Cantasia- Part 2: The Stone

As the prisoners of the Frank's attempt to take over Centrus were recovering, it became apparent to everyone that they were being targeted by more users of the Awakening. Multiple members of this mysterious group have been attacking them- and Chief Derus was able to subdue two of them. Aquarius, a person who was able to turn into water, and Gemini, who was able to manipulate acid. Assuming all of them went by code names referring to zodiac signs, there were ten more left, including a sniper and someone who was able to control people and their emotions.

The General, after interrogating Gemini, discovered that their group was after the Stone of Cretus, a mythical artifact that was just supposed to be a fairy tail, said to be a source of power. The General called Chief Derus and informed him that this stone was actually real, and the ancient leaders of Cantasia hid pieces of the stones in each territory. The General gathered up the group being attacked by them- including Abyss, a friend of Pyce and Chief Derus as leader of the mission- and told them to find the pieces before the group did. If they stuck around in Centrus, they would put more lives in danger as they were being targetted.

Their first destination was the dragon territory so that Chief Derus could learn how to obtain his own Awakening from a Guru that General Xerus said helped him obtain his own inner potential. However while the private train they were on was on its way to the dragon territory, their ride was attacked by the sniper- revealed to be Scorpio and hiding his face in a mask. Scorpio attempted to take control of the train but failed. While battling Dresden, Jones, and Abyss on the roof, another figure made of shadow itself appeared and fought Dresden one on one. With the help of Brook and Zak, Dresden defeated the shadow. He knew it was after him specifically- and most likely had nothing to do with this whole ordeal with the Stone of Cretus.

Scorpio was gone by the time the fighting stopped although he left a note for Jones. This was all he needed to know. An uneasy Jones changed their course to the human territory- where the sniper told him to fight him one on one in the ghost town of Leadwood. As Jones and Scorpio fought, Scorpio revealed his face and it seemed to be like Jones already knew him. To Jones' surprise, he revealed himself to also be the father of his late fiancé. Jones still wore her ring- a ring made out of Jade with a jewel embedded in it. The sniper used his own artifact- a sniper which when it hit Jones, it made him get applied with a pressure three times his body weight. Wounded and unable to move, the sniper was about to execute Jones before Dresden and Light swooped in to help Jones. At the same time, the mysterious white haired figure appeared. It's revealed his name is Dolos. Seeming to care only for the stone piece Scorpio was revealed to have already- he asked Scorpio to quickly give it to him. Scorpio refused and said he'll take it when he kills Jones. After that, the four excluding Jones locked into combat. Dolos was forced to retreat as the attacks from Dresden and Light seemed to tear apart his own existence. The sniper quickly moved to Jones who was already up and held him hostage. It was going to conclude as what Dresden called a "Stand-off" before Jones used the remaining amount of his maya and the last drops of water in his pouch to send a water bullet into the neck of Scorpio.
Injured and beginning to bleed out, the three made their way back to the train to head to the dragon district.
Jones left his ring in the hand of Scorpio, and kept his piece of the stone. Their first piece.

After getting their first piece of the stone- the group faced many challenges. Their next stop was the dragon territory, where they fought a man named Sagittarius; he had the power to pull people into his own space and control their fears. After defeating him, the group learned that Dolos was a man who was able to Awaken someone using the blade he carries at his hip. Once he has stabbed someone the blade chooses, they gain an awakening and are under Dolos' control. There are some Zodiacs- or "Fateseekers" as Dolos calls the organization- that have developed their own awakening, like Scorpio. This explains why he did not give his piece of the stone to Dolos when he asked. Sagittarius is not one of these people, and is only sane because he's in his own Awakening- an illusion.

As the group went further down into the Dragon Territory they finally reached a place where their train could stop and resupply. By this time the group was starting to become for affiliated with eachother, growing new bonds. When Abyss, Rune, Zak, and Dresden were in the train, one of the Fateseekers decided to attack Zak and Rune first. Aries, a veteran from the War of Zel, wearing his soldier uniform he attacked Zak and Rune. Dresden and Abyss joined the fight, but Abyss' revealed his power to be something terrifying- he was able to meld is body into any shape or material he wanted, a complete mastery over soul maya. Aries defeated Zak and Dresden, and Rune and Abyss went ahead to finish Aries off. Surprising everyone, Aries quickly countered Rune's attacks and killed him in cold blood, using his corpse to block Abyss' attacks. This left everyone in shock before Lord Walter and an old war buddy of his came in and utterly destroyed Aries with the power of Walter's hammer. Meanwhile, Light and Pyce stumbled upon an old fortuneteller's tent, and Light influenced Pyce to go with him inside. This fortuneteller dropped marbles in a lit fire and used the cracks that formed in it to tell the two's fortune. But suddenly, the fortuneteller told Light something that alarmed him, talking about a red stone which instantly paralleled to the stone they were searching for. The fortuneteller revealed herself to be Virgo, and dissapeared in a black void as the next Fateseeker they had to fight showed up behind Pyce and Light- Taurus.
Pyce expertly took care of Taurus with his earth maya with the help of Light and Abyss. Jones and Pyce, being the ones who were the least wounded went out to get the next stone piece. Following the pieces they already have, they entered a cave and found it. Jones took it but accidentally activated a trap for the cave to collapse. The two quickly got out before it happened.

