RPGWW

by **Endesu** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 1:19 am

Jikuro only had time to spout "The hell--" before being grabbed by Greg and placed into a position of temporary fortification behind an umbrella.

The shadows had not attacked and thus the two had been able to reach the umbrella, though their number was still building.

"The fireplace?! Lit with what?! I don't have anything to start a fire with!" Jikuro spat, readying her weapon as a club. The shadows, though they were not attacking, were steadily approaching...

***

"You're the deluded fool. Honestly, off by six years... how stupid do you think I am?"

Kelne's attempt worked... partially. A chunk of the aura that Astrynax had been building up was chopped away, due in part to the channeled Dispel.

"Damn it... they promised me more power than this..." The mage snarled and swiftly thrusted both palms out, his aura taking on a bizarrely green tinge as he did so. It was with that that Kelne and carpet were suddenly, momentarily, halted... entirely. By some sort of force of Astrynax's, both had been frozen in mid-air.

It seemed to be a strain on the mage, as he could barely move in the midst of such... but neither could Kelne, for the moment being. The mage could still chatter, though! "I'll be damned if I let you get in the way of what I've come to accomplish! I'm here for the moogle... and the Rai as well, I suppose... and I intend to finish them both, regardless of any interference!"

by **Idran1701** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 1:29 am

Holding it open as firmly as he can in front of the hallway, lodging it against the walls of the corridor if possible, he gives a quick glance towards Jikuro before speaking up.

"Whatever the staff uses, I don't know! They've got to have some sort of spark lighter, or flint, or something there for lighting it themselves."

by **Kelne** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 1:44 am

Kelne's eyes narrowed, "You honestly believe that, don't you? Well, by all means, don't take my word for it. Ask a random person in the street. Except the elves, of course. I'm pretty sure they use a different calendar. And if your friends have fed you false information in that regard, what else have they gotten wrong, I wonder?"

"Now then," he continued, in an almost conversational tone, "You've fulfilled your objective. I'm not getting any closer to the moogle while you maintain that little spell of yours. So what say we can the expressions of mutual loathing and compare notes? I'm sure we'll both find it educational."

Meanwhile, he quietly worked to disrupt the spell. Not enough to actually shatter the effect, but enough to ensure the mage would be too busy maintaining it to try anything else."

by **Endesu** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 2:21 am

Jikuro looked around frantically, before locking her focus onto the innkeeper's counter. "Kay... I'll check there first, I guess. Hold on tight."

That said, the elf dashed for the counter and leapt behind it, searching the unseen contents within frantically. Various items were tossed here and there, as the shadows began to press against Greg's umbrella... the sheer number and mass began to slowly push him back, despite his best effort...

Greg, somewhat randomly, found himself closer to the painting he had seen earlier.

The painting, on closer examination, was fairly big; certainly large enough to pick up and smash someone over the head with.

As well as the duck.

The duck was looking at him.

***

Astrynax was indeed busily insuring that the spell stayed on; this was something of an assurance in the sense that he wouldn't be trying to pull anything else... at least, for the time being.

He scoffed as he responded. "Last calender I checked stated the year was 1310. Last people I spoke to... random citizens of some note... stated the year was 1310. I don't see why I should need any more confirmation, simply because you're attempting to place doubt into my mind."

"As far as my 'friends' go, I really could not care less about their goals. They promised me a chance to finish my task and promised me additional power to help seal the deal. Clearly, they have not entirely lived up to their part of the bargain... but something is better than nothing, I suppose. They instructed me to interfere in your progress back, at least, and that seems to have had some merit."

"... but I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's begin again, with you telling me who the hell you are, and what your involvement is in any of this, to my 'friends' or to that damned moogle."

Edited by: Crawling Reshiki at: 12/24/06 3:23

by **Kelne** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 3:08 am

"Why not? My name is Kelne. 'The moogle', as you insist on referring to him, is a good friend of mine, though we haven't always been on particularly good terms. As for your 'friends', well, let's just say that as a rule, assuming they are who I think they are, I try to kill them on sight."

