Horizon, Part 1: The Passing of Time, Chapter 11: Sins of the Father
Horizon, Part 1: The Passing of Time, Chapter 11: Sins of the Father

Ness nodded silently, and waited a moment before standing again. Talah Rama had said all he was going to. The rest of the group got to their feet and followed Ness back through the tunnels.

"So the Rock is within Raltise," Matt muttered. "And its shattering is inevitable."

Talus nodded. "That's about the size of it."

"I assume this means we shall have to confront Raltise again in order to find the Path of Light," Harsemhin said, frowning.

Talus nodded again. "Most likely."

"I think we ought to reunite with the other group before confronting Raltise," Siris said. "Uh... safety in numbers, I guess." Talus nudged him and winked. Siris knew what he meant.

"Mr. Giovanni," Ness began, "Will you be staying with us?"

"A'course, sucka!" said Penetella with a grin. "I'll help ya any way I can."

The group quickly reached the surface. "The others went to Threed, right?" Matt asked.

"Yeah," whispered Siris, nodding. He had tried to say it louder, but something was on his mind. Something was bothering him... Then again, something always seemed to be bothering him. He shrugged the feeling off. "So uh... let's go, I think."

The group began to head in the direction of Threed. It wasn't too long before they reached the city border. Siris looked around, then closed his eyes. "They're still around, somewhere," he murmured, trying to accurately pinpoint the direction in which they should search, with the aid only of a few barely-recognizable energies. Fortunately, though he had trouble explaining it to himself, he found Chione's life force to stand out from the rest with an eerie familiarity. Siris sighed. Aside from the lavender hair, the color-changing eyes, and the eight-foot sword, everything about her seemed to indicate only one person. Her aura was strikingly similar to the way he remembered Luna's...

"Siris, you coming?" Talus said, frowning. Siris opened his eyes. It appeared that the group had already begun to walk away in search of the others.

"Uh... yeah. Sorry," Siris muttered. "I guess I tend to lose myself in thought sometimes."

Talus continued to frown. Siris sighed, and ran to catch up with the group, Talus quickly following.

"Uh... Let's go this way," Siris said, pointing in a direction nearly perpendicular to that which the rest of the group had begun to follow. "Trust me."

Six sets of shoulders shrugged, three mouths frowned. Seven pairs of feet trod along the road.

-----

In order to kill some time he had waiting for the others to get information, Vincent sat silently at a table near Dan and Christina's. He had been tricked into buying a horribly overpriced cup of coffee without first asking the price, and vowed never to repeat the error. While slowly sipping out of the small mug, he had been wondering what he was doing with this group of heroes; none of the reasons he had come up with matched up to the others. He certainly wasn't a necessity to the group. At last, he decided that it was his curiosity that was driving him further. It had pulled him out of the hospital, wondering what had caused the hotel fire, and was now pulling him towards the biggest expedition he had ever embarked on, wondering how the complex story would end.

He had heard rumors about the events of the previous year, through various sources such as TV reporters, newspapers, and novel adaptations. However, few of them came close to the reality that he had pieced together from stories of those who had experienced it first-hand. Each tidbit he gained left him craving more, until finally, he was too attached to the thrills and twists to walk away now. He had had a similar and disastrous experience before, but before he began thinking about that, he decided that old memories weren't worth dwelling on.

Why, he then thought, did Ness have such a hard time coping with his own memories? Even a year after their deaths, Ness had still been pining for the companionship of Paula, Jeff, and Poo. Vincent had never known such a bond so powerful. Then again, he had never known a person so powerful. This power must be the reason Raltise needs Ness in the first place, Vincent rationalized.

A sight in the distance broke Vincent's train of thought. "The other group's over there," he alerted to the others, getting up. He picked up his now empty mug. He had been so caught up reflecting on his journey that he didn't remember finishing the drink. "Wait... This scenario seems very familiar..." he muttered before the waiter took the cup from him.

-----

"Where heaven meets earth..." murmured Matt. He had been pondering the riddle since they had left Talah Rama's. The sage's words kept echoing throughout his mind. Likely, he was not the only one dwelling on it.

Siris dragged behind the group to match pace with him. "What do you suppose he meant by that?"

"Well, my first guess would be a mountain." responded Matt. "Since it is forged from earth and it towers into the heavens. But that seems a bit obvious, doesn't it?"

Siris shrugged. "I haven't a clue, honestly."

