Bard On the Run (Insaney and Fairess)

There was nothing quite like the sound of techno music and being barely able to hear the people around you. Although Dale had entered into the massive club with Rose, the poor Fae dear, he had ditched her just as fast to continue his normal activities. There were literally hundreds of women here, and he had plans to share time with every one of them.

Or at least as many as he could before she finally caught him.

That was probably what made this game all the more fun. Could she find him? Would she find him? What if- Oh it was better to not think about that. For now, he smiled as he looked around. There had to be one overly special person tonight that could make this whole event exciting. That woman would make Rose's anger totally worthwhile, he guessed.

But for now, he drifted through the bar and dance floor area of the first floor of this building. FOr now, he'd spend time in the common area, and before he'd find his way elsewhere. "This is so going to rock!" Dale yelled, but his voice was cloaked by the obscenely loud music. "Come get me, Rosey my dear!"

Elsewhere, powerful tailwinds blew the black jacket upon the man wildly as he watched over the building. "There's a lot of them..." the man said as he adjusted the goggles he was wearing and moved them atop his head with a smile. "But most of them are pathetic, likely new to what they're doing. Still... something in there is filling up that building with a sense of desire. Best be weary."

You need to get your mind of things. Raisha's words softly circled inside Rain's ears, over and over. It didn't ring in any way. It was just there, reminding him of what he'd accomplished and how he felt. He chuckled softly as the rest of the words came in, You're being too anxious.

But is a place like this really a cure to his anxiousness? Maybe the loud music and vibe resonates with it, or drowns it out. Either way, he hadn't entered while he was thinking. He was standing outside the building all this time. "I need some more... literal action than just this." He muttered softly.

Rose grimaced at the sight, having attained a headache within the first two seconds of entering the place. She hated every last thing she could and couldn't see, cursing the fuzzy bright lights, ground trembling music (if it could, in fact, be called that), and peals of drunken laughter scraping against the walls. All she could make out was gyrating bodies and the thick stench of sweat and alcohol.

“Sir Dale!” But it was futile even as she called out. Like a minnow down a stream, the bard had flashed away and was lost, leaving the fairy to fend for herself. She stood glaring at the masses for a long moment, quickly coming to the conclusion that wading through them would bring her no closer to finding Dale. With clenched fists and gritted teeth, she stormed back out of the horrible place, bouncing laughing passerbys off her hard armor when they collided.

The air outside wasn't all that cleaner, but the solid muffling of the walls was good enough for Rose. Without the bizarre sights and smells overloading her senses, she had quiet enough to hear herself think. Alone, she couldn't best such a storm to find Dale, and she doubted he even wanted to be found. Fickle as the breeze, he went about his own fancies, and hadn't even explained what on earth was going on.

But there was something decidedly wrong with the air outside. Rose's hand instinctively went to the hilt of her blade (which all had assumed to be mere play for a costume), blue eyes icy as she quickly surveyed her surroundings. Years of training had honed her mind for finding the slightest hint of darkness, that fel power of the Unseelie Court that constantly thrust a thorn in the Fairy Queen's side. Something dark was nearby, and she doubted it could mean anything good.

The source of that darkness wasn't particularly difficult to find, but it came in a surprisingly passive form. Rose found herself staring at a tall humanoid, one with gold eyes and a rather thoughtful look on his face. If she hadn't been in such a mood from Dale's abandonment, she might have watched and waited (he did, after all, appear to be talking to himself, however quietly it was), but her impatience had been perked, and she didn't need another foul thing to ruin the already awful atmosphere.

Shoulders back and hands ready to strike, Rose marched straight up to the golden-eyed man, her fey voice edged with frost. “You are not human.”

Dale sat in the midst of the masses, telling them stories of his adventures. However unreal of overblown most of them thought what he was saying was, they couldn't help but enjoy the laughs he gave telling these stories. He stood upon the table and reenacted an epic battle he had fought. He danced and sang songs for a while, his voice even being able to magically fight with the music. And what more, these people loved him. The mindless, unwashed masses loved him.

And yet it wasn't until a fairly strapping lady with red eyes approached in a blue dress and began to speak that he actually began to listen. Especially since she only said three words. "Come with me."

Outside, the rain began to fall. A crackle of thunder echoed out through the air. What was first a light rain suddenly turned into a downpour as the two non-humans stared at each other for a brisk moment. It wasn't until the ground shook slightly next to them and the next peel of thunder and lightning brought their attention to an onlooker who had chosen to land next to them.

