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 Posted: Fri Aug 05, 2011 2:14 pm
 Typically Kiarei didn't go out after the sun set behind the hills. This was mainly due to the fact that she was truly, completely, and utterly a healer and was also a lover of peace, thus had no ability that would aid her during combat. Walking anywhere alone at night was simply asking for something dangerous to happen especially when there was talk of Witch Eaters about. Despite that there she was, a bundle clutched to her chest and her red eyes glancing about warily. She had donned a darker dress than normal, hoping to stand out less in the moonlight darkness, but her skin and hair were too pale to hide; she might as well have simply worn her normal garb.
She hadn't left the safety of her home for a silly reason, either. Kiarei had received word that one of the students at the Academy was ill and she was the closest source that they could turn to for assistance. One of her weaknesses was never being able to say no to someone that was in need, and she recognized this, but she didn't truly see her as being weak... Though perhaps, she mused, she was still too naive. Whatever the case may have been she had struck out in the middle of the night after receiving word, only her herbs, mortar, pestle, and a small knife that she used for every day use, but could be used for self defense if absolutely necessary.
Mentally, however, she knew that if things became so desperate that she needed to defend herself that the knife would never be what she turned to. Kiarei was Mononoke, one of the shifting witches and, thus, would always resort to her lupine form if absolutely necessary... Though not for the teeth. If the options came down to fight or flight, she would always run, especially since she never wished to cause harm to anyone. Though, she had to admit, she had never tried to outrun a Witch Eater in flight and the mere thought made her clutch her bundle a little tighter.
Suddenly she saw something on the trail ahead, something that made her slow to a stop, her ears pricked and eyes wide as she stared at the shadowed figure on the path before her. From what she could see they didn't appear to be moving; the simply laid there, sprawled across the path like a dark smudge cast across the sand. Swallowing thickly Kiarei deposited her herbs in her satchel, slowly beginning to approach the figure that lay comatose or, worse, dead in the road. Distress began to rise in her, causing her feet to move more quickly to approach the figure, her mind not even contemplating what could have placed this individual so conveniently in her path.
Hesitantly she crouched near the figure, noting the faint movement of the gentle rise and fall of the individual's chest; they were breathing at least. Kia let out a slow breath, relaxing a little; his breathing pattern appeared deep and healthy. Smiling a little she tilted her head, attempting to peer at the figure but not attempting to reach out towards them yet. After all if they were simply sleeping she didn't want to startle them... Though she had to admit that it was a very odd place to fall asleep. Perhaps they were narcoleptic?
"Hello there." she called out softly to what she could only assume was a male figure. "Are you alright? Can you hear me?"
Kiarei startled when the figure shifted a little, a cloaked head lifting slightly and turning. She could not see the features concealed withing the large hood due to the heavy shadows it cast, but the stranger was moving, which was always a good sign. She saw a sliver of pale skin, the line of a jaw, moving a little and hesitantly she moved closer until she was right next to the figure, leaning down slightly so she could hear them; it never occurred to her to be wary or more cautious.
"I'm sorry... I can't hear you. What was that?" Kia questioned, her hand moving as if to draw back the hood.
"I said." A male voice, suddenly strong and loud in the darkness as a hand shot out and grasped the Mononoke's wrist. "That you smell delicious."
Kiarei suddenly let out a startled cry, bordering on a shriek of alarm as she was shoved backwards by the figure, beginning to struggle to get away immediately. Somehow she managed to keep from being pinned by the much larger figure mostly, she believed, due to her own size; it was easier for her to slip free of his grasp. Suddenly she focused, closing her eyes as she began to shift into her wolf form; she had to run. Every shift was easier than the last and this was no exception. The strange man seemed startled to suddenly have a white wolf trapped beneath him and jerked back when she snapped at him.
Seizing the opportunity she immediately scrambled for footing and began to run with all her might towards the academy. Thankfully the magic of the mononoke carried the clothing and belongings of the previous form as well, thus she still had everything she needed to help the student. She would simply ask to stay at the Academy for the night. However, suddenly, her thoughts were scattered as she suddenly became airborn, her paws scrabbling at the air as the Witch Eater grabbed her by her scruff and hoisted her up. She struggled futilely; she doubted there was a way for her to get away now, even if she shifted back; she was completely outmatched.
"Now, my pretty little morsel..." the man breathed, audibly licking his lips and causing her to yip and whimper in distress. "Hold nice and still for me..."
