Jump to content
TehUltimateMage

X-DREAMERS [mission 02: the otherworldly bazaar]

Recommended Posts

( THIS IS STUPID | Sonic, Tails, Signless, Dualscar )

 

"Okay, y'all ready for this?"

 

"This is undeniably stupid..."

 

"You're goin' to hurt yourself guppy. I can feel it; this ain't a vwise idea."

 

"Nah, I'll be fine!" Sonic was crouched on the floor in a runner's starting pose, eyeing the electrified bars with a determination that only a man who had no idea what the hell he was getting into would have. He curled up into a spin-dash, charging up power into it while Signless and Dualscar watched wordlessly, completely confused by his actions.

 

Before Sonic launched, Tails spoke up. "Wait, Sonic! The bars, they're--!!" Too late. Sonic launched into them at full spin-dash speed, electrocuting himself so badly he actually passed out again. "... electrified."

 

"... you should a vwarned him before he did that."

 

"I know..." His ears wilt and his tails stop idly wagging, a look of absolute and utter guilt crossing his features.

Share this post


Link to post

[ Not the best at subtlety. - Marketplace Jail - Illidan ]

 

Illidan had to make sure he wasn't mishearing things. Xander... actually wanted to help? When it put his reputation on the line? The Demon Hunter had never heard of any ruler - besides maybe Arthas - who was willing to get so down and dirty for the sake of those they cared about. Granted, Arthas wasn't exactly a good example of a ruler... but he could dwell on that later.

 

Still, the thought of breaking in undetected had already crossed Illidan's mind, but as far as escaping unharmed, that was more or less impossible.

 

For a few moments, Illidan flew on his own, surveying the perimeter of the building for the weakest point in its security. He managed to find a decent side entrance, but even it had a lone guard standing near the doorway. It looked like "undetected" had flown out the window.

 

He flew back to relay just that. "...okay, good news and bad news. The bad news is that there's guards at every door, so subtlety has basically flown out the window... but the good news is that I spotted where security is the weakest."

 

He helped Xander over to the side entrance he'd spotted, and thankfully, Illidan had a better solution than running in at the top of their lungs with weapons drawn. That single guard was not going to get out of this one unharmed. One Eye Beam was all it took to incinerate the guard and weaken the door's lock. Illidan helped Xander to the ground before running in and bashing the door down...

 

But skidded to a halt when his Spectral Sight went completely black. He couldn't see a damn thing in here; it was as if something was blocking his powers!

 

This was a problem - no powers meant no Spectral Sight, and no Spectral Sight meant that poor Illidan was as blind as a bat. No, worse. Even a bat could see better.

 

Panic settled in. "...Xander... I think I have a problem! I can't see!"

