The Forbidden Art

Kailyn, Drake, and the others all sat in the carriage on the way back to… wherever they were going.

Kailyn had her head on Drake’s shoulder. She was mulling over what had happened within the past few days. She had her eyes closed and focused on the breathing of her love. It helped to calm her down and excite her all at the same time. She nuzzled closer to him, inhaling deeply. He smelled like… well… like him. There was no real way to describe it. Maybe that was one of the most alluring things about it, that it remained an enigma.

Kind of like Ret.

Kailyn frowned and grumbled at the thought of her.

Seemed like she wasn’t too torn up about betraying us. She found comfort REAL quick, Kailyn thought. Just then, the carriage bounced and Kailyn was reminded of her soreness. Ah, alright, I got over it quick too. Still though… Kailyn sighed, removing her head from Drake’s shoulder and looked out the window. The ending of the hot springs vacation was not the most pleasant one in the world.

Too soon, Drake and Kailyn were interrupted. They had made love all throughout the day, only pausing to drink water and eat some of the fresh fruit that was in their room. She supposed they were drawing too much attention to themselves since there was a knock on their door, and it was very unhappy.

“You two make too much noise! Bother customers and kids! You stop right now!” Called a woman with a strange accent. Kailyn and Drake stopped and looked at the door, blinking. Just then, another foreign woman came along and started to bang on the door as well.

“This is famree enwirowment! You keep acts PG-13!”

“But… we aren’t even outside of our room, I didn’t think we were causing any trouble,” Kailyn said, tilting her head to the side. She was actually just cuddling with Drake at the time. The times before, maybe not.

“No! You two too loud! Udder people can have PG-13 act but you abuse privaridge! You no can! No mature enough!” Yelled the second woman. Kailyn untangled herself from Drake and rose to her feet. She wrapped a robe around her and scurried to the door. She opened up the door and looked out. She was confused for a little bit, considering she didn’t see anyone. And then she looked down.

The short, unhappy, plump women were the same height, just barely reaching three foot six. Kailyn had to hold in a laugh at their ridiculous faces, all twisted in anger and contorted with rage.

“I’m sorry if there was some rule that wasn’t mentioned to me and I broke it. I promise it won’t happen again. Just don’t insult Drake anymore,” Kailyn said, keeping the bath robe tight around her.

Of course, at that moment, another, even MORE round woman burst through.

“You get out!” She screamed, shaking her finger at Kailyn.

“What? Why?” Kailyn asked, flabbergasted, “What did I do?”

“Twenty nine time! Twenty nine!” She replied.

“What do you mean, twenty nine? There’s no way! It’s impossible!”

“No, you just get out right now! You no come back! You banned!”

Kailyn furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes dangerously at the very chubby lady. She growled deep in her throat and could feel the claws Azrael left her growing from her nails. Just then, her saving grace touched her on her shoulder. He told her that they didn’t need to be here anyways and that they should just get going without a fuss. Grudgingly, and grinding her teeth, Kailyn agreed and went downstairs.

They watched as the three women traveled off together, cackling evilly as they spotted another couple. Kailyn sighed and shook her head, taking Drake’s hand in her own. She saw a mop of black hair hiding another person. It seemed as if the woman was sitting on his lap. The foreign ladies were having a field day with it.

“You keep hands to self! You no do nothing but sit there and maybe kiss. No touch! No smoochie smoochie, just quick peck,” The roundest woman said, her finger still shaking, “Famree fwrendry! You ban!” She yelled, pushing the woman off the man’s lap.

The man with black hair stood up and she caught a glimpse of his profile. It was Asinoir. Kailyn ground her teeth together. As Asinoir helped the woman up, Kailyn noticed how angry Asinoir was. He turned around and glared at her, his hands shaking.

He grabbed the woman by the collar of her shirt, “Who the fuck do you think you are? No one ever touches Ret like that!” The name ripped through the air like a knife through butter. It reopened the wound that she thought had healed.

“My name is Eujars and I am absorutry appawed by your behavior! Is PG in here! PG! You no touch her like that!”

Asinoir growled and then threw Eujars to the side. He pulled Ret close and gave her a long, passionate kiss. His hands roamed over her body like he never would be able to again. He broke apart and threw a smirk at Eujars.

“Fuck you, bitch,” Asinoir said, taking hold of Ret’s hand, “Let’s go home.”

It was then that Ret turned around and Kailyn met her eyes. The glare the women gave to each other was deafening in its threats. They both knew that they needed to settle the score.

Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be that day.

Plump and Plumper, after helping Plumpest up, decided to take it upon themselves to banish the two couples. They pushed them off into opposite directions, completely oblivious to the storm that was growing overhead. Kailyn waited for everyone in her party to get out before letting off tremors of an earthquake right at the hot springs’ foundation. She just wanted to shake it a little bit, just to scare them, but her anger amplified her powers. It wound up collapsing one side of the building.

The carriage Kailyn was in bounced again and Kailyn winced. She fidgeted in her seat and looked at Drake.

“Did you know Ret and Asinoir were back there?” She asked, trying to keep her tone as casual as possible.

"No" He responded, "But who are they to stop me and you?" He asked. He felt content, and pulled her closer to him, while kissing her on the forhead. He hadn't noticed before, but she always smelt of roses, no matter what she did.

If they weren't in this carrige he couldv'e done more, but the carrige barely had enough room for his legs at all. He thought about the comments she had made back before they got "Banned". "How was it, being a mage? My childhood was very lonely, and when my Village burned down, I had to live out in the forest, and sell the extra food and supplies I could scavenge up."

