Aero and Tajy ((In Dream World))

The splash of the oars in the water was the only thing that made noise for a while. Ko struggled to stay awake, the energy that he had spent making the lake monster go away enough to drain him almost completely. It was stupid in hindsight, but at the moment it had been needed. His fingers found the little totem that had been given to him before the adventure started and he felt a little better. "Yeah, I'll be okay. Just… a little tired." He reached out and cupped her face with the palm of his hand, wiping at the tears that welled from her eyes with his thumb. "You did what you could." He whispered.

They were in the shallow now, the shadow of the mist that cloaked the island blotting out the sun and turning everything grey. It was quiet within the mist, sound was abnormally dulled. Even the splash of the oars in the water was strangely distant. But they kept going and eventually the bottom of the boat scraped against rock and they came to a rather sudden stop.

Aya attempted at a smile for Ko’s gentle words, leaning into his hand ever so slightly. “Which wasn’t enough…” She wasn’t really blaming herself for his death, she honestly she wished she could have saved them. Never before had they lost a part of their group, even when it looked as if Farah would not make it after being stabbed in the back. She put a hand over his and offered him another smile and sat with him for the rest of the ride.

As the boat came into contact with the shore, Farah was the first one off, holding her bow out and an arrow notched just in case something would attack them right away while they were unprepared. She looked around and felt a cold chill up her spine. “Isn’t this place cheery…” She commented dryly and looked back at the boat as she waited for the rest of her friends.

Aya steadied herself as the boat stopped moving and looked from Ko to Kol and back again. “Do you think you can move?” She asked him, unsure how much energy he really could have regained for the rest of their short boat ride. Kol needed to be buried, but Narrick and Auren could easily do it if Ko could not help.

When the boat made landfall, Auren drew his oar in, he and Narrick both putting them up, then he leapt over the side and grabbed the rim of the boat, looking to Narrick and Ko. "Everyone out of the boat. We need to heave this thing up so that it doesn't float off while we're running around on the island.

Narrick complied readily, but Ko a little less so. He managed to stad, though perhaps a bit unsteadily and got out of the boat, simply walking away from the craft looking weary. He was feeling better though, the little totem that he had clenched in his fist steadily supplying some energy back into his weary frame. By the time that Auren and Narrick got the boat all the way out of the water, he wasn't shaking on his legs anymore and didn't feel like he was going to fall over or anything.

"Lets lift him out." Narrick said quietly, holding Arina's hand as she got off the craft, grabbing her earth stone and joining Farah to secure the perimeter. Between the two men they managed to lift Kol out of the boat and carried him some ways up the shore where the gravel turned into dirt and sand, the landscape much rockier up here.

"Great, how are we supposed to dig him a grave like this?" Auren asked, carefully laying Kol down on the ground and looking around for somewhere to bury their fallen comrade.

This time it was Arina who stepped forward and stood next to Kol's feet, looking at his face with sadness written all over her face. "You gave your life to save another, your Fate has been revealed, though not in the way that we had hoped…" She knelt at his side and unsheathed his sword, laying it flat on his chest then crossing his hands over the pommel. She stood back then and gestured for everyone else to do so as well, her earth stone in one hand while the other hovered in the air. "You were chivalrous and brave, a kind soul that will be greatly missed by those who knew you. Rest in peace knowing that your life was not given in vain." She lowered her palm and at the same time Kol's body simply sank into the earth, vanishing into the earth like it was quicksand.

Aya was quick to be at Ko’s side, making sure he wasn’t going to fall and kept pace with the rest of the group. She looked at Kol as he was laid on the ground, his now pale features standing out against the rock he was laying on. She thought Arina’s small eulogy for him was appropriate and was only glad that she was able to give him a place to rest. She remembered being told that if you die in this world: that was it. He had probably died in what was supposed to be their own world as well. She briefly wondered if he had family as he sank into the stone and sent a small prayer that he would rest peacefully.

Farah bowed her head in respect as Kol sank into the Earth as if it had simply swallowed him up. After a few minutes of silence she looked around the group. “We should keep moving.” She said it out loud for the group, knowing the sadness they all carried for their lost friend but she was getting the heebie geebies just standing there and wanted to keep moving in case something even nastier that then octopus thing came after them. She put her hand on Auren’s arm, knowing he would more than likely agree with her to move out as soon as possible.

After a moment of silence Auren nodded, turning away from the grave that rain had made. "Let's get out of here then. The quicker we get to this god, the faster we can make him pay for what his little pet has done." Auren led the way through the mist, walking up the hill with the others at his back. Ko stayed close to Aya, feeling more energized now that he had been holding onto the little totem for a while. Narrick had Arina standing close by, the girl keeping a wary eye on the horizon, though they honestly couldn't see anything much. The landscape was rather barren with no trees to speak of and only some scrub that needed light terribly. The ground steadily sloped upwards, and the rocks that poked out of the ground became larger and larger until the narrow path that they were traveling on became the bottom of a ravine, sheer cliffs thrusting to the sky on either side of the line of wanderers.

