[PP-F4] The Road to Recovery. (Sol / Destiny)

[Sol 0]

Continued from here.

~~~

Sol began to dream once more. Visions of white plains along with a white sky with gray clouds floating above filled his mind. "Its not cold..."   Sol looked around himself, everything was in a black and white color scheme. He looked at his grey colored hands and pondered what was happening. "Where am I?" Sol said to himself as a voice echoed behind him. "Listen carefully..."

 

Sol turned around and saw himself covered in a blue flame like aura. "You're currently unconscious Bastion. That woman risked her life to try and rescue you. She cares for you as a friend. Otherwise you would be dead with out a doubt by now." Sol trembled some due to it being himself he was staring at. "Sorry, You are no longer Bastion in this world... Forgot about that tid-bit. Anyway, That Shadow you've faced on that quest, points fears in your head forcing you to act irrationally. "

 

Another voice echoed behind Sol. "Nah, He is lying Bastion. You're already dead. Why else is everything black and white to you?" Sol turned his head quickly behind him, panicking and break into a cold sweat. Starting to feel sick and light headed. This was the presence that influenced him to do those terrible things. "Y-You... You killed DESTINY!" Sol went to draw out his spear but... was unarmed in this state.

 

"HAHA! YES! I killed her Bastion. Made sure she looked right in my eyes when it happened too." Sol trembled with rage now, no longer was it fear.

 

"Sol, he lies. You have to use your newly found skill when you completed that quest." The brighter side spoke out to interrupt the darker. "Sk-skill? What new..."  He remembered the window popping up when he defeated his shadow. [ <<Skill unlocked : Meditation>> ] "Med...itation?" Thinking back... He never once used it.

 

"Could this really have been a harsh tutorial to use a skill like this!? It all makes sense! I mean, It explains everything..." Sol recalls a previous game he played where a player could influence another player through mind control, speaking directly to them and forcing players to do things they never would do willingly. Sol started to laugh softly. His darker side smirked and began to laugh as well. "See he believes me over you." Sol walked forward to right infront of his evil side. "I don't beleive you... You're just a shadow. Using my fears against me."

 

The darker side smirked. "Oh? Is that it now? Prove it coward!" He cackled as Sol reeled back a fist, thrusting a punch forward to the shadow as it poofs into a black mist. "...He is just a shadow..." Sol lowered his fist, trembling as he let out his shaky breath. A bright light shined behind Sol as he turned to look to see what it was. "Hm... Brave... I'm proud of you for doing that. Well... Looks like you're body is reacting to something in the game. I'd recommend tending to it immediately then Meditate shortly after Sol. Until we meet again." Sol watched the figure of himself vanish in thin air as the light grew brighter and brighter, then faded to pitch black.

~~~

 

Sol slowly opened his eyes, looking around to see that he was inside of a dark cave. He slowly sits up then holds his pounding head. "Ow.... What the hell? Where..?" He looked around the cave, despite his head throbbing in pain. He spots a fire dwindling in strength and then noticed Destiny against the wall of the cave. "...De~.." He stops, seeing her health back into a green color due to her battle healing skill taking care of her during her nap. "She's ...Asleep." He let out a relieved sigh as he stands to his feet as he feels the back of his head with a huge whelp formed where a forceful blow hit him. "...." He mentally wanted to cry due to the pain it brought, but sucked up his thoughts and walked out into the snow searching for more wood to feed the flame of warmth.

 

Sol returns after a few moments, being very quiet to not wake Destiny up. He places the wood he gathered and fed the fire, to make it warm the cave up to a more comfortable temperature. "There we go...." He quietly said as he stands up and peers back to Destiny once more. "...I really must have cause you so much trouble. I believe its about time to end this stupid mind-game of mine." Sol whispered as he took a seat in front of the fire and began to meditate, facing his back to Destiny. "Focus..." He stayed quiet for a few moments until a bright green glow began to float about Sol, healing him partially, And beginning his path to mend what was previously broken.

