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Post by Xavier on Sept 8, 2011 1:30:36 GMT -5
Character: Xavier Akafur PL: 5.4
Post Minimum: 6 lines Power Levels Allowed: 4.8-6.0
The sound of water gently lapping at wood was a near constant when one lived on a sajhari. There was never a lack of motion. Even on days where the air was motionless and stagnant, the amount of foot traffic walking between the raft-like structures was enough to cause waves. Life in the districts was an easy life compared to the poor folks stuck living in the warren, but still it had its rough spots. Sajhari required frequent maintenance, and you also had to make a living somehow.
Xavier sat, as he often did during the slower times, on the carpeted floor of his home. The sage sat with legs crossed, watching through the open window as the clouds rolled by above. He always tried to appreciate the beauty of a land caught in perpetual dawn, unlike the others who bustled around as if the sunset was something to scoff at. Here, though, he supposed it could not be called a sunrise, nor a sunset.... as neither were ever going to happen. The man's emerald eyes reflected the brilliant orange glow of the sky above as his thoughts wandered aimlessly through his head. He was a peaceful sort when he could find the time.
Finding time anymore was difficult, however. A fact he was reminded of when he heard the door open. In the sajhari flotillas, only the wealthiest businessmen could afford to pay for a separate building to conduct business. Most were stuck as Xavier was, running his business directly from his home. The sign outside his door read "Explorer for Hire" and he had a reputation around the local area as being well worth the cost if you needed something found.
Xavier's webbed paws were busy straightening his coat as he came walking around the corner to the small desk set up in the front room, inspecting his customer with a wary eye. The girl was human, and a young one at that. Brown hair and brown eyes, and a worn out dress that might've been pink at some point in time. The hybrid was actually about to ask her where her parents were when she noticed him. What he saw in her eyes answered his question before he asked it. In The Belt, life was hard. Outside the city walls, life was short.
"Are you....Mister Xavier?" The girl asked, her voice and her posture timid. She didn't wait for an answer though, and continued under the sage's confused look. "I need to ask Mister Xavier if he can find my daddy."
Xavier only paused a moment before he smiled. "Sure I can." He said. The anthromorph knelt down in front of the girl, who shied away from him. Most human children did that, he noticed. Unfortunately his bestial visage did not match his demeanor. "Where did you last see him, and did he say where he was going?"
"Daddy said he was going to go visit Aunt Lilly..." The girl replied after some hesitation. "Aunt Lilly lives near the big wall over there." The girl pointed out the window. Xavier's eyes followed her gaze to the giant stone wall that marked the outside edge of the Belt, visible even though they were currently some few dozen miles away.
"The warren...." The hybrid mumbled to himself, before smiling down at the girl. "I'll find your daddy, don't worry. You can sleep here in the mean time." The sage replied. She would be safer here than at her home. Anyone who lived in this sanjhari district knew better than to walk into the hybrid's house unannounced.
The hybrid walked the young girl over to a large cushion settled in one corner of the room, and showed her where the food was. "I should be back in a little while. Just take a nap, it'll make you feel better." He instructed cheerily, receiving a small nod in reply. He closed the door to his house as he left, locking it just to be on the safe side. He was going to need some supplies for a journey through the rat's warren. He began walking towards the center of town, knowing of a few good places to pick up food for the road, and maybe a few helping hands should things get rough.
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Post by Kit on Sept 9, 2011 17:58:46 GMT -5
Character: Kit PL: 5.5
Gouhash had it's appeal. It was so far away from others, with it's frigid cold, the blanket of dark that wrapped itself around her like a mystery. It reached into some part of the woman's soul and pulled out memories that had eluded her. The 'wasteland' sung it's own song in it's perpetual darkness, and she heard it at all hours, sapphire eyes glowing with tears at times. It was a beautiful, savage song that she sorely missed when she left. Yet there were things she needed to live, as did everyone. Food, water, though for the time being companionship wasn't among these things. The shaggy wolf-like beast, the size of a small horse, huffed as she heaved the last bit of ore onto the sled. "Don't worry. It's a light load. We'll get there soon." She ran her thick gloved paw over the beast's shaggy silver mane, hiking herself up onto the sled. "Hi-hi!"
