paradisalogs | I'm tired of being me and I don't like what I see;

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I'm tired of being me and I don't like what I see;

Who: Angeal Penance and whoever comes across him.
What: Angeal's arrival as a giant injured chimera-monster has him roaming the grounds, eventually collapsing in one of the castle's gardens.
When: Sunday morning
Where: One of the gardens
Rating: PGish

Monster.

Each step sets the word further into his brain, as clawed feet dig into the ground, unsteady steps taken one at a time. One after the other, he had to figure this out, figure out why he was here when the release of death had been so close, something he had so wanted. Angeal can still feel the lingering pain in the monster's body, amplified and mixed in with the creatures he had absorbed to become what he was now. Angeal Penance was starting to show the wear of a long battle, of all the damage it had taken. His wings drooped low and tails hung limply instead of lashing out, and each step became harder to take, heavier to make until he has to drop the trident from his hand, and his front legs give out and buckle underneath him.

This place is quiet, serene... It wasn't the abandoned baths of Modeoheim, dark and industrial, but something the human mind in the monster recognized as a garden, and one well cared for. But it was so quiet, no animal life, no voices, anything.

Perhaps this is his little bit of Lifestream- what he gets before breaking down and becoming one with the planet. Maybe he was dead already. That thought is more calming than any of the others, and the beast heaves a great sigh and lets itself fall to the ground below. Conciousness is not lost, not yet; But at the same time, he had accepted the fact that this would be his final resting place.

Angeal just hopes his student knows that in defeating him, his pride, his honor was his to of passed on, given to the one person he had trusted and forced to rid the world of him.

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It's a day like any other: Zack has awoken, done his morning workout, checked his journal, and shouldered his sword to head outside to train. It's a small routine but it is his, something he's building to try to give himself some semblance of normalcy in a world he still doesn't understand. It's one of the few days he hasn't invited Cloud or Allen to join him, one of the few times that solitude seems easier than company.

Not that company is easy, either. But when both choices hurt, it's sometimes a matter of choosing the one that tugs his heart the least.

And Zack is about halfway through his self-made training routine when he notices that something's a bit... off. The ambient sounds of birds and small animals in the gardens have ceased, and it's almost too quiet. He lowers the Buster carefully and listens, just for a moment.

Definitely too quiet.

Hefting the sword to move of a guard position, Zack turns in a careful circle, trying to pinpoint from which direction the feeling of wrongness is coming. When he thinks he has it -- no 'normal' animal noises, but a faint something that could be breathing -- he heads off at a steady pace, keeping his footsteps light and quiet. He doesn't want to take any chances that he'll ruin his own element of surprise.

Of course, surprise is turned on him when he rounds a corner of the castle to see a figure he hasn't seen in years -- one that tears his hurting heart open a little more. But there's not even a question of what to do next, no hesitation at all. His steps might be slow but they are sure, approaching the figure carefully, and from an angle.

"...Angeal?"

Does it take so long? Is he suppose to enjoy this, before being broken down? He is not sure what to think, though his body had already given up- so very little strength left in it. But even so, the man's torso, the only human part of him left, remains in the same position. Arms folded, eyes closed, disengaged from battle and from everything else, from life itself.

But he can feel the sunlight against closed eyes; Coaxing him to not give up, not just yet. At that coaxing comes with a hallucination, something far from real. Angeal knows it must be so, because if this was the end of the line, that familiar voice and the one it belonged to would not be here. After all, all of this had been for passing on his sword, his legacy, and everything that went with it...

The beast shifts, slightly. It is not designed to do anything other than to stand and fight, being like this is with it's makeup is uncomfortable.

Martel was walking into the gardens after spending three weeks as a potted plant. Walking never seemed so nice before. That's when she heard the loud steps, and it sounded like a monster. She thought about leaving, but then what if it was something else, or dangerous? She didn't want somebody who couldn't defend themselves to stumble across it.

So she stealthily sneaked about the garden, peeking around bushes, until she turned a corner and saw Zack approaching what looked like a large chimera. She poked her head out and called to him quietly. "Zack...?"

Zack is so torn: the beast looks tired, and it's a bloody mess, all wounds that Zack himself had inflicted, with a sword he no longer wields. He wants nothing more than to stand in front of it, to alternately wrap his arms around those shoulders and to grip them and shake them so hard, hard enough to knock some sense into the man. Angeal still isn't looking at him, not with his eyes, and Zack hesitates a moment before he takes one more step toward the man he once called his mentor.

