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Kadiante had been too busy dodging the attack from the sword to see the surprise on Sarah's face from her being so flexible. Streching and staying limber was always good, though she had not had a chance to really do that, but the few strikes she had done had helped. Still, if she had warmed up then the attacks would not be coming so close, and she would not have a little tiny wound on her shoulder from Sarah's blade. Kad concentrated as she had done the back spin trying to trust herself and have the end game in mind. Not looking the best she could she felt the heavy tiered end thud into something softer. She had hit! She only felt a little bad about hitting Sarah, but they were in a fight, and she wanted to win. The other woman would not hold it against her, or at least Kad hoped. The feeling of the mace smacking skin through the clothes was an interesting one as well as the hiss that escaped Sarah's lips. Kad could not imagine being struck with the heavy blunt object, and she did not even have the strength she needed yet for it. Her next strike had been a bit sloppier, or Sarah was paying more attention since it did not strike true like the other did. Still, it was the first hit of many hopefully, and Kad would do her best to dance away from Sarah's strikes the entire time if she could. As the second strike bounced off the blade Kad took a few steps backs letting herself get her surroundings and watched Sarah carefully.

Then the charge came and Kad watched for it, but still the blade came soaring through the air towards her faster than she could really keep up with. To the right... The Beetle in her eyes hissed at her mind and she followed through without hesitation. She was not good enough to try and block the attacks yet. Getting striking down was a pain in the a** as it was. She quickly side stepped and threw her upper torso to the right just as the blade swished by her and managed not to hit anything, except maybe a few of the strands of hair that had not moved enough. Kad let out a breath that she did not know she had been holding. Go for that core in the second strike this time as she will be defending it more after getting struck there. Legs, you have not tried for those yet. Low sweep then and high one. Keep hitting her where it counts.... The A.I. Coached her in the fight. It did not know the weapon as well, but it knew where to land hits to take out humans, that was its specialty. Kad could only shudder at the thought of taking the A.I. Out to fight alongside her, but she could not get cocky and risk loosing her health. Plus, it might effect her eyesight that was so crystal clear, even with her having perfect vision before the accident. Right, the legs. Up and sideways makes more sense... She thought to herself as she took the step towards Sarah, her mace already close to the ground. Following what Sarah and the Beetle had told her Kad swung up aiming for a knee cap coming in faster and stronger with the motion. Once the mace reached high enough Kad moved her body to the side letting the mace come slamming to the side going for Sarah's stomach once more.

She could do this, she could win and make a friend. If anything, she could have a friend. There was a win out of this duel either way and it mad Kad grin as she had done the last strike.

Acel hadn't remembered collapsing on the field of battle, in the arms of the man who had knocked him unconscious, but he knew what had happened. His consciousness had slipped in and out as Dal'Mori had carried him, and he recalled bits and pieces of it, knowing that the man truly wasn't a bad person. He had known the whole time, but he hoped he had been able to get through to the man so that he did not become what he would hate. The doctors took Acel into their care after Dal'Mori finally released the man to them, a couple of them too terrified by the warrior to actually take Acel for a minute or two. They carted him out of the area, running him in the stretcher to a tent outside of the arenas and immediately getting to work on the man. His ribs were broken, to be sure, and his leg was missing a large portion of muscle. They ran a scanner over the wounded leg, and it took charts of the entire musculature of his thigh, making a perfect replica of what his leg should look like when it was fully healed. The machine then calculated the amount of matter it would need, and of exact cell structure to create the leg once again as if the wound had never been there--there was not even a scar. The jaw set itself, the bones rearranging and then merely fusing when they were properly together. his bruising was erased, and his concussion was completely cured on the spot. The technology these people had was incredible. Within a few minutes Acel's body had been restored to the exact same form it had been in before the fight. The only thing that happened when it came to being rejuvenated in this way was the "phantom pains" that came along with it. You would feel the pain of the wounds almost as if they were still there for as long as up to six hours after your recovery. It was a small price to pay, sure, but you didn't get off without a penalty. Acel was given a crutch, the pain too bad in his leg to actually put weight on it without feeling as if it were going to break. He left the tent, his swords hanging from his hips, and he smiled at the doctor, bowing to him with a grin on his face. Acel felt, after that fight, that he had truly found where he had belonged. His body was changed--he felt the strength in it from his confidence with his core. He felt his strength and knowledge from the fight surging through him like an information highway, and he couldn't believe how fast his body was evolving. He was sore as all hell, but he knew that when he finished recovering, he was going to be a different man. He was about to limp his way out of the building, but before he had made it to the elevator, his father walked up to him, having been in the stands. "Acel...I can't even believe how much you've changed since you came out of that hospital room. Are you okay? What did they do to you? How did you fight like that?" The questions poured out of Cecil's mouth like a waterfall, and the man grabbed Acel tight to his chest.

