[IC] - Fantasia

The Real World

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Several minutes passed after the vicious thrashing that Dahlia's bullies had delivered to her. After the beating, the girls snuck Dahlia into a nearby bathroom and set her up in one of the stalls, their version of "hiding the body." Dahlia, however, did not recover. When the two girls restrained her, and she knew what was coming, it made her feel as helpless as the day that she had been raped. And then the words that the bully had planted in her mind supplemented her already deteriorating mental stability. Those things combined triggered her typical reaction to these things: Catatonia.

Dahlia sat, effectively unconscious, in the bathroom stall, stuck in her mental prison that served as a reflexive coping mechanism. Within her mind, she was experiencing nightmares; flashbacks to the night that her family and innocence were taken from her. Tears began rolling down her face as she experienced such thoughts. Eventually, the grief became too much... She lost consciousness and her heartbeat began to fade. In her final moments, she cursed her life and thought "What a day to die..."

Before her heart failed, however, a void opened in the stall door before her, pulling her to... who knows where?

---

Fantasia

---

It was a typical day in Fantasia. About as typical as living in the Human Imagination got anyway. The citizens were all bustling around, firefights from the gang wars in different sections of the city could be heard echoing in the distance. But if the citizens of the city were to turn their eyes upward, they would see a dark void opening in what served as Fantasia's sky: what was effectively a solid ceiling spanning into infinity.

A young-looking man stood upon the balcony of his apartment, sipping a cold beverage and staring at the void when he saw a single girl fall through the gap.

"Right on schedule." He said, before turning into his apartment.

~Fantasia (Nighttime)~

"Val, I think we're being followed." Anthony said, as they watched the group of 3 men turn the same corner they had for a third time.

"I know, they're after our possessions. Whatever you do, don't run. We'll shake them off the next block." Valerie warned in a whisper, as the two siblings started to walk faster.

"'Ey, They're runnin'! After them!" One of the men, the shortest, yelled as he went into a dash.

"Dammit, you idiot. Now they're gonna run!" The middle one shouted as he started running as well. The tallest one said nothing but ran with them.

"Crap, they're running, we gotta go Tony!" Valerie exclaimed. She started sprinting. She knew she could outrun them for a while, unless they had an ablity to help them, but she was hesitant about Anthony. She turned and her heart skipped a beat. "TONY THEY'RE COMING! RUN!" She screamed at Anthony, who was still walking and hadn't noticed yet.

Anthony started running just in time, as the smallest one dove for him and missed. The middle one tripped over him and fell, before quickly getting up. "Stop screwing around!" He shouted at the shorter man, before running again. The tallest man was already catching up to Tony, but he passed him and kept going.

"You're supposed to catch them Idiot!" The middle one shouted again, this time at the tall man, whom turned ready to catch the boy.

Anthony turned left and headed that way. The middle one barked again. "Leave him, go after the girl!"

Valerie turned her head just as Anthony headed left. "Tony!" She yelled, and turned left as well. She soon could see Tony, whom ran parallel to them a few blocks away. She headed towards where he was going, and manifested her gray chains.

"Boss, she's got a weapon!" the shortest one said, nearly out of breath.

"Doesn't matter what she has, we outnumber them! Shut up and get them!" The middle one; the boss, ordered.

Valerie swung her chains at towers of boxes on the sides, before catching up with Anthony. "Don't stray far from me Tony." She said when she was close enough.

The shortest one tripped over the boxes and was exhausted. "Hey, carry him or he'll keep dragging us down!" The middle one said to the tallest. The tallest one ran back and lifted the smallest one like a child, before turning and catching up with the boss.

"We can't outrun them for much longer, we have to hide." Valerie told her brother as she lengthened her chains. They turned into a dead end, with only a box and trash around it. She headed into the shade and brought her brother close to her before wrapping her chains around them. "Okay, what would happen if they catch us? What would happen if they catch us? What would happen if they catch us?" Valerie repeated to herself. As her head filled with images and possibilities, her chains blackened, enough to hide them in the shadows.

"Will we be okay Val?" Her brother questioned.

"I think so. We'll make less and less noise the more chains we have wrapped around us, as long as I stay scared." The more prominent the color and her mood got, the better the ability would work.