The whisper at his back distracts him though; Zack looks over his shoulder at the voice. And what fortune! Not only to see Martel again -- he hadn't been able to find her in forever, and he's glad that she's okay -- but to know of her skills with healing. And her calm manner; she had helped Zack on his arrival, after all, with no problem at all over blood.

"Martel." A glance at Angeal to make sure the beast isn't going anywhere; Zack will take the chance, because he's well and Angeal's not and he's pretty sure he can catch the chimera if it starts to wander off. "Please, can you help me aid him? He's in bad shape."

Another voice to accompany the first. Not one familiar, and it makes him wonder if his mind is playing tricks on him. It shifts, but not able to move far, not so injured and fallen over. Right now, there was no need to try for such either.

But he will look- not with human eyes, but with the other senses, a shift and a noise low like a growl, soft and broken with pain. Penance is able to get a better read on his surroundings that way- and still, it was quiet, peaceful, but now broken by two people moving closer and closer toward him.

Another shift, to try to stand. But like before, the injuries are to great to be able to overcome.

Martel moved over to Zack, quickly and quietly. As she gets closer, she can pick out the shape of a human being in the chimera. So it was once a person...? Or still a person. One that was injured. "Of course." She pauses. "...Do you know him?"

"I do." A pause of his own, because it's weird, so weird, to try to reconcile the timeline. "I mean, I did. It's... he's my mentor. Or was."

Zack runs a hand through his hair, a little frustrated with his apparent inability to articulate a thought clearly. He's still shaken by the appearance of Angeal; though the shock is starting to wear off, it's still not easy to try to make sense of things.

What he does know is how it felt to deal the killing blow back in Modeoheim, how he refuses -- absolutely refuses -- to do so again. He glances back at the chimera again, at its feeble attempts at movement and how its wounds are clearly wearing on it, blood staining the grass under it.

"He's not all monster. He's in there somewhere, I have to save him. Please."

Angeal can still understand them, understand speech and body language and the way Zack was giving off agitated worry. It is rousing him, the more human part of him at least- the one he considers more monster than the rest of himself, what he had become.

They are trying to save him. For a moment, Angeal wonders if he should lash out or leave- he doesn't want to, he just wants the end and for it to be over, since he had been unable to save his friend from... from himself. Fuzzily, the details seem strange and he was not sure why, Angeal was finding it hard to think in just reflecting, much lest anything else.

Another soft noise, before Penance turns to face the two of them. Even with no other eyes then the unopened ones, he still finds them easily, tracks them with a considerable amount of effort, considering his injuries.

Something has to be done, be it he does it himself, or them.

Martel's eyes widen at that, and she looks back at the human-chimera. Zack said was... Was he dead too? Or supposed to be dead, like Zack and herself? Either way, she wouldn't leave him like that. Not if there was a way to save him.

"Of course I'll help him, don't be silly. To be honest, I've actually seen something similar in my world before. There might be a way to get him back from...that. if the castle doesn't decide to do it first." She watches him follow their movements and shifts, keeping an eye on him as she starts charging up a spell.

"Thank you. And, I hope so." Zack knows that there is a way to get Angeal back to him, because he'd seen it before: at the point of death, with his body giving out, the monster falling away to leave just the man. But Zack doesn't want to, absolutely refuses to kill his mentor again.

But he won't have Angeal force either of them into it either, and the chimera is stirring. He takes a step closer to it, the Buster sword lowered but ready; defense and submission shouldn't be too hard, given the creature's injuries.

And it's probably a fool's hope, but he can't help trying a few simple words: "Angeal, please. Come back to me."

Angeal isn't so far gone not to recognize Zack's voice, to hear his words, though the voices of the other monsters do work to drown the other out. They remember him as well, they want to attack. Angeal is hesitant however, more and more so as Zack please for him to listen, for reason.

He does not want reasoning though, Angeal wants an end. Wing shifting to flare outward, The beast moves slowly compared to how it attacked the other to start, but all the same does try to swipe Zack and the woman aside, and out of his way.

