The Demon Lands

Note: Elizabeth's POV
Italics = Thoughts


I have just completed my tour of duty as the Duty Officer for the previous day and I am feeling really tired. I really need some sleep. While walking back to my quarters with Sagittarius and my quiver of arrows on my back, something caught the corner of my eye. I noticed two men speaking to each other, and the strangest thing is one of them mentioned something about "honor in his pack".

"A man speaking about honor, perhaps it was a rather common occurrence. But wait a minute, he used the word 'pack' rather than something else... Is it what I am guessing? One of them is a werewolf?"

I decided to stay on and listen to their conversation behind a wall. Apparently, they were trying to get information out from the Resistance. Does that mean our lives will be endangered in the future. Yet, I do not have any evidence that I could use against them. Besides, what is the point of fighting if there is a peaceful way out on the table?

I was lost in my thoughts. Ever since she was killed in that incident [flashback to the day when her best friend was killed during an assault on her home by the Demon Army], I became resolved to stop this bloodshed. After all, violence begets violence, doesn't it? Then, someone nudged me, and I lost my train of thoughts. It was Michael, the very same sergeant that escorted my father earlier, and my childhood friend that I have a secret crush on.

"A penny of your thoughts, Elizabeth?" he asked me. Yet I just simply shook my head and whispers into his ears "There is something going on here. I'm trying to figure out what the two men down the alleyway wants with us."

"Come on, you must be tired. Let's go and take a rest shall we? We'll discuss about this in the morning."

I simply nodded and walked with him back to our quarters. His was directly above mine.

"I will see you later in the morning at our office," he smiled to me as he spoke to me with a soothing voice.

"Very well, Michael. Have a good rest," I replied. Unknown to him, I murmured under my breath "I love you"...



P.s. I do apologize for generally short paragraphs.

 

"Who the hell are you?" Vetria asked, eyeing the sharp silver scythe.

"You don't need to know who I am," she said. He could tell she was female from her crystalline voice and the lithe shape of her body. "Sinner." With that, she swung her weapon. He could practically see it arcing through the air in slow motion as the deadly blade rushed towards his neck, seeking to chop his head off.

He easily brought up his dagger, Nightwing, to block the blade. "Alright then," he said, pushing away her scythe. "Then, what the hell are you?" She allowed her scythe to swing to her side.

"Justice. You, Vetria, are charged with deviation from the the path to Heaven; your punishment is death by royal assassination." Once again, she initiated attack, circling her scythe at him.

Vetria dropped and rolled out of the way, and sprang back up to his feet to dodge her follow up attack. "Hold on, what's this stuff about 'sin?'" He ducked backwards, seeing and feeling her blade swishing just past his face.

"Hey, I'm just doing my job," she replied. "I don't really see how what you're doing is bad, but I can't say no to my upper-classes."

Vetria noticed that she had completely dodged his question. "What exactly did I do?" he said, preparing to dodge or parry another attack. Instead, she lifted the handle of her scythe to rest on her shoulder.

"Er... Murder? I don't know, they don't really tell me this kind of stuff," she said. "I guess it's so that I don't skip out on a powerful target or something."

"Hm. Those upper-classes of yours sound pretty lax in their work," he joked, only to be met with the near-death experience of a scythe swinging past his neck.

"Don't you dare insult my order," she threatened. "You should not be fooling around with a celestial. Especially not me."

"And why is that?" Vetria asked cockily, though he was starting to get slightly nervous. He gripped the handle of his dagger a little tighter.

"My power with the blade is unmatched." Her voice was firm, but through his years of dealing with his father and mother, Vetria knew that it was only a half-truth.

"Oh really?" he asked. "What's the catch? Everyone's got one. I'm not a bad fighter myself, but my magical power is terrible. To be honest, it's practically non-existent."

Silence. "Why... Why would you tell me that? Don't you realize I could use that against you?"

"Of course I do," he answered. "It would make itself apparent during our fight anyway, right?"

She stopped, as if she were thinking something over. "What are you?" she said curiously.

