First Encounter

Aisha looked at the ground where Falo placed his backpack, the rubble of an old building, bricks and rotten wood strewn along the decayed cobblestones. Aisha waded through the rubble, kicking up dust, and made her way over to what looked like what was once a kitchen.

.

"Why are we here?" She asked. "Is there a hidden entrance here?"

"No." Falo said simply, as he pulled out a long tool with a spiraling blade attached to it. "Right now, we're right above a nepenthe den. Below our feet, they're crushing nependeath seeds, infusing glassware… you know."

.

"I don't."

"Uhh…" Falo scratched his head. "Nevermind. It doesn't matter, anyways."

"Then how are we going to get in?" Aisha asked, kicking around the dirt.

Falo grunted as he used his body weight to slot in the spiraled head into a large handle. "We aren't. We're going to sink this place."

Aisha raised an eyebrow. "... Don't you need… information? And doesn't Raxas have any qualms about killing everyone down there?"

.

Falo sighed. "Ever since we sent out the city guard to the frontlines, there's been a distinct… uh. lack of secrecy. At this point, hiding these dens are just a formality. Kro and Aless already know where everything is, and it's doubtful that we'll find anything here."

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Aisha noticed that Falo didn't answer the second portion of her question, and judging by the serious, but practiced expression on his face, his silence was a conscious choice.

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Falo pushed his hair back with a hand. "Speaking of Aless… she's usually the one who comes with me. You're going to be… uh. Doing the work she usually does."

"And what's that?" Aisha asked.

"I need you to clear out this rubble." Falo said sheepishly.

Aisha gave him a look of disbelief.

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.

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"This sucks." Aisha said, as she picked up a rock, throwing it to the side. "Why doesn't Raxas get anyone else to do this?"

"Well, we're his only subordinates." Falo explained, grunting with exertion as he jammed his spiral into the ground, twisting the crank on the handle to drill into the dirt. "We're the only guys who have free time. Besides, I'm the only guy who can do this."

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"Couldn't a mage do this much easier?" Aisha muttered.

Falo smirked. "Maybe if we wanted to just blow dirt in our faces. But no, this requires a much more… precise hand."

"You're not going to use magic?"

"No." Falo said, hefting up one of his bags. "I have this."

"And 'this' is?" Aisha asked with an eye roll.

"It doesn't have a name." Falo said, pleased with himself. "A Falo original creation."

Aisha waded through the rubble, not even bothering to look back at Falo. "Are they like those explosives that were sold at the black market?"

"Uh-"

"I thought so."

"Hey, my stuff is much better than the crap they sell at the black market." Falo muttered defensively, rummaging through his bag and extracting a small vial of an intensely blue, bright looking liquid.

.

Falo motioned for Aisha to come over. "Come here, come here!"

"What's that?" Aisha asked, leaning over the slightly sweaty man's shoulder.

"This is a special chemical I synthesized at the lab." Falo said proudly, holding the flask gently in his hand, as if cradling a child. "A few drops of this stuff could level a building."

"Cool." Aisha said, deadpan, starting to turn away.

.

"Wh- hey!" Falo said indignantly. "Don't you think this is cool?"

"Uh. Yeah. I just said so, didn't I?"

"You don't think it's cool?" Falo said, a despaired look on his face.

"I didn't say that." Aisha muttered, as she went back to kicking around rubble ineffectively, as Falo stared at her back with a hurt expression.

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"My kids think it's cool." Falo muttered back.

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The light in the alleyway was dim and sparse, and with the massive, sprawling buildings above them, filled with various cramped balconies and tarps, the sunlight couldn't reach the destroyed lot that Aisha and Falo stood in. There was no way to tell the time, but Aisha felt like they had been there for over four hours, just moving rubble and drilling holes. In a way, the inability to tell the passage of time made it feel even longer.

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In reality, it had only been about thirty minutes.

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"Ok." Falo said, getting a vantage point where he could properly look at all the holes.

"One there, one there…" He muttered to himself. "Should do it."

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As Falo jumped off the unstable plank he was perched on, Aisha groaned, stretching out her arms.

"Are we finally almost done?" She asked, and Falo nodded in return.

