FFVIII: Final Cry (Ishu and BlisteredBlood)

Alphonse noticed the two forks in the road, narrowing his eyes at it contemplatively when they stopped at it. He looked to the left fork for a moment then glanced to the right. "Hm..." He sounded out to himself as he looked between the two paths again. After a little more thought, Alphonse glanced over to Ishu and spoke to her. "Which way should we go, Ishu?" He asked, wanting her opinion on the matter. They could go anywhere, but as long as he stuck with her, it'd probably ease his mind if the both of them went in the same direction and remain close to the other. Besides, there was no telling where a potential threat was or how many were there in the first place. Besides, even if this was the Training Grounds, this place still had a tendency to have a plethora of surprises.
 
Hm... She crossed her arms and leaned on her toes, then on the backs of her feet and on her toes again as she mulled over her thoughts, Perhaps we should go to the right? Her feet stopped and lay flat on the ground as she looked up at him and searched for a response to her choice. They could go the the left instead, but she had heard that most of the time the left was harder. At least if you started there anyway. But it was less of a disappointment if you went to the left and got overwhelmed instead of starting on the right, worked your way through and then became overwhelmed. But the Training Grounds were unpredictable.
 
"Yeah, we could go to the right. It'll be easier for you, anyway." Alphonse answered with a nod of his head as he began towards the right path with his claymore resting on his shoulders easily and placed his other hand into his pocket for a moment with the same pensive look on his face. On top of all that, he still had his doubts about this place. For all he knew, they could've switched things up and probably added something more challenging now that he was on the scene.
 
Ishu looked from the left to the right and looked at Alphonses' back. She hurried after him before he went too far ahead and walked a little bit behind him and to the side. She wasn't watching the ground below them or the trail ahead of them but she was looking all around them. She looked up at the trees that leaned in toward the path and the shrubbery that lined the walkway as if keeping everything in the terrain hidden and even more capable of jumping the two of them. That was kind of cruel but it was understandable. Velidant wanted their SeeDs to be prepared no matter the territory.
 
Alphonse glanced behind his shoulder when he heard Ishu running up behind him in an attempt to keep up with him for a moment before turning his attention back towards the path he was currently on, his eyes narrowed in contemplation still as he then continued to walk all while glancing around from left to right. It was definitely a tense moment here and now, but it was an understandable tension that was beginning to make itself known on his face.

After a little more time walking, Alphonse glanced upward towards the trees when he heard something rustling above them then narrowed his eyes at it reflexively. Something was definitely here, he figured. A smirk was now playing upon Alphonse's face for a little bit as he kept his eyes held high towards the canopy before throwing an arm out in front of Ishu. "Hold it." He said quietly. "Did you hear that?" He asked, his voice maintaining its silence.
 
She looked off to the side as she watched the shadows alter behind the green of the shrubbery. She bumped into Alphonse's arm and paused, taking a step back as she turned her gaze to him. Ishu saw his eyes looking up at the canopy. She listened when he mentioned a sound and strained, soon hearing a gentle rustle, Yes, I hear... something... She couldn't make out what it was but there was definite movement.
 
"Stay close. There's no telling what's here, kid." Alphonse answered as he kept his weapon gripped tightly in one hand as he continued to keep his eyes moving around from side to side with a concentrating look in his eyes. Very slowly, Alphonse began to move, his steps now giving off a quieter cadence this time around.
 
Ishu nodded and stayed close, but not close enough to get decapitated if he decided to swing his sword around his back. She tiptoed, being quiet, as she followed him and stopped when she heard a branch crack. She looked up and to the side, her eyes trailing behind her when she heard a familiar scuttling sound. A shriek went off behind her and she felt something hit her back, knocking her down to the ground. Oof! Ishu sat up and turned over, crawling back towards Alphonse as a lone Grat scuttled quickly towards her.

She swallowed and frowned, getting her game face on. She had taken on plenty of Grats. They were practically her specialty. She thrust her hand forward, a spear of energy burrowing into the Grats' torso. It staggered and recovered, slamming both of it's rounded "hands" down on her. Ishu rolled out of the way and pushed herself up to her feet, avoiding the attack.
 
At the sound of a branch cracking above them, Alphonse stopped again and narrowed his eyes up towards the canopy once again. Something was definitely here, alright. But what? It could be anything, like maybe a...

His train of thought was interrupted when he heard Ishu give out a pained grunt when something hit her. "Shit!" Alphonse shouted out as he saw Ishu hit the ground then glanced around again when he spotted a Grat had swung past him. At that point, Alphonse held out his claymore once more, his face now becoming transfixed in readiness. All he needed was an opening and then he would spring forward to attack.

His moment came when he saw Ishu roll out of the way of the Grat's incoming attack. "I got this!" He said as he pointed at the Grat and moved himself out in front of her. "Alright, buddy boy..." Alphonse spoke to the Grat with a grin on his face. "Let's see what you're made of!" He added as he then shifted his stance into a defensive posture, poised for a counterattack if it came at him.
 
