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Post by Kyubey on Mar 27, 2013 2:48:58 GMT -5
Lynwood smiled contently as she put on her new outfit, her first time wearing clothing that matched that of those who lived outside Lejre. She wished that she could have worn something that did not hide so much of her tattoos, but at the same time, she did like the way it made her look. The purse especially was a nice touch, and made up for the lack of her usual pockets and pouches that decorated her old clothes. More importantly, she found that it was easy enough for her to move her arms and legs about, and being able to look good while still able to move about comfortably was vital. The long sleeves and fabrics would also be of good use in colder climates, which was just another bonus for her. Once she had time to add her own Urdian touches to her temporary look, it would be just perfect. With a touch of pride, she came out of the dressing room, and immediately tripped and nearly crashed right onto the floor.
It was the shoes that did it. Why anyone would design shoes like that, with heels sticking out and raising her feet in such a odd and unnatural manner, was a profound puzzle in of itself. They might have been a trap of some kind, but why a shop owner, especially one as kind as Ashleigh, would do something like that, she couldn't begin to guess. Unless the woman's intentions were not as decent as Lynwood thought. Why else, aside from near-impossible incompetence, would anyone give such things to one who hardly ever wore shoes at all before that day?
"Wh... What is this?" she exclaimed, a few octaves below shouting at Ashleigh, "This... this is..."
"...And Lynwood... you're very beautiful."
"...it's worth getting used to." Lynwood took a deep breath, and smiled at Ashleigh. "Many thanks for teaching me, friend. I will take good care of these clothes, that I swear to you."
She took an experimental few steps, and, given her naturally exceptional sense of balance, found she could adapt quickly enough, and even discovered that she rather enjoyed the few extra inches of height she now had. High heels weren't anything too frightening, and if she just thought of them as a fun new challenge, could be perfectly acceptable.
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Post by Kuro on Mar 27, 2013 23:01:35 GMT -5
The cashier of the weapons store jumped at Dunkan's sudden squeal, just as surprised as the boy was. After regaining his composure, he scoffed. "Lousy kid..." Just what he needed, some punk teenager all dressed up in piercings and stiches just poking around in his store because he had nothing to do. The cashier could tell that the boy wasn't even going to buy anything; he was just poking and prodding like an idiot.
It all came to a head when in all of his touching, Dunkan touched a button on what appeared to be a long silver cylinder on a table. As soon as the button was touched, a long steel blade the length of the cylinder burst out from each end, one of the blades poking a nearby customer in the rear.
"Yah!" The man jumped and threw his arms into the air, accidentally throwing the sword in his hands into the air by doing so. The cashier watched speechlessly, his eyeballs sticking out and his jaw dropped as the sword flew in an arc across the store, quickly sticking itself into the wall some several meters behind Dunkan. Right below the sword was the head of a man who had just narrowly dodged death and would have been crying out of relief if not for the fact that the sudden appearance of a sword spinning towards his face had caused him to throw the dagger he had been examining into the air, mainly because out of reflex. Unlike the sword before it, the dagger had been thrown by a more trained arm and flew towards the ceiling in a straight line. Of course, when it stuck itself into the ceiling, it cut through one of the two wires that had been holding up a silver greatsword identical to the one in the window. Apparently it had been the special of the day, but that didn't matter as the greatsword swung down towards the cashier desk.
"GAH!"
The old man jumped to one side before the sword could cut straight through his desk and wedge itself into the wall, unable to fall out. The desk and anything that had been on the desk in the sword's way was cleanly cut into two, including the cash register and the money in it. Now-useless shreds of beli fell to the floor as the two halves of the register fell apart from each other and onto the ground.
The cashier was still stunned, his face-fault still visible, drool now dripping out of his open mouth. It took all of his willpower to be able to say anything at all to the one responsible for the mess and even then, only one word came out of his dropped jaw at a time.
"...Boy...I...What...What's...I...I...I..."
His eye twitched and a vein bulged on his head as he tried to form a complete sentence.
"...Boy...Boy...BOY...What's...your..."
The comments of joy and satisfaction from Kusu and Wolf managed to make the beaming grin on Asheleigh's face even bigger, if that was possible.
"Yes, yes, YES! I am always glad to see my customers happy. Thank you for the smiles and nice words."
When Lynwood tripped over her own two feet, Ashleigh winced. Maybe it would have been a good idea to give her the regular shoes first. But the high heels just showed off her beauty so perfectly...She grimaced when Lynwood almost yelled at her and breathed a sigh of relief when she calmed her. "Don't worry, I do have some regular shoes for you if you want them, although I must admit the high heels look much better, and you're getting the hang of them already. And yes, yes, please do take care of those clothes for me, it would be a shame if they had to go to waste, especially since they look so good on you~" She snickered and slyly looked at the lady. "Why, in that outfit, you'll be shipped with everyone in no time."
When Kusu made her additional request, Ashleigh took the measurements and smiled. "Aw, isn't that sweet. Don't worry, i'll be sure to - GAH!"