As Cecil cried, having not been able to be with his son since everything had happened, Georgia placed her hand on her boy's arm. "You did very well, Acel. I see that you're using a twin sword style, like me, huh? What made you choose that?" Acel pondered it for a second but he shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. It had been the only one I had observed before, so I figured it would be the style that I would be most likely able to recreate. And some strange lady who checked my body out to see what I would be able to wield told me that it was a good idea. So I decided to try it out." His mother smiled and nodded. "Well, you certainly picked it up in an incredibly fast period of time. I am a baiter, I know that getting your first A.I. makes you stronger--but it doesn't train you instantly on how to fight. That should have been impossible...I am...proud." The woman said with a grin. Cecil wiped his eyes and nose and he looked at his son and grinned. Acel winced from the pain, having been grabbed by his father in such a state. "You might not have won your first battle, but it doesn't matter. You performed incredibly for your first battle." Cecil said with a grin, obviouslt proud of his son as well. He just smiled at them lightly and nodded. "They aren't just being nice either." The old man's voice cooed as he stepped from the sides of the arenas and stood with them by the elevators. "You rapidly evolved your combat style and you adapted to the fight like a chameleon during that fight. You have only ever fight before in the H.A.L.F Procedure, I hear, but you fought toe to toe with a trained warrior who had already succeeded the same procedure. He should have been far stronger than you, and yet...it was a struggle to take you out. You may not have landed a proper attack, but you, boy, are inhuman." His eyes held an almost accusing glare as he stared Acel down, and he chuckled in a silly manor, excusing himself as he grabbed Acel's hand. "Now, I have a little something I need you to do for me. You're the first one out of this tournament, so you'll have some time on your hands. I am sure it won't take you too long at all. I just need you to go outside...I think you're ready. I fact, I want to know if you're ready. I want you to go to Athens. I want you to roam in that area, and to experience your true job as a B.A.I.T.R member. And when you come back, I want to know how you feel about it." Acel looked at the man, and he felt as though he were being sentenced to death. Cecil and Georgia looked stunned, but they shrugged it off and returned their attention to Acel, asking about his preparations and fussing over whether or not he should even take the request. Acel almost laughed, but he merely shook his head and explained that he wanted to see what it was like out there--form a baiter's point of view. Not from a protected civilian's. He needed to. And with that, he prepared himself to leave, hitting the elevator button and waiting for one of them to descend.


Line Count: 64

OOC:

