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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2011 0:26:11 GMT -5
Darkness... Light... Many associate such words with two opposing forces: good and evil. Indeed it seems life is filled with people who are either complete on one side or the other. And then there are those who border in between such a place. Every talking, thinking, being falls in one of these three categories.
On a world such as Gaia, world that few who haven't lived there, have heard of, is a special world. It is a world thought to have been vanished in darkness. However, every so often, a being from an entirely different world finds their way into this strange place.
It was a normal afternoon. At least as normal as it ever was in the slums of Midgar. Being a place full of monsters, it was often a place that many stayed away from. Littered with trash, and a stench of pollution in the air, it cast a gloomy outlook on any inhabitant who lived there.
Being in the middle of the afternoon, many of the slums inhabitants hung around the edge of the slums, in the Eighth Sector. After all the Eight Sector was the safest place to be during the day in the slums. Then again it was never really safe in the slums. As one would imagine the inhabitants of this place were all lower class citizens. They couldn't afford any of the nicer buildings above the plate.
Children ran on this bright afternoon while many of the vendors stationed in the Eight Sector, tried to sell whatever wares they had. Despite the obvious poverty of the place, one could not say that the inhabitants were not happy. After all there was no where lower they could go in this life. The only path was up.
As the children ran, their game came to a sudden the halt as they reached the door that led back to the seventh sector. The five children stopped and stared at the pair of doors. Not a second later a loud crash followed by screams erupted from their tiny throats. Pouring out of the doors of the seventh sector were novashadow heartless. There were five of them, their humanoid bodies not hesitating to tear into the children in front of them.
The children were nothing to the heartless. They tore through the without any opposition. The reaction to the heartless by the people in the eighth district was marvelous for anyone who had never been to the slums before. They had weapons drawn the moment they heard the screams.
The citizens worked together, as a team. They did not attack. Not right on. They cornered the dashing heartless in a circle. This way there was no way for them to escape. They would pay for disrupting their afternoon, the eyes of the citizens said so.
As they narrowed the circle something occurred that the citizens did not expect. The heartless vanished in the shadows of the earth, moving underneath their feet. As they reappeared out of the circle, they did not turn on the surrounding citizens, as one might expect. Indeed there target was something or someone else.
Red Loki, a boy of sixteen years of age and standing just over five five, he looked every bit the age. Dressed in black pants and a grey t-shirt hidden by a gray travelers cloak, he seemed to blend into the wall. However the moment the heartless had crashed through that door, Red knew their target.
Drawing back the hood of the cloak revealed glowing yellow eyes and a scar on the side of his face. Left hand stretching behind his back, his hand grasped around the hilt of his weapon. As soon as it was drawn two things happened. The first was the air around him suddenly became thicker because of the amount of darkness the weapon gave off. The second was the manner of the novashadows. Their glowing yellow eyes went wide with what some might compare to emotion. Any onlooker might have thought that they were in sudden ecstasy.
Positioning the blade pointed towards the enemy he waited for their attack. When it came there was no plan of attack. There wasn't even any thinking behind the attack. And indeed as they grew closer to him, there was no mistaking the voices that sounded in his head. "Mine. They all called. As the first reached forward, its arms clawing for the weapon Red held, the blade came flying out at lightning speed.
Swinging vertically, the weapon tore through the heartless like a knife through butter. Not having the time to watch the destruction of the creature, Red pivoted his foot. By doing so he avoided another sweeping claw. Sword striking horizontally the weapon tore the novashadow's head off.
Rolling the blade in a circle to his side he twirled it to his right striking down a third heartless. That left only two of them. The ecstasy that had held them a moment ago had not erased, but the final two heartless let off. They were not as quick as the others to come into the reach of Red's blade.
Blade poised the same as before, Red eyed the two of them. One stood facing his front, the other his back. There was nothing to do but wait for them to make an attack. And when they did, the rush came in unison. Exactly what he expected them to do. "So predictable."[/i] He told himself.
There was a quick solution to a two front attack. Relying on his agile figure, he brought the blade behind his back and spun with the blade. As the first heartless came in reach, Red's blade ripped its skin. When the second came from behind, Red stopped his spin and turned to bring his blade down on his opponent. However he had not expected it to not be there. The heartless had sank under the earth as a shadow and appeared behind him, just as he made his turn. Red led out a scream as the creature sliced into his back.
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Post by Sprow on Feb 26, 2011 1:52:47 GMT -5
Jean looked around at the state of the slums. Today, she had gone through the Sector six gate. It was the only way to reach here through the outside from Kalm without having to get onto the plates above. Walking under the metallic structure, Jean couldn't help but stare up at the underbelly of the plates. Never before had she seen something so vast that it would block out the sky completely. It was like being in a completely different world.