Martel sees it coming and cancels the spell, jumping out of the way. She backs up, trying to get out of his range. She doesn't want to attack him, because he's obviously hurt and Zack cares about him considerably. Still, she can't heal him if he continues to attack them. She wasn't entirely sure why he was attacking them, but she knew that there was some sort of history there between them.

"Zack, if he continues to attack us, I won't be able to finish a spell. Do you think you could distract him?"

"You got it!"

The creature seems to have forgotten about the trident dropped at his side, which makes Zack's job a little easier. Still, he's not unaware of how fast the thing has the potential to move, and he's conscious as well of their goal being getting Angeal out of whatever this is alive. So he'll close the distance, swinging the Buster Sword but leading with the dull edge, movements to occupy and distract the creature so his companion can finish her spellcasting.

Penance growls, a low noise as Zack's blade meets his attack. It isn't a particularly strong one, but neither is Angeal's own, and Zack does have the advantage of not being injured. His tails lash, half to threaten and half to keep balance as it tries for another, obviously desperate attack. The figure in the chimera has not stirred at all, keeping arms crossed and disengadged from the fight.

But at the same time, it isn't trying to hurt Zack anymore more than to ward him off. Perhaps the man is still in there.

Martel loops around so she's behind him, a good distance away from the tails. Digging around in her pocket, she pulls out her unicorn horn on a chain and ties it around the end of her staff, just in case she needs some extra healing power. She's not sure if she can save him, but she's hoping the Castle will help.

Gathering mana from the air around her, she speeds it up by adding some of her mana, because she doesn't want to force either of them to hurt the other. "Revitalize!" The area of healing appears underneath the chimera and she watches, waiting to see if it at least works.

One of the tails does give Zack a good smack, but it's shrugged off because there are more important things, like making sure Angeal doesn't interrupt Martel's spell again (and hoping that said spell works!). He's doing his best, even moving closer to attempt to grapple with the creature if he has to. Maybe a good shake of the shoulders will help; maybe he can shake some sense into the man who seems so disinterested in what the creature around him is doing.

"C'mon, Angeal! Stop this!"

None of the collective monsters the man had amassed to create this form had expected an attack like this; It was not even an attack, it was a spell of healing, something not quite materia but a cure all the same. Then there was Zack, who makes such a boldly physical move without the use of a weapon, to go for the very core of the being who refused to participate, turned a blind eye to the things he had done.

It was the combination of both, of being healed and being forced to open his eyes to the one before him that make Angeal wake, that make the dark eyes turn blue again and the man exhale and actually look at the other, the fight going out of Angeal Penance as he sees that familiar face, as the healing works on him and it sinks to the ground again in the middle of the circle, arms coming uncrossed and reaching toward the familiar.

Martel sees that, and assumes it worked in some way to help him. She gets a bit closer, charging for another spell. With the amount of wounds he had, one wasn't going to do it, though it seemed to bring him back to himself. She's still wary and on guard, though, because she's not even sure what exactly happened to him, even though Zack seems to know.

Zack is glad that Martel's spell is working, however it's happening. Being pounded with that tail had hurt, and he knows he's going to have bruises to show for it. But that doesn't matter, none of it matters, because the fight seems to be going out of the creature. Maybe this time things don't have to end with a death; maybe Martel is all the difference, the factor that will let them save Angeal.

Zack looks over his shoulder at Martel, silent communication before moving to those outstretched arms, hands grasping wrists tentatively. It's dangerous he knows, and he wants her to know that he's aware of the risk, of the possibility that it could be a trap. Aware of it, and planning for it; he'll throw the beast if he has to, but he's hoping he doesn't.

"He's fused himself with other creatures." Zack's speaking to Martel, and then turning to meet Angeal's finally open eyes. He's not going to get choked up, he's not! "Death can... death can separate them, but..." But he's hoping that maybe healing can help too, can give the man enough fight to shake off the transformation. Of course, they might have the constituent creatures to deal with afterwards, but Zack's not afraid to fight them off to keep both Martel and Angeal safe -- and Martel, he knows, is no stranger to a battlefield either.

After finding out what he truly was, after chasing Genesis down and then losing the other- Dead by his student's had, at least supposedly- and Hollander's insistence at something Angeal refuses to believe is true helping all the more over that final edge.