Cecil and Georgia were a little more than concerned about Acel's condition, and him being sent out in the a Danger Zone to check out the world and what it was like, now. He was being sent back to Europe, which they hoped would not end up upsetting their boy, but at the very least he wasn't being sent back to Bergerac. They knew what the place looked like--they had gone back to search for survivors, and they had buried the ones that the A.I. Cores had left behind. They had dug special graves for Lidia and Jasmine, and they had laid the two of them to rest in the back yard of the home that they used to share with Acel, though they told none of this to their son...not yet. He had too recently experienced the loss, and they didn't want to threaten upsetting the boy--especially now before he left to go on a sanctioned mission from one of the Coders of B.A.I.T.R. His parents knew the man well--as he was one of the leading members of the organization--and they would not dare say a word against him. His power was absolute, and if you disobeyed him, you were only asking for strict punishment. He was not a man to be trifled with, to say the least. Cecil wiped his nose and eyes, ridding himself of the tears that he had been crying for his son, and he placed a hand on Acel's shoulder, along with the hand that Georgia had already placed there. "You be careful. And don't rush out to Athens if you aren't feeling well enough. Your body is not a machine, as much as you might want it to be. You were heavily injured by that psychopathic team member of yours, and you aren't going to immediately recover from those wounds. So be damn sure that you are feeling well before you limp your a** out into the outside world. It is no joke out there, and you are going to get killed if you don't go prepared." Acel nodded to the man and smiled lightly. "Thank you, Dad. I appreciate your concern. I will be careful. If a Coder wants me to go and check out Athens, then so be it. I will go and check it out to see just what happens. I will be careful, though, don't you worry." His mother almost laughed as she shook her head. "You are our baby boy, of course we are going to worry about you, dear. We wouldn't be good parents if we didn't." She leaned in and kissed his forehead and Acel smiled lightly. "Thanks for being so supportive you guys. I really appreciate it. Honestly...after that fight, I think I really found where I am supposed to be. I loved my life before...truly I did. And farming and living in that community was the best experience I could have asked for...but things are not like that. The world does not allow such peace, and it was naive to try to grab such a thing. I paid the price for that...but I will make sure I can stop people from having to pay the same price." He said with a curt nod, and his parents nodded back, grinning at their son's resolve. "You've really become quite a man, Acel. Jasmine would be proud of you, and so would Lidia." There was a short silence, sad, but yet happy as they thought about the two of them, and the shrill beep came from the elevators as the doors slid open. Acel hopped inside and the elevator rose to the training room. As he exited the room, he shifted his neck from side to side, working out the kinks.

He was still limping, using the crutch to carry his weight, and his face hurt like hell. His cheek felt like it was still swelling from the massive uppercut, and his jaw felt like every time he spoke or moved his mouth, it was going to fall to pieces, but he knew that his body was technically in perfect health--it was quite the strange feeling. He felt almost immortal, but he knew that he could still die, and it would still be ridiculously painful. He didn't want that to happen, and so he was going to be extra careful when he went out to see what Athens was looking like these days. He didn't even know where the hell Athens was, to be perfectly honest. He didn't know what it looked like, what it was supposed to look like, he had never heard of the freaking name of the place in his life, other than a few passing words here and there from his parents. He thought they had spoken about doing missions there when they were new as well, and he was excited to follow in his parents footsteps. He made his way to the main portal room, and upon entering the few technicians there smirked and poked fun at him under their breaths. He, after all, did puke everywhere the last time he was here. Acel cleared his throat as he looked at them all and he narrowed his eyes, knowing that he was not the same man as he was when he walked through here before, and they could feel it as well. "I need to go to a place called "Athens" if you will. I have no idea where it is, nor what I am doing there, and you can laugh all you want, but if you laugh at someone for trying to learn about the stuff they don't know, you're being quite the d**k." Acel stated with a nod, though he smirked back at the rest of the workers to show that he was just messing around with them. A couple of them laughed with him and nodded back, looking at him a little differently. "Just don't puke all over the old buildings when you show up, there, okay? Nobody is around to clean it up anymore." Acel laughed as the man spoke and he nodded. "I promise nothing." He stated, and as he stepped into the portal room and got ready, he was glad that he hadn't promised them. Because the room suddenly began to blur and he felt his body being pulled apart once again, not used to the feeling and as he was hurled through space and time, blasting through the world until he reached his coordinates at Athens. When he reached his destination he fell to his knees and instantly and threw up all over the steps of the Parthenon.


Line Count: 122

OOC:

Dal'Mori Cestrol Menne

"Don't.....become....the monster.....that they....want you....to be...."

Don't become the monster that they want you to be.

Why were these words banging around his head? Why couldn't he brush them off? He knew what he was doing. Knew what he was in for. He knew that he was going to have to pay some heavy prices. He knew he was going to sink to depths his family might not approve of. This was acceptable. He would do what he needed to do to get where he needed to get. He would wipe this plague from the face of the planet.

So then why wouldn't these words leave his mind! Why couldn't he let them go! Why would something so simple plague him worse than any sickness?! Badger him worse than any guilt?! Beat him worse than any fist?! It was maddening. Such a simple statement was leaving him without a simple response.

