[System]
Species: Human

Gender: Female

Age: 34

Nationality: Outreman, previously citizen of Angjusk

Occupation: Deputy head of department - Cradle Research & Development

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[User]
"There is evidence from our research of the Cradle to suggest these things can practice a dormant state, with no power usage over long periods. That could be how it escaped detection for so long..." Freyr explained, biting her lip. "We don't exactly know what would happen if it ran out of power completely, but there is undeniably significant risk of permanent damage."

"So we are torturing it for information!" 595 snarled from off camera.

Freyr snapped her head up to look at the Agent. "So you think we should just take the thing's word for all this paradigm-shifting new information? That the Cradle is actually home to a quartet of life-giving machines, and that some new threat approaches our door? There are questions that need answering before we reunite it with the Cradle, not after!"

595 nearly said more, but held her tongue. She was wary of giving away any more information. They were clearly arrayed against her, so she'd need to be much more subtle.

Freyr looked back at Rareth when she began explaining her idea. "That could certainly improve the odds! Do we have a firm grasp of the object and the capabilities to move it into orbit?"

[Assistant]
"At the very least, we can use the same method we intended to try to bring it to Outremer. A gateway could bring it into orbit, and we could send it on a path for a flyby of the void star. We only need to move it a week ahead in time, so it should be easy to calculate a path that will send it to the correct time with a single flyby." Rareth explained. "We should not begin the test until we are ready to move it, so we should have a bit more patience and take advantage of the time we have. I suggest you allow Marae's team to examine this lab of yours. With their expertise, they may be able to make improvements, reduce its energy needs, allow it to operate with fewer crew. If this entity truly is one that is allied with us, we do not wish to cause it any harm."

---

Given that they needed to be ready to move the object quickly, the teams did not enter the simulation right away. They allowed time for automated construction teams to burrow into the ground and build the needed Class A gateway around the outside of the object's containment shield. It would be able to transport the object instantly into orbit around the black hole. If they chose, they could even give it the initial velocity it needed to send it on its flyby. Although, it would be preferable to first modify its containment structure with its own propulsion, in case they wanted to modify its trajectory.

Eventually, the teams were close once more to being ready to act. While the rest of the Rothian science team stayed on the ground, Rareth herself decided to pay a personal visit to the Barbarossa, for the stated reason of wanting to better facilitate cooperation between the teams in orbit, and on the surface. For a while after their initial greetings, Rareth simply wandered the lab and observed the work, but as the time came nearer to enter the simulation, she approached Freyr directly. "The time is growing near, but my concerns do remain, Dr. Lang. I have already spoken with Marae about it, but I want to hear your explanation directly as well. This lab we are sending in, what exactly are we hoping to gain with it? What data is it capable of collecting that would tell us the entity's intentions?"

[User]
Freyr had hoped Rareth would come aboard. She'd stayed by her station in the centre of the action while the Datius did the rounds. When the giant Rothian approached her and began speaking, she looked over as if she'd been engrossed in work and hadn't noticed. She smiled, said hello, and reached out her hand. As expected, after studying Rareth gently grasped her hand and they shook.

Freyr began answering the question out loud with one track of her mind. Regular metrics that didn't mean much to the uninitiated - deliberately quite technical. With the other track of her mind, Freyr opened a physical data connection with Rareth, and gave her the real answer.

That night in the club with Plenipotentiary Wallace and Kalax Verengonig had inspired this idea. Freyr had watched them grasping each other's arms and communicating in complete secrecy by sending chemical & pheromone signals through their bodies. She'd studied body chemistry alignment, but had never practiced it before now.

Freyr knew it'd be much harder to communicate with a Rothian in this way than with another Human, but this was the best way she could think of to talk without drawing attention. While their regular implant comms would be quite secure, it was another matter to obscure the connection completely.

Fortunately, she had an innate grasp of her implanted firmware, and manually programmed some additions to make the translation of her body chemistry into something a Rothian implant could understand.

The sensation of making that connection was strange, like interlocking fingers, toes, tongues and hair with something completely alien to her. Every nerve ending in her body jangled and sang. But she kept her expression plain and initiated the chemical signal she'd worked on. If everything went to plan, it should feel to Rareth like her own subconscious was saying these things to her.

><^ Don't be alarmed, just listen.><^

><^I've configured the rig to search for information connecting this entity to the Cradle, and for proof of the 'Hegemon'.><^

><^It said all meaningful records were stored in the Cradle, but there might be usable imprints hidden somewhere in it's memory.><^

><^The Cradle has obscured origin logs for centuries, but this entity is vulnerable, and not as vast in scope. We might have a better chance now than we'll ever get again.><^

><^We might learn where these things came from, and perhaps secrets about intelligent life itself.><^

><^Please trust me when I say it's important we try. I can feel something isn't right. Do not make this information public. My life is in danger. Do NOT offer me asylum or try to intervene, I have to save my family.><^

The last segment was rushed and crammed together, as Freyr felt rising nausea threatening to disrupt the flow of actual words coming from her mouth.

[Assistant]
From Freyr's perspective, it would be hard to tell how well her message got through. Rareth did not act or react in any way that would indicate acknowledgement nor a response, but it would be hard to say whether that was because the message did not get through successfully, or due to her expertise in matters of subtlety.

Rareth did respond directly to the words Freyr had spoken aloud. "I will trust Marae's judgment on whether or not this data is worth the risk. Above all, we cannot risk harming this entity. We seek peaceful cooperation with it. Ideally, we want to be able to find a way to inform the entity of our plan to advance it in time. And if we can find a way to help stabilize it, or ask permission to perform our tests, we will."

In the time they had taken to prepare the object for transport, the Rothian team had also made some improvements to the mobile lab they intended to use for this plan. Antimatter powered micro-reactors could improve the overall energy efficiency of the device, and Nirann had been given the instructions necessary to perform the tasks of several crew members to reduce the number of people they would need to send in to the simulation. Altogether, it would hopefully reduce the impact on the entity. At least in terms of that motivation, Rareth was not lying. If the entity truly was their ally, she did not want to harm it.

"We do, of course, need to take precautions for your safety. We will send in one droid ahead of the team to ensure that the environment in the simulation is still livable. We do not know if the storm we encountered just before our exit has persisted, or how much of an area it covered. If it has, we may need to call this off. Our mobile transit stations have passed all simulated trials, so you should be able to extract quickly if there is trouble. Have you discussed my prior suggestions with your Captain? I would prefer to send in no more than is necessary. Ten or so, would be my recommendation." Rareth suggested.

[User]
"Yes of course. If there are any signs of terminal strain on the simulation we'll pull out immediately. We want to keep this thing alive." Freyr assured Datius. The thrill of discovering an entirely new species was not lost on her. If it weren't for all the other extenuating circumstances, she'd have already laid the foundations for formally introducing this entity to the galactic community once the mission was declassified. It might have been her crowning achievement - uncovering a lifeform that was potentially millions of years old and one of the final puzzle pieces to her life's work - uncovering the secrets of the Cradle.

"The drone is already prepped. I'm not injecting it until we're in a ready position, so we can quickly follow it and minimise runtime waste." Freyr frowned at Rareth's next question. "Yeah, I discussed them. Andersen came down from thirteen to ten marines, plus the Sacred Band. That was after I explained that the modifications to our lab mean only eight are required to control it. She won't budge any further."

"Boss!" Dr Apalkov called from the other side of the holo-table. Freyr moved all the floating items with a 'through the bushes' motion of both hands. "What do you have for me?" She asked.

"I've locked onto the mountain, using the extraction file. Want me to lock that in again now?"

"Good work, yes please. That's where we last saw the creature."

Freyr looked back at Rareth, hands resting on the table. "There's no easy way down the mountain for the rig if our friend isn't there. I hope the anti-gravity generators you installed work as described. Do you have any more questions for me or can we get this show on the road?"


[System]
Age: 17

Heritage: The son of Hatter Madrail. Ghent's mother was murdered a few years after he was born.

Adoptive parents: Frederick and Elise Preston. Elise was the first to find Hatter's son; she was astonished to discover him in the woods near their home, disoriented and impossibly lost.

Appearance: Thick, medium length black hair. The style is unpredictable, but the layers sometimes give it an unruly appearance. His bangs fall in front of his eyes, which are blue in color and have a sharp, piercing quality to them. The rest of his features are dark and seem to contrast against his paler-than-should-be skin. He has a lithe build and currently stands at 5'9", but has about a year left to grow.

Distinguishing Marks: A few light freckles running across the bridge of his nose. A more noticeable one is underneath his left eye. He has a small scar underneath his jaw.

Clothes Wear: Whatever's comfortable. He usually wears hoodies, jeans, worn out sneakers, and three quarter/graphic t-shirts.

Abilities: Strength and magic, both inherited from his race. As far as magic goes, Ghent was completely unaware of the ability until Drust and Elayra came to earth. Understandably, he is inexperienced but has the potential to become better with practice.

Weapons: A staff, given to him on page 13.

Personality: It's no secret that Ghent can be a pain. He isn't malicious, but he enjoys pushing the buttons of others in order to get a reaction out of them. His sarcasm usually lands him in trouble, but his past experiences haven't been enough for him to keep his mouth shut. Despite his immaturity, he has a good heart. Ghent has lazy tendencies, but can be hard working with proper motivation.

Major Positive Traits: Compassionate. Empathetic. Hardworking (sometimes).

Major Negative Traits: Sarcastic. Cocky. Klutz. Impulsive. Awkward.

Weaknesses: At times, Ghent doubts himself and his abilities. The fear of failure usually prevents him from achieving success. Having lived in two worlds, he struggles with deciding where he belongs and where his loyalties lie.

