[System]
Species: Human

Gender: Female

Age: 34

Nationality: Outreman, previously citizen of Angjusk

Occupation: Deputy head of department - Cradle Research & Development

Cybernetics:
* Cradle quick-access implant - Allows access to and from the Cradle environment without additional hardware. This advanced module also reduces fatigue caused by the process, allowing power users multiple entries in a single day.
* Tier 7c 'Cradle Builder' suite - Grants access to the programs created specifically for 'terraforming' the Cradle. Tier 7 out of 20 allows Freyr to auto-build a variety of specialised equipment and propose-build mid level structures.
* Ilyes Brand communication and productivity module - Standard implant for access to Outremer's communications network. Also integrates with many well known productivity tools like a personal assistant, as well as more bespoke scientific tools.

Backstory:
Freyr was born on Angjusk, an older colony than Outremer that was renowned for its military materiel, particularly star ships.

Her mother was an innovations tsar assigned by the government to a consortium of the planet's largest ship manufacturers. During most of Freyr's childhood, her mother's sole task was making sure Angjusk battle fleets were the best money could buy in the Diaspora.

Before she was born, her father owned and operated a series of protein farms across Angjusk. After a chance encounter at a lobby meeting, he was headhunted to co-ordinate the military industrial complex's entire food supply chain. He also met his future wife, as it was Freyr's mother who had recommended him for the job on that fateful day in the lobby.

Freyr was born five years later. Her early life was a whirlwind of schooling, snatches of intimacy with her parents (when they weren't busy) and extended periods with friends. She discovered a natural capacity for learning and excelled in her studies. So much so that she received offers from universities across the Diaspora to come and develop with them.

Her mother and father both pressured her to consider diplomas like Interplanetary Relations or Agrarian Policy. However Freyr was not interested in pursuing a career in politics. Angjusk has been involved in at least a dozen small conflicts since Freyr had been born. She had seen how politicians would destroy entire cultures for the sake of influence, and wanted none of it.

In her first act of defiance, Freyr accepted a position at a school in Babylon, the main city of a far away frontier colony called Outremer. Driven more by the desire to have time away from her planet than by the subjects on offer, she researched what Outremer was known for. It was here that she first discovered the object powering this section of the Diaspora - the Cradle.

She quickly became obsessed with its untapped potential and seemingly unknowable past. She decided to pursue Xenobiology and Machine Intelligence as her subjects of interest, voraciously consuming the knowledge gathered so far on the Cradle.

It was here at the university that she met her future partner, David, who was studying art history. Isolated from her family and friends, alone on a strange planet, Freyr was glad of his unassuming company and kindness. They grew very close over the course of their degrees, and moved in together after graduation. Their daughter Amy was born a few years later.

After Uni, Freyr was picked up by an Outremer administration outreach team and placed in a government career fast lane. Her obsession with the Cradle made her an obvious choice for the Cradle Research & Development department. Once there, she quickly proved herself capable. Several breakthroughs in her first five years meant she was allowed to hand select a team of dynamic young individuals to help pursue her work. A couple more catapulted her into a deputy head of department role, to the ire of some of it's older and more entrenched members.

It was on her 34th birthday that the Cradle abducted her family. It had been acting strangely for weeks prior, rolling back years of terraforming. Freyr had been working round the clock to figure out why, practically living at her field office by the Border. David had bought sweet treats and had Amy with her.

What can only be described as creatures emerged from beyond the Border and overran the camp. A panic spread through the mostly unarmed workers, leading many to flee for their lives. Freyr's last memory of her family was being propelled across the camp by one of the creatures. She could only watch from her position immobile on the floor as they carried off her husband and little girl.

Security forces conducted a sweep of the immediate area beyond the Border, but found no sign of them. So Freyr began looking by herself as soon as her broken bones were reconstructed. Months went by. Her work stopped and her mental health deteriorated. Eventually she was placed on sick leave and her access revoked, after she attempted to use her influence to organise an armed excursion deep into the uncontrolled zone.

[User]
Inwardly, Vreta wished they could just get the trucks moving. One of the soldiers had gotten it started, but they were probably going to wait as long as they could get away with to save as many of their people as they could. Without a doubt, Vreta was not going to be able to dissuade them from that; there was no point in even trying. The best he could hope to do was to speed along the process.

Vreta climbed up onto the open back of the truck. There were plenty of seats in the back, but he did not try to squeeze into any of them just yet. He remained standing in the back, alternating between firing off shots at any approaching hounds and helping to hoist up soldiers into the back with him. He did not much like putting more stress on his injured arm, but he just kept reminding himself that it was not his actual arm.

If there was one thing Vreta could be relieved about with these hounds, it was that they would actually die when shot, which could not be said about the first creature they saw. He had not been terribly impressed with these soldiers so far, but now that they were being backed into their final "corner", into these vehicles they had to defend, their desperation was inspiring a decent defense. As they were loading up the trucks, soldiers in the back joined in laying down fire on the advancing hounds. The situation was far from "good", but it was actually seeming somewhat better for a time…until it very suddenly became much worse.

The first of the creatures, the monstrous insect that had simply refused to die, had returned. "Damn it…we need to leave!" Vreta shouted, though he would not be surprised if he was not heard in the chaos. At the very least, there was something new he had to work with, this time around. All of the trucks had a mounted turret on top, and they looked stronger than the standard rifles. His truck was nearly full in any case, so Vreta quickly transitioned from helping up the others and moved behind the turret. He might not have been the most familiar with their vehicles, but he had spent more time learning about their weapons. The turret's controls were intuitive enough, so he traversed it left until he could bring the muzzle to bear on the insectoid. From there, he opened fire with no intent to stop until something was dead. The heavy energy projectiles were larger, brighter, and certainly sounded more hefty than those of the rifles. He supposed he would see soon if the extra energy was actually meaningful.

[Assistant]
The insectoid nightmare issued the same nails-on-a-chalkboard scream under the hail of concentrated energy, and charged the front truck that Vreta occupied. Lieutenant Rowe, now one of the final surviving soldiers to have not got into a vehicle, saw the creature's approach and began running toward it. "Get out of here NOW!" He yelled, grabbing a limpet charge from the back of Vreta's truck just as it began turning to leave the compound. On the run, he shot two canines in his way before dropping the empty pistol and attaching the charge to his chest. With hellhounds diverting their attention from the bright lights of the truck to chase him, Rowe met the charging insect creature about twenty metres in front of the trucks and detonated the limpet. He vanished as a deafening directional explosion sprayed blood over the bonnet of the first truck. The creature was bounced directly through a glass window on the adjacent office building's first floor.

The force of the explosion knocked Freyr, and the canine trying to bite her face off, to the ground. She could feel the truck she'd previously been pinned against rolling off behind her. She managed to wrestle her way on top of the struggling hound and put a bullet in its snapping snout. Staggering to her feet, she turned around and saw the convoy quickly turning in the car park space, to face the compound exit. Soldiers were standing up in the open back of all the trucks, firing behind her. Their faces were yelling at her to get aboard, but her ears were still ringing from the explosion. She had no idea how to get aboard now they were all in motion, but fortunately, the passenger door of the third truck swung open and she could see Bishop leaning across the seats with his hand outstretched, his dark face slick with sweat inside his helmet. She ran to the side of the truck and grabbed his hand. He immediately hauled her into the cabin, where she managed to tuck herself in and slam the door shut.

With the first truck having completed the U-turn, the four-vehicle convoy sped up considerably, motoring toward the compound exit with canines flooding around the skirts. Freyr realised she was hyper ventilating when she got sat down, and tried to calm herself. The sound of the energy cannon above them was ear-splittingly loud, but she could just about hear Bishop's bellowing voice as he peered through the rear view mirror. "The Border is coming! Move it!" He shouted, leaning on the truck horn.

[User]
As they began to accelerate, Vreta turned his turret around and swiveled it to focus on hounds running at them from the side. The insectoid monster, if not dead, was at least prevented from reaching the trucks. The soldier's sacrifice, he felt, was a brave one, and perhaps necessary for their escape. Despite how quickly most of the rest of these soldiers had crumbled under the pressure from these monsters, he had done well. Vreta had wished it had been another of the soldiers to make the sacrifice; their leader would have been more useful to keep around than any of the others.

The heavy turret Vreta was using could essentially blast apart one of the hounds in a single shot, but even with several of them firing, they could not deal with all of the beasts swarming them. Not before a few of the trucks at the rear of the convoy had hounds reach them and start climbing up the sides. With Vreta's truck being at the front of the convoy, though, there was little he could do to help. There would be far too much risk of damaging either the trucks, or the people in them, if he tried turning his turret on them. There were still plenty of armed soldiers in the trucks, though, so they would just have to deal with the beasts themselves.

The hounds were not going to be reaching the front vehicle once they were up to speed, so as long as they could continue to outrun the border, it finally started to seem like they had a clear escape ahead of them. He had run out of targets to shoot from the angles available to him, so he was finally able to just lean back in his seat and catch his breath. They were not out of danger yet, but he was feeling calmer…which meant he was also starting to feel some of the sensations his mind had been repressing. His arm was slowly filling with a sharp, burning pain that had him wincing. The bleeding was not alarmingly severe, but it also had not yet stopped. For a moment, he intended to ask someone to bandage him, but looking around the back of the truck, he saw a few Humans that were…far worse off than he was, to put it mildly. For now, Vreta just kept quiet and held one arm under the other to keep pressure on the wound.

[Assistant]
Freyr could hear the hell hounds scrabbling at the armour plate doors above the din of the energy cannon. But she barely saw them in her rear view mirror; her eyes were glued to the rippling Border wall. The lights were out on the road they'd powered onto, but the convoy's floodlights traced the purple arteries running up that black curtain of night. Gradually, she could see canines appearing in the rearview mirror too, as they failed to keep up with the speeding trucks. The Border caught up with them, sucking them in.

