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[Arato]

"I apologize for being so rude, but can you just tell me why this city is in lockdown?"

"I too apologize, I have been hasty in my judgments of you. The city is in lockdown because a two men and a neko caused an uproar. Now if you will excuse me, I am in a dreadful hurry." Adrasteia was standing directly behind the man now. Without giving the man time to respond Arato grabbed Adrasteia's hand and went further into the library to find the fairy.

[Shekey the Green]

(OOC: Hey guys, let me control Adrasteia. She is my character, after all. Either that, or read my posts. Because I specifically said she wasn't feeling weak, just numb. There is a complete difference.)

A whirl of confusion swept over her as Arato carried her? He was dragging her all about the city.

As they headed towards a giant building...She pulled away from Arato. Her mind was finally in the right place.

"What the hell is going on?!" She screamed. Her blood was beginning to boil once more. Lotus wasn't here to interfere. Arato looked surprised. "I don't blindly follow people. Explain, or I'm gone." If she did it again, she didn't want to be the cause of a friends death.

---

Alabast looked sternly at the people next to Lotus. His eyes dark. Wind started to blow, slightly; his hand was resting lightly on the hilt of his sword.

"Listen here, you bastard. This little lady is ours, and we're here to interrogate her," the man said.

"Why would you need to interrogate a woman...under the cover of night?" Alabast asked, almost curiously.

"Oy, that's none of your business," one of the men said as he drew his sword. "You're probably allied with her!"

Alabast grabbed Xavier. He threw the boy behind him and pulled out his sword.

Edited by Shekey the Green, 08 February 2009 - 01:17 PM.

[Arato]

(ooc: sorry, I've been a bit hasty. I apologize.)

"What the hell is going on?!" She screamed. Her blood was beginning to boil once more. Lotus wasn't here to interfere. Arato looked surprised. "I don't blindly follow people. Explain, or I'm gone."

Arato, seeing Adrasteia was back to her normal self, began explaining.
"I'm sorry. We are leaving the city as soon as possible. Lotus and Nameless are already by a secret exit, I don't know about Alabast and Xavier yet though. As soon as we meet up with a small fairy named Gwen in this library we will go meet Lotus and Nameless, if the others aren't there yet then I will go find them, but you MUST leave this city. Before, you were unconscious and I had to protect you. Now, I can no longer assume that as my role, please accept my apology and listen to me. It is too dangerous for us to stay. Even if our entire group were here protecting you, you would not be safe for long. I hope you understand my concern and will obey my wishes. I know you are a capable woman but I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you." Arato sighed. "If you choose to stay, I will do my best to protect you..."

[cubeboy]

Cecil turned to look at the 2 as they almost sped away. He followed, even more curious to see what was happening to them now than what was happening in the city. The other person pulled away from the boy he had been talking with for a moment. He saw her face, and memories of his own life came flooding back to him. It became obvious to him why this city was in lockdown, and what these people had on their minds. With the full moon closing in, he himself had to leave the city soon, though he had hoped he could be tolerated enough to stay. He began realizing now, that was a fool's dream. He ran towards the pair at a pace almost matching their own. With the full moon so close his strength was as if he was 20 again. Arato who was now in a more awareful and cautious state heard the sound of wind and footsteps from behind him. He turned, his hand lowering to the level of his dagger, prepared to fight, when he noticed it was just the old man. "Is there anything I can do to help you?... I am needing to leave this city soon as well." stated Cecil. The meaning of the later half of his statement was evident only to the neko standing before him. "While looking through some of these old books I have seen the layout of this city, I noticed several good spots to exit if necesary-- just a hobby of mine.."

[Arato]

(ooc:Sorry for the short posts lately, there isn't too much I can do at the moment.)

"Is there anything I can do to help you?... I am needing to leave this city soon as well. While looking through some of these old books I have seen the layout of this city, I noticed several good spots to exit if necesary-- just a hobby of mine."

Arato replied, "It is up to her whether or not I leave or stay, but we have already found an exit, thank you."

[cubeboy]

"It is up to her whether or not I leave or stay, but we have already found an exit, thank you."

Cecil knew they had to leave, and he did as well. He knew that the city was looking for them, but no one was looking for him... for the time being anyway. He could leave easily, but he wanted to help these people. He had been through so much in his life, he understood how they felt. He did not know if they could trust him, but he hoped at least the neko would understand his desire to help, because by now she knew what he was. In his mind he debated whether or not to tell the boy, but if he waited he could find out whether or not the neko would inform anyone else of his identity as a werewolf.

