Down to Earth (Open)

There was a quiet calm that lay in the wake of this morning. Much like all beginnings, it was filled with the whisper of rekindled hopes and dreams, the scent of hope, and the hinted flavor of greater things to come. Those that basked in the light of the rising sun could feel such a sensation kiss them gently as they passed through it. For every day that graced Daybreak Town, was one that was given out of the good graces of fate. There was once a time where the five great Unions would gather here in this world to convene as one force against the Darkness...

But that time had long since passed. There were no more memories of such a place. None could remember the time before the clash that nearly broke all worlds into ruin. Any lingering fragments of the past had long since been scattered to the winds of oblivion. The Unions were all but discarded memories. None of the common folk ever spoke of them, there were no hints of them ever even existing in this world...For they had all but destroyed one another in the ultimate battle for the light.

Foolish, perhaps in retrospect, to pit against one another to collect the light, when so many greater things plagued the worlds. It was selfish, to find one greater than the other, when each Union had been tasked with keeping the people safe from the shadowy abyss. By whom or what, nobody could say, but this was what the legends had told once. Now the stories were faded with time. They were all but fables to many.

The young man who heralded from Daybreak Town was not concerned with such trifle matters. His thoughts instead focused more on the compelling issues swirling around in his crowded mind. He was little more than twenty now, but his life had become a disambiguation of what it had been not so long ago. The wind tussled at his dark locks, tossing them into his vision...but he was too lost in his thought to give way to the sensation of his hair hitting at his dark eyes. Dust swept past as he continued to dwell upon the weapon now laying in his lap.
Such a weapon was used only by what many considered to be the pure of heart. The strong, the wise, the brave, the true, the protectors and the great noble ones of the worlds had such a tool of combat...to think that he, an urchin of misfortune, had been granted one, was unthinkable to him. Many a night had crossed the world where he dreamed of being so glorious a hero, with the power and potential to fight off the great evils of the lands...Never had he thought in a thousand years that he would be able to bring forth the same great strength as those in fables and stories.

He dusted off the deep blue dust from his coat, and breathed in the scent of the returning morning. Daybreak Town was well known for the beauty it held when the day first opened. He had lived here all of his life, and knew the routine too well. Still, deep in his heart, he remained troubled. What did the appearance of this...this weapon, mean for him? Was he one of the chosen to be its master simply because it had appeared? Maybe it was some sort of mistake.

Terra sighed, furrowing his brow at the thought. He could scarcely wrap his mind around the idea that he of all people possessed... He could hardly get himself to think the word, let alone say it aloud. The very inkling that something like this was happening to him was beyond unreal. He'd tried to wake himself up from the daze-like state he thought he was in, but to no avail. No, what he'd experienced, what he'd seen, what he'd felt--it all had truly happened. This was no dream.

It had been mere chance. Rushing to the aid of an old man, shielding him with his own body, and risking his very life had all been things he'd simply taught himself to do. All his life he'd been considered a bother to the town he called home. He was a thief. He was a bully. For sport, he'd beat down his peers and anybody who dared to mess with him. He went out of his way to purposely intimidate those who were fearful of him. Parents and teachers loathed him, while other children and students were terrified of coming across him. It wasn't because he was a troublemaker...Terra simply relished the feel of a good fight.  He never hurt those who couldn't fend for themselves. He had his own code of honor. Something told him to continue pushing himself to become stronger...
Perhaps this was the reason why?

Terra knew he had to find some answers, but there was no going back to Daybreak Town now that people had seen him summon... He smiled lightly to himself. The very weight of the idea seemed to keep him from finishing the sentence. These things were supposed to have been scattered. The old Unions were gone. There were, that anybody knew of, no more masters, foretellers, guides, or teachers of such matters. Legend had come to life in his hands. There was no situation where he could return back to his ordinary life. The moment he was spotted, he knew, he'd be swarmed with the people who had once thought him little more than a rat on the streets.
That sort of life was not one he longed to dive into headfirst.

