Field of the Beholder's Eye

OoC: Before I even consider letting anyone else in, I need a direction. I'm going to wait a bit and see where the story goes to get some ideas. Once I know where we're going with this, I'll consider inviting others. The current participants are:

Awbri
LinkMS
Insaney
Graceful_Sheik
Honest John
Lady Knives (Yes, you heard me right. Look upon her username and tremble!)

There is no post order, and try to control others' characters as little as possible. There's nothing wrong with two- or three-paragraph posts so, if you wish, you may abstain from power-playing entirely. This would be preferrable.

IC:

The dragon released a soft sigh as he knelt before a shady tree and sat quietly. He had come a long way, not quite knowing why, and the trip had sapped his strength. His body craved rest. The field of wildflowers in which he now sat was nothing if not picturesque. The wind carried the scent of the ocean. This was nature at its finest. In fact, the only sign that man had ever walked here was a cabin not far off. Though, it wasn’t so much a cabin as a cozy home, one-story, in a large L-shape that cornered off the field from the horizon. The dragon-man guessed someone was living there now, seeing as one of the two windows was lit. He silently hoped whoever was there wouldn’t notice him.

Reclining on the ground against the tree and crossing his arms over his chest, he sank into his thoughts. It had been only a short time since the funeral. Drake still couldn’t believe his brother, one of the Tears, was dead. According to Terrin, there was no way he could have survived, yet no body remained for proof. Only ash, he said. Brother…are you still out there somewhere?

His eyes slowly closed, and before long, he was asleep. If he listened closely, he could almost hear a voice from the depths of oblivion. It was vague, and the words were unclear, but it certainly was familiar.

Drake…?

Brother? Is that you?

It’s me… You can hear me?

I can hear you fine. Are you well?

I’ve been better. There was a sigh. Is Amy alright? I…haven’t seen her in a while.

I’m sorry to say she is not well. In fact, she has fallen ill.

She’s sick? How bad is it?

They say she should be at perfect health. Her body is well, but her heart is crushed.

Oh. A pause. …Hey, Drake? Can you do something for me?

Anything, brother. Ask and ye shall receive.

I want you to take care of her for me… I won’t be around for a while, and I don’t want her to be too upset. Stay with her…please.

Of course I will. She is a sister to me. May I ask where are you going?

Another pause. …I don’t know yet. But I think I will stay in this place for a while longer.

Well, then, I wish you luck, brother. May the wings of the Great One guard you.

Thank you…

Drake suddenly found himself awake. A serene peace filled him now, a comfort that he had not felt for a very long time. Had it only been a dream? Had Blitz spoken to him just now? “No,” he breathed, “it couldn’t be.”

His body was rested, and so he rose to his feet, hitting his head on a low branch. He winced in mild irritation, but let the limb off with a glare before ignoring it. To his right, around the side of the cabin, he glimpsed a figure. His pale eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the person, then decided he’d rather not be seen. Swift as could be, he darted forward, spread his wings, and leapt high. As Drake noiselessly hit the roof of the cabin, the person came into view. He crouched low at the roof's edge, watching carefully to see what this newcomer would do.

Despite the fact that Merric's boots were heavy, he plodded quietly across the lush green fields, barely making a noise. It was as if he had been going on like this for hours, every step coming in a monotonic second. He began to wonder what could break the monotony of this walking spell, and tried to force his legs into a diffently timed stride. No matter how hard he forced them to, they wouldn't.

Maybe...maybe if I try casting another spell, it will break this one of walking.

He focused hard, but the walking rhythm kept distracting him. He scoffed in disgust, and began to ponder some more. I wonder where I am? I wonder if anyone has been here before...

Merric smiled to himself, an idea popping into his mind. He turned his head to look at a tall stalk of grass, and quickly put his in it...

It was nighttime, and the crunching of grass awakened my slumber. Not many people came this way, and I tried to remember the last time I had seen a human. He was following the full moon, walking towards the building others have told me about. He drifted out of sight, and I fell back to sleep...

Merric pulled himself out of the stalk's memory, thanking him. No problem, sir.

A house, eh? Maybe the force that had made him start walking was taking him there. But what was it, why was he being forced there...and...

Staring back up at the night sky, he saw the full moon. Full moon! Had that passerby the stalk had seen just been here in that night, or a month ago? Either way, it seemed as if his body was following the moon, and something was definatley taking him--and others--to this place.

Now all Merric needed to know was how much longer this walk was going to be. Here, little plant, one who can see this building! he called out in his mind, sifting through every blade of grass and every stem of a flower. It felt as if he had searched for miles, when he found a sense that had a view of a house. He transfered himself into it with ease.

The plant faced something that seemed like the back of a an L-shaped building, and two of the windows were lit.

That was when he looked to the side and saw a great sleeping mass, dozing against a tree. He couldn't exactly make out what it was...but he didn't have time to investigate. His grip was slipping...

