[PP-F11] At the End of the World (Opal)

[Azide 0]

A city drenched in white, not unlike the snow-capped peaks and frosted fields of the fourth floor- this was Taft. And yet, for all of their piety, neither the slick walls nor the bleached buildings within them had ever elicited from him so much as a single gasp of wonder or awe. 

Or perhaps it would be more honest to say that it was because of the site's supposed affair with the divine that these unsavory sensations were allowed to prick at his skin like too many burrs held hostage by the folds of one's clothes. He had heard of certain places, where a man could cup his hands to his mouth and drink the warmth from the air; this was not that sort of place. Not for men like him.

A single gust of wind undid the meticulousness of cider-colored locks, and he folded his arms his chest with a resolve that might have suggested intimacy had he embraced another, rather than himself. 

~

He had never seen the appeal in so-called 'extreme sports' such as BASE jumping or skydiving, but he could only imagine that a view like this was almost commonplace for those who partook in such reckless frivolities. With the sun hanging low in the horizon, he was nothing more than a dimly lit silhouette to any prying eyes- a lone figure at the very edge of a great precipice, his hands in his pockets and his sights set towards the skies. 

But to leave it at that would be downright misleading- just another half-truth to toss atop the pile. How often was it that one might look down and see the sky? Up, down and all around, white-and-silver fish drifted endlessly about like careless puffs of smoke. 

Perhaps if the circumstances had been slightly different, he might have wondered if other eyes existed somewhere beyond the foggy veil, staring back from the other side. But it was a pointless consideration, and hardly one worth entertaining. 

Still, there was a certain sort of allure to it- the fabled edge of Aincrad.

[Opal 0]

Heels clicked against the hard ground, Opal  was not in her usual pristine battle armor, instead of being Vice Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath, she was simply Opal; a woman on a very much welcomed day off from her duties. Her attire was something not seen worn on her body since the beginning days of her career in the game back when she was still a noob in standing. And before the crimes and horrors had plagued her with nightmares of sinister hands, tongues and organs over her body as they carelessly took soul from youthful body. 

All that was in the past and after her latest shopping spree, the woman found clothes befitting of a woman of her stature, mostly. A red smile on her face as she continued to move through the streets, heels continuing to click as a tight pair of dark frayed edge shorts hugged her hips and upper thighs, leaving the complex art of the tattoo wrapped around her voluptuous body free to see with common eyes of NPC and players alike. Unfortunately for them, only one set of hands were allowed upon her and those hands belonged to Teselmar. Completing her ensemble was a dark tank top, showing off her toned belly as well as the ample bosom of the woman. Her 38 DDs didn't have much bounce to her step as they were held in place with her bra showing an ample amount of her own bust. Amber eyes looked forward and ahead of herself as she continued to enjoy the warmth of the sun on her body which was now setting down over the horizon, casting a bronze sky mixed with an enchanting forthcoming darkness. In her right hand she nursed a cigarette half burned from the minutes worth of smoking as she walked the crowded streets of Taft. The crowd barely noticing the fragile thing in her hand, more so their eyes on the creature itself as she walked with a confident stride. Bringing the calming stick to her full red lips, the woman took in a heavy drag, lips pursed and blew out a citrus stream of orange smoke from her mouth as it dissolved in the air giving a rather fruity scent around her. 

It was not soon coming until she spotted a figure alone as she ended up in an unknown part of Taft, her eyes fixed on the figure attempting to discern who it might have been that caught her attention. The unkempt hair blowing in the wind, the attire that was so simple yet so clean and pristine, it had only be one player that could pull off such a look in this world without causing stir for of a flamboyant nature; Azide? She had to get a closer look. Cigarette in hand, the woman moved it to her back as she continued her heels clicking against the ground. The man's back was turned from her, but there was no mistaken who it was, "Azide?" she asked out the person. She would have done something else to get his attention, but he seemed lost staring into the unknown worlds above his head. 

The woman quickly flicked her cigarette away from herself, dispelling the last of her craving of it as it exploded into pixels before it crashed to the ground. The orange scent clung to her body as she moved closer still to him. She moved to his side and smiled, it was Azide now that she got a closer look at him, yet his eyes seemed different...There was a time when she would have addressed him as Vice Commander, but things have changed since then. She now bore the title, but today, right now she was simply Opal and she was in the presence of a friend.

"It is great to see you again..." unable to control herself, the woman and her body went forward and hugged the man in embrace. What became of her to do so? She was unsure of herself, but she peeled herself back from him, they were probably not the closest of friends, but she was happy that he was well enough and alive in this world still. She apologized only with a red smile, and turned her attention over the countless ocean of the sky above, "It's been so long. I didn't know how to react to seeing you like tis so randomly. Seems like only yesterday we were out in the desert fighting that overgrown Lizard." 

[Azide 0]

A name, spoken from somewhere in the distance, hushed by the breeze and warmed by the fading light- soft like the clouds which danced before him. How long had it been since he'd last heard it? 

A month, possibly two, and even a touch beyond that. Plenty of time for asking questions, but never nearly enough to answer them. Not in any real way. Never in any satisfying way.

Either way, his ears had twitched just before he'd even recognized the mantle as his own- he reckoned that it'd been long enough for formalities to have lain dormant, at the very least. A single brow inched skyward, he turned to face the source of the phantom sound.

What greeted him first was an almost floral aroma, which he quickly gathered to be the scent of a freshly pruned orange tree. It'd been so long since he'd felt the smooth, slick peel of citrus between his fingers; how sad was it that he'd nearly forgotten things as simple and as pleasant as that? 

It didn't help that, while impressive, the NerveGear's rendering of smell performed at a level roughly equivalent to one's taste buds during a bout with the common cold. There, and fully recognizable, but without any of the spark that might otherwise bring such a sensation to life.

It was Opal who'd delivered his name, and Opal who smelled of the carrot-colored fruits and their blossoms. Moreover, it was Opal who stepped forward, and wrapped her arms around him.

It was Azide who returned the gesture, albeit in a manner more reminiscent of embracing a supposed distant relative than that of two former guildmates. Maybe it was suddenness of her initiative which had caught him off guard. Or perhaps it was his awareness of the precariousness of their position- standing at the edge of what amounted to an endless cliffside, to which his back was now turned.

