Welcome to Gaia! ::

The Heron looked around. Older birds were watching - Nikel was watching. Would he back down before them? The bird fluffed his feathers defensively at the thought before settling down. Certainly not! Before the eyes of his betters, he refused to be counted as a second hand loyalty to the guardian trio.

Besides...Amber was going to have to learn to be an adult sometime. She could survive one night without him serving as her living pillow guard.

So let the fun begin. Let them hunt whatever force was foolish enough to play with death. It was all just a game after all...and one he was determined not to lose.

Nikel was inwardly pleased. Those whom he summoned, those beautiful livingo nes, had yet to revoke their loyalties to the shop. All of them had free will, all of them had every right to turn tail and leave. Nikel wouldn't judge nor threaten them, but he did need their help.

He couldn't be in two places at once, he couldn't keep open the rip he'd have to create. Deep down, part of Nikel hated the fact that he'd have to actually tap in to the god energies. To use these powers was much like exercising a long forgotten muscle - it hurt, was painful, and sometimes had dire effects.

But there was nothing else to do.

Closing his eyes, Nikel begain to gather his energy as he spoke. "Before you begin, know that the place you'll be sent is neither the living realm nor the dead. This . . .between place none of you know about, or have learned. This is a raw dimension, a place of spirit and pure energy - trust not what you find nor anything you discover.

"I shall not be able to travel with you, but know that Shanuh and the others are there. Somewhere. Seek them out, find them."

The room began to heat with the power that Nikel possessed. Hazy, the entire room seemed to build with pressure - it wasn't a physical sort but the magic and energy within each and every presence seemed to tighten. The heat continued to grow, to envelop. Swirls of colour stained crimson begain to whisk around Nikel - his skin began to glow, to radiate, and light shone from his wings. The taste of coppoer - reminiscent of blood - seemed to stain the tongues of all.

"Savius, natural born leader - guide them well in their journey. Trust none that you encounter, and search for their presence. Seek and you shall find, but I know not where the journey shall lead you.

"Diacyn, so strong, bring up the rear. Though you may bypass creatures from the front, there are many dangers that lurk behind. Guard your Kin and be prepared for anything - the shadows will be everywhere."

The heat was sweltering - and yet it wasn't a burning sensation. The pressure, though, was irritatingly tight - almost as if the magics within the Guardians were being strangled.

A flash of light, and a rip in space begain near Nikel's fingers. Small, but . . . growing. The taste of blood and hate in the mouths of all thickened.

"Iamel, with your love for children, guard Hylusis, Riycan, and the other children close. They aren't nearly as controlled in their powers as you - guide them well and keep them safe.

"Xaxis, watch over the Birds. Their powers, previously untapped, could go haywire. Creatures much larger may be drawn to such unmolded potential. Beware the shadows and light."

All of Nikel seemed to be radiating. Those within the room seemed to suffocate with energy - pure, hostile, and blood thirsty. The taste of murder was stained on the guardians tongues, the desire for death laced and tangled within their souls.

The rip, which had started out small, had quickly grown in to a massive void. There was no colour to describe such a hole - was it black, green, blue, violet, red? To some it seemed to spin, while others it seemed to pulse and throb to an untamed rhythem. Like a whirlwind, the portal seemed to want to devour everything within the room . . .but the pull was far from physical.

Spirtual, magical, the very life-energy of each and every creature was jerked and pulled towards the void. Painful? Quite.

"Don't let the eyes fool you - search with your soul, your energy. Use it as a map to guide you! But be swift in your search - for as I hold this open, I'm not strong enough to keep it open forever. . . .

"Watch yourself, loves. I'll be waiting."



((Here's a note: Those who step in will find themselves in a world that looks . . . somewhat like the physical world but . . different. The shop is still the same, but the inorganic things - walls, floor, metal, all seem very faint. The animals in the shop, anything with any life or energy or magic, are much more vivid and bright. Almost . . . moving scribbles that throb. The tightness that had been felt in the room is instantly removed once they enter the rip. (I'll describe more as we progress - but for now, most creatures with life are just strangely coloured, disgustingly bright/glowy floating scribbles!)

BUT - the physical forms of ALL Guardians have been transformed. Each somewhat resembles their physical forms, but it's all new and different. The teens are larger than the rest - and their energy seems a lot more defined and controllable. Movement seems to be guided more by thought than physical walking . . . to move forward, left, right you kind of THINK about it and ta-da! It happens. It's almost as if they're all ghosts - floating. A disconcerting sensation. Their powers are all very potent.