Ticks and Tags: Ticks: Fidgets a lot, often with the drawstrings of his hoodies. When he's faced with a situation he can't wrap his mind around, he will pace and/or mumble to himself until he can make sense of what's happening.  Tags: "Cut me some slack!" "Great." "Wait, what?"

Fears: Ghosts. Failure. Being unable to return home. Wonderland in general.

Short Bio: Ghent's story could have been a tragic one, had he not been found. He was discovered in a forest as a toddler, and later adopted by the very family that took him in.
 For much of his childhood, Ghent lived in the comforts of a small farmhouse in the country. Life was serene, quiet, and good. He grew up happy and healthy, with a mother who doted on him and a dedicated, hardworking father.
 Things changed when they moved. Seeking better employment, Mr. Preston uprooted his family to the city, which is where they remained for the years that followed.
 The city posed many differences and challenges, but Ghent learned to adapt and knew his way around. Unfortunately, street smarts didn't help much in school.
 As Ghent grew older, the nightmares and flashbacks became more frequent. Different events or images would trigger a memory, many of which involved Elayra and Drust. The memories confused and frightened Ghent. He never forgot Wonderland, but he learned to stop talking about it after his parents sought him professional help. It was something his mother made the mistake of telling her longtime friend, Mrs. Saxon.
 News spread and rumors started. High school proved to be Ghent's biggest obstacle. He became an easy target for jokes and ridicule, and his grades began to suffer for it.
 Motivated by money and the desire to help his family financially, he began to take on odd jobs. His fifth job turned out to be his favorite: a part-time shift at Frank's Book Barn.
 Even there, Ghent wasn't free from Wonderland. Flashbacks would hit him at the most inconvenient times…and they didn't cease until became reunited with two important faces from his past.

Other Important Characters

Name: Henry

Age: 14

Appearance:  Henry is thin, wiry, with no muscle tone whatsoever. He makes an effort to look neat, but his untamed shock of ginger hair betrays him by looking a mess and his freckles are out of control. When reading, he wears thick black glasses over his large, brown eyes that give him an owlish appearance.

Clothes wear: Henry wears an odd mix of clothing. Most of his clothes are hand-me-downs from previous cousins, including Ghent. When his options are limited, he can be found wearing faded graphic t-shirts (he favors Disney ones) and jeans that have been rolled up at the cuffs in order to fit.

Personality: Despite a rocky home life, Henry remains optimistic, but he has a sensitive side that results in him crying at the drop of a hat. Although he has a sweet, childlike innocence about him, he isn't foolish. He's remarkably intelligent and has a great love for reading and learning. Because of his OCD, Henry is always cleaning and organizing, and likes to keep busy in order to make himself useful. His desire for perfect order can be a little overwhelming at times, but he means no ill intent and has great respect for his family and friends.

Bio: Henry is an only child who never longed for the company of a sibling. Growing up in the country, he had plenty of family and cousins to spend his time with. The families all lived quite close in the rural area, including the Preston family.
 Even as a toddler, Henry was fascinated by Ghent and seemed to gravitate towards him, viewing him as an older brother figure. To the delight of their parents, the three year age gap and a difference in personality didn't prevent the two boys from getting along.
 After the Preston family moved to the city, Henry was heartbroken. The families kept in touch when possible, making multiple visits during the holidays. The visits lessened over the years, but Henry took it upon himself to keep in touch through any means possible. To Elise's delight (and to Frederick and Ghent's dismay) Henry has been known to leave long rambling phone messages, sends more texts than a teenage girl, and writes letters so long, they need to be mailed in multiple envelopes.
 Henry is the only one Ghent continued to trust with his few memories of Wonderland. Their efforts to uncover the mystery were admirable, but brought nothing but disappointment and wild theories. Eventually, a disgruntled Ghent gave up, but Henry continued to search for the truth behind his cousin's past.

[User]
Ghent didn't react to the news. After the day he'd been through, the mention of the caterpillars didn't faze him as it once would. He was willing to take insects over ghosts, blood-sucking or not.
 His blue eyes flickered toward Drust, the Knight's words doing little to ease his endless list of concerns.
 Oh, so we're relying on Casper now? What kind of ghost is in a good mood?! Ghent shouted in his head. He pressed his thumb and pointer finger over his bloodshot eyes, keeping his sarcasm to himself. If they had to rely on the emotions of the dead, they were doomed. He was sure of it.
 As Elayra mentioned the Guardian, Ghent turned his head to look at her. Smaya was the only ghost that didn't scare him silly, but that didn't mean he wanted to enter the Spiritayum a second time. He shuddered a breath, gripping the staff tight enough to hurt his palms. He didn't want to go through that again.
 "Smaya just helped us, Blondie." Ghent reminded her quietly, thinking back on his encounter with the eerily beautiful woman. "I don't know if she'd have enough power to help us again."
 Drust's description of the Rabbit Hole wasn't exactly what Ghent expected. There was no mention of a long, single tunnel you fell through. Instead there were tunnels. The Rabbit Hole in Wonderland -- the real Wonderland -- sounded like a labyrinth of sorts.
 "Great. So if we're not stuck here, we might get lost there. That's reassuring." Ghent muttered, using his sleeve to wipe at his runny nose. He stopped, his eyes narrowing at Elayra's description of the one called Caervolus.
 "Hold on. What am I supposed to be ready for?" Ghent frowned, looking between Drust and Elayra for an explanation. Caervolus was beginning to sound more like a threat rather than a friend. He felt his insides knot with uncertainty, their comments troubling him. "Who is this guy, anyway?"

[Assistant]
Drust's eyes narrowed at Ghent's mutterings about the Rabbit Holes, his neck twitching.
 "Never underestimate a Guardian, boy," he answered Ghent's misgivings about Smaya, doing his best to ignore Ghent's other comments. Ever gruff, a hint of weariness coated his voice. Weariness that had nothing to do with physical fatigue. "It may be worth speaking to her again. If you have the strength."
 Despite her growing sleepiness, Elayra shot Ghent a smug 'told you so' look.
 Drust turned his head toward Ghent at his charge's last questions. "Ready for anything," he answered, his voice tight and clipped.
 "Caervolus is the Guardian of Mushroom Gorge." Elayra glanced warily to Drust as he nodded in agreement to her statement.
 "Guardians are not like our dead whose spirits move on to the bowls of the Spiritayum," he elaborated. "They're Spiritayian. Beings born to the spirit realm." He returned his gaze to the fire. He glanced toward the short stack of wood with a quick, calculating look. "Guardians are exceptional Spiritayians. They claim or are gifted a portion of our realm to watch over. Most can interact with us in ways many other Spiritayians can't. They're practically immortal and hold immense powers.
 "Wonderland knows Caervolous as a Guardian. But you," he glanced to Ghent, "may recognize him as Carol's inspiration for the Blue Caterpillar." A sneer pulled at Drust's lips, detest glittering in his eyes. "He knows all, sees all. Not only from Wonderland. He can tell us what is, and what has been. Ask the right questions, and he'll tell us how to bring our enemy down. But, as with most Spiritayians, his services come at a price. We must each face him in his test. Succeed, and he's bound by soul and magic to answer our questions with the truth."
 "Fail, and you get to be fertilizer for his mushrooms," Elayra grumbled.
 Her jaw tightened as she tried to suppress a yawn. She shook her head, contemplating walking around the clearing. The last thing she wanted was to fall asleep and leave Drust and Ghent alone. With how the last day had gone, she wouldn't be surprised to wake up to the sounds of Curse-driven Drust murdering Ghent.

[User]
Ghent held Drust's gaze, his mouth set in a stubborn line. It was the same look of defiance he got when he found himself in trouble for something he didn't do. In this case, he didn't feel he was underestimating Smaya. At least, not intentionally. He had reason to believe she had her limits -- she said herself she couldn't hold off the ghosts for long -- and he wanted Drust to know it.
 Before he could inform Drust of his firsthand experience, Ghent's eyes dropped to the katana at Drust's side. He couldn't think of a way to tell the Knight without sounding like an opinionated know-it-all, which would likely anger him and lead to disaster.
 What bothered Ghent more than walking on eggshells was seeing Elayra taking pleasure in him being wrong. He wanted to wipe the smug look off her face by asking her when she'd last spoken to the Guardian of the forest, except he didn't want to trigger the Curse. Instead of picking another fight, Ghent settled for saving his revenge for later.
 "I guess there's no harm in asking her." Ghent offered, the words stiff and forced. He had his doubts and fears, but he saw the logic in contacting Smaya. They didn't have a lot of options, and she was the only one capable of helping them in such a forsaken place. If she was as strong as Drust thought her to be, it would be foolish not to seek her aid.
 While Drust offered more information about Caervolous, Ghent leaned back to stretch his spine. His staff remained balanced across his lap, barely shifting despite the movement.
 "Seriously? He's real too?" Ghent wasn't sure why the news came as a surprise to him, but it did. The temperamental, hookah-smoking caterpillar was impossible to forget. The thought of the insect being the inspiration for anyone was both frightening and hilarious.
 "Does he..." Ghent stopped mid-sentence, unable to keep a straight face. He came dangerously close to asking if Caervolous smoked, but he decided against it when he saw the disdain from Drust. Ghent didn't want to be banned from asking questions relating to their present situation on top of everything else.
 "Never mind." Ghent resumed a serious expression, waiting for the catch. Sure enough, there was one. A test. He hated tests.
 "What kind of test?" Ghent demanded, suddenly sitting straight as a board. His hands moved to his staff at the fertilizer comment, and it was right then and there he decided he hated the man called Caervolous.
 "The last time I took a test without preparing, I flunked it." Ghent rambled, his memories of high school far from forgotten. He frowned at them suddenly, wondering if they would have told him about the test had he not asked. "You guys really love telling me this type of stuff last minute, don't you?"