Eyes the color of autumn, still wide as the mind behind them processed these most of developments, looked upon the woman's familiar face for a moment further as she took a step back. A nod of his head served to acknowledge the first of the player's sentiments, while a solemn smile adorned his lips as he considered the ones which followed.

"The Sando Satsu, was it?" spoke Azide. The name stirred up memories, managing through even the haze of all that had taken place since those days. He paused, placing two hands around the edges of his jacket, and gave a firm tug as the woman set her sights upon the sky. "It certainly has been a while, to say the least."

Again, the wind whispered to the earth, rustling the leaves at their feet. Was he a cold man, for not saying much more than what he had? That particular point was arguable, he felt. But then again, how often was it that warm men resorted to jackets and coats?

[Opal 0]

The woman simply nodded to him, "Yes. That was it indeed. I've come a long way since then. I don't feel like such a burden to others anymore when I am in a party and with you leaving the guild, I had asked to take up your mantle. We are...flourishing. I was able to contact Mack not too long ago and we agreed that him and his men would merge with the Knights of the Blood Oath, with some stipulations. Nothing that would break the guild however. After that I began scooping up some recent allies I had made to see if they would be interested as well. I can tell you now, we have quite the collection of people now. We are about eleven members strong..." She had to think about the number, there was so many swelling their ranks that she seemed to have lost count.

The woman continued to smile, despite Azide not taking on a conversationalist role at the moment, she felt she would lend aid and just stir something up so that the awkward meeting wasn't so awkward any longer. The woman had moved eyes from the heavens to the very depths below, widened eyes looked down.

"Azide! You weren't think of..." she stopped pointing down to the bottomless void below, a cliff that would surely end any player should they decide to jump. Her heart raced a bit, was she careless when she swung her arms over him, almost toppling them both to the Hell below? She was a bit nervous now, that could have been the worst thing to have happened. Then again, following from such a place with a person she still cared for would not have been such a horrible thing. At least she wouldn't have been alone. She cleared her head of the gloomy thought, and perked her head back up to him, "I don't think you are the type to just walk off the cliff to your doom. But it is still good to see you, I kinda want to ask...where you have been and what you have been up to. I know it can be somewhat personal, but...You did kinda leave me hanging for the most part as did the Commander. But I am not scolding you are anything, perhaps it is some weird and twisted fortune that you decided to resign when you did. It once again pushed me to become a stronger woman with your absence." 

The woman continued to talk, nervous fidgets every once in awhile as she tempted to stir thought within his gaze to her. Her eyes never left his, she still had many more questions to ask, but felt it was no longer necessary to even ask them. Whatever he had to deal with, she was more than just happy that he was alive. He had proved himself to be valuable friend over the short course that they were together as guildmates. The woman took a seat on the ground, her feet now dangling off the edge of the cliff, "It is pretty peaceful out here. Alone like this...getting away. I had thought so many times myself to just...run and leave somewhere. Go back to the ruined temples of floor seven and just escape this madness. But now as I look at the horizon, I only see greater things I can accomplish for myself. I have forever once again forgiven past grievances in order to heal my own spirit. Once more the heart within this vassal beats, unfrozen and unbound by the chains I have once placed upon it. It's a good feeling to have that release." 

[Azide 0]

Bittersweet reminisce tugged at the corner of his lip, urging it upward just enough to paint the shadow of a fuller, truer smile. "Eleven members, and a bustling guild on the come-up," summed the young man. 

It was a familiar story, even if the numbers themselves didn't line up quite so exactly. It was just a few cycles ago that he'd been fighting for news like this, and in the grand scheme of things, the same had again been true not long before that. The same fervor, the same tenacity- they surfaced every now and then, waving a different banner and guised under a new name. One day it was progress, and the next: stability. Labels were surprisingly unhelpful when applied to anything more complex than a box of crackers or a can of tuna.

"I'd ask for forgiveness, as people ought to do after such abrupt abandonment of their posts," began Azide. His arms intertwined during that brief pause, the resulting bridge cradled closely against his own body. "But admittedly, I've got a history of this sort of thing," he continued, briefly uncrossing an arm to brush from his eyes the offending stands. His expression softened, though his eyes continued to wear their far-off look. 

"I can't say I condone that brand of carelessness, much less from myself. And I certainly won't have anyone else doing so, well-intentioned or not." The words left his lips as a sigh, and his eyes pressed closed for a moment as the air flowed inward to grant him another breath. "So instead, I'll commend you. for staying steadfast in your resolve. You executed on what we'd professed, and from the sound of it, have done no less than a fine job."

The woman's eyes trailed hell-ward, and from the look on her face, he guessed she'd taken notice of their less-than-usual backdrop. With an outstretched hand and a few words of concern, she expressed all which she'd needed, even if the words themselves had remained half-vacant. For a while, he simply held her gaze. Eventually, stoicism gave way to a show of teeth, followed by a soft chuckle and a shake of the head. "Of course not," said Azide, shifting his hands to his pockets. "Nothing like that."

Opal sat down, and he did the same, taking a seat at the brink of the boundless abyss. "There's only so far that you can run before the futility of it starts to sink in," said the man. Still, the endless herd continued to march across the twilight field, decorating the vastness with woolen blotches of white. "And I think it's commendable that you've found freedom, even in a place as decrepit as this." Arms folded once more, his fingers drummed gently against the arm upon which they laid. "To tell you the truth, that's something I envy."

[Opal 0]

Even if he had not stepped back into the Guild, the words he spoke of made the woman tremble slightly in a good way. They were high praise from a man such as him and she held him in the highest of regards for being the former Vice Commander, and for being a good and loyal friend. She had only hoped she was the same to him in such eyes, but she possibly knew there was only so much of himself he could give to others. The years he spoke of on their earlier expeditions sounded bitter sweet in detail, but she had not come to any conclusions of what had happened during that time period. But she knew there was always something gleaming in his eyes, it held such mystery to her, but he was doing all he could with what he was worth and then some.

The woman smiled and turned a heavy red from his further comments before her face returned to a normal complexion. Her feet bounced off the side of the cliff as they dangled off the edge, he had sat down beside her and they both looked out to the endless see of clouds traversing an ocean dotted with soon becoming silver lights of stars. Azide had always had such cryptic meaning to his words, he was an intelligent person, she knew that right from the start and she always felt inferior to him in almost every aspect, even now she felt a little outdated from the words of wisdom he spoke of. 

