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This article, A Perilous Land: Into the Depths of Genosha, is the sole property of Phantom and cannot be used, edited, or referenced without his permission, with the exception of collaboration articles, whereas terms listed above are unserviceable. |
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This article, A Perilous Land: Into the Depths of Genosha, is property of Zicoihno. |
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Introduction[]
- "Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books."
- — John Lubbock
Birds fluttered over the rocky shores of Breaker Beach as the afternoon sun illuminated the sea of trees that followed it. Small patches of fishermen strapped up their boats with nets as they began to set off for the afternoon catch. The breeze strengthened as the afternoon went into full swing, just another day.
"What could you want to see in this place?"
A middle aged man pulled his sails to a close as the boat came to a halt at the wooden docks to their side. With a strong build for his advanced age, the man could be seen as foreboding by most. He dusted off his hands and stepped towards his sole patron. "Hey, didn't you hear me?" He asked quickly, eyeing the blond man before him.
"It's a nice view from here, " the young man answered with a smile, "Nothing like what you were on about on the way here from the main ship. This is the treacherous Genosha that I've heard of?"
The older man smirked, "Aye, and that's the same bloody ignorance that gets plenty of youngins like you. Cocky buggers. This be Breaker Beach, it's an exception to the rule, Mr. Vista."
"If it's worth anything, I was being a tad sarcastic, " Sanjo said through a frown. He shielded his eyes from the sunshine with his forearm. "Still, it's quite nice, this beach. Tell your captain, I'm grateful for him lending his services to take to a place like this."
The man nodded in agreement. "It's no secret not many folks folks from Fiore make the trek to this place, " he said, leaning on the wall next to him. "But the cap'n ain't no coward, kid."
Sanjo hopped over the side of the boat onto the docks. From afar, he noticed the fisherman pushing off with their boats into the sea. None of this matched his expectations so far, none of it. "I'll be off now, take care of yourself, Jack." The Wizard Saint turned on his heel and made his way down the dock and onto the beach.
"Two, no five, I didn't expect to run into anyone that could use magic so soon, " Sanjo pondered, scanning the wooded area north of him. His senses were at a heightened state, no chances would be taken while in a land as foreign as this. Where even the Vista name was seldom known, and his fame even more remote—if not, nonexistent. This was a new frontier for him, all his various travels in the past paling in comparison. Still, he was not alone, it would seem.
"Feel free to show yourself," Sanjo shouted, "I'm well aware that you are watching me."
A blonde haired, young man emerged from the trees slowly. Clad in a blue jacket and dark pants to match. His spiky, blonde hair swayed with the afternoon breeze, catching Sanjo off guard. "Breaker Beach isn't a typical beach, to put it simply. If you're wondering about the magical presences you're feeling, our guild makes this place a usual hangout in down times, " the young man said calmly, watching the foreigner's every move.
Sanjo arched an eyebrow, "And you are?"
"Taichi Marsh, I am a mage of the guild known as Phantom Breaker, " the blonde man answered quickly. "I can tell you're not from around here or near here. You are from Fiore, correct?"
"Phantom Breaker, " Sanjo said to himself, stroking his chin. "I've heard that name before, damn, where though." He looked back towards his first greeter, if it could be called that.
"He looks a little like me, this is weird. But, he is short, very short, " Sanjo thought, locking glances with this Taichi. The Wizard Saint towered over him in stature, to a rather amusing extent. "Still, I'm here for a bit of exploring. That being said..."
"Genosha is not exactly somewhere one can waltz around without any experience," Taichi said sternly, "Consider this a blessing. My guild has a thing for helping travelers, regardless of skill level. This place can be quite....tricky."
"Well, isn't that a touching honor code to have, " Sanjo replied with a smile. "The name is Sanjo Vista, by the way. Thanks for the welcome. So, how are we going to do this?" He tightened the strap of his bag, waiting for an answer.
"Follow me," Taichi said, nodding towards the woods.
The small group, accompined by several sacks of fish brought out from the ocean, made their way through the dense jungle as they came apon one of the open caves. Striking a match and lighting a torch, they entered the darkness as their one light source shined the way. They eventually found themselves facing a door as Taichi used a key to unlock and open it.