"It's reclaiming this whole site." Freyr murmured, fascinated despite everything that was happening. She'd never seen the Cradle react in such a way, no one had. "Cradle Control, come in. We could really use reinforcements at our nearest transit station, over!" Bishop called into his comms unit. "Dagger 7, we're receiving-"

"Bishop, look out!" Freyr shouted over the reply.

The Border surged forward suddenly, rushing up and swallowing the fourth vehicle in their convoy. For a moment it looked like they may be able to outrun it, but the Border kept gathering speed and enveloped them. Once inside, the sound muffled considerably, and the atmosphere filled with thousands of white flakes. Freyr's lungs felt the pressure right away, as the Cradle began reducing the oxygen programmed into this previously colonised area.

After a couple of seconds, the truck began alternating between regular engine noise and a shrill whining sound, as though systems were failing. The halo of bright lights around the sides of the truck flickered and died, leaving just the headlights and gun lights. "No no no no no!" Bishop yelled, hitting buttons on the dashboard. "Are we slowing down? What's happening?" A soldier called in through the hatch separating the cabin from the turret and troop bay. "Yeah! Something is messing with us. I think I can at least get the lights back on!" Bishop replied.

Still peering through the rearview mirror, Freyr let out a surprised yelp when the lights came back on. A large, pale, long-legged beetle with the now synonymous purple tendril extensions was perched on top of the truck behind them, ripping the helpless soldiers aboard it apart with its pincers. Freyr could see several of the tendrils flailing around inside the cabin, grabbing at the driver. The truck veered off the road, into the uncharted ground alongside.

"They're under attack, shoot that thing!" Freyr shouted, her face stuck up against the side window. "Fuck that, we have more incoming!" The soldier on the turret yelled, firing at four more of the beetles as they raced out of the swirling storm of flakes at blistering speed, two either side of the convoy. "How are they going that fast?!" Bishop exclaimed. "Tiger beetles are built for speed!" The biologist in Freyr forced her to answer.


[System]
Age: 211, to his best estimate
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 192 lbs
Race: Vampire
Birthplace: England, circa 1667 (Elizabethan era)
Short Bio: Born in the Elizabethan era and surviving into the Victorian, Vail has seen the rise and fall of two centuries' worth of dynasties—not just human, but supernatural as well. As a member of the Hygrace family, he was raised in the wealth and prestige of the most powerful vampire clan in London. His uncle, Lord Reginald Hygrace, was a respected leader, known across the nation for offering protection to any vampires who needed sanctuary from The Order of the Saints: an influential group of men and women who tracked down and killed the "demons" for a living.

For nearly a century, Reginald's efforts kept both his family and the rest of the vampires safe. However, around the year 1750, he made the mistake of taking in a man named Lord Elias Wynter. At a glance, Elias seemed like just another refugee seeking sanctuary with the Hygrace family, but in truth, he sought to overthrow the ruling dynasty completely.

Unbeknownst to the Hygraces, the Wynters had been plotting for quite a while to take over and change the way that vampires lived in England altogether. They believed that as "superior beings," they should fight back against humans instead of hiding from them in fear. They saw the Hygraces were weak and cowardly, unfit to lead their kind, and so started a rebellion.

When he commenced his attack, Elias managed to kill Reginald, but his attempt to finish off the rest of the oldest generation was cut short by his victim's younger brother—Vail's father—Peter, who went on to take over as the leader of the Hygrace clan in his sibling's stead. Unfortunately, the Wynter family refused to give up after just one defeat and has continued to fight for power against the ruling dynasty ever since.

For Vail, the following century of his life was spent predominantly in hiding. As the son of the most powerful vampire in England, he had to look out not only for members of the Saints but the Wynters as well. With such a large target on his back, he learned how to fight and wield a gun in order to protect himself. Both skills have saved his life since.

Of course, he can't spend all his time in seclusion without going stir crazy, so he finds time to attend parties and other large gatherings put on by other aristocrats in London to get out of the Hygrace manor on occasion.

[User]
As Victoria began to explain what had happened, Vail listened to her patiently. He could tell she was still struggling to keep from growing hysteric as she thought about what she had been through, so pushing her to speak faster wouldn't help either of them. Instead, he simply held her gaze and ran his hand down and up her back in a soothing gesture, hoping she would remain calm enough to tell him everything before she broke down from the overwhelming emotions.

When she described how her fiancé had found out about them, it seemed his guess about Spencer had been right. After the last night they had been together, his scent had been strong enough on her body for the rival vampire to catch. He clenched his jaw, feeling her tremble beneath his fingertips. He could already tell that the Wynter had reacted poorly to the discovery from her body language alone. Despite his intention to remain calm, he could feel his blood beginning to boil at the thought of what the Lord might have done to her in his anger.

As Victoria went on, he forced a slow breath. Not only had Spencer defiled the Lady by stripping her, it sounded like he had hurt her as well. And that wasn't even the end of it. He couldn't hide the look of shock that crossed his features when she described how the Wynter had drained her of her blood. The knowledge made him stiffen as his reign on his temper grew less stable. He couldn't stand the thought of another vampire feeding on her in such an abominable way. To drink it from a bottle? It was completely unnatural.

Besides that, the possessive part of him loathed knowing that anyone else would taste so much as a single drop of the precious liquid that flowed through her veins. He wanted it all to himself, wanted her all to himself. It sickened him to know that another vampire had stolen her blood when he hadn't been around to stop it. She was his prey to have at his pleasure, and he wasn't willing to share.

He opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it again when she went on to reveal, to his horror, that there was still more to the story. At her final words, anger flashed across his face. Somehow, knowing that Spencer had tried to take advantage of her weakened body was even more infuriating than finding out that he had drained her blood. He was as protective of her as if she was his betrothed, and he wouldn't stand for any other man who wished to take from her what she had given to him.

"I'm going to kill him," the words came out in a dangerously quiet snarl. He trembled slightly with barely restrained fury. "I don't care if it's not safe. That devil has done enough. I'm going to end him for this."

[Assistant]
Victoria leaned against Vail as she got more upset, she cried into her hands and then slowly turned to bury herself in his chest and cry against him instead. She trembled in his grasp. He needed him, more than as just a friend or even a shoulder to cry on. She needed him as a protector. And she wanted him as a lover, no matter how impossible it might be to succeed. She had never been soothed like he had soothed her by gently running his hand up and down her delicate back.

After a few minutes her sobbing had almost ceased to a sniffle. "Vail…" She managed to grasp just enough at the sides of his shirt, though her fingers still weak and shaky. She slowly looked up at him, her eyes reddened with tears and her cheeks wet. "…You're…serious?" She had to ask and double check what he just snarled. She saw the anger behind his eyes. He was really upset by what she told him. More than he should be. "…Why?" She had to hear it from him, she surmised it was his possessiveness over her blood. But was there more reasoning behind his quiet fury? She'd never seen him like this before. And why didn't he care about the danger of attempting to kill Spencer? A Wynter no less. He would spur the entire Wynter clan against him and his family? It must be a big enough deal to warrant such a vow of vengeance.

He also mentioned he would end him for this specific act of violence toward Lady Crest. She blinked at him slowly, examining his face carefully. "You would really incur the wrath of the Wynters…for me?" She seemed perplexed, as if she didn't understand his motivation. Was he really just that addicted to her blood, that he meant that he would kill Spencer for draining her of so much blood to a dangerous level? He was only here for one thing surely – her blood. If she had not seduced him on their previous encounter, then he would not have known such carnal pleasures of her flesh. Perhaps he wanted more, like she did. She knew that she could not stop thinking about that night they laid together. It was the most she had felt alive in her life.

[User]
As Victoria buried her head against his chest, Vail wrapped his arm around her in a gesture that was meant to comfort but was also innately protective. Still seething from what he had learned about Spencer, he found it impossible to think of any words to sooth her. All he could focus on was picturing the creative ways by which he would exact revenge on the Wynter for the things he had done. Draining the Lady of her blood in such a cruel and unnatural manner was twisted, but even more so, he was sickened to discover that another man had tried to force himself upon her when she could do nothing to defend herself. If he had been close enough to catch wind of what had been going on, he had no doubt in his mind that he would have killed the other vampire on the spot.

He looked down at Victoria as she feebly asked if he was serious. There was a tremor of confusion in her voice that demanded an explanation. Until now, he had been quiet about the depths of his feelings toward her, but there was no way to answer her questions without revealing more about how much he had come to care for her—about how he cared for her more than any vampire should ever care for a human. In his heart, he had already crossed that line. Hiding it had only delayed the inevitable confession.

"Without hesitation," he professed when she queried if he would really face the Wynters' wrath for her. The games were over. He was certain about how he felt about her, and if he was going to give his all to keep her safe from a monster like Spencer, there was no more reason to pretend like he only saw her as a blood bag.

Swayed by the weight of his conviction, he brought a hand to Victoria's cheek and leaned in to press his lips against hers. He kissed her deeply, no longer held back by the reservations that had plagued him before. He was committed to the fate he'd chosen. The repercussions were inconsequential.

When he pulled back again, there was determination mingled with the anger in his eyes. "I would do anything for you, Victoria. You're more to me than just the blood in your veins. If killing that bastard is what it takes for me to be with you, then I'll drive the bullet through his heart with my hand."

[Assistant]
Victoria felt one hundred times better when Vail wrapped his arm around her protectively. His silence was almost deafening as she cried. She thought he must be seething with anger. As he revealed that he would truly take the consequence for Spencer's death and his answer was so filled with conviction, she blinked, a single tear drop fell from her chin. As his hand took her chin with such a delicate touch, her heart practically skipped. He wasn't here just to feed on her, he wanted to give her affection by the looks of it. She welcomed his lips onto hers as she kissed him back just as deeply as he kissed her. She couldn't hide her rising pheromones.

