Saga of the Worm and the Dragon- Part One: Never Again (I... Fight... On!)

[Zado Zudamee]

Zudamee leapt down from the heap of trash, crushing a hovercar chassis beneath his feet.The Elite, If truth be told,preffered this new setting to the human city.He felt more at home in this relativly advanced city,even though the reek of pollution disgusted him.Above him,he heard someone with conversing with the others.He didnt climb back up,as an idea had just occured to him. ``This waste dump could hold the materials to build a ship!`` Zado thought.The Elite Warrior headed off deeper into the wasteland,scanning for any parts he could use.But it soon became apparent that no technology familiar to him was there.As advanced as this dimension appeared to be,its technology was still centuries behind that of his race.`` Bliztak!`` Zudamee growled,taking out his frustration on a nearby heap of trash.

Much to his suprise,a human sized creature scrambled out of a hole in the heap.``Who do you think you are,knocking over a guys home like that!?``It jibbered,wiping dust out of its eyes.As soon as it cleared its vision,it turned towards Zado.``And another thi...MmMmMmMONSTER!``It screamed as it got a good look at the Elite.At the cry,a dozen more strange creatures scrabbled out of various crevices,then fled the area.Zudamee,utterly confused,decided to head back to the group...

[Galen]

Pennance...

Pennance for his undeniable sin......

The Chamber of Night was beyond dark now, beyond hope itself; they had lost, there was no escape. No amount of self-pity would bring his friends, his familly- his people- back. Only he and a few others were left, left to wallow in the hell that was once Mazainmaoz'rsuwirku,his beloved land of Eternity. On his throne, Fakulumasu(Galen) looked at who were left; a few boys, a dying man, his old handmaid - Beyrkuluku was always strict with him when he was a boy, but now he had to be strong for her and the others - and his father's old retainer, Mabeyrbuarkubeyr. Gliding down towards his last subjects, FaluRuav'anmaoz'rbeyrkithkinruav(Glimmerdoom) in his hand, Fakulumasu struck at the ground, the very fabric of their dimension tearing apart, revealing a wilderness in some other world; he would get them to safety, but knew he could never join them. "Please my dear friends, you must go now, I--" But as he spoke, another tremor struck at the Citadel of Luqu'evsukuzainkuoz'rg'een(Lunatari), sending more and more debris down on their heads. "Go! Now!" With a wave of his hands, the air around them made a scoop, carrying them right into the tear. Another cut, into the same place, and they were safe. He, on the other hand, would never be safe. They, or it, took everything from him, and there was no way he could ever take them back. Using the last of his power, Fakulumasu struck hard at the air, his Glimmerdoom tearing one last portal. After this, he would never be able to use the full extent of his powers again; his home was his pinneacle of strength, the pilar wherein he delved into for the opwer to protect and deal justice, no more.

Gliding easilly onto the barren ground, though metallic debris was strewn all across the landscape, Fakulumasu floated half a foot from the ground, his silky raven-black hair, going to his waist, blew slightly in the wind, as did his deep blue cape. The light of the evening sun made his Plate glimmer brightly, armor fit for a king, but made to protect the life of whomever dons it. Fakulumasu looked at his shoulders in sorrow; they were made to look like Buarwirsufa , his Mercury dragon, whom died in battle, and in vain. On his left, the perfect likeness, on his right, a skull replica.

His Glimmerdoom back in its black sheath, Fakulumasu glided across the few meters to the pile of what seemed like metal; strange, these looked like the machines that his adversaries often used, he never had any use for them, his once-incredible magicks and control over nature, as well as his deadly swordsmanship skills, were more than enough to topple more than one of his opponents. From slightly afar, he could see humanoid shapes, one vaguely familliar; the one with the hole in his shirt, his aura was familliar to him. In a mer two minutes, he had come close enough so that the companions could see him.

When Dreiks turned, he was taken aback; Galen Kiuchenathus Loiren, son of Enoreth Loiren, known to many as the Eternal Emperor, was standing(floating really) just before him. The others turned in unison to see the man, his delicate features took on an almost sylvan feature, though there was something more, and his eyes; they were those that had seen too many die, too much suffering in his time. After the initial shock of an old comerade, Dreiks looked to his companions, then back to Galen. "Well well, it has been a long time, hasn't it? Why in the hells would yoube way out here?" Galen said nothing, but his eyes took in a darkness, a taint that was never there before. "Daladar and the others, where are they at?" The Emperor turned his head away, tears brimming to the brink. "What's wrong With 'im?" Yume asked, looking more intently at the scene. The priest could tell volumes already, but decided against telling them, yet. "well man? You wouldn't be here unless..." Dreiks was one for cold, cruel logic, most of the time, but nothing would seperate Galen from his home, except calamity. He already knew what had transpired now, it was all over his face. "Wir buarwirkyullhes zainkith fakith buarwirzainhes. Wir heakuvaimme sukithzainheswirsufa... byulumakyullma. (I wish to go with you wherever you go. I have nothing... please.)

" You really are weak now, aren't you?" Dreiks murmured, looking at his ancient aquaintance. He could sense something missing in him, but it was hard to tell; it did not matter, thast wasn't his problem. Yume looked him up and down, then turned to Ancolyte. "What do you guys think, five a crowd?"

The priest looked at the tall man; for a humanoid being, he rivaled the height of Zado, standing at a good 8'7". Fakulumasu steeled himself, his face like stone. " Zainheswirkyull ruavwirfaheszain kyullmadesruav kyullqu'evbeyrexmasu, mavaimasu kyullzainoz'rkusufama kusubeyr luqu'evbeyrwirkaloz'rkithqu'evkyull, nylqu'evzain lioskithqu'ev ruavqu'evkyullzain zainoz'rqu'evkyullzain ruavma. Wirzain wirkyull wirruavbyumaoz'rkuzainwirvaimma tu'nkithoz'r ruavma zainkith leymadesbyu kallukithkyullma zainkith lioskithqu'ev, wir heskithbyuma wir heskuvaimasu'zain kithtu'nujmasubeyrmabeyr vaimkithqu'ev." (This might seem sudden, even strange and ludicrous, but you must trust me. It is imperative for me to keep close to you, I hope I haven't offended you.)

Ooc: Well, he can't speak english, so I'll write it in his language(I made it myself, and I still can't write it without looking at the alphabet) and then in english. Is that okay? I thought it'd be fun. He's telepathic though, so he might not need to speak much. I edited it because i thought that the end was a little short, I mean, I didn't even explain what I was doing there. I really AM getting rusty.

[ March 15, 2005, 05:35 PM: Message edited by: Galen ]

[Slife]

Dreiks heard a muffled grunt from underneath him, and jumped in suprise. This elicited a yelp, and the tan huminoid arm he had taken for scrap thrashed wildly. From under the pile issued a voice, "Would you get off of me?"