The doorway opened as Sanjo saw the cave turn into a crowded area with people sitting and standing, talking and laughing, and even eating in some of the tables there.
"Ah, welcome back TaI, I take it the fishing went well?" A woman said with a smile as Taichi nodded.
"Yes, though we were only able to capture some small ones" He replied as the others in his group left the sacks on the ground and walked in, "Hopefully it'll be enough".
"It'll do for now, I should go prepare these...." She stopped when she noticed Sanjo looking around the guild, "and who is your friend?"
"Another "explorer" of sorts, I figured my Father would know what to do with him" Tai said then remembering something, "Is he still on his third serving of food?"
The girl chuckled awkwardly, "More like his seventh, in fact, I better get these fish ready soon, he's in his usual spot as always" She said quickly before grabbing the bags and rushing into the kitchen.
"Oh brother, come" Tai said as Sanjo followed him down a corridor, hearing the sounds of muiltiple plates piling on one another, and stopping at one of the doors.
"Just be warned, there may be food particles that can and will fly out, so you may want to keep a step back" He told Sanjo before opening the door.
The room was lit very well as the area was seen to be a small dining room, something that looks like it would used for dinner parties, and in the middle of the room was a long table filled high with dirty dishes and traces of food still left on some of them. Behind them was a dark-skinned muscular man with blond hair and mustache was woofing down the plates of food in front of him.
"Father, I'm back" Tai said to get his attention as he stopped with a mouth of food and looked up.
"AH MY SON, YOU'VE RETURNED!!!" The man said with a mouth full of food as bits of the food spat out of his mouth.
"Please, shallow before you talk" Tai replied with an irritated tone as the man swallowed and smiled.
"I hope the fishing was well, I always did enjoy the...." He stopped talking when he noticed Sanjo standing next to him, "and who is this?" He asked with his tone changing from excited to serious.
"The name is Sanjo Vista, sir, " Sanjo answered promptly, raising a finger. The sheer quantity of plates near the man was bizarre, to say the least. How could any one eat that much? Sanjo figured it was wise to stray away from such questions for now, his guide wasn't too friendly, and this wasn't exactly a resort welcoming. "I'm here on a bit of business, well, some exploring. I take it, you are the master of this guild?"
"Yes I am, Jayapura Marsh at your service... Wait, Vista... Where have I heard that name before?" He said scratching his chin with his left hand and eating the giant drumstick in the other hand, causing the two blonds to give an annoyed look at him. "Of Course!! Your lineage runs from the Vista Family, the Guild Master before me told of how the First met with the founder, Soran Vista, when he first arrived to Genosha".
"Well, it was Soran's son, but everything else sounds about right," Sanjo said, nodding. "To be honest, I remember reading something about this guild a long time ago in a book at my childhood home. My family's history is sort of why I'm here." The three of them were alone in the room, something of an awkward air about them all.
"Though Taichi-dono here, " He said, pointing towards his companion, "Showed me the way here. I've heard some things about Genosha, not exactly optimistic, so I followed his lead."
"We had finished our fishing when his boat came to dock on Breaker Beach, though in a way, I guess it could have been a lot worse if he had drifted farther than the beach" Tai replied as he decided to take a seat on the table with Sanjo following.
"I hope my son treated you kindly, we may not trust much outsiders, but we are kind when the need arises" Jayapura said as the same girl and a few others came into the room, grabbing the empty plates off the table, and replacing them with warm food. "In any case, you must be hungry after your trip, eat"
"I'm not new to traveling like this, so I take every chance to eat properly when I can. Had a little something on the ship, but more the merrier, thank you, " Sanjo answered quickly as he took a seat. "Your son was a substantial help, but enough of that. Tell me about this place, and why the sailors on my ship think of this place as some sort of hellhole." He took a bread roll and broke it in half.
"In some cases, it's wise to take heed on some of the things people say, especially when it comes to a place like Genosha" Taichi said as he grabbed a plate and began to eat the food on it, while his father in one instant devoured four plates in record speed.
