Ursali

"You're anything but!" She huffed and growled as he finished dressing himself back up, staring up at him as he leaned closer to her, her tail rolling on the ground, wary. Not wary enough, the lizard unable to pull away as in one swift motion the not-elf's hand was around her waist and his mouth greedily taking her lips! "MhphRrr!?" She growled in surprise, body temporarily frozen in shock until it wasn't, her claws grabbing at his shoulders and pushing him away; though, curiously, without enough force to actually push them apart. "L-Like I'll ever cheer for you after that!" Mira saw the not-elf off with a growl and scowl combo, her tail rolling aggressively behind her as he took up his position opposite to the sheep. The match itself played out almost exactly similar to all the prior matches, it was almost formulaic if not for how flashy of a display it was from Roxanne. Sari was finally clipped by one of the woman's attacks, but not enough for it to prevent his follow-up from being any less devastating. When the dragon that she knew to be Alvira quickly rushed up to what was essentially his doorstep, she expected the same result, only to be just as surprised as the not-elf had been by her fire when she managed to come out the victor. He put up a front of being a good sport, but as he quietly slinked back to his seat she already knew what was going though his head. So did her other, poking and prodding at her to comfort him. Incessantly. "Oi. Stop moping or I really will be disappointed. Maybe even feel like punching you again..." She huffed, staring at him, violet orbs judging him, but not for what he thought she was. "Where'd all your confidence go, huh? So what if you got clipped by a spell or three after people have been wearing you down all night. You're the one who said it was fun to watch them fight for fun rather than life or death. You'd rather beat yourself up over the fact that they're finally strong enough to fight someone like you off, when it's on their terms, than be proud of them." She'd long since tuned out her other in her head as she chewed the not-elf out. Alriana was protesting the entire time that she wasn't comforting him right, but she didn't care. Versaris refused to get over his hang-ups about being strong enough, clearly nursing them since their encounter with Luthier despite what he'd told Jeremiah and her other. "If getting beat is all it takes to ruin your mood, how did you plan to enjoy taking me out for food and shopping after I beat your ass?~" She smirked at him, sharp teeth blatantly on display, fully expecting him to ruin yet another of her taunts...

Though she had been the one to invite Owen to their table, she couldn't have possibly anticipated what the cat would do with that invitation. At first, she watched with slight amusement, her eyebrow raised as she sipped at her drink. However, as soon as she was brought into the absolute assault on Owen she nearly spit her drink all over the table, coughing but managing to keep her drink contained until she could swallow it, beating at her chest a few times. The corners of her eyes were alight, her ash grey face flushed much darker than a light buzz would normally give her. Even Seila had decided to jump in, causing the Hellhound to huff. "I already told you two I didn't need any help, damn it..." She lightly growled, downing the rest of her pour with one big gulp, slamming the cup on the table once she was finished. She was plenty damn embarrassed, but not entirely unappreciative of their work. Her gaze landed squarely on Owen, watching as he mellowed from embarrassed to serious and sincere. "Already a damn fine place you got here, Owen. If every Warlord in the country were like you and your people then it wouldn't be the hellscape it is. Keep going on as you are and I'm certain it'll lose that title." She smirked, a wolfish grin on her face. "I'd know, I'm a Hellhound after all." She snatched the bottle from Seila as Lezard brought Owen his cup, as if she was confiscating it for her prior behavior. "I'll make sure to teach these two troublemakers a lesson tonight, so don't worry about them." Though, as she said that, she was in the middle of giving the man of the hour a heavy pour, finishing the rest in her own cup. "And if you're that sad to see us go, maybe you should try a little harder to keep us around? Or at least, send us off with a bang, hmm?~" "Wh-What the hell are you doing!?" She could only watch as the not-elf began to publicly strip himself of his shirt, the azure only further brightening her face. "I didn't suggest this at all you pervert!" Despite her loud protests, she wasn't exactly averting her gaze or stopping her eyes from lingering on his chest and arms, her other whispering in her ear that she knew full well he could lift-- Shut up! How do you not care he's looking at me like this!? You already said he's ours. When you woke up the first time. Don't understand why fighting it now. The moment was seared into at least Alriana's consciousness, her, their, first encounter with the demon known as Luthier. Perhaps Mira simply didn't remember, or, more likely, she had trouble being honest. Alriana didn't understand why, but Versaris seemed especially suited to dealing with her. "Rhrrhhhrrr..." She couldn't handle the not-elf's teasing in place of expected anger or annoyance, especially not with Alriana providing back up. "I already told you I don't feel like punching you anymore! God..." Her tailed rolled and flicked, her arms crossed as he finally put his stupid shirt back on. A round or two had started again at the arena, but once again no one made it to challenge the not-elf, leaving him uncalled, at least for now. "You're impossible, you know that? In every sense of the word. Rrrhhhrr..." Suddenly there was call from one of the newer additions to the Tigers, a challenge to the arena from the sheep clouded that Mira knew next to nothing about given that Alriana didn't know much either. She was certainly different from the other mages that called the Tigers home, and there appeared that there were others with her. Odds were at least one of the mages would at least get to Laniva given that Syndra had, even if the masked one from earlier got stopped by Cinaed, so Versaris would have to head on over. She shook the blush and embarrassment from her face, managing a smirk. "I'm the only that gets to beat you, even if I can't get past the damn cat, so you'd better not lose."