Dreiks moved back, wary of the talking scrapheap. He lead rest of the group in training their weapons on it, prepared for an attack. Another hand snaked its way out of the pile, followed by a matching red-visored helmet. It turned to look at the group. "Are you always so suspicious? Is there no brotherly love in the world? Is anyone going to dig me out?"

A two foot-long green dragonfly-like robot buzzed around his head, and then started to remove scrap metal, using its claws and mandibles to reduce slabs of inch-thick steel plating into slightly smaller slabs, with the excess dumped to the side. Once his neck was free, the figure managed to stand up, showering the assorted metal around him.

He turned to the group, after straightening his neck. The dragonfly landed on the dust-coloured robot's shoulder as he said, "I see you aren't affiliated with" a hand gesture encompassed the smoke-spewing factories "them. In that case, I am willing to join your group. My ship is currently somewhere, or rather everywhere in this junkyard, so I'm not leaving that way. Even if by some miracle I managed to get something flyable, they'd just shoot it down again."

Pistols and a strange bladed dagger flashed in his hands, and then suddenly were gone again. The air around him shimmered for a second, and he nodded approvingly. “I seem to be in good shape. Is there anything else who we're waiting for?”

As he waited for a response, the robot polished dirt off the center his chest plate, revealing a small gem set in the center, and more of the same dull metal. He then turned his attention to the ends of his shoulder pauldrons, making sure the raised areas towards the end were absolutely clean. With that out of the way, he started cleaning his visor, for a split second looking like a demented pirate who had just discovered the joys of entomology .

Zado arrived just as a member asked where “that blasted lizard” was. Fortunately, he didn't notice the comment, being more preoccupied with investigating the new additions to the group.

Ghona's armament

[ March 14, 2005, 09:56 PM: Message edited by: Slife remembers the Home ]

[Repster™]

Aidan sighted as he tossed some of his small supply of whiskey on his various small cuts. Upon contact with his blood it flared up, a regretful look appeared on his face at the sight. This was much faster and more efficient then ingesting it, which was proved but only leaving a slight welt were a cut was, but that was some of the best whiskey he ever tasted. He did not bother waiting for the others or looking at the new companions as he gracefully hoped down. It was an easy feat. Having so many objects to leap from one to another. He wanted solid land under his feet. Those unaccustomed to his company found it strange that not a single thing moved, or made a sound where he stepped. Especially at the seeming force and speed he flew from each. His senses drew in as he landed fully. Some had flared up in a mile radius not knowing what was around him. They always lost efficiency when they were all spread out so much. Most times he could only tell something was there, not what. Very frustrating when it happened. He let everything wash over him as he stood there waiting for the others. He could not help but feel disappointed by the new arrivals.

He could not help but mentally scorn Galen. He had become so pathetically weak. He did not think of his power itself, that had retained some decency. Galen's spirit though, that Dreiks had lost almost all respect for. Such a simple thing to bring him to his knees. Such a simple thing to shatter his will. How many times would the man have taken his own life, or lost it by a thug with a knife, if he had lived threw what Aidan had. He was a fool to think he had lost everything. He had his weapon, his armor, and his life. Heck, that armor itself was a memento to some of what he had lost. Aidan had nothing to remind him of what he had lost. He had wished for something more then memories, yet had found nothing. The thought of it brought a sad smile to his face. An amused one took it's place as the thought of what Lycrios must feel towards him passed in his mind, especially as the growl he emitted proved it. He had not made a good impression on the son of wolves.

The robot was different. It was not itself that quirked Dreiks ire. It was why he had been built, or how he saw it. It was obviously made for combat. The fact that someone would design something to fight for themselves was almost unthinkable. The again, age did affect others. It might not be what he thought of after all. Maybe it was not designed as a combat model originally. No, the robot did not deserve his scorn for any other reason then that the three shared.

Lycrios was only shunned for that same reason. The monk could have no other reason. They were too much a like in thinking and experiences for that. Surviving death numerous times with each other did that. Not to mention another deep bond they shared.

No, all three were mostly unwelcome for the simple fact that he could not, or would not, sink his fangs into they're flesh and drink of they're blood. That was also why he had leapt down. The cravings were beginning. At this stage they were easily handle, yet just being close to Yume made them worst. He hoped he could find someone to sink his teeth into soon enough. He cursed that being once again, setting bloodlust running threw his veins, yet also being much to foul tasting to quench it. Well, what was a few days craving fresh blood? He had purposely made himself be in a state of pure bloodlust for a week surrounded by a dozen tasteful maidens only to develop his ability to handle the cravings. He even took the slightes taste of each before hand to make sure bloodlust would eventually consume him.

He took a swig for his canister his ears picking up Lycrios growl towards Galen once again. Now, just as long as he did not run out of booze and be stuck in a cold, cloudy place. He might just keep his sanity from slipping again. Then again, there were many people beginning to join the party. One of them might just eventually prove to be more then a temporary annoyance. He sighed shaking his head. He needed to regain full control again. He was loosing his cool. He could not help a chuckle at the last thought. Cool was not a word often used to describe his state of self. How could it when he was most comfortable having a body temperature that would kill a human? He reminded himself to make sure it was around where it should be, and the smirk shifted slightly. Why he bothered to check was a sign of order taking a slightly too tight reign on his mind. That was never a good thing. Too much order felt like a cage. It also made him act practically, like thinking something related to his sneaking did not work perfectly even when it was maintained unconsciously.

He pushed away those thoughts and let those Lycrios' scent had brought consume him. This led to the most devastating, horrible, and painful moments of his life. Those particular memories where never nice. This would have brought him down on his knees in tears at most times. Instead it only amused him slightly as he let the tirade wash over him. This was no time to let a weak thing like emotion controle him. Funny he thought of emotions as weak at that moment. Rage never lead him to weakness. His attention was soon divided on his thoughts, his surroundings, and everybody close by. It was almost like having over a dozen people chitering wildly at the same time in his mind. None about the same thing, an event to render any man insane, but what could it do to one already mad?

[Sarai and Samiel]

Yume turned to watch Aidan as he headed down the scrapheap a ways, watching him thoughtfully. It looked, to her, as though there was something a bit wrong with or for him. In spite of two of the abruptly arrived three being, apparently, friends of his, they seemed to irk him somehow. The immensely prideful Lycrios not nearly so much as the extremely tall man. The last foot or so of her tail lashed slowly as she watched Dreiks alight a good hundred feet down the slope.

Meanwhile, Ancolyte had begun the welcomings, having noted that Yume gave no objections to the additions to the group.

"Well then," the priest uttered cheerily, "I am fairly sure we aren't waiting for anything in particular, so that would probably be a 'no'. May I welcome you to our monster-hunt?"

<Monster hunt?> Galen questioned, in his odd, overly-elaborate language. <What sort of a monster are you hunting? Is there any way in which I can help you? Serve some purpose?>

Most of those present had not even the faintest idea what the former Emperor of the land of Eternity was saying. Dreiks might have, but he was far out of earshot now, and Lycrios did not notably respond to the large man's utterance, instead cutting in with a few words of his own.

