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Fantasy Legacies: World at War - In Character

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SkylaLocation: Great Oak Tree
Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
Current Weather: Raining
Current Time: August 26th, 1337. 1:35 pm

Skyla turned to Rai when he asked those question, "Rai-" But then Mateo spoke and gave more story. Skyla kind of winced when Mateo revealed more of his arm, Skyla didn't know about that and suddenly, Rai's line of questioning made a little more sense. In Skyla's eyes, if Mateo turned, she'd lose another dear friend. Rai's intention seemed to be more about his safety, whereas Skyla's line of thought was worry that she'd eventually lose him. It was a loss she wasn't wanting and only affirmed her desire to help him even more.

Skyla put a hand on his hand, completely not worried about whether or not it would affect her, "It's a curse, you said? Well, if I know one thing, curses can be removed. They're not permanent." Skyla sighed and took her hand off his and put her hand on her hips and gave a big smile, "You want to cure your curse, right? Well so do I! You said something about Luminosa right?" Skyla put a hand on her chin, "Beast of Luminosa, I think. If it's 'of Luminosa', then this Luminosa place must exist right? Let's start there, yeah?"


Joker and the CommanderLocation: Streets of Ironshire
Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Current Weather: Raining
Current Time: August 26th, 1337. 1:30 pm


Joker was stunned when Finch seemed to back down and put away his weapon. Everything was going according to plan. Joker looked at Nikki and waited for her to do the same. Nikki looked at Finch and understood his intention and sighed, "Alright, fine." She away her weapons, Joker's response was the same, "I'm... not gonna lie, I didn't expect you to... you know do that. You really are a strange kid."

He addressed the rumors first, "I promise you, it's just a case of wrong place, wrong time..." Joker briefly looked down and rapidly ran his fingers through his hair, clearly conflicted, "Okay look, things have been-" Joker was cut-off by a distant boom then the sound of panic coming from the direction of the Blacksmith's Shop, "It's already here..." He said quietly.

Nikki looked toward the direction of the boom and heard Joker quietly say something, "What? What's wrong?" Joker looked at Finch, Nikki and Kiko, "I... please, help me... it wasn't easy to draw you out here but I need your help with this... I'll explain later." Joker ran off towards the boom., leaving Nikki, Finch and Kiko to catch up if they wish.

Kiko stirred awake just after Joker left, "Hey... what happened?" She asked. Nikki looked and ran to Kiko's side, "It's... complicated..." She looked Finch, "What do you think? I know what I want to do but what do you want to do?" Everything went according to Joker's plan thus far, all that he hoped was that the trio would decide to investigate that boom.

??? (???/???)


Joker's Respect for Finch - +Positive
Joker's Respect
 
Mood: Serious
Rai Ikari
Thunderous Hunter
Bridge to Iron Fortress
Rai was only trying to be safe by asking that question, but from the look on Mateo's face, it had hurt him a bit. Rai felt wave of guilt rush through his body, but stayed true to his concerns.

Mateo explained more of the curse to Rai, talking about how whenever the host was exposed to negativity, whether from themselves or others, they would inevitably transition. Apparently he could sense those kind of feelings, and they lured him in dangerous way. Then he said that they "get big", which was confusing, and Mateo knew that, so he decided to just show Rai instead.

He lowered his sleeve, slowly revealing a cluster of black sludge that had formed around his arm. It was utterly repulsive to even gaze at. Rai had to stop himself from gagging at the sight of it. Mateo informed him that it appears as a sign that he was close to turning, and it encases his body once he loses control. Fur covers his skin, the sludge still remains in some places, and he takes the form of an animal. Apparently there are rumors that the first cursed person became a goat that had 10 different sets of horns.

What the hell is this shit? Rai thought to himself. He was taking this in all the wrong ways. It was almost demonic to him, and he looked to the ground, trying not to make a disgusted face. He couldn't blame Mateo for any of it, he was just a boy who just so happened to be born into that bloodline, but it still creeped him out.

Mateo continued, talking about how his consciousness slips away, and he's "floating in a sea of black sludge". He can't tell what he's doing while transformed, so he could do destructive things within that time period, and he wouldn't even be able to stop himself. He described it as being like an episode and that after a while he turned back to normal. The Cabreras didn't want to do these things. They didn't want to turn into beasts and terrorize people. The curse just affects them in that way.

Rai stayed quiet for a bit to think of a way to respond to all of that, and after a bit, Skyla spoke up and tried to reassure Mateo again, telling him that curses weren't permanent, and that they could find some way to remove it, and mentioning Luminosa again. She stated that if it was a place, then looking for it is where they should start.

Rai scoffed in disbelief as Skyla's cheerfulness. She said all of that like it'd be an fun and easy trip that would end in hugs and kisses. Maybe it's because he's young, but Skyla seemed to be constantly flooding his mind with the idea that everything can always go well, and that couldn't be further from the truth.

Call him pessimistic, but Rai knew for a fact that they'd end up going through some sort of trouble along the way. Hell, they could encounter one of Lucero's descendants the way there too! There were too many problems in this world for a peaceful and bonding trip to and from Luminosa.

He had finally found his response to the information, so Rai took yet another shuddering breath and stood up so speak.

"Listen, Mateo." he started. He struggled to keep eye contact with the boy, trying not to stare at his arm again. "Just because you have a curse, doesn't mean we're going to immediately change the way we think about you. We'll always be friends, family even, like Skyla had said."

Rai forced a small smile onto his face and looked between Skyla and Mateo, not looking at Cora because of the glare he was getting.

"So...let's cure you, eh? J-Just, uh, before then, give me a bit of time to process all of this, please."

Seeming optimistic was the best approach at the moment in Rai's mind. He didn't want to worry Mateo or seem like a bad person, and he didn't want to reveal his fear at the same time. He was worried, and he damn sure had a right to be, didn't he? He didn't know if Skyla was doing the same thing as him, faking being chill, but she was way too calm about this. From the way their lives were going at the moment, there could be plenty of scenarios where Mateo was exposed to negativity. In fact, he could've turned right there when Mika had died if it wasn't for Skyla consoling him.

And if he turns, Rai would be forced with an ultimatum between two choices. And both were choices he couldn't live with if he acted them out.

He would have to pick between killing Mateo before he could cause any damage, or letting him rampage till he turns back, putting other people at risk of dying.



Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Code by Serobliss


Mood: Shocked
Castro Smith
Blue-Eyed Bandit
Unknown, Ironshire
"H-Hey, what are you doing?" Castro quietly said as Rori bega to speak to Kaminari.

"Yes, that is my name." Kaminari responded to her first comment.

Rori began to negotiate a deal with Kaminsri, basically the same as what he had offered, but with added properties. She wanted Kuragiri off of her hands, and if he was capable of doing that, she was fine with it. But she wanted verbal confirmation that none of the Shugoshas, or anyone from the Seiryoku Empire, would come after her or Castro, who she addressed as her business partner, ever again.

Kaminari gave Rori a light smile and small bow before speaking again.

"Thank you for your cooperation," he said. "But I'm afraid that deal will only be for you, Castro cannot be incorporated into it. See, my master, ruler of our empire, has a certain hatred for Mr. Smith here, and has plans to make him suffer due to the results of their last encounter."

Shit. Castro thought to himself. He's still mad about that?

"So unfortunately, Castro will still be endangered after this, my sincerest apologies."

"Rori." Castro said with a disgruntled sigh. "It's always going to be like this. He's not gonna stop until Maki and I are dead. Rori, please just- " Castro paused, taking a deep breath in. "Just go. I'm sorry for dragging out into this mess and this is an opportunity for you to get out of here."

Kaminari walked into the store and brushed past Rori and Castro with a hand behind his back, then picked up Kuragiri with one arm and threw him over his shoulder.


"Take your time when thinking about your decision, but I should inform you that you have 15 minutes before Heath begins to become impatient."

