Taken from My Hands

In a universe, where both Magic and Technology controlled the world, many events and moments were carrying out, each with their own story. On the planet placed on the outer-skirts of the Magia Solar System, was a City planted at the base of a large mountain, covering over hundreds of miles. The large city was said it's the Citadel of the Universe, as it was home to a majority of the planet's population, and has the most progression in both technology and military.

The city itself was its own powerhouse and has its own government within it. While Magic existed on its own, the city rarely seemed to have use it, other than using Mana as power. The city seemed to have many secrets that no one could ask without suffering some sort of consequence, so most didn't ask nor care.

During a bright and sunny day, the streets of the city had a huge crowd of people from all over the universe, for the celebration of the city's 1011th year since its founding.

Within the crowd, walking through the long corridor of market stalls, walked a group of individuals that came from different backgrounds, different species, different nations, and different ages, but all experienced the same in both battle and memories.

Towards the front of the group was a man named Blaidd Frostwalker, he looked around, smiling and laughing with two girls walking beside him, as if he was touring them around. On his left was a girl named Daedaze Amethyst, with on his right was Ceri Siru.

Slightly behind them were some jokesters, making jokes to each other and filling the air with their laughs, one of the jokesters stops and points, "You Val, that stall has Ramen!"

The duo quickly rushes to the stall as another reaches out their hand, "Kaide! Val! Stay with the rest of the group!" a voice yells, with surrounding chatter of the crowd diluting it.

"Don't worry bout them, they'll find themselves back at the hotel sooner or later, Abstra" a man says, resting their hand on their shoulder.

"BUT... Fine." Abstra says, pouting and storming off with the others.

The man lowers his shoulders and sighs, before looking back and motioning at the others behind to catch up, yelling "WE'RE GONNA LEAVE Y'ALL IF Y'ALL AREN'T GONNA CATCH UP!!"

One of the guys in the back looks up from the Market's Map he's holding and slaps the 2 guys' shoulders beside him, "he's leaving us, we got to hurry up". "Ow dawg, I heard him too" says one.

The three turn around to notify their fourth but don't see him in sight. Each of them stare in the and move their eyes and head in unison, looking around. "Uh... maybe he already went ahead..?" One of them mentions.

The other facepalms, "Yeah, sure, like he didn't get last 3 other times in the last hour.."

The other two let out a big breath, and start formulating a plan to locate the other, each pointing in the direction on the map they'll search.

In the middle of the frantic talking, a man comes up and taps on the shoulder as all of them look behind at him, "Suhp... I goht someh Meahtbahhs" The man says, having his face stuffed with meatballs.

All of their eyes twitch with both confusion and anger. One of them walks away then quickly walks back in frustration, "DAWG, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN COPIA!?"

"I goht someh-" gulps "- meatballs on a stick from a stall in the A-Block area"

One of them looks at the Market Map "A-Block... A-Block...-" he mumbles, tracing his finger around on the paper, before stopping "A-BLOCK!? We've walked well over a mile from there?!?"

"Bro... You guys wouldn't wait up so I just walked around by myself, I've been gone for over a hour,"

"JIN, SIN, NEPHERES, COPIA, COME CATCH UP!" a voice yells in the distance.

Nepheres puts his hands on Copia's shoulder and makes eye contact with him, "Just this once, you're off the hook, but oh- I oughta", Nepheres hands grip harder onto Copia's shoulders before letting go.

The squad catches up as the others wait for them at a street intersection. "Oh look who decided to join us-" Abstra says, in a bratty and annoyed voice, before turning and waving at two people walking towards them, "Looks like you aren't the only ones that got their heads out their bums".

"We got Ramen!" The two say in unison as they walk to meet up with the rest of the group.

They turn and walk down a different street for a couple minutes before coming across a small collection of shops, "This is where I worked for 20 years," Blaidd says, pointing to an old run down Ramen shop, with dim lights, ragged leather seats, and an old man checking his ingredients, waiting for customers.

Everyone comes to a halt, with Val and Kaide slurping down on their noodles before looking up,

"W-Wait... you worked at a Ramen restaurant?!" Kaide asks, slowly turning his head to face Blaidd.

