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 Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2005 10:06 am
Io nodded, not saying anything as they headed down the path. The homebase finally came into view, making her sigh in relief. The cub was even heavier unconscious. "We probably need to feed them..." She said, glancing over at the others and inwardly sighing at the look in She's eyes.
"A Rade pack is a reflection on the leader. They do what they're told to do. And if we can figure out how to tell them what to do, then we'll have some powerful allies." She looked around, catching sight of Ice working on a fence with Scagg, and headed for them.
Ice sighed, wiping the sweat off her forehead and glancing over at the people heading towards them, a large, but not full grown Rade with them... and... cubs? She frowned slightly.
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Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2005 12:42 pm
Zahar took a gasp of air and almost screamed, then she heard the voice. It was the lizard tail man that Kasai and her hand found wounded in the forest. Reaching with her arms she straightened her dress, always a lady. She thought hard on how to tell him that she was just being a coward and running from herself. Zahar started to shake her head, then took a stick and wrote "I am fine" in the ground beside them. Hopefully he could read Commen as well as speak it. Taking a deep shuddering breath she tried to calm down and listened to hear if anyone had followed.
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Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2005 1:43 pm
he nodded, and bowed slightly. "i am sorry to have startled you. will you accept my company, these woods can be quite harsh and i see no weapon on your person... that.. and i have a debt to you that i feel i must fulfill," he waited solemly for her to write something back to him.
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Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2005 2:26 pm
Shiva looked ahead to Ice, shaking her head slightly at Io's words. She had no conscience against using the Rade. But allies they definitely would never be. That would imply trust, and she had less than none. Surely someone here would see reason?
Chae blinked, lifting her head slightly. "Shi's back." was all she said to Uta, getting to her feet. "Excuse me a moment, please." Walking to the back of the garden, she could just see the figures approaching. Her desire to wave greeting stilled. The emotion she felt was not elation or even relief from Shi, but a deep seated and smoldering ire.
That...wasn't normal.
Approaching the group, her gaze was slightly apprehensive.
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Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2005 3:13 pm
Zahar patted him lightly then pointed to her belt or throwing knives and one hand dagger. She hoped that he wouldn't take it as a threat and just a show of that she was armed. After a moment she stood slowly and looked around. He wanted to come with her, but where was she going. Her eyes flitted around like she was lost. Zahar thought to herself that she hasn't hurt this man, only helped him. If he followed her would that change? Slowly her shoulders slumped and she let out a soft sigh.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2005 12:42 pm
Nika sighed and followed the others, smiling politely at Ice and Scagg in spite of the feelings he was experiencing. Not all of them caused by Shi's anger which he believed was partly aimed at him.
He took the cub from under his arm and handed it to Ice, relieved to have it away from him. Ever since they'd left the ruins something, he wasn't sure what, had been playing at the edge of his mind. The feeling grew stronger the farther he was from the ruins. All at once, he knew even if he didn't know what it was, that the feeling was the reason he'd wanted to go to the ruins in the first place.
He wanted to be alone. Nika blinked at the sudden realization. He needed to think things through.
'I've gotta go...' he mumbled, trying to act as if everything was alright. Moving quickly, Nika headed towards the forest and then broke out at a run when he reached the first white stone, of many.
G_E wandered towards the group, having hastily put all of her suplies away when she realized that Nika was back, just in time to see her boy run off.
"What's up...?" she asked, eyeing Charlie and the cubs cautiously.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2005 3:18 pm
His sudden movement took her by surprise. Turning, her eyes widened, anger vanishing in puzzlement and surprise. Upset? What had happened?
Something she did? Reviewing her behavior, she wasn't sure. She had been honest in her dislike, had that offended him?
It didn't seem so. He hadn't acted angry. She hadn't felt it, anyway. Perhaps she had merely not been listening.
*Nika-* she began, but he was already gone. Casting a troubled glance at Chae, who was eyeing her with an unreadable expression, she said *Im sorry. Please excuse us both.* and turned. *Don't trust them.* she admonished, following the path the other had taken with more quiet and contemplative footsteps.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2005 5:23 pm
It had been quite some time before Alania felt rested enough to waken. Once she did however, her eyes fluttered open quickly, and the stark amber gaze stared up with a steady gaze at the woman watching over her. Without hesitance, she pushed herself up to a sitting position, taking a few seconds to do so. Her eyes never left Sukkubus, and she never turned her back on the woman.
