Kneeling on the ground, bloodied with torn wings,an angel smiles. For a few moments her dull and dirty black hair curtains sea green eyes. It may even appear she is calm, but is anything but. As her ears strained to pick up any sound including her own labored breath, she adjusted to the new surroundings.
They had done it! It had worked! As she stood, her body naturally tensed into the now second nature pose. All her muscles tightened and one fist was pulled as her legs stood spaces apart ready to bolt at a second's notice. However, it wasn't fear or hate that fueled her. No, it was power and pride. Firmly in one hand, the blade that would kill one of those blasted cats. Knowing she had that made up for the damage done. Even the hole in her chest was well worth it.
What helped even more, and what should scare the fur off of every blasted cat, was Hachiko didn't come alone. She was no longer prey and she was not alone.
Fea Line
Thyone
Posted: Sat Feb 22, 2014 11:21 pm
The loud crash of thunder filled her ears and for a split second that was all she knew. First terror and then the sudden feeling of her body impacting onto the ground. Her lifeless wings twitched against her back, blood dripping from every feather. Hot pink hands lifted the fallen form from the ground as dark sea green eyes glanced about this new place.
They had made it. They had broken free.
Quickly locating her blade and snatching it up, Thyone pulled herself to her feet, panting as she brushed her purple and pink streaked locks from her face. Her first impulse was to pin point any Rak and thrust her blade deep into their chest, piercing their heart. That vital organ that she no longer had. The price had been heavy for her freedom, but that was neither here nor there now.
But instead of those blasted cat beasts around, Thyone only saw kin. Friends. Familiar figures and faces. "Hachiko... you made it." she half laughed, brushing her tongue across her lips to lap up some stray drops of blood.
Hachiko turned to look at the familiar voice. Giving a crooked smile she told Thyone, "Couldn't let you have all the fun now." Silently, she added, 'and I couldn't get left behind.' Flexing her useless wings, she gave a head tilt. They were bleeding and hurt; however, compared to her life up until now, this was nothing but a tickle.
Retracting her wings she shifted her shoulder and looked at the blade. "It worked." There was a trace of disbelief in her voice. It still seemed surreal that it worked. Even in the new place, sharp eyes darted all around hardly able to stay on her brighter friend.
"What do you make of this?" She made a gesture towards the area around them, everything felt just a bit different. As her ears strained, she didn't hear the normal sounds indicating a blasted cat near by on the prowl. The idea they had fully escaped them was too good to be true. One shifted foot reminded her of the manacle on her ankle. Fighting back was the only true freedom.
Fea Line
Posted: Sun Feb 23, 2014 5:11 pm
Pain was nothing new to him, but the sudden wrenching pain of every single one of his feathers ripping out at the same time was more than even he was used to. Samkiel screamed as reality was ripped apart, and seconds later he was slammed into new and unfamiliar ground. A thundering silence filled his ears as he took precious time to orient himself. There were no screams of agony, no one being tortured. He shifted his legs experimentally and found the manacle was still around his ankle. Was he dreaming? He hoped not.
Slowly, voices filtered into the silence and he was back on high alert, fingers tightly gripping the blade in his hand. He sat up quickly, crouched to make a smaller target in case he had come through with one of those damned cats. But there weren't any of them around. He stood carefully, feeling the dull ache of his wings and the drip of blood onto his flesh. The voices grew clearer, and they were happily familiar.
"Hachiko," he murmured, standing and relaxing. "Thyone." He was glad these two had made it through. Especially Thyone. She was the one who had made the other world bearable. Knowing that one day they would be free...and now they were. He came closer to them and laced his fingers between the hot pink ones of his mate. "It's good to see the two of you," he rumbled with a small smirk.
Thyone faked a pout, tilting her head a bit as her hair draped over her shoulders. "Boo, you are no fun. Party hog." she teased, a light smirk playing at her features. To be able to just joke without fear of punishment was a whole new experience. The pink fallen knew it was a blessing and yet she could not quite feel as thrilled about it as she thought she should be.
At the other's question, she took a chance to glance further at their surroundings. Whatever this place was, it wasn't their homeland, and hopefully that meant no Rakshahsa. But before she could put words to her thoughts, another voice struck her ears and her smirk widened. "Ah... Samkiel." she said softly, curling her fingers over his hand as he laced his with hers.
