Fan Fiction ❯ Black Orchid ❯ A Fiery Demon and a Metallic Monster ( Chapter 20 )

Late: yeah, I've been busy lately. Sorry. Anyways, here's the next chapter. I think after this we can find out who the one Elias wants is. "Him". He's connected to the white haired dude… and Arc…Oh well, we'll see. And, we get a cool summon this chapter. Yay. Hmm… I'm spending less time on worlds… well, Traverse WAS the start, with all the background… Wonderland was just the greatest… and the Coliseum… we'll be back… I just wasn't hyped about deep jungle… and all you Agrabah fans, I'm afraid I'll have to apologize in advance for the next few chaps. Who else will I neglect? Umm… Atlantica fans, Monstro fans, Neverland fans… Yoai fans, Squffie fans, Sokairi fans…yeah, stuff… but Kairi's missing (as usual) and Riku + Squall are… busy. Hmm… 5 or 6 more chaps… and we get to a real turning point… whatever, R&R! fanimecon, woot! (also, I'm making Aero useable for Def. and Off.)

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"Hmm… I wonder where Zell and the rest of them are?"

"Maybe we should ask Cid, kupo?"

"Don't bother, they're all on patrol, most likely."

The three were wandering the first district in the approaching twilight, enjoying the cool night air. They had stopped by to visit and restock their supplies. Arc had not enjoyed the last meal consisting entirely of tropical fruits.

"How 'bout we go visit Merlin?" suggested Orchid.

"That's a kupo idea!" exclaimed Montblanc, his antenna pompom bouncing merrily. "We haven't seen him in a while."

"Old man," grumbled Arc as they wandered over and pushed open the door to the Third District. They sighed as they watched portals of darkness rend the air apart in the once quiet square. Soon, a small group of soldiers and mages clinked and whizzed about. "Don't they ever give up?"

"Who ever said the Heartless made sense?" asked Orchid as she strode forwards, Poison Ivy forming in her hands. She was beginning to like the brutish, raw power that it gave her.

They soon finished off the small group and continued on their way.

"That wasn't much," commented Arc, his white trench coat fluttering behind him as they walked. "I guess I can't accuse them of slacking off around here."

"Say," started Orchid, "who do you think those were?"

"Kupo?" asked Montblanc.

"Those Heartless… they were people once, weren't they?" asked Orchid, looking back with a touch of sadness in her blue eyes.

"Yeah… but we can't save them… it's not like we knew any of them," said Arc indifferently, walking on without looking back. "You need a special connection to save someone from something that deep."

They soon found themselves once more in front of the highly decorated door to the wizard's grotto. Orchid unlocked it with a lazy wisp of fire, and they walked inside.

Cursing and mumbling about the moving stones, they walked into the old wizard's house.

"Ah, yes, there you are. I was just about to start without you," said Merlin from where he sat at the table. The trio walked up to it to see a platter of cookies sitting in the center and sat down around the table. "And what brings you to my house today?"

"Boredom, mostly," replied Orchid. She started nibbling at a cookie like how a small animal would, managing to create a flurry of crumbs.

"Nothing… interesting?" asked the old wizard mysteriously, his eyes roving from Orchid's childish behavior to Arc and settling there in a piercing gaze.

"You know, don't you?" asked Arc, his eyes wary.

"Of course," replied Merlin.
"And do you expect me to spill?" asked Arc, his eyes tinged with a nervous fear.

"I don't see why not," stated the mage calmly, his gaze unwavering.

"I won't give it up."

"It's no use to you as it is. Just let me see the gem already."

"Huh?" asked Arc. Then he quickly masked his confusion and relief by searching around in his jacket until he found the gem he had picked up in Deep Jungle. He had thought the old man had been hinting about something deeper. Something darker and dearer to him. He found the gem and put it onto the table, where it pulsed slightly, seeming to glow with fire. "Here… what is it?"

