Trials and Travels (Semi-lit)

[Rakashua]

Kai nodded, listening to Ayame's wisdom. The older creature was right, they had only known one another for a short time... but still, Kai felt like he could have known Noe his whole life, she was like him in so many ways, and in so many ways they were also opposites, in this... he believed that she could indeed be his balance, and he hers, forever. He was prepared to accept Ayame's negative reply, and to come up with a plan to turn him to their agreement, over time, to prove that he could be perfect for Noe, but the bird-man answered yes. And Kai smiled in response, nodding at the bird-man as he took flight.

 

He turned back to Noe and planted a quick kiss on her forehead, "well, your guardian has great wisdom, and he's right, we have only known one another for s short time, but I don't intend on looking anywhere else." He smiled, running one of his large hands over the back of hers. "After all of this is over, I promise, we'll be married when we return." He grinned again, "assuming the world doesn't end and we all die of course." He was joking... mostly, there was of course the chance that they would both be killed, or one of them, and it was a reality that the whole group now faced.

 

"You have to promise me one thing though Noe," He said, his face returning to its more serious self. "You have to place this mission first, ahead of everything else, even ahead of protecting me, or keeping me alive, do you understand?" Even though he said it, he wasn't sure how he would respond to the same being said to him about her. He would gladly give his life to save her... but the mission was more important than either of them. If they failed, many more would lose their lives and their loved ones.

 

But they would succeed, because they had love on their side, and it was the motivation of fighting for those you love, that kept the body going even when it should be dead, and that allowed you to survive the unsurvivable by sheer willpower alone, because you had something to protect, it was a philosophy Kai held to.

[LoveLost]

Noe allowed a small smile to cross her features as Kai quickly kissed her forehead. To be considered so dear to someone was going to be rather new and wonderful to her, but then he started talking. Noe knew that was a possibility that they would all die, OR they would come back to Solis and they would have failed and been maimed or their numbers down in because of deaths. Why did he have to ruin the moment?

 

Noe sighed and looked up at the sky, which for once, was clear for a short amount of time. "All of these people here are like family....except for Isa and Yuaki...gaggling irritating, annoying....but that's beside the subject. We are here to protect each other and it wouldn't be wrong for me to do whatever little i could to protect my balance." She said as she looked up at him her eyes showing the changing, but sometimes firm nature of a Weather Elementian. They were a capricious folk, but once their mind was set, their emotions revolved around that.

 

"I will do my best to put the mission first for it was the first thing that has been on my mind in the past eight years. Apparently, it was thought that i would be an asset to the team otherwise I wouldn't have been told to come. But my love for you, and my hope that you won't be injured will not leave me." She said in a slight accent that came from being a servant for most of her life.

 

With her thumb, Noe gently stroked the side of Kai's palm since it was on top of her own hand. "Just knowing that you love me, is all i need to make sure I do whatever it takes to help." Her soft, smooth, gentle hands were warm within his own hands as she thought about what tomorrow would bring. A large army against however many were in their party. They were trained, yes, but were they a match for their enemies?

[Silver_Voices]

"Then I guess it's best you join us. She'll never have to fight him alone in a group our size--certainly we could get her out of his way and take him out if necessary. Besides, what's the chance we'd meet up with him anyway? He's not searching for her, is he?"

Isis smiled back. "Thank you... We'll serve as best we can. And he isn't," He added. "I guess I'm just paranoid. I've been watching out for her so long, and now that we're out on our own, I keep both eyes on her. In a battle, that's not so easy." He leaned back, comforted by the idea of traveling with a group. Yawning, he began picking seeds out of his bag. "Does this group have a name?" He got up and started placing them in the ground in a circle around where they were sitting. "I mean, what's a group with a mission without a name? What will people call us in history?" He chuckled to himself, amused by the thought of being a part of future history books.

Edited February 1, 2012 by Silver_Voices

[LadyNatasha]

~Aketsu~

 

Aketsu was glad to hear that Zepheena's father wasn't actively searching for her. That was one less thing to worry about, one of many. Aketsu watched absently as Isis organized some seeds. Something was drifting at the edge of his mind, telling him he should be doing something, but he couldn't quite tell what. "Does this group have a name? I mean, what's a group with a mission without a name? What will people call us in history?"

 

Aketsu laughed with volume at this as Isis began placing the seeds. "Funny you should mention it! It doesn't, actually, but I couldn't think of a good name if my life depended on it. History... I never thought of it that way, but you're right. We need a good name if we're going to be heroes!" He smiled and shook his head at the notion, then reached into his back pocket and made a twisting motion before bringing his hand out empty. "Well? Do you have any ideas? I mentioned 'The White Knights' to someone, but they said it was too overused. Some of the war groups named themselves after animals, but one of our members complained she didn't want to be remembered as an animal."