Now this she knew she was glad to see, her mate. He had made it through just like the rest of him, but at the same cost. She lifted her hand with her blade to his chest, sharp end down, as one finger traced the cracks and open edges of his hallow chest. Perhaps that was why parts of her felt strange, almost distant. They had left their hearts behind...
"Have any others arrived then? Avner perhaps?" she questioned, thinking of her green and blonde headed friend as she glanced back up towards the sky in which they fell, her face having gone from amused to expressionless.
EvilSilverDragon
Irish Night Fox
Posted: Sun Feb 23, 2014 7:02 pm
In response to Thyone she stuck her tongue out at her and remarked, "I am the party." Pointing her blade towards the sky she pulled of a smile as she jested back. The parties she remembered were horrible experiences, but now it was the cat's turn to have a 'party' if one was to arise.
Then another voice came out. Her first reaction was to jump clear into the air and whip around to the source, blade pointed out. If she had a heart it might have well jumped out of her chest. The feeling of being jolt on edge then instantly relaxed was a wash of warm. Like a ultra rare warm bath. "Sam." For a moment she held the 'm' like she was going to do something more with it before deciding against it and saying his full name, "Samkiel, I am glad to see you." Not only was it nice to have another friend, she was glad Thyone had her mate.
With such cruelty every day, having a mate of one's choice was a rare, and illegal treasure. That he was not left behind was just another small piece of fairness in a bitterly unfair world.
The question of Avner made her frown, she had been fond of him and he was so brave to stay behind and guard their exit, "He was the last to go through the portal. I hope he makes it." She didn't feel the strong pull of worry she should feel, but it was still there.
There were two others that should have made it before, or else it stopped at Samkiel, "Anyone seen Lahasha? Purah?Etall?" The thought had been to call out to them, but that was deadly. It had been before, she didn't trust it now.
Fea Line
Irish Night Fox
Strawberri Stardust
Teigra
Menelie
In case you want to join in, no post order
Wolfs Heart
In case you want to join in, no post order
EvilSilverDragon
Intellectual Mage
Offline
Irish Night Fox Crew
Chatty Regular
Offline
Posted: Sun Feb 23, 2014 11:27 pm
Avner had willingly brought up the rear of their team. He wasn't the strongest or the fastest of them, but he was the wit. He knew that if something happened with their way out or if they got caught out, he could figure it out. He wouldn’t admit that it was really because he cared for the others, that he was protective of them. He'd rather get left behind than any one of them. He didn't know if he could handle the immense amounts of punishment that would come with attempting to escape, but at least he would never have to live with the thought of someone else being in that position.
He watched as each body slipped through the portal. To freedom. With every cleared angel a weight lifted off his chest. They were making it- a stab of pain shot through his chest and stomach as he himself neared the portal. He twisted around and saw his pursuers had caught up. He felt a sinking feeling at the sight of their snarling faces, but didn't hesitate to make one last attempt at the portal. He wasn't the type to turn and fight, he wasn't afraid to admit he could be a runner. In this instance logic told him that he was more likely to survive making a leap for the portal than fighting so that's what he would do.
He wasn't sure if he actually managed to leap at the portal or if a blow to the head had sent him through it, but what he did know was that suddenly his sight was going blurry and there was a ringing in his ears. Everything was gone. His sight, his hearing, there was nothing but blissful silence and stillness. He couldn't feel his body, couldn't hear his thoughts, and certainly couldn't feel the pain their escape had brought to his body. It wasn't until a loud thunder clap rang through his ears that all of reality came slamming back.
A single yellow and pink feather fell to the ground, unable to fall gracefully due to the fact it was blood laden. Soon after Avner fell his way to the new surface. Unlike his comrades who fell and were instantly in alert mode, Avner was instantly to his hands and knees, a metallic taste filling his mouth coming from an intense pain to his side. He brought his inner elbow up to his mouth as he coughed harshly. Once his coughing fit was over he turned his magenta eyes upwards at the group, their voices finally filling his ears, “I saw them make it through,” he choked out at Hachiko's question.