"A spirit that was too strong to be dispersed when its world died," said Merlin, looking at it. "Take it to the Fairy Godmother, over there," he said, waving one hand vaguely towards a toy carriage. At this, it went up in a puff of smoke and sparkles, and when it all cleared, a motherly looking old lady with a cheerful face stood there. She held a little wand, and wore a simple faded blue and purple dress with a hood, and her eyes twinkled along with her gentle smile.

"Bring it here, please," she said in a polite voice. Arc got up and took the gem over without pausing for his usual noncompliant attitude. "Ah, the poor thing…"

There was a flare of light, and the fairy godmother looked a little taken aback.
"My… not very appreciative, are we? Well, I'm sure you two will get along just fine…" she said, and began waving her wand as the stone floated in midair before her. There was a burst of light as the stone erupted into flames, swirling throughout the room.

"I AM FREE. I AM YOURS TO COMMAND MASTER."

Arc stared at the whirling vortex of flames, and could barely perceive something staring back. "Who are you?"

"I AM IFRIT, THE DEMON GOD OF FIRE."

"Ah. Then come now… there is no fight for you here."

The whirlwind of flames funneled towards Arc, until it struck his chest and was sucked in. Then it was gone.

To Orchid's surprise, nothing in the room was burnt or damaged in any way.

"Let's go find something to destroy," said Arc enthusiastically, smiling widely. He left the house, and Orchid followed after. Montblanc sighed resignedly, then said his goodbyes to Merlin and the Fairy Godmother and left.

"Hey…" started Orchid as they walked through the Third District, "Doesn't Traverse Town have a keyhole?"

"Yeah… I guess so," replied Arc. "But who knows where it is…"

"Kupo… they were in different places than when Sora went to the worlds, weren't they?" commented Montblanc. He looked around, then suddenly stopped and snuffled at the air. "Kupopo… something's not right."

"Yeah," replied Arc, pushing his shades up over his eyes. Orchid now knew this was a sign of annoyance or seriousness. "I feel it too."

Orchid's eyes darted around the empty square, and Poison Ivy materialized in her hands. She took a defensive position. Then she felt it. "Not again…"

The trio jumped out of the way just as it came slamming down between them. They looked up to see a familiar face. Or, at least, a familiar faceguard.

"Not you again!" cursed Arc.

"Guard Armor…" muttered Orchid. "Fine! Be that way!"

The metal monstrosity clanked menacingly at them before flying off into three sets of pieces, as it had the last time. Only this time, all of them concentrated on surrounding Orchid.

"So, you wanna dance?" she asked, taking a stance more suited for dancing than fighting. "Moonlight Rave!"

The enormous armored Heartless stared at her for a moment just before it sent its clawed gauntlets in to crush her. But she wasn't there. There was a loud crash as one of the Guard Armor's feet went flying to crash into a wall and lay still. There was a blur, and Orchid came back into vision near it, holding the keyblade gracefully as she turned and took aim. Then she was gone again.

Arc and Montblanc could only stare as she blinked in and out of sight and blows rained down upon the Heartless's limbs and body. Soon, both the feet and the hands were lying around uselessly on the tiled ground. There was a flash of movement, and at the height of her ascent, they saw Orchid floating midair, holding the keyblade aloft with both hands.

"Finale!" she cried out, then disappeared in a blur of movement again. The giant plated torso shook as explosions rang out all across it. Orchid appeared again behind it, Poison Ivy held out much as a samurai would hold it. The armored body and head fell in a crumpled pile behind her as she stood up and turned around.

"Woo, woo!" whistled Arc, clapping enthusiastically.

"They don't learn, do they?" said Orchid confidently, striding back to her friends.
"Encore! Encore!" shouted Arc happily as Orchid took a bow. But Montblanc didn't share their enthusiasm.

"Kupo… I think it heard you, Arc," stuttered Montblanc, pointing his rod behind Orchid. The other two looked to where he was pointing, just in time to see the Guard Armor rising up behind them. It wasn't done with them yet.

"Are you dense or something?" shouted Orchid, bringing her keyblade into ready again. She wasn't expecting what happened next.

