WELCOME TO RAYVEN'S REIGN.

[Frosted]

Monsters... They exist but we continually shadow them from the public. Vampires, zombies, ware wolves, you name it we hunt them down. This of course is no easy task but the pay is very much worth it...most of the time. Adam Stone works for the discrete company entitled, Monster Hunter International. He was on his way to investigate a disturbance but someone seemed to get there first. Patches of molten rock and crumbled Gothic features has shown the disturbance was caused by a type of Gargoyle.

It did not take him long to find the rest of the monster broken and destroyed, as well as the unconscious civilian. He slowly gathered the victim and brought her to a private hospital while calling in a cleanup crew. Whoever she is he hoped to gain some knowledge about what she knows, and even recruit her. Taking down a Gargoyle is anything but easy, and he was sure she'd appreciate the twelve thousand dollar bounty. The victim has been unconscious for three days with concussive, burn, a few major laceration injuries. During that period Sarren learned that; She worked in a small café near a public school, No one else witnessed the attack, As well as she doesn't seem to have any spouse or close relatives he'd need to worry about.

***

*smack* "Dude she's awake!" "Finally, don't let Sarren know that." "How am I." "Just do it!" One of the two suited men left the hospital room. The remaining one faced the woman and peered into her with his soulless sunglasses. He took a seat right next to her bed and then started, "Good morning Lida Chrinsta, How are you feeling?" Without waiting for her reply he started inquiring further, "My name is Detective Trever Rorrim, I am with the FBI." "And there you have it, the score is 41 to 7 I am your host.." Irritated by the television he calmly stood up and pressed power, emptying the life of the device, and the room. He walked over behind the bed to stand over her head. "I have a few...questions for you." He gave a vivid evil smirk.

The door swung open and the other agent came in panting. "He. he knows...” The agent gasped and choked trying to receive some air. I'm getting too old for this crap." He then made his way towards the bathroom. He swung the door open, stuck his head in the sick and started guzzling from the faucet. Trever's face flushed, "Tom, c'mon! We're professionals, at least act the part for god's sake!" Tom took his head out from under and licked his lips. The agent's suit was partially soaked with water, his tie being the worst. Water dripped with each step until he took a seat.
A tall figure peeked in, then walked into the room. He wore a tan leather vest, cargo pants, and a tight blue t-shirt. He scanned the room and greeted, "Hello..Pain in the ass and your protege... " He gave an expression of disgust seeing the sad soaked agent. "and.. Sir Dribbles." Trever's face highlighted with irritation. He took off his glasses and stepped forward toward Sarren. "Get out of here Sarren, this is FBI business not MHI! If she's going to turn into one of those..Things it's our job to take care of it!" He commanded.


Sarren slightly pushed Trever aside and walked toward the woman. He took her hand and started examining it. Looking into her eyes he calmly instructed, "Take a deep breath, this may hurt a little." He grabbed a pair of nail clippers from his bag and clipped a partially large "V" into her finger nail, then quickly wrapped her hand in Gauss. Holding the bloody nail he walked briskly to the sink. Trever was losing patience, "Dammit Sarren I SAID NOW! I can have your company shut down!" He snapped his fingers, "Just like that!" Sarren rinsed the nail, and turned toward Trever. "And I can shove my boot so far up your ass, you'll need an old shoe horn to pry it out!" Trever's expression didn't change at the least. He calmly just questioned, "Are you threatening an officer?! I can have you court marshaled." Sarren held all his anger in and shoved the nail in his face. "If she were contaminated this would already be partially or all stone. My job! Not yours!" Trever's didn't blink but merely calmly said, "This isn't over, Tom grab our stuff, let’s go." The two agents left the room.


Sarren walked over to the woman on the table and placed his hand on hers. "My name is Sarren Stone, I'm sure you're very confused upon what has happened or why you are here. Not to worry, I’ve read your file, I know who and what you are. For the moment you are safe, as well as what is spoken in this room. I will explain what I know if you can tell me what you remember. We found you at your work, there was an explosion. Can you tell me what happened? What do you remember?"


