BoZV - Arc 5

[Arashi]

Silver looked a bit confused by Alriik's reaction.

"...Sure?" She spoke in reply to him quietly. She wasn't too sure of him yet, but he left a pretty good first impression by being nice so there was that. She couldn't really blame anybody for being spooked by the book if they knew what it was, too.

She then noticed Hien approaching. She would attempt to pet the tiny wyvern, in hopes of gaining his trust at the very least. She didn't want such an innocent creature being afraid of her; she'd rather befriend him. Plus, he was pretty adorable and she's wanted to pet him basically since the moment she saw him.

She would then look over and listen to Aqua as she began to speak. What she said first caught Silver off guard a bit; she tilted her head slightly in confusion, not really getting what she was saying. What did that mean? She glanced over at Rion for a moment, noticing that he looked over at her and then very quickly looked away.

And then she got it after a moment of thinking and again...didn't really know how to react at what was being implied there. She felt her cheeks flush a bit, but luckily the way she was sitting plus her mask would hide that pretty well unless someone was looking close enough. And before she could get a chance to really react further anyway, Aqua had handed her some paper currency with...her face on it? She let that catch her attention. She knew that only people of great importance ended up on currency...so Aqua must be pretty important. She couldn't help but think that was pretty cool.

She stared at the paper bill for a few moments, observing it's intricacies as she listened. She would then pass the bill to Rion, as it seemed Aqua intended to have it passed around among the group.

Silver would listen quietly as Aqua went on to explain how she became the so-called princess of her people. Aqua didn't seem to think of herself as a princess, but Silver silently agreed with the townspeople. With how incredible her mother was, Aqua clearly deserved the title and the respect. She had always heard that elves were powerful in terms of magic, but she didn't know they were capable of being that powerful.

She would not have any questions; she was too tired to really think at this point. But the way she watched Aqua as she spoke showed that she was amazed by her story. She didn't really expect Aqua to be someone of such high status, only because of how humble and kind she tended to be. It was a big contrast to what she was used to for people like her; usually they were not so nice. It made her feel honored, in a way, that Aqua had chosen to travel with the party.

Silver would wait to see what the others would say and how they would react. Sleepiness was starting to win her over though, and she yawned. With the interesting story that was keeping her awake over, she was liable to nod off at any moment.

[Tony]

Arne listened intently to Aqua's tale of her heritage... which was intertwined with a history lesson about the founding of the frontier. As the story was told, Hien started cuddling up to Silver. Doing his best to help cheer up the clearly distraught dragon girl.

Arne spoke up after Aqua finished with her story. "Makes sense why people treat you like you're royalty here. And your mother sounds like quite the mage. Pulling an entire city into the sea... that's a hell of a feat. But... with her being so widely idolized her, it's honestly kinda surprising anyone would even think about trying to do anything to your family. This kinda makes what's happening with your father a bit... confusing..."

[Swim]

Terra listened intently as Frida took her turn to share, and the answer she gave was a whole lot more than Terra had been expecting after asking the Princess question. Frida had already shared parts of this with Terra, but the full story, the details about the revolution and the founding of The Frontier were completely new to her. In particular the extraordinary feat of General Aqua, severing Atlantis from the continent and drowning her pursuers... it was incredible. Terra might have doubted the legitimacy of the story if it had come from anyone other than Frida. Suddenly the pieces began to make sense, and Terra felt a sense of foreboding for Frida's father. Itham must have enemies within The Frontier who felt emboldened by General Aqua's absence. It seemed like Rion and Arne were coming to the same conclusion, even though they hadn't been filled in on all of the details that Terra had been privy to. She'd leave it to Frida to answer those questions, it wasn't her place to volunteer that information. Terra recalled the pained expression that had suddenly appeared on Frida's face the first time she had asked about her mother. She knew it was more than just a sensitive subject for Frida, the elf carried her mother's loss like an open wound.

