Incendia Calx (Main body RPing forum)

Though the woman should have known these things about the district, her social awkwardness kept her locked up in her home on most days and kept her naive. She could not have explained the royal district even if she were staring at it, and the realization of this made her spirits drop for a moment. Taking a moment to decide if it was worth dwelling over, she decided that it was not; then she caught his words of it being deeper into the volcano and began to go back to a stage of content. Now as she looked into his eyes, though she felt a tug at her heart from the words of his mother, she couldn't help but smile. "I would love to hear more about your mother, if you choose to share information. You do know why I asked about the Royal District though, correct?" After speaking the words softly once more, she blinked at him.

At the talk of food, Icim's stomach would growl. With a glance around, she found that Shurik and Jin had exited the library, and that he smiled at them. Icim's face had gone blank now as she hid from the man that she did not know, but as soon as she had seen the smile upon his lips, she found herself moving under Ignis' arm. Slowly would her arm slide around his waist as she fell in step beside him, but still looked to him as he spoke once more. "I'm up for anything, dear. I say this only because I don't know much about the area; being tucked up in the Royal District hasn't helped it at all." Now as she stared forward, she asked, "Do you want to go there after a while?"

Though she noted that Ignis had skipped over most of her words, Icim's anger did not flow through her. "I sometimes forget that we have a king. He never shows himself.. kinda like I never do." A sigh sounded from her lips shortly after she spoke; knowing know that she should try and get out more. Upon entering the market district, Icim's lips would turn down in a frown. She'd never liked war, had never wanted to feel the effects of war again, but now she faced the destruction once more. War was when fighting seemed to get too far, and many innocents were injured; whether emotionally, physically, or mentally, Icim didn't appreciate it. She too had to look away from it by that point, but instead of turning to Ignis, she turned her head to the other side and saw what remained of the pole that had clotheslined her the first day that she had gotten out; the day the war started. As anger tore through her small frame, the hand that was attached to the arm around Ignis' waist curled; her nails then digging into her palms to settle her anger with pain.

Though she was still trying to steady herself, Icim turned at the turning of Ignis; eyes lit up with her misplaced anger. Though it would not be long before that anger turned into soft confusion and then dread. She did not want Ignis to go anywhere, nor did she want Sykosi to lose the fight. Seeing no other way out, Icim masked her emotions and stared up at him. She knew that the bond between Ignis and Sykosi was one of wonders, and that none could understand it; not even her as she heard him speaking of changing into something inhumane.

"I understand what must be done and have but one question to ask..." Letting her arms slide around him for a moment, she softly asked, "Where will I find you when it's all over?" She then stepped from him, having needed something close to comfort to keep her satisfied for a while. She hated to think about what could happen to Ignis if Sykosi were to lose, but she would always prepare for the worst and hope for the better; just as Syn had.

Then she began to think, and her thoughts sent her down; eating away at her short lived happiness.

'Will he be the same? Care the same?' She could only hope that he would, as well as wish that no harm came to him in this process.

A silent cry escaped his lips as he felt the invasion of the dragon. He could feel his humanity being overpowered by the beast within himself. He gasped out; Nothing but silence escaped his lips. His first kill -- a granger, the most feared thing within' Hayvn-- began to surface. His anger bubbled over; The Shared thundered across his mind. Ichi was no longer there. A snarl, silent in the world around the two, came forth from the man's mind, but it echoed across the land like an earthquake; it was nearly a physical thing, just like the two opposing forces of will. The animal that torn its way out of the vaults of Ichi's mind roared rebelliously at the the intruder, willing it to show more of its force, daring to crush it. The roar filled the will of the man-beast; The Shared echoed across mind, soaking the dragon's will, forcing it back upon its own mind. Anger seethed deeply in the tendrils of will that cornered the dragons mind. Nothing was left of Ichi's human mind, only the hunger, the need, the lust for the kill, encompassed it, fed it. The Shared roared in the dragons mind, making its own intelligence, its own force, seem weak and feable from the near-infinite vastness of the Shared; it surrounded the dragon, laughed as it struggled against the stronger force that invaded it. For the briefest of moments, Ichi would feel Ignis's own mind, but it was only through the connection Sykosi and him had.

