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 Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 7:34 pm
It was a seemingly normal day for the runt of the litter, Shyirah. She lay peacefully in the warm, relaxing sands of Hatari, basking in the particularly bright sunshine. This was one of her favorite pastimes, besides getting into the occasional scuffle with other young members of her tribe. Sometimes she would get scolded for being such a lazy little pup, but whenever that would happen, more often than not, Shy wasn't listening. It was something she had become very skilled at, since she was the type to get into trouble often.
Shyirah yawned slightly and rolled onto her side, enjoying the feeling of the sand underneath her, hardly noticing that it had begun to shift all too rapidly under her body as she once again rolled over to find a more comfortable position. She had always been such a heavy sleeper, that her caretakers feared that she could still be sound asleep and not even notice if she had fallen asleep in quicksand, or right on top of a sink hole.
And they were right, because that's exactly what was happening!
Only this was no ordinary sink hole.. The sand quickly gave way and swallowed her whole, causing her to fall through some sort of portal and send her tumbling into another world.
The portal spat her back out, only instead of landing safely on the ground, it had instead stranded her on a tree limb far above the security of the earth below. Although, it wasn't until she had actually deigned to open her eyes that she finally noticed that something very bad had happened.
"...Huh? Wha?" Shyirah yawned, rubbing her eyes, still groggy from her nap. But that soon vanished once she actually got a good look at her surroundings.
Panic swept over her, as well as an acute case of vertigo as soon as she looked down. Shy was now painfully aware of the fact that she definitely was not where she had originally been sleeping.
She let out a high-pitched screech and clung desperately to the tree limb. A part of something she had never in her life encountered.
"WH-WHAT IS THIS THING?!" she shrieked, clawing at the bark as she tried to get a good grasp on it, wobbling back and forth both from fear and unbalance.
"J-JUST WHERE THE HELL AM I?! SO-SOMEBODY HELP!!"
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Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 8:25 pm
"It's a deal, my fair lady," the pirate laughed, spitting into his palm and then grabbing Amelia's hand without giving her time to react. "Now, thank you much for helping me there, we'll take that fifty thousand once the war's done, eh? I'll join you back in Eyris for that pardoning after, yeah?" He bowed, then stretched. "I need to check on my men, see how things are going on the Sevenmoon. If we've got all the villagers, I'll have them launch and come back." He tossed Amelia a lazy salute and took off running around the corner toward the harbor.
Tibarn just whistled softly. "Might be a bit tough convincing Rath to pardon him. Pretty sure that guy's been responsible for the losses of a couple of our ships over the years." He patted her back, grinning. "But we do need the help, and he did kinda rescue a bunch of innocents caught in the crossfire here." As soon as Amelia started heading toward the center of town, Tibarn spread his wings and kicked off a bit, flying just above her-- and then flared his wings, legs swinging out in front of himself as a voice drifted to his sensitive hawk ears.
"... Somebody's calling for help," he murmured, flapping hard and taking off over the nearest building quickly. "This way!" he called, rapidly outstripping his earthbound companion as he circled, looking for the source of the yowling cries, and
That
That was a cat in a tree. A cat
In a freaking
Tree.
:I
He dropped to the ground, meandering over to the maple, and ducked under one of the lower branches to stand behind her, then coughed quietly to get her attention. "You, ah, called for... assistance?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 6:18 pm
Shyirah clung to the branch with all her might, not daring to let go for even a moment. She was shaking so much with fear that she had to shut her eyes as tightly as she could. It was only due to her excellent hearing that she was able to notice someone approaching her.
"G-Get me off'a this thing!!" she pleaded desperately, finally gaining the courage to open her eyes, looking at her would-be savior with a great big puppy dog eyed look on her face.
It was painfully obvious to anyone but her, it seemed, that she was merely a few feet from the ground, and could easily jump down from her current perch and be perfectly fine. But that didn't stop her from utterly freaking out and overreacting.
