“Belle!” I squealed as I darted behind a tornado tree, snowballs slamming against its hard bark. “Mercy!”

“The gloves are off!” She shouted as I peeked my head around the tree. “I told you, I am not cute!”

“I call a truce!” I pleaded as another snowball hit a tree branch, a bell screaming out its melody. “You win! I won’t call you cute again, I promise!” It was for a good cause! I wanted her to blush...

Mainly because after some brief (but intense) deliberation, the Council of Aria has come to a conclusion. The members of me myself and I have decided that Belle blushing is objectively adorable.

“For real?” She yelled, another volley of snowballs whizzing past my wooden refuge. “Because if you don’t back off, then this means war, Aria!” Dammit, she’s lucky I’m not prepared for war! I was only suitable for sniper support in our past snowball fights!

“Y-yeah,” I nodded quickly as I came back out into the open, hands raised in surrender. “I’ll even lie and say you’re hideous if that helps!”

“Good,” Exhaled Belle in relief before it seemed to click. “Wait, lie?” A scowl carved itself into her face, a subtle blush dying her pale white cheeks.

“I mean, tell the truth,” I squeaked, forcing a smile as she stared daggers my way. She is gonna kill me by the end of this. In my defense, I’ve only called her cute two times since she got here.

“You are so lucky I’d feel bad if I even slightly hurt you.” She grumbled, crossing her arms as she leaned on a tree. “Otherwise, I would’ve aimed for you by now.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being cute, you know?” I stated, pondering on if I should approach her. She could change her mind and then boom, death by a thousand snowballs.

With an eye-rolling shake of her head, she retorted, “I’m a guy… guys aren’t cute.” Agree to disagree, Belle. Agree. To. Disagree.

Dammit, though. If I can’t call her cute, I’ll have to find other ways to get her to blush. The world needs to witness it as much as possible! Even if it doesn’t know it yet!

Ensuring she wasn’t armed, I closed the distance between us, questioning, “But you said earl-”

“I know what I said!” She cut me off, massaging her temples as she went to walk away. “But I can’t just, like… ugh!”

I grabbed her hand before she could get too far away and forced her to face me.

“Relax,” I insisted, her face softening as I leaned in, our noses inches apart. “No one’s gonna find out about what happens here, okay?” I whispered, giving her hand an assuring squeeze.

Confusion flooding her gaze, she reluctantly nodded, “h-how are you so comfortable with this?”

“There’s really no point in getting angry at this,” I beamed, half-shrugging. “It won’t get our bodies back any quicker.” I so badly want to say something. Why can’t there be an easy (and safe) way to inform her? Like I don’t know, a skill to rewind time?

“Y-yeah,” she stammered with a deep breath that seemed to calm her. “I guess you’re right. It’s just us anyway; I can tolerate that.”

“Good,” I beamed, grabbing her hand as I took the lead, pulling us further into the forest. “Now, let’s think of a backstory for how you lost your body.” I winked, eyes twinkling with mischief.

“Um… backstory?” She queried as we passed by a row of bullseye spores.

“Yeah,” I replied with no sign I was joking. “We’ll need a genre. Thoughts on a dark comedy?”

- - - - -

A clearing was first to greet us. One entirely devoid of the bell’s apparitions. Spots of what little moonlight remained poked through, helping to light the area with the clusters of chredorine crystals.

“You see that?” Belle whispered as we crouched down behind a bush.

“Yeah,” I muttered, parting some of the icy leaves to get a better look. “Sadly...”

Chairs you’d find in a theater littered the environment, stuffing and wood fragments having been tossed about with reckless abandon. Their shattered bodies looked beyond ancient like decades had passed since last they felt maintenance.

A lone segment of crumbling white brick wall stood in the center. A silver, almost tar-like substance splattered against its body, slowly throbbing and pulsating like it was breathing?

“I propose a new motion,” Belle spoke up, unable to tear her gaze from the spectacle. “Going around whatever the hell that is,” she gestured at it as it quickly throbbed, seemingly aware of her acknowledgment. Please tell me that was only a coincidence just now...