Kaminari stood behind Rori and Castro, invading their privacy as he patient waited for their answer.







Mood: Annoyed
Akuhei
Shugosha
Unknown, Ironshire

Hi







Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf







Code by Serobliss
 
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  • Skyla kept doing completely unexpected things that kept making him feel more like a normal person. She touched his hand with hers, resting it there. A wave of anxiety passed through him as thoughts raced through his mind. 'What if I hurt Skyla? What if it activates? It'll kill her. She's seen it before, why would she wanna touch my gross hand now?' But she wasn't worried, and that eased his own worries. He kept his hand super still for the duration of how long Skyla had it there, not wanting to hurt her.

    Skyla remarked about how curses weren't permanent. She took her hand off his, with Mateo's clawed hand finally relaxing. She gave him a big smile, saying she wanted to cure his curse as much as he did. His eyes widened in shock at the statement. She talked about Luminosa and said if it was real then they should head there. Well, that was incredibly easy. Luminosa was definitely real, and he'd definitely wanted to steer them in that direction. He wondered if he should explain about the little demon girl that was waiting for them, or about Loki Ariyo who was hopefully gonna help like Kumii said. He figured that would be too much for today. He could tell Skyla was being supportive, but it was surely still a lot to handle especially after the death of Mika. And Rai wasn't saying much, still stunned. But that was the kind of response he was honestly expecting, the other response would be hatred and outrage, and the inevitability of an attack. This was a better alternative, but Mateo knew his friends were still trying to process everything. It seemed best to wait to tell them about that other stuff.

    He looked towards Rai in a way to check if he was ok with the new destination. He started with telling him to listen, which was usually not a good thing. It was a token line for when parents were telling their children they were getting divorced, or when a crush was telling the person who liked them that they weren't interested. Not liked he'd ever been in those two situations, so he wouldn't know.

    Mateo studied his body language. He noticed that it was hard for him to hold eye contact, but the same could be said for Mateo. He felt so guilty that it was hard to face Rai. He was a beacon of nobility and strength, truth and justice. Mateo felt like a criminal, with the way he had lied and put their lives in danger. At any point he could've transformed. He was close to with the reveal of Cerah Junia, and he probably would've with Mika when he really realized the guy was dead. But Skyla had helped him, and seeing Mika's spirit(?), he didn't really know what to call it, had helped him in a way. He remembered the warm smile he gave him, and the cold touch of his ghostly hand against his head, giving him a final pat before departing. He felt like it was hard to face Rai, especially since he wasn't taking it as well. But it was really all his guilt gnawing at him.

    But Rai's response was amazing, despite Mateo being able to tell he was the most shocked out of the two. He said they wouldn't think differently of him just because he was cursed. And then he said they were friends, family like Skyla said. He wanted to cry again but sucked it up. He didn't want to look like a complete crybaby in front of his friends. He wanted to look strong so they could depend on him in a fight. He was more capable now that he had his book. He'd have to study it later on to see if there was anything in its pages, maybe more spells besides the phoenix.

    Rai smiled at him, then said something about curing him, seeming to be on board with the Luminosa plan. He just said he needed time to process, and Mateo nodded in understanding. He knew it was a hard thing to wrap your head, and he would give Rai the time he needed.

    He gave a heavy sigh and then spoke once more. "Everything in the story is real, including Luminosa. It used to be a pretty small town in the days of my ancestor, y'know the first cursed. But now it's a pretty big city. Not Ironshire big, but pretty big. I can lead us there but healing the curse won't be easy. My family has tried, but it's gone on for twelve generations. I don't know if we'll find a way."

    Cora padded up to Mateo and let him take him up into his arms and stroke his fur. He didn't even seem mad about it. He was completely ok with Mateo petting him. Mateo shook his head. "But if you guys are there then I'm sure it'll be fine." He risked making eye contact with Rai, pulling up his sleeve so that the sludge was gone from eye sight. "Rai, take all the time you need. I know its.. a lot. If it makes you feel any better, I'll answer any questions you have, assuming I know the answers." He tried for a light smile, which was a little awkward, but it seemed genuine. His feelings were mixed, but he was mostly really happy that this had gone better than he'd thought. "But I'd like to start heading to Luminosa as soon as possible, if that's ok with everyone."

    Mateo reached for his glove and fixed it back onto his hand. He didn't want it out, because even he thought it was revolting. It was ugly and gross to look at. He knew the others wouldn't want to stare at it either.
 
  • SkylaLocation: Great Oak Tree
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Raining
    Current Time: August 26th, 1337. 1:35 pm

    Skyla remembered that they just fought her Uncle and lost Mika, surely they'd be drained physically and mentally, "Uh... actually how about a rest first though?" Skyla smiled slightly, "We all have been fighting super hard and... well, I'm sure we all need a rest." They could head to the inn at Ironshire since the city was close by, "We can go to Ironshire and rest at an inn before we head out. Give us time to prepared and whatnot."

    Skyla instinctively turned around to a non-existent Mika, "Isn't that right, Mi--" SKyla stopped herself and just stared where Mika would've been, "...oh..." She remembered and nearly teared up again, "I'm sorry, I thought he was..." She waved her hand dismissively, "...forget it, let's go rest, yeah?"
 

  • Mateo looked towards Skyla as she suggested they rest first. She was right. They'd been fighting super hard and needed some time to rest and relax. Just telling them the truth had left Mateo mentally drained, plus Mika's death still hung in the air. It wasn't exactly a happy mood. And that mixed with the exhaustion from fighting just brought them down. Mateo could sense it, how tired everyone was. And he was too. Resting would do them all good. Honestly, he just felt like curling up with his book, studying it for a while, and then going to bed.

    She mentioned Ironshire and he realized that they were by the city. He'd honestly thought they'd be camping out. He was so used to doing just that while on the road.

    Then she did something totally depressing. She turned around to ask for Mika's opinion, only his usual spot by her side was now empty. He couldn't help the small wince that escaped his mouth. Cora pawed at him, trying to distract him, but he just stared at the spot with a sullen gaze.

    Skyla apologized and snapped him out of it. She waved her hand dismissively like it was no big deal, but he knew she must be hurting inside real bad. She loved Mika, just as much as he had loved her.

    Mateo sent Cora scampering up to sit at his shoulder then stood and walked over to Skyla. He was apprehensive about what he was gonna do, as if the motion would be unwanted now that his secret was out. But he stuck to it, and laced his fingers between hers, holding her hand in support. "It's ok. You don't have to hide it."

    It was a little bit of an ominous sentence but take it from the kid who could literally feel negative emotions. He gave her a sad sort of smile, trying to comfort her, but he was sad himself. He wasn't as good at comforting others like Skyla was. She was a pro at it, while he was just trying. He'd be an awkward teen since the day they met, and he was still an awkward teen.

    A few moments passed and then Mateo continued on with the plans for Ironshire. "Honestly, I thought we were just gonna camp out for the night. But I think a nice, soft bed would do us all good. Great idea, Skyla!" He tried to act all upbeat and happy to distract them of the sad air still lingering. He was still a sweet kid, no matter the fact that he was cursed.
 
The Demonic Beast
The Demonic Beast reacted when it got its eye shot at. The arrow did no damage, didn't even penetrate the eye but it sure as hell got its attention. It let out a mighty roar. It brought up a claw and slammed it down where Finch was.

  • SkylaLocation: On the way to Ironshire
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Raining
    Current Time: August 26th, 1337. 1:40 pm

    Skyla flinched a bit when Mateo laced his fingers in her hand and he told her she didn't have to hide it. Skyla briefly stared at Mateo with a kind of sullen stare, "I'm not--" She didn't get to finish her statement before he congratulate Skyla on the good idea which snapped her out of her momentary trance, "Oh, uh... y-yeah..."