Brushing her soft hands from the ebony locks that drifted from her face from a small careless breeze, the woman hooked her hair over her ear allowing her golden orange orbs to cast downwards once more, she gave a small laugh, it was good he was not going to take his life as she had thought earlier. 

"Decrepit?" she asked, looking back towards him, her body twisted lightly as she faced him. One leg bending over towards the ground, while one leg carelessly hung over the edge, "Perhaps you are looking at things wrong, Azide. I don't see any decrepitness in this world. I see stories etched in everything I see. Sometimes the story is beautiful and romantic, the other times they can be scary and demoralizing. We take what we see of it. I don't know what has caused you to see this world in such a manner, but I have had my fair share of horrible experiences here. A woman that I was so broken and scattered now seems whole again thanks to the guild and people within it. Given time, those pieces have slowly started to seal their cracks. I wanted to have undergone this change with you by my side, but that was...perhaps a bit brazen in thought. A romantic fantasy that I had let get out of hand until you left. But I don't blame you or anything, every person must walk their own path. If that was yours, I am not one to darken the path from your feet. All a woman can do..." 

She sighed lightly, but with a faint smile on her crimson lips, "Do you have any plans on actually coming back to the Guild? I know that is a mouthful in question to ask you now, but I am sure the others would enjoy your presence as much as I had enjoyed it during the times we were together. Ariel and I had gone on a quest as well to staple our bond with the Blood Oath, but she too seemed to disappear. I have not seen the woman in a while. It almost seemed like I was cursed for a bit. All these great friends...slowly leaving my side." she laughed nervously a bit, "I am a big girl though. I will make due with what is offered to me." Her honey gaze set out once more towards the puffing of white noctilucent clouds in the horizon. 

[Azide 0]

"If I'm wrong about this, then I can't even begin to wonder about the value of these past few months," remarked Azide. 

Rather than the woman's own hybrid approach, he himself had opted instead to seat himself cross-legged, just as he had done all those years ago. An open hand rested comfortably atop each knee, both curling inward almost unknowingly. The slightest twitch of his nose, followed by the shutting of two heavy lids and ending in a momentary flicker of darkness. The bright scent of oranges continued to persist in the air, and he allowed himself to take a more satiating breath. It crossed his mind that had he been a smoker, it was at moments like this that those long drags would have filled his lungs.

His eyes fluttered open, greeting the night with the warmth and familiarity of an old friend. "I admit, it's entirely possible that I've managed to overlook something," he said, turning to meet the eyes of the woman beside him. "But whether or not I believe that- well, that's a whole different story." He shifted back to gaze upon the ethereal sight ahead as the last of the words escaped him.

What hadn't escaped him was the distinct optimism which clung to her musings like lingering smoke; this woman and the one he'd met back at the arena were most definitely one and the same, there was no doubt about that. But if he'd been judging simply by disposition and temperament alone, a call like that would be rather difficult to argue. Somewhere along the way, a fire had been lit inside of her soul, and he thought he'd caught a glimpse of it in those golden eyes. It was not something to be trifled with, nor a thing to be stomped underfoot and snuffed out without so much as a backward glance. 

Like the spindly limbs of a spider, his fingers scurried across the dusty earth until they stumbled across what he'd been searching for. "You're a lucky one, Opal," said Azide. Slowly, he closed his fingers around the small pebble, which felt cool and smooth within his grip. Thrice, he bounced the stone softly atop his palm, catching it each time before allowing it to rest between his fingertips. "Lucky to see what you see in this world." He craned back his neck and scanned the sprawling expanse overhead with a stare far-removed. "Or maybe I'm just crazy," he added, smiling. 

"As for the matter of guilds, I'm afraid that I can't offer much in the way of reassurances- both for the time being, and even indefinitely." It was a true cop out answer, and one unlikely to elicit much excitement or enthusiasm, and of this he was fully aware. "Your guildmates deserve somebody with more commitment than I have to offer at the moment- and it just so happens that a certain someone around here carries that in spades. So we can't be too disappointed."

[Opal 0]

The woman smiled and then laughed, "The answer, I was waiting for something like that to be said from you. Had you said yes in rejoining, I would have questioned the person in front of me. But that is fine, I had only wanted people to meet you as I have met you. I will not attempt to persuade you any longer. Paths that we all must take must be followed with our own feet in our own direction. But know very much, should you ever need the aid of anything...I am but a call a way. I will come running from the ends of the earth to do what I can to help." 

Opal smiled, her red lips curved over her perfect skin as she adjusted the small strap of her tank top over her shoulder. It had been sliding off her smooth skin for sometime, but she would carelessly move it back over the bone to keep it in place. She had wondered if she was truly lucky in this world. Luck was such a magical word to be used, or something people would say in games of chance. Others who believed in faith would have used the word blessed, both terms she found to be unsuited to her position. Whether she was blessed or lucky to her current position was up for grabs, but there was no denying that she was happy with the way things were going for herself and for the guild.

She sought out her own pebble from the ground. Her cherry red nails plucking a smooth surfaced stone from among the ground and examined it with a honey dipped eye while the other remained closed, "Master Myoga often spoke of stones and water..." she began, "A pebble can cause massive ripples in the wake of a still pond that would continue to stretch out and out further towards the edge. His wisdom had always guided me and it never let me down. You know there is a place on floor seven where my Master kept his Temple, a beautiful forested garden surrounded it with many exotic trees and plant life. One day on one of my many training days, he had lead me to this spectacular area and asked me to close my eyes...."

The woman did as she was asked to do so long ago, she felt the tiny pebble in the palm of her hand as she closed her digits around it. She breathed in the air around her, her own scent mixing with that of the other nearby allowing the world to seemingly open up around her and her senses. With her eyes still closed, she began once more, "What do you hear? What do you see? He asked me of this with my eyes closed. Of course, I knew very little of philosophy and gave a rather crude answer. I hear birds and the swaying of trees. But then I was asked to take a deeper approach..." the woman took a heavy breath in and exhaled slowly. 