He stayed there for a moment trying to catch his breath. His head was filling with excited thoughts- thoughts that screamed he was free, but he quickly dismissed them. They didn't know that for certain just yet. Stiffly he stood, feeling the warm sticky substance covering his back. He couldn't feel a thing in his wings and wondered if they'd ever be useable again. He ignored all the useless questions and quickly scanned their surroundings, “Where they end up I don't have the slightest idea. For now we need to take cover.” he nodded towards a treeline waving them forward. He walked slowly, wanting to be sure he stayed behind them so he could keep an eye on them. He also found he couldn't muster the energy needed to move much faster than what he was going. He had no idea how the others could be so lively after what they had just gone through, but what he didn't realize is he wasn't giving himself the chance at rejoicing. He was still in survival mode.
He held his side as he looked behind them where they each had landed. Single feathers from each of them laid skewed about the ground. He knew it would be smart to clean up the evidence they were leaving, but he was so concerned about their new surroundings all he could think about was moving forward. He would just make sure to be better about covering their tracks in the future. He turned his gaze back towards the group, “Once we're sure we're covered and secure we can talk about finding the others, and finding resources in this place. We don't know if things will come easy for us here or not so we need to be ready for the worse. Days of tracking down water and food, hostile environments or natives, anything and everything.” he sighed at what words were coming from his mouth. He hoped with all of his being this would be a place of rest. He didn't think he could last much longer if he had to keep fighting.
Fea Line
EvilSilverDragon
Strawberri Stardust
Wolfs Heart
Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 7:44 am
The crack of lightning was deafening, leaving a void of silence in its wake. The dark-hued Fallen hit the sands hard and rolled, the course grit clinging to her skin. When she stopped, her form lay sprawled for a moment on the sands unmoving except for her shallow breathing. She'd not have lain still for so long if she hadn't been nearly knocked senseless by the fall. She was lucky not to have broken anything, considering how far she'd fallen from.
After a minute, she started to stir, hearing a series of following crashes of lightning from a distance. Her eyes opened blearily, noting the flashes some distance away. She had a direction at least. Wait...
Adrenaline struck and she rolled hurriedly onto all fours. Despite the dizziness that resulted, she was quick to scramble for some cover. Not that there was much on this open stretch of sand. The water wasn't an option either. She headed straight for the trees, it would block lines of sight.
Wait...water...sand...trees?
It was all so foreign, yet she still remembered the words for these 'outside' things. How long had it been since she'd last heard them referred to in conversation? She assumed that they had made it, that they'd escaped from their captivity...but was this really another world? Hard to say. It wasn't exactly bright out here, but it was more light than she was used to...the prisons were always kept so dark in order to contain the Fallen...
Crouched behind a tree, she glanced around the trunk towards the open beach warily. This could be their world...or a new one. Either way, she was on the alert for the sign of any of the pursuing felines. Mangy cats could have followed them through somehow. If they did, well...she'd welcome the chance to test her new blade against one if she could corner it.
Her mind was catching up as the haze faded. Her wings folded tightly against her back. She'd left but a single feather on the sands, and a few drops of blood. No time to clean that up, she needed to get moving in case she was followed. She glanced down at the hole in her chest...no longer plagued by the lifelong pain, increasing with age, that had always resided there as long as she could remember. Now...she felt...nothing. To be honest, it would be a relief in comparison. After so much agony, to feel nothing was a blessing. The hole, well... "That's new," she muttered quietly to herself, touching the cracked edges, then shaking her head. No time.
Move, Lahasha.
But where? She had no idea where she was now. She needed to get her bearings, information was survival, and the sooner she knew learned about this place, the sooner she'd be better prepared to protect herself. She thought of the following flashes of light in the distance. The others? Had they made it through? Assuming so, it would mean she at least had allies here. For whatever she might have thought or planned on the other side regarding her fellow rebels, that was the sole thought she fixated on now. Allies in a strange land. Definitely a strategic benefit.
With a final glance around, Lahasha squared her shoulders and started off in the direction she estimated the others to have dropped. The Fallen would rise again...
Hachiko stiffened again. another voice. This one was greeted with a smile when she whirled around. With two of her kind with her, she had felt more confident, and the voice was familiar again. There was Avner. He was the one she most had been concerned about having held up the rear while the others ran head long into either safety or certain death. Ever day felt like certain death. "Oh, Avner, you made it."