After a moment of silence, a scratchy throat voiced it's concern.
"..May I inquire as to who you are? And.. where am I?"
First and foremost, it was important for her to get her bearings. The last thing she could remember was being in ship form - she couldn't even recall landing, or where she had chosen to land. For all she knew, she had crashed. It would explain why she had such a headache.. though she had never crashed before, so she couldn't assume to know what it would feel like. It would make more sense to be dead in such a case, but there wasn't a scratch on her right now as it were. Still, crashing was not altogether pushed out as a possibility.
Alania's gaze briefly left Sukku to focus on the window behind her, and her head craned just slightly to get a glimpse of her surroundings. She wasn't back on Gaia, was she? No, that was most unlikely of all. It was more probable that she was lost. She heard faint voices, and her left ear rose up to it's full two foot height, trying to catch the sounds and where they came from. Throughout all this, she did not move save for her ear, and her eyes returned to Sukkubus, focusing on the woman that she was determined to find answers for.
..Assuming she spoke English, of course.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2005 7:11 pm
Kataio F Zahar patted him lightly then pointed to her belt or throwing knives and one hand dagger. She hoped that he wouldn't take it as a threat and just a show of that she was armed. After a moment she stood slowly and looked around. He wanted to come with her, but where was she going. Her eyes flitted around like she was lost. Zahar thought to herself that she hasn't hurt this man, only helped him. If he followed her would that change? Slowly her shoulders slumped and she let out a soft sigh. he stared at he slumping form and reached out grasping her shoulders straitening them and said, "just a point of advice. do not show weakness such as this to those whom you do not trust, besides, it is not befiting of one who seems so regal as you. all i offer is my company and service. you have the right to refuse, but it is obvious you are running from something... and it helps if someone is there with you. all i can do is ask that you let me fullfill this postion at your side until i feel my debt has been repayed." he waited for her to respond in some way, and then with a coy smile said, "beisides i always enjoy the company of a beautiful woman... so, shall we be on our way?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 6:26 am
Of course, being the way she was, the halfling girl didn't even notice the subtle movements of the large eared woman's awakening. She had removed her glasses and began twisting them carelessly within her hands, heavy tail flicking back and forth as she fell deep into thought.
Where had she come from? It had to be somewhere; people don't just fall from the sky. ...Unless they were crashing. In an airship.
Like she had.
Sukku groaned at the memory.
But this woman had been her ship, unless she had some strange magic and managed to suck the ship into something she couldn't see. Oh! that made her doubly curious, now! Despite this, her face remained quite solemn and drawn; she had always managed to keep her emotions inside. With a soft sigh, she bent over her new charge to check on her, only to finally realize she was up and inquiring as to her whereabouts.
In her surprise, a sort of dumbfounded gurgle left her lips.
Well, this was reminiscent of Etsu's awakening, that was for sure. The girl's honey hued eyes flicked around unconsciously, checking for any loose items to snatch up before this woman got the idea of throwing them at her...as her masque had. But no, everything was nice and neat, and there was no sign of the geisha's earlier struggle, save for the pretty little bruises running up the guardian's arms.
She set her glasses back upon her face and rubbed one of her ears, arms folding beneath her chest. "I'm Sukkubus," she answered quietly, brows giving a small furrow. "And you're on Masquerade...in my house. Thing." Her eyes regarded the room again.
"You didn't...mean to land here?"
Etsu waited patiently outside the base, a splash of erratic color before the house. Her hands were tucked together neatly, head bowed. She itched to look back, and even head inside to keep a vigil over the new arrival, but her feet seemed rooted to the spot.
Everything was happening faster than she would have liked. But such was life, and it wouldn't slow just for her.
Her fingers twisted impatiently within her kimono, and in attempt to keep her fidgeting at a minimum, the child began to hum - or rather, sing - a wordless song. Something she simply spun together with her lyrical voice.
She supposed later on that the only person able to have even heard her was her guardian...and that thought dampened her spirits.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 8:32 am
Charlie came up to where Ice was, not seeing TB around, which was normal. "Cub's Baron was going to kill. Their parents moved against him, so he had them killed." He sighed then, giving her an almost tired look. The other two masked teens had run off as soon as they got there, and turned over the cubs. He wasn't surprised about that.