This post has been edited by Frosted on May 26 2012, 10:00 PM

[♖ Alathorn]

Lida slowly woke up and blinked looking around. When the man asked her how she was, she opened her mouth to respond only to be cut off. When he introduced himself, she blinked. FBI? What would the FBI want with me? She asked herself. Then, throughout the whole conversation with the two agents she listened, completely dumbfounded.

Finally, when the third man came in and walked up to her, she was just about at her wits end. Then he said that something might sting a little and she gritted her teeth for the pain. After the pain passed she watched the man work and tilted her head.

When the two agents left the confusion in her eyes was even worse then it was when the first man had started to speak. When the man left standing with her finally spoke her and asked her what she remembered she shook her head. "Oh hell no," she said. "Not until I get some answers! What the hell was all that about?!"

It was then that it sunk in exactly what he had said. "Wait," she said, thoughtfully. "You... You know what I am? Then you must know about the NPP! They would not let you keep me here knowing what I am! I want my NPP representative here now!" Her tone was strict and almost angered. The truth was she wasn't mad, she was terrified. She didn't know who this man was or what he wanted but she sure as heck would not talk to him without an NPP representative present.

[Frosted]

Sarren let out an annoyed sigh. He doesn’t blame her, but nothing is ever easy. He grabbed a nearby chair and leaned it against the wall, then reached into his pack bringing out a red folder. He plopped the folder onto Lida’s lap and collapsed in the chair. With a grunt, he said shortly, “There’s your answers.” Without waiting for her to open it up he began, “Those were taken two days ago when I found you.” He brought a cigar out of his vest as well as a lighter, but caught a glimpse of the large FLAMABLE and NO SMOKING sign by the door. He swore
under his breath and kept the cigar in his mouth.

He turned his attention back to Lida, and started,” Your protection program only goes so far in this country, especially when you deal with national security. God knows they’re going to hound me later though, but don’t worry, the last thing I’m here for is to bring any harm to you. I mean you’re in a hospital bed for hell’s sake.” Sarren laughed a little trying to ease the tension, then cleared his throat. My name is Sarren John Stone. I am with a very private company that deals with certain...” He waves his hand in the air trying to think of a better word. “Problems, which the government wishes to, keep secret. You of all people should know that some things are best kept as such. We are called MHI or Monster Hunter International. If you don't believe me, you will when u look more into that folder."

He stood up and turned towards her to keep a form of eye contact. He continued and reached into his pocket, “ Inside that folder also has a few pictures of an animated stone figure, which you probably know as a gargoyle. Evidence from the crime and your injuries says that you were attacked by one.” He pulled out another picture from his pocket and handed it to her, “This is a picture of you that my dash cam took. You can’t see much but you were hurt pretty badly.” The image showed Sarren carrying her over his shoulders and having a concerned face. He placed his hands behind his back and assumed a proper posture. “Now, will you answer my questions? Other's lives could benefit from what you tell me.”

This post has been edited by Frosted on May 26 2012, 11:07 PM

[♖ Alathorn]

Lida sighed as she opened the folder and pulled out the pictures. "Oh yeah," she said. "The stupid gargoyle... He kept hounding me for something... I had no idea what he meant... Said something about some kind of...'atrium' I think... I got the feeling it was either something really important or something drug related... Either way I had no idea what he meant... In the end he started to attack me... Then he cornered me, which was a big mistake on his part."

She sighed as her fingernails inched outward the one he'd cut earlier ripping through the bandage to show that it was fully healed. "Nekos are not normal creatures," she said. "We can hide among humans much easier than any other creature out there because we are more human that we are anything else. The one difference is our more cat-like parts, meaning our ears, tail, claws, and reflexes... When frightened enough our minds go into the primal instinct of 'fight of flight'. If cornered, our claws pull free from our fingers. If we are trying to hide our ears they pop out of their hiding place as does our tail if we hide that as well. This is known as our fighting mode because with this we are virtually untouchable... I've heard of agencies like yours and have been warned about them from the Neko Protection Program, more commonly referred to as the NPP."

