Journey to the Cave of Neverending Void

OOC: Too bad none of us have the authorities to control Vincent, or otherwise it's possible that he can pull out a lawyer out of his case. I'm not going to question what a Li'l Abner pose is but you are most likely to get permission from him, VVO.

OOC: good god i take a break for ONE day and I get left like a mile behind! What happened to Mako's attack? I mean, I may tl;dr on yer posts but I'll stop if people STOP IGNORING ME!!!!

OOC: Yyyyeah, about that. I didn't understand your post. Please clarify it. Also, I'm TRYING to get everyone in. You were the first target. Be honored! *bricked* XD

OOC: translation: Mako blasts the knight with energy and sprints after the blast, ready to attack the knight when the blast hits...GET IT

OOC: Ohhh. I thought the blast ALREADY hit Zenex! So sorry about that!Ugh I don't know how to fix that...

kiki.i wrote:

Drag3ndz wrote:

OOC: HEY! YOU CAN'T DO THAT TO- Ahh fine. It was unfair enough that he was too fast. But you guys still didn't dealt a blow, got it? I will repeat: He's invincible. He won't go down until I say so and I'll say so when VVO, .sickling., and Tigga freakin post! WHY ARE THEY NOT POSTING?!

ooc: jeez, fine. we'll say it was like her imagination or something. (someone's pms-ing)

OOC: I'm letting it slide on the slow movement. Just not hitting the knight directly. He can't be defeated. You know what that means! "CUTSCENE FIGHT!"

OOC: We wait for Tigga or move on. Either way, I should use this time to think about the ending THOROUGHLY.

Drag3ndz wrote:

OOC: We wait for Tigga or move on. Either way, I should use this time to think about the ending THOROUGHLY.

OOC: ...I think it's time to make a decision. Either we move this RP forward, or it's dead. Forever. And then you can join Sanctuary.... if you'd like...

OOC:

.sickling. wrote:

OOC: ...I think it's time to make a decision. Either we move this RP forward, or it's dead. Forever. And then you can join Sanctuary.... if you'd like...

I'd join Sanctuary, but I'm lost at where you guys are. PM me what happened. D:
I guess it's time to move on, I guess... Come to think of it, I even forgot that this RP even existed. '_'

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It was then that no one is even moving. Ferzain gripped onto his sword with fear. He knew he would loose eventually.

"That's it?" Zenex coldly questioned, "I waited eight years for this battle?"

His blade was surrounded in an aura, clearly showing its power being stowed within the blade. Ferzain backed away from everyone in hopes of surviving. But alas, he knew he was still trapped in this dome.

"Wait!" he exclaimed.

The knight kept charging his blade, but he paused to hear what the wimp has to say.

"Before you kill all of us," he said. If he was to die, he might as well give in a last request. "I want to say good bye to Sentrii."

For some odd reason, the dark man's eyes widened by the request. His power within his sword was released into vapor. Ferzain became confused once the armor held his arm towards the only opening, unsealing its lock. There, she was waiting. She gasped at the scenery of the freezing room. She started walking in slowly.

"Dexter?"

"Fionnie?"

Ferzain, in between them, halted his thoughts. "What?" He looked at the black-shelled fighter. "Dad?" He then focused on the water mage. "Mom?"

Zenex dropped his blade, slowly jogging towards the woman he loves. "Fionnie..." he spoke with his voice sounding like a kind man, "Why did you leave me? Why did you leave our son?"

Sentrii looked away, "I..." For some reason, something was holding her back from saying what she wanted to tell him.

Zenex was then holding her hands, "If you can't tell me now, then promise me you'll let me know in the future."

Her face stared at Zenex's helmet. The two were reunited, but in forms Ferzain did not expect. The reunification, however, was cut short when black lightning surrounded Ferzain's father.

"Uhhh... UAAAAHHHH!!!" His cries filled the entire room.

Sentrii grabbed hold of him. "FERZAIN! Help me remove this armor while your father is holding back the evil within the Shooting Star Armor!"

He didn't know what was happening. All he knows now is to save his lost father. He put away his sword into his sheath and started searching around the armor. "I can't find an opening! I don't know how to remove this thing!"

Bolts of thunder bounced everywhere. Lightning bolts almost hit everyone in the room! Zenex held his head, "Cursed human! My existence will not perish!"