He barred up his mind with the Shared, with his anger, with his animal ferocity, his primal rage. Ichi's body was slightly crouched with the pressure of it, as if it was a weight on his shoulders he couldn't shrug off. He ground the dragons into nothing as his own surrounded it. In this, Ichi lost all feeling, all control, lost everything, because of the dragon. It wouldn't live now that Ichi wasn't in his own mind; now that the animal he kept caged there was freed. The Shared echoed his Name --The Raven-- in his mind, calling him, teasing him, promsing him rewards; He ignored it all, his mind was on one thing; Sykosi. He could see the dragon beginning to crumple beneath the weight of the Shared, of the animal that screamed, stratched, and bit its way to Sykosi's inner mind were it slowly grinded everything to nothing as it had done with the outside walls, the barriers. With a twisted, wicked, cruel smile Ichi twisted the dragons mind, its will, with the "knife" that was plunged inside, and broke it. Now, Ichi simply stared blankly at it as if not knowing what had happened. He still wasn't Ichi exactly, but with the dragon gone from his mind, he had gotten back some of the humanity within. It is going to take days to repair the damage that Sykosi did... I hope Ignis doesn't hate me for what I have done...

With that, Ichi slumped to the ground, holding his head, trying to wish away the headache that formed there, and began to build his mind back up again after that perverse invasion.

The expression upon his face sent Icim's emotions into a turmoil, and though she felt this happening, she was able to draw strength and keep them hidden. She knew that this was their first time actually parting from eachother for more than a few moments since they'd met, and that emotions ran strong within both of them. Again her eyes stared upward into his as if absorbing every word, and looked in the direction in which he spoke. She only wondered when she would know when everything was done. Her pink lips parted to ask such question, but she found that her lips had been captured by his. Without a second thought, her lips did press back to his; the moment seeming to end too soon for the time seemed to fly in Icim's clouded mind, for she knew that he would leave all too soon. As soon as their lips parted and she was able to focus on more than the feeling upon her lips, Ignis was out of her sight.

Now the woman whipped her head around as if this were some joke; though her chest felt heavier than normal. She knew now that she would have get somewhere where she could see something in the distance, but she only knew one place; the gate. Her feet set into motion again as she followed the marks in the dirt that Ignis had left; heart heavy and mind shouting commands at her. She was supposed to feel, but yet her body was numb; the shock of all of this knowledge being more than her brain could take, though Icim knew that it would hit her soon. All she felt now was the emptiness of his absense and the chill that shouldn't have been running through her. She just couldn't make her body heat catch up to his.

Soon reaching the gate, Icim's mind wrapped around what seemed impossible and the one weakness in which could cripple her beyond relief began it's slow journey to her heart..

The dragon growled; hissed, and tore up the earth below it. Its eyes went wide; white wrapping the jade in a sickly embrace, as the massive maw fell open to loose a blazing rage. No such blast came; its body leaning back precariously, as the white usurped the green, and the massive beasts body fell to the ground with a thud. Its head spasmed and a low growl leaked from its mouth, as its last breath was taken, and its very essence drew forth from its body.

Instantly its blood began to dry; decaying from the inside out, as the body of the beast began to rot in extremely grotesque ways. Its leathery hide fell away; scales hitting the earth with dull thuds, as its eyes fell form the sockets and dissolved into burnt ashen dust. Its leathery wings fell apart at the seems; thin sinewy muscle breaking away and leaving exposed ligaments and bone. The beasts organs fell from its stomach as its muscle gave way, and its bones began to detach and collapse around it. Its head sat with mouth open as its massive ruby fell from between the eyes and embedded itself in the earth.

Within minutes; an entirety of a dragon consumed by its energy transfer, the massive beast Sykosi was but ash and bones. Scales strewn about in randomly surviving portions. The dragon was no more; its essence gone, its mind and will crushed, and with it dealt a deadly blow in such a way, it had no time to decay as others did. It had nothing left, and would soon become nothing. So there sat the bones; before Ichis body, and out in the wasted lands beyond... Ignis was suddenly struck with all that had just been upon the other man... The full force of Sykosis will and energy flitted through their connection and bore down upon him... It was done.. over.. Sykosi was no more, and the after effects were not for it to know about...

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Ignis didnt slow; he never faltered in his steps, and as he made it farther out into the wasteland of dead and arid earth beyond incendia, he began to glow. Foot by foot his body grew hotter; step by step his body grew brighter, and second by second, his mind grew darker. His eyes began to cloud; blue fading to black, and green melting to ashen grey, as he reached the edge of a mountainous volcano. He stood in the shadow of the earthen tyrant; its black peak belching acrid smoke into the clouded air, as he waited for the inevitable. He had felt it; Sykosis last flailing breathe, and even before the wash of loss had struck him, Ignis could feel the pounding of his heart and the energy storming around him.