Vetria laughed. "You don't need to know that," he said. "Your job is to kill me, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but... I don't really want to," she admitted. "I hate this job. There's got to be a better way than just getting rid of someone because they screwed up." She sighed, resting her scythe on the ground. She sat down, and wrapped her arms around her knees. She hung her head, placing her face in her arms.

"What-"


Vetria suddenly bolted awake, shooting up. "Heaven and Hell!" he cursed, gripping his head with his hands from the ensuing headache. When the pain faded, he glanced around at the many pairs of eyes now on him.

"I was unconscious for one second, and suddenly there's a party, huh?" he asked, noting the presence of an alicorn and what looked to be a resistance member. He then noticed that there was no pain to be found in his arm.

"So, what do we do next? Part ways, have at each other's heads, or something else?"

(If you're confused about Vetria's flashback, it will make sense soon.)

 

Apate looked at Naomi with a look that hinged somewhere between incredulity and doubt. Was Naomi actually considering handing her weapon over to a member of the Resistance? One who she had already been worryingly accepting towards? One who should have been lying bleeding on the forest floor at least three minutes ago?

She felt more doubt creeping into her expression. No matter how hard she tried to watch what was going on with a neutral expression, she just couldn't help it. First, Naomi had let the resistance commander live in battle, then, she had let this "Hjalmar" live without reason beyond idle chat (though it had proved slightly informative), and now she was actually considering letting herself be helped by the enemy. Had she forgotten that there were perfectly able blacksmiths in Alterwood and Gundam that would also have the added benefit of not being treason to visit?

Slowly, Apate found another emotion building up as the silence yawned on. Anger.

I don't know what's gotten into you, Naomi, She thought, barely repressing a growl, but if you don't tell this idiot "no"...

Her claws clenched tighter, the amount of magic left in her swirling slowly in her shadow. She could feel the life energy of the Resistance soldier right in front of her, tantalizingly close. It would be enough to restore her magic, hell, the life energy from a sentient being might give her some power to spare! She felt her magic begin to form around her claws. It would be so easy just to sink them into the human and take the energy, so easy to end this stupidity right now.

So why wasn't she?

She froze, and her magic faded away. She felt her expression falling again, from anger, to pain. Would Naomi really... It would be against every rule conceived, accepting aid from the creatures they were tasked to kill. But that was what was almost happening here, wasn't it?

Apate gripped the grass below her, as she heard the half dragon wake up. He muttered for a few moments, before she heard him speak up.

"So, what do we do next? Part ways, have at each other's heads, or something else?"

What do we do next. What do we do next? The thought ripped through her doubts, settling into a cold fury. In fact, what do we do next?

Her eyes locked onto Hjalmar. She knew what she had to do. If Naomi was so frozen, she would make the decision for her. If he isn't gone by the time I reach ten, I'm taking his life and setting this whole damn clearing ablaze.

1.

Toerga nodded slightly, his entirely passive expression hiding the shock that he felt within. Sorush Richtus, one of the acting Alphas of all of the demon forces?

He would have to be exceptionally more careful. If this demon's power was as it was rumored to be, any step out of line could mean death. And most of the questions he planned to have answered were more than a few steps out of line.

For now, it would be best to go along with him. There was bound to be some place for him to become "unfortunately separated" from Sorush later, but any suspicion against him wouldn't fare well at all.

Toerga hmmed in thought. "It would be wise to find this map first." He looked up at the sky, noting the sun's movement nearing the horizon. There wasn't much time left until night fell. "It would also be wise to accomplish this quickly." He said, looking around. The carts of supplies that had been being loaded earlier were all emptied, and the men who had been unloading them were now gone. Only one man was now left, and he stood counting supplies and sorting the crates into different sections.

That gave him an idea.

"This map, it would be among the supplies, correct?" He grinned, nodding towards the man who seemed to be inventorying the crates. "And those supplies would be heading to that same area, correct?" He chuckled, feigning an innocent tone. "I wonder if this man requires any assistance in carrying these goods? They do look awfully burdensome, would you agree?"

