330Hello people! Sentinel07 here with Chapter 34 of Kid Icarus: The Great War.
Italics means a character's personal thoughts.
Bold and italics refer to quotes using telepathy.
Make sure you keep reading those AN's at the bottom for anything that might be upcoming.
Disclaimer: I don't own Kid Icarus or any other referenced video game or anime.
Hello everyone! Been a while again. There's been much thinking as of late, especially given my large amount of OC's and trying to create a more steamlined story. I don't know how this will all turn out, but I'm going with my gut here, so hopefully it works out.
Overall reception of the fic has decreased considerably, so I do thank those who have been with me all this time.
Also, before we begin, some long deserved praise needs to be given. I would like to especially thank X the Reaper for all his help on this fic. He personally came up with the OC's Gwen and Marvis, and gave ideas for concepts such as Luna's Leviathan spear. I can't believe it took me this long to get that out. Kudos to him and I hope for his continuing support.
Well that aside, I hope you all enjoy this. When you all enjoy it, it makes it feel worthwhile. Let's hit it!
(BEGIN)
Chapter 35: Pit's Resolve
Throughout Palutena's Temple, most of the inhabitants seemed to be getting over recent events. The revelation about Gwen's heritage brought more laughs than anything else, which wasn't exactly a reaction she expected. It seemed as though she began acting much more calmly afterwards, especially evidenced when she decided to stop offering her services for free. Given the circumstances, Palutena and Viridi reached a new agreement with her, much to the chagrin of the others present.
The Underworld was left in ruins, as could be expected. Iris was in serious condition due to getting hit by Amiti's final blast, so she was stationed in Skyworld until she was fully healed. In her absence, and because no one trusted Thanatos to properly take care of things, Medusa volunteered to oversee the reconstruction of the Underworld Sanctuary. Just in case, Palutena decided to keep company and offer her own input, so she took her first personal trip to the Underworld in quite some time. It was a good time for the sisters to catch up a bit, although Medusa was still reluctant to engage in any kind of intimacy. Still, despite everything, Palutena wanted to try to convince her otherwise. Part of her worried that Medusa would go down the wrong path again. Despite her past wrongdoings, she believed that to patch things up with Medusa would be the best for them and the world.
That aside, Pit had brought his broken bow to Palutena, much to the sorrow of both of them. Still, Palutena perked up quickly and said that she'll try to get it fixed, but the cost would come out of Pit's paycheck. Pit retorted by reminding her that he never got paid. Aside from them, everyone else tried to recollect themselves following the huge battle.
And with that, we join Pit, who was on his way to visit a certain patient. He knocked on the door, hearing a quiet voice allow him inside. He let himself in and smiled as he saw Iris sitting up on her bed. She was recovering rather well, compared to most.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" Pit offered her a get-well flower (Palutena's suggestion), to which Iris happily took. Her left arm was still numb from her injuries, so she had to use her right arm to get around.
"Not bad. I don't feel pain anymore. Lots of aching though." She grimaced a bit as she moved her body.
"Well, don't push it. We can't have you reopening your wounds."
"I know." Iris laughed a little bit after saying that, much to Pit's confusion. "You know Pit, you remind me a lot of my brother from home."
"Home? You mean when you were human?"
"Yeah. He would always badger me, even when I just got a scratch."
"Well, excuse me." Pit gave her a bit of a stern stare, but that wasn't very threatening coming from him. Iris smiled anyway and gave him a one-armed hug.
"So, you know when you all will be heading out again?" asked Iris.
"I think everyone is using the time to get their heads on straight. Believe it or not, I'm actually still thinking some things over." Pit admitted, looking at the ground a bit. Iris' face immediately became concerned.
"Really? You can tell me anything you know."
"Thanks, but I need to think on my own for a bit."
"Not like you to be so secretive." Iris gave a light giggle. "You and I are quite alike after all, given that you're an angel and I'm a fellblood."
"What's the relation?" asked Pit. "I'd say the two things aren't even close."
"Well, technically, we're both higher forms of humans. I was once told that angels and fellbloods are both "errand spirits" for their respective realms. Believe it or not, while I may be in charge of the Underworld, I'm not that much different from you."
Pit gave her a bit of an odd look. Odd relation there. "So, Viridi didn't make up the term "errand spirit"?"