He picked up the magician with his claws by her throat. Sentrii held on with both of her hands. Ferzain then saw one light from the armor from the back. He lunged onto Zenex and put his two hands into the armor. He started making the slit crack wider. Zenex, however, tried to grab Ferzain with his other claw. He caught him hy his left boot and tried yanking him off his back. The boy held on. He slowly brought his sword out of his cover and jabbed it into the light.


Nothing but light covered the room.


When the brightness resided, Ferzain was holding his dad laying on the ground. The man was wearing overalls and a blank white shirt, just simple clothing. His brown hair was spiked only on the back side of his head. A different lady was beside Ferzain. She was wearing a white dress, nothing more. Her long almond hair flew along with the hollowness of the entire room. Somehow, the area didn't feel so cold anymore. In fact, everyone was outside the cave where the snow has disappeared. It felt like spring again. The black armor was laying right besides Dexter, with no animation moving it.

"Ferzain," Dexter whispered, "I can't thank you enough. I'm ever so sorry for abandoning you. I knew the armor had a mind of its own. It took over my closest friend, Yen."

Fionnie then helped Dexter to his feet, "We can't thank you enough, everyone. Unfortunately, we cannot stay in this world. I sacrificed my own being to stay in this world longer. Now, it's no longer necessary for me to stay."

Ferzain shook his head. "Wait. Are you saying, that you two are going? No, you can't leave me!"

Dexter grinned back at his son, "You're all grown up. It's time you lived a life on your own."

He looked at Fionnie, then back to Ferzain. "Please forgive us. We can't stay in this world. I haven't eaten in years. The reason I'm still talking to you is..."

"You two are already dead," Ferzain guessed.

His face was covered in tears. Just when he found his parents, he has to part with them. The man and the woman embraced Ferzain hugging him as he started crying like a young child. Fionnie wiped Ferzain's face with her handkerchief. She then presented something to him.

"I want you to have my earrings. I can't take them where I'm going. Please, be strong."

She enclosed the two dolphin shapes into Ferzain's gloves. The two souls then walked close to the cliffs. They started walking off the edge, disappearing into bits as they jumped into skies. Their vanishing act brought stardust into the sky. Ferzain was still crying, but he rubbed his eyes.



He turned towards everyone, mostly looking at Ankokuren.

"You really don't want to see this armor destroyed, do you? Tell me your true intentions."

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OOC: BAh, cliche-ness everywhere! Well ,this was how I really planned to put things out. I haven't done this in a long time, so sorry if this kind of thing pisses you off. *Looking at VVO*

Long story short, before Zenex blasted everyone, Ferzain requested to see Sentrii on his last time. Once Sentrii entered in the battle, Sentrii acknowledged Zenex as Dexter as Zenex realizes that Sentrii was his wife Fionnie. The reunification was ruined once the armor tried taking control over Dexter. Sentrii told Ferzain to remove the armor. Ferzain found crack behind armor and broke the crack by inserting his sword in it. As everyone is outside, both Dexter and Fionnie could not stay living in the world as they are already dead. As Ferzain started crying, he got his memento from his mom. Then, they flew into the skies as stardust. Ferzain looked at Ankokuren, questioning his motivation on joining the group.

OOC: HOORAY! VOID CAN CONTINUE!

Ankokuren lay helpless at the scene unfolding before him. The deity gritted his teeth in frustration and annoyance, trying futilely to break free. But, eventually, even Ankokuren knew when to stop. The bonds of energy were too powerful, even for him. The existence of the fact made Ankokuren shudder inwardly in distaste. The deity set his gaze towards the two combatants, Zenex and the human boy, Na'e. Na'e lay on the ground, his chest still smoking from the blast of energy that Zenex had released. However, Na'e, not entirely defeated, still climbed to his feet and resumed battle. The human boy began to fire spells of fire, ice, and other elements at the black knight in vain. Zenex quickly parried all of the boy's assaults with ease with a few flicks of his palm, and with fire and ice bouncing off his armor, Zenex knocked the boy to the ground with a swift backhand. A loud thud filled the air as the human boy, Na'e, smashed into the ground. Na'e lay there for a while, grumbling and cursing, his fists clenched tight. The pitch-black knight, Zenex, slowly walked over to the fallen boy, his wicked greaves clanking with every step. Na'e swiftly leapt to his feet and threw a punch at the knight's face, but Zenex lazily brought up an armored hand to block the blow. For a moment, the human attempted to struggle, but was subdued as Zenex tightened his grip substantially. The cave was filled with the sound of shattering bones as the boy's hand was crushed. Na'e crumpled to the ground, holding his injured hand, also defeated. What had just happeneds was something that Ankokuren had never understood in humans. When the odds were stacked hopelessly against them, they still continued to fight, with renewed vigor. What was it they called it again...? Right. Hope. Really, the boy should have just given up when they witnessed the defeat of a deity at the hands of this warrior.