He stood silently waiting; patiently observing, as his hands burst into flames, and his armor began to melt away. The heat too much for the obsidian scales to handle. His eyes produced small flickers of fire; his skin a mere reminder of the human beneath, as his entire body suddenly expanded outward with a dazzling assortment of ravenous flames. In one second he was there, and the next, all that could be seen was a pillar of fire reaching above the peak of the volcano. A punctuation mark to the sudden energy released into his body, and exploding out from it.

He fell to his knees; the ground beneath and around him boiling and bubbling up in a crimson elixir, as his head lolled back, and silent screams tore from his mouth. The world around him dimmed as the heat expanded outward; earth becoming molten lava, and in less time than would be taken to blink, he began to grow even brighter. He warped into and out of view; jade flames giving way to light blue ones, and then giving way again into pearl white, as he began to vibrate and pulse. Inch by inch the molten sea stretched farther outward; his body sinking into the viscous fluid around him, as the pillar of flame rose upward higher and hotter. From afar he was a spinning vortex of white flames shooting forth a beam of pure white fire into the sky; surrounded on all sides by a growing crimson sea, and warping the very air into instability around him. No doubt, he could be seen from miles around; countless people probably watching the distant display, but at that point in time, there was nothing he truly could do. He was lost to the increasingly dangerous fire; its temperature rising to near unstoppable levels, as his body consumed and expelled all that was Sykosi.

Twenty minutes he burned like the sun; sinking up to his waist in the molten sea, and within that time an entire mile of earth had given way to the firestorm, and became but a boiling sea of angry metal and minerals. Twenty minutes had passed, but to him... It had taken a lifetime of screaming confusion and pain. A torturous lifetime of nothing but blinding heat; unparalleled agony, and but one remaining human thought... Ici...

Suddenly the flames drew inward through his body; his eyes taking back their color, the pillar of great white light falling away, as he began to crackle and hum. His body began to go slack; limp in the wake of such expelled power, and before his eyes began to close, he began to arch massive bolts of electricity in all directions. A storm had gathered over and around him; lightning jumping to and from his body; blowing holes in the earth around him, as the small dark cloud formed and was too blasted apart. Wind warped around him; the earth and the red sea cooling instantly, as he silently lost himself to unconsciousness.

He fell forward at the waist; half buried in the solidified earth beneath him, and but one small flame burned upon his body while he dreamed. A thin red fire sputtered in half-life along his left hand; trying futilely to survive in the arid land, as he dreamed of what had been, and what he wished would be.

As the emotions began to eeb slowly into her pounding heart, Icim searched the eastern horizon, though it took her only a few moments of this before she saw the flames reaching high within the sky. Her eyes followed this streak of light down to the ground, and Icim had an idea of where Ignis might be, though as it kept burning; Icim's emotions hit her. Fear drove into her like a battering ram to her stomach as if pushing her toward action, and thus adrenaline began to pump through her veins. Yet still she waited. Even after the flames began to die down, she waited. Once a few more minutes had passed since the flames had seemed to die, Icim's muscular legs began to move beneathe her.

As she ran toward the area that she thought that Ignis might be in, her heart began to race and not just from the way she pushed herself into action. She knew not what she would find when she reached him, but the pain of her not finding him would be worse than if she found him, or simply remains. The image of this made it's way into Icim's mind for a moment, and as she kept her eyes on his general vacinity, she let out a soft whimper of pain. This moment caught her off guard, and she lost her focus for a moment. Now she slowed down to a walk and let out a frustrated sigh, though an odd red glow had her walking north. She hoped that this was what she had hoped for; Ignis, but she did not put all of her hope behind it. She didn't want to get crushed beneath the hands of disappointment.

As she stepped closer to the glow, Icim's heart sank to her feet. He'd been right about the destruction around him, and she was glad that she wouldn't see him go through what seemed like an hour of flames shooting from him. She only stopped walking as she reached his side, and though she dared not touch him, she sat beside him and waited; afraid that she had ran all of this time and her breaths were too short.. to see him never wake again. With that thought in her mind, she closed her eyes and let her head hang.

It was after her body cooled that a light sleep took over her, and she slumped forward across Ignis' legs.

