into a wolf's head, jaws snapping shut. If that managed to hit, well, then hopefully that was enough.

[Raen used Ice Beast, three posts until next use]

[Lagunamov]

Cavalry gone undetected.

[/i][/center]

Almost a direct hit. The target was getting sloppy. Slowly standing up after the impact on the ground, the disguised armor turned its head to the girl. Hurt and on the ground, she seemed almost defenseless against any further attack from the Sentiment. With one shoulder injured, the hip hit, and the effects of the Havoc crashing on the ground and causing a small shockwave, it seemed now she was just waiting for her misery to end. “Disappointing,” the shared thought echoed into the girl’s mind, Animositas’ usual tone for such speak colder than ever.

However, so distracted was the armor by its prey, that it had failed to notice the movement of the other two presences at the graveyard. As such, a man had now showed up to aid the fallen girl. Wasting no time, the newcomer began to attack ferociously, but predictably. Or at least, predictable enough. The sentient armor directed one of its crystal orbs to hit the ground between it and the man with one motion of its left arm, creating a weak shield of crystal stalagmites, and immediately after dispatching it, it lowered its rifle to the ground and stepped on it.

The reaction of the weapon was immediate, and quick enough to avoid the attack coming from below. The moment Animositas stepped on the weapon its internal engine came to life, its roaring start-up sound echoing in the wasteland as it took off into the air with its passenger. Just in time to avoid getting caught by the jaws of the dark beast. “Unwanted… Leave!” The armor’s thoughts transmitted to both its visitors, the second word accompanied by a sharp metallic sound, as if steel was being bent beyond its capabilities. Circling the air above them at around fifty meters from the ground, the sentiment dispatched another pair of its crystals as fast as it could, each aimed at a different target.

[Zack]

Zack snored loudly. For once the easily excitable hero-in-training was asleep while they traveled on the ship. They hadn't really found a place to go to next after the islands and since he hadn't been able to get much sleep there anyway, he decided to catch up while on the ship. He had slept through them managing to land, and even was asleep when Raen and Lanying left the ship. However, soon it seemed like he had gotten enough sleep, since he began to rise.

He yawned loudly. "That was some nap...." he mumbled and then jumped up to his feet. He did a few quick squats, which quickly woke him up. He headed for the bridge and asked "Hey, have I missed-" he started to say and then realized no one was there "....Anything?" He looked around, looking at the spot where the Gummi ship said what world they were on. Apparently they were now at a place called the Keyblade Graveyard.

It was definitely an interesting sounding place. It then dawned on to him "Don't tell me they left to explore already! Man, talk about oversleeping...." he said aloud and rushed out of the ship. He was surprised to see how desolate the world was, it was practically a desert. Then again the fact it was supposed to be a graveyard, left little to the imagination he guessed. Unsure, of which way Raen and Lanying went, he picked a direction and started to head that way. Hopefully with luck he would find them soon enough.

However, it wasn't going as well as he thought it would. The further he walked, the more barren the world seemed and everything was starting to blur together. He soon happened upon three giant craters in the ground, about the only notable landmark he had seen at this point. He was surprised to see them. "What could have happened here...?" he asked aloud as he looked at them. However, he couldn't think about it long. He had to find Raen and Lanying, wherever they were.

[Aerith]

The True Measure of Worth

Raen's appearance barely registered in Lanying's mind, for it was elsewhere, on a dark and winding path that cut through the past. The sounds of ice traveling along the ground and the roar of the armor's weapon soaring into the sky were faint background noise. The real sound that held Lanying in its grip was the imagined inner voice of her father.

You see? Women are naturally weak.

She wanted to curl into a ball and just die.

Always need a man to come and save them.

Maybe oblivion would free her from her father's ghost.

The only thing they are good for is satisfying a man's physical pleasure.

Her fingers slowly curled into a fist.

But you are probably barely worth that. The same as your mother.

"Is that why you beat her?!" She was completely unaware that she was audibly shouting now. The full brunt of the shout was muffled by the ground, but it was still loud enough to be heard.

What of it? She could not stop me. Women are weak. And you are no exception.

Lanying didn't know whether to scream or cry, so she combined the two. The despair was overwhelming now, threatening to choke the life out of her spirit. She tasted salt on her lips.

"You are dead! Leave me alone!"

Tai Shi Lanying!

Another voice, the voice from before, the sound of waves and wind, crashed into her with unspeakable violence. There was no gentleness present this time. It boomed her name with almost terrifying authority.

