#flameleads

// maybe someone was MISSING from that BED :(

@flameleads is coming down the hall ->

He paced up and down the hall for several minutes. The Lieutenant was asleep---or, at least doing a good job at feigning sleep. They could not keep him company at this hour, and his mind needed it. Someone familiar, someone who knew him, and someone real. These conversations with ghosts couldn't keep happening.

But, he didn't want this conversation to be from a Colonel to a Master Sergeant. That made it too formal. No, for once, he wanted ranks to disappear so the two of them could be people. White Cloud mentioned to him that rank didn't really exist here anyway, so he should probably enforce it... but how? Years and years of an established dynamic, and he was willing to throw it away now? It was what he knew.

Yes, he was. For Fuery and for himself. If he could just get himself to---all right, he stopped pacing. With a closed fist, he knocked twice on Fuery's door.

"Fuery? It's me... Roy." Why did that sound so odd coming out of his mouth? It almost sounded like a question. "Permission to come in?"

He's so close to going back to sleep despite his best efforts to fight it off. Nothing good comes from sleeping, unless it's Kumo somehow putting him to sleep. Kain's yet to figure that out, but he always seems to rest much more peacefully when the Misterican is nearby.

Chicken stirs before he ever notices anything. The chocobo lets out a soft noise, hopping off the side of the bed and walking towards the door.

It's about ten seconds after that when there's a knock and a request.

He sits up, gets his cane, and goes to open the door. It's odd to hear the Colonel's first name, and as upset as he is that the man is probably coming to assign him something at ass o' clock, he turns on the light and opens the door anyway.

"You don't need permission," he replies softly. He isn't lying - Roy could still ask just about anything of him, whether he's got any bad feelings or not. Ultimately, Kain's loyalty has still not faded, as much as he sometimes desperately wants it to.

He wishes he could remember clearly what feelings he's voiced already, but they had been so explosive and sudden that his memory could not retain it all fully. Whatever he'd said, it had definitely put even more space between them both. He should have never opened his mouth in such an exhausted state.

Maybe Roy's come to finally scold him for it. Or for not working enough.

Royal Knights of His Majesty || Accepting

Send    ‘ you’ll have to get through me first… ‘    for my muse’s reaction to yours stepping in and defending them from someone they’re scared of

@flameleads is growling:

"You’ll have to get through me first." [ because Roy said so ]

There had been a small bit of a squabble when the Amestrian Colonel came to learn what he had been doing all this time. It wasn't that the Misterican had been keeping the nature of his activities from the man out of ill will but more because he did not want to cause the man anymore turmoil that he had already been feeling and he also did not want to bring anyone else with him because of his airborne nature.

It was just simpler to search from the skies when he did not have to worry about what was happening on the ground, at the same time. Black Wind would have been the only suitable searching companion, but this wasn't adding to their on going search for Chaos so - so that wouldn't have been a productive conversation either. 

So now he finds himself walking through the first town they've seen for at least a day. Cid had been gracious enough to give him more time on that blasted timer since this time he was out with company but there had been a long talk between the Misterican and the Mechanic about staying aware of his surroundings, keeping his head down, if he feels unsafe for any reason they are to return immediately without hesitation. 

There had been a groan and a sigh from the prince in question to ultimately he had agreed to the commands. Eversti was adverse to flight, so that meant they were stuck on foot with only the supplies the swordsman's travel bag could carry. He didn't know how long they would be out this time but he can't imagine that Eversti would want to return before he found some kind of information on his children. 

This village was much like others he's visited in this patchwork world. Nondescript buildings surrounded by nondescript people. A girl of blue hair, and young but still an adult looking in age made eye contact with him when they entered so he only looked to offer her a smile even with hidden lips. 

Her head was snapping away as quickly as it could until his voice chimes.

"Excuse me, Miss? Can you help me for a moment?"

And pink eyes only widen as her face pales and the woman finds herself practically frozen in place. 

"L-L-Lord M-M-Makenshi." Her voice shakes in the same way a leaf would when the wind rustles through the trees. "What an honor it is for you to grace us with a visit today." 

His face grimaces when she speaks as his shoulders raise in his tension only to fall again in defeat seconds later. His hands raise up, flat as if to stop her trembling without touching her.