 

~~~~

 

~Yuaki~

 

"Good night Yuaki Xa. You may want to call that fearsome beast in before she goes and chomps someones head off." Yuaki giggled and stuck her head out of the tent to smile in defiance at Eirikr even though he was walking away already. She heard him laugh about something to himself and she popped her head back into her tent. She knew Isa was off somewhere cooling her jets, and she decided it would be best to leave Isa to do that. But her smile faded slowly as the edginess she had felt the past two days returned. She felt so trapped and yet so free, like a wolf with a spike collar on, a wolf traveling with a pack of coyotes. Or maybe a coyote traveling with a pack of wolves. There were things she wanted to say and things she knew she couldn't say, places she wanted to go and people she never wanted to see again. But she didn't let herself grow miserable over it. No, she couldn't, not while Isa was anywhere near her. She couldn't let Isa out of all people figure it out.

 

So long as she had the element of Shadow, she could never let her guard down. She was certain that if everyone found out she had such an element then no one would ever trust her. Maybe Isa would eventually, but no commoner would shake her hand. And Whisper? Whisper and all of the Shadow Alliance would hate her even more. But Yuaki decided that was thinking in circles, double-crossing one's own reality, chasing stars that didn't exist, imagining a painful fate that would never happen.

 

"Me, standing up for the Shadow Queen? The nerve!" She giggled to herself and shook her head. "I think," she said to her pillow, "I would not stand up for that old witch even if I was part of the Shadow Alliance. Only the brainwashed could follow her lead!" Bias bias bias; all she was doing was repeating words of bias. She couldn't wait for tomorrow, and so she formed a cocoon out of her blankets and went to sleep.

Edited February 1, 2012 by LadyNatasha

[gistofeverything]

Celeste

 

Lost in what she was thinking, she was shocked when she heard a voice ask what was wrong. Stunned, she reeled, and saw Jahanshah. Immediately, she got on her knees, and bowed before the lord, expecting to be fussed at for her lack of manners. "I apologize for worrying you, my Lord. I am in no need of worry! Please ignore my actions - they are not worthy of your time!"

[Silver_Voices]

Isis picked Zepheena up and laid her down in the middle of the circle of seeds. He backed up, out of the circle. He grew them up until they surrounded her and came together at the top. The leaves flattened against the stems, so the entire structure looked like a small hut covered in vines. He took out more seeds and started making another shelter for himself.

 

He looked up, startled as Aketsu laughed.

 

"Funny you should mention it! It doesn't, actually, but I couldn't think of a good name if my life depended on it. History... I never thought of it that way, but you're right. We need a good name if we're going to be heroes! Well? Do you have any ideas? I mentioned 'The White Knights' to someone, but they said it was too overused. Some of the war groups named themselves after animals, but one of our members complained she didn't want to be remembered as an animal."

 

He chuckled at the mention of 'The White Knights'. Whoever had turned that title down, he wanted to thank them. "What about 'Guardians of Peace'? It states our purpose clearly and it keeps us in a defensive position."

Edited February 1, 2012 by Silver_Voices

[LoveLost]

Once the dance was over, Isa was completely breathless and a little light headed, no pun intended. After straightening up for a few minutes, she took a final breath to calm her heart before she tried something that she had been learning over the week as an idea from Noe and Kaimaru, in a way. Electricity could start in one place, and then appear in another in a flash of light causing death to those that it hit for the most part. If Isa could harness her light enough, and properly place the photons in the air, she could apply her camouflage technique and travel on the backs of the photons. It was difficult, but, she had to keep trying.

 

At first, she only jumped two feet away and could see a small impression of herself in the form of rainbow colored light where she had once been. To her it looked like different hues of color, but to someone else, it would look like a perfect, if somewhat pale version of her. She would have to work on concentrating the colors so it didn’t look like she was see-through.

 

Another try got her at least twenty feet away from where she last was. The only problem, was that every time she stepped, a small flash of light came from her toe where she landed and a hologram appeared. It was a lack of control, this much she knew. It took her another thirty minutes of constant, tiring jumping to be able to get to where the flash of light didn’t appear and the holograms would be hardly visible in the day time even with cloud cover.

 

At the end of the last jump, she tripped and fell onto the grass with a solid thud, but she didn’t get up. She didn’t want to! Despite being a princess, she knew that there was a reason that they were here and she wouldn’t allow herself to be the weakest link. Noe did that for her. She was a weak woman without any sort of control and a double nature that put Isa on edge. It didn’t help that just because she was a weather elementian she was allowed to go from being a servant to a student and part of her father’s somewhat adopted family. It was stupid

 

Isa pounded the ground once with her fist in her frustration of being so tired but it could be understood. They all had been training like crazy to try and be the best that they could be with the fight tomorrow. And here she was resting. It took her a moment to stand up, but once she had, she decided to do something that would make her seem like a Shadow Elementian, but it was merely a trick of the eye. She pushed all light away from her, rendering her invisible. The only problem was that the earth would still hold the impression of her feet and if a breeze with debris was near her, it would still show her body.

 

With her invisibility in tact, she walked to where she could hear Aketsu speaking and overheard him say something about them being called the White Knights and someone told him it was overused. It made her smile that someone would defy him although she knew it was probably Noe in her sweet little way. When this other person, there were toooooo many new people, stated something about Guardians of Peace, her eyebrow raised. What a good name for what they were doing. It was true, they weren’t just trying to capture the queen or anything like that, they were trying to keep peace alive and well in the land of Element.

 

She didn’t make a noise and wouldn’t until Aketsu replied. Then she would give her opinion and state that it was definitely time to go to bed. They had a battle in the morning against unshakable odds.

[LadyNatasha]

~Jahanshah~

 

Jahanshah was used to getting reverent respect from everyone in his city, but for a week he had been away from that and he was more than a little surprised when Celeste bowed before him. "I apologize for worrying you, my Lord. I am in no need of worry! Please ignore my actions - they are not worthy of your time!" Her wording confused him and for a moment he was silent. His mother had certainly never reacted this way when he had found her crying. Then again, he had never tried to comfort a commoner when they cried so he decided maybe this was how they reacted. But Celeste was more than a commoner to him; she was a member of his team, a team that he was the leader of... a team that would change the world. Since he wasn't sure how to answer Celeste, he instead changed the topic.

 

"Well okay then, if nothing's wrong. So, are you eager for tomorrow?" If Jahanshah had been paying attention maybe he would have noticed that his sword was glowing slightly in a warning sort of way, informing him that someone new was within its sensing range. But as soon as it had started glowing it stopped; the newcomer wasn't approaching Jahanshah (he was approaching Marcus and Skylar and their fire) so the sword 'decided' it wasn't a threat. Jahanshah was giving Celeste a small smile, displaying his excitement for tomorrow. He had no doubt he would be successful in overthrowing or altering the government of Cumulus. He only desired to see it done without any loss to the Shadow Alliance.

 