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Falo carefully unscrewed the cap to the vial, and with extremely steady hands, went to one of the holes that he had drilled in the earth. He took out a smaller, pill sized vial from his bag, and carefully, he dripped three drops of the blue fluid into the smaller vial, capping it and sliding it into the hole. He threaded a bit of thin wire into the hole, and then he covered the entire thing with dirt.

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"Hey! What are you doing!?" Someone shouted at the two black-clad figures.

Falo quickly snapped his head to look at who had spoken. The man who had spoken was dressed in the same rags that the rest of the slum-goers were draped in, but something was off. Falo narrowed his eyes at the man's clean-shaven face, flickering in the lantern-light.

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"Shit." He muttered under his breath, turning to Aisha. "It's a dealer. Look at his face. It's shaven clean."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Aisha hissed back.

"It means he's just wearing those rags to blend in." Falo muttered. "He's not actually poor. Go deal with him."

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And just like that, Falo went back to his careful work, dripping his fluid into vials, not even bothering to watch Aisha kill the drug dealer. Evidently, Falo expected there to be no trouble on Aisha's part, and she felt a little uncomfortable having that expectation put on her.

.

But nonetheless, she had a job, and it was less boring than just watching Falo walk around with that stupid vial.

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The dealer moved first, seeing Aisha stand up and draw her sword, shooting a blast of fire from his hands that spanned the width of the road.

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Aisha bit her lip as the last bits of the fire left the man's hands, thinking. She could jump over it, but that would open her up to another attack. She could use the cramped alleyway to her advantage, to maneuver around him, but…

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The dealer's eyes went wide open as Aisha burst out of the fireball, slightly singed but entirely fine, and dangerously close to the man. She charged at the man like a bullet, but his reactions were fast enough and he was able to move out of the way, the tip of Aisha's dagger skidding along his mana shield with a scraping noise.

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He shot another fireball at Aisha, and this time she scrambled up the walls of a building, perching on top of a terrace.

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(Damn. That's not going to work again.)

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"Crazy bitch!" The man shouted up at her.

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Aisha vaulted over the guardrail of the terrace, using the bottom of the structure to launch herself at the drug dealer. Again, the dealer was able to dodge Aisha's attack, her sword just barely out of reach of the mage's shield, as he hastily backstepped to dodge.

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Aisha attempted to overwhelm the mage, rushing forward with her arm raised to attack, but she was met with a compressed ball of flames, bursting outwards and blasting them apart.

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The fey winced in annoyance as a small wave of flames washed over her. She had an incredible tolerance for pain, and her armor was very fire-resistant, but the fire made it incredibly difficult to breathe, and the girl started to hack and cough, finding it difficult to get oxygen into her lungs.

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Another wave of fire washed over her and Aisha fell to the ground, panicking as she tried to take a breath, but inhaled nothing but the poisonous air of the slums, and fire. She was beginning to lose strength in her arms and legs, and she was losing air extremely fast. The heat making the air thinner wasn't something that she had considered.

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As a last ditch effort, Aisha attempted to throw a hook at the dealer's kneecaps, but her fist didn't shatter the man's mana shield, instead meeting the solid thing with a resounding echo and force, but she was unable to smash through it.

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"Wow." He said. "You're weaker than I thought you would be."

"Shut up." Aisha choked out, coughing her lungs out.

"Maybe you just had a bad day." The dealer shrugged. "I don't know why you guys were here, but… It doesn't really matter. I got a job to do."

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The dealer drew a dagger from his hip, ready to finish Aisha, but stopped when he saw her reach into her pocket and grab something.

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"What's that?" He asked.

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Aisha didn't answer, instead chucking the unstable magicite crystal at the dealer's chest. Both Aisha and the dealer were sent flying away as a massive explosion rocked the small road, sending Aisha flying backwards towards Falo.

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"Hey!" He yelped. "Careful! You might set off the charges! Or alert… the…"

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All of a sudden, beams of light materialized into view around Falo, and figures dressed in dark-blue protective gear appeared.

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"Dealers…" He muttered.

"Sorry." Aisha wheezed quietly next to him.

"You're good." Falo sighed. "Just a little more trouble than I was prepared for."

"No, I…" Aisha started bitterly.

"Hey, don't worry about it. You'll get better."

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Aisha had nothing to say, as Falo pat her on the back, turning to the men that had surrounded him.

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"Hey, what the hell's going on up here?" One asked, looking around.

