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Post by Xenos on Sept 30, 2008 13:16:41 GMT -5
Immediately after Xenos exited the rain beneath the overhanging walkway, a weight lifted from his shoulders; they were here and hope was not lost! Aerith had braved through the worse with iron will beneath immobile limbs and his chest swelled with pride for the woman's struggle. "Squall," Xenos whispered hoarsely, "I'm going to take Aerith into the inn, but I need you to resupply us with everything we'll need-- food, water, armor, clothes." He had to use a hand to get to his coin purse, so he propped Aerith up on a crooked leg and tossed the money to her Knight. "Take this and get everything. I've got enough on me to pay for room and board for the night."
He slipped a hand back underneath the fold of Aerith's knees and nodded to Tiamat. "Let's go," he told her softly and plunged back out into the rain towards the inn. The little wooden sign clicked as drops of rain clashed against it, but soon the rain began to lighten and Xenos heaved a deep sigh.
With a struggle, he managed the door open and stumbled in with all eyes on them. "Disaster," he murmured through exhaustion, "down south... barely escaped, monsters everywhere...." Xenos coughed and coughed again, his act changing rude stares to ones of pity.
"Here," someone said, "follow me, I'll get you to a room." Xenos weakly nodded and followed as murmurs sprang up behind them, saying "The Opera House?" "What happened?" "Monsters?" "What was that with him?" "Dragon feet." "Cursed woman...."
The stout man opened the door for him with a key and led them inside. Xenos immediately found the bed (feather stuffed, it seemed.) and placed Aerith into the soft refuge. He dropped to his knees beside the bed and put his head onto the surface for a brief moment. "A Healer," he said to the man who showed them there, "If you can spare one." He reached into his pocket and pulled out some coin for the man. "We need to stay the night and to heal, please."
Dumbfounded, the man nodded (his bushy mustache bobbled with his head like a living creature) then he left the key on the nightstand and left.
Xenos dropped back from his knees to sit on the dry floor. They were finally here. They were safe.
"Tiamat," He whispered, "What next?" Xenos shook his head dumbly and wrung out his ponytail. "Where should we go from here? The Garden? Back to Zanarkand?" His eyes turned to Aerith, "She's our only hope, now that Ultimecia is gone.... I have to explain everything from the beginning. I'm to blame and she has the right to know."
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Tiamat
Villain
Queen Supreme of Extraordinary
Posts: 655
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Post by Tiamat on Nov 4, 2008 14:25:29 GMT -5
((Yes, I know, Epic Fail. If you only knew how many posts I had started. Also I actually forgot where we are supposed to be going so my hands are kind of tied here w/r/t your question. Did we discuss this somewhere? I don't have access to the Villain Board or admin board, and I am having trouble sifting through the stuff in plot discussion. Anyway, tell me if I need to change my answer.))
Tiamat followed Xenos into the inn, dragging her lethally spiked tail and large, clawed feet, leaving a trail of muddy water and scratching up the already less-than-pristine wooden floor. She caught the dirty looks directed at her from the people in the lobby as she followed Xenos and the innkeeper, and glared right back, twitching her tail menacingly.
The room, such as it was, was passably appointed. The bed was made with reasonably clean linens and there was a long, low bench along one of the walls. Here Tiamat sat herself gingerly, taking care to arrange her tail so that she was sitting comfortably, before lifting her gorget, then her pauldrons over her head and dropping them gracelessly to the floor. They landed with a loud clatter and she shoved them under the bench with one of her feet. She pushed up her bronze faceplate into her coarse, pale hair and watched Xenos conduct a transaction with the man who'd led them to the room. Xenos was sitting on the floor; Tiamat was leaning back on the bench, her long legs stuck out.
"What next?" she sighed. "I care not. I will follow you, of course." She laughed throatily. "I suspect, however, we might do well in Zanarkand."
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Post by Xenos on Nov 4, 2008 16:38:05 GMT -5
((Sorry! I didn't even realize that you didn't have any access to the villain board! I made you a Villain, so you should be able to get into the "After Jidoor" thread. We never decided anything because we were waiting for you to put in your two cents. D: ))
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Post by Xenos on Nov 16, 2008 12:18:46 GMT -5
Xenos sighed and shook his head, tiredly. "Going back wouldn't do us any good." He gave a weak chuckle, "I should have thought of that before. The Fayth are too weak now, so we have to find a way to strengthen them before we can do anything else...." His head felt like it was spinning. They needed a way to reinforce the world, but how would they get that kind of power? Where could they find any sort of magic to support them? He gripped at his head as he had when he was younger. Nothing made any sense anymore. Where had he lost his way? When would he find his way back? "Even now it's still a power struggle. What good would it do us if we even tried to go to Esthar now? They'd turn us away like always. They have the power, but they've turned it into a monopoly."