What set her on edge was she hadn't noticed him. It was that fact that made her feel more insecure about their location. Clutching to her blade for dear life, she listened to is plan. He was always the thinker, of all of them she respected his planning skills the most.
There was a flaw to the plan, but one she didn't know how to properly address, "How will the others find us?" Had it been her, out there alone without them, well she didn't know what she'd do. Worse would be to find the feathers of her friends but that they were no where to be seen.
Survival was more important, she knew that. Before her compassion for the others could slow or divert her. Right not it was just giving her pause. Out there were allies, the more they had the higher their chance of survival. They were also ones she considered friends.
Irish Night Fox
Fea Line
Strawberri Stardust
Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2014 6:51 pm
He watched Thyone's face as she traced the hollow in his chest. The loss of his heart was...not as devastating as he thought it should have been. Perhaps the loss of it was what made it seem so much less important. Or maybe it was knowing that his mate had made it to this side. His eyes drifted to the hole in her chest. He sighed softly at the sight and leaned a little closer to her. He was just glad they were both out of that hell hole...
A smirk crossed his lips as he eyed Hachiko who very nearly used a nickname she knew he hated. She liked to tease him. He shook his head at her question. "I haven't seen anyone else, only you two," he answered.
A clash of thunder heralded another's arrival and he turned to see who it was. Avner. He smiled a bit. If Avner had made it through, then everyone else had, too. The blonde fallen wouldn't have come through otherwise. A moment later, he confirmed his thoughts...and suggested they take cover. Of course. Avner was usually the most cautious of them.
Tugging a bit on Thyone's hand, he started to follow Avner. "They're smart, Hachiko, they'll find us. If not, then we'll find them." They needed to stick together in this world. There was no telling how many of those cats had crossed before them. They needed to be exterminated...
Thyone managed a half laugh as not only did Avner seem to arrive on cue, he arrived as his usual over cautious self, overflowing with plants and courses of actions. Though she supposed if he hadn't, well he wouldn't quite be Avner... and they probably wouldn't have lasted as long as they did.
Glancing back at Hachiko and then at Samkiel, she nodded. "They will find us. It's not exactly hard to miss our entrance." she grinned slyly before pausing and turning her head towards the distant sound of thunder. Someone else had arrived, but a few yards off it seemed.
First though, cover. Avner had a point. There was no telling how many, if there even was any, of those blasted cats slinking around this place. Not to mention her body still throbbed in places from hitting the ground and a good moment to just relax was long long long over due.
Closing her hand tightly around her mate's, she followed after the others. "Someone landed somewhere off that way." she said and pointed to where she had heard the crash of thunder. "Or this land enjoys a random Thunder clap." she mused, keeping her hand in Samkiel's and her arm wrapped around his one, the slight fear of getting separated from him making her overly cautious than normal.
EvilSilverDragon
Irish Night Fox
Teigra
Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 5:37 pm
Avner glanced up at the sound of thunder, and agreed to Thyone's statement with a curt nod, “I think that's a safe assumption. We can head that way, but we will need to be careful. We don't know if it one of us or a Rak.” he spat a bloodied stream to the ground, brushing his mouth against his wrist. “We're far enough currently that we can continue on the way we are, but as soon as we get close we will need to plan a formation.” As he was speaking the group entered the forest, when they had gotten deep enough in he made a motion for everyone to stop.
“We need to rest a moment.” he said we, but the burning in his side was making it hard for he himself to continue. “Once you've calmed down asses yourself, you may not have been able to notice anything till the adrenaline stopped pumping.” he said this has he leaned himself against a tree. He used it as support as he lowered himself to the ground. He desperately needed a breather, and as he sat there he looked down at his chest. The large gaping hole bothered him more then he thought it would. He touched the edges and felt his stomach turn up into knots. He wanted to empty his hallow stomach into the ground, but bit back the feeling. He knew that it had to be done in order to survive, but he knew it would be awhile before he got use to it.
He pushed his throughs about the hole aside and touched his side again. After a moment he figured it was just badly bruised and wouldn't need anything drastic done. His bleeding wings were coming from missing feathers and would clot soon, another thing to not worry about. He continued the search over his body till he was satisfied everything was in some form of working order. When he had caught his breath he very gingerly picked himself up off the ground watching out for his injured side. Once back on his feet he check his surroundings to be sure he hadn't left a blood trail.