The ocelot enjoyed the winter scenery, stuck in it's perpetual lifelessness. It was as if eternity sat perched here amongst the night-glittering snow, the sky above shedding her dark cloak forever on this land. It was somewhere she could appreciate. Shiverdark was her home, albiet a ruthless one, but Kit had never particularly liked living a 'comfortable' life. She could easily buy one of the sajhari, join the dancing girls who performed for the rich to keep a comfortabe lifestyle, or even live off her own jewels for many coming years. The ore was rich and precious, and she was one of the only seekers of it. She had a good life. Yet, Shiverdark appealed to the wild in her blood, the darkness being her solace, the silence her mother.
Her cloak billowed out behind her as they surged across the winter wastelands, the wind wipping at the goggles she wore to protect her eyes. "Hiyah, Saber." The canid howled as it charged forward, it's coat resilient to the cold. It was a native creature here, with five long, wickedly sharp claws that allowed it to scale the hardest cliffs. The snow flew past them in a brilliant spray. That was how the day passed, until on the distance, the blight of this planet came into view. The middle lands, as Kit liked to call them. Neither hot nor cold, like the world she just to know. She dismounted and set Saber about in the cold snow, hiking the package up over her shoulder. Now that it was not bitingly cold, the feline unwrapped her scarf. Curls of crimson fell past her shoulders, the sly, playful eyes darting about as she made her way into the city.
The filth of it never ceased to amaze the woman. She kept her house neat, tidy amongst it's cavern crevices. The smell reached her first, causing her to wrinkle her nose sharply, but she knew by the end of her visit she would be used to it. This place was so different from her Shiverdark, with it's clean, beautiful frost. She merged past groups of people who regarded her with interest that she had come from Goulash, but then it slowly faded as she got farther in, no one caring where she came from.
The door to the shop was inscribed with gold, as only the wealthy could afford, but it was in the slums that this shop was. Curious, indeed, up until one learned it was a fence for stolen goods. She could easily fetch a higher price at the other end, in the richer areas, but she rarely ventured over the interlocked planks of the sajhari. That was as far as she ever went in these days, though in the first year she had taken delight in some trinkets from the rich. She chuckled to herself at the thought, a warm twinkle in her eye as she greeted the aging male at the counter. He was one of the strange species of the planet, a weird cyclops with a wide-toothed grin that had literally two mouths that spoke truth and lies, though which one was which no one could ever really tell.
The feline hefted the bag up onto the counter. "Seventy one pounds." She announced, nodding toward the raw ore. The dealer's eyes twinkled as he took the bag, setting it on his own scales. "Says sixty here, Kit, darling." The cat tilted her head and smiled. "Oh, really?" The way she said it had a bit of a carefree tone to it. "Ah well, must have mis-weighed." Anotehr reason to keep working, to stay in her Shiverdark, away from the pain of this city that seeped through her bones and gave her chills. It was warmer in the caverns of Shiverdark than it ever would've been here. He counted out the coins slowly, as if sad to part with them. "There you are."
Kit nodded and took her coin purse, stepping out into the beautifully painted perpetual dawn. Forever in two states, forever balanced. It made her marvel for a moment, as she only saw this view every so months now, and she smiled to herself. As dirty as the ground was, the sky was still beautiful. The next stop was a rustic supplies shop that specialized in adventurer's rations. She poked her head in and gave a soft 'hoot' to the owner, a young female human who grinned at her. "C'mon in, lovey!" Kit laughed, stepping into the light. "Long time since a've seen your skinny bones. Gimme a hug." Girl and cat embraced, both with a smile.