Xenos scoured his brain for any other source of magic he could get his hands on. Bahamut was out of the question, now. How many other of the summons here would scorn them? They could tame the Dragons under Tiamat's reign, but that would be brute force, not the strength they needed. There was the Iifa Tree with its vast amount of lifestream bubbling under the roots. He paused and lingered on that thought. Lifestream would have all the essence they would ever need! The rich, glowing substance was so full of everything they needed that it could kill a person if immersed. It seemed perfect!
Then Xenos caught himself. How could they harness the power of this dying planet? Would it be a good choice to feed off of something so corrupted? He looked to Aerith who lay on the bed, her breathing shallow. Would she survive the onslaught of the minds and souls the Lifestream would bring? There had to be another option!
His mind reeled on images and on people he'd seen so many times before while this world was reborn. He saw Seymour with his Summoner's magic, derived from the Fayth. He saw the GFs and the summoner he'd spent his youth with and how the GF had destroyed his mind. He saw Sephiroth with his crystalline Lifestream, the Materia-- chancy to come upon and hard to find strong enough to be much good. Then he saw the Espers, a wellspring of power trapped inside blocks of their own magic.
Where had that monster, Kefka, gotten his power? Xenos chewed his lip. It had to do with the Espers. It had to do with the Goddesses.... "The statues," Xenos murmured, "I wonder...." The man turned his masked gaze to the half-woman before him and asked, "Do you think we could get through the barrier to the Esper Village?" This could be their only choice.
((I was going to write something about rations, but I sent Squall out on that errand. I hope she's able to come back.... T_T))
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Post by Aerith Gainsborough on Nov 28, 2008 1:28:14 GMT -5
((I can't guarantee how good this will be, but I'm gonna put something here that resembles a post.))
Before Tiamat could answer, even open her mouth, a rather large woman of around 50 threw open the heavy door. The dented doorknob slammed into a depression in the room's dark wood framework. With a sharp warning glare at the other two, she knelt there at the bedside. Tough, practiced hands flew about Aerith's body: forehead, throat, wrist. The woman frowned, frustrated, then pulled her necklace from around her neck. A green shard (smooth and gently arced on one side, sharp like glass on the other) dangled from the fine chain she held in her large, calloused hand. As the Healer stared at the Materia shard, it began to gently circle clockwise as it hung over Aerith's heart. The movement was sluggish and weak. With one more glance at the younger woman's face, the Healer spun around to Xenos. "What did you do to her? Her magic is almost completely depleted. Whatever fool spell you were making your White Mage perform sucked out all her mana and had to start leeching from her health." Her eyes narrowed. "Judging from your wounds, it wasn't a healing spell." She stood up and loomed her impressive bulk over Xenos. "Healers are for healing. Black Mages," the woman appraised Tiamat with a disapproving eyebrow, "or whatever she is, they do the other kinds." She practically slammed two glass bottles - one red and one blue - down onto the table. "Let her sleep until she wakes up, which should be any time now, then give her these. No running or swimming and CERTAINLY no casting until tomorrow. That'll be 150 gil." She sighed and took one last glance over at Aerith's sleeping form. "Men like you don't deserve girls like that." Then she was out the door.
((woman's rubbing salt and lemon all over your broken heart, Xen. Aerith will wake up next turn.))
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Post by Xenos on Nov 28, 2008 11:04:01 GMT -5
(( MY SWEET SWEET, SALTED HEART!))
Xenos handed over the money when asked and silently, with a bit of anger and guilt vying for his attention in his chest, watched her go. It wasn't anything Xenos had done to get Aerith to throw her soul out to the world. It was nothing that they could have avoided, either. There was no blame on him in this. The same would have happened had the woman remained Seymour's charge, certainly. As powerful as the Maester was, there was absolutely no way that a single person could have rescued them from the Sinspawn. There was no one who could have guaranteed their escape from the Lunar Cry. Aerith had done everything in her power and overextended herself. She had saved their lives, whether or not her action had been intentional. Xenos chuckled, but eventually his shoulders began to shake and the laugh grew to be almost hysterical. "I don't deserve a woman like that!" He couldn't hold back any longer, so he threw back his head and let the laughter pour out of him like the molten tears running down his face (aptly hidden by the ivory mask). The irony of the woman's words tore him apart from the inside-- he'd once deserved a woman like that! He'd let her escape from him! He'd turned his back on her! Only now, when that particular destiny had run its course was he given a second chance, but this woman was not for him. Xenos didn't deserve her, but they needed her.