"Yeah, it was pretty exhausting and the pay wasn't the best... but it was good memories."

Kaide loosens his grip on his ramen, dropping it to the ground as his face stays still in utter shock.

"You-"

"B-Blake! Is that you!"

Everyone in unison looks and Blaidd, "Blake?!"

Blaidd tenses up and puts his hand on his neck, "I forgot they couldn't pronounce my name so I put my name down as Blake..."

Abstra sighs as the others let out a small chuckle while the Shop owner runs out the side, running over to the group. "Blake! It's been 10 years but you look the exact same-" The man says, shaking Blaidd's hand profusely.

"Everyone, this is Mr. Chikara" The man looks around then bows, showing his sincerity.

"Are you hungry? I can make you food, on the house-" the man asks.

~~~ Some Time Later ~~~

"THAT RAMEN STALLS HAS NOTHING ON THIS!" Kaide says, before lifting up the bowl, slurping down the broth.

"I thank you for the praise."

"I'm glad the shop is still running" Blaidd says.
"It may not be running for much longer" the man mentions.

"Why's that?" Blaidd asks.

"Well... ever since my father died, the locals stopped coming, and we're so far in the back streets that tourists don't even notice us"

"I'm sorry for your loss" Blaidd says, as you bows his head.

"He was proud of you, Blake, he said you could've been the proud face of this shop, and that he was heartbroken when you said you have other plans, but he understood your emotions so he let you go without much fight."

"I do remember ole Jo saying he accepts my wishes, but would like me to visit every once in a while... sadly I didn't come extend my thanks for having me before he died... I'll make sure to say my thanks when I come across the area."

"You're a good man Blake, now eat up, let's not dwell on the past-"

A bowl slams down on the ground with a heavy thud "ANOTHER BOWL PLEASE!" Kaide yells, with another bowl slamming down beside him, "ONE MORE FOR ME AS WELL!" Val adds.

~~~ A Few Hours Later ~~~

In the airship ride home, the group talks, jokes around, and looks out the windows as they head back to their Nexus.

On the intercom, Abstra radios "We're back home, if you look out the window to the right, you can see the great ole Nova Concordia Nexus... our home."

A place that only a couple years prior only housed a couple buildings, but now is a large city that built up rather than out.

"Valentine... Kaide... I need you two to help unload the supplies."

"But we're... stuffedddd" Kaide says, letting out a sigh as he speaks.

When the airship lands, Blaidd turns back to the others "Remember, PB is hosting a feast for us, so meet up at his house tomorrow night". He then walks off, waving at Rinka and Daedaze as he heads for his house.

"WELCOME HOMEEE!" A girl named Ceri Siru yells, as Blaidd walks in through the front door.

"I'm home Ceri"

"Did you guys have fun today!?" Ceri says, preparing a bowl of soup.

"It was enjoyable, I got to see an old friend" he says, taking off his shoes and locking the door behind him.

"I made some herbal soup for us today, the potatoes were out of stock at the grocery today-" Ceri says as she places two bowls on a table alongside some rice.

"Thank you thank you, I'll definitely indulge in it anyways" Blaidd says as Ceri's face lights up

The two sit down on the table silently except for small slurps of soup and chopsticks clinking against the rice bowl.

Blaidd looks down at his reflection in the oily broth, "Hey Ceri..?"

"Yes Blaidd?"

"Am I a good guardian, well... and a friend?"

"I think you are, not just to me but to everyone else!" she responded, as she stuffs rice into her mouth.

Blaidd, still looking at his reflection, "But I wonder if it's enough" he says, mumbling under his breath and stirring the soup.

~~~ The Next Day ~~~

The NCN (Nova Concordia Nexus) was full of life, from adventurers coming from across the lands, tourist arriving through airships and boats, and the locals having a lively day.

Even with all the smiles on everyone's faces, sounds of footsteps and chatter, machinery buzzing, and cars flying, Blaidd still felt... a burden on his shoulders. Something that is holding him down from enjoying his life, something... gnawing at him.

~~~ At Night ~~~

"Got your coat? I heard it's going to get really cold tonight."

"I'll be fineee"

"Don't get upset with me for your mistakes Ceri, but hey, grab the beer from the fridge"

"Okays!"