"If I can't find what I'm looking for here..." the young man muttered to himself, "I might be able to somewhere else."
Ah, but there was the question. Where else could he go? He knew so little of the outside, and this world...this place...it was just so...tiny. Was this really all that was beyond the town's limits? Dust? Rock? Normally such things would be somewhat comforting to him, but now they only seemed to annoy Terra more.
"This world is just too small..." He grumbled, kicking at the ground. "There won't be anything of use to me out here, and I can't go back home...so where else could I go looking? Somebody else has to know more about..."

Surely there was another bearer of this burden here in Daybreak Town. He just had to find them. After all, the legends said there were once many warriors who vied for the light of Kingdom Hearts...perhaps one of them still lived nearby. There had to be more than just him to carry on the legacy of...
"The Keyblade."

Yes, there was no doubt in his mind now. Now that he'd been able to clear the rubble from his thoughts, it was clear to him. This was the legendary Keyblade. It had come to him, in a time of crisis...but how, and why, he couldn't say. Again, the looming features of questions came into view. How was he to understand the nature of the Keyblade, or how it worked, if there were no more masters to teach him? He hadn't asked for a life of such complexity, and cursed himself for ever wishing his life had something more to it than the daily routine.
How strange that fate should give the extraordinary to those who ask for more in life...Be careful what you wish for, indeed.

A sound suddenly caught his attention, shattering his thoughts for the moment. There was a sensation in the air, clinging to it, that told him he was no longer alone. But now, more questions crept into the young man's head. Who would be out here so early in the morning? Was someone from the town looking for him, even way out here? Terra had hardly the time to understand what had happened to him, or how, and now someone was coming to interrupt. It was irksome, to say the least.

Before he could so much as turn around to see if it was simply his imagination, lo and behold, a figure appeared before him. He was a thin, gangly lad. The cloak he wore made his features seem slightly more bulky, but not too terribly much. If not for looking further at this individual, Terra might have mistaken him as a skeleton. Besides the build of the other approaching him, what took the Daybreak Town denizen aback was the bizarre hue of his skin.
This new warrior of the Keyblade had seen many a different color before. The town itself had a collection of various people, ranging from pale white, to mocha, to caramel, to chocolate, and some to a creamy buttermilk tone...but never before had Terra ever seen a boy with so dark blue a skin color. If that alone didn't draw attention to him, the shade of his eyes certainly did--gold, glittering like the sun. He didn't know why...but something about them made his spine shudder.

He didn't appear to look too much older than most of the youth in Daybreak Town, but Terra was quite sure he'd never seen anybody so remarkably unique in appearance before. He knew nearly every person who lived in the limits of the villa, and this boy certainly wasn't one of their number.
What caught his attention was the words that he spoke. He knew what the Keyblade was. Terra's interests were suddenly piqued.

"You...know about this? Most people would tell you it's just a bedtime story. Even I believed it wasn't real, until yesterday..."
He held the Ends of the Earth aloft in his hand, studying it. He'd done nothing but stare at its remarkable design for hours now, but even now it captivated him. It was stunning how powerful it felt in his hands...it was radiating a warm, brilliant strength that he couldn't help but be drawn to. And yet...he still felt vulnerable...in fact, he felt more vulnerable than he'd ever been before. He was lost. He wasn't sure what to do, now that he knew he had such a potency. Now Terra had asked for some sort of aid, and here was a boy who knew what this was. Surely it couldn't be a coincidence.

Curiousness in his expression, he eyed the boy once again.
"I don't kill anybody, especially kids. That's not really my thing. And what do you mean by 'people like you'? What kind of person...are you, exactly? I've never seen anybody quite like you around these parts, no offense." He nitched the Keyblade tidily into the earth, where it remained upright.
"You're not from around here, either. I know every person living in Daybreak Town. I've lived there my whole life. I've never seen you before...so where exactly did you come from?"