So, the white SeeD's laughter ran its course and he fell into tired silence once more. "Tiamat. What am I turning into?" He rested his head on the bedside table behind him. "I used to know who I was, but being near these two is making me doubt." Xenos' head rolled to one side so that he could clearly see Aerith on the bed. "I am the Destroyer," he said softly to the young woman, "and you are the Creator. Only with the two of us can we fix this world."
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Tiamat
Villain
Queen Supreme of Extraordinary
Posts: 655
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Post by Tiamat on Dec 16, 2008 19:55:24 GMT -5
Tiamat slunk lower down on the bench and folded her hands together over her chest. She didn't put much stock in the scolding of the healer-woman; she was just some fat old woman, full of hot air, running her busybody mouth off when her tiny human brain naturally could not comprehend the situation. Xenos, however, appeared to have taken some of her ignorant ravings to heart. She supposed it was something in human nature. She watched his meltdown with an impassive face, waiting for his hysterics to pass. He seemed to calm down; she chose to ignore his more existential question in favor of the more practical one.
"I have never been to the Esper Village myself. But I do not doubt that we can get through the barrier. We are not inconsiderable mages ourselves, sir. We are, in fact, a force to be reckoned with. That is, if asking politely doesn't work." She grinned wickedly.
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Post by Xenos on Feb 24, 2009 10:28:26 GMT -5
Turning his attention back to Tiamat, Xenos nodded briefly. "You are right, Tiamat, but I can only hope that things don't come to that." He didn't want to have the summons against him. If he could befriend a few, then it would be much to their advantage.... "If we could get away with both the statues and a few summons at our back, it might be possible to strengthen the Fayth until we do what has to be done."
Xenos shook his head and then looked up to the ceiling, "I've made too many mistakes, Tiamat and I can't afford to make any more. We've lost everything because of my selfish mistakes. Because I turned my back on the one person who mattered most to me, our world fell apart." He sighed and stood, "I will not make that mistake again, Tiamat. Aerith is the only chance we have and I'm not about to turn the strongest beasts in the world on her because of a tiff over who has more rights to the goddess statues." Xenos' voice had become firm and full of purpose, once again but the volume had increased, he noticed at the last moment, so, quietly he turned to Aerith, who was still sleeping soundly on the bed and brushed some of those bangs out of her face. "Tiamat, she's not Ultimecia, but she's just as strong. I can feel it in her, even not being her true knight. With Aerith, we have a chance to make amends for our mistakes." He grit his teeth beneath the smooth cover of his mask and said, "I'm not going to turn my back on her like I did Ultimecia."
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Post by Xenos on May 23, 2009 12:42:31 GMT -5
(Hey, Jess, I'm going to give you a chance to enter as Squall and we're going to head out to the Castle. Does that sound okay? I want to get this moving.)
Xenos shook his head and stood. "Where is Squall?" He asked suddenly. "If we're going to visit the espers, we're going to need a little more than just food." The white SeeD peeled off the soaked-through white button up and pulled open the window to wring out the fabric. The window faced the street they had used to come in and Xenos could see that the rain was still falling pretty evenly. Across the way, distorted by the downfall, Xenos caught sight of the SeeD in question. "Squall!" He called out, "Just bring what you have, we'll take care of the rest later."
He pulled his head in from the window and, with a sneer of distaste, put on the cold, damp shirt. "Tiamat, what do you think?" Xenos turned his gaze to the woman still sleeping on the bed. "Do you think it would be safe enough to transport her?" A part of Xenos said that she needed to stay put and rest, but time was crucial. She could rest while moving, right? They would just have to be sure she was covered and dry. He distantly hoped that Squall had picked up fresh clothes for the mage, at least. He'd leave it to Tiamat to change the woman if Squall had, indeed done something useful.
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Tiamat
Villain
Queen Supreme of Extraordinary
Posts: 655
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Post by Tiamat on Jun 2, 2009 21:31:25 GMT -5
((B-bam! Clearly handwriting out my posts is the way to go. It gets done much faster this way.))