What the hell is wrong with him... She couldn't understand how he could just roll with everything she said without a hint of reluctance or protest in his voice or body language. She expected at least some hesitation, maybe a bit of anger, or at least annoyance. Instead she what she got was what he'd said. First she scowled, as he refused to take the bait, then her scowl lessened as she slowly began to process the tail end of his offer. Surely he wasn't being serious, just taunting her after she'd been digging at him for so long-- It means he wants to-- Alriana wouldn't let her other run from this; if she had to be subjected to Versaris' teasing then so did her other. Shut UP! Having her other able to freely chime in was much more of a curse than she could have ever anticipated, a harsh azure blush lighting up her face. "Wh-What the hell is wrong with you!?" She shouted out, incredulous that he would even suggest such a thing. Before he could pressure her further, thankfully, a new round of the arena had started, the challenger getting to Sari before being beaten back. She was proud, in a sense, that someone who batted away everyone effortlessly got put in their place by the not-elf, but she was equally as frustrated because it should've been her up there fighting him. She stared at him as he walked back over, crossing her arms and huffing. "How do you manage to suck the appeal out of everything? Now I don't even want to punch you." She glanced down at the fresh cut on his shirt. "Just get someone to stitch it up? It's not like it's completely ruined. Surprised you're not using it as an excuse to take it off, pervert."

"So that's why, huh..." He was similar to herself and Alriana, or so he claimed; though, she didn't have much reason to doubt him at this point. His interactions with her other had led him to see himself in her, though unshackled with a predetermined purpose like he was. And now, he wanted to protect their ability to choose their own purpose. From anyone else, she'd have trampled these feelings, discarded them as bait to make her lower her guard to get her to buy into false promises; however, she'd already resigned herself to accepting the not-elf and his promises. She huffed, folding her arms as stated he'd die trying, scowling. "Just so you know, if you die, we're probably following you into the grave. So if you don't want that to happen, you'd better make it happen, got it?" She kept the scowl that had formed on her face as he tried to lighten the mood, huffing once again. "Maybe you deserve a fist in the face. Ever think about that, huh?" Her tail flicked and rolled behind her, staring at him. He hadn't fallen for any of her provocations before, but surely if she kept throwing them out he would eventually fall for one, right? Ember took her seat at Seila's urging, watching as the mage poured the three of them healthy first glass. She shot her a smirk, determined to rib her back for earlier. "Make sure you don't get lost in your cups before the food comes out~" Though as she had taken the moment to tease the mage, and not secure the second bottle, Sylmaria had snatched it and beat a hasty retreat with Miria; as far as the hellhound was concerned that was far out of her range of being responsible. "Welp, guess there's nothing we can do. They'll just have to learn about hangovers the hard way. To be younger and stupider, eh?" She brought her drink to her lips, downing half the pour immediately, licking her lips and sighing in agreement with Amera. Free drink and food was a near cure all for most of her worries. "Ahhh..." "I'll have the spicy dish then if you've already got some made up, boss~ If the pup can handle it, then there's no way it cam out spice me." Order placed Ember had planned to sit back and relax, however an unexpected guest was nearby. Speak of the devil, am I right? Given that his attention seemed fully focused on Amera, it was only reasonable to assume he had overheard her excited shouting. "How about you sit and share some food and drink with us, Owen? There's plenty to share~" There was no 'lord' to leave her lips, a slight smirk to her face. Perhaps it was considered poor manners to do so when he was actively chiding Amera to watch what she said, but she wasn't going to add a title after how their night before the battle had been spent.

