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Post by Lady Summoner Adiona Duer on Jan 15, 2010 20:46:00 GMT
The sphere had filled up and the first game had begun, cheers and screams echoed around the arena. Each person cheering for their own team, it was nice to see Spira enjoying themselves it made Adiona feel more at ease. Although she was not enjoying just sitting here surrounded my figure heads and strangers, brushing her white hair back Adiona slowly rose from her chair. Making the sign of Yevon Adiona glanced from Zero to Seymour and then the others.
"If you will excuse me gentleman I feel this is not my place for the games, I shall look around Luca while the streets are mostly empty."
Quickly leaving the VIP box Adiona made haste out of the arena, her black heels clicked against the pavement as she hurried from the crowds. Walking down the steps Adiona instantly sat at a bench away from the hustle and bustle, glancing to the side she saw a man quite smartly dressed and she laughed.
Almost everyone in front of the stadium had now entered and those on the wrong side of the gates and guards were left behind to find whatever little screen they could to watch the sport. This included Buddy who had nestled himself on a city bench near the entrance of the stadium. It frustrated him to not be able to watch the strange Spiran pastime of Blitzball and his tendency to wear his emotions on his sleeve at times left him looking resentful of his situation.
Watching one of the monitors from a distance, he noticed the camera’s had focused on a particular person. A celebrity, of some sorts, gave a simple gesture and then the stadium erupted! Thousands of people screamed and cheered their heads off, either for this person or the start of the game, and the ground outside rattled the slightest bit from it. Buddy had only seen this phenomenon once before, and that was when the mob outside of Midgar had been rallied by SOLDIER and sent to charge into the Galbadian backside. Even he couldn’t help but feel the excitement that radiated from the crowd there and his irritation transformed into a full grin. He really didn’t understand it too well, but there was a certain pure aspect of the crowd’s enthusiasm for the sport. Too bad this would be the first time he had seen the game played and it would be at the injustice of a video screen.
Buddy leaned forward a bit and let his hand rest against the guitar on his back. With all of the joy in the city and the thrill of the game in front of him, he couldn’t help but express a little bit of that feeling into music. Clasping down on the instrument, he pulled it over his shoulder and rested it on his chest and lap. It took a few seconds to tune it properly and then he let his fingers walk across the strings. Rarely did he let his mind get involved with his playing, his expression was left to the heart and he began plucking and strumming a vigorous and dynamic tempo while riding the various notes and chords up and down the scale.
It left Buddy in a bit of a daze, just watching the screen and letting his fingers walk absent-mindedly over the medley. Content in the moment, he almost even ignored the beauty that had started talking to him. When Buddy had noticed her speaking out, his eyes shot away from the screen and connected with hers. She stood near one of the entrances, teasing and laughing him about not being able to get in. At first he wasn’t even sure she was talking to him, but after several uncertain looks at her and then taking a look behind him, to see if she might have been talking to someone else, he took the conclusion that she was indeed talking to him.
The woman held a gothic grace about her appearance, but she held herself proudly and assured. The sun managed to catch her long white hair and reflect off of it and he had to wonder how someone with such a radiant beauty was so pale in skin tone. Her laugh was light though and her tone of voice was soft, leaving Buddy to believe that the teasing and laughing was nothing more than a different way of getting his attention.
In instinct he wanted to throw out a wink to her, if nothing more than to let her know that he appreciated her attractiveness. It’s not like he could actually say that she was pretty after all. Fortunately, his good sense kicked in, and he was reminded that he was here in Spira looking for work and gesture like that were considered unprofessional and would likely hinder his chances in the long run. So instead he sat up from a more relaxed position and promptly stepped to his feet, throwing the guitar on his back in one smooth (and often practiced) motion. The back of the guitar banged slightly against the katana strapped to his back, which told him he still needed to work on that move a bit more, but he let it be in front of her. With a jolt, Buddy loosely threw one hand in front of his chest and bowed to her. It was supposed to be a sign of respect to the young lady.
Now to answer her question; She took the assumption that Buddy hadn’t been interested in the game going on at all. In truth, he didn’t know. He had never seen a game before and just before he was about to catch this one she came around and poked fun at him. So Buddy stuck his thumb out and pointed to the one of the monitors hanging around. A slight smirk ran across his face as he looked back at her and gave the universal shrug of “I don’t know”. Now he would have to wait for his next game to play to see if he understood and enjoyed the game. After all, a lady always came before a game. He opened the breast of his Shinra suit and revealed a sticker on the left side of his chest. It read “Hello my name is…”, while underneath it was written in large bold letters, “Buddy”.
On the bench where he had just been sitting, a pile of papers rustled in a trivial gust of wind, making just enough of a fuss to be noticed. They were flyers that advertised his services and Buddy shot them a quick glance to make sure none were escaping then turned back around to his visitor.
Oh, Gods above, Kefka was losing his mind, or rather what was left of it...
Everything was progressing at a stately enough pace, a normal person would assume. The game had started up promptly, the teams made their silly little gestures in honor of the Maesters, swam into their little floating fish bowl, and proceeded to throw a ball and beat each other senseless while doing so. And the crowds, like the boonie redneck bumpkins Kefka knew them to be, were eating it all up as if it were the most exciting thing in the world. But to the Court Mage himself, the time had slowed down to a snail's crawl, instead of whizzing by with the fervor that seemed to possess the crowd into such a frenzy. He just couldn't understand it! What was so enjoyable about this sport? Why did people pay thousands of Gil a year to keep it maintained? It was just ten muscle-bound imbeciles swimming around in circles, trying to get a sphere of leather from point A to point B! Where was the fire? Where were the explosions? Where was the death, the destruction? Why did Gestahl even send him on these damned things? He wasn't making and headway with the Maester whatsoever, he was just loitering in the back, trying to be as unassuming and uninterested in the game as possible. He actually found the back of the Shinra brat's chair more interesting than the game itself!
Oh, yes, he knew who Vice President Rufus Shinra was the moment he laid eyes upon him. Imperial Intelligence was not totally without ears in other countries. But by all reports, the president's son was an arrogant and spoiled twerp, riding on the coattails of his daddy to gain his position instead of gaining it through actual ability or ambition. Thus, the Court Mage thought it would be quite amusing to see how much he could infuriate the young upstart by thoroughly ignoring him when he walked in. The look of outrage on his face when Kefka glanced quickly when he sat down made him have to stifle a small chuckle. Ah, he simply loved to ruffle the feathers of the high-and-mighty patricians who thought they owned the world on a silver platter. But the kick he recieved from that little bout of fun, as amusing as it may have been, was short-lived as the game began and dragged on.
During the beginning, many subtle things began to happen in the VIP box that Kefka noticed with unyielding clarity and observation. Firstly was the Maester himself, and Kefka could swear that he almost saw puppet strings at the tips of his fingers. His acting to these blithering idiots was so superb and convincing that he had them all following his lead. The pale witch summoner was completely captivated by him, blue hair and all, and Kefka could only watch with an inward giggle as she became mesmerized by Seymour's eloquent and gracious manners and silver tongue. Like a conniseur of fine wines, Kefka could not help but critique the Guado mongrel's decieving nature in comparison to his own. Obviously, there was no contest whatsoever. His was based solely on his honor and prestige, his standing as a half-Guado citizen of Spira and a devout of the teachings of Yevon, and thus the blind sheep follow their shepherd willingly to the slaughter, so terrible was the fear of Sin and so urgent was their need of a commanding voice and leader. Kefka's, on the other hand, was a classic, a veteran brand which he spent years after his Magicite epiphany perfecting. Despite both of their obvious differences, the Maester and the Court Mage had one very important similarity: they both knew how to use fear to their advantage, albeit in very different ways. Seymour used the terror of Sin to spur the people into believing the code of the clergy, whereas Kefka made himself fear incarnate, harnessing the despair he inspired in his subjects to drive them. It was a crude method, but exceedingly effective and far simpler than such measly trivialities as hope and justice.
But enough of that, for it seemed like the summoner was retiring from the game in order to wander the vacant streets. She addressed all of them in the box and excused herself, but Kefka's eyes were wide like an animal's. Finally, the witch has left Seymour's side! Now was his chance. He would have done the same as she and excused himself a long time ago, but that damned imperial protocol bound him as heavily as a chain around his neck, and besides, he had some delegations to accomplish with a very intriguing Maester...
The Court Mage waited patiently for the summoner to leave, looked left and right at the others assembled, and assuring that they were mainly focused on the game, he hitched up his colorful scarves and cape and moved quickly and quietly over to her vacant seat next to Seymour and sat down. His eyes were slightly wider than usual, and he hoped that to all appearances, he had just moved up to get a better view of the game. Suddenly, he became very aware that the summoner's silent and deadly-looking guardian was standing right next to him, possibly looking at him, as well.
The Court Mage looked up, as innocently as he possibly could under the circumstances, and replied to the stone-faced man with the razor-sharp claw and the katana, "Well, she didn't call a seat check, after all..." and flashed him a quick smile with his yellowed teeth. He immediately turned and faced back to the game, his face to all appearances seemingly enraptured by it utterly. But this was but a ruse, one that the good Maester beside him, who was doing his best to try and keep up wih the prattle made by the Shinra brat, would recognize. Kefka knew that he had to move very carefully here. He knew that, under the circumstances, his reputation preceeded him immensely, especially when it came to the destruction of Doma, and even though it was a military campaign to bring down confirmed rebels of the state, he knew that he wasn't exactly popular with any of the people. A notion which wouldn't normally have bothered him in the slightest, but it would be worrisome, for it may impede his chance to converse with this snake-tongued young lad, something which the mage found to be a very intriguing proposition as each minute passed...
Post by Lady Summoner Adiona Duer on Jan 16, 2010 19:07:44 GMT
Adiona quickly realised the man could not speak as he pointed to his name badge and made quite a few hand gestures. Quite embarrassed Adiona quickly stood up makig the sign of Yevon and bowing her head low.
"My apologies good sir I did not realise you could not speak, please forgive me. My name is Adiona and I am a summoner from Bevelle, I am currently on my pligrmage which has come to a slight halt while the the games are on. After today myself and my guardian will be travelling to Djose where I shall obtain the aeon Ixion."
