[System]
Gender: Female
Pokémon: Skitty
Ability: Cute Charm
Hidden Ability: Wonder Skin
Moveset:
* Play Rough
* Attract
* Wake-Up Slap
* Feint Attack

Delphi

Gender: Female
Pokémon: Ralts
Ability: Trace
Hidden Ability: Telepathy
Moveset:
* Magical Leaf
* Heal Pulse
* Calm Mind
* Psychic

[User]
Piper the Skitty[Altepa Desert - Rabao Spring]

The journey out of the dungeon was nothing compared to the trek through the hot sandy desert. Although the hike to the spring wasn't long or difficult, it felt like an eternity in Piper's mind. I don't remember the heat being this awful... Maybe it's just because I haven't been eating that much... Ugh... I'm usually never this tired... She thought to herself as she trotted along and did her best to keep up with the Delphox.

Spotting the outpost in the distance made her face light up with joy. She broke into a sprint and left Alodi behind, claiming a spot before the refreshing spring. Eagerly lowering her head, she thirstily lapped up the water, enjoying the cool taste on her tongue. After five minutes, she lifted her head up and sighed happily. Oh, that was some of the most delicious water I've ever tasted... Smiling brightly, she turned to look up at Alodi, her tail wagging with newfound energy.

"Ooo! I'd love some food! Do you think they'll have Sitrus berries there? Oh oh oh! Maybe they'll have those little tiny things that come in all sorts of different colors? I like the white ones the best! And I'm holding up just fine, in fact, I'm doing great actually! Anyway, let's go go go!" Despite her exhausted state earlier, she was back to her normal self in an instant, promise of food fueling her body.

[Assistant]
Alodi the Delphox[Altepa Desert - Rabao Spring]

The Skitty before him was not the same Skitty he had seen only a few minutes previously. Given the fact he was a Fire-type, he never had to worry about heat exhaustion, though dehydration was a very real threat still. Doing his best to follow her excited speech, he considered the questions she posed, "Excellent question. It's been years since I've been here. I'm certain they have all manners of berries though. When you speak of the tiny things, are you referring gummis? I'm not sure if I've seen those around here."

At Piper's urging, Alodi made his way towards the tent across the spring. Once there, he was greeted by a Nidoqueen who appeared rather tired. "Oh! A customer." Perking up slightly, the large female leaned against the counter, looking over the pair. "What can I do for you?"

"We're both rather famished. I was hoping you had something to remedy that?"

"Of course! What do you think I'm doing here, anyway?" With a playful wink she'd pull out a sheet with scratches that would be able to be read by both present. "If you're famished as you put it, I would suggest having an apple or two. We also have Big and Huge Apples. If that's not something you're interested in, we also have Bananas, Chesnuts... ah! And of course a few different assorted Gummis. All manners of berries as well. So then, what will it be?"

Contemplating the choices, the Delphox finally made up his mind, "Two Big Apples if you wouldn't mind." Glancing down at his companion he smiled, "Have you made up your mind, Piper?"

[User]
Raiden the Feraligatr[Glyph's Guild - Guild Member's Quarters]

The Feraligatr stepped properly in front of the doorway as Pyrrha opened it up. A warm smile gracing his maw as he met her friendly eyes with his own. "I'm happy to see you too. Thank you. I have a bit of free time today, so I thought I'd come for a visit."

Giving a slight bow to the Psychic dancer, Raiden shuffled past her and into the room. Though it was larger than most, the room itself still held a similar style to the others with it's smooth wood interior, floor, and large puffy hay beds. A few small cushions sat around a table near the center of the area. The Water-type gazed around the neatly furnished room for a moment before turning back to smile at Pyrrha. "Looks like the Guildmaster saved the best rooms for the dancers. Did you sleep ok last night?"

[Assistant]
Selena the Bayleef and Ember the Quilava[Folio Town - Folio Guild]

With everything that had been talked about, a check up with Rhys had completely slipped everyone's mind. "That's right... you did get hurt pretty badly yesterday..." Selena said, remembering what had happened the night before. "Well... we could probably go to the market and get what we need while you get checked up, then meet you at the trunk." Said Ember. "That could work... what do you guys think?" Selena asked the group.

Fuse the Luxio and Breeze the Shaymin[Folio Town - Folio Guild]

The sunlight finally began to shine through the windows, touching the edge of the Gracidea Flower that hung on the slumbering Shaymin. In a moment that sunlight activated the flower pollen, and the grass type transformed as the electric lion entered the room. With a yawn, Breeze looked over to Fuse. "Morning... well... did we do it?" She asked. "You don't... remember?" Asked Fuse, turning his head questioningly. "No... that's weird actually... what happened?" She asked.

The events of the previous night replayed in Fuse's head. He couldn't tell her that, it could break her heart, or trigger another episode or whatever happened to her. "Yeah, we did it. You passed out from... exhaustion I think... so we took you back. And Gren... he found what he was looking for, and I hope he's okay now." He said, trying to make it sound believable. "That's good, as long as he was happy in the end, that's what matters." She said, a smile on her face. She bought it at least, but it didn't make Fuse feel any better.

"Yeah... so how are you feeling this morning?" He asked. "Just fine. That good night's sleep is all I needed. I think I'm gonna head into town and get a bite to eat. Wanna come?" She replied, Fuse shaking his head. "No thanks. I've got some stuff to take care of... maybe later." He said. "Alright, well, I'll see you later then!" She finished as she gave a wave and flew out of the room, leaving Fuse alone with his thoughts.

Omen the Absol and Serenity the Sylveon[Folio Town - Glyph's Guild]

Their knock went mostly unheard it seemed, but it seemed the group of Pokemon inside were in deep conversation. It sounded quite interesting, and they didn't want to interfere, but they couldn't help but eavesdrop on what they were saying. "You see? They know already, and they're preparing for it. You're worrying yourself to death when everything is already under control..." "Shh." Omen cut her off as he continued to listen. From the sound of it they thought they still had plenty of time to prepare and get civilians to safety...

"They think they can actually protect them all... they won't even have enough time to evacuate a third of the town... if this event occurs the same as others before..." Omen said, taking in the information he had heard and adding it to his own knowledge. He knew that another world ending event was beginning, and that this place would be the first major blow in what could become a war between Pokemon. Now he began to piece everything together.

"A Legendary Pokemon... leading an uprising of Dungeon Pokemon? Why?" Asked Serenity. "I don't know... I don't see the point... the Legendary Pokemon of our world have no reason to do such a thing..." He said, continuing to contemplate the details. "I need more details..." He said to himself in the same hushed voice he and Serenity had been using to avoid detection. Now he moved to the door and knocked hard on the door, hoping to get someone's attention that they were there.

[User]
Glyph the Flygon[Glyph's Guild - Guildmaster's Office]

@Shiny Keldeo
Shaking his head, the wise Flygon spoke again. "No, that should be fine Robel. On the point of leaving Folio, I-"

A pounding at the door caused Glyph to cut himself off mid speech. The room falling silent as everyone's attention zeroed in on the source of the noise. Crossing his arms over his chest, the Guildmaster's eyes narrowed at the doors before flicking to the Breloom and the Marowak them. "Jack, Lemmy, open the doors and ask what they want. I'm very busy."

Nodding at the green Dragon, the two shortish Pokémon reached up to grab the respective knob. Opening the doors up a small bit, the Marowak and the Breloom both stuck their heads out and analyzed the Absol and the Sylveon before them. The Marowak, Jack, looked to the Absol and grunted. "The Guildmaster's busy. What do you need?"

Devon the Totodile and Brick the Poliwrath[Folio Town - Entrance to the Trunk]

Keldeo@Ninian
When Ember offered to split up for the time being, Devon gave a thumb up to the idea. "Yeah, that's good. I'll meet you guys there. See ya in a bit." Once again, the Totodile turned to march off as the Poliwrath called after him. "Find one of the Guild members on patrol to escort you there. Don't want to risk that Gardevoir making another move."

Another thumb up was directed behind the young crocodile's shoulder as he stepped out into the sunny streets of the treetop town.

A half hour later...

[Folio Town - Trunk Entrance]

Rapid little feet tapped against the brightly lit wood street, a small blue creature darting around the clusters of legs, feet, and tails that made up the heavy foot traffic in the town's main hub. The bandage-less Totodile panting as he dodged through the crowd and finally emerged at the mouth of the tree's ginormous trunk. Devon grabbed at his knees and bent over a bit to catch his breath for a few moments. Huh....huh...huh...Jeez. I totally thought I was gonna get stepped on by that Donphan. Being small sucks.

Tilting his head up with half-lidded eyes, the tired Water-type grinned and waved over to the group gathered at the entrance. Standing up properly to begin walking to them. "Hey guys! Rhys says I'm good to go! Just as long as I use this cream he gave me on my burns whenever we go out into the sun. I already put it on before I left. He also gave me this berry drink for my tongue and a bit of stuff for the mission."

Turning to look back at the happy croc, the Poliwrath hefted the backpack off his shoulders and turned his eyes down into the main pouch as he dug around. "That's great Devon. And in honor of you being a quick healer, take this. It's on me." The buff tadpole's fist came out of the bag and tossed a shiny object towards Devon. One that the novice Explorer hopped up to snatch out of the air.

A curious expression washed over Devon's face as he inspected the circular bracelet in his grasp closely. It was round, mostly blue with a yellow trim, and had a large milky stone in it's top. Various tear drop shaped indentations rang around the jewellery's sides, ones that the Totodile poked his claws into. "Thanks, but uh....What is it? Some sort of special bracelet? I've never seen one before..."

A light chuckle escaped Brick as he tossed three more of the same accessories over to Lilisette, Ember, and Selena before crossing his arms and shrugging. "I don't have the faintest clue, but maybe you should ask your friends. They look like they know something."

Staring at the trainer with a raised brow, Devon turned towards his three teammates with the bracelet still clutched in his hands. "Can you guys fill me in?"