"Where am I?! Am I dreaming!? WhatisthisIdon'teven?!" Shyirah babbled incoherently, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 6:25 pm
Amelia didn't seem affected by Tarr spitting in his hand first; she seemed almost more enthusiastic, actually. He was serious about this, which was what she wanted. "Sounds like a plan. Go take care'a your own first." She watched him go, relaxing a little as Tibarn approached again.
"Yeah, but we'll figure something out, I'm sure." She looked up at Tibarn and offered him a small smile. "You've always been good at that sort of thing, too."
She began to walk forward, but paused when she noticed a familiar figure approaching her. "Alex!" She smiled broadly, lowering her spear a little as she closed the gap between them. "Good to see you're all right. We're going to start to move towards the center of the city to search there, Sunil went to find Isadora and Leon and we should run into them on the way, since we shouldn't be moving too quickly until they come back. Make sure your troops know where they're going." She rolled one shoulder, loosening the muscle, and... wait. What. She hadn't heard anything, but-- "Hey, Tibarn, hold on!"
She glanced at the docks, then moved the short distance to where Tibarn had swooped down. Hopefully Tarr would still see them; the docks were easily still in sight, at least, so that helped. By the time she arrived, Tibarn was standing underneath a tree where
um
"How did she get here?" Amelia wondered, eyes widening. She glanced at Tibarn, then bit back a sigh before approaching. "Hey, kid, are you feeling all right? You don't look hurt..." Amelia looked over at Tibarn. "She's not one of Gerlach's, is she?"
Her gaze returned to the black cat. "You don't know where you are, okay... Where were you last?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 8:14 pm
Tibarn frowned, just... staring at this cat.
In a tree. A maple. Five feet off the ground. He didn't even have to reach up to grab her, he just picked her up off the branch and leaned down to put her on the ground. "No," he said, "She's not one I've ever seen before. And I like to think most of my army could maneuver their way out of a tree," he added. "If not, I really need to speak to Gerlach."
He looked around slowly, frowning, and rubbed his face. "Honestly I'd guess she's... not from here," he coughed. "Miss, relax. You're not in Tellius anymore, and this beorc is not going to hurt you." He knew the look well enough by now-- most people in the guild could pretty easily recognize that absolutely lost and confused look on somebody's face when they realized they had apparently gone quite a long distance without any explanation regarding how, or to where.
He put on a smile, looking around. "I hate to say this, Amelia, but this is a really bad time for this," he rumbled, crossing his arms. "Maybe you should stay with her, and I'll see if I can find Sunil. She might be more comfortable hearing this from another cat."
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 8:24 pm
Amelia just... kinda watched Tibarn pull the girl out of the tree, a little dumbfounded. She rubbed the side of her neck, over the collar of her shirt, as he spoke up, nodding slowly. "No, she's not one I've ever seen before. And I like to think most of my army could maneuver their way out of a tree." Amelia sighed and nodded, brushing her hair from her eyes.
"Good point..."
She shook her head as Tibarn confirmed what she'd been thinking: temporal displacement. Again. And it had to happen now... She returned her lance to her back, hands visibly empty now, in an attempt to calm the girl's fears, offering a gentle smile. "We aren't going to hurt you, and we don't want to," she added, trying to reassure her. "Trust me, I know how much it sucks to suddenly pop up somewhere else. We'll help you, all right?"
"I hate to say this, Amelia, but this is a really bad time for this."
"You're tellin' me," Amelia mumbled, pushing her hair away from her eyes. She looked up in concern at Tibarn when he mentioned splitting up, though, putting a hand gently on his crossed arms. "Are... are you sure? I don't know how long it'll take Sunil to get back here, but I don't-- you already got targeted so easily earlier when you flew above the buildings." She frowned, hand tightening a little on his arm. "Are you sure? I mean, I can send a scout out or something..."
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 9:19 pm
"I'll relay the info," he nodded before turning around to signal his men to gather.
