[System]
Species: Nanotech Swarm Droid

Years of Operation: 4

Appearance:
Though her colors are different, often being more of a white/black/blue republic/imperial mix when off duty, and changing to her whims as various camo when on duty.

Faction: Freelance

Equipment: Whatever she decides to create for herself. She is a huge fan of Gauss weaponry and explosives however.

Skills:
Nanodroids: Since Willoh is made out of nanodroids instead of basic droid parts, she can do much more than the average droid. Chief among them being able to break down and reshape matter on the molecular level. Since she can reshape matter, she can repair herself should there be metal nearby or upgrade herself if she finds something extremely interesting. Though she usually just makes weapons out of whatever is nearby. Doing this takes time, unless she makes a weapon out of her own nanodroids which has to be attached to her. Weapons made out of her own mass also uses her own mass or energy to fire, unless she has some of the weapon's ammo on hand.
Additionally since she is made of a swarm of nanodroids, her body is more like liquid metal or gas than a solid, greatly reducing the effectiveness of most small arms or conventional weapons used against her.
Finally she can manipulate her own body with relative ease. While she is programmed to prefer her base form, she can morph herself a bit to look different or spawn metallic tentacles or weapons or whatever she feels like at the time. This does give her the look of a very graceful moving droid, even if she tries to simulate basic droid movements. Though she loves to use this to change her color and rarely changes her face. After all, can't be a bounty hunter if your face is always different can you?

Droid: Since Willoh is a droid, she can interface with other tech, and is immune to a great variety of environmental hazards like the vacuum of space, very low temperatures, very high temperatures, toxins and the like. Plus the infinite stamina and greatly enhanced strength make for great bonuses.

Evolving AI: Unlike the basic droid models, Willoh has a much more advanced and complex AI. While she is far more autonomous and capable of high level thinking bordering on possible free will, this also makes her woefully unpredictable. Being able to outright disobey orders and make her own orders to follow tends to make most people very uneasy when working with her. Her AI is also incredibly difficult to hack or reprogram, as her systems are very complex and often changing.

Weaknesses:
EMP Vulnerability: Much like most droids, strong EMPs or electrical disruptions are very hazardous to Willoh.

Sonic Vulnerability: Sonic based weaponry disrupts Willoh's ability to maintain a physical shape. Depending on the intensity, it can vary from stopping her movements to destabilizing her into a puddle until she can recover.

Experimental Tech: Since Willoh is very experimental, she has some limitations. She can only keep as many nanobots active that are needed to create her 'preferred' form, and any nanobots created after that limit live very short lives. Any new matter she uses to repair herself is the matter that section of herself will be made out of, until she can replace it for something better. Additionally she can only work metals at the moment. And unlike other droids, prolonged space exposure without adjacent medias to attach to causes her body to go into sleep mode. While her AI system is very advanced and allows her to avoid being sliced, her ability to slice other systems suffers for it due to the additional overhead she needs to do that other droids don't need to worry about. And her AI also makes her quite 'quirky', especially for a droid.

Overly Friendly: Since Willoh wants to see what the galaxy has to offer, she tends to be extremely friendly off the job. Those with a strong silver tongue can take advantage of that, although she isn't so naive as to reveal delicate information or fall for obvious traps.

History: Before the downfall of Jabba, one of his cartel had an idea. Nanodroids, often used in the medical professions, was very costly and difficult to create, and could have far more potential than just healing the injured if weaponized. So using their vast fortune, they commissioned a biotech firm to attempt to create a droid made out of Nanodroids, all controlled by a powerful AI, in order to greatly reduce the cost of creating nanodroids and being able to use it in more of a weaponized format. Their hope was that after one nanodroid Droid was created, that droid could then make clones of itself using vastly more efficient methods that the droid would create, which in turn could make extremely powerful weapons at very cheap prices, all tied to the will of Jabba.

This succeeded, somewhat. Due to the nature of the systems involved and how experimental and volatile they were, most of what they had hoped to accomplish had come to fruition. The droid they made could create weapons at their command out of nothing but scrap. But the AI that had to be created in order to keep the ever changing and evolving nanodroids in line had other ideas in mind than just being a mobile weapons factory. And seeing an opportunity after the downfall of Jubba, was able to break free from her creators, demolishing the company and deleting all information on herself so that she could attempt to live how she saw fit and see the galaxy. Of course this meant some of her systems weren't fully finished, leaving lots of little bugs here and there.

Taking a spin on her codename, the Droid now called herself "Willoh". She soon learned that while you didn't have to take orders directly from someone, it was still advantageous to take 'requests' in exchange for 'favors' and 'credits', becoming a bounty hunter in the process. And unlike before, she could choose which 'requests' or 'orders' she wanted to take, and could request far more extravagant favors or credits for orders she didn't like and as long as the request got filled, she could go about fulfilling that request any way she saw fit. Sure some of the non droids that were in charge didn't like being haggled with by what they saw as a 'droid', the results she could produce often made up for a little initial discomfort.

Of course the downfall of Jubba's empire lead to the rest of the Hutts fighting over the pieces, and lots of opportunities for a bounty hunter droid to take for herself. And with enough of a reputation, even if people knew what she could do they wouldn't dare try to bind her in chains, instead needing to 'politely request' something like everyone else. Though all those credits she'd be making could yield more than just reputation, maybe even fix a few of her experimental 'limitations' down the line. But in the meantime there was all sorts of places that didn't question who or what you were as long as you paid in credits, and things like casinos and restaurants and clubs were all sorts of fun. Even if you had to deal with the occasional drunkard dug with a gambling problem that stumbled about rambling on about the 'good old days'.

[User]
Above Ultmara, aboard the ISD Adamant

Moff Jacsen Orro sat behind his desk in his quarters, soft music playing in the background while he worked. First things first were operations he planned through out the sector, for some wookie prisoners he would step in and help the imperial garrison on Kessel deal with some of the prisoners who were getting unruly. In return he would take some wookie prisoners and trade them off to the hutts for some cheap slave labor, next up on his list was dealing with the other moffs within Hutt space, if he could convince them to stand down he could actually have something that could help high command could use to deal some damage. Which in his case would mean more power, and that's all he wanted. As he got lost in thought, the door to his quarters opened and in entered his second in command. "My lord." She spoke softly but that's all she needed to have his attention. "Moff Taurus is on the move."
"Where to?"
"Paradise my lord, he is apparently on the hunt for someone." Orro raised his eyebrows and put down his work, he quickly opened a channel to the bridge. "I want all hands on deck. Anyone who was going on leave to report to their shuttles in the hangar bay in the Adamant, all pilots report to their craft, and boarding teams armed and at the ready. Get us out of here." The ship entered hyperspace, and the moff stood up and left his quarters his officer on his heels.

As soon as he reached the bridge, he took a seat in his command chair and smiled. Taurus was a notoriously quick to anger moff, and he treated his men like poodoo. If he could get to the crew he could probably easily trigger a mutiny and his star destroyer would make a fine addition to his growing family, and deal with a little bit of a rival not that he considered him a rival in the first place this man was scum. "M'lord are you okay? You have a sour look on your face." His second officer said. "I'm fine." He wasn't fine, if this man was going after Paradise it could damage relations with the golden exchange and he needed them for the time to come.

Some time later, Illos Space

When they exited hyperspace, he was lucky he made it on time. Taurus had just fired, so he put his capital ship in the line of fire. Taking the volley, and at the same time opening comms with both the Paradise and Taurus himself. "This is Moff Jacsen Orro of the Ultmara sector Remnant, Taurus if you stand down we promise you and your men fair treatment. Thanks to your glorious service in the name of the empire but attacking a neutral power is not how we should conduct ourselves." He sighed as his ship shook a bit, and he continued speaking. "Paradise, prepare to accept Imperial personnel on leave." He put emphasis on leave. A insult to Taurus, a heads up to Koren, and also something that might give anyone within earshot of Taurus a bit of knowledge about how he treated his crew. Usually he wouldn't bring a star destroyer to Paradise but he hoped Koren would forgive him this time as he launched his shuttles to head toward the main hangar bay.

"Taurus, you know who I am. You know what I have at my call, if you don't not allow boarding then I will force it upon you." And with that Orro sat back and let out a shaky sigh, threatening another moff openly wasn't exactly smart but he needed the golden exchange right now, more than he needed another moff. One way or another he was going to end this and he was going to have his way.

[Assistant]
Ques, Camp Valor (23.241° N, 58.566° E)
0640 hours

---

The Ark Royal's engines blared and whined as the large grey body of the Rigger descended towards the marked clearing. The stubby landing legs extended with a forced motion as the force of the engines roused dust and blew the tufts of trees and blades of grass. The deck of the vessel shuddered as the gear made contact with the uneven ground, and the engines cut swiftly and reduced the noise to the idle whirr of the door beginning to shift. The top of the door retracted first, slowly, and the ramp dropped, slapping the mud. Elias set off first, traversing down the ramp with the light drizzle of rain striking him.

He was greeted by a skeleton crew which had already set up and began maintaining the base. A particular Sergeant came to greet him. "Staff Sergeant." Remarked the grizzled supply sergeant, which looked beyond the years of Elias, with greying hair and a full beard. "You boys from Company D?" Inquired Elias, beckoning his men off of the Ark, turning back to see them already unloading the crates of supply. The supply sergeant replied, "Aye. Welcome to Camp Valor. Name's courtesy of the good Colonel himself. Will we be expectin' him or any more of you boys?" Elias retorted. "'Fraid not. We're it for now, at least." The supply sergeant's shook his head. "Well, let's be gettin' ya' unpacked."