The group's next stop was the demon territory, where Abyss was from. Abyss and Jones both went to his house but only to discover that his mother was killed. Abyss knew who did it, someone who they kept locked in a basement because of his demonic desires. His father.

Jones sensed someone walking into the house, so the both of them hid. Abyss managed to escape but was not able to defend himself against Pisces- a man who was able to control people, controlling the citizens of the demon territory to try and kill Abyss. While Abyss informed everyone that they were being attacked, Abyss' father showed himself and revealed that he was the zodiac Cancer, with the power to bring back people from the dead as his zombies. He brought back Aries, along with his awakening. Meanwhile, Jones created a tunnel inside the basement he was in, escaping by going to the docks, but it was all for nothing as he was soon captured by Pisces' lackeys. While the group fought Cancer, the citizens appeared with Jones in Jade bindings and ordered the group to give him the stone pieces and he wouldn't kill Jones.

Zak and Pyce went inside the train to defeat Cancer, but Zak had to fight Aries one on one and Pyce had to fight Taurus one on one again. Zak defeated Aries and went to go help Abyss, but was defeated by Cancer. Pyce couldn't help because he was still fighting Taurus.

Suddenly there was a loud thud outside as Jones crushed the jade bindings and his hands with a large rock and went inside the train and utterly defeated Cancer before he could hurt Abyss. Taurus dissapeared.

Pyce was still uninjured, so he set out to defeat Pisces himself.
As Pyce went back inside Abyss' house he sensed Pisces in the basement trying to escape. Pyce went down, trying to fight Pisces but he escaped with the tunnel Jones made earlier. Pyce took this advantage to trap Pisces but he turned around and possessed him with his light.

Pyce had no choice but to help Pisces escape to the docks. As Pisces ran away, he was suddenly blasted back and started to get beat up. Pyce came back to his senses, hearing an old familiar voice- Kai. Kai took his blade, and slit Pisces' throat. But it didn't wound him. Instead, black smoke bursted out of the wound Dolos gave him, making Pisces exclaim how he was free from Dolos' control. Kai asked Pisces what his name was. Graham, he replied. Kai told Pyce not to tell anyone that he saw him, and to tell everyone that he killed Pisces, and that there was an awakened yura wielder with an artifact able to watch them at any time- so he told Pyce to get an artifact jammer in their train. Pyce agreed. Kai asked Graham if he could get him some life maya users that could heal with his awakening. Graham nodded, and the two set out- a third person joining the group.

Jones found the next stone piece not long after the attack, buried in the ground in the middle of a graveyard.
Abyss grieved and went to his mother's grave before heading out with the others. A week passed with daily treatments from life maya users, and with a new train the group was ready to set out. Virgo appeared out of one of Dolos' portal, sneaking towards the train to get rid of the artifact jammer stopping her from watching the group.
Suddenly, Virgo was caught by Goker, and the two engaged in battle. Virgo was going to lose, but Dolos appeared and slit Virgo's throat, saying that she was useless to his cause now. Dolos was Goker's next opponent, and overpowered her. As he called her weak, Goker suddenly awakened and hit Dolos with attacks of plasma, but as Dolos recooperated he still defeated Goker. Before landing the killing blow Goker shot one last beam of Plasma that lit up the area. The group saw this, getting to where Goker was as Dolos impaled her chest with his blade. Dolos dissapeared in a void, telling the group they'd meet again.

