#akashicmuses

The Forest of the Lost, as the locals call it, has turned out to be...unfortunately, very aptly named.

The place is apparently full of valuable herbs and rare animals, which made it a popular destination for potioneers and hunters alike. But the worth of such ingredients is debatable when weighed against a multitude of missing persons reports. The nearby townsfolk also seem to have taken a rather lackadaisical approach to the whole situation, eager to benefit from the flow of trade that travelers brought to their town and refusing to rope the area off because it was supposed to be 'safe, as long as you don't get too greedy.'

You'll be fine if you stick to the paths, an old lady had told him earlier that afternoon, lowering her voice conspiratorially. But, well, new folks will sometimes see something just a little off to the side...and that's up to them, really. If you give in to temptation, the forest will take you.

Nonsense. If people keep getting lost, then the solution should have been to either mark the place off-limits or improve the system of trails within. In any case, none of this is useful advice when Leon had been sent specifically to look for the missing people, and must therefore go off the path by necessity.

He could swear that he'd been keeping good track of his progress, though, marking trees with a dagger as he passed. So why...is it that everything looks so unfamiliar...

All things considered, he has an excuse for being a bit high-strung when some nearby bushes rustle, making Leon whirl around with a hand already resting on Chaltier's hilt.

@akashicmuses Number 2 for Dhaos and Sync! Maybe some relative of the swamp behemoth took a bite out of Sync or something

2: tending to their wounds

Eyes slowly flick open, noting instead of the bloody battlefield, they were instead inside a small cover behind some cliffs. They must have recently gotten here considering there wasn’t a fire. But fire didn’t seem to be the main concern of his latest travel companion. The warmth against him and the light glow told him a healing arte. Embarrassment and shame strangle him as the teen watches the way other for a moment. Vence had lost his touch. To get so injured that he passed out from the pain and blood loss. Pathetic. Pathetic. Pathetic!

⚅— Starter for @akashicmuses​ —⚅

— ★ ⚄ ★ —

Hanekoma drew in a deep breath and stretched his arms high up into the air as he watched the crowds of people passing in front of him. He preferred to stay in the RG as much as possible, but he was on duty today so he had to stay where players could see him. Maybe getting quite so involved in challenging the players wasn’t really all that necessary, but he wanted to push them as much as he could. And if his noise won, then that meant he earned himself points in the process. His main job was just to follow whatever orders the officers gave him, but reapers didn’t move up the ladder without being proactive.

And he didn’t want to let Mr. Abe down.

His eyes scanned over the street and met the form of another reaper among his ranks making her way closer to him. She probably didn’t have any business with him, but to say that he wasn’t a little on edge at the sight would have been a lie. He had hoped to monopolize this route since he hadn’t gotten word of any other harriers being sent to stake out the area. It wasn’t a main thoroughfare for the players today, but Hanekoma knew that it was a much faster route to the target destination than the more obvious one. A few players at least would know their way around well enough to come through there, and those were the ones he had been planning on preying on. But he was going to have some trouble if he had competition...

But maybe if he scared her off...

“ that was for saving my life. “ || Dhaos assisting Milla after she assisted him at some point? More likely than you think!

[ shining armour prompts ; accepting ]

Milla’s body has been struggling somewhat since the incident. Her legs are slow, still trying to get used to the spyrite attached to her leg. It isn’t an issue, until she’s separated from the rest of her friends and she’s left to fend for herself. Sometimes, her legs simply will not work. This is one of those times.

The Four are gone. Her friends are gone. She holds up her swords and waits for the inevitable.

It doesn't come.

"I remember you," she says, after they're safe. It's hard to forget a man like him. She tries to lift herself up, but gives up. "Thanks." She'd helped him when she first set off on her journey, before she even met Jude. A brief encounter, but she never thought she would see him again. This mission had been full of surprises.

“We live in a world where many kinds of regression dignify themselves with the mantle of progress." \\ To Leia, From Dhaos 

“Can you...run that by me again?” he spoke her language, but the statement didn’t click with her. She didn’t know who this blond man was either, but overhearing his words, she couldn’t help but react. The man was most likely talking to himself, but how can you not...respond?

“Sorry, uhh, I don’t really get what you mean by that.”

          Rindo would have expected many things when he walked into the Scramble that morning. He may expect to see people rushing to their new job, may expect friends in groups of threes and fours talking about the newest fashion to hit the stores that day.

          What he did not expect to see was the familiar, tall frame of the once Game Master of the Game.

          Despite knowing the other had made his way back to Shinjuku to rebuild,  perhaps showcasing his attempt at turning a new leaf – Rindo can’t help the nauseous turn of his stomach when he saw him. A part of him wondered if he could sneak away from him, slide away in the crowd.

          How could he even see the Reaper ? He thought that as soon as he was back in the RG that he wouldn’t be able to see the events of The Game or the Reaper’s anymore. That was the greatest concern Shoka had, wasn’t it.

          A slight sound escapes him when their eyes meet. Guess there was no avoiding it this time.