Ichi crawled over to the bones, the few scales, and the gem that was left behind. He didn't know what was happening around him. It was so disorienting. Tears fell down his face for no reason other than the pain within himself; the pain he had hid for so long. Everything came crashing down on him. He had come control over it, as to not be crippled by it; the tears being the only thing evident of his pain. Now his anger... His jaw was clenched with his hands tightened up in fists. A small snarl, growl, escaped him and then he swung a fist at one of the bones from the dragon, snapping it. He blinked as he looked at his hand; blood welled up from the splinters, and was red from the impact. He shrugged indifferent to the pain. Another snapping sound came; He looked. Two pieces of one bone was in his hands. He threw them down as if they were on fire. He laughed wryly at that comparision. Beginning to gather the bones, scales, and then the gem, he took off both wolf-skin vest and the thin undershirt; His lean muscles evident, the rest off his tattoos showing. He picked up the various dead items he had gathered within his vest and shirt, which were tied together and made in a temporary pack.

He stared up at the mountains, feeling the surge of power. He cursed and created a three foot Wind barrier around him that would cool down the molten lava should it come near him, though he doubted it. Slowly, he strode back up to the library, ignoring the glances at him, ignoring the pain pounding at his head. He would wait there for another day, reading, sleeping, eating, and then head back out to Hayvn. He nodded; A good idea.

Screams; terribly nightmarish screams. Everywhere, flowing from walls and floors; dripping like gore from blood stained chandeliers. Screams; wrought with sorrow and sadness; disguised in pain and anger, stitched into walls like their very mortar. Screams.. dead and sick; shrill and powerful.. screams.. They ensnared and encircled the young boy; the young incendian; his seven year old body standing amidst a large theater. His eyes looking upon the stage where his mother had just been. The screams came and went; rising and falling like the applause of the long since gone crowd, and every shrill note brought another wave of crippling fear over the boy. They broke like waves around him; pounding him into a fetal position, as the music from his mothers show faded into distant memory.

The cylindrical stage loomed before the boys eyes; steps leading to the large platform for performers, and even as the screams wrung the last tear and frightful whimper from him, the stage and set began to shift. As if another play was starting, another show for the small mass of incendians that would normally attend. Pillars of black marble; wrapped with viscous veins of pulsing purple flesh outlined the circular set as it grew in size, and the boy found himself at center stage without blinking an eye. The floor crusted over with a rust colored tar; its mass stretching out with oh-so-many fingers of sickened proportion, as the boy tried to crawl away but was surrounded. The pillars loomed around him; bending in impossible ways when he looked at them, and as tried to slide from the middle of the stage, the rusty mass reared up on all sides and came crashing down upon him.

Suddenly the boy was standing atop a ledge; overlooking a great magma flow, its heat washing over him, and gilded flames leaping from its edges. He could hardly breathe as the heat burst over him; his eyes closing against the horrendous smell of the burning earth, and when the screams came again, he almost fell in. This time they fell away instead of growing louder; their terrible screeches becoming a flesh tingling yell for help. The boy opened his eyes; now closer to the warmth of the lava than before, and right before him melting in the sadistic pool, was his father. His eyes were upon the boy; arms reaching out to him, as he screamed and yelled for help. He begged the boy to do something; to save him, and still the boy stood locked in fear. Fear of the screams, fear of the world he was stepping into, and in fear for his own life. He was shocked at the sight of his fathers face; terrible red tears streaming from his eyes, as he tried without success to swim free of the lava. His body cauterized and burnt down inch by inch; the sickly sweet smell of burning flesh rolling over the young boy in horrid green tinted waves, as he backed away from the ledge, and turned to run.

Gone....
Everything was gone...
Blotted out by a massive black shape before him. A dragon; eyes of jade looming high above, and flames lapping at its feet. Massive teeth opened and closed; sizzling liquid dripping from the beasts open maw, as the boy was struck with racking and painful fear. He couldnt run; there was nowhere to go, and even as the dragon came down : no doubt to eat him, he could still hear his father crying and screaming behind him.. He pushed away the sound; the terrible agony pulling at his heart and mind with an iron grip, and with a sudden hissing growl, everything turned red.

The boy began to burn; his flesh searing off, as the dragon torched him where he stood, and laughed from high above. Its massive jaw opened and spread wide as the flames left it. The seven year old incendian watching in excruciating pain as his body fell apart and his flesh charred beyond recognition. He begged for it to stop; begged to be free of the horrible pain, and the dragon gave it to him... With a howl; horrible growls and misplaced screeches leaving its devilish teeth, the obsidian beast bore down upon the boy, and swallowed him whole.

