Chapter 6: A Child's Guide to Prison

I quickly learned that being the only one able to speak was more of a burden than I thought it would be. The others seemed to be able to communicate just with short glances or gestures. Me? I had to play charades and twenty questions with them until I could finally get some freaking answers. It felt like it took an entire week just to learn the group's names. I had to systematically go through the alphabet to figure them all out. The blonde girl was known as Ash. I insisted that that had to be short for something, but all three of them just told me that Ash was her name, nothing more. She seemed to be the leader; hopefully not just because she was able to kick everybody's butt. She was definitely scary enough to be the leader. The shy girl with the long, green hair was known as Vera. She became a little less shy the longer I was in there with them, but she definitely didn't like it when I raised my voice. It didn't look like she liked me talking at all, actually. And then, there was the brat. Malik. I refused to call him anything other than Brat until he changed his attitude. That... wasn't received too well, but neither was the latest kick to the face he got. I haven't been on the receiving end of Ash's kicks yet, and I was hoping to keep it that way. Maybe that's a sign she likes me? Either that, or she's just going easy on the new guy. I was still recovering from those burns, after all.

The first week there could be summed up with one word: frustrating. I was locked up in a room with three kids who couldn't speak, all while barely being able to move. The healing paste eventually wore off the first day, but it still hurt to move my body afterwards. I definitely wasn't up for an escape attempt just yet. The only time anything ever changed was when one of those robed creeps walked by to give us some rations. They supervised us as we ate, and checked us afterwards to see if we actually ate it all, and didn't take anything suspicious from the meal, like the silverware. Making sure we didn't nab any tools made sense, but the food thing? I guess they wanted their prisoners in good shape, for some reason. Or at least alive. Though part of me doubted that, looking at the scars decorating Brat's face. The creepiest part was the way that the robed guys would stare at us as we ate. They didn't move. I wasn't even sure if they blinked. They just kept staring. Vera seemed to agree with me on that one, since she was clutching onto Brat's sleeve whenever they showed up.

One week later...

"32... 33... 34..." I counted out quietly, hoping not to attract the robed creeps. Sweat continued forming on my brow as I was doing my daily exercise; handstand push-ups, with various stretches in between each rep. I still wasn't entirely back on my game yet, despite the amount of rest I got, and that was starting to scare me a bit. It wasn't even that it hurt to move anymore, I just... lost all of my energy, somehow. It felt like I had just used my Crystal Dragon Facade spell, but constantly. It had to be this place. I needed to get out of here, where everything was back to normal. So, I resolved to start training myself back to fighting shape. If only it was as easy as it sounded... Crystelien did say that training needed to become second nature to be effective; slack off even a little, and you could wind up back at square one. I was pretty sure I had landed all the way back at square negative five.

When I got back to stretching, Vera decided to come and join me, giving me a happy smile when she did. When I first started exercising, the group thought it was odd. I think. All I know is that Brat was annoyed, but what else is new. Vera liked stretching, but was disappointed when she couldn't do the handstands. Ash... I never knew what to think with her. She always looked like she was silently judging me, for some reason.

But it wasn't like I had anything else to do. Two weeks. TWO. FREAKING. WEEKS. And nobody has talked to me, let me out of this cell, or come to punish us or anything! Well, I'm happy about the last one, but seriously? Nothing? The silent treatment was creeping me out! I was pretty sure that a captor would like to investigate their new prize, or lay down the rules, or something like that. But if they were just going to leave me alone, then there was no point in staying. Besides, I needed to get my cloak back and work on finding Crystelien. Oh, he was going to hear a lot about what I had to go through to find him... A forceful shove to my shoulder let me know to stop training right then. Brat was extremely annoying, but he had his uses. He was almost always on lookout for guards. And it probably wasn't a good idea to show the guards that I was starting to plan my escape. Maybe sometime I could ask him how he always knew where the guards were before they showed up?