He was back in himself now, frustrated. At his best guess, this place he was going was more than three miles away.

- --------- -

He walked and walked, until he was in sight of the cabin. He did not see the figure he had seen earlier, and was overcome with releif.

Merric had noticed that the closer he got the cabin, the more control he had regained of his legs. However, he could still not alter his path. Hesitantly, he stopped by the side of the cabin, pondering what to do.

Hearing a faint whistle overhead, he was slightly chilled, but decided to ignore it. He would ask for the resident of this cabin for hospitality.

Creeping up to the door, he extended his hand to knock.

oOC: Sorry for any misspellings, but my MSWord is acting up so I had to type in under quick reply.

Arina made her way through the brush. Her hands swept brush out of her way, and her wings jumped as reflexes to every action she made. The saurian was on the verge of tears.

I need to stop doing this... She sniffed, and wiped her nose with the palm of her hand, I should've stayed at the inn and wait for him...

She swept a vine out of her way, as she whispered to herself.

"Raven, where are you?"

She had been asleep while Raven left. He always did this, to check out the town, to see if it was safe. He left when the sun set.

It was past midnight now.

Her heartbeat increased as she thought of the dreadful things that could have happened to him...

Could he be...?

The sound of a wave breaking cut her thought.

She started to jog, clearing away the brush with the help of her wings. At the edge of the brush, she pushed off the ground, and spread her wings to it's full wingspan. Flying low to the ground, she observed the endless sea of flowerbuds, sleeping flowers, that had closed their doors for the night. She spied a cabin ahead, L-shaped, and a figure at the front door.

She landed quickly, and stooped down, bending over and spreading out her wings over the flowers, almost as level as the field of the buds. She couldn't risk retracting them now, they would have to be vertical for her to pull them in, and she may attract unwanted attention if that was done.

She turned her head so that she could see the cabin and it's entrance through the slits in the grass and closed flowers.

Another wave washed the shore...

The crickets chirped their happy tune, as the figure on the doorstep knocked the wooden door.

OoC: In my opinion, this was worth the wait. These are two NPCs from the novel I told you about. Merriwether is a whimsical, young woman and Roderick, the main character, is an ex-con with a sour mood, especially at 2:00 AM.

IC:

Thock, thock! came the sound of the doorknocker, rousing her from peaceful rest. Who could be here at this hour? Merriwether Petit rubbed the last traces of sleep from her eyes and tossed back the comforter. The hardwood floor was cold against her bare feet, so she shuffled over to the coat rack near her twin bed and stepped into her slippers. She then tossed a gray jacket over her nightgown and swept her long, curly, blonde hair out of the collar. Glancing into the mirror nearby, she smiled a smile that could cause angels to weep.

Merriwether loved the Field. She was likely the only human on Earth who could understand that this place was alive. Its power to show people things came from a beating heart; it chose what to show with its own mind. When she smiled to visitors, it was not a practice of professionalism. All of Merriwether’s smiles were sincere. The Field made her smile, for she loved guiding others to witness its majesty, even before the sun came up. She was happy here.

There was another knock at the door, and she rushed around the corner of the cabin to admit her visitor, still smiling.

“Tell them to shut the hell up and go away,” came the gruff voice of her roommate from the couch opposite the door. Merriwether’s lithe frame halted as she looked at him, her smile replaced by a thoughtful curiosity. She offered him blankets every night, but he never used them. “It’s two in the morning. They’ll understand if you say there’s an ex-con in your living room who was imprisoned for murder and illegal drug distribution.”

She laughed. “Oh, Roddy, don’t be such a grouch.”

“Will you stop calling me that?” He growled and rolled over to face the couch cushions. “Fine, show them, but keep it quiet.”

“You should come, too, Roddy. You are my bodyguard after all.” Her smile penetrated the back of his head, reaching his eyes still.

“If I go out there, I’m going to kill someone.”

Merriwether laughed again. She knew her Guardian—or, as he preferred to be called, bodyguard—was all talk. He had been imprisoned on false charges two years ago. At least, that’s what he told her. She had decided to take his word for it; he seemed honest enough.

“Fine!” Roderick threw up his hands in exasperated resignation. “I’ll go with you, just, for the love of God, make it quick!” He rolled off the couch with a thud and stood up. His body was muscular, but not bulky. Not once had she seen him in pajamas. He always wore dark-gray slacks with a maroon sweatshirt and a waist-length, black overcoat. At the moment, his short, brown hair was messier than one would think short hair could be. Merri liked to think of it as a reflection of his personality. She covered her mouth so he wouldn’t see her laugh.

“What’s so funny?” he growled irritably, eyes not fully opened.

She grabbed him by the hand and dragged him to the door, then swung it open to greet their visitor. “Good morning!” beamed the woman. “I’m Merriwether Petit, groundskeeper of the Field of the Beholder’s Eye. Pleased to meet you. And this is my assistant, Roderick Chase. But you can call him Roddy. Oh, and he wants you to know he’s an ex-convict imprisoned for murder and distribution of illegal drugs.”

