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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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 Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:10 pm
Aysu grinned at Noel's reaction to how pretty it was. Maybe they should live on the beach. Ocean water didn't freeze over the winter like lake water tended too, right? But it was still pretty and cool all throughout the year, something the naiad definitely appreciated. "It really is beautiful down there. Far prettier than the lake, I think."
The naiad couldn't resist taking another peak under the water, thoroughly enjoying the sights below the surface. Who knew a sight like this was underneath the floating isle the whole time? The Guardians had a good idea after all, even if it was extremely sudden for them to put them into the water. "I like this tropical paradise," stated Aysu, after she tore her eyes away from the sights and let herself come back up to the surface.
------------
Well, it had, but Texas didn't want to cause any unecessary alarm. That and it surprised him so much that he was too focused on the acorn to really do much else besides focus on it. The demonic nodded in agreement with Kane, choosing not to say anything so the demonic with the tiger-like senses could use them most effectively.
Magnus, in the meantime, had ventured ahead in an attempt to find whatever was running around and making noises in the forest. Unlike Texas and Kane, though, he hadn't managed to catch what the sounds were until he had gotten closer to what seemed to be their source. It sounded like a multiple somethings were coming in their direction, and so, he backed up a little bit.
Instead of saying anything to alert them, Magnus turned back to Kane and nodded to confirm there was indeed something headed their way. He really couldn't tell what it was, though. It was probably Pae'il... or maybe it was animal... or something, but whatever it was had multiple feet.
Texas moved so he could block anything that attempted to charge past him. He had this giant acorn that could work great as a bludgeoning weapon if it was some kind of threat...
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:17 pm
Arvid nodded at Cutter before moving back to Nitidu and grasping her hand.
"Finding others might be good. Perhaps someone knows what's going on, and if not, might know somewhere where we can find out,"
Nitidu grasped tightly onto her brother's hand.
"Odd," she said, looking at him, before looking around, probably more confused than Arvid and Cutter combined.
"I agree sis, now let's head off, shall we?" Arvid looked to Cutter as he said that, hinting in his eyes that perhaps he should lead the way.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:26 pm
Kane nodded briefly at the others before dropping to all fours. He didn't shift, not physically, but his mind had gone into full hunting mode. Claws extending and digging into the dirt, the demonic spread his wings to aid his balance as he inched forwards silently.
He thought he sensed a Pae...another of those fae things...male by the smell...but the other scent? It was...unique, something he'd never smelled before. The closest thing he could compare it to was...a deer maybe? Mmm...venison...it'd been a while since he'd been able to savor such...
Kane shook his head with a soft growl. No time for distractions. Whatever this thing was, he couldn't identify it by scent and that was unnerving. Best to play it safe...catch the thing by surprise, then deal with it once he had the upper hand.
Bounding away from the other two males in near complete silence, the tiger Pae was on the hunt, honing in on the location of the funny smelling thing. Closer...closer...it was nearby now...somewhere within striking distance easily!
He whirled on all fours, tense with eyes narrowed. A rustle in the foliage! Without waiting, Kane tensed, then released the energy in his muscles, soaring through the air in a hunting pounce towards whatever lie in wait...
---
Takeko nodded knowingly, her eyes still scanning the forest. "It's like...it's our isle...but everything feels different. Even the air feels heavier now." She wished for a moment that she could talk to plants like her mother-in-law. Not that she didn't appreciate her own power, but it would be nice to know if the plants of the isle themselves knew much of what was going on right now.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:29 pm
Zuri looked awful. The longer exposure to the water made his skin appear a reddish-purple instead of its usual red. There were hives all over his skin, and he was left squirming uncomfortably and itching when he exited the water. He really shouldn't have stayed in the water so long; it seemed that it really did injure his skin.
"It's alright, unless you want to go back," admittedly, Zuri really didn't feel like walking right at the moment. He'd rather just roll around in the sand and hope it eventually made the horrible feeling of his skin crawling and itching and burning and... oh OW! Zuri was back to itching himself furiously, looking rather frustrated and upset.
"This really shouldn't be happening. I don't even react this badly to the air." This couldn't be normal. He didn't see any other naiads in pain, and it looked like his sister was in the water a hundred feet or so over. Maybe it really was just him...