Whenever the guards showed up, I took that as my cue to start meditating. It wouldn't look suspicious, and it could help me break out of here! According to Crystelien, it was the fastest way to build up your magic energy, since it brought in all of these weird little magic particles into your body. Though, it takes me longer to charge up than average, according to him. Apparently it has something to do with why it took me so long to learn magic in the first place, even before he taught me to roar. I still didn't entirely understand his explanation. Something about... my body not agreeing with magic itself or something? Whatever it meant, it made building up magic energy more difficult, but also made other magic around me dissipate a bit, lessening its strength. So at least if I fought a wizard that could level the playing field, somewhat. Though, the goal in whatever plan I formulated would be to avoid fighting these creeps, if I could. After all, they managed to beat me the first time...

As I started my breathing exercises, I could hear the footsteps outside start to fade away, and I started meditating in earnest, trying to focus on my magic. I could feel a familiar energy building up in my lungs. My skin nearly hardened, already itching to transform into full on scales. My lungs wanted to burst out a mighty roar. And my stomach gave me a serious craving for some crystals. Oh, what I would give for a nice opal right about now... Hell, I'd settle for some quartz, if there was any. My senses heightened, trying to get as much information as possible from whatever was around me. Whenever I brought out my magic, the weird, tired feeling went away. But it was never too long until the next group of guards showed up, so I couldn't use that new energy to bust out. I needed to remember what Crystelien taught me; I needed to wait and watch, see the opponent's moves, and move accordingly. And never let them get to me in the meantime.

1 more week later...

"Hmm... Try starting off smaller, Vera. It was easier for me doing it step by step at first!" I explained. Vera was now my official training partner. It looked like she really enjoyed exercising with me. I couldn't blame her. Anything was better than just sitting around doing nothing in this place. She seemed to think of it as some kind of fun game, because as soon as we started she would get this huge grin on her face. Especially when she proved just how much more flexible she was than me. Seriously, my legs still hurt from trying to match some of her stretches...

Anyway, right now I was trying to get her into a handstand, since she was still having trouble with it. I showed her how I learned, starting from a squat, rolling onto my head, getting my balance, going into a headstand, and pushing up. Simple stuff. The problem was, while Vera was flexible, she didn't exactly have the best sense of balance. Basically, she was a klutz. She couldn't even roll to her head without having some kind of accident and almost getting a concussion... But she was starting to get that dejected puppy look in her eyes, and nobody in the room could bear it when that happened.

"Okay, how about I help you keep your balance? Is that okay?" I asked. She nodded happily, and after basically holding her still the whole way, we eventually got her into a full on handstand. "Awesome Vera! Now, see if you can do a pushup while you're like this!" I challenged. With a determined look, her arms started to waver as she started to slowly lower herself down, her face turning more and more red as she went on. She started to make some progress on her way up... Until she gave up and we both crashed to the ground under her weight. Ugh... And cue Brat storming over in 3, 2, 1...

And sure enough, I opened my eyes to see the hostile expression of a pissed off Brat. For some reason he was very protective of Vera, and really didn't like when she would hurt herself like that. Well, nobody would, but he always acted like it was my fault for some reason. What a Brat. Rolling my eyes, I pried Vera off of me before helping her up myself. "That's alright. Maybe we should work on regular pushups first, huh?" I asked, a little embarrassed. I completely forgot she didn't have the same training as me... Vera somehow looked even more excited than before, now having a goal to work towards, while Brat looked annoyed at the both of us.

While I was caught up in the moment, I didn't notice Ash in the background, smiling at the sight of the three of us. It had been a long time since she'd seen the other children so full of energy during their imprisonment. It was at that moment that she made a rather important decision.

A few days later...

I. Was. Booooooooooored. And a bored Yuji is not something that should be taken lightly. That is when Yuji is at his most dangerous. Especially if said bored Yuji is referring to himself in the third person. The patrols were stepped up that day for some reason, so I would never have enough time to focus on my physical training, leaving me to meditate all day if I wanted to make any progress. And let me tell you something. Meditating gets old really fast. Even with the inclusion of magic energy, it's a feeling you get used to quickly. Meditating usually calms me down, but not when the reason for my anxiety is a lack of movement. Seriously... I needed to do something right then... Anything! Sighing, I flopped down on my back and stared at the ceiling for a while. Brat simply rolled his eyes and Vera gave me a pitying look, but didn't really offer any solution. I was starting to make constellations on the ceiling in my head when Ash popped into my vision, an amused smirk on her face.

