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Y.Z. [PG-16]

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"Catch." Rod addressed Rosaline as he threw two bags at the princess, the girl barely catching the two without tripping over her own two feet. Rose had been waiting outside for the three, and was still quite red when they left the store. Rosaline carefully examined the contents of her first bag. That was the stuff she bought, but what about the other bag? She was about to ask, but Rod answered it for her. "I thought I'd get Reid a wardrobe change as well. You give it to him though, as thanks for saving you. We'll just say you owe me until you have money to give me in return, kay~?" Rose was a bit hesitant at the thought of giving Reid something when he was angry with her earlier in the day. What if he was still angry?

"Um... okay. But now I'm curious too, what do we need the swimsuits for?" Rose replied with obvious curiosity amidst her voice. The group was beginning to walk back now, with Rod in the lead, a bag of his very own at his side. Other than the bath she had been given by Alicel, she wasn't exactly sure why you'd get wet, or need clothing for that matter. "Like, what else is water for other than drinking and bathing?"

"HOT SPRING!" Rod shouted enthusiastically, throwing his left hand, the hand without a bag, comically into the air. "There's a sweet hot spring right on the outskirts of town! Now, usually you wouldn't wear a swimsuit to such a place, but it's a unisex establishment, and it's one huge hot spring, so I didn't really think you guys would want to go in naked. Most people don't, though it is allowed. I thought it would be a good way to relax after traveling so far, though we have to go at night because we won't be able to sneak Reid out of the city otherwise. The place is usually empty at night anyways, despite all the... extra surprises."

"I don't even know what a hot spring is, but it sounds fun!"

"Yeah! Rose knows how to live! Take everything on head first without any knowledge of knowing what you're getting yourself into!"

"Uh... thanks?"

"Yes. Thanks!" Rod chimed up some more, as they finally approached the door to Reid's house. "Now, you guys should all go take a nap or something. Lila told me she'll be making dinner around six, so be up by then. Oh, and don't bother changing into your new outfits until tomorrow morning before we leave. That way we can all be shocked by each other's fashion sense~ We'll probably go to the spring around 8, so I need to figure out how we can kill an hour after, though knowing you guys, it'll take you just that long to teach Rose how to put a swimsuit on..."

"HEY!" Rose shouted in argument as she kicked their escort in the shins, causing him to hold them in temporary pain.

OOC: So, go to bed or something, and wake up around 5:30 to the smell of turkey~ or something. XD
 
Faewyn had been largely preoccupied with being upbeat in general during the trip back, humming a cheerful little tune for herself and occasionally glancing at her purchases. It was a pleasant sensation, to finally have something really new, not just an object picked up on the road or a hand-me-down. Oh, the girl loved those too of course, but there's was something special about owning things that were truly brand spanking new. When Rod mentioned a hot spring, however, Faewyn was elevated to an all new level of hyperness.

"HOT SPRING!" the girl chimed in with his outburst, beaming at the desolate streets, "Hot springs are awesome!" she babbled on to Rosaline, "I mean, I know it sounds about as smart as boiling yourself in a big kettle, but once you learn how to get in right, it relaxes muscles like you wouldn't believe and it feels absolutely..." she made some vague gestures with her hands in search for the right words, "Especially if it's cold outside. Well, you'll understand when you experience it. Ohh...this is going to be so much fun!" she clapped her hands enthusiastically, even though the actual event was still hours away.

"I'll see you at dinner, then!" she called to the others, skipping into the house as soon as the door was opened. She soon returned, however, wearing a slightly sheepish expression on her face, "Umm...where are the guest rooms around here?"
 
OOC: I'm going to jump right ahead to the hot spring. We don't need to waste any posts with dinner.

Rose sweatdropped in response to Faewyn's enthusiasm. No matter which way she looked at it, that girl was totally high strung. Though, it was rather surprising to see her using her energy for something other than writing in her book. Rose had been meaning to ask about it, but in the end decided it really wasn't any of her business. Faewyn energetically ran into the house, basically guaranteeing the knowledge-less princess that she'd have a good time that night. Soon after though, the girl came back out, asking about rooms. In the end, Rod ended up have to get Lila, who ended up having to escort Faewyn and Alicel to spare bedrooms, while placing Rose in Reid's room temporarily while she set up another guest bedroom for the night. Rosaline didn't think too much on the fact that she was sleeping in Reid's bed, but rather dozed off seemingly instantly after she shut her eyes. She awoke some time later, to the smell of turkey in the air. Realizing she was starving, she headed downstairs and enjoyed a turkey dinner with everyone, including Reid who was still apparently off in his own little world.

"WE'RE GOING WHERE!?" Reid's voice echoed throughout the tall building at approximately seven thirty. Using their spare time wisely, Rose and Alicel had just gotten back from Alicel teaching Rosaline how to fly, and came back to this scene. Apparently Rod had waited until the last minute to tell his friend their next destination. Some time after this, Rod lead them out of the city by air, Reid now flying on his board because the city had somewhat of a curfew. Out a ways from the city, was literally a large hole, about 75 meters in diameter, filled with steamy, hot water. Like Rod suspected, it was empty, excluding the the small wooden shacks on either side of the spring that were used for changing. Rod and Reid entered one, swimsuits in hand, leaving the other one for the girls. Rose was first into the girl's shack. It certainly was... old. Some of the benches were falling apart, and the walls were beginning to peel. And what was that smell? Those weren't the least of her worries though. "Ah, so much skin is showing..." After she had gotten changed, she finally realized that wearing a bikini was basically walking around in underwear... only not. "At least I'll be in the water..."

OOC: Bunnied Alicel with Bell's permission.
 
