RPG Final Fantasy: Online Another World

[James]

[i]Chole continued to explore the coastline with his eyes...his glasses zoomed in as he combed the area for any signs of life.

As he looked out over the water, he noticed something strange. The fish in the water weren't moving. They were dead, it seemed.

Chole removed his glasses for a moment and rubbed his eyes.[/i]

Chole: The fish...are they dead?

Sephiroth: I think so...

Karu: What could have killed all the fish?

Sephiroth: Who knows...

[i]Chole put his glasses back on and continued combing the landscape.

All of a sudden, the boat began to rock back and forth in the water. The water around them was becoming unstable. Chole removed his glasses again and looked all around them -- he couldn't see what was making the water move.

Jasmine held onto Sephiroth, who held her in his arms. She may have been a warrior, but he was glad that she was seeking comfort from him.

Karu crawled toward the front of the boat and looked out over the water. He froze.[/i]

Karu: Uhh...g-guys? T-here's...s-something here...

[i]Karu fainted.[/i]

Chole: Hey! Karu!!! Wake up!!

[i]Chole ran over to Karu and shook him. But it was no use -- he was out cold. He carefully lifted up Karu and took him down into the passenger compartment of the boat. He lay Karu on the bed and covered him with a blanket.[/i]

Chole: Please be okay, Karu...

[i]When Chole came back up onto the deck, he saw Jasmine and Sephiroth on their knees, their hands over their ears...their eyes closed tightly.[/i]

Chole: What the hell is going on?! Sephiroth?! Jasmine..?!

[i]Neither Sephiroth nor Jasmine replied. But after a few brief moments, Sephiroth stood up and unsheathed his sword.

He turned to face Jasmine.

She looked up at him, her eyes full of terror. She couldn't scream or move...her terror enveloped her entire being.

Sephiroth's sword was glowing bright red, something it had never done before. Chole called out to Sephiroth, but it was in vain...Sephiroth wasn't listening to anyone or anything around him. And yet Chole could hear him muttering under his breath...

"I can't do it, I can't do it...don't make me do it. Please, I'll do anything. Don't make me to do it...for God's sake, please don't make me do it..."

Sephiroth raised the sword high into the air. Jasmine looked up in horror at Sephiroth, who's eyes were staring at her...coldly and without emotion.

Jasmine reached out toward Sephiroth...everything became blurred...the ocean's colors changed with each blink of the eye...and the sky grew dark...

Chole began to feel light headed...his vision blurred and his ears were blocked. He could see Jasmine screaming...but he could only hear whispers in the air...

"But I love you...why are you doing this?! Why?! Please don't...please...I love you..."

Chole reached out to stop Sephiroth...but it was too late...in a flurry of still, black and white moments...of clouds of red feathers and distant screams and hellish noises...the great sword was brought down on her...

His vision cleared. The feathers were gone...the sky was blue once more and the ocean was peaceful.

Laying infront of him was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She lay there, a lock of her dark hair covering her face. It was such a perfect scene, but it wasn't right somehow. As his eyes looked down...he saw it. He saw that her dress was stained a very dark shade of crimson...and that the wooden deck of the boat upon which she lay was covered in the dark substance.

He fell to his knees. He looked at his sword. It, like the decking of the boat, was covered with dark crimson. His white hair had turned red and was sticking to his trenchcoat.

He lurched forward and vomited heavily. He looked around him and saw his friend, Chole...standing there...white faced...staring thoughtlessly into the horizon beyond.

Tears welled in his eyes for the first time in years. He looked down upon his love...laying so peacefully on the deck of the boat.

He lifted her up and kissed her cheek softly.

"Goodbye my love..."

He cast her into the blue ocean and watched as she dissappeared into the waiting arms of the dark abyss below.

Sephiroth held his face in his hands. He couldn't even cry -- he could only shake violently. His stomach hurt...his head hurt...even his fingers hurt. What had he done? ...but it wasn't his fault! It was his sword...the sword to which his life had been directly connected.

He stood up and took his sword in his two hands. And then he plunged the sword deeply into his own chest. He closed his eyes and pushed hard...trying so hard to take his own life.

But he couldn't. His body didn't even feel the pain -- the sword continued glowing. It kept him alive. It refused to let him die.

Sephiroth collapsed on the deck of the boat that afternoon. The shock of what had occurred was too great for him to bear. He lay there, unconscious.

In his dark and tormented dreams...he could hear a distant voice...

