T - Kitty, Xenon, Nako, Bee

[carcinoGeneticist]

The understanding of what had happened - and was happening - to her made Mirai recede into herself slightly, going very quiet as they walked. She had no memory of the events. Something had to have happened to make her like this, but she just didn't know, and that alone was terrible enough... The girl choked back tears, she had always wanted to find love, sure, and she'd always dreamed it would be like one of the stories she and her sister read to each other when sleep did not easily find them.

Not -- not like this. Not something she couldn't even remember, accompanied by the knowledge of how things would end.

When Viast's kind words reached her, the girl looked up, blinking to clear her eyes. Slowly she nodded. "Y-yes, ma'am." She said in what she hoped was a strong voice. Then she hesitated a moment. "I might... I might need a doctor, though. When we get... there." Perhaps someone could save her, then?

It seemed a distant hope, but it glimmered as a possibility in her mind. This didn't have to be the end. Sure, she would still have to deal with what had been done to her, but... She could survive. Maybe.

Of course, the sight unfolding in front of her choked that hope, strangled it. Today was her worst nightmare relived over and over again - there was just too much death. Quaking with horror, stomach heaving though there was nothing left for it to eject, the girl cried out, pressing her face against Viast's leg and holding it there as they walked, crying openly now. Even with her eyes sheltered, the smell was unimaginably horrible... She would never forget that smell.

[Kitty]

Viast was certainly right when it came to pride, he definitely had more then his share of it. Add in enough self confidence to fill a swimming pool and you had him on a good day. In fact on one of those good days neither of his newer companions would probably be able to stomach him for long. Charlie on the other hand, didn't really seem to care unless he was being moody.

No, problems were meant to be dealt with as soon as possible .... but they were meant to be taken out on the one who caused them. Since the cause was nowhere to be found, yet, he was taking everything and compressing it neatly into a compact ball of negativity.

When they came across the gruesome scene, well, he was at a point where it didn't seem to phase him. Inside it made him want to be sick all over again, outside his expression remained neutral. At the very least it made things clear; When he did release that steadily growing ball no one would want to step in and stop him. Hopefully not even question the methods he was presently mulling over in his mind.

Someone was going to feel the brunt of this, and they weren't going to enjoy any little tidbit

Too bad he didn't have a large quantity of salt on hand. now that would be kind of... fun.

And then there was that not so little portal. Well, wasn't that interesting? A little too flashy though. So much for not advertising their position.

All he needs now is a giant, moving arrow that says 'hey look, I'm here.'

In other words .... he didn't trust this. Not at all, and wouldn't be at all surprised to see a trap waiting, or simply the remains of this ... Cale person.

[Nathalia]

((Viast gave the Queen a dirty look.
"It's a spell, sir. There isn't much you can do in an emergency situation of evacuation. Can you make a better portal?"
She sighed and shook her head. "Sorry, no disrespect. Stress makes me...aggravated, there's nothing we can do but get the survivors and get out as quick as we can, sir."

Viast's heart broke a little when the Avington girl sobbed on her leg.
All she could think to do was shush her gently. "Shhh, I know it's bad. It's gonna be ok, sweetie. No one's here, I've already been through, it's almost over, just don't look. It's ok."
She wished she could just scoop the poor thing up and take her home. The little rot-faced baby nuzzled her neck and the Deer boy nibbled her ear.
This was no way for kids to grow up.

They passed the dead and pressed on, nervous and trying to stick as close together as they could.
The alleys became slightly brighter, and the smell of a small bonfire drifted toward them, blocking out the smell of death and rot.
The alley then opened up onto an old, broken down square at the end of the Outer bazaar.
Four large Lowlanders, Canine mixes, stood in a semi-circle facing outward.
In the center of them, a tall, thin Human man was standing near a ten foot tall portal, shining fitfully.



"Cale!" Viast cried in relief. "Cale, oh Hell! I'm so glad you're ok, I found more of them."
She couldn't quite help herself, but trotted quickly to the Human, throwing Mirai a smile.
The man turned to them with a wan, tired looking grin.
"Hey! Viast, good to see you're still alive! No sign or Mirung, then?"
He nodded to one of the Canines, who also gave the group a wave, before taking the Human's place by the portal...it might be sucking energy out of them...

The Human turns to the others, gesturing to the portal.
"Good to meet you, I'm sure. I'm Cale, head of the Lowlands relief board, come on, lets get you and the kids through, sir."))



~Nathalia

[Kitty]

[[ Just know that his curses definitely aren't being said in a pc manner. >.> ]]

He felt less and less social the more they walked. More ... distant really. This was aggravating, the walking, the waiting and the unknown. He just wasn't used to waiting for what he wanted.

He simply gave the other lowlander and curl of the lip in response to her first comment, and a shrug to the second. He wouldn't feel compelled to say anything else until they came upon the circle of lowlanders and the odd portal. What on earth kind of power was that?