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Criofan snarled when he could no longer hear that the cowardly thing with weird feet. It sounded like it had stopped. Wait... this was the perfect time to sneak up on it. The leprechaun suddenly dashed forward in an attempt to catch it once and for all, but by the time he got there, all the fae saw was a pair of blue eues before it quickly disappeared into some kind of brush before he could get any better of a look.
"Damn it!"
...But that wasn't the end of his problems. The sound of something cutting the silence beside his voice caught his attention and he whirled around to see a Pae'il. "HOLY s**t!" Criofan moved to roll out of the way, using his natural luck and reflexes to move away out of the hunting tiger... but failing a little. Not quite getting out of the way fast enough, the leprechaun fell to the ground with a loud whump.
Magnus immediately recognized the voice of the man who shouted. "Kane, get off! It's just Criofan!" It seemed the intoxication faerie already knew this one. He ran forward, hoping that the leprechaun wasn't too injured. Of course, then again, Criofan seemed to be remarkably good at coming out of any situation unscathed even when he did take a hit.
"Criofan?" It was good to hear about another of his siblings. Almost forgetting he was holding a monstrous acorn, Texas ran at the bushes, following Magnus and Kane into the foliage where Criofan was now eating grass.
"Ya' all need to get offa' me!" Criofan squirmed, attempting to get out of the way. "Ya gonna' make me lose it!"
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:32 pm
Noel agreed, "It's very nice." She did miss her cave just a tiny bit though. She thought snow was pretty and wondered if they would ever see it again. She shrugged and then swam to to shore. "I want to watch you swim, ok?" She sat at the edge but still in the water.
***
"I know just the place." Cutter said as he led the group. "The HQ is the hot spot on the Isle. It's where most pae gather at different times. I'm sure someone there will be able to answer our questions."
***
"Yeah, exactly." He wondered why and how, but knew they would get their answer. "I hope everything is ok, you know?" He hoped it wasn't a calm before some storm or something. "I'm sure it is though.."
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:38 pm
"Don't think we'v been there," Arvid stated as he tugged Nitidu along, though she seemed insistant on keeping a certain distance away from Cutter, refusing to go any nearer until he had stepped away. Arvid found this rather annoying, but said nothing, as he understood that his sister was an oddball.
"Have you ever been to the HQ place Cutter?" he asked finally, getting curious once more.
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 6:51 pm
Something seemed to be wrong with Noel, but Aysu couldn't quite place it and that made her feel bad. She frowned when Noel shrugged so casually and swam back to shore. "Okay." Aysu didn't feel very comfortable remaining in the water enjoying herself while Noel sat on the shores with only her feet in the water, though. She swam around in circles a few times before making her way back over to Noel.
"What's wrong?" Aysu refused to let Noel just sit there and look dull when they were literally in a paradise. "You don't sound happy anymore." And the naiad couldn't have that, especially when they were all supposed to be happy. ...Bah, it must have been the Guardians' fault she was upset. Something wasn't right here, after all.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 7:05 pm
Unknowingly, Criofan had actually just stepped in front of Kane's true target. Behind the leprechan Pae, an odd little creature...a child really...stared eyes wide at the situation unfolding before him. He had stepped out to boldly crow his victory over the giant winged thing, but now...
Realizing the danger and this was no longer just a fun game, he let out a panicked squeal before diving onto the ground and covering his head. He wasn't supposed to get caught! But now, it looked like he might not have to worry about being discovered, not if he ended up getting eaten!
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 7:14 pm
Honestly, Kane paid little mind as the idiot Fae stepped into his attack path. He merely snarled at the fool, using his wings to adjust his path as he shoved the Fae aside and he recentered his sights on his true target.
...wait a minute.
#$@! IT'S A FRICKIN' KID!?!
For the first time in his life, Kane purposefully threw himself aside, rolling across the forest floor and crashing in an ungainly heap at the base of a tree. He was only there a second before he snarled and scrambled to his feet, claws and fangs flashing. He was torn between confusion and the urge to kill...that urge being fueled by said confusion, which wasn't helping.
Still snarling, he stalked over and crouched, staring at the weirdo kid as if still deciding whether or not he was a snack. Through narrow, slitted eyes, Kane surveyed the odd creature, still cowering on the ground. He forced the words through clenched teeth, a soft growl continuing under his breath. "Who the hell are you, kid? Or better yet, what the hell are you?"