Nodding fervently, I took the lead, stammering, “m-motion accepted and adopted. It takes effect immediately. Any objections?”

“Just one.” She nodded. “Mostly that we didn’t do it earlier.” She respired deeply, her anxiety-soaked tone betraying her calm demeanor.

In silence, we crouched down, slowly slugging along behind our shroud of shrubs, far too enthralled with the otherworldly sight before us.

All that lived were the whispers of the once screaming forest. The wind begged the bells to steal the show again, to say something, anything at all to show it wasn’t alone. And yet, no reply was given, fully ensnaring us in the dark’s silence.

“Statues?” I muttered as we finally got to decipher what secrets this wall hid.

Six marble statues rested in positions that only served to pique my curiosity. Of them, five were white like untrodden snow, and the other? Black, a shade on par with midnight.

All of them were frozen mid escape. One had fallen to the ground, his position suggesting a desperate plea to escape.

The onyx one was sat there, fixated on the one on the ground, head cocked to his side.

“Is it him they’re running from?” Belle questioned, leaning in for a better view.

They were encased in a substance akin to the others. Unlike them, however, the beginnings of a yellowed smile broke through.

“Let’s leave.” Belle and I said simultaneously as we began moving, ensuring we stayed out of sight.

We made for the brightest patch of forest we could locate, disregarding the clearing’s potential for supplies. There’s something about those statues… I’m not gonna risk getting any closer to them.

“Hm?” I spun around, worry engraving itself into my face. “You heard that, right?” Did I hear a twig snap just now?

“No?” Replied Belle, her gaze following my own as I skimmed the trees behind us.

Nothing. I better have just imagined that. A twig snapping in an almost dead silent forest? Yeah, that’s an omen for disaster. And way to go, me! My nerves really will detest me by the end of this...

“Let’s...” I trailed for a moment before picking up my pace. “Let’s hurry it up.”

- - - - -

I froze up, desperate to convince myself I was hearing things.

Bells. I’m positive I just heard what sounded like the bells ringing. By itself, they weren’t an issue. But these? They were paced out like someone walked up and rung each one. Their call had a layer of static behind it now, too, as if it were a shoddy recording.

As much as it pains me to admit, I’m definitely not hearing things. I don’t think I could imagine that in a situation like this. There wasn’t any wind to ring them. Nor were any apparitions present like before.

“Hey, come look at this!” Belle called out from ahead, shaking me from my stupor.

“Coming!” I shouted, getting one last look at our surroundings. No movement... for now, at least. Still, we better get moving as soon as possible.

I broke into a jog to catch up to Belle, noticing that she was crouched down inspecting a tornado tree. Before I could tell her what had happened, she placed my palm against it.

My eyes were pried wide with bewilderment. Its bark... it looks and feels like tarnished copper.

Corrosion blighted its body, allowing me to peer through it in some spots. It wasn’t entirely changed yet; some of its old characteristics persisted.

I peered further down the weakly lit maw of this forest, discovering this tree was just the start of something bigger. Calling this a forest will be a stretch at the rate things are going.

The spores, dultha weed, tornado trees, even the forest floor itself. Little was spared.

The chredorines had become rusted gears in dire need of maintenance. The dultha, currently defined by bodies with an oil-like appearance. The spores now gave off the appearance of what I assumed used to be a generator. Decay and corrosion ran along the copper-colored ground with little care for the beauty it killed.

Out of everything, the only major plus was the bells were twisted in a way that caused dim amber light to spill from them onto the ground.

“Why did this forest have to be massive?” Murmured Belle with disgust as we ramped up our speed, my anxiety setting back in. This place’s new aesthetic only serves to make my concerns worse...

Popping open my book, I jogged after her, worry worming its way beneath my words as I whispered, “when we get to the tundra, we book it. I heard bells ringing before you called me over.” We better be on the very edge of this forest.

She looked over at me, ready to question why that was unnerving me, but stopped when our eyes locked.

She nodded that she understood and I followed through with a question that slipped my mind earlier. “What are your skills? We may have some useful synergies.” I beamed, promptly listing mine off. 

The flames blessed my book once again as Belle replied, clearly confused, “Ermh… skills?”