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Posted: Fri Aug 05, 2011 3:03 pm
 Lawsonia Alexander had been in hot pursuit of a certain Witch Eater for weeks and this respect, the time in which was specified was of no exaggeration. Suffice to say that the Blackheart had been forced at one point to concede that his quarry had talent, but this elite Reaper was not an individual who admitted defeat easily. Consequently, Lawsonia had elected to vanish off the radar for a short period of time, permitting the Witch Eater an opportunity to 'play' - this would have been an abhorrant act for a Cerberus Knight but when it came to the Reapers, it was a reasonable measure. Fortunately his gamble had also proven successful and once the Witch Eater had discovered he was 'free' to pursue the vulnerable witches of the world, his trail became significantly easier to track.
Within a few days, the Blackguard was once again more forcebly on his trail. With enough information and intelligence at hand, the Reaper could now predict some of the more erratic behaviour with much more accuracy than he had previously. As they said, knowledge was power and the espionage had paid off. In fact, this information had all led him to a specific forest on the outskirts of Clarus Arbor - a rural city with very little protection to begin with. This really should have been of no surprise to Lawsonia as the entire area was a gift of a feeding ground! Similarly, the deserted forests provided ample cover for anyone who desired to flee - all things considered, if Lawsonia had desired to be a murderer then this probably would have been a good place to start.
Nevertheless he was granted very little opportunity to dwell and instead, continued to tread softly through the forest. Even without magic, his darkened armour ensured he remained concealed and for the time being he opted to avoid the well beaten tracks. His intentions were fairly simple in the grand scheme of things - in a woodland as isolated and vulnerable as this, the Witch Eater would have very few qualms about using the road as a lure, as such, it made sense for the Blackguard to avoid it so that he had the 'jump'.
Pre-emptive strikes were always fun, he got to be creative.
At present there was very little for the knight to observe and all things considered, the night had been wholely uneventful. The sounds were all of a normal nature, nocturnal beasts shifting back and forth within the undergrowth. Apply a healthy dose of a breeze to shake the wind and all in all, there was nothing that could raise his suspicions...or rather there hadn't been until he had a more foreign sound. It was faint, a 'cry' rather than a full blown shriek but it rippled with a sense of alarm which caused the Blackguard's head to swing in it's direction, eyes narrowing to slits through his helmet.
Remaining silent, the Blackguard refrained from any inappropriate or cliche remarks at this point and swept his free hand in front of him. His intentions had been to cast a spell of concealment, one that would guarantee his movements would be silent for the time being, however, as he took measures to cast it, it became apparent that whatever had shrieked was coming his way. He couldn't help it as a single phrase swept through his mind and his brow arched beneath his winged helm - 'How convenient'.
Thus it was with little time to act that the Blackguard did the only thing he could - given that tree climbing was not one of the easiest acts to perform in armour, he focused upon the very essence of his being, a concentration that was reinforced by a healthy dose of tea he had consumed a few hours ago. In seconds, there was a faint gust of wind and he vanished, a pile of ashes in his place upon the forest floor - a beneficial appearance really, since it fit in rather well with the current surroundings! Alas, from this point on there was nothing more that he could do other than to sit, watch and wait.
It was a shame he couldn't twiddle his thumbs.
Patience was indeed a virtue that was rewarded and sure enough, as the minutes passed, both his quarry and an unfortunate...animal, came into view. Still he remained stationary, waiting for the most opportune time to attack, a time that would come soon enough. No sooner had the Witch Eater flown over the top of the Blackguard's concealed form than he had landed to consume his prey. It was only whenever Lawsonia was certain that the Witch Eater was thoroughly distracted by his meal, that the faint gust returned and what had once been ash, gave birth to his true form once more.
Regarding the Witch Eater with considerable distaste, the Blackguard then prowled towards his own prey, polearm extended out behind him in preparation for a single sweep. Unfortunately for the Witch Eater and very fortunately for Kiarei, her hunter caught scent and sound of the approaching Reaper much too late. Before he even had the opportunity to spin round to confront, flee or otherwise dodge, the resonating polearm had been plunged into his stomach and right out the other side.
Of course, this did mean the majin's heart had been missed and the Witch Eater provided a sly smile to indicate as much. Ah, but isn't pride one's most dangerous vulnerability?
"Ah yes, about that," Lawsonia murmured, his voice muffled through his helmet though the drawl remained obvious. "I never miss," he pointed out wistfully and it was then, that his prey was subject to the true judgement of the knight. The polearm was shunted once more, twisted, jerked and then systematically drawn upwards in no more than three very clean, concise and swift movements - of course, one would be encouraged to use the term 'clean' rather loosely. With not so much as a shriek to his name, the Witch Eater was torn in half from the stomach up, showering the area with a rather unpleasant rain of flesh and blood.
