Where they lay: (Open)

There was nothing more relishing than the crunching noise of a fist on someone's nose, Rosse thought to herself. Of course, she'd have rather handled the situation to a better degree, but she digressed. There had been seven of these ugly, brutish, rather stupid-looking thugs who had decided to come in and rob whomever they pleased...and there was but a singular, lone heroine who had the gonads (figuratively speaking,) to stand up to them.

Amana had been quiet ever since she'd arrived here, but it hardly arose from the exception that every realm had its issues...and it certainly had its issues. Today's meager annoyance stemmed from a small band, belonging to a large guild of thieves. Yesterday's had been a pair of highwaymen who couldn't keep their hands to themselves. The day before, a nosy bar patron who had the gall to call her a rather less than appropriate name for her particular gender had managed to find himself rather well acquainted with the floor.

Still, Arianne wouldn't trade this sort of entertainment for anything else in the world. She practically reveled in the feeling of being admired and loved by the people she protected; even being amped up by the constant energies around her didn't get her on this much of a high. A couple of people cheered as the first of the thugs she'd tangled with moments earlier met the muddy street with a groan. There was a small crowd gathering for the event--Rosse grinned to herself--she loved this job.

But nobody was perfect. Even she admitted she had some major flaws--like her attention span--which had been so lacking due to the attention she was getting that she immediately found herself on the personal end of a pair of good, solid punches to the jaw. The runner felt her head hit the ground, the soggy earth spraying up under her sudden weight and force, splattering in little droplets all around her. She could already recognize the sensation of her tunic becoming soaked by last night's thunderstorms that still lingered in the street.
...Now she'd have to wash her clothes, and she hadn't even packed spares! This place didn't even have dry cleaning!

Muttering something particularly unlady-like under her breath, Arianne Rosse rolled to the side just as one of her opponents boots came crashing down in the vicinity of where her head had been only moments before. Huffing with annoyed indigence, she hopped back up to her feet, and drew both of her weapons. A peculiarly crafted piece of work, the Sanctum's Solace was not but just swords, but a handy shield as well--it was rather perfect for her particular fighting style, which flowed and changed to adjust to her situation. Rosse was flexible; it was what she loved best.
Her enemies, now numbering four in their total, didn't have anything but clubs on their persons, but it had hardly made them any less threatening; some of them had managed to hammer in nails into the flesh of their weapons, making them rather intimidating...and also painful. Still, there was little to nothing that could rival the sheer potency of her shield...and so the Voidrunner simply clicked the two blades together, locking them firmly into a powerful, brutally heavy shield.

Wait. Something was on her lip. She blinked, and touched the bottom of her mouth, suddenly interested in what had occured. Ah, blood. There was an ever-so-slight crimson stain on her mud-covered, well-calloused, ivory-colored fingertips. 
Oh well.

Arianne lunged left, rolling forward to her first unfortunate victim in the remaining group of practice dummies. Popping back up to her feet, she gave him the gift of a swift punch in the jaw, and a douse of muddy water to warrant his full attention.
Oh yes...that was right--the writer had neglected to mention the water.

Rosse had been given a special gift...though why it was that she'd been given it, was not entirely in her sphere of remembering...mostly because she had rather lost what she'd had beforehand. The young woman was a Voidrunner--one of the harbingers of balance and equality to the manny, many worlds that dominated the omniverse--and she was quite proud. Her particular spark allowed for a curious ability to manuever water to her whim; a feature that she had thought rather useful in various situations. Rosse was strong, and she was tough, but she was not invincible, and was horrendously slow--the water helped a great deal in that. Of course, it had taken ages of training to get these things down pact, but once the general feel, the connection between spark and core energy was felt, fluidly and potently...there was very little that she COULDN'T do with a well-placed water ability. Arianne didn't know, and didn't particularly care why she'd been chosen by the Core, or what she had been before she had been a runner; what concerned her now as peace, quiet, balance...and the last three stupid cunts who had decided to pick on people smaller than them.

The mud instantly hardened, leaving the poor, stupid lout scraping at his face desperately in an attempt not to be tagged as 'death by asphyxiation' by the morgue. The other two of his companions were not even the least bit deterred by the projection of power, which made Arianne laugh a little bit--if she were just some normal person, and had witnessed that sort of thing, she probably would have surrend...
Well, probably not. She gave them at least that much credit.

The taller, stouter of the pair tried to rush her headfirst with his club. As much matted blood and pointy nails were on the thing, Rosse was hardly phased by the primitive thing; it was wood...and her weapons were multifiber poly-carbonic steel...So when it shattered into toothpicks, the only one who wasn't surprised, was the Voidrunner. In fact...she grinned beneath her bloodstained lips.

"Well, doesn't that just bum you out?"
The other didn't have much time to answer. His pelvis became very suddenly and very intimately introduced to her kneecap before he could even reply, and the cracking of bone told her he'd be out of commission for a long, long while. His accomplice simply stood, dumbstruck, trembling, and near to the point of wetting himself.
How very un-villainous.

"Look," Arianne muttered, rubbing her face in exasperation at the sight of the man. "You look like you're pretty much ready to give up, so I'll cut you a break, let you apologize to the nice people, and send you on your merry way, alright?"


She ought not to have done the face rubbing after all, she thought to herself, as his fist met up with her face at a reasonably decent speed. His knee followed suit with a not-so-gentle kiss to her stomach, causing her to double up right into the line of his club, which sent her once again into the muddy earth, face down this time.
"Wmmmt mmm nnftnnnnnnt mmssstkk," Rosse grumbled, her voice muffled by the wet dirt.


"What's your last words dove?" The other mocked, tapping his club rather impatiently against his palm. "Speak up now, I want to hear 'em."
Arianne pushed her head upwards, her skin coming out of the saturated mess with a rather sickening sucking sound, and she glared at him behind penetratingly azure eyes.


"I said, what an unfortunate mistake."
 He did not get a chance to reply. The mud had already moved before he'd even realized it was happening. The water froze immediately. The last thug was secured within its icy confines. Every orifice of his body was caked in soggy earth and frigidly freezing water.
"Oh look," Rosse grinned, wiping herself of the same disgusting mess. "A shit-sicle." 