"This is entirely unnecessary.  I just need a bit of your help, if you would be so kind."

"Ah - I - Of course My Lord, whatever you desire." 

"You really don't need - It's fine. I just need to know if you've seen any children recently that don't belong to the town. Humans. One would have yellow looking hair and dresses in red. The other tall and in a suit of armor.  Have you seen anyone matching these descriptions?"

Her head shakes quickly as her arms stay folded with her hands close to her chest.  The fear in her eyes made plain as she looks at him.

"N-n-no My Lord. No one. No one has come through the village for several days, but I can't claim to pay proper attention to all who cross these parts. Fo-forgive me for not being more useful."

He's sighing again as she sounds and waving a hand in the air as if to dismiss whatever wrong doings she thinks she's committed.

"That's quite alright. Thank you for your time. "

He can hear the man behind him groaning and as he turns to face his companion there are words he doesn't know if he's quite ready to deal with at the present moment.

"When we met, you told me to call you Makenshi. Not Lord Makenshi. Why do these people call you that?" The Amestrian inquires.  "What's more... they're terrified of you."

There is no motion to turn around and face the man. There's no motion to stop as he simply starts walking again instead of answering his question.

"That's not... important. We need to focus on finding any information we can about your sons before Cid's blasted alarm goes off and checks in on us."

He's still not stopping, and the only other motion the Misterican makes is to lift his left wrist where the mechanic's invention lives and he shakes it as if to draw attention to it instead of him.

The dark haired man's eyes are narrowing on his companion as he speaks again. 

"I'd say that's pretty important. People don't tend to want to help someone they're afraid of. That, or they'll be too busy panicking to remember anything. So, what's the story?"

But the Misterican fails to turn once again and continues to keep walking. They don't have time for this right now. Cid might have given him more time this round but the blond was still checking in on him regularly to make sure progress was being made or seeing if they could do anything on their own end should useful information come about, so the words 

"I will explain it all later. We need to focus on the task at hand." 

are all that leave the Light's Unlimited, causing him only to stop in his tracks when he can hear the man's body practically shift and become ready to fight back.  Misterica's heir does the only thing he can think to in that moment and that is to turn on his heel and he swings his arm snapping his right hand clearly in front of the younger man's vision as if to pull his attention straight to him. 

His voice raises and he yells "Focus. Do you want to find your sons or not?"

But obsidian eyes are burning. Burning like Brother's fire and he can feel their heat rolling in his direction. He can't say he much cares for it either. 

"I am focusing on the task at hand. We won't get anything out of these people if they're afraid. I know that for a fact."

There are eyes on them now and he can feel the village's gaze fix on his person from his back to his front. They're making a scene and now this village is fixated on the ghastly intruder that has crossed into their sacred land. 

"Well I can't change that, so just keep moving." The annoyance is growing in a tone that is normally so very gentle as jade eyes narrow down and his nose wrinkles from behind his mask. 

"He's angry."   

                   "Oh no. That poor man."  

                                                                               "That's Lord Makenshi isn't it?" 

                "It sure is. That poor fool's spoke his last line." 

"No one escapes the devil's wrath."

                                                  "Children go inside. You don't need to see this." 

    "Only an idiot would raise their voice to  one of the Lords of Gaudium." 

                               "Especially of all of them - him." 

It's then that the Amestrian's eyes burn hotter than ever before as he bellows

 "You think I don't want to find them? Do you know how agonizing it is to not know if they're alive or not? I told you already that I lost my son once. I've been nothing but forthright with you. Can you say the same?"

The town fills with the sounds of small gasps and doors closing. There are as many people fleeing the streets as there are now staring at the man in white waiting to know what he'll do next. What will Lord Makenshi  -  

"I have told you what was relevant to finding your children and getting you and your people home. That's what matters here. Returning you to your Amestris! So stay focused!!" 

The masked man's voice echoes as he meets the Amestrian's passion in kind and doors slam all around them. 

"This is the end."

 "Surely Lord Makenshi is going to kill that man." 

"Get the children off the streets. They don't need to see what is about to happen!" 

  "That boy. He dresses in white."

 "That devil no doubt." 

