Having started their trek upward near the end of the previous week the journey ended up bleeding into the next. They were making good progress but after four days there was still probably two or three more to go. Ariel was beginning to feel the effects of the magic and rather than just her eyes her hair and clothes were changing sporadically. However her personality wasn't changing with it, much to both their relief. Ariel could be a little unpredictable at times and rapid emotional shifts caused her to pass out.
Finally Ariel couldn't go on and she dropped to her knees.
"Alright. We have to stop and wait for this magic to settle in. Ugh, it feels so weird." Letting go of Nolan's hand she placed her hands against the snow and she turned as white as it. Blinking for a moment she removed her hands and returned to the soft yellow of before.
"What the heck?" Reaching for an open patch of rock she turned a dark gray before letting go of that.
What the hell is... oh... She slumped over into the snow before she could finish.
"Ariel!" Nolan yelled out as she slimped into the snow. He picked her up and soon propped her up against a wall. Then he slipped off his hoodie and put it on her to make sure that she is warm and then was able to place her on his back. With his Shaman Magic, he was able to hold her on his back with spirit arms and soon set up the tent as fast as he could.
He bundled her up in the tent with the blanket and just sat there, hoping that she was going to be okay. At times like these he hated how useless he was. All that he could do was make her as comfortable as possible until she came to.
Sighing, he went outside and was able to start a fire and able to heat up a soup that they had prepared before hand. He brought it inside for her and waited for her to wake up.
When he reentered the colors of the things around her almost appeared to be melting onto her clothing and hair. Everything but Nolan's hoodie. But everything else that was part of the painting world was. The colors were slowly swirling around but not quite mixing when they touched her. Sadly try as he might Nolan couldn't get it to stop. Most of what they had was from the painting, including the ground they were sitting on. It would be a couple hours before she came to as as she did the colors set in an nonuniform pattern, mostly a mix of gray, white, and brown. Dazed Ariel blinked. Her eyes were a wild with color arranged like a color wheel She didn't say anything but just looked around.
Nolan had fallen asleep at some point, shivering from the cold without the hoody. There was a bowl of now cold soup next to him that had been there for quite some time. Nolan looked tired, like really tired. It was as if he was fretting over her to the point of exhaustion.
Coming to her senses Ariel managed to crawl her way over to Nolan and drag the sheets over. He was going to freeze like this. What was he thinking? Draping them over him she could feel how cold he was up close. At this point she hadn't even noticed that anything had really changed about herself. Sure things looked odd but that could just be her being extremely tired or some other side effect of the magic.
Speaking of the magic the floor seemed to be sticking to her. Lifting an arm the ground under them had turned into paint. What was going on here? It was then that she finally noticed the odd colors on her that started moving again and changing.
"What the... What's happ..." The paint began to move and enveloped her while she was speaking. It created a bubble that moved over and stuck to the wall. Being in a world made of the same Paint magic she was gaining caused the environment around her to react and grab her.
Stirring from the sudden noise going on in the tent, Nolan woke up to a startling sight; a massive bubble made of paint had enveloped Ariel completely and was getting bigger. She was trapped!
"Ariel! Hold on, I'll save you!" Nolan summoned two swords, Hermes and Balmung and swung the blades to pop the bubble though it was in vain. The paint just sealed the bubble again!
Gritting his teeth, he begun to swing his blades faster and faster, tearing through the paint faster than it could put itself together again. Soon he made it towards Ariel and he threw a blade past her, landing in the snow. He grabbed her with his free hand and the two of them teleported to the sword he had thrown.
"What in the hell is going on? Why is the world attacking her?!"More tendrils of paint leaped towards her though Nolan wasn't going to give them the chance.
"Fuck off!" He roared, sending a tumult of ashes at the paint and tore through the tendrils.
Coughing as she was pulled from the paint she went limp although she was still awake. The colors of her hair and clothes were shifting and changing as the magic tried to take hold. Nolan was fighting off the mountain it seemed. Mustering up the strength to lift an arm the colors finally set themselves and the mountain stopped moving. Her hair and clothes matched up with her eyes in a vibrant rainbow color.
Having managed that she clung to Nolan and spoke weakly.
"I think... we're safe now." Letting the air out of her lungs she relaxed as best she could.