"As you can see, I'm good and alive, so no need to ask me that." Kit interjected before she could. "I decided to stay a night this time, so no need to load me up right away. Here's your coins though, I'll have the usual." The girl chortled to herself. "Ayyyee, one of my best customers you are. I love ya Kitty Kit!" With that, she bustled about gathering stuff, exchanging idle chat with the Ocelot as she went.
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Post by Xavier on Sept 9, 2011 18:31:07 GMT -5
Xavier moved with relative ease across the shifting planks, his time here having accustomed his movements with the sway of the floating city. Those that saw him seemed mixed between reactions. Some did not know him, and gave the sage a curious glance as he walked by, marveling at the strange creature that appeared to be some sort of strange animal walking through town. Creatures in The Belt varied widely, but Xavier knew he was one of a kind. Other anthromorphs did exist, but certainly none of his breed. The others he passed, those that knew him or knew of him, tended to give the man a smile and a friendly wave as he moved through the crowd. Some he returned, others he did not, as his mind was roving through his thoughts.
The little girl troubled him, as did her father's predicament. Dealings in the Rat's Warren tended to be shady at best, and even to visit a relative one had to be careful whenever entering the slums. The military of The Belt was hard pressed simply keeping the city safe from monsters, and they had little time to deal with petty bandits. However, if the hybrid was forced to rescue the girl's father in some way, and a fight broke out.... he would have to be careful. Kidnappings and theft were often ignored, but if a rogue mage was spotted throwing magic around the streets, soldiers would not be long in coming. For Xavier, working in the city was tricky business indeed.
His thoughts were silenced momentarily as he reached the local shop, already speaking as he walked inside. "Vivian, it's Xavier." he called out, opening the door without hesitation. Vivian's shop wasn't terribly big, and in the middle of the peaceful sajhari, a shop that sold supplies of this sort didn't get a whole lot of business. "I need a couple of those smoke bombs you like to make...." he continued, his voice falling off as he saw the other visitor in the shop. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you had a customer." He said, smiling warmly.
Even as he spoke, however, his eyes were inspecting the other female that was in here. She was another anthromorph, like himself, which was unusual enough.... but something about her was very familiar. By the time he'd finished speaking he had already walked up closer to the counter, Vivian's following reply falling on deaf ears.
"Kit...?" He finally mumbled. The feline was from his home world, and had been with him when the magical rift had opened up around them and brought him here. He refused to believe it was her, yet there she was, standing right in front of him. He had looked for her, and others that he thought may have been sucked into the rift with him, but he had never found any of them. He had assumed they had either been killed, transported to a section of wilderness that was impossible to survive in, or had simply been left in his home world. He never expected to see any of them again.
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Post by Kit on Sept 9, 2011 18:56:58 GMT -5
The idle chat had sustained the female, and she had just been about to turn and leave when the bell rang announcing another customer. She reached up to tuck a few strands of crimson hair behind her ear, in mid-laugh as a voice rang out. She fell silent immediantly. There was a kind of gripping in her chest, a tight twist that made her head spin as she heard the echo of words. She hardly dared to turn around, her tail sticking straight out, not with it's usual sway. Her breath hitched softly, a quiet sound, before her senses slowly returned. The shop had been far away for a brief moment, and instead she had been standing in her memories on a familiar ship, surrounded by familiar faces, and warm words. The warmth was still there when the memory faded, along with it's sharpness of sea air.
As she turned her head, the bell hanging from her ear jingled, both perking up at the sound of her name. Her sapphire blue eyes glowed softly in the shadows of the shop, which seemed to willingly cling to her figure as she stood before him. She looked a little different, there was no hidden mistrust in the female's eyes, nor any lingering of sadness. In fact, there only seemed a soft hint of disbelief, but happiness that seemed to light up her whole face. The smile that came next was just as disarming. "Captain. Well, I'll be damned." Her voice cracked, probably from sheer shock, and she didn't seem to know what to do.