The Grat shrieked when it's next meal was suddenly shielded. Both of it' "hands" slapped down on his sword in an attempt to damage him or, more rather, to kill him. Of course, it did not work. The Grat retracted itself and hissed while vibrating its head. It swung at him again, this time from the sides, trying to go around his weapon.

Ishu stood up behind Alphonse and dusted off her clothing. She looked up behind them as another monster descended from the Canopy, A-Alphonse... She stepped back until her back met his and she gulped, tugging lightly on the torn cape, Alphonse!! Her cries were matched by that of a Granaldo. These creatures were particularly territorial and did not show up often. However, they were one of the more common creatures you would find at higher levels.
 
Alphonse gave out a grunt when he felt the impact of the Grat's "hands" come crashing down on his claymore, laughing a bit in reaction and even continued to grin at it when he watched the creature skid back from him and then make another attack, trying to get around his weapon. Anticipating this, Alphonse's body flashed white for a split second right when he quickly shifted his posture to face towards the incoming attack as he blocked it yet again. "TOO SLOW!" Alphonse shouted out before suddenly swinging for the Grat's midsection in a low to high arc.

Looking to his back a little bit later, he could see what had gotten Ishu creeped out. It was a Granaldo, one that didn't seem to care too much for these two to be in its territory. "Hohboy. Looks like we stumbled on a nesting ground." Alphonse spoke as he once again shifted himself to face it this time, grinning in earnest. "This day's getting better and better." He said with the same grin on his face.
 
B-Better!? She glanced back at him before looking back up. She tensed up as she watched the Granaldo lower itself and swing at her. It missed, though only because she panicked at the last moment and attacked it at the same time with a subtle slice of energy. The Granaldo flew up higher to recuperate before lowering itself down closer to them again.

The Grat gurgled on goo that filled up through its' throat. Alphonse had torn through a third of its torso with his sword. He had almost cut it in half horizontally. It was barely alive and staggered as it waved it's thin, green arms.

Ishu moved back to Alphonse and glanced back at the Grat, Um... I'll take the little one? She cracked half a smile but hoped he would let her take the easier one.
 
"Right. But don't get too cocky because that Grat's been wounded! It's still a threat, no matter how you look at it!" Alphonse answered as he then made a quick signal with his right hand towards Ishu, calling for a lane shift. "You get the Grat! I'll get the Granaldo! But whatever you do, make sure you put him down hard and you put him down fast! Otherwise, he'll try to get all over your ass!" Alphonse warned her as he then jumped back a good distance then turned himself around so that he was facing the fresher monster here then decided on shifting his posture once again to place himself into a counterattacking position once more.
 
Ishu nodded and rushed forward, ducking under Alphonses sword before slowing down near the Grat. She licked her lips and put her game face back on. She swiftly cut her arm through the air, a blade of energy flying at the Grat and slapping its frontside. The Grat stumbled back and hissed before swinging its "hands" at her on her sides. She focused as the attack came at her and put her hands out at her sides, sending energy at the Grats attack, blocking it effectively.

The Granaldo growled at Alphonse and rushed down, slicing at him with all of its arms.
 
Grinning at the Granaldo as it came charging at him, almost as if he was anticipating this all-out offensive move from that creature and right when he saw it get close enough to begin attacking him, Alphonse continued to defend against the creature's attacks, altering his stance each and every time those arms were trying to land a strike on him and moving his blade around to catch each and every attack that was thrown at him. However, that smile was going away rather quickly now, his temper beginning to spike up rapidly.

"You know! Seriously! You're starting to piss me off, you little shit!" He snarled towards the Grenaldo.
 
Instead of pulling it's spindly arms back, it slammed one down onto her, making Ishu's body hit the ground and bounce up just slightly before resting on the dirt floor. She winced opened her eyes just in time to see the hand came down again. She rolled out of the way and, unfortunately, got her leg stuck on its other hand. She kicked at it and tried to crawl away but gasped as it pulled her toward it.

The Granaldo roared at him and came down again, slicing at him with a torrent of bladed arms.

Ishu rolled over onto her stomach when she was pulled closer to the Grat. It shrieked in her face as it opened it's mouth wide. She thrust her hands up, energy growing and surging down it's throat until it found a spot to collect. It blew up the Grat like a balloon until it literally blew out its backside. The grat wailed and ontop of her. Her little hands pushed at it until she was able to get it to roll off to her side.
 
Alphonse only continued to guard against the incoming torrent of bladed arms, his own claymore glancing off of the them with heavy sounding metallic clangs as the look on his face was now becoming more and more angered the longer this thing continued to press him. This thing was relentless, but Alphonse was about to show it that he wasn't playing around anymore. Finally, in a fit of rage, Alphonse altered his stance so that his blade caught two of the Granaldo's arms with his claymore, growling at the thing furiously then used all of his proverbial might to shove it back hard a good distance.

"That's IT!!!" Alphonse shouted out, now having finally have had enough of this thing. "Time to put you out of your misery!" He snarled again as he once again held his claymore out in front of his body once more, but tightened the grip on the handle to a harsh degree to a point where the knuckles of his right hand could be seen turning white then lowered his head for a moment.

