Marcia scuttled inside hurriedly.

Krystal opened her large wings and started towards where Seth's house had been. Ariel flew beside the dragon with her arms open like wings. 'I haven't actually flown in ages!' Her hair rippled towards the ends due to the wind taking calming effect. Michael kept his balance as best he could, he was doing pretty well for a first-timer. Krystal glanced at the boys on her back and you could swear she was smiling.

Seth felt an instant wave of relief when they'd broken the boundaries of the village. He could think almost twice as clearly and could enjoy the sun beams that shone through the clouds. He put his arms out wide and let the wind straighten up his napped up hair. The air was fresh and cool- Seth thought it felt great. He laughed softly when he saw Krystal turn around and he looked at the ground beneath him. It was a lot smaller than Seth was used to, but he was still excited about it. Right about when Seth figured that they were passing Michael's house, he felt a little better than he usually did. Then, as the distance gap grew, so did his dull headache. He pulled his arms in after about a minute of the cool air- the sun wasn't completely up so it was still a little chilly. "Almost there~" he thought aloud. His voice rung with happiness, though he had no idea why. His house was practically the graveyard from his family- what in the world could make that something to be grateful about?

Krystal kept at least foot between herself and the ground when they reached their destination to keep from crushing anything and snorted. She didn't the presence she got from this place. Michael moved to slide off and she lifted her wings just a little, along with giving a warning growl. Ariel hovered around them. 'I can't blame her for not wanting you to get off her back at this point.' She says quietly. Michael sighs. "That or she wants us to use her wings to get down and she's warning us to be careful." He says. She stretched her wings to the ground at an arch- kind of like a slide. Michael climbed over and slides down, landing on his feet. Ariel giggles. 'Or that.'

Seth could see faintly that the ground was a darker color than usual, but it wasn't as vibrantly black and ominous as it had been. He avoided looking directly at the dark mass of what used to be his house while he hopped off the dragon and softly landed on the ground. He rolled sideways before the impact could do real damage and soon noticed that the surface he landed on stained black behind him. 'Weird,' he thought carelessly as he sat up and faced his friends. Seth glanced back at the dragon to see her discontent with existing in such an unsafe place. "It's.. inactive-" he started to say when he noticed that the grass actually turned a lighter color of gray- almost clear white- underneath Michael's feet as he neared and touched the ground. Seth slowly stood and brushed his jacket off a little. "His house is that way, but.." he stopped and turned towards his old home. He felt the need to at least check up on how Onyx corrupted things.. or people..

"Let's go then." Michael smiled a little, referring to where his house was. He started in the direction, Krystal followed him- wanting Seth to stay on her back for a specific reason that wasn't hard to figure out. Ariel took a spot on the crystal dragon's head.

When Seth finally realized he was in motion towards his house, he was already at the front door. The main archway still had the same finite details- the flowers, vines, and lights- except they lacked color other than black. He pushed the door in carefully and looked inside the darkness. Light peered through little bits of the windows that weren't covered completely, so he could see the reflection of more black. Suddenly, the door hit something that prevented it from swinging open any more and Seth saw a flash of what looked like a person before it shattered into black dust and blew away in the dull wind. He didn't dare look down at it- he simply stepped over where he knew the pile had mostly landed and blocked every emotion from his head.

Seth ventured the house a little, walking down the main hallway and peering into the two empty rooms on the left and right. His house was identical as it had been except for the color and liveliness. He didn't want to be in the house much longer, though- Seth could feel something holding its breath, or waiting to strike. So, he quickly tiptoed as quiet as he could up his own stairs and into the upper level of the pitch black house, thoughtlessly leaving his friends vulnerable on the main level. He wandered blindly through his strangely unfamiliar home until he thought he came across a set of shapes far down the hallway of blackness, partially touching the railing to his downstairs level. His heart stopped cold and he stood in silence for a few moments. Finally, he built up enough courage to touch the railing and inch his hand forwards until it came in contact with what felt like a porcelain doll's hand. He winced when he heard the faint sound of more shattering glass. Then, the dust flew backwards and there were two more gentle sounds of crumbling away until the sounds were nothing, just like his family.

He slowly sunk to the floor in defeat and put his back against the wall opposite from the railing, pulling his knees in close. He put his head down and gave into the tears that were so determined to stream out of his eyes. Seth was truly astray at sea, drowning in darkness, guilt, and sorrow. He knew his resistances were crashing and his weakness was growing like a wildfire, since the contact around him started to leech strange chills throughout his body- but he didn't care. Seth, at that moment, wanted it all to be over.

[[ >x< I apologize for the wall-of-text.. ]]

[iz okay ^^]

Michael took off after Seth, careful not to break anything. Once his friend disappeared upstairs while he was distracted- the blackness in the room was endless, everywhere he looked it was just more black. He could've sworn it was swallow him if it weren't for the stone in his back pocket. Michael didn't move a single muscle, too afraid of breaking something he couldn't see.