The group is greatly disheartened now that they have lost two members of their group. Under Dresden's guidance, the group faces many hardships before they lock combat with their next foe- Libra. The group tried to attack Libra with their maya but it was blocked with the opposite type no matter what. Libra dissapeared after giving them a taste of their power, but later on the group found themselves in the bowels of a large canyon. However, with their intuition and team work they were able to scale the canyon. After scaling the canyon they were met with a group of orcs. Jones stepped forward, bargaining with their leader that if he beat him in a fist fight they would be able to get taken to their destination- the place where Dresden was leading them.
Jones fights the orc and ends up winning, but accidentally kills him. The orcs engage, but they are all killed as Jones collapses the cliff side. He makes everyone else land on an earth platform, which they climb. Leo is waiting for them, along with Libra. They all engage into a battle, in which Appolion- Dresden's brother- appears and fights Zak and Dresden. Kai, Frank, and Graham(previously known as Pisces) all appear to help out the group. A fourth person appears- *Rune.* He appears in Dresden and Zak's time of need to help them out. He awakens, magma taking over his hands to help and defeat Appolion. The battle continues as Dolos yells out at Kai when he suddenly appears, their blades locking.
The battle ends with Leo retreating and Kai purifying Libra- her joining the group as Isabelle.

The group continues on to Heliux' temple, where they see Leo fight a minotaur and is easily defeated. The minotaur has the next stone piece in its eye. The group engaged in battle with the minotaur, and ended up winning. They took the stone piece out of its eye and went inside the cave entrance it was guarding.

Afterwards, they entered Heliux' temple inside the cave and helped the God himself defeat corrupted beasts. Though they realized they had somehow been stuck back in time- and because of their interference they caused time itself to change- Dresden's brother had been lost in time, and Lord Walter had been replaced with a butler named Mr. Black- Who claims that he'd been travelling with them this whole time.

Jones looks in his bag of stones, seeing that all the stones are gone. Dolos has taken them, along with the remaining ones. The group learns that the General who sent them on this journey has been under Dolos' influence this whole time, and set their next stop towards the black obelisk, where they assume Dolos' location is. Afterwards, Kai, Frank, and Graham meet up with the group with Derus and his wife Helga. Now that the entire team has been assembled, they make their way into the city where they immediately meet with the General, who leads the group into a portal leading into the black obelisk's top floor. Inside they see a coffin with the incomplete stone's power being drained into it. In front of the stone is Dolos. Dolos summons Leo, and Capricorn. Everyone decided to attack Dolos but they were stopped by the stone's power erecting a barrier inbetween him and the others around him. Dolos opened a portal, engaging in combat with Derus, Rune, Kai, and Zak. Capricorn engaged into combat with Light and was knocked down soon afterwards by Dresden. Abyss, Graham, and Helga focussed on taking down the barrier. Isabelle, Brook fought Leo. Pyce tried moving the black obelisk to get it away from the center of the Noble District, which forced him to Awaken.

With Capricorn being knocked down, and Leo being defeated shortly afterwards, Dolos engages onto Zak and almost kills him before Kai- revealed to be his father earlier in the plot- steps in and takes the hit. This causes Zak to awaken an evolved form of his spirit and weaken Dolos enough for Derus to step in and get the final hit.

The barrier breaks, and everyone advances on Dolos. Abyss, Light, Brook, and Dresden awaken.

The stone falls, rolling towards Capricorn as he slowly comes to.

Brook blasts concentrated lightning at the suspicious coffin, when suddenly a portal opens as the coffin opens at the same time, sending the lightning up into the cieling and breaking it open.

Suddenly the pressure in the room increases ten fold, everyone not being able to move.
Their bodies were telling them something: *Don't move. You'll die.*

A figure wearing only black leggings climbed out of the coffin, binded with broken shackles on his wrists and ankles. His skin color was a deep purple, black hair falling to his shoulders. His eyes glew an unnatural black.
Dolos phased inside the figure. This was his user.

Capricorn got up using what power the stone was regenerating, breaking the control Dolos had on him.

The group began to move anyways, despite what their instincts told them.

The figure shifts its attention to Capricorn, appearing before him and beating up Capricorn and taking the stone back. The figure clenched the stone in his hand, the stone appearing in his forehead as a part of him. Red markings covered his body. The figure opened up a golden portal, everyone except Zak and Capricorn getting sucked into it. Dolos spoke to the figure, telling the figure to kill Zak.

Capricorn stepped in front of Zak, knocking him inside the portal as it closed.

Brook is the first to wake up. He finds themselves and the entire group in a very small shack, what wounds they had poorly patched up and wrapped with bandages.

More of the group began to wake up.

The door opens, a small child wearing a red cloak and bandana standing before the group.

Cantasia- Part 3: The Sun and Moon