 

[sol begins to meditate]

[Destiny 0]

-ALARM-  Diana rolled over to push the snooze button.  “Ugh..†she said to herself.  Diana rolled over ontp her stomach and she pushed her face into the pillow.  She looked over to check the time.  “5:30…I guess I might as well as get up.† Diana looked in the mirror, her hair was down and flowed down to her back.  She covered her forehead with her hands, “Bangs…† she moved her hand away, “No bangs…† Diana let out a sigh and scuffed her feet as she made her way into the bathroom.  As she was in the shower she thought about all the things that she needed to do, and the people that she was going to face.  Diana frowned to herself a little, she hated seeing them.  They had casted her out of the group of friends and she still had no idea why.  Diana finished her shower and dressed herself.

 

She then went out to the kitchen and made herself lunch along with her mother’s lunch.  Diana used her cookie cutter press to make two peanut butter and jelly heart sandwiches.  She then placed one in her lunch box and the other in her moms.  Diana’s phone vibrated and she gazed over at the screen.  “Here† Diana quickly went into her room and grabbed her backpack and walked into parents room.  She walked over to the side that her mother was on,  “It’s 6:30 mom, time to get up.†She said as she shook her gently.  “hmsmgd…†her mother mumbled.  “Katie’s here, I gotta go now.  Love you mom.  Love you dad.†She said as she exited the room.  Diana ran down the stairs and tripped on her way down.  “Ow… “ she said as she rubbed herself.  “I’m such a cluts…â€

 

It was snowing outside as Diana ran to Kate’s car.  They both sat quietly as she picked up her boyfriend.  Diana looked out the window as Katie conversated with her lover.  The eventually made it to their high school’s parking lot and parked.  There wasn’t that many people there but soon it would be bustling. Diana hung out with Katie and Michael for a while until they showed up.  â€œWhy do you both need to hang out here…†she thought to herself as she looked at the love birds.  Diana looked over at her once-upon-a-time-friends.  She remembered the time that she wrote her friend Brian a letter, a letter apologizing for whatever had happened.  His response cut her deep.  “I don’t think we can hang out anymore…â€

 

Diana eventually got sick of standing in-between the cult of friends and the lovebirds, she walked to her next class.  Diana listened to her music as she walked,  No sir, no I don’t want to be the blame, not anymore; its your turn, so take a seat we’re settling the final score.  And why do we like to hurt so mch.  I can’t decide.  You have made it harder just to go on.  And why, all the possibilities, well I was wrong. That’s what you get when you let your heart win, woaahh.

 

Diana made it to the classroom door, when she opened it a bee flew by her face .  “Huh..†she said out loud.  She saw a field of snow, she felt angry and sad.  Her face hurt and her eyes were puffy.  Destiny turned around to see Sol.  He was laughing crazily and proceeded to stab her.  Destiny felt words spew out of her mouth, they were begging, pleading as Sol brought his blade to her face.  Destiny closed her eyes and then opened them after a moment.   â€œWhat..†she looked around and saw Sol’s lifeless body on the ground. 

Destiny opened her eyes to see Sol’s back.  “You seem alright…†she stated with a cold tone. 

[Sol 0]

Sol heard her voice and gave a slight smile, holding one hand up with a finger out as in for her to 'hush' or 'one moment'. He seemed to ignore her for the time being as he pulsed a green color. This effect seemed familiar. Claim... That's where it was from. Claim was able to heal when he attacked sometimes, but Claim was no where to be found. As Sol finished out his meditation he took a deep breath and exhaled his lungs fully. "Haaa~" Sol opened his eyes and relaxed into a regular sitting position. "...Yeah. Better this way, than off with my nonsense of killing players to free them. God, I'm an idiot. Ya know?" He teased himself to try and lighten the tension between the two. A moment of Silence followed. "...Destiny..." He turned around and sat on his knees facing her.