As quickly as she stood up Adiona sat back down looking around her feet, quite a few flyers rustling around her boots. Picking one up she scanned over the picture and the wording before looking back to Buddy.
"Gosh I'm sorry I tend to ramble.....By the looks of your badge and these flyers you seem to be looking for work."
Rufus was surrounded by a sense of tension. Tension between Seymour and the fearsome guardian, tension between the traveler and the fearsome guardian, tension between the demon and the fearsome guardian, and for the slightest of seconds, Rufus thought he saw something between the fearsome guardian and his own summoner. Rufus was not used to this. Under normal circumstances, he himself was the most intimidating thing in a room. Sure, he had to deal with Sephiroth on occasion, but those instances were few and far between, and Sephiroth took orders from Rufus...fortunately.
But this man, this guardian seemed to take orders from no one, and he seemed prepared to slaughter any one of them on a whim. Rufus himself had managed to avoid attracting the man's attention thus far, but the tension brought on by the glares he gave every other VIP in the box seemed to bog Rufus' mind. It was awkward being surrounded by so many different people, all staring daggers at each other.
Rufus stared blankly at Seymour for a moment. His mind failed to produce the words he needed. Part of this was out of the marsh of unease that was slowing his thoughts, and part of it was out of amazement at how Seymour could continue to just sit and wait patiently. How could he do that? The guardian was giving him a look that could kill, and Seymour was just smiling away as if nothing was going on.
Rufus thought for a moment. That smile was the smile of a man who had world class militias at his back. The smile of a man who could do whatever he wants. No one would try to stop him, or else they would risk being decimated by the sheer numbers of Seymour's armies. Even if someone did manage to kill him, it would result in a great continent-wide war, much like the one Galbadia and Midgar were in. A war so long, and gruesome, and with so many casualties, that no one will truly remember what started it to begin with. And since no country in their right minds would want to start such a war, Seymour was literally untouchable, and his smile reflected that.
This was a simple concept, one that Rufus was very familiar with. So why was it that Rufus was so unsettled by the cockiness that Seymour exhibited. It took a moment for Rufus to realize, but the reason was that Seymour's smile matched Rufus'. This alone came as no shock. Chances are every world leader on the planet had the same sort of cocky grin. No, what was unsettling to Rufus was how much more cockiness was behind Seymour's stance. Seymour's unwaivering smile was deeper, more profound than Rufus'...
Why? Shinra had the bigger army, in truth, Rufus was more untouchable than Seymour was... wasn't he? Could it be because Rufus was still young? Still inexperienced? Or perhaps Seymour was hiding something? Like some dark secret that only the highest levels of the Spiran government know? Or perhaps Seymour merely believed his armies were stronger than they actually were? Or perhaps it was because Shinra was already in a wide-spread war, and thus is more vulnerable, making Rufus subconsciously less cocky? Perhaps it was a combination of reasons?
These thoughts swirled through Rufus' mind as the Blitz-sphere finished filling. It wasn't until the young woman, the summoner, left that Rufus' mind jolted back to what it is that he was needing to talk to Seymour about in the first place. The woman's departure brought about a momentary lapse in tension, and Rufus' brain kicked back into gear. He hastily put together a speech in his mind, rehearsing what he would say to Seymour. He thought fast, and had something ready in an instant. Just at that moment, however, Kefka Palazzo, the painted magician, slipped around Rufus and navigated himself into the now-unoccupied seat next to Seymour.
An extremely awkward feeling set into Rufus' gut. Here he was, leader of the most technologically advanced country on the planet (aside from Esthar, which, frankly seemed to have disappeared off the map), speaking to one of the leaders of the most techno-phobic country on the planet about possibly striking up an alliance of sorts between the two, very secretive hush-hush stuff, and there was this representative from a third world power just sitting mere inches away.
Centimeters, actually. Seymour and the summoner were seated side-by-side, with Rufus sitting behind the two of them, the Summoner had turned away to speak with her guardian, and Rufus had leaned forward to speak with Seymour, so Rufus' head was in between Seymour's and the summoner... so when Kefka suddenly appeared in the summoner's place it made Rufus bite his tongue, and not just because of the initial shock of seeing a brightly colored clown face appear centimeters away from his own.
Kefka Palazzo, Court Magician to the Empire. How would the empire react if they were to learn that Midgar and Spira were negotiating something of this nature? The Empire, particularly this mage, seemed to be proponents of random senseless destruction. That would, of course, mean that Rufus could not tempt them with mere power. And if they can't be tempted with power, than they would have no reason to ally with either Midgar or Spira, and thus, no reason to keep Midgar and Spira's secrets. But then again, should Midgar actually manage to enlist the aid of Spira, at least in the way of land, like Rufus was about to propose to Seymour, than it would undoubtedly turn the tides in Midgar's favor and result in Galbadia's complete and utter destruction. Was that not what the empire seemed to be after? But then again, it wasn't the Empire in the box, it was Kefka Palazzo, a mere man, and men often have their own goals in mind. It was a tough call, honestly. Rufus didn't know much of Kefka personally, if Kefka were to hear what it is that Rufus meant to propose, it wasn't certain what he would do with the information...
But he realized that he was getting a bit ahead of himself. He wasn't even sure if Seymour would be willing to hear him out. Rufus cleared his throat and tried again. He kept Kefka in his peripheral vision while he spoke, looking for signs of movement, or that the mage was listening at all. With part of his attention on Kefka, and part on Seymour, he spoke, slowly and clearly, choosing his words carefully. He felt it would be best to test the waters a bit. "Yes, I am indeed here on business, but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy some small talk as well. Now tell me, did you happen to see the battle against Sin yesterday?"
This was a set-up of course. Rufus was almost positive that Seymour saw it, and if he did, than he undoubtedly noticed the large number of Shinra helicopters in the air that day, and the power brought forth by Shinra during that battle. Surely this would elicit a response. Rufus watched both of the world leaders carefully, but keeping his eyes trained on Seymour. He was curious how they'd both react.
Buddy didn't quite know what she was trying to apologize for. She tried talking to him like she would any other normal individual in this world. There wasn't anything wrong in that at all, so with a wave of his hand and a light grin he dismissed her apology, trying to get across the point that she didn't need to worry about something so trivial. In fact as much as he lacked the typical conversational skills, he did enjoy when people tried to talk to him, it gave him a greater sense of being.
So, her name was Adiona and she was from "Bevelle". She was a summoner on a pilgrimage and was headed to a "Djose" to pick up an "Aeonixion". Being a stranger in a strange land, most of the key words in her explanation left Buddy with nothing more than a vague idea of what she could mean. Pilgrimage made enough sense. If the dictionary in his mind was worth anything, a pilgrimage was a journey to some sort of holy land. "Djose" and "Aeonixion" could have meant anything however; Djose could be a piece of land or a person and Aeonixion might have been a personal affect or even a state of mind. It was a pilgrimage after all, so maybe this Aeonixion was their way of saying clarity.
While Buddy was mulling over these thoughts, the girl, Adiona, reached down and picked up one of his flyers. It wasn't till she started talking again that he realized that she had it. She put two and two together quickly and made note of his purpose in Luca/Spira. He nodded in agreement. He had left the Midgar slums in search of the Golem and to find better work than the crime lords and scum of Midgar. Sure they paid the bills, but there had to be more money for a "high class" personal bodyguard, than the schmucks that lived below the plate.
He gave Adiona a mock flex with his arms, imitating the musclemen in the gym in the Sixth Sector of Midgar. He wasn't sure if she would find the humor in it or not, but it was funny to him nonetheless, to remember their ridiculous stereotypes.
She had said off-hand that she had a guardian and when she did mention that he was looking for work, instead of the usual excited reaction of finding a potential customer, he just traded it off for friendly conversation. Out of professional interest, he did decide to pull one of his contracts out from the inside pocket of his jacket and hand it to her. From the other inside pocket he removed a 3x5 note card from the many he kept handy on him and wrote down, "I'm a personal bodyguard. The best where I come from! Do you know anybody who needs one?"
Post by Lady Summoner Adiona Duer on Jan 18, 2010 18:47:56 GMT
Adiona giggled quite loudly as she watched Buddy flexing his muscles in some macho way, it was nice to have such a refreshing character instead of all the same people who would bow before her. Feeling even more comfortable in his presence Adiona turned her whole body to face him, her hands now resting against the bench as she sat. Her eyes met his for a brief moment and for that second Adiona almost felt like a kindred spirit with Buddy, misunderstood but with so much to offer. Watching him she saw him pull out a card and begin to write down on it, taking it gently from him she looked around and then back to him.
"Hmmm I'm not so sure about bodyguards as here in Spira we have guardians for summoners and well then there are armies...I suppose guardians are like bodyguards."
It was then as Adiona trailed off her sentence her mind began to tick over, it seemed so sudden and well unprofessional but it was still an idea and maybe a good one in the long run. Getting up slowly from the bench Adiona made the sign of Yevon once more with a bright smile across her face.
"Say....would you like to walk around Luca a while until the games are finished for today....and well if we can't find anyone that needs a bodyguard....you could...well come with me on my pilgrimage. Sometimes it helps to have a few guardians, who knows what we could come up against."
The look on Buddy's face was undeniable. It took several seconds for him to realize that his jaw was hanging open. Did she just offer him a job? She laid it on him beating around the bush with the walk around town and saying she would help him find work, but it all came about in the fact that she was actually considering Buddy as protector.
The surprise really came from her trusting attitude towards Buddy. Maybe he was just used to he suspicious nature of man in the slums, or maybe it was his own suspicious nature that left him unable to immediately place his confidence in anybody. No matter what it was, this girl just blindly trusted the words he said and was willing to act on that trust. Wait! Maybe that's why she wanted to take walk with him… It was beginning to make sense a little bit. The walk she proposed was to get to know him more before she . He smirked believing in his own cleverness.
He looked back at Adiona. He wondered if he was supposed to return that gesture that she kept on giving him. It seemed like the right thing to do, so he bowed and gave a faulted imitation of the sign of Yevon. In mid-bow, Buddy suddenly remembered that this was a heavily religious part of the world and that what he was doing could possibly be something else than what he intended. He shot back up and looked back at Adiona. Behind Buddy's confidant grin, he desperately hoped that he had not just offended his latest hope for work. He wanted to jump on this opportunity of being her guardian or bodyguard or whatever you called it in that part of the world, but he wanted to hear a little more about this pilgrimage first. It wasn't like he was starving for work now that he had her pilgrimage to fall back on. He would just sniff a little bit at the food on his plate before he dug right in.