He waited for a while and pulled Kailyn even closer than before. A single tear running down his face. "I lost my only brother the day my village burned. His name, was Aeon."

Kailyn pushed a little closer into Drake’s embrace. He was so warm and he felt so safe. There was a feeling of contentment that came over Kailyn and she sighed. She looked up, hearing his voice break, and saw the tear rolling down his cheeks. She lifted up her head and kissed it away.

“I didn’t know you had a brother…” Kailyn mumbled, “Was the village burning how you got your scars?” She asked, hoping that her embrace would help to soothe him. She knew his did.

“Life as a mage… it was hard. I didn’t know how to control my powers that well. My parents found out about them soon after they discovered I have a half-brother. He was conceived during their marriage so my mom wasn’t all that happy. I guess that plus my powers was enough to make them abandon me in an orphanage,” Kailyn said, her voice withdrawn, “I was picked on and beat up there. I remember running away at a young age. After that… I don’t know how I survived. Azrael told me that he watched over me and I believe him. It makes too much sense.”

She noticed how Drake barely fit in the carriage and giggled, “Don’t worry, after this, we’ll go ahead and um… stretch your legs,” She said with a wink.

Vexoz cornered the man who had stolen his sword. He had been attacked by a tree, dragged to the Chosen village, killed a mage in a cold drunken rage, had been nearly murdered in a seperate event, threatened by a lightning man, and now this bastard had the nerve to try and steal his stuff.

"You picked the wrong time to screw with me!" The thief was obviously new at what he was doing. Vexoz intended to teach him a lesson that would keep it that way. Without making a sound, the thief tried to point Vexoz's blade at it's own master. In return, the warrior began to punch the man and kept beating on him until he couldn't even think about holding onto the blade anymore. "You'll need about a week to recover. Never touch my stuff again." He wanted to continue hitting the man. He wanted him to truely suffer. Vexoz had practiced with the same sword since he was eight and the thought of anyone thinking they could steal it and simply get away was frustrating.

Almost imediately, he saw Vera off in the distance. He didn't want to go back to the Chosen village with her, at least, not yet. There was something he had to do to make sure everything he did was for the greater good. He had to find the people against the Chosen and hear thier side of the story, why they wanted to kill off something as usefull as magic. There must be some reason for it. For all of this.

Trying to get out of there before Vera noticed, the warrior set off from the spring. He could practically hear her take notice as he began to leave.

Azirak remained perched on the roof of the hot springs inn, like a bird.
He was unsure what to do now. He couldnt find this Vexoz fellow anywhere, and he needed results fast. He had got lucky, finding mages here. But if they left, he would never be able to catch them. Failure was rare amoungst the kyren, and those who did fail were so ashamed that they often volunteered for a suicidal mission. Azirak had no intent to become one of these.

He was about to give up looking for the man, when he spotted something in the distance. Transforming into his energy form, he shot towards it, making sure to hide in the rays of the morning sun. If anyone saw the ball of energy flying through the sky, they would assume it to be a trick of the light. At least, azirak hoped they would.

As he got closer, he smiled. It was Vexoz. He was beating the living crap out of some random person. Azirak was about to attack, when he had a better idea.
If he incapacitated Vexoz now, he would only get the information that he knew, and there was a chance that he didnt know anything.But if he was heading for his little chosen friends...all their people would be there. He could find out everything they were planning and could hit them hard if he didnt like what he heard.
So he waited, a small ball of lightning, carefully hidden in the daylight, following a warrior.

Vera spotted Vexoz out of the corner of her eye. She hadn’t talked to him much at all but she figured she might as well give the guy some matter of space. Although, it wouldn’t last for long. Vera smiled devilishly, rubbing her hands together.

“Super ninja mode ON!” She said, pounding her fist into the air. She then dove into the bushes and dropped into a crouch, peering through the leaves to look at Vexoz. She watched as he beat someone up. She encouraged him by punching the air a few times with a left hook followed by an uppercut. She watched Vexoz retrieve his sword and furrowed her brow. He turned but it was in the opposite direction of the carriage.

She decided to follow him as quietly as she possibly could. She cushioned the air beneath her feet and walked silently.

Unfortunately, a flaming mop of red hair going through green bushes is pretty hard to miss.

She tiptoed, getting closer and closer until finally, she “blinked” so that she was standing right next to him.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” She screamed, waiting to see if she surprised him.

Drake was in shock, he was taken aback by her childhood being so... Harsh. The thought of his brother dieing, and then Kailyn having such a bad life up till now, It was horrible. He then shook his head.

"I got the scars in a fight with the mage who burned down my village. I know not all mages are evil, and you are living proof of that. But with great power comes great responsibility. And I'm glad you understand that. As for Azreal helping you along the way... I thank him from the bottom of my heart. And I can promise that nothing will happen to you as long as you are with me."

He paused and said "I love you"

Mira was sitting on the carriage with her eyes closed, reviving the memories of what had happened on the hot springs "Oh Vlad" She mumbled in a dreamy voice "I hope we get back together soon"

They had a excellent time behind the waterfall he had made on that hot spring, and surprisingly no one had bothered them during that time considering what would happen the next day. They peacefully slept, with Mira occasionally waking up in the middle of the night and kissing Vladimir before sleeping again. When she woke up she briefly kissed him before putting on her clothes and going to have breakfast, she met Kailyn there, but she was already leaving to "talk" to Drake. Mira knew that she would have other opportunities to do so at other times, and that Kailyn and Drake loved each other, so she decided that she would wait.

