Grazing The Sky

The flames dissipated, and Zidane no longer found himself standing on the concrete surface of the plaza. The energy of this place alone was more than he needed to have in order to identify exactly where he was.

'It's been... A very long time since I've been in this room.'

It hadn't changed much in the ten years, either. The walls were still the same red coloring, decorated with black-framed mirrors and web-like designs running along the edge where the wall met the ceiling. A ceiling that was also made up of a mirror. Zidane only had to see the beginning of it to know she had added in this reflection. He looked away from the mirrors on the walls and ceiling, attention going to the large portal in front of him.

The portal hadn't been opened yet, resulting in what looked like a crack in reality. A long, jagged line separating the wall behind it, distorting everything above and below.

Ezyta turned around, as if finally sensing his presence. She stared at him, light eyes taking in the uniform he was wearing-studying him from her towering height. Her chin lifted, eyes narrowing and bringing her disturbingly long eyelashes close together.

"You're mucking up my floor."

Zidane fought every urge to wipe his boots hard against the carpet. He stayed standing, cooling down his frustration as much as he could... But it was hard, being in this room with her again...

"I figure you could've just pulled him out yourself," he said, referencing the portal in front of them.

Ezyta blinked slowly, those eyelashes touching for a moment and sending a flash of sickness into Zidane's gut. "Pulling him out," she began, "if you do mean energetically forcing the host to us, would rip its body apart. It doesn't look pretty. Rather messes up the product, as well."

"So..." He rose onto the balls of his feet, at a loss for words. "You're sending me to go get him?"

"You're the only one who can, Zidane. Its puny mind will recognize you as familiar, given what similarities you share..."

"Right." He'd forgotten about that detail.

He rotated his wrist, stretching out the muscles that were weighing down with fatigue. As his hand completed the circle, the yellow book fell into his grasp, landing between two fingers. His other hand found his pocket as he held the book up to her, turning the text until the cover was displayed.

"So this is for getting back, right?"

"Yes. If our product stays alive that long, of course."

A dark energy swept down his back; near his shoulder blades like shadows descending downwards. She kept talking like he wasn't even a living thing...

'Can I really expect anything different from her?'

He didn't answer his own question, knowing full well who Ezyta really was. His focus trained on the portal again, and he felt the energy begin to pull him as he walked towards it. Zidane stopped a little more than arms length away, the memory of Zooka holding his hand through the doorway coming back.

His eyes closed, focusing on the sight of her face. The worry, the laughter as he wiped the concern away.

"I need you to make me a clone." The words came from his mouth, spoken easier than he thought they would be.

"Hm." Ezyta was interested-anything to attribute a longer life of suffering for him. "How much more can you run away, Zidane?"

His eyes clenched a bit tighter, pain fl.i.c.k.i.n.g into him. He let out a breath through his nose, determined to deny her question.

'I'm not...' He focused on breathing normally, focused on swallowing down the emotions trying to suffocate him again. 'I'm not running... I can't...'

But he was. He knew he was still doing what he did best.

He felt Ezyta's fingertips pulling against the fabric of his jacket. And soon, he could feel the pressure like a hollow copy of his own body, slowly sliding out of himself. The feeling was odd; something he had never quite experienced before. He felt the details of his own face slip out of the back of his head, felt his fingers pull away from the back of his hand. And then the pressure fell away.

Ezyta made another sound of brief interest. "I'm almost surprised I got everything right."

She was expecting him to turn around, to look at the clone. But Zidane only stepped forward, feeling the portal try and draw him closer.

"Send it to Zooka," he told her. Part of him was almost scared, speaking to Ezyta like this. But... After what she had done... No; a few commanding words were more than justified.

"I'll need to conserve all the energy I can."

He expected Ezyta to shoot a comment back. He expected her to do something, but he only heard the sound of fire ripping around the clone. A slight moment of fear dropped into him.

She was closer to him now; the feeling of her aura almost making him visibly shrink away. The energy was dark, sending a color deeper than black into his mind. He focused on Zooka again, remembering her smile, the angelic white of her energy.

Zidane could feel the words before they came, the tension like a gun being pointed at him. He stayed still, barely even breathing as she walked up to him, long heels soundlessly moving her to his side. She spoke, the words dripping from her lips like black ink.

"And Zidane?"

He turned, blue eyes meeting pale golden ones.

Ezyta smiled.

"Betray me again, and I will destroy your existence."

A shred of feeling and the portal opened, suspending Zidane in blackness.

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A/N: And Ezyta is introduced! What do you think of her so far?