//------------------------------// // CH17: Peaking Curiousity // Story: Kingdom Hearts F.I.M: Rise of The Elements // by Spirit Shift //------------------------------// Rarity magically lifted a rock off of her, and gently massaged the back of her head. “Uhhh,” she groaned, ”I really hope that rock didn't leave a mar-ACK” “RARITYYYYYYY!” The second that she sat up, Rarity was bowled over and rolled up into a bone crushing hug by Pinkie, who had begun crying fountains of water. “I’m sooooo glad you're alive!” she cried, her volume bursting Rarity’s eardrum. “Di-ack-Diane, darling I’m fine, please let me go or I won’t be!” “But I’m sooo~oo~oo happy that I found you!” she cried, increasing the strength of the hug. Rarity somehow managed to lightly pat her on the back, cringing when she felt her dress becoming damp. “Well, what ab-” “Oh, no!” Pinkie all but threw Rarity to the ground when she quickly realized something else. “Where are the others!” Pinkie began frantically searching the wreckage around them, zooming from place to place, calling out each of her friends names. “Jackie! Dashie! Twilie! DanDan!” Rarity simply took this as a reprieve from her friends harsh affection. Picking herself up, and using a special spell that Luna taught her, she quickly fixed her appearance. A few seconds later, every bit of grime and dirt instantly disappeared. Just as she began to admire the piece of art that was her body, she picked up the quiet sounds of groaning. Tuning out Pinkie, who was still yelling everyone’s name, she tuned in to the familiar sound. Turning around, she saw two familiar looking orange cowgirl boots sticking out from under a few rocks. Rarity recognized those fashion offenders instantly and called Pinkie over to her. Once Pinkie turned to her and saw what she was pointed to, she instantly dashed over to rescue AJ. “Jackie don’t die yet, we can still save you.” she began to try and lift the rocks, straining herself, just to lift one. “Just….. gotta dig you out!” Rarity rolled her eyes and lifted the one rock that covered her. Pinkie cheerily smiled up at her. “Thanks Rares!” Rarity smiled back, before turning her eyes to AJ, other than a few scratches, a slight lack of consciousness, and what seemed like troubled breathing, AJ was unharmed. Rarity noted that her hat, although slightly squashed, still clung tightly to her head. She wondered briefly if it was enchanted somehow. Her thoughts were interrupted when she noticed her Pink haired friend straddle herself on AJ’s stomach. “Diane, sweetie…. what are you doing?” “We have to wake her up and find the others.” “Yes, I know that, but still-” “It’s cool, I got this,” she smiled, proudly pointing at herself. “Look, she’s having a hard time breathing! She needs CPR,” she said determinedly. Rarity just stood there, mouth hanging open, dumbfounded. “Diane, you can’t be serious.” Pinkie narrowed her eyes and spoke seriously. “As serious as a melted show cone in winter.” Having proved her resolve, Pinkie took a deep breath, and leaned forward. Rarity tried to cover her eyes but ended up looking through them anyway, a blush evident on her face. Pinkie edged her face close enough that their noses almost touched before she released the breath that she was holding. “JACKIE!!!!!!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. Immediately, she leaned back up and began slapping AJ repeatedly in the face. “My word, what are you doing!” “CPR!” she yelled still slapping her silly. Rarity used her magic to seize Pinkie’s hand and cease her slapping. “That is NOT what CPR is!” “Oh, really?” “Yes, really! Who even told you that?” “Tigger,” she said plainly. Rarity deadpanned. “Of course….. Listen, sweetie, that may work for him, but this isn't a cartoon, you could seriously hurt her.” Pinkie looked back down at the still unconscious cowgirl. “She looks fine to me. I really thought it was working though,” she pouted. Rarity examined her downed friend. Other than slightly reddish cheeks, it didn't look like Pinkie’s slaps had any sort of effect. “I will admit, she is very…… resilient, but that still isn't the proper way to wake her. Not to mention, she’s probably having trouble breathing due to you sitting on her chest.” “But if CPR didn't work, how will