"I never thought I'd see you ever again," the man said, his voice having a ventilated sound thanks to the air-filtration mask he wore over his ears and nose. Aside from that, he was wearing goggles with a black tint as he stared at the two, or so they assumed, as the man crossed his arms. "And a Fae. Him being here makes sense to me, but what the hell is a fairy doing way outside of the Fae wilds?" the masked man asked as rain beat against his jacket, causing strange, clear forms to appear for a moment when the rain touched his jacket.

The man was slightly shorter than Rain and wore a black trenchcoat that was fairly standard. Fairly standard except for two things: He wore a sewn in shoulder mantle tied together by a golden string, and he had two items that looked like axes (plural of axis, not the weapon, I thank you. ) with the positive Y axis and both axes of the X formed. They also had lines emerging from the forty-five degree and one hundred and thirty-five degree marks with a semi-circle that passed through the center of all five lines. These items were attached to chains that attached to the cuffs of the man's jacket.

He cracked his hands, which were adorned in black gloves, as he took a step forwards. "Rain, what brings you here, I wonder?" the man asked, looking at the Vampire. The only other thing of note about the strange man was that he had a fairly normal pair of black pants to wrap up his peculiar costume.

He'd stood there silently until a petite young lady approached him. She was beautiful in the night's lights; rose red, curly hair and matching lips, a soft peach complexion all contrasted sharply by her deep blue but icy eyes. All this was betrayed by her expression, her hand ready at the hilt of her sword and the warm-looking red lips baring a cold greeting. "You are not human."

He looked at her in silence for a few moments. As if he were staring blankly at nothing, and then he smiled. A soft, sincere one, bearing no malice. "Neither are you," he responded, his serenity of his voice still able to be heard against the reverb of the music from inside. He turned away, still with that smile on his face. But it quickly disappeared with a peal of thunder and a crack of lightning that drowned out the city's lights for a split second. The sky seemed to weep suddenly, a light rain beginning to fall from the clouds. In that instant, someone had appeared nearby. And oddly dressed man, seemingly wearing a gas mask, or something of the sort. He seemed to know the girl, and he knew Rain. "What brings you here, I wonder?" The man asked, looking at him.

"You have me at a disadvantage," Rain replied, turning to him. The smile was gone, something wasn't right. Another low rumble of thunder came, the rain falling a little harder.

Rose wasted no time in unsheathing her weapon. Almost as quick as lightning, her sword was pointed at the masked man's throat, her fierce gaze perfectly honest in its intent to end that being's life if he made one false move. One did not strip her disguise as a fairy of the Court without speaking their intent. It didn't help that the stranger was already alien and suspicious to her eyes. With him having the advantage of her background, she felt the best thing on her side was frankness.

As for the golden-eyed man... well, she had her doubts about him, too, but the abrupt show of force would at least alert him that she meant business. She had no toleration for slinking intents, particularly when it involved dark magic. The fact that cold rain was pouring on her armor didn't help the mood.

“Who are you, and by what authority do you question my presence? Like this... creature here, I will not be put at a disadvantage by your apparent knowledge.”

"I don't question your presence, and I can see your wings... my eyes aren't that of humans... well, they are human, but they're slightly more complicated," the man said as he shifted and grasped the blade of her sword, his glove resisting the blade. "Now then, listen. If that obscene man, the one with the cloak, was with you, he's in danger. He's rushed into a hornet's nest, and if you're not quick, he'll likely die," the man said with a smile. "Well, have his soul ripped from his body and his body torn asunder, but that's neither here nor there."

The masked man turned towards rain and pointed at him as he pushed Rose's sword aside. "And you! You were a demon hunter and you can't smell the foul presence here? How pathetic have you become?!" the man questioned, shifting backwards slightly, pointing at the building. "In there are countless demons feeding on the souls of stupid people. WHy not go and figure stuff out?"

Elsewhere, Dale was chatting up a bunch of ladies, trying to figure out which one he would walk off to be elsewhere. Oh this was the thrill of the hunt he was on.

"Heh," The people were fiery around here. He watched as the girl swiftly drew her sword and went straight for the masked man. Who just stood there. Perfectly normal reaction to having a sword pointed at your throat. And now that she had moved a bit closer, Rain could get a good view of her wings. They were large, and shaped like a butterfly's; no doubt she was some sort of fairy creature.

The mask man pushed the girl's sword aside, completely ignoring the threatening glare she was burning into him, as well as the dangers of actually doing something like that. And then proceeded to chew Rain out for not noticing the 'demonic presences' surrounding them. Rain took a breath, the cold air filtered by the cool drops of rain invigorated him. It gave him a sense of serenity, despite these two in front of him.

