00 - Prologue - Nebulous Flight, Outlands (Escape Thread)

[Aphelionquasar]

Climbing down this hill, well it wasn’t a picnic that was for sure. In as much of a hurry as they were to leave and all that, the terrain itself hadn’t been real kind to the lot of them. At least they were going downhill, but the weird blue rocks that made up the place were tough, they didn’t seem to be of a normal sort, got a few little craters in them and had made it downright tricky since there were little potholes everywhere. Of course it wasn’t normal rock. After all, bleeding stars were stuck in them, glowing anytime anyone got close enough to them. Last time he checked, that wasn’t normal for rocks, or mountains, or whatever. There were pointy little buggers of all sizes, sometimes sticking right up like a couple of caltrops. Then there was the big ones, not as bad in his opinion, but some of them seem to be free standing. Would have made nice mirrors, polished, but, not the time to be stopping for a looksee. Whole place was riddled with jagged ledges, cliffs... the works when it came to hills and mountains. No ravines though. The less places to fall in a ditch the better, especially with this group. Wasn’t so much the fact that they were a lolling around, no, it was more so... err... they had these noodle limbs, they could reach. Didn’t know how they really saw where they were going, but they were better off in some respected. Might as well been a bush bash to him. And here he was wearing full armor, trying not to fall into some ditch or skitter off some ledge. At least there wasn’t any roots from some unlucky sapling, would have been embarrassing to go and fly off a cliff just on a count of a scrabbling tree. Probably weren’t any on the count of the rock layer was too thick, too hard...which his feet could attest to, metal hitting flesh and what not... still was weird that there wasn’t any tufts of grass or anything. Made all the glowing a bit more eerie... as it was really just them, and it was when it glowed, well it only seemed to glow when living things got near. So for it to be all dark... and with the faint din of battle bit unnerving it was. Didn’t help that the sky was still obscured by black clouds. Now he’d never admit this, but, he was retroactively glad that the sir had made them run laps in armor, made him practically live in it. Cause every stride, meant a few extra steps for him and at a hurrying pace, started to add up to a lot more. It wasn’t exactly a farce that he was lagging behind for protection’s sake, but, it was more that he didn’t want to break his own neck in the whole rush. What greeted them at the bottom of the hill wasn’t particularly heartening or reassuring. Mayhaps the fact nothing seemed to grow on the rocky crags had been a bit of a hint... one that he ought to have picked up. He’d seen a windswept barren wasteland before, his home world had been turned into one as a side casualty. Hadn’t thought he’d be reminded of it, but, stiff upper lip. Truth, probably was worse off than his home, which was really saying something. There wasn’t a patch of grass to be seen, not even a blade.... Bit of a shock that was... his home was now lush and this... this was a windswept desert, filled with dust. Scanning the horizon, well they were in a bind now weren’t they? He didn’t see much cover to be had, there were a few dead bits of wood dotting the horizon, but nothing substantial, nothing to cover them. Couldn’t even call the pieces trees, there wasn’t enough to be glorified as such. Still it meant that they couldn’t hide from the dark angry sky, not from the elements, not from... well anything. Traversing it would mean that they’d be spotted from afar pretty quick like... the most they had were a few hills here and there dotting the horizon. To be honest, he wasn’t sure what to do. His instinct was to try and find a cave along the hill they just came from... just cause they hadn’t seen one didn’t mean they weren’t there yeah? Would give a bit of cover. Yeah, he was supposed to protect this weird group, but he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to do that when the foe happened to be airborne. A rush of dry air brought up another problem. Didn’t know about these noodle arms, but, he needed a drink sometime in the next few hours... and the landscape wasn’t looking particularly friendly let alone accommodating to that request. Covering up a cough... yeah, no, the dust that came in with the roll of air was just choking. Rolling the handle of the blade in his hand as the sky flickered darker, he likewise rolled his options in his head... he wasn’t much of a leader. A follower, yeah, not a leader. Still sounded real wasteful to go back the way they came. Didn’t know what to say, so he didn’t say a thing. That and he was just a wee bit winded admittedly. Ginger hope you had a better idea than that... wasn't much of one, the one he had anyway.