"Genosha is something of an enigma, many things can be said about it, it's a land far off from any known regions and it is known for being one of the most bountiful places ever to have existed. Although, there's more to the secret that makes even the strongest person cower in fear. For it is not physical strength that tests people who come into Genosha, but their mental strength" Jayapura said in a serious tone while eating his food.
"Mental strength, if it's no issue, some elaboration on that would be great, " Sanjo said, grasping the cup beside him. The old man before him had a certain presence about him, reminded him of his grandfather to a small extent. It was not often that Sanjo knew someone was truly strong just by sitting down for a meal with them. " The sailors I traveled with described this land to be, quite frankly, perilous. And there isn't enough confirmed information about Genosha in my books over at my home in Fiore."
"It's...difficult to explain" Taichi said as he grabbed his own cup and took a sip of the drink while eating the fish that he caught. "Ever since birth, many people are instinctively aware of the power surrounding this place, for outsiders however, they don't truly understand how much change there is in Genosha. No offense Sanjo"
"My son is correct, I can say many things about what mental challenges this region offers to all, but to truly understand it one must experience it. Though what you should know about the region is that it is Very unstable and very dangerous to the untrained, but to someone like you, I believe you would be up to the challenge" Jayapura replied as he ate five more plates and drank five cups in one instant.
Sanjo tapped his fingers on the wooden table, he had come to a dangerous place. "Well, that makes my goal here a tad more difficult, " He said with a sigh, pushing the plate away from him. "I've been to alot of places, seen alot of things, dealt with some troublesome folks and beasts. Yet, it sounds like this place is at the mercy of mother natu--" A tumble outside the doors caught his ear, in that very moment, a rumble began to rock the room.
Sanjo jumped up from his seat, "Shit, is that what I think it is?"
The double doors swung open as the young woman from earlier rushed in. Hands on her knees, she panted as she tried to catch her breath. A ruckus echoed from downstairs, earning an arched eyebrow from the wizard saint. "Master! Another earthquake has just began to rock the capital, Utopia is in trouble!"
After hearing those words, the once-calm Guild master and son became serious in that instant as Jayapura helped the girl up, "Everyone knows their positions, have them sent out immediatly, and tell Konoha that he will be leading the first rescue team with me acting as the communication port. Hurry!!" He yelled as the woman ran in a hurry back to the main room.
"My son, we will need the statue to make sure no one is buried alive" He said as Taichi nodded and ran out to do what his Father told him. "Sanjo, I know we may not trust each other, but I can sense a good soul in you, will you help my son?"
Sanjo nodded at the guild master, " It's the least I could do."
He turned on his heel and rushed out of the room after Taichi. He could feel the ground shaking with a fright under, almost as if it was trembling. All around him was chaotic, with guild members running around left and right in the midst of everything. The guild hall was a frenzy of bodies moving about, the sound of crashing pots and shattering dishes filling the air. "Now, where did this guy go, and who is this Konoha, " Sanjo wondered, looking around as he dodged people left and right.
"ALRIGHT LISTEN UP!!!" A man shouted as Sanjo stopped in his tracks and looked over to see a tall red-skinned man with a large nose address them. "This isn't anything new, you all know the drill! I'll be leading the first rescue team, the strong and fast will be coming with me, that includes you Taichi" He said as Taichi nodded in response.
He then looked at Sanjo, glaring a bit before speaking, "You, since the boss thinks you're good people, then you're with me and I expect you to follow orders. The rest of you, you know the drill, medical and excavation teams are on stand-by until the quake stops, we will not fail understood?!"
The entire guild cheered in response as they went to their stations.
"In case your wondering, the man with the big mouth is my uncle, Konoha Akahada" Taichi told Sanjo as he put on his gear to get ready.
"Right, good to know," Sanjo answered, turning back towards Taichi. "So, where to now? Do we just follow his lead?"
"I know the drill for how he works, we'll be splitting up, the two of us will be on look out and help anyone that is left behind, we make sure no one gets hurt and everyone gets to the safe zones" Taichi said gathering his gear before heading out the door with Sanjo following him. When the entire guild exited the building, all that could be seen for miles were people running in terror and screaming as the quake was beginning to break apart some of the nearby buildings.