"Heh heh, no it's a real term. The real difference is how they're made. As you know, my body is composed of dead spirits. You on the other hand are more the opposite. You're more like a new life, without the need for using the dead. Sounds complicated, but Palutena actually helped me learn of that." Iris took a quick look out her window, seeing Skyworld beyond it. "Actually, humans have their own terms for us. They call us "fallen angels"."
"Humans have weird views, I'll say that much." Pit chuckled a bit. To be honest, he didn't understand most of Iris' monologue, but it sounded like she was trying to relate to Pit. Honestly, he did too. She was almost like a little sister. A little sister that could punch him through three walls.
"That's true. So yeah, it evens surprises me that I'm still somewhat human, even though I'm not in a sense."
"Well, if you ask me, I'd say there's a common thread between all of us. Even gods aren't that much different from humans, despite what some like to think." As Pit said that, he put a hand on her shoulder. "And on that note, while philosophy isn't all bad, I need to go."
Pit gave her a small pat on her shoulder, wishing her another get-well soon before taking his leave. Iris was a bit worried as Pit left, but she knew as well as anyone that he always came through.
"The author must be getting desperate if he's using me for sudden monologues." She gently smiled.
Noire was back at the practice area, trying to perfect her arrow shots. She didn't have much else to do, considering that despite how most of the others accepted her, Palutena still assigned a couple of Centurions to watch her. It was understandable, as Noire hadn't done very much to show her allegiance. Even she was still kind of confused about it all, but she felt safe here. She knew that much.
Back to current news, her face blushed as she remembered some of the hazing she had gone through the past few days. Ever since she happened to land on Dark Pit following the explosion, Phosphora and some others took every chance to tease her and Dark Pit. The dark angel would normally just growl a bit and then leave, but Noire would get the worst from Phosphora. She even still remembered what she said before.
"Hey, at least somebody's getting to him. Trust me, I've tried.
Her face went red again from thinking about it. Fimbulvetr also had her shots in on the situation, though she still preferred to annoy Noire about her lack of strength. Not the best motivation, but Noire tried to struggle on. She would hope for a chance soon.
Meanwhile, in another wing of the temple, Prometheus was sharpening Helswath. For once, he was actually letting things sink in, instead of just lashing out as he usually did. His powers had certainly increased thanks to his training. He now had the Ghost Reaver attack to go with Death Scythe, along with his other skills. Helswath could now cleave through the undead in addition to what it could before. Still, it wasn't enough. He knew that he would need something special to keep going. He didn't want that angel to get the best of him.
"Sure took you a while to break out the Monado. Eh, sis?" He looked over to Pyrrha, who was having a snack.
"Well, I had to unlock the darn things. What choice did I have?" Still, she smiled at her older sibling. "However, what you and Luna did down there. That was mighty impressive."
"It was nothing for me. Luna however…." Prometheus stopped from sharpening for a second. "I can't believe she actually went back. She was that desperate?"
"She cares about this world, as well as her friends. You especially." Pyrrha gave a last smirk at that, causing Prometheus to turn away indignantly.
While most of the others were okay, Pit actually wasn't as cheerful as he let on. He sighed as he reached an edge of the temple, dangling his legs over the edge as he sat down.
Truth be told, the last battles had weighed down on him. He was stunned when he heard of the Underworld, as well as what happened to everyone, including Iris. While he may have been off saving the Arctic, the fact that his friends came under attack and he wasn't there troubled him. Pit was not used to failure. Even back long ago, he always succeeded when Skyworld was under attack. Everyone knew him as a cheerful guy, someone who could see the goodness in anything. However, even he had some doubts now. He had missed many of the major battles as of late, and wasn't able to stop Viridi from getting killed once and Iris from nearly dying.
"Hey dweeb, what are you doing here?" And this was the absolute worst time for Viridi's sarcasm. Pit sighed as the Goddess of Nature walked over, sitting next to him on the edge. "Eres is making some lunch. I'm surprised you're just sitting here."
"Well, I've been dealing with some thoughts, alright?"
"Really? Didn't think you thought much at all." Viridi smirked at him, but Pit wasn't in the mood to retort. He just turned away, causing Viridi to raise an eyebrow at him.
"In fact, I do. Honestly, I wish you'd be a bit more sensitive about it." Pit said a bit harshly, to which Viridi seemed a bit taken back, but she quickly recovered.
"Excuse me, what did I do to you?" However, right as she said that, she immediately stopped. As if anyone needed to be reminded. "Um…..forget I said that."
Pit still gave her a stern look, but soon looked back at the ground. "It's nothing. I've just got a lot on my mind."
