We See You

The Forge - Part Four

 "Pick a card, any card! Mew!" Kira laid the tarot cards down on the ground, spreading them so all of the backs were visible. "This isn't usually how I do it, but we don't have much time, mew." She explained, gesturing to the cards and looking up at Alex and Tyler. Tyler shrugged and shuffled over to the cards, leaning forward to observe them all carefully. "So... Kira..." he began, noticing the stars on the cards begin to twinkle, "where did you come from?" Kira giggled, tapping the side of her nose "It's a secret, mew. 'specially if you haven't heard of me already." Sighing, Tyler picked a random card and flipped it over.

"Judgement," Kira pulled her lips to the side in thought, "that's interesting, very interesting." She then turned to look up at Alex. "Come on! Mew! Your turn!" Alex slowly sat down, "Are you not going to tell us what they mean?" he raised an eyebrow, and Kira just giggled again. "I'll tell you when you both pick! Promise!" she flicked her bubble-gum pink hair behind her shoulders, her ears twitching once more. Alex sighed and randomly selected a card, flipping it over. "Oooo! Justice! I like that card!" Kira giggled, clapping a few times and jumping to her feet. In a puff of smoke, Kira disappeared, leaving Alex and Tyler extremely confused. "Where'd she go?" Tyler began, but as soon as he had finished speaking, the cat girl appeared on the other side of the door, sliding in a key and pushing it open. "Judgement! A card of wake-up calls, clarity and purpose." Kira spoke, as the two watched her unlock the door. "Justice. The truth comes out, and win-win solutions."

"You just... you... okay," Tyler shrugged, hauling himself to his feet and slipping through the door, "I have no clue what any of that means." Kira grinned, spinning around and beginning to skip off. "Hopefully I'll see you guys again soon, mew!" She looked over her shoulder and winked. "I kinda like you both."

Alex followed Tyler out of the cell, dusting himself off and crossing his arms. "We need to focus. The Ancient Ones can help us." He said, turning his attention to the temple, they had to believe him, they saw him leave empty handed. Tyler pursed his lips, obviously unsure, "Maybe we should just leave..." he gestured to the cave opening "We could just-"

"No way! I don't have a sword! We'd be doomed if we left! Come on!" Alex grabbed Tyler's arm and started pulling on it, getting nowhere however. "I'm not risking it. I'm leaving." Tyler shook Alex off his arm and turned away. "I can't do this without you Tyler. Please. Let's fix things, for Crystal." Tyler tensed up, looking down at the ground for a short moment, before sighing. "Alex, these people have suffered, and now they are blaming us, why would we help them?" Tyler turned back to face Alex. "We just don't belong here... I hope you understand."

"What about them!? What about everything they've been through?" Alex took a step forward, gesturing down to the destroyed city below them. "What about trust?" Tyler shook his head "Even Itsuki didn't believe us." He inhaled, looking up and sticking his hands in his pockets "I'm done Alex, go on your hero mission and risk your life, whatever, but I have something to protect now... I gotta go my own way." Alex reached out, but grasped on air as Tyler turned once more, ducking behind the rubble, heading to the exit.

"That's disappointing, I was looking forward to formally meeting him." The hooded figure from before appeared behind Alex's shoulder. Shrieking, a hand was placed over his mouth, before he once again appeared in the large hall of the temple. The glistening marble walls, the dark wooden benches, it was a frightening contrast to the ruins and destruction not 50 metres from them. This time however, four other figures stood behind the glass box that contained the sword. "You did not steal the Jewel of Death, we know." The First spoke. "Please, save everyone, we fear worse things are coming, and we need that Jewel back." The Second took a step forward, placing a hand on the glass box in front of them.

Alex tried to speak, but no words came from his mouth. "Do not try to speak, let us." The Third shuffled, descending the steps and also placing their hand on the glass. The Ancient One beside Alex quickly left, joining their partners at the box. Once all hands hit the clear surface, the material began to ripple, before melting, allowing the sword to be collected. "Now, without the Jewel of Death, the sword is quite unstable, so be wary of this whilst fighting. Do you understand?" The First explained, retrieving the sword from the stand and gliding towards Alex.