Jean was a young lady of twenty six with very bright green eyes. She stood at five feet and seven inches and wore her faintest of blue hair in a high ponytail upon her head. Her hair draped about her shoulder and back, reaching to the edge of her shoulder blades. If her hair were undone, it would probably reach maybe to the middle of her back. Her bangs were kept out of her face with a white ribbon tied about her forehead and behind her head. Adorned in casual clothing, save for the black sword sheathes, she looked like she didn't belong here. She was far too well cared for compared to the poor down here.
Moving onwards, she patted her sword sheaths. It was out of habit to make sure her reflexes would be swift enough to nab them when she had to resort to using them. Here, she was to go through sector six to reach Wall Market. A possible business opportunity was rumored to be found there according to a job description on the bulletin board back home. Being a seasoned fighter and sell sword, Jean figured she might as well humor herself.
Pay hadn't been so elaborate lately and since her father was happily retired, it was up to her to bring home the gil. It was just the two of them, father and daughter. Jean's mother had passed away from a severe illness that could've been cured if it weren't for the fact they hadn't been very well off gil wise. Since then, Jean grew up under the loving care of her father, it was because of him that she now fought so well. A profession she was so skilled at that she preferred to fight rather than anything domestic. Making her an oddball in a room of ladies her own age. Not that she cared. Jean wasn't trying to impress anyone other than herself and make her father proud.
As she walked down the dirty path, Jean noted how much it stunk down here. The air was clearly nothing clean like in Kalm. Still, what was she to expect being in a city-like setting compared to a town like Kalm? The state of the place was quite apparent to her. There was a reason why they were called the slums. Poverty was very apparent here.
It made her cautious as she walked past an old, broken down building that was tilted to the side, holes in the rooftop indicating something must've fallen through it. Judging by the looks of it, the building had been decayed with time and traumatized with foreign bodies. The over all layout of the slums was depressing. Nothing like Jean thought it would be and she found herself mildly surprised.
As she wandered, she soon came upon Sector Eight. "Hm, looks like I took a wrong turn." Looking around, she got the feeling something was up. No citizens were in sight from where she was standing. Trying to locate someone for directions, Jean wandered further ahead. As she did so, she paused at the sound of shouting.
Following the source of the sound, she found a cluster of people dressed in rather unkempt clothing. Furrowing her eyebrows, Jean looked at them and followed their gaze in wonder. What had they been looking at?
Her eyes fell upon a youth no older than what looked to be unmistakably a teenager in his mid teens. He had the strangest sword she had ever laid eyes on. Unlike her's, the blade could apparently conduct elements and he used it to fight what appeared to be Heartless. Jean had seen those things numbers of times before. These ones were different from the type she usually saw.
For the most part, it looked like the teenager was handling it just fine. Deciding getting involved wouldn't be necessary, Jean turned as if to leave. She heard a scream and turned around again. One of the remaining Heartless managed to get him on the back. It made Jean wince seeing how nasty it was.
Unsure if whether or not he'd handle it, Jean got out her twin, black bladed swords. Might as well help him out before he went and tore his back up more moving to try and defend himself against the Heartless. It happened in the blink of an eye. One second, she was looking on at the scene and the next, she had appeared right next to the Heartless and attempted to cleave it in thirds. If she managed to cut it, Jean would then sheath her swords.
"Nice fighting back there kid, what kind of weapon do you call that sword of your's? Never saw one like it on Gaia." It was just Jean's way of starting up some talk if only a little. She had no idea who this kid was but she guessed she might as well say something.
"Name's Jean, by the way. Mind if I help you with that back injury of your's? I've Cura. It should be able to seal a wound like that." She waited for him to respond. Although, she wasn't aware that this kid was the solitary type and might take offense to her sudden arrival. Jean was just too used to a town setting and therefore used to friendlier people.
Looking at him, she figured he was old enough to be a kid brother if she ever had one. She probably was around ten years older than him. One so young yet able to fight like that, it was amazing to have seen. At his age, Jean hadn't even been that good. Then again, maybe this kid wasn't normal?
From where she was standing, she couldn't see anything so she wasn't unnerved yet by the fact one of his arms was completely skeletal underneath those bandages and glove.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2011 13:19:27 GMT -5
Pain... As the heartless clawed into his back, Red could feel the scratches on his back and the blood tickling down it from them. Still he didn't have the time to sit idly by. His opponent was still alive! Even though he knew it would hurt, Red rolled to the side of the heartless. Coming up from the roll, his blade flew into the air ready to strike the opponent. However the opponent wasn't there anymore.
Red's blade hit nothing but air as the creature was sliced into thirds by a two black colored blades. Bringing his weapon to his side he let it sit there. As his yellow eyes traced the tip of the blades up he got a look at the wielder. Standing before him was a young woman with green eyes and light blue hair donned in a pony tail. Taking in her clothing it was quite clear that she was not from this sector. She was not dressed in the usual drags that most of the slum citizens wore.
At first Red thought she was a threat. Those black blades she held were very interesting. He had never seen the likes of them before. For them to slice through the heartless that easily... Deciding it was best to appear to be off guard, Red's yellow eyes narrowed as he waited for this lady to make a move.