Terra wasn't stupid by any means. Strangers didn't just appear out of nowhere. Was there another town beyond here, or was it something much, much larger in scale? The idea that part of the Keyblade legend being true was mind-boggling, but the entire thing...Was there really so much more to the stories than mere fiction and morals? Could something that have been passed down as nothing but mythical nonsense through so many years really be so true?
He had the Keyblade in his hand...it was real...perhaps there was more that he'd never believed in just beyond the horizon as well.

Patiently, Terra listened to the boy's speech, engrossed in every word. He was right to think this boy was out of the ordinary, but the way he described himself put the young man at edge. There was a reason why those golden eyes had looked so familiar--they were near to identical in color to the ones the shadowy creatures had. Manifestations of Darkness...manifestations that had threatened the people who lived in his world, tried to hurt them! As tough as Terra was, as much of a reputation he had for getting into fights, even he had to spit on the idea of attacking the innocents.
That wasn't going to happen, not while he was around. They called themselves the Heartless...it seemed that name was fitting for a species that would do something so low.

With a tone of disgust, the fledgling Keyblade bearer scowled at him.
"Your kind...you Heartless, what kind of monsters go attacking civilians who're unarmed like that? Don't you guys have a sense of decency? Going around, attacking old men the way you did yesterday...that's just sad. Are you all afraid of a real fight or something?"

Terra's heart was stony towards anything the other had to say to him now. As far as he was concerned, he couldn't care less if more of those creatures--those Heartless--were going to come after him. He was strong enough to take them out before...and he had plenty of strength in him to keep fighting every last one of them until they were gone. The man returned the brazen smile with a smirk of his own, shaking his head. If this kid was as strong as the Heartless he'd faced earlier, then it would be a piece of cake to take him on.
"If you're meant to destroy me, talking me to death isn't the best option. I might suggest you try and hit me, first."

But no. He didn't seem to be much in a mood for conflict; quite the opposite, he was offering to help him. What could a creature that went around attacking people possibly know about something like the Keyblade? He'd mentioned the Keyblade could destroy his kind. That was a start, but Terra already knew that from the stories--the Keyblade vanquished the darkness.
This boy might be claiming that all of his kind wasn't so bad, but the Daybreak Town resident wasn't much for believing manifestations of darkness for their word. But he mentioned...a Master. That word caught his attention. A Master? A Master of what? Was there a Keyblade Master who controlled these Heartless somehow? If so, why would someone with a weapon of light do something like that? It didn't make much sense, but what else could it mean? Now he was eager to know more, and at the same time, hesitant. What kind of Keyblade Master controlled the darkness in such a way? It couldn't be anything good, but could it hurt to ask?

Ah, so this Jett came from another world. Terra let that information sink in slightly. So the legends of other worlds were also true...meaning much of the stories he'd heard as a kid were really real. It was a lot to take in, given what he'd already understood, but in a way he wasn't surprised. In fact, he was hoping there would be some other place he could search for a Keyblade Master, to teach him what he needed to know. Why did the Keyblade pick him? What was he supposed to do with it?

"I'm Terra, and--"
The sensation that he was not alone was deeply amplified, and as he whirled around, he could see why. There in every shadow, every crevice, beneath every rock around them, were those same glowing eyes. Empty. Gold. Emotionless. The abyssal quality of their features made his skin crawl. Something about those yellow eyes...made him incredibly uncomfortable.
He stilled his racing heart, remembering that his strength and will were enough to keep him safe, even from the likes of these Heartless. Even though he was outnumbered, he had the Keyblade...he had his heart...and that was all that mattered. He would be okay.

"I'm Terra," he tried a second time, masking his retreating nervousness with a glance back at Jett. "And your friends don't scare me. If you're going to try spooking me, it's going to take a lot more than that. Either way, I don't much appreciate you attacking my home. Your buddies need to take a hike someplace else."
He folded his arms, staring at the Heartless youth intently.
"Now, I'm going to ask you some questions. I'd like you to answer them. First thing's first: what did you mean, by training? You mentioned a Master...do you mean someone who can teach me more about the Keyblade?"

