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Chapter Text

His snarls soon start to fade from her ears. He had given up on her.

A sigh escapes her lips, clutching the stone in her trembling hands. She was safe, for now at least. It takes a moment for the feeling to fully set over, for the assurance of her security to sink in. But after a few moments, the young girl manages to open her eyes, aware that she was no longer in harm's way.

Her head tilts downwards, to glance at the sparkling stone that is nested in her hands. Why were you so important to him, she thinks to herself, her head tilting to the side as her brow raises a little. What were you?

As the girl rises to her feet, she starts to think of where she can go for answers- the cloud kingdom seems promising, she has heard of their tales and scrolls that hold many secrets. Or perhaps she could find her way back to the Dragonian village, maybe see if the elders know anything about this abnormal crystal. Though, this was an Oni she had just outran, and she is assuming that their kind would probably want to avoid each other due to past complica--.

Her mind wanders. And her foot slips.

The stone, as if it were butter, escapes her hands. A crack rings in her ears, and her eyes widen as she falls to the floor. Quickly scrambling to get herself back up, she looks around. If the crack wasn't from her, then...

She glances at the broken stone, shattered into many pieces on the forest floor in front of her eyes. The girl's brows furrow in slight annoyance- she just had to break it, didn't she? She turns around swiftly to turn her back to it, letting out a small huff of self-frustration. All of that effort, just for it to slip out of her hands and shatter?

The girl grips her dark purple cloak and closes her eyes. Now she felt like her own mind was laughing at her, taunting her. She could hear it. Though the voice was a little deep for her conscience...

And was it getting louder? Her eyes flutter open, and she turns around to face the shattered stone- wait, why is it glowing??

The laughs get louder, and they seem to be coming from above her. Tilting her head upwards, her eyes widen. The glow wasn't just coming from the rock, no, it was coming from something much stranger than that

A floating purple ball of flame levitates above its former prison, its laughs deep and raspy, loud enough to make the birds scatter to the skies. After its laughs die down into snickers, and then a sigh of relief, it talks.

"Finally...I knew this day would come." The raspier male voice declares, and the girl could swear she could see a grin form in its inferno-like figure. "The day where I would be free from that wretched prison." The malice in his voice as he looks down at the stone is obvious. As he stares down at it, the girl starts to connect the dots- maybe that's why the Oni was after it? Maybe he wanted to use this thing somehow? But why? Why was it so important to him?

"Now," The spirit exclaims. "I finally get to meet the warrior who set me free of my chains and--" He pauses, his eyes fixed on the cowering hooded figure in front of him. After a moment, he floats a little closer to her, examining her over.

"Eh...you're a little on the shorter side for a warrior." He says, suspicion in his tone. The girl then realize she has the ability to speak, coughing a little to clear her throat.

"I'm sorry to disappoint, but...I'm not a warrior." The figure mutters. "Just a traveler, trying to make her way around."

"A very small traveler." He comments, his flame-like body flickering backwards to give her some room. "And rather young sounding too...how old are you, kid?"

"How did you know I-" Her head tilts to the side. Was it really that obvious how young she was? "...never mind. If you really want to know, I'm eleven."

"Eleven...oh, you really are young. I'm surprised you haven't died out here yet, considering where we are." The spirit chuckles rather loudly.

The child tilts her head to the side, "You...know where I am?"

"Of course! It's been a while since I've been free, but I recognize these wastelands. You're in the First Realm, the realm of Oni and Dragon." He explains.

"So that's why that Oni was there in the first place...I didn't realise they lived here." The girl utters under her breath in realization. Upon seeing his confused gaze, the child quickly explains. "I prevented an Oni from getting his hands on you. He was really keen on getting that stone, and I kind of understand why."

"I see...well, thank you for saving me from that fate. No doubt me might have tried to use me." The spirit huffs, but his tone has a hint of gratitude towards the traveler.

"...when I say kind of though, I'm still a little lost. Who are you exactly?" She asks with a tone full of curiosity and wonder, finally managing to build up the courage to stand up and dust herself off after her fall.

"Oh, right, I forgot about that part." He coughs, before his flame starts to grow brighter. The air almost becomes electric as he speaks. "I am the Seventh Virtue of Sources, the embodiment of power itself, the one who has provided strength to many before my imprisonment..."