                                         "Are you a fool? that's Lord Makenshi"

 "Lord Makenshi?! Why would he be here?!" 

                               "You know if he shows in your town then everyone is doomed." 

"We've done nothing to anger Gaudium why would he be here." 

                                                                    "Lord Makenshi truly is the white devil." 

                                        "We're all going to die."

               "Keep your voice down, they say he has the ears of a demon." 

       "Because he is one." 

                   "Oh how have we been scorned by God to deserve this."

                                                       "We're all going to die because of that human!" 

And that was when the volcano erupted.  Everst's voice ringing loud to encompass the space around them. 

"I am. No one's going to talk to us if they're afraid." He gestures to the closed doors. "I can't be much help if I don't have more information." He's pinching the bridge of his nose. "Please, just give me something to work with so we can at least get through this town." He pauses only to glare further. 

"Or, am I really going to die because I pissed you off?"

He's been listening. Eversti has been listening to the space around them and he can hear doors slamming and a mixture of footsteps scattering and marching. He can hear so much going on at once that he can't answer.  He can't answer as his hands raise to cover his ears as he feels his body shake from the fool of emotions that are rushing his system faster than he has a chance to process -  

Marching.  It's a little further off on the edge of town.  He can hear marching.  The organized sound of boots against the dirt. 

                                         "Search the town. Leave no stone unturned." 

               "If we can bring our God, Lord Makenshi then surely he'll reward us." 

"I don't care if you have to burn it to the ground - no one leaves this town until we find him." 

                                                "Spread out." 

His breathing is picking up by the second as his mind fills with static. It's happening. He's caught. He's caught if he stays here too long and he can't fight inside the town. He can't give these people more of a reason to hate him then they already do. He's panicking as his head darts up and his hands fall away from his ears. 

He's looking in one direction and then the opposite as if to check to see if he can spot any of the opposing threat. His incoming captors if he's not careful.  They won't - they can't harm the town if he's not in it.

"They're here." He states frantically,  looking at the Amestrian with a wild look in his eyes. "They found me."   

The man in white looks as if he could be spooked by his own shadow before he turns away from his companion and runs.   

"We've never met."   echoes back from his trail as he forces himself into what is left of the crowd in the streets, only to weave in and out of buildings and back alleys until he can find himself coming to forest on the outskirts of town. 

There's no time to look back. He'll find Eversti again once he knows the coast is clear but he cannot let Gaudium take them both.  He cannot let Gaudium harm Eversti or the town.  So his left hand is flying up to his left ear, thumb pushing against the button along the bottom while he sounds out trembling. 

"Cid? Cid?  Cid can you hear me? Cid are you there? Cid answer me! Cid answer me! It's - It's Gaudium.  Cid answer me! It's Gaudium and they're on my trail. Cid! Cid I need Black Wind! Cid you have to tell Black Wind! Please Cid! Cid Answer me!"

'Why would anyone answer you, Little Cloud? You think they're your friends? I told you once and I'll tell you again. The people of this world don't care for you. They never have and they never will. That dog can't save you either. Why do you beg for someone who cares nothing for you?'

He can't be hearing this right now. He doesn't have the time. He needs to get away from the town. He needs to get away from the town so should they find him, they can't make the people of that village page for his disobedience.

Just like so many had in the past.

So many forced to pay his debts.

So his mask is flooding back as he lets his steps slow. His heart is doing no such thing, but his feet come to halt nonetheless. He needs to focus. He needs a way to run. He needs a way to get away unseen, so he needs to act like the Misterican he is and make himself some form of cover.

Quivering lips are parting as he lets himself exhale. One long and deep exhale to allow a rolling cloud of thick white to leave him. It floods through the trees, covering the ground to swallow all in it's path. This should buy him some kind of time. This should - give him some kind of advantage. At least this way they wouldn't be able to see and even if they could - it wouldn't be as well as he could. Not with his Mist in play.

No, his ears were far too sensitive for that.

He just needs to hide long enough until his soul's breath takes effect and puts them all to sleep. He just needs to wait for -

"This isn't going to work."

"If you think you can wait us out in your little cloud, you're wrong."

"We just want to talk, My Lord."