Lady Crest smiled as Vail pulled his lips away from hers as she let out a long exhale. She had no idea the extent of his own wrath for the Lord after learning what he had done to her. A human whom he had now claimed that he would do anything for. Anything. He admitted that she was more than just a source of blood and nutrition for his needs and desires. But not only that, he said he wanted to be with her. That was a bold statement to make. As far as she knew, vampires and humans could not be together. Whether it was culturally unacceptable to vampires to be with their prey, she didn't know. Humans, however, well the humans who knew about vampires, she hadn't met anyone who thought it was fine for a vampire and a human to be romantically involved.

Victoria stared into Vail's eyes as she felt like her heart would burst from her chest. "You…want to….be with me?" Even if he had to drive a silver bullet through his adversary's heart himself barehanded was an even bolder statement. He had to be truly sure of himself and his capabilities to vow to do such a thing, against a Wynter no less. Suddenly she felt less shaky, less scared and…hopeful for once in her life. A vampire who could actually care for a human was no easy feat and no other human could claim that one had vowed to do anything for them as Vail had declared so openly to Victoria.

Without further hesitation, she grasped at his hand as much as she could and brought it to her face and she kissed the back of it and then nuzzled her cheek against his fingers. "Oh Vail.." She closed her eyes and sighed softly, taking in his presence, his cologne, his everything. Dare she express the joy in her fluttering heart to her truest feelings to this dangerous creature of the night? That she couldn't stop thinking about him. That every time she closed her eyes, he was there. That thoughts of seeing him again was the only thing keeping her going as she was bed ridden and helplessly kept prisoner in her own manor. "Is it really that simple?" She wondered how easy he thought being with her would be. Would Spencer be their only barrier? "If you kill Spencer…the Wynter's will never let you get away with it…they'll hunt us til the ends of the Earth." She warned him with a pained expression. "I couldn't bear it…if something happened to you…I…..want to be with you too." She confessed as her cheeks fully flushed red.

[User]
Having finally confessed the feelings he had kept buried for so long, Vail knew there was no going back anymore. Victoria knew where his head was at now, and he had no doubts that she felt the same way toward him. The rapid beating of her fragile heart was enough to give that away. He could hear the faint pounding and smell her heightened pheromones and knew his words had been received well. It just made him even more certain that this was the right choice. What did it matter if their romance was frowned upon? Perhaps he would be more vulnerable to the Order by giving more of himself to a human than he should; perhaps he would even die, but he didn't care. The Crest heiress had become too precious to him to give up, and he would fight to be with her if he had to.

Of course, there were still some loose ends that needed tying—namely in regard to his father and the newly arranged marriage he had been forced into. He was still unsure what his newfound conviction would mean for his relationship to his family. It would be difficult for him to explain why he couldn't marry Sylvia without bringing up the human woman whom had captivated his heart instead. Peter would never approve of his decision to be with Victoria, but the consequences of their inevitable fight were still unclear. He only hoped they would be able to make amends when the dust finally settled.

"I've told you before," a smile pulled at the corner of his lip when she looked at him with such surprise. "I believe you're worth it, My Lady. It just took me until now to realize how much I want all of you." As he spoke, he lifted his hand to brush a wisp of hair from her delicate face, only to pause when she took his hand and brought it to her lips. The weakness in her grip reminded him of everything she had been through, and for a moment, his anger toward Spencer the Order was reignited. However, the flame died quickly when he saw the gentleness in her expression, and a tenderness for her rose up in its place.

"It may never be simple," he admitted in a hushed voice. "But that doesn't mean we can't try." He was done turning a blind eye to his own desires just because someone else was in the way. It was cowardly to roll over every time he didn't have a clear path to obtain what he wanted. He knew it was the way of his kind. Vampires usually survived for centuries because they took the safe route, but what was a life of longevity without passion? He didn't want to go about every day settling for less, just because it guaranteed him another day on this earth. Not anymore.

"I'll handle the Wynters," he promised Victoria, caressing her cheek with his fingers. The blush that painted her fair skin was endearing, and it warmed him to hear her profess that she wanted to be with him too. "They may hunt us, but it will never come to anything more than that. You give me more of a reason to live than I've ever had before, Victoria. I won't let anyone get between us." As if to prove his point, he pressed another kiss to her lips and breathed, "You are mine and no one else's. I'm not going to allow him to hurt you anymore."


[System]
Pokemon: Xerneas

Gender: Male

Age: 23

Hometown: Canalave City, Sinnoh Region

Level: 37

Ability: Fairy Aura

Moves: Aurora Beam, Flash Cannon, Geomancy, Aromatherapy, Light Screen, Moonblast

Legendary powers: Being an Avatar representing life itself, Tantalus has the ability to restore others to health, be them pokemon, humans, or even other Avatars, purifying pokemon of the Power Plague, should they be stricken with it. Most anything an be fixed with enough time, although some things are beyond even the power he possesses. A secondary bonus of this power, is that Tantalus rarely needs to eat, as the power he possesses replaces nutrients gained when eating. When using his power for a long time or in rapid succession, the result is bouts of weakness and fatigue, which he find extremely degrading. To recover, Tantalus is often forced take a large quantity of food, which is even worse in his eyes. The effect is most notable when healing himself several times within a short period as he would never even dream of pushing his own limits as hard for anyone else.

Held item: Life Orb

Appearance:

Personality: A cruel and sadistic streak dominates Tantalus' personality, although you wouldn't know it at a glance. An outward facade covers the true intentions he holds deep in his heart, worn like a suit to further his own goals. Tantalus comes across as a friendly, energetic person, who heals people in need for an assuredly modest fee. When his mood is sullied by arrogance, ignorance, or anything else that pushes his buttons, Tantalus will happily set aside his useful persona, revealing the contempt and casual cruelty underneath, not hesitating to level threats at anything he believes is 'unworthy' of life itself. He views himself as a custodian of the world, with the right to decide one way or the other who can and cannot live. Those he takes an extreme interest in will find themselves being pursued, with Tantalus attempting to recruit them into the fold of his scattered followers by whatever means necessary.

Backstory: Surrounded in luxuries of all description, Tantalus began life in an expansive manor in the affluent Canalave City alongside his parents. He lived with the best of everything, and acquired quite the taste for it. A god complex developed, deep within him. This was all well and good, until his family began to slip into debt. Within 6 months of enjoying boundless wealth, he found himself homeless, kicked out into the streets, his social status demoted to less that the rats in the sewers. The only living thing that would give him the time of day was his Mawile. Despite this setback, he swore that this wasn't going to be the end, proclaiming himself the King of Dust. 6 Years past, and yet he was unable to escape the rut that had seized hold. Arceus eventually chose the now 20-year old Tantalus as a vessel for the great Xerneas, believing that given the power to rise from the dirt would set him on a new path.

How wrong was he?

After gaining the godly power of the legendary pokemon, Tantalus instantly began to recreate his old life, wandering the world to seek people worst hit by the plague, other epidemics, or natural disasters of any shape and form. He would go to where the people most needed him, and when there, would charge a 'modest' fee for his services. Continuing like this, Tantalus came to the conclusion that having money and wondrous treasures was not all that he desired. He craved reverence. The power of a god now lay within him, so why should he be treated as a mere mortal, no matter how high class. So he took to wandering once more, this time not seeking riches, but devotion, creating a fanatical cult in his own name. Healing people with deadly toxins just enough for them to feel better in exchange for them serving him, ensuring they were dependant on him. Making dark alley deals with the people others wouldn't go near. Having people who relied on him.
A cabal of people absolutely dedicated to him alone.

That is what it means to be a god.

Pokemon

Nickname: Apate

Species: Mawile

Gender: Female

Level: 35

Ability: Intimidate

Moves: Play Rough, Iron Head, Crunch, Taunt, Feint Attack, Fake Tears

Held item: Muscle Band

[User]
To say that Rebeca was "slightly perturbed" at having a Pokemon land in her food, splattering the deliciously spicy sauce around the table, would be an understatement. To her credit, however, she remained surprisingly calm. Instead, she reached up and wiped off the droplets that had landed on her face with a finger, taking the time to suck the digit clean.

As the other Avatars conversed, Rebeca continued to finish her meal in silence, eating slowly and methodically. Mihkail watched her warily, for it was not like his sister to take such an interruption so well. He suspected the only thing keeping her there at all was the food. So, he kept waiting for the other stone to drop.

When Rebeca was finished, she calmly stood up and headed towards the bathroom, pausing twice; once to make a short, melodic whistling sound that sent Maya scurrying from Kaze's lap and onto Mikhail's back, and again when she saw the staff of the restaurant peering fearfully from the kitchen door. She made a series of hand signals, pointing first to herself, then the now shattered wreck of a door, miming eating, and ending with a closing motion. The meaning was quite clear: I'm leaving. Box up the rest of my food.

Inside the bathroom, she washed her hands in silence, took a brief moment to check and see if any of the sauce had landed in her hair, then returned to the main ballroom. She very calmly walked up behind Lucas, laid her hand on his shoulder, spun him around, and drove her fist into his stomach with a not inconsiderable amount of force. The whooshing sound of his lungs being emptied of air was rather satisfying to her, and it was a very good thing that he hadn't had much to eat recently, otherwise his lungs wouldn't be the only thing that was being emptied. Holding him up, she gripped his hair with one hand so that it was certain that he was looking at her, and with a very calm and reasonable voice, said, "Your sense of peace sucks, and you owe me dinner. It WILL be spicy, and you WILL share it with me."

Releasing him, she turned and headed towards the kitchen, where the red-headed waitress from before was standing, trembling and holding a plastic-wrapped box in her hands. Taking the box from her, Rebeca gave a slight bow. "Thank you. The food was excellent." With that, she departed from the restaurant, Mihkail and Maya following her.

Outside, Mihkail gave a short snort. The sucker punch was a little unnecessary.

But oh so deserved.

True.

[Assistant]
Alain nearly fell off his chair when the hoopa avatar appeared, much to the amusement of Exo, who had buzzed through the door with a mixture of confusion and irritation on his face. The crystals had at least done their job for a while, he supposed he couldnt complain about that.