"Six years..." She growled, her fury stoked only that much higher with a quantifiable amount of time stolen. Her fists clenched to the point that her claws threatened to dig into her own palms, stopped only by Versaris' own hands clasping onto hers. She wanted to scream, to embrace the Beast inside and rage against the world that had allowed this to happen to her until her fire was extinguished with either Grelbiria's or her own blood. "..." But she didn't, staring at the not-elf as a host of conflicting emotions played across her face. He was the only thing stopping her, his willingness to accept and love her equally as much as he did Alriana wasn't something she could so easily toss aside. From the moment she'd awoken she'd planned and plotted to put herself in control of her own body so she could carry out her revenge and snuff out the tag-along who had been forced to steal her everything. She'd have shifted the blame onto her creator to ensure Versaris didn't abandon her once she'd taken back her life and dragged him into hell with her. However, Versaris offered her a path she'd never though possible, had already devoted himself to it and her. It quelled the fiery rage inside her, at least for now. Her clenched fists slowly relaxed; she knew Versaris' word to be true and it was impossible to lie to herself when her other would not shut up whenever she tried. "How... How are you like this?" He was too good to be true, in every sense of it. If it wasn't for her other relentlessly insisting otherwise, if she hadn't witnessed how he treated her other, she wouldn't believe it. "We... We can do all that, if you want..."

Mira could only stare in absolute disbelief as her taunt bounced off the not-elf like she had, as much as she resented it, bounced off Laniva's armor. "Wh-What the hell!? When did you find the time to think of all this, huh!?" All she could do was bluster at him. She hadn't been prepared for a proper response, her tail flicking as she scowled back at his smirk. "Mrrrrr..." She growled, lacking a response to the genuine thought he had put into his plan. She watched him warily, making sure their faces were far enough apart that she could pull back if he tried to go for a surprise kiss; however, she hadn't accounted for him to grab her again, held against him in a hug as he smiled so genuinely down at her. She struggled and squirmed for a moment, both wanting and not wanting his embrace before eventually giving up and accepting it. "I don't understand how you can be like this..." She huffed, refusing to leave herself any more vulnerable than that. "I don't know if I like salmon or not. And, it's not like I'd know anything about jewelry... You think an absentee, uncaring, bitch," she couldn't restrain her ire, growling, "like Grelbiria bothered to teach me about anything like that?" Her tail had grown more agitated, whipping at the ground. "Even if she did, I don't remember the minor details that much. Neither does th-- Neither does Alriana, probably. I've been 'asleep' for..." It dawned on her that she didn't actually know the current year. Her fists clenched. She'd never had the luxury to consider how much of her time had been stolen from her, only focusing on the fact that it had been. "What year is it anyway?" The words themselves were harmless, but the muted fury behind them was anything but.

One by one the challengers fell before her without much fanfare, save for the dragon with a greatsword of her own. It was impossible to get a clean hit on the woman, her guard too unmoving to entirely escape the reach of her claws when she moved in to strike. Combined with the woman's own counters it was enough to break her armor, the original pushed further than she had patience for. She felt the root of her creation begin to stir as the fight dragged on, awoken by what it thought was a fatal battle. Mira welcomed the urge, knowing the strength it let her tap into, ending the fight decidedly. It wasn't until she was flung out of the ring by the damn cat's greatsword two fights later that she thought more about the incident, lying on the ground and refusing to sit up as she was healed, a scowl on her face. There had been no desire to kill the dragon, to slaughter her where she stood, to drive her knife the extra few inches needed to make it fatal. The rush of strength was long since gone, but as she recalled the fight there was an unexpected clarity to her actions, no haze of murder blending the beginning into the end. No matter how positive a change it seemed, it was unsettling all the same. The 'Beast' inside her was her survival instinct, incredible strength at the cost of being driven almost purely by that survival instinct. Given what she knew of herself, it wasn't possible to have one without the other. What had caused this change? It was there, deservedly, during her bout with the bitch fox, what had changed within the span of two hours? Was it good, was it bad? Only one person knew, and she wouldn't be caught dead here, not with Jeremiah so close. She finally sat up as Lucretia finished healer her, nodding at her but not actually speaking a word before she marched back over the Versaris. Whatever this change was wasn't going to be solved by either of them so it could wait. She stared as she stopped in front of him, arms bent with her hands on her hips, suddenly struggling to speak as the sight of his face up close forced her to remember the kiss. "...You'd better not think that because I lost to the cat you're off the hook for our duel. I never said I had to beat everyone in front of you, just that I had to beat you. So you'd better be thinking of where you're taking me for food and what you're buying me." She let out a quiet 'hmph' as she finished, waiting for the not-elf's response.

Her scowl was swiftly defeated as Versaris leaned in and completed the kiss, eyes widening back in sheer disbelief. She was stunned, her body frozen and stiff as the not-elf held her close and kissed her intimately, a heavy azure spread across her cheeks. She felt her body shiver as his hand traced along her spine, still held in his embrace, her limbs feeling heavy. "..." She had no words for him, it felt like her brain wasn't working, like everything had been shutdown by one kiss. This wasn't an act, wasn't something he was faking. He was willing to accept her, willing to treat her as he did Alriana. This not-elf was more than she could've ever asked for. It was too good to be true, but it was true. Alriana, for her part, was experiencing the rare sensation of being smug. Told you he was serious. You even knew better, too. Shut. Up. She growled, externally and internally, bested by forces within and without. She squirmed out of Versaris' hold, still unable to find her external voice as she retreated over to Lucretia whom he had pointed out before. A line seemed to be forming and she did her best to glare the blush off her face. Finally, now that she was at least a hundred feet away from Versaris her everything seemed to be returning to normal. "I'm participating too. Someone has to put the not-elf in his place..."

