Welcome to Gaia! ::

Fonic artes sounded extremely similar to just normal artes. Except, she didn't think they were able to work off someone else's artes like Jade mentioned. Jade mentioned the best and worst scenarios for Krystal's position. Both didn't seem all that favorable. If she stayed here, she'd have a hard time finding a place to stay; though, Sheena wouldn't mind opening Mizuho to her and Exire might welcome her if she didn't mind being isolated from the world. Either way, this was a world Krystal didn't know and she was on a mission to find out what happened to her planet. Maka's enthusiasm was a bit refreshing, but would that really happen? "Yes. Sybak is the closest city to the forest. But, she could be long gone before you get there."






Chani walked over to her brother, who was putting away some of his ingredients and discarding what he couldn't use. "Looks like everything's fine now." Daermod looked up at his sister when she spoke. He could tell something was on her mind. Standing, he rested a hand on her shoulder and knelt to look at her. "What's wrong, Chani? Did someone bully you?" "No, it's not that. Daermod....I met someone who doesn't know what a half-elf is. It was just weird hearing someone ask what one is." Someone that didn't know what a half-elf was? Ideally, that was the kind of person a half-elf would want to meet, but it was weird. Why wouldn't someone know what a half-elf was? "Where did you meet this person, and who is he?" "Over there. The man that led the people of Asgard to the tower, and his flying girlfriend."

Oh thank Gaia nobody prodded about the belly rubs, Azura thought. Wonder how much it may freak 'em out when the time comes to pass, though...

Seishin's little curious venture had not gone completely unnoticed, even if it was but a brush. Any touching of Kratos' wings always produced an odd feeling, as if his very soul were being touched. If Seishin would have gone as far as grasping at them, it would start to feel uncomfortable. He remembered the time he showed them to Lloyd as a toddler, who, with little coos of wonder and curiosity, had pulled at the "feathers". He could turn off his senses at will, but he was never able to figure out how to block out that particular feeling. Still, he didn't think it was worth mentioning verbally just yet. Bringing out his wings was such a rare occurrence anyway. But if Seishin tried pushing his luck in the next time, Kratos would have a word with him. He could tolerate the discomfort for his own son, but for someone he didn't feel that close to yet (even if it were a child), the boundary was thin.

Azura made a twisted sort of grin the moment she heard Rhone's little quip. She did have a bit of an enjoyment for puns, but they still never failed to spark this itch of annoyment in her. Add to that the still lingering exasperation she felt from the remark Chartreuse got away with letting loose. And then the exchange between Rhone and Solaire happened. Feelings of intense amusement and irritation were welling up at the same time, and she was at a loss for how to properly express them.

She halted in her tracks for a moment, allowing Rhone to draw nearer at his continued pace. Once she sensed him close beside her, she sharply threw back a fist, intending to hit him in the gut. But with her being a five-footer and him being a seven-footer, she miiiiiight have underestimated and possibly ended up hitting him in the jewels. "No, that was absolutely dreadful," she uttered firmly, still holding her twisted grin, still unsure where exactly she hit.

Hiccup...seemed to be acting weird. Was he hiding his other friend? Why? Oh! Maybe they were hurt and he didn't want them getting hurt! Like how Zero stayed hidden while she recovered from losing her arm. Of course, that little effort Hiccup put in was soon wasted as his friend stood and approached them. Arrest him? Mikhail tilted his head. "Why would you be arrested? All you did was fall out of the sky." This place was odd.






Die off? Gaius watched Chani leave to see her brother as Muzét rested her cheek on her hand in thought. What could that possibly mean? It sounded rather cruel. Muzét watched as Gaius turned and left, following after him. He soon met up with the three people that he'd rescued in Asgard. The second male was now completely awake and fretting over his sister, asking if she was hurt and if she needed anything. However, he nearly fainted again upon seeing Gains and the flying spirit next to him. He...was not very brave, was he? "I'm glad to see you are well." He crossed his arms again, seeming unsure if he should ask them for some clarity. "Is something bothering you? We'd be happy to help. After what you did for us, it's the least we could do, I'm sure." Aisha was a kind person with very strong observation skills. It reminded him so much of Karla. "...Forgive me if this is an uncomfortable topic, but I would like to know what a half-elf is. The term is unfamiliar to me, and I've never heard of them." Like with Chani, the three with him now looked a bit surprised. Yet, it didn't seem like they were going to avoid the subject. "A half-elf is a person born to a human and an elf. This is child knowledge. Where have you been all your life?" Harley sounded a bit bitter on the subject. Why was that?