Mira sat down on a chair near to Falks, he exploded in anger and she simply gave a cold reply. Before he could say anything another warrior suddenly appeared and went away, searching for his sword. Mira used it to get away before Falks started trying to kill her. She went to her room and was greeted by Vlad that had barely woke up and was stretching himself while getting up to eat breakfast "I think that I will stay here dear, there are some stupid people down there" She had said before laying down on the bed and staying there "I guess that we can still have a excellent morning don't you agree? But I guess that you should go eat something... We will need some energy..."

(Vladimir rubbed his eyes as he sat up in the bed, looking out the window and noticing the rising sun. Mira snuggled on his chest, resting a leg on him and kissing his cheek. Vladimir wrapped her up in his arms and kissed her back. They grinned, tasting each other like a favorite dish one hadn't eaten in years. She presses her body closed to his, letting her hands run freely on his bare torso, aroused by Vladimir's physique. He caressed Mira's sides and hips, liking what he felt. She slid out of her pants and began to undo Vladimir's pants as well.

Vladimir placed a hand around her breasts, squeezing and massaging them with soft tenderness. She softly moaned and tongued him while squeezing his sides. She felt his package and smiled lustfully, getting a grip on it. Vladimir flipped her over and tongued her back, sliding his arms to her hips and grabbed on them softly. Mira slid his package into her and made a slight gasp. He grabbed unto his back as he gave it to her with force, speed, power and love. Her breathing became exasperated, and soon turned into cries for more.

"Vladimir~, yes~" She screamed out in ecstacy, and Vladimir drove into her body with more force in response. She ripped her shirt off and cried out his name. Vladimir grinned, satisfying Mira's every sexual wish. She laughed, turning Vladimir over and pushed him down with an arm. Mira ran a hand through her hair and licked her lips seductively. She lowered herself onto him and licked his tongue before kissing him sensually. She began to ride him, grabbing Vladimir by his shoulders and raising his upper body to hers. He let his arms fall back to support himself and tongued Mira again, she herself loudly moaning in pleasure and screaming as Vlad began to push himself into her with raw strength.

"Yes~, oh God yes Vladimir~, I fucking love you!~")

---

Mira, with all clothes intact as well as Vladimir, sat on him and kissed him. Vladimir wrapped his arms around her, grinning as she did. They were sitting on a bench outside the hot springs, enjoying the time they had left with each other. She felt the carriage for her group arrive and she got up, pulling Vladimir. He held her sides and she wrapped her arms around his neck and they shared a final kiss, her face red with arousal. As she parted from Vladimir a tear rolled down her face. Vladimir wiped it from her face and kissed her again, and she pressed herself into him.

"Mira, we will meet again. Remember I'm with you in your heart and we will meet again." Mira smiled and held his hand.

"Yes Vladimir, we will."

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

"The frig!" Vexoz jumped back, unsure how to react to her, and lost his footing. He plummited backwards and nearly fell over before regaining his balance. Dangit Vera! He had wanted this to be simple but it seemed like Vera made everything just a little more... complicated.... Whatever happened, he wasn't going back to the Chosen village. As he scratched his head trying to figure out what to say, it seemed the best idea to simply tell her the truth.

"I'm going to.... Well...." Why was it so hard to tell her he would try to track down thier enemies! "Lets just say I need to find some answears." It was too obvious that he was trying to hide something. "And I can only find what I need to know outside the Chosen village." His eyes shifted away for a moment like he didn't want to look at her, but quickly returned. That alone wouldn't convince her to let him go, she was smarter than that... at least, he thought so.

In reality, Vexoz didn't imagine he would return. He didn't deserve any of this. All he had done was fail and screw up ever since he arrived at the village. It was time to do something to redeem himself, and if things went wrong then Vera would only get in the way. He would try and track down the ones who dared to oppose the Chosen, hear out thier reasons, and find a way to stop them. Or at least find a way to slow them down.

Vexoz finally turned his back to Vera and moved on. He was searching out the people dangerous enough to make the Chosen's super mages worried. He was searching out his death.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

June got up out of bed and quickly dressed herself. She stretched a little but before looking around her house. Wonder what's going on with the world? After searching her drawr, she quickly found her handmirror. Her abilities were rare for a reason. The magic only giving her the power over reflective objects, meaning it was usually completely useless. It took a minute for her eyes to get used to the light in the room, for whatever reason her eyes were a natural yellow. Like her magic, they were nice sometimes, but otherwise just ended up having trouble adjusting and got in the way. How she wished she could have non-magical eyes like everyone else.

She looked through the reflective world and checked out everywhere she could. Looked like there were some intresting people around a hot spring, but nothing that particularly caught her attention.

With a sigh, the woman tried to figure out what to do. She just felt like she almost had to use her magic some days. June looked around and found her contacts, specially made to make her eyes at least look normal. Soon, she left the town with a rod and reel in-hand.

"Another fishing trip, miss Maywell?"

"What can I say? I'm getting better." June responded with a musical tone to her voice. As she left, she could hear someone mumble something along the lines of 'how does she catch anything without bait?' Probably should find a better cover soon.

June wasn't going fishing, but she was headed twords the lake. In its prestine smooth surface, she could use her magic to go almost anywhere. Not that anyone else would understand. No one seems to understand that mages are people too, at least, not after all the legends they've heard of witches and such. She took off her boots and gently started dipping her feet into the water as the surface shifted between locations with what looked like sudden glares of the sun.

“I love you too,” Kailyn replied, giving him a gentle kiss. It wasn’t long after that when she felt the heaviness of her eyelids. The sway of the carriage and the sound of Drake’s steady heartbeat lulled Kailyn into a dreamless sleep.

She woke with a start when the carriage stopped. She jumped and the recoil forced her head to fall back, hitting it off the walls of the carriage. She pouted and rubbed her skull. She pointed at it and asked Drake to kiss it. He laughed and obliged her.