So long as they were being informal about everything, Buddy lent Adiona his elbow. She had asked him to take a walk with her around town and this was his answer. He would be her escort, though it would have to be her that led them through the town.
Post by Lady Summoner Adiona Duer on Jan 19, 2010 18:53:27 GMT
The summoner watched Buddy try to make the sign of Yevon, it was plainly obvious he was new to the area but he seemed to be making the effort which was polite of him. Tilting her head to the side Adiona smiled to him as he held his arm out for her, sliding up next to him she interlinked her arm with his and began to walk. The sun shone brightly on them and the noises from the arena could still be heard from the games, Adiona tried to block them out she wanted her undivided attention on Buddy and helping him. Truthfully she didn't know anyone that needed a bodyguard but she was sure summoners would grab him up....well some may. In her experience most summoners could be vain and would turn their noise up at someone who couldn't talk. Looking back to Buddy she gripped his arm tighter, even though she had only known him a few minutes she felt safe with him. Keeping her gaze ahead Adiona tried not to look so much at Buddy she felt it rude.
"Well Buddy let's see if we can find anyone that needs a bodyguard, I suppose I should tell you about what a pilgrimage entails in case you come with me as my guardian. Basically I am a summoner and I travel to different temples around Spira praying to the fayth to obtain a powerful creature called an aeon. I do this until I get to Zanarkand where I call something called the Final Aeon and then........well then the monstrous creature known as Sin will be destroyed for ten years. This period without Sin is called the Calm, after ten years Sin returns and more summoners take on the task of defeating Sin."
Adiona left, it was as simple a that. All she did was excuse herself from the match and left. She didn’t wait for him or anything. He found this rather unnerving. She was beginning to cast out and without a guardia to protect her anything could happen. He was just about to go after her when he noticed Kefka moving. The clown man seemed to have seized the opportunity to get closer to Seymour. Rufus Shinra was the same. This was suspicious to say the least. To say the most it seemed like they were plotting something. Three men of such power in one place.
He didn’t like it. And felt suddenly glad Adiona had taken her leave. It was like a swarm of piranha in here. And then there was that disgusting abrasion to Yevon. The Lucavi iumi. He was still being so ignorant of the damage he could cause to the religion of Spira. And its peace should a demon attempt to defeat Sin. He shuddered at the thought. No Adiona was the rightful summoner. She would be the one to defeat Sin.
His eyes moved to Kefka. The man spoke to him, albeit briefly. This would give him the chance to say what he was thinking earlier.
“ Indeed….Lord Kefka…I believe congratulations are in order…your capture of Doma after only a day in command was indeed a show of your tactical ability…”
He said it coldly. And bluntly. Not that it was sarcasm. No. He meant every word. “…You slew the enemy with brutal efficiency…and so it should always be….”. With that he nodded and moved outside to see Adiona.
Meanwhile within and outside the stadium
Pyreflies began to form as the matches went on. Some where in aawe at the beauty of them. The other. Smarter people. Realised this wasn't good. Within seconds of the match finals begining the pyreflies all crowded into one...large fiends emerged in and around the stadium. Something odd was going on.....
Boss Battle: Giga Knuckle x3
Information: The Giga knuckles are huge humanoid monsters, genetically engineered for combat. There are three of them in total rampaging in and around the stadium grounds. They have immense strength. But very limited intellect. Use this to your advantage. To Defeat: 2000 words per knuckle Extra Information Note that you can only attack the knuckles in YOUR area. Those inside the stadium must attack the knuckle inside the stadium before moving to help those in other locations.
It was funny how something so simple as a walk through the city could turn into something so intense. Buddy stood in awe of Adiona and here bold statement about her purpose. One thing after another surprised him about this girl! She directly stated that she intended on taking on a creature that terrified an entire continent and not to mention concerned the rest of the world to some degree.
So many questions were now running through his head as he released Adiona's arm and pulled himself around face to face with her. What kind of power were these Aeons that she mentioned? Why did Sin come back every ten years when it was beaten? Why would others go against it when someone had already beaten once? Wouldn't that same person just do it again? Why did this seem like a cycle to him? He looked straight into her eyes to see if she was even remotely serious about what she just said.
Deep inside the pools of blue, he saw the determination lying deep, as if it was rooted and not going anywhere. It suddenly felt a little bit intimidating to stand near Adiona, as he took a few steps back to give her some space. He wanted to apologize for the knee jerk reaction of it all, but quite literally he couldn't find the words. It was impossible for him to say, "Wait a second!" or, "Are you serious?"
Taken aback, he began to wonder if he was up to the task of protecting this woman. He barely knew anything about this whole Sin debacle and here he was about to jump right into a situation like he always did. What could he do, if something like Sin attacked her?
Colorful lights started to dance around the streets, eventually distracting Buddy from his thoughts. They were multicolored balls that seemed to float whimsically wherever they wanted to. Buddy shook his head and rubbed his eyes to make sure he was seeing things clearly and when they didn’t go away he shot an inquisitive look to Adiona as he point to the air in general.
Without waiting for an answer he tried to grab one, but it just floated through his grasp. Something was wrong though… Many of the people who were on the streets around them had dispersed and it was now quiet and empty. It left Buddy with a feeling of uneasiness and instinctively brought himself as close as he could to Adiona, lifting his hand and reaching over his shoulder to grab the hilt of the blade that rested on his back. His eyes scanned the surrounding area with suspicion. He needed to find anything that seemed abnormal, but the only things that were around were themselves and the gathering lights.
The lights started to congregate on a single point and before Buddy knew what was going on, a massive twisted version of a man appeared in the streets bellowing in rage. Most men would have been left frozen in fear of the unknown before them, but on instinct, Buddy grabbed Adiona's wrist and pulled her into a shadowed area behind a wall out of sight of that "thing". From the discretion of their hiding spot, Buddy looked over to Adiona with his face showing off an upset confusion. He threw his hand in the direction of where the giant appeared and looked at her waiting for an answer. Was this kind of stuff normal here?
The ground rumbled beneath them as the beast took a swing and removed the entire side of a building with little to no effort at all. Buddy grabbed Adiona's wrist and yanked at her again. The first step was to get her to safety and then find a way to deal with whatever that thing was!
TOO LATE!
The giant peaked inside the other end of the alleyway and the two were discovered! Buddy waited for something, but or an excruciatingly long minute the beast tried to decipher what it had just found, until the answer seemed to hit him directly. Subsequently it roared and Buddy made sure his position was in between the giant and the girl. Without waiting for it to do anything to them, Buddy thrust his palm towards it. It must've looked crazy to Adiona, but the instant he moved his palm towards the beast, a giant disembodied palm easily the size of a tall person, slammed into the face of the giant forcing it back in surprise. Buddy couldn't wait for a reaction as he grabbed Adiona's wrist once again and pulled her in the opposite direction.
The roar was only outdone by the rumble around them as the giant destroyed the alleyway trying to grab either of them. Buddy looked up to see the pieces of the building start to fall on top of them. He pulled Adiona ahead of him and threw her ungracefully out of the collapsing alley and jumped out after her, letting it crumble between them and the "insta-monster". A little out of breath Buddy stood up with dust from the collapse covering him. He looked to Adiona to see if she was all right.
Word Count : 869 Total Word Count:2689 Word Count Against Monster: 230 Rogue Bonus: 230
Post by Lady Summoner Adiona Duer on Jan 20, 2010 18:30:43 GMT
It was all such a blur from Buddy stepping out in front of her to being pulled left and right and pushed into an alley, out of the corner of her eye she had seen the pyreflies but wasn't quick enough to react. She was at Buddy's whim for the first few moments until there was a moment to breathe, picking herself up almost coughing her lungs out she could hear the screams of those in Luca. Her reaction was instinctive as she turned back to face Buddy.
"I can't run away I have to go back...these are my people here I have to protect them but how.....wait a second Buddy I'm gonna get us a ride back to that thing."
Pulling out her summoner's stave Adiona began to twirl it and wave it in every direction slowly and gracefully, a purple and silver light formed on the ground which then shot up into the air. Breaking out into sparkling lights in the sky a winged creature flew out from the clouds, landing beside Adiona she took her hand and gracefully stroked its head. Placing her stave back Adiona grabbed Buddy's own wrist dragging him over to the creature, the summoner climbed on the creature's back trying to get Buddy on as well.
"Get on and hang tight."
Once Buddy was upon the creature it flew straight up into the air, Adiona grabbed its fur with one hand while keeping a hand on Buddy. They flew high above the stadium until they came back to the area where they were and below was the fiend.
"Ok Buddy this is it we can do this...me and you together we can defeat this thing but I can't do it alone. I can use my magic and the aeons I have so far but I need you as well ok....don't leave me alone here."
The creature lowered itself down so Adiona could jump off, putting herself right in front of the fiend. Looking at it with fierce determination Adiona held her arm outstretched towards the fiend. The air around her hand began to grow colder and colder with each passing second, tiny ice crystals gently dancing around her fingertips. With one almighty push a large sharp icicle formed flying through the air hitting the fiend square in the face. Adiona stumbled backwards due to the force of the magic; she glanced back up to Buddy and smiled trying to let him know she was ok. At this point she had let her guard down which she knew from her training was a bad thing, with her head turned Adiona didn’t see the fiend lift its arm. With one swift movement the large creature had smacked Adiona against one of the walls, the young summoner cried out as her back connected with the brick wall. Angry at herself with her mistake Adiona flung more of her blizzard magic at the fiend trying to knock it off its guard, for the moment Adiona stayed still trying to defend herself. This fiend was much stronger than she had encountered before, Adiona could only imagine what Buddy was thinking at this point.
Word Count:539 Event Word Count: 214 Total Word Count: 2465
As the pyreflies began to form around the area, the crowds began to look up. Zero looked around however, for the moment his interests lay with Adiona. She seemed to have disappeared. A frown formed on his face, not that there was much else that ever appeared there. He crossed his arms, this time his own eyes were drawn to the pyreflies. He raised a hand, as one passed through it. The pyreflies were begining to thicken. This was not a good sign. The others were taking this as a blessing. To him. It was not. He needed to find Adiona, and quickly. He found her of course, strolling with a man somewhat casually. Once more he felt a frown forming on his face.