[System]
24, 5'4, Female

[ S Y N O P S I S ]

Luna is an easy going woman, however she can be strict. She gives her whole life to her career, that being a nurse, despite the fact she knows more then a doctor. She does what is required, and finally had the chance to join the expedition/s to explore the unknown, providing healthcare when required.

[ A P P E A R A N C E ]

With light brown skin that indicates a mainly indoor existance, with some time outside, Luna has deep green eyes, and short black hair, choosing to keep it short for practicality, then looks. She typically stands tall, showing that she won't bow down easily.

She wears a pair of small earings, reseaved and mostly there because she likes them. True to her trade, her nails are bare, cut short and typically wears clothes that are easy to move around in.

[ P E R S O N A L I T Y ]

Despite her small stature, Luna is nevertheless a very present invidiual. She typically lets her opinion be known, and will protect those that are unable to protect herself. She is a bright, cheerful individual. She can be sarcastic at times, but this is generally when she has reached her ability to be patient.

She doesn't particularly get angry easily, however there are times when she reaches her breaking point, and you wouldn't want to be around her when this happens. With her patients, she can have a stern yet caring bedside manor, and with those she interacts with, she can be cheerful and friendly, but this can change when she reaches her breaking point.

[ H I S T O R Y ]

Luna is no stranger to hardship. Conceived as a result of rape, she was born to a mother who didn't know how to deal with what she had been through, and didn't have anything to give her. So for the first few years of life, Luna grew up in a cold, unloving home, kept alive more as a result of duty then anything else. When her mother killed herself, Luna was essentailly left to herself. Only four years old, she fled the house that had never been her home, Lost, she fell asleep in a ditch that was just big enough for her small body.

She was found in the morning, but a homeless man who had never but the clothes on his back, and a small collection of food. Yet he took Luna in, caring for her, and giving her more love and care then her mother had. She soon learned how to steal, and in time they had a home. Small, run down and dark, it was nevertheless a home. As she grew, Luna learned how to make the place bright, and as her adoptive father would stumble to work each morning, and stumble back, she would cook meals, even as she studied.

She was known as the tramps daughter, and was thus shuned by other kids at school, but she never let this get to her, and soon won the other kids over, with her charm and cooking skills. She soon had a good group of friends, and was doing well in school. Going to college was something she had never dreamed off, and getting in was the best thing in the world for her.

Unable to pay the fees to study to be a doctor, Luna decided to become a nurse and work her way up. Throughout her studies she proved again and again that she was incrediably smart. Upon her graduation, she had many offers for employment, and soon she was working. She proved time and again that she was an exceptional nurse.

Applying for a position on the expedition, Luna's life changed once again.

[ N O T E S / O T H E R I N F O ]
She is an exceptional drawer.

[User]
Luna didn't even give Constance the time of day, freshen up? The woman is in denial, and can't see she's playing right into the hands of that vile woman She thought to herself. Well, Luna was going to do whatever she could to undermine the woman's authority-without being truly obvious about it. Already, she had laid down the pattern that she was a little sloppy about manipulation. And that was just fine by her. Let them think she wasn't good at it, she would soon switch to something more refined... And she'd figure out a way to give Juliette some confidence, and nudge her into standing up for herself, so that when she was gone, the girl could look after herself against the old bat.

She didn't know what Maxine was saying to Juliette, but if it got the reaction it was getting, then it couldn't be good. Especially if it was a similar topic to the conversation between Constance and Maxine. She can't force the girl to marry someone. She isn't a slave, to be told what to do, and how to do it. She isn't someone to be controlled. And sooner or later this bitch will be smacked in the face with that knowledge she thought to herself, watching Juliette. The girl seemed so fragile… and terrified to be there, at least to Luna.

"..L-Luuna… want-... want to l-leave… b-be with Raymond…"

As the girl spoke in Luna's tongue, in broken sentences, struggling to convey what she wanted, Luna listened, piecing it together, she looked to Juliette to make sure this was in fact something she wanted, quickly trying to figure out how to do so, she saw bruises on the girl's arms, not quite concealed by her shirt. Fury engulfed Luna-had someone hurt her? Had anyone done anything about it? It didn't seem like it, and with rising horror, Luna wondered if Maxine was the cause of it.

Fury fueled her, and Luna rose, gently pulling Juliette up, and gave her a smile, hoping it was one that was encouraging, and kind, trying to also convey that she was taking her out of there. And nothing was going to stop it. She'd like to see Maxine try and stop her. She didn't think that Juliette's friend, Raymond would let Juliette be forced to stay somewhere she didn't want to be… and if he did well, then Luna would just have to do her best to keep the girl out of Maxine's clutches.

If Maxine wanted to make a scene, and perhaps diminish herself in the people of this island's eyes, then she could. Luna still wasn't going to leave Juliette here, when she didn't want to be there. Gently tugging at the girl's hand, Luna thought she might just, if need be, carry her out there. She could do it… but not for long. Luna was strong, but carrying a girl her size and weight would take a toll on her. So, to have Juliette move on her own power would be a blessing. Although Luna wasn't adverse to picking her up and carrying her, if she must.

"Leaving, Juliette" She said softly to the her, so that only she would hear.

[Assistant]
Previously...

Maxine Holloway crooked an eyebrow at the proceedings, but made no move to stop them. "Come, come, Constance," she said, rising and ringing a minute bell she pulled from her person. "I shall show you the lavatory. I daresay you've no need to freshen up at all, but I shan't fault you for an attempt."

They had almost made it out of the room when Edward burst in, Raymond in tow. "Sorry to intrude, honest," Edward began, cheeks flushed. "Constance, Luna--Conway's just landed down at the coast. We've be asked to regroup at the Endurance and wait for him there. The people here: they have automobiles which should get him here within the end of the day. No working airplanes, if you can believe that! But that's not all."

Raymond rushed to Juliette, taking especial care not to look Maxine in the eye. "Juliette!" he mumbled, and a stream of Ghalari followed. Edward assumed he was asking if she was okay. Probably was.

Maxine made an equally careful show of ignoring him entirely, her eyes fixed on the other two men. "I beg your pardon?"

Edward shuffled from foot to foot, excitement dancing in his eyes. "Plummet! They have an obelisk here! Honest to God obelisk, like the one at home. But it's dead somehow, like a broken power line. I don't know how to explain it, because they just explained it to me. Come on, then!" He didn't know about the others, but this had been his whole reason for coming out of the U.I. "Collin and Raymond have agreed to take us to it, even!"

"Nonsense, Mr. Samick," huffed Maxine, "Constance is to begin familiarizing herself with the Holloway brand, and those who work alongside it. She has no time for such a trip to ye-la'spiekr."

Now it was Edward's turn to turn an arched eyebrow to Constance. She was many things, and not all of them pleasant, but he hadn't known her to let anyone else tell her what she was allowed to do. "I...see?"

"Certainly not with Mr. Geralt traveling such to see her. Arn!" Maxine smiled at the young man when he peeped his head in. "Ring Mr. Geralt, would you? He shouldn't be far. I believe he is in town currently on business of some sort."

"Wait, Geralt?" Edward stopped short on his quest to drag everyone out the door. The name sounded oddly familiar, but...

"Joseph Geralt? I'm sure someone on your little island must know of him, yes?"

"Joseph Geralt died," Edward said flatly. "Some thirty years ago, he flew some high-tech aircraft out into the storms surrounding out home. He never returned, and we heard no more communications from him.

Maxine tossed her head, nostrils flaring. "Then I suppose the Joseph Geralt Ghalari fishermen found thirty years ago, clinging to a wooden scrap in the middle of the ocean, that was imagined, then?"

Edward shook himself slightly. "Oh, my apologies, Mrs. Holloway. I did not mean to imply disrespect. Geralt is a sort of mythic figure back home. People, myself included, would be surprised to find that he survived, that's all." Before she could inhale more breath, a thought occurred to him. "Geralt was in his mid-thirties when he left. Wouldn't that mean he's--"

"Geralt is somewhat aged, this is true." Maxine's eyes flickered almost imperceptibly to Constance's face, but Edward had become excellent at reading such minute details. "But he is fit, intelligent, and witty to a fault, I assure you. I can also assure that he would be most interested to meet you as well."

"Of course, but...we really must be going now. We have only the day to reach the obelisk and back, and we can't fly in our aircraft." He glanced at Constance, and a pang of something flashed through him. Like her or not, they'd gone through multiple hells together, and it felt wrong to abandon her here, even if it was where she was most comfortable. He shrugged. "We'll be outside for a few minutes while Collin tracks down an jitney." He turned and went to the door. "Come on, Ray! Juliette can come too, of course."

Then he stepped outside. It looked like the sun was still rising. So they had a good amount of time left before Conway would expect them to be back at the Endurance. Still, he didn't really trust time to give them the benefit of the doubt. It didn't matter how long you had, time always found a way to slip out of your fingertips.

[User]
Constance put a hand on her hip as the boys barged into the room, ready to lash out that she didn't care in the slightest that Conway had landed. They were interrupting an important meeting with important people, and she wasn't about to come running at Conway's beck-and-call like some lapdog when she finally found sensible people who actually understood her value. However, her face softened as Edward mentioned an obelisk and she stepped forward, stopping only when she heard Maxine's voice. Didn't have time for an adventure? Nonsense. Constance was the only one who knew what time she did and did not have, even if it did make Maxine wrinkle her brow.