 

~~~
[ Idiot. - Marketplace Jail - Nora & Carol ]

 

The sound of electricity zapping something was quick to get Nora's attention. "What the...? What was that?!"

 

"Some idiot tried getting through his cell's bars. He got electrocuted pretty badly because of it. I don't think he's going to wake up again anytime soon."

 

"Well, damn. Now what?"

 

"We wait for a..." Carol seemed to grimace. "...a miracle." She hated that word, miracle. But if one was needed to get out of here...

 

Nora's ears suddenly twitched at the shouting he heard. "Wait... I know that voice! Lord Illidan, is that you?!"

 

There it was. There was the miracle they needed... even if said "miracle" was also being affected by the jail's anti-magic field.

Share this post


Link to post

(Market Jail - Burakki)

 

The Shiny Umbreon noticed one of his two human-looking cellmates wake up and finish talking. Her yone was irritated - Burakki pricked his ears a bit. Not that much to say, though. She looked around, seemingly taking the sights in. So, new here. Considering the green powder dusted on her and the other human....

 

"So they powdered--!"

 

There was shouting. So... what was going on. The Umbreon's ears flattened a bit, his lip twitching. If it was the police again.... But no. Burakki glanced towards the "mirror", spotting a blue hedgehog-thing run at the bars before getting zapped. What an idiot. He sneered a bit, curling his lips back. Some people didn't know obvious dangers.

 

"...I say the idiot who ran at the bars is brand new. All my money on it." Like Burakki had any money on himself at the moment. Still.

 

There was more shouting several moments later. Burakki turned, raising his ears tolidten. And it was a new voice, yelling for someone else that they could not see. Well, what would make someone suddenly blind in this lighting... oh. Ofcourse. The anti-magic field and losing magical vision. He scraped a paw against the ground. "Sounds surprised. I think the guards are going to show any minute now." After all, whoever had been yelling had been foing so loudly.

Edited by DuskOfTheStars

Share this post


Link to post

Anders [ --hey! ]

 

Anders folded his ears back and gave a few token lashes of his tail. There were worse things than being (hopefully) temporarily stuck as a cat -- there was that one time that Hawke made him touch an amulet that made him mute for three days -- but he wasn’t pleased by it. He was nearly defenseless and was completely unable to use his magic. What if someone got hurt? The small size and agility of a cat was useful for some things (mostly for lazing around in sunbeams), but being able to willingly shift back and forth was different. 

 

He was preoccupied with his sudden… condition, and so didn’t notice Keaton swooping down from behind him. Instinctively, he drove his claws into Keaton’s sleeve to keep himself from slipping. A soft growl left his throat, but when Keaton asked if it was alright he stopped. Keaton, well, he wasn’t actually bad at holding cats. Anders’ legs were supported properly, and he was pressed comfortably against Keaton’s chest. It was pretty warm, actually. Not having to walk or worry about getting lost or trampled underfoot was kind of nice as well. After thinking about it for a moment he let out a soft mmrph of assent. 

 

☙~❧

 

Anders’ fur puffed up and his ears flattened as the strong scent of fox hit his nose. One, small and cream colored, rested on the stall. He’d thought that they were going to meet cat people, not fox people. Foxes were fine, really! Small, and cute, and kind of like cats. They just also happened to make his cat body want to run or fight, so it would have been rather nice to receive a warning. He tried to force his fur to lie flat, but he was pretty sure that his tail would have been lashing if it wasn’t pinned against his body. 

 

Trying to help or not, he still didn’t want Kaden, a complete stranger, to touch his ears. He glared and Kaden and drew himself into a tighter ball, in the process snuggling deeper into Keaton’s arms. Fortunately the action didn’t take long, but Kaden’s assessment that the ears were real was hardly helpful. Wasn’t Keaton’s ability to hold him evidence enough? There hadn’t been any need to touch him. 

 

His bad mood wasn’t improved by Kaden’s inability to guess at how long the enchantment would take to fade, but a flash of white light and the appearance of a blond boy was enough to distract him from his irritation. His ears pricked up towards Ray and the boy and he extended his neck to better see. He mmrphed in amusement at the tangle of limbs that Ray and the boy had gotten caught it, but it was strange. The cream kitten hadn’t left the box until after he and Ray had touched the box, and he’d surely been exposed for longer, but Ray still had her ears and Anders was still stuck as a cat. Was the fading of the enchantment not entirely related to time, then? He hadn’t seen the cream kitten do anything else that could have broken the enchantment, unless heightened emotional states were a factor. It could be random, but that didn’t give them any hints about what to do next. 

Edited by Zor

Share this post


Link to post

Natsuki [ let’s just talk our way out and it’ll all be fine ] 

 

Natsuki hissed under their breath in frustration as Illidan carried Xander off yet again. This was too much to deal with at once. Illidan had abandoned them, Xander was kidnapped (again), the dragon was fleeing, etcetera etcetera, and they couldn’t even call for backup. At least the marketplace’s police had arrived to help. 

 

☙~❧

 

They picked themself off of a hard concrete floor, rubbing at a spot on their shoulder that had been caught between concrete and bone. They caught the tail end of what Raine had been saying -- something about Illidan’s actions proving that new agents needed basic training, which Natsuki completely agreed with. How much smoother would things have gone if they hadn’t dragged new agents out onto the field without so much as telling them not to kidnap people? 

 

That was something to worry about later. For now, they (along with Raine and some sort of cat-like being) were locked in a cell. The bars were made of some sort of energy, and the large mirror was different, but the general layout was recognizable enough as a jail. 

 

They stretched out their arms, testing their range of mobility. Oddly enough, they didn’t feel groggy or like they had a headache at all. No injuries, either. Their belt was gone, however, as were most of the contents of their pockets. Their captors had left the cube, however, which was either a major oversight or surprisingly polite. Presumably it was the latter, given how thorough they had otherwise been. 

 

“Will they?” they asked the black cat-like being. “Good.” The sooner the guards came, the sooner they could clear up the misunderstanding. Natsuki hadn’t even fought in self defense, so they knew that they hadn’t done anything illegal. If they were lucky, the dragon that had attacked Reshiram had been captured as well. They didn’t pay much mind to the yelling from the other cells, as there was really no reason to panic. It’d all be sorted out soon. “In the meantime, I’ll call Xander and let him know that we’re alright.”

 

They held the cube out in front of themself and tapped in Xander’s number. “Xander? This is Natsuki. Raine and I are in police custody, but we’re unharmed and in no danger. Please report your status. Over.” They tried to keep the worry out of their voice. He’d been fine the last time he’d been kidnapped, and worrying would do no good. 
 

Share this post


Link to post

Raine -- Market Jail

 

The partitions and the anti-magic field didn't stop Raine from hearing the commotion around her in other cells, and if she focused and strained her ears she could hear distinct conversations going on. She couldn't help but sigh at the rash decision one person made of charging the bars straight on. She had the sense that they were electrified -- she didn't need someone to run into them to figure that out, but at least it was good to know. It was unfortunate that not everyone had the insight to find out that the bars were bad news. 

 

The feline-like creature in the cell with herself and Natsuki seemed to wear a smirk upon its fangs. She nodded and rubbed her temples, agreeing that the people in the next cell were fresh idiots. She didn't see the black quadruped in the battle, nor did he talk like he got thrown in at the same time as the rest of them, so it was likely that they were already here at the time. Were they mistakenly imprisoned like herself, or something more sinister?

 