Anything that was so related to the Darkness, to these Heartless, Terra was quite sure couldn't be trusted. But if Jett had answers to the questions he had, where else was he supposed to turn? He couldn't go back home, not after this...Perhaps there was an answer, somewhere else, somewhere in another world. The big question was...how was he supposed to get there?

As the young heartless listened intently he kept a smile on his face, despite the tones of disgust in Terra's voice, he smiled. It would always be something that is hard to understand to somebodies as to why they'd attack the innocents, but the answer to that most of the time was they couldn't help it. All they did was collect hearts, there was no filter as to whose it would be, they just had to have them, re-opening Kingdom Hearts was one of the tasks Ophelia had told the young heartless about, but even then he had little idea of what to say about that, but he'd explain as much as he could, leaving the detailed bits to his master if they ever got to her.

Terra was beginning to show a bit of anger, sass and distrust. The heartless was starting to think that perhaps bringing this guy to Ophelia was a bad idea... He yearned for answers but what would he do with them once he had them? Ophelia wasn't a keyblade master either.. She just had a great deal of experience, whether it be about the keyblade or other things in this universe she tended to have the answers, bringing this warrior to her however? Jett would have to speak to him more, test him a little.. See if he truly is worth her time.

"The heartless usually can't help who they attack.. They'll take the hearts of anyone and everyone if they can, it's all they can do." He stopped there for a moment, taking in the man's introduction. He stopped short the first time to see Jett's family hiding in the corners, they weren't going to attack but maybe the threatening tactic wasn't the best thing for a keyblade warrior. Terra wasn't very appreciative of it after all, however he still wanted answers and he was quite stern about that. "Training? Well as far as I can tell, if you go into other worlds you're probably going to get defeated rather easily, you have the keyblade and it's power but you'll need a little more to survive. As for my master... Well she could teach you about the keyblade and more... But I'm not sure if she'd be interested in teaching someone like you."

He paused, in his hands appeared two small balls of fire. "I'm going to have to test you out before I take you to her or any other world for that matter.!" With that the young heartless lifted off the ground again, moving backwards as he threw one fireball at Terra, then another. After this two more formed in his hands.

---

((Sorry bout the late average reply, been really busy the past few days.))

This kid was starting to get on his nerves. Although Terra didn't like hurting children (or girls, or the elderly,) this one was definitely asking for it. The taunting nature, the snarky attitude, and the fact he was barely being direct with the questions he asked, was beginning to wear down the fledgling Keyblade Warrior's patience. Needless to say, Terra was not appreciative of smart-alecks.

According to Jett, these Heartless couldn't help who it was they attacked. All they needed were hearts. Hearts? What could anybody possibly use something as silly as that for? As uneducated as Terra was (he'd never really paid much attention in what little class he'd ever attended,) he didn't really think that hearts could be all that useful.
Still, there had to be something deeper than just collecting hearts. What were they being used for? How did someone use something like that? Was there some sort of power in people's hearts he didn't quite get?

And then, Jett went out of his way to throw a jab at Terra's pride. The young man snorted audibly, narrowing his eyes.
"Defeated easily? Do you even know who you're talking to? People around here are afraid of just my shadow! I haven't lost a fight yet...and I'm definitely not losing one to someone like you."
Him? Lose? The words didn't fit together. This kid--or rather this Heartless--was starting to grate on Terra's nerves. He was talking about his master as though they were some kind of super-human, practically kissing the ground they walked on, acting like they were such a hot shot. It might not have been much, or very complex, but what the young Keyblader did know from his life was that many people weren't as they appeared to be.

Still...anybody who could control the Heartless had to be strong, right? Strong, and not to mention, they supposedly knew about the Keyblade. That was one more person than Terra knew about, that was for sure. If he could get Jett to take him to this master of his, maybe he could get some answers from them. He might even be able to talk with them, and get the Heartless to leave Daybreak Town. Terra didn't really care about the other worlds; as long as the people he knew were safe, that was good enough for him.
So maybe going to this master wasn't such a bad idea...

