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 Posted: Sat Nov 02, 2013 12:12 am
Well, that's certainly different.
Lulu's appearance breaks the monotony of the jungle for the weary team, her bright (if frazzled) expression incongruous with the doldrums they had just passed.
And more still, as the team looks at the rabbit and she back at them, another strange thing happens. In a break in the leaves above them, a trail of green snakes through the late afternoon sky. Then, like a firework, it explodes into splintered light -- and only after is followed by a soft and distant crack, the shot of a gun, the sound too slow to catch up with the brilliance of the green explosion.
The flare! Kyou!
There is a rustling in the bushes beside Basil and Lazarus. The black cat turns its head up to the light, squints its eyes, and hisses. It jumps from its perch into the tree and heads toward the light -- and for the first time, it seems disturbed.
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Posted: Sun Nov 03, 2013 11:14 pm
The group slowed to a stop as Basil brought the cantine to his mouth. It wasn't until he was standing still that he realized how tired and dehydrated he'd been. Despite his thirst, he made sure to take small disciplined sips, swishing the water between his cheeks. Savoring it. Trying to get his lips to unstick from his teeth. When the mixture became too diluted with saliva, he'd swallow and drink again, meanwhile cocking his head to keep an eye on what was happening at the front of the queue.
What was Laz doing?
He was far enough away that Basil's view of him was blurry and unfocused, but he could tell enough that Laz had stepped away from the group now. Skimming through a wall of tangled man-sized shrubbery with something. A knife. Recognizing the weapon sent a ripple of anticipation over his skin. A raise in his pulse. What was he looking for?
Naturally he didn't expect to see a person come crashing into the light. His reaction couldn't rightly be called a "spit-take" with less than a mouthful of water, but somehow achieved the desired effect. He guiltily wiped his mouth on the back of his forearm. Thankfully Duncan was safely out of the splash-zone, but there was still a certain shame in wasting rationed water on a stupid jump-scare.
Like the others, his eyes were wide and popping, but his were the only pair with needle-thin pupils. Once the shock passed, they filled again with recognition. An identification so sudden and jarring, he nearly dropped the cantine.
The person who'd stepped out was a girl. A Raevan. With a stomach, and hips, and big long ears. He remembered bony wings like his, but different. Her smooth brown hands caressing his cold ones. The fine sound of scraping metal. The seismic jolt of a bus passing over a pot-hole.
His jaw clenched.
He knew her.
He drew a bit closer. Just behind Laz. In his shock, the Incubus still had the knife poised in his hand, and from over his shoulder, Basil could be seen mouthing an incredulous 'you'. It wasn't a very reassuring image.
He looked at her, the bottom half of his face completely incongruous with the top. His mouth was smiling, or maybe wincing. The corners were drawn from his teeth, conveying something like relief and friendliness. Hi, remember me?
But his eyes were a different story. They were enormous and dark and gleaming. There was suffering in them. Beseeching confusion. They were almost wild with it. Difficult to look at. Where had she come from? Where was she going just now? Where was her team?
He gently touched Lazarus' arm. The one with the knife. As if reminding him to lower it, or coax him into moving aside. He leaned towards her with that mixed expression. "...Did you see him?" he whispered. Not quite sure if he had said it out-loud, or if it had just been a very strong thought.
In that anxious moment, waiting for her reply, what happened next almost seemed to happen in slow-motion. A moment he would freeze-frame in his mind. Unforgettable. Down to every detail.
Basil could hear it whistling faintly through the sky. He turned up his head to see that brilliant speck of light, climbing into the heavens with a glowing green tail. Both fast and suspensefully slow. A star in the middle of the daytime.
The way it reached the apex of its trajectory.
And shattered the sky.
Basil's eyes shone. His jaw hung open. They'd found him.
He heard a new sound, turning in time to see the cat—his faithful tormentor—regard the dazzling sight with something like fear. Real fear. Still in slow-motion, he could see the narrowing of its eyes. Just like his own. Its ears flattened. Disappearing against a wedge-shaped head. Crouching. Tail swishing. Thin and serpentine. Not so different at all.
He met eyes with the cat. The world creeping around them a second at a time. The flare in mid-explosion. A broad yellow leaf hanging suspended in the air. Duncan and Jeremy and Lazarus like mannequins, posed at the height of their suspense. And in that moment of acknowledgement, when he looked into the cat's eyes—really looked, they defibrillated him. It was a physical, spiritual, emotional reaction that shocked his system. All at once. A spike in a heart monitor. A skip in a record. The whisper of contact, like walking past a stranger and your hands touching on accident. Brief and electric.
He felt a tingling burn in his brainpan. A familiar ache. Gone in an instant.
No, wait.
The cat turned away. Time suddenly elapsed. Speeding up to compensate. Too fast. Too loud. He dropped the cantine. The cat fled into the treetops. Towards the light.
Blood rushed into Basil's head. His vision sparkled. Went white at the edges. He had to grip Lazarus' arm for support, nearly fainting. A spinning feeling.
He had to fight it. Grit his teeth. Press into it just enough to slingshot back. Even farther than reality. Into a world where he had the strength of a thousand men. The power to change the course of the planets and rearrange the stars. Close the distance between himself and there in a single step. Find Kyou. Find his brother. Change his life. Change everything.
He was ready now. He'd never felt so strong, and he suspected he never would again. That cat had something that belonged to him.
Panting, he looked at Jeremy as if to say,
Lead the way.
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Dangerous Conversationalist
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Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 2:00 am
Lazarus's heart nearly jumped out of his mouth when LuLu jumped out of the bush like that. His hand was knocked by the swinging flashlight, made him loose his grip and the knife nearly flew out of his hand, but quick reflexes proved otherwise when he managed to grab the knife back by some miracle. "I would say the same to you!" His expression was one of shock and anger, but his body language would show that he was relieved as his shoulder slumped, and his breathing steadies. His heart was beating fast in his heart.
