Dive Into The Heart: Luso Clemens

Dive Into The Heart: Luso Clemens
Date of Scene:	05 March 2013
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Luso Clemens takes the first step...
Cast of Characters:	Mysterious Voice, Luso Clemens
Tinyplot:	Fragmentary Passage

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Mysterious Voice has posed:
The night has once again fallen, and Luso Clemens finds himself having strange dreams. Dreams of his past - from when he was still living in the 'modern world'. The days before he ever touched that book that he hugs in his arms right now. Around him, the children run through the playground amidst a grey and misty haze. There's the chirp of happy children, and them calling out to his name. They certainly seem perfectly okay. But... none of them call for his name.

Before him, he sees a man walking. Mr. Randell! The man looks Luso's way for a moment, then looks out to the children again and walks away. And then, suddenly a young girl 'runs' through Luso, as if she were nothing but a spectre. Or...

Perhaps it is him. Perhaps it is he who is the spectre. Nobody responds to him. They just all keep playing in that playground. There! In the corner are some of his old friends! Maybe they'll notice him!?

Luso Clemens has posed:
Blissfully off in dreamland, Luso happily walking through the space of his dream, eventually coming upon his classmates and other kids on the playground. Hey, he knew some of them! Oh man, he hadn't seen his old friends in forever! "Hey guys! Over here!" He called, raising a hand in greeting. ...But they don't even look his way. "Huh? ...Maybe they didn't hear me. Hey! Hey come on guys! I know I've been gone a while but--"

Still no form of acknowledgement from them. But before Luso can start getting miffed, he noticed another familiar figure; Mr. Randell. "Oh! Mr. Randell! You're here! I've got so much to tell yo--" And then he turned and walked away. ...Hey, what was going on here? He DID look at him, right? Right? And then some girl comes running towards him. "Whoa! Watch it there! Hey, we're gonna crash!"

But the collision never happened. She just ran right through him. As if he were a ghost. "....Dude, what is going on here?" With nothing much left to lose, Luso decided to approach his old friends. Maybe they just didn't hear him over all the chatter! "Hey guys! Over here!" He called, waving an arm as he did so.

Mysterious Voice has posed:
As Luso approaches his friends, they don't look up. They're playing a game of soccer, kicking the ball to one-another. Then, suddenly, one of them kicks the ball towards the other end of the playfield and calls out; "Last one there is a shrimp!" Followed by the lot of them running straight towards Luso. It's like a massive wave of people. And one by one, they manage to move through Luso. But this time, he hears them...

Voices.

Voices as they pass through him.

"I wish Luso was here..."

"... I miss Luso..."

"I hate soccer."

"Oh man, I hope we won't get more homework today."

"... Luso... where are you?"

His closest friends are those who miss him. And with each person that moves through him, the world turns more gray. Until suddenly, with that last person moving through him, it falls to darkness, and the ground beneath him falls away. The calls of children dies out, and instead there's the feeling of falling! Falling down, and then hitting the water! A loud /splash/ follows before he's submerged, unable to move, sinking towards the bottom of an ocean of darkness.

Luso Clemens has posed:
"Oh come on! This is just getting plain ridiculous now! How in the world can they-" Luso began to complainto absolutely no one apparently, but then they ball is kicked past him and his friends come rushing towards, and then through him. As this happened, he could hear their thoughts. The utter strangeness of it all, caused the boy to fall silent, hearing each thought.

His indignant expression fell gradually and was replaced with a rather somber one. How long had he been in Ivalice? What were his friends and family up to? ...It was something he tried not to think about. Instead just focusing on completing the grimoire to obtain the power to go home, but...

He had noticed too late however that the world was becoming more and more dreary with each persona that passed through him. It only got worse until finally, darkness fell completely. "W-Whoa! Hey! What the heck!?" Luso cried, feeling his feet giving way to the ground beneath him. He tried to flail his arms and find some sort of footing, but it was useless.

Before he knew it, he was sinking into the darkness. As if submerged in an ocean, and sinking to the bottom. All the while, he flailed about in it, thinking that he was going to suffocate or something similar. What sort of dream what this!?

Mysterious Voice has posed:
The youth is pulled down further and further. The gray above him closing off to mere darkness as well. Sinking further and further. But Luso would notice that he can breathe within this 'water of darkness'. And the further down he goes, the lighter the water seems to get, until it is more like he's floating through mere air. And then finally, his thick shoes touch down upon something. The ground? From the very tip of his foot, light suddenly spirals outwards and comes to reveal a beautiful thing.

