Oddness in a foreign Land

Mizu walked silently along a dirt path, heading towards the large steel gates of Chateu` Defron. This was her first time the young woman had been away from Kanto. She made her way silently as her blue dress swayed with the slight breeze that passed through the streets. She walked quietly past the large market and through the crowds of people. The heat around her was tolerable due to the constant flow of a thin layer of water dancing through her hair.

The woman relaxed a bit as she made her way into a small tavern. She smiled softly at the bartender. "Glass of water, please." she spoke calmly before the bartender returned the smile and gave her a glass of water. Something about the town was odd yet new, she didn't mind it. She loved to travel but not until recently had she left Kanto. She would have to thank Gil for the opportunity soon.

Viral paced down the long pathways of Chateu' Defron, he had just reported on his visit to Arnamaeus City, and had received a larger pay then usual. He planned on spending that bonus drinking away the pain of the injurys he contacted in Armetisia. As he walked into the tavern he pulled his bookbag close, looking up from his adjustments he noticed a foreign woman posted at the counter.

He made sure to keep a wide birth, his usual black orb trailing at his heels, weaving in and around the feet of the common folk. He sat about 3 seats away from the foreigner, unfortunately no-one had taken them, maybe that was her doing, or it was just his own bad luck. He made sure to keep her just inside his periferal vision as he spoke clearly to the tavern keeper. "Put that water on my bill, and I'll get a whisky, one sixth water."

Douglas walked along the path towards the Tavern. It has been about three weeks sence the tragedy of his ohme village. He noticed some people looking at him a bit, as if he was strange. Well, he kinda was. He was all one color, brown. although different chades, it was just brown. If he stood against the tree trunk at night you could barely see him. He shrugged off the stares and walked inside the tavern, hoping to get some study done in pease. As he walked inside, he stood at the entrance for just a moment. A few commoners, a strange man, and a strange woman. Apparently some people weren't from here, but he didn't mind.

He took his seat at a booth a few feet away from the strange woman and man. He picked up the large book and put it on the table. It made a bit of a noise, but some people didn't seem to care. He started to leaf through the pages off to where he was studying last. He smiled as he found the page and started to read. Chapter Four: Rock Arms, the close up combative spell.

The woman glanced over at the man that had taken the bill for her drink and slightly blinked. She was so used to paying things herself that she didn't truly know how to respond. So, Mizu merely smiled as a thanks before going back to drinking her water. The woman then heard someone enter the room, letting her eyes wonder before spotting a man with his nose stuck in a book. He was a tanned fellow and seemed to ignore the glances of the people around him. The woman nearly smiled as she then finished her glass, only to get it refilled. Her metallic gray eyes shined lightly as she looked around he tavern.

The place seemed to be relatively busy. People moved up and down the stairs. She looked around the faintly decorated room. She relaxed a bit as she felt the calmness of the still room. Slowly the woman stood as she walked toward a few seats which looked like a seating area to just relax. She glanced over at the two men that had come in with a slight curiosity and giggled under her breath.

Viral was served his drink, downing it in about thirty seconds, followed by the next, and the next. He looked around once more before standing, the black orb that followed him suddenly spinning around him at an amazing speed, almost hitting a few people in the head. He raised his hand, the orb moving to it and placing itself lightly into his grasp.

He looked once more at the female and said in a shy, almost un-noticable voice. "Viral Xerasu, Pleasure to meet you." Then continuing to pace out of the tavern, entering into night. He looked around, taking note of all those around him before he continued his movements, walking to the crossroads and talking with the guards. Whispering to them so that no-one could hear the conversation.

Douglas studied the spell as fast as he could, trying ot get its grasp. He raised his arm just a little bit ot his eye level and whispered quietly, "Rock Arm." It seemed that pebbles from the floor from boots came up and went around his arm, but quickly dropped when a orb was spinning around the room. He quickly ducked his head, trying to avoid its impact. After the man put his orb away, he sat up straight again and looked at the man, thinknig quietly to himself rude thoughts. He then returned his attention back to the book.

As he read, his mind flashed with the memory of him and his father in the fields together, learning the spells. He was always there to guide him through the spells, now there was no one to do that. He was alone now. He snapped out of him memory and continued to read, and think at the same time. The war, plans to try to stop it, and even about the planet itself. He wondered what histories weren't recorded, but he pushed it aside. It's impossible ot go back in time. I'll see what i can learn from recorded history first. He closed his book with a heafty sigh and looked around the tavern with his brown and green eyes.