Tiamat rose slowly and came to stand next to Xenos, stretching her arms over her head (careless of the sharp, bony protrusions from her elbows) and popping her shoulders. She leaned over Aerith, her nostrils flared as she inhaled deeply. Her delicate nose could not detect the stench of death, though the magic that usually crackled in the air around the mage, like bursts of pure oxygen, was still noticeably absent. Her skin was still so pale as to be translucent, but at least her breathing had evened out and deepened slightly. Tiamat looked back up at Xenos.
"She's out of danger, but nowhere near being back in commission. She should be fine. Perhaps we should cast a sleep spell on her to keep her under for the flight?" She laughed sharply. "It could get bumpy."
With that Tiamat turned back towards the bench, mindful to keep her tail from knocking Xenos' legs out from under him. She knelt and collected her armor, and stood with a heavy sigh. Tiamat would never admit it aloud, but she had hoped they'd be spending the night here. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept through the night. As she was slipping her pauldrons back over her head, the door swung open, and Squall walked in.
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Post by Squall Leonhart on Jun 3, 2009 8:52:35 GMT -5
((This is probably the longest post I will ever write, ever, so prease to enjoy. PS lol Squall having to pick out clothes. Aerith is going to look like she stepped out of the Urban Outfitters catalog (catalog, really spell check, really? Not catalogue? Man). That's either great or terrible, depending on your taste.))
Squall wandered the streets of Jidoor, his boots alternately squelching in the mud and maintaining a tenuous friction against the wet cobblestones. The first thing her bought, from a woman selling fruit, was a sturdy canvas sack for carrying his other purchases. He also picked out a couple of small but unblemished apples and a handful of assorted nuts. Then, thinking that Aerith might not be up to any strenuous chewing, he also picked up a soft, fleshy fruit that he had never seen before. The fruit vendor assured him that it was both flavorful and healthful. That remained to be seen, but she also pointed him in the direction of the apothecary and the general mercantile district, so Squall thanked her rather more warmly than was his custom (which is to say, at all).
Squall went though his errands mechanically, his mind preoccupied preoccupied. Potions, check. Ethers, check. How did I get here? He blinked. The man behind the counter looked at him expectantly and Squall dropped a few coins into his hand. Of course, I came with Xenos and Tiamat. The bell over the door tinkled brightly as Squall left the shop.
It had been easy, though, not to think, for example in Bevelle. Squall had been firmly in mission mode. But trying to remember anything before...before he woke up in the castle caused his mind to fog over. The thoughts glimmered and popped like soap bubbles. Best not to think of it, then, and retreat back into mechanical mission mode.
New gloves, check. Perhaps some new clothes for Aerith. Her dress of simple material had had it the worst in the fray at Bevelle. She was smaller than Rinoa Rinoa Squall shook his head like a dog with water in its ears and went back to rifling through clothes. A simple shift dress in un-dyed muslin. She'd like that, easy to move in. Squall checked the money purse and considered whether Aerith might need new shoes as well, but the boots she had were sturdy. The shopkeeper suggested a slip to wear with the dress, for modesty. Squall acquiesced and also selected a hooded coat and a pair of thick, pink, tights, considering that it would be cold should Tiamat be flying them anywhere. Now, the purse considerably lighter and the canvas sack full, he turned back towards the inn.
Squall stepped into the room, slung the sackful of purchases at Xenos' feet, and handed him the remainder of the money. "There's some medicine, some food...a new set of clothes for her," he said gruffly, looking to where Aerith lay on the bed. Squall pushed his rain-soaked bangs out of his eyes. His skin suddenly felt hot, and he supposed it would be his luck to catch a cold in the rain after surviving all manner of threats magical and mundane. "What's the plan?"
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Post by Xenos on Jun 27, 2009 20:24:27 GMT -5
((Lamest post in the world))
Xenos regarded the items with a vague nod. They needed to get Aerith into something warm, at least but he momentarily wondered if the change of clothes would be a waste if they would just be venturing out into the rain again. He turned his gaze back on Tiamat for a mere instant before he nodded to himself. "We need to head to the Castle," Xenos began, "The key that we need is going to be a much bigger jump than the items that this town can supply." He put his fingers to where his lips would be beneath the mask as though he didn't even notice the porcelain. "Everything we need is back at the castle and that would give us time to regroup." There was still the question of Aerith. Could she travel safely? Would this rain just make things worse? "It would be good if we could stay the night, but who knows how much time we have...." Xenos's thoughts trailed off and he fell silent.