 

"You probably want to yell at me, hurt me, punish me, hell maybe even kill me..." He knew this stunt of his probably ruined his friendship with her. "I just want to say I'm Sorry... I'm Sorry for taking off in the first place before letting you know. I'm sorry for not returning to you until days later. I'm Sorry for..." He hesitated. "Its not an excuse, I'm Sorry for hurting you, Physically and emotionally. I was out of line and I was too oblivious to realize that I could fix my problem sooner." Sol bowed completely, Being as apologetic as he can. "If you can forgive me, I won't let you down ever again... All I ask is a second chance." He kept his head on the ground as he expected some sort of punishment for his actions.

[Destiny 0]

Destiny glared at Sol as he told her to hush.  Destiny crossed her arms and looked away and made “Hmph.†She said.  Destiny was still upset at Sol for what happened.  Her mind was blank, she was still tired and fatigued.  She then turned to look at Sol again when he suddenly sighed.  “mother…†she thought to herself.  Destiny glared at Sol as he started to talk to her again.  She listened to every word that he was saying, about how he was an idiot.  “Yeah.. I know that..†she agreed to his statement in her head. 

 

She watched as Sol turned to her.  Destiny listened carefully and was skeptical about what he was going to say.  â€œHurt you is such an understatement….†She thought in her head.  “Taking off…. You practically dropped off the face of this earth…. Out of line doesn’t even begin to explain what just happened…â€

 

Destiny watched as Sol bowed and lowered his gaze  to the ground.  Destiny got up to her feet.  “Sol..†she said emotionless as she was looking down at him.  Destiny was waiting for him to look up at her.  She waited in silence and wanted to make sure that he was looking her right in the eyes. 

[Sol 0]

Way way she uttered his name made him cringe slightly. "...." He knew he was going to get one hell of a beat down if he made the wrong move or said the wrong thing. He debated wether to look up at her or not for some time... afraid of what punishment laid ahead. "Oh.. What if she decides to hit me anyway..." The thought crossed his mind. He gulped and slowly rose his head, his eyes tracing up her legs and to her body then finally her eyes, a look of sheer panic on his face. "...?" He blinked at he gazed upwards at the woman's eyes, sitting on his knees once again. "Y-Yes?" He attempted to calmly ask, but failed terribly, what ever the punishment may be, he would accept it no matter the action. It was the very very least he could do to make it up to her.

[Destiny 0]

Destiny swiftly moved to Sol.  She picked him up by his collar and pushed him again the earthy wall.  Destiny pinned him against the wall with her left hand and her torso.  She grabbed her sword and put it next to Sol’s throat.  Destiny was only a few inches away from Sol’s face as she stared him in the eyes.  She was looking for something, she was looking for the mixture of emotions that she felt.  Prior to finding Sol, Destiny was worried, upset and slightly depressed.  Destiny wanted to beat him to the ends of the earth and then some.  Destiny trusted him.  He was her first friend in this world, and allowing him into her life opened up new windows.  She met Claim, and was able to befriend the strange fellow.  Destiny was able to open up to strangers.  But after he left, she questioned everything.  She questioned their friendship and she questioned her ability to trust others. 

 

“Do you feel that, Sol?† she questioned him as she stared into his eyes.  Her blade was close to his neck.  One small move and he would cut himself.  “Do you feel the pain that I feel?†

[Sol 0]

Sol stayed still as he was pinned against the wall, a bit shocked that this would be the punishment. "I-I deserve this... " Sol gulped as his breath shook when he exhaled. "...The feeling of fear, abandonment, and being alone. If that's the case... Yes, I feel it." Sol let her pin him to the wall, not fighting back. He truly felt guilty for what he did to Destiny. "I know I probably deserve what you do to me ten fold. I didn't know I was crazy in my defense... It was that stupid quest... But that's not an excuse to drag you in like this..." Sol thought of the calming the soul encounter and when the monster transformed into himself. That started his mental breakdown in the first place. Before that encounter he actually was coping with the world he lived in.