They got out of the carriage and arrived in a small town. As Kailyn exited, she noticed that everyone had withdrawn faces. There were bags underneath the villagers’ eyes and they looked more at their feet than their neighbors. Kailyn frowned and furrowed her brow. She was sure that people didn’t always use to look like this.

She looked up at Drake and gave him a tight smile and squeezed his hand. She looked behind her and faced everyone who came with.

“Who’s ready to find a manaflayer?” She asked.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Vera narrowed her eyes at Vexoz. She pursed her lips and put her face very close to his.

“And you didn’t ask ME to come with?!” She yelled, chasing after him. She flailed her arms in the air until she finally caught up with him. She jumped onto his back, wrapping her legs tight so that her ankle crossed at his midsection.

“We’re going on an adventure! Giddyup!” She said, pointing her fingers forward, “Answers, ho!”

Falks quickly fell asleep in the carriage. He woke up for a little bit when Kailyn and Drake got in, but was soon rocked back to sleep by the sway of the carriage. He dreamed of Rose the entire time. He imagined those last moments, as he told her to head up the stairs. He could have stopped her. He could have stayed there and slept beside her.

He finally awoke as the the carriage came to a stop. Falks waited for Drake and Kailyn to exit and quickly followed.
“Who’s ready to find a manaflayer?” Kailyn asked.
"Sure!" Falks replied enthusiasticly.

Drake climbed out of the carrige, and was suprised when Falks was ready to help them. He thought for a moment about what had happened earlier. He was truly ashamed of his actions, but it was such an unwanted suprise, he knew he had to apologize.

"Falks, I'm sorry about back at the hot springs. I had thought that you had "Slept with" Kailyn, and that just made me..... Snap, You have to understand what it is like to love someone. You know what you would do for them in a time like that. I'm Truly sorry for that, and I hope that you don't think I am a impulsive idiot. Anyways... do you happen to have anyway to get to the manaflyer? It's not like we really know where it is..."

He waited a minute and extended his hand to Falks, while holding Kailyn close to him. "Is that okay with you?" Refering to his apology before.

Ret was walking along with Asinoir\s hand in hers, too angered by her treatement at the hot springs to risk flying. She was ranting, continually, about people not treating them the way they should.

"And it's like there was a man I saw, drunk as anything with a harlot being dragged behind him and one of his hands was groping her in plain sight! And we get penalized for being just a little lovey-dovey? It's disgraceful!" She sighed then her mood suddenly perked up, "Loved your raction to the fat midget's words... If it weren't for you doing that I think I'd have blown att three of them up!" She laughed before shrugging, "We might as well fly the rest of the way back... it'll be quicker to be in your arms somehwere cofy, hm?"

Vladimir stepped into the carriage before the others did and fell into deep thought. Life was going on way too fast to even recollect past events. His mind was stuck on Mira and an intricate claymore of alien design. It was in his hand, and Mira was before him, bleeding. There were other people, all dead. Mira kissed him before falling dead.

"NO!"

Vladimir woke up just as the carriage stopped and exited behind the others. When Kailyn inferred about finding a manaflayer he felt all his swords at his side and nodded.

"Whenever you're ready Kailyn."

Vexoz tried to get away when suddenly Vera jumped onto his back, pointing ahead and shouting, "ANSWEARS HO!" He took his arms above his head and tried to pull her off, but once again, her grip was just too tight on him. After a second attempt, he couldn't help but laugh.

"You've got me in your iron trap again.... And you're not letting go anytime soon, are you?" A smile crossed his face. From his experience, it was usually best to go along with what Vera said. While he couldn't quite understand why, somehow he enjoyed the thought of her coming with him to seek out almost certain death.... "I guess I don't have much of a choice." It was almost supprising how light she felt to him. "But if things get out of hand, then do that wind teleport thing to get away. I won't have you die for my stupid idea, ok?"

Something about the entire situation made him blush, so he put his faceguard on to hide it before Vera took much notice. Time to get some serious work done..... It was at that moment that he realized he had nothing to go on other than blind faith to find his enemies. After quickly looking around, Vexoz noticed a fresh set of tracks from a carrage. "Looks like a good place to start. If I could chase your carrage down all the way to the spring, then this shouldn't be much of a problem."

A glare of light seemed to shine in the corner of his eye, but Vexoz didn't think much of it.

"Ready Vera? Let's go!" This time, he decided to actually walk after the carrage rather than run like he did last time.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

June stopped and suddenly had a brilliant idea. There was one man she had always wanted to meet, but could never find. She focused on him, the warrior Vladimir. Not so much the man as she did his sword. With whatever small reflection came off the blade, she could find where he was. It just took a while. Tracking reflective objects wasn't a skill she used too often....

She would have to not only find him, but also find something reflective to travel through without attracting attention as a mage.... Or would she?

A sinister smile crossed June's face. She had the perfect solution!

Kailyn smiled at them all and unwrapped herself from Drake. They were very close to the end, she could feel it. She loved him but he would serve as a potent distraction. She then made a sharp right and started walking down that way. Then she stopped, turned around, and walked in the other direction.

“Where the heck are we supposed to go?!” She asked, frustrated.

“You can just follow me,” Anne said, popping up out of nowhere. Kailyn jumped in fright, landing a few feet away from Anne. Once her breathing returned to normal, Kailyn walked closer to Anne. Anne was dressed in similar clothing to when they had last met. It looked like a heavy, black robe that had to be itchy. In her hands, there was a map and a compass.

Kailyn narrowed her eyes, “You showed up at a very convenient time,” She said.