"Please tell me you have something for me to do," I begged. To my complete and utter joy, she nodded, holding a hand out to help me up. I followed her over to the edge of the cell, where she showed me a little brown bowl that had a bunch of green stains on the inside of it. I took a whiff and- "Ugh! Oh man that reeks!" I shouted, immediately dulling my sense of smell. Yup. There was a reason I was putting off training my senses today. For some reason, the smell from the first day I was here came back in full, and holy shit it was the worst thing I had ever smelled before. Ash silently giggled at my reaction before ushering me closer to her. Cautious, I kneeled down next to her, forming a wall in the corner so that any passing guards wouldn't see what we were up to. "Okay, so what's up?" I asked. She looked over at me before dabbing her fingers into the bowl, coating them in the healing paste from the first day, then spread it across her hands. After that, she took my hand in both of hers, and suddenly I felt... warm. It was small, and very weak, but there was definitely some kind of energy coming from Ash's hands. This energy... magic? Did the paste amplify magic? How did she even get this stuff? I looked up to ask her, and was shocked when I saw Ash's face sweating and bright red, as she struggled to release even that much energy. What the heck?

"Uh, Ash? It's okay, I got it. You have magic. You can stop now," I said quietly. Partly because of the guards, partly because of Brat, and mostly because this was kind of painful to watch. But she wasn't stopping. Instead, she kept going, and started to tremble a little bit as I felt the warmth focus on the back of my hand. It looked like she was really struggling... Was there anything I could do to help? Maybe... Maybe my own magic could help draw out hers somehow? It was probably my body not agreeing with her magic that was making it so tough on her, so maybe I could fix it? Focusing, I put myself into a meditative state, trying to draw in the magic particles around me. Breath in... Breathe out... Breathe in... Breathe out... As I continued to breathe deeply, I noticed the warmth on my hand growing stronger and stronger, and Ash's hands started to tremble less and less, until she eventually took them away and I opened my eyes. Ash's face was still flushed from her efforts, but she had a tired smile on her face, as though she was really happy about something. Maybe it was because she finally had someone else here that knew magic too? I had to admit, it was nice to know that much, even if she seemed to struggle with it.

Suddenly, she grasped my hand again, and lifted it up to show me what she had done. Now, on what used to be my plain old hand, there was a single, golden wing printed onto the back of it. It was almost like a tattoo. Thankfully a prettier one than everybody's chains. It looked really cool, actually! Almost like an angel wing! But all of a sudden, it started to disappear from my hand. "H-huh? What? Where did it go?" I asked, trying to see if I could bring it back. I tried focusing on my magic again, but I couldn't bring it back out. Oh no... Did my body not like Ash's magic? Did it get rid of her hard work? What if she was sad that it was already gone like that? I looked at the floor, a little dejected, but suddenly a hand came down to ruffle my hair, and I looked up to see a beaming Ash, letting loose a stream of those silent giggles of hers. Suddenly, I couldn't help but smile too. Something told me that when this girl could talk, everyone probably had a hard time getting her to stop laughing.

Another week later...

"Ugh... Surprise Slop again? Something different would be nice..." I complained, looking at the gray mush that was my meal. I've learned to quit looking forward to mealtimes. I was always so groggy afterwards. Maybe they put a sleeping spell on it or something? That would explain why it was so hard to focus in here. But then I should fall asleep after eating it, so that didn't make sense... What if it was some kind of magic canceller? Like some kind of opposing particles to mess with the magic particles in the air? Or maybe it was sleeping magic, but it was really weak? Or what if-

A nudge to my shoulder let me know that I should start eating before the guard forced me to. Brat again. He was really weird. Some days he'd act like he wished I never existed, others he would watch out for me, letting me know when guards were coming or would point out that I was doing something wrong in my training and show the right way to do it. I couldn't really figure him out. Vera was like a sweet little sister, and Ash was like a mom to everyone here. So that would make Brat... Like a brother, I guess? Actually... That made some sense, didn't it? Brothers were supposed to get at each other's throats, but they still cared about each other. At least, that was what they acted like in all of the stories I read. He did actually look out for everyone. Even me. Hm. Maybe calling him Brat was a little unfair... But he still earned the title. Meh, I'll compromise. We'll see how he acts after one name drop.