She sighed again and slid so that her legs were hanging off the edge of the bed, seeming as if she was going to stand. "When the gargoyle cornered me I went into this mode and started to strike back... I'm not sure what happened because, when we go into the primal instinct mode our minds essentially black out... I have no memory of getting the wounds or what happened during the fight but I do know that afterward I had enough time to gather myself back together before I fell unconscious where you found me..."

She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "That answer your questions?" Her tone wasn't harsh anymore or angered very much but it was as if something had changed in her. It almost seemed as if she felt hurt. This wasn't exactly the case she just wished she could help him more. She was tempted to offer him help but, knowing her current state, she was in no condition to help him.

[Frosted]

Sarren grinned at her reply. He believed that she had some real spunk and could defiantly make a great addition to his team. Gathering his thoughts, he crossed his arms and spoke, “Yes thank you. Like I’ve said, I’ve read your file and I know what you are, but I needed to know what you knew. I can’t speak too much due to having to be confidential, but I’ll let you in on a few things.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet and a stack of dollar bills.

He dropped the banded money upon the bed, letting it topple and bounce. He breathed in deeply and gave a subtle stare. “You’ve destroyed a gargoyal, I don’t really understand how, but you’ve managed to pull it off which is no normal feat. Those things are living breathing, flying, tanks of stone. I’ve had to hit my last one with a truck and a few heavy shells to take one down. The bounty on those beasts is One thousand two hundred and eighty dollars apiece. Since a portion must go to clean-up and your hospital bill, that’s seven hundred dollars for you to keep. There’s no strings to it.”

He opened his wallet and handed her his company card. It dully said, “M.I.H.” with a picture of smiley faced devil patch, and a phone number. “Unlike the organizations you’ve been warned about, we welcome all that can help.”
He stopped himself to think, then continued, “Most anyway, there are many…beings that just can’t be trusted. You’ve also been warned appropriately too. You see, similar organizations don’t trust Neko’s and pay out of the pocket for them. The government and that protection act are completely against it, and we with them. If there is a wild neko killing people, that's a problem for the police.

We hunt the real monsters, get paid, and keep others safe. We’re that simple. “He explained. He examined her , and began to think that he’s coming on rather strongly. He began to sympathize a little, “Look, I know you don’t have any trust in me, or those agent’s that were in here earlier. You’ve woken up harshly, especially to the scene, then me cutting your nail, it must all be such a rush. I am the last person you’d ever expect to get soft, just getting that out there. However, we could always use the help, and if you don’t feel up for it or interested that’s fine. It’s a dangerous job and its not for everyone. We do need recruits for obvious reasons. As a sign of good faith I’ll give you a little information about your nail. Gargoyals have a slight chance to, “Infect” those they attack. The victims may receive the condition where they slowly turn into stone, and become a Gargoyal. Doomed to serve the original Gargoyal’s master until death, unless treated of course. Those agents were here to put you down in case of that reason. The transformation begins in the nail, which is why I had to check.“

Sarren collected the folder with the photographs together, and placed the chair back in its original spot. He started for the door, then turned to address her, “After you begin feeling better, get your personal affairs in order and are interested. Call that number. That money is yours to do with as you will.” Sarren tried to take a puff of his cigar, but just remembered it wasn’t lit. He stowed it away in his pocket then leaned against the door frame. “Due to confidentiality I wouldn’t blab to others what happened with that gargoyal, or what I’ve told you. FBI agents, Dipshit and sidekick are always itching to harm those who don’t deserve it. However, is there anything else you would like to know?”

This post has been edited by Frosted on May 27 2012, 11:16 AM

[♖ Alathorn]

Lida watched his reaction and listened to him speak. When he dropped the money in front of her she froze, staring at it. She kept listening to him though as he continued and took the card he offered taking a look at it. She then looked back at the money almost unsure if she should take it.