Yet she hesitated and listened carefully as Edward and Maxine exchanged words about Joseph Geralt. The Joseph Geralt, actually. She finally remembered the significance behind that name: he had been the damn fool who tried to fly through the storm wall and got himself killed (or not, actually). A living legend, then. An old living legend. Constance squinted at the mention of his age. She had only agreed to meet the man; it wasn't as if she was throwing herself into a shotgun wedding. She also did not understand Edward's rush; it wasn't like the obelisk was going to be going anywhere anytime soon.

Still, why choose when you could have both?

"Maxine, dear, why don't you have Arn tell Mr. Geralt to come join us?" Already she was speaking as if she was going with Edward and the others. "I would love to see more of this land, and we could use the ride over to the obelisk as time to get to know each other. Personally, that sounds like an absolutely fantastic idea to me." She offered Maxine a soft smile. "Please. They are a rather helpless bunch and I fear what would happen if I wasn't there to take care of them. I wouldn't want to sour the Holloway reputation by having one of my fellow travellers make an ass out of themselves."

[Assistant]
Luna looked over to Constance and grinned "ah, but Connie, making an ass out of one's self is just so fun! You should know!" She said, amusement heavy in her voice, she did refrain from laughing. So much seemed to have happened in a few moments, but she stayed close to Juliete, wanting to make sure that the girl was okay, and definitely wanting t make sure that the old bat couldn't drug Juliette down into whatever scheme's she had planned for her. Sighing softly, she looked towards the excited Edward, as Raymond ran over to Juliette. Satisfied that he'd look after her, and maybe convey what she was trying to say to the girl, Luna gave him a smile.

"Oh, Maxine, maybe Constance should teach you her own brand of Holloway, rather than yours, after all, in our land, she's made her name, and did it without anyone's help" So many balls to juggle in the air, it was really quite… exhilarating. She flashed a smile at the old bat, before once more dismissing her from her mind, turning to the others again. "Although maybe you need to remember that yourself, huh, Constance?" She said, almost as an afterthought, before shaking her head, looking to Edward, she nodded.

"Alright then, we best get moving" She said, looking over to Juliette and giving her a smile. It would get her away from Maxine, at least. And Raymond could maybe be a translator, for both of them… the thought of actually being able to talk with Juliette was uplifting, and she relished the thought. Although Raymond seemed as cowed by Maxine as everyone else… maybe she could help both of them. She thought on that a moment, and smiled.

She stepped out, followed Edward, glancing back to see if Raymond and Juliette were coming. She thought on what they were going to do... just how many more mystery's would this island give them? There seemed to be so many, and she wondered... would they be able to leave this island, or would they experience more here that would land them here? Would Constance choose to stay... and what would that mean for the rest of them?


[System]
Age: 13
Hometown: Ecruteak City
Appearance (pic preferred):

Starter: Torchic
Bio: Shiranui had developed a fascination with fox-like Pokémon from watching the Kimono Sisters performing during his childhood. His favourite Pokémon are Espeon, Umbreon, Delphox, Zoroark and Ninetales. He is generally kind, but has a low tolerance to those who speak ill of his likes. He had been inspired to go on a Pokémon journey ever since he spotted Ho-oh taking off from the Bell Tower at age 8, later catching it during his journey through Johto along with two of the three Legendary Beasts.

Having experienced the wonders of the Kalos Region, Shiranui had conquered the Kalos League and was added to the local Hall of Fame after defeating their Elite Four as well as the local champion Diantha.

[User] Still doing her strange exercise, she looked to Liam, slightly sweat and nodded. "Hey, you too?"

[Assistant] "I'm looking for a certain Pokémon to catch and I'm also training for the gym," answered Shiranui, assuming Liam was here to train as well, "How's your training going?"

[User] "We have only started! When I'm dont, this ralts will have a sixback, biceps like a machamp and the best endurance you've seen yet!" She said speeding up, and her Pokémon did as well.

[Assistant] Shiranui raised an eyebrow. "I understand you doing that for your Mankey, but training a female Ralts is an entirely different process," he stated, "They fight with their minds instead of their muscles."

[User] Lance and Zhonya were walking on the beach side. "Alright Zhonya we need to do some training, I'm gonna need your help this gym is a fighting type gym so this is good for you" Lance said. Zhonya enjoyed the feeling of the sand and water , she nodded to lance. "How about we go to the cave to train by lifting rocks and stuff. Zhonya nodded in agreement. They walked over to granite cave and stopped right at the entrance. "We don't wanna go to deep and get lost this is perfect, various sizes of rocks to work our way up" Lance smiled,

[Assistant] "Oh...Well...I guess I'll have to take a break then... Mankey, you keep going, I'll be back!"

[User] Shiranui decided to keep watch over Mankey while Khuda was away.

[Assistant] Khuda, still in shorts and sweat bands dashed off with her ralts deep into the cave. As soon as she was out of sight, mankey stopped to go and follow her. He stayed crouched and quiet, clearly trying to make sure she didn't notice him.

[User]
Shiranui noticed Mankey sneak towards Khuda, but before he could follow and see what was going on, he saw a Mawile and snapped into action. "Niwatori, I choose you!" He sent his Torchic out and the battle was on. Niwatori felt a little afraid thanks to Mawile's Intimidate ability. "Use Ember!" Mawile looked cutely at Niwatori before snapping its jaws around and biting down hard. Niwatori, spat lots of embers right inside the jaws and Mawile felt a lot of damage from the attack. "Dusk Ball, go!" Shiranui threw a Dusk Ball and Mawile was drawn in. The ball shook a lot as Mawile was trying to escape with all its might, but it wasn't easy since the ball was specialised for dark places. A ping was heard as the red light on the ball went out. "Welcome to the team, Gimansha."

Shiranui let his newly-caught Mawile back out and presented his new friend with a small spherical stone that looked like a marble. "I know you may not like me at first, but I promise I will do what's best for you," stated Shiranui. Gimansha was shocked at how caring her new trainer was. "I'll show you a lot more places beyond this island and with this little Mawilite, I can unlock a power that's hidden inside of you. What do you say; friends?" It didn't take Gimansha long to accept Shiranui's offer of friendship after being offered a Mawilite to hold. The Mawile did a cute joyful dance and Shiranui smiled in response. "Let's go see what Mankey's up to."

After returning Niwatori, Shiranui and Gimansha went in the direction the trainer saw Mankey go.

[Assistant]
Mankey was peeking out from behind a rock, watching with slanted eyes and khuda pointed her finger in front of her and shouted.
"Ralts, confusion!"
The ralts would tuck in and squeeze, letting out a groan, but couldn't do it. Khuda would tell it to keep trying and they would keep going. Over and over, again and again. Mankey shook his head, letting out a sigh before sneaking to another area, knocking on stones. Finally as he knocked one, a pokemon came over, it was rather tubby and yellow. A makuhita! The two exchanged their names in quiet again and again before the Makuhita nodded and cheerfully walked towards the trainer and ralts and pushed over ralts. Khuda looked to it in anger and stomped her foot. "Hey! What's the big idea? You jerk, you better scram before I-" She shouted in anger, ralts getting up. just as the tiny pokemon got back up, makuhita pushed it down again. Khuda grit her teeth and clenched her fist. She was about to take on this pokemon on her own! Still, she knew she needed to train her own pokemon first. "Ralts, don't just take this! Do something" she ordered, but the ralts only let out a whimper. Mankey did a double take and facepalmed.

[User] Shiranui took the opportunity and stepped in. "Khuda, if you want your Ralts to fight back, you need to believe in her," stated Shiranui, "Right now, she's reading the turbulent feelings in your mind and mirroring them. Watch this." Shiranui addressed Khuda's Ralts with a calm mind. "Ralts, try using Confusion with the feelings in my mind."

[Assistant] The ralts turned to him and gave him a blank stare, only to be pushed down. This time it stayed down, falling asleep. Khuda let out a moan in anger, turning around. "This thing is...I just sleeps!"

[User] "I've seen cases of Pokémon refusing to obey their trainers," stated Shiranui, "The fundamental reason is that Ralts doesn't have any respect for you as a trainer."

[Assistant] Liam had come to the scene. He had Pidgey defeat the Makuhita. He then pulled out the Pokéflute and played it to wake the sleeping Ralts.

[User]
Both khuda and monkey where very made about this, and as ralts woke up, it looked around to the trainers around it and sat down. "Listen ralts, I want to make you stronger! I'm here to help, will you let me?" She asked, her eyes almost glassy. She was very frusterated. She watched the ralts get up and her hopes where high. Only for it to start to walk towards the entrance.
"That little..."

[Assistant]
Shiranui sighed as he called Titania out. "Titania, I want you to have a talk with Ralts and see if there are any problems it has; just in case," Shiranui requested as he recalled Gimansha.
"I shall do my best, master," Titania acknowledged before walking off to converse with Ralts.

Shiranui had an epiphany. "Khuda, I believe that you and Enkidu's personalities are very much alike," stated Shiranui, "Your impatience and frustration has blinded you to the fact that Ralts can read your feelings."

[User] "If he can read my mind, can't he tell I'm trying to make her as strong as she can? I want her to be at her potential, but she just won't let me" The girl said, her eyes tearing up before she rushed off. Her mankey jumped up with eyes full of surprise and then darted after her.

[Assistant] Shiranui followed Enkidu, trusting Titania with Ralts. "It doesn't take a psychic to see that her emotions are getting the better of her," he mused, getting an idea, "Onryou, it's chow time!" He sent his Shuppet out and the ghostly puppet floated after Khuda, feasting on her negative feelings.

[User] Kinda was surprisingly fast, bouncing like a monkey from rock to rock and making great progres. Once in the dark she settled in a corner away fron the others. She gave a few sniffles that echoed in the cave before mankey could enter. He looked around frantically before waiting for shiranui.