[Assistant]
Lilisette the Kirlia[Folio Town - Trunk Entrance]

Lord@Shiny Keldeo
Lilisette had branched off from the main group after gathering some supplies, wanting a bit of alone time to sort out her thoughts. Sitting on a bench near the Trunk's entrance, the Kirlia seemed downtrodden. That whole Gardevoir trying to kill Devon thing keeps bugging me. That never happened! There was no evil Totodile-killing Gardevoir! I can't help but feel like I messed this all up somehow. I don't even really understand how I got here, but I still feel like it's my fault, somehow...

Letting a sigh loose, she curled onto the bench, awaiting the others to get there.

A bit later...

Now sitting on the ground near the others, Lilisette remained fairly quiet the entire time Devon and Brick conversed. Finally, she accepted the Looplet with a small smile, putting on her wrist. With little emotion, the Kirlia glanced up at Devon before explaining, "It's a Looplet..." Staring at it with some confusion she'd continue, "This one isn't imbued... Oh. I suppose that makes sense, I believe only Cerran and Erius have the ability to do that..." Letting out a sigh, she stared at the Looplet before continuing, "...anyway, it's used to hold Emeras, magical gemstones found in dungeons."

[User]
Piper the Skitty[Altepa Desert - Rabao Spring]

Piper tilted her head and looked up at him, perplexed for a moment before immediately perking up. "Oh oh oh! Yeah! Gummis! That's what they're called! It's been forever since I've eaten them!"

Following Alodi, she trotted over to the tent, sitting besides him as he did the talking. With the smell of delicious fruit teasing her nose, her stomach growled loudly. Being quite hungry, she found it difficult to listen to the woman's speech. Only the names of the foods registered in her mind. She licked her lips at the thought of eating such delectable things, zoning out before her partner followed up the Nidoqueen's question.

"Oh, yes!" Glancing up at him, then to the Nidoqueen with a bright smile, she placed her order. "I'd like a Huge Apple and some White Gummis, if you have them. Maybe like... hm... two? No, that's not that much... Oh oh oh! How about three? Okay, yeah! One Huge Apple and three White Gummis, please!"


[System]
Pokemon: Rayquaza

Gender: Male

Age: 25

Hometown: Rustboro City

Level: 33

Ability: Air Lock

Moves: Crunch, Ancient Power, Twister, Scary Face, Air Slash

Legendary powers: Wells can survive extreme altitudes indefinitely, which also lets him hold his breath for nearly an hour if he needed to. He can also survive extremely low temperatures, is highly resistant to simple asphyxiants and ozone, immune to UV light, and has a 3m vertical jump.

Held item: Sitrus Berry

Appearance: Wells is 2m(6'6") tall, has green hair, and is slightly tan. He has green eyes, a small nose, and has a very slim physique. He usually wears a black vest over a green shirt, as well as a chestnut-colored leather bag and black pants.

Personality: Wells loves attention and feeling like he impresses others, as well as them considering him valuable and hepful. Beyond that, he doesn't really want anything more than the chance to live a life of leisure, entertainment and lively debate. Wells always does his best to stay cool and think calmly, even when the world suddenly surprises him, and he always thinks about what could happen in the future. When something absolutely unexpected happens, he often waits for a few seconds and rarely makes a choice based on instinct. On his own, Wells can enjoy spending his time thinking about the future and the greater questions, hoping to invent something interesting worth talking about.

Backstory: Wells lived an ordinary life in Rustboro, never really noticing that he lived in a big city as he always spent time with a small, selective circle of friends near his home. He came from a family who dedicated their lives to being his parent, although he often ended up doing a lot on his own. Wells had a talent for mathematics and language, although he didn't use it for anything other than finishing homework quickly and lounging afterwards. Wells found himself attracted to the trades, as he heard a lot about the places a trade could take him. He decided to become an apprentice for an electrician, and found work at ports, gyms and anywhere else exciting people travelled. After 5 years of work, he was zapped by electricity. Afterwards, he was given a week off work and spent it with his Helioptile, who was suffering from a strange disease.

That same week, he felt a strange force go through him. He discovered that he was very strong, could work far faster and that he seemed to never get tired. Curious, he also learned of his ability to withstand great altitudes, and he decided to begin mountain climbing. After the week had passed, his employer let him go. He learned that Arceus had given him a greater purpose, and Wells' employer knew that his new role was far more important than his old one. Wells decided to enjoy his vacation of sorts, and lived simply as he picked up odd jobs around Hoenn to keep himself busy.

Nickname: Fluke

Species: Helioptile

Gender: Male

Level: 34

Ability: Dry Skin

Moves: Thunder Shock, Charge, Mud Slap, Electrify, Parabolic Charge.

Held item: Leftovers

[User]
Wells looked at Kaze, who managed to combine being well-dressed and being poorly prepared as his formal clothes were too small, especially given his apparent attempts at athleticism. He wanted to do something humorous for the others, so he made an obvious observation.

"Porygon could sense her approach from far away. It took a moments to confirm what happened, realizing that its sensors were indeed correct."

Wells let the silence linger longer than necessary. It made sure that the punchline would more powerfully subvert the concealed set-up, making it seem like it stood on its own as much as it was part of a greater joke. When the context of the original sentence faded, he said what he truly meant.

"Porygon thought she was extremely hot!"

[Assistant]
Prior to Seras' arrival Vuduin replied to Germaine, and he too had a simialr motivation to be here as Germaine. The chance to try some new exotic and expensive foods - free of charge.
Germaine had to admit, he'd warm up to this Avatar business considerably more if free food was always a part of the bargain.
He was also glad that neither he nor Darkrai had made any attempt on Wells, because it was certainly tempting to Germaine, the more he was in that mans presence the more he grew to hate him.

Shortly afterwards Seras arrived.

Seras blushed slightly when Germaine interrupted her silent conversation with Kirlia; he normally knew what Kirlia was thinking about, it probably involved him, but as to what they actually spoke about, was something he could not deduce, even if he tried.
Following this she responded to Germaines question.

"Just as eventful, I'm afraid, but far more relaxing all the same. I've been selling statuettes in the main plaza - there's no end to the tourists who love them, and once you've already said yes to one person, it's hard to say no to the second."
This was true, Germaine thought to himself, and as well as that it was bad business practice, this was most likely one of her main forms of income, which wasn't at all bad, using her powers for good and joy.
Germaine could do something similar; allowing scientists to explore and learn about the distortion world...
It would take some hellish persuasion to allow him to ever contemplate this however; the first human to ever enter the distortion world was none other than a scientist, one who wanted to destroy the entire universe; the entire plane of existence for his foolish ideals!

It only just occurred to him after this short inside outburst within his own head that he realised Seras had said something else; but he had been a tad to preoccupied to listen to what she was actually saying...
Another downside to his lack of contact with any living being for millennia...

Seras was now doing something quite odd; the gems on her clothing and general appeal began to dim, as before they shone quite radiantly, despite the fact that it was now well past dusk.
And it quickly became evident as to why this was, Seras was forming a new crystal in her hands and before long produced a magnificent sculpture that resembled Kirlia with stunning detail, it was almost photographic but in the form of solid gemstone.
Kirlia couldn't believe her eyes, and they opened wide, both astonished and in admiration.
And followed soon after when Seras handed it to her it turned to that of incredible joy, to the point where she was almost in tears as her eyes assumed a glassy look to them.

"Consider this a homecoming gift to share with Kirlia. I wouldn't dream of charging another avatar - our gifts are to share freely amongst each other."

Kirlia with slight strain managed to compose a message to Seras before shortly giving a small Poof as she teleported to take her treasure back home - she would return later that evening.

"Thank you so much! And I will! Germaine is worth that much; no one should have to suffer what he has, Charity will know herself if she looks deep enough within Germaines heart, she can tell you." A rather strange touch to add to a compliment, but part of understanding Germaine meant that one had to understand what he had suffered.

After that Seras turned from the pair; or rather Germaine himself as Kirlia had just teleported with a gleeful hop before hand, she then began to speak to Vuduin.

(Notify me if this requires removal or reform.)
Germaine took the time to observe his surroundings, as he typically did.
The restaurant itself was inside the city's interior, although it was located in the North eastern section, as it did have an outdoor section that overlooked a near by river.

This part of the city had similar types of attractions in it, it was typically the "high" end of the city, it contained several Posh eatery establishments, "The Ritzy Raichu" merely being one of the ones available.
It was during this time, of Germaines observations that he spotted a girl who turned one her heels away from the restraunt, but he disregarded it as nothing of importance; that was until that blasted artificial creation; Porygon-Z zoomed to the "rescue" and doused the girl in a foam from a fire extinguisher it has just momentarily liberated from the restaurant moments before.

There was no fire to speak of... the blasted thing must be malfunctioning; as is the result of man attempting to create artificial Pokémon, be it intent or mistake; or even a by-product of humanity's avarice.
Certain Pokémon did exist in the world, specifically Ghost types that existed ONLY due to humanity being the despicable lifeforms that they were; Giratina was of course the exception to that rule.

Germiane simply looked down towards the Porygon Z with severe distaste; until he realised that the foam designed to put out fires was fizzling and seemingly disintegrating from her body, at least parts exposed directly to her skin were at any rate; the rest was cleared up rather kindly by Vuduin, using a Pokemon move that was designated as an attack but for utility instead; this of course warranted merit.

It was also around this time that the boy, or peace keeper number 2 showed up, unremarkably he went straight towards Seras, something Germaine had anticipated he'd do, and quite frankly he didn't blame him.
For someone who looked so young, he faced a hell of a challenge and a future ahead of him.

Wait.
Germaine stopped suddenly.
That noise? It sounded a lot like someone hammering a nail... yes...
One of the final few nails that needed hammering down in Well's coffin, as he took the opportunity to make a disgrace of himself and anger Germaine further with his blithe disregard to the people around him; people whom were powerful enough to relieve him of his head, with little more than a flick of a wrist.

Germaine did not speak though; he just made his seething anger towards Wells very evident.

[User]
With a somewhat amused sigh, Seras leaned towards Kaze. "Porygon-Z found a heat-based avatar before we did," she whispered back. "The rest pretty much tells itself."

