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...getting crowded.

Most of them seem to be on our side. Which is more than a little disquieting...

The Salamander had done little to keep its destination a discreet matter, and all of the exploding and crashing it's fight- apparently with Rage- and general movement had caused provided some nice cover for someone who wasn't a master of creeping through the forest. Even to the pointy ears about, he couldn't imagine with that ruckus deafening him from a good distance away that they'd heard him, so much closer to it themselves, picking carefully between trees in their direction.

And so the scene had come with them in the middle of conversation, much different than the mind-wrenching he'd expected to befall Teira simply by proximity to her counterpart. That at least made this unique to his experience, but it certainly gave him time to sit back.

Time for the armored figure to cross his arms across his chest and lean against the far side of a tree and listen in to the conversation. Listen and wait to figure out exactly what the trick, the trap was.

Victor... would he really let it get to his disadvantage by sheer numbers? When he has all of the shades as resource?

He wanted to close his eyes and consider it, but that seemed like a bad idea, even if he was facing the other direction with a large tree against his back and the other trees and natural obstructions between here and there as cover. It'd take him more than a moment to get over there if something happened but this way he could hang back.

There's too many people. Too many variables. Too many problems. Something is going to go wrong. I can't shut my eyes... but I need to be watching what's important.

Teira. What are you going to do? Which way are you going to take this?

It was her stage right now.

"You have nothing that I need."

He continued smiling, even as he started stepping forward, tilting his head to the side a bit.

"That is-- pretty soon, you will be of no use to me." He stopped, standing before Teira fully now. "Oh sure--- you have an amazing ability..."

He whipped out his arm to the right, hand open. "A blackened flame capable of piercing the soul itself... able to transcend the very barrier of the body itself."

His hand closed up.

"And surely, those close to you knew of that as well...however what mattered the most..were the people connected to you...that would drop everything at a moment's notice...just..for...you."

And the world suddenly grew very grim, even as the air pressure in the surrounding area became heavy-- both physically and metaphorically.

"And using the stage of a fighting tournament.. all the strongest..collectively in one place...far away...and to guard..our young princess..they would use their best..."

He smiled, canting his head once more to the side.

"And be unable to stop the full descent of Eden's Judgment on this planet."

He was of course referencing the undead army marching against three cities at the moment of course.

"I said it before-- and I will repeat myself only once more."

He looked down at Teira, his voice becoming starkly serious now. "Pretty soon-- you will be of no use to me."

Yellowed eyes took her in carefully, as if allowing her the time to understand his words.

"While your ability is great...the capability of the Efreet...is far greater."

He smiled now.

"And I will rip that power out of my brother...and use Ashe's Spell to bind it to Rakar."

And little by little...the pieces began to click.

"What I offer..." He extended his hand out now, a small void opening up within the palm, even as images began streaming within it... "Is life, my princess."

And within his grasp, she would see the unfolding battle that was happening right now within the Stadium's walls.

Athan.

Maximos.

Vahn.

Three warriors, three blades; all drawn upon one figure: Alpha.

"The son of Mere did a good enough job of bringing you here... even if I had to cheat a little, and appeal to the Salamander aspect within him... now, if you want these three men to continue living--- you would do well to cooperate with us."

Her eyes picked out instantly who it was standing against someone who looked startlingly alike to Mr. Omikron. Athan she'd only seen about at the tournament, they hadn't actually spoken... but Vahn and beside him... Maximos.

Athan meant little if nothing to her. True, it was a life that she had just been presented with the opportunity of potentially saving. But hadn't she decided to fight for HER life no matter the cost?

Vahn... well. She hardly owed him anything did she? In fact, he had out and out declared that he would destroy her to get Sierra back. Shouldn't she want him out of the way?

And besides that...

Her Nii-chan. She didn't want him hurt-- but she KNEW with every fiber of her being that he was strong. TRULY strong. And above all that he was a warrior. She knew the kind of damage he could take and that even then would still keep fighting. Would he push himself too far? Or would he win? She believed he could. He was hardly even roughed up yet--

But if she was wrong? If she lost him because her own selfish stubborn nature? Just what was the being they were fighting capable of? If he was an agent of these two...