913 Sword: Alone TL;DR We're in a wasteland folks, Sword isn't a leader. Ack this was just to get us out of there.

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Captain Pigtails]

Eleanor didn't for a moment regret taking them away, the sounds of battle blaring behind them made her confident of that decision.

But..

She felt her own confidence slip just a little at the sight of the wasteland ahead of them.

The reality of her situation hit her there. For all the horrors of her home, wherever she was now was far worse. Panicked questions filled her mind. Why? Where? Who? She felt sweat start to build on her brow she..

She felt a small hand grip her uniform and looked down.. one of the kids was also reeling from the sight as well. A little girl, Sunny.. right?

She moved her hand to pull out something, something gold.. and stare at for a moment.

They were all looking to her for strength. She couldn't let them down now.

"We'll be okay.." she said, feeling the words resonate inside her and she hoped, inside them as well.

She looked down at Sunny again, and saw her stare off into space.. she glanced in the direction she didn't but didn't find anything.

"Are you.. alright, sweetie?" She asked.

Sunny turned around to her and spoke.. "This place.. it used to be so happy."

Huh? "It.. it did? Did you live here?" She had thought everyone was in the same situation as her.. if she was..

Her thoughts her quickly stopped when Sunny shook her head. "No.. the Toad was.. but he didn't come.. I told him too.." her voice was weak, and it sounded sad. She could only offer a comforting smile.. maybe when they were safer, she could do more for the three. 

Eleanor didn't know what to think of this at all. She wasn't quite sure who Toad was supposed to be. But when she looked around this place and thought that it used to be happy.. she felt something else burn inside her. "I guess we should figure out what happened here.. and how to get somewhere safe." 

She turned around and looked at them all. "Alright everyone. Stay close together. If you see anything that looks edible, let me okay?" Not that she thought she would be able to tell.. although she had certainly thumbed through a field manual once or twice in her life, she hadn't exactly committed everything to memory. 

"Be on the lookout for anything dangerous, and please be careful."

Eventually though she had to pick a direction. "We're going to get to the coast.. yeah" she said softly to herself. There appeared to be beaches, some way away. If they were going to survive they would have to figure out food and water, and finding the coast seemed to be the most likely solution towards finding other people s well. 

[Teki]

As they escaped the fight, leaving behind the explosions, the yelling, the fighting, tension left the pinkette’s body. She wasn’t that intimidated by the fighting – after all, it was pretty common where she came from – it was just dangerous. She could get hurt, or she could accidentally show people her other side! Not that she was a good fighter to begin with... in fact, she would probably do pretty bad in a straight up fight against another Powered... she’s done it a couple of times. She didn’t do too well....

Desolation

Luzia slowed down, just as shocked as everyone else as she saw the state of the land. She knew it now... any doubts still in her mind somewhere were gone... she wasn’t in Hong Kong anymore. But, then, where was she? No one else knew that either... except for that mushroom guy... what did he call this place again...? She thought for a moment, then couldn’t help but let out a soft huff, her attempt at a derisive laugh, in her state of now-minor shock. Call this place the Mushroom Kingdom, and don’t have a single mushroom in sight? She coughed slightly as the wind picked up, carrying dust with it, hacking a bit before the wind settled down again. Honestly, this place looked like it hadn’t seen rain in... well, who knows how long? ...Honestly, though, despite the dustiness, it actually looked a little cool to her. Dark, depressing, almost lifeless... if there were a few buildings, she would feel right at home. Figuratively speaking, at least.

Her attention was caught again when the little girl tugged on Eleanor’s dress, and immediately, jealously flared up, squeezing the girl’s hand just a bit tighter. 'She was comforting me you little...!' As she yelled at Sunny in her mind, she growled softly under her breath, as she glared defensively at the kid named Sunny, pouting angrily at her.

That brief flare of jealously, however, ebbed away just a little bit as Sunny talked about happiness. Her eyebrows narrowed in confusion, trying to think it through for a few moments, then suddenly went wide-eyed as it hit her... this girl was a Powered, and she had that... thing... the thing that sensed other peoples’ feelings! She flinched softly, immediately looking away. She had to control herself even more now... she hated doing that so much... but she didn’t have a choice!

