Shadows of the Past

*Artexi flies around it then charges another Chili, firing again*
---
*Safian sends a stream of fire at the same Bruiser Mortal attacked, while Monu slashes at a Flood*

*I suppose that works. The Axe Flapper flaps around, trying to get up. Nero crushes a few Vile Phials.*

"We don't have to beat them all, let's just cut through to the door!"

*A Vile Phial works its way behind Noctis & dive bombs her, seeping purple fumes.*
======================
*Artexi does not make it, & is swatted down towards the lava flow. A pair of nearby Chilis also charge her.*
======================
*Thiera gets to Taiyo's back, calling a ring of flames around them to destroy a Flood that tries to slash her. Monu also destroys a Flood. The Buckle Bruiser that everyone attacks dissolves into dark flames.*

L"Yeah, fine."

*She points her Keyblade at the other Buckle Bruiser, binding his legs to the ground & his shields to his arms with ivy.*
============================
*There. Are. Still. No. Exits.*

*Artexi summons her glider back underneath her then charges the Chilis, attacking with her light*
---
*Monu attacks another Flood if any remain. Safian sends a stream of darkness at the remaining Bruiser*

Noct uses Slink into Shadows to avoid the dive bomb, then begins to rush towards one of the doors.

--

"Good," Mortal said, shooting another fireball at the remaining Bruiser as well.

Taiyo blasts a stream of water at the Buckle Bruiser that was probably destroyed several attacks ago.

===================================

And so they stop walking.

Azuma: "Not even a trapdoor."

*Roatha has had quite enough of Azuma's bullshit. A small white aura explodes around him as he dismisses the Keyblade, grabs Azuma's collar with both hands, & slams him up against the wall. The gridlines on his outfit turn red.*

"Look here, you idiot, I've told you no less than 3 times that there are no exits! If you don't start listening to me, I'll break out of here using your face!"
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*And so, the Buckle Bruiser gone, now they just have to contend with the Floods. Lilith runs past the one that Monu destroyed & slashes it. Thiera pats Taiyo on the shoulder, probably rather awkwardly.*

T"You're safe, now."

*She then runs off to destroy another Flood with a quick 2-hit combo. Seeing that this is clearly a lost cause, the other Floods sink into the floor, blue forms speeding off down the right hand side of the hallway.*
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*Nero uses a quick 3 strikes with Dark Splicer to stop the enemies in their tracks, then runs after Noctis. There's a slight gap that they'll have to jump across, then they'll be on the narrow ledge with the Buckle Bruiser. It slams its shields together, watching them. Nero points the Keyblade at it, shooting a larger blast of darkness that knocks it down. Then he doubles-over, dismissing the Keyblade & resting his hands on his knees.*

N"Geeze, this is exhausting...."
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*She wasn't knocked off of the Glider, but she does manage to regain enough control over it. This decision is questionable because, while she does manage to destroy the Chilis attacking her, she also goes spinning off-course, hovering dangerously close to the lava. Of course, plumes raise up on either side of her, like fingers curling inwards.*

Taiyo: "Thank you?"

===================================

Hitomi calls up her Keyblades.

Azuma: "This teamwork thing wasn't working too good anyways."

*Artexi flies almost directly upwards, away from the lava. Then she continues headngto the exit*
===
Monu:<Should we follow them?>

"Tell me about it," Noct said, cracking a few achy joints in her back, "Usually why I prefer not to go on these kinds of adventures..."

--

"They might lead us into a trap," Mortal pointed out, "Or would they? How smart are these things?"

L"Good question. But I think it's a safe bet that our bad guy is down there."

T"Lilith, there's something strange going on here."

L"You mean besides the monsters?"

T"Yes. Look at Mortal & Taiyo. They have Keyblades other than the ones they were fighting with."

L"What? So they changed Keychains, that's not so unusual."

T"That isn't what I mean! Please, just turn around."

*Lilith lets out a sigh & finally acquiesces, whereupon she starts looking between them, her brow becoming increasingly furrowed in confusion.*

L"...How is this possible?"
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"And what would you know about that? Is walking around doing nothing but making stupid, self-evident observations how you contribute to the team? I sure can't see anyone else. You're not the strongest, that's Mortal. Or the fastest, that's me. Is that all you're useful for? Making stupid quips? Hey, maybe you fool the enemy into thinking we're all as pathetic as you are!"

*Roatha laughs. It is sincere, but nasty, & devoid of mirth.*

"Or maybe you're just a joke. Maybe Binah should have never called you here in the first place. You'll probably be first to fail the Exam."
=======================
*She is hit by some of the lava as it curls inward, & ends up right back down near the bottom before she can level out & begin flying towards the exit. Meanwhile, one of the Chilis swerves into her periphery & shoots a fireball at her, & a plume of lava shoots up in front of said exit.*
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*When the Buckle Bruiser gets up, it hurls its shields at them. Nero raises his Keyblade to deflect the one aimed at him.*

*Artexi flies above the fireball, then charges the Chili, firing*
---
*Safian stares at Mortal, confused*

Noctis used a gust of wind to give the shield an updraft and launch it high over their heads, then dashed forward and clubbed the Bruiser in the head.