Shaking off the intrigue of the riddle, Siris focused his mind sharply. They had entered city limits a few minutes ago and he just needed to pinpoint their allies' exact location. It was relatively simple because of their close proximity.

"There!" he exclaimed, pointing towards a nearby cafe. Sure enough, the others could be seen through the windows.

"Finally!" bellowed Rustopher obnoxiously. "A place to rest. Oh, and a facility of such exquisite taste. I will enjoy this."

Matt rolled his eyes (along with pretty much everyone else) and addressed the group.

"I live here...in Threed, so I'm just going to go to my house to change." he motioned downwards to his worn-out pizza uniform. "And I'm going to grab my sword too. Don't worry, I'll be back in a flash. I'll meet up with you guys at the cafe."

Matt dashed away from his friends, waving a quick goodbye. His house wasn't far; the whole trip would only take a few minutes...

-----

Outside the new Mooby's, the ghosts, Kageru and Bruiser waited. Everyone else was inside, while they stood outside and waited... waited... and waited...

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to check this place out... "

Bruiser looked a lot better than he did a little while before. After the 'Handicap Attack' by the drunks in Dusty Dunes, he was shocked. He had killed another man. Kageru nodded, and the two slowly entered the restaurant. It was huge! Lineups were everywhere! Bruiser looked around, and what he saw made him smile. Video Games. He walked over, popped a quarter into a machine called, "Ultimate Fighting Champions", and began to play. He seemed to have done well for himself, as the voice shouted: "Player One Win!" Kageru looked from the side, and Bruiser winked at him.

"Wanna play, kid? I need a challenge."

Kageru nodded, and looked at the coin slot. Bruiser popped a quarter in for him, and the action began! Kageru's character jumped around the screen, while Bruiser tried to keep up. After a few minutes, Bruiser had lost. "Player Two Win!" could be heard. A few nearby customers had viewed Bruiser's defeat, and began to snicker. Bruiser smiled, even though he was embarrassed.

"Hey, kid.. you're not too bad at this. You must have played before.."

"Doubt it. Never seen this back home."

"Well, hey. You sure fooled me. Let's check out the grub here. We never had a Mooby's where I come from."

"Not in Shinjuku either. I wonder if the food's any good ... if not, I'll just pass until we find something better."

Side by side, Bruiser and Kageru walked back toward the counter. Kageru slowly moved his head back and forth, as he looked for something worthy of his taste buds and wallet.

"I don't know about you, kid.. but I'm getting a Mooby CheeseBurger.." Bruiser looked wide-eyed, as he stared at the picture on the menu board.

"I think I'll pass. Haven't bothered eating in a week, why start now? Cheaper that way. Besides, will they accept Yen here?"

"No, they only accept currency here on Earth."

Bruiser gave a hearty laugh, and wiped a tear from his eye. Kageru just sighed to himself, quietly. After he received his food, the two walked to a nearby table.

"This isn't half bad. Not bad at all. I haven't eaten in a day, and I'm staving. How could someone as young as you go a week?"

"Weird physics."

Bruiser stared blankly at Kageru. "I don't know much about Physics, but I know a good meal when I see one. You're missing out."

"I don't even need to eat, right now. I'm digital, so I don't care."

"I don't think I'll ever figure you out, Kageru."

Bruiser smiled, and took another bite. He suddenly stopped, and lowered his head.

"I can't get that image out of my head.."

"Which?" Kageru leaned back, and looked over Bruiser.

"You know, back in the desert. That guy was armed. I haven't been trained to fight someone armed. But my arms... they seemed to glow. I killed another man. He may have attacked us, but I killed him. What if he had a family? Like McPhee..."

Bruiser looked straight into Kageru's eyes, and sighed to himself. "McPhee had a family... kids... wonderful life. He was a legend... He was a legend..."

"I'm afraid I've never heard of him."

"Everyone has heard of McPhee... but outside the ring, he was a family man. But I let that go. I had to. But now, it's happened again. Another man is dead at my hands."

Bruiser dropped his burger, and put his face in his hands. Seconds which felt like minutes went by, before he raised his head in curiosity. "How come you didn't care that he was dead?"

"You just get used to it, I guess." Bruiser just stared at Kageru. he couldn't believe he was hearing this from a kid. "Sometimes you're just more worried about keeping yourself alive."

"I guess you're right. it's just, kind of depressing."