[Destiny 0]

Destiny pushed  Sol into the earth, and moved backwards as she did so.  She put down her sword.  Destiny looked at the ground.  “I guess you do understand…. Somehow..† She stated in a neural tone.  Destiny was extremely skeptical if he did really know how she felt.  Destiny sat down in the spot she sat in previously.  She brought her knees to her chest and looked down at her knee caps.  “How do you feel?†she murmured.  Destiny sat and thought to herself.  She didn’t know what to believe or what to think.  Did he truly understand?  Or was he just lying?  “He did nearly kill me…†she thought to herself.  Destiny looked up and over at Sol who was still standing there. 

[Sol 0]

Sol was let down as he remained silent for the first part of her statements. "..." He gulped and backed against the stone wall of the cave, sliding down it with a relieved look on his face. He let out a big sigh as he looked at the fire and began to stare at it. "...I feel, nothing but guilt... That's all I feel. I was aware of everything that I was doing but couldn't stop it. I wanted to just Kill myself when I drew my spear on you. I would never want to hurt anyone like that... Especially you Destiny." He said as he continued to stare forth in the fire. Clearly affected by his actions. "Honestly... I can't even forgive myself."

[Destiny 0]

Destiny listened to Sol talk about how he felt.  She brought her knee’s closer to her chest.  “Well, forgive yourself or else your other half will use that against you.†She stated as she looked at him.  “Seriously Sol,  don’t hold on to that guilt.  If you do that crazy person inside you will use it.  â€œ Destiny got up from her spot and walked over to Sol.  She kneeled in front of him.  Destiny cupped Sol’s face in her hands and looked him directly in the eyes.  “Seriously Sol…† she smiled “ Don’t worry about it.  I’m by far too tough of a cookie to crack.† 

[Sol 0]

Sol heard Destiny's sentence, taking it to heart. He smiled softly but still felt that guilt piled upon his shoulders. He listened to her once again saying to forgive himself. "I can't... I mean I nearly --" Hands were placed upon Sol's cheeks as his face was brought to meet eyes with Destiny. He stared for quite sometime, shocked that she did this of all actions. A slap? most definitely. A kick to the back of the head? Yeah more likely. Two hands being placed upon his face? Never in a million years. "..." His cheeks flushed a red color radiating heat. "Destiny..." He began to tear up a bit. "I'm sorry... I'm Sorry" Sol repeated himself over and over. Starting to cry profusely as he started to lean into Destiny's hands.

[Destiny 0]

Destiny watched as Sol’s cheeks turned red and his eyes started to tear up.  For once she felt a large amount of compassion for him.  Destiny brought Sol’s face to her chest and held him gently.  “It’s okay..†she said softly as she patted his head in an attempt to comfort him.  “Really Sol… Its fine….† Destiny held the weeping Sol in her arms as she gently stroked his hair.  â€œSol,  I need you to forgive yourself so you can move on guilt free from this.†

[Sol 0]

Sol continued to cry. Once being pulled to Destiny's chest, he leaned forward and his hands reacted to reach out and embrace her, wrapping around her whilst crying. After a few moments of sobbing, letting that guilt flow out of his fragmented heart. He begins to recover from his feelings and rebuilds his composure. He sniffles and lets go of Destiny and wipes tears from his face. "...Forgive myself... Is it really okay? It seems like such a selfish deed. But..." He hesitated, pulling away from Destiny and taking a big breath to rebuild what confidence he once had before this incident. "With you telling me its okay then I feel like it is okay." He slumped back onto the ground and laid on the somewhat warm cave floor, due to the campfire. "...Thank you Destiny. I don't know where I'd be right now if it weren't for you."