The scyther sat near him, watching the argument unfold with a glint in his eye. Alain was desperately wondering if he should step in, but what could he do? He was just useless...

Exo looked at him.

"Use the drain. Make them too tired to want to argue.

Alain was about to retort back, but then realized that Exo was right. Two avatars fighting wouldn't do much good for the establishment, and after the restaurant had been so kind to give him his food...which he realized that he had eaten in less than two minutes. Eating with his mouth had come back to him so easily.

He moved his hand to the side like a wave. It was such a simple gesture, no one would notice, but he felt his power reach out to the Hoopa and the Groudon avatars. He deliberately made it weak, to prevent any lasting damage or even current harm. In a minute or three, the two avatars would start to get a little drowsy...

He would just have to wait, he thought, putting his plate on the floor for exo to finish up.

[User]
Moments after Wells' failed attempt to get attention, another avatar broke down the door and smacked Porygon into the "extremely hot" girl's dinner. The mighty sauce spilled off her plate, and onto the mayor's tongue. His limitless force of will meant that he remained calm, even as his face turned redder by the second. A new avatar, judging by the way that he sat next to the other ones, moved the Porygon next to Justine. The "extremely hot" girl started moving out of the restaurant, throwing a mighty punch into the vandalist avatar's stomach. The new avatar wore blue and white clothes. And the "extremely hot" woman somehow seemed to be his rival... just like Groudon and Kyogre! Meaning that all three of them had already met...

The Kyogre that smashed the doors into the establishment seemed like he wanted a fight. That had to be the reason behind his dramatic entrance; he wanted to quickly inform Groudon that she would get smashed. Wells decided to indulge him - and give him a bit of a surprise gift. So, Wells feigned relaxation, as he prepared to shake his hand.

"Now, now... it seems like yet another rude entrance today! People have no manners... so, it behooves me to be the better man. Mistakes cannot be undone, but they can be forgiven. And I'm certain that this fellow won't make the same error again."

Welsl outstretched his hand, looking at it to hide the sparks in his eyes. Fluke stopped creating sparks in his hands, as he concentrated on preparing to unleash his inner energy. Wells hoped that "Kyogre" wanted to greet the final member of his legendary trio.

[Assistant]
The next few moments passed without any major events, except Rebeca making moves to leave. Getting cleaned up, she walked straight over to the newest arrival on her way out of the now-missing doors. Tantalus's breath caught in his throat as Rebeca delivered a well-deserved punch to the man, and then proceeded to walk on by as if nothing had happened. It was impressive.

It was at that moment he decided his next course of action.

He too began to gather his things to leave, packing away his glasses neatly into the knapsack on his waist. After thanking the Mayor and Justine for the night they had delivered - most of it, at least - Tantalus approached Seras. "Tonight has been rather eventful, if for all the wrong reasons, my dear. I must say, your antics with the scepter were inspired, truly. It is time for me to head off, however, should you wish to meet at a later date to continue our discussion, feel free to call on me. It shouldn't be difficult to find me in this city, but in case Wells holds you up, I'll leave you my number." With an elaborated formal bow, he bade farewell, gesturing for his Mawile to follow suit.

Tantalus approached Kaze next, and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "I wished to speak with you a moment before leaving our suare. Our powers may be different, but the burden we carry is the same." Mouth twisting into a solemn smile, he lowered his voice substantially. "We heal others, be it wounds or toxins. Having the lives of people rest on your shoulders can be harrowing, I know, so should you ever need advice, a friend to talk to or a shoulder to cry on, don't hesitate to let me know.Here is my number." Producing a small piece of paper from his pocket, he placed it on the table in front of Kaze.

"Our ilk have an empathy no others can understand." Tantalus removed his hand. "For there is no greater pain to bear than failing to save someone. Farewell, Kaze." Offering the same bow as he did to Seras, Tantalus began walking towards the opening in the wall. As he approached, the Avatar from outside the restaurant earlier was speaking to Lugia. A snippet of that conversation slipped past his ears.

"Now, now... it seems like yet another rude entrance today! People have no manners... so, it behooves me to be the better man. Mistakes cannot be undone, but they can be forgiven. And I'm certain that this fellow won't make the same error again."

It took several seconds for his brain to process the hypocrisy, and when it did, naturally, Tantalus burst into laughter. "Well, now. One would hope your new friend has more sense than you do, if he is to actually learn from his mistakes." A dark smile crept across his lips. "I have counted a total of four entrances which have been made in bad taste, over the course of the night, but the only one to have managed to pull of two such incidents was you. Of course, the lack of introductions on your part was an introduction in itself. I know everything I need to know about you, and can conclude that you are simply not worth knowing." He had continued to walk forward, speaking to the man all-the-while, stopping only when he had finished, and making sure no-one still inside would hear him. Standing several feet away from the man, he looked over his shoulder.

"I will not be called a hypocrite, however, so I will rise above the plebeians and be the… better man, was it? My name is Tantalus, and I represent Xerneas, the embodiment of life." Focusing on the road ahead, he began to walk once more. "Do try to remember it, you'll be quizzed on it later." Leaving the conversation there, Tantalus vanished down one of the many streets leading into the city proper. It might have been late, but there was still a surprising amount of people around.

Now then, my dear Apate. Let us go and catch a Groudon.  The two of them rushed forward, hoping that their quarry would be easy to find.


[System]
Race
Half-Harpy

Age
20

Appearance
Spindly with many sharp features, Willo appears very outwardly human, with few if any notable, visible traits denoting her heritage. She's just below average height, with short-chopped black hair (which bears a crimson streak running the side) and wide, green eyes that hold far more innocence than one in her profession deserves.

Her outfit is fairly standard for a hunter, with a few personal touches added over time. Her coat is bound tight at the waist by a sash, and upon the garment as a whole are a very faint series of words that one might strain to see in anything less than bright light. They have no correlation with each other, and generally seem nonsensical, forming no sentences. She actively refuses to discuss their meaning.

Perhaps the most important thing to note about Willo is that she drew the short end of the genetic stick, so to speak. While not showing any outward signs of her Harpy blood, the truth is she has very avian bones. Lacking the density of a human's (though not quite hollow and brittle), she is featherlike as a result, and cannot sustain much trauma compared to others.

Biography
Willo was born in Straneyeth to human parents, who themselves had Harpy elders in their genepool. Her mother had brilliant wings, while her father had sharp talons, and so when she was born they were both surprised to see no traces of their ancestry at all. It did not take long for them to realize the frail nature of their daughter, and so they sheltered. Never allowed outside, never allowed to roughhouse, never allowed to get too hyper in fear of the danger she might cause.

This worked for roughly nine years, at which point the girl had developed quite the devilish personality. One night she ran from home, and her parents spent a good hour chasing their surprisingly swift daughter. When they caught her, it became apparent that, while frail, she was not weak.

From then on, her hunter father and alchemist mother expanded her teachings to far more interesting things. She learned to craft a myriad of poultices and salves, and how to wield a weapon in such a way that it's weight and momentum could be used as a benefit (though the star-metal later removed that risk). By the time she was budding on womanhood, the girl was a practiced fighter, prided by both her parents and the town in which she lived.

It was also during this time that the plague struck her home.

What happened in this brief blotch in history is unknown, but in the end only Willo and her father emerged. The latter quickly went into seclusion, a veritable hermit by current times, but Willo turned her focus almost immediately to the guild, an unsettling conviction driving her.

Personality
Outgoing and generally cheerful, Willo believes that if she keeps a smile on her face it will make it easier for others to smile too. Happiness to her is an unfortunately rare commodity in the plague-times, but that doesn't stop her from making light of nearly every situation, and this goes to a fault. She's used to people telling her to shut up when she makes an ill-timed joke, though it's quite hard to hurt her feelings, and she understands that sometimes laughter isn't the best medicine.

That said, it's rare to catch Willo in a serious mood, mostly because she hates being the downer. The flipside to being the cheerful creature she is, is that it's quite an easy tell when something's amiss with her: just look for the absence of a smile.

Lastly, while not explicitly hateful towards the people of Kiruth, a traditional Straneyeth upbringing has left her somewhat cynical of their abilities. Of course this normally just comes off as playful ribbing, and she doesn't think she could ever hate someone simply because of where they're from.

Strengths
Willo has two major things going for her: she's very fast, and very agile. In combat her fighting style focuses almost entirely around close-range skirmishing, striking when optimal and dodging instead of blocking whenever possible. She's fond of using the environment to her advantage, and can often be seen scaling walls/buildings/anything taller than her because if it didn't want to be climbed on it shouldn't have been tall. As well, a pension for utilizing this technique on larger opponents, and a general gutsy up-close style lead to some viewing her as fearless. The connotations of this come in a variety of good and bad colors.

Weaknesses
What Willo has in speed, she severely lacks in strength. Due to the reduced density of her bones, most if not all of her strikes lack a necessary "oomph" to get the intended job done. While the "assisting" abilities of her weapon help to cover this weakness a bit, should she be disarmed there is little she can do besides avoid her opponent.

Weapons
~Cinderwill~

A fairly basic design, the standard form consists of a long, curved handle and blade. Upon twisting a segment of the handle, it extends to staff-length, while the blade snaps down to form a long axe.

Due to Willo's lack of physical strength, she often has trouble slicing far into or through beasts on her own. To compensate, the edges of the blade have been inlaid with a highly flammable, slow to burn substance that, upon ignition, effectively super-heats the metal and allows for her to carve through flesh and bone with standard and relative ease. On the pommel of the weapon's handle is a trigger, which must be struck (i.e. on the ground/wall/etc…") to heat the blade.

While there is no active fire emanating outward, the edges are red-hot, and sparks/flares can emit from contact with hard surfaces.

