Pax RP

Coolpikaaa and Tetsu returned to the group after excusing themselves for sonw time. They had been arguing, that was clear from the expressions on both their faces. That, and all the roaring that had come from around the corner. It was probably a miracle the electric mouse hadn't simply been eaten. Maybe Tetsu was more grown up now.

"What's... this going on?" CP said confused when he returned to talks of throwing one problem at the other and hoping for the best. "Is that where this came from?" He said shuffling about to look at the rifle round to dispach C. It still fizzled and he frowned, removing his bag to tear a strip of cloth from the bandages he held in there to wrap around his paw. Once he was... somewhat protected, he picked the thing up and inspected it very closely.

"This is just advanced tech that took her down? I'm usually all for it, but what if your friend just becomes... worse. Or if C overcomes him and becomes stronger herself? We can't possibly just throw two problems at each other and hope for the best can we?"

"Uh. Anyway. Should we just be standing around here? You know that thing there remade a Dragon on a whim right?"

Markus turned to address CP.

"Yea, about that. If the Collector returns here, we're screwed. If this other Artificer comes here, or is lured here, it will be with reinforcements and..." Markus' voice started wavering a bit. "...and I was shown what it does to normal, living folk. I'd rather die. So yes, we have to get out of here. And by us I mean ALL of us if possible."

All Markus could do was shake his head. He could have just run, kept low again and he'd never have had to deal with this whole mess.

"If nothing else, I've bought some time. The other Artificer probably won't come here for a long while, if at all, but you're right. We don't know."

"Where did you get this from, anyway?" Cp said, still looking the bullet over, trying to find anything peculiar. "And what exactly do you mean, "What it does to normal folk"? I mean... you've just met C and you seem a little bit more worried about someone that probably isn't coming at all."

"You also keep mentioning one of them worked with you? Where is she? Would she help against The Collector? "

Markus looked up at the sky. His eyes were hidden, but he still couldn't look any of them in the eye at this point.

"It changes them. They become... they're like zombies, but they're not, they're still alive. They have these strange bio-mechanic parts, just sort of, growing out of them, and they can't seem to think, but they're not dead."
Markus shook his head, trying to shake the image out of his mind. "I swear I heard one murmuring."

He looked at CP again.

"That's what I was doing before I arrived here. Putting those poor things out of their misery. This renegade Artificer didn't like me taking out it's footsoldiers, and so came after me itself. Turns out I was being used as bait, as the other Artificer chose that moment to strike. She was overpowered though, and I ended up giving us both a chance to escape.

As for where she is now? No idea. She returned me to real space after saying she'd contact me again. I think she wants to see what I do first."

"Bio mechanical parts? It turns them mechanical?" Cp seemed to be thinking about this, bothered. "So, your friend, she turned your bullets into this, knowing how to attack The Collector? They can manipulate machinery then too... How did she know it would work?"

Cp took the dagger out of his bag, and began prodding the bullet, trying to see how it reacted with other materials.

"Anyway, we need to get out of here. Start planning, just as we had been before. Anyone know someplace safe?"

Whilst Swix listened to the conversation that was directed at her then at the mouse when he showed up, explaining this new threat and how throwing them together might help everyone, the Split humanoid stood there slowly shaking her head. It might look to the unfamiliar eye that she was interested in helping them all, but she was a truly selfish creature at heart. It would be a different story if Raven was in danger, of course she'd try and help then but out of all of them the demoness had come out on top. CP was quite capable of taking care of himself and she wasn't going to lose any sleep over what the merc did now after what he'd just done. No, her comment about him dooming everyone was just to drive the point home that she'd told him not to shoot for a reason-but it was never the less true.

This is what she got for trying to be friendly. She should know better.

She was listening for any indication that what they were planning would free her from Cs claim, or somehow manage to get rid of her altogether. She heard distractions and maybes, and when CP came and pointed out how doing that could even make them worse, she closed her eyes with a rueful smile on her lips.