The gaze he turned on the mage was nothing short of completely serious, "These people care about two things - retaining their already insane amounts of power, and acquiring more. I have seen the death of worlds as a result of their actions, and they have come all too close to destroying this one as well. Various people who live on this world, including End, have taken exception to this."

"Your turn, I believe. Let's start with who you are, and what End did to incur a blood debt with you."

by **Idran1701** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 3:27 am

Keeping his weight against the umbrella, he begins to thrust his sword through the cloth near the sides, trying to at least delay, give time for Jikuro to find something.

That duck staring at him certainly isn't making matters any easier, as disconcerting as the thing's presence is.

by **Endesu** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 3:38 am

The mage, still keeping his focus on that spell, seemed to nod to the name, though he showed no recognition of it. "As stated, I could honestly care less about them. Their goals really matter little to me. Planetary destruction or not."

Somewhat politely, he responded in turn. "Very well. As stated, my name is Astrynax. I am no impostor, as you seem to have insinuated; I am the last Griffonic mage, dating from the year 1310. I intend to kill End Reshiki... the moogle... in addition to any of his insufferable friends that may be about... Dia Rai, her pocketdragon, or the other two whose names escape me at the moment."

"As far as my purposes go... this may seem a bit odd to you, but my clan held a concept known as 'blood debt'. Essentially, when something is taken from you in blood, you are reserved the right to take an equal or greater amount of blood. As stated, I am the last Griffonic mage... my entire clan was wiped out. My clan... my entire world, essentially, was taken from me in terms of their lives, their blood... by a band of Dragoons. They had destroyed that which I lived for, that which I loved... and hence, I determined not only to 'cash in' my blood debt by taking their lives, but also taking away the world they had grown to love, as well. Perhaps unreasonable, by some means, but I had determined it to be the best course of action."

He paused before continuing. "So I did indeed kill them... with the assistance of the Rivans, who I had managed to convince to assist me in my efforts. However, one was left alive... the moogle. At first, I left him alive... but gradually, the thought of leaving anything that would most likely eventually interfere with my plot to take blood debt from the very world convinced me to take new action and hunt him down as well. However... I failed in that task. The moogle... and the rest... managed to defeat me and prevent me from finishing my task, the finalization of my blood debt."

"... it is only recently that I have returned, and though I may not be capable of taking my blood debt from the world now, I should be capable of slaughtering those who managed to oppose me."

"You may find any of what I said ridiculous... foolish... insane. I really could not care less what insults you have to fling at me. What has been done has been done, and I intend only to finish what was started years ago."

From what Kelne could tell, this essentially matched up with what he knew of Astrynax's backstory...

***

Greg's thrusts cut at the shadows here and there, but not sufficiently enough to turn them back. The chittering sound began again as the shadows further forced him back... perhaps a tad slower, at best, due to his attempts at attacking.

Jikuro finally shouted out, "Okay! I think I've got... something!" She triumphantly held up what appeared to be a matchbox.

Edited by: Crawling Reshiki at: 12/24/06 3:41

by **Idran1701** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 3:50 am

Putting as much effort as he can into holding his ground, he shouts a reply back.

"Good timing! Not sure how much longer I can hold them here...think you can get it lit now?"

IM: I hope that's coming from the shadows...

by **Endesu** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 3:59 am

"I'll give it a shot!" Jikuro lept deftly out and frantically scanned the area for a fireplace, before descending upon one and opening the matchbox.

"Damn, there are only three left...well, we'll have to make do. Let's see..."

With that, Jikuro bent down and proceeded to attempt to light the first match by striking it against the side of the box.

It broke.

"Damnit!"