Jeremy seemed relieved too when he realized it was just another friendly face, wiping the sweat from his forehead before slipping his knife back into the sheath. Just then, before his heart had a chance to totally calm down, Duncan tapped his shoulder, which made him jumped a little. "Y-yes?" His eyes were wide as he whirled around. "O-oh right. Where we are..." Fumbling a bit, he pulled the crumpled map out of his pocket and started unfolding it.
Basil moved forwards and touched his arm then, the one holding the knife. Getting the gist, he slipped the weapon back into it's sheath. Since it's only LuLu, he figured as well that it's not needed anymore. However, something was off as Lazarus turned to look at Basil, he realized the Frei was not looking at him, but... upwards at the sky? Turning his head around, he looked in the direction Basil was looking at as well. What he saw seemed to make time slowed around him as he watched the green flare climbed it's last few feet and exploded into a brilliant green light, leaving a trail of green smoke behind that lingered longer.
Kyou is found!!
What should they do now?!
Eyes still wide, he looked over at Jeremy, their leader who was still fumbling with the map, oblivious to what just happened. Feeling a wave of anxiety rising, he grabbed the older man's hand suddenly and points at the sky, where the lingering green smoke is. "Look!!"
The man was momentarily surprised at this, but nevertheless his eyes turned to look as urged by the Sigel. What he saw was like a beacon of hope. Finally, someone had found him!! His brain went into full function as he lifted up the compass, memorizing the direction where the flare is coming from. Then crouching down, he flatten the map onto the floor, turning it around a few times to align to the correct directions. "I think that was... about two to three miles out? Judging from the distance." Using his fingers, he did some calculation on the map. "The flare was shot from around this area." Taking out a pen from his pocket, he circled a seemingly dense forest with a cliff along the north side of it.
Finally, they have a fixed destination to get to, Jeremy couldn't hide the smile on his face as he got up with the map. No more aimless wandering in what seemed like the same place over and over again. "We should get there, fast!" But as he turned around and spotted Duncan next to him, he suddenly remembered the man's words from earlier before. "I-is your back alright now? Or should we rest a little bit more." He didn't want to seem inconsiderate to the other man, this had been a rather long and arduous journey after all. Stormy grey eyes turned back to the map as he searched the path they should take to reach their destination. "There seems to be a body of water a little bit to the west of here. It's not too far, we could head over there first and stock up before we continue."
Lazarus was eager to continue on, but he was also aware that they needed more water. His throat was still killing him. "I'll help you carry your stuff." He offered as he picked up Duncan's bag. Even though he was not in the best of shape, he still had strength to carry it. Plus perhaps like this, they could get to their destination faster.
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Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 2:39 am
Duncan nearly jumped from his skin when Lulu appeared from the brush. Where the man would once feel relief from catching Jeremy's attention, he now felt overwhelmingly anxious, though he calmed down somewhat after recognizing that the woman was a Raevan.
The green flare signalled as soon as Jeremy respnoded to Duncan, though the man hadn't initially noticed. He merely recognized Lazarus craning his neck upward, and Duncan repeated the motion, his eyes alight upon seeing the green flare shoot through the sky. He looked over to Lazarus, his wariness blanketed over by a sense of success-- Kyou was alive. He wasn't trapped beneath that mound of bodies as Duncan had quietly ruminated over since they'd crossed it.
Duncan walked excitedly over to Jeremy's side when he pulled out the map-- it was hard to suppress a grin. "He's alive," Duncan exclaimed excitedly, even despite recognizing the ardor it would take to tranverse another three miles. He nodded when Jeremy identified their current location.
"I guess there's no need to worry about Anita and her group, then. We should hurry," Duncan began, slowly welling with energy. When Jeremy mentioned his back and the river, however, Duncan grimaced; the canteen was now indeed close to empty, and the rest would have been optimal. Duncan stood as upright as he could and shook his head, and though the attempt was somewhat pathetic, gave Jeremy an assuring smile.
"No, we should hurry to Dr. Kyou first," Duncan reasoned, "We don't even know what state he's in right now. If the rest of the teams arrive there before we do, I'm sure they can ration some water. If not, I'll make the trip afterwards."
It took him by surprise that Lazarus had taken his backpack, though Duncan couldn't complain. "Ah-- thank you, Lazarus," he laughed, "I suppose that'll make me walk along a little faster."
Though he wasn't aware of Lulu's name quite yet, he was eager to press on-- he stared determined at Jeremy and nodded. "Like you said, we'd better hurry."
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Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 7:23 am
The group’s eyes upon her made LuLu’s skin prickle as though she was gripped by a cold claws. Whether sharply slitted or age wrinkled, both bore into her with a heavy weight. Yet, she barely had time to settle into the unsteady air around her before everyone’s attention was drawn away to a new distraction. She was somewhat relieved that Basil’s pointed gaze had found something else to focus on. It meant she did not have to answer his question, or have the potential of being yelled at again.
Her eyes followed after theirs towards the sky. Her spirits were lifted as well once she saw the green light illuminating the darkening horizon. Kyou was found!
They had done what they had come here to do; yet, LuLu could not help but feel as though they were still miles away from the finish line. They had found Kyou, but was he safe? What about everyone else? The rabbit could only hope that one of the red flares she had seen along the way had belonged to Luka and that he had found his way to safety.
For now, it seemed as though everyone was being drawn towards the green flare. It was like a beacon for the remaining teams. They needed to come together now… to end this once and for all.
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