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Nikolas
Palazzo
Amoria
Thousand-Year Wall, Northeastern Tunnels


"Blizzard!" Nikolas shrieked jubilantly, holding his left arm out once again, this time firing out a jagged ice structure that flew into the chest of yet another rebel. The icicle shattered upon impact, and the man fell to the floor, dead.

That made ten they had killed in this battle so far. There was only one left...

And this one, they must keep...

The rebel soldier was trembling terribly with fear, glancing from his fallen comerades to Nikolas, then back to the dead soldiers. He dropped his iron sword, completely forgetting himself. Nikolas slowly approached him, and grabbed hold of his arm, gently but sternly.

"Why so upset, dear? Don't worry, you'll join them once I've had my fun with you." Here his smile grew, still twisted and cruel. He crept closer, their faces barely an inch apart, and stared into the man's eyes. "You'll be a good little boy and come with us now, won't you?"

The rebel soldier shuddered, and his shaking grew more violent. "The others will follow you...."

Nikolas threw his head back and laughed - a rare occurence in his case - for just a moment, shrieking with delight. He tightened his grip on the man's arm just a bit. "I hope they do, my dear. I truly hope they do. I wouldn't have it any other way."

At this, he turned to Dansworth and the moogle who had been hiding behind him. We'll be going back to the castle now. This little pet of ours has many questions to answer. And I have things to settle...You, moogle....You may come with us, if you wish. I shall see to it that you recieve lodgings and other proper accomodations, as a reward for aiding us in battle. And later, if you wish, we may settle an agreement for such aid to continue, for proper payment, of course."

And without another word, he began the long walk back to the castle, still dragging the rebel soldier along by the arm, as if leading a small helpless child.

((Battle & stat thread will be updated shortly, so y'all chill for a while, kay? XD))
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Tal
Tribal
Rosa
Sleeping Dog Inn


Tal smiled at the young Black Mage boy, and handed him a can of Tonberry Cola before he himself flopped down on the hotel room floor.

"Well, Lot, we're actually going to Gabbiani. I need to get home to my family, basically. And these two decided to tag along," he said, popping open his own can of soda as he finished the last statement. He drank down half of the can in deep gulps, then sighed with relief.

Dansworth
Palazzo
Amoria
Thousand-Year Wall, Northeastern Tunnels

"Damn, not a hot one among them," said Dasworth as she followed Nikolas back to the castle. She kept her rapier out, in case the rebel did something foolish.

"For someone who spends most of the time in the red-light district, that black mage sure is powerful." Dansworth thought to herself. "Hey moogle, you coming?" she yelled behind her.

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Lot
Tribal
Rosa

"I was actually planning on going there next, actually," said Lot smiling at the turn in his fortunes. "Mind If I tag along, the roads have been frequented by monsters lately. Plus, I still owe your mage friend for his hat." Traveling in a group was much safer than going alone.

Fals
Palazzo
Amoria
Thousand-Year Wall, Northeastern Tunnels


The moogle was deep in thought. He wanted to go and get his stuff from where he had left them but he didn't want to run into any more soldiers. Not to mention that he didn't know where he currently was.

Fals' head snapped up as he was called. "Yes! Kupo!", he yelled faking excitement. He didn't really want to be hired but at least he had a place to stay for now.

He sure as heck didn't want to be enlisted or anything. He hated fighting. Maybe he could convince them to just hire him to tag along but not enlist him. He may not like fighting but it would be better than what he currently did.

He let out a long, deep sigh as he ran to catch up with the others.

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Remetheus
Tribal
Rosa
Sleeping Dog Inn


Remetheus took Tal's words to heart and took a spoon and bowl filled with the soup that he really liked. It was sort of a delicacy of Rosa, one that he had had more than a few times when he had some extra Gil. It was sweet, but not too sweet.

He dipped his spoon in the soup and raised it to his lips, blowing off some steam and sipped it. He grabbed the can of soda and drank some of its contents before placing it back down and having some more soup.

Remetheus
Tribal
Rosa
Sleeping Dog Inn


Remetheus shrugged, putting down his bowl to take a sip of soda. He didn't know when they were leaving, probably tomorrow after they had rested up. Tal was the one who decided these things anyway. He was just tagging along for the most part.