And it wouldn't leave him alone!

As he passed some of the observers, he passively recognized two of them as the people he met before today. However, he was so distracted he couldn't even muster up the necessary energy to offer a glare towards Akio, whom he currently held a large amount of resentment towards. He noticed, offhandedly, that Corrinne seemed to be conflicted about something, though much like with Akio, Dal'Mori couldn't be bothered to respond. His mind was far from where his body was right now.

Which was made apparent when he bumped, rather harshly into the wall. Even more still when he didn't even seem to notice the bone jarring slam, or the dull thud that came with it.

Those words were ringing through his mind, repeating themselves over and over until they grew in volume to such heights he couldn't even hear anything going on around him. They reverberated constantly, bouncing around in his skull like a fly bounces off a window.

Don't become the monster that they want you to be.

He almost growled in anger. He was starting to get frustrated, and this was not making it any easier. Nor was the glare from a older looking couple nearby. This caused him just a moment's pause. He didn't know them, but they looked vaguely familiar. Perhaps the parents of someone he had met here recently? Regardless, once more he moved along. He didn't care what they thought of him, he had more important things on his mind.

Don't become the monster that they want you to be.

These words were driving him insane! He meandered over to a nearby wall and slid down it, placing his face in his hands. It was perhaps the most vulnerable position Dal'Mori had been in since he arrived in this place, only rivaled by practically falling asleep in the park last night. However, the warrior simply could not find it in him to care. They would not leave him alone, and he needed time to think about it.

Apparently this was a bad idea.

Suddenly he was bombarded by memories from the past, conversations long over. Things he had tried to let go in favor of not remembering the terrible events that happened recently. It was almost enough to give him a headache, but his mental fortitude was enough to combat that particular effect. He was not however, successful in suppressing the memories that weaseled their way through the new cracks in his defenses. There was one major one that stood out among the rest.

Age 9: A, tall for his age, Dal'Mori stood at attention before his father, which basically involved the young man standing with his legs straight and his arms folded behind his back. He was breathing a little heavily from the harsh training he had just undergone, and was standing before his father to learn the message he was supposed to learn. It almost made him feel a little resentful, but he knew he was learning something, he just wasn't sure what yet.

He had spent the whole day fighting with his father, who was brutally beating him back, not holding back a single blow. The only thing that gave the beating a lighter touch was that his father was using a wooden hammer, instead of his usual metal one.

Once more he found himself standing, feeling a weird mixture of exhaustion and exhilaration, as he always did at the end of a particularly grueling session. Once more, he found his father staring down at him, with that look. That expectant look. He never handed Dal'Mori the answers, he always made the young man work out the details himself. From the intensity of his gaze, it was clear that this was an important lesson.

The problem? He couldn't find the lesson. Or rather, he hadn't been able to, up to this point. He had an idea, it had come to him like lightning one day, as he was playing with his friend Plo'Noi. They had been playfully hunting these little birds, and Plo'Noi had actually managed to snag one out of the air and killed it ridiculously fast. It brought Dal'Mori to an interesting idea.

"What's the lesson?" His dad asked in his 'firm voice' as it had been dubbed by his mother. Without hesitation, for hesitation was punished with more training, he answered the question. "Sometimes, in order to achieve victory, you must become a monster. Sometimes, you must do that which appalls you the most to survive." It was straight to the point, and brutally honest. He felt ecstatic when his father gave him the approving smile, and nod. It was like water to a man trapped in the desert.

This memory did not help him one bit. It didn't point out why these words hounded him so. It didn't reveal some deep secret. It didn't... 'Unless.. The memory is the reason it's bothering me so much?' This thought caused him pause. He grew up with it pounded into his head that there was no such thing as a fair fight, and that sometimes you have to do things you despise in order to live another day. He was able to bare that burden because he knew that at the end of the day, no matter what horrible things he did to the monster that attacked his home, his family and friends still loved him.