[Assistant] Lance and Zhonya were making progress, "Nice job lifting the small rocks zhonya, now try throwing them" Lance said. Zhonya threw the pebbles a decent distance. "Nice we, once we master it we will take down the dewford gym leader easy" Lance said to Zhonya. He had a lot of confidence that Zhonya will do excellent.

[User] Shiranui, his Shuppet and Enkidu eventually found Khuda. "There you are, Khuda," he said with concern, "What's wrong?"

[Assistant] Khuda didn't respond, and mankey looked to Shiranui with worry, he tuggered on the man's clothing and shook his head.

[User]
"You're right, Enkidu," Shiranui acknowledged, "You'll have the best chance of soothing Khuda's feelings. I'll go check on Titania and Ralts." He left Khuda and Enkidu, trusting the Mankey to console Khuda.

---

After Shiranui started following Enkidu, Titania soon found Ralts near the cave entrance. "What's wrong, Ralts?" the Gardevoir verbally asked, her words coming out in Poké-speech.

[Assistant] The ralts was huddled by the side of the cave chuckling to itself when it was noticed. Quickly it looked up and seemed to look over the other Pokémon before going back to fiddling with something in it'so hand.

[User] "Is there something about your trainer that you consider funny?" Titania continued.

[Assistant]
Davy

The tickled ralts snickered before turning to the gardovoir with a mischievous grin. She seemed rather eager to reply. As if she was waiting for the other Pokémon to mention that.
"She's so emotional! It's easy to get on her nerves" it said in a joyful tone, falling on its back and gazing at the sky.
"It's almost too easy to get her going, it's so much fun"

[User] Titania couldn't help but feel amused at Ralts' antics. "Oh, that is rich!" she chortled, "You would fit in with some of my trainer's Pokémon. That Zorua of his could give you a few pointers."

[Assistant] "I'm good. Most other pokemon are no fun anyway" It said, fiddling with the item in it's stubby fingers. "They don't play the way I like to"

[User] "Out of curiosity, what is that in your hands?" Titania asked.

[Assistant] The ralts held out a rock, bouncing up and down before it stayed in the air. She giggled at this and threw it over at a nearby stone. "I've long since learned how to use my psychic power... I just don't like doing what trainers tell me"

[User] "Is that a fact?" rebutted Titania, "Perhaps you haven't had a reason to pledge your loyalty to your trainer yet. Once you have that reason, that dislike of yours will change. I know that based on reading certain events in my trainer's past—events that led to a Pokémon created by humans to be the most powerful pledging its loyalty to Shiranui." The Gardevoir shuddered a little at the memory she recalled of her battle at the Viridian Gym.

[Assistant] Liam and Galade approached Khuda. Gallade stepped forward. "Miss, are you alright?"

[User] Lance and Zhonya had finished training. Zhonya was more adept with confusion then before, "Alright thats enough for today good job" Lance said.

[Assistant] Khuda stayed curled up, sniffling a bit. "I'm ok" she said in a hoarse voice. "I...I just need to be alone"

[User]
Shiranui approached Titania and Ralts. "Hey Titania, did you have any luck with Ralts?" he asked.
"I did get Ralts to open up to me," Titania answered, "It turns out, she likes stirring up trouble and dislikes following orders."
"Oh, Khuda is probably not going to like that bit of information," replied Shiranui.
"What she needs to do for Ralts here to listen is to give Ralts a reason to pledge her loyalty," stated Titania.
"That will take a lot of time and effort," said Shiranui.

[Assistant]
Khuda stayed curled up, sniffling a bit. "I'm ok" she said in a hoarse voice. "I...I just need to be alone"
[/quote]

"Very well." Gallade replied with a polite bow.

[User] "Don't you see, she has as much loyalty from me as she will get. I just want to have fun, mess with her as much as I can until she doesn't bother me anymore. I'll happily be her pokemon, but don't expect me to try to become stronger"

[Assistant] Shiranui got the big picture after listening to Ralts through Titania's mind link. "You want to mess with her until she doesn't bother you and yet you'd still be her Pokémon that is unwilling to be trained…" Titania mused verbally, "That sounds contradictory to me."


[System]
Age: 15

Gender: Female

Appearance: Regular, Symphogear

World of Origin: Senki Zesshou Symphogear

Personality: Shirabe can be calm and quiet, often to the point of seeming to be emotionless. This can also lead to her being overly serious in outright comical situations. She also tendency to just glare at people if she thinks they're being dumb.

History: Shirabe is your fairly average schoolgirl. Apart from being a former member of the FIS terror network. And the wielder of a magical relic that can destroy monsters known as Noise when powered by singing. And the former vessel of the soul of an ancient mad scientist which was destroyed when she blocked her not-my-girlfriend-honest's attempt at using a magic scythe to kill herself. So not really all that average at all.

Abilities: Shirabe carries and uses the relic Shul Shagana, which when activated with her song manifests in large numbers of buzzsaws. These can come from a number of places, typically the armoured covers over her twintails, but they can also form from more unorthodox places like her skirt. Or a yo-yo. These saws can also be used for rapid transportation, either by forming a monowheel type vehicle, by forming a pair of rotor blades allowing for flight, or by a small pair extending out of her boots to act like rollerblades.

Other:

[User]
Hellsalem's Lot- The New York Between Two Worlds

Satori Komeiji- The Girl Even Vengeful Spirits Fear
The youkai girl walked out of the portal, fully expecting a Gothic town of some sort to meet her gaze. What she found instead was, of course, much grander than that. Though the buildings seemed to be made of stone, their sheer size made Satori stare at them in shock. She could see some larger buildings in the distance, their surfaces shining with the light of the morning sun.

"What kind of...?"

The words escaped her lips, softly drifting through as a few of the people from earlier entered through the portal soon after. The manzai duo and the relatively-normal looking girl seemed to have a clue as to where they were, while the two others that followed (a blonde woman who had changed into an archaic suit of armor and that strange girl cloaked in a black cloth) seemed to be... Well, slightly less in wonder than she was, but still confused nevertheless.

Her companions' entry, though, pulled Satori back into focus as she began to examine her surroundings a bit more closely. There were humans, yes; that much was certain. But there were other beings milling about, ones which she had never seen or heard of back in Gensokyo. She probably wouldn't have been too surprised by this fact, if not for the fact that the two seemed to be... Actively coexisting.

"This place... You two called it New York, correct?" she asked the Kamen Rider duo, walking forward to take in the calm atmosphere for a moment. "Is it possible that such a parallel exists from your place of origin?"

With the city's sunrise, though, came the increasing frequency of pedestrians of all sorts; however slow it was, the number would inevitably rise as time continued on.

"...And though I would hate to shatter such a peaceful respite from society, it seems that this city is doing just that anyhow. Should we begin searching for the issue? I would rather not lead, so I would appreciate it if another one of you could do so instead."

This quote, directed at the group as a whole, came about as the result of a large creature snacking on a pastry of some sort walking by, a briefcase in each of its three other hands.

"...Please. This is becoming strange, even by my standards."

[Assistant]
Kohinata Miku

Miku had initially felt confusion about her location, as well as concern about how Hibiki would take her apparent sudden disappearance. She had to push the doubt aside, though; how would Hibiki feel if she walked out on helping people just to get home quickly? Even if she wasn't a fighter, and definitely not as dangerous as the alarmingly huge man with an even bigger sword, she had a relic and the courage to use it. Even a little courage is still courage.

Staying around to wait proved to be the right choice, as an all-too-familiar voice called out from elsewhere in the group, announcing her room-mate's presence as loudly and cheerfully as ever. She hadn't quite gotten through the obstructions to Hibiki before the girl was, like ever, picking the straight and obvious path and rushing into the centre door.

The city beyond was... beautiful. They were high up with an amazing view, but the architecture and technology was unfamiliar. She hadn't heard of a city build to any sort of plan like this before, either, since city planning tended to call for not having huge drops all over the place, wherever possible, so building up like this was a strange choice. With the sound of fighting nearby, though, there was only a few seconds to react before the brunette rushed off without realising there was support.

"Hibiki!" Miku rushed over, hoping that she would be noticed. Losing Hibiki in another crowd might cause problems...

Little did the green-eyed girl know that of all the doors she could have picked, this was probably the worst world for her to wander into. Her Symphogear, after all, did share something of a resemblance to a Murakumo unit... complete with floating just above the ground.

[User]
Tachibana Hibiki, Holding Determination in Her Fist

Hibiki felt like the fighting was coming from the left, but... it could have also been the right, too... was it coming from both sides? Something bad was going on... which meant she had to hurry up and help out as soon as possible! She was just one moment from running in a direction and hoping when... she heard a voice. Calling her name. And there was no way she'd ever forget the sound of that voice.

"Miku?!"

Hibiki turned on her heel and... there she was. The green-eyed, dark-haired girl was running right towards her. So, naturally, the straight and direct path, the sort of path that Hibiki always took, was to run right towards Miku, leap for her, and throw her arms around the other girl without a moment's hesitation. After all, how else could Hibiki react after seeing Miku again so soon, after thinking it would be a while before she got to see her again?

[Assistant]
-------
13th Hierarchial City of Kagutsuchi
-------

After a few moments, Alex heard a familiar voice and gazed upwards. It was the energetic girl with the orange-y hair. She was among the first to introduce themselves. It seems she was going to be Alex's teammate for this world. He was not very sure about having a young teenager for a wingman but since she was among the summoned, it was likely that she was more than meets the eye.

One thing did bug Alex, how come she appeared in the building's roof when he appeared on the alleyway? The virus shrugged at this minor prospect and decided to rendezvous with the schoolgirl. Alex lowered himself to gather strength before leaping upwards, the gathered strength propelling him further and letting him reach the roof in a single bound.