"I still hear it till this day when I meditate...I hear the cries and screams of people all around me, forced to shed their tears in this world. It makes me sad to think of the torture that people had to endure while being here, the lives that were taken that should have not. I see Lindow, a great friend...watching over me time from time. But in all that, I still hear the cries and screams of people. And I realize this world can be pretty fucked up...if we allow it to consume us." The woman blinked several times, a soft breeze whispering through her hair and ear as she exhaled slowly once more, "Those cries and screams of the people, will only intensify the higher up we go. More lives will be lost, more tears will be shed. As for me...I feel as though I am still caterpillar, looking for one day to be a butterfly. Until then however..." The woman stretched her hand out and allowed the pebble to freely drop from her palm to the abyss of the canyon, "I will set the water's ripple, what happens then...is anyone's guess. But I will move forward riding on the waves."

[Azide 0]

"Sensation... contemplation... integration..." spoke the young man. He watched as a small stone fell from the woman's hand, and followed its descent until its meager form could be detected no longer. Between his fingers, he rolled a pebble of his own, weaving and guiding it among them with the ease of one who'd practiced such a thing for quite some time. "It sounds as if your teacher was an introspective one, Opal. And a rather intelligent man in his own right, if I had to wager."

If there existed some deeper meaning behind the anecdote, it had been lost on him. Ripples, pebbles, waves and meditation- the whole thing was colored by a distinctly counter-cultural approach, and such things had never been the focus of his interests. An overabundance of metaphysics with a criminal lack of actual physics did not tend to make for a compelling field of study, he reasoned. Even so, it sounded to him as if the story was simply one which demonstrated the merits of fuller consideration- and that was something he could get behind. It was, after all, something which he had done plenty of lately. 

Up to the level of his eyes, the small stone was raised. In his hand, the mottled piece of earth shimmered as it caught the pale light of the moon and the stars. "I've searched this place long and hard for any semblance of beauty. Hours, days, weeks and months- slaving over such a simple mission; all I have to show for it is a pair of empty hands," said Azide. Still, his expression remained that of an apparent smile; a bitter upturn of lips, if there'd ever been one. A flick of his wrist propelled the pebble through the air, until it too began to fall. Far and away it drifted, until nothing more of it could be seen- consumed by the unending depths of the world below.

"I stand by my conclusion; this world is as decrepit as it gets. Even with all my efforts, I've failed to find even a single sign which might suggest the active influence of this realm's creator."

In the literal sense, it was true: never had he found any solid evidence of such a thing. From the very first day, Kayaba had vanished into thin air, and nothing had been heard or seen from him since. Still, the implications of such a disappearance had eventually crossed his mind, though he would not consider such musings as credible leads. 

"As for the other half of the equation, you've hinted at it yourself: in this world, people die, and people suffer. The same as any world, really, but with one vital difference; it's also incapable of creating any new life. It exists because we exist, and once the last of us takes our final breath, it might as well not exist at all. Aincrad is abandoned, and all we can do is play soldier, and pretend as if twelve floors across two years is enough to get by."

He shook his head, but still, the brittle smile decorated his visage. Letting out a drawn-out sigh, he slackened the tendons in his arms, giving relief to the whitened knuckles of his hands. "I hate that man, Opal. From the bottom of my heart, I truly despise him- for what he did to me, and to you, and to all the other poor souls who slipped on those metal deathtraps. If were to ever meet him in the flesh..." he trailed off, unwilling to declare those poisoned words.

[Opal 0]

It had pained her to hear such a man of worth like Azide to say such things. His voice held such a tone which she had yet to ever hear slip between his lips for all the times that she had spent with him. The woman carelessly looked down to the abyss of the canyon, her honey eyes had searched for something to do or try to help alleviate him of such thoughts, but she could not think of anything to douse the flames of hatred he seemed to spout from his mouth. It was true, she had gone through many displeasures during her stay in Aincrad, but she had also experienced really good memories as well, she had forged herself into a new person. She felt reborn and gifted with a new set of skills that she hopes will follow her into the world she used to live in once they were free from the shackles of their prison. 

She was much like Azide was, full of hatred and animosity during her early years of the game. But now, she felt indifferent about her situation. There was a hunger of anger in the pit of her stomach, it was always there for the awful things she had to endure and she could never quite come to grips with it. But time was something funny to her, the more she had allowed it to consume her the more it took hold on her, the more the nightmares lashed back at her. "At one point or..." the woman began, she raised her right hand as it lightly trembled as it was picked up from her lap, she wanted him to see the nature of her body and what she gone through to stop such perverse nightmares taking root, "In fact, I still am using alchemical items to keep nightmares away and in their wake I have developed a bit of an addiction towards them. This trembling is an after effect of being withdrawn from such things."

The woman clutched her hand, easing the trembling limb back down to her lap, "I rely on many things to help me get through the day. And I blame all of this on that man. However, to say that I hate the individual for doing this to me...to us." the woman shook her head, "He can be blamed as much as God for putting us in a world where were are to survive or to die. Whether its real life or the one we live in now, it truly doesn't matter. What matters are the decisions we make in our lives. You say there is nothing beautiful in this world, all you see is the creation of a prison. It's the same in real life, Azide. We are prisoners there too. Whatever the God is, whether the religious one or the God of this game, it is the decision we make. The people here are real, just as much as they are in the real world. I find that to be a redeeming factor. We are not alone. If not the structures or the environment of the floors that lends beauty to your eyes, surely the friends you had made here, the people you have met...They can be seen as beautiful?"

She had asked, perhaps it was more of a rhetorical question or something for him to think about. She was not good with words and portraying her feelings into them. She was a woman of action, always was, but there were times when drops of wisdom came from her mouth, depending on the ear listening to them and how drunk or sober she might have been when she spoke of them. The woman smoothed her leg of any debris of dust that collected around her and her calf as the wind had once more sent a calming breeze between the two. Her dark hair shifting once more as it fluttered and slowly came back down to fall close to her shoulders. A thin pinky combed her hair back over an ear, red lips smiling only to break tension of the silence of thought now expanding over them. 

"Let go of the hate, Azide. Or be consumed by a fire that will destroy you and others around you. For all that I have seen, all that I experienced...I can't say I hate him anymore. But for every moment I draw breath I know I live and that is something more precious to me with each passing day. I hope one day you will find beauty in something, or someone to help leave the hate behind. That is your quest though, one that is lonely. No one can tell you how to feel or how to act, but I offer this as advice, for someone who truly had been done wrong in this world. It won't help...the anger, the hatred...turn it to something positive. It ain't about how hard you hit, it's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward."