The huge oodles of cash, she wasn't expecting. What sweet, sweet fortune! A rich kid with no knowledge of money whatsoever! In her store! This was, this was, this was amazing! She would get wrinkles if she smiled so hugely so much. She surpressed a squeal and looked at the money. "Hmmm....Yes....I suppose this will do...I'm sure that we have such outfits in such measurements in stock! I don't even need to go into my backroom; I can just show you where to go! Follow meeeeeeeeeee!"
She leaped forward, as ecstatic as ever because of the incredible amount of money she was making that day, and turned to face the girl.
"Oh! But that's right! I haven't got your name, young maiden. The two of you, Wolf and Lynwood, have been named in all of this conversation, so I just gotta ask..."
The elevator ride that Mr. Dark, Takai, and Kizuna had eventually been able to get on was longer than what the average person might expect; to this massive facility, one "floor" of their mall consisted of ten stories. Nothing had happened on the ride except for Mr. Dark thinking about the responses from Takai and Kizuna regarding his question. Takai's connection to the top-levels of the World Government were of most interest to him, but he predicted that it would take quite a while before he would be able to utilize them. Along with his dragon affinity and unique abilities, he was quite the asset. It was unfortunate then, that he was so grounded in his ideas of goodwill and morality. Unlike a young girl like Kusu, Takai and Kizuna were not as malleable. They had already developed their beliefs and codes. It would take an extra effort to change them for his own goals. A positive note about them though was that they were friendly and trusting, unlike the annoyance that was Hil. He had been far too distrusting of the boogeyman in the past, far too uncooperative for his own good. At this point though, Hil was somewhat cooperative, as shown in his advice towards Mr. Dark on the ship. Perhaps it had been for the best that the boy had practically been lobotomized.
Mr. Dark browsed the herbs with Takai and Kizuna, since there was always the possibility that he would not be presented with such a large variety of stock for a long time. He looked for ingredients that he could use for his medicines, poisons, and other things. As the three of them looked through the shop, each having more than enough to buy whatever they wanted, Mr. Dark glanced at a shop that was nearby, the shop he intended to go to next, although his two companions would most likely disapprove. For now, he would buy the ingredients. He would appear untrustworthy were he to sneak off to the other store.
As he browesed through the wares, he decided to ask the two another question.
"According to your previous response, Kizuna, you worry that the people you know may end up in the bloodthirsty grip of the war. Given everything that has happened to those of this crew again and again, I predict that such involvement will be most likely. If your loved ones become threatened, would either of you kill to keep them safe? Would you take another life to protect one you care about? Or would you be so naive as to not rid oneself of a threat in a dangerous situation? I will not judge you based on your answer", lied the doctor, "for I am simply curious."
When Mr. Dark turned a corner in the store to look at more ingredients, a young woman bumped into him, maybe an older teenager.
"O-oh, excuse me, sorry, sorry."
She backed up and blushed, embarrassed, and looked up at whoever she had just walked into. "S-sorry if I made you drop any -"
Her eyes went wide and her mouth opened into an O. Her body began to tremble as she stared at the man in front of her.
"Y-y-you...you...you're..."
Mr. Dark studied her face and knew that he had never seen her before. Was this woman an agent of some sort? Had she ever seen him commit some allegedly heinous act? She was shaking, but it was not out of fear.
"I-i'm sorry, I must seem so weird. Um, I, I was just wondering, if you don't mind me asking, because you like someone I know..."
"What's your name?"
The bag of bones threw the magazine with the "Why?" on it over his shoulder, seeing that the attempt to communicate did not work. He trudged through the trash again, but found nothing that could be used to communicate all of the questions he had for the odd newcomer. Indeed, all he could find was a magazine that told the story of some splendid sewer garbage maiden. He threw that over his shoulder too.
Seeing Kalen's attempts at escape, the bag of bones shook his head with a rattle. He went to show Kalen the exit, but stopped. He had almost forgotten.
He slunk over to one edge of the room and stuck his hands into one of the piles of trash that had risen so high it was going up the ceiling. He grabbed as much garbage as he could and cleared the pile in a couple of scoops, revealing a dirty ladder that led to a filthy, faded red lever high up on the wall. He climbed up the ladder and, gripping as hard as he could on the ladder with one hand, he grabbed the lever with his other hand. His entire body shook as he put all of his strength into pulling down one lever. When he succeeded, he thought of congratulating himself on still being able to perform that physically taxing task...and then realized he had forgotten to tell the newcomer just what he had intended to do.
The bag of bones hung on as tightly as he could onto the ladder he was on, and hopefully the newcomer would be able to find a ladder in all of the trash, although he doubted he could do it in time. With one click of warning, all of the trash suddenly spun around the room like a squalid tornado. The trash all began to lift up into the air and spin, spin, spin around around the center of the room. Once could easily compare it to being caught in a blender. Almost everything in the room was being sucked into the hole on the middle of floor. Anyone could fit through the hole if they happened to fall into it, but really, does anyone want to?
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Mar 30, 2013 0:57:16 GMT -5
Kalen was so busy examining an old thrown away lighter, and the ingenuity of it, that he wasn't even aware of the bone man's actions. By the time the lever had been pulled, the shepherd had only just figured out how to make the thing produce a flame (which he was amazed by), so being in the middle of all the trash he was caught off guard. By the time he realized what was going on, it was already too late.