"Alright here's the update..." Alex begins to proceed to relay the information Amelia gave him to his men. They all nodded to him after he finished. Before he could proceed to say anything else, he heard Amelia yell something out in a direction before walking off. He wasn't sure what she said, but it seemed slightly worrying.
"You guys proceed towards the center with the rest of the troops, I gotta something else to check out," he said to them before turning back around and running off. Alex began to run in order to catch up to Amelia.
Eventually he slowed down to a walk slightly confused at the sight he was seeing. Amelia and the man who he's pretty sure that goes by the name of Tibarn picking a cat from a small tree and bringing putting her on the ground. Slowly, but still confused, Alex approached the three by the tree.
As he got closer, the captain eventually started to pick up some of the conversation they were saying.
"Umm...I can possibly be of some assistance," he called out. "I can be your scout."
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 9:51 pm
Upon being safely returned to the ground, Shyirah's fear was replaced by bewilderment. She looked back and forth between her two rescuers and then surveyed her new surroundings.
There was green... stuff all over the ground. She looked up at the tree she had just previously been in and thought that too looked strange. There were far too many colors and shapes that Shyirah had never in her life encountered. It was a total sensory overload! So much so that she was barely paying attention to the other's conversation. Or the fact that they were now joined by another.
Though, she had picked up on a few words, spoken by the winged man. And they caused her great confusion. More so than her current predicament.
"Wait! Wait wait wait! Did you just say 'another cat'? Shyirah questioned, interrupting them mid exchange. "I'm no feline! That's just ridiculous! Can't you tell I'm a wolf?" she exclaimed, indigently. She couldn't even fathom why no one recognized her as such.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 10:52 pm
Tibarn sighed, rubbing his face. "No. I do not have time to explain this. I am going to... run. On the rooftops. To get Sunil. Deal?" He didn't bother waiting for Amelia to okay this-- he just grabbed her wrist, pulling her over and trapping her in a sudden, unexpected kiss. Revenge for earlier. See how she liked being caught off-guard! He broke it off after several seconds, grinning, and then turned and leaped into the air, flapping his wings hard a few times to get himself onto the nearest rooftop, then took off running.
He jumped clear over alleys and flapped over narrow streets, panting. How do beorc RUN everywhere!? The advantage of being able to move as the crow flies was helpful, and with his acute hearing he was able to pinpoint Sunil's location quickly enough. He jumped right off the roof of the building they were in, flapping hard a couple of times to slow his descent, and then shouldered the door open, face shiny with sweat. Tibarn was well-known for his strength and endurance, but it was a little known fact that his legs didn't get much in terms of a daily workout-- a fact true of most bird laguz, who were prone to flying if they had to go any faster than a walking pace. "Hey! Cat. Blue cat," he panted, wiping his face again. "Jeez, how do you run everywhoooa, the hell went down in here," he coughed as the raw smell of gore, collected into a small room, assaulted his nostrils, and the source of the beorc screaming became readily apparent under Sunil's boot.
His eyes were immediately drawn to Kieran, and his wings tensed. Hawk eyes were sharp-- quite sharp enough to catch a glint of steel protruding from the bandit's sleeve. Tibarn shouted, lunging straight over the nearest table, but he didn't have room to spread his wings and flap inside; there was no way he'd reach Kieran in time.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:14 pm
Amelia opened her mouth to protest. Hey, no, Tibarn, you don't have to go to get Sunil yourself! Alex is right here, he's offering to go for you! "You d--" And then the sound died somewhere between her throat and the open air as his hand closed around her wrist, dragging her forward so her armor rested flush against Tibarn's chest, and he kissed her. She hung there for those several seconds, eyes wide and face flushed, and when he finally pulled away, it took her a moment to unpucker her lips. "Th-- That--"
Hhrm. Well. She put a hand gently against her cheek, one finger against her nose, as her face turned darker and darker red until it reached her ears. She bit her lower lip for a moment, thoughts going elsewhere. "A-Anyway, um..." She cleared her throat twice and looked over at the black cat, hurriedly swiping one hand across her hair to try to sweep her fringe more neatly across her forehead and hide some of her face. "I don't think-- did you ever say what your name was?" She adjusted her gauntlets, taking in a deep breath to settle down again. "I'm-- Amelia. I'm Amelia. One of the commanders of this unit. The man that-- He went to get Sunil, I mean. His name is Tibarn. Leader of the hawk laguz, from Tellius. Sunil's a cat laguz from the same place. He should be able to help you."