But now he sees, Angeal himself forced to engage in the situation. Sees Zack there in front of him, different, sees another nearby, likely the one who has cast the spell.

They are trying to save him, a monster of all things. What makes him so worthy of it, after everything that had been done?

The beast sighs, outstretched wing lowering as the fight goes out of him, unwilling to continue, now that Angeal had been woken inside the beast. It pulls Zack closer, but far from with the intent to hurt... No, instead to hold, because Angeal wonders if any of this is actually real.

Martel watches them, and she understands Zack completely. It may be a trap, but it may not be. And she won't force Zack to kill him. To know that death can separate them...he might have already killed him once. She won't give up, not if that's the ending that's already happened. This place is something of a second chance, and she refuses to see anything but. Not if there is a chance, not if this man that Zack so obviously cares for is still in there.

So she puts her all into this one spell, hoping that it helps, hoping she might be able to do something impossible. But then again, she's fought against impossible odds before. And truly, is anything impossible in this castle? "Revitalize!"

The spell circle appears again, casting a green light on everything. If Zack's injured from being caught by the tail, it's probably healing him too, as well as hopefully healing the other man.

There's a tugging on his arms and it takes Zack a moment to realize he's being pulled into a hug, an embrace rather than an attack. He goes, letting his own hold relax into something less defensive and more brotherly. He's trying to fight down his own feelings, because seeing Angeal again -- especially like this -- is hard and awakens so much in him.

But he's trying his hardest not to think about that. Now is not the time to be selfish.

When all is said and done, Zack is going to find some way to repay Martel for all her generosity and her help. First when he'd arrived and now adding today, he owes her so much (even if he suspects she'll deny any form of recompense he tries to present to her). He can feel bruises starting to heal just from proximity to her spell, the glow of her magic surrounding him and Angeal. It makes him want to close his eyes and he does for a minute, wishing and hoping for the man in front of him to shrink back into himself, for the foreign bits to fall away and his mentor to return to him.

He is awake, more aware than he has felt in months... which makes him all the more aware of what he has done, of what he and Genesis have done. But he does not want to end it all because of such... Not right now, when Zack is clinging to him, keeping him there to stay.

The haze he has been seems to clear with the healing spell cast on him, and not just that, pulling the monsters away from the man, part the castle's work as well, now that he was healed. It happens slowly, until the man himself was standing there- both wings on his right side revealed as well. The monsters, four of them, seem stunned and do not move for a very long moment, about as long as it takes for Angeal to raise turn his head to look at Zack, breath escaping him before he turns to Martel as well, taking a moment to see if he can place the woman before he realize they have never met before.

"Where...?" But more importantly, why?

Martel inwardly cheers when she realizes that it worked, or at least a combination of her and Zack worked. And Zack didn't have to attempt to kill him again. But then she realized that there were four monsters, currently stunned, that were probably going to have to be killed. Preferably before they got loose in the gardens and the grounds. Her staff went into a more defensive position as she edged towards the two men, keeping an eye on the monsters for when they did try to attack.

"We'll explain later, I promise. Just...Zack?" She's hoping for a bit of back-up here, as she could probably defend herself, but killing them alone? Martel wasn't sure if she could actually manage it.

"Later."

It's a quick agreement because Martel is right, there's a situation to be dealt with. Zack pulls away from his mentor, bringing his sword up to bear and side-stepping a little bit, trying to place himself closest to the creatures and between them and his companions, if possible. Really, it makes sense; at the moment, he's the most capable fighter out of all of them.

But four-to-one makes for tricky odds at the best of times, and Zack has two others to think about. He casts a glance over his shoulder, briefly.

"Angeal, protect Martel."

Though it might end up being the opposite, or some combination of both. Zack doesn't give a second thought to ordering around the man he once took orders from, instead taking charge of the situation -- much as he'd had to do in Angeal's absence back in Midgar. No, right now he's only thinking of his companions and how he can protect them as the first creature gets ready to attack.

The Buster Sword-his own- Is lifted as Zack steps away and gives that order, half defensive and half to keep the blade precious to him off of the ground. He understands, knows what he has to do and Angeal is aware he was the cause of all of this in the first place. Once again, Zack is cleaning up the mess made by his bad decisions, a situation no mentor wishes to be in.