"What the?! No no no no! Why does this keep happening?!?!"
He struggled to try and reach an edge and or otherwise find some means to avoid being flushed away, but he was unable to do so. Though he fought, there was only one way things would go for him.
At the very least though, he wouldn't have to worry about being shunted into an incinerator.
Right?
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Post by CJ on Mar 31, 2013 11:05:11 GMT -5
"Young maiden?" Kusu nearly squeaked as she followed Ashleigh. "I'm sorry... it's just... you think I'm a young maiden? You really do?"
The captain turned back to Wolf and Lynwood with a ridiculous grin and mouthed the words "She thinks I'm a young maiden." It was an understatement to say she was ecstatic.
"Oh, my name," she snickered. "Well, this is my sword, Hil."
She motioned to the the katana at her side, which itself was motionless. She placed her hand on her chest and grinned at Ashleigh.
"And I'm Kusu R. Kidd, captain of the Feather Pirates! We haven't thought of a name but I think it works for now."
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Post by Kuro on Apr 1, 2013 20:29:55 GMT -5
Kalen came into the new area with a splash. He fell right into what could only be sewage water, as it was murky, green, and had a lot of trash floating through it, most of it the trash that had fallen with the shepherd. Like the pull of the incinerator and the flush mechanism of the previous room, the current of the sewage water was powerful and quick, too much for any average or even above-average swimmer to get to. There didn't seem to be any end in sight in either direction of the tunnel, though. The entire sewer was the gray color of metal and the lighting wasn't very bright, although one could just barely see where they were going.
And in the poor lighting, one could see the silhouettes of humanoid...things.
Clad in darkness in the light, they all stood still and a good distance away from each other on the metal floors surrounding the sewage. While they were definitely in the shape of a human, something about their proportions were wrong. None of them were drastically mutated, but it was the details that were just too noticeable to pass by one's sight. Some of them had elongated heads. Others had arms that were just longer than possible. Most of them were very thin. To make the sight more unnerving, they were all in poses that emphasized their deformities and seemed rather painful. Some had their arms wrapped around them several times as if their arms had no bones, some of their jaws were unhinged and seemed as if they would suck everything into it, some seemed like they were stuck in a single moment of agony, their mouths opened wide in a silent scream.
The speed at which Kalen was going down the stream made it seem as if the silhouettes were rushing towards and past him, each one stuck in a pose but watching the new visitor as it was carried past, each shadow creature eager to look at him, to touch him before he was swallowed up by whatever was waiting for him in the darkness at the end of the never-ending tunnel.
click
And a moment after the familiar sound, Kalen was lifted up from the water. Something had grabbed him by the back of his shirt and yanked him from the dirty river. A new source of light was shining from behind the shepherd and illuminated the area to show what the humanoid deformities really were: Sculptures made out of wire. Whatever had grabbed Kalen was now turning him around for both parties to see the other's face.
The shepherd was staring into a pale, slender face of a girl with long, straight, unkempt white hair and big gray eyes that stared into Kalen's with a raised eyebrow and mild curiosity. Her torso, clothed in a raggedy short-sleeved shirt that was once white but now stained and dirty beyond measure, was also slender and could be considered attractive. It was surprising then that she could lift the boy with just one slim hand while carrying a lantern in the other.
It was possible that such strength came from the fact that the body below her waist was that of a large spider. Its body took up much of the tunnel's space and the six thick legs took up the rest. The lantern only shed some light on the spider body and showed that it was mostly white in color with some gray on it. None of the legs were disturbing the sculptures and indeed, it seemed as if the person was careful not to touch any of them.
The girl continued to look at the boy, her curiosity now fully piqued, her head tilting this way and that. He began to turn him over and around in his grip, looking at him from all of the angles. All the while, she said nothing, preferring to observe the new thing in silence.
Ashleigh smiled from behind her counter as she tried to stuff as much money as she could into her cash register. "A name for your sword, huh? That's pretty cute. And Kusu...Kusu is such a pretty name. You take good care of that name, alright young maiden?"
She looked at Wolf and Lynwood, still smiling. "So, pirates huh? I've had some of those come here before, but none as fashionably spectacular as you guys. Are there any more of you guys, 'prowling' throughout the store? Wait, what am I saying? Why am I even talking to you three? There are so many more stores that you could go to. You couldn't have possibly spent all of your money here, right? Well, actually I guess its possible you guys did do that. But it was worth it, wasn't it? Ah ha ha ha ha ha!" Her shrill laughter sounded throughout the store. "If you guys don't have any money left, may I suggest that you go find and stick with the other members of your crew? I know the building is hundreds and hundreds of floors high, but it can't be that hard to go find them...right?" A sly smile crept onto her face as she asked that last question, although it was soon replaced by an expression of surprise.
"Oh, that's right! Silly me, I almost forgot. If you have any money left, go to the nearest Arkadian Weaponry store, where you can find the best way to main and destroy your opponents. Want to burn someone alive? Rip them to shreds, fill them with holes, slice them into mincemeat? Well look no further than A. I, the only way to die!"
