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----Kalace----

The brilliantly lit streets of Lieth's capital city, Kalace, were covered in a shiny luster from Closed shops and startlingly silent streets, apart from the occasional convertible. Bright lamplights and neon signs illuminated the blackened city with a plethora of color. Tall and mighty skyscrapers seemed to rest.

 

The nights were in preparation - although they remained a silent whisper today, overnight they would transform to an even more bustling noisy city than usual. Kalace was the epicenter of discovery and science, and although not everyone would "agree" with fact, the truth stood that Kalace was at the peak of world interest when it came to new findings or revolutionary technology.

 

Within the night, Sol perched atop a rooftop of a building, scouting out the area. A lopsided neon lit sign read "Whirlpool Bank" on a building whose window had been busted. Sol's eyes lit up emerald green in the night, and he scaled the building downwards.

 

Sol walked through the broken glass, stepping over the broken down machinery and security protocols, which had been tactfully destroyed beforehand. He slid open the broken door to the back room reading "employee only", where a main control panel was. The door collapsed immediately. Reaching in his pocket, Sol crouched and held over a card to the front panel of the control board, and a holographic image, which displayed the balance of "29,342,322 Rupees." A menu displayed, titled Whirlpool Circuit with "Withdraw" "Deposit" "Other "Generate Contract" and "Advanced Options {Administrator Privileges Required}".

 

"This was way too easy." Sol mumbled to himself, reaching for the holographic menu. A sudden sting shot up Sol's side, and a blistering sound shot through the silent night.

 

"FREEZE! Don't move!" A heavily armored, plump cop shot Seth with a stun gun. Behind him, a frail looking, skinny cop ran behind him. They wore bulky helmets and Magic-resistant vest, boots and gloves.

 

"Jeez, the hell was that for?" Sol grumbled. He staggered upon getting up, clutching his leg.

 

"Don't play with me! We saw you march in here!" the fat cop said. The skinny cop nodded vigorously.

 

"With this?" Sol flashed them the card. "Yeah, I did it to give the money back! I saw the guy who did it - beat him on the way here. I'll show you whe-"

 

"Likely story! We here it all the time! Don't we, Bruce?" The skinny cop nodded in agreement "Yeah, Prune, yeah!" Prune turned back around to Sol, poking his rifle in Sol's face. "Do I look dopey to you? Huh?"

 

Sol jammed his hands in his pockets. "Look! Look at the name on this card." Sol held up the card, then exclaimed "I'm not him. I'm Sol! You have DNA scanners? Check it!" He lifted his forearm.

 

Prune clicked a small button on a camera on his jacket. The camera scanned Sol's skin, then the card, and displayed a large "X" on its display.

 

Prune looked to Bruce, baffled at the result. "Well..." he croaked out, before Bruce said "Well, what do we do now, Prune?" Prune replied "What we do every day! Keep people from taking over the world! Let's dig around for some clues. There has to be a lead around here!"

 

Sol looked to the idiot cops, dumbfounded. "Ugh, these idiots. All the cameras in the world... even at a time like this." He chuckled a little, deposited the money, and then walked away, as the two men scrambled across the Bank's building. Police activity had been heightened in preparation for tourists, travelers, and representatives throughout Sectilis. Something about a big "archaeological discovery" had surfaced, and now the world was called to find out what was up.

 

But, that was a story for another day for Sol, strolling through the streets and pushing those thoughts from his mind. All he really wanted was some good food right now.

Edited January 4, 20178 yr by Clouded Sun

{Lady Esmeralda's Estate}

"Now" Kal said as the sounds of battle drifting up from the floor below. "Care to tell me where my partner is?"

Lady Esmeralda coughed again, trying to get enough air through the K'da's iron grip on her throat.

"What makes you think I have any idea?" She asked, stalling for time.

"I know you were the one the Path brought in to alter with Amara's mind." Kal growled, anger shining in his eyes. "Your gift for playing with minds isn't as secret as you thought."

"A secret that won't save you." Lady Esmeralda thought as she felt her power spark in her mind.

"Even if I knew exactly where she is, it is too late." She said aloud with a grin. "Your partner struck a blow against the false goddess. Either your precious Amara is dead, or your queen is. And it's only a matter of time before the half blooded abomination of a princess falls as well."

As she spoke, her Ladyship reached into the K'da's mind. Immediately, she felt lost inside an alien environment. It felt like parts of this creature's mind were beyond her reach. Still, she routed around for something to grab hold on. A flicker of fear answered her call and she grabbed hold of it to delve deeper into his mind.