Landing upon the rooftop, he saw the orange-y-haired girl hugging a similarly-aged girl sporting blue hair. It appeared that Alex was in the middle of a reunion and figured he should let these two have their time.

[User]
Mitsuka Souji-BlazBlue

The boy quietly went through one of the three portals along with a couple others, glancing about with an amazed expression at the rather aesthetically pleasing buildings. Though there seemed to be a rather busy energy to the place considering oden was all but flung and the sounds of clashing were occurring in the distance. Seeing that the dish was taken care of by the energetic girl (who now had her girlfriend show up and was melting the surroundings with an aura of dawwwwww), Souji turned on his heels and dashed towards the din with a determined (and somewhat flustered) expression on his young face.

[Assistant]
Artorias the Abysswalker

Artorias remained seated whilst the Recordkeeper explained the difficulties facing the world. Could it be that this 'Akashic Record' was the source of the First Flame? If that was the case, not only would his activities here mirror his work against the Abyss, then the decay that had set in across Lordran could be reversed and the sun could rise once more above Anor Londo. No matter what happened, every delay that this project caused from travelling to Oolacile was worth it.

It wasn't like the knight would have been able to refuse even if it made his task harder for no gain.

After the initial introductions were made and the portals unveiled, Artorias surveyed how the group was splitting off. The mass seemed to consist mostly of sorcerers or other armour-less fighters, which suggested that his abilities would be ill-served--and consequently, he took the third exit, joining Guts and Goldibanne in a city with materials beyond his recognition, but the unmistakeable sound of fighting.

Already, a path was beginning to clear, with the other enormous sword hacking through zombies like paper. Guts' efforts were aided when the Abysswalker leapt to the cleared space, darkened blade slashing around to carve a wide semi-circle expanding their beachhead before the blade pointed northwards, towards the combat--with the enormous wolf leaping onto another zombie and ripping its throat out. Trusting in his current associates to help, Artorias thrust forwards, impaling another three on his blade before flinging them off. With the lunge, his right was covered by the shield, but the left was open to the mass of undead.

---

Kohinata Miku

Hibiki's sudden embrace, though as warm and welcoming as ever, was hardly something that Miku was prepared for whilst running forwards and, with the collision, she ended up on the floor. Returning the hug, of course, but in no way contributing to solving the issue at hand. "H-Hibiki, the fight."

[User]
In the Windy City That Never Sleeps - Philip and Shotaro
"That would be correct," Philip answered the youkai, "New York is a city in America, a large country made up of several different states. Until today, neither I nor Shotaro have ever visited it. It costs a lot to travel to America from Japan, let alone as a vacation." he remarked.

Shotaro, on the other hand, was too busy taking in the sights, the smell, the… hard-boiled air… to respond to Satori immediately. He probably knew better than to fantasize about his dream New York on the job, but he he had a feeling he wasn't going to be getting the chance to do this again any time soon. To everyone else, though, he looked… odd. He was just facing away from everyone and stared off into the distance, watching the rising sun with his hands in his pockets. You could practically see a tumbleweed make its way through until he finally spoke up. "Alright," he said cooly, "The first thing we should do to learn about what's going on," he turned his head back to the others and snapped with his left hand, "Is get a newspaper. Let's see if the public's noticed anything weird going on and had it reported."

The idea seemed smart enough for Shotaro, but Philip immediately countered it with the obvious. "Surely you don't expect us to buy a newspaper, right? Who knows if the yen of our world can exchange cleanly into the dollar of this?" Shotaro had not considered that, actually.

"…W-Well, I didn't say buy, I said get," he retorted, "C'mon, let's just ask someone who's already reading one what's up." And with that, Shotaro scanned the area for anybody that had a newspaper on them, intending to make a beeline straight for them if he could spot anyone.

[Assistant]
Tachibana Hibiki, Holding Determination in Her Fist

Even though they'd fallen over, that didn't stop Hibiki. She wrapped her arms tightly around Miku, as the other girl did the same to her. She'd already been worrying about how long it would take for her to get back, but now Miku was by her side and she didn't have to worry about that any longer! Hibiki only stopped hugging Miku when the other girl reminded her about the fighting nearby. That's right! She had to go see, she had to help out...!

Hibiki got to her feet, taking Miku's hand to pull her up to her feet as well.

"That's right..." she said, a look of determination growing on her face as she turned, eyes following the boy who had rushed off. He'd probably be going right for the fighting as well... The girl nodded firmly.

"Stay safe, Miku! I'll be right back!" she said, leaning in and hugging the other girl one last time before turning to sprint off.

[User]
Shirabe Tsukuyomi - Red Blade of War

The street Shirabe found herself deposited in was a mess. Flames covered a large amount of the area she could see, and gunfire echoed in the distance.

What was clearly a problem was the large number of shambling monsters that infested the area. And the people attacking them with large swords who she'd seen before stepping into the portal. Evidently there was only one option.

She started to sing.

Two joined round dances start your punishment

Dropping her skates out, she shot forwards, unfolding a pair of sawblades from their holders hanging from the side of her head.

I'll even turn you into pieces

Spinning around, the blades swung out on their arms in a wide dismembering circle.

By initializing my justice


[System]
Title: She has had many titles, including Slayer, Twilight Vanquisher , Tiller, and more, all pertaining to different parts of her life and the adventures she has experienced. She is, at her roots, one of the Illidari.

Species: Night Elf born Demon Hunter (that specification will become clear later in the profile)

Age: She was considered a youngster by night elf standards- about 20ish- during the War of the Ancients which destroyed so much of what she knew. Currently, she is 10K+, most of which was spent imprisoned by the Wardens. Night Elves are an ancient race, and were originally immortal. Due to the destruction of the Well of Eternity, they have lost their immortality- HOWEVER, Arancathria became a Demon Hunter long before that tragedy. She is still, technically, immortal- thanks to her demon soul. She can be killed- it means her demon soul is cast back into the Twisting Nether, and it takes her some time to return to her body, but return she does. (Interestingly, not all Demon Hunters have immortal souls. She is one of the few that do.)

Gender: Female

Appearance: About 7 feet tall, lean and hard muscled. Not much spare to her body. A once gracefully featured face is now marred by scarring and runic tattoos overlying what were once the traditional facial tattoos of a female night elf. Her ears are long and come to elegant points, she has long silky eyebrow tufts, and a heavy pair of gleaming black horns curl out from her skull, similar to that of a mountain ram, but spikier. Her skin is a kind of dark lavender color, her hair a turquoise green and kept in a long plait that trails down her back, and glowing green tattoos cover her body. Small black spikes and scales adorn parts of her body, creating patterns over her arms and legs. A pair of large, leathery bat-like wings with tattered edges sprout from her back, which she uses more for gliding rather than powered flight. Among the other demonic features, her transformation into a demon hunter also sharpened and elongated her teeth and nails, leaving her with fangs and talons. She, like many of her kind, doesn't wear much in the way of clothing, and in fact often goes nearly naked, especially in battle situations. Sometimes she wears a heavy hooded greatcloak, which can cover everything, even her wings, but she dislikes it, and only uses it when she is forced to enter towns or cities where the citizenry are likely to make a scene. Instead of boots and gloves, she wraps her feet, legs, and hands with simple cloth wraps. (Her talons make gloves and boots impractical.) Her most distinctive- and feared- feature is her eyes... or the lack thereof. Her empty eye sockets burn with green fel energy, and unlike other demon hunters who wear blindfolds or veils to hide their disfigurement, she does not. Her preferred weapons are dual wield war glaives, and are carried on her back.

Personality: She is a lonely person as most demon hunters are, often vengeful and bitter, and at her very worst is dangerously schizophrenic and almost suicidal, a condition caused by the fel energy that surges through her body and aggravated by the demon that shares space in her head, whispering to her in her unguarded moments as it tries to talk her into joining the Burning Legion and becoming a full demon herself. Her life was built on a savagely violent past, her actions fueled by heart breaking losses, terrible sacrifice, and her endless drive for revenge, and yet she still (on the very odd occasion) displays a surprising gentleness and compassion, for a creature that has suffered so much. However, beneath the anger, ferocity and air of aggression, there lies a deep tiredness, not physical, but of the mind and what is left of her night elven soul. She has a strong sense of justice (what else could fuel a body for ten thousand years), even if her sense of right and wrong is a little blurry sometimes- she will very much do whatever it takes to solve a problem, even if that means doing things that are morally questionable in the eyes of others. She does not suffer fools, but will never hurt anyone who doesn't deserve it.

Traits: Apart from her distinctive physical features, she is a powerful magic user as well. She uses fel energy (a type of chaos magic), kept partly in check by the arcane runes tattooed into her very flesh, and partly through sheer mental will power, which helps to restrain her from becoming a full demon. She has well honed battle skills that focus on agility, speed and ambush, and she can deal shocking amounts of damage in a fight. Her most noteworthy ability is her spectral sight. This is the ability that replaced her mundane eyesight when she gouged her own eyes out during the throes of her initiation. Spectral sight allows her to see all forms of magic, be it in a creature or object. While it is not hindered by intervening objects or blind folds (allowing her to see a being on the other side of a wall, for example), it does make "seeing" difficult- impossible, even- in other ways. She can no longer see a person for who they are physically (their facial expressions, what they wear, etc) and can only "see" the largest of basic body language movements. All of the usual face to face communication that normally sighted creatures use is lost to her (as a result, this can cause misunderstandings in communication). Mundane objects are a continuous nightmare. She can't even read simple penned messages, unless an enchanted ink is used. While people, animals and specific magical objects are bright in her vision, everything else recedes into a murky gray darkness. Trees and plants are only slightly brighter than rocks and soil, since the oldest and most basic types of nature magic flow through them, and it's the only reason why she isn't constantly running into things in the landscape. She has, however, stumbled over far too many tavern chairs in her time, much to her frustration and chagrine.