She had to make a choice.

"Lazenca..."

She stared at the ground as she spoke clearly. "You heard all that? Make sure my brother hears it also. Tell Vahn too... and if you can rejoin us here with haste-- I would greatly welcome your return."

Rage had Sali.

That left-- She could feel six others besides Ra'kar and Victor? One felt like Malice and another was heavily cloaked but clearly aligned with the enemy. The others however, were not distinguishable to her, she couldn't tell if they were on her side or not. But it didn't matter.

"What you offer Victor..."

She stood tall, straight, her sword extended towards Victor even as she kept an eye on Ra'kar beside him from the corner of her eye.

"Is a mockery of life. And you have made a grave mistake in underestimating my Nii-chan and in overestimating my compassion."

She dropped into a lunge, thrusting the tip of her blade at Victor's stomach.

((Feels like we need a map of everyone's placement. XDDD))

She did not see what caused it, her gaze had only been for her mistress and what had her interest. As Ra'kar moved forward, so did she, although she only took one step forward, her hand still gripping the round of air as if there was something there. But her mistress had things well in hand, so it seemed, so the figure did nothing more, but lift her head so that she might better see the fight.

Through it all, there was admiration for the 'shadowling' as her mistress called her.

That reminded her of an uncle she'd once had.A man she admired greatly. A man who even death could not conquer, she'd once felt.

A hand lifted to the cowl of the cloak and brushed against her face, although it remained still in shadow and none could see.

One, however, did not fight the impulse to intervene. Or rather, he didn't realize the truth of the situation he was about to intervene on.

There had been no more bursts of flame that he could tell, but he was making good time. Leaping, bounding over the terrain, bolting forward at any clearing he found. Tearing through bushes, zipping through the tall grass. And he was barely winded either.

There was still something going on ahead. A battle, by the sounds of it. He couldn't make out the sounds of people talking over the sounds of Rage and Goliamander and Rain's own hurried footfalls. The wind began to pick up too, which was odd; but for the moment, Rain chalked it up to the result of the supposed firefight.

Then suddenly, a glade! Trees were whizzing by Rain as he charged, and he could make out... people. A small group of people! They...

WSSHH!

Rain barreled through a bush, exploding outward in a spray of torn-away leaves. He panted only slightly as he stopped, looking around.

Two Teiras fighting one another?

Someone who looked like Vahn, but was dressed up and had stoic written all over him?

The frightening wolfman Lazenca, with the demon guardian Dragosani Kain and the observed brave swordsman Ichigo, standing behind him?

Rage fighting a freakin' dragon...thing?

A mysterious cloaked figure watching in the background, and a likewise incognito armored man doing the same thing from the other side of the field?

Some other thing?

"Er... what the ********> was all Rain could get out, completely dropping his guard and scratching the back of his head. He took a pair of steps back, trying to piece together what the hell was going on.

Not having seriously taken up one of his blades in a while, Rage found the grip refreshing and welcome in his blood-drenched hand, even as it chewed through the back of the beast. That was, at least, until something snaked it's way around his leg. This was becoming an annoying, if not common theme, lately; first Teira, and now the Salamander.

"I really need to get one of those," he muttered as he re-gripped his blade, yanking it out before being swung through the air with an almost bored look on his face. It was an odd expression for someone about to be slammed into a tree. But then again, they say drunk people always survive crashes because they're relaxed, right?

... right?

THOCK--

The tree splintered, and so did his vision for a moment as stars exploded across the trees. He had to act fast, and even though he couldn't see, he could still feel the world around him. He was familiar with his equipment, and he knew what it was that had wrapped around his ankle. His left hand still held the first of his two katana, while his right hand reached for the one on his back. His arms wouldn't be able to pry Sali's tail off, but if he had learned one thing just a moment ago, his metal fangs were more than enough to tear her flesh, swinging both blades in an arc downwards a few inches in front of his foot.

SHA-SHINK

The games were over.

He'd take the tail clean off if he had to.