After speaking of death with such high-pitched enthusiasm, she smiled. "The nearest Arkadian Weaponry stores are there, there, and there." She pointed in random directions at the distance. "Thank you soooooooo much and have a super fantastic day!"
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Post by Hitotsumami on Apr 1, 2013 21:29:36 GMT -5
Wolf listened to the shopkeeper as she gave a few suggestions as to what they should do next. He thought about it a moment, then said, "Weapons aren't for me, to be honest. If I can avoid it, I will. I have enough as it is."
But ultimately the choice would be the captain's. He was alright with doing anything at the moment. He just wanted to spend some time with the crew and enjoy himself.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Apr 2, 2013 10:46:32 GMT -5
"Ah! Eeep! Yikes! Oh no!"
While being flushed down the waterway, Kalen made the mistake of viewing his surroundings. He was rewarded with the spooky sight of the figures, and went to cover his eyes in fear. Unfortunately, given the circumstances he wanted to see where he was going so that he did not end up inside some industrial blender, but every time he went to look again he only saw more terrifying sights of the figures. Thus he became trapped in an endless cycle of trying to see where he was going, but being too spooked to do so.
That is, until he was grabbed out of the water by his fair rescuer.
"Oh uh... hello. Thanks for saving me... is this where you live? I like what you've done with the place, it's very... nice."
Although he was initially bewildered by her presence, this was probably at least due in part to the sudden contrast, of being drawn so suddenly from the water and thrust into the light. Overall, Kalen was not all that bothered by his rescuer. After having just come from Breakwater and seeing cursed, living dead men, this spider person at least seemed to be natural. At the very least she was part human, part animal, rather than some monstrous combination of bones and fire or coral and blood and whatever other terrible combinations there may be.
"It's nice to meet you, my name's Kalen. What's your name?"
The shepherd boy did not do much beyond just hang in her grasp. He didn't feel threatened by her or in danger, even if he should have, so he did not struggle. He just looked at her when he was able, and when he wasn't he continued to examine the surroundings. Until she put him down, he wasn't about to start flailing about or anything.
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Post by Kuro on Apr 4, 2013 22:14:51 GMT -5
The spider-girl hesitated when Kalen started talking, but continued to turn him around in her grip as he spoke. A few moments after he asked her name, she stopped and made him face her, their faces only some inches apart. Her eyes were now wide-open as they searched the new person's face, darting this way and that to look at all of its features. Her expression showed that she was fully engrossed in this activity, like a baby looking at a new phenomenon of the world. After a bit, her eyes stopped moving and stared at Kalen's, still wide-open, perplexed.
"...My name's Belle. Silver Belle."
Her gentle voice rang throughout the quiet sewer like her namesake. She looked at Kalen for a little while more before gently placing him on the floor. She continued to stare at the new person, her hands near her face as she did so. After another while of silent observation on her part, she took a few excited "steps" towards the boy, the sound of skittering loud and clear in the tunnel, but hesitated in uncertainty before actually saying something.
"...I'm so glad to see you. It's been ages since i've ever seen a real human before. The boneman comes down here sometimes, but he doesn't say much...or anything, at all, and he's...not really as...'you'."
She intently stared at the boy, still fully interested in the living wonder. She sounded careful with her words.
"You...You talk. I haven't heard anyone else talk before. Not in a long time. Oh, i'm...I'm so happy, I could just..."
She closed her slim fingers in front of her smile and closed eyes, an expression of gratitude on her face. A quiet sound of contentment slipped through her lips and she opened her eyes to look at Kalen again.
"P-please...Tell me about you. Please...No, wait!"
She raised her voice ever so slightly, not out of any extreme emotion but more like an exclamation of surprise. She looked at the wall beside her and placed her hand on a seemingly random brick on the wall. She pressed it and the brick slid into the one next to it, revealing a secret compartment where she took out a sketchpad and a piece of charcoal. The sketchpad was an average size, about as big as one's chest, and unlike the rest of the sewer it seemed rather clean, if not used. She flipped to one of the pages in the middle and held it in one hand, the stick of charcoal in her other.
"I...Please, still talk. But please do it as I...draw you. I, I see so few things in here, this place. To have you, down here, with me, forever...Such company is a blessing I could not have asked for."
A gentle smile reappeared on her gentle face as she started to draw the boy.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Apr 4, 2013 23:17:31 GMT -5
"Silver Bell? That's a pretty name, reminds me of a song..."
When she moved towards him, Kalen leaned to the side a bit to look at her legs. He was genuinely curious about her, and he was quite intrigued, appearing quite impressed himself with an expression to show it. He might have been afraid of a regular giant spider, but Silver was relateable enough that he didn't seem to mind that aspect of her even the slightest.
"...I'm so glad to see you. It's been ages since i've ever seen a real human before. The boneman comes down here sometimes, but he doesn't say much...or anything, at all, and he's...not really as...'you'."
"Boneman... boneman... oh, you mean the guy in the suit? Like this?" Raising his hand to his head and looking up at the ceiling, Kalen tried to make sense of what she was saying. When he realized though, he tried to imitate the person in question they were speaking of, slumping around to give the impression that he too had no bones. "Yeah, he was pretty weird... but then I guess everyone's a little weird."
