The Future Keybearer (Invite)

[Kadeo]

It was a beautiful, quiet night in Traverse Town. Crickets chirped to their hearts content while the lights of the town kept a soft, happy glow on the few who were awake. Nearly everyone was in bed, leaving the town silent besides the sweet melody of the crickets. The best part of the situation was the stars: with nearly all the lights in the town turned off, the stars could shine with all their brilliance upon the family of three that were staring up at them. The youngest of the trio that were laying in the square was a boy named Kadeo, his bright red eyes wide as he took in the beauty of the night sky above him. He hardly looked like the spiky haired blond that was his father, the man sitting up with a smile as he rubbed the top of Kadeo’s head. The boy’s mother giggled, a dark haired light skin woman with red eyes that watched as Kadeo playfully flailed and pushed his father.

“Meaniehead!” Kadeo pouted at his father. He chuckled, shaking his head.

“Don’t tell me you don’t enjoy the attention, my boy,” He said quietly.

“But but!” Kadeo whined as he sat up, only to have his mother wrap her arms around him and hold him close to console him.

“There there Kadeo, everything’s going to be alright,” she said quietly, “Let’s all just behave and focus on the stars, how does that sound?”

“Yes dear,” his father said, earning a slight shove from his mother as they laid down. Kadeo rest his head on her bosom, staring up at the stars again while he listened to the soothing beat of her heart, the sweet melody of the crickets. He was happy everything was alright again; it seemed like forever ago that he was able to relax. Ever since the jungle fire he barely had even wanted to leave home, much less stay out in the open. Slowly he’d calmed down over the past few months, and now he could finally relax and enjoy the view of the stars again. Each one was a world, he knew that, but he’d only ever visited a handful. Even his adventurous parents had only been to dozens of worlds, yet there were thousands or even more of them in the night sky just waiting to be discovered. He wondered if he’d ever be able to meet people from all of them, if they’d ever accept them.

More importantly, Kadeo thought as he set his gaze on a particular star, he hoped that he could become brave enough someday to be a hero like Mr. Leon. The star he focused on was Radiant Garden, a world his parents promised to take him once he got over his fears of being outside again. He smiled sweetly, closing his eyes to snuggle against his mother as she wrapped her arm around him with a happy sigh.

Everything was going to be alright, Kadeo just knew it.

(For a few rounds Kadeo is only going to interact with Kefka, BUT Artemis will intervene at some point to save him and we'll go from there. Let's get Sonora going with some DESTRUCTION, Big K! =D)

[Kefka]

"WOAAAAAAAA
AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH~ OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO
HOHOHOHOHOHO!"

The maniacal laughter echoed through the air, interrupting the calm, quiet night. As Kefka bounded onto a rooftop, skipping as he normally did before stopping and looking around. "Now let's see what we have here..." Kefka muttered to himself, his mind aflutter with schemes. "Quiet night... peaceful town... happy people. I see! So, what I'm getting is a whole lot of YAWWWWWWWNNNNNNNNNNN! Where's the conflict?! The fighting! The chaos! The anguish! People beating up other people because he wanted that loaf of bread first! Bah! Can't trust anyone to do anything right! Well, if you want something done right, you IMMOLATE IT YOURSELF! Uwee, hee, hee! WHOA~OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!" Kefka then started unleashing havoc upon Traverse Town, throwing around Firagas and Thundagas like they were going out of style. "Run, RUN! OR YOU'LL BE WELL DONE~" Kefka shouted as he skipped and flew from rooftop to rooftop.

He then came upon Kadeo's family and smiled devilishly to himself. The kid looked oh so adorable. Well, that simply wouldn't do! Kefka didn't want adorableness, he wanted TEARS! LOTS OF THEM! He floated down and landed in front of the family. "Hi, I'm Kefka and this is crazy, but I hate you three, SO JUST DIE MAYBE?!" Kefka then cast Extra Crispy Firaga at the family, each fireball heading towards a different target. He then floated in the air before the spell even impacted the family. "And for those enjoying the show at home, fret not! For I have brought the joys of destruction directly to your homes!" Kefka then cast Meteor in the general vicinity of the family, but the spell was also cast to cause as much death and destruction in the area as possible. Meanwhile, Kefka laughed his maniacal laugh, enjoying the chaos he was creating. "Yes, YES! This is so much better than that dreary and boring Peace! War! Strife! You humans are going to do it anyways, so I might as well give you a swift boot in the rear! WHOA~OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!"

[Kadeo]

The sudden laughter that echoed throughout the town brought Kadeo up with a jolt, his eyes wide with fear as he frantically looked around for its source. His father chuckled, sitting up to place a hand on Kadeo shoulder as he shook his head, the mother soothingly wrapping her arms around her son to try and help him relax and quit his shaking.

“Relax son, it’s probably just someone out performing or something like that. Besides, we’re here for you, there’s nothing for you to worry about,” he said in a calm, reassuring voice.