"Wait. You have already found an exit, that is good, but.. may I come with you?"

[Crimson Lego]

Seeing as that person had ignored him and left, Leo shrugged and went back in the opposite direction. After a short walk, he reached the city, and walked along one of the walls. In one of them, he found a sizeable hole and got through it. Darting through the shadows, he avoided all the soldiers and waited for someone to come by.

[Steel Samurai]

Wil leapt easily into the back of the wagon and sat on top of a wooden box, Kreyhana within easy reach. He listened quietly to Lara and Sephrenia talk, discerning what he could of them from their speech. It seemed that crime was not so prevalent that Lara could simply proclaim who she was. Good. That meant that the city guard was doing their job.

The wagon rolled up to a rather narrow pass between two tall buildings. There was a young . . . woman? boy? being accosted by two seedy looking chaps. Wil glanced up at Lara, a questioning look in his eyes.

[Shekey the Green]

Adrasteia listened to his words carefully. She thought for a moment.

"Take me to the exit," she said quietly. "We'll decide where to go from there."

She still had to do something. She just didn't know what. Maybe the soothing sound of Nature would help.

[Goose]

An explosion of sorts occurred inside snoogyfoofies stomach, and the results ended coming out his rear, causing a noise not unlike the snort of a constipated dragon. The barkeep looked up at him, and saw that he'd run out of money, so he motioned to his security, who just happened to be his incredibly huge and pregnant wife, to remove the dwarf from the premises. Being in the state that he was, snoogyfoofie had no choice but to comply.

Once he'd been 'removed' for lack of a better word, snoogyfoofie looked up from the cobbles on the street and saw people talking in the distance. They reminded him of a place and a time that h'ed never been involved with, and the faces looked like they had rainbows coming out their eyes which were doing dances with ponies.

Yep, snoogyfoofie was drunk, and in that sort of happy drunk stage, before the vomit, and long before the morning after. He stood up and uttered a cry of

"Shivmtirs" which in his head sounded like "Shiver me timbers" but his brain and mouth weren't on speaking terms.

[Arato]

"Take me to the exit," she said quietly. "We'll decide where to go from there."

"We will leave shortly then, there is still the subject of the fairy I mentioned before. She should still be in here; I'll go look for her. It may be best if you follow me."

At this point the old man interjected.
"Wait. You have already found an exit, that is good, but.. may I come with you?"

Arato glanced at Adrasteia questioningly.
"I told him it was up to you whether or not he could come," he whispered to her.

[cubeboy]

"I told him it was up to you whether or not he could come," whispered Arato.

Cecil was able to hear this, even as feint as it was. He knew it must be a sensitive situation. He had seen the layout of the city, and had a fairly good idea of where they were going. He also knew he had to leave whether or not they did. He decided to leave them and go on ahead, hopefully he could talk to them again before they left or meet up with them after they departed the city.

"I don't mean to force myself upon you, I will go."

As he began walking, probobly in the direction they would be headed, he still wanted to help her.. somehow. He was travelling at a regular pace, faster than the old man that he was. Only a few blocks from the library he noticed a gaurd. With the city in lockdown there were bound to be gaurds around, and if they saw the boy and the neko then bad things could happen. He quickly slowed to a turtles pace and placed more of his weight on his staff. As he approached the gaurd he had to think of a good story.

"Evenin' sir, its gotten quite dark and my memory is not as sharp as it used to be. Can you guide me to the Red Feather Inn?"

Cecil had remembered a few buildings throughout the city, he just hoped the maps he had read were recent.

"For some reason it seems darker during times like this. Let me guide you, its not too far," replied the gaurd.

Upon arrival Cecil thanked the gaurd, and then waited for him to leave. Once he did Cecil headed for the exit.

Edited by cubeboy, 09 February 2009 - 07:16 PM.

[Goose]

Snoogyfoofie awoke from slumber. He could taste the concrete he'd been sleeping on. His head felt like a fat man had been sleeping on it. The smell that exuded from him was as if that fat man had farted after eating some sort of rabid stew and than fallen asleep on the poor dwarfs head.

Snoogyfoofie got up and started to wander around, looking for something to make the pain go away.

[Crimson Lego]

After making his way through a few houses, Leo eventually came upon 2 people walking, a guard and someone else; he couldn't clearly identify them in the dark. Soon, the guard left and the other person went on his way. Leo jumped out in front of him.

"Hi there. You, uh, heading somewhere important?"

