Almost There

[Cao]

Just a time for the cast to bond and get to know one another... you know, good stuff.

---

It was slow and steady progress, though thankfully they all (including Tohru, apparently; Vera had automatically seemed like the traveling type at first glance) could travel easily enough. The golem carrying Iris trudged along effortlessly, moving like any other golem would, and part of Yuri was wondering how Rita would react to this kind of magic. No doubt, their foreign diplomat would be hauled into her lab faster than he could question the state of said 'lab.'

Looking around at the scenery, Capua Nor wasn't really too far from where they were. It was almost dark, sure, but they would probably get there before—

There was the odd sound of earth crumbling, and Yuri spun around in time to see the Golem carrying Iris fall to its knees, eyes no longer glowing green. What caught his attention, however, was the way Tohru was leaning against it, heavily at that. Ebony eyes narrowed at the sight, instantly detecting the signs of exhaustion in the foreigner's form.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked, approaching Tohru, who jumped slightly and looked up. Yuri frowned at this.

"My... My apologies," Tohru said, pushing away from the Golem, hand going to his head for a moment before placing it back on the earthen creature. "I... lost my concentration. Give me a moment to—"

Yuri mentally sighed, hands going to his hips before he shrugged, taking his traveling pack and, quite unceremoniously, tossing it on the ground. "We're stopping here for today," he announced, loud enough for the whole group to hear.

"Don't we need—"

"Believe me when I say we really don't want you passing out on us. We can handle carrying Iris, but you're a lot bigger than her. If you're tired, don't be afraid of saying so. It's not like we're gonna kill you."

Yuri stretched his arms above his head, ignoring the bewildered look on Tohru's face as he simply knelt in front of Repede. "Go scout for us while we set up, okay?"

The dog barked, immediately setting off on his master's orders. Yuri next turned on Karol, Flynn, and Vera. "Alright. Which one of you remembers the spell for the anti-monster barrier?"

[Daisuke]

Vera gave him a look as if she felt offended by his statement.

"I AM the barrier, silly." she said, standing proudly and childishly sticking her tongue out at him. still, she had to admit internally that two ill-bodied party members made it hard to be properly taken care of.

Iris was in pain from the golem falling so suddenly, but she managed a tiny smile and got to her own knees. From here, she winced a bit, before finally standing with the balance aid of a nearby tree. Missing an arm made it tough to stand straight, that was for sure. But the ALL DAY laying down and being carried had given her enough energy to kneel. She decided she was tougher than that.

"C'mon tough guy, even you need a break sometime." she nudged him with her one arm, losing balance and inevitably falling into his lap with a squeak. It took her several seconds to realize she stopped falling, and no time at all to hurriedly get off of him and apologize.

Losing an arm seemed to calm her insanity a little.

[[Not likely]]
"SHUT UP AND NARRATE!" she shouted.

[[Jerk, did she have to?]]

Flynn agreed with Yuri and decided maybe it was time to rest after all. Blastia not working made it excruciatingly difficult to carry onward for very long, without the use of artes.

Artes...

"Yuri, I agree we need a barrier, but nobody can cast any spells at the moment without completely exhausting themselves. We'll just have to do watches in shifts."

"I voluntee-"

"You aren't staying up all night, Vera." he quickly stopped her.

"Aww, fine. Can I at least go first?" she asked, in a whiny childish voice.

Flynn sighed and looked to the others.

"I suppose. I will go next, so when I come to get you, we will trade places."

iris just leaned against the tree, too proud to admit it took all her energy just to stand up, TWICE. She would be doing a lot of thinking tonight for sure.

[[Oh, NOW she gets to think?]]
::Hey, why wasn't I in the post before this?::
"God dammit, someone kill these yellow boxes!" Iris shouted again.

[Mimizuku]

Karol looked around, and turned to everyone. " I'll go get some firewood! " He told them, wanting to be at least a little bit helpful. He then ran off, grabbing some logs that were laying on the floor, he grabbed three of them into his hands at once, they were only tiny logs though.
While picking up the logs, staring off toward the lights of a nearby town, wondering where Raven had gone, not to mention where everyone that had once been on there first journey had gone.

[Cao]

Tohru felt bad, noticing the pain Iris was in right away due to the Golem's sudden halt, but he did at least smile weakly as she attempted to cheer him up. Her fall startled him, and Tohru instinctively caught her so she wouldn't hurt herself... or him, for that matter. He simply waved off her apology, unsure of what to say, really, as she, once again, began talking to... whatever she was hearing.