 

In the light of hunger, his eyes glowed with awe at Emilia's skill and couldn't resist an expression of surprise. "Wow, Emilia! That's some stuff you got there!"

Emilia only chuckled in return. "Never seen such an act before? Come on, let's get this boar roasted, shall we?"

Ceithan nodded and carved some of the wood he collected into sharp stakes to lift the boar to grill it. "Boy am I glad to have you around. At least you're more useful than Rowen---" he caught himself before he could finish. Sure, he didn't like her as he should, but that didn't give him a reason to complain. Also, if there was anyone amongst the three of them who was worried about the healer girl the most, it would be Ewart. Or at least he thought.

"Ahah, which part of the boar do you want? The shank is mine!" He abruptly changed the subject, as he started to cut the boar into pieces to be grilled.

---

(Apologies that Rowena is less active, though,)

Apparently refused, Rowena was still tempted to help Avery. On another note, she would probably not do much good arguing against Avery, which would easily tire her and aggravate her wounds.

Nodding obediently, she made her way to the bedroll. Hugging her knees against the wall, she held the sheets close to her. Was Ewart alright? Was Ceithan doing what she intended him to?

"Thank you....will heal you...soon..." She murmured, to no one in particular. To Avery? To Morgan? To Ewart? To Ceithan? She didn't think much of it either. Slowly her eyelids dropped, even if she was away from the comforts of home, the comfort of her lessened guilt was enough to lull her to sleep.

 

Elizabeth was twisting and turning the whole day trying to sleep. However, she can't stop thinking about what happened earlier, about whatever she just heard. The two men that she saw having a conversation earlier... She felt that they were up to no good.

"Could they be enemies that have infiltrated the base?" was a thought that kept running through her mind. She wanted to keep an eye on those two, and sent a secret letter to her dad's quarters about the incident.

She then sent a messenger to her father, and told him to have the other guards to keep a lookout on the two suspicious characters. She thought "a lady's intuition tends to be correct, isn't it?"

"I'll speak to Michael about this later..."

She then saw nothing but a canvas of black as she got tired and fell asleep... Perhaps it'll be easier to speak to someone she's close to about the incident... And it's about time that she confesses to her crush...

 

Somewhere in the wasteland that is now Shikyo, a cloaked figure walks. Slowly, but surely heading towards Drukels Woodland, this mysterious person hopes to leave his mark on this scarred world, and give it hope.

"This is foolish..." Dintrius thought. The Resistance, whom he heard of a lot during his short time on the continent, would likely be the first people to reject peace between Demons and Non-Demons. "They are the ones being assailed, after all." And yet it was there he was heading. "Bah, I might as well take care of the hardest step first."

Humans can be more open-minded than demons... Mostly. But he knew, Someday he would realize his dream of peace. Someday, all races will be able to live in harmony, with no prejudices. Someday, the bloodshed will end. Someday...

Then it occurred to him.

He had to find the Resistance. He stood there, in front of the forest, contemplating the matter for a while. "I'll just head inside. Chances are the ongoing conflict will facilitate locating them."

So he marched forward, into that dark forest, whose roots absorbed more blood than anything else.

Yes!! Finally! Now, everyone could finally see how important she really was! Now everyone will respect her...
"Ferl, the Resistance's greatest alchemist!" She said to herself.
It's a shame Rowena couldn't be there to see her. Where did she go...?
"Oh well, she would probably just stutter on about how she couldn't be there. And even if I managed to convince her, she would just sleep for the duration of my demonstration."
She would just tell her about how it went. Woah, she better hurry up! She had little time to prepare. But she would show them. She would show stupid Ewart just how capable she was (When he'll be back). Time to show her latest invention...
The Spirit Keeper.

EDIT: In retrospect, this is a lot briefer than what I intended... Oh well, I'll catch up as it goes on!