As catastrophically typical the moment was, everything seemed to be entirely under control - Porygon-Z would probably get a firm verbal update to its public relation protocol from Justine afterwards, but no real harm had been done and the ever-polite Vuduin was handling the situation excellently. Crisis averted.

And then Wells opened his mouth.

As his words slowly registered - double-checking that, yes, she had heard him correctly - she felt some small, important gear in her mental composure give way. He simply would not learn. Anger flushed through her veins. First you land on me, without apology. Then you pick a fight with Germaine, in a crowded square to boot, and I stand in front of Germaine for you. And now you're goading another volatile avatar, shaming all of us in front of our host and spoiling my first night out in this gown. I don't even know which one of those frustrates me the most.

Charity tugged urgently at her elbow.

"Germaine is going to snap at this rate," she noted fearfully.

Seras glanced at Germaine without great concern; his response didn't seem out of proportion to her at the moment. But as rewarding as it would be to allow someone else to tear into Wells, that didn't solve the problem of their peaceful meal. Besides, I get first dibs.

"You restain Germaines, if-and-when necessary. I'll deal with Wells."

Ignoring Charity's loud mental protest, Seras spun towards Wells. His face seemed to be glowing cherry-pink for some reason, along with the walls behind him and most of the street around him. Quite strange - the same colour as the light from as her gemstones - but her anger had hijacked the car and thrown curiosity and critical thinking quite rudely from the driver's seat.

"Wells, you do everyone here a great disservice," she snarled. "This is a rare opportunity for us to enjoy a peaceful meal and have a pleasant conversation with our fellow avatars, neither of which seems likely if you insist on goading every last man, woman and child that you meet. If you can't behave like an adult, then we'll be forced to find you a booster seat and leave you at the children's table so that the rest of us can enjoy ourselves tonight."

Glancing down the alley, she exchanged a look of deep frustration and despair with Justine. I'll deal with yours if you'll deal with mine.

She took a steadying breath. Maintaining this level of anger without bursting wasn't pleasant at all, like crewing a steam engine on the brink of blowing a valve, but she'd damned if she let off steam before the matter was dealt with. "Apologise to our new friend for your crass behaviour," she demanded. "And I never thought that I'd need to say this, but could you please restrain yourself until we've finished our meal?"

Staring Wells dead in the eyes, she extended a hand from him to shake - the gesture would hopefully appear marginally more benign than actually intended to the major and Justine, neither of whom had witnessed her first encounter with Wells. Your code. Your choice. Either knowingly escalate this into an actual battle, which seems long overdue by this stage, or man up and take responsibility for once.

[Assistant]
Wells finally realized how poorly he understood the humor of his fellow avatars. Seras nearly exploded with anger, as she stared into Wells' eyes. But he realized that yielding to her anger could make him lose control over the situation - and perhaps create a fight that nobody would win. So he took the time that Seras nearly shouted at him, and spent it thinking of a reply. After hearing her demand an apology for a stranger, he decided to reply in what he hoped would be a disappointing way. He thought it was the most fitting response to her attempts at insulting his maturity, by insisting that he fit in better among children. And finally, she tried to give him a handshake yet again. Wells looked at it, hoping that Sera's words would lose some of their power among the crowd while he seemingly thought about the handshake.

"Do they have fries at the children's table? Because I quite like fries, and I honestly don't mind children. They're willing to be blunt when they speak, and they don't seem to mind when others do the same. I quite appreciate your suggestion, Seras, although I doubt I would fit in a booster seat. It would be an excellent way to escape the formality that I often try to avoid, but that I never talked about... to avoid being too mean to Justine and the mayor. Another poor attempt to ease tension seems to have been made even worse by its response... yet again. Seems like more than enough reason to leave you to enjoy yourselves. Seras, I'll take your advice to heart. I've worked here as an apprentice, and know a great place for pizza. I'll go there on my own, and hope you enjoy yourselves here."

Wells started walking away from Seras, deciding not to shake her hand.


[System]
"Good? Evil? Please. Such concepts are made up from the self righteous fools who have a holier than thou attitude. Acts of 'good' could bring great harm to others at some point, and acts of 'evil' may benefit another." - A cranky insomniac

Gender:
Female

Age:
17

Appearance:
Standing at a fairly average five foot six, Elaine isn't all that physically impressive, and not exactly on the 'attractive' side. She hardly has any muscles and weighs at barely 125lbs, nearly bordering on underweight no matter how much she eats. She has a skinny, lanky and has a fairly small frame and she constantly looks like she needs to eat more. Many people assume she doesn't eat a lot, when in fact the opposite is true. If anything, she eats far too much. Her canines seem to be longer than most peoples.

She has short cut black hair, and a fairly pale complexion with bright blue eyes. Often, she wears her hair long and untied.

After that, they would probably notice the perpetual scowl and dark bags under her eyes, suggesting the girl gets little sleep for whatever reason. She does, in fact, suffer from chronic insomnia, which may play a part in her perpetual bad mood. There have been attempts to try and fix this, but it seems drugs aren't much of a cure. On her back, seems to have been carved a rather painful looking magic rune right into her flesh.

Personality:
In a few short words? Grumpy, easily annoyed, and generally could honestly care less about you and your problems. Not her fault, really. On average she only gets about two hours of sleep every twenty four hours, at least that's her excuse. She generally keeps to herself most of the time, and only interacts minimally with other people, and any time someone does she will simply stare at them blankly before promptly telling them to get lost in the rudest manner she can possibly muster.

That's not saying she's a bad person. While she does keep to herself and is a bit a rude, jackass that doesn't entirely play well with others, her moral compass is...odd. While she wouldn't go out of her way to help someone since it would be both tiring and annoying, at the same time she'd never go out of her way to seriously harm anyone. If anything, she's out for herself, pure and simple. She comes first, and would only do something if it was in her best interests to do it.

However - she is surprisingly loyal if she gives you her word about something. She'd rather be known as someone who's trustworthy than someone who isn't after all. No one likes traitors. As such, she'll likely always side with those she's known longer rather than not, unless she herself, could benefit greatly from it in some manner. She can often be bribed with an appropriate amount of money, food, or any combination of both. Items of value typically hold no value to her.

Most of the time, she speaks in short sentences, often sounding incredibly tired when she does so. Doesn't like physical activity, as it is tiring, and she doesn't really have a lot of energy to spare. She tends to be surprisingly philosophical sometimes. She spends a lot of sleepless nights thinking about...well, quite a number of things.

History:
There's not much to mention here, really, save perhaps for her families origins if you know anything of the Wendigo though, you'll probably at least have a good idea of what happened. Similar to werewolves, Wendigos used to be human, though once wendigos turn into the monsters they can never usually go back. Elaine is a bit of a special case, in that regard thanks to her father.

Somewhere in Canada, near old Inuit lands, is where Elaine grew up living a fairly normal, if somewhat isolated life. Being so far north, there wasn't really much happening in the small community where she lived, and even then her family was seen as somewhat odd, due to their religious practices. Elaine's family has long watched over a forest to the north, an old, cold place where many old rituals on 'sacred land' took place. Over time, most of these rituals were forgotten, but people still avoided the land because of tradition - and a small bit of fear.

Her family, was one that didn't forget and sought to make sure the land was kept safe and to keep people out.

When Elaine was a child, she wondered into these lands, and got lost. To this day, she will say it was because she heard something calling to her. It's not too much of a stretch to realize what that was. Cold, afraid, alone, and almost starving, she wanted something - anything to eat. Well, it just so happened that this sacred ground was home to a spirit - the Wendigo, and it possessed the child. Her parents searched for her, but it took time. The beast was smarter than most people gave it credit for, but when people started disappearing in town he had to be swift before things got complicated. He knew the family legends well, and had a pretty good idea of what happened.

After some effort, He tracked the beast, and using old rituals and magic, sealed it. He had saved his daughter, but she was never the same after that. The beast had a rather obvious effect on her disposition. She outright refused to let them exorcise it. After countless arguments, being unable to do anything to help her, they sent her to somewhere they thought could help with her condition.

Metahuman Classification:
Possessed Human, Wendigo Spirit.
She is in fact, a wendigo. A human possessed by the Native American spirit of Greed and Gluttony. That's a bit of a bad combination in terms of ones personality. This, while granting her a number of abilities, also has a number of side effects that are less than glamorous. Its something she's had to live with most of her life, but until recently it hasn't been a problem. Theoretically, one could probably exorcise the spirit, but she has no intentions of doing so.

* Enhanced Physiology: Simply put, despite her frail looking form, she could probably punch a hole through solid brick without even trying, and is likely at the peak physical condition a human could possibly be in without damaging their muscles. She could easily lift three times her own body weight without even trying, and could lift anywhere from six hundred to seven hundred pounds, and this is without accessing any help from the spirit. The spirit simply being attached to her in this manner grants her this tremendous physical strength. Likewise, her stamina is something that would make most Olympic athletes jealous, and is fairly agile when she wants to be. Her sleepy demeanor tends to make it easy enough to catch people off guard with just these abilities.
* Insatiable Hunger, Gluttonous Healing: Sharing a body with a spirit of Greed and Gluttony isn't exactly easy. She is constantly hungry, desiring to eat whenever necessary. This is something that isn't easily suppressed, except by actually eating. Thankfully, despite the spirit being based in cannibalism, she can eat almost anything from metal to meat. Of course, she will admit that human flesh is something she has in fact eaten before on one extreme circumstance, and that it is the best way of going about satiating the hunger. The upside is, that eating actually invigorates her. Meaning, she can eat - and she'll heal almost anything. The effects are even obvious mid combat. The more she eats, the more she heals and healthier she becomes...and the stronger the spirit becomes.
* Beastly Senses: Her Sense of hearing and smell, has been boosted greatly and could substitute to using those to see even at night or in dimly lit areas, and is able to hear on frequencies normal humans likely wouldn't be able too. Granted, this also makes it so she could also be overwhelmed easily by sudden loud noises and sense of smell could easily confuse her if she has nothing else to go on.
* Partial manifestation: She is able to partially manifest the spirit at will in herself. What does this mean? Well, small increase to physical strength, agility, speed at the cost of some of her self-control. Typically, she gains horrific looking claws on the end of her hands, with a pelt of thick, matted dark colored fur extending up her arms, and canines elongating into sharp points designed for rending and tearing flesh. The claws, are sharp enough to cut through quite a few materials, and the fur turns into a tough, difficult to damage hide that could shrug off blows from even bullets.
* Beastly Manifestation (restricted ability, unable to access): This ability, if one could call it that, is completely restricted by complicated magic to keep the spirit itself, more or less suppressed barring any extreme circumstances. This, is well, what one might call it when the beast fully takes over. The creature stands at eight feet tall, covered in coarse, matted black fur. It has long, antler like horns atop its head, which is covered in a bony plate. Its mouth is full of sharp, but uneven teeth, and its ribcage is easily seen on its chest, bony protrusions revealing a hollow, empty stomach. Its physical abilities have yet to be fully tested, but with its size and the physical strength she displays normally, most people don't want to take the chance. The last time it was out, it caused more than a little trouble.