A soft noise of acknowledgement, and Angeal steps a little closer to where Martel is, the two wings on his back stretching before folding back in along his back. The healing had done much for him, though the man still needed time to recover... But he was a SOLDIER, and these were the people who helped him. He would fight as much as he could for them.

Martel watches Zack for a moment, hoping that he could manage to handle this on his own. And if he can't, well, she has a few spells up her sleeve. In fact, she's just going to start slowly gathering mana to her.

Then she looks sideways at Angeal, who is obviously trying to protect her, which was nice of him, but really, he should be resting. "Don't listen to him. I can protect myself perfectly fine. You, on the other hand, shouldn't be doing anything. I just healed you." The unspoken part of that is that she wouldn't like to do it again.

Zack can handle this on his own, because he's done it before, fought these creatures before -- singly, and when joined to the man behind him. He's done it before and he's doing it again, determined to protect two people he cares for. And perhaps it's telling that Martel has so easily fallen into that category, someone Zack would not hesitate to put himself at risk for.

But there's little enough time to think about that, time better spent in handling the four creatures coming quickly to their senses. The Ahriman falls quickly, and the Hound and Sahagin are smart enough to rush him together. And he can handle that too, but the Griffin is the strongest of the four, and he can't reach it in time--

Bzzzt! The flash of the Materia Zack keeps in his sword's slots, and a bolt leaps out for and strike at his three foes. He's got another slash before the spell even fizzles, never one to trust entirely in casting to fell his foes.

Telling him to relax? There's a grimace of a smile that catches on his face at that, and he turns a little more toward Martel in response.

"Tell you what... I'll play backup." The man's words are a little winded, healed but exhaustion of near-death and the ache of healed wounds still not gone, something that took time to it even with the help he had received.

But they don't need to help much, with Zack defending them so. The the Griffin does get thrown by the attack coming toward them, still alive, but Angeal is able to step forward and raise his sword, to glance the monster off the broad side of his blade for Martel to finish off with her magic.

Martel raises an eyebrow at that, but she still gives him a small smile. A stubborn man, exactly what she needed. It's not like she didn't have enough of those already. "Just humor me for a while before you keel over, yeah?"

She was expecting the griffin to come after them, so she's ready for it. A spell circle appears below her feet and she skips the incantation entirely-it didn't honestly have to be that powerful of a spell. "Holy Lance!" She watches as blades of pure light impale the griffin, and then burst into dissipating light particles. There's not much left of the monster after that.

Zack turns in time to see Martel's spell finish off the Griffin once and for all. And it's such a relief to see it go, to know that the last of the physical threat is gone. It means they can concentrate on more important things, like the man who should be resting.

"Thank you, both of you." Zack approaches them again, eyes roaming up and down each of them in the habitual check for injuries. He's hoping that their luck has held because it's already asked so much of Martel to heal Angeal's horrid injuries. Zack would hate to tire her further, not when she's done so much for them. "Are you both okay?"

He nods, though it was more than obvious that he wasn't- more mental exhaustion after his injuries were healed, had been taken care of by the woman who was obviously Zack's friend. After a moment he reaches back and holsters the Buster Sword, the weapon unneeded for now.

And then, of course, the million Gil question. "Where are we?"

It isn't the Lifestream, for certain, if Zack was here, even older as he looks.

"Oh, don't worry about me, Zack. I'm fine." Martel waves him off. She really was. But, she casts an eye at the man that she saved, checking just in case.

At his question she gives him a wry smile. "Welcome to Paradisa. Short version is... It's a sentient, magical castle that's kidnapped you to a different world and you can't escape." She pauses. "Oh, and the kitchen's on the first floor, since everybody seems to think that's important to tell new people."

"You'd say that even if you weren't. That was some really neat casting though." It's probably obvious to Angeal that Zack considers Martel a friend; if not, the exchange of such banter should give it away. His own sword is shouldered as well, and he casts a look of concern over Angeal. His former mentor doesn't appear to have any more physical wounds, but the exhaustion is pretty obvious.

Still, Zack's nodding as Martel gives the short version of the explanation. "And we've all got our own rooms, courtesy of the castle. There should be a book around here with your name on it too."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I'm tired of being me and I don't like what I see;

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/threadjack?

eeee!

Yay!

all teh awesome

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Bedtime for mee, will pick up after work!

Goodniiight~

Sweet dreams!

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