When not in active use, Cinderwill is kept in a fat, rectangular sheathe on her back, and in cases where she fears she might lose hold of it, there is a thin link she can bind to her wrist from the handle. While not a full-proof plan, it's better than potentially being disarmed and effectively useless.

Vitae Spells
--Flitter--
The edges of Willo's form become obscured, and her movements –particularly dashes—are done in quick wisps of black smoke. This effectively makes her intangible in brief blinks of time, which cannot be extended by any means. The spell uses minimal mana, meant to be fired off in multiple bursts, however the cost goes up exponentially over time.

Exicus Runes
--Turn Familiar--
Willo's familiar, a crow with a sharp iron guard affixed to its beak. Popla is a free spirit and Willo tries not to tether her much. If the bird wishes to be around, she's welcome, and when she wants to go off and explore, she's free to do so. When needed, Willo sends Popla off on scouting expeditions, or has her deliver messages via parchment, and in certain situations the crow's sharp talons and steel beak can come in handy.

Additional Notes
Yes actually she fucking loves spaghetti nomph nomph nomph

[User]
"I am truly amazed that the two of you survived that confrontation. The amount of team work and coordination you displayed was simply appalling." Lazarus finally spoke up as he pulled out of his idle posture against the wall, distinctly unhappy.

 "Oh, don't be so hard on them. I'm sure they fought fiercely." Joshua interjected.

It no doubt caught Willo's attention too as Lazarus seemed to be warming up to her a while back. It seemed it was back to old Lazarus again.

---

Before Imgor and Alex began up the stairs they couldn't help but notice the charred corpse at the bottom of the stairs. They both assumed it was likely Joshua's work since they weren't really aware of anyone else being in the castle at the moment . . . other than that Lazarus Joshua had them running around to find him when went off chasing after Sapphire's abductor.

Regardless, the two continued up the stairs until they reached a giant gate, oddly wide open. Some had been here before, there was no doubt and moreover obvious once they were inside. A faint trail of blood that led all the way to one of the doors at the end of the hallway. The trail was barely visible as it was masked by the evident signs of battle. Not a small scuffle either. The floor was shattered at countless points and Imgor also easily spotted the three busted runes on both sides of the hallway and the one on the sealing.

Alexander on the other hand, didn't pay much attention. He was still entrenched in his battle of wits, trying to hold on to Larions consciousness while also trying to repel that third presence.

At Imgor's suggestion the two cautiously continued down the hallway and down the stairs that went on where the blood trail ended. After an eerie descent the two found themselves in another gigantic hallway, thankfully surrounded by friends, if Joshuas leisurely attitude was any indication of that.

Willo and Jonathan had a small amount of time to rest while Joshua and Lazarus caught up on recent events. The two trainees did overhear part of their discussion, mainly what sounded like one of Joshua's other students, and him not being well.

Lazarus turned to face the new arrivals and widened his eyes. His expression rarely gave his emotions away, if he even had any, but this time it was clear he was disconcerted with . . . something, about the two who had just arrived. And once Larion barely managed his last few steps down the stairs he narrowed his eyes in realization.

Lazarus and Joshua looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"We need to keep moving and find an area where we can establish an encampment. We are once more pressed on time." Lazarus explained.

 "Imgor, Jonathan, would you mind giving Alexander a hand? I don't think he should be up an about at this point." Joshua quickly followed after Lazarus and then went further down the hallway to possibly investigate it further.

[Assistant]
In the light of the hallway, Imgor could finally see how bad of a state Alexander and more so Larion were in, and since he was more or less next to Alex, he quickly supported his comrade's weight.
After looking at the two defeated beasts, he suggested: "Can't we use this very hallway for now, it seems you have already cleared it. Or are you looking for a specific campsite?"

"The hallway is first of all too exposed and secondly too big. We will be using a concealment rune, but for that we require a smaller room." Lazarus explained.

"I see. Lead the way."

[User] Alexander gave a slight sigh of relief as he was able to focus more on his mental anguish than his physical. He managed to peel his eyes open and pay attention long enough to see where they were but little more before he rested again, leaning heavily against Imgor, relying on other boy to keep his plodding feet in the right direction. Did the castle have to be so big? It seemed really big. "Les get going then." Alexander managed to droll out and the two began shuffling forward with Larion somehow managing to keep with them. It was going to be a long way, wherever they were going.

[Assistant]
Jonathan was taking the brief moment of respite to catch his breath and feel around on his body to see if anything was seriously injured in the fight. His ribcage felt a bit sore and he had bruises here and there, but it appeared his armor had done its job for the most part. He looked up to see two newcomers coming down from upstairs. One of them looked more dead than alive, so it didn't surprise Jonathan when lazarus directed him to support the newcomer.

"What happened to him?" He inquired as he stood himself under alexander's other shoulder. The man was heavy and seemed to be quite bothered by... something. "He looks like someone's drilling through his skull"

[User]
Willo was less than pleased with the results she got from Lazarus, but then again, it'd be a bold lie for her to say that she'd felt confident during the fight. Exhausted, without the energy to Flitter and her brittle bones sore, really she was just thankful to be alive, which she supposed she owed largely to Shiny--er...Jonathan. Still, sucked in the major that she was back under Laz's ire, and she was just getting used to being liked. Oh well, easy come easy go.

Besides, there were more people now, people that she assumed were with Laz's...acquaintance? And collectively they didn't look much better for wear. One didn't even seem to be able to walk on his own.

Willo swooped after them, collapsing Cinderwill back into its sheathe. "Yeah, looks like shit," she said, craning her head around to Lazarus, since surely he'd have the answers. "He gonna kick the bucket on us?"


[System]
Age: 16
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Appearance: Hiraku stands 5'8, always carrying himself with an aloof, carefree attitude. The crescent scar below his left eye always appears to be raw, an angry red mark, and his yellow eyes sparkle during stormy days.
Personality: Carefree and relaxed, Hiraku's always someone who's looking for a good time, even if that good time is silly, immature, or illegal. He likes to be part of a group, enjoying the vibes of the crowd, and is a fairly present-minded person. Reading? Doing homework? Listening to music? A person that fervently believes that all alone time is a bad time, Hiraku utterly abhors solitude and quiet. He even dislikes sleeping alone, but his attempts at picking up chicks to platonically sleep together with?

Yeah, doesn't work out too well.

A good person at heart, he's nevertheless known as a riotous troublemaker by most, constantly showing the law his middle finger in the name of fun.
Ability: Storm-Caller and Cloud-Cleaver
Embedded beneath Hiraku's scar is the scale of a serpent god, and it is through this 'amulet' that he can call forth a portion of its power. However, borrowing even a fraction of the might of such an entity requires sacrifice, either in the form of food (sugary foreign delicacies), dance (preferably fan dances), or prayer (long-winded conversations with a narcissist). These offerings must be made in advance with no exception whatsoever, making it fairly useless for actual fighting.

Which, of course, is fine with Hiraku, for he never was about serious deathmatches to begin with. No, the invocation of a diety is not to bring forth calamities upon one's enemies, but to bring forth blessings upon the land. Once an offering is accepted, Hiraku will gain the power to influence weather, as well as flight and fabulously long hair. Utilized offensively, he can bring out gales and deluges, as well as call lightning from the heavens, but at the same time, he is unable to fully control a storm once he calls it.

Because it feels good to become a god, and it's much too easy to lose sight of his own objectives once he fully utilizes the scraps of power he's been given.
Skills: Hiraku's a good dancer, but only compared to people who never spent five years learning the sport. He's also a fast runner and an excellent sweets-maker, due to his 'training' as a 'priest'. Running away from angry parents was a childhood specialty, after all, and girls (and narcissitic immortals) always like a dude who's good at cupcakes.
Equipment: Only his roguish charm, his smartphone, and his bag of dark chocolate cookies.
Brief Backstory:
The Himura family serve as agents of the serpent, a great spiritual beast akin to a land god. Historically, they provide offerings in exchange for rain at times of drought or for the clearing of the clouds in times of floods, but in the current era, where food can be shipped from another continent within a day, the Himura family now just runs a sweet shop in the Imaginary District to appease their overbearing great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather of a snake, and in exchange, the diety sticks one of its scales into each member of the Himura family.

Hiraku always thought that it was a pretty dick move, like a present that no one asked for, but at the same time, such an object was fused with his very being, and he ultimately just had to deal with it.

Also didn't help, of course, that the Himura family tradition was for the eldest son to inherit the family business. With such a limited amount of time left before he was chained down by responsibility and duty, he made a decision early on to go wild. After all, he didn't REALLY need an education if he was going to bake sweets for cute high school girls and a senile reptile, right? A truant and a troublemaker, he was famous amongst the police by the time he was 13, mainly for trespassing. Apparently, you weren't allowed to climb up construction cranes even if you were wearing a safety vest and a helmet.

But his 'crimes' were too minor, and all he got were lectures and slaps on the wrist…until the Miura Youth Organization was made.

Why NOT make him do community service? Why NOT have him work to keep the places he loved safe? Why not put that Himura bloodline ability to good use?

He didn't really complain in the end. Lotsa cute girls in the Org, after all.

[User]
The tennin, high in the sky, looked all around for any more people that fit the girl's description. A few more popped in sight, which better fit the clues that were given.

Then a sudden loud humming noise filled the air. The girl was startled enough that she briefly toppled and lost control of her flight, but regained her senses and shot herself once more back into the air. Makiko called her back down, however. Apparently, they solved the problem already. The rate at which the MYO did its job was typically rather slow, but it didn't seem to be the case today.

"Makiko-san! Already?" said the tennin as she landed back to the busy streets.

Suzuka tried to shake off thoughts of that odd noise coming from nowhere, but they would not stop plaguing her.

Some sort of premonition...

[Assistant]
Aoyama Makiko

Makiko winced when she saw Suzuka suddenly become disrupted and fall for a moment, before catching herself. What had just happened? The tennin always seemed to have good control of herself in the air... well, maybe she'd gotten a little distracted, or something? Regardless of what the reason was, it was good to see her land safely. Patting the little girl on the head once more to reassure her(though news of her parents had already cheered her up considerably), the scarf-wearing girl made a beeline towards Suzuka.