Unphased, the knight proceeded to flick various pieces of skin from his shoulders and gave his polearm a shake. The blade still resonated and emitted a darkened glow of appreciation at the meal it had received but miraculously, it didn't appear to have been stained in the same manner as the rest of the Blackguard. Nevertheless, now that Lawsonia had been suitably satisfied that he'd dealt with his quarry, he took two lengthy strides towards the corpse, which predominantly comprised of the stomach down and kicked it to one side. Inspecting the back and sides, he found no further indication of gang-like or cult like activities... well, at least this one operated on a solo level.
Still there was one thing that puzzled him...
"I always thought that they were cannibalistic," he murmured, turning round to see if the wolf hadn't run for her life the moment she had been released from the majin's grip...
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 5:28 pm
Kiarei was struggling desperately in the grasp of her captor, attempting to twist or kick or something, but the grip he had on her was too firm. However her constant struggles did make it rather difficult for the Witch Eater to draw he closer without getting kicked in the stomach or the face. In that moment there was unfortunately little else she could do without being able to turn around and bite her captor so she could run.
There was suddenly a horrible, wet, crunching sound, accompanied by the clink of metal, causing panic to roll through her immediately. However shortly after she was falling, barely managing to catch herself before she whirled, knowing that she couldn't outrun the With Eater now. Kia's eyes went wide and her ears flattened at the sight before her in shock, her feet dancing a little in indecision and agitation. Her tail lashed behind her and her head dipped as she slowly began to back away, only to yip in distress and flinch when, suddenly, she was sprayed with hot fluid and wet chunks of things she didn't want to contemplate the origins of.
Quickly Kia focused on shifting back, keeping her eyes closed as she returned to her normal form. She heard the strange man's words but didn't look up, moving to turn away instead; she didn't want to see the results of such violence. However, in doing so she slipped and fell into the puddle of blood and gore, causing her eyes to snap open and a yelp to pass her lips. Catching herself on all fours she stared down at the blood... So much blood. It was a first for her, being exposed to so much violence and bloodshed.
Many could call her sheltered, others naive, and they would all be one hundred percent correct. Her parents had sheltered her from many of the horrors of the world, aside form teasing, even death in a way. Her view of the world was incredibly childish and, staring down at the crimson now staining her hands, lower legs, and part of her dress, she felt a little resentful about that fact. Perhaps if she had been prepared better she would have been less terrified, less useless.... Perhaps there wouldn't be tears streaming from her eyes and quiet, fear-induced sobs wracking her small frame.
"T-th..." she tried to stammer out but she couldn't get the words out as she forced herself up into a kneeling position, her tail flicking miserably, the pale fur crimson and heavy with blood.
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 5:54 pm
At first, he thought the wolf had run away, but a doubletake had caused him to re-evalute this. In fact, in place of the small, white animal, there was now a very petite woman. One could have gone so far as to say she was curled in a ball, but with a clear aversion to the blood, hell would have frozen over before she would place her face against it. Alas, it was obvious that her current surroundings caused a significant amount of distress and she seemed incapable of free movement. Trembling from head to toe, with heavy sobs wracking her lungs, she was the definition of a 'mess', and that was saying something considering that most would have called the dead witch eater the mess - he was the one who had run out of luck after all.
"Holy s**t," Lawsonia spoke at last, blinking twice to confirm that Kiarei was actually a real entity and not a figment of his imagination. "You're not a dog," he observed. It was perhaps, the most inappropriate thing that any individual could have possibly said in the given circumstances. It was a testament to the level of exposure he had been subjected to when it came to such brutality. He was more surprised by the little witch than horrified at his immediate surroundings. "Well at least that clears a few anomalies up," he conceded after a few moments, conversing moreso with himself than Kiarei.
Fortunately for the mononoke, he didn't delay his actions any further and with a set of swift steps, bridged the gap between them. Kneeling down, he glanced briefly at the woman for any signs of injury and concluded that save from a few scratches, she was fine. Well, perhaps a few scratches and a healthy dose of shock - always good for the heart. Still, her wracking sobs did cause him to purse his lips and he bowed his head for a moment, regarding his knees as he sought out some sort of sign as to what he should do.
...As if the obvious wasn't staring right in front of him.
"Hey, dingbat," his armour glowed faintly and he gave a grunt, lifting his hand and turning it over to regard the glowing runes on his rest. Shaped in the emblem of a bird, the mouth appeared to be moving.
"Yes?" he replied dubiously.