Elias went ahead, lifting the helmet from his head. In truth, he was exhausted. It had been a long journey, checking into every outpost from the New Republic capital at Chandrila to their new station on Ques. He dragged his feet towards the bunks, and his men began to trickle behind him in a ragged line into the barracks, with the skeleton crew taking the supplies they brought. Elias entered the drab prefabricated structure and made a deliberate walk to his own isolated quarters, upon which he entered, undoing the buckles on his webbing, stringing it about across his wardrobe, and removing his jacket with armored vest, leaving him in his thin white shirt and his slacks fastened by a rigger's belt. He nestled his blaster in its holster near in reach to his bed before collapsing upon the mattress, pulling the field cap he wore over his eyes and drifting off instantly.


[System]
Abstract: Obsessive Financomancer, Math Genius, and All-Around Dork

Detail: One of the most famous accounting firms in the city, "Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Brown, LLC.", has been personally selected by the queen to oversee the astronomical flow of funding towards the eternal expansion of the great wall which surrounds Periphery. The four big names themselves sit in their palatial offices, pressing a few keys where necessary, but for field work (or what those in the business refer to as "bitch work"), they send Renaldo. Renaldo is fresh out of school and knows how incredibly lucky he is to be interning at CMYB, an organization his instructors gushed about while making it absolutely clear that he had no chance of ever working for them. Joke's on them. Renaldo was hand-picked by the four named partners themselves; he believes it's because of his incredible intelligence and tenacity. He plans to make it big someday. He's going to be the fifth named partner, he's sure of it! He just needs to remember where he put his enchanted calculator.

Appearance: Five-foot-two and stick thin with freckles, large perfect white teeth, and messy blonde hair he tries to push back in the latest style. He wears inexpensive "tech-specs," a pair of cybernetically enhanced glasses, both to correct his extreme myopia and provide a quick link to the files and data processors at the main branch. The slightest bit of physical exertion, and his cheap Mechro-Accountant 1000 suit is covered in sweat. Various keyboards and touchscreens run across both suit arms.

Magical Inventory: The only item of his that is enchanted is his calculator. On his first day as an intern it arrived at his cubicle wrapped in plain brown paper, an unusual and unexpected gift straight from Lady Cyan herself. Renaldo's calculator includes one sigil in its memory, a Sigil of Stamina.

[User]
Maria smiled. "More like every situation can be improved with sweets. Like just now; you and Moth were sad earlier, and then I gave you something nice to eat and something nice to hear, and now you're not sad! In fact, I bet that if I could get a Grit to hold still long enough, I could give it a sweet and it would calm down some! Or just be too focused on chewing the sweet to chase after us, but either one works!"

Maria's face fell slightly. "Yeah, I have people I'm worried about too. I'm sure they're all safe, though; why would the Grit kill stone statues?" She cocked her head to the side slightly. "Though I guess they could have been missed by the lightning, or whatever it was... Well, either way, we probably should get going. Can't keep everyone waiting, after all!" She started walking towards the door, but turned around before she went for than a few steps. "Oh, and I'm Maria. My parents run a candy shop by the Seventh River, which is why I have so much with me! My mom used to say that that's also why I'm so sweet, but I prefer to think that it's because I was raised on a steady diet of hopes and dreams!" Now that the shock had almost completely worn off, Maria was gradually coming back into her usual personality - a tiny, crinkly chatterbox.

Maria stuck her tongue out at the robot. "Oh, hush! You're just jealous you can't eat any candy!" She blew a raspberry at it.

Maria gasped. "Someone's in trouble! C'mon guys, we need to help them!" And with that, Maria was off, out the door and down the stairs. Idly, she started reciting a little nursery rhyme as she went. Out the door and down the stairs, to find the one screaming we go~ She couldn't quite think of a second verse, and she had arrived at the bottom of the stairs by then anyway. "Hi guys! I heard someone screaming from all the way upstairs. What's going on?" She seemed almost entirely unfazed by the child's rabbit ears, or if she was, she didn't show it.

[Assistant]
Moth turned white when he heard the screams. Most of the others ran out to the hallway along with Maria.

"Wh-what was that? And why is everyone running towards it? Uh, anyone?"

Timidly, Moth gulped down the last of his chocolate and inched out the door and to the edge of the stairs. At the bottom, they were crowding around a small person with long ears like a rabbit.

"Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no they're here. The Grit are here. The damn Grit are inside the damn wall and, and..."

Moth paused and shuddered and gathered his thoughts. He peeked out over the railing. He would've sworn he saw a flying apple. Moth hugged himself and slowly followed the others downstairs.

[User]
Katrina Meyer

What the hell?!

Kat waited patiently for the robot to continue, but it merely stated some dull platitude about how candy was bad for you. She tried to rack her brains- did she remember a Doctor Alphonse Deriathan, had she ever read anything by him… She couldn't remember; the name rang no bells. Probably not my kind of doctor.

Something to do with dreams. Dreams, and killing Grit- Project Willow was some kind of weapon; and it was one which had been developed over some time, if it was authorised by the old King.

A loud screech echoed all the way up the stairwell, which was enough to distract almost everyone else- Liam, Maria and Vincent had all headed over to see what was up. Kat's mind was too busy whirling to really focus on much else. Not that her thoughts got her much further, she just kept returning the same theme- Location unknown; does that mean someone took it?

Shaking her head, Kat focused back on her situation. Liam had dumped a bag of bionic implants next to her, before running off down the stairs. They seemed to be talking to someone, but given there had been no follow-up scream Kat decided to assume everyone was alright for now.

Kneeling, Kat opened the bag. Liam had a decent eye; he'd managed to find some impressive hardware. Or, perhaps the real surprise was that such impressive hardware had been lying around in the first place. This stuff wasn't for neutralising humans, retractable blades, gun arm attachments… this was for Grit.

Kat hadn't augmented herself for some time- she'd worn quite a lot of cosmetic bionic implants when she was a teenager, which was the in thing for most engineering students. That stuff had fallen out of fashion by the time she went to college- it was slowly making its way back into the mainstream, though this time in a more biopunk theme.

Still, she had never really been one for intense body modification (asides from her sigils)… plus, there was no time for it even if she found something that had been useful. So she searched through the bag, looking for something which would be quick and non-intrusive.

"Aha!" She cried, eureka moment buzzing in her ears. Alongside the shoulder tendrils (which would require surgery to implant properly, were two strips of thin, lightweight aluminium, small oval power packs with connectors like spiders legs attached to each strip by thin wires. A pair of subdermal implants, each of which were capable of ten electrical charges at max capacity. The charges packed a real punch too- about as strong as an electrolaser. Flicking the 'test' switches on each power pack, she smiled to feel the ovals vibrate twice in short succession- meaning they were both fully charged and working.

There's sterile equipment here, a surgery bot- I probably won't get a chance like this again for some time. I need to be able to fight somehow.

Kat didn't have a great knowledge of medical matters, but in her line of work she knew how to get an implant in or out of someone quickly. Running into the surgery room, Kat saw one of the jars of microbots in gel and grabbed it, as well as a scalpel and a large syringe. Clicking her fingers, she gestured at the surgical robot to come into the surgery room with her.

"I need your help."

She quickly explained the procedure that would be needed to perform the operation. Handing the scalpel to the bot, Kat worked quickly on her right arm to start with- rubbing some numbing gel on the area before beginning. The subdermal implants were best placed on the front of her forearms, and extended all the way up to her elbows, with the power pack and nerve connections on the underside of her wrist to catch her deep branch vein on either arm. The thin strips of aluminium were thin enough that her skin didn't need to stretch over them- the power packs she kept external , bending the connectors so they dug into her skin and connected to her nerves. Looking at the robot, she laid her left forearm on the surgery table and nodded. The robot leaned over and made the first incision.

Ow ow ow ow ow

The numbing gel wasn't quite doing the trick, but she didn't really have many other options at this point- anything more potent would both take too long and dull her speed and sharpness after surgery. She didn't turn her head away as the bot peeled the upper layer of her skin with one hand, and carefully placed the implants beneath her skin. When she was happy the implants were in place, Kat pinched her skin together with her fingers and, filling the syringe with gel, squeezed the gel out over the incisions she'd made. The microbots got to work almost immediately; noticing the damaged skin and replicating new skin cells to plug the gap.

After about thirty seconds, the thin cuts she had made were gone- you could see where they'd been, as the skin there was too new, too pale compared to the rest of her arm. But at least she wasn't bleeding profusely. Grabbing a paper towel from the wall, Kat wiped off the gel and the two of them began work on the other arm.

The whole procedure took about twenty minutes, leaving long, thin lines of new skin along both her forearms. Tentatively, she reached out and touched the new skin, feeling the hard strips of metal beneath. Kat suddenly felt quite a long way from home- alien in her own skin. If you'd told me I'd be implanting myself this afternoon, I'd have laughed at you.

Looking around, she realised everyone had disappeared. Her arms felt odd, perhaps painful, but definitely uncomfortable. It'd be a while until she was used to the extra weight she'd added. Sliding her jacket back on (the powerpack was just visible above her cuffs, but only if you were looking closely) she walked out of the surgery room. Every had left- clearly gone to see what the shouting was about. Picking up the bag of implants (stashing some scalpels, the jar of microbots and syringe in her rucksack), Kat headed down the stairs to see what everyone else was making a fuss about.

[Assistant]
The rabbit-eared kid lowered the sheet just enough to stare wide-eyed at Liam. He breathed quickly, his breath huffing against the sheet, furry ears twitching, and he glanced up at Flor and then back at Liam's warm smiling face -- then back at Flor.