The contrast between her smile and his twitching was stark.

If it weren’t for the movements of the thief, however swift or silent, Ronin would be hard to pick out among the grassy meadow. His green cloak, which covered most of his body except is boots and head, blended in fairly well with the plants as did his tuft of green hair. His darting made a light, rustling noise as he tried to speed through before anyone saw him. Up ahead was a cabin, lights shining out of a few of the windows. Stop! a voice suddenly commanded, halting the boy in his tracks. A form approached the door and, a few minutes later, was yanked inside. It seems we have been beaten here, it stated, being the voice of the wind demon, Notus.

What is here? Ronin asked, You haven’t told me a thing.

Suddenly, a dull pain, the equivalent of being whapped on the back of head, gave him a slight headache. If you had hurried, nobody else would be here! the demon yelled. The he sharply retorted, There is power in this place. Why else would we be in the middle of nowhere?

The thief sighed, Power, I should’ve known. The field didn’t look like it held anything of interest for the power-hungry monster. Wildflowers graced the land with what seems hundreds of different shades and hues. The breeze gently moved the scenery and mixed the sea with the flowers which resulted in a sweet sea scent wafting around him. Ronin had only been to the sea once, on a ship as well, and absolutly loved it. It had been one of the calmest yet adventurous scenes he had seen. Perhaps, with the ocean so close, he could find a town with ships and go aboard one again once this was over.

However, it worried him that others would show here at the same time. If this place does have power, it’s most likely attracted people who want some. Which probably means I’ll have to fight them. His pleasant mood dissipated at the thought of more fights. He only hoped it was some kind of power that Notus couldn’t use. Maybe then they could leave without getting in any conflict.

A sharp pain hit his head, increasing the headache. Stop daydreaming! the demon shouted. It’s apparent people live here. I’ll bet that they hold the power of this field. And you’re a skilled thief... If the demon had a face, there would’ve been a smile there.

You want me to sneak into their house?! the boy questioned, appalled. And what if they don’t have the power? Then we’ll be in trouble before anything even happens.

If they live here, then they at least have the key to this place’s power. Or at least a clue.

Or maybe they just wanted a nice place to live, Ronin said moodily. Another pain knocked his head, Okay, okay, I’m going. He once again ran through the grass, hoping to attract no attention. As soon as he came to the house he flatten against the wall on the right side of the cabin, intently staring at the front door. When it seems no one else was coming or going he darted to the back and peeked through one of the windows. The room, what seemed to be a bedroom, was lighted but empty. After making sure it wasn’t going to be occupied soon, he check to see if the window was locked. To his surprise, it easily slid up. I guess they probably don’t have many people this way, he decided.

The first thing Merric noticed was that the woman had said "Good morning!", whereas it was still dark outside. Though, he supposed it was probably A.M., which made enough sense…and saying "Good night," while greeting someone just made no sense. It was still kind of awkward.

Merriwether gestured to her friend, Roddy, explaining about him. Merric found it the slightest bit odd, that Roddy had wanted him to know what he had done in the past. He shrugged, watching the woman beam and Roddy twitch.

"Uhm...hi?" was all Merric could manage to get out. He laughed nervously, shuffling his feet. "And what did you say this place was, again?"

Merriwether chuckled. "Just come inside with me, dear. I'll make some tea and I'll tell you then."

Merric wasn't sure if it was safe to walk in a stranger's house and have tea, but that insane force was tugging at him again. "Oh, alright," he agreed, scratching the back of his head.

Leading the Drull inside, she gave Roddy an odd look. It seemed as if she was scowling, but giving a sympathetic and ‘this-is-funny’ look at the same time. He ignored her and plopped down onto the couch he had been sleeping in earlier, smothering his face in a warm blanket.

When Merric and Merriwether entered the kitchen, she laughed heartily and commented on Roddy, something about how he really was kind deep down. However, Merric wasn’t paying much attention to her little speech. He was inspecting all the little trinkets that Merriwether had strewn out over the whole place, lined up against the mustard yellow walls. There were some scrapes, from where things had been moved and scratched the wall, so it wasn’t near perfect. It looked like it could use another paint job soon, though.

The stove was old, the cabinets were crooked, the table was slightly tattered, and the counters had multiple faint spots where there had once been stains. “You seem...quite the crafty woman,” Merric commented when he was sure she was done talking. She gave him a genuine smile.

“Why thank you, young’n. I don’t think I ever caught your name, so who are you?” She was sifting through her cabinets, looking to make some tea, Merric guessed.

She muttered a few things, pulling out a teapot and placing it on the stove, while Merric pondered if he should give his real name. She seemed nice enough—he hoped he wasn’t making a stupid choice. “Merric Everleaf, ma’am, pleased to meet you!”