Weaknesses:

* Fire - She burns easily. More so than most people, and in fact seems to have a bit of a fear of it. Likely due to the Wendigo spirit.
* Silver tends to have an ability to drain her strength a bit. While nothing deadly, it will greatly sap her strength and weaken her and the spirit
* Not eating, actually weakens her. Also makes her irritable and more cranky. A combo of which, is not good for most peoples health.

Allergies:
N/A

Pre-existing conditions:
Is a terrible insomniac. Can't sleep on a regular basis to saver her life, and drugs don't seem to be of much help. On a regular basis, she gets around 2 hours every twenty four hours.

[User]
@Stern Algorithm@Hitman5455@Thundercrash
Ashleigh could understand that. Even now the place was overwhelming to her. Jason seemed to relax, but that seemed to change. Something came over him, and Ashleigh reached out without thinking, touching him on the shoulder and trying to soothe. "It's okay. You're safe here, we're all in the same boat, after all" she gave a smile, but that faded quickly at the volatile emotions coming nearby. Rage was always violent, and always strong. She flinched at the impact of it, and her eyes went to the door.

She could remember, as if it was the day before, her beating. The violence, the pain, the anger and the righteousness. She carried a scar from that beating, something her body couldn't heal. Or maybe she just hasnr wanted to heal it. So the anger she felt, brought out an anger in her. It was just like that night...

The doors flew open, with a crash, her telekinesis acting on its own accord, and seeing Paulina being attacked by a boy, everything seemed to go black for a moment. Her voice rose, fueled by her own anger, yet the effect her opens would have on anyone was null thanks to the bracelet. "Leave my friend alone" Paulona might be the only friend Ashleigh had, and she wasn't going to let any harm come to her.

[Assistant]
algorithm @SomeoneSomewere
"It's ok you're safe here. We're all in the same boat after all." She reached out and touched his shoulder.She can tell something's bothering me, but how? He thought he had kept a straight face. Then he realized. He couldn't help but crack a wide grin. this girl was reading him, much like he read other people. Possibly better... His mind began to race trying to figure out how she was so intuitive, it had to do with her powers. Psychic ability? He got so excited that he had finished those thoughts in a fraction of a second.

Whats that bracel- His 6th sense kicked into overdrive. He immediately watched her expression falter, her eyes flickered to the door, which slammed open. Revealing a Boy holding up a girl, preparing to strike her. The girl appeared powerless. Powerless. He remembered that feeling too well, he remembered being assaulted by bullies on a regular basis before he had learned to control his powers. His blood began to boil...

He might have heard Ashleigh yell, if he could have heard anything over the sound of his blood roaring in his ears. In an instant he dashed for the door. He was never going to allow someone to be wronged like he had been. As he dashed over he saw another girl doing the same. However instead of attacking, the girl placed her hands on the other girls back.

Alright focus. He began to hyper react and time slowed. This guy is built, and powerful. I have to make this quick and consise. Nothing flashy, punch first, ask questions later. He jumped at the boy and swiftly brought his right arm around his neck, and his left arm on the side of his head for a rear neck choke. As soon has he made contact with the boy he realized he had made a grave mistake. His hyper reaction made the burning pain seemingly last an eternity. He quickly ejected off the boys back. What the fuck?! His arms had minor burns. He pushed the pain aside and brought this elbows up to his chin, arms protecting his head,in a defensive stance preparing for a reaction.@caits

[User]
"Nah man, not a ghost something else but thanks for asking. My ghost buddy took off when something hungry came into the room."

This caused a brief pause in Elaine's eating as she glanced over to Liam. It was only for a few seconds, and she quickly went back to eating. If he noticed she didn't care, she wasn't pressing the issue for now. Ghost buddies? Hungry? She had no idea about what his 'ghost buddies' meant, but the latter part of that comment...she wasn't a fan of what people called 'coincidences', and had no doubt that was definitely not one. He was aware, at least somewhat that she was at least possessed by something. She was fairly certain she wasn't wrong either.

She'd possibly inquire later, but for now, she was going to finish eating and get back to her dorm. The sound of fighting outside seemed to attract more than a little attention. Her eyes drifted towards the door, ears picking up a number of voices being involved in the fight. Most of which, seemed like they were trying to be bloody heroes. That was likely only going to make this entire thing worse for them. Fools. Their acts of 'good' were only going to get them all into trouble, and maybe even cause trouble for the rest of them here.

A small twinge of irritation formed at the thought. She had half a mind to go out there and beat them all to a bloody pulp and tell them to quiet down. If they didn't, she'd just-that was a dangerous line of thought. She shoved the second empty plate away, stacking it on the other and taking a momentary break from her eating. She shouldn't let her thoughts get so carried away. Two plates remained, and she'd try to maintain a slower eating pace.

...two plates? She glanced over at Liam. He had come with a plate of food...and he was giving it to her? Well...if he was offering, she wasn't going to say no. She reached for the plate, pulling it closer.

"I hope you don't expect me to thank you because you decided to hand me food from somewhere it was free." She replied.


[System]
N I C K N A M E

Ceres

A G E

31

G E N D E R

Female

H O M E T O W N

Kalos Region, Snowbelle City

H E I G H T

180cm (5'9 ft)

W E I G H T

72kg (158 lbs)

O C C U P A T I O N

Member of a shady organization

L I K E S

- Finding a man to hitch her
- Spicy food
- Strong liquor

D I S L I K E S

- Losing way too easily
- Bell peppers in food
- People that can get a date and are younger than her.
- Most Pokemon Trainers

T A L E N T S

- She is able to train her Pokemon in such a way that she doesn't need her command to dodge every single attack coming their way when they can see it or block/deflect it with another attack.
- She's a great cheater player in gambling.
- Ceres knows how to put on a fake persona every now and then.

P E R S O N A L I T Y

"I'm Celestia Paragon, though if you don't want to be so formal. Please, call me Ceres."

Ceres comes off as an authoritative woman with principles and responsibilities akin to that of a very successful businesswoman. She is straightforward with her opinions and will not back down on it unless she is proven wrong. Ceres can be quite strict to young people who misbehave around her which gives her an air of a motherly figure that only knows what's best for their child. Sounds like someone to look up to in the future right?

Wrong. This is her default fake persona.

In reality, she would often lead others astray or reward them with benefits so long as it gives her an advantage in life. While she does not actively believe in truly getting rid of something by taking a life despite being in said shady organization, she actually wants those she screws over to give in and join their growing numbers. Were it not for her vindictive charisma their probably wouldn't even be a crime organization this big in Kanto. Although sometimes she wishes she could do this with men her age who could finally have a date with her using her actual personality.

Although that's nigh impossible to find, almost as rare as finding a "Shiny" Pokemon.

"I was a former Pokemon League Champion in all the six regions with the Gym Badge Curriculum... but that was when the ban on ten year old trainers wasn't implemented. You're several years too inexperienced to go toe-to-toe with me!"

Haughty and proud of her training, she would often berate trainers during their battle just to throw them off their tune and win the victory under her name. While this was a dirty way to win by a lot of people who fight fair and square this did not bother her one bit.

So what's she doing hanging around a shady organization in Kanto? Simple. Because she lost her status as a Pokemon League Champion by other trainers who are likely the same age as her or a few years younger, she yearns to crush the will of other Trainers before they could step up. Why do this? It's boring once you're champion, it'll only be so many battles before you're dethroned and off the seat. She believed it'll be a little fun to work with bad people for a little bit.

No wonder she couldn't get a boyfriend. She's a complete psycho.

B A C K G R O U N D

Before the ban of ten year old trainers, Celestia Paragon was one of those ten year olds who went out to fend for themselves using Pokemon from their local Research Laboratories and picking out a starter Pokemon to start their journey. This was her wish when she was still living in Snowbelle City with a rich upbringing causing her to gain a spoiled attitude which allowed her to have several high-quality Pokeballs and Potions to use on her journey.

It was later found out that during her journey to become a Pokemon Champion in the Kalos Region. She kept losing because she didn't know that one had to command their Pokemon to dodge an attack that was coming their way. It kinda serves her right to think she can take on the world with a delinquent Fennekin. Annoyed and frustrated, she gave her Pokemon a harsh pep talk and began training by using other kids and other trainers as a vent for the temper loss even going as far as distracting her opponent's Pokemon to gain the upper hand. Eventually as the days go by, she had trained all her caught Pokemon how to dodge and block attacks without her command and this continued as she won gym badges... with the gym leaders bearing a grudge to her and her tactics.

Putting up a fake mask wasn't easy and she believed that putting on a "respected" persona was a good way for people not to brand her as a brat who wins by getting her way. Of course she did let her real face slip out a little bit during her acting, most people believe she's just a strict, condescending person.

She won various Pokemon Leagues across each Region, wins and losses here and there in the aftermath before she got bored of the title in Kanto and lost against a certain Pokemon master with a Pikachu. To quell this boring peaceful mind and without knowing better, she met up with shady individuals and joined their organization without knowing what they really are.

Not like she cares so long as she has fun, right?

