#bleedinghearth

"Is it just me, or is this bugger a bit on the large side, hey?"

Alma trusted any Hunter to handle themselves in a fight--it's not like she could help in that regard--but she stood by with a potion in hand, just to be safe, while she looked him over for a moment.

A pack of Balahara hot on their trail. The hot desert wind whipping at his face and making his scar itch. Kohna sped forwards, brave and true, the prints she left in the sand quickly being swallowed up by the leading monster as it swam through the sea of dunes.

He dare not wonder how much more a Seikret could run before it tired. Utilizing every skill he'd learned from observing his mentor had whittled down his pursuers' numbers down to three, but the largest was stubborn and unable to shake off. It was tailed by two smaller ones; perhaps packmates. Perhaps young. Perhaps, just a pair of unrelated individuals who had gotten caught in the excitement like sharqs in a frenzy.

The trail towards the grass-rooted plains soon approached. Even if the Balahara still pursued, they could not possibly swim through the solid grounds there. He pressed his body close to the saddle as his mount squawked, the seikret leaping to one side to dodge the gutsy brute leading the charge.

. . . He eyes an archway of rock and wonders if he could use it. Nata had been given his own clutch claw to use in case of an emergency, and boy, if this wasn't one! With a grunt, he tries to position his arm and gauge the distance to make a secure shot—when a bloodcurtling roar spooks Kohna, and he very nearly loses his grip on the saddle as she bolts.

Please no. Alma was going to be worried sick. He didn't need a Rathian tailing them too!

The first thing Vanitas became aware of was that his head hurt. As in fucking hurt.

He'd been wandering through Corridors on the way home from his weekend shopping. (Was it still the weekend?) Bag of vegetables in hand. (And miso paste. He was gonna bring some miso soup with tofu and king oyster mushrooms over to Sora.) When suddenly he got hit--no, he hit something--he--

A hole had opened in the Corridors, a portal he himself hadn't willingly opened. A naturally-occurring anomaly? The work of another wielder of Darkness? He had no way of knowing. It happened too fast.

Because the next thing Vani was aware of was right this moment, where he was laying on his back with his head throbbing in pain.

He didn't want to open his eyes yet. He knew damn well the light would hurt. He pawed around at his sides, looking for his grocery bag--nothing. God fucking damnit, that meant his vegetables and miso paste were lost to the Darkness. And wasn't that going to be an odd one to explain to Ienzo ("yeah sorry about the Darkness Flavored Soup my veggies went flying mid transition between worlds--" yeah he'd have to get new ones).

Vani heard snuffling. A Large Creature snuffling. Something--big critter near his head--what--

"Gmnnuh??"

Dragon. That was a dragon. Right there. Dragon. Fucking dragon.

“This is not permission for you to cover him in tiny penises.”

Oh, that's you? Time changes everything I suppose

Dont sound so disappointed💖

"You want a drink?"

He has no idea how accurate he is, just looking at the mad scientist with some concern, as he's quite crispy, and hands him half of his swiss-and-tomato grilled cheese. It smells incredible.

"Get some calories on board, mate, we'll talk about it later."

it had been a few hours since the explosion and he still felt the adrenaline rushing through his body . he can still listen to the ark breaking apart , still feels the heat of that thermonuclear mess - was he even actually unharmed ? sure , a few burns here and there to his clothing .

right . . . the suit his now dead ( and bastard ) grandpa gifted him . a shame . . . he really liked it . perhaps he could improve it at some point .

he's being talked to , and - he ignores it . at first , at least . until the tempting smell of great food brings him down to earth . yes , ivo , you escaped and survived the explosion .

before grabbing the snack he's looking up ; it takes him a bit but eventually he recognizes @bleedinghearth . it's without thinking that he scoffs in surprise , a smile spreading his lips .

" what are the odds . you and i seem to meet when i am at my worst , or stuck in a parallel predicament . i doubt this is the latter this time , though . " if he was in a fragile state of mind he might consider believing that carmine was nothing but an odd hallucination . but the food seemed very real as he continued to eat .