Then they started talking about bio-mechanical parts and people being made less than what they were. Interesting, if the EC could get a hold of that kind of ability, she could see possibilities. Unfortunately she wasn't technologically inclined, nor would she be around to see that sort of idea come to fruition.

"Yeah" she said when she opened them again and fixed them all with a glare "nowhere's safe. Not for you, not for me, not here. But getting away from here might postpone the inevitable for a time" she started to walk out of The Encampment away from the Tainted forest and the hole in the sky. She hadn't noticed that CP was prodding the bullets with the dagger, otherwise she would've told him to stop.

Whether or not they came with her was entirely up to them.

Almost as an added incentive, the sludge on the floor seemed to twitch.

BANG!

And Raven was splattered with goo. Just lovely. Wiping the foul substance off her face, and out of her eyes she looked to where the Collector had been only moments ago. She was gone.

Wait, what?! How the hell was she gone? The mercenary shot her?! What the hell! CP said she was basically immortal. As those thoughts ran through her head over and over, Raven stood frozen in shock. She should have just attacked the bloody thing in the first place. She could have crushed her with a rock, or roasted her, or hell cut her to pieces with air! But no. Coolpikaaa had misinformed her.

She was going to kill that little rodent bastard. Because of him the mercenary had killed her. God damn it!

Oh, no, wait. She wasn't dead. That was fine then. The shock of the concept faded and Raven found herself able to move once more.

She leaned against the wall of the tavern and started trying to remove the goo from her person. Absently listening to what everyone was saying, she ignored them for the most part. Until she noticed Swix trying to slip away. Where the hell did she think she was going?

Raven walked decidedly over to Swix and reached to take a hold of her arm. "You, my dear, are coming with me." She smiled at Swix, fangs showing. "We need to get you somewhere you can't be possessed again."

She began leading Swix towards the forest path, but called back to CoolPikaaa as she did. "RODENT! Get your ass this way or I'll char grill you again!" With a quiet chuckle at her abuse of the little creature, she continued forward.

--- --- --- --- --- ---

"Uuuuggghh" Laxus groaned as he picked himself up off the floor. Memory suddenly flooding back as to WHY he was unconscious on a floor, he looked around frantically looking for C. Only to find her not there. Huh. Awesome.

He got to his feet, picking up his sword, Devourer, from the ground beside him and went outside to look for everyone else. He could hear their voices. As he exited the bar, he heard the gist of what happened. Apparently he owed Markus a great deal, so without further adeau, he walked towards him.

The little rodent...thing... was speaking to the mercenary as he walked up to him. He awkwardly waited until there was a break in their conversation before speaking. "Hey, uh, Markus. Just wanted to say thanks and all that. Pretty badass of you." He offered him a hand to shake, the other one rubbing the back of his head bashfully.

Laxus was not used to feeling like such an... amateur.

Hearing the harsh call from the demoness, he looked over to see her attempting to lead Swix towards the forest. Oh god, what was she up to now? "Uhhm, I think we should probably go with them." He mumbled, gesturing to the females.

Hopefully he wouldn't screw up anymore today.

((EDIT: HAHAHA! I forgot about Laxus completely. Just wrote the post originally without him at all. Poor Laxus. His first RP and he's already screwing up and being forgotten xD ))

"RODENT!"

"Oh! That's me!" Cp said, looking around for where the sound was coming from. He found Raven off across the field, dragging Swix, with Laxus chasing behind. He hadn't even noticed them leave! The electric mouse had been so wrapped up in inspecting the bullet, and not even barely scratching the surface on what he could learn that he must have lost track. Racing, he managed to weave in between Raven's feet playfully before she got too far.

"You know, even though I was set on fire, that was one of my favorite days... You know, the hugs, the proclamations of love... What was it you said...? Oh right..."

Coolpikaaa grew a massive grin as he looked up at the Demoness.

"You're soooo sexxyyy" He imitated. "How come you never flirt anymore?"