Yuri bit back a retort to Vera as he pulled out the tents, setting Torrent aside for now. It would just get in the way. Well, he understood where Flynn was coming from at least, though it was a little funny to see Vera and Flynn argue over who would take the first shift, watching as Karol went off to get their firewood before turning back to the other two party members. "Guess that means I'm third, and Cap'n Karol here'll be fourth. We'll take it in 3 hour shifts. Repede'll also probably be guarding as well."

Tohru sighed in annoyance, making himself comfortable near the golem until he felt he could move without the world spinning on him. He was annoyed, hating it as he was unable to do anything and unable to explain his bout of exhaustion. It had never happened before. Normally, he could his powers with ease, but here—

A yellow blob gleamed in front of him, and instinctively Tohru caught it. He frowned at it, holding it in his hand as he examined it.

"It's just a lemon gel," Yuri informed, sighing at the confused look on the foreigner's face. "It's what most mages use to recover the energy they need to cast spells." He shrugged and went off to set up the first tent.

Lemon gel... huh, Tohru mused to himself, still eying the item suspiciously before cautiously eating it. He was surprised by the sweet, if lemony, taste, feeling some of his energy coming back. He shook his head. This world is strange...

[Mimizuku]

Karol sighed, Raven did usually run off a lot, but he usually came running right back, but it seemed odd, he had been gone for a while now, and Karol did catch a glimpse of Raven running into the forest when it was getting dark. He could've been eaten by a wolf, a bear, or worse! But Karol felt as if he was getting a little to worried, and shook his head, walking back to Yuri with the firewood. Though his instincts were right, and Raven was in trouble at the moment. Setting the firewood on the ground, Karol turned to look at Yuri. " Hey, Yuri, Raven ran off to a forest earlier and still isn't back, don't you think something might be wrong. " Raven was kind of like a father figure to Karol, and he hated to see his friends hurt. Raven couldn't have just got out of the forest by poofing out randomly, he would have to exit through the only two possible ways there were to get out, and lots of dangerous things had lived in that forest, monsters, creepy people, HOBOS! Damn, he was getting to worried again, Raven could just shoot a hobo that went to attack him, they would be very easy for him to defeat. But still... He had never seen Raven exit the forest, or come back at all, something had to be wrong, he would have usually been back by now. Karol sighed, starting to calm down, and began thinking about everyone else in his first journey. He still didn't even know where Rita was, being worried, after all, she was famous, yet not in a good way. But still, if she had done anything recently there would be news about it, but he hadn't heard a single thing about her for months.

[Daisuke]

It was rather amusing to Vera, really. This while thing was just because she was bored. She really personified dangerous boredom. Iris just personified dangerous. And Flynn, well, he's Flynn. But the group at hand as a while was so convoluted that it was strange. Brave Vesperia and the knights, joined by a foreign diplomat.

It was enough to laugh out loud about, which she did.

"Something funny, Bluenette?" asked Iris, still managing to support herself on the tree and not totally collapse just yet.

"Just that, if three days ago if you asked me what I wanted to do, I never would have said save the world. I probably would have said party or make money. I'm funding it funny how quick destiny is to punch out my goals and throw me at new ones."

Flynn gave a small chuckle as well at this.

"Destiny... The entire concept confounds me. I believe we make our own path. And through my beliefs, I rose the ranks within the Empire."

Iris just gave a small sigh.

"I wish I remember my beliefs. All I remember before I met my friends is being diagnosed with aer sickness. But I haven't seen any kind of sickness. Just me and my friends like always."

Aer sickness. She had aer sickness. That would instantly clue the party in on why she was so off the hinge.

"Iris... Why was this not reported in your official paperwork?" asked Flynn. He gave adequate pause, during which Vera walked off to stand watch. Iris didn't respond, however. She hoped she wouldn't have to, or that someone else would say something. Because honestly? She had no idea why. She didn't remember the day she filled it out. Or really any day before her diagnosis.

[Cao]

At Karol's concerns, it was only natural that Yuri contemplated the old man's actions, his own ebony eyes narrowing slightly as he glanced around the area. The kid had a point: Raven had been gone for a little too long, even for him. And he highly doubted the man was turning back into a loner. Shaking off the worry gnawing at his gut, he reached over and pat Karol on the head, ruffling his hair for good measure as he put on his trademark smile. "He'll be fine. It's the old man, after all. If the Great War couldn't kill him off, no way some lousy monster will." With that said, he turned to the wood Karol had collected and began making the fire.

Still, that didn't entirely stop him from worrying. The idea that Raven had gotten in trouble was still a very plausible idea, after all. It wasn't like the old man was invincible, after all.

"Aer sickness?" Tohru questioned, genuinely confused (and bringing Yuri back to the main conversation).