~~~

 

~Aketsu~

 

"What about 'Guardians of Peace'? It states our purpose clearly and it keeps us in a defensive position." Aketsu's smile widened; twice now Isis had come up with a good idea that he hadn't even thought of. He knew already that the young man would be of good help to their group. "That sounds perfect," he said as he watched Isis finish covering Zepheena with plants. "Not overused, and like you said it does make clear our purpose. It's not wimpy either so it won't allow enemies to trample on us... not that their verbal jeers and jests would mean anything important." He thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, I think that will work well. Thank you for your help, Isis, and as I said before if you need anything please just ask. The food is rationed though, so while you may certainly use any resources you need I trust you won't waste. Tomorrow I'll officially introduce you to the group and show you our routines. For now, I think it's best if we both get some rest. There are already camp watchers set out, so don't worry if you see someone lurking around."

 

He stood and yawned, signaling that the conversation was over. His arms were stiff from the work he had done earlier and he was definitely ready for some sleep.

[Lore_Master]

Loren, seeing that Cielo was too absorbed into her game went away, towards his wind raft. He got onboard the raft, sorted through the bags, making sure they were still on the raft. Once he had enough space, he began to draw a bit more, his mind wandering in thought. He wasn't tired, he hadn't been tired for a while. Once everyone went to bed, he was going to slip out and train some more... It was pretty much one of the only things that eased his mind. If it hadn't been for Kai's guilt-trip... He shook his head slightly, even though it was true. He felt trapped, like the only reason he was here was because he got guilt-tripped into this. "Tomorrow, I'm going to say it straight to his face... and present him the ultimatum." Thought Loren, after all he actually had no reason to be part of this group. His family was safe, he had no love for either alliance... they could rot for all he cared. So what was the reason he stuck around for so long?

 

He sighed as he shifted his position, he always got like this when it was late at night. He always got selfish and cynical at night, and he didn't know why... Part of him knew that by tomorrow morning, he would still be with the group, ultimatum or no ultimatum. He feared that the shadow alliance would be aggressive, and that the group would forget about the third path and merely fight like the shadow alliance. He sighed once more as he pulled out some bitter root from his napsack and began to chew on it. He was going to need it for tonight.

[Silver_Voices]

Isis waved Aketsu off as he sat in the middle of his circle. "Until then, Aketsu."

 

He started weaving the sides of his 'tent' with the branches as Aketsu stood. He opened his mind to the plants and heard their voices, whispering to each other. Some were singing. It was a common song among the trees of the woods, they all seemed to know it.

 

The wind is blowing, the water is flowing

The sun is gone, the night has come

 

The creatures of day retreat to their den

The children asleep in the houses of men

 

We say goodnight to the beautiful light

And welcome the dark 'till the moon starts its arc

 

The travelers stop a while to rest

They'll break at dawn to continue their quest

 

The forest lights glow and the fog rolls in slow

The birds flitter passed, to reach home at long last

 

We'll sing our song until the morn

When darkness flees and a new day is born

 

He hummed along as he finished the leafy shelter. He sat, listening to the hypnotizing melody. It was a shame he was the only one who could hear it. He had taught it to Zepheena at one time, but she seemed to have forgotten it. He smiled as he realized that he was now one of those travelers who stopped to rest. The song continued in a soft lullaby. It had been a long couple of days, and it seemed even more was in store for them. He had always thought of adventures as a child, but never imagined he would actually be on one someday.

 

The crickets chirped and the wind caused a rustling sound as it flowed through the trees. He watched as the moon started its way across the sky. He laid back and started to count the stars. There were new constellations since he had last looked, and even the sky itself looked different. It seemed like a whole new world. He closed his eyes and listened to the conversations of the trees. Their song and the low, flowing voices lulled him to sleep.

Edited February 2, 2012 by Silver_Voices

[LoveLost]

Noe, after bidding Kai good night, walked to her tent that she shared with Cielo and quickly changed her clothes into something drier than what she had on as well as cleaner. It took her the longest time to fall asleep, but once she did, her dreams were filled with the battle on the morrow and the love of the man that was now her fiancé.

