Abysmal Souls Chapter 5

[Nanami Touko]

Amera

She began to pack, waiting for a response from Mel. In the short time before said response, Amera got a teensy bit worried, wondering what was taking her, even though it hadn't even been thirty seconds since she'd asked. And finally, something was said, "Um...well, he's pretty cute." Phew... Amera smiled. Good that she's got a positive opinion of him. "But he's filthy. Does he ever bathe or anything?" Or... not. She sighed, but kept smiling. She did want the truth, even if it was a bit brash. She simply let it slide as Mel's lack of social cues. Not like I'm any better, but still... She went on a bit longer, Amera just nodding instead of getting annoyed. It wasn't like Mel was wrong. "Sure, I won't tell him. Don't want you two fighting anymore than you already do, hee hee." She threw the rest of her clothes into one of the bags that they'd brought along. "But I don't think he smells bad. I think he smells fine, even good. Maybe your nose is broken, Mel." She joked around, wondering how Mel would take that.

Amera, finally finished packing her things, glanced over at Mel, who had seemingly become entranced with Gideon's axe. "Mel?" she began, her hands reaching for Gideon's things to start with his bag. "I'd leave that alone. It's probably really heavy. He'll have to come up and get it himself." But Mel had left this plane of existence, and from what Amera could see, she wasn't coming back any time soon. "He uses this to fight, right?" "Uhm, yeah. Saved me, like, twice with it..." Is she alright? She's going into that... thing she does. And the questions just shot off. "Well, I wouldn't... Mel... I-- could you..." Amera stopped, not even bothering to try and answer them until she was done. She just continued to throw Gideon's clothing into his bag, finishing up as Mel finally said, "Am...am I rambling again?" With a rather heavy sigh, Amera nodded, tying up the bag. "A bit. No, a lot. But that's alright, we're done with the bags anyways... now, about the axe." She threw the bags over her shoulder, grasping the axe handle with both hands. It can't be that heavy, no way... but as she pulled, she felt her arms strain to move the metal object, finally managing to pull it a few inches. But, losing her grip, she fell over instead of actually managing to pick it up, landing with a thud. Shaking her head and sitting up, she blinked a few times. "Geez, that really is heavy!"

Andy

"A-Alright." He smiled, rushing back to the guest room to fetch his staff, before calming his quick steps down to walking, finally sitting down next to Noel and Langley. Andy... He blushed, a bit hesitant to try, now. "Uhm... m-maybe we should just wait, I don't know what using my staff would do to her if she's not actually injured..." Even though I've never tried, so how would I know? But do I want to try on her? He ruffled a hand through his hair before sighing, pointing the tip of his staff at her. "Alright, a little can't hurt." He closed his eyes and tried to focus, letting the magic flow into her body for only a few seconds, ten at the most, before stopping himself. "Let's... just see what that does."

Horatio

'I can't wake up?' He shook a bit, not expecting her to actually wake up while he was talking. "So, y'heard all that, did ye?" She probably did, an' I might be about t'get slapped. Brace yerself... 'So, Theresa eh? ~ I see I've met some sort of match? And nice abs.' "I'll take that as a yes." An' no slap? I'm gettin' off easy, I like this. "Don't get too worried. She was a drunken mess, an' I simply helped her into her own hotel room, before being accosted by some silly knights, er somethin'..." He slipped into his shirt as he spoke, wondering if Carrie would take the time to shower. "So, ye heard all o' that. D'you still want to come along, even knowin' it'll be dangerous? Don't want you t'get hurt, after all."

[Shin]

The Ken-Mobile

'We're taking a wagon? Is it safe? You wouldn't be able to see incoming arrows inside there…'

"I believe that may be an issue. Would it be safer if I pulled up the rain guard? It's only made out of cloth, but it should prevent an arrow from getting through."

The horse drawing the wagon hadn't really gone anywhere for a few weeks. Ken had fed it, but it would probably be happier moving again. He climbed up onto the wagon, raising the hood. He extended a hand to Obelia, ready to help her up.

[Jaybee]

Adonis

Pathetic... She's really going to learn the error of her ways. He walked away from her, back towards the town, for what would probably be another wasted day of searching.

Elune

She's on a horse again

Danyon

Hah... someone doesn't seem as though she's in a good mood.

The streets were relatively empty, and Danyon didn't know if it would make his search any easier or harder. An angel-like Anri will stand out here... too bad I have no idea what her name is, or what her face looks like... But she's probably a beauty. Ha ha ha...

[Rapier]

Asviel

The Original's answer kind of comforted her, as she really felt like "confessing" it all to someone trustworthy. Keeping all the rage, despair and sorrow inside would end up killing her in the inside. "W-Well, a lot of things happened. It's been a week since I've graduated, and my father decided to visit me... It's been a long time since I've last met him, so after he replied my letter I waited eagerly for his return. We reached the settlement at noon, and we were supposed to reach Shuthra by tomorrow... I-I asked him how he was going to do that, and he just told me to believe on him. I know how hard it is to deal with this Shuthra and Lushira relationship, but he tried his hardest to make it all perfect...". Words simply refused to get out of her neck, her rage and sorrow seizing her once again, but Asviel persisted. "A-And now he's dead. D-Dead! Why did that happen? What did he do to deserve this?! His own flesh and blood, my brother, killed him when he was trying to save us! I don't understand why... T-There's nothing on the world that can be purchased by the deaths of innocents! My father's comrades must be all dead by now, too... And R-Rainos aswell... He was my father's pupil until the end, choosing to give me time to escape while he held my brother and the other ambushers. What am I supposed to do now?! Avenging their deaths isn't going to bring them back, won't it? It can't end like that...".

