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in a forest pitch-dark
glowed the tiniest spark
it burst into flame
like me

Six Perfections was an otherworldly sight. Standing tall and dignified in his long cornflower blue coat with the white furry trim, his pale blond hair moving about in the wind stirred up by the ethereal dragon-like spirit coiling around him. In his icy blue eyes danced the golden lights of the one who stood across from him at the top of the skyscraper.

Ten Thousand Auspicious Signs was a warm contrast to Six. Ten's short black hair and golden eyes suited his darker complexion. A fu-dog made of bright ethereal flame stood by his side, illuminating the dark of night that sat upon the city.

"Just the two of us?" Ten observed.

"So it would seem," Six replied in a smooth voice.

"What happened to Five?"

"She volunteered to distract one of the Oracle's attendants so that I could meet with you," Six explained. "What became of Eight?"

Ten seemed obviously distraught at the very mention of Eight. Six caught Ten's fists clenching slightly and a noticeable tightening of his jaw before he said, "He's a coward."

"I see. That is a pity," Six replied, almost indifferently. "Twelve of us in the beginning, and now only two remain."

"You knew the risks."

"I'm surprised anyone, let alone the two of us, made it this far."

Twelve had, by fate, been brought to the curious anomaly in the East: Clock Town. What happened there formed a bond between them, however strong or weak it was in places, and it was evident that they had a common calling. Only nine of them made it to Neduin City, and now only two of them had made it as far as the heart of the city.

The Arc, the center of civilization, sat only a kilometer away, in the center of an immaculate garden. The elemental pole of metal that generated the power for the technological metropolis, the heart of Time itself, and the seat of power for the Transcendent Oracle who had become cruel and decadent after centuries of unquestioned dominion.

"You mind?" Ten asked.

Six merely nodded and made a gesture out toward the Arc. The spirit-dragon leaped into action, lunging from Six's aura out toward the massive building of virtual glass and etheric steel. It grew in a blinding flash of gossamer light, becoming a massive serpentine dragon with scales of white feathers and eyes like burning sapphires.

Just as Katagami-sama had encircled Six, he began to coil around the enormous tower that was the Arc. The trees in the garden surrounding the Arc swayed wildly in the breeze given off by the much larger draconic fox-spirit. When Ten noticed Six's eyes turning pale, he and Dahui, his phoenician fu-dog leapt from the sky-scraper and landed with a roaring crash upon the verdant grounds below. Like the glistening of lightning blades, they sailed across the garden and errupted into the lobby of the Arc with a thunderous crash, sending fire and light out into the night.

Katagami-sama had, with Six, disabled most of the security locks of the Arc. They also locked some of the other doors that would allow security personal to quickly make their way to stop Ten. Those locks that could not be opened by Katagami-sama or Six were obliterated by Ten or Dahui.

The Oracle's awareness that something was wrong in the Arc became apparent when the Arc Defensive Grid came online. A shimmering wall of translucent hexagrams appeared around the perimeter of the gardens. Several holographic guards materialized throughout the compound.

But the Oracle's eyes were unable to directly perceive Six or Ten. In becoming addicted to Time, she could only know and sense what Time could, and the power and grace of the Twelve prevented Time from identifying and cataloging them. To the Oracle, they simply did not exist.

Six, through Katagami-sama was able to follow Ten as he and Dahui made their way to the Oracle's Chamber and once they were inside ... he was just as blind to the Oracle as she was to them. He waited for as long as he could. When Six caught wind of members of the Elite Guard approaching from behind, he knew it was time to leave. As strong and skilled as he may be, one of the Twelve taking on six of the Elite Guard was suicide.

Six later met up with Five, Seven and Nine - but whatever became of Ten was anyone's guess.