In truth, the moment she had placed Kalen down, he considered running. He wasn't exactly sure why, maybe just some instinctual response to her, and this place. He considered it, but then he realized why he wouldn't. For what logical reason was there to flee? Forget what his stomach told him, she seemed nice enough, this place wasn't any worse than the other places before and she might know a way out. At least, unlike previous company, she was talking. His heart told him to stay, and he listened to it. By now, he was certain that the choice he made to be here, was the right one.
"You...You talk. I haven't heard anyone else talk before. Not in a long time. Oh, i'm...I'm so happy, I could just..."
"What? You don't have to be shy, I haven't met anyone else in a long time either."
When she started having trouble finding the words for what she wanted to say, Kalen laughed a little bit along with her, finding it funny and wanting to know what it was she wanted. He hoped he didn't make her feel uncomfortable, and so tried to relate to her, giving off a friendly air as he stood with his hands on his hips.
"I...Please, still talk. But please do it as I...draw you. I, I see so few things in here, this place. To have you, down here, with me, forever...Such company is a blessing I could not have asked for."
"Talk? Where I come from... well it's not that interesting, just a lot of sheep. You probably don't want to hea- wait I know! How about a story? I know a good few of those!"
Watching after her as she retrieved the notepad and talking with her, more and more Kalen lost track of things. He forgot that he was talking to a half-spider person, and he forgot that he was standing in a sewer. He was actually enjoying himself immensely, although he didn't seem to realize it yet. And he certainty didn't realize, or simply didn't notice when she said staying there forever.
"I know, I've got just the one, the time me and some friends fought against... the terrible pirates! Only these pirates didn't fight with weapons, they fought by playing games!"
---
"...and so wouldn't you know it, I lost the race! But it wasn't all bad, I mean I did get a good look of the island... and boy was it amazing! Like you wouldn't believe! It wasn't like any other place, everything was all weird and funny looking, like it was stretched out this way and that!"
Kalen got lost in telling the story, and eventually wandered far off from the original topic. All the while though he acted it out, everything he was saying. To him it was just second nature, to try and recreate the story for Silver to see, using himself and whatever props he could find laying about. Even the statues, he could hide behind and give voices to so as to have a conversation with himself. His intent was for her to have as much fun as he was having, so much so that he lost track of the time. Eventually after stretching his arms out every which way and pulling on his face to try and describe the fantasy island, he leaned on his knees after a laughing spell.
"A-hah-hah-hah... really, it was something. I miss those guys..."
Grinning to himself as the nostalgia washed over him, Kalen straightened up and leaned back to stretch, before walking back over to Silver. He went to move alongside her, to see the result of her drawing. He felt a little bad, given that she had likely wanted him to remain still while she drew, but he hoped she would understand what it was like to relive such memories and that she would forgive him.
"So Miss Silver, have you ever been on any adventures? Do you know any stories?"
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Post by CJ on Apr 5, 2013 15:00:13 GMT -5
"Young maiden," Kusu sighed with a beaming smile. Her eyes were twinkling at Ashleigh's compliments.
With a wave and farewell smile, she led Wolf and Lywnood out of the story. She kept looking at her clothing and admired herself more and more. Though otherwise sh seemed a little aprehensive about going to a weapon inventory.
"Yeah, I have enough weapons too, Wolf," Kusu responded. "I am a weapon! See? Pow, pow!"
She raised up her fists and double punched the air. The sword at her side remained motionless.
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Post by Kuro on Apr 5, 2013 22:41:39 GMT -5
As Kalen forgot his role in being still for the picture, so too did Belle forget her role in drawing him as she became more and more engrossed in the story. At first she had some mind to tell Kalen that he was moving around too much for her picture, but as he went on in his tale, she had slowly stopped sketching to the point when she put the sketchpad and charcoal down. It was clear on her face that she was completely enthralled by Kalen's story, wide-eyed and gasping throughout the duration. Her eyes followed him as he jumped around, acting out the events as if in a play, enacting an entire epic just for her. Besides gasps, "Oh my"s, and a few giggles, she was quiet as she watched a story she could never have thought of or asked for unfold right in front of her.
When Kalen finished the story and got close to her, he would notice tears running down her face. She wasn't weeping, as only a single stream of a few tears ran down from each cheek, but she was sniffling. She noticed that Kalen had come to her side and brushed one of the tears off of her face.
"O-oh please, don't mind me. T-t-these are tears of joy. I...I would never have expected anything quite like this. Your story and how you told it was just so, spectacular, and I...I..."
A small smile appeared on her face and she looked at the wonderful, wonderful boy next to her.
"...T-thank you. Thank you so much. Oh! Oh, that's right, I forgot. Your picture..."
She picked up the notebook and flipped it to one of the pages.
"I was able to finish a few quick sketches as you started moving around, but an entire picture will need you to stand still. Of course, I didn't mind you moving around, not at all. Your story was amazing."