Alicel tapped her chin as she examined herself in the dirty mirror, "I think I've lost some weight." She said, pouting. Normally, most girls would jump for joy, but if one was too skinny, that was just as unattractive. Either way, Alicel waved the strange smell of old rotting wood away from her nose as she threw the towel she'd brought along with her over her shoulder and stepping outside, folding her towel a safe distance away from the pool and placing it down on the ground. Stepping lightly over to the edge of the pool, she let herself sit down and hold both legs over the steamy water, being sure to put in her right foot only to test the temperature. It was a tad too hot for Alicel, being the cold water type herself, but if anyone decided to mess with them tonight, they had some scalding hot water to drown in, especially with a Wation user in the mix. Satisfied with this thought, Alicel slid into the water and sat on one of the seats built into the wall of the spring.

Cupping a small puddle of water in her two hands pressed side to side, Alicel watched as little trickles of water danced out of the smaller puddle, and arched over the surface of the spring itself like a skipping stone. She put on her own little personal water show with the steam in the air and the water, entertaining herself as she waited for conversation or something else to occupy herself.

~

A very handsome young man walked into the inn, smiling as he charmed the young lady handling the customers. He had molten gold eyes that were both warm and cold at the same time, a slightly tanned complexion, and very messy black and white hair that gave him a tough look, while the smile on his face gave him a gentle one. He was dressed very simply, in a black long sleeved shirt, with a wide collar and a pair of black slacks. His boots were oddly familiar, as was the red dot on his forehead, just barely seen through his white fringe. Sighing as he locked the door behind him, two purple hands sprouted out of his heavy black wings, the one on the right bearing an eye on the palm.

It was quickly replaced with a circular mouth lined with sharp teeth, the mouth sucking in the air around the young man, his diguise practically eaten.

Aertan sighed, and sat down on the bed, pulling out a pocket knife and heating the blade so that it glowed red. In this short period of time in which the blade glowed red, Aertan hacked at the thick metal wires sewn into Haeon't's palm, sealing his mouth and eye shut. Geote watched guard through the edge of the window. They'd reached their destination in two days flat. But Aertan wasn't about to engage in a battle exhausted. A good night's sleep, and then he'd do any catching up. In the morning. But first, he wanted to free Haeon't from Carn's laws. Haeon't and Geote had nothing to do with Carn anymore. His purpose had nothing to do with Tylonstus.

"There."

Haeon't's bright icy blue eye swirled about in new found freedom, blinking and seeing perfectly through the dark room. Geote's blood red eye caught sight of Haeon't's blue one, and he bobbed about in glee, forgetting about being watch-out. Sleep overcame Aertan, and a pair of eyes stared out of the edges of the corner of his rented room- a blue one and a red one.
 
OOC: Ack, I wish I was better at handling jumps through space and time. >.< Oh well, here goes nothing... :3

IC:

"THE HOT SPRING!" Faewyn had called back enthusiastically at Reid's exclamation, though fortunately the boy hadn't dignified it with an answer. In all honesty, her excitement over the upcoming trip had been so strong that the last few hours had passed in a flash; she vaguely remember having gone to sleep in one moment, only to be wide awake and enjoying a turkey dinner the next. Oh, she had quite profusely insisted on helping Lila with the dishes afterwards, though with her sheer energy in the same space as potentially fragile plates and glasses she had been kindly informed that she had done quite enough soon after. And now...now they were there, not even the decadent state of the changing room seemed to dampen Faewyn's spirits as she slipped into her swimsuit, already envisioning the upcoming fun.

"Well, that's sort of the point with a bikini, Rose." the girl replied to her younger friend's remark, "Come on, you'll feel a lot better when you're in the water." with that, she enthusiastically grabbed the princess' hand and led her down to the spring where Alicel had already gotten down to business.

"Now Rose..." Faewyn explained energetically as they approached the steaming water, "The trick to enjoying a hot spring is relaxation. Just let your body slide in there nice and slow. These are always shallow enough so you don't have to swim, so remember: no sudden movements, no struggling, like this..." she demonstratively sat down by the water's edge, dipping her toes daintily into the water before slowly lowering the rest of her body into the water after them until she connected with the bottom, eventually down about waist-deep in the warm water, stretching out her arms with a contented sigh, an absent smile playing on her face.

"It's been a while since I came to one of these last." she mumbled to no-one in particular, eyes still shut, "We have them all over Beta, you know, them and a lot of snow." she cast a glance at her surroundings, her face already reddening a bit from the temperature, "It's just too bad that there's no snow drift to jump into here. There's something special about settling down in a hot spring after having played in the snow. It..." she hesitated for a moment, once again having accidentally touched on the sad feelings, "...it was a family tradition." she finished, succeeding in regaining a bit of her previous upbeat feel as she turned back to Rosaline, giving her a wide grin, "Anyway, get in, Rose; the water's great."
 
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OOC: Sorry it's not much, I've been dealing with a bunch of kids today, so I'm a little less than energetic.

"Er... hey." Reid murmured to Rose, his face bright red, as he approached the girl, attempting to avoid visual contact with her body. It was actually kind of cute in his own way. Despite how he had been acting lately, he really was still a kid at heart. The boy was wearing a dark green swimsuit, with no particular design to it, the length covering to just below his knees. "I'm... sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to lose it. I'm a soldier, I should be able to control my emotions..."

"That's okay, Reid, you have your reasons, I underst-"

"CANNONBALL!" Was heard far from above before Rod's body plummeted into the hot spring in the general area group, causing the warm water to drench the two, dry social butterflies not quite in the water yet. When the boy surfaced, he received multiple rocks to none-to-pleased duo of mahstion users. "OW! OW! OW! I JUST WANTED TO TRY IT ONCE BEFORE I GOT MY WINGS WET AND COULDN'T FLY UP THAT HIGH!"

