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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 20:51:13 GMT -5
White had never thought that he would fit three people on his bike. It wasn't made to fit three people. Somehow though he managed it. They didn't have a portal that would send them immediately there. With Mr. Thomas and Arya gone there was no flying dragon for Lance to sit on. So that was how they ended up squished on White's gummi bike.
The trip had taken a couple of days, but as they entered the atmosphere, White could see the large jungle below. He had never been to this world before, and as he drove he looked for the only sign of life he could see. In a small break in the jungle were a number of huts. At one point hundreds of years ago they had been nothing more then tents.
However the few people who visited the Deep Jungle would find the small village with a single inn. It was there that White aimed for. Of course landing in a jungle wasn't easy. Not only that but he was having a hard time slowing down.
He was aware of the sound of the people behind him complaining that he was going to fast, but there wasn't anything he could do about. As they sped for the ground, White had no choice. "Jump!" He shouted. They were about ten feet from the ground when White jumped off.
It wasn't too high, but at the speed they were going White was forced to roll as he landed on the ground. The booming sound of his bike hitting a tree was loud enough to be heard across the jungle. White, pulling himself up to his knees looked at his bike in tears. "Whyyyyyyyyyy?!" He just had no luck with his bike.
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Sky Fear was dressed in his traditional garments. Naked except for a piece of loin cloth hanging between his legs and the bow on his back, he had his dagger in hand. He watched the bear as it walked from the river.
He hid in the tree, waiting for the bear to come to the fish directly below it. Sky was a hunter. The last of his kind alive. He had grown up here among his tribe. And he had watched them all die as well. He had left this world, searching for the cause of that death. But he had never found it. The dark one had escaped him.
And so he had returned here. To return to his ways and to reset his mind. Hunting was the way of his people, so he returned to it. He could hear the words of his mentor even now. "There is a peace in hunting. A knowledge that cannot be given any other way. When one hunts there is only the hunter and the pray. This is what makes that knowledge accessible."
Watching the bear, Sky readied himself from his branch. He would pounce upon the bears back the moment it went for the fish. It was practically there now, just a few more steps. Sky would have had it if not for the loud boom not to far in the distance. The bear, suddenly became afraid and quickly retreated back into the forest.
Sky slammed his dagger into the wood of the tree. He stood and looked to the smoke he saw rising somewhere farther in the jungle. Someone had just interrupted him. Ge was going to find out who.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 3, 2012 21:06:41 GMT -5
Darius and Lance had bickered now and then on the back of White's Gummi Bike. Mainly, it had been Darius and Lance fighting over who should budge how much and what not. Having been traveling for a few days on the bike, it wasn't a wonder if they were already sick of each other on this bike. No doubt, they would need to find out how to travel without getting this crowded again in case a situation like this were to happen in the future.
As soon as the world came into view, Darius and Lance had shut up to look at the world in wonder. It was indeed, a jungle and quite a vast one. The green canopy of the trees only opened up here and there. In one of the openings, a rather large clearing, there was an inn viewable from where they were.
"Didn't think they would have an inn here. I thought the place would be isolated." Lance gave a nod of agreement, the first thing he actually agreed upon with Darius since leaving Enchanted Dominion. Unfortunately, fate decided to give them another kick in the ass. White's Gummi Bike was going down to the ground but it was really going quite fast!
"Uh...White? Do you think you can er...slow down a bit?" Darius inquired but White said nothing. It looked like he was too preoccupied with the bike for the time being. Darius looked worriedly ahead of them and then at White and back again. They were headed right for a tree!
"Holy sh-!" Lance exclaimed, noticing the tree coming at them at break neck speed. At White's sudden warning, all three of the guys had dived off the bike, bailing. Landing roughly, Lance patted himself, checking for the book. He found it there soon enough. He would've left it in his bag but thought the closer it was to him, the safer it would be. When he found it, he calmed. "Is...everyone alright?"
Darius popped up from a bush the moment he heard White elongating a despaired 'Why' in response to his bike crashing into a tree. Neither of them knew of the figure's hunt they had just interrupted. "White...no offense but I think we need to work on them riding skills!" Darius stated, getting to his feet and brushing himself off just as Lance did.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 21:42:44 GMT -5
White whipped the tears from his eyes as Darius informed him that they needed to work on his riding skills. This was going to cost a fortune to fix! White spent so much time and effort into designing that bike. Sighing, White got to his feet and took out the small circle he always kept with him.
Tossing it by the bike, the small circle expanded underneath the bike until it covered it. An orb came from the circle and enclosed around the bike. Then the bike vanished in a shower of sparks. The circle's orb pulled back like a window being closed. Once it had shrank back to its normal size, White picked it up and placed it on his belt.
He would have to find some spare parts some how if they were going to get off the world at some point. For now though they were here for another reason. White had landed just outside the small village. "Let's go see whats in the village." Perhaps someone there could give them some information about training in this jungle.