The charcoal drawing on the page she showed the boy could be seen as impressive. The first sketch showed Kalen in a standing position, hands on his hips, a half-smile on his face. As it was a sketch, it was basically made up of straight lines and some shading but that didn't detract from the quality of it. It was a rather accurate picture of the subject and the person in the drawing just seemed to give off a friendly air. The second sketch depicted Kalen in motion and saying something, some prop in one of his hands as he walked around in the picture. The sketch made the picture seem as if it was in motion and was more concerned with expressing emotion than being exactly accurate.
When Kalen asked her if she had gone on any adventure. She shook her head. "No. I have never been beyond these tunnels in a long time, maybe even forever. I don't remember ever being out of this underground labyrinth. so maybe I never was. I don't have any stories of my own, but I am okay with that. All of that adventure and action and emotion...I think it would be too much for me.
In these tunnels, I was content, but now...I'm so glad you're here with me, Kalen." Her hand hesitantly reached towards Kalen in an attempt to draw him close into an embrace, but she ended up too meek to touch him. "I...Thank you again, Kalen. Now please, stand in front of me and I can do a full drawing of you. But please, feel free to keep talking. Once i'm done with this drawing, we can keep talking, and talking, forever in this tunnel of ours. Just you and me, together...You don't know how happy you've made me."
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Apr 9, 2013 0:02:52 GMT -5
"I was able to finish a few quick sketches as you started moving around, but an entire picture will need you to stand still. Of course, I didn't mind you moving around, not at all. Your story was amazing."
"Forget my story, your art is amazing! How do you even do that?!"
Thoroughly impressed by Silver's drawings, Kalen couldn't help but feel a little bit jealous. If only in that, he had nothing he could show off to her, that he could do even remotely as well as she could. Unless there were some sheep hidden around here, he had to settle with what he had, which at least to her seemed to be talent for recounting events.
"I...Thank you again, Kalen. Now please, stand in front of me and I can do a full drawing of you. But please, feel free to keep talking. Once i'm done with this drawing, we can keep talking, and talking, forever in this tunnel of ours. Just you and me, together...You don't know how happy you've made me."
"Well why settle with just drawing me, I'm not all that great anyway. I mean if that's what you like to do, there's a whole world out there you can see. I'm sure it's better than spending your whole life down here, I should know, I almost spent my whole life in one place doing the same thing."
While he may have started out rather emphatic about the whole situation, he soon lost that ambition when he started to speak of home. He remembered, and it made his heart feel heavy. Why was it that he hadn't thought of it in so long? It couldn't be because all he had seen and all he had done. It was a wonderful world, but he missed the farmstead. He missed the rolling green mountain valleys and even the chores. He had to remember why it was that he set out in the first place, to find his sister, and of course he would have returned with her the moment he did find her. That was always his plan, but now he was not so sure.
Whatever the case, he didn't want to think about it anymore, and though he attempted to change the direction things were going in, he still wasn't nearly as energetic as before when he spoke.
"I think you might like it... you don't have to see the world, but maybe what's beyond these tunnels? You won't ever know unless you try, and if you're worried, well I'll be there with you of course! It might be adventure and action and emotion, but we can go through it together. And you know, if you like it, well... I mean I travel around on a boat with a bunch of great people and we see the world. You could come with us... if you want?"
Holding a hand up to her, he held his other towards one of the many tunnels leading from this place.
"Would you like to see what happens next in your story? I know at least one way that it can go..."
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Post by Kuro on Apr 10, 2013 18:43:15 GMT -5
Silver had blushed at Kalen's praise, which had put a smile on her red face. As she listened to his next words though, words on the outside world and spending her life in the sewer, her face became pale once again and she looked at the floor. She noticed that Kalen's voice lost some of its passion and she slowly looked up. As Kalen had lost some of the emotion of the moment, so too did Belle. A sad frown was on her face and she reluctantly looked to the floor again when Kalen held out his hand.
"...I...I'm so sorry, Kalen. In just a few moments, you've done so much for me. And yet...
I've never wanted to go outside...outside of here. I've lived in these tunnels for as long as I can remember...most likely my whole life." She dipped her fingers into the calm water, letting it slowly run around them. "...I...Many things wash up here. Sometimes...There are pictures. Pictures of the outside. Pictures of the world besides these tunnels. These pictures are so different from what I know. So much color...so much light...so much life. A life that I..."
She closed her eyes, a sad but thoughtful expression on her face. She said nothing for a while, and then looked at Kalen once more. Like when she had first seen him, she simply stared at him, although now she looked a bit sad while doing so. Not angry, not concerned, just sad. Lamenting. Hoping.
"...I...I...I don't want to go outside. I'm scared. I'm not curious. I'm not excited to see a new world. I hope that I will like the world, but right now, it will not be an adventure. It will be a nightmare. But I want to stay with you. I would ask you to stay here with me instead, but...after how happy you've made me...That just wouldn't be fair."
She grabbed Kalen's hand and pulled him closer.
"...D...Don't leave me. Please, don't leave me. I just want to...to...
Whatever happens, be with me, like you say you will. Please...I know that I cannot ask anything of you, but...please...promise me that."