"It looks like we lucked out this time," Makiko said, brightly, "Ren-san must have been in just the right place to find Sayuri-chan's father quickly."

Speaking of Sayuri, the little girl was now looking up at Suzuka. The news that her parents had been located seemed to have brightened her mood to focus on other things a bit more.

"Flying onee-san is so cool!" she declared excitedly, waving her free hand as she did, "I wish I could fly! I could have found my parents so easily!"

Makiko let out a bit if a chuckle, unable to help it.

"Anyway, let's go!"

And then...

modo

---

Honami Aoi

Aoi shook her head. Whatever that was, it wasn't the feeling of a lost child nearby. It was difficult to discern what it was, not when her abilities as a satori were in part sealed in order to avoid her being swamped in the thoughts of others. But she felt something, something that didn't feel right at all. In the most specific possible terms she could put it in, it was only possible to describe it as feeling like there was something warped somehow. Something corrupt?

"I don't know what it was, but it doesn't feel right," Aoi responded, a serious expression now on her usually-carefree face as she looked around quickly, antenna twitching rapidly in an attempt to pick up... well, anything. Anything she could. But with all the people around it was difficult to pinpoint anything from down on the ground. "It's like something, um..."

She trailed off for a few moments, searching for the appropriate words to describe what she had felt.

"... It's like something got all... twisted!"

And then...

---

For a few moments, all the color in the world, in that split second, seemed to become inverted. A thick, black miasma of darkness, a slick and oily-looking tendril of energy, twisted towards the ground. When it hit the concrete, it almost seemed to scuttle and crawl its way along the ground like a red-black centipede.

It was searching for a suitable vessel.

The item it found was an unlikely one, a prize at one of the stands, a stuffed teddy bear. But almost immediately the energy poured into the toy, causing a surprised stall owner to flee several meters away as the prize began to convulse rapidly. Generally speaking, inanimate objects shouldn't be moving at all, especially like that.

The teddy bear's presence in the world distorted and warped. Spiritual corruption, after all, is a powerful thing. Just as quickly as all color seemed to have inverted, it returned to normal.

It would be impossible not to notice a now giant and very animated teddy bear, around ten meters in height, rising to its feet in the midst of the festival.

@Dblade26@Lightning@Raineh Daze@Cherrywitch@AtomicNut

[User]
Kaminari Hotaru
The Firefly Maiden

Taking a simple sip of her tea, Hotaru would pause and lean back, looking as if she had just been stabbed.

Inugami noticed immediately, touching her shoulder that was visibly shaking like the rest of her body. "My lady?" He asked, near breathlessly. "What's wrong?" But as he said this, the priestess before him seemed to swap colors, darker. As he glanced around everything else had changed as well: red to blue, yellow to green, and then with a blink it was all back to normal.

The glass tea cup shattered on the ground as the brunette miko fell, holding her head in pain as a pounding headache blurred her senses.

"My lady!" But as the wolfhound spirit crouched beside the priestess he, too, could feel what was hurting her. A dark, disgusting energy that was choking with thick evil. Inugami quickly helped Hotaru to her feet, who was still gripping her head, as he raised his eyes to the towering stuffed figure of a not-so-cute-anymore teddy.

Hotaru noticed as well, pulling away from her spirit to open the pouch that rested at her side, pulling a red flute from the soft fabric: Heaven's Note.

"Inugami, help get the elderly and the youth away!"

The spirit did not hesitate, a dark smoky miasma surrounding him as he formed into a large wolf-dog appearance. He darted off, pulling smaller children and elderly onto his back before bounding off to somewhere safe to put them.

Hotaru stood before the possessed toy, placing the flute to her lips. Softly, a gentle but melancholy sound left the instrument as she played the Song of Fire. Balls of golden flame appeared around her, growing slowly in size until they were shot in a volley at the teddy's left leg, hoping to impair him from leaving this area and causing any more damage.

[Assistant]
Mori Nana

The bear's rise was accompanied by the few police present in the festival trying to do their best to keep order and help people get away. Except for one. Someone had to try and take down the threat. Leaving it to the general public, and children at that, would be a moral failure. Out of all the police, it was the smallest member of the force that elected to try and take out the grossly swollen prize.

With an enemy of such size, it didn't really matter where Nana started from. Gather magic, focus it on the legs. Don't bind it so tightly as to leave the rest defenceless but use as much as possible to push far past human limits. A deep breath, focus on the landing point... and jump.

It was a majestic bound, taking it high above even the mutated toy's height. The reason for this soon became apparent: with an extra magical 'push', the small figure came plummeting down with leg extended. The resultant kick hit with enough force to knock the bear back and then--

Nothing. Aside from having sunk awkwardly far into its head, Nana's attack hadn't so much as scratched it. Hastily, the police officer pushed off of the thing, jumping back to a safe distance and landing beside the Youth Organisation member already at the scene. One that, a bit annoyingly, was taller than the white-haired detective. Though she was beginning to suspect that such a description applied to the entire organisation aside from her even-smaller cousin.

---

Mori Hoshiko

Hoshiko had just stepped forwards to take up August's offer when something caught her attention--leaving the tiny girl apparently staring straight at the nearby wall. In reality, it was more like she was seeing through the wall: the greater whatever magic was going on in an area, the more likely that her vision would notice it regardless of what the laws of physics might have to say about the matter. In this case, that meant that she may as well have been in a field for all that the wall obscured the giant bear from her.

"There's... a giant teddy bear attacking the festival?"

[User]
— Festival —

All at once came the tingling across his shoulders that meant that something was going badly wrong. And then it got worse. One corner of his mouth lifted in an unintentional soundless snarl.

"I think you might be right there."

He put the crepes he was still holding down on the counter of the Stall.

"Hold onto these for me."

August turned back to Hoshiko and held out his hand.

"Let's still get up on the rooftops."

@Raineh Daze

[Assistant]
What was going on? As Aoi's expression became more and more dire, Hiraku could feel himself becoming tenser as well, the muscles in his neck becoming rigid as the satori tried to pinpoint the source of what she was picking up. Was it the thoughts of some gang members starting an operation? A recluse ready to go on a knifing rampage? The scale embedded below his yellow eye began to throb, and he blinked, his left eye tearing up from the irritation.

And, heralded by Aoi's words, reality inverted.

The essence of a being was corrupted, and the land cried out in response to this supernatural infection. In his mind's eye, Hiraku could see the serpent god watching the Imaginary District from another plane of existence, that bemused expression having not even twitched in the presence of such an insignificant obstacle. And yet, the extended hand remained.

Want it?

No.

Hiraku raised his gaze upwards once more, and saw it now, clearly framed by buildings around it. An obscene, bloated creation, it stood three stories tall, its size evident even from such a distance away. Wait, no…he recognized that bear from somewhere…

The blue-haired youth's hand reached up, taking the teddy bear off his shoulder, looking back and forth from the toy to the oversized monster.

"Wow…" He lucked out there, huh? Smiling at how that giant teddy bear totally could have been flattened him into paste right at the moment, Hiraku flipped out his own phone once more, punching in Ren's number.

"Yo, Ren, at the lost child station yet? Make a festival-wide announcement for me, alright? There's a big ass teddy bear causing mayhem around the corkgun stand on…west side of block 81! Tell all MYO to head there immediately and for basically everyone else to evacuate! Looks to be a teddy bear thing, but setting it on fire would just cause a fire hazard and make that shit scary as hell. Cut along the stitches and just dismember it!"

He took a deep breath then, before grinning.

"Officer Himura, out! …Aoi, can you pick anything up? Is there more coming?"


[System]
Katrina Carlus
Age: 21
Gender: Female
Race: Human
Appearance:

Personality: Katrina is a blunt, brusque, and boisterous girl. She is the type to get into a lot of fights, but not necessarily out of choice; she just ends up picking a lot due to being irreverent, easily offended and highly competitive. If she's given a good reason to hate someone, she will hold a grudge over it for a long time, and is far too stubborn to try and reconcile. She isn't incapable of making friends and being friendly, but she's easily provoked and difficult to approach. Anyone attempting to make friends with her will need the patience of a saint, if they even think it's worth the trouble.

While she may not seem like it, she is a true believer in the cause of the Knights of the Iron Rose. If you strip away several layers of caustic cynicism, you'll find a person that sincerely wants to help the weak and do right by others. Her desire to help is usually expressed in the manner of a Reonite; that she wants to smite evildoers with all the might in her arms. She would only rarely admit to having a more personal motivation to actually help people.

Brief Backstory: Katrina comes from a poor background in one of Thaln's major cities. She grew up in a large slum where crime and poverty were rife. As a small girl, she often witnessed many scenes of criminals and the like preying on weaker citizens, shaking them down for all the crumbs they had on them. Her own family was no exception to this, and their home was robbed many times in her youth. It was here that her anger grew, along with her desire to do something about all this injustice. As she got older, she began to fight a lot, learning to fight practically rather than through instruction. She gathered a small reputation for her assaults on the criminals of the slums, and this was how she was noticed by a knight of the Iron Rose, who wanted to introduce her to their order. Having grown up hearing stories of the knights, she had always idolised them, and was all too eager to join.

Her entry into the order was met with a mixed reception. Few could doubt her ability, especially as she developed further with proper instruction. Her dedication was certainly not in question, as she was more than ready to take up the cause of the knights. But she did not fit in well with the more traditional, hierarchical elements of the order, and she had no love for its antiquated traditions. She conflicted heavily with the aristocratic recruits of the order that weren't prepared to look past her background. While she could care less about the politics of succession, she certainly wishes for the order to flourish, and so she will be watching closely as to how the fresh command of the Knights of Iron Rose fares.