The kids are a bit more scribbly, energy wise. Their powers, more potent now than in their physical form, are also a bit uncontrollable. When and if they use their powers, there's usually a rebound effect and a good chance they may miss their target. ^^;

Those that entered as birds have a more human-esque appearance. They're larger and the most scribbly of them all! Their magical abilities, sadly, are completely random and they have very little control when using them. They can keep their powers in check by NOT tapping in to them - but if they have to, watch out - anything goes!

I know this is a very vague description but, I'll draw some pictures up for future RP. They all have physical forms (they're very faint and hard to see) but think of each of them inside out - instead of seeing the physical body, you're now seeing their raw magic/energy.

And as a note, if they use their "Let's search for their presence" Nikel is very faint and will continue to grow more and more faint the farther away they move from the portal. But Shanuh, Jojo and Kirwan can all be *felt*.

Just . . . one problem. All three seem to be seperated in different direction! Haha. So what do yall decide to you? Let's get to it!

Oh, and another note. Right now, you can still tell you're in the shop, but once they move outside their walls it's a wholllle new world. xP So don't think they'll be wandering in the city and familiar territory. Oh no. It's completely different. More descriptio to come in future posts. :3 ))

(( hoo~ boy. This will be a fun adventure, yessir! I hope I can take an initiative. . . in the end, I wrote something really strange.))

Hylusis didn't close her eyes. The world unfurled like a paper crane before her, bright and buldging. It glistened the color of sweat. She felt it's enegery coaxing Kin forward like opposing magnets. Like magic. Nikel's hands were red. To look down, she found hers were red, too. Light played on the surface of the creatures/monsters/kindred beings like the refraction of water. Like at an aquarium.

Hylusis didn't want to speak. There was darkness. Choking. Drowning. She flailed helplessly in the endless nothing between worlds like a fish out of water. And then it was over. She submerged into conciousness, gasping and spluttering on her knees. It was not pain or confusion she was troubled by, but instead the feeling of nothingness itself. It was inherent in her mortality.

The world was flashing. There were loud crashes and low drones coming from the edges of the realm. Traces of Kin and other things weaving their way into her mind, all at once. Off in the distance, behind Wood doors and gilded Frame, glimmering objects swooped in and out of luminescancy, blurring into the landscape like immense fireflies, leaving trails of singing cracks. Fuzzy, sick neon white, like stars in the sea. Her eyes, child eyes, took in the world with suspended wonder. Slowly she searched for words to describe the world she saw. She kept them to herself, locked away with a dripping honey key.

Death is no magic. It is quite physical. Like gravity. Like magnets. There was Life being drawn to Death. Unfolding like a paper crane.

There was a drawn out silence from the Kin, then movement that sent the world fracturing into the sound of a million droplets of water falling. She moved her hands. They were old but new, strange but infinitly familiar. They made rich, earthy swirls of sound, like pebbles down a hill.

Hylusis got up, as up went in this realm, with a shuffling dirt sound. She openned her eyes. The stars hummed fluerescant light outside.

"Alright, bitches." Iamel called out, his arms waving. "Time to behave like proper bratties of Death here." He was behaving as a mother hen would, trying to soothe his nerves, fingers wriggling in the air to draw the children to him and to the entereance way as well.

Hyl went first, the little b***h. The woodpecker groaned, ushering the other kids over before moving in himself. It was good, to have distractions. It kept his mind off of -

Drowning.

The teen flailed as they moved into the other place and right before he thought he was truly about to die, he was spat out of the slitted womb into a brand new world. He stumbled a moment, sight swimming before collapsing to his knees. ********' OW. The woodpeckers head was swimming and he felt stars in his ears... Iamel braced himself on his hands, breathing roughly.

s**t like that shouldn't happen. People were handling it better then he was, he could see that. They were stumbling but he seemed to be the only one on the verge of vomiting. ....they had changed. His head moved up, squinting up to see them all. The children - the Birds who were now children. He'd watch them all and he knew it. With a smile. Ugh. So he pushed himself up, breath a little out of it, but he pushed his hair out of his face, gazing around at everything.

"What the ********..." Someone breathed out. It took a moment for Iamel to realize it was himself. He looked down at his hands, at the kids, at Diacyn, Savius, all of his friends, his SIBLINGS... "Are we the advanced form of energy-life I always hear about in sci-fi books? Savius? What are we doing now?"

He turned to the kestrel. Even if Nikel hadn't put the pirate in charge, Iamel wouldve turned to him anyway. "What do we do now? BRATS. Get over here."

Ciyrul was scared. Infact, he was beyond scared. He didn't even know if he could describe the feeling he felt at that very moment.

What in God's name was through there? Would he even be coming home? These thoughts swirled in the small swans mind making him slightly woozy and dizzy. He stumbled back slightly; but luckilly caught himself.

He noticed and older guardian trying to get all the kids his age through the "portal." Well...he wasn't gonna chicken out, he nodded and went ahead with it.