    Skyla noticed he was trying to improve the mood and returned a smile, but this was more sad, at least for Skyla it was. Skyla instinctively pulled her hand from Mateo's hand and began walking off, "Let's go then, yeah?" It seemed like a rude thing to do to Mateo but the true reason was she didn't want them to see her starting to cry again. She was done showing them weakness. Weakness was what got Mika killed. Weakness is what lowered their guard because they thought they were 'safe'. The more she thought about, the more her thoughts began to align with Rai's and she hated it because now she knew he was right.

    She clenched the Lance in her hand tightly and brought her free hand up to her face to try and secretly wipe away the tears in her eyes without Mateo or Rai noticing it.
 
Mood: Serious
Rai Ikari
Thunderous Hunter
Bridge to Iron Fortress
Rai sighed with relief when he realized that no one had caught on to his fake calm. His heart was racing through the entire conversation.

Mateo agreed to let Rai take some time to process the information, but that's not what Rai was going to do. He needed to talk to Skyla. He needed to talk to her about her constant reassurance and calmness in this situation.

Skyla had suggested that everyone get some sleep after the day they had been through, even suggesting that they get an inn down in Ironshire. Even though Mateo wanted to get to Luminosa as quickly as possible, he agreed, saying that it'd a lot more comfortable if they slept on actual beds. Rai was fine with whatever they decided on, finding it best to let them do the leading while he recuperates.

Rai didn't catch the comment Skyla made on Mika, as his mind was still wrapped around Matei's curse. He stood to the boy's left side, away from his blackened arm as he pondered on it. Even though it was encased with the glove, he still didn't feel safe just being near it.

Skyla began walking off towards the path of Ironshire,and Rai followed along, hoping to get there as quickly as possible to speak to Skyla alone. He looked back at Mateo, who was now beginning to catch up, then looked to his gloved arm before returning his attention to the road ahead.

A deep sigh left his body and he shook his head. Mateo chose right to tell them now, ut he should've done so long ago. He could've turned at any time, and no one would know how to deal with it. Not Rai. Not Skyla. Not Nia. Not Mika. Everyone would be in complete confusion. And since Rai didn't have the sort of connection with Mateo then versus now, he fears that he may well have attempted to kill the boy in the case that he had turned.
Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Code by Serobliss


Mood: Shocked
Castro Smith
Blue-Eyed Bandit
Unknown, Ironshire
"It's tempting, Blue Eyes." Rori said. It made him smile slightly even though he could tell that it probably wasn't a joke.

Kaminari told them that they had 15 minutes before Heath would become annoyed, and instead of discussing with Castro, Rori turned to Kaminari and began to question him.

"Rori, don't-" Castro began to muttered, but once again she was already going.

She asked Kaminari Kuragiri was so special to them, but Castro and Maki weren't. They wanted the two of them dead, but Kuragiri got to survive and live another day. She mentioned that she knew that they all had fought Heath, and if they had made a deal with Kuragiri, then they could've done the same thing with the Castro.

Kaminari smiled once again before giving his answer. He looked to Akuhei, who was shaking his head in disapproval, but he told them anyways. But before he did, even though he was unconscious, Kaminari chopped Kuragiri hardly on the back of the neck to make sure he wasn't awake.

"I might as well let you know." Kaminari said, his voice a bit too cheerful. "As Castro must have told you, Kuragiri is part of the Seiryoku Empire. His parents were born there. I'm not sure if you knew, Castro, but his father is still alive."

"He is?" Castro loudly asked? "The man with the scar on his left eye?"

"Yes, he is. He is very high ranking, and
even rules the empire."

Castro paused for a moment and blinked in disbelief. He had already put the puzzle together, but still didn't think it was true.

"W-wait. You mean to tell me..."

"Kuragiri is the offspring of Heath Mazaki, and the heir of the Seiryoku Empire." Kaminari proudly announced. "To answer your question, he is not being persecuted because he needs to take over the empire and rule it. I fear Heath is beginning to grow old and will soon be too weak to defend his position."

Castro took a few steps back and put his hands on his head, still baffled.

"But, Heath doesn't have a scar on his left eye!" Castro exclaimed. "So how-"

"That was a lie to make sure he didn't find out. Heath wanted to inform Kuragiri himself, but you defeated him and took Kuragiri back before he could."








Mood: Annoyed
Akuhei
Shugosha
Unknown, Ironshire

Hi







Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf







Code by Serobliss
 
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  • Mateo wanted to improve Skyla's mood, but it seemed like it didn't really work. He didn't notice the flinch from her. She wasn't really opening up to him. She seemed more closed off, but he could definitely tell from her sullen gaze and stuttering words that she was sad. She was probably just grieving, but it wasn't good to bottle all that stuff inside. Mateo wanted her to know that she could talk to him and that he would help, like Skyla and Mika had done for him before. They'd always helped him, and he wanted to return the favor to Skyla.

    Skyla pulled her hand out of his a moment later and said they should go. She sped up and took the lead while Mateo looked down at his gloved hand. It shouldn't have hurt as much as it did, but he was in a vulnerable state. She was touching his hand before, even when it wasn't gloved. Why would she hate it now. 'They don't hate me.' He thought, 'They said it so they can't hate me. They wouldn't lie.'

    While he was in his thoughts, Rai pulled ahead as well. His gaze popped back to Mateo for a second, then back to the road. Weren't they going to wait for him to catch up? He stuck his hands in the pockets of his ruana and started closing the distance. Seeing them go ahead hurt for some reason. It felt like they were leaving him for good. They weren't, but it sure did feel that way. And it gave him a sense of dread and anxiety. When he actually caught up, he felt relieved. He let the two adults lead them back to Ironshire, and walked in back with Cora coiling around his shoulders.

    ***

    Mateo had never really been to Ironshire. There was the festival, which was his first time being in Ironshire, and that was it. Him and Cora didn't really like big cities, for obvious reasons. He'd intended to stay and find a magic teacher, but that had never worked out considering Skyla had been kidnapped. So, he honestly didn't know where to go, and relied on the older members of the team to get them from point A to point B.

    Suddenly, he remembered about their little dilemma. You'd think the curse would be the most stressful thing, but right now Mateo stressed about money. Cora and him never managed to strike gold. He didn't work, mostly traveled, and when he stayed put, he was getting taught under a mentor. He whispered to Cora, who climbed into his pack and fished out a small pouch. There was some, but really not a lot. What he had wasn't worth much. Being a traveling healer didn't exactly make you rich. They used most money for provisions anyways, and usually Cora and Mateo slept on the hard ground. Mateo honestly didn't mind. It felt pretty soothing to be out in nature, watching the night sky as you drift off to sleep.

    As they arrived at the inn in Ironshire, Mateo spoke up and showed them the pouch. "I'm really sorry about this, but I don't have a lot of money. I hope it'll at least cover me."

    It was almost expected that the sixteen-year-old didn't have the most wealth, even though some people his age did work. He worked as a traveling healer, but never named a price or anything. Sometimes people would give him what they had, other times they couldn't afford to give him any. And there was that rare occurrence that some nasty person would slam the door in his face when he was done, giving him nothing. But Mateo didn't mind if he got paid or not. He thought that if he had the power to help people, he should help them. In a way, it helped him feel less guilty about himself and the curse.
 
  • SkylaLocation: Ironshire Inn
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Clear
    Current Time: August 26th, 1337. 5:40 pm

    Skyla and the others arrived at the Inn. Mateo pointing that he didn't have any money or barely enough money. Skyla sighed and checked her wallet. She had enough but she remembered that Mika carried most of the money and since they traveled together all the time, he covered most of the costs, "I have just enough too."

    She paid for her room and the the Innkeeper handed her the key, "Second floor, second door on the left." The Innkeeper said. Skyla nodded, "Thank you." She turned to Mateo and Rai, "Well, I'm heading up to my room. I'll see you guys later." She turned and walked to her room, opened the door and went in, closing the door behind her and locking it.
 