For a moment, Kal's eyes went unfocused as Lady Esmeralda amplified his fear. A moment later, the K'da's eyes refocused like lasers as the Mind Witch hit a wall of mental white noise. Old songs, public street maps, a mental chess game and more blocked up her avenues into the alien mind. For a moment she scrabbled to regain control, trying to push through the noise, not noticing his other fore paw being place on the back of her head. She finally was able push past the noise, only to find cold certainty and one thought.

To you, the fate of all traitors.

"N-" Her ladyship began to say, but was cut off by a paw grabbing her jaw and her head jerked around to snap her neck.

Kal dropped the head of Lady Esmeralda's corpse, leaving it at an unnatural angle. He sat back on his hind legs and considered what Her Ladyship had said. Wondering if she was lying was moot. He had to deal with the facts. He had to find Eclaire and ensure her safety. Beyond that, he could only hope.

With the sounds of battle gone from down stairs, Kal carefully left the study and peered into the entrance hall. Penny stood amid the dead bodies of the Path's soldiers. Kal could see a few fresh cuts on her arms and face. She was holding her head with one hand and tapping her leg with her spear. He could her her muttering under her breath. If he was lucky, she wouldn't notice him until-

Penny jerked around and looked right at Kal with wild eyes. The K'da dropped to his belly on the ground as a blast of her cold fire blew part of the banister where he had been to icy bits.

"Thought you could do it now, smarty scales?" Penny demanded, sounded angry and betrayed. "Thought you could finish me off after these tin soldiers wore me down?"

Another blast of blue fire.

"Think you're better than me?" The Child of Chaos screamed. "Let's do this!"

Kal dashed forward as a blast of Chaotic energy ripped part of the landing he was on.

"Penny, I'm not the enemy!" He yelled as he darted through another door to get some cover. "These people, the Path, they are the enemy."

There was silence from below.

"You said it yourself, they want the world to bow to their order. No difference, no change."

More silence. Kal tested the air with his tongue, trying to catch her scent. Maybe she was making her way up here now.

"Well?" Penny finally said, sounding like an impatient teenager. "You coming or what?"

Kal peeked around his door to see Penny putting away her spear. She looked back up, then gave him a put upon look.

"We don't have all day."

"Put them on." Kal said firmly.

"Oh come on, I don't-"

"Put. Them. On."

Penny rolled her eyes as she complied and pulled up her head phone onto her ears. She fished in a pocket and pulled out a music player and turned it on. After a moment with her eyes closed, Penny looked up at Kal and gave him an apologetic smile. Letting out a breath, Kal bounded out of the room and jumped from the half demolished landing to pounce on Penny. She lifted up her hand to meet him and as they touched, he became a two dimensional pattern that spread across her skin.

"Comfy?" Penny asked.

"Yes." Kal answered, one of his eyes peering from her shirt collar.

"Where to?"

"To see my old boss at last."

"Didn't you say that might be dangerous?"

"No choice now."

Penny shrugged and walked out of the decimated entrance hall. Her crouching foot steps on the gravel drive slowly died away.

Rose

 

Shortly after Rose and Sol had finished preparing food, a few of the others began to file in. Rose listened to Hanz inform her of Hin's affinity towards her, and she giggled in response. "Well, I've never really attracted the attention of a bird before..." she commented before everyone else began to enter. A few of the people began to speak with one another and joke around; Rose was still glad to see that everyone had bonded so quickly. She was feeling a little closer to everyone else as well, especially after helping Sol out. I only hope that everyone here will be okay when we head out... They seem like a capable bunch, and their safety comes down to me, so I'm sure we'll be fine.

 

Rose walked over with Sol and the others who were preparing to return to the rest of the group. Hearing that a fight had broken out made her a little concerned. "If anyone out there needs help, I can heal them."

 

Fiora

 

Fiora recoiled a little bit as Eclaire began reaching towards her. However, the woman only patted her on the head. Fiora found herself relaxing a little, although she was still somewhat nervous. "What do you mean... it only needs a glance?" She gave the woman a puzzled look. She had no clue how that answered her question, and she was a little afraid to keep pressing, but she needed to know at this point.

~Corvus and Yuna~

 

Corvus laughs a bit. "probably." He waved at Elise when she left. he then faced Yuna and said. "let's Head back." she nodded to him. Corvus decided to Call Sol, wanted to know where he's at. Yuna followed him and was kinda nervous about her training. hopefully she gets something to eat and some new clothes. her old outfit from yesterday were ripped a little and a few blood stains.

=Dalian=

 

"Well I'm sorry  I am not perfect." Dalian sassed to Iris, before Hanz stopped her by putting his fedora on her head.

Dalian could feel her face turn red, her cheeks burning as she looked away from Hanz, him taking the hat back.

"I'm going to make a crown anyways." she mumbled to herself. 

Before Hanz and Sol could leave, she rolled over to them. 