Her ears perked at a new voice. Somewhere in the distance she could hear Illidan yelling something about not being able to see, and one of his men -- which she recognized from the fight earlier -- had called to him. But no response.

 

Great. Illidan was one of the last people this situation needed. Like level-headed, logical and competent Natsuki, Raine believed that a simple talk with the police would be enough to sort out the misunderstanding. Knowing Illidan's history, however, the healer prepared herself mentally for more trouble down the line because someone wanted to break in and play hero. There was a fifty-fifty chance that Xander had accompanied the demon (higher if their relationship was indeed... reciprocal), but the easiest way to clear this misunderstanding was to contact the king and get him to do some paperwork to free them.

 

"Good thinking," she agreed. The cube was a strange object that appeared to have no value, but once Natsuki had activated it, it was easy to infer that it was some sort of communication device. "If we can get him talk to the administration to let us out, that would be fantastic. Second to that, tell him to retrieve his boyfriend. He's wandering the jail looking to break us out, apparently."

 

Share this post


Link to post

(White Kyurem)

 

The hoof-steps behind White Kyurem weren't stopping or getting fainter. Kyurem's skin was absorbing oxygen as fast as it could, but they were still running out of energy. It didn't help any that they were starting to feel their injuries. Accursed pursuer wasn't getting lost anytime soon.... The dragon let out a low snarl as they kept running.

 

White Kyurem's eyes scanned the area for any avenues of escape. No crowds. Great. There was, however, a big stone building with guards... and if Kyurem's pursuer fancied themself a hero... perhaps. Kyurem turned towards the building, charging at it.

 

Flame kindled in Kyurem's claws. They stole a glance over their shoulder, before raising one claw and slashing out with it. The sweeping motion Kyurem's claw described dictated the arc of the ball of fire, which slammed into the building. It scorched the side, cracking some bricks. A guard screamed in pain, burned, and two more raised their weapons. Kyurem summoned earth magic, creating a shockwave once again. The guards stumbled, one falling to the ground and suffering burns from a geyser of flame created by the Earth Power. The wall cracked some more, and Kyurem rammed into it. They threw all their might and weight that they could into the hit. Several shocked cries reached their ears as dust and pieces blasted outward. Kyurem's ice cracked, suffering damage from the physical attack and the reaction that followed, but as their momentum continued the leaking ice magic lessened to barely-sensable levels. They blinked and tried to summon ice, but it did nothing as the damaged walls continued to break. Kyurem snarled again. This couldn't be...! The dragon lashed out with an icy claw, putting a hole in a damaged wall and cracking the ice a bit. There was a surprised yelp from a Shiny Umbreon. Kyurem swung a claw, and the Umbreon scrabbled away, fleeing through the open front of the cell. There were things on the side that looked like they were supposed to generate..  something. Didn't matter. Kyurem turned to face their pursuer and the creatures in the cells. It seemed the pale grey dragon still had their strength, even if their magic was muzzled. The last guard tried to attack with his tusks at that instant, gashing White Kyurem and calling their attention to her which led to a bite.

 

---

 

(What the... - Bowser)

 

Smash. Crack. The noises caught Bowser's attention. He rumbled, eyebrows furrowing. The Koopa swung his head around, narrowing his eyes. Where was it? After he'd just got out of the darn crowd.... He snorted a bit of smoke - before tensing up. Oh. Stars above.

 

In the distance. That eldritch dragon. The Koopa's body dropped a bit in response, and he began to run. Bowser momentarily observed that there was dust, and there were creatures - some injured. Just went to show. That eldritch beast was bad news.

Edited by DuskOfTheStars

Share this post


Link to post

[ The sound of chaos... - Marketplace Jail - Illidan ]

 

Illidan didn't have time to explain his Spectral Sight; blind or not, there was still a rescue mission to carry out...

 

Even so, without his Sight, he was essentially just as helpless as the prisoners, and sheathed his Warglaives just before he felt something grab his hand and lead him down the hallways. He could hear the soft buzzing of electricity, but that was really all he could make out in this place before being tugged a little harder. Whoever was guiding him had broken into running and had eventually led them to an unknown room.

 

The feeling of a table underneath his hands was enough to tell Illidan that this wasn't one of the cells.

 

The voice speaking to him... it was Xander's, undoubtedly. And he sounded angry. Very angry. Whether it was purely his anger, or the Fel having amplified it, Illidan couldn't tell. The subject of the guard's death had undoubtedly come up, and how Illidan had all but gone lethal on him, but - still in a panic from the loss of his Spectral Sight - all Illidan could muster up in response to that was, "You don't know that." And even then, the words were shaky, as if Illidan were out of breath.

 

He could hear Xander pacing for a while, but that was his only indicator as to where the king was. Besides Xander's footsteps and the table beneath his own hands, he had no idea what was in the room.

 

He heard Xander speak again, this time apologizing. "...no, don't. Save the apologies. I... My world's authorities tend to use lethal force because most people on Azeroth are dangerous... I was so used to that... I didn't... I didn't think about how things might work in other worlds... Ugh, listen to me ramble. I decided to not think things through, play damn hero, and generally be a dumba** again. If anything, I'm in the wrong this time... At least we're even on me 'kidnapping' you from danger, right...?" That was a poor attempt at lightening the mood, now that he thought about it, but it was all he could muster up amidst his panic and guilt.

 

When he felt Xander's hand brush against his own, Illidan hesitantly took it, being careful not to grip too tightly. The last thing he wanted was to become lost in a jail, and Xander's touch was... comforting, to say the least. His tone softened, the softest it had been since they'd met. "...you're right about the fact that we barely know each other. Maybe it's wrong for me to love someone I've barely met, then..." Illidan shook his head, feeling the heat rush to his face but unsure of whether or not he'd blushed again. "I'm getting off-track. My world uses lethal force 24/7, but for all I know, yours doesn't..."

 

“Please, refrain from taking the lives of any other officer. If not for the sake of the mission, then for my sake.”

 

That didn't help Illidan's blushing. But... who was he to deny a request from the one he had a crush on? "...fine... if that's what you want..."

 

Illidan sighed. "...now to explain why I can't see in here. My Spectral Sight - my vision - relies completely on magic. When I ran in, it just... fizzled out. It normally doesn't just fizzle out, so something must be interfering with it..." He listened as Xander explained the "dragon vein" - likely his terraforming powers, Illidan deduced - and how they weren't working, either. "My best guess is that there's an anti-magic generator somewhere in the building. We take that out, and we - and any other creatures with magic in here - get our powers back."

 

Yet without his Spectral Sight to do so much as see with, and Xander desiring a more cautious approach, they were more or less stuck. It would take a miracle...

 

Loud crashing could be heard, followed by panicked guards.

 

A slight grin managed to come to Illidan's face. "...I don't know what's going on out there - can't bloody see for the life of me - but if my hearing hasn't gone out as well... Perhaps the chaos occurring out there could be used to our advantage..." Indeed, whatever was going on was sure to have disrupted the guards' usual patrol routes. He thought for a moment. "...first and foremost, that anti-magic generator..."

 