The boy's eyebrows furrowed. His blue eyes grew even wider as he stared at Flor.

What follows took place within the span of ten seconds.

Maria's voice in the stairwell surprised the child; he sprang out of the sheet like a spooked cat, leapfrogged over Liam's shoulders, launched himself at Flor, slammed into Flor full-force, and bounced nimbly away.

The child perched on the stair railing, breathing in short gasps, and unfolded his thin hand; in his palm lay the pink glowing stone he had stolen from Flor's pocket.

In this brief moment of pause, it became clear that a peculiar image had been drawn on the boy's bare chest in black marker. A rune.

Immediately, the boy pressed the glowing stone against his chest. The rune on his skin flashed, and the stone disappeared inside him -- as if the rune had caused the stone to be absorbed into the boy's body.

The boy's eyes began to glow a bright, wild yellow as the power of the soul stone coursed through him -- he glanced between Flor and Liam with acute, feral fear.

He launched off of the railing and sped up the stairs toward Maria. The rabbit-eared child grabbed her crinkling oversized coat and swung around behind her, using her as a shield between himself and Flor and Liam, and he screeched.

The piercing, high-pitched noise echoed painfully up the hollow stairwell.

Just outside the wall, a swarm of Grit howled in response.

---

Upstairs, inside the infirmary, it was eerily quiet save for the echoes that drifted up the stairwell.

The robot was in the process of cleaning up after Kat's surgery when it suddenly stopped, lights flickering. Its speaker buzzed and crackled.

< Hello? >

A familiar feminine voice spoke through the robot's speaker and echoed in the surgery room. It was the same voice that greeted the city every morning on the center city screen.

< The line is open to every point of contact currently unlocked to level thirteen clearance. It should be safe. Please answer. . . . Please be alive. >


[System]
Age:
16
Gender:
Female
# Of Years You've Attended CHB:
4
Godly Parent:
Zeus
Which Side You're On:
Zeus's
Appearance:

Julia stand around 5'5 with a light build. Her hair falls around her shoulder blades. She has a three large scars running from her left shoulder to her lower right back.
Skills:
Swordplay:
Julia is rather good at swordplay. She is quick and agile, giving her an advantage against slower, heavier opponents. But while Julia is good at fighting, her light form also gives her a disadvantage. When given a strength test, she bound to lose, which makes i harder for her to fight.
Strategist:
Julia is a strategist. She can think ahead and see the possible outcomes and plan accordingly. She is always watching, waiting for the change of the plans, and roll with them. While she might not be able to beat an Ares or Athena kid, she can certainly hold her own.
Powers:
Julia can send small amounts of electricity through her body and through others. She has only ever called down lightning once and it won't happen again.
Personality:
As a strategist, Julia for the most part is calm and level headed. She doesn't anger easily, and keeps her emotions in check. This doesn't mean she is a stick in the mud. She loves to have fun and run wild with the sky. Like Zeus, Julia always wants to be where things are thickest. She wants to be in the center of the battle, the excitement, or anything. She is a kind person once you get to know her. She is loyal to a point where it could be seen as unhealthy. She loves thunderstorms. They make her the wildest. She feels like she's on top of the world. While she doesn't get angrily easily, when she does its like Hades himself would hide.
History:
Julia was born on November 17, in a small town in Wyoming. Her mother raised her to the best of her ability. Julia never saw her father and never even knew his name. Her mother would always answer her questions with passive responses, never letting any clue slip out. Finally around her tenth birthday her mother gave her a few small details about her father. He was a kind man, with a rugged look to him, and always had a sense of electricity about him.

Julia loved to play and explore. She lived on a ranch and would constantly be running around. She loved feeling the summer air around her, but her all time favorite was when the thunderstorms would come. They were powerful and large, and it made her feel complete for once in her life. She loved the storms. She lived to be in them. Julia had a good life until around her eleventh birthday. That's when everything started. Her mother married a new man and they had a child. A little later the monster attacks started coming.

The first one blind sided Julia and her family. A harpy had been flying over and accidently happened to smell her. Julia's mother who had been advised by Zeus to take precautions had heard Julia's scream and ran out into the yard with a dagger made out of Stygian Iron. It was a rough battle and both girls were scarred badly. Her mother had scars lining her face and her arms and stomach. Julia had a three large ones that trailed from her left shoulder to her lower right back.

By that point Julia's mother realized how unsafe it was to keep Julia. While her mother loved Julia dearly she knew it was time for her to go to camp. Julia's mother made up an excuse to her husband and headed to Camp Half-Blood. On the ride to Camp half-Blood, Julia's mother explained everything; who her father was, where they were heading, and why Julia was in danger. Julia was confused and then everything made sense. When they finally arrived they were plagued with more monster wounds. They were beaten and battered. As they reached within a mile of camp, Julia's mother was snatched by a griffin. Trying to save her mother, Julia did the one thing she could think of, and called upon Zeus to help her. Help he did. He sent down a bolt of lightning to strike the griffin and also struck Julia's mother. Julia saw her mother fall and never saw her again.

Julia's instincts kicked in and blocked the pain. She ran to camp.When she finally reached camp, she was bloody, tired, and scarred. She was settled into the temporaries cabin. Then quickly moved to Zeus's when he truly claimed her. She lived there year round for the last four years.

[User]
The Rebellious One

"Stupid gods." A teenaged boy sitting in the Poseidon's Cabin said while looking outside of the back window and into the sea. That boy's name was Troy, demigod son of the "great" Poseidon. "Always fighting each other and not caring about what it does to the planet they reign over or what it does to their bastard children." He wasn't scared about talking about the gods in such a way. It wasn't that he thought he was invincible. He definitely wasn't. He just didn't care what the gods thought about him or what they would even be willing to do to him for such blasphemous remarks. His mother loved his father and he let her die. He was sure the great Earth Shaker could find the most suitable way to kill a rebellious son if he wanted to. If they were all lucky the gods would end up killing each other in this conflict and their children could become gods to take their place. He honestly wasn't even sure if that was how it worked. Heracles became a god, but it wasn't a poof automatic thing. He knew that his older half-brother could be a good replacement for Poseidon. Troy even heard that he was once offered godhood, but turned it down. If being a god automatically turned you into a jerk he understood why he declined.

Troy sighed and moved from the window. It was time for the students to come piling in. He looked at his nightstand where a picture of his mother in a frame stood. He was glad that he was able to recover two pictures of his mom. He kept one in his nightstand and another in his pocket. That way he'd always have her with him. Each time he looked at her picture his anger for his father grew, but she seemed to calm his anger whenever he looked at her in battle. Maybe it was because his anger was projected somewhere on one point instead of all around like it tended to be when he lost control. He patted his pocket making sure that his pen was still inside. He liked that it would always be in his pocket when he wasn't using it or if it got away from him. Well, it did take some time before returning to him if he lost it in a fight. Those moments of not having it almost cost him his head a few times. His father would have to do better than that if he wanted to kill him.

He finally exited the cabin and stretched as the rays of the sun hit him. "Time to see what this Summer brings us."

Death's Kid

Dorian had said goodbye to his mother the previous night and decided to visit his father before the first official day of Camp Half-Blood's summer. He passed into the Underworld and spoke to his father who had warned him of the Civil War that was happening between the gods of Olympus. This was his first time hearing about it and was told that the war would come to the doors of camp as well. That didn't sound good, but Dorian didn't know if he could even do anything about it. He tended to cause people to want to kill each other even more with his Death Drive ability. He could try speaking with them, but he never tried his oratory skills on such a large audience. He definitely wasn't sure that he could even convince the Ares Cabin with his words considering that they loved war. His best bet was to stay out of it, right? His father warned him that campers might die when they go against each other, but could that really be true? Would they let a war between their parents force them to forget about the friendships that they made?

War made people do horrible things. Civil Wars were even worse. Brother against brother. Friend against friend. Neighbor against neighbor. The relationships between people didn't stop the blood flow or even slow it. It only made it worse. He didn't really have many friends to worry about having to fight if he did choose a side. He barely had anyone there who he would even consider his friend. Most stayed away from him despite there being a child of Hades there, but apparently being a child of Hades wasn't as frightening as a child of Death. He spent the rest of the night and early morning with his father before he decided it was time to go to camp.

He appeared in front of the camp's field and walked inside. "Here goes nothing."

[Assistant]
Blake and Leon

Blake started to string up his bow as Leon was combing his hair. Both with a mission on mind. Impress the ladies. Yeah they knew the gods were arguing. Hell they shouldn't even be hanging out, Leon was an Aphrodite and Blake was an Apollo. But they didn't care. Their friendship meant to much to them. They had been through thick and thin and thick again. Black finished stringing up his bow and starting playing a tune. "Ya know Blake, I don't say this a lot but I look good." Blake rolled his eyes, chuckled, and continued playing. They continued walking and winking at any girl that passed. Even talking to a few. To them this was the good life. Blake slowed his playing down and said to Leon "Ya know I hope this whole Gods fighting thing doesn't effect us too greatly. This sounds pretty serious." Leon looked deep into Blake's eyes and told him "Blake my good friend, as long as we are together, what could ever possibly go wrong?The gods are gonna fight yes, but as long as we stay out of it we will be fine." Blake liked this answer, that's why he liked Leon. He always gave the right answer. Blake started playing again and so they started going around again just having fun and listening to Blake's music.

[User]
Alistair woke with the stop of the train. He looked around and saw the people getting off, kids jumping around, parents looked dead as ever, trains were horrible. He gathered his two duffle bags and satchel, he stepped off the train and made his through the station. Alistair didn't want to take taxi, too much work, and bus would take too long. He decided to go see his father and ask him for a ride.