"Are we leaving the hotel?" she asked, ready to go get her bags. There was no point in just waiting around and doing nothing. 

--------------------------------

Rain or Snow?

--------------------------------

 

Sol replied to Dalian "Yeah, we're going. No point in troubling Elise any more...." he mumbled quietly "Knowing her, she's probably pissed..."

 

Sol came upon the group, with Hanz, Dalian, Rose, and Iris in tow. Elise turned, a razor sharp look on her face and cheeks flared at Sol. Her clenched fists and deadly cold stare tried to hide the obvious worry and fear in her eyes. Whether it was for Sol or for herself, he didn't know.

 

"What?" He asked, already knowing why she was furious.

 

"I'll talk to you later. And not on the phone. You better come to me." She said, turning and, in shifting her demeanor, waving goodbye to the others.

 

Sol pushed the thought that he was in the hot seat out of his mind for a moment. "Sorry for the wait, guys." Bowing to the Ronin trio, he also said "And thank you for helping out my friends. I hope you guys alright."

 

Sol crossed his arms. "I made some food, but looks like we don't have much time for a chat and chew. I need to know your decisions. Are we heading to Rinde or traveling through Leith?"

 

--------------------------------------

A cold, dark chamber, with merely one square ceiling light shone from inside a small observatory. The observation deck was shrouded in darkness, and inside was a girl. Opposite her was a gate, which held a prowling monstrous female Tithl cat. She roared at the sight of the girl, whose demeanor showed no shift.

 

One word echoed down from the glass window into the chamber. A deep voice, hollow and lifeless, but powerful and commanding. Being the only sound in the room aside from the girl's breathing and the growl of the Tithl, it was heard loud. The voice needed no explanation, for the one word that came out was:

 

"Begin"

 

The girl tensed, her thick, muscular, and yet smooth and supple thighs crouched and pivoted as the flood gate bars of the cage rose slowly. The Tithl waited before stirring, as if to decide which piece of meat it would eat first. The girl was short, a mere 160 cm tall, but round across her body. The tips of her fingers relaxed, her waist declined. Her breathing was in extremely focused intervals. One.... Two.... One.... Two.... in rhythm with each beat of her heart. Her glossed chocolate lips were slit, and her cheek slightly creased; it was the only way one could tell her expression at the moment, as her eyes were blindfolded, the mask covered by her mid back-length raven black hair. The beast roared, then pounced towards her, a mighty force in its back legs.

 

One....

 

The girl parried the beast's head with a single thrust of her right forearm

 

Two....

 

With her left palm and a pivot of her back foot, she lunged powerfully at the Tithl's exposed underbelly. The beast was knocked back into the cold steel wall of the chamber before crumbling to the ground.

 

One....

 

The beast tried to rise, but the girl dashed forward, giving a heel kick upwards, snapping the Tithl's neck.

 

Two...

 

The beast, brutally harmed, hissed although knowing it met its match, it knew it was faced with certain death. The animal lunged with its claws exposed in a desperate attempt.

 

One....

 

The girl used the back of her wrist, breaking away the right paw and bending the left out of shape, broken.

 

Two...

 

She tugged the beast, dragging it horizontally in front of her, and straightened her hand and forearm. She came down with a powerful chop on the Tithl's back, rendering it unconscious and cold.

 

"Enough."

 

The voice echoed again, and the girl stepped towards the center of the chamber. She crouched on her knees and shin, then placed her hands, turned upwards, on her thighs. Her head tilted forward, and the blindfold slipped off of her face into her lap. It spelled a certain word, but beneath the dingy and dim light, was unreadable.

 

The girl meditated..... Training her body to withstand the tortures of the world. Hunger, drought, famine, aging.... All these processes dissipated as she sat. Time itself seemed frozen. For how long? For what purpose? Nothing mattered. The waves of silence brought solace. Calm. Peace.

Edited March 21, 20178 yr by Clouded Sun

-Iris-

 

Iris simply rolled her eyes at the Goddess, before smiling a bit. She then looked down, and away from the Goddess, gripping her hand rather tightly. Not even bothering to reply to Hanz, or Dalian. Their words simply passed through her, as she stared at her hand gripping Zions. "Of course I forgive you... Just be more careful." Iris said in a cheerful tone, before she smiled at the Goddess. Iris then let out a breath as she turned to face Sol, furrowing her brows at his question.

 

"Well... I'd personally go with Rinde, however... I'm up for wherever we go. I've already said I'm in this for the long haul, seeing as how getting bored around you guys isn't an option." Iris grinned at the group sincerely for a moment, before letting it slip a bit, her eyes narrowing for a moment, as her shining eyes dulled, seeming to shut off the look of sincerity she held moments before. "That is, for now, it isn't an option." She told them, in a bored tone.