OOC: yes, quoted Rocky. One of my favorite quotes in teh world. 

[Azide 0]

For a moment, he bowed his head, allowing the wisdom of the woman's words to truly sink in. Consideration took its leave in the form of sustained exhalation, exiting his body through each nostril as a steady breath. A simultaneous pat of each knee accompanied the ritual, and all appeared to be right in the world of Azide. 

Until from behind closed doors, two coffee-colored orbs came rushing to the scene with all patience of a runaway freight train. In that same moment, he rose up from the ground- nearly recoiling as he did so, as if he half expected for a hand to come shooting up from underneath. But they bore no interest in the lady; no, they took aim at the very nothingness which presented itself before them. No longer were his arms locked to their passive positions- they reined in the intensity of the moment, moving in accordance with invisible desires.

"I had a life back there," shot Azide. Words as knives to cut the air, and hands as whips- punctuating each slash with a lash of their own. He shook his head, every pretense of a smile now vanished from his face. "I wasn't some poor schmuck- some degenerate with more problems than a mathematical textbook." It was only natural that a videogame world like this would be populated by such textbook demographics. "And unlike most of these people, I actually liked it back there."

A heavy sigh, and his eyes sank to graze the floor. With little fanfare, his hands crept back to the comfort of his pockets, and for a while he simply waded in the silence. The slow blinking of his eyes, making the starlight twinkle more than was par, shadows flickering as they dance right off of the rocky ledge.

Finally, his voice broke the smothering surface of silence once more. "I never needed this place to be strong, or to be whole," he said simply, reduced to a slow-burning smolder. "We're wasting our time, and wasting away all the while." Like a pendulum at the long-end of effectivity, his boot came swinging softly into a loose chunk of gravel, knocking it into the depths below.

He turned a glance to Opal. "My friends are out there right now, changing the world," he said, spreading his arms in a grand gesture. "Meanwhile..." the outstretched limbs dropped unceremoniously to hang at his sides, "...I'm stuck in this wasteland." 

A somber breeze rustled his hair, and he rocked his head from side to side before rolling both shoulders. "But I guess I'm just too stubborn to call it quits," he remarked, staring out into the vast emptiness. "So I keep pressing forward, even when it's ceased to make sense."

[Opal 0]

"Sounds like you are doing everything in your power to make excuses for yourself, Azide." Even with his lashing hot words, the woman would not flinch carelessly at them. He had a right to be angry, everyone did. But she seemed to have noticed a problem with him as well, leaving for personal reasons. Perhaps he was but a boy on the inside, unable to take responsibility to actually help bring this world to an end. Instead, he catered to the liking of complaining rather than helping and when things seemed difficult or distracted; would vanish with a blink of an eye. 

As it had stood, his words posed little threat and no actual structure. Instead she saw just a hopeless man attempting to grasp at a reality he no longer had. People were still living in this world, they were not merely wasting away their lives. True enough, they would not have the life they had back in reality...But right now, with every bated breath they took in this world..."This is reality now, Azide." she said glorifying the open nothing with her hands as she looked out to the orange haze in the skyline. 

"You need to come to grips with that and if you want that treasured life back so much..." The woman stood up, patting her butt of the debris that had formed from the edge of the ground and her thighs, "Perhaps you should get off your ass and help the degenerates like me finish this world off. The poor schmucks are the ones doing something to give you that world back. Not complaining how great and grandiose their life was outside the walls or taking vacation time. If you want that life so badly then you need to do something about it." 

The woman flicked raven strands of her hair with the back of her hand, a breeze catching the silken strands blowing the hair back showing the deep orange gaze as she looked down on her former Vice Commander. With a sweep of her hands, the woman was engulfed in a small light as her body transformed as she was donning her Knights of the Blood Oath Armor. 

"I am the very thing you created and to hear you say things like that, I feel sorry for you, pity you...I can't give you the world outside these walls, but as a Knight of the Blood Oath, I will be damn certain to attempt that freedom for you. Why don't you just sit there and be a good boy while the adults take care of this matter." Venom, for every strike and verbal lash he had given her, it was like a hit to her soul. Degenerate? A poor schmuck? Perhaps she was both of these things here and in the real world, but she had responsibility because she had power to change the way things were in this world. If you had the power, you needed to do something about it. Help. Do something productive with your life. Don't feel sorry for yourself and end up acting like a child. The only one to blame was yourself...

"The pointing finger of blame can be easy to point at someone. Look at yourself in the mirror next time you wish to do so." 

OOC: I'm so sorry, Azide. ;_; 

[Azide 0]

"If it gives you even the tiniest bit of satisfaction, then by all means, carry on as you have," said Azide, a sidelong glance capping the statement's tail-end. 

Gone were the formalities which had pervaded the eyes and lips of the young man; yet, even in their absence, neither rage nor wrath had filled their seats. In the wake of that exchange, it was steel which lived on: a steely look which persisted, and clung to his countenance. A stubborn river of steel which ebbed and flowed, and filled every nook, crook and cranny- of course its course would continue, even when others had so freely abandoned their ships. A steeliness for the ages, forged and reforged time and time again.

"Lecture me to hell and back again. Fine. As long as you're able to extract so much as a single ounce of catharsis from this moment- who am I to get in the way of that?" A quarter turn leading into a swiveled gaze, and suddenly it was steel crossed with amber.

Confined to their chambers, his hands remained firmly entrenched within the folds of his coat as his boot struck the ground, affirming the shift in his stance. Above them, in an unending sky, the silver lady of the night disrobed; cloudy garments removed and discarded, it was only now that she'd revealed her form in full. Under the pale light of the moon, it was likely that the dark circles below his eyes might be mistaken for mere shadows. How quickly the hours had passed. 

Around them, the ever present wind slowed to a cease. A certain look lingered within those golden pools, and in the silent beat, he pondered the emotions which stirred beneath their surface. Anger? Disappointment? And perhaps even betrayal, he noted.

Again, he spoke, filling the void with the measure of his voice. "But before you take me up on that offer, allow me to make something clear: I'm not about to stand here and be lectured to about me. I know the things I've done in the last few months, and I can safely say that 'vacationing' and 'running away' were not among them. You think I bought myself a nice little hut on the beach?"

A simple shake of his head. "As for my contributions to the front-lines? Nothing I say here tonight will change what I've given here in Aincrad, and so I'll leave it to my record to speak for itself."