Ashleigh leaned on her desk, her head resting on one head as she looked at her three customers as they walked out of her building. Her three, fantabulously rich customers. She hadn't made money like this in a long time. Maybe even never. Never had she seen so much money in one place, nevertheless her store. The sight had filled her with delight and she guessed that even in her older years, she would look back on this moment and smile.
The moment in which she doubled the biggest fortune she had ever gotten.
Without a change of expression, she pushed a button on the underside of her desk and tilted her head to one side, still looking at Wolf, Lynwood, and Kusu. Now that they were out of her store, the police wouldn't make a mess of everything in it once they arrived. And speaking of arrival...
click
A large square suddenly appeared on the floor around the three pirates, surrounding them but leaving much space around them. Anyone who had happened to be standing in the square took their things and ran, and anyone who was in the general area stopped once they noticed the outline. The people who had noticed the square suddenly grew silent, muttering only whispers to each other. They kept looking back and forth between the shape and the people in it, as if trying to form a connection between the two. If one had exceptional hearing, he or she could hear a low hum and a faint, rapid clicking sound, coming from somewhere below the square's area.
A smaller square appeared at the middle of each edge of the square, revealing the floor to be made up of white squares, each large enough for a person to stand on. The squares on the edges quickly went several feet down into the floor and came back up with something new standing on it.
Each was seven feet tall and humanoid in form. The head was a smooth, round, white surface devoid of any feature except for the black Arkady logo taking up the majority of its front, serving as some sort of face. If anything, the logo made it look like there was one eye in the center, looking ahead with a piercing stare. Along the neck, tubes connected the back of the head to the back of the torso, which seemed like a chestpiece for a set of armor. The chest was covered in ornate, gold décor and patterns, wrapping around the machine and making it seem more like an artwork than anything else. This fanciful decoration also applied to the white, slender arms and legs.
Along with the tubes, three pipes stuck out at angles and to the side from the back of the torso, almost forming a half-circle behind the being. The abdomen looked like a large orb connecting the torso to the hips, and small sifts of steam came out of the tiny pipes on its exterior. Its left hand was had long, clawed fingers and the right was not hand, but the barrel of a gun fused with the lower portion of its arm. The feet were liked claws, three for each leg.
All in all, the machines, all identical, seemed more like artworks than anything else. Marvelous statues and sculptures to be put in a gallery or museum. But they were not statues. Their steam made them seem as if they were all hissing, each of them a white and gold creature of metal.
The statues pointed their guns at the pirates simultaneously, completely surrounding the three. There was one for each side and one of them, although it was hard to tell which one, spoke with a light, soothing voice.
"You have been identified as unscrupulous elements. We will not harm you unless you resist, in which you deserve to be stripped of further usage of your legs. If you already lack leg capability, then you will be stripped of arm capability and if that is already lacking, then you will be carried off as you have no way to defend yourself.
If you believe there to be a mistake or misunderstanding, please come with us anyway and if you are correct, then you will be reimbursed and your accuser punished before your eyes as a bonus. If you comply quickly and well, then you will receive a discount for further purchases unless you are imprisoned or executed, in which your family members will be notified of how you have failed at life.
Thank you for listening, and have a great day!"
"...Well, whoever or whatever you are, you just wrecked my store and literally cut my profits in half! I might even be investigated for this, criticized for lack of safety because some goofball stich-em-up went and pushed a button!"
He pressed a button on the underside of his desk and a tile of the floor right outside of the store went downwards and came up with a police robot. It pointed its gun at Dunkan and said the same thing Wolf, Lynwood, and Kusu heard. The other occupants of the store dropped what they were holding and ran out, the cashier opting to stay and watch with an annoyed look on his aged, bearded face.
"...I am known as Mr. Dark."
Normally the boogeyman wouldn't identify himself so carelessly, but this girl was a subject of interest. She recognized him from appearance, and his appearance in particular was not common at all. If she knew him, he had to knew why.
He did not expect what happened next.
".......EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
The girl leapt forward and grabbed Mr. Dark with all of her might, hugging him as hard as she could.
"Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh, it's you! It's really really you! I met Mr. Dark, I met Mr. Dark!"
"What is the meaning of this?"
The boogeyman took some steps back from the sudden force of the glomp and collided into one of the shelves, opposite of the ones that Takai and Kizuna were at. It fell to one side and crashed into another shelf, which crashed into another shelf, which crashed into another shelf, and so on. Half of the shelves in the store were toppled and the glass containers and vials for the potions on them had fallen to the floor with a cacophony of shattering, leaving an odd mixture of colorful fluids and liquids on the floor in their wake. At the moment though, Mr. Dark was more concerned as to why a squealing young woman was trying to suffocate him in an inefficient way. It took him some seconds before he realized that the girl was hugging him, although perhaps squeezing would be a more accurate term.
"..."
He activated his fear ability and a small amount of fear went from Mr. Dark to the woman, causing her eyes to loosen her grip as her eyes opened wide and her noise stopped. He pulled her away from him and walked a few steps back, not desiring to experience such a thing at the hands of a complete stranger yet again.
"Who are you, how do you know me, and why do you treat me as you have just done?"
"..."