White led the way, breaking into the village. White counted twelve small huts, a large hut with the words "inn" by a moogle who sat on a laid out carpet, and a large hut in the center of the village as well. There were a few woman, children, and elderly men dressed in garments made of different animals skins, who were walking in the village.
Upon appearance of the strangers, the village grew completely silent. White counted about six women, two elderly men, and three children. They all stared at the strangers a look of concern on their face. Given White, Darius, and Lance's garments, it was clear that they were outsiders. White could see that the village people here did not trust them. After all with a kantana on his back, White might not appear that friendly. Also seeing as they had just caused a loud explosion the people here didn't seem to trust them.
"Be you friend of foe?!" A voice from the gathered group spoke. It was a child's voice, a boy's.
White glanced over to Darius. He wasn't the best when talking among people. He tended to make things worse then they should be. He would leave it to him to talk.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 3, 2012 22:04:57 GMT -5
Darius mentally sighed, looking at the state of the bike. Yes, once or if they ever got it fixed, they would have to work on the whole riding thing. They didn't want to have to end up paying thousands all the time because of the bike crashing every time they went to another world. After brushing themselves off, Lance and Darius walked over to where White was as White tossed his circle contraption. It opened up under his bike and engulfed it, becoming a simple circle again. White collected it and then spoke. Both gave a nod in answer to White's words as they headed into the village.
As they went, it was clear that the three of them weren't of this world. For one, the garments people here wore weren't as detailed. Plus, the fact these people were living in a very warm climate, they didn't have a need for as much covering as Darius, White and Lance had. As soon as the three of them stepped into town, everyone there went silent. Darius could feel everyone's gaze as they walked.
Suddenly, a voice was heard from the crowd after they had all come to a stop. Be they friend or foe? Darius glanced over at White. He seemed to want to let Darius do the talking. Glancing over at Lance, Lance gave a nod at Darius to show that he had the stage. Sighing to himself, since he didn't always enjoy being the speaker of their group, stepped forward. He wasn't sure which boy had said it but he would answer him none the less.
"We mean you no harm. We crash landed here. You may call us friend. My name is Darius and my friends here are Lance and White." Darius had explained their situation and introduced them all to the people here.
"Can anyone tell us where we are?" Lance inquired. "I know we are in Deep Jungle but what's the name of your village?"
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 22:35:54 GMT -5
White noticed the gathered people broke into smiles upon hearing that they were friends. They mumbled among each other. White heard words like strong fighters, what strange clothes, and even some he's a cutie from the women. White didn't know who they were talking about but he blushed slightly.
One of the elderly men though stepped forward. "Hush, hush." He said, quieting those around him. White noticed that some doors had opened to reveal new faces as well. White though didn't have time to study them though since their attention had been drawn to the elderly man that stepped forward.
"Welcome Darius, Lance, and White." He greeted them. "We are what is left of the Village of Stam. You are in the only remaining tribe of the Deep Jungle I am afraid. What, may I ask, are your reasons for coming here?"
White stepped forward to answer this one. "We've come to become stronger. We were told by someone that this world has many opportunities to train and become stronger."
The group had grown while they had been talking. Every door to a hut had opened and the people gathered, White noticed, were all women, children, and elderly men. White heard more sounds of strong warriors then. There were about thirty people now in front of them.
"Hush everyone hush." The old man said again quieting the group. The old man went to speak again, but a small girl of about seven stepped forward from the crowd.
"Um... sirs.... Please will you save my papa." There were many sounds of gasps and a women from the crowd stepped forward and placed her hand over the child's mouth and apologizing over and over.
The old man, held up his hand to quiet the group. "I'm sorry about that. Kahli here spoke out of turn. Sadly we cannot help you. Those who might be able to train you are no more."
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Post by Sprow on Sept 3, 2012 22:54:32 GMT -5
Darius was relieved to see that people here no longer saw them as a threat. Instead, they had smiled and seemed to accept them. In fact, they seemed to accept them too enthusiastically. If they meant them real harm, there was probably a chance these people would be taken advantage of. Thankfully, Darius, Lance and White were the good guys in all of this. As people gathered around them, Darius could see there were a number of women, children and elderly men. No man of their forties or adulthood seemed to be around from what Darius could see. Maybe there was some sort of hunt going on? They were villagers after all. Darius wouldn't really know, he wasn't an academic like Ivory had been. He never enjoyed studying for anything. He loved his sports.
Darius rubbed the back of his head hearing the people talking amongst themselves. It wasn't hard to hear some women admiring their group. Probably White more so because of his hair being the lightest out of them. 'I feel awkward with this many people giving us so much attention,' he thought.