When she finally did, it was not the move he had expected. Red's shoulders relaxed. She was trying to help him... The thought of anyone helping someone was a bit different for him. Growing up in a place similar to this, people usually looked after one person. And that person was themselves. Still the inner child still in Red beamed at the aspact that someone thought he had "mad skills". The dominant cautious person who was forced to grow up too early, was reluctant to say anything to the woman.
Still Red had grown up in a place where his manners were expected. Because of them he felt obliged to at least thank her. "Thank you for helping me." Bowing in a grand manor while rolling his hand and then spreading it out, making it quite obvious it was not needed.
Standing from the bow, Red placed his blade back into its sheath. As he did he could feel the sting on his back. The cut on it was pretty bad. The heartless had cut into him deep. Red could feel the blood flowing down his back and the cuts hurt burning. Because of the burn it made him wince. He needed to get that mended soon.
When the lady introduced herself as Jean, Red simply gave her a nod. However his expression was different when she suggested that he let her help him. "I don't need help from an old lady." He said in a manner of fact way. Of course Jean was no where near an old lady. But Red knew a sentence like that would hurt anyone's pride. Perhaps it would get her off of him and make her leave him alone.
Turning around abruptly, Red made to take a step forward. That was when his vision started to swim. Suddenly he felt very light headed, and the scar felt like it was burning his skin right off. Falling to the floor, Red wanted to scream but couldn't. His skin felt like it was burning.
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Post by Sprow on Feb 26, 2011 18:32:53 GMT -5
Jean knew her blades' coloring was unusual but there wasn't anything really special about them. They were just colored that way. Albeit, a color not many chose over the generic silvery metallic color or sometimes the occasional red blade. The moment she stepped in, she could see the surprise on the kid's face. He hadn't been expecting help and for a short moment, she thought the kid suspected her of doing him harm.
Well, Jean had no intentions of doing someone like him harm. After all, if she was going to do him harm, why would she have helped him with that Heartless? Seeing the kid recover from his surprise, Jean merely smiled at the kid as she sheathed her swords. She was showing him that she had no intentions of hurting him in case he didn't believe her words.
She raised an eyebrow though seeing the way the kid thanked her. It was rather elaborate compared to what she was accustomed to and made her wonder if it had been a mocking gesture. Seeing the way the kid bowed though, it became clear the wound might've only slowed him down and that it hadn't bothered him all that much. Either that or he was prideful and hiding it. No matter, she didn't plan on interrogating him for it. After all, it wasn't any of her business.
"You're welcome." That had been her only response to his thanks and it was the usual friendly tone she had. The friendly attitude slipped away though the moment the kid insulted her. Old lady?! Jean was by no means an old lady. Still, there was one good way of getting him back at it just as badly.
"Fine, continue acting like a baby then." She watched the kid try to continue on his way but he didn't get very far before he fell to the ground. For a split second, she thought he had over reacted to the baby comment. It didn't take long before she figured the kid was in pain. Walking around him, not looking like she really intended to help seeing as he wanted to be difficult, she peered down at him. Rolling her eyes, shaking her head, Jean sighed at herself. Why did she have to be nice to others? Oh, right! It was because her parents brought her up to be well mannered and caring.
"You know, if you would stop for a moment and not be difficult, you wouldn't be feeling pain. You'd be healed and on your merry way again." Walking a few paces away, ahead of him as if to continue on her way, she looked back at him again. "But...since the baby thinks he doesn't need help..." she trailed off before shaking her head again.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2011 23:01:21 GMT -5
Any words that Jean might have said went in one ear and out the other. Red's vision was swimming and his ears were ringing. In fact he couldn't do much of anything besides cringe his eyes as pain flowed through him. Not only that but the burning on his back intensified every second. If Red didn't know any better he would have thought that he was poisoned.
In all honesty he really couldn't focus on any thought. Still instinct told him that he shouldn't be just laying. It left him open to all manners of attack. Yet every time he moved just an inch, pain echoed even farther up his spine and throughout his body. Still he couldn't just lay here.
Forcing himself, Red positioned his hands trying to stand up. The pain increased even more! Fighting through it, he managed to at least be able to rise to his face. His face was red and tears constantly fell from both his eyes. Putting up one foot, Red almost swayed back to the floor. Somehow he managed to keep his balance.
Blood continued to tickle down his back from the wounds. And if someone happened to actually looked at them, they would notice that the skin around the claw marks were foaming white. However his cloak and shirt covered the mess. Still fighting, Red managed to at least put both feet up. The next part would be the hardest. Pushing his hands down he forced himself to come up straight.
If anyone was saying anything to him he could not hear it. His ears rang as if someone had just screamed in them. The pain of forcing himself to stand made his vision swim. Yet he would not back down. Red had grown up on the concept that one should never give up. He could do this. Somehow he would do this.
One step forward... Then another... Then a third... That was about as far as he got before his legs grew too weak to hold him up. Not even noticing, his body raced to the floor. The impact this time would do a lot more damage then his first fall.