"You get used to that, too."

"Yeah, I guess so. By the way, you were really good in that fight. Where did you learn to do that?"

Kageru smiled and leaned forward. "Just by fighting. It's good training when things try to delete you."

"Delete you? How do you delete a child?"

"Delete, kill, it's all the same when you're data."

"I've never been more confused. I'm just about ready to go. Want to go for a walk until the others are ready?"

"Whatever."

Bruiser and Kageru stood up, and headed to the door. As Bruiser and Kageru walked out of Mooby's, they noticed the rest of the group was already walking down the street. They caught up just as the others went into the café.

-----

Kapeka grabbed on to the support beam on the empty side of the road, panting, and vowed never to travel alone again. She hadn't expected that guy to be quite that strong. Ah, well, She would just have to go all-out, next time. She took out her hit list and added "guy with swords" underneath "Ral-person".

It came out of nowhere. She just saw the sword, before ducking. She didn't duck low enough, however, and felt a searing pain in her pom-pom.

Virus was standing over her, arms folded, smirking. He expected her to react, but it threw him off guard when she didn't hit him. In fact, she didn't do anything. She just stood there, feeling her pom-pom for damage.

She was completely numb. no way anybody could commit so heinous a crime...it stood against reason...surely nobody was that bad.

She examined her hand. Blood. She couldn't believe it.. nobody could do that. Her eyes turned red. Not Crimson with evil, but scarlet with rage. Her cheeks turned red, but the discoloration didn't stop there, and pretty soon she was totally red. She started smoking. She burst into flames, and lunged at Virus, attacking him with her staff.

Virus was surprised with her speed. It was all he could do, countering her attacks with his Katanas. And even then, she hit him more often than not.

WHACK! She hit him in the side of his stomach.

THWACK! She hit him over the head.

"I'm not nearly done, but if she keeps this up, I'm dead!" Thought Virus. "I've got to find a way to make her stop!"

Then, suddenly, she did stop. She was hanging in the air right above him, She pointed her staff at him and cried "INFERNO!"

"What was the point of that?" Thought Virus. "If it was an attack, it was incredibly weak..."

Then, it happened. It felt like he had swallowed the earth's mantle. His insides were burning; he had never experienced something quite like this. He fell to his knees. His insides were surely melting. He fell to the ground...and then it stopped. He lay there panting for awhile, knowing that Kapeka had flown away. And he was right.

Kapeka was flying over the Dusty Dunes desert, with a new objective: Get Home. She needed a break, She was extremely tired.

"Good, Threed" She thought to herself. Just a little more...I'll make it..." But she didn't. She couldn't fly anymore and had to let herself crash. She plummeted a mile before crashing through the roof of the cafe, startling the group whose table she landed on. "Hey, It's that thing that demanded pizza from Matt!" Said Siris, recognizing her at once.

"I say we should take this foo thing to the hospital." Said Penetella.

"No, I think we should take it with us. I think it might be of use..." Said Siris. Pretty soon there was an argument going on.

Kapeka opened one eye blearily, And said "You Humans are so silly. Arguing over everything. Please, take me with you. But, does anyone have a first-aid kit or something?"

-----

The white Chevy approached Fourside. It had already entered Eagleland, and now Skulryk was headed on the road that crossed the desert and went towards Fourside.

The news reports so far were right; there was a very strange storm above Fourside. It didn't feel right in Skulryk's mind. Some sense of his just felt wrong. He didn't know what it was.

The Chevy was currently entering the Dusty Dunes Desert, and Fourside was visible in the distance. Skulryk slowed down as he began to think.

Lucky was looking ahead to Fourside. "Hey, that does look strange. It looks like you were right; there is something going down in Fourside. I don't know what."

Thoughts were going through Skulryk's head. This really didn't feel right anymore. He definitely was troubled by what he saw Fourside as. It wasn't only the clouds above it, which were an eerie purple. It was Fourside itself. In the darkness brought on by the clouds, neon lights flashed through. Skulryk didn't like it at all, and his brain was itching for where he remembered it.

Lucky was catching the current state of Fourside with Skulryk's camera as the truck approached it. As the bridge was coming into sight, there was a traffic jam visible, but Skulryk didn't get far enough to reach it.