"I DON'T CARE WE WEREN'T IN YET!" Reid shot back at his annoyingly playful friend, before stepping forward, only to slip. In an attempt to keep himself up, he grabbed Rose's arm, but incidentally brought both of them into the water with a loud splash. The two eventually surfaced, and Rose made her way over to the girls in hopes of getting that relaxation she was promised, Reid following without choice as the girl dragged him after her, leaving Rod all alone.

"HEY, DOES NOBODY WANT TO SIT WITH ME!?"

"No."

"NOT EVEN YOU, REID?"

"No." They boy replied as well, his right eye twitching in irritation. "Just shut up so we can relax. I'm starting to think you brought us here so you could look at the girls in swimsuits and goof off. It's not proper for a soldier like yourself to do such things like flirting with girls on a mission."

"...You're one to talk."

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

"Uh... are all guys like this?" Rose asked in the direction of the other two girls. "I'm not even sure what they're arguing about... This is nice, though, it's calming. I wish I could sit here forever~"
 
Alicel grew progressively annoyed before she finally snapped and stood up, pointing a rigid finger at Rod, "YOU. SHUT UP AND RELAX." She turned her extremely frustrated glare upon Reid and pointed at him as well, "YOU. SHUT UP AND RELAX." Grumbling and issuing fluent curse words under her breath, she sat back down in the water and stared determinedly at the wooden changing shacks, as though they might calm her down. There was no way she'd get any relaxation now.

"Not all boys are like this Rosaline," Alicel snapped irritably, "We're just unfortunate enough to get a pair of annoying babies who can't swallow the fact that nobody wants to sit with them, and the fact that one is shamelessly and annoyingly flirting like it's Valentine's Day." Huffing, she blew a strand of damp hair from her face, before fanning herself with her hand, gritting her teeth hard to resist the urge to continue her annoyed rant.

"So." She said, pointedly ignoring Rod and Reid completely at this point and exuding a dangerous purple aura of displeasure, "Are we just gonna march right into Tealia or what? Do we have a plan or are we just gonna wave to the guards and say 'bye-bye' as they march Reid off to prison for taking his merry time and sitting around arguing about the stupidest stuff in a hot spring?"
 
OOC: Having done 'voluntary' work in kindergarten, I can't say I blame you. xD Anyways, my official graduation day is today so I'm probably not going to have much time on the computer for the better part of the day; just as a heads up. :3

IC:

Faewyn flinched at Alicel's outburst. Most of it had been in good cheer thus far, but this girl was seriously angry. No, NO! They shouldn't be angry, not now, not when this was perhaps the last moment for just relaxation and fun that they'd have in a long while. They-they should have been happy!

"Ummm..." the girl began hesitantly, not able to fully zone out Alicel's obvious temper, "Could we please try not to fight?" it sounded like a feeble request, but it came from the heart, "I-I think there will be enough bad words without us picking on each other too. So...please?" she cast a pleading look at the others, "Please try to get along?" she sighed quietly, leaning back. Well, it couldn't be helped; with the serious business having been lifted up on the table her mood had pretty much been spoiled already.

"And...Rod, you can sit next to me if you want." she added. Okay, so he may have been a no-good dirty letcher, but Faewyn couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for the boy. He had been very nice to them too, so she didn't have the heart to just shut him out while the rest of them were together.

The girl paused for a moment, trying to figure out a response to Alicel's demand before speaking up, "Well, I'd like to go and ask uncle Kain for help if I get the chance. Even-even if he can't make them do anything he's really good with Mahstion. I'm sure he can help us with an escape if we need one. I..." Faewyn paused, shaking her head, "I don't think there's much else I can do. Reid..." she locked eyes with the boy, "...if you know they're just going to treat you horribly there, why would you want to go in the first place?" she didn't get it, she really didn't, "I mean, we could go somewhere else; like Beta. Kain said that we have a deal for not selling information of some sort to Carn in exchange for Tealia not dragging our country into their politics. He called it an, umm..." her brow furrowed in concentration, "...a crotch-grip, I think?" as with most expressions of that kind, she spoke it with the complete innocence of a child simply repeating what she had heard, "Anyway, I really don't see why you have to go."
 
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OOC: Again, crappy post, but plot twist. =D Sort of. XD

"You told them?" Reid shot a glare with no emotion in his voice towards Rod. "Then I have no will to say anything here. My burden is my burden alone, I don't need you guys involved." He proceeded to get up in an attempt to leave, but Rose pulled him back down into the water, shaking her head. "What?"

"You don't get it, do you? Your burden is my burden too. I'm the reason you're in trouble after all. The others wouldn't still be here if they had no intention of helping you!" Rose finally spoke up. It was really irritable that Reid kept such a lone wolf attitude, especially at his age, and Rose had finally had enough. "You're wanted for your failure, I'm wanted for being me, and before long the rest of them will be labeled as wanted under the condition that they were our accomplices. Stop acting like you're the only person here!"

Reid was certainly... shocked. Not once in the past couple of days they had spent together had Rose spoke in such a manner. "W-we're going straight to Tealia. If I'm away too much longer, we'll have a majority of Tealia's forces on our tails. Not to mention, I still have one last resort. I can talk to Prince Ryan." His voice grew a bit shaky when he mentioned that name.

Rod spoke up, only to be interrupted. "You mean..."

"Yeah, my brother."

"WHOA WHOA WHOA. Prince Ryan is your brother?" Rose spoke up in complete shock. Not only did it not make sense, why would he hide such a thing from them? All the things Rose had ever heard about the Prince were positive, so it didn't make sense as to why Reid never spoke of it.