"This promises to be interesting." He half-muttered. Then, more audibly, "Sure. Nothing quite like beating the **** out of a big 'scary nasty monster'." This last was spoken in a slightly mocking tone of voice, and while Galen could not understand the words, the tone of voice and the mental impression was rather distinct. He did not notice, for whatever reason, Yume abruptly beginning to smolder slightly.

<I do not think it would be a good idea to dismiss any foe so easily.> He stated, cautiously. <Often we are sorely surprised by that which seems much less than it is- and even that which appears to be very great, can be far, far greater still.>

"Shut up, you!" Lycrios growled. "You have no idea-"

"You have no idea what you're talking about." Yume declared, her casual half-slur abruptly gone. Her voice, normally fairly quiet, was abruptly sharp and quite audible despite her facing away from the others. "You are welcome to help us, because I know that if the thing we are after still exists, we are going to need every last bit we can get, but trying to trivialize this only makes you look like an idiot, and an *******."

That said, she hopped down to follow Aidan's path, absently noting that he was putting away his flask- he must carry that thing absolutely everywhere. Then again, she wasn't one to speak, given how all that she owned was about her person. Her long, scaled tail trailed behind her as she moved, using different rebound points from the bare-chested man who had preceded her. While she was not able to prevent more than a few of her chosen landing spots from shifting after her passage, her motion was, impressively, smoother down the slope than Aidan's had been, though it gradually roughened out to about the same.

Lycrios was still blinking as Ancolyte shook his head, smile seeming a bit strained as he looked at the lycanthrope, then turned himself to proceed at a much more leisurely pace down the junkheap.

Ghona and Zado were much less circumspect about their traveling, not so much darting and bouncing from point to point as plowing their way through the mostly metallic garbage, trusting their respective armors to protect their feet. Galen followed after, hovering ever-so-slightly above the jagged metal, making it a non-issue.

As he also moved to head after the others, Lycrios glanced at the spot Yume had been standing in when she spoke, and shivered slightly. Something about her tone of voice.... He may have been very sure of what he could do, but his instincts, stronger in one more connected with their 'animal' side as he was, told him that he would have to be fairly stupid to continue making declarations about how easy this would be. Not so much from danger out of the 'monster' the group was apparently after, as from the idea that it would put himself on Yume's enemy list.

He did not know why, but as he headed down the slope, last of the group, he got the impression that said list was a very short one, for more than one reason.


Repster did not turn to look as first Yume, then the others, arrived behind him, instead staring off away from the junkheap peak at the edge of forest just visible in the distance.

"I saw some people here..." Zado mentioned, as the group regathered. "They seemed... surprised... at my appearance. The technology here is... woefully inadequate."

Yume nodded slightly, in affirmation, before turning to look at the others. "I think we should make fer th' forest. Anyone disagree with that?"

"I like it." Lycrios opined, not much caring for the odors of oil, metal, and rubber about the area.

Ancolyte tossed in his own two bits as well. "It is as good a direction to go as I can find."

"Awright." Yume declared, getting no contrary opinions. "Forest it is. This is gonna be a bit of a hike, so any o' you not used t' exercise might wanna stretch a bit." She paused, looking at the others, then nodded to herself.

"Floaty guy," She indicated Galen, "If you c'n unnerstand me, I want you to go up high a bit, about five hunnerd feet er so, an' keep a lookout. You see anythin' movin' around looks dangerous, you come down an' tell Aidan here. Werewolf," This to Lycrios, "Go ahead an' scout for'ard a bit on th' ground. Rest of us'll all move together. Walkin' speed, everyone, on account 'a we gotta let Ancolyte keep up."

Directions given, she turned, and began hiking down into the first of a series of valleys in the junkyard, not having to leap anymore due to the much more shallow slopes. Not once did Yume look to see if any of the others were either following or following directions, for two reasons. One was that she remained as alert as ever, and since she usually travelled alone, she would be more than able to take care of herself. The other was that she trusted that the others would do what they felt was appropriate.

Silence seemed to be the order of the day for a while, Yume not inclined to talk, Aidan occupied by his slowly growing bloodlust, and the others more or less doing their own things.

It was Ancolyte who began humming first, and then singing softly, though he soon found that Yume was quite energetically whistling along with the tune. It went a little bit like so:

Rova,
Madrigada,
Almapela
Dasadan tera.
O sin ko
Un pen da vo
La graja

Tran tro dran
Le guda perrar
Le rechu do se
Shu padu vendugrijo
Mas mentu
Bi kela
Ve tseoch
Grandu, grandu, grandu..

And onward. The whole of the thing lasted a few minutes, and then, as Ancolyte was preparing to begin another softly sung song, he was interrupted in his choosing by Yume starting to sing gently as she hiked. In fact, as he watched the nominal leader, she did not seem to even be entirely aware that she was singing.

Zado blinked a few times at the first song, but remained quiet as he moved, and Aidan simply smirked slightly, a bit amused. Ghona, on the other hand, was wondering if this was some sort of traveling ritual. Perhaps he should try to join in, but he was not sure at all of the song, and instead left the scaled woman to her singing. Even Ancolyte did not participate in this one, it being unfamiliar even to him. In fact, its language was unfamiliar as well.

A bo s'ka zha ikimali...
A bo aka zha mikimali...
A bo zhaka zha mikipani...
A bo toepani, toepani...

A bo s'ka yu toemali...
A bo aka yu toemali...
A bo zhaka yu toelali...
A bo toepani, toepani...

Toebae ipani...
Toebae ipani....
Toebae.... ilarnoi...

Yume sang, and it had pretty much no meaning to any of the others. Not that she seemed to care any. So it went, a long, and not particularly interesting hike, though occasionally there would be a scrape of metal at some distance (Zado kept looking, but did not see any other of the people he had found previously), or something of color and interest amongst the heaps of trash, but mostly it was a long walk through a lot of silvery steel and black plastic. Yume stopped singing after a song that could probably have been called 'K'fazho Kukyuma' for all the times the phrase was repeated throughout the body of it, but the walking continued for several more hours, mostly to a hummed refrain of 'I Would Walk' by Ancolyte, which precipitated a momentary growl at him from the mildly irritable Aidan.

It was excusable, after all, it took nearly an hour for the man to tire of hearing the tune repeated over and over.

Whichever way it was, it had turned out that their arrival was somewhere in the noontime hour, and as the sun began to go down, Lycrios returned to the group, as did Galen, and the seven travelers gathered in the lee of a small tower of what might have been industrial freezers and small dock cranes.

Looking around, Yume found herself at a bit of a loss. "Um. Anybody got any firewood er somethin'?"

((Okay, I leave the details of what goes on as our group makes camp to all of you folks. Nothing of any real import is going to happen tonight (thread time), so feel free to converse and whatnot.

Try and make things interesting with the camping and whatnot, and remember- any food is going to have to have been brought. Yume's got a little for herself, but it's pretty much trail rations and whatnot, granola bar sort of a thing.