In response, Anne simply shrugged, “I knew you’d come here.” Kailyn didn’t know if she trusted this woman or not. She folded her arms across her chest and firmly planted her feet.

“How do I know this isn’t a trap?”

“If we wanted you dead, we would have killed you by the cabin. We wouldn’t have chased off Asinoir,” Anne said with a sigh, “We just want peace again. That’s all.”

Kailyn narrowed her eyes, “You betray us…” She warned, “Hurt any one of us, even make someone cry, I’m coming after you with razor blades and lemon juice.” Anne nodded slowly. Anne turned around and started walking to the west.

“It’s not too far from here, only a few miles. We should make it there within the next hour and a half on foot,” Anne said.

“Why haven’t you gotten it yourself?” Kailyn asked.

“It’s surrounded by a magical barrier that renders any and all magic powerless,” Anne said.

“Sure, that’s a minor problem… but that’s not a big deal. I don’t believe I felt any magic from Frank,” Kailyn replied, her suspicion growing.

“That’s true, but a lot of us are mages. We cannot fight with a sword or fist and we would be too much of a handicap to help get to W-8,” Anne said. Kailyn dug her feet in and came to a sudden halt.

“Why would you need to worry about fighting?” Kailyn asked.

Anne turned slowly until she looked Kailyn in the eye, “W-8 is surrounded by ogres. They worship the longbow and wouldn’t let it go without an immense battle.”

Kailyn’s temper flared and she ran up to Anne, grabbing the woman by the collar of her robe, “You weren’t going to tell me this BEFORE we nearly got slaughtered?!”

“I was going to tell you on the way there. We need you, we need all of you. LORE needs all of you. We have no chance but you… you all are our hopes,” Anne said, gently touching Kailyn’s cheek. Kailyn scoffed and let go of Anne, turning to face her friends.

“In light of this information, are we still going?” Kailyn asked, her nerves shot. She didn’t want anything to happen to any of them. It was especially applied to Drake. Considering the fact that Drake was the only person who didn’t rely on any magic at all, the battle would be very difficult and take a toll on him.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Asinoir smiled down at Ret and squeezed her hand affectionately. He stopped so that he could take her into an embrace, putting his nose next to her hair and breathed.

“I had a very hard time controlling myself… I wanted to rip her apart. No one lays a hand on you, not even another female. But I decided that maybe you didn’t want to see my more… carnal side,” Asinoir said, his words a little muffled. He reached his hands down so that his fingers drew circles on her lower back, right above her lovely derriere.

“Well, maybe not that part of my carnal side,” He said, dipping his head down and kissing her on the lips. At the same time, he hoisted her up, wrapped her legs around his waist, and held her in place by putting his hands on her bum.

“Ready to fly home, my love?” He said, “I have to hold onto you tightly so you don’t fall,” He winked at her, adding a bit more pressure. Then he leapt into the air and headed in the direction of their village.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Vera jumped off of Vexoz’s back when he found the carriage tracks. She bent down and looked at them closely, then sniffed them, and then looked at him.

“There were four people in the carriage! And one very fat man! They left an hour ago!” Vera said, completely blowing hot air. She allowed it to sink in for a minute before tilting her head to the side, “Actually, I have no idea. But let’s go!”

It wasn’t too long that they were walking that her stomach erupted in a loud growl. She pouted and patted her tummy, telling it to calm down. She looked around and jumped into the sky, altering the air around her so she could fly.

“Vee-Vee! I see fruit!” She called out, “I’ll be right back! You just wait right there!” She then burst forth at incredible speeds towards the tree she saw.

She landed and licked her chops, plucking it off one by one. She discarded most of them, complaining that they “just didn’t make fruit like they used to anymore”. Most of the rejected fruit weren’t shiny enough, or weren’t red enough, and she was very disappointed. The fruit from the Chosen village were much better than this.

Eventually, she gathered enough to have an armful. Discarded apples were strewn to and fro. She was proud of her ability to pick fruit. Although, the farmer who owned the orchard would have probably disagreed. With a smile, she kicked off the fruit laden ground and flew into the air, leaving the farmer oblivious to who caused such a wasteful mess.

She flew back to the main road where she last spotted Vexoz. She circled around a few times before spotting him. She eagerly waved at him, completely forgetting the fact that she had an armful of fruit and it took two to hold it in place. The apples plummeted from her arms to the ground, aimed directly at Vexoz.

All that Vera said was, “Oops!”

Ret laughed, "One thing at a time, honey~" She said, wrapping her arms around his torso and snuggling in.

She stayed silent during the flight, finding comfort snuggled against him... comfort that all too quicklyt lulled her to sleep. By the time asinoir was half way back She was alseep against his torso, a happy smile on her face and and thoughts of them together on her mind,.

Falks accepted Drake's handshake. "Honestly I can't blame you. If I had been in the same situation, I probably would have reactead the same way. As for finding the manaflayer, I do." He pulled the book and compass out of his bag. "These belonged to my father. Before he passed from this realm, he gave me this compass and said it would help me find the manaflayers."

Falks turned to Kailyn. "If you'll excuse me, I need to go see about some health potions... unless you'd like to come with."

Kailyn looked at Drake, "I'll be right back," she said, kissing him on the cheek. She then walked over to Falks, her hands in her pockets. She actually had an ulterior motive to coming along with him rather than just shopping.

"Falks... where's Rose?" She asked.

Falks paused for a bit then continued walking. "She dissapeared when we left you guys back at Dalleim's house. Then last night her soul orb came to me. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, having to release her." Kailyn came to a sudden stop and looked at Falks.