An elderly man came before them then. Darius and Lance looked over at him as he told the people around to hush. He had welcomed them and told them that they were in the only known tribe here on Deep Jungle. They were known as the Stam tribe. He then asked them what their reasons were for coming here. No doubt, he was trying to figure out what they were up to and it was understandable. Darius would ask any off worlder questions too if he were in his shoes. It was White that answered the old man's question. Lance and Darius had both nodded at this to further confirm what White had said.
While they had been talking, Darius couldn't help but notice the number of people gradually growing. Before long, Darius soon realized nearly every hut and door was open and nearly every head and pair of eyes was facing them. It was overwhelming but Darius didn't let it bother him too much. He was used to getting a lot of attention from people. It reminded him almost of what things had been like during and after football games. Darius would have to run to the field before people tried to stop him to talk with him only for more people to gather around and make quite a crowd. The old man had to quiet them again but a little girl came before them regardless.
Darius and Lance looked at her as she asked them if they could save her father. A woman parted from the crowd, placing her hand on the little girl's mouth to silence her as she apologized for her daughter's actions over and over again. Darius wondered what could be wrong with the little girl's father. Was it an injury maybe?
The old man silenced the group again before apologizing for Khali's speaking out of turn. No doubt, that was the little girl's name. Unfortunately, the tribe here couldn't help them. Whoever could have helped them wasn't here anymore. Darius and Lance exchanged glances with each other and White before giving a nod each. "Then...that's fine, we couldn't ask you to train us if you're unable to. We can train with each other and maybe even the wildlife here if we have to. Unfortunately, White's Gummi Bike is broken. Do you know anyone here that has any spare Gummi parts? Or knows how to repair Gummi Bikes? If not...do you mind us staying at your inn here until we can get the repairs done?" he inquired. He figured they had an inn. Maybe there was a slight chance they did? Probably not. Still, it was worth a shot.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2012 23:07:46 GMT -5
White listened to the little girl his heart going out to her. He, like Darius, wondered what had happened to her father that she needed them to help. It was a long shot to see if they could help them. When the old man had confirmed that they could not, White found himself sighing. So much for that... White had hoped that they could get right to training and in an effective way.
He hadn't wanted to take so much time because he wanted to get to Halloween Town and to Mr. Thomas. Arya was who knows where right now. They needed to do something to get her back. Darius had went ahead and asked them about gummi parts and if they could stay in the inn.
"You are most welcome to stay in the inn. It isn't much but what is ours is yours." The old man said with a genuine smile to their group. Everyone was very friendly here.
"I might be able to help you with your bike, kuppo." The moogle, being so small, had gone by unnoticed by White until he had come from the crowd. It was odd to see a moogle here, but the creatures were found pretty much everywhere. They were known for their handy stores across the universe.
The women and children were all still starring at White, Darius, and Lance. The majority of them were in their thirties or forties, but some were around their age as well. When White gave a group of them a smile in greeting they erupted in giggles. This of course caused White to blush.
The elderly man though seemed to think it was enough. "Alright now everyone back to work. Come with me sirs, I'll show you the inn."
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Post by Sprow on Sept 3, 2012 23:24:51 GMT -5
Darius returned the smile the old man had given them. "Thank you. We appreciate it." Darius, Lance and White certainly appreciated it. Whatever help they could get, the better. They were on a mission, after all. Unfortunately, right now, they were focused on rescuing Arya but to do that, they had to meet up with Mr. Thomas first. Aside from that, they also needed to get stronger. If they remained as they were, if they ran into an enemy during their rescue mission they were as good as dead. There was no telling how strong all of the other committee members were. If Ivory and Smiles had been able to apprehend most of them, there was no telling what else they could face.
Darius looked over as a Moogle spoke. He had thought he seen a Moogle earlier. "We would be most appreciative if you did." It was then that Darius took notice of the crowd around them again. There were a lot of women in their early thirties and forties. Of course, there were some their about their age. Darius could already see White had a considerable number of fangirls amongst the village women already. When White smiled at them in greeting, they giggled at him.
As Darius looked over at Lance, he could see the Wilder was rather stoic. He showed no expression upon his face but he didn't look upset or anything. Even still, there were three girls already taking notice in him. 'We'd better watch out or we might get mobbed by village girls!' Darius thought, also noticing that it seemed that actually their whole group was being overly admired. It was awkward to say the least.
Almost as if he had noticed, the old man spoke up again. Taking his attention away from the crowd, Darius turned to him. The old man claimed that he would lead them to the inn. "Thank you, sir." With that, Lance and Darius followed the old man's lead.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2012 0:14:55 GMT -5
The crowd was a bunch of sighs and moans, but they broke up about the same amount as they came. Many returned to their homes while a select few remained outside to do whatever business they were about. The elder led them to the second largest hut in town. It was about the size of an average hut, except it was made completely of wood and had a hay roof. White wondered how that kept out rain.
Going inside, White found the inn a lot different from the inns he was used to. There was no tavern or serving girls in the main room. A woman in her fifties greeted them with smiles and hugs. "Welcome." She said to each of them in turn. White was a bit unaccustomed to such forwardness and stood awkwardly when the woman wrapped her arms around him.