Interact! Develop character! Enhance realism! And don't forget: It's not a movie, people take potty breaks!

I will be accepting ONE more participant between this post and my next, so if anyone wants in, now is the time.

Amusedly,
Reiko))

[ March 23, 2005, 06:40 PM: Message edited by: The Willful Wanderer- Reiko Kameno ]

[Zado Zudamee]

In Response to Yumes request,Zado whips out his plasma rifle and targets a small mound nearby.The Elite fired off a few shots,enough to set the trash ablaze.Warmth soon flowed across their makeshift campsite,the plasma sure to keep burning through the night.Zado reattaches his plasma rifle to his belt,then takes a seat on a trash module.As the others began to converse,Zado gazed sadly up at the stars,realizing just how far away from home he was.Even the constellations were different...

Zudamee finally gave up trying to loacte a familiar constellation,clicking his mandibles resignedly.He then decided to listen to the others speak,but his thoughts still dwelt upon his home planet...

[Repster™]

Zado was then shocked at what happened. The fire suddenly snuffed itself out. What could possibly cause such a thing. Then Aidan spoke, turning from watching the last rays of the sun , his voice filled with disgust.
"Ugh, seriously man. Well, ...wait, now that I think about it. Do you even have a gender? Anyway, what's wrong with you? Setting trash of all things on fire? Do you have any idea what it was you just set on fire? Sheesh, this place does not need anymore pollution then it already has. Not to mention the stench it brought. Ugh, I feel sick from the small exposure to those disgusting polluted flames."
He waved his hand and a flame appeared a foot off the ground. There was no difference from it then the burning trash in Zado's eyes but the strange human seemed to have been calmed by it's apearence. Where had it come from? Was his technology so advance to be able to conceal such a device? The monk's eye was staring straight into the sun again.

Mentally Dreiks berated himself. Having now over three dozen voices speaking at once it had it's advantages for such a thing. He was starting to loose himself again becoming irrated so easily. He shook his head, no matter, it would pass.
"Squirrel?" Lycrios voice asked from pulling out a locked book from his gear.
That simple word, of course, confused the others. What would a squirrel have to do with anything?
"Death." Ansered Dreiks in a slightly heavy voice. It was just a tinge, but just the lack of amusement common to him made it seem quite heavy indeed.
"Which one?" The werewolf asked as his eyes picked up more glow then ever in the firelight.
"Death." Lycrios nodded at the monk's word. Aidan had not taken his eyes away from the horizon. He heard the metallic click of the lock and soft scratching of pen on paper. Such little affect from a wound that had caused much more harm then the scar stretching across most of his body.

"You know, we might have a problem after awhile with the big man there." A simple jerk of his head easily identified the werewolf.
"Oh? What would that be?" Ancolyte asked. It was obvious the pyromaniac was not referring the the obvious problem of a full moon might bring.
"I've seen guys his size eat more then they're share. He makes then look like a bunch of anorexic." His voice regained it's amused tone as he heard Lycrios grunt. Of course, the muscled warrior did not try and denying the claim. That would only prove futile, he would prove Dreiks correct soon enough.
"Ancolyte, before Yume tells us exactly what we will need to take done, it would be nice for you to enlighten me on how you saw me get beat to death. I've found that such small unimportent things can spark important memories"
He chuckled, death truly was an insignificant thing to him. He could not count how many times he laughed into it's face and proved those that thought him dead wrong.
"Once it was even just a..." His voice stopped dead. One particular mental voice's thought was strange. It was whole. That was not how his mind usually worked in this state, or ever for that matter. It usually had five or six randomly speaking a word of it. He had come to decipher it easily as speaking but what could be so special about this one? Why would a complete thought come threw.

To many, not enough. Much to many, once not enough.

How could he have died to many times, yet have died less times then needed. A strange thought even for himself. The same voice spoke clearly once again.

Failure, shame, sadness, loss, rage, death, destruction, wrath. How could I fail her. Why did I failed her...

He clutched his head as pain as his entire mind and soul shook with those last words. Every voice screamed as one, he barely even noticed the mental images that bust forward like a broken dam. They're mad flickering caused everything to simply worsen. They all screamed in inhuman voices each with a different emotion. Yet, those three words were all the same.

I failed her

The fire in the middle of the group burst with more life then ever, echoing the mad shrieking in his mind. Those three words were shouted into Galen's mind with painful force. If it harm his highly developed mind, he could not imagine the agony Dreiks felt. How could anything survive that kind of pain? Or even experience it. Then slowly they're source of warmth calmed itself back down and the pain subsided. Those words were nothing but a silent echo. Once again the constant buzzing in the madman's head began again. It was comforting to have regained the mindless droning.

"By the eternal flame...what was that. Ugh, doesn't matter,I'll figure it out eventually. Damn, going to feel that in the morning..."
His hand brought his whiskey to bare and a few gulps later he clipped it back into place. This was no time to ponder the strange inner workings of his mind. He had information to gather.
"Are ya goin ta do dat often?" Yume asked quzzicly tilting her head.
"Nah, just the insanity hitting me like a sac of bricks thrown down a plane. Been awhile since it did that. Head's going to feel like it got crushed for awhile. Anyway, just try and ignore what just happened. Telling me right now might bring back a relapse, so let's leave that particular story for later."
His amused smile returned, now as soon as that echo subsided for some time it would be safe to start trying to figure out what was going on in that crazy mind of his. So his mind wandered elsewhere. Mostly around exactly what he still had in his pouches. Each being magically imbued to carry much more then they're size could surport, they're was a lot. Each voice buzzed and mentioned one thing or another while a few more appeared keeping watch of everything around him.

He drank deeply from his flask again. Yume vaguely wondered if he lived off the stuff. He did nothing to prove her wrong. Considering who this was, not doing so might just mean it was true. He fell back in soft laughter and closed his eye. He doubted sleep would overcome him, but closing off one sense helped him calm himself. Soft laughter escaped his lips as he thought of the monks that had taken him in as a child. They had only made one mistake that set him on his current path. They forgot just who the child had been. He smiled as almost everything in his mind was taken back to that time. Good times, peaceful times. Times when he had no worries. He missed those times, but most of all he regretted the fact that he could never truly go back. Of course that was not counting the fact that the monastery had been completely destroyed. He lay there, his mind going back to simpler happier times. Of course, he knew he would be brought back into reality soon enough, but it was nice to enjoy such simple things while they lasted.

[Galen]

The Eternal Emperor looked at his new companions, letting out a silent sigh. He missed the days with his old companions, but those days were gone now, swallowed up. Only memories were left for him now. Asthayanax, Daladar, Amonthalas...