"If god was the ambushing type, we'd be sitting ducks…" Narrick murmured, his hands dropping to the hilts of his swords for reassurance. As they continued to walk, the sky ahead of them became dark. At first he thought that it was because the sun must be dropping, but it was too early in the afternoon for things to be getting dark. The question about the darkening horizons was answered easily enough though when the mist suddenly cleared, revealing a looming mountain whose rocks were pitch black in color. Around a bend in the ravine was a large doorway, or rather, it looked more like a cave entrance with runes carved around the entire thing, chiseled right into the black rock.

Ko stopped when he saw it, staring up at the looming doorway with his brows knitted together in deep concentration. "It's the old language. The one of the demonic tribes…" He took a few steps forward, trying to decipher what was written, though there was a lot of it there. "It looks like a warning."

Farah walked easily with Auren, agreeing fully with him to extract revenge on this god for the loss of their friend. The demon woman felt rather uneasy about this place, and she constantly looked around her, keeping her eyes, ears, and nose open to sense something. As the mountain came into view Farah stopped momentarily to look at the massive hunk of rock. She took interest in that the rocks were inky black before turning her attention to the door. She sighed when Ko spoke about some warning. “Why am I not surprised? It probably says something along the lines of go back or die, right?” She said in a dry tone. She honestly wanted to get this over with and her sarcasm was a product of her nervous state.

Aya kept as Ko’s side, looking at the door with him, a frown forming on her face. “You wouldn’t think of a god to be involved with demonic tribes…” She mused to herself, though in honesty, she supposed it-he-she could be. Not all gods were of the good-natured kind and from their experiences, it didn’t really seem like this one was. “Can you read it?” She asked Ko softly, looking from him to the back. She had no idea what the scribbles on the door meant or if it was some warning. Either way, whatever it would say they had no choice but to keep moving forward. It would be all for not if they did and would be a disgrace to Kol’s memory.

Ko frowned some more as he tried to determine exactly what the runes said, then turned a wry grin on Farah. "You're not too far off, I think." He turned back to the scripture, his mouth moving to frame words silently. "There's something on here about why the mountain is black, but for the most part it's all doom and gloom."

"Scare tactics, eh?" Auren mumbled with a dark glower. "Don't need 'em. We're goin' in there and kicking his ass, one way or the other." Setting his shoulders, the warrior continued walking forward, leading the rest of the group inside. At first it looked like just any old cavern, the uncut rock twisting and turning. Ko lit his magic to allow them to see in the broadening passageway as they walked.

"Is it just me or does the mountain sound like it's… breathing?" Arina asked, her small voice unnaturally loud in the cavern passage. She listened hard for a moment, but only seemed to confirm her own suspicion. The movement of the air was a steady flow of in and out, the noise so low as to almost be undetectable. She reached out and took Narrick's hand briefly, squeezing it gently in the darkness.

They came around a bend in the cavern system and suddenly found themselves in a large open room, the dome of it reaching far above where Ko's light could reach. The room was perfectly round, the floor that they stood on the same inky black color as the rest of the mountain, though here it had been carved smooth and polished to an almost mirror-like reflection. There was a raised dais in the center of the room, four wicked spikes sprouting from the ground and holding up a clouded ball, what appeared to be mist inside swirling around in slow self-contained patterns.

Farah walked in the cave after Auren, she couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach for anything. She had plenty of reasons to fear this island, but it wasn’t in her nature to be scared of some spooky island. Even if the walls were breathing and suddenly there was a creepy room in the middle of it all. What caught Farah’s attention though was the strange ball in the middle of the room held by the spikes. “What is it?” She asked in a distracted tone as she took a step towards the middle of the room. For some reason she wanted to touch it, to find out what it was. She had never seen anything like it and what harm could come from touching a ball?

Aya looked about the room with caution. “I’m not sure.” She answered Farah without looking at her, as she was preoccupied with the room. The floor was a beautifully inky black color like the rocks outside yet smooth as glass and the ball in the center of it all gave off a sinister feeling. She brought a hand down to Ko’s and grasped it lightly.

Arina was examining the intricate patterns on the floor when she noticed that the black lines carved into the glassy black floor began to glow. Immediately her heart began to hammer in her chest, and she looked up to see Farah approaching the ball in the center of the room. "Farah, don't-!"

But it was too late. The demon woman's presence on the rings had set something into motion of a magical nature. As they watched, the ball began to glow from the inside, a grating sound like rocks scraping against one another rumbling throughout the room, bits of rock falling from the black cavernous ceiling. The claws holding the ball drew back from their prize, but instead of the round orb falling to the ground it continued to float in place without aid, and even began to rise in the air, the glow inside the ball and all around the room intensifying until it was a blinding white light. When the glow dimmed, it did so to reveal the ball melting away like water, revealing the human form that had been hidden inside.