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Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 8:18 am
Before the paladin tried to figure out how to wake the bandit, she heard a scream from behind. Turning around, she saw Sunil grabbed the injured bandit away from Calill and dragged him back toward her, like a little puppy dragging a rag doll. When he let go of the bandit, the blue cat transformed back to his humanoid form before quickly stomp his foot onto the bandit's hand. The cat laguz was mostly covered in deep red blood. Was it his blood or the enemies' blood?
"Tibbers and Amelia were wondering where you guys were, so they sent me out to find you. I didn't think you would have this much trouble though. We're supposed to start regrouping near the piers." Sunil replied her answer.
So Tibarn was aware about what going on in Pentheus, meaning his troops came back from chasing those bandits outside. She wasn't sure if they managed to finish those bandits outside or not, but she was glad to hear that the Hawk King was aware about it. Sunil then asked her if there were anyone else missing.
"Well, I don't know where Wallace went, but as for Le-" Isadora then heard the somewhat unconscious bandit muttered about her legs. "..."
WHACK!!
Isadora made a swift bash to the bandit's head with her shield. She was not happy by the bandit's comment. For a bandit who was supposed to pretend to be unconscious, he was a fool to make a comment. Well, at least the Dame Knight knew that the bandit was now unconscious for sure.
"As for Leon," Isadora continued her talking as if the incident never happened. "I informed Leon to go to the dock to see if there were more bombs hidden."
But before she could go any further, she heard a familiar shout toward Sunil. Looking out, she saw Tibarn emerged in the room. Her eyes widened in shock by his appearance. "Tibarn! What happened to you?!"
However, Tibarn noticed something she wasn't aware as the Hawk King made a launch toward Kieran. The paladin looked to see the thief besides Kieran was awakening and by his look, it looked like he was faking his unconscious just like the bandit.
"Flux!" Isadora cursed as she too ran toward Kieran. She was too far to reach the red-headed paladin. She won't be able to save him in time. That man needed to know right now. She shouted. "Sir Kieran! That thief besides you!"
Hopefully, she wasn't too late to give him a warning.
Huh, it looks like I've lost them. Rajin commented himself as he looked back. He was hoping he would lost those idiots from where he ran. Without them chasing his tail, he would be able to continue his search to find Sunil and maybe the others.
Suddenly, his ear twitched when he heard a shout. Turning around, Rajin widened his eyes from what he saw in front of him. Right in front of him was a man in green armor, readied to fight with his lance.
Oh s**t! Oh s**t! Oh s**t! Oh s**t! Rajin cursed. He had saw that man earlier, riding alongside with Leon and the others when they were outside the city, but he had never spoke to him or knew him well. However, that didn't help him from what's going to happen.
The tiger quickly stopped running like a charging bull. However, his feet were skidding across the street like a small, flat pebble skipping across the lake. And seeing as he had little distance between him and the paladin, this was not going to be pleasant.
There was a loud crash, followed by a flash of light. Rajin was back in his human form as he laid on his back besides the fallen paladin. Whether or not Sain would recognize his human form was unknown, but the tiger would tell him he was no enemy.
"Um... Sorry for crashing into you. Got chased by some bandits." Rajin spoke, unsure if the paladin would except his apology.
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Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 12:07 pm
"...WHAT!?"
Everything just happened so quick, Alex took a step back as he was flabbergasted at the event that had just transpired. It went from him offering himself to be a scout to look for this person they were looking for to a cat having an identity crisis and now the woman who he had his eyes on get smooched in front of his eyes.
