Lore: Destroy all that Binds

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 4:33 pm

"Siren! Take care of Rai! We should get out of here! I'll get Soran." After she yelled her orders, Mizuki sprang forth towards Soran and was at his side in moments.

"Soran... Soran please. Let's go.'' she pleaded. Something felt wrong. She wrapped her arms around his shoulder's, trying to help him to his feet.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 4:41 pm

At the sudden touch on his shoulders, Soran wheeled on Mizuki, moving to strike her with the dagger, but he didn't. He stopped his hand, looking at her grimly. He knew who she was. At the moment, it didn't help. "That way," he said, pointing to a door on the right side of the cavern. Talking was like thunder clapping in his head. He forced himself to stand, before someone noticed he couldn't. The substance was returning to his legs, and they held him. In fact, the only external sign of the turmoil inside was his eyes, cold and bright with the pupils shrunken to black pinpoints, making the irises even more startlingly green than normal.

Kyosuke · Post by **Kyosuke** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 5:38 pm

Jhaptal had been rather confused about all that was happening. Despite living in an academy for magic users, Jhaptal did not know much about the mechanics of magic. He knew the basics like fire spells made fire and things like that. But he didn't know the specifics of magic.

Of course, even he knew something was wrong when Soran managed to catch Reya's hand and stop the dagger as well as the barrier that he had seen earlier fading away, revealing Soran's friends and Mayn.

He had been about to move when Mayn levitated before him, pleading for help. He leveled a glare at the girl, one of the few shows of emotion she would have seen him make. He backhanded her across the face, breaking her concentration and bringing the floating girl down on the ground. "Even had I not known you well enough to know that you were probably causing trouble in the first place, my loyalty is to Lady Reya first. If she abandoned you it was her choice." He then turned to Reya, who had taken cover behind him. "I will leave her to you for punishment. While I stop Nightblade and his friends." He walked towards Soran and the others, readying his armblades and considering the irony of the elf being slain by weapons of his own creation.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 5:41 pm

Mizuki stepped back, startled that he wheeled on her but... it made sense. "Soran..." she wanted to comfort him. She could see he was hurting inside, but now... would he let her near? She wasn't sure what he was going to do, but her mind was afraid he'd stay behind. She held his arm firmly, but gently.

"Come home with us..." she stared back calmly into his panicked green eyes. Her mind was too flooded and confused to sense Jhaptal's movement toward them.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 6:10 pm

"Come home with us," Mizuki was asking him. All of a sudden "home" seemed like a loaded word, full of pretention and false meaning. But he knew what she meant, and getting out of the building seemed like an appropriate goal.

His eyes caught a flash of metal behind Mizuki's shoulder and he looked over it to see Jhaptal attacking. From his arms stood a pair of blades - the ones he had created. In a burst of motion he shoved Mizuki to the side before Jhaptal would have gone through her to get to him, and met the ninja's attack with the gold dagger. Its form shuddered at the impact, the magic beginning to dissolve. It would not make a useful weapon for long.

"Mizuki, the bracelets!" he said to her urgently as he shifted all his focus into parrying the attacks Jhaptal was throwing. He was fast, and it was impressive that he had learned so quickly, but Soran could also feel instability in his movement; he hadn't mastered them. It was a task to avoid getting slashed open as he tried to maneuver hteir fight away from Reya and mizuki.

Mayn lay stunned on the ground, dazed by the strength of Jhaptal's strike.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 11:11 am

Reya had the bracelets. How could she---? Well, Reya was still stunned, right? Mizuki stood up and retreived the crossbow from her side and aimed it at Reya. Walking swiftly away from Soran's battle with Jhaptal, Mizuki fast came upon Reya.

"Give me the bracelets." she demanded. She momentarily panicked that Reya had recovered and Mizuki was going to die. Right here. Before she ever got the chance to see her son grown up. But she tried hard not to let it show in her eyes.

Kyosuke · Post by **Kyosuke** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 6:19 pm

Jhaptal looked back and saw Mizuki in front of Reya with her crossbow out. Jhaptal was half worried at that. He knew that Reya was somewhat weakened from whatever happened to her. That made sense since she hid behind him. However, to what extent he wasn't sure, his lack of understanding of magic being the reason. He also wasn't able to take the time to aim with one of his shuriken, taking his eyes off of Soran for more than a split second could prove fatal, and the ninja would need careful aim to prevent a crossbow bolt from hitting Reya, pelting Mizuki with many shuriken just wouldn't work.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 11:08 pm

Reya eyed Mizuki warily. She knew nothing about hand to hand combat; she'd never needed to know. She had Jhaptal and others to protect her, if she needed it, but she never thought she actually would. She took a slow step to the side, watching the arrow follow her. This was the woman who had taken Soran's heart. The heart she couldn't get. As foolish as she knew it was, she didn't want him to love her. She wanted him to be just the way he was when she met him, and do everything over again, and this time....this time... But the time for that was over. "Fine. Take them," she said, fishing the bracelets out of her robe. "In exchange for that bow." She wasn't foolish enough to expect mercy from this woman she knew nothing about. At the same time, she wasn't in a great position to bargain. She waved the hand that wasn't holding out the bracelets upward, as if to call up a spell, but she could feel the magical circuits were dry of power, no glow of energy filling her blood.