Mood: Serious
Rai Ikari
Thunderous Hunter
Bridge to Iron Fortress
Ironshire hadn't changed one bit. It was still the highly populated, bounty hunter paradise as it was at the Tournament. People recognized Rai, saying their hellos to him as he followed Skyla to the inn. Rai smiled proudly at all of this. It made him feel the pride he had before he met everyone.

_______________

"Alright, see ya." Rai replied to Skyla as he went off to her room.

Skyla had enough cash on her to easily pay for her room, but Mateo was short of some cash, apologizing for the inconvenience. Rai reached into the wallet hidden in his haori and took out a pocketful of yen to give to the Innkeeper.

"That'll cover me, and Mateo here." Rai told them. "That should be enough for 1 night for the both of us, and the rest you can take as a tip from me. Keys, please."

The Innkeepers eyes widened at the sight of the yen placed on his desk. "You have an amazing night here sir. Enjoy your stay, let me know if you need anything! Your room will be on the 3rd floor as well, first room you see. And for the kid, 2nd floor, 4th door on the right side."

The man handed Rai and Mateo their keys, and then scooped up the yen into one and and placed in in a pouch.

"You shouldn't have to pay, not at that age." Rai told Mateo, patting him in the back before heading towards the stairs. "See you in the morning. Sleep well."

Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Code by Serobliss


Mood: Shocked
Castro Smith
Blue-Eyed Bandit
Unknown, Ironshire
Rori kept pushing onwards with the questions towards Kaminari, and no matter how much Castro tried to stop her, she had more and more questions.

She told Kaminari that Heath wouldn't matter when he was dead and gone, which Castro winced at when he saw Kaminari's resting smile faded away as he narrowed his eyes. She was way too abrasive with her words towards the man Kaminari was so loyal to.

Then she continued on about how they should just let Kuragiri take the throne now, leaving the past in the past.

Please, shut up. Castro thought, not wanting to interrupt her.

Rori told him to fake nor being able to kill Castro and blame it on some subordinate, also mention that they could the issue between Heath and Castro won't matter in the long run. Rori then turned her attention to Castro and told him to focus on surviving for not and to not worry about Kuragiri's royalty.

"Rori, respectfully, please shut the hell up." Castro whispered back to her. "You're not going to be able to save me. Stop trying."

"I think you have it all wrong, miss." Kaminari suddenly spoke, his voice louder than before. "Kuragiri is far too weak to rule right now. Heath needs to train his son before someone attempts to take his position. And if I fake failing to kill Castro, Heath will know something is up. Be glad I was sent here. If it was Miyahira, you'd both already be dead. And if Miyahiri somehow failed, who do you think would come next? Kizawa would. Then Aikawa, then some soldiers, then everyone together, then Heath himself. I don't know why, but his hatred for the boy is too strong to be ended over a deal I make with some little girl."

"Rori, don't try to-"

"This," Kaminari loudly boasted, cutting off Castro. "Is your very last chance to make a decision, because it doesn't seem like your willing to take my deal."

"Brother, calm yourself." Akuhei told him a shuddering voice.

"I am calm. But it seems like I have to raise my voice a bit to have my point heard."







Mood: Annoyed
Akuhei
Shugosha
Unknown, Ironshire

Hi







Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf







Code by Serobliss
 

  • Skyla went first, having the same sort of situation but with her being able to pay for her own room. She went first, paying for her room and then saying she'd be going up. He waved to her and said, "Bye. Have a good night." Just in case they didn't see each other before bed. The boys turned back to the innkeeper, Rai rooting around for his wallet and took out a bunch of yen. Mateo's eyes went wide, and he looked up at Rai who paid for both their rooms and then told the innkeeper to keep the change. It seemed the innkeeper was as shocked as he was. Cora obviously wanted to swipe some cash, but Mateo shot him a look. They were not stealing from their friends, or an innkeeper as the money was now his.

    The innkeeper told them their rooms, calling Mateo a kid in the process. He didn't exactly appreciate that, but kept his mouth shut. He wasn't a kid. He wasn't even small like a kid. He was pretty tall, and the idea that he was a kid was laughable. Technically, he was by no means an adult, but he wasn't a little kid either.

    Mateo took his key, with Cora still on his shoulder. The 'kid' having a 'pet' didn't seem to matter, considering how much Rai had paid the innkeeper. Rai turned to him, saying someone of his age shouldn't have to pay. He gave him a pat on the back, and then said good night and walked towards the stairs. Mateo gave a little wave, "Night. And thanks." He told Rai before looking at the key. He waited a couple minutes, then went up the stairs to find his room.

    ***

    Mateo opened the door of the room, went in, and locked it. He slumped against the door and his back slid down till he met the floor, then sighed. Cora jumped off his shoulders and with a bright light turned humanoid, complete with a cloak. "Do you think food is included? We've barely gotten a chance to eat." Cora asked, now a fourteen-year-old human looking boy.

    Mateo shrugged as in an 'I don't know' answer and went over to the bed. He placed down his bags, leaned his staff against the bed, and then flopped down onto it. Immediately, he gasped. "Cora, you have to try this!"

    The boy walked over and put his hand on the bed, "Eh, my bed back home was softer." Mateo gave him a look. "I mean, yeah, so soft." Cora said, joining Mateo to lie on the bed.

    "That was pretty scary, but I'm glad I told them. I didn't think it would go over so well." He confided in Cora.

    "Me neither. That girl is full of surprises." Cora said, which was shocking because that was the nicest thing he'd heard Cora ever say about Skyla. It actually seemed like he was coming around to her. "The samurai on the other hand, I wouldn't trust him."

    "Ah, come on. Rai paid for all this." Mateo chided.

    "Yeah, yeah. Still, I just think you should be careful of him." That notion was out of a good place. He'd watched the expressions on Rai's face and knew he could be a danger to his naive older friend.

    "Mateo." Cora suddenly said.

    "Hm?"

    "I'm sorry about Mika." That was the first time Cora referred to them by one of their names. His voice was soft and sweet.

    It seemed like a while before Mateo responded. "Yeah, me too." He said, with tears rolling down his cheeks.

    The two laid in silence together, Cora giving support before Mateo wiped his cheeks and changed the subject.

    "Well, I think I'm gonna do some reading." Mateo said picking up his new book, "Wanna join?"

    Cora gave a light hiss at the book. "That thing? No thanks!" He said, a shiver going down his spine as he looked it over, remembering the fiery phoenix that had come from it. "I'm gonna go see about food. Key?"

    With that, Cora set off to get them dinner. With a slight ruckus in the kitchen, he returned with a platter, frost sticking to his hair in clumps. They ate, and then Cora turned back into a cat and cuddled up next to Mateo. They couldn't both share one bed, and Cora liked when Mateo lightly brushed his hand through his fur. Mateo studied the book for a few hours, attempting to learn something from it, before drifting off to sleep himself.

    They slept in a bit, with plans set for Luminosa. Mateo had gotten out some maps and set them on the desk, reviewing which way was the best to Luminosa. He'd never been before, but he felt excited and nervous at the same time. Going back to the place where he was born, where he should've grown up. He wondered what it would be like, what the people there were like. If he'd meet family, maybe even meet his father. He'd mapped it out, thinking they could make it in a few days' time if they left tomorrow morning. Or well, today, as the sun rose and peeked through the inn's windows.
 
  • SkylaLocation: Ironshire Inn
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Clear
    Current Time: August 27th, 1337. 8:28am

    The Next Day...Skyla got up and stretched. She rubbed her eyes and felt that they were a bit puffy, "Oh... I must've cried myself to sleep last night..." She muttered quietly. Skyla slapped her cheeks and got up, "Let's get this day started. We have a big trip ahead of us!" She picked up her key and trotted downstairs and handed the keys to the innkeep, "Thanks for letting me stay!" She bowed then walked over to a nearby table and sat down and waited for the others.