The Mortal God rose from his long slumber encased in the heart of the mountain, unfolding from his prison, the Essence of Elements springing to life around him. The glowing balls of energy replaced his need to handle something so trivial as element stones. Instead, a colored glowing ball flickered to life around his person, bobbing and swaying with some unseen wind. The runes on the floor were glowing now in full force, the tale of the island carved into the black marble written in the original language of Ra'Oath. The demons thought it their own language, but it had been he, God, who had given literacy to the lesser races of the world. Created them, gave them intellect and purpose…

As he descended he gained color and form, taking the shape of a human man cloaked in black, a long piece of sheer material floating behind his shoulders to which the Essence of Elements clung, attaching themselves to the garment. He took a step forward onto the black floor, every step he took on the stone leaving a footprint of blue energy in his wake. "The chosen have finally arrived in my domain. But I'm afraid that your quest ends here; I will not so easily cave into the force that a handful of mere mortals can provide. It seems like your group is missing a member. Already your prophecy is crumbling." All this was spoken in a deep echoing voice laden thickly with haughty tones. Talking to these travelers was akin to speaking to insects in his eyes after all, so he didn't bother to address them any better than insects.

Farah could only watch in wonder as the floor below them began to glow and as soon as the claws holding onto the mysterious ball, that had caused Farah to set this all in motion, was now floating on its own she readily moved back to join her friends. The demon woman watched as the ball transformed into a human and now her mouth hung open wide. "Well shit." She said softly, feeling slightly responsible for the self proclaimed gods presence. In honesty it was inevitable that this would be set in motion, Farah assumed it could be anyone that would set the chain of events off and shrugged off what nagging bit of guilt she had. There was no time for that anyway. At the mention of their prophecy Farah's ears went flat against her head. Even if they where a man down, it wasn't as if their fighting spirit would be broken. Letting out an indelicate snort, Farah kept hold of her bow tightly, loosely bringing the arrow back into it's notched position. She was read to get this over with.

Stunned at the transformation of the floating ball, Aya would do nothing but watch as the object took form. When the man spoke of Kol, Aya was a bit more saddened but the mention of the lost companion. They might have lost him but Aya would fully agree that they would fight this god, prophecy or not, Kol's memory would deserve that much. She clutched at her wind stone and kept a steady gaze on their foe.