His mind had made a connection between things, and he instinctively cut the wheel to the side as he slammed on the brakes. Perhaps a three-point turn would have sufficed just as well, but a panic had overcome Skulryk. He came to a dead stop, now partly facing the other way, and threw the car into first gear and gave it more than enough gas, accelerating as fast as he could away from Fourside.

Lucky frowned as he stared back to Fourside. "What's that all about, Skul? What are you doing? I thought we were going to Fourside, man!"

Skulryk shook his head quickly, a sweatdrop falling down his forehead. "That's not Fourside anymore! It's become Fourmoon! I don't know how it happened, but Raltise is back."

Lucky was all questions. "Ok, what? Explain this whole Fourmoon thing to me. And Raltise, who's that?"

Skulryk shifted into fifth gear. "Didn't you see any of the news that went on a year ago? A big thing happened with a great evil with Mani Mani, but he was just a small evil. Raltise was controlling it all. Still, I thought we sealed him away. Now I don't know what's going on. He's back? It was a nightmare getting rid of him the first time, and I don't care if it put me ahead of all the reporters, it's something I don't want to relive!"

Lucky was still rather confused. The entire Fourmoon incident was a matter that he didn't understand in the slightest, even though he lived through it. Skulryk seemed to be knowledgeable as to what was going on though, and Lucky chose to go with him. Lucky had known Skulryk a bit, and Lucky never knew of anything to scare Skulryk away from a story. Now here was the biggest story to hit the world, wide open for Skulryk to cover, and Skulryk was running away? It must be some strong force to keep Skulryk away from a story.

Thoughts raced through Skulryk's mind as his car raced towards Threed, still unsure of what course of action he should take.

-----

"Uh..." Siris looked at his group, wondering if they had a first-aid kit.

"I regret to admit that a first-aid kit is not among my possessions," Rustopher murmured.

"I don't have one either," Ness observed.

Harsemhin, Talus and Penetella also said they didn't have a first-aid kit.

"I ain't got no such thing," Penetella had retorted.

"Ahhh..." Kapeka groaned. "It hurts..."

"Perhaps the hospital here has one," Harsemhin mused. "Monoceros Agility!" He ran out of the café and towards the hospital. Seconds later, he reappeared, bearing a first-aid kit. Matt happened to be with him.

"What is that thing, anyway?" Matt exclaimed.

"I'm a Moogle," Kapeka spat. "Kapeka's my name."

Harsemhin opened up the first-aid kit and applied salve to Kapeka's wounds, then bound the salved wounds with gauze.

"That is amazing medical work," Rustopher said uncharacteristically. "Wherever did you learn to do that?"

"In school," Harsemhin replied. "It was necessary training for my powers. Is that tight enough, Kapeka?"

Vincent led the groups together.

"Fancy meeting you here, Harsy."

Harsemhin sighed. "Yes, yes. Have you found Narcissa yet?"

Jeff glanced at Harsemhin.

"Oh, right."

"What about you guys? I see you picked up a Moogle."

"She..." Rustopher set up his joke with a dramatic pause. "dropped in, you could say!"

"O...kay. Did you find anything about the path of light?" Chartreuse fought his instinct to say something about the joke.

"Well, we found the Talah Rama." Rustopher dug something out of his pocket. "He said the following." Rustopher turned on his voice recorder.

"Having escaped the confines of Null, Raltise took the Nightmare Rock with him. It is now an inherent part of him, imbued within his own black soul. As it shatters, his power becomes greater, for the souls of the other evil within join his own, increasing his malevolence exponentially."

"He also said something about the Path of Light being where the heaven and the earth meet." Siris said. "Stupid metaphors..."

"Well... you could always try an arcade. In any case, we need to get to the hotel; apparently Narcy stayed there as of a day or two ago. Afternoon."

"Wait!" Ness shouted as the group walked away. They backtracked. "I've gotta go with Paula and Jeff. I feel responsible."

"Well...the groups are lopsided as is." Harsemhin frowned.

Chione thought for a moment and spoke. "I'll go with them. Ness is right, he needs to stay with the others."

The groups once again headed their separate ways; Chartreuse and the others headed for the hotel while Harsemhin and his group continued to think over Talah Rama's riddle.

-----

– Fourmoon –

A burning sensation lingered in the back of Virus’ throat. He wasn't injured, as the Puppetmaster would make sure of that.

**** That thing... he thought, referring to the Moogle that had bested him.

Immense amounts of pain ripped through him suddenly, and that could only mean one thing. Risosha, his master, was calling him.