"Look!" Another pointed to the unconscious body of the dealer Aisha had fought. "Lapp is dead!"

"Wait." He said, running over to the body. "No, he's just unconscious."

"Aw, dammit." One muttered.

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"Who are these guys?"

"They're not junkies, that's for sure."

"Hey… you think they're feds?"

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The air visibly stiffened as all ten of the armored figures stiffened around Falo, hands feeling at hidden blades, and hands glowing dimly with charged magic.

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"Explain yourself." One demanded. "Before we kill you right here, on the spot. You're surrounded."

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Falo sighed and got up from his squat, rising to his full height. He looked around in a full circle, at all the men surrounding him, scanning all the people there.

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"You have all violated statute seven of the public health and safety bill. By the order of Judge Raxas…" He shouted into the alleyway. "You are all to stand down and leave, or die here."

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Murmurs could be heard amongst the armored figures, and hands that were previously fingering handles of daggers and swords, drew their weapons, brandishing them threateningly.

"You're not Raxas." A dealer said.

"That is true." Falo said calmly.

"Then you're out of your mind, old man!"

"Alright, whatever." Falo said, pointing at Aisha, no longer coughing her lungs out, but still catching her breath. "I warned them, okay? Remember that!"

"...Okay." Aisha said slowly.

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One of the dealers leapt at Falo, massive sword swinging, but sputtered in the middle of his swing as Falo threw his cloak in the man's face. The drug dealer batted away the cloak, but when he blindly swung again at where Falo was, there was… nothing.

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"Where'd he go?" He asked.

"He just disappeared!" Another one said, slightly panicked. The dealers began to back up from the spot where Falo's cloak now laid, now very cautious.

"That's some high level magic." One of them murmured, uncertainly. "He might have not been joking…"

"Just stick together!" Someone yelled. "Group up on me!"

"Where's the girl? She disappeared too!"

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Suddenly, the alleyway went dark, as the dim light from the street lanterns disappeared with a shattering sound. The noise of concerned murmuring chorused around the alleyway, as all the assailants started to back up towards walls.

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"Someone cast a light!"

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The alleyway was silent.

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"Goddammit! You're all useless!"

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The sound of cloth being furiously pushed aside could be heard in the silent alleyway, and after a few seconds, a small fireball lit in the dealer's hand, illuminating the area around him.

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The dealer jumped back in surprise. "Gah!"

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All of his friends were dead, some with massive gashes in their necks, and others pierced through the eyes and mouth, with massive spikes of ice, that were beginning to melt from what was left of their body heat. Horrified, the dealer backed up, but was met with the wall, as Falo's figure unblended itself from the shadows, his grizzled face illuminated in flickers by the firelight.

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"Thanks for the help, Aisha." He said, taking out his own light, a small lantern lit by a glowing crystal.

"You didn't need it." The fey girl muttered.

"Maybe not, but you still did some good work." Falo reasoned.

"Whatever." Aisha said dismissively, turning away.

"Don't be so hard on your- Hey!"

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Falo gripped the back of the fleeing dealer's coat firmly, pulling the man back to him.

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"Oh dear." He sighed. "What to do with you."

"I'm not going to tell you anything!" The dealer snarled. "Fuck you!"

"Well, I don't really need any information from you." Falo said. "I was thinking of just killing you."

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The dealer's eyes went wide, and his aggressive, confident expression quickly went fearful, at Falo's words. Evidently, the man's bluster had come from the false pretense that Falo valued his life… but clearly he was mistaken.

"What!? You're not going to take me to jail!?" He said in shock, eyes darting back and forth along the alleyway.

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"I don't really want to lug your body all the way there." Falo said, sighing and turning to Aisha. "What do you think?"

"You can do whatever." Aisha sulked.

"Whatever." Falo said. "I guess I'm going to kill you."

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The dealer started to struggle furiously in Falo's grasp as he drew his dagger, his arms and legs flailing around as he drew a vial from the inside of his pocket. Falo's eyes narrowed, and he threw the dealer to the ground and jumped away as the glass shattered on the floor, and a purple mist quickly filled the alleyway. The mist spread quickly towards Falo, but a gust of wind from his hands quickly blew the mist billowing towards the downed dealer, whose eyes went wide as he accidentally took a breath in a panic.

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"No!" He screamed, as he began to cough uncontrollably. "Help me!"

