The Promised Meeting

The Dandelion Bomber
The sound of buzzing filled the air; the buzzing of voices, human voices, all collected in this massive, glass-domed structure. The entire building was spacious, appearing to be made purely for the entertainment of the higher class, the rectangular building holding a large stage, seating for spectators, as well as the exit which lead out into the city, with all of this kept under an intricate glass-domed ceiling.

"...I heard this showing will have the best actor in all of the Royal City." One woman said excitedly.

"Oh really?" Another woman replied snobbishly. "I've heard the story is awful, but the effects are decent."

"This better be worth the money..." One of the men replied, looking down on the stage with an air of disdain. If he was so upset, why was he here?

Up in the air, hovering over the giant stadium in a balloon, was person, whose height made them appear young, dressed in what appeared to be a dark blue cloak, as well as generally loose fitting ensemble that also consisted of dark blue. Even their head was mostly covered, revealing only their eyes, a dark brown.

"I suppose even these fools can afford entertainment like this..." The person spoke to himself, and the voice revealed it was a boy. "According to my information, associated of Faust are in this theatre." He kept his cold glare fixed on the lighted theatre. "If my timing is right, their show should have begun right about now..." He took a seat in the basket, and pulled out what appeared to be a monitor. "Now...let's say hello."

The lights in the theatre fell, as it appeared the show was about to begin. As the fallen curtain began to rise, however, there were no actors taking the stage. Instead, an image began to flicker onto the hardwood, what appeared to be a silvery, translucent image of the same masked figure from the balloon.

"Greetings, members of high society." His voice, while childish and unimpressive, rang throughout the stadium, carrying into the farthest reaches of the stands.

"Who is he...?" A woman asked in confusion/

"Cut the power!" One of the staff members ordered, and even the dimmed lights went dark, but the shimmering figure began to illuminate the dark of the arena, casting it's glow on everyone. "I'm sure you're wondering who I am, and why I am here. I'll make this short. My time is valuable." He stepped forward, but his footsteps made no sound. The boy cast his transparent eyes into the stands, and everyone could feel his glare, it seemed to be piercing. "Our world is dying. Edolas, a world which, in the past, had been beautiful, and vibrant, has revealed it's venal nature, collapsing under the rule of king after king, under we find ourselves where we are now. Settlements such as Louen, Sycca, Athech, and the like, all of them cut off from the Royal City, and begin to wilt, like flowers deprived of sunlight."

The audience were casting the boy odd looks, and many seemed to be questioning his sanity, however, one thing was common in every eye; fear. This unknown figure, seemingly a specter even, had captured their attention, and worse, their imagination, and it now held them rooted to their seats.

"Our 'King' — and I use the word loosely — cares nothing for those outside this city." He waved his hand in the direction of the audience. "You lot, those who share a similar standing with him. And of course, his most trusted inner circle. The soldiers. The advisers. Those on the lower rung of government, the city officials, all of you who do nothing to improve the condition of the rest of us, who are left to watch as our villages crumble, our parents are taken and killed, and everything we hold dear destroyed, purely for his own personal gain. If you only knew what he had in mind..."

"He's done nothing but promise us prosperity!" One of the people in the crowd shouted, surprising everyone but the boy who stood center stage. "To gain more magical power for us, to overthrow the Exceed...!"

"Idiots." He scoffed, turning to glare the man, who quieted himself and resumed sitting. "He's no different from any other power hungry monarch. The magic power he collects...do you really think it will be used for your own good, or for his? He cares only for those who can help him attain his goals, and disregards the lot of you that can't. Even this Royal City, where you fools live in comfort, is only a statement of what he can do with the wealth he has. And now..." The boy turned from them, silent for a moment, before his head turned back towards them all once more. "Those affiliated with the Royal Family. This night, you will help me make a statement to all of Edolas, and most importantly, to Faust himself."

Everyone looked at each other in confusion.

"And now, before I go, I'll give you one piece of advice. Run."

With those words, the figure faded, and a loud, ear piercing shriek filled the room as people began to rush towards the exits, trampling over each other, pushing others down from the stands and into the stage, anything they could do to get away.

High in the air, the figure watched from the hot-air balloon, his face concealed from displaying any emotion at all. He was now holding a small switch, and, without any hesitation, pressed his thumb down on the button.

BOOM! With a thundering crash, the entire stadium exploded, lighting the sky up in a massive fireball, sending wood, rock, and most importantly, charred and destroyed bodies flying everywhere. People in the street, and even from the distance, gasped as they the building go up in flames. "I guess it's true what they say about art." The boy muttered to himself, before whistling. He leapt from the balloon, free-falling down into the sky...only to be snatched up by a large, grey, beast, a Legion. "Good boy." The boy said fondly to the creature as it flew away from the city, carrying him into a forest, where it landed. He slid from it's back, and removed the mask on his face, revealing a large shock of orange, spiky hair.

"You can go rest." He said, smiling at the creature. Was this really the same boy who just killed a good hundred people? "I'll call you again later, Riskal."

The beast roared, before taking flight into the sky. "I may as well go wash off." He sighed, and sauntered off towards the center of the forest. Having lived in this forest since he was about twelve, he knew the general layout of the place, and his favorite waterfall was right at the center. However, as he made his way closer, he could hear...humming. A female voice was humming. "That's...odd..." The boy walked closer, ducking behind some bushes that concealed him from sight, just looking over them. What greeted him was something he hadn't expected to see.

This young woman -around the boy's own age- was casually batheing in the waterfall; not really paying attention to the wildlife or anything like that around her. To her, it seemed that she, herself, and her were the only people in this entire world- then again, it was hard to tell whether or not she was a narcassist or just not giving two flying flips about her current situation. Her ears twitched; though moments later, she ignored it. "There's no way that anybody else'd know about this place, I just know it..."

How wrong she was.

"She's..." Jason caught himself mesmerized by the sight of the woman; her pale skin and white hair seemed to glow in the moonlight, and he couldn't take his eyes away. Carelessly, he took a step back, crunching a twig underfoot.

"Huh?" The young woman swiftly spun around- her emerald eyes moving around to find Jason. Her eyes sharpened- her fists clenched, she took no care for the fact that she was butt-naked. "...The heck are you, you, pervert, person, dummy!"

"Pervert!?" Jason said indignantly, standing up from behind the bush. "I'm no pervert, idiot." Her crass tone was already turning his bad attitude on full blast. "It's not my fault you happened to be bathing in my favorite spot!"

"Don't call me an idiot, idiot!" The young woman snapped back; obviously displeased at him. Then again, if you were walked in on bathing -even if you were in broad daylight- you'd be annoyed too. "It's my favourite spot too. Heck, I think only my kind know about it, so scram!"

"Why do I need to scram?" Jason barked; a vein throbbing in his temple now. The girl was beginning to make him angry. "I've lived in this forest for the past two years, I think I have the right to be anywhere I want. You get out." He put particular emphasis on "you".

"Because it's ettiquite!" She...probably, mispronounced that word. "If a lady is bathing, a man must scram before she suffers his wrath! This is one of these situations!"

"Oh for the love of...!" Jason shot her a cold glare. "Fine, I won't spend my time arguing with a child who can't even understand when they're trespassing!" With that, he sauntered off, deciding to forget a bath for the night and just go sleep. "Blasted woman..." He muttered as soon as he was out of earshot.

"I heard that!" Thankfully, the woman's super-sensitive hearing could hear Jason- and without even a second to lose, she hastily dressed herself, dashing after him. "You're a real weakling! A normal person would've tried to stand their ground!" Oddly enough, she was...pissed.