Despite Greg's efforts and attacks, the shadows were pushing him back further, and the chittering was growing ever louder... a few dark hands were reaching about and were apparently extending just far enough to almost grab hold of his face. That is to say, they were dangerously close...

by **Idran1701** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 4:07 am

Running out of ideas, Greg decides to go for broke, checking the nearest shadow for any sort of demanifestation spell as he tries to keep from their blind swipes.

by **Endesu** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 4:16 am

Nothing doing; the mind of the shadow closest to Greg was blank of anything utilizable.

And now, they were slowly beginning to overwhelm him... claws were beginning to tear at the umbrella in increasing numbers, 'hands' reaching for his face, and the chittering ever increasing in volume...

Until a whoosh of flame came up from a corner of the room. If Greg could strain his head enough to turn away from the shadow scene to Jikuro, he would see that not only had she managed to form a blaze of fire on a rather large log of wood... she had also attached it to her gun by some sort of bizarre mechanical means. With a yell, she lept into the fray, scaling over Greg and landing amidst the Shadows, slashing a clear swath through them with her new fire-enhanced weaponry.

"Nice idea there." She noted as she proceeded to make her way through the rest of the shadows filling out the hallway.

by **Idran1701** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 4:28 am

Giving a sigh of relief as he tries to catch his breath, he leans against the wall, quite thankful for her sudden appearance. After a brief rest, he follows after her wake, careful to watch for any stragglers she may have missed in her sweep through.

by **Kelne** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 4:29 am

A cold, sinking feeling began to congeal in Kelne's gut. He wasn't sure of the exact sequence of events, but this sounded an awful lot like Astrynax before he met him. The question was, which one of them was displaced here? Kelne did not want to be in the position of meddling with the past.

No. I just spoke to 32. If anyone here is displaced, it's this guy. Assuming there isn't all an elaborate trick.

"Alright. The problem with that is that I've known Astrynax - or you, if you prefer - for some five years now. I won't say you particularly like the moogle, even now, but you decided to give up on the whole killing him business, at least. If only because he has a habit of not staying dead."

"You lost everything," he continued, "but he wasn't responsible. You know that as well as I do, for the simple reason that he wasn't old enough to have had a hand in it."

by **Endesu** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 4:41 am

Greg would have a peaceful moment to rest.

The duck, at this point, was long gone.

Greg would find no stragglers; indeed, by the time he had reached Jikuro, standing near the door to the inn, he would see that she had apparently wiped them all out.

She turned to him as he approached with a somewhat concerned look. "You okay? They were overwhelming you for a bit there."

Despite the fact that many hours had apparently passed, the sky outside was still that of night.

***

The mage looked at Kelne as if he had gone insane. "What the hell are you talking about? Are you saying that there is another Astrynax running about these parts? One that has somehow dropped the goal of blood debt?"

The mage hung his head back for a moment before looking back upon Kelne. "You say that this is the year 1316... so, somehow, there is a version of myself here that is essentially five or six years older...?!"

He seemed to be having trouble grasping this concept, unsurprisingly, but he was at least thinking it over. "And I know damned well that he was not directly involved. That has little to do with it. The fact remained that I knew he would attempt to take revenge upon me at some point. To dispose of such a threat would entail killing him. There is also the fact of the blood debt... even though I failed to take it out when the time was right, there is still the chance of finishing it now. He may have had little to do with what happened to my clan... for various reasons... but his death, permanent or non, is still a means to the end I set years ago."

Kelne would also remember Enlil having a clear impact on Astrynax to some degree or another. Clearly, this one had not yet met the celestial.

by **Idran1701** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 5:43 am

"...As well as I could be, I guess. Suppose this makes us even, then?"

Looking around the lobby, and yet again looking to have some problems sustaining eye contact with her, he tries to find any sign of others having been here tonight. Mages, it seems most likely to Greg, summoning up those shadows to hunt for the pair.

by **Kelne** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 7:56 am

"Well then, again, mission accomplished. You've killed him at least once that I know of, even if it was a different version of you who stuck the knife in, so to speak. Certainly End's not out for any sort of revenge at this point."