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Post by Sprow on Feb 28, 2011 14:12:54 GMT -5
(OOC: Sorry for the wait, writer's block and so busy, I had hardly time to reply the past few days. Anyways, here we go. Do you mind if I do this? If not, I can fix it. I just wasn't sure what to do with him looking like he's gonna die.) Jean looked down at the kid. No initial response had come from him and it made her wonder. Looking back at him, it became clear that he probably couldn't hear anything she had just said. It was sad, seeing him struggle like this and in so much obvious pain. If she didn't know any better, it looked like whatever the Heartless did to his back had been more serious than thought.
'Just what the hell is wrong with him?' she wondered, frowning slightly as she watched him struggle. It was pretty pathetic, shouldn't she just take the initiative now in healing him? Let him crab later at her for it? Just standing there, watching him try his hardest to get up again, it was difficult to not want to help the kid. Cursing her caring attitude, Jean sighed as she came up to the kid.
"Sorry, kiddo. It's painful watching you act like this!" she stated. Whether or not he could even hear her, Jean didn't care as she raised an arm and aimed it down at him. No, she wasn't about to put him out of his misery. She had no intentions of ever doing such a thing to him. In fact, she was intent on healing him in hopes that it would stop the pain. Seeing someone like this, it was unsettling to sit there and watch. She couldn't do that when she knew that she could do something about it.
'He'll probably hate me for it but whatever. Least he'll be free of that pain!' she thought. An aura surrounded her hand then as she kept it pointed at Red's back. Bright green eyes focused on the struggling youth as he stood up, only to fall forward. Reacting to it, she ended up trying to catch him to prevent him from falling. Whether or not she managed to catch him, Jean would again call forth the energy to use on him once more.
Once again, the greenish aura surrounded her entire arm before shooting out toward Red. Once it touched him, the kid would begin to feel a soothing sensation. One where it slowly ebbed his pain away. Depending on whether or not he was really poisoned, Red's main wound would be healed at the very least. As for the poisoning, if he was really poisoned, Jean would soon figure that out if he kept acting this way.
"Kid? Hey, kiddo!" she stated, trying to bring him back to the present world. She wasn't sure if she helped in time or if he had anything worse done to him.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:19:46 GMT -5
((OCC: I was hoping you would heal me lol. It is perfectly okay)) So delusional was he, that Red had no idea what Jean had just done for him. As he pain caused his vision to swim he fought against falling asleep. He knew that if he was to fall asleep at that moment the chances of him ever waking again were slim. So he fought the sleep as best as he could. In the midst of fighting that sleep, Red found the pain slowly going away.
As the pain began to evaporate, he first could feel other things beyond simply pain. In fact he could tell now that someone was holding him. Who exactly, he had no idea...
When his vision eventually returned, Red found himself being held by the woman he had called "old". He of course had only said it because he thought that it might strike a nerve. Sighing, he deemed that his legs were strong enough to hold his wait. Coming to a stand his yellow colored eyes turned on Jean. Eyes glowing slightly yellow, Red bowed.
"I apologize for before... Thank you for healing me." Feeling relieved at finally getting the words out of his mouth, Red straightened from the bow. Red couldn't help but feel in debt to Jean. After all she had saved him. Growing up he had always been told to return his favors. And so one day he vowed to return the favor.
Thinking that their business was done, Red turned away from her. Looking around he noticed that quite a few of the citizens had their eyes on him and Jean. After the scene that had just expired, he couldn't blame them. Still the popularity was unwanted. Red was trying to blend in with people, not stand out.
"Got myself into trouble again." He said to himself aloud. Perhaps it was best for him to leave the slums... If he went into the city above the plates, he might stand a better chance at blending in with people. Yes, there wasn't anything else for him to do here in the sums.
Red had just come to this conclusion, when a scream shrieked through the crowd. Turning around to see what was the commotion was, Red's eyes went up in temporary shock. His eyes had locked onto the owner of the scream. A woman near the entrance to the previous sector. However it was not the woman that brought the shock to Red's eyes, but the figure that ran past her.
The figure was dressed in a black cowl that completely hid any features of the figure's body from view. What could be seen was a jeweled foot long dagger in the figure's left hand. It was a dagger that Red very much recognized. And as the the distance between the hooded figure and himself evaporated in less then two seconds, Red had no time at all to draw his blade. All he could do was step backwards out of its reach, less he wanted to feel the blade through his chest. Still his legs were not long enough to get fully out of the way. If he was to fully dodge such an attack, someone would have to intervene.
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Post by Sprow on Mar 1, 2011 21:18:00 GMT -5
Jean could see the pain ebb away from the teenager's face as she held him. Hopefully, that wasn't a sign that his life was now over. Anxiously, she waited to see any further change. Sure enough, he opened his eyes and the coloring on his face remained in tact. He was alive and not dying. That was good. It would've been a major buzz kill to one's day to have a kid die on them.