"I. am. CHIKARA." The spirit bellows, his voice dripping with pride. Chikara glances down at the child, who was staring up at him with sparkling eyes. "Now, who might you be?"

After a moment of staring in awe, she shakes her head quickly to snap out of it. "Right, sorry...my name is Locus. Locus Allstar."

"Hm...very interesting name. One I've never heard before..." The spirit says in curiosity, quickly swirling around her a couple of time before placing himself in front of her, as if he's thinking about something.

Then an idea pops into his head, and he grins. "Tell ya what, pipsqueak, let me make a deal with you."

"A...deal?" The surprise on Locus' face was obvious. She clasps her hands together and tilts her head to the side. "Go on...?"

"You see, I can't just be caught wandering on my own out here, I might get caught by the wrong people, used, abused...all of that baloney. You don't seem like the type to get yourself involved in all of that crap, am I right?" He raises a flickering brow at her.

"Uhm...you could be right?" The girl responds, the grasp on her hands tightening a little as she glances away.

"Excellent." Chikara nods. "So...why don't we become travel partners? I keep you safe, you keep me from being captured. Sound like a deal?" The spirit extends a part of his flame, as if he were offering a hand to the child.

Locus looks at his "hand" for a moment, hesitating on whether she could trust this being. But it would be nice to have someone to talk to, she supposes. After a moment, she exhales, and takes it.

"Alright, it's a deal!" He says, shaking her hand rather harshly before letting go. "Next question is...you got anywhere tight I can stay in? Being stuck in small places has kinda grown on me..."

Locus looks at him with a raised brow, slowly nodding as she turns around. On her back was a staff, a lantern attached by a chain on the top of it. The spirit's eyes practically sparkle, and she soon hears a clatter as he practically charges inside of it.

"This...now THIS is what I like." He says with a rather loud laugh "At least now I can actually see! Unlike inside that rock... Thanks, kid."

"No...problem?" Her confusion is evident in her voice, but this isn't the weirdest thing she has seen so it quickly fades from her expression. "Which way should I go?"

Chikara's body does a full 360 inside of the lantern, stopping when he sees a certain area where trees were starting to become more common. "Where those trees are."

Her own body turns in that direction, and she nods eagerly. "I see them! Let's go!" Her voice sounds more cheerful as she walks towards them. This was a start of a new chapter, one where she wouldn't have to be alone.

And she absolutely loves the thought of it.

Chapter Text

The descending sun has started to bathe the two in a hue of oranges and pinks as they traverse through the forest. Even though they have been walking for a while, the hooded child has show no signs of wariness, as if she were used to the idea of walking for hours. Her eyes scan the scenery around them, examining each and every flower nearby.

"So..." Locus says after a few moments of silence between the two has passed. "How exactly did you end up inside of that rock?"

Kara turns towards her inside the lantern, before exhaling. "Well, that is certainly a long story."

"How come?" She muses, turning her head towards him in return. The spirit pauses for a moment, before speaking once more.

"Well, kid, you see, when I mentioned I was a Virtue of the Sources..."

Her brow raises. "Go on?"

"...I meant sources as in...source dragons." The air turns still for a moment, her eyes widen ever so slightly.

"Source dragons...? As in, the beings who created elemental abilities?" As the spirit nods, a small gasp of adoration escapes her lips. "Woah...that...that sounds amazing!"

"Not exactly. Yes, they were sort of my parents in a way, but at the same time, some of them were not very...caring. As most god-like beings are." Locus' look of wonder changes to one of mild concern.

"Why's that?" The child asks, tilting her head to the side. After another sigh, Chikara starts to explain.

"You see, when the Sources created us, they had the intentions of creating us as heroic figures. However, some of my siblings went down a darker path, and the ones who didn't turn corrupt ended up being dragged into their messes." He says, his voice a little quieter, his eyes diverging from hers.

"Oh...wait, so does that mean--" The child's eyes lock with his, a clearly disturbed look in her gaze. "They...the Sources trapped you in those rocks??" Chikara's nod confirms all that she needs to know, a look of shock appearing on the girl's face, even if most of it was concealed.

"Exactly. Truth and I, the only ones who didn't turn against our creators, were both tricked into helping the ones who did, so we also were taken captive in those stones, and scattered across the realms." Chikara clarifies, shaking his head. "Until you found me, I thought I was going to be subject to eternal imprisonment."