"Thanks, Malik," I said, continuing to eat my slop. I looked and almost choked on my food when I saw just how surprised he was when I used his name, but he quickly regained his usual annoyed expression. Aw, somebody cares what I think! Oh, I could have fun with this... Get ready for a world of hurt! Or embarrassment, at least.

Yet another week later...

Today was... weird. Everybody seemed to be really stressed out. Vera was hiding in the corner of the cell, and she absolutely refused to budge. Ash was on edge, and her eyes were darting between the two sides of the hallway. She'd occasionally glance at me, but would look away immediately with a guilty expression, like she stole from the cookie jar. Malik was brooding and- wait, no, that's the same. But that's not exactly a sign that anything's getting better. I've tried asking a few times what was going on, but I guess they weren't exactly feeling cooperative today. Or they finally got tired of charades.

Suddenly, a chorus of footsteps could be heard coming from down the hall. Weird. Guards only usually went in groups of two or three. This sounded like- one, two, three... At least 14 sets of footsteps. Most likely more. Yeah, something bad was going down today. "You guys, I could probably handle whatever's happening today better if you would let me know what's going on," I said, trying one last time to get some kind of info. The suspense was starting to kill me. Torture, labor, interrogations, a purge; at least let me know what's happening so I could stop making worse and worse scenarios in my head! But no. They just gave me various looks of pity or annoyance (guess who shot that look). I just sighed and sat back on the ground, starting to meditate. I didn't have to know what was going on to know I might need my magic for it. And from the looks of it, this situation was going to be pretty grim.

I tried to drown out the cacophony of boots stomping on the ground, and gather as much magic as possible, but I didn't have long before the unwelcome creak of our cell door opening got me to open my eyes. These looked like the standard hooded grunts that had been giving us food, except they went on a shopping trip at an armory. While they still wore their robes, you could plainly see the metal gauntlets, boots, and what was likely a metal breastplate peeking out from them. They were prepared for a fight. Was now the right moment to strike? Would there be fewer guards in the hallway, or wherever they were going to take us? Crystelien always emphasized the importance of knowing precisely when to strike, but it was almost impossible to learn when that moment was! Suddenly, a guard walked in and had his hands on Vera. She slumped over, a defeated look in her face. It wasn't the terror she displayed whenever I shouted. This was different. She... She accepted whatever was happening next. And Malik looked sad, not angry. That wasn't right. Vera was in trouble, and he wasn't pissed? Three more guards walked in, two holding Ash and Malik in case they tried to flee. As the third walked towards me, I realized I didn't really have a choice. I had to wait it out, and see what happened.

This was gonna suck.

I grew more and more restless the longer they had us standing in line. The grunts had moved us into another stone room on the same floor with about a dozen other children, all with the same chain tattoos as my friends. That wasn't creepy at all. Nope.

The room itself was huge, the ceiling well over twenty feet up. The walls were covered in glowing yellow lacrima, giving the dark room a little lighting. There were guards posted at every exit, and spaced throughout the line of children standing next to the wall, facing the evil looking circle in the center of the room. My best guess would be that it was a magic circle, based on the runes etched near the edges of it. But I had absolutely no idea what it was for. The runes looked weird... Not at all like any I was taught, at least. But, since all of the other kids were shaking in their non-existent boots, my guess was that it wasn't anything fun. The blank ink they were written in wasn't exactly giving me a warm and fuzzy feeling, either.

The room was suddenly bathed in light as a new figure entered. She was an adult, I could tell that much. And from the curves, red earrings, and black ponytail, I was guessing it was a lady. She was at least a good two and a half feet taller than me and my friends, with a rather muscular figure. She must've been proud of it, too, with her sleeveless, olive green top. Geez, from here it looked like her biceps were bigger than me... She even wore some gold bands on her arm to show off how big they were. And her legs seemed to match, with how bulging they were. Though, considering her figure, her choice to wear a skirt was odd. It was black, and only went down to her mid-thigh. Not to mention her sandals, and the gold bangles around her ankles. It just really did not match what she looked like at all, to me. When she got close enough for me to make out her face, I had to resist the urge to rub my eyes. Was this... Really a woman? Her face was extremely angular, and those terrifying red eyes... She might not even be human. She could be a monster, for all I know.