(to explain what's going on with Michael, he isn't hallucinating or anything but he has this fear of getting lost since he was a kid- that causes his mind to pretty much black out everything around him .~.)

[[ Aw, ;~:'' ]]

Seth had just about lost himself in the Onyx- if he had been in broad daylight there would have been 'wings' of black that he wore. Right about when he was completely giving up, he heard a voice in his mind. It was laughter, and Seth recognized the voice. He almost reached out to it but was too forfeited to. "Bravo, Seth, Bravo.." it said, merely confusing the already troubled boy even more. "Look at you, fighting me off for nearly thirty hours by now.. Empty-handed, as well.. And they all turn to dust within a second... It will happen to anyone who dares to touch, even your dearest friends.. Or is he still just your friend?"

Suddenly, he knew exactly who was talking to him, and how his mind seemed to snap back into the path it was usually on. Seth gritted his teeth tightly as the tears stopped out of the blue- he was furious. How could that punk try and play with his emotions? 'Stay out of my head! And don't you DARE touch him!' he screamed back at the voice. He did the only thing he could think of- he threw his head back into the wall and a loud crack echoed through the house. A strong, familiar wave of pain shocked his body and he could feel his strength regaining. The Onyx strained to keep up with the rage that boiled in Seth's blood but it was a little much. "Michael!" he screamed, standing up and running back as fast possible, only to crash into him at the bottom of the stairs. That feeling of holding one's breath seemed to leave the house and the color of the Onyx got a little darker..

Without thinking, Seth literally swept Michael off of his feet to protect him from whatever Onyx might have tried to do the same to Michael what it did to himself. It burned a little more than usual, having Michael and his spirit stone so close to the Onyx-ridden part of his skin, but Seth possessed no sympathy to his own pain. He bolted back towards the main door which was still wide-open and didn't dare look back at the mess spewing up behind him. "Go!" he screamed towards Ariel and Krystal. "Get out of the vicinity!"

[ the effects aren't very kind either >< ]

By the time Seth had reached him, he might as well look like he was in a coma only breathing and as light as a feather pretty much.

Krystal looked at Seth and the dead-to-the-world Michael and picked them up with her head before moving out of the area, there was no way she'd leave them behind. Ariel hovered beside the crystal dragon. 'Where to Seth?' She asked quietly.

[[ Dx!?!? other than just blacking things out? ]]

Seth allowed the motion from the ground to the top of the dragon to stay smooth. Out of the corner of his eye, Seth saw his house turn pitch black and vaporize into dust before becoming a water-like substance and draining into the ground behind. He let out a small, barely-audible whimper and held Michael close to him. 'That was so bad,' he wanted to say aloud. He glanced nervously at Ariel and then back to Michael, who he still had in his arms. "Back to the village, I guess," he stated with a short sigh following. He began to understand that there was a lot of coordinated effort needed to be able to even stand a chance against some crazy freak-of-nature event like the one he nearly killed everyone with.

[ yep... when his mind black out it's kind of like trapping him in his own sub-conscious (exhibit a: looking like he's in a coma only breathing properly) til he comes to ]

Ariel nodded and flew in front of Krystal to kind of lead her back to the village. Krystal followed obediently.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Michael was stuck in this never ending sea of black, or his sub-conscious, standing in one spot like at Seth's house. The image slowly shifted to where he was watching himself running as a kid almost non-existence to the scenery. He could hear a girl yelling for him to run but he couldn't see who it was, the image was too blurry. She dressed much like a pirate though. Two people were chasing him, a man and woman- his parents. Who the girl? Later that same night is when he keeled over in the cemetery where Ariel had found him.

[[ <3 I love how the *~*~*~*~* is like "Omg get the popcorn here comes another flashback~!*squee/nomnomnom*" ;~: But.. how-come Michael gets so destroyed by his fuzzy past? Dx; ]]

At some point in time, Seth had let his guard down so he could rest a little. Even while on the back of a dragon with a sleeping-beauty in his grasp, he needed to be able to take a break at some point. He had been pulled out of his trance-like state of exhaustion and into another dull area of headaches- a symbol that they were breaking the village borders. He lifted his head up and looked around. The entire place was still pretty desolate and no more life was present than the amount seen the evening before. It was like when Seth ran into Michael for the first time. There weren't many people out and about, but the sun was higher in the sky and it was a seemingly lovely day.

[ i think it's because he really wants to know what happened that night how the events came to be him running fearfully into the woods and it's putting a really bad strain on mind and body, make since? O.o ]

Krystal landed on the ground near Marcia's hut and lowered her head for the boys to get down. Ariel landed on her feet and walked up to the door, which opened almost immediately and the woman came outside, curious.