Now though... Now he was not home anymore. Now, when he came back, if he committed atrocities, these people would probably punish him for it. Admittedly, they probably don't think of some of the things he would do as an atrocity, just him fighting. However, this means if he continued down the path of the monster, he would have to hold that weight on his own. It made him wonder if he even could carry that weight. It made him wonder if it was worth it, when in the end these people who are to be his new comrades in arms might look at him like a monster.

Then faces crossed his vision. His mother. His father. An elderly man, with a kind face and fierce eyes. A young woman with black hair, and hands so scarred one might mistake them for being butchered. These were his people. His family. They could not be avenged if he second guessed himself. They could not find peace if he stepped off the path of his resolve.

This thought was actually terrifying, so much so, it caused him to violently push down everything he was going through. He pushed it aside, and locked it away. He looked up from his hands, and his eyes were once more the epitome of resolve. These were the eyes of a man with no second thoughts. The eyes of a man who would not look back. He had made his choice, and nothing would stop him from reaching his end goal. Friendships be damned. These people were the key to higher levels of power. He could only hope they wouldn't drag him down.







Ooc: Dal took a bit of a dark turn there.. >.>

I'll have him hunt down Acel later. I thought this was a little better.

Line Count: 79

Akio didn't look up when Dal walked into the room, too busy writing something down to take notice. Everything happened so fast, Dal hitting the last blow on Acel and the blonde going down. And Akio was still so stuck on Acel summoning his AI. He knew it could be done, but was Acel that struck for a win that he would do that in a friendly battle? He would have to ask later.... If Acel cared to talk to him. The whole fight was so interesting that he was almost excited to fight in his own.

With a deep breath, he took another look around the room. It was still in the same state, Corrinne had no idea what to do with herself, and Akio sat quietly in his own world away from the rest. This had been his life for the past few years, and it never bothered him. With a soft clicking noise, he placed his pen in his mouth again, chewing on the end of it. He reviewed his notes, reading over them quickly. If he were to be honest, Akio was actually quite nervous about his own fight. Akio was an engineer, it was obvious he hadn't been in a real fight until his half. He spoke big, yes, but all he knew was the technical side of everything. That made him nervous.

He could never tell anyone about that fear, though. He was there to fight, and fight he would. If he lost his life? Well, the balance in his life would be restored, and he wouldn't have to worry. In his pocket, his phone started vibrating, and he quickly took it out, actually grateful for the distraction. "Moshi moshi." He answered, placing the small device against his ear. A long pause came before he answered "Torēningu-shitsu.... Un." Speaking quickly and quietly as to not disturb anyone. With a quick look, he noticed Dal was back in the room, but payed no mind. The two didn't matter to what was going on, so he looked back at his notes, idly flipping through them as he flipped through the pages. "Hai." Then the conversation was over, and he placed his phone back into his pocket.

If the others in the room were wondering what the conversation was about, it would be answered quickly with two older looking women walking into the room, one carrying a plate of sugar cookies. The one carrying the plate was thin and pale, like she never had never really seen the sun. Which was fairly true, as she was an engineer. The other woman was a small Japanese woman who, in stark contrast, seemed battle torn. The two women were his mother and grandmother. When they walked in, they first looked at the screen, watching the two women fight it out. His mother winced a little bit, but his grandmother only shook her head at an amature move. "Okāsan, o bāchan." Akio said, calling to them in a slightly softer voice than his normal tone. The two women, all smiles and rainbows, made their way over to their spoiled child and handed him a cookie. They all talked excitedly, talking about what happened, the HALF, what his AI was, and eventually who all of the new people were. Slowly, he pointed to people, starting with the girls still in their battle. "Kad and.... Sarah, I think her name was." He said, moving to Dal and Corrinne. "Dal'mori, and then Corrinne..." The last two, he said quieter, offering a small smile to his family, but outright ignoring the two he was introducing, taking a bite out of the soft cookie.

His mother, being who she was, walked right up to the two and offered them a cookie. She introduced herself to them, a bright smile on his face, "Hello! I'm Akio's mom, Chen." She said to the both of them, offering the same amount of smiles as she would if they were her own children. She was small, with her long black hair pulled into a messy bun. She looked like she had lived a hard life, but never on the battlefield. "I really do hope he's not being too much of an issue. He's a good boy, just rough as of late...." She had a thick Chinese accent, but she was understandable and full of only warmth and good intentions.