"Did I just see that..."
"whatthe***wasthatwhoisthatmantoyouwasthereanymeaningbehindthatkisswhatisyourrelationshipwithhimwhyareyoureactingthatway"
Okay okay okay okay, need to calm down. Alex managed to halt his mind to remember the whole situation that was on hand. If he hadn't reminded himself of the little battle that was going on, he probably would be so lost in his thoughts.
Ahem
"and my name is Alex," he added after Amelia finished her introduction. "I'm one of the captains of said unit."
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Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 11:00 pm
Sunil watched in silence as Isadora smashed her shield against the bandit's head closest to her. His sharp ears had picked up the comment the man had said, and he was hit with a blow that knocked him out.
Don't underestimate Isa-mommydora.
The bald general Wallace had gone off somewhere, but Leon was sent to the docks earlier, according to the female paladin. In that case, Leon should be with the others by now, and Wallace would turn up eventually. Hmm... wasn't there a Paladin who signed up for the Watch around the same time he did? He could have sworn he saw him here earlier. Maybe he was lost too, so he would probably turn up eventually too.
Either way, his objective was met. If they could just get out of here...
Just then the door was forced open. Sunil half-expected an enemy, but the rustle of wings told him it was Tibarn. He stepped off the bandit's hand to face the Hawk King, who was shocked at what had happened here.
"Bandits kept them busy, so I helped. We were just about to go meet up with you and the others." he replied, unaware that Isadora and Kieran (and maybe the others) had already decided to interrogate some of the bandits when they were done.
So Tibarn's reaction caused the cat to spin around to see Kieran looking back towards them, oblivious to the conscious thief who had pulled a knife on the soldier. Sunil was fast, but even he couldn't create miracles by stopping that blade in time or getting Kieran out of the way. Not with all the furniture strewn about from their fighting earlier, or the distance between the two. But even so, he tried.
If only there was someone magical enough in the same room to blast the thief.
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Posted: Sat Sep 21, 2013 7:37 am
Before anyone could answer Kieran's questions a familiar face shouldered through the remains of the door that Kieran had destroyed. "Tibarn what are you doing in Crimea don't yo----"
"Sir Kieran! That thief besides you!"
Kieran hadn't been known as the man who'd outlive cockroaches for having slow reflexes. When people started moving towards him shouting, the Paladin reflexively moved his arm up to shield his face. Rather then naked blade meeting an equally naked throat, Kieran felt something scrape the underside of the plate on his arm. With a grunt and realizing the amount of danger he was in Kieran closed his fist and blindly slammed it down to where he assumed the thiefs head would be.
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Posted: Sat Sep 21, 2013 7:58 am
EVERYBODY HERE, WE'RE NOTHING MORE THAN FRIIIIIENDS
The thief cursed softly as his surprise attack was foiled, his dagger had barely touched Kieran's armour before he was moving. Aware that the paladin was likely going to be pissed and after watching how he had beaten one of the bandits to death with his metal encased hands, the thief knew he had to act fast before Kieran could get a hold of him.
A foot shot out, catching the armoured man in the gut, Kieran barely felt it but it did push him back a step. His punch went wild and slammed into the edge of the counter top, breaking another piece of wood with it.
Quickly the thief found his feet and stood on the top, leaping off of it just as the others were reaching him.
Kieran had been reaching for his axe when the bandit slammed into him, the paladin threw another punch but the thief was too fast for him and slid behind the dismounted knight.
Rather than a knife in the throat though, Kieran found the thief draping an arm over his neck and pulling him in close. "STOP, EVERYONE BACK!" the thief cried. "Anyone moves and they die!" his free hand dipped into his robes quickly and a dagger suddenly flew towards Dude, hitting him hilt first between the eyes and knocking the large man out.
"I only knocked him out! That'll prove I can hit you all from here!"
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