She watched him carefully as he spoke, ready to find any bit of deceit in his words and hold it over his head like a proverbial guillotine. She glared and growled as he justified his stare, yet another thing taken from her, but found nothing worth acting on. She was left staring at him, claws clenched, with no proof of her claim but still unwilling to be swayed so easily. "I'm not going anywhere until you give me proof." This was where she would catch him, her trap perfectly laid. "You said it yourself. 'Actions are worth more than words'. So, show me that you're not all just talk, Versaris." What she wanted from him she didn't even know, but she was confident that he wouldn't be able to give her anything satisfactory. "Oi', you don't have to rub it in, Seila..." Ember whined and pouted, her spare claw moving to the mage's head to mess up her hair only to stop as Seila pulled the cat in close as well. Which only created another problem. The hellhound fought the growing flames of embarrassment as Amera shouted for all the nearby peasantry to hear that she had slept with their lord. Not of any real shame of the act, she was proud of that lay, but she never was one for sudden attention from a crowd strangers and the speed at which their heads turned was near dangerous. All Ember could do was shake her head. They hadn't even started drinking and these two were already up to their usual antics, maybe even more rambunctious than usual. Amera dragged them onwards, thankfully, until they ran into one of the Tigers and the dragon that had at one point tried to kill Owen. Both of them were already drunk, the human of the pair already beginning to slur her words. I swear to god if I end up having to carry four people back I'm gonna just go jump Owen for stress relief... "We'll have whatever they had, assuming you still got it," the hellhound called out to the stand's owner.

"Wha--" She was entirely caught off guard by his first question, initially confused until she followed his gaze and saw where the not-elf had directed his gaze. "Where the hell do you think you're looking...!?" Her foot slammed down like a lightning bolt, scowling as a blue tint took to her cheeks. There wasn't even anytime to get her claws on him before he continued on like nothing had even happened. "Mrrgrrr... You'll be doing both for that, you damn pervert." She growled, yet she didn't bare her teeth or roll her tail in a threatening manner. Though, all of her aggression came to a stop as he continued on. As did the original creation herself, staring at Versaris in disbelief. She refused to believe him. Refused to believe it was this easy to get what she'd erase the failure for in a heartbeat. "...You don't mean all that. You can't mean that. You love Alriana, not me!" She growled, her jealousy ignited. Why did the failure get to meet him first? Why did she get to live so innocently, so carefree. It wasn't fair, it was her body! "You're just trying to placate me until Alriana's back out, then it'll go back to how you were talking about me with Jeremiah. That has to be your game. I won't be tricked again." You know he's not lyin-- Alriana tried to speak up, not willing to let her other besmirch Versaris' intentions when she could feel that Mira knew better, but even internally the original was able to roar over her. Shut up! You think that just because you can share my feelings that you know everything!? You know nothing! She just wanted to live. Wanted everything the failure had. But it was too good to be true that Versaris would just accept her so easily. Not with the threat she posed to Alriana. She'd seen the man in action, heard him. He was as ruthless as she was. It had to be a trick...

Ember's fluffy tail wagged behind the trio as Seila led them around the festival, the witch sandwiched between her fluffy companions. "Oi... Finish chewing your food before talking. C'mon now..." Ember sighed, yet had a smile on her face, as she chided the excitable cat. "And do you even need to ask, Seila. When have we ever turned down free food and drink?" Her mood had significantly improved after they had disembarked and the festival had entered full swing. She raised her eyebrow as the cat leaned in, a soft blush quickly taking to her face with the next words out of the cat's mouth. "O-Oi! I don't need help with that, damnit!" She grumbled and growled, knowing that she was far from an expect on the art of seduction, especially with how intimidating she tended to be. That didn't mean she was just going to accept the truth, though. "I'll have you both know I got Owen into bed before we left for Kazran's damn keep!" She huffed as if that was the final say on the matter, but her house of cards would fall to any push from the either of them. "You'll need me around anyway for when you both get so drunk you forget where you are. Someone's gotta carry you both back to the castle..." "What do I get if I make it to you then? What do I get if I beat you? Aside from whatever you have set up with the bazaar." She was still all smug, a toothy grin on display, hoping she could make the not-elf squirm. She glanced over to the entrance of the makeshift arena, observing the Tigers as her other was wont to do. Until her eyes fell on Kise, almost hissing in response to the sight of the woman. "That fox bitch is up there... Maybe I wait until she's gone before I head up there to make my challenge." She'd intended to ignore his question, but now that she couldn't just run into the arena she was stuck with it in front of her. Watching the fighting hadn't done anything for her, effectively watching a pack of strangers politely beat the shit out of each other. The only one she cared to watch was Sari, and no one was good enough to get to him. "Don't really know. Surprised you care more than making sure I'm not causing trouble." She sighed, staring into his eyes before quickly averting her gaze. Looking at him without her guard up brought a lot of her negative emotions to the surface. Emotions that weren't conducive to playing nice with the failure. She kicked her leg up, grabbing it and stretching her muscles by pulling it above her head. Anything to take her mind off of that maelstrom.