It certainly gave Terra a lot to think about, but Frida was right that it was getting late and they should begin to wind things down. She kept quiet now to allow the others ask the more important questions if they wanted to. For her part Terra couldn't help but dwell on the revelation of Frida's age. Logically she understood that this was probably the least important thing that her friend had divulged, but age was difficult to determine with elves and she'd been nowhere close to the mark. All this time Terra had just assumed that Frida was several times her senior, it now felt very strange to learn that she was actually 9 years younger. Terra knew that Itham was at least 350, and that The Frontier had gained independence about 200 years ago. Now she wondered how long Frida's parents had been together and why they'd only decided to have one child so many years later. It seemed very peculiar to Terra, but it wasn't worth bringing up tonight. Still, Terra couldn't help but feel that something felt different now as she studied the elf and listened as she fielded the incoming questions of their friends.

[Sorrum]

Aqua folded her arms and looked down when both Rion and Arne asked the most logical question. If she was so special, why was her father in jail? "Of course, as important as she was nobody would harm us. You'd think so. It's just that, she isn't anymore. What I mean is.. she's gone. 10 years ago she disappeared. Nobody knows how or why, or where she'd gone too. There was nothing, no ransom, no farewell letter, nothing. The ship she traveled across the gyre on had disappeared from the harbor as well." Aqua sunk a bit lower into her slump. "There was a search party sent out, but even from the onset it looked grim. She wasn't one to just up and leave, and who in their right mind would take her away on her boat, across open water, of all things? Unthinkable.. thus, people had to think she left of her own accord. The Frontier hadn't lived up to her needs, so she left it. But then where would she have gone? Surely, a mage as powerful as her would spoken of in other parts of the world.. but no matter what port I'd find myself in, no sailors spoke or heard of a person with such caliber of skill."

"The humans have gone through several generations compared to the elves.. some of them are still around and can tell you firsthand about Neo-Vane, or about their time spent in the elf kingdom itself. But the humans, they don't remember. They just saw her as the elf in charge. She did the best she could for them, but there was little she could do to bring the humans to the same level as the elves. They are no longer slaves, but to say they are as well off as the elves is a lie. Disrespect only ever came from punks in the past, but in the last 5 years or so there's been more and more arguing between the two houses. Ever since their new head of house was elected, it just seems like my father faces a new issue every week. He's a fantastic individual and really rose to the position to lead out my mother's intentions and will for the country, but he's thought of as too traditional and set in ways that don't work for people anymore. Thus, political opponents."

Aqua rubbed her eyes. "I guess they must be getting very bold to think they can arrest him. I'll break him out myself if it comes to it." Aqua stood up and stretched. "I realize that this all might have been a bit much to say, but if I didn't tell you the whole story from the beginning none of it really would have made sense. Kinda why I skipped over it when the innkeep mentioned it in Port Sandora, so I hope you understand.."

With that, Aqua drifted over to her sleeping bag, warmed by the fire. She tossed another few logs in and let the flame rise more. "Let's get some sleep and head out at daybreak. I'll tell you all you want to know tomorrow." Aqua smiled back at the others, before laying down.

[Swim]

While Frida told the rest of the group about the mysterious circumstances of her mother's disappearance Terra went to sit beside her the way Alriik had with Terra earlier. She knew this wasn't easy to talk about but what little support she could offer at this time would probably be welcome. Frida had described her journey prior to meeting them as something of a rite of passage and self discovery. Terra now felt sure that in addition to sightseeing it was also a personal quest seeking any mention of her mother's whereabouts.

Terra wanted to hear more about Itham's political opponents and the strife building between elves and humans. She wondered if the conflict was just among the heads of government or if the general population was also feeling the tension. But Frida seemed to want to sleep, there would be time for more questions later. Terra followed suit and lay her sleeping bag down by the fire but did not immediately climb in.

"I'm going to stay up a little longer and keep watch," Terra decided. "We've already been attacked once by the creatures in this forest, I don't feel like going through that again."

[Vic Alriikerson]

The stories would be told. Everything would be said. Aqua would begin her rest and Terra would keep watch. Alriik would simply stare at the flame. They seemed to be okay with him for now… That was a good thing. But the night was heavy. And his mind wouldn't stop racing. Worry for Rion was washed over by memories of old, which were interrupted by thoughts on Aqua, and her legacy. It was all a lot. He'd need to break all the new information down piece by piece later, but… All he could do now was simply take it all in.