Once more, he turned. Back under the cover of darkness, his eyes retreated. "Of the ten thousand who've existed in this world, I've only ever blamed two. Naturally, there's Kayaba, who trapped us here in the first place." Within their sockets, steely eyes gleaned over to steal a glimpse of the lady beside him. 

"And then there's me." A hand released itself from his pocket, manifesting the slender form of an old rapier in the space before him. Before it could drop from the air, he snatched the humble blade by its grip, and held it out before him. In perfect parallel with the ground beneath their feet, the metal gleamed as it caught the light. With an edge of polished steel, the sword returned his look with ease. "Who never said goodbye."

He blinked. Then, turning the weapon perpendicular, drove it into the ground. A hint of a smile returned to his lips as his arms weaved against each other. Rhythmically, he tapped his foot against the floor, stopping only after biting his tongue. Skyward, Azide lifted his head. "I guess this is the part where I say sorry."

[Opal 0]

"An apology? Ha..hahaha..." The woman laughed waving a hand in front of her face as if something had rolled next to her and died, the stench of the comment made her sick, "You would not offer one and I would not accept. I believe we are beyond that point now. If you think for a moment...That I might have some grudge against you for leaving without a word..." She shook her head again, she was lying though. It would have meant the world to her back when they were Vice Commander and Guildmate, just to know what his plans were so that she could better understand the situation. But he had kept things to himself, unmoved by the situation and did his own thing with or without conscious thought of the repercussions of his actions.

A trembling hand once more reached for the ebony strands of her hair as a powerful gust of wind had caused her skirt to billow and pop. The gale howled like a banshee through them and banished off the side of the cliff as if nothing happened. But she was still trying to wrap her mind around what had happened in the short time they had spoken. It was casual, just two friends catching, then there was this...awkward moment between the two of them. She had felt heated in the moment, as if Helios himself had touched her mind. It was not fueled by hatred, or sadness, but just confusion of why? 

There was an instance where she wanted to just drop down to the ground next to him and cry, her brave exterior had never diminished. Even when his steel gaze clashed against her bronze pools, the iron of her heart had slowly started to melt as if her eyes were about to wax and tear. The liquid honey pools of her irises gleamed in pale moonlight. A finger swept under her eye to clear moisture from the breaking of a tear. 

"I won't settle for an apology, Azide. I don't know what has caused this rift to fall between us just now in the last handful of minutes that had transpired. I care that you left without saying a word, of course I would. You are my friend, even if you did call me a degenerate schmuck a few moments ago. And I won't question where you have gone or why you have left. That is your business. But there are people here, good people, wanting to break free from this world just as much as you do and go back to their lives. But we can't, not yet, we have so many floors to go...And yes, it seems like a daunting task. We haven't even scratched the surface yet. But we are trying...and trying desperately. Was it not your idea to form Aincrad under a single banner? A pillar of light united by that one thought of clearing these floors? I am keeping your spirit alive by only a flicker! A flicker, Azide! Flames burn out just as quickly as they are set, you know this all too well..."

Shifting her pose, the woman knelt down and once more rested her body upon the ground, a foot dangling off the edge, another bent to keep her arm propped over her knee. Her honey gaze set out to the dark clad horizon. The familiar glow of the sun gone, leaving the moon to take place as the lone soldier in the sky, the ever watchful guardian. 

"I have so much to learn still of being a leader. I am still careless, weak, jealous and envious of people around me. I never had a single thought of happiness, true...undisturbed happiness in a while. I laugh, I have good times with people. But happiness...as much as I yearn and yearn for it...Even with Teselmar, there is only so much of my heart I have left to give. And I fear it in the end...it might not be enough of what he deserves of me...." tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, she attempted with all her might while in her uniform to stave off the waterworks from coming out, she would not wish for herself to be seen in such a weak state.

"Tell me what to do, Azide...Maybe you are right, perhaps we will never see an end to this. Is it futile to believe we can be free...what am I fighting for anymore? What is anyone fighting for anymore? I just don't know...what to say...or even do."   

[Azide 0]

"Yes," said the man. A nod of his head, however redundant; it was as much a formality as the plaster pathway which followed the curve of his lips. "That was, in fact, the plan. Simple, ambitious and clean- but most importantly of all: it was necessary." Atop the rounded pommel of the grounded blade, his fingers rocked back and forth in an arpeggio roll, tapping along to a beat with no name. "It was needed. It was our only hope of surviving this mess; those words became my mantra. A man with a vision in a world so sorely in need of eyes like my own- I wouldn't let those eyes belong to a simple spectator. It was my duty to lead... and in those last few days, I'd known that I was at the cusp of something great."

Even in those first steps, the potential had been undeniable. Heathcliff, Azide and Opal- all three names notable in their own right, and to sweeten the deal, the Crown Lion herself had been all but confirmed. All of this in such a short span of time, before he'd even had the chance to truly get to work.

On and on they went: those pale, slender fingers; they drummed to an impossible beat, dancing atop their stage with neither rhyme nor rhythm. A plastic smile, falling just short of its task; a shade too bright, a hair too wide and a touch too stiff- this was not its brother, of flesh and of blood. Again, the wind howled, singing its siren song. Like an old friend, he greeted the wind, and raised a hand to the stars. 

"But there's music in my mind, Opal. And I've begun to realize that not everybody can hear it," said Azide. A turn of his head as he looked to the young lady. A stare just a moment too long; brief, but too long all the same. Away he turned, and down came the outstretched hand. Earthen eyes came to a close, and he snorted once in total. Around the smooth pommel, he wrapped his fingers in an intimate embrace. "It twists and it turns, and it changes completely at the drop of a hat. By all means, no one should be able to understand it. But I do." He sighed, and his eyes fluttered open. "And therein lies the problem." 

The young man laughed, leaning slighting against the sword's slender frame. "I'm sure my explanation probably makes little sense. But I'm afraid that's the nature of these things." From out of the dirt, Atom Slicer rose by the grace of his hand. With a flick of his wrist, he flipped the sword upright before reaffirming his hold. "Amethyst Descent... Knights of the Blood... even Square one. Sure, I had my reasons every time, but even I'm still left to wonder...." 