 

If Ceithan had anything to say about anyone wanting, or attempting, to court Rowena, it would be a lot. The idea that the commander had harboured a crush on Rowena was adorable, dare he admit. However, the chances that Ewart might unintentionally sound the alarms for Solaris' parenting instincts would skyrocket as well. Despite wanting her to be independent, a father would naturally be wary of who his daughter might be friends with and what she might do in their company. Even if it is people he trust very much.

As he started cooking the boar, he looked back to Emilia, while formulating a whisper of a response. "Really now? Well isn't that cute of him?" However, there was a little bit of spuriousness in his acting, as he was concerned about who was interested in Rowena. Generally, Rowena was very trusting of other people, but that had led her into trouble at times. He silently hoped that she wouldn't be so naive and Ewart would not take advantage of her like many others who did.

"I care to think so. Just hope she can notice this feeling he has." Emilia let out a chuckle before checking the meat. They have been grilling for a while, it would take some time more for it to be edible.

(Apologies for the short reply.)

 

Elizabeth aroused from her short nap and started thinking about the whole incident that happened. She had a hard time trying to understand why someone who use "pack" rather than some other word to describe a group. The only logical explanation that came to her mind was that she met a werewolf and his ally of sorts.

"Does that mean there was all along a security breach that wasn't realized? Does that mean the enemy has already infiltrated our ranks?" she asked herself. Given her intelligence, she knew that there was almost no one in the hideout she could trust, say her father and her childhood crush and trusted aide. She decided that it would be the best course of action to keep the two of them on watch, and she sent out a secret messenger to various divisions about the two men she saw before first light.

"I just hope everyone would be careful," she thought to herself. "Hopefully no one gets killed in this again. I don't want another round of bloodshed."

She decided to activate a group of resistance special forces to the various storerooms and change all the passwords for access. "I hope this is for the best"

 

[SIZE=10.5pt]Avery rolled her eyes as Morgan flapped back up into the cave. The boy opened his mouth to say something obnoxious but Avery raised a finger to her lips, pointing her other hand at the sleeping woman. Morgan nodded and alighted quietly on the cave flooring. "I'll take first watch," he offers quietly. "You need some sleep."[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]"No more than you do,"[/SIZE][SIZE=10.5pt] Avery hisses back. "What with you gallivanting around all afternoon and all night. Go get some sleep--tomorrow is going to be frustrating enough if you're dead on your feet." Morgan rolled his eyes and mocked a heavy sigh, trudging his feet as he ghosted over to his bedroll and tucked himself in. "And for God's sake, treat the girl with more respect, kid. Your manners are shit for royalty."[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]She smiled lightly at his quiet groaning, then tucked herself against the most uncomfortable piece of rock she could find to help her stay awake. "Not long to sunrise," she sighed, groaning. "Why'd you have to screw up the plan, Morgan..?"[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]((My apologies for the slow (and short) reply! Back in business, have a dream arc planned out for Avery and Morgan now. Not much to see in this post due to planning and revisions but felt I needed to do something.))[/SIZE]

 

Apate breathed in and out, keeping herself from boiling over in anger. But despite her anger, she did understand. After a moment of rigidly sitting under the hug, she sighed, returning it. Her anger fell away, and she felt a twinge of guilt for making Naomi have to choose. She pulled out of the hug, smiling half-heartedly in an attempt to make Naomi feel better.

But the idea of bringing the demons and the resistance together... It was impossible. It was foolish. It couldn't be done.

Could it?

First things first. She focused on the half-breed and the unicorn, narrowing her eyes at them. She wanted to kill them. It would feel good, just to cut them down where they stood, take their life from them and rejuvenate her own power. She even took a step forwards to simply act on her thoughts, but she stopped herself.

"On the battlefield, I might be a killer, but I don't like having to, and I could never just cut someone down."

She stood glaring at the half-breed, torn between her nature, her oaths, and everything she had come to believe she stood for, and the simple ideals of a friend. Apate opened her mouth, ready and all too eager to incinerate the others where they stood...

And spoke.