[Nightshade]

Gwen zoomed up to where Arato was standing with the others. OH! Wow!!
Gwen had never seen a Neko before, and the chance to do so was exciting.

"Arato, sorry I'm late... I got a little caught up in the moment..." So like me. She thought.
"Are we leaving then?" She eyed the Neko rather warily. She would be hard to move through the city.

[nameless]

"Ok, I think we should calm down a bit." Nameless steped out of the shadows, gun drawn. "You two drop you swords." Nameless motioned at the guards.
"What the hell!!" The Guards turned to the newcomer. "Its just a kid with a phony gun he's no threat." the other guard said. "we'll deal with you later Kid, but first we have to deal with the real threat." the guards turned to Alabast. "Ok we will give you till five to drop your weapon. One. two. Three. Four. Five. Get 'im." The guards lunged at Alabast. Blam!!! One of the guards was knocked off balance by the force of the bullet hitting his arm, the other guard stopped. "Underestimate the kid wouldn't you, well guess what I'm way more dangerous than you think." Nameless began walking closer to the guards. "Now will you kindly drop your swords so I don't have to shoot you again." The guard that Nameless shot got to his feet slowly. "you shot my arm you bastard!" "Your lucky I didn't shoot your head." Nameless responded. "However if you would like me to shoot you again I would be more then happy...."Nameless said as he pointed his gun at the guards leg. "Just drop your sword, Karl I don't think we can win this battle..." The guards dropped their swords reluctantly. "Ok now sit down back to back." the guards sat. "Here Lotus tie them up with this." Nameless said as he held out some rope for lotus to grab. "Alabast you allright?"

[cubeboy]

The gaurd had left, Cecil was prepared to resume his trip to the exit, he hoped he had stalled for enough time. He regained his posture, his back still a bit stiff from walking like an old man for several blocks.

"Hi there. You, uh, heading somewhere important?" stated the dwarf now in front of him.

Cecil instantly drew his staff to a defensive position, he had been so focused on his person he had not noticed someone lurking around him. The character in front of him being a dwarf no less, a very unlikely creature to sneak up on a werewolf in the darkness.

"Quiet for a dwarf..." he said in a silent tone, he quickly followed with a response to the question, "I am heading somewhere of importance to me, but it is of no concern to you." Though in his mind he concluded that this type of person would probobly be interested in an exit as well. Cecil decided to be more specific, he had learned of several exits so he did not think being outright about leaving would threaten his goals. "..I am leaving this city, now if you please I will be on my way."

[Crimson Lego]

Leo nodded in response. "Alright then, you can go.", he replied, stepping out of the way. Looking around, a thought crossed his mind to silently strike at the being, but decided against it. It could probably bring the entire city down on me; not a good idea. Shaking his head, he followed the street in the direction from where the newcomer was coming from.

[Arato]

"Arato, sorry I'm late... I got a little caught up in the moment... Are we leaving then?"

"Ah, there you are Gwen, Adrasteia, meet Gwen. Gwen, Adrasteia. Gwen has shown me an exit we can--" a loud bang interrupted his sentence. "That sounds like a gun being fired... I wonder who it is and why... We should hurry. It sounded like it came from the direction of our exit."

"Gwen, if you would do the honors of leading us there, as fast as we can keep up, if you don't mind."

[Ken the Wandering Soul]

Lotus' expression became one of horror as the scene played out. When the first Jinta guard was shot, Lotus unconsciously clutched his arm in the spot where the wound was. His heart began to race, feeling so confused that he could barely make out what was being said at times.

"Your lucky I didn't shoot your head."

All of this needless fighting...

"Here Lotus, tie them up with this."

Lotus backed away, shaking his head vigorously.

"No... this humble one... not a violent name!" Lotus stuttered, trying to convey something that would have made more direct sense in Mogili.

The confusion and horror overtook Lotus, making him take off down the street. Blindly running, he barely realized that there was a wagon in his path. He shouted out in fright and stumbled onto the ground, the mud on his feet preventing a more graceful stop.

[JRPomazon]

Gate awoke suddenly, his gray eyes open wide as if he had seen a ghost. He stayed still, curled up against the side of the ferry and his eyes wide while they stared into space. It wasn't fear that drove his abrupt awakening, it was something foreign. For just a moment, he thought he could hear a cry off in the mist. Perhaps it was just the cold waking him. He got to his feet and began to inspect the outside, to check whether he was still adrift in Lake Cha. He looked outside the hide covered cabin to discover that he had landed on shore. How long was he asleep? No time for questions, there was only one way to know where in the world he was.