Akio sighed, with a roll of his eyes. His mother was being a mom again, but instead of doing the teenager thing, he turned to his grandmother speaking to her in their native tongue. "Watashi no shiken wa umaku ikimashitaga, kono taikai wa.... Watashi no aite wa mada appu shimesa rete imasen."

The older woman, Granny, shook her head, a frown on her face. "Furendorīmatchi. Shinpaishinaide kudasai. Anata no chīmumeito no sukiru o sokutei suru tame ni shiyō shimasu. Shinpaishinaide, hādo ressha." She said, lightly touching the scars on the side of his face. Granny didn't smile at him, but instead looked up at the screen, switching to English with a quick ease that still impressed Akio. "These girls have no experience. Neither do any of you." She looked over to Dal, looking at the man up and down. "Except you." The older woman looked the group over, eyes lingering on each person as she looked around the room. Seemingly unable to help it, she crossed her arms and sighed. "You three are new to this life, and it's not going to be easy." Granny didn't speak as if she was coddling a child, but reprimanding a warrior. She never had a soft voice, but the way she spoke accentuated this fact. "This room is too quiet. No one talking to anyone..." Granny looked disappointed. "You are a team, whether you like it or not. Use each other, make friends, talk to each other! Weaknesses, strengths... You all have them. Talk, don't ignore each other like you're waiting for the paint to dry, or the sun to set." Granny seemed upset that the new Baiters weren't taking advantage of their time, "If you do not try to make each other better, it will be a long and lonely path. And for a Baiter, that means you will never reach your goals."

Akio looked away from his grandma, watching the girls rather than what was happening. His grandmother knew that his worst trait as of late was exactly what she told everyone to do. Granny was stubborn, her eyes steady on the screen where the two girls battled it out, and he couldn't help but think that she was mainly talking to him.

Chen, in an effort to make the air lighter, offered up her cookies to Corrinne and Dal again, a smile still on her face. "Have another cookie. Please. They're homemade."

Lines: 135
Ooc: Homemade cookies from mamma Kawaguchi!

Ӄȁɗɪᾳηϯє Ɉɑӿӽ

Kad knew she was in more control of her mace now, she could feel it. Though, she could still feel the strain it was putting on her fighting as well as throwing the mace around. It was heavy, but she could manage. It would just take time to build the correct muscles. As her swings were blocked again Kad felt some frustration, showing her furrowed brow. She had landed one hit, she needed to do it again dammit. Several many times. Sarah was not going to go down as easily as the Turbine Beetle had. As the second attack was blocked Kad let the metal bounce off each other and took a few steps back breathing heavier than before. She watched Sarah carefully seeing that woman was listening to something, but Kad had no idea what. Maybe her A.I. Was talking to her as well? It was interesting have a coach in her head, especially one that had been so hell bent on trying to kill her only so many hours ago. Then Kad raised a curious brow when Sarah threw her sword down, surely she was not giving up that easily, but the woman did not yield. Instead she pulled out something from her belt. "Well, s**t girl. That's pretty ******** spiffy. Might need to get me one of those eventually," Kad chuckled in awe a bit at the weapon. She had seen guns do that before and of course batons that the guards used, but never a full on weapon. Sneaky sneaky.

Kad watched carefully seeing Sarah shift her body and her hands as she took on the new weapon, Kad had been right not to underestimate her. Good, this would prove all the more interesting then. Then the attack came and Kad knew she needed to get more serious about the fight, Sarah had brought the weapon out for a reason, and she needed to watch out. The curved blade looked like it could do even more damage with the amount of force that could be put behind it. Kad stayed planted where she was but shifted her weight to the front of her feet to be able to move quickly as Sarah came charging in and watched where she thought the path would be. Skilfully Kad spun to the left just in time wanting Sarah to keep going with the attack and as she spun she threw another backhanded swing towards Sarah's middle. Maybe I should stop going for the middle first.... then again, I need to get these swings down... Kad thought to herself as she made her second strike swinging the mace up going for a shoulder herself.