The room had no tables and wasn't very large. There was only a small wooden desk and two doors. "I got it no Jeb, you can leave these two to me."
The elder smiled. "Well if you need anything I live in the hut closest to the entrance." With that he left them to the inn keeper.
She was a bright old woman who led them to the door to the left. "We only have one room for guests sadly." Opening the door, she revealed a small room with three single cots, a small lamp stand made of unpainted wood, and a wooden open closet. There was a single window and looking overhead, White made out a flat roof made of wood overhead. So the wood kept the rain out, not the hay. That was good to know.
"I live just through that other door. If you need anything just knock. We have a communal dinner in the hut in the center of the village in a couple of hours. Now is there anything else?"
White shook his head. "Nope, thanks though Ms...?"
The woman smiled. "Mrs. Houlu." With a smile she retreated. It was a small room, but White thought it good enough. He had stayed in smaller rooms back when he traveled with Justice.
"It's small but I think it'll do. What do you guys think?" White asked this just as the door to their room opened. The small girl from before rushed into the room in tears. She ran right to Darius, wrapping her arms around him. She was only four feet tall so her head only went up to his chest.
"Please! Please save my papa!" She said between tears.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 4, 2012 1:03:45 GMT -5
Darius and Lance looked at the hut they were brought to. It looked like any hut except that it was different in size. If anything, it looked a little bigger than the others. As they stepped inside, led in by the elderly man, Darius looked around. As they stepped inside, a woman in her fifties smiled and walked over to them, hugging each of them. Honestly, it was a bit forward compared to what Darius was used to but he still returned a hug in greeting to be polite. Lance doing the same, both figuring it must be their custom to greet others in such fashion.
It was smaller than what they were used to but Lance was happy for it. There wasn't a tavern for White to go and get himself completely drunk like that last time. Lance could really do with a break from that sort of thing considering the trouble White had gotten them into. He was lucky that Princess Leliana had seemed to finally forgive his behavior and that her father was a reasonable man.
"Thank you sir for aiding us." Darius had said that as the old man took his leave of them. Now, it was just them and the old woman. She took them to a room to the left. Inside, there were three small cots. Darius didn't mind the size at all. He didn't think they would be spending much time in here anyways except to sleep so it would serve that purpose. "This looks good to me, thank you, Mrs. Houlu." Lance said the same and the elderly woman took her leave of them. Now, it was just them.
"I don't mind, it serves its purpose." Darius gave a nod at what Lance had said. All of a sudden, before Darius could turn around, he found himself being hugged tightly and in desperation by the young girl, Khali. She was begging them to save her father again. Lance looked down at the little girl with concern, taking a step towards them to better hear the girl. Darius,not sure what else to do, pretty much hugged the little girl gently in attempts to be comforting.
"There, there. Calm down..." he spoke to her gently. It was like the times he had when Ivory suddenly burst into tears when she was little. Looking down at her, Darius spoke again. "We'll try to help you, Khali. What's wrong with your father?" he asked her, taking that moment to place his hands on her shoulders as he waited for an answer. She was so tiny compared to him. The fact she was crying seemed to make him want to help her all the more and as he glimpsed the others, he could see the will to want to help this girl too. (OOC: Last post I can make tonight, have to sleep. Work! See you tomorrow!)
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2012 13:21:02 GMT -5
White was surprised by the sudden appearance of the small girl again. She ran right for Darius, pleading with them once again to save her "papa". It was a sad thing to see the small child cry, and it brought a tear to White's eye as well.
"She must have followed us here when her mother wasn't looking." The way her mother had acted before, it was clear that she hadn't wanted Khali to come to think like this. However White couldn't just stand by when this girl was in obvious pain. She was asking for their help, and White planned on doing what he could to help her.
Darius had the right of it to ask her to calm down and then ask what's wrong. She composed herself enough to separate from them. Her eyes and cheeks were read.
She whipped her teary eyes with her arm, and then looked up to Darius. "The... the... the savages have him!" She barely got the words out before she erupted in tears and cries.
The door opened to their room once more, and the inn keeper stood in the doorway. "Is something the.... oh." She began to ask them if there was anything wrong, but she paused when she spotted Khali. "Oh child." The girl ran over to the older woman and buried herself in a hug.
"I'm so sorry about this. Khali's only seven summer seasons, and she's been a bit emotional lately."
White really wanted to know what Khali had meant by savages. What had happened here? "Um... mam if you don't mind me asking, what is Khali talking about."
The inn keeper sighed, taking Khali by the hand she said to White. "Just a moment... Khali why don't you go help yourself to some pie. There's some in the kitchen."
"Ok, Mrs. Houlu." The small child whipped her teary eyes once more before departing. The inn keeper went ahead and closed the door behind them.