The woman watched as the young man walked toward her. As he introduced himself, the woman only blinked. He had to be joking. ~'How can this kid be the ambassador.. He's bluffing. No way is he Viral Xerasu. Oh well.. Guess I can play along..'~ The young woman thought before the man walked out the door. She could only blink before shrugging and returning to her glass, asking the bartender for a refill.

As she waited on her refill, the woman's eyes roamed once more. She glanced at the man who had walked in moments after the one that claimed he was Viral Xerasu. She noticed a few speckles of dust, pebbles and minor rocks moving below the man's feet. Was he practicing earth magic? That would be the only reason why earth would be moving around him. Slowly the woman stood, placing her money for the glass of water on the bar counter before walking over to the other man.

"Mind if I join you, sir?" The woman asked in a soft, friendly tone. With some luck she could get to know the man and possibly gain an ally. The more she had the more likely she'd be able to get Gil to leave her be from time to time, not to mention have eyes on the outside for the sake of her revenge.

Viral looked back to the tavern, then continuing to pace to the building across it. The city guards that he was speaking to then pacing into the tavern. The guards kept their hands on their own swords as they looked around the room. Then pacing up to the two newcomers, the one on the left, appearing to be the C-O (commanding officer) spoke briskly to the two.

"Sorry to trouble you, but we need to see your traveling passes please. Its just orders." The guard motioned to them, placing his hand out in a -give it here- motion.

All the while Viral had a clear view of the tavern, and the events ensuing inside it. Making sure that nothing -unsavory- were to happen in the city, without his knowledge that is.

douglas read on after the man left the tavern. A voice was towards him and he looked towards it. It was the strange woman sitting next to that man that entered before him. He smiled a bit and said, "Sure, I don't mind." He closed his book to make some arm room for her. He set his arms ontop of the large book and looked at her. "How may I help you?"

Just then the guards came in. He then frowned slightly and said, "Last time I was at a town, they said I didn't need it because I was a scholar. Do I still need to show you mine? If not, this lady is my guest, we study together."

The female smiled softly as she took a seat quietly. She relaxed a bit as she sipped from her glass, looking over the man's book but then around the tavern. That was until the man asked her as of her reasoning for sitting near him. A soft and kind smile came over her lips as she looked at the man. "I just prefer to sit with someone rather than creeps coming up to me rudely." She said in a calm voice until the guards approached herself and the man.

"Like this." She said to the man she just met before looking up at the guards. She smiled at him lightly before looking over at the guards. As the man said that she and him studied together, she inched closer to the scholarly man. "Indeed we do, good sir."

The guards looked at eachother before looking back to the two sitting at the table. "I Don't see why we would need to get a visa from scholars, sorry to bother you two, have a good night." The guards traded questioning looks once more before stepping out of the tavern, and over to Viral. "They are scholars, travelling together sir. We have no reason to question them further. Now, do you have any other suspicions you would like us to check out?"

Viral gave a dirty look to the CO after his comment, waving his hand dismissively. "Thats fine, now I suggest you get back to your post before a hoodlum has a chance to steal a tomato, or whatever it is you two stop from happening." He turned, walking away from the group of soldiers and back towards the tavern. Taking a hood and cape trinket out of his locked box.

A small trail of dark energy travels around him, converting the magical trinket into a solid item, already worn over his usual attire, then dissapearing before he entered the tavern. His black orb trailed, silently around the heels of the people, trying to stay hidden from sight as that and his face were the only obvious things to give him away. Viral posted himself at the counter once again, andordered one last glass of whisky, this time without water.

As the guards left he let out a small chuckle. "Well, that was a bit of a situation. Do you need any information? Usually people don't seak to me unless they want information about something." While he said that, a waitress brought him a drink he ordered. He took a sip of it, looking at the girl waiting for an answer.

He didn't know why, but the woman reminded himself of Yuna, his former lover. He knows it's not her, because her corpse was incenerated with fire. He sighed sadly in his mind and kept smiling at the lady waiting for her responce.

The woman softly laughed as the guards left from sight, her attention then returning to the man that she just met. "How about a name? Your name. Mind telling me what it is?" She said with a calm tone. It was nice to have a relaxing conversation with someone rather than worrying about being attacked or worrying about a village.
"My name is Aqua. It's nice to meet you." The woman said. It was a lie but he didn't know that. It would be some time from now that she would reveal her real name, but for now, Aqua wasn't a lie really. Her name and Aqua both meant water after all.