The monster lady came to a stop in front of our row, silently appraising the lot of us. Could this be... The warden? Or our captor? Whatever title that person wanted to hold, this might be them. She was definitely scary enough. A slight nudge to my side had me glancing to the left, seeing a very serious looking Ash. She gestured at me as subtly as she could with her chin, then pursed her lips. What was she... No talking. I could still talk, and I probably shouldn't. Got it. I nodded slightly, then looked forward again. Right. I had friends, here. There were still people that could look after me. I didn't have to be scared. Even with the giant warden monster lady from hell a few feet down the row.

And a few less feet. And a few less feet. Slowly, as she inspected each child, she progressed down the row towards me. The room was starting to smell gross, with the amount of nervous sweat from each child. Understandable, but still gross. At each child, the monster lady would simply give them an appraising look, hold up her hand, then lower it and move on. I wasn't sure what she was doing... But it had to be something magical in nature, given the circle behind her. But what was it?

A shadow looming over me snapped me out of my thoughts. The monster lady was standing right in front of me. She took one look at me, and her eyebrows furrowed, a steely expression entering those blood red eyes. It was the lack of chains, wasn't it? The fact that I didn't have the tattoos the rest of the kids did. Did these people do that? What am I saying, of course they did!

I could feel myself starting to shake as the woman lifted her large hand, holding it directly in front of me. A sense of dread began to make itself known as I stared down her hand, and I could feel Ash, Vera, and Malik all go deathly still beside me as the hand started to glow a very bright green. Green was supposed to mean something healthy, or lively, or natural. So why did I get the sense that this green signaled my imminent doom?

"A magic user," the woman's surprisingly light voice echoed out into the silent chamber. "And a powerful one, too, for such a young age. How unfortunate." Suddenly, her hand jolted out, clamping down on my shoulder so hard, it felt like one wrong move would shatter it! I wanted to cry out in pain, but... But Ash told me not to speak. She was my friend. I trusted her. So I managed to reel in the pained shout before it could make itself known. The woman kneeled down to be just below eye level with me. I deigned to keep looking straight ahead. "Child, do you know why you are here?" she asked. Silence, Yuji. Deep breaths. Deep... breaths... Deep breaths?

Could that work?

The pain in my shoulder doubled in my silence. I had to clench my jaw as tight as I could to keep myself quiet. "You are here for the crime you have unwittingly committed," she said. What the hell was she talking about? I was caught after trying to save a village! That you all were pillaging! How was I the criminal, here!? "You may be wondering just what you did. Who you wronged. If there was some way to prevent this. And it is with a heavy heart that I have to tell you, no. You could not have prevented this crime." Deep breaths... Deeper... Take in as much as you can... Take in everything in this room, if you can manage it... You might need it... "The crime you committed, young one, was that of theft. You stole the life of another to exist in this world." What the... What the hell was this lady talking about!? "That body you're walking around in? That isn't yours, child. You stole it from its true owner. And now their soul is stranded, unable to return to Earthland while their vessel is occupied. Now, I understand that you are young. You may not know everything about how the world works, yet. But you do understand that when somebody does something wrong, they need to be punished for it, correct?" she asked with a sickly sweet voice. The same that adults use to talk down to children they believe to be ignorant. She thinks I'm ignorant, after spouting on about punishing people for something they have no control over!? I don't know what this crap about souls is, but I never asked to be born! And sorry for being selfish, but I want to keep living!

I finally looked down into the monster's eyes, to see a pitying expression. Almost motherly. Almost. If it wasn't for the emptiness in her eyes, I'd believe her to be genuine. She has no regrets for whatever she has planned for me. Suddenly her eyes flashed, and I was thrown behind her, and was sent rolling on the stone floor. I had a brief second to be thankful that my wounds from my capture had healed before I was lifted up by the collar of my rag shirt. "When I ask a question, I expect an answer, child!" she shouted at me. I slowly took in another deep breath, seeing the faces of my friends behind the monster. Vera was sobbing her silent tears. Malik looked genuinely scared. Ash kept her eyes on the floor, unable to watch. Though her clenched fists told me it must've been hard to just stand there. "I suppose you don't understand, do you? Then you will have to learn your lesson with a more... hands-on approach." The woman brought her hand to her waist, flipping open some kind of black leather pouch. And when she pulled her hand away from it she was holding... a key?