"Well, I've got nothing else to do. I think I can listen for about 3 minutes." Pit smiled a bit at Viridi's attempt at humor. Pit began relating to her exactly what he had been thinking. Half the time, he couldn't tell what she was thinking though. She just had her eyes closed and occasionally nodded.
"You know, some feedback would be really appreciated." Pit gave her another stern look. Couldn't he admit his problems to someone who actually listened.
"You really are a dweeb." She muttered to him.
"Hey!"
"You seem to get down every time this happens. You're the big cheerleader around here, you know. You're not you when you're down." Putting aside the fact that Viridi just called him a cheerleader, Pit listened intently.
"Personally, I think you're much better when you're chatty and bouncing everywhere. That's the angel that I know annoyed me to no end years ago."
"And I don't now?" Pit gave her a smirk.
"Don't push your luck. I'm a goddess you know."
"Noted." Pit said. It wasn't a lot, as Viridi just said what everyone else knew, but all the same, it was reassuring to Pit. It was nice that she cared enough to talk to him, even though it was in her usual thorny matter.
"You know, you somehow have a way with pick-me-ups. Thanks Viridi." Pit smiled with a wink. Viridi's face immediately went red, so much that she looked away from him.
"W-Whatever. It's better than seeing you sulk around like Dark Pit."
Pit just gave her an understanding nod as he left, to which Viridi couldn't stop herself from smiling a bit. Someone needed to keep that angel on his toes.
"He sulks like that again though, and I'm using Mayneth on him."
"You alright, Pit?" asked Palutena.
"Yes Lady Palutena. Better than a little while ago actually." said Pit.
"That's good. I've been a bit worried." smiled Palutena. "It might be time for you to head out again."
"How so?"
"I'm feeling that something is going on at Olympus. I think we should check it out, since we can't depend on the Legion just staying put."
"Olympus?" asked Pit.
"It's known as the mountain of the gods." Viridi spoke up. "It's got some of the richest minerals and ores in the land. I believe your Ore Club was made from them a long time ago."
"Wow, that sounds cool!" cheered Pit. "I'll just need to get ready first."
"But you don't have your bow anymore, and I'm not sure if you can trust that sword." said Viridi, referring to the Aroneis sword Pit had on his back. Pit just gave her a smile though.
"I'm not sure either. That's why I'm going to my back-up weapon. Be right back." Pit suddenly ran off in the direction of his room, leaving the others in confusion. Right before Palutena could call him though, the room was suddenly filled with the NES Underworld theme. Everyone looked around in confusion, until Palutena held up a small device, laughing sheepishly.
"Sorry, getting a call." Much like the camera, this little phone was also courtesy of the Aurum, and Palutena seemed to enjoy it a lot. "Hello?...Oh hi…..Really?...Okay, I'll put her on."
"Sheba, it's for you." Sheba raised an eyebrow, though she still got up and accepted the call.
"Hello?"
"Why hello there, young lady." It was Dyntos on the line.
"Oh hi Dyntos." Sheba said with not much enthusiasm. She met the old god once before, and she wasn't fond of it.
"How are you these days? It's been over a century since your last visit. Ho ho ho!"
"Is this all you wanted to say?" Sheba asked impatiently.
"Settle down now. This isn't just a pleasure call. I'd like you to come to my lair. It's regarding Falchion."
"What about it?"
"Why ruin the surprise? I won't take no for an answer. Do come immediately if you won't mind. Ho ho!" And with that, the call ended. Sheba gave it back to Palutena, though she shoved it hard enough to almost push the goddess to the ground.
"What does that old coot want with me now? Sheesh." Needless to say, even as Sheba reiterated conversation, she was not happy at all.
"What's going on?" Everyone turned to see Pit running back into the room, with a new pair of weapons in his hands. Viridi's face immediately went red.
"Y-You little…! Why do you still have those?!"
"Without my bow, these are my best ones." Pit defended himself. They were the pair of Viridi Claws that he kept from the war. They were very good ones too, so Pit didn't want to get rid of them. You would not believe how much forging Pit went through to get a pair like these.
"Why are you always so embarrassed when I wear these?" asked Pit. Seriously, it got kind of annoying sometimes.
"Yes Viridi, why is that?" smiled Palutena. Everyone seemed to give Viridi a bit of a smirk, which only made the nature goddess blush even more.