"How dare you think you can have peace. Look at what you are...look at what you've done. You don't deserve to die...you will live with your pain whether you like it or not. You know nothing...the end is near..."[/i]

[size=1]Sorry if that's a bit err..."deep" for some of you lol...but I have an idea in mind...and as the story progresses, all will be revealed.

If this post was too much, Seph...then it can be removed. It's really your choice as to whether or not you want to continue the story in this way (since Jasmine was your character). :)[/size]

[Break]

[SIZE=1]AJ: Rasanak, give me the sword.

Rasanak: How many times is this gonna be passed on until I can actually [i]use[/i] it?

AJ: Heh, as many times as I need to, I mean to get it good enough... I should be done soon, I'll go back to the inn.

Sabir: We might as well all go....

Cloud: Yeah.

[i]The party stepped out of Hades' shop and again went back to the inn. AJ instantly ran upstairs, clutching the sword tightly.

Ken pointed over to a bar/restaurant in the corner, with a few tables in it.[/i]

Ken: Who's hungry?

Cloud: Ah! Food!

Rasanak: I'll be down in a minute, I just gotta check on AJ for a sec.

Treble: Ok.

[i]Rasanak hung his cloak up on a peg and walked upstairs and went to one of the rooms they had. He tried to open it, but it was locked. He knocked on the door. No answer. He knocked again. Nothing.[/i]

Rasanak: AJ?

AJ: GO AWAY I MUST CONCENTRATE!

Rasanak: Whoa!

AJ: GO!!

Rasanak: ....

[i]Rasanak went downstairs and found that the group were at a table, talking and eating some fine smelling food.[/i]

Cloud: So, how was he?

Rasanak: A little crazy...

Treble: What?

Rasanak: He shouted at me...

Sabir: Oh, must need to concentrate then.

Ken: That's probably it, just leave him and he'll be fine.

Rasanak: Yeah, I guess.

[i]Rasanak sat down beside Ken and ordered some food.[/i][/SIZE]

[James]

[i]As the sun began to set, the water around the boat again became unstable. The boat rocked from side to side, its old wooden frame creaking with the movement.

Sephiroth and Chole both opened their eyes at the same time. Chole looked at Sephiroth and was about to say he was sorry about what had happened, but he held his tongue. Nothing could possibly make Sephiroth feel any better right now.

Sephiroth stood up and unsheathed his sword again.

The water was moving...and something was up ahead of them.

A large, blue, scaly hump slowly rose out of the water only a few metres ahead of the boat. Chole watched in terror as the giant serpent's head emerged from the water.

It continued to rise...twenty metres...thirty metres...fifty metres...it was as tall as some of the tallest skyscrapers in all of Solhara.

The giant sea-serpent shook its head and the large flaps on the side of his head fanned out. They were brilliantly colorful -- but Chole didn't have time to notice the colors. He was too busy staring into the menacing eyes of the beast.

It looked down at Sephiroth and began to speak...

[/i]Serpent: Ahh. So you're finally here. I was expecting as much...

Sephiroth: ....

Serpent: Hahahah. Still angry about Jasmine, eh?

Sephiroth: ...What?!

Serpent: Yes, unfortunate, that...tsk tsk, killing your own lover with your own sword...how terrible of you...

Sephiroth: You know very well that I had no control over my actions...it's this sword...

Serpent: Yeah...you can blame the sword all you want. The sword is only a reflection of your inner desires. Obviously you didn't care too much for Jasmine...

Sephiroth: [b][i]How dare you say that![/b][/i]

Serpent: No need to get nasty with me...Jasmine was dead weight anyway. She only held you back...

Sephiroth: [b][i]Take that back this instant! Take it back or you'll feel pain like you've never experienced before![/b][/i]

Serpent: You see? Hahah...all you want to do is kill me! That's your only solution! Well, in any case, I'm here to ensure that you don't pass. I have orders, you see...

Chole: Orders?

Serpent: Yes, orders! You're not to go north from here...that little thing with Jasmine was designed to point you back south.

Sephiroth: [i][b]You made me kill her just because you want to protect your stupid territory?[/i][/b]

Serpent: Of course. She was a pointless individual anyway...who cares if she's dead?

[i]It was too much for Sephiroth. He had to take out his rage...

He summoned all his strength...and pushed off the deck of the boat with his feet. He jumped up high into the air...higher than the serpent itself. Chole watched in amazement as Sephiroth dissappeared into the clouds.

The serpent looked somewhat surprised and looked around frantically.