"Got you now!" The boss said, as him and his men turned the corner. "What, they're not here? Shit, they must've climbed the wall! Other side let's g-"

"Wait!" The smallest one interrupted in a whisper. "That box moved." The men all stared at the box in the corner near the trash cans, before it moved again.

"Nice eye." The boss complimented the shortest man. They approached the box. "Alright, when we lift it, you grab whoever's inside." The boss murmured to the tall one, before they lifted it. The tall one quickly lifted the person inside. It was a barefoot woman with long hair and dirty robes. She brought her legs up to her chest and hugged them when picked up.

"Boss, this ain't the right girl. She was wearin red before." The shortest man said.

The boss was frozen and speechless. "That's my daughter! What the hell's she doing in this place!?"

"You sure boss? She looks way to different in my opinion." The shortest man questioned about the girl, who remained as speechless as the tall man. The girl stared blankly at the trash cans ahead of her, before the lid opened. Stuffed bears came out and stopped before the men.

"Hey, I'm pretty sure your daughter didn't have a bear army ether." The shortest one said, pointing at the stuffed bears in front of them.

"Oh, Good. Forget about those 2 we were chasing, let's take her back. They'll be useful." The boss ordered his men. But as soon as they stepped out of the alleyway, the girl let our a sudden scream. The men instinctively covered their ears and the tall man dropped her onto the ground.

"Shit! Pick her back up. Let's go!" The boss yelled at the tall guy once again. And so he did, and they ran back the way they came with the stuffed bears following them.

The girl continued to scream for a few seconds until her voice gave out, not long after she started.

The streets were once again filled with an eerie silence.

"Val?" Anthony said after a while.

"Yeah?"

"Who was that?" He questioned.

"She was probably just a helpless girl." Valerie said. "We can't worry about what happens to her, especially since we don't even know her." Valerie receded her chains and the two sat in the empty alley. A couple more bears exited the other trash can, and sat near them.

"How come she didn't fight back?" He questioned again.

"She probably wasn't a Magnus like me, so she didn't have weapons...I think." Valerie said uncertainly.

"What if the bears were her weapons?" He questioned a third time.

"Then they would've attacked the men. Plus, wouldn't bears be a weird weapon? Especially stuffed ones?"

"That would be weird, but some games had that! I even played one with a rainbow shooting-"
"Yeah yeah" Valerie Interrupted her brother. "Let's continue tomorrow, I've heard enough shouting today."

"Wait, is it safe to sleep here Val?"

"I think so. The bears don't seem that hostile, even when someone was being kidnapped. We'll know when we get to the library. But for now, we don't have many options."

Pio's Apothecary and Clinic | Scrapyard District | 7:53 AM

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Before Pio could even react, the merchant who frequented her shop and his assistants bursted into her shop, holding what looked like a man hurt in a crossfire.

"B- bring him into the clinic please!" Pio fidgeted at the sight of an almost dying man. She already lost 5 to the hands of Death, she will not let this man perish. "This way!"

Pio's Apothecary and Clinic | Scrapyard District | 7:55 AM

"Aye, lass." The merchant said. "You go watch the cart. Don't need another incident." He ordered his crewman to go back.

Yosho wasn't the largest of people, so it wasn't hard for the merchant to maneuver his lifeless body to the clinic. His mind was in a slight daze watching Pio desperately struggle to save someone who was already dead. The poor girl looked like she was already half-dead with the way she dressed and how famished she looked.

Yosho's injuries didn't look fatal, rather just the shock from the bullets are what "knocked the life" out of him. Regardless, he was still and motionless.

Pio's Apothecary and Clinic | Scrapyard District | Time: 7:56 AM

---

Once at the clinic, which was just a small room with dirty mattresses or bundles of blankets laid on the ground for patients to lay on, Pio motioned the merchant to lay the wounded on one of the beds. Omce he did so, she began inspecting the patient for any injuries and if he was beyond saving or still salvagable.

"The bullets didn't hit any fatal spots; the shock from them must've knocked them out." Pio commented as she held up a small bundle of bandages. "I'll close his wound and bring him back to health. "

Pio wrapped the bullet wounds with a bandage, closing them off from any chance of infection. It was the best she could do for now; she ran out of ingredients for the potion that helps close wounds faster, but she sure as heck could cook up something to rejuvenate the drinker while the patient is unconscious.