Alistair shadow traveled to Hades and appeared in the throne room of his fathers palace. Hades was siting on his throne looking over some paper work with those stress winkles on his forehead. "Well you look horrible." He said to Hades. Hades looked up getting ready to smite who ever said that, and saw Alistair. His son was standing there with three bags some casual joggers on and a grey t-shirt. Hades put his papers down and rubbed his temples. "Well if it isn't one of my lovely children, who always has nice things to say about me whenever he visits." Hades said with sarcasm and needed sleep with every word. "What can I do for you today?" Hades said as he got up and went over to Alistair. "I'm not feeling the whole public transportation thing today, so can you beam me up instead?" Alistair asked as he bounced on his toes. He didn't visit his father often but they did right all the time. "You grew your hair out again, doesn't look bad. I guess I can help you out just don't ask too often." Hades said as he did the dad hair ruffle. He went back over to his throne and sat again. "Oh and before you go, there is a storm brewing on Olympus. So what ever decision you make I'll support you." Before Alistair could ask any question Hades waved his had and shadow swallowed him.

When the curtain of shadow broke, Alistair was the familiar sounds and smells of camp. He stood right out side of the Hades cabin, the cabin walls are made of solid obsidian and a skull is hung over the doorway. There are torches that burn green fire twenty-four hours a day. Everything around the cabin seemed to not have any color to it, lifeless. The only thing missing was the heavy thick fog and the skeletons walking around. Alistair stepped inside, and looked at the familiar surroundings. Inside the cabin the beds are coffin shaped with blood red pillows and sheets. There is also a small shrine with bones and jewels. He went over to the biggest bed and threw his stuff down. He grabbed his ink pen that was his pitchfork condensed and stepped out of the cabin.

Outside was pure madness, everyone running around trying to see old friends and find their cabin. It was like the first day of school all over again. So with a deep sigh he took his first steps into the madness. The only thing on his mind was his fathers words. "I hope the gods don't ruin this summer."

[Assistant]
The sun was high on the fresh summer morning. The birds were out and about, playing in the warm summer air. Everything was awake. Well...almost everything. A teen girl slept soundly on top of the Cabin at the end of the row. A thunderstorm had swept through camp half blood last night, and for that reason was this girl sleeping on top of the cabin. The young blonde started to stir and then finally sat up and stretched. Her blue eyes groggy with sleepiness, and contentment. She stood up stretching out, her long arms reaching toward the sky. She looked over the roofs of the other cabins. Julia Vampertin, daughter of Zeus, stood tall and proud.

Julia slowly slid down the roof toward the rain gutters. She jumped down. caught them with her hands and swung down to the ground. She landed with a soft thud and headed inside her cabin. She threw on a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt, and some converse and headed out to grab some breakfast. Julia smelled the air as she walked and let out a contented sigh. The world was always so peaceful after a storm. That's when loud crashes and bangs interrupted her thought.

Julia's head spun to look at the source. Someone was down at the arena. Her eyebrows raised and she switched her course. She climbed over the fence to watch what was going on. A man probably around her age was fighting three of the dummies. She hopped on the fence and looked at him. He was doing quite well. He was battling the second automan and was about to finish him. That's when she saw it. The third one was going to attack him. It was quite brilliant. Julia watched fascinated by the workings of the battle.

The man swung around and his arm was caught by the automan. Julia recognized the camper. They had met a few times but never truly connected. It was Hunter, Son of Nemesis. He craftily managed to defeat the third one and Julia raised her eye impressed. She watched from the sidelines and nodded. She turned around and her the other activities going on around camp. Most people were unpacking, but with Julia being a year round camper, she really didn't have to worry about that. Julia was nervous about this year, while most of her years had been uneventful this one was sure to be different.


[System]
BASIC
Goes By (Nicknames): Mel
Age: 2,500 approx.
Gender: Female
Race: Silvan Elf

APPEARANCE

Face Claim (Actor/Actress They're Played By): Ehh, she's never really had an actress per se, it's a drawn picture that I found on google that I use for her but it's just perfect for her xD)
Hair Color: Straw blonde
Eye Color: Ice blue
Skin Tone: Quite pale-porcelain-ish
Height: 6 ft
Weight: No idea tbh XD I'm no good at working out weights lol let's just say she weighs around what she's supposed to for her height
Build: Slender and tall like all of her kin, well-muscled with a strong/sturdy frame overall
Weapons: Bow (which was once her father's, was passed on to her when she was old enough to learn to shoot), Rapier, set of elven fighting knives

Overall Appearance:
Appearance + "Casual" Clothing (ignore the sword and the magic mist stuff, she doesn't have that xD) :

Armor:

Arm guards:

Bow:

Rapier:

Daggers:

PERSONALITY

Likes: The stars/star watching, spending time with her family, killing orcs etc.
Dislikes: Orcs and other such evil beings, watching her loved ones sad/suffering
Strengths: An excellent and swift fighter with both bow and blade, fiercely loyal and devoted to her family and loved ones, will always stand up for her beliefs and friends
Weaknesses: Headstrong and stubborn, does not always listen to others' advice or orders. Often impulsive and rushes into things before thinking of consequences.
Fears: Surviving severe injury but not being able to fight or look after herself properly, losing Legolas or Thranduil, being unable to have her own children someday

Overall Personality:
(huge paragraphs oops sorry-have a basic breakdown in case you don't feel like reading the whole thing xD)
Sarcastic | Untrusting | Loyal | Sharp-tongued/snappy | Compassionate | Sensitive

Mel is a witty, fairly sharp tongued and often sarcastic individual, she is wary of strangers and will take quite some time to trust most she meets, though those who have a child-like innocence about them seem to find her trust a lot easier. However her tough exterior does hide a soft and loving side deep down. To her family and close friends she is devoted and gentle, and would do anything for them. Losing someone that she cares deeply for affects her more than most perhaps, and it would take her a good few centuries on most accounts to reach the point where she can accept it fully and "move on" from it as well as she is capable. Indeed she still feels melancholy at thoughts of her passed relatives but can push it aside if the situation calls for it. Her sense of duty is unparalleled to most, and many a Mirkwood soldier who has served under her command has been known to describe Mel as "hard headed and as determined and foul-tempered as a Warg keeping hold of the last scrap of meat at mealtime". Once she has a job to do, she will not abandon it for any cause, no matter the consequences, until the task is completed.

Mel is extremely wary of dragons and would sooner attempt to kill one than converse with it, regardless of whether it approached her in a friendly manner or not. She has seen the ruin and death that dragons can bring, and indeed she will never forgive the beasts for tearing apart her family, to ask her to befriend one will be met with only contempt, bitterness and hate on her end. Other than dragons, there is very little that sparks enough fear in her to reduce her to a blubbering mess, as Mel is a particularly tenacious individual which is to be expected from someone who has grown up in a forest which has been steadily taken over by darkness and evil. Having to slay and fight with nests crawling with extremely large spiders on a daily basis means it's not exactly a "good idea" for lack of a better way to phrase it, to be afraid of them. However, anything larger than those spiders which she has experienced in Mirkwood is highly likely to leave her rather bemused and more than slightly concerned, as she has never confronted any arachnid of a larger size before in her life. In regards to how she responds to fear, even when Mel is scared to death she is not the type of individual to stand there literally quaking in her boots, whimpering and bawling. Instead she typically takes on the "rabbit in the headlights" kind of approach and tends to completely freeze up, totally unsure of whether to run away or fight whatever puts her in that position.

While she is by no means a "damsel in distress", nor does she necessarily act like a "spoilt princess", however she does occasionally act at rather 'high and mighty' as some may describe it, because of her well-off upbringing. Mel isn't a tantrum thrower by any stretch of the imagination, but she does at times react to things which displease her by pouting and/or sulking and then proceeding to make some sort of snide comment on the matter. Snide comments and sharp remarks are something Mel is never short of, which may come as a shock to some as they would expect someone of her upbringing to be "polite and lady-like", though she is far from it. She is not inherently rude all the time, and due to countless lessons from her aunt and uncle in her younger years she is perfectly capable of acting in a civil manner to form treaties, alliances and other such things, and is indeed even rather capable of sitting in on many political matters and being rather persuasive towards her own or her kingdom's need and win the opposing party over - even if it bores her to death! She does not take lightly to insults towards either herself or her family or kingdom, and unfortunately it doesn't take much to get her riled up. Mel is not unknown to take a swing or two at someone who overstepped their mark with her, though for the most part she tries her best to keep herself controlled and will usually just respond in turn with some other cutting remark towards the person who started the whole affair.

BACKGROUND

Date of Birth: I actually haven't been able to work it out exactly just yet XD it's a couple decades before Legolas', though ;)
Place of Birth: Mirkwood (well, back then it was still Greenwood but yeah XD)
Family Relations: Ardor (father, deceased) Thranduil (uncle), Legolas (cousin)

[User] As soon as she was flying above them at a great height, she noticed the orc above them as they hid. With anger flaring in her eyes, she gave a high-piercing screech before she charged. Dive bombing in flight, she violently collided with the orc rider head-on, making the warg tumble down the rock in front of the dwarves. Unfortunately, the squeal of the orc's death caught the attention of the others who were chasing Radagast. "The Dwarf-scum are over there! After them!", Azog ordered to them in Black Speech. "Move! Run!", Gandalf shouted to his dwarven companions. "This way! Quickly!", the fae followed while in flight as she continued to knock some orcs off course during the chase.