"Look, I know you don't like Rade, nor does anyone here like us. But these little guys need a good home now and I can't do that much for them, yet. I know you and Trin got homes for the Masque... do ya think, possibly, you could find a home for them too?" He gave her a hopeful look now, knowing he was probably asking alot of her, but he didn't ask things often.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 9:14 am
Ice blinked, looking at the purple squirming cub in her arms, then at the unconscious one in Io's. Then she sighed. "Not many people will be happy with this." She commented dryly, trading the squirming cub for the unconscious one. Io made a face at her.
She glanced over at Chae and Gee. "You two have been here from the beginning. Or nearly so. You know what the Rade have done to us. And I suppose you know what we've done to them. What do you say?"
Io ignored her, the sound of singing making her distracted. She didn't know that voice... It sounded like a child. Without a thought she tucked the purple cub under her arm and headed into the village, curious.
She paused, catching sight of Etsu in front of a house, and smiled, heading for her. "That's a nice song." She said, crouching down in front of the little girl. "I'm Io. And you are?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 9:55 am
Chae shook her head, tearing her gaze from where Shi had fled to. "I'm not entirely sure how well my opinions merit here..." she answered "but Im more of the thought that nurture and not nature is the overall mitigating factor. Apparently you and Trin thought so as well at one time." she motioned towards the elder Rade "or he'd not be here chumming around. The question would be, how could we ensure that
1. The cubs are raised in a way that is not conducitve towards violence
2. The rest of the colonists can tell them apart from the wild Rade
3. The rest of the colonists CARE to tell them apart from the wild Rade."
She sighed. "The first answer and the last are ongoing things. The 2nd...I would recommend some sort of collar or tag or bracelet or something they wear. But I don't expect the Masque children to like it anymore than the colonists do. Shi absolutely doesn't approve of them."
That was putting it mildly. She didn't know how much her "chosen" didn't "approve"...
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 10:16 am
"Masquerade?" What an odd name for a planet.. certainly one she'd never heard of. She wondered if her brother knew of such a place.. he was the astronomy nut after all, not her. She much rather preferred her Rune study over looking to the stars.
Unfortunately it might have come in handy now, while her runes certainly would not.
The woman stood, pushing off the bed. She was obviously unhurt, and unphased from the trip now that she'd rested. She was only disoriented and feeling just a bit lost.
"No, I didn't mean to come here," She murmured smartly, walking to the window and looking directly out at it. She turned swiftly after a moment's thought, finding herself a bit rude for turning her back on the woman. Be she captor or host, Alania would never be rude to her on purpose.
"Your name is Sukkubus, you mentioned? I am Alania. I am from Gaia. Do you know of it?" She had no idea that Sukku was a native of Gaia, and not Masquerade.. how could she? For all she knew, she was speaking to a woman who'd grown up in the wilds of Masquerade all her life.
----
Just keep running. Don't look back, don't look back.
Had it been an hour? Two, perhaps? It must have been more.. but she couldn't stop to think about it. She'd flown through the trees, speeding away once she'd managed to trick the wild Rade that found her into being distracted. She didn't know when they realized she was gone, nor did she know if they were still following. For all she knew, they were all around her, waiting.. watching.. they would pounce on her and devour her flesh the moment she collapsed in fatigue.
So she simply didn't stop.
She hadn't flown until she was far from where they'd found her, simply because the humming of her thin little wings was sure to catch their attention. But her wings had tired out long before she had, and now she was just running. She knew she wouldn't find safety, but as long as she didn't stop, she held on to some vague hope that they wouldn't attack.
She would run until she died, either way.
Bursting out into a clearing, she paused for just a moment, before continuing to stumble forward, her blurred eyes catching sight of figures ahead. They didn't look like Rade.. in fact they looked a lot like what she could only faintly remember her own kind to look like. She ran towards Io and Etsu, a quick rush of relief passing over her - until her running had gotten her close enough to see the Rade in Io's arms, and her eyes widened in horror. The girl stumbled to a stop just past Io, only to swivel in a circle and fall to the ground unconscious.
At least she wouldn't feel death.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 10:40 am
"You make a good point." Ice said, nodding and wiping her forehead with her forearm again. She walked over to Charlie, picking up the pinkish purple female by the scruff, still holding the unconscious one in her arms. "Do you think you can back your words up with your actions?"
It wasn't as if SHE wanted to raise the batch. The sooner she got them off her hands, the better. Rade weren't her favorite creatures, to say the least.
***************
Io jerked, heading for the unconscious winged creature before Etsu could respond. She had to juggle the cub so she could crouch down next to her, but somehow managed. "Hey... are you okay?"
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