~~
[ Gone to hell all over again. - Marketplace Jail - Nora & Carol ]

 

"Carol, what the hell is going on out there?! I hear crashing!"

 

"Um... would you believe me if I said some dragon beast just crashed through the wall of the cell next to us?" It wasn't like Carol to sound panicked, but she had no weapon and no magic, so...

 

But then the words "dragon beast" hit Nora. That beast from earlier! That thing was the reason he was in this mess! He could feel the rage building up in him, but he was powerless, too - couldn't even muster a spark of Fel energy...

 

He hoped Illidan knew what he was doing.

Edited by hikarinomemori

Share this post


Link to post

Anders, Keaton, Ray

Prey is always so easy to find. Darkness fills their Hearts, pressing against the Light, even as the Prey remains unconscious of the battle within them. These hearts are wide open, vulnerable and unprotected. Just like the World. So careless. All the better...

 

This World was ripe with prey, maybe too many. They spread out across the small world, arriving at various locations, some more barren than others. Their travel wasn't perfect, it was hard to track down prey in certain places so more tedious methods were required. Track on foot. Rise to the surface and use their eyes....

 

The Key was here and many already hunted for it. That left the others to be distracted by something else. All sorts of prey were here, clustered in a single location. So many, so wonderful. Darkness and Light mingling together as each force pushed back against the other. 

 

There was a male, sitting on a girl much smaller than he. Something not quite human beside them, two 'somethings'. They were prey nonetheless. 

 

Almost silently, five Dark Corridors pool along the ground, forming a semi-circle behind the vulnerable pair of humans. Dark heads with bright yellow eyes rise from the surfaces, cat-like figures with twitching antennae and bodies taking shape. One immediately flattens itself into the ground, racing towards the pair of 'somethings' as the remaining four lunge into an attack. One strikes at the male's side while the other three leap at the prone girl.

Share this post


Link to post

Pascal -- Wandering the market (VS Heartless) 

 

The young woman grinned in appreciation, satisfied at Sora's herding job. (Or was it a luring job? The shadows were chasing him, not the other way around...) With the enemies in position, she focused on her spell again. It felt like the eleth inside her was going to burst! The magic seemed to rise from the ground but also seep from her skin, surrounding her in a soft blue glow. 

 

"Scorching flames," came her incantation, "find redemption in thine fists! I summon thee, Bloodflamme!"


As soon as she called the spirit's name, fire exploded outwards, searing the gathered Heartless with magical flames. Through the inferno appeared a horned creature nearly twice as tall as Pascal, covered in orange fur with the face of a bull, the arms of a gorilla, and instead of back legs its body trailed into a ghostly tail of a snake. Its massive hands had fingers that ended each in a purple hoof and, using those, it punched into the ground, sending another wave of fire ripping outwards and converting the monsters into wisps of smoke.

 

The summon vanished after its attack, having fully spent Pascal's gathered magic. The mage twirled her staff and leaned it on her shoulder, glancing left then right to see if there were any more of those shadow monsters that survived the assault. Didn't seem like it, so her stance fell back into something more relaxed.

 

"That wasn't too bad," she mused to Sora, though mostly it was addressed to herself. Her good mood was untarnished, as always. "It should do it, right? Hows about we get something to eat now to celebrate?"

Share this post


Link to post

[ Jackpot. - Marketplace Jail - Illidan ]

 

Xander talked with what Illidan could assume was Natsuki's voice before suddenly hushing himself. He could hear more voices - he couldn't tell who those were - but as soon as they stopped, Xander had grabbed his hand again and was once again leading him down a hallway. It wasn't long before they'd had to duck into another room.

 

Illidan followed the sound of Xander's voice to the back of said room. If this was the anti-magic generator and these police were half as competent as he thought they were, there wouldn't just be some off switch somewhere. No, the only solution the Demon Hunter had in mind was to break it.

 

"I'm useless with machines unless it involves breaking them. If my suspicions are correct, though, then they wouldn't just put an off switch on it and call it a day. That'd make it too easy..." Illidan drew one of his Warglaives and tentatively tapped a tip around, listening for the clanging of metal on metal. It wasn't as simple as smashing it - no, he had to be a little more detailed than that.

 

The lack of sight certainly made things a little harder than he was used to.

 

Eventually, he started tracing the box with a tip of the Warglaive, found a tube, and thrust downward to cut it off. He repeated with each tube in turn. Destruction was one thing he was good at - if the earlier fight with that dragon-beast and the breaking into the jail were any indication - but unlike earlier, he was being careful and calculated instead of brash and forceful.

 

Once he was certain the last tube was cut, he motioned for Xander to step back as he proceeded to finally get into the smashing - there were undoubtedly going to be a few sparks and he didn't want the king to get injured. He smashed into and cut at the box in every direction imaginable, utterly destroying it.

 

With the anti-magic generator busted, Illidan's Spectral Sight roared back to life, the emerald flames of his eyes brightening.

 

"...now that's more like it. My Spectral Sight has returned... and I'd bet your 'Dragon Vein' has returned, as well. And if our powers are back..."

 

Chances were that every other person in the place had their powers back, too.

 

~~
[ The return of magic. - Marketplace Jail - Nora & Carol ]

 

Nora had to blink his eyes a few times. His Spectral Sight had returned! "Carol, our powers!"

 

Sure enough, Carol could see her alchemy working. "Now this is more like it. Looks like we have your friend to thank for returning our magic. Now stand back." A little Fire alchemy was more than enough to blow out the glass. "...I'm afraid we have a greater challenge with getting past the bars."

 

"Shoot, I don't know any barrier magic."

 

"I need to wait for my alchemy to recharge a bit. It'll be a few minutes..."

 

Hopefully the others would find out about their returned powers quick enough.

Share this post


Link to post

(This magic.... - White Kyurem)

 

The police were coming. But as they came... White Kyurem felt it surge back. Their core. What they were. The dragon's entire body shivered involuntarily, feathers fluffing. The spikes on their shoulders once again glowed orange, and their skin sucked in oxygen more greedily. White Kyurem's lips curled, white gums visible, and they rumbled. So many coming. They snapped their head up and roared, loosing a pulse of earth magic. The pale grey dragon's magical strength was greater than their physical strength - and it was returned. Excellent. The magic was almost as a shockwave.

 

The Earth Power emanated out, tearing down more walls. Geysers of earth magic and fire shot from the ground as officers and prisoners scrambled to dodge. If they could. The ground shuddered and cracked with the force of the magical pulse, finally stilling with the end of the magic. Kyurem's head was lowered, and their body had started bleeding ice magic again - as well as magic-rich clear blood. Their white, yellow-scleraed eyes still glared at their opponents, though. They wouldn't show too much weakness. They must be whole again. And they were one step closer.

 

(Oh, perfect. - Bowser)

 

Well, this was absolutely lovely. The ground shook beneath Bowser, causing him to stiffen. He was bowled over by a Earth Power-induced geyser, landing on his shell and involuntarily whimpering slightly in pain. Bowser suppressed the whimpering as quickly as he could, mentally growling at himself. The magic had struck him rather hard in the gut and chest, and his current position made it hard to decide whether to stay still or struggle. Ugh... he'd best get himself out of this defenceless position, he guessed. Bowser bit his lip and began to kick and thrash, rocking his shell back and forth ... at least, when its spikes didn't stick in the ground. "Gah! Darn it!"

 

