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Quinn looked over at Maximos and Lucind.

"Well, aren't you two just so ********' cute," he quipped, a hint of sarcasm and envy in his voice.

He sighed, shaking his head with a smirk. Instinctively, both through training and practice, he began going through all of his equipment on his person. He had gotten rid of the pauldrons and one bracer, which left the right bracer, which held a blade hidden in it. He still had his knife at his hip, and the Jericho at his left thigh. Comm. Shield. Helmet. All he would need or use was on his person or on his bike. There might be provisions in the Chinook, but probably not since they weren't going to be using it before.

Quinn would ride his bike to the Chinook, someone else would have to ride the hummer. Lucind seemed distinctly happy about the hummer being added in at the last minute. That was all assuming they would take the Chinook instead of the hummer.

Was he missing anything else? He didn't know who would be with him, he didn't know what the people who MIGHT be with him had in way of power, really. Aside from Cecil, that is- he was, of course, skilled in magic, as he announced upon entry.

In preparation, he took the comm device and slid it into a socket in his helmet. This would provide immediate communication, and also allow him to control his shield, keep track of his ammunition, and also his vitals should they need to be checked. This, of course, required the helmet being on.

He undid the right shoulder clasp of his breastplate, then reached in under the underlay. Quinn pulled out a small device that was inserted into his shoulder blade, not wanting to lose the use of the smart little device that improved the strength in his right arm.

There was waiting. Lots of waiting. He hated waiting.

"Of course! I know the bartender there, he owes me a few rounds for lost card games..." He could tell she was still pessimistic, but the jokes were good. "And for the record, I don't think it's a life or death situation, we really don't know what it's going to be like," And that answered Cecil's question, Sun wasn't trying to whisper or disguise his discussion with Raven.

The next part floored him.

Noticeably.

That never happened.

If Sunstrike's mask could have been physical it would have fallen off his face and crashed against the floor. His hands reached out and took her upper arms, as if what Raven had said had been some kind of mistake. It was a busy day after all, he rubbed them gently, almost comforting.

"Eh? You're kidding right? How could that happen to Vahn?"

The hands suddenly tightened, but not painfully for Raven, just to stop her from poofing off, thinking she'd done wrong. He needed to know for sure.

"Hono. Vahn can't be blind."

Open and raw, his voice carried through the bar like a wounded child.

Broken.

That was the problem, Sun knew all too well why Vahn wouldn't be able to see. But, this sheer panic. This was accomplishing nothing but upsetting both the twins, and himself, and probably everyone that had heard. No, he couldn't fall to pieces that quickly.

So he dealt with it. A door opened in his head and the feelings were locked inside. It was an escape, for a bit, just for a bit, but the guilt was going to catch up with him eventually, it always did.

His hands shook around her arms, before he slowly, and very gently, wrapped them round her shoulders. Giving her a warm hug and rubbing her back, easing her own panic with a sense of rightness.

"I'm sorry, sweetness, I'm sure you did your best. It wasn't your fault at all, and if he managed to get up, then he'll be okay. You know Kas...he probably just got knocked for six. Head injuries do that sometimes."

With that, he let her go.

Sun didn't tell her it was his own eye doing the damage, or that it was his own fault the eye was in Vahn's head in the first place.

"Now, what I think I'm going to do is get some rest, because I think I just sobered REALLY quickly." Amongst other events in the day. "And I hear a bed upstairs that's just callin my name. I suggest you guys do the same. Sleep is a good thing."

He pinched her chin gently, and went to take up space in one of the guest rooms, figuring the card would do the work for everyone.

((Right, here's how it's gonna go. I'm gonna focus on Reen for a page or two, then Sun'll wake up, and everyone'll get moving. Thanks for your patience so far guys, I'm sorry if it's a little slow, BUT I'm actually thinking if anyone wants to space it out a bit more, I'm not opposed to individuals making their way there, either quickly or slowly, it's up to your pace. I'll try and make sure everyone has something to do. Thanks again! ))

"I'll tell the bloke in the Chinook to listen to you if you want to use it. If you don't use it for transport, you can use it for overhead recon. He's a bit of a jack arse sometimes, so put him in line if he gets to be a bother."


"Thank you." She caught the device in midair, while the guitar's last chord was still resonating. "I promise I'll treat it as if it were my own." Even while forming those words Lucind realized there was a certain irony to them that would become apparent, though, if Quinn had known what had happened to her last car.

"And I suppose we're going to use the Chinook for transport - but I leave that decision up to the others."

The Siren nodded at the man when he left and resumed playing, though only for a few minutes. A frown appeared on her face. Her hand was placed over the strings to mute them and she looked up.

"I'll go and have a look at the Hummer. Be back in a bit."

Shifting the guitar to have it snuggled against her back and corcing the bottle to slip it inside her coat, Lucind turned around right when she was about to step through the door and headed into the kitchen, only to come back wrapping a few pieces of raw meat into a white cloth.

Outside, she used the high tech walkie talkie to inform the guy in command of the helicopter that she was going to get the vehicle.
Once there, she would introduce herself and thanked him for standing ready like this before asking if the Hummer sported any special features she should know about.


((Just wanted to add that you guys can ignore Lucind coming back for the next few bouts since you sure wanna fill those twenty, thirty minutes with...whatever. But it seems that isnt necessary anymore anyway... XD either way, I'm back to bed, later!))

"Er... Ms. Varhetel? Is this creepy looking guy a friend of yours? He showed up out of the woods a few minutes after your first transmission and has been staring daggers at me ever since."

That's what Lucind would get as response when she neared the Chinook. And John was not kidding, either. About 20 feet in front of the parked helicopter was a man with dark hair, dark clothing, a sword hanging loose at his side in his right hand, just... staring at the pilot.

The voice over the intercom did sound a bit tweaked out by the experience though. As a soldier, he seemed to have gotten unnerved by the whole situation, which was saying something right there.

"Hey John, just checking in. I'm going to be leaving pretty soon. Has a young woman talked to you yet, over?"

The comm device in his helmet made a small beeping sound, which meant that he was tied up talking to someone else, that someone only possibly being Lucind.

"Alpha 4-9," he stated, which began a recording.

"Hey John, Quinn, just checking in. Make contact when you're done talking with Lucind. I'm leaving in time minus ten minutes, over and out. Alpha 3-9."

Message send, Quinn mounted his bike and waited for anyone else who wanted to join.

After hearing Quinn's questions, Katie would press the button and talk again. She'd forgotten that Quinn hadn't met Stephen yet.

"He's got white hair. He has a daughter, but I don't think she was with him. He's a friend of mine, and I saw him entering the Firebrand just as we were leaving.

The situation, well, not really much has happened. We just landed and a man at the gate told us we should consider putting the dragons in a safe place before the gates were closed. We are getting locked in here tonight, so Madison, Ichigo, and I are about to go search for a room while they put the dragons away."

That was about the only update she could give him at this time.