He had just enough time to sheathe his Katanas before he disappeared in a flash of crimson.

– ??? –

Risosha stood in the middle of... quite unbelievably, nothing. There was only eternal shadow, as far as the eyes could see. A slight sigh escaped from him as Virus appeared with a slight pop.

Without turning around, he acknowledged his puppet. "You have failed me." It was not an accusation, it was an icy cold statement. "You are becoming too much of a burden to me, and now you must be eliminated."

With a mere flick of his wrist, Risosha severed his link with the man standing right behind him. Virus only had a few seconds of nothingness before he fully realized the situation.

"This isn't gonna be good..." he whispered to himself, preparing for battle and drawing his Katanas in what he knew was a hopeless attempt.

Risosha turned around, slowly, but surely. Eyeing his latest victim's swords, he laughed softly. "You expect those playthings to help you now? Hmph."

"We'll see how helpful these playthings are when they're going through your heart!" Virus screamed, charging forth with the same combo he had used against Kapeka that had angered her to Inferno him.

After the massive attack, Risosha was still standing, laughing. He was unscathed, and now he had a powerful blast of magic ready to annihilate the former guardian of Fourmoon.

"Your pitiful attempt to be the hero has failed. Now... it's my turn to attack, yes?" Risosha smirked. With a massive throwing motion, he threw the energy at Virus.

Pain ripped through his body for about 10 seconds before he fell to the ground, nearly dead. Risosha moved over to examine the man's prone form, and a mixture of amusement and pity crossed his face.

He helped Virus up, to the latter's surprise, but then he drew one of Virus's Katanas from its sheath, and in one simple upward stroke, he struck it straight through the crushed man's heart.

Virus was dead before he even knew what had happened. Risosha looked down at the man he had just killed, and he felt power flowing through his veins, as the Nightmare Rock within him had absorbed the victim's soul.

A single laugh echoed throughout the nothingness as Risosha disappeared from the void.

-----

"Where heaven and earth meet," Rustopher mused. "This is a very irritating predicament we find ourselves in."

"Quite," Harsemhin concurred. "I wonder what that means."

"Why don' we jus' look for the place where th'meet?" Penetella exhorted.

"Heaven is a concept dependent on how you interpret it," Harsemhin observed. "It could mean the firmament, where the stars lies. Or it could refer to the afterlives of certain religions."

"The path of light," Talus whispered. "Maybe ... maybe that's what we should focus on, rather than where 'heaven and earth meet'."

"It's easy to SAY let's focus on finding the 'path of light', but where the heck do we expect to FIND it?" Siris retorted to Talus.

"Well, what's a place that is a sacred... well, light place?" Harsemhin interjected.

A few people had suggestions, but none of them seemed to really fit, until Siris came up with one:

"How about Lumine hall?"

"You know..." Matt said thoughtfully, "that actually works!"

"Well then, let's go! Also, my new suit needs attending to..." mumbled Rustopher, as several people glares at him.

"Are you ever going to forget the suit?" Chione growled, her hand reaching impulsively for her sword, as Rustopher grinned.

"Not until I get a new one, young lady!" he laughed, as everybody grumbled, and turned in the direction of Lumine hall.

The group of individuals trekked northward through the streets of Threed, toward the graveyard. As they headed northbound, naturally, they began to talk. Talus sidled up to Siris as usual.

"So..." he began, "Where on Earth did you pull this garbage out about Lumine Hall?" Siris grinned.

"Think about it. Deep Darkness. Path of light. It makes sense." Talus rolled his eyes.

"And exactly how is the Deep Darkness a place where heaven and earth meet, hmm?" Siris faltered.

"Errr, well. It's the last place in the world, isn't it? So wouldn't heaven meet the earth there? Sort of like the edge of the world?" Talus snorted.

"Yeah, good call there cap'n. That's the biggest reach I've ever heard in my life." He chuckled sarcastically. Siris muttered under his breath. Talus took a moment to look at him. "Ahhh, come on now. I kid. Who knows? You may be right."

Rustopher increased his pace, at last coming abreast of Siris and Talus, who led the group. "Pardon me, you young rapscallions, but I demand to know why we are heading in such a northerly direction!" Talus smacked his forehead, stopped, and turned around to face Rustopher. Harsemhin, Siris, Chione, Matt and Penetella stopped as well, and all stared at Talus, waiting for him to speak. He took his time, waiting for all eyes to focus on him.