[ReformBlade]

Carrion

She gave Adrian a dubious glance. "I admire your passion, but you don't think there's anything... odd about all of this? I mean, Shuthra doesn't even believe in a witch, why do they want her all of a sudden? You're not useless, but sometimes you're so... dense! I mean, obviously there's something behind this. Most people would want her, er..." Gulping, she continued. "T-They'd want her dead, why do they want her alive? I'm doing this because I have to, and I guess I'm curious as well but... I don't want to intentionally cause more harm, you understand?" Sighing, she let her shoulders go limp as she began to ascend the stairs. "I'm sorry... I'm paranoid about everything, I look for the worst in people, I seem to say one thing then do the complete opposite, but... it's just who I am at this point, you know? I just want normalcy, I really do, and as soon as we're done with this here, I swear I'll try for it as hard as I can." Turning to Adrian, she gave him a smug grin, "You just better be able to keep me entertained or else I'm going right out the door and adventuring again..." Hands on her hips, and leaning towards Adrian, "You got that?" Reaching a more serious tone, she drew herself back. "Anyway, we need to get going."

Alex

"You want this lousy woman alive? Knowing full well who the hell she is?! Listen here, old man, I can get money anywhere I damn well please. Pride has no price, so I think I-" It was then that he heard the witch start going hysterical again, throwing fire towards him. Taking a huge step backwards, he realized how dumb it was to not just sidestep it as he was enveloped in flames. Roasting and feeling just about the worst he'd ever felt, he began rolling on the ground, flailing and yelling like a madman, the fire licking at him constantly. "AAAAAAGH, AAAAAGH, HELP ME OH GOD JUST HELP ME KILL HER STOP THIS JUST FUCKING FUCK END IT SHIT RRRRRRRGAAAH" and then the rest became incomprehensible. Burning tends to do that.

Ignatius

Letting out a groan, he responded calmly to the girl on his back. "Only you can answer that question, you know. It's your life, your decisions, you make your own destiny. So take what you can and charge forward, and if you see an obstacle, think your way around it instead of trying to move an immovable object with your bare hands... I truly wish you will think this through before you do try and go through with it, Asviel, child... Vengeance is bittersweet. If you claim it, in the end it's just murder for selfish reasons." Snorting, he decided to pick up his pace by moving on all fours now. "Just calm yourself down, we'll be reaching... Nishtam by sun down. If you wish to continue this conversation, I will gladly oblige, same if you wish to vent your feelings more, I do not mind."

[Shin]

Lunaria

The screams of Alex soon became meaningless, not that she was listening beforehand. The flames soon subsided, leaving a few odd shrubs burning. Lunaria began to sway, her legs giving way. The tag-team of her wound and fatigue had overcome her.

Why is everything moving? I don't feel so good...

Her head was spinning, her consciousness was slipping. She fell onto her back, looking up into the sky.

"Mr Bush-man? Where's... Aurelio?"

[Anti-Social Meta Knight]

Melanie

Either Amera agreed with her, or she was trying not to lash out at her for talking about Gideon the way she had. It sounded a little harsh, maybe, but it was true! It's a wonder he even shaves... "now, about the axe." "Wait, um, maybe you shouldn't..." But she already was, and the weapon's weight was clearly giving her trouble. Within a few moments she had fallen over in her attempts to pick it up. "Geez, that really is heavy!"

Mel put her hands on her hips and looked at Amera, arching an eyebrow. "Do you see the size of the blade on that?" she chided, pointing at the axe. "What if it had fallen with you? You have to be more careful!" It occurred to her that she sounded a bit worried, almost motherly, when she spoke like that. She isn't a kid...she's probably five years older than you or something. She sighed and extended an arm to help Amera up. "Maybe he should get it," she offered. "I mean, if you can't pick it up, I definitely can't, and I even know how the weight's distributed..."

Gideon

He couldn't fathom how it took the man ten minutes to give Gideon what he got. Ten minutes during which he seemed so busy, too - there was a great deal of sizzling, clanging and movement in the kitchen after Gideon had mentioned that they were on the clock. And now, ten minutes later, he was holding a bag with six (admittedly thick) slices of bread in it, between every two of which was some sort of meat which had to be overcooked, because Gideon could not fathom what animal it had come from. I'm not about to feed them weasel, am I? He ignored the idea, tossed five coins to the man behind the counter and began to climb the stairs with the bag in tow.

Once he was at the top of the stairs, he heard a rather loud thump, followed by Amera's voice. "Geez, that really is heavy!" They didn't... He shook his head and approached their door, and sure enough he heard Mel's voice too. "What if it had fallen with you?" Goddamn it they did. He quickly opened the door to see Amera on the ground and Mel bent over in an attempt to help her up, and he just sighed. "Yeah," he said, folding his arms. "I'll get it." It was a bit funny, but Gideon didn't see the humor in Mel playing around with his weapon. "The rest of our stuff's packed, right?" he asked as he walked over. Before they could respond, he pulled Amera up almost effortlessly, handed her the bag, and reached for his axe, which he picked up and shouldered without much fuss. He could feel Mel's eyes on the back of his head, and so he turned to look at the girl. "Don't look so shocked." The weapon sat heavily on his shoulder, so he adjusted it just a bit. "If I couldn't lift the damn thing, I wouldn't fight with it," he pointed out with a grin.