Nolan made sure that Ariel had a tight grip on him. She looked like she was going to pass out at any given moment.
"Just what in the fresh hell was that?" Now that he had a better look at her, she looked like she had every color of the rainbow on her. Until now he hadn't seen this form of her before.
Did you...did you completely absorb the magic from the mountain? He asked as he lead her back to the tent, letting her go in first and helped her lay down slowly.
Once she was back on the ground she had the chance to see most of herself. Giving it some thought she shook her head.
"I think maybe it was just going through the mountain. It's stronger up here but now that I can feel it, this whole world is being held together with paint magic. I guess since I was absorbing so much of it that the paint got drawn it too." This was not her day. Leaning her head back she stared at the ceiling. Narrowing her eyes she seemed to be concentrating. After a moment she lowered her eyes to look at Nolan again.
"I see the way out. It's almost at the top."Paint Magic huh? It made sense since it was a painting after all. It was incredible that Ariel could absorb so much of that magic though it seemed like that was too much even for her. Still, now that she had this magic there was a chance that they could escape this world once and for all and he was right on the money. She was able to see the exit with her newfound powers! He leaned over and hugged her tightly.
"This is great Ariel. We're so close of leaving this place. We can go home."Smiling lightly she even managed a slight laugh.
"Yeah. Just a little more ways to go. Eh, this magic is still weird. Everything looks different here now. Well, except for you. Guess things that are real don't get the same effect." Somehow she wasn't tired, but her body didn't quite want to cooperate.
"Let's just stay here until I can move again. You need to get some sleep after my little scare."Nolan smiled back and nodded in agreement. To say that he was tired was an understatement; he was so fretful over her and even when he slept it was an uneasy sleep. Right now he had no intention of letting go of her.
"Alright Ariel. Sleep well." He pulled the covers over them and soon he was asleep.
Ariel stayed up most of the time but still got some rest in between. When she was awake she pondered how exactly this kind of magic functioned. It wasn't like a lot of others that had some element or a kind of guide. However as she thought ideas began to pop into her head. With one hand she put a finger against a wall and began to draw. She was not a very skilled artist but she made something that looked like a chair. While looking at it she thought it was good enough and it jumped from the wall and became "real" Or as real as it was in this world. It did look kind of wonky when it was an actual object though.
"Wow." That was some kind of power. Maybe it was amplified being in a paint world. Only one way to find out and that was by getting out of here.
For the next two days, the couple had hiked up the mountain with high spirits. Nolan was probably the cheerfulest that he had ever been in his life. It all had felt like some crazy dream though he knew that it was all real. It was strange though for some reason his whole body felt light whenever was with her, as if he was just walking in the air.
Ariel had used whatever free time they had to practice her newfound paint magic. While her creations were certainly not master pieces, they seemed to had become stronger and stronger the closer they got to the top of the mountain. Surely she must've had enough power to open up the exit.
He didn't know about Ariel, but Nolan was wondering what it was going to be like for them once they returned to the real world. They've disappeared for about a month and they'll be returning as a young, happy couple. He was going to have to meet her parents and both friends and family would probably have a lot of questions to ask! Now that was something to happen in the close future.
This was the last day of the hike up the mountain. Nolan had woken up next to Ariel and smiled at her sleeping face. He closed his eyes and nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck and kissed it softly.
"It's time to get up." He whispered softly.
Waking slowly she lifted a hand and brushed it through Nolan's hair. It had gotten pretty long in the time they'd been here, as her her own. Once they got back that would probably be one of the first things she would get fixed. They were so close she didn't waste a whole lot of time getting up.
"Feels like it's taken longer just getting up here than the whole rest of out stay. Is it the same for you?" She askes as their things were packed up for the last time.
Shrugging, he helped her back up their supplies for the last time.
"Time is odd here. It feels faster at times and slower at times. It's nearly impossible to have an actual grasp of time here." His hair kept getting in his eyes and was now constantly pushing it away from his eyes with some visible annoyance.
"The first thing we do is get haircuts. This is ridiculous." He grumbled in the grumpy attitude that he was all too well know for in the guild.
"No kidding. You're a guy though so it isn't as long as mine. I haven't let it get this long in years. It's almost to my shoulders. I don't know why but I just can't do long hair," She grinned at their complaining. It was nice to have such a simple thing to worry about having to deal with after all this.