You are the one who keeps yourself bound in the chains of the past. Release them, and take ahold of that which is yours!

Not of her own volition, she stood to her feet and stretched her hand out in front of her. The very sea seemed to be flowing through her veins, renewed strength coming from somewhere outside of herself. A blend of water and light flashed in a wave that extended from her palm and revealed the most magnificent weapon Lanying had ever laid eyes upon.

Was this... a Keyblade?

It looked nothing like King Mickey's Keyblade, but something inside of her told her this was a Keyblade. She grasped the massive dragon-themed weapon in her hand and stared at it in wonder for a few seconds.

When you have finished here, Small One, come and seek me in the mountains of your ancient homeland. There, you will further prove your worth to me.

Like the tides, the voice receded out of her mind. But there was no time now to ponder. A projectile was heading her way.

The burning in her shoulder had faded to a dull throb, allowing her the mobility to roll out of the oncoming crystal's way. The second she leaped to her feet again, she immediately summoned three glowing spheres of light into existence around her. Instinctively, she knew these could both be used for weapons or defense.

Her Keyblade--Maelstrom's Dragon--struck one of the spheres, sending it hurtling up toward the armor. The other two would remain rotating around her for now.

"We will see how weak and worthless a woman is."

[Violent Storm by Motoi Sakuraba from the Baten Kaitos OST]

[Summary:
Lanying used Eastern Radiance
Cooldown period begins after next post.
Uses remaining: 2]

[Nothingness]

Disbelief

Raen was astonished at how nimbly that old hunk of armor could move; it dodged or stopped all of his attacks like they were nothing. Even more surprising was that the suit's weapon turned into a some sort of jet-propelled board or something. Then to add to it all was that it was talking telepathically to him. "Then how about you make me leave!?" Raen shouted back at the suit. Naturally, as if in response, the armor shot launched two of those strange crystals towards he and Lanying.

It was then that he heard Lanying shouting into the air. He didn't know what she was talking to or why she was, but if she didn't snap out of it soon then she'd be hit by that thing. Remembering that he was also the target of one, Raen turned around and fired off one his Blizzard spells just in time to stop it. However, he didn't expect the crystal to explode into the large stalagmite that it did. Definitely something to watch out for.

Looking back at Lanying, she looked completely dazed. "Lanying, move!" The sudden flash of light from her forced him to shield his eyes. When he dared to look he saw a...Keyblade? Lanying had been chosen by the Keyblade? "No way..." He uttered, barely audible. Still, she seemed to have a new found determination and quickly avoided the first crystal and launched her own counter-attack with something Raen had never seen her do. Raen couldn't help but think that things were finally starting to look up for them.

[Raen used Dark Blizzard, three posts until next use.]

[Lagunamov]

Familiar...

[/center][/i]

The circling speed of the armor in the air around its prey increased each passing second, remaining away from physical range. It could see how the girl sunk into despair, an emotion that resonated all too strongly in the mind of the Sentiment. An emotion engraved so deep within its scraps of memories and consciousness that, had it not been for the entertainment that had arrived, would leave it motionless for the rest of eternity. The girl was yelling, talking to herself. Addressing the departed. Then…

Finally. The one with potential finally touched upon it. If only barely. The sight of the weapon at her grasp caused memories to resonate within Animositas’ mind, flashing in an out for a couple of seconds. It was right. It knew the source of that potential all too well. Before then, it was just a familiar feeling, but now, it could remember its origin. “Keyblade… Master? No… Master-less wielder…” It’s thought resonated within the minds of the ground-bound humans, the mirage of the girl fading in distorted light, the true appearance of the Sentiment returning.

A counter attack was imminent. The new Keyblade wielder struck a ball of light, sending it to the armor. The sphere hit the backside of the Havoc, causing Animositas to lose some balance and hurl down towards the ground. With the tip of the weapon pointing downwards, it took a firm hold of the middle handle of the weapon and used its own weight to pull the nose upwards. The fall stopped only inches above the ground, with the nose of the Havoc at about forty five degrees in regards to the landmass, no longer moving. “An improvement,” the Sentiment’s voice echoed in the girl’s mind as it spun its oversized weapon on its back end.

As soon as the nose of the Havoc aligned itself with the targets, Animositas let go of the handle, causing the weapon’s tip to abruptly fall forward. In that motion, the engine propelled it forward at great speed while a stream chaotic of bullets was sent flying towards the pair.