Not out of jealousy or disdain. But rather that she would walk off with someone she had just met so readily without any head for danger. Luckily he had more than enough of that for the both of them. That is when the fiend appeared. At first Zero was quite taken aback by the entire thing. But the moment he realised just what was going on his mind kicked into battle format. The creature after tearing the head off one of the other civillians aimed a punch at him. He jumped backwards moving into the shadows watching as Adiona and the man swooped down upon the back of Valefore the aeon.
She unleashed the power of her blizzard magic upon the beast, but even that only served to anger it. He had seen the technique used by the man next to her to force the creature backwards. It had been a good move to push it back. But ultimately its death was still something that needed to be taken care of. He slowly drew his blade. Walking into the light where both Adiona and this man could see him. He ran his hand along the length of his sword. And closed his eyes. He cursed his own sword at this point. Drawing in the power of the elements around him.
A dark wood elemental spirit formed around him as green pyreflies...and entered his sword. He opened his eyes. " Scatter...fallen dreams...". He swept his sword upwards. And as he did in the path of the slash, began to fall cherry blossom petals. They floated past the Giant, then past Adiona and buddy, some of the soft petals getting caught in their clothes. The giant however stood still. As if something had shocked it suddenly. Then without warning, mulitple gashes appeared all over its body where the petals had touched. Those areas grew green and inflamed. The giant bent over and vomited. Inflicted with a poison status.
His eyes moved to Adiona and the mysterious man. He would ensure that his summoner was not hurt. But at the same time. He couldn't help but notice that although many were running, just as many were standing to watch. This could be a good moment to put forth Adiona's position with the people. By showing a display of her power, and then of his. They had attracted the attention of the people. Although he disliked doing so. He required to end this with something perhaps unneccisarily flashy. If only to promote his summoner. He swept out his sword, more petals fell, but this time towards the crowd who caught them in their hands.
He closed his eyes, reaching down inside him for the well of power that he had been trained as a warrior monk to tap into. Most warrior monks knew the power of spiritual release. A power which would grant them additional strengths within battle. But Zero had always been told from a young age, his inner rage and power where something that made his spiritual energy uncontrollable. As of such he couldn't hold such a state for long. But his had the added bonus of being detrimental to the opponent. But it was a tad...flashy, then again. It was just what the situation required. He felt it open as he tapped into that power. It spewed outwards, filling every crack of his body with its power.
Immedietly it almost appeared as if he burst into flames. An aura of white fire seemed to flow around him. Those surrounding him, the monster. And the people of the crowds would feel a crushing weight upon them. The weight of his power. An mild concussive explosion occured, forcing the knuckle backwards a few steps. As the dust cleared, Zero was no longer standing where he had been. The crowd was begining to wonder whether he had actually exploded in an attempt to destroy the monster. But as the dust settled from around the creature as well. It would reveal Zero standing upon the monsters shoulder. He looked down at the creature.
Which, very slowly looked up at him. There was something akin to fear in its eyes. Just how had he moved that quickly? It was simple. The release of his power also effected his speed. Allowing him to move almost quicker than the eye could trace. It was however. A tiring fatigue moved over him. But he wasn't really required to move much. He drew back his blade and stabbed it directly into the knuckles eye ball. He felt it penetrate the eye, the leathery surface give way and the entire thing collapsing into a yellowy white goo. His sword traveling further, Cracking bone underneath. The beast roared in agony. He steadied himself. And drove the blade upwards, petals slicing up the wound from within, poisoning an already grevious wound. He backflipped off the creature and turned around.
The beast enraged. Held its eye, or what remained of it in its palm. There was a terrible wound in its head as well. The poison would soon effect its brain. ALready it was showing signs of this. Slowing down. Stumbling forwards. Then backwards. Acting like a drunkard. However it seemed to be in enough of a rage to actually ignore these effects, fighting them off for a time. Enough for one last ditched attack at the person who had caused its pain.
Its fist raised, moving towards Zero, the crowds shouted for him to turn around. To move. To run. He merely stopped. Closed his eyes. And with one swift movement turned and cut with his sword. The creatures thick hide was something else. He certainly hadn't encountered anything like this creature on his world travels. He'd killed giants before. Gigas even. But this thing was something else. Its muscle skin and bone structure seemed to be tougher. More resilient. It was suspisious. Just like the gathering of three of the worlds most influential men at a sports game. Was it all connected? For now it wasn't for him to know. He'd just have to keep an eye on one of them. Seymour. He hadn't liked how the man looked at Adiona. Like a wolf staring down a sheep. With an unrivaled hunger and desire.
His blade of course wasn't long enough to cut the entire beast in half. But thanks to his scatter of fallen dreams. The petals did the rest of the cutting work. Smoothly the creature fell neatly in two halves, blood pooling around his feet. Cherry blossom petals falling into the blood around him. He opened his eyes. Looking at Adiona and the other man. For now his job was complete. Adiona was safe from harm. The beast that had dared attack his summoner under his gaurd was already rotting away. A side effect of the poison that the scatter of fallen dreams inflicted. He flicked his gauntlet claws. And his inner power was resealed.
The dark gaurdian wiped the blood from his blade on the hem of his robe. He then twisted it. And sheathed the blade. The moment he did. The cherry blossoms stopped falling. Pyreflies escaped the sword as the dark wood elemental escaped. At the moment, he had nothing to say to Adiona, and he was sure she had nothing much to say to him. Her job was to please the crowds. With nothing more he merely bowed. Making the sign of Yevon. To add to the effect he looked at her and said.
" Your obstical has been slain Lady Adiona...".
With that done. He turned and began to walk back to the VIP stand of the Blitzball arena. He still felt that there was still a dark presence in the air today in Luca. For some reason he couldn't help but suspect that this was all down to those three men. Maester Seymour Guado. Lord Kefka Palazzo. And Vice President Rufus Shinra. Who knew. Maybe even that abomination Miumi had something to do with this. Regardless, whilst on his way back he stumbled across another one of these beasts. He drew his sword and aimed it at the monster...looking down his sights....
So this was the true face of Adiona. Within seconds of throwing her out of the collapsing alley, she was up and creating colorful sigils on the ground. In that moment, he saw two very important things. The first was the face of Adiona. The young and endearing girl had transformed in front of him into a purposeful, duty driven woman. She was prepared to go up against this giant by herself if she had to, by the looks of it. The words “these are my people here I have to protect them” rang very clearly in his head. As he brushed the last of the dust off himself, he thought back to just moments ago, when she had stated that she was going to oppose Sin. This apparent show of love for her people encouraged the thought in Buddy that it was for them, Adiona went on her pilgrimage. It was an impressive show of resolve and her actions only seemed to enhance the scene around her words.
The other trait that he noticed was the meaning of the title “Summoner” she had given herself when they were walking uninterrupted before. From the runes on the ground burst forth several different lights and they traveled to the sky. Travelling into the clouds up above, he watched as a giant bird came soaring from the heavens above, dispersing the clouds around it in a sonic blast down to Adiona. She caressed its neck for a moment before grabbing Buddy’s hand and lifting off into the sky!
With Adiona clutched onto one arm, Buddy used his other to grab underneath the feathers and find a place hold to snatch. He could only hope that he wasn’t grabbing anything overly sensitive to the bird while the Aeon held both of them high above the city. Afraid to look down, Buddy listened to Adiona let him know what she could do in the upcoming battle, so he nodded hastily and they took off back down to the beast below them.
Much to his surprise and chagrin, Adiona leapt from the bird when she felt it was close enough to take on the monster and landed directly in front of it. Still on the bird, Buddy slapped his head at Adiona’s poorly planned move and then pushed off the Aeon as well. He landed a little heavier than he would have liked as a cloud of dust escaped from underneath him in all directions. He immediately made a sprint towards Adiona who was firing off ice shards of a blizzard spell at the giant. Still a few steps away he watched the aggravated thing backhand Adiona into a wall. Buddy winced at the attack, but Adiona stood right back up and started throwing more ice shards in an attempt to keep the creature on the defensive. That wasn’t going to get him any points…
Buddy reached over his back to draw his blade when he saw a multitude of petals hang in mid air over the beast. Unexpectedly, fiery green flames burst from sudden wounds all over it body and it toppled over in a heap to vomit all over the street. Buddy watched as he recognized the wounds to be in the same areas of the body as the petal had landed. Someone had done this intentionally and with a strange and deadly technique. Buddy scoured the street for the perpetrator, but it only took a second to notice him. The only man dressed to kill on the street stood a ways away. Buddy looked back to the giant, who was managing to get up and then back at the man; he seemed to be putting on a show with the leftover flowers while he seemingly ignored the beast.
Buddy clenched his jaw and prepared to attack the back of the giant when a sudden burst of pressure flooded over him and the giant stumbled towards him. Unprepared for what just happened he watched as the man who was across the street was now digging into the eye socket of their enemy... and he just happened to be enveloped in flames. And then with the yell of the crowd, the thing fell apart. Both sides fell away from each other. Watching this man carefully, Buddy noticed the casual gesture and the sudden drop of pressure on him; as well the uncanny appearance of the flower petal seemed to disappear as well when the man sheathed his sword.
Buddy was now beat red. Here he was, looking for honest work and just when he had the chance to prove himself, this guy came in and took the fiend, the glory and his client. He watched as he bowed to Adiona and made sure she knew that he was the one who got rid of the monster. Buddy watched as he moved away from them. Too bad for this guy, Buddy wasn’t going to let this go.
He sprinted after the swordsman and passed Adiona, giving a simple bow to her hoping she would excuse his running off after the guy. Catching up to him without any trouble at all, he walked right into a stare off between the swordsman and another one of those giants. Arrogance welled up in Buddy as he stared at the back of the man’s head with malice. His glare turned to a smug and wicked grin as he sauntered up to the side of the guy. He didn’t think that the guy would acknowledge him, so after a second to pause by his side, Buddy slowly turned his head with the smile still attached to him and threw the focused energy of the palm at the blindside of the man. After all, he couldn’t let him get hurt in his battle against the big guy. That wouldn’t look good, would it?