MG: Well come then and let us get this over with.
Ko: *smirks* You heard the man! *casts energy spell*
MG: *deflects and sends a bolt back*
Arina: *pulls up a slab of rock to block*
Narrick: Auren! With me! *charges*
Auren: *follows w/ battle scream* Farah, cover us!
Farah: Right! *shoots arrows at MG*
Aya: *runs to Mg side, shoots wind at him*
MG: *creates a tornado*
Narrick+Auren: *thrown back*
MG: *flings arrows and magic back at casters/shooters*
Aya: *shocked* S-Sorry! *uses own wind to deflect from being thrown back*
Farah: *leaps out of way of arrows* We need to get closer!
Auren: *grumbles* Working on that right now...
GM: It is useless! I have all the elements at my command! What hope do you have?!
Ko: Narrick, Auren, rush! I've got your back!
Narrick + Auren: *run forward*
GM: *narrows eyes* Pathetic! *Sends wind*
Ko: *uses anti-energy stone to take the wind's power*
Narrick: Ha! *double slice*
Auren: Eat metal, fool! *stabbity*
GM: *dodges backward*
Aya: *runs behind GM, uses wind slices*
Farah: *gets better position and gets more arrows ready, waiting for a shot*
GM: *dodges sideways, gets his clothes ripped and sends up earth spears*
Arina: Oh no you don't! *sends out a quake and disables earth spears*
GM: *blows fire at them*
Auren: *hops in front of Aya and cuts through the fire* Didn't think I could do that...
Narrick: *cuts through fire as well* Gawk later!
Aya: The swords can cut through fire?! *follows GM's movements, sends more wind slices*
Farah: *fires off endless amounts of arrows*
MG: Argh! *envelops self in a firenado*
Narrick+Auren: *raise swords to block fire*
Arina: *throws a rock barrier in front of Aya*
Ko: *watches firenado disappear* Where'd he go?
Mg: *reappears behind Ko and blasts him with energy*
Ko: AH! *falls and skids across floor*
Aya: Ko! *runs to him*
Farah: *growl* Die already! *fires off more*
Aya: *helps Ko up* Are you alright? *throws wind slices out with free hand*
MG: *one arrow catches him in the shoulder, blocks the rest with wind and sends a wave of fire at Farah*
Arina: *summons water and puts out the fire*
MG: Can't you see that this is futile?! *rips out arrow and heals self*
Ko: *falls back down* Can't... breathe... *clutches chest*
Narrick: We need to separate him from his magic source.
Auren: *grumbles* You think up a plan, I'll go distract him *charges*
Aya: Ko! *kneels down and tries to heal*
Farah: Thanks Arina! *moves locations and continues to fire arrows when Auren isn't in the way*
Ko: *breathes easier and coughs* Thanks.
MG: *throws magic at Auren while retreating*
Auren: *cutting through magic*
MG: ENOUGH OF YOU! *shoots an ice spear at Farah*
Arina: *pulls up a slab of rock*
MG: *throws wind blades at Arina*
Farah: I'm hurt. He doesn't want me. *runs closer to continue shooting*
Aya: *nearly in tears* Of course. *finish healing, stands and sends wind at mg's wind blades* Don't think so.
Auren: *stabs the MG in the side*
MG: *bitchslaps him with wind then heals self*
Narrick: Farah, aim for his elements, not him!
Farah: Eh? Whatever you say! *waits for mg to use magic again*
Aya: *runs up and throws wind blades at mg*
MG: *narrows eyes* When will you insects realize that this is pointless?! *blocks with earth*
Farah: *fires arrow at earth stone mg used*
GM: NO! *earth stone shatters* NO!
Narrick: Keep doing it! *leaps forward to attack him*
Auren: *gets up* Now this is more like it!! *attacks as well*
Arina: *puts up a wall of earth to keep MG from retreating*
Farah: Heh! *aims arrow at fire stone* GO! *shoots*
Aya: *continues attack as well*
GM: *deflects arrow but it hits energy stone instead* WORMS! *pulses the room with anti-energy*
Narrick: *drops a sword* Augh! *instantly weakened*
Auren: *staggers and quits attacking* Damn!
Ko: *thows an energy shield around self and Aya*
MG: *gets his stone out of the way* That's right you puny life forms, on your knees before your master!
Arina: *barely keeps on her feet* Never! *water whips a stone*
MG: *fire stone goes bouncing away but doesn't shatter*
Ko: *zaps fire stone*
MG: How?! *pulses anti-energy at him*
Ko: *thows up another shield* I control energy too! *Zaps with energy*
MG: *zaps back* *enter epic light show duel*
Farah: *grabs bow again and fires for MG's hand*
Aya: *watches lighting show, dodges a stray bolt or two*
MG: *arrow goes through hand* AUGH! *sends a pulse of energy and knocks Ko back, then retreats and heals self* Damn mortals, WHY WILL YOU NOT ACCEPT YOUR FATE!? *sends out mass firestorm*
Arina: NO! *summons rain and quenches the fire then collapses* That took a lot... *panting*
Narrick: *picks up extra sword* Why won't you accept yours?! *slices at him*
Auren: *smirk* Can't let the elf have all the fun *gathers self*
Ko: *stands back up and pats self off* We need to get rid of the rest of those stones...
Farah: What do you think I've been trying to do?! *fires arrows where mg retreated to over and over again*
Aya: Arina, are you alright?! *goes to her side, wind stone in hand*
Arina: *panting* Yeah, I'll be fine. Just a little tired...
MG: *takes an arrow in the leg and gets slashed in the arm by Narrick* *knocks Narrick back with a blast of wind and sends the arrows back at Farah*
Ko: *zaps MG's anti-energy stone and shatters it*
Farah: *gets grazed in arm by arrow* Ah! Bastard! *fires off arrows much slower now*
Aya: *sends wind slices at his hands now*
MG: *sends an icenado at Aya*
Arina: *encases his feet in rock*
Auren: *stabs him through the gut*
Aya: *about to get pummled by icenado* ._.
Farah: Did you get him?!
Ko: Aya! Move!! *tackles her and uses anti energy magic* *gets lanced in the shoulder by an ice spear* Gah!
Auren: *withdrawls sword*
MG: *blood trickles from mouth* You think this is enough?
Arina: MOVE AUREN!
MG: *explodes the ground with energy*
Auren: AUGH! *gets blown back and is lanced with a bit of rock*
MG: *heals self* Pathetic!
Aya: Ko! *sits up, uses wind slice to cut ice spear down enough for her to rip it out, heals again*
Farah: *growls* How annoying! He has to have a healing stone somewhere on him! *aims at healing stone*
Ko: Augh! *winces* Damn that hurt!
MG: *moves out of the way of arrow, hits energy stone instead and shatters it* Damn you! *flings water whip at Farah*
Arina: *creates a thin earth shield then collapses back on the ground*
Narrick: *rushes forward and slices at him, cutting open his arm*
Farah: *growls* Arina stop protecting me, damnit! This time I'll get it...*aims at healing stone again and shoots*
Aya: I'm sorry...*mumbles, but gets up and continues to fight*
MG: *healing stone shatters* VILE CREATURE! *slices open Narrick's chest with a wind blade*
Auren: *stabs him in the side*
MG: GRAH! *water whips Auren aside and staggers, bleeding from side-wound* You will PAY wretch! *sends an icenado at Farah and Arina*
Arina: *activates token powers and takes the ice away*
Aya: *uses wind to void what was left of his nado, runs to Narrick and pulls him back to heal* Hang on a moment. *heals* *staggers, tired now*
Farah: Two more! *fires again*
Narrick: *groans* Thanks Aya *stands*
MG: *about to dodge and gets zapped by Ko* *water stone is shattered* *tornadoes the rest of the arrows back at Farah*
Auren: *gets back up and slashes at MG with a battle cry*
MG: *just barely dodges, but gets fried by Ko*
Farah: *gets hit in shoulder by arrow and goes down* Agh!
Aya: *nods to Narrick* *sends tornado at mg*
Arina: *encases MG's feet in rock*
Auren: *shatters water stone*
MG: NO! YOU INSOLENT FOOLS!! *clutches at self then throws arms out and screams, blowing everyone off their feet* *body has turned gost-like and is glowing bright white* *super godly voice: * You have destroyed my physical representation, but now you will face my fury as a full god!
Aya: *stares* What?!
Farah: *pulls self up and breaks arrow that was in shoulder* Damnit all...*growls*
Ko: No...
Auren: *panting*
MG: Seems that all of your sacrifice was in vain! SUFFER! *makes gravity super heavy*
Ko+Arina+Auren: *falls flat on the floor*
Narrick: *swords glow* What...?
Ko: Your swords are protecting you! STRIKE HIM DOWN NARRICK!
MG: WHAT IS THIS?!
Narrick: *mega battle cry and cuts MG from shoulder to waist*