“Did… did you not check?” I raised an eyebrow. She can’t be bothered to read her tooltips here, either?

“I was more concerned with a horde of jellyfish, okay?!” She shot back, turning away from me just as I turned to face her, stopping for only a second to let that sink in. Jellyfi-Oh yeah, she did say something about being underwater. 

I do have trouble buying it, though. She has a scarily lengthy history of skimming over descriptions in role-playing games resulting in... mixed outcomes to say the least.

“Belle, even Gael reads his tooltips…” I twisted the knife anyway as she slid her hands into her coat pocket, averting eye contact. Wait, is that... Holy crap, that’s a pout! Those are adorable, too!? She needs to keep this up; I’m less nervous already.

“And I’ve said it before, Miss I Read Every Piece of Flavor Text, it’s better to see what something does in practice.” She proclaimed with a staggering amount of conviction. 

“Please never change, Belle.” My smile resurfaced as I got back to my book.

A new category right below Guardians? When did?

 Alcerians

{#009987} (48/288) = (1/6)

The numbers? Their design is so much more different. The text around the numbers knew no immolation.

Instead, tiny crystals and dultha weed lined the words, producing a pulsating blue aura that a penny-sized jellyfish floated in tandem with.

It’s so different from my own... as if it was custom-tailored for another. Did I overlook this earlier? And those numbers from before... there are two sets now. 

Three bells cried out from our left, right, and behind. Each was spread a second apart, displaying multiple things were chasing us. Or even worse, something so fast we couldn’t hope to outrun it. Crap, these sounded real too...

I was about to shut my book and put everything I had into my sprint, but the crystals had carved new information into the parchment. Information about skills!

I chose that and grew more perplexed as the crystals shot off, inscribing new information into the page.

In glowing crystal, new text read:

Class: Mistborn

Progenitors: Vitra, Etzel, Jerina

Crafting Types: Vaporist, Executed, Jester

Status: Lucid

Skills

Fusions

Nightmarish Influences: None

I tapped on skills, watching as the crystals adopted three new hues.

In emerald green, their mystique spoke:

Vaporist

One of Mist - Reach out for your perfect peace, even if it’s not including me. Allows the breakdown of the target’s body into mist, rendering them both incapable of receiving and inflicting harm. Value:1

Miasma of Mimicry {Progenitor’s Blessing} - The product of those desperate to belong.  A thick, dense, near suffocating mist that adopts the properties of any skill or weapon used near it. Value: 3

Vaporist {Passive} - Permits the crafting of vapors, substances that either hinder or aid the recipient.

In mahogany brown, they pulsated like the beat of an excited heart, hints of red marring their hue:

Executed

Black Bagged - Applies the “Darkened” status effect, guaranteeing the user gains an Executed stack should their target die shortly after receiving it. Value: 1

The Unseen Guillotine {Progenitor’s Blessing} - So quickly did he learn the charm of their forced theatrics. Neck blows have a chance to instantly incapacitate those of a lower level than you. Note: Probability is determined by the number of Executed stacks multiplied by 0.5 Value: 3

Executed: Upon reaching maximum stacks, heals the user for 1-3% of damage dealt with Unseen Guillotine multiplied by the amount of Executed stacks. Note: Stacks reset upon healing. Current Stack Cap: 5

In rose gold, their brilliance shimmered:

Jester

As Kids - For the days that knew only joy. Invoke the first string of Jerina, invigorating sound itself with the Jester’s contagious laughter. Value: 1

Finale {Progenitor’s Blessing} - For the days when enough was enough. The longer the user spends in conflict, the more potent this skill grows. But be wary; Not many live to recount the Jester’s parting hymn. Value: 3

Wait, Etzel? But I thought he was a… maybe they’re different people?

And whose skills are these? Belle’s?

More recorded bells sounded off, this time from behind us as I called out to Belle. She glanced over as a wave of almost deafening white noise washed over us.

Shrieking with nearly everything I had, I explained how to activate and what skill to use, praying she could hear me correctly. These better be hers!

“This sounds insane, but screw it!” She shouted back, voice rife with uncertainty as her hand exploded with emerald green light.