"Get out of here." She growled menacingly. "And if I ever see either of you again, I'll rip your sanity to shreds before you even have time to flinch."

She whirled around before stalking off into the forest. "Come on." She called to Naomi, staying just ahead of the dwarf so Naomi wouldn't see the tears of frustration clouding her eyes. Nearly instantly, she felt a feeling almost like a shadow on her mind as the force within her magic spoke.

Hmhmhm. Ruthless, eh? Face it, whelp. You're not a proper dragon. You'll never be one; you're too soft.

"Shut up, Taom shade." She ground out quietly, her tail lashing violently.

((I have no idea what to say for Toerga right now. Also, trying to start my explanation of Eastern Dragon magic, yay! ))

 

[SIZE=10.5pt]Dintrius walked through the forest, with nothing but the wind, the scrunch of the dead leaves he walked on and the occasional squeak of some small animal still living in these ill woods to accompany him. As he trudged on, he could feel the remnants of the lamenting souls of all the deceased that were brutally killed in the surrounding areas. The cruelty of his brethren was incomprehensible... But he also felt the Demons that were killed in manners almost equally as horrid. "The effects of the ongoing war are making themselves apparent here... All this hatred and death is turning this country into Hell on Earth... literally. The situation is graver than I thought."[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Still he advanced forward, lost in thought. "Who knows how long this war has lasted? The land's scars say a very, very long time..." But why kill each other, for so long? One would think they'd eventually realize it was pointless... Apparently not. He would have to see to it that the bloodshed would stop. Or at the very least, try.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Suddenly, he felt a distant presence. It emanated potent Light energy. "I best be careful... As a Demon, I will likely be branded as a member of one the opposing forces."[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]He cast a discreet levitation spell, and started gliding toward the presence, only a few decimeters off the ground. When he heard : "[/SIZE]What in the name of the gods is going on here?"
[SIZE=10.5pt]He silently approached what he discovered was a small group of people, comprised of a Human, a Draconian-looking figure, what looked like a Dwarf, an Alicorn (Hence the holy presence he felt), and a mysterious lifeform Dintrius could not fathom. It looked Human, but it was not. And yet it was. He could not tell. One thing for sure, it was not a natural being. In any case, that was quite an odd group he found.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]He stood, or rather, floated behind a near tree and eavesdropped on them a little to see if it was safe to insert himself to the group.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]=======[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]It seemed like most of them were not ready to engage in combat, but he felt the distinct tension that occurs before such fights begin. He was also certain the Alicorn would have detected him by now. In any case...[/SIZE]
[SIZE=10.5pt]Dintrius observed a while longer, when the Dragon-esque person got up and said :[/SIZE]
"Get out of here. And if I ever see either of you again, I'll rip your sanity to shreds before you even have time to flinch." And started walking away, calling the Dwarf to follow her.
Then the "Dragon" started heading away. It was now or never! So he landed on the floor, and marched into everyone's eyesight, and asked his age-old question, for everyone to hear:

[SIZE=10.5pt]"Is it worth it?"[/SIZE]

(EDIT: I'm an extraordinary stupidhead, I should also have mentioned that from the beginning, he was in Humanoid form)

[SIZE=10.5pt]

[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Disaster[/SIZE]