Terra's thoughts were immediately cut off by the white-hot sensation of a fireball hitting him square in the chest. His mind went from sharp agony, to instant focus--instant fury. The Ends of the Earth vanished from its spot in the ground to the hand of the owner, appearing in a bright flash of cubes and light. Ignoring the burning sensation of his shirt as it exposed his flesh, the newbie Keyblade Warrior focused his sights on the second ball of flames. It wasn't enough to cripple him, but the magic still hurt, and Terra was not about to let his guard down a second time. Taking in a deep, calming breath, he willed his muscles to move and cleaved through the remaining sphere of fire with a grunt.
It wasn't an easy task, either; it may have been fire, but the magical energy that held it together was still dense. Terra wasn't even sure that was going to work...but he figured if conjuring up fire was magic, the best way to counter it was with a magic weapon.

Sweat forming from the heat on his body, Terra glanced down at his only shirt, and scowled deeply. There was a nice, tennis ball sized hole in it now, and it was smoldering. With a free hand, he batted out the cinders, and glared hard at Jett. Furious rage was beginning to build up in him now--the gall of this monster to come running around here, mocking him and poking fun at how little he knew, attacking people with his disgusting friends, and then demanding he show his strength!
He wanted to know how strong he was? He was going to find out the hard way.

With a shout that surprised even him, Terra raced forward with a bounding leap, throwing all of his power and weight into a single, precision cut. This wasn't particularly uncommon for him either--usually the young man ended his fights as quickly as he was able, meaning it was one punch to end it. They didn't tend to last too much longer than that...but then again...Terra had never faced an opponent that was magically inclined...or a humanoid Heartless, for that matter. Blind strength was not going to be enough to outdo this opponent.

He just hadn't realized it yet.

---

Actions taken:
Cleaved through one (1) fireball with Keyblade: Ends of the Earth.
1 strong strike across the torso region. (Medium base damage)
(Note: Base damage does not calculate the following: Tier difference, Status Point Allotments, Drive Bonuses/Defects, elemental weakness/strength.)

Damage taken:
1 fireball (assumed to be medium base damage @ minimum, with tier difference calculated additionally)
Terra takes fire damage.
END = 1
8/10 HP assumed remaining.

If there was anything Terra hated, it was cheek, and this Heartless had it in spades. Terra had beaten down plenty of other punks who'd disrespected him before; they were just people, people like him, people who were weak in some way or another. They were only people, after all. What kind of fight could they have possibly offered someone like him? He had always been stronger than them. He had always been faster than them. He had always been smarter than them. He was simply better. He had proved that time and time again. The Keyblade in his hands was proof enough that he was destined for so much more than they. Compared to him, they had hardly seemed worth fighting. This, however, was entirely different. This was a whole new spectrum of combat he'd only dreamed about.

Terra had always felt the nagging sensation of something tedious, looming over him. He was bored. The people here bored him. The school and lectures they'd tried to force him to attend, bored him. The life he led, bored him. Even the fights he managed to get into, the punks he'd beaten down...none of them ever seemed to last long enough to satisfy a seething hunger that had lain dormant in this young man for so long.
He wanted to become stronger.
He wanted a challenge.

Nothing in this world had offered anything of the sort until now, and every fiber of Terra's being was ravenous for it. He practically craved for this psudeo-child to make another move. Something deep within his soul told him that he had finally come across someone who was at his equal.
Possibly greater than his equal...

Two weapons now appeared, out of the thickening dark, into the creature's hands. The newer warrior scoffed--he ought to have known if he could do something like that, his enemies could as well. But they clashed with his own tool of destruction now, making it rather impossible to strike a blow. He could sense it just in the way their weapons strained against one another; he was stronger than he looked. He was much stronger, possibly even holding back. The kid was grinning at him. He was toying with him. He was barely trying. This was just a game to him. Terra was not a mind-reader by any sense of the word, but he had been in enough fights to know when he was being led on. He'd done it too many times to too many of his own opponents to miss that.

