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Post by Illusion on Sept 22, 2014 13:04:43 GMT -5
Rumours always tend to spread far from their sources, and one can never predict how far they'll go, or who they'll reach. Even if just one person starts it, most of us feel compelled to spread it amongst the other people we meet. Sooner or later, what started as one little rumour will blossom into something bigger, and reach further, until it eventually comes to the attention of someone whom will decide to investigate it, to see if it's true. To sort the fact from the fiction.
It was exactly that kind of notion that had brought Grace Memoria Chan, formerly known as Grace Memoria Swallowtail, to this world. A world which, as far as her knowledge went, had no official name.
Intelligence had come to her recently that intrigued her a great deal; apparently, some sort of expedition or team of adventurers had set up camp on this world, only to come under attack from...something. Only one person from the group had supposedly escaped, and from what he had apparently said about the attack, whatever it was that had attacked the group had been 'pitch black', 'move faster than any one of us', and 'swarmed us from all sides'. Ordinarily, Grace would have just assumed that to be some sort of Heartless hoard that they had run into...but another detail had captured her attention.
Whatever it was, it didn't kill them... They writhed, they screamed, they changed... It was like they didn't even know who or what they were any more.
What could that have meant? Grace had never heard anything like it. Whatever it was that had attacked the group, it almost sounded like it had mutated them, or something like that... But what sort of creature could do something so horrific? And why?
Grace had made the decision to investigate, to see if this was all true...and, if it was, exactly what had attacked the group that had been here before. Hovering several metres above the ground, looking around for any signs of danger and seeing none for now, she proceeded to glide down and carefully landed. This world was rather barren; it seemed to consist almost entirely of rocky badlands, cliffs and the like. Perfect hiding place for something like Heartless or what not. This was surely rather a dangerous place. But Grace still felt the urge to investigate these rumours she had heard.
What was out here...?
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Post by Archer Zero on Sept 22, 2014 14:17:01 GMT -5
For the love of all the gods...
Kenji could not believe when Grace had decided to head to a world that had been deemed hazardous. Even more so by something they had never witnessed before. It wasn't a job for her, but for trained scouts and recon units who can gather information swiftly and surely and, most importantly, survive so they could get the information back. It certainly wasn't a world where one should go unequipped. It definitely was not a world he would send his wife unprotected! He would have to have a talk with his wife once they were back home about her wanderings. He had Paladins assigned to her for a reason, and the fact she kept trying to evade them was a little worrying.
As such, Kenji had teleported on the world, with no less than three Paladins in tow, and just as many Black Knights hidden, waiting to come when needed. He had placed a small tracker on Grace long ago so he would know where she had went - and because of her forays, it came quite in handy. As such, he teleported right beside her with everyone else. He loved his wife dearly, but he would still get mad at her, especially for stuff like this. "Grace, what are you doing here?" he asked a bit sharply. "Go back home, you're not supposed to be on this world! We don't even know what's here yet, let alone how to deal with it!"
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Post by Illusion on Sept 22, 2014 14:57:05 GMT -5
Grace knew it was only a matter of time until Kenji came after her. She hadn't expected him to come after her quite this quickly, but...heck, she couldn't say she was that surprised. He was always rather concerned for her safety...mainly because on one occasion in which she wandered off alone, she had been killed. Brought back to life by unknown means, yes, but she had been killed briefly nonetheless. Since then Kenji had always been rather protective of her, which she guessed she could understand... Even so, it could get a little irritating when she wanted to go out to a world on her own.
"I am perfectly capable of defending myself, should the need for that be necessary," she replied, calmly. She wondered whether or not he would bring up the incident of a while back, the one in which she had been briefly killed, as a line of argument for that point; it was true, though, that she could defend herself if that was necessary. Before Kenji could reply, though, or send her back home, she spoke up again with another point of her own. "Besides...I didn't come here alone, actually. A friend of mine was the one to pass on the information about this world to me, and she wanted to investigate as well. Thus, we came here together. Isn't that right, Renegade?"
When she voiced that last question, she looked over Kenji's shoulder to a figure stood about ten feet away. Said figure was a young woman a little younger than Grace, with indigo-coloured hair and a scarf of the same colour bundled around her shoulders, carrying two long spears in a cross formation in a harness on her back. The girl wore a casual grin and stood there, her back against the cliff behind her, arms folded in a relaxed manner. She seemed...perfectly at ease, which was odd of someone in such a presumably dangerous place.