[SIZE=7.5pt]Disaster[/SIZE] [SIZE=10.5pt]Disaster[/SIZE][SIZE=13.5pt] DISASTER![/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Ferl stomped back into her quarters, and threw her stuff on the bed, and then she SLAMMED the door. Her back leaning against it, she yelled very loudly: "GWUUAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" and sank to the floor. "Why me? Why is it always ME?"[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Needless to say, her demonstration wasn't exactly a success. Instead of the intended effect, her invention unleashed the pent-up magical energy it contained, burning her test subject's face and sending him flying into a wall. Now he's in the infirmary, with most likely permanent blindness and broken legs.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]"It's not [/SIZE][SIZE=10.5pt]my fault he had weak eyes and frail bones! He just had to take better care of himself." She thought, moping. "Why would my invention fail anyway? I made all the calculations... It was perfect!" She stood up and started pacing "Of course... [/SIZE][SIZE=10.5pt]Sabotage! They ruined my invention so I'd stay in my low rank! They don't want anything to change... They refuse to [/SIZE]acknowledge[SIZE=10.5pt] my skills..."[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Ferl was sweating all over, like when she had her amazing breakthroughs while conceiving her potions and other things. [/SIZE]"Damn control freaks! Solaris, Ewart, even Elizabeth! They're all against me!" She said, with a demented look in her eyes. "Well you know what?! Screw them! Screw the Heulwen gizzard, screw that damned assassin! Damn it, screw the whole resistance! Screw them all! They never cared about me! They're always pushing me around... It's THEIR fault I lost my family! Them and their stupid scouting missions..."
Ferl was now fulminating. "That's it then. I'm leaving. They can rot for all I care."

She started packing her things, taking only her most valuable or rarest ingredients, and a few essentials."I'll also need some other things... I'll have to head for one of the storage rooms. Hopefully they won't have changed the passwords yet." But that didn't matter, she could just bash though...

She set out from her room, beginning on her path of self-exile.

 

Vetria was about to make a sharp retort which probably would have earned him a few claw marks across his face when a creature, one who looked human but possessed super-naturally blue skin, marched into the clearing, and, with a clear, commanding voice, asked,

"Is it worth it?"

Complete silence. All eyes were upon him in an instant; not a single breath could be heard, and even the dragoness had paused in her storming away. It took a moment for Vetria to realize that he was referring to the ongoing war, and, when he did, and seeing that nobody else had a reply ready, spoke up.

"As a whole? No," he said simply. "It's really just murder on a massive scale. I don't like it, and neither does anyone else." He paused, for no other reason than effect. "But I think I can say that all of us here have... personal reasons for taking part." He clenched Nightwing tighter. "You know, I'm okay with watching countless people, demons, and whoever else die, or with killing them myself, as long as I can reach my own goal." He looked around.

"Why? Because I'm selfish. Because everyone is selfish," he continued. "That's why wars happen; because everyone's looking after themselves, not because on faction's got a quarrel with another. None of us have to be here; we're all fighting on our own accord." With that, he got up, back turned to the group, readying himself to leave. "All of you'd best leave now," he said, taking a few steps forward. "Because if you let me get the headstart, I'll win the game and you'll all lose. That's all war is; a giant game with twisted rules."

"Oh, and Miss Dragoness?" He turned his head back. "Kill me, and you're dead."

Wings unfurling, Vetria leaped into the air and, catching a quick gale of wind, flew off without looking back.

(Sorry that this reply is so short, and that it's been a while since I've last posted.)

 

Apate exhaled a puff of smoke, her lips curling in an amused smile as the half-dragon flew away. "'Kill me and you're dead.' If that made any less sense he'd have been speaking in gibberish. Besides," she chuckled, "I never said I'd kill him. You can live without your sanity. I get the feeling he's starting to do so already, or at least living without maturity." She snorted, his biting Miss Dragoness remark simply leaving a caustic smile on her muzzle.

She turned to the odd newcomer with a bored expression, the trees around her partially blocking her view of him. "So. 'Is it worth it?' I don't know, is it worth it for you to be wandering aimlessly around only to receive an answer you've heard a thousand times? Hmph. Please. You'd be more help actually contributing to the war instead of wasting your time babbling on about things that won't matter when we get back to our separate lands. This war's been going on for centuries. What makes you think a simple phrase can stop it?" She snorted. "What makes you think anything can stop it? No, this war's simply a downwards spiral that we're all swept up in. We can't get out, so we might as well enjoy the ride."

"Now I have a question. Who the hell are you and why are you wandering around and wasting everyone's time?" Apate asked sharply, crossing her arms and leaning against a tree. She had better places to be and better things to be doing right now, but she did want to know who this mysterious thinker was. And if he would be an enemy.