"That's it, wakey wakey!" she stated as he blinked to clear his vision. When he was more focused, she let him push himself up onto his feet again.
Standing up, she heard his apology. Looking back at Red, she found him a bit confusing. He was singing a different tune now, apologizing and even thanking her. He hadn't crabbed at her like she thought he would have. "It's no prob. I couldn't just stand there and watch, after all." She really couldn't have. It was too painful to watch and Jean wasn't cruel.
Only then did she notice the crowd watching the scene. She paid it no mind. Jean was used to the fact people stared when something this extreme took place. Who wouldn't when some random monsters attacked and some random people fought back? She did raise an eyebrow when the kid stated he had gotten himself into trouble again. What did he mean by that?
"Guess I should head on over to Wall Market then." No sooner had she said this to herself, another commotion took place. It happened so fast, one would've missed it if they blinked. Turning, she found the teenager she just helped out faced with someone with a nasty looking blade. The teenager just barely managed to dodge the attack but at the rate he was going, she'd end up having to either heal him again or make his grave for him.
"Whoa! Chill tiger!" she exclaimed, having just barely reacted. Bringing up a sword, she just barely blocked the random figure's with her own. It was a damn lucky thing Jean's reflexes were good or poor Red would've eaten that blade. "Now that's not nice, attacking for no reason!" she stated, keeping her eyes focused on the new figure. She couldn't tell who or what they were but she wasn't about to let them kill this kid either. 'How do I keep ending up in situations like these?' she wondered.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 23:43:50 GMT -5
Artemis.... Assassin at large... Had his target right in his grasps. He could practically feel his opponent's breath as his dagger flashed to take his life once and for all. All he had to do was kill the target and take the blade back to his hire and he would have the greatest prize of them all. His last name.
However all of that hope left in the same amount of time it took for him to get within this reach. A woman... A person, Artemis ha deemed a bystander, had interfered. When the black blade flashed knocking away Artemis's own, his foot pivoted, rolling to the left and back peddling two steps. His eyes were now fully focused on the woman before him. She was a seasoned warrior, no question about that.
Because of her skills, Artemis did not rush in to attack. His eyes never really left her, but at the same time he watched his target as well. The teen had gotten over his temporary stun, and now had drawn his weapon with his left hand. Artemis had no doubt in his abilities to take these two head on, however his hire had made it clear he was not to bring to much attention to himself. Not only that, but it was bad business if the citizens who lived here got involved.
Still Artemis couldn't just leave... Not without looking like a coward anyway. Making a snap decision, Artemis's calmly let his blade drop from an offensive stance. Drawing upon his own unique abilities, the air around Artemis changed. It was almost as if the very air around him was suddenly filled with charges and indeed to all bystanders watching, one could see sparks of electricity traveling up and down his body and weapon.
Eyes setting upon the female he charged towards her, his speed increased three times as much as it was before. Closing the distance very quickly, he raised his hand towards his opponent. At that instant six pulses of electricity shot from his hand all at once and flew towards Jean. Changing direction with a single step, he closed the distance between himself and Red, his target.
As his jeweled dagger met with Red's cursed blade, the electricity traveled down the blade and towards Red. Still hidden from view, Artemis smiled as he watched his opponent leap backwards to stop the electricity. All this had happened under three seconds. Both Artemis and Red moved as if it were instinct. However Artemis had made it clear how easy it was he could take both of these opponents. So he leaped into the hair sailing over head out of distance of both Red and Jean. Not looking back he dashed into the previous district. He would get his target soon enough.
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Post by Sprow on Mar 3, 2011 1:05:32 GMT -5
Jean couldn't see the figure's face but she knew they had to have been looking at her. It was clear, at first, that they had been surprised by the sudden interference. Judging by the figure's shape, it was safe to assume it could probably be a male.
Keeping her eyes on the figure she had just stopped from killing the teenager she helped earlier, Jean made no sudden moves just yet. She wasn't just a seasoned warrior, she had once lead a high ranking military group as its general. True, she was young for someone of her caliber but she was a well experienced fighter. That didn't mean though that even she couldn't be hit or taken off guard.
Whoever the mysterious attacker was, they retaliated in a fashion that made her wonder. The wind seemed to have picked up. Considering how Midgar's slums was encased within a wall, it was difficult to see wind taking up naturally here. Wary, Jean focused on their unknown enemy. He hadn't said a word in response to her. Instead, he resorted to lowering his weapon from the offensive to kick up this strange wind which seemed to be provoking some unseen electrical force from it.
Judging by how this was turning out, some form of electrical attack was being charged up. She half considered attacking him while he was vulnerable but Jean knew better than to attack an enemy like that. She had class where he didn't.