Chen was excited to see that the tall man had liked her cookies. What was his name? 'Dal'mori' she reminded herself. For a moment, he looked unsure of what to do with the perfectly baked cookies, but once he took a bite, the sweet treat was gone. The pleased sound that came from his mouth made her blush and giggle, glad that he loved them that much. The woman who was there, Corrinne, spoke to her, sounding like she was thrilled to have something home made. Again, the woman smiled, the pink still coloring her pale cheeks. "Oh, sweetie. I'm so glad to have provided something for you then." Sassy? That seemed like an understatement to her, but she let it slide. Chen sat down next to Corrinne, letting everyone else remain standing. She was getting old, though, and she had the back of a programmer. "If you ever want a free home cooked meal, I want you to know that the Kawaguchi manor is always open to you young Baiters." And she meant it. If there were anyone who could win a mom off competition, it would be Chen Kawaguchi.

Granny, however, had some other things on her mind. The warrior who stood at attention when she was talking intrigued her. His face... Something in the way he held himself. It all seemed familiar, but she couldn't place her finger on exactly what it was. Perhaps she let her eyes linger a bit too long, but she couldn't help it. She did like the young man though. And when he gave her the leaf, she knew exactly what to do with it before he said anything. Granny looked down at the leaf, rubbing her thumb softly over the fuzzy leaf. They were so important to him, and he was giving them out like candy. Before Granny could say anything about it, she could hear Chen choking up. Granny looked up to her daughter-in-law to see the woman stand again, gratefully taking one of them with tears in her eyes. No doubt, the woman saw the importance of the gift she was just given. "Oh darling..." She whispered, placing her hand on the man's cheek. Well, as best she could, with him being so much taller than her. "Thank you so much."

However, what caught Granny's eyes was the man's own eyes. He teared up, but within seconds, a resolve replaced the regret. Dal'mori handed the leaves out, urging the others to try them. Granny was the first to place one in her mouth, Chen still reeling over the sentimental value of the leaf itself. The flavor washed over her like a wave, and she closed her eye to let the sensation flow through her. An image flashed through her mind, one of a small village and a fire. It wasn't quite a crisp image, but she had a vague sense of deja vu in the flavor. It made her smile, getting to the pockets of flavor. The flavor tickled her taste buds, making her hardened face smile. Even if she couldn't put the feeling together, she enjoyed her small feeling of nostalgia that this plant had given her.

Akio felt strange. He didn't know what it was, but he felt strange. The way that Dal'mori looked at him made him feel dead inside, but for some reason that feeling didn't bother him. Instead, it was... normal. That was how he was supposed to feel, like it was natural to feel empty, and cold. It made his stomach fuzz and his heart flutter, knowing that this person hated him almost as much as he hated himself. With his eyes on the leaf, he stood and made his way to the much taller man and took one of them. It was so soft, the texture in between his fingers fuzzy, like he was touching the skin of a peach without the slimy feeling on the other side. It was beautiful, looking at it up close. Akio turned it over, getting a good look at it before deciding to eat it. It was both a heart and a star, but neither. It wasn't a plant he had seen in any book before, nor one he had ever heard of. "Does it have a name?" He asked quietly before placing it on his tongue and beginning to chew. The flavor was odd, but he liked it. It was sweet! Akio cocked his head slightly, furrowing his brow in confusion. Was that strawberry? Banana? It was so subtle he didn't quite know. Then there was a pop, and he flinched a bit, looking even more confused. There seemed to be pockets of flavor in the leaf, bursting in more flavor that washed on his tongue. It was actually quite delicious, and he did quite like it after the initial shock of the sacks of juice. It was very simply good. Akio was surprised that it chewed like gum, the flavor lasting longer than he's imagine. He made a quiet pleased noise as he sat next to the seat his mother sat.