Ankokuren tried to struggle against his bonds again, but soon felt that they were no less weaker than they were before. He let out a long sigh of frustration. The pitch-black knight, Zenex, satisfied with the defeat of the human boy, Na'e, turned his attention toward the remaining human, Ferzain. The human boy shivered in fear, clutching his sword with trembling hands.

"That's it? I waited eight years for this battle?!?!?!" Zenex roared, unsheathing his black sword. And they say the weapon is only as good as its wielder. Zenex's sword was no different: the weapon was as black as the night, with vicious spikes lining the entire sword. In fact, the blade itself even seemed alive Ankokuren could just feel the power emanating from the weapon. The deity's observation was cut short as the blade began to glow a rather malevolent shade of maroon. Then the knight raised his blade-

"Wait!"

Zenex halted, listening to the tiny voice of the human boy. The pitch-black knight lowered his sword, slowly. "Before you kill all of us," the human said. "I want to say good bye to Sentrii." At this request, the deity burst into laughter. He had never understood some human emotions, but compassion was probably the one that made him giggle the most. However, Zenex reacted much differently than the deity. At once, the aura of power surrounding the knight's weapon dissipated in a thin mist. Zenex's hold upon his weapon went limp, and the blade fell to the ground with a metallic clatter.

"Dexter?"

Ankokuren, and everybody else in room gazed at the corner of the cave, where there stood a woman in a tattered white robe, slightly withered with age. Her eyes were a faded emerald, and her hair was the color of ancient gold.

"Fionnie?" was the knight's bemused response. Ankokuren didn't blame the knight for his ridiculous reaction, for the deity was just as surprised as he was. Suddenly, the binds constricting him released, and the deity burst free from his bonds. The deity stood to his feet with a small grin, but made no move towards the couple. He knew that humans could be.... irrational at times.

"Dad...? Mom...?" was the bewildered squeak of the human boy, Ferzain, who still seemed to be in disbelief at what was going on. Apparently, Zenex and Ferzain had some connection? The clanking of armor caught both Ankokuren's eyes and ears as the pitch-black knight, Zenex, spontaneously began to dash towards the woman, like a man long separated from his lover (this was one thing Ankokuren didn't understand either). As the two embraced, the deity shook his head in disgust. Things like this bored him, not to mention sicken him.

The two lovers briefly exchanged heartfelt words, all the while Ankokuren was rolling his eyes and trying not to pay attention. The deity was in the middle of a giant yawn when suddenly, the crackling of loose ions filled Ankokuren's ears. Screams of human agony saturated the cave, as Ankokuren quickly turned his attention toward the former Zenex, now revealed to be Dexter, surrounded by black lightning, who began to spasm erratically. The deity started towards the man, but soon discovered through his second vision, that there was nothing he could do. This was the work of the Shooting Star. Its true form was to be revealed.

"FERZAIN! Help me remove this armor while your father is holding back the evil within the Shooting Star Armor!" cried the human girl, Sentrii, as she madly started clawing at the plates of armor covering Dexter's flailing body. Heeding his partner's call, Ferzain quickly made his way towards his father's body. He tried fumbling around the armor for a bit, before briefly stopping.

"NO! DON'T TOUCH HIM-" Ankokuren started. All of a sudden, the cave began to tremble and shake tremendously. Ankokuren fell flat on his back.

"CURSED HUMANS! MY EXISTENCE WILL NEVER PERISH AT THE HANDS OF YOU!!!" the armor screamed, its booming voice blanketing the cavernous depths of the cave. Suddenly, a massive blast of lightning shot out towards the deity. Eyes wide, Ankokuren took a quick sidestep, making the bolt dodge by mere inches. As the acrid odor of singed clothes filled Ankokuren's human nose, the deity briefly crinkled his nose in distaste. Well, the deity thought, at least it didn't hit him. Ankokuren stared back at the armor, which had now enveloped itself in black lightning. It now had a life of its own. And Ankokuren was powerless against it.

At this one point of his realization of utter weakness, the deity of darkness was finally hit with the full force of his responsibility. The revelation hit Ankokuren with the force of a sledgehammer: he was a god, and he should act as his creator had meant him to. These were the events that he was meant to prevent and combat, if they were ever to happen. Ankokuren slowly sat down cross-legged, in a meditative stance.