She sighed once more before speaking to the three of them. "Jeb doesn't want you to get involved, but I don't see no harm in sharing information with you. There are really two villages in this Deep Jungle. We are the Village of Stam, people of the leaf. The other village is the Village of Vuli, the people of the beasts as we understand. As you can see we are a peaceful people, we hunt only what we must and are made of people from many different worlds. The Village of Vuli are a warring tribe. Often have our peoples clashed, and many have died from these battles.
"About a year ago Jeb made an alliance with the tribal leader of Vuli. We separated the jungle down the center, granting them their land and us ours. We agreed to a peace time. Things remained that way till about two months ago. I think the first hunting party to go missing was seven weeks ago. Seven of our fine warriors simply vanished to never return. A party of seven more went out to search for them as well. They too never returned. Just a week ago the remaining men in the village set out to search for them. Now a week has gone by and no one has returned."
Mrs. Houlu grew quiet for a short moment. "My husband as well as Khali's father were in the last party. Many of us believe it is the Vuli, breaking the peace. Many are sleeping with one eye open, thinking it is only a matter of time before they come for us. We have no more warriors. Only women, children, and the elders."
It was a heartbreaking story to hear. White had never come in contact with a tribal people before. He found the way of things a bit strange to him. To think that there were still people out there who warred and hunted. "I'm going to have to bring them a microwave oven next time."[/i] White thought to himself.
Still he couldn't help but feel saddened by the inn keeper's story. All of their husbands, fathers, and friends, were gone. Living in fear was no way to live. "That's why there is no one who can help us train." White thought aloud.
The inn keeper nodded.
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Sky had made it to the border and paused. He had thought that the explosion had been on this side of the border line, but he was wrong. He was the only member left of his tribe, but he did not feel right breaking the laws that his mentor had put into place when he had been alive.
"Tradition... Without tradition what are we Sky?" He could hear his wisdom even now. Turning back, Sky decided it was just better to continue the hunt. He turned, beginning to walk back to set another trap when the sound of movement behind him made him pause.
Sky had excellent hearing skills. Such was the training of his mentor. He could pick up the sound of movement, and so he spun around. He didn't bother with the knife. As he turned with his arm stretched out, his bow fell to his hand. Drawing an arrow with his free hand, he drew it back and pointed it at the sound of the movement.
The wisp of the arrow speeding pass as he let loose, the thrumming sound of the bow string as it let loose, all of this were welcoming sounds for the hunter. The arrow landed exactly where he had aimed, but his foe was faster. The dark one fell into a shadow and shot out from underneath the shade of the tree. Sky's eyes widened as he drew another arrow, knocked it, and let loose. The dark one though was faster. It did not come for him. Instead it retreated into the forest farther out of his reach.
The dark one had been on the other side of the border. He had thought that the dark one had left the world. He had watched it leave after it massacred its tribe and turning them into more dark ones.
"We are the hunters of the dark. When spotted a dark one must be hunted, for if we do not they will simply continue to bring death. We are the people of the hunt. And it is our duty to kill the darkness."
His mentor's words sounded in his head once more. They were only memory now, but they were all he had left of him. Sky made a decision then. He crossed the borderline.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 4, 2012 23:18:15 GMT -5
Well, it was no surprise the little girl had gotten here on her own. Darius didn't see her mother anywhere around here. Lance gave a nod at White when he had said this. When Khali pulled herself away to answer Darius's inquiries, Lance listened. Both Darius and Lance blinked in surprise at what the girl had just said. Savages? What did she mean by that? Who were they? Before they could ask her further about it, Khali had erupted into tears and cries.
"It's alright, it's alright. Khali, who are they?" he asked her but it was no use. She couldn't manage to come through her sorrow enough to answer anymore. As if sensing the situation, the elderly innkeeper opened the door asking if there had been anything wrong. She had cut herself short though when she discovered that it had been Khali. Noticing the woman, Khali ran from them to run over to Houlu and embraced her.
"It's no problem. We're just trying to see what's the matter." White went on to ask what Khali had been talking about. Lance and Darius looked up at Houlu then as they waited for an answer. Whatever she had in mind, it was probably too much for the girl. Speaking to Khali, Houlu told her to go and eat something so as to distract her from the situation. Once Khali took her leave from them, Houlu then spoke.
Apparently, there were two tribes that lived in Deep Jungle. The other tribe was known as the Vuli tribe. The Vuli tribe was a warring tribe. A year ago, the two tribes had made an alliance so as to prevent anymore violence between them. It wasn't until two months ago when a hunting party went missing. A second party went out to search for them and they went missing. The second party also never returned. Then, the final one with the remaining men had set out and now they, too, were gone. It was sad to say the least.
Houlu said their tribe believed the Vuli were behind it all and were planning on a war between their villages. The village believed they were next to disappear and that the Vuli tribe would be coming for them. It was heartbreaking. As White spoke, Darius gave a nod.