"If anything, you should be worried about your benefactors. They have as much reason to wish you ill as they do me, and conning you into coming after us kills two birds with one stone."

by **Endesu** » Mon Dec 25, 2006 5:03 am

Jikuro smirked. "Whatever works for you." She threw the gun/flame combo over her shoulder and looked about, letting out a brief sigh of relief as she did so.

Greg would find no sign of anyone else there, at all - no physical presence viewable; no obvious traces of magic left behind; nothing. Just the two of them.

It was still night. If they wished to risk it, they could always head back to bed for the time being... that is, if the ruckus hadn't completely awoken everyone else in the inn.

***

The mage growled. "But... even if what you're saying is true... it wasn't me... it wasn't my own hands that did it..." He wrung at his head briefly in aggravation, not long enough to release the spell but long enough to make a display; likely attempting to quell the thoughts raging in his mind.

"So what are you saying beyond that, then? That I shouldn't trust a group of shadowy beings who have granted me power and given me a chance at revenge in favor of a group of people I don't know and the benefit of the continued relationship, however strained, between an alternate version of myself and the Moogle? As far as I know, I haven't ever run into any sort of trouble with them in my travels before my current plot. I don't see why I would even be on their list. Yep, he scoffed.

by **Idran1701** » Mon Dec 25, 2006 6:40 am

Looking up the staircase, Greg thinks for a bit before speaking.

"There were sounds up above us, weren't there?"

by **Kelne** » Mon Dec 25, 2006 5:34 pm

"Ah, but you've made their list after the exploits you've achieved to date. The details get complicated, but you've done as much as anyone to thwart their plans. You may not realise this, but I assure you they do. I'm sure they'll be quite happy to help you kill End, but after that, they'll be wanting to make sure that history doesn't repeat itself. Which means neutralising you."

"As far as why you should trust me over them goes, I doubt anything I can say will convince you. I'd suggest talking to your counterpart, but I don't have the faintest idea where he is. Hell, for all I know, you are the normal Astrynax, suffering from memory loss."

by **Endesu** » Mon Jan 01, 2007 4:41 am

Jikuro paused, looking back towards the staircase.

"There were... there were other people in this inn, as well. You don't think that because we were here, those other people were...?"

Although her words broke off, Greg could see a troubled look swiftly breaking out on her face.

***

The mage looked as if he were considering Kelne's words, but before he could speak further, he was rather rudely interrupted by a sudden presence below.

Although Kelne could not move his head enough to catch a glance at the presence below, he could clearly hear their voice; no small feat, either, considering that the two of them were fairly high in the air.

"Mage! What are you doing? Don't you realize by listening to this fool you're giving your enemy more time to escape? Kill him and move on!"

Kelne would rather quickly pick up on the fact that the voice was coming from the maniac with an axe who had tried to off him fairly recently; presumably he was in one piece by now.

Astrynax looked somewhat disconcerted, but replied in turn. "He's giving me time enough to doubt the promises you've made; as it stands, the so-called power you promised me was only enough to freeze him at most, at the cost of my own goddamned mobility! And further, he seems to be speaking of an alternate version of myself who is targeted by your group! What does this all mean, eh?"

"Bullshit!" The unseen assassin spat out in reply. "You take such dubious words as truth from a being you do not even know? Who speaks to you of such things as a separate embodiment of yourself? Can you really, honestly believe him?"

The mage looked disconcerted, again, but Kelne had a chance to interject, if he wished.

by **Kelne** » Mon Jan 01, 2007 6:01 am

"And of course Astrynax has known you for years, and has found you to be an inherently honest person. You'd never try and bribe him or withhold information. Why, you've even been upfront with him and told him exactly why your people want the moogle and myself dead."

He doubted that the lunatic was capable of winning any kind of a debate. But then, if he was losing he'd probably resort to violence. Not something Kelne was well equipped to deal with just now.

Time to bring matters to a head.

Poking and prodding at the binding enchantment over the last few minutes had let him identify its weaknesses. Enough so that, with an intense effort, he was able to sever its hold on him. At least momentarily.