Despite all the praise she was getting from the people who'd been the victim of petty crime, Arianne wasn't exactly paying them much attention--she was seeing stars for definitely longer than she should normally be seeing them--it was way past due for her to sit down a take a rest. Less than heroically, Rosse trudged down to the inn, plopped herself down in front of the counter, and signaled for the barkeep.

"Yeah, give me like...the strongest thing you've got," she murmured, nursing her aching head with a free hand. Of course, she wouldn't be able to HANDLE the strongest thing he had...but so many consecutive victories at least warranted her getting utterly smashed in celebration, right?

Patiently, still wincing at all of her latest victory bruises, she waited for her drink...in silence.

((Author's note: Arianne's personality got a bit of a makeover; she's a lot more rough and tumble, battle-hardened, kind of cocky, and just out to be a hero without really understanding the concept in this particular version of her...I didn't want her to be some cookie-cutter Joan of Arc like she'd been in KHRPG, which made her so...super predictable. She's got a bunch of motives this time around and will be doing a lot of growing...I promise. x3
...I also apologize for the wall of text. I like big posts and I cannot lie, you other brothers can't deny. ...I also ALSO apologize if I d*cked up the way this world works. There be no descriptions of these places. ...we should probably do that. ))

Kris had been watching, and luckily so, as the small girl took on the four brutes of his kind. The energy the poured from the crowed and the fighters felt like a wave of ecstasy but he was careful to let it seep out of him. He enjoyed using his power, but not pointlessly. He made sure to keep his hood up, so that the common folk would not see his markings and get scared off, even though that would be one hell of a feast. Actually all he wore was sandals, and a large black tattered cloak that covered his body quite well. The sandals were rubbish in the mud however, simply rubbish.

He sighed, a sound akin to a dying mans last breath. The fight was soon over and he never even got the potential to dish out some of his own poetic justice. So he turned around to leave, and found a tall thin Amaranth outside, he looked similar in wear to the others and also had a club, but was smaller and held himself with more pride. The Amaranth grunted and looked at Kris, "What went on in there?" Kris shrugged, the man must have just heard something had happened to his crew of do-gooders. The brute grabbed his hood and shoved it off while yelling, "You answer me you little shit yo-" His words fell away as he saw the markings on the tall mans skin.

Kris smiled, a sick and twisted smile, "Who are you? Tell me before I kill you. So I can find your mother and do the same to her also..." The brutish man boiled with rage and hatred and fear, which in turn powered the marked man. He picked up his club and swung at the head of the pale skinned man, but nothing ever hit but a light wave of dust that even then dissipated. The amaranth looked at his hand then back up to Kris, his anger turned to complete dread. This man was way in over his head.

Before he could do anything Kris dealt a swift uppercut to his jaw, knocking him down into the dirty mud. Kris thought all this could go away including the man. As the stood up and launched himself at Kris the other simply dodged to the left, allowing his opponent to fall into the mud again. This time of his own accord.

Kris laughed at the now mud covered assailant. He walked over and grabbed him by the back of his muddy collar and dragged him to his feet, only to dish out two more punches to his face and another to his gut. He made sure to grab him and keep him from falling though, at least until he reached into his cloak and pulled out what looked like a ceremonial dagger. He plunged it deep into the stomach of the man and twisted, blood dripping from his mouth and the life draining from his eyes. As he died, Kris tossed the body into the Inn the warrior woman was in. The body crumpling to the floor in a bloody and muddy heap.

Kris, pulled his hood back up, but not before she would have had a chance to see his face. Covered with scars in the form on symbols. "You missed one, I handled it though." He put the dagger back beneath his cloak without wiping off the blood.

Well...she'd TRIED to at least enjoy her drink...

Arianne raised an eyebrow when the bloody body suddenly hit the floorboards. She was more irritated than bothered by it--she had just taken out a small group of thugs after all, and was more than a little accustomed to the sight of a bleeding body--maybe not bothered enough, all things considered. Still...this gentleman obviously lacked in a set of manners, throwing the dead around like that.
"Didn't anybody teach this lout not to make a mess in other people's houses?" The Voidrunner questioned, loudly, not looking away from the shelves of liquor across from her. Glancing over her shoulder, she took a look at the numbskull who'd decided to barge on in with the stench of murder still ripe on him.

He was fairly intimidating, Rosse would give him that much credit. He was at least a good two feet taller than her, and rippling in muscles that made her slightly uneasy, but not too worried...it was the tattoos that were giving her the heebie-jeebies; they were definitely nothing she was familiar with. Certainly nothing from any of the inter-dimensional gangs she'd seen, and definitely not a local.  No...those weren't tattoos, she noticed, catching a glimpse of his face--they were scars--very intricate scars. What a pity. He might have been considered on the cute side if he didn't look like he'd been mauled by an artistically inclined tiger. The knife he was carrying around didn't give her warm fuzzies either...and the fact he was dripping blood all over the floor just irked her nerves.
Other people in the tavern must have noticed her wariness, as several of them shifted from their tables to a further location in the room, and the bartender suddenly looked rather wan. The Voidrunner however, wasn't completely deterred from her hard-earned drink, fingering the surface of the liquid absentmindedly, eyeing the newest arrival coyly, an amused smirk on her face.

"What an entrance. You certainly do know how to catch a girl's attention," she said, lightheartedly as she could muster given the current circumstance. "Do you often violently maim people who cross you the wrong way, or are you just in one of those moods?" Rosse hardly cared if she was coming across as snarky, or even rude; you didn't just waltz around killing people for no reason...that wasn't how you preserved balance...it only caused more chaos. To her, they'd already gotten off the wrong foot.
"Still, I can't say I'm not thankful there's one less meandering thug out on the prowl," Arianne continued, shrugging. It wasn't her place to bring law into such a minor conflict...still, the idea someone would blatantly murder another person, even if it was a villain, struck her as severely agitating. "I suppose you have my thanks..." She paused, taking a sip of whatever it was the bartender had decided to pour her. "And probably a warning not to do that again....most likely."



((I swear I am not trying to be an ass.))

Kris made little movement as the woman spoke. He leaned down slowly and pressed a finger against the nape of the mans exposed neck, channeling his magic through the body slowly and casually, "I require no thanks, I did that because he assaulted me. I simply executed him for his insolence." He lifted his finger and his body simultaneously. Once the contact he had with the body was no more, the body began to decay and age, spreading from the point of origin the back of his neck. In a few seconds the entire body was no more, not even dust. It was completely destroyed, even the blood. "I also require no warning."