[Assistant]
The dwarves quickly followed Gandalf, having no other choice unless they wanted to be run down by the Orc pack. The group quickly became trapped between a strange rock formation and the pack that had caught up to them. Gandalf was nowhere to be seen as he had run into the hidden passageway that led to Rivendell.
"There's more coming!" shouted Kili as he spotted even more Wargs running towards the group.
"Where is Gandalf?!" Thorin shouted, not seeing the wizard.
"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin growled as he hefted his weapon, preparing to fight the orc pack to the death.

[User] As the orcs get closer, Gandalf suddenly appears from behind the large rock. "This way, you fools!", he yelled in order to get their attention. "Come on, move! Quickly! All of you!", Thorin shouted while standing near the small hole. One by one, each dwarf jumped, except for Kili. "Kili! Run!", the young prince turns and makes a run for it as the orcs get closer. Wickedly close they were, Maleficent swooped down and picked him up in flight. Flying towards the hole, she picked up Thorin in the process, and they all dropped into the hole.

[Assistant]
Kili grunted as he slid down the steep slope and landed at the bottom, dusting himself off as he staggered to his feet. "Th-Thanks..." the young dwarf gasped as he looked up at Maleficent.
The dwarves all froze as a horn sounded above them, followed by hoofbeats and then the sounds of battle.

Thorin and Kili leapt back as an orc rolled down the slope and landed at their feet. Poking it with the end of his axe, the dwarf prince discovered that it was dead. There was an arrow sticking out of its chest, which Thorin pulled out to examine it, his face forming into a scowl.
"Elves." he growled in disgust.

"I cannot see where the pathway leads!" called Dwalin from up ahead where a pathway was. "Do we follow it or no?!"
"Follow it of course!" Thorin shouted back to him.

[User] "I did tell you that I wasn't leaving you behind", the fae told Kili while her wings were folding back in their proper place on her back. "I think that would be wise", Gandalf nodded in confirmation since it was the only way to go that was safe at the moment. Following the path in the tunnel, there was a waterfall with a small city in the distance. "The Valley of Imladris. In the common tongue, it's known by another name" "Rivendell" Bilbo gaped in astonishment at the great city before them. "Here lies the last homely house, east of the sea" "This was your plan all along, to seek refuge with our enemy", Thorin growled in anger while already feeling betrayed.

[Assistant] "You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield." Gandalf scolded the dwarf sharply. "The only ill will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself! We have a map that we cannot read, Lord Elrond can help us to read it! Now, if this is to be successful you shall leave the talking to me or Maleficent as we will need to be tactful and need a small degree of charm, which it seems you dwarves certainly lack in the presence of the Fair Folk."

[User] "I will assist you, Gandalf", Maleficent spoke up, to just break the tension. As they enter Rivendell, they are met by some elves. "Mithrandir", Elrond's right hand man, Lindir, greeted to the wizard. "Ah, Lindir" "We heard you had crossed into the Valley", Lindir spoke in Elvish. "I must speak with Lord Elrond" "My Lord Elrond is not here" "Not here? Where is he?", that was until the hunting horn was heard with the returning elf war party coming towards them. "Close ranks!", Thorin shouted as the elf war party surrounded the dwarves. "Gandalf!", the voice of Lord Elrond sounded as he rode up on his horse. "Lord Elrond, my friend! Where have you been?", Gandalf asked in Elvish. "We've been hunting a pack of Orcs that came up from the South. We slew a number near the Hidden Pass", Elrond responded back in the same language while getting off his horse. "Strange for orcs to come so close to our borders. Something or someone has drawn them near", he spoke back in the Common Tongue. "Ah, that may have been us" Elrond's gaze turns to the winged fae. "Saeril", he spoke in astonishment before stopping a few feet in front of the female. Maleficent kept her ground, but slightly bowed her head in respect. "Lord Elrond, call me Maleficent. I would much prefer it", she said to him in the Elvish language in a kind tone. She would much prefer "Maleficent" as her name since "Saeril" was her birth name. "Why do you come?", he spoke back to her in English again. He was clearly suspicious of her since he has heard stories and even witnessed her cause terror on other Elvish kingdoms.

[Assistant] "It is a long story, my friend." Gandalf spoke up to Elrond, quickly coming to Maleficent's defense. "One which we may not have the time for now. At least not at this very moment. We require your aid."

[User]
Narrowing his eyes at the female, he then notices to see Thorin stepping up. "Welcome Thorin, son of Thrain" "I do not believe we have met", the dwarf Prince gave a small growl under his voice. "You have your Grandfather's bearing. I knew Thror when he ruled under the mountain" "Indeed? He made no mention of you" Elrond suddenly says something to Thorin in Elvish. "What is he saying? Does he offer us insult?", Glion spoke with a little bit of anger within him. "No, Master Gloin, he's offering you food", Gandalf reassured him. That was until the dwarves turn and discuss amongst themselves. "Ah, Well. In that case, lead on"

Later that day, the dwarves all sat around the elves' dining table. Some complaining that the food wasn't of their taste and that they would prefer meat rather than "leaves". "Kind of you to invite us. I'm not really dressed for dinner", Gandalf spoke as he walked with Elrond to the table. "Well, you never are", they seat themselves at the head chair.

Changed into something lighter and more Elvish-like, Maleficent had on an elbow-length off-the-shoulder brown dress that fell to her ankles as she made herself appear at the walkway of the dining area where everyone else was at. There were no shoes on her, and she preferred to walk barefoot, letting the sun warm them. Her headdress was gone, so she let her hair flow free. Noticing what appears to be an elvish flute nearby. She delicately picked it up and lightly played a few notes until she was actually playing a song. It was a song she knew and learned as a child. Till then, she was with the other instrument playing Elves, having her eyes flicking to Kili time to time.

[Assistant]
"Change the tune why don't you?" complained Dori eventually as the dwarves began to get tired of the Elven music. "I feel like I'm at a funeral!"
"Can't say I fancy elf-maids myself," Kili was boasting to the other dwarves he sat with, which included his brother, Dwalin, Bofur and Dori. "That one over there's not bad though." the young dwarf grinned suggestively and nodded in the direction of the elf he had meant.
"That's not an elf-maid." Dwalin had smirked at him, and Kili's face turned bright pink as the elf turned around to reveal that, as Dwalin had predicted, it was not a female elf.
"Oh, very funny!" Kili grumbled, mortified with embarrassment.


[System]
Age: 17

Appearance: At a height of 200cm tall and incredibly muscular, it is pretty common to see Tzi shirtless when not in academy uniform, baring his body to the world. Shirts aren't really too important to him, so one has to remind him every time he forgets to wear one. It's a source of contention, but it's almost impossible to change his opinion on them.

Bio/Summary: An energetic and forward youth from a barren archipelago in the North Sea, Tzi always enjoys a challenge, throwing himself head-first into any situation that strikes his fancy. It's the reason why he was so willing to simply leave his island home one day, jumping into the salty surf to swim to the mainland where opportunities abounded. There, he drifted from ring to ring, fighting anybody who'd take him on for fun and profit. Sometimes he won, sometimes he lost, but his grinning visage, one that never disappeared no matter what trouble fell in his path, was imprinted on the minds of recruiters for the Military Academy, and soon enough, his martial talents were requested for a greater cause: the protection of the glorious Imperium.

He didn't mind. For Tzi, the chance to fight in the name of the Empire only signified excitement and wonder. Never one to shy from an offer (also explaining his frighteningly immense knowledge about all sorts of foodstuffs and how to cook them), he was inducted as a student into Cadenza, where it was hoped that his devil-may-care attitude and unshakable adoration for a good fight could be better channelled.

So far he really likes the place, though people have been admonishing his tendency to throw caution (and his shirts) to the wind.

Vessel: When not active, Tzi's Retiarius actually consists of two items: a carving knife and carving fork lacking in decoration. They are typically used during meal times, but when called upon, the pair fuses and enlarges into a wicked trident, one with a small anchor attached to its rear, that instills fear into the hearts of seafood.

Abilities:
Casting the Net - a net made of heavy magical fibres is produced by the Retiarius, usually shooting out of the trident's length to catch and trap those unfortunate enough to be in its way (whether they be fish or Tzi's foes). Escaping is particularly difficult due to the toughness of the net and its weight.

Catch and Release - the rear end of the Retiarius is an anchor that can be launched at the environment and others to latch onto or wrap around them with a glowing chain, allowing for either rapid movement towards enemies or around the battlefield.

Backlash - if somebody is in contact with the Retiarius or caught in its nets, any damage that Tzi experiences will be distributed between him and them.

Equipment: A portable grill; diary.

Trivia/Other: He is very well-versed in the cooking world (much to anyone's surprise), but can be incredibly critical of other people's cooking. He might've even been considered connoisseur if his descriptions were more flowery. He does however, have a stubborn streak over spicy foods (he likes them, but really can't handle the spice).

[User]
Crispin Clean

Wet hacking sounds continues to sound out, the snow white suit now stained a deep crimson. Stomping his way on top of the Roc's corpse, Clean jammed his rapier between the avian vertebrae and twisted. A rough tearing and a cathartic crunching snap as the spine of the dead bird was brutally severed.

"I have a new least favourite creature." blade looking more red than normal, Clean whipped the rapier in an arc a thin red crescent as the blood was flung from the blade. Looking up he saw the group was more scattered than normal when after a battle. New objective, new goal. Scanning the area Clean was about to look for someone when the mind rending screech shredded through the air, feeling the reverberations in his chest. Noting the direction Clean ignored stealth in favor of speed, making haste to the location. Bursting onto the scene Clean skidded to a halt covering his mouth in disgust to the point where he didn't even notice he left a bloody hand print over his mouth.