Mira had accompanied Sari to his arena duties as promised, watching the variety of fighters try and fail to even reach the not-elf. Laniva was currently the furthest anyone had gotten; had Syndra played her cards differently she could've snatched victory and at least made it to Sari. It felt... almost uncomfortable to refer to the Tigers, even internally, with familiarity that wasn't hers. At least none of them had come over during the rounds; Alriana tended to be fairly left alone by the Tigers, with the creation usually having to engage with the Tigers on her terms for interaction. Mira was all too glad to reap the benefits of Alriana's typical behavior as long as she felt like this. Rather than dwell on that feeling of insecurity, she focused her attention back onto Sari, catching the slightest look of boredom flick across his face. She took that as her que; her tail pushed her off the ground to standing, Mira gingerly walked over to him now that there was a lull in challenges. "Feeling bored, Sari?" A slight smirk had taken to her face, smugness atypical to the face she wore directed at the not-elf. "Want me to run the gauntlet so you have something to do aside from look menacing?~" To the careful observer, although it looked like Aly, there was a never before seen air of peculiarity around the creation. The way she carried herself was different, more confident and less passive than Alriana. Her speech pattern full of disdain for spoken word was gone. And, to the especially observant, the creations usual red eyes and stripes had taken on a deep violet color.

Ember watched as Amera approached her, nearly tempted into grabbing the damn cat, but threw those thoughts aside as the teasing ceased. She knew Amera meant every word as she cuddled up to her arm, that she believed it was a good thing she cared, but the hellhound had been reconsidering since Kansei. She'd already been burned once and, coming off the heels of this magic scare, she knew caring meant she risked a second-degree burn or worse. She hadn't thought much on how serious she was about these feelings and she wasn't going to start right now. Now was the time for celebrating, not whatever the hell was going on up in her head. Things would probably work themselves out, anyway. As the cat had finished up, Seila had appeared and added herself to the standing cuddle pile that the trio now made up. "Hell yeah I'll be joining you two next time. Sitting around on the damn boat as both out employers go out to fight ain't really the best look, especially when I'm supposed to be the muscle of our little group." She huffed, still a fair bit miffed about being on boat watching duty and not getting to knock a single head. "When's next time gonna be, anyway? We sticking 'round with Owen? Or have we not figured that out yet?"

Despite the crow's nest being open air, it was swiftly making the lizard feel as though she was suffocating. She'd lost whatever desire she had had moments ago to be high up as possible, now wanting to scurry below deck and hide herself away. Yet as she watched as Renais was pulled into Kise's hold and, like a switched was flipped, the fox's whole demeanor changed, there was still a defiance to her body language, the demanding glare still present. "..." She didn't have much choice other than to accept what the woman was saying even if it wasn't the answer she wanted; she was no expert on magic, let alone the unique kind Kise employed, and had no way to know if she ought to know more and was withholding information. The only thing that she could maybe take as something new was the implication that the Voice had a soul - she couldn't remember in the moment if Jeremiah had initially implied that when they had realized there was another being inside her. The woman was strange, acting far different than the how the lizard remembered Mikoto acting. Yet the way she looked at Renais was the way Versaris looked at her and, while it took the lizard a while to realize it, an intimacy to her actions. It made the sudden shift in Kise's eyes as she looked back at her all the more jarring, almost as much so as the wolf that had suddenly appeared behind her, dagger presented for her to take. She wasn't so wrapped up in herself that she would refuse the gift, taking it just as Aegean arrived on the scene. If she felt like she was suffocating before, the addition of the mermaid made the crow's nest claustrophobic. She didn't want to explain what had happened to Aegean, part of her knowing that it would likely end up reaching Jeremiah outside of her terms. She agreed with that part of herself, even if she knew it was her other self encouraging those feelings. "Don't want to talk about it," was all the warning she gave before she was over the nest's railing once again, leaping down the beams of the sail using her tail and the rigging until she landed on the deck of the ship, out of reach of the trio left up in the nest.