Beneath him, a glass-in-lead comes to reveal itself, whilst the light distorts the darkness, forming white doves out of them that fly all around him, up into the skies. The glass has many a color, and together they form a series of figures. At the center stands Mickey and his two consorts - Donald and Goofy, holding up their collective weapons to the skies. Mickey's Keyblade, Goofy's Shield, and Donald's Magic Staff.

Around them, there's a half-moon lineup of figures. The princesses of heart, each shown by face alone, amidst a circle.

Then a voice comes out. Female. Hard to recognize.

"So much to do...such a long road ahead..."

Luso Clemens has posed:
Amidst his struggling, Luso took a breath...and then promptly realized that no. He was not drowning. Well thank the gods for that one! With that realization made, he took a couple deep breaths and finally, landed onto a dark surface. "Huh...where am I...?" He mumbled to himself, taking a single step forward. That step resulted in the darkness being driven away, as light spiraled outwards in the form of doves, revealing to him the platform he was standing on.

"Whoa!" He cried in surprise, shielding himself with his arms on reflex. But after a couple seconds of nothing happening, the boy lowered them, taking a careful look around before stepping forward one, then twice, then three times. He never noticed who's images were beging displayed at his feet.

All of this wondering is dashed away the moment a voice cuts through the silence. "Huh? Who's there!?" Luso called out, looking upwards and about as if he would find the source. So much to do? A long road ahead? What did they mean by that?

Mysterious Voice has posed:
There is no answer to Luso's call for who this voice is. There is simply a voice speaking to him.

"Power sleeps within you..."

The voice is hard to pinpoint. It's not really coming from one direction. But he can simply hear it. Like it is coming from within him yet all around him as well. Then, the ground rumbles! And from below come two stones which break to the surface. Without damaging the actual stained glass, three diases rise, in the directions of a perfect triangle from the center of the pillar around her. And when they finally come to rest, a light appears above each. One by one, a magical light brings entities to life which hover above those pedestals. They appear, each baring the symbol of the Trinity; A Sword, A Staff, and a Shield.

"... If you give it form...
...it will give you strength."

Luso Clemens has posed:
No answer. The voice just keeps talking. Great. At this point, he just gave up trying to get answers and just listened to the words being spoken. Power? What about power? His thoughts go unfulfilled as thre diases come rising up through the stained glass, not marring the surface at all. "Whoa...what are those supposed to be?" He murmured to himself, curiosity taking hold as he turned in place, watching as the light gave form to several different objects.

A sword. A shield. A staff.

...Was he supposed to choose one? According to the voice, it sounded that way, but... "Huh. Well..." Turning to observe all three diases once again, Luso finally stepped forward. Moving to to the sword Pedestal. It was there that he reached out and took hold of the sword that was floating above. Once the object was in his hands, he took a moment to observe it. Turning it over in his hands to study the shape and design...

Mysterious Voice has posed:
The weapon lies rather well balanced in his hands; a factor that might come as a surprise due to its rather round and almost... well... 'cute' looks.

"The power of the Warrior.
Invincible courage.
A sword of terrible destruction."

The voice speaks. "Is this the path you choose?"

Luso Clemens has posed:
Luso tested the weight of the sword in his hands for a little while longer before nodding slowly.

"The path of the warrior..."

He took a test swing of the sword. And then another before nodding once again.

"I choose this path."

Mysterious Voice has posed:
As Luso states that he will choose this path, the blade disappears from his grasp and the dias it once stood on no longer remains lit.

"You have made your choice...
You will walk the path with a warrior's courage.

But what will you give up...
In return for this blade?"

The voice waits for him to choose one of the two remaining items. The shield or the staff.

Luso Clemens has posed:
Give up something? Huh. Well, guess it was only fair. One can't just take and not give is return. With the blade disappeared from his hands, Luso rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he looked over the other remaining objects.

The shield of the staff...

Well, it was a hard choice. Both looked valuable. But he had to make a choice. Thinking long and hard, Luso eventually began to take careful steps, approaching the dias with the staff. "....."

He stared at the floating object for a while before nodding to himself and reaching to take up the item in question.

Mysterious Voice has posed:
The moment Luso takes that item of its dias, the item disappears.

"The power of the Guardian.
Kindness to aid friends.
A shield to repel all.

This is the power you forfeit."

The second that the voice finishes speaking, the diases begin to rumble and push down into the ground. And with that, the ground beneath him finally begins to break and shatter. The glass cracks in many a place, those cracks quickly traveling to Luso's very feet, until it breaks out from underneath him and he begins to fall once more! The glass disappears into the darkness while a new Vista appears beneath him during his descent.

This time, he has plenty of time to watch what isbeneath him. To truely see the stained glass figures. This time, beneath him, is a twosome of intertwined images. On one side, the symbol of his hometown. His schoolbuilding. On the other, Fluorgis, and items he's come to know and love - like his sword... potions... and the symbol of his very own Guild.