we get her to wake up?” she whimpered, huge tears forming in her eyes. “Allow me.” Rarity carefully crouched down near her unfashionable friend’s head, and gently tilted her hat to one side. “AH!” AJ instantly sat up and flung Pinkie off of her. The very first thing that she did, was move her hat back into place. Only afterwards, did she remove it to brush the dust off and unsquish it, before sitting it back on her head in the exact same place. She turned and glared at Rarity, who desperately covered her mouth to hide her snickering. “What’s goin’ on, an why do mah cheeks hurt?” Rarity finally finished giggling and sat up. “Well Diane-” “JACKIE!!!!” she screamed as she jumped AJ and wrapped herself around her, crying another fountain of tears. Her hugs had less of an effect on AJ than it did on Rarity, but it was still enough to knock the breath out of her. “IthoughtyouweragonersoItriedCPRbutitdidntworkbutthenRaritytoldmethatitwasentCPRand thatTiggerliedtomeandthenIgotscaredthatyouwouldentwakeupbutthenRaritymessedwithyourhatandnowyou’reawakeandI’MSOHAPPPYYYYYY~” Frankly AJ couldn't make heads or tails of most what her friend just said. “Rarity did what to mah hat?” “Oh calm down, I merely tilted it.” “You sure that’s all yah did?” Rarity scoffed. “Puh-lease, I decorate your hat ONE time!” “Uhuh,” she said, getting up and moving pinkie off of her, “you said that you wanted to clean it, but when ah get it back, ah see nothin’ but rhinestones coverin’ the whole gosh darned thing!” Pinkie giggled. “I remember that, your head shined like a disco ball when I pointed a flashlight at it!” “I was young….. and gaudy. It wasn't my fault! Stop holding a grudge at everything!” “Well-” “How long are you three going to continue your useless prattering?” Turning, all of them caught sight of Virgil entering the area. He looked no more injured than when he fought Dante, only angrier. When their gaze met his he reached for the handle of his blade. By instinct, AJ summoned her keyblade, and Pinkie pulled hers from her shirt. Rarity just gazed lovingly at the man in blue. Virgil released his hold on his weapon. “So those are the legendary keyblades.” “What of it?” Ignoring her, Virgil continued to analyze the weapons. “It seems that they tailor themselves to the personality of the user. Legends say that they can open any lock or seal…. I wonder….” “Oh, ah get it now, you think that you can use our keyblades to open up yer daddy’s seal. Well it aint gonna happen!” “You can have mi~ine,” drooled Rarity. “I see. In that case, I’ll just have to take it then. I’m curious, If I can defeat it’s chosen wielder...“ he paused and with a flick of his thumb he partially unsheathed his blade. “Will it reconsider?” “Fat chance!”AJ strode forward and delivered a crushing downward strike. Re-sheathing his Yamato, Virgil simply dodged. Afterwards, observed as the ground that was struck. He noticed that it had suffered considerable damage. “Interesting, is that the power of the Keyblade, or the wielder?” “You’ll never find out!” Pulling her blade out of the ground, she swung at Virgil. He merely dodged and struck her with his scabbard. “That all you got?” she taunted, completely unfazed by the attack. Just as Virgil was about to ready his Judgement cut, Pinkie popped up behind him. It was only due to his incredible reflexes that he dodged her attack. How did she get behind me? I must be extremely injured….. he thought. Moving in a blue blur, he dashed forward in a counter attack and took a swing at Pinkie. AJ quickly stepped in front of her to block the attack. She easily forced him back. “Hmm.” Deciding to switch tactics, Virgil holstered Yamato on his side and summoned Beowulf on his arms and legs. He moved at even faster speeds to throw a punch at AJ. Barely having time to block, AJ raised her keyblade once more in defense. She was surprised to see that Virgil had actually forced her back some. Seeing her friend in danger, Rarity snapped out of her new daydream. “Sorry, my love, the wedding will have to wait!” Instantly, Rarity shot out a few dozen keyblades at Virgil like missiles. Seeing the attack, Virgil managed to easily parry or punch all of them out of the way. “I see that we have something in common, but let me show you how