The limbs spun, then the clawed gauntlets slammed down onto the ground, as if in a handstand. Then the feet flew up to replace them, folding at the middle to become a vicious set of bulky claws. The torso did a flip beneath the helmet, completely reorienting it so the wider opening had the head.

"It's like an opposite…" said Arc, staring at it through his lenses.

"Opposite Armor," supplied Montblanc, preparing to start casting spells.

"It's still going to lose!" yelled Orchid, leaping at it. Before she could attack, one of the massive, blocky claws swatted her out of the air like a fly, and she landed hard on the ground. There, the viciously nailed feet tackled her, leaving vicious scratches on her arms and legs. She screamed out in pain, but the gauntlets-turned-feet just jumped at her again.

"Back off!" shouted Arc as his fist slammed into the both of them. The feet were sent flying, but he turned around only to see the claws flying at him.

"Thunder!" cried Montblanc. Bolts of lightning came crashing down upon the claws, stunning them. By now, the gauntlet feet were back again, but Arc was ready for them. Montblanc continued his magical assault of the flying boot claws as Orchid rose to her feet, though a little unsteadily. She looked around at the fighting. What about the body?

She was answered when she noticed a resounding humming that seemed to be everywhere. When she looked up, she found the source. The torso was aiming itself like the barrel of some giant cannon, and she could see the shining light as it gathered energy for the blast. She pushed her way forwards so that she was between it and her friends.

"Bring it on!" she screamed defiantly at it. The torso looked as if it would shake itself apart from all the energy it contained. Then, there was a blinding flash, and all of it was let loose in a torrential bullet.

The raging squall of weather to defend you!
It was the voice from eternity.

"Aero!" shouted Orchid, bringing Poison Ivy in front of her, hands wide with one holding it and the other supporting the haft. A wall of air sprung up before her, and the blast from the Opposite Armor smashed into it and the keyblade. Sparks and lightening shot off wildly at the clash of powers. "Go… AWAY!"

She swung the keyblade outwards, and the energy flew back at it. Right into its helmed face. Through the exploding lights, she could just see the Heartless disintegrate. Behind her, the limbs that her friends were fighting burst into dark particles of shadow, then shot past them as they were sucked into the keyblade. A pulsing light emerged from it. Orchid could just barely hear the clink of metal as the key chain fell off it. The light brightened to a blinding brilliance, and when it faded, the keyblade had grown again.

"Nearbloom," said Orchid, admiring the new blade. True to its name, the green leaf blade was now replaced with a large bud, which looked like it could deal out some serious mauling. The hand guards were now twisting vines with leave on the outside; she knew them to be razor sharp. She swung it around, and could feel its power. It didn't have quite the raw force of Poison Ivy, nor as much magic as Spellweaver, but the balance outweighed either of them. She picked up the key chain for Poison Ivy and put it back on. Nothing happened, and then it fell off again. "What the heck?"

"Kupopo… I think that it's at a new stage… so," said Montblanc, then paused, as he sorted out his thoughts, "it can't use the old keychains until they have caught up… like how the Vorpal Blade became Spellweaver."

"Yeah, I get it," said Arc. "It's a plant right? So it's going to grow… different stages allow different versions."

"I guess so," said Orchid, turning Nearbloom this way and that in her hand. Then she felt it. The tugging sensation again. She spun around, pulled by the keyblade, until it was pointing at the fountain across the Third District Square. A light shot out from the end of it and it went all the way across and directly into the keyhole that had appeared on the fountain. There was a click, and the keyhole faded and the light was gone.

"Well, that takes care of here," said Orchid, just as Zell came running up.

"Hey! There you are! I've been looking all over for you three!" he shouted as he ran up. "We gotta get Arc over to the hotel, man! It's time to PAR-TAY!"

"Happy twentieth!" screamed Rikku as she caught sight of Arc. Soon, all three of them were swept up by the gathering crowd and went to the hotel. Things were looking up, looking down.