The was the signal for the creature to slam down its massive hands down to where the two were, but with a little extra effort, Buddy threw the palm into the side of the fists and managed to push them to the side, barely missing him. He started to sweat a bit. He wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to pull that off, but now that he had, all sense of nerves left him and he let loose. Thrusting another palm into the chin of the giant, he knocked his jaw up into the air with relative ease. The giant probably wasn’t used to someone directly confronting it as Buddy was. So in succession, he threw another palm into the exposed stomach, however this time, instead of the flat side of it, the fingers were jammed into it like a spearhead. It doubled over in front of Buddy, he had barely moved from his spot and this thing was already bowing before him, if only forcefully from himself. Buddy raised his arm as high as he could in the air and brought it down through nothing; instead, the palm that had been assaulting the giant appeared again and slapped him in the back of the head. It fell to the floor with thud expelling a cloud of dust from underneath its fallen body. Buddy crossed his arms and stood tall. He was hoping that the swordsman wouldn’t miss this.
Without warning the fiend pushed itself to its feet and started searching the area for its assailant. It turned to its left, fist high in the air ready, only to be disappointed that someone wasn’t there. It jolted to the left raising the other arm in a fist to attack whoever was on that side, but once again it found nothing but an empty alley. Dumbfounded, it scratched the top of its bald head in confusion and spun around in a slow circle making soft grunts, making sure to go around a second time to make sure it hadn’t missed anything.
Buddy, still beaming with the arrogance, clinched his fists and cracked his knuckles. Slowly and methodically he raised his hand and in an instant thrust it forward, bringing the disembodied hand across the back and right shoulder. When it turned around to find the culprit, Buddy threw another one into the other side of it and it roared in frustration. It spun around again, but this time, Buddy brought the palm through the foot it primarily leaned on to spin and the giant toppled over, top heavy from its own generated centrifugal force. Suddenly Buddy’s hand danced it the air like he was trying to push something away. The silent protector’s attack now pummeled the frontal areas of the body, dozens of palms erupted, one disappearing and then reappearing following the path of Buddy’s hands onto the giant’s groin, stomach, chest and head.
Now that Buddy had the beast on the floor he was going to keep him pinned down! Every time it tried to push itself up with a hand or leg, one of Buddy’s furiously pounding palms would slam into a shoulder, or a knee cap, forcing the big guy back into a helpless position. Confused and quickly becoming infuriated, the creature started ignoring the attacks and slowly turned itself over to bring it self up from the other side. Buddy kept on beating the creature, but its resolve was steadfast and it was now on it feet glaring at the miniature man in front of it.
Enraged, it stood in front of Buddy and let out a bestial roar directly at him. Spit flew everywhere as it brought its own palm down to squish Buddy flat. Eyes wide, he leapt to the side and narrowly avoided his fate as a pancake. Instead of bringing its hand up however, it started sliding it across the ground towards Buddy. He jumped to his feet in a panic and ran as fast as he could jump on top of some bits of rubble to use as a boost, leaping up as the hand passed under him. A landed with a thud and started sprinting the towards the creature’s legs.
On his way over, Buddy drew his and it sung to him as it was drawn against the sheath, almost as if it was happy to be used. Clenching his teeth from the sudden turn in the fight, Buddy drew his sword across the ankle of the giant as he passed underneath him.
…Nothing…
Nothing happened when he should have clearly felt tendons and muscle being ripped apart by the blade in his hand. He turned around to the side see if even a scratch was made, and there it was. He drew blood, but somehow it looked like it was only a paper cut against the size of the fiend. Buddy watched as the fiend turned around again, but before it could notice him, Buddy was already backing beneath the legs and sprinting to the back it.
He wasn’t going to be able to play this game for ever. Now was the time to take care of things, so he jumped up and with dexterity he leapt his way over the hunched giant who was still searching for him. It was convenient that it bent over to search between its legs as Buddy made his way up to the head. It started to rise and from the enormous shoulders blades Buddy jumped up as high as he could into the air. Coming down, he twisted the sword in his hand and pointed it straight down towards the uplifted head of the giant. Using everything he had, he jammed it into the top of the skull only to be disappointed that ¾ of the blade was still sticking out. The damned beast roared in pain though as it raised its hands above its head. Buddy jumped from his platform to the ground as the hand crashed on top of the cranium and drove the katana deep into the brain of the giant.
Buddy landed with a thud on the ground and rolled off most of the falling damage. He brought himself to his feet as quickly as he could and turned around to find the giant swaying back and forth. Buddy blinked a few times as what had just happened registered in his mind. With that, Buddy wasn’t about to let it fall on top of him and he threw one more palm into the giant. With no resistance, the thing fell away from Buddy and onto its face dead as a doornail.
Breathing heavily, Buddy threw a slight, silent tantrum at the loss of another katana. Now he was going to have to buy another one before he set off for wherever. Getting control of himself quickly, Buddy looked around for the haughty swordsman. It might not have been as brilliant or stylish as that guy had made his, but he had done it none the less. Now where was he…?
Word Count: 2146 Rogue Bonus: 1402 Total Word Count: 5239
Even as he turned his brown-eyed gaze away from the unwavering stare of Adiona’s Guardian, Zero, he could still feel the man’s eyes burning into him for a short time after. Loathing and hate were clear in the quiet protector's expression. It was apparent that the silent and foreboding Guardian had a talent of piercing illusion, this included the knack for seeing through even Seymour’s thick mirage of compassion and sympathy. No matter, he did not break his serene composure and retained a wholly calm exterior with his custom, placate smile that remained unchanging, even with the excess build up of pressure in the small, socially awkward box. He mentally noted to scheme some method of silencing the man later on because he appeared to see too much, much more than he need. He was a hazard that needed to be dealt with swiftly and mercilessly. For now, though, he needed to focus on the blond-haired brat in front of him and the twisted clown beside him. There was now quite a deal of tension in the room, many powerful individuals clogged together in one room may not have been the best idea; however, with a practiced poise, Seymour did not lose control of himself. None the less, he needed some aid to keep everyone in check and supervised, so with a small mental surge, he summoned forth three, glowing, white orbs that passively floated around him. The orbs were roughly the size of his fist and to anyone observing them, they would have seem inactive, expect for the orbital pattern they followed when hovering around him. The posed no harm to anyone in the room and they would appear to be doing nothing but revolving around Seymour. What they actually did was act as another set of eyes, thus easing his internal strain a great deal. He was now able to supernaturally moment everything that went on in the room and no one would be wiser.
Returning his thoughts back to his current conversation, he thought outrageously. These men were unbelievable. They needed to learn that they were in HIS country. Under HIS control. The people’s love for him was overwhelming and if anything were to occur that he did not like, they would follow suit and obey his wish without delay. Understandably, both men, Kefka and Rufus, held great power in the world and they had their own powers under their command; however, they were in a completely different setting. Here, it was religion that directed everything and in terms of the Yevon religion, Seymour was a high-standing leader of its followers, practically the entire continent. Everyone followed Seymour’s words without doubt or refusal; he was almost god-like, or notably closer to Yevon than any other being on the continent was or would be. Consequently, if these men did not know this fact already, they soon would. They were on a completely different game board than any other.
A mental connection with one of his orbs kept him up-to-date with the events now going on behind him between the two Summoners and their appropriate Guardians. The atmosphere was strained and clearly, something had ensued prior to their arrival. Seymour would soon now what transpired. Anything that happened on Spira, he knew about almost immediately, it was surprising that he did not what occurred in this situation. Nevertheless, he would soon be informed so he turned back to the Vice-President calling for his attention.
The large Blitz arena had finished filling up, the machines stopped and the Water Sphere was now prepared for use. Two teams were set and ready to go. The crowds cheered for their favourite team and jeered their not so favoured one. Adiona had abruptly departed the edgy VIP box environment to go explore. However, Seymour did not pay much attention to either; he was busy decrypting Rufus Shinra’s words.
Why would he initiate small talk when just a moment go he was basically whining to speak with him as if it was utterly urgent? Had the presence of the mage, Kefka, beside them in colourful and vibrant war paint deterred him from his original plan of attack? Was he trying to suggest something about Shinra’s participation in assisting in the triumph over Sin the previous day? Was this suggestion to gain some leverage or obligation over Seymour and Spira? Or was the brat just tremendously conceited and felt it compulsory to boast? Whatever the purpose behind the blond princling’s colloquy, Seymour would play along with ever sign of innocence and he would see where this course led.
”Naturally. Of course. Forgive my discourteous comment. I just thought you might have wanted to get down to business immediately, for your own convenience; however, small talk is always pleasurable and maybe it may alleviate some tension that has accumulated since Sin’s attack. Regarding the said beast’s attack, I did, in fact, witness the horrible occurrence the previous day, at a distance. It was quite devastating, but thankfully, Spira was assisted by some brave heroes and courageous hearts, as well as the clear aid our neighbour, Midgar, sent us. I, personally, would like to thank you for the much appreciated support you gave us yesterday. May Yevon bless you.”
Seymour bowed his head with respect and produced the sign of Yevon in the air, directing it to the Vice-President. While on the outside, Seymour was collected and tranquil, on the interior, his mind swirled with desire and yearning. He deeply wished to figure out the intentions the young Vice-President had in mind for his professional visit. Regardless, deep down, Seymour knew what the Vice-President sought. Power. It was something all men and women in positions of high rank craved. It was like a drug and its subsequent horrid addiction, mental and physical alike. This young man would not be here had Spira not possessed some sort of potential use for him. Seymour knew what it was. Spira was deeply connected with a place known as the Farplane. Although, it was not the Farplane that he would be intrigued with, it was what was prominent and present all over the Farplane, Pyreflies. Pyreflies made up many things and were here in Spira, in an essence form. They could be harnessed for numerous reasons and purposes, and this was what Shinra wished to obtain. Why else would he be here?
