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It is Our Time; Time to Be Free
Topic Started: Jan 22 2013, 02:17 PM (254 Views)
Key2dawn
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Cursed by Writer's Block | Former Admin


Kuzumi...

It was a faint whisper in the martial artist's mind, and for a brief second, he thought it was his imagination. It wasn't until startling blue eyes opened to peer up at the night sky that he realized it wasn't his imagination. Kuzumi didn't know why, but he felt as if he actually slept well for once.

As he yawned, the youth sat up and looked around in search of his friend. Confused, the youth closed his eyes and sought for the source of that voice with his mind. It didn't take long, not even five seconds, before he felt Yuki's presence. After everything they went through over the years, it came as no surprise that his bond with the professor was so acute.

Yuki wasn't terribly far, much to Kuzumi's excitement, but the boy was unusually calm for some reason. Curious, Kuzumi rose to his feet to automatically head towards Yuki. As he continued on his way, the boy absently noted how his mind expanded to observe the environment all around him. This was, perhaps, the most peaceful night he experienced since the night before the fateful betrayal.

It seemed Yuki was thinking along the same lines as him...

The sun had just set as a pair of teenagers took to the road. At first there was no particular destination in mind, but then the eldest boy suggested that they return home. After a short discussion, it was settled, and the pair continued down the path, though now the path was different.

Instead of it continuing for many miles to connect to an intersection, the path's end changed to reveal the entrance of woodlands. It was the Forbidden Forest, a thick ring of ancient and mysterious trees that acted as guardian to a mystical patch of land. If these teens were anyone else, then they would not have gotten away with entering the forest.

Not just anyone could enter the forest while expecting to reach his or her original destination, if the person even managed to escape alive. Only the ancient king and those of his blood were capable of traveling through the Forbidden Forest unscathed, both physically and mentally. As it happened though, the pair that strolled into the woodlands was the king himself and his beloved creation.

The pair was silent, determined not to bother any creatures that took residence within the forest's shelter. The last thing either boy wanted was to cause unnecessary panic that could ultimately harm the creatures and any unfortunate humans that still wandered the maze of trees. At least it was a content silence, one that revealed just how comfortable the two teenagers were together.


By the time the memory ended, Kuzumi's face was pale as he stared into those ominous yellow eyes of his best friend.

"You remember." That was all the Wanderer could manage as he gazed into those unreadable, yellow eyes. After all this time of watching his friend suffer from trying to remember, it came as a genuine shock to learn that Yuki recalled such a vital day. At first he didn't know whether to laugh or cry about this, but when his friend revealed a faint smile, the martial artist's eyes lit up. "You remember everything?"

"Everything," Yuki repeated; immediately after this, Kuzumi rushed to him and the two embraced. For a long moment, the two stood there, Kuzumi crying into his best friend's jacket collar while Yuki just held his friend and stared calmly into the night. The last time such a welcomed embrace occurred between the two, Yuki had died in Kuzumi's arms.

Except it wasn't Kuzumi's arms that Yuki died in, but actually Oudies's. Kuzumi, who had been present at the time, would have died if not for Yuki's sacrifice, and that was how the battle ended for Kuzumi's freedom. A deep understanding took place as Oudies realized just who this infuriatingly persistent Yuki really was, and the final step was taken to break the cycle of rebirth.

We may never live again.

"How... why...?" Kuzumi demanded in-between sobs as he pulled slightly away from his friend. When their gazes met again, the martial artist seemed to falter a bit. "How? Why?" He repeated, his voice somewhat stronger despite how his throat seemed to clench painfully. The answer was obvious, but he needed to hear Yuki confirm it.

"I spoke with it," Yuki replied quietly as he released the Wanderer and stepped back. As he did so, Kuzumi reached out for him, paused, and then allowed his arms to drop to his sides, limp. The Wanderer took a calming breath in preparation for what the Umbran was about to tell him, but it still wasn't enough. He was not prepared for the memory.