The pain was intoxicating. He felt like he wanted to puke; luckilly he hadn't eaten that day. It got worse and worse. He felt like every bone and limb were going to be torn slowly away from his body. He clentched his eyes shut. Strange groaning and unearthly noises echoed inside his ears and filled his brain with strange sensations he had never felt. What was this..? Blood. He could taste the faintness of blood in his mouth, almost like iron, and it was thick...very thick.

The next thing he knew; the pain was gone and he was thrown into a new world. Where was he...?

He looked around...but nothing was clear. Everything was...scribbly. Where was everyone; was he all alone? Squiggly type blobs were moving about...they felt..familiar.

Ciyrul squintched and realized...the moving squiggly blobs were the other guardians! And the shop..it was still there too...kinda. Everything was hard to see and determine..but it felt raw..and fresh. Somehow..more free then it had been before.

He moved his hands; or what he thought were his hands; before him. These were his hands right? They made the sound of whooshing air when they moved, and left quick trails of colour behind them.

He felt oddly relieved to see everyone in this state. Just to know..other guardians where there..

And just to be safe...he moved close to everyone else. He still didn't know where he was.

What. The. ********. Tears in the fabric of space and time were stuff from that scifi s**t Taylor read. Diacyn did not like this. Not one bit.

But it didn't seem like he was going to have any choice in the matter. Something about the rip tugged at him, like fishhooks embedded in his soul. The air, the entire room was tight, too small, squeezing him, smothering him, crushing his wings to his body...

With a few choice swearwords, he gave up and leapt through the gap.

For a moment, it seemed like the atoms of his body had decided to run screaming in opposite directions, his insides wanted to swap places with his outsides- then he coalesced on the inside of the gap, swaying and dizzy. Still, he stood his ground, trying to appear tougher then he was feeling.

Then he opened his eyes. And shut them again. Open. Shut. WHAT? Since when was everything made out of glowy squiggly neon? And since when was he- well, he didn't know WHAT he was, but it was different. And more powerful. He could feel his magic, the sweet taint of death flowing through him...

Shaking his head to try to dislodge the overwhelming sensation of wierdness, he looked around. "Iamel?..."

He thought he recognized the others, even though they didn't look anything like he was used to. One of them was standing near him, a hyper-saturated glowing scribble less defined then he was. Heron, his mind said. So that was what the bird-shaped kin looked like.

"Shanuh? Sure, whatever," he said to Savius, his voice sounding strange to his ears. "You lead. I'm bringing up the rear, I guess. You helping, Heron?"

Diacyn speaking his name made the woodpecker - in all of his neon glory- glance up from his task with the children. "To Shanuh," He echoed, moving away from the youngsters for a brief moment to rejoin his bald - or his used to be bald? - friend.

"To Shanuh," The woodpecker murmured again, hand moving to touch at the Aura of Diacyn, fingertips resting lightly on his face. This was no time for akward - they would leave in a minute. "Don't do anything stupid, Diacyn. I'd like to see you again when this was over. Okay?"

The Gaurdian of hypothermia was the recipiant of a light poke to the forehead and then Iamel dipped down. The what-would-be of his lips pressed against the scribble that was Diacyns mouth, a brief, light movement and then he was taking a step back, body already half-turned to the children.

"A'ight, kids," His voice broke out again. "I can feel Shanuh, the teens can I think. Can you? Because that's where we're headed. We need to find Shanuh and if ANY of you little ******** breaks free and does something dumb-assish, I will cut off your head. Swear to God."

His arms spread, bustling the kids together, towards the vague general direction. "Well, General Savius? We have to go get us some leather-wearing Emo man. Onward?"

Easier? The Heron quirked a brow at the raptor.

The hunt has yet to begin. Savius will lead - two strong in the front. Diacyn will carry the rear. Two strong in back. The children will border the outer center. Those who are afraid will be center. As for myself - I am wherever I choose, or am chosen to be. What of yourself?

Yes, what of him? The Heron observed his fellow avian in mild curiousity, as though to wistfully wonder just how the Vulture proposed they go. If anything...it was his challenge set before the overly eager creature.

Well?

Tick tock tick tock...time was fleeting. Shanuh and the others may not be as safe as they luck few. It was fragile and of the essence.

He inclined his head before craning it up at the pair who had just briefly bonded. Ah, was that what humans called love? They made it seem much more...complex...than that. But than again - Love is all you need.


Or so they said...

He cared to think there would be more to the rescue than that, so having lost interest in the moment, he looked towards the one who would lead them.

Would it not be wise to form our siege together and head towards Shanuh? I do not know. You do. So do lead on.

And let the hunt begin.