Kingdom Hearts: Kingdom Hearts: Light Chaser

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Takehiko was up pretty early the next morning sitting at the front of the castle with a light with him and tray next to him that had tea and some sort of snack next to it that looked like a mini-party platter with some vegetables but mostly chicken tenders. He was focused on a book in his lap and he had a notebook next to him that looked like he was taking notes. But it was mostly some pretty detailed sketches that seemed to mime out things he was reading. The first was a guy holding his hand up with some fire in it. Then next to him was a guy with two of his hands out holding fire. There was a third next to him with him holding the fire up above his head with the flames being a little bigger and the fourth one was just a guy with fire all over the place. Underneath each had a poorly written: Fire, Fira, Firaga, Firaza.

He also just seemed to have different drawings for basic words. But even with that he still looked pretty stressed. He stopped every once in a while and put a sticky note next to a word he was having trouble with and he started looking through another book and started sounding out, “El....ee...aa...f….le...lee…” he paused and whispered, “Lea… Leaf. Leaves…” Take switched to the journal and started drawing a leaf in the notebook in a little more detail than probably was needed before he tried writing the word leaf. He then pointed towards the others and said, “Leaf… re… cover. Recovery… over time.”Take followed the line and whispered Leafra, Leafga, and Leafza. After a little while started getting a bit of a headache so he left the book on his lap and began sipping at his tea a little as he waited for the sunrise that was close to happening. Take leaned his head back against the wall he was sitting next to and just kind of tried to destress for a minute or two.​

 

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Another wave of ice overcame Aria right when Master Kaio walked in. Her breathing was shallow and slow, the cold overcoming her being. She didn't respond right away to the magical heat that engulfed the room, and slowly was slipping out of her thoughts all together. Aria's body glowed with a pale blue light only to disperse sending icy shards towards the man interfering only to turn into flecks of melted water that splattered throughout the room. The frozen tear on her cheek melted, rolling down her face and on her pillow.

There was a moment where Aria stopped breathing, only to take in a shuddering breath a few moments later. The warmth gradually wrapped around her being, coursing through her aching bones and muscles. She grimaced as feeling was returning to her once more, and then her eyes partially opened. Everything was all a blur, and the girl couldn't make sense of anything she was seeing. She saw a figure standing nearby, but he didn't appear to be solid with the heat waves surrounding them. She tried to talk, but found she didn't have the energy to even utter a sound for the time being.

 

All was black. It had been that way for some time already now. Even so, Chrys felt there was... something. At the edge of her senses, she was aware of a... Memory? ...Vision? ...Force? It wasn't really clear. Though it seemed it would be soon enough. The black was filling in, and in place of the inky void there was instead what looked to be the room of a cavern. Sitting against one of the far walls a boy and a girl with blonde hair were resting. The girl was completely unknown to her, but the boy... the boy was someone she knew very well.

Spoiler: I&II

Chrys stared towards the open mouth of the cave, watching the rain pour down. It was a calming sight for him, and the reason why seemed to escape him when he had first set eyes upon it. However, the realization dawned upon him suddenly as he stared at it, having found that he had recollected a large portion of his life all at once. Much of it was still hazy, but he figured he'd just need time to sort through it.



"Seems they've done it." He murmured quietly to his silent companion. Turning toward her, he could see the results of the battle clearly on her face, as her now wide eyes slowly narrowed in focus as she nodded. Likely trying to sort through her own memories, he left her be. She hadn't spoken much at all since they left the others some time ago, not that he could blame her. She had been rather severely injured back at Orphic Coast, and he was rather certain that they had both taken quite the blow to their self esteem as well. He returned to his original train of thought newly enlightened to his current situation...



Which only left him all the more confused...



"What happened to you Fleur?" His silent mutter caught the attention of his companion, who sent him a questioning look. "It's nothing." He placated her without thought as he continued to stare out at the rain. He knew not what world they had landed in, nor how long it had taken them to get there. Only that he should enjoy this rest while it lasted, as the two would need to be on the move again soon.