 

Isa, once she was sure that Aketsu had chosen the name of their group, she allowed herself to be visible once she knew that the other two were asleep. But she heard the song that Isis sang and found herself smiling at the innocent and rather lovely voice that he had. It called to the trees and they responded by creeping closer to him and making various woodland noises. The sheer closeness that he had with the trees was more than what Z’fan had for the trees didn’t seem to do that to her, although she had never really observed her interactions.

 

Isa walked up behind Aketsu and quickly kissed him on the cheek as she passed him. “Good night.” She said while looking back at him, her rainbow eyes seeming to whirl with joy at seeing him. “May the gods protect you on the morrow my love.” Her steps were quick as she walked over to the fire and with a swipe of her hand, she absorbed all of the photons of the fire while throwing water on it. The fire was doused and the embers couldn’t hold their light as she walked back to her tent where the posts were illuminated. She climbed into her tent quietly, changed and was soon asleep.

 

DAWN - BEFORE Everyone is Awake

 

[Lore_Master]

When the embers of the fire died off, Loren merely sat down and took a deep breath, goosebumps ran down his spine as he heard the ambiance of the wilds. He waited for an hour, until he was sure that everyone else was asleep. When he was sure, he got off his raft and returned to the same training, where he contiuned to trained Garuna. For the first hour, he practiced the form. He wanted to summon this form at will, to make his whole body float and merely use his hands and feet as propulsion. For the second hour, he practiced acrobatic moves, high above the forest. This included barrel rolls, mid-air back rolls and lastly, making sure that no matter what he did he could still have a grasp on his location. For the third hour, he practice fighting moves, punches, kicks and grapples. He found the third hour extremely tiring, if only because he had never thrown a punch in a long time. The fourth and final hour began after an half an hour rest, which resulted in a combination of ground-based acrobatics and fighting. Finally, after all was said and done, he began to make his way to the camp, making sure to get there before dawn finally broke. He was extremely tired and drenched in sweat. Deciding he needed to cover this, he quickly began to look around, looking for a stream big enough to wash both his clothing and himself.

 

 

After finding such one ten minutes away from both the camp and training hill, he began to quickly splash water all over himself, washing off the sweat. After he was done with that, he splashed his clothing in the stream, before giving them a powerful wind drying. After waiting for the next five minutes, he noticed that dawn was breaking. He merely placed on the clothing and got back into the camp, climbed onto the raft and pretended he was asleep.

[Nasa13]

Eirikr opened his eyes as the sun reached the horizon. It was time to leave. He fixed his stuff and left as quietly as he could. He needed to go on ahead. That way he could avoid traveling with the others. It always felt awkward traveling with crowds. Eirikr never was a companion type person.

 

"See you later Comrades," he whispered as he reached the road. He hoped to leave a message for them to find along the road. As he got farther away he began to hum to himself.

 

The few people on the road paid him scant attention. It was too early in the morning for most of them to care. Thus Eirikr was alone in his thoughts, as he liked to be.

Edited February 2, 2012 by Nasa13

[Silver_Voices]

Zepheena

 

Zepheena woke as the sun filtered through the leaves of her shelter, Isis's work, no doubt. The light passed through the greenery, making it an emerald color. Pushing aside the stems, she stepped out of the make-shift tent and blinked in the bright sunlight. It was wonderful to see it again. The darkness always dampened her spirits. Yawning, she turning and reached up into the apple tree Isis had grown last night and picked a ripe red fruit. Biting into it, she looked around. It looked like everyone else was asleep. She shivered; the sun had not yet had a chance to warm the crust of the earth.

 

She walked over to the second hut and shoved her fingers between the gaps and pulled them wider. There was Isis, asleep. She closed the hole and smoothed the leaves over the opening so the wind wouldn't get in. The slight breeze was chilly, but not too bad. She sat by a stone and watched the sun rise above the treetops. Another day was just beginning. What lay in store for her today?

Edited February 2, 2012 by Silver_Voices

[LadyNatasha]

~Jahanshah~

 

Jahanshah hadn't really understood Celeste the night before and the conversation had ended a bit awkwardly. He wasn't sure if something was actually wrong with her or if she was just having a strange night. Maybe it had been a nightmare and she hadn't wanted to admit it. He wasn't sure, so he didn't let it bother him. He woke early the next morning as the sun was just starting to peek above the trees. The sun always woke him, for even after a week he still didn't appreciate it. He crawled out of his tent and packed it up without a word, which took about three minutes. He then went to check on the horses. On his way he glanced at the sky curiously; it was always fun to see what kind of strange things Cumulus was doing. On that particular morning the western half of the sky was completely cloudy with light grey clouds while the eastern half (where the sun was rising) was filled with blue sky. Jahanshah greeted each horse and fed them each a piece of a carrot before he walked back to camp to see who was up and about and make sure the others woke up--after all, they had to catch the first group of travelers into the city.