The Mortal God's death scream echoed in Narrick's ears, and was blown back by the sudden rush of power that was released from the dying god's body. He landed roughly on his side, one of his swords sliding across the dark ebony floor out of reach. The Mortal God twisted and writhed, his two halves that had been rent apart separating from each other. His ethereal body faded, repaved by a pure white light that encompassed everything in a rushing explosion, but there was no sound. Soon, there was no feeling either, and then all was blackness and nothing...

Farah gasped for air, and jolted up from her lying position. What had happened to the god of the world? Last she could remember was he being this floating white thing and Auren fighting it. Her head pounded in agony, causing her to double over. She opened her eyes once more to see there was a white blanket on her. “What?” Taking the time to actually look around, Farah saw she was no longer in the cave where they were fighting but…in…a hospital?! She couldn’t possible understand how she had gotten there. It was true…Farah pulled the covers from her body and turned on her side. She had no tail, bringing her hands to her head she felt around for her ears, but no such thing was there. She had retained her blonde hair, and slim features but there were no claws no nothing of her former demon self.

Farah turned in time to see someone walk in, and blinked as they dropped the chat they were holding. A shocked look came to their face. “She is awake!! Doctor! Lucy is awake!” Farah sat up and was about to ask what was going on but the woman left. Lucy…That sounded familiar…”Lucy…” Then it donned on her, it was her name. “My name is Lucy?!” For a brief second a dry look came over her face. Somehow, Farah sounded like a cooler name…

“Lucy! You shouldn’t be sitting up now!” Someone walked over, wearing a white lab coat, and Far- Lucy could only assume that it was the doctor. He saw the confused look on her face. “Lucy, do you remember that’s your name?” He asked as he started to take vital signs. Lucy could only nod slightly; being in the shocked state she was in.

It would be an entire month before Lucy was able to leave the hospital; she did physical therapy and was told she was in a coma after testing a new came that had been released. Lucy looked out onto the horizon and sighed, exiting the hospital. “It’s nice to finally be out of there.” She said her goodbyes to the doctors and made for her way home. She had been on her own for some time and she had figured that was how she ended up being alone in the game world too. “Keh.” It all seemed like a terrible dream at that point, hazy memories of Auren flashed in her mind every once in awhile. “I wonder where you are.”

It didn’t take long for Lucy to reconnect with her friends, and get herself back in the flow of life. She had heard that someone who had tested the game as well had been in a coma and had died the same day Lucy was released from the hospital. Kol…It had to of been him. Pushing her more gloomy thoughts behind, Lucy found herself enjoying the more pleasurable things in life such as the renaissaonces fair. She had been into going to them for many years and couldn’t help but enjoy wearing the tight corsets.

“How long had it been!” Lucy said, wrapping her arm around her friend Lorra. Lucy down part of her beer and sighed contently. “Shall we go watch the jousting match now? I know you have the hotts for one of the reigning champs!” Lucy teased and a broad smile came to her face as she saw her friend blush.

“I swear you haven’t changed, Lucy…” She said quietly and walked with her friend to the middle of the fair.