Since they were on their last day the pace seemed to be a bit faster than usual. Maybe they were just so ready to get out of there that any tiredness was trumped by excitement. They hadn't quite reached the peek but they were now on the ridge and could see for miles in every direction. Although to be fair there was only so much to look at before it faded into a white nothing. It put into perspective just how small the world they'd been living in was.
Still what was there was a sight to behold and they couldn't help but stop and share the moment.
"Wow.... I really am going to miss this place. Kind of wish we'd tried to climb up here sooner so we could enjoy it longer." She had her arms around Nolan and was leaning her head against him.
A content sigh came from him as he enjoyed being so close to Ariel. His right hand gently stroked her now long hair, letting each strand go through his fingers. He was going to miss this place too though he knew that they had to leave.
"There is far more out in our world Ariel...Though I'd be lying if I didn't say that this is beautiful." For some reason, he couldn't help but to laugh a bit.
"It's crazy, but getting stuck here with you may be one of the greatest things that had ever happened to me."Smiling softly she nuzzled his cheek playfully.
"Aww, you're so sweet. I feel the same way." Stepping back she spun around and continued walking, throwing her hands in the air.
"I couldn't have asked for more. And soon we'll be back and surprise everyone." After a few more steps she paused and glanced ahead. There was still a ways to go up to the summit but the spot that she'd been sensing was almost level with where they were now. Putting a finger on her chin she supposed it could be on the other side, but it didn't feel that far away.
"Oh... I think the exit is inside the mountain top."He watched her walk on behind and he simply caught himself staring at her. She really looked beautiful in the perpetual dawn light. Nolan walked over to her side and looked up to the summit.
"Let's move then. There's no time to waste." He grabbed her hand and looked where she was staring.
"Ready?"taking his hand she held it tightly.
"Of course." Walking together this last part seemed like it was going to be easier than expected. They didn't have as much of an incline to deal with. Once they were about as high as Ariel could tell they should be she took the lead and began to circle around the edge. Yes their destination was definitely inside the mountain. It would be a bit much for her to try and punch a hole through with her magic though. Persistence paid off though as a mouth of a cave came into view. Hurrying over it looked pretty deep. It went far enough down that it became pitch black.
"It's in there. Hm." Going up to the wall she painted up a lit torch and it became real.
"That's better. Alright, let's keep going."They were way too close to stop and think about what else might be in the cave. Honestly it probably would have been rather silly to bother with given that there wasn't another living thing anywhere else. The cave twisted and turned several times but with Ariel as their guide it was pretty easy going. She didn't mention it but this close she ability to sense the world around her was a little fuzzy. It didn't seem important at the time. However the walls began to move and without warning the paint of the cavern collapsed on the two. Ariel tried her best to keep a hold of Nolan but they were eventually ripped apart from one another.
For Ariel the torrent of darkness pushed her around like a rag doll, seeming intent on taking her somewhere. It didn't stop until it suddenly let go and she was in her home, or what looked like home. Confused she spun around several times trying to make sense of what was happening. She began to glow and she glanced down at her hands which burst into flames. It suddenly clicked what weas going on as the place caught fire around her. This wasn't real, she could see it. It was a very good imitation but her magic allowed her to see the truth.
"Nice try, but it won't fool me." Throwing her hands out the fabrication of paint shook and started to melt. Coming apart Ariel found herself in the cave again. She looked around for Nolan but didn't see him.
"Nolan! Nolan can you hear me!""Ariel?! I can hear you fine! Are you alright?!" He called to her in the darkness though he couldn't see her. Just where in the world was she?! His pupils glowed white and he found her soul within the darkness. A sigh of relief escaped his lips as soon as he saw her location.
"Hold on, I found-" His words were cut short as a torrent of paint shot out of a wall and began to swallow him.
"S-shit! Get off me!" Nolan swung his arms and legs as hard as he could to get rid of the paint though the more he resisted the more it swallowed him.
Nolan was pulled in completely in a black sphere that kept on growing, as if the entire mountain was trying to swallow him. At this point there was only the low rumble and gurggle of the paint expanding to keep him in.
Spotting Nolan she barely took a step before the paint attacked him as well. Rushing forward she had some trouble catching up with it as it moved around. However she did manage to lunge and thrust her arms into the sphere of paint in an attempt to get a hold of Nolan.