As the inky black infected the reality around her once more, Chrys was left to wonder if what she had seen was an actual vision of her brother, or merely a dream, concocted by her mind to show her something she so desperately wanted to see. However, she was distracted from even that thought when ground appeared beneath her feet, and trees popped up around her. The thick foliage made numerous rustling noises, and she hastened away from where she stood without much thought. The feeling of something watching her was omnipresent, and she found herself running at the sound of a howling wolf. Eventually, she broke into a large clearing, where the ground had vanished once more. Beneath her was the picture of a night sky full of stars. It was above her as well, but above also sported a brilliant white orb that was clearly the worlds' moon. It was a marvelous sight; One that brought peace and comfort to many in her home world, if only because of the stories surrounding it. However, all she could do was stare up at the satellite with a sad stare. It stayed that way for some time. The desire to run was gone, and the forest stopped rustling. With no animal sounds to be heard, the clearing lapsed into silence.

Then the moon moved. It descended toward her, as the rough outline of a wolf, no doubt the one she had heard howling earlier, took form. The sky seemed to encroach upon her, but rather than be afraid, she collapsed willingly into the crystalline fur dotted with shining stars. Her tears finally began to spill forth once more. The great beast leaned down and opened it's maw, a geode filled with terribly sharp minerals of teeth, and began licking at her face with a tongue like a galaxy, catching up her tears in it's shining maw.

"Now, now, my child, you must dry your tears. Though I know that it is a task far easier said than done." The creature spoke with a motherly tone, though it was quite clearly male. As she somehow wrapped her arms around the creatures impossibly large torso, she marveled at the dream she was having. Everyone in the Garden of Rivers knew this being, legendary as he was. Many thought him an impossible being, but her brothers own existence could quite effectively silence any naysayers.

"Do not get carried away now child. I am no god, whatever my more... enthusiastic... supporters might have you think." Chrys response was to raise an eyebrow at the night sky that had decided to wrap around her like a safety blanket.

"It's your psyche."

It was only at this point that Chrys thought to question if the wolf was reading her thoughts. However, she quickly decided it didn't matter. This method was far more accurate and efficient. Words were useless. Tools.

"Perhaps." The wolf seemed to agree. "But tools are not without their use, as you thought yourself not long ago. Just because one man used his tools for evil, does not mean that value cannot come of the labors of another. If you would embrace a more silent path, than I encourage you to appraise them. Being able to discern their true value at a glance would do you well." Chrys was honestly surprised at the creatures musings. Even if he were not a god as he had said, he was still something of a spirit, and he spoke in surprisingly straightforward terms... or at least as straightforward as one could be when using tools and value as metaphors for words...

Maybe it was just that she herself was far too pretentious.

Still, is this why the wolf, her brothers creator, had come to her? To give her advice?

"Advice, and comfort." Chrys thought long and hard about this response. She decided that if someone was handing her pearls of wisdom, she should start by asking for some basic guidance. The master had said to her during her mark of mastery exam that he did not wish for blind obedience and asked just how far she was willing to go to save her brother. She supposed that her answer might as well as translated to 'not far enough' in his eyes. Yet still he named her a master. Why? What was the point in that whole show if he just wanted to paint her as a traitor? It was clear to Chrys that he got something out of this. He expected her to react in a way that would benefit him.

Almost anything she could do would play right into his hands.

Where was she supposed to find her faith in a situation like that? Where both bright and dark had failed her?

"It is quite the predicament, isn't it?" She felt the demigod of the moon nuzzling against her head once more. "But it's surprisingly common. It's hard to determine the consequences for your actions in advance. They can be severe, even when you had the best of intentions. If you've lost faith in Light and Shadow, than screw both. Fix what is broken, and destroy what dares to break others, regardless of the two. That may be all you can do." The princess considered these words and recalled Chryssa's wish. It seemed some days that only the dead were above malevolence, their ethereal state having burned away impurity and allowing them to see life more clearly. Yet she knew evil spirits existed as well, so even they were not so trustworthy. It brought the uncomfortable question of what exactly her wish consisted of. What would saving the Light Chaser from himself entail? What did one do when the thing that was breaking others, was broken of itself?

"That is an excellent question." Her companion mused. "It is good that you thought of it." Looking up at the creatures face, he was clearly giving a very considering look of his own. "First you would have to consider if the object in itself is capable of being fixed, or if it even wants to be..." This made sense to her. It was hardly worth beating herself up over anything she couldn't really fix after all. Though that left the second bit... likely what would be done in the event that fixing was not itself out of the question. In response to this questioning thought, the wolfs face leaned down. His sharp teeth lay before her eyes once more, and his breath blew past her like a light breeze.