[Nanami Touko]

Adrian

Carrion wasn't too pleased with his plan. She doesn't seem pleased... maybe I was too harsh? But she explained herself, and her reaction began to make some more sense to him. "Yeah, yeah, sorry. That does seem odd. You'd think that Lushira would want her instead, but maybe... well, maybe they just want someone to stop her going crazy down there? I dunno, but you're right, it does seem odd." He scratched the back of his head, a bit surprise when she slumped over. He sighed as she went on, trying to excuse herself, even though he really just wanted her to not focus on that at all. At least she was still being playful, as she said, "You just better be able to keep me entertained or else I'm going right out the door and adventuring again..." to him. But he still couldn't help but feel that she was completely held up on what she'd mentioned before. So he decided to be ballsy, stepping up the stairs behind her, and grabbing her wrist before she could keep going. "Carrion, just..." hoping she didn't freak out, he leaned in and gave her a kiss, holding it there for a few moments. "Just relax," he said, finally breaking it. "It'll be fine. Let's go ask that magus where Ellandra is, alright? Just worry about that."

Amera

She rubbed her back, groaning a little, as she'd hit the floor harder than expected. "Do you see the size of the blade on that? What if it had fallen with you? You have to be more careful!" Amera almost laughed, Mel's reaction a bit unexpected. "Sure, mom. I'll make sure to watch out next time." Mel reached in the help her up, "Maybe he should get it, I mean, if you can't pick it up, I definitely can't, and I even know how the weight's distributed..." "Yeah, he should--" "Yeah, I'll get it." Before she could respond, she'd been hoisted to her feet, blinking a bit to realize that Gideon had walked in already. "The rest of our stuff's packed, right?" "Oh. Uh... hi." He handed her their food, a rather embarrassed look on her face. "Y-Yeah, stuff's packed. Sorry about that." He lifted the massive weapon with ease, and as much as it didn't surprise Amera (as she'd seen him fight with it), Mel seemed pretty shocked. That face brought Amera out of her embarrassed moment, making her giggle a bit. "Don't get too surprised, Mel. Now, grab your stuff, let's get going~" With hers and Gideon's bags strapped around her shoulder, she took off out of the room, a bit too anxious to go on another adventure.

Reynor

"You want this lousy woman alive? Knowing full well who the hell she is?! Listen here, old man, I can get money anywhere I damn well please. Pride has no price, so I think I-" Tempted to just shoot the boy, he didn't get his chance, as fire enveloped his body. He rolled and garbled painful noises, Reynor backing away in a look of horror. His eyes immediately shot to where it had come from, almost expecting some sort of magnificent mage to be standing behind him. But it was still the girl, who had begun to stagger, suddenly falling over. "Mr Bush-man? Where's... Aurelio?" His lips were dry, he was breathing too hard. So he spoke quietly, scared for his life. "I-I don't know. I'll find him, alright? Just... just take a rest." If she gets me with that... oh gods, I'm not going to even think about it! That boy, he just... he just died! So quickly... He looked back at the still lit form of the other man, almost gasping at how he was still writhing.

Jack and Alfred

It was at this point that they had burst through the bush, seeing a flaming man who would soon be a corpse, Reynor, and their supposed mark. "Reynor!" Alfred shouted, dashing over to him and placing an arm around his shoulder. "Are you alright?" Reynor simply nodded, shaking a bit. Alfred knew why he was spooked; seeing someone burn like that would be alarming to anyone. "Go, sit down, Jack and I will get the girl." Reynor nodded and slowly made his way over to a tree, collapsing against it and holding himself, trying to stop the shaking.

Jack had made his way to the girl in the mean time, leaning over her. "Huh... you don't look that bad. You look like you can't even contain your magic properly." He glanced back at the other two, Alfred now checking the burned man for any signs of life, Reynor collecting himself. He sighed, stood, and nudged the girl with his foot. "Hey. Who are you? You have a name, or should we just call you 'Bothersome'?"

Edited October 23, 2011 by seph1212

[Shin]

Lunaria

More men had emerged from the bushes, and Lunaria had no idea who they were. She really didn't have the strength to fight them, or even stand. One of them had tapped her with his foot and started asking questions, but she really didn't understand what he was saying. Looking up at him, as if she hadn't heard him at all;

"I don't feel very well. Are you going to take me off this island back to Keyes? Everyone will be waiting there."

The fact that Keyes had been a bandit hideout for the last decade seemed to have slipped her mind. She coughed a few times, Alex didn't smell particularly nice.

[Rapier]

Asviel

Regaining her composure a bit, she was able to answer straightforwardly to Ignatius. "I'm not looking for vengeance, I know it won't bring me or anyone else anywhere. But still, something must be done, and I won't rest until justice is brought up on my brother. No matter how much it'll take me, I'll pursue him until the end and set things straight". Discussing about her opinions and thoughts began to annoy her off, also because she didn't really know what to do next. Her mind was in a complete confusion of ideas and feelings. "Can we change the topic? I'd like to talk about other things for now... Like, what's going on with Pravna and Lushira? I know they are enemies, but things seem to be getting tight for them. Do you think they are going into... Into war? And what about the other countries, such as Astarte and Sapphira? What do you know about their current situation?".

[Caliban of Sycorax]

Those two on horseback~

Still riding right along~

Those two who were lovers then became enemies and then just kissed

"Shit. Shit. Shit. Fuck. Shit." Julius paced around the room. "Why the fuck did I just do that?!"

