There and Back Again

Potok

The Saiyan's tail wrapped around his waist once more, almost resembling a belt at a glance. He stretched his neck and shoulders a bit, seeming a bit disappointed.

"...Guess that was a good warm-up, or something...name's Bardock. The hell's this about a lizard?"

Bardock looked from Emi to Shuka, then Kled, Usalia and Damar.

{Lessee...human, probably human, not a friggin' clue, human with rabbit ears and...one a' those...forehead...guys...? The hell are they all grouped together for?}

"I'm guessing you're some kinda...crew? Lemme take a stab - mercenaries? Would explain why people're trying to arrest you...been there."

He tightens his headband, almost looking like he doesn't want to lose it. Weird considering the absolutely annihilated state of the rest of his clothing.

Well this girl looks absolutely petrified.

And Ms. Grackowski's comment visibly did not help◊.

"U-um..."

And then the music starts, so she has no choice! She has a surprisingly good singing voice for someone clearly nervous out of their wits.

It's around when she gets to the lyric "the magic flows through my soul" that sparks of electricity begin to dance around her fingertips. Further into the song, she punctuates certain notes with small, harmless bursts of fire from her hand. Her dancing is almost mesmerising, it's a routine that clearly wasn't made up on the fly - she definitely has experience dancing probably every day of her life. On top of that, her enormous ponytail moves almost with a mind of its own, even considering the energetic way she's dancing. It spins around her at times, completely disregarding momentum, gravity and all relevant laws of physics.

The hair, the magic, her attire...for anyone acquainted with magical creatures, it might become obvious. This "Shantae" girl is a genie.

Potok (Emi) and (Shuka)

Emi goes to answer, but Shuka quickly cuts her off.

"We said it before, we're the Blaster Pair, magical girls passing by!"

"I think he wants something a little more specific, Shuka..."

So Emi smiles a little, trying to seem polite and friendly. It seems like it's time for proper introductions!

"I'm Emi Sendou, a novice magical girl!"

Shuka, meanwhile, does a peace sign in front of her eye.

"And I'm Shuka, Emi's Card Fairy friend!"

Emi and Shuka both smile, almost as though they weren't just in a battle there...

"The two of us are on a journey, sort of..."

"Yeah, we're looking for someone!"

Although, as Shuka says that, the look in Emi's eyes grows a little more worried... Just who could they be looking for...?

The two girls look over at Bardock when he asks about the lizard.

"We heard a lizard was being held hostage, and we decided to step in and do something about it!"

"We couldn't leave someone in trouble!"

Edited by CrystalMemoria on Jan 26th 2021 at 7:14:55 AM

Hinata – The Woods

Hinata's eyes squinted shut in response to the headpat, and with a rather wobbly smile and a tomato-red face she nodded shyly; scrunching up her form to somehow make herself look even smaller. She unconsciously leant and let her head fall against Shoto's shoulder—the ‘knock’ almost audible as she stammered out a reply.

“...a-arigatō... gozaimasu, Shoto-kun... I-I feel a little stronger being around all of you guys...”

...Even that scary woman...

She sent a tiny, softhearted smile towards the green-haired woman at that. It was almost a thank-you, in a way. For having given her a little opposition.

It had been nothing in comparison to Neji, after all, who'd almost broken her through cutting words alone. But now, she felt a little stronger for it, and she knew she couldn't keep folding her cards for long.

Having people around her to both gently build her up and push her out of the proverbial nest when necessary was a good balance to have, in her mind. She'd just wished it hadn't taken her getting lost for her to get this balance.