Before Rufus had a chance to reply, screams and a disastrous commotion was audible, coming from a section in the stadium, and soon, the whole stadium. Surprisingly, Seymour was able to move swiftly from his seated position to a standing location at the window overlooking the enormous arena. This fact may come as a shock to most and it was a fact many did not know (but soon would witness), but Seymour was not as useless in combat as he may have appeared at first glance. A perfect example of why you should not assess another based on appearances. Though he was not overly robust, powerfully built and brawny, he still was proficient in many physical arts. In fact, Seymour spent a majority of his lonely childhood training in physical combat and magical prowess in hopes of becoming a dignified Summoner of Yevon; however, noticeably, that professional course did not work out. Albeit, he reached a greater status than Summoner, so he was not complaining. Still, he possessed a battle hard capability and would fight relentlessly in order to keep his image of self-sacrificing and heroic untarnished. Over the years, he has perfected his aptitude for the staff and sword, nearly unbeatable at both weapons. In regards to magic, he has matured greatly in his manipulation of it and can perform grand attacks and maneuvers with it.
As he gazed at the site below him, he saw nothing more than idle pyreflies. At first, the mere presence of the abnormal pyreflies that infected the whole stadium and the areas surrounding it did not worry many people because they did not know any better. Being knowledgeable on them and their various aspects, Seymour knew that this was going to erupt into a detrimental situation and that many would suffer. The luminous pyreflies were dormant for a moment or two, but then they began to form and shape themselves. Soon, a large, brutish looking beast, easily twenty feet or more tall, rampaged through screaming civilians. It was a horror movie unfolding before everyone’s eyes. It was more than obvious that Spira would receive no rest or leisurely and much needed relaxation at this time. Just a day after an extreme altercation with the ruinous and formidable foe, Sin, Luca was once again under attack by a new, mysterious atrocity that threatened many lives if it was not intervened.
The corrupt monster was massive in both size and muscle. It wore no clothes, except the basic loincloth. Its eyes were an intense, bloodthirsty yellow. It snarled ferociously as it commenced its rampant desolation of the stadium and the people. It crushed people to death without mercy, as it tore through the stadium. Seymour could not simply stand there, especially since he was the ‘hero’ of Spira, in a sense. The people looked to him, out of all the Maesters, for protection because he deemed himself a saviour and saint to all, at least, more so than any other Maester.
Before making a move or action, Adiona’s Guardian, Zero, had already gone off to safeguard his ward. A dark desire boiled in Seymour, hoping the man would be killed or grievously wounded in his attempts, though in all honesty, he highly doubted that such a thing would happen. Turning to face the company in the VIP box, Seymour quickly spoke. ”Excuse me, friends, and accept my apology. There is a dire situation going on below and I am needed. When I return, we may further discuss matters, if you wish.” The last phrase was mainly directed at Rufus; however, it also applied to the Court Mage, Kefka, because Seymour was deeply inclined to converse an arrangement with insane mage, as well, however their setting would have to be recluse and somewhere where no one could overhear.
Without dawdling a second longer in the box, Seymour ran from it hurriedly and without any additional delay, and escaped through the door, bursting in the fresh air that was filled with terrified shrieks and cries of pain and torment. This feat was rather phenomenal considering he was required to run in a particularly large and awkward robe. At any rate, he was able to pull it off without tripping or ripping the fabrics either. His three, radiating orbs followed closely behind him, assembled and primed to go if their master commanded them to.
Had he not been seen as a champion to the average citizens, he would have just stayed where he was, in the VIP box, comfortably and uncaring to the Spiran’s calamitous circumstance. Unfortunately, he was not as lucky and was obliged to keep his virtuous deception just that, virtuous and unstained by passivity.
He made a straightforward route through the wailing mob. Even amidst all the chaos, people still parted for him, allowing him to pass with enjoyable ease, another demonstration of their respect and admiration for him. Though, he supposed they would be willing to part for anyone eager to contest with the beast, as long as it was not them.
Regrettably, he did not carry his great staff with him – though he was uncertain of how effective it would have been on this grand monstrosity. He had not expected any encounters with any beasts today; then again, this would be a lesson on how you should be prepared for anything at all times. His staff lay undisturbed on his bed that resided on the boat he got off of at the port of Luca after making his small speech to the invigorated and excited crowds. It was disappointing, yet he still believed he could manage with his magic and his capability without much hitch. Another disadvantage of his was he adorned no armour, only intricate and impressive robes; although, they held no defensive bonuses. Hopefully, he would not get hit too much, or else he would certainly be in a painful condition and he would have no one to blame but himself and his interesting fashion sense.
The beast was not hard to find, even at ground level. It was easily perceptible bearing in mind its fearsome size. The giant creature held a dead man’s body in its hands and was proceeding to strike people down with it. It was a fairly crude method of strategy, but he presumed the giant beast was not expecting much of a threat or challenge today. Still, the thought of a possible loved one’s body being used to crush others was rather morbid and surely after this disturbance was dealt with appropriately, there may be quite a number of traumatised innocents that would need to go through some sort of recovery program – or else they might end up insane, like him. This was no real concern to Seymour, at least, internally. Externally, he would show deep pity and sadness for those guiltless people that sustained injuries and mental anguish because of this happening, but he truthfully would not care.
With every step towards the creature he took, his infamous, three-pronged hair bounded with it. His brown eyes were glaring at the beast and scanning the area as his mind calculated a plan. He wondered what resources he had on hand and what would be the most useful. In this setting, his major reliance would be on the Water Sphere that was filled to the brim with pure water, ready for operation. Considering his main spell affinity was water, this reserve of water would be most valuable and advantageous. His affiliation with water was almost natural. It was just like him: deceitful. When you travel out onto the waters, they have the stunning ability to look tranquil and not dangerous, even appealing; however, that could all flip in an instant and water may become a raging storm of epic portions. Besides that fact, water was extremely beneficial and it possessed a hidden strength because very many doubted its true potential, when in reality, it is exceptionally mighty, formidable and hard to defend against.
Around the beast, everyone had scattered and was running off in all different directions. The beast looked almost hesitant, as if he did not know where to go, but eventually, it made up its mind and decided to kill everything around it. Beneath it, there lay countless, decimated, dead bodies. Seymour acted disgusted by the massacre, but in his heart, he did not care one bit for those slain. None the less, he had to act valiantly and save the day. Many people had stopped running to witness what would occur between Seymour and the beast. Of course, they were at a safe enough distance so they would not succumb to a violent death, similar to the others. This was the ultimate showdown for some of them: Maester verse Monster. This was his single-handed chance to destroy all thoughts others had about him that were negative. If he could prove himself, here, in battle, he would win the Spiran’s love and it would never, ever wane.
A simple mental gesture was all it took to launch his orbs into attack mode. The three of them went in various at the beast, in attempts to confuse it. It had worked. It would appear that this beast’s intelligence was not as up to standard as his muscle power. It was almost amusing to watch it trying to swipe away the orbs. Much to its chagrin, they were quite faster than it, and though what it possessed in strength, it lacked in intellect and speed. The white globes did their job well. They provided an excellent distraction, permitting Seymour some time to accomplish what he wanted. Reaching, with spirit, inside the Water Sphere that was only ten feet or so from him, he took control of the water within it. He could feel his ethereal grasp on the water, though he did not have control of all of it – because he was not that strong... yet –, he still had a fairly moderate portion under his command now. Effortlessly, he began to filter the water controlled by his will out of the large ball. Once complete, he now had a relatively large (probably, a ball of swirling water half the size of one of the Giga Knuckles) ready and set for assault in his control.
When he looked back at the beast, it started to become enraged by the irritating little orbs that assailed it persistently and without tire. It roared now and then out of frustration and smashed the stadium around it to bits and pieces. After this fiasco, there would definitely be a great deal of repairs necessary before the Blitzball season could continue. Despite this fact, no one else had been killed by the beast since Seymour started his attack. Fully distracted, the witless beast did not even comprehend the upcoming threat Seymour posed with his churning ball of clear water. A vicious, internal smile beamed inside. He had to be careful because he could not let people see how much he enjoyed this or he could be mistaken as sadistic and cruel.
Out of his globe of water, three tendrils burst forth and charged at the unknowing troll-like annoyance. At the ends of the tendrils, they formed sharp points and upon impacted, they would do a serious amount of damage. The stemming water streams sped rapidly towards the creature, yet it remained none the wiser. Colliding with the giant form, the water bore deep into the creature and sent it flying back quite a few feet. Blood oozed from where his water spikes had stabbed. A hidden, inhuman smile bore on his dark soul, though it could not be seen by the world, thankfully. The beast had been dazed and was grunting in pain. It was looking around for the source of its agony and its yellow eyes soon found the single man, standing up to it. The man wore elegant and immaculate clothes (which Seymour hoped would stay that way), and had peculiar, blue hair that formed three-prongs, which would seem, defied gravity. Rage was still visible in its features and it only increased as the massive beast bull rushed Seymour.
This was too easy. It reminded him of his fight against a fiend in the Baaj Temple against a hostile, swift creature; however, unlike it, this new creature did not have its speed. As it ran at Seymour, it splashed up water beneath its feet. An idea came to mind and with simple mana manipulation, Seymour was able to create hand-like vines that was formed from the ground beneath it. As the beast got closer and closer, Seymour stayed unfazed by its wild rampage towards him. Many people in the crowds gasped and looked away in fear for their Maester. It was amusing, but he did not show it and remained completely composed and placid.
At the last moment possible, with an easy command, the hands of water shot out towards the beast and grappled it to the ground. Seymour knew it would not hold him for long, so he needed to work fast. With the leftover water, he conjured it to form an airless bubble around the creature, trying to suffocate it. As it lay, it lashed out aggressively, trying to fight off inevitable death. What Seymour did not expect at the time was for the creature to lose its arm from his hold and when it did, he backhanded him and sent Seymour flying a dozen feet or so across the stadium. His concentration on the water encasing its head broke for a moment, but even from a seated position on the ground, Seymour was able to regain restrain over his water and continued to drown the immense creature.
After several moments, the creature struggled no more and death overcame it. Once only water filled its lungs, the water dissipated from its head. Seymour breathed heavily because he experienced some chest trauma from the blow he received from the monster. Nevertheless, once he was sure the threat was all gone. He settled himself and faced the majority of the crowd around him. Instantaneously, the crowd began to chant his name and cheer. He now gained their devote love and he knew this; however, did not show this victory outwardly. Instead, he smiled graciously and beckoned the crowd to cease so he could speak.