The very idea made Terra sick with rage. Did this punk kid think he was so much better than he was, going easy on him like he was some sort of joke? He'd been led to believe the Heartless were supposed to fear the ultimate weapon of light, and yet this one snickered at it as though he were fighting with a Q-Tip! It was difficult to keep the fury from showing on his face. There wasn't a soul he'd yet to face who'd blatantly insulted him and ever gotten away with it, and today was not going to be a first...he was going to make sure of that.
Though rather prone to emotion than thought, Terra wasn't stupid. If there was anything he was intelligent with, it was fighting. He knew better than to show his weaknesses blatantly, and was more than aware that he'd be able to use what little he knew about Jett to his own advantage. His cocky attitude was a perfect weapon to flip back at him...however, Terra was aware he couldn't make it obvious at what he was trying to accomplish.

Jett didn't fight like the other Heartless. They had tried hitting at him mindlessly, swarming at him, planning nothing out, falling for easy traps and tricks. Though he wasn't sure, Terra had a feeling this one wasn't going to be so easily batted down. This one could talk, and he could only assume that meant he could think as well. A dangerous opponent was one that could calculate better than you.

With the force of wildfire behind him, Terra's suspicions of Jett holding back were confirmed, which only made him more infuriated.  There was no time for him to be too blinded by his sudden anger. The sudden, intense heat of the wildfire made itself present to his senses, and the young man's instinct alerted him to retreat.
A flurry of wind, a blast of heat, such things made up the powerful wildfire, and propelled it toward Terra's former position. Though they had clashed but a moment, he could tell Jett was stronger than him, and judging on the sheer speed of the attacks he threw, the Heartless was faster than he was as well. Terra had no magic of his own, not yet, but he was inclined to believe that even if he had some form of it at his disposal, it would have faltered against this enemy as well. The bitter taste of weakness was not one that Terra so delicately swallowed.

He rolled out of the path of the blazing wind. It was clumsy and awkward, but he broke off and rolled to his left as quickly as he was able. There was, however, no moment to savor his uncooked goose. There was a sword in his shoulder.
Terra absolutely refused to give any sense of accomplishment to this kid for catching him off beat. He didn't dare to make a sound. His mind was too occupied with making his next move to dwell on the pain or the stinging sensation of salty sweat in his wounds from the heat. Jett was faster than he was. He was stronger than he was. Terra was willing to bet he was more agile as well. He was outclassed.
He didn't like it.

"If all you're going to give me is a paper-cut, I can only imagine your so-called master isn't such a hot shot either," the young man grumbled, keeping his tone bleached from the potent sharpness of his recent injury. "Is that really all you've got for me, fireworks and scratch marks? I've seen punks with a lighter and a dull spoon do more damage than that."

Perhaps Terra knew nothing of Jett, but he was aware of one thing; he had an ego as well. If there was nothing else the denizen of Daybreak Town knew, it was how easy it was for an ego to become an Achilles' Heel. He knew Jett was trying to press buttons, trying to focus out his rage. He wasn't entirely positive to the fact, but Terra seriously doubted this Heartless was going to let him leave if he fell in combat.
There was no becoming a mighty Keyblade Warrior if you became some punk's snack.

He was back on his feet now, Ends of the Earth in hand, shoulder dipped in involuntary crimson, and patiently waiting for a response. If he couldn't over power him, he couldn't outrun him, and he couldn't out-damage him, Terra only knew he'd just have to out-smart him.

---

Actions:
Terra has rolled to the left, avoiding the wildfire.
Terra has taken damage to his right shoulder. (7/10 assumed HP remaining.)
Terra is suffering from minor bleeding.
Terra has skipped his turn, and decided to wait for the opponent to move first.