[[ xox Hai, ]]

Seth tightened his hold on Michael and casually hopped down from the dragon. He mouthed the words 'Thank You' to the dragon and then turned to head back to the hut when Marcia walked out. "We're back~" he said with a slightly happy tone, though he looked more like he got back from a funeral. His eyes were still a little bloodshot and Seth was way out of it due to the fact that he nearly gave himself a concussion by breaking a wall at his former home. Seth looked back at Michael with distress. He'd long since established that Michael was still alive and breathing, that he surely wasn't deceased, but he was so 'gone' that Seth didn't know what to think. He had deserted in the middle of nowhere to explore a death trap, though, what more could he expect as a taste of medicine?

Krystal snorted with content and laid down, her tail coming close to her legs and her head doing the same only in front of her tail with her wings folded over herself. She decided to take a nap while they were here.

Marcia sighed in short relief that the boys were at least alive. "Come inside, lay Michael on the couch, and try to relax." She said in a sweet and tender voice as she moved from blocking the door way. Ariel hovered inside and took a seat in one of the chairs.

[[ Man, I had a Monster like nine hours ago and I'm still high on energy. ; A: ]]

Seth sort of wandered inside the hut rather than walked. He set Michael gently down on the couch, backed up a few steps, and watched for a moment. He was disoriented, but he tried to listen to Marcia's words.. '--It's no use,' he thought. the entire idea of Onyx was so drilled into his head. How did Alex even make that thing? Does it have a weakness? Why could he use telepathy through it? Why did it cause hallucinations? Why did it consume? How did it consume? How was it sparing Seth? What made him so special? Every question Seth could put together would remain unanswered, maybe even forever.

A moment later, Seth lost his balance and decided that it really was best if he sat down. He walked over to one side of the couch and sat against the arm. He crossed his legs, satisfied that at any given moment he could turn to look up and see Michael. He folded his arms up underneath himself once more and focused on his own heartbeat.

[ wooow -giggles- i'm wired from sweet tae ^*^ ]

Marcia went into the bathroom, got a washcloth, ran it under some warm water, rang it out so it was damp, came back out and gently placed it over Michael's forehead after everyone 'settled down'. She did this as quiet as the wind, trying her best not to disturb Seth.

[[ Heehee ^^'' ]]

Seth almost fell asleep when Marcia left the room. He wasn't exactly sure why, either. It was only midday and he wasn't up that early anyway. Nevertheless, he was only barely awake when she returned. His grey eyes secretly raged war against sleep while they fixed on the ceiling above him. "..Why do those stones repel against Onyx?" he asked quietly after a few moments of silence.

Marcia paused before glancing up at Seth and sighing a little. "Only the ancestors of this village can answer that.. but... It's got something to do with the purest of spirits, angels, and crystal dragons combining their powers into one rock that- over the generations- grew much like a crystal only bigger. The Onyx won't go anywhere near it and if someone's infected, then the part infected will ever try to reject the powers of the spirit rock." She explains as best she possibly could along with make since of it.

Seth nodded a little at each part of the story. He contemplated the idea that maybe Alex had actually gone through reverse mechanics to figure out a way to rule so harshly and forcefully. "-- If someone's infected, then the part infected will ever try to reject the powers of the spirit rock." Seth moved his hand to cover his eyes from the daylight shamefully when he heard the last part. 'Why is this so complicated?' he wondered. Seth could point out on a body model exactly which parts of him were foreign-like and cursed. They were stained a mix of shades of gray, below the average temperature, and burned the most when exposed to one of those spirit rocks. Not more than a day and a half earlier, though, none of the symptoms showed at all. Seth turned a little away from Marcia and had a minor coughing fit. It was almost the 'day after the day after' he'd initially used his run-for-your-life backup storage, almost time for his body to backfire and begin to complain about it's abusive over-usage within the past forty-eight hours. He shifted a little in the quietness, slowly losing track of his own thoughts, and eventually drifted off.

[ hia~ ^-^ ]

Marcia did her usual house-chores as the two boy 'slept'- since that's what it looked like to her. She sighed quietly under her breath. Ariel even took a nap of her own.