Edited by Enirboreh on Feb 1st 2021 at 8:49:02 PM

Potok

"Corat Damar." Damar said with a smile on his face. "This is Usalia, and that guy over there is Kled, the owner of the lizard in question." he said, as he pointed to the were-rabbit and Yordle, respectively. Then he heard Bardock's question. "No, we're not mercenaries... to tell you the truth, we really only first met each other yesterday. But that's a... long story. Several long stories, actually. But ultimately, we're no more mercenaries than these guys..." he pointed to the dead and unconscious agents on the ground. "Are law enforcement." He was about to add something else, when his eyes widened as he remembered something critical. Something he'd forgotten about in the heat of battle, but now came back to him with a vengeance. "Usalia?" he asked. "Did that ghoul in the building make any moves towards the agents we tied up?"

Potok

Usalia let Damar do the initial talking with the new guy with the tail and the new girls. Then he suddenly asked a question about Haise. Usalia's head tilted as she looked back at Damar. "You mean taking a bite out of them? Isn't it natural for a ghoul to eat people? But he didn't do anything like that while I was looking." It was a little uncomfortable to consider someone eating another person, but there are a lot of things that can and do eat humanoids.

She righted her head and bowed deep to Emi, Shuka, and Bardock. "Anyway, thank you for all the help, plip! You helped us save our companions Skarrl, Kled's friend and then Saltek, Damar's dog! I really appreciate it!" After holding that for a moment, Usalia looked up to Damar. "But whose law enforcement? They didn't have any identifying marks that would show they were from this country. Unless they have permission from this country to be here, that makes them no better than mercenaries as well." Law enforcement was generally rare to find anyway, it was expensive to have police all over the place and it was easier to let communities police themselves, only maintaining a town guard mostly there to stop murderers and invading monsters. Even then, it was probably adventurers that were handling the monsters and guards only helped with monsters that actually went into town.

Pluck

Jibril's eyes practically sparkled as she listened to Jake. "A group of anti-magic humans trying to eradicate all magic? How novel! But how would they even approach killing an angel without magic? Ahh, the absurdity of it all!" Before they could continue, Ahriman gave Jibril an order so Jibril took a glance back into the main tavern. Through the magic sources wandering around, there did seem to be something new. "As you wish, Master Ahriman. It does seem like someone slightly... divine? is here. I can't quite put my finger on it, I don't think they are an angel."

Potok (Bardock)

"'Looking for someone...?'"

The Saiyan seems pensive for a second before he continues.

"...Any of you seen another Saiyan? With hair like mine?"

He visibly seems to register mention of "someone tied up" and a "ghoul" but doesn't seem outwardly disturbed by it.

"...Sounds like you guys have your own problems to deal with right now though...so they're not law enforcement? Didn't think so - fought plenty of people with authority in my time and they seemed...off. Couldn't put a finger on it."

Pluck - Tavern (Shantae)

As the apparent-genie finishes her song, she tops off the performance with a series of impressive, if overly energetic dance moves. Her magic act also subsides, though anyone sensitive to magic can tell that the new presence seems to be coming from the stage.

Jibril is right in that it doesn't seem to be an angel, but certainly of a powerful bloodline. One that isn't particularly common these days, and for good reason if Ahriman is familiar with the story of the Pirate Master.

It's a source of powerful light magic, intermixed with normal human magic. The hell?

Edited by ZodanTheUnbounceable on Jan 29th 2021 at 8:08:15 AM

Tavern

The presence of a new figure could be felt within the tavern as he made his way through the crowd. There was something ominous about him, and yet… it was difficult to find a guy who had hamsters crawling on him particularly frightening.

The strange figure dressed in black and wearing a purple scarf listened to the ongoing conversation between the others with a wicked smirk. A hamster crawls from out of his jacket and onto his shoulder, looking curiously at the people gathered around until it sees Shantae.

“Kehehe,” Gundham thought as his scarf somehow dramatically blew in the wind, despite their being no apparent source of such inside. “You sense it too, Mirage Golden Hawk Jum-P? As expected, nothing goes unnoticed by your All-Seeing Eye…”

The young man’s icy gaze turned to the performer on stage. It seemed that she too possessed power over the arcane, going by what she displayed during her dance. He couldn’t help but be reminded of Hiyoko because of this... hopefully she was less sharped tongued than the Ultimate Traditional Dancer, though.