She stared at the man in black and stepped back, her gaze uncertain. In the next second, her eyes lightened up and a smile reappeared on her giddy face. She ran to Takai and Kizuna and politely interrogated them in a friendly voice desperately trying to hide its excitement.
"Do you guys travel with him? You're such a cute couple, and miss, your face is so pretty! You must know a lot about him, huh? Do you know his birthday? His age? What he does? How is he? What does he like to eat? Have you ever seen his -"
"I repeat, who are you, how do you know me, and why have you treated me in such a manner?"
" - and have a great day!"
Three of the machines appeared in front of the store, their guns pointed at the group. They had appeared some while ago it seems, and the other customers in the group had fled the premises as they had spoken. Mr. Dark looked at the robots and said nothing at first, thinking on what to do next.
"...We cannot be taken in. While pirates are treated as regular customers in Arkady Industries, we are of special interest to the World Government, which the corporation has a trade deal with. We may be given to the World Government as a gift. While you may know the higher authorities of the World Government, it is unlikely that they will not punish Kusu and the others at your request. We must fight out way back to the ship."
"...Wow...Is it like that for you every day?"
Mr. Dark looked at the potions on the intact shelves on the sides of Takai and Kizuna and grabbed a few. He threw them at the machines, all of which shot the potions in mid-air, creating explosions of color between them and the targets.
"Now."
Mr. Dark jumped towards one of the machines and punched it before it could lower its gun and fire. His fist went through the metal chest of the enemy and appeared on the other side, his arm extending through the torso. He retracted his arm and sent a straight punch to the machine's face. It flew backwards with a huge dent in its head piece and fell to the floor, unmoving.
At the same time Mr. Dark had attacked, the other machines focused on their targets, one of them lowering their gun to fire and the other running forward intending to slice them in half. As they did so, Mr. Dark looked at his hand. Steam was coming off of his twitching glove and some of the leather had been burnt through. He looked at the machine on the floor and the pipes on the back.
"...But of course."
"..."
The girl stayed behind the three fighters, either too scared or mesmerized to run.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Apr 10, 2013 20:58:08 GMT -5
Wolf chuckled, petting Kusu on the shoulder. Her display made him smile. "Of course you have enough weapons," he said, nodding.
And you have me, he thought to himself.
However, just as he decided it was time for them to leave and was going to lead the way, a strange display appeared all around them, followed by strange looking robots showing up on each corner of this square display.
Wolf immediately went into defense mode, scanning each of the robots. He immediately determined, as far as his scanners were aware, that these things were indeed machines and not actual alive. That just made him more curious. Rarely did he ever see another actually functioning machine, like he was.
Could this be related to Arkady, the individual, in some way? He thought back to what Mr. Dark had told him earlier. Maybe he would get the chance to meet him sooner than he expected.
He looked down at Kusu. "I can get rid of them if you'd like," he whispered. "But maybe we should follow."
It would be her choice in the end.
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Post by KaosuKishi on Apr 11, 2013 14:41:03 GMT -5
Takai's face fell and he sighed before answering Dark.
"You have to understand, we are not human. It's easy to forget that, but we're of the Beast Races. Dragons and Kitsune have other standards than humans. Kizuna and my races are actually very similar. We never attack first and due to our huge respect for all forms of life, killing us always a last resort, unlike humans, who kill for pleasure, revenge and greed, among other reasons. We prefer to incapacitate our enemies, cripple them at the most. Killing is the ultimately last option, and trust me, once we grow into our full power, not many beings will be able to stand up to us, none of them human. Though that won't happen for several human lifetimes, yet."
He and Kizuna couldn't help but stare stupidly at the scene before them. Mr. Dark actually had a fangirl?! Kizuna flinched a bit when the girl turned her attention on her. "Erm, well, he doesn't actually talk much about himself, at least, not to us..."
Their demeanor changed immediately when the machines appeard, though. THey watched as Dark neutralized on of the things and reacted when the other two turned their attention to them.
Kizuna whipped out Blazing Rose, the segments of the chain sword seperated and wrapped themselves around the machine with the gun. Kizuna pulled on the sword and the segments began to spin around her opponent, creating a screeching sound and lots of sparks. When all was done, the chainr sword become a normal blade again, and she put Blazing Rose away. A random breeze blew onto the machine and it fell apart, neatly cut into several pieces horizontally. Her eyes widened as the liquid coming from the parts burned the ground.
"What in Inari's name is that stuff?!" She exclaimed.
------------------------------
Takai's encounter was rather anti-climatic in comparison. He merly drew Tri-Edge from it's sheathe and switched to twin blade form. His eyes grew cold at the abomination in front of him. He always hated robots. Wolf being a notable exception.
With a barely audible "Soru." he disappeared and reappeared a foot behind the machine. Switching his sword's form, he sheathed it and walked back to his previous position, the machine motionless. Suddenly, the sword borke in half and two diagonal lines appeared on the thing's body, which split into four pieces. He frowned at the liquid before him. "What in the world...?" He turned to Dark. "It's obvious you know what these things are and what this liquid is. Care to tell us?"
OOC: Here's hoping this didn't count as godmodding...
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