The area of sky directly above the serpent's head turned a brilliant red color. And in an instant, Chole saw Sephiroth dive down from the clouds, holding his glowing red sword tightly in his fists.

He drove the sword directly into the top of the serpent's head. Rivers of crimson blood flowed down the snake's face and body.

Sephiroth stood on the creature's head and continued driving the sword into its face. Over and over again...he didn't stop. He was surrounded by red light.

Chole was amazed. He'd never seen Sephiroth unleash such tremendous power before...

Before too long, Sephiroth jumped down from the snake onto the boat. He stood and watched the great creature sway back and forth...its enormous eyes rolled back in its huge head.

Eventually, it toppled back into the ocean from where it came...
[/i]

Sephiroth: I don't know who your master is...but they will pay a very dear price for what they've done...

[conpiracymonki]

[i]As the party tucked into their desserts, having just had seconds, and thirds, they heard a thud, and a yell.
Sabir jumped up, out of her seat, her reactions taking over her.
Everyone else just turned around.
Thud thud thud thud

It was AJ, he was running down the stairs, with something in his hands.
It was shiney black, and had patterns of a deep red on it..[/i]

[b][color=darkblue]Wazhnak: My Mecha Sword! What have you done to it?[/color]

AJ: Let's see now, I've I've drained the Spirit Stone power into the generator, making less lag-time when powering up; I've added the chain as a chainsaw part around the edge of the blade, and you can switch[i] that[/i] on by pressing the second switch on the bottom of the generator; and I've remodelled it, so it's black and red. Red and black looks better than the chrome-look that sucky Hades guy put on it. Ya like it?

[color=orange]Sabir: That is [i]not[/i] the thing it was before....:eek: [/color]

AJ: :D I guess that's a good thing, anyway, let's go 'in your face' it to Hades..

[color=darkblue]Wazhnak: Yeah, it'll save me some Gil too

*Wazhnak pats pocket*[/b][/color]

[Guest Zeh]

[COLOR=indigo][i] after the finished eating they stayed at the bar telling each other stories. Also Sabirsing was telling the story of how she slaughtered Harper. While all this was going on Cloud secretly sneaked out of the inn. He walked onto the beach. This is where they had seen Levithan the day before. Why had it ran away. Was it the real thing? no.... impossible

Cloud decided to go for a walk. The beach was too squeaky for him so he walked out of of the beach. He was thinking about things. Why was he here? This all started because of a litttle Quart boy.... Karu if he remembered correctly. What else was there for him to do. He decided not to go back to the inn. He had himself and his bow and 20 some random thousand gil.

He didn't know where to do, what to do but he decided to wonder for now. He walked North and a touch to the east.

It started to get dark as he wondered. He could hear bushes moving and just about everything making noise. Monsters. Things had jumped out in front of him. He notched off a few arrows and slew them, without thinking. [/i]

Cloud: *sigh* I wish there was someone to talk to. just walking alone sometimes can get boring....

[i] Moments after he had said the to himself he heard a screach of alarm. Something in distress!

He ran towards where he thought the nose might be. He saw eight Warewolfs circling around some defencless creature. He knew nature would always have it's way, but he hated to see things die. He jumped in front of the warewolfs, and infront of the poor creature. He froze. It was the warewolfs turn. They Did jump like attacks towards Cloud. Not greatly damaging but took 1/4 of his life since therewas eight. It was his turn. He notched 4 arrows into one of the Warewolfs. [/color]

[COLOR=red] ??434?? [/color]

[color=indigo]Appeared over it's head. It turned into a fainted red color and disappeared. There were still seven left though. They all attacked him, a group attack.[/color]

[COLOR=red]??WarewolfWhirlWind??[/COLOR]

[color=indigo]it took Cloud down to a few hps.
[/color]
[COLOR=red]L[/COLOR][COLOR=indigo]I[/COLOR][COLOR=green]M[/COLOR][COLOR=blue]I[/COLOR][COLOR=seagreen]T[/COLOR] [COLOR=chocolate]B[/COLOR][COLOR=deeppink]R[/COLOR][COLOR=orange]E[/COLOR][COLOR=darkblue]A[/COLOR][COLOR=darkred]K[/COLOR]

[color=red]??Heaven's Arrows??[/color]

[COLOR=indigo]Cloud had a limit. He Jumped up into the air and fired off countless arrows into all the Warewolfs. The all turned faded and disappeared. [/i] [/color]

[color=indigo]Cloud: I wonder what they were attacking.