Ceri slams the fridge with a kick due to her hands being full, "CERI! Don't slam it too hard, you'll break this one too-.

"Mister Blaidd... it's fine, grrr"

As they walk out towards PB's house, they meet up with Daedaze, Komi, Sin and a girl named Ivy.

"Heyyyy I haven't see you guys in a while~" Ivy says,

"You seem to be a lot more open now, has hanging out with Gem and Reiku corrupted you?" Blaidd asks,

Ivy looks up to him with teary eyes, "No-"

Blaidd sighs, "I'll have a talk with Para and ask if he can take care of you in the meantime."

Ivy hugs Blaidd, almost making him drop the dishes of food he's carrying.

"Hey watch out, I have our dessert in my hands."

"NO DON'T DROP MY SWEET BABIES MISTER BLAIDD" Ceri yells, while slightly growling at Ivy as she makes a funny face at Ceri.

Komi and Daedaze drag Ivy and Ceri away as Sin holds the beers and walks beside Blaidd.

"You know it's okay to talk about things, right?" Sin asks,

"I know... I just... I have too much on my mind." Blaidd answers.

They arrive at PB's door, with the door opening after Daedaze knocks on the door, "HEYYYY" PB yells out

Ceri and them hug PB as he shows them inside, with Sin and Blaidd still outside the door,

"Well whatever it is, you're not alone Blaidd, especially not anymore-"

"BLAIDD, SIN! Come inside!" Copia yells from inside.

"Try not to force any smiles tonight, I'll come by tomorrow with some others, we can play some games and help you out" Sin says, nodding his head as he walks in. "HEYYY, Nepheressss, Rikushiii, how y'all been-..."

"Games huh? If the answer was games this whole time this wouldn't be an issue..." Blaidd mutters, walking inside.

"BLAIDD!!" everyone collectively yells, "Dawg you gotta try this, Tyrant made some crazily good chips and guac" Jin yells, stuffing his face full of chips,

Blaidd walks over to the living room with Rikushi, Mek, Kaide, Valentine, LuLu, and some others, "Hey, what's on the TV?" Blaidd asks, pointing to the television.

"OH! We're watching the news, they're showing some old highlights from the arena games,"

Ceri runs up behind Blaidd and jumps onto his back "THERE'S YOU GUYS!" she says, pointing while wrapped around his back,

Kaide points when a certain scene is played "Annnnd that's Valentine eating sh#t right there"

"Hey now, when we fought in the past at a couple years before, I clowned your ass" Valentine says back, crossing his arms with an annoyed look.

"Ladies Ladies, you're both pretty, now let's calm down and keep watching, I'm about to pop up on screen" Tyrant says, walking into the living room with Jin behind him.

A scene on the TV plays a clip from a fight between Toku and Latro, in which everyone becomes silent before Rikushi tries to alleviate the mood, "Toku fought well, this was his first Magic he's ever used, and did y'all know, when I first came into contact with him, he was Magic-less?"

Rikushi then points out the said clip on the TV where Toku goes 'berserk'.

"Right there! That surprised the crap out of me when I was shown the video afterwards-!"

Everyone sounded shocked yet cheer on the clip, watching Toku

"Just watching these clips makes me want to fight again, since we can fight without holding back-" Kaide says

"Yeah but this time, just the like rest, I'll clown on you" Valentine mentions

"And with that, that concludes the Arena Games Highlights, please tune in next month to watch the new this year's showdown!" The announcer says on the Television.

Tyrant's jaw opens wide in shock while Jin belly laughs so hard he falls to the ground, "WHERE WAS I?!"

"AHAHAHAHA-" Jin, holding his belly from laughing so hard,

Sin walks up behind Tyrant and puts his hand around his shoulders, "Maybe next time if you survive past me" Sin says, pointing at himself with a smug look on his face,

"We interrupt this channel to broadcast a live robbery that's currently happening in Eagle City-"

Blaidd turns away, "I will head back to the kitchen, you guys need anything?" he asks,

Jin stands up in his chair finally, wiping his eyes, "Nah, I think we're good dawg" then looks up to the TV with wide-open eyes,

"Hey Nepheres, Gem, PB, how's the food coming?"