As she listened to him she realized that she would be a more valuable asset than he would think. The defeat of the Gargoyle was proof of that. When he said he didn't know how she chuckled and shook her head. "I can tell you how," she said. "Our claws are ten times stronger than steel when we get cornered. If we can somehow regain control after being cornered then we would almost literally be unstoppable. The only thing that could possibly be able to stop us is a tank and that's if it's just as fast as us and it would have to get the hit on the first shot because if it doesn't then it's S.O.L. because of our reflexes." She sighed as he took the pictures away. "I almost feel sorry for that gargoyle... Though it attacked me first so that's why I don't."

As he walked toward the door she almost called him back but he paused at the door and leaned against the door frame. At his inquiry if she had any questions she finally made her reply. "Just one thing," she said. Then she smirked as she took the money. "When can I start?"

[Frosted]

Sarren grunted as he tossed the single piece of luggage into the back seat of his vehicle. Sarren owned an armored Smittybilt XRC Jeep Wrangler JK. Bolted down plating sounded the machine as was somewhat masked by the dim olive green paint job. The tires appeared brand new, but were covered with tar and gravel on a few sides. A complete stranger would assume a man of the wilderness to own the vehicle, except for the strange red scale like object sticking out of the front right rim. He began rearranging a few things in the back and started talking to Lida, “ Before you can officially start, I must take you to our training facility in Alabama. You’ll meet a few of my co-workers as well as other new recruits. If you can pass the tests there then.. you can join us as a monster hun- Oh hey, that’s cool.“

Sarren shifted an ammo box under the seat and found a Coke and an unopened water bottle. Slightly surprised he turned to Lida and tossed her the bottle. “Here you go.” Sarren ripped open the can, giving a relaxed sigh as he heard hiss of carbonation. Bringing it up to his mouth, he took a swig then quickly shoved it away from his face. With disgust he muttered, “GAh! It’s warm! “ He eyeballed the can as if it was an abomination, then chucked it down the street into the gutter. The beverage splattered everywhere but instead of caring, he went back to organizing. “That gargoyal, was more of an..introduction. As well we don’t normally recruit such young individuals, but you’ve done more than enough to prove your worth. We just need to see if this job would actually suit you. We also need to teach you a few extra things.” Sarren reached out with one hand and started collecting garbage with the other.

He pointed his index finger to make a “one” symbol. “One thing I can tell you for sure, is to never disreguard rumors or myths. I personally have experienced things that I thought was total bull shit. Like…” Sarren brought both hands into the car and was yanking on an unusual object. He placed his foot on the car to get more strength and leverage, then yanked out a bright pink and glistening feather. The stem and ridges were razor sharp, with care he turned and waved it gently towards Lida. “Pink hungry harpy. Pink! Can you believe it!? What a total..bitch. You wouldn’t know it but I had to weld my roof to repair it. She just came after me without warning. Would never stand a chance on foot, but god it’s such a pain to drive and shoot. Usually they are blue, yellow, and sometimes black. Those things are just awful, brought me five thousand. Just enough to make some repairs.” Sarren faced toward the trunk, “and purchase.. my ol’ Love.”

Sarren lightly slammed the door and leaned against his car. He faced Lida, peering at her though his thick red shades. He gave her a half smile, crossed his arms then asked her, “Are you sure you want to do this? Once you get in there’s no turning back. It is also a long drive to Alabama, we’d normally fly but, I’ve got a package to deliver.” He eyeballed the backseat and with irritation he growled, ”And even though I have clearance, I don’t have all day to explain to airport security what it is.”

This post has been edited by Frosted on May 27 2012, 08:10 PM

[♖ Alathorn]

Lida watched him and smiled, catching the water bottle as she listened to him. "Thanks," she said, though she didn't open it, feeling that it was warm. She laughed at the fact that the Coke was warm as well and shook her head. "You couldn't feel how warm it was? You really must not pay too much attention!"

She watched as he tossed it and sighed. "Oh come on that could have been a perfectly good Coke if you'd put it in a fridge!" She sighed and shook her head. "Next time make sure it's cold before opening it! What a waste of a Coke..." She looked at the spilled Coke and then looked back at him. "Apparently it did more damage to me than I'd thought after I regained my mental control... Of course, now that I think about it, it was a freaking gargoyle... Anyway I can understand that..."