((Sachi, I'm kinda waiting for your reply to continue with what Toerga and Sorush are doing. They're just walking right now, and you seem to have a better direction for what's to come than I do.))

 

Elizabeth was walking back to her quarters when she heard Ferl screaming.

"Damn control freaks! Solaris, Ewart, even Elizabeth! They're all against me! Well you know what?! Screw them! Screw the Heulwen gizzard, screw that damned assassin! Damn it, screw the whole resistance! Screw them all! They never cared about me! They're always pushing me around... It's THEIR fault I lost my family! Them and their stupid scouting missions... That's it then. I'm leaving. They can rot for all I care."

She rushed over to Ferl's quarters, only to realize that she had just ran out of her room with her bag. She knew something wasn't right, but she needed to confirm with Ferl what exactly happened before she could pinpoint on the possible solutions to calm her down.

"Ferl, please calm down. You know I'll never be against you. I wasn't against you right from the start. I do care about you."

"Calm down? What are you trying to say! You sabotaged my potion and you wanted me to calm down! You even have the cheek to say you care about me! What is the meaning of all these? I'm leaving!"

That was Ferl's reply in anger. Elizabeth pulled her into a hug. "Please, you're my friend Ferl. Why would I want to sabotage anything. I want the best for you. How about we have a drink in my room and you tell me exactly what happened? Having two heads to think about a problem would probably be better than one."

"My suspicions were confirmed. There is definitely a mole in the Stronghold. And his objective would be to sow discord within the resistance. After all, what's a better way than to create confusion within your enemy's ranks before you attack?" Elizabeth thought to herself.

 

Ceithan's eyes widened in alarm at Emilia's warning over Ewart's behaviour. Quickly, he turned to the meat and sighed impatiently, which was not altogether feigned.

"Why is it taking so LONG?!!!!" he cried out in boredom and exasperation. It seemed like an exaggerated reply, but he was quite starving as well. He stood up from taking care of the meat to walk around the clearing they were at, looking out for anyone they knew. No one seemed to notice this part of the forest, as it was inhabited by nothing but fauna and flora. He hoped to get this mission out ow the way.

Emilia cried out in glee as the meat was ready to be eaten. She called Ceithan and Ewart over to grab both their shares of meat. "Tuck in, gentlemen." she spoke before she started munching away at her meal.

Ceithan attacked the meat like a hungry wolf. Getting caught be damned, he wanted to satisfy his body's needs.

"Hey, hey, slow down!" Emilia scolded lightly as she chuckled at his actions.

-------

Rowena was tossing and turning in her sleep, curling up in the bedroll that Avery had so generously lent her. She made a notice to repay her favour once they got out of this mess.

In her sleepy thoughts, she thought of Ewart and how much he would be worrying about her, or was it the blade that he was concerned about? Nevertheless, she would dare admit that she had a slight crush on the assassin, but she had always put it aside as a "subordinate admiring a leader" kind of admiration.

Or was it?

Her thoughts flowed from Ceithan, that annoying swordsman that often got on her nerves back at the resistance. Her father, who had taken away her birthright. And Ferl, a friend she held dearly. She wondered what alchemy would the half satyr have conjured back at the resistance. A small smile came to her face at the thought.

(Sorry, nothing much for these two folks.)

 

(FINALLY found some free time to write!)

Dintrius stood and waited for each to finish their answer. The mysterious lifeform flew away after his response, and the last to speak was the Dwarf. At her response, Dintrius looked down in guilt, and closed his eyes and sighed. "It was not in my intention to bring such despond." He raised his head and turned his gaze in Naomi's direction "And, although it may not mean much to you, I would like to offer my sincerest apologies." He said, putting his hand to his chest.