"Hold on Nolan, I'll get you out of this!This would prove to be too much for her; unlike the paint she was trapped in, this was much stronger. Instead of being able to drag Nolan out, she was being pulled into the paint. Try as she might, she wouldn't be able to resist the mass of paint's power and slowly was pulled into the darkness, into Nolan's memories.
A flash of light followed by a deafening crack roared in the sky above. Rain was pouring down at an alarming rate as the wind was tearing through everything on a massive ship. The sea was as black as the sky itself, only illuminating with the wild bolts of lightning tearing in the sky. The ship rocked violently followed by the sound of splintering wood cracking as loudly as the lightning.
And in the middle of this was a young brown haired boy, no more older than seven years with frightful tears running down his eyes.
"Mother! Mootheeeeer!" The boy cried out loudly, desperately looking for his mother within in the chaos.
"Nolan!" A woman's voice could barely be heard over the cacophany of sounds. A woman with long, wavy brown hair similar to Nolan's and the same shiny black eyes ran towards her child. However, a sick twist of fate would never allow her to reach her son; the mast of the ship had crashed down in between them, smashing the already damaged ship into pieces and then swallowed by a wave. There was only the muffled torrent of the rampaging sea as young Nolan was desperately trying to swim to the surface. Then silence.
In the dark water the real Nolan was simply floating with his eyes closed tightly and his hands covering his ears.
Having been pulled into the dark ball of paint Ariel was dropped into the chaotic scene This felt a lot more real than the one she'd experienced. But she didn't have the time to mull on that as the rolling of the ship under her nearly threw her to the deck. Clinging to the railing she could hear the voice of a boy calling out. She had the chance to see the boy and what looked like his mother before the ship began to break apart and the waves washed them all overboard. Tossed at turned in the water she surfaced and was quite turned around. She spotted Nolan, the only other real thing around. He was a good distance away though and with this water it would take a while to get there.
A massive wave rose from the water and then crashed down on them, slamming them further down underwater though the deeper they went, Ariel would notice a red light in the bottom of the water. The red light grew brighter and brighter until it encapsulated them. From the sea they were brought to a completely different place; a different memory.
This version of Nolan was only a little older, perhaps nine or ten years old. He was sitting in a cage, dressed in only torn pants. His face was solemn and worn, his eyes sunken from exhaustion. What was most noticable were the scars all over his body, the blood on his pants, and a choker with a red jem on it. The cage was in a large room lit with red lacrima lights all over. There were others; some trapped in cages though they were mostly women.
"So how much for him?" A woman in a large white fur coat asked another woman who was wearing a suit. They were standing in front of Nolan's cage.
The woman in the suit put her hands together and spoke apologetically to the other. "Sorry, but that one isn't for sale. That's the boss' favorite. You understand right?"
The woman in the white coat sighed and folded her arms, pouting slightly. "Aw, and he's such a cute one too. What a shame."
Ariel was starting to piece together what was going on. These were Nolan's memories, quite dark ones. Each one just seemed to be worse that the last. There was no way of knowing if she could effect them by just standing around though. She'd seen the older Nolan around at the last one but she hadn't quite noticed him yet. So for now she would try and get to the one in the cage. Running across the room she grabbed the bars of the cage.
"Nolan, hold on and I'll get you out." Gripping the bars they softened and she bent them enough to reach in for him.
"Come on, we need to leave."This Nolan hadn't even noticed Ariel, it just sat there blankly staring at the ground. The boy was soon taken to another room silently by the woman in the suit. If Ariel followed him, she would've saw him in a room in front of an older woman, perhaps in her fourties sitting on a couch watching Nolan dance with a deadpanned expresion on his face. His movements were slow yet eloquent, masterful for a child his age. The paint had begun to twist and turn, molding the room to another scene of young Nolan facing what had caused his trauma with women all his life. Countless, horrendous abuses that would leave a person forever scarred and yet his face was always plain. No matter what happened, he didn't cry nor show any pain.
Suddenly the room bursted in black flames, the flames of a God Slayer though they quickly turned into a deep orange as the memory began to shift. Many temples had molded around her, burning down to the ground and blood...so much blood. Dead bodies were laid out everywhere, cold and lifeless among the flickering flames. The only ones standing were a more recent Nolan before he had joined Phoenix Wing and a white haired man in a long white robe with a black horn protruding from his head.