"S'usually a good idea to move the girl OUT of the blood," the runic bird explained. "It's really not one of their strong points," it clarified, clearly accustomed to the oblivious nature of the knight when it came to social norms. Afterall, Lawsonia was reknowned for defying social convention so blood had never been much of an issue to him.
Thus, it was with a slight nod of confirmation that he accepted the runic 'bird's' advice and, without furtherado, swept Kiarei into his arms and stepped away from the worst of the pool. Admittedly, this should have been done sooner and she probably wouldn't appreciate being at such close quarters to someone who was covered in as much of the accursed liquid as she was, but it was a start. Nevertheless, he didn't put her down immediately and it was only when he was satisfied that he had somewhere to put her, that he finally came to a halt and deposited her on a reasonably sized boulder.
A momentary pause and then...
"You know, you probably shouldn't talk to strangers in dark forests," he murmured, resting both his palms flat on the boulder as he regarded the bloodstained mononoke and the tears that still seemed determined to stream down her cheeks.
"And you're not a stranger in a dark forest..." his armour observed.
"Shut it," he ordered, his nose scrunching up as he regarded his risk before returning his attention to Kia again and heaved a sigh. It was at this point that he finally seemed to realise she wasn't overly fond of being covered from head to toe in blood. In fact, she seemed particular distressed by those hands of her's. Another sigh and a series of 'clinks' echoed in the eerily silent forest before the knight drew around one of the scarlet panels from his skirt and held it out to her. While the top might have been spattered with blood, the underside was still clean.
"Wipe," he ordered, his tone indicating there was no room for argument. "And then you're going to tell me why you were out in the middle of nowhere, even though there have been numerous warnings of Witch Eaters in this area," he added.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 5:12 pm
"Wolf..." she corrected softly, her voice quiet and monotone, the response seemingly more automated than anything.
It didn't really register in her mind that she had even spoken to someone really. She was far too preoccupied with her hands which were trembling and glistening with brilliant red liquid. Her eyes were wide as she stared at the fluid, her lips parted, seemingly entranced by the sight of it... Except her breathing accelerated a little, her eyes widening so a little too much white showed. Deep in the recesses of her mind she scolded herself; she had seen blood before, had worked with cadavers before, but none of that seemed to make what had happened any more shocking.
Slowly little details began to come back her, alerting her that tears poured forth from her eyes, that her breathing was now coming in rapid, hiccuping sobs. How had she missed such things before? Slowly she flipped her hands over, noticing they were completely clean on the opposite side, which allowed her to calm a little as her mind slowly began to sluggishly pick up on a few things. Her training in medicine slowly kicked in, gently alerting her that she was in shock that, no, missing such major things were not normal. However that also brought forth the source of her discomfort, the sight of the body burned into the back of her mind.
Quickly she clamped her eyes shut, her lips pressing together in a thin line as she struggled not to scream in distress. One of the medics she had experience with in the past had told her once that he had seen healers who started screaming in the face of horror never stop. Thus she forced herself not to do so, to simply take deep calming breaths and force her eyes open. It was then that she finally noticed that there was someone next to her, causing her eyes to widen as she slowly turned her head to look at him.
Immediately she sucked in a quick, panicked breath at the sight of the other man, covered in blood and chunks of things that she didn't want to think about the origin of. She swallowed thickly, staring at her in horror for a long moment before she slowly forced herself to calm down again, taking in the way he was dressed. He was a knight...? Was this the man that had.... Saved her?
When a strange voice spoke she blinked slowly, following his gaze to the symbol on the back of his hand, her ears giving a quick, curious flick as she leaned forward a little to watch it. Mentally she began to recognize that she was recovering a little, she just had to focus on doing small things, about not focusing on what she had seen. Slowly she tilted her head at the command from the symbol before yelping as she was picked up by the strange man, her hands scrabbling across his slick armor to try and find a hand-hold.
Kia suddenly flushed, realizing that she was in very close proximity to... Slowly she lifted her eyes, staring at the Knight's face, her flush darkening a little before she glanced aside. She already was making progress, she thought, she was already able to ignore the blood that stained his face. When she was set down she bit her lip, lowering her gaze to the ground at the scolding before looking up, looking a little disgruntled, though one could say it was more of a pout.
"What that voice said." she responded before her ears drooped, looking apologetic; this man didn't deserve her petulance. "...I'm sorry."
When he held out the clean piece of fabric she blinked slowly, looking up at him before giving a slow nod at the command and moving to wipe her hands off. At the next command her eyes hooded a little, even as she continued to wipe off her hands. This was a horrible delay from her duty... She should never have been so foolish and she deserved any scolding she might receive from this stranger.