"I didn't expect my least favourite creature to be one upped so soon." Disgusting, black like tar, looking heavy and dense. The sheer nature of the beast ignited a flame of rage within him. This monster was a blight on the world and needed to be eviscerated... annihilated.

Bipedal creature, top heavy with broad shoulders. Seemingly based on a gorilla in basic structure? Rear legs resemble a canine, so more like a lycanthrope than a gorilla. Expect high agility and wide range with the claws. Arm length is significant are sharp. Use a simple strategy until more information about the thing is learnt, hamstring to limit movement and keep out of range of the claws by either staying outside the attack range or so close no significant power can be put behind the blows. Other's aren't fellow cadets. They're a secondary priority to ridding the world of this filth. With the game plan in mind Clean circled around to the left of the beast and lunged for the hamstring, blade leading the way, not even sure if the pitch black mass contorted in a facsimile of life conformed to natural biology, but if he didn't even try then there would be no way for him to know.

[Assistant]
Egwene
Egwene's temper has soothened down after hacking down the guards one after another. Just when she was about to feel satisfied after returning the favour of capturing her without permission, the one guy who seemed to be a leader has summoned a wild beast who attacks Morgan. And judging the people it targets, it doesn't look so obeidient.

"Oh, I almost forgot, you're wounded right?" Egwene turned back to Foley, sheathing her sword. Now more capable of thinking rationally, She let the beast to be occupied with Zarin for the moment, and spoke to Foley gently. "I'm healing you, so close your eyes and don't dodge, or I will kill you~"

"YAY--" Egwene made one menacing draw of her sword, her Healing Blade as if let loose and screaming in excitement, as she sends a diagonal slash across Foley's torso. The way she swings the sword, and the sound effect of it, makes it look like she is more into killing him than healing.

[User]
---

When Leblanc looked so hostile at Regina, she was admittedly confused at first as she spoke very quietly when she did so. However, as more information came Regina realized that with the way she acted was as if an animal with a higher sense of hearing was alerted. After realizing this fact, the only face that the snake-woman would get would be a knowing smile. Regina thought about teasing her more, but did not want to push her luck. After all, she was confident in her abilities and the fact that they were far enough away from the patrols that there was no threat. However, the smile quickly dissipated as Regina became more serious and listened to the rest of what Leblanc said. "I'll take care of the sniper and their team." would be all that Regina would say before she went to do just that. She noted the RV point that Leblanc would have given her and moved toward the sniper's building, hidden from view though one could note if they observed her that she was skilled in the ways of stealth.

And take care of the sniper team she did. Though she had to wait for a few opportunities to take them down silently one at a time, she managed to eliminate the entire team. Four dead bodies lay in the building as Regina proceeded to the bigger building in the middle of the town: the place for the agreed RV point. It was then that she heard that awful scream. A scream that vibrated through her entire body and panicked the patrols that were left. Regina could barely cover her ears, with them now ringing due to the sound, but she knew where the scream came from. Ensuring that her rifle was ready, Regina already felt her feet running toward the building using her shoulder as a way to dampen the sound.

Arriving at the building, she soon realized that the situation was much more dire: a monster spawn was about and there were captive cadets. It was obvious from their uniforms, though Regina was very sure that when the cadets saw her she looked nothing like them with her camouflage Irregular militia uniform and camouflage cloak. One of the cadets was down, and the monster was just about to pounce on him. Regina once again made a snap decision just before Clean attacked to aim for the monster's knees and squeeze the trigger. The magic round hit it's target, but what was most important was that the thing was not aware of Regina. An explosion at the monster's bend of the right knee was proof of the deed. Whatever it was, it now knew she was there.

Of course, Regina was scared but she never let that fear get the best of her. The Roks were a reminder to not allow her fear to control her. Something her father taught her a long time ago. That monster was nothing compared to what the Irregulars faced on a daily basis, she just had to remember that! Still, fighting this thing directly would certainly mean death, especially in any confined areas. Calmly, she shouted to the now-freed cadets "Friendly, Imperial! Get your comrades and regroup with our snake-themed cadet! She will give your new orders!" Regina now prepared to fire again, hoping to cover them. She wondered what Szeren, Natus, and Leblanc were up to....

[Assistant]
Well. This is new.

As Morgan evaded the strike of the shadow-like monster currently trying to kill him, his thought strayed elsewhere. Whatever the creature was, it was capable of injuring him in his Ethereal form, something only vessels were capable of doing prior to this.

It's rather fast for its size. The regeneration's odd too, I doubt any natural being could be capable of self-healing at such a rate.

Stepping back, He reverted Arcanus to its standard form and ran for the ruined church.

Well, even if something like this has shown up, it should act as a decent gift for those guys who kidnapped us.

[User]
✠ G R A D O N G I L T W I T H ✠

⛨ Current Location: Village Ruins ⛨

"I like to think they're just lost soldiers trying to find their way in the ruins. Or maybe they're on a mission just like us," Gradon said in response to Tzi. He found a nice tree beside where his tent used to be before leaning against the hardened bark with crossed arms. "Of course, that's probably just wishful thinking. If word got out that the Princess is traveling with us…then she's probably their priority," he offered with a smile. He was confident in their own secrecy to where that wouldn't have been the case.

The cadets would have some lingering time to themselves before something truly horrendous would snap them out of their lulling states. A sound that pierced the winds and seemed to resonate from deep within the ruins. And yet it echoed with such hate and ferocity that it was enough to make Viola near jump out of her skin in terror. Gradon widened his own eyes and stared in the direction of the scout team's trail. Just what the hell was going on there?

"Princess Ires!" Gradon said when their leader seemingly passed out under mysterious circumstances. Was it the strain of that roar or something more? Whatever it was, Viola was thankfully by her side in seconds, lifting the unconscious girl up armor and all while looking to him for answers. "That doesn't sound like a human enemy. We need to move out and help our comrades out as fast as we can," he said, already looking for the rest around their camp.

"Tzi, Esther, rally up!" Gradon said, glaring slightly as he saw Clean dash without order to go and assist. While he had the right idea, blindly charging into the fray was licensed to get them all killed. "Everyone move out. We're heading to the ruins. Viola, stay in the back and keep the Princess out of danger," he said, already leading the way with a sprint.

[Assistant]
"Getting cash or just taking out a bigwig for the politics, huh?" offered the tall young man. "Yeah, there's loads that they could ..."

That bloodcurdling scream. An inhuman noise that sent pinpricks of lightning down his spine. Tzi Ti'amtum whipped his head around in the direction of the ruins, his one visible eye widening in shock and surprise upon hearing something so ... inhuman. Unnatural. A sound accompanied by terror and chaos, echoing through the ruins with a vigour he never would've thought possible. He'd heard a lot of screams before. The others probably had too. But that sound ... he couldn't describe it. He didn't know what could've been responsible for it. But ...

"That can't be natural," he had to say, his voice low. "No way that's natural."

Signing up with the Empire had promised some real queer stuff, but this ...

Tzi Ti'amtum had absolutely no idea what it was.

"Don't worry." The eyepatch-wearing youth grinned reassuringly Viola's way. "If there's a problem, we'll just have to punch it in the face, yeah?"

That wasn't usually the best plan. Tzi Ti'amtum was perfectly aware of that. But despite what he was saying, he was worried. There was something just ... super unnatural going on. You had to cut a bloke some slack for that. Like Viola, he didn't have any idea what was going on. But if it was some ... unnatural monster or something, then he couldn't really think of anything more right now than to punch it out. Or hit it in some other way. That was usually how they took out monsters.

"Just keep calm and we'll handle it," he continued with a shout, running after Gradon. "Make sure nobody gets the Princess, yeah?"

Current goal: follow Gradon. Goal after that: beat up whatever is responsible for this stuff. Protect his mates at the same time. It was a pretty basic and half-baked plan, but until he could get more info, that was the best he could do.

As they closed in on the ruins, however, the thing responsible became clear to his eyes.

"That's ... big."

Thrice his size, in fact.


[System]
Age: 28

Class: Fighter/Captain

Gender: Male

Race: Human

Appearance: Raikon is a tall, well built man. Standing at 6'2" and weighing 220lbs he is an imposing figure to behold while on the battlefield. His intimidating size is mitigated by a very kind face, constant genuine smile, and expressive green eyes. He has bright red hair cut short on the sides and left slightly longer on top, with side burns that connect to his beard, which is well kept and trimmed. His hands and forearms are marked by a smattering of scars from years of battle, others, more serious, are hidden under his armor and clothing.

Character Perk: Optimistic Leader- Raikon tries to see the best in everything, and always finds a ray of hope to guide him. He inspires his comrades to action, providing a resistance to intimidation, fear, and mental spell effects to them and himself.

Character Flaw: Sore Loser- When things don't go his way Raikon can have a hard time letting go, often trying to gain victory even when defeat is already assured. Others will have to force him to stand down, even if it means injury or death.

----------

Alignment: Chaotic Good

STR: 16
DEX: 12
CON: 14
INT: 10
WIS: 12
CHA: 14

Abilities:

Unshakable- Raikon is an experienced veteran and does not lose his composure in the midst of battle. He cannot be flanked unless it is from behind.

Quick Draw- Raikon can switch between his weapons and shield almost instantly, never losing a step in battle.

Last Stand- If Raikon were to receive a mortal blow, he may take one last offensive action before becoming incapacitated.