And why the hell was everyone being so nice? It felt... grossly inappropriate.

He opened his mouth to say something before another one of them tried to force that leaving thing on him again. He was tired, stressed out, pissy, dirty and had shoved a great deal of aggression down already. His expression quickly shifted again and he fixed his gaze on Cale. He didn't care who he was, didn't give a damn, and he wasn't going to tell him what to do.

Or keep him from accomplishing something important. Hell no.

I'll be f'ing damned if I just leave. and do nothing.

He ground his teeth against each other and curled himself forward a bit in an aggressive manner that looked incredibly off in a human form, and tensed up until one of the little ones he was holding squeaked in protest to being squeezed in such an unpleasant manner. He loosened up a bit, but his expression didn't much change. He was full of fury and didn't want to listen to anything anymore.

Get them out, I'm not going anywhere.

Oh yes, it was his mission to be as difficult as possible.

[Nathalia]

((Cale gives the man a flat stare, and then slowly starts to laugh.
”Ha! Really? A Queen who’s not too proud to fight? So be it, Viast, take the children and make sure they’re safe and labeled under this gentleman’s moniker. We’ll see how long he lasts before he run.”

He pulls a sword out of his belt and readies it, eying the pole-arm the Queen held.
"Not bad, must say, I hope you're good with it, for your sake. Chiro over there just told me that we might get a visit from the Josiggy squad's henchmen. If that's the case, we're in for it.
Viast, behind us near the portal, it'll be ready in about five minutes, Sir? Give her the kids."

Viast tries to gather them as best she can, telling Cale in a loud whisper that they're to g to the Wastes, he nods and waves her off.
The Bovine settled near the portal and the little Avington.
Mirai was just getting worse and worse, her expression becoming slack as her stomach expanded further and began to hurt.

Mo could hear an odd noise in the distance...footsteps?
A lot of them?))

~Nathalia

[Kitty]

For a moment he thought Cale meant to fight him, but that moment was short lived. No, he was complying and accepting his desire to do a little damage to someone else. Well, awesome... and he wouldn't have to worry about the little ones anymore either, so he relaxed and stepped toward Viast.

He carefully handed over the kids before leaning his weapon against himself and pulling the ribbon from his hair free. He gently tied it in a bow around the deer's neck so his parents could identify this as truly his desire to send these people to them. He was certain that his father would recognize it. Once this was done he turned his attention back to Viast in order to give her the location she was to go to when she got there.

He strightened up, took his weapon in hand and nodded toward Cale, he'd been practicing, and this form gave him the oh so wonderful ability to wield this thing like it weighed nothing.

I've got some tricks, you can count on that.

He gave another glance to Mirai ... he did so hope she would get to a doctor in time. He really didn't mind her presence in the slightest. The sound of footfalls, however, brought his attention back to the task at hand and he turned his attention toward the direction they were coming from.

[carcinoGeneticist]

There was a maternal quality to the Cow that Mirai's every molecule clung to. It was something she'd always missed growing up, and it seemed a gift that now, when she needed it most of all, she'd finally found it. She did as the woman instructed, keeping her eyes shut and trusting in Viast to lead her through the violence. There was something slippery under her paws, she did her best not to think about it. When she did open her eyes, she found she was surrounded entirely by Lowlanders.

Once, that would have been enough to make the girl scream. But after meeting the sweet woman who's side she was still glued to, she found herself... almost soothed by it. If she ever made it home again, she would have to tell her sister about it...

An idea suddenly popped into her head. She tried to cast it off, but it would not leave her. She turned to look up at the Cow, biting her lower lip. "V-Viast?" She asked quietly, voice barely above a whisper. It was as if the thought might be frightened away if she spoke too loudly about it. "Can I... stay with you?" There was something in the statement that implied more than just the immediate future, a hopefulness in her expression.

Before it suddenly went almost slack, her eyes fluttering closed as her body went limp. Something stretched inside her, and it was almost as if she was going into shock. She shivered lowly. Then, all of a sudden, there was pain.

The girl cried out sharply, tears springing to the corners of her eyes.

[Nathalia]

((Cale gave the Queen an approving nod.
"I am counting on it, by the by. Your name, Majesty? You know mine, already." He asked, turning to face the far alley, sword at the ready and another of the large Canine mixes going to help his brother at the portal...Cale must have a spell that fosters energy, because as large as the man running it now is...he seems quite tired all of a sudden.

The footsteps approach and a strange little party rounds the bend.
Some kind of Cat, two girls, and a Torque...
Cale curls his lip derisively at the sight of the Josiggy girls (one clearly, and the other looked like a mix), but seems ready to stay his hand unless given reason to strike.
"And who're the mess of you? What are you doing with Josiggies?" He holds his sword out at the scarred Feline, not trusting him an inch.
"Trying to harbor them? Trying to get them to safety, are you? Tell me, ass how many Lowland kids did you spare when your Josiggy pals were out killin' them, eh?"