Luzia pouted for a moment, once again reluctantly pulling herself together, sighing softly and at least somewhat calming herself down. She looked back to Eleanor – not even realizing she squeezing her hand even tighter – and smiled as she followed her again, though her smile was nervous as she attempted a joke. “Maybe if we find more of those turtles, we can have soup!” She paused a moment, putting a hand to her stomach, suddenly remembering what she was doing before she was pulled to this place. “Come to think of it, I’m actually kinda hungry...”

[Maelys Arkana]

Running is something he's good at.

Mika ran, following the others that fled the battle, showing that he could quite easily keep up with the group, despite his young age. Whether he had the stamina to keep it up, however, was another question entirely, but thankfully they did not run the entire way. Soon enough, with the battle raging on well behind them, they slowed their pace, allowing Mika to catch his breath, panting heavily from the exercise. The fox child wasn't used to such long distance running, he was used to running through small fields and playing with friends. Alas, that would not help him here, where the very land seemed to be sick. There would be no playing here, not when everyone was so unnerved...

The older lady, Eleanor, said something about looking for edible things... But everything around them, save for the stars that were stuck in the ground, was so dark and creepy. There didn't appear to be anything they could actually eat out here, although he wasn't hungry... yet. But what she said afterward started to confuse him. The coast? Mika had no idea what she was talking about, but if she thought it was safe for them, then...

Mika watched the group as they walked, curious about who they all are. Eleanor was definitely the leader here, she was the biggest, and seemed to know what to do, father had always told him about how important it is for a leader to know what to do in any situation. The short little green guy with the sword didn't seem to talk much, but with that weapon he was probably there to protect them. His weapon wasn't very big, though, so they might be in trouble if a lot of bad guys or a really big one attacked them...

The lady that looked a little like his mother, Sunny, said something about the place being happy before... Did she live here? Eleanor would ask the same question, and Sunny would deny such. Then... How could she know? Did she have powers like mother? The land didn't seem very happy to Mika, it seemed to be very sick... The last member of their group, Luzia, projected a wide range of emotion, ranging from a disdainful huff to an angry low growl and pout, to confusion and even what almost seemed to be fear.

That last one was definitely at the back of Mika's mind, a minor fear of what could happen here. There didn't seem to be anywhere safe for them, at least not nearby, besides maybe this 'coast' place Eleanor mentioned. Anything could happen to them, those flying machines from earlier could come and find them, they could run into something dangerous, or even never find any food or water... Overtaken by agonizing anxiety, Mika would run forward and latch onto Sunny's arm, hugging it tightly and whimpering a little. "I...I'm scared....." He would stutter out, voice somewhat shaky.

[Aphelionquasar]