"Then one must consider if repairs are worth the cost."

With that final 't' his teeth snapped shut, and the light and darkness that emanated from him faded into nothingness at an instant.

With that same sound, her eyes snapped open.

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Qamar's night was pretty uneventful. After her meditation, she ended up falling asleep on her bed. Her dreams were luckily only sweet memories she had of her mother and nothing of Ravana. She woke up at the same time she always does. Before sunrise and typically before many of the others. Sitting up, she reached back and stretched. Her legs moved to slide off the bed and press her feet to the floor. For many years she had woke up like this and now she wasn't so sure if she'd be coming back soon. Rubbing her eyes, Qamar looked forward and stared at the mirror, seeing her eyes giving off the same eerie yellow glow. Qamar sat up and looked around, taking in the fact her room was the same even after the years. Collections of various items were scattered on the various shelves and tables and chairs. Qamar stepped towards her large cushion chair and sat down in it, sighing. Her head turned towards the window, taking in the horizon. The sun hadn't risen yet and she was glad. Qamar much preferred to do her morning stretches with the sunlight out in the training grounds.

Standing back up, she walked to the closet and began to strip down. Qamar stared at the mirror in the room and took note of the various scratches and small scars on the front of her body that could be seen if one looked hard enough. She turned to look at her back and grimaced at the larger, deeper scars going up and down her back. They were from a time when pain was all she knew and the only salvation was to follow orders to get it over with. That was in the past and the man was gone now. She saw to it herself. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath in and slowly exhaled, beginning to grab various clothes. After slipping into the normal black leggins and into her boots, Qamar noticed something was missing. She glanced at the hair bow she had always wore and smiled to herself. She took the ribbon and focused a little magic onto it. The purple soon faded, giving way to a black to match the rest of her clothes. She tied the ribbon around her neck and fixed her hair up. Qamar walked back out and glanced at the ornate dagger on her weapons rack. It was the one she was tasked with stealing long ago. Not sure why, she walked over and decided to put it at her side. Sort of as a backup plan if her own keyblade was ever destroyed. Seeing the Light Chaser being capable of doing such a thing, she wanted to make sure she was ready for it.

Hurrying out of her room, Qamar looked around to figure out what she wanted to do. Shrugging to herself, she walked on by everyone's room, noticing that she saw Torrin walking downstairs. He waved at Aria's door which signified the girl probably wasn't awake yet. Qamar figured only a couple of them were truly awake now and so she decided it best to go downstairs and get some kind of breakfast cooking. Qamar ended up practically jumping down the stairs and found Torrin was talking to Take. And apparently Torrin went all out with the wardrobe change. She wasn't going to complain since she had done the same. Qamar walked forward, heels clacking on the floor, and stopped in front of Take. "Hi Take, hi Torrin. Good morning." she smiled. Her eyes first laid rest on Torrin, to which she looked him up and down. "Nice outfit. It suits you, I think." she noted. She then turned her attention towards Take and saw him writing and sketching quite a few things. Along with some little finger foods and tea. She tapped her chin a moment and chuckled. "I hope you didn't get into Master Varos' tea. He gets kinda funny if you drink it." she gave him a small warning. "But he's probably awake by now, so I'm sure he won't mind as much as you'd think. Anyway, I'm heading to the kitchen." She waved goodbye and headed off.

A small cat stopped Qamar and mewed at her, walking to the kitchen a few steps. "I'm already going there, little kitty. Go find the others! The Masters are probably hungry." she urged the kitten. Nini ended up running off, leaving Qamar to continue her journey. The kitchen had a great smell to it, so Qamar was confused for a second. She was usually the one that made breakfast since she woke up early. Peeking her head inside, she saw Tinarah finish talking to Master Choma, returning to cooking an enourmous amount of eggs and bacon. "Hey Tinarah." she said, leaning against the doorway. "What can I do to help? Can I suggest lots of toast?"​

 