The Marked Man took a seat at the bar, on the opposite side from the human girl. He sat there quietly and asked for no drink. He just felt like sitting down, and the people here interested him slightly. Another strange one was in the inn, and he wore the most peculiar clothes and some strange human technology. Part of him was curious, the other part really did not care and that one usually won. He just wandered and had some fun until he was called to crisis.

He wondered how much of a bother it would be if he destroyed this entire town. His family usually did not allow the Marked One to leave as a way to preserve the legacy but honestly his family was old and tired. Tradition was fun but meant little. Kris broke tradition by becoming as powerful as he is, and his family is only as old as it is because they never did anything but keep surviving.

He wanted the family to live. He wanted them to have political power again. Which was why he found Orion and made it clear that he would fight for the family of Old Ones in exchange for a place as one of her generals. The reply was simple. Prove yourself to be worthy, I will test you when I call. So he waits for the call, and he assumes it will be the upcoming battle on Earth.

Retracting himself back out of his head he waved a hand at the bartender, "Give me your best." He said without even looking at the peon. Upon retrieving his drink he took a drink and grimaced, upon further reflection he probably should have asked for something good instead of their best. What a shit town.

Rosse fumed silently, but didn't bother putting anymore energy into the marked man...she would watch him carefully, but that was all of the attention she would throw to him for now; the Runner was still mildly peeved at him simply waltzing about and slaughtering anybody he pleased. Despite her duty to the will of the Core...the girl loathed killing anybody--even the bandits outside had been incapacitated, not killed--somewhere in the back of her brain, even in spite of being taught that as a Voidrunner, she would HAVE to kill people at some point...she found a general distaste in senseless murder.

But she did find a great deal of interest in his ability, which he showcased perhaps as a counter warning to her--he immediately caused the bloody corpse he'd produced to vanish with a simple touch. Arianne shuddered, although tried to keep her body language to a calm and collected level. That...was creepy. She'd never seen anybody perform THAT kind of magic before...
Curious to see what was going on with him, she very carefully focused her energy in an attempt to peek at this man's spark--her azure irises lit up ever so slightly, and Rosse peered through the layers of the omniverse...directly to his very core.

Whoa, that was a lot of Sin energy, she thought to herself. His spark was a deep, penetratingly black hue, beget with sparks of searing red and purple energy, arcing and moving about as if lightning. Almost everything had a LITTLE Sin energy in them, Arianne knew as much only from her Voidrunner training, but this guy had it easily in spades. Mortals tended to lean towards Sin; it was in their nature after all, but the man with the markings...was very potent.
Out of sheer curiosity, Rosse glanced over at the other gentleman with her sparksight, interested in comparing the two. She'd never actually bothered looking at people's sparks before, though she'd been taught how to do so previously...the thought had never occurred to her.

And interestingly enough, the man with the (and she was perfectly honest) oddest clothing arrangement she'd ever seen in her life, had a spark that was relatively normal for a mortal; it was calmer, much so than the man with the markings, though still lingering in Sin...it was significantly less. A cool blue-gray spark, with jolts of sin energy running about it...although more akin to that of a solar flare than the thunderous storm she'd seen previously. 
Almost everything...had Sin in it...nobody was an exception...
Not even her.

She didn't have to see her spark to know it was there, either. Voidrunners had a particular, almost direct connection to their sparks, allowing the performance of various feats, depending on their potency...Though they could convert energies from people around them directly into Core energy to fuel themselves and their powers...they were no different than any other mortal. They were just as effected by sin and virtue as anybody else. 

Pulling her mind away from the thoughts of such deep design, Rosse twirled her finger in her braid, and took a lengthy gulp of the bitter, yet slightly tangy concoction that the barkeep had brought up to her. It was almost like whiskey, she thought to herself, though decidedly stronger. Biting her lip, she attempted to recall when the last time it was that she had drank, and then shrugged at the failure. She wasn't particularly bothered by not recalling her past--it seemed pointless when there was so much that was going on currently.

Vexed by the silence that had overcome the inn suddenly, Arianne glanced over at the marked man. He was still pondering over at the other side of the table. The Runner relaxed, slightly, and turned her attention to the human, grinning playfully. In spite of having the Omniverse's strangest getup, he still looked ten times less hostile than her other piece of company.
"Allergic to poison huh?" She questioned, her tone sweetly teasing. "I had a problem like that once. That can really put a damper in your weekend plans, you know?"

What an awkward thing to say, she chided to herself. She wanted to palm her forehead, but chose to stare at the surface of her drink instead, feeling particularly bashful. Men were not her strong suit.


((I have no freakin' idea how sparks work. I'm just going off the imagination here.))

Rosse glanced over from her orange concoction, back at the other gentleman at the bar, half relieved that he wasn't completely taken aback by the comment, and half amused by the response. It wasn't often she really got to talk to anybody besides returning all the "thank you so much, you're a true hero" dialog she typically got, (or, more commonly, "you're gonna get it you little bitch, I'm going to crush your skull in" from the opposing end of the beat downs.) It was nice to see someone who wanted to talk who was...well...neutral.
Without even really realizing it, there was a grin creeping over her features. Even though she was pretty tired from the constant fighting and scraping with the less-than-kind Amaranians, nothing could really keep her from showing those ever-present emotions. Arianne was more than aware she showed them a little too often (it was one of the many critiques she'd received during her time in training as a Voidrunner by other Voidrunners) but right now...what was the harm? This guy was wearing...black and white things on his shirt, for the sake of the Core--how harmful could he be? (...to be quite fair, she couldn't recall what exactly they were...then again, it didn't really bother her too much; either way, the shirt was weird to her.) He was rather attractive, all things considered; soft, short black hair, hazel eyes, and a nice profile...and there was something about his demeanor that immediately made her a little more relaxed...If you were into that kind of thing anyway!
Gah...she was getting distracted....

Shaking her head, a chuckle escaped her throat without even realizing it, and a full-out smile graced her visage. A hint of red flushed at her cheeks at the compliment, but she shrugged it off...thankfully she was too dirty for really displaying the subtleties of body language. 
"You look like you could afford a better shirt than a better vintage pal," Arianne replied, jerking her head at the barkeep to speed up his pace. The Amaran just glared, but said nothing, rather indifferent to the human's motions. The female merely shrugged it off; their kind was always kind of put off, and she turned her attention back to the other male.
"Do you always wear such outlandishly colorful clothing, or did the mood just strike you to stand out like a sore thumb?"