Turning around slightly, she commented, “Never heard that name before. Where are you from? It’s quite the unique name!” Filling the teapot with water, she turned on the stove to wait for it to whistle while, once again, rummaging though her cabinets.

Merric scooted a chair that must have been made to match the table out from underneath it, sitting down and enjoying a rest on his legs. “It’s…from really far away. I’m sorry, but I…I was only there for a bit of my childhood, and I don’t remember where it was.” It was a blatant lie. The woman was too trusting.

“That’s so sad!” She pulled out a teabags and tealeaves, placing the leaves in the bags, and set them to the side while going to sit down beside Merric. “So, what was your childhood like?”

“I…I’d prefer not to talk about it, ma’am.” At least that was the truth. Merriwether continued to pester Merric with unnecessary questions, until the teapot began to whistle. Standing up, she pulled out two mugs and poured the water into them, and proceeding to hold the teabags in there.

“Well, I’m so sorry about your tortuous childhood.”

Thanks for reminding me. he thought sarcastically, but instead, “Thank you,” came out. He scoffed at his own cowardice.

“I really must get going, Merriwether. I am terribly sorry,” Merric half-apologized after finishing his tea. Despite being slightly annoyed with the woman, her tea was actually quite scrumptious. He stood up to leave.

“Oh, please, do stay! I have the perfect place for you to sleep. Come, come, I’ll show you.”

Merric realized that he didn’t get say in this, and it was getting awfully suspicious. “Well, uhm…if you have another room, how come Roddy isn’t in there?”

“Oh, he just prefers the couch. I don’t get it either.” She flashed a smile back at him, leading him down a dark hallway. He gulped, but his fear began to ebb away when she flicked on a light about halfway down. “Here you go, dearie.”

She pointed to a rough wooden door, which Merric now realized was identical to all the others in the house. He reached out for the handle and turned it slightly, revealing a simple white walled square bedroom, with a mattress on the floor. “Uhm…thanks…” was all he could manage.

Merriwether didn’t register his disappointment. “You’re welcome. Bathroom is down the hall, and I’ll see you in a couple of hours.” Wonderful. Just wonderful.

As Merriwether left, he plopped down onto his mattress, listening to the sounds of the house. He could hear Merriwether’s footsteps treading further down the hallway, entering a room, shutting a door… He smiled. He felt safer now.

But footsteps were coming the opposite way from Merriwether’s room. His subsided fear was inching back. It could only be Roddy…and he didn’t like the looks of Roddy.

The knob turned.

It was Roddy.

“Kid, I just want to clear a few things up to you.” He knelt down beside the bed, a serious look on his face. “My name is Roderick, not Roddy. You will not refer to me as Roddy. And all that crime she said I did…it wasn’t me. But don’t get on my bad side.”

And then he was gone.

OoC: For more information on Roddy's and Merri's personalities, please PM me. I'd like these characters to be written accurately. Oh, and I'd prefer that my daughter went next, if you all don't mind.

BiC:

Roderick feuded to himself as he thrust open the door of the cabin and stalked outside, making little attempt to hide the redness in his face. “It’s pathetic enough that I submit to her childish games, but I’ll be damned if I let that kid call me—”

He fell silent and stared. The violet-haired woman stared back. Oh, God. There’s more of them? He fidgeted and clenched his fists to keep his eye from twitching while he sized her up. She was a cute kid, no more than eighteen-years-old. Startled that the door opened just as she reached out to knock, the girl stumbled back. Roderick loudly cursed; he had grabbed her arm to balance her. “Don’t take that the wrong way, kid, I don’t help people. You’ll end up facedown next time.”

Just when he thought his words were blatantly transparent, her eyes started to wobble in time with her pursed lips. Aw, hell… He reached out to touch her, but decided against it while fumbling for words. “Uh, look, kid, I’m sorry, alright? You caught me off-guard, I just…” Tears sparkled behind rich, violet eyes. Damn it. He put a hand on each of her shoulders and looked into her face. Against all practical wisdom, though his cheek muscles were not accustomed to it, he smiled awkwardly. Her lip stopped wobbling as she looked up at him. “Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. My name’s Roddy.” What the hell am I doing? “What’s yours, kid?”

She smiled back, and he found it oddly gratifying. “A-Arina!”

It was cute, but that only served to make him even more anxious. The sooner he showed this girl the Field, the sooner she’d be gone, and he could get back to his life. “I’ll get Merriwether to, uh, show you some flowers or something.” He released her shoulders and turned toward the house. “Hey, Merri! Forget the tea! We have another one!”

She shouted back in a sing-song voice. “Just a minute!” A loud whistling sound immediately followed.