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Takehiko had not heard someone walk out so when he heard a voice he jumped slightly and tried to keep his tea from spilling. He sipped at some of the tea that fell on the little platter he had under it before he put it down and said, "Um... yeah. I know you mentioned us working on getting stronger... and I figured, since I knew the least about magic, I should probably start looking into it more." he looked at the book and his notes and rubbed his nose as he elaborated probably more than he needed to, "I wasn't able to sleep, tried to go in my room to get some sleep and it just wasn't happening. So I figured instead of waste my time I'd do something productive." Take looked over towards the door and continued, "I was walking around and any masters who were awake seemed frantic and were running around. I guess something went down last night. I walked up and was trying to ask and most of them were just dismissive, some going to bed, and the one that did answer me just told me to grab this book in the library." Take pointed towards it and tapped on the book a bit as he said, "It's not a very long book, most people'd probably finish it in an hour... I'm only on page 5 though-"

Take stopped his explanation when her heard Qamar greet the two of them he nodded at her and said, "Good morning." and he waited and listened silently. When she mentioned the tea he looked at it and said, "I didn't even make it. Master Aster brought it out here when she saw I was outside. I think she also brought the food but I don't actually know..." when she said she was heading off, he waved at her and said, "Have a good one."

The boy reached over and grabbed a tomato from his vegetable platter and ate it quickly. He waited a second before he looked at Torrin and continued his topic from earlier, "The only problem is... I don't... I never learned how to read... so I've been spending most of my time kind of... self translating. So I'm not really learning anything from this." Takehiko paused to ponder and continued, "I guess that's not entirely true... I did learn the fact that the most powerful of spells has a za at the end of it. Some sort of... I know there's a word for it I don't know what it is. I just.. I don't know what that means." the boy seemed to be in his usual withdrawn and emotionless state, it was really instinct for him at that point and he didn't realize he was doing that. Take rubbed the back of his head a bit before admitting, "But it keeps my mind off the pure heart thing... and that's honestly welcome at this point."

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Everything was gradually becoming clearer to her. She could clearly see the man now as he introduced himself. Right, it was the guy that told her she wasn’t so bright at the last council meeting she was in. She could hear the annoyance on the master’s voice, and she didn’t want to waste anyone’s time.

Aria slightly shook her head to answer the question if she was injured, and then shifted her body. The feeling in her nerves hadn’t all returned and she winced as the ache radiated through her being. She swallowed hard and decided to stay put. “Just achy...” she honestly replied in a hoarse voice. She took a shuddering breath in, closing her eyes for a moment. “Thank you,” she mumbled. She felt like she was being an inconvenience to this Master, and sort of wished she could see a familiar face. At the same time, she was glad they didn’t see her like this. Still, she was grateful someone was here to pull her out of the nightmare just in time.

Fearing to fall asleep again, Aria’s eyelids fluttered open. She wondered how Master Kaio figures out she was in trouble, having missed him saying outloud that Master Kide did something to the rooms, but she didn’t want to continue to waste the man’s time and stayed quiet.

 

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So he knew about the nightmares. She supposed that Grandpa Gero said something to the whole council about it, which saved her from explaining herself over and over again to the masters. Aria shook her head again. "Never had anything physical happened," she spoke softly, "... The first night here was the first time it did anything to me." She was about to say it happened again in Hero's Sanctum, but then she remembered how that one turned out. Torrin went against orders to interfere with her dreams. She wasn't strong enough to sit up yet, so she wouldn't be able to get up and defend Torrin if one of the masters decided to storm off and give the boy an ear-full... Even if Torrin saved her in the end by stopping the thing from killing her.

"I had the same nightmares since I can remember," she recalled. "A spooky figure... Not human, dressed in a black, ripped robe... Reeked of darkness..." Aria shuddered at the thought of it. "First it attacked others I didn't know or could see clearly... Then it gradually got closer and closer to me as the years went on... Then it went to grabbing me in the dream, then restraining me with darkness... trying to scare me I guess...? And now we're here..." She wasn't sure how much she should have opened up to this master since she didn't know him, but she figured he would relay her words to the others eventually. Or she would have to explain herself again.