Out of sheer curiosity, the girl wondered if she could sense this fellow's intentions with this conversation by watching his spark. Were emotions even influential to a spark? The other runners had been very vague on the whole 'teaching' concept...it had really been more of a crash course survival trial rather than them explaining the whole idea of how things worked...especially to someone who had amnesia. 
Again, her eyes lit up ever-so-slightly, and once again, she took pleasure in peeking into his core. It was still calm, still a cool, collectedly neutral hue, still in a state of peaceful bliss, thought not without its turmoil. There was really nothing that could say what he was really feeling, and so Rosse mentally dismissed the idea entirely...apparently that didn't work with sparks...She guessed she'd have to be some kind of mind reader to really know what this guy was playing at.

Wait, whoa, what?
Doing an immediate double take, she took a closer look at his spark as a whole, and immediately felt like a moron. Most mortal sparks were spheroid in shape, surrounded by a storm of whatever energy fueled them, colored by their base intent and desires...There were god sparks, which typically took the shape of a crystalline figure of some sort, and gave off a powerful glow....there were sparks of angels and demons, which were rather base and shaped like pyramids, growing lighter and darker in color depending on the situations they were in and how much energy they had....Energy being's sparks were chaotic at best, buzzing with...well...energy. She had been taught about Sin Eater sparks, which she'd never encountered before, but were supposed to be towering obelisks, encased in a swirling inferno of colored energies...And those directly connected to the core were pure, singular, solid spheres...with nothing around them, radiating like a brilliant star...again, she had never encountered such a spark before, but had been informed of their properties.
But VOIDRUNNER sparks...they were rhomboidal prisms--diamond-shaped, in otherwords, bathing in the torrential storm of energies they converted...which typically meant that it was a mixture of Chaos and Virtue....which typically meant that their sparks were greyish in hue.

...and his spark was a prism, too.

Now Rosse quite literally brought her face to her palm with a slapping motion, allowing it to run down her features, shaking her head.
"I'm an idiot," she hissed to herself, and then leaned forward towards him. "I'm such an idiot! How did I not even see that?! You're a runner too, right?" Arianne poked a finger at his chest through his hilariously bad shirt. "Your spark, it's like mine. You must be a Voidrunner too, right?"

The young woman was understandably excited--she'd never really encountered one of her own kind out in the field before...at least not that she remembered anyway--and was interested in actually interacting with one of her own kind outside of the sanctum of their pocket dimension...

She had of course, made sure to keep the notion quiet between the two of them, still extremely wary of the marked man on the other side of the bar. Runners were a rare breed of individuals, and it was not entirely uncommon for them to get taken out if they weren't careful...

Rosse blinked a couple of times, more than slightly puzzled. She was POSITIVE his spark was like hers. The shape was the same, wasn't it?
Just to make sure, she checked again.

Yeah. Same shape. No doubt about that.
So why was he avoiding the question like that? Was a simple, straight yes or no too much to ask? The girl knew from her training in the Voidrunner's pocket dimension that some of their kind weren't exactly described under "people person" but this guy didn't seem very...well...he didn't look like loner material to her. What was the reason for him not just being plain? She guessed she was just that kind of blunt person...enigma was really not much of her style, she didn't care how much trouble discretion saved her.

Just as suddenly as she'd been taken aback by the absence of a direct answer, Arianne flushed bright crimson at the comment, and patted her face with both of her hands. She was caked in mud, and hadn't even noticed. No wonder the Barkeep was glaring at her so much...she'd been dripping the stuff from the street since she'd entered.
Of course, she'd been exhausted from the fight just outside, and the other two that had occurred before she'd even found her way into town...not to mention the one from last week....or the one before....
Man. She really needed to stop getting into so many fights. Rosse considered herself tough and strong, but even she wasn't invincible...and she definitely wasn't immortal.

...She didn't want to think about the latter, even if the voice of her mentor kept telling her otherwise.
"The destiny of a Voidrunner is to die," Etsolyx would say. "Whether in battle or by choice, there is no avoiding it...it's the way our kind works."

Arianne decided to keep her focus on the mud instead of the looming destiny she had hanging over her head. Grinning stupidly, she shrugged her shoulders, giving the other a playful punch in the arm. She COULD have knocked him clean out of his stool....but that didn't seem very paragon.
"Eeeey, this is good for my pores." Glancing down at the mud, she shook her head, playing on her absent-mindedness. "But, no good for the floor I see. Lemme just take care of that..."

There was plenty of Sin energy to convert around the place, that was for sure. Thank goodness for that, because frankly, Arianne was exhausted from all the combat. Harnessing the energy around her, the runner pulled it, an invisible tide in an unseen ocean of power, channeling it into her spark, churning it, transforming it directly into one that she could control...and then exerted that power, the power of her core, fueled by the Sin she'd harnessed into a different form.
Rosse focused that new strength in the space around her now, and with what appeared to be very little effort at all, formed a small spheroid of water from the condensation of the very air. Very slowly, very gently, this liquid bubble moved about, wetting and removing the layers of earthen filth from her skin and...well, most of her clothing--the Voidrunner was more than aware her clothes were going to have to go through the drycleaning. There where there had been water was now a ball of mud, which immediately let itself out the door, and was left to gravity's will in the streets.

A couple of the patrons glanced up at her, but did little else. Magic wasn't exactly uncommon around these parts, as shown by the marked man who'd come in earlier. Magic was easy...it was control, and the level of control, that made what few of them that had remarked her movements rather impressed. The bartender slid a glass of bright white liquid into her palm, with an interested look on his face, but said nothing.

Looking over her shoulder with a rather confident smirk, Rosse returned to face the other Runner. Quietly, she wondered what this guy could do, but that was a question for another time she supposed.
"Brown was never my color anyway."

It was then that this gentleman decided to introduce himself to her that she became a little intrigued...as well as completely confused.
Taken aback at the introduction, she stared at his extended hand, blinking in perplexed awkwardness. Was this some kind of secret Voidrunner greeting she didn't know about? Thinking it better to respond instead of contemplating in silence and leaving him hanging, she put out her hand in the same manner, not touching his at all.
"Arianne Rosse."