Its jaws closed with an audible snap. Louder than the very screams... and then there was life.. color... fire... The boy stood head and shoulders taller than he was; a small scale shield in his hand, and a rock in the other. He was prepared this time for the dragons assault; his mind already working to find a way out of its snare. He had been pushed back into a small alcove of jutting black rocks, and behind him was a thin red river of flowing lava. He gripped the shield with the strongest of his hands; looking behind him as the dragon came into view before him.. Screams... this time from all around, assailed the young man as he backed closer to the river of lava. He knew what to do, but he needed to wait for the perfect time.. the perfect moment to strike.

Suddenly the dragon lurched forward; jaws open, claws striking out at the walls on either side, and in an instant, the young man leaped backwards. He sailed into the air as the dragons might propelled it forward, and with a quick twist he threw the shield into the lava below. It stuck and righted itself; like a piece of wood in water, and with a careful and seemingly unending drop, he landed in its center. The shield dipped ever so slightly in the thick running liquid; its edges not allowing any of it to burn the young man, and as the dragon dropped in between the walls surrounding the river, the boy acted. He threw his arms up in unison; pulling the lava up behind the dragon as it came down, and as his 'board' passed through an outlet in the alcoves rear, he pulled it towards him.

The dragon roared in defiance at being trapped; its body being pulled into the lava by the slowly cooling wall of magma, and as the man quickly leaped to the safety of nearby ground, he brought it all crashing down upon it. The dragon roared; fire loosed into the sky, but even one such as it - A small red dragon that had challenged him - was slowly pulled into the blood of the earth, and passed into its very veins. The young man growled; letting it be known that he was the victor, and with a turn and a step, he fell.......

His body fell through the sky; passing through cloud after cloud; dropping like a rock through passive golden membranes of scaley flesh. He spun and flipped; his head lost in the fear of the fall, and even there... in the blue of the sky above.. the screams came again... He shook and turned; trying futilely to right himself, as he saw the ground below, and its dark brown expanse rising to meet him. His eyes closed agianst the fear of dieing; against the fear of losing, against the unnerving fear of heights. He fell until he could fall no more; until the idea of falling was no longer there, and when his eyes opened, he was upon the great black dragons back. Its head was impossibly turned as it flew; a disjointed impossibility, and it looked upon him with massive jade eyes.

Fear left his body as the dragon turned its head back; his body growing larger, more muscular, and his mind hardening against the temperament of the fires. He was now a man; an age of twenty and seven years survived on Incendian land, and his armor was that of blackened scale. He sat effortlessly upon the dragons back; eyes watching the growing treeline before him, and his resolve was thicker than ever. With a wave of his hand the dragon did burn what lay before him; the forest rising into a smokey cloud and ashen debris falling upon him and his companion in the skys. He growled and roared as the dragon did below him; their might unmatched by those below or around, and as the dragon lay its clawed feet upon the ground, the man smiled with an angry hatred for all.

His feet left the beasts back; falling to meet the earth below him, and as they did he collapsed onto the ground. His body hit with a small thud; and he simply folded over himself into a crumpled mess. His eyes closed and opened but once; before him laid a woman, and without hesitation, he wrapped an arm around her and continued to keep it there. As if it were meant to be; he rolled the woman over, and suddenly he shot upright and backpedaled. The woman was but skin bone and burnt fabric; long since dead, and as he looked upon her he saw the trail of fire wrapping from his hand to her body. His eyes went wide with fear; with understanding, and when he opened his mouth to ask why, the screams again returned. They fell from the skeletal womans mouth; their terrible might dripping and oozing from her frame like a malicious parasite, as the man slid backwards in the ash, and came to hide next to a tree. The screams continued, they kept at him; circling the tree with visible lines of hatred, as he curled into himself and willed them to go away. Once more his eyes closed, and his mind fell silent.

Gone... Everything was gone....
His eyes opened and without shock or fear; the man stood before the woman of skeletal body, and his hands were upon her waist. She swayed and moved with him; his eyes falling to his feet, as he tried to learn something he had never known. He stared as if blind at his own legs for a moment; not knowing how a dead woman could move in such a way, and as his eyes rose to look upon her horrid features again, it was different... The woman was beautiful; radiant, with a shimmering white gown, and countless small crystals adorning her chest. There was a crowd around them; dancing and moving as they were, and in the background a tall priest in havyn attire smiled. He was happy; his eyes shown it, and even before he knew what was going on, he accepted it. He pulled the woman closer; his head atop hers, as his arms wrapped around her tighter, and they danced..... His eyes closed...