 

Boreas' light sleep remained undisturbed until the morning when it grew more restless and Boreas dreamed, it was an unpleasant dream and Boreas awoke sweating, the events from the day before clearly having left their mark. He had dreamt of the Light Chaser destroying him and his mother being informed of his passing. Something that he realised could have very well happened the other day, it had been easy in his rage to defend Torrin until the end to make sure he lived even if it cost him his life. He knew his mother would have been devastated if that ever came to pass. Boreas shook the covers off of him, it was around his usual time that he had woken up but given how much he had run the previous day he didn't think he needed to go for his run right now so instead he put himself to strength training doing several sets of exercises within the confines of his room. During the exercises the dream remained at the back of his mind and he was reminded of something a comrade of his had asked of him a few years ago, the request seemed strange at the time but Boreas had obliged and looking back at it he understood it a lot better and it gave him an idea, after finishing up his exercises and freshening up Boreas sat down at his desk and wrote a letter.

As Master Skia had mentioned and he had seen twice now the Light Chaser was incredibly powerful and maybe next time Torrin wouldn't be there to stop him from doing something rash and with three casualties already on such a small team Boreas didn't like their chances and was very much aware of the dangers of combat. Boreas poured out his heart into the letter explaining why he was there and how he felt about it, what had brought him out here and what they were trying to do and ending it with what had happened if this letter was delivered and how he felt about it. When he was done he sealed the letter with a red wax seal and put it in his pocket, he'd give it to Torrin when he went to apologise. Writing the letter had taken longer than he would have liked but after yesterday he felt like it was necessary. His stomach however had been protesting for the entirety of the process and with the letter done he left his room to find breakfast as he headed for the kitchen the smell of breakfast being made grew stronger and stronger. In the kitchen he found Tinarah making breakfast and Qamar leaning against the doorframe. He squeezed past Qamar and sat down at the table. "Good morning, how are you two this morning?" Boreas asked, he had half a mind to make porridge again like every morning but with Tinarah working so hard he figured that for once he'd play along, he noted that Qamar was dressed differently, which wasn't too big a surprise as everyone had taken a beating the other day and the only reason his clothes weren't destroyed due to his armour, although he would have to wash his clothes, his armour was damaged here and the cloak in worse state but it didn't matter.​

 

Qamar turned to see Boreas squeezing by her and into the kitchen. He sat at the table and gave them a good morning, asking how they were doing. Master Choma came into the room soon after, which made Qamar stand straight and bow to the Master. "Good morning, Master Choma. And to you, too, Boreas. I hope you were able to clear your head after yesterday?" she tilted her head at Boreas with a smile. Tinarah told her to make toast, which made Qamar hurry in and grab a crap load of bread. Staring at the oven, Qamar looked at it and back to the bread. Carefully, she placed the bread on two racks and stuck them in, hoping they toasted quickly. Qamar listened to Tinarah, keeping an eye on the bread. Tinarah asked Master Choma to help make hashbrowns, which caused Qamar to chuckle.

"So after Master Kide uses us as guinea pigs, we get to start real training?" she asked out loud. "That's great, because I've been meaning to ask somebody about a specific kind of training." The toast was done, so she turned off the oven and brought it out, placing it on a couple of plates, setting them along the long table. Qamar grabbed some OJ from the fridge and brought herself and Boreas a glass if he wanted some. She planted herself in the seat across from him, setting his glass down in front of him and pouring herself a glass. "Boreas, I need to talk to you." she started off, sipping her OJ. "I know we're not really friends or even acquaintances, but...well..." she tapped the table nervously. "I...I was hoping you'd be able to help me with using my darkness...?" she looked him straight in the eyes. "Torrin already has a lot on his plate. I didn't want to bother him with my silly questions...so I hope you aren't bothered by them." she said, scratching her head. "I'm kind of really nervous, asking you about this. But, I know you lived in the Realm of Darkness for your entire life and you probably have a good uh...handle on it, I guess?" Qamar sighed, she wasn't sure where she was going with this. She wasn't entirely sure if Boreas would be okay with this either.

"I know what we can do. Let's get to know each other. I think that'd be a good place to start. Go on, ask me some questions." Qamar said, sipping on her OJ some more.​

 

Illiana took her hands off the piano before lifting up her glass and walking up to a column, leading outside. She leaned against the column, looking at the moonlight while sipping her white wine. She sat down leaning against the column until the calling of sleep beckoned her. Illiana reached into her pocket, holding a pen before falling asleep.