Gabriel sat baffled. "Julius, I--"

That one guy who needs to become useful

Cameron entered the jail, parking the horse he rode on nearby. Not like he'd need it anytime soon. The jail was packed full with people. He learned why from one of the guards--some time ago the guild had attacked some of the arena fighters. He also learned an interesting piece of information about one of the people who had fought against the guild.

"He had this sword. It was insane--it could turn into a whip and then retract into a regular sword."

Cameron recognized the blade immediately. It was Julius. He grinned, and requested to speak to some of the guild members.

[ReformBlade]

Carrion

Surprised by the sudden affection, she let out a light yelp, one that was silenced almost immediately and quickly replaced with a blush. "Just relax, huh?" Leaning towards Adrian, she held her head to his chest as if trying to listen for something. Content for the moment, she smiled and let out a lofty sigh. "Okay, if you insist good sir! I'll just have to get used to your insistence I suppose, won't I?" Pulling herself back but not letting go of her lover, she managed smile despite everything storming inside her mind. "Let's just go find that bitch and be on our way then!" And without any more distractions, Carrion turned herself around and went through the tower's doors, her tiny frame pushing them aside with a strength born of confidence and a sense of purpose. Eyeing the man at the desk, he sighed exasperatedly and begrudgingly greeted her. "Welcome, welcome, just slam the doors whenever you want, not like they cost anything... What do you want here? Attention? Destruction? I-"

Shouting, Carrion held a hand to shut the man up, "Shut your trap, I'm not here to talk to you I'm here to see the head magus guy again, I need to find someone."

"Well ain't that a shame then, he's out for the evening. Said he had... business to attend to. He wouldn't even tell me what it was, so don't bother asking. Unfortunately... going by the description he gave me, you must be... Caron? No, no... there's an I in there isn't there...? Carrion? Well whatever, you're definitely a 'pink haired girl with a fiery temper' that he wanted me to help out if you came by." Hands on his desk, and gritting his teeth, he went on. "So how can I be of service to you, oh great guest of honor?"

Hands on her hips and a frown, she took on a very insulted tone. "Can you drop the attitude?"

"Said the pot to the kettle..."

"What? No, you started this. Ugh! Nevermind, I just need to find some anri girl named Ellandra. White wings, has a-"

"Yes, I'd think that after being here for roughly a decade I'd remember one of my peers, dear. The magus has actually informed me of that setup as well. I'm confused why he'd send someone so sweet with someone so... impulsive sounding, but who am I to question his superior judgment? She lives on the north side of town, just... oh where was that place oh right! She's down the street from the northern entrance, quaint little hovel it is, green with a brown door... yeah, definitely green." Smiling, he stopped as he seemed to be perfectly content with his answer.

"Uh... ... ... Thanks, sir. I'll be going now. That's all I needed." Turning to leave, she didn't say another word to the man.

Shaking his head, he let out a little chuckle and spoke under his breath, "Yeah you better leave, woman... interrupting my goddamn break. Where does she get off?!"

Aiduen and Arcen

Sitting and waiting at her table for what seemed an eternity, Aiduen dug into her food like an extremely courteous yet rabid wolf when it finally came out. Completely unaware of the time she spent, she had just realized that Adrian and Carrion were going to be heading south very quickly today, so without another thought, she payed her bill without tipping since she had waited so long. Picking up her staff from her room, a staff that seemed to be hiding from her out of spite, Aiduen went outside, completely oblivious to the smelly man that seemed to approach her. Or perhaps she was avoiding him? Either way, she began to look for Adrian and Carrion, remembering in a blur that they had left the inn earlier. "Where did that hands..." Blushing furiously, she shook her head in an attempt to throw the bad thoughts out. "Where are those two?"

Watching his sister ignore him like he was some filthy hobo really struck his pride and hurt him down to the core. "Aiduen...?" he called out in a choked voice, wanting to cry but just not able to.

The other islanders

Burnt face man heard the cries of pain and of more pain, and then he figured something out. "Oh... Oh crap, that's... That's Alex, idn't it? POOP!" Shuffling himself towards the direction, he found nothing but another burnt man, a girl and a few other people he had no idea who they were. He did spy his pretty boy friend off in the distance, notching an arrow on his bow and ready to fire at a moment's notice.

Ignatius

"Ah, you wish to know about Lushira and Shuthra, hm? Well... They're both very rooted in their beliefs, and I use the word beliefs since it is simply the best description for them both. Shuthra believes in creating your own destiny, seizing the day, while Lushira believes in complete and total devotion to Lushiris, the Goddess. I personally think both of these beliefs can coincide, easily, but the leaders in each country will not budge... a shame really, a shame that this is all so avoidable, and yet violence is so readily embraced." Taking a small route to a higher view point, he looked over to the east, seeing treetops far in the distance but mostly mountains on the path he was going to take. "As for Sapphire and Astarte... Sapphire is and seems content to stay a country that is ruled by money. I've heard some odd things over there recently. Sudden influxes of anri slave traders and a militia seems to be in development. Neither bodes well. And Astarte... such a beautiful country. So fresh, so young, I must commend that country for forging its own future so quickly and efficiently. I do not agree with its means... but I cannot deny its military prowess. As for anything happening there right now, they're preparing for even more conquest. It is the natural course of action for that nation, and I would honestly say they would be foolish not to continue given how much success they have had."