Now he wasn’t one to pick at a turn of phrase, nor was he one to whinge about this whole, but sorry ginger Ellie... she was beckoning them to come to the raw prawn so to speak. Or more plainly, she was shitting all of them telling this great farce. Had to remember that there might be little one in the lot, the smaller one with the animal ears might be a child, he honestly couldn’t tell.... Cried for his mum though, the galah bird, eer... Sunny. Considering he hadn’t offered up anything else well, he kept the sentiment to himself, mostly. It was more so he just happened to prefer a plan or action to platitudes, came to expect it really. The problem, well this was the problem. He wasn’t good at the whole earbashing bit, patting each other with words... better than Blade, but most folks were better than his partner. Thing was, he knew that he probably should say something cheery and what not... considering he pretty sure the maybe child had just admitted that they were scared and the galah bird was rambling on about the happiness of the land. Scenery changed must have shocked them, couldn’t blame them either and he probably should say a bit or two. It came out slow, wasn’t natural for him at all and he was probably rambling, “Nature is a stubborn gal. ‘he can be downright nasty, but found if there is space ‘he fills it. With a pinch ouv time, place will be carpeted with daisies or whatever grows ‘ere... it’ll be happy ‘gain.” Was the truth, didn’t know if it was of any comfort and eer Mika, the eared noodle arm drew away onto mum. It was piss poor, oh he knew it was. He... it just was unholy practiced in trying to make things sound better than they were.... Most of the time it was the opposite. It was downright trying to communicate danger, see that was the hard part back home. Everything was gonna be alright, all the time even if a space ship was hovering outside your doorstep. Thing was, it usually did in the end... was alright that is. Eventually? Couldn’t manage to spit out the sentiment and even if he managed, well he might just have to kick himself. See, Popstar did usually make these strange sort of recoveries... didn’t know if it was the same here or not and if he said it, he’d probably be mentally kicking himself and not for being all mary contrary. Still, couldn’t help it. Shook his head a bit at the whole dilemma and sheathed the blade for now on the account that it looked like there was more walking ahead of all of them and more or less fell in line as the rest clung to each other. Did he... miss a memo here or something or was it just something this species just tended to do because he was pretty sure he didn’t hear anything. Wasn’t invited to join either and it seemed like a real good way to trip. Still, there was some good advice in all of this, stick together and don’t run off without your head. That was sound enough... otherwise everything was just common sense... err. Except, he didn’t know what these noodle arms could eat without heaving up all the goodies. The little grumble growl caught his attention as he was watching the surroundings and admittedly the little scene unfold before him, “Don’t know what yew lot can eat, but I do know one thing ‘bout stew. Need some water for it... which fer the record is real important lest fer me. Hope fer turtle, hope even more fer water.” He sort of guessed that it was a joke, but... in all truth, he didn’t know what a turtle was. Can’t get the joke, couldn’t get the humor... and to be honest his sense of humor might have just died out of self-preservation. Water though, water was going to be the real problem... if this lot had a biology similar to him then they couldn’t go two days without it. Food he had found that he could go quite a while without, water not so much. Probably ruined the mood or joke or whatever in the process though, whoops. At least they were moving, would be worse if they just stayed where they were admiring the view. Truth be told, he wasn’t one hundred percent sure, but he had a feeling they were going downhill, towards a low point in the surrounding area. Actually, no, they were heading towards a body of water which often flowed towards the lowest point, gravity was cute that way. That was progress While the wind wasn’t constant, it wasn’t as hot and dusty. He didn’t feel like gagging on it as he jogged to keep up with the noodle arm link... and that was a good sign. Meant there was moisture in the air, wind was blowing over a large enough body of water... only worked if it was a big body rather than a stream. Then the wind started to pick up as they keep walking in the same direction, not enough where it was a bother, and there were some lulls, but it always felt like the air was moving. Could have been because there was nothing stopping the air, there wasn’t a barrier unlike the hill they had just come down which could trap air and heat or well... mmmh. He couldn’t be sure, but he didn’t have to be. Something more important came up. Now he wasn’t tall, at least not compared to these folks, but he could tell before them the plain dropped off into what must be a steep cliff. However, it would have been strange to see an arch with faded shingles sprout out of the land, the... horizon... because from his position that was more or less what he was looking at. Faded dark blue shingles, there were pieces blackened and strewn around the bare landscape, jagged clay bits just waiting for some sap to step on them. It might have once been a pretty picture. As he got closer towards the cliff’s edge, he probably could say that with some certainty or mayhaps he should just chalk it up to wishful thinking. The architect should have been strangled though. There might have only been about twenty buildings, but the smaller ones, houses probably were all lined up, conjoined together... and that had been a right old mistake. Not all of them, just most of them, and it was a mistake on the account of the black scorch marks that remained on the protruding wooden beams, that rimmed the empty holes in the roofs... that had eaten away plaster now word down by the elements. Bits and bobs were littered all over the place, parts of barrels, crates and whole else knows what. Few of the smaller buildings remained intact, some of them collapsed against each other... some just had a stone foundation remaining whatever there obscured by rubble. At least there wasn’t any ashes in the air... didn’t smell it, which meant it wasn’t recent. Though with the distant crash of waves in the background and the wind refusing to stop blowing, howling as it wound through the innards of this small town, that wasn’t something he could be entirely sure of. It could be seen, the ocean, but the sand... the sand was red akin to rust. Something about that felt off with the dead palm trees buried in that rusty mix of sand and soil framing the darkened ocean. Yet, for him? It was overshadowed by the sheer emptiness of the town, only magnified by the wind toying with a shutter or two as it passed through as it had done no doubt countless times before. Eerie as it might be, the place? This was something he could work with. It was probably wrong to be a bit giddy about finding a ghost town, but it was something and far better than roaming around on the plains. Yeah... it was definitely wrong.