He nods to the Diamond Queen, indicating that the scarred Feline was all his if he wanted him, turning to the Torque.
"What business have you here, Torque?" He asks, curt, though polite enough. "Lost? Or assisting them?"

----------

Viast cuddled the tiny babies on her lap a moment, before pulling a shawl out of her bag and laying it on the ground, curling up the edges and laying the babies in it after making certain they were too tired to nibble at each other again.
Poor things. She'd just begun digging for some food, when the Avington girl spoke.
"Yeah, honey. You ok?"
She responded, finding some bread and some jerky and giving it to the Bipedal Highlander who nabbed a bit and started tearing at it sleepily.
The answer she got was...

It broke her heart.
She was struck dumb for a second.
Did she mean...adopt her? Or just until this whole mess was over?
Regardless, how could she say no to that face?
"Of course, sweetie. No problem. As soon as we get through, we'll ask Mr. Morpheus's family to get us to a doctor and you can stay with me after that as long as you like."
She didn't know what else to say, gently patting the girls' shoulder.

And then the poor thing jerked and cried out in pain.
"Oh, Hell. Sweetie? What's wrong, tell me where it hurts." She murmured, getting right down next to her and stroking her back.
What the Hell was she supposed to do?))


~Nathalia

[Kitty]

Morpheus, and I'm sure it'd be a pleasure in another situation.

Old habits died hard, even when he was in the type of mood that he could walk up and kick a puppy square in the face. And, damn it all, he actually liked these people.

He tightened the grip on his weapon and faced the same direction as Cale, waiting more. He hated waiting, in any shape or form, and it made him anxious. This anxious energy translated into him tapping the marble handle of the polearm rhythmically. Until Mirai made that sound, and he peered over his shoulder toward the group near the portal.

She looked awful, and it only served to make him angrier. He turned his attention back to where there would be other appearing at any moment and narrowed his eyes. Oh yes, something that came around that corner was going to be in a world of hurt when it showed it's ugly head.

And you couldn't get much uglier then the weird looking feline, could you? Not in his book ... there wasn't one attractive feature about the man, in Mo's book, anyhow. And Cale was offering him up for grabs eh? Well, he wouldn't want to be rude, now would he?

He turned his gaze to Kristoff, the corners of his mouth curling up in a creepy little smile. He'd give the group a chance to make some form of response, if they answered right away .... he wasn't going to wait long.

[carcinoGeneticist]

The sounds of voices wasn't exactly what Kristoff wanted to run into, at this point in the game, but it sure beat being alone with the two girls and the oddball Torque. Ever since they'd run into the gory sight in the middle of the road, something had seemed off about the other man. So he'd led them in the direction of other people, hoping very much that he could pawn his charges off on them and then get the hell back home. Today was a complete loss in regards to scavenging.

...and everything else, too, as his luck would have it.

The expression on the feline's face was strained when he found himself in front of a group of Lowlanders, all of them looking like they were about ready to skin whoever came around. "Fekkin' fantaftic, f'at'f wha' dif if.[/b]" he growled under his breath, hackles raising as he turned his attention to the Human. Certainly, the man was the leader of the group. Why else would he be making all the hustle and bustle? "I haff no bufneff wif' yew or any'o dem Joffigief. Found'em lookin dead in f'e ftreet, I waf gonna brin' 'em back to f'e Marff wif' me. 'til 'e came along.[/b]" He shrugged his shoulders at the Torque. At this point, Kristoff saw no point in lying. It wasn't going to do him a lick of good.

Might as well finish the job. "...f'o if yer lookin' fer fome Joffigy-loverf, f'en he'f yer man.[/b]"

~~~~

Another soft cry escaped Mirai as her body twisted. What the Cow said to her was a relief, of sorts, but it didn't do anything to ease her pain. She looked up at the woman, tears flowing freely down her cheeks, her body shuddering violently.

"P-please..." she whimpered, searching the area. Her whole life had been turned upside-down in a matter of hours, from waking up alone in the Capital, to feeling safe in the company of Lowlanders. It would have been laughable to her before, but now she just wanted to cry. She clung to Viast with all the energy left in her. "I don't... I don't want to die!"

There was a commotion nearby, no doubt the people who had killed the other Lowlanders were the cause of it all. She let out another pained yelp, squeezing her eyes shut as she expected violence to fall all around them. But none came. Instead, there was conversation. Heated, mind, but... The girl opened her eyes, and there she saw unfamiliar faces surrounded by two that she knew. Gasping, and suddenly realizing the problem that had unfolded, she looked up urgently at the woman. "T-that... That's my sister! The Josiggy... Please, don't let them hurt her..." Emotional and physical pain warred inside her, and she bit her lip.

What if... What if the first motherly kindness she had known rejected her, for her blood?