Alriik was oddly quiet throughout the night. He’d spend some time in his thoughts, eyes on the flame, before eventually unfurling his bed roll. He’d remove his boots and harness and attempting to get some sleep. But his mind would not stop. What if he couldn’t save Aqua’s father? What if Rion’s powers consumed him? What if Silver fell to the darkness while they were surrounded by innocents?



… What would he have to do?



He’d push those thoughts to the side, but soon memories came boiling up. The hideous smell that lingered after his father’s last strike. The taste of ash from 100 burning Altiim. The heat of off Angel’s body. Rage’s blood-chilling roar. The pure, unknowable horror in Xaphan’s eyes. Rage’s eyes. Black and empty. Alder begging to be spared. Rage's teeth. Dripping in blood. The pride after Rage taught him how to punch. Rage's claws. At his throat. The joy in Rage’s eyes. It’s been so long. My best friend. Rage… Rage standing over…. Standing… Over…



He’d sit straight up in his roll. Eyes wide. Breaths deep. He’d take a moment to collect himself… It… It was over. It... Was over. He’d groan, before stretching and getting up. He had managed to sleep for a few hours at least. Time for second watch. He’d put his boots and harness back on before rolling up his bed roll and putting it up. After just another moment to collect himself, he’d walk over to Terra. “So… Me and sleep aren't too agreeable right now. I got it from here, go get your rest.”

[Swim]

Terra's watch had been uneventful, no additional beasts came tearing out of the forest to assail them. In fact, the only movement Terra perceived was Alriik, the poor elf tossing and turning in his sleep. Terra pitied him, she supposed it was too much to hope that he'd sleep peacefully after finally getting so much off his chest. She couldn't imagine the psychological trauma that he'd endured over the years.

Suddenly he'd gasp and bolt upright. Terra looked away, intent that he not catch her staring. After a few minutes he got up and came over to take over the watch. By this time she was plenty tired and grateful for the chance to get some sleep. Still, Alriik had an exhaustion about him and Terra supposed it wasn't all from tiredness. "Say Alriik," she said quietly, turning away from her sleeping bag to face him. "You shared a lot of really incredible sounding things tonight, I'm still working on processing it all... but I just wanted to tell you that I trust you, and you've got my full support. And if you ever need someone to talk to about the hard stuff... you can count on me. I'll have your back."

With that Terra walked over to her sleeping bag, already pre-warmed from the fire and crawled in. After a few minutes she drifted off and began to sleep soundly.

[Vic Alriikerson]

"Appreciate it. And same to you." He'd flash her a tired smile as she went to rest. He'd keep an eye out on the outside, mind simply... Processing. He'd sit there through the night, only rising to tend to the fire. As the sun finally rose, he'd stretch, and get a good view of the area. No monsters nearby, but... A beautiful dawn. Clambering up a tree for a better view, he'd simply take in the golden tones and the promises they held. A sign he needed after the night before.

Alriik would clamber down and approach the campfire, drawing Shirosame and Axala's Rose and clanking them together. "Wakey wakey, team. We got ground to cover and we're burning daylight." He'd sheath the blades, and begin to rock the nearest person still laying. "C'mon, get up. Woulda whipped you up breakfast, but... Seems the local fauna is currently less than edible."

[Sorrum]

Aqua had woken up once or twice throughout the night, shaken awake by disturbing dreams and kept awake by the stories her comrades told her. She'd catch only bits and pieces of Terra and Alriik's conversation, but did not register any of the information between winks. She glanced over at Silver once, still asleep under her cloak. She thought it strange she return to them as the battle with the next blight mage approached. There were many strange things happening as of late. She herself wondered who the man was in that cosmic storm that sent them to that strange city in a foreign land. She wondered where Calico was. Where her mother was. There were many things concerning Aqua's time however, most pertinent of all her father's incarceration, so she didn't linger on these thoughts and fell back into her slumber ere long.