Perhaps he wasn't entirely all there.

"There are demonic presences nearly everywhere," Rain responded, still as calm as ever, "Especially in a place like this, on a night like this. No need to rush, now." He smiled softly, not quite looking at either of them, flicking a raindrop in mid-fall with complete accuracy; though any normal person wouldn't realize the amazing thing he had just done all on his own. In the end, he had half a mind to walk away from them both. But these two were interesting; and suspicious, he thought, glancing at the masked man.

Rose growled softly as her blade was turned harmlessly aside. She never enjoyed the feeling of weakness, and here she found herself completely exposed to two strangers. But even as her other hand had moved to her whip, it had frozen in place at the mention of Dale. Merely the thought of her charge in such immediate danger without her having had a clue—it rattled her confidence, and it showed. All the sullen anger she had been building up towards the bard (especially since she blamed him for having to stand outside with the horrible water seeping down her wings) was lost in a single gasp, and she turned immediately towards the door.

Before the fairy actually took a step, however, the golden-eyed man spoke, and she found confusion added to her mix of feelings. Why was one with dark energy hunting others with dark energies? And why was this human place so full of demons? The mere thought of Dale flirting with such foul creatures made her crinkle her nose in disgust. How natural that his lust would lead him into fel danger!

“I do not have reason to trust either of your intents at the moment, but the situation at hand is grave indeed if you speak truth, stranger.” Brighter blue eyes looked to the masked man before swiveling to the taller one. “My charge is careless, greedy for attention, and overindulgent. If you aid me in locating him, I will aid you in stopping whatever foul plans the fel beings here have, should that be your intent this night. Otherwise, I shall attempt to retrieve Sir Dale myself before it is too late.”

The man paused and laughed as he removed his hood. "Well, I suppose I should introduce myself to the wandering Fae," the man said with a laugh. The man had seen Rain's actions and smiled. "You're still as quick as I remember," the man said as he removed the mask and rested it around his neck before removing the black-lensed goggles. "It's good to see you, Rain. I'd thought to just kick you in the face for what happened at the wedding, but I've heard, via a very reliable source, that I shouldn't," the man said as he smiled.

"Miss, my name is Monroe Vossler, and I'm an expert demon hunter trained in the arts of the Quincy, but my true genius lies in my mastery of technology," the man said with a smile. "Anyway, the reason I bring this up is that there's a demonic gate attempting to be opened. That idiot Bard is brimming with vibrant magical energy they'll use. They intend to summon a Pit Lord," the Quincy said with a smile as he tossed down a bubble shield that protected the group from the rain. "However, I can't actively act in there... it's complicated, but they've figured out something that picks up the energy my body emits. I was tracking a succubus, but she slipped in with that moron," Vossler said with a smile. "I need to be home in about seven hours to cook, so if you don't work fast, I'll simply blow up the entire building and destroy everything without any discrimination. Sound good?" Monroe asked with a chuckle.

As for Dale, he slipped quietly next to a very voluptuous woman and smiled. "Good day, dear. My name is Dale, and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind... spending some time with me?" he asked, sliding her over a drink.

"Monroe Vossler. I knew I'd recognized your voice from somewhere. You better put that mask back on, you're scaring people." Rain's small insult was quick and precise, though you couldn't detect any harshness in his voice. "You're carrying yourself like you're something special, but you're asking for help." If he knew the bard was in there, and what he looked like, he could've at least pulled the bard out on his own. It wouldn't stop their plans in its tracks, but it would halt it for a while for him to come up with a next step, instead of just "blowing up everything". He really is an idiot. He turned to the fae now, nodding with a small smile. "Alright, let's go find this friend of yours," he said softly before making his way to the entrance, "His name is Dale, right?"

There were a number of things mentioned that the fairy didn't begin to understand, but Dale's immenint danger was clear. If nothing else, she was determined to rescue him, if only to keep him from being a sacrifice for some wicked summoning. Why, oh why couldn't he have been more careful? Rose had known something was very wrong about the place, but in all her confusion, she had been unable to identify it as the presence of many minor demons. If she could indeed foil their plans, there would be much honor to be had for her name.

Rose nodded briefly at Monroe before striding to the other man's side. Her gaze was more curious than threatening this time, bemused by the amount of serenity he seemed to have in the face of her charge possibly dying and some powerful monster being brought into the world. “Yes, he is Sir Dale Allan, a promiscuous bard and... friend. He is not large in stature, having dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a distinctive leaf-shaped cloak. If you have any sense for pure substances, you might also be able to feel the fae taint in his boots, which were altered by my kind. I myself shall attempt to locate him using a particular item he was given by... an important fairy.”