Reid had a look of distaste on his face in regards to the shocked response, and let out a mellow sign before moving on to give his explanation. "The late prince died a few years ago, and the Queen was unable to have another child. You know that popular ancient belief that everyone in the world has a doppleganger, someone who looks almost exactly like them? Well, my brother looked scarily like the prince. So, they just up and took him. He mailed us frequently after that, but slowly, he began to stop. I joined the Tealian forces so that I could get to the bottom of why."

There was a long pause of silence from the boy as he waited for everyone to digest the information. "Anyways, if my secret weapon is still where I left it, we can leave by 8am tomorrow and reach Tealia in four hours. From there, it's as simple as getting to, and infiltrating the castle without getting caught."

Rod sighed. "That's where I come in, isn't it? I know a secret passage for getting into the castle because I used to go in and hit on the maids."
 
OoC// Adela, new character, only gave an image because we're already so far into the RP that she's mostly just a support. Besides, it's not like anyone ever reads that part anyway. A picture suffice's here.

Spoiler:


Alicel fell silent when Rosaline started to lecture Reid. She looked at him only through a side stare, with an expression as if she'd tasted something foul in her mouth. And she sort of did. The sour taste in her mouth that always came around when a subject she hadn't noticed was brought up was certainly not something she enjoyed. It was true. Reid had placed nearly nothing on herself and Faewyn, as far as she knew. He was looking out for them, she knew, but at the same time, didn't that mean he didn't think they were competent enough to take care of themselves in a tight situation? Didn't that mean that he didn't want any burdens, extra baggage, or whatever they might be called? Spiteful thoughts ran through Alicel's mind as her envious and self-degrading personality started to eat at her, something that hadn't happened since she'd met Rosaline. Rosaline, the girl with nothing. Nothing that even Alicel could find jealous of. It was in this way that she could ignore Faewyn's intelligence. Rod's wealth. Reid's interest in Rosaline.

But now, Rosaline had something of value. He meant essentially nothing to Alicel, but she had someone to lean on. Someone who would always wait for her. She was pretty too, and carefree. She didn't seem like she cared about the way she looked, unlike Alicel, who was constantly obsessing over it. She could do things and not over analyze it. Ask questions without knowing the possible response. Sliding down in her seat, her nose hovered right over the surface of the water as she blew bubbles very slowly, watching them boil up to the surface. Reid, his brother a stand-in for Prince Ryan, and a great, hospitable family. Rosaline, the princess of Carn, granted her life all over again. Faewyn… well. Faewyn said her mom invented that super destructive thing, right? That was an accomplishment. And her Uncle didn't seem all too bad either. But what was Alicel? Someone with a fake surname. Her real one treated like dirt by everyone in her home country. She was the baby smuggled out of Carn so that she wouldn't get tattooed. The girl who was born into a family which resented their lineage, but always fell into the trend one way or another.

Alicel sat up straighter. She couldn't fall into the trend though. She didn't have the things needed for the disfigured left hands. But… she sank lower again. That didn't mean that Svartel blood was undeniably flowing in her system.

Jealousy overcame her, and Alicel stood, reaching over to grab her towel and exited. Maybe after a good night's sleep, she'd forget all about anything. Maybe in the morning, Rosaline would be the same sacrifice she'd met a few nights before, ragged and filthy. No- Alicel shook her head. Rosaline was getting a second chance at life. And Alicel had been the one who volunteered to help keep Rosaline's miracle a miracle, and not a curse. Sighing, Alicel draped the towel over her head and waved her hand once as she walked toward the rickety changing rooms again, "I'm going to dry off."

Drawing the curtain behind one of the separated sections, she stared down at the neatly folded new outfit with her icy blue eyes, before pulling the towel over her face so she couldn't see it anymore.

The evidence that things were changing.
 
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OOC: Heh, looks like I'm the only one not running three characters at the same time. I don't know what lies ahead plot-wise, but would it be okay if I tried to squeeze in a second character of my own? I sort of have one in mind and really feel like playing him now. x3

Spoiler:


But yeah, if this little fellow doesn't fit your grand scheme, Archsage, I can just drop him. Your call. :3

IC:

"Alicel!"

Once again, Faewyn's call was in vain. Her friend had already excused herself, and obviously not in a good mood. Some of the things Reid said must have triggered this, but the teal-haired girl couldn't figure out what. Sure, hearing that Reid's brother was a royal double had been a bit of a shocker, but then again...they were already traveling in the presence of real royalty. Faewyn felt sorry for Reid, to have lost a loved family member like that, but Alicel concerned her even more right now.

"I'm going to go check up on her." Faewyn announced to the others, rising out from the spring and walking towards the shack without bothering to dry herself, only to stop and turn around for a moment "Oh, and Reid; Rose has a point, we're already involved in this so you really don't have to hold back on our account. Just-just try to trust us a little, alright?"

With that, she turned around again, a cascade of droplets flying from her hair.

Faewyn was still dripping wet when she entered the changing shack, noticing that Alicel currently had her back turned, her mind seemingly somewhere completely different right now.

"Umm...Alicel?" the girl asked cautiously, walking over to her friend and gently placing a hand on her shoulder, "Is something wrong?"
 
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"EIIIIIiiiiIIiiiIIIIiiiiiIII!!!"

Alicel practically jumped through the roof in surprise when Faewyn grabbed her shoulder, letting out a shriek as if she'd just seen a ghost. Collapsing to her knees she pressed her hand against her chest, trying to still her heart that'd skipped one too many beats, breathing heavily as she said, "D-Don't scare me when I'm thinking Faewyn!" Scrambling to her feet again she whipped the towel off her head and flushed, embarassed to have been caught in such a feeble moment, and grabbed Faewyn's shoulders, turning her around and marching her to the other side of the room.