Arisen by the sharp clinging of blades and Alriik shouting, Aqua rolled back onto her side away from him, until he began to shake her awake. "I'm up.." She groaned, sitting up and rubbing her eyes clear of grogginess. She could still feel the pain from her botched landing the night before, but it was nearly gone now. She assessed the others as they soon began to rise up as well, greeting them with a nod, then responded to Alriik's comment. "Probably for the best.. not sure if eating anything in this forest is safe.. but.. the researchers still have to eat.. so.." Aqua shook her head. "Uh, nevermind."

Aqua told the group not to bother clearing the campsite. Nobody came through the area anyway, thus it'd be better the next forlorn traveler found evidence of a campsite that didn't have any corpses, might the monsters be wary of the area after the appearance of a blighted half-dragon. That being said, the group would set off again shortly. Aqua walked over to Rion and Silver and looked them both over. Despite Rion's crystallization he didn't seem any worse for wear. The forest was considered peaceful during the daytime, and any predators they encountered would likely be harmless to their group. Silver however was a concern. The time spent in her blighted state must have taken a toll on her, so Aqua recommended they let her sleep a while longer. Before they had set out, Aqua gently woke the sleeping dragon. "Silver. Hey. It's time to go. How are you feeling? Can you walk, or does Rion have to carry you in his arms?"

[Swim]

Terra woke up still feeling a little sleepy but some physical activity would bring her to full alertness once they got moving. She yawned and rolled up her sleeping bag, then began shoving her gear into her bag. Her hand bumped into the discarded crystal she'd picked up the night before and briefly drew it out. It didn't quite gleam the way it had in the firelight, but it did feel warm to the touch which Terra was quick to register on this chilly morning. She was fascinated by this forest and its crystal formations, and was very excited to visit the research lab that Frida had spoken of. Especially if they had food there, apparently Terra had become accustomed to being woken up with freshly caught fish and her stomach rumbled with disappointment that such was not the case today. She'd power through though. Terra stood up and settled her pack behind her, ready to move on.

[Bloodbane]

With the tales of intrigue coming to an end, Rion took a moment to affix his armor once more. "Sounds like we've got something else to be on the lookout for, hm?" he said with a calm smile to Aqua before setting off to get ready for sleep, nodding in agreement at the idea of leaving any other questions for morning. Rion's thoughts would briefly on the matter of the mysterious disappearance of Aqua's mother as he settled into his sleeping bag, though he made no further mention of the issue as he finally quit resisting his exhaustion and fell asleep rather quickly.

Though morning had come without interrupting Rion's slumber, the clashing of Alriik's blades roused him rather quickly as he sat up, only to see that everyone else was waking up at Alriik's urging. Stretching his arms, Rion determined that any lingering effects from his actions the night before had passed, thus he proceeded to get things packed up as the others began waking up and doing the same. When both Aqua and Alriik mentioned the possibility of the fauna in this region not being safe to eat, Rion looked to Aqua. "Well, it's like you said... there are people who live in these parts for research, so maybe they've got some ideas for us." he replied, before watching as she made her way over to Silver, understandably deciding to let her sleep as long as the group could allow. When she woke Silver up to ask if she could walk, however, he turned his head and stifled a chuckle at what she said afterward. 'Just what is she trying to do, here...' Granted, he was getting the impression that the idea wasn't just in Aqua's mind, especially given the fact that even before the group had really come together Silver was the first to know of his condition, as he too had learned to some extent her own secret in brief moments that they had shared away from the others... but was this really the time or place to try to poke and prod about such matters?

With all that in mind, however, Rion turned his head back to where Aqua and Silver were once his belongings were together, waiting to see what Silver had to say.

[Arashi]

Silver would doze off while others asked questions, eventually falling asleep where she was on the ground with Aqua's cloak around her. Being on the ground did not seem to bother her at all; likely because it was something she had done often since she was raised as a dragon anyway. She also traveled light and did not carry sleeping bags anyhow.

Silver would sleep through the night without waking up even once, due to how worn down she was after all that fighting.