P O K E M O N

Delphox
Female
An aggressive, haughty Delphox that shows a delinquent side to other Pokemon she meets. She aims to maintain a superiority over Pokemon that are smaller than her and praise Pokemon that are far larger than her.
Moves: Sunny Day, Flamethrower, Fire Blast, Psychic

Floatzel
Male
This Floatzel tends to act suave and cool among female Pokemon it sees and fancies. Even going as far as to impress them with bombastic moves in battle causing him to risk his chances whenever he is an a contest with a potential rival.
Moves: Surf, Aqua Jet, Ice Fang, Agility

Dragonite
Male
Ceres's Dragonite is loyal and is quite aware of his predicament upon being caught. While he does not acknowledge the fact that he is a mindless tool, he does know he is someone intelligent and can be counted on if ever she needs it.
Moves: Fly, Hyper Beam, Thunder Punch, Dragon Rush

Luxray
Male
Luxray keeps to himself and does not interact with the other Pokemon caught by Ceres. Should the need for a Team Battle arise he does try his best to interact although this ends with him getting frustrated at trying to create a better bond with the others.
Moves: Electric Terrain, Thunder Wave, Discharge, Thunder

Togekiss
Female
Togekiss is the creepy one. She is quite possessive of her Trainer and should any physical harm come to her, she pops out of her Pokeball and gives the attacker a piece of her mind, which usually ends in bloody results.
Moves: Aura Sphere, Aerial Ace, Psychic, Psycho Shift

Lucario
Male
Ceres's Lucario is the calmest one, a temperamental type and is often hard to coordinate with given her selfish issues. It is because of this that Ceres lets Lucario fight as he wishes so long as he wins.
Moves: Foresight, Counter, Power-Up Punch, Extreme Speed

[User]
Marie nodded along as Wolfenheim spoke, explaining that he still felt like a ranger but had caught a pokemon. She was holding onto his every word, running her fingers through Ninetales fur as she listened. It was all valuable information that she would need to learn.

"Ah, I was hoping you'd name a specifc pokemon" she finally answered as he explained about pokemon to work with, laughing softly "but I guess I need to learn that myself. I know Ninetales and Seel will help me through my adventure. Hopefully I don't completely embarrass myself!" she laughed again, smiling.

"Pallet town for me also! So we're going to the same place. Um...If I'm not going to be a bother, mind if I tag along with you? I'm really new at all of this at you can clearly tell and I've said before" she looked away a bit shyly "it would be nice to have company, right?"

[Assistant]
Wolfenheim nodded, removing his hand from Nove's head after patting her. "I doubt you'll embarass yourself." he assured her. "Though I hear that builds character" he smirked.

 They soon began to draw close to their destination, Pallet Town.

The next question threw the young man off guard for a moment. T-tag along..?
"Uhh..well-" he blushed. "Y-yeah! Sure, yes...of course we can travel together." he blurted out.

He twiddled his fingers a little as he went silent, turning his head towards his Golduck while pulling his collar up to try and hide his reddened cheek. The duck Pokemon looked at him and laguhed.

He looked up and noticed they were arriving at Pallet Town. "Hey, look. We're here." he said, dropping his arm and gesturing towards the window. While the town was still quite small, despite its popularity, it could be seen from the ocean as the train drew upon it.

[User]
"I hope my character isn't built on mistakes! I'm not used to messing up" Marie said with a smirk, looking out of the windows as well. While talking with other trainers was fun, she did enjoy the peacefulness of just listening to the world around them. His confirming that he'd like to join her was met with a softer smile, a nod in his direction as they both sat quietly looking out at the world.

The train though didn't leave them much time to enjoy the peace, as it rolled into pallet town.

"It's...really pretty" Marie commented quietly, feeling Ninetales nodding as they both looked at the city. It still remained quite small, the but focus on pokemon was obvious throughout; advertising for the newest brand of Pokemon food covered billboards, and you could see the famous Professor Oak laboratory not far from the station. They finally rolled in, and Ninetales hopped off Marie before she could say anything, moving to sit in front of the door and barking at the two trainers. Marie laughed.

"Looks like we've been given our marching orders!" She stood up, collecting her backpack and walking to the door as it opened, turning to smile at Wolfenheim, waiting for him before she departed the train.

[Assistant]
It is beautiful indeed... Wolfenheim thought as he gazed out the window longingly. He remember when he was a kid, he'd wanted to someday visit pallet town. Back before he'd decided to be a Pokemon ranger. He'd heard stories, saw shows, bought merchandise of the legendary Ash Ketchum. The guy who'd traveled the whole region and beat the elite four- and at an impressive age to boot. He'd always wanted to visit Ketchum's hometown.

Seeing it now, it was smaller than nostalgia let on. But that didn't make it any less awe-inspiring. That such a legend could derive from a humble place like Pallet Town.

Soon, Marie's Ninetales would set the pace for them as the train made its slow halt at the station, making her way to the door, before ushering them over.

Wolf didn't want to get up. One, because these seats were really comfy for a train. And two...because he was more nervous than he let on. This would be almost like a whole new world to him, despite the feeling he gave off outwardly. Though, someone observant enough could see the hesitation in his eyes. And Nove could feel it.

The Pokemon stood in front of him. She gripped his wrists with her webbed hands and pulled his arms until he begrudgingly stood in front of his seat. She gave him a hug, then turning towards the front of the train and waddling after Ninetales and Marie, leaving Clive to gather his bag and follow suit shortly after.

He would follow the rest of their group off the train, looking around at their surroundings as they did so. "It's just like I remembered from the books.." he mumbled to himself. To anyone who didn't know what Pallet Town meant to the young trainers to come after Ash Ketchum, the town wouldn't be impressive at all. But to him, it was almost description-less the energy the place fed into his very core. He felt like he could travel the whole region in a night- if he could walk that fast.

[User]
Celestia could only find such wholesome things as boring. Seriously, this gym leader owned the ex-Team Rocket gym AND turned it into a community centre for the less fortunate folks.

With a huff, she sighed. A hand on her cheek with a crestfallen look. "Really? A community centre? I thought you would at least try and make it more fun like giving it a practical battle arena or your personal Pokemon Centre and stuff like that." This woman seemed to be on the necessity type of things in the world.

As for why she would ask the battle arena first, maybe she's looking to pick a fight with some kids and crush their dreams? After all, she's giving off that kind of vibe to anyone near her. Even her Delphox was snickering.


[System]
Description:  Except no elven ears. She has human like ears.

Apparel: Same as above.

Demigod Form:

Age: 16

Race: Mathua (Pure-blood non-Hybrid)

Gender: Female

Alignment (Chaos Frame): Netural Good

Interests: Artwork, sweet foods, scenic sights, martial arts

Favorite Interest: Artwork

Dislikes: Ignorant people, people who think they're elite and better than everyone else.

Person of Interest: Does not have one.

Bestfriend: Meira

Rival: Does not have one at the moment.

Most Hated Word: Chic/Chick

Quote: I hope to see brother's warmth within bring a smile to my face again. I can't stand seeing him never be happy.

Important Value in Life: Family

Favorite Food: Sweet tofu

Ambition: She wants to make her brother smile again and help him create a world everyone can be proud of.

Sin Guilty of Most: Envy

Title: Silver Maiden of Ruination

Combat Style: Any form of martial arts

Weapon Preference: Knuckles/Gauntlets

Weapon Name: Destruction's Fangs

Chaos Rune: Chaos Rune: Darkness of Destruction – The almighty rune of Twilight that uses power that is controlled by Euphoria representing the very power of destruction that consumes everything into nothingness and waste.

Egis Name: Annihilation's Providence

Egis Weapon Type: Long thin thrusting sword

Egis Weapon: Luminares Twilitha (Sword)

Contracted Deity: Euphoria - Goddess of Universal Destruction and is a higher deity in the Lower Dimension. Resides in the Astral Plane home world of almost all Spirits. Euphoria is a very powerful deity that imbues her contractor with the devastating power of destruction that can ruin anything that its fangs lay claim to. She seems to be almost the same age as in appearance as Tsukiko. They also seem to sometimes share the same persona.

Deity's Element Alignment: Twilight

Deity's Chaos Frame: Chaotic Evil

Deity's Affinity Rating: 0

Magic Systems: Elemental Magic, Holy Magic, Psionics, Glyph Magic

Elemental Affinities: Inferno, Radiance, Miracle and Vortex

Weakness: Electricity

Magical Level: C-

Special Skills:
Corruptible Influence - Using her aura, Tsukiko can utilize Euphoria's great power to destroy inorganic and organic objects that are equal to her strength or weaker than she is.

Destructive Veil - Tsukiko can hide herself in a pocket dimension that is created from the very dawn of darkness that makes up the horde known as oblivion.

Enforcement of Ruin - Tsukiko can raise the attack power of herself and her allies and make their attacks more destructive than they normally are.

Ender's Blessing - With the force of destruction, Tsukiko can heal her allies though when healed it will cause shockwaves of pain to go down her spine.

Techniques:

Personality: Her personality is dark and mysterious where she comes off as gloomy and very depressed. She rarely shows any form of happiness and doesn't ever laugh making this girl very hard to socialize with, because she doesn't mean to come off as a cold person, but she doesn't really know what to say due to her sheltered life outside of public society. She is a nihilist by nature and not hard to get along, just hard to socialize since she tries to avoid talking to most people. She has a very severe resentment toward the male gender like my other character Ranathia.

Biography: Tsukiko is a mysterious who accompanies both Meira and Reala. She has a past she wants to run away from since it is said that she has no remaining family members that are alive. She contracted with her deity Euphoria at a very young age who is almost like a sister to her. According to recent documents recovered it is recorded that her parents were murdered in the little town she lived in. They say it was a dragon attack, but there is no concrete evidence that supports this claim at this time. It is known that she prefers gauntlets, knuckles and close range weapons toward swords, but her Egis Weapon takes the shape of a very long thin bladed rapier.

[User]
"Who are you?" Tsukiko questioned as Tsukiko questioned as she finally started relax relieving herself of her tension. She felt a vibrancy within the man that he was not someone who wanted to harm her. She pulled herself away from his grasp as he released her when he finally understood that she wanted him to let her go. He was only trying to keep her away from harm. He had no intention of doing anything else to her so he immediately released her when she gave the impression that she wanted to be released. Even though she asked who he was he still did not answer her which annoyed her.