Sniffing the air, the scent of steel seemed to be fairly strong nearby, making the wolf man tense up slightly. "Asviel, child, are you alright back there? Would you like to take a break?"

[Nanami Touko]

Jake and Pals

Alfred wasn't getting any signs of life from the body, which didn't surprise him, but made him sigh nonetheless. He left the body there and went over to Jake, who didn't seem very impressed with this girl. "This is it? She's the one causing all these problems? Doesn't look like she's got much in her, really..." Alfred gave Jake a light smack on the back of his head, getting an annoyed glare in return. "I've told you to never underestimate people, haven't I?" the gristled man spoke to the overconfident youth that Jake was. "She might still be able to do that," he pointed at the charred corpse, "again, and to one of us. And no matter how much she might try, Alison won't be able to heal a wound of that magnitude. So watch it." Wanting to do nothing but blow the old man off, he sighed and sucked up his pride, knowing how true he was.

Reynor's breathing was finally back to normal. He'd never been near someone who had been burned to death, and he could only imagine how painful it was, shaking the thought away as he collected himself to his feet. He had to help Jake and Alfred carry this girl back, and they had to have some way of keeping her restrained, lest she burn them all away.

"I don't feel very well. Are you going to take me off this island back to Keyes? Everyone will be waiting there." Jake scoffed, resting his hands behind his head. "She's delirious." Alfred nodded, leaning down to her. "Yes, we're here to take you back. Come along with us, and we'll make sure you get there unharmed, alright?" She might be out of it soon. That would help a lot, actually... It would make it easier to carry her back without any trouble. He wasn't about to try and carry her in this state, worried that she might freak out again. "Reynor! Come here, would you?" Reynor looked over at them, replied with a rather quiet "y-yes, sir" and walked over to them.

Adrian

"Yeah, just relax." And much to his own surprise, she listened, resting against him for a moment. Wow... she didn't even freak out at that. She might actually be changing. He let himself give her a hug, never getting enough of holding her there, as she finally came out of her little moment. "Okay, if you insist good sir! I'll just have to get used to your insistence I suppose, won't I?" She seems happy. Happier. Less depressed than she was a few moments ago. "You're damn right you will. It's just a part of me you'll have to cope with." He smiled down at her, her smiling back, a smile that seemed natural. Something he wanted to see more often. "Let's just go find that bitch and be on our way then!" She stormed inside, and Adrian laughed, leaning against one of the walls near the door, his laughter dying down to a chuckle, finally smiling. "Good to see you in such high spirits, Carrion..."

[Shin]

Oshea

It looked like he'd be stuck with this bunch of idiots for the next two days. They were stupid, selfish and had no idea what Oshea had planned for them. That suited him perfectly, they were his pawns for now. He could probably get enough from this job to retire, a life of luxury awaited him. The goons chattered amongst themselves, not wanting to disturb their commander.

Lunaria

She had drifted off for a couple of seconds, the last inferno had taken a lot out of her. A strange man started laughing at her, he couldn't be her friend - ever.

"Yes, we're here to take you back. Come along with us, and we'll make sure you get there unharmed, alright?"

"I'm not going with you. I'll only follow Mr Bush-man, he's nice. You should listen to him as well."

[Anti-Social Meta Knight]

Gideon

"Y-Yeah, stuff's packed. Sorry about that." Gideon nodded, adjusting the axe on his shoulder a bit. It was heavier than Amera probably realized, he figured - he would have to move it to his back before they left. "Don't get too surprised, Mel. Now, grab your stuff, let's get going~" With that, she bolted out the door, both of their bags in tow. Gideon sighed and shook his head. "Where does she get that from?" he mused to himself as he walked after her. "We're on the clock, Mel. Let's get moving."

Melanie

"R-right. Coming!" she called after Gideon as she lifted her backpack and began to walk after him. It was a lot lighter than she remembered; a part of her genuinely missed its weight. That's a lot of metal I won't be able to work with...well, if the monkey's as strong as he looks he'll kill plenty of guys, and I'll just take their stuff and work with it. Easy fix! I'm a genius! The thought made her grin, morbid though it was, and she actually charged past Gideon in a sudden burst of enthusiasm. "Gonna catch up to Amera!" she said in passing as she barreled down the stairs after the anri. This's gonna be fuuuuuuun~!

Within a minute, Mel arrived panting at Amera's side, and she forced her legs to match the anri's pace. It wasn't easy. "Where we going?" she asked quickly for lack of breath. "She...told you?"

Gideon again, because I clearly favor him

Mel charged out the door past him, and before he could even react both girls were gone. I'm never going to get used to that kid. Ever.

[Nanami Touko]

The mercenaries of the island

"I'm not going with you. I'll only follow Mr Bush-man, he's nice. You should listen to him as well." Alfred made a rather confused face, and stood back up, glancing around. "Listen, girl, I have no time for your little--" but Reynor cut him off. "I-I think she means me, Alf. She's been calling me that since I showed up. I don't get it, but, we should just roll with it, right?" Jake kept scoffing, turning away from them both. He thought this whole thing was ridiculous. Reynor bent down over to the girl, and tried his best to smile. "R-Right, my name's Reynor. How about I take you away from these two meanies and off of this island?" He figured that speaking in a child like manner would be more receptive to her; she seemed a bit immature. Alfred smirked, and Jake rolled his eyes, none too happy about having to play along with this girl.