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With a sudden ragged breath; eyes opening to the fear that it would all go away, Ignis awoke. His body was blackened from the ash that had fallen upon him; his legs and waist stuck in the dry earth below, and all around him were signs of a war. He swept the debris from his face; breathing deep for a few seconds, before he began to move from the earthen embrace. He turned to dig his way out; and there he saw her. Her hair lay over her face and he could barely make her out in the darkness of night, but she was there. He didnt know what to do; should he move her and free himself; was she possibly another horrible nightmare made from his one happiness left. He slowly; carefully, dug a small line around his hip, and extracted his lower half from the dirt. He was naked; entirely without clothing, and as the wind blew he realized it was oddly cold without his armor. He didnt know what to do; being so ill suited for the womans eyes, but he had to see. He had to find out if it was real.

He slowly knelt; both knees in the dirt behind the woman, and with a patient move, he gripped the length of her hair. Carefully and with shallow breathes, he pulled the hair away from her face, and sighed a great relaxing sigh. She was real; unburnt, unmarked, and beautiful as ever. He almost forgot of his situation at the time; what with being nude and all, and stared at her for a few more moments. His eyes would wander up and down her length; drinking in the site of her so completely still, and suddenly he knew she was why he awoke at all. Without the dream of her; without that final happy ending, his nightmares would have swallowed him whole, and left nothing to be returned to earth. His mind would have broken from the screams, and his body would have lain there without death allowed to take it.

Swallowing hard; a war of pride and of fear welling up inside him, he carefully gripped Icis shoulder and whispered into her ear. "Thank you Ici... for everything" His words were light; as if distant, and a hint of burning anger seemed evident. Though Ignis himself wasnt in the slightest bit angry at the woman. It could only be the remnants of Sykosi acting out.

"Sykosi" He thought. "Hes gone... I... Hes really gone" Ignis' mind wrapped and folded around itself as he fought back sudden and uncontrollable tears. Having lost the beast after so short a time connected to it. He was paralyzed in fear of what he could do in the absence of the great companion. His heart pounded in anger for its death; in sorrow for its loss of life, in sadness for its loss of friendship, in hatred for the one who took him, and in compassion for the life it lived. Until Ignis, the great beast was alone... and until Sykosi.. Ignis too was alone... But he wasnt anymore, and with that thought, Ignis turned again to Ici and looked upon her... He wasnt alone...

Tears still streamed down his face as he knelt in the ash and mourned. Mourned his mother, his father, and Sykosi. He carried the guilt of their deaths with him for so long now, that it was finally time to let them go. To let them into necropolis without hindrance. So he cried and let loose all the hatred for man; all the fear of the unknown and remembered, all the lost love. He cried and cried as he never had.

Naked, confused, and terribly exhausted... Ignis wiped the tears away with the back of his hand....

One spark of electricity lept forth....

Jin watched shurik with a slight currious gaze for a few moments " Well it seems that you have me at a dis advantage my friend" Jin casually put his hands behind his head. The tips of his fingers gripped a few of the scales their and a secret Katana that blended in perfectly with his armor. He would draw the katana in a fluid motion while his hand threw the scales hard and fast towards Shuriks face. The down side of throwing the scales was that it now created a opened spot on his back. This was a straight Katana that was flat enough to slip through a pair of ribs but hardened enough to hack through steel armor like butter. Flipping it around in his hands, he allowed the blade to rest on his back as he rushed forward after the scales. When he would get close enough, he would slash down and up in a small underhanded arc. It would cause the water to go up into shurs face as the blade ripped up after it.

Shurik chuckled a moment as his response flew from Jin's lips like the water from the valves near them. He couldn't help but to laugh some at the remark before regaining his composure. His eyes darted to the Pod timer for a minute as he grinned. "One more minute.." As Jin Charged for him he ducked under the scales. Shurik was now more to the left of Jin as he swong the blade towards the man. Shurik rolled forward, avoiding the attack as he landed crouched behind Jin's back. A smile was present on his face as he drew back the arrow and released it for the exposed part of Jin's back. The arrow was only released from about two feet away and would not take long to pierce the skin if not dodged. The arrow itself flew for just left of the mans spine. If hit, it wouldn't criple or pierce anything Vital.

The blade would continue forward to slice through the bench and part of the wall of the pod as shurik rolled. He knew what Shur was going to do so he did something that most might think was stupid in the long run. He let loose from his body a massive fire wave in all directions, literally spending all of the fire energy he had left. The flames would incinerate the arrow and catch both Shurik and Jin on fire, plus what was left of the pod. He would quickly splash water on him and Shurik before he gazed at the damage. Both him and Shurik were burnt, scratched, and covered in soot. The pod.. wasnt so lucky. It had major damage to it that would most likely leave it unfit for service for the next user. A laugh left Jin's lips as he turned towards Shurik again. " Well... I hope we dont have to pay for the damage." He would walk out of the pod as the doors slid open with a groan. He couldn't stop laughing as he turned to look at Shurik.

