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[EZEKiAL]

Roze drifted quietly through the ancient ruins that were once Scykle's home. She landed next to the Ideya Palace, and sighed.

"I told you that you were gonna get yourself killed, kid..." she snickered sadly, "I gotta hand it to you, though. That's a hell of a way to go out!"

She looked around, noticing the place was quite clean. It seemed as though someone was still living here.

[InTheNightlight]

Meanwhile, in Frozen Bell, Twilite and Slick were thinking about the past events. Scykle was gone, Wizeman was gone, for all they knew, Tide and Scykhell might still be alive, and they had NO clue who killed Twilite's parents. They now were living in the hidden tree house.

"I still can't believe Scykle just snuffed out his life like that..." Slick muttered.

"Hey, he might still be alive. But for now, we're going to have to wait." She said. She hoped she was right.

--------------

Tide opened his eyes. He rubbed his head, dazed by the events. He looked around. "Scykhell?" He asked aloud. His partner was nowhere to be seen. He stood up, still wobbly. "Looks like I'm on my own from here..." He walked through the forest, looking for any signs to where he was. He was in Everal Forest, the Reunion...

He continued to walk forth until he saw something in the distance. The upside down tower! He hadn't seen it since, well, for a long time! The last time he had seen this, it was the first time he and DaYZ faced off against each other. Unfortunately, DaYZ won, leaving Tide to perish in the Forest.

But the tower was different now. It now had lost it's glow and was not radiating energy. Well, no matter. He would return to the normal dimension one way or another. He would finish the job...

NOTE: Everal Forest is the Negative version of Ethereal Forest.
NOTE2: The reason the upside-down tower isn't working is because of the link Scykle closed between the different dimensions.

[EZEKiAL]

Meanwhile, in Endless Vista the Eternity...

A voice rang out in the silence, through the dew covered grass, around the occasional tree.

"Hello?"

A Nightmaren stood in the dense fog, confused and alone.

"Where...am I?" He looked down. On his chest was a large symbol; it seemed to be a magical seal. It was blue, like the crystal on his chest.

Just then, another voice rang out.

"Are we...alone?" A mirror image of the Nightmaren stepped through the fog, into view; except, this one had yellow instead of blue.

"Who are you?" Blue asked. Yellow shrugged.

"Are you the last one? Red, Green, and White are waiting back this way," Yellow explained.

"Who are...we?" Blue asked. Red then emerged from the fog, along with Green and White.

"We're pieces of ourselves," Red explained, "The seals we bear keep the worlds apart; even if we wanted to, we couldn't break them."

White butted in quickly. "We are Scykle!"

--------------

Rose flitted gracefully around the ruins, causing roses to bloom wherever she pleased.

[TORiAS_the_fallen]

Torias stared at the dreamscape of Frozen Bell, looking out at the sparkling landscape with his ruby eyes and sighing.

Why, oh why, does this nonsense always happen to me? I don't get it....

He had been wondering around for what seemed like hundereds of years, at first it had been to find answers, but now.... he just wanted to fix Nightmare, was that too much to ask?

I wonder if anyone that I know is around...?

He hovered there, several feet above the snow, his legs and arms both crossed in frustration.

What am I supposed to do now?

[InTheNightlight]

Slick stretched. "Listen, Scykle disappeared, everyone saw it with their own eyes!"

"You're forgetting that the link between the two worlds has closed due to some unknown force. That unknown force might be Scykle, alive and well!" Twilite said, growling.

"Hey, even if it was Scykle, I doubt there's anything we can do..." Slick layed back in his chair.

-------------

Tide was studying the upside-down tower. He had to find some way to the normal Nightopia.

"Sometimes the answer lies within..." He heard a voice rasp. He looked around, but there was no one in sight.

He still felt obliged to shout, "Just what the hell does THAT mean?!"

[EZEKiAL]

Roze twirled up to Torias from the snow down below, giggling gleefully.

"Well, hello there, handsome..." she said through her grin, "You wouldn't have happened to see a pair of Nightmaren around here, would you?" She created an image, with a swirl of rose petals, of Twilite and Slick. "They knew a friend of mine before he passed away..." She smiled temptatiously.

-------------

Scykle's pieces looked at each other, curiously. Each one had a different base color, corresponding to an Ideya.

"What happened to us?" Green asked. Red shrugged.

"All I can remember is that we broke apart for a reason. Say, what is this place, anyway?"

Blue interjected. "That doesn't matter. We need to find a way to put ourselves into one again! But how...?"

[Aura24]

Yori and Youko were both hunting for little Nightopians around the Ideya Palace. When they caught sight of one, they laid low in the grass and stalked it.

The Nightopian was unaware of the danger, but when it heard the grass rustle behind it, Youko leapt out with a growl and soared towards the little Nightopian. However, Yori leapt out at the same time as the red kitsune, and accidentally bumped into each other and fell to the ground dazed. The Nightopian, startled, quickly got up and flew away from its supposed attackers.

"Okay, we need a new strategy." Youko moaned.