“Your father is right, just lay down and enjoy us and the stars. Everything is alright,” she cooed. Kadeo nervously looked at his father, then his mother, before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. They were right; as long as he was with them he was safe. It’d always been that way, and it always would be. With a slight nod he rest his head back against his mother’s bosom as she laid down, only his father gazing towards the sounds of the explosions that seemed to be getting closer. A few eruptions in the sky flashed beautiful shades of red and yellow, and he smiled.

“See? What did I tell you, it’s just firewo-“

Before he could even finish his sentence, a colorful jester landed in front of the group. Kadeo yelped and clung to his mother, while she instinctively wrapped her arms protectively around her son. His father quickly jumped to his feet as the man spoke, glaring at him as a single consensus ran through the minds of each member of the family: there was certainly something wrong with this clown.

“RUN!” Kadeo’s father cried, immediately recognizing that the jester was conjuring a spell. He leaped back towards his family while his wife picked up her son and started to run away. Each of the three fireballs found their target in him, and he cried out in agony as the miniature explosion rocketed him back headfirst into the wall of a nearby building. As he slumped to the ground the flames consumed him, leaving no chance for his survival. Kadeo watched the event transpire in horror, reaching out for his father while he screamed and tears flooded from his eyes. He could only watch helplessly as the jester continued his destruction, with several meteors raining from the sky to crash into the buildings around him. He watched as roofs burst into flame and the side of a building collapsed. Ahead of them the final meteor crashed into the side of a chimney, sending it plummeting towards the ground.

“KADEO!” his mother cried, knowing she didn’t have the time to avoid being struck. She tossed the boy out of range, shouting “I love you!” after him before she vanished in the collision of the chimney with her and the ground. Kadeo landed hard, scraping his arm and crying out as he shoved himself to his feet. He turned and ran towards the cloud his mother vanished into, desperate to save her life.

“No no no NOOO~!” Kadeo screamed as he moved bricks out of the way, only to find his mother’s smashed body underneath the rubble. He curled up in a ball against her and started to wait, unable to stop the waterfall of tears that flooded from his eyes. His entire world had gone from perfect to destroyed in a matter of moments, and his heart felt as if it was tearing in two. He shook violently as he cried, just clinging to his mother in desperate hope that somehow she would wake up.

This just couldn’t be happening...

[Kefka]

Kefka laughed with unrestrained glee at the screams of despair and pain, dancing a little in the air. "I AM THE BEST!" Kefka shouted. He then looked down to survey the damage he caused and saw something that did not please him one bit. "W-W-WHAT? I MISSED SOME BRAT?! Ooooh, how could I have missed? I only rained fiery death from the skies! BAH! Well, I'm going to just have to fix that and pronto!" Kefka floated down behind Kadeo and snuck up behind him in a very exaggerated way. He then heard the kid crying and looked over his shoulder, realizing the little brat was crying for some woman. Probably his mother or something. Kefka didn't know or care. Once he was at point-blank range, Kefka smiled gleefully. He couldn't possibly miss at this range.

"Awwwww, does the half-pint miss his mommy? Well, don't you worry, because YOU'RE ABOUT TO JOIN HER!" Kefka then unleashed a point-blank Ultima spell right at Kadeo. There was no way he could POSSIBLY dodge... unless some sort of hero were to block the shot somehow. But where was this brat going to get that?!

[Artemis]

What the clown didn't know was that there had been a demon cloaked with shadows lurking among the flames and death that was beginning to swallow the town. He wasn't aware that hooded woman had already become accustomed to hearing the screams of those who were dying, burned alive, falling debris, or even from the impact from a meteor. Her ears heard the victims crying for help, but received none at all. She simply walked passed each one and doesn't even as much as a glance in their direction despite the fact that some of their shrieks were aimed at her. As the cloaked woman walked away, her ears could hear the victims accuse her of being Heartless, a demon, anything that dwell in the darkest corners of their nightmares that they could think of, and scream many, many curses and profanities at her. She simply shrugged them off.

The Nightmare knew she couldn't help them all so why help at all? Over the years, the demon learned how to block the sounds from Hell from the outside and stifle the cries of her own Heart out. The moment called for it. She knew that she couldn't help. Their fates were already sealed and written on their gravestones. There was nothing she could have done to help.

The cloaked woman continued to walk and her heels cracked underneath the broken glass from perhaps a wine bottle meant for a lovely night out. She only stopped when there was fire blocking her direct path and her side paths. From the other side of the flames, her own silhouette could possibly be seen. The woman glances behind her and saw that there was no turning back, the path was blocked. She literally stood in a box of fire.