She watched him with curiosity as he tried to pull something out and raised an eyebrow at the pink razor sharp feather and sighed. "Yeah I've seen a lot of strange creatures... Most left me alone but some came up to interact with me... Up until the gargoyle, though. Nothing really attacked me..." She shrugged and shook her head. When he mentioned his "ol' Love", she tilted her head. "And what exactly might that be?"

At the question directed at her she thought about it seriously and sighed. "I don't see myself having too much choice," she said. "It's either I join you and try to keep alive that way or it's quite possible that whoever was the master of that gargoyle that was sent after me will send another or something like that... Whatever the 'atrium' is it must have been really important to send a gargoyle after it... Besides I would like to learn more about the 'atrium' so I know what that gargoyle was looking for..."

[Frosted]

Sarren nodded his head at Lida’s reply. Everyone in his organization had their reasons for joining, Lida’s were among the simpler ones surprisingly enough. He stood up from his previous stance and stretched his arms, and yawningly slurred, “III’m going to have to…. make a call on the way there about that, there, it, whatever the hell an Atrium is. “ He motioned her to the front seat, then got it and started the ignition.


The engine roared to life, and the vibrating canisters in the back just added to commotion of sound. Sarren’s vehicle could never work under cover, it stuck out like a clown at a funeral. The only way it could be stealthy is if it were parked in some forestry or green terrain. Sarren slid the shift into drive and unleashed the power of the engine. Turning onto traffic his vehicle smashed the outer signal light and bumper of the parked vehicle ahead of him. This damage didn’t harm his armored jeep, but devastated the back of the stranger’s Prius. He brought out an older looking cell phone from his belt pouch and began dialing. A bobble head of a bomb with an angry smirk face bounced widely on the dashboard as he drove the car. With each turn and near miss, the bobble head seemed closer and closer of detaching itself from the spring holding it together.

Sarren finally received a connection as his jeep took off the mirror of a nearby Sudan. He closed the phone close to his mouth and calmly spoke, “Hold on a second”. Reaching his head out the window he hollered, “JACKASS!!” to the Sudan he passed. He finally stopped at a red light and continued to talk on his phone. “Uhm, yeah this is Sarren Sam Stone, is Harbinger there? He isn’t? Alright well, when he comes back from that before I get there, let him know I’ve got another rookie for him. Uh huh. Yeah.. Oh also before I forget.. Grab a paper and pen.. Yeah, I can hold.” He looked at Lida and immediately got an idea what she was thinking. Playing it cool he shyly remarked,”Theres um.. Some candy and some snacks in the that container on the door. The one closest to the floor, the top one has a hand cannon and some ammo in it. Also sorr-“ The car behind him started wailing on his horn and interrupted him. The light had turned green without him realizing it. Irritated he shifted into reverse and slammed the into the guy, completely caving in his grill and headlights. Before the shocked driver could react, he threw it into drive and left him with the remains of his transportation.

After a few blocks life arose on the other line of his connection. The sound of a female receptionist was quiet, but could be heard by anyone with great hearing, “What do you’ve got Sarren?” Sarren cleared his throat. “So my rookie here has some information about some kind of Atrium. She is a Neko so she managed to speak to it a bit instead of immediately trying to take her head off.” The receptionist was scribbling down the information, but Sarren couldn’t hear it over the clanking items in the back. “Aw c’mon Vida, if you think I’m just filling you full of shit maybe we could make an arrangement to..sort it all out huh. Few rocket launches and machine guns, we can make a date out of it. What do ya say?” She didn’t sound anywhere near enthused, but instead asked, “Let me talk to her.” Annoyed, he handed the phone to Lida and started making a mockingly angry face, and moving his hands to represent that that Vida was naggy.


This post has been edited by Frosted on May 27 2012, 11:22 PM

[♖ Alathorn]

Lida gasped with every smashed or damaged car she saw. She wanted to scream her head off at him for her horrible driving and offer to take the wheel even though she didn't have her license. When they, finally, stopped at a red light she sighed but listened to what was going on. When he started to speak to her she turned and listened. She was about to reach into the compartment when she heard the honk and then felt them suddenly start to back up, wincing at the sound of a car's front end being crushed.