Viral sat there and sipped at his drink every once and again, the amber liquid burning as it flowed down his throat. He sat patiently, listening to the two converse, it was obvious now that they did not come into town together, nor did they know eachother in the former. The fact that the had lied about their presence in town to the city guard was enough to get them in the local hold, 'but' , -he grinned lightly under the shadow of his cloak- . If they needed to lie about their presence in Chateu' Defron, there must be a reason why they did such. Viral yearned to find out this reason, and either report it, or perhaps assist in it. He was, after all, an ambassador for the people, so why not help out some foreigners?

Just as his thoughts seized themselfs, he head the woman speak her name, and took out a notepad, scribbling her name on it. 'What an odd name' He thought to himself, then putting the notepad down nd taking another painstaking drink of his whisky. Then whispering to himself, so that no-one could hear him: "So whats your name now scholar?" almost proding the question out of the thin air.

He looked at her as she spoke, listening to her intently. Once she told him his name, he smiled. "Aqua, not a name you come aorund to that often. Water. Heh. Well, my name Isn't very well known, but my last name was a tiny bit popular about two or three weeks ago. My name is Douglas Jaliji." He picked up another book out of his bag and set it on the table. "Im a scholar thats studying history. When i told the guard i was a scholar, I wasn't lying about myself, but I'm not to sure how long that will protect you."

His last name was only very little known, as his father was a great earth mage and a well known scholar as well. People talked about how Jake Jaliji died in the village raid two or three weeks ago. He tapped the book he just took out with his left hand and sipped his drink with the right. Something was off, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He shrugged off the feeling and put his drink down and waited for a reply.

"Ah... So you're a Jaliji.. I'm sorry for what had happened to Jake Jaliji. Such a tragedy for a man of such power and knowledge." The woman said in a sincere voice. Her eyes also showed her grievance for what had occurred for the Jaliji family. The woman didn't quite understand how things like such could happen to such people. Her family was also killed in a raid, due to being supporters of the king back when he had no true and complete power. The woman let out a soft sigh.

"I lost all of my family many years ago. Now I come to call the people of Kanto my family. I am not the water priestess of that land. Also, don't worry about the guards here. I technically didn't lie. We are studying together this very moment, are we not? Learning of each other. I never stated I was a scholar. I never told them any information." The woman said with a soft smile. Her eyes glowing with a slight excitement. She was not one to let herself get in trouble when dealing with guards, because she told the very minimum and twisted her own her other people's words so that she was completely truthful at all times.

The man walked into the area, sweating abit from the heat as he sighed in relief. The air here was cooler than the outside sun. Once he sat down in the nearest chair, he overheard the lady in blue talk about her family. Although trying to resist entering conversations that don't include him. He simply stares nonchalantly at the group as he reached into his jacket to take out a small white potion bottle, taking a sip to regulate his body's natural temperature from the heat. ~'What an interesting little group they have over there. I best not interrupt them. Although, that woman seems familiar; like i've seen her before.'~

Curious he is, the man's eyes dimmed into a dark green as he searched her vitals and body to make sure she was healthy. A simple habit gained from his medical work, the man noticed her core body temperature was higher than normal. He hesitated on interrupting their conversation, so he stood up slowly as his eyes turned back to normal. The man walked towards the group and sat beside her, with a warm smile. "Excuse me ma'am, but I seem to have noticed that you aren't from this area." The man took the white potion bottle and offered it to her. "This potion will keep your body temperature cool in this heat wave we're having."

Viral cringed, hearing another voice join in on their conversation, he could differentiate between two or three voices, but any larger of a group and he would be lost. He took one last sip of his whisky before placing it on the counter, then giving a light smirk as a sharp was molded out of the corner of the room. The sharp was made of shadows, taken from where the light didnt exist, it then aimed itself at the potion and threw itself at it.

He was hoping to cause up a stir, and if the sharp did make contact with the glass of the potion, it would simply dissipate after also. So It was un-likely that anyone would trace it back to him in particular. But even so, he tugged his cloak up tighter and changed his hair color to a jet black.
~I wonder how they will react when this little trick interrupts their visit~

Doulas sighed sadly and re-opened his large book, to study the spell a bit more. While he read he said, "Yea, war is tearing families apart from eachother. I wish there was some way to stop it completely." He turned back to chapter four of the book.