And Insinuah spoke to him:

"Ankokuren, I am prepared to forgive you for your previous acts. What you have done is not particularly tasteful to my eyes."

All the things he had done before were the careless and wild antics of youth: never would he commit to such foolery again.

"Good," the Almighty deity responded, a slight tone of happiness evident in his voice. "Ankokuren," Insinuah's tone changed to affection. "I know that you are able to protect my land of Isiya. It only matters if the intent is there."

And with that, the Almighty deity disapperaed from him mind. In a matter of seconds, the deity emerged from his meditation a much larger god. That didn't change the fact that he couldn't do anything about the events progressing before him, but at least, the deity knew whatever happened next would be his destiny.

Sentrii, the human girl, suddenly called out to Ferzain. Apparently, she had found a chink in the impenetrable armor. Ankokuren's eyes widened a bit. The Shooting Star, however, did not take kindly to the intrusion. In a blinding act, the armor shot out a pitch-black gauntlet and seized the water mage's neck with a vicegrip. The human girl's tiny hands clutched the armor's wrist as she desperately gasped for breath. Ankokuren could feel her life dwindling: Ferzain would have to act quickly, if he were to save the life of his friend. A tiny sliver of light caught the deity's eye, and Ankokuren brought up a hand to shield his eyes from its incredible brilliance. Through his fingers, Ankokuren witnessed the human boy, Ferzain, clutch the opening of his father's armor. The Shooting Star immediately took action, and launched its other free arm towards the human's neck, but missed. The human continued to tug at the pitch-black plates, generous drops of perspiration dripping from his forehead. The armor made another move, and instead of going for the boy's neck it went for his legs, and managed to grab onto Ferzain's boot and tighten with a bone-crushing grip. The boy's eyes narrowed in intense discomfort, but he still continued to wrench at the armor.

Finally, the plate came loose. A radiant blast of light enveloped the entire room, blinding Ankokuren. His face contorted in extreme agony. The deity had to use both of his arms to shield his eyes from the light, the light that seemed to sear right through his skin and bone.

In time, the light ceased to exist, and the pain disappeared. The deity let his arms fall to his side, and what he saw pierced his soul.

A family being torn apart.

Before, Ankokuren would have dismissed this as pure cheesefest. But, now, the deity knew truly how they felt: the sorrow of Ferzain and his parents was overwhelming. Ankokuren briefly turned his back to the scene. The deity felt a tinge of guilt inside of him, for he knew deep inside, that he could have prevented this occurrance in the first place.

And then Ferzain asked him the question. Why had he joined the group in the first place?

"It is a very long story," Ankokuren began.

"My insatiable greed had laid insufferable waste across the land of Isiya."

"To begin, I knew firsthand about the crafting of the Shooting Star. I knew that it had been forged from a shard of the stars themselves, and that it bestowed incredible power to the wearer. Me, being the jealous youth, conspired to steal the armor from your father. At this time, I was in the form of a dragon. I could not wear the armor, or make any use of it. But recently, the creator had informed me that my next reincarnation would be that of a human. And I heavily despised humans at that time." The deity explained.

"I brooded upon that thought for some time, before I realized that once I was a human, I would be able to wear the Shooting Star. So I went across the land, slaying many souls and warriors for one that would kill me. But, sadly, I was too powerful, for I killed many humans and took many lives. This saddened me, until I finally came across an old friend," Ankokuren gestured toward the girl in the corner, who seemed to be in a rather dark mood.

"Baihukourei. Still, it seems he's still stronger than me even after all these years," Ankokuren shot a sly grin at the human girl, Raikou. The deity could sense the furry beast within the girl growl smugly.

"Anyway, Baihukourei managed to free me from my dragon body, and put me into the shell you see me now. I even designed it myself..." Ankokuren took the time to run his hand over his biceps and across his face.

"I was more than ecstatic after I realized I was in human form, for I could finally get my hands on the Shooting Star. However, I soon realized that I had no idea exactly where the armor was. So, most reluctantly at the time, I was forced to follow your party." Ankokuren's eyes flashed a crimson red for a moment, but quickly reverted to their usual black.

"Eventually, I ended up here. But my hopes were dashed upon the rocks when I first saw the armor in this realm. The armor had taken up a conscience of its own. Nobody, not even I or the creator, could ever hope to harness its power. It was too powerful, even for a deity. It was then, I realized," Ankokuren paused.