Suddenly, the monster threw me back even further, but this time I was prepared. When I was sent rolling, I rolled to my feet, then set myself into a sturdy stance, feet spread far apart as I skidded a few feet. Deep breaths. Get as much ethernano as you can. You can't pass out when you use it this time. You don't have a choice. The monster seemed unamused at my determination to remain standing. "And I thought I had finally found one that understood... No complaints, no questions... But in the end, you're all the same. Selfish cowards that cling to your stolen moments," she sighed. I simply ground my feet further into the ground. I guess that's why Ash wanted me to keep quiet. To minimize the suffering for as long as I could. "It's a shame, really. If you were kind enough to allow the others a chance to live their lives, you wouldn't have to suffer. Instead, we have to chain you down like prisoners." At that, the monster lifted the key she held, pointing it towards me. It was a bright, gleaming silver piece of metal with a black chain snaking down from the teeth, all the way to the handle. "Open, gate of the Chained Lady! Andromeda!" she chanted, creating a bright yellow magic circle in front of her. She twisted the key, and brought it down, creating a beam of light so bright I had to cover my eyes. And when that light dissipated... I wasn't sure what I was looking at.

There stood another woman. She was as pale as a cloud, with sky blue eyes and midnight black hair flowing down her back. From what I could see, she had a dress about as white as her skin, but it was almost impossible to make out under the seemingly infinite amount of chains decorating her body. They roped around her torso, down most of her arms, looped around her neck, they dragged on the floor... I guess that's why the monster called her the "Chained Lady."

"Andromeda, we've got another rowdy one. Subdue him for me," the monster ordered. The pale woman simply nodded. "As you wish," she muttered. Suddenly, she somehow managed to flick an arm up, launching three separate chains at me! I was tempted to roar and counter them, but I needed to save my strength! Instead, I tried rolling out of the way. I was mid roll when I heard them clatter again. They were changing direction! I immediately pushed up at the ground as hard as I could, launching myself up and out of their path as they dug into the ground below. But the problem with dodging into the air was that it left you open. A fourth chain was launched at me with lightning speed, wrapping twice around my chest before slamming me into the ground. Once I landed, I heard the telltale clatter of more chains, and suddenly I was wrapped from the neck down in the chained lady's infinite chains, all reaching back towards her still covered arms.

"Target subdued," she muttered. The monster patted the pale one on the head before she started walking towards me. It was then when my terror finally began to dawn on me. This woman was talking like she was going to torture me. If not execute me. I... I didn't want to die. I missed my mom, but I wasn't ready to see her yet. I still had to find Crystellien. I wanted to spend some more time with my new friends. Outside of these stupid walls. Maybe they could meet him. I glanced over at the line of children. Some were teary eyed. Most were scared. Some resigned. But... That was odd. I didn't spot a flash of gold hair. Green and brown, but... Where was Ash?

I got my answer in a sudden shower of golden lights launching themselves at the chains binding me. Not one to question good luck, I immediately threw off my chains and backed away from the approaching woman only to flinch as a pair of hands landed on my shoulders. I turned my head to see none other than Ash. And she had definitely seen better days. Her face was red, and she was sweating buckets. But, her tattoos... There were cracks all over the black chains, showing the pale skin beneath. I glanced around us to see the various robed goons brandishing staves, all aiming either at the line of children, or towards me and Ash. "Hm... So, one of you has managed to break through the chains? I'd be impressed, if this weren't another act of selfishness. Preserving another simply because you've grown fond of them... You children clearly have no knowledge of right or wrong. I suppose she could use a reminder as well," the woman lectured. She swiped her key, dismissing the chained lady in a flash of white light. I put an arm in front of Ash, hoping I could somehow protect her from whatever the monster would do next. Maybe... Could I fit two people? The inner ring was pretty narrow...