There was that awkward moment when she stood gazing at him, soaking in his appearence, before the ocelot stepped forward. She still only came to a little below his shoulder, and she tilted her head up to gaze at him. She seemed to be inspecting him. For a brief moment, she considered he might be a hallucination. She'd had many in those first months, hearing his voice around corners, feeling more than warmth between her bedsheets.. Other fur. She had thought herself crazy, but had come to turn it was simply longing.
She didn't seem to know whether to step forward or step back, but that only lasted those few moments. She leaned forward and gave him a hug, her paws wrapping around his warm middle. The laugh that fell from her lips was like honey, warm and sweet, and it was apparent that the woman in front of him had changed in those two years. Gone was the cynical look in her eyes, but a sly playfulness had replaced that. Her tail flicked back and forth as she smiled to herself. "I never expected to see you in this foresaken place, that's for sure."
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Post by Xavier on Sept 10, 2011 11:21:09 GMT -5
Xavier just smiled, returning her hug.When she let him he would pull away slowly, just to hold her out at arm's length and inspect her. "I thought you were dead... or still in Artonia." He spoke up, sounding more surprised than anything. The feline would know better, however, as his eyes gave him away. He'd missed her.
"I looked for you for a long time, but this city is too big to even hope to search all of it." Xavier continued, eyes shifting towards the back room as Vivian bustled in and set a couple spheres on the table, complete with short fuses. Xavier gave the feline a quick hug before moving over to pay for the smoke bombs. "I set up a home here, even got a small business going." The sage continued. "You already know what I do... but today a small girl came in, missing her parents. Said her dad went into the slums.. and he still hasn't come back."
With the gold on the table, the hybrid pocketed the twin bombs, and turned back to the feline. "I'd love to catch up, but I fear if I delay for long he'll have a much higher chance of not coming home." The sage smiled. "If you are not too busy, it's always good to have company when you're in the slums. I'm sure you know that by now." The otter-wolf added that last part with a small grin.
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Post by Kit on Sept 10, 2011 11:29:40 GMT -5
"I haven't even been in the city." The feline chortled softly. "Too much like the old place for my tastes. So after I got some bearing on who I was I moved out into the Shiverdark caverns." She hiked her bag over her shoulder, a slick smile spread across her lips. She gave a curious glance at the bombs. Unfortunately, she couldn't use them in Shiverdark. It would cut off her line of vision too much in a place where many had learned to hunt in the dark. She swept her crimson hair over her shoulder, tail swishing to flick at her own hip. "I lost my memory at first, going through. I ended up sprawled here in Vivian's front room, caused a right mess of everything, I did." She looked around, her eyes warm and full of memory. "So, I worked for her for a time, and then found out there was a high demand for minerals from the caverns out in Shiverdark. I made a home out there and have been making a living off the ores."
She listened to him when he began to talk about the human girl. A small flicker of worry and sadness touched her features, before she gave a quick nod. "I'd be glad to help. After all, you can't brush me off that easy. I'll just have to go untie Saber so he doesn't get antsy." Vivian went pale. "You still have that awful beast?" Her voice had a crack in it, and one could almost see a black hair pop out of her neatly kept bun because of it. Kit laughed softly, shaking her head at Vivian, almost at a loss. "Aw, he's not nearly as violent as he was when he was a puppy. Besides, he's how I get here so quick. I'd have to go through the Catacombs if not, and I'm sure you don't want them dragging my body out someday when I get unlucky."
Vivian scoffed, "You? Unlucky? Never." She shook her head dismissively at the girl, rolling up her sleeves and studying the coins. Mmm, money. Kit watched her apparent greed with laughter. "You never change." She turned back to Xavier, her gaze warm, lips smiling. "Let's go off then. I'm sure you'll need someone to watch your back. You're far too reckless, after all. I can't trust you to wander off by yourself." The feline opened the door for him, giving a quick mock bow and sliding her arm to the side to invite him out.