***

This is ridiculous. Why am I still here? sulked Drake inwardly, flattened against the roof. These people were clearly preoccupied, and he strongly disliked the idea of meeting this “Roderick” fellow. Something inside nagged him to stay, however. The dragon suspected it had something to do with his dream, but this place put him on edge. I think it’s about time I left. He was just about to rise to his feet when he became aware that someone was standing behind him. The Twin Shadow was in hand instantly.

Coming from the complete opposite direction as the others who had come upon this field trod a young woman, clad in all black. The pale moonlight, which shone upon the lands illuminated her pale skin. Her steps were soft, almost soundless compared to the soft music of the night. As soon as she had entered this domain, an odd feeling roused in her chest.

Dark ebony locks cascaded down her shoulders as she looked up into the night sky, and watched as the moon hung in the sky like a Celestial Galleon on a great ocean of clouds. Her eyes flashed reflectively in the light given off by the moon, looking like two pools of fresh, oxygenated blood.

Not too far ahead was a cabin, in that of an L-shape. From the corner of her eye, Knives caught a glimpse of white. This made her stop directly in her tracks, her dark eyes traveling over the figure she spotted on the rooftop of the cabin.

Quickly, she sank into the shadow of a nearby tree, her eyes fully fading black as she did so.

'Peculiar...' she thought to herself, while deeply inhaling the surrounding air. She caught the scent of a dragon- but, it was not a full dragon. This being was only half.

She had heard a few voices from the front of the cabin as she was approaching. Each step she took from then on was practically inaudible. The darkness cloaked her aura as she made her way closer to the partially concealed figure crouching upon the cabin rooftop, her eyes not leaving the being. She had heard another few conversations going on before they had stopped, leaving everything silent, except for the soft whispering of an almost breathless wind.

The air around her was crisp, not too cold, not too hot. It was most the pleasant scent her sensitive nose had caught in a long time, and she wouldn't forget it. It enticed her senses, awakening her mind, keeping her extremely aware of everything around her. Every rustle in the grass, every chirp of the crickets, every coo of the night owls.

Her extended senses picked up that the aura on the rooftop lifted the slightest bit. She didn't panic, but merely stayed hidden in the shadow of the tree. Knives let her back rest upon the rough bark of the tree, and felt it gently scrape against her skin as she did this.

She didn't bother wincing, or even blinking really, she needed to focus on that aura.

He perked his ears and scanned the horizon behind the cabin with sharp eyes, still crouched on the roof. Whoever—or whatever—it was, he could tell it wasn’t necessarily friendly. In fact, there was a distinctive aura about it that didn’t sit right with the dragon. Male, or female? That was difficult to determine, but the faint breathing, though almost silent, suggested a young, female humanoid. But that aura can’t be human.

Drake slipped silently from the roof, falling to a crouch at the foot of the cabin. A pair of eyes were on him, burning through him, but he could not tell from where. In an instant, he’d dissolved into the shadowed grass.

Watch closely, for this one holds that which will restore him.

The voice caught Drake completely off-guard, and he nearly leapt from his shadowed hiding place. The Great One always spoke at the most unexpected moments. My Lord? What do you mean? He waited patiently, but to no avail.

The Great Dragon’s mind remained silent.

The dragon-man sighed inaudibly to himself, wishing his master could occasionally be less ambiguous. Then he focused his attention on the female, sifting through the shadows until he was close to her. He reemerged behind a tree and sensed that the girl was directly behind him, opposite the trunk. She didn’t seem aware of his close presence, but he cloaked himself in darkness just to be safe. After all, the Great One’s chores often involved great risk to life and limb.

Drake steeled himself for whatever was about to happen. Then, he turned and stepped around the tree next to her, and let the shadows around him dissolve, leaving him plainly visible.

“Good evening.”

It was felt as the aura moved, swiftly towards her. She still didn't move, her feet staying gently planted in the same spot she was in before. Her body tensed for the faintest moment, before relaxing once more, her slitted, demonic pupils traveling to the corners of her eyes. She set her gaze once more upon the aura, her dark eyes scanning the darkness which had shrouded her vision of him.

A few strands of silken black hair fell into her face as she turned her head slightly, in the direction of the Dragon.

'How could he have sensed me here..?' she thought to herself in perplexion.

Her face held no emotion as well, and her eyes held a look of pure calmness, nothing more.

After a few moments had passed between them, she straightened herself against the tree. The long, black cloak which was draped over her shoulders, and concealed her body rustled gently as she did so.

Once he made himself visible, her eyes averted their gaze from the blankness of the air beside him, and moved up to meet his own, cold gaze.

His skin was pitch black. She had caught a glimpse of his eyes, seeing them to be blank and white, no pupils.

She heard his voice sound, breaking the silence: "Good evening."

No sound crossed her lips after this. She chose to say silent for now. A slight nod was all that was given in recognition of his greeting. Her delicately sculpted eyebrows furrowed the tiniest bit, done so discreetly, that it wasn't noticeable whatsoever.

Her eyes remained fixed in the gaze she had set on him before, unblinking.