A wave of dizziness washed over him. He'd definitely been pushing himself too hard. Still, he held himself steady as he sheathed his sword.

"I'm not going to fight you for this idiot's amusement, Astrynax. But the bottom line is, if you're going to kill End, I'll be standing in your way. So if you're dead set on it, you might as well do away with me now."

It was a gamble, based on an act of faith that would have been inconceivable to him short years ago. Whether this Astrynax could look past his lust for vengeance was an open question, but even in the worst case scenario, the seeds of doubt had already been planted.

I pity the fool who has two versions of Astrynax gunning for him.

by **Idran1701** » Mon Jan 01, 2007 3:38 pm

"...Come on, let's check upstairs. Nothing else we can do until we see for ourselves."

As Greg speaks, he tries to keep himself steady. Calm. Inside, he's as worried as Jikuro; more so, after the discussion he had just a few short hours earlier. But this is just another act to do. Another face to put on...if it helps her stay calm herself, all the better.

He starts up the stairs, waiting for her to follow, as he tries to keep those memories down. And though his eyes betray a bit of his own fear, he continues to face forward, trying to keep her from seeing into them as he watches for...whatever might be found.

by **Endesu** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 7:37 am

And as Kelne managed to release himself from the mage's spell, he would note that Astrynax barely even noticed. So focused was he on this mental conflict that he did not even notice the tyrant's escape.

The assassin, still unseen yet clearly and perilously close, seemed to notice this, too, and called out to the mage in response. "We have given you power. We have given you the promise to track down your greatest target. The fact that you lack the power to fully make use of what you have been given is not our fault, but yours. This was a deal, Astrynax, and, regardless of our short-lived contract, we expect you to come through on your terms, as well!"

The mage paused for a moment longer, glancing between Kelne and the assassin. His glance finally came to rest on the assassin, and he growled as he spoke. "Funny, you never phrased your terms this way before. I may not know him, and I may not know the truth of all of his words, but he speaks far more clearly and far more candidly than you or any of your cronies ever have. While my mind refuses to let go of the moogle... I'll be damned if I let you thugs push me around like this. You're the idiot who pushed me into attacking him in the first place, anyhow!"

The response came, calmly and slowly. "... well, then. If that's the way it is, I suppose we will have to dispose of you, as he himself stated."

The mage growled and whipped back, forcing his palms towards the assassin once more. "We'll see how this turns out when I turn the power you've given me against you, you son of a bitch!"

It was at that moment that Kelne would feel the tug of an otherworldly presence at his coat. A swift turn would reveal the presence of his old friend, the mysterious portal leading to parts unknown. Said portal had not been there scant moments ago; it had apparently appeared just now.

"No, you have it wrong, my little traitor. I did not say we would kill you now. We'll kill you later. We have the rest of your band to deal with, and less one or two annoyances, at least for the time being, cannot hurt us too much."

All too swiftly, barring any potential chances at escape, came the suction of the portal, twisting and tearing at the two, making any attempts at escape all but impossible. The mage tumbled back, attempting to hold himself up against the suction, but he had enough time to curse the assassin with a long stream of curse words before plunging into the murk.

Kelne himself, despite his freedom from the earlier spell and his position on a flying carpet, would find himself far too immersed in the gravitational pull of the portal to even consider breaking away and escaping. He would, perhaps, have the chance of a parting shot or two, but nothing more, as the portal swiftly came to swallow him whole.

***

Greg would find that the noise he had earlier had apparently gone with the shadows. Indeed, the upstairs floor was almost eerily silent; truly odd, given that the entire inn had been flooded with noise just recently.

Jikuro followed steadily, weapon in hand. Though she was keeping up a strong front, one could easily detect the signs of potential guilt and/or responsibility for these dire events registering in her expression. She was holding up well enough, though, and wasn't likely to break down as badly as Greg himself had done earlier.

They would soon come to the top of the stair, at which lay a series of interweaving corridors, laden with shut doors.