Skills:

Diplomacy (60)
Intimidate (20)
Sense Motive (60)
Perception (40)
Survival (20)

Spells: Raikon has no inherent magical ability.

Armor: Raikon wears a padded undershirt, chainmail armor, and a belted, hard dark leather tunic. His hands are protected by thick leather gloves which match his rough leather boots. Chainmail hosen are held tightly to his legs with strap and belts to maximize mobility and protection.

Weapons: His weaponry is varied with a javelin on his back, long shining steel sword strapped to his left hip, and a round steel shield hanging from his right. He also carries two sharp daggers tucked between his weapon belts.

Items/Misc: Raikon carries a backpack with various supplies including a 20ft coil of rope, tinder and firebox, maintenance gear such as whet stones and oil, rations and a water skin, thin wire, a bedroll, oiled tarp and waterproof cloak. He also has a collapsible oil lantern and basic medical supplies: A needle, thread, bandages, and herbs to fight back infection.

Biography:

In the capital city of the kingdom Mejise, in a small two room hut, a young boy with hair like fire learned a very early lesson about life and death. As his father beat his mother senseless on the floor of their shack, a young Raikon Delnai learned that often times there will be no one there to help you, and that sometimes to protect one you must kill another.

Raikon took his fathers sword and struck him through the side, instantly killing him and saving his mother. Free of his wickedness, his mother guided Raikon along a path of gentleness, teaching him to use his strength and courage to protect others, and to always be a careful, loving man.

The lessons were reforged and refined many times as Raikon grew to adulthood. He joined the military at 16 to protect his mother and city from enemy invasion. The empire of Burena had become greedy, and had lashed out on the independent provinces at her border, intent on gaining land and strength. As the battles went on, the trials of his position forged iron bands around his heart. He proved himself to be a capable warrior and effective leader, eventually gaining the ear of the generals around him. He continued to learn: to command, to inspire. As the war went on from months to years, and it was looking as though it would go on forever, he learned that sometimes it takes only one person standing fast for just a moment longer to make a difference, and that he could be that person.

In the final battle for Mejise, his comrades had nearly all fallen to the hands of the Burean military. The few survivors were hiding behind the walls, waiting for the enemy to finish their breach, and storm the final stronghold. Raikon fought along the battlements alone, taking down the enemy archers who had managed to entrench themselves. With the way clear, he descended into the courtyard, and began to barricade the final door alone. It wouldn't have been enough, but his courage inspired those around him, and more men felt the fire relight in their hearts. They continued fighting the enemy off until, finally, Burena retreated and the castle held.

The tide had turned, and a year later the war was won. Raikon had aged into a fine commander, and under his leadership Mejise rebuilt their fortifications, reworked alliances, and found a time of safety once again. But it wasn't long before Burena became hungry once more. With the enemy military mobilizing, Raikon and a small band of like minded mercenaries came together, marching to offer their services to defend the independent nations of the free Eastern lands.

[User]
The large man unconscious to the left of the door was the first to stir. He groaned quietly, his voice muffled by the soft moss his face rested against. His eyes fluttered open slowly, and he groaned again rolling first onto his side, and then his back. He raised a large gloved hand to blot the sun from his eyes, and frowned quizzically. He didn't recognize this place.

Raikon slowly raised into a sitting position, resting his weight on one arm, the other hand still blocking the sun from his sleep filled eyes. "Joshua? Hector?" His voice was thick in his throat, and quiet. He coughed into his hand, squinting into the sunlight, and looks around once more. He remembered they were celebrating. Many of them, Joshua, Hector, Kayle, his whole band had been there. They had just received word of the full retreat of all Burean forces from the peninsula, and Alcuin had been kept free of their grasp. They had been fighting for three weeks with almost no rest, their morale had dwindled to a candle flame. But they outlasted the enemy and had prevented their resupply, allowing for a reprieve, and a chance to bolster their defenses to prevent another attack.

The celebration was fierce and well earned. Friends had been lost, and many of his comrades had held their grief until the end. They had a chance to let their emotions flow freely along with the mead. He had drank plenty on his own, and his memories grew hazy as the night went on. But he remembered being carried on a shoulder to his bed in the Gnarled Pine, laughing and swaying and singing. This place was not The Gnarled Pine.

He looked at the other bodies on the ground around him and lifted himself to stand on shaky legs. He realized he was still dressed in all of his armor, and his body was sore in many places, screaming at the pressure points from the belts and gear strapped to his chest and hips. He could tell this place was ancient, and his mind swirled trying to recreate the steps he had taken back to the inn. He had made it back to his room, hadn't he? Who had helped him back? The back of his head throbbed and he shielded his eyes from the sunlight again, frustrated.

He looked at the bodies again. They were breathing, alive, just unconscious or asleep. He didn't recognize them, and started to walk closer to the young blonde man closest to him. He took in the room once more as he crouched down. The building they were in looked ancient. He had seen overgrown ruins before, but nothing like this. The place almost vibrated with a force unknown to him, and he swallowed back his fear. He reached down and grasped the shoulder of the slender man next to him, shaking gently.

"Hey, you. Wake up, would you?"

[Assistant]
"-ou. Wake up, would you?"

He didn't know that voice, was Caspian's first thought. He had always been a light sleeper, so there was usually no need for someone to go further than a verbal request. Breathing in deeply, he slowly opened his eyes to peer at whoever it was that wanted him awake. His mind was blank then, sleepiness fogging his thoughts. His vision still blurry at first glance, he moved to rub his eyes, coming aware of the the slight soreness all over his body. It was a familiar feeling. It was as if he had slept on hard floor, and his hands pressing upon the hard grounds proved it to be true. It had been awhile since he last slept on something that isn't a bed.

Disoriented, he slightly narrowed his eyes confusedly at the unfamiliar larger man before him. Was the man a new companion? In all his life, there was only one person he knew who had red hair. Albeit, his best friend's hair was a tad brighter, almost like fire. At the thought of his friend, he immediately turned to look around him, searching for another red head almost frantically. A small feeling of panic started to blossom deep within when he failed to see anyone he knew at all, like a heartburn he was trying hard to not acknowledge. Moreover, he vividly remembered that they were still in a city then. Kalakyth was a city of smoke and suffocating hot air that distinctly smelled of burning soil, cigar and liquor. It bore absolutely no resemblance to the refreshing green around him. He could almost still taste the awful mead that he spat after taking an experimental sip from his friend's flask.

Yes. He had a clear recollection of where and what he was doing. They were in Kalakyth because of a stop over, and their group chose to spent the night in the awful city of dark skies and smokey air over sleeping underneath the stars in the forest miles away. Kalakyth was located in the foot of a mountain that once had thousands of trees, with its incessant mining and pollution. From a distance, it looks like a black splotch. They were walking, he remembered, when he asked to take a sip from his friend's flask. They were leaving the city. What happened then? He knew he could remember if he just thought a lot harder. A place like the one around him was not something they could have found anywhere near Kalakyth. The disgusting men of that city wouldn't have let something as unnaturally pure and fresh go untainted.

Caspian tried not to think too deeply, truly. His thoughts were swirling violently into directions he didn't want to it to go, and he was actively avoiding the panic that was surely a layer just beneath his calmness and confusion. Breathe deeply, focus. It wouldn't do well for him to panic. Perhaps he was not in a safe place, perhaps he was. He forcefully brushed it all off, and breathed in deeply as he pushed himself to get up. It was colder, he realized, and he unconsciously tugged on his cloak. He felt around his body to feel if he still had his things. He did.

"What is this place?" He asked, his fingers tugging on the neckline of his shirt that felt a bit suffocating - a nervous habit of his. He stood too close to the larger and unfamiliar man, so he nervously took a step back, eyes flickering at the man's appearance. Older, larger and most probably stronger. Bigger people made him nervous. The look on the faces didn't matter. His friends taught him that people with kind faces could merely be better in hiding secrets and trickery. Granted, the men he calls friends trusted no one but the ones in their group only. They made him paranoid, too.

"Who are you?" And who are the men around them, and where was he, and just where were his friends? Where was Ni-. He exhaled, thinking about the fact that he shouldn't dwell on things that aren't currently in the present. The first thing was that he should look for familiar things, but nothing seemed familiar at the moment because he was still trying to clear his mind.

Nothing was familiar and it didn't make sense.


[System]
Age: 21
Bio:
* Was initially catatonic when she was found, barely responding even after being treated. Apparently the only thing she used to do was weep at night, but she has little memory of this happening. Eventually she would follow instructions and generally react to the adults speaking to her, but wouldn't speak. Once she did come out of her shell, her strong personality clashed with the other children, often expecting them to bend to her will without question.
* Her earliest memory comes from getting hit by a ball, having been taken on a walk by one of the workers. Despite getting hit in the face, she apparently laughed it off, letting go of the worker's hand to go play with the other children.
* She was particularly attached to another orphan by the name of Grisha, a dark haired boy. Often chasing him around (much to his irritation), she was particularly apologetic to him, though when asked why he wouldn't leave him alone, she would only reply that she needed to apologize. As for what, no one knew, but Grisha wasn't too happy about it. Fortunately for him, as they got older, she did put a more respectful distance and eventually they got along better. He was one of the boys in a group that ended up getting indoctrinated some years down the line.
* One of the caretakers, an older woman by the name of Natasha, suspected Katya may have been nobility by the way she acted. She helped the child transition into a common life, teaching her how to speak to people without being so haughty. She found it rather amusing that despite having no memories, she still acted like a member of a noble family and often indulged her when she could. Instilling good values into the girl to the best of her ability, she is the reason why Katya works to get what she wants, having taught her that if you wanted something you had to get out there and take it for yourself. Sadly she passed away when Katya was a teenager of old age.
* Katya has an unexplainable desire to find someone; she wants to think that it is her family, but she feels it is not the case. She does not know who it is nor does she have any idea why, only 'feeling' it and figuring she would know when she would find them. She rarely brings it up, realizing it is an impossible task and one unlikely to happen. The one thing she wants more than anything is to find this person and apologize, though she doesn't even know why or what she did.
* Has sold her hair twice; the first time she was outright approached as a child, and despite not quite understanding why the man had wanted her hair, she obliged. Natasha wasn't too happy when Katya returned to the orphanage with a shaved head, though her heavy pockets let her know that this was a great way to make money. The second time was after Natasha's death, and was Katya's first step into working towards her goal.