"T-This is….augh! Whatever!" Viridi almost looked like she was going to rip her hair out, which was actually amusing to watch. However, after a while, Viridi was able to regain her composure. "So, you heading to Olympus now?"
"Yeah. I'd say there's no time to waste. I need the exercise." smiled Pit.
"Fine, then I'm going too." Pit gave an incredulous look at that declaration.
"Say what?"
"You heard me. I haven't done anything since I got revived, and I hate sitting around. My own powers still aren't fully back, so I need the exercise too." said Viridi, with a tone that easily said that there would be no more discussion on it.
"Well, I guess it's settled then." smiled Palutena.
"What?!" asked Pit.
"A partner is always welcome. Besides, Viridi can take care of you while I'm helping out in the Underworld."
"Again, WHAT?!"
"Oh, stop whining. Be grateful that you get to fight alongside me again." Smirking, Viridi grabbed Pit by the collar and began heading out towards the exit.
"I almost feel sorry for him." smirked Prometheus, who had kept quiet until now. After those two were gone, Palutena turned to Sheba.
"You should go too. Lord Dyntos doesn't like to be kept waiting."
"Grrrr…..fine." Sheba practically stomped her way out of the room, leaving the room empty and silent. However, it wasn't too long before they heard those same stomping steps re-entering.
"I don't know how to get there." She said with a mix of embarrassment and frustration.
"I'll tell you." offered Palutena.
After Palutena gave her directions, Sheba was also on her way, though with very little enthusiasm. Palutena was glad to see everyone getting back to work. Perhaps she should get back to work too.
With Viridi providing the Power of Flight this time, she and Pit were flying towards Olympus.
"I don't know if we'll be able to get there by just flying. We might have to travel on the ground for a bit as well." said Viridi.
"Got it." confirmed Pit. Viridi looked at how Pit acted, a little more like his old self. This brought a small smile, but her usual thorny demeanor showed itself again.
"One second, you're moping, and now you're excited again? I barely even said much before."
"Of course, but you said enough. I can't allow myself to get down just yet. I'll always have you guys to pick me back up if I need it. Thanks for that, Viridi."
Viridi turned her face away at the compliment. "Well, like I said, things are boring when you're moping."
"Heh, well thanks." Pit gave a cheery smile. The two of them flew down to the Overworld airspace, just hanging below the clouds for a while. Pit took a second to point out the Valley of Hope, where Viridi was revived in the first place.
"Boy, was that rough. We almost got swallowed up by the falling dimension." When Pit said that, he noticed that Viridi suddenly went silent again. "You alright Viridi?"
"Well….something just came to me." Viridi looked straight at Pit, a very serious look on her face. "What were you told about how I maintain the dimension of the Overworld?"
"I believe that Lady Palutena and everyone else confirmed that without you, the Overworld would begin to collapse. It got so bad that places were nearly getting swallowed up everywhere."
However, Viridi didn't respond to Pit's words, and Pit was beginning to get a bit worried. What was she thinking about? A little bit later, Viridi looked over to Pit again.
"That's not right, Pit."
"Huh?"
"I may maintain and stabilize the Overworld, that much is true. However, it shouldn't be so bad that the very fabric of it is collapsing."
"What?...What are you saying?" The more things went on, the more concerned Pit was getting. A very bad feeling was forming in his stomach. Looking over, there even seemed to be worry on Viridi's face. That could not be good at all.
"What I mean is…..if you saw places getting swallowed up by the dimension…..then it had to be the work of something else."
(END)
Dang, talk about a crud ton of exposition. Still, it was a good break from all the fighting. Probably didn't expect that ending, huh? Could there be more to this than we initially thought?
The chapter title may not be totally fitting, since Pit's internal dilemma wasn't the biggest part of it. Then again, I've never been good with drawing things out over a long period, hence why Pit seems to get back on his feet rather quickly.
So, todays character bio is Hovia, the dragon from the previous chapter. No, I did not forget her:
*****Hovia*****
Age: Centuries old
Appaearance: She is light blue in color mostly. Her neck is serpentine like a sea dragons. Pretty decent for a dragon overall.
Japanese Seiyu: Akemi Okamura
English VA: Caitlin Glass
Bio: Hovia is the Ice Dragon and resides in the Arctic. She was tasked by Sheba's mother, Shiki, to protect the Astrum Guard. She's has a bit of a noble streak, being easily offended in some instances. She's pretty formal as well, but often likes to tease others.
*****End bio****
Well, not much else to say. I hope you all enjoy and review. Sentinel07, signing out!