Suddenly, an encircling aura of orange swirled out all around Alphonse's body, giving off a sound of a scorching wildfire. A moment later, Alphonse's head lifted up quickly as his eyes narrowed at the Granaldo.

"OVERDRIVE SLASH!!!" Alphonse shouted out and within the speed of a thought, Alphonse seemed to have vanished from the battlefield with how explosively fast he moved towards it only to move right behind the Granaldo with his blade already extended for maybe a split second before he vanished a second time, this time appearing to the creature's right with the weapon extended again. For a third time, Alphonse disappeared yet again, only to pop up on the Granaldo's left with his blade having completed its deadly arc again, but for a fourth time Alphonse seemed to vanish yet again only to reappear in front of the creature, only to be seen with his blade held upward, it having already completed the same low to high arc to knock the Granaldo into the air above them.

"Here... We... GO!!!" Alphonse shouted out as he pushed off of the ground and literally flung himself after the creature at the same frighteningly quick burst of speed but cocked the blade back in a deep angle, looking to split the creature down the middle cleanly. At that moment, a fiercely crackling jolt of energy ripped through the claymore as he then brought it down hard onto the Granaldo's head, scoring a critical blow onto it.

With the move completed, Alphonse dropped down to the ground onto his foot and a knee as his claymore smashed into the dirt, his head lowered and his eyes shut.
 
The Granaldo's throat made a crackling sound as it fell to the ground, literally in pieces.

Ishu managed to wiggle out from under the Grat and popped up onto her feet. She dusted herself off again and turned a light shade of green after she looked back and saw the creatures remains splattered all over the ground. She rushed over the the shrubbery and bent over a thick bush, coughing as she choked on some pile. Thin, pinkish vomit sprayed out of her mouth as she choked again. Sighing, she grabbed at a nearby plant and wiped her mouth with a leaf. Ugh...parfait. She could see little red chunks of the strawberries she'd had mixed into her yogurt.

She leaned back off of the bush and looked over at Alphonse, still a tad bit queasy, Is there that much... ugh, blood and...ooogh, guts when you kill stuff? She held her stomach and grimaced as she shielded her vision from the sight of the decimated creature behind her.
 
Very slowly, Alphonse rose to his feet as he then gave his claymore a quick swish above his head for a moment before resetting the blade to his back once more, getting the same click sound once it was secured to his back. He remained silent for a moment more before he turned around to see Ishu vomiting up her lunch at the sight of the carnage he had left the Granaldo in before hearing her speak into his mind.

A shrug was his initial reaction at first before Alphonse's stern face would then reform back into that familiar smile. "It doesn't have to be pretty, Ishu. It's either kill or be killed." He answered with a bit of morbid humor behind his words, emitting a chuckle after he spoke. "But sometimes, you gotta get dirty in order to get anywhere in this day and age." He admitted.
 
Right. She nodded without thinking about any of the things around her, Of course... She cleared her throat and coughed a little bit, Alright... ok, I'm ready. She walked over to him and shielded her vision from the little chunks of Granaldo scattered all over the ground. She didn't think killing things would be this messy, but she knew it wouldn't be pretty. This disappointed her but it wasn't like she could really change that factor about the real world.
 
"Right. Off we go then." Alphonse answered as he first waited for Ishu to come close enough towards him and when she did, Alphonse began to walk ahead of her, looking around from side to side slowly once more followed by placing his hands on the back of his head in an almost casual way as he continued to walk.
 
Her stomach began to feel better, which made her feel better. She looked at Alphonse's back and eyed the Velidant insignia on his seemingly torn cape. It looked nice and pretty official but she hadn't seen much like that attire before. Of course, he did say he modified some of his armor. She looked up at the canopy as it thinned out and they entered another open area.

There were a few monsters around and most of them didn't seem too bothered by their presence. A few Bite Bugs flew by and hovered over a large plant. They bumped into each other and hissed as they argued over who got first dibs.
 
Upon arrival into the more open area, Alphonse spotted the small group of Bite Bugs hovering over a plant, bumping into and eventually hissing at the other which only made him smile a bit at them before shaking his head a little bit before putting his hands to his hips and then looking over to Ishu with the same smile on his face.

"How about that, huh?" He asked with a chuckle while putting his hands to his hips. "This is something you're used to see, right?" He asked.
 
Ishu smiled over at him and nodded. The monsters here like to mind themselves. It is actually... kind of peaceful here. While being the quietest but most active part of the training grounds, it was also one of the most dangerous. Sure, the monsters tended to cluster around here and yet they did not go out of their way to go after SeeDs, a more... ferocious opponent tended to pop in when it pleased. Large track marks had been filled in with dirt and leaves from the last time one of them had been here.

Seeing the faded marks in the ground made her nervous, We should... keep moving?
 
Alphonse shrugged his shoulder a bit before looking ahead of him for a little bit as he realized where they were now, seeing that there was quite a bit of activity here. Monsters of all sorts seemed to congregate here, and all of them proved to be dangerous in their own right. Looking down to the ground, Alphonse spotted the faded track marks that had been partly filled in. Something big had come through here recently. Fairly recently at that.

"That would be the best idea you've had all night." Alphonse answered as his face became concerned.
 
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