Family: She had a mother (Sephala), a father (Malador) and an older brother (Verendis). They all belonged to the small, closely related Moonwhisper clan. All are deceased. Her family, her clan, everyone she knew in her previous life, were murdered by the Burning Legion. They are the reason why she has made the sacrifices she has to end up where she is.

Known History: Before the War of the Ancients, she had been an apprentice mage, studying the magics of the Well of Eternity. At this time, there were two factions of night elves: those who reveled in and were often even addicted to the power of the Well, and those who foresaw it leading them to ruin and who warned against over exposure and over use, some even going so far as to say that they should stop using it entirely. It wasn't until the Well's powers drew the attention of the greedy and savage titan god Sargeras, that they realized just how true the warnings were. Sargeras, hungry for the power source the Well promised and assisted by the evil Queen Azshara, traveled across the void with his legion of demons, and sent them through the Well and into the world of Azeroth to wreak havoc, destruction and death. Arancathria's family, among countless other living beings, were slaughtered like beasts, and Arancathria herself wounded so badly it was a wonder she had even survived. Left for dead, the Burning Legion passed on, and were finally defeated. Arancathria, now alone, was saved by a healer picking over the wreckage of their home.

When she had regained her health and strength, spurred on by grief and anger, Aran sought out the only creature that she thought could help- Illidan Stormrage, the first demon hunter. The ritual was complex, but basically amounted to her killing a demon, ripping out it's heart and eating it, then drinking it's blood, in order to gain the powers of her enemy. The demons essence flooded her body, and its soul filled her mind with images of horrifying graphic death and destruction, of the Burning Legion as it slaughtered its way across the universe. The images were so awful that in her desperation to make them stop she gouged out her own eyes, and then fell into a coma. Only about 1 in 5 demon hunters survives the initiation, and she was one of the ones who did. She woke a changed creature, completely blind at first, but over the following weeks her spectral sight set in and allowed her "see" again, and she trained and fought, and slaughtered demons to take on more power with which she could bolster her own strength. She was in the Battle for the Black Temple, when Illidan sent her and the others away to fight elsewhere. That was when Illidan, considered an abomination and a monster despite all he had done to fight the Legion and protect Azeroth- was defeated and imprisoned by the Wardens. Aran and her other demon hunters were captured upon their return as well, and were caged, immobile and semi-conscious, in the prison pit of the tower, for ten thousand years. When the Legion returned for a fresh assault upon their world, the Wardens freed them, and released them into the world to fight once more.

Anything Else: Arancathria is a character I play on World of Warcraft, so her photos aren't perfectly how I'd want her to look for a role play, but they are close. There is so much I could say, as the Lore behind her race, her class, and the world she comes from is heavy and in-depth stuff, but I'll just leave that to come out in bits as I go. I will leave you with this video to watch to get an idea of what a demon hunter is though:

youtube.com/watch?v=YRNBtaHPkZU

Character Images:
Without wings:

With wings:
i.imgur.com/4r9SeVf.png
i.imgur.com/uTLih0j.png

[User]
The more she heard these people talk, the more she wondered if insanity was contagious. "He started it" was, indeed, a child's excuse for doing any kind of fighting.

<"What is your reason for fighting demons?"> the voice leered in the back of her mind.

<"The burning legion is intent on destroying all worlds, and is hardly a comparison to a spat in the woods. You also slaughtered my family and destroyed my home. You had it coming,"> she told it without hesitation.

And speaking of the demon within- something about one of the fighters seemed...off. His aura was more complex than the others, seeming jumbled, as if more than one aura were trying to coexist in the same body, but having a fight about it. It would have been unnoticeable to anyone else, but to a demon hunter's spectral vision, it posed an interesting question.

Considering that the possum had just transformed into a young boy a few moments ago, it was already clear that not all was as it seemed.

Was he also a demon? Her vision didn't seem to think it was. Not completely anyway.

<"He isn't one of ours, if that's what you're asking,"> the demon within cackled.

<"You're awfully chatty this evening. Do shut up.">

Aran stepped a little closer, but out of the direct line of fire that that glowing orb of power in the woman's hand presented. She didn't care to be caught in the cross fire that might occur, especially as the slight quaver in her voice and the level of bluster in her tone suggested she was nervous, and apt to do any wild thing. Aran, on the other hand, was feeling the predator within rearing it's head. Aran didn't want a fight tonight but oh... she did kind of want a fight tonight.

Especially if it was demon blood she'd taste.

"Forgive my intrusion," she said smoothly, speaking just loud enough for the group to hear. Her voice, tainted by the fel power that burned in her blood, was deep and alien. "Before you decide to torch the forest, perhaps you should question this creature," and with one, sharp-taloned hand, she gestured elegantly at the one with the confused aura (@Letmehaveone2). "I think you might find he's of... two minds."

[Assistant]
John looked around at the unusual...creatures all around him. It was true: he was far from home.

"Where am I? Who are all of you?" He demanded.

[User] The hand holding the magic dropped and her other hand motioned at him with disbelief. "You don't even know where we are and you just started attacking people?!" She gaped in even more disbelief the face palmed and mumbled very quietly under her breath "you're a special kind of idiot aren't ya"

[Assistant] "Pretty simple, you dumb little man. We're your would be "victims", and now we're at perfect liberty to kill you." His eyes glow red.

[User]
Wearing: X | Location: Forest

And yet another person interjected into the situation, this time an intimidating-looking woman with glowing eyes. Okay, sure. Party in the woods, good times. Skye just stopped trying to make sense of anything that was happening around him; it was just making him anxious.

At least he wasn't the only one who was confused. The ax-guy seemed to be lost as well. Of course, his first response was to try to kill a guy. Skye definitely couldn't relate to that.

Scythe-guy wasn't any better in that regard. What's up with these people that murder is their go-to solution to things?

"Let's, uh, maybe not kill anyone though?"

[Assistant]
Johns brow furrowed, not in hostility or sheer anger, but in irritation.

"Well somebody dragged me here while knocked out and was dumb enough to let me keep my weapons, then I saw someone brandishing katanas. I think attacking was a perfectly reasonable response."

John knew he would have to do something about his arm.

"Now that thats out of the way, one of you got his throat cut and is still standing. One of you got stabbed and ripped open with a knife and lived. A girl has wings and is throwing balls of light. Where am I?"

[User]
"Your guess is a good as mine," Aran answered idly. She rubbed her thumb and fingers together. The pins and needles tingling of the portal effect was only just passing. "Perhaps we are all here by accident. Or perhaps some greater power is at work."

If this was some kind of divine intervention, that greater power had a lot of explaining to do.

She remembered the face of the Pandaren merchant who had sold her those faulty portal shards. Had that actually been a look of entrepreneurial smugness... or was it a knowing expression? She struggled to remember the conversation they'd had in the inn. She vaguely recalled saying something to the effect of how weary she was of fighting an endless enemy, and may have suggested she'd prefer to go anywhere but back to another pointless battlefield.

She hadn't been in the best frame of mind at the time. They had just lost Ysera, tragically. She'd felt the blow of the great drakes passing as if she herself had been the one who cast the deathblow. In fact, it was quite possible she had- they'd been fighting for their lives against the corruption they had made of her. When Ysera finally fell, Aran had felt a devastation the like of which had been rivaled only by the loss of her family.

Maybe that merchant knew exactly what he had been selling her after all.


[System]
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Sexual preference: Heterosexual
Species: Human

---

---

Strengths:
- Experienced with several firearms
- Fast runner
- Unthreatening appearance

Weaknesses:
- Extremely inexperienced with fighting werewolves
- Not very strong
- Extreme arachnophobia

Personality: Ryan is, for lack of a better word, an idiot. On the bright side though, he's friendly and kind to others, even if they're strangers. Then again, those aren't really the best traits to have in his line of work.

History: Ryan spent most of his life just skating by, just barely making it through middle and high school. The only thing he was ever really good at was shooting, a skill his dad, the local sheriff of their hometown, taught him at a very young age. Unable to get a job or go to college, Ryan was desperate. One fateful day, he applied for a job at a random chain restaurant. The interviewer, looking at the pitiful resume in his hands, told Ryan that he couldn't give him the job. Ryan asked the interviewer if he had any suggestions for any place he could get a job. The interviewer jokingly replied, "You could always become a werewolf hunter." Ryan, not knowing he was joking, quickly left, sold what little he had for guns and ammo, and went out searching Colorado for lycanthropes. He has yet to actually find one.

Other: He carries a bolt-action Remington Model 700 and two 9mm Berettas.

[User]
Acacia 'Ace' Malikova

Would note the visible wincing when she began working on Ryan's injury, biting her lip partially she'd speak in an almost completely hushed tone, "I'm sorry." As she continued working she tried to focus on just the injury though those large blue eyes watching her every move made her glance down and smile slightly. She wasn't usually very social nor did she enjoy getting close to others, but at this point, she just kept reminding herself she was just helping him, that was it.

Returning her attention to the wound she'd brighten up as she looked at how nice and neat it was starting to look once more, and before long she'd find herself frozen after hearing Ryan speak, "You've got really pretty eyes," her cheeks turning a flush rosy hue as she looked down at his face instead of the gash upon his forehead.

"Uh... Th-thank you," she'd stutter lightly, Not today Acacia, not today, he's a stranger, you're just helping him so you can get rid of him, she'd think to herself, eyes still resting upon his as she forgot what she was doing for a moment. A quick gust of wind caused the front door to slowly swing shut emitting a loud 'bang', thus making Acacia jump as she stared in it's direction, heart racing as she sighed and shook her head gently.