As the pinkette that her other knew as Renais pulled herself up to the crow's nest her murderous gaze snapped to her, her teeth bared like the beast the fox bitch had called her. Had her call for healing just been a coincidence or did the woman truly know that much about her? Either way, she refused to let her first real outing be cut so short, even if it meant attacking one of the Tigers. She reached her claw out towards Renais to swipe, but with the fox's magic pinning her down her claw was barely able to get off the wood before flopping back down. "You... Next time, you're first." She chose to leave on a threat, purple eyes glaring into Renais' ruby orbs. Her control began to slip as her body was healed out of mortal peril, the adrenaline fading and with it her ability to overpower Alriana's will. I'll be waiting for next time, Aly. You'd better hope the damn fox is around when it happens. Alriana blinked, red eyes staring up at Renais as she asked for Kise to release her from the magic holding her down. Did she even know how close she'd been to a possible death at her own hands? She didn't know how to handle everything that had happened, choosing to remain on the floor of the crow's nest. She'd been forced to take a second seat to her own body as the other self inside her finally succeeded in wresting control, even if only momentarily due to Kise's magic and Renais' healing. Kise had been talking like she understood her before the fight, she wondered if that was still the case. Slowly, she picked herself up to standing, a new glare at Kise now adorning her face. "Will tell what know about me. Least you can do for making that happen."

Alriana hadn't been expecting Kise to start the fight up here, completely unprepared for the fox to tackle her over the edge of the crow's nest and onto the beam. They struggled before breaking it off as they felt gravity attempt to yank them from their perch, Alriana poised to leap at Kise as she found her footing. The fox was fast, she knew this from watching the fight, but she hadn't expected the woman's magic to extend to her claws, tearing into her like her dagger so easily tore through her foes. RRRaaahgh! She let out a roar, but, her lips didn't move, no sound escaped her save for a grunt in pain. What is-- It felt like her world slowed down, her body becoming sluggish to point it wouldn't respond. She shouldn't be dead so what was-- Shut up. A voice hers yet not cut into her thoughts as, externally, a smirk took to the creation's face. I know I encouraged it, but thinking you can beat Luthier? Pathetic. Here, watch how the real 'you' can move her body! Her eyes blinked as they focused on the vixen before her, red eyes shifted to purple, almost alight. She'd dreamed of this ever since she'd been awoken by Luthier's attack on the Tigers, a chance to wrest control of her own damn body. There had been chances before, but the failure was more resilient than she'd thought possible. Now, though, she was finally in control. "Normally I'd thank you, but you need to learn your damn place!!" A swift punch to the bitch's face sent her reeling, shaking her fist as she watched Kise balance herself, relishing being able to feel again. She was on her in a second, claw swiping at her face, not really caring if the woman survived her assault. Her damn fault for having the audacity to laugh at her and be stupid enough to let her out. She managed to move her head just in time, even trying to shove her back, but it wasn't enough. "Just hold still--!?" A sudden kick sent her falling off the beam, head swiveling around for anything to catch her as she moved her body into a position where she could turn some of the momentum into a roll targeted at the main mast so she could climb back up and knock the damn fox off herself. But, suddenly, the falling stopped, being lifted back up into the nest. This woman was no Luthier, but she was still dangerous if she was capable of this. A real fight wouldn't end in her favor. That wasn't enough to stop her from violently struggling against the hold of the fox's gravity magic as soon as she wasn't at risk of falling, snarling at Kise with an untapped well of rage. "LET GO OF ME THEN YOU WRETCH!" Murder was written in her everything, a gaze that could've killed if the damn researchers hadn't abandoned the idea with Sixteen. Try as she might she couldn't struggle out of the magical force restraining her, left only to seethe and glare death from her spot on the ground as the bitch called for another to come heal her body. "RRRRRRghggh...!"