"We can search for them." Lance looked at Darius before looking over at Houlu and giving a nod.
"Yes, we can try and look for them. We're not much in numbers but maybe we can solve what's going on behind these disappearances. If it really is the Vuli tribe, we can try to rescue them." Lance never mentioned the fact they might not be alive but he did it so as to not worry Houlu about it.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2012 23:53:14 GMT -5
White glanced over at Darius and Lance. They wanted to search for them? Thinking it over, it was the right thing to do. Plus if they went up against these warriors perhaps they could sort things out. Then they'd be able to train them.
"Is that alright mam?"
The inn keeper had a smile on her face. "Oh we could never ask you outright. Jeb would kick my behind if he knew I even spoke of it. But perhaps if you sneaked off before anyone noticed then there wouldn't be anything they could do could there?!"
The woman paused though. "But wait... I don't want to force you to do this. You three look like seasoned warriors, I'd never live with myself if I caused something to happen to you."
White could see that the woman was having second thoughts. "Mrs. Houlu don't worry about us. We won't rush off into any danger we couldn't win. We'll be just fine mam."
This seemed to brighten Mrs. Houlu up because she had a smile again. "Well then you just wait here. I'll go get you a map of the jungle and some provisions. It's not a long trip to the border line. About a couple hours no more. Even if you just checked it out that would be fine dears."
White could see the excitement on the inn keeper when she left to return to her room. White didn't know if this was the wisest decision, but he felt that Darius was right. They had to try and look for them. "You think we could stand up to a whole tribe?" White asked as the inn keeper fetched things.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 5, 2012 21:08:22 GMT -5
Darius didn't think they could take out a whole tribe. It really depended on the situation. Granted, they probably had better power than the tribe but it was never wise to underestimate one's foe. It could be a misunderstanding for all they knew. There was a chance something else was behind the disappearances. If so, the thought bothered him. Fissures hadn't come here too, had they? They only seemed to originate from keybladers though.
They looked back at Houlu as White asked if it would be alright with her. She stated that they couldn't outright ask them and that Jeb would kick her butt if she did. She was already making suggestions though, stating that they might get away if they crept away at night. However, she didn't want for anything bad to happen to them. White spoke then, saying that they wouldn't do anything to put themselves in danger. Darius doubted it since luck never seemed to love them but he refrained and merely nodded his head, as did Lance.
Hearing White's words reassured the woman as she smiled. She told them that she would get them a map and provisions. Their journey wouldn't be long, the borderline was just a couple of hours from here. Even if they just checked things out would suffice is what she had said. With that, she scurried off to get the things she had promised them.
Darius looked between Lance and White as White asked if he believed they would be able to stand up to a whole tribe. "We've been through a lot as it is, White. Chances are, we can just see what's going on. For all we know, it could be just a misunderstanding between the tribes. Hopefully, we can solve it peacefully. However, luck doesn't seem to like us very much. I think we'd survive but...well, it's best to not be too confident in the matter until we see how they are for sure for ourselves."
"In other words, if we run into trouble and there are too many to handle, turn tail and run like hell pretty much so we don't end up dead?" Darius gave a nod at what Lance said, who gave a sigh then. "So much for a night of reading. Alright, I'm with you on this."
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Post by Deleted on Sept 6, 2012 13:01:41 GMT -5
White nodded. Darius reassured him, and he couldn't help but let out a small laugh at Lance's comment. He had forgotten that Lance probably hadn't had a chance to check out the small book Justice had left him. In fact he didn't even know the elder had given Lance the gift.
The inn keeper returned with a map, a rolled up blanket that White figured had some food in it, and small little bottles filled with water. "The map will show you everything. Its pretty easy, best is to follow the path north until you reach the border. There's some loafs of bread and cheese in the rolled up blanket, and this is water from the river not to far from here."
She handed them all out, she gave White the food, Darius the map, and placed the three water bottles in front of Lance. "Any questions now dears? If not you should leave now, before Jeb comes back."
White hadn't known that they would be expected to leave right away. He didn't mind hanging around here for a bit and enjoying some food and some rest. However he didn't want to disappoint the inn keeper. Not after giving them all these things to aid them.
"Won't we be seen going through the village?" He asked. Partially wishing she would say that they should wait for a bit.
"Oh there's an exit behind my house. There's a piece of the wood in the wall that you can push back. Just make sure you put it back in place once your through to the other side."
White nodded once more. "Well then I guess we'll get going." He faked a smile.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 6, 2012 21:26:59 GMT -5
Lance looked over at White. Granted, Lance was being serious but he did realize the remark he just made was a bit funny. He passed White a bit of a smirk then in humor after chuckling a bit too. Yes, Lance had some humor to him. Believe it or not, he could be funny if he wanted to. That side to him didn't come out all that often though. Mainly because their situation wasn't always a humorous one.