[Destiny 0]

Destiny smiled as she felt the release of Sol’s hands.  She watched and listened as he stated hoe he felt selfish but since she had said it was okay,  that the issue may finally be a rest.  Destiny listened as Sol said his thanks.  “Hey.† She said looking down at him.  “I’ll always be here for you.  Right by your side,  I promise. “  She said as she gave him a thumbs up and a wink.  “And also, your real punishment awaits.†Destiny walked to the other side of the cave where she sat earlier and looked out at the snow storm.  “It looks like it’s letting up…Kinda..â€

[Sol 0]

Sol finally smiled sincerely hearing Destiny's words, not being able to feel joy for sometime since that quest. He was finally able to put that shadow to rest. "Real punishment huh? I'll accept what ever it is tomorrow if that's fine with you 'D'." As Destiny pointed out the details of the snow storm, Sol spoke. "Looks like it, Don't think we will be able to get out of here soon huh?" Sol picks up one of the twigs that remained un-burned by the campfire and prodded the flames and embers to fuel the fire with oxygen.

[Destiny 0]

Destiny chuckled at Sol.  â€œD…..Really?...What are you dubbing with me a nickname now?†she stated with a smile. Destiny looked at Sol and said “Sol, you can call me Destiny or you can call me by my real name, Diana.† She then looked away from him to look at the snow storm and then looked back.  “Now, for your punishment…Well you’ll never know when that is coming.† She winked at him and had a mischievous smile on her face. 

[Sol 0]

Sol laughed at his own nickname he gave Destiny. "Sorry Destiny."  He listened to her comment about calling her by her real name. "Diana... Hrm, Quite the elegant name if I say so myself." Sol smiled then continued his comment after her mentioning punishment, As if to avoid the topic for the time being. "Since I know your real name, Its fair that you know mine. Ahem..." Sol got into a standard introductory stance. "My name is Bastion Wight, The youngest of the Wight family name." Sol bowed formally. He hasn't heard that name for sometime. it kinda sounded weird when he said it himself. "...Sounds a bit odd. Saying your real name after going by your game name for so long... Ya know?" Sol scratches his head, a little nervous. Was this it? Were they buds once again? Sol fretted the future if something may happen where they would be pitted against each other. Sol tried to shake loose those thoughts and enjoy the time he is spending now not fighting, They were talking like everything was normal... That's what matters.

[Destiny 0]

Destiny rolled her eyes at Sol’s mention of her name and how it was elegant.  “Yeah…sure….†She thought to herself.  She then looked on as Sol got into a introductory stance and proceeded to tell her his name.  “Well that’s a bit weird…†she thought to herself.  Destiny laughed at his formality. Destiny proceeded to stand up as he mentioned something about it being strange saying real names.  â€œWell,  Bastion Wight.  A pleasure to meet you.† She said as curtsied.  “Well what should we do now, Bastion?†

[Sol 0]

Sol looked outside at the storm that seemed to last for quite a while. "Well.. Do you want to take chances of going out there to find the settlement or wait out the storm?" Sol asked as he began to brainstorm ideas. "Could do a number of things... Some a little more... Nah nevermind." He smiled as he shrugged off one idea as a no chance in hell option. Could cook a meal for us to eat and pass the time waiting for that stupid little blizzard to pass over." He suggested to Destiny as he sat back down in-front of the fire, letting the heat of the flames embrace his skin. 

[Destiny 0]

Destiny raised an eyebrow at Sol’s ‘little more comment.’  â€œHmm… what did he mean…I’m curious.†She thought to herself.  She got up and moved to the edge of the cavern.  Destiny stuck out her hand and she couldn’t even see it.  She then turned her head back to Sol and said,  “Unless if you’re the dumbest hero in SAO.  I think we should stay here.† She turned her head back to her hand and pulled It out.  It was covered in snow.  Destiny examined her hand and said, “Well then.†As she turned toward Sol and the makeshift fire, Destiny walked  over to the two and put her hand near the fire.  “I guess the latter of the two,†she said as she kept her eyes on the fire and her hand.  Destiny just wanted to reach out and touch it as the flame danced.