When he didn't spot anything, he turned his gaze up between the leaves of the trees and spotted the sun. He gauged they could make it to the thunder spot before darkness if they took up a good pace. Wanting to bring up the rear but knowing he needed to set the pace, he looked towards Samkiel, “Will you be our rear guard? I'll take the front and set the pace, we need to get there before darkness falls.” Those darn cats and their vision, they'd be sitting ducks if they waited that long. Especially whoever had landed out that way- they were the real ones in trouble. He hoped with his whole being they weren't alone.
Before they could leave he needed to check on them, “What's the status?” he asked “Anyone need me to look at anything? Anyone concerned about something? The sooner we take care of our wounds the sooner we can get to our destination. If you see anything along the way that looks edible say something, but don't touch. We have no idea what sort of place this is.”
Maybe he was a bit too paranoid...
Teigra
EvilSilverDragon
Strawberri Stardust
Fea Line
Irish Night Fox Crew
Chatty Regular
Offline
EvilSilverDragon
Intellectual Mage
Offline
Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 2:20 am
Standing stock still as the others began to move, Hachiko wrung her hand for a moment. Squeezing her left hand at the knuckle by her right, she bit her lower lip as the internal struggle commenced. They were leaving, if she didn't move she'd be left behind for certain. Just the idea of it was starting the little tremors that signaled a full on shake attack.
Tyrone was right, of course, their entrance was hard to miss. The others that landed in different areas might already be looking for them, three claps in one area had to be hard to miss. If it was, then any blasted cats in the area might come looking as well. That meant Avner was right as well, no surprise there. At least she could smile a little at that.
That was until their figures continued to retreat. Would they really leave her behind? Could she risk getting them killed because she was reluctant to move? Being slow was a weakness that could get others killed.
Lifting her right ankle up until her toes were the only thing touching the ground, she lowered it then lifted again. She had to move before she killed them all. If they noticed she was left behind that was.
One step forward and there was a slight change to her right side. She her shoulder and the whole side seemed to lifted a little higher then her left. Each step had the same change withe right always seeming to move just a little higher then right. Her expression didn't change much, just her eyes narrowing as she focused on Tyrone's back. She was the brightest of the group and the easiest for her to focus on.
Holding up the rear, she made it to meet back up with group with barely a grunt. With resting in mind, she gave herself a few moments to lean back against a tree, her right foot off the ground leaving only her left to keep her standing. Her body slid down the tree a little, not to the point she was sitting in an invisible chair but slumped down just a little, there was a fairly high root that proved some support. The relief of being off her foot was instant.
For a few moments, she raised her purple hand and whipped her brow of the layer of perspiration she had managed to work up. That same left hand lightly traced her own brow, checking for injuries as it trailed down her jaw. While sore, she found no direct injuries around her jaw line and she could already feel the busted lip so it wasn't a surprise that it was wet to the touch. At least the wound was healing.
The left hand traveled down her neck still searching for any signs she had been hurt there directly. Oh it hurt, but there were no outward wounds. Satified that there was nothing she couldn't see, Hahiko made a mistake. She closed her eyes for a few moments.
She was more tired the she had realized, as the fight or flight had died down in her system. The few moments felt like an eternity. A soon as they were closed, memories as clear as day came rushing forward.
Launching herself off the tree, she managed to reopen a few lash scars on her back. Landing on her right foot, her knee buckled but she was able to get the left one under her before she collapsed. There was some blood on the tree but nearly as bad as her back felt like there would be.
Dully she listened to the others talk, Avner being wise and cautious as ever. Thyone was able to make her smile a little bit, holding hands with Samkeil. That something good survived everything was heartening. What was also a relief, without a heart no one could hear it thundering in her chest because it wasn't there to show her anxiety. Trying to be tough, the fallen angel said nothing when Avner asked for status.
She just stood there, right hip higher then the left but otherwise looking pretty calm, Constant look of fatigue was nothing new. The knuckles on her right hand ran white with her death grip on the halo blade. What didn't help was there was life in the forest, over head some sort of bird flew of making the branches shake. On instinct she brought out her wings as if she was going to fly.
That was a big mistake as shooting pain shot right up her spine like a steel rod. Eyes searching for the cause of the sound, she expected to see eyes staring back, but there was none. Only then was she able to put the useless wings back against her body.