“I sense a strong aura emanating from you,” he said to the half-genie dancer. “Are you, perhaps, a demon?”

Tavern

The dancer seems shocked◊ by the accusation.

"D-demon?! No!"

And now she seems annoyed◊.

"Where do you get off calling people demons, buddy! I'm a guardian genie, I'll have you know! Or...well, I was, long story, I don't wanna talk about it..."

That gargantuan ponytail is now just resting against her back again, almost as if it wasn't just moving on its own.

"Point is, you and your admittedly-adorable hamster can take your slander and shove it!"

Tavern

Gundham chuckles.

“I assure you, I didn’t mean that as an insult. On the contrary, I find the hellish creatures of Pandemonium far more interesting than mere mortals. I myself am capable of transcending this form and becoming a beastly demon, should I so choose.”

The four hamsters squeak happily at being called cute, but Gundham shakes his head.

“Also, the four Dark Devas of Destruction are not ‘cute’. They’re truly fearsome beings when they feel like showing their true strength.”

He crosses his arms, and his hamsters immediately contradict him by doing cute poses.

“Anyways... a genie, you say? Most intriguing... your body doesn’t appear to be made of fire or wind, so I wasn’t privy to your true nature.”

Pluck - Tavern (Shantae)

"Okay well things can be fearsome and adorable, it's not mutually exclusive."

She reaches out to pet the hamster. At the same time, she looks skeptical of Gundham's claims.

"So...how do ya transform? I do mine by dancing - most of 'em, anyways. I don't have a demon one but I can turn into an elephant! They're faster than you think!"

Shantae stops at his last comment, looking self-conscious◊...before getting annoyed again◊.

"And what's that comment about my body, buster? This is a body-positive dance-performance, so what if I don't 'look the part' of a genie?"

Tavern

Gundham raises an eyebrow, not sure why Shantae seems upset until he realizes how his comment might’ve been misinterpreted. He looks appropriately embarrassed.

“I may be a practitioner of dark magic, but I’m not so crass as to make disparaging comments about a girl’s attire.”

The hamster enjoys the petting, at least.

“The djinn are typically elemental beings,” he explained. “Whereas you appear more human – to the untrained eye, anyway. That’s all that I meant.”

With that bit of tension hopefully diffused, he shifted gears towards the topic of magic again.

“My magic draws upon the ambient energies of this world,” he replied. “Though I know of bards who use dancing and music to perform their magic, I’m not one of them. I would demonstrate, but…”

He looks around at the crowd of people.

“I do not wish to cause a scene. Perhaps a less crowded location would make a better venue.”

Pluck - Tavern (Shantae)

"Genies look human, though...aside from the ears, usually. And I dunno about seeing dark magic...brings up bad memories..."

The genie girl awkwardly shuffles her feet at the subject. It clearly isn't something she's comfortable discussing too much.

"Wait, if you use 'ambient energy,' isn't that like...stuff that's everywhere? If your magic is dark, doesn't that mean the world's evil...or something? I'm having trouble following this...anyways, my magic isn't just dances, but that is like...my thing. Not everyone's magic works the same way, but mine's dancing. I knew a girl who was a seer, once! Her name's Plink, she could see stuff nobody else could! I borrowed her magic for a bit, it was weird."

And at the mention of a demonstration, her eyes light up◊.

"That'd be so cool! But I, uh...shouldn't walk out yet...nobody paid me for my show yet...and I spent most of my money on snacks already..."

Tavern

Gundham scratches his chin in thought as Shantae asks about his magic.

"That's what my teacher proclaimed at least - that my magic came from the very earth itself. I'll admit that even I am uncertain how such a thing could be possible for a dark wizard like myself, but I find it difficult to argue with her expertise."

At the mention of nobody paying for her performance, Gundham offered her some coin.

"Take this, then. From what I've seen, you possess skill worthy of notice."