Falo shook his head. "Aw man, you did that to yourself. And besides, I'm not really all that excited to help you after you tried to kill me."

"No!" The dealer pleaded, as foam began to form at the edges of his mouth. "Please- I!"

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"What is that stuff?" Aisha asked, pointing at the purple mist. "Poison?"

"It looks like an undiluted nepenthe." Falo observed. "Which is basically pure poison."

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"Damn you both!" The dealer spat out hatefully, writhing on the ground. "You'll never get rid of us, and you're going to end up paying!"

"Okay, man." Falo said nonchalantly, already starting to pack up his stuff.

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"You damn tops are all the same!" He spat, foaming at the mouth. "Always looking down on us! Fuck you! Just because we work for a living, you all-"

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The man broke out into coughing. Aisha felt no sympathy for him.

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I'll-" The man started, before his eyes went wide, his eyes suddenly fixated on something next to Aisha. "Who the hell are-"cough"-you!?"

"Hm?" Aisha turned, following the man's line of sight, but there was nothing there. Just a blank wall, covering in grime, and now, blood.

"Get away from me!" He screeched. "Stop! Stop! St-"

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His voice stopped abruptly as the life left his body, as if someone had cut the voice right out of his body, but Aisha couldn't see, or even sense anybody other than the two of them. She looked around one more time, looking for someone, but there wasn't even a trace of someone there.

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"Alright." Falo said casually, slinging on his backpack. "Let's get out of here."

"Don't you think that was strange?" Aisha asked.

"Think what was strange?" Falo said, as he started to walk off, absentmindedly flicking at little flecks of dried blood on the clothes.

"It was like he saw someone." Aisha mused, glancing behind her. "But there was no one."

"Probably a delusion from the Nepenthe poisoning." Falo said absentmindedly. "It is a powerful hallucinogen."

"His eyes were focused." Aisha murmured.

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"Don't think about it." Falo sighed. "People die like that all the time."

"They see people?"

Falo nodded. "I'm surprised you haven't heard of the stories. You've never heard of the reapers?"

"It's probably a hume thing." Aisha said.

"Well," Falo started. "When you're about to die, supposedly you see the reaper, who comes and severs your soul from your body to take to the afterlife. Apparently, a lot of people have this same experience when near death, although nobody has ever actually seen the reaper."

"Don't you think that's a bit too coincidental, for multiple people to have the same experience?" Aisha asked.

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"Nah." Falo said dismissively. "It's just an urban legend. If people believe that they'll see the reaper near death, then of course when they're all delirious, their mind will just make something up."

"Hm." Aisha said. "You've given a lot of thought into this."

"I'm a man of facts." Falo said proudly. "I see no reason to believe in something we can't prove. It's just another unnecessary thing to think about."

"Even though you've already spent so much time thinking about it?" Aisha asked.

"..."

"..."

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"We're back!" Falo exclaimed, as he forced his way into Raxas's office, casually dropping his bag onto the ground near the open doorway, before letting it slam shut behind him and Aisha.

"...Hi." Raxas said. "You've been busy killing, I see."

"I warned them." Falo said, noodling Aisha with an arm. "Right, Aisha?"

"I have no doubt that you gave them fair warming." Raxas sighed. "But I wish you would at least attempt to not just go on a killing spree, every time you can."

"They're just dregs, Raxas." Falo said darkly. "I'm not risking myself for them."

"Some of them probably have families, like you. They deserve a second chance."

"They don't deserve second chances. The drugs have killed thousands."

"Everyone deserves a second chance." Raxas said softly.

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Aisha felt uncomfortable. Not only because the argument itself was uncomfortable to listen to, but also because she felt like Raxas was referring to her.

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"Whatever." Falo said dismissively. "A job is a job. I get paid just as little regardless."

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Raxas rolled his eyes.

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"You only get paid so little because half of our budget goes to your resear-"

"Bye!" Falo said, leaving.

"See you later, Falo." Raxas called at the closing door.

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"What do you want?" Raxas asked, turning to look at Aisha. "You want to listen to my stories again?"

"Uh… no." Aisha muttered. "I'm good. I think I.. know what happens."

"Okay." Raxas said, with a twinge of disappointment. "Then what do you need? Why are you still here?"

"I want to spar." Aisha said.

"Really." Raxas said, leaning back in his chair. "Why?"