[[ I don't understand how my CP didn't show this. Dx Maybe it did and in between fusion fall crashes it got lost in my tabs. ._.; ]]

In Seth's dream, he was in a blackness that surrounded a white sphere of light. He reached forwards and found that upon touching the glowy ball of light, he was relieved of the agony he'd fallen asleep to. The sphere quickly expanded all around him until it formed the details of a massive room decorated completely in shades of crystal- the off-color of white and a tiny hint of blue. There were ornaments and house-like furnishings placed about the room; it looked like a castle. The sphere of light he touched was now merely a dull glass orb standing on a pillar in the center of the room. Seth looked at his hands and realized that his being was like that of a ghost- like the color of himself had faded almost completely into the crystal colors around the room. "Welcome back," a warm voice said to him- it was feminine Seth looked up to face who'd spoken to him. A crystal-pale girl sat at a tall blue throne ahead of Seth. She wore a long silky gown and a glittery tiara sat atop her long hair. She, too, was the color of the rest of Seth's surroundings. "We don't have much time, but I needed you here." She spoke without moving her mouth, which confused Seth. He still didn't get how his dream was on a time limit. The girl lightly shook her head at his misunderstanding. "This isn't a dream, I have brought your soul-" she pointed right at Seth. "-At this moment in time, you aren't breathing." Then, the connections started clicking. Seth got what this girl was trying to say. 'Why did you bring me here..?' he asked, worried for his own body's survival. It occurred to him that he didn't 'speak' either.

"You understand what the concept of 'Light' is and you understand what the concept of 'Darkness' is, but you do not know what 'Nothing' is, because it is no more. A long time ago, only nothingness existed. It was neither good or bad and was simply existence itself. Most souls are a clear color because they are affected by nothing. They are neither 'pure' or 'impure' and date back to the time of nothingness. Do you see what color you are? You bear the color of Crystal itself because you are one of the Crystal's first thoughts, the concept of purity and 'light' itself. The spirit stones were made by the ever-lasting power of Crystal souls like you and your friends. They resonate with Crystal and will continue to do so until they gradually fade away. What will happen after that? They can be restored or new stones can be created. Crystal is identical to Onyx; they were results of the universe's chaotic chance and happened to be what we call 'pure' and 'impure.' Think of you and your friends compared to Alexander and the friends he has yet to meet. His soul is darkened with the color of Onyx because he is one of its first thoughts. You both reject one another's ideas against what your lives should be based around. Crystal was created after Onyx. They co-existed in harmony for some time, but the Crystal was unhappy with the Onyx's nature that destroyed other chaotic chances that could lead to new types of entities. So, they decided that neither should try to influence other beings. Alexander's ideas have stirred up the destructive nature of the dormant being. Why does he possess seemingly limitless power over the Onyx? The answer lies with you. Why do you not regain the limitless powers and abilities you've had countless times before with your own origin?"

She stopped for a moment and looked off. "I beseech you, please find your answers quickly and protect the essence of life itself..." The girl smiled and clasped her hands in her lap, remembering her past encounters with this boy. "I await your return, so should you choose to live yet again. May it not be for an eternity. Now, before you perish-" She waved her hand and suddenly Seth was back in a field of endless darkness. He felt strained all over again and fell into a deep sleep due to his lack of oxygen for however long he was gone.

[[ Ne, why is Ariel a ghost? ]]

[ i hate it when that happens ><' ]

Marcia was outside with Krystal, singing softly as she gave the beautiful crystal dragon a wash down in the massive lake just a few miles from the village.

[ her father was a dark mage and killed her mother when Ariel was a toddler, he killed her as well- only when he killed her she became a ghost because of her mother's 'pure' soul clashed with his 'impure' soul and somehow that equaled to Ariel being stuck as a ghost. her father is still alive but no one knows where he is. ]

[[ Aw, that's one messed up dad. .-. What was his problem? -- Lets go take him out later. >:c ]]

Seth woke up eventually after his long nap. He thought about the strange dream he had and then looked out the window. The sun wasn't too low, so he wasn't asleep for too long. He stretched a little and looked up to where Michael was still sleeping. Seth thought about how he'd run off in his own house and forgotten that Michael was following behind in the dark. He felt a bit of sadness fall in his heart like little rain drops, since he knew how long recoveries worked- until Michael woke up and saw the scenery around him, he was technically still alone in that house. Seth looked up at the ceiling, worried. 'If he wakes up..' Seth shuddered at the thought of Michael being trapped in the worst moment forever. He prayed that such a case was false.

[ he was a physio who thought everybody was after him, so those who got too close- including his family- was killed -- if he find him~ ]

Michael shifted a little but he didn't awaken- it was like, he was trying to wake to up.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Michael moved from watching his past, to someplace different. He was now watching the events before he started running Watching his younger self play 'pirates' with a the girl he heard yelling run. Her eyes were as dark as his only brighter and full of spark and jet black hair for what he could tell . "Arrrgg! Hand over the booty or you'll be sleepin' in the locker!" The younger him said, trying so hard not to laugh. The girl stood on her make-shift ship with a chest under her arm. "Come and get it Captain Scarblade!" There was a pause before the two bust out laughing.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-**-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Something pushed him back to the real world before he match the girl's face to anyone he knew. His midnight blue eyes slowly opened and he covered them from the light with his arm. "..where-?" He voiced quietly, his hand moving to feel the damp rag on his forehead that was fairly warm.