"...I received... A summons... From the Academy. A student is sick there... I... I need to go there..." Suddenly her eyes widened and she quickly checked for her satchel, relaxing when it appeared it hadn't been stained. "I... I need to get going again... Th... Thank you for... Saving me... But I must go..."
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 8:13 am
Dogs and wolves were almost identical - in fact, dogs were descended from wolves and were domesticated. Given her naivity and general innocence, he would have been so bold as to point out she was a dog, but now wasn't the time for semantics. No matter how much he may have wished to argue this point it would have to wait for another time, preferrably when neither of them was covered in blood, and in his case, entrails. That being said, his thoughts should have been evident as he struggled to keep his mouth shut - suffice to say, that as a man who liked to be right, holding his tongue in certain circumstances was quite the challenge.
Nevertheless, the knight sucked in a deep breath and regarded the mononoke more closely. He weighed up the injuries she had received, the shock and other various issues before concluding that she seemed to be in a reasonable shape. She wasn't dead which was always a bonus, and she had perhaps, learnt a very valuable lesson. Granted, the Blackheart had no intentions of counting his chickens before they hatched but even he had some level of optimism. Once he had confirmed that she was unharmed, as well as discovering her reasons for being in the area, he concluded that she could return home.
Alas...she thought differently.
Lawsonia stared at the young woman for a considerable period of time, his brow creasing at her insistence that she must reach the academy. He was fairly certain that there were many healers both in the immediate town surrounding the academy and in the school itself. Was her presence there truly vital? Was she so special, powerful or unique in her abilities that she had been requested? His lips creased into a thin line at this point and his eyes narrowed. It seemed that he was going to deny her the request no matter how much she argued, in fact, he might even drag her home by force.
Fortunately luck was with the young mononoke this evening and after a few moments he closed his eyes and released a sigh. If he thought things through properly, he could conclude that trudging about in his current state wouldn't go down well with the locals. Additionally, they weren't that far away from the Academy either. If he were to escort her then she would reach Makai safely, he would get a shower and well... he could also have a good feed. The Blackheart might have graduated years ago but he liked the potato chips they made there.
"You aren't going alone," he spoke up at last and shook his head. "You have no idea what lurks in these woods and I suspect that any other encounter might get you killed tonight," he observed. Thus, it was with a wide sweep that he clipped the polearm onto his back and motioned for Kia to take the lead. "Besides, I'm going that way anyway," he concluded with a small shrug and a nod towards the path that lay ahead.
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Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2011 10:50 am
At the looked that crossed the other man's features Kiarei shrank back a little, shifting on the stone she was perched upon; she hoped she wouldn't have to run from him. Judging from how easily he had... Disposed of the Witch Eater, she doubted she would stand much chance of outrunning him, even in her wolf form. However, for some reason, she felt an odd hardness coil within her, a sternness that hadn't been there before. If this man was going to stop her from going to the Academy then she wasn't going to go quietly, she concluded, a thought which borderline startled her; since when had she ever been so bold?
She relaxed a little, however, at the man's slow exhale, ears perking a little in hope. Perhaps she wasn't the only healer in the area, but she had been the closest, and she had said she would come. It would be sad if the sick student went without treat due to something that was a simple unfortunate misshap. That thought, as well, had her pausing and frowning a little to herself, shaking her head. Perhaps she was still in a form of shock... Her thoughts felt alien to her.
Kiarei had read of the affects that shock could have on someone's personality. She had never come face to face with death or gore before, really, so perhaps the shock would have more lingering affects than she previously thought. Frowning to herself, lost in thought for a moment, she jumped when the man spoke again, eyes wide for an instant before she relaxed. His words made her frown a little but, after a moment, she slowly nodded; there was nothing wrong with company, she supposed.
"As you wish..." she murmured, watching him move and trailing off as she realized she hadn't asked his name; there would be tme once they were walking for that.
Swallowing thickly she slid from the rock, testing her footing a bit before standing for a moment. Her body was still trembling a little in the aftermath, but she was stable enough to walk, she mused. Briefly, she wondered why she wasn't crying... Or perhaps she was but she couldn't feel it any longer. After a quick look at her newly acquired escort she headed off towards Makai, her steps gradually getting more sure and a little quicker. Finally she glanced back at her savior, worrying her lip for a moment before speaking.
"You never told me your name." she murmured softly, glancing back to the road to make sure she didn't trip and fall. "I'm Kiarei, an herbalist and healer of Clarus Arbor..."
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