The Guardians of the Crystals- Officially Over

Arthur saw the crystal twitch a little, almost as if it were shivering. He leaned closer to the artifact, but he couldn't hear anything, Whether it was because he was too late to hear a voice or if it was just impossible, he didn't know, but he did know that she could hear him.

"I'm afraid they might start getting suspicious, my Queen." He sighed, picking up the crystal, making his way over to his bed, seeing that it was steadily getting darker and darker. "For now, I must rest, since it's been a very busy day." Not to mention neither of us got any sleep last night. He thought, but it only made him admire the Queen even more.

She had come back exhausted from shifting, and yet still brought up the power to dissipate as many faux-Guardians as she could. He'd only been tasked with readying the party and worrying.

"Goodnight." He whispered. Arthur thought about putting the crystal on his desk, but a sudden wave of mistrust overcame him. No, I must keep it close. He decided and slipped it into his pillowcase before laying down, falling asleep almost immediately.

- - - - -

Rave had been slightly curious when her brother told her that many people had been invited to a party at the Queen's Palace. She definitely didn't want to go, remembering seeing the Queen on her veranda, but when she noticed how ecstatic Allik had been, she reluctantly agreed.

She dressed herself in a fine black dress with blue highlights here and there, clipping a pair of earrings that matched the necklace her brother had given her.

He, too, dressed similarly, except in the form of a nice suit. They went together, and Kara made him promise that he would stay close to her and away from the hostess.

While they were there, Kara noticed some... interesting behavior. She saw a certain group of individuals - including the Queen and what she suspected was a high-ranking Guard or Officer of some sort - going around to some... sketchy people.

Suddenly, one of them turned into a bird and dark tendrils shot out after them, later being disrupted by that same high-ranker. The Queen then expressed her power in a furious display, later being carried to her room as the guests were ushered away by the normal Guards.

I knew better than to go there. Kara thought as Allik apologized profusely to her, talking about how he hadn't expected any of that to happen, and how he knew how she got near royalty and such. She simply shoved his words away with an "It's fine." and left him to go back to her chosen inn.

Oop hold on lemme edit that with Rave's stuff--))

Done ^^))         

Celeste panted softly, exhausted from the yelling. She could hear the sound of Arthur's voice, but couldn't make out what he was saying. She staggered on, the chains getting colder and heavier on her wrists. She groaned with frustration and, with all her force, hit the chain on the wall, making them shatter. Celeste's eyes widened with amazement as she touched her wrists. She was free. She focused hard, and made a ball of ice appear in her hand. She laughed with delight. She could use her powers! She tried teleporting out of the crystal, but her powers seemed to be useless against the imprisonment. She concentrated, and entered Arthur's mind. She could tell he was nearby. Arthur...I'm here!

Arthur opened his eyes slowly, only to get blinded by endless whiteness. He knew he was dreaming, for sure, but he didn't know why he was in this weird place.

He heard a very familiar voice call out his name, and he turned around, his pale brown eyes landing on Celeste.

"Hello, my Queen!" He laughed, and ran over to her, enveloping her in an informal hug he wouldn't dare do if she were really there, but she wasn't (...or is she?), and this was all just a giddy dream to temporarily put his worry to rest. "It is so good to see you once again."

"I'm so very glad that you found a way to save yourself, and to think I'll be able to escort you around more efficiently than I have been!" He chuckled, releasing the Queen. "I don't know where we are, since it'd usually be more... scenic... but I'll take it." He grinned.

(I was thinking that maybe he is in a dream state, yes, but he is actually inside the crystal with her until he wakes up. That's up to you, though ^^)

(Okay, sure)

Celeste embraced Arthur awkwardly. "Yes, well...this is only a dream state. You'll be returned soon." She pointed to the shattered remains of the cuffs. "I managed to break them. Somehow." She rested a hand on his arm, glad to see him. "Anyway. I need to follow that path-" She pointed to the rainbow strip. "-to the core. But I'm sure there are going to be distractions and obstacles. I shall let you enter once in a while, to assist me." She gripped his shoulders. "What happened with Cora? And Luna? And-" Suddenly the dome rumbled. She glanced at Arthur frantically. "The first Obstacle. It's the Key Master." She squeezed Arthur's hand. "You have to go. You can't survive him." She kissed his cheek, then flushed. "What did I just do?" She muttered. She managed a smile. "Well, good bye." She waved a hand, and he dissipated into mist.

Arthur tilted his head at her when she confirmed he was in a dream state -- he knew that, right? He felt a bit confused, and after some time began to wonder if he had just hugged the true form of the Queen.

When the dome rumbled, and she mentioned something about a Key Master, he tensed. "Wait... who?" He asked, looking around with narrowed eyes. His guard was definitely shattered when she squeezed his hand and kissed his cheek. His whole face seemed to get a bit warmer in color.

"I must stay!" He argued, but if she wanted him to leave and deemed it as best for him, he could only follow her 'orders' (and it wasn't like he could do much against her power.

The red-haired general's eyes shot open, and he sat up quickly, his hand seemingly gravitating towards the cheek that Celeste'd kissed. It made him smile, but newfound worry soon caught up to him. She said something about the Key Master. Who is that? Can they hurt her more than she already has been? What if I'm not there to bring her back to consciousness that time? The thoughts whizzed through his head, but there was little that he could do.

He took out the crystal from his pillow just to make sure it was still there. "Good luck, my Queen." He said softly, putting it back. He laid back down. He didn't think that he'd be able to go back to sleep, but his tired body obviously disagreed.

Celeste faced the new darkness. A shadowed figure appeared from the fog. The figure was a woman, a raven-haired woman who was swinging a silver key on her finger. She smiled. "Hey, Cee. It's been a while." Celeste gritted her teeth. "Kylie." Kylie laughed. "Oh, I'm not Kylie anymore. I'm Keye, pronounced "KAYE". And I'm here to kill you." She flung the key at Celeste, who caught it. She threw it back. "Stop kidding around, Kylie. Let me pass." The fog suddenly became suffocatingly dark. "I. Am. KEYE!" She swung the key at her face, leaving a scratch. Celeste fell to the ground. She summoned a ball of fire and blasted Kylie, but the fog seemed to protect her. "You were a Guardian too, Kylie. Give it up." Kylie snarled. "I found a better me, Celeste." She kicked her away. Celeste, now desperate, called Arthur. I shouldn't have let you go. Come back. Its dangerous, but you're the only one who can help.

Luna had fallen asleep, sometime during the night, but her dreams had been plagued by nightmares and she awoke the next morning, with a gasp, "I have to find out what is going on with Celeste and Arthur" she thought and slipped silent from the bed, getting back into her old dress before tiptoing out of the room, outside the door, she shifted into the form of a bloodhound and headed off down the hall sniffing the air, trying to find the scent of Arthur,

Cora awoke, just missing Luna slip out the door. She rubbed her eyes. Luna's room was empty, the door ajar. She peeked out, and a bloodhound(probably Luna)was sniffing along. Cora caught up to her. "Smell anything?"