~*~*~*~

Aya on the other hand woke to similar circumstances, save for the fact she was in a different part of the world. At first she could not understand the people speaking around her and suddenly she remembered, as if it had been clear as day the entire time. Italian. They were speaking Italian! Soon enough Aya found, she too, could speak the language and was able to reunite with her family and friends. Despite her happiness to be back an ache tugged in her heart. Ko. What could have happened to him? Aya was sure that while in the other world she loved him more than anything but now that she had no idea where he was, what he looked like, or even him name…she couldn’t possibly ever find him again…It took her only a short while to remember her name being Isabelle. She lived in Rome with a large Italian family. Isabelle could have been happy with how she was but she felt restless, this life seemed too normal for her compared to what she had been living with in the other world. She didn’t care if none of it was real, she had lived through it…

Isabelle’s mother noted this anxiety after a week or two of her being home and began to worry for her daughter. “Isabelle, why don’ta you go to Ireland with your pa? It will give you time to relax, hm?” Her mother said, with a smile on her soft features.

Isabelle could not get over not having wings, the sensation of being able to fly on her own was something she could never forget, something she did with Ko. “Cie. Mama.” She agreed, twirling some of her platinum blonde hair. She had delicate features that were not too far off from her in game self.

That weekend, Isabelle boarded her flight to Ireland with her father. He had suggested she go to a local gym to try and relax in one of the hot tubs. She had been fidgeting on the entire way there and her father had no idea how to deal with his nervous daughter. Taking up on his advice, Isabelle found her self walking into the local gym in Dublin. She was more than glad she remembered how to speak English, and could communicate with people easy enough despite her thick accent.

It was grey and cold, a typical day in autumn in New York. It had been nearly a year since Narrick, or rather Matthew, had woken up from the inexplicable coma that had him in a hospital for a week. He had come to consciousness rather abruptly, he was told. There was hardly anything to indicate that he would ever wake up again until suddenly he had just sat up in the hospital bed, nearly yanking the IV from his arm and startling his mother half to death. After first waking up he was confused, wondering what all of the stuff was hooked up to him, unable to comprehend the fact that he was in a hospital, but then it all came flooding back to him. His memories of life outside of the game world rushed back in a tidal wave of information that had left him mute for a while afterwards as he compiled everything until it made sense. It didn't take long after that to realize that somehow, some way, his consciousness had been dragged into the game when he had turned it on, which had put him in the coma in the first place. What was most interesting though was how he could still remember what had happened in the game world, and he wondered if he would ever meet the others that he had been traveling with for all of that time…

After he had been allowed out of the hospital, Matthew resumed his normal life, got caught up on everything that he had missed that week and was put on watch for a possible relapse. However, he had a feeling that there would be no more relapses, especially if he never played any of those games ever again. That afternoon he was walking from his flat to his office, skipping the hassle that taking a taxi would have given him in favor of pushing through crowds on the busy sidewalks of New York. It was a good thing he had too, otherwise he would have missed the shock of long blonde hair amidst the sea of grey that pushed her way towards him on that busy sidewalk that day.

For a few seconds, Matthew's gaze locked onto the young woman that appeared out of nowhere from the sea of people, the familiar face stunning him into stillness. With her grey eyes turned down, the young woman pushed passed him, her gaze and mind on other things than business men going to work during the morning commute. She nearly disappeared from his view when he finally found his voice, an irritable man bustling past him with a mean grumbled. "Arina!"

The blonde woman stopped dead in the flow of pedestrian traffic, someone who had been walking behind her quickly skittering out of the way in order not to bowl her over. She whipped around suddenly, her soft fawn coat flaring out as those grey eyes sought the caller of her name. The two stared at one another for a long moment, unable to believe that they were really seeing what they were seeing. "Narrick!" She called back, and suddenly the woman had flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and standing on her toes, kissing him hard.

Matthew dropped his suitcase, wrapped his arms around the thin woman he suddenly found in his arms and kissed her back, so happy that the two had found one another again that he didn't even care as people passing by stared at the spectacle. Suddenly, everything was right with the world.

*~*

When Auren woke, he did so to find several people crowded around his bed and at first wondered what in the world had happened. It didn't take long for one of the people-an older woman perhaps in her forties-to quickly smother him in a deep hug. He tried to tell her to get off and realized quickly that the voice coming from his lips wasn't the one that he had been using as of late. Needless to say, he was vastly disappointed when he realized that he was no more than a young boy in reality, the strong toned body that he had possessed in the realm of the game left there.

His mother was a worry wart after he had been released from the hospital, and smothered by her love for him, the boy felt an intense desire to get out and go do something with himself. She gave Auren exactly what he wanted; a trip to the Renaissance festival and fencing classes. It wasn't exactly broadsword material like he had known in the game, but as he had retained his memory from the game world, it was no surprise that he quickly became one of the best sword fighters in his class given his age and apparent lack of experience.