She took out the candy he'd told her about then put it back, realizing that it wasn't something she really liked very much. After a while she looked at him and sighed, hearing everything that was going on. When the woman asked to talk to her she simply reached out her hand, staring out the window, trying to ignore the sound of crunching cars. Though, when she glanced over and saw him making faces she couldn't help but let out a giggle at that.

She quickly stifled the giggle before clearing her throat and speaking into the phone. "Hello," she asked, wondering what she wanted to ask her.

The woman on the other side of the phone sighed. "Hello, miss," she said. "First off I would just like to ask you if you're surviving Sarren's driving well. Secondly I would also like to know if he's still making faces."

Lida couldn't help but giggle at the faces comment. "Uh-h-hum, yes," she replied. "And I'm doing the best I can with his driving. Though I'm afraid there may be some that don't..."

"That's not unusual from him," she said. "He's just an impatient person. What's your name again, miss?"

"Lida Chrinsta," she replied, trying to ignore the cars crunching around her.

"Now what can you tell me about this, what was it... Atrium," the receptionist asked.

Lida sighed and shook her head. "All I know is that it seemed important to the gargoyle that attacked me," she said. "It either seemed to be some kind of drug or some really important object. It couldn't have been a place though. Wait... He did ask me about my diary while I was trying to walk away... He asked me what was in it and if it was the Atrium... That means it's probably a book, right?"

"Yes that's a possibility," she said. "Though I don't know exactly what it could be... That's probably what it is though, since you mentioned that."

Lida nodded. "If it was then it must look really old and be leather bound," she said. "That's what my diary is, pretty much. I'm not sure what happened to it during and after the fight but I know I certainly don't have it..."

This post has been edited by Alathorn on May 28 2012, 07:15 PM

[Frosted]

Sarren kept on driving while listening to Lida talk. He assumed Vida asked about his gesturing, but was hardly surprised. He knew her for quite a while, even recruited her as one of his first rookies. He watched her talking on the phone for a second, remembering when his family for a moment. He looked back at the road and sharply swerved to avoid a crossing pedestrian, but completely taking off his back tire and chair of his bike. When Lida finished he took the phone back and plugged it into the jack of his car. He sighed with relief as he passed the edge of the city, and he finally reached a clearing. He looked to the side at Lida with a pitiful smile and mentioned, “Well better get comfortable. It’s a twelve hour drive.”

After a few hours wide open road and farmland was all the eye could see. Sarren had the window down so the wind could rush past his face and whip around his hair. Finally deciding to take a break, he rolled up the window half way and slid in a CD. He and pressed five on the selection and sat back making himself comfortable. It was silent at first, gentle piano music grew from his speakers. When it reached maximum volume he turned it down just enough so he could hear it and talk. Staring down the paved road expressionless and spontaneously spoke, “Well, now that you’re officially on with us I can be more honest with you. One, of utmost importance that you should listen closely..” He waited for a few seconds to collect his thoughts. Then he reached out and pointed to the container, “I’ve got the munchies so hand me the bag of Cheetos in there.” Before he received his snack he glanced at the window, he then quickly drew his shades to look again, but there was nothing there. He looked back at the road and dug his hand straight into the bag as if a lottery ticket bag. Receiving a half hand full, he popped a few in his mouth and then looked around for a spot to wipe his hands. Hoping Lida wouldn’t notice, he chose a carefully secluded spot on her luggage bag while he talked to her.