"Soul orb?" She asked, "You mean... she's dead?" She said, furrowing her brow. She looked up at Falks, who seemed to be having a hard time restraining himself from tears. She walked towards him and gave him a hug, wrapping her arms around the high of his back.

"I'm so sorry," She said, remorse laced thick with her tone.

Falks hugged Kailyn back, happy to have some warmth from another human being. They stood there for about twenty seconds, tears streaming down his face. "It's alright. I know that somwhere up above she's watching me right now."

Kailyn began to feel a little uncomfortable in Falks' embrace. It wasn't that she hated him, it was just that if Drake walked by he would probably assume the thing he assumed that morning. Kailyn pulled away and patted Falks on the shoulders.

"I'm sure she is," Kailyn said, offering him a timid smile, "I'm so sorry for your loss. If you don't want to come with us to find W-8, I understand."

Falks just smiled back at Kailyn and continued to walk again, angling for what looked like an alchemist's shop. "No, I want to. For my father and Rose. I think it was destiny that brought me here to you guys."

Kailyn, in turn, wrinkled her nose. The smell was very strong outside, and stronger still when she stepped through the doors. She gave a tiny smile to the clerk behind the desk at the front and began to browse their wares, waiting for Falks. She was mesmerized by the different shapes of the bottles and her reflection in them. She moved her head up and down and it looked like her forehead expanded and her chin narrowed. She giggled a little bit before looking back at Falks.

"Do you need any help finding anything?" She asked him, standing beside him once more.

"No." Falks pulled a small piece of paper out of his pocket with handwriting on it and a small bag of gold from his bag. He set the two items down on the counter. "I need that filled and this gold should be plenty more than enough to do it. I'd also like a large barrel Apple Cider and some lamp fuel."

"Sure thing." The alchemist said, taking the large bag of gold. "Anything else I can help you with."

"Yes. I need a mode of transportation arranged for me and my friends. Have it loaded up with the cider and two days supply of food and supplies." He said putting another bag of gold on the counter, which the Alchemist quickly snatched. away. Falks turned back to Kailyn.

"If there is anything you think we'll need to make the trip, it's all on me."

Kailyn blinked at the large amount of gold that Falks had put on the counter. She wiped a bit of drool from the corner of her mouth and her fingers twitched. She poked Falks on the shoulder.

"Well... if you want... that bag looks awfully heavy," Kailyn said, poking Falks yet again. She hadn't ever had a lot of money at one time, mainly because she couldn't make that much without needing to spend it on something.

"I could carry your gold for the rest of the trip!" She said, offering out her hands to him.

Falks just stared at Kailyn. "Oh trust me, you want this gold then you're gonna have to hold a lot more than my bag."

Kailyn just blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Oh You'll learn in time." Falks said as he headed for the door. "Now for some decent travel wear."

"MORE?!" Kailyn whined, dragging her feet out the door after Falks. She looked up at him, pouting.

"How much time till I can hold the gold?" She said, "Maybe I could take better care of it than you. You shop like a girl." She said, poking his shoulder again.

"Hey don't be complaining to me when that pretty purple shirt is ripped and torn from thorn bushes and what not while we're out searching for this thing." Falks said as they headed back out into the sun.

A good hour later they had finally made it back to the inn. While Falks carried bags filled with tons of clothes and other assorted items, Kailyn held his bag with a gleeful look he didn't quite trust. "Did you really need me to buy four different types of shampoo and two makeups sets?" He asked disheartedly.

Asinoir noticed the change in Ret’s breathing pattern. He looked down at her and smiled. She was very adorable when she slept. Well, she was adorable most of the time but you’d have to twist and pry off his arm before he’d admit it. He gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead and continued flying.

He took in the scenery and muddled through his thoughts. The idea of proposing to her terrified him. Not that he didn’t want to commit to her, that wasn’t it at all. What if she got smart and realized that he didn’t deserve her? What if he stuttered? Was he supposed to get down on the left or right knee? What if he wasn’t romantic enough? Would he propose on a date or just out of the blue?

Asinoir groaned in frustration. Commitment was hard.

He took in the view, seeing the familiar mountains in the distance. He flew a bit more eagerly. Within ten minutes, he was inside of the Chosen village. Ret was still asleep in his arms and he didn’t want to wake her. She was his angel and this more fragile side of her was endearing to him. He took a mental picture as he memorized the lines on her face and the curves of her cheeks. He trailed a finger across her chin and kissed her lips.

He wasn’t sure if her house was locked or not so he just went to his. He opened the door one handed while using his magic to keep her suspended. He then laid her down on the couch. Deciding that anyone would be angry to wake up alone, he looked for a piece of paper to inform her of why he was absent.

Quote :

I’ll be right back. I have an errand to run.

P.S. You snore.

He snickered. It wasn’t true but he couldn’t help teasing her. Maybe she’d get angry and he wondered if she was the type of woman who got all red faced. Or maybe she’d just get embarrassed? He wouldn’t mind seeing her blush again.

Asinoir walked out of his home and closed the door quietly behind him. He half jogged to the jewelers. When he arrived, the familiar ting of a bell announced his presence. The jeweler looked up at him with a smile and put up his pointer finger, then turned around and headed into the back. Asinoir shoved his hands in his pockets and tapped his foot against the floor. Nerves made his body fidget and he was sure he didn’t like it. More and more questions popped into his mind. They never ended and he hit the side of his head to make them stop.