Ronin was still inspecting the room, making sure no one was interested in using it. He had heard a door come from somewhere near the bedroom he was about to enter and didn’t want to get caught sneaking in. After a few seconds, the thief felt some tenseness from his alter-ego. What’s up? he questioned.

It seems that the person on the roof has just gone into the field, he stated, feeling dark energy but being unable to pinpoint it location.

The boy was speechless, ... There, there was someone on the roof!?

The demon growled at him, You didn’t notice? Hmph, you would be dead if I wasn’t with you. Then he turned his attention back to the being, I don’t like it, that energy is much strong than what I’ve felt in our travels. We should be wary. That suggestion made Ronin increasing worried. If the wind demon was trying to be cautious, that other person had be incredibly powerful. Or, at least, more powerful that Notus.

Maybe we should go back, the thief commented, then wished he hadn’t as the other mind hit him.

If these many people have gathered then there must be power here! And I will be the one to claim it! he shouted. The human sighed and carefully climbed through the window. His boots landed softly on the wooden floor, barely making a sound that wouldn’t have been heard outside. A simple mattress was laying on the floor and the walls were all painted white. A lamp in the corner gave the stark room its light. It even had a clean, unused smell. The people who lived here must have barely been in the room. Muffled voices could be heard talking from further in the house.

Let’s pray no one notices us, the thief commented to himself but still hear a scoff from the demon. He tiptoed across the floor and gently set in hand on the doorknob. He turned it quietly and slowly opened the door a crack. Not a person could be seen in the hallway though light came from under the doors of several other rooms and a large light came from around the corner of the hall. He breathed a sigh of relief, No one heard us. He opened the door a little more but froze when footsteps could be heard. Oh no! What do I do?! he frantically thought and darted back in the room, closing the door behind him.

OoC:
Hmm... sorry about the long wait... I had forgotten about band practice and so I had to do that all week and I just got XBOX Live. Me and new toys tend to spend much time together.

IC:
Ranul strode slowly along the shore of his childhood. A southward path he followed, in hopes that he would soon collapse from exhaustion. Some unearthly force drove his feet onward to some unknown and unseen destination. The more he fought this force, the faster he seemed to go, so he knew it was his master's will he go wherever it was he was going.

South, away from memories and toward his destination. He could smell the salty air no more, for he had gotten used to it hours ago. His black robes were getting sandy as they glided along the soft, brown sand. The sound of the waves crashing on the shore brought back memories both good and bad.

Suddenly, Ranul fell face first in the sand. Thankful for the rest, but unable to go to sleep right away, he sat up and looked around. Immediately, he knew something was wrong. For one, he remembered it had been night when he had stopped moving, but it looked as if it were broad daylight. Second, he was looking at a multitude of angels all bowing to him.

He snorted and looked to the skies. "What do you hope to accomplish by showing me this? I know it will never happen and that you are simply testing me. What are you trying to do?" he challenged.

As usual, there was no response. But unlike the norm, the vision remained in its place, but the sky darkened. He climbed to his feet and made his way up the shore, away from the water.

It wasn't long before he came to a large field. The grass was tall and there was a house visible in the distance, but Ranul seemed unsettled. His fatigue was catching up to him fast and he needed a safe place to rest.

It was then that a tree seemed to materialize out of nowhere. Too tired to question its origins, Ranul leaned heavily upon it and closed his eyes. The warm, dark embrace of a fevered sleep grasped him before he fell to the ground.

The dragon gazed back into her cold, red eyes so empty that they were almost lifeless. His heightened senses told him she was scrutinizing him, so he remained perfectly still. If the girl’s silence wasn’t unsettling, it was threatening, but her eyes were even more so. Had it not been for his reptilian instincts, he would have missed the microexpressions. Certainly not the talkative sort.

While she was studying him, perhaps wondering just what he was, he decided to approach his guardian-god once more. My Lord, who is this girl?

For a long moment, there was no answer. Then, She is of the living dead. Though young, this one possesses great power.

Drake’s eyes went wide at the mention. Living dead…? Another one? He fought not to let his distaste show. Dragons and vampires had never gotten along well. Drake still remembered his encounter with the odd vampire, Maximilian, in Xaevakra’s cavern. Mariana had liked him well enough, so the dragon-man did his best not to openly dislike the man. Now he was in a similar situation with this girl, though her apparent youth and frailty eased his tensions somewhat. Perhaps it was the moonlight, but she looked pale.

He tried at conversation one more time. “The stars seem lonely tonight.”

***

“…forty years, the Field has been a national park. I’ve served as groundskeeper since I was sixteen to help others witness its power, but I wasn’t always as in tune with the Field as I am now. It took a long…” Merri stopped both walking and talking suddenly, no doubt to Merric’s relief. In the hallway, she had caught sight of a door closing with a click. Another moment and she would have missed it. “That’s funny… Who would be in the guestroom?” She stepped a little closer and reached out for the door, but Merric quickly stopped her.