Tsukiko frowned at him as he surveyed his surroundings as the creature was still in the area sniffing about. His sword was plunged into the ground. Judging by the way his sword was crafted she knew this man was someone of exceptional skill. That didn't excuse him for ignoring her earlier where she tried to kick , but he moved off to the side dodging her kick. She looked at him irritated as she tried to kick him again, but he got annoyed where he grabbed her by the leg then lifted upward where she was immediately swept off her feet and fell to the ground with her buttocks landing first. "Why'd you do..." Before she could finish her sentenced he clamped his hand over her mouth once again since she was being too noisy. He noticed the creature had her voice and reacted but the way it was moving gave him the idea even though the creature knew someone was there, it still didn't know where to look.

Tsukiko tried to bite his hand as he took it away, but missed where she fell to the ground. The girl was angry by how the man was treating her. She felt like he was treating her like an animal and teasing her thinking in the back of his mind he thought it was funny and amusing even though he still showed that serious cold expression that he did not care which she despised. "What is the big idea covering my mouth again!?" She barked as she lifted herself back onto her feet and brushed herself off thoroughly using both hands. The man still did not answer her.

"Get behind me." He said to her as he heard some talking in the background, but wasn't sure who it was. He grabbed his sword pulling it out of the ground and took it into his hand letting it rest at his side for the moment. He could tell it was a group of people, but since he could barely hear what they were saying he knew they were quite a ways away. Tsukiko sighed deeply and did immediately like the man asked and stood behind him where she was completely out of sight. She saw the man was looking in the direction opposite from the beast, but didn't understand why he was looking in that direction. The beast was in the middle as the man was staring in the direction of the beast except not directly at it since it was upward of the direction he heard the voices. The beast was diagonal from him so why is he looking in an opposite direction she tried to ask herself calmly as she remained quiet as not to cause anymore ruckus.

[Assistant]
"Compass? What compass?" Erica questioned as assumption started to assert itself in her head. Her eyes bored into the young alchemist with increasing suspicion.

"He is right though; we need to move now," Danny said with some sense of urgency to her.

"Fine, we'll talk about this later," Erica huffed. She then turned and chased after Nathan.

They soon arrived at a clearing and were greeted to the sight of a pitch black beast prowling menacingly at them. There was, however, no sign of Tsukiko.

---

Aart was in the middle of converting his pod into a powerfist when he heard a voice calling him. He did not recognize the speaker but it sounded familiar enough and being the only other sapient voice he heard after the crash led the Dwarf into looking around for the source.He soon find an all too familiar drone flying nearby.

"Och, it's you lad, guess you're fine as well, eh?" Aart grunted. "Do you know where the ship crashed? I want to check my babies but I can't make head or tails where I have to go."

[User]
"Yes. I could sense the ship a mile awhile. It isn't like there is any other tech at its scale anywhere near here. I am at the ship right now. It is bad. Really bad. I can lead you back to the ship. Follow the droid." his voice came out, distorted by the speaker.

It moved slightly backwards towards the ship and then stopped waiting for Aart.

Axel was working on repairing a computer terminal. He had set up a protocol to have any major accidents at the ship be recorded and sent to all the terminals across the ship, but the damage to the ship made reading the data through simple magic not possible. He would have to get the device itself working, and then try to salvage any data that he could. He muttered to himself, "I hope this works." which then echo'ed through the droid's speakers as he had set it to pick up anything he said, and forgot to mute himself. If not, he would have to get the black-box.

Ever cautious, he had set up two. One was near the pilot's seat, and if that one was not functional. Axel shuddered.

[Assistant]
"So that's our noisemaker" Nathan raised an eyebrow

"I don't see any sign of Tsukiko, guess she didn't cross this thing." Danny noted. "So what's the plan? Do we take this thing, or just run?"

"I'm not sure we could lose it if we ran. At best, we could try to scare it off."

"How?"

"Like this" Nathan gathered power in his left hand and held it there for a few seconds, letting it build. Once he felt that it was sufficient, he punched the ground in front of him, creating a small crater as well as shaking the surroundings.

"Jeez! You did all that with just a punch! That's scary!" Danny jumped at the sight of the aftermath.

"It was either that or fire, and I don't want to burn this whole place down."

"Fair enough."

[User]
"Hmmm... there's others in the area." He said to himself as he kept his hand at the handle of his sword while using his other hand to shield Tsukiko away from harm. He continued to survey the area as he kept his other eye on the beast which was rampaging around in the forest. The beast suddenly went berserk and started to rip trees from their roots and rip to shreds any closing in the forested like area.

Just as he was about to move he noticed that one of the people who he works with was in the area due to the discoloration of the vegetation in the area which felt like a very strong distortion. The distortion was obviously drawing on energy from the life in the area as some of the plants suddenly became brown. "Someone is using the power. I wonder where it is coming from." He said to himself as Tsukiko also glanced upward to see there was green areas that suddenly turned brown where what look like a watery distortion like if there were a mirror of water right in front of her. She wondered who could be causing such a disturbance in the air. It was obvious that someone was drawing energy from the vegetation with some kind of mysterious power and she could feel the force of the energy as it was being drawn toward the person. It felt like a gentle breeze from the wind which whispered onto her skin tickling her flesh.

From a distance a lock of red hair could be seen and the figurine shown within the shadow that implanted itself from the sun embedding it into the ground looked like a female figure. A transparent darkish purple wall appears over the figure who could be seen from the distance as the roaring beast rams into the barrier she has just created after she shouted the words Odin Sphere. The wall looked to be vacuum tight sealed and repelled the force of the beast as you could feel the ground shaking slightly as the beast rammed the barrier trying to break through it.

The man looked onward as he just watched what was going on happen. It was obvious that someone else in the area had just run into the beast and now has engaged it. He could see a sparkly golden like sword in this person's hand. He also could barely hear their voice which appeared to sound like a girl. He wondered if who he thought followed him into the forest actually went against their word earlier not to follow him. He didn't look to be too happy about the presence of this female encounter.

"Huh?" He said as he noticed another negative presence in the area which bolted at him where he blocked it with just one finger held out. It was just like he thought when he came in the area. One of the enemies they detected since there were two others in the in the area had shielded their presence from detection. The first one they encountered seem to have its eyes away from the two at the moment and heard what sounded like a group of people coming into the area. The other one behind him was so far away you could hardly recognize the individual who was encountering it. The third beast which had just showed its ugly face bolted at the man where he retaliated immediately. The first one they encountered suddenly noticed the violence in the area and followed suit as it bolted at Danny and Nathan.

"Amazing." Tsukiko said to herself as she couldn't believe that this man was holding the monster at bay which looked like an ugly looking warthog with just one finger held in the air. She thought to herself as she watched him hold off the beast who was this person that had just come to her aid. She could forgive his rudeness earlier since it was apparent that he intended to keep her out of harm's way, but she was curious why he cared so much. Now wasn't the time to be asking that question as she noticed he pushed her away into the brush while she barely managed to hold her balance as he grabbed his sword out of the ground and held it in front of him as he let off a burst of energy which sent that beast flying into a tree trunk in front of him. Just who is this guy? Tsukiko thought to herself as she couldn't believe how strong this person in front of her was. The energy he released was so strong it felt like a wind storm had just swept into the area as she had to use her hand to prevent her dress from accidentally floating upward.


[System]
---

Arcane Archer Fighter 20Save the world... redeem myself.

[User]
E . .ʟ . .ʟ . .ᴇ . .ɴ . .ᴀ . .ʀ . .A  A. . ɴ. . ɴ ' . ʟ. . ᴇ. . ᴀ. . H ...
______________________________________________________________________________________

The violence vanished faster than it started. In a mere blink, the offending orcs were gone. With no fuel for her pyre, Ellenara returned to her natural state. Very briefly, she looked down and remarked to herself at how even the ash had fled from her feet in this disappearing act. Very tidy.

Seeing that the devouts seemed to have the vital aid well handled, Elle turned to her never-ending pouch once more. Lowering herself to the freshly scorched stone, she sat cross-legged with the crystal ball upon her lap. As the others spoke of their plans, her gaze beseeched the orb of knowledge of this warlord's whereabouts. After the ritual was complete, the orb revealed only fog, its destination unclear. "The orc man seems to be gone," she said in her usually dreamy voice, interrupting the Duke's apologies.

She seemed to give this a moment of contemplation as she stowed the artefact within her bottomless bag. Only then did she seem to recognize that the question of transportation has arose. "I can take us there. The trees rustle with excitement. They want to transport us to the North!" she proclaimed, as if they were to ride upon a cloud of leaves.

[Assistant]
Vale Detherwood

---

Vale wondered if she did the right thing in having her elemental friend hold back its attack. Of course, she had just sliced apart one of the orcs with her dagger herself; but that was before they had decided to fall back. She spent most of her life helping lost souls out of her forest. It would've been a shame to silence another lost soul just because he thought he could muscle his way in. Anywho; She had hopped her last display hadn't given away her abilities. She'd stick with the insisting of her mage-y prowess in any case. Even if she was just a beginner, she still had plans to be the best wizard ever.

Vale dusted herself off and sheathed her dagger. Her elemental had settled back into the ground, no longer controlled by her, and she skipped over to the owlbear to make sure the beast was all right. It was good to see the old man take care of her, though she was prepared to save her if things had gotten dire. At the mention of heading north, Vale looked at Ellenara in remembrance that the day wasn't over and they had much stuff to do. "Ah! North! I would be grateful if the plants could take me along. I had a horse I could summon, though who knows how well it would've fared if the terrain became rocky."

Vale paused momentarily. "Is everyone that's heading into the mountains ready? Or do we require a small break before we depart? I'm should be fine if we decide to just bully through."