Swix didn't take many steps away when she felt a hand catch her round the arm and turned to snarl at whoever thought that now was a good time for that sort of manhandling. However it turned out to be Raven, and Swix's snarl and remark died before she could say it. Raven was saying that she was going to take her somewhere that she couldn't be possessed again? She doubted such a place existed, but if there was then Raven would be the one to know about it, and she'd like to not have the control of her body snatched away from her again so soon.

So after the initial tug back against the demoness grabbing her like that Swix relaxed and allowed herself to be dragged by Raven towards the forest path and wherever she wanted to go. Not that she really had the strength to struggle against the demoness even if she wanted to. "Well it's not like I've got anything better planned to do today" she said, as she was dragged along.

Of course, then CP had to weave and catch up and start making that.... crazy.... imitation of when she'd been sick and everyone around her had caught it too, she didn't remember much from that time, but she remembered this part, unfortunately. Swix went green and tried to ignore the mouses teasing of the demoness. She knew better by now than to ask him if he absolutely had to do that.

Markus watched the others walk away, bar the dragon. The dragon still holding his rifle.

"So. Are you waiting for me to beg for my gun back or are you planning on helping me with this Artificer issue?"

His eyes flicked over to the twitching goop, and he suddenly really didn't want to be where he was any more.

"I'm not begging for the gun, I'll let you know now. I have a feeling it's getting back to me either way." Markus added, carefully avoiding a threatening tone, but certainly firm.

"I have the feeling I can bite your head off, and cram this down the hole." The Dragon growls, a little surprised Markus thought a firm tone was going to cut it on something four times his size. She draws close, her snout barely off from his skin.

"Don't, use that tone with me again, little one. That is a threat. Or, we go with what I've wanted to do and start seeing how flat I can get you after some stomping with these new talons."

The Dragon shoves the rifle into his chest with enough force to hopefully break something, before spreading her wings and taking to the sky above Swix and Raven.

Markus was knocked to one knee, the wind taken out of him. His chest was seemingly made of pain, but he didn't feel anything snap. He was about to get up again when the dragon took off, the resulting blast of air knocking him to the ground.

"Screw. Every. Single. One of them." He spitefully thought to himself as he got up again.

And he meant that too, to a degree. He'd stopped the imminent destruction of Swix, stopped the others getting kidnapped and may have even provided a more permanent solution.
But no, he wasn't part of the club. Or this world, as increasingly apparent as that was becoming. It would appear his new work had already started however, of course his employer would have to wait whilst he gave the local law enforcement some warning.

Oh, and negotiate a price of course... a ticket to the other world was certainly looking good right now.

Markus shouldered the gun, and wandered off into the encampment to let them prepare for a possible return of the Collector. Yet with all of this, Markus felt confident. There was no way the Collector could know Markus had actually shot her, probably wouldn't believe it... and hey, technically the Artificers fired the first shot right?

This was going to be his most dangerous job yet, sure. But he had a good feeling, for the first time in a long while.

It would take a short while to travel to Raven's home in the forest. No path marked the way, but due to her terrible sense of direction... well she'd placed glyphs on some of the trees to mark her way. They were keyed to her, so only she could follow them.

She'd gotten lost far too many times for her not to have them.

She linked her arm with Swix's in a rare show of affection and camaraderie and then, Raven kicked CP. Little bastard had it coming - though of course she'd made sure it was light enough it would only hurt rather than damage him. He may be needed in the coming battle...or siege or whatever.

"My home is this way. It's heavily warded against malevolent beings. Some er... subjects of mine I guess have been coming into the forest recently. Couldn't have them disturbing my sleep." She said with a smile, as if having bloodthirsty demons trying to kill you on a weekly basis was completely normal. She really shouldn't have unsealed that portal.

Oh well, no point in complaining.

The forest was slightly disorientating - after a point, any way you looked would simply look like an endless stretch of forestry. To her eyes, colourful lights marked the path to her abode. Now, hopefully it would be well protected enough to keep C out.

If she had time she should probably put up some extra wards - keyed to specifically bar the Collector. "So, while we walk I should probably get that information I wanted." Raven said cheerily, looking to Swix. "What's she made of? What is she? What do you know about her? Everything. Anything could be relevant to defeating her. Knowledge is power and all that."

