Ferrin Astra Colt and Claire
Mors Vincent Omni
Yesterday, Aftermath of the Battle.
He said "don't worry about him. I remember getting that speech a time or two as a kid. That's just how he is" he mused on that a moment, before shrugging, and studying the destroyed building. He walked on over.
A chuckle escaped him at the mention of the destroyed building, "the magic council is what it is, and that is why I am here. Even now, I'm around to clean up your messes, Ferrin" not that Ferrin would even know who he was, but he amused himself by playing with him.
Raising a hand, he closed his fingers one by one and Then opened them one by one, like their own miniature Mexican wave. The building restored itself, and then in a blink of the eye, Timelord was gone.
Ferrin's look of puzzlement morphed into a scowl, and he glared at the empty space where Seth had vanished. He muttered some ungracious things about where Timmy could stick his messes, but his anger was subverted by the feeling that he was simply getting some cosmic payback. The I-know-something-you-don't-know routine was something he did a lot to other people.
Then, the possible implications of what he had said dawned on Ferrin.
His headache intensified.
Ferrin shook his head and growled.
"I don't have time for this."Ferrin missed what Sora said, and he was only slightly aware of him moving to rejoin the battle that was currently going on. Ferrin wanted to help, but he took a step forward, and the world started swaying nauseatingly. Ferrin's headache mutated into a full-blown migraine. [color=silver][i]What?[i][/color] Ferrin thought, his mind fuzzy, and slow. He could feel huge waves of magic coming from across the park, but even they were dwarfed by the massive amount of magic Ferrin could feel, grating against his skull. His gaze was drawn to the east, where, unknown to him, Grane and Saya were facing down Frye. But he could feel the magic, all the way over here. Beyond that, there was some
presence wrapped around his mind, squeezing it, stifling it. He struggled the put up his mental barriers, a familiar ritual that he had developed to block out over stimulus for exposure to large quantities of magic. After a brief struggle, it worked. The pain receded, and his thoughts cleared. He was left panting, feeling strangely out of sorts.
"What is going on...? He wondered, trying to make sense of it. He had a feeling like he was staring at a strange puzzle with two pieces swapped, as if one small change could make the entire picture recognizable. He shook his head, and immediately regretted it as the ground did a few one-eighties around his head, then threw in some loopty-loops for an encore. He staggered a bit.
Calm down He told himself.
Think, there has to be a reason for this... But any attempt to put together a coherent train of thought was foiled. It was all he could do to maintain his mental walls. There was commotion on the other side of the clearing, but that wasn't his concern. His first priority was...he wasn't sure. A kid? His kid? No, no kids. The Twin. Right.
As he thought of them, Ferrin was gripped by a sudden sense of foreboding. He turned to the direction he had left the Twin in, and drunkenly staggered that way, no one tried to stop him for whatever reason.
Have to...find...them... He thought. He came to the spot where they had arrive, and looked around, but they where nowhere to be found.
Of course, he realized. They must have put some distance from them and the battle. He staggered away plodded in one direction for a few minutes, before he realized that he had no idea where he was going. The city was vast and without some way to locate--
Ferrin put his head in his metal palm and groaned. The ring of course.
His headache throbbed. He felt even worse.
This...ailment is...magical in nature. I know that much...but...what..... He dearly wished to find somewhere dark and lie down for a bit...or a month. But he had an obligation to help his client...and hell, if he was being truthful with himself,
liked the kids. Then there was their wild story of some madman's plot to destroy the city. That would be rather inconvenient. So he hauled himself together, stuck some mental tape on his fragmented mind, and set to work.
He fumbled in his pockets, and pulled out a silver ring, identical in every way to the one he had given the Twin, even cast from the same chunk of silver ore. He held the ring up to eye level and started muttering. The actual words didn't matter, only the intent and willpower behind it. A stream of nonsense syllables flowed from his mouth, some English, some Latin, some Greek with the occasion bit of Russian and German interspaced by grunts in a vaguely arcane sounding babble. Had he been in his right mind, he would have almost been proud of it.
It took less then a minute for the magic to take effect, the ring pulled gently in a certain direction. It was strong, the pair was close. Ferrin slipped the ring on, and followed the pull.
The magic had no concept of obstacles, and Ferrin's head hurt too much to triangulate, so he mostly stumbled forward until something got in his way, then he took a detour, reoriented himself, and stumbled forward again. Some people asked if he was okay, others just gave him weird looks.
He ignored them both.
Some time later, he slipped between two buildings, and entered an open space, an empty lot that had been overlooked when the city was planned and built.
And it was just that. Empty.
Ferrin gave it a lidless glance over, and passed through it. At the other side he stopped. The ring was pulling back the way he came. He turned around.
The last rays of the setting sun glinted off of a tiny circle of metal, lying discarded in the dirt. Ferrin stumbled over to and he carefully picked it up, and held up the other ring. They matched.
"No..." He gasped.
