[IC] A Hero Tale {Complete}

[tex]

Luke nodded. "Haha, there's more I bet, but you've got a lot to work with. I think you biggest problem is controlling everything about yourself," Luke stated, "If you can learn to just calm yourself, you'd be unstoppable."

[Jensoman]

Jenso blinked at Luke. "How can I calm myself when there's so much at risk all the time? If I lose or do nothing, people will die. It's always the same!" Jenso shouted. "I can't afford to calm myself. If I just stand there and let bad people kill innocents just for the sake of my own self preservation, I'd be disgusted with myself..."

[tex]

Luke smiled and fell backwards, laying down on the smooth, white, battleground behind him. "I used to be a lot like you when I was your age. Eager, ready to to anything for the right cause, never able to make sacrifices... Haha, I was almost the exact same person," Luke admitted. "I would put myself in danger more than I'd like to admit. Every day, when the tunnels first started out. Most for Bobba..." Luke sighed and his expression went grim. He reached down and lifted his green tank-top up to reveal his midsection. To the right of his abdominal muscles, there was a giant scar that stretched alongside his entire oblique. "Remember how I said Bobba died? Cuz he got sick?"

[Jensoman]

"Umm...yeah..?" Jenso muttered, staring at the scar. He was glad that his father could relate to him. Perhaps he understood him more than anyone else.

[tex]

"It wasn't no normal sickness, not cancer," He admitted, "That's a lie. It was poison. He got stung by one of them giant scorpions from the underground caverns. I tried to save him, but," Luke lowered his arm and tapped his scar. "Stinger went right through me, and he got all the poison..." Luke tensed up and lowered his shirt. "After that day, I wasn't able to forgive myself. Bobba wouldn't talk to me, every day I went to visit him. Back then he was a lot older than me, so I thought he was depressed, facin' the end and all. But.. He was teaching me something." Luke rose his hand behind his head again and chuckled lightly. "The day he died, I walked in with a smile, pretending to be alright. He looked at me and smiled back. After a month of sayin' nothin' and staring at the ceiling, he smiled back and said the words the changed me for the better, I think."

"I was going to die either way, Luke. Now, look at what you've gone and done to yourself"

"Ever since then, I hadn't been able to harness my Ki or arcane energy the same way." Luke grunted. "I used to be pretty strong, y'know. Stronger than most people. Bobba taught me how with those fancy books o' his. He was from a different time, after all." Luke sat back up and stood his back straight. "Bobba was right. What was there to be gained from saving him? He was dead, either way, whether it be through age, a monster, a villain, he was gonna die. We're all gonna die." Luke flexed his hand a few times, staring at it intently. "We shouldn't be protecting life. Life isn't what's important." Luke began scratching his head, and chuckled again. "What's important is happiness. What point is there livin' if you can't smile and be the best you that you can be? People die all the time Jenso." Right this second, there's somebody getting stabbed to death, coughing up blood, or dying from a disease. Hundreds, thousands, maybe even millions. How would you feel if they came up to you, one after another," Luke turned to Jenso and looked at him as if he were a villain, "And said to you, looking at you like this:"

"Why weren't you there? Why couldn't you save my mother? Where were you?"

"All while you were busy fighting a threat that posed more danger to the entire world than cancer ever will?" Luke grunted. "Priorities, Jenso. Keep your priorities straight, and that's how you'll learn to calm your soul." Luke began chuckling once again and patted his scar. "Even so, I don't regret what I did. If it wasn't for that action, I never would have learned how to prioritise. I would have been the same idiot who wanted to do the impossible."

[Jensoman]

Jenso choked up a bit as Luke spoke and staggered back slightly. He clenched his fists out of sheer frustration for a moment, as they shuddered. "Priorities..." He muttered, and began to calm down for a moment. His mind flashed back to something that Vale had said to him a good while back. According to him, if Lark simply laid low and hadn't done anything, the whole Order of Chaos business would have been over without him needing to lift a finger.

But one thing was unclear out of all of that. Would he truly have been happy with himself, for doing nothing? Would he still have been happy with his life? All this time, he blamed himself for Lark's death, but perhaps Lark simply answered to his priorities as he tried to save Jenso. He blamed himself for Vale going rogue and trying to kill him, but perhaps Vale would have gone crazy if Lark had passed away out of old age or some disease anyways.

Luke was right. Sacrifises had to be made to achieve victory sometimes, and it was up to him to make the right decision. His choices could affect the outcome drastically. Perhaps many people died while Jenso tried to stop Geode, but in the end he made the right decision and stopped the problem at it's core with Oz's aid. He smiled at Luke. "Thanks, Luke...it won't be easy, but I'll take your advice to heart."

[tex]

Luke nodded after a slight delay. Luke chuckled to himself and jumped off the platform. "Heh, good," He rasped, quietly. That when Bruce and Alvios arrived. Luke looked towards the entrance and waved them over. "Ey! Right on time, fellas."

---

~ End Of Chapter 140 ~

[tex]

~ Chapter 141 ~

_{Cutting The Light}

Bruce and Alvios were given the same speech about Initiative as Jenso, Jeff, and Oswald. With that out of the way, Luke ordered the two of them to spar, looking to apply what they'd learned, while trying to seize the initiative, first and foremost. Luke rose his hand and smiled.

"Ready, set.." He paused. "Ah! Right! No going all out!" He ordered, "This isn't a serious fight! It's about seizing the initiative!" With the out of the way, he dropped his hand and jumped back off the floating circular platform. "Fight! Go, go, go!""

[Jensoman]

Jenso's eyes widened. He had to move fast, to avoid being caught between the attacks of the two powerful heroes. He quickly hopped off the platform as well, landing beside his father. He smirked confidently, eager to see the two clash. They were both strong in their own way.

