Number 100 Red Nova Sorcerer

Chapter 18: Total Breakdown

~.Astral/Nova.~

I look around the area, spreading the fire inside of me to keep me warm. Bura opens up his cloak to allow Amber to warm up. We've landed in another city that's made of ice, which obviously explains the biting cold. We're in an alley that has many signs of battles, and upon removing the mask I was wearing, I smell the faint smell of blood. I don't know if it's just me, but it bothers me so much. My nose wrinkles from the smell, which makes Blackie look over to me in confusion. He doesn't seem to smell it even with the mask off.

"Crimson, where do we go from here?" I ask, looking around.

There is no response.

I look over to Crimson to see if he's distracted by something, but he's standing perfectly still, ridged. His breathing is coming out in short, quick gasps. His hands are clenched tightly, making scarlet blood taint the snow. I sense his mental activity, and instead of finding calm waters, it's like a storm has caught the ocean his mind represents and has thrown it into chaos.

A small, unstable chuckle finds its way out of his vocal cords. His wild eyes settle on someone or something at the end of the alleyway. "Y-you-you're back," he whispers shakily, almost happily with a mix of sadness.

Blackie and I share a worried glance. If the location we've landed in weren't enough, I'm sure that the lingering memories clearly remind the flame ninja of when Free died. This could be triggering a past memory or something. Maybe it's caused his mind to project a simple mental image of him that would talk to him.

"Number 12 Crimson Shadow Armor Ninja, we need to hurry up and find what we need and get out!" Blackie commands. He takes Crimson by the neck of his tunic and attempts to drag him, but the ninja simply runs past him and stops at the end of the ruined alley. The look on his face is desperate, and he looks like he's on the verge of tears.

"Free!!" he cries out with a trembling voice. The sound does not carry out very far. When he shows no sign that "Free" has answered, he starts panicking.

"What's wrong with him?" Bura asks, watching with concern as Crimson goes crazy. "It's like this place is a bad place for him."

"It is not our place to say why he's like this," Blackie states. "We just need him to get out of here!"

By this time, Crimson is howling in rage and misery. His fire is going out of control, his fire making an inferno, melting anything and everything that the tongues of fire reach. He's collapsed to his knees, and his hands are covering his face, but his screams are still clearly audible. In no time at all, the inhabitants will surely come to complain.

I rush over with a all of water in hand. I make it bigger and bigger, rotating my royal blue hands to keep the water in a sphere shape before slamming it on Crimson; he stops screaming, and his fire is doused. He lowers his hands somewhat. I can't tell whether he's been crying while he was screaming or it's just the water that drips from his soaked hair down to his face.

I take his shoulders and hiss sharply, "Crimson, calm down! If you cannot get a hold on yourself, we will never find what we need, nor will we ever get home! Do you understand me?"

Crimson looks at me with confused eyes. He further lowers his hands slowly, and he whispers one word, "Pardon?"

It's like he didn't understand a word I said.

I look over to Blackie for help, but he just shakes his head. "Relapse," is his response. "Being here has surely brought back unwanted memories, so he relapsed into a state of..." He thinks of a suitable word to describe what's happening here. "...Confusion, I would say."