"I was beat today." Aisha muttered. "By some random mage. I'm… "

"You're what?" Raxas sighed. "Useless? Then just get better. It's as simple as that."

"Yeah." Aisha agreed, remembering... "It… really is."

"You agreed… really fast." Raxas said, raising an eyebrow. "But are you sure about this? Doesn't seem fair."

"I stopped caring about that a long time ago." Aisha muttered.

"Whatever you say."

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"What is this place?" Aisha asked, looking around at the massive building, lined with white plates and bright, luminescent lighting. The ceilings were far out of Aisha's reach, almost as far as the clouds, and yet the space felt suffocating, all the blinding white tiles, and bright, white lighting, making it difficult to actually tell where one actually was in the massive structure.

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She didn't like it.

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"These are the training grounds for the agent program." Raxas explained. "They usually fill this place with blocks and obstacles for training, but well… we're using it."

"Are we allowed to use this place?" Aisha said with uncertainty. "We passed by a few people..."

"They wouldn't dare question my authority." Raxas said absentmindedly. "Besides, you're an agent too."

"I don't think they see it that way." Aisha muttered.

"Who cares."

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Raxas walked a few more steps, before putting a hand on the greatsword on his back and stopping, putting all his weight onto one heel.

"Sparring starts now!" He said quickly, before pivoting on his heel, swinging his massive greatsword at Aisha's chest, remarkably fast.

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Aisha dodged backwards easily. She had long gotten used to, what had felt like, all possible surprise attacks. She had been prepared for a surprise attack as soon as she had even asked to spar - if Raxas had leapt over his desk, sword aimed at Aisha's head, she would have been ready with her weapon drawn before she had even seen a glint of steel.

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It was really more like a reflex, at this point. An entire year of just fighting, practicing…

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"You've been trained well." Raxas said, shrugging off his coat to reveal a incredibly well-maintained, muscular body, straight from a bodybuilding catalog. If Aisha wasn't gay, she would for sure have stared at his form for a while. But…

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"Augh! Hey!" Raxas grunted, as Aisha attempted to attack him while the sleeves of his coat were still stuck around his wrists. "Clever. But not clever enough."

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A massive shockwave erupted from Raxas's body, and Aisha was blown backwards with immense force, tumbling over herself as she was sent flying almost a hundred meters away from her opponent.

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Aisha groaned as she picked herself up onto her feet. (That man… never used an attack like that. Fuck…)

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Aisha shook her head to get rid of the dizziness in her head, as Raxas charged at her from far away. Raxas was certainly less skilled than her old teacher, but he made up for that with…immense magical power. Already, Aisha felt like she was hitting a wall. If he could send her flying away just like that… how would she beat him?

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Aisha didn't have a lot of time to ponder over her question, as a red light appeared at the edge of her vision, her head quickly swiveling to look at what was coming.

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Her eyes widened as a massive tsunami of fire, as wide as the entire building, and as tall as a skyscraper, rushed towards her, the flames so hot, they bent the light around them in wavy distortions.

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For the first time in a while, Aisha felt a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach. The spell was undodgeable, at least for her. And she couldn't see Raxas, either.

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Aisha took a couple deep breaths before steeling herself, and rushing into the wall of flames, eyes shut and teeth clenched. As soon as she entered, she regret everything - pain washed over her entire being as the flames seared and tore at her skin - her uncovered arms and shoulders trembled with pain, and her chest was starting to burn from the heat-

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For what felt like an eternity, Aisha ran through the fire, with no end in sight - she didn't dare open her eyes, they already hurt like hell. A pit opened in her gut as her lungs burned. What if she didn't make it? Would she die here, in a sparring accident?

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Already her arms and legs were beginning to feel weak, from the pain and from the lack of oxygen, but Aisha forced herself to run through the pain, although everything in her body told her to just give up and die.

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Finally she burst through the flames, and she gasped a lungful of warm air, not at all pleasant, but enough to keep her alive, and for her to see Raxas leaping at her, greatsword poised to cleave Aisha straight in half. Aisha took a deep breath and raised her small little toothpick of a sword, both hands bracing against the flat of the blade in a feeble attempt to block.

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The sound of their blades clashing was so loud that it hurt Aisha's ears, and her arms physically shook from the shock that passed through her body; she couldn't help but let out a yelp of pain.