Her bubbly countenance hid her unease. Though they had a respite... well, who knows how long it would last. Not only that but she knew virtually nothing about this being. At least it wouldn't be pissed off at HER. That was something at least.

--- --- --- --- ---

"DUDE!" Laxus exclaimed, hands up in a "What the hell" gesture. Markus had completely ignored him. Though he'd felt a little... left out of the group of three now wandering to the woods - they obviously had some sort of weird friendship - he'd at least thought Markus wouldn't be so dismissive.

"Right, well whatever then. If you're too good for me, I'll just follow them!" He said after him. You didn't just ignore someone. That's just mean. So, still pouting, Laxus turned to jog after the others. His armour and sword clanked as he ran to catch up.

He caught up with them just before they'd disappeared from sight. "Hey guys! What'd I miss?" A scoff from the Demoness interrupted him. "Oh joy, you're here." She drawled. Really now, did everyone have to be so mean? Maybe he should just leave. No one wanted him here... but at the same time not matter how mean they were, he just couldn't leave them to fight off such an evil by itself.

He'd gone almost par to par with the Demoness before. Sure, she'd grown in strength after eating that demon's soul - but hey! He was strong too. He could fight this thing! Or so he assured himself. With a frown, he shut up and simply followed them.

Markus felt like he'd forgotten something. Was it possible the dragon had distracted him? Of course, what a stupid question that was. But he couldn't quite- Oh.

Looking back, Markus couldn't help but wince at the complete snub he had just committed. Not that he felt bad for... Markus didn't even know his name. So he felt a little bad for the guy now, but what could he do? He'd run off to join the others, something he expected him to do anyway and-

"OW!" Markus yelled, clutching his head. "The hell was that?!"

Something had smacked right into Markus' head, and had continued to zoom off in the air after the group. He had a bad feeling about this.

-------------

[INTERCEPT RESOURCES AND COLLECT]

Flying through the encampment, into the mercenary and towards the forest was a strange metal device about the size of a dinner plate that had the look of a spider about it. It hummed with energy as travelled, and let out a strange robotic chirping as it did so. It's many blue eyes were scanning the area until it found the resources it had been sent to collect.

The metal spider made a beeline for Laxus, and when floating behind him, clamped onto something and tugged in the direction it had just travelled from.

Swix felt the shift in Ravens grip, now rather than dragging the humanoid the Demoness was walking along with her, their arms linked like they were just going for a stroll. Then she kicked CP, at the sight of which her eyes lit up with a little dark humour. It was better than seeing him imitate simpering anyway, and it brought back early memories of meeting the rodent...

Swix admired the never changing scenery for a bit before Raven snapped her out of it and the Split humanoid looked up to the much taller creature as she talked, and frowned. "Well" she started, she had to phrase this right "if you're just after information about her I suppose there's no harm in telling you what I can. The Collector is one of four beings of alignments, or moralities-you know, Evil, Neutral, Good, and the Fourth alignment. C is the Evil alignment, and that's what she's made of-pure evil. She's not a God, Spirit, Demon or any other sort of Immortal you'd be familiar with. The door I opened leads to her realm, it touches all the worlds I know of through portals in shadows-though not every shadow holds one. Her realm, her, that oily liquid that she became, are all one and the same thing. That's why you can't kill her, she can just move her consciousness somewhere else. Oh, and I have that same stuff flowing through my very being" Swix paused, thought, and then added "Plus she likes collecting people, animals and plants and keeps them in her realm-even their bodies. On my world, I found the Ritual that promised power and entered her realm, she put me through a test... and I failed it. But she granted me what I wanted and let me out if I agreed to become her agent. That's how I got into this mess"

Swix stopped again before looking to the demon hunter who'd just caught up with them. "Who the hell are you anyway?"

((Hopefully I haven't piled up too much info in one post for people to absorb.

I've been told I have a habit of doing that XD))