"His Excellency would just like you to return to him."

"If you can do that, this won't need to get ugly."

"There's no need to go to such extremes, Lord Makenshi."

' Little Cloud. Little Cloud, don't ignore me. You know if you don't come home soon, then more of Wonderland will die. You can hear it too, can't you? Our beautiful song? You know they all die for you. Just for you, My Precious Little Cloud.'

The voices of his pursuers are mixing with that monster's within his mind. If they get their hands on him they'll take him back to Anarchy. They will take him to that beast and - if that monster gets his hands on him again then - then - then - Oh he can feel himself growing sick while the images of Black Wind's corpse fill his mind.

He has to hold his hands over his mouth to stop himself from making any form of noise. Back pressed against a tree trunk, he feels like his heart is beating with the ferocity of a thousand war drums. He can just kill them. He could just slaughter them all but if he does then what will that say to the people of this town and what will it say to Eversti?

Killing them all would be so easy and he can feel that beast wrapping around him from the corridors of his mind and urging him to do so. It has become such a thoughtless motion in recent years. It wouldn't cost him more than a couple of minutes to strip these men of their entrails but doing that would - doing that wouldn't be right.

He isn't supposed to kill unless he doesn't have any other choice. Lady Tiamat would be ashamed that he even considered doing so... but ...

Finally does he find enough composer in himself to pull his hands away from his face and swing around to look for the men hunting him. He can hear them for the most part. He can hear leaves crunching under thick boots and as he squints through the Mist that's when he catches sight of one of them enough to notice the state of his mask - a - he's wearing a mask.

He's wearing a damnable face mask! They came prepared for this! They came prepared to take him in at any cost.

"We'll make you a deal, My Lord. Come with us and we won't take it out on the town."

"Refuse us and the town burns to the ground. "

"The White Devil takes another town tonight or you come with us and no one gets hurt."

"But what do you care about a few hundred lives?"

"You've slaughtered thousands in the name of His Excellency, haven't you?"

"So come out here and we won't hurt you or the town."

"We know you've sided with the Black Wind."

"His Excellency is most disappointed."

"It's time to return home, Lord Makenshi."

They're right. They're right and he knows it. They're right and he knows he can't run anymore. If he just gives himself up and goes back to that beast.

If he goes back to that beast then he's going to die.

How many times?

It's better if he's the one that dies than the town -

It's better if he's the one that dies than if Eversti were the one to get -

There's a sigh of defeat and he can already hear Black Wind cursing him in his mind. He can hear the Windarian cussing rolling off his Other's lips as he allows his body to float out from the position he was hiding in, hands raised to either side of his head.

He got away once, he can do it again. He got away ....with Black Wind's help. He'll be furious but he'll come for him. He just has to believe that Black Wind will come for him again. For the sake of that village, he can't risk doing anything foolish and -

"That's right. We only want to talk, My Lord. It's time to go back to His Excellency."

A man appears behind him, grabbing his wrists and pulling them down behind his back.

"On the ground." He demands and the Misterican obeys allowing his feet to sink to the ground. He can feel his captor working to tie his wrists behind his back and it takes everything in him to resist the urge to shake the man off of him. It takes everything in not to flip the man to the ground then and there only to summon the Maken to his aid.

He doesn't need his hands to defend himself and they will learn this in the grimmest way possible if they cross him and harm the town outright. There's nothing else to do here and he just has to trust that Black Wind will come -

"You’ll have to get through me first."

A voice roars through the forest, echoing all around him like a grand dragon declaring war upon on all that stand in it's path. There are those same burning obsidian orbs glaring darts in his direction, but this time they aren't looking at him.

Your muse

      Initially, a rush of apology surges through her body. That wasn’t the reaction she anticipated from what appeared to be an innocuous observation. She understands why for some it would be so jarring to discover, and in public no less. She can certainly extend her sympathies even if it’s not the world ending cataclysm his yell suggests.

      Cocoa eyes level towards those in the office startled by the outburst. Once they’re sufficiently directing their noses into paperwork, equipment, or at least seeming as though they are not focusing in this spectacle, she sighs so only he can hear her.

WYRDIFY, FLAMELEADS & HAWKSIGHTS.