It was a dream, only a dream, but not entirely devoid of reality. Yuki stood at the bottom of familiar stairs, staring unseeingly at the highest step his eyes could make out. A long time had passed since he last stood there with the stairs present, though it could have been no longer than two years since he last stood in that same spot on Spear Pillar.

He had been summoned.

The very idea was enough to drain Yuki of all energy, yet he somehow managed to take that first step. After that initial step, the youth found that his body mechanically moved up the stairwell, as if pulled by the very being that patiently waited for his return. As he continued onward, he felt as if a great fog was lifting to allow him long-desired clarity.

He was not alone, for a boy his size and age strode beside him. With each step taken, the two appeared more and more alike, though they looked nothing alike. While one had blue eyes as hypnotizing as the ocean, the other had yellow eyes that glowed like the moon. While one wore all black save the green shirt, the other wore a sleeveless, peach-colored tunic and sandals that barely whispered with each step.

Here was one person approaching his lord as two people, as a man from the present and a man from the long forgotten past. Not a word was spoken between the two, for nothing more was needed to be said. After many lifetimes together, having shared every experience as one, there was not a single thought that the other wasn't aware of.

The fog from before, as Yuki calmly realized, was his failure to recall that he was another person. It was with this discovery that he felt the embrace of familiar yet alien memories. All were his, but all from different lifetimes; still, what mattered most was that he remembered each one.

When his epiphany was properly acknowledged and taken into account, the two started to move closer to one another. After a good number of steps, the pair had become one to stride confidently up the stairs, taking up the center of the stairwell. Not long after this did they reach the top and see the proud, magnificent beast that was their lord.

"Lord Arceus," The immortals spoke together, two voices speaking from the body of one. As the body stopped at a reasonable distance and knelt down to honor the Alpha, the immortals resumed the traditional greeting. "Creator of all that has, is, and shall be. I, your chosen puppet, guardian of the balance, your law, greet you." The body, upon saying this, would continue to kneel and keep his head down until otherwise instructed.

'You have returned, child,' Arceus began as it dipped its head in formality. 'Ancient King, ruler of the Time Forgotten, keeper of the Memory.' With Mladen's titles spoken, the immortal peered up with eyes that seemed to be a swirl of ocean blue and luminous yellow. 'Rise so we may speak on equal level.'

Upon instruction, the immortal rose to his feet and lifted his gaze to meet that of Arceus. Unfortunately, upon doing so, a tense silence enveloped the Pokemon and its subject, for a long time had indeed passed since the last two spoke to one another. Eventually though, Yuki decided that he would take the first step to start this conversation.

Unlike his time as Mladen, Yuki grew used to starting important conversations.

"I should kill you." That, despite how blunt and serious sounding as it was, actually brought a chuckle to both Mladen and Arceus. The ice had been broken, it seemed, and the Alpha actually dipped its head in acceptance to Yuki's comment. In light of this, Yuki managed a small smile; as much as he wanted to blame the Pokemon for everything, he found that he couldn't, and especially not after Arceus's reply.

'Yes; yes, I suppose you should.' With that said, the Pokemon trained its full attention to the one it knew to be Yuki, and it waited with utmost patience to see what the youth would do. When the boy inclined his head to show that he would not, the Alpha nodded in appreciation of the decision. The last thing it needed right then was to destroy its own creation because of something as trivial as vengeance.

"Why have you summoned me after all this time of silence?" Here, both Mladen and Yuki spoke in unison, for both personalities of the same immortal was unsure whether this was a safe or dangerous encounter.

'Your loyalty to that...'

"Oudies? Kuzumi?"

'
Wild One, as the people once referred to it,' Arceus continued as it shook its head, clearly baffled. 'Is astonishing.' The Alpha finished, though it was clear to everyone that this was not how the Pokemon wanted to end that sentence. The immortals chose not press it, thankfully, and eventually Arceus tried again. 'Admirable.'

Once again, a tense silence found its way into the reunion as everyone thought about Arceus's words. Eventually, the immortal body nodded as it bowed from the waist. After another moment of uncertainty, Mladen was coaxed into asking the question that was on his and Yuki's mind.

"The cycle is broken... What will happen now?"