The sight of blood dripping as Jett's sword hit Terra's shoulder was the beginning of a ruthless fight, the heartless more bloodthirsty as each drop of blood poured out. His wicked grin grew impossibly wider and his eyes squinted as if to show how keen he was. Terra had brought himself to his feet, giving back the attitude that Jett gave to everyone... However he spoke little of Ophelia, not something that Jett took kindly to. The heartless was always expressive in everything that he talked about despite being the cheeky bugger he was.

"If she were here... She'd squash you like the little ant you are Terra!" He shouted, his twisted and annoying voice fuming with rage. "There's a whole lot more than just little fireworks and scratches, I'd only take it easy on a weakling like you!"

With that the heartless took a pace back.. in the air. He viciously stared at Terra, the swords in his hands disappearing into the darkness once again. With a clap and rub of his hands together he spoke again. "Let me show you some real fireworks!" With that an orb of lunar energy formed around Terra, its effects to protect him from melee attacks but also immobilizing him from moving. With that in place he shot his hands forward a devastating blast of wildfire went straight at the unable to move Terra, the large explosion that came with it would explode as soon as the blast came in contact with him. It was an attack that was vicious, something that Jett knew he shouldn't be using on a weak person he was trying to persuade but the keyblader had gotten to him and to Jett, no one gets the better of him. Following not too far behind the blast was the heartless, flying forward as his swords reappeared in his hands again, as soon as the shield he put on Terra faded he'd slash down with a flurry of attacks with immense speed and strength.

---

Abilities Used:

...On second thought, perhaps provoking him hadn't been the best course of action. Still, nobody could consider Terra much of a strategist. He had no idea what to expect out of Jett save the fire, but there wasn't much else that he could see preemptively. The movements and attacks he threw were very quick, almost impossible to keep track of before they were delivered. There was no real way to read his opponent.
And that put Terra at a grave disadvantage on top of all the things already against him in this fight.

The last thing he was expecting was a binding attack. The energy strapped around him, pinning him perfectly in place. At first, Terra struggled against the power, his body straining to find a way out, but there was no means of moving anything.
It was clear Jett was infuriated by the conversational spark he'd thrown out there, but now that he'd seen the effect, the young Keyblader was reconsidering his thought pattern. If nothing else, it had only made the problem worse.

The wildfire hit him dead on. How could he have even managed to dodge something when he was frozen in the air? The heat scorched his skin, burning at his flesh, battering down upon him with the fiery vengeance of its master. For all the pain he had ever gone through in his rough-and-tumble life thus far, none of it could compare to the coursing agony of this magical assault on his form. The shock shattered his hardened exterior but for a brief moment, as the outcry of injury forced its way out of his throat in the form of a tortured shout.

When the flames had passed, the energy binding him had ceased to exist, allowing him to move once again. Terra could feel the wind, though it had been gentle before, stinging at his tender skin. The parts where the vicious tongues of heat had licked by were beginning to blister up.
Even he knew this kind of pace couldn't be kept up much longer unless he struck with equal brutality. The question was, how did he make an opening to do so?

There was little time to dwell on it; Jett was already lunging at him for another blow. The wildfire had been his means to get closer, Terra noticed, inwardly reflecting in the brilliance of it. It had certainly done the trick.
But Terra was not stupid either.

In a split-second's worth of thought, the green warrior put his weapon up defensively, trying to block the incoming volley of strikes that came directly towards him. He was more than aware, of course, that it would only take away the first couple of blows...but it would be enough time for his other hand, balled up into a potent fist, to deal a powerful left hook to the creature's jaw. That, possibly, would buy him a moment's respite to get back onto the offensive.

---

Actions taken:
Terra has sustained damage from Wildfire attack.
HP is now critical! (4/10)
Terra has sustained 2nd degree burns. -Stamina

Actions performed:
Terra has moved defensively, using Ends of the Earth in an attempt to intercept some of the incoming attacks.
Terra has swung his left fist towards Jett's jaw.
Calculating Character's T1 STR levels, this will deal moderate damage.