“Allow me, Miss.”

She nodded and stepped aside for him to open the door. But instead, he produced a thick book from his clothing and flipped through it, settling on a page and resting his finger on a series of bizarre characters. Then, he thrust his hand at the door, and it flew open, hit something behind it with a loud “Oomph!” and slammed shut again.

Merri and Merric glanced at one another in wide-eyed surprise.

A few moments passed between them, and Knives kept her eyes on the being's face, watching each emotion that passed across his features. His eyes went wide for a moment, which signaled to her, either shock, or some sort of surprisal. After this, she sensed a bit of tension and discomfort in his aura, but it soon lessened, and she thought nothing of it.

Her gaze was averted to the sky as his was, traveling across the blanket of stars. As she looked up at the midnight blue sky, her thoughts wandered, and a few memories had come back.

"Lonely..." she spoke in a smooth, calm tone.

Dark eyes closed as her blood grew a bit violent.

"Lonely..." she scoffed, her voice tinted with venom as her voice sounded once more.

A cold wind moaned gently in the silence of the night, and winded its way through each and every fine blade of grass. She allowed nature to calm her raging spirits, and her mind was at ease once more.

It blew up Knives' cloak, revealing the pale skin of her midriff, as well as her arms. The slightest bit of a chill ran down her spine at the bitter iceyness of the wind. Her hair was also whipped around, her bangs hitting the sides of her face, her long, dark hair billowing up beside her.

She bowed her head in thought for a few moments, taking what he said into mind. After gazing up at the stars for a bit longer, and closing her eyes, she began to speak.

"That is the way it seems..." she murmured softly under her breath, turning towards the dragonic man. She was agreeing with him in a way, but at the same time, keeping neutral.

Incarnadine pools which were the dark girl's eyes once more opened. They flashed in the moonlight as she tilted her head to the side, which gave her an innocent, child-ish, yet almost fiendish look.

She watched the being once more with those eyes, and awaited his response.

The intensity of those eyes as they bore into him was disturbing, yet alluring. Drake was immediately drawn to this girl in a way he couldn’t quite describe. Whether it was his animalistic instinct, or his human side, he could not tell, but something about the way this vampire spoke snared him. He felt his muscles relax as tension melted away.

Were it not for the emptiness in her eyes so deep that one could become lost in them, he would have thought here a mere child. She seemed especially young with her head cocked to the side.

Be wary. A demon of great strength lurks nearby.

Drake couldn’t help but think to himself that this was the most his master had spoken to him in a very long time. He decided to remain alert until someone came in range of his senses. A window had broken earlier; it was safe to assume the demon broke into the cabin. Keeping one ear open for any terrified screams, he returned his attention to the raven-haired vampire.

“You are not from here,” mused the dragon-main, hoping for information about her past, or something along those lines. “The undead rarely dally with the living for any purpose other than feeding, yet you seem content to break that unspoken code. Any particular reason why?”

After looking deeper into the being's eyes, she drew herself from the depths of his eyes and straightened her head from its tilted position. She felt his mind draw away from their situation for a moment, and wander on something else, she caught a trace of a thought, but didn't bother prying.

'Something about a window--I remember hearing that...' she thought to herself, wondering why he would be concerned about such trivial matters.

"You are not from here."

Her eyes lit up with amusement at his musings.

A delicately sculpted eyebrow raised at his comment, she had almost felt like laughing.

Was it not obvious enough that she wasn't from here, with the way she was colored?

"Yes, I am not from this realm." she nods slightly, her tone holding a tad bit of a frisk to it now.

The look of child-ish amusement in her eyes faded once he mentioned a "code" of a sorts. That happened to be something she was quite fond of. Throughout her years, she had broken most of the rules. Though looked down upon by others of her kind, she was a feared infidel.

"Code? The Code is nothing but a set of rules. What are rules made for if not to be broken? And you see...since I am of a Royal Bloodline, I can somewhat control my urges to feed." she spoke in a soft, calm, and smooth tone, which floated weightlessly through the air in the dragon-man's direction.

The dragon-man restrained an amused chuckle at this. Alliance soldiers carried many statutes on their backs—guidelines on how to live and serve—whereas Dark Horizon’s ways were lawless and unbound by morals. That was the primary difference between them: mercy. With or without it, there would be no Great War. But this vampire girl from a world unknown questioned the foundation of the Alliance’s purpose; certainly a bold assumption, if foolish in Drake’s opinion.

Then again, she was young and, therefore, inherently rebellious. Her vampiric qualities no doubt lent to that defiant nature. Drake could see it in her eyes—she was a flighty spirit, unable to remain in one place for too long. Either this girl was searching for something or wanted adventure. It was hard to tell which, for her mask was more unreadable than any the dragon-man had encountered.