The rose was in fact speaking of the pendant given by Erato, which her own necklace was connected to. Gleaming softly with all the fragile appearance of a real rose, her pendant lay at the base of her neck, the mark of a Court Rose. She would have to put her best efforts into ignoring all the awful din and stenches, but surely the pure aura of Erato's mark would be stark against the foul air these demons made.

Monroe nodded and laughed as he pulled the goggles back over his eyes and reattached his ventilator. Pulling his hood over his head, the technician chuckled. "Well then, now that this is back on, I'll entrust you two with this business. After all, the only reason I didn't IMMEDIATELY destroy the entire area is that the walking magical well that is that man and this Fae told me something else may happen. Upon that, I uncovered everything I've told you. Now that you're here, Rain, I can leave. After all, I've got to start work on something that I can finish later. I'll be back in about two hours... that's all the time I can allot you," the masked man said as he, and his bubble-shield, suddenly vanished in a black blur of speed.

The woman cackled for a moment as she took the drink. "My, my, my, sir, quite the forward one, aren't you? What is your name?" she asked, shifting away from him slightly to hide her face, attempting to seem more mysterious.

"My name is Dale Allan, and I am a bard of great renown!" the bard said proudly as he pounded his fist gently against his chest and smiled.

The woman smiled wickedly behind her hand. "Impressive, impressive, impressive! So you are one of THOSE Bards, are you?"

Dale narrowed his eyes for a moment before he smiled and nodded. "Yes, I am. I see you've heard of us!"

The woman leaned in and nodded. "Yes, yes I have. Please come with me. I've something to show you!"

Dale smirked wickedly as he stood up and crossed his arms. "Well then, shall we?"

You're really entitled, aren't you? "Alright, let's go." He said to the fae, "I'll search for him with my eyes, and you search for him through those items. Shall we?" He opened the door for her and allowed her to go in first. Easily, he could tell that she carried herself with some sort of nobility and that she would probably appreciate the gesture.

Inside, the pumping music was even louder, echoing from wall to wall. It seemed to resound together with the voices of the crowd inside. The lights were dim, save for the purple and green flashing all over the area. That's going to be a problem, he thought. The amount of people here, along with the lights flashing all over would make it near impossible to single out a person. At the very least, Rain had his sixth sense and the Fae had her trinket.

Rose wasn't particularly enthusiastic to return to the throbbing club, but duty required it. She was glad at least to have a companion this time, one that that wouldn't ditch her for some pretty and all too short skirt dancing somewhere in the distance. In an odd way, she almost found the fellow to be more like herself than the humans surrounding her, relatively calm and graceful despite the excitement surrounding them. At the same time, however, she knew he was one she couldn't quite trust, what with the dark aura. What he was capable of she didn't quite know, but she had the distinct impression that he wasn't one of the minor demons Monroe had referred to.

So she accepted his gesture at the door with a nod, armor failing to clink as she moved. Her posture remained tense, a new headache coming on as she tried to concentrate in the spotted lighting. Try as she might to focus on the daisy pendant, its aura was too faint to make out. Either she had to get closer, or somehow stop the chaos long enough to make out the bard. Helplessly, she turned to her new companion.

“I can't begin to make out what fey energies he was endowed with. Have you better luck in finding our first place to search?”

Dale paused as he rested his hand on the amulet he had been given and paused. "Hmm?" he asked, pondering if Rose was thinking about him. He didn't remove the item, feeling it would somehow bother this woman he was with. What was going on... he wasn't quite sure. Still... he gripped the item tightly in his hand as he looked at the woman who was now staring at him.

"What are you waiting for? Aren't you excited."

Dale quirked his eyes at her and laughed. "Of course. Still, I'm enjoying watching you move along," he said, holding the pendant tightly. As the two moved away from the large group of people and down some hidden stairs, he became keenly aware he was potentially in danger. The bard took a deep breath as he continued holding the pendant. If worse came to worse, he could distract this woman, but not do anything more. If she tried something dangerous, Dale would have preferred to have Rose there. That, and if this place was quiet, he might consider apologizing to the Fairy. Maybe.

"Stop stalling and keep moving!" the woman barked at him as he scoffed.

"Hey, ♥♥♥♥♥, I don't take orders from anyone. Not even really hot chicks!" Dale barked back, shifting himself slightly as he noticed two rather large men move to his sides. "Oh what the hell?"