The monster raised both of her hands towards the ceiling, creating three different black magic circles above her. As she did so, several of the robed men followed suit, creating one circle each, until they all coalesced into one giant circle that formed over myself and Ash. Suddenly, the ground below us started to glow as well, as the magic circle began to activate. There was no way I could get out of whatever attack this was in time with Ash... And... The thought of Ash having to deal with more pain... Of my friend being tortured, isolated, killed... A rush of rage and terror flooded my entire being. I clenched my teeth as I felt my fangs sharpen to fine points. My scales immediately took over my entire being, my tan skin now covered in reflective purple scales. Every sound, color, and scent became sharper. My magic power was overflowing so strongly, my body had to channel it wherever it could. I mustered the deadliest glare I could, and leveled it at the monster. "Just try and hurt my friend. See what happens," I growled. The monster shot back a glare of her own. She then lowered her hands to point them straight at me and Ash, the rest of her entourage following suit.

"Nyxing Chains!" she shouted, clapping her hands together. The room seemed to go still for a second. No noise. No movement. As if everything had frozen. Then, dozens of magic circles spawned in the space between the giant circles above and below me and Ash, surrounding us. There was no way out. But that didn't matter. I couldn't call myself a Crystal Dragon Slayer if my defenses fell to one stupid spell. I looked over at Ash to see a look of defeat... Something that I never associated with the brave leader of our cell. She never stopped caring for us, never stopped to care for herself. It was time for me to return the favor. I brought Ash into my arms, hugging her as close to me as possible. She looked at me, utterly confused, and I gave a determined look in response. If she was willing to put everything she was on the line to save me, then I'd do the same for her.

"Don't let go," I told her. The circles began glowing brighter around us as the magic energy began to physically affect the air, creating a tempest around us. However, my own was rising to the challenge, a small storm beginning to form between the opposing forces. I took one last, deep breath, trying to absorb as many magic particles as I could in one, last ditch attempt. I heard the telltale whine of the circles about to unleash their power, and released my own.

"Dragon Slayer Secret Art! Crystal Dragon Facade!" I shouted. Suddenly, the circle began launching a series of chains made of black energy at me and Ash as my crystals rose to meet them head on. Row after row of dark purple crystals rose from the ground to form my strongest defense around us, the chains doing their best to chip away at them. The crystals began to turn black themselves as they absorbed more and more of the black energy launched at them. I could feel myself grow weaker by the second as I tried my hardest to maintain the spell. Every hit the barrier took felt like a physical blow to whatever remained of my magic supply. I've never had to actually use this spell in combat, before. Plus, I always just passed out halfway through casting it. How was I supposed to know it'd be this draining? I fell to a knee, Ash leaning on my shoulder as I struggled. I started to see stars, and it felt like everything was rocking and waving... But that onslaught of chains was still going. I couldn't give up!

I couldn't...

Give...

Up...

There was a high pitched whine. Then a deafening boom. And then everything went white.

Author's Note: *Lightning strikes in the background as I lower the table with the story on it* It's... ALIVE!

So, yeah. Been a while. But, hey, I'm back! And I hopefully won't have as huge of a hiatus this time!

Anyway, about this chapter. I'm a little reluctant to put in so much dark stuff so early (hence the amount of fluff/getting-to-know-you bits beforehand) however, it is necessary to set up some major plot points in this story. Especially one in particular... Why must author's make their characters suffer?
Andromeda was a spirit that I knew I wanted to include from the start, so we'll be seeing more of her eventually, as well as what she can actually do in battle. As for the monster lady? *Shudders* As I wrote her design, I realized I was kind of modeling her after Bisky from Hunter X Hunter, lol. But, muscular women don't get much play in fiction, so there ya go!

Hope you all that enjoyed the story before enjoyed this chapter! And hey to any newcomers! I'd say it's maybe two more chapters until Yuji reaches Fairy Tail, so just be patient! Because I'm pretty sure chapters will be posted much faster when I have existing characters to work with! (Plus most of the planning for the story was for Yuji's interactions with everyone, so that'll help immensely.)

Once again, thanks for reading! Hope you all have a lovely [ insert applicable time of day here ]!