Today, the black haired blue eyed boy was hanging with a few of his friends at the local Renaissance fair, the group of trouble makers tearing through the ground and pretend sword fighting whenever they got the chance. They had ditched the retinue of accompanying parents some time ago, and were now waiting for the joust to start, talking excitedly about the things that they'd done already to unsuspecting passerby's that afternoon. Auren was in the middle of demonstrating something when his eyes seemed to play tricks on him, a familiar figure wandering through the crowd. He paused in his explanation, looking out over the crowd at the woman he could easily mistake as his imaginary lover from the game world when he had been trapped inside of it during his brief stay at the hospital. "Hold on guys." He said, jumping down from the bench he had been on and jogged away from the group who stared after him curiously but didn't follow.

He got closer to the woman, still amongst the crowd filing in to grab seats to see the joust and watched the woman move through the crowd, her revealing clothing giving the boy all he needed to know. With a grin, the fourteen year old approached the woman he had come to know as Farah far too confidently, unable to help it. "Farah!" He called with a grin when he was close enough, waving briefly to the woman.

*~*

"See ya Cedric!"

A man replied to the friendly call with a simple wave and a smile. Cedric continued wrapping up his rock climbing gear, humming to himself a lively little ditty that men usually sand while drunk in pubs, happy that the day was more or less over and his next batch of classes wouldn't be for a couple of days yet. Upon returning to the real world, Ko had found that quite a few changes awaited him, not the least of which was the fact that he didn't have wings anymore.

He had spent nearly a month in the inexplicable coma that had claimed the others, his time in the game world having been considerably longer than the others; long enough to where he had childhood memories of the place. It had been disorienting waking up and realizing that all of those seemingly tangible memories had been little more than a lie, and that the face staring back at him in the mirror was indeed his. His face was shaped the same as he remembered it being in the game, and his eyes still held that permanent look of mischief in them, but all of his coloring was wrong. His hair was black and eyes were green, and after having spent so long unconscious, his body wasn't exactly what he remembered either, weak from being fed a diet of tube food for a month and no movement to speak of other than the twitch of his hands or toes.

After some considerable therapy, he had eventually gotten things back together, resuming work at the gym that he had worked at for the past couple of years as a rook climbing instructor. That brought a laugh to him of course, content to know that no matter what universe he was in, he wasn't content to sit back and have a normal job. He reacquainted himself with the feeling of being permanently ground-bound and took to working out in order to regain the body he needed to not get completely exhausted after a lesson.

With his things packed in the black duffel bag he almost always carried, Cedric pulled out a towel and headed for the showers, ready to be clean again. He certainly like that about this universe, if nothing else. Indoor plumbing was a blessing, to be sure.

Lucy was more than happy to continue to berate her friend for her small crush on a rather handsome man, she would admit, but before she knew it someone was calling her name...no, not her real game, but her name from the game she was trapped in. Farah. She stopped dead in her tracks to turn and see a young boy making his way towards her. "Oh no..."

Lucy's friend turned an concerned look to her. "I just forgot something, will you go and get me a seat?" She asked, and her friend hesitantly agreed, leaving Lucy to herself. Lucy turned her attention back on what she could only assume was Auren. How could this be? She had been lovers with someone her own age, well built and a total play boy like herself. This kid looked like he was fifteen or something.

She stood, her hand on her hip, looking at the kid. "...Auren...?" She asked, almost hoping the answer was a no.

~*~*~*~

Isabelle turned to look around the facility when she saw something, someone rather that made her stop completely. There was no way. Could it be....Ko? He had totally different colored hair but his face...there was no way she could mistake. "Mi dispiace, mi scus..." She did not even think to excuse herself in English to the person at the front desk as she had her eyes locked on the Ko look-a-like.

"Ko...?" She asked softly as she made a bee-line towards him. "Ko?" She said with a little more conviction, her light blonde hair falling into her face as she stopped just a few feet from the man. If he wasn't him, then she would apologize and quickly leave the building in embarrassment.

Joey, for that was Auren's real name in this rather disappointing reality that he belonged to, grinned when the woman confirmed his suspicions by using his in-game name, and he rested his hands on his hips, looking who had had known as Farah up and down. "You look almost exactly the same!" He exclaimed, a tad disappointed that the same hadn't been true of himself. "Well, you're missing some appendages of course but overall, you're looking as pretty as ever." He was also disappointed that he wasn't as old as real-life-Farah was, especially since that meant that there was practically no chance of them reliving the old days. What with him being probably seven years younger at the least, not to mention being sadly underaged… Oh well. "So, how's the real world been treating you?"

*~*

At first, Cedric was under the impression that his mind was bringing up memories of his time in the game, having heard his other name being called. However, a flash of white-blonde hair caught his eye and he realized a little belatedly that he wasn't in fact dreaming, but a woman was walking directly towards him, looking slightly breathless and probably just as astonished as how he felt. He took a moment to make sure that he wasn't just seeing things, then tentatively replied. "Aya? Is that… is it really you?" He wanted to believe that it was her so badly, wanted to believe that somehow despite not knowing what her real name was or even what country she belonged to, she had somehow found her way to him.