Jikuro glanced around, looking from door to door. She spoke, keeping her voice as low as possible. "What now?"

Edited by: Crawling Reshiki at: 1/2/07 7:40

by **Kelne** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 7:57 am

Kelne likewise attempted to fight the pull of the portal, clinging to his carpet and impelling it to forward motion. To no avail.

Unlike Astrynax however, he didn't swear at his situation. Instead, he smiled, "You still have no idea who you're dealing with." And with that, he was gone.

A listener might assume that he was talking about himself. And it was true, in part. But in the main, he was referring to the others. If experience had taught him anything, it was that they were quite capable of looking after themselves.

If only he could be sure the warning would reach everyone in time...

by **Endesu** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 8:08 am

The trip would be like several prior trips through portals of the past - quick, disorienting, and somewhat uncomfortable. While it could not be said that these were the worst trips he had ever taken, he certainly could have done better than to be flung through... well, whatever he was being flung through.

However, it eventually came to an end, and he seemed to breach into another world entirely. Visions of vaguely humanoid shapes emerging from tanks of some sort would briefly surface in his mind before fading, replaced by the impact of the hard ground reaching his face. His carpet, though it had failed to catch him and prevent mouth to dirt impact, was still with him, at least.

The ground itself was fairly dry and dusty - all was hard dirt and rock, with no plant life to be seen at all.

Rising his sight higher would reveal that he was in a valley of some sort, stretching out for miles on end with a further lack of flora. The skies were a dark, distorted red, with black clouds quickly flitting hither and thither thoughout.

Not far from where Kelne stood, he would see a makeshift village of sorts. The homes and other buildings appeared to have been roughly constructed of various metallic scraps and objects, giving a very rough, thrown-together character to the entire area. What was there was simple and certainly not ideal living quarters... but it served as a home for the people he could hear below. There were no people wandering outside the boundaries of the town, but he could clearly hear them within. Further exploration would require an endeavor into the town itself.

There was no sign of Astrynax, so at this point, he was on his own.

by **Idran1701** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 9:34 am

Keeping quiet himself, he continues along with Jikuro, looking for a room that has signs of having been taken for the night, one that happened to have been left unlocked by the inhabitants. Should he find one, he cracks the door carefully, just enough to let him scan beyond the doorway astrally.

by **Kelne** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 5:32 pm

Muttering to himself, Kelne proceeded townwards. The situation was far from ideal. Still, unless he missed his guess, he wouldn't have to deal with any infinity goons directly for a while. Which was definitely a plus.

Step one, find a white mage. Step two, get some rest. Step three, find a way back home.

by **Endesu** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 10:32 pm

Some further investigation would eventually yield results: a door further down the corridor was partially open.

A quick astral scan would reveal something shadowy was lurking within. There was no light within the room, however, and thus no clear way to peer in at what was there. He would have to open the door all the way.

***

Kelne would now discover something new about this place: a smell in the air. It had not been present before, but now grew much stronger as he approached the town: the stench of sulfur. It wasn't strong enough to drive him off completely, but it most certainly wasn't pleasant.

As he entered the town, he would find it populated by a bizarre mixture of folk; some were fairly close to your standard human being. Others bore random animal appendages here and there; further bore truly bizarre mutations, though a further visual check of these types would likely draw unneeded attention. All were unified by raggedy and dirty clothing; some wore bits and pieces of armor intermeshed into the rest.

One of the people in particular seemed to note his presence; a woman with a truly magnificent set of antlers protruding from the sides of her head. She looked upon Kelne with an unusual glance; likely due to the fact that he appeared cleaner than the rest of the folk here; perhaps due to his different style of dress; perhaps, even, the fact that he bore no notable mutation. Whatever the case, he had her attention, and she approached him.