"Well, aer is what we used to use for magic and blastia and stuff," Yuri decided to answer, hoping that would be it. Yet the foreigner only seemed more confused, apparently unable to grasp the subject. "Your... world does use magic... right?"

"Yes. What we use is different, however, and has no name."

At this, Yuri sighed then looked to Flynn. "You're gonna have to make sure he understands what the hell happens here, you know." He shrugged, huffing in annoyance as his hair fell over his shoulders again, giving up on the fire for the moment to reach into his pocket and pull out a hair tie to put the ends of his hair together, at the very least. A familiar sight, for he used to do the same thing when he was in the Knights. Working on the fire again, it didn't take long before he was finally able to get one started, fanning it a little so it could grow.

--------------------------------

Repede sniffed around as he scouted, looking back and vaguely seeing the light of a campfire, indicating that someone in the traveling party had managed to start a fire. Keeping a mental track of where he was, Repede kept moving on, expertly pawing his way through the forest. He hadn't found any monsters yet, none willing to come after them, anyway. Perhaps they sensed his presence, though it was a little strange that none were attacking.

The dog found a small clearing, and what he saw there was truly a wonder, guard up instantly. There, in the middle, was what looked like a glowing creature. He lowered himself to the ground, cautiously approaching, pulling his dagger out as quietly as possible. Sniffing the air, however, indicated familiar scents: humans and blood.

And he recognized one of those scents.

Putting his dagger back, he approached the 'glowing mound', its shape quickly forming into that of a child-like figure and... Raven! He carefully nudged the child-like figure, noting the white cloak, peeling away the hood to find... blue hair?

Now he was utterly confused. Regardless, he nudged the child again, earning a soft little mumble until he found golden eyes peering at him tiredly.

"A-Ah!"

Before Repede could even blink, the child quickly changed position, getting between Repede and the other human. A flash of a familiar pink caught his eye, and Repede instantly recognized Raven's broken form.

Raven... was hurt.

"Y-You can't eat him!" the child said fiercely, though Repede could see he was shaking head-to-toe. He huffed, nudging the child aside (though it took a moment or two until the kid actually complied) to examine Raven.

There had to be broken bones, if the angles his arms and legs were at were any indication.

"You... know him?" the child asked, and Repede looked back at him. He was young, likely no older then ten. How had he gotten here, was the question at the moment?

No... Repede shook his head; this wasn't the time to contemplate. Raven needed help, and the others would no doubt be able to. Flynn, at the very least, would be able to heal him somewhat. Lifting his head up high, the dog howled, nice and loud. Yuri would recognize it, for sure. Flynn, hopefully, would recognize it as well.

-----------------------

Yuri started slightly as he heard the howl, nice and loud. His eyes narrowed as he stood up, locating the general direction it had come from. "That was Repede," he said, more to himself than anything. He looked to Flynn for a moment before he grabbed Second Star (grabbing Torrent wasn't yet second-nature to him) and went into the forest.

[Mimizuku]

Raven had his eyes closed, nearly about to pass out. But when he heard the sound of Repede howling, he opened his eyes, recognizing how he sounded. " Heh... Hey there, Repede. " He said with a slight laugh as he let his broken arm fall to the side, not able to feel it at all.
[[ SMALL FAIL SHIT! D: ]]

[Venetian]

He didn't have any means of tracking the time, since this was a world foreign to him- But he estimated it had been about a few hours since he had revived that women from the dead in Aspio. He thought back to that moment- He woke up, with a crowd of people who marveled over the very fact that he had revived someone from death itself; jade knew that when marvels happened, bad things happened soon after. He had quickly made excuses for why he had to leave- and left that place immediately. He had to make it to a new town, at the very least, so he could assure his own safety... But he was so tired... He briefly recognized that he was in the woods, but could not, in any other way, tell where he was. His eyelids began feeling heavier and heavier... Something felt weird in his forehead, like an applied pressure that he could not fight. Lack of rest was coming on him, he found that the ground was coming awfully close to him. He hit the ground, he passed out.

(( He passed out near you guys. Ruffles in the bushes! ))

[Cao]

There was something else in the woods, Repede noted. He could hear it. Not to mention someone from the campsite was also coming this way, likely Yuri. He always did act faster than the rest.

Still, he had to check out this next 'thing,' in case it really was a monster this time.

He couldn't just leave the child and Raven alone, though. He could sense other monsters coming nearby, attracted by the old man's blood.

But still...

"Repede!"

The canine started slightly, hearing Yuri's ever-familiar voice as the long-haired male came out of the forest. Naturally, the human was surprised at the sight before him: from the child who appeared to be glowing to Raven on the ground, broken and bleeding.