"I'm changing now, so stay here!" She said, like a kindergarten teacher, trying to shove all thoughts of envy from her mind as she picked the towel up from the ground and wrenched the curtains around the segment again, making sure there was absolutely no part that felt even the slightest bit damp other then her hair, (which couldn't be helped) before putting on her new outfit. Sighing as her heart slowed down, she whipped out two pins and expertly pulled her hair into a messy and fast up-do, so as not to get the back of her dress soaked. After finishing the long process of belting her right boot, she folded her swimsuit into the towel and then pushed the curtains aside.

"So anyway." Alicel said, clearing her throat, "Yes, I'm fine. I was just er reminded of something unpleasant."

Her composure was long lost, and Alicel was painfully aware of this. And while she was obsessing over the fact that she probably would be embarrassed for the rest of the night, she completely forgot about what had landed her in this situation in the first place. It was something that Alicel had never noticed before, her jealousy for everything around her lessened when in the presence of her newfound friends. Jealousy had begun to spring from Alicel like a fountain when she discovered that she had been lied to by the Florinen's, the only people she had ever really conversed with, due to the fact that they didn't live in town. But Alicel had one thing that was just the same as the others; they had her friendship and she had theirs.

Friends was a strange concept, Alicel decided. Pondering on it didn't seem to make her happy, so she pushed the subject aside.
 
OOC: This post is probably going to be pathetic. School starts tomorrow and I'm suffering from writer's block, sooo...

"Eh? What happened with her?" Rod questioned Alicel's sudden need to leave, just as Faewyn followed in pursuit. Even more questions arose as a shrill "EIIIIIiiiiIIiiiIIIIiiiiiIII!!!" was heard. Rose slunk off towards the cabin after this, mentioning she'd better check it out. "You know, you probably just added another twenty years to your sentence if anyone finds out you leaked the truth about Prince Ryan. Why'd you bother, man?" Rod's concern was sincere, yet unfortunately true. Reid had placed the ultimate trust in those three not to spill the beans. If they did, both the one who did, and Reid, would be locked up.

Reid shook his head, grinning as he stood up and out onto the dry land once more. "My brother will help I think. Real prince or not, he holds that title, and he still has some degree of influence in the Queen's decisions. Hopefully I can get to Commander Milo before we're caught, she'll help. Though I'd prefer to not see Adela again." The two proceeded to the old shack, where they got changed into their regular attire and waited outside for the others.

"Are you guys okay..?" Rosaline asked as she entered the girls' cabin, and seeing they were fine, she got changed into her usual clothing. She wanted to save her new outfit for the morning. "Do either of you know how to put jewelry on your wings? I might need help in the morning if anyone could..." She was apparently oblivious to the fact that Alicel was not in a good mood.

OOC: Like I said, crappy.
 
"Jewelry?" Alicel asked, ignoring the first question as she sat down on one of the benches to loosen one of the buckles on her boot, "On your wings?? I wouldn't know anything about that, since ornaments hanging in mid-air isn't really my thing." She fluttered her transparently iridescent wings, "I'm sure it's easy to see how to put it on if you just look at the way it's shaped anyway."

She stood up, again after changing two buckles that were digging into her ankle, and took a few steps toward the hotspring doors, deciding that this would do for the time being. Alicel peered out into the hotspring and noticed nobody there. So that would mean they were meeting Reid and Rod outside, at the entrance. Pulling her head back from the steamy fog, she turned to Faewyn and Rosaline, saying, "Well, I think we should head back now. It'd be bad if we tired out really fast tomorrow, don't you think? Or… wait, was Reid planning on leaving… tonight??"

That'd be a bad and good idea. The cover of night was always good for avoiding the other hunters who were out looking for Rosaline. But Alicel was tired, regardless of the nap from before dinner. She wanted to sleep for a long time. Who knew when the next time she'd get a good night's sleep would be after they're forced their way into Tealia? Who knew how long she'd have to keep her eyes peeled for people who were far from Alicel's definition of 'ally'?

~ + ~ + ~ + ~

"Babyface is sure taking his time." Kallen grumbled, twirling a strand of long brunette hair around her index finger, a bitter expression on her face as three girls loitered in the dark research room, the place littered with books and data. In fact, one of the girls even sat on a huge stack of books, which held her light frame with ease, "How is anything supposed to get done without her here?"

"Babyface?" She grinned, "That's a funny nickname!"

"It suits him." Said the raspy female voice from the darkest corner of the room.

"Doesn't it?" The girl who sat on the books chirped, her face and intricate outfit illuminated by the candles, "But I dunno, Mom always said that he did everything real fast and well, which is why she sent him off to Carn to get her. After all, it's not a trivial job, is it?"

"Well, I'm not one to doubt Commander Milo, but I think she made a big mistake." Kallen snapped, "No offense Adela."

"None taken!" The girl giggled as she hopped off the books, "After all, he's taken more then two days longer then his limit! I think he's got it in for himself anyway. But the fact that he's taking this long means that he's still got her with him, right? Otherwise he would've come back and told us that he'd failed and Carn had their sacrifice back! Unless he's too scared, which is always a possibility. After all, I don't know anyone in their right mind who'd come back empty handed!"
 
"Umm...well, okay."

Alicel's sudden scream had pretty much managed to shock Faewyn, at least enough for the girl not to protest as she was promptly told to stay put. Alicel had certainly been a bit...on edge there, but by the time she re-emerged she did seem to be holding up a bit better, explaining that she was just reminded of something unpleasant.

"Oh, I see." Faewyn replied, nodding, "Sorry, you just seemed sort of...well, angry when you left so I wanted to check if everything was okay. I didn't mean to scare you. Sorry." there were so many things she wanted to ask right now. Like had she really been alright, and what the horrible thing she had reminded her of was, but something held her back. It was a rare occasion, but somehow Faewyn felt like, for once, just plain asking wasn't the best way to go about it.

Just then, Rosaline barged in to break the awkward moment, however, throwing in a question about wing ornaments.