"It's coming great!" Gem quickly answers, as she quickly mixes around the chili

She hands him a small amount in a small bowl with a plastic spoon "Try it out, I added lots of seasoning!"

Blaidd takes it and scoops up some in the spoon, "The texture of it is amazing, it's almost soupy but still holds its on" then he ingests, "This is awesome, but it needs slightly more pepper," Blaidd adds,

Blaidd and Gem hear hard thuds of steps and turn towards the living room as Kaide and Valentine turn the corner, out of breath,

LuLu walks over "Let's not run here, glass will fall off the tables"

Kaide yells and gasps "Blaidd!"

"Catch your breath... speak slowly" Blaidd says,

"How did you guys get out of breath if the living room is not that far?" Gem asks under her breath,

"It's... It's Mister Chikara, Come See!" Kaide grabs Blaidd quickly, pulling him to the living room,

"Right outside the Ramen Shop located near Luuvin Street, we're here watching a man held at gunpoint and we're told by our sources that he is the owner of the shop, Kado Chikara...-"

Blaidd quickly runs out the door without hesitation,

"He's not going to make it in time!" Kaide mentions, "ABSTRA GET THE AIRSHIP READY NOW!"

Everyone runs out side, seeing Blaidd run off,

"BLAIDD HALT!" Rikushi yells, stepping in front of the others and walking towards Blaidd

Blaidd turns his head to his right shoulder, gritting his teeth in anger, "time is running out"

"You'll never make it in time even without an airship" Rikushi says, catching up to him and resting his hand on his shoulder"

"Don't stop me... I'm going no matter how long it takes" Blaidd says back,

A rumbling is heard coming from the distance, "I never intended to stop you, but I will ask if you're able to jump high in the cold..."

"That's easy... but why..?"

The rumbling shows itself as the airship, flying towards them through the skyscrapers,

"Because we'll lose a few minutes if it lands so we're going to get in while it's going there,"

Blaidd looks up as the airship nears their location,

"LULU, AND WHOEVER ELSE CAN JUMP OR FLY, YOU HAVE A 10 SECOND WINDOW" Rikushi yells,

"Do it, now" Rikushi whispers to Blaidd, as both lower themselves before lifting off the ground with sheer force as the airship flies under them in the air.

clunk - clang

Rikushi and Blaidd land on the top of the airship,

thwack - clink

LuLu and Valentine both land on top too,

"Everyone go in through the top hatch," Rikushi commands, as the airship turns towards Eagle City

As LuLu sits in the pilot's seat, Rikushi sits in the seat beside her,

"I'm taking it off auto drive and entering Warp Thrusters" LuLu says, as she flips switches.

"HOLD ON TIGHT" Rikushi yells, gripping a handle bar nearby as LuLu pushes forward a lever.

The ship gains speed, as Blaidd holds onto a handle near the closed hatch.
Valentine, which wasn't fast enough to hold on, flies to the back of the airship into a pile of metal crates. "I'm... fine" Valentine says, giving a shaky thumbs-up.

Blaidd grips the handle bar tight while keeping his feet on the ground, not to hold himself up, but because his anger is flowing throughout his body, needing an outlet to let it out.

"I'll be there soon... Mr. Chikara..."

LuLu comms onto the radio "Abstra and the others will be here after us with the other airship, they'll be about 5-6 minutes behind as the other airship was across town tonight"

Valentine, crawling on the ground towards Blaidd to not be flung back again, finally makes it to Blaidd.

The airship comes slows down drastically, sending Valentine in the opposite direction, hitting the food vending machines before putting his hand up "I'll fix it when we're back..." dropping his hand and continuing to lay there.

"We've reached Eagle City, we're near the ramen shop but I see no vacant landing areas" LuLu radios

"Open the hatch" Blaidd says, in a serious tone.

LuLu looks at Rikushi, in which he nods so she hits the button, "Safe Travels Blaidd, we'll be back soon"

The side hatch opens, revealing a city covered by both snow and sleet.

Rikushi gets up from the chair and walks over to the hatch as Blaidd leans forward, falling out towards the ground.

Rikushi signals at LuLu, as he jumps out behind Blaidd, with the airship being piloted away.