Luso Clemens has posed:
"Whoa, hey! Not this agai--gah!"

And so Luso began to fall once more, but this time, he could actually see where he was going. The large circular platform...it looked familar. He could make out a bunch of different familiar things. The school building, Fluorgis, the very distinct array of swords he's come to possess and rely on. And the symbol of Clan Gully itself.

"Just what is this anyway...?" He mumbled as he descended below, eventually coming to land on his feet without incident. Once on proper ground again, he took a few careful steps forward, looking about to see just what was going to happen next. Where was that voice anyhow?

Mysterious Voice has posed:
He lands on his feet rather nicely this time, and the blade he'd chosen earlier suddenly appears within his hands with a sparkle of magical and white light. The voice, this time clearer to him - definitely female - speaks up once more.

"Many times you will be expected to fight. You must not forget..."

Heartless appear. Three shadows, slowly approaching Luso. With this blade, he could easily wield and dispatch these three.

"You must never forget..."

Luso Clemens has posed:
That voice...it was telling him to fight? But even more than that. It was starting to become clearer. It was definitely female. He could make out that much. But there was no more time to figure it out as heartless had appeared. Three of them. Basic shadows.

He hadn't noticed the sword in his hand until he gripped it, which caused him to look down at it. "...Never forget what...?" He mumbled quietly as he raised his gaze over to the approaching shadows.

No time to wonder. With the sword held in both hands, he dives forward, rearing back with the blade before lashing out, dispatching the first two in a single strike. A second swing from overhead took out the third one. And then there were none.

"Phew...Why are /they/ here though?"

Mysterious Voice has posed:
"You must never forget..." The voice speaks again. And as those Shadows are defeated, the voice becomes clearer even more. He starts recognizing that voice. A certain cat-burglar speaking to him. "Never lose your light. Luso." The youth dispatched that last Shadow, and the ground begins to tremble beneath him once more... and then a bright light suddenly overcomes him. A moment of history that had great impact on him...

Luso Clemens has posed:
"...No way..."

Luso could recognize that voice. This had to be some sort of massive joke. But the surprise was simply too much for him to voice it. Instead, he just listened. "My light...?" And then everything went white.

Once his vision cleared, he could see memories. His own memories. Things that had happened in the past. From his days at school to first opening the Grimoire, meeting Cid and Clan Gully, Meeting Adelle...All of these memories flashed by until finally, they slowed down to a single moment.

That moment in the inn in Graszton when Cid had been injured by Ewen. It was at that moment that the responsibility for the entire clan had fallen to him. Now, he was no longer just following. Now he had to lead. Make decisions for the good of the clan. Negogiate with others in order to avoid conflict or obtain information.

All in all, he learned responsibility, and that responsibility gave him new insight on himself and the world around him.

...Why was he seeing this though?

Mysterious Voice has posed:
When the light fades, he stares down in the last moments of a fall. This time, there is that last station of Stained Glass beneath him showing himself, asleep, leaning back holding the Excalibur. Around him, beautiful colors, and in the portraits in that half-moon shape, the faces of his own clan, as well as other friends such as Ramza and Reize. People he has close connections with.

When he lands, he might notice the white door that remains standing at the edge of the station. The area is... silent though. Creepily silent. A light shines through the open door, but nothing else seems to be happening. Strange?

Luso Clemens has posed:
Well.

This was only getting weirder and weirder. The next platform depicted himself and his friends. It was...uncanny. Was someone stalking him!? But there was nothing to do but to simply press onwards. Thus, once Luso landed again, he looked over at the door. "...There's nothing else here..."

Suppose that only meant one thing.

He began to approaching the open door, strange seeming as it may be, and eventually entered into the light without hesitation. The light was always a safe haven. There was no way it could be a trap or anything like that now!

Mysterious Voice has posed:
The voice begins to speak, but Luso already is walking into the light. A shadow begins to come up behind him. "The closer you come to the light..." The shadow grows into the figure of a large Shadow... but he's already too far in. That last warning comes though, just before the light takes him; "...the greater your shadow becomes." Just before the light pulls him through, and Luso finds himself waking up.

Luso Clemens has posed:
"Huh? My shadow?" Luso mumbled, looking back as he walked. Just vaguely, he could make out the figure of a huge shadow forming on the platform. But the light enveloped him soon after and everything went white again...

- Fluorgis: Clan Gully HQ -

Luso opened his eyes slowly, blinking a couple times before sitting up in his bed. In his arms was the grimoire he always kept close by. "...That...was the weirdest dream I've ever had in a long time..."

And then he flopped back and went right on sleeping again.