Again, she heard the screams in what seemed to be coming from right in front of her. The demon listened to the cries of a woman whose voice suddenly became silent as it switched places with the sound of heavy stone connecting to flesh and bone. She listened to the screams and wails of a child facing an otherwise cruel fate. Insane laughter echoed in her head. This sounds...Familiar. mused the Nightmare, noting that it was becoming difficult to cope becoming trapped in the flames and could feel the flames licking the hem of her cloak like an eager puppy. She exhaled and when inhaling, found that there was little oxygen left in this 'box'. Leaving was inevitable.

In her mind's eye, she could easily imagine the scene in front of her. A child losing his or her parent from terrible violence whether it be war or cold blood. The woman remembered this scene many times; it had happened more than once during her years of fighting and had to freeze her Heart so why did it start to ache now? A flashback skipped across her mind; a pallid woman bleeding from a bullet wound where her Heart was looking directly up at her and she could barely hear her beg her to make an impossible promise. She blinked then darkly glared at the fire directly in front of her.

A quick gesture with her own right hand quickly summoned Umbra Vitis Shield[/color] to protect the child from meeting his end. If the Jester hadn't been able to sense her power, he certainly would now as he is going to face a Nightmare and there was no holding back. Her silhouette that was once behind the flames was gone. Vanished as if she had never been there at all.It will be just this one life that I could save if I can help it... The shadows had embrace her and replaced the cloaked woman's otherwise mortally human form with that of a demon from Hell and allowed her to silently fly up into the night sky, Eblis.

While the Nightmare possibly still held the element of surprise, he flew behind Kefka and quickly aims a kick toward his spine in an attempt to get him to faceplant the ground. She wasn't going to give this man mercy. Even if Kadeo had to watch, Selena "Artemis" Wolfsong will attempt to kill this jester in cold blood.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Eblis: Appearance]
With the darkness of her heart, Selena takes on the form of a dragon-like demon of the night. During battle, the most notable difference between this form and her normal form is the increase in speed and strength but a considerable decrease in defense. [Cooldown: 6 Posts] [Duration: 5 Posts

Umbra Vitis Shield: Selena can raise up many large, thorned vines of darkness to wrap around herself and/or her allies to act like a strong shield. It can be used normally and in her Dark Form. It may also be used in battle and outside of battle. [Cooldown: 1 Post]

[Kadeo]

Kadeo was completely oblivious to the jester’s precense, alternating between shaking his mother and clinging to her as he cried. He’d never cried so much in his life, he was filled with complete and utter despair. Everything was gone, in an instant, the happiness he’d finally regained after so long had already been stripped away from him in under a minute. He wailed, burying his face into his mother as he violently shook from grief. He didn’t care about anything else, he just wanted his mother back.

Then the voice came, the same voice that had carried that terrifying laugh. Kadeo would’ve froze if his body could stop shaking, but the crying immediately ceased as his eyes filled with fear and he looked over his shoulder. Almost in slow motion, he saw the formation of the white ball in Kefka’s hand. He flinched, pulling his hand up to his chest out of instinct and subconsciously summoning Luciferia. At such short range forever, even she would’ve been too late...

...But for the kid’s sake, a shield of dark vines surrounded him while darkness consumed the child. From above Kadeo a corridor of darkness form, from it emerging the battered appearance of a black winged angel. Luciferia slowly descended in front of the boy, and swung her sword towards Kefka as a threat while the shield vanished around him. From behind her blindfold she watched ‘Artemis’ kick at Kefka's back to send him to the ground, nodding at her in approval before she attempted to kick Kefka back to his feet and slash across his chest with her blade. Spinning the blade in her hand she then held it out to her size, face emotionless as she watched on to see what the lunatic had next in store for the two of them. Her intentions were the same as the demon’s, but ultimately she just wanted Kadeo to be safe.

Speaking of Kadeo, he slowly stopped wincing to look up at the back of the angel as she attacked the jester. If it were any other circumstance, he would happily shout “Luci!”, sang her praise and thanked her for her help. However this was a different story, all Kadeo could focus on right now was his mother. He clung to her again, and tried desperately to pull her out of the rubble. To no avail, he was simply too weak. It was finally hitting him that... That maybe she was like all the people who were taken by the Heartless... But he didn’t want to accept that, didn’t want her to leave him... Kadeo fell to his knees, wiping his eyes as he started once again to cry.

What else could he do? He was defenseless against someone like this, he’d just get in Luciferia’s way. He looked over his shoulder, worrying if Luciferia would be alright when he spotted a demon of sorts on the other side of the clown. He cried out and tried to back up into the rubble, but then realized her gaze was on the clown. ...Was she there to help him? He whined, wiping his eyes again with a gulp. Well, no matter what Luci would protect him right? He had to trust in her that he was going to be ok. Gathering some courage, he struggled to his feet, still shaking before his attempted should barely reached the demon.

“K-kick his butt!! Make him pay what he did to mommy, to daddy and all the townspeople!” Kadeo wiped his nose, “You’ll see, you big jerk, no matter what you do there’ll always be heroes like Mr. Leon to come and kick your butt for doing mean things!”