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Post by Xavier on Sept 10, 2011 11:44:07 GMT -5
The sage shot Vivian a glance when she began talking about some sort of saber, Xavier assuming it must be some sort of pet. He just looked at a loss for anything to say as the two bantered back and forth, and then as Kit opened the door for him he just gave a small nod. "Yeah, you know me. I'm just a magnet for trouble." The hybrid grumbled as he walked out, giving the shop keeper a wave as he passed through the portal to the outside.
Just as he walked out, the sage saw a few shady-looking men walking across one of the distant bridges, one he knew all to well. Xavier knew all of his immediate neighbors, and typically people did not wander out towards his Sajhari when simply passing through town, as it was off the main stretch. "Hang on..." He said as Kit closed the door behind them and the men walked out of his field of vision "We may have to stop by my place to pick a few things up... and quickly." He added, grabbing the feline's paw and pulling her along behind him.
Foot traffic was a nightmare in the floating cities, especially when you were trying to get somewhere in a hurry. The sage was forced not only to slow, but to outright stop several times to move people out of the way, or wait for them to pass a particularly narrow bridge. Half way back to his home, the sage just made a frustrated noise and looked down at the waters of the lake, glittering with the orange glow of the sky. "You can swim, right?" He asked the feline, knowing the answer already. He pulled the smoke bombs from his pocket and tucked them between the boards and the flotation device that supported them, then dove headlong into the mild waters.
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Post by S!lent.Ronin on Sept 11, 2011 20:50:37 GMT -5
Roy stared wide eyed at the vendor, amazed that the simple shop owner had so many rare ores. "So what do ya say Gramps?" Roy considered the deal, sure it was a rip off, but to find so many of these materials in one place was extremely rare, which raised more questions. The shop keep tapped his fingers impatiently as Roy thought about how he could use the metals on his suit. "Wellllllll..." Roy started but was interrupted by a commotion behind him. He turned to see the crowd staring down at the waterway which rippled from recent impact. Roy pushed up his glasses to the top on his nose and grinned, "Sounds like trouble." he said. It had been a while since he'd seen a good fight and even longer since he had partaken in one, though he tried to fight the feeling it deeply troubled him. The deep lust throbbed in his mind, it made his hair stand up and his fists clench with anticipation.
Roy saw the aggressors pushing through the crowd to the water ways, he let his fingers shake as he breathed harder. The longer he went without a fight the worse this feeling of violence overtook him. As his breathing became more intense he started to step forward, and then walk and finally start to sprint. His steam powered suit carried him at high speeds plowing through the crowd as he put his mask on. Roy laughed as he saw himself beating the bones out of the men in his mind, he didn't know why violence was ever present in his mind but he knew he loved it, and he knew Claire could carry to any victory. As he shook his thoughts off he was a mere few feet from the aggressors, one of the man looked at him with confused eyes. Roy wasn't himself, he didn't assess the situation, he didn't even think twice about what he was doing, he just laughed maniacally as he winded back his first punch...
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Post by Xavier on Sept 12, 2011 10:17:56 GMT -5
The waters of the lake were mildly chill, but not outright cold. To the sage, who had lives much of his early life around the rivers of his homeland, the change of temperature was no shock to him. Being half otter, the hybrid had an immense advantage in any water environment over most, and he cleared the distance from the point of entry into the lake to his residence within only half a minute. The sage surfaced, looking around slowly to make sure none of the thugs were waiting for him with a crossbow trained on his face, then grasped the rungs of the small ladder set into the side of the sjahari. As he came out of the water it occurred to him that the thugs should've at least been within sight by now at the pace they had been moving.
It was only then that his ears picked up surprised shouts from just around the closest Sajhari building, and the sage could see some people fleeing from the spot. Just a short moment later he saw one of the thugs go skidding across the planks wildly, flying right off of the floating platform and into the water. That was unexpected. Certainly the thugs were quite obviously here to cause trouble, but the people of this particular area were peaceful for the most part. He definitely hadn't expected them to openly attack the unwanted guests.