“Here ya go, Mr. Adonis. It’s got a decent sized diamond in the center and rubies on either side. The band’s white gold. I’m sure your lady friend is going to like it,” Said the jeweler, opening up the box and revealing the ring to him. Asinoir’s eyes bulged out of their sockets. It was very beautiful and sparkled in the tiniest glimmer of light. With shaking hands, he took the box from the kind man. He tilted it to and fro and was mesmerized by it. The jeweler chuckled.

“Now go on, I’m guessing you got a pretty important thing to attend to,” He said, nearly pushing Asinoir out the door. Asinoir nodded and slid the box and the ring into his pockets, grinning at the man.

“Most important thing in my life,” Asinoir replied, walking out the door and heading home.

A few minutes later he walked into his house. He looked around the room and tried to spot the love of his life.

Ret's sleep broke when she realized she was no longer in Asinoir's arms. the words she read on the note he left however made sure she was awake, "I SNORE!?" She half-yelled at the bit of paper. She paced the lounge of Asinoir's house thinking up something to tell him when he came back.

When she finally heard him return She waited a few moments then moved up to him, her face was beet red, "I DO NOT SNORE!" She said straight to his face. However it was obvious by her smile she knew it was a joke so she added, "It's just my soul reverberating in song..." She said calmly,

Mira jumped out of the carriage at the first opportunity she had, and decided to go flying towards the village "But I don't know the way..." She had thought for a moment, but quickly dismissed it "Eh, my things are there, if I can't locate them then I might as well kill myself with a manaflayer"

She was flying with her eyes closed, relying on her wind magic to tell her if anything was on her way while she flew towards the village of the Chosen. There was a reason for her to be with her eyes closed through, she was once again reviving her memories of what had happened between her and Vladimir on the hot springs, she could feel that she was becoming aroused again just because of that memories and mumbled a curse under her breath. She knew that it would take at least a few minutes to get to the village, as she also knew that it would seem like hours of torture for her because she didn't wanted to risk anyone looking to the sky and seeing her touching herself on her intimate parts, even if she was sure that no one could see her at that height...

After some "hours" she finally arrived at her house at the village and went directly upstairs, towards her bedroom, getting rid of her clothes along the way, but still carrying them for a moment before she arrived at the bedroom and threw them on a corner, looking at her own body in the mirror for a moment after that, before she laid on her bed and began to intimately touch herself while remembering about Vladimir.

Vexoz suddenly noticed Vera drop a load of fruit at him. He simply tried to block it with his arms, but didn't stop all of it from landing on him.

"You mages sure have a wierd way of eating," he half joked as he wiped his juice-coated arms on his messy pants. Somehow, he wasn't as angry as he would've normally been. "You know, I just thought of something.... How will we know where the carrage stopped and let them out?" He didn't give it much thought before continuting, "we'll just have to keep looking."

It was odd.... No matter what happened, he just couldn't bring himself to get truely angry at Vera no matter what she did. Could it be love? Now that thought frustrated him! He was Vexoz, greatest warrior alive! The mere concept that there was someone he physically couldn't hate was just... well, horrible! Something about it made him want to find the next person who dared to mess with him and beat them to a bloody pulp, what if someone threatened Vera? What would he do, give up? Vexoz ran the scenario through his mind. If anyone tried to attack her, he'd bust thier teeth out!

In his sudden burst of extreme thoughts, the warrior didn't even realize he'd entered the town. "So, where do we start looking, Vera? They could be anywhere."

Vera felt a strange twinge in her chest at the sight of the fruit juice covered Vexoz. Before she could identify the feeling, she had already stammered an apology, taken off her shirt (she had a camisole on underneath), and was wiping the juice off Vexoz. Her camisole, however, did nothing to cover the shape of her endowed breasts. The tightness of the shirt did a good job of revealing her figure.

"Finding the carriage?" Vera asked, plucking some apple skin off Vexoz's arm, "Well... we have to be able to catch up to it eventually," She said, "OH! You mean the people on the carriage too?" She put on a thoughtful face, "Well... elemental particles are naturally drawn more towards mages. If there's a mage among them, we could follow the trail. It would be like... looking at a slight difference, like if someone trailed their feet instead of shuffled. It's hard to see and the quicker we move, the better chances we have," Vera said, suddenly sounding much smarter than she usually did.

She grabbed one of the apples that didn't fall to the ground and took a big bite out of it, "Mff fe fay, mow bill me fow if me find fem?" And the moment was over. She swallowed and coughed on it. She patted her hand against her chest (unbeknownst to her, she also made her fleshy mounds jiggle) and inhaled deeply.

"Who are you going to ask the questions?" Vera said through her coughs.

Asinoir threw his head back and laughed. He put his arms on her waist and rested his forehead against hers, still chuckling.

"You're right, you don't snore. You are just too adorable to tease for me to resist you," He said, his shoulder shaking. A sudden thought made him realize that he wasn't doing his part as commander of the army. He was getting wrapped up in her and neglecting what brought them together. He rubbed their noses together and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips.

"Princess, we still haven't met with Mira," He reminded her, as well as himself, "I need to get a report from you both." He seemed to be very reluctant to do this. He huffed and pouted, sticking out his bottom lip. "I don't wanna," He whined.

Ret smiled placing a hand on his shoulder, "I already gave me report in to the council. And Mira's not had any missions that I'm aware of... so there's no reprts to get!" She then licked his cheek, "Besides we both deserve some off time~"

Asinoir smiled, “Well in that case, you go do whatever girly stuf you have to before a date and I’ll prepare to make tonight the best night of your life.”

She grinned, "You're asking me out?" she licked his cheek, "Alright then~See you in a few minutes!" She said planting a kiss on his lips before heading to her own home.