Chen watched her son eat the leaf, giggling at the response. She didn't quite catch the strained feelings between the two men, but couldn't help but feel her sons self-hatred. As a mother should, it made her sad, but she didn't let it show. Not in mixed company. Instead, she offered a silent prayer, then ate the leaf herself. She more or less had the same reaction as Akio, though with less confusion. She took it as it was, hoping for the name of the leaf as well. It was so wonderful... So calming, and it felt oddly like home to her. It was strange that a leaf would do such a thing, but it did. "Hmm!" She hummed aloud, sounding quite happy. "It's so sweet!" Chen beamed, so happy to have such a taste in her mouth.

All three were happy with the taste, all for very different reasons. It felt good to have something sweet in their mouths, that something also being so important to said person. Aki, Akio's grandmother, was unsure if she wanted to speak up about her nostalgia, but Chen had no issues saying exactly how the leaf made her feel. "It tastes like... Home." She had a bit of trouble finding the right word, but that was what she settled on. "It tastes like home in my heart. Thank you for sharing this with me." Again, she smiled at Dal'mori, and at Corrinne. The two of them seemed so wonderful.... She hoped only the best for her son, and the two sounded like they could be good friends to him, if only Akio would let them. And the two women on the screen, though she hardly knew them, she hoped the same. If this were to be the best place for her son, then all she could hope for was for him to open up. However, she pushed that train of thought away, looking at the screen.

Akio did the same, thinking more on how Dal'mori's look made him feel. Inside his heart, he was drained and empty. It was so heavy, and the leaf didn't help. It made him feel worse, because it did taste exactly like how his mother had described it. Like home. In the pit of his stomach, he felt a knot grow, and twist. He chewed slower, pondering this. This was how he should feel, wasn't it? Empty, cold, and alone. Right. Like he should, he watched the screen, chewing his portion of his leaf slowly, calculating each movement made, processing their personal style. No, he wouldn't take his grandmothers advice to heart. He'd work well with these people, but his heart didn't need them. He could observe just fine.

Lines: 208
Ooc: Whoops, totally impatient. <3


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peskyraven
PainfulThrill

Sarah Hartwell

Turn 7


23 - 40 = 1 (100 - 1 = 99 - 5 (TA) 94) - 15 (Stam rule) = 79 x1 Hit
23 x 5 = 115
40 x 3 = 120
115 x .2 = 23 (Defense can't decrease damage by more than 80%)



Sarah felt herself get a little embarrassed as Kad expressed her impression by her weapons. She wondered if it looked like she was showing off or not. She wasn't trying to, she was trying to keep herself protected as she waited for the scythe to be ready to be used. She could use it as a staff, but Sarah couldn't find herself using just the base unless for training. In an actual fight, she felt she could actually do damage with the blade out than just in. But then again Corrinne had a staff if she remembered right. Obviously she could do something with it. But Sarah learned a while back that she couldn't be great at everything and something without a blade just wasn't her style. Plus her family went all out to make sure Sarah had the best, and it was easy with the money they had. Though she could have bought them herself. It was quite a fight when they insisted that they bought her weapons, not her herself. Saying she would need her money for something else in the future, they were sure of it. “It's nothing special, just really expensive. But this was more convenient than having to travel with them when they were in full form like this you know?” Sarah said, not sure what to say about it. She wasn't sure how to react to someone gushing over her weapons. It never happened before. It was hard to believe that this world was amazed with her things while in hers, such things shouldn't be talked about. Unpleasant and not good dinner conversation.

The blade sunk into the ground without hitting it's mark. Sarah could only glare in frustration, quickly using the wedged weapon to help her avoid Kad's swinging attack, ducking under the handle to the other side. She watched as the mace swung over her, quickly getting up but she wasn't fast enough to pull the scythe out of the ground and grunted when the mace slammed into her shoulder. Her foot moved a bit from the force but she kept her hands on the scythe's handle. With a little added effort than she wanted to use, but with her shoulder now pulsating with pain from the mace, her jacket and shirt torn from the impact, some cuts shown through the holes, it was just a little harder to pull the weapon where it rested presently. But it didn't take long for her to pull the weapon out, just two seconds. Once out, she swung on handed with the uninjured arm, the scythe swinging through the air sideways, the blade pointing right at Kad's body. Sarah knew what she was doing, but she just wanted to keep from using that shoulder as little as possible for now until the worst of the pain was gone.