"Hello, sir." She spoke in a form of common that Kelne could, fortunately, interpret. "Good to see a fellow survivor of the Heat Wave. From where do you come?"

by **Idran1701** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 10:46 pm

Glancing back to make sure Jikuro's ready, he carefully nudges the door open, sword out and ready for whatever might be inside. Keeping an eye out as the light begins to fill the room, he watches the general area of that shadowy...thing he scanned as the chief priority right now.

by **Kelne** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 11:10 pm

Oh, yes. This boded well. Still, no sense in trying to bluff his way through. It was immediately obvious that he wouldn't blend in with the locals, and it was so much easier to ask silly questions if you established that you were entitled to up front.

"I'm an offworlder, as it happens. From a place called Gaera. I don't suppose you know it?"

by **Endesu** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 11:21 pm

Jikuro followed steadily behind, filling the room with ever welcome light.

The two would find... absolutely nothing out of the ordinary, visually. The entire room was empty, and appeared to have not been rested in; the bed was still made, and a fine layer of dust had taken the time to cover everything.

However, Greg could not shake that strong sense of shadowy energy emnating from here. At this point, it felt as if it were wrapping around him...

***

The woman paused before shaking her head.

"No... definitely not... we did have someone somewhat similar to you come through a few hours prior, mentioning something about a 'Gaera', but none of us know a thing about the world. Did you mistakenly take a one-way trip here?"

She gave something of a weak smile. "If so, you could've picked a better spot. We're going through some severely troubling times at the moment... and that's saying nothing of the Heat Wave. But don't let me get ahead of myself, here... if you need to find a place to rest, I can take you to our communal hall... it is not much, but it is better than resting out on these scorched sands."

At that moment, an intensely hot, stinging wind passed over, bringing with it a wave of sand. The woman and the fellow inhabitants of the village seemed to take it in stride, simply brushing aside what impacted them. Kelne, however, would receive a rather nice slap in the face; one that left behind a stinging sensation of a swift rubbing of sandpaper.

"Oh, and best get used to that. Common occurrence."

by **Idran1701** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 11:38 pm

Blinking, he tries to shake off this enveloping feeling of darkness.

"...Jikuro, can you feel that? Like there's something here...feels like those shadows, almost..."

He slowly begins backing towards the doorway, glancing suspiciously and a bit nervously about the seemingly empty room.

by **Kelne** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 11:44 pm

"I'd appreciate that. Thank you." Kelne let her lead the way, "I don't suppose you have a white mage, priest or other healer who can take a look at something for me? I didn't exactly come here of my own will, and I picked up a couple of injuries in the process."

He wasn't particularly hopeful on that front. Something told him that such people were in short supply here. He also didn't like the sounds of 'severely troubled times'. Still, let's face it, the blasted merc was hardly going to send him to a prime vacation spot...

by **Endesu** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 12:00 am

Jikuro looked about, clearly seeing nothing. "Don't see a damned thing, but you're getting me worried, here."

From what Greg could tell, she had no idea of what was apparently present - but he most certainly would, as the very feel of shadow was actually wrapping somewhat tightly around him, nearly tearing at him as he began to back away.

Clearly, the longer he remained in the room, the more the unseen shadow would move in on him...

***

The woman nodded and proceeded to lead Kelne on through the streets, passing by a variety of buildings of some sort. There was no clear indicator as to what any of these buildings were, either - many were simply slapshod metallic structures without a proper name or even a visible front door to welcome random passerbys. The area was most definitely a far cry from Doma.

"We have a few priests here and there, dispensing their own flavors of religion, though the presumable 'healing' you'd gain from their teachings is most likely not what you have in mind. We have medical supplies, but they're in very short demand, given the situation. More may be available... elsewhere, but let us not discuss that at this point." She led him on to a building that dominated the apparent center of the village. Unlike the others in this area, it had something of a respectable structure; formed of wood and brick and resembling what may have passed as an inn back in Doma. At least, externally.

Internally, there was little more than dozens of cots covering the floor; most of them were being used by all sorts of folk, some types of which Kelne had seen outside earlier. Some slept, while others chatted with neighbors about what Kelne could guess at as current events. Various coats and weapons were left to hang on various snags that jutted out from the walls; there was room enough for Kelne to hang anything of his own, if he wished.