"Philosophical types, eh? This isn't the first time I've branded this way, and it certainly won't be the last. Also, I must thank you for not attempting to kill me on sight. That happens all too often...Ahem" Dintrius took a few steps forward and sat down, cross-legged.
"Now, I owe you some answers. I am Dintrius, and I indeed am an Arachnid Demon, even if it is not so apparent it this form. I am not from this land, but that is not important." He paused. Then said, with a serious expression: "What I intend... is to begin the end of this war, for the better. That's right, peace. I know very well that more bloodshed is inevitable before that goal can be attained, but I will make it happen, or die trying, so to speak. I ask my 'pointless questions', to start people thinking. You'll be amazed how little people stop to think about the big picture. To have a little perspective. But from what you have said, that alone won't be enough."

He then got up, and with a solemn face, said: "I know I won't be able to dissuade you from your previous engagements, but I implore you, at least think about it. The killing can stop" He turned toward Apate. "You said this war has been raging for centuries? If so, than this is more of a downward spiral than you can possibly imagine."

(P.S.: I hope MoonlightEve finds some free time soon! :/ Her characters really seemed interesting...)

And now comes the risk of RPing someone else's character with not enough information... Ack! Please pardon me Princess Victoria, but I would like to point out that what Ferl was demonstrating was a small mechanism, an Orb whose effects are achieved through Alchemy (Although no one knew that, so everyone refers it as her "Invention") Not a potion! But, as I said, that's what a lack of information leads to, so it's more likely to be my fault for not specifying enough!

"Of course it couldn't be simple!"

That stupid Elizabeth had to come and stop her. And she started talking about their friendship... More lies, without a doubt. All this time she thought she could count on her.
No, it was all a sick game to them. To gain respect and power while diminishing the ones that really deserved it. Nothing more than twisted politics.And in this time of crisis, too! Ferl dismissed Elizabeth and was about to leave her, when she suddenly pulled her into a hug.

"Please, you're my friend Ferl. Why would I want to sabotage anything. I want the best for you. How about we have a drink in my room and you tell me exactly what happened? Having two heads to think about a problem would probably be better than one." THE NERVE OF THAT...

She fought back, until Elizabeth released her grasp. Gazing in her eyes with great hate, she violently growled: "Why I aughta... You... Grk..." Her breath heaving. "You think I'll fall for your tricks? Then you..." Her expression loosened. Her head drooped down and she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'll never win if I go head-on. Alright, I'll play by their rules then."

She opened her eyes, and with a creepy smile, she raised her gaze back to Elizabeth "Fine. We'll have a drink. I've been itching to have wine anyway. Lead on, Elizabeth." Ferl said, her mind continuing to race, inventing more and more of her paranoid conspiracies, never wanting to accept that she was the one who failed.

Years of arrogance and the toxic mixtures her alchemy exposed her to were finally beginning to take their toll.

(P.S.: I don't think I ever wrote or said the name Elizabeth so many times in such a short instance!)

 

As the sun's rays slowly filtered into the cave and her vision gave way to darkness, Avery stood with a quiet groan. Leaning against rocks all night was definitely not a good idea--but, well, she wasn't going to be doing much today. She had it all planned out--the girl would lead the two Alouettians to the rebel encampment, they would secure a position among their forces... and... then what?

What lies at the end of this road? War? Death? Yes, there was a good chance she would die in this fight against the demons. She could accept that. But what would she fight for?

The sun's rays filtered into the back of the cave and Avery cast a glance inwards. Her eyes registered Morgan's hair sticking out of his bedroll. She would fight for him. God knows he couldn't fight without her. They would rest upon each other when they had to.

Speaking of Morgan-- how was he handling the fight yesterday? Taking lives was not as easy as the stories claimed. Even if they were "demon" lives, it was not peoples' place in the world to decide who stays and goes on to the Skies Above.

Enough of this monologuing. Standing carefully, she wound her way to the back of the cave as the last of her vision faded away, her hand falling on the boy's shoulder just as the familiar blackness enveloped her. "Time to get up, kiddo." Apparently satisfied by his groaning and further curling up-- definitely not enough sleep, today was gonna suck for him-- and moved over to the young woman. What to do with her..? She tapped the girl's shoulder once or twice, uncertain, then shook it lightly. "Morningtime, young one! Time to awaken."