Amera

Amera was happily running along as a gasping Mel appeared next to her. Trying to be nice, she slowed down to a jog, hoping that would make it easier for Mel to keep up. It was almost funny. "Where we going? She...told you?" And now Amera had to stifle laughter, slowing herself down to walking. "Yeah, she said to meet at the southern gates. Like... in thirty minutes, or something. Didn't pay too much attention to that, I just can't wait to get back into adventuring~" She said that line with a rather gleeful smile, almost skipping along. "Oh! Geez, I should be waiting for Gideon, shouldn't I?" She stopped and started tapping her foot, waiting for him to catch up to them both. Better not get that antsy again. I don't think he likes that much. She looked over at Mel, needing to fill the quiet and the wait. "Hey Mel, weird question. How old are you? Just trying to make conversation while we're here, we barely know about each other."

Edited October 28, 2011 by seph1212

[Shin]

Lunaria

Mr. Bush-man's friends didn't seem to happy about what she had said. But why should they be, they weren't her friends. It looked like she'd have to be near them for a little longer. They'd be fine as long as they didn't annoy her. Just as she was about to slip off into her own mental realm, Reynor bent down to speak to her.

"R-Right, my name's Reynor. How about I take you away from these two meanies and off of this island?"

She got up onto her feet quite suddenly, her facial expression changing as she rose - her eyes were far more focused. This had been her best hope of escaping for years, she wouldn't pass it up.

"That would be nice... Reynor. Once we find Aurelio, we can tell him about mother. Please, lead the way!"

[Anti-Social Meta Knight]

Melanie

"Yeah, she said to meet at the southern gates. Like... in thirty minutes, or something. Didn't pay too much attention to that, I just can't wait to get back into adventuring~" Adventuring? Seriously? What does that even mean? There's no way she's a pirate or anything cool like that...well, maybe. The change in pace was welcome to Mel, but it was less than easy for her to contain her momentum, and she nearly tripped over her own feet as she tried to slow down with Amera. "Oh! Geez, I should be waiting for Gideon, shouldn't I?" And then she stopped. What the - Her arms flailed a bit and her feet shuffled as she tried desperately to stop herself. Surprisingly to her, she didn't fall; she ended up standing on one leg, her body angled forward and her hands in the air. The fact that she was forming a human T was blocked out by her relief at staying on her feet - or rather, her foot.

Then she realized how she looked and quickly stood upright. "Balance," she said sheepishly. "Not a cat, so I have to look stupid to make it work. Eheheh..." That fell flat. I can tell already. Play it off... "Hey Mel, weird question. How old are you?" "Huh?" That's a bit random to just ask... "Just trying to make conversation while we're here, we barely know about each other." "I guess." She paused for a moment and glanced over her shoulder. Gideon was nowhere in sight, and it made her wonder just how far she and Amera had gone. Oh, right, the question. "Um...I turned sixteen about four months ago." She said it matter-of-factly, without any shame in her tone. "I'm a kid, I know." She let that statement sit for a while, not adding anything to it - there wasn't much else to say. "What about you? You have to be, like, twenty or something. 'Cause, I mean, you look young but you don't act that young, so it's probably that weird transitional period girls have." She paused. "Girls have that, right? Is it the same for anri? I mean, I'm not really well-educated in that sort of thing, so I don't know. Like, at all."

Gideon

Gideon took his time with his walk - he had plenty of time, and the worst he would get for showing up five minutes after Amera would be a bit of whining, if that. So far, there was no sign of them.

[ReformBlade]

Carrion

Shutting the door behind herself, the witch smiled, almost getting used to smiling in front of Adrian. "Well... she lives nearby, anyway. Some... green house with a brown door, near the north entrance I think?" Jumping in front of the kid, sh grabbed both of his hands in hers, a smug look on her face. "I know you're not very happy about this, I won't ask why, but I will just say that the quicker we get a move on, the quicker we'll be done with this and the quicker we can get our job done and the quicker we can get back to civilization and..." Pulling herself even closer, "the quicker we can be alone without dumbasses interrupting us... sound alright?" Of course, for Carrion, this wasn't entirely up for debate as she began to pull Adrian. Not hard enough to force him to move, but enough for him to get the idea.

Islanders

"Now wait just a minute, where are you taking that wench?!" The burnt man shouted and stepped forward. "WE... are under the direct orders of Shuthra to bring her back UNHARMED I might add. Why, if any of you three lecherous curs lay your hands on her again, I'll have to fry you myself!" The burnt man brandished a rather silly looking wand, but it did begin to crackle as he glared at the group. Yeah that's gotta be her. Some pink haired lass on the island... close enough to pink anyway. He pointed it at each member at intervals, waiting for his friend to arrive.

Edited October 29, 2011 by SlaveKitty

[Nanami Touko]

Amera

Mel's antics had solicited a laugh from Amera, as she answered the question. "Um...I turned sixteen about four months ago." Amera, for once, raised an eyebrow. "You're only sixteen?" she asked with a rather bemused smile, wondering how a girl that age had a body like Mel's. "And you're not really that much of a kid... well, no, you get distracted pretty easily, but you can be mature when you want to be, I guess?" Amera stumbled over her own words trying to come to a conclusion, just making herself laugh, in the end. "Sorry. That was probably a bit mean of me." Containing herself, Mel said another bemusing thing. "What about you? You have to be, like, twenty or something. 'Cause, I mean, you look young but you don't act that young, so it's probably that weird transitional period girls have." Twenty? Whoa whoa whoa... "Girls have that, right? Is it the same for anri? I mean, I'm not really well-educated in that sort of thing, so I don't know. Like, at all." "Yeah, we do, but..." She was trying to contain her laughter once more, unable to stop herself from letting out a bit of a chuckle. "Mel, sorry to say, but I'm only seventeen. Do I really act that mature? I don't think I do, ha ha." She glanced at the road, wondering why Gideon was taking so long.