    Skyla looked at the floor as if deep in thought, 'Am I really okay? Is this really okay?' She began asking herself if she really was okay. She began to doubt herself.
 
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  • Mateo came down the stairs in a sluggish manner, clutching his things in one hand while sleepily rubbing his eyes with the other. The first one would notice was that his hair was an absolute mess. It was usually nice and combed, but now it was a knotted, unkempt mass on his head. Cora sat in his usual spot, perched on Mateo's shoulder. His fur also looked less tidy than it always did. Tufts of fur stuck up in places, his tail flicking as he focused more on Mateo. The cat seemed to try to groom Mateo's hair with his tongue, like it was his own fur, but it didn't work so well. It seemed like Cora was taking care of Mateo before himself.

    There weren't many people sitting in the inn and Mateo scanned the room for his companions. There was a feminine looking human in a corner of the room, then his eyes caught Skyla and he gave a soft smile at seeing the woman who acted like a big sister to him. He started walking over to her, but Cora gave a pull on his hair. The cat directed him to the inn keep and he gave a silent thanks as he trotted over.

    He looked like an absolute mess of a kid, with his things buddled under his arms and hiker's backpack covering his back, but he managed to hand over his key with a little help from Cora. The man accepted the offering but gave him a weird look. Surely the people who stayed never looked as unkempt as Mateo did rolling out of bed, with a cat sitting on his shoulder and licking his hair.

    He went over to Skyla, plopped down in a chair across from her, and laid all his scrolls out on the table. He softly batted Cora away from his hair, and the cat jumped down to sit on the table. "Hey.." He said, his voice a little groggy. "I have our route set for Luminosa."

    The scrolls set across the table were in disarray, but all seemed to be maps of different areas. Some had paw prints spattered on the edges, the obvious culprit sitting right on the edge of the table. Some edges had rips or showed signs of wear and tear. Others looked more pristine and recent, the most recent would be a map of Ironshire, which had various spots in the map that had no ink marks. This was very much an unfinished one, seeing as the scope of Ironshire was huge, and he'd seen very little. There seemed to be a small area that had fresher ink than most, filling out the inn they were currently at, as well as some surrounding buildings. Mateo had been hard at work last night.

    Some spots had delicate writing on them, marking little excerpts of experiences he'd had in that one place. There was a spot where the arena was, and the small writing next to it read:

    'Watched people fight in the arena. They all had really cool magic, especially the people I met. Rai Ikari, The Thunderous Hunter. Skyla Junia, The Lava Menace. Weather Martial Artist, Nia White. And Mika Yunara, the Stoic but Kindhearted. Cora and I had a lot of fun, even though it got filled with negative emotions towards the end.'

    The words were small, but incredibly neat with no smudges. It was obvious that a lot of care went into the penmanship. The words took up a small paragraph near where the arena was placed. A note he'd made likely a little bit after the Ironshire festival.

    "Is Rai still sleeping?"
 
  • SkylaLocation: Ironshire Inn
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Clear
    Current Time: August 27th, 1337. 8:28am

    Skyla was still deep in thought as Mateo approached. She flinched a bit when he spoke, 'Oh, it's only Mateo... when did he get here..?' Skyla looked at the table and the messy array of various papers and scrolls. Wait, not just any various things, they were maps. Mateo really was a traveler, part of Skyla didn't actually believe that, "Wow, Mateo, this is..." she paused, "...impressive." She noticed the one of Ironshire and the area where the Arena was, "I remember tha--" She the words scribbled next to it and she stopped dead in her thoughts.

    He described everyone in their little group but the one that caught Skyla's eye was Mika. It seemed like no matter where she looked, Skyla was constantly reminded of Mika. No matter how hard she wanted to forget he was gone and move on, something brought him back up. She was snapped out of her stare, "Oh.. uh.. yeah, I guess.. I haven't seen him at least." She said softly.
 

  • Mateo's cheeks turned red as Skyla looked over the maps and called them impressive. He usually liked to do one map of a city or town he visited, then filled it in on his bigger map, the one he was making of the Rhythm Nation. It was a fun project that let him see a lot of places, while also keeping him distracted from the curse. Cora seemed to have no objections, considering Mateo got to show him around a lot of different places.

    She looked towards the Ironshire map but stopped mid-sentence. He followed her gaze to the arena but didn't really understand. He was still half asleep and out of it but looked proud of himself. This was the first time when he really felt like he had skills to contribute. He was the traveler and had maps of a lot of places. That could be of use to the group.

    Mateo's question about Rai snapped her out of her stare. She hadn't seen him but guessed that he was still in bed. Mateo turned in his seat to look at the stairs for a few beats. He counted to ten, but no Rai popped out. He looked disappointed, hoping that Rai really was still in bed. The other alternative could be that he had left, which would've absolutely killed him. The group was like a family for him, a place where he was welcome. He didn't want to lose anyone else, much like Skyla.

    "Yeah, probably just sleeping." He murmured. He turned around and his gaze caught a butterfly affixed to the light above them. He stared at it for a moment, not even recognizing what it was because he was still tired. But when he did, he seemed to blink out of his morning sleepiness.

    "Skyla look!" He said with that usual childlike wonder in his voice. "It's a butterfly. In the inn of all places. Hi, buddy. C'mere."

    Mateo stood up to his full height, which was pretty tall. Then he extended his arm up to the light fixture and made a fist with his pointer finger out, a perch for the butterfly. His voice was a soft coo as he tried to coax the butterfly onto his hand. Unlike with Cora, he sounded like he was talking to an animal or insect. But when he talked to Cora, it sounded like he was actually talking to a person rather than a cat. Which made sense when you were privy to the knowledge that Cora was a person, just shifted into an animal form to be as inconspicuous as possible.
 
  • SkylaLocation: Ironshire Inn
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Clear
    Current Time: August 27th, 1337. 8:28am

    Skyla looked at Mateo as seemed to anticipate Rai's arrival from his room but looked utterly disappointed when no Rai showed up. Skyla looked a little dejected too but was quickly torn away when Mateo mentioned a butterfly, "Huh? A Butterfly? How'd a butterfly get in here?" She noticed Mateo's soft tone towards the butterfly but it didn't seem to do anything in response.

    "Hey, Mateo, be careful. Something strikes me as odd here..." Skyla was on her toes but she was still waking up, like Mateo, and couldn't fully perceive the situation.
 
Mood: Serious
Rai Ikari
Thunderous Hunter
Bridge to Iron Fortress
"Huh?" Rai groggy exclaimed as he found himself on the floor of his room. Drool was running down from his mouth and spilling onto the floor while he was in a very uncomfortable position.

After taking a second to examine his surroundings and remember where he was, Rai hesitantly got up from the floor and stretched out his hands. Very bad idea. A sharp pain shot through his body and caused him to yell out in pain and slam against his bed. His arms were sore, his legs felt like jelly, his core felt absolutely demolished, and his jaw ached. The adrenaline that had been easing and numbing the pain for the past few days and finally wore off, and it couldn't be more painful.

"My back is killing me!" Rai said as he began to stumble over to his room door, wincing with each step.

***

Once Rai got to the first floor and finally made it down those stairs, he sighed in relief and began to look around the lobby. Mateo and Skyla were there, huddled around some scrolls on the table. Rai began to make his way over to them, but he was stopped when he heard the innkeeper call his name.

"Rai Ikari, ain't it?"

"That's me sir." Rai confirmed.

"Got a letter for ya." The man held up a cloudy white envelope that had streaks of red across it and held it out to Rai. He walked over to the innkeeper and took it from his hands, nodding as if he had said 'thanks' and then returned his attention to the letter.

Who the hell sent me this? Rai thought as he opened it up. He took out the small piece of paper that was in it and examined its contents.



So, Luminosa, eh?

Even I wonder what that is.

Even the gods do!


You must really care for that Mateo guy.