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Spoiler: Episode Illiana: Fragment 4 - Epsilon Strike

Dried land surrounded both armies, as if the lands were a wasteland itself. A fierce battle waged upon that land. Warriors against warriors. The battle raged on for what felt like several years but had been going on for nearly two days. Bodies of fallen soldiers were scattered across that god-forsaken land. Amidst the bodies and the earth beneath them, Illiana was standing along with the rest of squad. “We gotta keep fighting!! This kingdom will not fall to the likes of those who stand fight in the name of darkness!” She ran with the rest of her squad into battle, ready to fight for her people.


The battle raged on for hours and hours without end. Illiana continued to fight and continued to support her squadron as their morale was getting low. “Keep pressing onwards!! They’re practically on their knees!! We can win this battle!!” Her comrades and other soldiers around cheered in unison before marching back into battle, feeling revitalized. Magic had been casted back and forth, offensive and defensive alike. Bodies upon bodies scattered across the battlefield. It felt as if the battle would never end.


Illiana barked out orders to her squad. “They’re thinning in numbers!!! All units of Drago Squadron……..Commence Operation: Epsilon!!!!” The rest of her squad nodded their head as they scattered into formation, gathering the rest of the opposing soldiers in one area. The thirteen soldiers had circled around the area. They all lifted one hand up as lightning gathered around their fingertips. Dark clouds had started forming within the area once Illiana gave the signal. All thirteen pointed their hands at the opposing army, shocking all of them at once.


One by one, they all fell down. Illiana looked at her comrades and smiled. “Victory is ours!!!” The army rejoiced all at once. Unbeknownst to them, the dark clouds still lingered around them. As the were cheering, thunder had struck the ground. “Whoa!!!” “What’s happening?” “Why are those clouds still here?!” Illiana told the army to evacuated and take the opposing soldiers that were still breathing, off the battlefield. She did her best to evacuate everyone off the battlefield while thunder and lightning were still striking the ground. As she escorted the last soldier off the field, she looked around for anyone else. Before she could leave the battlefield, she saw someone in the distance and it looked as if they were smirking. “Who’s there?! Show yourself!!” “Illiana!!!” Illiana’s attention had been pulled away as she looked back at her teammates. She looked up and saw thunder about to strike down on her. It was as if her body wouldn’t listen to what her mind was telling it to do. A bright flash filled her eyes as she heard in the distance. “Illiana!!! Look out!!!!”

The light of dawn had shined its way down onto Illiana's eyes. Her eyes shot wide opened and her breathing had accelerated before feeling something soft on her chest. She looked down and saw Nini. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack or something?" She sighed as she petted the cat's head. She looked out at the sky as the cat started purring. "Why was that day in dreams?...." She sighed before picking up her glass, seeing that she still had some leftover from last night. Illiana looked back at Nini. "I suppose you're suppose to be some kind of messenger?" Illiana's stomach growled a bit. Nini got off her chest as the girl stood up. "When you get the chance, find me again. I got something to show you later." Shepetted the cat once more before she walked off sipping her wine. She grabbed a silk robe out of her umbrella. Illiana put it on and tied it as she walked to the kitchen.

As she entered the kitchen, she saw Tinarah, Qamar, Boreas, and Choma. She took a sip of her wine before grabbing herself a couple of pots. "If you don't mind, I'm having something else for breakfast. No offense to you. Just wanted a dish from home." She looked over to Tinarah as she ruffled her hair. "Thanks though." She grabbed some eggs and a cup of rice. She got a fire on the stove started and began making her breakfast. After some time had passed, Illiana took out a plate and began plating her rice. Once her rice was plated, she grabbed the omelet she made and placed it on top. Illiana grabbed a small knife and cut the omelet in half, causing the omelet to unfold on top of the rice, surrounding it. "Alright. All done." She grabbed a spoon before picking up her plate. She took another sip before raising it to the others as if to say 'Hello' and 'Later' as she walked out of the room. Illiana exited out of the kitchen ans headed toward outside.

 

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Whatever sleep Chrono had gotten was shortlived, but at the morning rays from the sun found their way into his room, he found it not as bad as it usually was. At least this way he would be able to get an early start to his morning. Chrono's proceeded with showering and putting on a fresh set of clothing before leaving his room and while normally he would've gotten something to eat first, but the events of yesterday were still fresh on his mind. Even if it had been the Light Chaser that they were up against, in fact, that he couldn't come up with any plan in his head bothered him. It was for that reason that he was heading to the training room right now.