Alriana watched the fox with interest as she addressed her, speaking with familiarity of her situation that she woman shouldn't have had, as far as she was concerned. Versaris wouldn't have spoken about it to anyone other than the Evokers, Jeremiah, and maybe Natalya. Yet she was speaking with more knowledge than even Jeremiah had of the Voice inside her. The conversation with Jeremiah and Versaris was fresh in her mind, the discovery of what appeared to be another being underneath herself inside her own body. The conclusion that could be drawn from Kise's words wasn't remotely pleasing. "What you mean original!? What do you know about me!?" Her tail slammed again the crow's nest, an unexpected spark of rage to her questions. It only proving that the Voice was still ever-present. The dangerous menace to the woman's eyes as Luthier's name left her lips, a look that Alriana easily recognized as the look of a bestial hunter, chilled her unwelcome rage. But it was not enough to cow her into compliance. "If he has something of yours just take it back after Versaris and I'm done with him. Maybe even leave alive for you." There was no instinctual, overpowering fear of Kise as there had been with Jeremiah even if she'd watched the fox go toe to toe with Jeremiah; if anything, there was a confidence that if she could take this fox, then she'd be much closer to being on even footing with Luthier. "Aside from Versaris, one of the strongest Tigers. If don't hold back than I won't either." Renais' declaration ignored by the lizard, Kise's provocation stirring Alriana, and her guest's competitive nature. "Oi, just cause you're quick on your feet..." Ember grumbled as the cat continued to jab at her abs from outside ear grabbing/petting range. "Sh-Shut up!" She half-heartedly growled at the smaller cat clouded, real annoyance starting to pile up, but not having a proper rebuttal to Amera's statement. "Oi." That was one push too far, Ember's tail wagging aggressively as her eye twitched with the last provocation, glowing with just a spark of her flame as she was riled up. "I get you're a near unlimited bundle of energy, but that's nothing a little folding won't solve."

Having sat the entire battle out Ember found herself more that a little stir crazy on return voyage, spending much of her time above deck even if it was just to aimlessly pace about. She at least made it a point to get a workout in when she wouldn't be in the way of the crew, having just finished up as the sun began to set. She stopped to appreciate the view, before feeling the thud of certain furball colliding with her. "Oi, be careful..." She groaned, moreso in inconsequential annoyance than anything else, as the cat was already play jabbing at her. She was glad that Seila and Amera were alright, Amera was still as hyperactive as ever, but hearing the cat talk about the fight just left her feeling frustrated that she didn't get to deck a single one of the bastards. She'd seen the aftermath herself, of Kazran, of the magic blast, and of the men that the Tigers had cut down-- "O-Oi! Just drop it already, will you!?" Her train of thought was abruptly interrupted as Amera brought up how worried she'd been, a dark tint taking to the hellhound's ashy skin. Immediately her claws reached out for Amera's head, her ears specifically, with far from pure intentions but all they found was air, Amera dodging backwards. "You've teased me enough about that, don't you think? S-Someone's gotta look and act tough if people are gonna take us seriously." She huffed, crossing her arms now that her plan to shut the cat up had failed so quickly. "Seriously... Just cause I don't say it don't mean I don't care Alriana had spent much of her time not spent with Versaris lounging in various places around the ship. It had started with their shared room, then she had progressively moved higher and higher on the ship - from the deck, to the mast, and to the crow's nest when it was available. She's made to climb up to it earlier, but the fox had taken it from her this time. Alriana had settled for one of the beams holding the sails, laying down on it with her tail only partially coiled around beam as if it was the most natural thing in the world. He perked up as she heard speaking, quickly realizing it was the fox talking to herself. Alriana barely had a relationship with her, but ever since the Underground had crossed the Tigers even Alriana could see that she seemed different. Whereas a normal person likely would've been extremely concerned with overhearing the majority of what Kise was saying, Alriana could at least relate to some of it. Or at least, part of her could relate to some of it. Thoughts of Luthier brought about a deep hatred that she knew was entirely hers, making her lingering feelings towards Rustal feel like the smoldering remains of a bonfire. For no real reason, she decided to make conversation with the fox, crawling up the mast like a creature rather than use the ladder. "Talking about coward scum? Not the only one that wants to kill him."

"Damn snipers..." Daeran swore under his breath as he kept his HEX moving, relieved that there hadn't been a second shot. It quickly became apparent why, the dust and debris from Kazue's charge up the ridge not yet settled. He moved towards the southern ridge, eager to take cover from any additional sniper fire and keep pace with the squad. "Thanks, 正義の味方!" He'd had to look up, first up all, what the characters in her callsign meant and, secondly, how to pronounce it. He couldn't help the small smirk, despite everything going on, that she had taken that as her callsign. Daeran doublemoves to 26,10 with autorifle equipped.