"Anyone here know teleportation? No?" He smirked. "Got any transportation, then? Oh wait! We crashed the Sky Runner!" He let out a laugh. "I read a year or so ago about a remarkable invention that the late Dr. Andonuts had devised along with the Mr. Saturn and the Apple Kid. It was said to be able to pass through not only time, but also space. The Phase Distorter. And I'm willing to bet that the Mr. Saturn still have a prototype or spare lying about. It's better than trekking across the countryside, anyway."

He turned once again, this time to his left, where they had come upon the gated entrance to the graveyard. He swung the rusted metal gates aside and stepped through, the aroma of freshly dug graves assaulting his senses. They all quickly skittered through this final resting place for many and up the wooded path to the underground tunnel. They descended the ladder into darkness.

"So, Talus, what's your stake in all this?" Siris nudged him playfully. Talus winced.

"...Maybe another time. I'd rather not talk about it." He shifted uncomfortably in his stride and continued down the darkened tunnel toward the exit.

----

Risosha's face was encompassed in a perplexing grin, half playful, half demonic. He paced up and down the deck of the small fishing boat, while in his mind's eye he saw the small group of adventurers descend down the darkened underground tunnel.

"Excellent...yes, quite." Risosha casually ran his fingers through his full hair, aligning the red streaks. "My puppets, stay close. They may very well lead to that which I desire." He clicked his tongue in a satisfied manner, and trained his gaze outward on the glowing neon city of his own creation. He sighed dreamily.

----

The sun had fallen below the mountainous terrain, casting an eerie orange glow on the Grapefruit Falls. The group of adventurers quietly ducked into a side-tunnel, one filled with the most peculiar of sounds. They had arrived at Saturn Valley.

"Boing! Zoom!" A small, rotund creature bounded up to them upon their entrance into the crater valley. "Welcome to Saturn Valley, ding ding! Welcome you are! Yes! Zoom!" It sped off in the opposite direction. Harsemhin sighed wearily.

"Come on, let's head for the inn. I'm exhausted." The group nodded in unison and all trudged somewhat grudgingly off to the small rounded shack with the pointed roof.

----

Chione gazed into the twinkling starlight as she stepped from the rounded metal door. A flickering through the porthole had caught her attention. She peered out the crack in the doorframe and noticed a small campfire licking away near the pond, two figures silhouetted against it. She stepped cautiously out onto the plush green grass, and she caught voices, coming and going with the wind.

"Come on now, dude, you can't deny that Chione isn't hot."

Siris rolled his eyes, memories flashing across his mind. "Yeah, what'd you know about it?"

Talus grinned roguishly. "I know what I can see with my own two eyes. She is beautiful." Siris pushed him, knocked him over in his crouched position.

"Bah, be quiet." He muttered, still distracted by his thoughts. Talus frowned.

"Come on! Give me a little glimmer of acknowledgement here. I see how you look at her. Why, I bet I know what you're thinking too. You're thinking--" he was cut short by a blow to the head that sent him sprawling onto the grass. He cringed, holding the back of his head in response, and looked upward through his one un-flinched eye into the visage of Chione standing over him. "Oh err...hi." He grinned sheepishly. He sat up once again and Chione knelt between the two of them, eventually sitting cross-legged on the grass. The three stared wordlessly into the crackling campfire, thinking.

Siris was the first to speak. "So Talus, are you going to answer my question?" Talus frowned.

"What's that?" Siris nudged him, his arm passing in front of Chione.

"You know.... What’s your stake in this? You just appeared out of nowhere with all this information, and you don't seem to have any reason for helping us. But there's something about you that isn't right. You know more than you let on. What's the deal?" He detected the color rather noticeably fade from Talus' face. The young man swallowed hard, as if he was suddenly at a loss for what to say. Chione frowned at this and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You alright?" She asked innocently. Talus coughed and shrugged.

"Yeah." He said nonchalantly. Then he closed his eyes and a wry grin danced across his lips. "Well, you really want to know?" He chuckled somewhat emptily. "Better off telling someone, I guess."

------

The young boy gazed over his thin, blue-tinted spectacles at the man across the breakfast table. This man was built tall, slightly muscular, with a thick head of hair and a pair of frames perched precariously on the bridge of his nose.

"Dad? You don't look so well."