[i]He turned around and saw a hurt Black Chocobo. A Black Chocobo! Cloud dashed over to it and poured a few healing potions onto it's wounds.[/i] [/color]

[COLOR=seagreen]??500??[/COLOR]
[i]
[COLOR=indigo]Cloud drank a potion him self too.

The Choco Got up and rubbed its head on Clouds leg.

Cloud decided to Name this abandoned Black Choco Shadow.

Now cloud walked beside his newfound friend instead of getting on it right now. He stopped a few meters ahead and decided to set up camp.[/color] [/i]

[Sephiroth]

[sephiroth sat down at the front of the boat, looking onwards, he had not spoken a single word since the incident with the snake, his head was filled with thoughts, his long white hair was still drenched with dried blood, some of it from jasmine, and some from the serpent, he did not care about that right now, he had more important things to think about, there must be a way to bring back jasmine, there just had to be, he heard of practices of resurrection, though they were always vague, perhaps the answers to his questions lied at the destination they were headed for, in any case, he held his guard in case something else decided to show up and try to attack them, he would make sure that no more deaths were suffered at his hands, he glanced down at his masamune, it was still covered in the serpents blood, he held his sword and looked closely at it, the blood from the serpent still dripping, he drove the sword into the water to cleanse it, he held it back up, no trace of blood left on it]

seph: don't worry jasmine, I'll make sure you are brought back if its the last thing I ever do....

to be continued....

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue]:bawl: That's so sad........Poor Jasmine....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/COLOR]
[COLOR=seagreen]Sabirsing: ...........so.........where's Cloud?

Ken: Good question...

Sabir: Is anybody else wondering if we're still adding anything to this story?

Treble: Hmmmmm..............[/COLOR]

[Treble]

Treble: Hmmm...where can Cloud be?

Ken: Its only been for a few hours since Cloud left he's probaly walking around for some fresh air,don't worry he'll be safe after all Cloud's a nice guy noone wants to harm him.

Sabir: You're probaly right he is a nice guy.:)

Ken: Wow that's the first time Sabir ever said anything nice,lol.

Sabir: Oh shut up,Im just giving out my opinion every now and then.

Treble: Well hopefully you two are right.Lets go and show Hades the sword AJ made.

AJ: Oh yeah! He'll feel so stupid after seeing my incredible skills!:toothy:

Rasanak: Yeah the sword you made me is way much better,although Hades skills wasn't bad itself.

[i]The group continue on their way to Hades Sythenizing Shop.[/i]

[conpiracymonki]

[b]F_F said he's bored, he's dropped out, gone, bye-bye, and all that[/b]

[James]

[i]Karu sat down next to Sephiroth. He hadn't seen what had happened for himself, but Chole had told him all about it when he'd woken up.

Sephiroth was still sitting there, staring out over the ocean. His hair was still red...[/i]

Karu: Sephiroth?

Sephiroth: Yeah...?

Karu: What are we going to do now?

Sephiroth: I don't know, Karu. That serpent was trying to stop us heading north...so there must be something special there...

Karu: I heard rumors of a North Continent...but I always thought they were fairy tales.

Sephiroth: Well, in any case, I'm sure we'll find out. I think we should keep heading north...that is...if you're ready for more fighting. It's sure to become more dangerous as we move north.

Karu: Yeah...I understand. I have nothing to lose...my parents are gone...I'll do anything to find them.

Sephiroth: Okay, Karu. We'll keep going north then...

[i]Sephiroth stood up and removed his trench coat. He dived straight into the ocean to clean himself off. A few minutes later, he crawled back up onto the boat, his long, white hair all thick from the water...[/i]

[RicoTranzrig]

[COLOR=darkblue]Chole: You know, that guy reminded me of Ultros...

Karu: Who?

Chole: Ultros...a purple talking octopus...back in an old book I read somewhere. They could kick it's áss, but it kept coming back.

Sephiroth: So what you're saying is that it's immortal.

Chole: Well...it couldn't be one and the same, Ultros is just a legend.

Karu: But we don't know enough about this world to say that it's true.

Chole: Yeah, maybe you're right...the magic carpet was strange enough.

Sephiroth: How much longer does this river last...I'm getting real tired of getting wet.

Chole: Bear with it...it's only a few more miles...

Sephiroth: Grr...

[i]A red glow came from his eyes...blood was rushing to his head. An after effect of the poison and the rage from his lover's death...[/i]

Karu: We'll get it...don't worry.