His mental barriers fell, his mind shattered and was swept apart by the assault. His head swam, and he felt dizzy. Words echoed in his head, and memories of another time and place flashed through his mind. He started shaking, he felt feverish, and his breath sped up. The sunlight hurt his eyes, as the world spun around his head. His head throbbed and he felt like it was going to split open, the migraine intensified with every throb. He thought he could hear a voice singing, as if from far away, calling...calling to him. He became aware of more phantom sensations, things that felt real, but were not. He could feel what felt like a centipede crawling up his leg, his hand felt like it was on fire, and the inside of his mouth felt like dry leaves. There was too much going on, his brain was overloaded, trying to sort the out whirlwind of the sights, sounds, smells, feels, or distinguish from past, and future. It was too much, too much!
Ferrin tasted blood in his mouth, and he felt a slight pain in his tongue. He felt a mountain of guilt pile up. He inexplicably remembered her, painful memories that will never fade with time. Blond hair. Blue eyes. The smell of strawberries and sunshine.
I failed...again...
I'm sorry, AsheliaThen the ground hit him with an uppercut, and everything went dark.
Time passed.
How much, he didn't know.
Ferrin drifted. And it was nice.
He drifted in a void, he could taste nothing, smell nothing, feel nothing, see nothing, and he could only hear a voice singing, as of from a great distance...Memories that might have been his own drifted by.
"Magus" A Voice, melodious and powerful, split the void, and resonated with Ferrin.
...leave me be...Self-pity does not become one such as you, Magus.
Do not call me that. That name is no longer mine.Magus Ferrinas Astra!
Each syllable fell like a hammer blow. Magus's mind shook with the intensity of it.
Your name and power were given to you, and they bore little responsibility other then to bear them wisely and honorably. Do not malign them.
What do I care? All they have brought me is misery and sorrow. Besides, I was born with this curse. You merely enhanced it, and trained me in it so that you may continue existing. I owe nothing to you.There was a sigh, of titanic depth and width that reverberated through Magus's soul, carrying an unspeakable sadness within.
You have not changed, child. Ever the stubborn one.I learned from the best.The Voice chuckled.
You did indeed, child, you did indeed...
Now, I grow weary, child, and my time grows short, so I shall come to the purpose for which I contacted you. To offer advice, and lend aid.Was this your doing?Nay, the one who caused you ailment lay far over the continent to the north. Though I sensed no ill intent, instead, it seemed like an attempted form of long range communication. I believe that it was improperly done, causing your collapse.Why me?I know not. Only that it was specifically drawn to you, yet you were not the intended receiver.Very well.My aid is thus, to repair your mind, my advice is thus, to stay thy course.The Voice's presence withdrew, leaving Magus alone in the void, in the silence, he could hear a distant voice singing.
Wait! What about the Twin?The Voice rumbled in what might have been laughter.
You know all that you need to know.And it faded out.
Damn...damn it all. Just comes in and goes out at their leisure, cryptic as always. Ferrin thought, his reasoning functions restored. He pondered what was said, and the implications thereof.
Great, more on my plate. Just what I need. He thought. But he could feel his excitement rising at the prospect of an adventure. A bright light shone through the void, and Ferrin felt himself drift toward it.
Well, at least I will not be bored.Ferrin Astra
Mors Vincent Omni
Fifth day of the Grand Magic Games
7:30 a.m.
Ferrin woke to pain.
Given how his week was going, and how this day was looking to turn out, it was par the course.
Ferrin groaned as he sat up, his face half covered in dust, and the morning sun's rays hit him in he eyes.
"Ow...note to self, spending the night face down in the dirt is torture on the body." He said. Despite that, he was feeling oddly refreshed, in mind and body. The brief aches vanished quickly, and Ferrin realized that the collection of wounds and bruises he had accumulated over the last few days had healed to scars, or disappeared. He sprung to his feet in a burst of energy. He stretched a few times, and rolled his head.
"Well, what do you know, maybe sleeping face down in the dirt is good for the body." Although he knew the real reason.
He strode out onto the street, and took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. A smile split his scarred face. For the first time since coming to this time, he felt...calm, and centered. His mind was cleared and his spirits high. He looked at his mechanical arm.
Honor, huh? He thought, and he began walking.
Strangely, he didn't feel hungry either, but he knew he had to eat. Magical healing may dampen appetite, but his body still needed the nutrients. He pulled out a wrapped sandwich he had made...one...no two nights ago, and started tearing into it. It was gone quickly, and Ferrin let out a contented sigh. He then pulled out a canteen of water, and drank.
His needs taken care of, he started walking in a direction, letting his feet take him wherever.
I "know all that I need to know"...obviously that mean that I have all the pieces of the puzzle, I just need to put them together... He thought for a moment, before finally coming to a conclusion.
I have nothing. He was distracted by a loud voice, coming from several places at once.
"Well, here we are! The last day of the games, anyone can win today! Last constestant or team standing earns their guild just enough points to secure a win! Today, will be, Pandemonion! An all out battle, with the city as your field, but do try and not destroy it. Most buildings are protect, but still! You have five minutes! Plan as you will, but on the bell....you will begin!'Ah, of course. The Grand Magic Games. Ferrin had been so wrapped up in this business, that he had forgotten the original reason he had come. To watch the Games, and perhaps join a guild.
Although, he had reservations about the second part.
He hadn't been keeping up with them, so he took a brief moment to check the scores on a nearby lacrima vision, inside a bar. It looked like a close game, it could be anyone's win. He dearly wanted to stay and watch, but his friend and perhaps the whole city was in danger, and he was, possibly, the only one who could stop it.