Soon would the dreams flood her mind, not of her parental units but of the one who she had begun to fall for. Her mind played over the moments just before he had spoken that he would have to leave her side, for he did not want to hurt her if Sykosi was to lose the battle with Ichi. She felt the warmth against her side when his arm had wrapped around her shoulders; still felt the way his lips had molded against hers and left her wanting more, though the next part of her dreams were not so pleasant.

She'd seen him run from her, and when he never looked back.. neither knew that this would be his last action. Still she followed his footprints to the gate and waited for the flames to rise high enough to see and then cease, and she still ran to him like there was no tomorrow, though as she neared his body in the mile wide clearing, she did not see the man that was Ignis. She saw something charred.. not just covered in ash. Falling to her knees, she let out a scream, wanting just for the second to have him back; no, she had wanted him to live through this and to be there when she found him, but she found that he was nothing but remains.
As she grieved over the loss of Ignis, she felt something brush against her cheek, and still dreaming, she turned to see Ichi. Anger settled deep within her heart as she stared up at the man, though he was different than she had seen him in the glance at the library. He was more like the man who lain in ruins upon the ground behind her, and that only fueled her anger that much more. Not only had he stolen both the lives of Sykosi and Ignis; he'd taken the jade colour of Ignis' eyes and made them his own. Her heart sank, but what happened next sent chills up her spine.

'Thank you Ici... for everything...' sounded from behind her and she turned her body around to glance upon the corpse who had walked to her and had a charred hand against her flesh, and it sounded just a bit too angry; she then realized that corpses couldn't talk. With wide eyes and had bolted from the two men, and as they chased her... she began to awaken.

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Icim's eyes almost shot completely open as she tried to keep her breathing steady, her mind still wrapped around the thought that Ignis was lost to her. Though she knew that she was now awake, the fear was still within her, and she jumped at the slightest noise of someone or something crying. As she rolled over herself and got her footing, she realized that she was staring up at the man who she had thought she had lost forever. Her eyes locked on him as she began to straighten up, looking above his bare shoulders; though a blush turned her cheeks crimson.

It was then that the spark shot forward and she jumped, running toward Ignis shortly after, though she stopped before she could touch him. She felt a change about him, and though she wanted nothing more than to embrace him at that moment in time, she hesitated. There was more of a pull toward the warmth of him now, and Icim fought it the best that she could. Then she saw that he had been the sound that had made her jump up in the first place. Frowning at this discovery, Icim let her head hang slightly. "Ignis.." She spoke through dry lips, wanting to comfort him yet not knowing how or if she could. She knew what he could have mourned over; the death of his companion, but she knew not what else could have bothered him. She knelt before him now and looked up at him with a soft expression for she tried to be comforting.

Icim's mind rolled as she looked upon the man before her, though she still would not let her gaze fall lower than his bare shoulders. He was alive; here in the flesh, but still she did not move forward to embrace him until she figured out what all had happened. The pain of the thoughts that had run through her dreams was still planted within her pounding heart as he smiled, and she realized then that it was going to be okay. The little things that he did meant much to the woman, and she let her emotions becoming locked deep within the back of her brain, only happiness remaining as she straightened herself up and proceeded to look to and fro.

"Is there any possible way that we could go back to Incendia? This place makes me think about too much." After she spoke softly she let her gaze fall down upon him, and she couldn't help as her next words slipped out, "Maybe get you some clothes s...." She let her word die off before she shifted her eyes from side to side and laughed almost silently. Stepping from him now, she let herself calm down; knowing that she had never been remotely close to a naked male, and now was definately not the time to begin looking. Shaking her head slightly to get rid of the mess within her mind, she smiled and looked to the sky. 'What am I going to do with myself?'

Then she waited for him to stand and hoped that he wanted to go back...

She only turned as his words sounded, and finally her eyes saw that she could look further than the shoulders and still see armor. Now she let her eyes travel south of his shoulders, taking in the sight of the gold and black covering that he'd somehow been able to force upon his frame. Shrugging at her own thought, she would begin to move toward him; only to turn at the last second and begin walking back toward the city, a smirk upon her lips as she wondered how well he could move in his new armor.

