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The night goes, with Azelus and Johanna keeping warm. No fire, since they had no way to filter it, they would get smocked out and probably seen. They finally stop caring, and they huddle up to each other. Azelus had a warmth of his own, as all Magi do, and it helps to warm the two up. Azelus wonders what is going on back in Atlantis. How Yuki was, how things just plain were for everyone. Then he feels a tingling. He looks down to see Johanna stroking his leg. He shifts, uncomfortable. "Oops, sorry, your just, so warm!" He coughs, knowing that would be seen by billions of people, he blushes slightly.

"Geeze, I am easily ten years your senior!" Though he did look only about nineteen. Magi aged less than normal humans, lived longer too. He shrugs.

Azelus kneels, and aims his bow. Johanna loads her sling and they keep them aimed at the intruders. "Really, during a snowstorm?!" Johanna quips, her anger obvious. "I was just getting warm too." She waits for the intruders to make a move, but they did not. They had small knives, nothing big. Azelus decides to get it over with. He looses one arrow, and Johanna kills the other. They push the dead out, and get back to being warmed. "Stupid... Grr" She growls lightly and Azelus laughs.

The snowstorm persists for about a week, then it stops abruptly and things get hot. Too hot to leave. The lake dries up, as does most of the water, and Azelus and Johanna are stuck to their cave. A waterfall forms from the melting snow on the mountain, and it blocks off their cave opening. The three foot thick barrier of water makes it humid, and they sit, dying of heat. Johanna gets down to almost nothing, and Azelus sits in his trousers, his shirt off and used to fan him. "Gods be damned, Sara! Your gonna kill us with weather!" Azelus cries out, hitting the hot, damp floor of the cave. He was hungry, their rations gave out a day ago. Johanna finds a hole, and skewers a rat with her awl. They share the sparse meal, and go back to being miserable and hot.

Finally, Johanna and Azelus emerge, and first thing they do is climb the mountain to higher, and thankfully cooler ground. Johanna keeps top a small ripped up shirt, that barely covered a bit of skin, making sure her sweat had enough space to cool her, and a pair of shorts. Azelus had his armor on, with nothing underneath, the somewhat cool Atlantean armor touches his skin, and it feels good. They make camp and hunt some wild dogs. Azelus looked thinner rafter the couple days of rationing and not having food. He felt weaker too. But he kept up his skills, as did Johanna. The lay down, the hot rock underneath them was better than the hot air around them. The sit staring each other down.

After a while, the two just start touching eachother. The Quell was getting to much to bare! Night would be mighty pissed, but at the moment, the two could not stop. When a snicker happens behind them,. Azelus grabs the knife from Johanna's pants and he hears a bloody scream and then a dead body hit the ground. He continues with Johanna, the feeling keeping him from remembering why he was here in the first place. He could hear Vertusk now... "IDIOT! FOOL!" And Night ranting about how she is ten years younger. He cares not, and the two stay like that. It felt good.

Azelus lays next to Johanna, what had happened, made him part sick with himself, and damn glad he took the opportunity at the same time. Johanna rises easily, her body bare of any clothes as she looks around the small outcrop they had used for an act better left off the screens. Then she sees her. Suddenly, she has her sling out. "Hitomi, down, cliff." Azelus jumps, grabbing his bow, he knocks an arrow. They ditch the clothes, it would take too long, and might jeopardize them. Instead, they smile as they walk down to where she was, stark naked. "Why why, if it ain't our 'friend' from last time?!" They smile at her shock, her anger, again shock, and then confusion. It was perfect. Of course, Jamie picks the perfect time to come up, even she had barely anything on, but it was more than either Azelus or Johanna, but she only shakes her head. Then turns, sword out, to Hitomi. Who seemed shocked still.

Jamie laughs, as does Azelus. "Former head Battle Angel for God, and former Judge?" she asks wickedly. She yanks her sword out, and twists, her body perfecting what many angels called the wings slash, but with no wings, she uses the sword. It works, and not only is she out, she has gotten a bit of skin. She brings the blade closer, and Azelus watches, his bow ready. Johanna waits as well. "Seriously, your going up against an angel, and the son of a pirate. You think your gonna win, when there are two people, aiming at your head? You have lost, sister. I swear to God on that one!" Then it happens, Jamie jumps. Both Johanna and Azelus run to the edge. She dives, dives some more. And when she breaks the bit of water left in the far down lake, she is back up, gray wings on either side. She was fully clothed in white armor. He sword, a wicked thing, had runes on it. "Excalibur!" Jamie exclaims and Johanna almost slips off the edge of the cliff. Jamie looks to the would be assassin. "Seriously, give it up!" He wings jut out, and they were sharp at the tips of the feathers. Sara would be shitting herself now!

UGH! I was half asleep when I wrote this post, so, as never wanting a repost before, I CALL REPOST!

Loosing three arrows, Azelus jumps from the smokescreen, th red tinting his body somewhat, he kneels and watches the shapes move around. Wings were Jamie, rocks were Johanna, so he settles on the only other shape. He hears a whistling, and ducks from it. He comes back up, still aiming at her. He needed to be sure though.... He looks up to a higher outcrop that overlooked the scene, and he gets to it. He again aims, and waits for the smoke to dissipate.