Potok

"Another Saiyan?" Damar asked. "No, you're the first Saiyan I've seen in three years. Last time I saw another one was when the Dominion was negotiating that non-aggression pact with Frieza's empire - Zarbon had two on 'guard' duty." Then he realized that he should probably clarify that whole deal with the ghoul - wasn't sure if he got his name or not. "As for the ghoul, we only met him... not even an hour ago. He first showed up just before Kled's lizard was kidnapped, right when that idiot with the rope attacked us." he sighed. "All we came here to do, was buy some food, clothes, and other supplies for our journey. And now, we need to add truth serum to that list, just so we can find out who these guys are..." he said, once more pointing to the agents lying on the ground. "And how the hell they knew so much about us."

Kocsma Tavern

Ahriman walked down the stairs of the tavern and into its main hall, the "feeling" of the new magic source growing ever stronger, until at last, he saw it. Or rather, her.

A genie? Ahriman thought, rubbing his hand over his chin. Impossible, the battle with the Pirate Master forced nearly all of them to return to their plane. But her energies still carry the telltale signs of one. A half-genie, then. Then he noticed Gundham. And a human druid. These two should be simple enough to compensate for.

Edited by MasterOfAntics on Jan 31st 2021 at 9:56:39 AM

Potok

Bardock merely cracks his knuckles.

“Who the hell needs truth serum?”

Pluck, Kocsma Tavern

At about the moment Ahriman was thinking everything would be fine and dandy, yet another powerful beacon of magic would show up on his radar. Its source soon became clear as she glided - literally, hovering a couple inches off the ground - over the unfortunately mud-marred carpet at the tavern's entrance. The interior of the smiling, green-haired woman's◊ cape seemed to display a scrolling image of a starry night sky as she paused and looked about the room until she spotted what she was looking for, and her lips curved yet more upwards. She floated on over to the bar behind the object of her search and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hello, Christie!" she greeted, bringing up a hand for a little wave as she beamed at the enterprising explorer, "It is ever so wonderful to see you again! I have been looking all over for you, you know! You are quite a difficult woman to find!"

Edited by darksidevoid on Jan 31st 2021 at 2:53:45 PM

Potok

"People who want accurate intel..." Damar said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "All beating them will do is make them tell us what they think we want to hear. And because torture is so unreliable, and with these agents already knowing so much... our best course of action is to get the truth serum. he sighed. "I wish Garak was here. He could break these guys just by staring at them."

Kocsma Tavern

Ahriman's eyes widened as he sensed another source of magic appear in the tavern. This one, however, needed no snooping around to find - it was clearly the mysterious green-haired woman who had just entered. And this magic felt... old. Old enough that even the three great kingdoms of the ancient world - Prospero, Hyrule, and Bajor - were young in comparison. Now he truly began to take interest. Just who... or what... was this woman?

Kocsma Tavern

Though not quite as impressive as the wells of magic that Ahriman was detecting, the sorcerer would feel a vibration against his stomach as Tetra rapped a knuckle against his armour. "There you are. Look sharp, we're heading out. Folks here say there's something nasty in the woods, so I'd rather be clear of them 'fore it starts sniffing around."

She crossed her arms and craned her neck up to look at him. "Who's coming with us into the Chaos Realm? I don't see any reason for Christie to go, and I'd rather Alice and Jake stay here, but that might be leaving us a little short-handed."

Potok

"Tch, fine...always worked out for me, but suit yourself."

The Saiyan crossed his arms over his heavily-damaged armor, shooting a glance at the agents.

"...You guys met yesterday and you're fighting off goons together? I can tell ya this much - whoever they work for, it's not Frieza. No armor, no scouters, wrong weapons."

Oh hey he finally acknowledged Usalia said something.

"So they know stuff about you guys even though you just showed up, huh?"

He takes a few steps towards the agents.

"Now you've got me curious how much they know."

Pluck - Tavern (Shantae)

Shantae graciously accepts the coins from Gundham.