"The children of humans and elves. Fascinating. But, I wonder why Chani didn't answer and just told us to not be surprised if we were told they should die." "There are more than a few humans and elves that see half-elves...unfavorably." "Unfavorably? Don't sugarcoat it, Aisha. I can take it. What she means is that humans and elves hate us simply because we exist. They treat like we're a bunch of monsters. Like it's our fault that we're half-elves." Harley stood and looked at Gaius. "This person. Chani. She a half-elf?" "She is." "I'm willing to bet she's young. Not even an adult yet." "Seemed that way." Where was this going? Gaius hoped Harley had a point. "She didn't answer because she was probably scared. Scared you'd call her a freak or attack her or something when you found out. We adults are used to the hate, but if she's still a kid, she likely hasn't quite grasped the nerve to deal with it. So, now what?" Gaius tilted his head. "Now, what are you going to do about it?" That was what Harley was saying. "I've no reason to condemn your people as monsters. In fact, after the effort Chani and her brother put in to help Asgard, I'd say half-elves aren't different from humans at all." He was a king, and something as trivial as blood wouldn't stop him from protecting half-elven citizens if they existed in his world. After all, he was friends with and the king of Jude, a child born to a Rieze Maxian and an Elympion. In a way, half-elves weren't much different than people like Jude.

Rhone recoils back from the impact of Azura's hit before quickly righting himself and regaining his composure.

"That...would've really been bad if there was actually anything there to hit."




(Sorry for the really short post. I'm planning on triggering an event, but I want to finish this banter first before just jumping into it. )

Rhone crosses his arms and smirks at Azura's expression.

"Yeah, it got removed. By me. I removed it."

At this point, even Solaire is dumbfounded.

"You sound very...nonchalant about this."
"Well, yeah. I'm made entirely of mana and I have to constantly channel it in order to keep my body the way it is. What, am I supposed to waste resources so I can manifest a weak point?"

Rhone scratches the back of his head again as he begins to explain.

"Technically we're all made of mana on some level. The difference with me is that I'm far more in tune with the mana in the world than I am the sort of mana most people are made up of. I technically could keep my body comprised of pure energy, but then I wouldn't be able to interact with the world in a normal way. I'd just be a...force. Plus keeping a mostly natural body makes the resource drain to such a low extent that I hardly notice it. It's just...easier to be me."

He closes his eyes and raises his index finger.

"However, because my mana isn't quite the same as most people, my emulation of flesh isn't quite perfect. I'm about a third as dense as the average person, making me light and easy to fling aside. The only reason I have the strength that I do is because I augment my sword strikes with magic. In fact-"

Rhone's lecture is interrupted by a loud rustling noise coming from the other side of a nearby hill.

"What was-"

Rhone's reaction is interrupted by an armored man screaming.

"I'LL INVESTIGATE!"

Solaire draws his sword and quickly makes his way out of sight over the hill. Once there, he spots a peculiar creature rolling around on the ground. It looks like...er...it's kinda...um...huh. Hold on, let me see if I can find anything...hmmmm...what...okay, screw it. Here:

It's a that. Upon discovering the creature, Solaire is overcome with emotion!

"What...an adorable creature! How are you, tiny catdog...thing?"

He reaches out to pet it...and that's when its eyes turn red. The next thing the party sees is Solaire being flung back over the hill trailing purple smoke, hitting the ground, and rolling into a nearby tree. Shortly after, the creature...stretches...over the hill to stand in front of the party. The back of it following after, returning it to its normal size. Upon closer inspection, it seems to have a bag attached to its back with a red and purple sash...

Kratos didn't seem to react all that much to his wing being poked, but he gave off a slightly irritated or uncomfortable vibe. Had Seishin angered him? He didn't mean to. His wings were just so pretty; Seishin was incredibly curious. He followed behind the group with his head down, ears flattened against his head as if he was in trouble. He wasn't paying much attention, so when the group stopped, Seishin walked right into Kratos's back without realizing he'd halted. Holding his nose as a tingling sensation shot through it, Seishin peeked out from behind Kratos as Solaire went off to investigate something. What happened?

The spirit-spyrite watched curiously, waiting for Solaire to come back. But, his fur and hair stand on end as Solaire is suddenly thrown back over the hill, and Seishin immediately holds his staff close and stays behind Kratos. What followed Solaire was a...something. It looked like a dog or something. Maybe a spirit of some kind? When it wasn't stretched out, it was actually very cute. Seishin stepped out from behind Kratos and knelt next to him, curiously looking at the creature. Maybe Solaire had scared it. It looked like it had a bag on it's back. Maybe it was delivering something. If only he could talk, he would say hi to it. Instead, he decided to smile and wave to it. With luck, he wouldn't be attacked like Solaire had been. He honestly couldn't tell if it was an enemy or not.

[[ I mean, I don't know what's supposed to happen now, but....TEMMIE!!!! Also, sorry if I posted before I was supposed to. Just...the posting order demanded I do. Plus, I'm constantly being quoted, so.... ]]