"Oh, I can help with that." Faewyn chirped cheerfully, glad for an excuse to drop the topic that seemed to be bothering Alicel so much, "Well, I mean it's not like I've ever used them myself but I'm sure it can't be that hard to figure out, right?"

It was about then that the girl realized that she was still in her swimsuit.

"I'm going to go change." she announced, soon disappearing behind the one of the curtains, her discarded outfit in tow, only to reappear shortly after, once again donning her own clothes. After all, it was supposed to be a next morning thing.

"Umm...maybe we should ask?" Faewyn suggested as the question of their departure time came up, "I think Rod said it was tomorrow, though...or did he?" the girl scratched her head, "Well, at any rate we'd better go find the boys again. Let's get going, alright?" with that, she grabbed what little belongings she had taken with her and proceeded towards the exit.

-------------------------------------------------------​

"Lance Penderson, dearest of all my friends, are you absolutely certain about this?"

The veteran shuffled uncomfortably on his spot. He had been right about that girl, dead right. Trouble had come in her wake. The problem was, he had apparently not moved fast enough to avoid, perfect evidence of which was the black-clad gentleman in front of him and the oh-so-sharp blade at his waist, which - he had kindly demonstrated - he was able of drawing at uncomfortably high speeds.

"P-positive!" he stammered, glancing at the locket he had been asked to inspect. Indeed, there was no mistaking that teal hair...even though he had been quite definite that the strange girl he had met had beetle black eyes; not blue ones. "Sure as ah'm standin' 'ere, I saw 'at girl just the other day!"

The stranger didn't answer at first, merely keeping those disturbing dark blue eyes below his posh black hat fixed at him for a few more awkward moments. This guy was all about posh, all the way from the fancy suit and the hat to his manner, but he was certainly posh in the most dangerous sense of the word. The kind of posh that had people disposed off never to be heard from again on a daily basis. At last, the male relinquished his stare just a bit, a hint of a smile appearing on his face.

"And you are equally 'positive', as you so aptly put it, that this girl and her friends are headed for Tealia?"

Lance nodded, "Heard 'em myself!" this wasn't the heroic thing to do, he knew, but sometimes you had to prioritize survival over heroics. Besides, he had just paid off one hell of a bar tab for this 'little chat'.

"Then it appears I have no further use for you." the black-clad individual remarked calmly, shutting the locket and carefully putting it back around his neck, his hand reaching towards the blade. The old man gasped at the sight, bringing his hands up to shield his face just in time to absorb...a bundle of notes?

"A small 'thank you' for your time." the stranger explained calmly, seemingly paying no notice to the other's cringing as he strode past.

"Wait!" Lance called without even fully realizing why. The stranger's attention had been caught, though, so it was too late to back out now, "Ah-ah was jus' wonderin', what's with those posh clothes o' yers? D'yah, plan on proposin' to her or somethin'?" oh, he had really put his foot in his mouth this time around, that wordless stare was definite evidence...he was done for, he was!

"Yeah." the stranger remarked at last, a tiny hint of a smile once again crossing his features, "Something like that."

Without another word, the stranger turned around and walked off, leaving the old man to forage his hard-earned money from the ground.

"And she is with the Carn sacrifice too..." the man mused for himself, his smile widening a bit more, "Fortune really does play a strange game with us, doesn't it...Verdance?" he cast a fleeting glance at the picture in the locket before setting a course for the nearest town with available air transport, "It looks like I'll be taking that job after all..."
 
OOC: And just for the sake of screwing everyone up speeding everything up: RANDOM JUMP IN TIME.

IC: Reid was woken abruptly by a blinding light, one of which he mentally mistook for for sunlight. His assumption was painfully shot down upon opening his eyes, and became blind momentarily. When his vision refocused, and the light faded, the young boy's eyes met with Reid, whom of which was laughing uncontrollably with a lionus powered flashlight in his hand. Chances were he had tricked Rose into providing him with the energy for the little prank. As their stare unlocked, Reid came to notice the new attire that his companion was wearing. He had graduated from the dirty old robe he had been wearing since they met, and was now dressed in a pair of black pants, accompanied by a black dress shirt over top a regular white shirt, the top few buttons unbuttoned so that you could see the white underneath. A snappy pair of brown skate shoes covered his feet, and his raven black hair was pulled back into a ponytail once again, though this time the bangs were pulled back, making a red dot on the boy's forehead clearly visible. Reid had almost forgotten about the dots. Everyone in his group had them, so clearly something was going on that needed to be investigated. They would probably find out when they hit Meredy though, that city had about a hundred different newspapers after all. Complimenting Rod's outfit was a silver, chain necklace with a charm in the form a silver lightning bolt at the end. That lightning bolt was the symbol of Rod's family, so the boy supposed he was sporting it because they were re-entering Tealia. "Hurry up and put on the contents of the bag Rose gave you last night and meet us downstairs ASAP. You need to get your surprise mode of transportation going so we can get out of here pronto." The fashionable, hawk winged teen said before running downstairs to talk with the others.

That was right, Rose had given him a bag after the hot spring the night before. Something about payback? Reid slowly but surely got out of his old creaky bed, and forced himself over to the bag that was sitting by the door. The boy slowly removed the contents, examining each item carefully. The first item he removed was a pair of baggy, navy blue cargo pants, that were accompanied by a beige belt. The second item was what appeared to be a plain black muscle shirt, but a closer inspection proved otherwise, as on the back in the location that would usually have holes for wings, were two blue shapes embedded in the material that resembled wings. Reid smirked a little at this. He could tell Rose hadn't picked the stuff out, Rod had, just by the overall style. But that was okay. Upon closer examination of the bag, he found a pair of black skater shoes, and a silver necklace similar to Rod's, but it had the same wing symbol for it's charm that was on the back of his new shirt. Content with the attire, the boy proceeded to put it all on. He found that since his arms were free because of the muscle shirt, he could move them easier, and while not a fan of cargo pants, they were quite roomy. He even found the skater shoes overly comfortable. What remained from his previous outfit, however, was the pair of goggles on his head, and the red Tealian forces scarf around his neck, which he hadn't worn since before rescuing Rosaline. His board strapped to his back, and his kris dagger located sharply in it's sheath on the right side of his waist, he made his was downstairs.