[Brucenorris007]

Bruce summoned his blade of ki, electing to keep his other weapons out of sight unless they became necessary or advantageous. As far as he knew, Alvios only knew of his sword. He leaned forward and erupted toward Alvios, strafing to aim for his side opposite where he kept his own blade. In a short sprint, Bruce drew up near him, slashing upward at an angle. He kept his stance such that he could either press Alvios back or make a brief withdrawal based on his response.

[Hatman1801]

"Sword-fight time then?" Alvios didn't bother drawing his physical blade, instead forming his own blade of Ki to block Bruce's, negating the advantage of the flank. He clashed against Bruce's upward swing with a downward one, while the sword at his hip shattered of its own accord. The fragments covered themselves in Ki, floating up and flying at Bruce from multiple angles.

We both make Ki weapons it seems. Mikey said he had vast reserves, same type as Jenso, and unfocused. My highly-focused Ki and restoration held up well against Jenso's massive power, and now that I know what kind of strength I'm up against, as well as being familiar with weapon-based combat, I should have experience on my side...

[Brucenorris007]

Bruce heard the sword break up, and he recalled hearing about Alvios' superior skills in ki control.
'It would be best to make this spar brief for both of us,' Bruce thought, turning his foot to give him a wider stance and therefore more momentum in pressing on. 'In the long run, though, if Mikey was correct, I should be able to outlast him in a battle of stamina.'
Bruce expelled more of his ki in a focused form of a chain that snaked around his body under his robe. The end of it then flew out and downward toward Alvios' feet, intent on taking away his footing while Bruce pushed upward with more force with his blade to upset Alvios' balance.
At the same time, he dug deep into his soul for the sensation that had struck him during his bout with Vale. Fortunately, he found it readily, even in the space somewhat removed from his element, and his body hardened in response. Beneath the building, he heard the planet's breathing, and he allowed his mind at ease that this sage form would be sufficient to prevent serious damage from Alvios' projectile weaponry and give Bruce an edge in power.

[tex]

Just as Alvios and Bruce began clashing, the entirety of the ground shook, sending them both off balance and knocking Luke to his feet. The floating platform locked into the ground for safety, and Mikey stormed into the training room.

"There's been a breach!" He shouted, "Outside the walls, creatures like... I don't know!" He waved the group out of the training room and rushed towards the front hall of the hero guild, hoping they would follow.

--

Ultimate, he only took Jenso and Bruce with him to investigate the east wall. Everyone else left to defend the north, south, and westward walls. When they arrived on top of the high-tech ramparts, they were able to see a collection of at least 30 purple creatures, turning large portions of the walls purple. Their energy, or bodies, whatever it was, stemmed outwards like giant webs.

"Are those.. Ada's creations??"

[Jensoman]

Jenso glared at the beasts as they turned the walls purple. He thrusted his left arm forwards, launching a Ki-image impact punch at one of the creatures to see how it would respond to pure Ki. "Is Ada trying to take control of the base with her purple goo?!" He asked Bruce and Mikey. He clenched his fists in frustration. If she succeeded, their entire plan might be ruined.

[tex]

Mikey followed up and launched a stream of Arki at one clone, slicing it in half, and dispersing it. The clone that Jenso attacked exploded and didn't reform. Mikey shrugged and continued firing at the horde. "I don't know, but they don't seem too attentive. Keep wiping them off before something bad happens!" He shouted.

[Jensoman]

"Right!" Jenso simply responded, launching a barrage of Impact punches at the horde of clones in an attempt to dispatch them quickly. He kept a close eye on the movements of the creatures as he did.

[tex]

The monstrosities didn't react. One after another they faded, and with them, their webs disappeared as well. It didn't take very long. Was this just a distraction? It couldn't have been. All of the walls were attacked, and the trumps had all been moved to react. Mikey nodded and walked off the ramparts, jumping down into the city below. As Jenso caught up, he looked to his friend and sighed.

"What was that all about?" He asked. Suddenly, his phone rang off the hook. It was Jeff! What could he possibly want? Mikey picked up his com device and answered it. "What is it, Jeff?"

[Brucenorris007]

Bruce glared at the spot where the nearest creature had disappeared. Slowly, he turned his gaze up and surveyed the outer side of the walls. The extent of whatever damage they might have caused couldn't be properly assessed from his position.
'There was a reason for this.' Bruce thought, scratching his chin with his index finger. 'If not a distraction, then a message of some form. Are they simply telling us that they know where we are? Do they mean to say they can try to destroy us at any time?'
"Wait..." Bruce murmured, whipping his head around toward the inner chambers and quarters. He dropped to his knees and slammed his palm into the ground, expanding his presence to sense the situation inside.

[SuperFlash]

Before Mikey could have a chance to respond anything else Jeff blurted out in panic. "Mikey, They got Alvios! We managed to drive all of them back, but only after they swarmed him nonstop." Jeff then turned his attention to some of the lower guild members shouting random orders to them in the background and muttering something about how he was completely pissed how they seem to keep pulling these kinds of stuns on them at what seems to be by the day now, though only a few words could be made out of the rant. Taking a few seconds after to calm down he returned back his attention to Mikey. "We're having him rushed to the infirmary now to have him scanned. Geode pray we can help him."

[Jensoman]

Jenso's eyes widened as he overheard Mikey's conversation with Jeff. "No...Alvios..!" Jenso blurted out, concerned for the safety of his friend. "Darn it...how did we fall for that?!" He added, clearly shocked about what had happened. "This madness needs to stop..." He muttered, turning to Mikey and Bruce. "We gotta get stronger as fast as possible so we can beat the Order...It's what Alvios would want." He said.