The small mage pointed towards the bathrooms before picking up his spoon and went back to his soup.

Nikolas
Palazzo
Amoria
Castle, Ground Floor Main Hall


Upon entering the castle once again through the secret passageways of the Wall, Nikolas had headed straight for the Main Hall. It was a wide-open chamber with blue walls inlaid with gold, luxuriously decorated with the finest paints, furniture, and decor. This Hall alone probably cost more than an average Amorian soldier's yearly income.

He snapped his fingers at two young pages standing at attention beside the door through which they had just entered. They immediately drew in closer to him to hear his orders.

"See to it that these two-" he said, pointing with his free hand at Fals and Dansworth, "-are given proper compensation for their services, as well as additional accomodations. Get them whatever they may desire. Food, the finest wine, whatever. Also see to it that they are given their own quarters to rest for the night. Arrange the room conditions after you lead them to the Dining Hall."

The two pages blinked at him. They both hesitated, but one of them finally got up the nerve to speak. "...Th...The dining hall, milord? Not the soldiers' mess hall?"

"Of course....These are our guests. And they have shown promise in the battle today. I want them treated in the same manner as our distinguished foreign visitors, is that understood? They shall be going through quite an ordeal tomorrow, if they should so choose to further serve the crown..."

The pages nodded, then bowed, and gestured for Dansworth and Fals to follow them into the Dining Hall.

Nikolas then turned to the prisoner he was still gripping by the arm. "Now...We have things to discuss amongst ourselves, don't we, darling?" he taunted, the faintest sign of that twisted smile of his breaking out on his face. Then, silently laughing at the man's horrified expression, he turned and headed off to a more secluded area of the castle, still dragging the rebel survivor behind him.


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Tal
Tribal
Rosa
Sleeping Dog Inn


"Were you honest when you said, 'I could never leave your bed'? Wake me up and let me know you're aliiiive....And will you fall in love again? Is the scent slowly spreading? I've been answering machines all niiight...."

Tal had a habit of singing in the shower, obviously. Well, he would sing anytime, anywhere. So it didn't really matter. He turned the water off and dried himself, quickly throwing on the white robes provided by the inn's staff before tending to his hair.

"Now the doctor's dancin' in, while the ambulances sing, another boy without a sharper knife.....A moment that's where I..kill the conversation, wrap this up, with a knife that loves to feel. How do you know how deep to go before it's real? Take me home..."

After brushing his hair, he gathered the things he had been carrying in his usual clothes and began to place them in the pockets of the robe. Money, cigarettes, lighter, paper, the list goes on....

But he suddenly paused for a moment, thinking to himself.

Wait...where's the......?

He rifled through all of the pockets of his dirty clothes frantically, desperate to reassure himself. But there was nothing left in his pockets.

"No way....No way, no way, no way! Cliff's flute...it's gone...."

He paused for a moment, his hand to his chin, thinking of what could have happened to the instrument. Then his eyes widened as he realized the bitter truth.

"Fallyn...That b*****d...He stole Cliff's flute!" He had to suppress the urge to pound his fist into the floor. No...Now was not the time....It would be pointless to get frustrated over something he could do nothing about...at the moment...

But dammit....That was the last thing we had left of Cliff after he died....And he left it to me in his will...To ME! It was all I had left of him....

His mind stuck on thoughts of the heirloom from his departed brother, he fought to choke back tears. There was no point in it. He would not cry....He would get even....

Tal cleared his throat and shook his head from side to side before gathering up his dagger from the floor and rising to his feet. He had to focus and keep his cool. He would fix everything...He could set everything right...

He sighed and resumed his singing as he headed out of the bathroom. "Can I even complicate your breathin'? I guess I'm just your average boy! This is me....With a knife in the back and a grip on the grass, it's cold...and I don't wanna be here...."

He smiled at his comrades. "Hiya!

Fals
Palazzo
Amoria
Amoria Castle, Ground Floor, Main Hall --> Dining Hall


"Can't say I have. Kupo!" Fals said enthusiastically, grudgingly adding the 'Kupo!'. He was going to be around a lot of people and he had better get used to saying that accursed word a lot again. It wasn't that he disliked the word or anything, it just seemed odd to him. How one word could define a whole species. How one word could change a person's impression of someone. How one word decided how someone's life would be.