Eternal. The word rings in Locus' ears. Eternal punishment. Eternal torture. A pit grows in her stomach, and she looks away for a minute, keeping her eyes on the path. She knew a little about the word eternal, and how desperate it made people.

"Hey, you good, pipsqueak?" Chikara raises a flickering brow. Locus blinks, still keeping her eyes on the path.

"I'm fine." She utters quickly, her voice less enthusiastic than before. "Just got reminded of something, that's all. Nothing to worry about."

"...kid." He sighs, the creak of the lantern's metal hinge echoing through the forest. Chikara floats in front of Locus, stopping her idle strolling. "I may be a little on the scarier side, but if we're to be...travel partners, then you can tell me what's bothering ya."

No response comes from the child, and she looks away from him. Chikara sighs. "Look, just because I'm not exactly, well, human, doesn't mean that I can't--."

"That's the thing." Locus mutters, turning her head. "I'm not a human either."

The Virtue pauses for a moment, slowly narrowing his eyes and raising a brow. "Okay...so why does that matter? I have dragon gods for parents, it doesn't bother me."

"No, you don't get it." She says, her voice a little quicker, just a little bit louder. The girl pauses, looking around the trees, to see if something was close by. Then she glances back towards him, and brings her hands to her mask and hood.

"I'm not just inhuman." She explains, pulling down her mask which previously had covered her mouth, before moving her other hand to the front of her hood and pulling that down too.

The girl in front of him now looks like any normal 11 year old child- bronze skin, a slightly rounder face. However, then the spirit notices her eyes: they were not only a deep purple, but also seem to have tiny white flecks within them, like stars. Then he catches sight of her hair- it was rather long and made up of a different swirl of purples, blues, pinks: they swirl on their own, as if it was alive. It almost seems to glow, and tiny stars are seen embedded inside.

"...I'm the type of inhuman that doesn't belong on this planet." Locus finishes, letting out a small sigh. Chikara's eyes were wide, though to Locus they looked like little circles.

"Kid...you never told me you were starfolk!" He tilts his head to the side, poking the child in the shoulder. "That's incredible- I mean, I've never seen one before, especially not one who ended up on earth of all places!"

"Wait, hold on, you know what I am?" Locus raises a brow, her starry eyes glowing ever so slightly as she does so.

"Duh? Your kind is like, one of the first species to ever exist! Hell, some of you guys are probably as old as the Sources themselves." Chikara explains, looking over her hair once more before he looks back at her perplexed expression, almost as if he couldn't believe his eyes. "How exactly did you end up coming to Earth anyways?"

"The Merge." She says simply. The child has explained the Merge during their travels, and the devastating but peculiar impacts it has had on other people. "I still don't know a lot about it, but it must have been powerful enough to change the size of the atmosphere." The look in her eyes seems hesitant, almost as if she's purposefully missing something out. Chikara notices this, but shrugs it off.

"That's what makes us such good travel partners- we both don't belong out here." Chikara says reassuringly, putting a hand on her shoulder, like a best friend would. "But we keep fighting on anyways, right kid?"

The child looks at him for just a moment, and then nods, a smile appearing on her face. "Yeah, you're right...you know, for a spirit who often looks really grumpy, you're surprisingly optimistic, you know?"

"Hey, I can be optimistic if I want to!" He yells, but with a joking undertone. Locus lets out a small giggle, which son turns into a laugh- a genuine laugh- that she finds hard to set down.

"I know, I know." She giggles a little more, before sighing. "Gosh, I think that's the first time I've laughed in...well, a while."

"Well, glad I could serve comedic value to your journeys, pipsqueak." He chuckles, before heading back into his lantern swiftly. "Let's get going, eh? Maybe find somewhere to set up camp for the night?"

"Yes!! Oh, maybe I could point out the different stars for you?" She offers, looking at the spirit in the lantern with a bright smile. "I know a lot about them, after all!"

"Mhm, sounds good to me." He nods eagerly. "Now, let's get walking."

"Alright, let's go Kara!" She beams before starting to walk. Kara, a shortened version of his name. It felt...nice. Like he was a living being other than a vessel used for showing off the glory of the Sources.

He felt like he belonged somewhere. Even if it was helping out a child.