Adrian

"Green house? Shouldn't be too hard to find." The girl, now apparently full of energy, jumped in front of him and grabbed his hands. It seemed that his particular dislike of Anri was being made apparent, which made him blush in embarrassment a bit. What Carrion was saying wasn't helping, either. "I'm not that obvious about it, am I? I mean... I thought I was at least somewhat tolerant of her." Wow, that sounded horrible... "N-Not that I wouldn't be, I just... wow, I sound like an ass. I think I'm just going to shut up now." Carrion was tugging at him to come along, which he thought was cute, her trying to move him on her own. Not that he was that large, but she wasn't particularly strong. "I get it, coming," he sighed, jokingly, as he let her pull him along.

Oh my goodness island people.

"Now wait just a minute, where are you taking that wench?!" Jake turned, hand on his sword. Alfred stood slowly as he heard the irate man speak. "WE... are under the direct orders of Shuthra to bring her back UNHARMED I might add. Why, if any of you three lecherous curs lay your hands on her again, I'll have to fry you myself!" "Like I give a damn--" Jake went to say, Alfred shouting "Jake!" The man winced, stopping himself. Alfred stood in front of him, standing tall. "We've got the same orders as you, probably by the same people, though I doubt you want her unharmed, with how bad her arm looks. And while I have no quarrel with you, I don't intend to hand her over so easily. I do want to get paid, after all. Your friend," he said, motioning to Alex's burnt corpse, "already paid a large enough price. Don't you think you should stop while you can?" He quickly turned to Reynor, and nodded. Reynor didn't really know what to make of it, but he did what he thought was best at the moment, which was pick up Lunaria as best as he could and start running back to the beach. He didn't think about what would happen, scared enough as it was, and ran. Jake smiled a bit, the first real emotion he'd shown that entire time. "So, we get to fight this guy? I don't think he's going to go quietly."

Edited October 29, 2011 by seph1212

[Shin]

Lunaria

More people had turned up and started shouting, they didn't look very friendly. Reynor had picked her up and had started to run. Perhaps he was going to save her!

"Reynor, you're stealing me... tee hee hee. Aren't you worried about your friends?"

She certainly wasn't. If she had been capable of it, she would have roasted all of them.

[NagafenOfIlivikitty]

-Obelia-

With a rather soft look coming from Obelia’s eyes, sighting how even with murder attempts, the complete change of objective back and forth for the young priests journey, even with the advance of his fathers letter, one that should seem likely to dampen the man’s spirits, he seems rather together, Ken’s lack of worry oddly refreshing for someone who is filled with it nearly all the time. She takes his hand, gently pushing herself up to him and to meet on the wagon, so as to not fall backwards tugging him against her armour.

-Langley-

Watching Andy run so quick would maybe be curious if Langley had s embralce of truly awake consciousness to amuse. She just watches him sit with a slightly dull smile, listening to her friend call in her sleep and with a simple call like that, know that actually she has made the right choice. However much that grates at her. With a slightly curious stare, even slightly stirring from her sleeplessness at noting whether this might affect Noel badly or not… she does jolt. For what happens next first makes her try to stand and then, sink straight back into her chair. For Noel seems to spasm before calming down eerily. Quite a show indeed, her form jolting within the bed, tugging at the sheets… then falling back into half-dazed sleep.

-Noel-

With the rather abrupt healing, it is inside the hazed, twisted landscape of Noel’s mind, quiet as her dream tries to claim her whole… that she winces harshly, at the light that cuts through the dark around her. A burst of light, making her form jolt, as if electrified with the energy that passes through het. She tries to cry outward but finds her body soon falling back, into darkness. What this darkness is, she does not see, it merely claims her and her breathing elevates to regular levels, her body now in just a slightly deep sleep…

-Carrie-

‘Most of it.’ She adds it with a slightly amused grin, a soft chukle coming from her at the slight tease of the guy. It is proving to be an entertaining premise, making Horatio squirm. ‘And yes, take that as a… well, yes.’ She says it with a slight stretch, pretending that the idea that once again, she just isn’t up to par with another somehow isn’t bothering her, nor is it slightly eating at her mind, causing her a small pain inside that for some reason, just buzzes at her. She listens to the description of Theresa and yet that doesn’t help. The idea that a moment ago, she was less appealing to be around then someone drunk just kind of… well, doesn’t help, to put it simply. She sighs, wondering if what she says is because of good or bad reasons or just reasons, but as she stands from the bed, she gives him a firm look. ‘What, not come and see you be a gentlemen for drunken women? Of course I’m coming. I’d pay to see how you can pull that off.’ With that, she takes a small, inward hint and heads for the shower with a sigh.

-Ellandra-

With a grin that grows from the size of a slight smile to a widened width with a flash of teeth, Ellandra takes the flowers and, however lame she might feel it is… gibes him thumbs up. Slightly smiling, she thinks to herself then with a quiet thought, she wonders. Maybe a walk? This early in the day, just a nice walk might be something to go with. She thinks, sighing at having to be ‘direct’ but takes his hand, tugging it slightly to the side, moving from her doorway. She wonders how abrupt this feels to him, but for now she also wonders what to do today? She has a guy who seems half-decent, flowers, the rest of the day ahead of her. It’s a valid thought, she muses.