The citizens' screams filled the air as people fled for their lives. Parents ran frantically with their children's wrists tightly gripped, as their great escape continued. Sanjo and Taichi glided over the droves off people in a single bound, landing firmly in the midst of the chaos.
"So, how are we going to do this?" Sanjo asked, eyeing Taichi's watchful eye. The citizens were making headway. The wizard saint shook their head, they were so used to it, it was almost a ritual for them. Yet, the fear was still there. "Oi, Taichi, are you still there?"
The young Phantom Breaker mage's eyes scanned the moving crowd and their surroundings. The seismic shakes continued to rock the very ground beneath them. The hysterical screaming didn't help anything. "We're gonna watch for stragglers on the escape route. That, and anything out of the ordinary."
Sanjo arched an eyebrow, "We're in the middle of an earthquake, what could be out of the ordinary--"
"Help!"
A piercing scream caught their ears. Sanjo and Taichi turned to see a man with a leg caught under a fallen, stone pillar. His small daughter waved frantically for someone, for anyone to help. The wizard saint shot towards the pair, weaving through the crowd of fleeing citizens.
"M-my, my, my papa is stuck, I can't get it to budge, " the child said with a sniffle. Sanjo noticed the cuts on her hands from attempting to be her father's savior. A tenacious child, he thought, somewhat reminding him of his own sister.
"It's alright, kid, " Sanjo answered her, smiling. He began to lift the pillar off the struggling man. The latter crawled to a safer position next to his daughter. "I got your dad's help covered." Sanjo dropped the pillar, a cloud a dust sweeping past them. He looked back towards the pair.
"Get going, " He said, pointing towards the moving crowd, "Follow that horde of people and you'll be fine." Sanjo gave a nod towards Taichi, sadly, it felt like things were just beginning.
The ground began to shake harder as the entire area began to shift, causing some of the civlians fall through some of the cracks in the ground, only to be saved by the lightning fast speed of Konoha, grabbing them, and handing them to the field medical mages.
"WAH!!" The sounds of a baby could be heard as Taichi looked over the area, finding an abandoned stroller in the middle of the pathways. In an instant, the ground beneth it started to give way as the baby began to fall. With quick instincts, Taichi went as fast as he could, jumping into the abyss and grabbing the child before using Sound-Make to create a platform to jump off of, and land safely on one of the neary by roofs.
"Shhh, it's okay, you're safe now" Taichi said trying to calm him down as suddenly another few houses came crashing down to the ground. A woman appeared before him with the smiling at the child before taking her in his arms "Another orphan?" She said sadly as the baby began to calm down.
"Yes, I don't think his mother survived, you better get him back to the guild and quickly, things are getting worse" He said as she nodded and disappeared running with baby in hand.
"Where to from here? Most of the citizens are out of here."
Sanjo landed near Taichi, the earth still rocking about beneath him. "This quake should have subsided already, this is bothersome, " Sanjo surveyed the area around. The place a blasted ruin, nothing but a shell of its' former self. He sighed, "Again, what's next?"
Taichi concentrated and used his Sound-Make to emit a sonar to track the heart beats of anyone still alive in the rubble. After a few seconds, the ping of four heart beats were felt not far from their destination, "I found straggler's not too far from here, so if we hurry...."
His explanation was interrupted when suddenly a powerful explosion could be felt, causing the ground to break apart, and seep lava from out of the ground. "Wait, this isn't right, something is wrong here, we must hurry and get the survivors" Tai said acting fast as he ran away from the lava, heading to where the heart beats are located at.
"Something is not right, no doubt," Sanjo bolted after his blonde companion. The lava gushed out, sweeping over the ground with a sizzling fury. Yet, the mage's mind was on one thing, the stragglers crying out for help. If Taichi had a hit with this magic of his, they had to do whatever they could to save those people.
Sanjo sighed, taking a quick glance over his shoulder, "One thing after another. Taichi, the lava, do we handle it or let mother nature have its' way?"
Taichi looked over his shoulder, finding that the lava was now emerging from certain area's as he knew that this was something else, "I do not think this is mother nature, even if this region is unstable, no known lava paths are within the capital, but whatever the case the people must come first and in cases like this, we must work together" He replied stopping in front of the lava's path.