Gate walked on to land and looked around. There was a faint light in the distance, obscured by small trees and foliage.

[cubeboy]

Cecil arrived near the exit quickly, with his knowledge of the layout of the city he had made good time. He hoped he had helped, but still worried if they had been seen on the way to the exit, and wondered if prehaps they had already left. He sniffed the area but detected no hint that the two had been here. He stood not too far off from the exit, wondering if he should wait for them and try to help more, or just leave. Tommorow was the full moon.. There was urgency, but he was away from people, and time did not seem his enemy so he remained standing, thinking.

[Selena]

"Oh my," Lara said in false surprise, "it seems as if there's trouble in this part of the city. Miss, you'd better keep your head down."

She hadn't expected a scuffle to already be in progress upon their arrival, but that would be all the better. The Jinta didn't seem too pleased with the situation, either. Jinta enforcers from further down the street came rallying to the defense of their comrades in jeopardy. That was enough to spur Lara into action - the more left dead, the better for her business. She snaked her arm to the side of the wagon and slammed her hand down on it three times. It was the general signal for her men to do what they did best. One of her 'bodyguards' placed the barrel of his musket in between the wooden planks framing the bed of the wagon. He fired, taking out one of the advancing Jinta. The rival fell, blood pouring out of the wound. It would take a deal of time to reload the musket, so the others would have to take over.

Lara's melee experts left the safety of her second wagon, all racing into action. They and the Jinta clashed blades. One of her men fell. Two Jinta died. The few Jinta who had previously been moved into surrendering to the first group of troublemakers had a change of heart, more than willing to fight bare knuckled against Lara's thugs. It was an awfully hectic mess. Blood everywhere. Lara pointed at the chaos and sent a wry grin to Wilhelm. "Well, my favorite bodyguard, you'd better get going. Best take the Jinta out as quickly as possible, lest the innocents get involved."

[Steel Samurai]

The sharp retort of a musket, and blood spurted from the side of the first Jinta. Wil stared in morbid fascination as the small scale battle began. They had, of course, undertaken small-scale battles at Dvorec during his training, but they had been with wooden practice swords, and the most anyone normally got hurt was a few bumps on the head. This was different. Men were dying before his eyes.

"Well, my favorite bodyguard, you'd better get going. Best take the Jinta out as quickly as possible, lest the innocents get involved."

She was right. A Jinta clanmember was approaching the source of the strife, the androgynous person Wil had noticed earlier. He took a closer look. It was the same boy he had met on the ship over. He took hold of Kreyhana's hilt and rested it on his shoulders. With luck he would not need to use it. He waded into the brawl, using his massive fist liberally. A Jinta leapt at him with a nailboard from the side, swinging down towards his head. Wil raised his arm, grunting as the nails sunk into his forearm, then swung Kreyhana with his left hand, the flat of the blade smacking the attacker on the side of the head. He shook the nailboard away, and then continued towards Lotus. The wound was painful, but not debilitating. No muscles had been severed. The Jinta was beating him mercilessly. Wil punched the man in the face. The man's nose crumpled under the impact. Wil knelt to help Lotus up.

"I did not think our meeting would be under such circumstance, my friend." He said, stretching his right hand towards the boy. But Lotus' gaze was not upon him. He was looking behind him. Wil turned only to see a Jinta wielding a hatchet, about to split his skull open. His left arm moved of its own accord, years of reflex training with wooden blades now paying off. The massive blade moved as though it weighed nothing, catching the attacker in the side, and cleaving easily through the bones and organs of the man. Wil watched as if he were a casual observer, his arm not under his mind's control. He looked into the man's milky brown eyes. He . . . he was only a boy, probably younger than Wil. His eyes were . . . surprised, more than anything. He had never expected to die. Never thought that the path life had pushed him into would end in his death. His face was still smooth, his hair curly and unkempt, and his ears were a little too large for his face. It could have been Wil, had things been different. Could have been him with a sword carving its way through his small intestine. The blade finished its deadly arc. The boy's torso and legs fell to the ground several feet apart, the look of surprise still evident in his face. Wil mechanically shook his sword free of blood and swung it back over his shoulder.

It was his first kill.



He didn't like it very much.



* * *


The battle was over. The Jinta clansmen had been thoroughly thrashed. Wil got back into the wagon, moving as though he were a marionette, and someone pulling his strings. The elf girl was safe. So was Lara. And Lotus. He had done his job. He should be relieved. But for some reason, he couldn't get the boy's face out of his mind.