-Zwool-

With a slightly hesitant blink, his heart decides to avoid going at the regular beat, skipping for a few moments and supposedly crafting such a grin on the angelic-… angel girl’s face. It is slightly annoying almost, seeing someone who literally has to be described as angelic, pure white wings, innocent look, as bright as any sort of light, it’s cliché but at the same time, very literal, almost too literal. He blinks a bit, a hesitant glance at the tug. But Zwool is learning, ever so slowly, that usually, when someone indicates something, try to roll with it. So he nods, moving in the direction she tugs, watching her close the door and smiling, he is surprised to find her makes her blush as his arm gently links with hers. He does too, to his credit. He does very much too.

[Nanami Touko]

Reynor

He moved himself through the foliage as best as he could, while holding her. It was rather awkward, and rather difficult, so he wasn't going very quickly. He'd never held someone before, and his upper strength wasn't the best. "Reynor, you're stealing me... tee hee hee. Aren't you worried about your friends?" Suddenly talkative, are we? He cleared his throat, still moving along. "I'm not stealing you, I'm trying to save you from whoever that was. He didn't look very friendly... and of course I'm worried about them, but they're not really that close of friends, and they can handle themselves." He smacked his face into a branch while he was talking, not having noticed it, groaning a bit.

Andy

Jarred from Noel's rather abrupt start, he stopped focusing, letting the magic slowly quit its work. "I... guess that didn't work." He sighed, but then wondered. What about a more direct approach? It seemed rather silly, but if magic wasn't going to do anything, it might work. It probably wouldn't. He reached his hand to her arm and nudged her a little bit, "Noel?" He felt a bit silly doing so, and blushed, retracting his arm almost immediately. "S-sorry... I just don't know what to do." For someone normally lost in thought, Andy wasn't thinking much, at the moment.

Horatio

"I should learn t'think t'myself more often, huh?" Great job. You know that sort of sigh. You know how she's feelin' now. He slouched a bit and wondered how he could fix this, as Carrie spoke some more. ‘What, not come and see you be a gentlemen for drunken women? Of course I’m coming. I’d pay to see how you can pull that off.’ He almost chuckled, but knowing how he'd made her feel, wasn't in the mood for much smiling. But hearing her sigh, he stands and grabs her wrist, "Carrie, I uh... didn't mean t'make you feel like that, alright? I'm not headin' out to meet her, I'm..." Can I even tell her? He hesitated for a moment, but decided it would be fine. Better than having her think he was just going to run off to another girl "... Going to be trailin' someone I suspect t'be the Crimson Witch t'see if she's truly an evil person or not. And that sounds a bit ridiculous, doesn't it?" If she believed him, that is.

[Anti-Social Meta Knight]

Melanie

"You're only sixteen?" She looks like she's about to start laughing... Mel hadn't started out self-conscious, but that was steadily changing. "And you're not really that much of a kid... well, no, you get distracted pretty easily, but you can be mature when you want to be, I guess?" She was fumbling with her words a bit, but Mel understood her; what she didn't understand was what was so mature about her. "Sorry. That was probably a bit mean of me." Not really. Just confusing. "Yeah, we do, but..." She's laughing. Dammit... "Mel, sorry to say, but I'm only seventeen. Do I really act that mature? I don't think I do, ha ha."

Mel's jaw dropped. "You're shitting me," she said incredulously, her lips slowly curving into a smile. "But you're...you're so pretty! And you're so mature and you act so responsible and...seventeen? Really?" Monkey-boy has to be around the same age, then. He looks like he's in his twenties, but if she's younger than she looks, he could be younger...wait, what if he's older than he looks? Ew, what if Amera's fucking a guy who's just a really young-looking forty-something? He'd have to be rich for her to do that, probably.

Gideon

A familiarly shrill voice hit Gideon's ears as he walked, which told him he was going in the right direction. Sure enough, as he turned the corner, there she was, gushing over whatever had surprised her this time. Sighing, he took his time in closing the distance between them, not entirely excited to see Mel in such high spirits. It's good for her, sure, but my ears don't know that.

"So did you get tired, or did you know I didn't feel like running?" he called over to Amera with a smirk. Knowing her, it was probably both.

[Nanami Touko]

"You're shitting me." She laughed even more, almost a bit embarrassed as Mel began to smile at this. "But you're...you're so pretty! And you're so mature and you act so responsible and...seventeen? Really?" And now she was blushing, unused to receiving compliments. "I'm not the best at math, but I'm pretty sure I haven't been counting wrong all these years. And... even he gave me a birthday, despite..." Her gaze wandered off and she lost her smile for a moment, shaking that off before going back to what she was saying before. "Yeah, about that, Anri develop faster than humans, so that's why I look so... twenties? I've never really put much thought into it. And, come on, I'm not that responsible. Do I really give off that kinda impression? I've gotta work on changing that..." She giggled at herself, wondering if she really did seem as mature as her body looked.

"So did you get tired, or did you know I didn't feel like running?" And there were more smiles, as she stuck her tongue out at the approaching Gideon. "I was waiting for you, geez~" she called back, almost laughing again. I'm having way too much fun... this is a good thing, right? I just hope nothing bad shows up to turn this around. Goddess, please, don't let my life be ruined again.