Lucy sighed, yep, it was Auren. How could it be even remotely possible that this was the same man that she had taken to bed or well...or whatever was around so many times? She sighed again, a little disappointed but shook it off. At least the kid had spunk, right? "Names Lucy. Life has been treating me well I suppose...And how old are you now?" She wanted to know, slightly hoping that he just looked too young. It had felt like she had spent so much time with him but, eh, if he was as young as she thought there was just no way. Perhaps a cute pen-pal or something.

~*~*~*~

Isabella dropped her bag on the ground, her hands flying to her mouth as tears welled in her eyes. Was it really him? "Ko!" She ran the last small amount of space to the man, wrapping her arms around him as tears ran down her face freely. How was it possible that on a random trip she had found him? She had come to love him in the game and when they parted for so long she thought she would never see him again.

A long sigh escaped Auren when she asked his age, folding his arms over his much smaller chest and rolled his eyes back into his head as if thinking hard. "It's Joey now, by the way. And I'm 21." He said it with a completely straight face of course, almost daring Farah to challenge the rather ridiculous lie with an unwavering face until a boyish snort broke the mask and he couldn't help but to giggle. "I can't even get my driver's license yet." He admitted with extreme reluctance, tapping his own elbow. "I don't suppose you'd take me back anyway…?"

*~*

Cedric didn't have time to think on the action before he did it, dropping his own bag in favor of catching the leaping woman and squeezed her tightly, finding her lips with his own and kissing her, lifting the tiny woman off of her feet. Somewhere behind him there was a wolf whistle and he broke the kiss, turning briefly to glower at one of his climbing friends and give him a very rude hand gesture before putting Aya down, but not fully letting go of her. "I can't believe it's you!" He whispered, squeezing her once more just to make sure that she wasn't a figment of his imagination. "I was worried I wasn't ever gonna see ya again…" He traced her familiar face with his hands, a smile seemingly stuck permanently on his face.

Joey, seemed fitted for a kid and it brought a coy smile to the womans face. She took his lie and waited for his real age. So she was right at least that he was under sixteen anyway. She crossed her arms over her chest as he asked if she would take him back. "Even if I were into...younger...men...It would not be legal." She giggled a bit. "I am sure you will make a great stud one day though." She reassured him the usual playful glint to her eyes that she held in-game.

~*~*~*~

Isebella wiped at the tears in her eyes, a little embarrassed by the whistles they were getting but that did not matter one bit to her right now. She placed both her hands on his face, gently rubbing to also ensure he wasn't going away. "I know, I know, me too...." She kissed him once more, unable to help herself and then continued to rub his face. "You are Irish..." She laughed a little helplessly, a few more happy tears falling from her face. She would have never expected that he would look like this but she could-would never complain. She had found him.

"Pfft… Details…" Joey scoffed, kicking a random rock by his foot and sent it skittering away. A couple of his friends, apparently annoyed that he hadn't returned yet, came scampering over and asked what had been taking him so long, only giving Farah a cursory glance or acknowledgment. "I'm comin'." He replied, a bit irritated sounding which made the other two be quiet for a minuet. "Maybe we'll meet up again later." He replied with a nod and a wink, knowing that the effort was futile, but making it anyway just for old time's sake. "It was cool to see you again." He smiled and waved a quick farewell, following his friends back to their seat to watch the jousting match, a grin on his face.

*~*

"And your not." Cedric replied to her obvious statement with one of his own, chuckling as he did so and kissed her on the forehead, glad that their height difference was still the same. He reached down and picked up their bags, nodding to himself as he did so. "Whe're ya stayin' at?" He had a feeling that she wasn't exactly from the country, so assumed that she also was staying somewhere during her stay in Dublin. "I've gotta place right up the street if ye haven't got anywhere else te be." It was of course also an invitation to go with him and get away from the ogling people, though they weren't cat calling anymore now that nothing exciting was happening… There was so much that he wanted to share with her about his life outside of the game, and in turn he wanted to know who she was in the real world.

Lucy could only smile. "Perhaps." She said, looking back to his friends, and then to him. As he said his goodbyes she gave him a small wave and smiled. It was honestly nice to see him, despite finding out his age and she returned to her friend, finding her totally enamored with one of the men on the house and she grinned. "You haven't even noticed I was back." Lucy said, and found there was still a grin on her face as well. What at interest day.

~*~*~*~

Isabelle couldn't get the smile from her face. "Uh, no I ama staying at a hotel near here but I don't have to be back anytime soon..." She said, more than happy to go back to his place. A year, a year she had lived outside of the game world and here was this entire time. She had been lonely without him and now she was full of joy.