[Crimson Lego]

After darting through the streets of the City, Leo almost had a run-in with a guard. All of a sudden, a gunshot echoed throughout the city. "Huh....I better get out fast." murmured Leo. Running faster, he came upon a small building.

Edited by Leo Crimson, 20 February 2009 - 07:05 AM.

[Nightshade]

Gwen winked at Arato.
"As you wish." She flew off in the direction of the back door. Once she reached it she waited for Arato to open it for her... She was rather useless at moving heavy things.

She lead them through the streets at a breakneck speed. Not only did they have problems keeping up, more than once Gwen had to alter course so as to avoid passers-by.

One they finally reached the hole in the wall Gwen ushered them through, nearly out of breath.
"Head for the forest, we will be safe there." They waited for her signal that the cost was clear and then they all bolted through the hole.

[Sephrenia Katrov]

Sephrenia had heard Lara's warning, and thusly had time to duck and brace herself for whatever was coming. She flinched at the sound of a gunshot and struggled to remain down while the unmistakable sounds of a scuffle erupted around her. She wanted desperately to sit up and watch, but her vision was still milky and she wasn't sure that sitting up would be a terribly intelligent decision. Anyway, she could hear well enough to know that this wasn't a sight she'd regret missing. There. That was the sound of a man dying. And there, she heard a sword bite through some armor to meet flesh. And all around, she heard grunts and yells and metal, crashing upon metal in an unbearable cacophony. Being blind, even temporarily, meant that one relied on one's other senses all the more, and with her naturally large ears, these sounds became huge, and brought the battle much too close for comfort.

It lasted for only a little while before slowly easing into a heavy silence. The air was tinged with the smell of fresh blood, death, and fear. Or was it regret? And there, footsteps that sounded heavy and unnaturally lifeless, and the weight of a man stepping into the wagon. Was it the knight? By the sound of things, Sephrenia was willing to bet that their side, whatever that entailed, had won. But she didn't feel relieved. The air around her seemed heavy, as though something were just slightly out of place. It reminded her of the times that she'd entered her room, which was always perfunctorily kept, to find that a book had been left just inches from where she'd left it. It was an easily overlooked sign that all was not right. For a moment more, she remained ducked down, considering her uneasiness. She couldn't put her finger on it. Sighing, she sat up and tucked the feeling away, to take out and look at again later. For now, she was in the company of strange people, and she needed to be sharp.

[Selena]

Lara craned her neck to get a view of the situation, and was ultimately pleased by the outcome. The Jinta checkpoint had been eliminated, making travel much easier for Lara and the rest of the Yuusef affiliated businessmen. She calmly sat in her seat, smiling at Wil as he returned to the wagon with that large sword of his. "That was very good work. You move quickly for a giant."

She patted the top of Sephrenia's head. "It's over now. No need to be afraid. My gallant knight managed to fend off the enemy. They were just a group of petty thieves trying to lock down this part of the city in a criminal network. They could have easily hurt us had Wil not intervened. We're just a few more minutes away from the inn. It won't be long until we're safe."

Not wanting to involve herself with any more of the locals, she clapped twice and ordered the wagons to keep moving. The confused boy and the other hoodlums were none of her concern. Having a little help against the Jinta was just a bonus for the day. Now all she had to do was get her supplies back to her suite, and all would be well. The two wagons slowly began to roll forward, moving through the chaotic streets and passing into a less frantic area of the city.

[Crimson Lego]

(OoC: I edited my last post seeing as you guys didn't respond.)

After waiting for a relatively long amount of time, Leo saw 3 beings come out, 1 of them a fairy. They whispered to themselves, and the fairy flew ahead. Trying to leave? thought Leo. He shook his head. Drawing his knife, Leo darted through dark corners until they reached the hole he had come through. Once there, he hid and waited.

[nameless]

"Here Lotus tie them up." Nameless said.

Lotus backed away, shaking his head vigorously.

"No... this humble one... not a violent name!" Lotus stuttered, trying to convey something that would have made more direct sense in Mogili. And then he took off down the street.

"Wait what where are you going? Crap!" Nameless moved to the guards and tied them up and gagged them. "Alabast I'm going to go see if Lotus is ok, I'll be right back."

Nameless moved off down the street where Lotus had ran down and saw him lying on the ground. "Lotus! are you ok?" He moved over to help him up. "Im sorry for asking you to do that, I should have thought before talking."