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 7:30 pm
Texas had managed to arrive on the scene a little late, sighting a rare sight--a baffled Criofan, a Kane who purposely seemed to sabotage himself, and a Magnus who wasn't even doing something totally inappropriate. The demonic slowed his pace, clutching the acorn close to his chest even though there was probably no real point. If anything, the cowering thing was probably more afraid of them than they were of it.
"Everyone needs to calm down." He announced, before focusing his mind on Criofan O'Kane and Kane in particular in an attempt to stop them from acting so harshly. The last thing they needed to do was frighten the little guy any more than it was probably already frightened, no matter how weird it looked or how desperately they all wanted answers to their questions.
After a few moments, he opened his eyes back to the world and hoped that had worked.
Criofan found that his heart rate was slowing and he was washed over with a feeling of calm and a clear head that he usually had and couldn't help to wonder where it had come from. ...Oh, Texas was there. The leprechaun glared mildly before moving towards the cowering creature with trees growing out of his head.
So this was the thing leading him on a wild goose chase? Admittedly, Criofan felt like an idiot for not being able to catch up to this thing. It was way smaller than him and there was no way it was naturally that much more agile than he was. It was just a little kid with fur and what looked to be hooves... what was it, some kind of half-horse, half-plant?
...This was all bloody ridiculous.
Magnus decided that all of this chaos wasn't worth getting involved in, so he chose to stay back and let the other three deal with the kid. Admittedly, Magnus couldn't stand children anyway--the farther he was from this thing, the better. Other people could get answers from it; certainly not him. Plus, all of this chaos was highly amusing to watch, anyway. He leaned back against a tree and waited for some kind of shouting match to break out.
Calmly, Texas ventured forward with the blue and white acorn still grasped tightly within his arms. "Now, tell me, who are you? And what are you?" Instead of the rough approach Kane was using, Texas attempted a calmer approach that he hoped the nervous child would be open to.
(( It's your choice if Texas' ability actually worked on Kane or not, but his ability involves focusing on people to calm them--that's what he's attempting to do earlier in the post. ^^ ))
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 7:51 pm
The child peeked upwards between his fingers, blue eyes shining brightly in contrast with his mottled coloring. Though he was still shaking at the possibility of being eaten, his eyes darted from the angry blue thing, to the yellow one, to the other, then to the last one, who sounded much more calm than the rest.
The barrage of questions sent his little mind whirling. He wasn't supposed to be here. He'd only come 'cause he was sure he wouldn't get caught. So much for that now. Still, he couldn't say where he'd come from...as much as these things scared him, there were some things that scared him more.
Still, no harm in giving his name, right? That was something and maybe they wouldn't ask much more.
"...Faroth," he finally squeaked, still cowering from Kane. His eyes darted back to Texas...then widened at the sight of the acorn in his arms. No! But wait...he couldn't do anything...not with all the big things around! What was he supposed to do now?
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 8:00 pm
The urge to kill was fading, but whether that was due to the fact that Kane was facing down a terrified kid, or to Texas' power, who knew. Still, he was angry at being made to look a fool...but he wouldn't stoop so low as to take it out on a kid. Even if he might deserve it.
Taking a deep breath, Kane retracted his claws and closed his eyes with a grumble. "I'm a predator...but not a cannibal," he snapped, if the others were harboring any such thoughts at the moment.
Then he realized what he'd just said. That implied...this thing was a Pae? He leaned in a little closer, sniffing, though that probably looked odd to the rest. Yeah...it was different, and mixed with smells of the forest which is what had thrown him off before...but the thing was definitely a Pae of some sort. But of what sort that was, well...it wasn't anything Kane had ever met before.
Balanced on his toes, arms on his knees, he stared the child down. "You're a weird looking thing, aren't you?"
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 8:09 pm
'Weird-looking thing' wasn't exactly the best thing to call a terrified looking child. They wanted to calm it, not make it feel insulted... Though instead of scolding Kane for not being very polite to the terrified thing, he instead decided to comment on how wide-eyed the kid looked when he had turned his attention to him. Texas looked down at the blue, white, and slightly purple acorn he was holding before looking back up at the kid.
Wait, did he know what this was? Perhaps this kid held some important answers. "Faroth? Would you happen to know what this is?" Texas didn't loosen his grip on the giant acorn, but he did move it in a position so it was more visible to the terrified little child. He didn't want to ask too many questions and make the child even more nervous, but at the same time, Texas did want to know what the acorn he was holding was. "You seemed a little surprised when you looked at me."