The first person Reid noticed when he got downstairs was Rosaline, who, too, was sporting new clothing. She was wearing a long sleeved, light blue traveling gown that emphasized her womanly curves. Across her shoulders was tied, dark blue cloak that went all the ways down her back, the object tied just before her neck. Around her waist was a gold chain that was positioned on an angle, and she had a pair of light blue, gem, stud earrings on. However, the most eye-catching feature of the girl's new outfit were the thin, silver chains that ran across the upper portions of her wings. The two stared at each other for a moment, most likely not sure what to say to one another, before Rod intervened. "Now everyone come outside so you can see how Reid is getting us to Tealia so quickly~"

They stepped outside into the darkness that was seven thirty in the morning, to find themselves confronted with an odd contraption that appeared to be capable of flight. It was red, and fairly large, about the size of a small barn, and it had large wings and what appeared to be an exhaust at the back. Inside of it were three rows of three seats per row, with a spot for a navigator at the front, and an energy source at the back. Overall, it kind of looked... slapped together. "This thing is my own creation." Reid said with obvious feelings of self achievement in his voice. "It'll get us there in four hours flat, but only wionus users can power it, so that means Faewyn or I. At the same time, someone needs to pilot the aircraft, and the rest can just relax. Any questions?"

OOC: There will be another jump to Tealia once we get in the air, so keep that in mind when you make your next post.
 
Alicel, normally the early bird, was rather miffed that she'd woke up so late, thus giving her less time to get dressed and make sure she looked presentable. However, deciding that time hardly mattered, she stood in front of the mirror with a calculating eye for five minutes before finally deeming herself presentable, taking in the curls of her hair, which seemed to be slowly straightening out. Perhaps it's because she'd been going through more rigorous things other then weeding the garden and hanging the laundry lately. Delicately, she pressed the neon blue headband on top of her head, leaving her bangs covering her blurred left eye, but pulling the bit of hair that framed the right side of her face back. Another five minutes of staring later, Alicel walked out of her guest room, and looked about her imperiously.

She ate breakfast silently, wondering when the next time she'd get to see home would be. Absent mindedly, she'd spent most of the time she'd been 'eating' just tapping her spoon on the edge of the bowl, but had somehow managed to finish just before Reid came downstairs, which marked the time of their departure. Standing up, she clapped her hands together and thanked whoever made breakfast for breakfast before hurrying herself after Rod and Reid. She was met by an awfully ugly contraption that looked something like a flying... thing.

"Questions?" Alicel repeated, putting her hands on her hips, "Yeah, just a few! Will it stay together for more then five minutes, let alone four hours? Is this an Underground contraption? Is it Tealian??" She said, giving it a disbelieving stare, about to ask why it was so tacky and ugly, but catching the note of pride in Reid's voice, she craned herself back to see the thing better before waving her hand.

"Feh! Forget I asked, at least I don't have to fly. How do you get in?" She asked, completely drawing up a blank about any sort of flying technology or the sort, because the village she'd grown up in was a less advanced plot of land that stuck to old fashioned ways of relying on mahstion.
 
Reid might have thought that he had been up at the crack of dawn, but by the time the others began stirring, Faewyn had already been up and about for a good half hour, cleaning up after herself, making the bed she had slept in, checking and double checking that she had packed everything, and of course updating her journal. The girl's energy really was something else, and she could easily go with seemingly no sleep at all for three days straight as long as interesting materials were forthcoming.

In this case, there was plenty of interesting things for her in her new outfit alone. The dark green cargo pants and dark purple tank top were hardly what most would consider an extraordinary outfit, but for Faewyn it was the prettiest one she had ever worn, and she was enjoying the sensation for all its worth, unable to resist glancing at a mirror now and again and occasionally stopping to marvel at just how nice it felt to wear something that had never been worn before. Topping it all off was the messenger bag, still her absolute favorite of the purchases, which she couldn't help playing with every once in a while.

Yes, it was a brand new day and Faewyn was indeed as hyper as could be, cheerfully greeting her friends as she skipped down the stairs, but when they arrived to the secret mode of transportation, she seemed to reach an all new level yet again.

"Really?!" Faewyn exclaimed as Reid remarked that it was his own design, the girl's eyes widened in wonder and adoration at the sight of the complex machine, seemingly oblivious to the fact that it looked rickety to say the least, "Oh, how does it work? How much weight can it support? Where did you get the materials? Where did you learn to build something like this in the first place? Do you think you could teach me? Can I pilot it?"

Pencil and paper were procured at the blink of an eye. Apparently, she had yet to learn that there was such a thing as too many questions, "Ohhh, this is going to be so much fun!" she exclaimed, turning to the other girls, "Don't you think so too?"

Ohh...this was going to be a long trip, a long trip indeed...
 
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BANG. BANG. BANG.