Click. The black box on the cord around his neck made a noise. Cocking an eyebrow, she stared at the abyssal lens, seeing tiny reflections in the object, but couldn't decypher much more about what its purpose was. She narrowed her eyes at it, craning her body down so that her nose was practically in the plastic...and also his face.
"What a weird little box. What's it do?" 
She then remembered she was still holding the other drink in her hand, and slid it smoothly across the counter to the other with a flick of her wrist, winking at him.

"Drink up," Rosse told him, cracking a goofy grin. "Don't worry, it's not poison," she added, waving her hand around nonchalantly.

Rosse smiled to herself as the picture developed, and he examined it with a single eye. So the little device managed to create tiny paintings of things that it saw, she mused...How amusing. It was so quaint compared to the technology of the Voidrunner's pocket dimension--well, it was hardly a dimension, it was more like a pocket world than anything--where one could essentially break apart matter and it not even be a major issue. Teleportation wasn't exactly uncommon in some of the more advanced parts of the omniverse.

But her face instantly turned three shades crimson when he noted his mistake...or, was it even a mistake? Arianne cocked an eyebrow again, this time in mistrust. This guy was pushing his luck, and she wanted to give him that feeling. It wouldn't be the first time a potential mate had attempted such a feat, and it would hardly be the last, she thought to herself, her brows now knit in annoyance. Sadly, the girl intended to live a long, long while...it was her dream to be the one Runner who actually...managed to live.
Scoffing to herself, she shook her head, plucking the picture firmly from his fingers and slipping it into her shirt, her eyes glued onto his, which would probably be glued to something else. He was cute. But...he was not THAT cute.

"I think you ought to buy me a couple of dinners first at the very least," Rosse muttered.
However, the comment of her not being particularly knowledgeable in human culture threw her for a loop. I mean, why should she be?
"I visited Earth before," she replied stiffly, butchering the world's name. "But there's such diversity in their culture...it's too complicated for me. Besides...they're not really all that impressive to me, humans I mean...No offense," Arianne added, with a shrug.
"I mean, I know I AM human, but I just don't really feel like I'm one of them, you know?"

But before he could really reply, or even acknowledge what she was trying to get out, it appeared that the man was leaving her company. Shrugging, she almost waved him goodbye, but then did a double take at the words he'd said.
Wow was she socially stupid.

"Oh, right!" She agreed, nodding furiously, standing from the bar. A cough from the barkeep reminded her of something she'd also forgotten, and the Voidrunner reached into her coinpurse, tossing him a golden shard of currency.
"Buy yourself something nice, m'kay?"
Did she really care that she was spending money like a millionare after the lottery? Not really. Money was hardly a matter for her--it wasn't that she had a lot of it, Rosse was broke--but material objects simply meant nothing to her. Voidrunners had other things to focus on...more important things.

Without a word, and giving one last glare to some of the seedier-looking patrons of the bar, the girl followed the other out of the bar.
Why was she following him again? He could be a defective Runner, an assassin of some sort, but she supposed if he were trying to kill her, the Core would just strike him dead...


((Uncharacteristically short. Small children everywhere. Sue me.))

She took the picture, which he was glad for. He showed no sign of resisting, since he definitely didn't want to come off as one of those.
Rosse did end up muttering something about dinner. He was unsure if she was actually interested or just being clever. Maybe, he'd prod at it later after they'd have their Void Runner discussion. And they definitely wouldn't have the talk around here. Too impersonal, too dangerous, too smelly. It smelled as if somebody died. Oh.

Anyway.

She spoke of being human, but not identifying with their culture. It was understandable. With the vast expanse of the infinite awaiting them, as they stood there, at their greatest height, ready to plummet into adventure's abyss, why would they keep their mortal lives? Abandoning mundane was an easy option, when accompanied by forever.
However, he was much too mortal. And there were too many connections he had had.

As she followed, with only a momentary lapse of impaired judgement, he let a small smile accompany his face, glad she came along. Wonderful, they could actually speak about their mutual ancestry.
"Well, well, well." He began, adjusting his hat, ensuring the Sun -- or whatever they called it -- wouldn't hit his eyes, only the brim of his headwear. "Void Runners, huh?"

He said, leading them into the area he had arrived. It was close, secluded, and provided enough shelter for them to hide, if need be. The only issue might be the dangers within the forest, but considering their occupation, it shouldn't be too large of an issue; especially since there were two of them.
Eventually, Arianne would see the luscious forest, with swapped colors from what he had been accustomed to. She likely wouldn't have an issue with this though, since she was much less familiar with her native environment.

"I mean, if I'm being completely honest, I have no idea where to begin." ...He began, moving his hands around, being very open with his body language. He seemed to channel whatever charisma he had through it, his flesh sharing his vernacular and personality with its subtle movements and grandiose gestures.
"I just didn't want to start a bar fight, if any of them had a problem with what we were. It's bad enough that we're humans, y'know?" He continued, resting his motions for a bit and making eye contact once again. Emile had a poor habit of looking around as he spoke, he preferred to make eye contact when listening, not speaking.

After sitting on a nearby log, The Runner motioned his hand forward, allowing her to take the lead in this conversation. She was the one who seemed to be far more interested in their shared occupation, while he was more interested in her -- the person.

"Take it away." Emile said, supportingly, with a large grin and closed eyes, the angle of his head allowing the planet's native star to hit his eyes, momentarily, as he did this.

So, she followed him into the forest surrounding the village, like an idiot. Her mind was hesitant, extremely untrusting even...but her body language was that of naive simplicity. Two could play the manipulating game. Push, pull--she was more than aware of the motion after all...True enough while that from time to time she was a sucker for a cute guy, or even a friendly individual in her otherwise hostile life...she wasn't stupid enough to trust....Emile...At least not until she got a direct response.
Rosse was also more than alert for any local attackers...it wasn't only the local flora and fauna that tried to snack on random wanderers, but ample amounts of bandits, thieves, thugs, and highwaymen just begging to rob a sucker blind.

...Also, she was still vaguely annoyed by the move he'd tried to pull on her. Indignantly, she huffed air through her nostrils. The nerve of that guy, snapping such inappropriate pictures of her! She didn't know whether to feel insulted or flattered yet.

