In a cold dead world, a world full of fierce beasts and hidden terrors, a new life is just beginning...
"Ahhhhhhh!! Fuck god damn ittttt!!" A beautiful blonde womans agonized scream echoes through the small cave.
"You're doing great Danielle, just keep pushing!" the woman's husband, a stern-looking black haired man with a resemblance to modern models attempts to comfort her, In his hands lies an orb which emits a constant white light.
"God damn it Edward shut the hell up before I bash your face in!!" Danielle threatens through the pain.
"Ahah, she told you!" A grizzly looking brown haired man laughs at his captain's expense.
"Flint, Shut up and wall off this cave already before we attract a swarm of unwanted guests!" Edward glares at his subordinate, who quickly raises his hands which emit a brown energy before the stone at the mouth of the cave close the gap, leaving the only source of light to the orb in the captain's hand.
The birth considers in silence, aside from the blonde male crouching in a corner of a cave, glaring steadfast at the wall and mumbling to himself. "I refuse to watch my sister give birth, I refuse to watch my sister to give birth..."
"Like I want to be giving birth in a musty gave with you either jackass!" The woman glares at her brother, Dale, with a red face.
"It's alright honey, it doesn't matter if it's here or a palace fit for the gods, I'm here for you." He takes her hand and gives her honeymoon eyes.
"Shut up and get my baby out of there, you dunce!" Danielle blushes at his idiocy.
And with that the birth continued, a high pitched cry soon filled the air. "It's a boy honey!" Edward exclaimed with joy.
"Tidus.. My baby boy." Danielle held the baby with a relieved smile on her face.
The peace lasted for but a moment, before a rumbling came from beyond the sealed mouth of the cave, creating a cold silence upon its inhabitants.
The silence reigned for several minutes, the mother holding her hand over the newborn's mouth to silence his cries as the whole party stared tensely at the cave entrance.
A roar grew in the distance as whatever had been searching outside the cave ran off into the distance.
Flint, who was closest to the cave entrance put his ear to the wall, waiting silently before releasing a sigh of relief. "Whatever monster that was outside is go-"
The world froze as a tall male with silver hair, purple eyes, and a leather coat appeared beside the new mother and her child. "Lowly beasts. I can't have them harming you yet now can I." With a flick of his wrist, the newborn Titus flew into his arms, on contact emitting a cry as he was freed from the locked time.
One wave of his hand and the baby calmed, falling asleep instantaneously. The man looked over the baby as his eyes begin to glow. "It will do, but barely...."
He held his arm out as a rift formed before his hand, reaching in he pulled out a marble sized Iridescent clear gem, a myriad of colors twisting about within.
The unknown man muttered swiftly at an imperceptible speed, slowly creating a small incision in the child's hand before pressing the gem into the wound.
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With a faint glow, the gem faded into Tidus's hand as the wound began to close itself at the silver haired adult's will. "Grow well, and return." The man lowered Tidus back into his mother's still frozen arms before fading away.
"-ne, I swear we were done for." Flint grinned.
"It's no laughing matter! My baby isn't about to become monster food! I don't care how powerful they may be." Danielle looked down at her now sleeping child, impressed at a child's ignorance of danger to where they can fall asleep in such a situation.
Edward scoots over to sit besides his wife, looking down at Tidus. "At least the birth went without any problems... God, I can't believe we have been stuck in this hell hole for almost an entire year.. No matter how hard we search, it's as if the gates have closed." His words bring a solemn silence to the cave.
Dale sighs as he moved back over to the group now that the horrors are over. "They're not going to close just like that, would they? After being open for thirty odd years there has to be a way out." It was obvious that he was attempting to be optimistic and improve the mood, but it had little effect.
Flint crouched down with the group, with a quiet laugh he spoke. "Oh cmon, after we return from such a long expedition we'll be right as rain." He lifted up a sack of clanking gems. "With these, we will be rich, which may not be a difference to you nobles but to a commoner like me I could stay in the brothel and never leave for a year!"
"And that is why you will never marry." Danielle glares at him.
He flinches "Oh cmon, you're husband used to go with me all the time."
Swiftly the man is smacked over the head with a rod of Ice. "You traitor!" Edward groans as he glances at his wife's twitching and cold smile.
With that, the group slowly fell asleep, aside from one who would be the first for the lookout rotation. throughout the night opening the cave entrance to let in fresh air...
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The next morning the group packed up their supplies and headed out of the cave, looking out at the rising purple sun and the gray sky.
"Hahhhh... If we ever get home I'm never returning to this hell.." Dale frowned at the once foreign sky.
"Mm, an adventure wasn't all it was cracked up to be... Danielle held her still sleeping baby in her arms, she had checked to see if he was okay throughout the night, as normally a newborn would not sleep for such a long time, but his breathing stayed normal and he appeared fine.
"We will go home, it's just a matter of ti-" Edward began to comfort as he looked at the almost unbelievable site that stood before them.
A black gate of swirling gold energy.
"Wha... Hurry! Get through before that bastard decides to close!" Dale grabbed his sister by her arm and pulled her towards the gateway, the rest following behind him at a fervent speed.
Swiftly they entered through the gateway, one instant they were in a dead forest, with a gray sky above their heads and the next they were surrounded by armored knights in a vast field, blue skies lie above them.
The knights wore shocked expressions at the humans appearing from the other world, and so few in numbers at that.
"T-thank god..." Danielle broke out in tears and hugged her child and husband tightly.
Mutters spread through the crowd of knights as an official looking male with gray hair stepped forward. "Edward and Danielle Aenward? Dale Estyn? You live! It’s a miracle, we must strike your names from the obituary at once, but... what of the rest of the expedition force?"
"Dead. everyone..." Edward spoke with grief in his eyes, thinking of those who followed him only to die in a world not their own.
"I see.. I am sorry to hear, May I have the specific number for the files?" The official takes out a book and quill, false sympathy in his eyes.
"586 knights, 10 mages, and 15 medics... The survivors, me, my wife, our child, Dale, and Flint. I expect his family to be informed that he lives as well." Edward resists the urge to glare at the prideful official.
"Your child..? But Sarah and Willis are accounted for, then.." The official looked down at the newborn in Danielle's arms in surprise. Almost as if by his attention Titus awoke, emitting a cry "You had a child? In the other world...?" The official looks astonished, as through pregnancy the mother's mana is mostly drained, leaving the chances of survival in such a dangerous place slimmer than it normal survival in such a land already is.
"His name is Tidus." Danielle looked down to offer an affectionate motherly smile at her child before gasping in surprise.
Within the baby’s pupils lie an iridescent cascade of swirling colors.