(Sayonara - Burakki)

 

Burakki didn't notice the return of his magic at first. That was, until the walls started streaking by. Suddenly he was running a whole lot faster. And... oh. Yes! Something had disabled whatever was suppressing magic. Burakki's tail wagged stiffly. He sneered and started to actively will himself to run faster. It certainly sermed to work. He heard an officer's yelp of surprise as he ran between their legs. Good luck catching me. Heh. The Shiny Umbreon continued running, eyes scanning the area. He darted down another hall. Was it...? Where's the exit?

Edited by DuskOfTheStars

Share this post


Link to post

Sora | Food, Please!

He felt the air rush against his back, Pascal's surge of magic releasing at her summon. With a grunt, he leapt the last bit of distance he needed to evade her area of effect, hitting the ground with his shoulder and rolling back to his feet. Sora could feel the heat of the fire that Bloodflamme created, the light of which momentarily chased away the darkness of the Black Market. 

 

And just like that, the handful of Shadows were torched, disintegrating into mist instead of ash that faded in a single breath. Whistling a single note in appreciation, Sora leaned back on his heels and grinned in the next heartbeat. "Cool!" he complimented, Oathkeeper vanishing in sparks of light. Running a hand down the back of his head, Sora waited for the last remnants of Pascal's magic to fade before moving closer again. At her suggestion, he nodded enthusiastically. "Oh man, food would be amazing! You were saying something about knowing a place?" Sora replied, prodding at his short-term memory for Pascal's words before the Heartless appeared. 

 

They started walking, Sora a pace or two behind Pascal so she could lead and he, follow. Despite the lack of Heartless, Sora wasn't too relaxed. Actually, it was because of the lack of Heartless that he was a little guarded. They hardly attacked in such small numbers....

 

Concern melted away as the scent of food reached him and his mouth began to water. Up ahead, a little stall stood with lots of lighting, containing only a makeshift kitchen, a short countertop, and a few stools to sit upon. Tiny was putting it lightly. But it didn't seem to phase the creature that was too-large for the stall as its shoulder bumped into the set of pots that hung from the awning. 

 

As they drew closer, Sora realized that he couldn't sort out how to identify the chef. Hunched over and broad chested with thick shoulders, dark scales covered any part of its body that wasn't hidden behind clothing. Fins sprouted from the sides of its face, fanning backwards as a pair of forest green horn jutted upwards at a slight angle. The face was elongated, kind of reptilian and possessing multiple whiskers that weren't longer than Sora's arm. Alongside the typical two arms, the creature had another pair that looked as if someone attached them backwards. 

 

Sora was just starting to squint and inspect a hole in the back of the chef's shirt when a giant, single, emerald eye slid open and oriented on the duo. "I'll be with you in just a moment," the creature grumbled. It sounded like a bag of rocks rolling down a hill to Sora's ears, the words tricky to parse out. The eyelid closed and Sora made a face.

Share this post


Link to post

15173d25115509cd0948ab8434aba27b.png [ vincent ; -- add. echo ; -- for. s & p ]

-- status.

dormouse ; wound

demios ; dormant }

for you, the abyss.

--

 

"That stall was delightful, Echo." A well-dressed blond man with his long hair tied back in a silky low ponytail claps his gloved hands together as he speaks, moving almost as if to some invisible tune as he weaves his way through the streets of the unfamiliar bazaar. Though his manner and face are calm and friendly, when Vincent Nightray skates his gaze around the numerous small shops before him, there is only a cruel curiosity in his yellow-red eyes.

 

"But you would think they would carry gloves of better quality," he sighs, following his words with an action; he withdraws a pair of white gloves from seemingly nowhere within the large black cloak draped across his body, and stares at the item with bored interest. "My dear Elliot cannot start another school year without proper gloves. And Gilbert doesn't even care!"

 

"Lord Elliot gave his gloves to Leo, master," the girl beside him says, her arms laden with shopping bags from their earlier excursions. "Echo believes he was very firm in saying he didn't want any more gifts from you."

 

"I feel like such a mother sometimes!" Vincent continues, ignoring Echo completely. "I buy them all these things, and Ellie doesn't take time out of his day to see how I am. He took offense to me visiting him last night only because I scared that little pet of his."

 

"You nearly landed on Leo when you jumped in through the window, master."

 

"And Gilbert won't even let me into his household! I feel like I am being purposefully persecuted."

 

"The world is against you, master." 

 

Vincent scoffs in response, taking a quick glance at the gloves in his hand before he throws them over his shoulder, shrugging. "Find a place to put those for now. I don't want to think about this anymore." Without waiting, he turns back and begins to make his way down the street, scanning around for his newest target in his current mission to find suitable items for both of his -- ungrateful -- brothers. Echo, catching the gloves with quick reflexes and slipping them into one of the many bags, catches up without hesitation just as Vincent comes to abrupt stop.

 

"Echo," he breathes, sounding positively delighted -- a hand pressed against his chest in mock imitation of his excitement, and he points towards a small stall a couple of steps before them. "Look -- a commoner's kitchen."

 

"Echo believes that is a food stall, Master Nightray."

 

"It's just like the ones from my childhood," Vincent replies, ignoring Echo's correction, "when we traveled and saw all the wonders the world had to offer. Of course, Gilbert was busy trying to ensure we weren't beaten to death, but" -- and here, a laugh, entirely too casual for the situation at hand -- "it was pleasant to see what others had and to wish for the death of the aristocracy." 

 

"That would include you, master."

 

Vincent hums. "So it would. A shame -- but nevermind that, let's eat!" Without waiting for Echo's response, he begins to move forward once more, eyes locked onto the little stall in the distance. 

 

As he comes within reach of the small stall, the blond noble squints slightly as he realises the surrounding area is open, the stall a part of the dark streets around them with only small seats in front for customers to eat -- how extremely interesting, and absolutely disgusting. There was not even a door to separate the outside from in! 

 

"Hello," Vincent calls into the shop, moving as he speaks; a gloved hand reaches out and meets the back of another patron, a young boy who only seconds ago had been staring intensely at the turned back of the cook, and pushes him, hard. The blond man hops nimbly onto the stool the other boy had been occupying only a moment before, crossing his legs as he gathers his clothes and smooths out his cravat. "I would like -- Echo, what do they eat here?"

 

"Echo doesn't know." The white-haired girl, trailing seconds after her command, shoves her way into the small space with their numerous shopping bags. 
 

"I would like whatever," Vincent declares. "Give it to me. Echo -- leave the bags outside, you're going to make a mess trying to fit it all into here. Oh, but hand me the new pipe, I want to see if I can use it to finally poison --" Murmuring to himself, the blond looks briefly upwards and cocks an eyebrow at the chef, not at all fazed by her otherworldly appearance. "Well? I don't have all day. Do you need money? Echo, give her some money."

 

From within one of her large sleeves, Echo pulls out a coinpurse and holds it out to Pascal. 

Share this post


Link to post