-=-=-=-=-

It took a total of ten minutes for her to fix her hair and clothing for a proper date, deciding on her formal gown. once she was ready she examined herself in the mirror, pushed her breasts up a little then, satisfied with her appearance she left her own home and returned to Asinoir's. There wasn't much of a change aside from the change of clothing but it was enough of one, "Ready~" She called.

-=-=-=-=-

He dashed back downstairs and then leaned against the kitchen counter top, waiting for Ret.

When she arrived, he nodded and offered his arm, "Ready," he confirmed, subconsciously double checking that the ring was still in his pocket, "Would you like to fly or take a carriage?"

She giggled, cupping his cheek before kissing him, "I'd rather fly, honey~ Less people that way, right?"

Asinoir nodded with a smile. His heart rate didn't decrease at all and he cursed his nerves for the fifth time. He gripped Ret and held her tight, picking her up and then walking out the door. Then he took off in flight, careful of her dress. No one was allowed to see her panties but him. And even he wasn't allowed!

Yet.

They flew for a little while. The sun was still up but it was apparent that it was getting low. The sunset would be the perfect time to propose.

If she was listening, she could have heard the roar of falling water. Their destination was located in the heart of a forest, surrounded by willow trees and wild, docile animals. The natural beauty was enough to take one's breath away.

Suddenly, he spat out a curse while she was still in his arms.

"I forgot blankets and candles!" He said, landing next to the waterfall. He let her go gently, making sure she was steady on her feet. He mussed up his hair and felt his back pocket where the box the ring was again, a habit he was starting to get addicted to.

Ret giggles, "Do we really need candles? You, Asinoir, are the light of my life," She said moving to kiss him, "But now you've got my curious... You keep seaching youself like you've lost
something..." Her tone was alsightly accusative as her hand snaked around his hip closer to where the ring box was.

Asinoir was in a "almost kiss Ret" daze but he snapped out of it when Ret asked him about the ring.

"I, uh, um, well, it's nothing," He said, obviously lying. His gaze shifted from side to side and he had an intense blush.

She leaned a little closer, "Come on, honey~ You know I can tell when someone's lying, Especially you given how much o f a blush you've got~"

"I--I'm not lying," Asinoir stuttered, backing up a little bit, "Oh look, isn't that a unicorn?!" He said, pointing.

Ret kissed him full on the lips, "If you turn out to be lying about this..." She sighed and shook her head moving backwards a little.

"Y'know, maybe you should trust me a little bit more, after all, I'm the guy that's about to propose to you," He said. His eyes widened as soon as he said it, recognizing his slip up.

"Wait, forget that!" Asinoir said, "Well, don't forget that I want to propose to you but-- agh..." He shuffled from side to side, trying to think of how to recover from this. He took off his shirt, revealing his toned chest and chiseled abs and laid the shirt on the ground. He cleared his throat and allowed a moment of silence grow between them, the sound of the waterfall drowning out his nervous thoughts.

He got down on one knee (the right one) and pulled the ring out of his back pocket. He cleared his throat again. He kept the box closed but in the palm of his hand.

"Princess, you said that I'm the light of your life, but for the first time ever, I think you're wrong," Asinoir began, inhaling deeply, "You're the sun that warms me during the day and the moon that guides me at night. You're like the stars with your beauty that shines forever. Everyone looks up at you and wishes they were you. You're forgiving like candle light, well, to me at least. You're the excitement in a firework."

At this point, Asinoir's heart was spiraling out of control.

"Princess, I can't be the light in your life. You are already too bright," Asinoir said, "And, if you wouldn't mind, maybe illuminating me and lighting up my path for the rest of my life," Asinoir then opened the box, revealing the ring inside, "Would you marry me?"

Ret blinked, a blush on her face. Something inside her leaped at his slip up and silenced her.

Something in her made her stand there and watch as he went down on one knee and proposed. I'm his beacon in life am I? Oh how can I say no to him? Her mind raced, The ring looks so beautiful!

Her mind made up she gave him a loving smile and said, "Yes~" It was one word but it was the word that moved the ring onto her finger. She was now betrothed to Asinoir and the next thing she knew she was kissing him.

Vladimir began wandering from the group, sure that not a soul even bothered to know if he arrived from the springs safely. He sighed, holding his katanas and running a hand through his hair.

Falks probably hates me for taking Mira. I've loused up big time. Maybe I should have never kissed Mira. But...I love her.

Vladimir felt a sudden wash of doubt wash over him. He hadn't noticed but his skin was becoming increasingly pale, even white and ghastly. His once great black hair slowly turned red, his soft orange eyes fading darker.

Mira was happier with Falks. Why did I interfere? Its always me...

Vladimir's soul turned from bright and joyous into dark and corruptive. His skin began to burn with a fiery sensation, steam coming off his body. He fell to his knees, crying out in pain. He ripped off his shirt and armor plating, grabbing at his chest. Ominous red tribal seals appeared on his torso and arms, running up to his neck base and stopping. He looked up into the sky, eyes closed and mouth open, roaring.

A single tear ran down his cheek.

Darkness began to race up his body, burning his body, stopping at his neck. It shaped in the form of four black clawed hands.

Mira, you're worth more than me. You deserve someone better. It's better if we never met at all.

The hands races up his face, devouring his body in darkness. His eyes opened, looking to the sky. One last tear fell from his eye, the last of his emotions gone forever. They turned blood red, cold and ominous. His black cargo pants and boots became pitch black, his fingers becoming claws. The darkness sank within the tribal symbols, revealing Vladimir. His hair became wild, but also neat and crimson red. His skin became ghastly and white, his eyes cold and emotionless. He got up, radiating a black aura with a red outlining.

Incarnated State: Zen. Vladimir Romanov