They'd gone deep into the woodland now, and Arianne glanced around them, taking in her surroundings to better put her at an advantage. The last thing she wanted to do was get ambushed by either this Emile character, or something much hungrier than him.
Her attention was caught again when he spoke, to which she turned her head to face him, still guarding her peripherals. His voice was so innocent and sincere, but she had a very difficult time letting her walls come down...This was Lanvi after all--nothing EVER was as it seemed.

He was glancing around. She didn't like that. Was he looking for fellow assassins? Was he some kind of slave, working with a group of Amarath bandits to lull stupid humans into their trap? Her fingers twitched slightly for her weapons. Rosse was getting antsy.
She got violent when she was put into a corner...and this was beginning to feel more and more like one with every passing instant there wasn't a pointed response.

Crossing her arms, she raised an eyebrow, tapping her foot impatiently.
"You're just dancing around the questions," she muttered crossly, her tone a wrecking ball in bluntness. The Voirdunner wrung her hands, annoyed. "Just answer me straight. I've seen your spark. I know you're one of us. So are you going to talk?"

Arianne looked over both her shoulders, making sure there was no manner of trap before she made her next move. Nobody could be too cautious. If he dodged the question again...he was going to regret it.


((This isn't KHRPF Arianne....No Guardian code, pretty blunt, rather aggressive, and VERY little patience. Be afraid.))

She was aggressive, like most of the Void Runners he had come across. They were often so emotional, even when experienced. He was unsure why, but he annoyed him a bit. She didn't seem this uptight, nor paranoid, when they were in the bar surrounded by monsters.
But, whatever. He was tempted to give a bit of attitude, but he didn't want to stoop down to their over emotional level, nor was he actually feeling it. He didn't care enough, even though the attitude likely would've made him more appealing to her. He would've seemed similar, but he didn't care enough to directly oppose her.
"I thought my bad pun was confirmation enough." He began, not really giving anything to body language, right now. Or maybe his limp, almost disappointed posture, was enough of a give away. He couldn't enjoy the moment, not until she realized the point of his actions.

"Void Runners," He began, pointing to the two of them, "Surrounded by unknown creatures, who might have motives to harm us." He continued, moving his two fingers, from each hand, to create a circle.
"We're already destined to die, there's no reason to bathe with sharks." He explained, showing his ideology in a poorly placed metaphor.

"Look," Emile said, crossing his legs while grabbing his feet, almost child-like in stance, as he looked up to her. "I get that you're interested in the fact that we're both Void Runners, but I don't understand why." He explained, his face transparent with his confusion on the matter. He had a been nonchalant and aloof before, but his was demeanor was almost as if he was a kid, furrowed eyebrows with an innocent look on face, hoping to receive some answers.
"I just wanted to keep us safe, all things considered." He said, leaning back on the log, looking backwards to what was behind them. There wasn't a particular reason, he was just resting his head, comfortably, now that he had finished talking.

Emile closed his eyes for a moment too long, almost as if he was going to fall asleep, but he didn't. His blue eyes opening as he sat back upright, giving her whatever attention she needed so she didn't feel ignored. He really didn't understand Void Runners sometimes. They were so complex. And pretty.

She was easy on the eyes, but not necessarily the ears. He hoped they could return to whatever chemistry they had back in the bar. There was a deep sadness inside of him that he didn't particularly understand. It was an amalgam of disappointment, loneliness, and yearning. For what? No clue, but it was there. Maybe Emile would be able to find out some other time. After this. Yeah, maybe. There was a certain nostalgia to meeting someone for the first time.

The rain had slowed to a slight drizzle.  The sun was still found in hiding behind a sheath of blackened clouds that would cover it for the remainder of the day until the moon decided to make its grand appearance.  The breeze had picked up by this point, causing the tiniest of ripples to surge out amongst the puddles of mud throughout the streets.

He always liked these kind of days...dark and dreary...cold and wet.  Of course he was not the typical humanoid...he didn't care for the light as much as he did the dark.  He preferred altercations to pleasant greetings, as was apparent by his various scars; the one most visible being directly under his right eye stretching downward for approximately three inches. 

He was known as Leonidas...Leo to a very few.  On such a day as this he was found shrouded in black pants, yet not much of them was visible as a result of his dark green cloak.  The hood was erect, hiding his facial features; save his thick beard that hung out from the opening.  His boots sloshed through the mud as he made his way to the local watering hole.

Upon entering he recieved a good amount of strange looks as he lowered his hood.  Perhaps they knew what he was...perhaps not.  Either way it would not stop him from aquiring a bottle of ale.

"Long neck ale..." his deep voice said towards the bartender.  A moment later the chap behind the bar was sliding him a bottle of local ale...of course it would not be the best Leonidas ever had, yet it would do.

After paying the proper amount, Leo arose from his stool, grasping hold of his bottle and proceeded towards the door.  He knew if he stayed much longer it would lead to a brawl and that wasn't something he had time for at this moment...no matter how much he would love to put some of these human's faces through the tables.

He slid his hood back over his head and began the trek towards the forest.  He had been there many times before and felt a sense of comfort upon the trees.  As he walked he gazed down at his spark, sensing a vast amount of sin energy in this place.  "Hm...more than usual." Leonidas carried on down the path as he journeyed deeper and deeper into the lush overgrowth of the forest, occassionally taking swigs from his bottle as he began to feel the tingling sensation of the alcohol entering into his system.

Carefully, Arianne relaxed her body, taking her eyes from Emile, back to the surrounding forest, and then back again to her company. She personally considered it rude not to look at people when she was speaking to them, and the way he was acting jittery only made her more anxious to pound the answers out of him with her fists. The runner fully admitted she was more comfortable in an inn, crawling with things that wanted to kill her, than with a guy her age and race who was giving off the weirdest signals she'd ever seen in terms of body language.

And he had the NERVE to take that picture! She was still silently, mentally seething...but she didn't want him knowing that it bothered her. Better to keep the collected image she was so good at keeping hold.

But the point he made stood firm. She was seeking out other Voidrunners, even though she'd only left their pocket world not so long ago...It'd be about fifty years now... Quietly taking a moment of introspection, she thought to herself.
...Why exactly AM I really looking for?
Rosse had come to this particular dimension to make sure things were okay with the Core's will of balance here. She'd taken care of various blips around the place that were radiating off energy throwing things out of whack, and did her best to improve people's lives the best she could without damaging things herself...But to be perfectly honest...