"You didn't have to, but thanks! Exchange rates from Sequin Land to here...weren't fun...so are you from around here? I just arrived a few days ago, I'm looking a pirate named Risky Boots."

The magic-sensitive ones might sense something else on Shantae's person - a source of magic similar to a genie's but different, and not sentient. A magic conduit of sorts, rather than a living being.

The little folk were quite bemused when Hinata gifted them a few sharp and pointy things, but their faces brightened when she also on a flower, and especially when she decided to 'decorate' Shoto with another. "Ah, you're a sweet little thing," went the mother.

"Indeed," said the father, as he gingerly took the kunai and shuriken and wrapped them up in cloth. "One of a few that have done so much for us already... In fact, I think we ought to give you something for your troubles." He searched through the pouches at his belt, and retrieved one with a golden seal.

Uncle Pieprz startled at this, and went to grab his arm. "Octu, you can't be serious! You don't just give that kind of thing out to humans!"

The mother gripped Pieprz's shoulder and spoke with a reprimanding tone. "Now, Pieprz, it's only fitting and fair they should have a reward for saving us, AND for giving us something defensive...though, ah, hopefully we should never have to use them."

Octu nodded. "They've proven themselves to be decent folk, and shouldn't use them for any ill will. Besides, I'll only give them the one sprig."

With a smile and a wink, he brushed away Pieprz's hand, and trotted over to Hinata. From inside the pouch, he took out a little plant held between finger and thumb. It looked like a little stem of grass, with four triangular leaves at the end, like a clover.

"This...is a Raskovnik," he said. "Brush one of these up against any gate or padlock, no matter the size, key or material, and the lock will spring open as quick as a blink. Its potency lasts until it's completely wilted, so keep it preserved and use it wisely. You can use it as material in a spell for finding buried treasure too, but that'll burn through its lifespan much quicker."

Things had settled down in the dingy alleyway, but the great noise that the fight scene had generated was bound to attract attention, specifically from law enforcement. And if a guardsman or guardswoman were to arrive, and find a gathering of strange people standing over the battered bodies of unconscious men in black, there'd be a lot of awkwardness to explain.

The builders cheered and catcalled once Shantae finished her performance, while the barkeep just rolled his eyes and kept polishing mugs. Meanwhile, over at the far end of the bar, Columbia Christie had been perched, just keeping to herself with a flagon of mead. She'd drowned enough of her sorrow at this point to be subtly swaying side to side with a tipsy smile on her face. But then came a tap on her shoulder, and before she could irritably brush it off, it was followed by a voice that she could never quite forget. The merchants' eyes went wide as saucers, and the colour drained from her face, with an expression that suggested her drink had been rapidly drained as well. Slowly, she turned her head, and the moment she locked eyes with Cassiopea, she loudly and awkwardly tumbled from her stool and onto the floor, drink spilling everywhere.

"...by Jupiter...it's you..." she said, lying on the ground. "The white wi-er queen...B'where...how did...you were...what're you do..."

Over on the other end of the room, the announcer from moments ago approached Shantae with a satchel of coin. "Hey Shantae, thanks for doing this again. None of the patrons giving you any trouble, I hope?" he said, eyeing the dark and edgy druid suspiciously.

Meanwhile, outside the tavern, Leah might have noticed sunset beginning, as the already quiet and disassembled town would already feel a whole lot colder and darker than before.

The precious moment was interrupted by a gift. Shoto stepped back slightly so that Hinata could accept the reward. Of all their group, she was certainly the most deserving of one. She'd done most of the work herself, really. All he did was burn his own clothes and make things harder.

He needed a cure, and fast. If something made him angry again, who knew what could happen? He didn't want to be a liability on the group. For now, they probably didn't realize how little use he really was like this, but when they did? He'd probably be sent away immediately.

Leeches. No matter where Leah went, there were leeches. And no matter where she went, she was going to exterminate the pests. Especially ones that were terrorizing a little town like this.