Abruptly he came to his senses. Galen looked to the others; Lycrios was scribbling in his book, Ancolyte was leaning back on a piece of trash near the flame - certain things were commonplace around him - Yume was sitting a little apart, so was Zado, though he was slightly intrigued by the hovering flame projected by Dreiks, of course Aidan was leaning back, eye closed. The thoughts inside his head crashed into Galen's mind like the clear waters under the cliffs of the Claria Spire in Elunitari. Though he was gifted with many powers, helping others with their psychological aches, wether natural or not, could not be so with the limitations of his powers, however strong. His mind was strong enough to levitate him to great heights, as well as feel things in the air, the ground, even the waters. The smells carried on the winds were mixed, some were strange new scents that he had never come across before. Though animals were in the forest looming nearby.

Galen hovered near Ancolyte, who's gaze still lingered on the flame. " Lioskithqu'ev kyullmahesruav zainkith duaqu'evwirzainma leymsukithbuarlumabeyrfamakunyllume. Ruavkulios wir?" (You seem to be knowledgeable, May I?) Galen had lain his hands on Ancolyte's head before the elder one had come back from the deepness of his thoughts. A chilling sensation, then the feeling of having something swirling in your head came and went as fast as Galen had laid his hands on the priest's head. Looking up at the Emperor with a look of curiosity, Ancolyte was tempted to ask what he had done, but the answer came to him in the form of a question. " You can understand me now sir?" Dreiks only spared a second of a look at his direction; he already knew Galen's methods. The Elite turned his eyes toward the Emperor before looking back to his surroundings. "You seem to speak english now," Ancolyte began, looking at Galen straight into his angular eyes. "Are there any other things you'd like to show us?" Galen looked at him for a long moment before bending low to mutter something into his ear. "It took my world." was all he said before floating off into the night sky, gathering winds into his direction.

Lycrios caught a glint of the long-haired man's blade, it's slender form making it seem like it would break with the slightest of pressure; but he knew better. It seemed to him like a jag of crystal wreathed in flame and water, making it shift and change colors, from deep blue, to light, to a deep indigo, and even a brackish obsidian.

It sensed the others down below its master; how it loathed them, their feeble forms, so unlike its master. It loved its master, its kind meciful master. He let it live when it could have been destroyed by the Light, the burst of magic that killed its former master. It still remembered the one who mutilated its former master; she was the one below, but if its new didn't want to kill her, it couldn't disobey orders. Though, it could still feel the Worm far from here. It took on a deep pulsating indigo light around itself, its blade swinging slowly in the wind, the deadly edge cutting the wind and air itself, making it scream with every foot higher in the air. Glimmerdoom would somehow get back to its true master.

[Zado Zudamee]

OOC:I apologize for the short posts,But I have limited computer time.

As Zado took in the warmth of the fire,both of his stomach began to rumble with hunger.Elites,like many large reptiles,ate very large meals between long intervals of time.Zudamee cursed himself for not packing any food,as he had not eaten for 3 cycles.``Do any of you carry Bulgarian Marshcrawlers?``He asked...

[Lycrios]

Lycrios glanced at the Elite with a look of confusion. Never had he heard of such a creature roaming this world. Maybe this was a creature of the same origins as the Elite, but it was of no bother to him. All this talk about food had made him hungry, although it didn’t take much for his appetite to be aroused. Although he was writing quite fast, a thing he had picked up over the years, he could not let the detail Aidan had just said slip his pages. The squirrel was no more. Although this sounded fairly unimportant to anyone there, Lycrios knew of true meaning of this unfortunate event. Although he did not want to ask right away about the cause of the little one’s demise, he knew that she had been a long companion to him. She was the one who could keep his insanity in check, most of the time. She had helped him through the times of the “fu-fu-fu”. Lycrios chuckled at the though of the insane monk, still sitting at the bar, gulping down glass after glass of whiskey to try and make them go away. Although at first he had never quit believed in the “fu-fu-fu”, it had become apparent after a while that they always appeared before danger struck. And it seemed an innate ability that the monk could only have, for he was the only one able to see the shadowy creatures. Still, none of this could even begin to bring comprehension as to what had brought the untimely demise of the squirrel.

He quickly finished scribbling down a few more sentences before returning his book to its secure location, inside his backpack. It had become a habit for him to carry around a book and write a journal of sorts. In his many years of existence, he had written several of these books. He kept them in his home, hidden somewhere in a forest so dense, even the bravest of adventurers rarely ventured into it’s shadows. The forest was renowned to hold horrors unimaginable for many. Most of the stories involved the wolves, either of monstrous size, of packs ranging from hundreds to thousands, and of wolves walking on their hind legs like humanoids. These stories christened the forest, The Forest of Wolves. Nowhere else did Lycrios ever feel more at home, that was why he had made his home in the deepest of it. There, many treasures were hidden, and his lifework, his books and weapons, were all lined up as trophies.

Though most of his books were hidden in his home, many were in the hands of great wizards, studying them, for his books held great knowledge. Many times where he had ventured to recollect his books, the secluded wizards would not want to return the valuable pieces, but soon found Lycrios’ methods of dealing quite direct. Most of the inexperienced wizards who had even attempted to read the books had fallen into insanity, for the books not only revealed Lycrios’ most inner thoughts, but also projected the images of what he had witnessed. That’s when he remembered Yume’s words. He turned to her, his yellow eyes glowing under the small light of the moon being able to pass through the smog. “ I am sorry if I offended you in any way by my words. It is just that, I’ve been through a lot in my many years of existence, as I am sure most of you have too.”

He paused. He was never good with apologies, he would have rather beat the other until his point of view changed to his own, but he knew somehow that this was not a thing to attempt with Yume. “It is not that I take what you have been through lightly, far from it. It’s just that, I have fought against creatures that have been said to wipe out entire races and survived. I have clashed swords with gods and demons all the like, with the help of the monk over there.” Lycrios glanced at the monk quickly, not knowing how he would react to the sudden jerk of memories. A smiled appeared at the corner of his lips. This was enough to give Lycrios assurance enough to continue. “ I know that what we might be facing could bring our end, but the meaning of death looses it’s hold on you when you have died a few times before. Trust me, I did not mean to seem arrogant or anything of the sort, it’s just hard for me to take anything as seriously now.”

He looked down at the ground. He realized at how much he had changed since the first time he had fallen. He didn’t think his eternal youth to be a burden, but sometimes, it was almost a strain too much to bear. Although he was not immortal, it seemed so to the many that had fought against him. His recklessness in combat was a direct link to his lack of fear of dying. And the same lack of fear had shaped him into the being he was today. A being he sometimes despised from his inner soul. Then, his stomach reminded him of something that had never changed in him. Aidan had warned the ones there, but they had no clue of what they were in store for. Lycrios pulled himself up and dusted his clothes. He then put two fingers to his lips and let the air vibrate through his fingers. The whistle began low and monotone, then shifted into a high pitched sound that seemed to go into a wave motion as the sound rose and fell in a slow interval. How this was possible, not many knew, for the whistle had only lasted a few seconds. No one said anything, but the Elite was aware that the sound could have attracted the critters he had seen, and kept a hand close to his weapons. Lycrios saw the move and snarled. “You better not take out those weapons in the next few moments. I say this to you as a warning. All of you, please do not be alarmed by what you are about to see.” Then, a voice rang out from above. It was Galen informing the group that something big was headed their way. Everyone stood up and prepared for a fight, all but Lycrios who simply sighed. “I told you, do not be alarmed.” As the sound of something big approaching got bigger, the words Lycrios had spoken were almost insufficient enough to keep them from pulling out weapons. Aidan had not moved at all, he was still lost in his thoughts.