'Now,' Arceus replied, this time appearing quite sure of itself, 'It is over.'

It took a moment for the immortals to process this, but when they did, a surprising ecstasy blossomed from within their body. At last! They were free to live a peaceful, normal life, and live it with their beloved friends, Kuzumi and Oudies. But as the two thought of this, a deep tiredness swept over the two. A long time had passed since they last had a good night's sleep.

"My lord," The immortals whispered before they paused to make sure that Arceus was listening. "We are tired." And as they said this, an exhausted sigh escaped their lips as their head dipped a bit. If they had more energy, then they would have flinched in shock when Arceus moved to allow their head to rest against its own.

'And what of the Wild One?'

"I would assume he is far more tired than me."

'Then, perhaps an arrangement can be made?'

At that point, the memory started to fade. As it faded, the general idea that a discussion concerning this arrangement could be deduced, for suddenly the immortal was standing straight again; it seemed that meeting ended on an agreeable note, and the memory ended with the meeting.


By the time the memory finished, Kuzumi was sitting on the ground, suddenly devoid of much energy. Although it took a lot of effort, the martial artist managed to peer up at his friend. It was then that he felt the surge of energy return, for it was then that he noticed the serenity in Yuki's eyes.

"So you mean..." Kuzumi trailed off as he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. It seemed the very idea was enough to calm him, and suddenly the idea became quite appealing. A nice, long rest sounded wonderful at the moment, though the Wanderer understood that it would last far longer.

"Kuzumi..." Here, Yuki's eyes softened enough to reveal an ancient sadness as he seemed to split into two people. To the Umbran's left was the youth with ocean blue eyes, Mladen, and the ancient king smiled gently down at the one Mladen called friend. In a familiar voice, the king called out to his friend: "Oudies..."

As Kuzumi watched his friend, unaware of Mladen standing nearby, a spectre of his own took form beside him to peer up at Mladen with bluish-grey eyes. It was shocking how different Kuzumi and Oudies really appeared, especially when Oudies's hair was a delicate silver while Kuzumi's was an unruly auburn. In sync, both Kuzumi and Oudies blinked in surprise as their friends offered a hand to help them up.

"Let's go home."

Here, both Mladen and Yuki held out a hand for his respective friend to take as sad, welcoming smiles graced their lips. The gentle sadness in their eyes were almost identical; almost, due to the minor difference of Mladen's eyes being touched with playfulness while Yuki's were touched with wisdom. Besides this difference though, the two acted as one person, just as they always had.

In response to their gesture, both Kuzumi and Oudies grinned. While Kuzumi's eyes lit up with affectionate relief, Oudies's appeared to be more of a mischievous relief. Nevertheless, they were both pleased at the offer of returning home, of returning to the hidden Paradise. As the two reached up for their respective friend's hand, they replied:

"Yeah. We can't influence fate forever."

Once each one had hold of his friend, everyone would start to fade until, at last, they disappeared from the present world. Soon after this, in paradise, four boys, each aware of the other three, would start a new adventure. This adventure would be unique to the four of them, for there were no real duties to be followed, and no bloody curses to attend with. Instead, they would learn what it means to have a true family, and this would be their greatest adventure of all.

But this was only half of the agreement.

As part of the agreement, Arceus sent the humans' Pokemon to Professor Oak, who would also receive a note that was written in Yuki's handwriting. Another part of this agreement was the idea of Kuzumi and Yuki leaving behind a memento or two for certain people.

Kuzumi's necklace would be sent to Alexandria, his Team Aqua bandanna to Julian, and his Team Magma headband to Aika; each item would be accompanied by a note with Yuki's precise handwriting stating that the received items were Kuzumi's mementos. As for Yuki's mementos, his beloved gloves would be sent to Xaviero, his necklace to Amy, copies of all the research he ever came up with would be sent to Professor Oak, and a staff as black as the darkest night would remain in Arceus’s presence.

This was the end for Kuzumi T. Narumi and Yuki K. Sorano, as well as Oudies, the Wild One and Mladen, the Ancient King.


But we will never be forgotten.

The Next Step
Amethyst
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