She was lonely. She didn't like to admit it, but Arianne was horrendously lonely. The girl missed being with people she could identify with. She had only put off trying to remember her past for fear that it might contain something she didn't like, or would hurt her ability to properly enforce the will of the Core...The bulk of Voidrunners she knew were very standoffish, and didn't like running around in groups...

Was it too much to ask for more out of life than death? Is desire for an existance beyond simply leaving the mortal world and becoming something else in the cycle of rebirth?

And that concept frightened her, too. She didn't want to become someone or something else. What was so wrong, about her staying the way she was, WHO she was? Did nothing that Rosse accomplish ever really mean anything if she was just going to die and become...who? What? Did it even matter?
The whole idea filled her with terror. What was the point to everything if you were only going to lose yourself?


But she wasn't about to tell HIM that. It wasn't any of his business anyway!

"Well I was about to ask you the sa--" She began...until something caught her attention. Sound. Not one of them. Coming towards their location. Arianne didn't even bother looking in the direction it'd come from with either sets of her eyes--whatever it was, it was coming towards them rather nonchalantly, and certainly with purpose.

Without even considering the consequences, Rosse lunged forward, grasping for Emile's wrist. She could only assume there was an assassin or a group of thugs, or some wild beast approaching them now...very little was safe around these parts. It was her intent to get him down on the ground...but given her current positioning, momentum, and positioning, it was more likely that hijinks was about to ensue.




((Going to give you the option of whether or not we make it to the ground or not. Godmodding post is bad, and if I did it, I would feel bad. But WOW holy shit. This post really shows a lot about me and I didn't really even realize it. Wasn't intended to get this deep but I did.))

What was she going to say? Was she going to ask him the same? That didn't even make any sense to him. He didn't care that she was a Void Runner -- she was just another person to him. Even the Amarans were, but she took particular notice to him, so he returned the favor. After all, wasn't that how friendships were made? Then again, considering her previous actions, Arianne did not particularly excel at social interaction.

There was a lot of confusion about what she was about to say, before his wrist was grabbed, which deterred him from his thought process. The Void Runner noticed something, which he hadn't been paying attention to. Maybe it was the feline he had met earlier? It would make sense. The old 'I want revenge because you hurt my pride and, oh yeah, you look tasty' plot. It was fun.

Despite, typically, being able to react quickly to these things, he was a little more than okay with just being dragged along. He landed, however made sense for his body to land without hurting himself or her, but was unsure why she was so worried about the oncoming force. Did she have some perceptive ability he did not?
Or was there something so blatantly obvious that he missed out on that she hadn't?
Whispering, hopefully in her ear, he began, "What do you mean you were going to ask me the same?"

He was calm, and genuinely curious. It was rather confusing to not understand where she was coming from. Despite his minor frustrations, most of which was innocent confusion, he didn't like not understanding people.
Disagreeing with them? Sure, but he still understood them at that point. Despite how blunt Arianne was, he was interested in figuring her out, to some degree. Or just understanding why she was the way she was. Maybe it'd give insight to the other Void Runners? It was hard to become close with them.

As he continued to watch, after having asked the question, he noticed the spark of the man that was entering the area. Wait, another Void Runner? Score. Two people to bounce and contrast off of. Popping up from where they were hidden, he welcomed him.
"Hey! Over here. White flag, white flag." He began, waving a nonexistant white flag, hoping to get his point across. "My associate and I, Arianne," He continued, gesturing towards her, whether she remained hidden or not, "are also Void Runners." He finished. Pausing only for a beat.

"She's very into finding other Void Runners for reasons we have yet to discuss. and -- look at that!" He said, his body language following his voice, "You have the credentials to join us!" He said, continuing to welcome him.
"Oh. You might not believe me, but look at my spark. It should prove evidence enough; it's just like yours and hers. We're all cool here, right?" Emile finished, looking between the two of them, hoping everyone was chummy. Or at least not stabby-in-face.

Having finished talking, he was able to let himself breathe for a moment and actually look at the man. This Void Runner looked older, but he might not have been. Who knew? Who cared? That wasn't important. What was important is that he looked like he had seen quite a few battles. Hopefully, he wasn't the silent type. Those silent types always swooned the ladies. And, oh yeah, they were bad at conversations. Since, y'know, the whole 'I don't talk much' thing. It wasn't all that fun, honestly.

As his feet carried him further along the path he could not help but to feel a familiar presence, yet the familiarity was not alone...there was another; one he did not know. He heard a good bit of rustling around. Perhaps whatever or whomever it was bolted from the scene, perhaps one had attacked the other. 

As Leonidas rounded the next bend in the road he was surprised by a voice shouting. Without hearing what the boy was saying and assuming it was an assassin, Leo drew his battle axe and lobbed it in his direction. The axe would soar until it planted itself firmly within the surface of the tree directly beside Emile. Leo then snatched a long knife out of the sheath that was attached to his left leg as he began to trace the origins of the voice. 

It was then that Emile began to speak in more depth as their eyes met. He was a younger fellow, no doubt a void runner from the looks of his spark. But that's not what caught Leo's attention...it was the name he had mentioned. Arianne. He knew only one by that name. 

"Did you say Arianne? Arianne Rosse?" he managed to say as he sheathed his knife and walked over to the tree to snatched out his battle axe.

Well. That...that did not go as planned.
What she had INTENDED to do was let go of his arm and roll gracefully forward, drawing her weapons as she popped back onto her feet.
What she ended up doing, with Emile contorting his body to where either the two of them wouldn't get hurt, was getting jerked forwards faster than she'd anticipated, which ended with her planting her forehead firmly into his crotch.

((...I couldn't help myself. This topic has been so serious! ...Also that was for two days ago, you cheeky little shit.))

It took a moment for the stars to fade out from her vision, half of her vision obscured by the ground, and the other half...
"Oh gods, just kill me now," she muttered.

Scrambling back up to her feet, Rosse brushed herself off of any grime that might have already gotten on her body, not even daring to look Rivers in the eye at this point, the hue of her cheeks showing her humiliation.
And the thrown axe almost made her soil herself with the sheer speed and power behind its toss. The sound of the metal embedding itself into the wood, sending a heavy 'THUNK' across the acre, would have normally put the young woman up in the ante for combat...And it had at first...