"What the hell—" he started, already going to Raven's side. Broken bones galore... what had he run into to get like this?

"He... " Yuri turned on the child, who shrunk almost instantly. Blue hair and golden eyes, he noted, ebony eyes narrowing slightly. It couldn't be... "He... protected me... from a demon... "

"A demon?"

This got the long-haired male thinking. Was it Skade? It seemed highly likely, and he couldn't really think of any other kind of demon. Before he could finish his train of thought, however, Repede barked, getting his attention. Looking to his furry companion, Yuri nodded. "Go ahead. Head back to camp if it's all clear."

Repede barked once more, then bolted off into the woods.

Yuri looked back at Raven, sighing mentally as he reached into his pocket, luckily finding a Lemon Gel, nudging it in Raven's general direction. "Hey. Think you can take this?"

----------------------------

Repede dashed through the forest, following the scent of yet another person. It didn't take long for him to find what he was looking for, spotting a vague shape on the ground. He came to a halt, approaching the figure cautiously, taking in his form.

A male, tall, kind of old... definitely human... no blood.

Cautious as ever, Repede nudged the person's head, hoping to somehow stir him awake.

[Mimizuku]

Raven looked at Yuri, grabbing the lemon gel as he sighed. " Looks like I won't be able to help ya guys fight for a while. I don't think any form of medicine can cure broken bones. " He told Yuri, though still, the lemon gel would help, it still wouldn't help his broken bones. Raven ate the Lemon gel, and then turned to look at Yuri. " That thing seemed to be manipulating shadows, it looked human, but it definitely wasn't. " He told Yuri.

[[ Crappy post is crap. ]]

[Venetian]

He hadn't been asleep for long until something nudged him on the head; he let out an instinctive groan, he felt very weak- this magic, despite its obvious marvel, has taken quite the toll on his body. He opened his eyes about halfway and stared tiredly at the being before him-- That just about gave the old man a heart attack..!
It was a wolf. He realized he could barely sit up, his breathing quickened and he glared at the thing. The "great necromancer" was looking so much like a injured animal. As a warning, he began charging an energy ball in his hand, " Go on..! " It was just a warning, he didn't have the energy to complete the spell. He wanted this animal to go away... He should never have left that town; given these circumstances he would have been better off there.

[Cao]

"Manipulating... shadows?" Yuri blinked, unsure of what to make of it. He knew dark magic existed. Hell, Rita even knew it. Manipulating shadows, though? That was damn-near impossible, as far as Terca Lumereis was concerned.

At least he knew one thing: That eliminated Skade as a possible suspect.

He doubted Raven would even be alive if he'd gone up against Skade...

Shaking those thoughts out of his head, he turned to the kid, scowling slightly. "Hey," he asked, not surprised when the child jumped slightly, "what's your name?"

"My... name... ?" The genuine confusion on this kid's face told him enough, honestly, especially as he kept contemplating it.

There was no doubt it: this was Alex.

From the blue hair to the golden eyes, it was obvious. He'd never heard of anyone else having this kind of hair colour. Estelle's pink hair was as strange as he'd ever seen, and even then, it was practically rare. Cumore? He'd probably just dyed it as some kind of fashion statement... or show of money.

Regardless, it would take a lot more than just guessing. Tohru's reaction would probably confirm it, depending on what it was.

Yuri turned back to Raven. "Don't worry about fighting or anything. Old people need to rest after all, right?" He cracked his trademark smirk, punching down his thoughts (and worry) down. "Once Flynn or someone else gets here, we'll get you back to our camp."

-------------------------------

Repede huffed in annoyance, not liking that he was being brushed off this quickly like some... some rogue animal. He reached into his pack, pulling out a bag with a few gels — Lemon, Pineapple, Orange, Apple — and placed them in front of the downed human, hoping that he would take them. TO add to this, he also stepped back a bit, both to calm him down and to have enough time to react in case he really did fire off that spell of his.

[Venetian]

Now he understood that the situation was no longer a violent one. That what he had assumed a " wolf" was something else in intelligence, it seemed. He stopped the spell and stared at the gels; surely this would help with his lack of energy- so that he could walk- but he thought to himself that he still really did need a nap. Jade smiled at the animal and accepted the gels, managing to use them. After a few minutes he managed to stand, wobbling, still not sure where he needed to go. " Thank you for the offer" He said, not very sure why he was talking to a dog.
He really should get to a town soon... He needed to sleep.

[Mimizuku]

Raven looked at Yuri and smiled. " Ya treat me like I'm a retired grandpa. " He said and sighed, his head starting to hurt. " Can't ya get me a wheel chair or somethin'..? " It hurt to just lay down on the floor.
[[ SMALL FAIL! ]]