"That the armor posed a threat to the very embodiment of existence. But, now the armor is destroyed." Ankokuren finally gave a genuine smile, one free of deceit or spite. Suddenly, he seemed generations older.

"My greed and spite are gone. I need not meddle with the interactions of humans for much longer." A wispy veil of darkness sprouted from the ground beneath the deity.

"I must congratulate the human boy, Ferzain." Ankokuren mentioned, as the veil crept up to his shoulders. "He showed me the true meaning of hope. Farewell, brave warriors." And with that, the veil completely enveloped the deity of darkness, and they both disappeared.


~~~~~~~~~


OOC: YEAH! SUPER-LONG POST!!! AND ANKO'S FINALLY GONE!! I'll come up with Nae's side of the story later.

Hearing what Ankokuren had to say, what he said was inspiring to Ferzain. Ferzain was left smiling, but he whispered to Mako when Ankokuren vanished, "Eh, he was a good companion when you get to know him."

He added in when he was sure Ankokuren was gone, "I bet he was messing with me on that last part. God I am such a tool."

Suddenly, he felt like his left foot was dismembered from his body.

"Oh god pain finally kicks in!"

He fell laying down, instantly grabbing his leg where Zenex choked his foot.

"I'll be okay, guys!" He checked his foot. Ouch, it's hard to tell if that foot is even alive.

OOC: Oh god the Kudo attitude at the "Eh" part. Oh my god I'm emulating my friends, mostly Cram. Alright, enough about Ferzain. Tell while you're witnessing that last part of the battle or just post outside the cave.

Adelle and Kaoru stood side by side as they watched Ferzain's parents disappear and soon after Ankokuren.

Kaoru turned to Adelle and whispered, "I never really liked Anko..."

Adelle formed a pot and wacked him on the back of the head. "How dare you ruin this beautiful moment!" Adelle thenrealized how corny she sounded and could barely hold back a laugh.

Kaoru fell unconscious and landed face first on the floor but then woke up from the pain of floor to face. He heard Ferzain talk about his hurt foot and ran oer to him.

"I gotcha buddy!" he called out. He knelt over and formed a small brace which he infused with some healing magic. He put it on Ferzain and told him. Just tell me when it's done healing k?"

He walked back over to Adelle and she muttered, "Showoff..."

OOC: awww its over... *sob*

It was then that the group heard a pound at the ground. The once-injured merchant who happens to still be alive was standing next to Ferzain.

"What's with her?" he asked.

The voice brought down everyone's mood. "Raikou's gone."

Ferzain looked over Kaoru with surprise.

"Gone," he asked with sad hopes, "as in 'she's dead' gone?"

Kaoru looked back at Ferzain and said, "I, I don't know."

Adelle tried to swallow but there was a lump in her throat and she couldn't. "Do you mean...forever?" Adelle was worried and saddened. The last time she felt this sad was when she saw her hometown and little brother completely infected with the consuming plague. And when she ran away from Kaoru without doing a thing.

She remembered when Raikou had told Adelle to throw her at the sea dragon in the spring and Adelle thought she had a death wish. But at least she had done something then...

Adelle cried out in anguish and was on her hands and knees. "Raikou is gone and there wasn't a damn thing we could do about it..." She started crying amd punching the floor till her hand bled and then just sat there crying.

OOC: Drag3ndz, it's spelled Kaoru not Korau

OOC: Uhhh VVO It's about time you type up what happens next since about every character here is pretty much surprised.

OOC: They're actually outside the cave, about near the huge entrance.

Ferzain raised his hand, "My dad usually takes the trail down instead of that shortcut because it's a safer path."

He started going the other huge trail, "Anyone think those Fashiras are still there?"

OOC: WHAT IS GOING ON!?

OOC: Everyone is practically leaving. They'll all regroup in Ferzain's destroyed village.

kiki.i wrote:

ooc: hey, guys? are we going to finish this rp or not? just outta curiosity.

OOC: It's put temporarily on hold.

WUUUUT? I didn't even write the ending yet! And I was waiting patiently too!

Na'e stood silently at the wreckage of Ferzain's home. Lots of things, far too many to count on his fingers, had happened in such a short period of time. His severance from the Brotherhood of Secrecy, their excursion in the desert of Ucadius, and the unspeakable horrors that lay in wait in the Cave of Neverending Void... Na'e would never forget these events. He would take them, remember them, and they would stay with him until the day he would breathe his final breath.

There was nothing else to say. Na'e turned his back to the group, and began walking in pace with Raikou and Vincent.