Shaking his head, the moogle stashed those memories away for reliving another time. It wouldn't do if someone saw him act depressed and not all happy and chipper. He continued walking behind the woman. His feet ached. He'd been running for a hell of a long time and now he had walked all the way to this huge castle so it was understandable that his feet ached. How did the woman look unaffected by all the walking? Well, the moogle reluctantly thought, he was smaller than her. And for every one step she took, he took two or so.

Fals looked up at her. He didn't know her name, and he doubted she knew his. They hadn't even been introduced to each other yet, though he thought that the man seemed familiar, but it wasn't like he had seen him once before or anything. Like he had heard of him from somewhere. "What about you, kupo? Have you ever been to one? Kupo."

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Remetheus
Tribal
Rosa
Sleeping Dog Inn

Remetheus was a fast eater, and thus was quickly finished with his meal by the time Tal had appeared. However, it also meant that Lot seemed to take that as a sign that he was interested in hearing more of his stories. Not that much changed before or after he finished his meal. Lot was right, he could speak enough for the both of them. The small mage politely listened to him though, it wasn't like he could do much else.

At Tal's greeting, Remetheus looked up and waved at him. Now that he wasn't distracted, he could still smell the beer on his hat, though not as suffocating as it was before. It wasn't cleaned very well at all, in fact it seemed like it was just dried. It was likely that the beer stains he had observed would be there to stay and that he would have to wash it himself to get rid of the smell, or at least make it unnoticeable.

Tal
Tribal
Rosa
Sleeping Dog Inn


Tal waved at the black mage boy, brushing his green hair (now even darker thanks to the fact that it was wet) before addressing Lot.

"Well....We're leaving tomorrow. Oh yeah, I'm Tal, the woman here is Akara, and this boy is......er..." he trailed off as he stared at Remetheus. The child hadn't even told them his name yet, had he? Actually, he hadn't told them anything.

"Um...Well, actually, I don't know what his name is. He hasn't spoken to us...at all...." He smiled at the young boy once again, trying to give the room a better environment of friendship and safety. "So, what's your name, kiddo? You can talk, can't you?"

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Nikolas
Palazzo
Amoria
Castle, ???


The chamber was one step away from complete darkness; the only speck of light came from a dim candle set upon a wooden table. And sitting at this table, staring across the room at Nikolas' cold demeanor, was the captured rebel soldier.

He said nothing; only glared at Nikolas with contempt and hatred. Nikolas' cool exterior finally cracked a bit, as he chuckled lightly at the man.

"I could do this all day, sweetheart. But I'd rather not. If you don't start talking soon, I'm afraid you'll have to lose a part of that dirty body of yours."

The man's eyes widened, and finally he spoke. "No..You don't mean...You're not going to..."

Nikolas laughed again, this time without holding back. "Oh, no, of course not, dear. That's just too cruel. I was thinking more along the lines of your arm.....Or maybe one of your eyes..."

The man simply sat there, motionless, speaking no more. Nikolas shrugged and rose from his own seat. He tapped his fingers on the table top as he slowly approached the rebel. Once he was less than a foot from him, he suddenly lunged out with both arms, grabbing ahold of the same arm he had been gripping earlier.

"Yes, I think this one should do. What do you think? Should we just rip it off right away? Or start tearing it open slowly...?" he taunted. His usual apathetic expression was gone, replaced now by a manic grin, his eyes wide and laughing in a twisted, malicious way.

"W-what's...wrong with you?" was all the rebel could manage to stammer in his sudden fright.

"You know, I've been asking myself that same question for YEARS!!!"

If the walls and door to this dark, secret chamber weren't soundproof, they would not have contained the sound of the rebel soldier's screams of terror, nor the maniacal laughter of his crimson-haired nightmare...

Dansworth
Palazzo
Amoria
Thousand-Year Wall, Northeastern Tunnels

"My name is Dansworth. I'm a mercenary, employed the Amorian army. That mage you met earlier is Nikolas. I'm sure you've heard of him. His power is a corner stone of Amoria's military force," said Dansworth looking at the servants. "Wonder what's wrong with them," she said, unaware of her terrible reputation.