A single stroke: swift, and almost blisteringly so. Rag in hand, he held out the freshly cut cloth as azure dust streamed from the frays of his sleeve. "I can't tell you what to do, where to go, or even offer you the answers to those questions. Not when I'm still searching these things myself." He inched the verdant fabric closer towards the woman, turning to her once more. "You're a symbol of hope now, you know. Your guildmates shouldn't see you cry- not if you can afford it."

With a click, the blade was returned to it sheath, and he grasped the woman's hand with his own. Gently, he raised it up to the light, before pressing the soft scrap into her palm. "But I'm not your guildmate. And it's too dark to see."

Edited February 16, 2016 by Azide

[Opal 0]

"But I'm not your guildmate. And it's too dark to see."

The woman looked at the verdant piece of cloth in her hand. Torn from the very fabric that rested upon his arm. Whatever words had been broken between them, in the midst of it all...he was still a very deep friend and the action alone once more made the tears well up in the corners of her melting gold eyes. He was not her guildmate, and at this very moment she was beyond happy about that. In meant so much...that she could have a small release without the prying eyes of her guild members upon her as she wept. The green cloth pressed to her face as she cried, stifled noises emitting from her cupped hands as she carelessly allowed the tears to fall from her face. She had not cried so hard or so much since the day she came out of her tortured prison. The long weeks she had spent there being abused, being defiled...over and over...the pains of those memories only held back by forbidden potions that caused her to be dependent on the liquid as if alcohol as it were to help numb the pain and dirt she felt encrusted in. 

In her state she bawled out more of her tears, her cheeks burned with the liquid streams from her eyes but the soft fabric, cut from the rapier that had served him prior to his dagger, had been used to gently clean away the tears as she sniffled. She never thought she would have to cry again, she had tried to promise herself she would never be allowed to be seen in such a state or to show such weakness. But the darkness around them had formed a cocoon for her feelings, masking them with only sobs and small noises. Once more pressing the verdant fabric from her eyes, the woman dabbed the cloth against her dermis and turned to face Azide. She probably looked like a wreck right now. Had this been the real world, her eyeliner would be streaming dark lines down her cheeks. She exhaled softly, "Thank you." She was able to finally get the words out, she now felt overly terrible for attempting to belittle him. What right did she have to say such words to him? There was so many things just going wrong her. She lashed out at Jomei, even punching him in the face, took up misdirected anger at him and causing a drama scene. Then here and now she accused Azide, a friend, a close friend at that, of being too weak to handle the responsibility placed upon him as Vice Commander. 

All these things accumulated into bursts of frantic misdirected rage. She was unsure of what she was really mad at, perhaps...the potions she had been drinking were causing a mental instability within her, blurring the lines of emotions and bringing them up to full blast. But she needed to use such things or those nightmares would come back, and every time Teselmar placed a warm hand on her, she would feel the cold bite and sting of that night again. Was she ever to be free of such things without being dependent on such...items of nature? Or perhaps it was just months of built up rage for many things. The hate for Sensui, the death of her Master whom she was never able to properly grieve for, taking over the position as Vice Commander. All these things were burdens upon her shoulders that she bore the weight of yet she did not fall to such weights until now...crying like a baby. 

She swept two fingers across her forehead, raven black hair moved from the soft peeling orange glow of her eyes as she stared skywards, "I should be the one apologizing. You are right, I can't hear the tune in your head. We all march to our own beat...I am well aware of this, I don't know why I got so heated at you either. You had such discipline...as Vice Commander, I look up to you and seek guidance. You are my Phantom...and yet I am pulled away by Raule leaving your dark embrace. I must find my own path once more, guidance I will find in the wisdom of others when it is given to ear and I shall listen. For you Azide, I shall give you my blessings and I hope with all my heart that you find what you are looking for. And should you need help along the way, you know how to find me." 

[Azide 0]

Bleeding so brilliantly, he aimed a cursory glance at the damaged sleeve; from it, the blue smoke still streamed, though by now its course more closely resembled a trickle than that of a rushing river. It would come to pass, and could always be fixed- not at all like people, except in the case of the former. Not frail, but rather, fragile. Much too fragile. Always too fragile.

"There's nothing to apologize for. It's not the end of the world," said Azide. Noticing the path which the woman's eyes had traveled, it wasn't long before he too turned his eyes to the sky. On the most basic level, it was a shallow, meaningless gesture- nothing more than the kneel of godless men as they descended from their pews; more than the wrath of the divine, it was the judgement of their fellow men which brought them to their knees. But god-fearing he was not, and neither were his fears born of man.

In reality, every starry eyeful and upward glance served as a constant reminder. Though he'd entertained himself a non-believer, a line had been crossed on that fateful day: the day a mere man ascended to the ethereal throne, and snatched the crown of god with the filthiest of hands. A man who'd killed god, and thought himself a suitable replacement- that was Kayaba Akihito.

Usurper king or otherwise, it seemed unlikely that their so-called god roamed the heavens; that it was the sky which he turned to was but symbolic and instinctive in nature. However, if this man was not Zeus, whose not-so-humble home scraped the heavens themselves, then where was it that their god-king resided? More than two years later, and still, there had never once been a credible report. Aincrad's most notorious figure had simply vanished, and they were all in the dark.

Into the night went the moonlit sphere, and he watched in silence for a while longer as wispy clouds moved to hide the forms of countless celestial bodies. The woman's passing reference to a certain production had not eluded him- it had been one of the many which he'd seen witnessed first hand, and likely one of the better ones at that. Even then, the significance of her allusion was left unclear, though he refrained from giving the matter too much thought. There'd been plenty here to ponder as it was.

Just like that, it seemed as if the man of few words had made his return. He was vaguely aware of the briefness which had shrouded the most recent of their exchanges, though he had never been one to fear these quieter moments. "If those answers exist in this world, I can hardly expect to find them here of all places," he said, turning around on the balls of his feet. He shot a quick glance over the small of his shoulder, waving over to the woman behind him. "In the meantime, there's no point in sticking around this place any longer. Really starts to lose its touch after the novelty wears off."

 

Spoiler

bad post, lack of sleep, sleep now

 

Edited February 19, 2016 by Azide

[Opal 0]

Dabbing her eyes once more with the verdant cloth, cut from the very cloth of his own uniform, the woman lifted her body from off the ground and stared at the bottomless pit below. She could be free from this world with just a step forward, but that would be running away from everything she had built in this world for herself. The woman looked at the cloth in her hand, before it could fizzle out into nothingness, she secretly pocketed the item to her inventory making a small note of what significance it had to her, though how could she ever forget. 