”Everyone, please, I thank you greatly for the appreciation you show me. However, I must be the one to announce that today’s Blitzball match will be cancelled, but rescheduled for another day. The stadium has sustained considerable damage. Do not fret, though, repairs will begin immediately and the season premier will happen again shortly. I thank you for your cooperation and may Yevon be with you on this day. Once again, we have survived an attack, showing the sources of evil that we are not to be crushed so easily. Remember, with Yevon and unwavering faith, we may overcome anything!”
His speech was short and frankly, cheesy. Though that did not matter because the crowd still sang his name as he made his way back to the VIP box. It was one of the only places that did not receive damage and inside it, there was still a pack of wolves to handle. It was humorous in a sense because when he mentioned “unwavering faith,” he meant it in terms of the people remaining loyal to him alone. However, no one would be able to discern his true intentions or meaning behind his words. Which was even more funny.
The fact that the dead still remained in the stadium was insignificant. He would be sure to bless each one’s passing and promote his compassion later on in the day. For the moment, he still had business to deal with.
After he made his way through the exiting crowd that still praised his name, he entered the VIP box with his typical smile as he looked to the company. They still possessed their wolfish features, specifically Rufus; however, he had just shown them his control and whether they took the cue or not, they were in HIS domain.
Turning to face Rufus, he asked, ”Now that the festivities have sadly been interrupted, would you like to continue our conversation elsewhere, more privately?” His brown eyes briefly fell on the Court Mage and when that happened, he sent a silent message to the Mage saying, We need to talk. Although the flash in his eye was brief, he was sure the Mage got it. His glance returned to the spoiled, young man that tried to prey on Seymour, though now the tables have turned. Seymour’s control and power in this land was displayed and obvious for everyone to see, regardless it was only meant to kind of challenge the Vice-President of Shinra and to make him acknowledge that he is not the higher power on this continent, Seymour is.
Boss Word Count: 2205
Word Count: 3929 XP Count: 392.9
Total Word Count: 6591 Total XP Count: 659.1
Last Edit: Jan 21, 2010 21:41:05 GMT by Seymour Guado
Post by Lady Summoner Adiona Duer on Jan 23, 2010 15:55:39 GMT
Still on the ground Adiona watched Zero leave and then Buddy following after him, the threat to Luca was for now gone but it wouldn't be long before it started up again. Getting to her feet Adiona looked around at the crowd that had gathered, she brushed herself down before walking over to the crowd. Forcing a smile on her face she bowed making the sign of Yevon, they all looked so scared and worried....is this the true face of Sin's power to strike fear into Spira. Her heart went out to those this had affected which was just about everyone, Adiona wondered how Seymour had dealt with this. He was a Maester surely he would have handled to better than she had, almost ashamed now this brought back memories of Besaid when Zero had pushed her to the ground out of the way of a net. Anger boiled under the surface as well as the feeling she was useless and only good for one thing, only she could obtain the aeons was that all they needed her for? Shaking her head Adiona had to focus on the task at hand.
"Please...citizen's of Luca do not be alarmed the threat has been dealt with, please stay calm at this time. If you have lost anyone I shall do the sending for you."
What else could Adiona do she wasn't sure if there were more of these things, all she could do now was protect those here in case any more showed up.
Rufus listened to Seymour carefully. Yes, that was it! The clear aid of their neighbor, Midgar! It felt as if Seymour was underselling it a bit, making it sound as if Rufus had just walk across the street to loan him a cup of sugar or something, rather than load up and ship out to the far side of the planet to fight off a world-crushing beast. Nonetheless, Seymour had acknowledged Midgar's influence on the battle.
This was more for the benefit of Kefka, than anything. He wanted to make sure Kefka understood that, even though Midgar was at war, they still had power to spare, and by getting a third party, Seymour, to confirm it so readily... well, surely Kefka would be having second thoughts about revealing Midgar's secrets now. Now, though Rufus was still uneasy, he was a bit more confident in saying his piece in front of the mage.
Before Rufus could begin, however, the stadium fell under attack. Seymour stood and excused himself, before dashing out the door and down the VIP box stairs. Rufus sighed and stood, climbing over the seats in front of him, completely ignoring the mage and the demon summoner still in the box, and instead looking out, over the edge, and out unto the stadium below. Rufus watched as the fight occurred below, watching Seymour, watching the beast. It seemed that the fight was won before it began. But not without repercussions. And from the sounds of the screaming, there was fighting elsewhere in the city as well.
Rufus reached into his pocket, bringing forth his cell phone. He glanced briefly at the glassy screen; he didn't really expect there to be any change. After all, this entire continent was one large anti-technology bubble, it was unsurprising that he would have no signal here. However, due to the wonders of Shin-Ra, and Materia based components and links in the wiring of his phone and the phones of a few other select individuals, there were a few numbers that were always available to him.
He sighed again, and dialed, bringing the sleek tool to his face. He had left his guards in the lobby of the stadium, as they were not VIPs, they could not enter the box. Not that Seymour needed them, the knuckle dragging monster was as good as dead. But Rufus always thought ahead, and he figured he could score some bonus points with the Spirans if Shin-Ra were to help with the repairs to the city.
The problem was, Rufus hadn't thought to bring a construction crew with him; the battleship he came on had limited room for personnel. The only men he could spare were his own guards, waiting in the lobby. No matter, Rufus didn't need bodyguards, he had his shotgun, and, if need be, he could make do without that even. He had plenty of physical strength. After all, he was more than capable of carrying his heavy gun in a single hand with ease, and fire it without fear of recoil or backlash. If that weren't a sign of strength, Rufus didn't know what was. After barking orders at his men for a moment, he snapped the phone shut and reclaimed his seat behind the colorful magician.
He leaned back and relaxed, listening to Seymour's words as they echoed up into the VIP box. Rufus made a mental note; It seemed that Seymour was setting himself up to lead the country, petitioning to become leader. Rufus vaguely wondered what Maester Kinoc and Maester Kelk Ronso had to say about this, but it made no difference, it seemed that the citizens had already made their voices heard, and as far as Rufus knew, Spira was a theological democracy. It seemed he made a wise decision when he decided to speak to Seymour about this matter then, if Seymour was soon to rule here. It did make some sense, Grand Measter Mika was old after all, and he couldn't live forever... Although, now that Rufus thought about it, he couldn't remember hearing of Spira EVER being led by anyone other than Mika... just how old was the Grand Measter?
Rufus shrugged these thoughts off as Seymour re-entered the box. Rufus smirked as he saw the cocky grin upon Seymour's face. It seemed all the fandom was making the half-breed a bit arrogant. If only Seymour knew what Rufus had cooking back home. He wasn't the only one about to become the ruler of his respective country! The Guado Maester greeted him again and offered to take the conversation to a more private locale.
Rufus noticed as the brown eyes shifted toward Kefka for just a fraction of a second. Did Seymour not trust the clown either? Well, if that were the case, Rufus would jump on the opportunity to leave. "Yes, Maester, I believe that to be wise." Rufus got to his feet once more, "I have also taken the liberty to have my men stay here and help clear the debris. And, I must say, this whole affair seems to prove what it was that I was going to discuss with you... but we can discuss that elsewhere."
Word count 887 Thread Total 4016
Power Activated: Shinra's Authority- In three turns a squad of Shin-Ra guards will appear to fight (or in this case do manual labor) on Rufus' behalf.
OOC: Ok threads dragged on long enough. I'm allowing people to exit at this point, but Kefka and co can still make their posts.
All in battles: + 1 free magic spell/ Combat ability/upgrade
With shinra's men working to get rid of some of the debris the last match went on. This year suprisingly the aurocs came out on top. Led by their captian, Wakka and a mysterious new player. However their victory was overshadowed by the attack on the stadium. Summoner Adiona and her gaurdians would move on, heading to the Djose Highroads to obtain the next Aeon. However things were still left to do for those here on a political agenda.
As people began to leave, there were two men who remained in their seats. One with red hair a long white coat and a cigarette in his mouth. The other, a rather unassuming man. Fair hair, glasses, a grey long coat and a scarf. Nothing that stuck out about him at all. The man with the red hair looked over at the other.
" You sure it was such a good idea to summon them right in the middle of the game?".
The other man looked over. " Had to do something to cover up the noise of that ghastly explosion over at the labs....". Crimson looked slightly shocked. " There was an explosion?". The other man grinned. " See...even you didn't know....". Crimson spat on the ground. " Remnants?". The other man nodded.
" That and....him....he's getting closer to the truth.....however...it doesn't matter.....take a look over there...summoner Adiona is leaving....3000 gil says Seymour is her guardian by the end of the night".
Crimson sat back and closed his eyes.
" Told ya....I don't gamble anymore....least not with you M....".
Seymour listened intently to the blond-haired conspirator. What did he have in mind? What was he seeking? These questions remained the prominent ones in his mind; none the less, he would soon know the answer. Seymour changed his expression to a more appreciative one when Rufus talked of calling in for some assistance to help remove debris and such. In a indebted tone, Seymour said, ”Thank you, Rufus. I and Spira are very grateful for all the support you have given us recently.”
He turned away to observe the crowds and the stadium around them. He knew that he should be out there, consoling those that lost those dearest to them and to treat the general shock of the mass. He would have to make a rain check on Rufus’ and his meeting. Rotating to face Rufus once again, he said, ”I am very sorry, Rufus, but I am going to have to meet with you another time. These citizens need some comforting and hopefully, I can provide some. May we set up another meeting? I do not wish to keep you waiting any longer than you already have. How about we say tomorrow afternoon?”
He waited for the other’s response and then he would go about, soothing those in need. Secretly gaining more devotion from the people, as well. It was a win-win situation.
It seemed like Kefka had gotten his wish after all. Within the depths and throes of his boredom, some all-powerful moron in the sky had granted his request and sent down a few fiends to spice up the horrendously dull event with a little dash of death and destruction, Kefka's favorite.
At first, after he had pulled up into the chair next to Seymour, things were a bit strained, and the political jargon that both the Guado mongrel and the Shinra twerp were bandying about was simply unbearable. Kefka hated people like this the most, men who tried intimidation through rank and "threatening" promises which, to the man who slaughtered entire villages of innocents, most cases by his own hands, were quite empty and lacking in substance. Let their puffed up egoes believe that they held the cards in this particular game. Without the stones to back up their talk, such prissy bureaucrats were little more than whiney prima-donas trying to inflate their own sense of self-importance by addressing a literal unknown, as Kefka was apparently, with veiled threats.