--

Mortal looks at her hands and saw that she had two key blades, "When in the world did that happen?"

Taiyo lets out a surprised shriek, dropping the Keyblades.

Taiyo: "Where'd that other one come from?"

===================================

Azuma: "Well, we'll just have to wait and see. Now are you going to channel this frustration in a manner that contributes to trying to find a way out or continue berating me? 'Cause y'know, I can do that myself."

"I bet you can. You know what, you're not even worth wasting my Berserker power on."

*He drops Azuma & summons his Ultima Weapon in a blue flash of light. A second later, the Omega Weapon shows up in his left hand in a red flash of light. He holds it up & inspects it.*

"Well, that's new. Wonder what it can do."

*He turns & begins attacking the wall again, striking downward with the Ultima Weapon, across with the Omega Weapon, & repeating, picking up speed as he goes. Several bolts of red lightning materialize out of apparent nowhere, striking the wall again & again. In time, a crack is formed. Roatha jams his Keyblades into it & yanks them apart while stepping forward, blowing out the wall & leading them into a dark hallway with similar blue lines at the edges. As he steps out, the Omega Weapon vanishes & his outfit goes back to normal. The lines on the walls, however, turn red as the background noise [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].*
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*The Keyblades vanish when they hit the ground.*

T"I think you've had them during this whole fight, but didn't notice. Lilith, do you have a theory?"

L"I don't know. I've never heard of such an ability. It's true that they did go on another Dive to the Heart, but that won't give you an extra Keyblade."
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*Noctis falls into the chasm, which I don't even feel bad about, because I specifically drew attention to it twice. Nero shrugs & jumps after. They are lucky(?) enough to splash into some cold water that's just deep enough for swimming. Nero sniffs.*

"She's been here. This is where her Dark Corridor let out."
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*As the plume of lava settles, another one shoots up in front of her, becoming like a hand with long fingers, & tries to swat down at her. Another duo of the surviving Chilis drift down from further up & shoot fireballs at her back.*

Azuma: "Right then."

And so Azuma stands up and goes down the path, Hitomi following, her Keyblades hovering behind her.

===================================

Taiyo: "Kind of a hard thing to not notice."

Safian:<I think it's cool.>
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*Artexi soars away from the lava, then charges and fires at the remaining Chilis*

"What WOULD give someone an extra keyblade?" Mortal asked, looking her new one over, "Maybe we fulfilled the requirements without even knowing."

--

OOC: You said they already jumped it. At least I had thought so.

Noctis looks up, "When did that get there?" She then looked around, and tried to find dry land so she could dry off, "Think you can find her?"

OOC: I did not.

*Nero holds up the Keyblade, emitting a small amount of light. They then presumably swim to one of the rocks. Nero turns to a pair of waterfalls, pointing the Keyblade to illuminate them better.*

N"She went down the right one."
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L"I just said I haven't heard about it. What I can say is that I really doubt it's natural."
===========================
*Now she's heading away from the exit, & the Unversed who attacked her swerve out of the way. Another shoots a fireball from farther away.*
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*Roatha lags behind & scratches the back of his head. They start to pass other prison cells, the difference being that these ones all have window panels & visible entrances--hexagonal doors marked by glowing outlines with dividing lines between them, although no visible means of opening them. So far, they're all empty.*

R"Hey...I'm sorry about all of that stuff I said. I don't usually get that angry. I'm not sure what got into me."

*She charges and fires at that one*

"Well, lets get going then," Noct said, pushing her sopping hair behind her ear, annoyed at being wet.

--

Mortal frowned, "I don't think I'm unnatural. It doesn't feel wrong, or bad at all. In fact, unless you pointed it out I wouldn't have noticed. It felt natural."

Azuma: "Water under the bridge."

===================================

Taiyo: "Should we continue on?"

L"If it's so natural, why haven't you always been able to do it?"

T"Taiyo has a point. We need to stay on the move, if we want to avoid security."
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R"Thanks, that's a relief."

*He jumps at a noise. From one of the windows, [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] taps on the glass.*

<(You need to move! The Black Guards will be here soon! I can show you the way out!)>

R"Uh...should we?"
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*Artexi successfully destroys a Chili. Congrats. 3 pillars of lava shoot up around her.*
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*Soon after they pass over the waterfall, they come to a stream that's just barely trickling under a series of crystals sticking out of the wall every which way. Nero tries to bend over 1 & step over another, but yelps & falls back, making a splash. He looks at his leg, which is now blistering, then flicks some water on one of the crystals. It turns to steam.*

N"I think this whole place is some kind of trap."

Azuma: "I don't know, he looks pretty shady."

"Well, some things come with time," Mortal pointed out. "Well, we'll figure it out later. We should get going like Taiyo said."

--

Noct just looks at Nero, then nods, "Well, thanks for letting me know. That looked kind of painful."

*Artexi flies in between the pillars, back towards the exit*
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Monu:<I agree.>