It happened in the blink of an eye, one second, he was standing there and the next, he was practically in Jean's face. At first, it looked like he was going to attempt to attack her with his blade. It wasn't until he extended his hand out did she realize what he was sup to, a little too late. Leaping aside, she got hit by two surges of the electrical energy. The power so intense, it made her bend to one knee as she gritted her teeth. Jean still held her weapons at the ready though. Right now, she couldn't stand up seeing as her muscles were all contracting from the electrical shock but she would survive.
It had distracted her long enough to allow him to turn on Red. When she was able to look at them fully, she saw the unknown warrior leave after crossing blades with Red. It all happened so quickly, Jean wondered as she got to her feet slowly again. It hurt to have been fried a bit but she wasn't going to die. It was a lucky thing and it angered her how she had been surprised like that. She wouldn't make the same mistake a second time.
"That was...fast." Despite her pain, her voice sounded casual. She looked back over at Red curiously. "Any idea who that was?" she asked him, wondering if he had encountered this figure before.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 3, 2011 16:42:43 GMT -5
From Red's perspective Artemis wasn't as neraly talented as he thought he was. Indeed when Artemis went for an attack, Red had been prepared to step back. It was because of that, he was able to dodge the electricity from shocking him as it did Jean.
Blade parried, Red was in for a surprise when Artemis turned about and leaped out of the way. As Red watched him go he couldn't help but ask out loud, "Well what was the point in that?"
Putting away his blade, Red turned over to Jean. He hadn't noticed the pulses of electricity, because of how focused he was on the figure's movement towards him. After all it made no sense to go after Jean. His target was clearly Red, himself.
Walking over to where Jean was, gazing up and down her body looking for any signs of permanant damage. Well if she was so easily standing up right after such an attack, she was more of a warrior then Red had judged her for. Folding his arms, one looking much smaller and bonier then the other from inside the jacket, Red's eyes locked back to where the opponent had come from.
"Trouble... And not the last of it." That was all Red really could say. He had no idea who the figure really was, nor had this been the first time he had encountered him. "Which means I need to leave before trouble comes back."
This was what Red's life consisted of now. Running... Constantly running from every shadow, every disturbance, every hooded figure. All because of the stupid weapon he held on his back. "I'm sorry you got involved in this... But you won't live long. Trouble will come to you now because of me." Which was true. Every person that had ever helped Red was dead.
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Post by Sprow on Mar 4, 2011 2:20:57 GMT -5
If Jean had gotten the full brunt of the attacks, she might've not been standing. Heck, she probably would've been close to death maybe. Still, her endurance was remarkable. Having been through a lot of harsh training under her father and through real life experiences, she wasn't a push over. Why else would she have become a general?
Once the enemy was gone, Jean waited for the teenager from before to answer her. Judging by the way he spoke, the figure wasn't anything new to him. According to him, it was the usual trouble he kept coming across.
"I see, nothing new eh?" she replied before he spoke up again. Judging by the way his arms were crossed, she wondered about the thin look to one of his arms. Why did it seem skinnier than the other? Was it even...bony? She really couldn't tell since it was covered. Trying not to pay it much mind, Jean focused on what he was saying to her.
She had to laugh, raising an eyebrow at what the kid said to her. Clearly, he had no idea what Jean was. It wasn't like she would allow herself to die any time soon. Being a seasoned fighter, it wouldn't be easy to kill her off just yet. Especially now that she was aware of what sort of thing she had just dealt with. "Don't worry about me. Anyone crazy enough to take me on, a former general, will find themselves in more trouble than they can afford." She wasn't bragging either. It was obvious by the light of her bright green eyes that she had said it rather seriously and was speaking the truth.
True, that idiot earlier got her with some electricity but she was still standing. No permanent damage was apparent on her body.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2011 12:50:22 GMT -5
Red nodded to Jean's explanation. From the short glimpses he had seen of her fighting style, there was no doubt that she would be a match for the assassin. Except Red didn't think she really comprehended the technique. An assassin was an expert at killing you when you were not on your guard. That was what made an assassin successful.
Growing up in the slums of the Enchanted Domain, Red knew a lot about how murderers and thieves worked. They attacked when all the elements were in their favor and not a moment earlier. They would not openly challenge you to a battle. They would use every dirty trick in the book to win. That was why Red had said Jean would most likely be dead. He had seen many a warrior get killed by the knife when he was least expecting it,
But it was not Red's place to say or explain this to Jean. He couldn't look out for everyone. He wanted to help Jean, but the only way he could really help her was if she went with him. And there was no way she would simply travel with someone like him. Still waiting around here wasn't going to help him any. He was an open target right now.
Unfolding his arms he turned to Jean. "I don't suppose you no of any inns nearby. I really shouldn't be just standing here out in the open like this."
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Post by Sprow on Mar 4, 2011 20:29:07 GMT -5
Jean knew very well what assassins were. She had to deal with them when she was a general. She was usually her boss's main bodyguard when it came down to it. He had trusted her that much despite her youthfulness. Always, she had to have her guard up, even now. True, that situation earlier had caught her off guard somewhat but she wasn't about to let it happen again.