“As I was saying, I can be more honest with you. I don’t want you to suspect me of going to stab you in the back, someone you can highly depend on.” He brought both hands back to the steering wheel and continued, “As you already know my name, and the company I’ve worked for.. but just like you, I’ve had a life before that.” He leaned on his side and brought out his wallet, then tossed it in her lap. It popped halfway open and a picture of a family was in the front. He took a deep breath and popped another cheeto into his mouth. Munching loudly, he delayed retelling his past as long as he could. “That was my previous life, I had it all until I was exposed too.. well.. “ he took his hands off the steering wheel and make an invisible arc with his hands. “All this nonsense.” Sarren placed the bag near Lida, as to say he was done and to offer her some. “So. Lida. I’ve read a little on Nekos. “ Sarren pulled a fiendish but humoring smirk, “But tell me, you’re not gonna like rip the holy hell out of my shirts are you? Because if so, were going to have some serious problems.” He gave her a playful nudge, then continued watching the road. "Your file did not say much about who you are though, wanna give me a quick version or tell me a bit about yourself?"

[♖ Alathorn]

Lida glanced at him as he started to speak then handed him the cheetos bag. Then she noticed him looking around as if looking for something before wiping his hand on her luggage. "I would much prefer you not to wipe your hands off on my stuff," she said. "Hell I would much rather you not touch my stuff at all!"

When he tossed his wallet into her lap she looked at the picture inside it. "They look like nice people," she said. "As for me... I never knew my real family... The first thing I remember was being in an Orphanage... Then I was adopted for a couple of years but that didn't go over so well..." She sighed and shook her head. "After that things seemed to go down hill... I'd rather not talk about specifics though... There's a reason why I was integrated into the NPP... In fact, it's the same reason the NPP was started in the first place..."

She looked out the window and stared off. She knew why her file didn't have much information about her personal life and that's because she, unlike so many humans but like so many of her kind, had come across people that were cruel to a girl younger than the age of five. She shuddered at all the things that happened to her and she could pick out the signs of what happened to her in others, now. She hated people like that and was glad that her own foster parents were in jail for life. The NPP had saved her life but, unfortunately, they had not saved her innocence.

She'd been staring outside for a rather long time before she realized something was staring back at her. "Oh my god," she said almost jumping out of her seat. "What the... CROSIS!! PULL OVER AND STOP THE CAR!!!!" Her voice wasn't afraid more like ecstatic. It was as if she was seeing someone for the first time in ages. The thing was, what she had seen staring back at her was one of her best friends named Crosis, a centaur.

[Frosted]

Sarren looked over but didn’t move his head when Lida told her story. He knew exactly what it was like to be without family, but not to never have one. He scratched his chin, then placed his hand on her shoulder and sympathized, “While I don’t know what it’s like to never have a family, I sure know how it feels to not have one.” He retrieved back his hand and scratched his back. “If you work with us for a while, we usually become similar to a family. That’s how it is to many of us in our organization. We share everything and deal with each other’s shit.” Sarren gave a short lived smile until Lida yelled at him to stop the car.


Sarren glanced at what had her attention and immediately threw himself into survival instincts. Before Lida could explain he clutched the emergency brake and spun his car around, then reverse and began driving backwards for a small distance, then hit the break. He popped open the trunk and threw himself out his door heading straight for it. From the urgency in her voice earlier, he could tell the creature was familiar to her, but he didn’t want to take any chances. Attached to the top of the masked trunk was an M202 rocket launcher. It owned four shots of sixty six millimeter rockets. All of it was olive green similar to his jeep, except for the painted on logo on the side titled, “Ol’ Love”. As well as the top which had a similar bomb as the bobble head on his dash board. He took aim from behind the jeep and beckoned to Lida, “If you’re gonna do something do it, if not… We’re going to have some flame broiled hamburger

[♖ Alathorn]

As soon as he stopped she jumped out of the door and bolted toward the centaur, jumping into his arms. "CROSIS OH MY GOSH I'M SO GLAD TO SEE YOU," she cried out, tears almost dropping from her eyes. The centaur smiled as he caught her in his arms.

"It is good to see you as well, γαλῆ(Ya- Lee) Lida," he said. "We haven't spoken in a long time. However, now is not the time for rejoicing."

She looked up at him confused. "What's wrong," she asked. "Is there something going on in the UMNN?"

He nodded. "It has come to my attention that the object I have been searching for has been revealed to be in the hands of a γαλῆ," he said.