Returning his gaze to Darius, he gave a bit of a shrug. "I'm sure you'll find some time...so long as we're not running our butts off from angry tribes. You wouldn't want an arrow sticking out of your butt." Lance snickered at that.
"That would be most unfortunate." Darius gave a nod at that. It really would be unfortunate for any of them to have an arrow sticking out of their butt or even a spear. Hopefully, nothing like that would be happening anytime soon. It hadn't taken long for the inn keeper to return. When she did, she gave White food, handed Darius a map and placed three water bottles before Lance. Lance picked them up and looked back at Houlu as she spoke.
She was sending them off right away, apparently. Lance and Darius both exchanged glances before looking over at White who was of the same thought. Would they be seen? Houlu just told them that there was a back door out of the inn. They could escape through there so long as they put the wooden board back where it belonged. Jeb wouldn't be any the wiser about where they had gone.
"Sounds like a plan to me." Darius nodded at this. Lance and Darius both exchanged glances again before heading over to where Houlu said the exit would be. Darius removed the board and indicated for the others to head out. Lance headed out first, glanced around, and waited for White and Darius after signalling to them that all was clear.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2012 1:29:18 GMT -5
The journey through the jungle was uneventful for the most part. White didn't notice much out of the ordinary. As they traveled he looked for any signs of the other tribe. Oddly there weren't much. No tracks, no sign of movement anywhere. They had followed the map to the hunting trail. It was a trail that had been traveled upon before, but it was the fact that it didn't look to be traveled on too recently that bothered him.
Perhaps they were just not too far out yet? White continued to follow the trail, listening to the sound of the jungle. There were sound of animals in the distance, and the hum of bugs. The heat coming from the sun above made things a bit sticky as well. "I don't like the jungle anymore." White proclaimed after he began sweating.
They had traveled for about an hour, and according to the map they were another hour to the border. Taking some time to rest, White took a seat against a tree and leaned his head back against it. He just wanted to rest a moment. He had his kantana leaning against his shoulder.
"Let's pause a moment for a water break." Looking to Lance, White stretched out a hand for him to toss the bottle of water. He was pretty thirsty. It was the heat and humidity in the deep jungle.
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Sky Fear paused as he leaped to another tree. He could hear the sounds of voices coming not far from here. This made him freeze and draw his bow. He didn't know how the other tribe would react to the appearance a warrior of the Vuli on Stam lands. He had been tracking the dark one via the trail it had left behind. He had been closing in on it without a doubt.
He risked loosing the trail if he tried to go around those from the Stam. "The Vuli are the hunters. A hunter must always have courage to do the most difficult." His mentor's words were a perfect reminder that he must not give up the trail. He would have to be careful.
Making his way across the branches, the sounds of talking grew louder. Finally Sky came to a pause as he beheld the owner of the voices. Sky counted three, and was greatly confused by their appearance. They were not of the Stam. Sky had never seen someone with white hair before, or someone with blue streaks in their hair. The three were all dressed in clothes that Sky had never seen before either.
He knew immediately that these were outsiders. "Outsiders do not understand to respect the jungle. They are beings who do not know our ways, so they must not be trusted. Better to leave them alone." His mentor word's were right. Despite Sky's curiosity, he had to continue. He was looking for the dark ones not for the outsiders.
Sky went to move on, when movement caught his eye. From the ground one might have not noticed it, but from his vantage point he did. From the shadow of the tree that the outsider with the white hair rested, the dark one rose. Its yellow beedy eyes, round black body that was streaked with dark blue, and three thick black and blue tentacles named it as a "krabal", or as most knew a darkball heartless. It rose from the ground its mouth opening in a gap to chomp down on the outsider.
Sky acted regardless of knowing that he should now. The arrow flew through the air and collided with the dark one. It didn't stand a chance against the specially made arrows. The dark one was defeated, but now the outsiders would definitely see him.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 7, 2012 21:31:44 GMT -5
Darius lead the way using the map. He didn't trust White with it only because White did not have a good track record. Of course, Darius never told White this and merely lead the way. He was certain they were following the map correctly. However, when they got to the points that were indicated on the map, Darius couldn't help but wonder just how much time had passed since it had been traveled last. It seemed as if the hunting parties hadn't gone this way at all. Did they even get this far? Probably not considering how old the trails appeared to be.
They had been traveling for at least an hour when White proclaimed that he didn't like the jungle anymore. "Since whenever did you like the jungle in the first place, White?" Darius replied, still following the directions indicated on the map. They had at least another hour to travel before they would come across the border.
White had propped himself up against a tree to rest. It was a good time as any to take a break. The whole day had been rather humid and at least all of the guys were sweating. Lance didn't need telling twice when White indicated he wanted some water. Tossing one water bottle to White, Lance handed Darius another one to him before taking the final one as his own. The three of them sat around the area. Each were drinking from their water bottles and even slathering some water on their heated, sweaty faces in attempts to cool themselves further.