When the head of the creature turn around a corner of trash and started heading their way, it took Lycrios’ hand on the Elite’s shoulder to stop him from pulling out any weapon he possessed on him. The wolf headed their way, or what looked to be a wolf. It was at least the size of a bear, maybe even bigger than the biggest of bears. It held a bloody dear in its powerful jaws. Lycrios walked confidently towards it. All watched at the sight when the man whispered something into the huge animals ear. The wolf then kneeled down and Lycrios mounted it, as if the creature had been trained to do so. “Everyone, I’d like you all to meet Nightstrike. Do not be alarmed by his presence, he is quite a docile creature, as long as no harm is meant towards me.” He rode the huge creature next to the fire and it let its prey drop to the floor. Lycrios liked his lips and jumped down. He began carving into the animal. His skill was remarkable and he had finished skinning and cleaning the dead dear in under an hour. At least half the meat had been put aside. Yume looked on. “You plannin’ on keepin’ that meat for later?” Lycrios looked at her with a puzzled look on his face. “What do you mean? This meat is for me, I just thought I’d share with you guys the other part. Nightstrike here tells me he has already feasted in the forest.” Yume just looked on, dumbfounded. Aidan chuckled, and his only response was, “I told ya.” Still, Yume had yet to believe that such an amount of meat was even physically possible to fit in Lycrios’ body. All her doubts vanished when he began feasting on his meat, not even taking the time to cook it on the open fire. The huge wolf stayed behind its master, curled up in a ball, seemingly half-asleep. Halfway through his meal, Lycrios stood up and took the skin of the deer and strapped it on the saddle in the back of the wolf with a few other skins of animals already there. No one had realized it when the beast had arrived, but a large saddle, with many various things strapped to it was attached to the mighty creature. Lycrios returned next to his pile of meat and lay back on his dire wolf.

------

OoC: I'm sorry this took so long.

[Zado Zudamee]

Zado watched as Lycrious devoured the hooved Mammal,considering what he had just heard.Finally,he reached a decision.``I am going into the forest to find food and scout out the surroundings.Would anyone wish to come along?``Zado said as he rose off the ground...

[Galen]

Galen floated nonchalantly down towards Zado, gliding about a foot above the damp grass to fall in beside the Elite. Zado nodded and trudged forth into the forest with the Emperor in tow, sword jouncing slowly on his hip.

[Repster™]

Aidan sighed as Zado and Galen "walked" away. Scouting. One bound by technology, the other by magic. Could they truly scout wilderness? Could they truly have any idea of what walked within nature's realm? Oh, of course the had they're respective skills to help them out there, but Dreiks doubted they were any good at tracking in the old ways. Tracking, and scouting by simple knowledge of nature itself. Being able to read movement, life and the land in such simple ways gave him more pride then the use of a simple spell or any sort of machinery.

He rose a hand and Lycrios tossed him a chunk of meat. The meat burst into flame before reaching his hand and extinguished itself in his grasp. He looked at it a moment. Strange for him to be picky with the blood he would ingest. Oh, in the heat of battle he would gorge himself on the stuff around for the simple reason that it was there. Yet in calm times when his blood was cool he was quite picky indeed. Of course, cool could only be defined as a comparison. His blood would still burn flesh, just not quite as much as was possible. His was picky about the blood, but meat was a different story. He could not think of many creatures he would not eat unless starving. Coming from one that could live off ale for a month, and the stronger the brew the longer and in better shape he would survive. He chewed the remains of the agile creature slowly. He was in no position to east with any speed. A fine creature. Good health to produce such good meat. Only the slightest hint on fear taste in it. Nightstrike had been as quick and vicious as ever. Yes, a fine creature to have lived long enough to fear.

He leapt up and stepped in the opposite direction. Unfortunately that slowly bought him closer to the city.Well he was still far enough from it to only feel uncomfortable and not sick. Well, not for that reason anyway. After reliving himself and making sure nothing was close enough to tell he let his guard down. For one that was always on guard and never showed weakness, he truly did need to make himself let it down.He sighted before coughing out a chunk of blood that sizzled on the cold metal beneath his feet. He closed his eyes removing his eye patch as the old scar burst open. He could almost see the weapon that caused it. He felt the agony as it ripped into his flesh as the blood splattered and sizzled. He blinked, and smiled. He could always see her when this happened. Such a pretty face, he never was able to bring himself to strike her. Of course, if she had not incapasatated him with that attack, he probably would have. He groaned as his organs regenerated and flesh knitted. His eye had already repaired itself as soon as the passing blade had finished it's cut. He slipped the eye patch back over the glowing orb and sat down for a moment. He chuckled, ignoring his bodies painful protesting, as his blood dissipated. Even it would no be tracked down. Of course, the singed and slightly melted alloys gave away that something had happened, but not what.

He got to his feet smoothly. He felt weak and tired, yet look in the prime of health and moved like it. He arrived back in camp and settle back sitting against a random solid object.
"Where did ya run off ta?" Yume asked tilting her head.
"Hehehe, I may be no moral, yet a mortal body I live in. It is such a bother to eliminate liquid waste products." he chuckled. Unfortunately he was cut off by violently coughing out another batch of blood.
"Flame, almost ruptured a lung. That's going to sting for awhile. Added blood lost won't help." He pulled out a simple piece of cloth and wiped his mouth. To they're questioning stairs he traced the scar with a slight smile. Of course, Lycrios was much to absorbed in his meat to bother with such a trivial thing. He had been there when the wound was made. He had no need of any explanation.
"The gods strongest of weapons wielded by an expert hand does not leave a wound that can be simply shrugged off, especially when said wound almost cleaves you in half. Not even by me." He chuckled at that. A wound he could not shrug off did not come about often, even since the incident with the traitors.

[Boolean]

((Reiko invited me to come join you folks. I hope I'm able to live up to the high standard you all have set for the thread!))

A distant cry suddenly reached the reposed group's ears. "No! Wait!"

A few heads popped up in alarm. Who said that? Who wanted them to wait? Ancolyte stopped short, but he showed no alarm as he turned his head bemusedly to one side, toward the noise. This could prove interesting.

Yume and Aidan stood, and cautiously moved up the slight hill that blocked the speaker from their view. Before they crested it, they heard a faint but unusual sound, reminiscent of a balloon being sucked into a vacuum cleaner. Yume's eyes widened at the odd familiarity of the bizarre sound, and she scrambled the rest of the way up the heap of parts.