"Couldn't sleep?" Thallasa spoke from behind Chrono, folding her arms across her chest. "What's going on in that head of yours Chrono?"

Chrono had stopped and turned when he heard Thalassa speak to him. "Oh, its nothing really. I had just figured that I should start training physically more." He wasn't wrong, mentally he gets enough practice trying to either figure something out. Take being a Prince of Light was a good example of that.

"Training? Well, it's always good to see a student show some initiative. However, at your level, you would be most productive if you had someone to guide you. Normally I'd go get your master but, if you'd like, I am free if you would like my assistance."

That certainly would be helpful and easily speed up any progress that he could make on his own. "I would appreciate the help."

Thallasa linked her fingers together and stretched her arms out until her fingers popped. "Well then. Let's get started. What shall we start with for today? Magic? Close combat?" She called her keyblade forth and watched the boy for a response.

Chrono brought out his keyblade following Thallasa doing so. He briefly stretched out his limbs to prepare himself, then returned his attention to Thallasa. "Magic, more specifically I would like some help on my drive form. I've never actually used it and I would like to have a good idea on what its capable of."

"Hm?" The woman tilted her head. "Well, that's not what I expected but of course. Go ahead and activate it and I'll see what I can spot. I'm not sure how much help I'll be in that area but I'll do my best." She spoke simply.

"Right." Nodding, Chrono had taken up a pretty basic ready stance with keyblade in hand. All he actually needed to do was activate his drive, it couldn't be that hard. He took in a deep breath and concentrated on his keyblade. To him, at first there was no noticeable change, but Thalassa would notice the silver aura beginning to cloak Chrono. He, on the other hand, spotted the golden translucent clock face above his keyblade's hilt. "I guess this is it." He didn't feel any different yet, nor were there any 'sudden burst of power' coursing through him.

Thallasa called her keyblade off seeing as how she wouldn't need it for this. "Hm. I see. Well, my first thought is time. Stop magic shouldn't be much further from your grasp now so perhaps it might be related to that. Hm...yes. I suppose you must have an affinity for time magic. Given that it doesn't seem like your raw power hasn't increased very much...well it can't be well suited to pure damage."

"That's good to know I suppose, but never used time magic before." Time magic. It made sense when he thought about it and even more so when Thalassa pointed out that it wasn't a raw damage form. He didn't think it was a healing one, so maybe it was more geared towards support. "How would I figure out how to use my drive form. Besides practicing with it." That was a given, but Chrono would at least like a starting place.

"Well if it is time-based, one of the best things for you to do would be to get stronger and learn some time magic of your own to gain insight into it." She chuckled. "Otherwise there's little else to it other than practice as you've said. Even for practice, you don't even need to really do anything. Just activating the form and maintaining it will give you a better feel for it over time."

Part of him was relieved to know that he wouldn't be as strenuous to get familiar with his drive, but he still wanted to speed up the process a bit if possible. "Gotcha. Do you mind sparring with me then?"

Thallasa called for her keyblade once more and nodded at Chrono. "Of course. Prepare yourself." She spoke as she readied herself in a battle stance.

Chrono readied himself as well as the silver aura around him intensified. His opponent being a master meant that he would have to be careful about the moves he made. At first, he took a step back and followed that up by casting Thundara at her.

Thallasa raised her keyblade up in the air quickly and cast a Reflect spell which blocked Chrono's own magic and exploded, knocking him over in the blast. "You're going to have to be more aggressive than that if you're going to make a dent against a defensive opponent." She commented. "My turn." Thallasa brought her keyblade down and with it came a massive wave of water that cut down on Chrono.

Chrono was quick to get back on his feet and barely managed to avoid her own attack. Unsure if he should be grateful for the fact that she wasn't keeping on the attack, but learning that she was a defensive type came with its own share of problems. He took to trying to move again, though this time he had started to float slightly off the ground which had allowed him to skate around. There was no time to react to that small detail as Chrono first sent off a Blade Beam towards her, then quickly moved over to her right side. His keyblade aimed at her once more. "Ragnarok!" Light gathered at the tip of his blade, before exploding off in a cascade of light all aimed towards Thallasa.