The waitress downstairs stared with shaky legs as one of the inhabitants of the rooms upstairs seemed to be in excruciating pain, hollering and screaming. The sound seemed to have put the small restraunt in a frozen state of time, everyone staring at the staircase where the sounds of what seemed like merciless torture floated loftily down into the bar, where the clinking of glasses and jolly chatter had ceased entirely. Meanwhile, the banging continued, as something collided with the rickety metal frame of the bed. After the most torturous, most anguished, most horrible scream of pain had stopped ringing in the patron's ears, everything was silent, the terrified waitress taking a tentative step onto the first stair, her heel making a 'thunk' sound that seemed to echo throughout the bar. She took a deep breath and held it, before walking at a slow pace up the stairs to investigate. At the top of the flight, she finally calmed down, but it was short-lived as a disgusting purple arm shot out of a once tightly locked door and turned it's palm toward her.

Another scream, though this one rang more clearly as the waitress turned on her heel and flew down the stairs and out of the bar. Her terrified expression caused most of the rest of the bar to flee as well, leaving only the bartender, who had a heavy wine bottle at the ready as he stared determinedly at the staircase. However, it wasn't long before he finally decided that nobody was coming down, and proceeded to clean up. Indeed, nobody would've come down for another good hour. The tattoo on Aertan's hand smoked, as the skin around it turned a blackish purple, both from being charred from the burning and the bruises that were slowly emerging after he'd slammed it into the bedpost over and over again to try and cease the pain.

Haeon't and Geote stared at the hand, hovering above it and glancing at Aertan every now and then, who was silently staring at the hand. The burning of the tattoo seemed to have ebbed his doubt in Tylonstus somehow, and he now pressed prayers and hymns into his mind, pushing away the dream that had haunted him for the past few nights. The dream of the sacrifice that seemed to loom right over his shoulder. Aertan's eyes shifted for a split second when his index finger twitched, and Geote's eye switched places with a fanged mouth, which sucked out a silvery liquid from the tattoo. Writhing for a split second, Geote shook himself back and forth before retreating into Aertan's wings.

'They're leaving today.' Haeon't's eye slid from the hand to the dot on Aertan's forehead.

"I know." Aertan croaked, not moving his eyes from his left hand.

'You're not allowed in Tealia.'

Aertan blinked. That was right. He'd forgotten about that. If they made it to Tealia, then there was nothing left to do. Even so, Aertan's hand felt like a dead weight, and even if he'd wanted to move, he probably wouldn't have even so much as rolled off the bed. If they made it to Tealia, then there was nothing left to do. If they made it to Tealia, then everything was done.
 
OOC: SUPER TIME JUMP. Sorry, I'm a little anxious to get things rolling again. XD

"This is a well crafted piece of Underground technology, it's as reliable as Rod on a shopping trip." Reid murmured in irritation towards Alicel's questions. The machine was built similarly to a crop dusting plane of a time long past, with the main differences being that it could carry at least nine people, and was about three times larger, just barely fitting in the street. Reid kicked the machine, and a rope ladder fell from the top of the machine, nine feet upwards. "That is how you get in. Nice outfit by the way." There was no doubt about it, Reid was in a very cheery mood, and that was easy spotted by noting the fact that he had just given out a compliment randomly. It wasn't long after that Faewyn drowned him in questions that he hastily tried to answer. "By channeling wionus in through the generator, the wionus becomes amplified and propels the machine forward, with the wings allowing it flight. It can hold approximately one thousand five hundred pounds. I got the materials from a scrapyard near here. I've been fascinating in machinery ever since I was a kid, I just kind of picked it up. Maybe some time. And sure you can pilot it, I'll act as the energy source. You guys get on, I have something I need to do first." And with that, Reid went back into the house, short of breath from all the talking.

Waiting for him when entered the house was his mother and sister, who looked their relative over with worry. Ailia was the first to speak up. "Don't get yourself killed, mom would be sad, and I'd never forgive you, big brother!" That was a typical 'I'll miss you' speech from Ailia. It meant that she really did care, she just wouldn't directly admit it. It was pretty obvious that the stubborn trait ran through their family.

"Yeah, I'll miss you too, you little pest."

"I never said I'd miss you, big brother."

"Sure you didn't."

"So you're really going then?" Lila chimed in, her hands clasped together before her chest, her eyes watering. Reid nodded, a serious look on his face. "Remember this then. Your life is yours to live. You've made some invaluable friends, don't lose them. And please, come home. I don't know what I'd do without either you or your father."

"I will mom, I promise." With that said, the boy turned his back to his family, and left the building. Reid then proceeded to climb the ladder, and stepped into the leather interior of his aircraft. At the very front of the interior was a joystick with a seat before it, Faewyn's seat. Then there were nine leathered seats present, and a seat at the back before a peculiar hole. Reid took his position there, and pressed a button which caused a glass roof to slide upwards from within the machine. Reid then placed his arm in the hole, and the sound of intensifying wind could be heard. "Everyone put your seatbelts on!" Reid wasn't sure if they heard or not, but Rod and Rosaline had done so. "3...2..." The machine began shaking violently, and as he announced 1, the machine blasted forward, slowly lifting off high into the air. "Faewyn, don't forget our destination is Meredy.

Along the way the saw many small, floating islands and a shocking view of the Underground below. The land down there was for the most part barren, other than the small sections that remained of the once great "ocean". Around the four hour mark, the landed just outside Meredy, on Tealian territory, and entered the city. Meredy, being the country's capital, was very beautiful. Being located in the area that used to be North America so long ago, the city wasn't as heavy on spiritual sights as it was a tourist town. Usually, wherever you went you could hear music, and people laughing, walking, and playing on the stone cobble pathways. However, that wasn't occurring at the moment. In fact, for 12pm, it was unsettlingly quiet. Glancing back and forth at the Victorian styled homes lining the street of the residential area they had entered, there wasn't a person in sight. "It looks like someone was expecting us..." Rod said in a troubled manner towards Reid.

"Yeah, stay on guard. Especially you, Rosaline. If they act like I think they will, you'll be their first target. You can also probably bet that guy from the other day is on our tail still..."

"Okay..."
 
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