 

 

~~~~

 

~Aketsu~

 

A cold breeze woke Aketsu and he shivered unhappily. It took him a moment to gather his thoughts and realize that a cold breeze shouldn't be happening in a tent. He opened his eyes quickly to find that his tent was still over him, but he had forgotten to fully shut the curtain. He smiled just a little as he remembered Isa's visit the previous night. It had been a while since he had gotten a chance to talk to her alone, but it was pleasant having her be the last thing he saw before the fire went out. That reminded him of his new allies and he decided to get up a bit early to check on them. He was certain the beast-people had kept watch, but better safe than sorry.

 

As he got up and got his shirt on, he noted the things to do in the morning (as he always did). He would have to do a head-count and check up on the group members individually. Not all of them, but some of them; he had made it a point to personally take two or three aside every morning and ask them how they were feeling and if they had anything they wished to talk about. So far so good, but now he had to think of who he hadn't asked for a while. Loren for certain, and then Cielo too. He hadn't talked to Luna while, but he wasn't sure if he'd have time for three people. Yes, he decided he'd talk to Loren and Cielo. After the personal talks he would check up on the food supply and ration out breakfast. Thanks to Tractus the food supply hadn't gone down at all the previous night which left room for Aketsu to add Eirikr to the list of those that needed to eat. Isis and Zepheena were free to take from the food as well, but Aketsu also realized that they could add to the food supply. He was a bit excited to introduce Zepheena to Isa, as he figured they'd get along well.

 

Aketsu exited the tent wearing a leather shirt and similar pants along with his normal steel-toed boots. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, then quietly headed in the direction of Isis and Zepheena. Since they were both together, he figured it'd be easiest to check on them first and Eirikr afterwards. After all, he mused, he didn't want a pickaxe through his head if he woke Eirikr up again. As the plant tents came in sight he saw Zepheena sitting on a rock, watching the sun rise. He smiled, glad to see her up and about. "Good morning," he said as he approached. He didn't speak too loudly as he didn't wish to wake up Isis. He found another rock and sat on it, about five feet from Zepheena. He yawned, enjoying the pine-scented air and the call of early morning birds. "Are you feeling better?"

[gistofeverything]

Celeste

 

The night before...

 

She gasped when she heard someone ask what was wrong - she thought she was alone. She looked up, and it was Jahan! She scurried out from underneath his gaze, and got on her knees. "Oh, my lord, you needn't worry about a lowly servant like me! I personally don't want to waste your time. Please excuse me!" She stood, curtseyed, and ran off in a various direction, blinded by embarassment. ((Interaction with Renzo, if you want, Apollo.))

[Rakashua]

Kai had chosen the last watch of the night to be his and had been awake to watch the sunrise. There was still little chance of them actually being attacked at this point, but it never hurt to be prepared. Kai enjoyed watching the sun peek over the trees and feel the first rays on his skin, that meant his watch was over, it was time for everyone to be awake... they had a lot to discuss.

 

He walked to the center of the camp and piled a bit of wood on the fire so that breakfast could be cooked if they chose to do so, and he ignited it with a spark from his hand. He felt much better having slept for eight hours straight before going on guard duty, he even felt more at peace with the whole situation after having confronted Noe and working out a few things for himself while he stayed up thinking.

 

He moved a little ways away from the fire and placed his hand on the ground, pushing against it slightly to send a small ripple of earth through the whole camp, it was a simple and harmless way to wake everyone up, most people would wake up instantly when they felt the ground under them rise and fall like a tiny wave, he didn't think anyone would mind.

 

Today, or tonight, they would meet the enemy, the first enemy, the army. Later they would meet the force sent specifically to oppose them, but until then they would prove themselves to be soldiers, to be killers, to be comrades, to be worthy of the task.

 

"This morning we decide our fate, this afternoon, we prove our destiny." Kai said softly to himself. After this morning, there was no going back, there was only moving forward.

[Silver_Voices]

"Good morning."

 

Zepheena jumped as she heard a voice calling from behind. She turned and saw the young man who had approached them when they had first entered the camp.

 

"Are you feeling better?"

 

"Um, yes. Yes, I am. Thank you for asking." Another man walked into the campsite and put some wood on the extinguished fire. He re-lit it with a spark. He wandered off a little ways and put his hand on the ground. The ground shook ever so slightly, but it was enough to make her scramble to her feet in surprise. She felt slightly awkward in the middle of the campsite. What was going on? The only thing she remembered was entering camp and seeing this person, and the next thing she knew she was waking up in the shelter. If they were welcome or not, if they were safe or not, even if they were free or captives, was a mystery to her. She wanted to ask so many questions, but first things first... She turned back to the man she recognized. "My name's Zepheena. What's yours?"

Edited February 2, 2012 by Silver_Voices

[Lore_Master]

~Betzalel~

 

When the morning sun began to rise over the horizon, it was time for Betzalel to stop sleeping. The shadow-beast had returned a few hours ago, fusing their memories with his. He knew some of the secret escape routes of the castle, and even heard some gossip from the taverns. Part of his mediation allowed him to get a full eight hours of sleep just by doing that for roughly four hours. He decided to get extra sleep merely because he wanted to be cheerful and happy for today. As he woke up, he stretched his arms as he began to pace around. "I wonder if those fools will listen to us..." Thought Betzalel.

 

~Loren~

 

When Loren took a peek, he saw that some of the others were getting up. He merely did the same, yawning as he stretched. He reached for his napsack and pulled out another bitter root, he was going to need it to get him through the day. He mentally cringed as the extreme bitterness went from his tongue and into his body, but the charge would keep him up until night fall. Once he was done, he got off the wind raft and walked over to the small fire that Kai had created. His eyes were filled with trouble... he mentally promised himself to kill as little as he could, merely knocking them out would be good enough for him. He sighed as he tried to get a bit warm, call a bit of wind to stroke the flames enough the make it slightly bitter.

[gistofeverything]

Celeste

 

Celeste woke up, damp, on the ground. She murmured a grunt, and then got up. Her back was sore... Not thinking twice about it, she pulled out her staff, and started to practice. She swung, and tried to portend as if she were hitting live people. However, she couldn't concentrate, and soon, she lost focus. She sighed, sat down, and gazed into the morning sun. A new day is dawning...

 

Trying unsuccessfully to think about last night, it all came back to her in a rush. Jahanshah saw her for what she was... That wasn't good - she wanted to be strong for him, and he saw her cry. She pounded the ground in rage. Nothing seemed to be as easy as it used to be - not as easy as before she joined the Shadow Militia... No. She was going there again. She was not to disobey Jahanshah - her feelings on any matter are no longer being taken into account. She was going to accept this, whether she liked it or not.

[LadyNatasha]

~Aketsu~

 

"Um, yes. Yes, I am. Thank you for asking." Aketsu smiled. "Your very welcome," he said, realizing she was probably a bit startled at his sudden appearance. Then Kai arrived about fifteen feet away and prepared a fire. He did his normal thing, waking everyone up with a little earth wave. He wanted to thank Kai, but he saw the grave look on his friend's face and he decided to let him be for a while.

 

"My name's Zepheena. What's yours?" Aketsu turned, surprised that Zepheena didn't remember--then he realized she had been asleep the whole time. "Oh, I'm Aketsu," he said simply. "You--that is, I spoke with Isis last night, and you are both welcome to join us. We are the Guardians of Peace, and our mission is to stop a war before it starts. Isis said you'd be fine with joining us and we will protect you, so here you are." He smiled, but he wasn't sure if she'd accept what he had just said. If she did have complaints she'd have to take it up with Isis, he decided. After all, it wasn't like he could just force her to help with the fighting; that was worse than wrong, forcing someone to fight for something they didn't believe in.

 

Aketsu saw his chance to get away from the awkward moment when Loren approached the fire. Aketsu glanced at Zepheena. "Isis can explain it. If you'll excuse me a moment I have morning duties. 'Twas nice meeting you." And with that he approached the fire. Immediately he could sense Loren wasn't happy; his stance, his eyes, and everything about him spoke what was close to misery and was for sure a troubled soul. Aketsu sat down across from him and looked at him, not sure what to say. He processed in his mind how Loren had behaved the last week and decided to guess the problem. He remembered the conversation Kai had had with Loren to convince him to come, that conversation of how many lives would be saved and how many children would grow up in peace if the war was stopped. "Loren," he began firmly, "I hate to rush you but I need you to make the choice you should have made at the beginning of this week." He straightened. His look was not unkind, but it was a bit demanding which was typical of his family line (them being nobles). He spoke quietly so only Loren and him could hear, and maybe Kai.

 

"Your body and mind is here, but your heart isn't, is it? I need all of you or none of you." Whether or not this seemed to get Loren's attention he quickly continued as something came to mind; "and you don't have to fight! Last night a healer arrived, Zepheena, and when the battle's done we will for certain need such healers. You can stay back and assist her, if that's what you wish to do." Aketsu hoped he wasn't too far off from what he thought Loren was miserable about. Certainly Loren didn't think he was too weak, and that was what he was moping about for? If that was so Aketsu realized he had just said the opposite of what he wanted to... but he did need Loren to make up his mind. It seemed everyone else was perfectly with it and prepared, with perhaps the exception of Yuaki--but she was so random-minded that Aketsu usually let Isa worry about her. Loren, however, was directly under his command and it mattered to him that Loren knew what he was getting into and didn't feel forced.

 