"Feel free to take a seat if you wish on one of the cots still available; you're free to rest as long as you need to. As far as your situation goes, I am terribly sorry to hear about it, and would be interested in discussing certain topics with you... but there are things I need to be doing, given that this is the time of day when they begin to emerge from the wastelands around. Unless there's anything else you absolutely need, I can chat with you later..."

If Kelne had anything else to ask her for, she was available; otherwise, she would depart, leaving Kelne to his own devices.

by **Idran1701** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 12:13 am

All but wincing at the feeling of...whatever it is pressing on him, he gestures back towards the doorway.

"There's something in here all right. It's trying to get at me right now. Come on, we should get out of here before it decides to latch onto both of us."

Trying to focus on keeping this thing off of him, he waits for Jikuro to leave the room before leaving himself.

by **Endesu** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 12:27 am

Jikuro backed out of the room swiftly, leaving Greg ample time to retreat.

As he did, he would feel the wave of darkness swiftly passing by him - save for a single strand, which appeared to circle around him, even as he left the room behind.

Jikuro looked around, still keeping her voice down. "Shadows gone or no, I think it's a given we're no longer safe here. Any other bright ideas as to how to pass the time and not get killed in the process?"

by **Idran1701** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 12:56 am

Sounding a bit distracted as he worriedly considers this strand, he speaks.

"Besides the two of us holing up in that room keeping watch until morning? Nothing's coming to mind, no..."

He continues, testing the strand with his hand to see just how 'solid' it is.

"Wouldn't mind putting some more distance between us and this room, though. Something's still here; it's wrapped around me like some sort of string."

by **Kelne** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 1:34 am

"I'm sorry, one last question. The time of day 'they' emerge from the wastelands? Is this something I should be worried by?"

He had a feeling the answer was not going to improve his day.

Edited by: [url=http://p068.ezboard.com/brpgww60462.showUserPublicProfile?gid=kelne>Kelne</A] 

at: 1/3/07 1:36

by **Endesu** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 3:56 am

"Well, sorry to say I still have no clue what it could be. I can't 'sense' stuff like that. You'll just have to make do with it for now, I guess." She began to head down the stairs as she continued to speak. "We should at least take a breather in the old room... left the rest of my stuff in there earlier, anyhow."

Jikuro had managed to leave Greg behind somewhat quickly. Completely alone, Greg would find himself feeling as if several 'strands' were reaching out for him at once - not just from the room he had left a moment ago, but all of the other rooms around him on this higher floor. His own, present strand circled slightly tighter, but made no further motion.

***

"Oh, right. One of us will fill you in on the entire story later, but you may have noticed some of us bearing... unusual mutations, yes?"

She noted her antlers with a flick of the fingers. "Well, tribes bearing far worse mutations than that infest the lands around us, and typically attack not long from now. Ravaging the lands, destroying our structures, devouring our flesh... why, it was good you came upon us when you did. If you had stayed out there any longer, you would have been surrounded by hundreds to thousands of them in a matter of moments.

So, in a sense, you're safer in here. If you'd care to help us with our defense, you may; otherwise, you can remain in here and hope that they don't break through our defenses."

With that, having no further time, the woman ran off... and at that very moment, a siren, stationed somewhere in the town, began to blare...

by **Kelne** » Wed Jan 03, 2007 6:44 am

Swearing irritably to himself, Kelne followed in the woman's wake, keeping pace a short distance behind her. There was never any question of staying where he was and hoping for the best. Drained he might be, but he could still swing a sword well enough. Or fire a pistol, as soon as he got a decent opportunity to reload.

Besides, he might well need as much goodwill as he could muster from these people. And fighting alongside them would go a good way towards garnering some.

Hundreds to thousands of flesh-eating savages. Yes, today was going from bad to worse fast. No doubt something truly unholy would present itself before dinnertime.

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