"Sanjo, I'll keep the lava at bay, with any luck some of the water mages from the guild will be able to hear my sound make's and rush to help us out" He said focusing his attention on the lava, concentraiting his magic, "Static Barrier!!" Taking in a deep breath, Tai lets out a powerful screech that creates a multi-barrier shield around the entire block of the lava.
Sanjo clenched his teeth, even now, the earth continued to shake with a fury beneath him. He watched on as his comrade beat back the flowing river of lava, the fiery stream of destruction was thick as pudding. "That should hold for now, " Sanjo scanned the area. They had gotten the citizens in this area out, luckily. They couldn't save everyone, but mother nature is a tough advesary. Admittedly, he could not think of anything to help Taichi's efforts. It was all in the Phantom Break mage's hands for now.
Taichi could feel himself being pushed back by the sheer force of mother nature, hearing as most of the citizens were finally rescued as he kept pushing with everything he's got, but as quickly as the lava came, it quickly hardened, filling most of the cracks that had been made and fixing them within seconds. Tai fell to his knees, panting heavily as his throat felt sore from all the screaming he did. "That wasn't a normal event..." He said with a hoarse tone his throat was very dry.
After the lava stopped, the earthquake followed as the entire area seemed to fall into a state of silence that seemed endless. After a few seconds, the sound of electricity could be heard as Konoha came rushing over to both Sanjo and Taichi, helping Taichi up and giving him a canteen of water to drink from. "You okay Tai?" He asked with worry as Tai nodded and looked over to Sanjo, who he passed the canteen of water too.
Sanjo took the canteen to his lips, and drank down one big gulp of water. A hiss of the hardening lava was still ringing in his ears, but everything was finally over. "Hell of a quake," Sanjo said dryly, "Everything seems settled for now, hopefully it holds like this for a while."
"You don't seem very shaken at all from it, " Taichi replied quickly as he took the canteen from his companion for another sip. His throat felt like a desert. "Earthquakes aren't the most attractive things for anybody, especially with their frequency here. "
"Well, I hold myself together well, I suppose, " Sanjo said with a smirk. "Though, what's your father been up to?"
"He held down communications, checking around to see if there's any explination for this bizzare earthquake change, especially since Lava paths aren't anywhere in this general location" Konoha replied letting Tai stand on his own as he finished the canteen.
"It is very strange, my father made sure Genosha was stabilized, something this massive shouldn't have happened in another year at least.... There's more to this than we originally thought" Tai said as he was trying to think of what kind of issue was going on.
Sanjo stepped past the pair in the direction of the guild. "That leaves us to look into things, doesn't it?" He said, massaging the back of his neck, all this pandemonium was stressful in its' own way. He peered over his shoulder to Taichi, "We're heading back now, no?"
Taichi and Konoha chuckled at Sanjo's laid back style, feeling that he would be an interesting guest to have in their guild as the three of them began their walk back to base. However, unbeknownst to them, several shadows could be seen hauling large oddly shaped figures as they disappeared into one of the caves.
The small band of cloaked figures kept walking through the cavern, passing through small opening's that revealed magma chamber's as they eventually made their way to a large wooden door of sorts, pushing it open as they entered what looked to be a chamber of sorts as it was filled with vast quantities of books and parchments.
Then in the middle of the room, stood a man wearing a cloak with a mask covering his face as he was reading one of the large tomes that were in the middle of the room.
"I assume by the recovered Lacrima's that the experiment was successful?" The man asked closing the tome as he turned to his followers, each of them kneeling down in front of him.
"Yes your majesty, as you predicted, they were able to generate the proper energy to stimulate the enviorment, though the Phantom Breaker weren't able to find them" One of them said as under the mask, the man grinned widely at the news he had recieved.
"Excellent my subjects, after some tweaking, we will be prepared for stage two of my plans, and after all these years, Genosha will be nothing more than a forgotten memory" He said with a cynical tone in his voice as he went to one of the smaller Lacrima. Charging it with magic, it revealed an image of Taichi as he was walking side by side with his allies.
"Then, those who hurt me will feel the pain I felt all those years ago".
Next Chapter: A Silent Hush: The Calm Before The Storm