Soran dodged and rolled to the side, barely missing another swipe from Jhaptal. He was good. Soran couldn't even return an attack without lowering his guard; he was focusing on evasion alone, and picking up some nice bruises in the process.

Siren stood at the edge of the room, holding tight to Rai. She wanted to go to Soran, but leaving Rai alone would be a huge mistake when the enemies knew attacking her could bend almost any of them to their will.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 11:17 pm

Mizuki narrowed her eyes at Reya. "I'm not stupid." she said sternly. Watching this woman, remembering all that Soran was remembering...

"You tricked him once, you're not doing it to me." Mizuki's hands shook with fury at this woman. "You dare... try to love him.." her voice was quiet and shaky at first, but then it grew stronger. Mizuki remembered things she wasn't supposed to, private things in Soran's life that she should've learned by him slowly telling her. But that wasn't possible because of this woman before her. "You destroied him. You let him trust you and then you broke it! I should do him the favor of killing you..." She was so angry. She never felt this before, it was like somekind of power...

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 11:49 pm

Reya hesitated. The woman acted like she knew what had happened to Soran in his past. But that didn't make sense...he hadn't had time to tell her. "He never trusted me," she said, her voice hard. "I was nothing to him. Just another kid infatuated with him."

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 11:55 pm

Soran's memories flashed through her mind again, and she was also reminded of how badly Soran needed his bracers back. "He obviously trusted you on some level with the memories I received from him!" She became steady again and she held the crossbow even firmer, again taking aim for it had slacked somewhat.

"Give me the damn bracelets...and..." dare she bargain that much? She hated this woman, clearly she deserved to die. She had caused pain to Soran, she was causing her pain now. To Mizuki, she didn't have the time or the choice. "I'll let you live, against my damn better judgment. As long as you don't ever come back to haunt us! You've done enough!"

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 12:05 am

"He obviously trusted you on some level with the memories I received from him!" Reya stared at her. No... she didn't want to know. She didn't want to hear that Soran had cared about her. Or how Mizuki had been allowed into his head, without violating it as she had. Even holding his memories all these years, she had never been able to see them herself. This girl somehow knew all about him. It made Reya feel helpless in a way she hadn't felt for years.

"Give me the damn bracelets...and...I'll let you live, against my damn better judgment. As long as you don't ever come back to haunt us! You've done enough!"j

Reya frowned. If Soran escaped, everything she'd done up to this point would be in vain. But she valued her life more. With a cold frown, she held the bracelets out to her to take.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 12:07 am

Mizuki snatched them without hesitation. She backed away, not taking her sight off of Reya. When she got to a safe and close enough distance to Soran, she called out to him.

"Soran! I have them!" she cried and threw them to him. Hoping she hadn't been too late.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 12:25 am

Soran heard Mizuki's words like a blur in his head amongst all the other things preoccupying his thoughts. It was like trying to fight his way out of a dream, concentrating on what was in front of him when so much was going on in his mind. He threw his effort into dropping down to his hands and throwing a solid upward kick into Jhaptal's stomach. He kicked of Jhaptal's body to get some distance from him and caught the bracelets thanks to Mizuki's aim. He had to put his weakened blade down to put them on, his thumbs working at the latches rapidly. He managed to get them open and threw them over his wrists, locking them shut again. For a second he couldn't remember the password - a warning that his focus really wasn't up to par, or a symptom that his old memories painted over his new ones to some extent. THankfully, the word came to him. "Shourai!" he shouted as Jhaptal came in at him. The magical blades burst from the bangles as they extended into bracers. He ran to meet Jhaptal's attack, the two of them locking weapons.

"Cute weapons," he growled to Jhaptal. There was something in his eyes that hadn't been there before; fierce, and empty. Death was there as well; it filled his aura as if he had brought death over and over without hesitation, or maybe died himself. Whatever the reason, a killer's eyes now seemed to be glaring into Jhaptals as Soran leapt in to attack with full force. This battle had to end quickly before he ran out of energy; he was going to pull all the stops.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 12:29 am

Seeing as she could do no more here, and having a disturbing shudder run through her body as she watched him and felt his thoughts, Mizuki ran towards Siren and Rai. She kept an eye on Reya though, incase she decided to attack.

Watching Soran fight made Mizuki feel as if she had just lost something. She was forced to close off the connection between them finally, before her own mind snapped. Her heart was aching, deep in her subconscious she knew and understood what was happening to Soran, but she just didn't want to believe it.