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Post by Seltzer Grenadine on Jul 4, 2009 3:18:57 GMT -5
((<< The Falcon <<))
The descent went a bit smoother than Setzer expected, though he kept a white-knuckled grip on the wheel, fighting against the soaking winds. The steep descent had surely shifted around the contents of the cabin—Setzer visibly winced when he thought of his liquor collection—but he could sense that his passengers remained safely rooted to their spots. He couldn't be bothered, however, to turn and look until after he had broken through the cloud cover. Still, he kept his eyes forward. If they were going to land in Zozo, the towers could post a prob—"Hold on, now, where are the towers?" What had he expected? Of course Zozo wasn't there, but this? This was his hometown, nearly unchanged if not for its location. It had been so long, after all, after the building of his airship, he could hardly be bothered to spend much time in a place so rooted to the ground.
Feeling suddenly relieved, and perhaps empowered by the sight, the captain pulled his 'ship into an even landing, just at the entrance at the lower end of the town. Setzer cut the engine as soon as it touched down, and just above the dying whirr and the harsh hiss of heavy rain, he could hear a familiar voice; the old chocobo handler, who had lent him many a bird in his younger years, had heard the commotion and was now shouting up at the 'ship's occupants, smiling fondly. "Hush, you, they'll hear us," Setzer called out, rushing from his place at the wheel to the ladder leading off the airship. He flew down the rungs, waved absently at Reno and the others when his head disappeared over the side, and skipped the last couple of rungs on his way to greet and hopefully quiet the grey-haired man. "Listen, old man. I haven't got much time. I'm looking for someone."
The man clapped a chapped hand on Setzer's shoulder, flashing a knowing smile. "Still up to your old ways?" he boomed, voice going quiet at the end when Setzer shushed him again. The captain shook his head, laughed softly. "No, no, someone else stole the girl, this time." The handler gave him a quiet "oh," at that. "Listen, have you seen anyone strange coming through here? Two men, a woman and," he gestured at first, but gave up quickly, "a dragon." The old man seemed to consider it for a moment before he nodded, gesturing northward. "Thataway," he mumbled, looking a little grim, "the girl didn't look so swell, tell th' truth." Setzer sighed, nodded, and gave the man a soft, albeit bothered smile. He knew the man had not bothered to investigate further; he had birds to tend, and not much surprised him anymore. He gripped the old man's hand and gave it a firm shake, "Thanks." The old man shook his head and gave a little wave, turning back to his stables. Setzer could just hear him murmur something about heroics and chasing after girls who probably don't love you when he disappeared through the door.
With a quiet and much needed laugh, the captain turned back to his ship and strode back to the ladder. There, he leaned against the hull, waiting for the other men to gain their bearings and join him on the ground.
((Man, so, finally. Right? That felt good. So, basically what we need to do is decide how this is going to go down. I imagine Xenos will probably be alerted by the sound of the airship, and possibly a commotion with some of the residents of the town. Are we going to have a gut-wrenching moment of chase, where Xenos and crew escape at the last moment, or is Xenos and Co. going to slip out behind our backs?))
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Post by Xenos on Jul 22, 2009 14:19:06 GMT -5
((I have no clue. I guess we'll just see how this goes. I finally put this back up on my bookmarks AND on my tool bar, so I'll be reminded!! Sorry for the wait!!))
Xenos's silence was interrupted by the sudden jolting ground. The distant sounds of steam pulled his attention to the window and he hurriedly peered out. "My friends," Xenos began, "It seems like we have no time at all." He gathered the items from Squall and wrapped them in one of the sheets from the bed which he carefully pulled from underneath the unconscious woman. "It looks like we've got someone tailing us." The SeeD chanced another quick glance outside, but could make out no more than a dark figure speaking to a local. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible if we're to avoid trouble. Tiamat," he said with his eyes trailing over her humanesque face for a mere instant, "I hope you're ready, because we're going to need to get out of here quickly." The man hated the thought of throwing caution to the wind, but in this great hurry, there would be no need to keep the locals from getting suspicious. "Squall, get Aerith; we're leaving immediately."
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Post by Reno on Jul 22, 2009 14:38:11 GMT -5
It didn't take Reno long for him to find his footing on still ground. One too many trips on airships in Midgar had taken care of his disorientation years ago. While Setzer had gone down in a hurry to speak to the loud old geezer on the ground, Reno had leisurely let go of the railing he'd been gripping and lazily approached the edge where the Captain had disappeared.
"Any luck, Captain?" the Turk asked with a wink. He cast his gaze out on the town and smiled. "Looks homey. Could do with a cup of nog to warm up your bones, though."
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