The woman smiled. "WE need your magical powers. With you and the ritual I've prepared, we can open a hell gate and allow demons to flood this world. Just weak ones at first, but later, much more exciting ones," the woman stated with a smile as the two large men shoved Dale. "I hope you're ready to be a sacrifice."

Dale scoffed. "Haven't you heard, milady? No one out foxes a bard. I hope you're prepared to die soon, though," the mage bard said with a chuckle.

The woman clasped her hand into a fist for a second before turning and slapping Dale. "Quiet, human."

Dale smiled. "So, you aren't a human, huh? Good to know. Best of luck, then. After all, I'm good at slipping free," the bard said as he began to prepare an escape. Oh this was going to be a fun escape.

"I haven't." He said quickly and sharply, not making it flowery or sugary with a smile or other words. Just quick and precise. He hadn't found the person he was looking for, but he was detecting something else. Something familiar. He beckoned the woman to follow him as he headed towards his target. There was no doubt. It was some female demon of some sort--if only the pounding vibrations of the music in his head would let up.

Rose nodded at Rain, her worry only forming a larger ball of sickness in the pit of her stomach. He seemed to have found something, but by his words and the look on his face, it wasn't Dale. She was of half a mind to remind him that nothing could matter more than finding the bard at the moment, but splitting off to find him without distractions didn't seem productive. It irked her greatly to feel so useless, knowing she could not find him on her own, but she couldn't start taking that out on her new partner. He wasn't as focused as she wished, but she had the distinct feeling that questioning him about it would only make a worse distraction.

“What have you found?” The question was a bit sharp, but to the point as the warrior took her place alongside her companion.

As the two men dragged Dale along, they quickly noted that he wasn't resisting. It was like... he was... waiting for... something. The two brutes didn't know what, but the Succubus was too confident for them to worry. Any sign of concern would be dangerous for them. Still, there were times where the two wondered why their job seemed so menial all the time. After all, they were supposed to be guards, not jailers.

"Don't worry, we're almost there," the woman stated as she sauntered forwards. A demon slinking out of a room and falling shoulder first against a wall stopped her. She held her hand out and the two advancing stopped. "What is the meaning of this?" she asked.

The lesser demon held his arm up and showed here his hand had been cleanly seared, or burned, off. The human flesh where the hand was attached had peeled away, leaving the demonic flesh below. "He's here..." the creature coughed as it held it's chest. "He's here!" it yelled before a powerful blast from within the demon caused him to erupt into a blood smear across the walls, floor and ceiling.

The succubus sighed. "Satan wasted trash. If we didn't need more servants, we wouldn't let them breed," she muttered angrily as she turned around.

In the time it had taken the lesser demon to stumble out and explode, the two large demons had been given the slip. "THis isn't ♥♥♥♥ING FUNNY!" she yelled maliciously as the two demons noticed they were holding onto a cloak with no one inside of it. "So now we've lost him, huh? Well, then I shall deal with this more... personally," the woman said as she walked past the two and began laughing into her hand.

As she laughed, a shining projectile ripped the head of the large demon next to her off. "Oh, Servant Number thirty-three. THat minion just died. Go deal with it!" The brute simply nodded and rushed down the hallway. "I can't believe the crap I put up with," he muttered as she started off.

As for Dale, he had slipped their hold and had made his way back towards the stairs. "Almost there, almost there, almost there!" He yelled proudly. Still, the bard paused as he neared the staircase. He swallowed hard as he saw the demons who had moved in to make sure he couldn't escape. "D-don't you guys know! THere's... THere's... a... a murderer... A MURDERER ON THE LOOSE!" he yelled, trying to seem frantic.

"Oh, he is good. We betta be careful of this one. He'd sell his own motha to get out a trouble," one of the demons stated as he stood up and drew a large sword from his back. "Still, cuttin' his legs off otta stop 'im from runnin!" the demon said as he approached.

In times where there were no other choices, fighting to continue to run away was the only option. In that light, the bard drew his sword and prepared for battle, but three-on-one put him at a major disadvantage. How could he pull this one off?

"Trouble." He responded to her, leading the way, following the path that his sense laid out for him. Then there was more than just one thing he picked up on. There was a myriad of them down the way, hidden. He kept walking slowly, with a hand instinctively out to the side, in front of his companion, as if he were trying to protect her from any oncoming danger. It wasn't long until he'd heard someone shout. It was faint, but it definitely came from where they were headed.

He looked back at his companion before picking up the pace, starting to jog down the way towards where he thought the shout was from.