Ol' Rai is protecting cursed kids now.

Underestimated you, I guess.


That's not the first bad thing I've done.

Hell, most of them were to you.

Eerie sense of guilt in my heart..

Really sorry for all of that.

Even you can still hate me for it.




Rai looked around the lobby in hopes to find out who made the letter. This shit made absolutely no sense. Rai thought to himself. It was like a 5 year old wrote it. Or some 89 year old man. He looked at it one more time with yet another confused look. The person spoke like they knew Rai, and that they had hurt him before. Was it another bounty hunter? A criminal who had beat him before.

"I mean seriously. What the hell is-" Rai paused for a moment, staring intently at the words. There was a hidden message. The first letter of each sentence spelled something out. See you there.

Without looking at it again, Rai shoved the note in his pocket and shook his head. He believed that it was just someone who hated him trying to freak him out. Maybe it was the Foggy Bandit, or another crook out here.

"Morning." Rai said as he walked up to Mateo and Skyla. He looked at the scrolls laid out on the table. "What's all this?"

Rai looked at Mateo hand which was outstretched for the butterfly above them and pushed it down back to his side.

"Don't touch random insects. Could be a Creel Monarch." he told him. "Those things are poisonous to touch."

Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Code by Serobliss


Mood: Shocked
Castro Smith
Blue-Eyed Bandit
Unknown, Ironshire
Castro saw this coming. Rori left her negotiating ways and went back to how she originally acted. Rude and bitchy. All because Kaminari called her a little girl.

She checked Kaminari for calling her a little girl, stating that she was actually 19. Castro raised his eyebrows at that, realizing he had never known they were the same age till now. Then, Rori told him that he shouldn't be putting words in his mouth, calling Akuhei and Kaminari shady at the same time.

And afterwards, she sealed a deal. The Shugoshas could take Kuragiri back to the empire, and just for today they wouldn't go after Castro. She put back in the part where they didn't go for her too. Despite how disrespectful she was to them, Kaminari smiled and bowed once again.

"Great. We have a deal." Kaminari turned to Castro individually and bowed again. "I'll be seeing you soon."

"I-Is that all?" Castro asked, stopping him from walking away. "You drop all that on me and just decide to leave, preparing to come back and kill me? Yknow what, I agree with Rori. Why do I have to live in fear and die because I beat the shit out of your master?"

"I explained this already. You have angered Heath-"

"Bullshit! That was years ago! He can't possibly still remember that." Castro's tone was spiteful and annoyed.

"Heath is a man that holds grudges. He will not let it go until you're dead."

"Stop lying to me, Kaminari. If he wanted that, he would've killed me already! Why do Maki and I have to suffer?"

"I have told you already. Now please, do not push any further into your questioning."

Castro wanted to say something, but he bit his tongue and held it back. He just wanted to know. Why did he have to suffer? Why did he have to die at the hands of someone cruel just because of something of the past? Why couldn't he live a normal life as a young adult and fulfill his dreams? He wanted to work as an engineer for Ironshire and show off his skills of building. He wanted to have a wife and start a family one day. But the harsh truth is, he may never live to see that day because of the turn his life had taken.

Kaminari left the store with Kuragiri, while Akuhei walked up to Rori and put his hand out.

"Give sickle, redhead." he told her.







Mood: Annoyed
Akuhei
Shugosha
Unknown, Ironshire

Hi







Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf







Code by Serobliss
 
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  • Mateo's soft tone did nothing to move the butterfly, but he was already invested in getting it down. Skyla was just as shocked as he was to see the butterfly in there. She told him to be careful, and that there was something odd about it. He shook his head.

    "Butterflies are harmless. I think..." He put a finger on his chin as he thought. "Most of them, at least."

    Mateo really wasn't sure. He didn't really know all too much about butterflies, just admiring them and letting them perch on his hand if they wanted to. Mateo didn't seem scared of any bugs. He let spiders and beetles crawl all over him. He'd gotten his fair share of bug bites and knew mostly the bugs you weren't supposed to touch, simply from experience. But butterflies were never a danger.

    The teen didn't hear as Rai came up and asked what all the maps were about. He only noticed when someone pushed his hand back down to his side. He turned to see Rai Ikari, in all his glory. He smiled to see him, despite the man basically lecturing him about not touching random butterflies, remarking about how it could be poisonous. It definitely didn't seem poisonous.

    "Butterflies can be poisonous?" He thought for a second, "Well, a lot of insects are poisonous so I guess it could be possible. It's just so hard to imagine how one little butterfly could be so dangerous." He realized he wasn't exactly being cordial to the freshly awoken Rai. "Oh, good morning!"

    Then he had an idea. "Wait here." He rushed over to the inn keep and asked for some fruit, specifically overripe fruit. He'd done this before with food that had gone bad while they were on the road. You just gave your bad fruit to the butterflies, because they loved it. To them, overripe fruit was great.

    He was given an overripe orange, with a few odd looks, and walked back to Skyla and Rai. "I learned this when I was traveling." He said, peeling the orange and setting the scrapes on the table. He popped out one overripe orange slice and handed it to the butterfly. "Come on." He softly murmured. Maybe with the prospect of food, the butterfly would wander over to him.

    "Rai, how do you know so much about butterflies?" He asked with his eyes still to the creature he was trying to coax down.
 
  • SkylaLocation: Ironshire Inn
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Clear
    Current Time: August 27th, 1337. 8:29am

    Skyla jumped, let out a little shriek then turned around and threw a punch at Rai's face out of pure surprise by the sudden appearance of a Rai, "Ah! Oh my god, I am so sorry, Rai!"

    Skyla tilted her head as a bluebird came flying in from nowhere, "Wh-- how did--" Skyla was still just as confused as ever. Like how the hell did a bluebird get in here?! Did someone leave the door open?! "Rai, looks like you made a new friend... somehow..." Skyla said in a confused tone as she started to wake up.
 
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Mood: Serious
Rai Ikari
Thunderous Hunter
Bridge to Iron Fortress
Rai only nodded about Mateo's question about butterflies being poisonous. Some were, others were natural and harmless. Mateo returned the good morning before getting up to the innkeeper and asking for...a fruit? He came back with an overripe orange and began to quickly peel it whole telling them he had learned through traveling.

Once he had peeled enough of the orange to take a chunk of it, he took one and began to give it to the butterfly.

"Rai, how do you know so much about butterflies?"

"Uh," Rai started. "My little sister, Aurora, loves them. Well, used to. She always made me go catch them with her before she became-"

Rai's head flew back a bit as he was cut off by Skyla's fist connecting with his face while she shrieked a bit. Rai lowered his head and held his nostrils, and his eyes watered due to his sinuses.

"Ah, what the hell!?!" Rai yelled out, his voice sounding weird because of him holing his nose. Think of Squidward from SpongeBob SquarePants. That's how he sounded.

Right afterwards, a blue bird seemed to appear in the room randomly and flew over to Rai, perching itself on his shoulder. It chirped loudly in his ear and he slowly turned his head to make eye contact with it. He swatted his hand, trying to get it off, but it flew onto his head and made itself comfy there.

"Yeah, guess it did." Rai answered Skyla, still holding his nose to prevent bleeding. "And uh, it's alright. I must've been too sudden."

Rai paused for a moment and felt around on his hair.

"Please don't take a shit on my head, birdie." Rai told the blue bird. "That stain will be super visible on my white hair."


Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Code by Serobliss


Mood: Shocked
Castro Smith
Blue-Eyed Bandit
Unknown, Ironshire
Akuhei sighed with anger as he stepped closer to Rori and began to rant.

"What make you think I care of hair color?! Reddish brown include red in name. So, redhead! And I give no fuck about deal, give sickle, or we fight again. You. Me. No Castro to save life. You. Me. You die. Sickle now. I have no patience remaining."

What the hell is he saying? Castro thought, a confused expression on his face.