Texas, the parental figure he tended to behave as, was trying to be as comforting as possible while still getting a few answers out of the child. "We won't hurt you." And even if he had wanted to, hurting Faroth would be horribly counter-productive. They would never get any answers of the terrified child then.
Texas Pete and that weird tiger-patterned Pae'il seemed to have the questioning under control, so Criofan didn't bother adding his own question to the mix. However, he would mutter, "Why don't you get him to say what he actually is?" The name 'Faroth' wasn't quite the answer they were looking for. This Pae'il thing, if it even was a Pae'il, couldn't have been called a Faroth. ...And even if it was, that didn't seem to be the case from the child's reactions.
The brown demonic shushed Criofan before turning his attention back to the furry boy with brilliant blue eyes. Hopefully, he would be willing to cooperate.
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 8:28 pm
"I'm sure everything is alright. Or will be," Takeko murmured, interrupted briefly when her stomach grumbled to remind her how hungry she really was. Blushing a bit, she chuckled at herself and set into her 'breakfast' as they walked.--- Saffron waited until the trio of Pae'il had moved a decent distance away before shifting back to his normal form. He had been working on a theory, but sadly, while shifted, all that changed was his shape. He was unable to communicate with the isle's flora like his grandmother could. Still, he didn't think the Pae'il below would have reacted well to discover the tree that she'd been hiding behind was really a Pae'il.
So, after they had set out at a distance, he shifted from tree to Pae once more, hoping he didn't alarm the poor girl more than she already was.
"Err...not to butt in," he called out, heading towards the group. He didn't want them to think he was spying or anything either, so better to simply announce his presence. "But, personally, I'd like some answers myself. I've had no luck so far, so I was just about to head off for the HQ."--- ((For my own ease, all posts for Faroth will be made from my own account from now on, so I can lump them in with my other replies. XD He's mine anyway. *laughs*)) When it became plain that the big things weren't going to eat him afterall, Faroth seemed to grow a little bolder, sitting up and staring back at the blue one. "You're pretty funny-lookin' yourself, mister," he quipped, prepared to take to his hooves and hide behind the one with the acorn if necessary.
Speaking of which...how was he supposed to deal with this situation? He'd never planned on what to do if caught...and he was only a child, so seriously, he had little experience to draw on anyway at this point. He was gonna' have to play this as it went and maybe he could just give them the slip later. They were big and clumsy afterall, right?
So, he turned his gaze back to the one with the acorn, attempting to mask his face as best he could. Just like when caught taking the last apple...feign innocence all the way. "Maaaaybe," he drawled, blinking cutely at the brown demonic. "Why? What would ya' give me if I did?"--- Kane's eye twitched at the kid's response, but he didn't move otherwise. Finally, he muttered half to himself, hiding a smirk, "Smart-assed little brat, ain't he?" Then back at the kid, "And don't call me 'mister.'"
Raising an eyebrow at the exchange that followed, Kane sat back in the leaves, seemingly relaxed. Well now, this is...interesting. If Texas wanted to handle this one, then by all means, he could have it. Kane had seen this game before and it never seemed to end well for the adult...at least, not the inexperienced ones.
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat May 30, 2009 8:43 pm
Criofan couldn't help his snickers at Faroth's attempt to convince Texas to give him something. Admittedly, that wouldn't work too well.
Texas quirked a brow. The little thing was trying to bargain with him? Sharp, but Texas did not easily fall for the cute act after dealing with both Magnus and Okeanos at their young and annoying ages. Okeanos still was a brat... "Faroth, don't play cute with me." The demonic suddenly sounded rather stern like a scolding father who didn't want to play games with their mischievous child. His expression went from gentle to much more serious at this point; Texas didn't particularly feel like playing around with this mischievous little one.
The demonic sat himself down in front of Faroth, not letting his grasp loosen on the acorn. "Just tell us what we want to know, Faroth, and then we'll be fine. That's all we ask." Just because Texas was more calm than the others seemed to be didn't mean it was easier for this child to play the bargaining, adorable game with him. The demonic paused, before remarking with a quirked brow, "You were awfully frightened just a moment ago, and for that you're speaking awfully boldly now."
Texas' expression went back to the calm one he was wearing before and then he simply asked, "So what do you know?"
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