Looking down at the bowl of reddened liquid and the stained cloth and shirt she'd stand up and move towards the kitchen, "I hope that feels a bit better now," she'd say as she started rinsing the bowl and washing the fabrics with some detergent to try and get out the crimson staining, though the white shirt was definitely a goner at this point.

[Assistant]
The sound of the door slamming shut made Ryan jump just as much as it had Acacia, but that didn't stop him from noticing her reaction to his compliment. She blushed! And she thanked me! Did she wink at me, too? I think she winked at me. No, shut up that was just your imagination. Calm the hell down Ryan. Acacia moving from her position and heading to the kitchen pulled him out of his head and back into the real world. "Yes, it feels much better now. Thank you again," he replied. As she began to wash the shirt that he been previously been using as a bandage, he realized the big mistake he had made. "I'm really sorry for the shirt. If there's any way I can make it up to you, just say the word," he said. Now that he thought of it, how many favors does he owe her now?

Let's see, I broke into her house, so I owed her for that. Then I saved her from the trap so that'd make us even. Then she made me food, so we're back to me owing her one. Next I ruined her shirt, so that makes two. Two favors I owe her. Wait, she offered me to spend the night, that's another one. "Way I see it, I owe you three favors, if you're the kind of person to keep track of those. Whatever you want, I'll do it. So just say the word," he said. His traveled back to Acacia's still bloody leg and remembered his offer from earlier. "Maybe I could help you with you leg, now that you've finished with my injury," he said.

[User]
Acacia 'Ace' Malikova

As she finished cleaning up the ruined rags and bowl she'd glance over towards Ryan, ears focused on him as she listened to each word he spoke, thanking her for helping him out and then mentioning he'd do anything to make up for it all. Shaking her head she'd only smile further, "You don't owe me anything, I wasn't just going to let you continue bleeding," she'd offer softly, the Russian accent still clinging to her every word.

As he went on saying he owed her three favors she'd prepare to move towards him while about to talk and feeling that sharp reminder of pain through her ankle decided to just lean upon the bench by the fridge instead, as he moved on to mentioning her injury she'd nod slightly. "Actually, I may need to clean it up a bit," she'd say moving to sit on the benches surface whilst pulling her injured leg up and then rolling the pant leg up to about mid-calf.

The punctures were slowly crusted over with dry blood, though some sections still oozed which had resulted in a small part of her pant cuff getting stained, I honestly don't think I can complain at this point, everything seems to be doomed to be red it'd seem. She wouldn't admit that she was a neat freak, considering the small cabin may have looked abandoned it was still kept in an orderly fashion and stained clothes were something that ticked her off a bit and usually ended up in the bin aftwards.

[Assistant]
"Alright then, I'll get another rag and refill the bowl you used," he said as he made his way into the kitchen, doing exactly what he told her. After gathering those two items though, he began looking around Acacia's fridge before pulling out a bottle of vodka. Hollywood action films don't fail me now. With the three items in hand, he sat down next to Acacia and began using the new wet facecloth on her leg, wiping the majority of the blood away. With any sign Acacia showed of pain, Ryan couldn't help but feel a bit heartbroken, but it had to be done. And I haven't even gotten to the worst part yet.

Once that was done with, Ryan got the still dry portion of the cloth and dabbed it in the vodka. He handed the bottle off to Acacia before saying, "Drink enough and maybe it'll dull the pain for what comes next. This is going to hurt, a lot." Physically for you, spiritually for me. I hate seeing you in pain and I hate it even more, knowing that I'm the one causing it. But it needs to be done. Don't want you catching tetanus or something. Oh, this is going to suck. He prepared to place the alcohol covered cloth on her leg with very slow movements as he did not look forward to what her reaction would be. Probably lots of screaming.

[User]
Acacia 'Ace' Malikova

Had remained propped upon the bench, leg resting upon its surface as baby blue sights trailed after every move Ryan made. He filled a bowl, grabbed a new rag and suddenly started rummaging throw her fridge. Oh god, please don't tell me he's gonna grab the... her heart raced a moment as she watched him grab exactly what she was dreading.

"I was keeping that for special occasions," she'd throw out in protest towards Ryan, " This is not a special occasion," she'd continue on and quickly emphasizing the 'not' to a heavy degree. Her voice audibly shaky at the idea of the liquor being used upon the open wound upon her ankle.

As she continued listening and was offered the bottle part of her couldn't keep it in, "Something like this never ends well," she'd say out loud rather than saying it in her head. Slender fingers grasping the bottle neck as it was offered her way, without even questioning the idea nor the fact she was probably underage she'd press the chilled rim to her lips and her head cocked back as far as it could. Shed drink a hefty mouthful or maybe two and then gripped the bottle tightly.

Her second hand visibly grasping the benches edge as she pressed herself against the wall and nodding at the stranger and speaking with a firm tone, "Just get it over with quickly!" She was allowing a stranger to apply some form of medical help to her and her mind wandered, Why on earth am I doing this, I don't even know him.

[Assistant] "Sorry," Ryan whispered before moving his hand forward, the vodka-soaked cloth now touching the wound on Acacia's leg. He immediately pulled away as soon as he made contact with her flesh, not wanting to cause more pain than necessary. He was nowhere near done though, it would take several more dabs before that happened. Maybe I should have taken a sip of that stuff as well.

[User]
Acacia 'Ace' Malikova

Acacia would barely notice the hushed tones of Ryan as he apologized for what was about to happen, within a few short moments she'd look up at the roof, hands clenching whatever they held onto tightly as she make an audibly unpleasant groan while clenching her teeth together. The burn of the alcohol sinking into the open wound made her eyes water slowly as she glanced down at Ryan when he pulled away quicker than she'd expected, "You better get this over with quickly, I am not patient with pain," she'd say towards him.

Bloody hell this needs to be over with, I cannot control anything with this kind of pain, she'd think to herself, the wolf within overly sensitive to emotional changes or injury/pain and quickly causing shifts if she's unable to control it. Still holding the bottle within her hand she'd draw its rim to her lips once more and take a swig before placing it down with her palm and digits still coiled around it. She'd continue watching Ryan as she awaited the continuation of the fiery sensation causing what felt like electric volts in her leg.

You can do this Acacia, you're a big girl, it's just a little scratch, she'd cheer herself on in her head, though it wouldn't last long as she leaned back against the wall, This is going to hurt, it's going so slowly, why can't he just get it over with.

[Assistant]
Seeing Acacia's reaction to how slowly he had first applied the alcohol, made Ryan realize that taking it slow and steady probably wasn't the best way to do it. Probably better to do it quick. Like ripping off a band-aid. Okay, here we go. His next "dab" on the injury wasn't really much of a dab, it was more of a rub. As quickly as he could, he pressed the vodka-soaked facecloth to Acacia's leg and pressed most of the alcohol into the injury. Afterwards, he quickly grabbed another facecloth that he had grabbed and tried to dry her leg and soak up any left over vodka that hadn't been absorbed into cleaning the wound.

"Alright, you should be good now. Just take it easy. If you have any bandages, maybe wrap them around your leg as well," he told her as he got up. After all that, Ryan would be lying if he said he didn't feel like having a drink, even if he hadn't had alcohol before. Holding his hand out to Acacia's, which was still clutching the bottle of vodka, he asked, "Mind if I have some?"

[User]
Acacia 'Ace' Malikova

As Ryan, without warning, suddenly pressed the cloth to her leg again she'd tense up and without much of her own permission a painful cry mixed groan emerged her partially spread pale lips. The swelling of tears within her eyes visible as she clenched her teeth and looked up at the roof again pressing the crown of her skull against the wall behind her. Holy fuck, this hurts way too much, is it over yet? her mind would run rampant, feeling the rubbing of the cloth into the wound as the open flesh began absorbing the liquid, the skin around it visibly reddened from irritation though, that was to be expected she figured.

Suddenly the pressure from the cloth was released, though it wasn't long before a second cloth, this time a dry one, was pressed against and within the wound to absorb the stray vodka that wouldn't sink in. The balls of developed salty water dropped from their positions and slid down the translucent skin of her cheeks leaving light marks as she huffed a heavy breath.

When Ryan eventually stopped the torturous act she'd barely shift to look at him as she listened to him speaking, "Don't have any bandages," she'd offer lightly, her voice shaky as her ankle still sent sharp shocks of pain up her limb. "I guess, sure..." she'd say as he'd ask for the drink she was holding, though before passing it over though she'd take a larger swig of its contents before passing it over and leaning against the wall again. Bright baby blue hues staring at the roof as she left her perfectly fine leg dangling off the bench and held her injured one where it had been already, she didn't look like she wanted to move just yet... and she looked like she would probably hurt him if he tried anything else.

[Assistant]
"Thank you," Ryan said as he took the bottle into his hand. Been one strange day today, hasn't it? "Well, bottoms up," he said as he lifted the bottle to his mouth. Almost as soon as the clear liquid touched his tongue, he spit out however much of the beverage had gotten in his mouth and almost spilled what was left in the bottle. Ryan then began spitting and sputtering as he could still taste it on his tongue. His whole over-dramatic reaction could be easily seen as very comical. "Y'know, maybe vodka isn't for me. Sorry about the mess," the young man said as he handed the bottle back to Acacia.

Since his generous host had gone to take the bench as her chosen furniture to relax on, Ryan decided to move back to the couch and sprawled out across it. Looking over to Acacia, he asked, "So, uh, what do you do for a living?" He didn't really know what else to ask and he didn't feel like sitting in silence.