Maker's Rise Square | Central District | 8:00 AM

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Dahlia slowly opened her eyes. She had no idea what had just happened to her, but she knew that she was alive, and that was good enough for her. She sat up lethargically and looked around. It appeared to her that she was somewhere in some sort of city... but it was dark. The not just the atmosphere but the city itself... the buildings she observed were largely blackened and twisted, almost looking... evil. Dahlia rubbed her eyes and pressed her fingers against her throat.

"......... Yep... still alive... Where the hell am I?" Dahlia groaned. As she analyzed the streets around her, she realized that they were strangely empty. It didn't LOOK like the city was abandoned. The streets were relatively well maintained where she was, all things considered. So why did it seem so abandoned? And then she some something, just barely out of the corner of her eye. Something lurking in the shadows, stalking her. She looked to where the movement had caught her eye but saw nothing.

Then came the pounding footsteps behind her...

Alleyways | Scrapyard District | 8:02

"Come on Val, hurry and wake up."

Valerie opened her eyes almost on cue as her brother urged her to wake up. She slowly sat up.

"What is it Tony? How long were you up?" Valerie questioned.

"An hour or so, but that's not important. You totally misse-"

"Is our stuff alright?" Valerie interrupted lazily and began searching the alley.

"No, but there were these-"

"What!?" Valerie stood up quickly. "They were stolen?"

"Yeah. Some guys came up and asked me if I wanted any trouble. I said no, then they told me to stay put and not to follow them. Then they took our stuff and went away."

"Great." Valerie sighed. There weren't much things valuable in there. But they were planning on taking it to the library with them.

"That wasn't all that happened though. A little while after our stuff was stolen, there were these two kids- well, they weren't kids, but they were running from big guys. I didn't see it, but they turned after running past us and then they were running on the roofs! It was like um... Oh, parkour! Val, we've gotta do that!" Anthony shifted restlessly.

"Maybe we'll practice stuff like that another day, but we still need to reach the library Tony."

"Well, I also found some other stuff lying around." Anthony pointed to one of the walls which had a bunch of random trash rested on it.

"Do you have a bag to stuff this in so we can take it with us?" Valerie asked, as she examined the various tools and coins.

Anthony stood up and shrugged. "I couldn't find any big empty ones."

"Then we'll just have to go without them." Valerie picked a few of the coins up and stuffed them in a small bag near where she slept. She grabbed the bag, manifested her chains, and tied the bag's string to them. "Come on, let's keep going."

The two headed back into the streets and picked a new direction.

Fantasia | Hidden Bunker

Deep underground in a hidden part of the city. There sat a cruel being with a dark ambition. Resting on a throne of skull and bones she sat in her dark attire and waited. Her eyes remained closed and her body lifelessly still. The only disturbance within her room was the ticking of the clock as seconds turned into minutes. But wat exactly was she waiting for? Tis deep meditation was eventually broken by a deep male voice.

"The time is nearing. "

"How much longer?" she asked the voice.

"Be patient child"

"I've waited long enough!"

"Go now and all your waiting will have been for nothing. The one we're after will be here shortly."

Begrudgingly the girl turned in her chair, propping her legs up on one of the arm rests and leaning into the back of the chair as though she were going to sleep. "You had better be right." She said as her eye lids slowly shut themselves again. Within mear moments she had falen asleep. wether she was truely tired or just bored beyond belief was a mystery even toher. She could never tell the difference. The clock tics away as the girl waits in her slumber. Resting until the one she's waiting for arrives

Abandoned Warehouse | Scrapyard District | 8:05AM

After checking several of their hidden stashes of supplies and gear, Joel and Avi finally arrived at their intended destination, an abandoned warehouse that was currently being used as a base of operations for a bandit group called Umbrae Lucem. As they entered, they found that there was a lot of movement going on inside: crates being transported, vehicles getting loaded, people running to and fro. Joel and Avi made their way through the chaos and climbed a ladder to get to the second floor, where a gray-haired man stood, overseeing the entire operation. He smiled warmly upon seeing the two teens approach him.

"I see you two are alive and well, have you the medallion?"

"Yep, I have it right here Pops." Joel pulled the tiny pouch from his pocket and placed it in the man's waiting hands.