it’s done.” “Wha-” Without warning, several transparent blue blades begun circling around her frame. Before she could react, they shot forward and pierced through her from all angles, shattering afterwards. Even though were no internal or external wounds, the pain was still very real. Rarity immediately succumbed to it and passed out. “Hey! That was uncalled for!” screamed Pinkie from right behind Virgil. Once again taken by surprise, Virgil turned and struck her in the gut. “I do not know what allows you to believe that you can sneak up on me, but it will not be tolerated,” he said simply. Pinkie hunched over in pain. “You’re…… such a killjoy….” she grunted before she lost consciousness. “Pinkie!” AJ was in a rage now. She rushed at Virgil like a freight train, putting her all into her next attack. Time seemed to move in slow motion as Virgil moved under her and delivered a strong left hook to her gut, AJ grunted in pain but did not stop her attack. Before it could connect, however, Virgil delivered an even stronger right hook to her face, AJ still wouldn't go down. Combing, Virgil connected the punch with a small spin in the air, before sending a devastating kick to the same spot on her face, sending AJ barreling into the far wall. Her Keyblade spinning into the ground where she once stood. The match over, Virgil moved to pick up her Keyblade, it was rather heavy, but not enough to give him any sort of trouble. He completed a few test swings with it, but eventually it disappeared in a mess of light. Not surprised, Virgil began to walk away. He stopped in his tracks when Beowulf began glowing unnaturally. “What is this?” Beowulf, pulsated a few times before leaving his body and transferring themselves over to AJ, and appearing on her limp limbs. “I see, she’s more compatible then... I can’t say that I disagree. Consider it compensation for the trouble,” he said to the unconscious girls. He began to walk away, intent to reach the top of the tower. “I need only my Yamato and the power of Sparda, anyhow.” ~~~ Eventually, Twilight and Dash found Dante chilling on some rocks. They then made their way around the base of the newly risen tower until they found three knocked out girls. “Woah.” Dante whistled, obviously impressed. “Oh my goodness!” Running over to each of them, she desperately tried to wake them up, but to no avail. At her command, Dash and Dante quickly rounded them together. After which, Twilight tried to cast a large scale curaga, only for her to fail and break down coughing. “Twilight don’t push yourself, now isn't the time!” Dash warned. Twilight gave her a weak smile. “I know… Shia was better at this anyway,” she said sadly. “She once healed all 6 of us at once.” Taking a breath, Twilight cast three small cure spells, healing them just enough for them to regain consciousness. Rarity and Pinkie immediately clutched their stomachs, coughing harshly, and AJ moved her head back and forth, attempting to work out some cracks. “Ahhh, what hit me?” Dash moved closer to her. “That’s what we want to know! Don’t tell me that tiny rock slide did you guys in?” “Twasn't no rock-slide, it was that one’s big brother.” she said, pointing a finger directly at Dante. Before he could retaliate, AJ’s arms and legs began to glow with an ethereal bright light. Appearing on her hands and feet were none other than the Beowulf gauntlets and greaves. Everyone gasped at her new gear. “Where the heck did you get those!” Dash exclaimed. “A-ah don’t know.” “Aren't those the same one’s that Virgil wore?” Twilight asked. AJ looked over her silver clad arms. “Ah think so….”  “Dante, what’s goin on!?” “Well it sorta goes like this,” he sighed, rubbing the back of his head. “You know how your keys choose their owners.” When he got nods, he continued. “Devil arms are almost the same, strong demons become weapons after being killed and usually become the tools of the killer, like Nevan. But sometimes they’ll change owners if they feel that another is more worthy, or more compatible, or whatever. Seeing as how you still have your arms and legs firmly attached to you, I’d say that old Virg didn't care much.” “Ahm not cursed or anythin… am I?” “No, you're cool, just be careful if it starts talking. Trust me, they can get pretty