[i]Chole sat down, crosslegged. He knew the creature was long gone. But now that they knew what to look for in the water. They would be ready, the next time it chose to mess around with them.[/i]

Sephiroth: After this...what are we gonna run into?

Chole: Land...mostly tropics until we go further north.

Karu: Well, your sword'll come in handy.

[i]Their boat travels for another hour until they hit a fork in the stream. Karu guides it straight, hitting the mud softly. They all got off, avoiding the slime and water and climbed up a small hill and entered the canopy.[/i]

Karu: Strange place.

Chole: *watches as strange birds he's never seen before fly by*

Sephiroth: Even stranger creatures...

Chole: Gyro sensors are pointing north, straight ahead...

Karu: Okay...

[i]They began walking through the serene forest floor, the sun penetrating through the thick leaves, making streaks of light in their path. Exotic animals watch the three pass by. Sephiroth screams at them a couple times and they tease back...[/i]

Chole: ha! Looks like they have a mind of their own here.

Karu: Let's hope there aren't any serial killer animals on the loose...

Sephiroth: Very funny...*flips off a chimpanzee*
[/COLOR]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue]*KNOCK KNOCK*

Sabir: *sigh* *stands up* *pulls out sabre*

Ken: :therock:

Sabir: Who is it?

????: ......a messenger.....

Sabir: Open the door then AJ.

AJ: *shrug* *opens it*

*WHAM*

Sabir: :demon: .....so you really did come back....

Harper: Couldn't resist.

Treble: Do I know you?

Sabir: He's the Necromancer......again......I really ought to put you in a safer place.....[/COLOR]

[Sephiroth]

[the trio continued on through the forest, but sephiroth was walking ahead of them, guiding them through every turn, as if he knew which way to go, which was not possible since he was never here before, it was almost like something was pulling him in deeper and deeper, finally, he stopped in front of a wall, hyrogliphics written all over it, sephiroth studied it for a while and looked up, they stood in front of a door]

karu: what....is it?

seph: its a door to something....

chole: just looks like a wall to me

[sephiroth continued to study the door, he tried to push but it would not budge, he looked down on the ground and spotted a little hole, it looked strange, though they walked on grass, the area surrounding it was concrete, he looked at it for a while longer and raised his sword]

chole: sephiroth....what are you doing?

[sephiroth placed the sharp tip of the masamune in the hole, and then with all his strength, dug his sword into it, he awaited a while and looked on at the door in front of him]

karu: nothing....happened

[as soon as he said those words, the doors began to shake heavily, as they slowly began to creak open until they were opened fully, inside it was dark and looked like no one had been in there for a long time, sephiroth removed his sword from the hole]

seph: looks like our only way is in....

to be continued....

[James]

[size=1]What is this continual mention of a river? lol...they were moving along the east coast of Terraforma heading north...and they were heading toward the Norther Continent...this isn't really how it was supposed to happen, oh well...[/size]

[i]Karu lit a torch and held it out infront of him. The hallway beyond wasn't a mere cave. The walls were decorated with ancient engravings and artwork and in the distance, Karu and the others could see what looked like stone columns.[/i]

Karu: This can't be a natural formation...

Chole: Yeah, it looks like some sort of secret entrance to something.

Sephiroth: The Ancients...

Karu & Chole: Who?!

Sephiroth: Nevermind. As we continue...if this place is what I think it is, I won't need to explain anything at all.

[i]The three continued walking down the cold, dark tunnel. It curved and twisted deeper underground. And then, fairly abruptly, it began to rise again.

Eventually, everyone stepped out onto a large plateau, overlooking the water. There were old, broken down columns all over the place, but the huge fountains that littered the grounds of the structure were still operational.

Just as they turned around to continue exploring, a woman walked up behind them.

She was wearing white robes with a weird symbol on the chest. It looked somewhat like a golden eye. She had long, dark hair which nearly touched the ground behind her.

The strange woman held out her hand...[/i]

Woman: Welcome.

Chole: Who are you?

Woman: My name is Saron...what brings you to our temple?

Chole: Temple?!

Saron: Ahh, obviously you stumbled upon this place by mistake...let me show you around and explain to you where you are...