"That's right, mate," she said, casually, in an accent you or I would recognise as Australian. "I happened to mention to Grace the things that supposedly happened around here...I would have come here anyway, but seeing as she fancied coming along too, we came out here together. Two sets of eyes are better than one, after all."
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Post by Archer Zero on Sept 25, 2014 17:43:57 GMT -5
I am perfectly capable of defending myself, should the need for that be necessary.
That was beside the point. He knew quite well Grace could defend herself - not only did she already have rather inhuman abilities, she had also been training and learning under the captain of the Paladins, the greatest blademaster the Empire had. If this were any other situation, any other world, he would have only sent a Paladin to make sure of her location and guard her, but otherwise knew she would be fine. But she was on an extremely hazardous world with an unknown threat looming about it. It was a time for trained specialists to gather information, not a time for anyone - not even himself - to try and find out to satisfy their own curiosity. Before he could interject, however, she continued.
Besides...I didn't come here alone, actually. A friend of mine was the one to pass on the information about this world to me, and she wanted to investigate as well. Thus, we came here together. Isn't that right, Renegade?
Kenji blinked with surprise and looked over to see the young woman. She seemed to be fine in such a place, like she didn't so much as care about the danger as she wasn't worried whatsoever. He frowned slightly. Well, if Grace trusted her, he might as well. Grace normally had good instincts on those with evil in their hearts and those who were good - though at times the lines could be blurry. Still, Kenji kept his expression impassive as he listened to her words.
That's right, mate. I happened to mention to Grace the things that supposedly happened around here...I would have come here anyway, but seeing as she fancied coming along too, we came out here together. Two sets of eyes are better than one, after all.
Oh for heaven's sake, this was getting ridiculous. "I appreciate you two deciding to come to find out for yourself what is the situation around here," he said, his voice still rather crisp. "However, if you don't mind, this needs to be done by those trained in gathering information. You can defend yourselves, both of you - of that, I have absolutely no doubt. But we have no idea what we're up against here. Where does it reside? What does it eat? How does it fight? How can it be defeated? Can it even be fought? Have either of you considered these questions and develop a safe way to find out? Or were you thinking you could find out on the way by stumbling blindly - and pray to whatever deities, saints, devils that you won't die before you find out because you got blindsighted by something unexpected?" At the last part, he turned to look at his wife to emphasize his point. The memory of her death was still fresh and recent, and most importantly, had eternally burned itself into his mind. He wasn't about to risk that again, and not for something so utterly stupid. And he was also angry at Grace herself mainly because her near-death came from doing precisely the same thing: Rushing headlong into a situation based on intuition rather than any sensible thinking.
"Both of you need to get off this world immediately," he said, in a tone that brook no argument. "We'll send scouts and gather data. Then we'll see if we can return to find out more personally what is going on. Until then, merely being here is a risk to everyone involved here."
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Post by Illusion on Sept 30, 2014 7:43:50 GMT -5
Grace had already suspected that Kenji would be rather displeased of her decision to come to this world before any prior investigation ha been made. Truth be told, while she had been initially curious, it was her adventurous acquaintance that had the most to do with the decision. Renegade was...rather enthusiastic, to say the least, especially when it came to anything that might be exciting or, even better (in her mind, anyway), dangerous. From what Grace could gather, Renegade had intended to come here even if she had declined, and in all honesty, she didn't want to let her friend go alone. Combine that sense of caring with some curiosity, and...well, here they all were.
As Kenji continued to talk, Grace noticed Renegade, who had moved to stand beside her at that point, didn't seem all that fussed by what he was saying. In fact, she didn't really seem to be listening to him much. She had come here to explore, to experience the adrenaline rush of finding something dangerous. This was putting her fun on hold, and she didn't much appreciate it. Once Kenji had finished speaking, Grace sighed softly and seemed about to reply...but noticed, out of the corner of her eye, that Renegade had suddenly tensed up. She now stood very still, not relaxed and casual like before.
"What is it...?" Grace asked. Renegade didn't seem to respond for a few moments, staying silent, so Grace turned to face her and addressed her again. "Renegade? What's wrong?"