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Her sword visibly warped under the strain of Raxas's strength, and Aisha's knees buckled, forcing the girl to her knees. Aisha took a breath of cool air, and suddenly a bit of strength returned to her body - not nearly enough to push back against Raxas's blade, but maybe enough to redirect it to the side-

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"AIIGH!" Aisha cried out in pain, as her sword split in half, and her face took a massive gash along her cheek from the massive blade. Thankfully, Raxas had enough control to stop his sword before he cut Aisha's head in half, but blood still gushed out of Aisha's face at an alarmingly fast rate.

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"Oh shit." Raxas said, his eyes widening. "I'm sorry. I got a little carried away-Let's get you to the church!"

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Raxas attempted to pick up Aisha into a princess carry, but Aisha forced herself out of the hold, trying to pick herself up, but her legs and balance gave over, and the girl fell flat on her face. Dimly, she realized that her leg had been cut too. The force from his sword had literally cut her without even touching her…

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"Auuuuuhhh…" Aisha groaned. "Fuck! I didn't… stand a chance…"

"Hey, you're bleeding out."

"Uuuuhhhhhhgggg…"

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Aisha collapsed onto the floor.

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"Girls! Girls!" One of the priests called excitedly. "It's Aisha- hey what did you do to her!?"

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Raxas grunted as Aisha was snatched out of her arms by the priest girls, and more than a few accusatory looks were shot his way, as the girls fret and cooed over Aisha's very burnt body, as if she had been cooked for too long in an oven.

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"What did you do!?" One of the priests angrily accused Raxas, jabbing a finger into his chest. "I know you! You're the judge guy! What did you do to her!?"

"I-"

"How could you do this to her!?" A small priest cried. "How could you be so mean!?"

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Raxas held his hands up and began to sweat as he was mobbed by priests, demanding a variety of accusatory questions that were immediately interrupted by more questions. He thought about just walking away until Aisha was healed, when a voice spoke, echoing along the streets.

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"Leave them alone, my priests." Ifrit said, chukling. "I'm sure whatever happened, he meant to harm."

"His grace!" The priests gasped, at the god's presence. Instantly, all their attention was drawn to the god, clad in his usual disgustingly white robes, Raxas completely forgotten.

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Raxas visibly stiffened at his presence, glaring at the man with equal parts discomfort and disdain, watching the man sweep his gaze over the bowing acolytes.

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"Ifrit." Raxas greeted stiffly.

"It's your grace." The god corrected smugly.

"..."

There was a long silence, as Raxas's eyes flitted between Ifrit and Aisha, who noticeably, was not being healed while all the priests were prostrate. It physically hurt to make eye contact with the god, as he emit an extremely bright light, but still Raxas refused to take his eyes off the god's bright yellows.

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"Heal my champion, girls." Ifrit commanded, not taking his eyes off Raxas. He looked at the judge from up high, casting his gaze below him.

Raxas hated that.

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"Oh, whatever. I will choose to abandon such silly titles." Ifrit sighed, in a self-satisfying manner, as he broke eye contact with Raxas. "Such things are… not important."

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(You mean to say… below you.) Raxas thought spitefully, as he started to blink rapidly, looking away.

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"What do you mean by 'my champion?' " Raxas asked stiffly. "Aisha's my subordinate."

"I have no doubt that she is." Ifrit said, his white boots descending onto the ground, so that he could stand on the steps, still looking down at Raxas. "But she is my champion. I have chosen her to watch her journey. It's quite interesting, wouldn't you think?"

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"Watch? What would happen if she did something that you didn't like?" Raxas demanded. "Did you also "watch" Havel? Bariss? Alune? Idra-"

"Watch your tongue, mortal." Ifrit said, his expression growing dark, for just a split second.

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Raxas shut up, but his gaze was still hateful.

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"Those few are just puppets." Ifrit said dismissively. "Their stories are over. Uninteresting. I have no use for them other than to play this… "politics" game. Aisha is different."

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"Puppets, huh." Raxas said bitterly. "Is that what humans are to you?"

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Ifrit gave Raxas a small smile, before his feet left the ground once more, starting to ascend in a bright light. His next words came out with the same ethereal echo his voice always had, full with power, but this time, it came out with a much more haunting edge. Raxas thought that he could hear a laugh, almost.

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"Yes."