-Zion-

 

She looked nervous, but with Iris forgiving her, the lonely goddess threw her arms around her waist and nuzzled up quietly, just enjoying some contact.

 

-Eclaire-

 

"Love at first sight. Hence seeing if you at all like me. Is that the answer you'd prefer?"

~Yuna and Corvus~

 

~going back to the group~

 

They find Sol and the others as they walks towards them. Yuna then smells something good, something delicious. She saw the food and grabs one of them and started eating. Yuna then realized something that everyone is watching. She felt embarrassed and looks down shyly. "I'm sorry. I'm just so hungry." Corvus smiles and pets her head. "Hey, it's alright." He said. He decided to get one as well and begin to eat. As he tasted the food, he was amazed. "Huh. This is actually pretty good. Who made this?" He asked.

{The Ronin Trio: Nox Poetis; Lobby}

The elevator doors opened and Garok went to move in, but stopped at the sound of Jarod clearing his throat.

"What?" The Gin asked, half turning back.

"There is someone offering healing back towards the kitchen." The Blind Swordsman replied. "I get the feeling we need to be back up to full strength and fast."

Garok made a face, but had to consider the option. Damn, the Seer had a point.

"Fine." He grumbled, using his good shoulder to keep the elevator from closing. "Just be careful."

"That's something we did away with a long time ago." Jarod said with a chuckle.

Against his instincts, Garok stuffed moved out of the way and headed towards the kitchen. He heard Jarod enter the elevator and the doors close. After stuffing Amara's guns into his belt, the big man reapplied pressure on his wounds before approaching the party..

"Okay, do what Jarod does and don't blow your top." He thought.

Aloud, Garok said, "Heard an offer for healing."

He looked at Sol, then around to his companions. Who was the damned healer anyway?

"Any good at bullet wounds?" He asked presenting his injured hand and arm, luckily in the same general direction as Rose.

Edited March 31, 20178 yr by rikunobodyxiii

----------------

Departure

----------------

 

Sol wished he could be as carefree as his group was.... Yuna and Corvus were in love with his and Rose's job cooking, while Iris, Eclaire, and Xion were mostly off to themselves. In a slight, heaving sigh, he whispered "Well... Rinde it is, then."

 

The Ronin's approached the group, with even the towering Garok limping a little. Sol gritted his teeth — there was just something about the pain in them that set him off. He balled his fists, crouching and looking at the giant about eye level. "Sorry about that, big guy. We're gonna get moving again. We've stayed where we are far too long — it's time we leave... So no one else gets hurt."

 

Looking to Rose, he asked "I know we don't know them as well, but can you help?" A little curtesy wouldn't hurt. He already knew that whatever happened, the Ronin's were among the scuffle with his friends.

 

Crossing his arms, Solace realized the lack of a particular witch and Jack-o-lantern. What were they up to, amidst the commotion?

 

"Lucia and... Her friend. I'll see what they're up to." Sol commented. "Then we'll leave for Rinde. I've already got some supplies salvaged. Unfortunately, we can't just hop on a plane where we're going, so prepare for the worst."

 

Sol ventured upstairs in search of the witch.

Fiora

 

Fiora froze up for a few moments once Eclaire finally told her the truth. She felt her fear sink back in. Maybe it was all just a ruse after all... This was some sort of crazy seduction plot. If it was, she was being very up front about it, but Fiora knew first-hand that succubi wouldn't just let something like that slip. They were good at planning things to get their way. Her life wouldn't have been ruined if they weren't so intelligent. Fiora tried to regain her composure, though her cheeks had turned a light shade of pink. "Y-you, um... I appreciate your honesty... b-but, um... that's really it?" she squeaked out, trying to steady her breathing. If this was a trap, she'd fallen right into it at this point. She didn't think she could get out of it. She could only hope that her previous impression of the woman still held up and that this all really was just an innocent trip.

 

 

Rose

 

Rose studied the injured Ronin, then looked back at Sol. "Yeah, I can take care of them," she said with a smile. "Be careful, okay?" she said just before the impromptu leader departed to find Lucia and her assistant. She then turned her attention to the Ronin. "This should only take a few seconds for each of you. Just relax." She gently placed a hand on each one of them, and the bright glow that emanated showed that her healing powers were beginning to work on helping the group regain their strength. Once she finished healing them, her smile returned. "Feel better now?"

-Iris-

 

Iris let out a groan, and pushed herself up against Zion, looking up at the Goddess, with shining eyes, and a pout. "I dont wanna walk, carry me." Iris whined, as she raised her arms and placed them around Zion's neck, as she leaned against her. "I'm so excited to go traipsing through the wilderness in my expensive clothes." Iris drawled, as she leaned against Zion. "You'll buy me more, wont you?"