~~~~

 

~Yuaki~

 

Yuaki awoke bright and early to the uncomfortable bump of ground rippling beneath her. She grumbled something about Kai's lack of manner and got up. Still half asleep, she managed to dress in some light armor and brought her sword and daggers at her side before she exited the tent. She wasn't awake enough to look for Isa or even tell if Isa had still been in the tent, so instead she yawned and did her hair up in a pony-tail. Then she sighed deeply and smiled; today was the day. Today would determine where she would end up, and today she would use her true element. Sure, she had been using it in the dark when she was all alone and no one could see, but using it in the open would be a great relief. Then she frowned. What am I thinking?! I can't use it. If they see it... but the battle... surely they'll know I'm still their ally?

 

She sighed and thought for a moment. Then, with a big smile, she decided to do what she usually did; just let the first thing that came to mind control her actions during the battle. If she felt like using her element she would, and if she didn't she wouldn't.

 

Yuaki skipped over towards two interesting blobs of plants and soon realized that they were some sort of tent. There was a fire where Kai, Loren and Aketsu were... and there was the new girl. Yuaki smiled brightly, deciding she may as well get to know her. "Hey there!" She called, waving. She approached, stretching her shoulders. "My name's Yuaki Xa, and I'm the weaponist without an element! What's your name and element?" The new girl looked a bit confused but nice, and Yuaki was eager to find out if she was a 'Noe', 'Isa' or even a 'Cielo' in personality.