She woke up the next morning to Aqua's voice. It took some prodding to actually get her awake, and she found herself to still be quite sore...and still quite a bit worn down. Aqua asked how she was feeling, and then asked if...Rion would have to carry her? That caught her a bit off guard. She sat up quickly, alert, and not really sure what to say. She laughed nervously. Aqua appeared to be picking up on something even Silver herself wasn't quite able to decipher yet. She also wasn't used to this kind of banter at all, but she was aware that it was a form of friendliness. Most dragons were normally pretty direct in their speech, aside from Celestrus.

Truth be told, she was quite sore and unsure of herself. While the fight was a blur to her, something had surely done a number on all of her limbs, even her arms. They felt numb and slightly cold. She determined it must have been ice magic slowing her down, and while her scales were tough when it came to ice and snow, they were certainly not invincible; especially to the cold temperatures of ice magic. But now, she would be determined to not show the weakness and she couldn't really explain why.

"I-I um...," She paused for a moment and scratched her head. Her arm was a little shaky. She glanced at Rion, who seemed to be packing his things at the moment, and then back to Aqua.

"I'm fine. Don't worry!" She said in a bit of a nervous tone with an equally nervous smile, hidden under her mask. She would then take off Aqua's cloak and hand it to her after remembering she had been wearing it.

"Thank you, for allowing me use of your cloak, by the way."

She would then stand up, slowly, wincing a bit. It was rather painful, but she managed to stand. Her armor and her own cloak would hide pretty much all of the damage done, too. Likely though, if they were attacked, she would be a liability instead of an asset in her current state. She hoped things would stay peaceful for a bit, because she really hated her current inability to protect her friends.

[Sorrum]

Aqua grinned playfully as her remark startled the dragon, then her expression turned to concern as Silver struggled to stand. She'd put her hands out to catch the dragon if she fell or to help her keep her balance, "Hey, hey, easy now.." she'd worry, but it wasn't necessary. Aqua hadn't felt like her attacks did any damage the night before and that only by breaking Sharksbane halfway was she finally able to subdue her, but all that damage must be catching up now. Aqua clipped her cloak back in place somberly. "You still look a little rough. We'll break at an easy pace so you don't fall behind. It's not far to the research facility, and we'll stop and rest there." Aqua smiled at Silver, before patting her on the shoulder. "Good to have you back, Silver." With that, she turned to gather the last of her supplies and prepare to set out.

[Tony]

As story time started to wind down... Arne laid back and started to drift to sleep. Hien curled up next to him and got some rest as well. The two slept rather well considering everything that was revealed to them, and didn't stir until after Alriik start clanging his swords together.

Hien awoke first... and quickly headed off into the forest. Arne would get up soon after, and would start stretching to work out the grogginess of the abrupt awakening. "Think you could go with a method that's not as... loud next time?"

After fully waking up, he gathered up his gear and got ready to set out with the others. And around this time, Hien returned to the camp, carrying what seemed to be a crystal apple in his jaws... and offered it to Arne with muffled chirps.

With a chuckle, Arne takes the fruit from the wyvern "I don't really think I can eat this, but... good job trying to help." he gives Hien a quick pat before placing the crystal apple with the rest of his things.

[Vic Alriikerson]

Alriik would flash Arne a grin as he was asked if he could be quieter next time. “I mean… I could say 'Yes’… But we both know that'd be a lie.” He'd turn, and grab things, and look to Silver, Aqua and Rion. He felt he had a good grasp on the personalities of his group, but Silver was still an enigma to him. He wanted so badly to just assault her with questions, but… Now was not the time. He'd wait to irritate her with his unabashed presence after Aqua's father was safe. But still… A question arose in his sleepless thoughts the night before. Something eating away at his very being.



“So, uh… I might be the only one who cares, but… Does our merry band have a name? Because I absolutely refuse to call such a fine group of warriors 'the group’.” His eyes would light up, and suddenly, he was in his element. He’d clap his hands together, and a goofy grin would spread across his face. “So if anyone has any ideas, throw them out. My pick…” He’d take a moment to breathe, and his eyes returning to the rising sun. “We’re a bunch of foolhardy fighters trying to make sure tomorrow comes, so I think ‘The Dawnbringers’ is appropriate.” He’d look from friend to friend, gauging their reactions. “Any other suggestions? Thoughts?”