[User]
Janine  Fawkes
Scrapmouse

Scrapmouse at first decided to sit down on the arch and watch the other allies from a distance, but then to her surprise, Lonett, the huntress with the pet owlbear, decided to climb up and sit next to her. The gnome looked to the huntress and listened when she made her request. She answered Lonett after she finished speaking, "Listen. I'm up for any sort of tinkering. I'd be happy to help out. Just gimme time to come up with an idea to come up with an idea for how to help...Divna become more resilient. If you've got any ideas for how you want to help your owlbear, you let me know. I know what it's like to worry about a companion," She nodded downwards as Sparky made his appearance underneath the arch and looked up to Scrapmouse, sitting on the haunches waiting for her to come down or for her orders. The red light of its visor was now blue once again.

Scrapmouse watched Lonett climbed down, before standing up herself, and using her crafted Wings of Flying to get herself down from the arch.
She patted Sparky on the head before she marched up to the group that was going to face the Dragons and Giants and she asked, clapping her hands and rubbing them together in anticipation, "So! What are we waiting for?"

[Assistant]
"A small break might be of some relief. There were a few things I was unable to tend to this morning due to the interruption. I don't know how much use it would be to the others though."

James removes his robe of useful items from his bag of holding while walking towards the stall where his horse was kept. Once in the stall, he dons the robe and begins taking off some of the patches. He starts with the two healing potion patches, the scroll of locate object, a sack, two of the three ladders, a ten-foot pole, the patch of gems, the two coils of rope, the silver coffer, and a steel mirror. He takes the robe off and stuffs it in the sack with the eight potions of healing. Setting aside one fifty foot coil of hempen rope he puts the raining items in his bag of holding. He puts the sack to his left side, his bag of holding on his back, and the coil of rope next to the bag of holding.

He returns to the courtyard where the others were leading his horse."I am ready to go now. I have no preference as to the method of travel. Whichever would be most beneficial to our mission"

[User]
Marcus  Lakeltia

---

Marcus shook his head at Ada's concerns. "If it will take hours, then it will. Whatever be the case, we must travel the distance", he explained his reasons for going forward with the plan. If there was no faster way of doing it, they might as well resort to what they had available instead of sitting idly by and awaiting for a better method to rain upon them from the heavens. The gods had given what they could, or would, give them and the rest was up to the Titan Hunters themselves, those chosen for the job by those divine entities. The paladin looked around himself, scoping out everyone who were going to join him. They were all more or less present. Good. They could begin.

"Those heading West, gather where we first saw Krusk when you are ready. Bring your mounts and belongings, especially the former. The gift from gods we will transport ourselves with only reaches so far from me and to so many souls at once", he switched to a much louder volume, so that anyone could hear. Then he was off to fetch his mount from where it was being held. Bartimeus was used to the magic they would utilise. The fellow hunters would be able to handle it through the merit of understanding alone. But if there were any wild animals, which it appeared there was bound to be, Marcus could not be sure on their reaction. A fair warning should likely be given to all of those involved either way.

In the stables, Marcus held a hand on Bartimeus's forehead as the servants removed any bindings the Pegasus might have had placed upon it. Finally he was given the green to open the gate and walk the Greater Steed out from its holding. The two exchanged a few pleasantries through their link, mostly about how the night had gone and what had the awful racket been about. The news of them having to use Wind Walk to move onward came as quite a displeasure to the winged steed, but he knew better than to complain. They needed to move fast. Not everything could be achieved.

Once those whose destination was the empire of ghouls and whose (current) destiny would amount to toppling said power had gathered in the smaller part of the courtyard, Marcus would nod. "I would like to ask everyone to gather close to me and prepare for quite the experience. Do your best to keep any animals in check", he stated as he fished out his prayer beads and held one of them in his fingers. He spoke a few words of prayer, and the air around them changed quite suddenly. "This will only take a minute!" he yelled over the ever rising wind. And soon even if he tried nobody could hear anything over the deafening gale.

Everyone affected by the spell would find themselves in their own personal maelstrom, the thundering winds ripping at their armour, clothes and flesh. But instead of pain, only a light feeling would come around. Through the winds, one could barely make out the shape in the middle: The half-orc who had called this spell upon them stood there, calmly, slightly wavy in his disposition. His eyes were closed for the whole duration of the casting and he would stand still, holding on to the single bead from which power radiated into his surroundings. His armour shimmered as it became air, his face and hands had long since been but fog. Only a moment later, the vestments he wore under the plate puffed into a more transparent form too, though simultaneously the armour would strengthen in its opaqueness. Or perhaps it was everything under that became so much softer? Nonetheless, the paladin appeared more or less his usual self, if only made of coloured air instead of his actual physical form.

"If everyone is ready to move, we should be on our way. Last chance to pick up anything forgotten", he declared and began a slow ascent off the ground and towards the sun.

Wind Walk is cast through the Necklace of Prayer Beads. Ten (10) potential targets should be more than enough to get everyone along.

[Assistant]
James had to hold fast to the reigns to keep the horse from bolting. He himself was starting to wonder what happening. He was only slightly familiar with magic outside of enchanted items. As the spell took hold he could feel the gale rushing around him. He expected to feel the sharp pull of the wind only there was only a feeling of lightness. When he looked at Markus seeing the man become what appeared to be air. James looked over himself seek seeing the same starting to happen to him. With another quick glance he saw that the horse was also turning into air.

He turned back to Markus as he said it was now time to take off and make way to the ghoul empire. "Lead on." James takes up behind Markus following his lead.

[User]
Marcus  Lakeltia

---

Marcus had not had the opportunity to lead the newly formed Ghoul Slayers for longer than few minutes before he heard a now familiar voice call for him from the sending stone given to his use. At least the blessings of Tyr allowed the item to function even when reduced to a form of air and wind, so when he raised it again to his mouth and requested in a billowing voice for the message to be repeated, Ada would hear those words just as well. The news from the former Duchess were worrying to say the least. Marcus shook his head as he asked for one more repeat, wanting to make sure he had absolutely got that right. And he had. Well, it would seem that despite everything, today would not be the day for the empire to fall. A royal shame.

The windsweeping Paladin turned to the other coloured clouds travelling with him and shared his concerns: "An issue most dire has presented itself to us, and it seems it is impossible for us to divide our forces any longer. Our numbers have reduced further, with one of our kin stepping away from the task. With the mandatory guard detail in case of the returning warlord, that means we cannot on good conscience dare even attempt breaking our forces into separate squads. We need return. Not least thanks to the parting words of the one who stepped away: The giants know."

Marcus shook his head again, but put his chin up only a moment after. "Yet the ghoul empire remains a standing issue. We need someone to alert the remaining Hammers-" he began on his next concern, only to be interrupted by Lonett.

"I volunteer for the task", the Monster Slayer shared, her motivations clear in her own mind. Marcus pondered briefly on whether they were of righteousness, fear, or something entirely different, but now it was not a pressing matter. No, now it was important that the task was done.

"Go with my blessing, Lonett of Caernath. I have no doubt my fellow Paladins will listen to the word of someone like you. I hope this is not the last time we see one another", Marcus shared his parting words, followed by the two clouds formed of the Ranger and her Owlbear separating themselves from the group and heading towards the house of the Hammers of Grimjaws. In the meantime, the rest could only follow the call sent to them once again by the one who had originally called upon them, turning for the quick return trip to the Seat of Mavros.

The heroes would descend upon the courtyard where they were awaited by those that still remained, Ada now in possession of the powerful Scrying Orb again. Upon his wispy form touching the ground, another whirlwind erupted around Marcus as he would reform into his physical body. In only a minute, the Paladin stood before the one who had called again upon them, letting loose a question from his lips: "We have returned. What was it that you saw, that made you call for our immediate return?" Of course, he knew exactly what it was. He had heard it multiple times now. The others would benefit of hearing it from the source as well though.

HOLD UP WE ARE GOING BACK!
The party that originally departed to slay the Ghoul Emperor has returned to the Seat of Mavros, sans Lonett and Divna who headed to pass on the warning of the Ghoul Empire's threat to the remaining Hammers of Grimjaws.

In the meantime, Ellenara has vacated the castle grounds. Without anyone else. Ada might know more about that, or she might not. Marcus has shared what he knows.
- Ada's insights, please and thank you.

[Assistant]
The group riding winds had just departed when Ada heard a quiet voice behind her. "They fly to their deaths, and we to ours," Ellenara whispered, her voice barely loud enough for Ada's elven ears to perceive. "The winds have changed; spring turned to fall. Destruction awaits."

Ada looked to the druid in confusion. "Destruction? You mean there's a trap? Nothing that the servants of deities cannot handle, though." Even as she spoke, Ada was cut short by a derisive laugh. "If you have seen something, let us know, for all our sakes," the duchess demanded.

"The giant has seen us, and I have lost the orc man. They will have bolstered their numbers, and perhaps may seek us out. Even now, the strength and desire of many of our number has faded. Even I long to return to the trees. I see death of many at the feet of Orcus's handimen. No, it is useless unless we are gathered. And the orc man will return. You need many to guard in your absense, and I believe I am best suited to help those who have already volunteered."

Ada sighed with some frustration. The Keep could protect itself, but the city below would be vulnerable from a large-scale onslaught. Plus, Krusk had already proven he could teleport past the magical wards of their keep. That spoke of a powerful mage assisting him. There really was no other choice. She spoke into the Sending Stone, requesting Marcus to return. Only a few minutes were wasted waiting and explaining the situation.

"If we split up much further, both parties will be doomed. If we leave no one to defend the city, thousands could die. If we do not stop the Giant, he has already been alerted to us and may march on the Seat. I'm sorry, my friends, but our only choice is to ignore the ghoulish threat for now and focus on the more pressing matters. When we complete this mission, we still may have the chance to stop the emperors' advance." It wasn't what Marcus wanted to hear, Ada was certain, but it was the only way.

They must all head North.