Ponbiscuit proved stalwart and kept up with the dragon easily, even through the milling crowds of the market. But when they got close, the dragon sensed them, and gladly smashed through the walls of a nearby building with a pommel and a gout of flames. More screaming--this time more physical too--reached her ears. Ponbiscuit stumbled, and Sacred gritted her teeth, glaring at the monster. This called for drastic measures, clearly.

 

"Ponbiscuit, up!" she begin lifting up with shimmering wings before Sacred even finished her name. Sacred brought her sword in a wide sweep, and a wave of shining energy followed it--And promptly dispersed into raw mana again as it impacted something in midair. Sacred paused, the rest of her attack halted and thrumming, waiting for her to release it. Ponbiscuit stayed in the air, and the dragon turned to face her, snarling, the fire gone from its body. Something inside gashed it, and as Sacred looked when the dragon turned, she realized that they had crashed into the prison, of all the places in the marketplace! She took a deep breath as an even stronger wave of anger swept over her--the mana around her started flaring an even stronger green in resonance. Even so, it would be useless in an anti-magic field.

 

But that doesn't matter.

 

Her shield solidified from mana to a solid metal diamond, as she crouched down just enough to draw in a breath of energy from the earth, then leapt up, flipped, and smashed her sword down on the dragon's location. A wave of air and green mana swept out, momentarily forming a massive plant with broad and shining leaves, scenting the air with the scent of a hazy summer afternoon in the forest. Wait, how did that not disperse? The dragon's fires lit again--The Harbinger also didn't seem to have much effect on it--and when it bared its teeth in an evil grin, Sacred felt that same welling of power as before, when the earth cracked and erupted. She sucked in a breath and braced herself, bringing her shield up as a geyser exploded in front of her and showered her with rocks and heat.

It hurt badly, and Sacred barely managed to stop herself from recoiling in pain. I've lived through worst, she told herself sternly. 

Share this post


Link to post

Natsuki [ Marketplace Jail Cell ; this is fine ] 

 

Natsuki frowned at Xander’s words. They were glad to hear that he was alright, but was using the communicator something that they had to worry about? They hadn’t been explicitly told that they were allowed to use their communicator and the idea of breaking the rules sent a pang of guilt and fear through them, but surely if it had been left with them --

 

Reverberations traveled up from the floor to their feet. Something big was approaching. 

 

There was no time to react or give a warning before something large and grey tore into the cell. All Natsuki could do to resist the impact was twist away from the wall and shield their eyes with their arms and nictitating membranes. A shower of stones and dust crashed into their back and they collided with the ground. Pain shot up their elbows and the wind was knocked out of their lungs. Distantly, they noted that their cube had fallen from their grasp and had tumbled off into a corner somewhere. 

 

Struggling for air in the thick atmosphere they pushed themself to their feet, ignoring the pain in their arms. “Raine!?” They coughed, then pulled their collar over their nose to filter out the worst of the choking dust. It was difficult to see through the chaos and cloudy membranes over their eyes, but they had to move immediately. They stumbled forward, trying to avoid tripping over the pieces of brick and mortar in their path. 

 

It felt wrong to start trying to escape without verifying that their teammate was okay, but if she knew anything about fights Raine would be doing the same. The situation had simply happened too quickly, and trying to help each other would just get them both killed. In any other circumstances…

 

They didn’t get far before the ground shook and opened under their feet. Walls crumbled around them, chunks of stone the size of their torso falling to the ground with deafening crashes. A few bursts of flame shot out of the new cracks in the floor. I thought magic wouldn’t work here!? Obviously their assumption had been wrong, and they paid the price for it when their arm got too close to a gout of flame. They jerked their arm away and grit their teeth, but couldn’t stop the ragged groan of pain from escaping their throat. Just had to keep moving. Everything else could be dealt with later. 
 

Share this post


Link to post

~Tara and Kouji- This can’t be HAPPENING.~

 

Tara woke up to find herself in some sort of containment chamber… and the sounds of Kouji shouting. She remembered he didn’t like being trapped in cages, but this was weird. The bars looked much more dangerous than in a normal jail cell, they radiated electricity. Kouji didn’t seem to realize that, it seemed. That, or he was too scared and angry to actually use a little bit of common sense. Because what happened next scared the ever living crap out of Tara.

 

HEY! LET ME OUT OF HERE!” He tried to grasp the bars, but he found himself on the other side of the cell. The boy was out cold. Tara sighed and sat up on the cold, hard floor. Moron, she thought. Tara decided she was stuck here, that there was no way she could pick a lock on a cell with electric bars. Hopefully the voltage wasn’t too high. She didn’t want to sit next to a dead body, much less the body of her friend. Tara checked his pulse- he was okay, just unconscious. And a little burnt on the hands.

 

The earth seemed to rumble, and the bars just… disappeared? Tara noticed the ground was messed up, cracked, showing the foundation and ground beneath the floor. Flames shot from the earth a few cells away, which after a while seemed to go out. The walls seemed to crack, which caused Tara to drag Kouji to the center of the cell. She didn’t want to lose her friend, not at all! This couldn’t be happening. No, she was back with Evonna, still shopping. Yeah, right. She wished. That dragon thing passed her cell, but it seemed to pay her no mind. She was sure that it was because she was weak in this state, but it seemed to be on a mission so that may also have been it. Tara didn’t have any time to wonder, she needed to go and find her D-Tector. Dragging Kouji by the hand, she continued out of her cell and searched for a map. Hopefully if she had a map she’d know exactly where to go. But if it didn’t…. she was going to have to risk her neck and search.

 


 

~Evonna and Chikako- Let’s get some Korean food!~

 

The two girls walked and talked, Evonna starting to like Chikako more as they spoke. She smiled at her, a wide grin that only her brother Jehan would ever see out of her. Maybe Ev was too trusting, but oh well. Chikako was gorgeous, Ev liked the gleam in her eyes when she started to talk about styling hair. She talked about how she was the go-to for when anyone wanted a trim or to change up their look, and Ev noticed that Chika seemed to talk with her hands a lot. She was so animated when she talked about something she was passionate about. Evonna usually was not, but she didn’t mind this one bit, she actually enjoyed it.

 

Chikako made a small clapping gesture, as if she had a sudden eureka. “Oh! There’s this one place we should go to before we meet this ‘Pascal’ girl. It sells… uh… Oh yeah! Korean food! I’m not entirely sure what Korean is but it’s really good food! Come with me! My treat!” Evonna laughed as the excited girl took the lead, but she stopped laughing when Chikako took her hand. She blinked, but kept walking. Chikako had a slight bounce in her step, which was rather cute. They navigated through crowds and continued towards a small stall with a very tiny kitchen. Not too far away was… Oh, it was Pascal! This was perfect timing!

 

Except she was…. interacting with some strange blonde man. Someone else was with him, a female, holding some sort of purse to Pascal. “What the hell…?” Evonna said as she approached the stall. Chikako raised a raven eyebrow as she walked in, not much room in the stall but it was just enough for the girls. “Pascal, hey, what’s going on here?

Share this post


Link to post

Raine -- Marketplace Jail

 

Natsuki? I’m glad to hear you’re okay, but how are you calling me from custody?Xander's voice came from the communicator. What a relief. Are you certain you won’t get in trouble for calling someone outside of the jail? Certainly, the police must have—

 