"That's better!" She called out towards Chrono as she swung her blade horizontally, cutting through his Blade Beam and sending the two broken energy waves crashing behind her. She whirled her keyblade about in front of her, spinning it with such great speed the beams of light that blasted out from Chrono's keyblade bounced off and struck everything except her. "Much better." The woman said calmly.

"Stop!" A magic clock surrounded Chrono but when it vanished nothing had happened to him. The woman tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "Fascinating. But I have more than that." She then immediately cut at Chrono, sending a sharp wave at air at him with a powerful Aeroza spell

The sharp blast of wind had knocked Chrono down following the Stop spell casted on him. He was sure it was cast on him at least, he saw the magic clock behind him and everything. Either way his tactic from earlier had almost worked, he just needed some other way to go about. Maybe if there was another one of him, it could work. That instant a golden clock similar to the one hovering above his keyblade's hilt appeared next to him. The hands made a full rotation before another Chrono was left sitting next to him. Naturally, this caught him by surprise upon realizing there was another him right next to him, as did how it appeared to mimic his movements as he made them.

This gave him an idea that was immediately put into action and it was quickly noticed that the copy seemed to know exactly what to do. The real Chrono had leaped forward and sent a shockwave towards Thallasa upon landing as the copy went skating around her with its keyblade aimed towards her. "Stop!" This time the real Chrono used his own stop spell, which was a shot in the dark if he were, to be honest. Elsewhere the copy had moved in to attack with Ars Solum, making the success of this spell quite crucial.

Thallasa retaliated against Chrono's copy first but hadn't been fast enough to react to both it and the real Chrono as he cast his own Stop spell. In that instant, Thallasa had been frozen in place for a brief period and when she came to she had been knocked back by Chrono's series of attacks. Bruised but still feeling well, she pushed herself to her feet. "Haha! That's good...very good." She called off her keyblade and dusted herself off. The woman chuckled as she straightened out her hair."Keep that kind of tenacity in mind and you'll make it far. Well then. I think we're about done here. If you don't mind, I think I'll get cleaned up and check to see if the Council needs me to complete any more tasks for them."

There was a strong feeling of accomplishment following the success of his plan. So much so that he hadn't even noticed that his double had vanished nor the golden clock on his keyblade was gone as well. He did feel a bit wore out, more so energy wise despite the spot where her wind attacked had struck was still a bit sore. "Thanks for both the advice and the sparring match." His drive was certainly a unique one, but he could work with this. Chrono headed out the room the to training hall shortly after Thallasa herself has left, running into Nini along the way. He hadn't expected to run into her without either Take or Tinarah being around, though she wanted him to follow her. Least that was the impression Chrono had gotten from the way she mewed and tugged on his pants leg.

 

It didn't take long for someone else to appear in the kitchen and he was greeted by master Choma. "Master Choma." Boreas said nodding back in greeting. Boreas hardly ever took it easy but was intrigued by what the Master mentioned about making their training more useful Boreas had a pretty good idea how to keep on training. "It's fine, I'll wait." Boreas said to Tinarah, it amused him that while she handed out work to others including a master she avoided attempting to do so to him. He simply glared at Qamar when she asked him whether he could clear his head the other day. He had been able to do so perfectly fine, actually enjoyed himself that afternoon and had gotten it out of his head . "Yes, I was, speaking of which I was angry and lashed out, shouldn't have done that but still." Boreas said not elaborating on what happened, then she started to bring him food and put a glass of water in front of him. And then proceeded with beating around the bush regarding him potentially helping her train in something, with the memory of her being a loose cannon during his face off with the Chaser and having gotten a comrade killed and master Thallasa giving him authority to whip everyone into line. "Alright I am going to stop you right there." Boreas said. "Don't beat around the bush and explain what you want me to do here what a master couldn't teach you better, beating around the bush is just wasting time." He wanted it crystal clear.from her before he made his decision. He had his own things to take care off and would help if he could. Sure Torrin and him were natural choices due to them hailing from the Realm of Darkness, and yes Torrin had a lot on his plate with the burden of leadership, but he wasn't a master, he was a student himself still, sure he had his experience as a commander and maybe that was useful here too but he wasn't entirely sure of it just yet.​