She knew the other had to have been thinking with all the consequences trouble may bring but she wasn't afraid. If she decided to be afraid, she would only cause herself problems more often than a would-be assassin out to get her.
Live life to its fullest, that was how she lived. Worrying about the future never let you get things done. That was why it was so easy for her to leave for a while without worrying about what would happen to her father. He could always hold his own even though he was retired. It was to be expected since he had trained her for the most part of her life, it was from him that she learned how to fight so well. He wasn't even that old to begin with either being around his middle to late forties.
When Red finally turned around to face her again, she listened to the question. He was right, it wasn't a smart move to stay out here in the open. Danger seemed to have passed for now but it would surely return if they didn't get a move on. What the kid wanted to find was an inn. "Well, if it's an inn you want, I know of one...not exactly the best of places but it should do." She turned toward the pathway that would lead from here.
"Where I'm going, they have an inn. You can rest up there if you wish...I just need to figure out which sector this is." Looking around, Jean figured this was sector eight. "Sector Eight huh? Looks like we've got a bit of a walk...c'mon!" she said, heading down a route she figured would take them around sector seven and into sector six. Wall Market was where they were going.
It was a bit of a walk before they finally reached it, all the while Jean had her guard up. "Here we are. Wall Market. There's an inn not that far from where we are." Even though she was an out of towner, she knew where to go. Apparently, she had come here often.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2011 23:37:02 GMT -5
Following Jean through the district, Red kept up his guard. He was not about to let any more enemies sneak up on him tonight. He paid for that moment of surprise back there with the assassin. Because of this, his eyes flashed at every change of shadow or surrounding as they walked.
Going through the seventh district, he didn't see many people. Seeing as how alot of enemies liked to hang around this area, it did not surprise him. Still he knew that the assassin was out of there. Probably watching their every movement.
Red's worry only stopped when they arrived at Wall Market. Having never been in such an area in the slums, Red was a bit surprised by how many people were out and about. There was everything anyone might need here. Indeed Red noticed the INN not to far off.
Reaching into his pockets Red's face lit up in shock. His wallet was gone. All of the money he had stolen... a good 1000, was gone. Sighing aloud, Red tried to think how his money could have just disappeared. Reaching into his other pockets he searched for the money to no avail.
"Someone stole the money I stole." He said to himself aloud. He didn't have any money for an inn now... Sighing Red thought about his options. Perhaps it would be another day sleeping in the streets.
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Post by Sprow on Mar 5, 2011 12:52:30 GMT -5
There was quite a crowd in the streets. It wasn't anything out of the normal for a place like Wall Market. It was a market after all, this number of people was to be expected. That's also what made it dangerous. The high number of people here allowed for more crime to take place. Most of the things that usually happened were disappearances or theft.
"And just like I said, there's the inn." She gestured toward it. Although, she didn't know why she did. It was quite obvious that it was there since it was so close to them. Oh well, better to point it out then not and the kid not find it. It wasn't like an inn one would really recognize as one anyway.
She watched as the teenager started to rummage through all his pockets. Seeing the hurried, frantic search she could tell he must've realized something was missing. Sure enough, he said aloud to himself that the money he stole had been stolen from him. "Well, isn't that ironic?" she stated. He had stolen money from someone else only for someone else to steal from him. Oh, the bitter irony.
"...Hm." Thinking about his situation, she looked around the given area. Considering she could pick up a job any old time and she wasn't really in need for gil, she could at least help him out again. Although, she had to wonder exactly what will become of all this. First saving the kid's life, healing him, the assassin, bringing this kid here and now this? What would happen next? She didn't plan on letting herself get killed off so her guard was up.
Any wandering guy that looked her way got a firm glare as they passed. Wall Market was also known for the kidnappings of random ladies close to her or Red's age. "Alright, you can borrow some gil from me." She started rummaging through her pockets for the gil. Worse case scenario, she always brought herself some extra in case she found herself in a situation where she'd need to rest at an inn or something.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2011 22:26:49 GMT -5
Red's eyes flashed her way. Could he honestly take her money.... It would just put him more in her debt. Still... There had to be some way he could earn some money. Eye's glancing around Wall Market, they landed on a board with the heading "Hunts" listed above it. Before She could give him the money, he ran over to that board.
He wasn't the only person there though. A couple of people were their studying the board as well. One was the tallest person, Red had ever seen. Standing as tall as seven feet he was a large man donned in only pants and a large axe hanging over his shoulder. The person next to him was much smaller. With a petite figure, she was dressed in green robes and leaned on a wizard's staff.
Trying to look tough next to the season warriors, Red stood tall. Gazing at the board he looked at the various posters listed there. All of them called for a party to come and take care of an enemy or two. One poster however caught his attention more then the rest. In fact their was no picture just a description. "A nasty heartless towering at least ten feet tall and taking the form of a giant plant. Will pay 1000 Gill to anyone who can take down this monster."