"Whew, didn't think this would be so hot." Lance gave a nod at this before glancing over at White. The three of them were probably odd compared to the tribe people but this was normal for them. White with his white and spiky hair, Darius with his black, short cut and shagged hair, and Lance with his naturally light blue hair. As he looked over at White, his eyes widened in horror as he saw something large with yellow eyes looming out from behind White and rising. As it did so, Lance rose a hand, pointing with his index finger behind White.
Before he could say or do anything, an arrow was launched at the Heartless that had appeared, killing it instantly. Darius, who had also seen the Heartless at the last minute, turned on the spot to find a figure in a loin cloth. He had been the one to have saved White. "Huh? Who are you?" Darius stated.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2012 22:50:22 GMT -5
White had not seen the heartless behind him. He merely just had enough time to look at Lance oddly before the arrow sailed right by his head! As anyone might react in said situation, White rolled as far away from possible and drew his kantana. His eyes had followed the trail of the arrow, and he thought that the practically naked man was attacking them.
Then he heard the poof of the heartless being destroyed. It had happened so quickly, White hadn't even known the heartless was there. Still it was better to be cautious. He did not return his weapon. Yes, the man might have saved him, but he still had no idea of his intentions. Darius went ahead and asked about the man.
White waited to hear what he had to say. At first it looked like the man with the bow was reluctant to do much of anything. He had a darker shade of skin then White did, with short black cut hair and ripped muscles. For a moment he studied them, but then the man leaped from the branch. He landed like a cat, with a certain grace that White had never seen before.
"Outsiders should leave this place... It is not safe." The man said to Darius. White wondered if this was one of the lost villagers.
"Are you one of the missing villagers from the Stam?" White asked.
The man turned to White. "I am Vuli..."
White glanced over to Darius his eyes wide. What should they do here? The villagers from Stam believed that the Vuli were going to attack their village. They believe they killed their other villagers. And here they found a member of the Vuli on the other side of the border. According to the inn keeper they were supposed to stay on their side. White gripped his kantana a little harder.
This did not go unnoticed though. The Vuli man must have been truly experienced, for he stepped back suddenly and before White could even blink, had an arrow draw and pointed to the ground. Just like White, the Vuli man was ready.
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Post by Sprow on Sept 9, 2012 0:41:29 GMT -5
Lance watched as the Heartless dispersed. It was a very lucky thing that arrow had come out of nowhere and killed the thing. Neither of them really had much time to react, it happened so fast. Now that he was able to focus on what was going on, Lance had turned abruptly toward where the arrow had come from. Judging by Darius's voice, someone was there. Sure enough, he spotted the boy. He had to be somewhere around their age. His choice of attire was enough to signify that he was a local.
Darius didn't wield any weapons right now. He had the steel pipe but he didn't take it out. He decided that White and Lance would cover his back should this man prove to be hostile. If they could resolve this peacefully, Darius would take that route instead. Obviously, this man would mean them no harm if he bothered to save White's life. Unless, of course, there was some strange and twisted reasoning behind it that none of them could comprehend not being from this world to begin with.
At first, the figure didn't move before landing on the ground with grace that startled Darius. This youth, no doubt, was quite graceful in his movements and strong. He was definitely a warrior, that was for sure. Darius heard him speak but not in the answer that Darius was looking for. Instead, he was telling them that they should leave since it wasn't safe.
Darius heard White behind him asking if the guy was one of the missing villagers from the Stam tribe. When the other answered saying that he was of the Vuli, Darius felt uncertain now. It didn't help though when someone must've done something behind him for the Vuli villager to react the way he did. In one fluid motion, he had drawn a bow and arrow but had the arrow pointed down at the ground, clearly at the ready should he have to defend himself. Carefully, Darius glanced over his shoulder to find White had been clutching his katana more tightly.
"White...Lance...stay calm. Let me talk to him first." Yes, even Lance had summoned his lance but he didn't hold it in a hostile manner. Instead, he simply held it upright, allowing the butt end of it to rest upon the ground as he stood there, watching. Once the others calmed, Darius looked to the Vuli tribesman. How to confirm if the Vuli really were keeping the villagers from the Stam tribe hostage? It was clear this man was not on his end of the border like he was suppose to be. He had broken the truce the two tribes had made. Did this mean the Vuli were enemies now with the Stam tribe again?
"...Have you seen anyone pass by through here in the past few months? Why are you on this side of the border? From my understanding, it's another hour's walk to reach the borderline..." he trailed off. Darius figured if this one meant any ill intent that he would be confident enough to inform them why anyways. After all, why hide it when you were potentially the better warrior out of the four of them right now? He probably could give them one hell of a time. Darius guessed by the way he moved so quickly. Neither of them moved that fast except for White whenever he allowed himself to submerge with electricity to amplify his speed.
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