Yori nodded slowly, "I agree."

[InTheNightlight]

Twilite thought hard on the matter. Or, perhaps, two matters. She still couldn't get that event out of her mind. She was about to get crushed by Yori, but something was preventing it. And then there was that staff that just came out of nowhere and disappeared a minute later...

Wait...

She looked at an old photograph of her and her parents. DaYZ was wielding something. Twilite looked closely. It was the same staff she had used! And that voice she had heard just before the staff appeared, it sounded like her dad!

"Something wrong?" Slick's question snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked over at him.

"No, nothing's wrong." was the first answer that came to mind, but she answered with a question. "Slick, when you knew my dad, did he usually use a staff?"

"...Yeah, I think he did."

"And did it has green crystals on it?"

"Yeah, why?"

---------------------

"No way!"

"Yes way! I think my dad somehow contacted me and gave me this staff to defend myself!" Twilite explained everything.

"Hmm...............Well, it makes sense; DaYZ was telekinetic, so he COULD have contacted you, but how did he send you that staff?" Slick pondered.

"I'm not sure, but we'll find out soon..." Twilite said.

[EZEKiAL]

"Alright, guys, let's try it out!" White sing-songed. The Scykles were standing about a foot away from each other, then jumped, bonking their heads together. They all fell backwards, dazed.

"White," Blue commented, "You're an idiot."

------------------

A brutish Nightmaren lumbered lazily through Ethereal Forest. He spotted two foxes, recognizing them immediately.

"Hey, guys!" Scykhell yelled, stomping over to them. "It's been ages!"

[Aura24]

Yori and Youko looked up and saw Scyhell running towards them. Thinking he was attacking, the kitsunes panicked.

"YIPE!!" Youko squealed, then she and Yori took off running away from Scyhell.

[EZEKiAL]

Scykhell stood, blinking, unsure of what just happened.

[Aura24]

Yori and Youko were soon hiding behind a couple of pillars after running from Scyhell.

"I thought he was going to tear my limbs off!!" Yori whimpered.

Youko shuddered, "I thought he was going to rip us to shreds!"

[EZEKiAL]

Scykhell searched for the pair, pushing pillars over like they were made of LEGOs.

"Guys? Hello?" He sighed, "Oh c'mon, I'm not gonna hurt you. Why would I?"

[Aura24]

"You're one of the bad guys, that's why!" Youko shouted, making it sound like her voice was all around Scyhell.

[EZEKiAL]

"Bad guys? Have you looked around? There aren't any left! I don't even know if Tide made it out okay!" Scykhell's face saddened from its usual manic look. Tide was perhaps the only friend he'd ever had.

------------

Blue Scykle sighed, trying to remember what had happened. Yellow walked up, and sat down beside him.

"You know, maybe it's best that we stay as five instead of one. If we can't remember anything about our life before, it could't have been that great..."

------------

Rose drifted back to Scykle's Ruins, having had no luck with Torias. She grinned widely at the sight of Scykhell, and dashed down to him.

"Scykhell! I can't believe it's you!" She tackled him, interrupting his emotional moment.

[Aura24]

"???" Both Yori and Youko noticed another Maren tackling Scyhell as if they knew each other.

"Great, he brought re-inforcements." Youko hissed, growling softly.

[EZEKiAL]

Scykhell growled, tickling Rose. The two had known each other really well when Rose was a baby.

Rose smiled, "Don't worry, I mean no harm..." She blinked, "Oh yeah! Are you two the ones living in Scykle's place?"

[Aura24]

"Yes, we are! Why do you ask such a question?" Yori demanded.

[InTheNightlight]

"Come on, Slick! Hurry up!" Twilite called back at her friend.

Slick was panting behind her. "Hey, come on! You know I'm not as fast a runner as you!" He called back. They both stopped at a spot in Ethereal Forest. "Twi, can you PLEASE tell me where we are?"

"We're at the upside-down tower. It separates this dimension, the Waking, and Tide's dimension. If that's true, maybe Scykle is inside the border!" She explained. Slick lifted an eyebrow.

"Okay, what was the middle thing?"

[EZEKiAL]

Roze giggled. "Fiesty for a...um...kitten, aren't we? I was just wondering if you two knew him! Scykle and I used to be...an item...and I wanted to know if he was happy."

Scykhell noticed Twilite and Slick running by.

"Wonder what they're up to?"

[Aura24]

"Hey, we're not kittens! We're three-tailed foxes!" Youko growled, "And yes, we knew Scykle and he was our friend!"

[EZEKiAL]

Roze floated upside-down, looking at the "kittens". "Oh, goodie! I'm sure he mentioned me, right?"

Scykhell plodded after Twilite and Slick, unnoticed.

[Aura24]

"Uh...no." Youko shook her head.

[EZEKiAL]

Roze faceplanted into the ground, then regained her composure. "Well, I suppose it HAS been a couple millenia...anyway, why are you guys living in Scykle's ruins? Did he will the place to you or what?"