After that weird sounding, broken English rant, Akuhei began to take out his sickle again and prepare to attack Rori. But just when their 1v1 was about to commence, someone put a hand on Akuhei's shoulder and told him to step aside.

A white haired man. No, a devilish white haired man stepped up to Rori and began to demand that she give back the sickle in a calm manner, remarking that she was figbrint "his sister" earlier. So, this is the red eyed woman's brother, huh? Maybe he's the one that sent her to betray them, or at least knows why she was there.

He switched back to his original conversation quickly, but his eyes seemed to flash into a hot red color, just for a second though. But that second was enough to send chills down Castro's spine. If he was brave enough to just walk in here and was listening in without anyone noticing him, then he must be skilled. He told Rori about the Shugoshas not being able to hurt them but definitely implied that he wasn't included in that deal and could do harm to her. The guy even said that he hoped she refused.

"No, no." Castro said, stepping in front of Rori. "That won't be necessary, sir. She'll give the sickle back. Isn't that right, Rori?" Castro looked back at her with a look that clearly said, 'give the man his goddamn sickle'.

Though Castro was a bit frightened and on the edge from the new man, Akuhei was quite impressed. He nodded his head in respect of the man's assertiveness, and even cracked a smile at his threat.

"Akuhei." Kaminari suddenly said, walking back into the building. "What are you-" He stopped and examined the situation, along with the new face that seemed to be smiling at Rori. "What's the issue here?" he asked, stepping further into the store.










Mood: Annoyed
Akuhei
Shugosha
Unknown, Ironshire

Hi







Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf







Code by Serobliss
 
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  • It didn't look like Mateo was listening to Rai, but he really was. He wasn't someone who would block out someone's words because he was focused on something else. The butterfly really wasn't doing anything anyways, and Mateo stared dejectedly at it. He was sure the fruit trick would work, but this butterfly wasn't doing anything, so he focused more on Rai's words.

    He brightened up at the mention of Rai having a sister. He didn't know much about Rai, and having that little information felt like he was getting that much closer. Also, it seemed like things hadn't changed. Rai was responding to him like he always did and enjoyed some conversation in the morning air.

    "You have a sis-" He trailed off because one, Skyla turned around and gave him a punch. And two, Rai had corrected himself, saying he had a sister. Past tense, and he knew what that meant. She was likely dead. He shut his mouth and bit his tongue to stop himself, knowing all too well what losing someone was like. Mika may not have been his real big brother, but it still felt like he had lost a sibling. He knew how that hurt.

    "Skyla!" He exclaimed in surprise. She apologized a second later and everything seemed fine again.

    Then a bird came from out of nowhere and perched on Rai's shoulder. Mateo looked surprised, amused, and delighted all at the same time. Skyla remarked about how Rai made a friend. "Yeah, now we're twins! Because we both have little friends." He turned to where Cora used to be sitting and looked confused. "Though I don't know where Cora wandered off to." Mateo shrugged. "He always finds his way back eventually. He shouldn't be too far off."

    Mateo turned back to Rai and Skyla. "You think maybe they have a petting zoo here or something? That would be so cool."

    Just then Cora jumped down from the rafters and landed delicately on Mateo's shoulder. "Oh, there you are." Cora didn't even meow to acknowledge him or anything but gave a deep growl to the blue bird with his eyes slitted and claws extended. "Cora, don't do that! That bird is Rai's new friend. Play nice, ok?" He sighed. "Why are you trying to go after birds?"

    Cora moved along Mateo's shoulder and whispered one word into his ear, too low for the others to hear. "Spirit."

    Mateo pointed to the bird as if he were confirming, and Cora simply meowed, but to Mateo he knew that was a yes. "It's fine." He murmured to Cora, not caring about another spirit tagging along. Cora flicked his tail to lightly bash into Mateo's head to tell him he was crazy. Mateo just scratched between Cora's ears and went over to the table. "Are we ready to get moving?" He said while packing up his maps.
 
  • Skyla and LolaLocation: Ironshire Inn
    Interactions: AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf SharkBark SharkBark
    Current Weather: Clear
    Current Time: August 27th, 1337. 8:29am

    Skyla heard Rai say he had a sister, 'Had, huh?' Skyla sighed, taken a little by surprise when Cora came from nowhere but this time, resisting the urge to punch the cat like she did Rai. She still felt bad about that, Rai made a little remark about the bird not shitting on his head. She looked at Mateo, "So who's gonna tell him that bird poop is white...?" She whispered to Mateo.

    Then she saw Mateo packing up, "Nevermind. Yeah, let's get going."

    A maid in beige maid clothing approached the group, holding a broom. She gave them all a smile, "Excuse me. Which one of you is Skyla Junia?" Skyla raised her hand, "That would be me..." Lola hand Skyla a letter, "Some shifty woman in desert gear handed this to me and told me to find you." Lola pointed to the woman leaving but the group would only catch a glimpse before they would disappear.

    Skyla opened the letter;

    We Know.

    Was all the letter said, Skyla quickly crumpled up the letter and bowed to Lola, "Thank you, miss." She said frantically. Lola tilted her head, "You're welcome but... why the urgency?" SKyla dismissively waved her hands, "It's nothing, I'll deal with it later!" She turned to Mateo, "Let's head off, shall we?"
 
Mood: Serious
Rai Ikari
Thunderous Hunter
Bridge to Iron Fortress
Rai chuckled at Mateo's comment about them being twins, which was something he hadn't done in a while due to the battles and stress from the past few days. Mateo mentioned that they were "twins" now, since they both had they both had little friends.

He then asked about his cat, Cora, who seemed to be missing, but after a bit. Cora leapt from the rafters above them and returned to Mateo's shoulder. It seemed like Mateo would've been a lot more worried about his cat, but instead, he immediately had to stop it from being aggressive towards the bird on Rai's head.

"Whoa, whoa." Rai started. "If you're going to attack the bird, please wait till it's off my head." Just after he said that, the bird moved from Rai's head and landed on the table before them, seeming to examine the map. He let out a sigh of relief for a mere second, but Mateo picked up the map and asked for confirmation of everyone was ready to go, causing the bird to perch itself on Rai's head again.

"Dammit!" Rai angrily barked, resisting the urge to swat at the bird. "Made yourself real comfy up there, huh?" He sighed heavily and shook his head, ignoring the bird for now. "Uh, yeah. I'm ready. I didn't have much l stuff anyways. Just my katanas, wallet, and other small supplies.

Skyla also agreed to get going, but suddenly, a woman who appeared to be a maid approached the group, holding a broom for some reason. The woman asked if Skyla was here, which Skyla raised a hand to, and then proceeded to hand her a letter. The woman mentioned that someone in desert gear had asked her to find Skyla, and though she pointed towards the woman., Rai only got a quick glimpse of her leaving.

Skyla quickly read the letter, and after only a fraction of a second, it seemed to spook her and she crumpled it up and thanked Lola.

"Uh, that was weird." Rai whispered to Skyla since the woman was still there. "You know who the hell that is?"




Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf
Code by Serobliss


Mood: Shocked
Castro Smith
Blue-Eyed Bandit
Unknown, Ironshire
Akuhei snatched his sickle from Rori's hand, mean mugging* her and Castro before returning to Kaminari's side.

[Mean Mugging - Twisting up your face or giving a mean look to show disgust or being revolted.]

When Kumii explained the situation to Kaminari, the Shugosha could only shake his head in disappointment at Rori.

"Just made a deal," Kaminari started. "and you already want to make Akuhei go against it. You really love getting on people's nerves, don't you?"

Kaminari was going to continue giving Rori a piece of his mind, but Kumii continued on, admitting that he was actually going to follow the Shugoshas on their way back to the empire, claiming that they sparked interest in him. Kumii pointed a sharp thumb back at Rori, saying that he had intended to kill her regardless of how the situation went. Something about Rori having had hurt someone of his family.

