Chapter 312: Sands of Time

The sands kicked up as the two crashed within the area. The sun was smiling down upon them, rays melding with the dunes. The two buildings crumbled once they made impact, wood and stone being scattered, some stabbing into their bodies, yet the two did not cared. They basked in the sun's light, the fresh, warm air caressing their faces, as they'd begin to laugh. Despite the blood they would cough up from time to time, they laughed. They were happy. Stolas would see once the dust cleared that Beaux's markings were spreading across her body, implying her own variant of her Final Gambit takes a stronger toll the longer such markings grew. Beaux, meanwhile would see Stolas' talons burnt to a crisp, smoke coming out from the bandages, his fingers most likely snapped off in such a charred fashion.

Despite this, both of them would try to get off from their spot, approaching each other, and giving a firm handshake on their efforts.

"That...was awesome..." Stolas commented, struggling to maintain his breath, as he'd try to trek through the sands for a nearby hospital to tend to his wounds. He would have his arm over Beaux's shoulder so she can be treated in the same way.

Beaux can't help but nod at his assessment, as well as smile at seeing him be kind to her, despite the two trying to kill each other. "You think we're at...." She would start, looking up and pointing her own talons to the buildings, letting the two reminisce a bit. The Square Buildings, the Saloon-esque Tavern, and the Sheriff's building. Both of them couldn't believe their eyes as to where they were taken, yet such a place was worth visiting at least once more. Salvandi. As soon as they were healed up in said hospital, potions in tow to handle any other injuries they'd have taken during their scuffle, the two would pause their fighting in order to take a stroll around the kingdom, a tour around their home. As Beaux was smiling away, walking across the places she's visited, every time she tried to turn around to Stolas, she can see his expression not of fondness, but of relief, of sorrow, of strife, of peace, yet of sadness. "You ok, man?" she asked.

"...It's been a while since I've seen this place again. Y'now...Intact and everything. It's like it never changed." He'd respond.

Despite her confusion, Beaux was quick to put two and two together. "Oh.... Oh god..." Her hands cupped at her beak, before Stolas continued.

"A Fire did it. No one knew what happened there. All that we knew were the casualties. Pops was one of them. His last moments was wanting to protect someone, before getting glassed."

"I....I'm so sorry, man."

Stolas simply gave a soft smile at her, even with his pained eyes. "Don't worry. I've grieved enough as it is. Besides, they're never truly dead, yeah?"

Despite such optimism from the Stellar Sorcerer, Beaux can't help but look disturbed by it all, looking back at the village, wandering to the saloon and seeing the empty chairs, imagining the people there having as much fun as they could, before picturing what such a disaster looked like. "Yeah....They never stay dead. They'll come back eventually..." She can't help but feel hurt, lying to herself about such. She tried to recall her own moments here, walking amongst the wood, scaling up to the roof so she has a better view, helping Stolas in getting to the top. "Mines may not have been....like THAT...but it definitely had its own issues. Actually, it had to do with my Father as well..."

"Really? Yours should've been the same as mines though! He would've clobbered anyone that tried to mess with his people!"

"Heh, you say that... But mines was unlucky. If I recall correctly, yours got away with burning down a whole kingdom, right? By himself?"

"O-oh.... Oh, he won, didn't he?"

Beaux would nod as she'd try to have another atmosphere, Mars, seep into the sand, letting the red dust mingle with the yellow, molding it into a smaller diagram of Salvandi, as well as the people involved. The red served as the enemy, ransacking the kingdom, the yellow being forced to run away. "He never did a second attempt of fighting the king and his men. Why would he? No one should have the power to pull off such a feat. That type of magic should only be restricted to the REALLY strong stuff. Without God's Skin on top of that, and its a recipe set up for failure. The logical answer at that point was to fall back and try to build stuff up again. That was when they invaded and took advantage of our weakened state." As she explained, the figures of yellow would be seen visibly distraught, some being murdered, others kidnapped and lunged into the dungeons, and only a few being able to escape, the few including Beaux. Stolas raised an eyebrow at her words, wondering how come she wasn't able to fight at such a time, but when he saw the figure desperately trying to cast something, only for nothing to come out, it became all the more clear.

She never mastered her style properly yet at the time of the invasion.

"The only things that can come out of me at the time was only Earth and Saturn. I tried so hard to achieve a miracle, but such delusions were....impossible, really." The figures kept such a story going, the sand by Mars quickly shifting into a new kingdom, one of trees and rich soil, one which held a familiar face for Stolas. Oaking, with Griffos watching over the land. The Griffos figure saw the distraught people and immediately took them into his land, letting them rest, letting them have feasts upon feasts, treating them just as royally as he is, all for them to make sure they have their homes made and their shops built, all to ensure their life is stable. The Red figures were quick on coming back, this time aiming for a figure beside Beaux's.

He can infer that it was her Father.

"Wait, I thought you said you guys were siblings by blood. How come it looked like you never met each other?" Stolas would ask.

"Funnily enough, we actually never knew we were related. When he took me in, Griffos thought I was just another commoner, like my other folks. He still treated us well, but he never took the time to notice where I came from. Guess you can say I was twice removed on the tree, hehe." Beaux would joke, gesturing towards a banner regarding the Heraldry of Griffos' family: A Lion, with a Crow holding a branch. Such a branch was alight, a metaphor for the sun. As Stolas shifted his focus back towards the Red figures, he could see the two yellow ones, Griffos and Beaux, try to fend them off. Such an experience in that fight, mingled with her desire to learn more, would unlock not only more of her style, but the Final Gambit with it.

He can tell from the figure's eyes it has seen something beyond her comprehension.