Johanna had left the smoke screen, feeling for ground. Once out, she sees Azelus, and nods. She grabs their clothes, armor, and other supplies while the angel and Hitomi tried to figure out what was going on. Returning to Azelus's outcrop, she throws his clothes at him, and takes up her sling. Dressed, dressed cooly, in armor, he takes up roost again. Then he hears a click, swivels, and launches an arrow right into a sniper's throat. He clutches at it and falls, falls right off the mountain. The man hits the ground, in the mud, and a sick suckling sound is heard as the mud accepts the body. Johanna watches as the smoke disappears, and Hitomi is left with Jamie, while the other two wait for a move on either part, the shouting from Jamie attracts a few gunmen. Apparently, no one had killed those ones, so the ranged duo pick them off, one by one. Johanna produces a small bow, and starts to help pick off the further ones. They had to hide every so often, hailing bullets were not good to stand in.

Once that is done, they look back to see Hitomi gone, and Jamie standing their confused. "Crap, where did she go?" Johanna says, destroying the face of another competitor with a rock, while Azelus watches a group of two make their way up. "I guess that makes.... what? They need a thing to tell people when a person dies!" She shouts, obviously towards Sara and the Quell Judges. The Quell Judges were obviously enjoying Jamie, who was now flying to find Hitomi.

"I say we get to higher ground, or of course, we could go lower too. Either way, we need distance," Azelus says offhandedly. "I do not like our position." Johanna agrees, and while the sun starts to set, they hurry off. They keep looking over their backs for Hitomi, but find no one following them. Reaching the top, which held a sniper fast asleep, Azelus pushes the guy off, and he screams until he hits a cliff face and dies instantly. There maybe were 7 left, including Azelus, Jamie, Johanna and Hitomi. "This will work." They had a three-sixty view, with gave them a good chance of seeing anything before it got a chance to attack. Johanna takes first guard, but the shift is short lived. Azelus is on his feet, as the mountain starts to rumble. Suddenly, it dawns on him. "JOHANNA! GO GO!" She starts to slip down the mountain, and so does Azelus. They jump from outcrop to outcrop, getting down the mountain faster than some running competition. Finally on the ground, they hurry to the edge of the walls, and then it is clear why it is shaking. Lava bursts forth, setting the woodlands on fire. Anyone still on the mountain would die instantly. The lava spills forth, running down the erupting volcano. It hits the lake and what is left of the water creates steam, but everywhere else, fire, ashes, soot and death was lingering. Azelus looks, scanning for somewhere to go. Johanna deftly starts running, her sling out. He follow suit and then she jumps. She jumps into a tree, into another, and another. Finally, she is on the tallest oak she can find, that is not on fire anyway. Azelus jumps after her, and the two get to the top. They jump onto the metal wall, safe from fire, they only had soot and ash to deal with. That is when they notice it.

"Two rings lay on either side of the small bubble that had been built into the wall. Johanna had noticed it during their rapid descent, and took note in case she needed to get there. But what was there, was amazing. The two rings contained large suits of armor. But what was amazing, was its design. It was a mini Arena, all metal, and it was maybe fifty meters wide, from one wall to the other. Two swords lean against small podiums, and Johanna grabs one. She smiles. Then turns it on Azelus. He backs up some, his eyes gaging the situation.

"Only one winner, I am afraid," the girl says. "You have to die so I can live. It is just how it has to be." Azelus was hoping she would be killed off by Hitomi, not by his own hands, but whatever worked. She comes at him in a dead run, and he whirls, circling off of her attack. He brings his bow up and shoots. The arrow embeds itself in her leg, and she hits the ground. Sling out, she throws rocks at him, and he hides behind a suit of armor. "Damn, i forgot why I chose you as a partner up till now!" She shouts, Azelus chuckles.

Azelus, leg broken from a good shot from Johanna's sling, sits with his bow resting against him. They were both immobile, and hurt. "So, Johanna, what did you think of.... yesterday?" He yells out, he hears her get up to speak.

"It was... not what everyone says it is!" she laughs lightly. "But if I had to say so, your good! Despite the hard rock..." She again laughs, and slings a volley of rocks towards Azelus. He grimaces, pulling the broken leg in. "I do want to say though, thanks for helping me last Quell. I do not think I would have made it without you..." Azelus smiles weakly.

"Sure thing," he says, and he rolls out. "I guess it is needed, for one of to die by the others hands. A savior killing a damned, right?" He could see her, she had rolled out, her sling pulled back. She smiles and nods. "Well, I hope the other does not have too hard a time outside the Arena!" He looses his arrow, and it impales her skull. She dies instantly. He on the other hand, gets pelted with three rocks, knocking him out stone cold. A minute later, he holds his head as it pounds. He looks up to the dead form of Johanna, and crawls to her. He closes her eyes and then his. "You were a good friend and ally." Night would be on his knees crying.

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Jamie keeps her eyes out as she descends. When she touches the ground, her ears twitch suddenly. She is back up in the air, waiting for something to happen. When nothing does, she cautiously lowers herself to the ground.