The light peaked, and with it, a thick, dense fog shot from Belle’s hands, settling mere meters ahead of us.

Words, ones with no change in tone as if they too were recordings began to drill their way into my mind.

“Don't,” a woman's voice pled. “Why?”

“Please, please, please work!” I swiftly tucked my book away as my hands were bathed in Yuul's crimson hue.

“Madness,” a man forced a flat laugh as we passed into the mist.

The mist slammed into me like a brick wall, robbing me of my breath as regret spread throughout me. As if the mist didn’t want to do this but knew it had no choice.

“Oblivion,” a third masculine voice solemnly hummed as a shriek pierced the static.

I threw my hands to my ears as the mist took on one of the most vibrant sanguine hues I had ever witnessed.

A whimper followed after us as we exited the cloud, oxygen practically being shoved back into my lungs. Belle glanced back to make sure I was still following, and we poured on more speed as the forest fell back into silence.

I didn’t bother to stop and check if that tactic did anything. Playing it safe, we assumed it didn’t (at least for now) and kept up our mad dash.

By the time we had reached the forest’s edge, we felt we put enough distance between our “guest” that we were due for a quick breather. And by that, I mean we collapsed on the outermost trees.

A gust of cool wind waved to us as we put our backs to a pair of metallic trees. Everything had been morphed at this point. Not a single reminder remained of what this forest used to be.

“I don’t,” Belle wheezed, shutting her eyes. “Know what you just did, but keep doing it. That was fucking amazing.”

“Right back at you...” I grinned, panting as I stared off into the tun... Did we get turned around somehow? How is this a tundra?

The iced-over bones of what had to be hundreds of buildings littered the snowy wastes. Many seemed to have collapsed, leaving just bits of themselves exposed as they awaited Mother Nature’s wintry blanket.

A castle-like spire twisted into the clouds, a ruined monument to what once was. Rain was coming down in droves, but at the same time, it wasn’t? It was frozen somehow... a drop occasionally falling to the forlorn settlement below.

Dozens of brilliantly shining stars shot through the sky. They seemed to either be piercing the shroud of clouds above with their radiance. Or perhaps, they simply came into being beneath them, disregarding their existence almost entirely.

Occasionally, one would explode into a random hue, like food coloring dispersed into water. It offered ample light, which I was grateful for, but it fast faded like dust on the wind.

Peculiarly, the decadent structures seemed to share a glow akin to the comets that exploded, giving them an almost spectral atmosphere.

And yet, the sight of it all served me contempt on a silver platter. The sensation started out with the intensity of embers, quickly expanding into a barely containable inferno of rage. It torched my other emotions to a fine crisp, leaving little room for them to thrive.

“Why does that piss me off?” I muttered under my breath, clenching my fists to try and calm down. Why is that sky ticking me off so much? It’s absolutely gorgeous, so how would, no, how could I be pissed?

With raw resentment festering beneath her words, Belle took a deep breath as she shakily got to her feet, “now why does that fucking sky make me feel like I’ve been cheated?”

Wait… that’s it. That’s exactly it. Gazing upon this, that’s all I can think about. It’s like I was cheated out of what I’m owed. As if I was robbed of something irreplaceable.

Ripping my gaze away from the spectacle, I pointed my eyes to the ground as I gathered my strength to stand. It helped for the most part, but there lingered still a lightly smoldering flame of rage in the back of my mind, ready to expand at any moment.

“Guess we can search for supplies there.” Belle remarked as we marched into the “tundra’s” full embrace.

“Yeah,” I mumbled, glancing over just in time to see Belle’s eyes widen in surprise as her feet were swept out from under her.

She slipped backward, causing her to go crashing down as I instinctively reached out to try and stop her descent.

Our fingers brushed by each other as I froze, blood going cold as white noise began whispering to me.

Someone’s grabbing my hand.

Dely

I'm not dead, it's a miracle! And neither is this story. Real life was busy punching me in the face for a while but now that it's, for the most part, finished I have returned from its depths! Hopefully, the wait was worth it! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off! Off to finish doing that chapter 9 thing... and probably grind out FF14 or something, I'm not sure.