The building rumbled, and an old friend burst from the back wall. All she could really do was press herself against a corner and protect her head from the flying debris.

 

"I'm fine," she managed to answer Natsuki, although she was unsure if the other agent had heard her. Already, people were beginning to panic and to mobilize. Xander's voice continued on in the communicator: "The dragon from earlier has breached the building you’re being held in. Other officers are coming to help fight--"

 

Haha. If only he knew.  With no magic or weapons, the best option was to flee and wait for reinforcements. But, she realized, the ice dragon was also being affected by the anti-magic. Anything not within its claws' grasp was safe. At least, until some good-intentioned idiot decided to--

 

The mana.

 

Magic surged back and her mana sense returned, feeling like a cloth lifted from her eyes. Taking no time to wonder how, she threw down a casting circle immediately. The lack of a staff was an inconvenience, but she was by no means helpless without it -- it was just a focus. However, having checked earlier, they did take her unicorn horn, which was something that influenced her abilities. Made sense. They probably didn't want her to stab anyone with that thing (even if, to her, the thought of marring it with blood was appalling).

 

Open palms held in front of her, she gathered mana and called upon the holy powers to smite the dragon -- but the monster was faster in unleashing its own magic. Raine felt the earth shake and the heat rise under her feet a heartbeat before she was forced to open her eyes, her concentration broken and her spell interrupted by pelted rocks. Scoffing under her breath, she shielded herself with her arms, jumping backwards and out of the way of an erupting crack in the floor.

 

She ran the handful of paces to the hallway with the two way glass, now that the electric bars were disabled. The cells were falling apart from the assault. With her back to the mirror, she held her hands out and gathered her mana, determined to give her spell another try.

 

"Light, transform into spears and run this evil through!"

 

Runes swirled around her. They vanished in a flash of light when her spell came to completion and she called its name. "Holy Lance!"

 

A shining square glyph appeared under the ice dragon. She could see it -- no, feel it -- leaking magic, now that it was this close. Above each side of the glyph materialized prismatic swords that rained down like a piercing torrent, each blade glowing brightly upon contact and then dissipating into feathers. 

Share this post


Link to post

Pascal -- Jeon House

 

A man had come to the stall at around the same time they did.

 

His most distinctive feature were his two-toned eyes, and if Pascal knew anything about all the people with mismatched eyes, is that they were supposed to be special. She wondered if she could make herself get a red or a blue eye, just for the fashion statement.

 

He shoved Sora out of the way and Pascal wondered if it was on purpose. She frowned and was about to confront him about it, but the woman who was with him came up to her with a coin pouch and a command from the man to 'order whatever'.

 

"I'll get 30 pajeons and one of those fished shaped desserts," Pascal said to the cook. She looked at Sora, then added, "and a shortrib burrito. And one more jeon for the guy over there!"

 

The aquatic-looking creature didn't even flinch at her request. Their eye was focused on the patrons of the shop, but the rest of her limbs went to work pouring the batter. One of the smaller arms accepted the money that Pascal had counted out from the coin pouch that the strange white haired woman had handed her, then payed the rest by chip.

 

Finally noticing the teen and her friend, Pascal looked Evonna right in the eye, voice flat, expression uncharacteristically focused and determined. "I'm gonna eat 29 pajeons," she stated. "And no one will be able to stop me."

Share this post


Link to post

Circuitraider | At Your Service

 

Shifting carefully to remain out of the way but still at a better eye-level with the organics, Circuitraider frowned as the orange creature decided to buy more fruit. She was... confused, by the yellow being (was this Mrs. Pacman or did the name of the stand make no reference to any actual creature?), to say the least. It seemed more and more that Pascal's words about "going with it" were what the Autobot eventually would just do.  As much as she wanted to question the rules of this universe....

 

"'Meat and grain'?" she repeated, lifting her head slightly. Had she seen such a place while she was wandering? No, she hadn't. But it was a fair assumption to believe that this beast would know where to go for those. The nutrition requirements for organics was something she did not envy, as interesting as some of the processes might be to her fellows. Glowing blue optics traveled down to the bundle of oversized fruit. "If we're done here then...," Circuitraider prodded, letting the words trail off as she glanced at all three organics.

 

Already kneeling, the scout tucked her arms in against her body as plates of metal and spinning gears began to rearrange themselves. Pieces slid or clattered into place and her bipedal shape remade itself. When all four tires rested against the dark ground, the trunk popped open. "Place everything into the compartment. If something doesn't fit -" The passenger door clicked and eased open. "- then put it in the cab."

Share this post


Link to post

Sora | Bon Appé - Hey!

He'd only been on the stool for less than a heartbeat when a hand roughly pressed against his shoulder blade, force sending him mostly sideways and a bit forward. Gasping from the suddenness, Sora plummeted to the ground, grunting as he hit. His foot caught in the feet of the stool but a weight kept it from falling over with him. "H-Hey! What was -!" The rest of his words instantly died in his throat. Propping himself up on a hip and an elbow, Sora quickly found the culprit. A tall man with blond hair, talking to Pascal and another girl with white hair. "Huh?" Sora breathed, mouth slightly open and eyes widening a fraction in bewilderment. 

 

He clenched his jaw shut tight, frowning nearly to the point of a pout, furrowed brows and all. Unhooking his foot from his lost stool just as two more people came up to the stall, Sora angled his head and face towards the ground, trying to let the heat of humiliation wash away. Tainted with anger as it was, the feeling didn't leave too quickly. He picked himself up, dusting off his clothes while still refusing to look at the others as Pascal made her order. In a final thought about details, he brought his hands up to his hair and ruffled the unruly strands in case any dirt had landed among them.

 

Finally feeling a bit more composed, Sora turned towards the food stall with its sudden surge of customers. "Oh! Hey Evonna!" he waved, greeting the girl as soon as he saw her. His face brightened with a smile. "Who's your friend?" he asked, barely catching Pascal's very serious intentions. Sora's eyebrows lifted with wonder. "Are you sure?" 

Share this post


Link to post

[ Onward to battle! - Marketplace Jail - Illidan ]

 

Right - he'd almost forgotten about that dragon freak. Well, now it was time for some well-earned payback. Hopefully the prison guards were more occupied with the beast and less with the resulting jailbreak. If anything, maybe they thought the beast was the cause of the jailbreak. Technically it was, but still.

 

"Lead the way, Xander." Now that Illidan could see again, it made navigating the prison all the easier. He nearly cursed when he felt the edge of his hoof catch on one of the cracks, though he supposed it was only more proof of the dragon-beast's presence. Illidan nearly froze at the sight of the police, but they seemed to almost completely ignore him and Xander and went onwards towards the chaos. That had to be where the dragon-beast was.

 

Lo and behold, it was where that beast was. It seemed time for round 2, but Xander was preoccupied with helping a very much injured Natsuki. That just left him, Raine, and anyone else who was around...

 

[ A brief reunion... - Marketplace Jail - Nora, Carol, and Illidan ]

 