"It's nothing, Talus. It must have been something I ate." A dainty woman glided across the kitchen floor to her husband, placing a reassuring hand on his back.

"He's right, honey. You look terrible. Maybe you should take something." A worried expression crossed her face. The man stood, heaving his weight to his feet, coughing lightly. He turned and ambled on across the living room, to a small door framed in the hallway. He gripped the sink basin with his white knuckles and quietly shut the door with his foot. Talus stared after him in perplexity, then looked to the woman.

"Mom? Is everything alright?" The woman sighed.

"No, Talus. Your father's been having some very troubling dreams lately. You know, he said that he was researching some ancient artifacts lately and apparently he found something about a gold statue with devil-like horns. He had tracked it to some small café establishment in Fourside, and he was meaning to travel there this morning to look into it." Talus' father had a profession that took him everywhere. Being a cultural historian took great amounts of effort and hours. Talus had taken an interest to the field and begun his own research into ancient Scaraban lore.

"So Mom, did I tell you about the work I've been doing?" Talus grinned and held his head up proudly. "Yeah, I've been looking into some Scaraban cultural texts. They said something about a place called 'Null' which is supposed to exist beyond time and space." Talus' mom sighed.

"Come now, you don't really believe in that stuff, do you? Why don't you look into something more practical, like your father is? Why, this latest discovery could be something really big--"

A shrill cry from the bathroom cut her short. The house was immediately enveloped in silence following this. Then, ever so slowly, a booming, reverberating laughter echoed through the house. It reached a crescendo, piercing eardrums, filling the small abode with dreadful sounds. Then with a crash, the bathroom door flew off its hinges. Talus jumped from the kitchen table while his mother turned in horror and let out a shriek of absolute terror. He gazed, as if in a dream, while a tall man dressed entirely in black stepped through the threshold, eyeing the door peculiarly. His complexion was completely white and two rows of yellow teeth were framed within his thin lips. The man's head turned in their direction, and he stepped quietly over the fallen door and into the living room.

"Ah! Guests! So good of you to greet my arrival! Yes, yes! So very...quaint!" He stepped forward, a deep chuckle reverberating from his throat as he strode across the living room. Talus jumped in his path, but quickly found himself toppling head over heels as the malevolent creature merely created a blast of air by a wave of the hand. He smacked into the wall and tumbled to the floor, groaning loudly. He opened his eyes again, reorienting himself, in time to see the figure standing over his mother. He had her by the neck with one hand; the other hand buried deep into her abdomen. A flash of white light erupted from his palm, and the woman's eyes dilated somewhat before all color drained from her face and she fell, limp, upon his shoulders. He dropped the lifeless shell aside.

Talus screamed in horror and dove head-first into the apparition. The man merely sidestepped and caught him by the back of the neck, yanking him back and throwing him into the wall once again. Talus slumped to the floor in a heap, and the figure closed in.

Talus gasped as the man gripped him by the throat and hoisted him into the air. He grappled onto the individual's strong arms with two of his own hands, struggling and kicking to free himself, but to no avail. The man pulled him in close, his crimson eyes flickering violently.

"Such...easy prey. Yes, yes...I shall enjoy crushing your world. And I think I shall start...with you." The creature grinned wildly as he tightened his grip upon Talus' neck. He gazed horror-stricken into the ruthless being's face.

And then...a flash of recognition. Through the blood-red eyes he saw a moment of two distinct, warm brown orbs staring back at him. Two eyes which he knew all too well. Raltise's maniac grin creased into a frown, and he released his grip. The boy dropped to the floor, clattering like a marionette after the puppeteer had let go of the strings. Raltise strode to the door, opening it, and looking back.

"On second thought...I don't even wish to soil my hands on such a lowly game piece. Yes, quite." He stroked his hands appraisingly. "Well, little puppet...adieu." Raltise mock saluted, stepped outside, and in a flash of white light, winked out of existence. The boy with the disheveled white hair passed out from shock.

------

Siris stared unbelievingly as Talus finished his story, his mouth agape. Chione, as well, gazed at him in utter perplexity, biting her bottom lip. Talus, who had been staring meditatively into the dancing fire throughout the telling, one hand resting on a curled up knee, at last closed his eyes. A sorrowful smirk, one heavily laden with loss, regret, and pain, passed over his lips, and stayed there. Then those lips parted.

"Yeah. The Raltise you fought in Fourmoon. That was my father."