When they saw the apparent source of the cry, they realized it hadn't been directed at them at all. A lanky bipedal figure was loping on a path roughly parallel to their own, laden with a double armload of something. "Awww, NO!" He -- for the voice had sounded male -- had been moving at quite a pace, but his posture already held a defeated slouch as he slowed and finally stopped at a point in the heap that looked entirely like any other point in the area.

The ensuing moment of hesitant silence was broken by the clattering of rubbish, as the figure unceremoniously dropped a double armload of scavenged parts on the ground. He trembled slightly, oblivious to the bodies cautiously moving toward him, lost in his... laughter?

The figure wasn't human, though it obviously shared at least some human traits. Loose blue jeans billowed our around his long legs, and a simple green T-shirt covered his back. In an interesting nonsequitur, his front was covered with a plain white apron, complete with some bulging pockets in the front. A pretty normal outfit on the whole, though it did clash with the brown-spotted gold colour of his arms.

He threw his head back and released the deep belly laugh that had been brewing within him, only faintly tinged with a telltale note of hysteria. "Ha ha ha ha... This is perfect!"

"Lost, my son?" Ancolyte spoke, a kindly grin on his wizened face.

The lanky figure instantly sobered. A slightly oversized footpaw hooked under a six-foot length of steel pipe, flipping it up to where the figure snatched it out of the air. He held it before him in a defensive stance, and his tail flicked agitatedly behind him.

Ah yes, that's what's so unusual about him. He's a feline, as those curious or worried enough to approach were noticing. He was spotted like a cheetah, though his head was covered by a dark, unruly brown lion's mane.

As his wary hazel eyes fell on the priest's face, he relaxed for a moment. The old human looked entirely nonthreatening, and refreshingly friendly, the kind of person you'd see out for a walk on a sunny Sunday afternoon. But the echo of a memory flickered across the feline face, and he again raised his guard.

"Boo?" Yume ventured. The figure twisted to guard himself from her as well with his makeshift staff, before his jaw fell in recognition.

"Yume?" he replied incredulously. Then, relievedly, "Yume! Man, are you a sight for sore eyes!"

"What t'heck are you doin' 'ere?" she asked skeptically, gloved fists resting on her hips, and her own tail twitching much like his.

Boolean smirked. "Oh, come now. When was the last time you saw me?"

"The pub?"

"Bingo. We got sent here after the fleeble honk wakka wakka," he said, or it seemed that way to anyone with less than genius levels of technical knowledge, "so I was scaring up some spare parts to try and bodge up some repairs." His smile faded into a grimace, and he stared again into the entirely normal space of air beside him. "Apparently, I took just a bit too long."

"It does explain th' apron," Yume acknowledged.

Boolean chuckled and nodded, propping up the staff like a steel walking stick. "Yep. How about you, what's your story? Are these your friends?" he added with a tentative wave and grin to those who had followed.

[Sarai and Samiel]

Junk. Scrap. Trash. Garbage. Refuse. Waste.

Nothing worth noting presented itself to the wandering Zado and Galen. Indeed, they were meandering about a forest- a forest of metal and plastic, useless down to the last piece. There was nothing to hunt here- nothing grew here. Even in a standard junkyard, there would have been growing things, wending their way up from the long-buried soil.... Not so here. It was as though someone had sheathed the ground below in steel plating or something of the like. There weren't even any insects or molds about.

Nothing organic. Nothing biodegradable. ...nothing with any *personality*. Even for Zado, used to the gleaming and shining surfaces of a high-technology society, this place was eerily dead, empty. He did not envy the strange people he had run across their existence. This would be a horrible place to try to scrape out a living.

For Galen, he did not even consider the possibility of someone living in the area. This was a graveyard for that which had never lived, and at the moment, only a place to pass through. Piles of ruined things, mostly unidentifiable and unnamed, loomed up out of the darkness as they were approached, and just as silently receded into unrecognisability as they were left behind.

Now far enough from their starting point that the dim light of the 'campfire' could not even be seen, the two found themselves getting more and more uneasy the farther they went- and still no hint of an end to the scrapheap. The forest that Yume had sighted must still be much further off.

Eventually, they could take it no more, and Zado, who still held the lead, pulled and about-face and started tromping back. He was fortunate they had traveled in a straight line- the indistinct shapes of the junkpiles would be too easy to confuse if he got the least bit muddled. One unexpected turn, and they could be lost completely out in the wasted mess.

With that unpleasant thought to spur them on, the two continued on their way back to the others.

***********

Yume blinked at Boolean, then turned her neck, looking over her shoulder at Aidan, Lycrios, Ghona, and Ancolyte. Her gaze remained on these as she spoke to the cheetah/lion/man.

"'M not sure. Aidan here-" She replied, indicating the shirtless man with a loose gesture from her right hand. "- 's what I'd consider a friend. Th' others, I ain't known long 'nuff. May as well innerduce, though. Already idennified Aidan, an' the guy with th' pointed ears calls 'imself Lycrios. Baseball-cap there is 'Father' Ancolyte," the quote around 'Father' was barely audible, "An' we don' got a name outta th' guy with Popeye Syndrome."

"Ghona." The robot supplied, then, "....Popeye Syndrome?"

Yume waved it off as she turned her head back to Boolean, her tail lashing a bit more slowly now. "As fer what's goin' on, 'm honestly not sure. You remember how I got ta th' pub, right?"

Boolean chuckled, still leaning on the stick, tail waving in amusement. "How could I forget? You fell from you-only-know how high, right into the beach. Come to think of it, I never saw you leave...?"

Waving her left hand in a beckon to follow her, Yume turned and strode back to the area with the small floating fire. "Yeh. That happens with me, ya know? I got this kinda... thing... I guess it kinda follows me, but 'm not sure." She paused to take a seat upon a handy- well, it *looked* like it used to be a rather small jet turbine. "Random times, it grabs me up an' throws me somewhere else. Us'ully somewhere from 'not again' to 'way the frack too high' off the ground"

The others proceeded to take seats themselves, mostly on miscellaneous pieces of scrap, though Ancolyte once more sat in a low point, leaning on a freezer storage unit that looked like it had been in an extended firefight. Boolean had grabbed a few of the more intricate-looking chunks of debris from the pile that he used to be burdened with before following Yume, and he set these carefully to the side as he chose his seat. To his surprise whatever it was that he sat on probably had been intended as a seat, giving slightly under his weight- just enough to be comfortable.

"C'n never tell when it's gonna hit, an' 'ceptin' the last two times, I'm th' only one gets yanked. 'S been actin' up a bit lately, but I got no idea where it's comin' from, so what c'n I do, ya know?" Extended canines showed as Yume gave a slight chuckle, glancing at Aidan. The master of flame had pulled out the remaining balls from his rainbow and begun to juggle once more.

"Anywho, these folks all jus' kinda decided ta start followin' me in some sorta questy thing er other. Not sure what th' quest is, though I got an idea." Her face darkened as she continued, and her casual slur began to drop. "An idea I don't like very much, I'll say that. 'S a pretty good chance that we're gonna wind up facing the one thing that I don't think anyone should ever have to face off with. Something you've seen, Boolean."