"Where's Jo Chikara's grave?!?" A large man says, holding Mr. Chikara up by the neck.

"..."

The man throws Mr. Chikara angrily across the shop, slamming his body on the wall.

3 men ravage the place in search of something, "I CAN'T FIND IT" one man screams, throwing around appliances and tools.

Mr. Chikara props himself up, attempting to reach a nearby knife on the ground, but another man walks up beside him, kicking away the knife before crouching to Mr. Chikara's side.

"So... where's your old man buried at?" the man says, unsheathing a sword tied to his hip.

"I'll... never tell you..."

The man stands up, "I figured as much," before stabbing his sword straight through Mr. Chikara's out-reached hand.

"GAHHHH" Mr. Chikara yells out, as the man twists the sword by the handle, then rips it out.

"Where's the Artifact, Ka-" The man stabs the sword down again on his other hand, "-do Chi-" then twists it, "-kara?"

Mr. Chikara yells out in pain as the main then pulls out the sword.

"We need to hurry up, the cops are starting to surround us!" One of the men yell near the front of the shop, looking out the windows.

"I'm going to ask you one more time Kado..." the man picks up Mr. Chikara by the throat, lifting him up.

"...Where is Jo's Artifact... where is his grave." The man asks, staring into his eyes

Mr. Chikara spits in the man's face, so the man shoves his sword forward, piercing Mr. Chikara.

The other 2 men come get the man, "We have to go now".

clank

A large thud is heard on the roof of the building, the 3 men look at each other while one is holding Mr. Chikara, "Go look upstairs, hurry!"

One of the men heads upstairs but a loud thud is heard paired with screams of pain.

Another man looks up the stairs to see the other falling down the stairs at intense speed before hitting the wall at the base of the stairwell.

"Well what was it?" The man holding Mr. Chikara asked.

Another thud is heard on the roof, with quick steps creaking from the ceiling above.

"It's your karma..." Mr. Chikara mentions, struggling to speak and breath.

The man pulls his sword out of Mr. Chikara and drops him to the ground, before getting into a combat stance, facing towards the stairwell door.

The man by the stairs drags the injured man lying on the ground into the open area of the shop.

"He's got a dent in his chest-"

The man with the sword slides on foot backwards as they hear thuds coming down the stairs.

Blaidd turns the corner, and sees Mr. Chikara lying on the ground, motionless.

"You will pay..."

The closest man charges forward before Blaidd throws his fist around from his side, breaking the man's ribs on contact and sending him backwards.

The man with the sword charges forward, sword first, aimed for Blaidd's torso but Blaidd quickly steps to the side, in which the man sweeps his sword towards Blaidd, which results in a small cut from Blaidd.

"I've seemed to have gotten a little rusty..."

A tap is felt on Blaidd's shoulder, so he swings his arm to hit, so Rikushi bends his back backwards to dodge the hit.

"Woah there we're on the same side here B" Rikushi says, holding out Blaidd's Katana, "Was thinking you'd want this for your revenge"

Blaidd grips the hilt of his sword, "Thank you Riku" then turns to face the man.

"I won't let you live." Blaidd says, eyes closed and breathing a cold air.

He lets out a long breath of cold air, nearly freezing everything around him,

"Atleast let me leave before you do that...brrr" Rikushi exclaims

"Standstill" Blaidd mutters

Blaidd stances with his sword near his head, dashing forward sword-in-hand, towards the man.

The man attempts to move but his body was frozen still from the shoulders down.

"YOU-" The man's voice is drowned out by the loud ching of Blaidd's sword slicing through his neck.

Blaidd quickly throws his sword down and leaps to the ground, picking up Mr. Chikara's head, "Kado... Kado it's me... Blake..." He says with a shaky voice.

Mr. Chikara's eyes stutter as his dry lips attempt to formulate words, "Sor...ry..." One last breath is heard leaving his body.