If the heartless were to carry on the way he was going, he'd probably burn Terra up into a crisp. Despite his outrage over the keyblader dissing his leader, he would eventually have to restrain himself, he knew this but it was a matter of when. As the heartless boy would only assume, his lock spell in conjunction with a blast of wildfire had done a great deal of damage to Terra and even then, the kid wasn't going to stop. His flurry of attacks was enough to a little damage but Terra wasn't as weak as Jett thought.

In his blind rage the heartless only felt the contact of Terra's punch until it was laid right into his jaw. The heartless was taken back, his attacks stopped in the moment he felt his jaw click out of place. Dismissing one of his swords the heartless pushed his jaw back, turning to Terra again to see his reaction or, his next attack. Either way it was clear the heartless had been caught by surprise, he certainly wasn't happy about it but he was impressed. His wicked grin formed once again as he brought his hand back around, a fireball in it as it was sent straight for Terra's chest. An annoying burn if it hit the same place again, but it'd buy time. Time enough for Jett to talk.

"Well, you caught me by surprise!" He paused as his other sword was dismissed and a portal opened up behind Terra. "Maybe you are worth a shot, we'll see how you do in a place away from home then huh punk?"

Jett's tone was full of attitude as per usual. If Terra understood through his harsh tones, he'd see that Jett was about to take him to another world, perhaps not in the way he'd like, but he'd get there. With that said the heartless flew back a few paces before going at full speed towards Terra, whether the keyblader would attack him or not, he'd push him into the portal. With the Realm of Darkness as the space traveled through, Jett would have disappeared and Terra would find himself in another world.

To Terra, there was little that was more satisfying than feeling your opponent's body give way to his sheer force. The dislocation of Jett's jaw wasn't too much different in the sensation, as he sensed his natural flow of hormones shoot up in glee. That definitely made up for the stinging agony of the burns on his skin and the throbbing of the wound in his shoulder, at least for the moment.

What he wasn't accounting for was an immediate counter-attack. He was sure that a shot like that would have at least stunned him longer than a few seconds. He almost winced at the cracking sound of the Heartless placing his jaw back into place, looking more as though it were some kind of joke rather than a serious injury. Was he really so strong in comparison to him?
While his mind was occupied, Terra caught the jerking movement of Jett's arm going for another fireball to the chest. The only thing he could do was raise his injured arm up for a block. He wasn't about to get caught in the same place with the same attack twice.

The force of the attack was enough to send him staggering backwards from the closeness, and as he recovered from the surprise, the young Keyblader saw his opponent racing toward him at alarming speed. The sheer speed he was clocking in was enough to cause Terra to question how he was doing it....he'd never seen anything or anybody move so quickly. Was he really that strong? He'd been taking it easy this entire time...
In fact, he was so occupied with the stunned revelation, he didn't see or hear the portal opening up behind him.

Jett slammed his hands into the already damaged flesh of his chest, and he winced with the sting of the charred flesh. Then, suddenly, the morning sunlight of Daybreak Town began to shift into a pit of terrible, black nightmares. Shades of blues and violets passed by his gaze, as Jett faded from sight. Terra flailed in a panic, with no avail. He was still falling backwards through the inky shadows, unable to control where he was moving. It felt as though he were suffocating, and yet at the same time he could breathe just as normally as he had only moments before. He tried to shout, but all that came were the choked noises of his own terror, swallowing in the tasteless shade. Struggling through the murky stuff was as easy as straining through quicksand, muddy, and thick, and watery in nature, weighty, and just as prone to killing its victims. He tried to summon his Keyblade, but the weapon could not heed his call.
After what felt like hours, Terra resigned to the dark around him.

"If this is how it ends," he thought, "maybe some good will come out of it..."
The invisible hands of destiny pulled him down, down to a place he couldn't fathom...Perhaps to someplace, somewhere, to someone....who could answer his question, and change his fate.

---

END.