[i]Saron beckoned for them to follow her, as she began walking along the great plateau towards to giant double doors at the other end...[/i]

[Sephiroth]

[as they continued to walk down the corridor, saron be began to speak]

saron: I don't think you had mentioned your names

karu: oh yeah, sorry, I'm karu

chole: I'm chole

seph: ....sephiroth

saron: sephiroth? hah, what a strange coincidence, your name is the same as that of someone long ago in the past that was known by my people, he is depicted in the hall of records, I haven't studied him much though

seph: yes, coincidence, now tell me, is this the temple of the ancients?

saron: ah, a wise one I see, yes, this is the temple of the ancients, it is over 4000 years old

seph: yes, I know quite a lot about this place

saron: oh? but how? not many people even know of this place, let alone any of its history

seph: you are the last of the ancients, correct?

[she nods her head in agreement]

seph: thought so, there is something I need you to help me with

saron: can it wait? we are now in front of the door to the hall of records

[they all enter the room, and karu and chole looked on wide eyed, stacks upon stacks of shelves filled with books as long as the eye can see, sephiroth merely kept the unemotional look on his face]

saron: this is the hall of records, everything that has been recorded in the ancients history resides here in this room

[karu walks up to a shelf and picks up a book, he opens it and tries to read it]

karu: its in some kind of strange language, I can't read it

[sephiroth walks up to karu and takes the book and glances at it]

seph: its written in the language of the ancients, the writing is called anchao, this book is about a war that started 700 years ago, named the one year war

[saron stared at sephiroth wide eyed]

saron: you....can read anchao?

[sephiroth merely nods his head]

seph: now, like I said before, I need your help

saron: sure, what is it?

seph: where are the books that are about....resurrection?

to be continued....

[Guest Zeh]

[COLOR=indigo][i]Cloud and Shadow continue on the next morning. Cloud though about going up north, to visit the Bon Bon ranches and buy some stuff for Shadow.

There first destination was for the Bon Bon ranch outside of Physar.... So onward they went fighting a monster every few miles. [/COLOR][/i]

[RicoTranzrig]

[COLOR=darkblue][i]Saron looks around her stacks and stacks of books with her hand on her chin...[/i]

Saron: Hmmm...

Seph: Well?

Saron: I normally don't carry those types of books since...well...I don't really believe in raising the dead.

Chole: Have you ever tried before?

Saron: Oh, I've tried...and I didn't like it.

Karu: Well, what happened?

Saron: I don't wanna talk about it...but it wasn't pleasent.

Karu: Oh...but do you have any books on it?

Saron: No....not here.

Sephiroth: *falls down* Ugh.

Saron: But I know of a person who might...he's not what you would call, "bright" but he gets the job done.

Chole: Where is he?

Saron: Further north...in the Zolem region...mostly marshlands and crap like that.

Karu: You think it's worth the risk?

Seph: To get back Jasmine...I'd do it.

Chole: Okay...let's go then!

Saron: I warn you that it's not a friendly place.[/COLOR]

[James]

[i]Saron began arranging some of the books.[/i]

Saron: This northern continent is not under the juristiction of any of the Kingdoms or Cities on the mainland...

Karu: So?

Saron: So...your safety is not certain.

Chole: If that is the case, how are you able to live peacefully in this temple? Especially if you're surrounded by monsters and dark magic...

Saron: The Temple of the Ancients is sealed with very powerful magic. Infidels cannot get in our out...

Chole: But we got in...

Saron: Yes, but you were with Sephiroth. I believe that our shield was ineffective against him.

Chole: Why?

Saron: I'm not sure exactly...I think Sephiroth may at least be partly an Ancient...his genes may carry some Ancient blood.

Karu: This is all very confusing...

Saron: The history of the world is confusing at best. This temple has been dedicated to the pursuit of truth and the study of the natural world for the last 4000 years.

Chole: Why does nobody on the mainland know of this area?

Saron: I feel it will only be a matter of time before this temple is discovered by outsiders. The Solhara City Government is becoming very technologically advanced...they have been sending naval patrols to the north to explore the coastline here. So far, they haven't seen our temple...but who knows when they'll discover us.

Karu: You sound like you're worried about them discovering your people...

Saron: Power is corrupt. The Metropods hold the balance of power in the world...they are the dominant race on Terraforma. They are continually extending their influence and reach around the planet. Eventually, they may try to take over the other races on Terraforma...and they may perhaps try to conquer us, too.

Sephiroth: But you said your shield will not let in infidels...or non-Ancients...

Saron: That is correct, but one can never know how far technology will go. Solhara City Government officials are continually experimenting with anti-magic technologies. If they are successful, everything we hold dear could die out...