He wondered briefly whether to mention his affiliation with the war, or perhaps even with the Great Dragon, but decided against it for the time being. Until she gave him reason to trust her, he would hold this acquaintance at arm’s length, though his guardian-god advised him to entreat her.

At least I have her speaking now, thought the dragon. “You are of noble descent? Where is your family, your home?” It was a harmless question, but no sooner had it left his mouth than Drake suspected she would not answer. Of course not. She has as much reason to trust me as I do her.

“Ohh,” the thief quietly moaned as he held his face in his hands. I was just attacked by a door, he thought to himself. His nose hurt the worst as it was the first part hit.

The demon chuckled at his unfortunate position, It seems your thieving skills could use some work. We are caught... for now. Ronin looked up with a suspicious frown on his face. Notus never gave up so easily. Even though it would be hard, the boy could probably still escape from the cabin. He also didn’t like the ‘for now’ part of the sentence.

What are you thinking of doing, the thief questioned. He didn’t want the wind demon to attack anyone.

The thought cause Notus to laugh again, They will probably think of you as nothing more than a common thief. I doubt they would even suspect you can perform magic. It would be easy to escape from these people.

Ronin still didn’t like the demon’s plan. It didn’t involve hurting other people, a first for the creature. But it seemed he would have to follow it as the door swung open another time, thankfully missing him. Behind stood a woman with a curious look on her face and a another being that looked human except for the giant, clawed hands. The male had a book in one hand and appeared to be ready to cast a spell at the thief if he made any sudden movements. Ronin glupped and then held up a hand, “Uh, hello.” He had a nervous smile planted on his face, This could get ugly.

This sleep did not last long. Ranul awoke within minutes of having fallen asleep. He climbed to his feet and did what he does best... survey his surroundings and assess the situation.

He could see no tree, but he remembered having fallen asleep against one. Suddenly, he noticed a cabin of sorts that seemed strangely out of place... but like it belonged all the same. The feeling he got when he looked at the house was not that of fear, but of an unsettling comfort. It didn't look abandon, so he could only assume there was at least one person living there.

"Okay," he whispered to himself, "I fell asleep next to a tree that wasn't here... and now I see a house that I don't remember seeing before..." He shrugged and moved silently and swiftly over to the cabin.

Keeping to the darkest parts, which wasn't hard considering it was nighttime, he was able to get right up against the wall. Because there was no door on this side of the cabin, he had to find a craftier way in. He spotted a window not far from where he was crouching and slipped over to take a peak.

Lifting himself up, as it was a tall window even for him, he was able to see inside without much difficulty. He could see a small man reeling for some reason unknown to Ranul, a woman, and a familiar face.

Ranul groaned as he lowered his head so he couldn't be seen and thought to himself, Merric? I never thought I'd have to see him again. Not a good thing for me to be here... He got ready to drop and run away, but something inside told him to take to the roof.

He moved away from the window and hefted himself onto a pile of logs so the he could reach the roof. The size of the cabin bothered Ranul. From the outside, it made him look like a normal sized human, but from what he saw on the inside, it was a normal cabin.

He sat on the roof, hidden from view by a shadow cast by the chimney, and looked around. All was as he thought it would be... except one thing. There were two figures standing apart from the cabin, near some trees. He tried to hear what they were saying, as his angelic senses were quite heightened, but he could only hear indecipherable whispers.

Well, this is going to be an interesting night... to say the least, he thought, settling closer to the chimney. No sense attracting any... unwanted attention from the others in the area.

Invoulentarily, she ran her tongue across her deathly sharp incisors. Her fangs glinted in the limited light which was graciously given by the moon. A soft rustle sounds as she shifts, standing straight and tall, at 5'7".

The Dragonic man was a giant compared to her, but fearless as she was, she didn't fret over it. He looked as if he was contemplating, and that, she figured he was.

For a moment, she said nothing, looking at the man a bit awkwardly after his question. 'Why would he want to know this anyhow..?' she thought to herself curiously, before readying herself with an answer.

"I was banished from my lands. I come from Solaris, the Royal Palace of the Abyss. My Father was the Overlord of that realm. I do not know what has become of them, nor do I care." she spoke in a tone so cold, that it could have made a chill run down the spine of the most fearless being.

"As far as I'm concerned, I have no family." her soft, calm, and smooth voice sounded once more. She then closed her eyes, a deep exhale escaping her lips as she did so.

You and I both know, that you never had a family in the first place...

A low, smooth, calm, and temptingly seductive voice sounded at the back of Knives' mind, making her eyes open calmly. It was the beast. The demonic soul which was forever intwined with her own. It was her lifesource, her power. It was something she could never rid herself of, even if she wanted to.

The young, dark girl's eyes then closed once more, almost in a wince. They then opened, the surface a luminous coat of metallic black. A split second later, they blinked back to normal, the beast had been shut out to the back of her mind, where it belonged.