Blaidd picks up his body and quickly sprints outside to the police "TAKE HIM TO THE HOSPITAL NOW!"

~~~ Some Time Later at the Hospital ~~~

"b...d-"
"B...i...d...-"
"BLAIDD!"

Blaidd jolts up, "YES?"

Abstra, slightly panting, stands in front of him, "I could've get your attention... Sorry... I didn't mean to yell at you".

"Sorry... I was just lost in my thoughts...What is it?"

"We were given some items that the detectives got from the ramen shop... they said there's something directed towards you..."

Abstra hands him a box with a letter on top "Sit down and look in it"

Blaidd sits down and places the box to his side on the ground, then picks up the letter and opens it, "It's from... Kado..."

Dear Blake,
Thank you for coming by the store even after you quit working here.
My old man still would brag about you to our customers up until his final days.
I missed you ever since you quit as you brought not only smiles but good memories.

When you came by earlier, I was overjoyed.
After you left, my old man wanted a way to repay you for sticking with us for so long even though there was better places to be so he started a side job as an adventurer.
He used all of his money and connections to create a new artifact made by the renowned Artifactsmith Octavia.
He sadly died during a dungeon quest.
He thought of you like a son, as I thought of you as a brother.

If you read this Blake, Thank You.

From, Kado Chikara

P.S. We knew your name was Blaidd due to your ID; but calling you Blake felt like a nickname only we called you.

A single tear slid down Blaidd's cheek.

Blaidd then looks inside the box to find pictures, some clothing, and a couple bowls.

He pulls out a picture, showing him with Mr. Chikara and his father working the shop during one of its busiest times. "I like that photo, you looks so happy in it" Blaidd smiles, and then pulls out another, showing him being scolded by Mr. Jo. "Here's when I accidentally threw out freshly fried tempura instead of the old ones." Abstra chuckles, "You look so scared in that photo"

"Well I thought he was going to fire me..."

"Well to the looks of it, he didn't atleast"

"He made me clean the bathroom for 2 weeks straight though-" Blaidd says, letting out a small laugh.

Blaidd looks into the box again and pulls out a bowl instead.

"Is that some bowls from the shop?" she asked.

"This one is the from the first bowl of Ramen I ever made," Blaidd replies.

"How do you know this is the correct one?"

He turns the bowl upside down and shows a chunk of the ceramic missing from the bottom and points at it, "I was too excited that I made it finally that I dropped it without thinking~"

Abstra giggles, "I didn't know you to be so clumsy,"

"Well... I guess I was just... happy..." Blaidd says with a softer tone.

"Have you not been happy with all of us?" Abstra asked.

Before he could answer, Sin steps in to tell Blaidd that he's needed.

Blaidd puts the photos and bowl back into the box and follows Sin to the front desk.

"Here he is," Sin says to the lady at the front desk.

"Mister Frostwalker, you're here for Kado Chikara?"

"Yes ma'am"

"I heard that you ran all the way here after the ambulance was taking too long to arrive, is that true?"

"Yes ma'am it is"

The lady flips through a nearby folder, "Here's a list of items that he had in his will for Blaidd Frostwalker." She then gives him a sheet of paper from the folder then closes it.

Blaidd looks at the paper but looks forward quickly, "Wait ma'am, why am I receiving this?"

"Oh... I thought you heard already..."

Blaidd grips the paper sheet tighter, crinkling it up on its edges.

"Mister Chikara has passed away."

Blaidd doesn't hesitate to dart down the hall way to his room, "MISTER FROSTWALKER!!" The lady screams.

Blaidd arrives at his room and quickly slides open the door, to see the doctors unplugging the equipment.

He walks towards the bed with sheet laying across a human's silhouette.

One doctor turns around, "Were you one of this man's loved ones? I'm sorry but the wounds he took were too deep and we were only able to keep him alive for a few extra minutes."

Blaidd stands at the side of the bed, before dropping to his knees in shock and agony.

He then grips the hand, feeling its coldness through the sheet. "I'm sorry I didn't come sooner..."

The doctor asks the others to leave the room, and on his way out, he stops at the doorway without looking back, "I enjoyed his food... my favorite was the... Blaidd Bowl... I think that was the name of it..." The doctor then walks out.

Blaidd stares at Mr. Chikara's silhouette.

Sin, Rikushi, and the front desk's lady enter the room, "BLAIDD!" Sin calls out.

Blaidd turns around slowly, before losing consciousness and falling forward onto the ground, "BLAI-"