As Azide spoke, it sounded like he was about to leave again. The Vice Commander turned to face him in the darkness and slowly stepped away from the edge as she proceeded to move towards him, "Sounds like you have a wild goose chase going on at the moment. I really hope you do find what you are looking for in this world, Azide. For all that you have indeed done, karma should be inclined to embrace you with open arms. Just promise me, if you decide to drop off the radar again, you'll send me a message or something. I worry for my friends." Her voice sounded beside him, she had no intention of speaking of the other words that seemed to burn at her heart no matter how much she wished to unfurl them from her tongue. It was not the time for such things, perhaps it never will be between the two of them. Azide was one with many questions, she did not need to add extra unnecessary burden to the ever collapsing weight upon his shoulders.

With her palm, the woman weaved her digits through the blackness of her hair as the silken strands were pulled back from her eyes. The veil had seemingly come undone as she looked towards the city and its darkened structures. Was this all that was left to be said from the two, they would go from here on their separate paths. Opal would continue being the light of the Knights of the Blood Oath, continually fighting for the day they could all free themselves from this prison. She smiled, and looked to Azide, and the man next to her...with a song in his mind that only he could hear; was destined on a different path, something of importance that seemed to cause much stress to ever beating heart. 

"Well, I think I had my fare share of crying for tonight. Now that it is out of my system, I think I will be good for another few months until I have my next mental breakdown." She attempted to ease the awkward tension with a joke, probably misplaced as she was unsure how he would react from it. Honestly though, as much as she appeared to be weak, the woman was still considered soft. She would put on that rough exterior because it was needed, and she did not mind being the aloof Vice Commander, yet she cared very much for everyone. There were times of feelings and times of apathy. Sometimes the two were one in the same to her. What was this called? Tough love? 

[Azide 0]

"I might not wear heavy metal suit of armor, swing around an oversized sword or swear like a sailor, but I'm a pretty tough guy," answered Azide, cracking perhaps his first tried-and-true smile of the night. The shape itself resembled the many contortions which had preceded it, though it was only now that the curled corners came without the usual conflicts of interest. He shrugged, lifting his hands to accompany the gesture. "I'm sure i'll manage just fine- cosmic shenanigans be damned. But if the universe is feeling generous, then I'm not the sort to turn down a side of magical goodness."

He lowered his hands, returning them to his usual position of choice as of late; within the pockets of his coat, they settled comfortably as he studied the woman across from him. After a moment, he nodded; a slight dip of the head was all it was, and he couldn't be sure that she had even perceived it. It was a dispassionate, brief motion, which left little allowance for enthusiasm. Even then, his eyes had remained sharp as he'd spoken. "I'll try my best," he said simply.

"As for everything else? There's nothing dishonorable with crying- not really, anyway. After all, we can't all be strong all of the time," he added. And while that was all good and true, he'd neglected to mention that the fact of the matter did little to discourage many individuals of attempting just that- himself a notable name in that vast list. Never had he denied his nature; pride was a fact of life, and with it, he had made his peace long ago.

Still, his gaze remained steadfast and trained. It was very much looking as if this unexpected encounter would soon be wrapping up, and he wondered how long it might be before such another one came about. It seemed as if it'd been so long since these more whimsical occurrences had called for his attention. But in any case, he reminded himself that things here had not come to an end just yet. Despite the goldmine of irony at hand, he felt obligated to at least say goodbye this time around, if only for now.

At her off-handed comment, he blinked. Turning his eyes to their corners, he considered the meaning of her words before offering a dry and quiet chuckle. "So long as you don't do anything rash, you should be able to stave off another few months at the least," he remarked. Then, taking a step forward, he laid a single hand upon the woman's covered shoulder. A moment passed as he held the lady's gaze with his own. Then came another. After what might've been seconds or hours, he spoke his last words of the night.

"Take care, Opal," said Azide. Turning away, the man took his leave. There existed no compulsion within him to entertain a backward glance- but that in itself was nothing new. As he faded into the darkness, the sound of whistling continued to persist from quite some time, a testament that the man called Azide continued to walk this winding world.

[Opal 0]

Opal hugged her body with her arms and nodded lightly. She would like to think that they they came away with this as better friends, but somewhere in the darkest hour of the night...No, she would not entertain that thought. A relaxed hand came forward brushing the ebony strands of hair from her face revealing the golden gaze of the female as she watched Azide walk away and then fade like smoke in the wind. She would see him again and she hoped it would be on good terms. Opal looked away from his leaving, staring into the vast open depths below her once more looking down into the abyss at the edge of the world. There were things she needed to accomplish still, ambitious things, things that might dirty her Oath. But there were times when drastic measures needed to be taken and they would be well worth the risk for her future development. Orange eyes cast a dull look into the darkness.

Would her path lead to total darkness? Former friends now crossed with blades against one another? These were questions that tolled heavily in her mind. It was a nightly interrogation for her, the nightmares that kept her awake at night, the sun that ate away at her heart. She was a bad person, a really bad person with the thoughts she had. But it was for the greater good, or at least that is what she told herself. She laughed, shaking her head, "Vivian...you are such a hypocrite." Words that were so low and so empty in thought and feeling. Once more her feet moved away from the edge and followed the darkness of Taft. The citizens unencumbered by such thoughts of her own, they all lived within this prison feeding off the morale energy that the Assault Teams paved way. It was their blood, their tears that they shed to once again see the possibility of the outside world.

Azide was right, this place was a wasteland, and these people probably were degenerates...But she was amongst the dregs as well, as she herself was one. It didn't matter though, she knew what she was and was more than happy being as such. But to everyone else, to her guild, she was Vice Commander Opal of the Knights of the Blood Oath. The woman swept a hand over her face once more, the curtain of black fleeing from her eyes as she moved the strands from her orange gaze. It was late, and Azide had offered much to think about for the woman. The night came swiftly for the female as did sleep as she found herself a safe little inn to call her home for the night. But she did not sleep well...persistent demons knocked on the chambers of her mind sending happy thoughts a flight with a snap of the fingers. Before she could get a good hour of sleep the sun had already been peering through her window. She grumbled and stretched, it felt like she didn't sleep at all. It was a new day...Another. Day.