"Why...Why would you do this?" Nolan asked, blood dripping from his body. His grip on his sword grew tighter and tighter.
"They didn't need to die...So why...WHY DID YOU DO THIS?!" The God Slayer roared, charging at the white haired figure in a blind rage.
The white haired figure stared at Nolan lacking any form of emotion. He held his palm out and a white hand smashed Nolan's stomach inwards and sent him skidding along the stone floor.
"Because the gods demand it." He stepped to the side as a torrent of ashes tore through the ground.
"I'll kill you...I'll kill you, you fucking nutjob!" Nolan could barely stand though it hardly mattered to the other man, who turned around and walked away.
"What the...Don't walk away...Don't you dare-" He coughed up blood and fell to his knees.
"I don't feel good about killing children. Don't let me see you again." He vanished without a trace. Nolan had passed out on the ground.
By now Ariel had stopped trying to interact with the world around her. Forced to watch these horrible things happen she stood in shock. With each one she felt numbed and horrified. This was Nolan's past, all these things happened to him. It was no wonder why he acted the way he did, pushed people away, feared women. He'd lost and been abused many times over. And these were just glimpses.
By the time the last scene with the white man had played out Ariel had sat down because her legs wouldn't carry her. She was just a witness to the past and it left its mark. In such a daze it took her a few minutes to realize that her Nolan was the one laying out on the ground. She had to get to him. Crawling forward she eventually managed to stand on wobbly legs and make her way over to him.
When she did make it though she very nearly fell on him. Moving close she rolled him over and held him tightly.
"N-Nolan... I'm here. You need to wake up." Her voice was weak and she was fighting back tears. Leaning her head down she put her forehead against his.
"I didn't know. How could I? These things that happened... I need you to remember more. Not all these aweful things. Think of your friends, the guild... think about us. Remember what you told me." She stroked his face gently and lifted him into her lap.
"Don't give in Nolan. I need you, you need to come back with me."It all hurt...oh god it hurts. His body felt like it was anchored, his very soul was being dragged down deeper and deeper into the abyss. It was so cold to fall away from the light. There was nothing; there is only the pain that haunted him every night. The abuse, the loss, the anger...it all tore through his body. Perhaps he could finally give up, just stop fighting the monsters in his mind.
And yet there was one ray of light, so warm and comforting. He heard echoes of Ariel's pleads going through his mind until his eyes finally opened from the nightmares.
Ariel... He smiled weakly at her trying to put on his strongest front, but for once in his life it was starting to break; tears were running down the sides of his face and he held onto her as tight as he could, burying his face in her shoulder and finally let years and years worth of sadness out.
When he said her name and opened his eyes Ariel smiled briefly and set out sigh of relief.
"Hey there." Not much else was able to be said as she watched him break in her arms from repressed emotions. For a long time she said nothing and simply held him like a child letting him cry out on her shoulder. When the tears stopped flowing she brushed his hair gently and kissed his head.
"Let it all out Nolan. I'm here for you."No, no...I'm done now...I'm fine. He lifted his head from her shoulder that showed his eyes were now red from crying. For so long he had carried this weight on his shoulders and now he felt lighter. No, crying wasn't going to be an answer to his emotional trauma, but now he felt at least human.
Nolan sighed, exhausted by this ordeal. They both were.
I love you. He placed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. Slowly he moved in and kissed her lovingly yet needingly, as if he couldn't live without her.
Ariel didn't even say anything, she didn't have to. This whole time they'd been getting to know each other but that all felt small in comparison to this walk through Nolan's past. She was able to understand him better and share the burden. More importantly though she'd pulled Nolan from the brink because of it. They'd been flirty and loving on each other the last couple weeks but she dove head first into nightmares and the only thing that kept her going was Nolan. It wasn't that she couldn't leave him behind, she just couldn't leave him.
So when they kissed this time it was more and they both knew it. The hell that had been created around them weakened and melted away in a much less dramatic way than Ariel had dispersed her own. Holding the kiss for a while she eventually broke it and moved to stand, helping Nolan up as well.
"Let's finally get out of here." The exit was only a few yards away and having crossed the last hurdle were able to exit.