The cat-man's tail lashed slowly as he thought, subjected to the surprised glances of a few of the others. None came from Aidan, who was much too busy trying to get a good juggling stretch while missing three of the balls, though his curiosity was piqued.

Really, Boolean didn't have to think long to come up with the proper answer. He didn't say it right away, though. Mostly for wanting to make absolutely certain. After all, the last time he'd seen the thing, he had been assured by a supremely confident Ralter that it had been reduced to component atoms and used to coat the ever-teleplacing pub. However, the dragon-man's assurances had not been well-recieved by either Boolean or Yume. The maned bartender had had a feeling, and it grew now into a slightly queasy sensation. He had been right, back then, he knew. Ralter had been much too smug and confident, and now there was again a threat. A threat from...

"...Kry'tull." Boolean stated. Yume, tail still for a moment, nodded solemnly.

"Kry'tull." She echoed. "I've seen signs that It's about- or at least used to be. I couldn't tell how fresh the traces were, just that It was in a hurry when it left them. I hate to think about where It was hurrying to."

"Signs?" Lycrios queried. "This thing leaves tracks, then- marks and traces?"

Yume snorted. "More like a lack of them. Kry'tull is... partially outside of existence."

"Huh?" This from the robot.

"Well, it's like this.... Kry'tull's got a solid shape. I'd say 'bout three miles long around now. Like a giant... You ever read 'Dune'?"

The only nods came from Boolean and Ancolyte, so Yume sighed and began to explain.

"Imagine something like a freakin' huge earthworm, with skin like a snake. Its front end is a big mouth, with three.... um.... I'm not sure if they're jaws, lips, or what. But they close to a dull point when It wants. Inside that is rings and rings of teeth and teeth and teeth and... and teeth and... " Yume broke off to shudder, but continued. "'S got six eyes, three on each side of it's head in two rows. And there are these blade... spike... things. On its tail. Four sets of two, symmetrical. They're shaped kinda like... Hm. They poke out to the side a ways, and then curve sharply towards the tip of the tail, and extend that direction, slowly thinning to a point. Real nasty, sharp-edged and everything.

"But that's just the physical form. That's the *nice* part of Kry'tull. The nasty part is... Kry'tull 'eats' things. But nothing ever comes out. It's kinda.... It always wants to eat everything. No particular reason for it, I don't think it's capable of being hungry. It just wants to eat everything. Like some sort of simplified Cthulhu or something."

Lycrios shrugged. "That doesn't sound too dangerous."

Yume shook her head, and that sharp glare was back in her hazel eyes. "You don't get it. When I said 'Cthulhu', I meant it. Whatever Kry'tull eats doesn't get digested or killed or destroyed. It gets... UnDone." The capitalization was clearly audible, and Ancolyte blinked, leaning away from his backrest, suddenly interested.

********************

As Galen and Zado approached the camp, empty-handed and still rather empty-stomached, they could hear a discussion going on- or rather more like a Q&A session of some sort. It seemed like Yume was finally telling about what was going on.

"You have to understand, Kry'tull isn't, has never been, alive in the sense that most people mean. It's also definitely not natural. Kind of a synthesis of Reality and unReality." Yume was saying. Her left hand rose to forestall Lycrios' question, while her right waved at the two approaching, and gestured for them to take a seat. The dirty-brass-scaled woman didn't break rhythm at all. "Reality is a whole bunch of planes, of dimensions and organized clusters of dimensions. But, as infinite as each of these dimensions is, there are things that exist outside of these dimensions- and thus, outside of normal reality- outside of Nature. These are called SuperNatural. Some elementals, most deities, any of a number of monsters... plenty of things are SuperNatural. But they themselves, as well as all the realities, exist within a larger thing. That thing is Reality. There are a few, a very few things that exist outside even that. In UnReality. In a place where the only thing where there isn't anything isn't even nothing. There is no space to occupy, but there are still those few things there."

Yume paused to let this soak in. Ancolyte remained partially unscrutiable, though she had the inkling of a thought that the man had already understood this and had terms for it before she said it. Ghona just looked confused, and Boolean and Lycrios seemed to be following with some difficulty. Zado appeared to have lost interest. Interestingly, Aidan appeared to be understanding to a degree, and Galen was apparently fascinated. She glanced around at the others a second time, her tail curling the last few feet around forwards to wrap around her own wrist, letting her fingers play with the diamond pad at the end of it.

"Kry'tull... Mind, I was told this, I don't know it for sure, and I'm not sure if I believe it. But Kry'tull is supposedly the kind of thing that happens when something from UnReality manages to merge with something from a reality inside of Reality. Kry'tull... has no digestion. Whatever it eats, is UnMade. Whatever enters it, ceases to be. No longer exists, and cannot exist again. It's erased from all of Ever. *That* is what is most dangerous about Kry'tull, Lycrios. This isn't dying we're talking about. If Kry'tull consumes you, that's it. That's the end. No more."

Her right hand clenched on the cartilage spade, just enough to slightly crumple it, not so as to cause herself pain. "Because Kry'tull is partially from Reality, It has some limitations that it would not have otherwise. It actually has a speed limit- somewhere below mine and Aidan's. It suffers injury and pain, though it is almost as tough as myself, and uncountable times stronger. And, the thing that majorly slows it down in its UnMaking....

"It has to UnMake everything in a place before it can UnMake the place. Effectively, to finish its UnMaking, it has to pass through a place twice. Once to UnMake everything in it, and once to UnMake the place itself."

"That still leaves Kry'tull as extremely dangerous, though." Boolean observed, to which Yume gave a slow nod.

Galen opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by a grumble from Yume's stomach. Naturally, this reminded Zado that he had not eaten yet, as well as several of the others. With a wry grin, Yume turned her attention on Boolean.

"Say, Boo, we're kinda short on supplies. You wouldn'ta brought anything edible with ya, hm?"

"Sorry to disappoint," the feline apologized. "But I only came out to gather some parts, and..."

"Nah, nah. 'Sokay. Just hoping." She looked around at the others. "Eesh. Between Aidan, Zado, floaty-dude (I still don't know your name, by the way), Ancolyte, Lycrios *and* Ghona, we've got nobody as had th' presence of mind ta take food with 'em when they went ta go travelin'?"

The collective nod caused a groan to issue forth from the tailed woman. "Okay, okay. Us'ully I wouldn' use this, but we prolly won't get ta gather some supplies 'till we get ta th' forest- prob'ly tomorrow- and I ain' gonna make anyone do somethin' as bad fer 'em as walk a day on an empty gut."

So saying, she began rummaging in one of her much-bigger-than-it-appears shorts side pockets. The first thing to come out was a stack of CD shelves, full of various musics. This was joined by a black teflon case, apparently for a fairly small woodwind. Two remote controls followed, then a large, fluffy towel (teal with pale purple stripes). A pot of petunias, a PDA (with dead batteries), half a dozen small notepads, and what looked