Lida blinked in surprise. "You mean, one of us has it," she said. "But... How do you know?"

"All the signs point to one of your kind," he replied. "I am not sure who it is exactly as of yet but when I do find out I assure you that you will be the first to know!"

She nodded and jumped out of his arms. "Alright... Tell me when you can," she said. "May fortune be on your side!"

He nodded and waved at her as he ran off back into his veil and disappeared. Lida sighed and walked back into the vehicle and stopped, looking back at him. "You don't have to have your guard up all the time," she said. "Crosis is a very good friend of mine. Nekos and centaurs are very good friends, though the centaurs are very slow to trust."

(γαλῆ(Ya-Lee) is ancient Greek for "cat". In the case of the centaurs it replaces "neko" which is the Japanese word for "cat, with the Greek translation though it means the same; a half-cat, half-human person.)

This post has been edited by Alathorn on May 29 2012, 03:42 PM

[Frosted]

Sarren monitored the two as they came together, not taking any ease off his posture or weapon. To him it was all about survival, and he had to make sure that the centaur was who Lida thought of him to be. When she jumped in his arms and they both smiled, he eased up a little and decided to check his weapon and look around. A gentle breeze brushed past the fields, illustrating wave a wave like texture. Something seemed wrong, and it wasn’t the centaur, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Lida came up after their reunion ended. She mentioned his constant guard was unnecessary, but he completely ignored her. He was disappointed he didn’t get to test out his favorite toy. He only responded with, “Yeah, yeah” He waved her to the truck while he placed he strapped his weapon back with a sigh of false expectation.


Sarren closed the back and headed to the front. He had one hand on his door handle when he stopped. He glanced at Lida and mentioned, “I’m just gonna handle my own monster, I’ll be right back so, take five.” Sarren walked across the run down pavement, rolling rocks under his shoes. Dropping down a small hill, he found a spot within some high growing grass. He began thinking how the entire situation was unusual. He’s been through some creepy and paranormal experiences, but something just seemed odd, as if everything was too convenient. His new rookie is spoken to by a gargoyal, but yet he hasn’t seen or at least heard any casualties. Gargoyals are summoned for a reason. A centaur shows up just for her with more information. He brushed it off and decided to wait, he had far bigger problems to deal with. Sarren finished up, and began to stretch. A wild bird screech could be heard in the distance. He stopped half way through and his blood turned cold. There wasn’t a single tree within sight.
Sarren struggled at first as he started toward the car. He was half way there when he yelled at Lida, “Start the car! Start it!!” He left the keys in the ignition since there was no reason to take them out. A black feather wizzed through the air and narrowly sliced the back of his leg. He grunted in pain and slammed into the side of his jeep. Throwing open the door he slid into his leather seat. His wet leg made a sticky squeak on his leather seat, but died as gravel was thrown as Sarren spun the jeep around. He could see three harpies angrily following him through his side mirror. A black, a blue, and dark violet were slicing toward the air, getting closer to them.


Another wiz sounded, followed by the shattering of his side mirror. Looking everywhere he unintentionally gave Lida a crewl look and questioned, “These friends of yours too?!” His heart was racing, and sweat was dripping into his left eye. He couldn’t think straight, but he knew he had to gain an advantage. He opened the roof shutter on Lida’s side and looked straight at her. With the current situation he treated her just like anyone else on his team and began to give orders. “Take that firearm in the first pocket and shoot at those harpies. If they’re hungry they will back off, if not. “ He didn’t bother finishing the sentence since he assumed she could piece it together. “I have to find a advantage point or we’re dead, and patch up my leg. When you’ve have enough switch me places. You know you’d prefer yourself to drive over me anyway!” With that, Sarren grabbed a map on the side of his seat so he could find a nearby overpass. He flipped on cruise control and grabbed a bottle of hydrogen peroxide in his cup holder. He’s been scratched so many times that he just keeps it there.

He poured the bottle on his leg, not caring too much about patching it up. The pain rebounded from earlier and a blast of energy shot up Sarren’s spine. He stuck his head out his window and roared, “YOU BASTARDS!!”