Xavier glanced behind him at the water, knowing Kit would not be far behind him if she had decided to also take the underwater route. He couldn't wait for her, on the chance civilians might be involved with this fight. The longer he waited the more likely it was someone would get hurt. Trusting the feline to figure out where he went by the very obvious trail of water pouring from his water-proof fur, the sage took off across the bridge, rounding the corner of the building and going wide-eyes at the mechanical beast that was engaged with the bandits. It looked as if someone had unleashed a steam golem into the city! However, it seemed to be focused only on the bandits right now, who had a myriad of weapons drawn at this point and were cautiously in a semi-circle around the mechanical humanoid. Eleven men remained of the initial dozen, and Xavier saw at least one of them had a gun leveled at their attacker. They had yet to notice the sage in light of this strange enemy, and Xavier moved slowly closer, putting himself in effective range for an easy hit should the fighting continue, which he was certain it would.
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Post by Kit on Sept 12, 2011 19:04:17 GMT -5
The ocelot had watched her captain slip away into the water, surveying the rather crowded Sajhari walk. The waves lapped unsteadily, the rafts shaking as if some sort of heavy strain was bearing down upon them. A slick frown crossed her face, whiskers twitching as her ears perked to hear the distant sounds of screams echoing from the distant sajhari. The ocelot took a gentle step out onto the water, her foot melting into it as if she simply dissolved at the touch. All that was left of the red-haired beauty was a circular shadow, that moved through the water until it was at the source of the commotion. She watched as the rather large steampunk suit sent an unlucky man flying. What a delicious bit of a show, she couldn't help but think, though she couldn't imagine what these poor men (and they were poor, from the looks of the one knocked out on the floor...their fate wasn't the brightest) had done to tick this weird machine off.
The cold steel of her dagger slipped softly down her wrist from her sleeve, settling into her palm easily as she mounted her body onto the docks, pulling her body free of the water. Xavier was a pleasent sight to behold, though were there was commotion, the man was never far behind. It was one thing that greatly amused her. The poor thug she had come up behind would be caught rather forcefully by the hair, a quick kick sending his knees with a (pop) out from under him. He gave a slight shriek of unexpected pain as she rolled his body into the water. The force of the kick had not broken anything, but the steel boots she wore definantly had cracked the backside of his kneecaps. It left the man clinging to the side of the sajhari walkways to stay afloat. There had been no real hesitation to join the fight, considering her captain seemed also ready to join into the spoils.
The thug's rather burly friend, who had been standing to the left of him as this odd encounter with the ocelot's steel-enforced boots, was not quite as surprised as his colleague had been. The silver of the dagger flashed through the morning air, singing as it tore a large hole through a cheap leather vest, leaving stinging trails of crimson in it's wake. The man threw a heavy underhanded punch, moving a bit slower than most, but putting the force of himself behind it. The punch caught Kit underneath the chin, and there was the distinct sound of 'crunch' as her teeth clanged together. She stumbled backward, but picked herself up before she flew off the sajhari walkway.
Her world spun for a moment, the force of the second punch almost knocking her into the water, but the dextrous female used a certain previous thug's head as a quick step ladder. She feinted to the side as another fist whizzed past her cheek, an elbow coming downward to sink right between the man's legs. She hadn't even really hit him full on, but the man's first instinct was to, of course, sink to the ground like roadkill, clutching the family jewels. The venemous, and probably well-earned, sound of "You bitch!" hissed through his chapped lips as he reached upward, grabbing her leg in his frenzy. This made the ocelot worry, but only for the moment, because the next moment she was in the water again from the strength of the man's throw. She was little more than a soaked and irritated kitten for a moment, an almost pathetic 'meowl' leaving her lips. She had taken such care in not getting wet too, having had to use the enchantment on her cloak. The dirty thug was going to pay for that one. She didn't very much mind being wet when she wasn't carrying this much gear on her.
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