[i]Saron finished arranging the books and continued walking down the corridor, flanked by the others.[/i]

Saron: We have tried to maintain order and balance here. The magic which flows from this temple is what has created the thick mist around this continent, to shield us from invaders. Our magic also keeps all living things alive...even in the face of pollution and corruption.

Karu: I've noticed that the planet seems to be changing though...plants are dying...

Saron: Yes, it's very unfortunate. But it doesn't mean that we aren't successful. There are outside forces which are trying to tamper with us. These forces are trying to uncover our secret...and they are trying to reveal us to Solhara and others who may seek to destroy us.

Sephiroth: Who would seek to destroy you?

Saron: I-I can't talk about it right now...she might hear...

Sephiroth: Who might hear?

Saron: Nobody. Don't worry...now isn't the time to discuss this. Please stay at our guest quarters before you leave...

[i]Saron glanced nervously around the room and made her way out of the main entrance. The others gave each other puzzled looks. What did all this mean? And who else besides Solhara City would be trying to interfere with the Temple of the Ancients?[/i]

[RicoTranzrig]

[COLOR=darkblue][i]The three went into the guest quarters...four beds, evenly spaced out...[/i]

Sephiroth: Did it seem like Saron was a little paranoid about that entire deal of the temples being taken over?

Karu: It is a serious issue to her, isnt' it?

Sephiroth: But it is protected by a strong shield...I wouldn't think Metropod technology would be able to take it down.

Chole: Please don't discriminate me because I'm Metropod...

Karu: Don't worry...we know you're neutural in all of this. You've lost most of your gear too...

Chole: Yeah...I'm not so tech dependant as I was a while back.

Seph: Good...but, where should we go from here?

Karu: Back to Solhara?

Seph: No way!

Chole: That might be the only way we can tell if they are planning to take down the temples.

Karu: But why though?

Seph: Because they hold a lot of information that's useful to magic users...but not them...

Chole: Good point...but our techs have always compared with magic...

Karu: I dunno...I'm getting kinda sleepy...let's talk about this tomorrow.

Seph: Fine...

[i]The three set down their gear, blow out the light and rest up for the next day.[/i][/COLOR]

[James]

[i]The sun rose over the calm, blue ocean. The Temple of the Ancients stood in the middle of the forest, its enormous stone columns reaching up toward the sky above.

Sephiroth, Chole and Karu were woken by the sound of talking and shuffling outside their room.

They each got up and walked outside, only to find that a large congregation of Temple Elders were moving down the main hallway to the dining room. Sephiroth, Chole and Karu were invited to join them. Saron decided to sit down with them at the end of one of the large, wooden tables.

[/i]

Sephiroth: So what were you saying yesterday...about "she"..?

Saron: I didn't want to talk about it there...it was too quiet. She might have heard me.

Chole: Who?

Saron: Are you aware of the story of the four Goddesses?

Sephiroth: Yes...the four Goddesses who made Terraforma -- Ephra, Solhara, Physar and Falyore...

Saron: Correct.

Sephiroth: What about them?

Saron: There are ancient scriptures which talk of a fifth Goddess...

Chole & Karu: Fifth Goddess?!

Saron: Yes. These scriptures suggest that there was a fifth Goddess involved in the act of Creation. However, she was greedy...and power hungry. She wanted to create a race of creatures which would dominate all the others. But the four other Goddesses wanted to start things on an equal footing. They became suspicious of her powers, so they locked her inside the Castle of the Four Goddesses. The castle is protected by some of the most powerful beasts imaginable...it is designed to never be penetrated by anyone...

Chole: Why didn't they just kill her?

Saron: A God/Goddess can't be killed. They had to find another way of containing her powers.

Karu: Is she the cause of the changes in the world?

Saron: I don't know. Nobody knows. We suspect that she is somehow influencing things from her resting place...

[i]The four continued eating their breakfast. It looked as though their journey had only just begun...[/i]

[RicoTranzrig]

[COLOR=darkblue]Chole: Odd, a corrupt godess....

Saron: It's believable...many pure beings grow corrupt for one reason or another. Plus...the fifth one...she was believed to be left out often.

Seph: But if she is causing influence throughout the world...how can we seal her up again?

Saron: That's beyond my knowledge.

Karu: If god sealed her up...then I wonder if we'll be strong enough to reseal her.

Chole: Question...if the fith goddess is still alive? How about the other four? Particularly Solhara?

Saron: They're all very much alive...They don't have a physical form...but they're there.

Seph: How can you tell?