-----------

Scykle's pieces were busy exploring the misty landscape. It seemed that once you reached a certain point, you were sent back to the other side, like circling a planet. The world was made up of an endless grassy plain, a few trees, and the occasional park bench, all covered in a dense eternal fog. Unlike most Nightopias, there was no music, likely due to the lack of Nightopians.

The colorful Nightmaren met back under the largest tree, where they discussed what to do next.

[Aura24]

"No, we just stay there." Youko replied.

[EZEKiAL]

Roze sighed. "Don't you two have any respect?" She shrugged, "Whatever. Who are you anyway? I'm Roze, the Nightmaren."

[Aura24]

"I'm...the ruling Maren of this area." Youko replied, secretly lying.

Yori also lied, "And I'm her assistant."

[EZEKiAL]

Roze grinned. "Really, now!" The 'Maren giggled, "Why isn't a big, strong man like yourself in charge, huh?" she laughed, patting Yori's head.

[Aura24]

"Uh...well, my mate here is stronger than me, that's why." Yori responded, making an excuse.

[EZEKiAL]

"Mate, hmm?" Roze laughed, "Aren't you two a bit...kitten-like for mating?"

-------------

Red, Green, Yellow, Blue, and White all focused as hard as they could on getting out of Endless Vista, and the crystals on their chests began to glow brightly.

"See, I told you it would work!" Green exclaimed.

"Don't get your hopes up yet, Green..." White grumbled, "I'm beginning to get a heada..."

Suddenly, each of them spontaneously disappeared in a flash of light.

--------------

Not five feet away from Roze, Youko, and Yori, White tumbled out of a rift in nothing, landing on his head. What Scykle's pieces had failed to realize in their empty home, however, is that they were all only about three feet tall!

[Aura24]

Youko suddenly jumped back at the sight of White, "What the?!"

"What is that??" Yori questioned, looking at White.

[Dreamer#96]

Lucas waved back to the other visitors in Delight City and set off to Ethereal Forest, he hadn't seen any of his friends for awhile, if any of them still remained there, "If only Scykle was still around." Lucas murmured to himself. Lucas shook the thought out of his head and continued on.

[EZEKiAL]

Scykle's Purity shard looked up at those surrounding him, but before he could get a word out, he disappeared again.

Roze was stunned for a moment. "That...thing looked like...Scykle!" She cheered, "Scykle must still be alive! ...but, why is he white?"

-------------

White reappeared in Endless Vista, where his siblings were already waiting for him.

"Looks like we're stuck here," Red mumbled, "We're connected to this world, somehow...but maybe..."

Blue interrupted, "...we can bring others here!"

[TORiAS_the_fallen]

"...?"
"Handsome?"
Torias sped after the Maren girl, having been unable to answer her in utter emabarassment.

A long time ago he'd been in a relationship with a girl named ViXEN, but that was anceint history, and she had caught him off gaurd.

He had arived just in time to see White tumble out from the gate, and then something occured to him.

What about The Inbetween? That portal.... I wonder if where ever he came from is... connected to me? To my past, like inbetween is?

Despite having promised himself not to dwell on his past, he couldn't help it. As a Nightmaren seperate from Wizeman and the others, not being created by the Nightmare King, he had no proper place in this world and sometimes wondered about the meaning of his existance. Who was he created by?

But that time, when he had searched for the answers to himself, was in the past.

Instead, he opened his mouth to speak, in his clear, deep voice. "So, anyone have any idea what that was?"

[EZEKiAL]

Roze turned around, smiling. "Oh, hello, Handsome!" she giggled, "As for what just happened...erm...I have no idea."

[InTheNightlight]

Twilite and Slick arrived at the tower. It had lost it's usual glow and had become dark and dull. Even the air around it was deathly still.

Slick looked in awe. "Man, the tower changed ALOT in over 300 years..."

Twilite shushed him. "Do you hear that?"

"What?"

Twilite grabbed his arm and they both hid behind some trees nearby. From behind the tree, they saw a brutish Maren approaching.

Slick gaped. "Scykhell is still alive?!" He whispered.

"Ssh!"

They saw the Nightmaren search everywhere around the tower, apparently confused. Twilite reached towards her holster for her rifle and set the gun to level 2, stun.

"You STILL carry that? Even if you're NOT in your battle suit?" Slick asked.

"Yep. Never leave home without it."

[Aura24]

"That was some weird gem." Youko muttered, then perked up, "Scykle's alive, but the last time we saw him, he went to the Waking World and the portal got destroyed."

[EZEKiAL]

Scykhell twitched at the sound of Twilite's voice. "Hello?"

---------------

Roze put her finger on her "chin" and thought aloud, "He's why the portals have closed?"

[Dreamer#96]

Meanwhile...

Lucas reached Ethereal Forest, "The portal isn't far away from here, but that one doesn't work either, just like the rest." Lucas said. He reached the portal and headed in the direction of the Ideya palace.

[EZEKiAL]

Roze turned her head slightly to see Lucas running towards the ruins.

"Visitor! Come here, Visitor!"