 

~~~~

 

~Jahanshah~

 

Betzalel was up, Jahanshah saw, so he was eager to get the others up. He walked in the direction where Marcus and Skylar were sleeping. "Marcus, we are preparing to set out," he called. Then where he had last seen Celeste; he saw her in the distance, though he couldn't tell what she was doing. "Celeste, the time has come for us to prepare ourselves." Then, quite satisfied he had awoken those who hadn't been awake (except for Aamina, who he couldn't really wake but expected would be prepared), he approached Betzalel. He smiled and sat on a rock near where Betzalel was pacing, and he took out some cold meat for his breakfast. He ate quickly and silently, eager to get going. He did manage to ask a question between bites, though; "So, do you have our routes planned?"

 

He tossed the map of of the palace of Cumulus to the ground. Of course, being a generic map, it only had certain rooms actually marked and didn't go into detail. But Betzalel had said he would do some scouting or something and Jahanshah expected him to have something planned. If he didn't, Jahanshah had his own backup plans as a good leader was 'never ever ever to depend on others, not even me your mother' and Jahanshah didn't want to seem as though he hadn't planned. He was only fourteen (and due to lack of sunlight he looked thirteen), but that wasn't the way he viewed himself. With his allies at his side and Daedureth in his hand, he doubted there were any that could stand against him. It wasn't like he hadn't been training like crazy with the sword for the past week, and swordsmanship wasn't a new craft to him. Anything metal was fairly easy for him to handle, and Daedureth was especially so because it was metal and shadow. He had practiced with it both in human-form and metal-beast-form, and he was quite satisfied with how it felt in his hand. It was as though the sword was made for him, perfectly balanced as it was.

[lachrymation]

The town of Cumulus was bustling with activity. The markets were scattered, selling their finest products, adding to the noise with their loud shouts of "fresh fish!", and "hot buns!". The indistinct chatter of the citizens in restaurants was heard, along with the sharp 'clangs' of the blacksmiths hard at their work.

 

A young man, looking around his early twenties, stood in the middle of the road as the busy, moving crowds passed by on either side of him with the customary motions of their daily and usual routine. A large, brown, leather travelling bag was over his right shoulder. His hair, which was a faded orange, stood out among the majority of the monochromatic haired people like a wolf in a pack of dogs. Hoping that they believed that he was an Earth Elementian instead, for people had mistaken him for one before, he closed the top clasp of his coat to cover his collarbone, hiding the mark of a flame that he had on the top left part of his chest. Once the collar was put back into place, he walked over to the side of the road and drew his hair up, tying it into a ponytail that hung loosely over his left shoulder. He looked around. No one seemed to be watching him in particular, so the coast was clear. Slinging his bag over his shoulder, he leaned against the wall and glanced up at the sky. It was clear, and he grinned to himself a little.

 

I haven't seen a clear sky in a while...

 

He turned, his coat flapping behind him, then disappeared swiftly into a dark alley.

Edited February 5, 2012 by lachrymation

[Silver_Voices]

"Oh, I'm Aketsu. You--that is, I spoke with Isis last night, and you are both welcome to join us. We are the Guardians of Peace, and our mission is to stop a war before it starts. Isis said you'd be fine with joining us and we will protect you, so here you are."

Zepheena

 

Zepheena sat again, slightly confused. They were the Guardians of Peace? Stop the war before it started? It was nice that they wanted to stop the war, but in her mind it had already been raging her whole life. Her father was technically a prisoner in his own home, and when he did step outside, he was imprisoned, just because of his Element. He wasn't a bad person... Well, only when she was around. If he did become evil, it was because of the cruel treatment in Sola.

 

But, she did want to stop the war, and she did want to see her father... If that's where they were going, then she was all for it.

"Yeah, Ok. I'll just, um..." She looked up only to realize Aketsu had excused himself already and was talking to Loren. Loren looked pretty tired, and rather downcast. She smiled slightly and waved in his direction, hoping to cheer him up.

 

"Hey there! My name's Yuaki Xa, and I'm the weaponist without an element! What's your name and element?"

 

Zepheena practically fell of her rock at this. She scrambled to her feet and turned to look at the person who had called out to her. Yuaki's eyes were the first thing Zepheena noticed. Black with just the tiniest bit of blue. "Um... Hi, Yuaki. I'm Zepheena, Light Elementian." She backed up and kicked the side of Isis's plant shelter. If there was going to be tons of people coming up to her and asking questions, she wanted him next to her so she could have something familiar.

 

Isis

 

Isis felt the ground tremble, but didn't heed it. He ignored the voices around him and didn't fully wake up until his tent shook, signalling someone had kicked it or something. It's the girl, the plants commented. What does she want? Isis sat up, realizing it must be Zepheena. He waved his hand and the plants separated, creating a tent flap of sorts. He stepped out and blinked in the bright sunlight. Glancing around, he saw Zepheena looking at him thankfully and a young girl, possibly fifteen or sixteen. He stepped next to Zepheena and smiled at the girl. "Hello, I'm Isis. Who are you?"

Edited February 3, 2012 by Silver_Voices

[LadyNatasha]

~Yuaki~

 