As the man cam up to them and said osmething about tempature, he looked at him and said, "Ahh, I'm guessing youre in the medical field then. always ncie to have people like that around here. I heard there have been a few sicknesses from exposure of different materials, but as far as I know it's a rumor."

The female looked up at the man who seemed to be a doctor of sorts. She softly smiled at him as she grabbed the vial gently. "Thank you, sir. I'll be sure to use it when the heat becomes unbearable." She spoke softly as she looked at the one named Douglas as he spoke. However, something was moving in their direction through the water vapor in the air and she could feel it.

"Watch out!" The woman shouted as she moved toward Douglas quickly, forcing him down with her own form and grabbing the doctor. Once what was flying had passed by, she blinked before letting go of both men and sitting up. Her hair swayed an seemed slightly flustered from her sudden movements but she didn't mind. "Are you both okay?"

The man would smile, glancing at the other man with the book. "Thanks, it's also good to see someone who actually looks smart. Most people here are either injured pussies or people who fight alot." Although, suddenly being knocked down by the woman, he noticed the other man's heart rate spike for a split second. He laid there for a second and looked up at the woman, but for a second he stared at her face. "Hold on, is your name Mizu Fydan?"

The man would soon sit up as he rubbed his neck lightly. "I haven't seen you since I left Kanto. What brings you to this city?" His distraction of an old patient made him forget the situation at hand with the mysterious disturbance. Although is eyes stayed dark green, keeping an eye on the other man.

Viral cringed once again, then slamming his head down hard on the counter. The whisky had hit him, because it was around ten seconds after the fact, that he noticed that would seem extreamly, extreamly suspicious to anyone else. He gave a slight ~fuck me~ kind of look and then formed a sharp, right out of his back. He cringed, this time in real pain, just because he formed it didnt mean it wouldent hurt just as bad as anyone else.

The male had done a bit of acting in his past, but he was wondering wheather or not he had gotten rusty. "Gyuaaa, Goddamnit.... Bad place, bad time I guess." He was worried about the one with medical knowledge, he might see right through his ruse. But without anything else he could do, he fell on his side, shallowed his breath, and closed his eyes, faking his own unconciousness. There was little more he could do to make the un-conciousness more beliveable. But all he could hope for now, was that the doctor would keep his mouth shut if he found anything out of place.

Douglas's eyes went kind of wide for a moment as 'Aqua' forced him down. "What was that?" He said as he stood up and looked around. He wasn't liking the fact that he might have been, or thought he was being, attacked, but then again who does like that feeling? Well, he has met a few people, but now was not the time ot think about that, sence he still had company and he thought the danger was over.

He listened to the medical man and heard what he called 'Aqua' and then looked back at the man. "When I talked ot her, she said her name was Aqua. So, it's either you're mistaken people, or she was lieing to me, which, has happened before. Either way I don't really care."

"I speak no lies for you both are right. My name is Mizu Aqua Fydan. I prefer Aqua over Mizu. I apologize if it seems as though I had lied to you, sir." She spoke to Douglas. She then looked over at the medic. "And who are you? Are you from the temple?" She asked before hearing a thud to her left. The woman glanced over to see that what had flown at them seemed to had hit a man in the back. The woman's eyes widened as she got up quickly and walked over to the man. She kneeled down, placing her hand on the sharp object and blinking.

The object was cold and pointed. As well as completely black like darkness. The woman glanced over at the medic and motioned for him to come over quickly. The man seemed to be in pain, if not passed out. She sighed softly, slipping water out from behind the bar with her hand's movement rather than getting up. The water levatated over the man's wound and began soaking up all blood and even particles of the dark material.

The man nodded abit. "Well, yes and no. I'm from Kanto, but not from the actual royal family or something. I've seen you around alot in the city. It's not that hard to miss you." As the man answered her question, he stared at the sharp object as he stood up, walking towards him. His eyes widened abit as he noticed what material the object was, surprised he grabbed a bottle of dark liquid and opened it. "Hold on, this will take care of it." He poured two drops of the dark liquid onto the sharp object as it disintegrated instantly.

Glancing at his wound mark, he had no internal bleeding, moving to his liver as he noticed some abnormality with alcohol. "He's kind of drunk.. His liver function is abnormal to a certain extent, at least for humans. His wounds aren't that bad, just close the wound and he'll heal over time." The man sat down in a chair and glanced at the man on the ground, keeping an eye on him as his brain function was normal, showing he was conscious.