Her friend remained silent a little longer, still in her alert and tense stance. Finally, she spoke up again. "So, there's gonna be scouts and such sent out to gather info on what's been going on here, right?"
"Um, yes..." Grace replied, a little confused by her friend's question. Renegade nodded.
"And I'm assuming there haven't been scouts sent out before we came?" she asked. Grace frowned a little, evidently becoming a little more confused.
"As far as I'm aware..." she replied.
"Right, right...Well then, in that case, I have another question. Just one more," she said, pausing for a moment, and addressing Kenji for a moment. "If you haven't sent any scouts out here before us... Then who the hell is that?!" She looked up sharply and pointed past him. Grace's eyes followed the direction in which Renegade was gesturing.
About twenty feet away from the group, stood in the shadow cast out by a tall cliff, was the figure of a young man. He was hooded, and much of his face was hidden from view. He hadn't been there just before, when they had arrived...it almost seemed like he appeared out of nowhere. Perhaps he had teleported in? Whoever he was and however he had gotten there, he simply stood in silence, making no effort to approach the group, or communicate with them.
Grace shuddered a little; it almost seemed like the stranger was watching them, waiting, seeing what they would do next.
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Post by Archer Zero on Oct 8, 2014 16:40:50 GMT -5
OOC: I had completely forgotten about the thread. Sorry!
IC:
Of course Kenji was furious. He had lost his wife to the exact same situation and wasn't about to do so again. Friend or not, it mattered little if she had persuaded Grace to come here - Grace should've known better than to come here by herself. But before anyone could say another word further, Renegade suddenly stiffened, and following their gazes, saw the stranger watching them, silently. S/he, or it, didn't move. He glanced towards one of his Paladins, known for her sensory abilities, and she shook her head. She couldn't make heads or tails of anything about the stranger.
Great. It seems Kenji's point was about to be proven, not that he was happy about it.
"Defensive cordon," he commanded quietly. "Get those two out of here." With that, he summoned his helmet on. Two of the Paladins placed hands on both Grace and Renegade's shoulders to teleport them away to safety. The last Paladin, the sensory one, had also summoned her full armor, allowing no openings in. Keeping the distance between them, Kenji called out, "You there. Are you a resident of these lands? Speak your name and your intentions."
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Post by Illusion on Oct 8, 2014 17:18:51 GMT -5
OOC: It's fine. ^_^
IC:
Grace had been about to speak up in protest as Kenji ordered a couple of his Paladins to escort herself and Renegade away from this world. She quickly thought better of it, though; they would no doubt end up discussing this particular matter later, anyway. Renegade did not take the decision so lightly, however; she attempted to shrug off the hand that had been placed on her shoulder, then simply frowned in frustration and crossed her arms, muttering something under her breath. Probably something along the lines of 'But I wanna stay here', but it wasn't all that audible so it was hard to tell.
The hooded stranger made no sound as Kenji addressed him, and didn't even move. Grace could have sworn from his eerie lack of movement that he wasn't even breathing; this thought of hers seemed to be confirmed by the fact that his breath was not visible, whereas her own and that of the others present was, as it was a little cold out here. How mysterious...and unsettling. Renegade eyed the stranger as well, whilst undoubtedly thinking up ways she could slip away, either to explore or to challenge the stranger to a fight.
"I am not of this world. Mine was left a ruin many years ago," a voice, emotionless and sharp, cut through the air as the figure spoke up for the first time. "The name of that world? I needn't tell...she already knows." In saying this, the stranger raised a gloved hand to point at Grace, whose face became clouded with confusion. Renegade seemed surprised as well; her expression changed to one of aggression, and without so much of a second thought, she shifted into her true Heartless form. The transformation happened in the blink of an eye; with a snarl, she took a single step forward, then stood still, her now feline body poised to move quickly with the slightest prompting.
"Whatta you talkin' about?" Renegade snapped, and might have said more had not Grace whispered 'shhh', so as to hush her, also managing to shrug off the hand on her shoulder so as to stand alongside her friend. The hooded stranger chuckled darkly, and raised his hands to his hood, pulling it back to reveal his face. He looked to be a man in his late teens, blonde haired, relatively good looking...but, most distinct of all were his eyes. One green, one blue.
Identical to Grace's.
"Don't you remember?" the stranger asked, addressing her directly. When she simply shook her head, he went on. "Well, I suppose not...it has been a while."
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