But then she took a second, longer look at the axe itself, and recognized it, her lips parted in what was both awe and a smile.
"Leonidas, is that you, sir?"
Calling him sir was only a force of habit...he'd been hard on her in the past...but Leo was a man known for his stern, but fair methods...
And it was him. Arianne would have recognized the strong, deliberate footsteps of her former combat tutor anywhere. The way he carried himself, the motions of his (rather impressively) muscular form, and the light scent of musk and spirits...there was hardly any mistaking the man...and out of all the Voidrunners she personally knew, very few could throw an axe with that much accuracy and miss with a purpose.

Giddy with excitement, she completely forgot about her recent fuck-up with Emile, and the other himself, and immediately went bounding at the older gentleman, practically leaping into an embrace.
"Leo!"

"Leo!".....she had shouted. Her voice landing upon his ears with grace, bringing back every fond memory he had of her. Her hair flowed as she leapt into his arms. He dropped his knife as his hands slid around her waist, his arms wrapping around her body as he held her tightly, lifting her off of the ground a few inches. 

She held the sweetest scent that greeted his nose with a kiss. He was speechless for once...his lips shed no words for but a moment...they were paralyzed in a smile. For this moment, time stood still as his memories of their many adventures danced through his head...their various battles and journies... 

His lips soon fell upon her warm cheek as he planted a soft kiss. "Lady Rosse...I cannot express the joy I feel to see you again at last...tis been too long.". His voice was deep yet soft as the words left his mouth. His arms still held her in their embrace for a moment longer.

An axe flew towards him, which he could've dodged, if he needed to, but he didn't. The axe was thrown as a warning, luckily. He wasn't in the mood to tussle with another Void Runner. Things typically got messy, especially when they returned back to their quaint little pocket dimension.
He was also glad too, because he was at a disadvantage. A forehead to his genitalia did not make one comfortable, but he was playing it off pretty well. They had some pretty awkward interactions so far. Best to ignore it? Yeah, definitely. She was, so.

Oh, hey. They knew each other. Great. He didn't have to awkwardly introduce everyone and have to deal with the silence. He could just relax and let them do the talking. What a relief. It wasn't fun to take control of the situation, especially when he'd rather relax.

Letting out a soft sigh, responsibility evaporating from his chest and shoulders, he sat on the base of the tree. Well, not the one he was at. Emile had moved to one that wasn't covered in the brush, which had kept them hidden from him prior. There was no point in hiding, especially now that they were allies.
Oh, wait. What if they decided to double team him? Eh...everyone dies sometime, right?

"Not to interrupt," He began, totally interrupting, "I'm Emile." He said, supporting himself with his two thumbs, pointing to himself. "Just getting introductions out the way." The Runner finished, grabbing a stick and making random lines in the ground, as he looked down.
With a soft smile, he continued to innocently make shallow lines across the dirt, entertaining himself as the two caught up. If he knew how to draw, he'd make a penguin to match his eccentric outfit. Unfortunately, he wasn't that skilled. Aw, shucks, might as well try, right?

Snuggling in his happy, warm hug, Rosse felt a little safer. At least now, there was someone around that she actually knew...and Leonidas had not yet fallen to the Voidrunner's fate. That at least gave her comfort. She didn't even mind that he was pawing all over her--he was at least as happy to see her, as she was to see him...possibly even more, but she was quite oblivious.

Her face turned three shades darker than it had when...well...her face had become intimate with Emile's private parts. My he did miss her, didn't he? He'd certainly never been this...fond...in training. Arianne decided to ignore it for a moment, pulling away and grinning with a world class smile.
"This is Emile," she explained, echoing what the other Runner had said only a few moments ago. "And this is Leonidas, he was my mentor, back in the pocket I mean," she added, sheepishly.

Running her hands through her hair, she paused, bending over to peer at whatever Emile was sketching about in the dirt, a bemused grin on her face.
"Well, what've we here? An artist? You never told me you could draw."

Glancing back at Leo, she blinked, and then finally decided to gather up her courage, speaking her mind as usual.
"Leonidas, sir, I don't mean to be rude, but what in the name of the Core are you doing all the way out here in these boonies?" Her visage cracked a goofy grin, as she nudged him playfully. "Surely not for the spirits...I can tell you they're not the best."

Leonidas merely nodded in Emile's direction. His eyes drifted from Arianne and back to the fellow as she finished her introduction of him. He bent down, picked up his knife and proceeded to slide it against the leg of his pants, cleaning off the dirt before sheathing it once more. 

What was he actually doing here? Of course he enjoyed the quiet and solitude the forest here provided yet he had no real purpose here as of yet. 

"I tell ya, it's not my first choice of ale, but when ya drink enough of it, it doesn't seem to matter." he said before letting out a laugh. "As for my purpose in being here...I couldn't tell you. I merely enjoy the peace and quiet now and again...it's a nice place to get away for a bit."

As he finished speaking his eyes drifted away from them and gazed around at the trees. It seemed that some were tall enough to reach the heavens. 

"What about you madam...why might you be here?  Searching out young artists?" he jokingly asked as he pointed down at Emile's sketch in the dirt.

As he continued, despite being introduced to the mentor, since she seemed interesting speaking a bit more, he drew his little penguin. Horribly. As Arianne commented, he replied, almost laughing at himself, "I really can't."
His large, goofy smile, only exuded in his innocence, as he looked up towards Leonidas and waved. He was suddenly a lot friendlier. Maybe, with the two being comfortable around each other, it would be easier to interact with them? They seemed very stand off-ish otherwise.

As he commented about picking up stray artists, he commented, once more, the same innocent tone going into his voice."I'm really not."
Emile looked towards the penguin, and wished he really could draw. If he did, he'd draw the penguin wearing his outfit, but instead of penguins on the shirt and hat, he would've drawn the penguin wearing little Emile's surfing. It would've been adorable.

Continuing further, after only being distracted for a moment, he would say, "I don't know why she's here, but she was very into the fact that I was a Void Runner. Did something happen in the pocket dimension I should be aware of? I haven't been there in forever."
Which was true, he didn't visit it often, typically due to how stand off-ish everyone could be, unless of course mediated by another, such as the situation here.

What he really didn't enjoy in the pocket dimension was the upper echelon, where everyone had a metaphorical stick up their ass, which made communication difficult. But, apparently, he was only supposed to listen, not speak. They were only interesting in responsibility, not their mortality.

Whoa, ho, ho, it seemed even the higher ups were scared of their own fate. Oh, well. At least he could avoid their monotony, for now.