"Obviously, I have been waiting on you, darling. Plus, I need to put on something fresher than this." It was then that her eyes fell upon the scales in which adorned her own armored frame, knowing that not much was left to the imagination. With a soft sigh, she looked upon the dirty scales and began to brush at them with her fingers, but soon she found herself turning her head over her shoulder to see if Ignis was following her. If he wasn't, she could possibly leave him here; she doubted that she could leave him though. It was merely an option.


'This man is going to be the death of me one day, but with my last breath, I will speak of how my heart yearns for him..'

Seeing now as he began to follow behind her, Icim followed the way back to Incendia, though she had ran through the area just last night. She headed west, knowing that Ignis was behind her, and she knew that he was looking upon her; felt it even. Her knack for wearing just enough to cover the basics so that men wouldn't crawl all over her when she was seen had gotten her in trouble in the past, but now she walked as if grace had always been with her and as if confidence was one of her attributes. Though soon she grew tired of walking in front of him and began to slow so that she could be near him and the warmth.

Smiling to him as she slowed down enough, she let her eyes fill with with the warm feeling that she had when near him and let her guard down once more. She couldn't help but feel as if the world would never tear her down again as long as he were by her side, and she wondered soon if they would be questioned when they returned to the city. Thinking about this brought a small frown to her face and she looked forward again, but still she stayed near her comfort; her strength.

Icim was beginning to learn what it was like to feel like her mother did, and knew of the rush that one could get when they sent their better half out into the cruel world.

It was frightening, but oh so.... thrilling. It was uncertain.. but the arrival back warmed the heart once more and one could remember why they had been worried and that they were cared for by the other.

Yet, she still wondered what love was and what was to become of them...

"Where to first?..."

Just as his arm fell over her shoulders, a smile crept its way to her lips and her arm slowly slid around his waist. The future was looking a lot better by this point in Icim's life, and though she was young, or thought to be, she knew that she would have many years ahead of her. If there was such a thing as love, or a forever, then maybe she had met the person to spend it with by chance, though she knew little of it and let the thought slide through her head without realizing that it even had come to the surface.

Though she questioned the concept of love, she knew that she would do all that she could for Ignis; having already come to that conclusion since she had chosen him though she had known him for a short time. She'd only been crushing by that point, but it was slowly moving into something more; the 'what' was to be answered later. She only knew that it was not lust, for that was what she felt for Syn. It was an attraction for the two lonely people, but something more would have been near impossible. Icim's body couldn't take the humidity outside of the volcanic city.

In a way, Icim didn't want to reach the city, for she knew that their time away to the two of them would be over. Though.. she knew that there would be food and a change of armour, though she would have to find her home again. As if karma was catching up to her, she began to see the area leading to their destination, and huffed out her breath slightly. Glancing up at Ignis, she got an idea...

But then thought better of it.

Instead she began to speed up again and spoke over her shoulder, "Come on, slowpoke." Then with a laugh, she sped up just a little more.

Warmth reached her deep than it had before as she broke into a slight run, but as she sped up, she felt herself missing something; as if she had to be near Ignis or nothing was right. Realizing this, she began to slow down, only to see that he had increased his speed to match hers. With a soft smile, she enjoyed their brisk pace for a moment, having not known that this could be so much fun, and though she felt that something else was going on, she found that she could not focus on anything but their pace; their hearts beating rapidly and breaths being shallow and fast.

His words caused her own stubbornness to surface, for she hated to lose to anyone. Pumping her legs beneath her at a heightened speed, she began to catch up, though it was a slow trek up to his speed. Her heart pumped harder in her chest as she reached the peak of her speed, and somehow she knew that Ignis had more in him; still she pushed herself further, wanting and needing to be by him and get back to their home, though she knew that she may regret wanting the later.

She knew that they were getting close to the gate, and she began to slow a bit as the running became too much for her legs. Noticing this, she gave one last push of speed to her legs and thought about jumping on Ignis' back, but again she rethought her idea and shook her head, falling off of the pace a little. Though as she did, she felt that she wasn't enough to keep up with him, whether physical or otherwise. With but a soft huff of her breath, she slowed down to a brisk walk; staring ahead of her at Ignis. Since her legs had gone from that speed to this current one, she found that she could only walk so straight.

Then she tripped over her own foot...

With a soft squeak as she headed for the ground, the woman curled into herself as if to roll over herself with the momentum. When she was able to achieve this and roll over, her legs worked with her enough to get her back on her feet as if it never happened. Then she mumbled, "I'm okay..." and looked around her to see if anyone had noticed her slip up; especially Ignis.