1320 Sword: Alone Awkward Sword is awkward... and I got permission. Welcome to Seaside Town or what remains of it. Protip: Don't build houses in rows, that are connected real fire risk

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Captain Pigtails]

Sunny smiled at Sword, and his kind words. "You think?" Her tone was a bit excited and she looked energetic for a moment before getting clung to by Mika. "We can make it look like the spirits remember it looking?" The thought was comforting and helped her get just a bit of the peace with her surroundings, before giving her fellow child a big hug. "We're going to be okay, okay Mika!?" The encouragement of the two adults was helping Sunny feel more at ease.

While they were walking along the dusty road, more petulant thoughts quickly started to toss about her mind. Sunny didn't like focusing on the dreary scenery or sad lights. So the thoughts and memories she had were the best bet. The first thing that was bothering her was the thing she had just said to Sword. To be perfectly honest, Sunny didn't quite remember where she learned the word spirits. It seemed right though. There was all kinds of frightful spirits around, angry spirits, sad spirits.. that's what they were. Spirits.

The last thought she had and the one more gnawing at the back of her mind was a guilty feeling she suddenly had. Why had the woman named Luzia given her such a scary look before? Sunny was playing back every moment she could but she just.. couldn't think of anything at all she had done. Not knowing was hard.. but..

The sound of Eleanor pulled her away from her thoughts and she noticed the landscape around her. They had found a place that wasn't the flat ground.. but it was a place without anyone in it. Broken houses, broken dreams, and a gloomy atmosphere. She wasn't exactly surprised.. which was really sad too. Once again she saw little stars, little happiness buried in all the steam.

The happiness hurt in it's own way too.. surrounded like this.

She heard Eleanor speak up and quickly gave all of her attention to her..

---

Eleanor had been busy herself along the road, although a lot of what she had been doing had been missed by Sunny during the accessing of her memories.

Both Luzia and.. the malak made some good points. Luzia's point was first and it was responded with a slight nervous laugh but an honest smile. "Honestly it might come to that, I suppose.." Although she didn't like the sound of it, obviously. "You didn't strike me as a hunter, but I'll be thankful for any knowledge you have for us." She smiled again and offered her encouragement.



Sword's point was a bit more relieving. "They do have to eat and drink themselves, don't they, the turtles.. there has to be something nearby. Good point.. umm.." She didn't like the thought that she was actively looking for demons, but.. it almost seemed like one of their best bets. Also she thought for a moment that she might have simply forgotten his name, but no.. he had made a point of not giving it. Her experiences with her new friends left her feeling a bit uncomfortable just calling him malak but..

The path she took was confusing now. She had no idea where she was, how this place worked, or how she was going to get home. But for now she had to start with what she did know. Figuring out things one at a time.

The sight of the ghost town was a welcome breath of fresh air.. as welcome as something painful to look at it could be. The painful memories of her youth aside, it at least allowed her a moment to dream. "I'm sure we can find something to eat and drink here, even if it's not much." she said, allowing herself to give into the hope. "And maybe we can figure out what's going on." For a moment, she desperately wished she could suggest they split up.. but she didn't exactly trust any one of them alone.

Then.. after a pause, two things would happen. Eleanor would nudge a bit closer to Sword and ask.. "I sort of missed your name before, I feel a little bit awkward just calling you malak.."

And then Sunny would move closer to Luzia and ask outright. "Did I do anything bad? How come you are angry at me!?" The look on her face was full of put on bravery, she had really worked up her nerves to ask this question.

[OOC: Any chance we could have a mod post of just what we could be allowed to find here? Just so not cheating.. but obviously we want to take this chance to scavenge whatever we could.]

[Teki]

Luzia blinked. She... she laughed! Eleanor laughed! She had kind of told it as a joke, but it was true... they weren’t really the turtles that were actually used for soup, but they would work anyway, probably. The surprise quickly changed to a genuine elation; she made someone laugh! Someone that seemed to care about her! All of a sudden, everything seemed to matter a lot less. So what if she didn’t know where she was, this person liked her! So what if she was hungry, Eleanor liked her! So what if she had almost no blood for her powers? This pretty and friendly girl liked her! That never happened! She was smiling brightly, but she was so out of practice at smiling, it was... odd. Just a little offputting, a slight unhinged-ness to it, a touch of mania. But even so, there was a genuine happiness behind it.