annoying.” Dash groaned. “Aww man, she gets awesome gloves?” “Don’t be sad Dashie, you still got that awesome gun!” Pinkie cheered, patting her on the back. “Anyway, are you all okay, what he do to you?” Rarity finally got the pain to subside in her midsection and sat up. “I don’t know, one second, I’m fighting, the next he copied my move and I felt like my sides were somehow bursting.” “He didn't like jokes.” “He was strong, tried to take our Keyblades, ah guess,” she said, banishing Beowulf. “Tried to- that’s impossible.” “Yeah, that won’t stop him from trying though. Seems he got his answer,” Dante reasoned. “He didn't injure any of you seriously did he?” asked Dash, her fist clenched. Each of them looked over their bodies, but other than a few bruise marks, nothing serious. Twilight let out a small relieved sigh. “Lets just wait here for a bit and rest.” Everyone readily agreed. Dante craned his head to look upwards as the stable looking, but still cracking tower above them. “Fine, but we have to hurry, every minute we waste, Jester's getting that much closer to my old man’s power.” “We won’t be long,” Rarity answered, “but you should rest too, you must be more tired than all of us.” Not able to deny that fact, Dante moved over to a nearby wall and began to sit down and relax. It would be a good 45 minutes before they decided to move on. ~~~ “Amazing,” grinned Dash. “Uncouth!” scoffed Rarity. “Epic!” “Rowdy!” “Jaw droppingly awesome!” “Unnecessarily show offish!” Dash and Rarity had been arguing back and forth like that ever since they had to climb the the tower directly. While the others did it normally, Dante chose to do it by riding Lady’s abandoned motorcycle directly up the side, completely defying gravity and shattering Twilight’s mind. If that weren't enough, he then went on to fight multiple sets demons mid-air, using only the motorcycle as a singular nunchuck. Shattering everyone else’s minds in the process. Normally, Dante would've stopped them by now, but he was enjoying the constant praise given to him by one half of the argument. “Twilight, AJ, Pinks, back me up on this!” “As far as I’m concerned that entire scene did not exist.” “Don’t be hatin’,” Dante chided. AJ let out a soft chuckle. “You gotta admit, sugarcube, what he did back there was somethin’.” “Something?" said Dash, aghast. "It was the most incredible thing, I’ve ever seen!” “See, Rarity, everyone else agrees with me! Seriously, the last time I saw something that awesome, was when I watched Spike beat up a whole gang with nothing but a ‘how to fight’ book!” Everyone went quiet. It seemed that to everyone except her and Dante, Spike was still a touchy subject. AJ didn't want to start another argument, and Twilight still wasn't completely sure about her feelings on the subject. Eventually, the group came to a large elevator-like device. Twilight went up and carefully read it. “It says that we need three pieces of orihalcon to activate the device. Look, there’s even a map here.” “Fat load of good that’ll do us. This entire place is all topsy-turvy now. We’ll never find our way around if we follow that thing.” “We have to try at least. There are three, so let’s split into three groups. Be very careful, we’re all still injured, don’t try to fight anything if you can run. Dash, you go with AJ. Pinkie, with Rarity, and I’ll go with Dante. ” “Oh, my,” Rarity smirked. “What?” “Nothing, we get it, you’ll want some alone time with Dante.” “What, no I just-” “I’m not surprised, I knew this was coming.” Dante shrugged. “Wait, hold on!” “Ohh, have fun you lovebirds you!” Pinkie cheered as she bounced off. AJ and Dash also shared a chuckle at their friends expense before leaving as well. Everyone left in their respective directions, leaving Twilight and Dante alone. Eventually, they too left to go find their piece. Twilight sighed exasperatedly as she walked. “Hey, those are your friends.” “They’re your’s now too you know.” “Sure, whatever.” “Anyway, I really did have something to ask you.” “I charge 20 to see it, 50 to ride it.” “What!?” “Nothing, what’s up?” Twilight ran and stood in front of Dante, blocking his path. Her face looked extremely determined to get her answers this time around. “How do you and Virgil know Master Luna?”