Pops immediately pulled the string loose and peered inside, sighing in relief that the medallion was there. He fished a faded silver medallion from the bag and fastened it to the string around his neck. "I can't thank ya' enough for getting this back. It's a heirloom that has been in th' family for generations, I don't know how I would be able to'live with myself if I couldn't get such a precious thing back. Here, a little cash for yer troubles." The old man pulled a small stack of bills from his pocket and split it, giving one half to Joel.

"Wow, thanks Pops, this'll keep us floating for a while."

"Pops, sir. These jobs that you've been giving Joel are worrying me a bit. Could you maybe give us some safer jobs?

The old man looked at Avi for a bit before bursting out laughing. "Sorry lass, ya just remind me of my wife, that lady always worries about me and tells me t' stay safe before I leave home every day. Anyway, I can find ya some safe jobs, nothin' dangerous unless someone decides to attack ya. Now lemme think." Pops stroked his beard idly as he stared off into the distance. "That's right, so there's this this nice girl named Pio in th' scrapyard district. She's done so much for my boys and I think it's about time t' pay her back. I've got a backpack downstairs o' supplies like bandages and herbs and whatnot that th' boys pulled together t' make as thanks, it's not much but it's something. Bring it to her and make sure she gets how much we appreciate her work. One other thing, she'll probably reject it, but I want ya t' insist that she keeps it no matter what, y' hear?"

"You got it, boss. I'll get to it right now." Joel saluted Pops before jumping down the ladder.

"Thank you, sir." Avi bowed then followed Joel outside with the bag of supplies.

Pops waved to them from a window as they exited the warehouse and began walking down the cluttered side street. "Good kids, almost remind me o' myself when I was younger."

Scrapyard District | 8:07 AM

Anthony Groaned. "Ugh. Val, is there even a library in such a place as this?"

"Does that answer your question?" Valerie pointed at a small, 2 story building where someone had just walked out with a book.

"Let's find out already." Anthony said impatiently, as they entered the building.

The interior of the building was...not the greatest. There was rubble in a few areas and the walls looked worn out. There was a staircase leading upwards on the opposite wall. Although the whole building looked run down, the duo saw what they searched for. Rows of books across from them, separated by the stairs. Although there weren't many, there was more than enough information. As they locked on to the books a man had walked up to them with a smile on his face.

"Welcome." He greeted them. "Thank you for coming here and not judging our library by it's...cover." The man chuckled a bit. He seemed like the kind of guy that would let a neighbor borrow something and tell them not to worry if they lost it.

"This is a small library." Anthony said what was on his and his sister's minds.

"Well, it's the only library for a while. There's a few others around here too, but you've picked the best one~"

"Do you have books on the history of this world? And is there a place near here we can stay?" Valerie got to the point of what they needed.

"Yes and yes. We offer hospitality here as well as knowledge. There's a few empty rooms upstairs since nearly everyone found a place to stay around here already."

"How much does all of this cost?" Valerie felt a business-y feel from the situation.

"Nothing really." The man said, startling the duo. "I'd just appreciate donations or help cleaning up every so often. And please return the books when you're finished with them.

There was a pause of silence between the cheery man and the confused duo.

"Do you have any ga-"

"Can we just go upstairs now?" Anthony stopped his question when he realized him and Valerie spoke at the same time.

"Sure you can. Feel free to grab a book or two when you do. Only a couple though, others want to read too." The man's continuous smile seemed to brighten the room.

Anthony grabbed 3 books and followed his sister. They headed upstairs and settled in one of the empty rooms.

"This is perfect." Valerie fell backwards onto the bed. The room was tidy. There were just a few cracks in the walls and slightly broken furniture, but it was in a nice condition.

Anthony peered out one of the windows. The streets were populated, but there definitely wasn't as much as a city.

"Pass me a book Tony." Valerie said, as she sat up on the bed.

Anthon tossed a book onto the bed. "Do you think we'll make friends here Val?"

"We still need to figure out this world. This place is decent, but I'd like someplace better for something like that." Valerie opened a book titled: 'Civilization Fantasia'. It seemed the same as a book on earth itself. "I know we'll find others like me though. And you're sure to get your powers one day as well."

After a few minutes of reading in silence, Valerie read one of the sentences in the second page. "'Those who possess godlike abilities are Deis. These people are as rare as a clear blue sky." Valerie looked outside for a second, then sighed. "Maybe a few years..."