To Nora's surprise, just after Carol managed to conjure a barrier to slip under the bars with, Illidan returned with his royal friend. Seeing as the king was preoccupied, now was when the younger Demon Hunter had quite a few choice words for his Lord...

 

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU ABANDON US BACK THERE?! DO YOU KNOW HOW RECKLESS THAT WAS?!"

 

Both Illidan and Carol had to back up a bit, and Illidan was reduced to stammering. After getting over the shock, Carol tugged on Nora's arm. "I get that you're angry, but your friend is more equipped to handle that beast than we are, even after taking my alchemy into account. If anything, we should find where the weapons are being held..."

 

Nora stiffened a little before huffing, and both he and Carol disappeared into the prison's hallways. Still, it left Illidan wondering...

 

Had he done something wrong?

 

~~

 

[ OH SWEET ARCEUS!! - Kaden's Wares - Ray ]

 

Apparently the guy knew magic of some sort, because she hadn't even had a chance to scream before vines came between the two of them and the four shadowy... things... that came after them.

 

But holy mother of Arceus, this guy was snooty and bossy! It seemed his handsome looks were only skin deep, but considering everything, Ray decided to drop it until she knew they weren't about to die. It only took one glance to see that these things were physical fighters that left themselves wide open to ranged attacks. Ray reached into her bag, pulled out Tsuki's PokeBall, and brought out the Lunala once more.

 

"...Ray, why in the Distortion World do you have Litten ears and a tail??"

 

"Not the time, Tsuki! I need a Thunderbolt, ASAP!"

 

"At what?"

 

"Those. ANY of those!" Ray pointed out the shadow creatures, and Tsuki was quick to jolt them with the aforementioned Thunderbolt. Hopefully it was enough to at least stun them, if not thin their numbers a little.

 

~~

 

[ Outside the Jail - Oblivionix & Noreillan ]

 

"...okay, this sight is just sad." Oblivionix sighed at the scene before her. "Can't just leave 'em like this. C'mon, bro, gimme a hand here!"

"...do I have to? Fine." Noreillan stood on the left while Oblivionix stood on the right. Both were poised behind the dragon-turtle creature. "On three. One..."

"Two..."

"THREE!!" Both siblings shoved on the dragon-turtle's shell, aiming to push him back into an upright position.

Edited by hikarinomemori

Share this post


Link to post

Anders [ let gO !! ]

 

Anders should have been paying more attention to his surroundings, especially in such a crowded and unfamiliar place. Stupid, to be so easily distracted. Maybe he’d have been able to notice earlier had he been better rested, but as it was his warning yowl came too late to be of any help. 

 

His fur puffed out and his lips curled into a snarl. He tried to stand up to arch his back and better see the specters, but Keaton’s thick arms restrained him against his vibrating chest. 

 

One thing that Anders and cats had in common was that neither enjoyed being trapped. All thoughts of staying where he was safe from the not-shades were chased from his mind by flee flee flee. Justice was of little help; though he didn’t have a fear of confinement, Anders’ emotions still affected him and he burst forward to protect his friend. 

 

Anders’ fur diffused the blue glow from his skin, but his eyes shone clearly. They renewed their attempts to get free with Justice’s strength, uncaring if they hurt Keaton in the midst of Anders’ panic. 
 

Share this post


Link to post

~Evonna and Chikako- She’s my girlfriend- er, my friend who happens to be a girl.~

 

Evonna first blinked at Pascal. “Girl, you’re crazy. Don’t get sick please.” Then she looked at Sora, smiled a little, and waved. “Hey Sora. This is Chikako, a ninja from another world. She’s pretty— cool. Pretty cool. She’s interested in joining the organization.” Evonna nodded to Pascal.

 

She wondered what Pascal was going to say. They didn’t already have too many members, did they? Evonna hoped not. She liked this girl and wanted to see more of her, without having to deal with the hassle of interdimensional travel. This girl seemed to be a cool cat though, Chikako smiled and waved.

 

“Hi. Chikako Tanimoto, from the Village Hidden in the Leaves. What about you guys? Where are you from? What are your names?” She seemed to be very interested in all of these new people. Chikako was the very extrovert that Evonna was not. Maybe that’s why Ev liked her already. She just had that…. warm, friendly aura. Maybe it was her curiosity that caught Evonna’s attention. She wasn’t a hundred percent sure what exactly it was about this girl, but Evonna really, really liked her. Part of her hoped Chikako likes girls, but she knew that from her world those chances were probably slim. She really hoped so, though.

 

Share this post


Link to post

Natsuki [ Marketplace Jail Cell ; please believe me ] 

 

Xander!


Natsuki felt a pang of worry mixed with their relief. Xander was the reinforcement that they had hoped for, but at the same time they worried about his safety. His armor didn’t make him invincible, and he was charging into a ruined pile of rubble and dust. A single misstep in the low visibility could mean a twisted ankle, and then he’d be vulnerable to the dragon. 

 

Not as though there were many other options. The dragon had to be contained, and the ruined cell was as good of a place as any. 

 

“I’m fine,” they said quickly, barely able to spare Xander a glance between looking at the ground, back to the dragon, and scanning the rest of their surroundings. They blinked, and when they opened their eyes the nictitating membranes were hidden again. The improved clarity of their surroundings helped, but they were mostly concerned with not worrying Xander. In the moment, they couldn’t remember whether he’d seen the cloudy membranes before. 

 

Xander’s approach had forced them to stop their retreat, and they used the moment to straighten themself. Legs apart, feet steady on stable pieces of rubble, bruised muscles tensed and poised to prepare them to move in any direction. They picked out pathways through the rubble, eyes flickering between potential footholds. It wasn’t perfect, but when they next moved it wouldn’t be with the disoriented stumbling they’d used before. 

 

Xander pulled them towards himself, and in the expectation of unseen danger they let themself fall limp towards him, a foot striking back against the ground to stop them from falling over completely. Nothing whizzed past them or otherwise showed that their previous location was more dangerous than the one that Xander had pulled them towards. Confusion swiftly changed to annoyance as they realized that Xander’s movement had been more of a gentle tug than a yank, not meant to drag them out of immediate danger. 

 

Why hadn’t Xander left them yet? They would be safer if he left them to flee on their own, and as much as letting others fight while they escaped bothered them they knew they’d only get in the way if they stayed. 

 

"Do you need to leave? I... do not think…”

 

Damn it. 

 

They stepped back and away from Xander, putting some distance between them, and straightened their spine, focusing more on appearances than the stability of their stance. A point on their shin burned from the strain, but they ignored it. They moved their uninjured arm away from their injury and let it to hang down by their side, joints loose, trying to make the movement look natural rather than forced. The slight tension around their mouth and eyes told them that they hadn’t entirely succeeded, but they hoped that Xander would get the message. 

 

“...but I have no issue with taking you to safety-”

 

“I’m fine, they insisted. “Go help Reshiram.” It felt wrong to give an order to a king of all people and a pit of dread settled in their stomach, but they couldn’t let Xander keep wasting time for them. The creeping feeling that they were being coddled was almost worse than the fear of going against the chain of command. At least when Xander had bought them food it’d been outside of battle. Didn’t Xander trust them to do their part? Had they portrayed such weakness that he didn’t believe in their ability to do something so simple as get out of danger? Xander had his own duties, and the idea that they couldn’t be relied on to do their part, that they were a burden, twisted like a parasite in their gut. 

Share this post


Link to post


  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.