There was a little more energy in her movements, a bit of a skip to her step, Luzia smiling softly as she nodded and responded. “I am! I’m a hunter! I can hunt! I can find us some good food!” She kind of was – she tended to hunt... weird things, but she was definitely a hunter, she thought. She grinned softly, looking over and bringing the metallic orb that had been following her the entire time, looking down and squeezing it gently as she briefly imagined finding something to hunt.

Ruined Town

Finally they had reached... wherever they were going, as far as Luzia figured. She blinked softly in surprise as she saw the town. She wasn’t a strange to empty warehouses or quieter neighborhoods, but this definitely had a different feel. It definitely felt strange; even the quieter neighborhoods had people in it, but this place was completely empty, at least in regards to people. The silence was palpable – only broken by some window opening and shutting with the wind.

It was weird... all these houses and no people. It was actually... kind of nice. It was quiet, alone, and interesting. It felt like a fun and relaxing place to her. She didn’t pay any sort of mind to the why or how such a place could be so abandoned as she commented softly, “Wow... peaceful...” Before she could clarify, though, Eleanor made the suggestion – indirectly – to search. Luzia nodded in agreement; she was already thinking the same, and was moving towards the village and away from the group.

Her few steps stopped when the little girl, Sunny suddenly stepped up to her, Luzia startled and flinching just softly as she was suddenly yelled at. A flash of anger welled in her – she was in a good mood, and she didn’t want it to be interrupted by some tiny attention-stealing little-

She stopped herself. She couldn’t think like that. She was one of those inpath people... emotion sensors. She closed her eyes, taking a soft breath, fiddling with the red orb for a moment before opening her eyes again, a soft smile on her face, an attempt at pleasantness, but holding the slightest hint of malice behind the screen as she forced a gentle tone. “I’m not mad at you, little girl, don’t worry.” she lied, “That’s why I’m going to look around; I bet I can find us some food.”

Luzia lifted herself up, having bent down to be just a little more eye-level with the girl, and moved to walk past her. Her good mood was still going, only lessened now from having to deal with children. She wanted to get away, have some fun with hunting... and try to impress Eleanor more. She stopped, made a little shooing to Sunny. Luzia didn’t really care what she did, she just wanted to be alone.

[Maelys Arkana]

Though he couldn't make out most of what the short green guy said, Mika could understand some small bit of it. Something about stew and water... Definitely something Mika would be interested in. It sounded like they were making some kind of plan to survive here. Hopefully it could work, despite all the sadness and gloom around them.

He turned to Sunny as she said something about the way the "spirits remember" the place looking. "You have... mommies power?" She would suddenly pull him into a hug, telling him that it would be okay. It helped a little bit, even though it seemed awfully scary around them, these people were being nice and helping him. He was still unsure of himself, but things weren't as bad as they could be.

Seaside Ruins

A few moments later, they would come across... a town? The houses were all destroyed, blackened and charred, the beach a strange reddish color, the ocean turned black... Nobody was here. Nobody but them. The wind would blow though the area, whistling through the debris to create a creepy noise that combined with the slamming of shutters to set off practically every nerve that Mika had. This place was scary and sad... but was it any worse than being out in the wilds?

Mika had never been to a town of ghosts. The only towns he'd seen were small, thriving communities building themselves up, not a desolate wasteland of destroyed buildings and ruined landscape. Everyone else was saying something about finding food and water here... It made sense, if people lived here, there should be things left over from before it was destroyed. But was it wrong to take what doesn't belong to them? If these people were still alive, a possibility as Mika had yet to see any dead bodies, then this stuff would belong to them.

Maybe it didn't matter what he thought, the others were planning to start searching for stuff regardless. Luzia said that she would find some food for them, but for a moment Mika was confused. Why did Sunny yell at her like that? Sunny was really nice, he wasn't sure why she would suddenly do that to someone... For now, he kept close to Eleanor and Sunny, still nervous thanks to the wind and its creepy sounds.