Fea Line
Strawberri Stardust
Teigra
Irish Night Fox
Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2014 9:41 pm
Glad for a chance to stop, the brightly colored fallen slowly began to realize just how sore she was from the fall. Adrenalin kept surging through her veins but the pain of bruises and scraps were beginning to push themselves to the surface. She could tell nothing was really broken, though it hurt to move she could at least move. But a chance to just sit down and and catch her breath, maybe steal a snuggle or two with her love, was a much welcome relief.
"All good here Avner. How about yourself. Can't hide behind them brains forever." she teased, kicking back against a tree and taking in some welcome deep breaths. She winced a bit as pain came from each breath, but it only served to remind her she was still alive, as were they all.
When Avner began dishing out more suggestions and orders, she glanced over to her love. "If he's taking the rear, it better be my own." she smirked, tossing Samkiel a cheesey grin. Her heart may be gone, but her feelings for Sam were still there.
She then turned towards Hachiko, noticing her posture. "Hang in there girl, I'm sure we'll be able to rest for real soon." she said, before glancing off to where she had heard the last clap of thunder. She wondered who had landed, where they had landed and just how hurt they were as well. She hoped they found them soon if it was another one of them.
Avner chuckled at Thyone, feeling a bit of relief flood him. There was something healing about laughter and he knew he hadn't taken the time to indulge in such luxuries in a long time. It felt good to know they even had that freedom- to be happy, “Of course, Thyone, thanks. I've bruised something on my side- ribs or something- but I can still move.”
He attempted to not choke on his spit from a laugh that threatened at Thyone's words. He rolled his eyes at the pair allowing himself another chuckle. He was glad they had made it. They had always been the pair who attempted to lift their spirits, something they had needed at every turn of their journey to freedom. Now that they were out it was serving as a relaxant. They'd do very well anywhere they went as long as it was together.
Avner's head snapped back towards Hachiko at the suddenness of her movement. He didn't recall jumping to his feet, but there he was his muscles tense and eyes sharp reaching out a hand to steady her. He watched silently for a moment till he was sure she could stand on her own before letting her arm go. He made a mental note of her injury realizing this would slow them down even further. They would either have to watch the number of breaks they took or find somewhere to stay the night. He hated the thought of leaving one of their kind out on their own, especially since he wasn't sure which way they would be traveling if they were able to.
He twitched when he heard the bird above and Hachiko's wings shot out. He had been so deep in planning it had caught him by surprise, he'd need to be careful of that. He saw her wings were as bad off as his own and could feel her pain, “Focus, Hachiko,” he said to her softly, laying a hand on her shoulder, “These abrupt motions can only injure you further.” He glanced behind her and saw the blood mark she had left behind. “You've reopened wounds and your ankle is pretty bad off. Have one of the others check your wounds on your back to see if they need tending to. I will take care of the tree. We will move slowly so take care of yourself.”
He let his hand slip off her shoulder, walking behind her to the tree she had used as a support. He looked around its base and picked up what leaves he could. Hunching over the tree to wipe the blood with the leaves caused his side to burn, but he didn't need this bright signal showing where they had gone. As soon as he cleared off as much as he could he tore them up into little pieces and shoved the leaf pieces into holes in the roots. It was all he could do, but it was better than leaving it.
He stood straight again, brushing himself off and looking over their small group. His mind worked quickly as he assessed how they would move forward from here, “Alright, we need to spread our presence out as far as possible as we move forward. This will help us cover more ground just in case one of our own are headed our way and it keeps us from being a bigger target.”
He put a hand to his chest, “I'll set the pace. Which means I will need Hachiko behind me just in case she needs to slow things up. Plus, Thyone needs her rear guard so...” he just shook his head at himself smiling slightly. It faded as he continued, “Like I said, I want to cover as much ground as possible so I want a diagonal line rather than straight. So say five paces left and five paces back, whatever you think is far enough. Keep far enough back, but keep the person ahead and behind you in view. This forest looks like it may get dense up ahead so if you need to get closer do, but be sure the person behind you knows of the change. If you're getting left behind or find something, use the appropriate sound signals.”
He looked each one in the eye trying to see if they got it or not, “Questions?”