She watches the sunset, glaring to herself. Once night fell, and she was less likely to spook the townsfolk, she'd take care of this little problem. With or without the others.

Hinata – The Woods

Hinata visibly flushed and fell once again meek at the compliment from the mother, but any attempts to downplay herself were cut short as she was offered a gift. In a stunned state, she found herself mutely nodding along even as she felt a few tears prick the corners of her eyes; graciously accepting the strange sprig and protectively clutching it to her chest.

“...H-Hai...! I'll keep it safe... a-arigatō gozaimasu...!”

Without much warning she made to hug Octu in thanks, and held it for only a couple of seconds before her courage left her and she sheepishly shuffled away to hide behind Shoto again. She couldn't help but think about how useful this gift was. Compared to a couple of mildly sharpened shovels, some glorified knuckledusters, and a literal trimmed flower...

“...Arigatō...” she breathed once more even quieter, despite it likely unable to be heard. This could come in incredibly handy. Though she was now fretting how best to keep the thing safe. She decided to just wrap it gently in a few bandages, nestling it within an inside pocket of her jacket and (as an afterthought) making sure her healing ointment was tucked beside it.

Maybe that'll help it stay alive...

After making sure her jacket was definitely secured again, she merely poked her head over Shoto's shoulder in regards to the others; feeling too shy now to come out from behind him again.

Potok

"Ahem."

The sound of someone clearing their throat could be heard.

Near the folks in the alleyway, there stands a guardsman — or rather, guardswoman, if her voice is to be believed. She walks up to the others, keenly observing their surroundings. "Now, now. What happened here?"

Potok (Emi) and (Shuka)

Emi and Shuka smile to Usalia, glad they could have helped out like they did.

"No need to thank us! We heard that someone was in trouble, and we knew we had to do something!"

"Yeah, don't mention it!"

The two girls also shake their heads to Bardock, frowning.

"We haven't seen anybody like that... Sorry, sir."

"Nope, we haven't seen anyone like that at all except you!"

And thinking about the guys that just showed up, claiming to be law enforcement... So this group was just in town trying to gather supplies, but suddenly their lizard was kidnapped by a bunch of people that seemed to know about them?

"So do you guys have to deal with stuff like this a lot?"

"Sounds like you guys have a big enemy if someone found you guys here like that..."

And just as the two girls were about to ask more, they heard a voice. A guardswoman?!

"Eh?!"

"Hey, are you a real guard?"

"Shuka and I were helping save a lizard, and these guys were dealing with some bad people!"

Or at least that's what Emi is gathering from all of this... She doesn't know the group well, but she has a feeling they can be trusted.

Shuka, meanwhile... well, she doesn't really know what to think, but she's sticking along with Emi regardless! The two are the Blaster Pair, no matter what!

Potok (Bardock)

Bardock is surprised by the sudden appearance of the guardswoman before stepping forward like somebody with authority.

"Well about time someone got here. We're a detachment from the Saiyan homeland, Vegeta. We were looking for a place to stay when these guys jumped us. Name's Turles. These are..."

He motions to Emi, Shuka, Damar, Usalia and Kled.

"...Selypa, Kale, Toolo, Nion and...Big Green. It's a nickname, don't ask. You gonna arrest these punks for assault, or what?"

Percival, this guy is obviously a Saiyan (if she knows about them), the tail and armor fit the profile...but his armor has whole parts of it apparently blasted off!

Pluck - Kocsma Tavern

"Oh no, no trouble!"

As Shantae's hand pockets the money from Gundham, her ponytail wraps around the bag from the announcer and drops that in her pocket as well.

"We were just talking, adventurer stuff! Hey, thanks for letting me perform twice! I really needed the help...say, have you heard anything of a pirate in town? Or...anyone or anything suspicious? I really need a lead here..."

Edited by ZodanTheUnbounceable on Feb 3rd 2021 at 5:51:44 AM