That was the one. Walking up to the board he went to grab the poster, however at the same time the seven foot tall warrior went as well. Suddenly his eyes slowly turned until they rested on Red. There was a challenge in his eyes, that much was clear. In response Red's hand went to his weapon, however he did not draw it.
"Hunts aren't for kids..." He said in a matter of fact way. Red's eyes returned the scowl. It was quite clear Red didn't like being called a kid. He deserved a better title and more respect. Red's idea had been that instead of taking Jean's money, perhaps she could help him with a hunt and they could split the money. That way he wouldn't owe her any more money.
Still it was looking like this was not going to be all that easy... "Well hunts aren't for old men either." That brought a flash of anger to the warrior's eyes as his own hand gripped tighter on the axe. Things weren't looking good. The mage on the warrior's side was trying to calm the giant, and it even appeared to have worked. That is, until Red snatched the paper and made a run for it.
Not even bothering to look back he ran towards Jean. As he approached her, the heavy footsteps of the giant chasing him, he went to grab her hand to pull her along with him.
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Post by Sprow on Mar 6, 2011 4:10:48 GMT -5
Jean linked as Red took off on her. "Where are you-?!" she never got to finish her sentence since Red had already gotten just out of ear shot. He didn't wander too far though. She could easily see that a bulletin had grabbed his immediate attention. Merely observing the situation, Red appeared much smaller than the guy nearest of him. In fact, the guy next to him was sort of like a giant.
Next to him, there was a small figure that looked to be the healing sort. All of them appeared to be fixed on the bulletin board. Jean didn't pay it mind whenever she came here. If she were desperate for gil, she would resort to hunts. However, her purpose for coming here had been something she had seen back in Kalm and not here.
It wasn't long before Red had returned. Behind him, she was quite surprised to see the taller guy chasing after Red. Not really sure what to think of what Red just gotten them into, Jean made to try and confront the giant. However, Red had other plans in mind. Before she realized what was going on, he had managed to steer her away from the giant and forced her to follow his lead as he ran. She could easily break from his grip if she wanted to but seeing as she really couldn't think at the moment as to who was really in the wrong here, she settled for following after the teenager.
"Whoa! Whoa! Just where are we going?" she called ahead to him. Red didn't seem like he was stopping any time soon as they made their escape from the tall axe wielder. At the rate they were going, he wouldn't be able to catch up to them unless one of them tripped. Being light on her feet, it wasn't hard for Jean to eventually keep in step with Red as he ran.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2011 0:26:03 GMT -5
Red didn't let go of her hand as he ran. He really didn't have time to think about anything right at this moment. Not when the giant was still on their trail. Eventually though, they began to outrun the large beast. Eventually he was brought to a halt. However Red didn't stop then. He continued his dash, right out of Wall Market.
Running through the districts he allowed himself to slow down just a bit. He was in no way surprised by the question Jean posed to him. "Were going on a hunt. That way you don't have to pay for me and yet help me at the same time. And this was the best hunt there and there was no way I was going to let that old guy get it."
Finally slowing down, Red took the chance to take a look at where they were. They had run through district after district. Not really knowing exactly where they were, he did notice an odd church like building not far off. "Where the hell are we?" He asked more to himself then to anyone else.
The good thing was that the giant and his mage were no longer chasing them. The bad thing was that Red had no idea where they were. Still.. As his eyes fell on the church he pulled up the hunt poster he had taken from the board. "Hmm... I think the informant of the hunt is in there."
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Post by Sprow on Mar 7, 2011 2:40:48 GMT -5
They seemed to run for what seemed like hours. Where they were going, Jean didn't know. It was obvious though at the rate they were going that they would lose themselves along the way. Sure, she had been to Midgar and Edge numbers of times but only certain areas. She never really ventured into it too deeply. Now, she was regretting the fact she hadn't as Red kept leading them on, making her run along with him.
Long after the giant stopped chasing them, only then did Red finally slow down. When he finally answered her, she blinked. Apparently, this teenager decided that doing a hunt would be better for her to aid him than paying for him. That the reason the giant had been chasing them was because of the fact he had swiped the best hunt.
"Well, if that's the way you want it, then that's fine. I'll help you hunt whatever it is that you're hunting then." She continued to let Red lead her on, although he wouldn't let go of her hand as he kept running onward.
It wasn't until they came upon an old, ruined church when the kid finally stopped. Breathing, Jean looked around at where they stopped. She didn't know Midgar too well except for the areas she visited more often. Here, she was unfamiliar with. Hearing the teenager's question, she just shrugged in response. "Your guess is as good as mine."
She turned toward Red then after taking a look at their surroundings. Watching him pull up the wanted paper, she raised an eyebrow as he stated that the church looked like the informant's location. Turning toward this, she wondered about it. "If it says then guess we unintentionally found the place right off."
Glancing over her shoulder, she wondered what she was suppose to call him other than kid or kiddo. "You know, I gave you a name...what can I call you if you don't want to use your real name? Just so I'm not constantly saying things like kid, kiddo, or hey you!"
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