Oops! Yuaki visibly flinched when she realized she had startled the new girl. Way to make a first impression dummy, she's obviously somewhat shy, she told herself. But her smile didn't fade and in fact brightened when the girl said her name. Light Elementian, huh? Sweet! Just what we need I'm sure. I wonder how she compares to Isa? She noticed Zepheena kick the side of one of the blobs of plant... and out came a guy! A super cute guy, in Yuaki's opinion, but then again she thought of Kai and Eirikr and Loren and Tractus as super cute, and was thinking of switching her boredom-instigated-flirting to Tractus to see how much she could bother him. The twins she avoided for personal reasons and she knew Aketsu belonged to Isa. But this new guy... she loved his hair. Green hair wasn't a common sight! By the way he waved off the plants she guessed he was definitely a Plant Elementian, making him an even more interesting person in her opinion.

 

"Hello, I'm Isis. Who are you?" She smiled brightly, shifting to face him. Ha! He's got a super nice voice too! You're a lucky girl, Zepheena. "I'm Yuaki Xa. I deal with weapon upkeep and moral. Nice to meet you, Zepheena and Isis! I'll tell ya it's good to see some fresh faces. Traveling for a week with the same people can get really really dry." She giggled a bit and then looked more at Zepheena than Isis. "So you two came together, right? Are you siblings? Are you staying with our group and helping us fight the Shadow Alliance?" It wasn't unheard of for Plant Elementians to marry Light Elementians, although to get two people who were as different as Isis and Zepheena were would be strange indeed. Still, she couldn't help but ask as their answers could possibly determine her mood for the day.

[Lore_Master]

~Loren~

 

Loren watched, from the corner of his eye as Aketsu had walked up to the seat across from his. Instead of hiding his emotions, he looked up as a strange coldness filled them. His experiences with Cielo and Kai had taught him to strengthen himself whenever either Kai, Aketsu or Cielo tried to talk to him. He took a deep breath as he saw Aketsu's mouth open.

 

"Loren, I hate to rush you but I need you to make the choice you should have made at the beginning of this week."

 

Loren knew this was going to be brought up... He had already mentally prepared for all possible actions. His face hardened slightly as he remained silent, he knew that Aketsu had more to say on this matter.

 

"Your body and mind is here, but your heart isn't, is it? I need all of you or none of you. And you don't have to fight! Last night a healer arrived, Zepheena, and when the battle's done we will for certain need such healers. You can stay back and assist her, if that's what you wish to do."

 

 

His heart? Loren scuffed darkly as he made direct eye contact with Aketsu. He stopped slouching as he sat straight. "Let me asked you a question milord." Began Loren, placing emphasis on the last word. It wasn't out of hate he did that, but merely to imply to possibility of him getting a little full of himself, since within the span of a week he became the heir to new Aero and fiance to the princess of the Sola.

 

"Think about this from my perspective... Let's say you were a pacifistic artist who wanted nothing to do with this whole mess. And along the way someone guilt-tripped you into becoming part of something you didn't wanna be, with a two year old girl none the less, would you put your heart into it?" Explained Loren, giving a look to Kai as he began talking about the guilt-tripped part. After a few moments of silence, he looked back to Aketsu and began to speak once more.

 

"You may be the leader, but you do not have control over whether I put my heart into this nor not. Twice now, I tried to leave... But thanks to Cielo and Kai, they convinced me to stay. What's to prevent me from just leaving altogether? After all, I have no emotional reason or obligation to stay with you guys" Asked Loren, trying to make sure his voice carried the real possibility of him leaving... even though it was very unlikely he would do so. "I could just as easily defect... and give the shadow alliance everything I know." Spoke Loren in the lowest voice he could, making sure only Aketsu heard. Even though there was no chance of him betraying them, he wanted to convey his true message.

 

"Who was it that assigned me to record this whole thing? Those records would be very valuable to them..." Spoke Loren, still using the same voice. After a moment of silence, he got up and stretched, giving Aketsu a small smile. "Make no mistake Aketsu, I will follow you... for my own reasons and personal beliefs. But don't think for a moment I'll be like the rest of them, I will never put my heart into this, and I'll kill as little as I can. And remember this..." Finished Loren as he passed by Aketsu one last time, bringing his mouth close to his ear. He then said three words in the quietest voice he could.

 

"I. Wanted. Out."

 

Once those three words were said, he left Kai and Aketsu with a smirk on his face... and the cold, nervous sweat began to appear on his skin. He couldn't believe he said all those things to Aketsu, he felt like his heart was going to burst out of his chest. Hopefully Aketsu didn't thing he would seriously betray them... he just wanted to show him he had backbone of his own... however small it was.

 

~Betzalel~

 

"So, do you have our routes planned?"

 

Betzalel turned towards the young lord as he threw a generic map of the castle the the ground. Betzalel merely unrolled the map and summoned a small, inky shadow to mark the map. "I do milord, we don't need to worry about you or Amalia, since I'll personally be picking you up with my true form. As for Marcus and Skylar, if they can get the riot to the castle gardens..." Explained Betzalel as the inky shadow marked a spot on the garden, then in several other places. "For a bunch of neutrals, they are extremely paranoid. I found no less then seven of the bloody escape routes. Basically in the gardens, there is a hollow statue that moves with a push. Those two can escape from there, if things go sour. I'll inform them of these other routes, if they managed to get in further. As for Celeste... I'll arrange for one of the city gates to be 'distracted' so she can slip out. All the routes lead to the same place, about ten minutes from the city. The exit leads to an abandoned barn, that's is we're we'll meet up, saddle up and get out." Explained Betzalel as he handed the map back to Jahan.

 

"Thoughts, Questions, Concerns?" asked Betzalel with a toothy smile.

Edited February 3, 2012 by Lore_Master