Castro threw a glance at her. Was this today, or sometime before? Did she have some sort of beef with the white haired man before he had met her? If so, the least she could've done was told him, after all, he had spilled most of his past and backstory to her. He informed her that she could be in danger, the least she could do is the same.

Kumii shrugged and called off killing Rori for another time, and then revealed more of his true intentions. He asked that they let him join the two of them, since it could possibly give him a chance to be able to kill Rori later in time.

"I know feeling." Akuhei agreed. "I want murmer her same. Deal restricts."

"Murder." Kaminari corrected. "Not murmer. You still need practice with your English. But besides that, just letting you join on such short notice wouldn't be easy. We don't even know if we can trust you, and you'd have to be accepted by our ruler."

"True, and Heath be threatened."

"Ah, yes. Heath is threatened by those stronger than him. So if you have any powerful feats, please refrain from usage of them." Kaminari and Akuhei exchanged a few looks, seeming to have a silent conversation, before finally nodding to each other."

"We take you meet Heath." Akuhei announced. "No funny business."

"The empire is heavily guarded, you will be persecuted and killed if you attempt to harm Heath. Understood?"

While Kaminari and Akuhei awaited Heath's answer, Castro spoke to Rori quietly.

"You should leave after this. Go back to your life and live without me endangering you. It's the least I could do after putting you through all of this."

Castro reached in his coat pocket and took out a 12 pieces of yen. He slowly gestured it in front of Rori to take, making sure that no one could see their little exchange.

"You are a bandit, right?" he asked with a slight laugh. "Take this as a token of my apology."









Mood: Annoyed
Akuhei
Shugosha
Unknown, Ironshire

Jack.png

Kizawa pushed himself through the heavy doors of Heath's throne room and stood up straight as he approached the minimum distance he could be to the ruler.

"You called for me, Heath?" Kizawa asked, his voice cracking on the 'me'. He was actually a lot more nervous this time. It's because there wasn't just Heath anymore. Aikawa, Heath's right hand man, was here. And Miyahira, the beautiful and 2nd ranking Shugosha, was also with them.

Kizawa was already scared of Heath, but Miyahira and Aikawa pushed the factor further. Aikawa's dusts were powerful and versatile, and Miyahira? Well, Miyahira was like a goddess to Kizawa. She may have been a terrifying, powerful, and ruthless killer, but she was absolutely beautiful. Sure, she could remove his head in mere seconds, but he still fell for her. He had feelings for Miyahira, though he always denies whenever Noxious asks him.

Noxious can feel every emotion that Kizawa does, and whenever they're around Miyahira. Kizawa's soul warms up. That's the true reason why Noxious knows.

"Yes, I did." Heath responded. "I have finally decided on my next big move. This will be my first move of our game of chess with Ironshire, and we're moving a pawn forward first."

Kizawa and Aikawa both felt uncomfortable with Heath's new announcement of his plans. It involved Ironshire, and that could only mean one thing. He had finally felt like he was powerful enough to take it for himself.

"Wh-who's the first pawn?" Kizawa asked, sweating more because Miyahira's gaze was locked onto him.

"You are, Kizawa."

That sentence was enough to make hisbheart drop. He knew he had responsibilities for the empire, but not anything this big. This is Heath attempting to rule nations, and Kizawa was vital to the plan. If he failed, he'd surely lose Heath's trust, and die.

"You are to venture to Ironshire and spy on Cyan for three days." Heath continued "Retrieve as much information as possible, and do not get caught."

Heath stood up from his throne and began to walk towards Kizawa.

"I'm sure that Cyan does not know of our existence, so we cannot afford for him to know now. I need to know about his every move, and who he associates with. I NEED to know how powerful his forces are, so we can know how much of a chance we have at success."

Kizawa nodded at Heath's commands, but it didn't seem to be enough for him.

"Do not fail me." Heath said, leaning down close to Kizawa's ear. "Kill anyone that spots you spying on him, stay hidden at all costs, and do whatever it takes to prevent anyone from informing Cyan of your presence. Use Noxious if you have to. Succeed in this, and I can assure you that you will blast through our ranks."

"Yes, sir." Kizawa said urgently. "I will not fail you, Heath."

"Great." Heath walked back to his throne and took a seat. He smiled at Kizawa. "Now we wait for Akuhei and Kaminari to get back to explain our plan to them. Come stand next to Miyahira. Once they come in, it'll add and extra sense of urgency.

Kizawa hesitated for a second, but took in a deep breath and walked up the small stairs of the throne to stand next to Miyahira. She glanced him as he stood beside her and said,

"You've got some big responsibilities now, Kizawa. Good luck on your export."

"Heh. Thanks." Kizawa responded, a smile spreading on his face.

Kumii Kumii AlphaBlueWolf AlphaBlueWolf







Code by Serobliss
 
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Kumii the Loathesome and the Demon TwinsLocation: Somewhere in Ironshire
Interactions: SharkBark SharkBark
Current Weather: Clear

Kumii looked at Kaminari and Akuhei as they explained a few things, namely to reign in the power, "Fair warning. Me being a Spirit and shit. Okay. Done. No displays of power." Kumii waved his hand dismissively, "Yeah, yeah. I get it. Protected, killing blah blah." Then the threat came, or he perceived it as a threat, "And just know that if you guys try anything on me, I will NOT hesitate to crush your little empire." He said sternly, "That's a promise." Clearly they knew he had the power to back that promise up. Besides, Kumii wasn't alone right now...

Hidden off in the shadows were the Demon Twins, who Kumii had told to observe from a distance and do nothing unless signaled. They looked incredibly bored, then a signal came. Kumii waved his hand dismissively, which was basically Kumii telling the Twins to follow at a distance, just in case...

Seems Kumii is coming prepared...
 

  • Mateo giggled as he heard Skyla comment on the whole Rai and the bird poop thing. It was true, bird poop was white so it would literally blend in with Rai's hair. Still, Mateo didn't like to call people stupid or make fun of them for tiny mistakes. He made tiny mistakes all the time, whether it be getting into trouble with townsfolk or making a bad call in battle. Also, not telling the others. Ok, maybe that was more of a bigger mistake, but one that could be justified. It was terrifying to tell others you're cursed, especially when you don't know if they'll accept you. He did feel guilty, because he'd been putting them in danger. But if he had transformed, he knew Cora would help. Even if it meant them finding out he was a spirit, he would've done that. Whether that be protecting him from people trying to kill him in that state or trying to calm him down and make him come to his senses. Cora was prepared for that situation.

    He'd made many mistakes on this journey. He knew that. But he was getting stronger, and hopefully he could be of use to this team.

    Mateo simply giggled and continued packing his bag. Both Rai and Skyla had agreed to get going. He stuffed his maps in his bag and then put it on and grabbed the rest of his stuff. He looked at the orange, still saddened by the butterfly. He picked up the slice it'd never eaten and put it up to Cora. "Want it?"

    Now Mateo wouldn't usually recommend giving a pet cat oranges, but since Cora was a spirit, it really shouldn't be a problem. Cora sniffed at it, wrinkled his nose in disgust, and gave a grunty meow. An obvious no. He sighed and put down the slice. Guess no one wanted to eat that.

    Mateo turned when a new voice asked for a Skyla Junia. What could they want with Skyla? A woman in a maid's uniform handed Skyla a letter and said a woman in desert gear had left it for her. His gaze turned to the woman's point, catching a glimpse of the lady she had been talking about. His eyes lit up about the prospect of what this meant.

    "Skyla, Skyla! What does it say?"

    She read the letter, and quickly crumbled it up. She turned to Mateo saying they should head off now. He cocked his head to one side with a puzzled look. Rai was confused on who that is.

    "Sure." He said as he started walking out the front door. "Isn't it obvious Rai? That woman must've been a Desert Strider!" He remarked. "How cool is that? Maybe we'll see her on the way to Luminosa."
 

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