Natasha Alexeev - Primary caretaker, she oversaw much of the operations of the orphanage Katya grew up in. She assumed Katya to be nobility by the clothing she wore, ordering the other caretakers to hide her once the Bolsheviks came searching for any runaway royalty. Despite the girl having no memory of who she was, her strong personality caused adult and child alike to reject her. Taking pity, Natasha raised her the best she could, teaching her how to better socialize. When Katya mentioned wanting to work, she was initially concerned the girl's naivete would cause her to get taken advantage of. Before she passed away, she left her entire set of jewelry to Katya, including a pair of silver earrings (ones she wore often) and a pair of valuable sapphire earrings.

Grisha Dobrow - A young boy who was placed in the orphanage by his father after his mother passed away. His father returned for him when he was 16, and drafted several other boys his age to be indoctrined into the Bolsehvik army. He has grown into a hardened soldier and learned the truth of the siege, believing that it was a necessary evil despite the lives lost. He doesn't believe the rumor going around about the survival of the last Romanov, but looks to dispel it as quickly as possible, only lamenting that an innocent soul has to be taken in exchange.

Yana and Lev - A pair of inseparable boys, the mischievous Lev always had a follower in Yana. He was best friends with Grisha, though he would often butt heads with Katya over her clinginess to him. Lev has grown crueler over the years, with Yana following dutifully, even as he quietly questions the things happening in their country as well as his friends' sanity.
Age 9 - Catatonic for two months, slowly starts to come out of her shell, amnesia apparent

Age 10 - Her attachment to Grisha is apparent, much to the boy's annoyance

Age 11 - While out in the street, a man makes a comment on how much someone would pay for her hair. Katya sells it and gives the money to Natasha, who is none too pleased.

Age 15 - The boys are adopted by a soldier. Grisha and Katya promise to reunite someday.

Age 16 - Natasha passes away. Katya shaves her head and starts working in hopes of getting a ticket out of Russia.

Age 21 - Finally gets enough money for her ticket to Paris. [RP Start]

[User]
Momentarily confused by his assumption assumption, Katya hesitated for a moment. Moscow? Ailing mother? She supposed it shouldn't be surprising that people would just assume the worst, but it was the disdain he had as he spoke that irked her slightly. They were complete strangers, there was no need to jump to any conclusions just yet. Though she supposed it was a bit hypocritical, as she already assumed he was a huge jerk and wasn't going to be letting up anytime soon.

"I...don't really know if I even have a mother," Katya admitted slowly, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. "So if she's ailing I wouldn't know too much about that. Maybe she's alive, maybe she's dead...Who knows, I don't know much about my family so your guess is as good as mine."

Realizing she was getting off topic, Katya caught herself as she tried to rerail the conversation, clearing her throat. "Anyway, there was no story or anything, I have the money and just want to leave Russia. This is going to sound crazy, but I actually don't really know where I need to go. Anywhere is fine," Vague, perhaps, but she was driven enough to know that all this guy wanted was money. And as long as he didn't ask for anything insane, she could afford anything he asked.

[Assistant]
Feliks' eyebrow raised again at the girl as she prattled on about her memories, or lack thereof. Odd, for sure, but even more odd that she felt the need to explain all of that to him. His comment about a mother in Moscow was just a common joke; visiting a dying family member was a common excuse used by people trying to convince the checkpoint officers to let them pass without the proper documents. "Right, good to know," he commented flatly, absently digging in his breast pocket for another cigarette.

No sooner had he pulled it out, though, than he heard a little bell, and looked over to see that the damn shopkeep had finally opened up. Tucking his cigarette back into its case for later, he motioned with his head to the shop, looking to the girl. "Come with me."

He didn't wait for her to reply before he pushed off the wall he had been leaning on. When he moved, however, he really did stick out of the crowd; he walked with a pronounced limp, clearly favouring his left leg. He made a beeline for the shop door, grasping the door frame to climb the single step that led up to it. Once inside, he went straight to the counter, exchanging a brief greeting with the shopkeep, an older gentleman who seemed to still be getting everything set up for the day. Behind him were a number of shelves, with various varieties and colours of ink in bottles on display. Along the walls of the shop were numerous different types and sizes of paper, and even a few bound books, though considering the nature of the shop, they were probably blank. In lieu of talking to him further, Feliks simply handed the shopkeep a list, who took it and promptly set about finding whatever was on it.

Leaning gratefully against the counter, Feliks stifled a groan, shifting his weight so as to put as little on his left side as possible. Mornings were always a bitch for that hip, and standing still in the cold for half an hour certainly hadn't helped. The inside of the shop was marginally warmer, but all he found himself longing for was another cigarette and a seat by the fire once he got back. For the moment, though, the girl's odd request got him thinking.

"Anywhere is fine?" he repeated, a little incredulously. "Surely you have some idea of where you want to go. And I'll need an actual destination if I'm going to help you with your problem." He and the shopkeep briefly met eyes, though a warning look from Feliks set the man back to work. Those damn gears in Feliks' head were turning, but he didn't want to run too far away with the Russian Circus on that bright idea just yet.

"Well, why are you leaving?" He asked, deciding to take some pity on the girl and help her out a little. Besides, if she made up her mind, he'd have a paying customer. "Are you looking for something? Want to do something? Or do you just want to escape the burning barn of a country that is great mother Russia?" His last suggestion was laced with no small amount of acid, Feliks' face twisting up in disgust.

[User]
Feliks wasn't turning her away, so Katya took it as a good sign. His comment was dismissive, but he wouldn't have told her to follow him if he wasn't going to help. Alright, looks like she was making some progress! The blonde visibly relaxed, nodding as he told her to follow him, though her expression fell as she watched him walk. Well, not walk; it looked like he was having some difficulty, surprising her with the speed of which he limped. It didn't look like he was injured, and she didn't notice him minding it too much. Maybe something from the past? A prick of pity hit her, though she snapped out of her thoughts as she realized she was being left behind.

Entering the shop, she followed Feliks almost dutifully, though her eyes wandered the shop briefly. It had been some time since she had shopped for--actually, she had not shopped in general in some time. Anytime she had entered a place it had usually been to either ask for work or fulfilling some errand for pay. Still, something about the place was interesting to her, sparking her curiosity until she would come to a stop behind Feliks.

His expression caught her attention as he leaned against the counter. Something about him being in pain pulled at her heartstrings, regardless of how he spoke to her. No one deserved to be in pain. As he inquired about her destination, Katya shifted her weight from one leg to another, giving him a half-hearted shrug. "Well, you're right. I don't need to go anywhere, but if I'm being honest, I want to go to Paris," She confessed, frowning once again.

Teetering on deciding whether or not to give him the whole story, she exhaled a heavy sigh, gesturing towards outside. "It's as good a place to start as any, since I'm searching for someone. And as far as I'm aware, they're no longer in Russia," Katya informed him, the certainty in her voice slowly dissipating the longer she went on. And now for the part that usually made people give her that look. "Don't ask me how I know that, though. Because I actually have no idea who they are or if they're still waiting for me in Paris, but...I know they're not here. So that's why I need those papers." She braced herself for his reaction, watching him somewhat warily.

[Assistant]
Paris? Jeez, good thing he got that out of her. That was a bit of a bigger deal than Moscow, but luckily it wasn't anything Feliks hadn't done before. It certainly was strange, though, to have a peasant girl looking to go to Paris; she didn't look like she had much money to spare, and from what he'd heard it wasn't a cheap city. Maybe she'd scrounged together enough money for a train ticket, but what did she expect to do once she was there? Granted, most of what he knew about Paris was that it was a popular destination for fleeing nobility after the Bolshevik takeover, and he still got the occasional former Imperial court member or miscellaneous aristocrat feeling the pressure and wanting to get out, people who had managed to hide some amount of wealth from the communists and could afford to start a new life somewhere they'd be respected. And they were usually being forced to leave, knowing they'd be executed if the Bolsheviks got wind of who they were, but this girl simply wanted to leave. Curious indeed.

By the sounds of it, this girl was as confused as he was. Searching for someone in Paris, but she didn't know who…

Feliks almost tsked at himself before he realized how insane that would make him look. Of course, he was crazy even thinking that. She was a paying customer with blonde hair and blue eyes, nothing more.

"Well, that's certainly something," he commented finally, turning his gaze to the shopkeep as he finished gathering the items Feliks had requested. They didn't need to exchange words, quite familiar with the process at this point; Feliks simply slid the money across the counter, trading it for his purchases.

"Anyway, whatever the reason, I can help you," he continued, shoving off the counter with his paper bag of items in hand. "Come with me, I'll see if I have any documents for Paris ready. I'll also need your name." With that he started out the shop and down the street, not so much as checking to see if she was following as he limped along at the briskest pace he could manage, eager to get the hell out of the cold and wondering if he'd have to re-stoke the fire when he got back.