The Court Mage knew that he had the guts to prove his haughty demeanor. Doma was case enough for this point. A whole castle of soldiers, wiped off the face of Gaia with brutal efficiency, and he did so all by himself. There was no chain of command that dotted the lines between his order, channelling it through multiple officials, then to the heads of the army, and finally landing on the shoulders of a troop who poisoned that river. No, it was all him. Jar, open, pour, dead civilians. And he didn't even lose sleep over it. That was how one proved his worth. Not by being born into the priveledge of leadership and riches or by pandering to the brainless populace through flowery words and pretty speeches. But by showing them that if they don't follow orders, they would end up deader than a doornail by the hands of their own leader. Kefka had formed this all-perfect image of him for the many years since his great epiphany, molding himself into the perfect killing machine which could inspire and drive other little killing machines to more blood and carnage, all in the name of the Empire. He made those under his command fear him, yet he felt no fear himself. He was practically immune to the feeling. When his whole battalion would be surrounded by Returner forces, he wouldn't run away with his tail between his legs like a snivelling coward all the way back to Vector. He would laugh and hoot and order a mass rush on the enemy ranks. He didn't care if ten of his men fell for every one of the enemy's. Such losses would only spur him to a greater frenzy. He took the blood spilt, and seemingly absorbed it into himself, the euphoria of chaos, the mindless power of anarchy, and lash back stronger and stronger, until the enemy would be the ones who are fleeing, back into their holes, too scarred and terrified to crawl out and face him again for a good long time.
This was the terrible beauty that was Kefka Palazzo. He didn't operate like a normal human being, not anymore. He had remade himself, recasted the mold to perfect an outdated model of the human psyche, and took his masterpiece to heart. He operated by no rules, and therefore had no fear when the rules went wrong. He gave up on emotions he long ago ruled as insipid and irrelevent, and instead focused on a select few that more heightened his prowess with chaos: hate and bloody joy. He burned anything he didn't like within the flames of his hatred and enjoyed the inferno while it sapped the village, the person, the idea of everything that had made it what it was, turning it instead into a smoking, blackened husk, and thus made it easier to deal with.
While the flames ate up everything, Kefka would always be a god among insects.
It was at this time that the guardian of the witch summoner, the morose swordsman with the katana and bladed gauntlet, commented in a cold, deep voice about the Court Mage's recent victory at Doma, calling it a stroke of tactical genius, and that what had transpired, the brutal killing of every living man, woman, and child in that castle, was as it should be, and left after his charge before Kefka could say anything back to him. In all honesty, Kefka didn't think of it as a stroke of tactical genius at all. What he did was simple enough; he wanted to get into the castle quickly, but the fool General Cristophe was bogging down everything with peace talks, and the warriors outlasting and besting the Empire's Magitech Knights with little trouble was simply the last straw. Kefka merely saw a glaring weakness that Doma possessed, the riverway, and exploited it. The deaths of hundreds, possibly thousands, of people was icing on the cake for him.
But, Kefka shrugged, I may as well accept the compliment for what it is. After all, the more buffoons that didn't get in his way, the easier time he would have getting around to his other plan. The Court Mage then turned back to his previous point of interest, and saw with some dismay that it was still going on as political clap-trap and muscle flexing. These peacocks were preening themselves in front of each other so much that Kefka was getting blinded by the light shining off their feathers. Honestly, was there no limit to how great their egos could get? The mage allowed a sigh to escape from his closed teeth in a quiet hiss at the spectacle, and even bit back a scoff as both of them, at one time or another, quite obviously threw a scantily-disguised threat his way. Pompousness aside, these three powers were practically equal in power and influence, and even though Seymour had promised Rufus, though maybe not actually said so, that Spira would have alliance-friendly thoughts toward Midgar, politicians were generally regarded as having a creed of "saying one thing and doing another". And Seymour, having already been diagnosed as a deciever by the insane mage, almost certainly had a plan for this kind of scheme.
It was at this time that the fiends attacked, and Kefka was so surprised and excited that he leaned out to the corner of his seat and began to giggle like a little schoolboy at the huge hulks decimating everything in sight. Seymour rushed out immediately to deal with the threat, and had done so quite spectacularly, the mage added metally to himself. Kefka would have helped, but... gosh, he was having so much fun simply watching that he never thought to get out of his seat to join in the fight. He mused quietly that it really took a good, boring game of Blitzball to truly enjoy the little things in life when they came.
After the fiend battle, which had ended all-too-quickly for Kefka's tastes, Seymour returned, a bit flushed from the excitement, and a grin on his face. The mage shrugged at the mongrel's eagerness, dismissing it as mere enthusiasm, and listened to him ward off the Shinra brat's attempts at further political manipulation. But right during that, Kefka caught the Guado Maester flashed him in a split second, telling him that they needed to speak. Kefka allowed a yellowed grin to spread across his face, and nodded once, discreetly pointing a red-clawed hand to the corridor leading outside the box. With that, the Court Mage of the Gestahlian Empire gathered up his robes, swept back his red cape behind his straightened shoulders, and marched right out, being sure to roughly but discreetly push aside the little Lucavi Summoner whelp before he could notice. He walked a little ways down the corridor, the Spirans who saw him giving him queer looks but otherwise leaving him to his own business. Before too long, the coloful mage turned into the shadows of an alcove, and waited for the Guado Maester to rid himself of that spoiled parasite and come out to meet him.
Rufus stood there for a moment, Smiling in recognition of Seymour's thanks, and nodding as he heard Seymour's words. "Tomorrow afternoon?" He heaved a mental sigh. He would have hoped to be on the ship home by this time tomorrow. Oh well, it wasn't as if he was all that anxious to get back to the paper work in his office anyway. "Very well, I look forward to it." As far as Rufus could tell from Seymour's demeanor, the fiend attacks were a regular occurance. Which fit into Rufus' proposal perfectly. "Ah, but where and when should we meet?" Rufus looked around the room, eying the remaining shady figures. "...on second thought, perhaps it would be best to simply send a summons for me when you are ready for me. I would hate for any of these eaves-droppers to interupt our meeting, would you not agree?"
Word Count 160 Total 4176
OoC: Right, well I don't know exactly what Seymour is planning... on the one hand, this thread seems to have reached a logical conclusion and it almost feels like we're beating a dead horse. On the other hand, my proposal should be short and sweet, hardly worthy of a whole thread of its own (unless the admins decide to mix things up on us). So I guess I'll leave it to Seymour to decide. Should we bog down this thread more, or make another super-short thread?
This "proposal," it would seem, was becoming more and more of interest to Seymour. What was it that Shinra wished to keep hidden from the others? Although, it is understandable that some matters should remain private and unheard by wary ears. Thus, with a simple nod, Seymour said, "Very well, I shall summon you. Look for a messenger this evening. He shall have the information of a more private location and time. Until then, I bid you a good farewell and may Yevon bless you." Graciously bowing his head, he respectfully made the sign of Yevon for Rufus.
Turning away to face the VIP entrance, Seymour left and followed the silent indication the clown-like, mad mage, Kefka, gave him. He would have them walked to a more seclude area before any in-depth discussion took place, naturally. Regardless, he hoped to achieve something great with the dark, Gestahlian figure head. A deal, perhaps? None the less, he would see how it would play out.
Word Count: 173 XP Count: 17.3
Total Word Count: 7007 Total XP Count: 700.7
[Seymour leaves the thread.]
[OOC] In my opinion, we should end the thread here. It will give people the chance to cash in their XP points from this thread. Also, I was just going to start a new thread with Kefka alone after this anyway and then 'tomorrow,' I was going to start one with Rufus. I don't mind if it is short. I am a-okay with it.
Rufus nodded and stepped aside, allowing the Clown and the Measter to pass. He glanced around the nearly-empty box again. The demon, the traveller, and the mage were all that remained, and all of them seemed to be unmoving. Perhaps they were in shock of the day's events. The traveller seemed to be feigning sleep again and the other two sat near each other at the far end of the box. Rufus shook his head and left, walking down the now empty hallways back to the lobby.
As Rufus passed, he wondered vaguely which of these doors Kefka and Seymour entered to dicuss their little nefarious plots. It was no concern of Rufus' however. Kefka was third or fourth in the chain of command of his country, while Rufus was soon to be the head of his own. Rufus and Seymour both, it seemed, judging from how the citizenry treated him. But Kefka had no real authority in Ghestral. Rufus would have been more worried if it were Hojo meeting with Seymour. Rufus chuckled at the thought and walked on. Kefka would undoubtedly try something to overthrow the emporor sooner or later, for that was the nature of all people with ambition, but until he did so, he wasn't anything to panic over.
And besides, Rufus' proposal was undoubtedly a lot more logical and would be of great benefit to both countries. There was next to no chance that they couldn't come to some sort of agreement. Not unless Seymour didn't truly want to help Spira prosper. That was a rediculous thought though. What would a leader be without his mindless peons?
With this in mind, he gave another chuckle and entered the lobby to find his men hard at work gathering debris and bits of sheet rock and hualing it away. The stadium was a mess, and yet somehow it retained its splendor. Rufus stood admiring the view for a moment before continuing out to the docks and onto his ship. It was easy to spot, it was the only metal cannon-laden battle ship in the small port. The rest of the vessels were small wooden and equiped with nothing but harpoons. It was humorous to compare Shin-Ra's best naval vessel to the dinky fishing boats that lined the docks. And with yet another chuckle Rufus went below deck to await the arrival of his message, in a rather good mood, at that.
[Rufus exit]
word count 414 Total 4590
OoC: Sorry, I was 9 exp shy from an upgrade I wanted, so I slipped in one last post. Hope nobody minds. XD
OOC: Well actually i never left so i'll just make a leaving post. Wow i really did miss a lot here >_>
Sonzai got up form his seat; not having cared a world about what had just taken place in here. The reason for such was because everybody else had already sprung into action as soon as the monsters had appeared.
not seeing that the ones around would need him, the warriors all looked strong and Sonzai felt a little selfish and moved to a more calm area while everything went on and he finished watching the blitzball game.
The game ended. Sonzai got up from his seat and walked out of the stadium, happy that he watched a game of Blitzball.
---------------------------------------------------------- wc:100 Total 400.
" You sure it was such a good idea to summon them right in the middle of the game?".