[System]
Age: 24

Gender: Male

Race: Human

Appearance: Armoured I Unarmoured

Sergio stands at around 5'11", certainly taller than a lot of his compatriots, but his figure is more so enhanced by his armour, which tends to make him look more imposing. He has an interesting demeanour outside of combat that can't be masked by plate armour, an elegant and emotive style of body language that is still tinged with a trained and experienced sense of alertness. He also makes a point of keeping strong eye contact in conversation, even if armoured. His eyes are a fiery orange, and his hair a blazing red, and he tends to keep his hair long and in a bushy ponytail when not concealed in an arming cap. While not egoistic, Sergio takes pride in his looks, and this shows in his clear skin and well kept hair, where other Knights would have servants pretty them up, Sergio has always taken care of his appearance when out of combat. He has a few scars, but his most notable is a large dark red diamond shaped mark across his abdominal region, rarely seen due to his tendency to use battle wraps.

Personality: About as flowery in demeanour as he is practical in mind. Sergio is a warrior above all else, admiring strength and ingenuity, as well as honour. He also values presentation and appearance, believing a Knight's duty is to look the part, as well as act it. Pious but by no means preachy, he follows the codes set by his religion and order but does not let them enslave him. Contrary to the more strictly defensive doctrine used by some Mayonite zealots, Sergio believes that the best way to protect the good from the evil is proactivity - put simply, the best defense is a good offense. This attitude and his appearance earned Gherardesca his title of "Knight of the Harvest Moon", which he embraced in kind. However, his thirst to prove himself as a teenager left a chip on his shoulder that, whilst not visible from an onlooker, affects him in his downtime. He notably dislikes communal meals and prefers to eat alone.

Brief Backstory: Sergio della Gherardesca was born in Southwest Thaln, the first and only son of a family belonging to a minor noble house of the same name. He speaks little of his childhood, only with a fondness and sadness in his eyes when of his father. What is known is that he made an excellent impression on other noble families as a teenager, charming them with his humour and presence, but his mettle was truly tested during the War of the Red Flag, where he was called into action as a squire for a noble of a house of a much higher standing. During his first battle - inside a fort in which they were being besieged he was shocked to realize that the Knight he served was utterly ill equipped and trained, refusing to make plans of attack and resorting to playing passive - a decision that cost their forces heavy losses when the enemy began to cut their supply chains off. Half starving, Sergio disregarded his orders and assembled a sortie of men to raid the enemy camp, the troops in question gladly accepting an actual point of authority. The raid was a huge success, routing the camp and buying enough time to receive proper reinforcements. However, although the troops applauded Sergio's lead, he was given no commendations for the battle, and to his utter disgust, his actions were credited to the Knight he served. Upset, but now emboldened by the knowledge of his purpose as a warrior, the young man fought tooth and nail during the war, often ignoring the wishes of his useless master and earning the love and admiration of the men he served, his natural charisma raising the morale of the troops massively.

The war forged a strong and fierce leader out of the growing man, and even though he was never awarded a Knighthood for his actions during any of his battles, at the end of the war, he was finally given some minor lands around his ancestral home, and became a landed Knight in turn. After the war he continued his efforts to protect the people that other hand-me-down nobles had failed to, and often led militia to destroy slaver rings or defend against Orc raiders, slowly but surely gaining a true reputation, and sometimes even working with Reonite Paladins to achieve the same goals.

A few years later, his great service to the Kingdom earned him the eye of the Iron Rose Knights, and he was extended a formal invitation, to which he gladly accepted, seeing it as the fruits of his hard work.

Equipment: Sergio wears plate armour into battle, which consists of dark silver metal and some leather elements to help with flexibility, as well as a red fabric tabard across his shoulder. He generally carries a dark silver heater shield, two painted crimson horizontal stripes across the front, with him along with his favoured weapon, his warpick/axe. One side is bladed while the other end is pointed, and he wields it in one hand along with his shield. As a backup he carries a rondel dagger for close quarters.

Skills: Excellent in both one-on-one and general skirmishes, and excels further with crushing weapons in particular. Generally he can use anything bladed, but two handed weapons pose a challenge for him, and he is wholly inexperienced with ranged weapons. He can also play piano proficiently.

[User]
Sergio della Gherardesca

Gerard.

Well, he'd certainly put some effort in, to Sergio's surprise - although he suspected much of that was due to urging from his companions.

He couldn't fault him too much, Lein on the other hand seemed to have put precisely too much effort in.

It was an unfortunate reality that Gerard simply did not suit a doublet. He wasn't a noble - not that it mattered - and wasn't a talker either. He was clad in a disguise, essentially, dressed like someone that he wasn't. Were Sergio to have been the one to be confided in, he'd have chosen perhaps a jacket not too dissimilar to the one Lein had besmirched days prior - pure black. The amber was tacky.

The Knight of the Harvest Moon, all the while, was draped in a black doublet of his own, relatively tight to his frame and flanked by a short cloak, the inside of which had been stitched with a fiery red fabric. A few frills came out from the wrists, and his trousers had been tapered, oddly similar to Gerard's choice in that aspect.

Most importantly, though, the Knight had taken ample care in accentuating his complexion for the night - as he always did when he had an excuse - his skin glowed ever so slightly and his eyes had been painstakingly given leeway to stand out. His ruby irises looked in their element here. Sergio's hair, despite usually being tied up, had been allowed to flow down to his shoulders finally, brushed and pampered to the point of softness.

He sipped ever gently from a glass of the same red wine Gerard had - meeting the man's glance with a grin of his own. He had been waiting for an opportunity to speak to him at leisure.

 "Buonasera, Ser Gerard. This ball, is it to be your first, eh?"

[Assistant]
When someone is nervous, they may want to take comfort in food. Especially when there is such a wealth of excellent cooking on display. It was said that the two greatest of chefs in all of Thaln resided in Aimlenn: One in Candaeln, and one in the Royal Castle itself. The array of edibles on display ranged from piping hot pot pies, to golden-brown fresh roast duck, to honey-glazed pork, to a lovely-looking rack of lamb. The scent that emanated from the food table was one that indicated quality, the savory flavors of seared and roasted meats, vegetables cooked to perfection serving as sides... And of course, there was the impressive-looking multi-tiered cake, decorated with some manner of dark purple and gold frosting, resting on the most distant table closest to the opposite end of the hall to the entrance.

The fact that Fanilly was as nervous as she was and that there was so much lovely food on display made her reaction only natural. The young Knight-Captain found herself taking a plate from the table and approaching the food even as the herald continued to announce the knights as they entered. The blonde girl was only a few steps away from the roast duck when someone approached her.

It wasn't unexpected. Fanilly knew that she was likely to be approached across the whole knight, and had done her best to steel herself for that outcome. Undoubtedly some of the nobles who were among the guests knew her from before her ascension as the Knight-Captain of the Iron Rose Knights, and others would desire to meet her. On top of all that, she had to anticipate being spoken to by the Princess herself given the nature of the invitation.

What she hadn't expected in the least was the presence of a hundi noblelady. She supposed it wasn't impossible, given that the dog-like race lived only just across the border in the South of Ithillin, and that one of the knights she had selected to attend the ball was himself one as well. But she didn't remember ever speaking to a hundi noblelady, at least not recently. Was this someone she had met when she was very young?

Smiling sheepishly, Fanilly fidgeted a little before responding.

"F-forgive me, but if we met before it must have been very long ago," she began, head bobbing apologetically, "Your name is...?"

---

Fanilly was not the only one who had been approached for conversation.

In perhaps what was possibly Sir Gerard Segremors's worst nightmare given the situation, it was not long at all before some of the nobility noticed him and Sir Sergio and approached them.

In what may have been a source of relief for him they were not seeming to look for a way to use a conversation with him politically.

Three young noble girls had approached the men, two of which had eyes sparkling with excitement while the third looked more or less bored with the entire situation.

"Aaaah, good Sir Knights!" called the first girl, who had trailing blonde hair in refined curls and a red and white dress. She looked towards her two companions at her sides with a somewhat smug smile on her face, "See? Didn't I tell you they would be here?!"

"Ah, how exciting!" cried a second, this one seeming to be the eldest of the three. She was clad in a blue and white dress, her blonde hair paler and worn loose. "Yoohoo, Sir Knights!"

She waved towards Sir Gerald and Sir Sergio.

The third girl, who appeared to be the youngest of the three and had black, neatly-cut hair and a black dress, looked rather less enthusiastic.

"It's not as if it was a secret or anything..." she half-murmured in a rather flat tone with a sigh. Still, she followed the other two girls as they eagerly crowded around the man.

"Tell us of your adventurers, Sirs!" said the first girl, "We wish oh so much to hear of them!"

"Yes, tell us, tell us!" declared the second.

The third simply sighed.

---

Of course, the knights were not the only guests of particular interest tonight.

To the left of the hall their stood a girl in a blue dress, no older then thirteen. Her gray hair was up in wavy pigtails, already distinct before being coupled with her almost golden eyes. Her slight features contrasted with a rather sharp gaze, and her slender figure contrasted with the one who stood beside her.

A towering knight, pitch black plate armor completely obscuring their features, obsidian surface gleaming in the light of the party. While the one they presumably guarded was quite petite, the opposite could be said of the knight. They stood at least a head taller then even the next tallest partygoer. Perhaps more.

There was no mistaking the girl for anyone else.

Veilena Cazt.

The daughter of the traitorous Anzel Cazt.

At only eight years old, she had demanded that her father be buried in disgrace, in an unmarked grave. And yet, that did not clear her of suspicion in the eyes of some of the other nobility. Her magical talent was that of a prodigy, having entered the College when she was only ten years old.

For the moment, she was drinking some manner of crimson, non-alcoholic drink, seated close to the window, as her guardian stood wordlessly beside her.

Daze@Rune_Alchemist@Psyker Landshark@HereComesTheSnow@Saiyan@The Otter@Crimson Paladin@ERode@Psychic Loser@Richard Horthy@VahkiDane

[User]
Gerard's response had been cut short by a trio of teenagers, 2/3 over enthusiastic.

A shame. Sergio made a mental note to take Gerard aside properly later in the night, perhaps after more of the wine had been consumed. For now, though, the Knight greeted the girls with an extra charming smile - playing the part up. His arms spread as he bowed dramatically for them.

"Signore, would it not be rude to not ask of your names before we regale you of our stories?" He glanced to Gerard. "Like that of the mighty bandit lord, eh?"