Saron: Look all around Solhara...there's a good amount of grasslands and beautiful scenery. There's no doubt that they didn't grow without the help of a higher being.

Karu: Do you want us to do anything?

Saron: Look for that temple...seal the fifth goddess...

Chole: You make it sound so simple.

Saron: It's no simple task...I assure you that.

Seph: Any places to start?

Saron: You can revisit all the places where the four other goddesses reign...

Chole: Solhara?

Karu: What's with you and that place?

Chole: I have friends there...just didn't get a chance to introduce you to them...

Saron: That wouldn't be a bad idea...you're familiar with that place so it would be a great place to start...[/COLOR]

[James]

Karu: But we stole a spaceship from the city...surely they'd be looking for us? And the main gates are blocked...how do we get in?

Chole: Hm...my grandfather lives in a house several miles north of the city. He used to operate the old mine to the east of his house...perhaps we could use the mine to get underneath Solhara City...

[Treble]

[i]Meanwhile as Cloud and his new companion Shadow traveled to Bon Bon Ranch,Treble and others had finally reached Hades Sythenizing Shop.[/i]

Rasanak: Oh....Hades???Come out,come out wherever you are.....

AJ: Come on Hades open the door.

Treble: Patience my friends....

[i]The group waited outside,as half an hour has pass by,with no sign of Hades.[/i]

AJ: Bah! If you were afraid of me my skills,you should've said so in the first place.

Ken: Hmmm....maybe he went off somewhere like probaly he had to get some food.

Sabir: At this time during an important visit,I highly doubt it.

Rasanak: My leg is starting to hurt from all this standing.Come on Hades open the door.

[i]Rasanak turns the knob of the door,repeatedly pushing forward,but the door just wouldn't budge open.[/i]

Treble: Maybe we should burst into his door...what do we say guys?

Sabir: [clears throat] Ahem....guys?

Treble: Oh yeah my mistake...ladies and gentlemens.

Harper: :toothy:

AJ: Treble do your thing and kick down the door!

All: Yeah!

Treble: Alright if you people insist.

[i]Treble rubs his nose and karate kicked the door down.The group went inside and saw Hades and his fat stomach sleeping on the bed.[/i]

Sabir: Ugh...he drools while he's sleeping....not a good sight at all

Treble: Hmmm...maybe we should come back another time or so we shouldn't bother his sleep.

AJ: What?Are you kidding me we came all the way down here for nothing then.

Rasanak: Heh maybe you should just wake him up then.

AJ: Sounds good to me.

[i]AJ walks toward to Hades as he is heavily deep into his sleep,AJ touches him trying to wake Hades up.[/i]

[RicoTranzrig]

[COLOR=darkblue]Karu: Not a bad idea...

Chole: We'll have to keep our heads low though...since we don't know if they're looking for us or if they've turned their heads towards some other matters.

Seph: Just as long as we don't go back into the slums...I'm fine.

Chole: How are we gonna get there anyway?

Saron: Chocobos aren't a bad method of transportation...with speeds up to 80MPH...yeah...

Karu: There are chocobos here?

Saron: Somewhere around here...I think, I don't get out much.

Seph: Uh...huh...well...

Saron: Oh! One more thing...about ressurecting Jasmine...if you really want to. There's an artifact called the Pheonix Tail...I'm sure one of you will know how to use it once you get your hands on it.

Chole: Well, not me, that's for sure.

Seph: Where is it?

Saron: One of the four godesses has it...be nice enough and she might give it to you.

Karu: ...we're very much grateful.

Saron: I wish I could offer you guys more info...

Chole: This is more than enough...thanks :)

[i]The three packed up, said their goodbyes and continued north, back towards Solhara...hoping to find a Chocobo ranch somewhere in between them and the vast city.[/i][/COLOR]

[conpiracymonki]

[b][color=indigo]I was wrong[/color]

AJ: What?

[color=indigo]:mad: I said I was wrong[/color]

AJ: Couldn't hear ya

[color=indigo]I SAID THAT AS A COMPLIMENTARY GIFT, I SHALL NOT ASK FOR THE PAYMENT OF THE SYNTHESISATION OF THE MEHCA SWORD OF THIS MAN HERE!![/color]

AJ: ...and?

[color=indigo]:flaming: ..AND I SHALL CHANGE MY SHOP SIGN, AND REMOVE THE 'LEGENDARY SYNTHESIS' TITLE OF IT. HAPPY LITTLE MAN?![/color]

AJ: very, now let's go back to the inn people :)[/b]