The woman had been quicker with her bow than the Creation had considered, firing off a shot into her before she could even draw a dagger. But aside from the woman's speed there was little to note of her shot. Alriana had weathered much worse; it wasn't even enough to shatter her armor. With little fanfare her dagger found one of the woman's vitals, snuffing out her life within a matter of seconds. Her target slain, Alriana's attention turned to the real target of their job as the Tigers whittled away the fire of his life only for another unknown to her person to fell the beast of a man with a thunderous call of lightning. Kazran fell, the charred remains of a monstrous man landing with a thud. There wasn't even a moment of silence, the armored archer that had been fighting with them moving forward to stake her claim over this castle and Kazran's lands. Alriana wasn't one for politics, hearing Lati but devoting none of her attention to what was being said; as far as she was concerned the hall was still filled with enemies and her attention would remain focused there. The loud explosion that rocked the very ground beneath her feet proved impossible to ignore, however. Alriana's eyes darted over to the hallway, wondering what could have even caused something of that magnitude. She knew that at least some of the Tigers had to be over there and that with her speed few if any of Kazran's stragglers would be able to stop her if she was to go check. However with Renais and Syndra running off ahead of her it would only weaken their deterrent if their body count kept dropping. Versaris approached shortly after, apparently content enough with the situation to sheath his sword for the time being. Her eyes remained on the remnants of Kazran's forces, particularly the swordman of theirs that must've fancied himself the leader of the remnants, even as Versaris spoke. "Could handle fighting a little more." Her glare made the target of her ire obvious, almost daring him to do something about it were he to look at her. She opened her mouth to ask a question but she stopped herself, already knowing Versaris' answer. "Hmph... Know what going to say. Have to be the bigger people and stop the hate or it will just continue. But people like them won't change until they die." Ember had been pacing around the deck of their ship for awhile now, pretty much since the sounds of fighting had left the range of the dock. She knew they needed people to guard their only method of an emergency escape if everything went tits up, but with both Seila and Amera having been chosen for the assault force she was left with little more to do than worry for the pair. There hadn't even been any sort of attempt by Kazran's forces to go after the ship so she was wound tight. She watched as the fox departed the ship, unable to leave the ship with out at least for some sort of excuse to abandon her post. She didn't think she'd actually get one, but then the whole damn castle shook, accompanied by magic strong enough for even her to feel it! "What the fuck was that!?" She could wait around any longer after that, a part of her immediately fearing that somehow Seila and Amera had been caught up in whatever had caused what she could only assume was an explosion. The hellhound leapt from the ship, bounding into the keep proper at full speed, flames trailing behind her with only one thought on her mind. Please just be safe you two...

Alriana didn't have time to think as she and Versaris ran into the room; Aegean was already in motion, she must have seen what was on the other side of the pillar, reaching out her hand to pull the Creation forward. With what little time was allotted to her she saw Ullr moving in against a woman with a bow who looked to be staggered and on her last legs. The lizard could tell she was a step above the rabble from before, and after Ullr's attack she was fighting to keep the light behind her eyes. She was swiftly behind Ullr, dagger in hand. "Don't know who you are, but you die like the rest." Aly to 18, 28, Steel Dagger Cereza.

Alriana to 15,25, finish off Merc #14 with Steel Daggers.

Aly to 12, 23.

Somehow, the reveal that Leon was actually a member, former member?, of the Blackwell family wasn't the only surprise that Daeran had woken up to this morning; the other surprise was at least pleasant, even if it came with its own set of complications and worries for the future. As he'd read over the Thread created by Tokiwa, he wondered if she would do the same to him if he provoked her; though, his past was far less of a concern than Leon's was... Unless she tried to push some sort of double agent narrative. He still had yet to relay the information Tokiwa sent to him via the video call to Sia with how yesterday afternoon and night had gone, but part of him still wondered if it was entirely true information. Though, given that the information about the attack on the facility was proving truthful maybe she really had been entirely truthful with him... As Daeran sat in his cockpit waiting for launch, a ping on his communicator interrupted his thoughts. It was from Thesephine, wishing him well, something that yesterday would've seemed impossible given how they had clashed in this very cockpit. It triggered a complicated surge of emotions, most of them positive, as he quickly typed back "I'll be safe." It was a minor distraction, but a welcome one to the suffocating silence of the inter-squad comms. The Captain had made her stance crystal clear, but, at least in terms of open communication, there was nothing that had been discussed between the pilots. He'd be lying to say that Leon's true identity didn't give him cause for concern. The Blackwell name was something that he was well aware of even as a boy lightyears away from the Earth; his knowledge had only grown once he joined the CEN and had been stationed on Earth. The atrocities committed by those bearing the name were unpardonable, so how had one managed to make pilot on a CEN ship, let alone board in the first place? Yet, whatever the man's circumstances were, he was here, still allowed to pilot his HEX and not rotting in the brig. Only time would be able to tell if the Captain's decision was a good one. He did his best to put it far from the forefront of his mind as he launched from the Dawn. Thoughts wasted on Leon's situation during live combat would just increase the risk of someone getting shot down, or worse. He could only hope everyone else had come to the same conclusion. Daeran to 32, 13.

"Rrrhh... You still don't know when to just be quiet." She gave him one final huff as they moved down towards Renais, sticking her dagger into the priest as soon as she was in range. The man may not have been able to defend himself, but she was certain that if the rolls were reversed he would have no problem doing the same to any of the Tigers, not that she needed any justification to kill scum like him anyway. Aly to 9, 30 and stab the cleric.