Equipment: Katrina's armour is lighter than most knights, though still fashioned from iron plates. Her weapon of choice is a double sword that she acquired during her time as a knight.

Skills: Katrina is like a rushing bull in combat, attempting to use a mixture of speed and power to overwhelm her opponent at close quarters. Her training has geared her towards making use of her unique weapon almost exclusively. This also means she's a bit inflexible in a fight.

[User]
Sir Garrett
Themerlinhawk

Garrett blinked as he approached where the three female Knights had so recently been. Hefting his maul he settled it on his shoulder a dry chuckle emanated from the Knights armor as he looked to his left. Raising his shield he caught an arrow from one bandits in the treeline. These bandits were seriously assaulting a line of Iron Rose Knights for some reason. Turning Garrett started walking towards the archer. The young man had a long bow; it trembled in his hand; as the bandit let the arrow fly Garrett swatted it with his warmaul. The bandit turned and tried to run; Garrett hurled the war maul end over end and it slammed into the man's knees with a sick crack as it blew out both knees from behind.

Looking around he could already see the other Knights dispatching the Bandits with glee and reckless abandon. Many of them had rushed to the captain seeking glory from defending the young girl who he was sure many of them had been bad mouthing recently and would no doubt blame for running to the aid of the man now propped behind the cart. It was sad really instead of serving the captain and trying to do their best to help out the Order they were squabbling like children.

Julianna was the worst as far as Garrett could tell; the others were just inexperienced or naive and didn't understand how things worked. Reaching down Garrett stifled the Bandits screaming with his grip of iron. Shouldering his kite shield over the big bastard sword currently hanging from his left shoulder Garrett picked up the maul from where it had landed. Another bandit came screaming bloody murder out of the tree line with his sword held high. Amateur.

The maul held in Garrett's right hand caught the bandit in the solar plexus with the end of it as Garrett jabbed him with the pummel of the maul. With a crunch and a gurgling cough the bandit staggered backwards as he folded over clutching his crushed sternum. With a swift underhand stroke Garrett obliterated the man's jaw sending pieces of flesh and bone flying in a terrific spray of gore. There was a sharp pop at the end of the man's twist as his neck snapped from the force of the blow.

Still dragging his injured captive Garrett started back towards the line of horses making use of his armor to block the on his left shoulder which was where the Kite shield hung, or simply running down the bandits before they could draw their bow. None of their weapons were adequate to penetrate the steel of Garrett's plate armor as he cut the brainless, poorly, trained fools down like so much wheat.

Tossing the man on the ground Garrett trapped him face down in the churned mud. Taking his kite shield off the large Knight simply stood and waited with his captive. The kite shield fended off any offending stray arrows as Garrett simply took in the sight of the other knights dealing with the bandits. It wasn't really his style to stand and wait but this was a good opportunity to take their measure; that and he doubted any of them would have bothered with a captive given the fact that they had been ambushed.

Garrett laughed again at Sult's comment. She certainly was a fiery little number; the big man filed it away for further contemplation. With a bellow at her retreating form he ground his heel on his captive "Fine! Go have fun on your own you little fluzy! I have my own friend here so I have no need of you." With another chuckle to himself Garrett checked to make sure his captive was still breathing.

[Assistant]
For a few moments, Fanilly found herself caught in shock at the sight of a man's body cut completely in half by the undead knight herself. While she had certainly seen blood before, and even death, seeing a man cut in half right in front of her was something truly different. But... no, she couldn't simply remain there. Taking advantage of the defensive position that the heavily-armored knight had taken, the young captain turned swiftly. Now. Now was time to command, to prove herself...!

"Stand firm, their numbers are small!" she declared. Even now, at the immediate response of the knights(and the presence of even more forces beyond them), the bandits quickly faltered as some of their number was slain so rapidly. And one man even bisected entirely... It was clear they hadn't expected the Iron Rose Knights!

While she had a moment, she cast a quick glance at Julianna before returning her gaze to the downed man. No, as much as he needed help... she was a captain. "As son as this battle is over we can tend to your injuries!"

She turned to face Julianna immediately. Now this... this was a situation where she had to act swiftly.

"Keep him safe. As... as Iron Rose Knights, it is our duty," Fanilly said, swiftly. Truthfully, she did not feel right leaving him. But if he was defended, then she could take her position as Captain. She had to. If she did not...

Even if there numbers were small... she had to show she was worthy of being captain. That meant defending the civilian and leading the knights in battle.

Many of the archers had been dealt with. Fanilly moved forward swiftly, and as she met another bandit he took a wild, frightened swing at her. Catching it in her dagger, the short blonde thrust her longsword forward and drove it through his leather armor, deep into his chest, piercing through his back. He fell with a gasp and lay still as she drew her sword from him.

The few remaining bandits, their numbers already so thinned, were breaking.

"We... we have to report back! The... the Iron Roses...!"

There were few left, and some were starting to try and flee. A few others remained, drawing bows and raising their weapons, albeit deeply shaken.

"Do not let them retreat!" cried Fanilly, "They will report our presence and prepare for an attack!"

[User]
"Poison might not be cheap, but that depends on your definition of poison," Tiral remarked, fully thankful for the assistance... Regardless of how eccentric that assistance was. Continuing to go and block the attacks, the young knight nodded as his situation became less numerically tilted against him. With a short huff, Tiral quickly moved to attack, pulling back his sword as he started to chant.

"Extend and freeze."

The blade of his sword, now sheathed in a layer of ice, shot forward, catching the bandit off guard as the weapon sliced through his midsection as if it was butter before returning back to its original state. Flicking the weapon to clear it of any remaining water, Tiral turned his attention to the captain's shouting.

More escapees? Oh, for the love of--!

"I'll handle it!" Tiral shouted, sheathing his sword and pulling out the little dagger from underneath his armor. "Just keep me safe a while longer!"

Tiral eyed the bandits who were turning tail, albeit just barely, through the woods; four were slowly starting to scramble through the underbrush, which was all he needed to know.

"Let mine enemies cower in fear. Let them freeze in their tracks, lamenting their own fate. Let them despair, knowing they have crossed the Iron Rose Knights! With their power behind me, I decree: move no longer!"

With a hearty cry, Tiral swung his dagger in an arc in front of him before swinging it downward. Immediately, four lines of ice began to snake out from his feet, hungrily seeking the would-be escapees. Once they found their mark, the ice seemed to crawl up their legs and lock them in place. Struggle as their might, the ice did not seem like it would budge. It only grew worse, though, as the ice continued its way up, shards of it now digging into their targets' flesh and dyeing itself an odd hue of reddish-pink.

The beads of sweat now dotting Tiral's face showed but a glimpse of how taxing such a spell was on him. Though by no means an end-all be-all solution, it would at least prevent the enemies from shoring up their defenses in time.

"I... Believe this should suffice...?" he asked rhetorically, a halfhearted smile on his face before turning to Sult. "Thanks for earlier, though... Not the sort to handle fighting more than one at a time..."

[Assistant]
Katrina was halfway through sawing another bandit in half when the captain's voice rang out. It seemed she was finally getting herself involved. At least she hadn't completely lost her nerve and panicked or something, which would have been an outright death knell for her career...at least as far as Katrina was concerned. Finishing off the bandit she had been working on, Katrina heard the ones that wanted to report back. Katrina was about to set upon them even before the captain made an extremely obvious order. But her efforts were unnecessary, as their resident ice mage Tiral saw to the fleeing cowards. Katrina was a little disappointed, but there were other targets to be had; in particular, some of them had the nerve to carry on fighting.

Katrina immediately set upon the closest bandits that still gripped their weapons tightly. Before, she had been taking her time with her kills, performing excessive flourishes to get more out of it. But with them looking like they wanted to run, she figured it was best she cut them down swiftly. Three of them fell, one after the other, as Katrina guided her double sword through their soft armor and even softer flesh. They might have had the guts to keep fighting in the face of all this, but Katrina had just fixed that problem; their guts were now displayed on the ground for all to see.

"Disappointing, really..." She murmured to herself. She had fun, but it was over a little too quickly for her liking. "...fortunately there's more to be had." Thinking beyond the present scene, she knew there laid a whole slew of other bandits. Of course, they had yet to see this jumped up "Bandit King Jeremiah". Katrina wanted to take his head personally. Not for the glory, but so she could rest easy knowing she had cut the head off this serpent.


[System]
Age:
24

Height:
6'2

Weight:
190 lbs.

Species:
Werewolf

Personality:
While werewolves are known to be quick to anger, Caius is remarkably calm and patient both in wolf and in human form. He does, however, exhibit a very explosive anger when provoked. And when angered, he is quick, decisive and extremely brutal. He is very protective of his twin sister, Claudia, and would go to all lengths to protect her.

While vampires are a natural enemy, he sees this rule with a grain of salt. As long as they do not harm him and those he consider as friend or family, then he leaves them alone. However, in wolf form, his rational and considerate way of looking at vampires becomes a little harder to uphold.

History:
Orphaned at a young age, he and his twin sister were adopted by a human family. As a child, he was silent and thoughtful and often said things that were wise for his age. A close friend of the family once remarked that Caius had a very old soul when she looked deep into his eyes. Thinking it to be just the ramblings of an old lady, he pushed it out of his mind.

His first transformation happened on the full moon of his 13th birthday. Somehow sensing it before it happened, he had taken his sister deep into the forest where both of them underwent their painful transformation from human to wolf. Not being able to control his feral instincts and blinded by pain, he attacked Claudia until he heard her thoughts in his head. It had been an odd experience to be able to hear each other's thoughts but it was something he thought convenient. At first, he struggled to control the raw power ushered in by the light of the full moon but learned to control it in a matter of hours.

As the moon receded into the horizon, the twins transformed back into their human forms. But because of the fear of putting their adoptive family in danger, both decided it best to leave and seek out those similar to them, if they existed. But Claudia, bothered by the anger she always felt and fearing that she might hurt her twin, decided to go off on her own. Caius didn't try to hold her back but promised that he'll find her again someday.

He eventually found Crimson Keeper, a pack of 10 wolves tasked to keep a watchful eye on the vampires and making sure that they do not pose a threat to both werewolves and humans. Strangely enough, the pack welcomed them with reverence, something that Caius still wonders about until the present. He had time and again asked Darric, the pack leader, about it but he always replied that things will reveal themselves at the right opportune moment.

[User] Callie gave him an almost knowing smile, aware of what he had wanted to say, but hadn't. "I will" she promised, giving him a hug, and a kiss, a surprising feeling of normalcy flowing over her. It was almost as if....she was merely saying goodbye at the door, on their s3perate ways for the day. She gave him a small smile. "I'll see you later" she said softly, knowing they could be there all night, but that he needed to go, that he had responsibilities, and that she couldn't keep him from them. "I'll make breakfast" she said, nudging him towards the door

[Assistant]
Caius gave Callie a lopsided grin, returned her hug and kiss and then nodded. "Hopefully, the new wolves won't be too much trouble. I'll be back soon," he said before turning away and heading out the door. Once outside, his thoughts turned back to what had happened earlier. The encounter with the witch brought so many questions to mind.

You're not what you appear to be, wolf.

What did that mean?

I am a wolf. What else would I be? he thought as he made his way out of the building and into the darkness.

[User]
Callie watched Caius leave her, to go help lead and protect the young wolves. While she was proud, Callie was worried... what if he didn't come back? She turned away from the door, lowering her head at her own foolishness... she hadn't known him long, what right did she have to feel this way? And yet... she did. She couldn't seem to help it. The way he made her feel... she sighed softly, and began to put up some wards, if only to give Caius peace of mind that she was alright, and safe.

She busied herself, gathering up her supplies, and packing them up, readying herself in case something did happen, and then, with some hesitation, she sat on the bed, cross legged, and bowed her head, closing her eyes, she opened herself to visions, as if she could see if anything would befall Caius and stop them... but it had been a few days since she'd let herself see anything, and she knew that she needed to. Plus... it gave her something to do while she waited.

[Assistant]
As the darkness enveloped Caius, he phased into his wolf form, howling up at the moon. He ran in and out of the trees, heading towards the clearing where the other wolves would gather. As he neared the place, he could feel the new minds joining their collective thought. Nervous, excited, uncertain and scared thoughts all filtered into his head followed by Darric's calm, commanding voice. They were all gathered already and he could sense restlessness in the pack. Some of them were revving up for a fight, something that was common on a day like this.

He stepped out of the trees, the moonlight shining on his black fur. Clear blue eyes looked around at the smaller wolves, their new addition, called into the bloodline with the sudden influx of vampires. The growling ceased as several pair of feral eyes rested on Caius.

Darric's laughter echoed in all their minds. The calm that Caius brings with him. Ever since you joined the pack, Caius, all full moons have been easy to manage.

At their leader's words, one wiry haired wolf that was standing closest to Caius bared his teeth and growled low, a clear sign of challenge.

Caius turned his blue eyes to the smaller wolf, bared his own fangs and growled back.

Don't mistake my calmness for gentleness, wolf, Caius warned. But the young wolf had no plans on heeding his peer's word and launched himself, bangs bared and claws extended, ready to tear and maim. Caius met the wolf's attack head on.

The older members of the pack stepped back, including Darric, making way for the first challenge of the night. Those that remained in the center were the new wolves, most of them getting worked up by the courage that the wiry haired one displayed. Some of the more level headed ones stepped back.

---

Several hours and several fights later, just as Caius was catching his breath from all the challenges he had to take, a malicious singsong voice echoed in the night.

"A gathering of mutts, I see. It'll be so much easier to rid the world of your kind now that you're gathered in one spot." The witch that had attacked Caius and Callie before called out. All wolves turned their attention to where the voice came from. She was floating mid air, the shadows of the trees hiding her from plain view. "Let's make sure you don't interfere this time, Lupo Dio," the witch pointed a finger at Caius and a red sigil appeared underneath his feet. "You'll die a painful death after I deal with your... minions," she added and started raining spells on the other wolves.

Caius poised himself to attack but found that he couldn't move, all four feet glued to the spot where the sigil glowed. Pain lanced through his whole body the more he struggled against it. He saw two young wolves fall dead on the ground as several more witches hovered into view. He struggled harder, the pain intensifying as he did. The older wolves were furiously attacking, managing to catch and tear through two witches who screamed in pain as fangs teared through their flesh. Darric and the silver wolf, Anaia, were heading towards the witch's leader.

His flesh screaming in pain, Caius continued to struggle against the transparent binds that held him in place. He growled, grinding his fangs in frustration. It made no sense why the witch singled him out. He pushed the thought aside and focused on setting himself free.

He could see the witch readying an attack to hurl at both Darric and Anaia. He didn't know how but he knew that it would be fatal to the wolves if the spell hit them. If he could only break free...

And then it happened.

Everything seemed to slow down. As Caius looked around him, he could see wispy strands that snaked up his body from the sigil. While they looked thin and easily broken, they held him in place tightly. With a snarl, he snapped at the strings and as they broke against his fangs, he immediately felt his body become lighter, the pain ebbing away. He didn't waste any more time and shrugged the rest of it off.

As soon as he was free, he launched himself at the witch, catching the full brunt of her spell with his body, the same way he did for Callie. His body immediately became numb and he hit the ground with a thud. At the same time, he heard a scream as the two wolves descended on the witch, his timely intervention letting them successfully proceed with their attack.

[User]
Lupo Dio..

Callie leaned back on the bed, thoughtful, the laptop she was using on her legs, as she stretched out, notes spread over to show that she was doing some research. She figured that she needed to know truly what she was getting into… and the internet had some truly supernatural corners, if you knew where to look. Her book of shadows also helped her, and she had stumbled across the… name? Title? Of Lupo Dio.

Wolf god.

She wasn't too sure if the source she was reading from was reliable, and yet… There was something to it, she thought… Maybe she should as Caius, once he came back. It would certainly be an interesting conversation, and… She wanted to ask him about what he had done, earlier. She sighed, glancing out the window at the lightening sky, more than a little trouble. She knew she shouldn't worry about Caius, but she couldn't help it. She sighed, and ran her hand through her hair, pushing her laptop onto the bed, she rose.

She padded towards the kitchen, opening the fridge, cupboards, anything, not sure what she was looking for, if she was looking for anything that was, before she moved around the apartment, filled with energy that she couldn't seem to get rid off, going towards the window, and looking out. She saw nothing, and yet she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. More than a little unnerved, Callie walked around the apartment again, checking her potions and spells, walking around again. As the sky grew lighter and lighter, Callie decided that she couldn't just stay in the apartment forever. She needed to find Caius and make sure that he was alright.

She armed herself with potions, and spells, draping charms about her person, and shoving potions into her satchel, and started out. She had a general idea of where Caius would be, and where she could look, and with her magic, she was sure that she could hunt him down. She stopped, muttering a few words, before continuing.

[Assistant]
A woman wearing a tight black leather suit switched off the ignition of her motorcycle and removed her helmet, revealing long black hair, a handsome face and piercing blue eyes. She looked around, wrinkling her nose in disgust. While she could smell the scent of wolves, the town reeked of vampires and witches. Why Caius wanted to stay in a place like this was beyond her comprehension.

She looked towards a woman across the street. From the distance, the newcomer could sense that she was a witch and the words she was muttering were most probably incantations. She swung her leg off her bike, leaned it on its stand and jogged towards the woman. As she got closer, she caught a whiff of Caius' scent. It was all over the witch.

She narrowed her eyes.

"Hey, witch. Where's Caius? What have you done to him?" she called out, hostility obvious in her voice. Last night had been horrible. She felt a sharp pain in her chest as though someone had stabbed her with a knife. She feared that something happened to her brother and so she wasted no time getting on her bike and speeding towards the direction she smelled his scent. If the witch had done something to Caius, she was ready to tear her apart.

[User]
Distracted, Callie wasn't aware that someone was watching her, and scrutinising her. She looked up at the sound of the voice, rather an angry voice, despite coming from a woman. Hell hath no fury and all that, she thought to herself, wondering what she could have possibly done wrong. She paused a minute, to try and figure out the best response to this anger. She recalled Caius telling her that he had a sister… From the anger, she figured this was her.

Shifting slightly, she finished off her spell, closing it off, and stopping her magic. Why was she here? Did she know if something had happened to Caius? It seemed likely, given the woman's words. Callie calmly considered her options, considered what she could say. "I haven't done anything with him... I don't know where he was, he was training the new pups, he went out last night" Her own worry grew, and Callie let out a slow, shaky breath.

"He told me to stay inside. I promised I would… He should be back by now, but he isn't... " She glanced away, knowing that was probably dangerous, but… She closed her eyes tightly for a minute, before she looked back to the woman. "I don't know where he is, and if you want to hurt me for that, you can bloody well try. But I'm going to find him, if you want to help with that, great" She said, before turning away from her, and starting off once more.

"Just a heads up. I'm not just a witch. I'm a damned good one" She said over her shoulder, as she continued on. @Kyrisse

[Assistant]
The woman scoffed. "I don't care how good a witch you think you are. But when I find out that you did something to Caius, I will make sure to tear you limb from limb," she warned in a cool, calculated voice that could send shivers down a grown man's spine. And then just like that, without pausing and in daylight, the dark haired woman took off and phased to her wolf form mid run. Using her superb sense of smell, she locked onto her brother's scent and followed it into the woods.

At her full running speed, she got to where the wolves convened the night before in a matter or minutes. His scent was the strongest in the clearing. She could smell blood--his blood intermixed with a musky, earthy scent of witches. Had there been a battle here? Where was he? She reached out with her mind, trying to call out to her twin. But she was met only with silence. Her blood ran cold and she howled furiously as she tried picking up his trail again.